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Im supposed to wear this hat so Im in character," said Jim Barksdale, the Democratic candidate for Georgias U.S. Senate Race. And throughout the race, he has proven to be just that  a character.
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12 local nonprofits receive grants

Twelve nonprofits in Shasta and Siskiyou counties recently received grants that were administered by the Shasta Regional Community Foundation in Redding.

The California Heritage Youth Build Academy received a $16,000 grant from The Woman's Fund of the Shasta Regional Community Foundation.

The money will be used for a training program for women and girls ages 16 to 24 years old to receive basic life skills.

Also getting grants from The Women's Fund were Girls Inc. ($11,000), the Shasta Community Health Center ($10,000) and One SAFE Place ($8,000).

The Animal Welfare Endowment Fund gave grants to Horses Assist Lives Organization ($2,357), Saving Animals from Euthanasia ($7,480), Shasta Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation ($5,470) and Siskiyou Humane Society ($5,326).

The Community Arts Endowment Fund awarded $4,750 to Anderson Community Services, Parks and Recreation; $4,800 to Jim Phillips; $5,000 to Mt. Shasta Sisson Museum; and $2,500 to Turtle Bay Exploration Park.

Health Fair set at Holiday Market

Holiday Market on Placer Street will host a Halloween Health Fair 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday.

A variety of health treats will be provided by vendors like Annie's, Taste Nirvana, Lundberg, Bob's Red Mill and Measures of Joy.

Dress up and compete for a prize for best costume.

The store is in the Placer Heights shopping center at 3315 Placer St.

Reporter David Benda can be reached at 225-8219 or at david.benda@redding.com.
This Oct. 6, 2016 photo shows Goodyear's newest airship, Wingfoot Two, in Mogadore, Ohio. Goodyear is officially welcoming Wingfoot Two, the second airship in the fleet replacing its famous blimps. The first of the new models, Wingfoot One was launched in 2014. From the ground, the cigar-shaped replacements look much like their predecessors. Though they still use helium and bear the blue-and-gold Goodyear logo, they aren't technically blimps because they have a fixed structure holding the balloon in place. (Malcolm Porter/WEWS-TV via AP)

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By The Associated Press

AKRON, Ohio (AP)  Goodyear is officially welcoming the second airship in the fleet replacing its famous blimps.

From the ground, the cigar-shaped replacements look much like their predecessors. Though they still use helium and bear the blue-and-gold Goodyear logo, they aren't technically blimps because they have a fixed structure holding the balloon in place. They also are longer, have a third engine, make less noise and are more maneuverable.

The first of the new models, Wingfoot One, launched in 2014 and is based in Pompano Beach, Florida. Wingfoot Two was finished in March and already was used for some event coverage ahead of Friday's christening in Akron, where Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. is based.

Wingfoot Two eventually will be based in Carson, California, where the last of the previous blimps has been operating, Goodyear airship spokeswoman Emily Cropper said.

Goodyear expects to retire the remaining blimp, the Spirit of Innovation, next year and start building the third vehicle in the new fleet, she said.

The other blimps from the old fleet, the Spirit of Goodyear and the Spirit of America, were previously retired.

Akron native Savannah James, the wife of Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James, is the official christener for Wingfoot Two.
In this Sunday, Oct. 16, 2016 photo, the high priest of the ancient Samaritan community Abdullah Wasef Tawfiq poses for a photo inside his house, during their celebrations of the week-long biblical holiday of Sukkot, or Feast of Tabernacles, on Mount Gerizim, overlooking the West Bank city of Nablus. In the Bible, God commands the people of Israel to build huts symbolizing the Israelites encampments as they wandered the desert following the exodus from Egypt. Unlike the outdoor huts Jews construct on the holiday, Samaritans build exquisite canopies of densely packed fruit, which are attached to metal frames and perched on stilts or suspended from living room ceilings. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)

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By DANIEL ESTRIN and MOHAMMED DARAGHMEH, Associated Press

MOUNT GERIZIM, West Bank (AP)  In one of the tensest corners of the West Bank, Israeli settlers and Palestinians live in separate worlds. But there is a spot on the top of a mountain that connects them both: a village of Samaritans.

To get there, Israelis drive up a steep, winding road, near ominous red road signs posted by Israel's military that warn them against entering the nearby Palestinian city of Nablus. Palestinians get to the top by driving up a steep, winding road from Nablus on the opposite side of the mountain.

At the top live about 380 Samaritans. They, and about 420 Samaritans based near Tel Aviv in Israel, comprise one of the world's oldest and smallest religious minorities.

Israelis and Palestinians are locked in continued conflict over land and national identity  currently a yearlong stretch of Palestinian lone-wolf attacks met by often deadly Israeli force.

But the Samaritan hamlet in the West Bank is a place where both Israelis and Palestinians feel welcome.

The Samaritans' unique role  highlighted during the Sukkot holiday now under way  is particularly poignant at a time when hope for negotiating an end to the conflict is at an all-time low.

Best known from the New Testament parable of the Good Samaritan, the sect traces its roots to the ancient Israelites, follows the Five Books of Moses and celebrates biblical holidays.

In that way, the Samaritans are like their Israeli Jewish neighbors. But the Samaritans have lived in the West Bank for centuries and are fully embedded in Palestinian life. They speak Arabic, have common Arabic names, study in Palestinian schools, and work in Palestinian government offices.

"If we get involved in either side," said Linda Sadaqa, a 43-year-old Samaritan who works in the Palestinian Health Ministry, "they will squeeze us."

They're caught in a particularly violent spot, just up the road from where a fatal Palestinian shooting attack last year on an Israeli settler couple helped fuel the current violence, and close to the intersection where Israeli border policemen on Wednesday shot and killed a 19-year-old Palestinian woman who they said walked toward them with a knife and ignored calls to halt.

Still, the Samaritans have managed to keep in the good graces of both Israeli and Palestinian societies, despite decades of conflict, including Israel's half-century of military rule over Palestinians.

It's particularly apparent during the week-long biblical holiday of Sukkot, or Feast of Tabernacles.

In the Bible, God commands the people of Israel to build huts symbolizing the Israelites' encampments as they wandered the desert following the exodus from Egypt. Unlike the outdoor huts Jews construct on the holiday, Samaritans build exquisite canopies of densely packed fruit, which are attached to metal frames and perched on stilts or suspended from living room ceilings. The colorful sight attracts a parade of Israeli and Palestinian visitors.

One afternoon this week, Samaritan high priest Abdullah Wasef Tawfiq received a group of Palestinians, employees in the tahini factory he owns, from the neighboring village of Beit Furik. Since last year's shooting, the village has been under periodic Israeli military closures, occasionally preventing Tawfiq's employees from coming to work on the Samaritan mountain.

The 81-year-old high priest with a white turban and white beard chatted about Islam and the Samaritan religion as his Palestinian employees held up their phones to photograph the concentric circles of pomegranates and greenish-yellow lemons accented by a stripe of citrons, a fruit associated with the holiday.

Shortly after, a 25-year-old Israeli from a nearby settlement and his friend crouched under the same fruit canopy to take a photo, a gun tucked into the waistband of his shorts. "You see how comfortable we feel here," Amichai Ziv said. "I don't have to look behind my back."

The procession of visitors continued: an Israeli military official and his troops, a group of Palestinian journalism students, Palestinian families. The chairman of the area's Jewish settlement council, and the Palestinian governor of Nablus, paid separate holiday visits to the high priest.

Israelis and Palestinians both claim the Samaritans as their own.

"I see them as my relatives. As brothers, really," said Yossi Dagan, the Jewish settler council chairman.

"The Samaritans are part of the Palestinian people," said Akram Rajoub, the Nablus governor.

The increased tensions in the West Bank this year put a damper on the Samaritans' Passover ceremony last spring, when Samaritans slaughter sheep according to a biblical edict. Usually, Palestinian and Israeli dignitaries observe the ceremony in relative coexistence, but this year, the Nablus governor stormed out of the ceremony when Dagan, the settler chairman, addressed the crowd.

The Samaritans of the West Bank are the only people who carry both Israeli and Palestinian government-issued identity cards, according to Michael Corinaldi, an Israeli lawyer who has represented the Samaritan community in court.

The privilege affords them unfettered access to Israel, which most of their Palestinian neighbors do not have. In Israel, they earn higher salaries than in the West Bank, or take advantage of their special travel access to import fresh fish or Israeli appliances into the West Bank. A recent sewage upgrade in the Samaritan village was funded jointly by Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

But the dual identity can be a burden, especially for the younger generation of Samaritans.

One 21-year-old marketing student, a grandson of the high priest, said he isn't always open about his religious identity on campus at his Palestinian university so that he wouldn't be mistaken for an Israeli.

On the flip side, he said, Israeli soldiers took him for a Palestinian suspect last year. They held him at gunpoint when he hopped out of a Palestinian car at the foot of the Israeli-only road leading to his Samaritan village. Matters got complicated when a soldier demanded his ID and saw his unusual name: Abdullah Cohen.

"He was shocked," Cohen said of the soldier's reaction to his typical Palestinian first name and typical Israeli last name.

Cohen's grandfather, the high priest, has asked members of his community to be careful about what they post on Facebook.

"Samaritans need to walk between the raindrops," the high priest said.
Sean Longoria/Record Searchlight

Law enforcement officers unload Jack Lee Breiner, accused of killing Modoc County deputy Jack Hopkins, for his arraignment Friday in Modoc County Superior Court in Alturas. Breiner pleaded not guilty to the charges.

SHARE Breiner Sean Longoria/Record Searchlight A deputy wheels Jack Lee Breiner, accused of killing Modoc County deputy Jack Hopkins, our of a courthouse after his arraignment Friday in Alturas. Sean Longoria/Record Searchlight A deputy wheels Jack Lee Breiner, accused of killing Modoc County deputy Jack Hopkins, into a courthouse for his arraignment Friday, Oct. 28, 2016, in Alturas, Calif. Breiner pleaded not guilty to the charges. Sean Longoria/Record Searchlight Sheriff's deputies and their dogs patrol a street next to the Modoc County Superior Court in Alturas, Calif., ahead of the Friday, Oct. 28, 2016, arraignment of a man suspected of killing a sheriff's deputy last week.

ALTURAS -- Law enforcement officers shut down a block surrounding the Modoc County Superior Court on Friday for the first court appearance of a man accused of killing a sheriffs deputy, a crime that has rocked the normally sleepy community in the far North State.

Were the 10th largest county in the state of California, geographically, but were small  less than 10,000 people  and weve never had to deal with such a tragic loss, Sheriff Mike Poindexter said before the arraignment of Jack Lee Breiner.

Breiner, appearing in an orange jumpsuit and using a wheelchair, pleaded not guilty to the Oct. 19 murder of deputy Jack Hopkins and attempted murder of Poindexter.

Breiner allegedly shot and killed Hopkins Oct. 19 outside the county seat of Alturas as Hopkins responded to a family disturbance, Undersheriff William Tex Dowdy has said.

Poindexter later apprehended Breiner, who was shot in a gunfight that also caused minor wounds to the sheriff from glass pieces that hit him after Breiner shot at the sheriffs car.

Breiner arrived from the Redding area, where hes still being treated for gunshot wounds to his lower leg, Modoc County District Attorney Jordan Funk said. Deputies loaded him from a stretcher to the wheelchair to take him inside, where a judge forbade all of the about a dozen people who attended the hearing from carrying cell phones.

Hopkins parents, who live in Yreka, did not attend the hearing.

The block surrounding the Modoc County Superior Court was locked down ahead of Breiners transport from the jail to courthouse, a stretch of only a few hundred feet. Law enforcement blocked the streets around the courthouse, which sits a block away from Highway 395 running through the center of the city.

Officers also stood guard on the roof of the courthouse.

Breiner could face the death penalty if tried and convicted of killing Hopkins, though Funk noted a pending statewide ballot initiative to repeal the death penalty could remove that option.

Well know in a couple of weeks what the status of the death penalty is in the state, Funk said.

Breiner will continue to be held without bail. Superior Court Judge David Mason appointed Madera-based Richard Ciummo & Associates to represent him. Funk said the same firm handles the hiring of countys public defenders.

Since this is presently a capital case, we have to have a capital-qualified defense attorney, and I think they have several on staff and I expect one of those lawyers will be named later as the council of record Funk said.

Law enforcement officers in Modoc County and the North State as a whole continue to mourn Hopkins death.

Jack (Hopkins) was great, I wish I had 10 more just like him, Poindexter said before the arraignment.

Poindexter called Hopkins a team player who worked as a bailiff, patrol deputy and in other roles. He volunteered whenever needed.

Were a family and when you lose a family member and  I mean  need I say more? Were pulling together, were trying, Poindexter said.

Those sentiments also extend to the community as a whole. At least two signs honoring Hopkins sat along Highway 395, one of only two major thoroughfares in the rural town in far Northern California.

I just think its shock, said Elsie Burke, whos lived in the area for more than 30 years and on-and-off before that, echoing what many others in the community have said.

Burke said people continue to discuss the stunning killing of Hopkins, who was well known in the area.

Every time you turn around another officer is being shot, Burke said of the recent high-profile killings of police across the nation. It touches you really closely, if not personally.

Even Breiner and his past are topics of discussion, she said. Breiner is a registered sex offender and was convicted of lewd and lascivious acts with a child, according to Californias Megans Law database.

Burke said the small-town sense that everyone knows everyone applies to Alturas.

You might know who they are  I know who a lot of people are  but you dont know them personally, she said.

Hopkins funeral is set for Nov. 5 at the Siskiyou Golden Fair grounds in Yreka.

The Butte County Sheriffs Office, under the direction of Lassen County Sheriff Dean Growden, is handling the criminal investigation into the murder of Hopkins and attempted murder of Poindexter.

The California Highway Patrol is handling the administrative investigation into the officer-involved shooting.
Stephen Carlton will retire Dec. 30 as Shasta County's district attorney.

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By Nathan Solis of the Redding Record Searchlight

Shasta County District Attorney Stephen Carlton still wears his class ring from Santa Clara University as proof that he could finish school, because as a freshman he was unsure he would make it through his first year.

"At least if I had the ring I had proof that I tried," Carlton said the day after he announced his retirement as Shasta County District Attorney. Carlton was at the helm of the DA's Office off and on for 16 years.

"With almost 50 years in this line of work I think it's time to step down," Carlton said. "The only reason I went to law school was to try cases before a courtroom and I don't do that anymore. When I had my private practice, I was always before a jury."

Carlton estimates he has tried approximately 350 cases before a jury during his 24 years as a prosecutor and 25 years as a defense attorney.

Carlton, 74, said he will recommend Chief Deputy District Attorney Stephanie Bridgett to take over as DA.

"She's respected and I've thought she would be my replacement for several years now," he said Thursday.

Bridgett is responsible for the DA's Office, hosting community workshops on consumer fraud and other topics, said Carlton.

Bridgett did not return a call for comment Thursday.

The Shasta County Board of Supervisors decide whether Bridgett will get the job. They could choose to appoint her outright, hold a special election or open it up for interviews with other candidates before making a final decision.

The board has not met to discuss Carlton's replacement, but Supervisors Pam Giacomini, Les Baugh and David Kehoe all agree Bridgett's work with the DA's Office is Shasta County's gain.

Kehoe wants to give other candidates the chance to apply and Baugh said it's a decision that should not be made lightly.

"I love (Bridgett's) work on fraud education with seniors," Baugh said. "We have not received any official recommendations at this time from (Carlton). My question is, what's the rush? The DA's Office will continue to run well."

In 1981 Carlton was appointed DA after Will Haws was removed for misconduct. After taking office, Carlton tried a murder case that involved the torture and murder of a schoolteacher in Burney. The suspect, William Proctor, was 19 and a jury found him guilty of the crime.

The DA's Office in 1982 was small and few attorneys were experienced with murder trials.

"It was a horrendous case. I had the experience working on those before, so I personally tried it with the aim for the death penalty," Carlton said about the capital case.

Today, Proctor remains on Death Row.

Carlton ran unopposed for District Attorney in 1986 but left after 10 years. In 2011 he ran against Jerry Benito and won.

"The DA's office was in disarray and I returned with a specific philosophy," Carlton said.

That philosophy was different than Carlton's approach in the 1980s. This go-around he guided attorneys to not seek the maximum number of years in convictions.

"Treat them fair," Carlton said of the defendents. "Know that these people will eventually be released if they did not commit murder. Help them out so when they are released they have a chance to be rehabilitated."

He received push back from some in the office, but said the old model was not ideal for the county.

Carlton's term as DA expires in 2018 and his replacement will serve through then. With his retirement Carlton plans to travel and spend time with his grandchildren.
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A 19-year-old German hiker was rescued in the cold and rain Thursday morning while on the Pacific Crest Trail in northeastern Shasta County.

Magalie Viezens was saved after she triggered her GPS to alert the California Office of Emergency Services, according to deputies with the Shasta County Sheriffs Office.

She triggered the locator device near Grizzly Peak, just south of the Siskiyou County line. Deputies, along with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and firefighters, walked about a mile to her reported location and found her suffering from exposure, they said.

She was treated at the scene and did not need to go to the hospital, they said.

Viezens was the second person this week who had to be rescued from the Pacific Crest Trail in the Grizzly Peak area. Both incidents were triggered by extreme weather, deputies said.

Deputies caution outdoor enthusiasts to be careful and prepared while in remote areas because weather conditions can change rapidly.
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Halloween festival canceled due to rain

The Redding Recreation Department's annual Halloween Haunt and Carnival has been rained out.

The festival was originally scheduled Oct. 14-15 then postponed due to rain for Friday and Saturday.

But the rain forecast for this weekend has canceled the event, organizers announced Thursday.

German hiker rescued from trail

A 19-year-old German hiker was rescued in the cold and rain Thursday morning while on the Pacific Crest Trail in northeastern Shasta County.

Magalie Viezens was saved after she triggered her GPS to alert the California Office of Emergency Services, according to deputies with the Shasta County Sheriff's Office.

She triggered the locator device near Grizzly Peak, just south of the Siskiyou County line. Deputies, along with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and firefighters, walked about a mile to her reported location and found her suffering from exposure, they said.

She was treated at the scene and did not need to go to the hospital, they said.

Viezens was the second person this week who had to be rescued from the Pacific Crest Trail in the Grizzly Peak area. Both rescues were triggered by extreme weather, deputies said.

Reward offered in BB gun vandalism

Secret Witness of Shasta County is offering a reward up to $1,500 for information leading to the person who's been shooting out windows of a doctor's office with a BB gun in west Redding.

The felony vandalism to the windows has been occurring in the evenings at 1892 Buenaventura Blvd. in Redding from Oct. 8-23, according to Secret Witness.

Call 243-2319 or go to www.scsecretwitness.com to provide tips anonymously.

Workshop slated on legal weed measure

A left-leaning organization is partnering with the American Civil Liberties Union to put together a seminar on Proposition 64, which would legalize the recreational use of marijuana for adults in California, in Redding this weekend.

The meeting runs from 1:30-3:30 p.m. Saturday at the UPEC offices and is being organized by the Shasta County Citizens for Democracy and the Shasta-Tehama-Trinity County Chapter of the ACLU.

Redding attorney Samuel Williams will speak about the ballot measure and other issues. It is free and open to the public.
Greg Barnette/Record Searchlight Shasta County sheriff's deputies detain a man after a standoff on Yuki Yama Lane off Old 44 east of Redding Thursday afternoon.

SHARE Jim Schultz/Record Searchlight Law enforcement officials wait in a steady rain during a standoff Thursday on Yuki Yama Lane east of Redding. Jim Schultz/Record Searchlight Sheriff's deputies and officials with the California Highway Patrol and California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection all responded to reports of shots fired at a compound of trailers and residences on Yuki Yama Lane. Jim Schultz/Record Searchlight A man is detained for questioning following Thursday's shooting on Yuki Yama Lane.

By Jim Schultz of the Redding Record Searchlight

A Redding area man was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder Thursday after he reportedly fired three shots from a high-powered weapon at two men after a relationship with a woman "went bad."

Shasta County sheriff's Lt. Pat Kropholler said David Cox, 45, was arrested after an approximately three-hour standoff following the dispute at what he described as a "compound" of small trailers and residences in the 9700 block of Yuki Yama Lane, off Old 44 Drive east of Redding.

No one was injured, Kropholler said, noting the two men sought shelter during the episode by hiding under trailers or in vehicles.

They were eventually brought to safety, and Cox arrested, after authorities, including at least two members of the department's SWAT team who arrived in an armored vehicle, detonated flash explosives as a diversion, Kropholler said.

Sheriff's deputies, assisted by California Highway Patrol, a CHP helicopter and California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection authorities, responded around noon to the area after getting reports of shots being fired. They closed off the road and set up a perimeter around the area.

According to sheriff's officials, Cox fired shots at Joe Muncy, 27, and Ben Holmes, 28, who had to be rescued from the property. Others were also escorted from harm's way.

Deputies said Cox at first refused to leave his trailer despite negotiation efforts but finally gave up and was taken into custody.

Deputies said they searched the trailer from which Cox left and found Joan Tevik-Muncy, 34, hiding under clothing inside its bedroom.

Deputies said she hid because she had outstanding warrants for her arrest for allegedly stealing cars and possessing narcotics.

Tevik-Muncy, who was also on the Shasta County's Most Wanted list, was arrested on her outstanding warrants, deputies said.

The police action put several schools on lockdown: Foothill High, Redding Christian, Chrysalis Charter and Junction Elementary schools.

Redding Christian Prinicipal Brian Steffen said his school was on a "soft" lockdown in which classes are still held as normal, though students limit their movements on campus.

The schools are all within a few miles of Yuki Yama Lane.

Kropholler said law enforcement authorities, including code enforcement, are often called to the compound for a variety of reasons.

"We do get a lot of calls for service," he said.
How a program helped change a North State woman's future

Step-Up students prepare for in-demand jobs with employers that are receptive to hiring people with criminal records.
Last week, the U.N.'s premier cultural agency, UNESCO, approved a resolution viciously condemning Israel (referred to as "the Occupying Power") for various alleged trespasses and violations of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Except that the resolution never uses that term for Judaism's holiest shrine. It refers to and treats it as an exclusively Muslim site, a deliberate attempt to eradicate its connection  let alone its centrality  to the Jewish people and Jewish history.

This Orwellian absurdity is an insult not just to Judaism but to Christianity. It makes a mockery of the Gospels, which chronicle the story of a Galilean Jew whose life and ministry unfolded throughout the Holy Land, most especially in Jerusalem and the Temple. If this is nothing but a Muslim site, what happens to the very foundation of Christianity, which occurred 600 years before Islam even came into being?

This UNESCO resolution is merely the surreal extreme of the worldwide campaign to delegitimize Israel. It features the BDS movement (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions), now growing on Western university campuses and some mainline Protestant churches. And it extends even into some precincts of the Democratic Party.

Bernie Sanders tried to introduce into the Democratic Party platform a plank more unfavorable to Israel. He failed, but when a couple of Clinton campaign consultants questioned (in emails revealed by WikiLeaks) why she should be mentioning Israel in her speeches, campaign manager Robby Mook concurred, "We shouldn't have Israel at public events. Especially dem activists." For whom the very mention of Israel is toxic.

And what to make of the White House's correction to a press release about last month's funeral of Shimon Peres? The original release identified the location as "Mount Herzl, Jerusalem, Israel." The correction crossed out the country identifier  "Israel."

Well, where else is Jerusalem? Sri Lanka? Moreover, Mount Herzl isn't even in disputed East Jerusalem. It's in West Jerusalem, within the boundaries of pre-1967 Israel. If that's not Israel, what is?

But such cowardly gestures are mere pinpricks compared to the damage Israel faces in the final days of the Obama presidency. As John Hannah of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies recently wrote (in Foreign Policy), there have been indications for months that President Obama might go to the U.N. and unveil his own final status parameters of a two-state solution. These would then be enshrined in a new Security Council resolution officially recognizing a Palestinian state on the territory Israel came into possession of during the 1967 Six-Day War.

There is a reason such a move has been resisted by eight previous U.S. administrations: It overthrows the central premise of Middle East peacemaking  land for peace. Under which the Palestinians get their state after negotiations in which the parties agree on recognized boundaries, exchange mutual recognition and declare a permanent end to the conflict.

Land for peace would be replaced by land for nothing. Granting the Palestinians an officially recognized state in advance makes peace all the more unachievable  it removes any Palestinian incentive to negotiate and strips Israel of territorial bargaining chips of the kind it used, for example, to achieve peace with Egypt.

The result would be not just perpetual war but incalculable damage to Israel. Consider but one example: the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem, destroyed and ethnically cleansed of Jews by its Arab conquerors in the war of 1948-1949. It was rebuilt by Israel after 1967. It would now be open to the absurd judicial charge that the Jewish state's possession of the Jewish Quarter constitutes a criminal occupation of another country.

Israel would be hauled endlessly into courts (both national and international) to face sanctions, boycotts (now under color of law) and arrest of its leaders. All this for violating a U.N. mandate to which no Israeli government, left or right, could possibly accede.

Before the election, Obama dare not attempt this final legacy item, to go along with the Iran deal and the Castro conciliation, for fear of damaging Hillary Clinton. His last opportunity comes after Election Day. The one person who might deter him, points out Hannah, is Clinton herself, by committing Obama to do nothing before he leaves office that would tie her hands should she become president.

Clinton's supporters who care about Israel and about peace need to urge her to do that now. It will soon be too late. Soon Obama will be free to deliver a devastating parting shot to Israel and to the prime minister he detests.

Charles Krauthammer's email address is letters@charleskrauthammer.com. He writes for The Washington Post Writers Group.
Bareburger takes a stab at greatness in Chicago's already crowded burger scene.

Mini-Review: Bareburger

3357 N. Lincoln Ave. 773-697-3079

Rating: !! (out of four) Give it some time

>>Read more about our ratings

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The only thing I find more suspect and unnecessary than a new steakhouse is a new burger franchise. I mean, I get it. Everyone loves pizza, tacos, sushi and, yeah, burgers. There can never be enough of these major food groups. And that might be true if you're making something unique or top-notch, but the proliferation of a particular food concept is often marked by a glut of mediocre players riding a trend.

As far as boutique burger chains go, Chicago has Epic Burger, M Burger, Umami Burger, Good Stuff Eatery and Shake Shackjust to name a few. The competition to sling grilled beef around here is fierce. The folks behind New York-based Bareburger, which planted its first foothold in Lakeview last month, know this. Their CEO is named Euripides Pelekanos. And if you know anything about Euripides the Greek playwright, it's that he was a controversial, innovative badass. And Bareburger does have an innovative shtick. It's "bare" in that the company pursues a no-hormone, no-additive, no-pesticide approach to ingredient sourcing. They stick to fair-trade, non-GMO stuff whenever possible. In other words, they're trying to build a better burger. But do they?

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The local franchisee: Apparently you can go home again. Bareburger's Chicago franchisee (three more Chicagoland locations are in the works) Jerry Brunton grew up in Woodridge, Lisle and Naperville, Ill., but spent the past 20 years in London and New York working in consulting. Of the switch to the restaurant industry, Brunton said, "I don't know that I chose this as much as it chose me."

While living in New York, Brunton and his wife walked by Bareburger and wondered if they'd ever been, so they tried it on a whim. Brunton enjoyed the experience so much that he did some research and called up the owners and told them he thought the concept would do well in Chicago. "They said, 'Well, you're the guy to do it.' I said I have no restaurant experience," Brunton said. "But we share a similar philosophy of not rushing things and doing stuff to get it right, so it made sense."

The interior of Bareburger. (Lenny Gilmore / RedEye)

The scene: If the name Bareburger strikes you as a little hippie, you're right. The logo, which features a wavy font and a bear riding a big-wheel bike, looks like it was cribbed from a Grateful Dead tour poster. The menu touts stuff like "crops" and "greens," and the dining room has a Chicago flag made out of flower prints. A hodgepodge of colorful lampshades hangs from the ceiling. In other words, it's totally groovy.

The food: Though I understand the cutesy abbreviation "wiches" topping a section of the Bareburger menu, seeing the word gives me flashbacks of Anjelica Huston peeling off her face to reveal her wrinkled beak-nosed witch countenance in the movie "The Witches." Despite the horrifying memory, I still ordered something called Hot Honey Chicken ($9.75) from that section.

Hot honey chicken sandwich from Bareburger. (Lenny Gilmore / RedEye)

What arrives is a golden-crisp wedge of poultry, the flesh tangy with buttermilk and juicy to its core, dripping with chili-spiked honey. The whole thing is topped with shaved Brussels sprouts and grilled pineapple and enrobed in a whole-wheat bun crusted with crispy sprouts. There were also fried crunchy lotus root circles hanging from a toothpick on top of the burger. Like a late-night talk show sidekick, the lotus root was extraneous and cumbersome. Its crispness would be better deployed within the burger. But other than that, the interplay of sweet, spicy and tangy was balanced, making this a top-notch fried chicken sandwich.

But this place is called Bareburger, not Barechicken, so what of the patties? The burgers ain't cheap, but they're fairly priced relative to the competition. The cheapest beef burger clocks in at $9.95. For reference, a Shake Shack double ShackBurger, which is hormone- and antibiotic-free, clocks in at $8.09 in Chicago.

My favorite beef option here was the Buckaroo ($13.65) topped with aged cheddar, brisket, wild mushrooms and house barbecue sauce and served on a custardy brioche bun. The thin slices of smoky brisket are barbecue joint quality, while the cheddar is sharp and the mushrooms savory and earthy. The only problem is that the patty is supposed to be cooked medium, but mine arrived well-done, bordering on dry. The same problem plagued a wild boar burger called the Hog Wild ($11.25). There was some moisture resurrection provided by a runny fried egg from Harrison's Poultry in Glenview, Ill. Despite the dryness, spicy pimiento cheese and pickled green tomatoes on top offer a delightful acidic punch.

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The meat is high quality. The grind is thick and has a loose pack. The beef has a mineral kick, and the pork a bit of funk. It's procured from farms that use the Temple Grandin method of humane slaughter, and you can taste the focus on quality. Once the cooks find their grill rhythm, these should be some of the better burgers in Chicago.

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Bareburger's sweet potato fries and onion ring combo. (Lenny Gilmore / RedEye)

The sides fared more consistently than the meat. Sweet potato fries ($4.25) were cut thick and had a touch of skin and soft, fluffy interiors, and onion rings ($4.50) featured a flaky panko crust dotted with herbs (a side combo of both is available for $5.90). The kimchi slaw was fizzy and spicy ($3.85). My only quibble here is the slaw could use a touch less mayo.

The drinks: Unlike most burger spots, Bareburger has a full bar. (This is fitting as the Bareburger founders started out running a club. When the club closed, they knew the burgers they served there were good, so they resurrected the recipe to start the chain.) The beer list features 12 local brews on tap, including a coppery-colored Temperance Beer Co. Smittytown extra special bitter ($5), which drinks like a clean, punchy lager and paired well with the burgers. There's also a full cocktail list, which features a mai tai ($10) bursting with tropical notes.

Bareburgers raspberry shake (Lenny Gilmore / RedEye)

Bareburger's raspberry shake ($5.95) is life-changing. If I ever become an actor and do one of those roles where I need to gain 100 pounds like Robert De Niro did for "Raging Bull," this shake would be my secret weapon. It's a simple mix of raspberry preserves and organic Blue Marble ice cream from Brooklyn, but it bursts with farm-fresh raspberry essence and closes with a comforting creamy finish.

Bottom line: Whether it's top smoked brisket or pickled green tomatoes, the condiment and flavor combinations happening at Bareburger are a cut above. While the meat quality is high, my burgers were a little overdone. If the cooks make this adjustment, they will achieve true burger nirvana in a crowded field.

Michael Nagrant is a RedEye contributor.

Reporters visit restaurants unannounced, and meals are paid for by RedEye.
'The Tata group will need for its new leader to show the same foresight and willingness to go against conventional wisdom to keep the group's aspirations high and uphold the values of innovation, ethics, corporate responsibility, trust and leadership that are frequently associated with the Tata name.'

IMAGE: The Tata group's interim chairman Ratan Tata, with the portrait of the legend he succeeded in 1991, J R D Tata. Photograph: Kind courtesy AirAsia.

Dr Sunil Mithas, professor of business administration at the University of Maryland, worked for nearly 10 years in engineering, marketing, and general management positions with the Tata group after securing an engineering degree from IIT, Roorkee. He left the group to pursue a PhD at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan.

Dr Mithas, image, left, who has written a book on the Tata empire, Making the Elephant Dance: The Tata Way to Innovate, Transform and Globalize with a foreword by Ratan N Tata, tells Rediff.com's Shobha Warrier in an email interview that he is as surprised as everybody else at the recent developments in Bombay House.

As the author of a book on the Tata empire, are you shocked at the recent development at the Tatas?

I am as surprised as anyone else, both in my capacity as an author and as a professor at the Robert H Smith School of Business with research interests in corporate transformations and strategies.

Such leadership changes can be surprising, but they are not unheard of. We have certainly seen examples like these at other reputed firms, such as Starbucks and P&G.

According to the Tata Business Excellence Model, leadership and results were deemed very important. Do you feel under Cyrus Mistry, these two suffered?

The Tata Business Excellence Model certainly emphasises the critical role of leaders and leadership systems in shaping the longer term trajectory and results of an organisation.

With insufficient information in the public domain to comment on specifics, I would hope that board members considered far more details to inform their deliberations and decisions than what we can speculate.

It is rumoured that Ratan Tata, who took pride in making the Tatas a global player, was unhappy with the way the UK steel operations and the Docomo project were handled. Do you feel so?

I have seen these rumours and do not know enough to comment on them.

The UK steel plant workers union president spoke on Indian television about how unhappy they were and they would like to talk to Ratan Tata himself. Do you consider it a failure on the part of the leadership under Cyrus Mistry?

I do not have sufficient information to comment on this.

Since you have studied how the Tatas worked, do you feel as an outsider, Cyrus Mistry could not get the pulse of the organisation?

I do not know the particulars of this case, but in general, one would expect top leaders to have a good sense of different stakeholders' expectations and feelings regardless of whether they come from outside or within the organisation.

You said while management fads come and go, the Tatas' steadfast commitment to this metrics-driven system has paid huge dividends, literally and figuratively.

Was there a compromise on these ideals in the last four years?

My book covered the period from 1991 onwards and beginning 1994 until about 2013 or 2014. The group certainly did very well during this period when it was benefiting from actions taken in 1990s and 2000s when Mr Tata was at the helm of affairs.

The Tata Business Excellence Model is deeply ingrained in the Tata group and I believe that the group has continued to use the model in its various companies.

All Tata stocks were down after Cyrus Mistry was replaced. Do you think the Tatas will regain its old glory?

I hope that the Tata group will continue to be an exemplar of ethical and responsible capitalism as it has for many decades now.

It is best to avoid over-interpreting stock market fluctuations.

Do you think as a global player, the Tatas will have to manage its overseas projects more judiciously?

From what I know, the Tata group has some excellent people who are leading its global forays and overseas ventures.

Sometimes it is hard for companies to counter large macroeconomic forces and I anticipate that the Tata group will eventually succeed with the persistence that it has often shown, even under adversity, in its long history.

Do you feel Cyrus Mistry's appointment as chairman four years ago was a 'failed experiment in succession'?

It was an experiment worth trying and certainly a bold move at that time.

The good thing about experiments is that they can help us to navigate the future more effectively if we learn from them.

What kind of a leader does the company need to make it successful?

Leaders are not judged by their performance alone, their actions and values as important if not more.

The Tata group did very well during Mr Tata's leadership of about two decades, he unified the group and pushed it to globalise and innovate to compete successfully in a liberalised and increasingly competitive economic environment that Indian companies were facing in the 1990s and 2000s.

The Tata group will need for its new leader to show the same foresight and willingness to go against conventional wisdom at times to keep the group's aspirations high and uphold the values of innovation, ethics, corporate responsibility, trust and leadership that are frequently associated with the Tata name.

The Indian economy is witnessing significant changes due to digitisation and the Tata group and its companies will have to reinvent themselves all over again to compete in a more digital environment.

It helps that some Tata companies facilitate digitisation efforts of their customers all over the world (for example, TCS, Tata Technologies).

The trick will be to use some of that expertise with some augmentation to help group companies to compete more effectively while continuing to build new businesses.

The new leader must demonstrate an ambidexterity to grow revenues while reducing costs. In my research (external link) with Professor Roland Rust that was published in MIS Quarterly in 2016 we show that such a dual strategy is more profitable and value adding if firms complement that with appropriate investments in information technology.

Doing so may require significant investments in human capital and the Tata group is well-known for not shying away from that in the past, but this time they may need a particular attention on honing what I call digital intelligence.

Combining digital intelligence with the Tatas' brand and excellent human and physical resources that it already has can be a promising start for the group to create synergies among its various companies.

In my mind, I think of digitisation as a potential rallying cry to start the next growth curve for the group, similar to what the group did with the Tata Business Excellence Model in the 1990s.

Mr Tata has demonstrated some of this digital savvy through by investing in many digital startups.

It remains to be seen whether that spirit will be embraced by the new leader. I discuss this topic in my book Digital Intelligence that Penguin will be publishing in December 2016 for the Indian subcontinent.
A Europe-like cyber security defence alliance is the need of the hour, say banking technology experts.

At a time when the banking sector is grappling with a possible systemic risk brought upon by the data breach of 3.2 million cards, banking technology experts at the Business Standard Banking Technology Round Table said banks should collaborate to tighten the security framework.

Even though India is still far from a defined cyber security defence alliance, it could be a pressing need. We probably need to have a better interoperable system of security in the banking industry to stay one step ahead of fraudsters. In fact, we could have a cyber security defence alliance like the way it works in other nations, said Madhivanan Balakrishnan, chief technology and digital officer, ICICI Bank.

According to Balakrishnan, along with collaborating on security, sector participants could get together and share data and information pertaining to cyber security.

In times of emergencies, the banking system as a whole should come together to reassure customers. The panellists unanimously agreed that the aftermath of the data security breach could have been handled better. Banks individually went on to assure their own customers that their networks were safe, but that did little to restore confidence on a customer who uses another banks ATM.

All the banks have been reassuring their own customers but banks also need to go and assure the customers that entire network is safe. That degree of comfort would have been more reassuring than the one we have seen in this case. This is because the customer will perceive it as a network threat, said Nitin Chugh, country head-digital banking, HDFC Bank.

In the recent event of data theft, all banks as well as Hitachi Payments System that operates YES Bank ATMs where the malware was allegedly found, sent out communications saying there was no security threat at their end. Some lenders had specifically advised their customers to operate only ATM networks of their bank.

This greater emphasis on cyber security also comes at a time when digital and cashless transactions are increasing in the country and some cases of data vulnerability could slip through. As the panellists pointed out, the data attacks have always been present in terms of phishing, vishing schemes etc. But now that these attacks are more co-ordinated, lenders also need to step up security and collaboration.

Digital is an opportunity and also a threat, but it is still necessary to adopt it because of the convenience it brings. But we need better fraud management and security in place, said Rajesh Mirjankar, MD & CEO, InfrasoftTech.

Ramas Venkatachalam, MDIndia and South Asia, FIS, said this was no longer a bank-specific problem but a sector-wide concern where all the players needed to come together. Security and infrastructure concerns are related to all banks and not one. So if all come to the same table then it is easier to resolve it. Even the regulator could play a role here. In the pursuit of transactions and to reduce the cost of transactions there may be compromises being made, which the regulator needs to take a look at, he added.

In the past few months, the Reserve Bank of India has also stepped up focus on the need for banks to strengthen their information technology networks.

However, in certain cases the regulators stringent approach and handholding may curtail growth. For instance, sectors like peer-to-peer lending, which will come under RBIs purview, could have been given more leeway to evolve. Some of the disruptions must happen. We believe that some leeway has to be given where it doesnt post a systemic risk or a massive exposure to customers, said Venkatachalam.

For instance, RBI recently relaxed some of the rules for the payments banks. These niche banking players that are allowed to only accept deposits and not lend had asked RBI for some relaxations in rules as the risk and their revenue earning capabilities are not the same as universal banks.

The genesis of payments banks was the idea that lenders are not able to scale up at a level that the economy requires for small value transactions because of certain business model and cost effectiveness reasons. The structure that was formed is also inherently different from the conventional banking risk structure, said Shinjini Kumar, CEO, Paytm Payments Bank. She added that the risk was reduced for payments bank because of lower ticket size and lending restrictions, and so they should be treated differently.
Top businessmen often seek refuge in the animal kingdom to describe their situation

Cyrus Mistry wrote a 2,101-word letter on the affairs of the Tata group. But, two words that stood out and found its way to front page in papers, if not on the banner headlines themselves, was 'lame duck'

"I hope you do realise the predicament that I found myself in. Being pushed into the position of a "lame duck" chairman, my desire was to create an institutional framework for effective future governance of the group.

I believe I had to be true to myself and the best interests of the organisation. While I would be lying if I said I am not disappointed, I have a sense of pride and dignity intact in the efforts I have taken to professionalise and institutionalise, regardless of the outcome of effort, I now witness," the 48-year old wrote in the concluding paragraphs of his explosive letter.

The phrase 'lame duck' caught on as it accurately described and summed up the position the former chairman found himself in the $100 billion group. Often used in politics to describe underperforming leaders, the word has its origins in the stock market.

Several accounts, including in the US Press, said the term originated in the London Stock Exchange. Ed Quinn wrote in Denver Post quoting "Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable," that the expression referred to "a stock-jobber or dealer who will not, or cannot, pay his losses" and has to "waddle out of the alley like a lame duck." It also applies to a defaulter on a loan, and goes back to 18th-century London.

But, Mistry is not the first businessman to seek refuge in fowl and fauna to articulate his situation or strategy.

Almost eight years before Mistry took interest in letter writing, it was Satyam founder Ramalinga Raju who wrote an equally sensational letter.

Unlike Mistry, Raju saw the national animal. He did not see himself as one. But, he saw himself riding one. "It was like riding a tiger, not knowing how to get off without being eaten," he wrote referring to the widening gap between the real and artificial numbers in the company's books.

Raju's letter did not surface first in the Press like Mistry's. It was sent to the exchanges sending the regulatory apparatus into a tizzy. Sebi swung into action to ensure it was not some prank before unleasing the 'tiger' on an already beaten down stock market.

Unlike the other two, Mukesh Ambani was not in any sort of trouble, when he invoked the spotted jungle cat to describe his strategy.

In an interview with The Economic Times in 2011 the Reliance Industries chairman said: "I love the leopard. It sits on top of a tree. It doesn't take any risk. Whenever it sees it can make a kill, it rapidly makes the kill. It just happens in a flash," said Ambani, who often sat observing leopards for hours in many forests.

"After getting the kill, the leopard goes back to the top of the tree and sits there aaram se," he added. He wanted his company to institutionalise leopard like execution capabilities.

These are not the only animals in what some describe as the dog-eat-dog world of big business. There are some 'wily old foxes', who can trick you before you blink.

There are those promoters and top executives, who run away with 'lion's share' of the company's profits. And, then there are scapegoats. Lesser you talk about them, the better.
The government has managed Rs 21,000 crore through stake sales and buybacks in the first six months, the highest-ever first half divestment revenue for any year by a good margin, raising expectations for the rest of FY17.

The Union Cabinet, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Thursday gave an in-principle approval to strategic sales and disinvestment in a number of State-owned companies, kick-starting the process of valuing these entities and finding interested buyers.

The public sector undertakings include loss-making and profit-making entities as well as assets such as factories and plants.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley announced the decision during a media briefing after the Cabinet meeting. He, however, declined to reveal the names of the companies, saying these will now be approved by the Cabinet on a case-by-case basis after valuing them, finding prospective buyers and possible methods of sale.

The recommendations of the NITI Aayog with regard to both disinvestment and strategic sale came up for consideration. In principle, the Cabinet has approved the recommendations with regard to some of the units, Jaitley said.

Specific cases would now come up after a detailed examination as to how it is to be done in each case and the details with regard to the units concerned will be furnished at that stage. This list does not include PSUs for closure, he said.

A senior government official said later that the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management, along with the line ministries, will now begin the process of valuing these companies, finding a market and prospective buyers as well as the method of selling these companies.

Once these processes are completed, the Cabinet will be approached again for a final approval, the person said. Dipam is said to be considering at least five different methods, including relative peer review and discounted cash flow, for valuing the PSUs.

As reported earlier in Business Standard, two lists are said to have been prepared by the NITI Aayog. One on companies where government ownership will be given up and shareholding will be brought to below 50 per cent at one go. The other on companies in which shareholding will be brought down to 51 per cent or above.

Some possible names of entities for which approvals could have been sought include Pawan Hans, Bridge and Roof Co, BEML, Scooters India, Hindustan Prefab and Central Electronics. Approvals may also have been sought for selling some units of Steel Authority of India and NMDC.

Some of these are important units and since each unit would be considered in its own merit, the timing of that would be decided by the government accordingly, Jaitley said.

He added that the valuation will also take into account immovable property and other assets.

I am not going to allow it to be under sold merely because there is a calendar limitation, he said, when asked about the timeline for sale.

Asked whether the government will be able to meet the Rs 20,500-crore strategic stake sale target for current financial year, he said, At the moment we are at the mid-point of the year and this year we have already made significant headway.

The government's disinvestment target for the current financial year is Rs 56,500 crore. Of this, Rs 36,000 crore is expected from minority stake sales and buybacks. The rest is expected from strategic sales in loss-making or profit-making PSUs or their assets (factories, warehouses, and office buildings).

The government has managed Rs 21,000 crore through stake sales and buybacks in the first six months, the highest-ever first half divestment revenue for any year by a good margin, raising expectations for the rest of FY17.

Of this, Rs 16,500 crore is from buybacks initiated by five PSUs. The rest is from five stake sales through the offer-for-sale route.
Unlike Ratan Tatas philosophy, Mistry cared about short-term gains. This is a Diwali gift for many

In hindsight, Tata group senior executives say, it always seemed that all was not well between the ousted chairman Cyrus Mistry and now interim chairman Ratan Tata. But, no one expected that Mistry would be replaced. It was a bolt from the blue.

What happens in Tata Sons board meeting is a well guarded secret. Some of it trickles down through the grapevine, they say. They may or may not have been able to read the tea leaves but the return of Ratan Tata at the helm has brought much relief to old timers within the group.

Many young people had been inducted to the Group Executive Council (GEC) who lacked experience, an old timer pointed out. The GEC was set up by Mistry to provide strategic directions and operational support.

Its not just the old timers who are celebrating the comeback. There is muted exuberance among thousands of TCS employees across Gurgaon, Bengaluru and other centres. TCS, one of the crown jewels of the Tata group, witnessed lay-offs in 2014 and its never been quite the same.

Senior talent left, the management was reshuffled and employees were left in the lurch in an organisation synonymous with job security. A slew of cases were filed, especially from Bengaluru where all the fired employees formed a group to register a case against the IT giant. Though companies are driven by their respective boards, employees see Mistrys hand in the lay-offs. His ouster prompted a flurry of exchange of messages saying it was poetic justice.

Unlike Ratan Tatas philosophy, Mistry cared about short-term gains. This is a Diwali gift for many, a senior TCS executive in Gurgaon said.

It is a reason to celebrate but we are waiting anxiously on who would be the next chairman, an employee said.

Workers at the Sanand plant, too, are happy that old guard, Ratan Tata, is back at the helm, even if for a brief period. Nano was Tatas pet project and from Mistrys letter its clear that emotions kept Nano alive.

Tata was there for decades and he is a name to reckon with. We joined the house of the Tatas because it is one of Indias oldest, largest and most respected business houses in India. In older days there was huge job security that this group offered, things are different now, though, said a supervisor.

Senior executives at Sanand, however, are more worried about the fate of the plant and the contents of Mistrys letter have only added to it.

It is obvious the car has not been doing as well as one would have wanted it to. Despite tightening the noose and adopting lean manufacturing, the enterprise continues to bleed. Several executives have quit in the past few months, and recruitments at senior levels have been in the slow lane, said one officer on conditions of anonymity.

Salary appraisals have been average at Sanand for years now. Each year, the company has been highlighting that the performance of Tata Motors in the market has not kept up to expectations.

The executives are worried how a change in the groups management structure is likely to impact loss-making entities like the Nano or the Sanand plant at large.

Component makers at Sanand are also worried about a long-term demand for Tata Motors passenger cars than management changes at the top.

The company has a pipeline of launches, some of which would be from the Sanand plant and any change at the top is unlikely to change that right now. Their models have not been doing well in the market, and we only hope that some of these new models click, so that our prospects improve, said a senior official of a supplier of rubber parts.

Among those who are worrying about the future is also the West Bengal government which has been nursing the hope for settling the spat over Singur once and for all. The Supreme Court has paved the way for return of land to the farmers but will Tatas comeback cast a shadow, wonder the officials at Nabanna, the state secretariat.

Photograph: PTI Photo
'This Ajay Devgn video game gets more unwatchable with each minute -- and there are 173 of them,' rues Raja Sen.

Girish Karnad is in Shivaay.

The venerable actor, a luminary of the stage and screen, here plays a wheelchair-bound father asking his daughter to invite a young girl in from the cold.

The daughter, fresh off an encounter with the titular chap, Shivaay, is too thunderstruck to really hear him, and so the crippled father, determinedly starts hoisting himself out of the wheelchair, only to fall back into it, drained.

The shocked daughter asks why he did this, to which Karnad says -- in the voice of a fine actor ambushed by a paycheque -- that someone has to stand up.

It is an awful line following an awful moment, and sounds unforgivably tawdry in Hindi, but giving Girish Karnad horrid innuendo is not the worst of director Ajay Devgn's sins.

Where, in fact, can one begin?

Perhaps at Devgn himself, a man who casts himself as invincible and flawless, a director influenced by such immodest greats as Saint Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh Ji Insaan and Madhur Bhandarkar.

Devgn, we learn, is a filmmaker who enjoys making jokes about the divinity of his own genitalia.

Perhaps at the way this film is shot in Bulgaria but pretends it's in Everest, which is why Devgn turns around to a Bulgarian girl at a Bulgarian mountain and chest-thumpingly asks her if they have views like this in Bulgaria.

Perhaps at the way Devgn's character, Shivaay, stays shirtless in snowy hills and prefers to take a dramatic pause -- to properly sell a bad line of dialogue about the best laid plans -- instead of warning a troupe of people he's led into the hills.

The whole thing is a catastrophe.

Devgn's Shivaay is a self-celebrating (and frequently shirtless) mountain guide who 'makes love' to a buxom Bulgarian girl while they're both falling down a hillside in a transparent tent -- possibly what the director believes 'zorbing' means -- and the two fall in love.

She gets pregnant, a fact delivered to the couple by a doctor who speaks slowly to white people as if they're all Siri, and Devgn's reaction to this is to drive the pregnant girl home like a maniac and start yelling at her.

But then he offers her a glass of milk. ('Devgn Offers Women Milk' was the alternate title for this film, but was rejected by Devgn himself because it took up too much space away from his face on the poster).

She wants an abortion because she has plans for her life, but along with this milk stands Devgn's offer that she have his child and leave it to his care and only then go off to her plans. She acquiesces to this insane demand, one that Devgn then decides to resent her for.

Anyway, the little girl grows up and wants to see her mother, so Devgn carts her off to Bulgaria without once checking where the lady lives.

They get there, the girl gets taken -- oops -- and the rest of the film is an inane series of car-chases and imbecilic behaviour during which Devgn is shot and battered and beaten but none of it appears to slow him down.

He's wearing a directorially-omnipotent forcefield, you see.

With Aseem Bajaj at the camera, the film is well shot but rather sloppily choreographed.

This Ajay Devgn video game gets more unwatchable with each minute -- and there are 173 of them -- during which he is wrongfully imprisoned and meets a lawyer who advises him to forget he's a father.

Later, a roomful of cops wait around for Shivaay, the most wanted man in the country, to look thoughtfully at them and make a call before they start chasing him.

All this while the villain is an old man who calls himself Uncle Ustinov and listens to opera while he fondles masks. (None of this is exaggerated. None of it.)

Shivaay's kidnapped daughter, played by an adorable girl called Abigail Eames, is a mute child, which makes me believe that this film is, on some warped level, Devgn's version of Salman Khan's highly effective Bajrangi Bhaijaan.

Except in the Devgnverse, Nawazuddin Siddiqui is replaced by Vir Das -- a decision that really tells you all you need to know about this film.

Devgn might believe Shivaay is a piece of Shiv, but there's an obvious typo there.

To invoke a truly superb avalanche-filled film, this one may as well have been called Force Manure.
'Devendra Fadnavis' brokering the deal between the MNS and the makers of Ae Dil Hai Mushkil raises questions about the chief minister's effectiveness,' says Neeta Kolhatkar.

We live in strange times.

Last week, the chief minister of a state has sent a strong message to citizens that he cannot ensure law and order.

This is a huge failure on Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis' part.

Fadnavis succumbed to Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray's tactics during the MNS agitation against the employment of Pakistani actors in Bollywood films.

The MNS has only one member in the Maharashtra assembly and is likely to face a near rout in the coming civic elections in the state.

This was not a deterrent for Fadnavis who seems to have revived Raj Thackeray's moribund political career and accorded him the stature of a quasi-judicial authority, who can dictate the price of patriotism.

Here, I must bring in Karl Marx, who said, 'Nothing can have value without being an object of utility.'

Raj Thackeray has discovered the utility of disruption and Fadnavis may have helped him.

Till the anti-Pakistan artiste agitation, it was Raj's cousin and political rival Uddhav Thackeray, the Shiv Sena president, who faced flak.

The Sena newspaper Saamna had taken a perverted view of the Maratha-led Muka Morcha by publishing what was seen as a derogatory cartoon.

It had put Saamna, the Sena, and Uddhav in the line of fire.

Uddhav was already facing flak for the Sena's failure in addressing civic issues in the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation, which his party has headed for over 19 years.

The pathetic conditions of Mumbai's roads led the Bombay high court to slam civic officials and municipal corporators for their indifference.

The MNS aggressively took on municipal engineers and officials, which brought the MNS some applause from citizens who thought the Shiv Sena had let them down.

When the MNS began its anti-Pakistan campaign, Mumbaikars and others, swayed by patriotism, backed its actions.

Meanwhile, relations soured further between the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Shiv Sena, who rule Maharashtra in a coalition.

Uddhav criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for taking credit for the surgical strikes against terrorist launch pads in Pakistan occupied Kashmir.

Fadnavis thought the MNS' anti-Pakistan actors campaign was an excellent opportunity to pit one cousin (Raj) against the other (Uddhav), who despite being an ally acted like an Opposition leader by constantly questioning Fadnavis and Modi's actions.

Fadnavis, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and other BJP leaders are keen to ditch the Shiv Sena before the coming civic polls. These BJP leaders believe the party can win the civic elections on its own.

Fadnavis' brokering the deal between the MNS and the makers of Ae Dil Hai Mushkil raises questions about the chief minister's effectiveness and his commitment to maintaining law and order. Fadnavis is also Maharashtra's home minister.

Many question Fadnavis' failure to read Raj Thackeray's utility value and his total lack of understanding of the changed political equations.

Fadnavis -- who set out to clip Uddhav's wings by backing his estranged cousin -- may ironically have bettered Uddhav Thackeray's prospects when his and the Shiv Sena's political stock was on the decline.
IMAGE: Former Union minister Yashwant Sinha after meeting Hurriyat Conference Chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani in Srinagar, October 25. Photograph: Umar Ganie.

'The first clear cut call for 'engagement with all stake holders including separatists' came, not from the political class but the men in uniform,' points out Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished observer on Kashmir.

The explosion of suppressed expectations in the choked Kashmir Valley, triggered by the visit of a five-member non-official, fact-finding team, headed by former Union minister Yashwant Sinha, provides a measure of below-the-surface frustration in the state.

This has been caused, on the one hand, by the recklessness of the local separatist leadership spearheading the four-month long violent uprising and, on the other, by the equally arrogant and unresponsive central government.

This scenario contrasts with the defiant sullenness which defined the earlier two visits of Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and by an all-party parliamentary delegation when the main propellers of the unrest avoided even eye contact with the visitors and literally shut their doors,

The ease and eagerness with which the Sinha team was courted by one and all, from Syed Ali Shah Geelani to representatives from business and civil society, strengthened the impression that the earlier reservation was only posturing, for tactical reasons or under pressure from some invisible forces, or a bit of both.

Even so, this belated realisation that engagement was inevitable as well as desirable is a welcome development, considering the huge losses resulting from total disengagement.

Nearly 100 people have lost their lives since the July 8 killing of the Hizbul Mujahideen's Burhan Wani in an encounter in south Kashmir. Normal life across the Kashmir Valley remains totally paralysed since then.

Adding to multiple ironies of the Kashmir problem is the one that Sinha's team of five individuals is known to have no brief from anyone in authority in New Delhi.

And yet it happened to be breaking the ice while the relatively empowered parliamentary delegation had to return virtually empty handed, after completing the formality of convincing the convinced -- mainstream politicians and their related non-political attachments.

Ditto for the Union home minister.

The central government and the Bharatiya Janata Party needlessly went as far as to disassociate themselves from the Sinha-led team and its visit to Kashmir.

It made no difference where it mattered -- on the ground. The separatists responded as if the visitors were god-send. Unlike only a month or so back, nothing would convince them to at least meet, if not talk with visitors from New Delhi.

Indicators on the ground in the Kashmir Valley suggest a perceptible, though as yet not so distinctly, that fatigue is beginning to set it and take its toll.

It is an open secret across the Valley, that the apparent face of the uprising, the two factions of the Hurriyat Conference led by Geelani and Mirwaiz Ummar Farooq and Yasin Malik, were actually not in command, or at least certainly not in full command.

Effective leadership on the ground remains confusingly dispersed with teenagers acting as 'commanders' in their respective local areas.

The Hurriyat leadership's track record in the three decade long resistance movement clearly does not square up with the dynamics of its current phase.

This one has been the toughest and harshly punishing for ordinary people.

Life in the Valley has never before been shut for so long and with schools targeted for arson.

Its backlash is beginning to spill over into the open with the hardest hit having reached the end of the tether.

Lest the Sinha-team is tempted to nurse notion of its efficacy (vis a vis the earlier could-be interlocutors) and overestimate its ability and capability, it would do better by confining itself to sharing its experience and impressions with the authorities in New Delhi, that is presuming that by now there is some appetite for such interaction that was not the case so far.

Visiting non-official teams and individuals can undoubtedly contribute to reinforce the process of engagement, but if those who eventually matter and ought to take the call are not interested, for whatever reason, all these initiatives are destined to backfire.

That would certainly mean aggravation of both, alienation and frustration.

It was not for nothing that the first clear cut call for 'engagement with all stake holders including separatists' came, not from the political class but the men in uniform.

Lieutenant General D S Hooda, the Northern Army GOC-in-C, made a public appearance at the beginning of the uprising to convey the message.

Again, it is the army's intervention at the ground level, especially in the most seriously affected villages and towns, that has put a check on the dangerous drift towards lawlessness and violence.

Restoration of civil authority is going to be a long drawn affair, depending upon how fast the local administration is able to reassemble its disintegrated body parts.

All said and done, the team led by Yashwant Sinha had reason to be satisfied with what it was able to achieve in Kashmir. To that extent, it is a job well done.

However, it is useful to remember it is not happening for the first time.

As they say the path to hell is paved with all good intentions. And Kashmir is notoriously known as the graveyard of reputations.

Only time can tell if there are any takers within the ruling establishment in New Delhi to carry the good work forward. In the given parameters, that might be hoping against hope.

But then Kashmir is already rendered a hopeless case, from several angles -- local, national and international

For the Hurriyat and other props of the uprising the writing is on the wall: The 'Revolution' is just beginning to eat its own children.

Their eagerness to meet the Sinha team after having haughtily spurned parliamentarians and others suggests that the message is beginning to sink in.

As it happens so often in Kashmir, everybody who is anybody likes to join the chorus of the day.

Today the flavour is engagement and dialogue. Till now it was 'now or never.'
'Everyone has to take some step in solving this deadlock -- civil society, separatist leaders, the government.'

IMAGE: Curfew-like restrictions and a strike called by separatist leaders has left Kashmir crippled for 112 days. Photograph: Umar Ganie

A five-member delegation led by senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Yashwant Sinha completed a three-day visit to Kashmir on October 27 during which it met various stakeholders to 'understand the situation' and 'share the pain' of the people.

Normal life in the Kashmir Valley has been disrupted for 112 consecutive days after the death of Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist Burhan Wani on July 8.

Amidst this gloom, the Sinha-led delegation meeting separatist leaders and other stakeholders in Kashmir was seen as a ray of hope.

Sushoba Barve, from the Centre for Dialogue and Reconciliation and a member of Sinha's delegation, spoke to Rediff.com's Syed Firdaus Ashraf.

What was the agenda for your delegation?

Our organisation -- the Centre for Dialogue and Reconciliation -- has set up a Kashmir advisory group.

Yashwant Sinha, Jairam Ramesh, Brinda Karat, Wajahat Habibullah, Professor Badri Raina, Air Vice Marshal Kapil Kak (retired) are all members of this group.

We had a meeting last week and it was decided that the ground situation in Kashmir was serious and whoever could go should travel to Kashmir.

Each of us went in an individual capacity. We don't represent any political party or group.

What did you discuss and whom did you meet?

We went to listen to the people, to share in their pain and grief.

We met all the stakeholders.

On the first day, we met several separatist leaders -- Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Shabbir Shah and some other people.

On the following day, we met business leaders, writers, journalists and academics.

You met Hurriyat leaders who are responsible for the unrest in Kashmir for 110 days.

Peace has to be made on both sides -- the government as well as the separatists.

You cannot break a deadlock alone.

To break a deadlock, you have to speak to both sides. You cannot speak to only one side.

One has to explore possibilities and we had a positive response.

Let us hope that we keep continuing this interaction.

Our group was not denied a meeting by any group, be it a separatist group or civil society.

They (the Hurriyat leaders) had not met the parliamentary delegation, which had gone earlier.

We would like to build on that and continue our efforts.

Why is the Hurriyat not lifting the forced curfew? People in the Valley have suffered so much owing to this curfew.

I am sorry, but I can't say anything on this issue as the people discussed this with us in confidence.

We have to see what change happens on the ground.

Everyone has to take some step in solving this deadlock -- civil society, separatist leaders, the government.

The fact is how much do we care for the people who have died and been injured.

Have we reached out to them?

The responsibility for normalising the situation rests on everybody.

Do you think these talks will help restore normalcy in Kashmir?

Yes. We went with government permission to meet every state leader.

To that extent, the government has supported us.

Theek hai, we went in an individual capacity. It is a fact that our meeting was not sponsored by the government.

IMAGE: BJP leader Yashwant Sinha interacts with Syed Ali Shah Geelani at the separatist leader's home. Photograph: PTI photo

Did you discuss the use of pellet guns by the security forces in Kashmir?

People are upset and angry about the use of pellet guns.

Despite the fact that each party in Parliament urged the government to withdraw the guns, it hasn't been done yet.

They say if there are riots in Haryana, Gujarat or anywhere in India no such measures are used to control the crowd.

They wonder why they are subjected to such harsh action.

This is a question we as a nation and the government has to answer.

Why are the Kashmiris so angry with the Narendra Modi government?

You must ask them, why should I answer the question?

We went and stated what our aim was. We are an independent group.

We said we have humanity in our heart. We went there to share the pain of Kashmir.

I think if you go to Kashmir, you have to have the right language to reach out to the people. This is what I will say.

When will you go again?

I will not say anything on this issue. We have just come back. We will meet and decide what should be our next step.

Are you going to report your findings to the government?

We will meet people in the government also.

Are you hopeful of a solution? Do you think this deadlock will be broken?

I cannot tell you that. Only time can will say.

How can I predict anything? We have made our effort and done our bit, so let us see how things develop on the ground whether some breakthrough happens or not. That is all I can say.
Rocky's mother and suspended Janata Dal-United MLC Manorma Devi told a police team that he will surrender in the court soon. M I Khan reports.

Rakesh Ranjan alias Rocky Yadav, who allegedly shot dead a Class XII student for overtaking his SUV, is absconding after the Supreme Court cancelled his bail on Friday.

A district police official in Gaya said that Rocky has gone underground soon after the Supreme Court cancelled his bail.

"In the police record, Rocky Yadav has been absconding as he was not found at his parents' house," said the official.

Rocky's mother and suspended Janata Dal-United MLC Manorma Devi told a police team that visited her house that he will surrender in the court soon.

Earlier, staying Patna high court's order, the Supreme Court cancelled Yadav's bail and sent him back to jail.

A bench headed by Justice S A Bobde sought response from Rocky on a plea of the Bihar government challenging the bail granted to him on October 19.

Senior advocate Rajiv Dutta, appearing for the Bihar government, said this was an open-and-shut case and the youth was highly intoxicated. Hence, his bail should be immediately cancelled or the order of the Patna high court stayed.

The bench said that "chargesheet has already been filed in the case and this may go against you".

The court said it was issuing notice to the respondent (Rocky) and posted the hearing after Diwali.

Rocky, son of suspended JD-U MLC Manorama Devi and alleged history-sheeter Bindi Yadav, is accused of shooting and killing Aditya Sachdeva, a Class XII student who was driving his Maruti car, for overtaking his SUV on May 7 this year near Gaya.

Police had filed a chargesheet in a Gaya court against Rocky and another accused in connection with the murder. They had also filed chargesheet against Rocky's cousin Teni Yadav, his father Bindi Yadav and his MLC mother's bodyguard, Rajesh Kumar, in the murder case.

The state government had put the case on speedy trial and investigation was completed in three weeks and chargesheet filed within a month of the incident.

Rocky is facing two cases -- one of murder of Aditya and another under Excise Act for recovery of liquor bottles from the house of his mother. He was arrested from his father's mixer plant in Gaya on May 10.

His name was included along with his father Bindi Yadav in the case of recovery of liquor bottles which were found when police raided his mother's house looking for Rocky.

With inputs from PTI
China on Friday warned India that bilateral ties may suffer damage and affect peace and stability of the border areas if it allows Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama to visit Arunachal Pradesh, which Beijing claims is part of southern Tibet.

We are seriously concerned about the relevant information, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lu Kang told a media briefing here replying to a question about reports that India has granted permission to Dalai Lama to visit Arunachal Pradesh at the invitation of the chief minister.

Chinas position on the eastern section of China India border is consistent and clear. The Dalai clique is engaged in anti-China separatist activity and has very disgraceful behaviour on issues relating to China-India boundary question, Kang said.

The Indian side is well aware of the severity of the Dalai Lama issue as well as the sensitivity of the China-India boundary question, he said.

Under such circumstances Indias invitation to the Dalai Lama for activity in the disputed areas between China and India will only damage peace, stability of the border areas as well as the bilateral relationship between China and India, Kang said.

We require the Indian side to honour the political commitment to Tibet-related issues and abide by the bilateral consensus on boundary question, he said.

India also should refrain from taking any action that may complicate the issue, do not provide any platform for anti-China separatist activities by the 14th Dalai Lama, he said.

Only by doing so can we maintain sound and steady growth of the bilateral relations, he added.

Asked about assertions by external affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup that Dalai Lama has visited the state in the past, Kang said making one mistake does not mean that you can make another mistake.

As I just said, Indias invitation to the Dalai Lama for activity in the disputed area between China and India is like providing a platform for anti-China separatist activities. It does no good to peace and tranquility in the border areas as well as the development of China-India relations, he said.

China considers Arunachal Pradesh as part of southern Tibet and routinely objects to visits by Dalai Lama, Indian leaders as well as foreign dignitaries.

The border dispute covers the 3,488-km long Line of Actual Control.

India asserts that the dispute covered Aksai Chin area which was occupied by China during 1962 war.

On October 24, China took exception to the visit by Richard Verma, the US envoy in India, to Arunachal Pradesh which it claims as southern Tibet, saying any interference by Washington in the Sino-India boundary dispute will make it more complicated and disturb hard-won peace at the border.

Objecting to Vermas visit, Lu had told a media briefing that China is firmly opposed to the visit.

Verma visited the province on October 22 at the invitation of Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu, who has also invited Dalai Lama to the state early next year.

We have also noted that the place visited by senior US diplomatic official is a disputed region between China and India. We are firmly opposed to his visit, he had said.

Rebuffing China for objecting to Vermas visit to Arunachal Pradesh, India had said there was nothing unusual about his trip to a state which is an integral part of the country.

The US Ambassador visited Arunachal Pradesh, a state which is an integral part of the country to which he is accredited. There is nothing unusual in it, Swarup had said.

Lu said both India and China are resolving the issue through bilateral consultations and negotiations and any third party with a sense of responsibility should respect efforts made by China and India for peace reconciliation and tranquility rather than the opposite, he said.

The behaviour by the US contrasts the efforts made by China and India, he had said.

It will only make the dispute more complicated, disturb the hard-won peace and tranquility of border areas and sabotage peaceful development of the region.

We urge the US to stop its interference in the boundary issue between China and India and make more contribution to regional peace and stability, he said.
Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey on Friday said that the agency would investigate additional emails that have surfaced related to Hillary Clinton's use of a personal email server to determine whether they contain classified information, adding that it is unclear how significant the new materials may be.

The new probe, which comes barely 11 days before the United States votes for its new president, is a blow for Clinton who is the Democratic Party's candidate and the front-runner in opinion polls.

In a letter to several US congressional committee chairmen, the FBI Director said that he "cannot predict how long it will take us to complete this additional work."

"In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation," Comey wrote. "I am writing to inform you that the investigative team briefed me on this yesterday, and I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information as well as to assess their importance to our investigation."

The letter from Comey comes nearly four months after the FBI director announced the Bureau would not recommend criminal charges against Clinton for what it dubbed "extreme careless" use of a private email server while secretary of state.

The FBI director said then: "Although there is evidence of potential violations of the statutes... our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case."

The Clinton campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The FBI's decision to reopen the investigation was welcomed by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump as a "big day" soon after the announcement.

The controversial billionaire from New York departed from his prepared speech as he landed for his rally in Manchester in New Hampshire.

"I have a breaking news for you," he told his cheering supporters, who waited for him for hours.

"FBI has just sent a letter to the Congress that they have found new emails pertaining to the former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's email investigation. And they are reopening the case into her illegal and criminal conduct that threatened the national security of the United States," he said.

"I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the Department of Justice are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made," Trump said and hoped that "perhaps finally justice would be done."

"This is a big day," he said alleging that the email scandal is bigger than Watergate. " Hillary Clinton's corruption is on a scale that we have never seen before."

Other Republican leaders also welcomed the decision.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte said the move shows Clinton and her team "committed wrongdoing and jeopardised national security."

House of Representative Speaker Paul Ryan said Clinton has nobody but herself to blame. "She was entrusted with some of our nation's most important secrets, and she betrayed that trust by carelessly mishandling highly classified information," he said.

"This decision, long overdue, is the result of her reckless use of a private email server, and her refusal to be forthcoming with federal investigators. I renew my call for the Director of National Intelligence to suspend all classified briefings for Secretary Clinton until this matter is fully resolved," Ryan said.

Trump's campaign manager Kellyanne Conway called this a great news. "A great day in our campaign just got even better. FBI reviewing new emails in Clinton probe," she tweeted.

Photograph: Reuters
Reacting strongly, India on Friday condemned Pakistans decision to expel its high commission staffer in Islamabad, saying the action further confirms that Pakistan continues to be in denial of its anti-India activities, including cross-border terrorism.

External affairs ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said no justification has been provided by Pakistan except for the completely baseless and unsubstantiated allegation that his activities were not in keeping with diplomatic norms.

Government notes with regret the government of Pakistans decision to declare Surjeet Singh, assistant personnel and welfare officer in the high commission of India in Islamabad, persona non grata and expel him and his family members.... The government condemns Pakistans step.

It is obvious that the step is an afterthought following yesterdays apprehension of Pakistan high commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar in Delhi while indulging in anti-India activities. Pakistans action further confirms that it continues to be in denial of its anti-India activities, including cross-border terrorism, Swarup said.

Within hours of India expelling Akhtar on Thursday, Pakistan, in a tit-for-tat action, declared Singh as persona non-grata and asked him to leave the country within 48 hours.

The Pakistan foreign secretary, who had summoned Indian High Commissioner Gautam Bambawale to convey the decision, expressed deep concern over the activities of the Indian official that were in violation of the Vienna Convention and the established diplomatic norms, the Pakistan Foreign Office said in a statement.
Former Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf described Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar as a terrorist, saying he has been involved in bomb blasts even in his country.

He, however, he did not give a clear reply as to why Pakistan has been asking China to get Azhar declared as an international terrorist by the United Nations.

Why should China be involved when it has nothing to do with him (Azhar), Musharraf told News Nation, according to a release issued by the TV channel.

A proposal is pending before the UN Security Council for declaring Azhar as an international terrorist but China has been blocking it, claiming that there is not enough evidence to prove that he is a terrorist.

When asked about the espionage case busted on Thursday in Delhi involving an employee of the Pakistan high commission, the former Pakistan Army chief initially parried the issue saying, I am not aware of it. But then he added that if at all it has happened, (it) shouldnt be encouraged, the release said.

It also quoted Musharraf as saying that the Nawaz Sharif government lacks aggression.

The channel said Musharraf accepted Pakistan governments diplomatic failure on international front. He, however, said it does not mean that Pakistan should be taken for granted.

To a question on whether a political leadership or army is better suited for Pakistans development, Musharraf said the country had witnessed growth when the army was in power.

When asked about terror camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, he feigned ignorance saying I dont know. However, with a smile, he said, I will let you know only once I get the count of these camps which you are talking about.

On Pakistans diminishing relations with United States, he said there are certain contentious issues which are being addressed by the Pakistan Army.

When referred to the surgical strike and military might of India, he said, Pakistan is a nuclear power with a strong army which cant be bullied.

On Prime Minister Narendra Modis sudden visit to Pakistan and his meeting with Sharif, he said shaking hands is just an artificial move, but for a formal solution, something concrete needs to be done.
The Raman Singh government hardens its stand against the Naxalites days after state Home Minister Ramsewak Paikra said the Chhattisgarh government was ready for a dialogue with the leftwing extremists.

Rediff.com's Prasanna D Zore reports.

Even as an encounter in neighbouring Malkangiri district in Odisha -- where the Greyhounds, a special anti-Naxalite force in Andhra Pradesh along with the Odisha police killed 28 Naxals since October 22 -- continues, the Chhattisgarh government has hardened its stand against the Naxals who dominate the borders areas of Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.

A few days after saying that the Chhattisgarh government was open for talks with the Naxals as quoted by PTI, state Home Minister Ramsewak Paikra says his government would welcome only those Naxals who surrender before the government.

Paikra denies he had said that the Chhattisgarh government was open for a dialogue with the Naxals.

"I was misquoted. We will welcome only those Naxals who have already surrendered or are ready to surrender," Paikra tells Rediff.com over the telephone when asked about his government's stance vis-a-vis the Naxals against the backdrop of the continuing encounter in Odisha's Malkangiri district.

"I had only said that if the Naxals show their willingness to surrender, then the government is ready (for talks). The government wants the Naxals to join the national mainstream, but they should surrender first," Paikra says.

Citing a statement issued by Paikra, PTI reported, 'Mutual dialogue is the foundation of democracy. The state government is ready for talk with any side, including Maoists, to solve the Naxal issue. The government's doors for talks with Naxals are always open provided that the dialogue must be under the purview of democracy and the Constitution."

Paikra denies having said that.

Without giving an official figure about the number of Naxals who have surrendered to the Chhattisgarh government, Paikra says, "I cannot give you the exact figure, but they keep surrendering at regular intervals."

Keeping in mind the Malkangiri encounter, he has ordered the Chhattisgarh police to maintain a strict vigil along the Odisha-Chhattisgarh border.

"We do not expect any fallout of this encounter in Chhattisgarh," he says.

"Our police too are engaged in various operations against the Naxals," the minister adds. "We may take time, but we will uproot the Naxal menace from Chhattisgarh."

IMAGES: Left: A video grab of Chhattisgarh Home Minister Ramsewak Paikra. Top: Naxalites in the Chhattisgarh jungles. Photograph: Reuters
Pakistani troops are pounding border hamlets with heavy mortar shells to especially target civilians in the latest round of ceasefire violations by the neighbouring country.

In the past four days, a six-year old boy and a man have been killed and 24 civilians injured while over 60 cattle have perished and 200 cattle left injured in firing by Pakistani troops. Scores of houses and other structures along the IB in Jammu district are riddled with ammunition from across the border.

The situation worsens during nighttime as villagers struggle to find a safe place to escape from the gunfire.

"Pakistani troops are now increasingly targeting civilians. They are resorting to heavy mortar shelling and firing targeting our houses and animals," says Subash Chander of village Suchetgarh said.

Subash, whose seven family members were injured as shells exploded in the compound of his house close to IB in Suchetgarh, said the Pakistani troops rain mortar bomb shells and fire from automatic weapons targeting civilians.

"We are sitting ducks for the Pakistani troops, who find civilian targets and their properties to target after they failed to fight with Border Security Force troops," he said.

The firing from across the border had intensified from October 21 when BSF killed seven Pak Rangers and a terrorist in retaliatory firing.

Many people from border hamlets in R S Pura, Arnia, Hiranagar, and Pargwal sectors have fled their homes and taken shelter in migrant camps set up by the state government at safer places.

"As the shell landed in our compound, there was a deafening blast and splinters injured us mostly in legs. All were lying in blood," Subash's wife Kamlesh Devi said.

Kamlesh along with her daughter Sukhi is undergoing treatment in GMC hospital.

Daljeet Kaur, who was working close to her house in Chand Chak (R S Pura), was injured when a mortar shell exploded. She was taken by her husband to hospital.

"It looks as if Pakistan is specifically targeting civilians and cattle with specific. Their guns look for human targets," Kaur said.

In Suchetgarh, Ramesh Chander was returning home on a motorbike when a shell exploded near him, injuring his leg.

In Karotana Khurd hamlet close to Indo-Pak border, Pakistani troops shelled the houses of Kuwinder Singh and Bishan Dass.

"We passed the night huddled in one room as the house was shelled," said Kulwinder, who later left his home along with his mother, wife and two daughters.

There are similar horrific tales from people, who feel they living under the shadow of death.

Harbans Lal of Vidhpur says his entire family would have perished had the shell, which pierced through the roof of their house, had landed any closer to the room where they were huddled.

Three shells landed in the compound of the house of Desh Raj of Vidhpur hamlet close to IB in R S Pura.

"One shell hit a vehicle and damaged it. One landed close to wash room and another landed in the compound of the house," he said.

Director General of Border Security Force K K Sharma had on Monday said that Pakistani troops were targeting civilian areas.

"The way they are bombarding our areas, they are targeting civilians but as a policy BSF does not target civilians at all," Sharma told reporters after laying wreath at the mortal remains of BSF Head Constable Susheel Kumar, who died in Pakistani firing on Monday.

"We only target the place from where the fire is coming. We only target military and Pakistan Rangers establishments. we never intentionally target civilian areas," he had said.

"As a policy matter, BSF does not target civilian areas in retaliatory action," Sharma had said.

He also asserted that the forces "have never initiated" firing.

"It is Pakistan who is doing it. As you know in case of Gurnam Singh they killed him in a sniper fire and we gave them a befitting reply," he had said.

IMAGE: A villager shows the pockmarked wall of a building damaged by shelling from the Pakistani side of the border, at Gopad basti village in R S Pura Sector, about 35 km from Jammu. Photograph: PTI Photo
Espionage ring accused Shoaib was arrested in New Delhi on Friday after being brought from Jodhpur, with police claiming that he was in touch with the expelled Pakistan high commission staffer for the last three-four years and had visited the neighbouring country six times.

Investigators said they will try to recover data from a 'phablet' seized from his possession, which he had tried to damage when police in Jodhpur detained him last evening, and question him along with the two other alleged spies Subhash Jangir and Maulana Ramzan arrested in the case.

It is alleged that Shoaib, who is a passport and visa agent, had been responsible for recruiting Subhash and Maulana in the module.

"Shoaib visited Pakistan where his maternal grandparents live at least six times," said Ravindra Yada, joint commissioner of police (Crime).

He was in touch with the Pakistan high commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar for the last three-four years, he said.

Yadav said that some documents and a phablet were recovered from Shoaib.

"There were some classified documents recovered from him. A phablet was also found with him. He had tried to damage the phablet so that the data cannot be recovered but we will try to recover the information," added Yadav.

While Subhash and Maulana had told the police that Shoaib was also present at the Delhi Zoo when they were handing over the documents to Akhtar, Shoaib told the police that he was present at a hotel.

"He had stayed in the hotel while the other two went to the zoo for handing over documents. When he saw that the mobile phones of the other two were switched off, he sensed something wrong," said Yadav.

The officer also said that Shoaib will be questioned along with Subhash and Maulana to clear the contradictions in their versions.

Shoaib's family has a clothes shop in Jodhpur. He was involved in his family business and was also working as a passport and visa agent.

Shoaib was detained near Jodhpur on Thursday evening after Delhi police alerted the local police.

While Akhtar was declared persona non grata, Subhash and Maulana have been arrested on charges of sharing of sensitive information and defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border. They were sent to 12-day police custody.

Shoaib had come in contact with Maulana around one-and- a-half years back and lured him into activities of collecting vital information about installations of army and paramilitary forces in Gujarat and Rajasthan, an officer said.

"We had sent a request to Jodhpur Police about detaining Shoaib and last evening he was detained," said the officer.

IMAGE: Visa agent Shoaib. Photograph: Subhav Shukla/PTI Photo
Hillary Clinton is absolutely ready to be Americas commander-in-chief on day one as the Democratic presidential nominee and former secretary of state has more experience and exposure than any candidate in our lifetime, US First Lady Michelle Obama has said.

IMAGE: Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and US First Lady Michelle Obama greet supporters during a campaign event at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Photograph: Alex Wong/Getty Images

During a rare joint appearance with Clinton at a North Carolina election rally, Michelle contrasted Clintons vision of a powerful, vibrant and strong nation with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trumps vision of hopelessness and despair.

I am out here first and foremost because we have never had a more qualified and prepared candidate for president than our friend Hillary Clinton. Never before in our lifetime. I say this everywhere I go, she said.

I admire and respect Hillary. She has been a lawyer, a law professor, First Lady of Arkansas, First Lady of the US, a US Senator, secretary of state. She has more experience and exposure to the presidency than any candidate in our lifetime.

Yes, more than Barack (Obama). More than Bill (Clinton). So she is absolutely ready to be commander-in-chief on day one. And yes, she happens to be a woman, Michelle said.

IMAGE: Michelle has emerged as a strong advocate of Clinton and has made several impressive speeches in some of the key battle ground states. Photograph: Alex Wong/Getty Images

In the past few weeks, Michelle, 52, has emerged as a strong advocate of Clinton, 69, and has made several impressive speeches in some of the key battle ground states.

It takes a level of generosity of spirit to do what Hillary has done in her career, in her life, for our family, for this nation. If people wonder, yes, Hillary Clinton is my friend. She has been a friend to mine and Barack, Malia, Sasha and Bill and Chelsea have been embracing and supportive from the very day my husband took the oath of office, she said.

IMAGE: Michelle said Clinton is her friend and has been a friend to her family, including the US President Barack Obama. Photograph: Alex Wong/Getty Images

The US First Lady called this election unprecedented.

I do not think we have ever had two candidates with such dramatically different visions of who we are and how we move forward as a nation.

One candidate has a vision that is grounded in hopelessness and despair, a vision of a country that is weak and divided, where our communities are in chaos, our fellow citizens a threat. This candidate calls on us to turn against each other, to build walls, to be afraid, Michelle said without mentioning Trump, 70.

And then there is Hillarys vision for this country that you just heard, a vision of a nation that is powerful and vibrant and strong, big enough to have a place for all of us, a nation where we each have something very special to contribute and where we are always stronger together.

IMAGE: "She has more experience and exposure to the presidency, more than Barack, more than Bill. she is absolutely ready to be commander-in-chief on day one. And yes, she happens to be a woman," said Michelle about clinton. Photograph: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

That is the choice we face between those who divide this country into us versus them and those who tell us to embrace our better angels and choose hope over fear, she said.

Michelle said this years election is not about Republicans versus Democrats, but about something much bigger.

We know the influence our president has on our children, how they turn on the TV and they see the most powerful role model in the world, someone who shows them how to treat others, how to deal with disappointment, whether to tell the truth, Michelle added.
As military confrontation increased on the border, two civilians were killed in Jammu region of India in cross-border shelling and firing overnight even as the Border Security Force on Friday claimed to have killed 15 Pakistani soldiers over the last one week.

The BSF, which primarily guards the International Border with Pakistan, said it had also foiled two infiltration bids in Samba district two days back. Besides, BAT (Border Action Team) attacks from Pakistani side along the Line of Control have also been thwarted during the past 24 hours.

Firing mortar shells and using automatic weapons, Pakistani troops targeted civilian areas and forward security posts along the International Border and Line of Control in Jammu, Kathua, Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu and Kashmir.

"At 1720 hour yesterday (Thursday), Pakistan Rangers started unprovoked heavy firing and shelling in Kathua sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba. It continued till 0500 hours today in the area of 24 BSF posts," a senior BSF officer said.

"In the Pakistani shelling, one civilian died in Khour belt of Pallanwala sector on Friday," Jammu Deputy Commissioner Simrandeep Singh said, adding another civilian was injured in R S Pura sector.

Similarly, one woman Usma Bi, aged 50 years, was killed in shelling by Pakistan on Gohlad village in Mendhar tehsil of Poonch district on Friday, Defence spokesman said.

Another civilian was injured in area, the reports said.

BSF Additional Director General Arun Kumar said as per the ammunition used, it seems Pakistani Army Army is backing the Rangers and has taken over the posts of paramilitary force, which is further cause of escalation.

Kumar, who laid wreath at the moral remains of the BSF martyr Head Constable Jitendra Singh in Jammu, said "they (Pakistani side) are resorting to heavy firing and shelling and we are giving them befitting reply."

He said the BSF has inflicted heavy damage on Pakistani side.

"As far the number of casualities on other side is concerned, which our men have seen through our eyes and instruments, 15 Pakistani soldiers have been killed after the sniping incident of Constable Gurnam Singh (on October 21)," he said. Gurnam was injured in the sniper firing and then succumbed to the injuries.

"They (Pakistani side) have suffered damage but are hiding them in public domain and they do not accept it. Last night we have destroyed their OP (observation post) towers and some OP towers caught fire due to our firing," Kumar said.

He said Pakistani Rangers, Pakistani regulars and civilian population on their side have suffered heavy damage because of the Indian retaliation.

"The damage to civilian population is much more (than us)... We have seen large number of ambulances coming and picking up injured. They have been making announcements from mosques asking people to assemble for last rites. All that points that they suffered a lot," the BSF officer said.

"Their (Pakistani) OPs (observation posts) have been raised to the ground. Their civilian population has also been hit. We do not fire on populations," the BSF ADG said.

"We have lost three jawans. Two of our jawans are injured. One civilian has lost his life and 15 are injured," he added.

Giving further details about the Pakistani regulars backing Rangers in firing, Kumar said, "the arms and ammunition they fire at us, it confirms that Pakistani regulars have taken over as posts and are supporting Pakistani Rangers... 120 mm mortars are being used which we take a clue that regulars are supporting them."

He said heavy firing and shelling is taking place for the last one week since the death of Gurnam in sniper fire.

"On 19-20 October night when they (Pakistani troops) forced militants to infiltrate to this side, and later the next day sniped our Constable Gurnam Singh, since then the incident of firing and shelling have increased by them and we are giving befitting reply," he said.

The ADG said that in the process BSF lost third man.

"It is a sad moment for us that we have lost 3rd jawan in the firing last night, Head Constable Jitendra Singh, who was on duty, when a stray bullet hit his lever resulting in his death," he said.

"We want peace to prevail... But if they (Pakistan) violate ceasefire, we will be forced to give a befitting reply," BSF officer said.

He added, "There have been two infiltration bids by armed militants a day before. We had seen the movement of the militants and resorted to firing forcing them to flee." The infiltration bid was foiled in Samba district along IB.

"They (Pakistani forces) is engineering infiltrations (of armed militants)," Kumar said.

The ADG said, "We are cautious. They may try again. Winter is coming. So the infiltration bids in the coming time will be more but we a ready to foil them."

To a question regarding the BAT (Border Action Team) attacks from the Pakistani side, the ADG said, "during the last 24 hours, action of BAT teams have taken place on the LoC. On the LoC they have resorted to BAT actions and they have been given befitting answer. There have been no BAT action of IB so far."
United States vice presidential candidate Mike Pences campaign plane slid off the runway as it landed at New Yorks LaGuardia Airport on Thursday evening.

The governor of Indiana, who was returning from a campaign event in Iowa, was not hurt in the bumpy landing.

There were 37 people on the plane, including the candidate, journalists and campaign staff, when it skidded off the runway at around 7.50 pm during a heavy downpour.

Emergency crews were on site but no injuries were reported.

Witnesses say the plane made such a hard landing that mud splashed up on the plane windshield, and the pilot slammed on his brakes so hard that the passengers could smell burning rubber.

The rough landing even tore up the tarmac along the LaGuardia runway.

Pence has since tweeted to let his supporters know he is safe.

So thankful everyone on our plane is safe, he wrote. Grateful for our first responders and the concern and prayers of so many. Back on the trail tomorrow!



At the time of the incident, Trump was in Ohio, where he later addressed a rally in Geneva and briefly referenced the close call.

I just spoke to our future vice president, and hes OK. Do you know he was in a big accident with the plane? Trump said. Everybodys fine. But what a great decision it was to get Mike Pence. What a great guy he is. What a great job hes doing.

Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton also offered her regards via Twitter as well, writing, Glad to hear @mike_pence, his staff, secret service, and the crew are all safe. -H.

Image: Men inspect a campaign plane that had been carrying US Republican vice presidential candidate Mike Pence after it skidded off the runway while landing in the rain at LaGuardia Airport in New York. Photograph: Lucas Jackson/Reuters
In a "barbaric" incident, terrorists, aided by the cover fire by Pakistani Army, on Friday night crossed the Line of Control and killed an Indian soldier and mutilated his body in Macchil sector of Kupwara district of Kashmir.

One terrorist was killed in the incident which the Indian army said will be "responded to appropriately".

Television channel India Today reported that the terrorists beheaded the soldier, reportedly belonging to the 17 Sikh regiment, and carried his head back with them across the LoC.

"In an encounter close to the Line of Control this evening, one solider was martyred and one terrorist was killed. The terrorists mutilated the body of the jawan before fleeing back into Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir under the cover of firing by Pakistan Army," an army spokesman said.

He said the incident reflected the barbarism pervading in official and unofficial organisations in Pakistan.

"The incident will be responded to appropriately," he added.
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.
Dubai, United Arab Emirates -- (ReleaseWire) -- 10/27/2016 --Dubai Capital Management (DCM) has announced it will start accepting a lower minimum deposit for its well-known DCM Pro Fund. Company officials are expected to meet with some of the largest corporate investors to celebrate the continuous success of the fund.



With collectively 20 years of banking experience, Alexander Wittenberg and Joseph Sprengmann sought to change the face of investment banking. Their Dubai based investment company focused on the concepts of asset growth and wealth protection. Since then, DCM has operated in three countries with over thirty employees and has successfully managed more than 250 million USD.



A lower minimum deposit means that DCM officials can attract more investors from the middle class and improve investor confidence. A DCM Pro Fund allows clients to attain fully-secured capital in an easy to access manner. DCM funds tend to be historically the most successful in the industry.



CEO John Kinker explains, "We are proud to announce that from now on even more investors meet the criteria to take advantage of this wonderful investment opportunity."



More information is expected to be released following a shareholders meeting this fall.



About Dubai Capital Management

DCM opened its first office in Dubai in 2010 and is owned by DCM Holding Ltd. It has enjoyed 6 years of successful operation with positive trading results since day one. As of today, DCM offers its products to thousands of investors worldwide and maintains representative offices in France and China. The DCM Pro and DCM Elite Fund are the centerpieces of the managed investment strategy DCM offers to its investors. A capital guarantee for the initial investment is one of the unique features distinguishing DCM from its competitors.



For more information, visit http://dcm-invest.com



Contact:

Bill Slaker, Media Relations

Level 28, Al Habtoor Business Tower

Dubai Marina, Dubai, UAE

Office: +971 4 453 22632

billslaker@dcm-invest.com
Morgan County Election Board reviews financial records

The Morgan County Election Board met Friday to review the campaign finance reports of local candidates running for office.
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Taipei, Oct. 28 (CNA) The United States has been calling for flexibility and calm in the Taiwan Strait and feels that dialogue between the two sides is needed, the new chairman of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said Friday during a visit to Taiwan.
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Wine tasting

Los Aficionados will conduct a wine tasting from 4-6 p.m. Tuesday at The Grace Museum, 102 Cypress St. Tickets are $45, with proceeds going to the museum. Registration is limited. To register, call 325-673-4587.

Final Ala Cumba

A remembrance event, the Final Ala Cumba, will begin at 5:15 p.m. Tuesday at the Sacred Wind statue on the campus quad. A roll call will be presented in memory of McMurry alumni, friends, students, faculty and staff who have died. To submit a name, call 325-793-4608.

Hospice documentary

Interim HealthCare Hospice will present a free screening of the documentary "Being Mortal" at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Paramount Theatre, 352 Cypress St. Reservations are requested. To RSVP, contact 325-437-2982 or jamie.foreman@interimhh.com.

Documentary

A free showing of part of the PBS documentary series "Latino Americans" will begin at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at The Grace Museum, 102 Cypress St.

Candlelight memorial

The West Texas Rehabilitation Center Hospice of the Big Country will conduct its annual candlelight memorial service at 6:30 p.m. Thursday in Logsdon Chapel at Hardin-Simmons University. A reception will follow. For more information, call 325-793-5450.

Diabetes Texas Style

The 22nd annual Diabetes Texas Style workshop will be presented from 8 a.m. to noon Nov. 5 in the Shelton Building at Hendrick Medical Center, 2000 Pine St. Exhibits, presentations and more will be available. For more information, call 325-672-6048.

Harmony Family Services gala

Harmony Family Services Inc. will conduct its 50th anniversary gala dinner at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 5 in the Hunter Welcome Center at Abilene Christian University. Jenny Broughton will be the featured speaker. Tickets are $35. For tickets, call 325-672-7200 or go to www.harmonyfamilyservices.org.
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By Loretta Fulton, Special to the Reporter-News

There's good news and bad news coming from outer space.

"There are no dinosaur killers out there," Lindley Johnson assured, starting off with the good news that no massive asteroids are about to strike the planet.

And the bad?

Lesser asteroids can cause damage, too.

"We have a long ways to go to find the smaller ones," he said, referring to their immense numbers.

Johnson is the planetary defense officer for NASA and is former program executive for the space agency's Near-Earth Object Program.

The objects he was talking about are asteroids, the stuff of both science fiction and real-life science. Johnson joined Hardin-Simmons University mathematics and astronomy professor Patrick Miller for a presentation Thursday night at Abilene Christian University.

The program, "Asteroid Night," was hosted by the West Texas Science Center, a nonprofit focused on making science and mathematics more accessible to the public and to students.

Johnson led off the program, apologizing for a 10-minute delay resulting from technical difficulties.

"That's why we always test spacecraft for about six months," he said, "before we launch them."

Once the video equipment was working, Johnson showed a photo of Meteor Crater near Winslow, Arizona, which, Johnson noted looked like Mars. The crater is the best preserved meteorite impact site on the planet and measures almost 1 mile across and more than 550 feet deep.

The impact occurred 50,000 years ago. That kind of impact may be rare, but smaller impacts aren't.

"We get hit by the small stuff daily," Johnson said.

The office that Johnson heads, the Planetary Defense Coordination Office, places an emphasis on the word "coordination," he said. Its primary mission is to detect and track near-Earth objects, including asteroids and comets, working in cooperation with national and international partners. The office also issues notices of close passes and warns of detected potential impacts.

Johnson said that as of Oct. 22, 15,043 objects had been cataloged through NASA's Near-Earth Object Program.

Johnson said that even though no "dinosaur killers" are lurking, ready to strike planet Earth, smaller ones could do a great amount of damage, depending on where they hit.

As a defense against a strike by even a small asteroid, the International Asteroid Warning Network was established in 2013 and endorsed by the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. NASA is a part of the network, along with other international space agencies and organizations. Observatories in 40 countries are involved.

"We're trying to get everybody on the same page," Johnson said.

One of the most exciting detections of a near-Earth asteroid came just a year ago. On Oct. 10, 2015, the asteroid was sighted by scientists at an observatory operated by the University of Hawaii. It safely passed by Earth on Oct. 31.

"Of course," Johnson said, "we called it the Great Pumpkin."
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Today in history: On Oct. 28, 1992, the 1,480-foot Leif Erickson Tunnel opens on I-35 in Duluth to complete the highway, which runs from the Mexican border to that with Canada. Officials announce the Interstate Highway System overall is 99.7 complete. The highway was proposed in 1958 but because invasive freeways fell out of favor in the 1960s, the Duluth project was not finished. A compromise, called a "cut and over," put the highway underground and a park was built on top.
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Cambodian twin brothers and environmental activists Chum Huor and Chum Huot were detained briefly by immigration officers on Friday while trying to cross the border from Cambodia into Vietnam, one of the two men told RFAs Khmer Service.



The pair, who were traveling by motorbike, had hoped to take a short cut through Vietnam to cross back into Cambodia to visit the Pak Nam temple in Kandal provinces Koh Thom district, Chum Huot told RFA by phone.



They may have thought we were going there to stir up trouble over border issues at the temple, Chum Huor said.



We were the only two people who were stopped, questioned, and not allowed to cross the border. Other people could travel freely, and some didnt even need to show their identification to the authorities, he said.



This was very unjust, he added.



After being held for three hours at the border, the two men were released after fixing their thumbprints to a document provided by authorities, but were not allowed to cross into Vietnam, he said.



Also speaking to RFA, Kim Sarin-head of the refugees and immigrants department of Cambodias Ministry of Interiorsaid the two brothers were stopped because they had failed to obtain passport stamps authorizing an earlier trip to Thailand.



It was illegal to leave and re-enter Cambodia without them, Kim Sarin said. We wont allow them to leave Cambodia unless they produce proper immigration documents regarding their previous travels.



Active in protests



Chum Huor and Chum Huot, close friends of assassinated government critic Kem Ley, had fled Cambodia on July 14, four days after the pundits murder and after they had posted criticisms of the governments investigation into the murder online.



They have also been active participants in campaigns and protests to stop the building of the 260-megawatt Don Sahong hydropower dam being built along the Mekong River in southern Laos, less than a mile from the Cambodian border.



Environmental activists say the dam will block transboundary fish migration routes and disrupt the livelihoods of villagers living near the dam and along the river and its tributaries.



Chum Huor and Chum Huot are prominent activists who are engaged in raising social issues related to the border and the environment, Am Sam Ath, technical adviser to the Cambodian rights group Licadho, told RFA on Friday.



They used to encounter similar [travel] restrictions when they tried to go to Laos to protest the construction of the dam, he said.



Reported by Sereyvuth Oung for RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Nareth Muong. Written in English by Richard Finney.




Chinese authorities have shuttered a popular website used by ethnic Mongolians following the death of a veteran dissident writer.



Prominent author and ethnic Mongolian activist Huuchinhuu Govruud, known in Chinese as Gao Yulian, had been under prolonged house arrest and in financial difficulties over her open support for long-term friend and fellow activist Hada.



State security police froze her two bank accounts in retaliation for her support of Hada and his activist wife Xinna, she said in a statement in January 2015.



According to exiled ethnic Mongolian rights activist Xi Haiming, Huuchinhuu died on Oct. 25 after a lifetime of dissent and activism on behalf of ethnic Mongolians in China.



"Gao Yulian is the pride of the Mongolian people and her spirit will be with us forever," Xi told RFA in an interview after her death.



Huuchinhuu's death aged 61 at her hometown of Tongliao in northern China's Inner Mongolia region had sent shock waves through the dissident community, both Han Chinese and Mongolian, in China and overseas, Xi said.



He said the Genghis Khan website was shuttered by censors after the tributes began pouring in from fellow dissidents and ethnic Mongolians.



"The news of the death of Ms. Gao Yulian caused a widespread reaction among ethnic Mongolians," Xi told RFA.



"We all have different memories of her, and there are many poems and eulogies mourning her loss on Mongolian websites," he said.



"Eventually, the Genghis Khan website was shut down."



'Very influential leader'



Huuchinhuu had become a "very influential leader" of her generation of ethnic Mongolians after taking part in the student movement of 1981, Xi said.



"As a participant in the 1981 movement, I feel that I have lost an old friend and was very sad [to hear of her death]," he said.



Gao was arrested in 1995 for joining the Southern Mongolian Democratic Alliance formed by Hada, and was repeatedly detained, beaten up, and harrassed by the authorities in the years that followed.



"She suffered oppression her whole life," Xi said. "She published three or four books, the last of which had the entire print run confiscated from the publishing house by the local police. Some were even confiscated before she could have them printed," Xi said.



"She was a steadfast and reasonable individual who never backed down. I think we can say she was the pride of her generation of Mongolians."



Huuchinhuu was "a symbol of Mongolian culture," Xi said.



"Her death is a huge loss to us, but her spirit will never die, and the Mongolians will continue their struggle," he said.



Environmental destruction



Ethnic Mongolians, who make up almost 20 percent of Inner Mongolia's population of 23 million, increasingly complain of widespread environmental destruction and unfair development policies in their homeland.



Clashes between Chinese state-backed mining or forestry companies and herding communities are common in the region, which borders the independent country of Mongolia.



Since his release from a 19-year jail term and four years additional detention, Hada and his wife Xinna have continued to speak out on behalf of Mongolian herders in spite of routine police harassment.



The New York-based rights group Southern Mongolian Human Rights and Information Center (SMHRIC) estimates that at least 160,000 ethnic Mongolians have been forcibly evicted from traditional grazing lands in recent decades, adding that the true number is likely to be far higher than that in official media reports.



Reported by Tian Yi for RFA's Mandarin Service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie.




As the ruling Chinese Communist Party held a plenary meeting of its powerful Central Committee this week, feminists hit out at the low proportion of women in the corridors of power.



Just 33 Central Committee members out of 350 are women, while only two women sit on the 25-member Politburo. And no woman has ever taken up one of seven seats on the all-powerful Politburo standing committee.



The country ranked 99th out of 144 in the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report for 2016, and 74th in the political power section.



The current ratio of male to female members of the country's rubber-stamp parliament, the National People's Congress (NPC) is 76 to 24, rising to 88 to 12 at ministerial level, the report found.



Guangdong-based women's rights activist Xiao Meili said the country has gone backwards since the Communist Party founded the People's Republic in 1949.



"At the time of the founding of the People's Republic of China, women's participation in politics was better than it is now, and there were still a number of feminists in the party," Xiao said.



"Now there are basically just a handful, and they are pretty marginalized, and don't have much opportunity to make an impact."



"This is one of the key factors behind China's appalling level of [female] participation in political power," she said.



Anhui provincial governor Li Bin is the only woman to head a provincial government. Only one woman has ever done so before her.



And Tianjin party secretary Sun Chunlan is the only woman in charge of a city.



Just 23 percent of national-level civil servants are women, and fewer than one percent of village committees are chaired by a woman.



Figures don't match



According to a recent article by Jude Howell of the London School of Economics, the figures don't match the relatively high level of economic participation enjoyed by Chinese women.



"Despite ideological campaigns during the Maoist decades to change peoples thinking around gender roles, entrenched gendered attitudes remain amongst both men and women," Howell wrote in an article for the East Asia Forum website earlier this month.



"Women are often described as lacking self-confidence or lacking quality," she said.



Yang Jianli, who heads the Washington-based nongovernmental organization Citizen Power, agreed, saying that China is basically still very much a male-dominated society.



"There have been advocates of equal rights throughout the modern period, from the 1911 revolution right through to the communist revolution [of 1949] ... but people still take discrimination against women for granted," Yang said.



"This is a very serious problem."



Rituals of power



According to Howell, many of the rituals of power and connection in China's political system are male-oriented.



"Surviving in a male-dominated political system ... means playing the cultural games that are laid down by men, such as smoking and drinking heavily," she wrote.



"Women are thus caught in a dilemmaif they drink along with men, their reputation might be sullied; but if they do not drink along with the men, then it appears that they are not part of the group, and may forfeit influence and connections."



Meanwhile, overt gender discrimination is rife in job advertisements and recruitment literature produced by companies and government agencies alike, feminists said.



"Employment discrimination is very common in China, but basically nobody wants to take this issue to court," Xiao said. "There have only been four such lawsuits, and all of them have been brought with great difficulty."



"In the most recent example, the court awarded the plaintiff 2,000 yuan [U.S.$300], so she appealed, and only then did they order the company to apologize," she said.



"It's still very hard for women to fight to uphold their rights."



Promoted in theory



The ruling Chinese Communist Party has promoted gender equality, at least in theory, since it came to power in 1949.



But women's and rights campaigners say the reality is very different on the ground and that discrimination still presents major obstacles to equality.



Last year, the authorities detained feminists Li Tingting, Wei Tingting, Wang Man, Zheng Churan,and Wu Rongrong, holding them for five weeks on public order charges after they planned a public transport awareness campaign to combat sexual harassment.



The five women, whose detention prompted an international outcry, are still not allowed to leave their hometowns without police approval, and still have the charges hanging over them although their lawyers say they broke no law.



The Fourth World Conference on Women in 1995 in Beijing set out a challenging program of improvements to the rights and opportunities offered to women and girls around the world, as well as requiring governments to report back to the United Nations on progress in key areas.



The Beijing Declaration produced by the conference included a pledge to "ensure equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms for all women and girls."



Reported by Lin Ping for RFA's Mandarin Service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie.
Authorities in China's northwestern region of Xinjiang have reportedly detained a man for using circumvention software to scale the complex system of blocks, filters, and human censorship known as the Great Firewall.



Police in Xinjiang's Changji city detained a man this month for allegedly "downloading violent and terrorist circumvention software" on Oct. 13, according to a leaked crime report that circulated briefly on social media before being deleted, the Global Voice Online blog reported.



"The leak raises serious questions about the consequences of using VPNs, web proxies, and other tools that help Internet users get around censorship and other obstacles (like slow speeds) in online networks," blog author and Internet activist Oiwan Lam wrote.



"It has been estimated that 1-3 percent of China's internet users use a circumvention tool to visit overseas websites," Lam said.



Citing copies of the report, Lam said the circumvention tool described in the report was a VPN (virtual private network), which enables users in China to get around the Great Firewall and visit banned websites.



However, it was unclear exactly how a VPN, which provides no content of its own, could be classed as "terrorist and violent," Lam said.



"This leaves Internet users with no way to know if their software or other tools are legal or not," she wrote.



Services suspended



Last November, the New York Times reported that Xinjiang residents using overseas-based smartphone chat apps and VPNs had their services suspended by police.



Users were told to report to a nearby police station to get their service restored, and warned that the suspensions were triggered by the use of a VPN.



China has vowed to crack down on what it calls religious extremism in Xinjiang, and blames ethnic minority Uyghur "extremists" for a string of violent attacks and clashes in recent years.



But critics say the authorities regularly conduct "strike hard campaigns targeting the mostly Muslim ethnic group, including random, nighttime police raids on Uyghur households, a ban on children being brought up as Muslims, and curbs on the language, clothing, and personal appearance of the Uyghur people.



Chinese authorities in Xinjiang routinely target men wearing beards and traditional robes and women wearing veils, while banning Uyghur families from taking their children to mosques.



Dilxat Raxit, spokesman for the World Uyghur Congress exile group, said the authorities are very worried about the use of VPNs to get news not approved by the ruling Chinese Communist Party.



"The authorities are terrified that [overseas] information will get out and start circulating, which they fear will turn people into potential terrorists," Raxit said.



"The ongoing policies of curbs, surveillance, and suppression by the Chinese government is leading to something of a crisis for the regime," he said. "It has already got to the point of unsustainability."



"I think that the Chinese government fears domestic opposition more than anything."



Officials use them, too



Writing in Global Voices Online, Lam quoted former Xinjiang Communist Party chief Zhang Chunxian as saying that 90 percent of terrorism in the region was the result of jumping over the Great Firewall, where people become radicalized by overseas propaganda videos.



Chinese online activist Xiucai Jianghu said there is no law against using circumvention software in China, however.



"Even officials use this kind of software to climb the Great Firewall," he said. "If it's OK for them to do it, then it's OK for ordinary people to do, because we're equal, right?"



"They basically say you have broken the law if they want to control you ... If they want to break the law, they break it."



Online activist Jia Pin said that if the case means that VPNs are now on the list of terrorist equipment, then more and more people are likely to be accused of terrorism in future.



"Ethnic tensions are very tense right now, and there are frequent acts of extreme opposition," Jia said.



"But regardless of whether it's in Xinjiang or the rest of China, controls on freedom of expression are getting tighter and tighter."



Reported by Qiao Long for RFA's Mandarin Service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie.




Nguyen Thi Tuyet Lan, the mother of popular blogger Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, who writes under the pen name Mother Mushroom, has made a public appeal following her daughter's arrest on Oct. 10. Quynh co-founded the Network of Vietnamese Bloggers, one of the few independent writers associations in a country where the news media and publishing industry are tightly controlled by the governing Communist Party, and had blogged extensively about the Formosa Plastics Group steel plant chemical spill in April that killed tons of marine life and left fishermen and tourism industry workers jobless in four provinces.

On Oct. 10, my daughter was arrested by the Khanh Hoa provincial police and accused of propagandizing against the state of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam according to Article 88 of the Penal Code. She is being kept in the Khanh Hoa provincial polices detention station.

After Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynhs arrest, our family has received sympathy and attention from friends inside and outside of Vietnam. Some international human rights groups and media have raised my daughters case. As the mother of a daughter who was arrested for her fight against injustice and protection of sovereignty, democracy and the environment, I really need more support from you who can raise your voices demanding freedom and justice for Quynh.

My daughter, blogger Mother Mushroom, Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, would have been deemed innocent if it were in a free nation. For her advocacy for human rights, environmental protection and helping others who were imprisoned wrongly, she was arrested, leaving behind two children aged four and 10, who miss their mother every day.

Since the police came to our house to arrest Quynh, our family has always lived in fear. I write this letter to call on your attention to the arrest of my daughter. Please raise your voices together with us to demand justice for Mother Mushroom.



It's been three months since her arrest and we have not received any news about my daughter. At the time of her arrest, she told me that she would go on a hunger strike and would not say anything until she met her lawyer. We have sent a petition to ask for a lawyer twice, but they denied our request.

They invited me to meet with them on Oct. 17 and Oct. 25. They rejected assigning lawyers based on Article 58, which says that during detention, a lawyer is not allowed. I asked to see a working report. They told me that I could only look at it there, but could not take it with me. On Oct. 25, I told them that I had read the penal code and there is no sentence about not providing a working report and so I asked for the document but they did not give it to me.

I want everybody and international community to help and be with us demanding freedom and justice for Quynh. It is not only for Quynh but for everybody.

Reported by Gia Minh for RFA's Vietnamese Service. Translated by Viet Ha.


WASHINGTON  On the occasion of Turkmenistans Independence Day, demonstrators gathered in front of the Turkmen Embassy in Washington, D.C. on October 28 to draw attention to the country's abysmal record on media freedom.

The imprisonment of RFE/RL contributor Saparmamed Nepeskuliev, held incommunicado since July, 2015, was among the cases championed during the rally organized by the media advocacy group Reporters Without Borders (RSF). An RSF representative called on Turkmen authorities to make [Nepeskulievs] whereabouts known, and release him immediately so that he can return to be with his family. RFE/RL President Thomas Kent has called Nepeskulievs imprisonment outrageous and thoroughly inhumane, while seven U.S. Congressmen, led by Rep. Adam Schiff (R-CA), urged Nepeskuliev's release in a July 2016 letter to Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov.

Nepeskuliev began working for RFE/RL's Turkmen Service in 2015, boldly producing video reports documenting decrepit infrastructure, financial hardship, economic inequality, and depressed schools in the countrys western region.

He disappeared on July 7, 2015 in Turkmenistans Caspian Sea resort city of Avaza, and was held incommunicado before a Turkmen court, in a closed session on August 31, 2015, sentenced him to three years in prison on narcotics charges that rights groups believe were fabricated in retaliation for his reporting.

In an incident earlier this month, veteran Turkmen Service freelancer Soltan Achilova was questioned and then physically attacked by plainclothes men she believed to be from the state security service while taking photos of persons queuing outside of a shop in the capital, Ashgabat.

In 2006, Ogulsapar Muradova, a correspondent for RFE/RL and VOA, died under unexplained circumstances in a Turkmen prison. RFE/RL has neither a bureau nor accredited journalists in Turkmenistan, and its website is permanently blocked, obliging visitors to use proxy servers to access the site. Stringers and freelancers have long been subject to surveillance, but beginning in 2014, and coinciding with a dramatic rise in the Turkmen Service's online traffic, authorities intensified their pressure on correspondents, targeting them and their family members to interrogations, public denunciations, false criminal accusations, and incommunicado detentions.

In the twelve months to August 2016, the Services website logged an average of nearly 630,000 visits and one million page views per month, while its Facebook page has more than 162,000 fans.

Turkmenistan is consistently ranked as one of the worst violators of press freedom by media monitoring groups, including Freedom House and RSF.
Chechnyas Culture Ministry has ordered the creation of a special police unit to ensure proper traditions are observed at weddings in the Russian region.



The news agency TASS said a special morality unit will be charged with monitoring wedding celebrations.



If something is noticed that isnt in accordance with our mindset or clothing, or if there is improper dancing, it will be halted, the agency quoted the ministry as saying.



The move isnt the first time that local authorities have sought to regulate such celebrations, some of which have garnered wide attention for ostentatious displays.



Chechnyas leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, and other officials have frequently spoken out about foreign influences that they say are undermining traditions in the Muslim region.



In the Chechen town of Argun, officials decreed that wedding convoys -- where a bridal party parades through the streets -- may consist of between three and five cars.



Last year, the mayor of Chechnyas capital, Grozny, issued an order banning cake cutting and what he complained were indecent dance moves at weddings.

With reporting by RFE/RL's Kavkaz.Realii
U.S. air strikes in eastern Afghanistan killed several Al-Qaeda militants, including two Arabs and four Pakistanis, Afghan officials said on October 27.

Although the officials said they could not definitively identify the militants slain in a remote area of Kunar Province, they likely included two top leaders that the Pentagon said it targeted in the drone strikes.

Kunar's governor, Wahidullah Kalemzai, told RFE/RL's Radio Azadi that four militants of foreign origin were killed in an area of the province where Al-Qaeda has been present for years.

Other local officials reported that as many as eight militants were killed, including two Arabs and four Pakistanis. The militant leaders targeted by the Pentagon -- Faruq al-Qatani and Bilal al-Utabi -- were both Arab.

The AFP news agency quoted Afghan officials as saying they could confirm the death of Qatani and Utabi in the drone strikes.

The Pentagon said on October 26 that Qatani was a senior planner for attacks against the United States and had a hand in deadly attacks on American forces in Afghanistan.

Based on reporting by AP, AFP, and Radio Azadi


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A Baku court has sentenced pro-democracy activist Qiyas Ibrahimov to 10 years in prison for drug trafficking -- a charge filed shortly after he spray-painted an antigovernment slogan on a monument to the country's former president. Amnesty International called the charges a "shocking assault on freedom of expression." (RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service)
Authorities in Azerbaijan say security forces have killed two suspected "terrorists" in an operation conducted in "various regions of the republic."

The government said on October 28 that the operations were conducted over the previous two days and were aimed at "arresting members of a radical criminal group" identified as the Caucasian Jamaat.

Officials said one suspected "terrorist" had been arrested. They did not say where the killings or the arrest took place.

In February, Azerbaijan arrested eight men on suspicion of fighting for the Islamic State (IS) extremist organization in Syria and Iraq.

Based on reporting by AFP and TASS
A Minsk court has sentenced a Belarusian blogger to nearly two years of house arrest after finding him guilty of "inciting hatred" on his blog, which was critical of Russian policy toward Belarus and Ukraine.

Eduard Palchys, 26, had been held in jail since January as prosecutors investigated his case.

Under the court sentence, Palchys must return home nightly and regularly report to local police.

Belarusian authorities had opened a criminal case into Palchys's blog posts in late 2014.

Last year, he was ordered held in a psychiatric hospital for one month, and when he was released, he fled to Ukraine.

Palchys was then arrested in January by Russian security forces as he was trying to enter that country.

He was subsequently extradited to Belarus, where he was immediately jailed.


Kosovo prosecutors have indicted a senior politician in connection with two murders allegedly committed during the Balkan region's bitter war in the late 1990s.

The special prosecutor's office said on October 28 that Fatmir Limaj failed to prevent the murder of two Albanians in 1998 and also neglected to conduct a proper follow-up investigation into the case.

Limaj is a former commander in the Kosovo Liberation Army that fought a separatist war against Serbia in 1998-1999. He is now the leader of an opposition political party.

A United Nations tribunal acquitted Limaj on war crimes charges in 2005. Seven years later, a Pristina court staffed with international judges cleared him of allegations of torturing and killing Serb detainees during the conflict.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, which Belgrade has never recognized.
Pakistan and India have each expelled a diplomat from the other country amid escalating tensions between the two South Asian powers over the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.

India announced early on October 27 that it had expelled a staffer at the Pakistani Embassy in New Delhi after briefly detaining him for espionage activities.

Islamabad said the allegations against its diplomat, Mahmood Akhtar, were "false and unsubstantiated." Akhtar was told he had to leave New Delhi by October 29.

Indian officials said Akhtar was detained briefly for questioning and was found with documents detailing Indian troop deployments along the India-Pakistan border.

They said two Indian men, from the western state of Rajasthan bordering Pakistan, were arrested for passing on information to Akhtar.

Later on October 27, Pakistan's Foreign Ministry responded tit for tat, saying it had asked Indian Embassy official Sujeel Singh to leave Pakistan for violating diplomatic norms. It said Singh must also leave the country by October 29.

Tensions between India and Pakistan have soared since a militant raid last month on an Indian Army base near the de-facto border dividing Kashmir killed 19 soldiers, the worst such attack in more than a decade.

Based on reporting by AP, AFP, and Reuters


More than 20 leading members of the Russian Academy of Sciences have issued an open letter supporting calls for Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky to be stripped of his academic degree because his dissertation "stands outside the realm of scholarship."

The letter, published in the newspaper Kommersant on October 28, also attacks a recent decision to transfer the hearing of the case from the dissertation council of the Urals Federal University to the Higher Attestation Commission (VAK) of the Education Ministry.

The academics say that decision amounted to "unprecedented interference" in the academic-credentials process in Russia.

The nongovernmental organization Dissernet has challenged Medinsky's dissertations, saying that his doctoral dissertation and his two "higher doctoral" dissertations all contain elements of plagiarism.

Earlier this month, the VAK abruptly cancelled a hearing on the matter at the Urals Federal University and took over the case itself in order to prevent "political attacks on public figures."

Based on reporting by RBK, Kommersant, and TASS
Russia has dismissed as "unconvincing" a United Nations report finding that Syrian forces carried out three chemical attacks, and said no sanctions should be imposed.

"We believe that the proof is not there for any punitive action to be taken. It's simply not there," Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said after a closed-door UN Security Council meeting on the report on October 27.

The joint UN-Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons report provided documentation that government forces carried out three chlorine gas attacks on villages in 2014 and 2015.

But Churkin insisted the findings were not strong enough to trigger sanctions.

The conclusions "are not substantiated by sufficient testimonial basis, first of all material proof. They are full of contradictions and therefore unconvincing," he said.

The findings are "not definitive, have no legally binding force and cannot serve as accusatory conclusions for taking legal decisions," he said.

Britain and France are demanding sanctions, however.

"Those responsible for using chemical weapons must be sanctioned. There is no other way," French Ambassador Francois Delattre said.

"There should be accountability for every single person involved in any use of chemical weapons in Syria," British Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said.

Based on reporting by AP, AFP, and dpa
WASHINGTON -- U.S. authorities have ruled the death of former Kremlin media boss Mikhail Lesin an accident, saying that a nearly year-long investigation determined that "acute" alcohol intoxication was a contributing factor and that the case is now closed.

Federal prosecutors said in an October 28 statement that Lesin, 57, died in a Washington hotel on November 4, 2015, due to "falls" that left him with "blunt force injuries" after drinking heavily for several days.

Lesin, a former press minister under Russian President Vladimir Putin, was found dead in his room at Washington's Dupont Circle Hotel the following day, November 5.

His death has been shrouded in mystery and the subject of widespread speculation about what the former powerful Kremlin official was doing in Washington at the time.

Lesin's family had lived in California for several years prior to his death. After serving as head of state-owned Gazprom Media, he fell out of favor with the Kremlin in 2013, and largely dropped out of public view.

In 2014, a U.S. lawmaker called on federal authorities to investigate whether he had laundered ill-gotten gains through pricey California real estate and other assets.

U.S. Assistant Attorney General Peter Kadzik said later that year that the request from Senator Roger Wicker (Republican-Mississippi) was referred to the Justice Department's criminal division and the FBI. Neither agency confirmed whether a formal investigation was ever opened in the matter.

As press minister, Lesin played a central role in tightening the Kremlin's control over the media during Putin's first term. He also was instrumental in creating Russia Today, the Kremlin-backed global news network now known as RT.

After his body was discovered in his hotel room, local police in Washington indicated that they were not treating his death as a homicide. An employee at the Washington city police's homicide branch indicated to RFE/RL shortly after his death that the matter was being handled by the branchs natural-death unit.

'Some Sort Of Altercation'

However, on March 10, more than four months after the body was found, the city medical examiner's office released its finding, saying that Lesin died of blunt force trauma to the head, and to other parts of his upper and lower body.

This prompted speculation that Lesin had sustained injuries in an attack. The New York Times a day later cited an unnamed law-enforcement official as saying his injuries were the result of what the paper described as "some sort of altercation" that occurred before Lesin returned to his hotel room.

The Reuters news agency also quoted an unnamed police official as saying that investigators were looking into whether Lesin had been attacked outside the hotel.

But the October 28 statement issued by the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Columbia painted a different portrait of the events leading up to Lesins death.

Citing "new evidence," it said the attorney's office and the Metropolitan Police Department -- with help from the FBI -- determined that Lesin fatally injured himself in his hotel room on the morning of November 4, 2015.

It said that Lesin, who was known to be a heavy drinker, sustained the injuries from "falls" after entering his hotel room on the morning of November 4, 2015, "after days of excessive consumption of alcohol."

His death was a result of "blunt force injuries to his head, with contributing causes being blunt force injuries of the neck, torso, upper extremities, and lower extremities," the statement said.

It added that Lesin died "while alone in his hotel room."

Bill Miller, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office in the District of Columbia, told The Washington Post that authorities made the results of the investigation public "because of the widespread interest in this case."

"We typically do not comment on specifics of our investigation, and have no further comment on this particular matter," Miller told the newspaper.

Just two days before his body was found on November 5, Lesin was on the guest list to attend a lavish dinner at Washington's Ritz Carlton hotel, honoring Russian billionaire and philanthropist Pyotr Aven and Susan Lehrman, a Washington socialite, investor, and patron of the arts.

But Lesin never attended the event, which was organized by the Woodrow Wilson Center's Kennan Institute, a think-tank specializing in research on Russia, Ukraine, and other former Soviet republics.

Also, the night before his body was found, Lesin had sought to attend another, smaller, private dinner meeting at the Atlantic Council, another Washington think-tank, that also featured a discussion with Aven.

According to a person with knowledge of the event, officials at the council declined to include Lesin on the guest list, due to his checkered past.

The Russian Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to an e-mailed request for comment from RFE/RL on October 28.


A Russian blogger awaiting trial on charges of hooliganism for allegedly playing Pokemon Go in an Orthodox church has been taken into custody after a court ruled he violated the terms of his house arrest.

A court in Yekaterinburg ruled on October 28 that blogger Ruslan Sokolovsky violated his house arrest because his girlfriend -- who is a potential witness in the case -- visited him to congratulate him on his birthday.

The court also found that Sokolovsky had been using the Internet in violation of the conditions of his detention.

The court ordered Sokolovsky held in custody until January 23.

Sokolovsky was arrested in September after posting a video of himself playing the popular game Pokemon Go in a cathedral in early August.

The human rights organization Amnesty International has called Sokolovsky's arrest a "farcical attack on freedom of expression."

Based on reporting by Interfax and The Chronicle of Current Events
U.S. officials say a Russian fighter jet came dangerously close to a U.S.-led coalition aircraft over Syria earlier this month.

One military official told the Reuters news agency that the Russian plane came close enough for its wake to be felt by the other pilot.

The officials said the incident, which occurred on October 17, did not appear to be threatening, but rather caused by the Russian pilot losing "situational awareness."

It wasn't immediately clear whether the non-Russian jet was a U.S. plane or one piloted by one of the U.S. allies helping the effort in Syria.

With scores of aircraft flying sorties over Syria, Russian and U.S. military operations there have communication procedures to reduce the risk of mishaps or midair collisions.

Still, the incident also follows more intentional close encounters between Russian and American planes. Last month, a Russian fighter jet came within 10 feet of an American spy plane over the Black Sea.

Based on reporting by AFP, Reuters
A flotilla of Russian warships en route to the eastern Mediterranean has been refueling at sea near the Strait of Gibraltar.

The eight-vessel flotilla, headed by the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov, was refueling at sea on October 28 after cancelling a request to do so at the Spanish-controlled port of Ceuta on the North African coast the previous day.

Spain came under heavy international criticism for allowing the flotilla to resupply at its facilities because of concerns that Russia intends to boost its military capabilities in supporting the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Russian and Syrian forces have been accused of inflicting civilian casualties in and around the city of Aleppo.

The BBC reported that two tanker ships had joined the flotilla, but it is unclear where they came from.

In 2009, Russia acknowledged that the Admiral Kuznetsov spilled some 300 tons of fuel into the sea off the coast of Ireland during a botched at-sea refueling operation.

Based on reporting by the BBC
U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has criticized Democratic rival Hillary Clinton for speaking "very badly" of Russian President Vladimir Putin, remarks that follow Clinton's recent allegations that the Kremlin is trying to tilt the election in her opponent's favor.

Noting Russia's nuclear capability, Trump told a rally in Springfield, Ohio, on October 27 that Clinton is unwise to criticize the Russian leader so harshly and that Washington and Moscow would benefit from closer ties.

"She speaks very badly of Putin, and I don't think that's smart," Trump told the crowd.

He accused Clinton, who has suggested Putin considers Trump a potential Russian "puppet" in the White House, of "trying to get votes" with her stinging criticism of the Russian president.

"How do you speak so badly of somebody? I mean, how are they ever going to get along? Wouldn't it be great if we actually got along with Russia and other countries?" Trump asked, drawing cheers from the crowd of thousands.

U.S. intelligence has formally accused the Russian government of meddling in U.S. elections by directing a string of cyberattacks, including on the Democratic National Committee (DNC), ahead of the November 8 election.

Clinton has publicly accused Putin of ordering the cyberattacks in what she characterized as a Russian bid to help Trump, who has advocated repairing U.S.-Russian ties battered by disputes over the conflicts in Ukraine and Syria.

Both Trump and the Kremlin have rejected the allegations. The Republican candidate, who is trailing in most major polls, has also cast doubt on the U.S. government's charge of Russian involvement in the cyberattacks.

Trump told the crowd that it would be a "good thing" if Russia and the United States teamed up against Islamic State militants and "knocked the hell out of them."

Trump has faced widespread criticism for speaking warmly of Putin, including saying that the Russian president has been a better leader for Russia than U.S. President Barack Obama has been for the United States.

Trump's vice presidential candidate, Mike Pence, has taken a tougher line on Russia, calling Putin a "small and bullying leader" in a debate earlier this month.

With reporting by AP and Reuters


The office of UN human rights chief Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein has said that militants of the extremist organization Islamic State (IS) have executed at least 232 people in the embattled Iraqi city of Mosul.

Speaking in Geneva on October 28, UN rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani also said IS has been bringing "tens of thousands" of Iraqi civilians into the city to use as "human shields" while Iraqi government forces and Kurdish Peshmerga fighters push to drive IS out of Mosul.

Shamdasani said the 232 people were executed on October 19 and that 190 of the victims were former officers of the Iraqi security forces. Forty-two of the victims were civilians who refused to obey IS orders.

She added that, because of difficulty confirming information from inside the city, the number of victims might actually be much higher.

Shamdasani also said that IS fighters had rounded up some 8,000 families from districts around the city to implement a "depraved, cowardly strategy" of rendering "certain points, areas, or military forces immune from military operations."

The U.S. Pentagon on October 19 said IS had been using human shields "for several weeks." The International Organization for Migration issued a similar report on October 18.

U.S. Brigadier General Matthew Isler said on October 28 that U.S.-backed Iraqi forces have captured 40 villages around Mosul from IS since the operation began last week.

WATCH: Iraqi Forces Close In On Mosul

Isler also said the U.S.-led international coalition has stepped up its air strikes in support of the Mosul offensive.

A spokesman for an Iranian-backed Shi'ite militia said the same day that his group was about to launch an offensive on the city from the west.

UN spokeswoman Shamdasani said her organization is concerned about possible "revenge killings" against locals who militia fighters believe supported IS.

There are believed to be some 1.5 million civilians in the Mosul area.

With reporting by AP, AFP, and Reuters


High-profile trial over the armed occupation of the Malheur wildlife refuge sparked a national debate about the rights of ranchers in the American westA jury has ruled that brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy were not guilty of conspiring against the government, a surprising end to the high-profile Oregon standoff trial that sparked national debates about public lands and the rights of ranchers in the American west.The decision, unveiled in federal court in Portland on Thursday, is a blow to the US government, which had aggressively prosecuted the rightwing activists who led an armed takeover of public property to protest American land-use regulations.The Bundy brothers, who orchestrated a 2 January takeover of the Malheur national wildlife refuge, were acquitted on Thursday on a number of serious charges, along with five other defendants. Only a day earlier the court dismissed a juror over fears of bias, raising concerns that the trial would drag on for weeks.We are just so excited, Angie Bundy, Ryans wife, told the Guardian after the verdict was announced. Weve been praying hard, and we knew they hadnt done anything wrong.mo
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A Grace Street building that housed an iconic Richmond restaurant is back in the family, so to speak, and the family  the Giavoses and Dikoses  may have Virginia Commonwealth University to thank for the acquisition.

Richmond restaurateur Johnny Giavos, with business partner Scott Coleman, bought the building at 939 W. Grace St. It was the original location of The Village restaurant.

The building at Grace and Harrison streets near VCUs academic campus has been vacant since The Village, which was renamed The Village Cafe in 1981, moved out and across the street under new ownership in 1989.

When 939 W. Grace St. hit the market last month, Johnny Giavos knew he had to act.

His wife Katrinas parents, Stavros and Stella Dikos, opened The Village restaurant in the space in 1958 and ran it there for 23 years. The Dikoses also opened Stellas restaurant at 411 N. Harrison St., which is now the Edos Squid space. Stellas eventually moved to West Main Street for a few years and was revived by the Giavoses in 2011 at its current home, 1012 Lafayette St., in the near West End.

For Giavos, the building was a sentimental purchase. He said when he told his mother-in-law that he bought the building, her eyes glowed.

Its good for Stella, he said. It makes her feel good.

But Stella Dikos wasnt the only one moved by the sentimentality of the purchase.

VCU, which has been snapping up properties around its Monroe Park campus for years, backed out of bidding on the building when it heard Giavos was interested.

When the word of the buyer was shared, and there was an understanding of family sentiments and goals for the property, it was right to back away, said Mitzi Lee, VCUs director of real estate services. Having knowledge of the work of Johnny and Katrina Giavos in the Richmond community, there is no doubt this next project on West Grace Street will be an excellent addition to the greater VCU community.

Giavos plan for the building is a full restoration. He plans to renovate the upstairs apartments and restore the restaurant space but not for himself.

I can 90 percent guarantee that it wont be mine, said Giavos, who owns multiple local restaurants including Perlys, Kitchen 24, Stellas, Kuba Kuba and Sidewalk Cafe.

Instead, he hopes to bring in a restaurant tenant that would be good fit for the city and neighborhood. Hes even reached out to a few New York restaurateurs (though hes not sharing names).

Regardless of what goes in the space, Giavos said he plans to talk to VCU to make sure its a fit for the schools vision for the area, too.

I dont know whats right or wrong, Giavos said. I just go to work every day and hope Im nice to people.

The building at 939 W. Grace St. was listed for $595,000. The sales price was $675,000, according to listing agent Tom Rosman with One South Realty. Richmond BizSense first reported the sale.
Thousands of eighth-grade students gathered at the Richmond International Raceway on Thursday for a career exploration event, in which students talked with experts about careers and got a feel for the industries.

Students tried on a bulletproof vest, carried a police shield and got behind the steering wheel of a Hanover County Sheriffs Office cruiser and asked seasoned officers questions about law enforcement work. Some students worked to keep a dummy alive in the back of an ambulance, while others pretended to deliver TV news.

We want them thinking about stuff theyve never thought about, said John Easter with ChamberRVA.

Easter, the senior vice president for government and community affairs for ChamberRVA, said the event was an ambitious event aimed at opening young students minds to various career paths, adding that the many interactive components of the event allowed them to find something they might enjoy and then imagine themselves in a career.

Its something for them to envision and be able to imagine, Easter said. When youre in the eighth grade, abstract talk doesnt do a whole lot for you.

The event, Mission Tomorrow, was held throughout the morning and early afternoon Thursday and will continue today.

About 12,000 public school eighth-graders from all eight localities in the Richmond region are expected to attend over the course of the two days.

Eighth grade is a critical year for students as they are deciding on coursework pathways for the remainder of their high school years and beyond, ChamberRVA said in a news release.

ChamberRVA, The Capital Region Collaborative, John Tyler Community College and the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond organized the event.

On Thursday, thousands of students were brought in by bus loads and allowed to interact with representatives of more than 100 businesses.

At the WTVR CBS 6 booth, students were able to get in front of a camera and pretend to deliver the evening news, as well as talk with on-air local journalists about the news industry.

Meanwhile, Dominion Virginia Power professionals gave students an inside look at what the power company does.

Them being able to put the gloves on to see what it takes to get the power back on after a storm gives them a better understanding of what we do, groundsman Travis Hardy said.

Added lineman Kevin Henderson: A lot of the students who came to our table are very open-minded, and they asked a lot of questions.

Deputy Jim McLaughlin, a veteran of the Hanover Sheriffs Office, invited students into the drivers seat of a police cruiser and answered questioned about law enforcement training and policing.

McLaughlin had a wide smile when circled by a pack of students who peppered him with questions about police work, in addition to a fair share of oddball questions, such as whether people being arrested would be able to escape from handcuffs by covering their wrists with Vaseline.

I think its a great event, McLaughlin said, adding that he was encouraged by the many questions that were asked, as well as the number of students who expressed interest in law enforcement careers.

Virginias first lady, Dorothy McAuliffe, plans to attend the event today.

Giving 12,000 eighth-graders the opportunity to learn about the different careers that await them is not only empowering, its essential, McAuliffe said in a statement. This expo is opening so many doors to so many young people by introducing them to careers they may not even know existed before today.
Editors note: This story contains graphic content.

A Henrico County judge this week allowed a woman formerly represented by Joe Morrisseys law firm to withdraw a guilty plea amid allegations that the Richmond mayoral candidate pressured her for sex.

Kanika Shani Morris, 35, said Morrissey in February exposed himself to her in his law office and continued making advances through text messages.

When she repeatedly refused him, she said he handed over her case to another lawyer in his office, who pushed her into taking a plea deal  telling her that she hadnt paid enough to have Morrissey himself represent her at the jury trial she had requested.

Morris, who was facing a felony charge for allegedly failing to return a rental car last year, cried throughout her sentencing hearing earlier this month, according to a transcript of the hearing. Now seven months pregnant, she spent two weeks of a 90-day sentence in jail before she was released Thursday afternoon.

You always hear, Joe Morrissey is a fighter. I heard it today, she told the Richmond Times-Dispatch in an interview Thursday evening. If anybody, I would hope that he would be able to help me. ... Hes more worried about what you can do for him sexually. What he can get out of a woman.

Her description of her experience with Morrissey is consistent with text messages  some explicit  that she provided to the newspaper.

At a press conference in the foyer of his home Friday evening, Morrissey denied both exposing himself to Morris and playing any role in her decision to plead guilty in her case.

He said a female attorney in his law office was present during the entire meeting at which Morris said Morrissey made his initial advance. As evidence, he offered an email from the associate, Catherine Mullins, that said, to my recollection, I was with her the entire time and she was never alone in Joes office.

And as to Morris misgivings about her plea deal, he said that at no time did she ever tell any attorney that she was dissatisfied with the firms service or with me.

But on Friday evening, Morrissey acknowledged sending her text messages he described as flirtatious.

And while I dont recall the exact texts, I dont deny them at all, he said What I do deny is ever, ever having any contact with her outside of my office after that first day with the exception (of) a preliminary hearing in June.

After that, Morrisseys wife, Myrna, asked members of the media to leave.

The text exchange with Morris and alleged encounter in Morrisseys office took place less than three months after Joe and Myrna got engaged  and while Myrna was pregnant with their second child.

I nicely asked you guys to stop the questioning, and to stop your video and to please exit my home, she said, cutting Joe Morrissey off as he tried to answer additional questions. Their two young children were, at times, heard crying from another room. I cant ask you guys any nicer. Please.

***

Henrico County Commonwealths Attorney Shannon Taylor said Friday that her office and Henrico police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the withdrawal of Morris guilty plea.

Taylor said the motion to withdraw the plea contends Morris was under duress, pressure and confusion.

Part of that investigation is to find out did she in fact feel pressure from her (prior) counsel, Taylor said.

When told that Morris said police had her cell phone and asked if the contents were being examined, Taylor said she could not comment on the details of a pending investigation. She said the investigation will look into anything that might be pertinent to her allegation regarding the pressure to enter a guilty plea.

Outside of any police investigation, Morris allegations raise questions about a possible violation of the professional guidelines that govern lawyers: Sexual conduct with clients violates ethics rules for lawyers established by the Virginia State Bar.

At the Thursday hearing, little was said in open court, but Judge Richard S. Wallerstein Jr. granted Morris motion to withdraw her guilty plea. Prosecutors asked to meet with Wallerstein in his chambers just before Morris case was heard.

Area defense attorneys said its unusual for a judge to allow a defendant to reverse a guilty plea after sentencing. A standard of manifest injustice must be met, they said.

Morris was released Thursday afternoon and, later that evening, she told The Times-Dispatch about her encounters with Morrissey during an hourlong interview. She also provided the newspaper with copies of text messages she says Morrissey sent her.

***

Earlier this year, Morris sought Morrisseys help because she believed she was innocent of the charge against her and was worried her public defender wouldnt take her case seriously enough.

I decided I needed the help, and I believed that Morrissey could help me, she said.

The two met for a consultation Feb. 1 at Morrisseys Highland Springs law office. She waited for half an hour in his waiting room. He came out, he shook my hand, I then proceeded into his office.

They sat down, and he questioned her about the case, she said. And he asked me how much money did I have? she said.

She told him she had $500. He told me he would charge me $800 to pick up the case, to take this case and I said, OK, you know, that will work for me, she recounted.

Morris said Morrisseys advances began moments after he agreed to defend her for what she recognized was a bargain price.

She recalled Morrissey getting up from his desk and walking toward her.

He pulled his penis out and asked me to grab it, she said. I was scared to death. I froze up. Ive come to you for help. I didnt come to you to do those things. But I knew the price he had given me was a good price. It was a good offer.

She said Morrissey was standing between her and the closed door to his office when he propositioned her, which made her extremely uncomfortable.

When she declined to touch him, she said he asked her to send sexy pictures later instead. She said she would and left his office.

That night at 9 p.m., she got the first of several text messages from Morrissey: I never got those pics, he wrote.

Morris replied I got ya, according to the record she provided.

Seven days later, having not received a response, Morris received a second message: Hi Kanika. Never heard back from you...still need my help?

The request for photos was repeated in subsequent messages. Each time, Morris brushed them off or made excuses about why she was unable to respond.

The situation escalated on Feb. 14 of this year  Valentines Day  when Morrissey asked her to come by his office.

Make sure you wear fresh panties and shave your p**** nice n smooth, the message said.

***

Other than to acknowledge the veracity of the text messages, Morrissey flatly denied every other aspect of Morris account on Friday.

Nothing inappropriate that she alleges took place, he said, citing his and his associates word that Morrissey wasnt in the room alone with her.

Asked why the text messages appear to corroborate Morris account, Morrissey responded only by saying nothing actually articulated in the messages rises to the level of a crime.

If I texted I never got that pic, Im assuming that she was saying to me that Im going to send you some pics, he said. And the only thing I can think of is that I said, I never got those pics.

But lets be clear, what Im accused of is a crime if I forced this person into a plea agreement. That is absolutely false.

And why was he texting a client about panties and personal grooming?

Morrissey said the messages stemmed from the fact that Morris was a former girlfriend  an explanation Morris strongly denies.

She was a brief girlfriend from eight years ago, he said. We had engaged in textual, uh, sending texts. That long ago. And thats what I characterize it. Thats not what Im charged with  committing a crime  forcing someone to plead guilty.

As to Morris allegation that she was pressured to take a plea deal after she rebuffed Morrisseys advances, Morrissey said his law firm was unaware of her concerns.

He also distanced himself from the handling of her case, saying the plea deal was arranged by a second associate in his law firm, Paul Galanides, who was present at Morrisseys press conference and called the allegations outrageous and 100 percent categorically false.

Galanides said he reviewed the agreement with Morris two weeks before the hearing and she agreed the terms were in her best interest after we reviewed the overwhelming evidence against her.

The hope, he said, was that the judge would not sentence her to any time in jail.

***

Morris agrees that her alleged encounter with Morrissey this year is not her first. But she describes her prior experience in very different terms than he does.

I was never his girlfriend. Oh my God, no, she said. Hes a liar.

Instead, she described an experience similar to what she said took place this year in 2008, when she said Morrissey exposed himself to her in his office at the General Assembly.

She had sought his assistance having her voting rights restored, which were revoked when she was convicted of three felonies in 2005 for cashing a bad check  a charge she said was the result of her employer at the time paying her with a fraudulent paycheck.

In a subsequent incident at his private office  she could not recall if it was a campaign office he kept at the time or his current law office  he led her under the guise of finishing paperwork to an upstairs room where he had a bed, where he exposed himself to her, she said.

Morris, who was 28 at the time, said she never once engaged with Morrissey sexually.

Morrissey offered a different take: Thats not true. We did.

Morris, meanwhile, said she went back to Morrissey for legal help this year by mistake; she said a friend had referred her to another lawyer who she didnt realize practiced at Morrisseys law office. When she got there, she found out Morrissey would instead be her attorney.

When he told me he could help me, honestly, I needed the help, she said of Morrissey. Maybe hes not that same person. I really needed help. I needed assistance and I didnt know how much that was going to cost me with anybody else. I felt like, maybe hell be able to help me.

Morris said she still believed Morrissey would represent her up until she arrived in court this month for what she believed would be her jury trial.

Morrissey had texted her the morning of the hearing instructing her to be in court, but when she arrived, she was met by Morrisseys associate, Galanides. She said he pulled her aside and told her that Morrissey said she needed to plead guilty.Galanides declined to answer questions Friday beyond his initial statement after Morrisseys press conference concluded.

Without her knowledge, she said Morrisseys firm already had arranged for a plea deal that reduced the crime to a misdemeanor. The sentence, not stipulated in the plea agreement, turned out to be 90 days in jail.

Morris became frantic when she learned she would be jailed for the final months of her pregnancy.

On Oct. 13, she wrote the judge a pleading letter and began cold-calling area lawyers. My name is Kanika Morris and I am seven months pregnant, she wrote in the letter, addressed Dear Judge, on file with Henrico Circuit Court.

She described herself as having a high-risk pregnancy and said she had a son with a chronic medical condition.

I am request sir if you can please re-hear my case and or allow me to present myself to you, she wrote. I was represented poorly and had requested a jury and the attorney had something changed without my knowledge.

***

Morrissey, who is the apparent front-runner in the Richmond mayors race, was disbarred in 2003 for unethical behavior and, while he has had his law license reinstated at the state level, is still prohibited from practicing in federal court.

In 2014, while serving in the General Assembly, he pleaded guilty to a charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor in connection with allegations that he had sex with a 17-year-old receptionist in his law office.

He served three months in jail on the charge, but because a judge granted him work release, he was able to campaign for re-election to the House of Delegates while serving his sentence.

He won and now speaks about how hes the first person to win election from a jail cell in 200 years.

Morrissey married the woman at the center of that scandal, Myrna Morrissey, in June. They have had two children together, and Morrissey has featured his family prominently at campaign events and in campaign literature.

This week, Morrissey sent a campaign mailer that features Myrna front and center with Morrissey looking on from behind holding one of their children. My husband knows how to win a tough fight, the flier reads, attributing the quote to her.

As in Morris story, lewd text messages figured prominently in Morrisseys courtship with Myrna: Among other things, prosecutors alleged Morrissey solicited nude photos from her, which he then sent to a friend to whom he boasted of his sexual exploits.

Despite his legal troubles, Morrissey remains immensely popular among some voters. He has led the race in every poll conducted to date.

As he was campaigning this week on a street corner on Brookland Park Boulevard, a constant stream of supporters stopped to wish him well, pose for photos with him and ask for campaign T-shirts.

His backers have brushed off his most recent legal run-in, with many saying the fact that he married the woman at the center of the scandal has made it a non-issue.

Asked about his propensity to get into trouble, Morrissey said at a debate in September that he has changed.

Theres no question I have had some trials and tribulations and stubbed my toe on more than one occasion, he said. But he asked voters to consider both his years of business experience and political experience.

He also said that, despite his Fighting Joe moniker, he has mellowed recently. I think perhaps Ive tempered things a little bit being a father and a husband.

***

Morris search for a lawyer to reverse the work of Morrisseys law firm led her to the law office of Nicholas Braswell, a former public defender now with the firm of Price Benowitz LLP.

It was Oct. 14, two days after she pleaded guilty and the day before she reported to jail.

Somebody has to hear this, she said. She walked across the street from the courthouse and showed up at his office without an appointment. Hes going to probably think Im crazy, Im weird, but someone needs to hear this and the people need to know whats going on.

Braswell confirmed that he filed the motion for Morris to withdraw her guilty plea and that he did so free of charge. In it, he cited the great duress, pressure and confusion Morris was under at the time of her final hearing.

He said that at the public defenders office and at his current firm, Its been both our credo and our mission ... to provide a good, strong competent legal representation to all people and especially those who need any kind of help.

In her particular situation, she came to me seeking our help and I did what I felt was the right thing to do, said Braswell, who declined further comment.

At this point, Morris is being represented on a pro-bono basis by three lawyers: Braswell, Betty Layne DesPortes and Steven D. Benjamin.

Anytime someone is accused of a criminal offense, they are vulnerable because it is such a stressful situation and so much is at stake, and if anyone takes advantage of that, that is not only reprehensible, but it should be actionable, DesPortes said.

We, as lawyers, for the sake of the profession and the justice system, we need to ensure that ... if someone is taken advantage of under those circumstances that we remedy it and do everything possible that we can to fix the situation for them.
A Henrico County police officer has been acquitted of all charges stemming from a December shooting of a woman in a car.

After more than 10 hours of deliberation, a jury delivered a unanimous verdict Friday afternoon.

Joel D. Greenway of Sandston originally was charged with malicious wounding, shooting into an occupied vehicle and use of a firearm in a felony after a Dec. 15 shooting at an Exxon station on Nine Mile Road that injured Kimberly McNeil.

Greenway was on duty and in uniform while investigating what he called a suspicious vehicle in a high-crime area. Greenway opened fire when the car drove off, shooting McNeil four times, including once in the back of the head and right arm.

Emotions ran high Friday as Judge Michael C. Allen, a stand-in retired judge, read aloud the jurys decision.

McNeil, who was a passenger in the car that her ex-boyfriend Robert Davis was driving when he sped away, was not present Friday after suffering a seizure Thursday in court while prosecutors recounted what had happened for the jury. She walks with a cane and suffered a traumatic brain injury from the incident. Her daughter, Octovia McNeil, stormed out of the courtroom after Greenway was acquitted, screaming expletives.

Greenways wife and mother cried softly behind him as he sat with his defense attorneys, a hand over his mouth.

They were scared, Peter B. Baruch, one of Greenways attorneys, said of the family after court released. Baruch said Greenway was a hard-working guy just doing his job when things took an unfortunate turn that night.

Greenway is still a Henrico County employee, but is not actively doing police work, according to the countys human resources director, Paula Reid.

His return to active duty remains to be sorted out, Baruch said. He really wants his life back.

Greenway testified Thursday that hes dreamed of being a police officer since he was a child.

Reid said the decision is up to Henrico Police Chief Humberto I. Cardounel Jr. A statement from the police department said the criminal investigation took precedence over an internal investigation, which is ongoing.

Officer Greenway will remain in his current status until the internal investigation is completed, police said.

Part of the prosecutions case against Greenway included the fact that hed breached several department policies and police training when he failed to identify himself and turn on his body-worn camera, then stood in front of a vehicle and shot at the fleeing car.

Greenway, as well as the county, still faces civil litigation in which McNeil is suing for $75 million in damages.

I just feel like there is no justice. A civil lawsuit dont mean nothing compared to seeing him go to jail and off the police force, said McNeils cousin, John McNeil, who attended the trial since it began Monday. This is crazy.

Both prosecutors and defense attorneys were surprised by the length of deliberation  a jury of six women and six men took the case around 12:50 p.m. Thursday and delivered their verdict at 1:30 p.m. Friday.

Defense attorney Jed C. Patterson said he expected a hung decision based on the 10-hour deliberation. Patterson and Baruch, with more than 30 years of experience between them, said theyve never had a jury deliberate so long.

Henrico Commonwealths Attorney Shannon Taylor said the amount of time it took to come to the decision showed the jury took the matter seriously.

We recognize that they did take their time and viewed the evidence and came back with the verdict that they thought was reflective of their assessment, Taylor said after court. When you look at the totality of the case, starting with the approach and the actions that were done and then the response of using the firearm, we believed, again in the totality, that each of the steps that the officer took were not reasonable steps.

Taylors office works closely with police to prosecute its cases. Moving forward, the handling of this case, the verdict of this case should not and will not affect our working relationships, she said.
A man with no mask robbed a Hanover County bank on Friday afternoon, according to the sheriff's office, which is seeking the public's help identifying him.

At about 1:30 p.m. Friday, a man approached a teller at the Wells Fargo Bank in 8100 block of Elm Drive, displayed a note indicating he was armed and demanded money, according to the sheriff's office.

"The suspect left the bank with an undisclosed amount of currency," Sgt. James Cooper with the sheriff's office said.

The suspect is described as a white man wearing a black cap with the word ARMY on the brim, black-framed eyeglasses, a blue and white plaid button-down shirt, blue jeans, and black tennis shoes with white soles.

This suspect is believed to be the same person who robbed the Wells Fargo Bank in Henrico County on Oct. 18.
Three candidates are running for the 8th District seat currently held by Derik Jones, who is stepping down: Tia Simone Redd, 34, a Henrico County schoolteacher; Dawn C. Page, external program coordinator for the Richmond City Justice Center; and Christopher J. Woody Sr.

Woody did not respond to the survey.

Heres where Redd and Page stand on issues facing the citys school district.

What is your opinion of Dana Beddens tenure, and do you intend to support him if elected?

Redd: The average tenure for a Superintendent is 3 years, which is about the time that Dr. Bedden has served. During that time the budget ,as it has always been, continued to be an issue. The only notable changes were the hike in administrative salaries and drop in graduation and accreditation.

Page: As the employer of the Superintendent, the Board should maintain a relationship of respect, accountability, and fiscal responsibility. The assessment of a superintendents performance is outcome based. I support a leader who creates an environment of support focused on educating the whole child.

What is a School Board members role in the day-to-day administration of RPS?

Redd: To be accessible to the residents and knowledgeable of policies and procedures, of budgetary related issues and/or changes and district and administrative concerns decisions and changes.

Page: Aside from an ongoing visionary role, the Board must: Set and maintain policies to support the districts mission; Oversee the superintendent; Maintain, manage, & control the property; Monitor & request funding based on district challenges and needs; and Share actions & concerns with the public.

School administrators have said that a possible solution to dealing with some fiscal issues facing RPS and to create a more efficient district is to close some schools. Will you support closing schools if the administration recommends that it will be best in the long term? Why or why not?

Redd: The business of schools is to educate students. Instead of consolidating and downsizing we need to be trying to figure out why enrollment is dropping and put more effort into retaining and drawing in students and improving overall educational equity and quality.

Page: Equitable resource allocation to support all RPS children must be the hallmark when considering school closures. I would support rationally designed school closures if biases are put aside and obstacles evenhandedly addressed. The process must be mindful, transparent, well-reviewed and fair.

One issue you may face early on is redistricting. When it comes to moving school lines, what should the priorities be?

Redd: Neighborhood proximity, convenience, and transportation should be considered. Efforts to create an economically diverse environment should be top priority. Collaboration with city developers and officials is essential to identify future plans that may effect zoning and enrollment.

Page: The priority should be to balance the enrollment for the entire school district.

Given the budget realities facing RPS, where can the district make cuts that save money without affecting academics?

Redd: I believe that preventing and addressing issues in a timely manner is more cost effective and is rarely done. For example using trailers over a short period is more costly than simply fixing the issues. The school is throwing money away in the area of facilities management.

Page: Its evident that cuts have negatively impacted classrooms, vocational programs, staffing, support services, beneficial electives/extra-curriculars, infrastructure and facility maintenance, and raises for RPS employees. Administration must audit to propose vetted, concrete changes for Board review.

Attracting and retaining teachers is seen as key to turning RPS around. What will you say to current and prospective teachers thinking about going elsewhere about why they should stay?

Redd: I have taught in several surrounding districts and can say the grass is not always greener. The teachers have voiced valid concerns that should be addressed. Quality educators are and should always be among our top priorities and are essential to the education and success of our students.

Page: I would say to current and prospective teachers  Stay and invest in the future of young person!

The number of schools gaining full accreditation and the on-time graduations rate are both down. What needs to be done to turn those around, and do you support RPS current School Progress Plan?

Redd: I feel that expanding the course offerings and focusing on instruction is the way to improve the graduation and accreditation rates. Allowing students more options in Career and Technical Education and opportunities to obtain beneficial trades encourages students and provides purpose.

Page: We need to ensure that our students are provided the necessary resources to support academic achievement.

While RPS faces a slew of issues and problems, name something positive being done in the district or at a school and how it can be duplicated elsewhere in the district?

Redd: Blackwell Elementary has partnered with the Hull Street Branch of the Richmond Library, and Boushall Middle School partners with Catholic Charities and the Richmond City Hispanic Liason Office to effectively utilize city resources to provide additional programs and services.
A former Virginia resident has been charged with felony voter registration fraud after prosecutors say he fabricated voter registration forms by inventing false applicants, officials announced Friday.

Vafalay Massaquoi, 30, a former resident of Alexandria, is accused of fabricating records this spring while working for a Democratic-aligned voter registration group, according to Alexandria Commonwealths Attorney Bryan L. Porter.

The applications were filed with the Alexandria registrars office, which forwarded the matter to prosecutors for review.

Massaquoi was an employee of New Virginia Majority, the progressive advocacy group confirmed in a statement released Friday. The organization said Massaquoi was fired in June and said it will continue to cooperate with authorities in the case.

Protecting the integrity of our elections so they remain free, fair and accessible remains New Virginia Majoritys top priority, the group said.

New Virginia Majority collaborated with Gov. Terry McAuliffe this year during his push to expand voting rights for felons who have completed their sentences. The group was given advance warning of McAuliffes April announcement that he was restoring rights to more than 200,000 ex-offenders. At the governors news conference, the group had representatives in the crowd ready to start registering would-be voters.

Massaquoi was arrested in early October in Philadelphia, extradited to Alexandria on Thursday and arraigned in court Friday. He faces two felony counts of forging a public record and two felony counts of voter registration fraud, each carrying a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

In a statement, Porter said he chose to release information about the case in part because of the upcoming presidential election, but he noted there was no allegation that any illegal vote was actually cast.

Furthermore, since the fraudulent applications involved fictitious people, had the fraud not been uncovered the risk of actual fraudulent votes being cast was low, Porter said. However, any such offense is extremely serious and can degrade the confidence we as citizens justly have in our system of elections.

Massaquoi is being held in Alexandria with a hearing date set for Dec. 13.

The case comes a few weeks after state lawmakers debated the possibility of election fraud at a joint hearing of the General Assemblys election committees. Republicans have pointed to a similar case in Harrisonburg in which more than a dozen dead people were registered to vote as evidence that fraudulent activity exists and is a justification for voter ID laws. No charges have been filed in the Harrisonburg case, which remains under investigation.
CHARLOTTESVILLE  An editor for Rolling Stone has admitted that his magazines now-retracted article did hurt University of Virginia administrator Nicole Eramo, but he said he still agrees with the articles criticism of her work.

Sean Woods, deputy managing editor at Rolling Stone, was the main editor for Sabrina Rubin Erdelys infamous November 2014 article A Rape on Campus, and he said in testimony Thursday that, like Erdely, he stands by the articles critique of the U.Va. administrators handling of sexual assault cases among students.

Woods was on the stand for the majority of Thursdays trial date in Charlottesvilles federal courthouse, which has hosted Eramos $7.5 million defamation lawsuit against Rolling Stone, its publisher and Erdely for 10 days.

At the time of the articles release, Eramo was an associate dean of students, charged with offering resources and support for student survivors of sexual assault. She has since been moved from that position, and she alleges that Erdelys article cast her as a callous and indifferent administrator who sought to suppress the claims of her students.

Representing the magazine that has employed him for roughly 17 years, Woods echoed statements Erdely made in her days of testimony late last week, standing by aspects of Erdelys reporting and the article, though he fell on his sword when the questioning turned to Jackie.

Jackie, whose name has been kept confidential throughout the course of the case, was a former U.Va. student whose tale of her own brutal gang rape at a U.Va. fraternity served as the centerpiece of Erdelys article.

In court Thursday, Woods was drilled with questions about Jackies involvement with the article and the fact-checking that the magazine underwent to confirm her claims.

When asked about Erdelys decisions not to contact or attempt to contact any of Jackies alleged assailants, Woods said his understanding was that she was very afraid of them. Pressed about whether the article would have misled readers on that matter, Woods took a long pause before letting out a sharp exhale, saying: Yeah, I think it did.

The magazine originally had a disclaimer in early drafts of the article stating that Jackie did not disclose her attackers identities, but Woods volunteered that he was the one who actually cut the disclaimer from the piece; he intended to put it back into the story, he said, but forgot to do so before it went to print.

Like Erdely had stated in her testimony, Woods said he regretted anything in the article that had come from their lead source. Emails show that, weeks after the articles release, Erdely expressed concern over pressure from other media outlets to talk about the veracity of her story. At the time, Woods responded to her: Relax.

Its a big huge story, Woods wrote in the email. This is fishbowl backlash.

That assessment unraveled with the same speed that Jackies story did. By Dec. 5, 2014, Woods and another editor at Rolling Stone received an email from Erdely entitled our worst nightmare. That morning, the magazine published an editors note atop the article, saying it no longer stood by information it had gleaned from Jackie.

Woods took time Thursday to speak about the Columbia Journalism Schools scathing review of the article and its reporting, saying it was beyond painful, but that the magazine published it to be transparent about what went wrong. He added that his reputation, as well as Erdelys and others at the magazine, had been trashed as a result of their mistakes in the well-meaning article.

We were trying to make a difference, he said.

Pressed as to whether the article had hurt Eramo, Woods hesitated before eventually assenting, but he added that he still stood by the articles censure of her performance in helping sexual assault survivors.
Diane Brown has always been intrigued with the idea of running for public office, however, life always seemed to get in the way; and the opportunities continued passing her by.

But in Early December 2015, Brown decided it was finally time to get out into the publics eye and attempt to make a real difference in the Fremont community.

And she set her sights high  she wants to become Fremonts new mayor. On Nov. 8, Browns name will be paired with incumbent Mayor Scott Getzschmans on the ballot.

A few years ago I decided to reassess my goals in my life, and this has always kind of been one of those things that Ive always wanted to pursue, but it just never felt like the right time, she said. Now, since things have shifted in my life, I made the decision that I could either sit on the sidelines and keep complaining, or I can actively do something.

Brown has worked as a radiographer at Schollmeyer Family Chiropractic for more than 17 years, and has been active at the local level and state level of the Parent Teacher Association for decades. Because of her service to the organization, Brown was honored as a life-long PTA member. In addition, brown also acts as a member of Kiwanas International.

One of her strongest attributes, she said, is that she will be a hands-on mayor; she has no intention of hiding in the shadows.

Ive been talking to people about how I will be a working mayor, from the bottom up, not the top down, she said. I plan on going into the different departments in the city and working with them  not doing their jobs for them  but sitting down with them and seeing what they need as a department, seeing where we can make improvements. They are the ones in the trenches doing the work, but I think sometimes we need to work better as a team and build up morale among the city employees.

Brown noted how in the past, city employee disputes caused issues to arise. When morale is strong between city employees, positive action happens resulting in positive morale with the constituency, she said.

Brown acknowledged that some positive things are happening in Fremont in regard to helping the local economy flourish through business development, but she believes more can be done.

She said that she wants people to have an active voice about the things they want and need, as well as having an input about what types of businesses enter Fremont.

Some of the comments that Ive heard from people is that, nobody asks us what we want for the city, Brown said. I think we need to do an overall survey of what Fremont citizens want to see  I know they want more sit-down restaurants and more good businesses overall.

Since deciding to run for mayor, Brown said that she has received an overwhelming amount of support. Some days, people she doesnt even know stop her and tell her that they support what she is trying to accomplish.

Ive truly had nothing but positive comments, she said. Theres been so much support. I feel so good about this campaign, and I have the whole way through.

In terms of the proposed Costco poultry operation, Brown said that on its face she is supportive of the endeavor  it would have a great impact on Fremonts local economy, she said, however, she is still doing her research and learning more about the operation.

Brown said that it isnt simply a white or black issue in terms support, there is some gray area. And while as of now she supports the project moving forward, should it be completed, she said that she will hold Costco accountable for its actions if problems arise.

If Costco doesnt come through with what theyve promised, I will hold their feet to the fire and make sure they are held accountable, she said. They will be the ones facing the penalties and the fines  the repercussions of their actions if something goes wrong.

Brown said that her sense of transparency and willingness to bring about positive change is a key reason to vote for her.

People can approach me with any questions they may have, she said. I may not have a solution right then, but my whole goal is to work toward a solution, and get the resources we need so we can accomplish the things our community wants to.

And while Brown believes that she is the right candidate, current Mayor Scott Getzschman believes that he has done a good job of propelling Fremont in the right direction.

Getzschman has held the position of mayor since 2010 when Mayor Donald Skip Edwards stepped down, and was elected for his first full term in office in 2012, receiving nearly 62 percent of the general election vote.

Prior to becoming mayor, Getzschman served as a member of the Fremont City Council for five years.

Since taking office in 2010, Fremont has continued growing and flourishing, even during times of economic downturn.

You look at continued growth, and through that period (of becoming mayor), nationwide the economy was down, he said. And Fremont continued to grow, and we continue to strive to grow today.

Getzschman said first and foremost, leading a community in the right direction requires high levels of dedication and integrity. In his mind, being a great leader boils down to listening, having honesty and integrity, and having a keen focus on fulfilling the bare necessities, which consists of taking care of infrastructure, taking care of public safety and taking care of the overall quality of peoples lives.

In terms of infrastructure, during Getzschmans tenure as mayor, several important projects have been completed, and many are still in the works.

Projects included the widening of Bell Street from the viaduct to 13th Street, and the widening of Military Avenue.

It was a project that not only widened the road, but took care of a drainage problem on the west side of Fremont, Getzschman said.

Under Getzschmans guidance, businesses have continued flocking to Fremont  a quick drive down 23rd Street reveals a great deal of new development.

Several years ago, we put a plan in place to basically revitalize that entire area, that includes not only the Clarion (Inn) property, but it includes the Fremont Mall, the property behind the Fremont Mall, it includes the Data Park, it includes the Staples building and actually, some housing behind the staples building, he said. So we put together a revitalization plan and it allowed us to use tax increment financing.

Projects benefiting from this include: the 32-unit Senior Housing Development and new Fairfield Inn & Suites.

In addition, the tax increment financing is paving the way for another new additions, including: Buffalo Wild Wings, Firehouse Subs, a Starbucks and EmergiCare.

Establishment of housing is key, he said, and will continue to be a focal point.

In this next term, something we will really have to continue working on is housing development, especially with the coming of Lincoln Premium Poultry and Costco, he said.

Getzschman noted that when he first took over as mayor in 2010, collaboration among local governing bodies needed improvement, and now, everybody is doing a much better job of working together for the common good.

We cannot move forward without this type of collaboration, he said. It goes back to the old adage that as a team, collaboratively, you can get way more done than you can if you are all by yourself. The City Councils that Ive worked with, and the County Boards (of Supervisors) that Ive worked with, they are focused on community growth and economic development, and that working relationship has been extremely positive for us.

One of the ways Fremont is moving forward is through the establishment of the Costco and Lincoln Premium Poultry, Getzschman said.

Not taking full advantage of an opportunity such as this would be a drastic error, he said.

This is a project that comes to a community once in a lifetime, Getzschman said. It comes to us with a $1.2 billion impact on our local economy, its a project that actually not only affects Fremont, but 11 other counties, too.

It also plays a huge role in the local farming network, he said.

We are an Ag-based community, and Nebraska is an Ag-based state, he said. We have the opportunity to bring a poultry operation to the state of Nebraska, to Eastern Nebraska, Dodge County and the city of Fremont that truly will impact not only a local community, but the entire region. This is a project we cannot afford to pass up.

Getzschman is asking for the communities support Nov. 8.

I love this community, I love being the mayor of Fremont and I would just ask that the citizens of Fremont get out and vote, he said I would appreciate their vote of confidence on Nov. 8.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.  Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., the Democratic nominee for vice president, said in an interview Friday that he was puzzled by news that the FBI is looking at new emails related to Hillary Clintons private server.

I was very puzzled because they (FBI) did a very exhaustive investigation, a very long investigation, and then they reached an extremely unequivocal conclusion  and that was, no reasonable prosecutor would take this further, Kaine told the Richmond Times-Dispatch in an interview following his speech at Florida State University in Tallahassee.

And when he (FBI Director James Comey) was asked about that conclusion, he said, And in reaching that conclusion, Im going to tell you its not even close. That is an unequivocal conclusion, its not even close, Kaine continued.

Now  and I dont have any reason to think that it will be any different  but the letter that came out from Comey to members of Congress is pretty vague about whats going on, Kaine said.

And so to have it out 11 days before an election, with so few details, is of concern to me.

I would hope that the director would try to be a little more specific about exactly whats happening, he continued.

Especially since some reporters are saying its about this or that, which suggests that the FBI is talking to reporters but theyre not talking to people involved.
GAMBIER, Ohio  Before Tim Kaine found his way to the U.S. Senate  and was elevated to the national stage as Hillary Clintons Democratic running mate  many in Virginia politics thought he would end up as a college president, or at least a professor.

Perhaps thats why Kaine seems so at ease talking with college students.

Kaine started teaching at the University of Richmond School of Law in 1987 and did so for six years, until he was first elected to the Richmond City Council.

He taught again at UR after he served as Virginias governor. He maintains a part-time continuing faculty appointment at the UR Law School and the universitys Jepson School of Leadership Studies.

The senator from Virginia had spoken to college students three times in two days Wednesday and Thursday on this latest campaign swing.

On Wednesday in Pennsylvania, Kaine stopped at Bucks County Community College in Newtown and then Muhlenberg College in the Lehigh Valley seeking to motivate millennials to get out and vote for Clinton and Kaine on Nov. 8.

Bouncing onto the stage late Thursday afternoon at Kenyon College in Gambier, about an hour northwest of Columbus, the 58-year-old University of Missouri and Harvard Law School graduate was almost giddy.

My high school grades wouldnt have gotten me into Kenyon, but I made it to Kenyon! I made it to Kenyon! Kaine told an enthusiastic crowd of more than 1,100 assembled in the small liberal arts college gymnasium. This is so cool.

Like a college professor, Kaines speeches tend to run longer, rather than shorter. They often are a blend of history lesson and partisan political talking points, honed over weeks on the trail, delivered in a tone and cadence that just as easily could fit into a freshman seminar from a cardigan-wearing instructor.

He discusses the founding principles of equality embedded in the Declaration of Independence, drops Latin phrases and some Spanish, and is not shy to pull out Bible stories such as the tale of the Good Samaritan to make his case for votes.

He plays the candidate card very well  he knows how to make himself relatable to college students, said Kenyon senior Kate Prince of New York, an English major.

He reminds me of Professor Shutt, she said, referring to Tim Shutt, a professor of humanities at Kenyon.

A lot of things he said, my political science professor is saying, said student Tommy Johnson, 18.

To Mollie OLeary, Kaines communication style and use of personal anecdotes reminded her of her contemporary poetry instructor, Thomas B. Hawks.

I think he could be in the history department, said student George Goldman, 19. In the near future, however, Goldman would prefer to see Kaine sticking to politics.

I think its really important we have someone in the White House who understands history, he said. Because (Donald) Trump doesnt, he said, referring to the Republican presidential nominee.

Kaine talks a lot about history on the trail  about making history by electing Clinton as the first female president of the United States.

Saturday was expected to be his last day off before the Nov. 8 election. Kaine returns to the campaign trail today, flying to Detroit for the beginning of a final swing that will take him to North Carolina, Wisconsin and several other states before returning to Richmond, where he is expected to cast his ballot at his precinct on Election Day.
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Kimberley Diamonds said that mining operations at the Lerala Diamond Mine, in Botswana, which are conducted by external contractor, Basil Read, have been temporarily suspended.

The company said operations had been exceeding the plants current ability to process feed, which had resulted in the development of a large ore stockpile.

As a result, Lerala has asked Basil Read to temporarily suspend their pit mining operations in the K3 kimberlite pipe to allow Lerala to process and reduce these stockpiles to reasonable levels, it said.

Basil Read has now temporarily ceased all in-pit operations until further notice, however their operations to provide feed from stockpiles to the ROM and into the plant, continue.

It said the plant remains in production and produces diamonds every day.

Lerala expects the suspension of in-pit operations to continue for about three to four months or until stockpiles are reduced and mining is required to re-commence.

This is a cost saving measure while Lerala implements the performance improvement plan, and is not anticipated to impact on our expected production levels, it said.



Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished




The India Bullion and Jewellers Association Ltd (IBJA) is gearing up for the 4th edition of its annual bullion conclave the 'India International Bullion Summit' on 19th Dec. 2016.

The summit, to be held at Hotel Sahara Star, Mumbai, aims to create awareness on issues pertaining to the gem and jewellery industry of India. This event will bring together a diversified group of experts, officials and trade pundits not only from India but from across the world. Prominent speakers will address major issues pertaining to GST, e-business, hallmarking and much more. The event will also witness IBJA awards honouring the stalwarts of the jewellery industry.

Besides the interactive panel discussions the event will also host the IBJA fashion show by prominent jewellers. Commenting on the summit Mukesh Mehta, National president, IBJA says: The IIBS 2016 aims to educate jewellers about new trends in the industry. Experts from the different areas of the GJ industry would grace the panels for discussions. GST and hallmarking would be the prime topics to brainstorm on, besides several industry issues.



Aruna Gaitonde, Editor-in-Chief of Asian Bureau, Rough & Polished




Sociedade Mineira do Lulo (SML), a company set up last May by Lucapa and its partners, to hold the Lulo alluvial diamond mining licence in Angola, has recovered two more large stones, weighing more than 10.8 carats, at the mine.

Lucapa said that two diamonds weigh 77 carats and 71 carats.

These specials follow the recent recovery of white type IIa D-colour diamonds weighing 172 carats, 104 carats and 72 carats, as well as a 39 carats pink, the largest and most valuable fancy coloured diamond recovered to date at Lulo.

Lucapa said the five white diamonds would be included in diamond sales penciled for the current December quarter.



Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished




The UAE KP Chair, Ahmed Bin Sulayem, has issued a proposal related to fair, independent funding of NGOs in the KPCS.

According to the proposal, the KP Chair will lead the creation of a Fund, which would allow African NGOs to participate on equal terms in Review Visits and Missions, as well as KP Intersessional and Plenary Meetings as Observers, says a Press Statement.

The KP Chair has stated that it is his intention to have a decision on his proposal in the Final Communique at the upcoming KP Plenary in Dubai, November 13-17. It will then be adopted by UNGA by the end of the year.

The proposal for fair and independent funding for African NGOs follows the KP Chairs recent invitation to all members of the Civil Society Coalition (CSC) to attend the upcoming Plenary in Dubai, UAE.



Aruna Gaitonde, Editor-in-Chief of Asian Bureau, Rough & Polished




Savji Dholakia, a Surat-based billionaire, has gifted 400 flats and 1,260 cars as Diwali bonuses to his employees this year. Hare Krishna Exports has spent as much as $ 7.67 million for this purpose. In 2015, the company had gifted 491 cars and 200 flats to its employees.

Hare Krishna Exports also marks its golden jubilee this year. As many as 1,716 employees were named as the companys best performers. The hefty bonuses, which were announced at an informal meeting of employees, have been an annual affair at this company.

Dholakia, who is fondly called kaka (Uncle) in his firm, treats diamond polishers as family members and gifts them as per their performance in the company. Dholakia established and grew his diamond business using a loan from his uncle decades ago. Recently, he made headlines when he sent his son Dravya to Kochi in Southern India, with three sets of clothing and around $100 emergency money, to make the young lad understand what earning was, and also stand on his own feet.

Aruna Gaitonde, Editor-in Chief of Asian Bureau, Rough & Polished


The Diamond Commission saw a lengthy debate on Annex B of the Diamond Blue Book regarding diamond treatments, and made numerous changes including adding new definitions.These included descriptions and the display of imitations or simulants of diamonds, annealing, artificial products, artificial products which are not crystallised, artificially crystallised stones, fancy shapes and graining.The Commission added the new ISO standard 18323:2015 Jewellery  Consumer Confidence in the Diamond Industry, as a normative reference in the Blue Books.In addition, some of the Diamond Book language was adapted or changed according to the definitions in the new ISO standard.Commission Chairman Udi Sheintal said he was happy with the significant volume of work done on the Diamond Blue Book before the Steering Committee meeting took place.Members of the Diamond Commission Steering Committee did a tremendous amount of work before they arrived in Yerevan for the congress, he explained. As a result, we were able to review the book with many of the changes already widely discussed and agreed. That made it much easier to deal with all the issues.We had an excellent in-depth discussion about the proposed changes and I was pleased to receive so many comments during the Diamond Commission meeting, which showed the strength of interest, Mr. Sheintal said.He added that there will be some changes to Clause 3 of the Blue Book  Classification of Materials.These new changes will be brought before the members at the 2017 congress, he added.
Sean Winkler/REMSA

Knox Kershaw, Inc., hosted U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL-3) for a tour and discussion of rail and manufacturing issues at its long-held Montgomery, Ala., facility.

Local businesses, such as Central Steel Service, Inc., Loftis/Robbins, Inc., and railroad representatives from Genesee & Wyoming Railroad Services and Norfolk Southern also participated in the event, which was coordinated by the Railway Engineering-Maintenance Suppliers Association.

Chairman and CEO J. Knox Kershaw, II, let the tour of the companys state-of-the-art facility, which produces tie cranes, track brooms, material handlers, ballast regulators and other railway maintenance equipment.

We are honored to host Rep. Rogers and demonstrate our commitment to providing high quality products manufactured here in Alabama, said Kershaw. It is crucial that our policy makers in Washington support sound rail and trade policies to promote high-skilled and high-paying jobs here in Montgomery.

Rep. Rogers focused his remarks on encouraging economic development in Alabama, ensuring awareness and safety at rail-highway grade crossings and the need for a strong, efficient and safe freight rail system to connect Alabamas agricultural and energy producers to the global market.

We must do all we can in Washington to ensure our small and medium-sized businesses succeed, said Rep. Rogers. I look forward to working with strong Alabama companies like Knox Kershaw to continue to create manufacturing jobs here in Montgomery and promote American products abroad.

The rail stakeholder group discussed the Building Rail Access for Customers and the Economy Act, which aims to make the shortline tax credit permanent and has more than 220 cosponsors in the House of Representatives, including Rep. Rogers. Also discussed was recent regulation initiatives issued by the Surface Transportation Board on reciprocal switching and commodity regulation. The group explained the negative effects these efforts would have including reduced freight rail capital investment and the risk of creating major inefficiencies in the national freight network, as well as artificially creating government-mandated price caps.
AstraZeneca Plc. (AZN.L,AZN) confirmed that the US FDA has placed a partial clinical hold on the enrolment of new patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma or HNSCC in clinical trials of durvalumab as monotherapy and in combination with tremelimumab or other potential medicines. All trials are continuing with existing patients.

The company noted that the partial clinical hold on new patient enrolment relates only to head and neck cancer. Trials for durvalumab in different cancer types, as monotherapy or in combination with tremelimumab or other potential medicines, are progressing as planned, with pivotal data in lung cancer anticipated in the first half of 2017.

The FDA's decision follows voluntary action by AstraZeneca to pause enrolment of new HNSCC patients while a detailed analysis is conducted of adverse events related to bleeding that were observed as part of routine safety monitoring of the Phase III KESTREL and EAGLE trials. Bleeding is a known complication in treatments of head and neck cancers primarily due to the nature of the underlying disease, the proximity of tumours to major blood vessels and use of prior cancer therapies, which may involve surgery and radiation.

The company said it has submitted its analysis of the observed bleeding events to the FDA for review and is working closely with the Agency, providing the required information to resume new patient enrolment as soon as possible.

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Business News
Total (TTA.L, TTFNF.PK, TOT) reported that its net income group share for the third-quarter increased to $1.95 billion or $0.79 per share from $1.08 billion or $0.45 per share in the same quarter last year.

Total said it continues to benefit from its integrated model and is responding effectively to short-term challenges due to good operational performance and strong cost discipline.

In addition, the sale of Atotech for $3.2 billion in cash, or close to 12 times Ebitda, was part of the Group's portfolio management strategy to align its asset base with its ambitions and contributes to achieving the $10 billion asset sale program for 2015-17.



Adjusted net income for the quarter dropped to $2.07 billion or $0.84 per share from $2.76 billion or $1.17 per share, in last year's third quarter. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $0.80 per share for the third-quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items. Adjusted net income excludes the after-tax inventory effect, special items and the impact of changes in fair value.

Quarterly revenue dropped to $37.41 billion from $40.58 billion last year. Wall Street expected revenues of $32.62 billion.

With the market expected to remain volatile, Total said it is pursuing its efforts to lower its breakeven.

The company said that the Group's cost reduction program is ahead of schedule, underlining its ability to deliver the $4 billion savings target by 2018.

Given the capex guidance of $15 billion - $7 billion from 2017 and increase in operating cash flow, the Group's net cash flow is entering a growth phase. Operating cash flow before working capital changes should cover organic investments, including resource renewal, and dividend cash-out, with oil prices at 55 $/b in 2017. The discounted scrip dividend will be ended in 2017 if Brent is at 60 $/b.

Hydrocarbon production was 2,443 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (kboe/d) in the third quarter 2016, an increase of 4.3% compared to the third quarter 2015.

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Business News
Portland General Electric Co. (POR), a vertically integrated electric utility, on Friday reaffirmed its fiscal 2016 earnings per share guidance of $2.05 to $2.20.

On average, 11 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect earnings of $2.13 per share for the year. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Further, based upon retail deliveries year-to-date, full-year retail load growth guidance has been reduced to flat from 1 percent related to softening in the industrial and commercial sectors. However, the company said it still sees positive growth ahead based on the continued strength of local .

In its third quarter, net income was $34 million, or $0.38 per share, compared to net income of $36 million or $0.40 per share a year ago.

Earnings declined due to a reduction in sales volume due to mild temperatures, a decrease in deliveries in the commercial and industrial sectors, and expenses related to Carty not included in customer prices.

These decreases were partially offset by the incremental earnings associated with the OPUC approved Carty capital costs being placed in-service, an increase in the decoupling collection, a gain on the non-qualified benefit trust and other miscellaneous items.

Net revenues improved to $484 million from $476 million last year.

Analysts expected earnings of $0.42 per share on revenues of $473 million for the quarter.

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Business News
Austria's producer prices declined at a slower pace in September, preliminary figures from Statistics Austria showed Friday.

Producer prices fell 1.4 percent year-over-year in September, following a 1.7 percent decrease in the previous month. The measure has been falling since February 2013.

The annual decrease in September was mainly caused by the price declines in the fields of energy and intermediate goods.

At the same time, prices of both capital and consumer goods registered rises in September.

Month-on-month, producer prices edged up 0.1 percent in September, after remaining flat in the previous two months.

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Economic News

What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more.
Amid repeated claims the presidential election is being rigged against him, Republican nominee Donald Trump suggested that the contest should be canceled and he should be declared the winner.

Speaking to reporters at a rally in Toledo, Ohio, on Thursday, Trump argued that he should be awarded the presidency because Democratic rival Hillary Clinton's policies are so bad.

"Just thinking to myself right now, we should just cancel the election and just give it to Trump, right?" Trump said lightheartedly.

"What are we even having it for? What are we having it for?" he asked. "Her policies are so bad. Boy, do we have a big difference."

The comments from Trump come as he has suggested the election will be rigged due to a conspiracy by the media and establishment politicians as well as the possibility of widespread voter fraud.

Trump made headlines at the final presidential debate last week for refusing to commit to accepting the results of the upcoming election.

Making light of the controversy at a rally last Thursday, Trump suggested to supporters he would accept the results as long as he is victorious.

(Photo: Michael Vadon)

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Business News
In the race for the District 15 legislative seat, candidates David Schnoor and Lynne Walz list some different priorities.

Schnoor talks about personal property taxes, prescriptions and the Castle Doctrine.

Walz speaks about putting people back to work, education and ag business.

Both share similar stances on prison safety issues and the Costco chicken processing plant, which intends to locate in Fremont.

Schnoor, the incumbent, said he wants to eliminate personal property tax to help the state grow.

If businesses dont have to pay personal property tax, they have more money to invest in their business and, hopefully, grow their business, Schnoor said.

Hell also investigate what hes been told about pharmacists not being able to tell whether a less costly generic version of a drug is available, over a name brand, unless theyre asked by the patient.

I want to research that and find out what we can do about that, he said.

In addition, Schnoor is looking into the outlawing of ionization-type smoke detectors, which he said already have been banned in a few states because they dont work properly.

The senator also said hed like to see legislation passed on whats called the Castle Doctrine, something this state doesnt have.

If an intruder comes into your house, your first obligation by law in Nebraska is to flee, Schnoor said. With the Castle Doctrine, you would have the right to defend your family and your property.

Walz, the challenger, listed different things as her priorities.

My No. 1 priority is getting people back to work, she said. I think theres a misperception that a lot of people just want a handout and thats not what Im finding.

I think one of the things we need to do is change our government assistance programs, Walz continued. Currently, its an all-or-nothing system, where people who receive assistance can only make so much money a month before their assistance is totally taken away.

Walz said shed like to see a system in place where as people make more money, their assistance is adjusted so theyre not put into crisis situations.

Thats going to encourage people to go to work without being threatened, she said.

Walz also cited situations where people, who dont want assistance, are compelled to accept it. She cited the case of a man with disabilities, who was working full time and paying his bills.

She said the man was compelled by the state to apply for social security benefits. When he did that, he was told to cut back his work hours from 40 to one hour a week.

He lost his livelihood and the employer lost a good employee and now were paying for something he didnt need or want in the first place, Walz said.

Another priority is education.

We are 49th in the country in state funding for our schools, which I find very irresponsible, Walz said. We need to make our children our No. 1 priority. We need to spend money on our children now so were not spending money on them as adults and we need to make sure were putting programs into place that are individualized to meet students unique needs.

She also believes in promoting ag business and making a large marketing impact.

Both candidates spoke about the state budget.

If we can freeze our state spending and not cut any current programs and dont have to increases taxes  that alone is saving all of the taxpayers money, Schnoor said. Normally, the government grows by 2 to 3 percent per year.  If our budget is $4 billion a year and we dont have to increase it by 2 or 3 percent, then we save the taxpayers money and we dont have to cut any programs to do it.

Our one and only obligation is to fund public education and we still need to do that, but we need to balance how we do that so that the predominant area is not from property taxes, Schnoor said.

Walz said she believes there are many ways to cut back on duplication of services in the Health and Human Services Department. She cites examples of having to fill out different papers, all with the same questions, and having to call several people to get services.

What I would like to see is a more individualized system that takes out the duplication of services, where one caseworker follows the person and makes referrals to other local organizations get (him or her) help, she said.

Both candidates said overcrowding is an issue in Nebraska prisons.

We changed some laws last year to help that, but it may require additional prison space, which is going to be a big cost to the taxpayers, Schnoor said. I feel we have to rely on the new director for the prison system and see what he feels needs to be done.

We need to look at increasing the pay for the prison guards, Schnoor said. Theyre overworked and underpaid. If the pay increases, then they could get more employees, reduce their hours and have overall better working conditions.

Walz said non-violent offenders could be placed in rehab programs with job skill training. She said the prison guards working conditions must be improved, also saying they are understaffed and overworked.

Both candidates are for the Costco/Lincoln Premium Poultry Chicken Processing Plant locating in Fremont.

Im in favor of it, Schnoor said. Its a major economic boon for Nebraska and its all going to be funneled through Dodge County. There are growing pains that will come along with this and everyone is aware of that, and those issues will have to be dealt with as they come along.

Walz noted something else.

Im in favor of any agricultural business coming to Fremont, she said. We have a huge opportunity with the highways that are being built. All highways are leading to Fremont, which gives us huge opportunities. I think we need to take advantage of that and market our ag business to outside states.

Regarding Schnoors Facebook sharing of a post by another person of Black Angus cows and a commentwhich fellow lawmaker Sen. Ernie Chambers has called racistthe Dist. 15 senator said: Consider the source as far as Chambers is concerned, and had no other statement.

Walz declined comment.

In concluding thoughts, Schnoor talked about not wanting to see the size of government grow.

We want people to live free and prosper without the government controlling everything they do, he said.

Schnoor also said: We need to get back to the word of God and the Constitution and stop ignoring that. Theres people in the Senate who want to ignore the Constitution and I will not let that happen.

Walz talked about running a positive campaign.

I let everybody know, whos working for me, that we were going to run a positive campaign, she said. We have too much negativity in our world today. I think its really important that we stay positive at the local level and, hopefully, that can someday make a difference at our national level.
By SA Commercial Prop News

Johan van der Merwe CEO of Sanlam Investments says the fund forms an integral part of the Sanlam Groups growth strategy and takes advantage of its large existing footprint on the continent.



SA's Investment giant, Sanlam announced its newly sub-Saharan Africa Real Estate Fund listed on the Stock Exchange of Mauritius late last week.

The fund which is structured as a listed property company will allow local and international investors to invest in high quality retail and commercial real estate across select sub-Saharan African countries excluding South Africa.



Thomas Reilly CEO of the Funds Advisor, said on Thursday the response from the investor community to the launch of the fund has been exceptional.



"We have closed the first capital raise for the fund in line with our full initial target of US$ 100 million. The fund is open-ended with multiple future capital raisings planned in order to raise additional capital.



He said the fund takes advantage of the supply and demand imbalance for quality real estate across the subcontinent as well as the regions strengthening demographics and attractive investment returns.



The majority of the initial capital was raised in Southern Africa We expect most of the second capital raise - anticipated to take place early next year - to come from the international investor community. While raising capital internationally is by no means an easy task this fund provides a compelling investment opportunity and investor interest has been strong. The proposition is strengthened by the fact that the fund has been structured to international standards and it provides the first acceptable platform for both local and international investors to tap the growth potential of the sub-Saharan African real estate market - without any significant development risk says Reilly.



The Sanlam Group currently has businesses in 11 countries across the African continent and expects to grow a portfolio in excess of US$500m over the medium term with a large percentage of the investor base aside from Southern African investors expected to be sourced from the US and Europe.



Johan van der Merwe CEO of Sanlam Investments says the fund forms an integral part of the Sanlam Groups growth strategy and takes advantage of its large existing footprint on the continent.



The fund is a strong demonstration of our entrepreneurial ability and is a further step towards us being able to provide the investor community with a comprehensive suite of products for Africa.
By SA Commercial Prop News

The problem of coal trucks tearing up Mpumalanga's roads may soon come to an end following Eskom's announcement that the R5.2 billion Majuba railway line near Ermelo will start operating in the next two years.



The problem of coal trucks tearing up Mpumalanga's roads may soon come to an end following Eskom's announcement that the R5.2 billion Majuba railway line near Ermelo will start operating in the next two years.

The 68km railway, operated by Transnet, will connect the province's coal mines to Eskom's Majuba power station.

"Civil construction and earthworks for the development will be completed by the end of October this year. The line will be able to carry the first coal-loaded train on 31 May 2016," Eskom spokesman Andrew Etzinger said.

The project was expected to yield lower life-cycle transportation costs, improve coal-delivery turnaround times, and enable Majuba to access more coal sources than was currently the case.

Mpumalanga residents have been up in arms over the number of coal trucks destroying town roads, but Mpumalanga premier David Mabuza has assured them that the new railway will alleviate this problem.

During his 2013 state of the province address, Mabuza said numerous social and economic benefits would be associated with the project.

The mining town of Ermelo has been the most heavily affected with three national roads, the N11, N2, and N17 passing through the town. The N11 carries approximately 1000 trucks a day.

The Majuba railway has been designed to transport 14 million tons of coal yearly from the Goedgevonden, Vlakvarkfontein, Exxaro, Middelkraal, Kuyasa, and Shanduka mines.

The project received a R3bn loan from the World Bank and Eskom financed the balance.
Misleading texts claim to show your polling place. Here's how to vote.

A batch of texts that claim to show a voter's polling place were sent Monday to Kansans, despite appearing to show inaccurate information.
Its the weekend. You re in town having a great family outing but hard pressed to find a decent place that is kid friendly, serves alcohol and wont hurt the wallet.

Look no further, Izzys Restaurant has recently just opened its doors at its new location in the heart of Apia.

The restaurant offers an American dinning experience with a Samoan twist. Being one of the only restaurants in Apia to offer create- your own gourmet burgers that can stack up to six inches tall!

As well the best seller, mouth- watering, savory pulled pork sandwich. Which is slow roasted, smothered in barbecue sauce, shredded and stuffed between two buns. It is one of the only sandwiches of its kind on the island. And of course, one of its more notable dishes is the Stui, which is a coconut crusted fresh fish burger paired with banana chips and nui is one of the most popular dishes amongst expats.

Restaurant owner, owner Friedrich J Kruse IV , disclosed the inspiration behind naming the dish the Stui.

He said, We call it the Stui because, (Prime Minister) Tuillaepa had mentioned in the news paper that he wanted to see more dishes with local fish and bananas and nui. So we were happy to name that after him.

He hasnt come into try it yet, but well shout him a Stui if he wants to come down.

The mastermind behind Izzys unique flair is restaurant owner Friedrich J Kruse IV, and cites his eldest of his two daughters, Izzy , as the inspiration behind the name of the restaurant.

Having been born and raised in American Samoa, Mr. Kruse reflects his life experiences in his menu and unique ambiance that the restaurant offers.

He stated, Were pretty much American based. A lot of my culinary experience has been from the U.S: Hawaii, Texas and California.

Since Ive been here and my wife is schooled over in New Zealand, I have been able to change and kind of fuse in some New Zealand favorites as well as my American background as well as some Samoan dishes. Just pulling everything together into that.

Im from American Samoa born and raised. I have family here, they own a restaurant already made and came to help with their restaurant. Ive been able to save up and be on my own and Ive been on my own ever since. Weve been in business for about four years now, and weve done well enough to move into town.

Not only is the food amazing, but the unique dining experience and catering toward working class people is an attraction as well. The restaurant is family friendly offering a well-lit indoor facility, outdoor patio and very secure. Mr. Kruse stated, One of the things were going to do is a happy hour day for Thursday, well just extend our hours just a bit longer for the working class, before they want to go home and want to grab some snacks. Or we want to do some beer pairing with some of our food that will be the opportunity for us to do that on Thursdays.

My personal project is, I want to do family friendly dinners on Fridays. There are not too many places in town where you can bring over your family to have dinner unless its like a bar. So were hoping to tap in to that market.

Its well lit, we have an outdoor patio, its well secure, and we have some kid friendly food. Well have a dinner menu for some of the adults.

We do have alcohol, we do sell beer, but were not expecting to have a tower on the table.

We just wanted to have; you know if dad wants to have a beer with his steak then well be able to offer that, while the kids can have pasta.
Members of the Methodist Church at Vaitele-Fou, Vaipoto-o-Manu-o-le-Atua officially celebrated the opening of their new church building and their Pastors house yesterday.

The two projects took six months to complete at the total cost of $727,172.46.

The President of the Methodist Church, Reverend Apineru Lafai conducted the opening ceremony. He highlighted the fact the earth is the Lords and everything in it belongs to him.

Let us rejoice in the Lord for He is the Chief Carpenter, in whom the building is completed.

The Churchs Senior Pastor, Reverned Lone Urima, said the completion of the project is a moment to celebrate. He acknowledged everyone who contributed.

To the Methodist Church, all the leaders, churches in Samoa and overseas, not forgetting the hard working members of the church here at Vaitele-Fou, I want to say faafetai tatalo, faafetai lagolago!"

May God the Father of all continue to bless us.

The President of the Auuso, Seti Lafai, cut the ribbon.

Church members and families raised funds through their tausala, barbeque, month contributions and other forms of fundraising.

There were also donations from families in Samoa and overseas.

The service was well attended by the church leaders from overseas and Samoa  including the Prime Minister, Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, Minister of Works, Papalii Niko Lee Hang and villages Member of Parliament, Lealaipule Rimoni Aiafi.
The Associate Minister of the Ministry of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Peseta Vaifou Tevaga, is a relieved man.

He walked away a free man yesterday after he was found not guilty of charges of fraud and forgery filed against him.

Supreme Court Judge, Justice Mata Tuatagaloa said the prosecutor failed to prove the charges against the M.P. for Faasaleleaga No. 4 beyond reasonable doubt.

All charges against the defendant are dismissed, Justice Tuatagaloa said in her brief decision.

Outside Court, Peseta and his lawyer Leuluaialii Olinda Woodroffe were elated.

Peseta was charged in relation to a complaint filed by the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Laaulialemalietoa Leuatea Polataivao, Apulu Lance Polu and Martin Jonathan Schwalger.

The complainants are shareholders of a company called Local Partners and Associate Limited. Pesetas son, Leiataua Danny, was also a shareholder of the company.

The complainants claimed Peseta had forged the signature of Mr. Schwalger in order to transfer shares from his son, Leiataua, to his name.

Leuluaialii told the Weekend Observer that the decision means justice has been done. 

But this is not the end of the matter. The lawyer and her client have vowed to take the complainants in the matter back to Court.

The civil claim has already been filed (against them), said Leuluaialii.

But lets take one step at a time. The purpose is not to just fight, it is to seek justice and truth for what has happened.

Peseta told the media he was thankful. The M.P. pointed out the matter has stained his good name and it has been a costly process.

I thank the Judge for the decision and my lawyer as well as those that supported me, he said.

I have a lot of things I want to talk about because this has damaged my reputation, affected my family and the constituency that I serve as the Member of Parliament."

Which means a civil claim will be brought in Court against those involved.

The people involved that Peseta is referring to are the complainants  including senior fellow H.R.P.P member, Laauli.

The Associate Minister added although the process of clearing his name has been costly he will pursue with the civil claim against the complainants to reveal the truth.
BEIRUT (AP)  Syrian rebels launched a broad offensive for Aleppo Friday as the Russian, Syrian, and Iranian foreign ministers vowed to intensify their fight against terrorism in the country.

The battlefield allies met in Moscow as the Syrian government is looking to cement its authority over the divided northern city and the contested suburbs of the capital, Damascus.

Fighting for Aleppo appeared to have calmed by the afternoon after rebels assaulted the city's government-controlled western side with three vehicle bombs and at least 150 rockets in the morning. The Syrian military said the rockets were Russian-made Grad missiles.

At least 15 civilians were killed in the volley, according to pro-government TV stations. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group also said that 15 civilians were killed, and over 100 injured.

A reporter inside the city for the Lebanon-based Al-Mayadeen TV channel had reported attacks on "all sides" of the city, "from the furthest points north to the furthest south."

Sounds of heavy gunfire, mortar fire, and explosions were heard in the background of his broadcast, as dark smoke was seen rising above the city on the overcast morning. Presumed government or Russian jets were also heard flying overhead.

An afternoon broadcast from the city on Lebanon-based Al-Manar TV depicted a quieter scene, though sporadic gunfire and missile attacks were heard in the background.

Rebels said they seized a factory and pushed into government-held neighborhoods in southwestern Aleppo, but the Syrian military said through SANA that it had repelled the offensive from all fronts, with support from allied militias.

"The Syrian army and its allies are in control on the ground and armed groups were not able to change the map," the military statement said. "Fighting is still ongoing but the intensity has dropped."

This is the second attempt by rebels to break the government's siege of Aleppo's opposition-held eastern districts, where the U.N. estimates 275,000 people are trapped. U.N. Special Envoy Staffan De Mistura has estimated 8,000 of them are rebel fighters, and no more than 900 of them affiliated with the al-Qaida-linked Fatah al-Sham Front.

The area has been subjected to a ferocious campaign of aerial attacks by Russian and Syrian government warplanes, and hundreds of people have been killed in recent weeks, according to opposition activists and trapped residents.

Rebels opened a corridor to the east for the month of August after pro-government forces first applied a blockade in July, but they were not able to hold it as the government and its Russian ally pounded the gap with artillery and airstrikes. Pro-government forces reapplied the siege in early September.

The setback caused the rebels to pursue a different tack, and they are trying to draw government forces into street fighting in the densely-inhabited western part of the city, according to rebel spokesman Ammar Sakkar. They are hoping this will dissuade the government and Russian air force from using heavy weapons and aerial munitions.

"We want to force the regime into street battles, in addition to opening several fronts," said Fastaqim spokesman Ammar Sakkar. "It may go beyond lifting the siege to liberating the whole city."

Friday's attack began with rebels detonating three vehicle-borne explosives against government positions to the city's southwest and attacking with hundreds of rockets, the Observatory said. It said at least one of the vehicles was driven by a suicide bomber for Fatah al-Sham, which also announced the offensive.

Fatah al-Sham claimed credit for two car bombs, saying in a statement that a "martyrdom-seeking fighter" drove a tank laden with explosives and parked it, before it was detonated and the fighter "returned to his brothers."

The Islamic Front rebel coalition also announced on Twitter that the ultraconservative Ahrar al-Sham group targeted a military airport to the east of the city with Grad rockets and destroyed a government position to the west of the city.

Sakkar, said "all the revolutionary factions, without exception, are participating in the battle." He said hundreds of fighters were participating in the attack, adding that the total number of participants was "much higher."

"What the rebels did today, it was very much a technical thing to try to tell the regime ... we can get more weapons and get to Aleppo," said Bassam Barabandi, political adviser to the Syrian opposition's High Negotiations Committee, in an interview in Washington.

The Syrian army depends on battlefield assistance from Lebanese and Iraqi militias, as well as Russian air power and Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard forces.

The Russian military says it has asked President Vladimir Putin to allow the resumption of airstrikes in Syria on the rebel-held eastern part of Aleppo due to the fresh rebel offensive there.

Lt. Gen. Sergei Rudskoi said the opposition fighters took advantage of a 10-day moratorium on military flights over the city to attempt to break the siege of the eastern rebel-held part of the city. He says all attacks have been repelled, but 43 civilians have been killed and 96 wounded in the rebel shelling.

Putin rejected the military's request for the resumption of airstrikes on the rebel-held eastern part of Aleppo. The president's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said that Putin considers it "inadvisable to resume airstrikes on Aleppo," and wants to have humanitarian corridors out of Aleppo's rebel-held districts stay open both for rebels and civilians to leave the city.

The Syrian government has labeled the country's armed opposition "terrorists." Syria has sunk ever deeper into a costly civil war since security forces cracked down brutally on popular demonstrations in 2011.

Near the capital Damascus, meanwhile, the Syrian army captured an army missile base that was held by rebels, as well as a castle. Syrian troops have been on the offensive near Damascus for weeks.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in a news conference with his Syrian and Iranian counterparts the intensified fight would come in parallel with efforts to improve humanitarian aid access.

But U.N. official Jan Egeland said Thursday it was the Syrian government that had denied humanitarian access to eastern Aleppo as part of a monthly U.N. plan to access 25 besieged and remote areas in Syria.

Western nations accuse Russia of deliberately attacking a U.N.-backed aid convoy in September in rebel-held territory, killing over a dozen humanitarian workers and destroying hundreds of tons of cargo.

Aleppo is the focal point of the war. President Bashar Assad has said he is determined to retake the country's largest city and former commercial capital.
When Pacific Gas & Electric announced earlier this year its intention to shut down the Diablo Canyon nuclear facility, it said closing down the last remaining nuclear power plant in the state would not raise rates for its customers.

But the investor-owned utility, in a mailer sent to customers in August, said it is applying to the California Public Utilities Commission for a 1.6 percent rate increase, which translates into $1.766 billion to be collected over an eight-year period.

PG&E spokesman Blair Jones said Thursday the rate hike application is not a U-turn because the utilitys short term rate increase will be offset in the long term.

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But critics of the Diablo shutdown are not in a forgiving mood.

They just lied, theres no sense in sugar-coating this, said Michael Shellenberger, president of Environmental Progress, a pro-nuclear group based in Berkeley.

On June 21, PG&E made headlines by announcing it had agreed to a joint proposal with a number of environmental groups and labor organizations to close Diablo Canyon, which supplies more than 9 percent of Californias electricity, by 2025.

Under the proposal that will go before the CPUC, Diablos almost 18,000 gigawatt-hours of power each year will be replaced by a combination of greater renewable energy sources such as wind and solar, increased efficiency and energy storage systems.

The proponents of the shutdown also expect depletion of PG&E customers to more localized energy programs such as community choice aggregations.

The Natural Resources Defense Council, one of the environmental groups that signed on to the joint proposal, issued a blog post Thursday saying it still strongly supports closing Diablo Canyon.

NRDC estimates that Californians will save at least $1 billion compared to the high cost of refurbishing an aging nuclear plant, said Ralph Cavanagh, co-director of NRDC s energy program.

Nuclear advocates point to figures showing California adding more natural gas to the states power portfolio after the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station was retired and say the closure of Diablo Canyon will make the state more reliant on gas, which is a fossil fuel.

PG&E officials disagree.

It would be more expensive for customers to continue to operate Diablo Canyon and  in some cases it could be almost twice as much to continue to operate Diablo Canyon as compared to the cost of replacement resources, Jones told the Union-Tribune in an email.

The proposed closing of Diablo Canyon is currently before an administrative law judge at the CPUC. Eventually it will go before all five commissioners for a final vote, which is expected in about one year.

The CPUC has been under scrutiny on a number of fronts, including San Onofre decommissioning costs that had customers at Southern California Edison getting billed for $3.3 billion for leftover plant costs.

In May, the utilities commission decided to take a second look at the settlements details after it was revealed that in 2013 then-commission President Michael Peevey and an SCE executive met secretly to sketch out an agreement.

Will news of the PG&E rate hike affect the thinking of commissioners when it comes time to approve or deny the proposed shut down of Diablo Cayon?

Definitely, Shellenberger said. The only thing that the CPUC really cares about is bad public relations.

rob.nikolewski@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-1251 Twitter: @robnikolewski

ALSO

Will natural gas go up when Diablo goes down?

Proposal filed to shut down Diablo Canyon

Group wants CPUC taken off Diablo Canyon decision
Tucked just off an Escondido street, behind walls and lush trees, is a two-acre slice of inspiration for artists and scientists alike.

Its a hidden sanctuary surrounded by canopies of trees and quaint bridges over a slip of a stream. But what truly makes the three-bedroom home unique is the occupant: A Ship in the Woods, a nonprofit arts incubator run by people dedicated to elevating culture and conversation.

Over the past year, the home has emerged as a hub for creative thought, where art mashes with science and brings together people from both fields who have found a way to open up science in a very artful, engaging way, said A Ship in the Woods co-founder Dan Fauchier.

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This is kind of like a Thanksgiving table for a family, Fauchier said. You are there for a shared celebratory purpose.  Discussions can get lively but there is a lot of love that cuts through it all. It sounds corny, but its like that.

Lianne Mueller, the incubators co-executive director, said culture doesnt have to be in an institution.

There is so much art in San Diego; we want to offer something different, she added.

The groups board of directors includes Salk Institute neuroscientist John Reynolds, who leads a Salk team studying how brains perceive, understand and interact with surroundings. His professional work calls for running tightly controlled experiments with little change in variable. But working with artists in his free time provides a platform to ask questions beyond the realm of what we look at as scientists, he said.

Its a way of looking at some of the questions that I care about in a way that is a much freer point of view, Reynolds said. Science has to be very vigorous. In this, we can play.

Reynolds is one of the scientists who worked on Rhodopsin, an interactive light and sound art piece in which people experience how the brain not only sends information about reality, but constructs reality as well. He said the installation is now part of an exhibit in Northern California entitled Neurosociety, created by Talking Heads cofounder David Byrne and tech investor Mala Gaonkar.

A Ship in the Woods  the name is a metaphor for something unexpected  also calls itself WSOHOIDPS, the letters in the word ship interspersed in the word woods.

The group started in 2010 in a mid-century Del Mar rental home that had previously provided lodging for visiting theater actors. The organizations founders wanted to create a hub for art and offered one of three cabins on the Del Mar property to use for an artists residency.

Over the course of five years, more than 80 artists bunked there, and small gatherings of less than two dozen gave way to events drawing upwards of 400 people.

Since the move to Escondido last year, a handful of visiting artists have stayed.

The three-bedroom house, which needed some renovation, is the full-time residence of Fauchier and co-founder RJ Brooks. It sits on more than 2 lush acres on the edge of Felicita County Park, and in the backyard is a swimming pool with an installation of Atlantis by artist Matthew Bradley temporarily displayed under water.

The home is also a gallery, where more than 600 people attended its last big event, the opening of Flat Earth in September.

There are plans to build a separate two-story recording studio that will also serve as a gallery, performance space and residency program. Its still in the design stage, with a county grant covering some of the design cost.

Everything about the property is intended to stoke creative thought and bring people together.

You can have the elevated dialogues youd have in museum, but put it in a domestic space, Brooks said. Its not as stuffy as a museum.

Art runs throughout the house, including a life clock, a countdown to dying. The piece, by Point Loma Nazarene professor David Adey, ostensibly counts backwards the time left in the artists life, based on his lifestyle and habits.

Adey said events at the home are unlike anything else going on. Ditto the group itself.

I dont know how to categorize it, he said. Thats what makes it so interesting.

teri.figueroa@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @TeriFigueroaUT
Members of the Bahai community in Carlsbad are putting on two public events Nov. 1-2 to mark the birthdays of the founders of their faith.

A commemoration of the birth of Bab  Siyyid Ali-Muhammad, known as the herald of the faith  is set for Nov. 1 and the celebration of the birth of Bahaullah  Mirza Husayn-Ali is Nov. 2.

The Bahai Faith is a religion that promotes the unity of humanity and offers a vision of hope for a peaceful world, said Susan Hibbard, a member of the Carlsbad Bahai community, who is helping organize the events.

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Siyyid Ali-Muhammad, who later took the title the Bab, meaning the Gate, was born in 1819 in Shiraz, Persia, (now Iran).

The Bab called for spiritual and moral reformation. He announced that humanity was standing at the threshold of a new era, and that a divinely-inspired educator would soon arise whose teachings would transform civilization, and begin an era of justice and peace, as promised in all of the worlds religions, Hibbard said.

The divine teacher was Mirza Husayn-Ali, born in 1817 in Nur, Persia, who became known as Bahaullah, meaning the Glory of God.

In 1863 Bahaullah began to share teachings that God had revealed to Him. These teachings promote justice and peace and form the basis of the Bahai Faith, Hibbard said.

The birth of Bab commemoration is 5 p.m. Nov. 1 at a private residence (RSVP at susan_hibb@yahoo.com or (858) 253-2685.)

The Birth of Bahaullah celebration is 5 p.m. Nov. 2 at the Carlsbad Seniors Center, 799 Pine Ave Carlsbad.

Visit https://carlsbad.ca.local.bahai.us.
With a state proposition looming that could legalize the sale of recreational marijuana across California, several San Diego County cities have been scrambling to pass emergency ordinances that would temporarily prohibit the cultivation and sale of the drug within their borders.

National City, San Marcos and Santee have already adopted such measures, and the Poway City Council is set to consider its own temporary ban next week. Lemon Grove has a permanent law banning medical and recreational pot and El Cajon and Imperial Beach are set to address the matter next month.



For the record: The original version of this story said Poways ordinance would temporarily ban the cultivation and use of recreational marijuana. The ban would only apply to the cultivation and sale of the drug.

City officials in those communities say that while voters statewide may be ready to legalize marijuana by approving Proposition 64, its a different story in their towns.

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Id be willing to bet anything that this measure will go down in flames with Poway voters, said that citys Mayor Steve Vaus. The people who live in Poway choose to live here for a reason. They like the way we do business and they like the way we approach public safety.

In National City, the City Council unanimously passed an emergency ban on Oct. 18 after hearing a report out of Colorado that the consequences of that states recreational laws have been far flung and often negative.

I see this as an economic cost to society that is definitely far outweighed by any potential revenue that could come into this city, said Councilwoman Mona Rios just before voting.

Prop. 64  also known as the Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act  would allow people 21 and older to grow up to six plants at home and to buy and possess an ounce or less of marijuana and 8 grams or less of concentrated cannabis, although it would still be illegal to smoke or consume marijuana in public. The law would also eventually allow the cultivation of marijuana for commercial use, but commercial sales wouldnt be legal until 2018.

The measure appears headed toward approval, according to several recent polls, including a statewide survey released this week by the Public Policy Institute of California showing 55 percent of likely voters favor Prop. 64, and 38 percent oppose it.

While some suburban cities are looking at how to shield themselves from the law, San Diego wants a cut of the potential revenue. The city has put Measure N on the November ballot that, if approved, would allow San Diego to create a local tax of up to 15 percent on marijuana sales should Prop. 64 take effect. Officials say, if the state law passes, the city tax would be a proactive way to deal with an expected increase in local costs, particularly for law enforcement.

Legalizing recreational use will increase demand, so I think its likely youll also see an increase demand for these kinds of city resources to monitor and regulate this industry, Councilman Mark Kersey said in June.

In Poway, Vaus said the tax boost isnt worth the problems the law would bring.

Some other cities like San Diego have decided to tax potential sales, but in Poway there are more important things than money, he said. The urgency ordinance would require a 4/5th vote of the council but Vaus said he thinks it will pass unanimously.

Prop. 64 would establish a state regulatory system  to be known as the Bureau of Marijuana Control, within the Department of Consumer Affairs  similar to the way the Department of Alcohol Beverage Control regulates the sale of wine, beer and spirits. Retailers of marijuana would be subject to state control, including a 15 percent state excise tax paid by purchasers, and a cultivation tax paid by growers.

However the measure also allows cities to exert local control over non-medical marijuana commercial activities, including a ban on such uses. The League of California Cities conducted a webinar for its members earlier this year, advising them how to prohibit the sale and use of recreational pot if they so choose.

Poways ordinance, if approved, would go into effect on Nov. 9 and would be in effect for 45 days, but could be extended twice more for up to two years.

The countys board of supervisors unanimously voted to oppose Prop. 64 earlier this month, raising the possibility they might also consider prohibiting recreational use in the unincorporated areas. But no decision to pursue a temporary ban has been made.

Most suburban cities in the county continue to ban medical marijuana dispensaries, despite a state law allowing them. The City of San Diego has an ordinance allowing and regulating dispensaries, but illegal pot shops continue to crop up, to the frustration of city officials and dispensary owners who are following the rules.

In terms of the recreational marijuana ban, Poway Deputy Mayor Jim Cunningham said he will vote in favor of his citys urgency ordinance.

The biggest concern coming out of the blocks is that anytime there is a vote or something that is brought into law by a referendum that the fallout, the consequences and the details, are never clear, he said. This legislation is likely to have unintended consequences. We have no idea what theyll be. To force this down the citizens of Poways throat at this time would not be appropriate

Reporters Karen Pearlman and Christine Huard contributed to this report.
As one of the nations most acclaimed and daring contemporary classical and New Music pianists, Sarah Cahill has received her fair share of glowing reviews  and, every once in a while, a few pans.

But this Bay Area maverick may be one of the few pianists of such note who has also written her fair share of glowing reviews and pans  about other musicians.

Before devoting herself full time to performing music, Cahill was the staff music critic for the East Bay Express. She also brought her insight and encyclopedic knowledge to her writing for the San Francisco Chronicle, The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, the Village Voice and other publications. Since 1989, she has hosted a weekly music and discussion show, Then and Now, on San Francisco public radio station KALW-FM.

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In a not entirely simple twist of fate, Cahill went on to collaborate with at least a few artists she had reviewed during her years as a critic.

I did review the Alexander String Quartet and, a couple of years ago, played the Mozart piano quartets with them, said Cahill, whose Friday solo performance at Bread & Salt in Logan Heights concludes this falls Fresh Sound concert series.

And I reviewed the Berkeley Symphony Orchestra and later played Lou Harrisons Piano Concerto  which he wrote for (jazz piano giant) Keith Jarrett in 1985  with them.

Has Cahill ever performed with artists to whom she had given a less than flattering review?

I think the Alexander String Quartet review I wrote wasnt very favorable, but I like them very much, she said. They didnt bring it up; they had probably forgotten about it!

And I hate to say it, but I did not (write favorably) about Philip Glass Beauty and the Beast (re-imagining). This is difficult for me to say, because (last month) I played Glass etudes concert with him (at Stanford), which was one of the greatest things for me, ever.

Critical mass

Less likely Cahill collaborators include with the California electronic music duo Matmos and the Japanese psychedelic rock band Acid Mothers Temple.

She brings an inviting eloquence and visceral impact to anything she performs. She also digs as deep as necessary to find the emotional essence of even the most challenging works by composers who revel in working well beyond any mainstream musical conventions.

To cite two examples, Cahill shines whether breathing new life into French impressionistic icon Maurice Ravel (on her 1997 album Miroirs and Gaspard de la Nuit) or tackling The Cradle Will Rock composer Marc Blitzsteins deviously complex  and at times hair-raising  pieces (on her 2009 album with the Del Sol String Quartet, First Life - Rare Early Works).

Then theres her striking 2013 album, A Sweet Music, which was inspired by Cahills despair over the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

For it, she commissioned anti-war compositions by Terry Riley, Frederic Rzweski, Kyle Gann, Yoko Ono, and other politically engaged artists, including the proudly quirky avant-rock band The Residents (whose video projects are often directed by her husband, John Sanborn). What results is an almost entirely instrumental album with a powerful message of hope and peace.

Cahill spent two decades as a music and literary critic before deciding to focus solely on the piano in the late 1990s. In reflection, she has noted, her work as an uncompromising concert and recording artist has been informed by her work as a critic.

It makes me recognize that we all want to be understood for what were doing, she said.I think everyone wants to have a critic (accurately) say, This is what shes trying to do. This is what her vision is, sort of. And it doesnt need to be full of accolades.

For instance, a critic recently didnt say anything about my playing and that I balanced a program between men and women composers, which I always try to do. Instead, they pointed out the mistakes I made in one piece. But I remember being a young critic and wanting to take down an (esteemed) performer, and pointing out in a review I did that (celebrated pianist) Murray Perahia made some mistakes, although I didnt do that often.

I love that there are particular critics in the U.S. who really know the kind of music I play, see its value, and appreciate some of the neglected composers I spotlight from anywhere in 20th or 21st centuries.

Switching majors

Championing undervalued composers has been a constant for Cahill, who was born in Washington, D.C., and grew up in in Berkeley, where father was a noted professor of Chinese art history at UC Berkeley.

She began studying piano at 7, performing with area orchestras before she was a teenager and entered the San Francisco Conservatory of Music at 16. When she was 17, budding New Music giant John Adams composed a piano piece for Cahill, China Gates.

I was in my practice room when he brought it in. It was a Christmas present, she recalled. I looked at it and the score had these zigzagging, up-and-down figures. It looked kind of like a graph or something. In 1977, this was all very new  and new to me  that kind of minimalist music.

So I did realize it was an honor. But I think its fascinating that China Gates is now a classic and has been recorded by so many different pianists. ...

Given her prodigious musical talents, why did Cahill become an English major after enrolling a year later at the University of Michigan? She cites one key reason.

After working with a warmly nurturing piano teacher in the Bay Area, she found herself studying with a Michigan music professor who had little time, or encouragement, for most of his students.

Some of the most famous teachers in conservatories have been horrible and screwed up their students, Cahill lamented. And I just loved writing poetry and reading, so I became an English major. It was that 18 year old thing of: Is this what I really want to be doing? Do I want be in a practice room eight hours a day for four years? 

I love sonnets and short stories. I was a Hopwood Award finalist in poetry at the University of Michigan. Then I combined the two worlds and started writing music reviews the East Bay Express and other alternative weeklies for 20 years.

And that was really good training in thinking about what makes great performances and what makes them compelling on stage. Thats very useful in planning and doing concerts.

Making thorny music inviting

Cahill performed periodically as a pianist during her years as a critic, but focused primarily on the traditional classical repertoire she had grown up playing. Her work as a critic led to her to the contemporary classical and cutting-edge music to which she has since devoted herself as a performer and recording artist.

With tireless enthusiasm, Cahill has championed the work of composers whose work can be difficult going for audiences. Happily, she has a knack for making even the most thorny music inviting and accessible.

Thank you! Thats the best thing you could say, said Cahill, before explaining her artistic modus operandi. I think its very helpful to put yourself in the position of the music itself, and to say: Well, does someone really want to hear thorny music?

For instance, Ive recorded a lot of Terry Rileys music, from 1958 to the present day. He has these complex 12-tone pieces from 1958 and 1959 that are really spiky and can sound very thorny. Or you can play it in a way where you find the melodic and expressive qualities, and try to be as lyrical as you can.

I think thats more what the music is about. Because no one really wants to listen to a dry academic performance.

Fresh Sound Concerts presents Sarah Cahill

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday

Where: Bread & Salt, 1955 Julian Avenue, San Diego

Tickets: $15; $10 students

Phone: (619) 987-6214

Online: freshsoundmusic.com

Twitter @georgevarga

george.varga@sduniontribune.com
A California review board denied parole Thursday to Charles Tex Watson, the self-described right-hand man of Charles Manson and a key figure in the Manson familys 1969 killing spree in the Los Angeles area.

Watson, 70, was initially sentenced to die in San Quentins gas chamber for his part in the murder of pregnant actress Sharon Tate and six others. In 1973, his sentence was commuted to life in prison after the state Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was unconstitutional.

The panels decision, reached late Thursday, marks the 17th time that Watson has been denied parole, according to Luis Patino, a spokesman for the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Hell be eligible for parole in five years.

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Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey condemned Watson after the parole boards decision was reached.

These were some of the most horrific crimes in California history, and we believe he continues to exhibit a lack of remorse and remains a public safety risk, Lacey said in a statement.

Watson was convicted of joining other Manson followers in the Aug. 9, 1969, massacre of five people including Tate, who was married to director Roman Polanski.

Before storming the Polanski home in Benedict Canyon, Watson climbed a pole and cut the telephone wires. He also fatally shot Steven Parent, a man who was visiting a friend at the Polanski estate. Next, Watson and other Manson followers  Susan Atkins, Linda Kasabian and Patricia Krenwinkel  carried out the barbarous slayings.

Abigail Folger was stabbed 28 times; Jay Sebring was shot once, stabbed seven times and found with a rope around his neck; and Wojciech Frykowski was stabbed 51 times and shot twice, according to court papers.

Tate, who was eight months pregnant, was stabbed 16 times and found with a rope around her head.

After the killings, Watson and the other Manson followers  who were covered in blood  drove away, stopping to use a hose to wash off.

The next night, Watson and others fatally stabbed Rosemary and Leno LaBianca at the couples Los Feliz residence. War was carved into Leno LaBiancas chest, and a knife was left stuck in his throat. On the walls, with the LaBiancas blood, they wrote, Death to pigs, rise.

The Los Angeles County district attorneys office has long opposed releasing Watson and other members of the Manson family.

Prosecutors said Manson and his followers  based out of the Spahn Ranch commune in Chatsworth  were trying to incite a race war that the cult leader believed was foretold in the Beatles song Helter Skelter.

At Watsons most recent parole hearing in 2011, Deputy Dist. Atty. Patrick Sequeira called Watson the leader of the rampage at Polanskis home; he had announced to the victims: I am the devil. I am here to do the devils business.

His role within the family was a significant one, Sequeira said. He was essentially the main hit man. These werent impulsive actions. Murdering seven people on two subsequent nights were not impulsive actions.

During the 2011 hearing, Watson said his decades behind bars had given him time to reflect on his delusional beliefs and horrific crimes.

My heart is filled with remorse for the tragedy I caused so many people, he said. Im so deeply sorry that I allowed myself to get to the place of not valuing life.

Addressing the family members of his victims, he said, Because I cannot apologize to your loved one, I have chosen to honor their memories by living a clean and sober life.

The parole board recognized Watsons efforts to reform but found that he still posed a danger to society. The parole commissioners opined that he lacked a depth of insight into the grisly crimes and their effect on the nation.

Watson is in Mule Creek State Prison in Ione, about 40 miles outside Sacramento. Behind bars, he has married, divorced, fathered four children and become an ordained minister.

He also earned a bachelors degree in business management in 2009.

According to a website for Watsons ministry, he works as a janitor and attends Bible study.

Most of the key players in the Manson murders  including Krenwinkel and Leslie Van Houten  continue to serve life sentences with the possibility of parole. Most, including Manson, have been denied repeated requests for parole.

In 2009, Manson follower Lynette Squeaky Fromme was released from prison.

Atkins, who stabbed Tate to death, was denied parole even when she was terminally ill. She died in September 2009.

matt.hamilton@latimes.com

Twitter: @MattHjourno.

UPDATES:

8:45 p.m.: This article was updated with comments from L.A. County Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey.

7:55 p.m.: This article was updated with the board denying parole for Watson.

7:45 p.m.: This article was updated with additional background and excerpts from Watsons previous parole board hearing.

This article was originally published at 5:30 p.m.
The body of Navy Chief Petty Officer Jason C. Finan is being flown to San Diego on Friday.

California Highway Patrol troopers will lead a procession carrying his remains from San Diego International airport to the Merkley-Mitchell Mortuary in the Hillcrest section of the city at around 11 a.m.

Finan, 34, of Orange County, died on Oct. 20 after suffering wounds from an improvised explosive device near the town Bashiqa while on a mission with special operation troops accompanying Kurdish forces in battle with the Islamic State.

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He was assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit 3 in Coronado and was serving in Iraq as a military adviser.

A private memorial service will be held for Finans family on Nov. 1 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Coronado, according to a military press release issued early Friday morning.

Finans family has asked for privacy during their time of grieving.

cprine@sduniontribune.com
This election, Im with the bad kids.

Im for bacon.

At least it tastes good.

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Call me a fool, and I suspect many partisans will, but Im dropping to the bottom of the list and writing in my presidential choice.

Trump? Too terrifying.

Clinton? Too depressing.

Early on, I thought the Libertarians might offer an escape pod from the two-party rocket wreck.

But former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson, who in his pre-Aleppo salad days liked to say that Mickey Mouse would poll at 30 percent against Clinton and Trump, wound up missing the debate threshold by a mile. In the end, he made Mickey look clever and well-prepared.

Green Party? Peace and Freedom?

As protest votes, neither one plays a tune a militant moderate can follow.

So Im left with the all-purpose bailout below the five party slates on the presidential ballot: Write-In.

Im well aware that this agnostic gesture is, in a practical sense, a waste of ink.

In registrar-speak, its an undervote. A de facto blank.

I might as well vomit on the top of the ballot for all the impact my write-in vote will have.

My presidential preference will be unceremoniously dumped into the rubbish pile of the 2016 general election.

To be fair to our democratic process, however, I should note that there will be a number of names you can write in that will be dutifully counted as if they were relevant to the inevitable Clinton cruise to victory in California.

Im talking about the official write-in candidates, a group that will be revealed with muted fanfare on the Secretary of States website Friday.

I called up the S of Ss office on Wednesday to get a preview of what this candidate pool might look like.

I do not yet have figures on write-in candidates for this Novembers ballot, a spokesman told me, as our office is still reviewing documents .... In the 2012 General Election, there were eight certified write-in candidates for president.

No matter how many certified write-ins there are, however, its pretty safe to predict two things:

One, Mickey wont be in the mix; and two, no one will really care who they are unless theyre celebrities, porn stars or action heroes. (Independent candidate Evan McMullin, whos making serious waves in Utah, is a possible exception.)

If anything, media outlets looking for a quirky angle will play the mass of certified write-ins for laughs, a hapless gaggle of losers.

Nevertheless, in this most deplorable of election cycles, I can see a bonanza for uncertified ironic gestures, personal pieces of performance art that mean absolutely nothing but say something about the tortured psyche of voters, young and old.

A couple of weeks ago, Scholastic News published the results of its quadrennial straw poll of students K-12. All told, 153,000 children cast fake votes.

As all but magical thinkers would expect, Hillary Clinton won in a landslide, 52 percent to 35 percent for Donald Trump.

But what intrigued me was the 13 percent who went off the major-party script and, even more interesting, the 9 percent who just couldnt keep a straight face while they were doing it.

After write-in votes were tallied for Johnson (2 percent), Bernie Sanders (1 percent) and Green Partys Jill Stein (1 percent), the remainder turned up such wild cards as Mom, Kanye West, Harambe the gorilla, Spider-Man and  wait for it  bacon.

On a less aromatic note, Charles Krauthammer, the syndicated conservative columnist of a certain age, recently confided his intentions:

The only question is whose name Im going to write in. With Albert Schweitzer doubly unavailable (noncitizen, dead), Im down to Paul Ryan or Ben Sasse.

At least in California, however, House Speaker Ryan and Nebraska Sen. Sasse, Krauthammers finalists, might as well be undocumented immigrants and dead.

Quite simply, they cant count.

Michael Vu, San Diego Countys upbeat registrar of voters, broke the news to me on Wednesday.

He confirmed that no matter how interesting or instructive a write-in vote may be, there would be no recording, no reporting out. Its as if they never happened.

He did, however, leave open the possibility that notable write-ins could be the subject of water-cooler conversation at the registrars office.

These good folks are human, after all. They have hearts and minds. They share stories.

With any luck, the greatest write-in hits may leak out to brighten up the post-election coverage that, lets face it, will reflect the dismal fact that roughly half the country will be in a state of mourning.

In June, the Union-Tribune raised some eyebrows by urging Republican primary voters to write in Ronald Reagan (citizen, but dead) to send a signal to Trump, the GOPs Great Excommunicator.

Vu told me this week that no one documented how many voters took the counsel and voted for the Gipper.

Despite that official reticence, Im going for write-in gold.

This is our moment for millions to channel our inner Hunter S. Thompson and vote gonzo.

If we hit the lottery, well get the exhausted workers at the registrars office to smile and/or reflect for a moment before they spike our work of political science fiction.

Its not a lot to shoot for, but in this presidential election, its just going to have to do.

logan.jenkins@sduniontribune.com
Its not a new argument: Hate crime allegations  which increase punishments for underlying crimes like assault  are both unfair and unnecessary.

Thats how some people view them anyway.

Deputy District Attorney Oscar Garcia, who has specialized in hate crime prosecutions in San Diego County for more than a decade, said hes heard it all before, including from judges and lawyers. And he has an interesting counterpoint.

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A lot of times, these (crimes) have ramifications beyond the immediate victim, Garcia said. State and federal lawmakers, he said, have long supported the idea of harsher penalties for behavior that causes greater damage to society.

The prosecutor explained that when a person is targeted because of race, gender, religion, sexual orientation or disability, it tends to increase the emotional trauma that an individual victim experiences and sends ripples of fear and anger throughout the community.

People ask themselves, What could be done in the future to make ourselves safer? Garcia said.

Often, the answer is  nothing.

You cannot change the thing that makes you more of a target and you should not be expected to change, he said.

So local prosecutors file hate crime allegations in cases where they believe they have evidence to prove the crime was motivated in whole or in part by bias.

That can be challenging. A third of the suspects in these cases have legitimate mental health issues, Garcia said, and victims can be reluctant to report the crimes for fear of retaliation.

And then theres the argument that these kinds of allegations punish free speech. Just because an assailant used an epithet during an attack doesnt mean its a hate crime. Usually there is more to it than that.

A judges order in a case now pending in Vista seems to underscore that point.

Superior Court Judge Harry Elias this month ordered three suspected Fallbrook gang members to stand trial in the fatal stabbing of a 33-year-old black man, Hugh Pettigrew III, who prosecutors said was attacked at random while walking in the small North County town.

Deputy District Attorney Christine Bannon argued the killing was racially motivated because the defendants are members of a gang that purportedly hates black people.

The judge rejected that argument, saying there was no specific evidence that two of the three defendants  Kevin Garcia, 21, and Tyler Ryan, 25  attacked the victim because of his race. Hate crime allegations for those two defendants were dismissed.

The judge said evidence presented during a two-day preliminary hearing showed one of the defendants may have been motivated by bias.

Ryan Valdezs moniker was listed with other alleged gang members on some anti-black graffiti found in Fallbrook, but his defense lawyer argued that Valdez, 18, neither wrote the graffiti nor added his name to it.

The prosecutor later dropped the hate-crime allegation against Valdez.

A conviction for first-degree murder in California carries a sentence of 25 years to life in prison. A hate crime allegation or enhancement, if found to be true, can tack on up to four more years.

According to the state Attorney Generals Office, the number of hate crime events in California went up 10.4 percent in 2015, to 837 from 758 the previous year.

Overall, hate crime events in the state have decreased by nearly 36 percent over the past decade. Hate crimes with a race, ethnicity, or national origin bias were consistently the most common type. Within that category, hate crimes with an anti-black bias motivation were the most common at just under 32 percent.

Hate crimes with a sexual orientation bias were the second most common, and religious bias was third with the majority targeting Jewish people.

Last year in San Diego County, 22 hate crime cases were referred to the District Attorneys Office. Of those, 14 resulted in hate crime convictions and eight ended in convictions for non-hate crime offenses.

The San Diego City Attorneys Office, which handles misdemeanor cases in that city, reported three hate crime cases in 2015. All of them resulted in convictions, but only one for a hate crime offense.

dana.littlefield@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @danalittlefield
Marine scientists, Navy admirals and elected officials gathered in downtown San Diego on Friday to celebrate the commissioning of the R/V Sally Ride  the nations first academic research vessel named for a woman.

The ships namesake, Sally Ride, is the late astronaut who made history as the first American woman in space. The longtime La Jolla resident, who died of cancer in 2012, was also a nationally recognized role model for girls, women and people in general who aspired to excel in the sciences.

This is one of the most exciting things that can happen within a university  the acquisition and operation of a brand new research vessel that allows us to really fulfill our mission to explore and educate, Margaret Leinen, director of UC San Diegos Scripps Institution of Oceanography, told the audience at Broadway Pier.

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Ive been involved in a lot of remarkable events, but this is truly one of the happiest, she added.

The $88 million ship is owned by the Navy and will be operated by Scripps.

Following a Navy band performance, speakers took to the stage to highlight the relationship between the military and higher education, as well as Rides legacy.

They included San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer; Rear Adm. Timothy Gallaudet, an oceanographer with the Navy; and Jon Alberts, executive director of the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System, or UNOLS.

The research vessel Sally Ride, as the newest vessel in the UNOLS fleet, will enable further advances in science  not only for Scripps Institution scientists but for the entire world by bringing together technological advances in ship design and the most current oceanographic sampling equipment available, said Alberts, whose organization helps coordinate ship schedules between 62 academic institutions and national laboratories.

To roaring applause, Rep. Susan Davis addressed Rides 92-year-old mother, Joyce, who was sitting in the crowd.

You can feel the love in this room for your daughter  and you as well for having raised such an incredible woman, said Davis, D-San Diego.

Throughout her life, Ride used her pioneering role in space to advocate for a far stronger representation of women and minorities in various scientific fields. Her educational company, Sally Ride Science, is now part of UC San Diego and continues to be guided by co-founder Tam OShaughnessy, who was also her life partner.

Ride, who made her famous voyage on the Challenger, served on the investigation panels for the space shuttles explosion in 1986, as well as a panel that looked into the disintegration of the Columbia shuttle upon re-entry into Earths atmosphere in 2003. She is the only person to have severed on the panels for both of the nations space shuttle tragedies.

The 238-foot Sally Ride ship can hold 20 scientists and 25 crew members. Its designed to accommodate a wide range of missions, from monitoring seismic activity to studying fisheries to researching melting sea ice caused by climate change.

Many types of scientists are slated to use the vessel, including chemistry crews that need a completely clean and sterilized work environment as well as geologists who scoop up rocks and make a big mess, Bruce Appelgate, Scripps head of ship operations and marine technical support, said during a tour of the ship Friday.

Weve got that new-ship smell. Come back in a couple years and that will be gone, he said with a smile.

The Sally Ride features an array of groundbreaking technologies, including a robotic arm for lowering often heavy monitoring equipment into the ocean  such as a rosette that collects water samples and measurements from the sea floor. The ships mechanical arm stabilizes such sampling devices as theyre lowered off the side of the vessel, a process that in the past required several technicians to prevent equipment from smashing into the bulkhead.

This allows us, with few people, to deploy systems more safely in sea conditions that are more challenging, that couldnt be done the old-fashioned way, Appelgate said. We can continue operating even when sea states are high, which is great for the American taxpayer, who ultimate funds the research.

The Sally Ride replaces the 45-year-old Melville. It joins three other research vessels operated by Scripps  the Roger Revelle, the Robert Gordon Sproul and the Floating Instrument Platform.

The planning for this new research vessel started in 2002, and the construction phase began about four years ago at a shipyard in Anacortes, Wash. The ship is expected to operate for at least 30 years.

The Sally Ride will be docked along the Embarcadero through this weekend, and it will be open for public tours on Sunday between noon and 4 p.m.

Twitter: @jemersmith

Phone: (619) 293-2234

Email: joshua.smith@sduniontribune.com
Time is running out to get your mail ballot: Tuesday is the deadline to request one.

San Diego County is reminding folks that its a huge ballot  two cards, four sides of elections  and that there may be backups at polling places on Election Day, Nov. 8.

Considering the length of the ballot and the traditionally high turnout for presidential elections, the Registrar of Voters is urging voters to plan ahead and save time by requesting a mail ballot, the county said in a release Thursday.

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Mail ballots must be requested by Tuesday. Under state law, applications must be physically received by the Registrar of Voters no later than 5 p.m. They cannot be simply postmarked on that date.

The county reminds voters there are several ways to apply:

Complete the application on the back of the sample ballot and voter information pamphlet.

Download an application from the Registrar of Voters website.

Email, fax or mail a letter to the Registrar of Voters. The request must include your name, residence address, name and date of the election, the address where the ballot is to be mailed, and your signature.

(Times really running out for the mail option. If mailing your request, the county says send it immediately.)

Call (858) 565-5800. The Registrar of Voters is accepting mail ballot requests over the phone. The request can be only for the current election and the registered voter must make the call personally.

Applications and letters can be emailed to rovmail@ sdcounty.ca.gov, faxed to (858) 694-2955 or sent to the Registrar of Voters at P.O. Box 85520, San Diego, CA 92186-5520.

Upon receiving the ballot, a quick turnaround is urged.

The returned mail ballots will already be processed so when the clock strikes 8 p.m. on election night, we can immediately start counting them, said Registrar Michael Vu. Those results will be released just minutes afterward. As with any election, the more ballots processed beforehand, the quicker the election results.

Those who miss the mail ballot deadline can vote in person at the Registrar of Voters located at 5600 Overland Ave., San Diego, 92123 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday until Election Day when the voting hours will change to 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. to reflect the hours at the polls, or between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 5 and Sunday, Nov. 6 for weekend voting.

Voters can also cast ballots at their assigned polling place on Nov. 8.

For voters who need language assistance, election materials are also available in Spanish, Filipino, Vietnamese, and Chinese. To learn more about voting in the Nov. 8 election, visit sdvote.com or call (858) 565-5800.
Last March as former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was under attack for using a private email server her aides hatched a plan to embarrass some of her critics, and Rep. Darrell Issa was in their cross-hairs.

The Vista Republican was fresh off a four-year stint as chairman of the House Government Oversight and Reform Committee where he oversaw the investigation on the deadly attacks in Benghazi, Libya. Clintons use of a private email server to conduct government business became an issue.

Issa and other Republicans attacked Clinton for that and argued that her decision to store her correspondences outside of a government network sidestepped the Freedom of Information Act, a law that lets the public review government documents from the executive branch.

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As Issa and other Republicans stressed the importance of transparent government, Clintons confidants developed a plan to make them look like hypocrites for maintaining a provision in FOIA that makes Congress documents, including emails from representatives and senators, exempt from public scrutiny.

It doesnt appear that they ever moved forward with the plan.

The details were included in emails from Clinton adviser and campaign manager John Podesta that were obtained and published by WikiLeaks.

Issa said he wasnt surprised by the plan mentioned in the emails.

Its not the first time weve detected the administration, including the political side, trying to embarrass the committee under his chairmanship, he said in an interview.

In the WikiLeaks emails, a Clintons aide said it is hypocritical that members of Congress pushed for an open executive branch, but kept their own business away from public inspection.

In the course of this we discussed an ironic hypocrisy that we believe the public would benefit in knowing before judging anyones intentions and practices: Congress is exempt from FOIA. Because Congress exempted itself from FOIA, Clinton aide Philippe Reines wrote.

In an email to prominent lawyer Abbe Lowell, counsel to House Democrats during Bill Clintons impeachment proceeding, Reines suggested getting Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Maryland, a member of the Oversight Committee and frequent Issa adversary, to introduce legislation that would end Congress exemption to FOIA, or tee up some good government group to make a point about it. He also suggested approaching the chairman of the House Select Committee on Benghazi, Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-South Carolina, and the new chairman of the Oversight Committee, Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, to co-sponsor the bill.

Im sure the leadership wouldnt appreciate giving up the carveout, he wrote, referring to the exemption, but chances are it would reach the floor anyway.

To highlight that members of Congress champion transparency, as long as they can remain opaque themselves, Reines suggested that they also file a series of FOIA requests just to watch them go unfulfilled.

WikiLeaks: Fletcher suggested attendance attack on Rubio, though it was very painful for himself 

Issa, other Republicans on the oversight committee and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, were all targeted for possible FOIA requests with the expectation that they would be dismissed.

All those who pound their chests about the publics right to know how their government functions. Just not their  of it, Reines wrote.

Reines also wrote that there was a reporter  the journalist was not named  he thought would be very interesting in covering the Republicans response.

Its not clear what happened to the plan discussed in the emails, but FOIA has subsequently been amended. In June, President Barack Obama signed the FOIA Improvement Act, a bill that included provisions from House legislation Issa and Cummings introduced. The law says the executive branch should presume that documents should be made public and requires government agencies to justify why some requested documents should be withheld. It also requires routine disclosures while conducting everyday business, requires agencies to update their FOIA regulations, and allows more oversight of efforts to make sure FOIA provisions are followed.

The law doesnt eliminate exemptions for Congress, however.

Issa praised the bill when Obama signed it into law.

This critical update to the Freedom of Information Act is a major milestone that enshrines into law the peoples right to know what their government is actually doing, he said. Its a significant step forward to the accountable government the people deserve.

Issa, in an interview Friday, said hed like to see FOIA expanded, but not to include everything members of Congress do.

The president is entitled to an exemption included in the deliberative process, so the commander in chief can receive candid advice, and there should be a similar exemption in Congress.

What we cant do, constitutionally, is strip away the individual right of a member, just like the president, to seek counsel, he said.

But they have made their workings more accessible by putting more information, including webcasts of meetings and troves of records, online. He said he also requested documents from his chairmanship of the House Oversight Committee put into the National Archives in order to make them available as well.

Additionally, Congress could require that legislation spend a minimum amount of time online before a vote in order to give citizens the chance to read the bill, and to disclose when and who lobbyists meet with.

The judicial branch could become more transparent by allowing cameras into courtrooms during proceedings.

When it comes to the judiciary, the biggest thing we dont have that we want is cameras in the courtroom, he said.

Cameras are allowed in two federal appeals court, and a pilot program allows cameras in some district court courtrooms during proceedings.

Twitter: @jptstewart

joshua.stewart@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-1841
A San Diego law student has created a way for American voters and their pets to release some frustration over this years presidential election.

Josh Morse, a first-year law student at California Western School of Law, is the creator of Chomp-A-Chump. His one-man shop sells $9.99 chew toys that bear a striking resemblance to Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. He hopes to expand into offering dolls in the form of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

Theyre pet toys with a purpose, Morse said. Its not to be taken seriously. Its a light, funny and farcical way to look at this political season.

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Morse started the company in May but the idea came to him in the fall of 2015, while watching a GOP debate with his a six-year-old Australian Shepherd, Cody.

He usually only barks at animals on TV, but for some reason he started barking at Trump and no one else, Morse said. The light bulb went off in my head. Im going to design a Donald Trump parody chew toy.

He said he didnt act on the idea right away, but when Trump gathered momentum in the election, Morse spent hours watching YouTube instructional videos to learn how to design a toy and create the product.

The final version has a heart tattoo that reads PUTIN and a Wall Building 101 book in the back pocket.

It was originally designed as a chew toy, but Morse said consumers have found other uses  a door stop, a desk ornament or just something to squeeze when stressed out at work.

Morse said he sold his first thousand toys in 23 days. He hopes to continue to sell his remaining stock soon, to help combat student debt and give back to local animal shelters.

My goal is to drop off bags of Frisbees, balls and ropes to all the shelters in the area. he said. If it wasnt for [Cody] I wouldnt have come up with the idea, so it was kind of a way for me to give back.

Giving back is a common theme for Morse, who said he was five years old when his abusive father abandoned his mother and left her with three children to support. The family was living on the street when Morse ran away.

He said he got a second chance when an Ocean Beach couple took him in.

They said I could stay for the weekend and that weekend turned into 11 years, he said. Thats why I try to give back whenever I can. If someone hadnt helped me out, I wouldnt be where Im at today.

Contact Lauryn Schroeder via Twitter or Email.
A Spring Valley man died Wednesday after getting into a fight with his cousin, who has been arrested on suspicion of murder, a sheriffs official said.

The victims girlfriend called 911 about 5:30 a.m. to report the scuffle in an apartment on Kenora Drive near Dale Avenue in Spring, homicide Lt. Kenn Nelson said.

When deputies got there, both men had stopped fighting.

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One of them, Kenyan Embry, was in obvious medical distress and having trouble breathing, Nelson said. Embry, 37, was taken to a hospital, where he died a short time later.

Nelson said he had suffered deep scratches and some minor head trauma. The county Medical Examiners Office ruled his death a homicide but has not yet determined the cause of death. Investigators will run toxicology reports, which could take up to eight weeks, Nelson said.

Embrys cousin, Andre Blue, 28, was taken to another hospital and treated for minor wounds, Nelson said. Blue was later arrested and booked into jail on suspicion of murder in connection with Embrys death.

Investigators do not believe either of the men used a weapon during the fight. They did not say what the dispute was about.

Nelson said Embry lived at the apartment where the fight broke out.

Twitter: @D4VIDHernandez
A man accused of kidnapping a German foreign exchange student in Pacific Beach and raping her at knife point in his truck on New Years Eve last year was bound over for trial in San Diego Superior Court Thursday.

Jacob Skorniak, 50, had pleaded not guilty to felony charges of rape, kidnapping to rape and a number of allegations. If convicted, he could face life in prison, said Deputy District Attorney Lisa Fox.

Details of the alleged assault emerged during his preliminary hearing, including description of a video that appeared to show the victim being sexually assaulted while she was unconscious.

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The night she was attacked, the 21-year-old victim went to dinner with friends, then to a friends house and finally to a bar in Mission Beach. Officers who testified Thursday said she told police she consumed a number of drinks, including wine, champagne, a gin and tonic and tequila shots.

The victim had a blood-alcohol content of .09 percent when she was examined at a hospital about eight hours after the attack.

Shortly before midnight, her friends suggested they take an Uber to bar a few miles away in Pacific Beach. She told them she was feeling sick and asked the Uber driver to take her home instead.

The driver told police she started vomiting and tried to get out while the car was still moving a short while later. He pulled over and she stumbled out. He tried to persuade her to get back in the car, but she refused, police said.

The next thing the woman remembered was being in a vehicle with a stranger who had a knife. He drove to a dark location and pulled over. She told officers the man told her, you want this, as he took off his shirt and unbuttoned his pants.

During the sexual assault, the woman told officers he was holding the knife near her head. Skorniak is also accused of using the knife to cut through some of her clothing.

She said she let it happen because she was fearful he would cut her throat, said San Diego police Officer Geoffrey Kaiser, who testified Thursday.

While she was being raped, the victim said she heard her phone vibrating somewhere in the car. The phone had dialed her family in Germany. Her dad answered, police said, and heard an altercation.

He told police he could hear her asking to be left alive and he tried to scream into the phone, Stop it! The womans sister later called the victims friends in San Diego to tell them of the call.

The friends called 911 and rushed to the victims home.

The man reportedly became apologetic after the assault and offered to drive the woman home. When he stopped for gas, the woman waved a man over as he passed by the truck at the station. She told him her name and that she was being kidnapped. The man, identified as Michael Kimbell, testified Thursday.

She seemed to be really scared and looked like she had been crying, said Kimbell, who works security at a Pacific Beach bar.

When he told her to get out of the car, she didnt. He said that he thought she was too scared, so he called police.

Just before she was dropped off, police were outside her house interviewing her friends. Officers spotted the truck, but the driver got away, leaving the victim on a street close by.

She went to her home and reunited with her friends. One investigating officer said she was only wearing a jacket at the time, but had most of her clothes with her.

Skorniak was later found in Santa Barbara. When investigators searched his vehicle, they found a number of memory cards, including the one that appeared to show a portion of the sexual assault.

Twitter: @LAWinkley

(619) 293-1546

lyndsay.winkley@sduniontribune.com
A fire at a home in the community of Shelltown Thursday night displaced a family of five, including a child with a disability, fire officials said.

The residents got out safely and called 911 about 9:45 p.m.

A faulty electrical cord was to blame for the blaze in a bottom room of the two-story townhouse on Nordica Avenue east of 40th Street near Balboa Elementary School, said San Diego fire spokeswoman Monica Munoz. Smoke and flames quickly extended to the top floor.

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When firefighters arrived they saw smoke escaping out of the front door. Crews put out the fire in 10 minutes.

Damage was estimated at $50,000.

The Red Cross was called to assist the two adults and three children who were displaced. One of the children has a disability, Munoz said, but no other information was available.

Twitter: @D4VIDHernandez
A third suspected gunman was arrested Thursday in the 2006 fatal ambush of Oceanside police Officer Dan Bessant, roughly eight years after two gang members were convicted in the slaying.

Newly developed information led officers to arrest 26-year-old Oceanside resident Jose Compre shortly before 9 a.m. Thursday morning, authorities said. They declined to provide details about that new information Thursday, but said Compre would be arraigned Friday in Vista Superior Court.

Bessant, 25, was assisting a fellow officer during a traffic stop in a gang-plagued neighborhood on Dec. 20, 2006, when teenage gang members down the road opened fire on the officers. Bessant was struck and killed.

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Eventually, three suspects were under arrest: Meki Gaono, then just a few weeks shy of 18; Penifoti P.J. Taeotui, then 16; and Compre, also then 16.

Prosecutors had argued the three had been drinking beer, and had watched the police activity for about 15 minutes before opening fire. The motive, authorities said, was to bolster the street status of themselves and their gang.

Although Compre was arrested the morning after the shooting, authorities kept in him custody on an unrelated robbery case for eight months. When he was due to be released, he was charged with Bessants murder.

In 2008, at the end of a 10-day preliminary hearing for the trio, only Gaono and Taeotui were ordered to face trial.

Superior Court Judge Runston G. Maino dismissed the murder charges against Compre without prejudice, finding insufficient evidence.

I certainly dont think Mr. Compre is innocent, Maino said at that time. I just dont have enough (evidence) for a strong suspicion with Mr. Compre.

Compres then-attorney, Mary Ellen Attridge, said at the time that her client was not present at the moment of the shooting and that there was no physical evidence or witnesses placing him at the scene.Much of the evidence against Compre, Attridge has said, came from statements by the other defendants.

Gaono and Taeotui were eventually convicted of first-degree murder, and both are serving life sentences. They were tried as adults but because they were under 18 at the time of the attack, they werent eligible for the death penalty.

On Thursday, Bessants father, Steve Bessant, said he has long believed that Compre was involved.

I think the biggest feeling I have is relief, he said Thursday afternoon. I always felt it (an arrest) would happen. If there was any way for it to happen, it would happen.

The officers father said he remains thankful to Oceanside police for their support and determination.

Danny loved serving the community and the people from OPD are continuing to serve in the fashion that he did, Steve Bessant said. Thats really how I feel. Thats where my heart is.

When Dan Bessant died, he was married and the father of a 2-month-old boy.

On Monday, the boy turned 10 years old. He and his mother have since moved out of the area.

He is doing well, Bessant said of his grandson. Healthy and happy and doing great.

teri.figueroa@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @TeriFigueroaUT
Regarding San Diego to weigh sweeping Airbnb restrictions (Oct. 27): The San Diego City Council needs to put the brakes on a proposal to effectively ban short-term rental properties (STRs). The proposal put forward by City Council President Sherri Lighter would effectively ban vacation rentals, harming our local economy and severely restricting our rights as homeowners.

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I am an STR owner. This is more than just business to me. This is personal. At a difficult time in my life, when I lost my spouse and my job, having the income from a STR helped me keep my family afloat. Under Lightners proposal, I wouldnt have had the flexibility to make ends meet.

And its not just me, STRs in San Diego generated an estimated $110.3 million in revenue and another $86.4 million in other visitor-related spending in 2015. The City Council needs to reject plans that would harm our economy and our citizens rights.

Margo DiBartelo

South Park

* * *

On Tuesday, San Diego will discuss enforcement of illegal short-term vacation rentals. This action is long overdue. But lets be clear what is and is not being considered.

This is about enforcing the existing municipal code, on whose reliance San Diegans bought homes in residential zones. The minor changes proposed  eliminating the word primarily and adding the definition for visitors and tourists to conform with the definition of transient in the municipal code  have no effect on the ordinance. They only address City Attorney Jan Goldsmiths perceived need to facilitate enforcement.

These changes do not ban home sharing to the extent it is permitted under the code now. This enforcement is directed at unsupervised mini-hotels where owners are absent. These commercial uses in residential neighborhoods are prohibited by the code because they destroy neighborhoods.

Tom Coat

Pacific Beach

Want to see more letters that appear only online? Follow @UTLetters on Twitter and UTOpinion on Facebook.
Fridays surprise announcement of a new FBI investigation into whether Hillary Clinton improperly sent classified material over email as Secretary of State sent immediate shock waves through the presidential campaign just 11 days before Election Day.

In a letter to members of Congress Friday, FBI Director James Comey said the agency has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation it completed in early July and that the bureau should take appropriate investigative steps to consider whether the emails had any classified content.

Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta released a statement saying, it is extraordinary that we would see something like this just 11 days out from a presidential election  we are confident this will not produce any conclusions different from the one the FBI reached in July.

https://twitter.com/gdebenedetti/status/792089746067468288

The New York Times reported that the emails surfaced after the F.B.I. seized electronic devices from Clinton aide Huma Abedin and her husband, Anthony Weiner.

https://twitter.com/BraddJaffy/status/792049409244663809

The timing of the announcement has unleashed a wave of reactions from Democrats and Republicans, including Donald Trump, given the implications it could have on Clintons campaign. Clinton leads in most national polls by a narrow margin. The most recent poll from ABC News has Clinton ahead of Trump by four percentage points.

Republicans were left unsatisfied after the FBI closed its investigation into Clintons emails in the summer. In July, Comey said Clinton and her staff had acted extremely careless but would not face any charges. However, the controversy never went away and Trump has insisted Clinton should face justice.

Trump and other Republicans, including House Speaker Paul Ryan, have welcomed the new investigation. Trump spokeswoman Kellyanne Conway was among the first to weigh in.

https://twitter.com/KellyannePolls/status/792055185950515200

https://twitter.com/BloombergTV/status/792061355863834624

https://twitter.com/mike_pence/status/792075934333558784

In a statement, Ryan went so far as to call for the suspension of Clintons classified briefings until the email matter was resolved:

Yet again, Hillary Clinton has nobody but herself to blame. She was entrusted with some of our nations most important secrets, and she betrayed that trust by carelessly mishandling highly classified information. This decision, long overdue, is the result of her reckless use of a private email server, and her refusal to be forthcoming with federal investigators. I renew my call for the Director of National Intelligence to suspend all classified briefings for Secretary Clinton until this matter is fully resolved.

Its unknown what might be revealed in the new emails, but the news amounts to a plot twist and an October surprise in an election with high stakes for Trump and Clinton. WikiLeaks has been releasing a trove of hacked emails from Clintons campaign chairman John Podesta in recent days, with seemingly little or no impact on the candidate in national polls.

As of Friday afternoon, the FBI announcement became the top story of the day and many have begun to speculate what this means for Clinton, the election, and the FBI.

https://twitter.com/JohnCornyn/status/792059507631230976

https://twitter.com/mmurraypolitics/status/792054065572216832

https://twitter.com/ryanbeckwith/status/792053953097760768

https://twitter.com/CNN/status/792076044975149056

https://twitter.com/AliWatkins/status/792067270755385344

https://twitter.com/CBSNews/status/792074206074798080

Comey has not provided additional comment on the newly discovered emails or whether it would result in re-opening the larger investigation of Clintons use of a private server for official use during her role in the Obama Administration. In the letter sent to members of Congress, he said he didnt know how long this new investigation would take.

As the news broke, Clinton had just arrived in Iowa for a campaign rally. The Podesta statement came a short while later.

https://twitter.com/gdebenedetti/status/792089746067468288

Email: luis.gomez@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @RunGomez

UPDATES:

8:42 p.m.: This article was updated with a statement from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta.

This article was originally published at 12:25 p.m.
I normally stay out of the public comments and negativity but I am compelled to compose this letter because of the insults thrown at the school board meeting last month and posted in the Ramona Sentinel by some of the Ramona Unified School District School Board members.

Blue ribbon schools, Model Continuation School, Title I academic achievement awards, California distinguished schools, and golden bell recipients are all fantastic accomplishments our schools have earned in Ramona Unified School District. We certainly have a lot to celebrate! Even with all of these accolades and accomplishments, our district started this school year with several classes having substitute teachers instead of fully credentialed teachers. We have even hired teachers who are not fully credentialed in their curricular areas because hiring has been so difficult.

Our administration has offered multiple teaching positions where applicants actually turned down the position after seeing our pay scale in comparison to others in the county. Last year our district had to collapse an entire program at Olive Peirce Middle School and distribute the students to James Dukes and Ramona High in order to support them because the district was unable to fill the position at OPMS. We have had five teachers teaching an additional period each day in order to fill the void of an open math position for over a full year now at RHS. Teachers have been working harder and covering for the districts inadequacies just to have a few of our very own school board members say such negative comments about them in such a public way.

It was extremely disheartening to read the comments made by a few members of our local school board about our schools and test scores in Ramona Unified. When looking at the data presented at the last school board meeting, it was shared that RUSD scores are, in fact, in the top third of the entire county of San Diego. While Dawn Perfect might consider these scores to be deplorable, I personally find her negative public comments to be deplorable. Our teachers are working with the new standards and new curriculum to support our students and prepare them for the new measurements of success.

While our teachers salaries are in the bottom 20 percent in San Diego County, those same teachers are leading our students to perform in the top third of this county.

Our teachers and students have not seen many board members in classrooms observing the learning occurring in our district, yet there have been public comments about it. Our teachers and students deserve more! Good leadership is not about advancing yourself. It is about advancing your team.

The school board is a group of individuals who make decisions to make our district a better place for students to learn and for employees to work. While employees are taking on extra responsibilities due to the lack of leadership in this school board, these board members are making deplorable comments about those same employees. As a school board, they set the tone for the entire district. They have negotiated a contract with a brand new superintendent, with zero years of experience in that position, to receive almost the same salary that the previous superintendent was making after eight years of experience. They have openly stated that this was necessary to get someone of quality to run this district. They also approved a similar situation in hiring a high school principal, also stating that it was needed in order to get a quality person in that leadership position. While we completely understand the reasoning behind hiring these highly qualified candidates, we would ask that they do the same for ALL employees. When the superintendents contract has an automatic 2.3% raise each year for the following two years, classified and certificated employees should receive at least the same compensation.

At a public school board meeting, the unaudited actual financials from the 2015-16 school year were presented. In that presentation, it was made clear that there was over $11 million rolling over into the 2016-17 school year and just over $3 million of that was not in the previous projections for the year. This means an additional $3 million came into the district that was not anticipated. Those dollars are more than enough to meet the needs of ALL employee groups.

The board needs to show our employees the same respect they have shown the administration. We need highly qualified employees in all positions. As Mrs. Perfect stated last week in the Sentinel, RUSD needs to work hard to attract good teachers. I hope that is backed up with action in support of offering a salary that is more comparable with similar school districts in our county. I understand Mrs. Perfect feels Poway offers a quality education and I completely agree. However, I am a product of Ramona schools as a student so I also know what quality schools are as well. I am now the fourth generation to work in Ramona Unified so I have seen firsthand quality schools with quality employees who help produce quality learning for students.

It is my hope that Ramona Unified becomes just that, UNIFIED. We should be unified in finding solutions to the hiring struggles and be putting money toward salaries to attract and retain highly qualified employees. We should be unified in supporting teachers to do and be their best for our students. Additionally, we should also be unified in finding solutions to concerns and on commending employees for their efforts and positive results. I hope moving forward we can come to an agreement on what makes Ramona Unified School District a quality place to work for our employees and continue to make it a quality place for students to learn.

Cori McDonald is president of the Ramona Teachers Association.
A U.S. Navy officer, one of several charged in the Fat Leonard bribery scandal, pleaded guilty Thursday to a bribery conspiracy charge in San Diego federal court.

Lt. Cmdr. Gentry Debord, 41, admitted he accepted cash, luxury hotel rooms and prostitutes from foreign defense contractor Leonard Glenn Francis in exchange for passing on inside information about Navy operations.

The information benefited Francis company, Glenn Defense Marine Asia. The company provides fresh water, ground transport, sewage disposal and other services and supplies to Navy ships that visit foreign ports across southeast Asia.

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Debord also admitted in his plea agreement that he instructed GDMA executives to inflate invoices to the Navy to cover the costs of the gifts he received from the contractor.

According to prosecutors, the executives described Debord as over the moon to receive the gifts and joked that he swallowed their bribes hook, line and sinker in instant messages quoted in court documents.

In emails and other communications, they referred to prostitutes as cheesecakes and bodyguards, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

Debord served as a logistics and supply officer aboard the Essex, an amphibious assault ship, beginning in 2008.

In February 2010, Debord asked a GDMA executive to provide him with three hotel rooms, two cellphones, a van and $2,000 Singapore dollars, the plea shows. He then advised the executive to recover the value of the items by inflating the amount the company would charge the Navy for potable water and trash removal service for the Essex port visit to Singapore a year earlier.

So far, 16 people have been charged in the corruption and fraud investigation. Of those, 11 are current or former Navy officials.

Several defendants have pleaded guilty to federal charges and have been sentenced to prison. Others, including Francis, await sentencing.

Debord faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Sentencing is set for Jan. 13.

dana.littlefield@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @danalittlefield
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Gutzon Borglum was the gifted sculptor behind Mount Rushmore, but he wasnt the easiest guy to work with. Read a firsthand account from the South Dakota governor who had to deal with his requests and demands.

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It began as an ambitious plan to boost tourism in South Dakota in 1926. When it was completed 15 years later, it became an American landmark and a symbol of the nations determination and skill. In between 400 workers did the grueling work of blasting and drilling 410,000 tons of granite from the side of the mountain under the supervision of a gifted sculptor named Gutzon Borglum.

But Borglums gifts werent limited to pulling heroic images out of mountains. He also showed considerable talent in promotion, both for the project and for himself. As the governor of South Dakota during Mount Rushmores construction, William J. Bulow was well acquainted with this side of the artist. His article My Days with Gutzon Borglum, which appeared in the December 1, 1947 issue of the Post, outlines Borglums fickle and often maddening ongoing requests and demands, as well as his genius.

Securing the necessary funds for the project proved as difficult as carving the gigantic granite heads. The federal government approved the project in 1926, but most of the work was performed during the Great Depression, when money was particularly hard to come by. Ultimately, the memorial was a scaled-back version of Borglums original design. He had intended to sculpt the presidents down to their waists, but time and money were too limited.

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Time was even more limited for Borglum himself. He died in March of 1941, leaving his son, Lincoln Borglum, to complete the project. Later that year, funding ran out: The government was focused on rebuilding national defense (the Pearl Harbor attack was just weeks away.) So Mount Rushmore was declared completed on October 31, 1941.

Though it wasnt as grand as had been originally intended, Borglum left an enduring tribute to four presidents who represented the founding of the nation (Washington), its expansion (Louisiana Purchaser Jefferson), its development as a global power (Roosevelt), and the preservation of the union in the Civil War (Lincoln). Today, this national memorial is maintained by the U.S. National Park Service.

But Mount Rushmore is also a tribute to the artist, who emerges as a larger-than-life figure in Bulows article.

My Days with Gutzon Borglum

By William J. Bulow

Originally published on January 11, 1947

Ever hear about the time when the famous sculptor walked up Mount Rushmore in the rain and got his white pants dirty? The governor of South Dakota heard plenty about it  and other unfortunate incidents.

In the spring of the first year I was governor of South Dakota, the annual convention of the Young Citizens League was held at Pierre. This was a new state-wide organization of school children below the high-school grades, and I was much interested in its welfare and success. At one of the convention sessions, Doane Robinson, the state historian, submitted a proposition that the Young Citizens League take charge of raising funds for the Rushmore Memorial. Until that moment, I had never heard of the Rushmore Memorial.

I listened to the proposal and then asked for permission to appear before the league in opposition, contending that the children in the grade schools ought not to be burdened with a proposition of this kind. The league turned the proposal down.

Not so long after that, however, Doane Robinson, in company with Gutzon Borglum, came to me and with a good deal of enthusiasm discussed what they had in mind. It sounded all right, but at that time I was not much excited. Their plan was to raise the necessary funds by public donation and subscription. Funds for a starter had already been subscribed.

Borglum, who was a born promoter, then worked up a great advertising stunt by having President Coolidge, while he was visiting the state, dedicate the mountain. The services drew a tremendous crowd of people. In addition to the Presidents address, the event gave Borglum a chance to make a speech and tell what he intended to do. He actually had the fortitude to authorize President Coolidge to prepare a short history of the United States, of a few hundred words, which he, Borglum, would then carve on the mountain peak opposite the gigantic statues of Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt, which he planned to hew out of the granite. President Coolidge accepted the job, but he didnt know what he was getting into. When the manuscript was completed and submitted several years later, about the time Mr. Coolidges term expired, the sculptor decided it was wholly unsatisfactory and turned it down flat.

Next, Borglum got the Hearst newspapers interested in a Mt. Rushmore promotion scheme and staged a widely publicized contest, offering a first prize of $10,000 for the best short history of the United States. More than 10,000 persons, from all sections of the country, submitted manuscripts. A general committee was named to select the five best, and the five thus chosen were submitted to a special committee of five United States senators for the final choice. By that time I was a member of the United States Senate and was one of the committee of five.

In my judgment, all five manuscripts were excellent; any one of them was worth carving on the mountainside. The committee made its choice, and Borglum promptly turned it down. Moreover, he took a look at the four others and threw them away. He said that someone would have to produce a better history than had yet been written or he would write one himself. Borglum had, however, accomplished one of the things next to his heart  the advertisement of Gutzon Borglum and Mt. Rushmore. A million dollars could not have purchased the advertising that the Hearst papers gave Gutzon, Mt. Rushmore, and the state of South Dakota in publicizing the contest.

The original Mt. Rushmore committee was a group of local citizens that Doane Robinson had gathered together and interested in the proposal. This committee was succeeded by a larger and very prominent group of wealthy and philanthropic citizens scattered all over the United States. Considerable sums of money were thus raised in the earlier stages of the work. In order to give more permanency to the project, Congress created the national Mt. Rushmore Commission, the members of that commission to be appointed by the President. Since the death of the sculptor several years ago, the Rushmore Memorial has been placed under the supervision of our national-park system. From the time Congress created the Mt. Rushmore Commission, the work has been financed by federal appropriations from year to year.

One of my headaches during my 12 years in the Senate was the obtaining of necessary appropriations to keep the work going. Gutzon Borglum was not an easy man to work with, but he was, I am convinced, a really great sculptor. I doubt that any other artist living had the vision and the ability to carve those magnificent heads in the living granite of a mountainside. But as a financier and diplomat, Gutzon stood down on the bottom round of the ladder. To obtain the necessary appropriations for the first few years under the national commission was comparatively easy, but the job became harder each year, until toward the last it was nearly impossible.

Borglum always insisted that he himself should appear before the appropriations committee in behalf of his requested budget. His memory was not very good and he had difficulty in remembering his statements from one meeting to another. Some of the committee members, on the other hand, were hard-boiled and had good memories. Gutzon would nearly always end his plea to the committee with the promise that this would be the last appropriation he would ever ask; this would wind up the job. The next year he would be back asking for a substantial increase because he had thought of a lot of new things that he was going to add to the memorial.

At one point he decided that there ought to be a Hall of Fame. This was to be housed in a large cave excavated in the solid granite of the mountain and would include an archives room where the national records could be stored and sealed  to be opened in 10,000 years. In due course of time he had talked a number of prominent people into letting him make marble busts of them, to be placed in the archives room. And then he thought he ought to carve a stairway from the bottom of the mountain up to the doorway of the Hall of Fame and to the room of archives.

I remember particularly the bitter dispute between Mr. Borglum and Senator Norbeck about the stairway. This was in the New Deal leaf-raking days, the days when the government was hiring people to carry stones from one pile to another and then back again. Senator Norbeck had arranged for a government works project to build this stairway with idle labor in that vicinity. It would be paid for from relief funds and not from Mt. Rushmore funds.

Gutzon blew up when he heard this proposal, and he and the senator got into quite a row. Borglum was no financier, but he knew that he was getting a very liberal percentage commission for every dollar that he spent on the memorial; if the stairway was built with relief labor, he would get no commission on that part of the project. This would be bad, and he would not stand for it. The plan to build the stairway with relief funds was dropped. In fact, the stairway has never been built.

Work was started on the Hall of Fame and the archives room, but never finished. Over the years I urged Borglum in every way that I could to devote all his time to completing the carving of the figures. That was work that he, and only he, could do. If he should die before their completion, the job would never be finished. Any miner, I told him, could blast out the cave in the mountain for the archives room, but there was no one else who could carve the face of Lincoln on the mountain.

Borglum did not expect to die when he did and leave the job uncompleted. The last talk I had with him was just a few weeks before his death. I was begging him to complete the figures, as I had begged him many times before. He said that I need not be disturbed about that. He had just gone through a clinic and had had a complete physical checkup; he was in perfect health, he said, and would live for many years.

I know from personal experience that no one could get along with Mr. Borglum for any length of time without losing his temper  unless one was a saint, and there are few human saints. I never had so many rows with any other person as I had with him  sometimes over important things, but more often over little, insignificant things. We were probably equally to blame. Borglum never carried a grudge.

Early in our acquaintanceship, we often parted in the evening with Borglum vowing he never would speak to me again. But the next morning would be a brand-new day, and Borglum would extend a hearty handshake and a cordial good morning. That cordiality would hold good if we did not visit too long. If we talked too much and discussed too many subjects, it would become necessary for us to part again in anger. Most of my first year as governor, Gutzon constantly made life miserable for me. His chief peeve at that time was that there was no road to Mt. Rushmore. There was just a trail that could be traveled only on foot or by horseback.

When President Coolidge dedicated the mountain he rode horseback up the mountain trail and wore a ten-gallon cowboy hat. There were a few other horseback riders, including Senator Fess, of Ohio. Senator Fess was not a good bronco rider and he was lagging a little behind. The President said, Senator, ride up here by my side  it wont hurt you any. There were not broncos enough to go around, so I walked, as did several thousand other people who climbed the mountain trail that day.

To Borglum, Mt. Rushmore was the most important thing on Earth  the center of the universe. Everything else was of secondary importance. But Mt. Rushmore had no highway leading to it. It must have a highway. The State Highway Commission must build this road at once. The governor was chairman of the highway commission, so Mr. Borglum took all matters up with me. Almost every day he would demand that the road be built, and after each demand he expected that the job be completed before breakfast next morning.

I especially recall one telegram that he sent me. I recall it because it was the longest telegram I ever received and contained the most expressive language. There were more than 300 words in that telegram, and Gutzon didnt repeat himself. Every word meant something. It was a masterpiece. I wish now that I had kept it to insert here. I remember, among other things, he said that he had just returned from the mountain. That it had rained. That he had worn white shoes and a new pair of white dress pants. That he had driven his car as far as he could and then walked. That he had ruined his shoes and new white pants. I wired him suggesting that the next time he went to the mountain in the rain he ought to put on a pair of overalls and go barefooted. This advice held him down for several days, but in a short time he was lambasting again.

We got the road built as soon as we could. First a good graveled highway and later a hard-surfaced road. After that first dedication, people could travel to the mountain by automobile. Borglum had a habit of dedicating the mountain about once every year. I attended a number of these dedications. The last one I attended was when he had President Franklin D. Roosevelt come out and dedicate it. There was a tremendous crowd attending on that occasion. I thought then that now at last the mountain was properly dedicated, and that it would not be necessary for me to attend any further ceremonies of this sort. I never did. But I have visited Mt. Rushmore upon many occasions since then and always enjoyed the visit.

On one occasion when Mr. Borglum was in Washington urging the necessary appropriation to continue the work, he arranged with President Roosevelt for a meeting in the executive office, to which he invited all senators representing states carved from the Northwest Territory. Most of the senators attended. Borglum was the orator to make the speech to the president. He was a good orator. He was then stressing the importance of carving a short history of the United States on the mountainside. He said he intended to carve this history in four languages, English, Latin, Greek, and Sanskrit.

Senator Tom Connally, of Texas, thought it was time for a question. He blurted out, What in the world do you want to cut it in Sanskrit for? Nobody reads that.

Borglum turned on Tom with a withering look of scorn. Striking a dramatic pose, he said, as nearly as I can now recall: Sir, Mount Rushmore is eternal. It will stand there until the end of time. This age will pass away and all its records will be destroyed; 10,000 years from now all our civilization will have passed without leaving a trace. A new race of people will come to inhabit the earth. They will come to Mount Rushmore and read there the record that we have made. If that record is written on that immortal mountain in four languages, those people will not have the difficulty in reading our record that we had in figuring out the hieroglyphics of Egypt.

Gutzon Borglum never lived to carve that history on the mountainside, but he had the vision. No other man has ever had the perspective to carve such gigantic figures and make them look natural to the human eye from any spot below. Several times I climbed into the basket and rode up the cable to the mountaintop and inspected the carvings at close-up view. The close-up view is disappointing. You cannot see the face of Lincoln when you stand on his lower eyelid; you cannot see Washington while walking back and forth on his lower lip. It takes a genius to figure out the proper perspective so that the carvings will look right from the point from which the human eye beholds them. Gutzon Borglum was that genius.

On one occasion I was visiting him at his studio at the foot of the mountain. We were out on the porch looking up at the mountaintop, where a number of men were working on the carvings. He said Washington wasnt right. His head did not sit right. He was going to turn the head around a little. I asked him how in Sam Hill he was going to turn Washingtons head around in the solid granite of the mountain. He took me into his studio and showed me his model, pointing out how he would chisel off a little here and a little there. I could not see his point at all. But a few months after that, I was up there again, and Gutzon Borglum had turned the head of Washington around.

Those of you who have visited our National Capitol and looked at the bust of Abraham Lincoln have seen a marvelous reproduction. Gutzon Borglums Lincoln is, I think, by far the best. Many times have I stood and gazed upon that marble bust and marveled at its beauty. No other artist in all the world could take a piece of cold and expressionless marble and reflect there so well the likeness of the face of Americas best beloved  the most beautiful face in all American history.

Upon one occasion Mr. Borglum and I were visiting in the Rotunda together. We stood before the bust of Lincoln. I complimented the sculptor, as best I could, on his work, and he told me that the Lincoln bust was the work of a lifetime. Before undertaking the task he had spent years in studying the life of Lincoln; he had read every book that had been written about Lincoln; he knew Lincoln and had his likeness emblazoned upon his own memory before he undertook to produce the likeness in marble. Those of you who have made a pilgrimage to Gettysburg have seen the memorial there erected by the citizens of North Carolina in honor of their heroic dead. That monument is a group of soldiers cast in bronze  and it was created by Gutzon Borglum. Everyone who has ever looked at that monument returns for a second look, and then for a third. It is by all odds the most attractive memorial on that historic field.

The best view of Mt. Rushmore, I feel, is the one seen as you look through the tunnel, as you drive up the paved highway toward the mountain. As you approach the entrance of the tunnel, looking through it, you see the four heroic figures as if they were encased in a picture frame. As one looks at Mt. Rushmore from any angle, it is awe-inspiring. I have never talked with anyone who has not admitted that his heart beat faster with patriotic pride as he gazed upon that heroic shrine.

People who claim to know tell me that Mt. Rushmore is not subject to erosion; that its granite is everlasting; that a thousand years of winter snows and winter storms, and a thousand years of summer rains and summer suns will leave no mark upon it. Generations hence, when we who had our troubles with Mr. Borglum are forgotten, the name of the man who carved those noble figures in the granite will be remembered. Gutzon could be a little difficult at times, but there was greatness in him.

Featured image: Borglum with his model of Mr. Rushmore (Library of Congress)
A heartbroken woman goes toe-to-toe with an undead playwright insistent on presenting her with his newest work, based on her own failed relationship.

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Mallory turned the key in the lock and stepped inside. She sighed, exhaling the stress of the past few hours, and glanced up at a handwritten sign on the elevator. Out of Service.

She whined. She groaned. But she had to take the stairs, so she slipped off her heels and did so.

Six awful, stupid, poorly designed, dumb, exhausting flights of stairs later, she unlocked the door to her apartment and, not bothering to change out of her dress, flopped onto the bed.

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What an awful first date 

*

She woke to three taps on her bedroom window. She turned  yawning  and gasped.

Egh! Then Oh. She scowled. Its you.

It scraped the window in an upward motion and stared at her with big moon-yellow eyes.

No, Mallory said.

The creature half-slithered, half-crawled onto the window ledge. Please, it said in a voice that sounded as if it came from an old radio. Its a wonderful play, and youre one of the main characters!

I dont care, Mallory said. Her fingernails dug into a pillow.

The creature scraped the window again.

Mallory thought maybe she would lift the window, if only to give him a solid punch in the face, but decided against it. He was tricky. He would get in. And then shed be awake for hours searching for him in the apartment, trying to get him out.

He tapped the window again. She smirked. Relaxing her fingers, Mallory put a hand up to her face and bit one of her fingernails off. The creatures long claw (what hed tap-tap-tapped on the window with) broke off. He howled and descended down the brick, down and away from her apartment.

Mallory wagged her finger around in pain. Blood was all over the bed sheets.

Half of her nail had been ripped off.

Damn it, she said.

*

Mallory tossed another piece of popcorn into her mouth and sipped her wine. On TV, an evening-television self-help program (one of those hosted by a Dr. Something who wasnt, actually, a doctor) featured a middle-aged woman who had been recently widowed. You have to confront it, the doctor said. Meet it in the flesh and acknowledge it, let it be your friend rather than your enemy. Fear can consume you, will consume you, if you let it.

But its just  that  voice, its so logical, I know the next morning Im going to wake up and hell be there. But then hes not, the middle-aged woman said.

Yes, the doctor said, nodding. Fears language is rational and logical, isnt it? And worse yet, the voice always sounds suspiciously like your own. Its a parasite. It feeds on pain.

The middle-aged woman began to sob. What can I do?

Mallory blinked and shut one eye. She blinked again. Her contact lens was dry. She glanced up, dragged the lens down to the white of her eye and pinched it. She put the lens in her mouth, swished it around as if it were mouthwash, and put it back in her eye.

 if you dont, itll still be there, biding its time until it can combust. Because it will one way or another.

The studio audience clapped, and the program went to a commercial. She muted it.

At her window, a little earlier than usual, she spotted Mr. Gravespeare. He had the Laughing Face on. She turned away from him. Hmph. His Laughing Face twisted into a Weeping Face, and both of his moon-yellow eyes darkened a shade.

You wont get any sympathy from me, Mallory said. Those are just masks.

I wrote an entirely new scene to the play, Mr. Gravespeare said with a flourish of his claws. Would you like to hear it?

No.

Its an epilogue. And everyone loves epilogues! Features warping, twisting simultaneously, the Weeping Face became the Laughing Face again. Its a Saturday, and the girl, Mallory, woe-stricken, heartbroken, and oh-so-sad, cancels the date she had scheduled that night. Oh, the misery! he cried. Oh, the pain! he wailed. Guess what she does instead?

Go away!

She gorges herself with wine, butters her popcorn with tears, turns on the programs that remind her most of the noble Benjamin, our beloved hero in this story, and lets the people in the television feel the loneliness so she doesnt have to 

Mallory got up and stormed out of the bedroom. It was time to get curtains for that window.

Wait! Mr. Gravespeare shouted after her. Youre going to miss the best part!

*

Under the stores fluorescents, in wine-stained pajamas, and her hair in a bun, Mallory picked up and flung down every plastic-wrapped package of curtains on the shelf. She hated the selection. Everything was terrible and stupid. And her contact lens was getting dry again. She made herself take a breath, inhaling long and slow, exhaling slower and longer. She glanced up, dragged the contact lens to the white of her eye, pinched it, pulled it out, and put it in her mouth. She swished it around for a few seconds.

Still doing that, huh?

Mallory turned with her tongue out and her fingers poised to take the contact. Her vision was half-blurred, but she recognized Benjamins voice.

She chuckled, no humor in it, and put the contact back in her eye. Hed gotten a haircut. And his shirt was ironed. And that was a new watch  wasnt it?

She became hyper-aware of the wine stain on her pajamas (as well as the pajamas themselves) and grabbed the first package of curtains she touched.

You have a motorcycle jacket on, steel-toed boots, and you look hot as hell, she told herself. Hey. Whatre you doing here?

Getting curtains, actually, he said.

Yeah? How come?

Suns waking us up in the morning.

Us? Itll do that.

You?

Hm?

Sun waking you up in the morning too?

Oh. No. Theres this creepy, undead monster-thing that crawls up the side of my apartment at night and taps on my window. Hes always begging me to let him in so he can show me this play he wrote?  So, anyway, my battle-plan is curtains.

Benjamins mouth dropped. Neither of them said anything for a moment. And then he cracked up.

Wow, he said, wiping his eyes. All right. Well, um, good luck with that. There was another silence. Its great to see you. You look  um  Mallory raised an eyebrow. Like youre having a relaxing evening.

Mallory nodded. She glared. She didnt blink.

They messed up the sides again, she said, referring to his haircut. Curtains in hand, she power-walked to the nearest checkout lane. She still didnt bother to read the packaging on the curtains as the cashier scanned them. They were ruby red, quite long, and very wide.

*

Mr. Gravespeare skittered spiderlike up the brick exterior of Mallorys apartment and peered around the building at the entrance. One big moon-yellow eye studied her as she stumbled up the stoop. His face shifted from Laughing to Weeping and then to Laughing again. She didnt remember to lock the door.

Gravespeare skittered farther up the building to Mallorys window. Like a mechanic, he unscrewed one of his moon-yellow eyeballs from its socket and set the eye on the window ledge, facing the bedroom.

Mallory stepped into her apartment, shut the door, and then slid down to the floor with her face in her hands. Gravespeare nearly giggled with joy; what juicy, theatrical images she was giving him! Furthermore, in her despair (it couldve only been a result of bumping into Benjamin  how much more perfect could this get?), she forgot to lock that door too.

Gravespeare snatched his eye from the window ledge and spun it back into its socket. He skittered down the building, claws clicking against the brick.

He paused for a minute to let passersby clear the area. Then he scuttled, slithered, and stretched his way to the front of the apartment and up the stoop, and in one fluid movement, Gravespeare turned the doorknob. He squeezed through the crack in the door, and continued into the foyer.

Gravespeare came to the elevator and read the sign (Laughing  Weeping  Laughing again). Out of Service. He hopped three feet up in the air, yanked the elevator door open, held it there, and dropped feet-first into the elevator shaft.

With one claw he grabbed hold of a steel column, hung from it for a second, swinging, and then scuttled up the elevator shaft  up-up-up.

At the sixth floor he pried open the elevator doors and vaulted himself into the carpeted hallway. He was so jittery with excitement (he would be performing soon!) he didnt notice the young boy come out of an apartment just ahead, dragging a trash bag. The boy stared at him.

Whatre you doing here?

Gravespeare put on the Weeping Face. Im about to debut a new play, he said, his voice in several octaves at once.

I hope its better than the last one, the boy said.

Gravespeare mightve scowled, if he could  that comment was certainly unjustified, if not also rude.

*

Mallory washed her face and changed into different clothes. She wasnt going out again  and changing hadnt exactly made her feel better. Actually, changing had made her feel worse. It was too late, now, to pretend she was having anything more than a relaxing evening.

From the bathroom, Mallory heard the rip of plastic being torn. You didnt get a curtain rod? a voice said  a familiar, haunting voice. Oh, well. The show must go on!

Mallory pulled and twisted at the bathroom-door doorknob. It was stuck  no, it wasnt stuck. It was being held.

She gripped the doorknob and turned it with all her strength. It wouldnt budge.

Hold on, now, Gravespeare said. I have to get everything set up.

Gravespeare made his stage by dividing the sitting room from the kitchen. One arm stretched far and long to hold the bathroom door shut as the other fastened the curtains to the wall with claws hed unscrewed from his toes. The sitting room would be where Mallory could sit during the play if she didnt make a fuss. The kitchen, with the curtains drawn, would be his performance space.

Let me out! Mallory screamed.

So you can destroy my stage? Gravespeare said. I dont think so.

This is my apartment!

And you lending it to me is kind, given the circumstances.

Please, this is the worst time to do this. Her heart thumped in her chest.

What happened, dear? Tell me while I make the finishing touches. Mallory began to cry. No, no, no! Wait for the show, wait for the play! Dont shed all your tears just yet. Theyll come soon enough!

I dont want  I dont want  

You dont want what, dear?

He finished fastening the curtains and then drew them aside one at a time, pinning the midsections to the wall with two kitchen knives. He was out of toenail-claws.

I dont want to think about him!

Who? Benjamin? The curtains set, he let that arm contract. But dear, this play is all about Benjamin. And you, of course! Youll just have to think about him!

No, Mallory cried. Please.

Gravespeare stretched his neck until it was as thin as a rubber band, reaching his head toward the bathroom door. After the play, Ill go, he whispered, head beside the door. If I let you out, will you promise to be as sweet as I know you are and let me do the play for you, no fuss?

Ill kill you if you let me out! she said, and pulled and twisted and tugged at the doorknob.

Tsk, tsk, tsk, he said. Fine. The rest of Gravespeares body inched, like a centipede, toward his head.

Gravespeare put a claw in front of the bathroom door and scratched an X in the air. The door disappeared.

Mallorys first instinct was freedom. She hurled herself forward, struck something, and stumbled backwards. She stared at the space where the door had been  when she set her hand there, she could feel the wood. Hed made the door transparent.

Crouched, with skin like volcanic rock and dull, jagged spikes at the shoulders, elbows, and knees  a face at Laughing, and two big moon-yellow eyes  Gravespeare cocked his head to one side, staring at her.

Mallory lifted her hand to her face and barred her teeth. His face changed to Weeping. Heart thumping wilder and wilder, she bit down on a fingernail and ripped half of the nail off. Gravespeare howled in pain and cradled his hand against his ribs. Blood dripped onto the tiles in the bathroom, and Mallory lifted her other hand to her face.

No, no, no! Gravespeare said. Is emotional pain so much worse than physical pain? Come, now, dont do this!

She bit the fingernail, and this time, since she was already in pain, tore the whole fingernail off. Blood leaked steadily onto the tiles like a low faucet drip, and Gravespeare howled and howled and howled. His hold on the doorknob loosened. Suddenly his head began to spin. Mallory readied the next nail, grinning in the ecstasy at the pain, when the spinning ceased, and instead of Gravespeares head, it was Benjamins.

Like youre having a relaxing evening, it said in Benjamins voice.

Mallorys hand fell to her side.

Still doing that, huh?

Her breathing came slower and slower, her heart thumping at wider and wider intervals.

Suns waking us up in the morning.

Theyd only dated for five months. Why had she fallen in love with him, why had she let him in? With steel-plated lies hed built a bridge to her heart, and even though the bridge had been burned, she was still treasuring the ruin.

Well, good luck with that.

Her lips parted. She remembered the night  it was so many years ago, the memory had been buried for a while  after her dad had left. Shed met Gravespeare that night. She remembered thinking then that he was rather an amusing, if not also awful, actor.

Gravespeares head started spinning again. It paused on the Weeping Face.

Im not an awful actor, he said.

Her eyes puffy and pink, her upper lip dotted with dark blood, and eyeliner smeared across her cheeks, Mallory smiled.

He changed to the Laughing Face.

Will you listen to my play?

Mallory inhaled. She exhaled.

*

Mr. Gravespeare, a top hat on his head tilted over one eye, struck a grandiose pose.

The Tragedy of Mallory and Benjamin, he started. The players  myself. The characters  the heroic, handsome, slightly hard-of-hearing Benjamin. (Mallory giggled.) And the self-deprecating, somewhat bow-legged, pooper-of-parties, Mallory Winters. The play begins outside a noisy Manhattan bar, where Benjamin is outside smoking a cigarette, his hair coiffed and trimmed neat on the sides 

He truly was an awful actor. But there was a charming quality to that. After the play, he bowed, and she gave him a standing ovation. As he left (once hed unfastened the curtains, folded them up the way theyd been in the packaging, and put the kitchen knives back in the drawer), Mallory thanked him.

I hope there wont be any  well, um, any future performances anytime soon.

The Laughing Face became the Weeping Face and then changed back to the Laughing Face again. Upside-down, hanging from the ceiling in the hallway, he said, I am but a humble actor, not a fortune teller. But I am sure there will be future performances. Not of this play, of course. This play, my dear Mallory, is finished.

Gravespeare scuttled across the ceiling to the elevator, popped it half-open, dropped into the shaft, and paused midair at the first floor. He wrenched the elevator ajar and flew like dark-gray smoke out the front door into the night. He fled like this because he had somewhere to be  and soon. There was a new play, he was sure, just a few blocks down.
Lewes, DE -- (SBWIRE) -- 10/28/2016 -- Report forecast the adult diapers market in the Middle East and Africa to grow at a CAGR of 12.22% during the period 2016-2020.



The adult diaper market in MEA is still in its nascent stage. The social stigma related to adult diapers is still prevalent in this region. Adults diagnosed with urinary incontinence often feel embarrassed to wear diapers and are uncomfortable discussing their problems with physicians. However, manufacturers are collaborating with hospitals in the region to educate consumers about adult diapers.



The report covers the present scenario and the growth prospects of the adult diapers market in the Middle East and Africa for 2016-2020. To calculate the market size, the report considers the revenue generated from the retail sales of the following types of adult diapers in the MEA market:

- Pad-type adult diaper

- Pant-type adult diaper

- Flat-type adult diaper



The market is divided into the following segments based on geography:

- Africa

- Middle east



According to the report, one of the primary drivers in the market is increase in birth rates. Women, worldwide, give birth to around two children, which is half of the global average in the early 1950s. However, in Africa, on an average, women give birth to around five children, and the population is increasing three times faster than the rest of the world. The long valued concept of large families as a matter of status, where more children increased the number of farm hands are the main reasons for such a high birth rate. Additionally, higher life expectancy at birth has increased the surviving possibility of babies, who later become parents themselves. Thus, the birth rate cycle is growing at a faster rate. Thus, in more than half of the continent, nearly 1.2 billion people are children or teenagers. It is expected that Africa's inhabitants will triple or quadruple by the end of the century.



Further, the report states that one major challenge in the market is negative effects of civil wars. The civil unrest in countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has badly affected the economy not just of these countries but even the neighboring countries. Around 87 million people in countries like Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Yemen were affected by the ongoing wars and consistent civil unrests in 2016. It has affected the basic living necessities such as home, work, food, water, clinic, and school.

Adult Diapers Market in the Middle East and Africa 2016-2020, has been prepared based on an in-depth market analysis with inputs from industry experts. The report covers the market landscape and its growth prospects over the coming years. The report also includes a discussion of the key vendors operating in this market.



key players in the baby diapers market in Middle East and Africa: Kimberly-Clark, P&G, SCA, and Unicharm.



Other prominent vendors in the market are: Abdullah Shamsan Group, Bumkins Finer Baby Products, Cura Hygiene Group, DSG International, Faderco, First Quality Enterprises, Hayat Kimya, Indevco, Kao, Lodestone Brands, Novatis, Ontex, Wipro Consumer Care, and Wemy Industries.



Market driver

- Growing diagnosis of urinary incontinence

- For a full, detailed list, view our report



Market challenge

- Political instability in Middle East

- For a full, detailed list, view our report



Market trend

- Emergence of smart diapers

- For a full, detailed list, view our report



Key questions answered in this report

- What will the market size be in 2020 and what will the growth rate be?

- What are the key market trends?

- What is driving this market?

- What are the challenges to market growth?

- Who are the key vendors in this market space?

- What are the market opportunities and threats faced by the key vendors?

- What are the strengths and weaknesses of the key vendors?



Spanning over 62 pages and 33 Exhibits "Adult Diapers Market in the Middle East and Africa 2016 - 2020" report covers Executive summary, Scope of the report, Market research methodology, Introduction, Market landscape, Market segmentation by product type, Geographical segmentation, Market drivers, Impact of drivers, Market challenges, Impact of drivers and challenges, Market trends, Vendor landscape, Other prominent vendors.



For more information Visit at: http://www.marketresearchreports.com/technavio/adult-diapers-market-middle-east-and-africa-2016-2020



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Indianapolis, IN -- (SBWIRE) -- 10/28/2016 -- A portion of the proceeds from the recently released debut album by Charles Moorer and The Faithful Few will benefit the Indiana Make-A-Wish Foundation, an organization that holds a special connection to the group's lead vocalist.



Charles "Chuck" Moorer and his family received support from the Indiana Make-A-Wish Foundation when his then 16-year-old son Chadwin was battling renal sickle cell carcinoma, a form of cancer that gave him a 10 percent survival rate.



The wish the Foundation provided turned into a celebration of life when Chadwin was miraculously healed. A few years later, Moorer himself was healed of cancer.



"Through my own personal experience, I came to realize just how caring so many people are in donating their time and resources to be a blessing to so many children and their families, who through no fault of their own, have been dealt with a difficult blow to their mind, body, and spirit," Moorer said. "The Indiana Make-A-Wish Foundation is hands down my favorite charity!"



Divine Direction, the independent group's debut album, is a mix of lively, funky gospel and cool jazz united with powerful songwriting. The title track points to God through an easy flowing vocal urban jazz groove, with a smooth and silky saxophone taking the emotional harmony role behind Moorer's silky lead vocals.



Two tracks offer up varied versions, with "Make A Change" as both an instrumental and vocal piece, and "We Praise You" performed first as old school jazz gospel jam followed by a remix with spirited rap vocals.



Throughout the album listeners will experience trumpet and saxophone harmonies, rocking electric guitar edges, and soulful female vocals by the group's members. Moorer delivers powerful lead vocals and performs on both the bass guitar and fretless bass.



With seven tracks in all, Divine Direction draws from Bible's creation story where the number seven is God's number for completion. Future albums by the Faithful Few are also expected to contain seven tracks.



"If it's good enough for Him, it's good enough for us," Moorer said.



The group doesn't bill themselves as entertainers, but a ministry full of love of God and concerned about doing His will by spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ through music, a message delivered throughout Divine Direction.



Moorer's lifelong passion for music began while singing gospel concerts in his native Ohio as a youth. During college he performed with R&B/funk and jazz groups and later moved to Los Angeles to follow his musical dreams. But after much soul searching, the Lord led him back to the Midwest, Moorer said.



While looking for a home church in Indianapolis, Moorer found the 28th Street Church of God in Christ and returned to his gospel roots when he volunteered to play bass in the church's band. In 2000, the original lineup for The Faithful Few was formed. Their mission to expand beyond the four walls of the church and provide outreach to people across the world remains strong.



To learn more about Charles Moorer and The Faithful Few and their album Divine Direction, visit charlesmoorerpraise.com/music-and-ministry-2/music/. The album is currently available to purchase on CDBaby, iTunes and Amazon and will soon be available at Life Way Christian Book Stores with a portion of the proceeds from the sales going to the Indiana Make-A-Wish Foundation.



Media Contact:

Blue Artists

Phone: 877-977-2023

Email: info@blue-artists.com
Generating sufficient scientific knowledge to restore degraded land is critical in Africa because the continent largely depends on land and other natural resources for socioeconomic development, experts say.



Most populations, it was noted at the 1st African Forest Landscape Restoration (AFR100) Regional Conference this month (11-12 October) in Ethiopia, depend on land for livelihoods, but there has been massive degradation and this calls for, among others, adequate knowledge for restoration, particularly by small-scale farmers.

Rivers are drying, Lake Chad is gone, Lake Turkana in Kenya is receding and [thus] people have to take restoration very seriously. Alice Akinyi Kaudia, Kenyas Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources.

This requires inter-universities collaborations because not all African universities are well endowed with enough resources to generate needed knowledge and tools, says Alice Akinyi Kaudia, environment secretary in Kenyas Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources. It will [also] be useful to develop centres of excellence within them to address this urgently.



The AFR100 conference was organised by the New Economic Partnership for Africas Development, Federal German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the World Bank, and the World Resources Institute.



We need to undertake research from the point of view of problem solving; getting to know farmers or communities real problems caused by degradation and that can only be attained by embracing a model where farmers are consulted from research design to generating of innovations and technologies for use, Kaudia adds.



She explains that mining and logging activities are degrading a large proportion of Africas land.

Rivers are drying, Lake Chad is gone, Lake Turkana in Kenya is receding and [thus] people have to take restoration very seriously, says Kaudia.



There is also a need to develop markets for farmers to embrace approaches such as agroforestry with confidence they will sell products profitably, making restoration attractive and sustainable business.



Restoration from an ecological point of view needs to be examined systematically and holistically to enable farmers get a package of knowledge and investment capacities to achieve tangible targets, she says, adding that governments should create policies and incentive mechanisms for farmers, especially smallholders, to undertake restorations



According to Kaudia, AFR100 initiative that targets restoration of one million hectares of African degraded landscape by 2030, needs political and scientific focus because demand for natural resources has outstripped supply.



She adds: We need a continental goal with clear quantifiable targets to focus on restoration of degraded landscapes. There is need for transformative business entrepreneurship and an inclusive process of policy makers, farmers and scientists to agree on technologies and innovations that will to help reach the 100 million hectares restoration target.



Ato Kebede Yimam Dawd, Ethiopias minister of forest at the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, says that AFR100 will accelerate landscape restoration to enhance food security, increase climate change resilience and mitigation, and combat rural poverty.

We know that restoring the ecological functions of our landscapes is essential for economic development and achieving food and water security, he says.Ethiopia, he explains, has committed 15 million hectares to be restored, which is one-seventh of the size of country: We are speaking of using trees in 15 million hectares of agricultural, pastoral, and forest land to increase productivity of land, resilience, and the well-being of our people.Dawd adds that the country has seen progress with communities mobilising people voluntarily to restore degraded lands.
Climate change is being fought by different countries globally. Each country is doing their part in minimizing the global warming. Even the animals living in the oceans and seas are being fought. Currently, it has been declared that Antarctic sea will be protected and accounted as a marine reserve.

Antarctic bay, home of the killer whales and penguins became the world's largest marine protected area last Friday. The body of the United Nations declared this at a meeting in Hobart, Tasmania after five years of negotiating.

WWF Australia Ocean Science Manager Chris Johnson told CNN, "It's near pristine and how many near pristine parts of the ocean do we have left on the planet?"

The European Union, together with the twenty-four nations under it agreed unanimously to declare the Ross Sea in Antarctica as an official Marine Protected Area. After the negotiations brokered by the UN's Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources.

The United Nations reported that 50% of ecotype-C killer whales (the smallest of the four types of Southern Hemisphere orcas), 40% of Adelie penguins and 25% of emperor penguins live in the area covered by the new park, according to BBC News.

David Ainley, a scientist from the United States also one of the first to call for the area to be protected, said in a statement that, "The data collected from this 'living laboratory' helps us understand the significant changes taking place on Earth right now. "

However, not everyone will be happy with this agreement because the experts do not want the agreement to become a precedent for other marine protected areas in the Southern Ocean. Enable to declare the new marine park, every country should be involved and must agree on a complete consensus.

Chris Johnson said that this has been a long, ongoing, challenging debate and I believe this one of the compromises in terms of getting that 100% consensus. The WWF would be working hard to make the Ross Sea, a permanently protected area.
Pokemon GO may not be as popular as it was when it was first released, but that hasn't stopped game developer, Niantic, from doing its best to lure players back with new features and updates. Now that Halloween is fast approaching, Niantic is holding a Halloween Event for Pokemon GO and fans are excited for all the double candy and spooky Pokemon spawn rate.

According to JBH News, Niantic has confirmed that they are having a Halloween Event for Pokemon GO fans. The newest arrival of the most recent update showed the new egg patterns. It also previously mentioned what the Pokemon trainers can get from hatching eggs will depend on the distance required for hatching. Now, the list of Pokemon has changed, and the appearance of the egg will also be different for each of the required distance types.

Reports also said that the update can potentially double the amount of Candy you make every time you catch, hatch or transfer your Pokemon back to Professor Willow. Buddy Pokemon will also earn Candy four times faster than usual. According to a report published on Wired, from October 26 to November 1, Niantic has hinted that the number of 'spooky Pokemon' spawning could also increase, which will include Ghastly, Haunter, Gengar, Zubat, Golbat, Drowzee and Hypno

"Trick-or-Treat, Trainers! It's Halloween season and we have a treat for you!," said Niantic. "If you encounter more spooky Pokemon than normal, don't be startled, they want to enjoy the fun too. Scare up some friends, grab your buddy and enjoy this spooky, fun celebration with us. Happy Halloween!"

Meanwhile, a report by Game Spot also said that in other parts of the world, Pokemon GO is in the process of being updated to version 0.43.3 for Android and 1.13.3 for iOS device. In an update blog post, game developer wrote: "Professor Willow has discovered that eggs have different patterns depending on the distance required to hatch them."

This simply means that eggs which will hatch sooner will appear differently in incubators. The 2km eggs will be covered in green spots, the 5km eggs have yellow spots and the 10km eggs are shown with purple spots. Other features that changed are the Pokemon type icons added to the information screen for each Pokemon, and for people using Pokemon Go Plus there is now a low battery indicator.
The animals that fall under the category of being endangered are increasing. In a current report, the global wildlife population have fallen by 58% since 1970.

The Zoological Society of London and WWF conducted an assessment called the Living Planet Assessment. The report stated that if the trend continues the decrease of the vertebrates could reach up to two-thirds by 2020. The figures suggest that specifically, animals living in lakes, wetlands, and rivers are the ones suffering the biggest losses. Human activity, including habitat loss, wildlife trade, pollution and climate change contributed to the declines, in a report by Pakistan Today.

Dr. Mike Barrett, head of science and policy at WWF, said: "It is pretty clear under 'business as usual' we will see continued declines in these wildlife populations. But I think now we have reached a point where there is not really any excuse to let this carry-on," according to BBC News.

The report of the Living Planet is published every two years and its goal is to provide the assessment of the state and the world's wildlife. In the recent analysis, the experts looked at the data that has been collected from 3,700 different species of birds, fish, mammals, amphibians and reptiles. It is about 6% of the total number of vertebrae species around the world.

The scientists then analyzed how the animal population has changed over the years since 1970. The previous report, published in 2014 shows that the world's wildlife population had halved over the last 40 years. The assessment suggested that an estimated of 58% decrease have occurred because of the trend continued.

As follows, The researchers conclude that today, vertebrate populations are declining by an average of 2% each year, and warn that if nothing is done, wildlife populations could fall by 67% (below 1970 levels) by the end of the decade.

Head of ZSL's Indicators & Assessments Unit Dr. Robin Freeman shared that, "But that is assuming things continue as we expect. If pressures - overexploitation, illegal wildlife trade, for example - increase or worsen, then that trend may be worse.
FLORENCE, S.C.  The Moving Wall, a half-size portable replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., made one of its final stops of the year on the Francis Marion University campus on Thursday.

The Moving Wall arrived in Florence after making stops in Ohio, Wisconsin and Mississippi. Florence is the second-to-last stop on the 2016 tour, which will finish in Springfield, Tennessee. The Moving Wall has two different structures that travel the nation from April through November.

Dr. Jon Tuttle, director of the FMU Honors Program and English professor, played a key role in having the Moving Wall make an appearance on campus. Tuttle said that when he put in the application to bring the wall to FMU in the spring of last year he had unyielding support from his colleagues and students.

Im teaching my Vietnam War in American Culture course and I thought it would be very appropriate to have this here during that course, Tuttle said. Every office on campus was involved in some way.

Tuttle had to cancel his class so he could assist in preparation for the Moving Wall ceremonies, so instead, his students volunteered to help with the building process.

They got literally a hands-on education on the wall, which I thought was better than anything I wouldve had to say, Tuttle said.

The Moving Wall was built by Vietnam veterans and displayed for the first time in 1984 so those who did not have the opportunity to visit Washington, D.C., could still experience the power of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Like the actual memorial, the replica lists the names of the 58,228 U.S. servicemen killed during the conflict in Vietnam.

The memorial replica was erected in front of the James Rogers Library on the FMU campus. Opening ceremonies for the Moving Wall were held at 5 p.m., featuring the Florence Brass ensemble and the Mullins High School Marine Corps JROTC, which performed the presentation of the colors.

The focus of the ceremony, however, was a presentation from the keynote speaker, retired U.S. Marine Corps General James E. Livingston. A Vietnam veteran and 1970 Medal of Honor recipient, Livingston addressed the crowd of more than 100 veterans and civilians who attended the opening ceremony.

We are a great country because 18- and 19-year old Americans are willing to stand up and go forward when the country asks them to go forward, Livingston said. The wall is really a legacy of that service and sacrifice.

Livingston retired from the Marine Corps in 1995 following 33 years of active duty. He received the Medal of Honor for his actions while serving as a commanding officer in 1968. During a three-day battle against 10,000 or more North Vietnamese soldiers, Livingston led his battalion of 800 men into victory despite being wounded three times.

Livingston said 150 men from his battalion have their names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and their sacrifice, along with the sacrifice of more than 58,000 others, shall not be forgotten.

I think about all those young men who didnt have a chance to be fathers and grandfathers and what kind of sacrifice that was and what that means and should mean to this nation, Livingston said. As you look at those names theyre asking you to take care of America and take care of their families.

The Moving Wall will remain open for viewing throughout the day until Sunday.
U.S. air strikes in eastern Afghanistan killed several Al-Qaeda militants, including two Arabs and four Pakistanis, Afghan officials said on October 27.

Although the officials said they could not definitively identify the militants slain in a remote area of Kunar Province, they likely included two top leaders that the Pentagon said it targeted in the drone strikes.

Kunar's governor, Wahidullah Kalemzai, told RFE/RL's Radio Azadi that four militants of foreign origin were killed in an area of the province where Al-Qaeda has been present for years.

Other local officials reported that as many as eight militants were killed, including two Arabs and four Pakistanis. The militant leaders targeted by the Pentagon -- Faruq al-Qatani and Bilal al-Utabi -- were both Arab.

The AFP news agency quoted Afghan officials as saying they could confirm the death of Qatani and Utabi in the drone strikes.

The Pentagon said on October 26 that Qatani was a senior planner for attacks against the United States and had a hand in deadly attacks on American forces in Afghanistan.

Based on reporting by AP, AFP, and Radio Azadi
WATERLOO  Vandals hit the home of an openly-gay candidate for a Black Hawk County Board of Supervisors Wednesday night.

Candidate Chris Schwartz said the damage  which includes slurs painted on campaign signs in his yard  is a targeted hate crime.

They hit my signs and our front door, which is more concerning. Its basically a death threat, Schwartz said.

In black paint across his door reads Lev 20:13, a likely reference to Leviticus 20:13, a Bible verse about a man lying with another man being an abomination. The verse ends with They shall surely be put to death.

The slur fag was painted on a blue Schwartz campaign sign, and Trmp was painted on a Clinton-Kane sign. Other candidate signs in his yard had black lines sprayed across them.

A Schwartz sign in a neighbors yard  some 20 feet from the damaged signs  was untouched.

This isnt from the neighborhood. We have lots of respect in this neighborhood because weve lived here a long time and have done a lot of work here, Schwartz said.

Waterloo Police photographed the vandalism Thursday morning, but no arrests have been made.

Schwartz said the attack came in the midst of a heated social media battle after Cedar Valley Patriots for Christ took aim at his campaign and Schwartzs background as an organizer of PrideFest, an annual gay-rights event in Waterloo.

The Patriots Facebook page on Sunday called PrideFest a celebration of sin and called Schwartz a pro-gay socialist who will increase the minimum wage, hurt businesses and bring debauchery to the community.

Christians in our community better start stepping up and put a stop to this! the post continues.

Several online exchanges continued throughout the week, and Judd Saul, leader of Cedar Valley Patriots for Christ, said Schwartz politicized the matter by calling Patriots a hate group.

On Thursday morning, Saul said he thinks the vandalism is a hoax.

This is right out of the socialism playbook in politics, to create phony crises and try to capitalize on it, Saul said. I think they did it themselves.

Even so, Saul, who admitted theres a chance someone else was behind the damage, said his group will contribute funds to the cleanup of Schwartzs property.

We will contribute to the cleanup cost of Chris Schwartzs house, Saul said.

Saul said Patriots is not a hate group.

None of anyone who attends Patriots for Christ, and not myself, condone any kind of violence against anybody for their personal stances or beliefs, Saul said. As Christians, we are supposed to preach and proclaim the gospel, and its up to them to accept or reject the gospel. We dont force it on anybody.

Prior to the vandalism, Schwartz had criticized the Republican supervisor candidates  John Dodge, Chad Folken and Terry Scheffert  for remaining silent as the Facebook battle waged. He also noted Saul donated to Dodges campaign.

Dodge said he chooses to avoid engaging in online bickering, adding that someone making a donation to his campaign does not speak for him.

Social media can be a tool for instigation and not a medium for polite discourse of opinions, Dodge said. When I have been heckled online I have chosen to not engage as it benefits no one.

Scheffert said Schwartz was out of line for dragging him into the debate and attacking him on my beliefs or what he thinks my beliefs are. Scheffert said he hasnt said anything about PrideFest.

Folken said he found it troubling that Chris Schwartz is attacking a local religious group for expressing their First Amendment right to free speech over the Facebook posts.

Black Hawk County Democrats issued a statement through Chairwoman Pat Sass in which they strongly condemn vandalism of property in conjunction with the election campaign, including defacing, destroying or stealing campaign yard signs, and especially the hate crime at Schwartzs home.

The victim of this act is not only Mr. Schwartz, but also our entire democratic election process, the statement said.
DES MOINES  Some Iowa faith-based groups are encouraging voters to retain the states Supreme Court justices despite the opposition of other faith-based groups dismayed by the high courts 2009 ruling that legalized same-sex marriage in Iowa.

Members of the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa held a news conference Thursday outside the Iowa Judicial Building, which houses the state Supreme Court chamber, to support retention of the high courts justices.

Im here because I fear that three fine justices may not be retained on Nov. 8 due to misleading rhetoric and a misunderstanding about the role of the court in this historic case and others, said the Rev. Mark Stringer of First Unitarian Church of Des Moines. I fear that religious extremists with an agenda to impose their views on our state may succeed in deceiving too many of us into politically motivated and misguided attempts at revenge.

Iowa Supreme Court justices are nominated by the governor and retained by voters. When a justices eight-year term expires, he or she is placed on the ballot, and voters decide simply whether the justice should be allowed to continue to serve.

This year, three justices who were a part of the unanimous 2009 decision that legalized same-sex marriage are up for retention: justices Brent Appel and Daryl Hecht, and Chief Justice Mark Cady, who wrote that 2009 ruling in Varnum v. Brien.

In 2010, some religious organizations upset with the Varnum ruling mounted a successful campaign convincing voters to vote against retaining three Supreme Court justices up for retention, including then-Chief Justice Marsha Ternus. The group tried again in 2012 with David Wiggins, another Varnum justice, up for retention, but opposing advocacy groups prepared and mounted their own successful campaign to defend Wiggins, who was retained.

This year, with the final three justices involved in the 7-0 Varnum decision up for retention, those who in the past have campaigned for the justices ouster are again calling for the same, but they are not campaigning to the extent they did in 2010 and 2012.

The judicial retention vote is a key check and balance the people of Iowa have against judicial overreach and, while the Family Leader will not be devoting the extensive staff time and resources required to conduct a judicial vote campaign this year, we encourage Iowans to vote against retaining those judges who have used their office for political activism, says a post on the website of the Family Leader, the lead group of the 2010 and 2012 anti-retention campaigns.

Interfaith Alliance members said Thursday they oppose the Family Leaders effort.

We are certainly encouraged by the idea that there is less opposition to the retention elections this year, but we are taking nothing for granted, said Connie Ryan, executive director of the Alliance. But there are voices, certainly, out there that are opposed to this, and we want to make sure that Iowans understand the importance of the retention election, how you vote on a retention election, and that it is nonpartisan and that politics should not be inserted into it.

More than 40 percent of Iowans favor retaining the three justices, while just 16 percent oppose retention, according to polling conducted for Justice Not Politics, an advocacy group that supports retaining the justices.
CEDAR RAPIDS  Democrat Hillary Clinton has wiped out Republican Donald Trumps lead in Iowa, where the two are tied at 44 percent among likely voters, according to an independent Quinnipiac University Poll released Thursday.

While wide gender and racial gaps remain, Trumps standing among men is shrinking, especially in Iowa, according to the poll.

The dead heat in Iowa is reflected in the polls internals, Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac Poll, said. Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton both are getting 88 percent of their respective party members while independent voters are evenly divided.

Clinton and Trump traded the lead in Iowa in two previous Quinnipiac polls since the national party conventions in late July.

Clinton had the lead in August  47 percent to 44 percent. However, Trump turned it around in September, taking a 44 percent to 37 percent lead. That poll was conducted before revelations of a recorded conversation in 2005 in which Trump made lewd comments about kissing and groping women.

Because of the crucial role swing states play in the Electoral College, Quinnipiac paid special attention to voter opinions in Iowa as well as Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia.

The new poll findings are not good news for Trump, Brown said.

Time is running out and Donald Trump has lost his leads and now is tied with Hillary Clinton in Iowa and Georgia. North Carolina appears to be moving in her direction also, he said.

Quinnipiac also found that Clinton leads 61 percent to 27 percent among Iowa likely voters who have voted early.

Clinton is less disliked by likely voters, with a negative 40 percent to 55 percent favorability rating, compared to Trumps negative 36 to 59 percent rating.

Iowa men back Trump 51 to 35 percent while women back Clinton 52 to 37 percent. Republicans go to Trump 88 to 6 percent, while Democrats back Clinton 88 to 9 percent. Independent voters are split 40 to 40 percent, with 6 percent for former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson, the Libertarian Party nominee. Green Party nominee Jill Stein gets 1 percent of the Iowa vote.

Quinnipiac conducted the poll Oct. 20-26, calling 791 Iowa likely voters using land lines and cell phones. The Iowa results have a 3.5 percent margin of error.

To see more results, visit www.qu.edu/polling.
At a government-level meeting held on 27 October, attended by ministers and leaders from China State Shipbuilding Corp (CSSC) and China Shipbuilding Industry Corp (CSIC), the ministry of industry and information technology (MIIT) called on the shipbuilding industry to prove their mettle in the face of the protracted slump.

Xing Guobin, deputy minister for MIIT, said the global shipbuilding segment is facing the toughest period since the post-global financial crisis. In order to tide through the recession, Xing listed six areas of improvements that Chinas ailing shipbuilding sector need to act upon.

The six improvements needed include a greater focus on innovation and technology, developing more advanced and efficient production processes, building up local brands, supporting and nurturing reputable enterprises, integrating military and commercial shipbuilding, and removing excess shipbuilding capacity.

Xing noted that the shipbuilding industry crisis has dragged on for eight years, and the remaining shipyards that are still in business are hanging on by a thread.

Apart from cruise shipbuilding in a handful of European yards that are doing well, the global shipbuilding industry, including Japanese and South Korean markets, are in serious trouble, Xing was quoted saying.

He highlighted that even with Chinas shipbuilding market share at the forefront globally, the countrys industrial innovation continues to fall behind, efficiency remains low and product quality has a lot of room for improvement.

Xing added MIIT and the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) are currently working on a study to speed up and structural reform and upgrade of Chinas shipbuilding industry for the period 2016-2020, as part of Chinas wider Thirteenth Five-Year Plan on social and economic development initiatives.

History has shown that for every major global or regional crisis, there is always an opportunity, Xing said.
FORT DODGE  Republican vice presidential candidate Mike Pence brought an upbeat message to Iowa supporters Thursday, urging them to be part of a movement to take back their country with President Donald Trump at the helm of a stronger America.

Iowa, weve got work to do, Pence told about 300 people at a rally at Iowa Central Community College. He said its time for Republicans to come home, time for Iowans to vote early with a friend, and time for them to tell their neighbors or strangers to help the Trump-Pence team maker America great again with an election victory Nov. 8. Lets get on with it.

Pence said the GOP ticket is gaining momentum every single day despite the unfair fight created by liberal and media elites who play up Trump negatives while ignoring an avalanche of scandals in an effort to sway voters into thinking the election is tilting in Democrat Hillary Clintons favor. Trump will be in Cedar Rapids on Friday  the same day Clinton is slated to campaign in Cedar Rapids and Des Moines in what Pence called a wheel to wheel race to the finish line.

Lets go get it done and bring it home, he said.

Pence said this year's elections offers a choice between two futures, with Trump offering the best hope of restoring America security at home and abroad, jump-starting a sputtering economy and filling U.S. Supreme Court vacancies with justices who will follow the law not legislate from the bench.

Its change versus the status quo, he said. Its up or down, America.

Pence said Clinton would continue Obamas downhill spiral of making America weaker with a hollowed out military and a pro-government approach toward more taxation and regulation.

By contrast, he said, Trump would plant his feet, renegotiate or scrap bad trade deals, repeal Obamacare and presidential executive orders, drain the swamp with ethics reform, cut tax burdens, place a moratorium on new government regulations, and restore law and order at home and abroad by marching up the hill to a stronger America.

Before the Pence rally, Democrats held an event in Des Moines where Michele Meadors, a quadriplegic Des Moines woman who grew up in Indiana  where Pence is governor  said she comes from multiple generations of Republicans but she no longer identifies with the GOP because of Trump.

I will tell you Im really saddened, said Meadors. Mike Pence, coming from Indiana, is someone that was greatly respected in the Hoosier community where Im from. And I had great respect for him: family man and what he has done. But how disgusting is it that a man of his background can actually support the words that are coming out of that mans (Donald Trumps) mouth? Any god-forsaken individual cannot find that acceptable or even right, because its just not right.
MASON CITY | The Cerro Gordo County auditors office will be open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday for absentee voting for the 2016 general election.

Regular courthouse hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. A voter can cast an absentee ballot in person on any regular business day prior to the election.

Anyone with questions can contact the auditor at 641-421-3041, or visit the county website at www.co.cerro-gordo.ia.us.
EUROPE

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Expected Council Action

In November, the Council is expected to hold its semi-annual debate on Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and to renew the authorisation of the EU-led multinational stabilisation force (EUFOR ALTHEA). High Representative Valentin Inzko is expected to brief on his offices latest report to the Council.

The current authorisation for EUFOR ALTHEA expires on 10 November.

Key Recent Developments

Tensions between Bosniaks, Croats and Serbs have worsened, in particular over a referendum in the Republika Srpska (RS)the predominantly Bosnian Serb entity of BiHon whether to celebrate Republika Srpska Day on 9 January. BiHs Constitutional Court ruled in November 2015 that the holidays celebration on that date was discriminatory and unconstitutional, as 9 January falls on an Orthodox holiday and marks the day that Bosnian Serbs declared the creation of RS and its secession from the Yugoslav republic of BiH in 1992. Defying this ruling, on 15 July, the RS National Assembly voted to hold a referendum on 25 September on whether to continue observing the holiday.

Western governments and the High Representative opposed the referendum, arguing that it violated the General Framework Peace Agreement (GFAP), which ended BiHs 1992-95 war, since the Constitutional Courts decisions are final and binding. On 17 September, the Constitutional Court approved a temporary ban on the referendum pending final decisions on motions filed by Bosniak leaders against the vote. The government of Serbia said it opposed the referendum but would but not interfere to stop it. On 22 September, three days before the scheduled vote, RS entity president Milorad Dodik met with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, which was widely viewed as indicating Russias support. RS went ahead with the referendum on 25 September. Turnout was reported at 55.67 percent, with 99.81 percent voting to continue recognising 9 January as RS day.

On 26 September, the BiH prosecutor opened an investigation into the referendum. Dodik was summoned to Sarajevo but refused to attend, citing concerns over his safety.

In other developments, long-awaited results of a census that was conducted in 2013 were released on 30 June. RS leaders objected to the methodology for processing census data and rejected the results. The first census since 1991, it revealed a nearly 20 percent decrease in BiHs population. Regarding the countrys ethnic makeup, the Bosniak population increased to 50.11 percent (up from 43.47 percent), with decreases in the Serb population (down from 31.21 percent to 30.78 percent) and Croat population (down from 17.38 percent to 15.43 percent).

Local elections were held across BiH on 2 October. Results strengthened ruling nationalist Bosniak, Croatian and Serbian parties. Mostar, the divided Bosniak and Croat city, failed for a second time to hold municipal elections due to its not having changed its electoral laws as required by a 2010 Constitutional Court ruling. Municipal elections were last held there in 2008.

Further highlighting ethnic divisions, Dragan Covic, the Croat member of BiHs tri-partite presidency, increased calls for creating a Croatian entity by reorganising the Federation of BiH (FBiH), the predominantly Bosniak and Croat entity.

Regarding EU accession, Republika Srpksa agreed to measures for an EU coordinating mechanism. This cleared the way for the EU to accept BiHs membership application on 20 September.

Key Issues

Ethnic divisions among Bosniaks, Croats and Serbs and divisive rhetoric by RS officials, along with recent referenda initiatives challenging the GFAP (which have included whether to accept the authority of the High Representative and state-level judicial institutions, and a possible vote on secession), remain key issues.

Socio-economic and governance problemssuch as political gridlock, corruption and high unemployment, which led to violent protests in February 2014are important issues, which the BiH political class is seen as seeking to divert attention from by focusing on ethnic divisions.

Options

When re-authorising EUFOR ALTHEA, the Council could stress BiH parties continued obligations to implement the GFAP.

The resolution could also be updated to reflect recent developments, including a call for leaders of all sides to avoid divisive actions and rhetoric, condemnation of the 25 September referendum as violating the GFAP and an emphasis on the importance of socio-economic reforms to improve the lives of BiH citizens.

Council and Wider Dynamics

Most members express concern about BiHs political gridlock and the divisive rhetoric from RS officials usually chronicled in the High Representatives reports. They view such rhetoric and recent referenda initiatives as challenging the GFAP and BiHs sovereignty and territorial integrity. Russia, on the other hand, supports the positions of RS, arguing that it is unfairly blamed for BiHs problems and that political dysfunction and provocations in the FBIH are overlooked.

Such dynamics play out within the Peace Implementation Council Steering Board (PIC SB), composed of states responsible for guaranteeing the GFAPs implementation. Russia, which is a member, has frequently not joined PIC SB statements, including recent ones opposing the RS referendum. Russia, however, continues to emphasise its support for BiHs territorial integrity and the GFAP. Another challenge that the international community faced in responding to the recent referendum is the inability of the High Representative to enforce his authority, provided by his mandate, to strike down decisions or remove politicians who violate legal obligations.

Once relatively straightforward, since 2014, negotiations on the Council resolution to reauthorise EUFOR ALTHEA have been difficult. All members support the presence of the force. Recent difficulties, though, have revolved around previously agreed language related to Euro-Atlantic integration and broader political issues, which Russia has sought to reduce or remove. Russias role as penholder during last years negotiations resulted in many of these elements being removed from the final text.

The Contact and Drafting Group, consisting of France, Germany, Italy, Russia, the UK, the US and elected Council members from the Western European and Others Group and the Eastern European Group, drafts decisions on BiH. Its penholder rotates monthly in English alphabetical order. In November the penholder will be the UK.

UN DOCUMENTS ON BIH

This resolution renewed the authorisation of the EU-led multinational stabilisation force (EUFOR ALTHEA) for an additional year. This was the biannual debate on Bosnia and Herzegovina.
AFRICA

Burundi

Expected Council Action



In November, the Council will be briefed by the Secretary-Generals Special Adviser, Jamal Benomar, on his recent meetings in the region and on the Secretary-Generals report on the situation in Burundi.

Key Recent Developments

The situation in Burundi, which developed after April 2015 when incumbent Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza announced that he would run for a controversial third term, remains dire. While the number of casualties has subsided and the security situation has improved, serious human rights abuses continue on a daily basis with impunity, mainly committed by the government. The overall level of oppression and control over Burundian society has increased, manifested by arbitrary deprivations of life, enforced disappearances, cases of torture and other forms of ill-treatment and arbitrary detention on a massive scale. Furthermore, these actions are taking place in an environment where freedoms of expression, association and assembly are virtually non-existent.

On 23 September, the UN Refugee Agency announced that the number of refugees fleeing violence, threats, extrajudicial killings, abduction, torture and persecution in Burundi has passed the 300,000 mark, and is likely to continue to rise.

On the political front, there seems to have been no headway in the Inter-Burundian Dialogue, led by the East African Community (EAC) and facilitated by former Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa.

In an attempt to address the situation, the Council adopted resolution 2303 on 29 July, authorising a police component with a ceiling of 228 officers to monitor the security situation and support the human rights monitoring of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), headed by a senior police adviser and under the authority of Benomars office. The Secretary-General was requested to take the necessary steps for the protection of UN personnel and facilities, including the police component, in consultation with Burundi. Adopted under Chapter VI, the resolution urged Burundi to cooperate fully with the police component, including giving unhindered access to detention facilities. At the same time, the resolution took note of the fact that Burundi had only consented to the deployment of 50 police officers for training the local police.

The resolution further requested the Secretary-General to strengthen the Special Advisers office with additional political officers, and to report back to the Council within 30 days on proposals to enable the UN to facilitate the deployment of the 200 AU-authorised human rights observers and military experts, and on ways for the police component to cooperate with the AU deployment.

In a 19 September letter to the Secretary-General responding to the resolution, Burundi rejected both the deployment of any force on its territory and the expansion of the Special Advisers office, noting that the resolution could not be implemented without its consent. Burundi has continued to maintain this position.

In accordance with resolution 2303, the Secretary-General reported on 19 September that the AU had deployed 47 human rights observers and 23 military experts to Burundi (out of an authorised 200), all of whom were operating in Bujumbura. He added that because of financial and logistical constraints and security concerns, the AU had not been able to operate fully throughout the country and deploy the available additional personnel. Furthermore, little progress had been made towards the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the AU and Burundi regarding the terms of deployment, though the AU reported that the movements of those currently deployed had not been restricted. The Secretary-General proposed that the Council authorise him to provide a targeted logistical support package for the AU deployment.

The AU Peace and Security Council discussed Burundi on 6 October. It called for the resumption of the Inter-Burundian Dialogue under the aegis of the EAC. It further urged Burundi to sign a MoU with the AU Commission for the deployment of the AU human rights observers and military experts in Burundi, as well as to engage with the UN on the deployment of the police component.

Benomar briefed Council members in consultations on 13 October before departing for the region and asked them to express support for his efforts. Council members issued a press statement the following day, calling on Burundi to cooperate with Benomar to develop, in a consensual manner, a plan and timeline for the implementation of resolution 2303.

Regarding accountability, Burundi passed a law on 18 October to withdraw from the ICC Statute. According to the Statute, the withdrawal comes into effect a year after notification of termination is given to the Secretary-General. The ICC Prosecutor launched a preliminary investigation into the situation in Burundi on 25 April 2015.

Human Rights-Related Developments

On 20 September, the UN Independent Investigation in Burundi (UNIIB) mandated by the Human Rights Council (HRC) published its final report (A/HRC/33/37). It describes abundant evidence of gross human rights violations, possibly amounting to crimes against humanity, by the Burundi government and people associated with it. It recommends setting up an international Commission of Inquiry, reconsideration of Burundis HRC membership and the use of Chapter VII of the UN Charter by the Security Council. The Burundi government has rejected the report as exaggerated.

On 30 September, the HRC adopted a resolution creating for one year a commission of inquiry to investigate violations in Burundi since April 2015 to present a final report to the HRC in September 2017 (A/HRC/33/L.31). Security Council members China, Russia and Venezuela and incoming Security Council member Bolivia voted against the resolution.

The Burundi government decided to suspend all cooperation with the Office of the High Commissioner and declared the UNIIB experts personae non gratae. The High Commissioner for Human Rights and the HRC President met with Burundis Ambassador to Geneva on 13 and 14 October, respectively, and requested the government to reconsider the decisions.

Key Issues



An immediate issue is ensuring that the situation in Burundi does not descend into chaos and further violence.

On the political front, a main issue is finding an avenue for renewed and productive engagement with Burundi in order to solve the political crisis.

Promoting the deployment of the police component and the AU observers and renewing Burundis cooperation with OHCHR are also key issues.

Options



In order to resolve the ongoing crisis in Burundi, the Council may take any of the following steps:

coordinate efforts with the AU and EAC in engaging with Burundi in order to advance the Inter-Burundian dialogue and facilitate both the UN and AU deployments in the country;

invite Mkapa to brief it on developments in the Inter-Burundian dialogue;

adopt a logistical support package or another form of support for the AU deployment in Burundi;

re-engage with Burundi to seek the deploymentas an interim measureof the 50 police officers it agreed to receive before resolution 2303 was adopted; and

adopt targeted sanctions against spoilers of the political dialogue and those responsible for human rights violations.

Council and Wider Dynamics

With Burundi currently entrenched in its opposition to the implementation of resolution 2303a position well known prior to the adoption of the resolutionthe Council is at an impasse with respect to its engagement with the country. Council members view the current situation as unsustainable. Some, such as the US, France and Spain look to Benomar to make headway with Burundi on the implementation of the resolution, while others, such as Russian and the African members, stress the need to establish a new basis for renewed engagement with Burundi. At the same time, Council members fear that the current state of affairs in Burundia relatively stable security environment accompanied by severe human rights violationscould become a tolerable status quo for the international community.

On the issue of logistical support for the AU, France, the UK and the US have been consistently against granting such requests over the last few years for financial reasons. During the negotiations on resolution 2303, the issue was left unsettled. Other Council members take the view that at this point, the AU is the only operational international presence in Burundi and should be supported in order to monitor the situation. They hope this issue will be more readily considered if a MoU officially accepting the AU deployment is signed with the government.

The penholder on Burundi is France.

UN DOCUMENTS ON BURUNDI

The Council established a UN police component in Burundi of 228 officers for an initial period of one year. This called for the implementation of resolution 2303. This contained the report of the Secretary-General on options to enable the UN to facilitate the deployment of AU human rights observers and military experts.
ASIA

DPRK (North Korea)

Expected Council Action

In November, the chair of the 1718 Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK) Sanctions Committee, Ambassador Roman Oyarzun (Spain), is due to brief Council members in consultations on the Committees work.

In addition, it is possible that the Council will adopt a resolution in response to the DPRKs 9 September nuclear test.

Key Recent Developments

In the period since the chairs last briefing on 30 August, the DPRK has maintained its defiant posture, while continuing to develop its nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities.

On 5 September, the DPRK successfully test-fired three mid-range Rodong missiles. In response, Council members held consultations on 6 September and in a subsequent press statement strongly condemned the DPRKs actions as a grave violation of Council resolutions. They expressed serious concern that the DPRK had conducted the launches in flagrant disregard of the Councils repeated statements. Moreover, they called on member states to redouble their efforts to fully implement sanctions, in particular the new measures in resolution 2270. (This was the resolution adopted on 2 March in response to the DPRKs fourth nuclear test.) They also directed the Sanctions Committee to intensify its work to strengthen enforcement of the resolution and assist member states to comply with their obligations, while calling on states to report on implementation as soon as possible. Finally, members expressed their commitment to a peaceful, diplomatic and political solution through dialogue but warned of further significant measures in line with the Councils previously expressed determination.

The DPRK protested the press statement in an 8 September letter to the Secretary-General, affirming its intention to continue to bolster its nuclear force. The following day, 9 September, it conducted a fifth nuclear test, its most powerful so far. Council members again held urgent consultations and, in a press statement strongly condemning the test as a clear threat to international peace and security, expressed their intention to immediately start work on a resolution imposing appropriate measures under Article 41. In a 9 September letter to the Council president, the Republic of Korea (ROK) also called for tougher sanctions against the DPRK.

On 14 and 20 October, the DPRK made failed attempts to launch an intermediate-range ballistic missile, the Musudan. The Musudan has a range of between 2,500 and 4,000 kilometres, enough to reach US military bases on the island of Guam. Council members condemned the first launch in a 17 October press statement, which closely followed the language of the 6 September statement. They reiterated their intention to closely monitor the situation and take further significant measures. The DPRK is reported to have conducted eight Musudan launches this year, but according to the ROK and the US only onein Junewas successful. So far this year, the DPRK has conducted a total of 24 ballistic missile launches.

Meanwhile, media reports seem to indicate that countries are responding to the Councils call for more rigorous sanctions implementation. Recent examples include the freezing of a bank account in Belarus found to have been used to violate the sanctions measures and Ugandas announcement that it has terminated all of its police-related cooperation with the DPRK and is considering whether to suspend all remaining military cooperation. Also, according to one report, 69 DPRK-owned vessels have been de-registered, as called for in resolution of 2270.

In a related development, the US on 26 September announced the imposition of DPRK-related sanctions against a Chinese company and four of its executives. The entity, Dandong Hongxiang Industrial Development Company Ltd, was designated for acting for or on behalf of the Korea Kwangsong Banking Corporation, a DPRK-based business that was listed by the Council in resolution 2270.

Human Rights-Related Developments

On 9 September, the High Commissioner for Human Rights designated two independent human rights experts, Sonja Biserko and Sara Hossain, to support the work of the special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the DPRK, Tomas Ojea Quintana. The appointment was made in accordance with Human Rights Council (HRC) resolution 31/18 adopted on 23 March, which requested the High Commissioner to designate, for a period of six months, a maximum of two independent experts to support the work of the special rapporteur, with a focus on accountability for human rights violations, in particular where such violations amount to crimes against humanity, and to recommend practical mechanisms of accountability to secure truth and justice for victims, including through the ICC. The report of the independent experts will be presented to the HRC in March 2017. Meanwhile, at the time of writing, the special rapporteur was scheduled to present his latest report to the General Assembly in the Third Committee on 27 October. The Committee is scheduled to vote in November on its annual resolution on the human rights situation in the DPRK. The resolution is expected to once again call on the Security Council to take appropriate action to ensure accountability for human rights violations.

Key Issues

The fundamental issue for the Council is how to respond to the clear and growing threat to international peace and security posed by the DPRK as Pyongyang continues to develop the countrys nuclear and ballistic-missile capabilities in direct defiance of the Councils demands.

A related issue is whether the tightening of sanctions will achieve the stated objectives of preventing the DPRK from making further progress and inducing Pyongyang to engage with the international community, or whether a different approach is needed.

A continuing issue is the importance of ensuring effective sanctions implementation by all member states, while avoiding adverse humanitarian consequences or negative effects on legitimate livelihood activities, as specified in resolution 2270.

Options

The main option for the Council is to adopt a resolution to further strengthen sanctions against the DPRK. This could include removing some of the exemptions to the existing provisions and imposing new measures, such as restrictions on the sale of oil to the DPRK, additional measures targeting DPRK diplomats, a ban on remittances to the DPRK from labour exports and restricting the DPRKs textile exports. It could also include additional listings.

A further option would be to begin raising the issue of possibly suspending the DPRKs UN membership in accordance with Article 5 of the UN Charter, which states that a member may be suspended from the rights and privileges of membership by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council.

With regard to the chairs briefing, the Council could decide to hold it in a public meeting, perhaps followed by consultations, to provide a forum for Council members to publicly express their concerns about the DPRKs actions and remind member states about the importance of implementing resolution 2270.

At the Committee level, the main option is to work closely with the Panel of Experts to assist states in implementing new sanctions measures and providing additional guidance, when needed, without delay.

Council and Wider Dynamics

At press time, negotiations on a draft resolution in response to the DPRKs 9 September nuclear test were underway, but still involving mostly bilateral discussions between China and the US. The US has also been working closely with Japan and the ROK, including a visit by Ambassador Samantha Power (US) to Tokyo and Seoul from 7 to 10 October. Since the nuclear test, the three countries have repeatedly declared their intention to seek a resolution imposing the strongest possible measures against the DPRK and to strengthen unilateral measures as well.

Few details have emerged from the negotiations so far, but the focus seems to be on closing some of the loopholes in resolution 2270 by removing exemptions, such as those allowing the DPRK to export coal and iron ore if the transactions are determined to be exclusively for livelihood purposes. (According to some reports, there has been an increase in the DPRKs export of coal since the resolution was adopted.) During her visit to the region, Power confirmed that closing loopholes was a priority, and described the negotiations as intense.

Although China condemned the DPRKs nuclear test and has expressed its support for further measures, it remains to be seen how far it is willing to go. It strongly opposes, along with Russia, the deployment in the ROK of the USs Terminal High Altitude Area Defense anti-missile system, which the ROK and the US recently said would move forward without delay. In Council discussions, both China and Russia have characterised the deployment as a provocation. In response to a recent joint ROK-US naval exercise, China once again called on the two countries not to raise tensions in the region.

In terms of overall Council dynamics, it seems that Russia has signalled that it wants to be more involved in the initial negotiations than was the case in the past.

The US is the penholder on the DPRK.

UN Documents

imposed additional sanctions on the DPRK. was the ROK letter calling for tougher sanctions. was the DPRK letter rejecting the Councils 6 September press statement. condemned the 14 October failed missile launch. condemned the 9 September nuclear test. condemned the 5 September missile launches. was the report of the special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the DPRK.
AFRICA

DRC

Expected Council Action

In November, the Security Council is expected to undertake a visiting mission to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

The Council will also be briefed by the Special Envoy to the Great Lakes Region, Said Djinnit, followed by consultations, on the implementation of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework Agreement (PSC Framework) and other developments in the region.

The mandate of the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) expires on 31 March 2017.

Key Recent Developments

On the political front, the presidential election originally scheduled for 27 November continues to be a deeply divisive issue in the DRC, given that it will now not be held before the second andaccording to the Constitutionfinal term of President Joseph Kabila ends on 19 December. On 17 October, the Constitutional Court granted a petition of the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) to postpone elections to 2018 in order to perform the necessary updates to the voter registry.

Meanwhile, on 18 October, participants in the national dialogue on elections signed an agreement on a new electoral calendar. According to the proposed agreement, provincial, parliamentary and presidential elections would be held in April 2018, and local elections would be held simultaneously or within half a year from the other elections. According to the agreement, Kabila would remain in office until the installation of a newly elected president, and a prime minster from the opposition will be appointed in the interim.

The dialogue between the government and opposition groups is being boycotted by several of the main opposition groups, which have formed a coalition called Rassemblement. The Rassemblement has vowed to organise popular protests to pressure Kabila to step down on the 19th day of every month until the formal end of Kabilas term on 19 December. The nationwide demonstrations on 19 September turned violent, with several dozen protesters and some police killed. On 19 October, a general strike took place in Kinshasa. According to media reports, many of the capitals 10 million residents adhered to the strike and streets were largely empty, with little traffic.

Maman Sambo Sidikou, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, and Ambassador Amr Aboulatta (Egypt), the chair of the DRC Sanctions Committee, briefed the Council on 11 October, followed by consultations. Sidikou stressed that the DRC has entered a period of extreme fragility and that the only way forward is for all parties to re-engage in an inclusive dialogue. He noted that MONUSCO is making the necessary contingency plans, but if widespread violence erupts due to the electoral impasse, MONUSCO will not have the capabilities to successfully protect civilians. During consultations, several Council members reiterated their positions, some that the political tensions are essentially an internal issue, and others stressing the need to pressure the government and the opposition to find a political solution.

On the Great Lakes, the Secretary-General recommended in a 4 October letter to the Council that the role of the Special Envoy be expanded beyond issues relating to the PSC Framework. In response, the Council said that it welcomed further discussions on the recommendations in the coming weeks, as several Council members felt that the proposals required further elaboration as to their financial and organisational ramifications. The briefing on the Great Lakes comes at the request of the Secretariat in order to have a discussion on the region separate from that on the DRC, including on the prospective role of the Special Envoy.

The visiting mission to the DRC will be co-led by Angola and France. Council members are expected to begin their trip in Kinshasa, where they will meet with key political actors, followed by a visit to Beni and Goma in the east. From there they will travel to Luanda for an update on the 26 October summit of the International Conference on the Great Lakes (ICGLR) by Angolan President Jose dos Santos, who is currently chair of the ICGLR. Council members started discussing the possibility of such a mission in early October and decided to hold the visit prior to the planned 19 November protests and the 27 November constitutional deadline for the election in an attempt to promote a message of stability and compromise among all political stakeholders.

Sanctions-Related Developments

The DRC Sanctions Committee met on 10 October with the countries of the region to discuss improved implementation of the sanctions regime, following Aboulattas visit to the region from 1 to 6 August. In his briefing to the Council on 11 October, Aboulatta identified the security situation in the east, political tensions and the illicit exploitation of natural resources as key impediments to implementation of the sanctions regime.

Human Rights-Related Developments

On 30 September, the Human Rights Council (HRC) adopted, without a vote, a resolution on technical assistance and capacity-building for human rights in the DRC (A/HRC/33/L.26). The resolution strongly condemns recent deadly clashes in Kinshasa and elsewhere in the country. It also calls on the government to ensure equitable political participation and to create without delay the necessary conditions for holding free, transparent, inclusive and peaceful elections. The resolution requests the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to prepare a report on the situation of human rights in the DRC during the electoral period, to be presented during an enhanced interactive dialogue at the HRCs 36th session in September 2017. A UN Joint Human Rights Office report released in October, covering the period from 1 January 2014 to 31 March, concluded that, despite progress made by the authorities in holding perpetrators of human rights abuses accountable, a very low number of state agents, especially senior officers and leaders and combatants of armed groups, are prosecuted and convicted compared to the high number of violations reported.

Key Issues

A key issue for the Council is resolving the political tensions and potential for widespread violence surrounding the electoral calendar.

The continued violence by rebel groups in the east remains a serious threat to peace and security. The violence in the east may further worsen if the political situation destabilises western DRC.

Options

On its visiting mission, the Council could:

apply pressure and offer some incentives to Kabila to announce that he would not seek another term and seek to ensure that elections are held before 2018;

encourage the Rassemblement coalition to engage with the government in order to reach agreement and resolve the political crisis; and

threaten to impose sanctions on actors, both in the government and the opposition, who destabilise the DRC by contributing to electoral violence or inciting violence.

On the Great Lakes, the Council may decide to expand the role of the Special Envoy after receiving further clarifications on this issue from the Secretary-General.

Council Dynamics

Council members all have similar concerns over the potential destabilisation of the DRC due to the political crisis and hope that a visiting mission will provide an opportunity for the Council to pressure the relevant actors to engage and reach an agreement to hold timely elections and resolve other political issues. (The Council visited the DRC annually from 2000 through 2010; its most recent mission to the country was in 2013.) Council members will strive to present a united front towards the various stakeholders during their visit, although they continue to have diverging views on the nature of the crisis and what may or may not constitute undue interference in internal constitutional matters by the Council and other international actors. However, there seems to be consensus about the need to apply pressure on both the government and the opposition to compromise and find middle ground to end the political impasse.

UN Documents on the DRC

This resolution renewed the DRC sanctions regime and the mandate of the Group of Experts. This was a resolution renewing the mandate of MONUSCO for a year. This was on the implementation of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the DRC. This was on MONUSCO. This was a briefing on the latest MONUSCO report and on the activities of the DRC Sanctions Committee.

Other Relevant Facts

Special Representative of the Secretary-General

Maman Sambo Sidikou (Niger)

MONUSCO Force Commander

Lieutenant General Derick Mbuyiselo Mgwebi (South Africa)

MONUSCO Size, Composition and Cost of Mission

Strength as of 31 August 2016: 16,735 troops (including 478 military observers and 1,407 police), 816 international civilian personnel, 2,654 local civilian staff and 364 UN volunteers.

Approved budget (1 July 2016-30 June 2017): $1.23 billion

Mission duration: July 2010 to present
MIDDLE EAST

Iraq

Expected Council Action

In November, Special Representative Jan Kubis will brief the Council on the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) and provide an update on the campaign to retake Mosul from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).

UNAMIs mandate expires on 31 July 2017.

Key Recent Developments

On 15 July, Kubis briefed the Council on Iraqs deepening political crisis and challenges to Prime Minister Haider al-Abadis reform efforts, as well as on projected increased humanitarian needs in the context of counter-ISIL operations.

On 17 October, Iraqi government forces launched the campaign to retake Mosul from ISIL, supported by Kurdish troops and Sunni tribal fighters with the US-led anti-ISIL coalition providing air support. This will be the last major offensive to restore government control over territory that ISIL has held since the fall of Mosul in June 2014. After the campaigns to retake Ramadi and Fallujah earlier this year, ISIL holds only about 10 percent of Iraqi territory.

The Shia militia Hashd al-Shaabi, which constitutes the popular mobilisation forces (PMF), nominally under the command and control of the government, have also announced their participation in the Mosul offensive. As during the Fallujah campaign, the PMF is expected to operate mostly on the perimeter of Mosul in deference to the US position that Iraqs use of Shia militias in Sunni areas stokes sectarian tension and deepens the distrust of the Shia-led government among Sunni leaders. Nevertheless, some government forces have reportedly flown flags displaying Shia symbols, despite Abadis promises that the Mosul offensive would be a national effort.

The PMF has announced that it will take Tal Afar, to cut off the escape route of ISIL fighters from Mosul to Syria. However, PMF presence along escape routes can also interfere with civilians trying to flee Mosul, particularly in the context of the PMFs security screenings. The PMF has been accused of abusing Sunnis in the aftermath of past anti-ISIL campaigns. In July, the UN reported that 640 Sunni men and boys had been abducted by the Shia militia during security screenings when fleeing Fallujah and another 50 had been summarily executed or tortured to death. On 18 September, a bloc of 70 parliamentarians announced their plans to introduce a draft law that would grant immunity to the PMF.

UN officials anticipate that the humanitarian consequences of a campaign to dislodge 5,000 ISIL fighters from Mosul, which has a current estimated population of between 1.2 and 1.5 million, will be significantly worse than the Fallujah exodus. OCHA has said that ISIL, as in Fallujah, could hold the civilian population as human shields or forcibly expel large numbers of civilians in the face of an attack by Iraqi forces. In a worst-case scenario, almost a million people could be displaced. While OCHA and humanitarian partners are preparing 250,000 shelter units, their response plan for the worst-case scenario remains severely underfunded.

The governments campaign to retake Mosul comes amid ongoing challenges to Abadis leadership and his cabinet. In April, Abadi put forward a cabinet of technocrats to counter corruption and curtail the power of political actors opposed to reform efforts. It continues to be stalled in parliament, while other appointments have been rolled back. The parliamentary bloc of former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who is widely believed to be seeking to regain the premiership, has instigated investigations that led to the 25 August dismissal of Sunni Defense Minister Khalid al Obeidi and the 21 September dismissal of Kurdish Finance Minister Hoshiyar Zebari. In July, Abadi was forced to accept the resignation of Shia Interior Minister Mohammed al Ghabban following a string of terrorist attacks in Baghdad. All three posts remain vacant. Foreign Minister Ibrahim al Jaafari was subject to questioning by parliament on 6 October. Meanwhile, on 10 October, the Iraqi Federal Court declared unconstitutional Abadis August 2015 decision to eliminate the three vice-presidencies (of which Maliki holds one).

This political discord in Baghdad will make it harder for the government to focus on the re-stabilisation needs of areas liberated from ISIL, in particular to address the disastrous conditions which internally displaced persons face. UN officials have repeatedly flagged their concerns about lagging re-stabilisation efforts. UNAMI has said that for military advances against ISIL to hold, the government, in cooperation with the UN, would have to work quickly to restore the rule of law and basic services. This is particularly important in relation to the Sunni provinces, which have a strained relationship with the Shia-led government in Baghdad.

In other developments, there has been heightened rhetoric between Ankara and Baghdad following Turkeys 1 October decision to renew its presence in northern Iraq for a further year. Turkey maintains that its presence in the Bashiqa region near Mosul is to counter the activities of ISIL and the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in northern Iraq. Turkey also wants to play a role in the Mosul offensive, which Baghdad opposes. Media reports indicate that Iraq wants a commitment from Turkey that it will withdraw after Mosul is liberated. On 17 October, Iraq sent a letter to the Security Council objecting to the Turkish incursion into Iraqi territory.

On 12 October, Council members were briefed on northern Iraq as part of a situational awareness briefing presented by the Executive Office of the Secretary-General. Council members heard that the presence of the PMF, the PKK and Turkey was a challenge to a cohesive military strategy to liberate Mosul from ISIL. The competing interests of these forces risked prolonged conflict with the potential to trigger a regional war.

On 18 October, the 2242 Informal Expert Group on Women, Peace and Security met on the rapidly unfolding humanitarian crisis in Iraq that has been caused by ISIL and the counter-insurgency operations launched against it. During that meeting Council members heard that ISIL is targeting women from minority communities as well as women who engage in professional work, activists, or any who do not conform to their idea of gender norms. Beyond ISIL, women may also be the subject of retaliation by local militias who suspect them of having collaborated with ISIL, or may be separated from their husbands or male family members as they are screened by security forces. Meanwhile, the escalation of the crisis has coincided with the increased political marginalization of women in decision-making, both at the national and the local level, and this will likely not be a consideration in local governance plans for Mosul when it is liberated. There is not a single woman in the various command cells administering the return of population to liberated areas and the lead government entity for women was abolished and has not been replaced.

Finally, as per resolution 1958, the indemnification period for the oil-for-food programme ends on 31 December 2016. The UN has yet to conclude an agreement with Iraq to protect the UN from liability resulting from the oil-for-food programme. Without such an agreement, the issue may have to revert to the Security Council.

Developments in the Sanctions Committee

Since August 2016, the 1518 Iraq Sanctions Committee has removed 26 entities from its list as part of an initial push to wind down the Committee (SC/12523, SC/12507, SC/12498 and SC/12476).

Key Issues

The immediate issue for the Council is how to address the impact of the anti-ISIL military campaign on the human rights, humanitarian and security situations in Iraq.

Another key issue is promoting a genuinely inclusive government accountable to the Iraqi people. A related issue is determining how the Council and UNAMI can support Prime Minister Abadis reform process and encourage greater cooperation on financial, security and humanitarian issues between Abadis dominant Shia Dawa party and Kurdish and Sunni parliamentarians.

Options

Options seem limited since the security response to ISIL is happening outside the Councils purview. However, the Council could adopt a statement:

calling on all parties to strictly adhere to international human rights and international humanitarian law and take every step possible to protect civilians;

calling on the government to screen civilians fleeing conflict areas in strict accordance with international human rights and international humanitarian law, underscoring that such screening should not be conducted by paramilitary groups;

calling on the government to work towards enhanced security and humanitarian coordination with Kurdish and Sunni leaders and for UNAMI to support the government in that effort; and

calling on the government to cooperate with UNAMI in areas that may require enhanced mission activities, such as human rights, rule of law, security sector reform, stabilisation activities in areas liberated from ISIL and best practices for child protection and gender policies.

Council Dynamics

Council members uniformly support the UNs role in Iraq and UNAMIs mandate, which they believe is broad enough and flexible enough to allow Kubis to fulfil the missions good offices role.

However, except through the lens of counter-terrorism, Council members have been unwilling to approach the connected crises in Iraq and Syria holistically. Similarly, the Council has not directly grappled with the underlying political divisions among Iraqs Shia, Sunni and Kurdish populations except for bland calls for an inclusive government. It has shown little willingness to address Iraqs relationship with neighbouring Turkey, instead exhibiting preference for the two member states to resolve the issue bilaterally and to keep the disagreement out of the Council.

The US is the penholder on Iraq.

UN Documents

This was a resolution renewing UNAMI for a year. This was the Secretary-Generals report on UNAMI. This letter was from Iraq objecting to the Turkish incursion into Iraqi territory. This was a briefing by Special Representative Jan Kubis.
CHARLES CITY  A Charles City woman was sentenced Friday to up to 10 years in prison for felony sexual abuse.

Brittany Rae Beek, 27, who was accused by police of committing sex acts against the will of two female minors on May 11 in Charles City, originally was charged with two counts of third-degree sexual abuse.

A Floyd County jury found her guilty of one of those counts in August. She was found not guilty on the second count.

Beek has been ordered to register as a sex offender and pay a $250 civil penalty. She also will be under supervision by the Department of Corrections for the rest of her life, with the possibility of parole, after she is released from prison.

A $1,000 fine was suspended. She is to pay victim restitution to the Crime Victim Compensation program, with the amount to be determined within 30 days.

Beek is to have no contact with the victims. The no-contact order will be in effect for five years unless it is modified, terminated or extended by further court order.

Beek also pleaded guilty to and was sentenced to 180 days in jail and fined $315 Friday for a misdemeanor charge of assault on persons in certain occupations. She was given credit for time already served in custody.

While Beek was being escorted from the Floyd County Jail to a patrol car to be taken to another jail on Sept. 6, she kicked, spat and bit at three officers while in restraints, according to the criminal complaint.

A spit mask was placed on her to prevent further bodily fluid transfer, the complaint states.
EUROPE

Kosovo

Expected Council Action

In November, the Council is expected to hold its quarterly briefing on Kosovo. Zahir Tanin, the Secretary-Generals Special Representative and head of the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), will brief on recent developments and the latest Secretary-Generals report. Serbia will probably participate at a high level, while Kosovo is likely to be represented by its ambassador to the US.

Key Recent Developments

While the overall security situation has remained stable, the ongoing rift between the government and the opposition parties continues to contribute to political instability within Kosovo. The continuing political tensions arise from the oppositions strong disapproval of the 25 August 2015 agreement between Belgrade and Pristina which, among other things, mandates the establishment of the Association/Community of Serb Municipalities (ASM/CSM) in northern Kosovo. In addition, in recent months, the demarcation of the border between Kosovo and Montenegro has emerged as a serious issue of contention. The opposition claims that the border agreement would deprive Kosovo of part of its territory, while the government led by Prime Minister Isa Mustafa repudiates these claims.

Though ratified by the Montenegro parliament last year, to come into force the demarcation agreement still needs the approval of a two-thirds majority in the Assembly of Kosovo. In attempting to prevent a vote in the Assembly, some members of the opposition have resorted to the use of smoke bombs in the chamber, which has caused a general disruption in the work of Kosovo institutions. Parallel to these actions in the Assembly, the opposition supporters have staged several demonstrations, sometimes violent, outside the legislature. On 1 September, the government postponed the vote on the agreement, amid protests by the opposition and a boycott by the members of the parliamentary political group representing Kosovo Serbs.

Recently, there has also been some tension in relations between Belgrade and Pristina. On 28 September, Serbia arrested Nehat Thaci, a senior Kosovo police official, at a border crossing between Kosovo and Serbia. Thaci was detained on terrorism charges for his alleged involvement in the Kosovo conflict in the 1990s. On 12 October, the Assembly of Kosovo adopted a resolution calling for Thacis release and urging the EU to intervene to this end. Thaci has denied all accusations against him. As of this writing, Thaci remains in detention in the Serbian city of Nis.

Tensions rose again on 7 October, when the Assembly of Kosovo voted to take majority control of the Trepca mining complex amid strong objections by Serbia, which also claims ownership of the mine. In an 11 October press conference, Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said that his government would reject the decision of the Kosovo authorities regarding Trepca. However, Vucic said that Serbia would not call for a special meeting of the Security Council because the situation did not pose a threat to peace and security.

The special court that will investigate crimes committed by the Kosovo Liberation Army during the conflict in Kosovo is expected to become fully operational at the beginning of 2017. The EU has already provided initial funding for the Court. International judges will staff the court, which will operate in The Hague under Kosovo law. The Netherlands parliament still needs to ratify the agreement with Kosovo on locating the Court in The Hague before formal operations can begin. On 5 September, David Schwendiman of the US was appointed chief prosecutor of the special court.

Human Rights-Related Developments

On 16 September, the special rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons (IDPs), Chaloka Beyani, released a statement at the end of a five-day visit to Serbia and Kosovo, urging the government of Serbia and the authorities in Kosovo to show leadership and intensify their efforts to achieve durable solutions for those living in protracted displacement for some 17 years. The statement expressed concern that many IDPs, especially those belonging to the Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian communities, are still living in squalid conditions. The special rapporteur emphasised that the situation of IDPs should be addressed as a key issue in the context of the EU accession framework and the Brussels dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina.

Key Issues

The primary issue for the Council is maintaining stability and security in Kosovo amid ongoing political tensions within Kosovo.

Implementation of the existing agreements between Belgrade and Pristina and the role UNMIK could play to that end are related issues.

Anticipating the start of the Special Courts operations, an issue for the Council will be to encourage and follow the cooperation of Kosovo authorities with the Court.

Tensions arising from the Kosovos takeover of Trepca could also be an issue for the Council.

Options

Should the current political tensions escalate further or start posing a risk to overall stability, the Council could consider issuing a statement calling on political actors to resolve outstanding issues through constructive dialogue.

Another option would be for the Council to explore ways in which UNMIK could facilitate the implementation of the existing agreements between Belgrade and Pristina.

The Council could consider the calls by some members, most notably the P3, to lengthen the reporting cycle and possibly modify UNMIKs mandate.

Council Dynamics

Kosovo has remained an issue of rather low intensity for the Council, especially during the past several years when the Council has been preoccupied with a multiplicity of issues on its agenda considered more pressing. Moreover, other regional organisations such as the EU, NATO and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe play a more prominent role in Kosovo. However, some members with a particular interest in the region still follow the issue closely; these include Russia and the US as well as the EU members of the Council.

The deep divisions among the permanent members have shaped Council dynamics on Kosovo. The P3 membersFrance, the UK and the USrecognise Kosovos independence and are supportive of Kosovos government, while China and Russia, which do not, strongly support Serbias position on the issue. Despite the ongoing political tensions in Kosovo, the P3 members have supported lengthening the reporting cycle and thus reducing the frequency of meetings on Kosovo, noting that there are more pressing issues that deserve the Councils closer attention. Russia continues to oppose any change in the reporting cycle or UNMIKs mandate, citing the unstable political and security situation and problems in implementing the agreements between Belgrade and Pristina. The permanent members longstanding entrenched positions are likely to paralyse any efforts by the Council to change the reporting cycle, and altering UNMIKs mandate is even less likely.

UN Documents

This resolution authorised NATO to secure and enforce the withdrawal of Federal Republic of Yugoslavia forces from Kosovo and established UNMIK. This was the report of the Secretary-General on UNMIK. This was a briefing on Kosovo.
AFRICA

Libya

Expected Council Action

In November, ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda will deliver her semi-annual briefing on recent developments concerning cases in Libya.

Key Recent Developments

Governing authority in Libya continues to be contested. The Presidency Council of the Government of National Accord (GNA) has yet to agree on a new cabinet list to submit to the Tobruk-based House of Representatives for its endorsement, following the rejection of a previous list on 22 August. Despite some engagement by boycotting members of the Presidency Council, key divisions remain among its members. In addition to the political deadlock and the Presidency Councils failure to deliver basic services, the situation has been further polarised following the attempt to seize the headquarters of the State Council by Khalifa Ghwell, who became the prime minister of a Tripoli-based government supported by the General National Congress in 2015.

Several counter-terrorist operations, conducted by different armed groups with external support, are reinforcing the positions of key actors in the conflict and may be undermining efforts to reach a political solution. Briefing the Council on 13 September, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and head of the UN Support Mission in Libya Martin Kobler noted that he has sought to engage with General Haftar, an influential figure who leads military operations to take over Benghazi in the east, to no avail.

ICC-Related Developments

A court in Tripoli sentenced Saif Al-Islam Qaddafi, son of deposed leader Muammar Qaddafi, to death in absentia on 28 July 2015 for serious crimes during the 2011 revolution. On 30 July 2015, Bensouda requested that the Pre-Trial Chamber order Libya to refrain from carrying out Qaddafis sentence and surrender him to the Court. On 20 August 2015, Libyas delegate to the ICC proceedings (who had concurrent mandate to be Libyas representative by the House of Representatives and the General National Congress) responded that Qaddafis judgment was not final, given that he was tried in absentia, and stressed that he could not be surrendered to the ICC because he was not in the custody of the Libyan government. The response also stated that until a unified Libyan government can be established, there is no authority that can properly make and implement a decision in respect of the situation of Qaddafi, including negotiations for his transfer.

Briefing the Council on 26 May, Bensouda said that, upon confirmation that Qaddafi was being held in Zintan in the custody of the Abu-Bakr al-Siddiq Battalion commanded by Al-Ajami Al-Atiri, her office had filed a request with Pre-Trial Chamber I for an order directing the ICC Registry to transmit directly to Al-Atiri the request for arrest and surrender of Qaddafi. In a report to the Council circulated ahead of the meeting, she said that if Al-Atiri refused to cooperate, the Security Council must give serious consideration to imposing sanctions on him and his battalion. On 1 June, the Pre-Trial Chamber I issued a decision asking Libyan authorities whether there is any recent coordination or liaison between them and the battalion; whether the Libyan authorities would agree that a request for arrest and surrender of Qaddafi be addressed to the battalion; and, if so, whether they would either facilitate the transmission to the relevant local authorities in Zintan of such request or, alternatively, agree for a direct transmission by the Court.

On 3 June, the African Court on Human and Peoples Rights determined that Libya violated the rights to liberty and fair trial by holding Qaddafi in secret detention since 2011. An opinion of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) issued in April had considered Qaddafis detention as arbitrary and requested the government of Libya to provide adequate remedy by releasing him.

In 2013, the ICC concluded that Libya was not unwilling or unable to carry out its proceedings regarding the case against former intelligence chief Abdullah Al-Senussi, which was before the ICC, thus making it inadmissible before the Court. However, the Office of the Prosecutor continues to collect and analyse relevant information in relation to Al-Senussis case.

In her 25 May briefing, Bensouda said that her Office was evaluating newly acquired evidence of serious crimes committed in Libya since 2011 and that it was likely the Office would apply to the Court for one or more additional warrants. Security and budgetary constraints, among other things, appear to be hampering these efforts.

Human Rights-Related Developments

On 31 August, representatives of the cities of Misrata and Tawergha signed a reconciliation agreement that had been facilitated by UNSMILs human rights division, providing for the return of those who were displaced in 2011. On 27 September, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights Kate Gilmore provided an oral update on Libya during the 33rd session of the HRC, pursuant to resolution 31/27 adopted on 24 March. According to the update, heavy weaponry continues to be deployed in residential areas across Libya, armed groups act with complete impunity and thousands of people are held arbitrarily in detention centres. In addition, migrants, refugees and asylum seekers are arbitrarily detained, with numerous reports indicating patterns of abuse perpetrated against migrants, such as summary killings, torture and other ill-treatment, sexual abuse, extortion, and forced labour; and human rights defenders and media professionals face abductions and attacks. Gilmore concluded the update by calling on the HRC to consider establishing a mandate for an independent expert on Libya to report on the situation of human rights and on progress made towards accountability.

Key Issues

Ensuring accountability for international crimes committed in Libya since 2011 and exerting pressure on the parties that conduct hostilities to do so respecting international humanitarian law are key issues.

The overarching issue is to ensure a solution to the political deadlock that consolidates governing authority in Libya, by exercising leverage on internal and external actors involved in Libya to encourage engagement in the political process.

Options

Options on Libya include:

holding an informal interactive dialogue with Bensouda to discuss options for follow-up of ICC decisions on Libya;

reiterating in a resolution the call for the GNA to hold accountable those responsible for violations of international humanitarian law and violations and abuses of human rights and to co-operate fully with and provide any necessary assistance to the ICC and the prosecutor; and

calling on member states to ensure adequate funding to support the ICC in investigating serious violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.

Although unlikely, Council members could use sanctions to ensure compliance with ICC decisions.

Council and Wider Dynamics

The semi-annual briefings by Bensouda on Libya have had limited impact, given the reluctance of the Council to follow up regarding the difficulties in implementing ICC decisions. Council members have often reverted to general exhortations rather than addressing non-compliance in a more forceful and effective way.

The UK is the penholder on Libya. Ambassador Ramlan Ibrahim (Malaysia) chairs the 1970 Libya Sanctions Committee.

UN DOCUMENTS ON LIBYA

The Council was briefed by ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda on the progress of her Offices investigations on Libya despite the lack of sufficient resources and the prevailing precarious security situation in the country.
Status Update

Mali

On 4 October, Council members issued a press statement condemning the multiple terrorist attacks against MINUSMA, during which two peacekeepers from Chad were killed and others injured (SC/12542). On 6 October, the Council was briefed on the absence of concrete progress in implementing the peace agreement and the deteriorating security environment in Mali by Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Herve Ladsous (S/PV.7784). Ladsous also briefed on the latest MINUSMA report (S/2016/819). Atul Khare, Under-Secretary-General for Field Support, stressed how MINUSMA is missing key capabilities needed to operate safely and effectively in the current environment.

Yemen

In a 4 October press statement, Council members strongly condemned an attack by Houthi forces on a UAE vessel operating near Bab al-Mandeb strait on 1 October (SC/12541). It further noted that members take threats to shipping around the passage extremely seriously. The US subsequently informed members of missile strikes it conducted on radar facilities following Houthi cruise missile launches at US Navy warships on 9 and 12 October around Bab al-Mandeb (S/2016/869). Following the 8 October attacks on a funeral in Sanaa, which according to initial UN figures killed over 140 people, the UK circulated a draft press statement that would have strongly condemned the attack. Russia broke a silence procedure on the text, believing the statement was not strong enough. The UK subsequently informed members on 13 October that it would prepare a new resolution that would include a call for a cessation of hostilities but at press time it had not been circulated. On 31 October, Special Envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed briefed the Council on his recent efforts to reach a cessation of hostilities in Yemen (S/PV.7797). In the Yemen 2140 Sanctions Committee, the Panel of Experts submitted preliminary analysis on 17 October that the 8 October attacks on the funeral in Sanaa were the result of at least two aircraft bombs, and that evidence suggested that the Saudi Arabia-led coalition violated its obligations under international humanitarian law.

Sudan (Darfur)

On 4 October, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Herve Ladsous briefed the Council (S/PV.7781) on the most recent UNAMID report (S/2016/812). Ladsous noted that fighting continued in the Jebel Marra region between government forces and the Sudan Liberation ArmyAbdul Wahid rebel group. In reference to the late September allegations by Amnesty International that government forces had used chemical weapons in the Jebel Marra area, Ladsous said that without further information or evidence being made available, it is not possible at this stage for the OPCW to draw any conclusions. In the consultations following the briefing, there was reportedly widespread agreement that there needed to be additional investigation of Amnesty Internationals findings. At press time, the 1591 Sudan Sanctions Committee was planning to hold a meeting with the recently appointed Panel of Experts on 28 October.

Maintenance of International Peace and Security

On 6 October, the Council adopted resolution 2312 with the abstention of Venezuela. This resolution renewed the provisions of resolution 2240 aimed at disrupting human trafficking and the smuggling of migrants on the high seas off the coast of Libya (S/PV.7783). Prior to the adoption, the Council had received the Secretary-Generals report on implementation of resolution 2240 (S/2016/766).

Central African Republic

On 10 October, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Herve Ladsous briefed the Council (S/PV.7787) on the MINUSCA report (S/2016/824). The Chair of the Central African Republic configuration of the Peacebuilding Commission, Abderrazzak Laassel (Morocco), also briefed.

Haiti

On 11 October, the Council held a debate on Haiti with a briefing via VTC by the head of MINUSTAH, Special Representative Sandra Honore (S/PV.7789), who presented the most recent Haiti report (S/2016/753). The impact of Hurricane Matthew, which struck Haiti on 4 October, and the postponement of the elections originally scheduled for 9 October were among the main issues discussed. On 13 October, the Council adopted resolution 2313 renewing the mandate of MINUSTAH for six months while maintaining its authorised troop strength at 2,370 military personnel.

Counter-Terrorism

On 13 October, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman briefed the Council on the Secretary-Generals third report (S/2016/830) on the threat posed by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (S/PV.7791).

Israel/Palestine

On 14 October, elected member Malaysia, along with Angola, Egypt, Senegal and Venezuela, hosted an Arria-formula meeting entitled Illegal Israeli Settlements: Obstacles to Peace and the Two-State Solution. On 19 October, Special Coordinator Nickolay Mladenov and OCHA head Stephen OBrien briefed the Council at its regular quarterly open debate on the Middle East, with a focus on Israel/Palestine (S/PV.7792).

Colombia

On 18 October, Council members met in consultations with the Secretary-Generals Special Representative and head of the UN Mission in Colombia, Jean Arnault, and the missions chief observer General Javier Perez Aquino. The meeting was the first Council discussion on Colombia following the 2 October referendum, in which a narrow majority of 50.2 percent of voters rejected the 24 August peace agreement between the Government of Colombia and the FARC-EP.

Western Sahara

On 18 October, Special Representative and head of MINURSO Kim Bolduc and Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General Christopher Ross briefed Council members in consultations. The meeting focused particularly on the situation in Al Guergarat, in the southern part of the territory within the buffer strip controlled by Frente Polisario, where Morocco is attempting to build a road connecting its position at the berm with the Mauritanian border.

1540 Committee

The Committee met on 19 October to discuss the draft report on the comprehensive review of the status of implementation of resolution 1540. The final report, which has to be agreed by consensus, is due for submission to the Council by 31 October. At press time it was unclear, however, if agreement would be reached by that time.

Guinea-Bissau

On 20 October, the Secretary-Generals Special Representative to Guinea-Bissau briefed Council members in consultations on developments in the inclusive dialogue held in Guinea from 11 to 14 October to resolve the longstanding political crisis. After the briefing, Council members issued a press statement welcoming the initiative and the Conakry agreement that resulted from these talks (SC/12560). Among other points, members encouraged Guinea-Bissaus president to proceed to the nomination of the consensual prime minister as soon as possible.

Afghanistan

The 1988 Afghanistan Sanctions Committee met on 24 October with the head of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization to discuss counter-narcotics efforts in Afghanistan, and on 27 October with the Mission of Afghanistan to the UN to discuss reconciliation efforts in the country.

Women, Peace and Security

On 25 October, the Secretary-General and the head of UN Women, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, briefed the Council at the annual open debate on women, peace and security (S/PV.7793) where member states considered the Secretary-Generals latest report on the issue (S/2016/822). Rita Lopidia, who heads the Eve Organization for Womens Development in South Sudan, participated as a civil society briefer. Russia circulated a concept note ahead of the debate asking member states to focus their interventions on implementation of the recommendations from last years Global Study on resolution 1325 (S/2016/871). No outcome was adopted.

International Court of Justice

On 26 October, the Council convened for a private meeting to receive a briefing from the President of the ICJ, Judge Ronny Abraham (France) (S/PV.7794). Abraham discussed the annual report of the ICJ (A/71/4) and the overall activities of the Court, including an overview of pending contentious cases.

UN Cooperation with Regional Organisations

On 28 October, the Council held a debate on cooperation between UN and regional and sub-regional organisations in maintaining international peace and security focusing on cooperation with: the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). Prior to the debate, Russia circulated the concept note outlining the main objectives for the debate (S/2016/867). In addition to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, briefers included: Rashid Alimov, the Secretary General of the SCO; Nikolai Bordyuzha, the Secretary General of the CSTO; and Sergey Ivanov, Vice-Chair of the Executive Committee of CIS.
AFRICA

Sudan/South Sudan

Expected Council Action

In November, members of the Security Council will hold consultations on the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) and on Sudan/South Sudan issues more generally. The Council expects to renew the mandate of UNISFA prior to its 15 November expiration.

Key Recent Developments

On 5 June, Sudan and South Sudan convened a ministerial-level meeting in Khartoum of the Joint Political and Security Mechanism (JPSM), the instrument employed by the two states to discuss political and security matters of mutual concern. The parties agreed during the meeting to reactivate the Joint Border Verification and Monitoring Mechanism (JBVMM). The JBVMM is intended to monitor the Sudan-South Sudan border, but the Secretary-General has cited in past UNISFA reports a lack of cooperation by the parties in implementing this mechanism, whose operation UNISFA is mandated to support. However, it remains unclear whether the parties have followed through on their commitment made at the meeting to remove their forces from the Safe Demilitarised Border Zone, which the JBVMM is intended to monitor.

At the 5 June meeting, Zewda Belay Malefiya, a brigadier general serving in UNISFA, reportedly noted that the mission had been able to conduct only 37 percent of its aerial patrols along the border as a result of poor weather conditions, insecurity and troop rotations. Aerial patrols have also been limited because the government of South Sudan has denied landing rights to planes expected to monitor the border as a part of the JBVMM.

Between April 2015 and September 2016, Sudan delayed renewing the visas of police officers in UNISFA and providing new visas to police meant to rotate into the mission. This led to significant understaffing of the missions police component. In his 12 October UNISFA report, the Secretary-General noted that only eight police officers were serving in UNISFA, which is authorised to have 50 police officers. Nonetheless, the Secretary-General welcomed the fact that, on 6 October, the Government [of Sudan] issued 14 entry visas and travel permits for the UNISFA police component.

In June, a joint market was established in Amiet, just north of the town of Abyei, for the Ngok-Dinka and Misseriya groups. The market is intended to promote peaceful relations between the two groups. However, violence at the market caused its temporary closure. UNISFA helped organise three meetings between Ngok-Dinka and Misseriya leaders in July and August in Todach to discuss the security and administration of the joint market. The leaders from both groups reached an agreement to reopen the market in Amiet as a temporary site until the end of the calendar year. They further affirmed their commitment to peaceful coexistence, payment of compensation for past cases of criminality and measures to end the insecurity surrounding the common market by establishing a joint traditional court, according to the Secretary-Generals recent UNISFA report. Historically, there have been tensions in Abyei between the Ngok-Dinka, who view Abyei as their ancestral homeland, and the Misseriya, who migrate through the region to graze their cattle.

Taban Deng Gai, first vice-president of South Sudan, met with high-level Sudanese officials, including President Omar al-Bashir, during a 21-22 August visit to Khartoum. Both states committed to expel rebels who had sought refuge on each others territory within 21 days.

Sudanese Ambassador Omer Dahab Fadl Mohamed addressed the Council on 12 May following the adoption of resolution 2287 extending the UNISFA mandate. He maintained that Abyei, a disputed region straddling the Sudan-South Sudan border, is a part of Sudan and that its status can be amended only by a referendum mutually agreed with the government of South Sudan. The referendum on Abyeis status was supposed to take place in conjunction with the referendum on South Sudans independence in January 2011; however, it was not conducted because Sudan and South Sudan could not agree on the criteria for voter eligibility.

Key Issues

The key issue for the Council is to ensure that Abyei remains calm, especially given the lack of progress made by the parties for the past several years in determining the areas final status and, as an interim measure, in establishing temporary administrative and legal institutions in the area.

On Sudan/South Sudan issues more broadly, another key issue is whether the two states can be induced to address security and political issues of mutual concernfor example, border monitoring and demarcation and agreeing on the status of the disputed areas along the border other than Abyeigiven that both countries are dealing with their own domestic crises.

Options

The most likely option for the Council is to adhere to the Secretary-Generals recommendation to renew the mandate of UNISFA for an additional six months. In doing so, the Council could consider:

urging Sudan to issue visas in a timely fashion for police personnel serving in the mission, while recognising that some visas were provided in October;

urging South Sudan to end its restrictions (i.e. the denial of landing permissions) on aerial monitoring of the JBVMM; and

demanding that both countries commit to withdrawing forces from the Safe Demilitarised Border Zone.

An option for the Council on Sudan/South Sudan relations more generally would be to adopt a statement that encourages continued dialogue between the two states on mutual security and political issues, including through the Joint Political and Security Mechanism.

Council Dynamics

The Council has not focused on Abyei in several months as its attention to Sudan/South Sudan issues has been absorbed by the crises in South Sudan and, to a lesser extent, Darfur. While there is recognition that Sudan and South Sudan face their own domestic crises, members have long been frustrated by the lack of progress by the parties in resolving their differences with regard to Abyei or with respect to other mutual security concerns. UNISFA, which was meant to be an interim mission designed to provide time for a political solution to the Abyei situation, has now been deployed for more than five years, and there are no indications that the final status of the region will be resolved in the near or even medium term.

The US is the penholder on UNISFA.

UN Documents on Sudan and South Sudan



This was a resolution renewing the mandate of the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei until 15 November 2016. This was a meeting to adopt a resolution renewing the mandate of the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei. This was on the situation in Abyei.
MIDDLE EAST

Syria

Expected Council Action

Council members expect to receive the regular monthly briefings on the political, humanitarian and chemical weapons tracks but could not rule out other activity, given the urgent nature of the Syrian crisis.

It was unclear if the mandate of the UN-OPCW Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM), the body instructed to determine responsibility for the use of chemical weapons in Syria, would be renewed prior to its expiry on 31 October. It was even less clear how the Council might react in November to the JIMs findings that the Syrian regime used chemical weapons against its civilian population.

Key Recent Developments

Since 19 September, the Syrian government and Russia have carried out a sustained military onslaught against opposition-held eastern Aleppo following the rupture of the cessation of hostilities, agreed between Russia and the US only ten days earlier.

The military escalation against rebel-held eastern Aleppo has been described as a slaughterhouse by the Secretary-General. The High Commissioner for Human Rights has said these attacks constitute war crimes, and if found to be deliberate, may constitute crimes against humanity. OCHA has designated eastern Aleppo as a besieged area, reporting that 275,000 civilians, including 100,000 children, are trapped. Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura has said that Aleppo could be destroyed by the end of the year if the offensive continues.

It was against this backdrop, as well as the US formally suspending its bi-lateral engagement with Russia on Syria on 3 October, that France and Spain circulated a draft resolution demanding an end to military flights over Aleppo. Council negotiations were acrimonious. Russia was clear that it was not open to having any demand placed on it to cease military operations. The draft resolution was put to a vote on 8 October and was vetoed by Russia. The vote was 11-2-2 with Venezuela also voting no and Angola and China abstaining. This was Russias fifth veto on a Syria resolution, but it was the first time China refrained from casting a veto alongside Russia on a Syria draft resolution.

Immediately after the veto, the Council voted on a competing Russian draft resolution. The draft was almost identical to the French-Spanish draft, except that it placed greater emphasis on the counter-terrorism aspects of the conflict, in particular separating Al Nusra Front from other armed opposition groups, and did not include the demand to cease aerial bombardment. The vote was 4-9-2. China, Egypt, Russia and Venezuela voted yes and Angola and Uruguay abstained. Nine Council members, including the P3, voted no. Because the Russian draft did not get the 9 positive votes to be adopted, the negative votes by the P3 were not considered a veto.

Special Envoy de Mistura briefed Council members twice in October on his Aleppo initiative. He reported that the implementation of the initiative would require an immediate and total halt to the bombing of eastern Aleppo followed by the evacuation of Al Nusra fighters. De Mistura underscored the need to keep the local administration intact, and called for some sort of international presence. Many Council members have expressed scepticism about the feasibility of this initiative. However, others have noted that it has managed to slightly shift the dynamic by calling attention to Russias and Syrias use of Al Nusras limited presence in eastern Aleppo as a justification for the assault that has had such a devastating toll on civilians.

In an attempt to broker an Aleppo truce, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry met, along with regional actors Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, on 15 October in Lausanne. There was no breakthrough.

Following the Lausanne talks, Council members began negotiations on another Syria focused draft resolution, this time put forward by New Zealand. This draft sought to stop aerial bombardment, to get humanitarian aid flowing and to address the need to separate terrorist fighters from other armed opposition groups. Nonetheless, after several rounds of difficult negotiations, particularly on language calling for an end to attacks on civilians and civilian objects, neither the P3 nor Russia were satisfied. The P3 preferred stronger language regarding military flights over Aleppo while Russia did not want to agree to language that could constrain its military action in Syria. New Zealand sought a document that would, at best, have practical effect on the ground, and, at the very least, would change the divisive dynamic among Council members. However, after negotiations made clear that consensus would not be reached, New Zealand decided not to table the draft for a vote.

Separately, on 20 October, the Secretary-General and Special Envoy de Mistura briefed the General Assembly, following a request by Canada for a meeting on Syria with the intention to see whether there was enough support to call for an emergency special session as a possible next step. The request was made on behalf of 69 member states, including the P3 and elected Council members Egypt, Malaysia, New Zealand, Spain, Ukraine and Uruguay, noting the failure of the Security Council to carry out its responsibilities for the maintenance of peace and security in Syria, and that the General Assembly also had responsibilities in that regard.

Russia announced a unilateral pause in hostilities for eastern Aleppo that went into effect the same day as the General Assembly meeting and lasted three days. However, during that time no aid entered the besieged part of the city nor were any medical evacuations possible. The UN stood ready to evacuate critically injured people, but in the end could not do so as the requisite security guarantees were not forthcoming.

OCHA head Stephen OBrien briefed the Council on 26 October and expressed his incandescent rage at the unparalleled humanitarian catastrophe, saying that eastern Aleppo had become a kill zone. He described leaflets that had been dropped over eastern Aleppo by Russian and Syrian aircraft that read This is your last hope.save yourselves. If you do not leave these areas urgently, you will be annihilatedYou know that everyone has given up on you. They left you alone to face your doom and nobody will give you any help. He exhorted all Council members with operational military assets in Syria to halt the aerial bombardment of civilian areas and to allow the UN to deliver humanitarian assistance to those in need. Finally, he told the Council if it didnt take action, if it didnt take the right path, then there would be no Syria to save, that would be the Councils legacy and the shame of a generation.

On chemical weapons, Acting High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Kim Won-soo and Virginia Gamba, the head of the JIM, briefed Council members on 27 October. The JIMs four reports have concluded that of the nine cases investigated, the Syrian regime used chlorine gas against its own population in three cases and that ISIL used mustard gas in one case. There was insufficient evidence to make a determination in the remaining five cases.

While Aleppo remains the epicentre of the Syrian crisis, fighting continues elsewhere in Hama, Idlib, northwest Syria, the suburbs of Damascus and Deir Ez-Zour.

Turkish and opposition forces have pushed ISIS from Jarabulus and Dabiq in northwest Syria and have announced they will continue south to ISIL-held Al Bab. Turkeys Operation Euphrates Shield has created a 20 kilometre-deep buffer zone, which seems to have as much to do with blocking Kurdish control of contiguous areas in Syria along the Turkish border as it does with countering ISIL.

Meanwhile, Moadamiyeh, a suburb of Damascus, was surrendered by the opposition in mid-October after years of a government-imposed siege. The surrender of Moadamiyeh has been characterised by the opposition as a forced population transfer disguised as a local truce. Other evacuations, under almost identical circumstances, occurred in the opposition-held Al Waer neighbourhood of Homs in September and in Daraya, another suburb of Damascus, in August.

In other developments, the Board of Inquiry appointed by the Secretary-General to investigate the 19 September attack on a humanitarian convoy began its work on 24 October and is expected to deliver its report in early December. It will not be public, but the Secretary-General is expected to release a summary of the findings.

In relation to the airstrikes on a school compound that killed dozens of children and teachers on 26 October in Idlib, the head of UNICEF said he thought he had seen the depths of depravity, adding that reports of new attacks on schools in Douma and western Aleppo brought the toll to five schools hit since 11 October.

Human Rights-Related Developments

On 30 September, the Human Rights Council adopted a resolution strongly condemning the military offensive on eastern Aleppo by forces loyal to the Syrian authorities (A/HRC/33/L.30). It was adopted with a vote of 26 in favour, seven against (including Security Council members China, Russia and Venezuela and incoming member Bolivia) and 14 abstentions. On 4 October, the High Commissioner for Human Rights urged the Security Council to adopt criteria to restrain members from using the veto when there are serious concerns that war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide may have been committed, so that it can refer Syria to the ICC. On 21 October, at the request of the UK, the Human Rights Council held a special session on Aleppo. The High Commissioner said indiscriminate airstrikes by government forces and their allies across eastern Aleppo are responsible for the overwhelming majority of civilian casualties and constitute war crimes, and that responsibility for halting the Syrian crisis rests primarily with the Security Council. A resolution was adopted that urges the immediate implementation of the cessation of hostilities; demands that the Syrian regime and its allies end immediately all aerial bombardments of, and military flights over, Aleppo; and requests the Commission of Inquiry to conduct an inquiry into the events in Aleppo and present a report to the Human Rights Council in March (A/HRC/S-25/L.1). The resolution was adopted with a vote of 24 in favour, seven against (including Security Council members China, Russia and Venezuela and incoming member Bolivia) and 16 abstentions. Before the vote on the resolution, five amendments tabled by Russia were rejected, one of which called for separation of terrorists from the opposition. As with the preceding Human Rights Council resolutions adopted on 1 July and 30 September, the 21 October resolution did not contain a request to transmit all reports and oral updates of the Commission of Inquiry to relevant UN bodies, including the Security Council, as was done in 2015 resolutions.

Key Issues

With Syria in the fifth year of a war that has exacted a death toll of 470,000, left 860,000 living under siege and displaced half of the Syrian population, including nearly 4.8 million refugees, the essential issue for the Council is to exert effective leadership in supporting a cessation of hostilities and efforts to reach a political solution.

Regarding chemical weapons, the JIMs findings mean that the Council is in a position to consider whether Syria is in breach of resolutions 2118, 2209 and 2235.

Options

While the Council has many tools at its disposalsuch as imposing an arms embargo or targeted sanctions, referring Syria to the ICC or authorising a no-fly zone to deter Syria from using its aerial capacityP5 divisions have made it impossible for the Council to fulfil its role in maintaining international peace and security in the case of Syria.

In this context, the Council could vote to refer Syria to the General Assembly under the Uniting for Peace procedure, so that the General Assembly might recommend collective action. This would be a procedural vote and therefore could not be vetoed, requiring only nine affirmative votes. A Uniting for Peace resolution by the General Assembly can confer legitimacy on international collective action, but it would carry no binding obligation for such action. (Alternatively, the General Assembly itself could choose to take the initiative to adopt a Uniting for Peace resolution.)

Regarding chemical weapons, if the Council is able to determine that Syria has violated resolutions 2118, 2209 and 2235, it has the option to pursue the further measures cited in all three resolutions, commonly understood to be an implicit threat of sanctions.

Council Dynamics

The quick collapse of the cessation of hostilities agreement has led Council members to conclude that the chances for a near-term political solution have been severely diminished.

Several Council members are of the view that the governments offensive in eastern Aleppo confirms the regimes preference for prolonged armed conflict over a negotiated settlement. There is also broad recognition that if fighting in Syria cannot be controlled, particularly in Aleppo, it will be close to impossible for UN mediation between the government and the opposition to resume.

Many Council members are aware that a diplomatic approach to resolve the crisis has become simultaneously ever more untenable and ever more urgent amidst signs that the conflict will likely see further military escalation. The US has held internal discussions on its Syria options, including military ones, though no Council member expects the US to exercise such an option. More likely the US will opt to increase support to armed opposition groups. Meanwhile, Russia has reached an agreement with Syria for indefinite use of its Hmeimim air base, has moved significant air defence capabilities to Syria, and has announced plans for a permanent naval base in Tartous, while NATO reports that eight Russian warships are headed for the eastern Mediterranean.

With Russia and the US publicly displaying the depth of their disagreement over Syria, most members are of the view that it is impossible to break the Councils deadlock. These members expect that the next display of this animosity might be in early November if the US presses for a renewal of JIM or sanctions against Syria over its non-compliance with resolutions 2118, 2209 and 2235 on chemical weapons. At press time, it was too early to gauge how broad the support might be for pursuing sanctions, but most Council members are convinced that if such a draft is tabled for a vote then Russia would cast its sixth veto on a Syria resolution.

Four of the P5 members (France, Russia, the UK and the US) are involved militarily in the Syrian war to varying degrees.

UN Documents

This was a resolution that endorsed the cessation of hostilities and called for the resumption of political talks. This was the first resolution focused exclusively on a political solution to the Syrian crisis. It was adopted unanimously. This was a resolution that requested the UN Secretary-General and OPCW Director-General to recommend the establishment and operation of a UN-OPCW Joint Investigative Mechanism to determine responsibility for the use of chemical weapons in Syria. This resolution condemned the use of toxic chemicals such as chlorine, without attributing blame; stressed that those responsible should be held accountable; recalled resolution 2118; and supported the 4 February 2015 decision of the OPCW. This resolution was adopted unanimously by the Council and required the verification and destruction of Syrias chemical weapons stockpiles, called for the convening of the Geneva II peace talks and endorsed the establishment of a transitional governing body in Syria with full executive powers. This was a report on the humanitarian situation. This was the 36th OPCW report on chemical weapons. OCHA head Stephen OBrien delivered a particularly strong statement on Aleppo, provoking unplanned discussion in open chamber by all Council members. Russia, as president of the Council, cancelled the previously scheduled consultations that were to have immediately followed the briefing. This meeting was the vote on the two competing draft resolutions on Aleppo. The vote on the Russian draft resolution focused on the situation in Aleppo was 4-9-2. China, Egypt, Russia and Venezuela voted yes and Angola and Uruguay abstained. Nine Council members, including the P3, voted no. Because the Russian draft did not get the 9 positive votes to pass, the negative votes by the P3 were not considered vetoes. The vote on the draft resolution tabled by France and Spain that called for an end to all military flights over Aleppo was 11-2-2. It had 43 co-sponsors. Russia cast its fifth veto on a Syria draft resolution and China abstained, the first time it has not vetoed a Syria draft resolution alongside Russia. Elected member Venezuela voted no and elected member Angola abstained.
Coming down the escalator at Denver International Airport, reality hit me like an overloaded carry-on bag to the head. The security line snaked around the stadium-sized Jeppesen Terminal. And it was hardly moving.

A new high-tech security scanner from the Massachusetts company Evolv Technology could potentially prevent painful bottlenecks like this - if it works. The idea: No more emptying your pockets, no more stripping down, no more watching the bin with your phone disappear from view. Just go through at your normal speed.

Evolv's pass-through scanners look like streamlined metal detectors, but they actually use the same millimeter-wave technology as current enclosure scanners. The difference: artificial intelligence.

Computing capabilities in the scanners allow them to process large amounts of information in a fraction of a second, and they have machine learning that quickly detects weaponry and explosives, the Guardian reported. When the scanner does pick up something, it sends an alert highlighting the suspicious spot on a photo of the person to a nearby officer's tablet computer.

Recently Evolv submitted an application for special temporary authority with the Federal Communications Commission indicating they want to test the scanners at several transit hubs in the United States including Union Station in DC, Metro Rail in Los Angeles, and Denver International Airport. Testing could start as soon as next month. The company, which received funding from Bill Gates, said its technology can scan 800 people an hour - that's more than twice the speed of TSA-approved systems like ProVision.

Even though I'm mostly sure the millimeter-wave scanners at airports now aren't taking naked photos, and want to believe that they're not doing terrible things to my body, I still loathe them. I feel uncomfortable spreading my legs and holding up my arms like I'm under arrest. I have momentary panic during an occasional false alarm. But the alternatives seem worse, so I submit.

RELATED: Flying Contraband: TSA's Weirdest Finds

The Evolv scanners certainly sound less intrusive. In addition to ease of use and speed, they have portability, unlike existing monstrous airport machines. The company envisions their scanners being rolled out at transportation facilities, office buildings, museums, and other busy areas to add security or replace old machines, their renderings show. Luggage would still need to get scanned separately, though.

As with anything that promises so much, there's always a catch. That catch could turn out to be too many false positives, or it could be terrorists who figure out a way to subvert the machine's artificial intelligence, computer science experts told the Guardian. We won't know more until after the scanners get put through their paces in the real world. Just a bit more of a wait, folks. In the meantime, remove any laptops and make sure all liquids are in a quart-sized bag.
When the SETI community adopted protocols for telling the world that ET exists, people mostly got their news from radio, TV and newspapers.

The year was 1989. The internet was a nascent U.S. military-backed project known as ARPANET  the Advanced Research Projects Agency Network. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg was 5.

"There was no mention of the internet or social media because they didn't exist," said Arizona attorney Leslie Tennen, a member of the International Academy of Astronautics' SETI Permanent Committee.

The protocols stipulate that the discoverer of a signal from an extraterrestrial civilization notify each of the parties to the "Declaration of Principles Concerning Activities Following the Detection of Extraterrestrial Intelligence" before going public with the news.

RELATED: Kepler's 'Alien Megastructure' Star to Spill SETI Secrets?

"This is designed so that a candidate signal can be tested and confirmed," Tennen said at the International Astronautical Congress in Mexico last month.

The privilege of making the announcement, according to the protocols, is reserved for the discoverer. But in the age of Twitter, Tennen is not sure that confidentiality would be maintained.

"It's difficult to imagine a discovery that would have a greater impact and consequence on society than the announcement of a confirmed detection of intelligent extraterrestrial beings," Tennen said. "The person making the announcement would be an instant international celebrity, never again to have a moment's peace."

The allure of fame may bring pressure on someone to announce the discovery before it is confirmed. Plus, today there are many more researchers involved in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, or SETI, most of whom have not agreed to follow the voluntary protocols.

The discoverer might, in fact, be someone's personal computer analyzing data for SETI@Home, a distributed computing project backed by the University of California, Berkeley.

"The risk of unauthorized disclosure increases with the number of people having access to the information," Tennen said.

RELATED: No, That 'Interesting' SETI Signal Wasn't Aliens

With the rise of social media, Tennen said it is time to revamp the SETI post-detection protocol.

One idea is to designate a single point of information for public release. "We foresee it more as a clearinghouse fir information, not as a censor of the information," Tennen said.

"Of course, this presumes that the information is not going to be embargoed by the government. If that happens then we've got a whole different situation and this discussion takes a completely different track," he added.

The original protocol was developed by the International Academy of Astronautics, with support from the International Institute of Space Law. It was presented to the United Nations' Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, which adopted the doctrine as part of its official record, and endorsed by six major international space societies, said Paul Shuch, author of "Searching for Extraterrestrial Intelligence: SETI Past, Present and Future."

The doctrine was revised in 2010, still with no mention of the internet or social media.

Astronomer Dan Werthimer, co-founder and chief scientist for the SETI@Home project, said he believes the protocol should avoid stipulating a particular technology be used to publicize detection of a candidate signal.

"These applications and technologies change so quickly," Werthimer wrote in an email.

"All the information known about the candidate signal should be made public as soon as the candidate signal is independently confirmed," he added. "This info should be easily available to the scientific community, as well as the public, in all countries."

Astronomer Seth Shostak, senior scientist at the SETI Institute in Mountain View, Calif., said there already have been many claims of a signal from ET, some of which were made by "uninformed" persons. "I'm less worried than reconciled," Shostak said.

WATCH VIDEO: We're Not Saying The Kepler Discovery Is Aliens, But...
Twenty-four countries and the European Union have agreed to establish the world's largest marine protected area in Antarctica's Ross Sea, bringing to an end - at least for now - six years of determined effort, lobbying and, ultimately, compromise.

The member nations of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), meeting in Hobart, Tasmania, agreed on Friday morning to increase protection in 580,000 square miles of the sea, with 425,000 square miles being set aside as a "no-take" zone where fishing is prohibited.

The Ross Sea, the southernmost sea in the world, is an embayment that slices into East Antarctica, southeast of New Zealand. It terminates in the Ross Ice Shelf and the McMurdo Sound region, from where Roald Amundsen and Robert Falcon Scott respectively launched their bids for the South Pole a little over 100 years ago.

According to the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition, the Ross Sea has been identified by scientists as being one of the world's most intact large marine ecosystems. It's home to 38 percent of the world's Adelie penguins, 26 percent of Emperor penguins, more than 30 percent of Antarctic petrels, 6 percent of Antarctic minke whales, and perhaps more than 30 percent of "Ross Sea" killer whales. Moreover, it has the richest diversity of fishes in the high latitude Southern Ocean, including seven species found nowhere else.

RELATED: DiCaprio, Cameron, Branson Back Antarctic Protection

However, among the fish species found there is the Antarctic toothfish, a top predator that can weigh more than 250 pounds, grow to more than 6 feet in length and live for 50 years. It's also been increasingly the target of the commercial fishing industry, which markets it as "Chilean sea bass." A 2012 study suggested that the fish was declining in the Ross Sea, and there were concerns also about the broader ecological impacts of fishing top predators.

Hence the move within CCAMLR to establish at least part of the sea as a marine protected area. However, that designation required consensus within the organization, and Russia, which possesses a large toothfish fishery, remained an obstacle, as did to a lesser extent China and Japan. It took years of concerted effort, spearheaded by the United States and New Zealand, to achieve a compromise that all could accept.

Key to that compromise was the fact that the agreement will expire in 35 years. Environmentalists and the United States had pushed initially for it to be indefinite, and then to last 50 years, while China had countered that any protective measure should not be for longer than two decades. While that compromise takes the gloss off the victory for some, it hasn't entirely diminished their feelings of triumph.

"This is a historic, precedent setting-breakthrough that has been years in the making," John Hocevar, oceans campaign director for Greenpeace USA, told Seeker. "There are a lot of happy-footed penguins in Antarctica right now. We all wanted to see permanent protections for the Ross Sea, but I am confident that by the time this is up for renewal in 35 years it will not be a controversial or difficult decision."

RELATED: John Kerry Urges Support for Antarctic Reserve

The sea was discovered by British explorer Sir James Clark Ross, who sailed his ships Erebus and Terror into the embayment in 1841, where he marveled at the "extreme solitude and omnipotent grandeur" of the surroundings. The ships were later dispatched to find the Northwest Passage, before disappearing on the ill-fated Franklin Expedition. The Ross Sea's protection comes just weeks after the apparent discovery of the wreck of the Terror, two years after the discovery of Erebus.

"What a fantastic finish to the year, with both ships now found too," Philippa Ross, the explorer's great-great-great-granddaughter said to Seeker from New Zealand.

She added: "The Ross family is euphoric that our family legacy has been honored in the 175th anniversary year since James first discovered the Ross Sea. Thanks to the individuals and organizations who have poured their hearts and souls into campaigning for its protection along with the support of over a million global citizens; the world's most pristine marine ecosystem can now support the life of our oceans, the planet and future generations to come."

WATCH: What's Hiding Deep Within the Ocean?
"Entanglement is the likely cause of death for many marine organisms, particularly whales, dolphins , seals, sea lions, sharks, turtles and rays," lead author Martin Stelfox told Seeker. Stelfox is the founder and director of the Oliver Ridley Project , which is working to combat derelict nets and other equipment that continue to fish in the Indian Ocean. The problem occurs worldwide, however.

Left-behind fishing gear that continues to catch - sometimes called ghost fishing - entraps sea life from the world's largest animal, the blue whale , to the critically endangered small tooth sawfish , according to a new study.

Once out of the hands of a fisherman, abandoned, lost or discarded gear often ends up floating on the surface of the water with ocean currents, or sunken toward the ocean floor, where it can smother coral reefs and other delicate habitats.

"Any object that floats in the ocean will start to grow organisms on its surface in a process known as bioaccumulation, or fouling," Stelfox said. "It is believed that this acts like a food source for different species and the (fishing gear) also acts as a form of shelter - essentially it forms a mini ecosystem. However, fish will become entangled in the nets during feeding or hiding and this attracts more species and larger predators such as sharks, turtles, etc."

This domino effect of trapping and killing perpetuates the ghost fishing cycle.

Stelfox and his colleagues, Jillian Hudgins and Michael Sweet, also found that the same cycle applies to lost traps and pots. Stelfox explained that "trapped animals inside the traps and pots act like bait for more animals," thereby continuing the sinister ghost fishing.

RELATED: Shark Dines Exclusively on Eggs of Ghost Sharks

The researchers emphasize that the majority of fishermen do not want to lose or discard their gear. Stelfox said that often gear is lost during times of stormy weather, operational damage, by mistake or due to other factors.

Some fishermen, however, do intentionally dump their gear because they lack convenient port-side disposal facilities, or for other reasons. The dumping is particularly common among those who were already engaged in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

The scientists estimate that 640,000 tons of such equipment wind up in oceans each year, equating to 10 percent of the world's marine debris. Those figures are likely on the low side, given how difficult it is to track the lost fishing gear.

For the new study, the scientists carried out an extensive review of journals and other reports to compile a list of losses.

Humpback whales were the most commonly caught animals, followed closely by the North Atlantic right whale. Many of the whales showed signs of being entangled before. Antarctic fur seals, California sea lions, manatees, sea turtles and sharks were also frequently entangled, according to the study. Ghost fishing nets and monofilament lines posed the most frequent threats, the researchers found.

RELATED: Mysterious 'Ghost Lights' in Forest Draw Thrill Seekers



Stelfox said that "small scale fishers are now moving away from traditional nets made from natural materials to nets made of synthetic materials" like nylon. Additionally, monofilament superfine nets are favored now in many areas. They can be damaged easily, increasing the chance they'll become ghost gear.

Oona Lonnstedt, a postdoctoral researcher at Uppsala University's Evolutionary Biology Center, told Seeker the gear poses other dangers. Fish and other marine life sometimes eat plastic debris, especially if it exists in smaller pieces. She said that such long-lasting pollution "highlights the need for replacing plastic products with biodegradable options instead."

Stelfox and his team propose that, in addition to removing as much of the harmful gear as possible, authorities need to work with fishermen.

"For instance," the scientists wrote, "a fisher incentive program to deposit old or damaged nets at designated collection points was met with resistance in South Korea; but, after educational workshops, the program quickly became a success with Incheon City collecting 18,000 tons of derelict gear in only 4 years." Financial support helped this and other programs, rewarding fishermen who safely disposed of their nets.

Marking all fishing equipment to identify its source can help reduce the problem, as can technology. Prior research has shown that video, thermal imaging and radar used in manned or unmanned aircraft can be effective ways to locate the ghost gear.

Photo: A shark is entangled in a fishing net. Credit: Prodivers Maldives, Oliver Ridley Project



WATCH: Will the Ocean Run Out of Fish?
On Saturday, voters head to the polls for one of the most highly anticipated elections of the 2016 - not the U.S. presidential race - the parliamentary elections in Iceland, where the anticipated success of the Pirate Party has capture global attention with its anti-establishment sentiment.

Originally slated for April 2017, the parliamentary elections were moved up in the wake of the Panama Papers disclosure, a massive data leak documenting how wealthy and politically connected individuals and organization hide their assets, that forced former prime minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson to step down following a wave of protests over accusations of financial conflicts of interest.

Formed by anarchists, hackers and other outsiders, the party's social-liberal platform includes decriminalization of drugs, protection of online privacy, the adoption of the bitcoin digital currency and an offer of citizenship to Edward Snowden. The party is currently leading in most major polls.

RELATED: Elves Spark Road-Building Protest in Iceland



The Panama Papers may have triggered the early elections, but as with any electorate, voters are focused on more immediate concerns. "Even if the election is an early election because of the Panama Papers, the scandal has not been much of a campaign issue," Eva Heia Onnudottir, a political scientist at the University of Iceland, told Seeker. "The campaign has been more ... about the usual issues - how to manage the economy, the health care system, the fisheries quotas, etc."

In fact, as Onnudottir explains, the current government ruling parties, the Independence Party and the Progressive Party, are polling more or less the same as they were before and after the Panama Papers disclosure.

So if this campaign is typical in terms of what issues are on voters' minds, how did the Pirate Party - founded just four years ago - become a frontrunner, considering the group's arguably radical political philosophy?

What separates a Pirate Party voter from those supporting other parties is dissatisfaction with how democracy works, according to data from the Icelandic National Election Study in 2013. They are also more likely to view corruption as high in Iceland, which doesn't bode well for establishment parties. Taken together, "Pirate Party voters are those who are both dissatisfied with how the system works and have lost faith in the system," Onnudottir explains.

The Pirate Party is capitalizing on a larger anti-establishment, center-left mood sweeping Europe. "The Icelandic Pirate Party is in many ways, both the party and their voters, comparable to Podemos in Spain, Syriza in Greece and even the Five Star Movement in Italy," Onnudottir says. "The discourse of those parties, including the Icelandic Pirate Party, is framed as that they stand for the common people against the corrupt financial and political system."

RELATED: Iceland Building First Pagan Temple in 1,000 Years

In a nation of some 320,000 people, the Pirate Party captures the support of its youngest voters. That presents both an opportunity and a challenge. While that youthful energy may explain its status either leading or coming in second in polls ahead of the Saturday's vote, come the day of the election, younger voters are less likely to actually show up to cast a ballot.

The Pirate Party may be reaping the benefits of its outsider status in this election. But, as Onnudottir notes, "what happens with [the Pirate Party] if and once it becomes part of the system is another story."

To learn more about the Pirate Party's platform, watch the video below.
ALGONA  A man attempted to abduct young girls in Algona Thursday, according to police.

An individual approached four girls, age 7, and offered them money to get into his vehicle, according to the Algona Police Departments Facebook page. The suspect is a white male with reddish or blond hair and driving a gray car with a black stripe on the bottom.

Police say a similar attempted abduction was reported in Humboldt County.

Anyone encountering the vehicle and suspect matching the description should call the Algona Police Department at 515-295-3515 or the Kossuth County Sheriffs Department at 515-295-3514.

Police are asking people to report the sighting location, license plate information, direction of travel and any other details they can give.
If you're born today with the blood disorder beta thalassemia, it's a life sentence. The genetic condition - the result of a single mutation on chromosome 11 - cripples the body's ability to produce enough red blood cells. Severe cases require a lifetime of blood transfusions to fight off anemia, and there's no cure.

But a new, possibly safer method for fixing bad genes could change that - and offers a new way to treat other genetic diseases.

In a paper published this week in Nature Communications, a team of researchers from Carnegie Mellon University and Yale University describe how they cured mice with beta thalassemia using a groundbreaking method for altering mutated genes.

Gene-editing is a hot topic in medical research, especially a popular technique called CRISPR (pronounced "crisper"). With any type of gene-editing, the goal is to cut out the mutated portion of a cell's DNA and replace it with healthy "code."

RELATED: Human Gene Editing: Ready for Prime Time?

For decades, scientists relied on slow and expensive gene-editing methods accessible only to the best-funded research centers. But with the rise of CRISPR in 2012, fast and effective gene-splicing can be done for as little as $30 in off-the-shelf materials. Now scientists say they can do even better.

Better than CRISPR?

Danith Ly, a professor of chemistry at CMU and co-author of the paper, told Seeker that his team's new gene-editing method offers two significant advantages over the much-hyped CRISPR. First, to repair a genetic mutation using CRISPR, scientists must use an enzyme derived from bacteria to cut open the DNA.

"With CRISPR, you're delivering a molecular 'scissor' into the cells," Ly told Seeker. "That scissor, in addition to cutting wherever you want it to cut, is going to cut other places as well."

These "off-target effects" can result in damage to related genes, which has the potential to spawn new diseases. Since the new CMU-Yale technique triggers the body's own repair enzymes to make the cut, the chances of an off-target cut are extremely low, less than one in 500,000 according to Ly.

The second major advantage of the new CMU-Yale technique is that it can be executed en vivo - inside the patient's body - using nothing more than a regular IV. For CRISPR to work, cells must first be extracted from the patient, then all of the gene-editing is done ex vivo in a test tube. Once the healthy repaired cells are propagated, they're returned back to the body.

"We don't have to do any complicated extracting of bone marrow, putting it in a dish, and introducing CRISPR enzymes or viruses," said Peter Glazer, professor of both genetics and therapeutic radiology at Yale, and principal investigator of the experimental technique. "After just four simple IV treatments, the anemia associated with beta thalassemia, a genetic blood disorder, was completely cured in the mice."

How it Works: Triple Helixes and PNA

The CMU-Yale method relies on three novel discoveries that were decades in the making. The first involves an oddity called triple-helix DNA.

"Normal DNA is a double helix where two strands wind around each other," said Glazer. "In rare cases, DNA can also form a triple helix where another piece of DNA winds around that duplex DNA in one of the grooves and form a three-stranded structure."

RELATED: Tool Could Snip Genes to Treat Cancer, Autism

Glazer discovered that the weird shape of triple-helix DNA signals the cell's own repair enzymes to cut off the extraneous strand. What if Glazer could send a cell into repair mode by creating his own triple helices? He began working with bioengineers to experiment with different synthetic materials that could bind to DNA and mimic the triple-helix structure.

That's where PNA comes in. Peptide nucleic acid (PNA) was first synthesized in Denmark in 1991, but while it was useful in other types of genetic research, scientists couldn't figure out how to make it bind to DNA at a specific target site. For the past 10 years, Ly at CMU has been tweaking the PNA recipe. The result is a custom-made molecule called gamma-PNA - only 25 nucleotides long - which can recognize and target any sequence of DNA that Ly wants.

"We're the only lab that does that," Ly added. "There are no other molecules that can recognize double-strand DNA the way that gamma-PNA does."

The gamma-PNA is carried into the bloodstream by an FDA-approved nanoparticle developed by Mark Saltzman, also at Yale. Once inside the body, the gamma-PNA leaches out of the nanoparticle and binds to a nearby cell's DNA, forming a triple helix precisely at the site of the mutated gene. Then out come the cell's repair enzymes to make a cut.

Here's where the CMU-Yale method and CRISPR converge. Both techniques use a piece of healthy donor DNA to "re-code" the faulty gene. It works similar to genetic recombination during sexual reproduction, when mom and dad's DNA combine to create the baby's new genetic instruction manual. Here, the donor DNA provides a blueprint for the replacement gene and the mutation is reversed.

Beyond Mice?

The lab mice cured by the CMU-Yale technique were engineered to carry the human blood disease beta thalassemia, a genetic disorder which in severe cases requires a lifetime of blood transfusions. Ly is confident that the same technique could be used to cure sickle-cell anemia, another debilitating condition caused by a single mutated gene.

But how far away are we from trying out these life-changing genetic fixes on people? Ly is in the process of filing an application with the FDA to begin human trials of his CRISPR rival.

Meanwhile, Ly said that researchers around the world are working hard to limit the potential "off-target effects" of CRISPR, which is otherwise a very powerful tool for modifying and repairing genes.

We may still be a decade away from gene-editing becoming a routine medical procedure, but there's growing hope that soon we'll have not just a treatment for some of the world's deadliest genetic conditions, but a cure.

Image: A peptide nucleic acid developed at Carnegie Mellon is part of a gene editing system that has cured a blood disorder in mice. Credit: Carnegie Mellon University WATCH VIDEO: What is CRISPR & How Could It Edit Your DNA?
The writing is in the sky. Flying electric cars are coming and the ride-sharing company Uber wants to access whole fleets of them.

Instead of getting stuck in maddening traffic for two hours, a commuter in San Francisco could soar through the air from the Marina district to downtown San Jose in a mere 15 minutes - and do it without having to hail a helicopter. That's the super-futuristic vision that Uber describes in a detailed white paper the company recently published.

"Just as skyscrapers allowed cities to use limited land more efficiently, urban air transportation will use three-dimensional airspace to alleviate transportation congestion on the ground," Uber's chief product officer Jeff Holden wrote in a description of the company's plan.

Instead of helicopters or traditional fixed-wing aircraft, the new transit approach would involve vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft that are small and electric. Ideally these eco-friendly flying cars would have a max distance of at least 120 miles, an airspeed of 170 mph, and battery cell specific energy of 400 Wh/kg. Uber won't actually be building them, but wants to strike a deal with whoever does for a new service called Elevate.

Parking garages, unused helipads, and empty land near highways could be turned into new hubs called "vertiports," forming an extensive network. A single pad would become a "vertistop." Uber points to Sao Paulo, Brazil, where the company operates a helicopter-based taxi service. The company say hundreds of flights take place daily in Sao Paulo.

RELATED:10 Wild Ways To Travel In The Future

This isn't Uber's first time seeing potential in the sky. The company regularly offered helicopter-hailing for big international events, including Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. But those particular rides cost about as much as a first class airline ticket.

The new fleets will be different, according to Holden and his team. They predict that VTOL aircraft will become affordable daily transportation for the masses and cost less than owning a car. Yes, the whole system will cost a bunch of money to start, but the ride sharing model is expected to create a positive feedback loop that brings prices down.

Electric vehicles on the ground have the advantage of being quiet so, in theory, the aircraft shouldn't create more noise pollution. Pilot augmentation technology could reduce training time. Uber also stressed that they would require the aircraft to be certified by the government agency overseeing flight in any country where they operate.

Numerous hulking hurdles must be overcome, though, not least of which is the current lack of commercially available aircraft that fit the bill. Uber's white paper highlighted current battery technology and vehicle efficiency challenges. Those can't be dismissed. The aircraft also need to be safer to ride than driving a car. Plus, we'll definitely need new air traffic control systems.

Elevate is a lot to take in - and a lot that can be dismissed as far-fetched. Dream on, the naysayers exhort. Well, dreaming is fine by me, so long as this doesn't turn into a transportation nightmare.

WATCH: Flying Cars: Best Or Worst Idea Ever?
Yemen is split between two groups: the Houthis, an anti-government rebel group aligned with the Shia branch of Islam, and the Hadi government, which has struggled to maintain power since the Houthis enacted a coup d'etat in 2015.

In October 2016, the U.S. launched a volley of missiles at the Houthi rebels after an attack on an American warship. The U.S. says this was isolated and it's not involved in Yemen's Civil War. But many say that not only is the U.S. involved, it's also chosen a side in a "proxy war." So, what exactly is the U.S. doing in Yemen? Jules Suzdaltsev has more in today's Seeker Daily video.

Check out Discovery Go!



Learn More:

The Guardian: U.S. Denies Seeking Wider Role in Yemen War a Day After Firing Missiles

Al Jazeera: Talking to Yemen's Hadi: A President Resisting Defeat

Human Rights Watch: Saudi Coalition Airstrikes on Yemen's Civilian Economic Structures
MASON CITY  An Osage couple has dropped a lawsuit against the Mason City Municipal Airport that alleged a falling speaker injured the woman during an air show.

The gust of wind created by the propellers knocked over a speaker that struck Melcher, according to the lawsuit filed in Cerro Gordo County District Court earlier this year.

The suit was dismissed without prejudice, meaning the couple can refile their claims later.

Iowa Aviation Promotion Group, which organized the airshow, and Claude Spears, of Cedar Rapids, who provided the speakers for the show, also were named in the suit. The Melchers have dismissed their claims against them as well.

Chad Swanson, attorney for the Melchers, had no comment when the Globe Gazette asked why the couple chose to dismiss the suit.

Spears told the Globe in August that according to his employees, a World War II-era B-25 bomber taxied about 25 feet away from the crowd  in violation of FAA regulations requiring planes to stay at least 100 feet away  which blew over an assortment of tents and chairs, including a 20- to 30-pound speaker that hit Melcher.
A blue whale that washed ashore near Thornton State Beach in Daly City had suffered from multiple skull fractures, researchers said Thursday.

A team of a dozen scientists with the Marine Mammal Center, California Academy of Sciences, Noyo Center, and University of California, Davis, went to Westmoor Beach near Daisaku Ikeda Canyon to conduct a necropsy on the animal.
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Democracy is never easy  or cheap. And that includes the act of mailing in a ballot, a messy collection of thick cards that are weighty on the issues and just as weighty on the postal scale.

One stamp or two? Or maybe three? Is the envelope regular-sized or oversize? Does that cost extra? How much?

And what happens if you leave off the stamp entirely and drop a completed ballot into the mailbox stark naked?

The answer is  dont worry. The mail will go through. All mailed ballots are delivered immediately to county registrars of voters, according to U.S. Postal Service spokesman Gus Ruiz, whether they are mailed with the proper amount of postage, or without any postage at all.

Its a little-known secret, Ruiz said. The Postal Service will always deliver a ballot, whether there is a stamp on it or not. We know how important this mail is, and we want to get it where it belongs as soon as possible.

The issue is far from trivial. More citizens than ever are voting early. In 1964, 1 voter in 25 voted by mail in California. In the 2012 presidential election, 1 voter in 2 voted by mail. This election, registrars say, the percentage of mail-in voters can be expected to keep going up.

Some voters dont need to affix any stamps  five of the nine Bay Area counties, including San Francisco, now supply mail-in voters with postage-paid return envelopes. But elsewhere, mail-in voters are asked to slap a stamp on the envelope, and many of them drop their ballots into the mailbox with insufficient postage or no postage at all.

We dont eat it, Ruiz said. The registrars of voters have agreed to reimburse us after the election for insufficient postage.

Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle

One place where mail voting isnt free is Contra Costa County. According to the countys clerk-recorder-registrar, Joseph Canciamilla, individual counties perform a random check of returned ballots for insufficient postage, then compare that result to the Postal Services random check. Together they agree on a postage-due sum that the county reimburses to the Postal Service.

In the 2012 election, Canciamilla said, about 1 ballot in 20 was mailed in without stamps or without enough stamps  a fairly constant ratio in the registrar of voters trade. Contra Costa County reimbursed the Postal Service about $5,000.

But if word gets out that voters need not affix a stamp to have their ballot counted, Canciamilla said with a sigh, that amount could change dramatically.

We dont like to broadcast it, he said, because everyone would dump their ballots in the mail without stamps.

The size and weight of the ballot envelopes, and the policy of whether to provide a postage-paid envelope, vary by county. In San Francisco, because of the many city ballot propositions, this Novembers returned-ballot envelope weighs 4 ounces and, depending on how the ballots are folded, may be too thick to qualify as a standard envelope. That means returning each San Francisco ballot costs the city and county up to $1.57 in postage.

Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle

Since 2003, San Francisco has sent out all ballots with postage-paid return envelopes, said John Arntz, the citys elections director.

We have such a large ballot with so many cards, and more than one stamp was required, he said. It was a hassle. Voters were complaining.

In decades past, Arntz said, the Postal Service did not always forward postage-due ballots to the registrar as it does now. The policy before 2003, he said, was for postage-due San Francisco ballots to be returned to the sender. That meant some peoples votes were never counted, which contributed to the citys decision to pick up the tab.

This year, Arntz said, 310,000 out of the 506,000 registered voters have requested mail-in ballots, and the citys postage bill is expected to be about $350,000.

The San Francisco ballot is so thick that Arntz has provided a tutorial on a two-minute video on how to fit all the ballot cards into the postage-paid envelope. Long story short: Fold each ballot card individually before you put them in the envelope. If you fold them all together, disaster looms.

If a voter folds all the ballot cards together before inserting them into the return envelope, the envelope becomes very thick and can jam the equipment, slowing the process, Arntz said in a statement to ballot-challenged voters.

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In Alameda County, nearly 2 out of 3 ballots are sent out by mail in advance of election day, said Dwayna Gullatt, the assistant to the registrar. The county has mailed out 569,000 ballots.

Alameda County voters are asked to affix postage. One Berkeley voter who did found himself out $1.57, which included the premium he had to pay after discovering at the post office that the return ballot envelope was too thick with ballot cards to count as a regular envelope.

The postage-due issue cuts both ways, however. In Contra Costa County, the ballot envelope weighs slightly under 2 ounces and the postage required is 68 cents  47 cents for the first ounce and 21 cents for the additional ounce. But since most people use only forever stamps that cost 47 cents each, most ballots are coming back with two stamps on them  which is too much postage, not insufficient postage.

And what happens to the 26-cent overpayment? The Postal Service, which runs an annual deficit of $5 billion, keeps it. Every quarter-and-penny helps.

Steve Rubenstein is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: srubenstein@sfchronicle.com

Price of voting

The cost in postage of returning a vote-by-mail envelope varies by county.

San Francisco, San Mateo, Sonoma, Santa Clara and Marin counties: No stamp required.

Alameda County: Postage required  68 cents to $1.57, depending on weight and thickness.

Contra Costa and Solano counties: 68 cents postage required.

Napa County: Stamps required (68 cents) for voters in 11 precincts that still have polling places. Stamps not required in 159 precincts where voting is by mail only.
CHRIS STEWART/STAFF

The pilot of a small Oakland-bound plane made an emergency landing at the former Alameda Naval Air Station on Thursday after his trajectory was blocked by thick clouds, according to officials.

A call came in about 4:45 p.m. from the Federal Aviation Administration in Sacramento reporting a plane was in distress, said Alameda Fire Capt. Jim Colburn.
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It was a scene reminiscent of a middle school dance, with boys on one side of the room and girls on the other, waiting for a brave interloper to get the party started.

A news conference Thursday at the Hilton in San Franciscos Financial District brought together two groups that disagree on most everything when it comes to marijuana  save their opposition to Proposition 64, which would legalize retail sale and adult use of recreational pot if passed by California voters Nov. 8.

Taking stage right were marijuana foes whose opposition is rooted in calls for morality and public safety. On the left: cannabis advocates who warn that Prop. 64 will allow corporate interests to crush mom-and-pop players in the current medical marijuana industry.

A demilitarized zone was marked by a No on 64 sign, a nod to the sponsor of the event, Public and Mental Health Advocates Against 64. The two sides hope their coalition will once again defeat legalization, but that doesnt mean theyre arm in arm.

Kevin Sabet, the founder of the antilegalization group Smart Approaches to Marijuana, broke the uneasy ice, saying he would have thought you were smoking something to suggest the two groups would share the same stage as recently as a year ago.

But together, Sabet and the members of the medical marijuana industry he often butts heads with outlined their case that Prop. 64 would allow big business to monopolize profits, while pervading California with reefer billboards and other marketing pitches.

It would make Colorado look like Saudi Arabia, Sabet said, referring to changes in Colorado since that state legalized recreational weed in 2012.

Conspicuously absent was Dennis Peron, the driving force behind Californias Proposition 215, which became the nations first medical marijuana law in 1996. He had planned to attend, but organizers said he got tied up volunteering at a soup kitchen, and the cannabis activist did not immediately respond to calls and emails seeking comment.

Supporters of Prop. 64, which would implement a 15 percent tax on all marijuana sales, said Thursday that opponents of the measure are getting desperate as they run out of time and polls show strong support for legalization. They said assertions that the law would be a death blow to small growers and dispensary operators were unfounded.

The scare tactics ... are distortions of potential truths, and theres a lot we dont know about commercial cannabis regulation, and making these huge claims is oversimplifying what is a very unknown and nuanced situation, said Lynne Lyman, state director for the Drug Policy Alliance, which supports Prop. 64.

The legalization push comes six years after a similar ballot measure, Proposition 19, was defeated in 2010. It, too, splintered the medical marijuana industry. Traditionally pot-friendly counties like San Francisco and Marin gave it nearly two-thirds support, but voters in all three counties in the weed-growing Emerald Triangle rejected it.

Jamie Kerr, the owner of a Shasta County medical marijuana dispensary and member of a local planning board, was among those at the San Francisco news conference. She said Prop. 64 removes local control by not having municipal governments license new marijuana businesses.

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Lets face it, the marijuana business doesnt have the best reputation, said Kerr, who conceded that new recreational competition could harm her business. There are a lot of problems with rushing through recreational before we have answers to a lot of the questions we have now.

Opponents argued that Prop. 64 will allow one individual to pursue multiple licenses, such as a cultivation site, a production facility and a storefront, and will thus create Walmarts of weed, as Sabet put it.

Prop. 64 does include a five-year restriction limiting the size of cultivation sites  an attempt to appease current growers  and leaves a good deal of discretion to state regulators when it comes to issuing licenses. But people on both sides of the debate agree the business landscape would change quickly.

Theres a lot of people out there who have been making a little money on the side with modest home grows, and thats going to be a thing of the past, said Dale Gieringer, the state coordinator of California NORML, which supports Prop. 64.

Michael Bodley is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mbodley@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @michael_bodley
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When the Internet Archive was created 20 years ago, few envisioned how a small galaxy of about 500,000 websites would evolve into the center of human communication and culture.

Now, the nonprofit San Francisco organization  which celebrated the milestone with a party Wednesday night  curates a vast digital archive that includes more than 370 million websites and 273 billion pages, many captured before they disappeared forever.

Its more than an archive of Internet sites. The organization, founded by computer scientist and entrepreneur Brewster Kahle, now has a virtual storehouse ranging from digitally converted books and historic film to funny memes and audio recordings of Grateful Dead concerts.

Future scholars will be able to search through an archive of news talk shows and political advertising to better understand the twists and turns of this years presidential election season.

When Brewster started this, a lot of people thought he was crazy or irrelevant, said Rick Prelinger, a film archivist and associate professor of film and digital media at UC Santa Cruz.

First off, who thought the Web was anything that needed to be saved back in 1996, 97 or 98? he said. It was just screens you looked at. I dont think anybody anticipated that our culture would move online so rapidly. He did see that. Hes got a good instinct for that kind of thing.

Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle

About 600 people turned out for the party in the Internet Archives neoclassic, Greek-columned home, the former Christian Scientist church on Funston Avenue in the Richmond District. Guests included early tech entrepreneur Marc Canter, co-founder of what would become Macromedia, early Apple employee Dan Kottke, and Washington journalist Kathy Kiely.

The crowd included past and present Internet Archive employees, and others who volunteered their time or money to help the organization over the years.

Kahles goal was to create the digital version of the Great Library of Alexandria, the lost repository of the ancient world. He believed that preserving the particularly ephemeral World Wide Web, as it was then called, would be key for future historians to be able to understand the contexts of this time.

The Web is a sharing extravaganza of people trusting each other with who they are, and making it public, Kahle said. We wanted to make that permanent.

Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle

About the same time, he co-founded Alexa Internet, a Web research and information company that also derived its name from that ancient library. Amazon bought Alexa in 1999 in a deal worth about $250 million.

Kahle had a reasonable vision of the future and a path to getting there, said Ronna Tanenbaum, Alexas former head of design. He was trying to protect, preserve and create universal access to knowledge.

The Internet Archive has survived through community donations and by working with about 1,000 libraries around the world that pay the group to help digitize books and other material. But the site itself remains free.

It is an organization that gives things away, Kahle said. Who does that? The interesting thing is that free works so well on the Web.

The archive is best known for the Wayback Machine, which uses computer algorithms to crawl the Web and constantly save snapshots of sites. Online visitors use it to compare how websites, like SFGate.com, have changed over the years. Its also a repository of Internet firms that went belly-up long ago, like Pets.com.

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The sites 3 million to 4 million visitors a day show that people want old stuff, they want to remember, Kahle said.

Last week, the archive released an easier way to search the Wayback Machine, which has also helped repair 1 million broken citation links on Wikipedia.

In another section is an archive of about 3 million hours of TV news broadcasts. That includes a searchable database of political ads captured during the current election season, which political scientists 100 years from now might use to figure out what we were thinking during this craziest, most disruptive election since the Civil War, said Roger Macdonald, the TV archives director.

Or future scholars might find something else in the archive more indicative of our moment in time.

The most important value of the archive in the future inherently cant be anticipated now, Macdonald said.

Kahle said the archive has digitized about 2.5 million books, although its still a long way from its goal of 10 million books by 2020, and from the Library of Congress. But archive visitors can now search through books it has digitized, a feat not possible until recently.

Today, our whole world is the Internet and digital material, said San Francisco historian Woody LaBounty. And theyre taking on this ridiculous, massive job trying to capture just a small part of it and saving it for posterity. Its a daunting task.

Benny Evangelista is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: bevangelista@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ChronicleBenny
As the Internet media industry consolidates  think AT&T-Time Warner, Verizon-Yahoo and smaller deals  the Federal Communications Commission has moved quickly to protect consumers and smaller firms. Too bad the government regulators who ultimately approve or reject mergers have not followed suit.

The FCC issued rules Thursday that require high-speed Internet providers like AT&T and Verizon to obtain permission from customers before using personal data like browsing histories and financial transactions for targeted ads. In the past, people had to specifically opt out of having their data collected.

The move follows this years FCC decision to uphold net neutrality  the principle that Internet service providers should transmit all data at the same speeds, regardless of who provides it. Critics worried that those providers, without regulatory checks, would offer faster speeds to in-house services or large companies that could afford to pay tolls so that their apps run better and videos stream faster.

Taken together, the two decisions reflect a growing concern from the FCC that big telecommunications companies, many enlarged by mergers, are amassing too much power, whether its collecting vast amounts of consumer data or controlling toll gates to the Internet. Verizon and AT&T, two of the reassembled components of the old Ma Bell monopoly, want to spend billions getting bigger, with Verizon dropping almost $5 billion on Yahoos Web properties and AT&T splashing out a cool $80 billion for Time Warner.

KENA BETANCUR/AFP/Getty Images

The FCC has done a good job but the rest of the government has not kept up, said Mark Grabowski, a professor of communications at Adelphi University in New York who wrote a book on Internet law. The world has changed a lot.

For the most part, the job of determining whether merged companies would become too powerful falls to the Federal Trade Commission and Justice Department. The FCC only gets involved in policing deals when businesses it licenses get bought or sold.

But the two lead antitrust agencies in recent years have shown more interest in blocking what are known as horizontal mergers of companies that compete in the same industry: Staples and Office Depot, AT&T and T-Mobile and the parent companies of the Los Angeles Times and Orange County Register, to name a few.

Yet the feds have blessed technology-media combinations like Comcast and NBC Universal, AT&T and DirectTV, and AOL and Time Warner. These deals represent vertical mergers of two companies that may operate in ostensibly distinct business sectors. These sanctions, however, ignore a reality: The Internet flattens barriers between industries. In other words, mergers are no longer horizontal or vertical. They go in all directions.

Its pretty clear the feds are still not sure how to consistently apply 19th century antitrust laws to this less-than-linear world.

To regulators, the harm from a Staples-Office Depot merger or newspaper consolidation in adjoining areas are pretty obvious: higher prices because of less competition.

The framework is clear, said Andre Barlow, a partner who specializes in antitrust matters for the Doyle, Barlow & Mazard law firm in Washington.

But the approach seems outdated. For example, even if a combined Staples-Office Depot entity raised prices on business customers, as the FTC had feared, those companies could have easily just switched to Walmart or Amazon.

The Justice Department sued to stop the former Tribune Publishing, now Tronc, which owns the Los Angeles Times, from buying the Orange Country Register because both newspapers are in Southern California. But geography means little in a world where people can access a variety of media over the Internet.

Glen Taylor, owner of the Star Tribune newspaper in Minneapolis, recently told a Minnesota magazine that he was interested in buying the rival St. Paul Pioneer Press but balked because of the Justice Department.

Look at what happened in Orange County, Taylor said. Our lawyers say dont waste your time on it until the government will allow you to do something like that.

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I think our big competition is not another regional newspaper but TV, the Internet.

But when it comes to mergers like AT&T-Time Warner, regulators generally believe such deals are pro-competitive, Barlow said. The idea is that AT&T would invest its telecom profit in distributing Time Warner content online and on mobile devices. AT&Ts DirecTV, which will introduce a streaming service to compete with Netflix next month, would be stronger with easy access to Warner Bros. films and HBO series like Game of Thrones.

Fiona Scott Morton, a former Justice Department antitrust official who now teaches economics at Yale School of Management, said the feds are also less sure about how vertical mergers hurt competition and consumers. AT&T, for example, could charge competitors more for content owned by Time Warner. But it may just as well use Time Warner cable channels like CNN and TBS, which Comcast wants to carry, to make sure the cable giant gives it good terms for NBCUniversal programs it owns.

Thats all speculative since the effects of the merger will unfold years after the feds bless the union  in ways that are likely hard to envision now, given the fast changes in technology and consumer behavior.

Yet recent research shows that mergers, even if approved with conditions by regulators, lead to higher prices for consumers. John Kwoka, a professor at Northeastern University, studied 46 mergers and found that prices rose an average of 7.29 percent.

The FCC has had to grapple with changes wrought by the Internet. Perhaps its time for the FTC and Justice Department to upgrade their antitrust algorithms, too.

Thomas Lee is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. Email: tlee@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ByTomLee
Sarah Ravani/The Chronicle

A teenager was charged with murder in juvenile court in the fatal shooting last month of a 19-year-old San Francisco resident in the Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood, authorities said Friday.

The suspect, an 18-year-old Millbrae resident who was 17 at the time of the killing, was arrested Tuesday on the 1200 block of El Camino Real in Millbrae, authorities said, and was subsequently jailed and charged by San Francisco prosecutors with murdering Alejandro Valle.
Lucky Choi has been thinking about making music again.

Hes played piano, at times professionally, his whole life. But he stopped composing original pieces in the early 1990s. The last time he wrote something of his own, he was in Paris, just before his partner died of AIDS. He found, in the aftermath of that loss, that he had lost the desire to compose.

The last piece I wrote was in his home. I stopped after that, said Choi, who will turn 60 next month, from his home in San Francisco. Music was always what gave me the most feeling of being alive.

That he is still alive, still healthy, still able to make music if he is inspired, is in his view a miracle. Choi is HIV-positive, like his partner who died more than 20 years ago and his partner now. He was infected, he thinks, in the late 1970s, when he was in his early 20s and new to San Francisco.

But theres something different about Choi. Unlike his partners, hes never been sick from HIV and has never taken drugs to treat it. The virus is detectable in his blood only in the most sensitive of lab tests.

Choi is whats known as an elite controller. His immune system, by some twist of genetics, is able to naturally fend off HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Scientists believe about 1 in 100 people have this natural resistance  and some researchers think they may be a key to curing HIV.

But to live with HIV amid the plague of AIDS wasnt easy, even for those who didnt get sick. Many lived for years in constant fear that they, too, would die. For some, the realization that they were going to survive was isolating, or even guilt-inducing. And being essentially immune from HIV did not protect them from the tsunami of loss that rolled over their generation.

Now, these survivors are among thousands of men and women in the United States who have lived for 20 years or longer with HIV. Nationally, more than half of all people living with HIV are age 50 or older; in San Francisco, the number exceeds 60 percent.

Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle

Like hundreds of other elite controllers in the U.S., Choi has participated for decades in medical studies that aim to understand how his immune system works, in hopes that the knowledge might lead to a cure for HIV. Every month, he visits the UCSF offices of Dr. Jay Levy to give blood, from which doctors obtain snapshots of the virus and his immune function.

Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle

Levy, whose lab was among the first in the world to identify HIV as the cause of AIDS, has been working with elite controllers since the mid-1980s, when he started noticing that some of his patients werent getting sick, even as their friends and partners fell ill.

I learned very early in my career, if you want to understand a viral infection, look at the survivors, Levy said.

So when a man arrived in his office in 1984, saying he was certain he was positive but also puzzled to be healthy, Levy knew he had someone special. Over the years, he built a cohort of such men, and women, and produced dozens of papers on them. But the path toward a discovery, and ultimately a cure, has been more complicated than anyone expected.

Scientists are still trying to work out exactly how the immune system of an elite controller operates. Their understanding is that, in these patients, a certain immune cell is powerfully attuned to controlling HIV: It kills most of the virus and prevents what remains from replicating out of control and causing harm.

Because so little of the virus circulates in their bodies, elite controllers are unlikely to infect others, but they still must take precautions.

Just how well protected these patients are seems to vary. Some stave off HIV symptoms for two decades before getting sick, while others have been infected for 30 or more years and are still healthy. Increasingly, as they age, elite controllers have started taking HIV drugs to prevent the possibility of becoming sick.

For years in the 1990s and early 2000s, scientists focused largely on harnessing what they learned about elite controllers into developing a vaccine to prevent HIV infection. When those attempts failed, many scientists stepped away from the elite controllers and focused on other vaccine strategies.

But a few scientists stuck with the elites, convinced that what their bodies were able to do naturally was too important to ignore. Their work has since shifted toward finding a cure.

Weve just scratched the surface of this research, said Dr. Steven Deeks, a professor in the UCSF division of HIV/AIDS at San Francisco General Hospital who has built his own cohort of elite controllers.

Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle

These volunteers have made heroic contributions, Deeks said. Some have been engaged for decades  donating blood once a month and offering spinal fluid and tissue samples, too.

The people who survived that early period of the epidemic, they lost many of their loved ones and friends and sometimes their entire social support system, Deeks said. Theyre really motivated now through altruism, to try to figure out what happened.

People infected with HIV in the 1980s presumed they would die within a few years. They had little reason to believe otherwise. And the elite controllers had no way of knowing there was anything special about them. So even as they remained healthy, many spent years waiting for their turn to come.

One of my best friends, he got infected about the same time I did. He started to get sick, he started declining, and I was in a panic, said George Fox, now 60 and living in Sacramento. But I had to stop and think, Why am I doing this to myself? Bills getting sick and Im not. And thats good.

For me, he said, it was a double-edged sword.

When Foxs doctor prescribed him AZT, the early antiretroviral drug that was the first to treat HIV but proved widely unsuccessful and often toxic, Fox refused to take it. He framed the prescription and hung it on a wall instead, taking it with him as he moved from place to place in the 1980s and 90s. Hes never taken any drugs to treat HIV.

Fox joined Levys elite controllers study in the late 1990s, when he decided there was something different about him. His best friend had died of AIDS by then, and so had a longtime partner. But other than a bout of bad thrush  a painful rash in his mouth  shortly after he was infected, Fox remained abashedly healthy.

As time went on, he began to feel guilty. He had a career and a home. Hed never been sick, and he didnt need the drugs that in their earliest iterations made those with HIV so ill.

Around him, friends were dropping like flies, Fox said. Survivors would sit around trading traumatic stories  of near-death experiences, gruesome infections, debilitating drug side effects  and Fox would just listen, awkwardly unable to participate.

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Oh my God, the survivors guilt kicked in, Fox said. People around you are getting sick, and you start to feel like you should share that with them.

For many, theres a sort of identity built around being HIV-positive, especially among long-term survivors who endured the worst of the epidemic. These poz men and women banded together, building a community based not only on shared grief and horrors but resiliency.

Many elite controllers, though, say they dont feel fully connected to the HIV-positive community. They certainly dont identify as HIV-negative: Theyve feared for their lives at times, and faced the stigma of being among the infected. But much of the experience of being positive doesnt resonate with them. And that can be isolating, some said.

Its like being between two worlds, said Kai Brothers, 54, another participant in Levys elite controller group. I never really felt a part of that world of somebody who is HIV-positive. I didnt have anything going on that would relate me to what the others had to endure.

Choi felt a little more connected  largely, he thinks, because he spent years as a caretaker for the sick during the epidemic of the 1980s and 90s. He didnt have time to be afraid for his own health, he said, because he was too busy looking after others in San Franciscos hard-hit gay community.

It was my escape, he said  a distraction, but also a way to feel useful.

He became particularly adept at sitting with young men who were dying, easing them through their last breaths and consoling families who couldnt understand what was happening to their sons and brothers.

In this time of crisis, Choi, whod studied music for years, chose not to pursue a doctoral degree. He invested himself instead in caring for friends and, later, educating people in marginalized communities on how to protect themselves from HIV.

Like many other longtime survivors, he made decisions in his youth  based in part on assumptions that he would soon die  that he second-guesses now as he approaches 60.

I dont regret what I did with that time, said Choi. But years later, he wonders whether he really missed my calling in life. I had high ambitions for myself.

For Brothers, turning to science  in particular, volunteering his blood and his body to Levy  helped him assuage the isolation he sometimes felt. It made him feel connected, knowing there were others like him.

But eventually his time, too, began to run out. As hed always feared, his immune system weakened. After more than two decades living with HIV, the virus started to win.

He was startled by the rush of disappointment he felt following those first bad blood results two years ago.

I had to realize, thats not me anymore. Im not infallible, Brothers said. Im not this super being that can just fight off disease forever.

For the first time in his life, Brothers was prescribed medication to treat HIV. Today, hes as healthy as ever.

Erin Allday is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: eallday@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @erinallday
When Philip Kaufman was offered a chance to remake Invasion of the Body Snatchers, he initially hesitated. Simply copying the 1956 horror classic about a small town overrun by an alien invasion was of little interest to him.

Then Kaufman got the idea of transplanting the story to a city, specifically San Francisco, his home since the 1960s. It was a way of saying that even in the best city with the greatest individuality, there can be elements of urban paranoia, of things creeping up on you that get more and more magnified, Kaufman said in a recent interview.

Other star directors like Alfred Hitchcock and Francis Ford Coppola have been lured to San Francisco and the surrounding region to make movies to frighten their audience. For those of you who need a share of old-fashioned scares to get through Halloween, here are all manner of horror films  disaster, traditional thrillers, psychological ones, high and low budget  set in your own backyard.

Kaufmans 1978 version, considered among the best remakes, blends traditional horror  San Francisco citizens methodically replaced by look-alike pod people unable to display emotion  with a broader psychological underpinning. The film can be viewed as a reproach to Erhard Seminar Training or est, a program headquartered in San Francisco that sought to transform its followers by controversial methods.

The Jonestown thing took place around then, too, Kaufman recalled, referring to the cult whose members committed mass suicide and murder in 1978. I was talking about all those movements. There were so many of them. This is the city of movements going back to the beatniks and hippies.

Visually opulent, Invasion is set in 25 locations all over San Francisco, transforming the city into another character in the narrative. Even the most routine sites are given a creepy gloss. The distressed protagonists race around in a car with a broken windshield creating splintered, distorted views of the city. The weather helps promote a menacing mood.

This foggy city was sort of fertile ground for spores from outer space to come and proliferate, said Kaufman, who has the pods germinate at Pier 70, more industrialized then than now.

Celluoid Nightmares Chronicle critics pick the scariest movies theyve seen

Several scenes were shot in the Tenderloin, which was a little scary to begin with at the time, Kaufman said. The Transamerica Pyramid appears often, an in-joke because the structure was owned in the 70s by United Artists, the studio backing Invasion. The joke was that this sort of odd-looking lurking building is pod central.

It is hard to recall another mainstream horror film with known actors (Donald Sutherland and Leonard Nimoy) shot entirely in San Francisco. The reason for this is twofold, believes Peter L. Stein, senior Frameline programmer and former executive director of the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival.

San Francisco has historically been a very expensive city to shoot in, and horror films tend to be low budget because they have niche audiences. So maybe that explains why most horror movies seem to be set on a farm or in the suburbs, he said.

However, numerous movies are set around here that feature a more sophisticated brand of horror. Instead of creatures from beyond, these films feature recognizable human beings forced to deal with inner demons and outer threats. The city is used in subtle ways to magnify their terror.

The gold standard is Hitchcocks Vertigo (1958), whose protagonist, Scottie (James Stewart), has acrophobia. As Hitchcock scholars point out, his sense of irony is at play when he situates Scottie in an apartment on top of a steep hill a block east of the winding part of Lombard. (In his 1977 parody High Anxiety, Mel Brooks pokes gentle fun at Scottie by creating his own vertigo-afflicted character and depicting him terrorized by a ride in a glassed-in elevator as it rises in the Hyatt Regencys atrium.)

Hitchcock told Francois Truffaut during their famous interview that he chose the Empire Hotel at 940 Sutter St. for Judy (Kim Novak) to live in because of a green neon sign flashing continually outside. Against this tawdry back light, Scottie engages in a kind of necrophilia, passionately embracing Judy only after hes made her over to look exactly like a dead woman.

A series of black-and-white film noirs shot in the city capture the terror of an individual faced with an outside menace. In D.O.A. (1950), a small-town accountant (Edmond OBrien) spending a wild weekend in San Francisco is poisoned at a jazz club and given only hours to live. In one memorable scene, hes shown desperately running down Market Street in a private panic.

In Sudden Fear (1952), Joan Crawford appears as a wealthy San Francisco playwright who discovers the talentless actor that shes married to is trying to kill her. The citys steep streets are used effectively to create an ominous mood.

Lee Remick is a bank clerk terrorized by a murderous blackmailer with an asthmatic wheeze in Experiment in Terror (1962). The villain is chased through a Broadway nightclub and a Crocker Bank branch before a final showdown at a night game at Candlestick Park.

More recently, Zodiac (2007), based on true events, chillingly captures the arbitrariness of senseless acts. In a scene shot from above to give an overview of downtown San Francisco, we watch a serial killer grab a cab at random and shoot the driver in the head as they arrive at a Presidio Heights destination.

Northern California has proved fertile ground for other scary films, most famously The Birds (1963). Hitchcock used Bodega Bay for his story of a San Francisco socialite (Tippi Hendren) who travels to a coastal town where she becomes victim to attacks from hundreds, possibly thousands, of birds.

Francis Ford Coppolas Twixt (2011) stars Val Kilmer as a washed-up horror novelist who pulls into a small town to peddle his latest book and becomes involved in solving the murder of a local girl. Coppola shot in Clearlake, Kelseyville and Napa, near where he lives. Twixt proved to be jinxed: It wasnt distributed to theaters in America, and Coppola has not directed a feature film since.

A robust subgenre of San Francisco sci-fi films, including Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), Godzilla (2014) and San Andreas (2015) are predicated on the destruction of San Francisco. The Golden Gate Bridge is particularly susceptible.

At the other end of the spectrum from big-budget disaster films are inexpensively made indie horror movies. They rarely show in theaters but can be viewed online and at horror festivals like San Franciscos Another Hole in the Head Film Festival, currently in progress.

Festival director George Kaskanlian Jr. says that in a program of 40 indie horror films, typically only one or two are set in San Francisco. He offers a reason: The city is so expensive you dont have time for passion projects. They dont pay the bills. People arent here to make movies. They are here to make apps.

Director Christopher Coppola (nephew of Francis and brother of Nicolas Cage), however, felt compelled to set Sacred Blood his 2015 gore fest featuring a vampire who seduces lonely men in bars  in these parts.

I went to school in San Francisco and turned 21 here. It was a lonely safe haven for me, he said. Sacred Blood has a lot to do with my own feelings back then  the late-night walks through the city, the fog, loneliness and yet acceptance. Its my bittersweet, atmospheric valentine to the city.

Ruthe Stein is The San Francisco Chronicles movie correspondent.

The 13th Annual Hole in the Head Film Festival: Through Nov. 9. The Curfew Gang. 7 p.m. Vampariah. 9 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 30. House of Temptation. 5 p.m. Nov. 9. New People Cinema, 1746 Post St., S.F. Philip Kaufmans Invasion of the Body Snatchers. 9 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 3. Tenderloin Museum, 398 Eddy, St., S.F. www.sfindie.com

To see a trailer for Invasion of the Body Snatchers: www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7yK8gE1qI8
If spirits took up movie seats, the Castro Theatre would have been in violation of the San Francisco fire code Friday night. To come here is kind of like walking into the most wonderful thing in the world, said Harry Breaux of San Francisco, standing just off a temporary red carpet in a bright floral blazer. But behind the veil are the ghosts of all these people.

The ghosts Breaux is referring to are the more than 21,000 San Franciscans who have died of AIDS. Breaux is himself a long-term AIDS survivor  and one of the subjects of The San Francisco Chronicles first feature-length documentary, Last Men Standing. Accompanying Chronicle reporter Erin Alldays print and digital series interviewing dozens of men who have lived with HIV and AIDS far longer than anyone ever expected them to back when they were first diagnosed, the documentary premiered at the Castro on Friday night before a sold-out audience.

Were not a traditional filmmaking company, Judy Walgren, The Chronicles former director of photography and the creative director of Last Men Standing, said when asked how a newspaper ended up making a movie. This was done by sheer force of will.

That force began with Alldays series and was picked up by Walgren, who paired Chronicle filmmakers Tim Hussin and Erin Brethauer. Walgren and Managing Editor Kristen Go tasked the two with turning Alldays powerful print series into a real documentary.

Over the course of 10 months, Hussin and Brethauer pared Alldays 50 subjects down to eight long-term AIDS survivors and 65 minutes of film, which has been selected for inclusion in this years Frameline LGBT film festival.

To be watching this unfold over time is just surreal. Its really beautiful, Allday said at the premiere. Its amazing to have this as a companion piece to the written work.

Community of leftovers

Its also amazing for the members of an overlooked community to take center stage. Long-term survivors of HIV and AIDS accepted the death sentence that came with their diagnosis decades ago and now find themselves in a new, unexpected crisis. Housing is an enormous issue, said film subject Kevin VandenBergh. We never expected to still be here.

Breaux fought back tears as he entered the theater with an affectionate collection of middle-aged men in statement jewelry. Although we had lost all of our friends, said Breaux, we still had each other to create a community of leftovers.

The people who survived have been to hell and back, Scott Wiener, the Castro districts supervisor, said as he ducked (literally) into the screening. They do not deserve to be forgotten, and we need to be there for them.

Like many in the theater, Carol Borden-Gomez remembers the early years of the AIDS crisis. The 70-year-old San Franciscan attended the premiere with her boss. I remember riding Muni and seeing young men who looked like skeletons. Borden-Gomez grabbed my hand to make her point, It was the saddest thing Ive ever seen.

The tears began before the lights dimmed. Longtime locals reminisced about catching classics at the Castro with loved ones now lost to AIDS. Guests clamored to chat with the nights stars, each of whom rode a decades-long emotional roller coaster to an unexpected stop at their own film premiere. And folks like Borden-Gomez asked to go off the record just so she could let loose with some good, old-fashioned cusswords about the horror of this disease, which can be managed by medication but still remains without a cure.

Necessary comic relief

But to quote Steel Magnolias character Truvy Jones, Laughter through tears is my favorite emotion. Throughout the night and throughout the film, laughter came fast and easy, a sweet relief amid the scary darkness that comes with survival. Were not tragedy queens, film-subject David Spiher said to enthusiastic applause and support from other Last Men Standing.

I hope this film makes people aware that their stories are stories that everyone shares, said Hussin, who confessed that his main concern Friday night was that the projector worked. It did. Hussins co-director shared his dream for their film. I hope it sparks conversation, Brethauer said. I hope it connects people.

This is one of the first times that these men will really be seen as more than just patients and survivors, but as people with stories, said Chronicle Editor in Chief Audrey Cooper. Hopefully a lot of the people here will see their truths reflected. She paused. Hopefully. Or theyll throw popcorn at us.

Beth Spotswood is a Bay Area freelance writer and blogger.
FLOYD  A meeting to discuss proposed changes at the Avenue of the Saints intersection will be held Nov. 9 in Floyd.

The meeting is 5 to 7 p.m. at the Floyd Community Center, 706 Fairfield St.

A formal presentation will begin at 6 p.m.

Officials from the Iowa Department of Transportation will present proposed changes for Avenue of the Saints at U.S. 218 and Quarry Road.

Many locals have lobbied for an an elevated interchange at the intersection, which was the site of a deadly crash in July.

More than 3,000 people signed an online petition urging change after the July crash. A delegation of North Iowans formally presented their concerns at the Iowa DOTs meeting in August in Sioux City.

Iowa DOT Field Services Coordinator Pete Hjelmstad said state transportation officials considered a number of proposals for the intersection. These alternatives were detailed to the public in 2012.

Through input weve taken from the public and DOT staff weve got a preferred alternative, which we will be presenting the 9th, Hjelmstad said.

He would not say which of the preferred alternatives was chosen, but said it was an interchange with ramps. The elevated roadway would replace the current at-grade interchange.

In a letter sent to legislators in August, the Iowa DOT said it would discuss funding the project in fiscal 2019-20 or 2021-22.

Oral and written statements will be accepted at the meeting. Attendees also will be able to ask questions at the meeting.

Details of the preferred alternative will be available after the meeting at www.iowadot.gov/pim.
What started as a fun night at a casino turned to horror earlier this month for a 55-year-old Fremont woman who was followed home and violently robbed at her doorstep, police said Thursday.

The Port Costa couple who allegedly stalked the victim and bashed her in the head with a flashlight were arrested less than 24 hours after the holdup, booked in Alameda County Jail and later charged with attempted murder and robbery.

The episode unfolded around 1 a.m. on Oct. 18, when the victim pulled up to her house on the 40400 block of Citrus Drive after a night of gambling at a South Bay casino, Fremont police said.

When the victim got to her front door, someone ran up and began wailing on the back of her head with a hard object, police said. A man wearing dark clothing then ran off with her purse, containing cash, credit cards and her identification.

The womans husband heard the commotion and ran after the assailant, who jumped into the passenger seat of a waiting tan-colored sedan that sped off, officials said.

Police and paramedics rushed to the scene and took the woman to a nearby trauma center. Officials did not provide any information about the victim or her condition.

Shortly after the attack, investigators went to the casino, where they pulled surveillance video showing a man identified by security guards as 44-year-old Barry Heisner, shadowing the victim around the casino floor.

The video shows Heisner then following the woman out of the casino before getting into a tan car and tailing her out of the parking lot, police said.

A short while later, video near the womans house shows a tan car pull up nearby. A man is seen getting out, walking up the victims driveway before he later flees to the car, which police said is seen speeding off down Fremont Boulevard.

Detectives figured out that Heisners girlfriend, Darlene Marquis, 45, owns a 1999 tan-colored Toyota Camry that matches the description of the car involved in the attack.

That night, SWAT officers from the Fremont Police Department arrested the couple as they drove in the suspected getaway vehicle in Pittsburg.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Officers later searched Marquis home in Port Costa where they found the victims wallet, ID card, credit cards and purse.

Investigators also found a copper Maglite flashlight they believe was the weapon used in the attack.

Officials said they waited to release details of the crime while they worked with other law enforcement agencies on other similar investigations.

Police did not say if Heisner and Marquis are suspected in any similar attacks.

Evan Sernoffsky is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: esernoffsky@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @EvanSernoffsky
If there was ever any doubt about who should be recognized as the greatest artist the Bay Area ever produced, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art has resolved the question definitively with its lovingly presented, sweeping analysis of the work of Bruce Conner. The exhibition Its All True, opening Saturday, Oct. 29, comprises some 300 works and is accompanied by an authoritative, 384-page book. Together, show and catalog provide a detailed argument for the artists dominance in a range of media, from collage and assemblage, to independent film, to conceptual art.

But it is the many layers and subtleties of meaning, not the varied means of Conners expression, that place him at the top of a proud list of San Franciscan contributors to arts vast history.

His art is the embodiment of primal angst and spiritual yearning  of our mortal fears, joys, pain and pleasures, and our aching need to transcend them. Like the peyote buttons and other fuels of his early creative efforts, his work sets us teetering on a thin edge between enlightenment and oblivion. The product of a prolific career spanning more than 50 years, buried for long periods by the neglect of the art world and his own consuming wariness, the work smolders still with a palpable heat.

SFMOMA has a broad international agenda and a penchant for market-sanctioned Big Art. It was crucial for its credibility that the museum take the lead in this new assessment of such a key figure in its midst, who made his work  much of which you could carry under one arm  from leftovers and discards. And it matters that the show takes things beyond the regional, in partnership with the Museum of Modern Art in New York, to acknowledge Conner (1933-2008) as among the most significant artists of the 20th century.

 2016 Conner Family Trust, San Francisco / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

The exhibition is laid out chronologically, the only route possible through such a varied production. There are something like 18 discrete galleries, beginning with ephemera-filled cases that give a sense of, among other avatars, Conner the Dadaist performance artist  wearing surgical scrubs to receive an honorary doctorate; running for San Francisco supervisor  and Conner the conceptual artist  insisting that an employer-required fingerprint be treated as one of a series of multiple works of art.

Conners attention to the aesthetics of even the slightest gesture extended to his requirement that titles be rendered in capital letters with no other punctuation, which he saw as like objects in themselves. ... They have an architectural structure. Similar to newspaper headlines, true titles, imperative or directive phrasing, such as HELP, STOP, FREE, TAKE ONE.

The ephemera cases, along with a group of mid-1950s student paintings in the language of late Abstract Expressionism, are shown in a kind of entry hallway. I was surprised that the first larger gallery is devoted to a theater-style presentation of the 1958 masterpiece A MOVIE.

Conner has always been known for a substantial body of films with loose or nonexistent narrative structures. And A MOVIE  a collage of found footage snippets, some of them menacing, some comic, set to Ottorino Respighis Pines of Rome  is widely recognized as groundbreaking. But in relation to his entire output, filmmaking has generally been considered a parallel but distinct pursuit. Here, SFMOMA implies a central place for film.

At MoMA, where the show was presented earlier this year, the films were shown in spaces entered through sound-dampening doors; in San Francisco, music issues freely from darkened galleries, becoming a kind of soundtrack for the exhibition itself. And it works in this instance, where only one film features spoken words: Sculpture and graphics galleries are enlivened, moods shift, new sounds draw us along.

Many of the films have recently been restored, sometimes transferred to video. The results are downright gorgeous. Conner resisted digitizing his work, his media assistant and collaborator Michelle Silva has said, until he could no longer get the quality he demanded from analog processing shops.

That change of heart made possible a version of BREAKAWAY (1966) that is as tonally rich in black-and-white as the day it was made. A visual expression of dance as joyous, dervish-mystical abandon, it features a Toni Basil as sensually alluring on the screen as the 23-year-old must have been in front of the camera.

Conner famously considered all his work, in any medium, to be subject to revision, if not perpetually unfinished. Museums and collectors might stay his hand when it came to, say, sculpture they presumed to own, but no one could stop him from endlessly revising his films, and digital tools only made that easier. REPORT, his elegy to John F. Kennedy and the era he represented, is exhibited at SFMOMA as a 16mm film. It went through at least eight versions from 1963 to 1967, but kept its title and form.

 2016 Conner Family Trust, San Francisco / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

THREE SCREEN RAY (2006), on the other hand, is an entirely new digital piece, drawn from his seminal 1961 work COSMIC RAY, which continues its existence embedded within the later piece. (An interim work not included in the show, EVE-RAY-FOREVER (1965/2006), dispensed entirely with the Ray Charles soundtrack, the classic Whatd I Say.)

Curators usually have to mete out the best pieces to bring balance to an exhibition. But as one walks through this show, the realization dawns that virtually every room seems to contain at least one masterwork. The assemblage sculpture that, to many, still defines Conner as an artist, occupies three large galleries and then some.

Yet these works  which were shown around the world, collected by museums and entered major private collections well before he was 30 years old  were all made in the first tenth of his career. By 1965, he was done with the art that had had critics comparing him to Robert Rauschenberg and curators including him in exhibitions of international influence.

It began in 1958 with RATBASTARD, a squarish canvas no bigger than 10 inches across, which Conner slashed open and stuffed, along with costume jewelry, photographs and other found materials, into a pouch he made of nylon stockings. A canvas handle from which the object could hang on a wall  but which also allowed the artist to carry it like a purse  was nailed to the stretcher.

RATBASTARD and other nest-like, pendulous works take their place in the SFMOMA show alongside other horrid constructions with titles like SPIDER LADY HOUSE and ARACHNE (both 1959).

THE BRIDE (1960) is covered with molten wax. The exhibition label tells us that the artist kept the candles that cover the work burning throughout its first showing. Deeper, darker than a commitment to change, it was an embrace of entropy. Works that started their lives as accretions of the decrepit had nowhere to go but to dust. Reason enough to see this show: These will be different works when you see them next.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

The so-called dark sculptures, in their black-painted gallery, evidence an awesome gravity. At the nucleus of both room and exhibition: CHILD (1959), a slumping, dismembered figure with the painful grimace of a mummified corpse.

Aspects of CHILDs fascinating history are retold in a short catalog article. Owned for nearly half a century by the Museum of Modern Art, it was in storage for most of its existence and never shown at MoMA until this year. Yet it is a legendary cultural relic of its era. Originally cited by the artist as a protest against the death sentence imposed on one man, Caryl Chessman, it came to more generally symbolize cruelty and inhumanity, central themes of Conners total oeuvre.

Avert your eyes from this nightmare. Through a glass wall, the film LOOKING FOR MUSHROOMS (1959-1967) offers relief, a gesture toward redemption. Its hallucinatory imagery and the words of Timothy Leary, chanted by the Beatles, draw you into Conners short Mexican sojourn. It is a holistic vision  the resplendent PARTITION (1961-63) is part fleshly decadence, part Christian passion; CROSS (1962) conflates the corpus of Christ with an Aztec head.

There is much in the exhibition that cannot be adequately reproduced, and too much to sufficiently describe. Galleries overflowing with meditative abstract drawing; precisely arranged collages of old engravings; obsessive folded inkblot imagery; gritty photographs of punk music clubs and their denizens.

In Conners case, too much is the right amount. He lived for too much. He was too much for most curators, who handled him gingerly or faced his rancor. Too much for an art world that wanted to set the terms of a relationship.

The denouement of the exhibition, though not the literal end of the gallery sequence, is a darkened room around which are arrayed eight of Conners ANGELS (1973-75)  life-size photograms of his whole body that he made with another artist, Edmund Shea. Unique objects, acutely tangible as records of actual skin in contact with paper, they are also images that fairly glow from within. The physical become transcendent.

Are the angels meant to be our protectors, or do they defend against us? Through a window into an adjacent gallery, we glimpse the answer.

Beyond that glass wall, we encounter a spellbinding installation of Conners famous, mesmeric meditation on the first widely announced nuclear bomb test, CROSSROADS (1976). A work of fearsome monumentality even viewed on a small TV monitor (the way I first saw it years ago), the recently restored version presented here  in grand scale with a superb rendition of the Patrick Gleeson/Terry Riley score  is stupefying.

Insistent, numbing, repeating eruptions  clouds of a terrible, purposeless storm. We came upon this tempest through a chamber of spectral attendants  guardians of humankind or from it? Our world needs both.

Charles Desmarais is The San Francisco Chronicles art critic. Email: cdesmarais@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Artguy1
CLEAR LAKE  Police have charged a Mason City woman with stealing more than $50,000 while employed as the office manager at Lake Chevrolet.

Amy Monahan, 42, turned herself in Friday on felony charges of ongoing criminal conduct, first-degree theft and forgery.

The charges conclude a seven-month investigation into reports of misconduct while Monahan was working for the Clear Lake car dealership from 2013 through 2016, according to a statement from Clear Lake Police Chief Pete Roth.

Investigators allege Monahan misappropriated more than $50,000 during a two-year period of her employment, according to Roth.

Monahan was responsible for employee payroll, employee benefits, accounts payable, accounts receivable, reconciliation of accounts and monthly financial reports, Roth said.

She is alleged to have taken money, received extra employment benefits, used business funds to pay on personal credit cards and forged checks.

Monahan is being held in the Cerro Gordo County Jail on $40,000 cash or surety bond.
San Francisco has a second chance to land George Lucas trove of artworks and movie world memorabilia. The city shouldnt miss the opportunity to consider putting the collection in a prime spot on Treasure Island.

Well leave the architectural appraisals to others. Fog-like flowing lines, a sleek race car body or maybe a plastic bag snagged on a branch: we dont have an opinion yet on the look.

The larger point is the museums impact and desirability. It could be a major asset in the regions array of cultural offerings while giving a signature image to an empty location.

An earlier Lucas museum proposal was rightly turned down two years ago for a location near the Crissy Field shoreline in the Presidio. The clunky project wasnt a good match.

After an unsuccessful sales pitch for a lakefront spot in Chicago, Lucas is back. Theres a twist this time. The filmmaker is dangling his museum before Los Angeles as well. A decision is expected in two to four months.

All signs are positive in the early vetting of the museum, unveiled this week after months of meetings and talks with City Hall and officials involved with turning the former Navy facility into a 8,000-unit community in the middle of the bay.

Theres no worried neighborhood that will be upended by a visitor-attracting cultural magnet. The location adjacent to a ferry pier and reachable from a Bay Bridge off-ramp could ease traffic concerns. Also, Lucas financing plan remains the same: Hell pay for the construction and upkeep plus an estimated $400 million endowment.

The Lucas proposal isnt fully baked or explained. That makes it too early to back the plan unconditionally. But San Francisco should welcome a chance to find the museum a proper home, and this one looks very promising.
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For a man who could be less than two weeks away from the death knell of his 35-year political career, San Jose Rep. Mike Honda sounds remarkably confident.

Sure, he finished second  not lost, Honda insists  in the June primary to Fremont attorney Ro Khanna, a fellow Democrat whos back for a second try after losing a tight congressional race to Honda in 2014.

And, yeah, a House Ethics Committee investigation into Hondas alleged misuse of government-paid staffers on his political campaign is, at the very least, a distraction.

But theres a straight path to victory on Nov. 8, the 75-year-old Honda insisted this week.

I have to get my base voters out, reinforce my message and make sure Ive got sufficient funds to run my ads all the way to election day, he said in an interview.

That message Honda hopes will carry him to a win is an almost unrelentingly negative one, charging that the 40-year-old Khanna has neither the experience nor the character to represent Silicon Valley in Congress.

Some politicians are bought and paid for before ever setting foot in office, a narrator says in a Honda ad that includes scripted footage of a faceless South Asian actor in a sharp suit climbing into the back of a limousine and telling someone on the phone, Hey, what do you need. ... Im here for you.

Just to make sure no one misses the none-too-subtle point, the limo includes a bottle of Champagne in an ice bucket and the license plate Wall Street Ro.

Khanna quickly cried foul, accusing Honda of both misrepresenting his positions on subjects like taxes, Social Security and outsourcing, and what he called a below-the-belt appeal to racial stereotypes.

Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle

This is really ugly, Khanna said in an email. Think for a moment what the reaction would be if I hired a Japanese actor to impersonate Honda.

A claim of ethnic profiling is an odd one for the multiracial 17th Congressional District, which runs south from Fremont and Milpitas to San Jose and then west to Santa Clara, Cupertino and Sunnyvale. Besides being represented by Honda, who spent the early years of his life in a World War II Japanese American internment camp, its also the only district outside Hawaii where a majority of the residents are of Asian ancestry.

The attack was personal, not racial, Honda said.

Khanna says he doesnt take money from (political action committees), but he does take money from special interests, Honda added. If he wants to take the gloves off, he has to be ready for everyone to take the gloves off.

Honda also hit Khanna and his campaign with a civil lawsuit last month, charging that Khannas then-campaign manager stole donor information from a computer linked to Hondas campaign and shared it with Khanna, in violation of federal law.

While Khanna has denied any wrongdoing and the suit wont go to trial until well after the election, Honda has used the charges he made in the suit to reinforce his claims that his opponent isnt to be trusted.

The lawsuit, was nothing but a Hail Mary from a congressman down in the polls and desperate to distract from his ongoing ethics scandal, Hari Sevugan, a spokesman for Khanna, said in a statement.

Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle

Khanna has been more than willing to join Honda in the mud. From the start of the campaign, hes talked about how its time to bring in new blood to replace an eight-term congressman who he says is out of touch with the district, its communities and the high-tech world at its center.

The campaign also hasnt been shy about publicizing the ethics charges plaguing Honda. In a TV spot, Khannas team paints Honda as someone who has been around too long, his record an embarrassment.

The negativity is not that surprising, said Melinda Jackson, an associate professor of political science at San Jose State University. When you have two Democrats without a lot of policy differences between them, it makes sense to go negative ... and turn to character questions.

That could be a bad thing for Honda, she added, especially if the presidential election brings out a horde of occasional voters whose information about the candidates comes from the 30-second hit pieces they see on TV.

In a low-turnout election, most of the voters are party faithful, who can be expected to back Honda, she added. But when you add young voters, independents and those less committed to the (Democratic) party, its a different story.

Even if Khannas attacks can be dismissed as the standard rough and tumble of a tight political race, there are plenty of other signs that Hondas re-election effort is an uphill battle.

While Honda has always been a favorite of labor, a number of unions have decided to hedge their bets this year. Groups like the California Nurses Association and the Alameda County Building and Construction Trades Council, which backed him in 2014, have announced dual endorsements for the 2016 race, adding Khanna to their list of favorites.

Honda managed to snag the official endorsement of the state Democratic Party in February, but with the November winner guaranteed to be a Democrat, his campaign has been far from a party priority.

Honda also lost the gold ticket of Democratic endorsements when President Obama, who backed him in 2014, declined to renew his support this year.

With the election days away, Honda and Khanna know the winner will be the one who does the best job of getting his supporters to the polls. Both campaigns have volunteers working the phones and knocking on doors in an effort to find every last vote.

At Cupertinos De Anza College on Thursday, Khanna was joined by former San Francisco Mayor and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom in an effort to stir up support from young people, who often dont show up to vote.

About 125 people gathered under leaden skies in the college quad, where Khanna opened his first campaign against Honda four years ago.

Its good to see a lot more people out here today to hear me speak, he said.

Newsom and Khanna praised each other as progressive leaders and called for the crowd of mostly college-age listeners to vote.

Its our obligation to get out and vote and not run the 90-yard dash, Newsom said. Amplify the efforts of the last four years.

Khanna thanked Newsom, whom he called Californias next governor, and warned his supporters not to be complacent.

We have 12 days, he said. If everyone votes, were going to win and win decisively.

Honda is bringing out his own big-name endorsers, joining actor and progressive activist Danny Glover at his Cupertino campaign headquarters Tuesday evening and planning a rally with Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers union, Saturday in Newark.

Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle

Speaking to about 75 campaign workers and supporters, Glover hailed Honda for the diversity of his campaign, comparing it to the efforts of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who challenged Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination this year.

Honda is a progressive who knows about racism, Glover told the multiethnic crowd. He has fashioned a life in the service of justice, in the service of change.

The pair shook hands and posed for pictures with the crowd, then joined volunteers in making calls to undecided voters.

After talking on the phone to one voter, Honda thanked him for his time, hung up and then pumped his right arm in the air.

Got one! he shouted.

John Wildermuth is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jwildermuth@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @jfwildermuth
ST. GEORGE, Utah  While some of you Democrats are prematurely breaking into a look-at-the-latest-polls happy dance, dont bury the Republican Party just yet. Its future is still in this race and is embodied by a techie. A female techie. A Millennial female Republican techie.

Yes, unicorns do exist.

Mindy Finn is the accidental vice presidential running mate of accidental presidential candidate Evan McMullin. Hes a Republican on the ballot as an independent in 11 states who could actually win Utah because voters in that perennially red state are so repulsed by Donald Trumps morals and stances on refugees and immigration. So many Utah voters are flocking to McMullin as the native-son Mormon voice of conservative reason. Also, he isnt Hillary Clinton.

We say accidental because Finn has only been on the ticket for about three weeks. Until she agreed to take the gig, one of McMullins buddies had volunteered his name as a placeholder to meet ballot submission deadlines. In several states, Nathan Johnson will be listed on the ballot with McMullin.

Yeah, we know, its been that kind of campaign season. But thats not the point.

Earlier this year, McMullin was just another faceless bureaucrat, policy director for the House Republican Conference, and Finn was founder and digital strategist of the fledgling bipartisan Empowered Women organization. But they foresaw how Trump could destroy their partys brand and were among the Never Trumpers who tried for months to recruit a candidate who wouldnt cower before him as 16 other Republicans did in the primary.

Trump was a clear and present danger, Finn told me during a phone conversation the other day. When we saw that our leaders werent stepping up and getting the job done, we got in. We would have loved for someone to stand up. To be this line of defense. But none of them would.

Talk about leaning in. Unless youre the type of political nerd who attends tech-and-politics forums (hand raised!), Finn has always been a behind-the-scenes person. She was the digital media director for Mitt Romneys 2008 presidential campaign, spent time at the Republican National Committee and with the George W. Bush-Dick Cheney 2004 campaign, and worked for two years for Twitter in its office in Washington, D.C., where she lives.

But theres an edge in her voice now, because Republicans at the highest levels knew what they were getting with Trump. Four years ago, after Republicans got trounced in the presidential race, Finn contributed to the 97-page Growth and Opportunity Project, better known as the GOPs autopsy on the failure of its 2012 race. It suggested myriad ways the party could reach out to Latinos, women and young people, and figure out how to better use technology.

But her fellow Republicans didnt have the guts to follow through on those ideas. They melted at the sight of Trump.

There is just a lack of courage, Finn said. But it doesnt have to be this way. There are a lot of people like Evan and me out there.

She knows their campaign is a moon shot. But the 35-year-old mother of two sees it as a beginning, a way for Republicans to shed Trumps nativism and xenophobia and focus on a future thats more center-right.

Unlike Trump, Finn and McMullin dont think global warming is a Chinese hoax. They think the tax deductions in Trumps child care plan mainly benefit wealthy families. They oppose stop and frisk police tactics as an infringement on the Fourth Amendment. They support a path to legal status  not citizenship  for those who are in the country illegally, but they do not want mass deportations. They support NATO and oppose torture. And theyre OK with admitting carefully vetted refugees from Syria.

Theyre conservative on social issues, including abortion and same-sex marriage but say theyre not focused on these issues. Finn even talks about criminal justice reform and poverty.

Poverty is an issue that is of great concern to our campaign, Finn said. Were locking too many people up and putting people on a lifelong path of poverty.

So presuming Trump loses, does this mean people who think like Finn will form a new party? Unlikely, she said. Building an entirely new party requires re-creating too much political infrastructure across the country just to be borderline viable. Just ask Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson and Green Party nominee Jill Stein.

Instead, Finn wants to rebuild the GOP from within. With people who think like her and McMullin and others of their generation.

Quick note about Finn: Ive known her for years professionally, interviewing her for stories about the intersection of tech and politics. Shes always been a smart, straight-up person who doesnt reflexively kick out partisan sound bites. And, as I told her when we chatted, Mindy, youre the only vice presidential candidate whose cell number I have.

Yeah, she said and paused. I was thinking about blocking my number.

Joe Garofoli is The San Francisco Chronicles senior political writer. Email: jgarofoli@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @joegarofoli
Cutting a $450,000 check without formal approval to an ailing former employee of the San Francisco Fine Arts Museums was improper under federal guidelines, but not illegal, according to a city audit released Thursday.

The audit was done in response to a complaint that former Fine Arts Museums chief executive Dede Wilsey gave the payout in 2014 to the former stationary engineer, on top of his $56,000 annual pension, without approval from the museums Board of Directors.

After a whistle-blower brought the payment to public attention, Wilsey said she didnt need approval. The money, meanwhile, was reimbursed by anonymous donors, according to the museums.

The museums are partly funded by city taxpayers and partly by private donations managed by a nonprofit. The $450,000 payment came from the nonprofit arm. Wilsey did not need board approval to make the payment because neither the public nor nonprofit halves has rules requiring that approval, the audit said.

But the payout was nonetheless inappropriate, said Tonia Lediju, director of city audits. U.S. Government Accountability Office guidelines, which apply to nonprofit agencies, state that such payments are improper if insufficient or no documentation (is) found, according to the city audit. There were no documents to explain the payout to the former employee, auditors said in the report.

The report said the museums should change policies to forbid similar actions in the future.

The payout and subsequent questions led to an investigation by the state attorney generals office in addition to the audit. The state investigation is still going on.

For a while after the payout was revealed, it looked as though Wilsey might be forced out of the Fine Arts Museums organization, which runs the de Young Museum and the Legion of Honor.

But last month, both the private, nonprofit board and the public board that oversee the museums voted to keep Wilsey in her leadership roles, though she lost her title as president and chief executive. She was named board chair instead, but will likely retain many of the powers she held in her previous position.

The audit, which investigated museum records from 2013 to 2015, also found multiple minor inconsistencies in payroll and employee reimbursement systems. The report said the museums need to better define procedures for paying staff, including for regular work and for other kinds of cash disbursements.

In a written response to the report, the Fine Arts Museums largely agreed with the auditors findings and stated it would be working towards improving our policies and procedures.

Erin Allday is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: eallday@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @erinallday
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Sixteen third-graders from the Mission District turned a bunch of bones into the full-length skeleton of a long-dead juvenile gray whale named Gracie inside City Hall on Thursday, while a posse of politicians looked on amazed.

It was a tribute to a onetime lawyer and farm labor organizer named Dan Sudran whose collection of fossils, rocks, seashells, birds nests and radio parts became the first tools in what is now a flourishing venture in unorthodox science teaching for public school kids in some of San Franciscos poorest neighborhoods.

The event marked the 25th anniversary of Sudrans Mission Science Workshop. The kids who arrived by bus from Cesar Chavez Elementary School were met by 35 feet of assorted whale bones in City Halls vast rotunda, and their teacher, Nina Ravizza, quickly herded the students into teams of four.

Rib people, you can fill in the ribs, Ravizza guided them, and vertebrae people, you can line them up one at a time.

The ribs were taller than some of the kids, and each vertebra made an armful, but it took the teams barely 15 minutes to complete the skeleton of Gracie, which remained on exhibit all day and into the evening for curious City Hall visitors.

Her bones normally lie in Sudrans original Science Workshop, housed in a large basement room at Mission High School. Another workshop is at the Ocean Avenue Presbyterian Church in the Excelsior, and both are designed to bring informal but rigorous and bilingual science teaching to more than 10,000 students a year  primarily from public schools in the citys poorer neighborhoods, Sudran said.

If they get curious about how things work, whether its a whale or a flashlight battery, and they learn how it evolved or where the energy comes from, thats science education, he said.

The bones that the kids assembled in City Hall came from a juvenile gray whale carcass that washed up on the beach near Sudrans Pescadero home five years ago. Teams of teachers and students from Oakland to Watsonville retrieved the bones and stored them temporarily in his backyard.

Now those bones, all numbered and cataloged, form a whale in a box that demonstrates the basics of evolution to a network of similar science workshops at low-income schools in Fresno, Sanger (Fresno County), Greenfield (Monterey County), Salinas and Watsonville. Theyre financed by school districts, foundations, PTAs and local fundraisers, Sudran said.

Sudran was fresh out of law school in Chicago and working with farm labor organizers in Idaho, he said, when he moved to California in the 1960s to work for Cesar Chavez and the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee. He later trained as an electronics technician at City College of San Francisco and set up his own shop and a lab in his Mission home to learn how to do experiments.

I began inviting my equally curious neighborhood kids to share my investigations, he recalled, and I became a regular visitor to the Exploratorium where I saw how people really had this natural curiosity about how things work.

Its pretty amazing how kids can really learn science when you grab their curiosity, said Supervisor John Avalos, whose district includes the Outer Mission and Excelsior.

A proclamation by the mayor and Board of Supervisors declared Friday as Mission Science Workshop Day, and the ventures supporters celebrated Thursday evening at a community party in City Halls South Light Court with mariachi and bluegrass student bands and Mission District food.

David Perlman is The San Francisco Chronicles science editor. Email: dperlman@sfchronicle.com
Mission Bay is one of those neighborhoods that all judgmental San Franciscans - these days are there any other kind? - dismiss with disdain.

The architecture is boxy and bland. The retail scene's anemic. It feels too new.

But standing on a hillock in a grassy park along Mission Creek one recent afternoon, I see something else: all manner of housing for all types of people.

Across the way are midsize blocks of condominiums that sell for what the market will bear, but also a building with generous balconies that contains 139 apartments for low-income seniors. Directly behind me, construction crews are adding the final details to a new 124-unit complex that includes 99 affordable apartments, 50 of them for formerly homeless families. At the end of Mission Creek are 20 honest-to-gosh houseboats; peeking up to the north is the top of One Rincon, the condo tower next to the Bay Bridge.

This is a sampler of the living options available in San Francisco, it is varied and mostly new, and that's the point. It's living proof that as the city, and the Bay Area as a whole, wrestles with the demand for housing, we need places to live that are as diverse as our population.

Obvious as this may sound - let a thousand domicile types bloom! - it bucks the trend of single-answer solutions being pushed by various factions in a city that has made being fractured a high art.

One camp infers that we should follow the lead of Houston and do away with zoning. "If people want to live in San Francisco, and they don't want rent to go up, then we need to build more units for people to live in," argued tech reporter Kyle Russell at the website Business Insider. "With taller buildings, San Francisco would be able to fit more housing and thus lower rents."

On the other end are activists who would be happy if nothing was built save subsidized units by nonprofit developers. This argument is summed up by Calvin Welch, a longtime leader of the city's left, who last year released a study of housing permits and prices that concluded: "When there is a decline in production of market rate housing, there is a decline in price. ... New construction of market rate housing will never meet the housing needs of current residents and we should move on from that dangerous 'urban myth.' "

Everyone has their absolute. Inevitably, the absolutes collide.

Mission Bay offers a different view of what's possible. By no means ideal, but instructive and even a little heartening all the same.

Like too many recent additions to the landscape, it has a tangled history of political grandstanding and even a ballot showdown or two. Willie Brown was the fourth mayor to wrestle with how to revive 300 acres of decrepit railroad yards; in arguably the most substantive accomplishment of his eight years in office, he worked out a deal with landowner Catellus where UCSF was given 43 acres for the creation of a new campus. That, in turn, set the ball rolling for a mixed-use redevelopment area that will include 6,000 housing units, 30 percent of them reserved for low-income residents.

In hindsight, more housing would have made sense, with a sprinkling of towers beyond the official 16-story limit. But city leaders were skittish about heights back then, and they wanted to finally make something happen.

There's a much different neighborhood emerging north of the Bay Bridge, where zoning for the Rincon Hill and Transbay areas encourages residential towers of 400 feet and more. Three went up before the economy nose-dived in 2008, and eight more are on the rise. There's no neighborhood yet, more a checkerboard of construction sites and sky-high shafts. When several thousand newcomers move in, and some towers include shops along landscaped sidewalks, that might change.

Would I want to live in an aerie above the Bay Bridge? No. I wouldn't want to live in a 300-square-foot "micro-unit" either. Or a 5,000-square-foot mansion in Pacific Heights. But in a city of neighborhoods, the more types of neighborhood the better. Some low-slung a la the Sunset. Some tall and dense with a Chicago sheen, as will be the case on Rincon Hill.

Mission Bay teaches us something else about the current "housing crisis." It's a chronic condition dating back to the 1980s, when San Francisco attained the dubious honor of being the nation's priciest big city.

"Affordable housing ... is central to the character of the city and remains our most urgent priority," then-Mayor Dianne Feinstein wrote in 1986 by way of introducing a report on her administration's housing efforts: "The battle is by no means over," she intoned, but "despite the tough odds, housing is being produced within the reach of lower and moderate-income persons."

One year later, Art Agnos launched his successful campaign for mayor with a speech promising to ensure that "young families and senior citizens and working people can afford to buy a home or rent in our city." He also vowed to protect "those who enrich our diversity and uniqueness ... the newcomers ... the artists and the crafts workers."

The cynics would say that today's obscenely high prices mean that past efforts were futile. But today's tensions over the issue are proof that diversity has endured. Despite its very real imperfections, this city continues to attract people from a confounding array of cultures and aspirations who come for a visit and then find ways to stay. They make themselves a home, in all meanings of that word.

Houseboats, towers, the well-planned blocks of Mission Bay - they're part of today's San Francisco every bit as much as Victorian homes. Not only that, this is how it should be.
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Alphabet Inc., the parent company of Google, said Thursday its third-quarter revenue grew 20 percent to nearly $22.5 billion, as more people used Google search to look for items on their smartphones and watch ads on YouTube.

The Mountain View company made a profit of about $5.06 billion in the quarter, up 27 percent from a year earlier. Revenue, excluding payments to partners to drive traffic to its sites, came to $18.3 billion, beating analysts estimates of nearly $18 billion, according to financial data firm FactSet.

The engine of Alphabets growth continued to be Google, which generated $22.3 billion in sales, much of it from advertising. Revenue within Alphabets Other Bets division, which includes long-term projects such as self-driving cars, Nest, Google Fiber and health firm Verily Life Sciences, was $197 million for the quarter, up 40 percent from a year ago.

Alphabet has faced scrutiny over its Other Bets, owing to the substantial investment and length of time devoted to the projects, which in some cases have yet to reach the market.

The company has been working on the self-driving car project for seven years, and the test cars have driven more than 2 million miles, but it has yet to announce when they might hit the market.

Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat defended Alphabets structure on Thursday in a call with investors.

As we reach for moonshots that will have a big impact in the longer term, its inevitable there will be course corrections along the way and that some efforts will be more successful than others, she said.

In the past year, she said, Alphabet has accelerated or paused some of the Other Bets businesses, adding, We are taking the steps necessary to lay the foundation for a stronger future.

Several CEOs of Alphabet businesses have stepped down this year, including Nest CEO Tony Fadell and more recently Craig Barratt, who oversaw Google Fiber, which planned to bring superfast Internet service to cities. Some analysts believe the changes had to do with Porat cutting investment into areas that dont have a clear path to profitability.

As she promised, she is going to be prudent on areas that arent providing a return or dont have a path to providing a return said Robert Peck, an analyst with investment bank SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.

Peck said its possible that some of these Alphabet companies could be spun out into their own firms in the future.

On Tuesday, Barratt said in a blog post that Google Fiber would suspend plans to bring its service to some cities, including San Jose, and there would be layoffs.

Fiber recently acquired Webpass, a company that brings speedy Internet using wireless technology.

Porat said the team will be able to focus on the potential with these efforts (such as in wireless technology) before we accelerate the deployment.

The operating loss from Other Bets shrank to $865 million in the third quarter, down from $980 million in the same period last year.

Wendy Lee is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: wlee@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @thewendylee
MASON CITY  Students in the Building Trades program at North Iowa Area Community College are building a house from the ground up.

Construction of the three-bedroom home began in September on the NIACC campus. It will be made available for sale to the public and moved to its permanent location by its new owner.

Its so fun, said Building Trades student Heather Kadera of Mable Rock.

She said she helped put in the flooring joists.

The roof trusses are now being placed on the house.

Gregg Helmich, NIACC Building Trades instructor, said the students have worked on house building projects in the past, but this is the first time they have been able to build an entire house from start to finish.

Its a great learning lab for the students, he said.

In addition to construction skills, the students are learning about decision making and problem solving, which are critical on a job site, according to Helmich.

Past construction projects have involved traveling to an off-campus site. Being able to build the house on campus reduces driving time, Helmich said.

In addition, if a tool needed for the project was left behind in the Building Trades shop on campus, students dont have far to go to fetch it, he said.

The project was made possible by a $100,000 gift to the Keeping NIACC First Capital Campaign from Dean Snyder Construction of Clear Lake.

Helmich said that money is for the Building Trades program as a whole, not just the house building project.

The company also had an architect draw the design plans for the house and even provided a heated trailer that serves as a break room for the students as well as a place where they can go over blueprints, he said.

If someone agrees to buy the house early enough, the new owner will be able to choose the siding color, Helmich noted.

The house is on a temporary foundation. Whoever buys it will pay for the moving costs and build a permanent foundation.

Helmich said he expects to have the house roll out of here by late April or early May.

The Building Trades program has 20 students this year, which is its highest enrollment ever.

Helmich said the Dean Snyder Constructions Lunch & Learn program, which began in December 2015, has a lot to do with the increase.

The company provides pizza for local high school students during these events, which take place on an actual job site and serve as a recruiting platform for the NIACC Building Trades program.

Kadera is one of two female students currently in the program.

Its a big change for me, said Kadera, whose background is in customer service.

She said she likes to fix things around her house and the Building Trades program teaches her the correct way to do it.

Kadera said most of the other students in the program are the same age as her own kids.

I think I have turned into the mom of the group, she said.
The Justice Department is citing last weeks widespread cyberattacks to support allowing U.S. agents to search online devices in faraway locations with approval from a single judge. Lawmakers on Thursday expressed renewed reservations about expanding the FBIs authority to hack devices.

An amendment to the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, which governs search warrants, goes into effect on Dec. 1 unless Congress stops it. Google and civil liberties groups have argued that the amendment grants the government overly broad powers, with potentially unintended consequences.

Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Rand Paul, R-Ky., have proposed legislation to block the amendment. On Thursday, 23 lawmakers wrote to Attorney General Loretta Lynch asking how the Justice Department intends to use its proposed new powers, and the potential consequences to our digital security.

The amendment is intended to deal with scenarios where certain technology makes it difficult to determine a computers location, or cases when swarms of computers are used to coordinate digital attacks. When the computers cant be located physically, agents could hack into them and look for clues.

The amendment would allow a judge to issue one warrant for computers or devices in multiple districts. Generally judges can issue a search warrant only for their own district.

Earnings

LinkedIn

makes profit

LinkedIn Corp. on Thursday reported third-quarter income of $8.6 million, after reporting a loss in the same period a year earlier.

The Mountain View company said its profit amounted to 6 cents per share. Adjusted for one-time gains and costs, earnings were $1.18 per share.

The online professional networking company, which is being bought by Microsoft, posted revenue of $959.8 million in the period, also topping Street forecasts.

Amazon misses

profit estimates

Amazon.coms profit fell short of analysts expectations last quarter, despite a 29 percent increase in sales.

The Seattle company said Thursday it made $252 million (52 cents per share). Analysts had expected 78 cents per share.

The announcement of the results took an immediate toll on Amazon shares, which fell nearly 7 percent to $763.19 in after-hours trading.

Amazons results often have yielded surprises, but investors in recent quarters had come to expect tidy earnings, as the Amazon Web Services cloud computing business helped increase profitability. Chief Financial Officer Brian Olsavsky said heavy spending on fulfillment centers, which expanded by 30 percent in the past year, and shows for its Prime Video service contributed to the shortfall.

Chronicle News Services
Of all the companies trying to bring about autonomous cars, Comma.ai was perhaps the oddest.

A San Francisco startup founded by famed hacker George Hotz, Comma created a self-driving system that could be added to existing cars, Hondas in particular. Picture Tesla Motors Autopilot sold as an add-on, off-the-shelf kit. The company planned to start selling its system, Comma One, for $999 late this year.

But on Thursday, federal regulators sent Hotz a sternly worded letter ordering Comma to show that its system would not violate auto safety laws. And on Friday, Hotz abruptly canceled Comma One, saying the startup would turn to developing other products.

Would much rather spend my life building amazing tech than dealing with regulators and lawyers, Hotz wrote on Twitter. It isnt worth it.

Hotz wrote that the letter, which he posted online, was the first time he had heard from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. It ordered Comma to reply by Nov. 10 or face fines of up to $21,000 per day.

The agency never asked for a test drive, Hotz wrote.

The administration has been encouraging automakers to develop autonomous cars as a way to prevent traffic accidents, which kill more than 30,000 Americans per year. Critics have, in fact, complained that the administration has given the industry too much leeway, issuing guidelines for self-driving cars rather than enforceable regulations.

But Commas approach appears to have crossed a line.

Comma had argued that its system merely provided a better version of lane-keeping technologies already on the market. The startup had been testing Comma One on a Honda Civic which already had Hondas Sensing system built in.

It provides no new functionality, so it should be legal everywhere the Honda systems are; it is an aftermarket upgrade, Hotz wrote in a recent blog post.

The administrations letter references that post and bluntly tells Hotz that Comma must follow existing auto safety rules.

It is essential that you are aware of and in full compliance with your legal responsibilities to ensure vehicle safety before introducing this product into commerce, reads the letter, written by Chief Counsel Paul Hemmersbaugh.

We are concerned that your product would put the safety of your customers and other road users at risk, he wrote. We strongly encourage you to delay selling or deploying your product on the public roadways unless and until you can ensure it is safe.

The letter then includes a list of question about how the Comma One system works and how the startup has tested it to ensure its safety. All questions had to be answered under oath, accompanied by an affidavit.

Hotz gained fame as the first person to successfully hack the Apple iPhone and the Sony PlayStation 3.

Tech startups often take a dim view of government regulation, preferring to introduce products and services first  as quickly as possible  before worrying about their legality. But the auto industry takes a far more methodical approach, both to developing new products and dealing with regulators.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk, for example, has said his company is in daily contact with the safety agency. And the fallout from a fatal accident involving Teslas Autopilot system in May illustrates why automakers prefer to move carefully.

Much like Autopilot, Commas system was supposed to steer a car at freeway speed while requiring that the driver pay attention and take control if needed. Offering it as an add-on, Hotz argued, would allow interested drivers to take advantage of the technology without buying a new car. The companys website describes its approach as ghostriding for the masses.

David R. Baker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: dbaker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @DavidBakerSF
LONDON  Ubers claim that its drivers are contractors  and not employees entitled to vacations  was rejected Friday by a British tribunal, in a ruling that may have implications for a range of companies that rely on self-employed workers.

The employment tribunal ruled that the two drivers who brought the action are employees of the ride-hailing service, and so are entitled to paid time off and a guaranteed minimum wage. Uber plans to appeal.

While the ruling may eventually affect as many as 30,000 Uber drivers, it also has implications for more than 100,000 independent contractors in Britains gig economy, where people work job-to-job with little security and few employment rights. Such employment, often for services that use apps for everything from food delivery to health care, has grown as the Internet cuts the link between jobs and the traditional workplace.

The Uber ruling will demystify much rhetoric on the gig economy being inherently liberating, said Guglielmo Meardi, director of the Industrial Relations Research Unit at Warwick Business School. He said it will spur debate on how to regulate new forms of contracting work.

The ruling could also encourage Uber drivers in other countries to seek recognition as employees. Uber has fought those efforts as the change would raise its operating expenses significantly and go against its business model and identity. The ability to provide cheaper rides has been integral to its success and appeal.

The San Francisco firm describes itself as a technology company that links self-employed drivers with people who need rides.

Jo Bertram, Ubers regional general manager, argued that thousands of drivers want to be self-employed and their own bosses. The company released a survey in June showing that 68 percent of Uber drivers dont drive a set number of hours each week and 41 percent set their hours based on what is going on in their lives.

The overwhelming majority of drivers who use the Uber app want to keep the freedom and flexibility of being able to drive when and where they want, Bertram said in a statement.

Uber said the ruling applies only to the two people who brought the action, though experts say that, if upheld, it could help shape future regulation of the company and industries that rely heavily on self-employed workers. Leigh Day, the law firm that brought the action, said other Uber drivers could use the action to press their claims that they are also employees.

Attorney Nigel Mackay, who is representing the drivers, said he is pleased the tribunal recognized that his clients are entitled to workers rights.

Uber drivers often work very long hours just to earn enough to cover their basic living costs, he said. It is the work carried out by these drivers that has allowed Uber to become the multibillion-dollar global corporation it is.

An effort to identify Uber drivers as employees has fallen short in San Francisco. In August, a federal judge rejected Ubers attempt to settle claims by drivers that the company had been exploiting them by treating them as contractors instead of employees. The settlement would have given $100 million to about 380,000 drivers, but U.S. district Judge Edward Chen said the amount was not sufficient to cover potential claims under California law.

While companies argue that the gig economys system of self-employment provides lifestyle benefits for people who choose where to work, set their own hours and take time off when they want to, they also avoid many expenses associated with hiring full-time employees.

Sean Nesbitt, a partner in the employment team at the international law firm Taylor Wessing, estimated that the British ruling could cost Uber millions a year in vacation pay and pension contributions. It would cost even more to guarantee a minimum wage or back pay, said Nesbitt, whose firm is not involved in the case.

The Uber tribunal judgment ... will form a vital part of the debate on the gig economy, he said, and it almost certainly will be appealed because its economically significant, it affects over 100,000 workers in related industries, and policymakers are interested in the gig economy.

Prime Minister Theresa May has ordered a study on the implications of the gig economy, and tax authorities are beefing up their enforcement unit.

Matthew Taylor, who is conducting the inquiry at Mays behest, wrote in the Guardian this month that 1 in 5 British workers are in involved in what he called nonstandard working arrangements.

He cited job security, and said that 92 percent of people consider it to be important. But, he added, only 6 percent of people think their job is secure, and 15 percent think it is insecure. Thats around 5 million people wondering if they will be able to pay the bills each month, or what will happen to the mortgage if theyre suddenly out of work.
The latest company to offer American investors a piece of Chinas Internet boom has thousands of couriers on electric carts who speed garments, lipsticks and electronic devices to customers homes.

ZTO Express is one of a host of delivery companies that have emerged in China to ferry packages from merchant to consumer to propel the countrys vast e-commerce revolution. China is now the worlds largest delivery market; nearly 21 billion packages were sent last year, roughly 70 percent originating from online transactions, according to market research firm iResearch.

That concept enabled ZTO to raise a greater-than-expected $1.4 billion in an initial public offering of stock on Thursday, the largest IPO in the United States this year, according to Dealogic. But by the close of trading in New York, its shares on the New York Stock Exchange had tumbled 15 percent, to $16.57, a concerning signal for new listings, which have been challenged this year.

The offerings size eclipsed the $1.3 billion that Japanese messaging company Line raised in July. That also makes it the largest American IPO by a Chinese company since the $25 billion stock sale in 2014 by Alibaba Group, the Chinese e-commerce giant that has underpinned the rise of delivery companies.

ZTO is one of four Chinese delivery companies that ferry a bit more than half of all packages in China. The companies, known as the Tongda Operators, share similar names, business models and origins, and all the founders hail from Tonglu County, about 50 miles south of Alibabas headquarters in Hangzhou, in the eastern province of Zhejiang. Proximity to Alibaba has been a boon for business; Alibabas online shops accounted for about 77 percent of ZTOs business in 2015, according to the companys IPO prospectus.

To Xinjiang, Beijing, anywhere in China, all the Tongda Operators are about the same price, said Liu Song, who runs the Sweet Lisa Flagship Store, which sells womens apparel on Alibabas Tmall online shopping platform. From Chinas southern city of Guangzhou, Liu ships about 3,000 dresses, blouses and skirts each month, for roughly 53 cents a parcel. In 2011, he paid $1.20 a parcel to ship to Beijing.

Every year the price is going down, Liu said. I dont think it can go down any more.

Though ZTO depends heavily on the legions of delivery people who zip around Chinese cities delivering makeup, clothes and gadgets, it doesnt employ them. The Tongda Operators run only the sorting and long-haul transportation network, leaving last-mile delivery  traditionally the most costly link in the chain  to partners who ferry packages from hubs to homes.

That has helped ZTO maintain profit margins as prices charged to customers decline. ZTO earned a net income of $115 million on revenue of $639 million in the first six months of this year.

As the market cost leader, we are not afraid of a price war, said James Guo, ZTOs chief financial officer, while also noting that the decline in parcel weight and the introduction of digital waybills explained some of the falling prices. In the case of the price war, we can actually benefit from that and gain market share.

Almost anyone can open a delivery outlet by paying a fee and signing a contract with ZTO or one of its partners. Then come logos, three-wheeled carts and delivery personnel to start carrying packages. These partners set the prices charged to senders and are the ones being squeezed by a price war.

Though the Tongda Operators are the biggest, Chinas delivery market is fragmented and cutthroat. It has an estimated 8,000 companies, according to 2015 figures from the China E-Commerce Research Center. No single courier holds more than 15 percent market share by volume, according to iResearch. Deutsche Post DHL pulled out of the domestic delivery market entirely in 2011; FedEx and UPS have a tiny share.

ZTOs business model is particular to China, with its densely populated cities and its online shopping boom. It is a business model probably unsuited for many other countries, so the bet for investors is on growth in Chinas e-commerce market and eventual consolidation in the delivery space.

An American initial public offering like ZTOs is unusual among Chinas express delivery companies. ZTOs immediate peers  YTO Express, STO Express and Yunda Express, as well as premium competitor SF Express  are going public in mainland China using what are called reverse mergers, in which the company pours its operations into an existing company that has publicly traded shares.
BY RAY MAGLIOZZ I

Dear Car Talk:

I own a 2014 Toyota Sequoia and took the car in to the dealer for its 35,000-mile oil change and maintenance  including a tire rotation. When I got there, he told me that my lug nuts were swollen. I had never heard of such a thing happening. He told me that the lug nuts are made out of two different metals and that this swelling often occurs. He recommended replacement, but said it might be OK if I went to an auto-parts store and bought the new lug nuts myself if I wasnt comfortable paying the $14 apiece for the 20 factory originals ($280!). He indicated that there is not a safety issue, but said they have to use a socket one size larger than normal, and therefore, my lug nuts might become scratched. I wondered why I would buy factory originals only to have my lug nuts swell up again, and asked if I should contact Toyota to see if maybe it could replace them with non-swelling lug nuts that would have been more properly engineered. Is there a safety issue, or is this indeed just a cosmetic thing?  Tim

CHECK CAR PRICES:

These lug nuts are indeed made of two different metals. Theres the lug nut itself, which is steel, and then theres a thin, chrome-plated metal covering, which is entirely cosmetic.

Because the lug nuts on this truck are exposed, Toyota wanted to make them look nice and shiny, rather than rusty and ugly  like most lug nuts. So they covered the nuts with a chromed sheet metal. Weve seen a lot of cases of swollen nuts in the shop. Usually, it tends to be associated with older cars; its not something we typically see on a 3-year-old vehicle.

What happens is that moisture gets in there and begins to rust and swell the steel nut, which then pushes on the chrome nut-cover, making the whole thing enlarged.

And while its not a safety issue per se, in that your wheels are going to fall off, it is a safety issue in that the lug wrench that comes with your spare tire wont fit over them anymore. Its supposed to be a 21-millimeter nut. But now yours are 22 millimeters. And if you have a flat tire in a remote location, that lug wrench is going to be unable to grip the nuts.

Or, if theres a lot of rust underneath, the chrome cover can actually break off, and youll be left with smaller nuts than you thought you had. Not to mention less-shiny nuts.

So I would complain to Toyota, Tim. At 35,000 miles, you shouldnt have to spend nearly $300 to replace something that should last the life of the vehicle.

If Toyota turns you down, then, as a backup measure, Id buy a breaker bar and a bunch of sockets. Id get a 19-, a 20-, a 22- and a 23-mm socket. And Id throw all that stuff in with your spare tire. That likely will cover any swollen- or delaminated-nut scenario you encounter with a flat tire.

But I would hope that Toyota will take care of you. Unless youre parking in a salt marsh, this sort of nut-swelling shouldnt happen on a car of this age.
A prominent San Francisco attorney returning to his home in El Cerrito on Thursday evening was confronted by an assailant who shot him to death, police said.

Officers responding to 911 calls just before 9 p.m. found James Gilliland Jr., 62, on his front porch on the 2600 block of Mira Vista Drive, in the hills east of Interstate 80. Paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene.

Gillilands wife, Victoria, was inside the home at the time, but investigators have not located any eyewitnesses. They were canvassing for surveillance footage in the neighborhood Friday morning, said El Cerrito police Lt. Robert De La Campa.

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Gilliland had apparently been returning from a social engagement, and had just parked his car when he was shot, De La Campa said. The killer, he said, fired approximately six shots from a handgun.

We dont know the motive yet, the lieutenant said.

It was not known whether Gilliland was stalked or followed, whether he was the victim of a robbery, or whether the victim and gunman knew one another, De La Campa said.

A few residents remembered seeing a white car, and someone running, around the same time as the shooting, he said. Others said they heard loud gunshots.

I heard the shots, but honestly I didnt make the connection to gunshots, said neighbor Roberta Binarelli. I thought it was fireworks. I thought, What are they celebrating?

Other residents said Gilliland was a familiar face in the neighborhood and at a nearby church. He was regularly seen walking a large black dog and maintained a free take-one-leave-one book box in front of his home for the benefit of passersby.

Man, I cant believe that, said neighbor Bruce Easley. When I got up this morning and saw the activity, it just clicked.

Gilliland was a partner at Kilpatrick Townsend and Stockton LLP in San Francisco, where he headed litigation from 2013 to 2015. Specializing in patents, copyright and antitrust, he represented companies including Oracle, Sony, Williams-Sonoma and Levi Strauss and Co.

Susan Spaeth, the firms managing partner, said Gilliland was an absolute pillar.

"He was our trusted colleague and close friend, as well as a mentor and role model to so many, she said in a statement. Jim will be missed deeply. He was truly a great lawyer, and his many clients trusted him with their most difficult cases.

In addition to his work with the law firm, Gilliland served on the board of directors of Roses in Concrete, an Oakland charter elementary school. Its founder and chairman, Jeff Duncan-Andrade, recalled Gilliland as such a humble dude and so giving of his time and expertise.

His legal acumen was incredible. He read every document for us. ... He insisted on excellence, and he would catch every mistake, Duncan-Andrade said. He was a lawyer  the best of what that word means. Not stereotypical. But I was most impacted by his humility.

In an interview earlier this year with the Law360 news service, Gilliland was asked how he attracted new clients.

On occasion, (I) tell clients that I am not the right person for a job, he said. One potential client said he was looking for the meanest SOB in town. I said he should not hire me, because that is not how I handle cases. He didnt.

Investigators urged anyone in the area with surveillance camera footage to call (510) 215-4400 or email investigations@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us.

Kimberly Veklerov and Steve Rubenstein are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com, srubenstein@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov, @SteveRubeSF
Requiring people who have been arrested to pay bail to get out of jail may be unfair to the poor, Californias chief justice said Friday as she named a task force to study possible changes to the states bail system, which is also being challenged in federal court.

This is an equal-access-to-justice issue here in California and nationally, Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye said in announcing the appointment of 11 trial judges and a court administrator to look into pretrial detention practices around the state. She asked them to present their recommendations by December 2017.

California law requires counties to set monetary bail for different crimes but leaves counties free to determine the amounts. Bail levels vary between counties but can amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars for some of the more serious offenses. Defendants usually post bail through bond companies that charge a 10 percent fee.

Lawsuits challenging the bail schedules in San Francisco and Sacramento counties argue that the system is discriminatory because it keeps poor people in jail awaiting trial while wealthier defendants charged with the same crimes can go free.

Lawyers for the counties and bail bond companies argue that the system promotes public safety by giving defendants an incentive to come to court. Plaintiffs in the court cases say the same goals could be accomplished evenhandedly by monitoring defendants, electronically and otherwise, and taking other steps to bring them to court.

Cantil-Sakauye raised similar concerns in her annual State of the Judiciary speech to the Legislature in March, saying a system of supervised release after arrest might be both more effective and fairer than cash bail. We must not penalize the poor for being poor, she said.

The Obama administration weighed in with a filing in an Alabama case in February saying a system requiring a specific amount of bail for each crime, without regard for the ability to pay, violates constitutional standards of equal protection and is also bad public policy.

A federal judge in Sacramento reached a different conclusion last week, dismissing a claim that the bail system violated equal protection of the laws.

The states interest in ensuring criminal defendants appear for trial dates is a legitimate one, and detaining individuals before their arraignment is rationally related to that legitimate interest, said U.S. District Judge Troy Nunley, an appointee of President Obama.

Nunley refused, at least for now, to dismiss a claim that the bail system is unfairly punitive.

Attorney Phil Telfeyan of Equal Justice Under Law, a nonprofit that has challenged bail systems in California and six other states, said Friday the ruling would help his case by requiring defenders of bail to justify the system.

Why is detaining all people who cant afford money bail (the only practical) way to make sure folks will show up for court? Telfeyan asked.

In a separate case, U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers of Oakland allowed a challenge against the bail system in San Francisco to proceed last week. One plaintiff in that case said she was held for two days on a theft charge, unable to raise bail of $30,000, and lost her job at the Oakland airport before prosecutors dropped the case.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @egelko
NORTHWOOD  A Northwood man has lost his appeal of a first-degree murder conviction.

Tyrone Washington Jr., 42, was charged with fatally stabbing Justina Smith, 30, in Swensrud Park in Northwood on Aug. 5, 2013.

During his trial testimony Washington claimed Smith, a Northwood resident he had been romantically involved with that summer, pulled a knife on him in the park and he grabbed it from her and acted in self-defense.

A Webster County jury found him guilty of first-degree murder. He is now serving life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Washington claimed there was insufficient evidence to support a first-degree murder conviction. He also stated the district court abused its discretion in denying his motion for a new trial.

The Iowa Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday that considering 12 sharp-force injuries Smith sustained and two stab wounds  either of which may have been fatal  the jury could have reasonably concluded Washington intended to physically harm her.

The ruling also disputed Washingtons self-defense claim, noting he was not wounded and Tyrone Jones, the man who accompanied Smith to the park to meet Washington, testified he never saw her holding a knife and had no knowledge of her owning one.

Washington claimed his trial attorney, Charles Kenville, failed to object to admission of evidence of Washingtons being violent toward Smith  choking her and slamming her down on a bed  a month before her death.

The appeals court ruled evidence of Washingtons past violence toward Smith was admissible because theres a logical connection between a defendants intent at the time of the crime and prior acts of violence toward the victim.

Washington is black. The trial was moved to Webster County due to concerns over the low number of black Worth County residents for a jury pool.

Washingtons trial first began in May 2015 in Fort Dodge, but was halted during jury selection after Judge Colleen Weiland dismissed the entire jury pool because 111 of the 112 potential jurors identified themselves as white. One juror identified himself as Native American.

The trial was rescheduled for July 2015. This time Weiland rejected a defense motion to strike the jury pool due to lack of diversity.

Four people on the jury panel of 224 individuals identified themselves as black. One of the them was chosen for the jury.

In his appeal Washington challenged Weilands denial of his motion to strike the second jury panel.

In its ruling the appeals court noted Webster County census data indicated black people make up 4.1 percent of the population. The percentage of black people in the panel of potential jurors was 1.8 percent.

The court ruled this was not a substantial deviation from the overall percentage of black people in the county, and that they were not being systematically excluded from the jury panel.
When Prince Harry wants to get away from it all, he likes to head to Africa. Recently he released a few of his vacation photos and they are impressive.

While you and I might go on vacation to relax, drink something alcoholic and soak up the sun, Prince Harry spent his vacation working with conservationists in Malawi to save elephants. The group is working to move 500 elephants to a sanctuary 200 miles away. Elephant poaching in Africa is a huge problem and Prince Harry is working to raise awareness of it.

IN PHOTOS: Kate Middleton's fairy tale life

In the photos above you can see Prince Harry spray painting a young male elephant so that when it's released, they can make sure it ends up with its original family group. You can also see the 32-year-old prince wrestling with an elephant to get it to lie down. (They must be easier to spray paint that way.)

In a statement Prince Harry said:

Elephants simply can't roam freely like they used to, without coming into conflict with communities, or being threatened by poaching and persecution. There has to be a balance between the numbers of animals, and the available habitat. Just how nature intended it. Human populations in Southern Africa have increased annually by an average of 1.16% from 1960 to today, from 73 million to 320 million. There is no question at all that Africa's wildlife will be increasingly susceptible to growing human populations and their requirements for land. ' To allow the coexistence of people and animals, fences are increasingly having to be used to separate the two, and try to keep the peace. Once a fence is up, you are now managing a parcel of land. Different rules have to apply whether we like it or not. Under these conditions human intervention in stabilising nature might be required by park managers. In this case, African Parks, in partnership with the Malawian government, have re-established a safe area for elephants to be moved back to. This simultaneously relieves the pressure in Liwonde, and restocks Nkhotakota so both populations of Elephants can continue to grow. If the re-balance doesn't take place, human wildlife conflict will increase and elephants will degrade their habitat. We're then back to having to consider the worst  reducing herds by culling.'

We have to say Prince Harry spending his time and influence to combat this serious issue just makes us love him even more.

Have you ever wrestled and spray painted an elephant while on vacation?
Halloween is upon us and the Bay Area's favorite neighborhoods are wrapped in orange and black. Below is a list of favorite spots for trick-or-treaters offered up by SFGate readers on Facebook. These are the spots where you'll find haunted houses in the garages, tombstones stuck in the front yards, and lots of spooky spirit.

Please share where you like to bring the kids in the comments.

SAN FRANCISCO

Noe Valley, 24th Street (between Church and Castro)

Sweet spot for little kids: The parade of parents pushing mini pirates and princesses in strollers starts around 3 p.m. Retailers pass out treats to little ones in costumes. By nightfall the street is packed and families with older kids head out to nearby Fair Oaks and Randall Streets to load their bags with more treats.

Cole Valley, Belvedere (between Parnassus and 17th Streets)

Street party: This pretty tree-lined stretch gets blocked off to traffic to make way for the droves of Halloween revelers who flock to this hood for candy and spooks.

Seacliff

Think full-size candy bars: This posh hood is known for its opulent mansions, celebrity residents, and Halloween candy. Locals tell legendary tales about homeowners passing out full-size Hershey's bars.

VIDEO: WHAT YOUR HALLOWEEN COSTUME SAYS ABOUT YOU

EAST BAY

More for you Costume fails: 45 Halloween moments gone frighteningly wrong

Berkeley, Russell Street (between College Avenue and the Claremont Hotel)

Spooky decorations: The homeowners in this hood go all out creating elaborate graveyards and haunted houses in their front yards. Prepare for crowds.

Oakland, Haddon Hill

Best atmosphere: On October 31, this posh hood's opulent houses turn into haunted-looking mansions with cob-webbed front stoops and front yard cemeteries.

Lafayette, Victoria Court and Avenue

Neighborhood spirit: The street is completely blocked off from cars and the entire small neighborhood decorates their homes to the hilt with some even building elaborate haunted houses.

SOUTH BAY / PENINSULA

San Jose, Willow Glenn

Fun for all ages: Businesses along Lincoln Avenue welcome toddlers and babies in strollers from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and school-age kids in costume from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. In the evening, follow any of the streets off the main drag to find lots of candy and houses decked out in spooky decorations.

Los Gatos, Tait Avenue, Almond Grove

Halloween central: An estimated 100,000 pieces of candy are passed out by homeowners on this festive street. Don't miss the Thriller performance that takes place in front of one of the homes.

Burlingame, Cabrillo Avenue

Safe and easy: Flat streets and close-together homes with no stairs make trick-or-treating on this street a breeze.

NORTH BAY

McDonald Avenue, Santa Rosa

Nonstop party: Fog machines, scary music, laser-light shows, haunted garages . . . this hood goes all out for Halloween and trick-or-treaters come from all over Sonoma County to stuff their jack-o-lanterns with candy here.

Mill Valley, Sycamore Street

Halloween charm: The leafy street lined with storybook houses make this one of the Bay Area's most picturesque neighborhoods for trick-or-treating. Warm, family environment.

Petaluma, D Street

Scariest street: Decked out to the nines in creepy decor, this street's stately Victorians are right out of a horror movie.
MASON CITY  North Dakota protests over the construction of a multi-state oil pipeline symbolize a resurgence in Native American activism not seen in decades, according to a Mason City hip hop and tattoo artist.

This is the equivalent to the civil rights movement in the 60s for the black community, said Sten Joddi, 34. We never had a civil rights movement for native people.

Joddi, a member of the Muscogee Creek Nation tribe and an Oklahoma native, said environmental concerns raised by the Dakota Access pipelines construction should not just concern Native Americans. Joddi took part in a smaller protest in downtown Mason City in September.

For many Native American tribes, the pipelines construction was foretold by the prophecy of the black snake, where a generation would unite to stand and stop and cut the head, Joddi said.

The almost-complete $3.8 billion pipeline passes through North Dakota, South Dakota and Iowa to Patoka, Illinois. Opponents worry about its negative effect on drinking water, as well as the potential destruction of cultural artifacts.

What they dont understand is that we are indigenous people, Joddi said. We were there when there was no heater or electricity. The traditions show us, our elders show us how to live that way. We arent going anywhere.

Law enforcement officers and soldiers, some wearing riot gear and many armed, began an operation on Thursday to remove Dakota Access pipeline protesters camped on private land in the path of the pipeline in North Dakota.

The forcible removal began a day after protesters refused to leave voluntarily.

About 200 activists supporting the Standing Sioux Tribe moved onto the site in North Dakota last weekend, setting up teepees and tents and saying the land is rightfully theirs under a more than century-old treaty.

But the pipelines developer, Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners, says the protesters are trespassing and demands they leave.

The pipeline is to carry oil from western North Dakota through South Dakota and Iowa to an existing pipeline in Patoka, Illinois, where shippers can send it on to Midwest and Gulf Coast markets. Energy Transfer Partners has said the pipeline is nearly complete other than the work in south central North Dakota.

The years-long dispute over the pipeline reached a crisis point at the weekend when some 200 protesters set up camp on land owned by pipeline developer Energy Transfer Partners.

More than 260 people have been arrested since demonstrations began in August.

As a native people, we are going to have to deal with that in a way that we can try to stop what we feel and stand up and stop allowing it to happen, whether its speaking up ... or its standing there on the front lines and not moving, Joddi said.

Earlier this week, Gov. Terry Branstad and the governors of North and South Dakota wrote in a letter to the Army Corps of Engineers that pipeline construction delays will adversely affect landowners and farmers in their states.

The Army is reviewing concerns raised by Native American tribes protesting the project. Federal agencies have ordered a temporary halt to construction on Corps land around and underneath Lake Oahe, which starts in South Dakota, flows into North Dakota and is one of six reservoirs on the Missouri.

All three governors said its their understanding the project meets the federal requirements necessary to move forward.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill.  Illinois Republican Sen. Mark Kirk apologized Friday for mocking his Democratic rivals immigrant background and her statement that her familys military service dates back to the Revolution  comments that drew wide criticism and threatened an already difficult re-election campaign.

Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her familys service, Kirk wrote in a Twitter post.

During a debate Thursday night, Rep. Tammy Duckworth said her family has served this nation in uniform going back to the Revolution.

Kirk responded that he had forgotten that the congresswomans parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington.

Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran who lost both legs when the Black Hawk she was piloting was shot down in 2004, was born in Bangkok. Her mother, who is of Chinese descent, was born in Thailand. Duckworth has said her father first went to Southeast Asia while serving with the Marines in Vietnam.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee condemned Kirks comment, calling it offensive, wrong and racist.

Duckworth later tweeted a photo of herself with her parents, including her father in uniform displaying his medals. Her tweet says: My mom is an immigrant and my dad and his family have served this nation in uniform since the Revolution.

Kirk suffered a stroke in 2012 and returned to work one year later.

During his first bid for Senate in 2010, Kirk acknowledged that he had exaggerated some of his own military record, including stating that he came under enemy fire while flying reconnaissance missions in Iraq as a Navy intelligence officer.

Kirk is seen as one of the Senates most vulnerable Republican incumbents.
1 Prince museum: Princes Paisley Park studio complex and home reopened Friday as a museum honoring his musical legacy, and the mayor of the Minneapolis suburb of Chanhassen declared it Paisley Park Day in celebration. Visitors to the museum can see the studios where Prince recorded his hits, his guitars, Purple Rain motorcycle, costumes, awards and other memorabilia. Prince died at Paisley Park in April of an accidental painkiller overdose. The museum, managed by the same company that runs Elvis Presleys Graceland, is expected to draw 600,000 people a year.

2 Coke busts: The U.S. Coast Guard has delivered more than 39,000 pounds of cocaine to San Diego  including some seized from a mini-submarine. A Coast Guard cutter on Thursday off-loaded narcotics that were confiscated in 25 separate busts that took place off the coasts of Central and South America over the past fiscal year. That includes 5,600 pounds of coke  valued at $73 million  that were seized from a semi-submersible in September. The vessel had a mostly submerged hull with only a cockpit and exhaust pipe above the water. Altogether, the Coast Guard and its partners seized 416,600 pounds of cocaine between October of 2015 and the end of September. The agency also captured a record 585 suspected drug smugglers.
1 Amtrak settlement: Amtrak will pay $265 million to settle claims related to a deadly derailment in Philadelphia that killed eight people and injured more than 200 others. Lawyers who negotiated the settlement say people will have their awards in hand by June instead of going through years of legal wrangling. Amtrak has previously taken responsibility for the May 2015 crash. Federal law caps payouts for any one accident at $295 million. The injuries range from catastrophic, including one man left a paraplegic, to people who suffered emotional trauma.

2 Pot measure disqualified: The Arkansas Supreme Court disqualified a medical marijuana proposal from the November ballot less than two weeks before the election and with thousands of votes already cast, but voters will still be able to consider a competing plan. In a 5-2 ruling Thursday, the court sided with opponents of the proposed initiated act that would have allowed patients with certain medical conditions and a doctors recommendation to purchase marijuana from dispensaries. The proposal was one of two medical marijuana proposals on the ballot, and justices earlier this month rejected a challenge to a competing measure. The ruling comes after nearly 142,000 people have already cast ballots through early voting.
CANNON BALL, N.D.  Law enforcement officers dressed in riot gear fired bean bags and pepper spray on Thursday as they ousted protesters from a camp on private land in the path of the Dakota Access oil pipeline.

Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier said authorities would maintain a presence in the area for the time being to keep protesters off private land and prevent them from blocking a nearby highway.

About 200 police and soldiers launched the operation to force out the protesters, a day after they refused to leave voluntarily from the camp. Kirchmeier said late in the afternoon that the camp was secure, though officers were still dealing with some protesters in the surrounding area.

Kirchmeier said that there had been 16 arrests and that the total would increase.

The confrontation marked a major escalation of a protest that has raged for months. Opponents of the pipeline moved in over the weekend to establish a camp on private land where the developer was working to complete the 1,200-mile pipeline designed to carry oil from western North Dakota to Illinois.

The route of the pipeline skirts the Standing Rock Reservation and the tribe says it could endanger water supplies and disturb cultural sites. The state of North Dakota says no sensitive cultural sites have been found in the area.

Police and soldiers driving trucks, military Humvees and buses began the operation to clear the camp at midday and formed a horseshoe-like loop once they reached the camp, where about 200 protesters were awaiting them  some defiant and others praying.

Officials used a loudspeaker to warn protesters to move out. Two helicopters and an airplane monitored the operation from the air.

The camp is just to the north of a more permanent and larger encampment on federally owned land that has been the main staging area for hundreds of protesters, including American Indians from across North America, environmentalists and some celebrities.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.  Trailing with time running out, Donald Trump denounced both Hillary and Bill Clinton Thursday as creatures of a corrupt political system who would use another pass at the Oval Office to enrich themselves at the expense of American families. Clinton turned to popular first lady Michelle Obama to rally voters in North Carolina, a state that could deliver a knockout blow to Trump.

Trump seized on newly public emails in which longtime Bill Clinton aide Doug Band describes overlapping relationships of the Clintons global philanthropy and the familys private enrichment. The emails were among thousands stolen from the private account of a top Clinton aide, part of a hacking the Democratic campaign has blamed on the Russians.

Mr. Band called the arrangement unorthodox. The rest of us call it outright corrupt, Trump declared during a rally in Springfield, Ohio. If the Clintons were willing to play this fast and loose with their enterprise when they werent in the White House, just imagine what theyll do in the Oval Office.

Band wrote the 2011 memo to defend his firm, Teneo, describing how he encouraged his clients to contribute to the foundation and provide consulting and speaking gigs for Bill Clinton. Some of his work included obtaining in-kind services for the president and his family  for personal travel, hospitality, vacation and the like.

Clinton made no mention of the revelations as she campaigned alongside Obama, their first joint appearance of the campaign. The first lady has emerged as one of Clintons most powerful surrogates, passionately touting her experience and denouncing Trump as too divisive and thin-skinned for the White House.

We want someone who is a unifying force in this country, someone who sees our differences not as a threat but as a blessing, Mrs. Obama said as she addressed an enthusiastic, 11,000-person crowd, one of Clintons biggest of the campaign. Trump often points out that his crowds are generally larger than his rivals.

Obama also accused Trumps campaign of trying to depress voter turnout and panned his provocative assertion that the results of the Nov. 8 contest may be rigged.

Just for the record, in this country, the United States of America, the voters decide elections, the first lady said. Theyve always decided.

With a lead in the race for weeks, Clintons campaign is concerned that her advantage could prompt some of her backers to stay home on election day or cast protest votes for a third-party candidate. Nearly all of her recent events have been in states where early voting is already under way, aimed at using the rallies to prompt supporters to bank their votes now.

A new Associated Press-GfK poll released Wednesday found Clinton on the cusp of a potentially commanding victory, fueled by solid Democratic turnout in early voting, massive operational advantages and increasing enthusiasm among her supporters. The survey shows her leading Trump nationally by 14 percentage points among likely voters, 51 to 37 percent. That margin is the largest national lead for Clinton among recent surveys.
Earlier this month, a Montana man who repeatedly raped his 12-year-old daughter was sentenced to 60 days in jail.

On Friday, a California man who repeatedly raped his daughter when she was a teenager was sentenced to 1,503 years in prison.

Comparisons of the two cases were quickly drawn. Brock Turner's six-month sentence for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman outside a Stanford University frat house was also thrown into the mix.

Just as Judge Aaron Persky, of Santa Clara County, Calif., found himself besieged by critics over Turner's light sentence, so did Judge John McKeon, of Valley County, Mont., after he handed down a two-month jail sentence to the 40-year-old man who pleaded guilty to incest.

"The victim only had the justice system on her side, and it failed her," reads an online petition calling for McKeon's impeachment. "Judge McKeon failed her."

Compare that to the reaction to the gargantuan sentence imposed by Judge Edward Sarkisian Jr., of Fresno County, Calif., on the 41-year-old man who raped his daughter for years.

Yellow Dog Productions

Readers who commented on stories about the case thanked Sarkisian, a California Superior Court judge since 1987.

"This Judge always give great rulings," a Fresno Bee reader commented after Rene Lopez received what amounts to multiple lifetime sentences.

"This is great. This judge set(s) a very good example of all judges to follow," wrote another.

"Bravo. We need to clone this judge," one reader wrote on the Facebook page for the group Justice For Children Without Voices.

"A judge that gets it!!" another said.

Several factors could explain the sentencing disparity between the two rape cases.

For one, the father from Glasgow in eastern Montana pleaded guilty to only one count of incest to receive a lighter sentence. Two other counts were dismissed as part of the plea deal.

Rene Lopez, of Fresno, was found guilty by a jury of 186 felony charges, including 22 counts of rape of a minor and 163 counts of rape. The trial lasted 11 days, court records show.

Lopez could have received a much lighter sentence.

Prosecutors offered him a plea deal twice, the Fresno Bee reported. The first offer could have secured him a prison sentence of 13 years, at most; the second, 22 years. But Lopez rejected both offers and chose to go to trial instead.

According to the Fresno Bee, Lopez raped his then-teenage daughter from May 2009 to May 2013. She was raped two to three times a week, on Christmas and other holidays.

The horrific crimes ended when the girl, who is now 23, moved out. Lopez was arrested in November 2013, after she reported the abuse to police, the Bee reported.

During the trial, jurors were read entries from a diary in which the victim chronicled the crimes against her.

The Washington Post generally does not name victims of sexual abuse.

The Post also is not naming the convicted man from Montana, as it could expose the identity of his victim, who is still a minor.

Testimony given at the sentencing hearings for the two men likely played a significant role in how they were punished.

In a statement explaining his decision, McKeon, the Montana judge, said the victim's mother and grandmother wrote letters asking for the defendant to not be sent to prison, the Associated Press reported. While his actions were horrible, the man has two sons who love and need him, the women wrote.

Nobody spoke on the victim's behalf, according to the AP.

In Lopez's case, the victim testified about the abuse during the sentencing hearing on Friday.

"When my father abused me, I was young; I had no power, no voice - I was defenseless," she said, according to the Fresno Bee.

Sarkisian, the judge, called the victim a "courageous young woman."

Lopez, who did not testify at his trial, wrote a letter to the judge saying his daughter lied. He also did not show any remorse, his daughter said in court.

Sarkisian found him to be a serious danger to society. After his daughter moved out, Lopez left love songs on her answering machine and drove by her new home, the judge said.

When she got pregnant, he paid for her abortion, the Bee reported.

In Montana, prosecutors did not challenge a psychosexual evaluation's findings that the defendant could be safely treated and supervised in the community, the AP reported.

McKeon explained that although the plea agreement recommended a sentence of 25 years, it also provided for a lesser sentence depending on the results of the psychosexual evaluation. Under Montana state law, defendants may not face the mandatory 25-year prison sentence for incest involving children age 12 and younger if an evaluation finds that they can be rehabilitated.

Montana's sentencing policies "encourage and provide opportunities for an offender's self-improvement, rehabilitation and reintegration back into a community," McKeon wrote in his statement, according to the AP.

A clinical social worker also testified that the defendant is not likely to commit a similar crime if properly treated. Public defender Casey Moore said the man is remorseful and has cooperated with law enforcement, according to the Glasgow Courier.

McKeon's sentence requires the defendant to register as a sex offender and to communicate regularly with a probation officer. He's prohibited from having any contact with the victim or any minor and from accessing pornographic material.

Prosecuting attorney Dylan Jensen told the Glasgow Courier that he was "shocked and disappointed" with the 60-day sentence.

But while Jensen said he respected McKeon's decision, the public's fury likely will not dissipate anytime soon: The online petition calling for the judge's impeachment has been signed more than 100,000 times.

It's unlikely to make a difference, however: McKeon is retiring next month.

And according to the National Center for State Courts, a judge may be only impeached by a two-thirds vote in the state legislature. The state's judicial standards commission also can make a recommendation to the state Supreme Court.
FOREST CITY  The proposed Hanson Fine Arts building will be for the community, but first it needs help from the community.

Forest City is, as it should be, is proud of our tradition in the fine arts, Waldorf University President Bob Alsop said. With this opportunity, the community can really leverage their partnership with us and help make the fine arts facility a reality.

Alsop, Darwin Lehmann, Barney Ruiter and Beth Bilyeu recently applied for a $625,000 Community Attraction and Tourism Grant. The $625,000 is the last amount needed for the initial construction of the proposed $9.3 million facility.

They issued a challenge, Forest City Schools Superintendent Lehmann said. The original budget had the community contributing $200,000 to help pay for the building amenities like chairs, tables, podiums, audio and visual equipment.

Those with the grant suggested setting the public fundraising total at $500,000, with at least $50,000 raised by Nov. 9.

They want to see public support. They think its a goal we can achieve, Lehmann said.

He agrees. Especially, he said, as the fine arts have a long standing pride and excellence in the community.

The high school marching band recently received its 36th consecutive Division One rating. Lehmann said the musical continually sells out the high school auditorium.

The same goes for Waldorf productions in Smith Theatre.

The theater department gets national recognition, year in and year out, Alsop said. The instrumental program is also growing in numbers.

The middle school has more than 100 students involved in choir while the high school has over 70. Those students recently performed a concert in the high school gym, which Lehmann says isnt designed for the fine arts.

The solution, he said, is the proposed fine arts center.

The school district plans to send out mailers to the community. Alsop said the university will be turning to its alumni.

With Waldorf, our alumni are passionate and proud, he said. They are excited about what it brings to our campus.

Lehmann encourages those in the community to consider donating to the fine arts center.

Its an opportunity for all of us to step up and keep the ball moving forward, he said.
FOREST CITY  Smith Theatre will turn into a haunted hospital just in time for Halloween.

It wont just be any haunted hospital, though.

Were going to try making the guides people who are looking for their relatives lost in the hospital, said Waldorf University sophomore Myriah Hacker.

The hospital opened Friday night and will run through Sunday. Hours are 7 to 10 p.m. Admission is $3, or $2.50 with a canned good for the Winnebago County Neighborhood Food Bank.

The guides, Hacker said, are going to break into the crazy hospital.

There will be crazy doctors, creepy little girls, all the good stuff, she said.

This is the 12th year for the haunted house, sponsored by theater students in the campus organization Alpha Psi Omega. The group sponsored a screening of the Rocky Horror Picture Show last year in place of the haunted house.

Hacker is helping design this years haunted hospital for the first time.

Im actually really excited. I think it will turn out really well, she said.

The costume shop underneath Smith Theatre is turning into the childrens ward, complete with dolls and assorted props.

Its going to be creepy, Hacker said.

So creepy that APO President Abbie Wells doesnt plan to even walk through the haunted house.

Ill be up front, the senior said of her usual spot during the haunted house.

Hacker doesnt share Wells apprehension.

Im in love with Halloween, she said.
The last time anyone saw Yonatan Daniel Aguilar in public was in the spring of 2012.

Teachers at his elementary school in Los Angeles were worried about him. One said Yonatan appeared to be hoarding food. Another said he came to school with a black eye. They filed their concerns with county social workers, who in turn alerted police, according to the Los Angeles Times. After interviewing people close to him, authorities found no cause for alarm - school officials told social workers he lived in a safe household.

Not long after, Yonatan vanished.

He did not return to class, nor to his after school program. Although his family had been the subject of a half-dozen reports by the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, social workers had no legal ability to inquire about him, the Times reported.

Yonatan's stepfather, Jose Pinzon, believed the boy was living in Mexico. The boy's mother, Veronica Aguilar, allegedly told him so, and said the same to other people who wanted to know his whereabouts.

That was the story until August 2016, when Aguilar came to Pinzon with tragic news: Yonatan had died. Pinzon, who said he had not seen the boy in several years, figured she would be going to Mexico for the funeral.

Instead, she opened the closet door.

Inside was the 11-year-old's body, wrapped in a blanket and surrounded by medicinal cups. His hair was falling out, his nose was plugged with foam, and pressure sores covered his tiny frame. He weighed just 34 pounds.

"I took care of the problem by ruining my life," Aguilar allegedly told Pinzon.

Details of the harrowing saga were culled from Los Angeles County Juvenile Court records and published Thursday by the Times.

Aguilar, 39, has been charged with murder and child abuse and is being held on $2 million bail, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. She has pleaded not guilty and faces 15 years to life in prison if convicted, according to KTLA.

Aguilar's defense attorney told the Times: "My client is innocent until proven guilty."

Why Aguilar allegedly kept Yonatan hidden for so long remains a mystery - perhaps one that will be explored in her criminal case - but police said she was so crafty that for three years Pinzon may not have realized that he and his stepson were under the same roof, according to the Times.

Sometime in 2012, Aguilar pulled Yonatan out of school, apparently because she was offended by questions from social workers, the Times reported.

As the couple and their four children moved from house to house, the Times reported, Aguilar kept the boy locked in closets, sedating him with liquid sleep medications. When Pinzon would go out for groceries, Aguilar would always ask him to pick up purple-colored "syrup," records show - something Pinzon reportedly found confusing because they were tight on money.

At the time of Yonatan's death, the family was living in a one-bedroom house in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Echo Park, according to the Times. Two children shared a bedroom and a third child slept in a shed outside, while the couple slept in the living room. Her children appear to have known what she was doing, but concealed it from their stepfather, the Times reported.

It was Aug. 22 when Aguilar allegedly told Pinzon the truth about Yonatan. After seeing the boy's body, Pinzon ran out of the house and called police from a 7-11, according to the Times.

When detectives arrived, they interviewed Pinzon and the children in the same room. Pinzon exploded when he realized the children knew, reported the Times, which described the exchange from records:

"'How can you do this to me?'" he asked.

"One of the children replied: 'You were always at work, so you didn't know.'

"Pinzon then started crying.

"'I carry a photo of him in my wallet,' he said, according to the records. 'I'm the only one that cared for him.'"

---

A public memorial was held for the boy at an Echo Park church last month, according to KTLA. Among the speakers was Moses Castillo, the lead detective in the case.

"Yonatan, I pledge to you that we will continue to tell your story in hopes that similar cases do not repeat again," he told people who had gathered to remember the boy.

Pinzon also recalled his relationship with the boy.

"He's still alive for me," Pinzon said, "because I carry him in my heart."
I have been involved with the United Way for 10 years and currently serve on the board. I ask that you support the United Way of North Central Iowa's campaign and invest in your community.

I have seen the impact the United Way can have on issues by working with different agencies. Hunger in our schools is a reality and the United Way and the Food Bank of Iowa have partnered together through the Back Pack Program to help insure kids have access to food over the weekend. This is just one example of how the United Way and its partner agencies are making a difference.
In 2011, Darleen Franklin, a biology researcher at San Francisco State University, was commissioned by The Bay Citizen to take samples of whatever was hiding in the then-plush BART seats. The findings were frightening, and likely contributed to BART's eventual decision to replace the seats with an easier to clean vinyl covering.

In April 2016, she (with a team of researchers) reprised their duty again, re-testing BART's seats as well as Muni's, and the results are now in, via KTVU.

To their surprise (and disgust?), Muni's seats yielded some odd findings. Franklin found a "hard to identify" bacteria that her team eventually discovered to be a strain called "Pigmentiphaga." The bacteria, found on the 28 bus line that runs near Golden Gate Park and SF State, is extremely rare, only ever being found in waste water from South Korea, the South China Sea, and in one weird case, a 6-year-old patient in Manitoba, Canada.

Franklin tells KTVU that they're not sure yet if the strain is dangerous to Muni riders, saying that in the case of the young Canadian girl, it was "difficult to assessthe clinicalrelevance of this microbe as itpertains to human health."

John Haley, a representative for Muni, maintains that buses are "definitely safe" to ride; an SFMTA spokesman backs him up on that as well, saying that San Francisco's Department of Heath found it was "non-pathological" and "nothing to worry about."

It is, however, irrefutably icky.

On the other hand, BART, thanks in large part to a decision to move to the vinyl material, has substantially improved the sanitation of its seats. Unlike years before, there was "nopresenceoffungi,fecalbacteria" found on the seats, which is great news for people who don't like gross things.

In the meantime, Franklin and her team are planning to look more into the Pigmentiphaga strain. As she says, "more research has to be done on it."

Read Franklin's report here.

Edit: Franklin has provided SFGATE with the following update:

"Conclusion: From this study the take home message for our commuters would be that the BART new seat material today is much better than the old cloth seats at preventing transportation of the unwanted tiny passengers in our microbiome. No human pathogens were detected in this qualitative microbial study, basic hand washing / hand sanitizing and keeping your hands out of your open orifices (eyes, mouth, nose etcetera) when on any public transportation is still the best way to prevent infection. In addition the procedure described in this study could be used to continue tracking public health disease in the SF Bay Area public transit system or microbiome studies."

Additionally, she notes that the Pigmentiphaga does not pose a health concern, as "with poor and observed slow growth in 37C, they don't pose a health concern in this study."
MARTINSRIED / MUNICH, Germany, Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX) will publish its first nine months' 2016 results on November 7, 2016 at 7:00 am CET.

At 2:00 pm CET (1:00 pm GMT, 8:00 am EST), the Management Board of MorphoSys AG will host a public conference call and webcast to present MorphoSys's financial results for the first nine month of 2016 and provide further details on the Company's latest developments.

Dial-in numbers (listen only):

Germany: +49 89 2444 32975

United Kingdom: +44 20 3003 2666

USA: +1 202 204 1514

We request that you please dial in up to 10 minutes before the call to ensure a prompt start and a secure line.

The presentation slides and webcast link will be available at the Company's website at www.morphosys.com/conference-calls

A slide-synchronized audio replay of the conference will also be available at the corporate website following the live event.

About MorphoSys

MorphoSys developed HuCAL, the most successful antibody library technology in the pharmaceutical industry. By successfully applying this and other patented technologies, MorphoSys has become a leader in the field of therapeutic antibodies, one of the fastest-growing drug classes in human healthcare.

Together with its pharmaceutical partners, MorphoSys has built a therapeutic pipeline of more than 100 human antibody drug candidates for the treatment of cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, and Alzheimer's disease, to name just a few. With its ongoing commitment to new antibody technology and drug development, MorphoSys is focused on making the healthcare products of tomorrow. MorphoSys is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol MOR. For regular updates about MorphoSys, visit http://www.morphosys.com.

HuCAL, HuCAL GOLD, HuCAL PLATINUM, CysDisplay, RapMAT, arYla, Ylanthia, 100 billion high potentials, Slonomics, Lanthio Pharma and LanthioPep are registered trademarks of the MorphoSys Group.

This communication contains certain forward-looking statements concerning the MorphoSys group of companies, The forward-looking statements contained herein represent the judgment of MorphoSys as of the date of this release and involve risks and uncertainties, Should actual conditions differ from the Company's assumptions, actual results and actions may differ from those anticipated, MorphoSys does not intend to update any of these forward-looking statements as far as the wording of the relevant press release is concerned.

For more information, please contact:

MorphoSys AG

Dr. Claudia Gutjahr-Loser

Head of Corporate Communications & IR

Alexandra Goller

Senior Manager Corporate Communications & IR

Jochen Orlowski

Associate Director Corporate Communications & IR

Tel: +49 (0) 89 / 899 27-404

investors@morphosys.com

Q3 2016 Conference Call Alert http://hugin.info/130295/R/2052333/768086.pdf
We know  its been a LONG election season. And your mailboxes are just as overwhelmed as you probably are.

So, KQED collected as many campaign mailers as we could get our hands on, and took on the tough task of sifting through them. Below, check out some of our favorites. Its by no means an exhaustive list  we only got our hands on so many!  and wed love to see more, so if you have one thats noteworthy, tweet us a pic.

One of the best  and most bizarre  came from former Richmond City Councilman Jim Rogers, who christened himself a Pokemon, Rogersmon, as he seeks another term on the East Bay citys leadership body. (In case you were on a deserted island earlier this year, Pokemon Go is a massively popular video game that blends virtual reality with the real world ):

KQED

Down the road in Silicon Valley, fliers sent out by two Democrats competing to represent Assembly District 24 also caught our eye.

First up, Vicki Veenker, who used the late, great Yogi Berra on her flier about traffic and crowding problems in Silicon Valley:

KQED

Supporters of her opponent, Marc Berman, went for an equally wholesome message: Vegetables. In a series of mailers, Bermans backers argued that his positions on fiscal and budget issues are are akin to eating your veggies. Brussels and beets, to be exact. Maybe theyre trying to appeal to the farmers market crowd?

And you didnt think you could get through this post without us mentioning Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, did you? Well, the state Democratic and Republican parties werent going to let that slide.

Well start with Clinton, This one was an email, but we had to give the California GOP credit for humor. This went out Wednesday, which was Clintons birthday:

CAGOP, KQED

Not to be outdone, the state Democratic Party has been targeting several congressional seats currently held by Republicans in the hopes of flipping them to blue. And you know they were going to bring Trump into it.

In Modesto, Democrats were busy linking Congressman Jeff Denham with the GOP nominee. Denham has gotten heat for supporting Trump.

KQED

KQED

And in northern Los Angeles County and part of Ventura County, GOP Congressman Steve Knight is being haunted by his past statements on this scratch-off mailer, also sent by the Democratic Party (thats right, its like a real lotto ticket).

KQED

KQED

More from Marisa Lagos.
English Swedish

Industrivardens 2016 Annual General Meeting assigned the Chairman of the Board with the task of contacting four shareholders from among the largest registered shareholders in terms of votes in Euroclear Sweden AB's printout of the shareholder register as per the last business day in August, who each appoints one representative who is not a director on the Company's board, to form together with the Chairman of the Board a nominating committee for the time until a new nominating committee has been appointed based on the mandate from the next year's Annual General Meeting. The Nominating Committee appoints a committee chair from among its members. The composition of the Nominating Committee shall be made public not later than six months before the next Annual General Meeting. No fee is payable for work on the Nominating Committee.

Accordingly, the Nominating Committee has the following composition: Bo Damberg (Jan Wallanders och Tom Hedelius Foundation and others), Mats Guldbrand (L E Lundbergforetagen), Fredrik Lundberg (Chairman of the Board of Industrivarden), Mikael Schmidt (SCA Pension Foundation and others) and Hakan Sandberg (Handelsbanken Pension Foundation and others). The members of the Nominating Committee have been appointed by shareholders who together represent approximately two thirds of the total number of votes.

If a member leaves the Nominating Committee before its work has been completed, and if the Nominating Committee is of the opinion that there is a need to replace said member, the Nominating Committee shall appoint a new member. Any change in the Nominating Committee's composition shall be announced immediately.

Industrivardens Annual General Meeting will be held on May 9, 2017, in Stockholm.

Stockholm, October 28, 2016

AB INDUSTRIVARDEN (publ)

For further information, please contact:

Fredrik Lundberg, Convening member of Nominating Committee, tel. +48-8-463 06 00.
SANTA MONICA, Calif., Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Opiant Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Opiant) (OTCQB:OPNT), a specialty pharmaceutical company developing pharmacological treatments for substance use, addictive and eating disorders, announced that it has obtained exclusive development and commercialization rights to the heroin vaccine invented by scientists at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).



Aggressively addressing heroin addiction is part of Opiants mission, said Roger Crystal, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Opiant. In our view, this vaccine fits our plan to develop innovative treatments for this condition. The vaccine has promising preclinical data.

Scientists at NIDA in Rockville, Maryland, and at WRAIR in Silver Spring, Maryland, developed a vaccine candidate that induces antibodies that then bind to heroin in the bloodstream, thereby preventing the drug from crossing the blood-brain barrier and blocking the euphoria and addictive effects. Because heroin is too small a molecule to induce antibodies on its own, the researchers worked closely with organic chemists to join the heroin analog to a carrier protein to improve its immune-inducing effect.

The preclinical research was funded by NIDA. WRAIR also leveraged its expertise in novel adjuvants research to increase the immune response of the vaccine. If further pre-clinical testing is successful, Opiant plans to work with researchers at the U.S. Military HIV Research Program at WRAIR to eventually combine the heroin vaccine with their HIV vaccine candidate.

This innovative dual-vaccine model would concurrently address the entwined epidemics of heroin abuse and HIV, and could provide considerable public health benefit, said Gary Matyas, Ph.D., the WRAIR principal investigator.

With the heroin epidemic reaching astonishing levels, we are driven at Opiant to develop new treatments for this addiction, said Dr. Crystal. We look forward to completing the preclinical work conducted by WRAIR and advancing into the clinic. Whilst our development of NARCAN Nasal Spray to reverse opioid overdose has been a significant effort to address the unfortunate consequences of heroin addiction, we see the vaccine as having potential in addressing the disease itself.

About Opiant Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Opiant Pharmaceuticals, Inc., is a specialty pharmaceutical company developing pharmacological treatments for substance use, addictive and eating disorders. Over 45 million people in the U.S. have one of these disorders. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), describes these disorders as chronic relapsing brain diseases which burden society at both the individual and community levels. With its innovative opioid antagonist nasal delivery technology, Opiant is positioned to become a leader in these treatment markets. Its first product, NARCAN Nasal Spray, is marketed in the U.S. by the companys partner, Adapt Pharma Limited. Currently, Opiant is developing opioid antagonists for the treatment of substance use, addictive and eating disorders, with a near term focus on eating disorders and cocaine use disorder. For more information please visit: www.opiant.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or our future financial performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our or our industrys actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed, implied or inferred by these forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as may, will, should, could, would, expects, plans, intends, anticipates, believes, estimates, predicts, projects, potential, or continue or the negative of such terms and other comparable terminology. These statements are only predictions based on our current expectations and projections about future events. You should not place undue reliance on these statements. Actual events or results may differ materially. In evaluating these statements, you should specifically consider various factors. These and other factors may cause our actual results to differ materially from any forward-looking statement. We undertake no obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this press release to conform those statements to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by applicable law.


MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cachet Financial Solutions, Inc. (OTCQB:CAFN), a leading mobile FinTech provider of cloud-based remote deposit capture (RDC) and mobile money solutions, will hold a conference call on Thursday, November 10, 2016 at 4:30 p.m. Eastern time (3:30 p.m. Central time) to discuss financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016. Financial results will be issued in a press release prior to the call.



Cachets president and CEO, Jeffrey Mack, and EVP and CFO, Bryan Meier, will host the presentation, followed by a question and answer period.

Date: Thursday, November 10, 2016

Time: 4:30 p.m. Eastern time (3:30 p.m. Central time)

U.S. dial-in: 1-877-705-6003

International dial-in: 1-201-493-6725

The conference call will be webcast live and available for replay here.

Please call the conference telephone number 10 minutes prior to the start time. An operator will register your name and organization. If you have any difficulty connecting with the conference call, please contact Liolios at 949-574-3860.

A replay of the call will be available after 7:30 p.m. Eastern time on the same day through December 10, 2016.

U.S. replay dial-in: 1-844-512-2921

International replay dial-in: 1-412-317-6671

Replay ID: 13648697

About Cachet Financial Solutions, Inc.

Cachet Financial Solutions is a leading cloud-based, SaaS technology provider serving the financial services industry with mobile money and remote deposit capture solutions for PC, Mac and mobile. Founded in early 2010, Cachet has quickly grown into a technology leader and trusted partner of some of the largest and most respected financial organizations. With remarkable growth, an impressive client base and award-winning technology, Cachet continues to drive innovation and deliver world-class solutions to financial institutions of all sizes.

Cachets industry-leading solutions can help the companys clients increase customer retention and revenue opportunities. Cachet's cloud-based technology platform simplifies development, deployment and servicing of consumer and commercial solutionsminimizing cost and accelerating speed-to-market for Cachets clients. Enabled by Cachet's suite of business and consumer solutions, financial institutions can better serve the needs of all their customers. For more information, visit www.cachetfinancial.com.
NEGRIL, Jamaica, Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Sandals Foundation, the non-profit arm of Sandals Resorts International, is proud to announce its new collaboration with School Specialty, Inc. (OTCQB:SCOO) (School Specialty or SSI) for the Pack for a Purpose program. This partnership will further assist travelers to Sandals Resorts and Beaches Resorts, who wish to bring along much-needed supplies for the resort companys locally-supported schools in the Caribbean. The partnership also comes at a crucial time when support is needed for the current relief and rebuilding efforts in the region following Hurricane Matthew.



A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fcb730e7-3afc-4bd6-b921-7d82c54ba5eb

Over the next twelve months, School Specialty has committed its support to students and teachers in The Islands with a donation of educational supplies valued at US$150,000. First priority has earmarked a portion of these supplies for schools across The Bahamas including schools in hardest hit islands such as Grand Bahamas and Andros for hurricane relief efforts. The assorted products will range from well-known and trusted brands in the market, as well as SSIs own proprietary offerings including Abilitations, Califone, Childcraft, Classroom Select, EPS, Frey Scientific, Premier, Sax, School Smart, and Sportime featuring SPARK.

Following a number of consultations and enlightening discussions with educators in country, the School Specialty team has also curated an assortment of classroom resources and tools that are critically needed by teachers and their students on The Islands. Together, they developed an assortment of pre-assembled backpacks filled with fundamental items for different grade levels, including art supplies, pens and pencils, notebooks and paper, various accessories such as calculators, rulers, staplers, scissors, and more. Now, guests staying at any of the Sandals and Beaches Resorts will be invited to Pack for a Purpose and purchase their supplies  for those in need as well as for their own use  through schoolspecialty.com/sandals.

School Specialty is a leader in delivering innovative curriculum materials, supplies and furnishings that help foster vital 21st century learning environments and skills, and were thrilled to have them on board as a partner in support of such an important initiative as Pack for a Purpose, stated Heidi Clarke, Director of Programs for The Sandals Foundation. This is an especially important time during our collaboration when The Bahamas have suffered tremendous destruction by Hurricane Matthew and need our help in providing essential materials and supplies for their rebuilding efforts. Were so grateful to have a partner in School Specialty that can bring the kinds of resources children in classrooms across these affected islands and the wider Caribbean region need for a strong educational foundation. We look forward to our relationship growing and creating a better tomorrow for our young learners and future leaders.

Since 2012, the Sandals Foundation has been a key collaborator with the non-profit Pack for a Purpose program that encourages travelers to bring up to 5 pounds of needed supplies in their suitcases to meet the needs of people in nearby underdeveloped regions. All Sandals Resorts and Beaches Resorts in Jamaica, Antigua, St. Lucia, The Bahamas, Grenada, Barbados, and Turks and Caicos serve as participating destinations for the program and have collected and distributed thousands of pounds of needed materials to the many educational institutions which the Sandals Foundation supports.

We are very excited to be partnering with the Sandals Foundation for the Pack for a Purpose initiative! Their mission aligns with School Specialtys own values to do whats right, to lead with action and do our best in helping and inspiring our neighbors around the world, said Joseph M. Yorio, President and Chief Executive Officer of School Specialty. This holds true particularly during those times when we must come together to help do what we can to support each other in crises, as we see with the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew. Together with Sandals and Beaches Resorts guests, we look forward to providing top-quality learning supplies and equipment that enable meaningful educational experiences and have a transformative impact on the thousands of children and their communities throughout the Caribbean, where The Sandals Foundation calls home.

The Sandals Foundation and School Specialty partnership was announced at Social Media On the Sand at Beaches Negril on October 26-30, which was attended by a number of special guests including event sponsors and influential media bloggers, who sought to sharpen their social media skills with immersive and empowering sessions.

About The Sandals Foundation

The Sandals Foundation is the non-profit arm of Sandals Resorts International (SRI), the Caribbeans leading family-owned resort company. The 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization was created to continue and to expand upon the charitable work that Sandals Resorts International has undertaken since its founding in 1981 to play a meaningful role in the lives of the communities where SRI operates throughout the Caribbean. The Sandals Foundation funds projects in three core areas: education, community and the environment. One hundred percent of the monies contributed by the general public to the Sandals Foundation go directly to programs benefiting the Caribbean community. To learn more about the Sandals Foundation, visit online at http://www.sandalsfoundation.org

About School Specialty, Inc.

School Specialty is a leading distributor of innovative and proprietary products, programs and services to the education marketplace. The Company designs, develops, and provides educators with the latest and very best school supplies, furniture and both curriculum and supplemental learning resources. Working in collaboration with educators, School Specialty reaches beyond the scope of textbooks to help teachers, guidance counselors and school administrators ensure that every student reaches his or her full potential. Through its SSI Guardian subsidiary, the Company is also committed to school, healthcare and corporate workplace safety by offering the highest quality curriculum, training and safety and security products. Finally, through its SOAR Life Products brand, the Company offers thousands of products that sharpen cognitive skills and build physical and mental strength in fun and creative ways. From childhood through adulthood, they help individuals live life to the fullest  engaged, happy and well. SOAR Life Products is a customized offering for hospitals, long-term care, therapeutic facilities, home care, surgery centers, day care centers, physician offices, and clinics. For more information about School Specialty, visit www.schoolspecialty.com.

@SchoolSpecialty

Connect with School Specialty on social media; search School Specialty on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest. For Ideas and resources, educational trends and inspiration for todays educators  visit the Schoolyard blog.
CHICAGO, Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aeris, a pioneer and leader in the Internet of Things (IoT) market, today said Raj Kanaya, its chief marketing officer and managing director of automotive, will be presenting at the 4th Annual Internet of Things (IoT) Summit Chicago.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b6610833-29fd-41ba-8235-da98282ec33c

The IoT Summit Chicago, which takes place here Nov. 9 and 10 at the Chicago Mart Plaza, will feature more than 50 sessions and provide insights on everything from IoT in clothing and jewelry to driverless cars to industrial implementations. The conference will also feature 27 presentations from innovative IoT companies seeking investment, bringing together executives from IoT companies and venture capital and private equity investors.

Kanaya, who also serves as CEO of Aeris Japan, a joint venture formed in Japan by Aeris and SoftBank to provide IoT and telematics services globally using the Aeris IoT solutions platform, will present at 3:00 p.m. (CST) on Wednesday, Nov. 9.

The IoT Summit Chicago, hosted by the Illinois Technology Association (ITA) and featuring the First Analysis Capital Conference, is a convergence of IoT thought leadership and investor engagement.

CLICK TO TWEET: #CMO Raj Kanaya of @AerisM2M to present Nov. 9 at #IoTSummitChi hosted by @ITAbuzz in #Chicago. #IoT http://www.aeris.com/news/

Supporting Quotes

Raj Kanaya, chief marketing officer and managing director of automotive, Aeris, and CEO, Aeris Japan

The Internet of Things and Chicago go hand-in-hand for Aeris. We are a leader in the IoT industry and Chicago is where we conduct a great deal of business now that we have a presence in the city with our new office in the River North community. We look forward to presenting at the IoT Summit in Chicago.

Fred Hoch, CEO, ITA

This years Summit will explore some of the timeliest issues impacting the Internet of Things, such as data ownership and governance. We will simultaneously be showcasing local IoT companies including Aeris, and attracting investors and capital to the region.

Digital Assets

Supporting Resources

About ITA

The Illinois Technology Association (ITA) scales Illinois tech companies. With innovative resources that allow members to collaborate with each other, build their talent networks and elevate their local and national presence, ITA is the regions strongest advocate for fostering innovation and growth. Founded in 2005 and supporting 500-plus growth-stage tech companies, ITA has a rich history of driving the business forward. For more information, visit illinoistech.org, follow @ITAbuzz on Twitter or find us on LinkedIn.

About First Analysis

First Analysis has a 35-year record of serving emerging growth companies, established industry leaders, and institutional investors in its focused areas of domain expertise, both through its venture capital investments and through First Analysis Securities Corp. (FASC)*, which provides investment banking services and institutional equity research. Integrated public and private company research underpins our success, yielding a deep, comprehensive understanding of each segment's near-term and long-term potential. We excel at uncovering and leveraging the best opportunities in emerging high-growth segments in health care and technology for the benefit of the investors and growth companies we serve. (*Investment banking services are offered through First Analysis Securities Corporation, a registered broker/dealer with FINRA and member SIPC.)

About Aeris

Aeris is a pioneer and leader in the market of the Internet of Things  as an operator of end-to-end IoT and machine-to-machine (M2M) services and as a technology provider enabling other operators to build profitable IoT businesses. Among our customers are the most demanding users of IoT services today, including Hyundai, Acura, Rand McNally, Leica, and Sprint. Through our technology platform and dedicated IoT and M2M services, we strive to fundamentally improve their businesses  by dramatically reducing costs, improving operational efficiency, reducing time-to-market, and enabling new revenue streams.

Tags/Keywords: Aeris, Internet of Things, IoT, machine-to-machine, M2M, Raj Kanaya, Illinois Technology Association, ITA, Fred Hoch, First Analysis, IoT Summit, Chicago




English Danish

Release no. 27/2016

With reference to release no. 25/2016 of 26 October 2016, changes in Columbus A/S Articles of Association as a consequence of the adoption made by the Annual General meeting about new guidelines for incentive programs, cf. section 139 of the Danish Companies Act have today been registered in the Danish Business Authority.

At the same time the new Articles of Association are hereby published.
DGAP-News: MC Services AG / Key word(s): Conference MC Services to host Press Lounge at BIO-Europe(R) 2016 in Cologne 28.10.2016 / 15:15 The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Press Release October 28, 2016 MC Services to host Press Lounge at BIO-Europe(R) 2016 in Cologne Munich/Duesseldorf, Germany, October 28, 2016: MC Services AG, the international investor relations and public relations firm, today announced that it will serve as supporting media partner for BIO-Europe(R) 2016, Europe's largest partnering conference for the global biotechnology industry. The event, organized by EBD Group, will take place November 7-9, 2016 at the KoelnMesse Congress Center North in Cologne, Germany. As host of the BIO-Europe(R) Press Lounge, MC Services is inviting both international and local journalists to the event and keeping them informed about the presenting company executives and investors attending this meeting. Centrally located in the exhibit hall - in the midst of activities - the BIO-Europe(R) Press Lounge offers fully-equipped work stations for accredited media representatives who will also be able to use the lounge area to conduct interviews or network with industry representatives. In addition, together with its partners EBD Group, Labiotech.eu and BIO Clustermanagement NRW GmbH, MC Services will host a dedicated BIO-Europe(R) live blog. Journalism students from the TU Dortmund and the Kolner Journalistenschule have been invited to the conference to conduct interviews with participants and report on their impressions of the event, as well as highlights from panels, company presentations and discussions. The goal of this initiative is to provide a vivid picture of the event to interested people in and outside the conference and to get young journalists enthusiastic about the complex field of biotechnology. The blog will be accessible via the websites of EBD Group as well as MC Services under www.bio-live.de. "BIO-Europe(R) is a key partnering conference for the European biotech industry and an important event for MC Services and many of our clients. BIO-Europe(R) 2015 in Munich was a great success and we are pleased to further intensify our collaboration with EBD Group as a media partner," said Anne Hennecke, Managing Partner at MC Services AG. "As part of this initiative we are also proud that we will again be inviting science journalism students to get in touch with this exciting industry. Through this project, we seek to gain maximum attention for the industry, this prestigious event and the participating companies not only today but also in the future." Each year, BIO-Europe(R) attracts an international "who's who" from the biotech, pharma and finance worlds along with the most exciting emerging companies. In 2016, approximately 3,500 attendees, representing 1,800 companies from over 50 countries are expected to have about 19,000 one-on- one meetings. More than 130 company presentations and 17 high-level workshops and panel discussions will round off the event. For detailed information regarding the program, timing and location, please visit the event's website. About MC Services AG MC Services AG is an international public relations and investor relations firm specializing in communications for the life sciences and healthcare sector. A strong team of science, finance, media and communication experts with relevant industry experience positions MC Services as the leading life sciences agency in Europe. MC Services' long-standing clients include international public and private companies as well as venture capitalists and investment firms. Established for many years as a link between the healthcare industry and the financial markets, MC Services provides comprehensive services in the fields of investor relations, public relations and financial transactions. MC Services is based in Munich, Duesseldorf, London and Boston. www.mc-services.eu Contact Anne Hennecke MC Services AG T +49 211 529252 22 Email: contact@mc-services.eu --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 28.10.2016 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. The DGAP Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases. Archive at www.dgap.de --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 515713 28.10.2016
NEW YORK, Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mid Atlantic Bio Angels (MABA) announces today that its previously announced, closed-end investment pool (Pool) funded solely by current, active MABA members, has made its second investment of the year. The investment, which was joined by several MABA members, was made in Genome Profiling LLC (GenPro), a Delaware-based company focused on epigenetic biomarker discovery.



This second investment for our closed-end pool, which occurs within fewer than six months of its inception, re-affirms our expectation that the Pool increases the likelihood of a presenting company receiving an initial investment from our members. The goal is to provide the company with early validation of its efforts while encouraging the achievement of some milestone which could justify a larger funding commitment by the group in the future, said Yaniv Sneor, a MABA co-founder and president of Blue Cactus Consulting.

Added Stephen Goodman, another co-founder and partner at the law firm of Pryor Cashman LLP, Not only are we thrilled to be making our second Pool investment so close on the heels of our first, but, in the process, the GenPro investment broke an internal MABA record. The time it took from presentation, through due diligence to funding was less than a month.

GenPro (www.genprollc.com) is an epigenetic biomarker discovery company that is opening the door to a new class of clinically and commercially valuable biomarkers, called GenProEpiMarkers. GenPros proprietary and disruptive quantitative analytics rapidly transform next generation sequencing (NGS) data into novel, highly sensitive and specific epigenetic biomarkers that the company translates into low-cost/high-throughput precision assays for breakthrough improvements in clinical trial responder vs. non-responder patient selection, companion diagnostics, and early disease diagnosis. Their approach is applicable across many diseases and also elucidates new molecular insights into pathways and mechanisms of action valued by translational medicine operations.

About Mid Atlantic Bio Angels

Mid Atlantic Bio Angels (http://bioangels.net) is a group of active angel investors, which meets in New York City monthly (except July and August) solely to hear from pre-screened early-stage life science companies. MABA members consist of individuals from Delaware to Massachusetts with significant expertise and experience in the biotechnology, pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, including former and current corporate executives, doctors and Ph.D. scientists with product development backgrounds, successful medical entrepreneurs and analyst/investors focused on life sciences. MABA's goal is to create an environment where the depth of investors' knowledge coupled with the pre-screening of presenting companies enhances the potential for meaningful investment.
CHICAGO, Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- More than 2 million people are imprisoned in the United States, but is incarceration always the best solution? The 23rd Annual Braun Symposium at The John Marshall Law School will examine restorative justice practices as an alternative to mass incarceration during a two-day conference that features judges, prosecutors, public defenders, legislators and criminal justice reform experts.



Restorative justice is a rapidly developing area of criminal justice reform focused on reducing recidivism rates and mass incarceration by not only addressing, but rebuilding, the relationship between victim and offender. The Braun Symposium will focus on the practice applications of restorative justice in the correctional system, the judicial system and the communities impacted by crime.



Speakers include Kim Fox, Democratic candidate for Cook County State's Attorney; La Shawn Ford, Illinois State Representative for the 8th District; Justice Janine Geske, former Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, Distinguished Professor of Law and Director of the Restorative Justice Initiative at Marquette University School of Law; Hon. Sheila Murphy and Professor Michael Seng, Co-Directors of John Marshall's Restorative Justice Project. Mario Marazziti, President, XII Social Affairs Commission on the Chamber of Deputies of the Italian Parliament and author of "13 Ways of Looking at the Death Penalty" will give a special video address. See the complete list of speakers and presenters here.



"Restorative justice's focus on the offender, the victim and the community offers a comprehensive means to correct anti-social behavior and restore harmony to the community. Restorative justice acknowledges the interconnectedness of all parties to a dispute. Offenders accept responsibilities for their actions; victims become survivors who see that that their injuries are recognized and redressed to the extent possible; the community acknowledges that it is not a mere observer but an active participant in the process. In the end, all three constituencies are benefitted. How this can be accomplished in the real world is the focus of this exciting conference," said Seng.



The conference is free, but registration is required and space is limited. To register, please visit: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2016-braun-symposium-restorative-justice-in-action-charting-a-more-humane-path-for-our-criminal-tickets-27016155047



About the Belle R. & Joseph H. Braun Memorial Symposium

The Braun Memorial Lecture Series honors the legacy of Joseph H. Braun, a 1918 graduate and his wife Belle. The inaugural lecture was held in 1989, the year of his passing. Since then the lecture series has featured a number of distinguished panels and speakers on topics including constitutional law, criminal law, environmental law and international human rights.
WELLINGTON, New Zealand  The countries that decide the fate of Antarcticas waters reached an historic agreement on Friday to create the worlds largest marine protected area in the ocean next to the frozen continent.

The agreement comes after years of diplomatic wrangling and high-level talks between the U.S. and Russia, which has rejected the idea in the past.

Proponents of the reserve say it sets a precedent for multiple countries working together to protect a large swath of ocean, which falls outside any single nations jurisdiction.

The agreement covers an area about twice the size of Texas in the Ross Sea.

The deal was clinched after 24 countries and the European Union met in Hobart, Australia, this week. Decisions on Antarctic fishing require a consensus among the 25 members, a hurdle which has confounded past efforts.

The U.S. and New Zealand have been pushing for a marine reserve for years. They first submitted a joint proposal in 2012, but it was rejected five times before Fridays agreement. Ukraine, China and Russia had expressed concerns in the past, with Russia becoming the final holdout before the deal was made.

The marine protected area covers 617,000 square miles. There will be a blanket ban on commercial fishing across about three-quarters of that area. In the remaining ocean zones, some commercial fishing will be allowed.

A small amount of fishing for research purposes will be allowed throughout the protected area.

Several countries fish in the waters surrounding Antarctica for lucrative toothfish, which are often marketed in North America as Chilean sea bass.

Evan Bloom, who led the U.S. delegation in Hobart, said that Secretary of State John Kerry has been a passionate advocate for the reserve and has been pushing for it in high-level talks with Russian leaders.

Weve been working on this for so many years and had so many disappointments trying to get here, Bloom said. This is a real win for marine conservation.

In a statement, Kerry said the agreement will safeguard one of the last unspoiled ocean wilderness areas on the planet  home to unparalleled marine biodiversity and thriving communities of penguins, seals, whales, seabirds, and fish.

New Zealands Foreign Minister Murray McCully said the final agreement included some concessions to Russia, including adjusting the reserves boundaries and allowing a little more commercial fishing outside the no-take zone.
KORONADAL, Philippines  Philippine anti-narcotics officers gunned down a town mayor and nine of his men in a clash Friday in one of the bloodiest operations since President Rodrigo Duterte launched a crackdown on illegal drugs.

Mayor Samsudin Dimaukom of Datu Saudi Ampatuan town had been publicly named by Duterte among many politicians he accused of involvement in illegal drugs as part of a shame campaign.
BEIRUT  Syrian rebels launched a broad offensive for Aleppo on Friday as the Russian, Syrian and Iranian foreign ministers vowed to intensify their fight against terrorism in the country.

The battlefield allies met in Moscow as the Syrian government is looking to cement its authority over the divided northern city and the contested suburbs of the capital, Damascus.

Fighting for Aleppo appeared to have calmed by the afternoon after rebels assaulted the citys government-controlled western side with three vehicle bombs and at least 150 rockets in the morning. The Syrian military said the rockets were Russian-made Grad missiles.

At least 15 civilians were killed in the volley, according to pro-government TV stations. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group also said that 15 civilians were killed, and more than 100 injured.

A reporter inside the city for the Lebanon-based Al-Mayadeen TV channel had reported attacks on all sides of the city, from the furthest points north to the furthest south.

Sounds of heavy gunfire, mortar fire, and explosions were heard in the background of his broadcast, as dark smoke was seen rising above the city on the overcast morning. Presumed government or Russian jets were also heard flying overhead.

An afternoon broadcast from the city on Lebanon-based Al-Manar TV depicted a quieter scene, though sporadic gunfire and missile attacks were heard in the background.

Rebels said they seized a factory and pushed into government-held neighborhoods in southwestern Aleppo, but the Syrian military said through SANA that it had repelled the offensive from all fronts, with support from allied militias.

The Syrian army and its allies are in control on the ground and armed groups were not able to change the map, the military statement said. Fighting is still ongoing but the intensity has dropped.

This is the second attempt by rebels to break the governments siege of Aleppos opposition-held eastern districts, where the United Nations estimates 275,000 people are trapped. U.N. Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura has estimated 8,000 of them are rebel fighters, and no more than 900 of them affiliated with the al Qaeda-linked Fatah al-Sham Front.
Griego's Old Campaign Bank Account Scrutinized

Andrew Oxford reports investigators at the Office of the New Mexico Attorney General continue to

connected to former state senator Phil Griego. Documents unsealed in state District Court on Thursday show thousands of dollars in payments to business associates that were never reported to the Secretary of States Office.

Poll: Presidential Race Narrows in New Mexico

It looks like Donald Trump is

to just 5 percent in New Mexico.

Martinez Campaigns for Republican Gubernatorial Candidates

Gov. Martinez is the chair of the Republican Governors Association and has

to get Republican candidates elected to state executive posts.

Attorneys Question Paiz' Campaign Donations

Dan McKay reports two Albuquerque attorneys want the secretary of states office to

to Bernalillo County Commission candidate Patricia Paiz, whom they accuse of accepting donations that go well beyond the $2,500 limit allowed in local campaigns.

Moderate Drought Conditions Likely to Increase

Only 4 percent of New Mexico

, but members of the Drought Monitoring Workgroup, made up of members of the National Weather Service and of state and federal agencies, say that percentage is likely to increase over time.



Pot Farmers Leery of Legalization

Marijuana farmers in California, whose families have been illegally growing the drug for years, are worried that if voters approve a proposition to legalize the drug next month, they

by big businesses, taxes and regulations.

Santa Fe Reporter
Milk New Zealand, the local unit of Chinese investor Shanghai PengXin Group, is facing new hurdles with its New Zealand investment plans after being knocked back by the government last year over its proposed $88 million purchase of Lochinver farm.

The company owns 29 farms in New Zealand, including the former 'Crafar' dairy farms in the North Island, and 13 farms in Canterbury previously owned by Synlait Farms, which supply processor Synlait Milk. In September last year the government scuttled its proposed purchase of Lochinver farm saying the transaction failed the test of providing a substantial benefit to New Zealand, and the Chinese investor subsequently withdrew from buying the neighbouring Taharua Farm and a separate deal to buy the so-called 'Pinny' farms in Northland.

The knock back riled the company, which disputes the value assumptions and conclusions made by economist John Small in assessing the value of the investment under the so-called counterfactual test on whether ownership by the overseas company brought any extra benefit.

The company's Chinese owners say the progress it is making with its New Zealand development plans is too slow but New Zealand viewed it as moving too fast, Milk NZ managing director Terry Lee told a conference on Chinese Agriculture at Victoria University in Wellington.

Milk NZ is now struggling to progress plans for a $50 million investment in a local processing plant to produce a long-life yogurt for the Chinese market as it hasn't been able to find a local investor to meet overseas investment requirements that limit its stake to no more than 50 percent.

That kind of drinking yoghurt is popular in China but Milk NZ has struggled to find a New Zealand partner to build the new facilities, Lee told BusinessDesk on the sidelines of the conference.

Milk NZ wanted to work closely with local partners to add value to the New Zealand dairy value chain "because we think it is a big waste to make commodity product from the world best quality raw milk in New Zealand," he said.

However, Lee said the company has been rebuffed by nearly all of New Zealand's dairy processors and has applied to the Overseas Investment Office for a rule revision that would allow it to develop the factory on its own, with limitations on the amount of milk it would take, such as an agreement to process only 5 percent of the milk production in the North Island and South Island, or process no more than 50 percent of the milk produced on its own farms.

Having a factory would enable the company to try its business model and add value to the supply chain, he said.

"This is good for New Zealanders and good for Chinese consumers as well. This is a 'win win' case - I can't find who is the winner by the OIO conditions," he said.

However, Lee said the request had been with the OIO for 13 months and was still awaiting a reply.

"The timeframe is very disappointing," Lee said. "When we were rejected for (the) Lochinvar application, (the) Prime Minister said that 17 months OIO processing is not acceptable but after that we got approval of application of the Dakang (company) reconstructure 22 months after the application was lodged, so another record was broken, so I hope this time we should not wait longer than that again."

Milk NZ has expressed its concerns to ministers, Lee said.

He said he felt the company is being unfairly treated because it is a Chinese investor, while investors from Europe, America and Canada were able to buy farms without a long processing time, without the same counterfactual test, and without restrictions on building a dairy processing plant on their own.

A hundred years ago Chinese came to New Zealand as cheap labour; 30 years ago Chinese people exported cheap products such as toys, clothes, and shoes to the country; and in recent years China has become an investor and export of capital, he said.

Lee said the Chinese company needed to be patient for progress on New Zealanders better understanding its operation, values, and contribution to New Zealand dairy and agriculture as its investment could turn out to be a "success story."

There was a lack of understanding about the mutual benefits the Chinese investor could bring to the New Zealand dairy industry, he said.

"New Zealand think dairy is the base of the economy and we need to protect it in a special way so foreign ownership and especially foreign integrated business model will make some change to our dairy," he said.

However from PengXin's point of view, it brought beneficial change, he said, particularly thinking outside the box to help industry follow the latest trends in the value chain. He also dismissed concerns about over-reliance on the China market.

"My answer is if you change your commodity business model into a consumer business model then people from all over the world will use the dairy products from New Zealand, not only China, not Indonesia for the commodity like whole milk powders. I think this is the future."

After being rejected in its earlier plans for acquiring more farms, Milk NZ has turned its focus to investing more in the farms it already owns to contribute to the industry, raising the standards for environmental protection, health and safety, and animal welfare, he said.

While New Zealand has a good legal system and is a good destination for dairy investment, Lee said it was "still on the way to making these systems working well.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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KiwiRail's statement of corporate intent projects a drop in revenue for 2017 but chief executive Peter Reidy sees some bright spots for the state-subsidised railway, including the potential pickup in coal volumes and the benefits of increased forest harvesting in some regions.

"This year is going to be quite strong in terms of forestry. Coal has been very flat. But as coal prices come back we're likely to see a bit of volume uptake," chief executive Peter Reidy said at KiwiRail's annual meeting in Wellington yesterday.

KiwiRail is currently preparing its annual investment plan and expects to sit down with the Treasury before year-end, with the aim of feeding into next year's budget. The state-owned enterprise, which describes itself as an 'above-the-rail' business, got a two-year funding package in Budget 2015 of $210 million in 2016 and $190 million in 2017. It needs to convince the government of its vital role in New Zealand's transport infrastructure to win additional Crown funding for 'below rail' investment after years of under-investment.

The railroad says it has been holding up its end of the bargain, exceeding its statement of corporate intent targets for revenue and operating surplus in the year ended June 30, while stripping out $27 million of costs. The SCI projects weaker revenue growth over the next three years but with an improving operating surplus and operating margin. Shareholder returns and dividends are projected to be zero through until 2019, while the return on equity is expected to deteriorate to -55 percent by 2019.

Reidy says KiwiRail can pretty much pay for itself from operating earnings as an 'above rail' business.

He referred to a new "wall of wood" as forests are harvested near Wairoa after Hawkes Bay Regional Council and central government stepped in with funding support that has been kept confidential to take the railway line to Napier out of mothballs.

Against that, the Interislander business was having to cope with excess capacity on Cook Strait, with little growth in freight volumes but an increase in passengers. "We will look at our models for Cook Strait," Reidy said. He ruled out a return of fast ferries, which had to contend with challenges such as speed restrictions in the Marlborough Sounds.

Among other challenges was the appearance on New Zealand roads of larger-sized trucks, which competed harder for freight, while internally the railroad company was dealing with an ageing workforce, dominated by older men. Among challenges yet to come was the question of driverless trains, which are being readied by miner Rio Tinto and Sydney's metro lines across the Tasman.

Reidy said the decision to reopen the mothballed Napier-to-Wairoa line, which came after negotiations with local authorities and Napier Port, was an example of local interests acting to preserve infrastructure seen as having a community benefit, something KiwiRail is restrained in considering.

A similar strategy may work in Northland, the other region where KiwiRail sees scope for local interests to underwrite unviable lines.

"It was most pleasing in Hawkes Bay," Reidy said. "They can look at the community benefits in a different way than KiwiRail can. We do believe that regional councils have an opportunity."

Reopening the line from Wairoa to Gisborne is less likely, he said.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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Related News:

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South Port NZ Ltd - 2022 Annual Meeting

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SML - Executive Leadership Team appointment

SCL - Meateor and Fayman Settlement & Market Update

November 1st Morning Report

NZME Investor Day 2022 Virtual Event

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New Zealand shares fell, led by Trade Me Group while Summerset Group gained on its positive earnings outlook.

The S&P/NZX50 Index dropped 13.31 points, or 0.2 percent, to 6,928.64. Within the index, 18 shares rose, 17 fell and 16 were unchanged. Turnover was $124.7 million.

"There still seems to be a weight of selling in the marketplace, after the past three or four-odd weeks of experiencing some downside," Grant Williamson, director at Hamilton Hindin Greene, said. "It will be interesting to see next week whether the start of a new month turns things around."

Trade Me Group led the index lower, down 3.4 percent to $4.88, and has dropped almost 17 percent since its record high of $5.86 reached at the beginning of September.

"It has been trending downwards for a while now, it doesn't seem to be the market darling like it once was," Williamson said. "Investors are concerned about where growth is going to come from, whether it's reached saturation point."

A2 Milk Co fell 3 percent to $1.92, Stride Property dropped 2.1 percent to $1.85, and Australia & New Zealand Banking Group fell 2 percent to $29.40.

Scales Corp was the best performer, up 3.7 percent to $3.10, while Metlifecare rose 3.2 percent to $5.79.

Summerset Group gained 2.3 percent to $4.86. The retirement village company says earnings will rise by as much as 46 percent this year as it benefits from strong sales in a nation with an ageing population.

The Wellington-based company anticipates underlying profit of between $53 million and $55 million in calendar 2016, but didn't give guidance on net profit, saying there was too much uncertainty in the fair value of its investment properties.

"It's a record quarter for them and they've got some good earnings guidance, though it's coming well off its highs - it was up at $5 earlier this year," Williamson said. "Other stocks in that sector are higher as well, they've been going through some weakness but have had a bit of a bounce today on that guidance, they're being buoyed by that news."

Outside the benchmark index, Intueri Education Group gained 35.6 percent to 8 cents. It lowered its 2016 earnings guidance, saying deeper cost cuts and the decision to sell its dive school aren't enough to offset weaker enrollments and one-time restructuring costs.

AWF Madison Group rose 3.8 percent to $2.44. The country's largest contract labour company lifted first-half profit 15 percent to $3.9 million, which it said reflected improved productivity that has continued into the second half.

OceanaGold Corp dropped 2.3 percent to $4.24. The gold miner's third-quarter profit soared 345 percent to US$30.7 million as it expanded its operations and didn't have a repeat of the previous year's impact from the shutdown of the Didipio mine for maintenance. Revenue rose 37 percent to US$150 million.

Augusta Capital dropped 2.9 percent to $1.01 while NPT gained 2.9 percent to 7 cents. Augusta, which bought 9.3 percent of listed property investor NPT a month ago, wants to spill NPT's board after being rebuffed with an offer to buy the company's management contract and facilitate a $329 million acquisition.

Pyne Gould Corp was unchanged at 20.5 cents. The investment group, which plans to target 'distressed assets', has been fined $300,000 by the NZ Markets Disciplinary Tribunal for repeated late filings of annual and interim financial information.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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Related News:

AIA - Auckland Airport announces executive team change

South Port NZ Ltd - 2022 Annual Meeting

ENS - Rights Issue Offer Document

NZK - Resignation of NZKS Chief Executive

SML - Executive Leadership Team appointment

SCL - Meateor and Fayman Settlement & Market Update

November 1st Morning Report

NZME Investor Day 2022 Virtual Event

SPG - Changes to Executive Team

HGH - Details for the Heartland 2022 Annual Shareholder Meeting


Swedish English

Stockholm, 2016-10-28 17:45 CEST (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --

Notice is hereby given to the shareholders and the holders of depository receipts in Vostok New Ventures Ltd (Vostok New Ventures or the Company) that a Special General Meeting

(the Meeting) of shareholders shall be held on 18 November 2016 at 9.00 CEST, at Advokatfirman Vinge, Smalandsgatan 20 in Stockholm, Sweden.

Notice to attend etc.

Holders of depository receipts in respect of common shares of US$ 0.32 par value each in the Company wishing to attend the Meeting shall:

(1) be listed in the register of holders of depository receipts kept by Euroclear Sweden AB on 11 November 2016; and

(2) notify the Company of the intention to attend the Meeting not later than 14 November 2016 by mail at the address c/o Vostok New Ventures AB, Hovslagargatan 5, 111 48 Stockholm, Sweden, mark the envelope Special General Meeting 2016, by telephone +46 8 545 01 550, by fax +46 08 545 01 554 or by e-mail to sgm2016@vostoknewventures.com. The holder of depository receipts shall state his or her name, personal or company identification number, address as well as telephone number. If a holder of depository receipts intends to be represented by proxy, the name of the proxy holder shall be stated.

Holders of depository receipts represented by proxy shall issue dated and signed power of attorney for the proxy. If the power of attorney is issued on behalf of a legal entity, a certified copy of a registration certificate or a corresponding document for the legal entity shall be appended. The power of attorney in original and, where applicable, the registration certificate should be submitted to the Company by mail at the address set forth above well in advance of the Meeting. The form to use for a power of attorney can be found on www.vostoknewventures.com.

Holders of depository receipts who hold their receipts through nominees (Sw. forvaltare) must request a temporary registration of the voting rights in order to be able to participate at the Meeting. Holders of depository receipts who want to obtain such registration must contact the nominee regarding this well in advance of 11 November 2016.

Proposed agenda

1. Election of Chairman for the Meeting.

2. Preparation and approval of voting list.

3. Approval of the agenda.

4. Election of one or two persons to check and sign the minutes.

5. Resolution that the Meeting has been duly convened.

6. Resolution to effect a new common share issue for the consideration of non-cash property.

7. Closing of the Meeting.

Chairman for the Meeting (item 1)

The Board of Directors proposes that Jesper Schonbeck, member of the Swedish Bar Association, is elected as Chairman for the Meeting.

Resolution to effect a new common share issue for the consideration of non-cash property (item 6)

The Board of Directors proposes that the Meeting resolves to approve an increase in the Companys issued share capital by not more than US$ 1,329,438,4 by an issue of not more than 4,154,495 new common shares of US$ 0.32 per value each in consideration for non-cash property for such common shares of the Company (the Issue in kind).

The following terms shall apply for the Issue in kind.

Right to subscribe for depositary receipts representing the new common shares in the Company (SDRs) shall be granted only to Lead Edge Capital II L.P, Lead Edge Capital II QP L.P and Lead Edge Partners Opportunity III L.P., with a right and obligation for each of them to pay for such new common shares with non-cash property consisting of shares in Comuto SA (BlaBlaCar) to the Company.

Subscription for SDRs representing the new common shares in the Company shall be made on a subscription list from and including 19 November 2016 and up to including 30 November 2016. However, the Board of Directors shall be entitled to extend the subscription period at its sole discretion.

Payment for the SDRs representing the new common shares in the Company shall be made by transfer (non-cash consideration) of shares in BlaBlaCar to the Company not later than 30 November 2016. However, the Board of Directors shall be entitled to extend the period for payment at its sole discretion.

The assets to be transferred to the Company as the payment of non-cash consideration (as described above) have been valued by the Board of Directors to have an estimated aggregated value of EUR 32,000,000, which corresponds to a subscription price of approximately SEK 75 per new SDR, which according to the Board of Directors assessment does not exceed the real value of the depository receipts. When valuing the assets representing the non-cash consideration, the Board of Directors has used the value of the shares used in the last known transaction with BlaBlaCar shares of the same classes, and verified the value using several methods of valuation. Based on the information presented in connection with negotiations, due diligence, and other information known to the Board of Directors about BlaBlaCar and its business, the Board of Directors has estimated that the value of the assets representing the non-cash consideration is at least equal to the aggregate par value of the new common shares of US$ 1,329,438.4 to be issued to Lead Edge Capital II L.P, Lead Edge Capital II QP L.P and Lead Edge Partners Opportunity III L.P. In practice, the value at which the non-cash consideration will be accounted for in the Company's balance sheet may, due to applicable accounting rules, change depending on the circumstances on the transaction date but will not be less than the aggregate par value of the new common shares to be issued.

The new common shares shall be entitled to dividends for the first time on the record date for dividends that occurs immediately following the registration of the new common shares.

_______________________

October 2016

The Board of Directors of Vostok New Ventures Ltd

Registered office: Clarendon House, 2 Church Street, Hamilton, HM 11, Bermuda
NEW YORK, Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP, a leading national securities law firm, reminds investors in Adeptus Health Inc. (Adeptus or the Company) (NYSE:ADPT) of the December 27, 2016 deadline to seek the role of lead plaintiff in a federal securities class action lawsuit filed against the Company and certain officers.

The lawsuit has been filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas on behalf of all those who purchased Adeptus Class A common shares pursuant to the Companys secondary public offering (the SPO) on or about July 31, 2015, or common shares between April 23, 2015 and November 16, 2015 (the Class Period). The case, Oklahoma Law Enforcement Retirement System v. Adeptus Health Inc. et al, No. 6:16-cv-01243 was filed on October 27, 2016.

The lawsuit focuses on whether the Company and its executives violated federal securities laws by engaging in potential predatory billing practices, particularly with respect to lower acuity level patients.

Specifically, on November 17, 2015, KUSA, an NBC-affiliated television station located in Denver, Colorado, aired a 9WANTS To Know investigative report about the billing practices at Adeptus Health's Colorado First Choice emergency rooms (ERs). The report concluded that, after alleged months of investigation, the Companys ERs routinely treated lower acuity patients at urgent care facilities and excessively billed them for the services rendered.

In response to the airing of the KUSA investigative report, Adeptuss share price fell from $59.87 per share on November 16, 2015 to a closing price of $46.50 on November 17, 2015a $13.37 or a 22.3% drop. Furthermore, the stock price has continued to decline since the SPO.

Request more information now by clicking here: www.faruqilaw.com/ADPT. There is no cost or obligation to you.

Take Action

If you invested in Adeptus common stock during the Class Period and would like to discuss your legal rights, visit www.faruqilaw.com/ADPT. You can also contact us by calling Richard Gonnello toll free at 877-247-4292 or at 212-983-9330 or by sending an e-mail to rgonnello@faruqilaw.com. Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP also encourages anyone with information regarding Adeptuss conduct to contact the firm, including whistleblowers, former employees, shareholders and others.

The court-appointed lead plaintiff is the investor with the largest financial interest in the relief sought by the class that is adequate and typical of class members who directs and oversees the litigation on behalf of the putative class. Any member of the putative class may move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff through counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. Your ability to share in any recovery is not affected by the decision of whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff.

Attorney Advertising. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP (www.faruqilaw.com). Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter. We welcome the opportunity to discuss your particular case. All communications will be treated in a confidential manner.
AUSTIN, Texas, Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- RVi Planning + Landscape Architecture announced today it has opened an office in Atlanta, Georgia. In July 2016, the company first announced its expansion into Scottsdale, Arizona, on the heels of an equity investment from national consulting firm Atwell, LLC. The 34-year-old firm headquartered in Austin, Texas, has named Doug Craig vice president and managing principal of its Scottsdale office and Kerry Blind vice president and managing principal of its Atlanta office.



Photos accompanying this announcement are available at

http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/22597df0-885f-461d-a2ff-9c32c4076904

http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/26febe49-4f2c-4d0a-b0a4-91b10498c913

Craig and Blind join the firm with more than 30 years of experience each. Craig is a licensed landscape architect who began his career in Phoenix in 1982; he has a strong understanding of the market and a passion for the nuances of working in the desert. Blind is a licensed landscape architect and a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) Council of Fellows, one of the highest honors a landscape architect can achieve.

Were proud to have Doug and Kerry leading the charge in the Arizona and Georgia markets, said Chris Crawford, RVi president. In just a few short months, Doug has already proven to be a great asset to our growing Arizona team. Kerry has an outstanding reputation and his portfolio of work speaks for itself.

Craig has been involved in numerous private and public-sector projects in a wide variety of fields, including healthcare, higher education and corporate campuses, retail centers, hospitality facilities and community parks. He is experienced in the design of large, residential master-planned communities, including community theming and branding. He is also a member of the City of Scottsdale Historic Preservation Commission and is a graduate of the Scottsdale Leadership Class 29.

Im thrilled to have the opportunity to build RVis team and our client relationships throughout Arizona, as well as to serve our existing clients in the southwest United States, said Craig.

Over the course of Blinds career, he has founded two landscape architecture firms and is a recognized leader in the field of green infrastructure. His experience includes the planning and design of parks, trails, academic campuses, urban developments and residential communities. Blind is a member of the Urban Land Institute-Atlanta, Lambda Alpha International, the Georgia Conservancy and the Southface Energy Institute Sustainable Atlanta Round Table Steering Committee.

Ive known the leadership team at RVi for many years, and Im thrilled to join them, said Blind. "Were looking forward to building our staff and company presence throughout the southeastern United States.

RVi provides planning and landscape architecture services in a variety of market sectors, including master-planned communities, commercial developments, parks and open space and academic campuses. The firm has offices in Austin, Houston, Dallas, Scottsdale and Atlanta, as well as an affiliate office in Oakland.

For more information about RVi: www.rviplanning.com
FALLS CHURCH, Va., Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) will participate in the Goldman Sachs Industrials Conference 2016 Wednesday, Nov. 2. Ken Bedingfield, corporate vice president and chief financial officer and Steve Movius, corporate vice president and treasurer, will present beginning at 10:40 a.m. Eastern time. The presentation will be webcast live at www.northropgrumman.com.



Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing innovative systems, products and solutions in autonomous systems, cyber, C4ISR, strike, and logistics and modernization to customers worldwide. Please visit www.northropgrumman.com for more information.

Note: Statements to be made at the conference, including in the presentation and in any accompanying materials, other than statements of historical fact, may constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as anticipate, expect, intend, plan, believe, estimate, guidance, and similar expressions generally identify these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date when made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements after the date of the subject presentation, except as required by applicable law. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and inherently involve a wide range of risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. A discussion of these risks and uncertainties is contained in the Companys filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
ENGLEWOOD, Colo., Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Westmoreland Resource Partners, LP (NYSE:WMLP), today announced the close of a unit exchange agreement with Westmoreland Coal Company and a quarterly distribution reduction. These actions are primarily designed to preserve Westmoreland Resource Partners ability to continue to make cash distributions to public unit holders.

Westmoreland Coal Company, the controlling unit holder of Westmoreland Resource Partners, has exchanged 4,512,500 common units for an equal amount of new Series B units that do not have rights to distributions.

The Board of Directors of Westmoreland Resources GP, LLC, general partner of Westmoreland Resource Partners, declared a cash distribution for all unit holders and warrant holders of $0.1333 per unit for its third quarter ended September 30, 2016. The Board elected to distribute at the minimum quarterly distribution level, a reduction of 33% from its previous distribution. Additionally, the Board declared a distribution of Series A Convertible units to be issued in lieu of a $0.1333 cash distribution to holders of Series A Convertible units. The distribution will be paid on November 14, 2016 to all unit holders and warrant holders of record as of the close of business on November 7, 2016.

This press release is intended to be a qualified notice under Treasury Regulation Section 1.1446-4(b). Brokers and nominees should treat one hundred percent (100.0%) of WMLPs distributions to non-U.S. investors as being attributable to income that is effectively connected with a United States trade or business. Accordingly, WMLPs distributions to non-U.S. investors are subject to federal income tax withholding at the highest applicable effective tax rate.

About Westmoreland Resource Partners, LP

Westmoreland Resource Partners, LP is a low-cost producer of high-value thermal coal. It markets its coal primarily to large electric utilities with coal-fired, base-load scrubbed power plants under long-term coal sales contracts. For more information about Westmoreland Resource Partners, LP (NYSE:WMLP), please visit www.westmorelandmlp.com. Unit holders may request a hard copy of the Partnerships Annual Report on Form 10-K free of charge, which is also routinely posted on and accessible at www.westmorelandmlp.com. The Partnerships most recent Annual Report was filed March 14, 2016.
SARASOTA, Fla., Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ringling College of Art and Design today announced that the College's DRAW Learning Portfolio Platform was chosen as the winner of the Pitch IT! Challenge at the 2016 Educause Conference in Anaheim, California. Educause is the higher education Information Technology association.

DRAW is the acronym for Ringling College's Digital Resource Archive Warehouse. Developed over the past three years, DRAW is a learning portfolio platform for archiving, downloading and searching student artwork, photography and other digital works. DRAW was presented at Pitch IT! on Wednesday by Jeff Schwartz, Interim Vice President for Academic Affairs for Ringling College to a panel of judges made up of representatives from Amazon Web Services, Dell, EdSurge and USA Funds.



Ringling was chosen to compete with three other institutions out of a field of 25 in this Shark Tank-like challenge for the opportunity to have Educause and its members throw their weight into further developing DRAW into a higher education product applicable to Art and Design institutions worldwide.

In his presentation, Jeff detailed that DRAW "became a game changer for us." The Pitch IT! judges agreed, bestowing winner status to Ringling College and DRAW Thursday afternoon. DRAW was developed to find a solution to offer students of art and design an opportunity for reflection, engagement and assessment of meaningful student learning along with the ability to share and search the enormous volumes of work created in the educational process.



According to Jeff, "We are thrilled to have won the 'Pitch IT!' challenge. The opportunity to work with industry leaders to further develop DRAW is amazing and we are humbled and grateful to have achieved success at this level. We will spend the next year in partnership with Educause and their industry-leading member companies to further develop DRAW, resolve some of the challenges with the platform to allow for greater integration as well as increasing storage capacity and the addition of long-awaited features. It has been a team effort working with IT, our faculty and students. It is going to be very exciting to see what we develop over this year with our partners and we look forward to sharing our results at Educause 2017 in Philadelphia."



Jim Burnett, Educause Senior Manager for Strategic Sales and Business Development, said that "We were very excited with the level of technological application to meet higher education challenges presented by our finalists. Ringling's DRAW really captured the interest of our judges and attendees for both the depth of its application and its potential for Art and Design schools across the globe. We look forward to seeing what Ringling brings to Educause next year.



DRAW was developed by Ringling College's Information Technology and Academic Affairs departments, led by Dr. Mahmoud Pegah, Director of Information Technology; Randall Alberts, IT Project Manager; and Jeff Schwartz and David Jackson, Interim co-Vice Presidents of Academic Affairs. Implementation of DRAW with the incoming student body was driven by Ringling College Instructors and First Year Coordinators Karen Sullivan, Claudius Cumbria-Jones, Angela Leed and Nathan Skiles.



About EDUCAUSE

EDUCAUSE is a nonprofit association and the foremost community of IT leaders and professionals committed to advancing higher education. EDUCAUSE programs and services are focused on analysis, advocacy, community building, professional development, and knowledge creation because IT plays a transformative role in higher education. EDUCAUSE supports those who lead, manage, and use information technology through a comprehensive range of resources and activities. For more information, visit www.educause.edu



About Ringling College of Art and Design

For 85 years, Ringling College of Art and Design has cultivated the creative spirit in students from around the globe. The private, not-for-profit fully accredited college offers the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in eleven disciplines and the Bachelor of Arts in two. The College's rigorous curriculum employs the studio model of teaching and immediately engages students through a comprehensive, first-year program that is both specific to the major of study and focused on the liberal arts. The Ringling College teaching model ultimately shapes students into highly employable and globally aware artists and designers. www.ringling.edu

Photos accompanying this release are available at:



http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=41773



http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=41774
BENGALURU: Filmmaking is an entertaining as well as good revenue earning profession in the present day. Now-a-days people are more of willing to invest on Films rather than shares. Thats the impact film making has created all over the world. These days film making is not constrained to only professionals, as normal cameras and smartphones are enough to shoot short films, so what you need is a money spinning idea. Smartphones with moviemaking apps and High quality camera has encouraged most of the filmmakers to be in the trade.

Here are few film festivals that are celebrating smartphone films, according to the blog of Wishberry.

Mobile Film Festival

Paris is organizing its 11th Mobile Film festival, which selects 75 one-minute films from 27 countries, shot on a specific theme. This year the focus is on the intimidating thoughts on climate change that will be held in the last week of September.

Cinephone International Smartphone Short film Festival

This film fare is known to exist since 2012. The event organized by Spain, hosts films that are completely shot on mobile phone. The booking of the show commences from the 1st of January to the 31st of August. The festival is held usually in Barcelona on 16th of October every year.

The Original iPhone Festival

This Film festival supports exotic, revolutionized method of film making. The event was first performed in 2011 at New York. The constraint is that the film must be shot using iPhone or an iPad. The festival is going to be held in the month of January.

iPhone Film Festival

Unlike The Original iPhone Festival this event organized at California allows or acknowledges films shot on any mobile device, with just one rule i.e mandatorily minimum of 70 percent of the film must have been shot on iPhone.

International Mobile Film Festival

In the upcoming year this festival will be rejoicing its 6th year anniversary on 29th & 30th of April, 2017 in San Diego, California. Unique film resource and knowledgeable environment, makes the event much more happening.

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.-- Enough is enough -- that's Gov. Andrew Cuomo's message to those abusing the Staten Island Expressway's HOV lane, which opened in September of 2015.

Starting today, the governor has directed the New York State Police to partner with the New York City Police Department to "step up enforcement of the expressway's HOV lanes, and put a stop to this reckless and arrogant behavior once and for all."

"Plain and simple, this is a blatant disregard for the law that could cause a real danger to all drivers on the Staten Island Expressway," Cuomo said in a statement in which he credits Assemblyman Michael Cusick for bringing the issue to his attention.

In addition to Cusick, Cuomo also thanked State Police Troop NYC and the NYPD for "making this a public safety priority."

Cusick has been working with the governor since the beginning of the month on this issue which affects many Staten Island commuters.

Cusick noted that the HOV lane on the Staten Island Expressway is designed to "encourage carpooling and improve the lengthy commutes of tens of thousands of Staten Islanders."

"Unfortunately, the lane has been widely abused by vehicles with less than three passengers, due in no small part to a lack of enforcement," Cusick said. "In light of this, I asked Governor Cuomo to bring the State Police to Staten Island to work with the NYPD in solving this problem."

Cusick said he's pleased that beginning today "State troopers will patrol the HOV lane, ticketing violators and discouraging any vehicle without three passengers from entering the lane in the first place."

He thanked the governor and the New York State Police for "responding to the call of Staten Island commuters."

The state police presence is going to be ongoing, according to State Police spokesperson Beau Duffy.

"We'll work with the NYPD as long as our assistance is helpful," Duffy said.

Councilman Steven Matteo (R-Mid-Island), who has been vocal on this issue as well, said he shares the governor's "anger and frustration about HOV scofflaws," and welcomes "any efforts to crack down on this dangerous activity."

However, he still thinks there's more to be done and took to social media to once again share his ideas.

Let's start w good news: NY State Troopers were set up in SIE HOV Lane this AM. Bad news: The number of motorists... Posted by Steven Matteo on Thursday, October 27, 2016

Matteo has asked the state Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) to install bollards separating the HOV lane on the Staten Island Expressway from the other lanes.

Matteo said: "As I have said many times, both in public statements and letters to the State DOT, we not only need stepped-up enforcement, but a physical barrier like bollards between the HOV and regular SIE lanes to ensure that is used legally and safely."
nws burglary RMA

Police are searching for two males in connection with a burglary in Granitevlle on Oct. 21, police said. (DCPI)

(RIVERO, HENRY)

STATEN ISLAND, NY. -- Police seek the public's help identifying two individuals wanted for questioning in connection with a burglary in Graniteville last week.

On Oct. 21 at around 1:10 p.m., two males entered an unlocked 2003 Acura SUV and used the garage door opener to access the garage and removed two bicycles, according to a written statement from the NYPD's Deputy Commissioner of Public Information.

The incident occurred in the vicinity of Kirshon Avenue and Renee Place in Graniteville, police said.

Both individuals fled on Lamberts Lane riding the bicycles and made a right turn onto Longdale Street, the NYPD statement said.

Police released a photo of the individuals sought for questioning, taken from a surveillance video at a nearby home, police said.

The first male was last seen wearing a blue sweatshirt and appeared to have had an injury to his right leg. The second individual is described as an adult male who was last seen wearing a red winter jacket with a hood, police said.

Anyone with information in regard to this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit tips by logging onto the Crime stoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.-- Over the past two weeks, armed robbers have stabbed, beaten, stalked and threatened people who, according to police, were going about their daily lives.

Police have reported eight armed robberies from Oct. 15 through Oct. 27 -- including four over the span of 24-hours on Wednesday and Thursday.

Seven remained unsolved, as of Thursday afternoon, according to the NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Public Information office.

It's uncertain if any are connected, as police continue to investigate the possibility, according to a source with knowledge of the investigations.

Bus riders beat up and robbed

A 66-year-old man told police he was waiting for the bus at 2:30 a.m. Wednesday on Jewett Avenue in Port Richmond, when two men approached him. One of them brandished a silver hand gun and demanded money, while the other punched him in the head and the mouth, according to an NYPD spokeswoman.

One of the men reached in to the victim's pocket and took $800 cash, a credit card and ID card before they both fled on foot, police said. Both were described as Hispanic: one of them 5'8," 150 pounds; the other 5'6," 140 pounds.

No arrests had been made as of Thursday afternoon.

At the other end of the Island, at about 7:15 p.m. Wednesday in Rossville, an 18-year-old man was beat up and threatened by three teenagers with a large knife, police said.

The victim told police three males followed him off the bus, then, ran up to him throwing punches near the intersection of Woodrow and Bloomingdale roads. His wallet was stolen, and the assailants told him they'd stab him if he didn't give up his pass code, police said.

The suspects -- ages 14, 15 and 17 -- have since been arrested and face multiple charges in connection with the incident, police said.

The 17-year-old-- Tyreek Foster, of Warren Street in Stapleton-- was scheduled to be arraigned Friday for charges of robbery in the second degree, robbery in the third degree and criminal possession of stolen property, according to court records.

Man stabbed walking home from work

Screaming and shouts for help Monday night drew the attention of a resident on Hull Avenue in Dongan Hills. The man said he walked outside shortly after 11 p.m. to find a male victim in his early 20s, bleeding from the neck. Neighbors said they saw four men sitting in a car on Hull Avenue before the attack.

The suspects took an iPhone and $80 from the victim, who was walking home from work, police said. The investigation was ongoing, as of Thursday.

Cashiers threatened at gunpoint

The Diddle Dee Bagel and Deli in Dongan Hills has been robbed twice over the past two weeks, Oct. 16 and Oct. 25, as suspects have made off with about $2,000 each time, police said.

One of the men who robbed the deli the first time told the cashier he'd be back if the man called the police. It's uncertain if the two incidents were related.

Diddle Dee was one of four businesses recently hit.

Three men ambushed employees at Richmond Food in Sunnyside just before 4 a.m. Oct. 15; one of them carrying a gun.

Two of the suspects entered the store in masks and hoodies, while a third stood guard outside, according to a store employee.

The man with the gun walked around the counter and held the store clerks up, as his accomplice jumped on the counter. They made off with about $5,000 from the register.

And just this week, two businesses were robbed within a few hours of each other.

Nearly a dozen police cars were outside a deli at 44 New Dorp Plaza Wednesday night, after two males, both described as black males, 5'6" and wearing ski masks, robbed the business at about 11 p.m.

Then, at about 2:50 a.m. Thursday, a "strong arm" robbery was reported five miles away at a Sunoco on Arthur Kill Road in Arden Heights. The suspects were described as black males, also wearing masks.

Robberies this year

Despite the recent uptick in robberies, half of which have occurred in the 122 precinct, year-long statistics show a 15 percent decrease from 2015.

Police have reported 323 robberies so far in 2016, whereas 382 robberies were reported at this point last year, according to NYPD statistics.
Screen Shot 2016-10-27 at 4.54.26 PM.png

The 37 acre site -- of which 22-acres can be built on -- is owned by the Queens-based Muss Development for more than 40 years, and once housed the S.S. White Dental Manufacturing Plant. (Rendering provided by Rampulla Associates Architects)

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A long-stalled Prince's Bay luxury home community on the Raritan Bay shorefront may finally get built if a developer purchases the property and plans for the 132-home community.

The 37-acre site -- of which 22 acres can be built on -- is owned by the Queens-based Muss Development for more than 40 years, and once housed the S.S. White Dental Manufacturing Plant.

Plans for a shoreline luxury residential community were delayed over the last 20 years due, in part, to the need for a full remediation of PCBs and contaminated soil at the site.

Last year the property was listed with a Manhattan-based broker that boasted "approved, permitted and shovel-ready" plans for the site.

The property didn't sell, and while there was no definite price-tag, the ballpark price for the parcel that was floated was $30 million.

"While a ballpark asking price was set for Princess Point almost two years ago, there is no current asking price," said Helen Hwang, senior executive managing director, Meridian Capital, the new Manhattan-based listing broker for the property.

A spokesman for Muss Development said Meridian Capital has some parties interested in developing the project and is accepting bids on the land.

A LONG HISTORY

The site, which stretches 1,900 feet along the Raritan Bay shoreline, housed S.S. White plant from 1865 to 1972. During the 1980s it was transformed into a mall, known as the Prince's Bay Trade Mart.

Muss Development razed the plant in 1986 after a suspicious two-alarm fire destroyed many of the vacant buildings the previous year. In 1989, Muss Development received approval to build 396 condominiums at the site. In

1997, the developer began a state-mandated cleanup of the site where PCBs were found once the dental plant was gone.

Remedial work was completed in February 2001. In 2004, Muss downsized the original plan from 396 condominiums to 133 detached one- and two- family homes.

THE 'FACTORY BY THE SEA'

When the S.S. White plant left Staten Island's South Shore in 1972, it marked the end of an industry that had operated in the borough for more than a century.

In 1865, the Johnston Brothers bought a palm oil processing plant in Prince's Bay at the foot of Seguine Avenue and converted it into a dental supply factory. In 1881, the company merged with a firm owned by Samuel Stockton White to form the S.S. White Dental Manufacturing Company.

In the 1890s, S.S. White was the largest employer on the Island, with 425 workers. By 1927, the horseshoe of 14 interconnected, four-story brick buildings had become the largest maker of dental equipment in the world, with 1,900 workers.

Tool and die makers, electricians, engineers and other technicians turned out dental chairs, drills, metal fillings, toothpaste, mouthwash, dentures and bottled anesthetic gas.

The "Factory by the Sea," as it was called, was proud of maintaining a safe, comfortable workplace with good recreational and health care facilities.

The Prince's Bay plant was closed in 1972. It reopened as the Prince's Bay Trade Mart, but by 1980 only 40 of the original 100 businesses remained. The ailing mall was then turned into a Factory Center of discount outlets. But the idea never really took off, and in 1982 the Factory Center was closed.

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Climate change could push risk of megadrought to 99% in American southwest

Posted on 28 October 2016 by Guest Author

This is a re-post from Carbon Brief by Robert McSweeney

A megadrought spanning several decades could be almost certain to hit the American southwest this century if greenhouse gas emissions are not curbed, a new study says.

Rising temperatures will load the dice in favour of a megadrought in the region, the researchers say. Combined with a decline in rainfall, warming conditions could put risk levels at 99% for much of the region, the study finds, while moderate increases in rainfall would still leave risk levels above 70%.

But there is a glimmer of hope another scientist tells Carbon Brief. The study also shows that keeping global temperature rise to no more than 2C above pre-industrial levels would cut this risk by half.

Megadrought

In the last few days, state officials have confirmed that Californias drought has now ticked over into its sixth year. The costs of the ongoing dry spell have run into billions through lost crops and livestock, and the energy demands of pumping water from ever-retreating groundwater stores. Today, more than 60% of the state remains in severe drought or worse.

Now a new study, published in Science Advances, says unchecked climate change is upping the risk that California and the wider American southwest could see droughts in future that persist a lot longer.

The study looks specifically at megadroughts. These are 35-year periods that are at least as dry, on average, as the worst droughts experienced in the 20th century  such as the Dust Bowl droughts of midwest America in the 1930s.

The researchers assessed future drought risk using a statistical model to estimate the impacts of temperature and rainfall changes on soil moisture in the southwest. This region includes Arizona, much of California and Nevada, southern Utah and western parts of Colorado and New Mexico.

The findings show that rising temperature is the predominant factor in increasing the likelihood of a megadrought. Lead author Dr Toby Ault, assistant professor in the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at Cornell University, explains to Carbon Brief:

We found that temperature generally wins out and drives evaporation rates to higher levels, which in turn makes megadroughts more likely in a warmer climate even if precipitation increases.

You can see this in the maps below, which show the risk of a megadrought occurring this century under different levels of warming compared to pre-industrial levels: 2C (upper map), 4C (middle) and 6C (lower).

Global emissions are currently tracking just above a scenario that climate models suggest would raise global average temperatures by around 4C or more by 2100.

The left-hand maps indicate how temperature changes the megadrought risk if rainfall amounts stay the same as they are now. The shading indicates the level of risk, from yellows and oranges up to dark brown where the risk reaches 90-100%.

You can see that under 2C, the risk in some southern parts of the region is less than 30%, with around half of the region at greater than 60% likelihood of a megadrought. But the step change to 4C is stark, with all but the southwest corner of the region at a risk of over 90%.

The right-hand maps show how much extra rainfall would be needed to keep megadrought risk below 50% for each temperature increase. The darker the blue shading, the more rainfall that would be needed.

For a 2C warmer world, most of the region would only need modest increases in rainfall  less than 10%  to reduce the risk of megadroughts to 50%, the paper says. However, under 4C, this increases to 10-30%, and then up to 40-50% in northern parts of the region with 6C of warming.

The contours on these maps show how much rainfall is actually projected to change by climate models. As you can see, for all but the most northern parts of the region, rainfall is expected to decrease by 5-15%. This means rainfall is unlikely to reduce the risk of megadroughts substantially.

Glimmer of hope

Earlier research has shown that the Earth has experienced megadroughts around once or twice a century during the past millennium. But while these were caused by natural fluctuations in the climate, were now adding human-caused climate change into the mix. Ault explains:

In the past, the ocean is the most likely culprit for driving megadroughts. Persistent  La Nina  patterns, as well as other prolonged sea surface temperature anomalies, are possible culprits. In the future, temperature will play an increasingly important role.

The findings add to growing evidence that the American southwest is likely to experience worsening droughts under climate change, says Dr Peter Gleick, chief scientist at the global water thinktank, the Pacific Institute, who wasnt involved in the study. He tells Carbon Brief:

In particular, rising temperatures will drive changes in water availability beyond what even moderate increases in precipitation can mitigate, and even worse, there may not be any precipitation increases at all.

This reinforces the importance of efforts to limit global temperature rise, says Ault:

Future megadrought risk depends strongly on temperature, hence reducing global carbon emissions will limit the total amount of regional temperature change and ultimately lower the risk of megadrought.

This means there is a glimmer of hope to avoid the crippling impacts of a megadrought, says Gleick:

The risk of these megadroughts can be partly reduced by aggressive efforts to cut greenhouse gases, but we should have begun these efforts years ago, when similar warnings were first sounded.
by Brian Allan '17

A standing-room-only faculty discussion at the Tang Teaching Museum Wednesday night covered the ways that Donald Trump's mold-breaking candidacy has infiltrated into the academic sphere. The panel was aptly titled "Teaching Trump."

From notably diverse disciplines, the panelists were psychologist Sheldon Solomon, historian Jennifer Delton, political scientist Chris Mann, and sociologist Andrew Lindner '03; the moderator was social-work professor Pat Oles.



A reaction from Linnea Harris '19 draws a smile

from Conor Pochna '19 A reaction from Linnea Harris '19 draws a smilefrom Conor Pochna '19

Delton recalled, "When I was in school, my professors always taught that Ronald Reagan would be the worst thing that ever happened to the country." She had heard that about Barry Goldwater and Richard Nixon too. "I said, 'When I become a professor, I'm not going to do that.'" Delton paused before adding, "And then I get Trump" After the laughter subsided, she described how Trump's campaign and popular following have played a role in her classroom discussions of economic and social class in America.

Lindner said, "Courses reflect the individual teacher-scholars who teach them," but of course "students should be able to trust their faculty members to be intellectually honest and admit their assumptions, and to create a civil and respectful environment where you can try out new ideas."

Mann reported that Trump has forced his way into his "Campaigns and Elections" classroom. Though the course doesn't focus on presidential elections, this year Trump complicates what it means to campaign at any level. "Donald Trump doesn't act like any candidate we've had since basically World War II," Mann said. From its fundraising to its media strategy, he argued, Trump's campaign has the capacity to drastically alter the topography of future campaigns, and of political science: "It may very well be that I have to tear up my syllabus for the second half of the semester," because, regardless of whether Trump wins or loses, "much of what we think we understand about how campaigns work as organizations and how elections work as institutions may get thrown out the window."



Tongtian Xiao '18 queries the panel. Tongtian Xiao '18 queries the panel.

Solomon spoke about his research based on the thinking of sociologist Max Weber, who believed that in times of danger or upheaval people are more drawn to an outspoken "charismatic leader," and of anthropologist Ernest Becker, who posited that a key impetus for supporting such leaders is an underlying fear of death. Building on his research conducted just after 9/11, in which people who had been subconsciously reminded of mortality were more likely to support the Bush administration and its invasion of Iraq, Solomon applied the same methodology to the current election and found that people reminded of their mortality were more likely to say they endorsed Trump.

Among the audience questioners was a student concerned about whether a liberal majority on campus may be stifling to the conservative voice. A member of the Skidmore Republicans student club noted the surprising levels of agreement at a debate last semester: "People were surprised that we weren't actually bickering the whole time." And Lindner said that while he routines has more liberals than conservatives in his classes, he has seen that "conversation really is possible."



Skidmore Republicans club Skidmore Republicans club

In terms of Trump the candidate, the panel clearly demonstrated how he serves in different academic roles: in psychology, he is a way of understanding how fear of mortality can influence one's choices of leaders; in political science, he is a case study of a potentially new norm in campaign strategy; in history and sociology, his constituency brings to life some important socioeconomic and political characteristics of American society.

The event was organized by the Skidmore Republicans. Co-president Julia Budsey '19 says the club will not be endorsing a candidate this year, but she told the Skidmore News that the group hoped the panel would "further the political dialogue" as a way of sharing "in Skidmore's academic and extracurricular community."
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Kate Goodchild and partner David Turner with children Ebony, left, and Evie, right, in a picture released by the family. "So many of us, like Kate, Luke, Roozi and Cindy, have visited Dreamworld and sat smiling and laughing with our loved ones on the same ride they were sitting on last Tuesday. "We know that there have been candlelight vigils and prayers of support from people all around the country, and we are grateful and touched by this support." Killed: Mother-of-two Kate Goodchild. Mr Goodchild did not address the question of compensation and declined to go into whether or not Dreamworld had contacted the families.

"We do not wish to make any comment about the actions of Dreamworld or its owners at this stage and prefer to wait until further details emerge from the investigation and coronial process," he said. Shayne Dorsett said the unfairness of the deaths of his son Luke Dorsett and Luke's partner Roozi Araghi in the Dreamworld accident cannot be overstated. He regarded Roozi as another son. Credit:Melissa Adams We want to know why our loved ones were taken from us in such horrific circumstances. No-one wants those answers more than we do. Shayne Goodchild, father of Luke Dorsett and Kate Goodchild The families' thoughts were very much on dealing with their grief and preparing for even more heartache ahead. "In the next few days we have to bury our beautiful children, and for Dave, his amazing partner. Roozi's family have to farewell their incredible and inspirational son and brother," Mr Goodchild said.

The families of the Canberra victims of the Dreamworld accident have also expressed their condolences to the family of Sydney woman Cindy Low who was also killed. "We also all have to help two little girls start to come to terms with the fact that their mum is never coming home. "For this reason, we ask from the bottom of our hearts, on behalf of all our families, that the country give us time and space to grieve, and to farewell our loved ones." Shayne Goodchild says it is the saddest thing to know the mother of his granddaughters Evie, eight months, and Ebony,12, is never coming home. Credit:Facebook Mr Turner, meanwhile, was stoic in the face of a throng of media gathered at the National Carillon on the lake, its bells ringing once as Mr Goodchild detailed the catalogue of grief the family has had to process in just three short days.

Mr Turner had not only lost Kate, his partner of 15 years, "the love of his life" but had to "be strong for their beautiful daughters", Ebony, 12, and eight-month-old Evie. He wiped tears from his eyes and sought support from Mr Goodchild, the anguish and overwhelming horror of this week clear on his face. "Dave was standing next to the ride holding Evie when this tragic event happened, and Ebony was sitting next to her mum when they were thrown into the water," Mr Goodchild said. "Dave not only has to deal with his own grief, but be strong for their beautiful daughters. Our darling Evie, is only eight months old, and far too young to be without her mum. "And he must be a rock for his oldest daughter Ebony, who saw her mum's life taken. Our darling Ebony is only 12.

"Only 24 hours earlier, my family was on the beach, taking Evie into the waves for the very first time. It is truly devastating that Evie will never get to know just what an amazing person her mum was." As is often the case, the tragedy had taken people who were so full of life, so giving to others and so treasured in their communities. Mr Goodchild said Luke, 35, and Kate, 32, were as close as any brother and sister could be, both working for the Department of Human Services and living just a few streets away from each other in Crace in the northern suburbs of Canberra. "Evie and Ebony have not only lost their mum, the deaths of Luke and Roozi have also taken away two uncles who also loved and cherished them," he said. Mr Goodchild said he considered Luke's partner Roozi, 38, as "another son", a much-loved member of the communications team at the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

"Luke and Roozi have been partners for nearly a decade and are a truly inspirational couple to everyone who had the great fortune to have known them. To say, 'This is just not fair' doesn't begin to express our despair," he said. "Their loss will be deeply felt not just amongst our families, but amongst all of their friends and work colleagues." Mr Goodchild said the families also wanted to express their condolences to the family of Cindy Low, 42. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to Cindy's family, and particularly her son, who was also sitting on the raft with his mum," he said. Loading
A Canberra man on remand in the Alexander Maconochie Centre and sharing a cell with axe murderer Marcus Rappel has been refused bail.

The man, 34, appeared in the ACT Magistrates Court via videolink on Friday afternoon. On October 20, he had pleaded not guilty to four common assault charges against his partner.

Details aired in court describe the pair fighting after returning home from a night out drinking at the Raiders Club. It's alleged the Hume man spat on the woman, sat on her legs, threw the contents of an ashtray over her, and poured a drink on her legs. He allegedly then forced her into the shower.

A phone rang, and the woman allegedly ran from the house and to a nearby Caltex with wet hair and holding a towel, the court heard.

Defence counsel John Masters said the man's partner did not oppose bail, nor fear for her safety, and a letter she had written to the court was tendered. They still intended to move in together, the court heard.
So many of us, like Kate, Luke, Roozi and Cindy, have visited Dreamworld and sat smiling and laughing with our loved ones on the same ride they were sitting on last Tuesday. Kate Goodchild and her partner David Turner with children Ebony, left, and Evie, right, in a picture released by the family. Kate was killed in the Dreamworld accident this week. We know that there have been candlelight vigils and prayers of support from people all around the country, and we are grateful and touched by this support. Kate's tragic death has not only devastated Dave, her partner of 15 years, but it has also left her two beautiful daughters, Ebony and Evie, without a mum. Roozi Araghi, Luke Dorsett (left) and Kate Goodchild (second from right). The three Canberrans were killed in the Dreamworld accident on Tuesday Credit:Facebook

Dave was standing next to the ride holding Evie when this tragic event happened, and Ebony was sitting next to her mum when they were thrown into the water. Dave not only has to deal with his own grief, but be strong for their beautiful daughters. Our darling Evie, is only 8 months old, and far too young to be without her mum. And he must be a rock for his oldest daughter Ebony, who saw her mum's life taken. Our darling Ebony is only 12. Only 24 hours earlier, my family was on the beach, taking Evie into the waves for the very first time. It is truly devastating that Evie will never get to know just what an amazing person her mum was. We've also lost Luke and Roozi. Luke and Kate were as close as any brother and sister could be, and Luke's loss is going to be felt by all of us. Evie and Ebony have not only lost their mum, the deaths of Luke and Roozi have also taken away two uncles who also loved and cherished them.

Luke and Roozi have been partners for nearly a decade and are a truly inspirational couple to everyone who had the great fortune to have known them. To say "this is just not fair" doesn't begin to express our despair. Their loss will be deeply felt not just amongst our families, but amongst all of their friends and work colleagues. We would also like to express our condolences to the family of Cindy Low. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Cindy's family, and particularly her son, who was also sitting on the raft with his mum. Like everyone else in Australia, we want to know what went wrong. We want to know why our loved ones were taken from us in such horrific circumstances. No-one wants those answers more than we do. The next few weeks and months are going to be incredibly difficult for our families.

In the next few days we have to bury our beautiful children, and for Dave, his amazing partner. Roozi's family have to farewell their incredible and inspirational son and brother. We also all have to help two little girls start to come to terms with the fact that their mum is never coming home. For this reason, we ask from the bottom of our hearts, on behalf of all our families, that the country give us time and space to grieve, and to farewell our loved ones. In particular, we ask that the media respect our wish to hold private farewells for Kate, Luke and Roozi. We understand the media interest their funerals will attract, but plead that we are allowed to grieve in private, at this most difficulttime. We do not wish to make any comment about the actions of Dreamworld or its owners at this stage and prefer to wait until further details emerge from the investigation and Coronial process. There have been some question about whether the company has tried to contact us or offered any assistance. At this difficult time we would prefer that any future contact from the company or the media be made through oursolicitor.
When embattled Dreamworld operator Ardent Leisure's chief executive - former Women's Weekly editor Deborah Thomas - decided to hand her $167,500 cash bonus to the Australian Red Cross on Thursday evening, it meant she would earn less than half of what her predecessor made last financial year.

The kicker is that former chief executive Greg Shaw did not work a single day of the financial year in question.

Ardent unexpectedly announced Mr Shaw's retirement in March last year. He was replaced by Ms Thomas, and left the company the following month.

The shock announcement proved disastrous for chairman Neil Balnaves, with the sharemarket sending Ardent's stock into a plunge from which it had only recently recovered.
Australia's richest woman Gina Rinehart has all but snared control of the vast Kidman and Co land and cattle empire after a rival all-Australian bid pulled out.

The all-Australian BBHO consortium withdrew its $386 million offer Friday after Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting and its joint venture partner Shanghai CRED increased their bid to acquire the country's largest landholder to $386.5 million.

Gina Rinehart's group bid $386.5 million for the Kidman empire. Credit:Lisa Maree Williams

"We are disciplined investors in Australian rural assets and made what we believed to be a full and fair offer," the consortium said, admitting defeat.

"Each of the BBHO partners wishes the Hancock consortium well and, should they be successful in completing the acquisition, we look forward to welcoming them as neighbours."
Fortescue's stock price rose to its highest level since April 2014, helping bolster the local sharemarket on Tuesday. Credit:AP Fortescue's chief executive Nev Power wryly noted this week that there have been a "lot of barriers and a lot of attempts to to stop Fortescue ever coming to fruition". Iron ore's fall Fortescue chief Nev Power. Credit:Rob Homer In January this year, as the iron ore price sank to around $US40 a tonne and Fortescue's share price crashed to a low of $1.54, there was a new wave of concern.

The recovery in the stock price has been nothing short of staggering  up 180 per cent since then. Forrest's personal wealth hitched a ride  he is now worth more than $5 billion. The much lauded performance by Fortescue's management was in a period when iron ore prices bounced between soft and dire. We are at that very fine point now where every extra tonne can make the difference. Glyn Lawcock In that 2016 financial year the company made big strides in cutting debt. It repaid almost $US3 billion in debt "and it will do a similar amount this year", Forrest forecasts. Indeed in the space of three years Fortescue has cut what was a mountainous debt pile of $US11.3 billion to $US4.2 billion at the end of last month.

It can't yet boast a debt-lite balance sheet but if Forrest's predictions are borne out it will have one in a year. The comparisons with the fortunes of BHP and Rio and others are sweet for Forrest. "While other majors in the mining industry were dropping their dividends, we increased ours ... when their borrowings were hitting limits, we were repaying capital at an enormous rate," he points out. One of Australia's most successful funds managers, John Sevior of Airlie Funds Management, reckons Forrest will take much satisfaction when Fortescue has a balance sheet in better shape than BHP and Rio's. "No one could have foreseen this," he declared. And Power predicts that by the end of 2017 Fortescue's debt levels will be "the envy of almost everyone in the mining industry".

Near-death experience AFR. Pic of Andrew Forrest at the Sydney FC Business Luncheon Today. Pic by Nic Walker. Date 17th April 2012. While Forrest needed to use debt to create Fortescue, develop mines and build its infrastructure, he never wants to return to those days where its balance sheet was under pressure. "The reason we won't be another BHP or Rio is because we won't test our balance sheet [to further expand]," he says. One of the most experienced investment bank experts in the market, UBS's Glyn Lawcock, says while nothing is ever bulletproof, "Fortescue looks pretty safe" particularly for a company which by his count has had four near-death experiences.

"They had near-death experiences but they always had options. It's just that they chose to always stare down the market." Forrest was adamant China would save him and the low iron ore price putting his balance sheet under pressure wouldn't be sustained. But there were mettle-testing moments  not least of which was Fortescue's early 2015 attempt to refinance its US debt. A major repayment loomed and a depressed iron ore price threatened to produce insufficient cash to meet those needs. Having heralded its plans to offer $US2.5 billion in a US note facility it pulled out at the 11th hour because it couldn't get the terms it wanted. A month later Fortescue waded back into the market having to accept even harsher terms. Five months later, after it announced the halving of its profit in 2015, Fortescue began talking up a late 2012-mooted plan to investigate a minority sale of either the infrastructure or mine assets, the proceeds of which would be used to cut a swath through the debt mountain.

The market wanted it, but for Forrest it was a last resort. If the proposed asset sale was designed to assure the market Fortescue had an escape hatch, the plan worked. "Was there a point you were very scared?" BusinessDay asked Forrest. "I had this rock-solid faith in Fortescue since I started the company. With every really brave plan A, we had had a bulletproof plan B, and people don't give us credit for that. People just see the high wire of the plan A. It's not a rabbit out of a hat." Fortescue 2.0 Fortescue - their Perth control room image supplied Credit:Matt Reed - Photography Project

While many believe Fortescue has beaten more than its share of such existential moments. Forrest now faces the fresh challenge of moving to the next stage of the company's development. How does the new lower-risk Fortescue retain that that adrenalin-infused flavour, that small investor-punt appeal and that roguish upstart DNA that the large establishment miners loved to hate? Fortescue 2.0 will be a different beast but retain some elements of the original. Forrest defines it as the "entrepreneurial stock without risk". Power declares: "It will never be boring."

Once Fortescue has its balance sheet and costs to its aspirational point, Forrest says plans to spend big licks of capital will be done through joint ventures and won't endanger Fortescue's balance sheet. At this stage there are no plans to invest in increasing iron ore production. "Riding the iron ore price in Fortescue is like riding a really energetic race horse at a canter," he says. "The reins are tight. It could produce way more if it wished and it's holding its production steady and really getting its operation costs, workforce and systems completely right." Having argued so loudly for a couple of years that BHP and Rio were blowing up the economics of the iron ore market by signalling excessive capacity increases, it would be near impossible for Forrest to push new supply onto the market in the foreseeable future. Moving forward The mining headwind has turned into a tailwind, argues HSBC's Paul Bloxham. Credit:Nick Cubbin

So what commodities is Fortescue looking at now? "It's more a question of what I don't like," says Forrest. Fortescue has recently secured tenements in Ecuador with prospects for copper and gold and others in western NSW. He says the sorts of investors that have bagged huge returns at various points over the past 10 years and witnessed the revival of the company's fortunes are keen to support its next phase of development. "There will always be wonderful growth opportunities and we can do that without testing our balance sheet ... you've got the BlackRocks, the Capitals, a whole suite of funds  all approach us and ask 'What's your next Fortescue?'"

The company's management has certainly earned its prized reputation for making fools of the sceptics by paying close attention to cutting costs  a vital part of which was deploying innovation to reduce waste and water from the ore and in doing so increasing the saleable portion of what is mined. It was a significant part of the recipe used by Fortescue to increase free cash flow in 2016 by 93 per cent to $US2.7 billion despite a near 30 per cent fall in the average benchmark iron ore price in that year. Forrest says Fortescue hasn't reached its natural bottom on costs because it still continues to learn about new advances in processing. But getting more incremental cost out of the business is harder, according to Power. The intense focus its management has placed on this task is the primary reason Fortescue has now earned the boasting rights of being the world's lowest cash cost producer of iron ore. There will be ongoing pressure for the company to continue to bring that down to its current year target of between $US12 and $US13 a tonne (and an all-in cost below $US30 a tonne). Its ability to make good on this promise will rely on a number of things it can't control, including fuel costs, the exchange rate and shipping costs. Citi analysts calculate Fortescue has shredded its all-in cash break-even level by almost 45 per cent since 2013.

And how its profits fare is most dependent on the price of iron ore and in turn demand from China. Forrest declared at a gathering at the National Press Club a few weeks back that iron ore was at its cyclical low. But at the current price of between $US55 and $US60 a tonne there are numerous investment houses tipping it will fall again as we move into 2017. Analysts are putting the firming of the price over the past 10 days down to weaker than expected output numbers from released in quarterly production reports from BHP and Rio. Fortescue alone among the larger Australian producers in reporting increased production in the first quarter of 2017. Hot topic There is still plenty of value in the big mining stocks despite their stellar run, Shaw and Partners senior analyst Peter O'Connor says. Credit:Bloomberg

Indeed the issue of market supply, or oversupply, has been one of the hottest debates over the past few years. Forrest argued the three industry giants  BHP, Rio and the Brazilian Vale  were bringing in additional supply to force down the price. The big boys of the industry denied the accusation and any suggestions they were attempting to push Fortescue or any smaller Australian producers out of the market. As they produced the iron ore at the lowest all-in cost they maintained the economics of the industry worked better for them if they dug up more. It was a frenzied debate that reached a climax last year when the Abbott government appeared to support an inquiry into the iron ore price  a position from which it ultimately backed away. Whether they will now continue to forge ahead with aspirations to put significant new tonnes into the market is no longer particularly clear. The mood and the appetite seems to be shifting.

"Our discussions were we thought it was very shortsighted to put volume over value," Forrest says. "I bring this up because everyone now talks about value over volume." Lawcock thinks BHP is still covered to 290 million tonnes annually and Rio to 360 million tonnes a year using their existing mines and infrastructure but notes if the markets is not there now they may not ever actually reach that number. He says they now want "to practise value over volume ... [and] they tell you that adding the extra 20 million tonnes won't hurt the market". But he questions whether they will actually go ahead it the price starts to move down. "We are at that very fine point now where every extra tonne can make the difference because we are not seeing any growth in demand."

So why did BHP and Rio ramp up supply a few years ago? Lawcock contends the rationale was not to send Forrest broke, nor to cripple Australian producers: the motivation was to discourage new entrants into the market. He uses the Goldilocks fable by way of illustrating the iron ore market: at $US65 to US$70 and above you will see people think about building large greenfields projects. And if the price falls too low the profits of all producers including BHP and Rio are squeezed. Supply and demand The Christmas Creek 1 ore processing facility. Credit:Damien Smith Once any new producers invest billions in new infrastructure they must use it and that supply will stay in the market.

But Power argues that although the market is pregnant with new supply from both Brazil and Gina Rinehart's Roy Hill the gestation period will be longer than many are expecting. He said this week supply and demand now sit in balance which suggests the price should remain relatively stable. But he also acknowledges the unpredictability driven in part by market speculators. Power describes bearish analyst forecasts for the iron ore price are "perplexing" given there are "no real indicators" Chinese demand for iron ore is going to decline enough to push the price back to $US40 a tonne. Fortescue was expecting the spot iron ore price to continue to trade in a "band" between $US40 and $US60 per tonne in 2017, Power said, acknowledging the potential for the price to track even higher if sentiment improved. Fortescue has argued the iron ore price has been artificially deflated by negative sentiment and apprehensions about an impending wave of supply. "If you look at the supply curve without any change to demand and supply, the price should be higher than where it is today," Power said, suggesting the price should be around the 90th percentile of production on the cost curve at about $US70 to $US75 a tonne.
Murray Goulburn has apologised for the burden on farmers caused by the dairy processor's surprise cut to its farmgate milk price.

The diary co-operative says it will review its board structure and the way its milk prices are set.

The weeks and months after April's shock price cut, and accompanying profit downgrade by Murray Goulburn, had been tough, chairman Philip Tracy told the company's annual general meeting on Friday.

"Every member of the co-op has been affected and everyone has had to make adjustments, sit at kitchen tables and run figures, look for savings, put off staff, cull herds - it's been extremely challenging," he said.
To suggest that the tragic accident at the Dreamworld amusement park on the Gold Coast on Tuesday has had a visceral impact on people across Australia is no exaggeration. Amusement parks are supposed to trade in fun, laughter and thrills, not in the shock and horror which unfolded on the Thunder River Rapids ride when a raft carrying six people (Kate Goodchild, her daughter Ebony, her brother Luke Dorsett and his partner Roozi Araghi, and Cindy Low and her son Kieran) crashed into an empty raft stopped in front of them.

The impact occurred not far from where the ride ended, and where members of their families stood waiting. Despite desperate attempts to extricate those trapped under the capsized raft, only the two young children were saved.

Ms Goodchild, her brother Luke and his partner Roozi Araghi lived and worked in Canberra and their deaths have been felt across the city, but most acutely, of course, by their families and loved ones.

Shayne Goodchild eloquently expressed that near overwhelming sense of familial grief and loss in a statement he read on behalf of the Turner, Goodchild and Dorsett families on Friday. In it, Mr Goodchild said that "to say 'this is not just fair' doesn't begin to express our despair".
The tragedy at Dreamworld this week is just the reason I've been looking for to stay away from amusement parks. I hate theme parks although my thrill-seeking son loves them.

Just take a look at the photo of us riding Luna Park's Wild Mouse. It says it all. I've squeezed my eyes shut and am gripping on with white-knuckled terror silently proclaiming "get me out of here". While my son is screaming with wide-eyed joy and is so pumped at the end of the ride he begs, "can we do that again?" It's a metaphor for how we both approach life, though it wasn't always this way.

I can be an adrenalin junkie with the best of them. I've jumped out of planes. I've swung from harnesses in trees in the Daintree rainforest and in the California redwoods. I've skied in Aspen and broken a leg as an exchange student while tobogganing in the Swedish snow. I've even done a few hair raising laps at "Mt Pany" in Bathurst. So I'm not exactly a 'fraidy cat.

It's just theme parks are not my thing  and surely I am not the only mother who can admit this.
If Hillary Clinton wins on November 8 she will have forged a remarkable and unprecedented political trail: the first woman in more than 200 years of American democracy to win the Presidency, and the first former First Lady to become Commander-in-chief.

Contrary to what many might think, the latter is in many ways the more formidable achievement.

In a country where women are still such a distinct minority in politics that they obviously are not widely accepted by many voters, the path to power for a woman has all too often been to take over a seat from a dead husband. This used to be so common that it even has a name: the widows' succession.

Thirty-four of the 90 women who were elected to the US House of Representatives between 1916 and 1980 went into seats previously held by their husbands, the Huffington Post reported in July last year. The practice continues today, most recently with Democrat Debbie Dingell, who took over her (still living) husband's seat in Detroit, Michigan just last year.
With the territory election confirming the construction of Canberra's light rail, focus is already shifting to feasibility planning and detailed design development of the Stage 2 line from City to Woden. Where should it run? Adelaide Avenue and Yarra Glen, or perhaps a route that provides better connectivity with existing residential areas, workplaces, and schools?

On a prima facie examination, many may assume that the second stage route should replace and replicate the existing Blue Rapid express bus route along Adelaide Avenue with its small number of intermediate stops. This route is principally established for, and is admirably well-suited to those commuters who desire and need rapid journeys from Tuggeranong and Woden to the City and return.

An artist's impression of Callam Street in Woden with light rail.

There is wide acceptance in cities around the globe, however, that contemporary, best-practice transport planning is most effective when integrated with land use planning, and increased value is captured through the uplift of land-use zoning on land immediately adjacent to, or within a short walking distance of a transit corridor.

This was a key insight of Canberra Urban and Regional Futures' (University of Canberra) Working Paper 5  "Light rail transit and residential density in mid-size cities" (2015) - which established that "the review of the case study cities has highlighted that there must be an integrated approach to land use planning and light rail implementation as part of a holistic urban planning and urban transformation process".
As they are the first and second law officers of the country, it's hardly surprising that the dispute between the Solicitor-General and the Attorney-General turns on points of law. Yet too much of the furore over this contest has focused on personalities and too little on the fundamental democratic principle that elected representatives derive their authority from the will of the people.

This is something that unelected officials  be they public servants or statutory officers  should always respect.

Justin Gleeson has resigned as the government's chief legal adviser. Credit:Andrew Meares

Whatever you think of George Brandis personally, or of his politics generally, he is a member of a government voted in by the people of Australia and as such he has a right to implement policy as he sees fit. The power to overrule his decision lies with the Parliament, specifically the Senate. It does not rest with unelected individuals, regardless of the nature of their appointment.

Clearly, the Solicitor-General believes the Attorney-General is wrong in law by issuing a direction that before providing a legal opinion, the Solicitor-General requires permission from the Attorney-General under section 12(b) of the Law Officers Act 1964.
As we come to the end of October an ever-growing number of Australians are engaged in a celebration which took a long time to really take off in this country but has really hit with a vengeance in the last few years: complaining about Halloween.

This celebration of our national identity beautifully captures the Australian spirit of making a song and dance on social media about an objectively unimportant thing on the basis that it seems suspiciously foreign.

"This is Australia!", these people angrily type, presumably while wrapped in a flag and holding a sprig of wattle between their clenched and patriotic teeth. "Why are we importing this American tradition as though we were Americans, from the American Americas of America? Did our forefathers angrily bicker about who deserved the most federal compensation for the abolishment of internal intra-state tariffs in the years leading to Federation for this? No, they did not, I assume!"

And sure, one can point out that Halloween isn't technically American since it originated from the western European Christian celebration of Allhallowtide ("Halloween" is a contraction of "All Hallows Eve", the night before All Saints Day), which in turn was nailed over pre-existing celebrations in much the same way that the church did with Easter and Christmas, and most likely has its roots in Celtic harvest festivals marking the end of the northern summer.
On Monday night, in homes across town, a whole bunch of scary Halloween things are about to happen... Somewhere in the suburbs, in a nondescript weatherboard house, a woman will be putting up Halloween decorations on the front door, and filling bowls of chocolates and lollies ... when suddenly she'll hear an ominous ghoulish voice behind her, going, "Why are you doing this? It's not our holiday. It's got nothing to do with us. It's the bloody Americanisation of this country!" Australians just don't "get" Halloween. Credit:Guille Faingold But she will ignore the voice: it's just her irritating and obnoxious husband/life-partner (after 10 years, they still haven't worked out what to call each other. Sad). Then the woman will wait for kids to arrive, but no kids will come to the house, and the husband/life-partner will sit on the couch that night, watching TV, feeling very smug. A little bit sorry for her. But mostly smug. In another part of town, in a leafy backyard, an eight-year-old boy will be at a kiddies' Halloween party  the boy's name is Jarrryd, though maybe it's Jaryyyd, nobody's quite sure, not even his parents.

He will be dressed in an adorable kangaroo costume that his mum spent hours making, with a droopy tail that swings between his legs with Dirk Diggler abandon. Another kid at the party will say his tail looks like a winky, and Jarrryd/Jaryyyd will say no it doesn't, and the other kid will say, yes it does, and Jarrryd/Jaryyyd will stab that kid in the cheek with a Chupa Chup stick. Not too far away, in a cosy little cottage, an elderly couple will be completely unaware it's Halloween, so when a bunch of kids knock on their door, they will have no Halloween treats to give them  they will panic and open a box of fancy Belgian chocolates that they got for their 50th wedding anniversary, then give handfuls to each kid. But the kids will get upset because they do not want artisanal marbled truffles shaped as seahorses, so the elderly couple will give the kids $20 each to keep them happy. This was all the money they had for food that week. More tragic than scary. Closer to the city, in a small rental property, a young 20-something man will be in a state of great excitement because he's bought his girlfriend a sexy Harley Quinn outfit from an adult Halloween website... but when she tries it on, horror of horrors! It will not look anything like it did on Margot Robbie in Suicide Squad. They will still have sex that night, but his mind will be troubled and distracted, wondering if the outfit can be cleaned and repackaged, and whether PayPal cover return shipping.
The ABC has axed the Friday broadcast of the 7.30 program less than two years after it controversially replaced state-based editions of the show.

From 2017 the slot will be filled by a current affairs program hosted by veteran journalist Stan Grant, who has also been appointed as the national broadcaster's new editor of Indigenous affairs.

The axing of the state editions in a round of sweeping cost-cutting measures provoked outrage in late 2014, with critics arguing the programs  formerly known as Stateline  were a popular source of crucial coverage of local issues.

Grant  a media veteran with experience domestically and internationally, including roles at CNN, NITV, Sky News and Guardian Australia  has forged a reputation for his powerful writing and speeches on discrimination against Aboriginal Australians.
Family First senator Bob Day has confirmed he will return to the Senate next month to support the government on industrial relations and the same-sex marriage plebiscite, despite announcing his resignation.

With his housing construction empire in liquidation, Senator Day faces being expelled from Parliament if he is declared bankrupt, and last week announced he would resign.

Despite previously saying "would be untenable to stay in Parliament", the South Australian issued a statement on Friday to say he would return to Parliament on November 7 to support restoration of the Australian Building and Construction Commission and the government's registered organisations bill.

Senator Day said enabling legislation for the plebiscite and changes to tax rates for backpackers working in Australia were too important to miss.
The High Court could soon have its first female chief justice with sitting judge Susan Kiefel firming as the favourite to take over from Robert French, amid speculation he will leave the bench in early December.

Justice Kiefel, a former judge of the Federal Court and the Queensland Supreme Court, was appointed to the High Court in the last months of the Howard government in 2007.

Justice Susan Kiefel, a Queenslander, will become the first woman to occupy the nation's most senior judicial role. Credit:Glen McCurtayne

After leaving school at 15, she began work as a secretary in a law firm in 1971. The Cambridge University alumna would later become the first woman in Queensland to be appointed to the prestigious rank of Queen's counsel, or silk, in 1987.

Justice Kiefel is now among the most senior judges on the bench. The majority  Chief Justice French and justices Virginia Bell, Stephen Gageler and Patrick Keane  were appointed during the Rudd and Gillard governments.
A husband and wife duo was busted by the government for running a scheme in which they imported generic goods from China and re-sold them in America with counterfeit luxury labels attached to them, according to the U.S. Attorney's office.

Investigators say Daye Dong and Hongyu Chen, a couple from Bayside, allegedly spent the last four years importing things like handbags, wallets and purses from China and then selling them out of a Midtown storefront. The store in which the fake luxury goods were sold, DNC Fashion, was brazenly located right down the block from the NYPD's 23rd Precinct headquarters on 30th Street.

Per the criminal complaint, the scheme was first uncovered when an investigator from Immigration and Customs Enforcement found hundreds of pounds of counterfeit luxury labels in packages shipped here from China. After a long investigation that involved the agent dressing up like a UPS delivery person to bring the fake labels to their intended address, and ICE and NYPD agents doing surveillance on warehouses in Bushwick and Ridgewood, the government eventually raided the warehouses on Troutman Street and Ingraham Street as well as DNC Fashion.

Inside, the warehouses, government agents found 30,000 handbags and wallets and corresponding counterfeit luxury labels. Inside DNC Fashion, the government seized 2,000 handbags and wallets with fake luxury labels attached to them.

These defendants allegedly sold counterfeit goods, fueling consumers desire for low prices on high end products. But the cheap prices come at a high price for legitimate businesses," Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a statement announcing the arrests. Dong and Chen have each been charged with one count of conspiring to traffic in counterfeit goods, and one count of trafficking in counterfeit goods, both of which carry a maximum of 20 years in prison.
As Canberra struggles to come to terms with a horrific tragedy, Sandra Brookfield remembers one of the happiest times in the life of Dreamworld victim Kate Goodchild.

When Ms Goodchild and her mother called their family friend Ms Brookfield to reveal Ms Goodchild was expecting, the three squealed with joy as it was decade since she last gave birth.

"They were so excited Ebony would have a little sibling," Ms Brookfield said.

"They [Kate and partner David Turner] had bought a home in Canberra in recent times in preparation for this baby."
With just a week to go before the HSC ends, and with many teenagers dreaming of unencumbered freedom, these students are worried about being priced out of Sydney's housing market.

"Money is definitely becoming a big part of our lives, especially with the housing boom," said 17-year-old Andrew Cotton. "We really need to work hard to get a house in the future."

The Waverley College HSC student and his classmate Christian D'Aloia are two of more than 17,000 students who took the HSC Business Studies exam on Friday.

Like many in their cohort, they are painfully aware of the generational disadvantage entrenched in Sydney's housing market.
Mark Colvin dining with his mother Anne in Carorle, Italy. I can honestly say that I never received or even asked for a story or an inside-track from my father  let alone got "fed" one  but in those rumour-driven days there were plenty who might have made assumptions. Especially as my father, whom I hadn't seen since we parted in Ulan Bator, [Mongolia where he was British ambassador but really head of mission for MI6] was now living and working in a very senior job in Washington, DC, and I had plans to visit him later in the year. A younger Mark Colvin. Credit:Sneaky Mag I hadn't taken a lot of leave since I'd joined the ABC in 1974: I had enough backed up to take eight weeks off. I'd also saved enough to buy a round-the-world ticket, and a two-week Eurail pass. I would begin with my first visit to the USA, starting on the west coast, moving on to New York, then spending some time with Dad in Washington.

I set off at the beginning of the Sydney winter, headed for San Francisco to visit my friend Roger Allebone. Then it was New York, where I stayed a couple of nights in the YMCA before running into an old English friend, Jamie McDonald, now working in finance, who let me stay in his flat for a couple of weeks. Journalist and author Mark Colvin. And I had lunch with my dad. We'd arranged for me to stay with him in Washington for a fortnight before I headed across the Atlantic. But, he told me on the phone ahead of my arrival, we needed to talk. Thanks to the conversation with my mother earlier in the year, I had a fair idea what we'd be talking about. His venue, characteristically, was an old-fashioned, London-style "gentlemen's club". I had not known such things existed in New York, but fortunately I'd packed a suit and tie in my round-the-world travel case, so I was duly admitted to the stately premises of the Knickerbocker Club. There we ascended to a high-ceilinged dining room with tall windows looking directly across 62nd Street to Central Park. The tables, covered in thick white linen and set with heavy silver cutlery, were widely spaced, and the tone hushed. My father liked these places anyway, but you could see why he frequented them professionally, not just socially: discretion was guaranteed and our conversation could not be overheard.

It was a strange reunion. It was the first time I'd seen my father since we'd parted at the Ulan Bator railway station five years before, but the personal pleasure of seeing each other again was a little overshadowed by what we had to talk about. Over lamb cutlets and claret, he told me that I had to be clear that what he was about to say was secret, not to be revealed to anyone, and that if I could not agree to this condition, I wouldn't be able to come and stay with him. There would be colleagues from the London office staying with him at the same time, and people coming for dinner, about whom and around whom I would have to be very discreet. Of course I agreed: there wasn't much of a choice involved. So then he explained to me that his title, councillor (political) at the British embassy in Washington, was just "cover". He was in fact the head of station for what I would know as MI6, but what the organisation itself preferred to call the SIS  the Secret Intelligence Service. Dad outlined the differences between the SIS and the domestic intelligence service MI5. The SIS had an "intelligence-gathering" remit, with no powers to work inside the UK, while MI5 had the job of "counter-intelligence", defending the country on its own soil from the depredations of foreign spies, mainly of their mutual enemy, the Soviet KGB. He also explained that British intelligence agencies and their members were known as "The Friends" and the CIA as "The Cousins", and that his job in Washington was to liaise between "Friends" and "Cousins": between the SIS's home in London and CIA headquarters at Langley, Virginia. His position was an extremely senior one. Did I know the name Kim Philby? Of course. Well, Philby had been his predecessor in the job during the 1950s, before he was unmasked, and his betrayal had come close to destroying the relationship between the two agencies. My father's was therefore now an extremely senior, delicate and closely watched job. It had taken two decades to rebuild after the damage done to US trust by the defection of the Cambridge spies.

Master spy Harold 'Kim' Philby at his mother's home with the British press. I had read enough John le Carre to have an idea of some of this already, but hearing it from the horse's mouth was the end of a long process of guesswork and confirmation. We parted after lunch with a promise that he'd pick me up at Washington National Airport (since renamed after Ronald Reagan). Two weeks passed quickly in Washington for me. Dad took me to lunch a couple of times at one of his clubs. I forget its name, but it was another of those gentlemen-only establishments done up to look like the interior of an English stately home. There I got a glimpse into another aspect of his job: making connections with the media. We were having a drink before lunch when a man called Rowland (Rowley) Evans came over. For decades, Evans and his writing partner Robert Novak put out a hugely influential, widely syndicated column called "Inside Politics". They were both fierce Cold Warriors with strong Republican connections, and their usually anonymous sources gave them a lot of scoops. The familiarity and warmth of Rowley Evans' conversation with my father that day left me in little doubt that Dad was one of those sources. It was also clear enough that it was a two-way street: Evans was not just a conduit for planted stories (part of what are known in MI6 as I/Ops), but also, in the opposite direction, a source of gossip and political intelligence for Dad. Clearly, Evans usually knew a lot more gossip and information about Washington political and strategic matters than he could actually print. From conversations at the time, I know that Dad was also a contact of Jack Anderson, who wrote the "Washington Merry-Go-Round" column, and who was revealed in a 2010 book to have bribed, blackmailed, extorted, bugged and lied in order to get stories.

Knowing of these relationships left me forever sceptical of all stories involving defence, intelligence and national security that rely on anonymous sources. They're too often tainted, and subsequent events, like The Spectator (while I was Europe correspondent during the Balkans war) running two articles by a pseudonymous MI6 agent in Bosnia, have done nothing to change my mind. Another friend of my father's was Allen Weinstein, then writing his massive and influential book Perjury, about the McCarthy-era case of the accused spy Alger Hiss. I'd read a little about the extraordinarily convoluted course of this case but only enough to pigeonhole Hiss in my mind in the same category as others targeted by the House Un-American Activities Committee. Weinstein's investigations of the case were even then causing huge ructions on the left, because, in exemplary fashion, he had chipped away at the detailed factual foundations of Hiss' defence, finding a host of contradictions which pointed more strongly than ever to the man's probable guilt as a Soviet spy, a KGB "mole" high in the US State Department. Staying at the house when Allen came to dinner were two MI6 colleagues of my father's from London. In retrospect, I see myself that night as callow and arrogant. I was foolish enough to regurgitate some half-remembered and thinly understood material I'd read or heard about the Petrov Affair of the early 1950s, and suggested that the evidence that ASIO produced about infiltration of the Labor Party was still regarded by some in Australia as a put-up job by the Prime Minister, Robert Menzies. Russian diplomat Vladimir Petrov and wife Mrs Evdokia Petrov. The pair defected in 1954.
MHK's story shows we should also contemplate another possibility: deradicalisation. Changing MHK Colac-born Ramzi Elsayed is a bald, bright-eyed and intensely energetic Islamic community leader who laughs heartily when recalling spending hours discussing religion and politics with Waleed Aly as the pair served together on the Islamic Council of Victoria. When conservative commentators blame the Muslim community for failing to confront radicalism, they ignore the Elsayeds in the community, who devote large amounts of their free time to shaping the views of young Muslims as they grapple with incendiary community issues, such as Western foreign policy and counter-terror policing. Perhaps more than any other person, Elsayed, who volunteers as a prison chaplain, is responsible for MHK's apparent decision to disavow extremism.

When Elsayed first met MHK in Parkville Juvenile Justice Centre in inner city Melbourne, he recalls a withdrawn teenager who was bitter and angry about the police raid on his home, and who embraced extremist views as unshakeable truths. During the 2014-15 summer holidays, as most 17-year-old high school kids socialised with friends, took driving lessons and headed to the beach, MHK immersed himself in IS's online networks and supporters. Prior to this, he'd been smoking dope and had dropped out of high school, partly because he was being pressured to shave his beard. "Academics and police say there are many factors that can lead to extremism. But the biggest one was that he was socially disengaged," says Elsayed, in comments backed up a senior counter terrorism official. During those summer holidays, MHK became fixated by IS's online propaganda, which is laden with emotive visuals of dead Syrian women and children. "I would always cry. I would always think about it and it just consumed me," MHK told the Supreme Court.

Elsayed says MHK's increasing isolation was fuelled by the unwitting "spiritual arrogance" that comes from being a poorly or self-taught religious zealot. It made him a perfect target for IS recruiters. Via online networks and an encrypted phone application, MHK was instructed to become a domestic suicide bomber by IS senior figure Junaid Hussain. Having earlier pleaded guilty to partially constructing an improvised explosive device and accessing documents in preparation for or planning a terrorist act, MHK explained to the Supreme Court in September that he was seeking to help "defend those [Muslims] that were suffering all over the world". Elsayed's task was immense: to attempt to re-mould the entrenched beliefs that led a young man to spend hours scratching the powder from match heads to build a bomb to blow up himself and others. Confronting extremists

AFP Deputy Commissioner Mick Phelan says the nation's deradicalisation programs are a vital part of Australia's counter-terror framework, but he concedes they are still in their infancy and delivering uncertain results. "There is no silver bullet. We are willing to try everything and anything," says Phelan of work that is gaining urgency given the likely influx of extremists returning from Syria and Iraq as IS loses ground in the Middle East. The counter-terrorism police on the National Disruption Group have the task of identifying Australians who appear to be heading down an extremist path, but who are ripe for intervention via education, employment support and assistance from a community or religious figures. The National Disruption Group, or NDG, targets "peripheral" figures  those on the edge of the extremist circles being watched by police or intelligence agencies. The aim of the NDG is to redirect these figures, who are mostly young men aged between 16 to 26, away from the criminal justice system and to a school, employment or community setting in which they will ultimately drop off the counter-terror radar.

The NDG doesn't champion its successes for fear of undermining its work, although an official close to the group says a number of young Australians have been diverted away from extremism due to the NDG's efforts. But there are failures too. Some NDG subjects leave the program with their extremist views unaltered. A small number have later been arrested for terrorist offences. The ANU's Dr Clarke Jones says that "police-led" deradicalisation may be less effective than community-led programs, although some of these may be untested or ineffective. Jones is piloting one such program in Victoria involving a group of young men, including some who have sought to go to Syria or Iraq. He is reluctant to give details about the program. Jones also believes there is much more that can be done in prisons and the community to complement the work of the NDG. "We have heard that ASIO has 400 active cases [of suspected extremists being monitored]. Why haven't we been more proactive with those people? We are losing opportunities by not doing anything earlier. So we are going to have a greater threat of terrorism in the future." The NDG's work is supplemented by programs and research delivered by community, academic education, religious and social welfare organisations as part of various "countering violent extremism" initiatives funded by the Attorney-General's department.

Jones says that some in this deradicalisation "industry" may be attracting government funding in the absence of evidence that the programs they promote are actually working. "I am very concerned that people without the relevant qualifications are commenting and chasing funding. It's led to lots of theories but very little evidence. That's dangerous because the government picks up on this stuff and then that comes out in policy." Meeting MHK MHK initially regarded Elsayed with extreme hostility  as someone sent "to brainwash me". In his early meetings with MHK in Parkville, Elsayed worked to build a relationship of "trust and respect" and to counter MHK's extreme views via "robust dialogue". Elsayed says his reasonable knowledge of Islamic scripture and basic Arabic was vital, allowing him to gradually counter MHK's beliefs with passages from religious texts and views from respected Melbourne sheikhs.

Elsayed also focused on giving MHK constructive examples of how Australian Muslims could combat anti-Muslim sentiment. After several sessions he noticed changes in the young man. Soon, Elsayed says MHK was regularly and excitedly inquiring about activities in the Muslim community, including Elsayed's work as a volunteer tour guide at the Islamic Museum of Australia in Thornbury. MHK also had daily intensive sessions with various teachers at the education college housed in Parkville, including campus principal Shannan Roberts. A report written by Roberts reveals that when MHK was initially remanded in May 2015, she was confronted by a young man who could barely make eye contact. For six weeks, Roberts spent four hours a day with MHK, teaching him and provide social support. He later undertook regular classes and tutoring from other Parkville teachers. In reports submitted to court, these teachers describe his change from recluse to a "very bright" student with an "inquisitive nature and desire to learn". "I believe that [MHK's] time at Parkville has been truly transformative," Roberts wrote in her court report. In his own testimony, MHK described Roberts as "a good person" with "a good heart" who could have cast him aside as a fanatic but instead offered him genuine care. Elsayed believes another key factor in MHK's deradicalisation was the intensive support offered by MHK's family, including his sister, who stalled her university studies to visit him daily.

"Now he doesn't even recognise his former self," says Elsayed, who estimates he has had more than 40 lengthy sessions with MHK. "He is genuinely remorseful." That is not an entirely uncontested claim. In cross examination, Elsayed and other witnesses who provided supportive testimony for MHK conceded he may not have fully grasped the enormity of the terrorist path he was descending. "I haven't seen a full demonstration of contrition in the sense that I don't think he's fully processed and absorbed the full consequences of the direction his actions were heading," psychologist Guy Coffee told the court. ANU counter-terrorism expert Dr Clarke Jones believes there are important things to be learnt from the MHK case in dealing with hundreds of other suspected extremist or at-risk Australians, although cautions that there are singular aspects as well. Behind bars, MHK was a captive audience for his teachers and Elsayed, rather than in the community, where mainstream teachers find it much harder to make strong connections with those holding radical views.

He was also in one of Australia's more progressive juvenile justice settings, mixing with other young prisoners. Adult prison often provides a far more restrictive environment for accused or suspected terrorists, including long periods of isolation. "If you are already feeling marginalised, what good will it do for your mind if you are isolated? You will come out of jail even more pissed off," says Jones. He's previously researched the deradicalisation of jihadists in Philippine jails, where extremist prisoners have reformed after mixing freely with the mainstream population and having regular contact from family members. This contrasts with the experience of some of the Australians previously jailed for terror offences, including the young men jailed in NSW and Victoria for terrorist offences after the Operation Pendennis investigation in 2005. Some left prison as more hardened Islamists and criminals, a phenomenon which has informed existing federal government plans for new laws permitting the indefinite detention of convicted terrorists after they complete their jail sentences. MHK's guilty plea also meant that when he engaged in robust discussion with Elsayed, he didn't have to worry that these conversations could be used to convict him, as is a possibility for suspected extremists. Defence lawyers who have represented multiple terrorist defendants say the unique conditions of MHK's incarceration and guilty plea made deradicalisation feasible, where in many other cases it fails.
About seven months ago, a photograph was posted on Facebook showing a smiling Phoebe Handsjuk being warmly embraced by a glamorous-looking older woman.

"In loving memory. I just stumbled across my favourite pic of beautiful Phoebe. I miss you darling," the post said.

Phoebe Handsjuk lived with Antony Hampel for more than a year before her death in 2010

"You were a fragile little flower that no one watered. You and you're [sic] family were let down by the justice system and those who represent it.

"I only hope that one day the truth will come out so that they will have some peace."
It's not easy being arachnophobic in a country that's home to about 4000 species of spiders.

Jacquelyn Cassell has never been camping. She once had to miss a friend's wedding because it was held in the bush in summer. And a possible move to the Blue Mountains was rejected in favour of living in Sydney's inner west, where she is happily surrounded by concrete and less likely to encounter spiders.

"I don't want to hurt them," she said. "I don't hate them. I just don't want them anywhere near me."

Arachnophobia is one of the most common specific phobias, said clinical psychologist Sophie Li. A research associate at the University of NSW's School of Psychology, she is part of a team examining how hormone levels affect treatment outcomes for women scared of spiders.
The family of late racehorse trainer Bart Cummings have been ordered to enter into private mediation to work out a dispute over his estate on the eve of this year's Melbourne Cup.

On Friday, lawyers for the racing mogul's widow, children and executor appeared before the NSW Supreme Court.

Bart Cummings' son, racehorse trainer Anthony Cummings, is involved in the legal stoush against his sisters Sharon Robinson and Anne-Marie Casey over their father's multimillion-dollar estate.

Lawyer Anthea Kennedy, acting for the sisters, told the court she was seeking a mediation date as soon as possible due to the ill health of Valmae Cummings, 87, who had been married to Cummings for 60 years.
At 53, Con Passas wasn't anticipating having to move home any time soon after buying his apartment and business in the same block on Botany Road in Waterloo in 2010 and 2011.

But then along came stage two of the $12 billion Sydney Metro rail line.

When he first learned his properties were to be acquired for the project, Mr Passas immediately thought of the controversy over forced acquisitions for the $16.8 billion WestConnex motorway.
One of the greatest political scandals in the state's history, which involved bribery, corruption and the jailing of a minister, has been revisited in the NSW Supreme Court with one of the jailed conspirators arguing he should be allowed back on the roll of solicitors.

Howard Hilton, 73, at the Supreme Court last week. Credit:Nick Moir

"It was well rumoured at the time, that Buckets accepted a lot of bribes," said one witness, solicitor Norm Gibson, last week.

He was referring to the state's former corrective services minister, Rex "Buckets" Jackson, who was jailed in 1987 after he was found to have "prostituted his high office" by accepting bribes to feed his gambling addiction.
Former NSW treasurer Eric Roozendaal is back in the fold of the Labor party, after facing the ignominy of having his application to re-join queried because he allowed his membership to lapse.

In 2014, Jodi McKay, now the opposition transport spokeswoman, called for Mr Roozendaal to be expelled after evidence at a corruption inquiry.

Eric Roozendaal outside ICAC during its hearings in 2012. Credit:Fairfax Media.

"I don't want to belong to a party that has Roozendaal in it," she said.

Mr Roozendaal was suspended from the party in 2012, having featured at a previous inquiry by the Independent Commission Against Corruption.
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The Frenchman accused of murdering British backpacker Mia Ayliffe-Chung in north Queensland has been given a preliminary diagnosis of schizophrenia and had his case referred to the Mental Health Court.

Smail Ayad, 29, did not appear in the Townsville Magistrates Court on Friday where his charges were upgraded to include two counts of murder.

British backpacker Mia Ayliffe-Chung. Credit:Facebook

Mr Ayad was initially charged with the murder of 21-year-old Ms Ayliffe-Chung and the attempted murder of fellow Briton Tom Jackson, 30, over his alleged stabbing frenzy at a Home Hill backpackers' hostel, south of Townsville, in August.

The latter charge was upgraded to murder after Mr Jackson's death in hospital a week after the incident.
The Australian Workers Union has given the detectives investigating Tuesday's four deaths on a Dreamworld ride two 2015 emails from senior Dreamworld staff which they say show the company understaffs some rides at the theme park.

The union's concerns did not include the Thunder River Rapids ride where four people died in an industrial accident on Tuesday afternoon.

Dreamworld spokeswoman Miche Paterson said on Friday the Thunder River Rapids ride manufacturer specified two staff operate the ride.

"And that is what they had," she said.
Dreamworld's CEO has defended his parent company's executives over a disastrous public response to the nation's worst park tragedy in 37 years.

The park will continue with a private memorial service for the four victims of the rapid ride accident on Friday following an embarrassing last-minute cancellation of a planned reopening.

Police have now put down the bizarre about face to a "misunderstanding" as their investigation continued for longer than first expected.

Speaking to Triple M on Friday, Dreamworld CEO Craig Davidson said he and Ardent Leisure chief executive Deborah Thomas had now been in touch with a representative from each family.
The loss of four lives at Dreamworld is likely to "destroy" the theme park's future with experts expressing doubt that the park will recover despite plans to re-open after the victims' funerals.

On Friday afternoon, Queensland police Commissioner Ian Stewart said their investigation is "to some degree growing in complexity" as a host of special investigators get to the bottom of how the fatal crash occurred on the Thunder River Rapids Ride on Tuesday.

Canberra mother Kate Goodchild, 32, her brother Luke Dorsett, 35, his partner Roozi Araghi, 38, and Sydney mother Cindy Low, 42, were killed when a malfunction caused their raft to crash into an empty raft and flip over backwards into a wooden conveyor belt.

The park's parent company, Ardent Leisure, led a private memorial service for 500 employees at the park on Friday morning following a disastrous week in which they backtracked on a planned reopening just three days after the incident.
"The sooner we get back, psychologically, the sooner people get back to normalcy the better I think. "How do you define the appropriate time after the mourning aspect? I'm not talking about the families, I'm talking about the community." Mr Crandon said people who would not be able to work while the park was closed would be impacted as well, financially and psychologically. "People who work in the park, they would all feel the burden of that tragedy, and there's a period of mourning, but I think... for their psychological wellbeing, the sooner people get back to normalcy, getting up in the morning, getting dressed, going to work, going through the process of doing your work and what have you, the sooner the better it is," he said. Mr Crandon, whose electorate includes Dreamworld, also extended his sympathies and said the events of this week were absolutely devastating.

"I just feel so much for the families, the pain they're going through must be horrendous," he said. "Aside from that (reopening the park), and above all of that, is the pain that the families and friends of those that lost their life tragically are going through. "I don't think an hour goes past that I don't think about this... It's just an absolute tragedy." Member for Southport Rob Molhoek said the theme park would want to review all of its equipment so it could assure visitors the rides were safe. "I think there needs to be some time to let this settle so we're respectful of what's happened," he said.

"I would have thought that they need to give the police time to do what they need to do or the investigators need to do. "Whatever time that takes, if it takes a few days, if it takes a week. But I think the important thing out of any tragedy, and we've seen it out of cyclones, and other significant events, that the sooner we can go back to normal the better." He said the incident would have a significant impact on how people feel about theme parks for some time, but that the park could not stay closed indefinitely. "It is a terrible tragedy and it absolutely needs to be thoroughly investigated," Mr Molhoek said. Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate said the park should reopen when the families of the four people killed were happy for it to reopen.

"First and foremost, and that they're ready to move on with the findings, and the police have got everything they want, that's my opinion," Mr Tate said. Member for Burleigh Michael Hart said people on the Gold Coast were shocked. Mr Hart said the park should reopen at a time amenable to both Dreamworld management and the police investigation. "They need to have sufficient time to do it, so whatever timeframe that'll work for everyone," he said. Member for Currumbin Jann Stuckey said the events would be an enormous blow for tourism, but one that the park could recover from.

"Without a doubt, our hearts and prayers go out for those who've tragically lost their lives," she said. Ms Stuckey said when Dreamworld reopened should be up to investigators working with the theme park. "The rest of us should keep right out of that," she said. "I think we've got plenty of other things to be concerned about and a grieving process needs to be able to take place. "I think we should be allowed to grieve separately from even thinking about when the park should reopen, I think that's a totally separate issue."

Member for Broadwater Verity Barton said the question of when Dreamworld "may or may not reopen" was for the business and police. "Everyone on the Gold Coast is devastated by the tragic events at Dreamworld earlier this week," she said. Earlier on Friday, a Queensland Police spokesman said there was no timeframe for reopening the park and a crime scene warrant issued on Tuesday was valid for seven days. "The crime scene warrant is for seven days. If they require longer then there will be an application made for further extension," the spokesman said. He said he was not able to comment on when Dreamworld might reopen.
A 29-year-old German tourist has been charged after an alleged one-punch attack which has left a young man in a critical condition in a Gold Coast hospital.

A good Samaritan had to be revived at the scene by police after he was allegedly punched from behind while trying to break up a fight between two groups of males in Surfers Paradise early on Friday morning.

A man was taken to hospital after a fight broke out at Surfers Paradise's Orchid Avenue. Credit:Jess Millward/Nine News

The 23-year-old's injuries are now considered non-life-threatening, and he is in a critical but stable condition after hitting his head on the pavement.

"It's very serious," Detective Acting Senior Sergent Mark Mooney said.
The tragedy that unfolded today at Moorooka has left the community devastated and shocked as police continue their investigations.

Manmeet Alisher, also known as Manmeet Sharma, was driving a Brisbane City Council bus along Beaudesert Road when he pulled over to let passengers on at the Moorooka stop.

The 29-year-old burnt to death while sitting behind the wheel after a random attack that has shook the community to its core.

A 48-year-old is in police custody.

An impromptu vigil was held for the former cab driver on Friday evening while an official vigil will be held on Saturday at 5.30pm at Luxworth Place, Beaudesert Road at Moorooka (next to the Woolworths).

Our rolling coverage will conclude now. Check the main site for updates.
Anti-mining, reef and industrial law protesters will greet the Labor state conference on the Gold Coast at the weekend.

The Australian Marine Conservation Society will display a mobile billboard outside the conference on Saturday and Sunday, protesting the Queensland government's handling of the Adani coal mine.

Protesters will target Queensland Labor's state conference on the Gold Coast on October 29 and 30. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Australian Marine Conservation Society Great Barrier Reef campaign director Imogen Zethoven said the mining companies' pressure was working on the government.

"Our message to the premier is - stop giving special treatment to foreign mining billionaires like Adani," she said.
The "cowboy" developers behind the illegal demolition of a heritage-listed pub in Carlton face further fines after missing a deadline to cover asbestos waste dumped on a building site n Melbourne's west.

The Environment Protection Authority on Friday confirmed it had issued a company owned by the developers with two fresh fines totalling more than $15,000 for failing to cover debris containing asbestos.

Those penalties follow a $7500 fine to another company run by the same two developers for leaving rubble exposed at the site of the former Corkman Irish Pub.

EPA metro manager Daniel Hunt said the owners of the demolished Corkman Irish Pub had had until 4pm Friday to cover the waste from the hotel, which had been dumped at another site the developers own in Cairnlea.
When Jessica Eshel heard a new national disability scheme was coming, she vowed to advocate on behalf of her sister Antonella, 41, who has an intellectual and other complex disabilities.

She pored over NDIS brochures, went to information sessions and spoke to the carers at Antonella's group home about the kind of support she needed to live a full, happy life.

Jessica Eshel and her sister Antonella, who has complex needs and is now worse off every fortnight. Credit:Simon Schluter

So she was shocked when, after a brief conversation with an NDIS planner on the phone, Antonella's finished plan arrived in the letterbox. No meeting, no consultation.

"It's so basic, it's like a five-year-old wrote it," she says. "My sister is complex needs, she needs a high level of support."
A former abattoir worker who attempted to push his chronically ill girlfriend out of a Melbourne hotel's third-storey window has been jailed.

Candice Britton, 25, and her partner Andre Wayne Young, 28, had come to Melbourne so Ms Britton could receive medical treatment when, without warning, Young smashed the Park Regis Hotel window with a table and tried to force Ms Britton out.

He made several attempts to push Ms Britton out of the window on December 10 last year before hotel staff arrived, drawn by the sound of breaking glass and a woman screaming.

At one stage, she was halfway out of the window, and was injured by the broken glass.

The couple, from Nathalia in northern Victoria, regularly travelled to Melbourne so Ms Britton could attend The Alfred Hospital.
Teen criminals could be locked up in adult jails under a contentious policy shift being considered by both major parties to tackle Victoria's alarming rates of youth offending.

With the state's crime rate continuing to rise  and young re-offenders a particular challenge for police  the state government and opposition both agree that a tougher approach is needed, and it could involve sending more teenage miscreants to adult prison.

Police Minister Lisa Neville Credit:Penny Stephens

Police Minister Lisa Neville told Fairfax Media that while this should not be "a first step" in sentencing, there were some cases where recidivists under the age of 18 might be better off away from juvenile detention, particularly if it meant protecting other impressionable youth.

"I think there are probably some 16 and 17 year olds who are very high and very violent offenders, where nothing is making a difference, and where maybe their impact will be so significant on other younger ones at Parkville or Malmsbury (youth detention centres) that you might want to move them," Ms Neville said.
London: Snowdens of the world rejoice, the Pirate Party is coming.

This Saturday Iceland holds its parliamentary elections and is likely to become the first nation to vote Pirates into government.

The consequences could affect not only this tiny, eccentric North Atlantic nation, but also the world, through proposals to make Iceland a haven for whistleblowers.

On Thursday opposition parties including the Pirate Party met to plan a four-party, anti-government grand coalition  which on the last pre-election polls would defeat the two-party centre-right governing coalition.
Calais: France has demanded that Britain take in hundreds of unaccompanied children from war-torn countries after the UK suggested that Paris should do more for them following the closure of the "Jungle" migrant camp in the northern port city of Calais.

Bulldozers have spent the week flattening the sprawl of ramshackle huts and tents that had been home to about 6,000 refugees and migrants from Asia, the Middle East and Africa hoping to cross the English Channel to start new lives in Britain.

Most have now been bussed to other centres across France pending examination of their cases, but the plight of hundreds of minors still roaming the area  nearly 1,500 of whom have signed up for temporary lodging in shipping containers in Calais  has become a point of dispute.

British Home Secretary Amber Rudd told her French counterpart Bernard Cazeneuve on Friday that his government must guarantee the protection of youngsters left in limbo after the evacuation of the Jungle.
Beirut: Syrian opposition rebels on Friday started a wide-scale attack on regime forces in Aleppo aimed at breaking the government siege of the contested city.

Once Syria's commercial hub, Aleppo has been divided into the government-controlled west and rebel-held east since fighting erupted for control of the city in mid-2012.

Eastern Aleppo has been under government siege since July.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem vowed on Friday that the state military would take full control of the war-torn city of Aleppo.
Washington: It seems wholly appropriate that this depressing election could be undone by a man drummed out of Congress years ago for his habit of sending dick-pics to women he met online.

If you don't like this sort of language please don't read on. It's hard to write about the current campaign without it.

The only time the race has veered out of the gutter is when it has buried itself in someone's pants or up someone's skirt.

Way back in the relatively innocent days of the primary, Donald Trump was first moved to talk about his penis. "Look at those hands, are they small hands?" the then front-runner said mid-debate, raising his paws for all to see.
RESULT - Multiple investigations cleared the president of any involvement, though an investigation found Mrs Clinton played a "substantial role" in the firings, despite her assertion that she played no role at all. On the first day of Clinton's impeachment hearings  17 November 1998  independent counsel Kenneth Starr exonerated the Clintons. VINCE FOSTER (1993) THE ALLEGATION - Vince Foster, a childhood friend of Bill Clinton and a senior staffer in the White House, suffering from clinical depression, committed suicide in a federal park in Virginia. Republican conspiracy theorists suggested Foster was murdered by someone connected to the Clintons and his body dumped in the park. RESULT - Three separate investigations found Foster committed suicide, brought on by depression which had been aggravated by attacks against him by Republicans and the Wall Street Journal. PAULA JONES (1994-1998)

THE ALLEGATION - Former Arkansas state employee Paula Jones filed suit against Bill Clinton in May, alleging that in 1991 then-Governor Clinton approached her privately, exposed himself and propositioned her for sex. Clinton denied it and Jones claimed his denials amounted to defamation. She asked for $US750,000 in damages. Clinton tried to get the trial delayed until after his presidency, but the courts allowed the case to proceed. In August 1997 a judge dismissed the defamation charge and set a trial date for May 1998. Jones' lawyers then withdrew when she refused a settlement and her case was taken up by the right-wing Rutherford Institute. While the case was proceeding, Jones' lawyers learned President Clinton was carrying on a consensual affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky, who swore in an affidavit that she had not had sex with President Clinton. Meanwhile, Lewinsky's friend, Linda Tripp, recorded telephone conversations between the two women, during which Lewinsky discussed her sexual relationship with President Clinton. Tripp took the tapes to independent counsel Kenneth Starr, a Republican lawyer investigating Whitewater with little success. The judge in the Jones lawsuit eventually blocked all information about Lewinsky from the case. RESULT - Jones' case was thrown out by the judge in April 1998. Jones appealed and Clinton eventually settled out of court with her for $US850,000 in November 1998. FBI FILES (1996-1998) THE ALLEGATION - Clinton White House chief of personnel security improperly requested and received personnel files on hundreds of people. Craig Livingstone resigned in disgrace, but Republicans alleged the President and Mrs Clinton were involved in the affair and used the files for political purposes. RESULT - Investigators found no credible evidence of any involvements by the Clintons and they were cleared completely. On the first day of Clinton's impeachment hearings  17 November 1998  independent counsel Kenneth Starr exonerated the Clintons.

WHITEWATER (1992-1998) THE ALLEGATION - That the Clintons knew of a fraudulent loan made to their partners in a real estate venture that resulted in a $60 million loss to taxpayers. The Clintons lost $67,000 on their investment. In January 1996, Clinton became the only First Lady in U.S. history to be subpoenaed and testify before a grand jury. RESULT - After six years and $50 million spent investigating, no charges were filed against the Clintons due to "insufficient evidence." On the first day of Clinton's impeachment hearings  17 November 1998  independent counsel Kenneth Starr admitted there was insufficient evidence to charge the Clintons with any crime. ROSE LAW FIRM BILLING RECORDS (1994-1996) THE ALLEGATION - That Mrs Clinton was a frequent legal adviser to people involved in the Whitewater affair as part of her job as a partner at the Rose Law Firm. Her billing records were subpoenaed in 1994, but mysteriously disappeared until 1996.

RESULT - The billing records largely supported Ms Clinton's position, but their two-year disappearance has never been explained. MONICA LEWINSKY (1998) THE ALLEGATION - President Clinton had sex with White House staffer Monica Lewinsky and lied about it to investigators. RESULT - President Clinton was impeached on a party-line vote in the House of Representatives, but acquitted in the Senate. President Clinton emerged more popular than ever, while his chief political antagonist, House Speaker Newt Gingrich, resigned in disgrace after his party was defeated in elections and he was found to have had extramarital affairs of his own. Ms Clinton blamed a "vast right-wing conspiracy that has been conspiring against my husband since the day he announced for president." LINCOLN BEDROOM (1995-1997)

THE ALLEGATION - That President Clinton "rented" overnight stays in the Lincoln Bedroom of the White House to campaign contributors, including Hollywood heavyweights like Steven Spielberg and David Geffen. RESULT - None. Unseemly, but not illegal and not entirely unusual. PRESIDENTIAL PARDONS (2000) THE ALLEGATION - President Clinton pardoned controversial persons in the waning months of his presidency, including tax evader Marc Rich, whose ex-wife made contributions to the Clinton library and Mrs Clinton's Senate campaign. RESULT - Unseemly, but not illegal. President Clinton's popularity dipped slightly, but his wife was easily elected to the US Senate in 2000.

BENGHAZI (2012-Ongoing) THE ALLEGATION - A 2012 attack by terrorists on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya killed four Americans, including the ambassador. Republicans blamed Secretary of State Clinton for an intelligence failure in not anticipating the attack and ordering CIA operatives to not rescue the consulate. RESULT - Republicans are still investigating, but several Republican-led investigations in Congress have already cleared Clinton of any wrongdoing and concluded there was no stand-down order to the CIA. E-MAILS (2012-Ongoing) THE ALLEGATION - As Secretary of State Ms Clinton used a private email instead of the public email for much of her correspondence and thousands of those emails were deleted, thus making them unavailable for inspection as a matter of the public record. Republicans accuse Ms Clinton of illegally using a private email account for for classified information.

RESULT - Unless one of the tens of thousands of emails Ms Clinton turned over to the State Department is deemed "classified," it is very unlikely she will be found to have violated the law. Both her immediate predecessors, Condoleeza Rice and Colin Powell, used private email at times. CLINTON FOUNDATION DONATIONS (2012-Ongoing) THE ALLEGATION  That when Hillary became Secretary of State and her presidential ambitions became clear foreign governments, corporations and individuals donated to the Clinton family's private foundation in order to curry favour with the Clintons. RESULT  Not even the most critical observers  including Peter Schweizer, author of Clinton Cash  have claimed any laws were broken. A less jaundiced analysis by the Washington Post was sympathetic to his case, but also noted the Clinton Foundation did significant good work around the world. But even some of Hillary's supporters are tired of defending this sort of behaviour and appalled by evidence of avarice. WIKILEAKS (2016-Ongoing)
NEW YORK: A plane carrying Governor Mike Pence of Indiana, the Republican vice-presidential nominee, skidded off a runway at La Guardia Airport on Thursday night, but no one was injured, according to reports.

The episode happened around 7:15pm as the plane, carrying Pence, was landing.

Muhammad Jilani, a car service driver who was parked at the Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology across the street from the runway, said it was raining "very, very heavily" at the time.

Jilani, 26, of Elmont, Long Island, said that he heard the loud noise of the plane braking hard and that "water was splashing everywhere." It was three minutes from the time the plane made a full stop until the first emergency response vehicle arrived, he said, noting that he had made it a point to time it.
PHILIPSBURG:--- After our new parliamentarians are sworn in on Monday, October 31st they will be faced at some point during their tenure with having to vote their conscience. A careful look at Sint Maartens State Regulation commonly called the Constitution, reveals that there is no such article or phrase in our law that charges parliamentarians to vote their conscience. In the State Regulation of the former Netherlands Antilles however, voting ones conscience was regulated in article 61 which read: the members of Parliament will vote in good conscience, without interference by or consultation with those who elected them. This article was taken from the constitution of the Netherlands. In 1983 the Netherlands amended this article to read: De leden stemmen zonder last which means The members [of parliament] will vote without interference or the members shall not be bound by any instructions. When Aruba, Curacao and Sint Maarten became separate countries within the Kingdom of the Netherlands they each included this article in their respective State Regulations. Consequently, article 61 sub 3 of the Sint Maarten State Regulation reads de leden stemmen zonder last which has been officially translated as The members shall not be bound by a mandate or instructions when casting their votes. Here the translator took the liberty to give the interpretation of this article rather than the translation of the text.

Based on article 61 sub 3 of Sint Maartens State Regulation our parliamentarians have the right, while on the floor of parliament, to vote against party policies, programs and decisions as long as their vote serves the best interest of the people. According to article 44 parliamentarians are elected to represent all of the people of Sint Maarten and not only their own constituencies. Besides, based on article 56, they swear that they have not made any promises, will not accept any bribes and will promote the welfare of Sint Maarten to the best of their ability. At times this may actually mean going against the partys policy or agenda. A very good example of voting ones conscience and applying article 61 sub 3 was demonstrated during the recent debate on the 2016 draft national budget in March of this year. Even though his political party was opposed to the draft budget, MP Dr. Lloyd Richardson supported the ruling coalition on this matter and voted in favor of the national budget. Also commendable was the fact that MP Richardson did not walk out of the meeting, as some of the other parliamentarians did, when it came time to vote, but he stayed and motivated his vote. He stated that because he knows the budget is a projection and knows that his country is in peril he voted in favor of the budget since they are men and women in the peoples house, according to SMN-NEWS. In this instance, MP Lloyd Richardson clearly put country and the people above party interest and self-interest. This is exactly what article 61 sub 3 is all about! It was never meant to support or justify ship jumping or disagreements between a parliamentarian and his or her party. This article allows a parliamentarian to stand on the floor of parliament and vote, in good conscience, on what he or she believes is right and good for the people whom he or she represents without undue pressure from the party or from family, financial supporters or any other interest group. Several of our MPs have jumped ship based on this article but have never stood up in parliament and given their reasons for doing so. I am still to hear the many MPs and MPs elect from previous parliaments, who jumped ship, explain on the floor of parliament, why they opted to leave their respective parties. By the way, I think that the Dutch word zetelrover or seat robber instead of ship jumper is a better description of what takes place when a parliamentarian crosses party lines.

Should parliamentarians vote their conscience? Yes they should, but it must always be done in the best interest of the people and of Sint Maarten and not for the sake of self-interest. I believe that MPs also have a moral obligation to inform the people who elected them and to motivate their vote on the floor of parliament as to why they decide to go against their partys policies and agenda. I congratulate all of our incoming MPs and wish them well, especially those who are entering parliament for the first time. Let your conscience be your guide throughout the next four years!!

Wycliffe Smith

Leader of the Sint Maarten Christian Party
NewVoiceMedia positioned in the Challengers Quadrant of Gartners Magic Quadrant for Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS), Western Europe

SAN FRANCISCO, CA  (Marketwired)  10/27/16  , a leading global provider of inside sales and contact center technology which helps businesses sell more, serve better and grow faster, today announced it has been positioned by Gartner, Inc. in the Challengers quadrant of the Magic Quadrant for Contact Centre as a Service (CCaaS), Western Europe.

Gartners Magic Quadrants objectively depict the vendor landscape in various technology sectors. Vendors are assessed against strict criteria and those who successfully appear in the Gartner Magic Quadrant fall into four categories: Leaders, Challengers, Niche Players and Visionaries depending on their completeness of vision and ability to execute. To discover why NewVoiceMedia was positioned as a Challenger and read Gartners full evaluation, visit .

Our technology is attracting some of the worlds highest-growth businesses as we continue to drive innovation that is transforming the way they connect with their customers and prospects on a global scale, said Jonathan Gale, CEO of NewVoiceMedia.

He added, We feel our position as a Challenger in the Magic Quadrant for Contact Centre as a Service, Western Europe by Gartner underscores our commitment to enabling our customers to deliver a personalized customer service experience and drive a more effective sales team, while demonstrating the importance of integrating communication channels with CRM data to ensure those successful conversations. With greater competition and consumer power eroding traditional product- and price-based differentiation, customer experience has become a key differentiator, and by doing it well, organizations can drive the client acquisition, retention and efficiency that make leading companies successful. We know that every customer interaction is important  from the moment you close a deal, to resolving a query  and todays customers expect a personalized experience regardless of which service channel they choose. Our cloud contact center and inside sales platform connects everything you know about your customers to every interaction you have with them for much more successful conversations.

According to Gartner, Customer experience (CX) has become a CEO priority, and many enterprises are competing more on the experience than on their products or services. Most enterprises that sell services see revenue that is a multiple of the average for their industry, and, in some cases, they enjoy profits that are orders of magnitude greater than average. The value of CX is undisputed, and CX has become the new battleground for achieving sustainable, differentiated competitive advantage(1).

Carole Edwards, Head of Contact Centre at Vax, Britains leading floor care brand, commented, With NewVoiceMedias platform we are able to successfully manage 70,000 multi-channel contacts each month, while improving both employee and customer satisfaction. Consumers expect an effortless experience and ContactWorld has enabled us to build solutions that are easy to access and deliver and the results are impressive too. First contact resolution is now at 87 percent, NPS is 91 percent, and we have the highest employee satisfaction scores in the business. Our customers benefit from a completely unique, personalized experience that is designed with them in mind.

For further information and to view a complimentary copy of the Magic Quadrant for Contact Centre as a Service (CCaaS), visit

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartners research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

(1) Gartner, How User Experience Can Make or Break Your Customer Experience, September 2, 2016,

powers customer connections that transform businesses globally. The leading vendors award-winning cloud customer contact platform revolutionizes the way organizations connect with their customers worldwide, enabling them to deliver a personalized and unique customer service experience and drive a more effective sales team. With a true cloud environment and proven 99.999% platform availability, NewVoiceMedia ensures complete flexibility, scalability and reliability.

NewVoiceMedias 600+ customers include PhotoBox, MobileIron, Lumesse, Vax, JustGiving and Canadian Cancer Society. For more information, visit or follow NewVoiceMedia on Twitter

Ben Noble

Tel: +1 919-721-3590

Email:
NetBet Becomes the First Licensed UK Gambling Site to Accept Bitcoin

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM  (Marketwired)  10/27/16  UK bookmaker and online casino operator, , announced today that they would accept Bitcoin for bets on their sportsbook and casino products. In doing so, they have become the first licensed operator in the UK to embrace the virtual currency.

NetBet spokesman, Alexandre Mangaud, says, We have been looking at digital currencies for some time now; it has a growing user-base and was something we wanted to offer our customers. Since Bitcoin is new to the regulated gambling industry in Europe, weve worked closely with our payment processing partners to ensure that the addition of this new payment method meets the UK Gambling Commission regulatory requirements.

Bitcoin is now accepted by a number of major retailers including Expedia, Microsoft, Virgin Galactic and Dell and now NetBet joins their ranks in a first for British bookmakers.

NetBet customers will now have the option to use Bitcoin to load their accounts via the Neteller and PaySafe payment methods.

ABOUT NETBET

NetBet are an established brand in regulated European markets including the UK, France, Italy, Greece, Ireland, Germany and Romania. The company offers a sportsbook, an online casino and online poker to its customers. The company are official sponsors of West Bromwich Albion for the 2015-16 season and they also sponsor St. Etienne and Ajaccio in France, as well as Steaua Bucharest in Romania.

Contacts:

NetBet

Alexandre Mangaud

+44 203 608 6024
There was a time when you could live in New York City and get paid for it. The New York Public Library system has 30 Carnegie libraries (funded by Andrew Carnegie) located in the Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island, and they were all built with custodial apartments around the turn of the 20th century. There were also two non-Carnegie branches (George Bruce Library and Ottendorfer Library) which had similar apartments. In 1949, an advertisement for a custodial job at one of the branches listed a monthly salary of $60.83, and with that salary came a five-room apartment (ft. a dumbwaiter!) in the building.

The catch? You had to be on the job 24/7. A rep for the NYPL explained, "The apartments came with the job, so as long as someone was doing the job, the apartment was theirs. Taking care of buildings used to be a 24-hour job, especially in the age of coal furnaces."

Of the 32 apartments, all but 13 have already been renovated into usable spaces, or are currently being renovated. The rest sit in abandonment until the budget allows for the work to be done. We recently got invited to the one inside of the Hunts Point Library in the Bronx, which has been uninhabited since the tenants moved out in 2001.



(Photo by Tod Seelie/Gothamist)



(Photo by Tod Seelie/Gothamist)

Located on the second and third floors of the building, which was completed in 1929, the library's custodian lived there with his family for decades, moving out in 2001. The library's information assistant, Reina Velazquez, recalls how the apartment caught the eye of patrons, "who would be curious after seeing family members enter the side door with groceries."

Liana Acevedo, the library's current manager who was also working there when the family was in residence, told us of how "the cat the family had would escape the apartment and join the patrons roaming around the branch. He would enjoy mingling until he was found and taken back upstairs." She recalled the custodian's younger son "would sneak downstairs after hours and read books, we would know because he would leave them on the end of the shelf so that he didn't put them in the wrong place."

He wasn't the only kid roaming a library after hoursSharon Washington (who has a recurring role of Judge Hayes on Law & Order: SVU) wrote and performed in a one-woman show in Pittsburgh called "Feeding the Dragon," which tells her story of living in one of NYC's libraries. Washington lived with her family in a custodial apartment in the St. Agnes branch of the NYPL, located at 81st and Amsterdam, from the ages of 5 to 12.

"We all had keys to the front door, and inside, there was a separate entrance," she told the Pittsburgh Gazette. "I would have friends come over and have a party in the library. Everybody could sort of run around, and then my father would have to be very careful about cleaning up."

Of course, the most intriguing apartments were at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building on 5th Avenue. We're told, "John Fedeler, the first superintendent of the Library, lived in an eight-room apartment on the mezzanine floor from 1911 to 1941, raising two children there. His daughter was born in the building." Want to know how he kept the kids from roaming around and making mischief? According to the NY Times, he developed a little urban legend.

"More real and frightening was the bag man in the library. He was a porter who went about, after lights out picking up scrap paper and discareded newspapers and magazines. Father always told the children that the bag man was a cannibal and that he would just as soon pop little John, or Edouard, or Viviani Joffre into the bag if he found them roaming the halls."

One of his sons, John H. E. Fedeler, later took over the superintendent position, and the family moved out of the apartment in the late '40s as the space was needed for something else. (Sadly, the NYPL couldn't locate any photos of the old apartment.)



Hunts Point Library. (Photo courtesy of the NYPL)

The custodial program ended for many reasons, an NYPL rep tells us: "The end of coal furnaces (and by extension the need to feed those furnaces 24-7) was the biggest. But also the advent of better transportation (making it easy for one custodian to manage several buildings, for example) made that model inefficient."

The apartments that have already been renovated into a usable spaceincluding the 5 are already funded and slated for renovationhave been done so through that $100 million allocation from the city to NYPL in the 10-year capital plan. ("Historic," a rep for the NYPL told Gothamist, because it "was the first time in recent history the city added libraries to the 10-year capital plan.")

It's unclear what the Hunts Point Library will become, but it will need a "top-to-bottom renovation" to be transformed into a usable space.
Police are looking for a pair of people who go to Brooklyn bars and sit down next to female customers in order to steal from their bags.

The NYPD has described three incidents, two at the Prospect Heights venue Saint Catherine Bar and one at Chavela's in Crown Heights:



Incident #1: It was reported to police that on Saturday October 8, 2016, at approximately 0100 hours, inside of 660 Washington Avenue (Saint Catherine bar), the male individual sat next to the female victim, removed her purse from her chair and walked out of the bar. Among the items inside the purse were a pair of headphones.



Incident #2: It was reported to police that on Sunday October 16, 2016, at approximately 0005 hours, inside of 660 Washington Avenue (Saint Catherine bar), the female individual sat next to the 21 year-old female victim, knocked her pocketbook to the floor, picked it up and walked out of the bar. Among the items inside the pocketbook were $30 in cash, a cell phone and a credit card.



Incident #3: It was reported to police that on Thursday October 20, 2016, at approximately 2100 hours, inside of 736 Franklin Avenue (Chavela's Restaurant), the female individual sat behind the 40 year-old female victim, rummaged through her purse and removed her wallet. The individual fled the restaurant with $27 in cash and 3 credit cards.

Police released images of the female suspect, who is described as 40-46 years old and has a pronounced limp; she was last seen wearing a dark-colored coat and white shirt, dark colored pants while carrying a black purse.



The female suspect (NYPD)

The other suspect is described as a black male, around 50 years old, who was last seen wearing dark clothing.

Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime stoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.


I am offering the solution to a problem most Republicans don't know they have -- that they can be outmaneuvered and thrown on the defensive endlessly, on nearly any issue, because they accept as true Democrat lies about the Republican Party. To correct that misperception and to help the Republican Party get 'back to basics' is why I'm a man on a mission.

A few years ago, after one of my speeches, a man told me "Do you know what your problem is? You're too far ahead of your time!" My efforts to show Republicans how they would benefit from celebrating the heritage of our Grand Old Party have been arduous, but if this were easy someone else would have already done it.

Among my speech topics are Reconciling the Tea Party and the GOP; Barack Obama, the Worst President Ever; Socialism, the new Slavery; Appreciating the Heritage of our Grand Old Party; Returning to the Founding Principles of the United States; The Womens Rights Achievements of our Grand Old Party; Abraham Lincoln, Republican; Frederick Douglass, Republican; Martin Luther King and the Republican Civil Rights Legacy.
St. Joe County floats new site for Portage Manor group home

The county plans to sell Clay Township Park to the township for a nominal fee, rather than continue to lease it.
1. Fill in your name or an alias. Do not leave blank or use the name 'guest' or 'anonymous'.

2. No Nivul Peh. Profanity will be deleted.
The new streetlights are on in White Sulphur Springs and illuminating years of work to update infrastructure and revitalize the communitys main street.

Five years ago city officials embarked on major upgrades to the towns water tank and water and sewer lines. Those projects needed to coincide with new highway construction by the state as Mayor Julian Theriault and the city council began the search for much needed funding.

You have to sell your taxpayers in town that this has got to be done, and half our town was on Social Security so you can see thats not an easy sell, he said. The infrastructure in this state for small towns is really tough. We use the same engineers as Great Falls does and they charge the same price but we dont have the same tax base.

With White Sulphurs population of about 900 and only 1,500 in Meagher County, the city knew it needed to seek grant funding. Theriault and others worked with the state, he testified before the legislature multiple times and contacted Sen. Jon Tester to find grants.

More than half of the over $3.5 million in projects were offset by grants from the Treasure State Endowment Program, DNRC and the Army Corps of Engineers.

When we put all our plans to the town, they said, it has got to be done so get it done. Theriault said, while adding praise for both the Montana Department of Transportation and state grant writers. So dont thank the city, thank the taxpayers because theyre the ones that supported this.

Theriault, 81, drove slowly through his town pointing out construction at the school and the many projects to revitalize city parks and buildings. Red brick and new landscaping complement the county courthouse, while new sidewalks line the gradual climb of downtown.

I think the attention brought to White Sulphur by this has gotten the attention of people that maybe want to come to a small town and open a small business, he said. If they see that youre building a new school and new highway, theyre going to want to move there. Youve got to get your city in line before anything happens.

Several new businesses have sprung up in the last year, including a brewery and sporting goods store, and existing businesses have also stepped up by updating storefronts, said Chris Hedrich, the local representative for SCORE, which mentors small businesses and also facilitates grant funding.

Grants have gone to five businesses to update signage and improve the outside appearance for customers.

What draws people to town is youve got to have something attractive, she said. A lot of people have taken ownership of saying, Lets spruce up the faces of our businesses a little bit to make them appealing.

Hedrich is the co-owner of Two Basset Brewery, which opened about eight months ago. Realizing that the community alone would likely not provide enough customers, they knew the business depends on people coming through town.

White Sulphur has struggled for years economically as important timber jobs evaporated, she said. While it has long been a stop for hunters, skiers, visitors to the hot springs and Smith River floaters, promoting the town as a tourism destination and short drive from nearby cities such as Helena, Bozeman and Great Falls is becoming an economic priority.

Weve had all of this, but for whatever reason no one really put it all together, she said of the outdoor amenities. Through this revitalization, weve got a really good thing going.

Hedrich credits one successful business and another proposed business for catalyzing the revitalization.

When Red Ants Pants opened a decade ago in an old storefront, many in the community wondered if it would survive. As owner Sarah Calhoun successfully grew her business and the Red Ants Pants Music Festival now brings thousands of visitors to White Sulphur every summer, I think it gave the community a little bit of hope for what can happen here, Hedrich said.

The proposed copper mine by Tintina Resources has also offered some economic inspiration for the community, she said. While the mine is currently seeking a permit from the state and faces opposition from several conservation organizations, it would employ more than 200 people.

Perhaps the signature of White Sulphurs revitalization are the antique-style lamp posts anchoring the new sidewalks. As the city worked on infrastructure, the $100,000 needed for the lamp posts became the passion of the chamber of commerce, which launched a fundraising campaign.

We started raising money and it was just amazing how fast it came in, said chamber President Kelly Huffield.

The campaign allowed people and businesses to sponsor individual lights, with several going as memorials for lost loved ones. Businesses and former residents bought lights, and even a hunter that makes a yearly trip to Meagher County contributed.

It still amazes me how it went and now each light tells a story, Huffield said.

A White Sulphur alumni fundraiser at the senior center brought in the last quarter of the needed funding. The lights became a sense of community pride, Huffield said, as has the many projects throughout the town.

When the lights finally arrived it was an emotional experience unpacking them and ultimately seeing them turn on for the first time.

Everyone has been so excited and thrilled with how main street has come out, she said. Weve really worked hard on just a lot of little things and weve seen things starting to happen. It shows what a caring, giving, strong community we have here.
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Helena police received a report of a clown with a bat across the street from Hawthorne Elementary School.

Officers investigated the call, which came in around 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, and did not find anyone dressed like a clown, Capt. Curt Stinson said. Three children reportedly saw the clown hiding behind a van on Madison Avenue during a school function.

School officials sent out an email Thursday alerting parents to the incident. The students told authorities the clown rattled a fence, according to the email.

The reported sighting follows many clown-related situations and threats across the country and in Montana. Earlier this month in Missoula, a teenage boy was cited for disorderly conduct following what was described as a "clown threat."

Stinson said Helena police have received a handful of reports of clown sightings, but none have culminated in criminal charges. One was simply a man in a clown mask sitting in the backseat of a car, he said.

"It is not illegal to dress in a costume," he said.

"We haven't had any problems connected to it."
The planet Mars was formed, along with the rest of the solar system, about 4.6 billion years ago. But exactly how the planets formed remains a subject of debate. Currently, two theories are duking it out for the role of champion.

The first and most widely accepted theory, core accretion, works well with the formation of the terrestrial planets like Mars but has problems with giant planets. The second, the disk instability method, may account for the creation of these giant planets.

Artist's conception of our solar system's solar nebula, the cloud of gas and dust from which the planets formed. (Image credit: Painting copyright William K. Hartmann, Planetary Science Institute, Tucson)

Scientists are continuing to study planets in and out of the solar system in an effort to better understand which of these methods is most accurate.

The core accretion model

The leading theory, known as core accretion, is that the solar system began as a large, lumpy cloud of cold gas and dust, called the solar nebula. The nebula collapsed because of its own gravity and flattened into a spinning disk. Matter was drawn to the center of the disk, forming the sun.

Other particles of matter stuck together to form clumps called planetesimals. Some of these combined to form asteroids, comets, moons and planets. The solar wind  charged particles streaming out from the sun  swept away the lighter elements, such as hydrogen and helium, leaving behind mostly small, rocky worlds. In the outer regions, however, gas giants made up of mostly hydrogen and helium formed because the solar wind was weaker.

Exoplanet observations seem to confirm core accretion as the dominant formation process. Stars with more "metals"  a term astronomers use for elements other than hydrogen and helium  in their cores have more giant planets than their metal-poor cousins. According to NASA, core accretion suggests that small, rocky worlds should be more common than the more massive gas giants.

The 2005 discovery of a giant planet with a massive core orbiting the sun-like star HD 149026 is an example of an exoplanet that helped strengthen the case for core accretion.

"This is a confirmation of the core accretion theory for planet formation and evidence that planets of this kind should exist in abundance," said Greg Henry in a press release. Henry, an astronomer at Tennessee State University, Nashville, detected the dimming of the star.

In 2018, the European Space Agency plans to launch the CHaracterising ExOPlanet Satellite (CHEOPS), which will study exoplanets ranging in sizes from super-Earths to Neptune. Studying these distant worlds may help determine how planets in the solar system formed.

"In the core accretion scenario, the core of a planet must reach a critical mass before it is able to accrete gas in a runaway fashion," said the CHEOPS team.

"This critical mass depends upon many physical variables, among the most important of which is the rate of planetesimals accretion."

By studying how growing planets accrete material, CHEOPS will provide insight into how worlds grow.

Core accretion was first postulated in the late 18th century by Immanuel Kant and Pierre Laplace. Nebula theory helps explain how the planets in our solar system were formed. But with the discovery of "Super-Earth" planets orbiting other stars, a new theory, known as disk instability was proposed.

The disk instability model

Although the core accretion model works fine for terrestrial planets, gas giants would have needed to evolve rapidly to grab hold of the significant mass of lighter gases they contain. But simulations have not been able to account for this rapid formation. According to models, the process takes several million years, longer than the light gases were available in the early solar system. At the same time, the core accretion model faces a migration issue, as the baby planets are likely to spiral into the sun in a short amount of time.

According to a relatively new theory, disk instability, clumps of dust and gas are bound together early in the life of the solar system. Over time, these clumps slowly compact into a giant planet. These planets can form faster than their core accretion rivals, sometimes in as little as a thousand years, allowing them to trap the rapidly-vanishing lighter gases. They also quickly reach an orbit-stabilizing mass that keeps them from death-marching into the sun.

According to exoplanetary astronomer Paul Wilson, if disk instability dominates the formation of planets, it should produce a wide number of worlds at large orders. The four giant planets orbiting at significant distances around the star HD 9799 provides observational evidence for disk instability. Fomalhaut b, an exoplanet with a 2,000-year orbit around its star, could also be an example of a world formed through disk instability, though the planet could also have been ejected due to interactions with its neighbors.

Pebble accretion

The biggest challenge to core accretion is time  building massive gas giants fast enough to grab the lighter components of their atmosphere. Recent research on how smaller, pebble-sized objects fused together to build giant planets up to 1000 times faster than earlier studies.

"This is the first model that we know about that you start out with a pretty simple structure for the solar nebula from which planets form, and end up with the giant-planet system that we see," study lead author Harold Levison, an astronomer at the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in Colorado, told Space.com in 2015.

In 2012, researchers Michiel Lambrechts and Anders Johansen from Lund University in Sweden proposed that tiny pebbles, once written off, held the key to rapidly building giant planets.

"They showed that the leftover pebbles from this formation process, which previously were thought to be unimportant, could actually be a huge solution to the planet-forming problem," Levison said.

Levison and his team built on that research to model more precisely how the tiny pebbles could form planets seen in the galaxy today. While previous simulations, both large and medium-sized objects consumed their pebble-sized cousins at a relatively constant rate, Levison's simulations suggest that the larger objects acted more like bullies, snatching away pebbles from the mid-sized masses to grow at a far faster rate.

"The larger objects now tend to scatter the smaller ones more than the smaller ones scatter them back, so the smaller ones end up getting scattered out of the pebble disk," study co-author Katherine Kretke, also from SwRI, told Space.com. "The bigger guy basically bullies the smaller one so they can eat all the pebbles themselves, and they can continue to grow up to form the cores of the giant planets."

In 2018, NASA will launch the InSight mission to Mars that will study the planet's interior.

"But InSight is more than a Mars mission  it is a terrestrial planet explorer that will address one of the most fundamental issues of planetary and solar system science  understanding the processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system (including Earth) more than four billion years ago," according to NASA.

"InSight seeks to answer one of science's most fundamental questions: How did the terrestrial planets form?"

Shrinking down

Whether Mars got its start through disk instability or core or pebble accretion, it continued to pack on the weight as it grew. Models suggest that the Red Planet should be about as large as Venus and Earth if gas and dust were smoothly spread through the solar system. Instead, Mars is only 10 percent as massive, suggesting that it formed in a region low on planetary building blocks.

Enter the Grand Tack model, the leading theory to explain the so-called "small Mars problem." According to the model, Jupiter and Saturn migrated toward the sun shortly after their birth before tacking like a sailboat and returning to the outer solar system. Along the way, they would have swept up much of the debris that should have fed Mars' formation.

The western scarp of Olympus Mons has both steep and gentle slopes with clear channels, some likely created by flowing liquid, perhaps water, and some apparently carved by glaciers. (Image credit: Nature/ESA/G. Neukum)

"Provided that Jupiter changed direction close to 1.5 AU, the growth of Mars would be successfully stunted while leaving enough material closer to the sun to form Earth and Venus," John Chambers of the Carnegie Institution for Science wrote in a 2014 "Perspectives" piece published in the journal Nature.

Another possibility is that regions of low density formed naturally in the protoplanetary disk.

"If this partial gap survived long enough, it could have been preserved in the distribution of planetesimals and planetary embryos that formed subsequently," Chambers writes. "The simulations performed by Izidoro show that reducing the number of planetary building blocks near Mars' current orbit by 50 to 75 percent favors the formation of a puny Red Planet."

Another option is that Mars actually got its start in the asteroid belt, then migrated toward the sun because of its interaction with planetesimals.

"Since Mars is more massive than the planetesimals, it tends to lose energy when it scatters these planetesimals because it passes them to Jupiter, which then ejects them from the solar system," Ramon Brasser, lead author and associate professor at the Tokyo Institute of Technology's Earth-Life Science Institute, told Space.com.

Heating and cooling

Like all planets, Mars became hot as it formed because of the energy from these collisions. The planet's interior melted and denser elements such as iron sank to the center, forming the core. Lighter silicates formed the mantle, and the least-dense silicates formed the crust. Mars probably had a magnetic field for a few hundred million years, but as the planet cooled, the field died.

The young Mars had active volcanoes, which spewed lava across its surface, and water and carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. But there is no tectonic activity on Mars, so the volcanoes remained stationary and grew with each new eruption.

The volcanic activity also probably gave Mars a thicker atmosphere. Mars' magnetic field protected the planet from radiation and solar wind. With a higher atmospheric pressure, water probably flowed on Mars' surface, studies indicate. But about 3.5 billion years ago, Mars began to cool. Volcanoes erupted less and less and the magnetic field disappeared. The unprotected atmosphere was blown away by solar wind and the surface was bombarded by radiation.

Under these conditions, liquid water cannot exist on the surface. Studies suggest water is be trapped underground in both liquid and frozen forms and in the ice sheets of the polar ice caps.

All life as we know it requires liquid water, so there is much interest in finding evidence of it on Mars.

 Additional reporting by Nola Taylor Redd, Space.com Contributor
The spacecraft of the future will use lasers instead of radio waves to send data back to Earth, NASA believes.

In NASA's eyes, a record-breaking laser-communications test in 2013 was just the beginning.

In 2019, the space agency plans to launch a mission that will extend upon the progress made during that 2013 trial, which was performed by NASA's LADEE (Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer) spacecraft.

LADEE's Lunar Laser Communications Demonstration (LLCD) experiment sent data from Earth to the moon at 622 megabits per second, far exceeding what would have been possible with traditional radio communications. While LADEE's laser showed the feasibility of the technology in space, the mission was designed to be short-lived; LADEE crashed into the lunar surface as planned just a few months after arriving at the moon. [Laser Communications Could Be 100X Faster (Video)]

The 2019 mission, called the Laser Communications Relay Demonstration (LCRD), will operate much closer to home, on the International Space Station (ISS). LCRD will practice sending communications from Earth orbit to two dedicated ground stations in Hawaii and California.

If all goes well, NASA plans to implement lasers in future communication relay satellites that work similarly to the existing Tracking and Data Relay Satellites, which ferry information from the ISS and other spacecraft to Earth. This would expand the amount of data the ISS can send back home, especially from its scientific investigations, NASA officials said.

In a NASA statement, LCRD principal investigator Dave Israel said radio communications have been used since the space age started nearly 60 years ago. Laser communications, he added, are much newer and require more practice.

"LCRD will allow us to test the performance over all different weather conditions and times of day and [help us] learn how to make the most of laser comm," said Israel, the exploration and space communications architect at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

While Goddard works on laser communications from 250 miles (400 kilometers) away in Earth orbit, other branches of the agency are looking at putting lasers into deep space. If lasers were used on these missions, they would greatly expand the amount of data sent back from Mars or other locations per unit time, thereby increasing the missions' science potential.

NASA's Glenn Research Center in Ohio plans a Mars satellite experiment called Integrated Radio and Optical Communications (iROC), which could receive information from more distant spacecraft and relay these data back to Earth. The system would also be equipped with radio frequency capability to send back data from older spacecraft, such as NASA's venerable Voyager probes, which launched in 1977 to perform an unprecedented "grand tour" of the solar system's outer planets.

The agency's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California has a concept called Deep Space Optical Communications, which is studying how lasers can increase data rates and make it easier to meet spacecraft space and power restrictions  especially for spacecraft operating at lower solar power far away from the sun.

The laser system on NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, for example, is half as massive and uses just a quarter of the power of the traditional radio frequency system it also carries. Lasers could also be useful on missions employing tiny cubesats, which have severe restrictions on power and mass due to their small size, agency officials said.

While laser communications are a newer technology for space, lasers have been used in other applications for decades. For example, Goddard first tested out satellite laser ranging to measure distance starting in 1964. NASA's satellite laser ranging system now has eight stations around the world.

Laser reflectors were also placed on the moon during the U.S. Apollo and the Soviet Union's Lunokhod programs in the 1960s and 1970s. Even today, engineers can measure the distance of the moon to an accuracy of a few millimeters, just by timing how long it takes light to bounce off the reflectors and come back to Earth.

"This application is used on numerous NASA missions, such as ICESat-2, which will measure the altitude of the ice surface in the Antarctic and Greenland regions," NASA officials said in the same statement. "It will provide important information regarding climate and the health of Earths polar regions."

Follow Elizabeth Howell @howellspace, or Space.com @Spacedotcom. We're also on Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
Artist's illustration of NASA's New Horizons Pluto probe beaming data home to Earth. New Horizons finished sending all of the data collected during its July 2015 Pluto flyby to mission control on Oct. 25, 2016.

NASA's New Horizons spacecraft has finally finished beaming home all of the data it gathered during its historic July 2015 flyby of Pluto.

The last piece of flyby data reached mission control at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, early Tuesday morning (Oct. 25), NASA officials said. New Horizons is currently 3.4 billion miles (5.5 billion kilometers) from Earth, so it takes signals moving at the speed of light more than 5 hours to journey between the probe and its handlers.

"The Pluto system data that New Horizons collected has amazed us over and over again with the beauty and complexity of Pluto and its system of moons," New Horizons principal investigator Alan Stern, of the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado, said in a statement. ['Land' on Pluto in This Amazing New Horizons Video]

"There's a great deal of work ahead for us to understand the 400-plus scientific observations that have all been sent to Earth," Stern added. "And that's exactly what we're going to do. After all, who knows when the next data from a spacecraft visiting Pluto will be sent?"

The $700 million New Horizons mission launched in January 2006, tasked with getting the first-ever up-close look at Pluto. The spacecraft performed its epic flyby on July 14, 2015, coming within just 7,800 miles (12,550 km) of the dwarf planet's frigid surface.

New Horizons gathered more than 50 gigabits of data during the close encounter  about 100 times more than it was capable of beaming home immediately, NASA officials said. So the New Horizons team commanded the probe to send along a few high-priority data sets just after the flyby; the rest of the information has come trickling in over the past 15 months.

And now that work is done.

"We have our pot of gold," mission operations manager Alice Bowman, of APL, said in the same statement.

New Horizons is currently on its way toward a small object called 2014 MU69, which lies about 1 billion miles (1.6 billion km) beyond Pluto. On Jan. 1, 2019, the spacecraft will perform a close flyby of 2014 MU69, as part of an extended mission that NASA approved this summer.

The New Horizons team will make sure all of the Pluto flyby data is in good shape, and then clear the spacecraft's onboard memory to make room for the observations New Horizons will make during its extended mission, Bowman said.

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.
The Mars Society is conducting an ambitious two-phase Mars 160 Twin Desert-Arctic Analog mission to study how seven crewmembers could live, work and perform science on a true mission to Mars. Mars 160 crewmember Annalea Beattie is chronicling the mission, which will spend 80 days at the Mars Desert Research Station in southern Utah desert before venturing far north to Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station on Devon Island, Canada in summer 2017. Here's her fourth dispatch from the mission:

None of us have traveled to Mars, and we don't really know what it will be like. The challenges for humans in long-duration space travel have yet to be experienced.

Here at the Mars Desert Research Station, we are seven for the first phase of our Mars 160 science mission. We are living in simulation in a Mars analogue in a remote desert where temperatures can range from 14 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 10 degrees Celsius) in winter to more than 104 degrees F (40 degrees C) in summer. [See more Mars 160 photos here, and get daily images by the Mars 160 crew]

When it comes to understanding how life might be in an enclosed community in an extreme environment off Earth, unless I move to Eigg (an island off the west Scottish coast), this is about as close as it gets to living in a small frontier microsociety on Mars.

This evening, after a ruckus in our crew family about report writing (I won't go into it), in my loft I was thinking about crew morale and how we manage to stay healthy, as well as work hard and live together in such a small container in an enormous desert. I found something on my laptop that I wrote a while ago that started me thinking. This is what I wrote:

"When we leave the security of home and the warmth of our fires to travel to other planets as explorers or even as refugees on starships, we will be constantly challenged by our new circumstances. We may be menaced by those who control our oxygen. It's possible that we could end up living as spectators to our own imprisonment, trying to exist amongst people who are aggressive or broken. On Mars, as we contend with the threat of real danger, pain or harm, anxiety and the continual tension in shared space could lead to deteriorating morale, to stagnation or depression, to a loss of well-being in management terms, and for us, damage to human health." (Editor's note: This passage is part of a piece Beattie wrote called "Art and Change in Extraterrestrial Societies." It appeared in the book "Dissent, Revolution and Liberty Beyond Earth," which was published by Springer in 2016.)

Our human health. Although I'm an artist and my own research tests out the value of geological field drawing in a spacesuit, my role on this crew is also as Health and Safety Officer (HSO on the spacesuit badge).

Here's my country badge, my HSO tag and a special Mars passport given to me by scientist Jen Blank on our NASA Spaceward Bound expedition to the Ladakh region of India. (Image credit: The Mars Society)

Even though I have the Mars passport, we are not travelling on a one-way ticket to Mars. In terms of safety, it's clear to us we should follow the rules of the mission and the regulations of the Mars Desert Research Station, as these protect us. Our health relates directly to the different kinds of activities we do every day. If we are not healthy or safe, we can't do our work.

In the outside world, there is often a clear demarcation between working time and leisure time. Here things are not so simple, as in fact we are working most of the time. The average working day for any crewmember on this mission is between 11 and 12 hours, not counting food preparation. [Buzz Aldrin: How To Get Your Ass To Mars (Video)]

And on a mission of 30 days to date, we have had two scheduled leisure days off. (Most of the crew chose to work at least part of these days off.) What happens is, we go outside and work, and then we come inside and work again! I think you get the idea. There are requirements for the mission, and we really are a productive crew.

On an average working day at the Mars Desert Research Station, what are we actually doing, and, most importantly, how does our busy working life impact upon our health?

As in a normal household, there are many things that need to be done on a daily basis, to ensure we live well and stay within our limits. Our day can be extraordinary if you are out on a field trip, but in terms of hab routine, it's groundhog day.

We are quiet getting out of bed around 7 in the morning. Coffee is on and someone is cooking. We eat together, do dishes in rotation then meet for the day's briefing. Dr. Alexandre Mangeot, our commander, runs through the tasks and commitments for the day, then he takes notes while each of us identifies daily goals and scopes them out in the time available. We plot out all of our day, nominating work spaces, meetings with others and the resources we need, including requests for access to the internet. We delegate daily report writing as well as cooking and cleaning. Then we discuss science goals and reiterate roles for the EVA (extravehicular activity) of that day.

After our briefing, we disband to different jobs for EVA prep. Downstairs, crewmembers leaving for field science dress in preparation while others check equipment. Our engineers confirm communication gear, batteries, fuel and so on. We all assist to help the EVA crew suit up and depart. Someone always has the responsibility of communicating with the away team (HabCom for the EVA crew).

Then those who are left at the hab begin their work. This is different for each of us. On our crew, science generalists like myself are cross-trained to work with scientists. Today Anushree, our crew biologist, and I continue our study of the physical ecology of the hypoliths (specifically chasmoliths and endoliths) in the analog environment of the Utah desert. This took several hours. Yusuke practiced spot tests on lichens while Alex mopped the floor and cooked lunch. The rest of our crew returned from the EVA with lichen samples and we ate. Lunch time is when we really stop and talk.

Mars 160 crewmembers chat around a table at the Mars Desert Research Station. (Image credit: The Mars Society)

After lunch, Alex spent an hour working on the technology for his spacesuit project, Claude-Michel pumped water, and then fixed the 3D printer, while the rest of us worked on writing up their research or daily reports for the evening's Mission Support. (Here we go: We need to send five reports  a mix of the Science Report, the EVA Narrative, the Journalist Report, the Food Report, the Engineering Report, the Photo Report, Phrase of the Day and Sol Diary.) The purpose of some reports is for publication on our website as outreach, and some communicate our status with Mission Support, like the Engineering Report. We also might have requests for assistance and information from CapCom. Today, my request to our Mission Support will be about how to correctly treat a scorpion sting. (We found a scorpion downstairs; no one was bitten).

At 3 p.m. we meet at the kitchen table to do a round of psychological testing for the Russian Institute of Biomedical Problems. (This was group problem solving.) At 4:00, Jon Clarke and I discussed the data we've collected in terms of any preliminary findings for the EVA project, which looks at the science operations for our mission. We talked and wrote copious notes. Anastasiya made a loaf of bread for breakfast. Yusuke finished his article for National Geographic Japan. Alex and Claude-Michel started the 3D printer and printed a test run. Anu finished a science report on lichens. Jon had a shower. We only have one shower a week, so every day is special for someone. I am waiting for Sunday; my hair is filthy.

At 5:00, we did yoga and body strength training for an hour while others cooked and continued to write their reports. Yoga is fantastic; I love it. We have also set up a hanging bar and ropes that I want to learn to climb. After dinner we cleaned up and met for the debrief, where we discussed what has been done today and what else needs to happen that didn't. At 7:00, CapCom, our Mission Support, opens. By that time, we are ready to battle our slow and challenging internet to send in queries and daily reports to Mission Support. It always takes much more than an hour to send files, even though we have most of them uploaded and ready to go. There can only be one person on the internet at a time, and we save the data for CapCom by switching off the internet during the day. CapCom closes its doors at 9 p.m., and by this time, most of us are back to working on individual projects. This goes on until bed at 10. Once a week we watch an episode of "The Expanse." Often those who have been out in the field go to bed early because they are so physically exhausted.

If you managed to stay with me during that description of our ordinary day and you have not dropped off to sleep yourself, you are doing well. You can see we thrive on routine.

Now, we are about a third of the way through our mission here at MDRS, and the crew has actually been keeping records of what kinds of activities they do every day. Here's some data from Jon Clarke's diary of daily activity. Pinch yourself now if you are feeling tired. [5 Crewed Mission to Mars Ideas]

On Oct. 19, an EVA day, Jon was awake for 17.5 hours. He took three hours for personal time (reading a book, personal internet, fitness workout); did 2 hours and 25 minutes of food prep and cleanup; 6 EVA-related hours and 2 hours and 25 minutes of EVA support, which includes the writing up of field notes and reports, plus an hour of research, mostly reading and note-taking on inverted channels; 2 hours of meetings (with the whole group and with the small science team); and, finally, 75 minutes of communications to Mission Control.

On his second diary day, Oct. 20, which was a non-EVA day, Jon was awake for 16 hours. He noted down 3 hours and 25 minutes of personal time; 3 hours and 25 minutes research for field science projects; 75 minutes helping with hab engineering; 2 hours of meetings with the whole group and with small groups; 25 minutes in a personal health conversation with me; 5 hours of writing reports to COMMS; and 1 hour seventy five minutes on food prep.

You can tell Jon has spent most of his time in the public service.

If you are still here with me and you are awake, I guess you are wondering how all this activity relates to our health. As a crew, how are we actually doing?

Here at MDRS, we are doing well. To start with, we are all stronger and fitter than when we arrived. Wearing the spacesuit and back packs on EVAs requires physical strength and stamina, and we have been training.

Next, everyone sleeps well; there's no sound at night. Truthfully, I am the exception to this. Sometimes in my loft at 3 a.m., the moths and I are attracted to free Facebook. And sadly, I have to give up coffee after dinner.

In terms of the food, the crew has few complaints. We would prefer less processed food, for instance, more dried beef or dried fish, fewer sausage crumbles, more dried fruit and nuts, and fewer biscuits  but we are trying hard to cook within the limitations, and our meals are yummy.

The croissants our French commander Alex made were exceptional. (Image credit: The Mars Society)

One day, the greenhouse will be operational, and we'll grow something in "Martian" soil that we can eat. (Salty Martian soil; does this mean we have to flush out the perchlorate?)

To me, it feels like our crew is the hive.

While we are here, we are safe, our water is good, we eat well, we work hard and we support each other. Living together is part of our work. Because of our shared commitment to Mars and to the mission, we've formed an emotional bond that sustains, even if life is not always easy in isolation. For instance, since we arrived here, several of our crewmembers have experienced personal trauma when something has happened at home. When something awful happens (or anytime, really), we are crew family, and we need to comfort each other.

Dehydrated roast beef and dehydrated sausage crumbles. (Image credit: The Mars Society)

We are a science research mission, and the science return is paramount. Cross-training means we are engaged with the science at all levels, from field sampling to laboratory work to science operations. As an international crew with different languages, disciplines, cultural backgrounds and different ways of working, we continue to iron out our misunderstandings to find equilibrium in the working day under pressure. In the hive, we rely on our commander Alex to negotiate equivalences and represent our needs to our Earth-based leaders.

In our small world in the middle of nowhere, we function well because we share goals and maintain a good balance between sleep, nutrition, exercise and work. And the Utah desert keeps us stimulated, as a research environment for all kinds of conditions analogous to Mars. The desert is so ancient and beautiful and otherworldly that sometimes we humans are overwhelmed.

On yesterday's EVA to sample hypoliths, we saw Jurassic crocodile burrows.

We feel lucky to be here.

Per aspera ad astra.

Annalea Beattie

Editor's Note: To follow The Mars Society's Mars 160 mission and see daily photos and updates, visit the mission's website here: http://mars160.marssociety.org/. You can also follow the mission on Twitter @MDRSUpdates. For information on joining The Mars Society, visit: http://www.marssociety.org/home/join_us/.

Annalea Beattie is an artist and writer based in Melbourne, Australia, and her art practice is based on space science. She is a member of The Mars Society's Mars 160 Twin Desert-Arctic Analog mission, where her art-based research explores how observation is key to the role of all field geologists, including those on a planetary exploration crew. Follow The Mars Society on Twitter at @TheMarsSociety and on Facebook. Original article on Space.com.
California-based company Made In Space plans to test the production of a superefficient optical fiber aboard the International Space Station in 2017.

Society is about to take another big step into the age of space-based manufacturing.

Early next year, California-based startup Made In Space plans to launch a machine to the International Space Station (ISS) that will produce ZBLAN optical fiber.

ZBLAN has the potential to be much more efficient than the silica-based fiber currently used in the internet and telecommunications industries, but it's tough to make here on Earth because the planet's strong gravitational pull induces imperfections in the ZBLAN crystal lattice, Made In Space representatives said. [3D Printing: 10 Ways It Could Transform Space Travel]

So the Made In Space machine will churn out ZBLAN in the microgravity conditions aboard the ISS, and the product will soon be returned to Earth for testing. If everything goes well, and there's sufficient demand for the space-made ZBLAN, the company will eventually build and launch a larger-scale production facility, and perhaps additional machines that will manufacture other exotic materials off-Earth as well.

"If this works, it'll be huge," Made In Space business development engineer Brad Kohlenberg told Space.com last month at the Dent:Space conference in San Francisco. "It'll be the first time we've ever monetized physical goods in space, other than memorabilia and stuff like that."

The project is a collaboration with Thorlabs Inc., which makes ZBLAN and other materials here on Earth. If all goes according to plan, the machine will launch toward the ISS in the first quarter of 2017, Made In Space representatives said.

Made In Space's overarching vision involves helping to establish an off-Earth economy, which company representatives believe will enable humanity's spread out into the solar system.

The startup has already made some progress along these lines. For example, the ISS already houses two 3D printers built by Made In Space. The first machine is a technology demonstrator that arrived at the orbiting lab in September 2014; the second is a fully commercial facility that was installed in April of this year.

This latter machine, called the Additive Manufacturing Facility (AMF), is a "machine shop in space" that's available for use by customers here on Earth, Made In Space representatives have said.

The company is working on other projects to help open up the final frontier as well. For example, Made In Space  along with partners Northrop Grumman and Oceaneering Space Systems  recently scored a $20 million NASA grant to build a robotic-arm-equipped 3D printer capable of building and assembling a large-scale structure in space. This project, called Archinaut, is scheduled to get an orbital trial in 2018.

And in April 2016, a Made In Space idea to turn asteroids into autonomous spacecraft was funded by the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts program, which seeks to encourage the development of potentially revolutionary space technologies.

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.
An artist's impression of the Milky Way as seen from the outside. New research suggests that the Orion Spur, or Arm, is almost twice as long as scientists had previously thought.

The sun's galactic neighborhood just became a bit more significant. New research reveals that the sun's branch of the Milky Way may be several times longer than previously measured, which would make it a significant contender in the structure of the galaxy.

Spiral galaxies like the Milky Way contain several massive structures known as arms, which unwind from the galaxy's center. The sun's neighborhood is called the Orion Arm, though scientists often refer to it as the Local Arm. Despite its name, it is classified as a spur  a collection of dust and gas that lies between the more massive arms.

"Our study reveals that the Local Arm is not only a tiny spur of the Milky Way. In includes a prominent major arm nearly extending to the Perseus Arm and a long spur branching between the Local and Sagittarius Arms," astronomer Ye Xu of the Chinese Academy of Sciences told Space.com by email. Xu led a team that identified eight new features in the Orion Arm and determined that it is much longer than scientists have previously estimated, Xu said. [Our Milky Way Galaxy: A Traveler's Guide (Infographic)]

According to Xu, characteristics of the Local Arm "are comparable to those of the Galaxy's major spiral arms such as Sagittarius and Perseus."

Mapping from within

With their gently unfurling arms and ongoing star formation, spiral galaxies are some of the most beautiful star collections in the universe. But it is far easier to calculate the characteristics of distant galaxies than it is to understand the features of our own Milky Way.

"Determining the structure of the Milky Way has been a long-standing problem for astronomers because we are inside of it," Xu said. "While astronomers agree that our galaxy has a spiral structure, there are disagreements on how many arms it has and on their specific location."

Mark Reid, a researcher at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Massachusetts who was not involved in the study, compares the Milky Way to a dinner plate with an interesting design on its face. While the pattern is easy to spot from above, it can be difficult to interpret when the plate is edge-on.

"All of the structures are projected on top of each other, and without accurate distances to these structures, it is impossible to infer the design," Reid told Space.com by email.

To measure how far parts of the arm sit from the sun, scientists search for telltale signals in star-forming regions. As gas enters galactic arms, gravitational forces squeeze the gas to produce newborn stars. In other galaxies, blobs of bluish light that are produced by the birth of stars trace out spiral arms.

In the Milky Way, star-forming regions are more challenging to map. As part of the new research, the scientists identified bright spots of radio emission known as masers, whose shift in light researchers can measure to identify their movement and distance from Earth. Masers can be made up of clouds of gas that contain trace amounts of molecules such as water and methyl alcohol.

Reid compared the microwave emissions produced by masers to the spots of red light streaming from a hand-held laser.

"All they need is a source of energy  analogous to the battery in a laser pointer  and long path-lengths to amplify the emission," Reid said. "In star-forming regions, the more massive and very young stars provide the energy."

Using the National Radio Astronomy Observatory's Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA), a suite of 10 telescopes operating in Socorro, New Mexico, the scientists identified and measured eight new masers in the Orion Arm, setting its new length at about 25,000 light-years long. (A light-year is the distance light travels in a year.) Although measurements of the arm vary, Xus team set the distance as being just over 16,000 light-years in 2013.

"This characterization of the Local Arm will change the image of the Milky Way," Xu said.

The new research, which was published in the journal Science Advances in September, reveals the Milky Way as more complex than scientists have previously estimated. The galaxy is typically classified as a grand-design spiral, which Reid said is often very symmetrical, often boasting only two arms.

"The Milky Way, while probably a 'pretty galaxy,' has significant irregularities," Reid said. "Based on our observations, it is clear that there are four major spiral arms and some non-symmetric structures like the Local Arm."

Further studies are needed to determine how irregular the Milky Way might be: "Without a complete map of the Milky Way, however, it is not clear how symmetric the four arms are," Reid said.

Instruments like the VLBA, located in the northern hemisphere, are limited in their ability to study the Milky Way. According to Reid, they can only map a bit more than half of the galaxy.

"We need more observations, particularly from the Southern Hemisphere, so that we can map the entire Milky Way," Reid said.

Follow Nola Taylor Redd on Twitter @NolaTRedd or Google+. Follow us at @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.
The total solar eclipse of moves through its phases in this collage taken by astrophotgrapher Justin Ng from Palu, Indonesia on March 9, 2016.

The big event is set for Aug. 21, 2017: The first total solar eclipse to go coast to coast in the U.S. in 99 years is now less than 10 months away, and if you haven't booked your hotel or made any solid plans yet, you may have a problem.

Along the totality path (where the sun will be completely blotted out by the moon), which averages about 70 miles (110 kilometers) in width, some hotels have been booked out for months  even years. Other hotels might be available but, depending on where you look, could be very costly. You have a few options, but you will need to act now or else you might end up missing out on one of nature's greatest celestial road shows.

Price gouging

The climatological odds for clear skies on eclipse day are quite good in the western United States. Western Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming and western Nebraska have odds ranging from 65 to 85 percent for a sky ranging from clear to scattered clouds. Of course, this part of the eclipse path is where most people would want to be. And with that potential high demand, a number of hotels, motels, bed and breakfasts, and other types of accommodations are taking full advantage by jacking up their rates for accommodations around eclipse time. [Total Solar Eclipse 2017: When, Where and How to See It (Safely)]

At the American Meteorological Society's 44th Conference on Broadcast Meteorology (held in Austin, Texas, last June), Kelly Beatty, a senior editor at Sky & Telescope magazine, gave a presentation on the 2017 solar eclipse. Beatty told his audience what happened when he was trying to put together an eclipse tour that would take participants to Casper, Wyoming, which is practically on the center line of the eclipse.

"I went to a hotel, one of the better ones," Beatty said. "I worked with the sales manager and told her I would rent the whole hotel  120 rooms  for two nights. She came back and said, 'It'll cost you $485 per room, per night.' I said, 'I'll take it.' She then withdrew the offer!"

"Maybe she thought she could get more from somewhere else . Maybe so," he added.

Last summer, I made a reservation at a hotel within the totality path in Ontario, Oregon, and was surprised the very next day to get an email from the general manager containing a PDF attachment titled "Eclipse Agreement," which quoted much higher rates than I had originally planned to pay as well as asked for a 20 percent nonrefundable deposit and a "no-cancellation clause" within six months of Aug. 21, 2017!

Needless to say, I canceled my reservation at that hotel.

Entrepreneurship?

Michael Bakich, a senior editor/photo editor for Astronomy magazine, told yet another story:

"My wife's boss and her fiance are traveling from Milwaukee to St. Joseph, Missouri, for the eclipse," he said. "They booked a room at a hotel on Aug. 21, complete with a confirmation number, for $199 per night. On Friday, Aug. 26, she received a call from the hotel informing her that her reservation had been canceled and that she was free to rebook the room in a week but that the rate would be $399 per night. My initial reaction was something to the fouler side of 'Come on! What's to prevent them from jacking up the price again, and again?'"

But there was a happy ending to the story. Bakich noted that after checking with several lawyers, it was determined that a confirmation acts as a contract, and then provided instructions (in legalese) to his wife's boss. And, lo and behold, the hotel honored its previous commitment.

The smaller the town inside the totality path, the greater the opportunity for hotel price gouging. Casper, Wyoming, has already been cited here as an example. Casper's population is 65,000. There are smaller resort towns that have larger tourist bed bases. Hotels will still be expensive there, but larger groups may be able to find condos at a lower per-person cost. In a resort town, you will almost surely have a multinight minimum.

How Solar Eclipses Work: When the moon covers up the sun, skywatchers delight in the opportunity to see a rare spectacle. See how solar eclipses occur in this Space.com infographic (Image credit: Karl Tate, SPACE.com Contributor)

Search wisely!

But there is also good news: If you search long enough, you will find good bargains.

Use internet travel search engines such as Trivago, Expedia and Travelocity. Finding a room just outside the totality path should be easier than finding one inside the totality path. Most people would rather get up early and drive an hour or two than pay $400 to $600 per night with a three-night minimum, for example. In the end, perhaps it's best to choose a larger city either grazed by, or slightly outside, the totality path that should have more hotel rooms, such as Portland, Oregon; Boise, Idaho; Kansas City, Missouri; St. Louis; or Knoxville, Tennessee. It could be more difficult for hotel operators to try to price gouge in places like that.

It may also be easier to find hotels with reasonable rates in places within or close to the totality path east of the Mississippi, where climatological odds for a clear sky on eclipse day are not quite as good as the glowing expectations out west. Nashville, Tennessee, for instance, has a roughly 50 percent chance of clear skies or scattered clouds; Greenville, South Carolina, has a 42 percent chance; and Charleston, South Carolina has just 32 percent odds. All three cities are inside the totality path.

Remember, regardless of what the statistics suggest, every place along the path of totality has a chance of a beautifully clear sky  or overcast conditions. As the late science fiction writer Robert Heinlein noted, "Climate is what you expect; weather is what you get."

You might also be able to get discounts using your AARP or AAA membership.

With less than 10 months to go, keep this in mind: The big hotel chains may be full, but the little ones probably aren't. [Incredible Solar Eclipse View Shot During Alaska Airlines Flight Video]

Other options

Camping is an obvious cost-effective alternative. Competition for campsites may be intense inside the eclipse's path but probably much less so even a short distance outside the path. Search around online, and you'll see that hotels and campgrounds along the totality path have been booking up since May.

Another option is to rent an RV or motor home. In this way, you can drive to any part of the totality path, fully self-contained, and bring everything you will need to "camp" for some days ahead of Aug. 21. Then, after eclipse day, hopefully you can stay put for a day or two afterward to survive the traffic mess of everyone trying to get home.

There are, after all, approximately 12 million people who live in the totality zone, but another 225 million are within a one-day drive of the totality path. This may well be the most watched astronomy space-related event in U.S. history since perhaps the first moon landing. Without a doubt, the days surrounding next Aug. 21 are likely to be very busy ones nationwide!

Joe Rao serves as an instructor and guest lecturer at New York's Hayden Planetarium. He writes about astronomy for Natural History magazine, the Farmer's Almanac and other publications, and he is also an on-camera meteorologist for News 12 Westchester, New York. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
On Thursday, the states top campaign cop dismissed a complaint filed by a state employee who was called on her work phone by the campaign for Republican candidate for governor Greg Gianforte.

On Monday, a Missoula resident, Suzin Kratina, filed a complaint against the Gianforte campaign, saying it violated campaign laws by calling her at work. Kratina is a state employee, and her number has a 444 prefix, commonly understood to indicate a phone number associated with the state.

Kratina said she received four calls from the campaign. After the second she asked the campaign to stop and told the caller it was inappropriate. On Monday, she had another message on her phone from the campaign and filed the complaint with Commissioner of Political Practices Jonathan Motl.

This is annoying, disturbing and inappropriate, she wrote in her complaint.

Motl said in dismissing the complaint that there was no use of public resources inherent in the Gianforte campaign phone calls to the state phone number.

Earlier this election cycle, Motl dismissed a complaint by Gerald Thomas, the county coroner in Anaconda, that said Gianforte violated campaign practice laws by sending a campaign email to Thomas' government email account.

In his dismissal, Motl ordered Gianforte's campaign to purge all public employee addresses, email or physical, from campaign mailing lists. He also ordered Gianforte and all other candidates to refrain from using the work addresses of public employees.

The Gianforte campaign said the 444 number was placed in its campaign voter file during the 2014 election cycle by a different state employee. Kratina was assigned the number in 2015.

The first two calls were made under the assumption the person with the number had consented to political calls and the latter were accidental, Motl wrote.

The prior workplace phone number consent does not excuse the entirety of phone call actions by the Gianforte campaign, Motl wrote, but it does explain how the campaign could keep calling the number after Kratina asked to not be called back because the later calls came from professional campaign callers who went back to voter file lists that were omitted from the main campaign call list.

In his decision, Motl took note that Montana is routinely setting new fundraising records each election cycle and the increased money in state politics means residents encounter campaign activity in many forms, including the tens of thousands of phone calls placed by both Gianforte and Democratic Gov. Steve Bullocks re-election campaign.

That increased campaign contact with voters is good, when it supplies information to voters, Motl said. That increased contact is not good when it is made to prohibited venues such as the work-place mailboxes and phones of Montanas public employees.

The Gianforte campaign, and all other candidates or ballot issue campaigns, should note that campaign activity extending to workplace contact of public employees will be subjected to such examination, Motl wrote.
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Officials have unveiled plans for a 42-unit housing complex for homeless veterans at Fort Harrison near Helena. The project would include residences for single occupants and families.

Authorities said the residences would serve as permanent housing and help address the issue of veteran homelessness. While the residences would be located at Fort Harrison, they would be open to veterans across the country. The project describes the residences as "permanent supportive housing."

The project plans would convert vacant and underutilized buildings alongside four new buildings into affordable housing. It would include units with one, two, three and four bedrooms.

During a meeting Wednesday night to unveil the plans to the public, organizers said the proposal would include about 16 months of construction. It would open sometime in summer 2018.

A public comment period on the project will remain open through Nov. 26. Comments can be mailed to VA Montana Healthcare System, Attention: Shawn Garcia, 3687 Veterans Drive, Fort Harrison, MT 59636.

About 20 people attended Wednesday night's meeting. They asked questions on a variety of topics, including whether a school bus would be accessible and if weapons would be allowed on the campus. Authorities said they have already discussed the project with school officials, and busing to local schools would be available. Weapons would not be allowed on the complex.

Officials said two local grocery stores have offered free delivery to tenants. Other offerings to residents are also in the works.

The housing would be on U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs property leased by a private company.
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However, theres more to dangerous than meets the eye. There are many factors to consider before a job or industry can generally be labelled as being safe or unsafe. These include the integrity of the injury reporting systems in place, the type and level or reporting required, the number of innate risks in any given job and how you define accidents and fatalities.

The number of accidents and fatalities also relate to the number of people employed by an industry, as well as the quality and degree of health and safety training employees have undertaken. In other words, the better trained employees are in health and safety, the less likely accidents will be to happen, irrespective of whether the nature and number of risks has changed.

Fatalities on the farm

Recent HSE statistics show that, in 2015/16 there were 27 fatalities in the agriculture industry, lower than the five-year average of 32. There are several possible explanations for this: long working hours, for example, may lead to a higher number of accidents because employees are exposed to risks for a greater time.

Hazards such as working outdoors in poor weather conditions at the same time as working with heavy machinery, dangerous chemicals and unpredictable livestock may also push the accident rate up.

Farming compared to other industries

Construction has the highest fatality rate, with 43 people fatally injured at work in 2015/16. Interestingly, out of the 43, 27 were employees and 16 were self-employed. Two members of the public were also killed.

Two workers were killed in mining and quarrying, compared to an average of four deaths for the previous five years.

And there were 27 fatal injuries to workers in manufacturing, 23% higher than the five-year average.

The figures vary every year, but the UK fishing industry has reported fatalities as high as 16 during 2006. A recent government report shows these figures have generally been in decline over the last decade, with 7 casualties in 2015.

The transport industry in general frequently makes the list for one of the most dangerous industries, but the question remains as to whether civilian fatalities (which somewhat distorts the statistics) contribute to make this the most dangerous industry.

No industry is risk-free

We expect construction, agriculture and mining to come with a high level of risk, but other industries arent risk free. Believe it or not, those working in the hair and beauty industry often report a higher number of accidents than electricians, plumbers and police officers.
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BRIDGEPORT  Elected in 2014 to represent Bridgeport, Trumbull and Monroe in the state Senate, Democrat Marilyn Moore is hoping to defeat Republican challenger Elaine Hammers.

The 22nd District race is the most competitive of Bridgeports legislative contests. And each candidate tried to make the case for their election at a forum Thursday night at Bridgeports North End library, hosted by the AARP.

Moore, 67, calls Democrat-dominated Bridgeport home. Hammers, also 67, lives in the more Republican friendly Trumbull, where she is chairman of the town finance board.

Both emphasized Thursday that they understand the importance of serving the entire district.

People in the towns around you very much want things to go well, for you to succeed, Hammers told the modest Bridgeport audience.

Moore said she has set aside political affiliations to focus on meeting the needs of Bridgeport, Trumbull and Monroe, collaborating with GOP lawmakers and officials from the two smaller towns.

Ive been able to work with all of them, Moore said.

Hammers seemed at times eager to appeal to Bridgeport voters. Asked about forcing the state to fully reimburse municipalities for tax-exempt properties  Bridgeport hosts many  Hammers said, My silly logic says the largest city ought to be getting the most.

Moore said the so-called Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) should be funded 100 percent.

And when the question turned to state aid for education, Hammers, who served a term in the Legislature in the 1990s, said, 16 years ago I was screaming, Bridgeport does not get its fair share. 

School aid could be a sensitive issue for whoever represents the 22nd District. A state Superior Court judge in September ruled Connecticuts school aid formula  which big cities like Bridgeport have long complained is unfiar  irrational. But changes could be a difficult sell for a senator with urban and suburban constituents.

Moore said she has begun meeting with local officials to determine a more equitable way of divvying up the money.

This inequality in education will hurt us all down the line, she said.

Some of the towns are going to lose money, Hammers said. Im betting some wont care, if you take away some of the (state) mandates.

When the candidates were asked about gun safety, Moore said, I want you to be able to hunt, but I also want to keep our children safe.

Hammers wants the state to focus more on mental health care, battling drug use, improving education and, in a specific nod to Bridgeport, helping to pay for more police.

The city is currently trying to fill around 100 vacancies created in large part through retirements.

Thats insane, Hammers said. I think you need help, and I think the state has a role in that.

Other forum questions concerned issues that would not necessarily pit one part of the 22nd District against another.

Hell no, was Hammers response to backing a mileage tax.

Moore said, Im so against putting another tax on individuals who live in the state.
The Department of Labor announced today the death of the 40-hour workweek after a lengthy battle with modernity that lasted over 40 years. Born on October 24, 1940, the eight-hour workday and 40-hour workweek became standard practice in a range of industries. Friends said the cause of death was the invention of the Blackberry electronic device, which created the expectation that workers would respond to emails within moments, irrespective of the time of day and without regard to weekends or holidays. My boss would call me in the middle of the night while I was sleeping and be angry when I didnt answer immediately, said a doctor familiar with the case.

Conspiracy theorists believe that the 40-hour workweek actually died decades ago but grieving workers covered up its passing. The fringe group cites numerous reference to the death in songs by The Beatles beginning with Eight Days A Week and other cryptic, lyrical messages, like the utterance, Im very poor, at the end of Strawberry Fields. Indeed there is evidence that the 40-hour workweek may well have died as early as 1982, although again conspiracy theorists contend that the actual death occurred much earlier.

Related: 10 Bad Habits You Must Eliminate From Your Daily Routine

Was it murder?

Corporate leaders deny any culpability in the death of the 40-hour workweek, claiming that those affected were salaried workers for whom a 40-hour workweek was never intended. One particular CEO, who spoke on condition of anonymity, defended the practice of working salaried workers upwards of 100 hours without additional compensation by explaining that the extra work typically yields greater results and correspondingly higher bonuses.

Salaried workers disagree. One middle-level manager reached at his home in a cardboard box produced receipts showing that his last bonus was three rolls of dimes, a book of McDonalds gift certificates and four expired dry cleaning coupons.

The 40-hour workweek is survived by weakened benefits, greater out of pocket expenses for medical insurance, reduced vacation and sick leave, and greater income inequality. A memorial service is planned, though details were unavailable at press time.

Related: Workaholism Is the Threat That Masquerades as Dedication

What does it mean?

Irrespective of the timing, circumstances or cause one thing is certain: The 40-hour workweek is indeed dead, leaving as is the case in so many untimely deaths, many troubling questions. Perhaps most troubling is what is the upward limit of hours which a company can expect a worker to be on the job? In many offices, salaried workers who log less than 55 hours are seen as less committed, less hard working, and less willing to make personal sacrifices; in short: less valuable to the firm.

Worker well-being has been on a downward slope since before the Great Recession. As the cost of benefits continued to rise, employers began cutting benefits outright or asking workers to share the pain. Some workers were reportedly placed in the unenviable position of offering up concessions or losing their jobs altogether. Many were laid off and immediately hired back as contractors.

Related: 3 Factors When Choosing Between a Contractor or Full-Time Employee

By the time of the Great Recession (frankly, I never understood why we call it that, I was there and I thought it sucked), workers had grown accustomed to arbitrary pay cuts, benefit rollbacks, and unpaid furlough days, all in the name sparing companies from extinction that probably should have perished. At the risk of sounding like an economic Darwinist, did we do the world any favors saving small businesses that probably should have been allowed to fail? Still, too many business leaders when forced to choose whether to invest in workers or to stuff company coffers, chose the latter at the expense of the former.

What's next?

We are at the cusp of another great business challenge -- the Great Talent Drain. Managers of so-called lean enterprises are increasingly finding themselves hamstrung because they cant find, attract and retain the talent they need to take their companies to the next level. This unintended consequence of their management practices provides smart entrepreneurs with a once in a lifetime opportunity. By restoring the 40-hour workweek; working with governments to control the costs of healthcare and prescription drugs; providing dental and vision coverage; partnering with workers and offering a more equitable split of the company earnings, forward-looking entrepreneurs will have the proverbial pick of the litter when it comes to staffing. Thus will they attract the best with whom to compete against the rest.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in the deceased's name to your favorite charity. Or not.

Related:

An Obituary for the 40-Hour Workweek

Ideal Approach For Creating A Perfect Workspace That Emits Excellence

The 2 Ingredients That Make Up a Healthy Company's Winning Formula



Copyright 2016 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
Think back to the last time you were on a joint call with several co-workers. You were likely packed into a conference room, all collectively staring at the star-shaped speakerphone in the center of the table. The phone absorbed and transmitted important topics discussed, deals done, projects debated and to-do list items checked off.

The world has Jeff Rodman and Brian Hinman to thank for that technology, which can be found in nearly every conference room from Boston to Paris and Beijing to Tokyo. The pair created the phone in the early 90s after founding Polycom in Rodmans San Francisco basement. Since then, the company, now based in San Jose, has blossomed into one of the worlds largest communication players with 71 offices in 31 countries and 3,800 employees worldwide.

Related: 5 Qualities of Successful Entrepreneurs

Image credit: Polycom

Earlier this month I caught up with Rodman, now Polycoms chief technical evangelist and speaker at upcoming NextCon -- a business conference scheduled for November -- to learn more about his path to building an iconic company and his advice for others who want to do the same.

Let's start from the beginning. Did you always want to be an entrepreneur?

I always wanted to be an engineer. Im not sure about the entrepreneur part. Looking back, I incorporated qualities from both my mom and my dad into my career and life path. My dad was a radioman in WWII, and I learned a love for technology through him. My mom is an organist and has played piano all her life. I now play the piano quite often.

How did you and Hinman come up with the idea for Polycom?

I grew up in the San Fernando Valley, moved up to San Francisco after college to work as a development engineer and then relocated to Boston to work at PictureTel, a startup that was leading the way in video conferencing and collaboration. After a few years, my wife wanted to come back to California, so in 1989 we moved back to San Francisco. It was right around that time when Brian -- a founder at PictureTel -- and I started talking about launching a company. (Note: Polycom acquired PictureTel in 2001.)

Related: 7 Signs It's Time to Transition From Employee to Entrepreneur

He moved out, and we got to work in my basement. We wanted to create a company that would let people collaborate wherever they were. We had ideas around document collaboration, but eventually decided to get into audio first and started talking about how to create the next great speakerphone.

How did your idea morph into the star-shaped phone?

We wanted to create a speakerphone where you could talk with anyone and interrupt the same way you do when you are in the same room with another person. That was an unusual concept at the time. Back then, speakerphones pretty much only allowed the person with the loudest voice to carry the conversation; that persons voice would drown out other conversation.

We created a technology that mimicked in-person conversations and, at first thought, it could work perfectly just as a super speaker inside an existing phone on a persons desk. When a conference call needed to happen, colleagues could gather around that desk. We priced it out and realized it would cost $400 per phone. And this is 1991 we are talking about.

That seems like a lot of money.

It was a lot of money, especially back then, and especially when you think that one company might need hundreds of phones. So we scratched that idea and decided to create a group-oriented system designed to serve a whole conference room. That is where the star-shaped phone came in.

It seems like you guys exploded after that. Did you always envision the company going public?

Yep, that was part of the plan. Our vision has always been human collaboration, but going public was always the plan, which is why we did an IPO in 1996.

Has the success of Polycom surprised you at all?

Not really. I think when you are building a company, you take it a step at a time and then always look back at the last step to make sure everything seems in line. In hindsight, everything seems logical. I dont think I ever reached a point where I was super surprised by our success because it happened so incrementally.

Related: 10 Sucessful Entrepreneurs Share Their Recharging Secrets

What advice can you offer entrepreneurs just starting out?

Whatever you do, make sure it is something you enjoy because you will be spending the better part of your day -- 12-16 hours -- doing it. When you are building a company, dont focus on how much money you can make and how quickly you can double that money. Focus on how to make your product twice as good as it is. If you do that, success will come organically.

For more information on Polycom and NextCon, scheduled for Nov. 14-16 in Scottsdale, visit polycom.com and nextcon.com.

Related:

Three Must-Have Apps For Entrepreneurs

3 Ways FAA Drone Regulations Are Changing the Construction Industry

The Birth of the Star Speakerphone



Copyright 2016 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
STAMFORD  State Rep. William Tong wont face a challenger in the 147th House district race, though that hasnt slowed his campaigning.

Tong, 43, has spent recent weeks knocking on doors in Darien and attending events in his district to discuss his efforts in Hartford as chairman of the Judiciary Committee and address unease about economy and the state budget that will be top priorities in 2017.

You want to take the opportunity to let them know what youre doing and what the issues are going forward, Tong said. I want people to know Im fighting hard for them and come through.

Thousands of state employees were laid off in recent months, coming off a 2015 legislative session where tax revenue fell short short of state spending by more than $1 billion.

In the last budget we cut more than $2.6 billion from the budget and those cuts are having a dramatic effect on people in our state including Stamford and Darien, Tong said. The fact is unless we deal with our long term pension and debt service obligations more of that money will go to that and crowd out other investments we want to make.

Fritz Blau, chairman of the Stamford Republican Town Committee, said a Republican candidate who was to run against Tong withdrew near the end of the race for personal reasons.

Within the states government, lawmakers need to immediately deal with spiraling pension and debt service obligations by restructuring the liability to make it manageable, Tong said. Meanwhile the state needs to begin attracting more private employers to the state.

More Information William M. Tong Incumbent - Yes Previous elective offices held - State Representative District 147 (2007-Present) Political party - Democrat Age - 43 Highest educational level - Graduate/professional degree Occupation - Attorney Employer - Finn Dixon & Herling Marital status and family - Married, three children Campaign website - williamtong.com What makes you the right choice for this seat? - "I strongly believe state legislators must earn re-election based on their performance. Through hard work and perseverance, I've come through for Stamford and Darien. For example, when Stamford and Darien needed a new inter-district magnet school, I came through with $62 million in state funding. With strong experience and seniority, and as Chairman of the Judiciary Committee and the Commission on Economic Competiveness, I can do even more if my constituents honor me with another term." See More Collapse

In addition to his work on the Judiciary Committee, Tongs role as chairman of the Commission on Economic Competitiveness  a group created by the legislature in 2015  gives him an outsized voice in discussions of state policy to facilitate job creation and recast the states economic profile amid a lagging economic recovery.

As head of the group, Tong helped tailor an economic bill in 2016 aimed at establishing 500,000 new private sector jobs in the next 25 years.

The discussion about the budget is going to dominate everything (in the next session), Tong said. ...All the things we want to do for underserved communities, economic justice, and equity, all of the values that progressives have; we cant do them without growth.

Tong is also quick to defend decisions by longtime ally Gov. Dannel Malloy to cut state jobs and spending in an effort to maneuver through the states worsening budget troubles last year.

I dont think thats fair, Tong said. I think hes worked extremely hard and been a very strong and decisive governor whose made tough and unpopular decisions regardless of politics.

Transportation is the seminal infrastructure and economic issue, for cities like Hartford, Bridgeport and New Haven to approach the success of Stamford and generate more tax revenue, Tong said.

Blau said Tong and the Democratic legislators long dominant in Hartford might pay lip service to trimming state expenses but will continue tax and spend policies that have resulted in recent deficits and tax hikes.

Deals such as a $22 million loan to Bridgewater Associates approved by the legislature this year to keep the worlds largest hedge fund in Connecticut run counter to the free market approach Republicans think the state should take.

William Tong is just like every other Democrat; he is a tax and spend advocate, Blau said. If he is on a government commission to bring more jobs to Connecticut I could only imagine it would come from some kind of giveaway like Bridgewater.

Blau said Republicans also fault Malloy as governor for failing to reduce the costs of state regulations and taxes for smaller businesses in the state. The current climate prompts businesses to relocate or downsize Connecticut operations, he said.

We have to reverse things so growth comes from less taxed and regulated businesses, Blau said. Unless we cut taxes and regulation it will all be picking favorites which companies the government decides which companies to back rather than the free market doing the same.

Busy session

Tong, a commercial litigator at Stamford firm Finn Dixon & Herling, said during the 2017 session the Judiciary Committee could potentially revisit a Malloy bail reform initiative that Democrats let die last year. The proposal was aimed at eliminating bail for many misdemeanors.

The governors proposal on bail reform  what I call Second Chance Society 2.0  is a fundamental overhaul of the states juvenile justice system and it stalled largely over election-year politics, Tong said.

On the heels of a sex scandal at Stamford High School, in 2015 Tong shepherded to approval legislation that beefed up the mandatory reports educators and child care professionals must make when they suspect teacher sexual misconduct.

The penalty for failing to report those suspicions was stiffened to a felony from a misdemeanor.

A second law passed in 2016 requires school districts to divulge to other districts whether former employees were found guilty of sexual misconduct or abuse that led to their dismissal. Applicants for jobs working directly with children are also required to authorize former employers to communicate with potential new employers about their job history.

Ive had a reputation of being a tough-on-crime chairman and I think that showed in this legislation, Tong said. I dont really have much tolerance for those who dont do everything they can to protect our kids.
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STAMFORD  A jury deliberated for about four hours Friday before finding a city man guilty of trying to firebomb the Norwalk courthouse in 2013.

The five-day trial of Joseph Stephenson, who faces up to 30 years in jail for breaking into the Belden Avenue courthouse and leaving behind six bottles of kerosene, ended late Friday afternoon when a jury of three women and three men returned guilty verdicts on all three counts against him.

Stephenson was convicted of attempted arson, attempted tampering with evidence and burglary for the late-night incident on March 3, 2013. Stephenson, 49, will be sentenced on Jan. 6.

Stephensons defense attorney Wade Luckett and Assistant States Attorney Michelle Manning could not be reached for comment following the verdict.

A State Police trooper responding to the courthouses burglar alarm thwarted Stephensons arson attempt. The trooper arrived less than two minutes after the alarm sounded and saw the suspect peering at him through window blinds, but it was too dark to identify him.

Manning told the jury the case was mostly circumstantial, but there was enough evidence to convict Stephenson.

A DNA researcher from the state forensic lab testified he matched Stephensons DNA to samples collected on each of the 32-ounce kerosene bottles as well as a canvas bag found next to them inside the states attorneys office and a hammer found near the exit of the courthouse.

Investigators also testified they tied a Range Rover caught on surveillance cameras in the area of the courthouse that night to Stephenson.

Authorities said Stephensons motive was to avoid a court appearance several days later on a larceny charge that he was ultimately convicted of and sentenced to one year in jail.

The prosecution also presented audio conversations between Stephenson and relatives while he was in jail. Stephenson told his brother, Christopher, and mother, Colleen, in the recordings to not cooperate with the police investigation.

Christopher Stephenson was the lone defense witness to testify. He told the jury on Wednesday he took his brother to Brooklyn, N.Y., and picked him up there the night of the incident.

But the state countered by recalling the lead investigator, Detective John Kimball , who said he interviewed Christopher Stevenson about two months after the break-in. Kimball said Christopher Stephenson told him he wasnt with his brother and didnt know where he was on the day of the incident. The detective also produced an audio recording of the interview that confirmed his testimony.

Kimball said Christopher Stephenson did not know his two-hour interview was recorded.

Luckett argued the bottles had other peoples DNA on them in addition to his client. He also said there were hundreds of other people who had pending court cases at the time who could have had motive to set a fire.

Luckett said his client said some stupid things to his brother and mother that were recorded, but that wasnt enough evidence to convict him.

JNICKERSON@SCNI.COM;
In 1993 Montanans overwhelmingly rejected a ballot initiative that would have established a four percent statewide sales tax. It wasnt the first time that politicians tried to tax us on the things that we purchase each day. But when 75 percent of Montanans voted no, it seemed that the sales tax issue was finally sent out to pasture  youd think.

For the first time since that 1993 vote, the threat of a statewide sales tax in Montana is very real, and depending on the outcome of next months election, Montanans may soon be forced to hand over more of their hard-earned cash to the government.

This fall the Montana Chamber of Commerce traveled across the state supporting the creation of a statewide sales tax, and in fact, officials from the Chamber told press in Missoula that a sales tax in Montana would be the best tax of all.

Additionally, the Chairman of the Republican Party, and legislator, has thrown his weight behind a sales tax and asked state revenue staff to prepare sales tax models in advance of the upcoming 2017 session.

Since 1993, Montanans have overwhelmingly rejected attempts by politicians to impose a sales tax in our state on a number of occasions. But the Chamber of Commerce and the Republican Party Chair have found their sales tax champion: Greg Gianforte.

Greg Gianforte has a record of lobbying to impose a statewide sales tax on hard working, Montana families, calling it the best solution for Montana. If Gianforte had had his way, Montanans would be paying more for everything from school supplies to baby diapers to groceries. Now that he is running for office, Gianforte has proposed a scheme that gives massive new tax breaks to millionaires and out-of-state corporations but would decimate Montanas budget.

Gianforte's pollsters are obviously telling him to avoid advocating for a sales tax during this election. But if he wins, and Gianfortes huge tax breaks to corporations become law, the only ways to pencil out a balanced budget is for Gianforte to raise taxes on working families including imposing a regressive sales tax on those very same families.

That is why Montanans need Steve Bullock.

Steve has always opposed a statewide sales tax and even proposed a constitutional amendment to ban a statewide Montana sales tax forever. Despite being asked several times, Gianforte refuses to support the constitutional amendment. Which makes you wonder: if Greg Gianforte does not support a sales tax, why wont he support banning one?

Montanans have made themselves clear: No sales tax.

So please, make sure your voice is heard on Election Day. Support Steve Bullock so we can send Greg Gianforte and his tax schemes back where they came from.

Sen. Mary Caferro, D-Helena, represents Senate District 41 in the Montana Legislature.
STAMFORD  A city man has been accused of a hate crime for brutally beating a Hispanic immigrant with a broomstick while shouting insults at him, police said.

Erick Sanchez, 20, has been charged in the Oct. 20 incident that began when he walked by four Hispanic men who were drinking behind an East Main Street garage, Sgt. Chris Broems said.

Broems said Sanchez returned with a broomstick and some friends. They began yelling racial slurs and threatened to kill them, Broems said.

Sanchez then whacked one of the men in the head while his friends punched and kicked the others, Broems said.

The man was knocked unconscious and was released from Stamford Hospital three days later after requiring four staples to close the wound, Broems said.

It seemed like whatever was said, Sanchez did not like the answer, Broems said.

Witnesses helped lead police to Sanchez, Broems said. Police are still searching for the three other suspects.

The Stamford community is speaking up and getting tired of this behavior so they are actually helping us out, Broems said. When we were out canvassing the area, people were helpful in giving us his name.

Sanchez was charged with first-degree assault, third-degree assault and intimidation by bigotry.

Sanchez was arrested with his brother nearly two years ago when police said the two were firing their BB gun behind Cloonan Middle School. Kevin Sanchez was charged with striking a 13-year-old with two BBs as the youth was walking down West Broad Street.

JNICKERSON@SCNI.COM;
I ts strange to think that in this socially-driven 21st century, the media industry can still seem intimidating to those who work outside of it. We live in an era where we are all surrounded by platforms on which people can make themselves seen and heard, but many businesses still ignore the basics of media relations.

If youre a small business or entrepreneur starting out, its vital that you not only understand the value of a good working relationship with the media. You also need to know how you can work with the media so you can grow your business and your brand. Once youve got your head around what the media can do for you, you then need to grasp what you can do for the media.

In a time poor, crowded market, multi-platform publishers are no longer just looking for content, theyre looking for amazing content. And how do you go about producing it? What platforms are right for your organisation? It could be building a social media brand or working with a radio station.

Many people dont just feel intimidated by approaching media organisations. Social media can scare many professionals and knowing how to use it effectively is difficult to learn. Business professionals are busy enough. As weve shown, trying to master the media can add a lot more pressure and questions that need answering.

So what can you do? Here are four steps companies can work on, to make the most of the opportunities media provides your brand and business.

Network

Its important to develop access and insight into the media world, how it works and what makes the people in it tick. Networking is essential as you build great contacts and learn how to make your network work with you. Getting to know media professionals gives you great opportunities and advice to get your organisation out there.

Knowledge

It takes confidence to work directly with the media. A key way to develop that confidence is by growing your own understanding and knowledge. Ultimately, you need to understand what journalists and media outlets are looking for and how to give them what they want, while communicating your own message.

Profile

It wont happen overnight, but there are essential tips to utilise and skills to develop which will help you create a higher media profile for yourself and your brand. But, once this is created, you have to keep nurturing and maintaining that image.

Content

Great content will get you noticed and the art of good storytelling must be at the heart of everything you do. In a crowded market, you want stand out content that will set you apart from your competitors.

A stunning image, a powerful video, an incredible fact, an amazing quote, an outstanding company ambassador  discover your most valuable asset and dont be afraid to use it.

Whilst it may seem relatively simple when laid out like this but many firms still need help when it comes to creating their marketing and media strategy. If youre a small company, you may not feel you have the budget needed to enlist a bit of outside help. The good news is that mastering the media doesnt have to come with a hefty price tag of a glossy PR firm.

Media experts, Vikki Cook and Adam Waters, are hosting an event to teach companies and individuals the fundamentals of how to work with the media. To book your early bird discount ticket and find out more - click here

Vikki Cook is head of media consultancy Cookie Media Ltd. Adam Waters runs Sunbather, the digital consulting arm of SSVC.
I served for 11 years in the Montana National Guard. The Guard provides many services for Montana, including not only defending our country but standing ready to work on fighting forest fires and assisting with flood relief  to name but three. As a member of the Guard, I came to appreciate those members of our community who actively supported our mission and efforts. Former State Representative Hal Jacobson is one of those people.

During the four terms Hal served in the House of Representatives, he carried legislation for the Guard each term and saw each one passed. Hal was recognized for his commitment to the guard by being presented with the Commanders Coin.

Hal is now running for Senate District 40. I know he will work hard to represent all the people in the district well, whatever their needs are. And, as his record shows, I know he will continue to give full support to the Montana National Guard.

Please join me in voting for Hal Jacobson for Senate District 40.

Roger Wihlborg

Helena
U BS is being investigated in Hong Kong over its role in several stock-market flotations.

The Swiss giant said the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission was probing its handling of some initial public offerings in the territory. The regulator could ban UBS from further flotation work or fine it.

This is a recent development and at this stage we are not commenting on the situation, UBS chief executive Sergio Ermotti said.

The watchdog has launched a draconian crackdown on listing rules to tighten up the accuracy of financial information given to fund managers.

Investment banks who shepherd companies to the stock market are now legally liable for the information contained in the sales pitch, known as a prospectus, opening the door to potential litigation.

UBS investment bank reported a 68% drop in pre-tax operating profits to Swfr161 million. Overall third-quarter net profit fell to Swfr827 million from Swfr788 million last year.
A merican elites were caught completely by surprise by the rise of Donald Trump. Republican Party elders assured listeners and readers for months that Trump and his candidacy would eventually flame out, right until the moment where he completed his hostile takeover of the party. The Democratic Party seemed downright giddy at the prospect of Trumps candidacy, certain that his lack of policy chops and general boorishness would make for an easy victory. And while that confidence appears well placed, Trump has weathered crises that would have buried other politicians. Despite a near constant stream of scandals, it looks increasingly likely that Trump will collect at least 40 per cent of the vote.

That Trumps support has proven so large and so durable should have surprised no one, but America is increasingly a country characterised by remarkable geographic segregation. On the coasts and in its largest cities, Americas elite citizens celebrate economic dynamism, rapid mobility and free trade. Meanwhile, in the middle part of the country  so-called flyover country other Americans embrace an entirely different model: with much less mobility, a suspicion of trade that causes many job losses and a recognition that economic dynamisms occasional losers look a lot like them.

These two segments of society have increasingly been drawn to two separate political institutions: the cosmopolitan, urban elites have gravitated toward Democrats while Republicans have become the party of the rural and suburban American. Importantly, American politics hasnt fully caught up to this new cultural reality: thanks to decades of Republicans ignoring or sometimes actively alienating the black vote, for instance, black voters continue to largely call the Democratic Party their political home. But the transition is well under way as Trumps primary electorate highlights: this year, the average Republican primary voter earns a lower income and is less likely to have graduated from college compared with previous Republican voters. For the first time in six decades, the Republican Party is projected to lose the college-educated white vote.

As the son of a white, working-class family, I saw the Donald Trump phenomenon coming sooner than most. He had captured a zeitgeist in my community, not because they loved Trump but because they mistrusted the institutions that his opponents  Republican and Democratic  represented. There was something sympathetic about the affinity so many felt for Trump, even though I loathed the mans obvious personal character flaws. He was, as American film-maker and labour activist Michael Moore recently argued, a Molotov cocktail to throw into the inner workings of the elite universe. The system had failed so many in my home town, and Trump was the vehicle with which they would blow it up.

That mistrust of the system came in many forms. Some of them, like their frustrations with the policies of both of Americas main political parties, struck me as entirely legitimate. The mainstream media in the United States had, for too long, been dominated by elites with relatively little interest or respect for much of the country they reported on. Alternative media institutions sprang seemingly from nowhere, and while it was easy to understand the sense that the mainstream media had failed, the alternative media often produced outcomes no less admirable.

For starters, there is a new industry of conspiracy-mongers and fringe lunatics writing about all manner of idiocy, from President Obamas alleged religious leanings to his ancestry. Interestingly, every major news organisation, even the oft-maligned Fox News, has always told the truth about Obamas citizenship status and religious preferences. The people I know are well aware of what the major news organisations have to say about the issue; they simply dont believe them. Only six per cent of American voters believe that the media is very trustworthy. To many of us, the free press  that bulwark of American democracy  is simply full of it.

Hillary Clinton v Donald Trump: US Presidential Election 1 /93 Hillary Clinton v Donald Trump: US Presidential Election Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump votes at PS 59 in New York Carlo Allegri/Reuters U.S. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton fills out her ballot at the Douglas Grafflin Elementary School in Chappaqua, New York Brian Snyder/Reuters Topless protestors cause commotion at the site where Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is scheduled to work at PS 59 located at 233 East 56th Street in Manhattan NY Daily News via Getty Images Republician presidential nominee Donald Trump arrives at a polling station in New York to cast his ballot in the presidential election Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton arrives to vote in the U.S. presidential election at Grafflin Elementary School in Chappaqua, New York Mike Segar/Reuters A voter looks at a sample ballot as he waits in line at a polling location in Kansas City, Missouri. Whitney Curtis/Getty Images Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton cookies are on sale at the Oakmont Bakery in Oakmont, Pennsylvania Jeff Swensen/Getty Images Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and her husband former President Bill Clinton, leave their polling place in Chappaqua Seth Wenig/AP lay Smith is the first voter to cast the ballot in the US presidential election, in the small village of Dixville Notch, New Hampshire Herb Swanson/EPA Poll workers look on as US President Barack Obama gestures towards the press as he votes early at the Cook County Office Building in Chicago, Illinois Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images President Barack Obama speaks at a campaign event for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton at the University of New Hampshire in Durham Elise Amendola/AP Donald Trump takes a break from speaking to compare his face to a mask during a rally at the Sarasota Fairgrounds in Sarasota, Florida Loren Elliott/The Tampa Bay Times via AP Lady Gaga speaks during a campaign rally for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in Raleigh Gerry Broome/AP Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and husband, former President Bill Clinton take the stage during a campaign rally in Raleigh Gerry Broome/AP Madonna sings a song as she campaigns for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton during a surprise performance at Washington Square Park in New York Matt Rourke/AP Musician Bruce Springsteen performs at an election eve rally for Democratic presidential nominee former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Spencer Platt/Getty Images Supporters hold signs and a copy of the Bible during a rally for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump in Manchester Charles Krupa/AP Republican vice presidential candidate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, speaks to a campaign rally before the arrival of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump in Manchester Bill Sikes/AP Jon Bon Jovi and Lady Gaga perform during a campaign rally for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in Raleigh Gerry Broome/AP Musician Jon Bon Jovi performs at an election eve rally for Democratic presidential nominee former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on November in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Spencer Platt/Getty Images Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton boards her plane at Philadelphia International Airport Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images Part of a Nov. 6, 2016, letter from FBI director James Comey to Congress is photographed in Washington. Comey tells Congress that a review of new Hillary Clinton emails has "not changed our conclusions" from earlier this year that she should not face charges Jon Elswick/AP Supporters of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump cheer during a campaign rally in Leesburg Evan Vucci/AP Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump attends a campaign rally in Detroit, Michigan Carlo Allegri/Reuters NBA basketball player Lebron James introduces U.S. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton during a campaign rally in Cleveland, Ohio Carlo Allegri/Reuters A member of the audience holds a sign during a campaign rally for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump in Sterling Heights, , Michigan Paul Sancya/AP President Barack Obama speaks at a campaign rally for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in Kissimmee. Florida John Raoux/AP Secret Service agents rush Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump off the stage during a campaign rally in Reno John Locher/AP Hillary Clinton smiles holding a mask onboard her campaign plane on Halloween Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images Supporters of Donald Trump pose with a Hillary Clinton character during a campaign rally at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas John Gurzinski/AFP/Getty Images Donald Trump holds a rainbow flag given to him by supporter Max Nowak during a campaign rally at the Bank of Colorado Arena on the campus of University of Northern Colorado Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Hillary Clinton speaks during a campaign event at The Manor Complex in Wilton Manors, Florida Getty Images A Donald Trump supporter's pet bulldog is decked out in campaign stickers Jason Connoll/ AFP/Getty Images Hillary Clinton joins Jennifer Lopez at a campaign concert in Miami, Florida Brian Snyder/Reuters A Donald Trump mural covering a building in Miami, Florida Rhona WiseAFP/Getty Images Hillary Clinton, accompanied by first lady Michelle Obama, greet supporters during a campaign rally in Winston-Salem Chuck Burton/AP A crowd gathers to watch as Donald Trump's vandalised star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is cleaned up Frederic J Brown/AFP/Getty Images Hillary Clinton delivers birthday cake to reporters on her campaign plane Justin Sullivan/Getty Images A Donald Trump look-a-like walks with bikini-clad women in Times Square. The stunt was organized by artist Alison Jackson Drew Angerer/Getty Images Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump hugs a the American flag as he arrives to speak to a campaign rally in Tampa Evan Vucci/AP Katy Perry speaks at a rally in support of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in Las Vegas AP Democratic U.S. presidential nominee Hillary Clinton waves to a member of the audience as she walks off the debate stage as Republican U.S. presidential nominee Donald Trump remains at his podium after the conclusion of their third and final 2016 presidential campaign debate at UNLV in Las Vegas, Nevada Mike Blake/Reuters NFL fans wear Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton masks during a game between the New York Jets and Arizona Cardinals Norm Hall/Getty Images Donald Trump holds a child onstage during a campaign rally in Green Bay, Wisconsin Jonathan Ernst/Reuters Hillary Clinton (Kate McKinnon) and Donald Trump (Alec Baldwin) take on the 'Town Hall Debate Cold Open' on SNL Saturday Night Live Hillary Clinton chats to Ellen DeGeneres during a commercial break during the filming of the Ellen Show Brenan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images A Donald Trump themed fortune telling machine stands on the street in Columbus Circle in New YorK Lucas Jackson/Reuters Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump kisses a "Women for Trump" placard during a rally at the Lakeland Linder Regional Airport in Lakeland, Florida Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump during the town hall debate at Washington University Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Kevin Lake of Jefferson, Iowa, wears a wall outfit in honour of Donald Trump's pledge to build a wall along the Mexico border Scott Morgan/Reuters Donald Trump holds two-year-old Hunter Tirpak, who is dressed as Trump, during a rally at Mohegan Sun Arena Christopher Dolan/The Citizensi Voice via AP Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump during the town hall debate at Washington University Saul Loeb-Pool/Getty Images Ken Bone found himself going viral after his attention-grabbing question during the town hall debate at Washington University Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Donald Trump's daughters-in-law Lara Trump and Vanessa Trump and daughter Tiffany Trump Scott Olson/Getty Images Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump leave the stage after the first presidential debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images Melania (L) and Ivanka (C) Trump sit next to Republican vice presidential nominee Governor Mike Pence ahead of the first debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton Joe Raedle/Pool/Reuters Hillary Clinton shakes hands with husband and former U.S. President Bill Clinton after the first Presidential Debate Joe Raedle/Getty Images Donald Trump with wife Melania Trump, Ivanka Trump, Donald Trump Jr.'s wife Vanessa Trump, Eric Trumps wife Lara Yunaska, and Eric Trump Paul J. Richards/AFP US actresses Lena Dunham and America Ferrera speak at the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia Peter Foley/EPA Alec Baldwin as Donald Trump on Saturday Night Live Saturday Night Live Hillary Clinton attempts to open a pickle jar on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Andy Holmes/ABC Donald Trump greets supporters at a rally at Ladd-Peebles Stadium Mark Wallheiser/Getty Images Denis Leary and James Corden on The Late Late Show CBS Donald Trump reacts to the cries of three-month-old Kellen Campbell, of Denver, right, while holding six-month-old Evelyn Keane, of Castel Rock, Colorado Joe Mahoney/Getty Images Bill Clintonon on the final night of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Mike Segar/Reuters Alicia Keys performs at he Democratic National Convention Shawn Thew/EPA Meryl Streep at the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center Alex Wong/Getty Images Donald Trump hugs his daughter Ivanka Trump at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images Sarah Palin endorses Donald Trump's run for the Republican presidential nomination Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images Donald Trump during a campaign stop on the campus of the University of Central Florida Joe Raedle/Getty Images

With little trust of the press, theres no check on the internet conspiracy theories that rule the digital world. Barack Obama is a foreign alien, actively trying to destroy our country. Everything the media tells us is a lie. Many in the white working class believe the worst about their society. Heres a small sample of emails or messages Ive seen from friends or family:

From Right-wing radio talker Alex Jones on the 10th anniversary of 9/11, a documentary about the unanswered question of the terrorist attacks, suggesting that the government played a role in the massacre of its own people.

From an email chain, a story that the Obamacare legislation requires microchip implantation in new patients. This story carries extra bite because of the religious implications: many believe that the End Times mark of the beast foretold in biblical prophecy will be an electronic device.

From the popular website WorldNetDaily, an editorial suggesting that the Newtown gun massacre in 2012 was engineered by the federal government to turn public opinion on gun control.

From multiple internet sources, suggestions that Obama will soon implement martial law in order to secure power for a third presidential term.

The list goes on. Its difficult to pinpoint precisely how many people believe how many of these stories. But if a third of our community questions the Presidents origin  despite all evidence to the contrary  its a good bet that the other conspiracies have broader currency than wed like.

This raises a daunting spectre for our elites, who will be called upon to successfully govern after Trumps expected defeat. The challenge is to re-integrate much of the countrys population, and that requires regaining their trust. Unfortunately, many elites seem primed to cheer Trumps defeat and treat his supporters as backward rubes who dont know whats in their best interests as the elites always treated them. Of course, we do ourselves no favours ignoring the fact that many of Trumps supporters are actually quite successful financially, or ignoring that some of them express troubling levels of racial resentment. We must confront these realities.

But if we ignore the legitimate grievances of Trumps voters, we do the very thing that led so many to embrace Trump in the first place. Our country  both those who voted for Clinton and those who voted for Trump  deserves better.

Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by JD Vance is out now, published by William Collins.
O ne of Jack the Rippers victims has been brought back to life in a ghostly exhibit as part of a new crime museum.

Catherine Eddowes, murdered by the killer in 1888, will speak to visitors to the City of London Police Museum from beyond the grave via a hologram.

The new museum, which is free and opens at Guildhall on Monday week, tells the story of the force responsible for policing the Square Mile since 1839.

Sara Pink, head of the City of London Corporations Guildhall Library, said they wanted to tell a different side of the story of the mysterious killer who terrified 19th-century London.

The exhibit, featuring a student from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama playing Catherine, is based on the forces archive which includes details of her arrest by City officers the night before she was killed.

Ms Pink said: When we looked through the original documents in the City of London Police force we could see what she looked like, what she was wearing, what she was saying to the officers. So weve been able to recreate Catherine within the Square Mile up until those final moments when the Ripper found her.

Jack The Ripper 1 /25 Jack The Ripper Jack the Ripper 1888, London: Elizabeth Stride, 45, a prostitute was murdered in Berners Street. Her windpipe was severed, but her killer, Jack the Ripper, had apparently been interrupted and she became one of his six victims (Photo by Popperfoto/Getty Images) Jack the Ripper The front page of a newspaper reports on a 'Ghastly Murder in the East-End. Dreadful Mutilation of a Woman,' as part of its coverage of the murders of Jack the Ripper in September 1888. Though the body is unidentified as of the writing of the article, it probably refers to the death of Annie Chapman on September 8, 1888. (Express Newspapers/Getty Images) Jack the Ripper Gunthorpe Street, scene of Jack the Ripper's first kill (Picture: Associated Newspapers) Jack the Ripper Jack the Rippers fourth victim, Catherine Eddowes (Picture: Evans Skinner archive/PA Wire) Jack the Ripper Mitre Square in the City of London, with an arched passageway leading to St James's Passage (formerly Church Passage), circa 1928. It was here that prostitute Catherine Eddowes was murdered by serial killer Jack the Ripper on September 30, 1888. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) Jack the Ripper The corpse of Annie Chapman, murdered by Jack the Ripper at Hanbury Street, September 8, 1888. (Photo by Express Newspapers/Getty Images) Jack the Ripper Hanbury Street in Spitalfields, east London, circa 1900, where Annie Chapman was murdered on September 8, 1888. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) Jack the Ripper The corpse of 40-year-old Alice McKenzie, who was murdered on July 17, 1889 in Castle Alley, Whitechapel, London. Her left carotid artery had been severed. The murder was attributed by many to Jack the Ripper, although several investigators were unconvinced. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) Jack the Ripper The envelope of a letter that was written by a person claiming to be Jack the Ripper. It was sent to Doctor Thomas Openshaw of the London Hospital Whitechapel. The letter is dated 29 October 1888 Jack the Ripper A letter written by a person claiming to be Jack the Ripper dated October 29, 1888 Jack the Ripper A Google StreetView of Old Castle Street, near where Castle Alley used to be, the location where Alice Mckenzie was killed by Jack The Ripper. Jack the Ripper The corpse of Elizabeth Stride, murdered by Jack the Ripper at Derner Street, September 30, 1888. (Photo by Express Newspapers/Getty Images) Jack the Ripper Slum dwellings in Berner Street (later Henriques Street) in Whitechapel, east London, circa 1900. It was near here that Elizabeth Stride was murdered by Jack the Ripper on September 30, 1888. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) Jack the Ripper The corpse of Mary Ann Nicholls, murdered by Jack the Ripper at Bucks Row, August 31, 1888. (Photo by Express Newspapers/Getty Images) Jack the Ripper Bucks Row, now Durward Street, east London, where the body of Mary Ann Nichols, victim of Jack the Ripper, was found lying across the gutter. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) Jack the Ripper Miller's Court in Dorset Street, east London, circa 1900, where Mary Jane Kelly was murdered by Jack the Ripper on November 9, 1888. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) Jack the Ripper Illustration showing the police discovering the body of one of Jack the Ripper's victims, probably Catherine Eddowes, late September 1888. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) Jack the Ripper Extract from the 'Penny Illustrated News' October 13, 1888. This illustration is connected with the infamous "Jack the Ripper" murders and shows one of the victims, Kate Eddowes, and a sketch of a man who was thought to be implicated in the case. (Popperfoto/Getty Images) ColneyHatchLunaticAsylum.jpg Colney Hatch Lunatic Asylum - where Ripper suspect Aaron Kosminkski was committed following the murders

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I have a growing conviction that future civilisations, or alien races landing on the burned-out husk of the Earth, will judge that Western civilisation began to decline in direct proportion to the rise in popularity of the toilet book and the self-help book, and the weird zone where those genres meet. Any culture that needs to create an extra diversion for itself in those few, private minutes spent on the lavatory is clearly short on both attention span and spine.

At a time when the market for the serious printed word is in terminal freefall, when book and newspaper publishers are seeing their business models unravel, the fact that brainless how-to-improve tomes are on the rise is a sign that society is in terminal moral and intellectual decay.

This year, the spavined rump of what used to be the publishing industry has clearly noted the success of those mock-Ladybird guides to the hipster, the hangover, etc, and in particular to How It Works: The Husband. Because suddenly it seems that the toilet books and training are all about blokes  yummy husbands, have-it-all-dads, man-boys who cant grow up, cavemen who must be domesticated.

Next month sees the publication of How to Train Your Husband: A Vet Techs Guide to Love and Marriage, in which a husband is treated as a dog. The price, 23.99, suggests it is meant to be taken seriously.

More chilling, perhaps, and due next March, is Becoming a Significant Man, which promises to unleash your masculine self and make you the better husband your wife desires, a better father and better leader the world needs  but not, clearly, a better grammarian.

Reading this statement, an image of Nigel Farage praising Donald Trump as an alpha-male silverback gorilla popped into my mind. The book is by Warren Peterson: a quick Google search does not show up any authors of this name, although it does yield another vet.

Preceding these publications, and already touting themselves as secret Santa presents for male colleagues you dislike, are a trio of toilet books, all mocking men in general and husbands in particular.

Maybe this rash of publications which treat the male in a partnership as a baby to be indulged or an animal to be trained are a timely and just riposte to a resurgence of boorish machismo in public discourse (see Trump again). Personally, I think they represent a weak-minded reinforcement of gender imbalance as the status quo. But what do I know. Im only a bloke and a hopeless husband (simpers/blushes).

Of the books out now the worst is The Contented Little Husband by Tess Read (Michael OMara, 7.99). Its subtitle  Say Goodbye to Temper Tantrums and Unhelpful Habits  tells you straight away that this is a spoof of a parenting book, with the arrival of a new co-habiting partner or a new husband shown to be as baffling and frustrating as the appearance of a newborn.

The bundle of joy or new arrival in this book is a thoroughly loutish heterosexual male: toilet books are blind to the subtleties of a world where gender and sexuality are measured on a spectrum.

So, The Contented Little Husband involves chapters on preparing for your new arrival (by building him a man-cave or shed), regular feeding (bringing him a beer), toilet training (getting him to wee in rather than around the lavatory and then put the seat down), weaning (getting rid of his friends) and travel (how to get him to ask for directions).

Its a simpering, vapid, stupid little book and, worst of all, its coy. The chapter headlined And So to Bed faffs and snickers around the idea of sex and then ends with the statement: This is not a book about how to keep your husband contented in the bedroom in that kind of way... Its about so much less than that. Well, quite.

Next up is From Frazzled to Fabulous (Bantam, 9.99), subtitled How to Juggle a Successful Career, Fatherhood, Me-time and Looking Good, by the un-named individual who tweets as The Man Who Has It All. This Twitter account is one of those that works by ironic inversion. It takes cliches or offensive statements or dilemmas that are usually faced by women and repurposes them for men. Its a trick that works well once (Nearly half of all managers admit to thinking twice when it comes to hiring men who have children) but quickly becomes repetitive and boring. Thats bad enough on Twitter but in a book its positively depressing.

Self-help books for anxiety and depression - in pictures 1 /10 Self-help books for anxiety and depression - in pictures Scroll to see our pick of the best self-help books... Shutterstock The Little Book of Hygge: The Danish Way to Live Well by Meik Wiking From numerous terror attacks to Brexit, the year 2017 hasn't been easy. This insightful book on Hygge  a lifestyle from Denmark, the worlds happiest nation  teaches us how to become happier and appreciate the little things in life. Meik Wiking, CEO of the Happiness Research Institute in Copenhagen, shows some simple ways to incorporate the Danish concept into your daily routine  think candles, cocoa and cosy pyjamas. 5, Amazon, Buy it now Start Where You Are: A Journal for Self-Exploration by Meera Lee Patel With plenty of encouraging exercises, this interactive journal is ideal for those who want to manage (or discover) their long-term goals. Its filled with beautiful illustrations by Meera Lee Patel, a self-taught artist from New York, and aims to help the reader gain a better understanding of who they are through charts and writing. There are also various quotes throughout to uplift and motivate you. 7.69, Amazon, Buy it now Goddess Revolution, The: Make Peace with Food, Love Your Body and Reclaim Your Life by Mel Wells If youre ready to rise above self-destructive thoughts, then this is the book for you. In this inspiring tome, former-Hollyoaks actress and health coach, Mel Wells, empowers women to ditch fad diets for good and adopt a healthy relationship with food. In the age of Instagram filters and body image trends like #fitspiration, her methods for achieving body freedom couldnt come at a better time. 7.69, Amazon, Buy it now Hardcore Self Help: F*** Depression: Volume 2 by Robert Duff Ph.D. In the second volume of his Hardcore Self Help book series, psychologist Robert Duff is informative without being overwhelming and offers a practical guide to solving the issues caused by depression. Those looking to ditch anxiety for good will appreciate his no-nonsense approach to the self-help book, which involves light-hearted humour and straightforward solutions. 8.28, Amazon, Buy it now Declutter Your Mind: How to Stop Worrying, Relieve Anxiety, and Eliminate Negative Thinking by S.J. Scott and Barrie Davenport Life in the city can be busy, hectic and overwhelming. This concise read will you how to release the mind clutter that causes you to lose focus and misplace things. Inside youll find science-backed strategies for taming your mind, nailing life values and simplifying your surroundings. 8.99, Amazon, Buy it now A Mindfulness Guide for the Frazzled by Ruby Wax If you are totally new to mindfulness, then this fuss-free option from comedian Ruby Wax is a safe bet. The humorous yet handy guide features a six-week course where readers can test out various mindfulness exercises and see what works best for them. Theres also advice for improving relationships and becoming a better parent. 6.99, Waterstones, Buy it now Radical Self-Love: A Guide to Loving Yourself and Living Your Dreams by Gala Darling Blogger and author Gala Darling has been teaching self-love for almost a decade, and her gripping book is a great choice for those who lack positive thoughts. The techniques might not be suitable for those looking to make ground-breaking changes in life, but theyre simple enough for anyone who wants to make small improvements to their way of thinking. 10.68, Amazon, Buy it now

As we repeatedly read statements by men who feel lucky because their wives listen to their opinions, or praise their awful cooking, or cheer them up after binge-eating, the spirits sink. Ditto with the exhortations to keep smiling, keep hydrated, and colour yourself handsome. Who says men cant be funny? asks TMWHIA, and the reader thinks, Well, I do, now.

I suppose TMWHIA might argue that this is the point  that the insults and degradations and belittlements still suffered by women, and here turned back on men, are not funny.

Certainly, the statement by Phil, aged 55, stops you in your tracks: I am grateful for a safe house where I can spend my days free of tyranny and violence. I am grateful to be married to a nice woman who actually respects men and thinks they are every bit as worthwhile as women. But the book is too obviously thrown together and lazy to claim to make any serious point on gender imbalance bar the most obvious one  that it persists. Plus the occasional knob gag  try power dressing in a smart trouser suit paired with a jockstrap to give the illusion of a larger penis suggests there is not a subtle mind at work here.

Finally we come to The Best Husband in the World! (Prion, 6.99), a piecemeal anthology of quotes to which the author clearly did not wish to append her, or his, name. Heres Meg Cabot: I like em big. And Stupid. Dont tell my husband. Heres Les Dawson: My wife is a sex object. Every time I ask for sex, she objects. But here, too, are Sun Tzu, Mother Teresa and countless others whose words are pressed imperfectly into service of the arent-men-awful theme, and whose names are sometimes mis-spelled.

Does it matter that there seems to be a micro-industry of books that are babying or belittling men if not actually bashing them? Not really, or at least not in the sense that some wealthy, powerful, white men seem to think it matters  that it is another factor in the creeping erosion of their innate privilege by women and other minorities in the name of political correctness. The patriarchy has had it pretty good for a pretty long time and can stand a bit of bashing. If theres a crisis of masculinity perhaps its because we need one.

But to write men off in unfunny joke books and training guides is to minimise the real problems of gender imbalance in the world, which it will take both genders to mediate  even, perhaps, eventually to solve.

Being a good husband is one of the few things I am proud of in my life. Not complacent, and certainly not smug enough to think I am perfect, but diligent enough to keep working at a partnership of equals, not a relationship where one party has to be socialised or domesticated.

But hey, I can take a joke. I can even tell one against myself, and all the married men out there. How many husbands does it take to decorate a room? One, but you have to slice him very thinly.

Follow Nick Curtis on Twitter: @nickcurtis
W hen did Halloween become a Thing here? Not that long ago, Im sure. Certainly less than a generation ago pumpkins were just a large orange vegetable nobody ate, let alone carved into a grinning gargoyle, and Trick or Treat was something we saw American kids do in horror films and laughed at them for their funny foreign ways. If you dont believe me, look at the stats: just 15 years ago the UK spent 12 million on Halloween  this year the figure is likely to go past 500 million and poor old Guy Fawkes will barely get a look in.

Nowadays, you cant approach the end of October without pumpkins piling up outside the greengrocers and newsagents filling up with family-sized Haribos in readiness for the night of the year adults fear the most. You know the one, when you have to go to the shops to stock up on those packets of brightly-coloured foul-tasting candy for fear of having your front door and windows sprayed with strings of foam. If not, you face the worse fate of being labelled a grouch by all your neighbours children, earning the scorn and derision of the adults  only youll never know which ones because you wont have recognised the children you were rude to because they were all dressed up like vampires and ghouls or had their heads covered in a latex mask. And, living in a street with three schools in it, I for one dont want to spend the rest of the year being the guy the kids point at every morning with the parents glancing over and shaking their heads sadly. So Im a Haribo man every time.

Of course I know how to avoid it. Many of my friends either go out for the night (my chosen avoidance tactic, if possible) or, in my sisters case, close the shutters, draw the curtains, turn off the lights and hide at the back of the house between the danger hours of 6 and 9 oclock. But that seems like an awful lot of trouble and deprivation to inflict on oneself just to avoid the once-a-year ritual of opening the door, pretending to be terrified at a child dressed up like a corpse bride or a chainsaw killer, and grinning insincerely while offering them a bowl of unpleasantly sour sweets from a garishly-coloured packet. Frankly, in these days of Sky+ I cant see any compelling argument not to do so, unless youre at a crucial point of cooking your dinner (behind closed curtains, obvs). Especially when its quite fun to turn the tables by dressing up yourself, so that when you open the door theyre greeted with a terrifying apparition in a velour tracksuit and string vest sporting a silver wig and gold medal on a chain that beckons them in while croaking: Ive been expecting you...

Anyway, I was thinking about all of this the other day in Abney Park cemetery, where a group of actors in Victorian costume capered about in the dark telling a largely incomprehensible story about a missing girl while we, the audience, were led around the gravestones by torchlight by a man who looked as if his day job was in a death metal band (leather trenchcoat, ponytail, long pointy beard). He was scarier than the cast members in corpse make-up hissing from the shadows, but part of me couldnt help feeling that, for a really scary experience, I would have come here on another night when the only occupants of the graveyard would be cider-swilling teenagers smoking skunk while their parents think theyre doing their homework, and the occasional dogger.

Trick or treat: the night of the year adults fear the most

At least the event  Fear in the Dark - was recognisably Halloween-flavoured, with a story channelling Edgar Allen Poe, who went to school around the corner from this cemetery, and was based around the myths of All Souls Day. Unlike my experience of Halloween in the USA, which seems to be one big fancy-dress party where teens get drunk and try to cop off with each other while dressed as cartoon characters: a sort of Autumn Break filtered through Disney. While there are skeletons and witches aplenty, youre just as likely to encounter a girl dressed as Minnie Mouse or Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz as you are to be attacked by a chainsaw-wielding serial killer or a sinister surgeon in bloodstained scrubs. I had the same experience a year or two back in Camden Town when I emerged from a gig to find the streets filled with gangs of nuns in fishnet stockings and groups of doctors wielding bloody scalpels and began to fear Id stumbled into the hen party/stag do from hell.

Fright night: Of course, you could stay in and not answer the door / PA

This year, of course, theres a new element to it all with attempts to ban Halloween outfits that cause offence. Sorry, that should read offence  Ive never met anyone who was *actually* offended by someone in fancy dress. Anyway, those nice Canadians, who always seem such a liberal lot compared to their Christianity-crazed neighbours to the south, have taken offence at costumes that reek of cultural appropriation  again, that should probably read cultural appropriation - and political correctness (insert your own inverted commas). An educational establishment called Brock University (me neither) has issued helpful instructions to its students to avoid trouble, citing concerns about reinforcing harmful stereotypes around race, gender, culture and mental health. Meanwhile in Florida, another uni is offering counselling in case any Halloween costumes cause triggering issues among its students.

Banned outfits range from any sort of national costume (Arab and Native American, African chiefs and Geisha girls, leprachauns and those hilarious Scottish ones with an orange wig and a tartan tam oshanter, plus anyone with a bindi, which is bad news for all those posh hippie girls who spent their gap year in India) to inappropriate outfits relating to current events, (the lawyers are watching so Ill leave that list to you) though Im pleased to see there has been a backlash at Yale University (yes Ive heard of that one), where a new college head has announced controversially that students should wear anything they damn well please because, you know, youre only young once and if people are offended they can either tell the offender why or  get this, and take a deep breath  ignore it.

That time of year: Stock up on Halloween goodies, or risk being branded a grouch

Alternatively, you could wait a week and do it the proper British way without causing any offence to anyone  by burning a Catholic on a bonfire.
T his is the first picture of a humble and caring teenager stabbed to death on a night out as he tried to break up a fight.

Ziggy Owusu, 19, was knifed a number of times in the early hours yesterday while out with friends in Goodmayes, east London.

He was the 10th teenager to be stabbed to death in London this year.

Police were called to Goodmayes Road where witnesses saw Mr Owusu being carried out of the Basement Shisha Lounge on a stretcher by paramedics.

It is unclear whether the brawl erupted inside or on the street, with witnesses describing up to 60 people crowded outside amid arguing and girls screaming.

Scene: the victim was reportedly carried out of a shisha bar on a strecther

The teenager, who lived on the Jack Dunning Estate in Hackney, was found at 12.40am and taken to an east London hospital where he underwent emergency surgery. He was pronounced dead an hour later.

Detectives from Scotland Yards Homicide and Major Crime Command have launched a murder hunt but are yet to arrest anyone.

A friend who attended the Royal Alexandra and Albert School with Mr Owusu, said: He was a funny and caring person. He was always making me laugh. He was very caring and will be deeply missed.

Emergency services on the scene of Goodmayes murder

Another friend told the Standard: It was just a night out. He was a humble and calm guy, he never went out looking for trouble.

Everyone is in so much pain because of how humble he was and also because he tried to help and solve a problem and in return suffered. He was an innocent guy that just tried to stop a fight. Im not sure who the fight was between.

His family were today too distraught to speak, with one relative saying they were still trying to understand what had happened.

Another friend added: He was just trying to break up a fight. He was a good guy.

The scene of the stabbing / David Churchill

He was one of the funniest guys I ever met. I always loved seeing him. Im so shocked this has even happened to him. Im so heartbroken.

Police and forensic officers yesterday overturned bins and combed the street outside the shisha bar for weapons and evidence as it remained closed off throughout the day.

Residents who overlook the road, near Goodmayes train station, described chaotic scenes with up to 60 people flooding the street as arguments broke out and girls were heard screaming.

One resident, a 32-year-old woman, said: A young boy, about 18 or 19, came out of the Basement Shisha Lounge on a stretcher and he was put in the ambulance.

There were huge crowds and ambulances everywhere and police cars. They brought the boy out and he had an oxygen mask on and was covered with a white sheet.

Another said: I heard lots of noise outside, men arguing, and it got louder and louder and more and more people were getting involved, then there was a girl screaming, so I knew it was serious. There must have been up to 60 people in the street when this was going on.

A Met spokesman said: A post-mortem examination will take place in due course. There have been no arrests and enquiries continue.

Anyone with information is urged to contact police on 020 8345 3865.
A man has been rushed to hospital after being stabbed in central London in the early hours of this morning.

The man was knifed in the stomach in High Holborn just before 4am today.

Metropolitan Police officers sealed off the road at the junction with New Oxford Street.

The victim was rushed to a major trauma centre by paramedics from London Ambulance Service.

An LAS spokeswoman said: We were called at 4:01am today to reports of a stabbing at High Holborn.

We sent an ambulance crew, a single responder in a car and an incident response officer to the scene. We also dispatched Londons Air Ambulance. The first of our medics arrived at the scene in under three minutes.

We treated a man at the scene for a stomach injury and took him as a priority to a major trauma centre in central London.

A Met Police spokesman confirmed the man's injuries were not life-threatening.

No arrests have been made and enquiries continue.
A minicab driver accused of knocking down and killing one of Britains top ballet dancers will stand trial in April next year, the Old Bailey heard.

Abdul Qayyum, 44, allegedly failed to give way to Jonathan Olliviers motorbike in Farringdon before hitting him with his cab last August.

The professional dancer, 38, was due that day to give his final performance in the lead role of Lucas in Matthew Bournes The Car Man, at Sadlers Wells Theatre.

He suffered fatal head injuries in the collision, falling from his motorbike and hitting a lamppost.

Qayyum, from Slough in Berkshire, appeared at the Old Bailey this morning to plead not guilty to causing death by careless driving.

Judge Anthony Morris QC freed the minicab driver on bail until a trial on April 10.

Following his death, leading figures in the ballet and arts world paid tribute to Northampton-born Mr Oliver, who had won plaudits for his starring role as The Swan in an acclaimed Swan Lake.


A Breaking Bad fan accused of murdering Pc Gordon Semple today said he died in a state of erotic bliss following a sex game gone wrong.

Stefano Brizzi, 50, is alleged to have strangled the Met officer during a chemsex party before cutting up the body with a saw and then trying to dissolve parts of the flesh in acid.

However, he claims Pc Semple, 58, died accidentally in a sex game gone wrong. He told the jury this afternoon: He died in a state of erotic bliss.

The former City banker said he chopped up the dead mans body and put it in a bath of acid because he wanted to get away with his death, the Old Bailey heard today.

Prosecutor Crispin Aylett QC this afternoon asked Italian-born Brizzi why he had decided to get rid of the body and the Pcs bank cards and police badge instead of calling 999.

Trial: Stefano Brizzi, 50, is accused of strangling Pc Gordon Semple

I was hoping I could get away with his death, he told the court.

That thing had happened and I didnt know what to do at the time  I was traumatised.

I was already f***ed up, I thought I was already screwed. Every passing day things were getting worse and worse, I was terrified, living in sheer terror.

In the end I couldnt handle what was going on, I had to keep taking drugs to handle what was going on.

Victim: Pc Gordon Semple / Metropolitan Police

PC Semple died on April 1 after meeting Brizzi through gay dating app Grindr and agreeing to meet at his flat for a drug-fuelled bondage sex party.

Brizzi said he was high on crystal meth before the officer even arrived, and told the jury this afternoon they had consensual sex before Pc Semple died accidentally.

He said he panicked when he found Pc Semples police badge and did not call emergency services, instead talking to the body as it lay in his hallway.

I am a person who believes in a spiritual dimension of life and I was still trying to talk to his soul, he said.

I was begging him to let go of his body.

Brizzi said he took sleeping pills to calm himself down after realising Pc Semple had died, and may have overdosed later that day.

He said he continued to take a lot of drugs, especially crystal meth, in the days afterward as he tried to get rid of the body.

It is alleged he tried to cook and eat parts of the officers body, after his DNA was found in the oven and blood stains on a pair of chopsticks.

Brizzi told the court this afternoon he had cooked some of the body in an effort to burn it.

He said he became paranoid that the officer had been sent to monitor him because the police were in control of Grindr and he had posted messages about drugs and illegal activity.

Speaking about the day after the death, Brizzi said: When I woke up I was thinking please someone tell me its a dream because I cant believe its true..

I thought it was a bad dream, I thought it was a horror movie, I couldnt believe it.

Sometimes you may have dreams that are so vivid they seem almost real. I was confronted with a reality in front of me that was so horrific I didnt believe it was real.

I thought it was a nightmare.

Brizzi, who used to work as a web developer for financial giant Morgan Stanley, has admitted trying to get rid of the body in the six days before he was arrested, on April 7.

He told the jury today he had a vague memory of trying to dissolve PC Semples head in acid, and realising that he had stuffed a 50 and a 5 into the officers mouth.

I didnt know why I put them there so I took them out, he said, sobbing.

Brizzi, of Southwark Street, denies murder. He will continue his evidence on Monday.
A London imam branded an extremist by the BBC has lost his libel action against the corporation after a judge ruled he had encouraged religious violence

Shakeel Begg, chief imam at Lewisham Islamic Centre, had complained about a short segment of an interview on the Sunday Politics show in November 2013.

But at the High Court today, Mr Justice Haddon-Cave ruled in favour of the BBC, which denied libel and said that the words used in the Andrew Neil-fronted show were substantially true.

The judge concluded that Mr Begg was an extremist Islamic speaker who espoused extremist Islamic positions and had recently promoted and encouraged religious violence by telling Muslims that violence in support of Islam would constitute a man's greatest deed.

Mr Begg was "something of a Jekyll and Hyde character" who presented one face to the local and inter-faith community and another to particular Muslim and other receptive audiences, it was said.

On the occasions when it suited him "he shed the cloak of respectability and revealed the horns of extremism".

The broadcaster had presented a number of speeches in its defence, including one given at Kingston University and another at a rally outside Belmarsh Prison, which houses Abu Hamza and the 21/7 attempted bombers.

Judge Haddon-Cave said the Belmarsh speech was "particularly sinister" as Mr Begg was not only expressing his sympathy and solidarity with the Muslim prisoners' plight but also approval of their crimes.

He added that Mr Begg's core extremist messages would have been quite clear to the audiences at the time on each occasion.

Mr Begg had produced cogent evidence as to his considerable inter-faith, community and youth work over the years and that he was a respected and trusted figure in the Lewisham Muslim and wider community.

But the judge said: "His reputation for respectability is likely to have made his messages all the more compelling and seductive to his audiences.

For this reason, therefore, his words would have been all the more effective and dangerous."

The judge said that, taken cumulatively, Mr Begg's speeches and postings represented an "overwhelming case of justification for the BBC".

A BBC spokesman said: "We were right to stand by the journalism of Sunday Politics.

"The judge has concluded, based on the evidence, that Imam Begg has preached religious violence and an extremist world view in his remarks."

Mr Begg was not in court for the ruling.
Sabrina Steketee, a Democrat, is running for election to represent HD75, which covers much of Jefferson County. A resident of Jefferson County for much of her life, Steketee is not only very knowledgeable about the countys needs and issues, she has made her commitment to Jefferson County and its citizens evident especially by her service on local and state school boards. She has also served in local chambers of commerce and economic development groups as well as in other community organizations. A business owner herself and the mother of two children, she has earned a diversity of viewpoints.
A ring of mobile security barriers should protect Government buildings from a Nice-style terrorist lorry attack, a major report says today.

The capital should also trial a new public alert system to inform Londoners of a fast moving terror incident with messages to their mobile phones.

The recommendations are contained in a wide-ranging review of security in the capital ordered by Mayor Sadiq Khan following the Bastille Day lorry attack in France which 84 people were killed.

The terror preparedness review by Lord Toby Harris of Haringey puts forward a total of 127 recommendations for the Mayor, the Government and other agencies.

Alarms: Passengers at the scene of a bomb alert at North Greenwich / Dan Worth, Twitter.

The report outlines how a marauding terrorist firearms attack is now considered the most significant terrorist threat to the UK and Europe.

France remembers 86 victims of Nice lorry attack

While London is a natural target with 50 out of 73 of the highest risk crowded places across the UK, the consequences of a terrorist atrocity in London similar to the Paris massacres in November 2015 could be more than 1 billion.

The study says that around 850 UK nationals have travelled to join Islamic State in Syria, around half of whom have returned and represent a real threat.

PA

Lord Harris said : The quality and effectiveness of the work done by the intelligence services and the counter-terrorist police is amongst the best in the world, and if London were subject to a terrorist attack today, our emergency services response would be substantially faster than five years ago.

Nevertheless, a serious terrorist attack remains highly possible and we cannot be complacent.

"London needs to become a city where security and resilience is designed in and is part of the citys fabric, and where everyone who lives and works here sees security and resilience as their responsibility just as much as it is for the emergency services and civic authorities.

Mayor Sadiq Khan said: Lord Harriss many recommendations deserve careful consideration and exploration over the coming months so we can take steps to ensure we are as prepared as possible.

The report makes a series of recommendations to tighten security which include:

Mobile temporary barriers and security bollards to protect the central London Government area against a Nice-style attack.

More affordable housing for specialist emergency services workers in the capital.

A change in protocols to allow Mayor to attend Cabinet Office COBR meetings and have a greater defined role in the event of a terror attack.

The Met should merge with the City of London force and take over policing the London Underground.

All schools in London should have evacuation plans in place for a terror attack and appoint a governor responsible for security.

The report also calls for a full review of security at City Airport after the Black Lives Matter protest group breached the airport perimeter last month.

In a controversial recommendation Lord Harris also urges the Government to consider merging the Met and the City of London police force saying the Citys fraud role could go to the National Crime Agency.

Lord Harris also said the mobile barriers should be available for specific events in central London involving large crowds.

Tens of thousands of people line the Nice seafront in the aftermath of the attack / Reuters

He said there a number of central London locations which needed permanent "pop up" barriers.

The City of London police dismissed the review saying it was outside the remit of the report to consider the merger.

He also says the Met should take over policing of the London Underground from the British Transport Police to improve the response to incidents.

The report outlines details of the Mets response to a marauding firearms attack saying it would trigger a plan codenamed Operation Plato.

A 24-hour immediate response team of highly trained Counter-Terrorism Specialist Firearms Officers would be deployed to an onslaught by air, car or by motorcycle.

Lord Harris says the Met should review the number motorcycles for armed officers to speed up the response to incidents. He also urges the force to increase the number of Taser equipped officers.

An attack as serious as the Paris massacre would result in soldiers being deployed on the streets and the report says military leaders are now routinely involved in counter terrorism planning in London.

The report states: When needed, the military would deploy under Operation Temperer which would see potentially hundreds of troops deployed to backfill armed police roles, or deployed alongside British Transport Police, to increase the operational capacity and capability of specialist counter-terrorism and armed policing.

Lord Harris also proposes tighter controls on boats using the River Thames while the Mayor should review security on the river amid the possibility of a water born firearms attack.

The report also raises concerns that a proposed new communications system for the emergency services may not work effectively underground.

It also urges that cuts to the number of health personnel trained in dealing with Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear attacks should be reversed.
A woman who had her skull rebuilt by surgeons after a brutal unprovoked attack in the street today told how she was enjoying life No2 after making a complete recovery.

Suzanne Ratajova, 39, suffered catastrophic injuries when she was punched three times in the face by an unknown assailant, smashing her head on the pavement as she collapsed unconscious beside Brockwell Park.

She spoke of her gratitude to the medical teams at Kings College hospital this week as she helped open a 9.6 million helipad on its Denmark Hill site.

Though she was rushed to the hospital by road ambulance, doctors say hers was a classic case of the need to provide rapid care to major trauma patients.

CCTV of attack on Susanne Ratajova

Ms Ratajovas assault, as she walked home after dining with a friend five years ago, was captured on CCTV.

Her story was first shown on the Channel 4 documentary 24 Hours in A&E. She was finally discharged from hospital care in May last year.

Recovery: Ms Ratajova now, after her surgery

Im living life No2 and its great, she told the Standard. Ive got a new partner, Ive got a new job, Ive just bought a new place.

The attacker, a black man wearing a hoodie who fled on a bike, has never been traced.

He must have said something, and as soon as I turned he hit me three times, she recalled. I went down and hit my head on the pavement.

"I would like to think the guy has anger management problems and one day he will pick on someone who will pay him back. He attacked me within the space of one minute. I dont know what propelled him to do it.

Ms Ratajova lived without the left side of her skull for nine months. Surgeons removed it to save her life.

All traces of DNA were lost during the emergency surgery. Police have told her that the case remains open but there are no current lines of inquiry.

Ms Ratajova, a Czech national who had lived in London for 15 years, was spotted collapsed in Herne Hill by passer-by journalist Andrew Snowball, who called an ambulance.

Recovery: Suzanne Ratajova with Rob Bentley, the consultant surgeon who rebuilt her skull

She underwent five hours of surgery to remove a bleed in her brain. They didnt know if I would wake up, she said. They kept me in a coma for four days.

For nine months she was without the left side of her skull, which surgeons had removed to save her life.

Rob Bentley, a consultant cranio-oral and maxillofacial surgeon at Kings, rebuilt her skull using a titanium plate.

I beep every single time at the airport, she said. Its a small price to pay.

She helped to raise funds for the helipad, including abseiling off the side of the hospital.

Mr Bentley, the driving force behind the new helipad, said: It was a brutal and unprovoked attack caught on CCTV. She got whisked straight in by ambulance to Kings.

She started to have seizures. It was quite clear she had a significant head injury.

"She went straight into theatre and had part of her skull removed to decompress it. She is a classic case of the situation where time is life.

Ms Ratajova now works for the General Dental Council, based near Oxford Circus, and has moved to Rochester.

She was off work for almost two years as she recovered from the attack. She previously worked for the National Register of Public Service Interpreters.
P olice were called to a London university last night after Jewish students were trapped in a room by pro-Palestine supporters who descended on the building.

A woman claimed she was assaulted during the chaotic scenes at University College London (UCL), which came ahead of a speech by Israeli writer Hen Mazzig.

Mr Hazzigs appearance, which was given the go-ahead at the last minute, stirred up controversy due to his time with the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF).

And, footage from the university last night showed crowds of pro-Palestine protesters at the university building, with those who turned up for the talk claiming to be trapped in a room.

Devora Khafi, a campus director for pro-Israel group StandWithUs UK, described the melee as a whirlwind of hate.

Police: Officers were called after the stand-off began / Elliot Miller

She wrote on Twitter: I was assaulted. We were attacked. But freedom will prevail.

Mr Hazzig uploaded a video to Facebook protesters where could be heard hammering on the doors and windows, yelling free, free Palestine.

At one point the video showed several men clambering through the windows and lying on the floor while being branded cowards and morons by the people inside.

A rattled Mr Hazzig said in the video: So the situation is really out of control were hiding in a room and theres protesters outside.

He went on: I dont think that even in my days in the IDF it was bad as it is right now.

Its really scary. I hear that theyve been attacking some girls, Jewish girls that came to support my talk. Its crazy, its really crazy.

During the footage, one woman can be held yelling the word murderers through the glass.

When the attendees were finally allowed out of the building, with help from security and police, an angry crowd can be heard yelling shame at them.

Student Rights national organiser, Elliot Miller, told the Standard: It was a very intimidating atmosphere

UCL staff were overrun and before police came there were clashes.

Pro-Palestine activists banged on the doors of the room where the event was taking place and tried to jump through the windows

We were all escorted out by police and I felt very intimidated and upset. Students were crying and a few had panic attacks.

"Intimidation": At one point, protesters clamber through the windows / Hen Mazzig

A spokeswoman for UCL Friends of Israel, which organised the event, said it had been "seriously compromised" and students had been intimidated and left shaken by the events.

She said: "Police were forced to escort attendees out of the building for their safety, amongst other ongoing proactive security measures.

"It goes without saying that moving forward a concerted effort is required to safeguard students freedom of self-expression and freedom of speech in an environment where debate and dialogue should ensue without threat or fear."

A spokesman for the university's Friends of Palestine Society denied they had organised the event but said claims students were trapped or assaulted were untrue.

He said protesters had decided to attend because of "the IOF's association with apartheid-style policies in Palestine." Critics refer to the Israel Defense Forces as the Israel Occupation Forces (IOF).

"Even freedom of speech has its limits," he said.

"Freedom of speech is fine but people who are part of this system are not acceptable.

"He was part of the of occupation. He was part of the colonisation and construction of settlements."

"Imagine if a member of Hamas came and spoke at UCL," he said. "They wouldn't be allowed to."

He went on: "We have a right to protest and if students genuinely see him as a threat on campus they have a right to shutdown the event and that's what happened."

A spokesman for the Met Police confirmed they had been called to the Gower Street building at 7pm.

He said: Officers spoke to security at the university who were happy to let to demonstration go ahead on its grounds.

They provided a policing presence during the demonstration. Police remained at the venue until the meeting ended safely.

Following this, a woman made an allegation of common assault to officers and this is currently investigated by Camden police.

A UCL spokesman said: "On 27 October, we did all we could to ensure that the UCLU Friends of Israel Society event could go ahead at UCL, working with our Security team and the Metropolitan police.

"It was widely advertised and open to the public, and as result a small but noisy group of protesters attended and occupied the rooms where the event was originally meant to take place.

"UCL Security found an alternative location and ensured the event went ahead safely. We regret protestors took measures to try to prevent the event from happening but stress that the protest was non-violent.

We are aware that the Metropolitan police attended following accusations of assault and support them fully in their investigations.

"As this was a public event, it is unclear how many UCL students were present but we are instigating an enquiry and we will take appropriate disciplinary action where there is clear evidence that students may have breached our disciplinary regulations.
T he next president of the United States will have to heal a country which has not been so badly divided since the American Civil War, the audience at an Evening Standard debate was told.

Josh Berger, chairman of the British Film Institute and head of Warner Bros UK, warned the future world leader must do a convincing job of uniting Americans after the election.

His calls were echoed by other panellists at the Evening Standard and CNNs Future Of America debate at the Royal Geographical Society in Kensington last night.

Mr Berger told the audience: Whichever candidate is elected will have to reach out to the people on the other side.

They are going to have to do a very convincing job of saying, Ive heard you and understand your issues. Because America has never been this divided since 1860s.

Every single idea to bring the country together  we say that after every election  but I dont think it has ever been more pressing than it is now.

Heated debate: Josh Berger (left), Lord Black (centre) and Lauren Collins at the Evening Standard debate / Lucy Young

The panel included Sir Christopher Meyer, ex-British ambassador to the US, New Yorker journalist Lauren Collins, MP and historian Kwasi Kwarteng, Green Party parliamentary candidate Larry Sanders  whose brother Bernie lost out to Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination  and ex-newspaper publisher Lord Black of Crossharbour.

The election takes place on November 8, after which the worlds most powerful nation will be led by either Mrs Clinton or Donald Trump.

The fiery debate, chaired by CNNs Hala Gorani, centred on trade, immigration, China, and the Middle East.

Serious discussion: The debate was held at the Royal Geographic Society in Kensington / Lucy Young

Talk quickly turned to Mr Trumps recording about grabbing women by the p****, which was leaked to the Washington Post three weeks ago.

Lord Black, who knows the businessman personally, was booed by members of the audience when he defended him.

He said: It was 11 years ago and hes apologised for that. He had a perfect record as an equal opportunities em-ployer in regards to all members sex, orientation, gender, race and religion.

Hes very devoted to his family. I will tell you personally he is one of the best, most honest and successful business associates I ever had. He is not a bad man. Hes a gentleman.

Mr Berger said: Ive been in a lot of locker rooms and Ive never heard of any of that talk. He was 59 not 15. Despite polls putting the Democrats on course for victory, Ms Collins said Mrs Clinton, 69, who would be Americas first female president, was not as popular with young women as would be expected, adding: Hillary is a very compromised candidate.

Strong views: Kwasi Kwarteng, MP for Spelthorne, aired his opinions / Lucy Young

Although he called Mr Trump repulsive and vulgar, Mr Kwarteng said: I see him as someone who is a negotiator who stakes out his initial position which is extreme and colourful but will seek to modify it.

Sir Christopher disagreed and said the scary stuff in Mr Trumps rhetoric was his aggressive comments on trade, which include 45 per cent tariffs on China just as tensions in the south China seas including militarily between the US and China have never been higher.

He said Mr Trump would be a great unraveller of world order.

On the Middle East, Sir Christopher said Mr Trump and Mr Obama were curiously aligned on Syria.

He suggested Mrs Clinton may back down from her no-fly zone approach once in the hot seat. He said: Military people would say now [it] is an utter-nonsense unless the Russians are on board.

Powerful opinions: Lord Black of Crossharbour took part in the debate / Lucy Young

Mr Sanders said: My brother and millions of people now see an America they dont like will be there and I think even if Trump were elected  which would be a disaster for the world  hed have a powerful opposition and that would be led by people like Bernard.

The Athenaeum Hotel & Residences kindly provided accommodation for this debate.

Josh Berger, chairman of the British Film Institute and head of Warner Bros UK, said: In recent memory its hard to imagine two more different Americas depending on who would win the election.

Hillary Clinton would represent continuity with the last eight years. Theres very much continuity with President Obama and of course with her husband and quite a departure from George W Bush.

I think Donald Trump represents quite a dramatic departure even from the last Republican president. I dont think we are as clear on what America would look like post-Donald Trump.

In my view its pretty troubling aside from all the character issues I think we are all briefed on.

Lord Black of Crossharbour, former newspaper publisher, added: Its the first time a candidate has simply taken over one of these major parties.

Donald Trump just seized the Republican Party right from under those who have run it for a long time. Its a remarkable achievement.

The last 20 years have been the 20 worst years of this government in the history of the United States. People are very angry.

Hala Gorani, CNN Anchor and Correspondent for CNN International London Evening Standard Future of America Discussion / Lucy Young

For 32 years one member or other of the Clinton and Bush family has held one or other of the three seated jobs of the administration.

The only alternative to the continuation of the great Washington sleaze factory  which is what its become  the only alternative is Trump.

Kwasi Kwarteng, MP and historian, said: Its very easy for liberals, sophisticated people, people like me in politics to dismiss Trump as a barbarian but the fact is hes done something extraordinarily difficult to do. Hes captured a political party.

Trump is saying enough is enough. Hes trying to stop illegal immigration and put tariffs on China. We have got to recognise these are actual policies.

For my part I find him really quite repulsive as an individual.

If Clinton gets in  which I imagine she will  she cant govern as a status quo president.

Theres a strong feeling in America  We simply cant carry on as we have for the last 30 years.

Lauren Collins, New Yorker journalist, said: Donald Trump is married to an immigrant.

If we are going to get into Trumps psychology tonight we have to consider that this is the second immigrant hes been married to and his mother was an immigrant.

If Trump is worried about all the killers and rapists coming in from Mexico and thinks we should build a wall I hope [he] considers building a wall around his pants.

I wish I could agree with Hala Gorani that if a woman was elected it would shape the world. Unfortunately my somewhat downbeat [opinion] of Clinton is America is so late on this and America is so compromised that her election will feel somewhat like the Heathrow expansion.

Sir Christopher Meyer, Britains former ambassador to the US added:I personally found Donald Trump grotesque. We have to be really careful about not tarring with the same brush those millions and millions of decent people who actually think Trump is the saviour.

Professional politicians have got to take this seriously otherwise  just like the Remainers got whacked in our referendum  mainstream parties all over the place are going to get whacked in their elections.

The thing I want to get over, whether its President Trump or President Clinton, is can we please get the phrase the special relationship out of the vocabulary? Please can we finish it and get back to the reality of the British-American relationship?

Larry Sanders,Green Party politician and UK-based brother of Bernie Sanders, said: America after the election will be very much like the America before the election.

Bernards great strength was in describing what America had become, winning the support and enthusiasm of millions of Americans  particularly young people.

The America he talked about was of at least 30 years of growing inequality ... wealth and income shifted from the bulk of the population to the very rich.

We have astonishing health statistics  thirty, forty or fiftieth in the world in children dying before the age of one, even worse for women dying during childbirth. Thats whats become of America over these years.

The Athenaeum Hotel & Residences kindly provided accommodation for this debate.
B usiness Secretary Greg Clark today denied using a cheque book to clinch a deal for Nissan to boost production at its giant car plant in Britain.

The Cabinet minister said he had instead given the car companys bosses reassurance that they could have confidence investing in the UK as it heads towards Brexit.

The Japanese firm announced yesterday that it would build its next-generation Qashqai, and add production of the new X-Trail model, at its Sunderland factory, securing 7,000 jobs.

With Labour demanding the Government comes clean over any secret deals, Mr Clark insisted no financial favours were offered.

Theres no cheque book. I dont have a cheque book, he told BBC Question Time.

The important thing is that they know this is a country in which they can have confidence they can invest. That was the assurance and the understanding they had, and they have invested their money.

Pressed on reports that Nissan was given written reassurances, suggesting possible compensation for any future EU tariffs, Mr Clark said: We have had, obviously, as you might imagine, lots of communication between us, but actually what it rests on is a very strong mutual confidence.

Colin Lawther, Nissans senior vice president for manufacturing in Europe, also denied there was a special deal for the company.

No, there is no offer of exchange, he said. Its just the commitment from the Government to work with the whole of the automotive industry to make sure that the whole automotive industry in the UK remains competitive.

Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn said the manufacturer could make the decision due to support and assurances from the Government.

Former Prime Minister Tony Blair backed the moves to keep investment in the UK after the shock June 23 vote. I know the leadership at Nissan, Im absolutely sure they would not have made this commitment unless they received very strong assurances from the UK government, he said.

I should imagine they gave strong assurances about the car industrys access to the single market. If this is an indication that the UK government are giving strong assurances about access to the single market, this would be important.

He also believes all options, including a second referendum, should be kept open to ensure the British people back  or dont  the reality of Brexit once an exit deal is negotiated.

Iain Wright, Labour chairman of the Commons Business Committee, said he would summon Mr Clark to face a grilling on whether any special deal was offered.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn warned: If you are offering big inducements to one industry or one manufacturer, then all the others will quite reasonably say Well, what about us?

Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron welcomed the investment but said it was utterly ridiculous that Prime Minister Theresa May was having to give special assurances to key manufacturers to deal with the Brexit fallout her Government is creating.
Z ac Goldsmith today admitted for the first time that he has regrets over a mayoral campaign which was branded racist and divisive.

The former Tory candidate took responsibility for failings in his campaign  which was criticised even by his sister, Jemima Khan.

He said there was no point trying to rewrite history as the result  in which his Labour rival secured a huge personal mandate  showed his campaign had not been a success.

The new Mayor, who won 1.3 million votes, has regularly described the race for Londons top job as one of the most nasty and divisive in British history.

But Mr Goldsmith, who stood down as Tory MP for Richmond this week in protest at the Governments decision to expand Heathrow, insisted he did not have a racist bone in my body.

Zac Goldsmith on the campaign trail in Notting Hill / Rex

He suggested he had been outplayed by Khans team and claimed his campaign had been misrepresented.

Of course I regret the portrayal of the campaign  but Im not sure theres a lot you can do about that, he added. If you lose a campaign, youre not going to get a good write-up.

Mr Goldsmith has faced bitter criticism since the May election over alleged dog-whistle tactics used by his team.

Even some Tories believe he failed to grasp how badly trying to link his opponent to Islamist extremists might go down in the capital.

In his first interview since his failed mayoral bid, Mr Goldsmith accepted that his campaign was not perfect but denied he had put his integrity at risk.

Sadiq Khan won the Mayoral election with 1.3m votes

It was a very different campaign to anything I have ever done before but it was my campaign  Obviously we lost and I take complete responsibility for that, he said.

But it was not unprincipled.

On election night, Jemima Khan tweeted she was sad her brothers campaign did not reflect who she knew him to be, and his mother said he was the least racist person she knew.

Mr Goldsmith denied he was hurt by the criticism. He said: I know Im not racist and I dont feel I have anything to prove in that department. Its not something over which I lose any sleep.

He became a father again during the mayoral campaign and admitted spending time with his children was the silver lining to losing the election.

During the campaign he rarely saw his newborn son during daylight hours. Occasionally I would change his nappy at four in the morning. He would look at me as if I was some weirdo looming over his cot.

Mr Goldsmith revealed his wife Alice is now pregnant with the couples third child: Its not a carefully thought through plan, but it is a blessing.

How did she feel about him deciding to fight Richmond  his third election in 18 months?

The only decision was, do I break my promise to stand down or not and that was not a decision  and she knows that, he said.

Zac Goldsmith on Heathrow airport decision

That is also true of my association and local councillors and members. Theres never been any sense from anyone that I ought to try to wriggle out of this promise.

But did he ever consider just walking away? With his immense wealth and campaigning zeal he could have a satisfying life outside politics.

Yes, I did. You dont have to be a politician to campaign.

He also had to decide whether to stand as an independent. My local association sent a pretty strong message to the party centrally they would not accept a Conservative candidate.

Theresa Mays response was pragmatic and Mr Goldsmith has not ruled out a return to the party after the end of this Parliament.

Does he ever regret making the promise in the first place? I cant completely deny that, he said.

All his attention, for now, is focused on the by-election. He is building up a new team from scratch with no access to resources or data from the Tory machine.

He is still working out how it will be funded, but confirms he will be dipping into his own pocket.

Armies of anti-third runway campaigners from across the political spectrum were already flooding into the constituency to volunteer. He would love Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson to be among them.

He said: If people see it as an opportunity to send a message on Heathrow then I will be given a big mandate and the Government will have to take heed.

But if Im squeezed or booted out, the risk is exactly that, the consequence of that risk is Heathrow will take heart.

If Im sent back with a diluted mandate, or not sent back at all, then Heathrow will be licking their lips.

But the Liberal Democrats, who held the seat until 2010, are desperate to recast the by-election as a referendum on Brexit  around two-thirds of the electorate voted to remain while Mr Goldsmith is a long-standing Leaver.

HE said: The Lib Dems will do everything they can to make it about Brexit, but I dont think that is going to resonate with people. I think that will look opportunistic.

I just dont believe that people want to re-run the referendum. We know exactly what people in my patch think about Brexit because they have just voted on it.

If he wins he will focus on the legal case against Heathrow  which he believes will prevent the third runway from ever being built.

But he is unlikely to join shadow chancellor John McDonnell taking direct action in front of a bulldozer: I dont think you have to break the law to protest.

He thinks Mr Khan has to play a big role, and brushes aside concerns that the Mayor only dropped his support for expansion ahead of the mayoral race.

He changed his mind but hes in the right place now and thats a good thing.
A plane was forced to divert back to an airport after a passenger allegedly set fire to his hands and threatened a flight attendant with a lighter.

Monarch Airlines flight ZB933 left Tenerife this morning and was due to land in Birmingham before it made the u-turn due to disruptive behaviour of two passengers on the aircraft.

One man was arrested when the plane landed back on the Canary Islands and a second person was told to leave the aircraft.

A woman who claimed she was on board the plane told ITV News: After taking off at 11.20 this morning a passenger was setting fire to his own hands, so the stewardess asked the passenger for the lighter for the duration of the flight.

He refused and attempted to light the lighter in her face.

This information was forwarded to the pilot who decided to divert back to Tenerife south airport where the man was arrested."

Delayed passengers were later flown to Portugal before boarding another flight to return to the UK.

A Monarch spokesman said: "Monarch can confirm that two passengers were offloaded on board Monarch flight ZB933 from Tenerife to Birmingham on 27 October 2016 due to disruptive behaviour.

"The flight had departed for Birmingham but diverted back to Tenerife airport where a passenger was subsequently arrested upon arrival.'

"Due to crew operating hours expiring the flight is now positioning to Faro, Portugal where a new crew will be available for the return to Birmingham. Customers will be provided with refreshment vouchers upon arrival in Faro.

"Monarch takes a zero tolerance approach to disruptive behaviour on board all of our flights. The safety and security of our passengers, crew and aircraft is our absolute priority."
A woman dubbed the coffee killer, who murdered her college friend by slipping cyanide into her drink, has been jailed for 20 years.

The sentencing of Jessica Wongso, a 28-year-old Indonesian citizen, ended a case that gripped the country for months.

Wongso, a permanent Australian resident, went to meet her friend Wayan Salihin at a mall in Jakarta where she poured poison into the womans coffee.

After sipping the beverage, the 27-year-old collapsed on the floor and went into convulsions, dying by the time she got to hospital.

Prosecutors claimed the murder, which took place in January, was carried out when Ms Salihin advised Wongso to split up with her boyfriend.

Dozens of police were positioned around the Central Jakarta courtroom yesterday as crowds scrambled to hear the verdict.

Judge Windu Kisworo was applauded by crowds who had packed into the courtroom, telling them: The defendant has been proven guilty of premeditated murder.

The murder was vile and sadistic because the defendant did it to her own friend."

Appeal: Wongso with her lawyers after the sentence / AP

Wongso, who plans to appeal and denied the murder, remained expressionless while hearing the sentence.

Her defence lawyers had argued that police never found cyanide in her possession and CCTV from the cafe had not shown her poisoning the coffee.

President Joko Widodo's administration waded into the case, saying Wongso would not be executed if she got the death penalty.

The deal was made with Australia in order so Australian police could help in the investigation.
N ATOs military build-up in eastern Europe is not an attempt to provoke Russian aggression, the alliances chief said today.

As Britain plans to move 800 soldiers to Estonia by May next year as part of Natos pledge to defend its eastern flank, the organisations secretary general Jens Stoltenberg insisted it was not a bid to start a new Cold War.

On Radio 4s Today programme, he said the military presence was there to provide a deterrent and not to provoke conflict.

But he added that the move is a reminder to adversaries that an attack on one Nato member will trigger a response from the whole alliance.

On Natos decision to deploy troops and aircraft, he said: Russia is stronger than it was some years ago and Russia is a power which is willing to use military force against neighbours and we have seen a substantial use of military force.

Add to that Russia is a nuclear power and is using nuclear rhetoric to try and intimidate other European nations... so we take this seriously and thats the reason why Nato is adapting and responding in a measured, defensive way.

We dont want a new Cold War. Actually we will continue to strive for a more co-operative and more constructive relationship with Russia but we have to do that based on collective defence deterrents.

Tensions in the region have been high since the Russian annexation of Crimea from the Ukraine in 2014.

Ukraine is not a member of Nato but other states in the region are, including Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Romania and Bulgaria. All six countries will host Nato forces.

Mr Stoltenberg defended comments he made earlier this week about Russia intending to use its Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier to target civilians in Syria.

The Kremlin had branded his remarks as absurd, but the Nato chief repeated his fears that the Russian naval fleet which passed through the Channel last week would be used in bombing raids.

He said it is a risk the fleet will be used in offensive attacks and air strikes against Aleppo.@KateProctorES
A plane carrying Donald Trumps deputy Mike Pence skidded off the runway while landing in New York.

The plane, which the Republican vice-presidential candidate was travelling on, slid off the tarmac at LaGuardia Airport on Thursday evening.

Mr Pence, who was travelling from a campaign event in Fort Dodge, Iowa, and around 30 passengers, were evacuated through the back of the plane.

The Indiana Governor said he was fine following the rough landing.

No other injuries were reported but LaGuardia Airport was closed following the incident, officials said.

Rough landing: Mike Pence and around 30 others were evacuated from the back of the plane / REUTERS

The pilot slammed on the brakes and passengers on the aircraft claimed they could smell burning rubber, the BBC reported

Live TV footage showed Mr Pence standing in the rain near the plane, talking to police and other officials.

Deputy candidate: Mike Pence with emergency workers following the incident / REUTERS

He tweeted: "So thankful everyone on our plane is safe. Grateful for our first responders & the concern & prayers of so many. Back on the trail tomorrow!"

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump called his deputy following the incident, a spokeswoman said.

Campaign partners: Donald Trump with Vice-Presidential nominee Mike Pence / AP

She added: Mr Trump did reach out to Gov Pence. He's glad that everyone on board is safe.

The billionaire businessman told supporters at a rally in Geneva, Ohio: "You know, he was in a big accident with a plane.

"The plane skidded off the runway and was pretty close to grave, grave danger, but I just spoke to Mike and he's fine. He got out. Everybody's fine."

Democratic candidate Hilary Clinton tweeted: Glad to hear @mike_pence, his staff, Secret Service, and the crew are all safe. H.
Legal questions regarding how Lewis and Clark County can spend funds from the $10 million Open Lands Program are delaying action on a request to purchase 9.5 acres along the Blackfoot River by Lincoln to protect the land from future home construction.

Deputy County Attorney Paul Stahl said he would prepare an opinion on two questions: Can the county pay more than the appraised value to purchase the development rights on property  this is called a conservation easement  and whether the Open Lands Program is able to fund costs associated with the purchase of land or a conservation easement.

Transactional costs for the sale of the Paul Roos land in Lincoln are $20,487, according to an Oct. 24 breakdown of expenses on the Lincoln Community River Park provided to the county by Vickie Edwards, conservation project manager with Five Valleys Land Trust of Missoula.

Contained within is $12,000 for a stewardship fee for perpetual monitoring of the land by Five Valleys Land Trust.

The county is being asked for up to $102,887 from the Open Lands Program for the purchase of the land that will become a community park and be managed by the land trust.

The application lists Five Valleys Land Trust as the primary sponsor. Prickly Pear Land Trust of Helena is the secondary sponsor.

The application for funding is less than the $113,300 that had been previously requested from the Open Lands Program. Helping to reduce the funding request was that transaction fees were less than anticipated, and $2,600 in private funds would help with the purchase.

The commission agreed to continue its consideration of the funding request on Nov. 10, after Stahl asked the commission for additional time to prepare his legal opinion on the issues facing use of the funds.

There may be more than the two primary issues contained in a legal opinion on use of Open Lands Program funds, Stahl said after the meeting.

State law, he noted, limited what can be paid based on an appraisal for land or a conservation easement.

During the commission meeting, Stahl spoke to whether the bond could be used to pay transaction costs.

The language is that the bond does not authorize the payment of those kinds of fees, Stahl said. That has been our legal opinion for a number of years, expressed openly to the commission on many occasions, and so that is the answer today if that is the one that you want.

He cautioned commissioners of the risks in pushing to find a way to meet the commissions desires and said that shifts the county further from the letter of the law and exposes the county to risks.

His discussion noted the countys position a decade or so ago on requiring developers to fund improvements to county roads outside of subdivisions, which was overturned through litigation. The county paid more than $5.8 million to conclude nine cases.

County commissioners have said previously their only choices were to deny approval for the subdivisions because the county did not have the money for road improvements or approve the subdivisions but require the developer to pay the cost for upgrading county roads.

Youre asking how do we figure out a way that we get it done, he said of the commissions interest in including transactional fees in the funding request, before continuing when you get to that and as you keep parsing it down, we get further and further away from the black (letter of the) law, and it only takes one person to sue us.

Commissioner Susan Good Geise disputed Stahls assessment of what the commission wanted, and said it was asking for his legal opinion to see if there was a way to make this work according to the law.

We have never, ever said make it so that we can say yes, change your opinion or do anything like that. And that seemed to be what you were saying in your earlier comments, and I wanted to be clear that has never been our intention, she added.

The people who wrote the language for the bond levy chose not to include authorizing payment of costs to be funded from the bond, Stahl told the commission before adding that he will prepare a memo on use of bond funds for associated costs.

He also noted that two other attorneys with the county attorneys office previously shared the same opinion on the exclusion of associated costs from use of bond funds.

Stahl said afterward that he didnt believe the county could request groups that had received transactional costs to repay that funding.

If the county has made a mistake, the mistake is the countys, its not anybody else who comes to us and tries to work with us, he added.

Commission Chairman Mike Murray asked for Stahls opinion in writing.

Murray noted that the commission looked previously at the purchase of land listed for more than the appraised value and refused to pay that based on Stahls advice.

We followed your advice. I believe this commission has always, when youve drawn the line and given us advice, weve followed it, Murray said.

Stahls caution to county planning staff represented that legal line and said the commission would follow the law, Murray said.

Commissioner Andy Hunthausen said the bond language does not limit uses to the appraised price and asked Stahl how that affects commissioners spending decisions.

Those two things seem in conflict: the advice that weve gotten that you can only spend up to the appraised price and the bond language saying you can invest in the purchase of easements. Those seem potentially in conflict, and Im asking for advice on that, Hunthausen said.

Hunthausens other question to Stahl dealt with paying transactional costs and said the county would pay for these related expenditures, such as an appraisal, a survey and closing costs, were it to purchase property for a building.

Given that the county would pay these costs for other purchases, how does that compare with funding transactional costs in the purchase of the Roos land, Hunthausen asked.

The project has wide community support, Hunthausen said and noted that it seems to be a good project.

Public comment in Lincoln and 39 letters the county received supported the use of the Open Lands Program funds for the project, although roughly three-fourths of the letters were form letters signed by individuals.

Among the letters of support was one from the Upper Blackfoot Valley Community Council, signed by James W. (Bill) Frisbee Jr. who wrote, This is a project that, in our opinion, is a great idea and project.

When completed, this project would provide an avenue for Valley residents and visitors to our community to enjoy the wondrous beauty that is the Blackfoot River without having to track down a landowner to ask permission, the letter stated.

Grant Kier, executive director of Five Valleys Land Trust, spoke to the commission in support of the project and its strong partnership.

He also noted that Five Valleys Land Trust did not want to compromise the project, nor was it asking anyone to cross anything like a legal line in the sand.

The Land Trust had more than 10,000 acres of land in the Lincoln area under conservation easements, he said, but added that this project was much different.

The people of Lincoln have clearly said how important this space is to them, Kier said.

Glenn Marx, executive director of the Montana Association of Land Trusts, also spoke in support of the project.

I attended and spoke at the community hearing in Lincoln. The room was pretty filled and every single person who spoke, spoke in glowing terms about the potential that this project has for the local community, for local businesses, for local recreation, for the local economy and for local safety, he said.

The community of Lincoln deserves this project, they support this project. And once you do fund it, and once it is in place, it will be a crown jewel in your work and in your Open Lands bond, Marx added.
P rince Harry today made a graphic and impassioned plea to the world to save the wild African elephant.

Harry, 32, who spent the summer in Malawi on a major project transferring 500 tranquillised elephants hundreds of miles to save them from poachers, also released a series of amazing photos of his mission.

Commenting on the importance of this work Harry said, "Elephants simply can't roam freely like they used to, without coming into conflict with communities, or being threatened by poaching and persecution.

"To allow the coexistence of people and animals, fences are increasingly having to be used to separate the two, and try to keep the peace.

"Once a fence is up, you are now managing a parcel of land. Different rules have to apply whether we like it or not. Under these conditions human intervention in stabilising nature might be required by park managers.

"There has to be a balance between the numbers of animals, and the available habitat. Just how nature intended it.

"In this case, African Parks, in partnership with the Malawian government, have re-established a safe area for elephants to be moved back to.

"This simultaneously relieves the pressure in Liwonde, and restocks Nkhotakota so both populations of Elephants can continue to grow. If the re-balance doesn't take place, human wildlife conflict will increase and elephants will degrade their habitat.

"We're then back to having to consider the worst  reducing herds by culling."

Harry joined he "500 elephants" initiative in Malawi - one of the largest and most significant elephant relocations in conversation history.

Prince Harry helped 261 elephants to be successfully re-homed in Nkhotakota / African Parks/Frank Weitzer

It worked by firing tranquillising darts at the animals and then transporting them by truck and crane to a wildlife reserve in the centre of the country.

Today Harry pointed out that human populations in Southern Africa have increased annually by an average of 1.16% from 1960 to today, from 73 million to 320million.

"There is no question at all that Africas wildlife will be increasingly susceptible to growing human populations and their requirements for land," he said.

It was the second summer in a row that Harry - who left the Army last year after a decade as an officer - spent time in Africa.

The 500 Elephants initiative, led by African Parks, will play a critical role in helping to secure a long-term future for Malawis elephants.

Prince Harry assisted with the first phase of the translocation during which 261 elephants were successfully re-homed in Nkhotakota.

The remaining 239 elephants will be moved during the second phase which will occur in the Summer of 2017.

We are thrilled to have Prince Harry serve as an integral part of our translocation team said Peter Fearnhead, CEO of African Parks.

He has extensive field experience and was extremely comfortable with the animals, whether helping an anesthetized elephant to the ground and monitoring its breathing to affixing radio collars.

He played a vital role in many aspects of this giant operation which requires not only all hands on deck, but a vigilance he exudes, and a commitment to the cause he embodies.

Along with moving elephants, Prince Harry assisted with translocating a male rhino, a host of game species including antelope, buffalo, and zebra (more than 1,500 head of game were also translocated to Nkhotakota to help restore the park),

He also helped in re-collaring three lions in Majete with GPS collars to monitor and better protect them.
A woman has been awarded 58 million after claiming that Johnson & Johnson's baby powder gave her cancer.

Deborah Giannecchini of Modesto, California, blamed the company for 'negligent conduct' after she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2012.

Ms Giannecchini accused Jonson & Johnson of failing to make clear the risks of using their product.

Her lawyer Jim Onder said: We are pleased the jury did the right thing.

They once again reaffirmed the need for Johnson & Johnson to warn the public of the ovarian cancer risk associated with its product.

The case is one of many against the cosmetic company after some research found that using talc on female genitals can increase womens risk of developing cancer by 40 per cent.

Johnson & Johnson deny the claims.

In a statement following the ruling the brand said: "We will appeal today's verdict because we are guided by the science, which supports the safety of Johnson's Baby Powder."

The International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies genital use of talc as possibly carcinogenic.
In the race for the U.S. presidency, Roque Rocky De La Fuente figures times on his side.

Unlike the Democrats candidate, Hillary Clinton, whos 69, or Donald Trump, the 70-year-old Republican Party candidate, De La Fuente, the Reform Party nominee for president and Delta Party candidate, marked his 62nd birthday in October.

He is one of five presidential candidates on Montana's ballot, along with the candidates for the Democratic, Republican, Libertarian and Green parties.

De La Fuente says he still has time to prepare for the next presidential race.

Im still young enough that in 2020 I will make a good stab at this thing, said De La Fuente, who was in Helena on Friday for a news conference at the Capitol.

Even if we lose this battle, lets not lose the war, he said. Four years from now, 2020 comes so fast.

De La Fuentes webpage, www.rocky2016.com/meet-rocky, describes his extensive business experience. He was awarded the title of Doctor Honoris Causa from UNESCO, the Institute of Advanced Studies Foundation Le Franc and CONALMEX, for being an outstanding international business ambassador with a phenomenal track record.

My specialty is generating jobs, jobs and jobs. Thats all Ive done over my life, he said.

I currently do business in the United States in over eight states, in over 50 different cities across the nation, he continued and added he also does business in four countries.

He dismisses the practicality of building a wall to address illegal immigration, an idea suggested by Trump. He questioned how to "create a wall between California all the way to basically Louisiana. That wall is 1,954 miles long."

Now, are we going to put a wall between Canada and the United States? Are we going to put a wall in the Pacific Ocean or the Atlantic Ocean? The wall did not work in China. The wall did not work in Germany. It aint going to work here, De La Fuente said.

Hes also cautious on the use of military force and pledged, I will not sacrifice a life going to a needless war.

We need to take care of America first, De La Fuente said. We need to take care of our homeless, we need to take care of our unemployed. So the first thing I need to offer is education.

Free access to a virtual university available to anyone with internet access is part of his platform, as is building on education to create good-paying jobs.

De La Fuente also called for health care reform and pointed to health care in Canada as a model for the United States.

Lowering the costs of medicine would contribute to free health care, as would addressing malpractice insurance.

The Affordable Care Act needs to be adjusted, he said, and with reforms such as to drug prices and toward malpractice insurance, health care can be made free in the United States, De La Fuente said.

He blames the media for not giving his candidacy the amount of attention given to Trump and Clinton.

We do not happen to have two good choices. What I came to offer to Montana is an option, he said.

Sixty percent of voters do not like either Trump or Clinton, De La Fuente said, and he asserted that between themselves, theyre the most disliked candidates in the history of the world.

Hillary has been in public all of her life. Whatever changes she was going to do as First Lady in the Clinton administration, whatever changes she was going to do in the U.S. Senate, whatever changes she was going to do as secretary of state, she would have done so, he said.

And today we got absolutely nothing with the exception of, as we know, that all she focused was on using public expense to get money for her foundation, De La Fuente said.

Were going to get the same thing for four more years, he added.

Trump is successful and made money, De La Fuente said, but hes arrogant. Hes not polite. He insults all the minorities. He has a very, very short temper. Is that the person that we want to  lead, that he basically speaks before he thinks?"

I do not believe. I think hes the worst thing that could happen to all the minorities. I think he would be the worst thing that would happen because he only cares about himself, himself and himself.

Both Trump and Clinton, he added, They only think about themselves.

His voice echoed off the marble inside the Capitol building as he discussed his candidacy and explained his strategy and scenario for success.

So imagine if Montana decides, 'Yes, we want to vote for Rocky, we want to show a difference. We have somebody that has logic, respect, common sense and dignity -- more importantly, dignity. And he respects the other human beings.' All of a sudden your three electoral votes will make history, history around the world, he said.

A third-party strategy

A presidential candidate needs 270 Electoral College votes to win the office, and he questioned what might happen if neither Trump nor Clinton can lay claim to that number.

He said the success of the other presidential candidates, such as the Libertarians' Gary Johnson and the Green Party's Jill Stein, would deny Trump and Clinton those Electoral College votes.

De La Fuente offered a scenario in which hes among the top three finishers -- and national popularity propels him past Clinton and Trump.

With no candidate having enough Electoral College votes, the 12th Amendment to the Constitution, his news release explained, would allow the House of Representatives to decide the elections outcome. Each state gets but one vote.

California could choose to support him, he said, because hes a native son and has businesses there. Popular support for him could pressure the states House members to vote for him.

His third place finish in the Texas Democratic primary could allow him to lay claim to that state, just as New York could reject Clintons candidacy in favor of his, according to his scenario.

And it could all begin with Montana, he added.

Montanas three Electoral College votes are critical to his candidacy. Hes courted voters previously in Alaska and continues to seek the support of Nevada voters.

Im shooting for Alaska, Nevada and Montana, he said of the states that would give him 12 Electoral College votes.

Adding Utah into this mix of states that could stray from the Trump or Clinton camps would strip six more Electoral College votes from them, he noted.

If Montana picks a presidential candidate other than Trump or Clinton, other than Red or Blue, he said, You guys will be famous.

Yesterday, I happened to be in Utah. Yesterday morning, I happened to be in California. This afternoon Ill be in Texas and tonight, tomorrow Ill be in Florida, he said, adding that three days ago he was in Colorado.

But if Clinton wins Florida, its all over, De La Fuente said. The same if she wins Ohio.

Ohio, Florida and North Carolina are key states for Clinton, he said.

Despite all that must happen for him to survive the outcome on Nov. 8, he radiates optimism.

I stand for common sense. I stand for logic. I stand for human decency and I stand more importantly for education, he said.

Ive got you thinking because, you know, it might be a long shot, but when you go to the horse races, they do come in once in a while, De La Fuente said.
LINCOLN  For most upland game bird hunters, taking to the field provides a lot more than just the act of harvesting birds. Its a great opportunity for exercise, camaraderie and enjoying this time of year.

Nebraska Hunter Education Coordinator Wendy Horine encourages all those going afield for an upland bird hunt to remember the basic safety rules of hunting: keep your gun pointed in a safe direction, treat every firearm as if its loaded, keep your finger off of the trigger until you are ready to shoot, and know your target and what is beyond it.

Horine offers the following additional reminders:

-- Read the 2016 Hunting Guide before heading out to become familiar with species-specific regulations.

-- Be prepared for longer trips with plenty of water and snacks. And keep your dog rested and hydrated, too.

-- Make sure you have landowner permission before hunting on private land, even if you asked and received permission last year. Remember to thank them for their hospitality afterward. Doing so builds good relationships and benefits everyone.

-- Since upland game bird hunting is frequently a group activity, know where your hunting partners are at all times and only shoot within your own zone of fire. Never shoot at a sound, shadow or movement.

-- Although not a requirement, all game bird hunters are strongly encouraged to wear blaze orange as a precaution in the field.

The statewide Nebraska pheasant, quail and partridge season is Oct. 29  Jan 31. Permits are available at OutdoorNebraska.org.

Special youth pheasant hunt another success

Nebraska youth got to experience an upland hunt as adult mentors took them afield for the states special youth pheasant hunt Oct. 22-23.

The special hunt took place on 14 wildlife management areas (WMA), where the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission released 5,445 adult roosters Oct. 21.

In total, 387 adult mentors accompanied 465 youth hunters on the hunt this year, compared to 295 mentors and 350 youth in 2015. Youth and their mentors harvested 44 wild roosters and 692 released roosters. The harvest success rate was 0.86 roosters per hunter.

Pheasants were released at the following WMAs: Pressey (Custer County); Sherman Reservoir (Sherman County); Oak Valley (Madison County); Branched Oak (Lancaster County); Twin Oaks (Johnson County); Hickory Ridge (Johnson County); Wilkinson (Platte County); Peru Bottoms (Nemaha County), Yankee Hill (Lancaster County), Cornhusker (Hall County), Arrowhead (Gage County), George Syas (Platte County), Randall W. Schilling (Cass County), and William Gilmour/Tobacco Island, (Cass County). Arrowhead, George Syas, Randall W. Schilling and William Gilmour WMAs were new additions to the list of hunting sites this year.

The highest success rates were at Peru Bottoms (1.35 roosters per hunter), Cornhusker (1.14) and Arrowhead (1.06).

The special hunt, which takes place annually during the statewide youth pheasant, quail and partridge season, was for youth ages 15 and younger. Youth could take two rooster pheasants per day while adult mentors were allowed to harvest one per day. Only one adult mentor per youth was allowed to hunt.

This was the sixth year of the pheasant releases during the special youth season, which is intended to increase youth participation in upland game hunting.

The statewide pheasant, quail and partridge season is Oct. 29  Jan 31. Permits are available at OutdoorNebraska.org.
Bead Mountain Ranch, located southeast of Gering on a flank of the Wildcat Hills, encompasses approximately 3,100 acres of forest and grassland with about 40 miles of canyons, including riparian water holes and three natural springs. Pine and juniper cover the bluffs, with massive cottonwoods and box elder trees lining the canyons at the south edge of the property. The peak of the mountain to the north ranks as the 15th highest point in Nebraska at 4,610 feet.

The local Audubon Society chapter has documented over 120 species of birds visiting or making homes on the ranch, PRBE says on its website. Flocks of mountain blue birds are highly visible from early spring to late fall. Clumps of skunkbush, sumac, golden current and choke cherries can be found in abundance in the canyons and approaches to the escarpments. Wild grapes climb century old cottonwood and pine trees in the canyon spring areas.

PRBE board member Bruce Rolls said he has seen other evidence of Native American and pioneer activity in the area, including narrow-gauge wagon ruts, likely from freight wagons looking for a way off of the bluffs after climbing nearby Stage Hill.

They would look for anywhere they could get a wagon to come down, he said. They took the path of least resistance.

Evidence of agricultural activity at the site includes terracing to reduce erosion and a dam built to capture intermittent runoff from rainfall. Buildings have been removed, but wells and fencing remain. Two-track roads provide trails across the property. The top of the mountain and adjacent bluffs offer sweeping views of the North Platte Valley.

Bead Mountain is a public access area controlled by PRBE. It is open to hunting, with deer, turkey and antelope known to utilize the area. No camping or open fires are allowed. Target shooting and paintball are also prohibited. No hunting is permitted within 200 yards of an occupied dwelling or feedlot.

The site has one parking area, on County Road W west of County Road 24.
Buffalo Creek is probably best known for a pond that once provided fishing for trout and bass but nearly dried up during drought years and is largely overgrown with reeds.

The remains of a cabin lie near the southern edge of the dam that impounds the creek.

The site is five 5 miles south and 2.5 miles west of Melbeta, with a parking area at the end of County Road 26 off County Road X and another to the east off Wrights Gap Road. The 4,300-acre tract extends southward from Scotts Bluff County into Banner County. Although it preceded PRBEs land acquisitions, its included on the PRBE website and is contiguous with the Bead Mountain and Murphy Ranch tracts.

Buffalo Creek is a state wildlife management area managed by the Nebraska Game and Parks Commissions Wildlife Division for the enhancement of wildlife habitat and for public hunting, trapping and fishing. It is open to many other activities, including hiking, bird watching, nature study and primitive camping. No target shooting is allowed.

Numerous game animals utilize the area, including deer, elk, turkey, rabbit, squirrel and morning dove. Two-track trails lace across much of the property. Its a popular area for hunting, horseback riding, hiking, mountain biking, photography and bird watching. Feed plots of millet, wheat and other crops attract animals and birds, and moose and evidence of mountain lions have been reported in the area. A birding survey in 2013 identified 62 species of birds in a single day.

The creek comes from probably the biggest spring out there, said PRBE board member Bruce Rolls. There was an old still back in there in the Prohibition era. I dont know exactly where it is, but guys have brought me pictures of it.

An area near the pond holds what he believes to be one of the biggest juniper trees in Nebraska. Hes also found evidence that members of the Robidoux family, early traders in the area, operated one of their early trading posts on the tract.
Unlike most of the PRBE lands, Spotted Tail is mostly flat and far from the rugged Wildcat Hills. It includes approximately 1,200 acres of riparian river frontage, farm land and pasture on a broad river bottom meadow, cut by an occasional canal or marsh and grazed by a small herd of cattle. It was once flooded by the Toohey Spill, a channel that sent unneeded and return flow water from Pathfinder and Tri-State Irrigation canals back to the North Platte River, cutting gullies and feeding a complex of ponds and marshes. In 1958, the spill was trenched all the way to the river, providing more pastureland but drying up ideal habitat for waterfowl, wetland plants and other wildlife. The Spotted Tail project began with about 800 acres of farmland between the rail line and the river and has steadily grown with help from governmental and environmental stewardship organizations. Ducks Unlimited funded a headgate that now sends water through the original channels during the winter months. The latest project, supported by Trout Unlimited, would create a new meandering channel for the creek, which now cuts a mostly straight line through the property.

Over time, the site has grown to encompass several miles of shoreline on the north bank of the North Platte River between Mitchell and Morrill, running from the area near Toohey Spill to west of Dry Spotted Tail Creek. It is also open to hiking, horseback riding and bird-watching. A informational kiosk at the site describes its history. The Nebraska Environmental Trust and North American Wetlands Conservation Council have financed work on the site, with partnership assistance from the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Oregon Trail Community Foundation, U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service and Pheasants Forever. Returning the meadow to its former marshy state has taken a lot of effort, including removal of Russian olive, saltcedar and thistle. The area contains a wide variety of plants, birds and game that change from season to season.

The site is a public access area controlled by PRBE. The northwest corner of the property is a game preserve, off limits to public access. The rest is open to fishing and limited forms of hunting, including waterfowl hunting with steel shot and other hunting with archery and muzzle-loading firearms. No camping or open fires are allowed. Target shooting and paintball are also prohibited. No hunting is permitted within 200 yards of an occupied dwelling or feedlot.

To get to the site, turn south on County Road 13 from U.S. Highway 26 and then west on County Road E. Youll find three parking areas, including one with an informational kiosk explaining the project.
This page is archived. Data published after 5 April 2022 can be found on the renewed website. Go to the new statistics page

Published: 28 October 2016

Average life expectancy at birth was 78.5 years for boys and 84.1 years for girls in 2015

According to Statistics Finland, life expectancy at birth was 78.5 years for boys and 84.1 years for girls last year. Compared with 2014, the life expectancy of boys grew by 0.4 years and that of girls by 0.3 years. Life expectancy is an age-standardised indicator that describes the level of mortality observed during the calculation period.

Life expectancy of newborns by gender in 1971 to 2015

Men were catching up with women in life expectancy

The difference between genders in life expectancy, 5.6 years, has narrowed in recent decades. During the last 30 years, the life expectancy of newborn boys has lengthened by 8.5 years and by 5.6 years for girls. The difference between genders in life expectancy was last this small in the 1930s. The difference between genders was largest in life expectancy in the late 1970s when it was nine years.

The life expectancy of men aged 65 was 18.1 years and that of women aged 65 was 21.6 years in 2015. During the last 30 years, the life expectancy of men aged 65 has lengthened by 5.2 years and for women aged 65 by 4.4 years.

Median age at death 76.8 years for men and 85.3 years for women

In 2015, the median age at death for men was 76.8 and for women 85.3 years. In 1980, the corresponding median age at death was 68.2 years for men and 75.4 years for women.

The median age at death probably best describes the age distribution of deaths. The median age at death shows at what age the middlemost dead person dies if persons who have died were placed in order of age. So one-half of all persons that died either died at a younger or older age than the median age at death.

Regional differences in life expectancy narrow slowly

The life expectancy of newborns during the period 2013 to 2015 was longest for girls born in the region of Ostrobothnia, 85.3 years, and shortest for boys born in the region of Etela-Savo, 76.3 years. During the period 2013 to 2015, life expectancy has risen in all regions and for both genders compared with the 1993 to 1995 period. Men's life expectancy grew most, by over six years, in Paijat-Hame, Lapland and North Karelia. Women's life expectancy went up most, by over four years, in North Ostrobothnia, South Ostrobothnia and Kainuu.

Men's life expectancy has risen nearly everywhere more than women's, which has narrowed the differences between genders in life expectancy. However, men's life expectancy is still shorter than women's in all regions. Between 2013 and 2015, the difference was biggest in South Karelia, 7.6 years, and smallest in Aland, 4.5 years.

The differences between regions in life expectancy have narrowed down only a little. In the period 1993 to 1995, the life expectancy of a boy born in Ostrobothnia was over four years longer than that of a boy born in North Karelia  the life expectancy of a girl born in Aland was nearly 11 years longer than that of a boy born in North Karelia. In 2013 to 2015, the life expectancy of a newborn boy in Etela-Savo was four years shorter than that of a boy from Aland, and nine years shorter than that of a girl from Ostrobothnia. The differences between regions in women's life expectancy were smaller for both periods than the differences in men's life expectancy.

Finnish boys' life expectancy average in comparison with EU countries

Based on Eurostat's 2014 statistics, in the EU 28 countries the life expectancy of boys was longest in Cyprus, 80.9 years, in Italy, 80.7 years and in Sweden, 80.4 years. The life expectancy of boys was shortest in Latvia, 69.1 years and in Lithuania, 69.2 years. Finnish boys' life expectancy was the 16th longest, or average for EU countries.

In a similar examination, the life expectancy of girls was longest in Spain, 86.2 years, in France, 86.0 years and in Italy, 85.6 years. The shortest life expectancy for girls was found in Bulgaria, 78.0 years, and in Romania, 78.7 years. Finnish girls fared better than Finnish boys in the comparison, as the life expectancy of Finnish girls was, based on Eurostat's 2014 statistics, the ninth longest among the EU 28 countries.

According to Eurostat, the difference between genders in life expectancy in Finland, 5.7 years, was the 13th biggest of EU countries in 2014. The difference was smallest in the Netherlands, where women's life expectancy was 3.5 years longer than that of men, and in the United Kingdom, where the difference was 3.7 years. The difference was biggest in Lithuania, 10.9 years and in Latvia, 10.3 years.

Source: Deaths 2015, Statistics Finland

Inquiries: Eevi Lappalainen 029 551 3367, info@stat.fi

Director in charge: Jari Tarkoma

Publication in pdf-format (262.6 kB)

Updated 28.10.2016

Referencing instructions: Official Statistics of Finland (OSF): Deaths [e-publication].

ISSN=1798-2545. Annual Review 2015. Helsinki: Statistics Finland [referred: 1.11.2022].

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RALEIGH, N.C. (AP)  The North Carolina state NAACP is holding its state convention even as the civil rights organization and its allies are involved in encouraging turnout during early in-person voting.

The group's 73rd annual convention set for Thursday through Saturday in Raleigh had been scheduled for earlier this month, but it got postponed as Hurricane Matthew approached the Atlantic coast.

The convention's theme focuses on voting in the presidential election year. The state NAACP was among the plaintiffs in litigation challenging a 2013 state law requiring photo identification to vote in person and scaling back early voting. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals struck down those provisions last summer.

State NAACP president the Rev. William Barber will speak Saturday morning on the state of civil rights in North Carolina.
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The military prosecutors with the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) decided to send to court Antonina Radu and George Petrica Matei, at the time of the offence prevention inspector-officers in rank of captain with the Bucharest-Ilfov Inspectorate for Emergency Situations (ISU), in the Colectiv case.

They are charged with abuse of office, if the public worker has obtained for self or others ill-gotten gains, and office usurpation, if the worker obtained for self or others ill-gotten gains.

agerpres.
Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos voiced his conviction that the Canadian visa issue is solved, the visa requirement lifting going to be formally announced by the Canadian Government. "The Canadian Government must announce it formally, officially, but I have the full conviction that indeed, this problem is solved, and I have had this conviction some time now. (...) This matter has been left aside. I took this topic, I assumed this topic sometime this summer, when I decided to go to Canada and endorse this both in Romania's and in Bulgaria's, because this is it, we are dealt with as a bulk. And only Romania has made proactive demarches in relation with the Canadian Government. I had two direct meetings with the Canadian Prime Minister and several phone conversations in this period," the PM told Realitatea TV private television broadcaster on Thursday evening.

He said that he worked very well in this case with MEP Sorin Moisa, who has been and is involved in the CETA ratification in the European Parliament. "We have coordinated our actions so that we persuade the Canadians that the decision must be made now, before the CETA approval and not afterwards, because that was the Canadian Government's goal. (...) We insisted that the issue be solved now. We found a solution even after our Bulgarian friends accepted an alternative which we said it does not satisfy us. We continued the negotiations with dignity and determination and we managed to persuade our Canadian partners why it is important for the visa requirement lifting to happen in 2017 and not in 2018," the Prime Minister said.

Agerpres
BILLINGS -- A 32-year-old Wyoming man who refused repeated orders to drop a handgun was shot and killed in a hotel lobby by a Billings police officer early Thursday.

The man's identity will not be released until after the coroner notifies family members, Billings Police Chief Rich St. John said during a press conference Thursday. Seven-year department veteran Officer David Raschkow shot the man three times in the chest with a .223-caliber patrol rifle, St. John said.

At about 4 a.m., Billings Police got a call from a Days Inn desk clerk saying a man had come in with a semiautomatic handgun. The man at one point held the gun to his own head, St. John said.

The clerk was able to get out of the office and police arrived at the Days Inn, 843 Parkway Lane, within minutes of the 911 call, St. John said.

Officers tried for at least 25 minutes to convince the man to put the weapon down, St. John said. With his back to the officers, the man continued to watch the security television that showed feeds from multiple cameras inside the hotel, St. John said. The man made statements he was going to start shooting.

Most of what the man said did not make sense, the chief said. A police negotiator arrived about 15 minutes after police and was unsuccessful in convincing the man to disarm. Eight to nine officers were in the lobby with the man, with more officers outside the building, St. John said.

The man stood up and began to turn around, St. John said. The man had a gun in his left hand and did not obey orders from officers to drop the weapon, St. John said.

Raschkow shot the man out of fear for his fellow officers, St. John said.

The man was responsive when officers pulled him out of the lobby office, but died at St. Vincent Healthcare, St. John said. Police were notified of the man's death at about 7:30 a.m.

The Yellowstone County Sheriffs Office will assist with the investigation, in order to make the investigation more transparent, St. John said. Raschkow will meet with mental health professionals and there will be an independent review by the Police Departments Office of Professional Standards before Raschkow returns to duty.

According to Billings Gazette archives, Raschkow was placed on paid leave May 3, 2012, when the department initiated an internal investigation into a complaint of excessive force. St. John said the complaint was generated from within the department and was not from a citizen. The investigation determined Raschkow's actions were "proper and within department policy and procedure," St. John said.

The chief was notified about the shooting at about 4:30 a.m. He has contacted Yellowstone County Attorney Scott Twito and a coroner's inquest will be held sometime after the investigation into the shooting is completed.

Raschkow will be on paid administrative leave while the shooting is investigated.

Billings Mayor Tom Hanel, City Administrator Tina Volek and representatives of the Billings City Attorney's office were also at the press conference, though none spoke.

This is the fifth fatal officer-involved shooting in Montana this year.

In January, Sean O'Brien, 37, was shot by Livingston police. A May coroner's inquest found the two officers, Kevin Engle and Andrew Emanuel, were justified in their actions.

In March, Carbon County Sheriff deputies shot and killed 42-year-old John Charles Graham. A coroner's inquest found deputies Chad Glick and Jeremy Neibauer were justified in the shooting.

In June, Butte Police officers shot and killed 36-year-old Peter Grandpre. A coroner's inquest has not yet been held. The officer was wearing a body cam during the incident.

In July, a Phillips County sheriff's deputy shot and killed 20-year-old Ambrose Mecklenburg after Mecklenburg pulled a knife on the deputy.

Montana had 22 officer-involved shootings between 2012 and July 2016, according to Montana Division of Criminal Investigations statistics. Out of 22 suspects, 14 died as a result of the encounter.
Should construction of electric vehicle charging stations be left to utilities and state regulators, or the free market?

That is one issue at the heart of a debate facing the Missouri Public Service Commission, which, on Wednesday, suspended a ruling on prices that Ameren Missouri could charge at proposed charging stations between St. Louis and Jefferson City. The commission may first need to explore the broader question of whether it even has jurisdiction to regulate the new technological frontier.

Im not persuaded by all of the filings that we in fact have statutory authority over electric vehicle charging stations, said PSC Chairman Daniel Hall in Wednesdays proceeding. I think its unclear whether or not it should be a regulated industry or whether it should be an open, unregulated, competitive market. As we all know, the commission exists to set prices where there is monopoly service provided. Where there is a competitive market, Im not sure that that is a role for the commission.

Mark Nealon, Ameren Missouris director of engineering design and project management, said the decision to suspend the utilitys proposed tariff was understandable.

The commission just wants a little more clarity, Nealon said. This is a brand new asset, the likes of which weve never installed before.

The move postpones Amerens plan to launch its pilot project of building six electric vehicle charging stations in communities along the I-70 corridor. Before Wednesdays ruling disrupted the utilitys proposed timeline, Ameren hoped to install its first station before the end of the year.

Ameren filed for state approval of the project in August, citing the rising popularity and driving ranges of electric vehicles and the range anxiety that electric vehicle owners can experience between charges. The project would aim to monitor its effect on adoption rates of electric vehicles in counties along its path.

Were feeling the urgency, said Nealon, arguing that impending releases of electric vehicle models able to go more than 200 miles on a single charge means that someone needs to begin to deploy charging stations that facilitate longer-range travel.

But the utilitys proposed foray into the world of charging stations has raised interesting questions about whether its something that the PSC should even be tasked with regulating. The commissions statutory oversight formally extends to electric plants, but charging stations fall into an undetermined gray area. Historically, the commission has also regulated pay phones, leaving some to wonder whether Amerens charging stations would be given the same treatment as remote outposts operated by a regulated monopoly.

James Owen, director of the state Office of Public Counsel, does not believe that charging stations should fall into the PSCs domain. He says that not only do the stations fail to satisfy the technical definition of an electric plant, but that utility involvement with charging stations is unnecessary since third parties and competitive businesses are already providing the service.

This is not something that these more affluent customers are necessarily hurting for, said Owen, adding that about 70 percent of electric vehicle owners charge their cars at home and also have the option to charge at electric vehicle dealerships and other venues. Like gas stations, Owen says charging stations should be left to competition in the free marketplace.

Nealon says Ameren is not opposed to competition, either.

I would actually envision a day where we would step aside and let the free market take over from there, said Nealon, expressing confidence that the utility could coexist with unregulated competitors who he notes would be much more nimble in determining prices.

More broadly, though, Owen says the decision facing the PSC could set an important precedent for determining whether future technologies fall into a category that requires regulation.

I think its complicated  this is very new stuff for Missouri, Owen said. They want to make sure they get this right, because they may need to look at this detail again ... when we look at innovations and technology that comes down the pipeline.

Utility regulators in other states do retain oversight. In Kentucky, for example, the state PSC in April approved a proposal by two utilities to establish company-operated public electric vehicle charging stations and allow nonresidential customers to host charging stations. Kentucky regulators also approved the utilities proposed rates of $2.85-$2.88 an hour.

Nealon says those similar cases in other states are generally rare and, when they do exist, are often other pilot or limited-scale projects exploring the same question of whether its appropriate for a regulated entity to get deeply involved with charging stations.

If the Missouri PSC decides to retain authority over the matter, it will also need to address whether Ameren is allowed to recover the costs of the project through its rate base. Installation of the pilot projects six charging stations will cost under $600,000, according to Nealon.

Owen says his office questions whether all Ameren customers should foot the bill for stations that, at least for now, serve what are largely luxury purchases.

This one little thing right now isnt (a lot of money), but it will open the door, says Owen. Were talking about, in time, millions of dollars and that does have an impact.
After the passage of a pivotal bill to allow Missouri insurance regulators to review health insurance rates, consumer advocates say the rules proposed to carry out the new law need to be strengthened.

A group of consumer advocates met this week to pick through the proposed rule the Department of Insurance, Financial Institutions and Professional Registration drafted. They identified several crucial areas that they say need to be improved.

The fight now is going to be how effective each of those components is going to be, Jay Angoff, a lawyer and director of the Missouri Department of Insurance in the 1990s, said during the Consumers Council of Missouri meeting on Tuesday.

In several instances, Angoff said Missouris rule needed to add a little more teeth.

For example, under Missouris proposed rule, the insurance carriers are not required to justify the assumptions theyve made on potential rate increases.

We need to see both the assumptions and the basis for those assumptions, Angoff said.

When the draft asks for trend projections that means they want to know at what rate does the company estimate that claims or costs will increase in the future, he said. Under the rule thats all the company needs to submit, that number. Angoff said the insurance company should be required to justify the estimate.

Another potential problem: Carriers would be allowed to provide a redacted copy of their rate filings to the public, omitting key information.

And even though the proposed rule calls for written comments from the public, it does not have a requirement for a hearing, an important element for consumers, particularly if a large rate increase has been requested, he said.

Sidney Watson, health law professor at St. Louis University School of Law, said the department will get the necessary data to review the projections the carriers have made to see if its reasonable, but the issue is what the public will be able to see.

We know from national experience that they seem to believe practically everything is a trade secret, which makes it impossible for a consumer advocate or a concerned member of the public to be able to follow this process and weigh in on behalf of consumers, Watson said.

Until now, almost all other states required insurance carriers to disclose the prices they planned to charge customers for health insurance plans prior to open enrollment. State insurance departments review pricing and the justification for those prices, and determined whether the pricing is reasonable. Some states authority goes even further, and they have the ability to deny rates if theyre deemed excessive.

Missouri will only have the authority to determine if rates are reasonable or unreasonable.
In her 30-plus-year career in television, Tracey Ullman has done more to boost the wig-making economy than any other woman except perhaps Dolly Parton.

Beginning with The Tracey Ullman Show, the groundbreaking sketch show that helped establish the fledgling Fox network back in the late 80s and introduced The Simpsons to the world, the British actress has earned a reputation as a comedic shape-shifter and unparalleled impressionist.

Shes up to her old tricks in Tracey Ullmans Show, which debuted Friday on HBO. The six-episode series, which aired earlier this year across the pond, where it has already been renewed for a second season, reprises Ullmans signature blend of celebrity impersonations, outrageous characters and comedic musical numbers.

Basically Im still doing the same show I did in my mothers bedroom, and Ill do it till the bitter end, Ullman sings in the shows opening credits. And while I cant vouch for the show she did in her mothers bedroom, its true that shes not exactly breaking new ground. (Even the title is just a single possessive s away from her Fox series.)

Sketch comedy has evolved considerably since Ullman first burst onto the scene, with shows like Inside Amy Schumer, Key & Peele and Portlandia pushing the form into absurdist, socially relevant new realms. As such, some may find Tracey Ullmans Show a touch dated, but her acutely observed characters are generally enough to overcome any mustiness.

The contemporary subject matter also keeps things fresh. After spoofing American culture in the Emmy-winning Tracey Takes On   and Tracey Ullmans State of the Union, she turns her gaze back to the U.K. at a turbulent time. With sketches about libraries closing because of budget cuts and refugees stowing away on the bottom of RVs, it might as well have been called Tracey Takes on Brexit.

Ullman is drawn to formidable women of a certain age and finds humor in playing with expectations.

She does a wonderfully prickly version of Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, imagining her as a posh boozehound. Her Dame Judi Dench is a kleptomaniac mischief-maker, clogging toilets in five-star hotels just because, as a national treasure, she can get away with it.

In a less successful bit, Ullman plays German Chancellor Angela Merkel as a sultry, image-obsessed sexpot.

But as Ullman makes clear even in her less hilarious moments, being a good impressionist is about observation as much as execution. The most jaw-dropping impressions dont mimic obvious vocal tics or distinctive facial expressions (Robert DeNiros grimace, Bob Dylans rasp), they illuminate traits so subtle and ineffable, you may have never noticed them before.

Come to think of it, Maggie Smith does have an interesting way of pronouncing her Rs, you might find yourself thinking.

This truth even applies to her fabricated characters, whose gestures, accents, costumes and hairdos are so specific, you have to believe theyre based on real people. Theres a proud Northern real-estate agent who wields her fingernails like talons and a crazy-eyed Irish entrepreneur who peddles twee, overpriced ceramics.

Ullman brings these characters to life so vividly, there are times when  forgive the cliche, but it applies  she almost literally disappears.

During a sketch about a deluded app developer who treats the local coffee shop like his own fiefdom, I wondered when Ullman was going to show up. (Turns out she was there the whole time, playing him.)

The sketches are timely even when theyre not entirely ripped from the headlines; theres a very funny bit about an Internet literacy course for older people (called Silver Surfers) in which they learn to troll and foment racial hatred.

Some of the references  to Coronation Street characters and Scottish politicians  might be lost on American viewers without advanced degrees in Anglophilia, but for the most part the humor transcends cultural barriers.
Election years can magnify the cracks in even the closest relationships. And this election is the San Andreas of familial and friendship fault lines.

Those who live in politically divided families can either agree to disagree or try to influence the other party without letting it get too personal. But its hard not to take it personally when the stakes feel so high. Or when the other persons views appear to be based on misinformation or prejudice rather than policy differences. Both leading candidates have large swaths of people who deeply dislike  loathe  them. Its unsettling to see someone you love or admire support someone you feel is dangerous to the country.

One friend confided that he is dreading an extended family vacation soon after the election. Another is worried her relationship with her mother will never recover based on what shes seen in her social media posts. Its similar to the relationship strain people reported after the unrest in Ferguson. Views on police shootings are often influenced by ones own experience with the police, which can vary dramatically by race. Social media laid bare these differences.

In some ways, the fallout from this rancorous, deeply polarizing election has been even harder to take. Sharing ones views on politics, race and religious beliefs always runs the risk of offending those who disagree with you. For ordinary citizens, elections are when beliefs translate into actions that can influence the society in which we live. This is why it can feel like a betrayal when those close to us dont see what we see; we see their action impacting our lives, our childrens futures.

Its hurtful to see a friend or relative share bigoted or sexist views publicly, but even more so if you happen to belong to the targeted group, whether it is Muslims, Mexicans, immigrants or African-Americans. Its hard to look at people the same way after learning they believe debunked conspiracy theories.

Often, its best to limit the mental and emotional toll these interactions can take: No need to engage people of little consequence in your life. High school friends you havent spoken much to in years, let them go. Fringe social acquaintances you rarely see in person, forget about it. The mute, unfriend and unfollow features on social media are especially handy this time of year.

But relationships that you want to maintain  spouses, parents, children, close friends and neighbors  require a different approach.

A dinner guest recently started railing against illegal immigrants living off the government during a family meal. I suppose I could have tried to offer a facts-based argument about the percentage of crimes committed by various groups of people, or shared which demographic group in America is actually most likely to be living off the government. But I dont think facts would have influenced her opinion. More likely, any counter-argument would have inflamed the situation. So I changed the topic to Mexican desserts.

Gracias, tres leches, for the pivot.

Then, there are those who can manage political difference in the most aspirational way.

Alex Kaminski, 32, lives in Maryland Heights, and says his family is a mixed lot politically. He refuses to argue with those whose information is solely based on political ads on TV and pounded into their heads. There are people on Facebook whose posts he will ignore until the election is over.

He does, however, try to understand and engage with those willing to agree to his ground rules.

If you really want to talk about this, lets agree to a few rules, he has said to family members. No interrupting, you cant get mad at the other person and you have to listen to one another respectfully.

You have to try to separate your emotions from what you believe in trying to understand the other persons point of view, he explained. These conversations have actually changed his mind on how he plans to vote in this election.

He had planned to vote for a third party, since he isnt a fan of either major partys candidate.

Conversations with my mom and sister have convinced me otherwise, he said.

These dinner table discussions show us how civil society functions best.

You ignore the loudmouths, listen to reason and if all else fails, pass the dessert.
Cora Faith Walker is headed to Jefferson City.

Two days after a special prosecutor declined to file charges in the allegations of rape she brought against a fellow state representative candidate, and one day after that man, Steve Roberts Jr., filed a defamation lawsuit against her, the 31-year-old lawyer turned her focus to the state Capitol.

On Nov. 8, both she and Roberts are running unopposed as Democrats for seats in the Missouri House. She lives in Ferguson. Roberts lives in the city of St. Louis. In early January, if they both follow through with their plans to serve, theyll be together in the states capital city for five months, working in a building in which theyll cross paths every day and likely have desks mere feet from each other.

After filing a complaint with the police, and then taking the rare step of publicizing her sexual assault allegations  and putting her name on them for all to see in my column outlining her accusation  Walker was devastated that St. Charles County prosecutor Tim Lohmar didnt file charges against Roberts.

I completely get why women dont report, she told me, in tears as she recounted a difficult couple of days. I completely get it.

In Roberts lawsuit against her, he describes in salacious detail the days and hours leading to the evening on Aug. 26 when Walker says she was raped, and Roberts says they had consensual sex. The events in the lawsuit dont paint a positive picture of Walker, of how she treated her marriage, of the judgment she showed leading up to the moment that would change her life, and others.

Im not an angel, she had told me when I first interviewed her last month. It was a phrase I didnt use in my column because its one of those narratives that all too often emerges after alleged sexual assault victims have their every move dissected in the sort of public way that serves to dehumanize them.

Walkers alleged sins are now splattered in the court records and news pages for all to see. She knew this was going to happen. But it doesnt make it any easier.

So she thinks about next steps.

Im the rep-elect from a town that burned because of the manifestation of a system that doesnt work to protect all people equally, Walker says. I feel like, now I have personally experienced that. I am going to be that much more of a fierce advocate for challenging and changing that system. Im going to Jefferson City. I have to.

She may not know it, but Walkers courage telling her story  regardless of what didnt happen in the criminal justice system and may happen in civil court  has already made a difference.

The morning after Lohmar said he wouldnt file charges, I received an email from a woman who found her voice because of Walker.

My name is Amy Harms, she wrote. Im twenty-seven years old.  In April 2015, I was the victim of a sexual assault crime.

Harms is the woman I wrote about earlier this month who was the St. Louis University Law School student who last year accused Roberts of sexually assaulting her in a bar in downtown St. Louis. Roberts was arrested but never charged in that incident. He maintained his innocence. When Walker came forward, Harms told me her story but asked to be anonymous. Now, with Lohmars office making a similar decision two years in a row, shes adding her name to the cause of women who want to change Americas rape culture, where the threat of lawsuits and shame silences victims.

I didnt see the evidence in her case and Im not saying I know what happened, but I believe Mrs. Walker, Harms says.

I havent seen all the evidence in the case either, but I believe her, too.

Those three words  I believe her  are the basis of a several-year-old social media movement to elevate the plight of victims in sexual assault cases. In the past couple of days, it took on new meaning for me. The most heartbreaking thing Harms told me was that she had been afraid to tell her father about what she says happened to her more than a year ago. Until my column ran, she hadnt talked to him about her alleged sexual assault.

Until Thursday night, I had never asked my own daughter about hers.

A year or so ago, during a long drive from Florida, she had dropped a hint about some trauma she was dealing with in therapy. I didnt pry. She didnt offer details. I lacked the courage to ask the question that would give me the answer no father wants to hear.

Cora Faith Walker and Amy Harms gave me the courage.

Were you sexually assaulted? I asked my 27-year-old, who lives in another state.

Yes, she said. When I was a kid ...

I wasnt there to protect her. I wasnt there to hold her afterward and tell her everything was going to be OK.

She was just a kid. But she bottled up her fear and found the courage to live. And now she taught me what I had all wrong about this story. I thought I was writing about sexual assault victims to help give courage to those women who have felt stigmatized by Americas rape culture. But they already had the courage. The one in five women around us who have been sexually assaulted often demonstrate their courage in silence, but they exercise daily bravery just by putting one foot in front of the other.

Its men like me who need to find our voices. Its dads, brothers, sons and uncles. Its men who work with women who have been victimized, who have relatives who have been assaulted, and who sometimes are too quick to doubt because we dont want to think about the brutality of rape.

Cora Faith Walker is no angel. But I believe her.

I believe her because its not justice when a college swimmer spends three months in jail for a brutal rape because the judge thinks his life has promise.

I believe her because it shouldnt take dozens of women to be victimized before a University of Wisconsin sexual predator gets arrested.

I believe her because when women come forward and accuse a sitting Supreme Court judge or presidential candidate of sexual assault, they ought to be taken seriously.

I believe Cora Faith Walker.

I believe Amy Harms.

Today, I cant hold my daughter in my arms and make her hurt go away.

So I will just tell her this:

I believe her.
GODFREY  David J. Von Bergen, 35, of Godfrey, pleaded guilty Friday in Madison County Circuit Court in Edwardsville of two counts each of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child and child pornography, officials said.

State's Attorney Tom Gibbons filed charges in 2014 based on an investigation by the sheriffs office. The crimes involved assaults and videos regarding two girls.

Von Bergen had been set to go to trial Monday. Given his 2001 child pornography conviction, he could face a prison term between 30 and 180 years when he is sentenced in six to eight weeks, State's Attorney Tom Gibbons said in a prepared release. Prosecutors plan to seek the maximum penalty.
ST. LOUIS  Police canvassing a neighborhood for leads after a homicide late Thursday happened upon a second body.

It happened in the 4800 block of Margaretta Avenue, in the city's Penrose neighborhood.

At about 11 p.m. Thursday, police arrived on Margaretta to find a 28-year-old man dead in the street. He had been shot multiple times. He was later identified as Paul Schneider.

About an hour later, as police were canvassing the neighborhood, they found the body of a second man, 27, in the rear of the 4800 block of Margaretta. He had been shot in the head. He was later identified as Sylvester Kendrick.

Police say they don't have any suspects.

Nassim Benchaabane and Kim Bell of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.
UNITED NATIONS (AP)  The Baha'i International Community said Tuesday that Iran's effort to crush the religious minority has continued unabated and intensified on some fronts despite President Hassan Rouhani's promises to end religious discrimination.

In a 122-page report, the community said Rouhani's government has stepped-up its "campaign to incite hatred against Baha'is" including by disseminating more than 20,000 pieces of anti-Baha'i propaganda in the Iranian media.

Since Rouhani was inaugurated in August 2013, the report said at least 151 Baha'is have been arrested, and at least 388 incidents of economic discrimination have been documented ranging from threats and intimidation to shop closings.

The report also said that under Rouhani, thousands of Baha'is have been blocked from attending universities and 28 followers have been expelled.

Iran has banned the Baha'i religion, which was founded in 1844 by a Persian nobleman considered a prophet by followers. Muslims consider Muhammad the final prophet.

In 2013, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued a fatwa, or religious edict, urging Iranians to avoid all dealings with Baha'is.

The report said that "on every front the Iranian government is facing pressure to end the decades-long, systematic persecution of Baha'is."

But instead of keeping its promises to end religious discrimination, the report said, "the government has shifted its strategy of oppression, moving away from arrests and imprisonments to more easily obscured measures such as economic and educational exclusion,"

Bani Dugal, the Baha'i chief U.N. representative, said "taken altogether, what we have seen is an overall shift in tactics by the Iranian government, apparently as part of an attempt to conceal from the international community its ongoing efforts to destroy the Baha'i community as a viable entity."

On a broader scale, the report said that since the previous government of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad began to intensify the persecution of Baha'is in 2005, more than 860 followers have been arrested, about 275 have been sent to prison, and there have 950 incidents of economic suppression and 80 violent attacks against Baha'i-owned businesses or properties ranging from arson to vandalism.

The report urges the international community to keep pressuring Iran to end discrimination against Baha'is.

"The take-away from the report is that international pressure on Iran, whether by the United Nations, the news media, activists or even the general public, remains a critical means of protection against a wider pogrom that targets the largest non-Muslim religious minority in Iran," Dugal said.
WELLSTON  A federal lawsuit filed Friday accuses a former Wellston police officer of pepper-spraying a woman multiple times while she was handcuffed to a chair.

The suit says that Stephanie Douglas, of St. Louis County, was in custody at the police station on April 5, 2013, and was being questioned while her hands her cuffed behind her back and she was chained to a chair.

Without warning, Officer Michael Weaver aggressively jumped up and pepper-sprayed her in the mouth, eyes and nose, the suit says. It says Weaver had not issued any lawful instruction before taking action and Douglas was not resisting the questioning.

Police did not offer Douglas any medical care and she had to endure the painful burning for several hours, the suit says.

The suit, filed in federal court in St. Louis, names Wellston and Weaver and says police violated Douglas' civil rights. It seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages and costs.

A lawyer who has represented Wellston in the past said Friday afternoon that he had not yet seen the suit.

The police department in Wellston was disbanded in 2015 and has been replaced by the North County Police Cooperative.

Weaver has a valid Class A license with Missouri's Peace Officer Standards and Training program, but is not currently commissioned anywhere in Missouri, said spokesman Mike O'Connell. He could not be located for comment.
ST. LOUIS  The Board of Aldermen on Friday passed a bill to give developer Paul McKee $2.8 million worth of tax incentives to build a grocery store and gas station at North 13th Street and Tucker Boulevard as part of his long-awaited NorthSide Regeneration project.

The 20-7 vote approving tax increment financing for the project comes after weeks of arguments from critics who questioned McKees trustworthiness and his ability to deliver on promises.

Many of the arguments came during debate last week when the bills sponsor, 5th Ward Alderwoman Tammika Hubbard, implored her colleagues to judge the bill on its merits and not as a referendum on McKee.

Voting against the project would deprive her constituents of healthy and affordable food options within walking distance of their homes, she argued.

This is an opportunity to help some of the most impoverished people in my community, Hubbard said.

Eighth Ward Alderman Stephen Conway, who was not at the meeting Friday, argued in favor of the project last week, reminding colleagues that the city is not giving McKee any money but rather helping the developer make the deal more attractive to a third-party lender.

Once the project is finished, the city will benefit in the form of new taxes, Conway added.

But 21st Ward Alderman Antonio French, a mayoral candidate who once called the project a turd wrapped up in a bow, argued that McKee seems to get deals other developers dont.

In one recent example, McKee worked out a deal where he bought several parcels of land from the city only to sell the land back, while also getting the city to buy off some of his debt.

In all, the city agreed to pay McKee and a lender more than $5 million as part of the effort to attract the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency to north St. Louis.

The NGA, in turn, is expected to be the anchor that will allow McKees NorthSide Regeneration project of housing, retail and a small clinic, to thrive.

Also on Friday, aldermen voted 24-3 to establish a special taxing district allowing property owners to levy a 1 percent sales tax at the future grocery store and gas station for 16 years.

Otis Williams, executive director of the St. Louis Development Corp., described the gas station as a convenience store that sells gas, rather than strictly a gas station.

The convenience store will be a GreenLeaf Market run by Good Natured Family Farms, a farmers group that provides fresh food from small family farms around the Kansas City area.

Maggie Crane, spokeswoman for Mayor Francis Slay, said the mayor supports the project and will sign both bills.

McKee could not immediately be reached on Friday. Its unclear when construction on the two stores is scheduled to begin.
In 2006, Missouri Sen. Tim Green, D-Spanish Lake, was tired of the growing use of opaque, innocuously named committees created to circumvent campaign finance limits by shuffling money from wealthy donors to candidates.

Citizens For Good Government, Citizens For Very Good Government, Southeast Missouri Citizens for Very Good Government he said. You couldnt tell where the money was coming from.

The cash flowing into state politics had been rising since voters overwhelmingly approved limits in 1994, and Green concluded that if the tide of spending couldnt be stemmed, at the very least, some transparency was needed.

He added an amendment to a bill that repealed the limits so that donors would give directly to candidates instead of splitting checks among various committees. The bill was signed into law, though it was tossed out by the state Supreme Court in 2007 on procedural grounds. During its next session, the Legislature voted again to remove limits.

In the last eight years, Missouri has earned the reputation as a total free-for-all when it comes to political fundraising, culminating in the current governors race, a state-record $72 million-plus election that is the most expensive governors race in the nation in 2016, according to the National Institute for Money in State Politics.

I never realized when I was in the Legislature there would be people willing to spend $10, $20, $30 million of their own personal wealth to influence elections, Green said. Boy, was I naive.

On Nov. 8, Missouri voters will be asked if they want to reinstate the limits through a constitutional amendment. The proposal is designed to address the loopholes that were routinely exploited when limits were in place, said Todd Jones, the lawyer who drafted the amendment.

Critics of the amendment argue that capping donations unfairly limits political expression and will redirect donor money to less transparent third-party groups. Supporters say not having the limits concentrates power and influence among wealthy donors and interest groups that disproportionately fund campaigns. With little organized opposition, the amendment is expected to pass, though it probably will face a court challenge.

It has already survived several.

If passed, the amendment wont necessarily lead to a big drop in political spending. Though it caps donations to candidates at $2,600 and makes it illegal in most cases to shuffle money between committees, any political action committee not affiliated with a candidate or party can still receive unlimited donations and spend freely to advocate for or against any candidate or cause.

Thats going to happen regardless and you cant constitutionally limit that, Jones said, pointing to the Supreme Courts 2010 Citizens United decision, which ruled that political spending by corporations and labor unions couldnt be restricted. It also wouldnt limit donations to ballot initiative committees, where some of the most prolific special interest spending occurs.

More cash, fewer donors

Did allowing unlimited contributions invite a flood of money into politics? Before the current election, the answer might have been no.

While the rising number of six- and seven-figure checks have consistently grabbed headlines, eliminating the limits didnt immediately alter the trajectory of overall spending, which had been rising before limits were repealed, according to a Post-Dispatch analysis of historical data from the National Institute for Money in State Politics.

The most prolific fundraisers  gubernatorial candidates  raised similar amounts each cycle from 2004-2012. Legislative races, on the other hand, saw an immediate jump in spending once limits were eliminated. The level of spending has held steady even as the number of contested races has declined. The remaining competitive races are seeing much more spending than in the past.

One striking trend in the data isnt more money  its that as politicians raise more cash, theyre reaching out to far fewer donors.

In the 2004 election cycle, excluding donations under $100 that typically arent itemized, candidates for Missouri statewide and legislative offices got 111,000 donations and raised $53.5 million.

As of the end of the last quarterly filing period in September, candidates this cycle got 79,000 donations and raised $118 million.

In the race for governor, which featured an expensive four-way Republican primary, the $60 million raised as of Sept. 30 more than doubled what candidates raised in 2004  with fewer than half as many donations. Since then, Republican nominee Eric Greitens and Democratic nominee Chris Koster raised an additional $12 million from larger donations disclosed prior to quarterly filings.

Its amazing how little they do to raise all this money, said former state Rep. Chris Kelly. It produces welfare to legislators  They dont have to earn their own way.

The prospect of increased third-party spending wasnt a good reason to keep the current system, he said. Because you can conceive of a future malady doesnt mean you shouldnt fix the malady you have.

More outside money

Another effect of no limits has been how easily out-of-state money from political parties, organized labor and industry groups has entered Missouri races. In 2004, 9 percent of the overall money given directly to candidates came from out-of-state donors. This year, its 27 percent. And that doesnt account for money given to candidates by Missouri PACs that raised money from outside the state.

In the governors race, the $31 million raised from donors outside Missouri is more than what candidates raised from donors everywhere in 2012. Factor in donations from Missouri groups that pass along money transferred from national parent organizations, and the outside infusion is certainly higher. The average itemized out-of-state donation in the race is $12,400, nearly twice what it was four years ago.

The proposed amendment would keep much of that money from entering candidate coffers, but it cant keep it out of Missouri.

Independent groups that would have a much easier time raising cash would play a larger role than ever before, said Missouri Republican Party chairman John Hancock, causing candidates and state parties to have less control.

Hancock believes unlimited contributions added transparency, but weakened the state party system because more donors went straight to their preferred candidates. He expects the amendment, which caps what people can give to parties at $25,000 per election, will further weaken the state party system. While many people think thats a positive thing, he said, I do not.

You used to be able to go to the polls, and if you didnt recognize a name, you knew the person had been vetted, recruited, aided, even assisted by the parties, he said. I think theres value in that. Now, its a free-for-all.

While independent spending probably would rise, it isnt likely to dominate every race, and supporters of limits argue that many candidates would be forced to reach out to a wider swath of constituents to fund their campaigns and get their message out.

Theyll have to work harder to do it, and some people wont and will fall by the wayside, Kelly said, and thats a good thing.
A man accused of rape by a fellow candidate for the Missouri Legislature filed a defamation suit against his accuser Thursday, two days after authorities declined to press charges against him.

In a suit filed in St. Louis Circuit Court, Steven Roberts Jr. accuses Cora Faith Walker of defamation, malicious prosecution and inflicting emotional distress. The suit asks for a minimum of $25,000 on each allegation.

Roberts and Walker, both Democrats, are running unopposed on the Nov. 8 ballot and likely will be elected to serve together in the Missouri House beginning in January. Roberts would represent a district in St. Louis. Walkers district covers an area of north St. Louis County.

Walker made public her accusation of rape in a letter sent Sept. 30 to Missouri House Speaker Todd Richardson, R-Poplar Bluff, and other legislative leaders.

Walker told the Post-Dispatch that she went to Roberts apartment the night of Aug. 26, discussed political matters, passed out, then woke up and could not recall what had happened.

She reported the alleged sexual assault to authorities about a month later, in late September, according to Roberts suit. On Tuesday, St. Charles County Prosecutor Tim Lohmar, who served as a special prosecutor in the case, declined to press charges.

There simply wasnt enough credible evidence that sexual relations between these two people were anything but consensual, Lohmar said.

Roberts has said he and Walker had consensual sex. Roberts civil suit claims the two actually had their first sexual contact at a political conference in Kansas City on Aug. 25, the day before Walker alleges she was raped.

Roberts claims that Walker, who is married, initiated the contact in Kansas City by asking to keep her purse in Roberts hotel room while she attended an evening social function. The suit claims that once in Roberts room, Walker asked to use his shower and then undressed in front of him. Roberts said Walker posed for a nude photo and then the two had sexual contact. Walker left Roberts room about 2.a.m., the suit claims.

The following night, after returning to St. Louis from the conference in Kansas City, the two met up for drinks, according to the suit.

Walker texted Roberts from a jazz bar and he went to meet her, the suit says. On leaving the bar about 10 p.m., Roberts said Walker turned down his invitation to go to another bar, but accepted his offer to go to his apartment. They stopped to pick up food and wine on the way to his apartment, the suit says.

While there, from about 10:30 p.m. to the early morning, Roberts claims, they had sex three times and then fell asleep.

Roberts said Walker woke up about 6 a.m. when her cellphone rang, and she became agitated. When Roberts asked if everything was all right, Roberts said Walker stated that it was, except that she was supposed to have gone home the night before.

He says they exchanged cordial texts later in the day.

Jeremy D. Hollingshead, Roberts attorney, called his clients suit a response to Walkers demonstrably false allegations and said his client has phone texts, photos and a video to corroborate his version of events.

Roberts declined to be interviewed, but said in a statement: For the past month I have stood by watching as Mrs. Walker made false allegations against me over and over again. This suit explains the facts of what actually happened that night. The public deserves to know the truth, and the only way to do that is to show the facts.

Walker could not be reached for comment about the suit.

This was not the first time Roberts had been accused of a sex crime. In April 2015, a woman alleged that Roberts initiated unwanted sexual contact with her at a downtown bar. A special prosecutor also declined to file charges in that case.

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce used special prosecutors in both cases because Roberts had worked for her as an assistant prosecutor.

Roberts is a son of former city alderman Steven Roberts Sr. and Dr. Eva Frazer. His uncle, Michael Roberts, is a former alderman and mayoral candidate.
ASSUMPTION  It's not enough to dream of a goal. You have to do the work to achieve it as well.

Nothing can substitute for hard work, said Jared McClain, a graduate of Shelbyville High School and an entrepreneur now living in Nashville, Tenn. McClain visited Central A&M Middle School on Thursday to talk to students on the topic of Achieve Your American Dream.

The typical, cookie cutter American dream, McClain said, is a house with a picket fence and a two-car garage, and 2.5 children.

How do you have 2.5 children? he joked.

Their dreams might not match up to that image, he said, but that shouldn't discourage them from going after them. He asked a few of the students to share their career aspirations, and the answers ranged from mom to lawyer to detective.

McClain told them his three principles for life: attitude, gratitude and the power of positive thinking.

Some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue, he said.

As a boy, he rode his bicycle down the Shelbyville Dam and knocked out his front teeth. He had to go to school like that and some kids made fun of him. His parents divorced when he was a little older and that was difficult for him. However, he told the students, when he got into a funk, he learned to recognize that his bad attitude was feeding on itself, and learned how to shift his attitude and make things better.

He worked for Jimmy John's for several years as a marketing representative, traveling the country for 48 weeks a year, but he knew from a young age that he wanted to be his own boss someday. He's getting ready to launch a beverage company. Several people helped him develop the idea and move forward with it, and that's where the gratitude part of his principles comes in, he said.

Say 'thank you,'  he said. Be genuine. Be sincere. One thing money can't buy is time, so thank people for their time.

Students listened closely during his talk and afterward, Rainey Mitsdarffer called him inspiring.

He went through a lot of tough times and he always came back, she said. He was very positive thinking.

Caleb Woods said McClain was pretty cool.

Positive thinking will get you through your day, said Caleb. And you can turn a bad day into a good day.
JEFFERSON CITY  At the heart of Amendment 3, a constitutional amendment to raise Missouris cigarette tax by 60 cents, is a promise that the money will go towards early childhood education, something backers say state lawmakers have failed to adequately fund.

Language in the amendment says the revenue generated shall not be diverted to any other purpose. An ad released by supporters of the controversial measure Friday argues that this is precisely why Jefferson City politicians are fighting it.

But Rep. Scott Fitzpatrick, Missouris House budget chair, recently reminded proponents of the tax hike on Twitter that the legislature still has to appropriate the money.

@RYH4KMO @BradKetcher sorry folks but conservation doesn't stand appropriated and neither will A3 funds. #moleg still has to appropriate.  Scott Fitzpatrick (@FitzpatrickMO) October 25, 2016

He pointed toward language in the constitution that says no money shall be withdrawn from the state treasury except by warrant drawn in accordance with an appropriation made by law.

He also compared the early childhood fund the amendment creates to the Missouri Conservation Commission, which has a dedicated tax stream  the legislature cant spend the money on anything else, but they have the discretion whether or not to appropriate the money at all.

"We have declined to appropriate money for things they request," said Fitzpatrick, R-Shell Knob.

The tobacco tax amendment requires that at least 75 percent of the funds collected go toward grants intended to increase access to early childhood education programs. No less than 10 percent and no more than 5 percent is to go toward hospitals or health care facilities for early childhood initiatives, like health and development screenings for kids, but cannot go to any facilities that provide abortions.

And no less than 5 percent and no more than 10 percent of the funds are to go toward programs to help Missouris pregnant mothers or youth to quit smoking or prevent smoking altogether.

But the amendment gives very little direction in terms of specific policy, Fitzpatrick said.

Its not like the Amendment 3 proposal states in the text that the money is supposed to be used for Parents as Teachers, Fitzpatrick said, citing as an example a program that helps parents with their child's development before school begins. Were going to have to make those determinations.

As to whether or not lawmakers will withhold the money brought in by Amendment 3 if it passes, Jane Dueker, the attorney representing its backers, said she was hopeful the legislature wouldnt block proposals and let the money sit in a fund.

If they tried, it would come down to a constitutional showdown, she said.

Its a logistical question. Is it theoretical they could do that? Yes, but that would be violating the constitution and the will of the people who voted for this, Dueker said.

Linda Rallo, co-founder of Raise Your Hand for Kids, the backers of the initiative, called the appropriation by the legislature "a formality," saying their power is limited because they can't act against the constitution.

"If the legislature refused to appropriate the funds, there would likely be litigation regarding the issue," Rallo said.

Voters will weigh in on the proposed cigarette tax increase on Nov. 8.
JEFFERSON CITY  Democratic leaders in the Missouri House warned Friday that the House could take some kind of disciplinary action depending on the outcome of a legal dispute between two incoming members.

House Minority Leader Jake Hummel, D-St. Louis, and Assistant House Minority Leader Gail McCann Beatty, D-Kansas City, said questions raised in a lawsuit filed Thursday by Steven Roberts II against Cora Faith Walker are "concerning."

As this case continues through the legal system, we are hopeful the many questions it raises will be answered so that the House of Representatives may determine if institutional action is appropriate, the two said in a statement issued Friday.

Roberts filed a defamation lawsuit in St. Louis Circuit Court after a special prosecutor declined to pursue sexual assault charges against him. Walker, who is married, earlier accused Roberts of sexual assault. He says the sex was consensual.

Walker, of Ferguson, alleges her St. Louis counterpart assaulted her when they met at an apartment in August to discuss how they could work together in the legislative session that begins in January. Both are running unopposed for the Missouri House.

House Speaker Todd Richardson did not immediately respond to questions about Roberts countersuit. The Poplar Bluff Republican earlier said the kind of conduct alleged by Walker cannot be tolerated in our state and will not be tolerated in the House of Representatives.

He said the House has a zero tolerance policy for sexual assault, misconduct and harassment.

Richardson took over after his predecessor left amid a scandal involving college-age interns. He already has overseen the resignation of one member who was caught having an affair and the expulsion of a lobbyist accused of making inappropriate comments to interns.

He also presided over the chamber after two Democratic members - Courtney Curtis of Ferguson and Michael Butler of St. Louis  had a physical altercation outside a tavern in downtown Jefferson City last January.

As part of the solution, Butler was moved from his normal desk on the House floor to accommodate a distance requirement outlined in a restraining order obtained by Curtis.

Hummel and McCann Beatty, meanwhile, said they appreciate the special prosecutors efforts in concluding the criminal investigation.

In the meantime, we expect that both incoming members will take their legislative seats in January, and any challenges that might result will be dealt with as they arise, the two said.

Roberts lawsuit seeks at least $25,000 in damages on each count of defamation, malicious prosecution and inflicting emotional distress.
FERGUSON  With the help of a small army of people, a patch of cleared land beside Zion Lutheran Church was given new life Saturday.

The effort started in the early morning with a few dozen volunteers unloading a trailer full of colorful playground equipment. As the day went on, the volunteers doubled and the former site of the church parsonage evolved into a climbing wonderland.

It has been a long-range plan for the small church, which has a membership hovering around 80. A crowd-sourcing site was started, bringing in just more than $5,000 over five months, well short of the $70,000 goal. But then the fundraising efforts caught the attention of one of the regions prominent nonprofit groups that is regularly on the lookout for community service projects.

But this was not just another project to add to the Veiled Prophet Organizations long list. The secretive, predominantly white group, known for Fair St. Louis and wealthy businessmen annually crowning one of their daughters Queen of Love and Beauty, partnered for the first time with the Royal Vagabonds, an African-American group formed in the 1930s when black men were not admitted to private social clubs.

Along with a contribution from Emerson and a discount from the playground company, the money was raised.

Chad Phillips, the house maintenance manager for the Royal Vagabonds, said he was proud to work alongside friends, old and new, in his group and the Veiled Prophet.

Everybody here is not separate, he said. Were here because we want to give back to the community ... because were glad to see the positive and want to show that things are getting better here.

Talk of a community service partnership between the two organizations had been going on for about eight months among a few members of both groups. They settled on the playground project after Dave Plufka, with the Veiled Prophets Community Service Initiative, heard about it from another parishioner at Trinity Lutheran Church in Kirkwood.

They invited us up to their mansion [in the Central West End], we had some drinks and got to talking in earnest. We found ourselves having more in common than we didnt, Plufka said. That was my thinking, then I was chiding myself for being surprised.

Plufka called it heartwarming Saturday, watching volunteers from multiple groups assist in carrying 300-plus-pound equipment and filling cement in around the playground poles.

He hopes to build on the momentum and experience gained from the two groups teaming up with future projects.

Claude Brown, who serves as Grand Pharaoh of the Royal Vagabonds, said the playground project was more than a symbolic coming together.

Before we even decided to work with the Veiled Prophet Organization, we looked at the Ferguson Commission report, looking at bringing about diversity and inclusion, said Brown, former president of the St. Louis NAACP.

Brown said that after talking with men who were members of both groups, it became clear that working together on a project in Ferguson would be a great start at building a more solid relationship.

I think what they are trying to do is change the way people think of them, particularly in the African-American community, Brown said. This is a unique opportunity for both groups to prove times have changed. Our history springs from members of the Royal Vagabonds banned [from other social groups], but weve got to get away from history. Weve got to learn to work together and recognize that we are all citizens of St. Louis and deserve the right to do what is right for St. Louis. And right for the nation, actually.

The church and school, for children ages 2-12, sit just off South Florissant Road in downtown Ferguson, not far from the police station, City Hall and sites linked to protests after the shooting of Michael Brown.

Over the last few years, our students have witnessed some of the worst ugliness and hate the world has to offer, center leaders posted on their GoFundMe page. With this campaign, we hope to show them another side of our community. One of compassion and generosity.
DECATUR  Tank, like most basset hounds, looks lazy and laid-back, but he's tireless when it comes to food.

He's a counter surfer, said his owner, Sharon Andrews, who volunteers with Pet Partners. He's short, but he's long and he loves his food.

Andrews, Tank and volunteer Karen Allen, who brought her Portuguese water dog, Gabby, visited Diane Orr's first-grade classroom at Muffley School on Wednesday so the children could read with the dogs.

Orr said the dogs have been coming to her classroom for six years. Having the dogs as an audience inspires the kids to work harder on their reading, and it's fun for them, too.

Kiah Rogers, 7, has a dog of her own named Roxie, so she was comfortable snuggling next to Gabby on a beanbag chair and reading to her and to Allen, who helped with the hard words.

She's so soft, Kiah said, stroking Gabby's curly fur. When Gabby, in response, rolled over for a belly rub, Kiah accommodated.

Jada Williams, also 7, is a little bit afraid of dogs, so she sat on Allen's lap to read while Gabby listened and snoozed on the floor. Jada liked Gabby, but at a distance.

Andrews and Tank also had a steady stream of readers, and Tank had to thoroughly sniff and snuggle every one of them, to the kids' amusement. Andrews explained that bassets have sensitive noses and sniffing you is just what they do.

Pet Partners is a national organization of volunteers, who are trained alongside their own dogs and are responsible for the care of the dogs themselves. Before visiting a school, nursing home or other facility, the dogs have to be bathed, their teeth brushed and their nails done, and as with any other therapy dog, they have to be calm and friendly, welcoming petting and touching by people they don't know, Andrews said.

Pet Partners (petpartners.org) registers a variety of animals for its therapy animal program, from dogs to llamas to rats, if the animal meets the criteria and completes the training, along with its handler. The organization insists that the animal's welfare is a critical factor in their mission to enrich the lives of both humans and animals through the bonds created.

Gabby isn't comfortable in nursing homes, Allen said, but she loves visiting schools.

She was a little nervous at first here this morning, Allen said. But she's happy now. Look at her tail wagging.
When Walter White needs a motel ...

It's fair to say that Sunset Hills police and city officials have gone the extra mile in business friendliness with Shaik Amir, owner of the EconoLodge on Lindbergh Boulevard near Interstate 44. But 800 police calls in three years, for complaints about crimes including drug-dealing, prostitution and even meth manufacturing, finally convinced the city's board of aldermen to yank the motel's business license this week.

Best quote in Post-Dispatch reporter Tim O'Neil's story about the decision came from Alderman Dee Baebler: We scolded him three years ago when there was a meth lab that blew up in one of the rooms. We had a list of things to correct. But, in fact, it only got worse.

Well, sure. An exploding meth lab deserves a stern scolding. But Amir insisted it wasn't his fault. How's he supposed to know when a guest is cooking meth? Or selling drugs? Or hooking?

So he went to court to try to overturn the city's decision. Meanwhile, the motel was still taking reservations, and police were still writing reports at the rate of nearly one a day.

EconoLodge says online that the site is close to lots of St. Louis attractions but quickly adds that "guests do not need to leave the property to have a good time!" No kidding. Room prices do not include bail bond charges.

Dogs get their day

Historians aren't entirely sure how long dogs have been domesticated, but it's somewhere between 12 and 15 millennia. Now, for the first time, dog owners might be able to buy smart dog bowls. And at long last, dogs might be able to get the sheep's-milk-yogurt dog biscuits they crave.

A contest sponsored by Nestle Purina PetCare and two St. Louis investment firms has yielded five finalists for the first Pet Care Innovation Prize. Our personal favorite is the ProBowl from San Francisco-based Obe Dog Health and Happiness. No longer will you have to gaze at your dog's empty bowl and think, Huh. Time to feed the dog.

The app-based feeding system will send an alert to your smartphone, plus carefully weigh the amount of food you place in the bowl. Presumably, a really smart dog with a smartphone can send you an alert.

Obe got $10,000 for making the finals. So did the other finalists, including Ewegurt, a South Barrington, Ill., company that sells pet treats made of ewe's milk yogurt, and PupPod, which lets you play computer games with your dog. Isn't anyone offering a Timmy's fallen in the well game?

It's surprising dogs made it 12,000 years without this kind of stuff.

Pocket change

Former Illinois Rep. Aaron Schock, R-Peoria, has agreed to pay a $10,000 fine to settle a Federal Election Commission case from 2012. Before leaving Congress in March 2015, Schock was a high roller who spent more than $40,000 in taxpayer dollars to decorate his office in the style of Downton Abbey.

The settlement is over his request from a top GOP official for a $25,000 contribution from his political action committee to help another Illinois Republican in a tough primary race. The limit on such contributions is $5,000.

The status of a federal criminal investigation of Schock's campaign fund spending and $1 million-plus annual office budget has not been revealed by the U.S. Attorney's office in Springfield, Ill. The Chicago Tribune reported Monday that Schock may legally be allowed to use his leftover campaign cash to pay the election commission penalty. He had about $315,000 left in contributions in September.

Filling many tanks

When Enterprise Rent-A-Car's founder, Jack Taylor, died in July, one of his last wishes was that the company feed the hungry. Fulfilling that wish, the company's foundation is putting its money where the mouths are with a donation of $60 million to food banks around the world.

Enterprise will donate $10 million annually for the next six years, with checks to 365 local food banks in North America already on their way. Frank Finnegan, head of the St. Louis Area Foodbank, said the donation would enable the group to provide fresh fruit and vegetables to hundreds of food pantries, homeless shelters and senior citizen groups in 26 Missouri and Illinois counties.

The $60 million figure marks the company's 60th anniversary, and coincides with a hunger awareness campaign Enterprise is running on social media with the hashtag #FillYourTank.

When the emergency call comes

Kirkwood will begin answering and dispatching fire and emergency medical services for neighboring Des Peres next year, under a five-year contract that should be a model for other communities to consider combining services.

Des Peres will pay Kirkwood nearly $75,700 for the service next year, with the annual cost gradually increasing to $86,851 by 2021. Kirkwood will answer about 1,400 calls a year for Des Peres, upping its current call volume about 4.5 percent. Kirkwood has two dispatchers on call round the clock and will hire three more full-time dispatchers as part of the agreement.

Des Peres has been contracting for the services with Ellisville-based Central County Emergency 911 since 2012. That contract expires at the end of the year, and the cost was going to quadruple to nearly $149,000.

It's a smart move for these two communities that should inspire others to look at ways of consolidating services to save their residents money.
So my question is, if the department is defunded, and low pay continues, what will happen the next time the police are desperately needed and only a handful of them are available?
SPRINGFIELD  With a little more than a week to go until Election Day, more than 6 percent of Illinois record 8 million active registered voters have already cast their ballots, according to the Illinois State Board of Elections.

As of Thursday morning, 485,410 Illinoisans had voted in the Nov. 8 election either by mail, in person or using grace period registration, which allows people to register and cast their ballots at the same time.

In the 2014 general election, about 6.6 percent of registered voters cast their ballots early, accounting for 13 percent of the overall turnout of nearly 3.7 million. In 2012, the last presidential election year, nearly 16 percent of active registered voters voted before Election Day, representing 22 percent of the nearly 5.3 million ballots cast.

Jim Tenuto, a spokesman for the elections board, said early voting has become increasingly popular as the state has expanded opportunities for people to cast ballots ahead of time.

Voters could begin casting ballots Sept. 29 by mail and at the offices of local election authorities. More early voting locations opened across the state Monday and will remain open daily through Nov. 7.

Given the contentious presidential race and the fact that this is the first general election in which residents of Illinois more populated counties will be able to register at their polling places on Election Day, its hard to predict the overall turnout, Tenuto said.

It just seems like with all the registrations going up that hopefully that translates to a big turnout, he said.

The previous state record for active registered voters was a little less than 7.8 million in 2008, the year then-U.S. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois won the presidency. Overall turnout that year was nearly 72 percent.

So far this year, Rock Island County is among the top five jurisdictions for early voting, with 10.6 percent of the countys 98,732 active registered voters having already cast ballots.

The Northwestern Illinois county is also one of the areas from which the Illinois attorney generals office has heard complaints about voters not receiving mail-in ballots after sending in applications they received from third parties, spokeswoman Eileen Boyce said.

Advocacy groups, political parties and others often distribute applications for mail-in ballots, which is legal, but voters who send in the applications should make sure theyve been received by their local election authority, the attorney generals office said Thursday in an alert.

Those wishing to vote by mail must fill out an application, which their local election authority must receive by Nov. 3, the attorney generals office said. Once voters receive their ballots, they must fill out, sign and postmark them by Nov. 8. They can also be hand-delivered to the local election authority by 7 p.m. on Election Day.

The attorney generals office and the state elections board encourage those who have requested or submitted a mail-in ballot to follow up with their local election authority to make sure theyve been received. Contact information can be found at elections.il.gov.

Those whove applied and havent received a ballot or received one but havent sent it in are allowed to vote in person, either early or on Election Day.

Aside from Rock Island County, early voting rates are higher than the statewide average in several downstate jurisdictions.

In the city of Bloomington, 9.8 percent of registered voters have cast ballots, though the rate is 5.8 percent in the rest of McLean County.

The early voting rate so far is 8.1 percent in Coles County and 7.3 percent in Macon County.
As we have since July 2006, each Friday well post a mixed bag of quick cigar news and other items of interest. Below is our latest Friday Sampler.

1) Yesterday, Cigar Aficionado reported the exclusive newswhich was then widely disseminated throughout social media and on cigar websitesthat Jose Blanco will become the new senior vice president of EPC Cigar Co., the premium cigar company owned by Ernesto Perez-Carrillo. In that capacity, he will focus on building out a sales force for EPC in the U.S. Meanwhile, Las Cumbres Tabaco, which includes the Senorial and Freyja brands, will be majority owned and operated by Blancos wife, Emma Viktorsson, who will work out of Macedonia to build distribution in both Europe and the U.S. The brands will continue to be manufactured at Tabacalera Palma in the Dominican Republic. Blanco launched Las Cumbres in 2014 after serving as vice president of Joya de Nicaragua. Before that, he was the sales director for La Aurora. He cites impending FDA regulations as the primary reason for the change. The uncertainty behind the FDAs rules is the main reason, Blanco told Cigar Aficionado. They are not making the terms clear and making business very difficult.

2) The Wall Street Journal recently weighed in on the FDA clarification that cigar companies are no longer allowed to donate cigars to troops. It would be hard to find a man or woman in uniform who doesnt know that smoking is risky, reads the editorial. Then again so is combat. Meanwhile, the ban on cigar donations takes away the ability of these adults to make their own choices, contrary to President Obamas explicit promise. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) says hell try to overturn the cigar-donation ban with an amendment to the next defense authorization bill. But he adds that the FDAs overreach has given Congress good cause to take a fresh hard look at the FDAs overall tobacco rule. Members are likely to find that it is less a genuine health measure than another government power grab.

3) The book we called spectacular in a review earlier this year is on sale at a bargain price. The Cigar  Moments of Pleasure is available at Amazon and Cigars International for only $20, about a third of the original $59 list price. Its a great gift for any cigar lover.

4) Inside the Industry: Drew Estate and Pappy & Company have announced the release of the Pappy Drew Limitada (4.9 x 60). The cigar is only available to those who purchase a box of each of the three regular Pappy Van Winkle cigars (Robusto, Toro, and Churchill). It sports an overstuffed perfecto shape similar to the Feral Pig.

5) From the Archives: Back in 2011, as part of our interview with cigar maker A.J. Fernandez, we observed [A.J.] may be the best cigar maker you havent heard of. But not for long. The years since have only validated that statement, which makes the interview worth a read now in light of how prolific Fernandez has been.

6) Deal of the Week: This weeks deal is a special sampler we personally selected. The contents highlight cigars we enjoyed years ago and still remain staples in our humidors. Just $58.49 gets you 10 cigars well below MSRP, including some high-end smokes from Padron, Fuente, and Oliva.

The Stogie Guys

photo credit: Las Cumbres
CHICAGO (AP)  Regulators suspended the license Friday of an Illinois doctor known as "Dr. Million Pills" for lavishly prescribing opioid pain pills without examining patients and taking up the operation of a pill mill run by a former doctor whose license was revoked five years ago.

Dr. William J. McMahon's patients filled prescriptions up to 200 miles from his suburban Chicago clinic, according to paperwork signed by Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation Acting Director Jessica Baer.

Investigators learned one patient was running a crew of people into the doctor's office to get pills to sell. Drug Enforcement Administration investigators recorded one 60-second office visit during which McMahon provided three prescriptions for the opioid painkiller Norco without examining the patient.

The scheme allegedly involved Joseph Giacchino, a former doctor whose license was revoked in 2011. Giacchino was in the office and took the patient's $200 cash payment and put it "in his front pocket," according to Friday's suspension order.

Giacchino, once considered one of the nation's most prolific prescribers of narcotics, was the original "Dr. Million Pills." Investigators believe that after his license was revoked, Giacchino hooked up with other physicians, including McMahon, and kept the pill mill running.

An Associated Press reporter called McMahon's office Friday and asked to speak with him. A man came to the phone, answered to McMahon's name, but later said he wasn't the doctor. The man gave his name as "Louis" and said the office hadn't received the suspension order.
The European Commission has opened an in-depth probe to assess whether the proposed acquisition of Syngenta by ChemChina is in line with the EU Merger Regulation. The Commission will assess whether the deal may reduce competition in crop protection products and the supply of certain input chemicals.

Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy, said: "This deal would lead to the combination of a leading crop protection company with one of its main generic competitors. Therefore we need to carefully assess whether the proposed merger would lead to higher prices or a reduced choice for farmers".

The proposed merger would combine Syngenta of Switzerland, one of the main global seeds and crop protection companies, and ChemChina of China, which controls Adama, the largest supplier of generic crop protection products in Europe. The transaction would take place in an industry that is already relatively concentrated.

The Commission's preliminary concerns

Syngenta and ChemChina, through Adama, each have strong partially overlapping portfolios of crop protection products, including herbicides, insecticides, fungicides and plant growth regulators. These products are used for the cultivation of several of the main crops grown in Europe, including cereals, cotton, corn, fruits and vegetables, oilseed rape, soybean, sugarbeet and sunflowers.

The Commission's initial investigation identified preliminary concerns in a number of these crop protection markets and suggests that:

the parties have relatively high combined market shares in many of these markets, and that at least some of each party's products may compete directly with those of the other;

Adama may be an important generic competitor of Syngenta in many of these markets;

for a company that focuses on generic crop protection products, Adama has a broad portfolio of products, wide geographic coverage and good access to downstream distributors.

The Commission therefore has preliminary concerns that the proposed merger could reduce competition on these markets and that this in turn could have an impact on price and choices for farmers.

As well as looking into crop protection markets, the in-depth investigation will also verify whether the merger may negatively affect Syngenta's and ChemChina's supply of active ingredients. These are the key chemical input for other manufacturers to make crop protection products.

The transaction was notified to the Commission on 23 September 2016. The Commission now has 90 working days, until 15 March 2017, to take a decision. The opening of an in-depth inquiry does not prejudge the final result of the investigation.

Given the worldwide scope of Syngenta's and ChemChina's activities, the Commission is cooperating closely with other competition authorities, notably with the Federal Trade Commission in the US and the antitrust authorities of Brazil and Canada.
Oceaneering International, Inc. (NYSE: OII) announced that a unit of BP p.l.c. (NYSE: BP) has agreed to a two-year extension through January 2019 under the Field Support Vessel Services contract that was entered into with the Company for work offshore Angola on Blocks 18 and 31. Under this contract term extension, the Ocean Intervention III will remain chartered through April 2017, with five option periods for further extension of one-month each. Additional vessels and services, if any, would be provided during the remaining period of the contract, on as-needed basis.

M. Kevin McEvoy, Chief Executive Officer of Oceaneering, said, "We are pleased to have secured this contract extension with BP. In support of this contract, we are also providing a wide range of vessel-related subsea services, including remotely operated vehicles, tooling, asset integrity, and diving services. This extension strengthens our long-term commitment in Angola, which we see as a vital deepwater market for Oceaneering's services and products."
Artificial intelligence-based endpoint security software developer will offer 150 jobs over the next three years in Cork, Ireland

IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Cylance Inc., the company that is revolutionizing cybersecurity with products and services that use artificial intelligence to proactively prevent, rather than just reactively detect advanced persistent threats and malware, today announced the opening of a new office in Cork, Ireland. The launch of the companys operations in Ireland is the latest in a series of internationalization moves to meet the global demand for the companys next-generation endpoint protection product, CylancePROTECT, and to provide in-region presence to support customers across EMEA.

Cylance is currently seeking to fill a number of openings for jobs in its new Cork office, including sales, sales engineering, and customer support, with a view toward adding malware analysis and software development roles in the future. The company will be generating approximately 150 job opportunities in its new office on the South Mall in Cork over the next three years. The investment is supported by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation through IDA Ireland.

Speaking at the announcement, the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Mary Mitchell O'Connor TD warmly welcomed the investment by Cylance. I am delighted to be here today for the launch of Cylance's operation in Cork. We already have a strong footprint of ICT companies in Cork city and we are very keen to expand that by attracting a wider range of specialist IT companies. We are all aware of the crucial importance of being able to deal with cybersecurity threats and it is terrific news that a company of the stature of Cylance has decided to locate here. We have the IT skills available to enable the company to grow and to embed their operations in Ireland. Their arrival is a great vote of confidence in what Cork has to offer.

Cork has become an international cybersecurity and technology center, and we are proud to be a part of that, said Stuart McClure, president and CEO at Cylance. Our mission has always been to protect everyone under the sun, and tapping the rich technology pool in Ireland will help us greatly in this effort. The IDA Ireland has been extremely welcoming and we greatly appreciate their expert assistance.

Cylance has developed an artificial intelligence-based approach to endpoint security that is dramatically more effective than traditional antivirus products. Currently protecting millions of network endpoints (computers and servers) for more than 3,000 large enterprise customers, CylancePROTECT is preventing cyber attacks every day that could otherwise have resulted in data breaches or crippled network performance, employee productivity and brand reputation.

Commenting on the announcement Martin Shanahan, CEO, IDA Ireland, said, Cylance is one of the fastest growing companies in the history of cybersecurity. The choice of Ireland for the new EMEA Operations centre for Cylance is an endorsement of the emerging cybersecurity cluster in Cork. The citys tech infrastructure, talent pool and supportive academic network have created a compelling business environment which will continue to attract investment from companies operating in this space.

In just a few short years, the company has achieved a position of leadership in the security industry, having recently closed its Series D funding round of $100 million, much of that earmarked for supporting internationalization. In 2016 alone, Cylance has been named to the CNBC Disruptor 50 list, named in the top 100 of the Inc. 5000 fastest-growing American companies, and was called an endpoint security visionary by Gartner.

About Cylance Inc.

Cylance is the only company to offer a preventive cybersecurity solution that stops advanced threats and malware at the most vulnerable point: the endpoint. Applying a revolutionary artificial intelligence approach, the Cylance endpoint security solution, CylancePROTECT, analyzes the DNA of code prior to its execution on the endpoint to find and prevent threats others cant, while using a fraction of the system resources associated with endpoint antivirus and detect and respond solutions that are deployed in enterprises today. For more information visit: www.cylance.com.

For More Information

Cylance press releases and newsCylance events and Unbelievable Tour dates

Social Networks

Website: www.cylance.comBlog: blog.cylance.comTwitter: http://www.twitter.com/CylanceIncLinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/cylanceincYouTube: www.youtube.com/cylanceinc

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005685/en/

Media Contacts

Cylance Inc.

Cynthia Siemens

Director, PR and Communications

+1(949) 242-9221

[email protected]

or

US

InkHouse PR

Jill Gerig

+1(916) 215-3286

[email protected]

or

International

ZonicGroup PR

Hannah Whitrow

+44 (0)1672 550126

[email protected]

Source: Cylance Inc.
PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Today, the following three Delaware Investments municipal income funds, all closed-end management investment companies, declare their monthly income dividends: Delaware Investments Colorado Municipal Income Fund, Inc.; Delaware Investments National Municipal Income Fund; and Delaware Investments Minnesota Municipal Income Fund II, Inc. (together, the Funds). The investment objective of Delaware Investments Colorado Municipal Income Fund, Inc. and Delaware Investments Minnesota Municipal Income Fund II, Inc. is to provide current income exempt from federal income tax and from the personal income tax of its state, if any, consistent with the preservation of capital. The investment objective of Delaware Investments National Municipal Income Fund is to provide current income exempt from regular federal income tax consistent with the preservation of capital. In addition, each Fund has the ability to use leveraging techniques in an attempt to obtain a higher return for the Fund. Currently, each Fund has outstanding a series of variable-rate preferred shares as leverage.

The following dates apply to the above dividend announcement:

Declaration date: 10/28/2016 Ex-date: 11/08/2016 Record date: 11/10/2016 Payable date: 11/25/2016

The dividend distributions are as follows:

FUND Dividend pershare Delaware Investments ColoradoMunicipal Income Fund, Inc. (VCF) $0.06000 Delaware Investments NationalMunicipal Income Fund (VFL) $0.05500 Delaware Investments MinnesotaMunicipal Income Fund II, Inc. (VMM) $0.04750

About Delaware Investments

Delaware Investments, a member of Macquarie Group, is a global asset management firm that offers a wide variety of equity and fixed income solutions for individual and institutional investors. Delaware Investments is supported by the resources of Macquarie Group (ASX: MQG; ADR: MQBKY), a global provider of asset management, investment, banking, financial and advisory services. Visit delawareinvestments.com for more information.

Delaware Investments is the marketing name for Delaware Management Holdings, Inc. and its subsidiaries. Advisory services provided by Delaware Management Business Trust, a registered investment advisor. Macquarie Group refers to Macquarie Group Limited and its subsidiaries and affiliates worldwide. For more information about Delaware Investments, visit delawareinvestments.com or call 800 523-1918.

Neither Delaware Management Company nor its affiliates noted in this document are authorized deposit-taking institutions for the purposes of the Banking Act 1959 (Commonwealth of Australia). The obligations of these entities do not represent deposits or other liabilities of Macquarie Bank Limited (MBL). MBL does not guarantee or otherwise provide assurance in respect of the obligations of these entities, unless noted otherwise.

 2016 Delaware Management Holdings, Inc.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005911/en/

Investors

Computershare

866-437-0252

delawareinvestments.com/closed-end

or

Media contacts:

Delaware Investments

Daniela Palmieri, 215-255-8878

or

Jessica Fitzgerald, 215-255-1336

Source: Delaware Investments
WESTON, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Florida Community Bank (FCB) was recently named Mortgage Lender of the Year for the companys leadership and determination within the South Florida community. More than 800 guests attended this years Latin Builders Association 36th Annual Awards Ceremony at the Hilton Downtown Miami on September 30th, 2016. Included in the attendees was Florida Governor Rick Scott, who congratulated the winners, and Lieutenant Governor of Florida Carlos Lopez-Cabrera who presented the awards.

This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005086/en/

FCB Members with Mortgage Lender of the Year Award (Photo: Business Wire)

As one of 42 companies in the South Florida area to receive an award from the Latin Builders Association this year, FCB joins the ranks of others helping build the landscape of the local South Florida Community.

It is truly gratifying to be recognized by the Latin Builders Association for the high quality of leadership, innovation, and commitment for which FCB strives, said Kent Ellert, President and CEO of Florida Community Bank. The spirit of entrepreneurship is alive and well in Florida, and is critical to fueling the economic strength of our communities. Our dedicated associates truly make FCB the successful market leader and mortgage lender it is today.

Throughout its 44-year history, the Latin Builders Association has been vigorously involved in local, state and federal issues that have an effect on the South Florida community. With members from over 650 companies, the Latin Builders Association represents every aspect of South Floridas construction industry.

About Florida Community Bank

Established in 2010, Florida Community Bank (FCB) has grown to over $8 billion in assets, is the third largest Florida-based independent bank, and recently received a five-star rating from Bauer FinancialTM. Listed on the New York Stock Exchange, (NYSE: FCB), FCB serves the state with 48 full service banking centers. The presence of FCB blankets both Florida coasts from Daytona Beach to Miami-Dade, Naples through Tampa Bay, as well as the I-4 Corridor. FCB is among the most highly capitalized banks in the state with capital ratios exceeding the regulatory standard to be considered well capitalized by a wide margin. Complete information outlining the depth and breadth of the company is found at www.FloridaCommunityBank.com. Equal Housing Lender, Member FDIC.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005086/en/

Florida Community Bank

Isa Andrews, 407-539-7725

SVP, Marketing Director

[email protected]

Source: Florida Community Bank
IRVINE, Calif., Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Resolve Systems - The Incident Resolution Summit, a unique executive event focused on innovation and transformation efforts in IT Operations, Automation, and Security Operations, had its European debut in London last week. Resolve Systems, the global industry leader in accelerating incident resolution, continued as principal sponsor of the event and led collaborative discussions with industry trailblazers and disruptors.

Headliners of the two-day summit focused on sharing best practices on topics such as: new models for incident resolution, actionable intelligence with automation, effective security incident response, critical incident management, and cyber security. Speakers included, Aleem Cummins representing the SplunkTrust, Jennifer Arcuri, Founder and CEO of My Hacker House and Tedx Speaker and Lee Bonham, Business Change Architect from Amadeus. Participants in attendance ranged from a variety of industries and companies including: TalkTalk, Fujitsu, KPMG, Accenture, Sky, Updata, BT, and Splunk.

Aleem Cummins former Group Data Analytics CTO of Computacenter and SplunkTrust member shared that, "There is an inherent need for an event like the Incident Resolution Summit that fosters an environment for disruptors in IT Operations and Security Operations. Companies need to evaluate their technology investments and prioritize human-guided automation processes as part of their new norm."

"Hearing industry leaders share their thoughts and experiences on systemic challenges and needs solidifies Resolve's position on automation," said Zahi Yaari, Managing Director of Europe at Resolve Systems. "There is an inherent opportunity for network, service, and security organizations to make an impactful mark within their organizations by leveraging human-guided automation and incident resolution tools Resolve delivers."

The London summit follows the successful inaugural Incident Resolution Summit held in Austin, Texas earlier this year with over 100 companies in attendance. For more information on upcoming 2017 events visit www.resolutionsummit.com.

MediaResolve Systems949-954-6592[email protected]

About Resolve SystemsResolve Systems is the global leader in accelerating incident resolution for enterprise IT operations and cyber security operations that utilizes a unique combination of intelligent incident response, actionable dashboards, and human-guided automationsTM in a single, scalable platform. Headquartered in Irvine, California with Operations in EMEA, Resolve Systems has Fortune 500 customers around the world. For more information, please visit www.resolvesystems.com.

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150420/199820LOGO

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/intelligent-human-guided-automation-highlighted-at-the-london-incident-resolution-summit-300353650.html

SOURCE Resolve Systems
The Wharf has reopened at 201 W. 1st Drive in Decatur under new ownership.

Corinne Ross and her daughter, Cori Ross, now own and operate the popular bar and grill in South Shores. They worked to give it a fresh look before reopening, but didn't want to make too many changes.

The restaurant had been closed since the spring. At that time, previous owner Matt Sites opened Locals 101 Bar & Grille at 101 S. Main St.

Customers who have returned to The Wharf so far have enjoyed having the business back open, Corinne Ross said.

They just love it, she said. They all missed it.

Renovations included painting, installing new flooring and adding new appliances, Ross said. The new menu, which still includes the Wharf burger, as well as Krave frozen yogurt for dessert, is posted on Facebook.

Kitchen hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday-Wednesday and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday-Saturday. Call (217) 423-5450.

nnn

Dog lovers, especially the owners of a special needs canine, have a new grooming option at the Paw Spaw at 1370 N. Oakland Ave. in Decatur.

Owner Christie Moody, who formerly worked at Do It For The Biscuit in Oreana, said she offers full grooming services by appointment. She also does pet sitting and will provide one-on-one services or house calls for dogs with special needs.

Call (217) 791-0138 or find the business on Facebook.

nnn

More than 100 people got a sneak peek Wednesday night of Decatur Memorial Hospitals new medical facility in Shelbyville.

DMH Shelbyville Medical Center at 415 N. Cedar St. officially opens Monday.

DMH CEO Tim Stone said DMH worked with former Shelbyville resident Dr. Jeffery Pfeiffer of the Vita Center for Women in planning services that include a variety of specialties and medical services including CT scans, 4D ultrasounds, mammography, lab and physical therapy services, womens health and a Sav-Mor Pharmacy. Radiology Section Supervisor Sarah Minott of Assumption said her department is excited to provide the same types of services in Shelbyville that are available at the hospital.

It will be very convenient for patients, Minott said as she showed visitors the ultrasound facility. Theyll be able to get the services they need close to home.

ON BIZ BITS: The Pizza Hut at 910 Illinois 121 in Mount Zion has closed.
LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- International SOS, the worlds leading medical and travel security services company, announced today that Ramesh Munamarty has been appointed to the newly created position of Group Chief Information Officer. The role will be responsible for driving three strategic imperatives: Enterprise Information Technology; Digital Transformation; and Business Process Optimisation for the International SOS group of companies. The CIO position is part of the International SOS Group Executive Committee.

This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161027006543/en/

International SOS Group CIO Ramesh Munamarty (Photo: Business Wire)

Technology is absolutely essential to the customer experience and the speed to care our clients expect, said Arnaud Vaissie, Chairman and CEO of International SOS. We are investing significantly in our digital solutions to support our clients, and look forward to the expertise Mr Munamarty will contribute.

International SOS has been at the forefront of using technology to deliver medical and travel security services since its founding in 1985. They were the first company in the world to be certified in the delivery of its TeleHealth services and developed the worlds leading traveller tracking solution, TravelTracker.

It is an exciting time to join International SOS, said Mr Munamarty. The companys mission of protecting and saving lives attracted me to the company. In fact, I was so motivated by the role and opportunity I relocated to Singapore. I am looking forward to leveraging my experience with leading software companies such as Oracle and Verint to contribute to the development of world class digital products for the International SOS Group of companies.

Mr Munamarty has more than 25 years of experience in Information Technology. He spent the last 22 years in the United States and relocated to Singapore for the role with International SOS. Most recently he was the Chief Information Officer for Verint Systems, a global leader in Enterprise and Security Intelligence. He played an integral role in leveraging technology for the growth and transformation of the company. He has received several industry recognitions and was a finalist for both the Georgia CIO of the Year 2015 and the ATP CIO of the Year 2015.

Mr. Munamartys past leadership roles included 3 years as a Principal in Capgemini, one of the worlds foremost providers of technology services; and 12 years in Oracle in various roles including Director, Consulting and Director, Cloud Services.

He has also served on several boards including the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and Alpharetta Technology Commission. He chaired the Oracle High Tech Strategy Council and was an active member in the community helping non-profit organizations.

Mr. Munamarty obtained a Bachelor of Science from the National Institute of Technology, Trichy, India, a Masters in Engineering from the University of Maryland, College Park, USA, and an MBA in International Business from Georgia State University, USA.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161027006543/en/

International SOS

Erin Mitchell

t +44 (0)20 8762 8494

E: [email protected]

Source: International SOS
BRIDGEVILLE, Pa., Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, Department of Community and Economic Development Secretary Dennis Davin and representatives from ACTION-Housing, Inc. toured in-progress weatherization work to highlight the importance of the Weatherization Assistance Program in recognition of the 40th anniversary of the U.S. Department of Energy's National Weatherization Day on October 30.

"As cold weather approaches, many families across the commonwealth are turning up their thermostats," Secretary Davin said. "For low-income families, the winter months can quickly become a financial burden. Through the department's Weatherization Assistance Program, we are providing assistance to combat that challenge by providing permanent solutions to reduce energy costs and increase safety year round."

The Weatherization Assistance Program reduces energy costs for low-income eligible households by increasing the efficiency of homes through a federal allocation received from the U.S. Department of Energy, which in turn is allocated to local agencies statewide. As part of the program, an energy audit of the home is conducted to determine air flow and leakage and weatherization measures are chosen to best reduce the home's energy usage. Measures may include weather-stripping, insulation placement, and window or door repair. The federally-mandated statewide average to be spent on individual weatherization work per home is $7,105.

Eligible applicants include low-income individuals, at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level, with priority given to higher risk residents such as the elderly, disabled individuals, families with children, and high energy users.

"ACTION-Housing started implementing this program 35 years ago," said Larry Swanson, executive director of ACTION-Housing, Inc. "What started as inspection audits has evolved into truly life-changing work. Since its inception, we have fixed an estimated 41,000 homes. This program allows us to alleviate the burden of utility bills for our clients, and we continue to eradicate many unsafe living conditions. Naturally, this kind of work gives birth to compelling stories."

Another critical element of WX is DCED's partnership with the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) through which DCED receives a separate allocation of 15 percent of the statewide Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP Crisis) for the repair or replacement of furnaces during heating emergencies.

"Through our federally administered Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or LIHEAP, we are able to help keep Pennsylvanians safe and warm during the cold winter months," DHS Secretary Ted Dallas. "You, or someone you know, could be eligible for LIHEAP. Apply today at COMPASS.state.pa.us or by visiting your local county assistance office."

Since 1977, DCED in collaboration with its local partners, have weatherized more than 535,176 homes and responded to 114,620 heating crisis emergencies. To commemorate National Weatherization Day's 40th year, Governor Tom Wolf signed a proclamation to formalize the observation throughout Pennsylvania, bring further awareness to DCED's Weatherization Assistance Program, and further demonstrate the administration's commitment to creating strong, stable communities.

For more information on DCED or the Weatherization Assistance Program, please visit dced.pa.gov.

MEDIA CONTACT: Heidi Havens, 717-783-1132

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/pennsylvania-dced-secretary-dennis-davin-attends-weatherization-demonstration-in-recognition-of-national-weatherization-day-40th-anniversary-300353526.html

SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development
IT infrastructure and product flexibility help Taiwan remain a key player

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Taiwans leading auto parts brands will demonstrate their ability to remain competitive in an industry poised for disruption at the 2016 AAPEX Show, which is being held at the Sands Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada. That competitiveness is built on top of the islands outstanding IT infrastructure and flexibility in terms of responding to new market trends. Visitors to the exhibition can gain a firsthand look at the diversity of Taiwans industry at the Taiwan Excellence Pavilion (booth number 7834) from November 1st to 3rd.

Taiwanese brands move towards regional specialization to maintain their elite status

The $356 billion aftermarket auto care industry is experiencing significant growth. The average length of vehicle ownership for new and used vehicles has increased by 60% over the last ten years, according to statistics from Openbay.com. As the demand for replacement parts goes up, the value of Taiwans auto parts industry is growing yearly in both the aftermarket and OEM sectors.

In addition, demand from developed countries such as the US for high-value parts and new energy efficient vehicles is driving Taiwan's auto parts makers to aggressively move towards international consolidation and regional specialization to maintain their advantage in the industry. The demand in the US, in particular, remains high and is of great significance to Taiwan. Taiwan saw a total export value of nearly US $3 billion to the US market alone in 2015, representing a growth of 11.37%.

Taiwan can meet demands in the connected car market with its IT credentials and flexibility

As the connected car matures technologically, it will influence market trends and automakers relationships, according to a report from PwC research. This will cause the aftermarket to grow faster than average, at least in the near term, as shared mobility increases utilization. At the same time, automakers are introducing a wave of new infotainment and information technologies, including smartphone connectivity and in-dash apps, sophisticated audio and navigation systems, and even incorporating technology that recognize gesture controls.

Taiwan is especially equipped among overseas markets to cope with this disruption, thanks to a wide range of advantages. These include a comprehensive supply chain and seamless integration between central and satellite factories. This system, bolstered by a wide network of clusters strategically placed island wide, ensures production flexibility, a diversified product range along with rapid prototyping and reverse engineering. Most importantly, Taiwans exceptional IT infrastructure makes it easy for the local industry to rapidly adapt to any new technologies in the market.

Products featured at the Taiwan Excellence Pavilion (booth number 7834):

FederalFederal 595RS-RR: The UHP tire delivers remarkable dry and wet handling and delivers performance at high speeds.

TranscendDrivePro 520 Car Video Recorder: The product features a 130 view and f/1.8 aperture. The front lens captures Full HD videos.

Eagle EyesHeadlight Glory of Dark Knight: Complying with green initiatives, the light bars use next generation material and high efficiency LEDs.

ADATAThe RC300 Dash Cam: Uses advanced optics and sensors to provide accurate and responsive road recording.

Proxene Tools Co., Ltd.Fas Wernch IIRW Series: This powerful wrench provides users with two functions through the use of its magic button, allowing users to choose between regular or ratcheting functions.

KendaThe Klever H/T (KR50): The first City Crossover and SUV tire that offers a quiet, smooth and comfortable ride, with four wide grooves that help provide extreme gripping when it's wet, while offering great braking performance.

HoluxHeart-Rate Wristband Impulse 8050: The wristbands fatigue detector alerts the user and prevents dangerous driving situations.

RoximRaptor e-bike Lights: The lights super-compact range gives the user a panoramic 200 visual field of light, maintaining constant clear side and ultra-wide forward vision.

FSP GroupThe EMERGY 1000 series: An all-in-one system that integrates a Li-ion battery system, battery management system, AC charger, Photovoltaic (PV) charger, DC to AC inverter, and System Controls.

GSK InTek Co., LtdSteering Wheel: Features an airbag module and can be installed in different vehicles just by simply changing the boss plate.

The symbol of Taiwan Excellence honors Taiwans most innovative products that provide tremendous value to users worldwide. All products carrying this symbol have been selected for specific Taiwan Excellence Awards based on their excellence in design, quality, marketing, Taiwan R&D and manufacturing. Initiated by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, R.O.C. (Taiwan) in 1992, the symbol of Taiwan Excellence is recognized by 100 countries.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005118/en/

TAITRA

Angela Lin, 1-213-908-1801

[email protected]

Source: TAITRA
OUAGADOUGOU (Reuters) - Burkina Faso lost nearly a billion dollars to corruption and mismanagement in the mining sector in the decade leading up to the fall of Blaise Compaore and the year after he was forced out, according to a parliamentary inquiry.

The committee announced its findings late on Tuesday after a three-month investigation and called for charges to be brought against three ex-ministers as well as the former president's brother, Francois Compaore.

None of the ex-officials named in the report, who are living in exile in neighboring Ivory Coast, could be reached for comment.

The committee's head Ousseni Tamboura said about 551 billion CFA francs ($920 million) was lost between 2005 and 2015.

Former president Blaise Compaore ruled the West African nation for nearly 30 years before being forced out of power in 2014 when protesters took to the streets to demand he step down.

After his fall, Burkina Faso's new authorities vowed to battle corruption and arrested several former ministers in 2015, but graft has proved difficult to stamp out.

"The losses are essentially due to bad governance of the sector, bad management, and the appropriation of the mining economy for self-serving interests," Tamboura said.

The commission said Francois Compaore, who served as an advisor during his brother's rule, collected bribes of 5 billion CFA francs ($8.33 million) linked to the awarding of a mining contract in 2014, he said.

Compaore could not be reached for comment.

The commission also recommended legal action against three former ministers, without giving specific information about their alleged crimes.

"There are documents that establish criminal acts. It is up to the government to bring these to the judiciary," said president of the national assembly Salif Diallo.

A government spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment.

According to the report, fraud in the gold industry worsened after the state-owned buying office which had a monopoly was liquidated in 2006, opening the door to private buyers.

Gold leapfrogged cotton to become Burkina Faso's main export in 2009 and now accounts for roughly a fifth of economic output.

($1 = 600.4700 CFA francs)

(Reporting by Mathieu Bonkoungou; Additional reporting by Loucoumane Coulibaly in Abidjan; Writing by Nellie Peyton; Editing by Tim Cocks and Toby Chopra)
Afghan refugee boys pose next to the EU humanitarian aid sign posted outside their school in the Bardsir settlement for Afghan refugees in Kerman province, Iran, October 22, 2016. Picture taken October 22, 2016. REUTERS/Gabriela Baczynska

By Gabriela Baczynska

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Promises of more help for Afghan refugees made by the European Union aid chief on his visit to Iran this month were not enough to dissuade Mariam Haidari from wanting to head to Europe.

She plans to go to Germany to join her husband and three of their children who were among a million-strong wave of irregular migrants to arrive in Europe last year, causing a rift among the bloc's members who struggled to agree on how to deal with them.

"Life was very difficult here and my husband was the only breadwinner for the family ... We couldn't afford the living expenses," said Haidari, who was at a refugee administration center in Tehran when EU humanitarian affairs commissioner, Christos Stylianides visited the facility.

To help stem the influx, the bloc is increasing aid to certain countries on migrant routes in the hope of persuading people there to stay put. So far these have included Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon and some African countries.

Now the EU is trying this strategy in Iran, which sits on the main transit route for Afghan refugees -- the second-largest group after Syrians to have reached Europe by sea last year.

In Tehran, Stylianides announced the doubling of EU humanitarian aid to Iran to 12.5 million euros this year, with a special focus on education and health services for Afghan refugee children.

"It's better to be close to your home and move back when the situation gets better than to be far away," Stylianides said.

"It's better for Afghan refugees to integrate in this society than in Europe. Here it's the same religion, similar mentality, culture. It's much harder in, let's say, Germany."

IRAN TIES

Iran has only recently become more accessible to such EU diplomacy, enabled by a tentative rapprochement after a landmark agreement last year for Tehran to scale down its nuclear program and the West to ease its hard-hitting sanctions.

The EU hopes humanitarian aid could help re-establish ties with Iran, an Islamic republic of some 78 million people, which has a high number of executions and ranks second in the world on the highest number of imprisoned journalists.

Freedom of expression, rights of ethnic and religious minorities and women there all are a major concern for the bloc.

But during his visit Stylianides carefully avoided criticizing Iran on that, instead playing up the need to rebuild ties with Tehran to be able to engage more on the ground.

EDUCATION

Nevertheless, EU's aid to Iran fades compared to 3 billion euros the bloc promised to Turkey for its help in managing migration.

Iranian officials said foreign aid covers only about 6 percent of the cost of hosting the Afghan refugee community and said the EU should do more.

"I would call it an investment for the European Union, any kind of support to the education system," said Hamid Shamsaldili at Iran's Bureau for Aliens and Foreign Immigrants Affairs. "Any kind of support to this country will prevent these people from going to European countries."

The situation of Afghan refugees in Iran is often dire.

Iran has hosted the large refugee community for more than 30 years now as Afghans first fled the Soviet invasion, then the long Taliban insurgency and now Islamic State attacks.

A third of them have a formal refugee status with some limited benefits. But the other two millions are "undocumented", meaning that for generations they have had no access to education, jobs or healthcare.

Last year, as its ties with the West started to improve slowly, Tehran allowed children of the "undocumented" Afghan refugees to attend public primary schools. Aid groups on the ground say some 48,000 such children enrolled in 2015.

It was the first time Western aid agencies could reach out to this large and extremely vulnerable group.

"There has been quite a lot of hope, from the Iranian authorities as well as from our side, that this political opening will create more funding options," said Olivier Vandecasteele, the Norwegian Refugee Council's head in Iran.

"So far it has raised interest but it hasn't translated into any additional huge funding decisions."

At the time of Stylianides' visit, Swedish officials were in Tehran to pick 157 Afghans for resettlement, a tiny share of the large numbers of such requests.

It is mostly the younger Afghans who want to go to Europe but EU's asylum acceptance rates for them are low.

And they face dangers along the way: For those crossing the Mediterranean, as most Afghan refugees do, the UNHCR said 2016 is shaping up to be the deadliest year yet.

(Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)
By Lesley Wroughton

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A meeting on Libya in London next week will seek to break a political stalemate over the country's U.N-backed unity government, which has struggled to extend its influence beyond the capital, Tripoli, a senior U.S. official said on Friday.

Monday's ministerial meeting, convened by Britain and the United States, takes place as Libyan forces close in on the key city of Sirte, hoping to flush out Islamic State forces that grabbed it during factional infighting more than a year ago after the fall of strongman Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

"The goal in London is to ... see if we can make some progress and get beyond the stalemate, which is preventing the government from doing what it needs to do," the senior State Department official told Reuters ahead of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's arrival in London.

"Libyans are going to have to find a way forward even in the absence of any cooperation; you can't allow a small number of spoilers to destroy an entire country," the official added.

Expelling Islamic State from Sirte would shut down the militant group's main stronghold in North Africa and its only base outside Iraq and Syria.

Since Gaddafi's fall, factional fighting among brigades of former rebels, who first battled the strongman and then turned against each other, has increased while militants have profited from the security vacuum.

The United States and allies are concerned about the resistance to Libyan Prime Minister Fayez Seraj and the U.N.-backed Government of National Accord (GNA). He has been in a standoff with General Khalifa Haftar, who has waged a military campaign against Islamists and other opponents in Benghzai and the east, and blocked a parliamentary vote to endorse the GNA.

The eastern-backed parliament has twice rejected lists of ministers put forward by the GNA's leadership, or Presidential Council, which is meant to represent all sides of Libya's fractured politics.

Seraj has said he is open to talks with Haftar, whose recent seizure of oil ports has risked deepening divisions.

The State Department official said the London meeting would also discuss ways to move forward with economic decisions and a budget until a finance minister is appointed.

Officials from the World Bank and International Monetary Fund will also participate in the meeting.

Libya is highly dependent on hydrocarbon revenues and needs oil exports to resume to save its economy from collapse. The conflict has reduced oil output to a fraction of the 1.6 million barrels per day the OPEC member once produced.

(Reporting by Lesley Wroughton; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
ATHENS (Reuters) - Talks in Switzerland between rival communities on ethnically-split Cyprus in November will offer clarity on whether a peace accord can be reached this year, a United Nations envoy said on Thursday.

Estranged Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders are engaged in peace talks on reuniting the island under a federal umbrella.

The sides are scheduled to take their negotiations to Switzerland in early November to discuss territorial trade-offs defining boundaries between Greek Cypriots in the south and Turkish Cypriots in the north.

"It's ambitious, but I believe it is still possible," the United Nations special adviser for Cyprus, Espen Barth Eide, said of the deal.

"The meeting in Switzerland will be significant because it will show with more clarity whether this aim (of a solution) will be possible within the timeframe," he was quoted by the semi-official Cyprus News Agency as saying, referring to the end of this year.

The east Mediterranean island was split in a Turkish invasion in 1974 triggered by a brief Greek-inspired coup. Its division is a source of tension between NATO allies Greece and Turkey and an obstacle to Turkish aspirations to join the European Union, in which Greek Cypriots represent Cyprus.

Eide said progress in negotiations had been made, but there were still issues which needed to be settled including security and guarantees.

The security issue relates to the presence of the Turkish army on the island, and the guarantees to a decades-old treaty allowing Turkey, Britain and Greece intervention rights over Cyprus.

Greek Cypriots want the system abolished. Turkish Cypriots want a form of Turkish guarantees to remain.

Switzerland has hosted a number of rounds of negotiations on Cyprus through the decades, the latest long-haul talks being held at the mountain resort of Burgenstock in March 2004.

Those consultations finalised a reunification blueprint prepared by the United Nations which was eventually rejected in a referendum by Greek Cypriots. Turkish Cypriots accepted the plan.

(Reporting by Michele Kambas; editing by Andrew Roche)
By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon has asked the Security Council for help to resolve a stalemate between peacekeepers and the Democratic Republic of Congo government over what to do with hundreds of South Sudanese rebel fighters.

In a letter to the 15-member council, seen by Reuters on Thursday, Ban said 755 South Sudanese rebels had crossed into Congo's Garamba National Park with opposition leader Riek Machar in August. They fled the South Sudanese capital Juba in July, after fighting erupted between Machar's forces and troops loyal to his rival, South Sudan's President Salva Kiir.

U.N. peacekeepers in Congo extracted Machar, his wife, son and 10 others from Garamba at the request of the Congolese government in mid-August, Ban said.

Since then the United Nations has been trying to broker an agreement between Congo and South Sudan on the repatriation of the fighters or their relocation to a third country until a political deal is in place in South Sudan, Ban said.

On Oct. 3 the Congolese government told the United Nations peacekeeping mission, known as MONUSCO, that it wanted the fighters to leave within a week, but the mission does not have the legal authority to expel the troops from Congo, Ban said.

"At the same time, there is no basis for MONUSCO to continue providing humanitarian assistance to them, as they are no longer in a life-threatening situation," he said, adding that the mission had told the Congolese government it could not longer take care of the South Sudanese fighters.

"I am, accordingly, bringing the matter to the attention of the Security Council in order that it might take such decisions or provide such guidance as it may deem appropriate," Ban said.

In August and September, Ban said the peacekeeping mission in Congo removed 755 opposition fighters from Garamba "on lifesaving, humanitarian grounds." Eight of those died from injuries, malnutrition or ill health while in the mission's medical facilities, he added.

The United Nations has been in contact with the African Union, East African regional bloc Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and the International Committee of the Red Cross to resolve the issue.

The fighters have voluntarily handed over 134 weapons, which peacekeepers will dispose of, Ban said.

Political rivalry between Kiir, an ethnic Dinka, and his former deputy Machar, a Nuer, led to civil war in 2013 that has often followed ethnic lines. The pair signed a shaky peace deal a year ago, but fighting has continued.

South Sudan gained independence from Sudan in 2011.

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Richard Chang)








Summary Prospectus November 1, 2016 AC Alternatives 

AC Alternatives  Equity Market Neutral Fund Investor Class: ALHIX Institutional Class: ALISX A Class: ALIAX C Class: ALICX R Class: ALIRX

Before you invest, you may want to review the funds prospectus, which contains more information about the fund and its risks. You can find the funds prospectus and other information about the fund online at the web addresses listed below. You can also get this information at no cost by calling or sending an email request. The funds prospectus and other information are also available from financial intermediaries (such as banks and broker-dealers) through which shares of the fund may be purchased or sold. Retail Investors americancentury.com/funds/fund_reports.jsp 1-800-345-2021 or 816-531-5575 [email protected] Financial Professionals americancentury.com/ipro/funds/fund_reports_mf.jsp 1-800-345-6488 [email protected] This summary prospectus incorporates by reference the funds prospectus and statement of additional information (SAI), each dated November 1, 2016 (as supplemented at the time you receive this summary prospectus), as well as the Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm and the financial statements included in the funds annual report to shareholders, dated June 30, 2016. The fund's SAI and annual report may be obtained, free of charge, in the same manner as the prospectus.

Investment Objective

The fund seeks capital appreciation independent of equity market conditions.

Fees and Expenses

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the fund. You may qualify for sales charge discounts if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $50,000 in American Century Investments funds. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional and in Calculation of Sales Charges on page 13 of the funds prospectus and Sales Charges in Appendix B of the statement of additional information.

Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) Investor Institutional A C R Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) None None 5.75% None None Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load) (as a percentage of the lower of the original offering price or redemption proceeds when redeemed within one year of purchase) None None None 1.00% None Maximum Annual Account Maintenance Fee (waived if eligible investments total at least $10,000) $25 None None None None

Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

Investor Institutional A C R Management Fee 1.38% 1.18% 1.38% 1.38% 1.38% Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees None None 0.25% 1.00% 0.50% Other Expenses 1.55% 1.55% 1.55% 1.55% 1.55% Dividends on Short Sales 1.42% 1.42% 1.42% 1.42% 1.42% Broker Fees and Charges on Short Sales 0.11% 0.11% 0.11% 0.11% 0.11% Other 0.02% 0.02% 0.02% 0.02% 0.02% Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses 2.93% 2.73% 3.18% 3.93% 3.43%

1 Purchases of $1 million or more may be subject to a contingent deferred sales charge of 1.00% if the shares are redeemed within one year of the date of the purchase.

















Example

The example below is intended to help you compare the costs of investing in the fund with the costs of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods, that you earn a 5% return each year, and that the funds operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

1 year 3 years 5 years 10 years Investor Class $297 $908 $1,544 $3,245 Institutional Class $277 $849 $1,445 $3,055 A Class $878 $1,500 $2,144 $3,852 C Class $396 $1,200 $2,019 $4,136 R Class $347 $1,055 $1,785 $3,703

Portfolio Turnover

The fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or turns over its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the funds performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the funds portfolio turnover rate was 235% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The managers use quantitative models to construct the portfolio for the fund. The portfolio managers buy, or take long positions in, equity securities that they have identified as undervalued. They take short positions in equity securities that they have identified as overvalued. A short position arises when the fund sells a security it does not own but has borrowed in anticipation that the market price of the security will decline. If the market price in fact declines, the fund can replace the borrowed security at a lower price and capture the value represented by the difference between the higher sale price and the lower replacement price. The funds investment process is designed to maintain approximately equal dollar amounts invested in long and short positions at all times. By employing this market neutral strategy, the fund seeks to limit market risk (the effects of general market movements on the funds performance). A market neutral strategy seeks to limit the funds volatility relative to the market. As a result of this strategy, the portfolios price movements are not expected to correlate with the markets price movements.

In selecting stocks for the fund, the portfolio managers use quantitative management techniques in a two-step process. First, the managers rank stocks, primarily publicly traded U.S. companies with a market capitalization greater than $1 billion, from most attractive to least attractive based on an objective set of measures, including valuation, quality, growth, and sentiment. Second, the portfolio managers use a quantitative model to build a portfolio of stocks from the ranking described above that they believe will provide the optimal balance between risk and expected return.

The portfolio managers generally sell a stock when they believe it has become less attractive relative to other opportunities, its risk characteristics outweigh its return opportunity, or specific events alter its prospects.

Under normal market conditions, the fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets in equity investments.

The funds use of short selling as a principal investment strategy creates leverage in an attempt to increase returns.

The fund may engage in active and frequent trading of portfolio securities to achieve its principal investment strategies. This may cause higher transaction costs and may affect performance. It may also result in the realization and distribution of capital gains.

Principal Risks

 Management Risk  Although the fund seeks to have approximately equal dollar amounts invested in long and short positions and a neutral exposure to market movements, there is a risk that the portfolio managers will not be able to construct a portfolio of long and short positions that has limited exposure to general market movements.

 Investment Process Risk  Stocks selected by the portfolio managers using quantitative models may perform differently than expected due to the portfolio managers judgments regarding the factors used in the models, the weight placed on each factor, changes from the factors historical trends, and technical issues with the construction and implementation of the models (including, for example, data problems and/or software or other implementation issues). There is no guarantee that the use of the quantitative model will result in effective investment decisions for the fund. Additionally, the commonality of portfolio holdings across quantitative investment managers may amplify losses.

 Failure to Maintain Market Neutrality  Though the fund seeks to limit risks associated with investing in the general equity market, external conditions may impact the funds performance. In addition, although the portfolio managers intend to construct a market neutral portfolio, there is a risk that the portfolio managers will not construct a portfolio that limits exposure to general market movements.

















 Style Risk  Because the funds portfolio may not always be style-neutral, its performance may be sensitive to the value/growth cycle within the U.S. equity markets. Also, if at any time the market is not favoring the funds quantitative style, the funds gains may not be as big as, or its losses may be bigger than, those of other equity funds using different investment styles.

 Short Sales Risk  If the market price of a security increases after the fund borrows the security, the fund may suffer a loss when it replaces the borrowed security at the higher price. Any loss will be increased by the amount of compensation, interest or dividends, and transaction costs the fund must pay to a lender of the security.

 Leverage Risk  The funds investment strategy utilizes leverage, which can increase market exposure and subject the fund to greater risk and higher volatility.

 Overweighting Risk  If the fund is overweighted in a stock or sector, any negative development related to that stock or sector will have a greater impact on the fund than other funds that are not overweighted in that stock or sector.

 Small Cap Stocks  Though the fund invests primarily in larger companies, it may also invest in smaller companies. Investments in smaller companies may be more volatile and subject to greater risk than larger companies. Smaller companies may have limited financial resources, product lines and markets, and their securities may trade less frequently and in more limited volumes than the securities of larger companies, which could lead to higher transaction costs.

 Market Risk  The value of the funds shares will go up and down based on the performance of the companies whose securities the fund owns in its long portfolio or in which the fund has taken a short position.

 Price Volatility  The value of the funds shares may fluctuate significantly in the short term.

 Principal Loss  At any given time, your shares may be worth less than the price you paid for them. In other words, it is possible to lose money by investing in the fund.

An investment in the fund is not a bank deposit, and it is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) or any other government agency.

Fund Performance

The following bar chart and table provide some indication of the risks of investing in the fund. The bar chart shows changes in the funds performance from year to year for Investor Class shares. The table shows how the funds average annual returns for the periods shown compared with those of a broad measure of market performance. The funds past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the fund will perform in the future. For current performance information, please visit americancentury.com.

Sales charges and account fees, if applicable, are not reflected in the bar chart. If those charges were included, returns would be less than those shown.

Calendar Year Total Returns

Highest Performance Quarter (2Q 2006): 10.73% Lowest Performance Quarter (3Q 2008): -6.78%

As of September 30, 2016, the most recent calendar quarter end, the funds Investor Class year-to-date return was -0.98%.

















Average Annual Total Returns For the calendar year ended December 31, 2015 1 year 5 years 10 years Investor Class Return Before Taxes -0.97% 2.21% 1.46% Return After Taxes on Distributions -0.97% 2.21% 1.39% Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares -0.55% 1.70% 1.12% Institutional Class Return Before Taxes -0.78% 2.43% 1.67% A Class Return Before Taxes -6.96% 0.75% 0.61% C Class Return Before Taxes -1.92% 1.19% 0.45% R Class Return Before Taxes -1.47% 1.70% 0.95% Bloomberg Barclays U.S. 1-3 Month Treasury Bill Index

(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) 0.03% 0.05% 1.17%

The after-tax returns are shown only for Investor Class shares. After-tax returns for other share classes will vary. After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investors tax situation and may differ from those shown. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold their fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or IRAs.

Portfolio Management

Investment Advisor

American Century Investment Management, Inc.

Portfolio Managers

Brian L. Garbe, Vice President and Senior Portfolio Manager, has been a member of the team that manages the fund since 2010.

Claudia Musat, Vice President, Portfolio Manager and Quantitative Analyst, has been a member of the team that manages the fund since 2005.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

You may purchase or redeem shares of the fund on any business day through our website at americancentury.com, in person (at one of our Investor Centers), by mail (American Century Investments, P.O. Box 419200, Kansas City, MO 64141-6200), by telephone at 1-800-345-2021 (Investor Services Representative) or 1-800-345-3533 (Business, Not-For-Profit and Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans), or through a financial intermediary. Shares may be purchased and redemption proceeds received by electronic bank transfer, by check or by wire.

Unless otherwise specified below, the minimum initial investment amount to open an account is $2,500 ($2,000 for Coverdell Education Savings Accounts). Investors opening accounts through financial intermediaries may open an account with $250 for all classes except the Institutional Class, but the financial intermediaries may require their clients to meet different investment minimums. The minimum may be waived for broker-dealer sponsored wrap program accounts, fee based accounts, and accounts through bank/trust and wealth management advisory organizations.

The minimum initial investment amount for Institutional Class is generally $5 million ($3 million for endowments and foundations), but the minimum may be waived if you, or your financial intermediary if you invest through an omnibus account, have an aggregate investment in the American Century family of funds of $10 million or more.

For all share classes, there is no minimum initial investment amount for certain employer-sponsored retirement plans, however, financial intermediaries or plan recordkeepers may require plans to meet different minimums. For purposes of fund minimums, employer-sponsored retirement plans do not include SEP IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs or SARSEPs.

There is a $50 minimum for subsequent purchases, except that there is no subsequent purchase minimum for financial intermediaries or employer-sponsored retirement plans.

Tax Information

Fund distributions are generally taxable as ordinary income or capital gains, unless you are investing through a tax-deferred account such as a 401(k) or individual retirement account (in which case you may be taxed upon withdrawal of your investment from such account).

















Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase the fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank, insurance company, plan sponsor or financial professional), the fund and its related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediarys website for more information.

























































































































































































2016 American Century Proprietary Holdings, Inc. All rights reserved. CL-SUM-90212 1611




CULLEN ENHANCED EQUITY INCOME FUND Retail Class Class I Class C ENHRX ENHNX ENHCX

SUMMARY PROSPECTUS

October 28, 2016

This summary prospectus is designed to provide investors with key fund information in a clear and concise format. Before you invest, you may want to review the Funds full prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. The Funds full prospectus and statement of additional information, each dated October 28, 2016 and most recent annual report to shareholders, dated June 30, 2016 are all incorporated by reference into this Summary Prospectus. All this information may be obtained at no cost either: online at www.cullenfunds.com or by calling Cullen Funds at 1-877-485-8586.

INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE

The Cullen Enhanced Equity Income Fund (the Enhanced Equity Income Fund or the Fund) seeks long-term capital appreciation and current income.

FEES AND EXPENSES OF THE FUND

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Enhanced Equity Income Fund.

Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment):

Retail Class Class C Class I Redemption Fee (as a percentage of amount redeemed)a 2.00% 2.00% 2.00%

Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment):

Retail Class Class C Class I Management Fee 1.00% 1.00% 1.00% Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees 0.25% 1.00% 0.00% Other Expenses 6.37% 6.56% 6.56% Acquired Fund Fees & Expenses 0.01% 0.01% 0.01% Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses 7.63% 8.57% 7.57% Less Expense Reduction/Reimbursementb -6.62% -6.81% -6.81% Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement 1.01% 1.76% 0.76%

a You will be charged a 2% redemption fee if you redeem or exchange shares of the Enhanced Equity Income Fund within seven (7) days of purchase. The redemption fee is payable to the Enhanced Equity Income Fund and is intended to benefit the remaining shareholders by reducing the cost of short term trading. The Enhanced Equity Income Funds Transfer Agent charges a $15 wire redemption fee to shareholders who elect to redeem by wire transfer.

b Cullen Capital Management LLC (the Adviser) has contractually agreed to limit the Net Annual Fund Operating Expenses (excluding Acquired Fund Fees & Expenses (AFFE), interest, taxes, and extraordinary expenses) to not more than 1.00% for Retail Class shares, 1.75% for Class C shares and 0.75% for Class I shares of the Enhanced Equity Income Fund, through October 31, 2017 (the Termination Date). The Adviser may, due to a recapture provision of the written fee waiver and expense reimbursement agreement (the Agreement), recapture any expenses or fees it has reduced or reimbursed within a three-year period from the date of reimbursement, provided that recapture does not cause the Enhanced Equity Income Fund to exceed existing expense limitations. The Agreement to limit the Net Annual Fund Operating Expenses may not be terminated by either the Enhanced Equity Income Fund or the Adviser prior to the Termination Date.

Expense Example

This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Enhanced Equity Income Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. This example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Enhanced Equity Income Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes your investment has a 5% return each year, and that the Enhanced Equity Income Funds operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

SUMMARY PROSPECTUS October 28, 2016

Cullen Enhanced Equity Income Fund

1 Year 3 Years* Retail Class $ 103 $ 1,649 Class C $ 179 $ 1,887 Class I $ 78 $ 1,616

* The Expense Example amounts assume that the expense waiver and reimbursement agreement remains in effect only through October 31, 2017. Thus, the 3 year example reflects the expense waiver and reimbursement only for the first year.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER

The Enhanced Equity Income Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (portfolio turnover). A higher portfolio turnover rate will result in higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when the Enhanced Equity Income Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Enhanced Equity Income Funds performance. Further, by writing covered call options, the Funds portfolio securities are susceptible to being called by the holder of the option, thereby creating a likelihood of additional portfolio turnover. During the most recent fiscal period, the Enhanced Equity Income Funds portfolio turnover rate was 86% of the average value of its portfolio.

PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES

The Enhanced Equity Income Fund invests, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets, plus borrowings for investment purposes, in dividend paying common stocks of medium-capitalization companies (which are companies with a typical capitalization range of between $5 billion and $12 billion at the time of investment) and large-capitalization companies (which are companies with a typical capitalization range greater than $12 billion at the time of investment). As a point of comparison, a high dividend common stock that the Enhanced Equity Income Fund would invest in would generally have a dividend yield greater than the average dividend yield of the equity securities in the S&P 500 Index.

The Enhanced Equity Income Fund invests roughly similar amounts of its assets in each stock in the portfolio at the time of original purchase, although the portfolio is not systematically rebalanced. This approach avoids the overweighting of any individual security being purchased. In addition to seeking high dividend yield, the Adviser employs a value style investing approach, which means that it selects stocks for the portfolio by screening for securities with low price-to-earnings ratios but that possess above-average earnings and dividend growth potential. For securities that meet such screening criteria, the Adviser will conduct fundamental research on the underlying company. The Adviser may sell portfolio stocks when they are no longer attractive based on their growth potential, dividend yield or price.

As part of its strategy, the Enhanced Equity Income Fund, in order to generate additional portfolio income, will selectively write covered call options, on a target range of between 25-40% of the underlying equity securities owned by the Enhanced Equity Income Fund. A call option is a short-term contract entitling the purchaser, in return for a premium paid, the right to buy the underlying equity security at a specified price upon exercise of the option at any time prior to its expiration. Writing a covered call option allows the Enhanced Equity Income Fund to receive a premium. A call option gives the holder the right, but not the obligation, to buy the underlying equity stock from the writer of the option at a given price during a specific period.

3

The Enhanced Equity Income Fund may invest up to 30% of its assets in foreign securities. These investments are generally made in American Depositary Receipts (ADRs), which trade on U.S. exchanges. ADRs may be purchased through sponsored or unsponsored facilities. A sponsored facility is established jointly by the issuer of the underlying security and a depositary, whereas a depositary may establish an unsponsored facility without participation by the issuer of the depositary security. Holders of unsponsored depositary receipts generally bear all the costs of such facilities and the depositary of an unsponsored facility frequently is under no obligation to distribute shareholder communications received from the issuer of the deposited security or to pass through voting rights to the holders of such receipts.

The Enhanced Equity Income Fund generally invests substantially all of its assets in common stocks and ADRs but may invest in other equity securities, which can include convertible debt, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that invest primarily in equity securities, warrants, rights, equity interests in real estate investment trusts (REITs), equity interests in master limited partnerships (MLPs), and preferred stocks.

The Fund will not engage in derivatives except to the extent that the writing of covered call options is deemed to involve derivatives.

PRINCIPAL RISKS

Like all investments, investing in the Enhanced Equity Income Fund involves risks, including the risk that you may lose part or all of the money you invest.

General Stock Risks. The Enhanced Equity Income Funds major risks are those of investing in the stock market, which can mean that the Enhanced Equity Income Fund may experience sudden, unpredictable declines in value, as well as periods of poor performance. Periods of poor performance and declines in value of the Enhanced Equity Income Funds underlying equity investments can be caused, and also be further prolonged, by many circumstances that can confront the global economy such as declining consumer and business confidence, malfunctioning credit markets, increased unemployment, reduced levels of capital expenditure, fluctuating commodity prices, bankruptcies, and other circumstances, all of which can individually and collectively have direct effects on the valuation and/or earnings power of the companies in which the Enhanced Equity Income Fund invests. Stock markets worldwide have experienced significant volatility in recent periods as a result of market participants reacting to economic data and market indicators that have contradicted previous assumptions and estimates. At times, these reactions have created scenarios where investors and traders have redeemed their investments/holdings en masse thereby creating additional and often significant downward price pressure than might be experienced in less volatile periods. In the future, market participants views on the valuation and/or earnings power of a company and the overall state of the economy can cause similar significant short-term and long-term volatility in the value of the Enhanced Equity Income Funds shares. As a result, you could lose money investing in the Enhanced Equity Income Fund.

Options or Covered Call Writing. The market price of the covered call options will, in most instances, move in conjunction with the price of the underlying respective equity security. However, if the security rises in value and the covered call option is exercised, the Enhanced Equity Income Fund may not participate fully in the market appreciation of the security, which may negatively affect your investment return. The Funds writing of covered call options are also subject to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the other party in the transaction will not fulfill its contractual obligation.

SUMMARY PROSPECTUS October 28, 2016

Cullen Enhanced Equity Income Fund

The U.S. government is in the process of adopting and implementing regulations governing derivatives markets, which may include options or covered call writing, including mandatory clearing of certain derivatives, margin, reporting and registration requirements. The ultimate impact of the regulations remains unclear. Additional U.S. or other regulations may make derivatives more costly, may limit the availability of derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives. Future regulatory developments may impact the Funds ability to invest or remain invested in certain derivatives. The Adviser cannot predict the effects of any new governmental regulation that may be implemented on the ability of the Fund to use derivative products, including options or covered calls, and there can be no assurance that any new governmental regulation will not adversely affect the Funds ability to achieve its investment objectives.

Medium-Capitalization Companies Risk. The Enhanced Equity Income Fund may invest in the stocks of medium-capitalization companies. Medium-capitalization companies often have narrower markets and limited managerial and financial resources compared to those of larger, more established companies. As a result, their performance can be more volatile and they face greater risk of business reversals, which could increase the volatility of the Enhanced Equity Income Funds portfolio.

Large-Capitalization Companies Risk. The Enhanced Equity Income Fund may invest in the stocks of large-capitalization companies. Securities issued by large-capitalization companies tend to be less volatile than securities issued by smaller companies. However, larger companies may not be able to attain the high growth rates of successful smaller companies, especially during strong economic periods, and may be unable to respond as quickly to competitive challenges.

Value Style Investing Risk. Different types of equity investment strategies tend to shift in and out of favor depending on market and economic conditions, and the performance resulting from the Enhanced Equity Income Funds value investment style may sometimes be lower than that of equity funds following other styles of investment.

Foreign Securities Risk. Foreign investments involve additional risks, which include currency exchange-rate fluctuations, political and economic instability, differences in financial reporting standards, and less-strict regulation of securities markets. More specific risks include:

 future political and economic developments,

 the imposition of foreign withholding taxes on dividend and interest income payable on the securities,

 the possible establishment of exchange controls,

 the possible seizure or nationalization of foreign investments, and

 the adoption of other foreign governmental restrictions which might adversely affect the payment of amounts due with respect to such securities.

You may lose money by investing in the Enhanced Equity Income Fund if any of the following occur:

 foreign stock markets decline in value,

 the Enhanced Equity Income Fund has difficulty selling smaller capitalization or emerging market stocks during a market due to lower liquidity,

 the value of a foreign currency declines relative to the U.S. dollar, or

 political, social or economic instability in a foreign country causes the value of the Enhanced Equity Income Funds investments to decline.

All of the risks of investing in foreign securities are heightened by investing in emerging markets. Emerging markets have been more volatile than the markets of developed countries with more mature economies. ADRs are subject to the risks of foreign investments and may not always track the price of the underlying foreign security. Even when denominated in U.S. currency, the depositary receipts are subject to currency risk if the underlying security is denominated in a foreign currency.

5

Market Disruptions Risk; Sovereign Debt Crises Risks. Beginning in 2008 and continuing through much of 2009 and 2010, the global financial markets underwent pervasive and fundamental disruptions, resulting in substantial declines in valuation and liquidity in the global capital markets. This global market turmoil, combined with a global reduction in the availability of credit, has led to an increased level of commercial and consumer delinquencies and contributed to a lack of consumer confidence, increased market volatility and reduction of business activity generally. The resulting economic pressure on consumers and lack of confidence in the financial markets also adversely affected the equity markets. Consumer and business confidence remains fragile and subject to possible reversal for a variety of reasons, including high and growing debt levels by many consumers, business institutions and governments in the United States, certain countries in Europe and elsewhere around the world, and continued weakness in global job markets. The securities of the United States, as well as several countries across Europe and Asia, have in recent years been, or are at risk of being, downgraded, and sovereign debt crises have persisted in certain countries in those regions. These events and circumstances could result in further market disruptions that could adversely affect financial markets on a global basis.

Government Intervention Risk. The global financial markets have in the past few years gone through pervasive and fundamental disruptions which have led to extensive and unprecedented governmental intervention. Such intervention has in certain cases been implemented on an emergency basis, suddenly and substantially eliminating market participants ability to continue to implement certain strategies or manage the risk of their outstanding positions. In addition, these interventions have typically been unclear in scope and application, resulting in confusion and uncertainty which in itself has been materially detrimental to the efficient functioning of the markets as well as previously successful investment strategies.

Derivative contracts, including, without limitation, swaps, currency forwards and non-deliverable forwards, are subject to regulation under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the Dodd-Frank Act), enacted in July 2010. Under the Dodd-Frank Act, certain derivatives may become subject to margin requirements when regulations are finalized. Implementation of such regulations under the Dodd-Frank Act regarding clearing, mandatory trading and margining of swaps and other derivatives may increase the costs to the Fund of trading in these instruments and, as a result, may affect returns to investors in the Fund. In December 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission proposed a new rule to regulate the use of derivatives by registered investment companies. If the rule goes into effect, it could limit the ability of the Fund to invest or remain invested in covered call options, to the extent that covered call options are deemed to involve derivatives.

PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

No performance information is available for the Enhanced Equity Income Fund because it has not yet completed a full calendar year of operations. In the future, the Enhanced Equity Income Fund will disclose performance information in a bar chart and performance table. Such disclosure will give some indication of the risks of an investment in the Enhanced Equity Income Fund by comparing the Enhanced Equity Income Funds performance with a broad measure of market performance and by showing changes in the Enhanced Equity Income Funds performance from year to year. Updated performance information will be available at www.cullenfunds.com.

SUMMARY PROSPECTUS October 28, 2016

Cullen Enhanced Equity Income Fund

INVESTMENT ADVISER

Cullen Capital Management LLC serves as the investment adviser to the Enhanced Equity Income Fund.

PORTFOLIO MANAGERS

James P. Cullen, the Advisers Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and controlling member, has been a portfolio manager of the Enhanced Equity Income Fund since the Funds inception on December 15, 2015. He is also a founder of Schafer Cullen Capital Management, Inc., a registered investment adviser, and has been its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer since December 1982.

Jennifer Chang has served as a co-portfolio manager of the Enhanced Equity Income Fund since its inception on December 15, 2015. Ms. Chang currently serves as Portfolio Manager and Executive Director at the Adviser and has worked there since 2006.

Tim Cordle has served as a co-portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception on December 15, 2015. Mr. Cordle currently serves as Portfolio Manager and Managing Director at the Adviser and has worked there since 2012.

Mike Kelly has served as a co-portfolio manager of the Fund since October 28, 2016. Mr. Kelly currently serves as Portfolio Manager and Research Director at the Adviser and has worked there since 2007.

PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES

You may purchase or redeem shares of the Enhanced Equity Income Fund on days the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is open for trading by written request to the addresses below, by wire transfer, by telephone at 1-877-485-8586 or through any broker/dealer organization that has a sales agreement with the Enhanced Equity Income Funds distributor. Purchases and redemptions by telephone are only permitted if you previously established these options on your account.

Regular mail: Cullen Funds, P.O. Box 13584, Denver, Colorado 80201

Overnight mail: Cullen Funds, 1290 Broadway, Suite 1100, Denver, Colorado 80203

The Enhanced Equity Income Fund accepts investment in the following minimum amounts:

Share Class: Initial Additional Retail Class-Regular Accounts $1,000 $100 Retail Class-IRAs and UGMA/UTMA Accounts, Simple IRA, SEP-IRA, 403(b)(7), Keogh, Pension Plan and Profit Sharing Plan Accounts $250 $50 Class C-Regular Accounts $1,000 $100 Class C-IRAs and UGMA/UTMA Accounts, Simple IRA, SEP-IRA, 403(b)(7), Keogh, Pension Plan and Profit Sharing Plan Accounts $250 $50 Class I $1,000,000 $100

 A registered investment adviser may aggregate all client accounts investing in Class I shares of the Enhanced Equity Income Fund to meet the investment minimum.

 If you use an Automatic Investment Plan (AIP) for a regular account for the Retail Class or Class C shares, the initial investment minimum to open an account is $50 and the additional investment minimum is $50.

 If you use an AIP for a custodial or retirement plan account for the Retail Class or Class C shares, the initial investment minimum to open an account as well as the monthly additional investment amount is $25.

7

TAX INFORMATION

The Enhanced Equity Income Funds distributions to you are taxable, and will be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains, unless you are investing through a tax-deferred arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account (IRA).

FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARY COMPENSATION

If you purchase the Enhanced Equity Income Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank or financial adviser), the Enhanced Equity Income Fund and/or its Adviser may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other financial intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Enhanced Equity Income Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediarys website for more information.
PESTEL, Haiti  Helping Haiti after Hurricane Matthew can be a Herculean ordeal. Thats true for Coconut Creek, Fla.-based Food for the Poor despite being permanently on the ground in the country with the largest of its satellite offices.

But, by scale, the natural disaster was manageable compared to the 2010 earthquake.

The earthquake  there were almost 250,000 who died and 1.3 million left homeless, living in tents or whatever they could get under, said Food for the Poor Executive Director Angel Aloma. There were areas where any open land you saw was covered by people living that way. It was difficult just to get into the country. We had to get things in through the Dominican Republic.

This one is smaller in scope  1,000 deaths and there could be as many as 100,000 displaced or homeless people.

Less raw, brutal carnage still meant widespread major hardship for Haiti. The storm in early October wiped out crops, killed farm animals that fed families and forced close-quarters living, often in less than sanitary conditions. Standing water invited cholera.

To help deal with water-borne diseases, Food for the Poor shipped and set up eight solar powered water-filtration systems, each able to pump 10,000 gallons of filtered water per day.

As elsewhere, the organizations work in Haiti goes well beyond the elements in its name. The Matthew relief goods sent to Haiti included hygiene kits with soap, toothpaste and toothbrushes and 5,000 cases of oral rehydration salts to treat cholera victims.

One of the post-Matthew goals is to build 1,000 homes in 100 days.

After the earthquake we were able to build 6,200 homes, Aloma said. If we have a strong push, we could manage 1,000 homes. Its a reachable goal, but a stretch goal financially and in the construction of the houses.

Both come back to the fundamental that dominates helping in Haiti: logistics. Getting what you need is one thing. Getting what you need to where you need it is something else.

Aloma said the greatest initial problem after the hurricane was the lack of communication because of the destruction of the bridge [to the most affected area] and the roads. We had to wait to get an idea of how bad it was.

As the government rebuilt the roads, a Food for the Poor barge came into Pestel with a truck and forklift. Trucks rolled into Jeremie with food, hygiene kits, blankets, anything they might need.

Logistics is why nothing beats cash for medium- and small-scale giving from individuals. In fact, Food for the Poor isnt accepting clothing donations for Haiti at all.

Aloma explained one large donor contributes loads of clothes that come sterilized and packed in bales. The donor pays half the shipping. So, Food for the Poor doesnt need clothes. It needs money.

Hormel Foods contributed 5,000 cases of food, mostly canned meats with a generous storage life. Food for the Poor just has to get that contribution to storage or to people in need. Delivery costs money.

Whether an area is impoverished, recovering from disaster or both, the rules remain the same: cash talks.

As Matthew hit on Oct. 4, Food for the Poors public relations arms began reaching out via mail, e-mail, public service announcements, the media.

Whenever the media picks up a story, the American people respond quickly, Aloma said.

Ask Aloma how much cash Food for the Poor needs in Haiti and you understand how the charitys task there can seem Sisyphean as well as Herculean.

Haitis normal is crisis. If we were to take every dollar we raise for the 17 countries we serve and poured them into Haiti, it still wouldnt be enough, Aloma said. The reason is the government  they have the will, but they dont have the resources because 80 percent of the people are getting by on less than $2 per day. Theres billions of dollars of infrastructure needed.

Narrowing the scope to Matthew recovery, we raised $20.7 million after the earthquake. The press stayed with that story for a month. If the press does the same for this, wed like to raise a few million.

A few being $5 million for housing and $10 million overall.
New Braunfels, TX (78130)

Today

Mostly cloudy skies. Slight chance of a rain shower. High 73F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Some clouds. Low 59F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph.
Vardan Harutyunyan was appointed chairman of Armenias State Revenue Committee twenty days ago by Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan.

The committee oversees all tax and customs services throughout the country.

Lets now look at Harutyunyans personal finances.

On October 8, the new committee chief filed a financial disclosure, per the law, with the Ethics Committee for High Ranking Officials.

He disclosed 123 million AMD (US$259,000) in revenues, all in the form of wages from his prior job as the head of administration and general director at Armrusgasprom.

Harutyunyan also declared $121,640 in interest from loans he provided.

As for bank deposits, he declared 46 million AMD ($96,800), $54,105, and 110 Euros. He also owns shares in a company worth 309.3 million AMD ($651,000).

Harutyunyan owns three apartments, three automobiles, two houses and twelve tracts of land.
Armenian Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan joined the prime ministers of Belarus, Russia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan at todays Council of CIS Heads of Government in the Belarus capital of Minsk.

The government heads backed a draft calling for a 2017 unified budget of CIS bodies. Another issue discussed was the draft of the new Customs Code of the EAEC.

Talking to reporters after the session, Karapetyan said that the discussions were interesting and since some issues remained unresolved the council will meet on November 15 in Moscow.
Mobile black spots in the Bay of Plenty and Coromandel could soon be receiving full coverage.

A request for proposals has been issued to extend the Rural Broadband Initiative and provide mobile coverage to black spots on state highways and in tourist areas.

Noted black spots in the Bay include State Highway 35 between Otamaroa and Tokomaru Bay, and from Raukokore to Omarumutu, and also SH2 between Te Karaka and Opotiki. In the Coromandel, one black spot on SH25A between Kopu and the Tairua River Bridge will be improved.

While tourist locations in the Bay with black spots include Adrenalin Forest at the TECT All Terrain Park, Kaingaroa Forest, Lake Tarawera, Maraehako Bay Retreat, Rangitaiki, Te Kaha, Te Wairoa (Buried Village), Waitangi in Rotorua, and Whanarua Bay.

Tourist locations in the Coromandel include the Coromandel Coastal Walkway, Fletchers Bay, Papa Aroha, Port Charles, and the Waitawheta Track.

Communications Minister Amy Adams says improved broadband and mobile services for rural New Zealand will grow regional economies and boost tourism in key destinations.

Around 293,000 rural New Zealanders are accessing better broadband under the first phase of our RBI programme. This next stage sees an investment of $150 million to extend coverage to even more New Zealanders, says Amy.

My aim is to provide high-speed broadband to the greatest number of under-served rural New Zealanders within the funding available, and give regional communities access to high-speed broadband. We also want to improve the reach of mobile services to support safety on State Highways and enhance the visitor experience for tourists.

There are more than 200 mobile black spots noted in the RFP for potential inclusion but the minister notes it is important to understand not all those locations will get coverage and others not listed could also end up with increased coverage.

The RFP is open to any telecommunications technology able to meet a set of user outcomes. For the Mobile Black Spot Fund theres a minimum requirement to provide 3G voice services, with 4G preferred in tourist areas. The RBI2 and MBSF programmes will deliver open access to government funded infrastructure (towers, cabinets), with exemptions from some obligations for regional operators.

Weve set an ambitious goal of ensuring that by 2025, 99 per cent of New Zealanders will have access to broadband peak speeds of at least 50Mbps, and everyone will have at least 10Mbps, says Amy.

Were interested in seeing how proposals for delivering coverage under the RBI2 and MBSF programmes show an upgrade path in line with this vision.

Its expected the first contracts will be awarded by June 2017.

Prospective bidders can find the RFP on the GETS website. The RFP closes on February 2, 2017.
Tauranga MP Simon Bridges visited Matua Primary today to announce three new classrooms for the school.

They are among eight new classrooms being built in the Bay of Plenty and Coromandel, thanks to Ministry of Education investment.

Along with Matua Primary, Katikati Primary School will also receive three new classrooms, and Tairua School in the Coromandel will be getting two.

During this mornings announcement, Simon was welcomed by Matua Primarys kapa haka group, with assembled students of all ages looking on. This was followed by the singing of the school song.

Principal Craig Wallis then spoke in both Te Reo and English, welcoming all attendees and their very special guest.

He asked the children what they thought Simons role as Minister of Transport involved, to which a child replied: Hes in charge of the whole school.

Craig explained the minister helps our whole country by making rules about cars, buses and other transport.

Simon then spoke, joking about Matua being the best suburb in the city, before revealing the news of the three new classrooms. This was met with audible gasps from some students.

He asked how many students were born in Tauranga, with around half putting their hands up. This was taken as an indication of the citys growth, and the need for more classrooms.

Weve had really strong growth recently, and these classrooms are about future-proofing the school, he says.

We want to keep Tauranga as the best place to grow up in New Zealand.

When asked about the time frame for building the new classrooms, the minister was unable to give an end date.

But we dont want to muck around. We want to children to be learning in, and enjoying, these new classrooms.

The announcement is part of a second round of investments in new classrooms under Budget 2016, which provides $882.5 million for school property, including 480 classrooms nationwide to meet roll growth.

The news also follows the $18 million announced for a new school in the Pyes Pa area.

From Left: Matua Primary Board of Trustees Chair Stephen Tisch, Tauranga MP Simon Bridges, and Principal Craig Wallis. Photo: Bruce Barnard.
The Bay of Plenty Regional Council has officially welcomed its newest member of their fleet.

New vessel Moko, named after the dolphin that frequented Te Awanui Tauranga Harbour as well as all marine taonga, was blessed by kaumatua Reon Tuanau at a special ceremony held outside the Tauranga Yacht & Power Boat Club this morning.

Bay of Plenty Harbourmaster Peter Buell says its going to be great to have such a versatile vessel available for patrol on Tauranga Harbour this summer.

Its low and soft sides make it easier to approach other vessels and the layout means there is a great platform for our scientists to work from. Its also extremely light to tow, efficient to run and can be used by one person in stable weather conditions.



Moko is a 5.5 metre rigid hulled inflatable which features a Yamaha 100hp motor and customized bimini top.Photo: BOPRC.

Peter says Moko is surveyed to carry up to eight people and will be useful in emergency situations as it has the capacity to tow other boats.

Moko will be based in Tauranga but will serve the wider Bay of Plenty region as required.

Youll see her out and about this summer helping the maritime team keep people safe on the water.

The regional councils Long Term Plan commits the maritime team to ensuring 24/7 navigation safety and maritime oil spill response is provided in the Bay of Plenty region.

BOPRCs goal is to ensure that all harbour, lake and river users operate safely and in harmony with one another and the environment, to ensure the regions waters are available for all to enjoy.



From left: Bay of Plenty Regional councillors John Cronin, Jane Nees and Arapeta Tahana with Harbourmaster Peter Buell and kaumatua Reon Tuanau. Photo: BOPRC.

Photo: BOPRC.
A dedicated and driven 15-year-old from Tauranga has just won New Zealands most prestigious senior ballet scholarship.

Olivia Moore beat out 30 other contenders to win the Sir John Logan Campbell Major Ballet Award at the Auckland Caledonian Dancing Society Competition, which doubles as the New Zealand Ballet Nationals, held recently.

Its a bit of surreal experience for Olivia, says Mum Kat, because its such an important awards for ballet dancers. And I am very,very,very proud.

Proud but gracious. To be fair, there were three other girls and a boy who were as good as Olivia. It was tight. But she has an amazing performance ability and that set her apart.

The award, which is valued at $5000 and is now into its 40th year, is perceived as the pinnacle prize for ballet students whose ambition is to become a professional dancer. Many winners have gone on to dance with companies in Australia, Germany, Denmark and the United Kingdom.

Olivia also found out last week shes been accepted into the New Zealand School of Dance for full-time training as a Classical Major.

For a 15-year-old that is a pretty amazing achievement, says Kat.

Olivia the Auckland Caledonian Dancing Society Competition held recently. Supplied Photo.

Its also amazing how she got there. Technically Olivia is still a Year 10 student, but she needed NCEA Level 1 Dance in order to audition.

So she withdrew from college, skipped a year and did NCEA Level 1 this year through Te Kura correspondence so she could audition. She saved herself a year and was accepted. Shes been like that since she was little, says her Mum.

Olivias has already been offered places overseas but she wants to stay in New Zealand in the short term.

We have watched the good kids get taken. says Kat. They go overseas and you dont hear of them again unless they really, really make it. Olivia didnt want to be one of those kids.

Her Mum says Olivia wants to be the best in New Zealand, a name in New Zealand, keep her talent in New Zealand and be loyal to the training she has received here. And on that score shed like to give a shout to her teacher and mentors including Debbie and Prue Gooch at The Dance Education Centre.

But clearly there will come a time.

The Moore ballet dynasty doesnt stop with Olivia.

Thirteen-year-old sister Arabella has just auditioned for the associate programme at the School of Dance which Olivia has just completed, and waiting in the wings is 8-year-old sibling Lucia. Both sisters dance nationally.

Mum Kat was also a dancer. But certainly not to their level. I was a rhythmic gymnast and then jazz, but not ballet.

Photo: Beth Maskey Photography
The emergency services and armed forces are teaming up in Papamoa this weekend to help put an end to family violence in all of its many forms.

Family violence is not just physical  violence can be psychological and emotional, both of which are very common forms of violence against women and children.

This Sunday at Gordon Spratt Reserve the emergency services and armed forces are banding together for the Emergency Services and Armed Forces Open Day to get a message across  Its okay to ask for help.

Tauranga Moana Abuse Prevention Strategy  or TMAPS  is working with the services to help raise awareness to stop violence.

Family violence response coordinator Heather Beddie from Family Works says our communities are part of the solution.

To partner with all our emergency services and armed forces sends a clear message across the Bay of Plenty, says Heather.

Whether you are a husband, father, son, brother, uncle or granddad, we all have women in our lives that we love and wouldnt want to see subjected to violence.

The services involved are currently fire, Police, NZ Defence Force, St John ambulance, civil defence, land search and rescue, TrustPower rescue helicopter, plus Classic Flyers and more.

Papamoa Police officer Phil Gillbanks says the event is an important one in the communitys calendar.

Its to raise awareness of family violence in the Western Bay of Plenty, in particular the its not ok campaign. Its also to show a unified support by the service organisations as we all recruit from various walks of life.

For me its about pulling as many of the community together who can come down and have a good day at a family-friendly event, come and meet their emergency services personnel, see what equipment weve got and to, at the same time, take a stand against family violence in our community.

Held at the Gordon Spratt Reserve on Parton Road, therell be plenty to do for the whole family while getting across all-important key messages.

The providers of family violence services will also be in attendance and have resources for families and for the children, says Heather.

There will be contingent of the its ok to ask for help champions throughout the grounds as well as running a colouring competition for children with donated prizes from services and businesses throughout the area.

The businesses from Papamoa have been extremely generous and thanks go to them for their commitment to the children.

Tauranga Moana Abuse Prevention Strategys Emergency Services and Armed Forces Open Day takes place at Gordon Spratt Reserve in Papamoa on Sunday, October 30, from 10am to 3pm.

For more information visit TMAPSs Facebook page.
Police have arrested a Finnish man in connection with the death of the 51-year-old Brit outside the Cercanias train station

The body was taken away for forensic examination. :: SALVADOR SALAS

A Finnish man in his fifties has been arrested on suspicion of voluntary manslaughter as National Police continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of a man whose body was found on a bench near the Cercanias train station at Malaga airport on Friday morning. The man was lying faced down on a bench to which he had been tied with cable ties, according to sources.

The body was discovered by an airport security guard just before 9am. Forensic police and homicide specialists were called to the scene and the area cordoned off. Shocked tourists recorded videos as the body was removed by police.

A luggage trolley carrying personal belongings was found next to the body. Among the items was documentation that allowed police to identify the man as a 51-year-old British national, Steven Frank A., who is thought to have suffered from bouts of schizophrenia and problems with alcohol.

As well as having hands and feet tied, police are investigating a possible sexual attack as the man was also found with his trousers and underwear pulled down, with his genitals placed in an empty can of tuna and a slice of ham on each of his buttocks.

The exact cause of death is as yet unknown with the body showing no external signs of violence. The autopsy carried out on Saturday suggests that he may have choked on his own vomit but further tests and verification needs to be carried out.

Empty alcohol containers were found next to the body and the strong smell suggests that he was heavily inebriated on the night.

One major line of investigation centres on whether the victim was tied up before or after he died, and whether the crime was committed by one or more perpetrators.

Analysis of security camera footage led the authorities to the Finnish man who on Thursday was being held in prison in Alhaurin de la Torre.

According to several sources consulted by SUR, the most likely scenario is that he had already died before being tied up and that the aggressors, believing he was merely paralytic and therefore unable to react, tied him up and placed the offending items purely to humiliate him.

For this reason, a team specialising in hate crimes was drafted in on Wednesday to aid the investigation.
Despite opposition from religious leaders, Parliament unanimously approved the Bill and deputy registrars are to be given an opt-out clause

The Equal Marriage Bill was passed unanimously by Gibraltar Parliament. :: SUR

Thursday 27 October 2016 was a red letter day for Gibraltar ,as Parliament unanimously approved a bill to change legislation so that same sex couples could marry in civil ceremonies on the Rock.

In his address to Parliament during the debate, chief minister Fabian Picardo stressed that the new law was not intended to interfere with religion or try to alter the course of nature.

We are changing a law that got in the way of love, and in doing so we are doing the right thing, he said.

Although Parliament was unanimous in approving the new law, it has caused considerable controversy since being mooted and the new Bishop of Gibraltar, Mgr. Carmelo Zammit, spoke out against it just last month, hours before being ordained in Malta. He said he fully intended to discuss the matter with the chief minister upon his return to Gibraltar.

There was also opposition from different religious communities in Gibraltar, including the Roman Catholic Church, the Church of England, the Church of Scotland, the Gibraltar Methodist Church and the Jewish Community, who issued a joint statement in January stressing that the traditional concept of marriage as the condition of man and woman, legally united for the purpose of living together and usually procreating lawful offspring should be maintained.

There was, however, dissent in Parliament over another aspect of the equal marriage law, regarding the right of deputy registrars to opt out of conducting the marriage of same sex couples.

Should this be the case, an alternative registrar will officiate, but some MPs strongly believed that public officials should be obliged to carry out their duties, independently of their personal beliefs.

Independent MP Marlene Hassan Nahon also claimed that allowing registrars to opt out would be another form of discrimination.

The clause giving deputy registrars the right to opt out was eventually approved.
The UK based group, Britain for Europe, is strictly Pro-European Union and has clear and bold objectives about the UK remaining part of the organisation

Sue Wilson, the Overseas Councillor for Britain for Europe. :: SUR

A new pro-European, anti-Brexit group was formed in London in August, calling itself Britain for Europe (BfE).

Since then the group, which is a registered company based in the UK, has been gathering pace and is acting as an umbrella for other like-minded collectives in the UKand the rest of Europe. It so far has UK county and country (in the case of Scotland and Wales) groups and others such as Bremain in Spain and Brexpats in Spain.

Britain for Europes goals are clear: to prevent Brexit from happening and if it does happen, to fight for the country to rejoin the EU.

It is looking to have an elected council by 2017 and has 12 members who are already acting as councillors representing the various regions of the UK.

Sue Wilson, who lives in Alcocebre in Valencia, is currently acting as the companys overseas councillor and represents Brits living abroad. She believes that in time the role will be shared out so that there is at least a representative per country.

Sue, who says she had no interest in politics before the referendum, has been a vociferous Bremainer.

One of the main administrators on the Bremain in Spain Facebook group, her rapid ascension into the world of politics has found her the position of councillor for Britain for Europe, representing the rest of the European countries other than the UK.

Sue says that one of the key objectives for Britain for Europe is to keep it strictly pro-European, anti-Brexit. She says that while there are many groups and social networks sites that represent British people abroad, not all of their members are Remainers.

We want BfE to be a safe haven for Remainers so that they can voice their opinions without fear of Brexiters unwanted comments, she adds.

Originally from Oxford, Sue and her husband have lived in Alcocebre, in Valencia province for nine years and they say they have no intention of returning to the UK.

Her husband still works in the UK, but is due to retire next year.

Sue worked in training and management in the UK and says that she can bring tactical skills to her role as councillor.

She adds that she has politicised a lot of people since the referendum, having taught herself about what the EU is and does, what trade laws are and the jargon, such as single market and Schengen.

I cried every day for about three weeks after the referendum, Sue confesses, but then knew she needed to, do something about it.

She says she joined groups and started writing letters to MPs and other influencers and eventually became heavily involved in the Bremain in Spain Facebook forum.

It was her activity with that group which led her to meet people involved in Britain for Europe and eventually be nominated as councillor for this year.

Next year she will have to be elected for the position and she is confident that the group will look much bigger by then.

Sue has also been working closely with Gemma Middleton, the woman behind the Brexit documentary that looks at the effect the UKs withdrawal from the EU would have on Brits living in Spain. Between them, they are involved in a number of projects, including being filmed by a Dutch TV company which is making a programme about Brexit.

Another project is a survey to analyse the problems overseas voters experienced getting their ballot papers. A 2017 calendar is also being produced to raise money to fund the campaigning activities of groups such as Britain for Europe and Bremain in Spain.

Sue attended a Britain for Europe meeting in London in October and another is planned for November. She is keen to point out that, like the company, BfEs website and Facebook page are still in the early stages. However, she is positive that it has some powerful players onboard and is growing fast and feels confident that the group will be able to influence the Brexit process.
Views of Calton Hill have become synonymous with the city. :: SUR SEE ALSO: Edinburgh: The Insider Guide

A grey sandstone building half-way up Edinburghs Lothian Road, opposite the citys imposing Usher Hall, has for more than 30 years offered escapism into different worlds, through visual story-telling of intrigue, romance and fantasy. Here at Edinburghs Filmhouse, an independent cinema, I was captivated by Claude Berris Jean de Florette; seduced by visual richness of Gabriel Axels Babettes Feast; and both amused and confused by Almodovars Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown.

It was during those years, in the late 80s, as an undergraduate student of film that I first got to really know Scotlands capital. Its a spellbinding place that over the years has truly flourished, and one I love to revisit.

City of Writers

As opposed to film though, Edinburgh is surely best known for its literary heritage. For example its here that Robert Louis Stevenson wrote Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and of course JK Rowling famously sat in the back room of the Elephant House tea & coffee shop, penning the drafts of her Harry Potter novels.

For the literary curious, pay a visit to The Writers Museum in the historic Lady Stairs House. It celebrates the lives and works of Robert Burns, Sir Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson. Outside is Makars Court, where one finds flagstones inscribed with quotes from famous Scottish writers. Its one of the many quirky and original features of a European capital city that has a unique identity, charm and character.

Ancient, old and new

Architecturally, Edinburgh is not only notable for its Georgian New Town, an elegantly planned and constructed part of the city that runs north of George Street; but also for its atmospheric Old Town. With its ancient wynds, those narrow alleyways between dark-stone buildings, its little wonder it makes the perfect back-drop for touristy ghost-themed walking tours.

The city is a showcase too of Scottish baronial architecture, with the styles distinctive little turrets, battlements and romantic towers adorning many of the citys buildings. The gothic St Giles Cathedral and the elegant Holyrood Palace, the Queens official residence in Scotland, are two architectural headliners but if one steps away from the Royal Mile and its gift shops selling tartan scarfs, then one discovers a myriad fascinating streets and squares that reflect the hidden Edinburgh.

Taste of Scotland

Although each street feels infused with history, there is plenty of 21st century energy in this increasingly cosmopolitan city. To feel the pulse of modern Edinburgh means enjoying the lively bar and restaurant scene.

Scottish cuisine is affirming its contemporary credentials with a generous helping of new restaurants celebrating the nations larder. Edinburgh also now boasts a handful of Michelin star restaurants yet one doesnt have to fork out for fine dining in order to enjoy some of the best bites in town.

For example, head to the Leith, the citys docklands area and one will find some smart, informal places offering creative dishes from some of Scotlands emerging young chefs. When I first moved to the city, Leith felt disconnected from the centre, but now this port area has embraced positive change and is part of the citys urban cultural and gastronomic scene.

Hot tickets

Talking of culture, of course the Festival and the Fringe are now well and truly international events that define the summer season. Yet a winter break will still be rewarded with the opportunity to engage with local events. Admittedly the weather may not be exactly Mediterranean but Edinburgh has plenty more to offer. The hottest ticket in town is Hogmanay, the famous New Years Eve celebrations that see the streets fill with revellers and the sky light up with fireworks. Many book ahead for this time of year as many businesses typically close on the 31st except for those hosting events, dinners, galas and parties. If you dont book something, then join the locals and enjoy the atmosphere in the street.

Urban hiking

Edinburgh is one of those European capitals that although vibrant and lively, doesnt pulse with frantic urban energy. So a city break here wont leave you exhausted, but instead encourage you to relax, unwind and gently explore. Nature is never far away. Arthurs Seat is the highest peak of a series of volcanic remnants that are in the city centre, including Castle Rock upon which Edinburgh Castle is built. Arthurs Seat is less than two kilometres from the castle and offers the surprising opportunity to enjoy city centre hill walking, affording wonderful views across Edinburgh to the Firth of the Forth and beyond.

After a mornings hike up to the top, followed by a rewarding lunch in town, then youll feel like catching a movie matinee at the Filmhouse.
Julie Billings joins Dale Carnegie Training of CNY as a training advisor.



Billings has19 years' experience in strategic and creative development consultant with working to enhance the public/private donor profile for nonprofit organizations.

She has served on many local and regional committees and boards of directors including the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Toomey Residential and Community Services.

Billings received a master's degree from Strayer University, and a bachelor's degree in international relations from Syracuse University.

She resides in Fayetteville.
Yeungling, Eric Trump

Eric Trump, son of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, poses for a photo with Yeungling brewery owner Dick Yeungling on Monday, Oct. 24, 2016.

(Twitter | @EricTrump)

Yuengling is finding out that beer and politics don't always mix.

Donald Trump's son Eric Trump toured D.G. Yuengling & Son in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, with owner Richard "Dick" Yeungling, Jr., earlier this week. Yuengling thanked him for visiting America's oldest brewery by announcing his family-owned business is endorsing the fellow billionaire for president.

"Our guys are behind your father," Yuengling told the Republican candidate's son in front of media. "We need him in there."

As a result, some beer fans have begun boycotting the company, once praised by President Barack Obama as his favorite.

Todd Bird, of Kentucky, said on Twitter he used to drive 90 miles regularly to get the popular lager in Ohio, "but supporting racist, misogynist nut-job Trump is the end of the line for me."

"Is nothing sacred? Yuengling supports Trump. What other good low price beer is out there?" another user tweeted.

The Washington Post reports some bars in Washington, D.C., have stopped stocking the brew. A gay nightspot called JR's posted a video showing the Yuengling handle being removed from the tap.

"Just so you know, when people support things that don't support us, then we don't support them," JR's manager David Perruzza said in the clip on Facebook. "So goodbye Yuengling, you are the weakest link."

Fortune reports Pennsylvania state representative Brian Sims, who is openly gay, said he is done with the beer-maker after being a customer for 17 years.

"D.G. Yuengling & Son, Inc. believes that an agenda that is anti-woman, anti-immigrant, anti-LGBT, anti-racial minority and anti-equality is best for them and that tells me all I need to know about what they think is best for their own customers," Sims wrote on Facebook. "I'm not normally one to call for boycotts but I absolutely believe that how we spend our dollars is a reflection of our votes and our values!"

Trump supporters, on the other hand, praised the endorsement.

The Post compared the controversy to past informal boycotts against Chick-fil-A, which drew criticism in 2012 when its president spoke against same-sex marriage, and Target for its opposition earlier this year to North Carolina's anti-transgender "bathroom bill." According to the newspaper, Target saw a 7 percent sales drop in August compared to a year earlier, but there was no evidence it was connected to conservatives boycotting the brand.

When asked for comment, Dick Yeungling, a lifelong Republican, told Fortune that he would happily welcome Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on a tour of his brewery, but declined to say more.

"I've said enough," Yeungling said.
green photo.JPG

Andrew Green leaves County Court after his arraignment March 28, 2016.

(Douglass Dowty | ddowty@syracuse.com)

Andrew Green

Syracuse, NY -- A 50-year-old Air Force colonel pleaded guilty today to the non-forcible rape of a 15-year-old girl in DeWitt.

Andrew Green, of Jamesville, admitted that he had sex with the underage girl in May 2015. He had been charged with having sex with the girl three times in DeWitt and Manlius.

He will be sentenced in January to 6 months in jail and 9 1/2 years of probation.

Green told Syracuse.com after court that he regretted what he'd done. "I'm very sorry for the pain and hurt I caused the victim and her family," he said. "And my family."

Green had been division chief at the Air Force Research Laboratory in Rome before being reassigned during the investigation.

He will retire before going to jail. Sentencing is set for Jan. 9, 2017. He remains free on $5,000 bail until then.

Brunetti noted that Green could face up to 4 years in prison if he doesn't appear at sentencing.
DANUBE, N.Y. -- A Syracuse-area Thruway worker was killed early this morning as he helped recover a passenger car along the highway in Herkimer County, officials said.

Ronald C. Deming, 58, a construction equipment heavy operator who worked out of the Syracuse division of the Thruway, was killed in a crash on Interstate 90 east, the Thruway Authority said. He had worked for the Thruway for more than 20 years.

"Day in and day out, our maintenance crews are on our roadway to ensure the safety of motorists and Ron's death deeply touches us all," said Thruway executive director Bill Finch. "The entire Thruway family mourns his loss and will keep his wife Sally and his daughters Leah and Nicole in our thoughts and prayers during this tremendously difficult time."

The accident happened around 8:15 a.m. Friday on Interstate 90 East in Danube between the Herkimer (Exit 30) and Little Falls (Exit 29A) exits, said the New York State Police.

Investigators remain on scene. State Police said more information will be released when it becomes available, troopers said.

The right lane of I-90 east was blocked near the accident scene, reported the Thruway Authority. Traffic was moving slowly.
DANUBE, N.Y. -- A Thruway worker died Friday after he was hit by an SUV on the Thruway in Herkimer County while helping recover a vehicle, the New York State Police said.

The accident occurred at 8:15 a.m. on Interstate 90 east in the town of Danube, between the Herkimer (Exit 30) and Little Falls (Exit 29A) exits.

Two tow trucks accompanied by a Thruway maintenance truck were on the shoulder of the highway removing a vehicle from a previous accident.

State police said a Ford Escape going east sideswiped one of the tow trucks and hit Thruway worker Ronald C. Deming. The Escape became airborne after hitting the other tow truck and then ended up in the center median.

Deming, 58, of Little Falls, was pronounced dead at the scene by the Herkimer County coroner, state police said.

The driver of the Escape, Matthew Jarvinen, 31, and his passenger, Danielle L. Holmes, 31, both of Maine, suffered minor injuries. They were taken to the hospital. The drivers of the two tow trucks were not injured.

State police said troopers with the Collision Reconstruction Unit was continuing to investigate the crash.

Deming was a construction equipment heavy operator who worked out of the Syracuse division of the Thruway. He had worked for the Thruway Authority for more than 20 years.
2010-09-02-jb-korea7.JPG

Marion Smith Chester, of Salina, and Arlene Simms, of Cicero, were each presented an American flag in memory of their brother, U.S. Army Corporal Frank Herbert Smith. Smith was killed in action during the Korean War. His remains were identified in 2010. Army Cpl. Joseph Trepasso, 20, of Fulton, will be buried Nov. 5 in his hometown. His remains were identified this year.

(John Berry | The Post-Standard, 2010)

FULTON, N.Y. -- Army Cpl. Joseph Trepasso, of Fulton, was killed during the Korean War and after 66 years his remains will be returned to his family for burial with full military honors.

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that the remains have been identified and will be returned to Oswego County. Trepasso was 20 years old when he died.

Trepasso will be buried Nov. 5 in Fulton, according to the agency.

In late November 1950, Trepasso was a member of Company L, 3rd Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division on the east side of the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea, when Chinese People's Volunteer Forces attacked the regiment and forced the unit to withdraw south to the Pungnyuri Inlet, according to the agency.

Many soldiers became surrounded and attempted to escape, but were captured and marched to POW camps. Trepasso was declared missing in action as a result of the battle that occurred Dec. 12, 1950.

Trepasso's name did not appear on any POW list provided by the Chinese People's Volunteer Forces or the Korean People's Army. In 1951, the Army received information that Trepasso was killed in action Dec. 1, 1950. Based on this information, a military review board amended his status to deceased Dec. 1, 1950.

In September 2001, a U.S. and Korean People's Army recovery team conducted a Joint Recovery Operation in the vicinity of the Chosin Reservoir in North Korea, based on information provided by two Korean witnesses. During the excavation, the team recovered material evidence and possible human remains for at least seven individuals.

To identify Trepasso's remains, scientists from Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory used mitochondrial DNA analysis, which matched a brother and nephew, as well as anthropological analysis and circumstantial evidence.

Today, 7,786 Americans remain unaccounted for from the Korean War. Using modern technology, identifications continue to be made from remains that were previously returned by North Korean officials or recovered from North Korea by American recovery teams, according to the agency.
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Evensen to step down as Teekay boss

Teekay Corps president and CEO, Peter Evensen, is to retire on 31st January, 2017.

As a result, the company has appointed Kenneth Hvid, who is currently serving as the president and CEO of Teekay Offshore Group, as CEO-elect to succeed Evensen. Evensen will also retire from his positions as CEO and CFO of Teekay LNG Partners and Teekay Offshore Partners and his board positions at Teekay, Teekay LNG, Teekay Offshore, and Teekay Tankers. In connection with his retirement from Teekay Offshore and Teekay LNG, Ingvild Saether will be appointed President and CEO of Teekay Offshore Group in place of Hvid; and Mark Kremin will be appointed president and CEO of Teekay Gas Group. As part of the transition process, Evensen will be retained as an advisor following his retirement. "It has been an honour and privilege to lead this company, and I am very confident that Kenneth Hvid is the right person to be my successor to lead Teekay into the next phase of its strategy," Evensen commented. "Teekay's success is largely about how we work together as a team not only within the company but also with our customers and business partners. The decline in the oil price has significantly affected our energy customers. Faced with these challenges, the Teekay team has responded with resilience, adapting to the new environment in many ways, including implementing cost reduction programmes while maintaining our high safety standards, increasing focus on efficient operations, and systematically completing the financing of our existing growth projects which, once delivered, are expected to increase Teekay's future consolidated cash flows," he said. Sean Day, Teekay's chairman said, "In Peter's many leadership positions at Teekay, he has brought dynamism and strategic thinking that has enabled Teekay to expand and grow into the company that it is today. He was the architect of our innovative daughter company structure that provided a low-cost source of capital, which enabled us to build our market-leading businesses, and, with a solid team in place. Teekay is well-positioned to take the company into the next phase of its strategy. "Kenneth Hvid is the natural successor to Peter Evensen as CEO of Teekay at this time. He has had multiple roles in his 16 years at Teekay, including leadership positions in offshore, LNG, tankers, strategy, and operations, as well as having worked extensively in Vancouver and Norway. I am confident Kenneth's strategic mindset, his passion for the business and his strong leadership focus will ensure a seamless transition and renewed energy on the strategic opportunities ahead of us. "By placing a high priority on talent management and succession planning over many years, the Teekay board has ensured that Teekay has strong leadership across the organisation and, as a result, Kenneth will be supported by a talented and experienced team that will ensure continuity of Teekay's vision and values going forward," he concluded.




Frangou sees a slight revenue drop

Navios Maritime Midstream Partners has experienced a decrease in revenue for the third quarter of this year of $0.3 mill to $22.2 mill, compared to $22.5 mill for the same period in 2015.

TCE was $40,835 for 3Q16, compared with $45,432 for 3Q15. The decrease in TCE was mainly due to a fall of $1.5 mill in profit sharing obtained on certain charters during 3Q16. EBITDA decreased by about $0.5 mill to $15.7 mill for the three month period, compared to $16.2 mill for 3Q15. This drop was due to a: (a) $0.3 mill decrease in revenue; (b) $0.2 mill increase in timecharter expenses; and (c) $0.1 mill increase in general and administrative expenses. The reserve for estimated maintenance and replacement for capital expenditures for each of the three month periods under discussion was $3.6 mill. Navios Midstream generated an operating surplus of $9.3 mill in 3Q16. Net income was $5.5 mill, compared to $6.2 mill for 3Q15. The decrease was due to a: (a) $0.5 mill decrease in EBITDA; and (b) $0.4 mill increase in direct vessel expenses; partially mitigated by a $0.1 mill increase in interest income. However, revenue for the first nine months of 2016 increased by $11.5 mill to $69.1 mill, compared to $57.5 mill for the same period the previous year. This increase was due to the acquisition of the Nave Celeste and the C Dream in June 2015 and an increase of $0.4 mill in profit sharing on certain charters during the period, compared to the same period of 2015. TCE was $43,295, compared with $45,917 for the previous nine month period. The decrease was due to the lower average charter rate of the two VLCCs acquired in June 2015, compared to the existing fleet. EBITDA increased by about $7 mill to $49.8 mill for the nine month period, compared to $42.8 mill for the same period in 2015. The increase was mainly due to an $11.5 mill increase in revenue but was partially mitigated by a: (a) $3.2 mill increase in management fees; (b) $0.6 mill increase in general and administrative expenses; (c) $0.5 mill increase in timecharter expenses; and (d) $0.1 mill increase in other (expense)/ income, net. The company generated an operating surplus for the nine month period of $30.6 mill. Net income was $18.8 mill, compared to $17.9 mill in 2015. The increase of around $0.9 mill was due to: (a) $7 mill increase in EBITDA; and (b) $0.2 mill increase in interest income; partially mitigated by: (i) $2.8 mill increase in depreciation and amortisation; (ii) $2 mill increase in interest expenses and finance cost; and (iii) $1.4 mill increase in direct vessel expenses. Angeliki Frangou, Navios Midstream chairman and CEO, said: We are pleased with our third quarter results, for which we recorded $15.7 mill of EBITDA and $5.5 mill of net income. We recently announced a distribution of $0.4225 per unit, representing an annual distribution of $1.69 and a current yield of approximately 15% per unit. Our unit coverage ratio was 1.06x for the quarter. Navios Midstream extended the fixed fee under the management agreement until December, 2018 with no increase. Operating expenses for commercial and technical management of the vessels thus remain at $9,500 per day, about 8% below the industry average. Navios Midstream also extended, for a two-year period, purchase options for three of the five vessels, all of which were scheduled to expire in November of 2016. The commercial terms of the options will remain the same and Navios Maritime Acquisition Corp will not be providing any charter rate backstop. We anticipate that these options will provide a continued avenue for fleet and distribution growth, she said. Subsequently this month, Navios Midstream amended its existing management agreement with Navios Tankers Management, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Navios Maritime Holdings, to extend the fixed fee period for commercial and technical management services of its fleet, until 31st December, 2018 at the current rate of $9,500 per day per VLCC, following the expiration of the current fixed fee period. Drydocking expenses are reimbursed at cost for all vessels. The company holds options to acquire up to five VLCCs from Navios Maritime Acquisition Corp expiring on 18th November, 2016. In October, 2016, Navios Acquisition extended the options of the Nave Buena Suerte, the Nave Neutrino and the Nave Electron for an additional two-year period expiring on 18th November 2018. The purchase price will be equal to the fair market value of each of the three vessels at the time of the options exercise. The extended purchase options do not include any backstop commitments from Navios Acquisition, the company explained.




Inmarsat makes senior appointments

Inmarsat has appointed Jason Smith to the role of COO, replacing Ruy Pinto who is leaving the organisation to pursue other interests.

Smith joins Inmarsat from Rolls-Royce, where he was most recently president of the groups nuclear business and had previously held the roles of COO for the nuclear business, and president of the companys submarine business. Rupert Pearce, Inmarsat CEO, said: The wealth of experience Jason brings will make a vital contribution to Inmarsats success at an exciting juncture in the transformation of the company. Jasons appointment underlines our commitment to accelerating the development of new capabilities at Inmarsat; ensuring that our customers and partners have access to the most advanced, efficient and effective high-speed connectivity solutions on land, sea and air. In addition, Inmarsat has announced the appointment of Mark Warner as head of marketing communications for its maritime business unit.



Reporting to Inmarsat Chief Marketing Officer, Chris McLaughlin, Warner will take responsibility for maritime marketing communications activities, with the objective of opening up the full potential of high-speed connectivity at sea across vertical markets, including merchant shipping. Warner joined Inmarsat after seven years with ShipServ, where he was a director for marketing and business development.



During my time at ShipServ I worked closely with shipowners and shipmanagers at strategic level as they converted key parts of their business functionality to digital formats. The wider maritime sector is now changing rapidly, and digital strategy has been given a place in the boardroom. I am delighted to join Inmarsat at a time when Fleet Xpress is enabling the digital revolution for ships at sea, Warner said.




Markets - Rates to firm?

In general VLCC chartering activity was slower during the week.

Older tonnage built up in the MEG weighing down on rates, which fell to mid-WS50s MEG/East, Fearnleys reported. The tonnage list was somewhat thinner for the more modern VLCCs, as owners clearly expected rates to firm throughout the winter. However, West Africa/East rates did not fall nearly as much as seen in the MEG and the rate difference between the trades widened by about WS10 points. Owners expected volumes to increase and rates for now may have bottomed out, Fearnleys said. Suezmaxes in West Africa fell to WS67.5 levels as the tonnage hangover from October began to bite. As the week progressed, there has been further softening and rates plateaued at WS65 for TD20. Meanwhile, eyes have been focussed on the Novorossiysk and CPC programmes where activity picked up but the availability of ships has also increased due to West Med tonnage ignoring West Africa and focusing on the better TCE returns ex Black Sea. The coming week will be challenging for owners in West Africa, as the latter part of the 2nd decade is overtonnaged due to sparse activity. The Black Sea is expected to stabilise as the heavy programme continues. Last week was fairly busy in the North Sea and Baltic, and an increase in rates was expected by the majority of owners. The result was year to dates smallest and most short-lived spike going up a staggering WS2.5 points for nearly a day. However, softening rates for the week to come should be expected, due to upcoming maintenance at Primorsk. In the Black Sea and Med, it has been an interesting week for everyone involved. Rates were under pressure at the end of last week, and high WS80s was paid from Black Sea early November loading dates. After the weekend, we saw more prompt tonnage in place, and three cross-Med market quotes made owners give up putting the market back at low WS70s. The Black Sea programme should get extremely busy from next week, so the market has some upward potential for the rest of the month, Fearnleys concluded. Sale and leasebacks are becoming an increasingly popular way of financing. One of the latest deals to come to light was Singapore-based product tanker owner and operator BW Pacifics sale of two LR1s on a lease back basis. The vessels were thought to be the 2006-built Compass and Compassion which were said to have been sold to Chinas Bank of Communications. The price was not disclosed but each tanker was chartered back to BW Pacific for seven years. Bank of Communications had earlier agreed sale and leaseback agreements for five MRs with commodity trader Trafigura. Navig8 Product Tankers has taken delivery of the LR2 Navig8 Guide from Guangzhou Shipyard International Co (GSI), formerly CSSC Offshore & Marine Engineering (Group) Co. Navig8 Guide is the fourth of eight vessels contracted at GSI to be delivered to the company and is the fourth vessel to be delivered under the sale and leaseback agreements entered into with CSSC (Hong Kong) Shipping Co (CSSC). Following her delivery from GSI, the LR2 was delivered to CSSC under the terms of the sale MOA and then taken back by the Company under a bareboat charter. She has joined Navig8 Group's Alpha8 commercial pool. Meanwhile, Navig8 Chemical Tankers has taken delivery of the Navig8 Stellar, a 25,000 dwt stainless steel chemical tanker from Kitanihon Shipbuilding. She is the fourth of six vessels contracted at the yard to be delivered to the company and is the second and final vessel to be delivered under the sale and leaseback arrangements entered into with subsidiaries of SBI Holdings. Navig8 Stellar will be operated in Navig8 Group's Stainless8 commercial pool. Gener8 Maritime took delivery of the VLCC Gener8 Miltiades on 25th October, 2016 from Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding (SWS). She is the 16th of 21 VLCCs due for delivery into Gener8 Maritime's fleet. Upon delivery, Gener8 Miltiades entered Navig8 Group's VL8 Pool. She is the sixth VLCC to be delivered by SWS, concluding the companys newbuilding programme at the yard. Tsakos Energy Navigation (TEN) has taken delivery of the Aframax Leontios H from Daewoo Mangalia Heavy Industries. Leontios H entered into a long term contract to a northern European charterer that could generate gross revenues in excess of $100 mill, TEN said. She is the third vessel in a series of nine purpose built Aframax tankers on long term time charters at accretive rates. The company also reported the delivery from Hyundai Heavy Industries of its second LNGC, the 174,000 cu m TFDE Maria Energy and immediate charter to a major end-user for a minimum 18 months and a maximum of three years, which could generate gross revenues in excess of $70 mill if options were exercised. George Saroglou, TEN COO, said. "Following the delivery of the Leontios H, TEN is in the midpoint of its 15 vessel growth program. With eight more tankers scheduled for delivery over the next five quarters, a minimum of $720 mill will be added to TEN's secured revenues from new vessels. This increases the company's minimum secured income to $1.5 bill and further solidifies TEN's bottom-line and provides healthy cash visibility going forward. dAmico International Shipping (DIS) has launched three tankers at the Vietnamese shipyard Hyundai Vinashin Shipyard - one Handysize (recently delivered) and two MRs. The total investment in the three ships amounted to $104 mill. With the delivery of the Cielo di Salerno on 21st October, DIS fleet includes 51.8 ships. The delivery of the MR High Wind is expected in the first half of November, 2016, while her sistership High Challenge will be in operation by the start of 2017. One of the tankers has already been chartered to an international oil major for three years, while the others will be placed on the spot market, DIS said. We have added three new assets of great value to our fleet, which is among the most innovative and updated on the international panorama, said Paolo dAmico, DIS chairman. We are successfully working in partnership with a shipyard of the highest calibre, Hyundai Vinashin Shipyard, which guarantees us ecological, safe and exceptionally performing ships to offer our clients. In the charter market, broking sources reported the fixture of the 1999-built VLCC Ridgebury Pioneer to Litasco for six months at $29,500 per day. The 2000-built Suezmax Sri Vishnu was said to have been fixed to BPCL for two years at $18,700 per day. Jellicoe was believed to have taken the 2006-built Aframax Jag Lyall for 12 months at $15,500 per day, while the 2003-built Aframax Astro Sculptor was said to have been fixed to Teekay for 12 months at $17,000 per day. Stena Bulk was thought to have fixed the 2015-built MR Essie C for 12 months at $12,750 per day, while Koch was said to have taken the 2012-built MR Nave Aquila for six months at $11,500 per day. Frontlines two VLCCs - the 1999-built Front Circassia and the 2001-built Front Ariake were believed sold to Russian interests for $50 mill en bloc. Reported to be leaving the fleet was the 1994-built VLCC Progress believed sold to Bangladesh breakers on private terms. She had been recently used as a storage vessel. There were a few more orders reported this week. For example, Nordic American Tankers (NAT) has confirmed that it had entered into agreements with Samsung Heavy Industries for the construction of three Suezmaxes to be delivered during the second half of 2018. "This is another large step forward for Nordic American," said chairman and CEO Herbjrn Hansson. "By adding these ships, we substantially increase the dividend capacity and bolster our earnings potential. We believe that our solid balance sheet as well as our well-defined and transparent operating model are elements supporting the competitive position of NAT. The stock issue of about $120 mill that we completed 30th September, will part finance this transaction. A 33 vessel homogenous Suezmax fleet is making NAT stronger and the company becomes even more attractive for our customers." Gulf Navigation (GulfNav) has formed a strategic long-term partnership with Wuchang Group, which has led to the ordering of six chemical tankers. Khamis Juma Buamim, Gulf Nav board member, managing director and Group CEO, said "This partnership with Wuchang Heavy Industry Group, which is one of the largest companies worldwide in its field, is a significant step that will enable us to strengthen the companys capabilities by expanding our fleet with modern and advanced tankers. This will enhance our competitiveness in the transfer of chemicals; a market that is steadily expanding and is witnessing increasing demand. We started with Wuchang Group by signing an agreement to immediately begin building six chemicals tankers. At the same time, we discussed with them co-operation opportunities in various areas. One of the most important pillars of this agreement is to pave the way for Chinese investors and attract them to work in the local market, which will reflect positively on the region as a whole, Buamim said. A few smaller units were also ordered by Baltic Sea-based owners. These included two dual fuel Ice Class 1A 25,600 dwt chemical tankers for ESL Shipping, contracted at Jinling for 2017-2018 deliveries. Furetank and Alvtank have also extended their orders with two more intermediate product/chemical tankers with LNG propulsion. They will be operated in the Gothia Tanker Alliance. The latest two will also be built at Avic Dingheng Shipbuilding to the same design as the other vessels. They will be delivered during 2018/2019. Including the previous order, Gothia Tanker Alliance now has six tankers on order - three for Furetank, two for Alvtank and one for Thun Tankers. They will be commercially managed by Furetank Chartering.




Shipping industry group addresses challenges

Some 200 representatives of classification societies, shipbuilders and shipowners met in Tokyo last week for the annual Tripartite Meeting.

At the meeting, the IMO Goal Based Standards (GBS) for bulk carriers and tankers, which entered into force for ships contracted for construction from July, 2016, was discussed. Over a five year period, the meetings have helped to oversee inter-industry agreement over the handling of the content of a Ship Construction File (SCF), as required by the GBS. The SCF is meant to provide information related to the structural design and construction of a ship to those that need it, to help ensure safe operation throughout the vessels working life. Among other Tripartite spin-off groups, work continued on fuel data collection (as will be required by mandatory IMO and EU CO2 data collection systems), under the leadership of IACS. There will also be further work carried out on cyber risks and security, also being led by IACS but assisted by BIMCO, which led the development of recent inter-industry guidelines on this issue. During the meeting, ICS pointed out the importance of collating knowledge on likely ship efficiency improvements from shipbuilders enabling better estimates to be made of CO2 reduction performance, which will lead the work in the coming year. Following an introduction by INTERTANKO, all parties agreed that better information flow and data-bases were required on incidents related to ship construction and operation. Reflecting on requirements directly arising from the regulations, the meeting agreed that ICS would initiate the collection of experience with the fitting/retrofitting and operation of ballast water treatment equipment. Shipbuilder representatives (Committee for Expertise of Shipbuilding Specifics and SEA Europe) initiated discussion on human element issues, and in particular on training requirements arising out of innovative technology. This annual meeting, which was first held in 2002, was hosted by ClassNK, the Japanese Shipowners Association (JSA) and the Shipbuilders Association of Japan (SAJ) and was this year organised by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS). The next Tripartite Meeting is scheduled to be held in China next year.






Wartsila forecasts a decline in net sales this year

Finnish-based conglomerate Wartsilas overall order intake increased 5% to just over 1.1 mill in the third quarter of this year, compared to 1.086 mill for the same period in 2015.

However, net sales decreased 12% to 1.1 mill from 1.2 mill. The cash flow from operating activities was 189 mill in 3Q16. For the first nine months of this year, the order intake increased 2% to 3.6 mill from 3.5 mill during the same period last year. Net sales decreased 6% to 3.2 mill, while the cash flow from operating activities was 378 mill. The orderbook at the end of the period decreased 2% to 5 mill. Wartsila revised its prospects for the year on 12th October, 2016 saying that it expected its net sales to decline by around 5% and its profitability (comparable operating result as a percent of net sales) to be around 12%. Previously, Wartsila expected its net sales to grow by 0-5% and its profitability to be 12.5-13%. Jaakko Eskola, Wartsila president and CEO, said; "The third quarter of 2016 developed largely in line with our expectations. As anticipated, the concentration of deliveries towards the end of the year resulted in lower sales, which burdened our operating result. We continue to focus on increasing efficiency and flexibility within our organisation. Although service activity has stabilised at a high level, we remain confident in the positive long-term drivers. In the equipment markets, the demand for new vessels was weak, reflecting the challenges related to overcapacity and low earnings. Nevertheless, improved sentiment in the power generation markets has contributed to the growth in overall order intake. I am pleased to note that a solid project pipeline supports continued momentum in our Energy Solutions business. Despite the growth in order intake, lower than anticipated power plant deliveries in the current year has caused us to adjust our guidance for 2016. We now expect a small decline in sales, and estimate profitability to be around 12%," he explained. The outlook for the shipping and shipbuilding markets remains challenging, the company said. Overcapacity and weak earnings continue to limit the demand for new vessels in the merchant segment, while low oil prices are impacting investments in offshore exploration and development. In the gas carrier markets, the demand for both LNG and LPG carriers remains under pressure, due to the low oil and gas prices and supply/demand imbalances. The service market outlook remains solid with growth opportunities in selected regions and segments. An increase in the installed base of medium-speed engines and propulsion equipment, as well as the shift to gas based technology, offsets the slower service demand for older installations and the uncertainty regarding short-term demand development in the merchant marine segment. The service outlook for gas-fuelled vessels remains favourable. Customers in both the marine and power plant markets continue to show interest in long-term service agreements, Wartsila said.




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RACINE  Willie M. Ward had been working to clean up his life.

But a punch he threw at a Racine tavern more than a year ago will continue to put those efforts on hold  at least for the next two years.

After a series of convictions and prison stints for battery and drug crimes  some dating back to the mid-1990s  Ward, now 37, had been released from federal prison in November 2014 and was reportedly working in Chicago, and on his way to getting a promotion, when he decided to head back to Racine.

It was sometime after that decision, on May 14, 2015, when Ward, who was reportedly living in the 1500 block of Park Avenue, decided to go to King Daddys bar, 1333 Douglas Ave. It was at that bar that he punched another man in the face so hard that it created a gash in the victims upper lip that cut through to the bone.

During his sentencing hearing for the crime on Thursday, Assistant Racine County District Attorney Chris Steenrod stated that he could call the incident a mistake if Ward didnt have an extensive criminal record.

This was a violent offense, Steenrod said. Mr. Ward classifies this incident as him doing something stupid. I might be more willing to accept the proposition that he did something stupid if he was younger; if he didnt have the record that he does have.

Incident

According to the criminal complaint the victim entered the bar around 1:15 a.m. and greeted everyone he saw. When he later made eye contact with Ward, the defendant reportedly got in the victims face and delivered a punch that caused the man to bleed profusely. The victim told police that he did not understand why Ward had hit him but could only guess it was because he had forgotten to shake Wards hand.

A doctor who examined the injury, which required roughly 10 stitches, believed it had been made with some kind of sharp cutting instrument, but Ward, who admitted to punching the man, said he only used his fist. Ward was initially charged with first-degree reckless injury and aggravated battery, according to court records. But those charges were later reduced to a single count of substantial battery-intend bodily harm. Ward pleaded guilty to that single charge this June.

2005 shooting

Although not mentioned in court on Thursday, Ward was also a victim of one of the citys most violent shootings, one that took the lives of 23-year-olds Aaron Woods, Ryan Lockridge and Frank Mister, on July 17, 2005. Four men were also injured in the incident, which took place in a parking lot in the 1300 block of Washington Avenue. Ward was one of them.

According to investigators, he suffered a gunshot wound to the right arm and another one to the left leg. Ward had reportedly been the target of the shooting, which apparently stemmed from a dice game, criminal complaints stated.

Speaking to the court before his sentencing on Thursday, Ward seemed to reference his checkered history in Racine, noting that he made progress while living in Chicago. According to the criminal complaint, Ward had a warrant out for his arrest at the time of the 2015 incident, reportedly for escaping from an Illinois halfway house in March of that year.

I just need to stay out of Racine. The police already got me marked. Its hard to move on, because they only know you but one way, Ward said.

But Racine County Circuit Judge Eugene Gasiorkiewicz took issue with many of the explanations Ward gave for his conduct on May 14, 2015.

The only one who has it in for you, sir, is you, Gasiorkiewicz chided. (Your boss) had you on a promotion track, yet you threw that away with a closed fist.

In the end, he sentenced Ward to two years in prison, followed by two years on extended supervision for the crime.
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Apple on Thursday unveiled two new MacBook Pro laptops, adding a touch more power to the line.

Both the new 13-inch and 15-inch models will be offered in silver and space gray. They have a Touch Bar that replaces the row of function keys found on laptops, as well as a Touch ID fingerprint scanner incorporated into the power button. They sport a Force Touch trackpad thats twice the size of the trackpad in previous models.

The new 13-inch MacBook Pro is 14.9 millimeters thick, 17 percent thinner than its predecessor. Its also smaller  23 percent by volume  and at 3 pounds, it weighs half a pound less than the previous version.

The 15-inch unit is 15.5mm thick, 14 percent thinner than previous models. It too has a smaller footprint than its previous generation, 20 percent by volume, and it tilts the scales at 4 pounds, also a half pound lighter than its predecessor.

Both units have an improved version of the butterfly keyboard introduced in Apples 12-inch MacBook, as well as a key dedicated to Apples digital assistant Siri. They also have four Thunderbolt USB-C ports that can be used for a variety of tasks, including charging the units.

Four Thunderbolt ports are a tremendous amount of bandwidth, said Kevin Krewell, principal analyst at Tirias Research.

You can support two 4K displays, a 4K camera and an external storage array all at the same time with the 15-inch MacBook Pro, he told TechNewsWorld. Thats a lot of power.

Brighter, Faster, Louder

The MacBook displays also have been upgraded. For example, the screen on the new 15-inch model is 67 percent brighter, with a 67 percent greater contrast ratio and 25 percent more colors.

The new 15-inch MacBook Pro runs on a 6th generation Intel Core i7 quad processor with 2133 MHz memory. It has Radeon Pro graphics based on AMDs Polaris architecture. It can deliver graphics 2.3 times faster than the previous generation of the laptop.

The unit now supports up to 2 terabytes of solid state storage, and its faster  50 percent faster than the previous model.

The speakers also are better. They not only produce greater volume, but also have two times the dynamic range of previous models.

The new 13-inch model runs on 6th generation i5 or i7 Intel chips, also mated to 2133 MHz system memory. It has Intel Iris graphics, as well as storage speeds twice those of its predecessor.

Touch Bar

The Touch Bar feature on the new MacBook Pros definitely was the star of the Apples Thursday show.

The bar is a high-resolution touch display that replaces the function keys on the laptop. The display is context aware, so it can change its content based on the application running in the foreground of the computer.

Its a disruptive new implementation, said Werner Goertz, a research director at Gartner.

Its not new to see a dynamically adaptable bar, he told TechNewsWorld, but as usual, Apple has taken something thats already out there and perfected it.

The bar acts almost as a second monitor. Items can be dragged from the main display to the bar.

Thats something that will capture the users imagination and will be a great differentiator for Apple going forward, Goertz said.

The Touch Bar is a game changer for Apple, according to Tim Bajarin, president of Creative Strategies.

It allows not only Apple, but also developers to create custom connections to their applications, and make those applications more interactive and easier to access, he told TechNewsWorld.

Apple emphasized the role of the MacBook Pro for creativity, Bajarin continued, but that Touch Bar will be extremely attractive to even mainstream consumers, because it changes how they interact with applications.

Apple TV

Along with the new MacBook Pro announcements, Apple revealed a new app for Apple TV and iOS aimed at unifying a users TV experience.

Called TV, the free app displays an aggregate view of all shows and movies the user currently is watching through other apps. It also recommends programming based on the users tastes. It provides access to a library of iTunes purchases and rentals, and a store for buying more content.

We want Apple TV to be the one place to access all of your television, said Apple CEO Tim Cook at the Thursday event.

With 1600 apps available for Apple TV, its become necessary for someone to step in and make it easier to discover and organize content, explained Bajarin.

The new TV app is designed specifically for that purpose, he said.

Revenue Driver

Apple TV will be a growth area for the company in 2017, noted Trip Chowdhry,managing director for equity research at Global Equities Research.

Service revenues this quarter grew 24 percent, probably because of Apple TV, he told TechNewsWorld. That growth could accelerate in 2017 with the new Apple TV app.

Although Apple believes its TV app will completely change how people will watch TV, Gartners Goertz maintained the app will be less disruptive than Apple expects it will be.

If you look at what Amazon and others are doing with TV, its what Apple is doing now, he said. For that reason, I didnt see the TV app that disruptive.

The absence of any mention of Apple TVs potential as a smart home hub was disappointing, Goertz added.

Apple is still lagging behind the Amazons of this world when it comes to the smart home, he said.

There was no hint of restraint in Apple CEO Tim Cooks enthusiasm, however.

We couldnt be more excited about having our best product lineup ever heading into the holiday season, he said at the close of the event.

The new 13-inch MacBook with function keys sells for US$1,499 and is available immediately. The Touch Bar models are available for preorder and will go on sale in two to three weeks, with the 13-inch version selling for $1,799 and the 15-incher for $2,399.
One of the most volatile conspiracy theories in recent times ended with a whimper last month, when Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump made the terse statement, President Barack Obama was born in the United States. Period.

Though birthers may be with us always, it seems that many have turned their attention to other potentially scandalous topics  and they need look no further than the place most conspiracy theories are born these days, the Internet.

Scientists recently made a discovery that might explain why Trumps search for President Obamas real birth certificate resonated with his supporters  those most drawn to his promise to make America great again.

Highly stressed people are more likely to believe in conspiracy theories, according to research published this spring in the journal Personality and Individual Differences.

Based on the responses of 420 U.S. adults surveyed, stress and discontent correlated with a higher likelihood of belief in conspiracy theories ranging from 9/11 being an inside job to the moon landing being produced on a Hollywood set, researchers found, regardless of the participants social status.

That offers some insight into why some people are more likely to believe, but it does not explain why they push away a preponderance of evidence in favor of the generally accepted answers to questions most people dont even ask.

There always have been conspiracy theories, noted pop culture expert Paul Levinson, a communications professor atFordham University, who pointed to all the wild ideas that emerged in the aftermath of the JFK assassination.

Social media have fanned the flames, making conspiracy theories more likely to spread, he said.

Anyone can write anything, and it can be viewed by millions in the blink of an eye on Twitter. Millions can, in turn, easily retweet the comment or image or link, Levinson told TechNewsWorld.

At the Intersection

One of the most popular conspiracy theories  one thats likely to outlive this generation and the next  concerns the untimely death of Princess Diana in a 1997 automobile accident. That event occurred squarely at the intersection of two eras, spinning one of the first major series of conspiracy theories of the Information Age.

Suspicious circumstances surrounding the incident intrigued the world. Back then, newspapers were still alive and well, birds were the only ones tweeting, and posting meant sending mail.

Author and self-described Diana fanatic Roman Clay recalled how old-school TV and print media coverage of the princess death focused on certain details and missed many others.

Clay was surprised by the common perception that Diana had died immediately in the tunnel, as well as by the many other details that generally were unknown  for example, that it took 108 minutes to rush her to the ER, and that she passed away due to internal hemorrhaging.

There were a few writers who questioned the official report and wrote investigative books on Dianas death, but they received very little coverage in mass media, Clay told TechNewsWorld.

So Clay, using the freedom fiction allows to fill in the blanks, wrote Death of the Queen of Hearts to publish his own theory and encourage more people to question the official line.

Coverage of the princess death certainly would have been a lot different had it occurred a decade or so later. These days, individuals can express themselves to a large audience over the Internet, and thats definitely a plus, Clay said.

Researchers into Dianas death would be able to present the facts quickly and widely, he noted, but that easy access to the Internet also permits some outrageous theories that bring in aliens or lizard people, which thereby dilutes and buries other serious investigative research.

New Millennia, New Media, No Change

Although news of Dianas death traveled quickly, its dissemination was nothing like it would be today. Anyone with an Internet connection now has up-to-the-minute access to every detail, true or false  whether its the latest controversial police shooting, an Olympic divers tale of being held at gunpoint by Brazilian muggers, or the discovery that the divers story was fabricated.

The worlds current connectedness gives everyone a voice and a platform. However, voices that once were dominated now get drowned out by a crowd of blog, forum and social media posts.

Governments have harder time controlling their messages, noted Richard W. Lachmann, a professor specializing in comparative/historical sociology and political sociology at the University at Albany.

Its a way around censorship, he said, pointing to the U.S. governments inability to control information about the Iraq war, due in large to soldiers sharing impressions online.

Compare that to Vietnam, Lachmann told TechNewsWorld. It took years for enough soldiers to come home and tell civilians that the reality of the war was very different from the governments version.

As for terrorism, the Internet has increased the amount or rumors and conspiracies on the subject, he noted.

That can induce panic and the feeling that the government does not have terror under control, Lachmann said.

However, savvy government can take advantage of a climate of fear, he suggested.

The Bush administration repeatedly tried to increase public fear after 9/11 to build support for the Iraq war and for others of its policies, and to win the 2004 election, Lachmann maintained. For those purposes, rumors about terror were helpful, even though they had no basis in reality.

While the Internet has turbocharged the speed and distances at which conspiracy theories travel, that doesnt necessarily mean more people buy into them, observed Joseph Uscinski, an associate professor of political science at the University of Miami and author ofAmerican Conspiracy Theories.

Many people blame the Internet for conspiracy theories, he told TechNewsWorld but conspiracy theories are a part of the human experience and existed, sometimes in great numbers, long before the advent of the Web.

Conspiracy Theories in the Information Age, Part 2
Eno Vino Wine Bar and Bistro is getting a new, Downtown location on the top two floors of a 10-story Marriott hotel under construction a block from the Capitol Square.

"We felt it was time to expand to a second location," said Eno Vino partner Jose Luis Granados, who is known as Pepe. "We think we can definitely bring a different level of service and standards to Downtown."

The 12-year old wine bar and small-plate restaurant is partnering with North Central Group, the hotel's Middleton-based developer. Eno Vino will keep its current location at 601 Junction Rd.

Andy Inman, vice president of development for North Central Group, said they've been working on the site for about four years, and when Marriott International brought the European AC Hotels brand to North America, they knew they wanted to get on board.

"We saw that as an exciting design and art-centric hotel brand that would be a great fit for Downtown Madison," Inman said.

The hotel at 1 N. Webster St., will be one block off the Capitol Square at the top of East Washington Avenue and North Webster Street, Kitty corner from the Glass Bank or U.S. Bank building.

"We knew the view alone was going to make the hotel successful," Inman said. They wooed Eno Vino because of its reputation and success on Madison's Far West Side.

"It really has become one of the premiere dining options in Madison," he said. "We felt that both brands, being creative, experiential brands and with AC Hotel's Spanish roots, that Eno Vino was really a natural fit."

Granados, who owns Eno Vino with Bruce Crass and John Smithe, said they like to say it is "a wine bar with great food." Eno means wine in Latin, and vino is its Spanish and Italian equivalent.

The restaurant offers about 50 wines by the glass and its wine list is about 300-bottles strong. The food focus is on small, shareable plates.

Granados points out that Eno Vino was one of the first Madison restaurants to offer small, tapas-style plates and it continues to keep that model. "We know people love it," he said.

It has also been a "farm-to-table restaurant since day one," Granados said. "We just never promoted it because it wasn't a trendy thing then."

Chef Anibal Brandt, who has been with Eno Vino for two years, will also run the Downtown kitchen. Granados said they let Brandt be creative, not holding him to Spanish, Italian or any other cuisine. As a result, the restaurant uses a "world fusion" approach, he said.

"He utilizes something from Latin America mixed with some French sauce and a spice from India mixed with Asian cuisine," Granados said.

Eno Vino offers cocktails in addition to wine, and will have a larger craft cocktail selection and focus Downtown, he said.

The new location will be about double the size of the current restaurant. The dining room will seat about 80 people and probably another 80 in the lounges located on both floors. The bar will seat an additional 40, Granados said.

Inman said that Eno Vino is allowing North Central Group to bring local flavor to the AC Hotel Madison and make the hotel a unique part of the Madison community.

Traditionally, a bar and restaurant would be located on the first or second floor, he said. But elevating it to the ninth and tenth floors provides guests with a much more memorable experience, he said.

The ninth floor will feature an outdoor terrace, an indoor terrace lounge, a two-sided indoor-outdoor fireplace and a glass partition wall that will allow them to bring the outdoors to the indoors in the summer months, Inman said. The main dining room will be on tenth floor, where there will be another fireplace and "soft-seating area."

Both the 165-room hotel and the new, 10,000-square-foot restaurant will open in late April or early May in time for UW-Madison graduation, Inman said.
Qualcomm on Thursday announced it will be acquiring NXP Semiconductor in an all-cash deal valued at approximately $47 billion.

With the acquisition, Qualcomm is looking to diversify its business as sales of smartphones using its chips cool in saturated markets. NXP, a leading semiconductor supplier in the automotive industry, will almost certainly establish Qualcomm as a key supplier to companies looking to build smart vehicles.

Qualcomm isn't going after NXP just to satisfy its automotive ambitions. The combined company, which is expected to generate annual revenues of more than $30 billion, will also be in a position to be a market leader in the areas of networking, the Internet of Things and security - all of which are expected to becoming booming industries in the not-too-distant future.

In an interview with Bloomberg, Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf said it's no secret that they've been looking around. He said that if you look at their growth strategy, you'll see that it is to grow into adjacent markets when they are being disrupted by mobile technology.

NXP investors will receive $110 per share in cash, a substantial 11 percent premium over what shares closed at on Wednesday. Shares spiked at the end of September but prior to that, they were hovering around the $80 to $90 mark.

Barring any pushback from regulators, the transaction is expected to close by the end of 2017.
One of the most interesting companies in the smartphone market is Xiaomi. While the Chinese smartphone manufacturer largely sticks to selling devices in its homeland, people around the globe import significant quantities of Xiaomi products due to their low, competitive prices.

The Xiaomi Redmi Pro is one such product that immediately caught the eye of many budget smartphone hunters. It packs a 5.5-inch 1080p AMOLED, a dual-camera system for refocusing and creating bokeh effects, a massive 4,050 mAh battery, and a decent MediaTek Helio X20 SoC with 32 GB of storage. All of this can be had for just under $250 from Gearbest.

Gearbest provided TechSpot with the Xiaomi Redmi Pro to review. Use coupon code miPro to get the Redmi Pro 32 GB for $242.99, or code miRedmiPro to get the 64GB variant for just $247.99. Shipping is free to most countries. Or check out their full range of smartphones, we think there's some great deals to be found.

While the hardware can seem great on paper, I've seen my fair share of Chinese devices that fail to live up to their specs, or include software packages that aren't localized or butcher Android itself. The Redmi Pro falls in the latter category, so prepare yourself: if you want a decent experience outside of China, you might need to tweak the software to get things working correctly.

That's not to say you should completely ignore the Redmi Pro. There's actually a few things to like about what Xiaomi is providing for such a low price, particularly as far as the hardware is concerned. But for Westerners this phone falls into enthusiast category, so casual users that want a perfect phone out of the box should perhaps opt for something else.

So what are the hardware aspects to the Redmi Pro that make it a phone worth considering? Let's start with the design, because what Xiaomi has implemented here may be a bit familiar to those who closely follow the smartphone market.

The Redmi Pro is a combination of a brushed aluminium rear shell that curves around all four edges, and a glass front panel with either white or black bezels depending on the color you opt for. For a mid-range handset, the build quality is fantastic and the phone itself is quite attractive, however there are many design elements that have been clearly borrowed from smartphone design leaders HTC and Apple.

The front panel is a sleeker version of current iPhones and similar to the HTC 10. The large screen is flanked by a rounded-rectangular fingerprint sensor at the bottom, along with capacitive navigation buttons, and a small speaker with nearby sensors at the top. It's a derivative design that doesn't set the world on fire, but that's pretty typical for a phone in 2016.

The rear aluminium panel, with a great brushed silver finish on my review unit, is reminiscent of the original HTC One. The metal back isn't as curved as the HTC One, but the large circular cameras centered at the top, plus the white antenna bands, makes the Redmi Pro look like it came straight from a HTC factory.

The machined metal edges remind me of the HTC One M9. The single-piece metal back appears to wrap around the edges like a shell, exposing a small portion of white plastic that belongs to the front panel. In the hand this creates rather sharp edges - another feature of the One M9's design - however the Redmi Pro is still comfortable to hold, and the edge design prevents the phone from easily sliding out of your grip.

The use of a mostly metal design has a number of advantages. Firstly, it looks superb, and makes the Redmi Pro look like a far more expensive device than it really is. I love it when manufacturers don't skimp on design for mid-range products, and Xiaomi seems to do well here. Secondly, the Redmi Pro feels very solid and dependable in the hand. And lastly, I always appreciate the texture of aluminium, especially how it feels cold after an hour or so without use.

The bottom edge of the Redmi Pro looks remarkably similar to the iPhone 6s Plus and iPhone 7 Plus. The centered USB Type-C port (a great inclusion here) is flanked by visible screws and two six-hole speaker grilles, which could easily be mistaken for an iPhone by an untrained eye. Xiaomi seems to love pushing the boundaries of what is legally acceptable in a smartphone design.

The left edge has a single tray for either two nano-SIM cards, or a single SIM and a microSD card. On the opposite side are both the volume rocker and power button, positioned comfortably but with a somewhat soft clicking mechanism. On the top are both a 3.5mm headphone jack - a crucial inclusion on smartphones - and an infrared blaster for controlling home theatre equipment.

At 8.2mm thick and 174 grams heavy, Xiaomi aren't going for any slimness records here. However, considering this phone packs in a large 4,050 mAh battery, the phone feels dense though surprisingly compact. I had no trouble operating the 5.5-inch display throughout my time using the Redmi Pro due to reasonably-sized side bezels, and the display is much more manageable than, say, the Xiaomi Mi Max.
Back in March, it was reported that a Pennsylvania man responsible for the 2014 celebrity photo leak scandal known as 'Celebgate' or 'The Fappening' had pleaded guilty to a felony computer hacking charge. Now, Ryan Collins has been sentenced to 18 months in federal prison, the same length of time recommended by authorities earlier this year.

36-year-old Collins faced a maximum of five years behind bars for the incident, which saw explicit photos and videos of female celebrities posted online. He used phishing techniques to access people's cloud storage, tricking them into revealing passwords and usernames by sending fake emails in which Collins claimed to be from Apple or Google.

After stealing information from more than 600 individuals, not all of them famous, Collins compromised over 50 iCloud and 72 Gmail accounts between November 2012 and September 2014, including those belonging to Jennifer Lawrence, Scarlett Johansson, Rihanna, Kate Upton, Hilary Duff, and many more. In some cases, he downloaded a victim's entire iCloud backups.

The images were leaked on anonymous image board Anon-IB before appearing on the likes of 4Chan and Reddit, though the FBI found no evidence to suggest that Collins shared or uploaded any of the stolen photos.

A second man confessed to his part in celebgate back in July. 28-year-old Chicago, Illinois resident Edward Majerczyk also pleaded guilty to felony computer hacking charges, after he accessed the iCloud and Gmail accounts of over 300 people. Surprisingly enough, there is no evidence or suggestion that the two men worked together at any point.
A strange color change at the Saturn's the north pole has caught the attention of space enthusiasts. It came to light after the photos taken by NASA's Cassini spacecraft from 2012 to 2016 were analyzed.

Space scientists said that the changing seasons, as well as the increased exposure to sunlight, are the reasons for the color change.

Cassini's images taken in 2012 showed a bluish halo over Saturn's the north pole, while the 2016 images showed a broad golden hue.

Cassini spacecraft has been orbiting Saturn since 2004, and the spacecraft's mission is expected to end in September 2017.

In a statement, NASA said scientists are investigating "potential causes for the change in color of the region inside the north polar hexagon on Saturn."

"[T]he change from a bluish color to a more golden hue may be due to the increased production of photochemical hazes in the atmosphere as the north pole approaches summer solstice in May 2017."

After Effects Of Saturn Winter

Reactions between sunlight and the atmosphere are the key to the creation of aerosols or photochemical hazes.

The matter was well explained by another expert who said Saturn's four seasons are significant, each of them lasting seven Earth years.

There was a "winter polar darkness" between November 1995 and August 2009. This decelerated the haze formation.

There was enough sunlight in other parts of the planet to create and spread aerosols. However, the north pole was kept out of aerosols, as there was not enough sunshine to produce the haze, and it was further blocked from entering the area from other parts of the planet.

Haze production goes up when sunlight hits the pole. During the winter, haze formation stops, as there is no sunshine. Also, particles cannot reach the hexagonal jet stream. That is why the region stays blue.

"The hexagon jet acts as a barrier and when there is nothing produced inside, the atmosphere clears up and the inside looks blue," explained Kunio Sayanagi, who is an assistant professor at Hampton University.

As the summer is approaching in May 2017, particles have started building up in the jet stream, causing the area to turn to a golden hue.

NASA scientists also pointed to the increased sunshine received by Saturn after it experienced equinox in August 2009. As a result, photochemical aerosols have accumulated in the sky above Saturn's north pole, giving it a golden haze.

Meanwhile, Tech Times reported that NASA's Cassini spacecraft detected a canyon network flooded with liquid hydrocarbons on the surface of Saturn's moon Titan.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Parrots have the special ability to mimic and copy sounds that they hear in their environment. These birds are also known to repeat the words and laughters that they hear from humans so it is not surprising that parrots that are kept as pets would repeat the words that their owner, or visitors, would say.

Unfortunately, for some of these pet owners, the ability of parrots to repeat the phrases that they hear can get them into trouble.

In Kuwait, a married man narrowly escaped prison after the family's pet parrot exposed his secret affair with the housemaid.

The wife was already suspicious about her husband and the maid, but the affair came to light after she heard the bird repeat the flirty exchange of words between them in front of her.

The wife then filed a complaint at the Hawally police station accusing her husband of cheating and claiming she had already been suspicious about the man. She said that she already suspected for a week that her husband was cheating after she caught him surprised and nervous when she returned from the office earlier than usual.

Adultery is illegal in the Gulf state. Those found guilty of this crime face potential prison sentence or hard labor. Fortunately for the husband, the cops rejected the wife's evidence.

The prosecution officer said that the case could not be proven for lack of credible evidence. The parrot's squawking of phrases could not be admissible in court since the bird may have heard the phrases elsewhere such as on TV or the radio.

It isn't the first time though that a parrot outed a secret affair. In 2006, a computer programmer in England learned that his girlfriend was having an affair when the bird kept repeating the lover's name.

The African gray parrot kept repeating "I love you, Gary." The bird's owner, Chris Taylor, realized his girlfriend was having an affair when he noticed her embarrassed reaction. His girlfriend, call center worker Suzy Collins, eventually admitted the affair with a colleague named Gary.

The words of a parrot named Bud, which may have witnessed a murder, were also studied by authorities to see if these could be considered admissible evidence in court.

Parrots are known to be intelligent animals. Alex, a gray parrot that died at age 31 in 2007, is among the most intelligent of these birds. Alex knew 150 words and was able to count small numbers and identify colors and shapes.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Common swifts (Apus apus) may not be the biggest of birds, but they're proving to be some of the most powerful flying machines in the world.

Researchers in Sweden have confirmed a popular theory that swifts can stay in flight for long periods of time. In fact, these medium-sized birds can remain airborne for 10 straight months without having to land.

In a study featured in the journal Current Biology, Lund University researcher Susanne Akesson and her colleagues attached data loggers to 19 common swifts in 2013 and 2014 in order to record their flight data. They then recaptured the animals after a few months.

The devices that the researchers placed on the birds measured the animals' acceleration and activity during flight. The ones that were attached to the swifts also featured trackers that monitored the birds' geolocation.

Akesson and her team discovered that the birds can spend almost their entire 10-month nonbreeding period every year without needing to land.

One swift that the researchers observed only stopped flying for four nights in 2014. The following year, this exact same bird only took a break from its flight for two hours.

While most of the other swifts took breaks for longer periods, the time they spent resting is still considerable small compared to when they are in flight, the researchers said.

No Sleep, No Worries

According to the National Geographic, common swifts are known to fly from Europe down to the sub-Saharan part of Africa. However, the birds don't seem to land in the area, as evident in the lack of roosting sites found in sub-Saharan Africa.

Akesson and her colleagues believe that swifts take a break from flying during their nonbreeding season only to avoid bad weather. This seemingly nonstop flight suggests that these birds may not necessarily need to pause to sleep. The researchers said nobody knows exactly when swifts choose to sleep and for how long.

"They feed in the air, they mate in the air, they get nest material in the air," Akesson said. "They can land on nest boxes, branches, or houses, but they can't really land on the ground."

This apparent inability to land may be explained by the swifts' body shape. The National Geographic says the birds are known to have very long wings but short legs, which makes it difficult for them to take flight from flat surfaces.

As for the swifts' propensity for long sustained flight, the researchers believe it may have something to do with their preferred food. The birds mainly feast on insects found in high-altitudes, making it necessary for them to master efficient flight.

However, this also means that swifts had to trade off their ability for territorial locomotion. Staying on the ground for long periods would make them more vulnerable to parasites and predators.

Photo: Stefan Berndtsson | Flickr

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Twenty-four countries, along with the European Union, announced on Friday, Oct. 27, that they have unanimously agreed to declare a portion of Antarctica an official Marine Protected Area (MPA).

The United Nation's Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources has long been brokering for the Ross Sea in Antarctica to be recognized as a marine reserve. The sea is known to be the home of a large number of killer whales and penguins, including Southern Hemisphere orcas, as well as Adelie and emperor penguins.

After five years of negotiations, the EU and other nations agreed to turn the Ross Sea into the largest marine protected park in the world during a meeting in Hobart, Tasmania.

Chris Johnson, an ocean science manager for the World Wildlife Fund, said the Ross Sea is near pristine, one of just a few such parts of the ocean left on Earth.

David Ainley, a scientist in the United States and one of the proponents of having the Arctic sea be declared a marine reserve, explained that this part of the Antarctic serves as a "living laboratory," allowing researchers to monitor the various changes Earth has currently been going through.

35-Year Expiration Period

While the declaration is considered a huge step toward nature conservation, Johnson pointed out that it is not a complete victory as the Ross Sea would only remain a marine reserve for 35 years.

The WWF official said they don't want the new deal to turn into a precedent for other marine reserves.

Before an area can be declared a marine reserve, every concerned nation has to agree to such a move. There must be a complete consensus in order for it to be adopted.

Johnson said the Ross Sea deal went through a long and difficult debate, and that its 35-year expiration period is likely one of the compromises that countries had to agree upon for them to achieve 100 percent consensus.

He added that the WWF would continue to push for the Ross Sea to permanently become an MPA.

"It's critical to set aside these really epic spots for diversity, not just as marine parks but as places that can build resistance to the changing climate," Johnson said.

Despite being an early opponent of the MPA declaration, Russia decided to finally throw in its support behind the new deal.

Sergei Ivanov, Russian President Vladimir Putin's Special Representative for Ecology, welcomed the announcement.

"Russia has a proud history of exploration and science in Antarctica," Ivanov said.

"In this time of political turbulence in so many parts of the world, we are pleased to be part of this collaborative international effort to safeguard the Ross Sea."

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Everyone has been obsessed with Netflix's latest standout series Stranger Things  even Google.

The Mountain View company teamed up with the popular streaming service to bring Stranger Things content to its messaging app Allo.

'Stranger Things' Sticker Pack On Google Allo

As part of the voice messaging app's latest update, Allo now includes a Stranger Things sticker pack that brings the popular gang of characters and other iconic images to the platform, which can be sent in chats with friends.

The Stranger Things sticker pack includes 24 different options that include the Demogorgon, Eggo and Eleven in her blonde wig being "pretty." There are stickers of Eleven with captions like "friends don't lie" and "WTF" in Christmas lights.

The new sticker pack comes just in time for Halloween, allowing users to get into the supernatural mindset.

'Where Is Barb?' Scavenger Hunt

There is a really good chance we will see lots of Elevens and Barbs trick-or-treating this Halloween, but Google Allo users can get in on the action early, thanks to a scavenger hunt that is taking place in New York on Friday, Oct. 28.

Allo users start by asking Google Assistant in the messaging app: "Where is Barb?" The user will then be given the first clue that will lead to a first location.

Continuing to use the app for suggestions and more clues, they will uncover a vending machine and eventually be led off to another location powered by Google Maps where prizes, such as a BMX bike, can be won, or in the worse case, players be handed a sticker.

Those not in New York who can't go on a quest to find Barb can still send not one, but three different Barb-inspired stickers.

The Stranger Things content is part of the recent update to Google Allo released this week. The update includes features like the new and improved theme and direct messages, and users are now able to reply to messages directly from notifications.

Android users also got the new spiltscreen mode, so that they can be watching Netflix and chatting with friends at the same time, all with support for Android N.

Google Allo for iOS also now includes a doodle option for photos.

The Stranger Things sticker pack is now available with an update for Google Allo for iOS and Android.

Stranger Things will return for season 2 on Netflix in 2017. For now, celebrate Halloween with food inspired by the show like Barb French onion soup.

Source: Google

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Microsoft Offers MacBook Owners Up To $650 to Get Rid Of Their Laptops

How about getting paid $650 for trading a MacBook Pro or MacBook Air and get a Surface Book or Surface Pro instead? Does the deal sound exciting to you?

Well, thats what Microsoft is trying to do. The software giant is hoping to sway you by paying as much as $650 to get rid of your current MacBook Pro or MacBook Air and trade up to a new Surface Book or Surface Pro at a Microsoft Store or via Microsoft.com. Microsofts Mac trade-in program is yet another campaign in the companys buyback battle against Apple.

This deal was announced by Microsoft right after Apples latest keynote address, where they released the next generation of MacBook Pros. At this point, theyre really doing customers a disservice to not to have an option for touch on a MacBook, said Brian Hall, corporate vice president of marketing for Microsoft devices. Were going to announce tomorrow a trade-in program so that people who feel disappointed by the Mac not going all the way to touch screen can trade in their Apple computers for Surface.

Further, Microsoft is also hoping statements like these will persuade you to get a Surface instead: No device line up can match the performance, portability and versatility of the Surface family and If you have a Mac but want to experience the ultimate laptop with on-screen touch, Surface and Microsoft Store are here for you.

So, how does this trade work? Depending on the model and condition of your MacBook, Microsoft will be offering customers up to $650 in trade-in value as long as the credit is used towards the purchase of the Surface Pro 4 or Surface Book.

You can follow these four steps to take benefit from Microsofts offer (Note: The device should not have signs of wear and tear or should not have been repaired before):

Visit this site to find out your trade-in value.

Give Microsoft your old laptop and accessories.

You will receive an email with a promo code.

Use the promo code at checkout to get your discount.

If you are interested, then the offer is valid until November 10, 2016, Pacific time 11:59 p.m., or until supplies last.
Top 10 countries for computer programming

Recently, HackerRank published a study showing which countries have the best developers. HackerRank is a free coding practice website that allows developers to enhance their coding skills by solving challenges. In other words, the HackerRank platform is the destination for the best engineers to perfect their skills and companies to find top engineers. The company has ranked 1.5 million developers based on the speed and accuracy with which people complete the challenges.

This study ranked which countries were best overall, which countries ruled in each type of challenge, which types of challenges were most popular, and which languages each country favoured.

The United States and India overall put up disappointing numbers despite having the most participants on the site with U.S. coming at 28th position and India following a little behind at the 31st position.

Lets have a look at whos made into the top list and why?

1 China

In HackerRanks overall list, China clinched the 1st position for the best performing computer programmers. When it comes to specific types of challenges, China is the best performing country in data structure, mathematics, and functional programming.

2 Russia

It is no surprise that Russias strong performance in HackerRanks challenges has got them to this list. Russia is the most dominant country when it comes to algorithms, which is the most popular kind of challenge on the site.

3 Poland

Java is the preferred language among many of the HackerRanks users. It is particularly remarkable to see Poland in the list, as it has won Java challenges on HackerRanks site. Poland also offers coding classes in their schools like many of the other countries on this list.

4 Switzerland

Switzerland is one of the most dominant countries across the board, as it scores the top five in nine of them of the 15 top types of challenges on HackerRank. Switzerland was also the origin of Pascal, one of the first computer programming languages. Additionally, Switzerland was also ranked no. 1 in the Global Innovation Indexs 2016 report.

5 Hungary

Hungary tops the world in performance on tutorial challenges and comes in at a remarkable no. 5 spot in the rankings. Hungary was one of the first European countries to implement computer programming classes into their education system, in both primary and secondary schools.

6 Japan

Japan is making great strides in AI (artificial intelligence). So, its no surprise when it comes to HackerRanks AI challenges that Japan is the best country in the world. For instance, early this summer, the University of Tokyo was apparently able to save a womans life using AI to diagnose her cancer.

7 Taiwan

Scoring high in database, algorithm, functional programming and data structure challenges, Taiwan comes in at no. 7. The survey found that Python is the dominant language.

8 France

French programmers dominate C++ challenges, according to the HackerRank study. One reason for this is that France started providing programming classes in elementary schools in June 2014.

9 Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is dominant in shell scripting challenges, which makes the country stand at the no. 9 spot on the list of best programmers. They also ran second in mathematics challenges on HackerRank.

10 Italy

When it comes to HackerRanks database and tutorial challenges, this country is specifically impressive as it ranks second in both those areas. It is not only HackerRank that thinks extremely high of Italy. Apple announced a new school for 600 programmers at The University of Napoli Federico II on the coast of Italy.

Source: Business Insider
Suppose aliens live among us (some people swear they do). What do they look like?

Are they soft and furry, with a taste for housecats, like ALF, the wise-cracking alien life form whose real name was Gordon Shumway and made his home with the Tanner family in suburban California? Or are they charming and precocious, with a knack for mischief, like Evie, the California tween daughter of a human mother and alien father whose abilities included stopping time and gleeping objects into existence?

Or are they human-like in shape and form, but childlike in act and attitude, like Mork from Ork, whose egg fell to earth in Boulder, Colorado, where he wore rainbow suspenders and sent nightly missives about his studies of human behavior to his superior, Orson?

Setting aside the otherworldly creatures who populate sci-fi shows like Stargate, Farscape, Babylon 5, and Star Trek, the aliens who make their home among earthlings do their best to try to blend in, with varying successes: The Solomons of 3rd Rock From the Sun managed to pass without overt suspicion; Saturday Night Lives Coneheads, who claimed to be from France, not so much. Even the alien heroes  Supergirl, Superman, and the like  hide in plain sight.

People of Earth, a new comedy on TBS premiering Monday, takes a typically skeptical view of the existence of aliens, dealing mostly with those so-called kooks who believe they are abductees (er, they prefer the term experiencer; it retains more agency).

As Ozzie Graham, a journalist writing about Star-Crossed, a support group of experiencers, Wyatt Cenac uses a slack, nearly expressionless face that served him so well as a correspondent on The Daily Show to full effect here as the guy who thinks hes the only sane person in the room. And, indeed, their stories are as wacky as they are: The alien takes the form of a Reptilian, a Big-headed Gray, or a pale Nordic, and tells each one of them, You are special, as if the only television show aliens get is Mister Rogers Neighborhood.

But then Ozzie starts to think that maybe the car crash that landed him in the town of Beacon  he hit a deer  may not have happened the way he remembers it. His explanation and insistence of normalcy  It happens all the time!  is evidence to the group that he, Ozzie, has had his own alien experience. And when hes hypnotized so he can recall the repressed memories, along with his editors insistence on even more stories about this support group, Ozzie begins to suspect that there is, indeed, more to these people than crazy alien-abduction stories.

(See, the car-hitting-deer story is just a cover the aliens use so the experiencer wont remember their abduction incident; it works because they really do happen all the time. Or do they?)

Alien characters in an otherwise sci-fi-free universe serve as a lens through which human behavior can be seen in a different way. In a sense, when humans are set against unknown, otherworldly creatures, the audience is the alien forced to re-examine the once- familiar territory of humanity. When were confronted with having to explain or justify our actions, as we might be when, say, an alien asks us to, the mystery and motivation behind them can break down, and we start to question our own reasons for existence.

Or we shrug it off as the vagaries of life and reach for a beer.

Either way, contemplating the existence of life beyond Earth can really mess with a guys head, but it makes for some pretty good clickbait. People of Earth premieres at 8 p.m. Monday on TBS.

An even greater Pumpkin: Those who watched Its the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown on ABC earlier this month might have felt, as Sally did after she missed trick-or-treating because she spent the night in a pumpkin patch with Linus, a little cheated, and for good reason. The show that aired was shortened so the network could fit another half-hour special on the air. On Friday, though, the network makes good with an airing of the full episode ... but that doesnt quite last an hour, so a truncated version of Youre Not Elected, Charlie Brown, which features Linus run for student body president endangered by a mention of the Great Pumpkin during a campaign speech, will fill out the hour. The specials begin at 7 p.m. Friday on Ch. 27.

Scream time: Catch airings of classic horror films just in time for Halloween during the final days of AMCs Fear Fest. Friday its Friday the 13th at 5 p.m., followed by the first two sequels at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.; and Saturday catch Halloween at 6 p.m., followed by four sequels that run into the wee hours of Sunday morning.
Two foreign nationals, one from Mexico and one from El Salvador, were sentenced this week for illegally re-entering the United States.

Jesus Sanchez-Lopez, 47, and Carlos Orellana-Vasquez, 27, were sentenced to prison by U.S. District Judge William Conley in federal court in Madison.

Sanchez-Lopez, a Mexican citizen found living in Madison, was sentenced to two years in prison. He pleaded guilty in August.

He had been deported after serving an 18-month sentence for the same crime.

Orellana-Vasquez was sentenced to eight months in prison. He pleaded guilty in July.

Orellana-Vasquez was found living in Grant County. He was deported from the United States in 2011 after serving a sentence when he was convicted on a recklessly endangering safety charge.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced Monday that he agreed with Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to resume the cooperation agenda between both nations. | Read More
Wisconsin conservation groups are again asking federal regulators to force the state Department of Natural Resources to get tougher on polluters.

A petition filed this week asks the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to reject changes the state is poised to make to an air emissions permit for a frac sand mining company.

The permit would allow emissions of very small particles that are a serious health hazard when inhaled, said Sarah Geers, an attorney for Midwest Environmental Advocates, a public interest law firm in Madison.

Under a new policy, the state Department of Natural Resources has proposed about a half-dozen air pollution permits that fail to properly control the particles despite previous objections by conservation groups and a 2015 letter from the EPA making it clear that DNR guidelines would wrongly exempt polluters from legal limitations, Geers said.

The DNR is ignoring the presence and cumulative impacts of fine particulate matter from facilities including frac sand mines under its new policy, Geers said in a statement. Despite repeated objections by the EPA and groups like MEA, the DNR is ignoring its responsibilities to protect our air under federal law.

DNR spokesman Andrew Savagian said the departments air permitting staff wasnt aware of the petition, which calls on the EPA to object to a revised permit to allow expansion of production at Superior Silica Sands in Barron County.

The Superior Silica permit proposed by the DNR would allow the company to expand production without estimating, monitoring or controlling the small particles, Geers said.

If the EPA objects, the DNR would be required to rewrite the permit with different limits on particles.

The EPA recently completed a four-day review of DNR files in Madison as part of a broader investigation of Wisconsins enforcement of the Clean Water Act in response to an MEA petition.

The water program probe could result in Wisconsin losing its authority to administer water pollution laws. However, in most cases states make changes to avoid losing control of those programs.

In 2002, conservation groups petitioned the EPA about persistent flaws in Wisconsins air pollution program that could have led to withdrawal of authority to administer the Clean Air Act, but the Legislature acted in 2005 to restore staffing that fixed the problems.

The petition on small-particle emissions is focused on a permitting practice the EPA warned the DNR about last year.

In an Aug. 25, 2015, letter to Kristin Hart, a manager in the DNR air quality management bureau, the EPA was blunt in its assessment of policy guidelines the department was writing for particles smaller than 2.5 micrometers  referred to by the abbreviation PM2.5.

The guidelines were flawed because they falsely asserted that machine processes such as crush and grinding dont produce the particles, EPA Chicago Region Air Permitting Chief Genevieve Damico said in the letter.

Overall, EPA does not believe that a broad statement that mechanical processes do not emit PM2.5 is accurate or appropriate, Damico said. EPA believes that such an assumption may cause WDNR to issue permits that are inconsistent with its State Implementation Plan. ... EPA urges WDNR to revise this guidance.

The Ho-Chunk Nation and the Wisconsin chapter of the Sierra Club joined Midwest Environmental Advocates in filing the petition.

Ho-Chunk Nation vice president Darren Brinegar said in a statement that the petition was needed to keep the public, the environment and natural habitats safe.

The Ho-Chunk Nation is in favor of complying with the EPA standards, Brinegar said.
Lisa Hansens daughter, a 19-year-old freshman at UW-Madison, had a sore throat and was achy and tired when she went home to the Milwaukee area the first weekend in October.

On Monday, Oct. 3, back in Madison, she was rushed to UnityPoint Health-Meriter, where she was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis and fought for her life.

It was the most horrible vision, Hansen said. Shes sitting up, her eyes are really big, her mouth is crooked like (shes having) a stroke and her hands are opened up and really stiff. Shes grabbing her head and trying to pull the IVs out. Shes thrashing and kicking.  She couldnt focus. She couldnt recognize me.

Hansens daughter, who has mostly recovered, had the first of three cases of meningococcal disease reported on campus this month, Hansen said Friday.

Hector Jimenez said his sister, an 18-year-old freshman at UW-Madison, has the third case, which was announced this week. She became ill Tuesday, and on Friday she remained in intensive care at Meriter, said Jimenez, of Madison.

Its slow progress, he said.

Hansen and Jimenez declined to name their family members, and UW-Madison hasnt released the names of the cases. Hansens daughter and Jimenezs sister live in separate residence halls on campus.

Meningococcal disease, which is rare but can be deadly, most often causes meningitis, an inflammation of the lining surrounding the brain and spinal cord. The bacterial disease is spread through oral or nasal secretions.

All three cases are serogroup B, which isnt covered by widely used vaccines. A new vaccine covers serogroup B, however, and UW-Madison has held free clinics to immunize students with that vaccine.

More clinics will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday and noon to 8 p.m. Wednesday at the Southeast Recreational Facility on campus.

As of Friday, more than 15,000 students had received the vaccine, or more than half of the undergraduate population for which it is recommended, said Dr. Sarah Van Orman, executive director of University Health Services.

With the random nature of it, and the fact that we cant predict it, its so important that when we have these situations on a campus that everybody get vaccinated, Van Orman said.

In addition, she said, Dont share things that touch your lips.

Hansen said her daughter promptly received steroids and antibiotics at Meriter, which considerably improved her condition within a day. She stayed at the hospital for a week and resumed classes last week, though she remains fatigued and has trouble understanding what she is reading.

Hansen credits Meredith Leigh, mother of Henry Mackaman, a 21-year-old UW-Madison student who died from serogroup B meningitis in 2013, with urging doctors to better recognize and treat the disease.

Leigh filed a complaint with the state against two Meriter doctors, saying they didnt do enough tests or treat her son quickly enough. The Wisconsin Medical Examining Board took no action against the doctors.

(Mackamans) whole case helped (my daughter) live, Hansen said. She is one of the lucky survivors.

Hansen said the second meningococcal disease case on campus this month is a UW-Madison sophomore who went to Meriter on Oct. 5. That student and Hansens daughter didnt know one another before meeting at the hospital, Hansen said.

Jimenez said his sister had a fever, body aches and stiffness when she went to Meriters ER early Tuesday morning. After blood tests and a spinal tap were negative for meningococcal disease, doctors sent her home, he said.

After a few hours at home, she returned to Meriters ER Tuesday afternoon, unresponsive, with marks on her face and a rash on her legs, Jimenez said. She tested positive.

Jimenez said Meriter shouldnt have sent her home Tuesday morning, given that shes a UW-Madison student and had symptoms of meningitis. I feel like they dropped the ball, he said.

Meriter spokeswoman Leah Huibregtse said she couldnt discuss specifics of the case, citing a federal privacy law.

The decision to admit a patient or discharge to home is based on the patients condition and extensive lab tests, Huibregtse said in a statement. Patients who are released home are given instruction to return should their symptoms persist.
Rich people threaten lawsuits. Its what they do.

They have teams of high-priced lawyers at their beck and call. Its like carrying around a loaded weapon and an itchy trigger finger  things are bound to happen. And why not? It often serves their financial interests. When the deep-pocketed make threats of legal action against ordinary folks who dont have counsel at the ready, it tends to have a chilling effect on them.

So at some level, it should come as no surprise that Donald Trump who, according to the latest USA Today count, has been a party to 4,090 actual legal filings (not counting merely threatened litigation) decided that in his own Gettysburg address  a speech intended to focus on healing the countrys divisions, ironically  he would promise to sue the women who have accused him of sexual misconduct.

But heres the problem. Candidates for president dont threaten lawsuits. Thats not to suggest they dont have a right to sue. They do. Candidates dont set aside their legal rights when they file for public office, any office. But running for president involves, in itself, a kind of public examination of candidates and often of their critics, too, that is not unlike what happens in court. Instead of a judge or jury, its the electorate that gets to decide the merits of the case. In 2016, its Clinton v. Trump in the court of public opinion.

Barack Obama didnt sue Trump for defamation when he made outrageous birther claims. He might even have won, given the facts of the case and the malice Trump displayed, but probably not. In this country, public figures must meet a very high standard to succeed in a defamation suit. Given Trumps own words caught on tape  his now-infamous chat with Billy Bush in which he bragged about sexually assaulting women  its difficult to imagine how any court would ever award him damages.

But lets say Trump is, as he claims, not guilty of some or all of the despicable behavior of which he has been accused (as difficult as that is to believe). Again, why threaten the lawsuit? Its clearly not going to scare his accusers who surely anticipated this behavior. (It is perhaps one of the reasons they didnt step forward earlier.) Indeed, on Saturday as Trump was promising litigation in Pennsylvania yet another woman  Jessica Drake, an adult film star represented by none other than womens rights attorney Gloria Allred  was stepping forward in Los Angeles with new claims of how the candidate allegedly harassed her.

Heres the only real effect the threat has  for Trump, it gives him something to storm and rage and act indignant about (even if it misguidedly refocuses public attention on the a subject that does not enhance his alleged effort to defeat Hillary Clinton at the polls in two weeks). ... But one other consequence, whether intentional or not, is to underscore how much Trump and his followers appear to have declared a war on women on almost every level imaginable.

Disparaging womens looks (whether they are fellow candidates or accusers), calling them pigs and dogs, fat-shaming them and blaming them for the past sexual indiscretions of their husbands are not the ways in which a candidate for president inspires confidence in voters with two X chromosomes. Trump and his minions have been given every opportunity, including by the army of reporters who chronicle his every move, to provide evidence he has been wronged, but whats been presented to date (despite promises that it would set the record straight) has simply not been compelling.

Real presidents dont threaten to sue their critics. They either rise above such charges or disprove them. The original Gettysburg orator, Abraham Lincoln, was called a gorilla, an imbecile, a laughing stock, a simple Susan and a person of very inferior cast of character, wholly unequal to the crisis. He didnt sue, he rose to greatness.

All of which leaves 21st century Republican voters in a painful position. Those who believe in what used to be regarded as bedrock GOP principles, including a belief in traditional morality, can support Trump and either overlook or not believe his accusers (or perhaps view the nominee as the lesser of two evils on the ballot). Or they can do what a growing number of Republican officeholders are doing  withdraw their support for him and send a message to the blustering billionaire and to the rest of the party of Lincoln that the days of misogyny are over.
Heads up to prevent injury from falls Morning walks in my neighborhood are one of the most enjoyable parts of my day. I love the coolness of daybreak and the special sightings of the stag and two does that frequent our open space. I also enjoy my walk because each day at...

Signs that point to the best time for retirement Ive been thinking a lot about retirement lately. One of our amazing staff members, who has been with Senior Concerns for the last 13 years, retired last month. It just doesnt seem real. I always thought of Dana as young. Certainly not the person to...

Rethinking the mandatory retirement age How old is too old for working at a job? Last week a news story hit my inbox and it really got me to thinking about age and retirement. The article noted that Target Corp. abandoned its mandatory retirement age of 65 for its CEO,...

Tips to promoting a healthy nights sleep for children Question: Help, please. My daughter is almost 2 years old and has been an easy child to put into her own bed. Yet in the past few weeks she is purposefully stretching out the bedtime routine longer and longer. She wants more: more stories, more...
WASHINGTON  Last week, the U.N.s premier cultural agency, UNESCO, approved a resolution viciously condemning Israel (referred to as the Occupying Power) for various alleged trespasses and violations of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Except that the resolution never uses that term for Judaisms holiest shrine. It refers to and treats it as an exclusively Muslim site, a deliberate attempt to eradicate its connection  let alone its centrality  to the Jewish people and Jewish history.

This Orwellian absurdity is an insult not just to Judaism but to Christianity. It makes a mockery of the Gospels, which chronicle the story of a Galilean Jew whose life and ministry unfolded throughout the Holy Land, most especially in Jerusalem and the Temple. If this is nothing but a Muslim site, what happens to the very foundation of Christianity, which occurred 600 years before Islam even came into being?

This UNESCO resolution is merely the surreal extreme of the worldwide campaign to delegitimize Israel. It features the BDS movement (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions), now growing on Western university campuses and some mainline Protestant churches. And it extends even into some precincts of the Democratic Party.

Bernie Sanders tried to introduce into the Democratic Party platform a plank more unfavorable to Israel. He failed, but when a couple of Clinton campaign consultants questioned (in emails revealed by WikiLeaks) why she should be mentioning Israel in her speeches, campaign manager Robby Mook concurred, We shouldnt have Israel at public events. Especially dem activists. For whom the very mention of Israel is toxic.

And what to make of the White Houses correction to a press release about last months funeral of Shimon Peres? The original release identified the location as Mount Herzl, Jerusalem, Israel. The correction crossed out the country identifier  Israel.

Well, where else is Jerusalem? Sri Lanka? Moreover, Mount Herzl isnt even in disputed East Jerusalem. Its in West Jerusalem, within the boundaries of pre-1967 Israel. If thats not Israel, what is?

But such cowardly gestures are mere pinpricks compared to the damage Israel faces in the final days of the Obama presidency. As John Hannah of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies recently wrote (in Foreign Policy), there have been indications for months that President Obama might go to the U.N. and unveil his own final status parameters of a two-state solution. These would then be enshrined in a new Security Council resolution officially recognizing a Palestinian state on the territory Israel came into possession of during the 1967 Six-Day War.

There is a reason such a move has been resisted by eight previous U.S. administrations: It overthrows the central premise of Middle East peacemaking  land for peace. Under which the Palestinians get their state after negotiations in which the parties agree on recognized boundaries, exchange mutual recognition and declare a permanent end to the conflict.

Land for peace would be replaced by land for nothing. Granting the Palestinians an officially recognized state in advance makes peace all the more unachievable  it removes any Palestinian incentive to negotiate and strips Israel of territorial bargaining chips of the kind it used, for example, to achieve peace with Egypt.

The result would be not just perpetual war but incalculable damage to Israel. Consider but one example: the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem, destroyed and ethnically cleansed of Jews by its Arab conquerors in the war of 1948-1949. It was rebuilt by Israel after 1967. It would now be open to the absurd judicial charge that the Jewish states possession of the Jewish Quarter constitutes a criminal occupation of another country.

Israel would be hauled endlessly into courts (both national and international) to face sanctions, boycotts (now under color of law) and arrest of its leaders. All this for violating a U.N. mandate to which no Israeli government, left or right, could possibly accede.

Before the election, Obama dare not attempt this final legacy item, to go along with the Iran deal and the Castro conciliation, for fear of damaging Hillary Clinton. His last opportunity comes after Election Day. The one person who might deter him, points out Hannah, is Clinton herself, by committing Obama to do nothing before he leaves office that would tie her hands should she become president.

Clintons supporters who care about Israel and about peace need to urge her to do that now. It will soon be too late. Soon Obama will be free to deliver a devastating parting shot to Israel and to the prime minister he detests.
Citing family and personal interests, Cristo Rey Baton Rouge Franciscan High Schools first president, James Llorens, has announced he will leave the school in December, just months after the school opened.

The Catholic school announced Llorens departure late Thursday. John Bennett, former principal of St. Aloysius Catholic School and current Cristo Rey board member, will step in as interim president of the work-focused north Baton Rouge high school. In the meantime, a national search will be conducted to settle on Llorens replacement. Bennett has more than 30 years experience in Catholic education.

Llorens, best known for his stint as chancellor of Southern University, came out retirement in 2014 to lead a feasibility study to see if the school could thrive in Baton Rouge. A years later, he was named as the new schools founding president.

Llorens appointed president of proposed BR high school James Llorens, former chancellor of Southern Universitys Baton Rouge campus, has been appoi

In a prepared statement, Llorens described Cristo Rey as a labor of love but I now desire to tip the scales in favor of family and personal interests.

I remain committed to Cristo Rey and will continue to support it wholeheartedly in whatever capacity I am able, Llorens said.

Kendall Hebert, a spokeswoman for the school, described Llorens departure as bittersweet and not unexpected, though it was not clear when it would occur.

We knew that at some point he would return to retirement, Hebert said.

Cristo Rey, a network of 32 Catholic schools in 21 states, has an uncommon educational approach. At least one full day each week, its students work at a white-collar job in town. Seventeen Baton Rouge employers are currently underwriting part of the students tuition in exchange for their work.

Cristo Rey opened in early August at the former Redemptorist High School, 4000 St. Gerard Ave. Days later the old high school went underwater during the historic flooding in August. Cristo Rey reopened later that month at unused space at the Bon Carre Technology Center. The school, however, plans to build a new facility on St. Gerard Avenue once the old, flooded high school buildings are demolished.
U.S. Senate candidate Foster Campbell is crying foul over a negative ad from fellow Democrat and rival Caroline Fayard, saying that it takes his words out of context to link him to former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke.

The television spot, which Fayard defended after Campbell raised objections on Wednesday, uses a recorded comment from an Alliance for Good Government forum on Aug. 8 to claim that "Campbell even sided with Mr. Duke."

"I may be like Mr. Duke," Campbell says in clipped, somewhat grainy audio, in an ad that Campbell says is "built on lies" because it lacks the context of a broader statement unrelated to race or other objectionable positions Duke, a Republican also in the race, has virtually become synonymous with in Louisiana and outside.

"David Duke's hateful rhetoric has no place in this Senate race," Campbell said Wednesday. "And neither does this lying ad that tries to undo my 40 years of loyal service to the people of Louisiana."

It's the latest clash in what has become a tense battle between the two leading Democrats in this year's Senate election. About two dozen candidates total are running for Senate in Louisiana. Election day is Nov. 8, and early voting currently underway through Tuesday.

The top two candidates, regardless of party, will head to an all-but-inevitable Dec. 10 runoff. The action in this year's race has mostly centered on the two Democrats angling for one spot, while the major Republicans have been battling for the other.

Organizers of the Alliance forum announced at the event that audio recordings were not allowed, even by reporters in attendance, and Campbell's comment wasn't reported at the time. It's unclear how Fayard's camp obtained the audio.

An Advocate columnist who attended the forum confirmed that Campbell's statement wasn't alarming in its intended context.

A document that was accessible on Fayard's campaign website Wednesday identifies the broader exchange from which the audio was clipped. It also outlines other potential attacks on Campbell.

The 67-page file, labeled "Foster Campbell Key Hits," notes that when asked to name two tax exemptions, Campbell, after Duke named several examples, engaged in this exchange (bold contained in original file):

MODERATOR: Mr. Campbell can you name two of them?

CAMPBELL: Two of them.

MODERATOR: Two of them, thats all Im asking

CAMPBELL: Oh yeah, you know I can name, I may be like Mr. Duke, I might be able to name like ten.

The television ad, a video of which was obtained by The Advocate, uses that clause to set up what it says are the differences between Campbell and Fayard.

"Campbell and Duke, the past," the ad's narrator says, before identifying Fayard as "our future."

The ad also shows images of Campbell and Duke standing near each other at the forum, alongside Campbell's son.

"What makes me really sick is that they put photos of my son, Nicholas in this ad. Implying my kids are connected to David Duke is pretty much the lowest thing there is," Campbell said in a news release.

Fayard says she stands by the ad, which ends with her surrounded by children, saying that she approves the message.

"The facts are the facts. Commissioner Campbell refuses to even say Hillary Clinton's name publicly, or say whether he voted for President Obama," Fayard said Wednesday. "But he's happy to sidle up to David Duke at a public forum for a chat in front of many witnesses."

Fayard said that the ad isn't about opposition research seen in the document that was posted to her website.

"It's based on what I've personally witnessed Commissioner Campbell do and say with my own eyes and ears," she said.
A task force that will be making key recommendations on Louisiana's recovery from catastrophic floods this year on Friday delayed a vote on the initial component of the state's plan for housing.

Members of the Restore Louisiana Task Force said they needed more time to digest recommendations from Gov. John Bel Edwards' administration for a program that would aid homeowners whose homes were damaged or destroyed in the floods.

"It touched all people and I think what we are seeing today isn't going to help all people," said state Rep. J. Rogers Pope, R-Denham Springs and a member of the task force. "I just have major concerns about it."

Pat Forbes, executive director of the state Office of Community Development, offered up a recommendation that the state put most of its initial $437.8 million in federal aid toward a housing rehab program with tight criteria.

That money, he said, would likely only cover fewer than 5,000 homes. He recommended a series of criteria that could be put on it, including directing it to low- and moderate-income families, people without flood insurance, people outside the flood hazard zone and those who suffered major or severe damage.

Forbes described that set-up as a way to draw down the $437.8 million, with the option to expand it if more money becomes available, as officials expect.

Congress approved the initial $437.8 million in flood aid for Louisiana in a last-minute deal that was tied to legislation needed to prevent a federal government shutdown.

Edwards and the state's congressional delegation have repeatedly described the money as a "down payment" on future recovery money that they expect to get when Congress comes back from recess after the November elections. The governor recently updated his full ask from $2.8 billion to $4 billion, following new assessments.

"Our top priority is to bring our communities back as quickly as possible and deliver help to homeowners, renters, business and local governments devastated across every pocket of our state," said Erin Monroe Wesley, special counsel to the governor and an adviser to the task force. "This housing plan is the most important piece of our overall recovery  bringing people back home."

Gov. John Bel Edwards increases federal flood aid request to $4 billion Gov. John Bel Edwards has increased the amount of federal money he thinks the state needs fo

But task force members said they were concerned about several aspects of the proposal, even though any plan must meet HUD's requirements that include an income component.

Qualifying income levels would vary by parish, ranging from a $37,500 cap on families of four in parishes like Avoyelles, Franklin and Winn to $51,900 for those living in parishes that include East Baton Rouge, Livingston and Ascension.

Sean Reilly, the CEO of Lamar Advertising who represents the business community on the task force, said he was "troubled" by that variance.

"Fairness is essential," he said.

FEMA has verified that 112,365 homes suffered major damage in the August floods that swept south Louisiana and the spring floods that hit north Louisiana. About 9,677 of those  or 9 percent  would meet the criteria that the Edwards administration had proposed for the initial program.

Congressional delegation presses state task force to quickly develop federal aid plans Louisiana leaders say they don't think that the state will struggle to get disaster aid afte

Forbes said that the plan was to create an initial program for the initial federal aid that could then be expanded and added to later, opening programs to more people and additional components for renters and small business owners. The state can't receive its money from HUD until it submits a plan.

"We're doing everything we can to make sure that it goes as fast as humanly possible," Forbes said.

The task force's delay appears to throw off the administration's proposed timeline. The group isn't scheduled to meet again until Nov. 18. Officials had hoped to begin the process of choosing a program manager if the panel put forth recommendations for the program and then finalize the decision at the next meeting.

But Monroe Wesley said after the meeting that the administration is understanding of the delay.

"The task force requested additional time to review the proposal," she said. "Their input is critical in this process, and we look forward to working with them, very soon, to finalize these plans to help Louisiana's families recover from the devastating floods."
The task force that has been charged with directing Louisiana's flood recovery efforts will on Friday consider the first major component of the state's long-term housing plan.

Gov. John Bel Edwards' administration is expected to propose a program that would provide financial aid so homeowners can rehabilitate and get back into their flood-damaged homes.

The proposal, which is slated to come up at the Louisiana Recovery Task Force meeting Friday, would require the task force's approval, as well as approval from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

But leaders say they see it as a key step in addressing the state's long-term housing recovery from catastrophic floods across south Louisiana in August and spring floods that hit north Louisiana. The floods caused an estimated $8.7 billion in damage and have left thousands of homes damaged or destroyed.

"The governor, I know, has said getting people back in their neighborhoods is a priority," said Pat Forbes, executive director of the state Office of Community Development. "That tends to be the top priority generally in disaster recovery."

Other housing recovery components are expected to be unveiled as more data is gathered, including programs that would assist renters and small business owners, he said. "There are some things that we really don't have enough information to say yet 'Here is a program that meets the needs for this,'" Forbes said in an interview with The Advocate on Thursday.

Gov. John Bel Edwards increases federal flood aid request to $4 billion Gov. John Bel Edwards has increased the amount of federal money he thinks the state needs fo

Getting a program outline together  at least for the first wave of the homeowner rehab program  should help the state tap into the $437.8 million that Congress approved last month for flood recovery aid for Louisiana. The state can't access that money until it gets HUD's approval.

"What is obvious to everybody that the amount of money we have right now is woefully inadequate for our need," Forbes said.

Congress approved the initial $437.8 million in flood aid for Louisiana in a last-minute deal that was tied to legislation needed to prevent a federal government shutdown.

Congressional delegation presses state task force to quickly develop federal aid plans Louisiana leaders say they don't think that the state will struggle to get disaster aid afte

Edwards and the state's congressional delegation have repeatedly described the money as a "down payment" on future recovery money that they expect to get when Congress comes back from recess after the November elections. The governor recently updated his full ask from $2.8 billion to $4 billion, following new assessments.

That's on top of the hundreds of millions of dollars in FEMA assistance and disaster recovery loans that have already been awarded.

The first round of money will come to the state in semi-flexible HUD grants. Officials repeatedly have stressed that housing would be the first priority, as many people have been unable to return to their flood-ravaged homes.

Edwards developed the task force to oversee recommendations for how that money is spent.

Erin Monroe Wesley, special counsel to the governor and adviser to the flood task force, said that the group has been in regular conversations with the delegation and working with the Representatives and Senators to develop steps moving forward.

"The task force is working aggressively to make sure communities come back," she said. "After two meetings, we've already had some great wins."

Forbes said that the criteria for the initial version of the homeowner program will need the task force's and HUD's approval, but the administration is going in with a set of recommended parameters that it will recommend: Homeowners who 1) suffered major and severe damage; 2) don't have flood insurance; 3) meet low- to moderate-income requirements; 4) live outside the flood hazard zone.

"Even with those priorities set we still don't have enough money if we used the entire allocation," he said.

FEMA has estimated that 50,000 homes meet the "major" and "severe" damage thresholds from the floods.

But Forbes stressed that the initial program is likely to evolve and be added upon as more federal aid comes in.

"We're going to have a lot of things in place and expect to just expand them," he said.

He said that working off that assumption will remove some of the hurdles this round and make any future rounds of assistance smoother.

The state plans to design its program and any needed contracts under the assumption that more money will soon be in the pipeline.

HUD also places certain environmental regulations on funding, which the state is developing some easier ways to get through, Forbes said. HUD is expected to send an environmental team to Louisiana next month to work with the state in developing its plans.

"We're going to think outside the box and look at innovative ways to get to less expensive environmental reviews," Forbes said.
Perhaps this is fitting for a campaign that has had a few twists and turns and has basically remained stagnant, but it looks as if the contest for Louisiana's open U.S. Senate seat could end up pretty much where it started: with state Treasurer John Kennedy most likely  although not guaranteed  to claim one of two runoff slots, and the rest of the major candidates scrambling for a ticket to the second round.

Just as in the race's early polls, Kennedy, the only statewide official on the ballot, has opened up something of a lead over his four major competitors in three recent surveys, by Southern Media & Opinion Research for a group of business leaders, by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research for Raycom Media, and by the University of New Orleans Survey Research Center.

In the SMOR poll, Kennedy, a Republican, scored 22 percent, followed by Democratic Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell with 16 percent, Republican U.S. Rep. Charles Boustany with 14 percent, Democratic lawyer Caroline Fayard with 12 percent, and Republican U.S. Rep. John Fleming with 9 percent. Another good sign for Kennedy here is that his approval rating is an enviable 65 percent, which suggests voters aren't necessarily looking for an alternative. The poll did not measure the popularity of the other candidates.

The Raycom poll, which was used to determine which candidates will participate in next week's final televised debate, had Kennedy at 24 percent, Campbell at 19, and Fayard, Boustany and Fleming bunched in third at around 11 percent.

The UNO poll released Thursday afternoon had Kennedy at 22 percent, Campbell and Boustany tied at 15 percent each, Fleming at 11 percent and Fayard at 10 percent.

A fourth independent poll presents an alternate picture. This one, by Market Research Insight for a different business group, had Kennedy and Boustany nearly tied with 17 and 16 percent, respectively. Campbell, Fayard and Fleming rounded out the top tier with 14, 12 and 7 percent. This poll is closer to surveys we were seeing earlier this fall, when Boustany and Fleming were advertising on television and Kennedy was holding back. He's since started advertising heavily, and his affiliated Super PAC, funded largely by money from money raised for his treasurer campaign account, has been pounding the other Republicans.

The other news out of the polls is that Boustany has settled in as Kennedy's biggest threat. He's got some momentum, having picked up the main newspaper endorsements, run some of the best ads in the race, and made an explicit pitch to voters who are focused on policy and productivity. Kennedy has run as more of a throw-the-bums-out outsider, and has campaigned in mostly hokey generalities about drinking weed killer and such.

So, one big question is whether Boustany can finally knock Kennedy out of that top perch. Another is whether, if Kennedy were to hold on, he'd face a Democrat or a fellow Republican in the runoff. The first scenario remains more likely, but the latter would create a far more interesting dynamic, with the sizable minority of Democratic voters without a candidate of their own but perhaps able to tilt the results toward their favored Republican.

A Kennedy-versus-Boustany runoff would be particularly intriguing on that front. Kennedy, who is not only a former Democrat but a former Democrat with that name, polls well among non-Republicans. In the SMOR poll, he drew 13 percent of the Democratic vote even with two major opponents from the party in the field, and 30 percent of independents. Boustany, the only Republican in the race who really focuses on his willingness to work across the aisle, got 9 percent of Democratic support and 13 percent among those who identify with neither party in the poll.

In fact, both Fleming, who represents the field's right flank, and Boustany have hit Kennedy for his past party alliance and his 2004 endorsement of John Kerry for president  something that could actually help him if he winds up in an all-GOP runoff. In the meantime, he seems to be weathering the line of attack.

When you get kicked in the rear, it usually means youre out front, Kennedy said at the first televised debate last week.

That's where he stood when this whole race started. And it looks like that's where he'll be as the clock ticks down toward Election Day.
When Donald Trump speaks of the inner city  as when he talks about so many other things  he reveals his ignorance. His oddly retro term fails to capture the renaissance that has swept so many urban centers.

It overlooks the last three decades dramatic drop in violent crime, and it suggests that most black Americans live in urban ghettos, which is certainly not true.

But Trumps insensitivity and shallowness aside, serious problems linger in some urban centers, the most troubling being an uptick in the homicide rate. Over the last year or so, as criminal justice experts have noted, murders are up in several cities around the country, including Los Angeles, Houston, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Baltimore and Chicago.

And its not only the nations larger cities that have seen an upsurge in violence. So have smaller ones such as Mobile, Alabama, where I live. According to local law enforcement, Mobile has already surpassed its recent high of 31 homicides in 2014. By mid-October, police were investigating the 35th.

Why arent we more upset about these murders? Why arent we holding daily protests and demonstrations to demand better police tactics to ameliorate the violence? Why arent we insisting that the presidential candidates outline plans to deal with poverty, joblessness and persistent hopelessness, which allow violence to flourish? And why, oh why, arent we holding weekly conclaves with leading politicians to demand reasonable gun control?

Yes, we ought to react with anger and alarm when a poorly trained, trigger-happy police officer shoots down an unarmed black man. But we should also be angry and alarmed when a lovely teenage girl like 15-year-old Trinity Gay, daughter of Olympian Tyson Gay and a rising track star herself, is gunned down in the parking lot of a Lexington, Kentucky, restaurant, apparently caught in the crossfire between two groups of men shooting at each other earlier this month.

To keep this in perspective, violent crime is still trending down from its lofty and frightening heights in the 1980s and early 90s. Chicagos murder rate, for example, is only about half as high as it was in 1990. (And its always wise to reiterate that most homicides are intra-racial: The vast majority of black victims are killed by black assailants, while the vast majority of white victims are killed by white assailants.)

Still, some neighborhoods are suffering staggering losses. Those caught in gang wars, turf battles and revenge slayings over dumb insults include children on the playground, mothers driving to work and elderly couples out for a stroll.

And that doesnt even take into account the actual targets (and perpetrators) of most of these crimes: young black men who have been seduced by the siren song of the streets, who have little hope for productive lives (or long lives, for that matter), who have so little self-respect they cannot manage any respect for others.

They are killing each other with a callousness that is chilling.

While the phrase root causes went out of vogue a long time ago (just as inner city did), it remains true that young men consigned to lives of poverty and despair will frequently turn to crime. The nation needs a new plan to tackle the intergenerational poverty that has left so many of them behind. That makes more sense than spending billions on incarceration, which leaves families bereft of husbands and fathers and produces better-trained criminals.

But the single best weapon (if I may use that term) against this senseless violence would be the better regulation of firearms, a goal that shouldnt be beyond our reach.

Gun rights advocates note that Chicago already has tough firearms regulations, but that doesnt prevent nearby jurisdictions from selling weapons to Chicago residents. That means that state politicians, in Illinois and elsewhere, will have to be persuaded to crack down on gun sales.

Impossible, you say? Not if enough voters started to care about the lives of poor black people lost to street violence. Black lives certainly ought to matter, regardless of the way those lives are lost.
New Orleans is planning about $871 million in public construction projects next year, primarily hundreds of millions of dollars in road repairs and continued work on a new terminal at Louis Armstrong International Airport.

Those projects make up nearly the entirety of the city's 2017 capital budget, its spending plan for infrastructure construction and repairs.

Those major projects and other minor work included in the Department of Public Works budget were rolled out in a budget hearing Thursday before the New Orleans City Council, which is holding hearings on Mayor Mitch Landrieu's proposed operating and capital budgets.

The biggest-ticket item is a plan to spend more than $480 million on roadwork next year.

The work follows a $2.4 billion settlement between the city and FEMA for damage to the city's sewer, water and drainage lines during Hurricane Katrina. That money is expected to fund about 200 projects over the next eight years, with most of those due to be under construction by 2018.

Because the projects are being funded by FEMA, they will occur largely within the area where there was major damage from Katrina, administration officials said.

That raised some concern from Councilwoman Nadine Ramsey, who noted that the West Bank, which suffered little flood damage from the 2005 storm, is largely unrepresented in the city's plan.

Cedric Grant, who doubles as executive director of the Sewerage & Water Board and Landrieu's chief infrastructure adviser, said city funding could eventually result in projects beyond the scope of the FEMA funding.

In response to a question from Councilman James Gray, who said some residents might be skeptical that the city isn't spending the full $2.4 billion immediately, Grant said a faster pace would not be possible.

"If we tried, even though I don't think there's the capacity in the construction community or design community, we would shut this city down," Grant said.

The next largest item on the list is construction on the new North Terminal at the airport, which is expected to cost about $371 million next year alone as the project moves toward an expected completion date of October 2018.

The city also plans to spend $16.6 million on a 28-bed expansion of the Youth Study Center, the city's juvenile detention facility. That addition is particularly important in light of the recent suicide of 15-year-old Jaquin Thomas at the city's adult jail, Councilwoman Susan Guidry said.

Other projects in the plan include repairs to various city buildings and spending on "green" drainage initiatives funded through a federal grant.

The fate of repairs at the Municipal Auditorium in Armstrong Park remains somewhat in limbo, though it is moving toward resolution, the council was told. The city has been negotiating with FEMA over the cost of the repairs, and Grant said the city's $80 million request is still more than double what the disaster agency is offering.

The budget also contains $3 million each for drainage and streetlight repairs and about $6.5 million for minor road repairs such as filling potholes.

Grant said the road maintenance spending "is just the beginning. It's nowhere near where we need to be, particularly given the infrastructure we're about to put in place."

As part of proposed drainage improvements, the city will be shifting its focus from cleaning storm drains to inspecting and repairing those that need it, Public Works Director Mark Jernigan said.

Councilman Jason Williams proposed a plan to make safety improvements at the most dangerous intersection for bicyclists and pedestrians in each of the five council districts.

He suggested spending about $50,000 per intersection on upgrades such as crosswalks, bicycle lanes and pedestrian signals with count-down timers. The sites likely would be drawn from a report issued this summer by the city's Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Advisory Committee.

The project could potentially be paid for with a grant from the Regional Planning Commission, Williams said.

"I'm looking for a commitment from the administration to make those physical changes" next year, Williams said, "rather than spending another year on analysis while more white ghost bikes go up" to mark the spots where cyclists have been killed in traffic accidents.
Trinh Thi Ngo, who has died aged 87, was for a generation of American troops serving in Indochina better known as "Hanoi Hannah", the silken-voiced propagandist on North Vietnamese radio who tried to convince GIs that they should lay down their arms and go home.

At the height of the war, broadcasting in impeccable English under the name Thu Huong ("Autumn Fragrance"), Trinh Thi Ngo hosted three 30-minute programs a day.

Rock tunes such as the Animals' We Gotta Get Out Of This Place and anti-war songs such as Pete Seeger's Where Have All the Flowers Gone? (both banned on US Armed Forces Radio) were interspersed with lists of the names and home towns of GIs killed in action and messages to exploit the ambivalence felt by many servicemen about the war.

"How are you, GI Joe?" ran one such broadcast in 1967. "It seems to me that most of you are poorly informed about the going of the war, to say nothing about a correct explanation of your presence over here. Nothing is more confusing than to be ordered into a war to die or to be maimed for life without the faintest idea of what's going on."

She broadcast messages from anti-war activists such as Jane Fonda, reported demonstrations around the world and sought to stir up racial tensions within US forces by playing up news of race riots at home. She was popular listening for American soldiers, who enjoyed the music, though less popular with US commanders who failed to end the broadcasts by bombing a transmitter in Hanoi.

Though most GIs were said to find her often inaccurate reports of the war entertaining, some confessed to being disconcerted by the impression that North Vietnamese spies must be everywhere.
The Antarctic Ross Sea is the healthiest marine ecosystem on the planet  home to toothfish, seals, a range of penguins and a unique population of killer whale.

Lying south of New Zealand, it is vast, cold and largely untainted by human contact.

After a landmark deal reached in Hobart on Friday, it will stay this way for at least the next 35 years. More than 50 countries including Australia, the US, China, Russia and members of the European Union agreed to make the Ross Sea the world's first large-scale marine park in international waters.

It means 1.55 million square kilometres of ocean  an area nearly twice the size of NSW  will be protected.
Liberal MPs say concerns about the misuse of race hate laws have "hit the mainstream", and have hailed the Prime Minister's suggestion that debate about change to section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act is "reasonable".

Coalition MPs Tony Abbott, Tim Wilson, Eric Abetz and Dean Smith  who has recommended a parliamentary committee look at the controversial section of the act  were delighted with Malcolm Turnbull's comments.

The Prime Minister has previously ruled out any changes to section 18C, but on Friday he said his government would consider a proposal put forward by Senator Smith for a parliamentary inquiry.

He said the government had no plans to amend the act, but crucially added: "Senator Smith has recommended that the issue should be considered by a parliamentary committee, presumably the human rights committee. That's a recommendation he has made and the government is considering it.
If you cast your mind back to the most embarrassing subject completed at school, sex education for many people would come out on top. But a post on Reddit titled 'What do you wish your sex ed classes had actually taught you?' proves how essential school education is for providing proper information on sexuality and relationships.

From pleasure to STIs, the nearly 3000 responses showed just show schools have been lacking over the past few decades when it comes to the absolute basics of procreation.

People want to learn not just about sex, but also what a healthy relationship looks like. Credit:Stocksy

And it's crucial that schools get this right. Earlier this year a study by Deakin University and The University of South Australian found that secondary students rely on information from sexuality and school-based education programs over their parents and friends. Of the 2325 students between 13-16 years of age that were surveyed in Victoria and South Australia, 76 per cent of girls and 74 per cent of their male counterparts cited education programs as their number one source followed by their friends.

The survey also revealed that students wanted to learned more about gender diversity (52 per cent) and violence in relationships (54 per cent) as well as more about loving and starting a relationship, all of which is reflected within the Reddit comments on a global level.
The chief executive of Dreamworld's parent company has admitted she hasn't handled the crisis surrounding the deaths of four people "as well as I could have".

Deborah Thomas, head of Ardent Leisure, laid flowers outside the theme park on Friday morning alongside more than 100 park employees.

She said she hoped a private memorial ceremony held on Friday morning at the park would be "the beginning of the healing process".

Ms Thomas said the ceremony was emotional.
Megan Jean Haines arrived home on May 15, 2014 to find "10 coppers" poised to search her north coast unit.

A homicide detective told her they were there following the deaths of two women at St Andrews Village aged care, where Ms Haines had recently landed a job as a registered nurse.

Aged-care nurse Megan Jean Haines was convicted of the murder of two residents at a Ballina aged-cared facility.

The NSW Supreme Court has heard that Ms Haines was not told how those women had died.

Yet during an intercepted phone call to a friend a day later, Ms Haines allegedly knew the elderly residents had been given the wrong medication.
The defence barrister for a man who murdered his parents in their home near Wangaratta has urged a judge to give the killer the prospect of one day being released from prison.

Ian Thomas, 38, was found guilty by a Supreme Court jury of strangling his mother Pauline, 63, and shooting then bludgeoning his father William, 65, at the family farm on April 21, 2013.

Ian Thomas arrives at the Supreme Court in Melbourne. Credit:Wayne Taylor

Thomas, who had previously been living in Western Australia, had been staying with his parents when he used cable ties to strangle his mother, before shooting his father and then repeatedly hitting him in the head with a pick-axe.

He claimed during his trial it was his father who had murdered Mrs Thomas, and that he had shot his father in self-defence, but the jury rejected this testimony.
Accused murderer John Torney told police Nikki Francis-Coslovich and her siblings looked up to him like a "god", a court has heard.

Mr Torney, 32, has been charged with Nikki's murder, but he alleges it was his girlfriend and Nikki's mother, Peta-Ann Francis, who killed the toddler on August 25 last year.

The Supreme Court jury was on Friday played Mr Torney's record of interview with police on August 28, which his lawyer has already conceded he lied in.

The trial has previously heard that he asked to make a new statement a few days later, when he told police Ms Francis was responsible for Nikki's death and he helped hide the body.
WA doctors will be able to legally prescribe medicinal cannabis from Tuesday after the state government threw its support behind changes to Commonwealth laws.

Health Minister John Day on Friday welcomed the new legislation, which will class medicinal cannabis as a controlled prescription drug from November 1.

Dr Andrew Katelaris is one of Australia's biggest medicinal cannabis suppliers. Credit:Rohan Thomson

"Like all controlled drugs, medicinal cannabis will be prescription only, with strict rules around prescribing," he said.

"Medical practitioners will be at the centre of all treatment decisions and patients will need to discuss their situation with their treating doctor.
Washington: The US Justice Department have charged 61 people and entities with taking part in a scam involving India-based call centres where agents impersonated Internal Revenue Service, immigration and other federal officials and demanded payments for non-existent debts.

The scam, which had operated since 2013, targeted at least 15,000 people who lost more than $US300 million in the US. Twenty people were arrested in the United States on Thursday, while 32 individuals and five call centres in India have been charged, the department said in a statement.

The defendants, including 24 people across nine US states, were indicted by a grand jury in the US District Court for the Southern District of Texas.

A similar scam has been targeting Australias, with people receiving phone calls at home purporting to be from the Australian Tax Office. Those who don't pay their "debts" are threatened with "consequences".
Foul-mouthed Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who called the Pope a "son of a bitch" and told Barack Obama to "go to hell", says he has promised to God he will not spew expletives again.

Duterte's profanities have become his trademark, especially when threatening to kill drug dealers as part of his war on narcotics, which has left thousands dead since he took office at the end of June.

Duterte made the stunning pledge on arrival in his southern home town of Davao city late on Thursday from a trip to Japan.

While flying home, he said he was looking at the sky while everyone was sound asleep and he heard a voice that said "If you don't stop epithets, I will bring this plane down now".
Ground Breaking Hyundai Ioniq Hybrid and Ioniq Electric Go On Sale in the UK

 IONIQ Hybrid prices start at 19,995, while Electric is available from 24,495 (including Plug-in Car Grant)

 IONIQ Plug-In Hybrid set to join the line-up in Q2 2017

 Newcomer is the first car in the world to be offered with three different electrified powertrain options on one platform

 Between now and 2020, Hyundai will launch 28 alternative fuel models

HIGH WYCOMBE, England - October 28, 2016: Hyundais ground breaking IONIQ - the worlds first car to offer three electrified powertrains on one platform - is now officially on sale in the UK.

First available in Hybrid and Electric variants, a Plug-In Hybrid version will join the range in 2017 giving customers unrivalled choice thanks to Hyundais completely electrified portfolio.

Highly aerodynamic, all IONIQ models feature an airflow-optimised fastback body that slips through the air thanks to a drag coefficient (Cd) of just 0.24. Inside, the IONIQ features the very latest connectivity systems - including Apple CarPlay and wireless phone charging - while safety features include the very last active safety systems. Thanks to an aluminium bonnet and tailgate, the IONIQ Hybrid is 60kg lighter than the similarly sized i30 hatchback - and the cleverness doesnt end there. Compactly packaging the cars batteries under the rear seats means the IONIQ has a 443-litre boot, some 100 litres bigger than Toyotas Prius.

Hugely efficient, the IONIQ Hybrid boasts official combined fuel consumption of 83.1mpg, which gives a range of 846 miles: enough to drive from Lands End to John OGroats without needing to fill up. Its also completely free to tax thanks to CO2 emissions of 79g/km.

The IONIQ Hybrid range starts at 19,995 for the SE 1.6 GDi, which includes standard features such as 15 alloys, DAB with Bluetooth, Cruise Control and Rear Parking Sensors with Rear View Camera. Safety features include Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB), Lane Keep Assist System (LKAS) and individual Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS).

IONIQ Hybrid Premium 1.6 GDi, from 21,795, provides additional equipment over the SE, including keyless entry with push button start, heated front seats, heated steering wheel, Bi-Xenon headlamps with LED rear combination lamps and a drivers supervision instrument cluster with 7 LCD display. Integrated satellite navigation with TomTom Live services, an Infinity audio system with Android Auto / Apple CarPlay and Wireless Phone Charging (where supported) also feature as standard.

From 23,595, IONIQ Hybrid Premium SE 1.6 GDi models benefit from enhanced comfort equipment such as leather seats with heated/ventilated front seats and heated outer rear seats, heated leather steering wheel and a driver power seat with Integrated Memory System. Blind Spot Detection with Rear Cross Traffic Alert, Front Parking Assist and optional 17 alloy wheels round off this range topping trim.

IONIQ Hybrid is available in 7 different exterior colours; Phantom Black, Polar White, Platinum Silver, Iron Grey, Demitasse Brown, Marina Blue and Phoenix Orange. The lava stone interior trim features blue accents throughout the cabin and control surfaces.

The IONIQ Hybrid will be sold alongside an all-electric model, the IONIQ Electric, which boasts a remarkable 174-mile range. Prices start from 24,495 (inclusive of the Government Plug-In grant of 4,500) for the Premium specification, mirroring Hybrid Premium, with specific equipment including Automatic Windscreen Wipers with Rain Sensor, 16 alloy wheels, LED headlamps and rear combination lamps and Advanced Smart Cruise Control. Integrated satellite navigation is standard across the IONIQ Electric range.

IONIQ Electric Premium SE, available from 26,295 (again inclusive of the Plug-In grant), features standard equipment such as leather seats with heated/ventilated front and heated rear seats, heated leather steering wheel and a driver power seat with Integrated Memory System, Blind Spot Detection, front Parking Sensors and EV-specific 16 alloy wheels.

The savings dont stop there, though. The IONIQ Electric is exempt from the London Congestion Charge, which represents a whopping annual saving of 2,886.50 over a car that emits more than 75g/km of CO2 driving into central London every day.

Keeping the IONIQ Electric topped up with power couldnt be easier, either. All models feature a standard rapid charge compatibility, ensuring an 80 percent charge capability in just 33 minutes from a 50kW CCS Combo Rapid public charger, whilst a standard ICCB Charging Cable will allow charging from a domestic three-pin supply. IONIQ Electric also boasts adjustable regenerative braking, via steering column-mounted paddles, maximising driver engagement and enhancing efficiency.

POD Point is Hyundais preferred charging partner for customer domestic charge point installations. Owners can charge their IONIQ Electric from zero to 100 per cent in just 4.5 hours at home. POD Point also has over 1,500 public charging points across the UK, as well as points across the Hyundai UK dealer network and Hyundai Motor UK facilities.

The IONIQ Electric is available in 6 different exterior colours; Polar White, Phantom Black, Platinum Silver, Marina Blue, Phoenix Orange and exclusively for IONIQ Electric, Blazing Yellow. The lava stone interior trim features copper accents throughout the cabin and control surfaces.

IONIQ Hybrid will be available across the Hyundai dealership network from the 27 October, with IONIQ Electric initially available from a selected network of 27 dealerships, with full network rollout from 2017.

All IONIQ models come with Hyundais industry-leading 5 Year Unlimited Mileage Warranty package, with the additional high voltage battery cover of 8 years / 125,000 miles.

IONIQ Plug-In Hybrid 1.6 GDi prices and specifications will be announced prior to the on sale date in 2017.

Tony Whitehorn, President and CEO Hyundai Motor UK said: This is a landmark launch for Hyundai. Not only is the all-new IONIQ the worlds first car to offer three electrified powertrains, but its also our first move into the electrified sector in Europe. We have listened to our customers and we have responded with a full portfolio of electrified models, making low- to zero-emission mobility more accessible to more people.

Hyundais innovative approach delivers an uncompromising design and driving experience, the latest connectivity and safety features with an enhanced industry-leading warranty-package. It is also an important milestone in our sustainability strategy, bringing innovative technologies to the market and extending the companys product range of low-to-zero emission vehicles, which already includes the worlds first mass-produced fuel-cell electric vehicle, the ix35 Fuel Cell. What is more, this is just the start too  between now and 2020 we will launch 28 alternative fuel models.
Auto Lab Radio LIVE From NYC - Saturday October 29, 2016; 7-9 AM (EDT)







The Auto Lab Radio Show is Broadcast Saturday's 7 to 9 AM On New York City's WNYM Radio AM 970 and Streamed Worldwide On The Auto Channel

Broadcast Date: October 29, 2016

Car Question or Concern? Call Toll Free 888-692-7234

Auto Lab is a 28 year old interactive automotive-focused New York area radio call-in show hosted by Professor Harold Wolchok. Each week a cadre of experienced hands-on automotive experts are in-studio with advice for the New York area's 12 million people, providing listeners with honest, practical and street-smart car repair and buying advice.

Auto Lab is also about the automotive industry, its history, and its culture, presenting the ideas and advice of leading college faculty, authors, and automotive practitioners in a relaxed, conversational interactive format.

Listeners can hear the past 18 years of archived Auto Lab shows as simulcast on www.theautochannel.com.

Listen - Auto Lab Page (Includes Audio-on-Demand Archives, Auto Programs at Community College Database, Guests Pictures

Auto Answers - Maintenance, How To's, Safety, Used and New Car Buying, Ombudsmen Suggestions. From These Auto Lab In-Studio Experts

Broadcast Date: October 29, 2016;

Harold Bendell- Major Auto

Fred Bordoff-Bronx Community College, CUNY

Tim Cacace-Master Mechanix

David Goldsmith - Urban Classics Auto Repairs

Joseph Guarino-Joe Guarino's Auto Repairs

Joanne Porcelli, Esq

Michael Porcelli - Central Avenue Auto Repairs & I-CAR

Nicholas Prague- MTA and Rockland Community College, SUNY

Auto Lab Correspondents Report Auto Safety News, New Car Reviews, Technology and Latest Auto World Information That May effect You!

Broadcast Date: October 29, 2016

Robert Sinclair-AAA Northeast

GASOLINE PRICE ECONOMICS

PLANNED $105 PARKING AND TRAFFIC FEE NOTHING MORE THAN A TAX

Russ Rader, Vice President Insurance Institute for Highway Safety

MOST PICKUP TRUCKS HAVE POOR HEADLIGHTS, IIHS TESTS SHOW

Joanne Porcelli, Esq.; Michael Porcelli-Central Avenue Information

NEW YORK TIMES ARTICLE- AT AUCTION, VEHICLES WITH FATAL FLAWS

John Russell, Senior Correspondent

2017 MAZDA CX-9
Monday 05 September, 2016 Reliable information reaching Biafra writers desk has it that the life of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indi...
Hospital offers safe option to dispose of meds, narcotics Los Robles Health System is working to crush the opioid drug crisis by raising awareness about the dangers of opioid misuse and the importance of safe and proper disposal of unused or expired medications. Crush the Crisis will take place...

Alzheimers Foundation to host free conference The Alzheimers Foundation of America will host a free virtual educational conference from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tues., Nov. 15. The event is part of the foundations 2022 national Educating America Tour. The conference, which is free and open...

Authorities warn about rainbow fentanyl Victims often arent aware theyre taking it

The Ventura County Office of Education and state health officials have issued a warning to schools and families about rainbow fentanyl, a form of the potentially fatal synthetic opioid that comes in bright colors. Rainbow fentanyl can be found in...

Cancer support community to host remembrance event Cancer Support Community Valley/Ventura/Santa Barbara invites family members and friends of those who have died from cancer to attend the second annual Evening of Remembrance from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Thurs., Nov. 3 at Cancer Support Communitys Garden of Hope,...
October 21-27, 2016

Weve got some major sparkle in store, including a three-way tie for first place! Be sure to vote for your favorites in the poll below.

Photo: BENOIT DOPPAGNE/AFP/Getty Images

10. For a reception on Wednesday at the Royal Palace in Brussels honoring Belgiums Rio 2016 athletes, Princess Astrid wore pearl earrings and a stack of statement necklaces.





Photo: REMKO DE WAAL/AFP/Getty Images

9. On Tuesday, Queen Maxima of the Netherlands wore golden jewelry  including her bamboo-style hoop earrings and her torc necklace  for a visit to Philips Innovation and Production Centre in Best.

Photo: REMKO DE WAAL/AFP/Getty Images

8. Maxima went, well, Full Maxima with a pair of beaded statement earrings for Thursdays visit to Almelo and Northeast Twente.

Photo: Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images

7. Queen Sofia of Spain was regal in pearls at the Princess of Asturias Awards in Oviedo on Friday.

Photo: Jeff Spicer/Getty Images

6. For Wednesdays 30th anniversary celebration of JDRF (a global charity focused on funding diabetes research), the Duchess of Cornwall wore pearl earrings and her pearl necklace with the elaborate Deco-style diamond and sapphire clasp.

Photo: John Phillips  WPA Pool/Getty Images

5. Camilla chose another of her pearl necklaces  this time with the large diamond cross clasp  to present this years Man Booker Prize on Tuesday. (She wore the same necklace with pearl earrings on Thursdays visit to Poundbury.) She also wore her gorgeous diamond and amethyst earrings.

Photo: Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images

4. For the Princess of Asturias Awards on Friday, Queen Letizia of Spain selected her black diamond earrings from De Grisogono.

Photo: JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/Getty Images

3. For the unveiling of a statue of her mother in Poundbury on Thursday, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom appropriately donned the Queen Mums Cartier Palm Leaf Brooch. ( More pictures of the event, including a brooch close-up, over here.

Photo: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Princess Grace Foundation

2. Princess Charlene of Monaco glittered in diamond earrings and a coordinating cocktail ring at the Princess Grace Awards in New York on Monday. ( More images, including jewelry close-ups, over here.

King Harald and Queen Sonja held a dinner for the Members of Parliament at Oslo Royal Palace. pic.twitter.com/kqguHbu9Ql  vanina swchindt (@vaninaswchindt) October 27, 2016
China is known as the Middle Kingdom. This self-appointed moniker derives from the fact that Imperial China (which ranged from the Shang Dynasty in the 2000s BC all the way through the Qing Dynasty to 1911) regarded other civilizations as barbarian and beneath the culturally superior Chinese. The Chinese were superior to all except the spirits in the Heavens - hence the name the Middle Kingdom.

Historians often use the history of the Roman Republic and Empire as a guide stone to the development of the United States and seek analogous situations between the two to explain whether the United States is rising or declining. But I think a better historical period and civilization to study in this regard is late Imperial China. This revolves around issues that were very similar for both including illegal drugs, philosophical change, and foreign influence. Consider the following historical progression:

And China was able to develop on its own for centuries without much disruption. Bounded by Siberia and the bitter cold of Manchuria to the north, the Gobi and Taklimakan deserts to the northwest, the Tibetan Plateau to the west, the Himalayas to the southwest, the jungles of Indochina to the south and the Pacific Ocean to the east, the Chinese could bask in splendid isolation. Two of its last three dynasties (the Mongols and the Qing, were non-Chinese, but were Asian and did not present a threat to the Confucian philosophical order.

But this isolation had its disadvantages. In the 1800s, the Europeans, who had been merely tolerated through the allowance of several trading posts in the 17th and 18th centuries, now had vastly superior technology. Economic imperatives in Europe led to the desire to open any new markets it could and China, 400 million strong, had the customers that the British desired.

But China was unwilling to open its markets. It was a very conservative country that had centuries of tradition and imperial prerogatives to defend and maintain. So two diametrically opposed desires were clashing. And one of them had to give. And what gave was the imperial Chinese system.

So, in the 1830s, the British East India Company, in control of India and Afghanistan and its poppy fields, surreptitiously sold opium through independent traders in to China to make some money from the vast market. China protested to Queen Victoria, who claimed no knowledge of such tactics. As the opium crisis worsened in China, the Confucian precepts that had been the basis of Chinese society for millennia eroded significantly. Many Chinese were no longer productive members of society, hooked on opium as they were. Opium dens opened up to service their newfound sloth and decrepitude. It got so bad that some Chinese actually sold their children in to slavery to feed their drug habit.

The Chinese Imperial Government then seized opium cargo which eventually led to the Opium Wars which were fought from 1839-1843. Britain, with its superior naval technology, won the war and received Hong Kong and the rights to unfettered trade in China.

And this is where the real problems for China began. Being too big for one foreign power to effectively control, China faced interference and domination by all the Great Powers of Europe and, by the 1890s, the newly transformed industrial power of Japan. The flood of new foreign made goods changed China forever.

But it was ideas that changed China the most. Christian missionaries infiltrated China in the 1840s and 1850s. Their message resonated with quite a few Chinese. So much so that one Hong Xiuquan, the Chinese Jesus, claimed that he was the younger brother of Jesus Christ and was sent here to rid China of the devils. Due to the decline of China vis-a-vis the West this movement led to an attempt to overthrow the Imperial System. But this Taiping Rebellion in the 1850s, with the help of Western advisors like Frederick Townsend Ward, was put down over the next fifteen years and it resulted in the deaths of about 40 million people. Some historians say the total death toll was over twice as high actually. It was the bloodiest civil war in history, by far.

China then went through a period of slow and steady decline and, of course, domination by foreigners. The people hated it though and over time formed fighting clubs to practice martial arts and prepare for conflict. This was more generally called the Self-Strengthening Movement. It was essentially a movement with the goal of Making China Great Again.

One of the more famous of these clubs was the Fists of Righteous Harmony more commonly known as The Boxers. In 1895 the xenophobia got worse after the Chinese got humiliated by losing the Korean peninsula in a minor war with Japan. It was clear to the Chinese people that the foreign influence that had corrupted their government had to go.

So, after percolating a while, the Boxer Rebellion exploded in China in 1900. Foreigners were attacked with reckless abandon. The homes and estates of Western officials were ransacked and burned down. Telegraph lines (which some Chinese thought conveyed demons in them) were cut. Westerners who physically fell in to the wrong hands were often murdered or worse. Our own 31st President, Herbert Hoover was caught up in the melee as he worked there as a mining engineer. He was able to hole up with other Westerners in the Forbidden City complex until the Sikh troops of the British empire in conjunction with US Marines routed the Boxers and returned the fossilized Chinese Imperial government to power.

This was then the period of the very conservative Dowager Empress Cixi and then Pu Yi, the Last Emperor (a boy). In 1911 he was removed from the throne and an abortive republic of China under Dr. Sun-Yat-Sen lasted for a mere nine months before China entered a fractious period of civil war marked by fights between regional warlords. By the late 1920s the strongest of these, Chiang Kai-Shek eventually dominated China. Mao Tse-Tsung was driven from the coasts inland near Tibet and rebuilt the Communist Party of China. After World War II, Mao was able to defeat the Nationalist Chiang in a new round of civil war and established the Peoples Republic of China.

So China went through hell in the hundred plus years from 1830 through 1950. A large part of the population got addicted to opium, the underlying philosophy that had served Chinese order well for millennia was threatened by an alien culture, the country was broken up economically in to spheres of influence to benefit several European powers, and a xenophobic reaction led to a period of chaos. Sounds a bit like America in the 21st century.

The USA was isolated for over a century. George Washingtons farewell address advised the country to stay out of foreign entanglements and his successors largely followed his advice through the 1800s, combining a mix of nationalism and protectionism while assimilating millions of newcomers. The United States also had a Judeo-Christian moral system at its core, while embracing the ideas of the Enlightenment in terms of individual political rights and economic liberty. America had developed in its cocoon and came out a vibrant country and an example for the world. But things have changed. And most of it is our own fault.

Consider: We have serious drug problems in our country, especially among poor whites hooked on methamphetamines and various opiates. The philosophy that our country was founded upon is being undermined as our minds of our youth get corroded with liberal propaganda in our schools and universities. Our government cuts trade deals that have hollowed out American manufacturing and enriched globalists, foreigners, and elites. And our government deliberately works against its own citizens by allowing in hordes of immigrants which drain the resources of those very people who were hurt by the debilitating trade deals in the first place.

This is all a recipe for future civil strife at best and open rebellion at worst if not reversed. Many Americans today, like the Chinese of a century and a half ago, feel that they are losing their country and culture.

Only a bold and defiant leader can reverse this horrifying trend and eventually turn our country from going the way of Imperial China. That man is Donald Trump. If he is denied victory on November 8, given the historical lessons from imperial China, I do indeed fear our countrys long term future.
With less than two weeks until the election, Donald Trump has amassed an impressive army of small donors, fueling his bid with individual contributions of $200 or less. But noticeably absent from the list of contributors is basically anyone with the last name Trump, many of the surrogates who represent The Donald on national television, and members of his own campaign staff.

According to a review of Federal Election Commission filings by The Daily Beast, only one of Trumps children showed up on a list of itemized receipts for the campaign: Eric. On Sept. 7, 2016, Eric Trump appears to have contributed $376.20 listed only as meeting expense: meals. It appears that money was later refunded. Eric Trump did not respond to a request for comment about the transaction.

Ivanka Trump, who previously contributed to Hillary Clinton and John McCain in 2007 and 2008 respectively, does not appear to have given to her father.

Donald Trump Jr., who contributed to Iowa congressman Steve King in 2014 and Hillary Clinton in 2007, is also nowhere to be found.

And a search for Tiffany Trump yielded no results.

The Trump children are not the only prominent figures in his orbit who have not invested in the moguls presidential bid.

Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn , the former Defense Intelligence Agency director turned Trump warm-up act, has not given the candidate a dime. Neither has Governor Chris Christie, Trumps first rival for the presidency to endorse him. Christie gave his own campaign the maximum allowable contribution of $2,700 on Sept. 29, 2015.

Many of Trumps surrogates, who have been generous in previous campaigns, this year have kept their wallets closed to The Donald.

Newt Gingrich contributed $4,600 to John McCain in 2008 but has yet to give any money to Trumps campaign. Ben Carson, another staunch Trump defender, gave Mitt Romney $1,000 in April 2012 but nothing to Trump this cycle.

The rest of the Trump circle of staffers, advisers, and surrogates who are absent from his FEC filings includes: former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, adviser and attorney Michael Cohen (an admitted registered Democrat), and former executive of Breitbart and Trumps campaign CEO Steve Bannon.

Theres no law or general practice that dictates whether family members or staffers should or should not give to presidential campaigns with which they are affiliated. And contributions below $200 are not required to be reported by presidential campaigns. But in this cycle, Trumps family has remained particularly involved, often serving as surrogates in place of leading Republicans who are not campaigning on his behalf.

That category is not among the prohibited sources of contributions: corporations, labor organizations, national banks; federal government contractors; and foreign nationals, Judith Ingram, the press officer for the FEC, told The Daily Beast in an email regarding staffer contributions.

Family members can give, too, as long as they stick with the limits, she added.

Staff may not give contributions if the individual running is a member of Congress, which is obviously not the case for either Trump or Clinton.

The kind of anything goes rule when it comes to donations applies evenly to both candidates in the race and some of Clintons team is not on record providing contributions either.

A search for Brian Fallon, Clintons press secretary, in FEC records returned no results for contributions this cycle. However, Clintons campaign chairman John Podesta appears to have given $2,700 on April 16, 2015. And Chelsea Clinton gave her mothers campaign $2,700 on Jan. 21, 2016. There are also documented contributions from newly-appointed Democratic National Committee chair Donna Brazile, Clintons campaign manager Robby Mook, and former strategist for President Obama David Axelrod.

Trumps campaign manager Kellyanne Conway told The Daily Beast that she and her husband gave $25,000 to Trump Victory Fund, the joint fundraising committee between the campaign and the RNC, on October 1.

One major Clinton surrogate who is noticeably absent from her extensive list of contributors is billionaire Mark Cuban who has been a public thorn in Trumps side.

No. Not to any candidate. Not to any pac, Cuban told The Daily Beast when asked if he had or would contribute to the campaign. I want to retain my independence.

The Trump and Clinton campaigns did not respond to a request for comment about their respective policies when it comes to these contributions.

While its up to the discretion of individual family members when it comes to campaign contributions, one adviser to Romneys 2012 campaign described it as a common occurrence.

Family members donating to a campaign, especially brothers and sisters, is an absolutely common practice, Kevin Madden, Romneys former spokesman, told The Daily Beast.

Immediate family members making contributions, like sons or daughters, are also pretty common, but its not unusual for them to not donate, either. Campaign staff making donations can be unusual, and you never want to put pressure on staff to feel like they have to in order to keep some standing inside the campaign, especially when they are providing the campaign valuable resources like time and effort.

When the Trump campaign began soliciting online donations in June, the candidate asked for a paltry $10 from each contributoran appeal his millionaire kids didnt respond to. The request resulted in a quick $3 million haul from his supporters though. And by September, Trump had paid his own businesses around $8.2 million, comprised of rent, food, and facilities and payroll for corporate staffers. He even used tens of thousands of dollars in campaign donations to buy copies of his own book.

Meanwhile, Trump is still asserting that he will invest $100 million in his own campaign. But with less than two weeks left in the race, hes almost 50 percent short of meeting that goal. Trump gave an additional $30 thousand of his own money in October, bringing his total to less than $57 million.
Michael Moore appearing on Fox News is always an exciting proposition, never more so than on a day when he was publicly lauded by Donald Trump. Just a few hours after Trump said he agrees with Moores assessment that his campaign is going to be the biggest fuck you ever recorded in human history, the liberal filmmaker sat down with frequent Trump nemesis Megyn Kelly.

The clip of Moore making that statement and others from his new film Michael Moore in TrumpLand has unintentionally become a rallying cry for the Trump campaign. As he told Kelly on Thursday night, the clip that has gone viral in TrumpLand was doctored so that it cuts off just before he delivers his primary message. It will feel good, is the last thing Moore can be heard saying in the clip Trump himself shared. But his next line is, For a day, or maybe a week.

But when you find out that your life isnt going to get any better under President Trump and will probably get worse, he continued on Fox News, thats when youre going to realize what the Brits have realized, referring to the Brexit vote. If we elect Donald Trump as president of this country, it wont be the same country after four years, he added. Im absolutely convinced of that. This is the most vile, disgusting candidate thats ever run for office in this country.

Speaking directly to Trump supporters on Fox News, Moore said, I understand why youre angry. You have every right to be angry. The system has failed you, but he is not the solution to this. If Trump had watched the film, Moore said he wouldnt be promoting it, because the message is to get out and vote for Hillary Clinton.

Hes a busy man, Kelly joked, before asking Moore to make the case for Clinton. You like her so much. Why were you against her when she ran against Obama and you were against her in the primary? You liked Bernie. You seem to be a reluctant Hillary supporter.

Moore said that while he doesnt like that she voted for the Iraq War and thinks shes too cozy with Wall Street, the WikiLeaks revelations dont bother him at all. I care about women should be paid the same as men, I care about the polar ice caps melting, the big big issues, he explained. We have a choice between somebody who is smart, who has a heart, whos going to stand up for kids and for families and working people and we have a billionaire who just says these things trying to pretend that he cares.

He went on to compare Trump supporters to abused people who sometimes have a hard time making the right decision because of the abuse, and the attack on the working class has been so intense over the last couple of decades. Moore added, Youre not going to be better off with a billionaire whos never spent a day of his life worrying about you.

Theres only one problem with Moores attempt to clarify his message. If he wanted to reach Trump supporters, he may have picked the wrong Fox News show.
The plan to cut off the city of Raqqa, the capital of the self-proclaimed Islamic State, could begin as early as two weeks, a U.S. defense official told The Daily Beast Thursday.

But which troops would eventually enter Raqqa after it is surroundedand how the U.S.-led coalition would choose which warring allies should be involved in the invasion of Raqqahave yet to be sorted out. In other words: U.S. military this week may have begun to trumpet the definitive battle to defeat ISIS, but they have yet to finalize the details of how the battle for Raqqa would shake out, defense officials conceded to The Daily Beast.

Instead, there are dueling battle plans emerging between purported NATO partners. The U.S.-led coalition is saying that the fight for Raqqa is about to begin, led by Kurdish forces known as the YPG. Turkey, meanwhile, is vowing to stop the YPG.

The U.S. military has said it believes the best way to defeat ISIS is to launch simultaneous operations against two major cities under the terror groups control, Raqqa and Mosul, which serve as capitals of its self-declared caliphates in Syria and Iraq, respectively. The Iraqis launched the campaign to liberate Mosul 10 days ago.

But theres no equivalent to a friendly Iraqi army in Syria. Instead, the U.S. militarys most effective local ground force against ISIS has been the YPG. Two defense officials told The Daily Beast that the YPG would only be a part of what the U.S. military calls the move to isolate Raqqa, building essentially a ring around the city to stop ISIS movement in and out.

The defense officials said the YPG would not enter the city, a concession to Turkey which considers the YPG a terrorist group.

The YPG are part of the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces, which also include Arab fighters. And the U.S. said it plans for Arab members of the SDF, in addition to yet to be trained additional Arab forces, to actually enter Raqqa. According to BuzzFeed, Turkey this month began training some of those Arab fighters for the battle for Raqqa, with U.S. backing.

The battle for Raqqa is driving a wedge between the United States and its NATO ally, Turkey, even as they say they both want to see the demise of ISIS in Syria. On Thursday, the defense officials said there are ongoing discussions with Turkey about the operation to liberate Raqqa.

Tension between Turkey and United States has only increased in the last two days, since the U.S. declared its commitment to working with the YPG forces, over Turkish objections. On Thursday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced in a speech in Ankara that Turkish troops would rid the northern Syrian city of Manbij, which Kurdish forces help capture from ISIS in August, of Kurdish forces, and eventually do the same in Raqqa.

The announcement was part of an ongoing Turkish military operation it has dubbed Euphrates Shield, a push to drive ISIS and Kurdish militias out of northern Syria, which borders Turkey.

Turkey is demanding instead that the liberation happen any other way than with YPG forces. Meanwhile, according to one local report, the YPG are ready to move on surrounding Raqqa.

The U.S. push to distinguish between the use of YPG forces outside the city, rather than in the city center, buys the U.S. time to sort out how exactly the campaign for Raqqa will happen.

What this sounds like is that the U.S. is stalling. The U.S. wants some ground movement against Raqqa in support of Mosul operations. The U.S. doesnt have it so it is doing what it can in the meantime before another administration takes power, Jennifer Cafarella, a Syria expert at the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War, explained to The Daily Beast.

On Wednesday, Army Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria, announced that the YPG would be part of the initial war for Raqqa saying: The only force that is capable on any near framenear-term timeline isare the Syrian Democratic Forces, of which the YPG are a significant portion.

Earlier this week, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter said the Raqqa campaign would begin within weeks, but did not differentiate between isolating and liberating the city in an interview with NBC News.

Townsend said that the plan for Raqqa must start soon, in part, because ISIS is planning attacks on the West from Raqqa, but he said he did not know the specifics of such an attack.
A twelve-page document released by WikiLeaks late Wednesday shows how a shadowy consulting firm became the connective tissue between Clinton family insiders and deep-pocketed multinational corporations.

These documents make it clear that Bill Clintons ear was up for rent.

Now, a Daily Beast review of federal lobbying disclosure forms shows some of the same companies that hired Teneo and ponied up cash to the Clinton Foundationincluding Dow Chemical and Coca-Colaalso found favor with the Hillary Clinton-led State Department.

Its virtually impossible to find discrete examples of quid pro quos between Clinton Foundation donors, Teneo clients, and the Clinton State Department. But information in Clinton campaign chairman John Podestas hacked emails released by WikiLeaks shows that Teneoa firm founded by a Clinton confidanteappeared to act as a doorkeeper for companies seeking special access to the Clinton network. Doug Band, who helped found Teneo in 2011, referred to the set-up as Bill Clinton Inc.

Meanwhile, federal lobbying disclosure forms show companies that hired Teneo also successfully lobbied the State Department while Hillary Clinton was there. Its not clear whether these companies would have had such good fortune without being in Teneos orbit, but the emails suggest these relationships were cozier than previously known.

Teneo doesnt publicly disclose its client list. But in July 2015, Fortune reported its clients included Alibaba, Coca-Cola, and Dow Chemicalall companies that gave generously to the Clinton Foundation and lobbied State during Clintons time there.

Alibaba lobbied the State Department in 2012 regarding intellectual property rights and property protection on website and market in China, according to its federal lobbying disclosures. Alibabas contributions to the Clinton Foundation have long drawn criticism because of the companys alleged complicitness in Chinese government crackdowns on internet freedom.

A former president of the United States received a donation from a Chinese firm that is involved in censorship, and now his wife is running for president, exiled Chinese activist Harry Wu told the Los Angeles Times in 2008. This is a shame of the U.S.

Coca-Cola, another open-handed Clinton Foundation donor which would later become a Teneo client, also received favorable outcomes after lobbying the Clinton State department. Lobbying disclosures from 2010 show Coca-Cola lobbied the State Department and Department of Commerce regarding an excise tax in Pakistan on one of its ingredients. The Pakistani government later nixed that excise tax. It is unclear what exactly happened behind the scenes, but Coca-Cola got what it wanted.

In a similar instance, the company lobbied the State Department over an excise tax in Thailand that it didnt want to pay. A leaked State Department cable revealed that the U.S. ambassador to Thailand, Eric G. John, raised the issue in a meeting with the countrys finance minister. The cable mentioned specific efforts that assist U.S. firms Coca-Cola and Pepsi.

According to the cable, then-Thai prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva reaffirmed that, if requested by Coca-Cola, the government should not disallow the U.S. company from increasing its prices. It is unclear whether Coca-Cola continued to pay excise taxes after appearing to be granted a reprieve from the countrys prime minister.

Coca-Cola has donated between $5,000,001 and $10,000,000 to the Clinton Foundation, according to the charitys disclosures.

Dow Chemical is another Clinton Foundation donor that seems to have found favor with State. Its ties with Teneo run deep. The New York Times recently noted that Dow is Teneos most profitable client and that its CEO, Andrew Liveris, has visited the White House multiple times and co-chairs the presidents Advanced Manufacturing Partnership.

In emails released by the State Department earlier this month, Liveris asked senior Clinton aides to send a letter to then-Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh regarding the companys acquisition of Union Carbides shares. Union Carbide owned and operated a chemical plant in Bhopal, India, and 17 years before the acquisition by Dow, the plant had a major gas leak that killed thousands of Indians.

Liveris wanted to keep Dow from being held liable for the incident. It isnt clear whether State officials did what Liveris asked them to do, but the Obama administration never aided Indian efforts to punish Dow. Earlier this year, activists blamed the Justice Department for intervening on Dows behalf to keep the company from appearing in an Indian court.

Disclosure forms show that a Dow subsidiary, Dow Agrosciences, lobbied the State Department in 2011.

Glen Caplin, a spokesman for the Clinton campaign, said Clinton did not prioritize the needs of Foundation donors when she was secretary of state.

The State Department has made clear that Hillary Clintons actions were made in the best interests of American foreign policy and that she never made decisions because of donations to the Clinton Foundation, he said.

None of these companies mentioned above responded to requests for comment from The Daily Beast. By hiring Teneo, they helped enrich some of Bill Clintons top former aides; and keeping the Clintons close clearly wasnt bad for business.
Do not dress as Ken Bone for Halloween.

Fright of frights, Halloween this year is going to be infested with drunks in red sweaters waiting for you to delight in their cleverness. Oh, night of terror, there will be women who have actually purchased that Sexy Ken Bone costume. Is that a haunted spirit I see out of the corner of my eye? No, its the pun-loving academic getting his late October jollies. He is Ken Boner.

Friends, I am terrified.

Halloween is upon us, this year an entire three-day weekend celebrating our evolution from candy-guzzling children into the booze-stuffed misguided, teetering through the streets in any number of terrible pop culture-inspired costumes.

The holiday has somehow become the real-world manifestation of the insufferable have you seen conversations we have about any number of viral memes. Gone is any homage to Halloween tradition. Who wants to be a goblin, ghoul, or ghost when you can dress as a dead gorilla?

And so this Halloween will see any number of nasty women, bad hombres, baskets of deplorables, and a slew of politically inspired costumes, all festooned with the air of pride over the so-called cleverness of such styling. It is exhausting.

Our instinct to create folk heroes out of undecided voters and memes out of some of the most tragic moments of the election is one of our worst. Its a reflex that indicates a refusal to process the brutal reality of a pivotal moment in our history, choosing to make sideshows the main act, and perpetuating ignorance by focusing on distractions. By minimizing what actually matters, we dont have to be made uncomfortable by confronting it.

These costumes are our denial personified, drunk on 2-for-1 Fireball shots.

Ken Bone, by the way, is not a cute little distraction. His disturbing Reddit history proves hes not nearly as adorable as we thought, suggesting, among other things, that the killing of Trayvon Martin was justified. But, sure, spill Bud Light all over your thrift store red sweater on Halloween while dressed as him. Cool.

The debate rages each year about whether controversial Halloween costumes are funny or distasteful, whether we should treat Halloween as an occasion to bait offense and be a little naughty with our lack of political correctness. Were not blaring any sensitivity siren here. Were merely pointing out that these costumes are really dumb.

When your pop culture joke has been commoditized, its no longer worth making. Youre no longer clever. Theres no punchline anymore. When when were all in on it, its not cheeky; its mainstream. And when something becomes mainstream, its neutered of any intended provocation. Worse, it means that weve become desensitized to the perhaps once-incendiary and maybe even valuable conversation that meme or joke or costume might have caused.

As a costume, these outfits are now just lazy. As a cultural statement, they now represent our resignation to the worst: racism, sexism, bigotry, and political disinterest.

Dressing as Donald Trump for Halloween isnt funny. Youre either suggesting that Donald Trump is a joke or you want to start a fight. If the reason is the former, see above. If the reason is the latter, youre the worst for reasons far greater than your lame Halloween costume.

You may, however, dress as Donald Trumpkin, and that is the bar for creativity you must reach for other Trump-inspired dressage.

We, at our humble cubicle at The Daily Beast, have received press releases about costumes for: Locker Room Donald Trump, Cry Baby Trump, Trump Taco, and Prison Hillary. We have since thrown our computer out the window next to our humble cubicle at The Daily Beast.

This Halloween will no doubt see a harem of sorority girls as Nasty Women and their male counterparts doing some racially insensitive version of Bad Hombres.

Based on the number of Sexy Tinkerbells, Sexy Devils, and, yes, even Sexy Candy Corns we see year after year, perhaps originality isnt of the utmost importance to these people. But unless you are wearing a Hillary Clinton pantsuit with Janet Jackson-inspired detailing, we are going to groan at each one of you.

And, sure, the racist Mexican costume is hardly a new thing. (I have ashamedly dressed this way myself, because I once was drunk and in college and thought things like that were funny.) But this year, its as if expecting the barrage of Bad Hombre costumes preemptively grants permission to the giddy exploitation of peoples Im just joking! racism.

How will you and your friends illustrate Trumps basket of deplorables? We await your creativity with bated breath. God save your soul if there is any pussy-grabbing theme to your outfit.

And then there are those costumes that arent politically themed, the pop culture ones worn with a devious smile because youre so confident that you dont care if you offend people when, really, people dont think youre being offensivethey think youre being just dumb.

Cool, lady. You spent $70 on a costume version of Kim Kardashian being held hostage during a robbery. Money well spent on a costume that lost its edge the minute we all knew of course this was going to be a costume this year. Instead of making a statement on Kardashians fame, its a statement on how foolishly you manage your money.

Dressing as Harambe holding a bloody child? As novel as a new Harambe joke, at this point. A Syrian refugee? Youre not provocative. Youre an asshole. Killer clowns? Eyes dont have the mobility to roll dramatically enough.

Its pointless to dredge up the (completely valid) conversations about the exploiting of socioeconomic disparity with costumes mocking the homeless or white trash, the problematic consequences of the sexy Halloween motif, and the truths revealed about us by our consistent excusing of racist costumes.

Theyre had every year and, if nothing else, only serve to bolster the annual blackout bacchanal, not deter from it.

But while we may think Halloween is the worst, we do acknowledge that, yes, Halloween can be fun. Or so we hear.

Were glad people enjoy the camaraderie of it, get excited about the occasion to bond with friends, lose inhibitions, and be someone else for a night. There is ample opportunity, too, for actual cleverness and creativity on Halloween, especially with costumes inspired by pop culture and watercooler conversationeven if we think the perfect Halloween outfit is and forever will be a bedsheet ghost.

But the extent to which weve embraced the opportunity to lean into the vilest aspects of our culture, excusing it under the false guise of some sort of winking intelligence? Youre not clever. Youre not smart. Dont do it.

Now get off my lawn. Its the one without those dollar store fake spider webs decorating it.
The case of Hillary Clintons private server took a pair of almost cinematically strange turns Friday. The Federal Bureau of Investigation announced that it is examining emails that the Bureau considers pertinent to the investigation of Clintons servermonths after declaring that she wouldnt be prosecuted for any crimes in connection with that email system. Odder still, the messages in question were found on electronic devices that belong to top Clinton aide Huma Abedin and her disgraced and estranged husband, former congressman Anthony Weiner.

In a letter to members of Congress, FBI Director James Comey said the emails were discovered in connection with an unrelated case. The New York Times first reported the connection to Abedin and Weiner, whose cell phone and call records were subpoenaed by federal prosecutors investigating his communications with an underage girl. The Washington Post reported that the emails in question were found on a computer used jointly by Abedin and Weiner.

An individual familiar with the FBIs review told The Daily Beast that the emails are large in number, but its not yet clear that any of them contain classified information.

Coming just 11 days before the presidential election, the revelation of potential new evidence in a scandal that has plagued Clintons campaign gave new ammunition to her opponents and inspired fierce criticism of the FBI director from her supporters.

While Comeys letter was certainly surprising, it wasnt particularly illuminating, nor is it clear that the recently discovered emails will alter the FBIs earlier conclusions that Clinton and her aides, while extremely careless, had not done things that warranted criminal prosecution when they used private email accounts for official business.

Clinton herself pointed to the vagueness of the letter in a hastily arranged press conference Friday evening, by calling on Comey to release more details about the nature of the investigation as soon as possible.

Its imperative that the Bureau explains this issue in question, whatever it is, without delay, Clinton said. Right now, your guess is as good as mine. And I dont think thats good enough if theyre going to be sending this kind of letter then they need to share whatever facts they claim to have with the American people.

Comeys letter also may have had more to do with correcting his own previous testimony than tipping off lawmakers to some new bombshell. He began began by noting that hed earlier testified that the FBI had completed its investigation of former Secretary Clintons personal email server. The new developments, however, meant that testimony was no longer accurate. Comey said his letter updating lawmakers was meant to supplement what hed previously told them.

Comey wrote that FBI investigators had informed him of the newly discovered emails a day earlier.

I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation, Comey wrote, adding that there is no timetable for the new investigation. Comey also said the FBI is thus far unable to assess whether or not this material may be significant.

At no point did Comey say the FBI had reopened its investigation of Clinton and her email server, but that didnt stop her critics from claiming as much.

Republican nominee Donald Trump, who is trailing Clinton in national and state polls, pounced on the news, saying at a New Hampshire rally that Clinton will pay for her use of a private server.

Hillary Clintons corruption is on a scale that we have never seen before. Perhaps finally justice will be done, Trump said. In the past, he has criticized the Department of Justice for not charging Clinton after an extensive investigation into her email system, which Comey said mishandled classified information.

Trump has previously suggested that Abedin was a security risk because of Weiners proclivity for sexting with strangers.

Huma Abedin, the top aide to Hillary Clinton and the wife of perv sleazebag Anthony Wiener [sic], was a major security risk as a collector of info, Trump tweeted last August.

Weiner has a long history of sexually-charged conversations with women he met online. But its apparently a more recent relationship that helped reignite the Clinton controversy. The Daily Mail reported in September that Weiner carried on a sexually-charged series of communications for months with a girl who said she was 15. Weiner sent photos of himself bare-chested to the girl. While investigating this exchange, the FBI came upon the computer where they found emails related to the Clinton investigation.

Back in 2013, after Weiner admitted to sexting with women even after that behavior led him to resign from Congress, Trump lashed out at the disgraced politician.

Wiener [sic] is seriously sick and will never change! Trump tweeted.

Earlier this month, leaked footage from an Access Hollywood segment showed Trump bragging about his own sexual exploits and his fondness for grabbing womens genitals without their permission. Since then, 11 women have come forward to accuse Trump of kissing or groping them against their will.

Weiner didnt respond to requests for comment.

Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta said that Comey had raised more questions than he answered. He should immediately provide the American public more information than is contained in the letter he sent to eight Republican committee chairmen, Podesta said in a statement. Already, we have seen characterizations that the FBI is reopening an investigation but Comeys words do not match that characterization.

Republican lawmakers also lashed out at Clinton for her email use and called on intelligence officials to withhold classified information from her and her aides in light of the FBIs new discovery.

House Speaker Paul Ryan said Clinton has nobody but herself to blame, and reiterated his call for Clinton to no longer receive classified intelligence briefingsa privilege given to her as the Democratic presidential nominee. Trump is also allowed to receive briefings.

Devin Nunes, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said in a statement that it was no surprise that the FBI has found additional problematic emails. FBI Director James Comey is right to reopen the investigation and pursue all leads until we know the full extent of Clintons misconduct and the full extent of the harm she did to our national security. In light of these circumstances, its impossible to see how Director of National Intelligence James Clapper can believe Clinton or any of her implicated staffers should ever again be provided access to classified information.

Rep. Bob Goodlatte, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, stated, Now that the FBI has reopened the matter, it must conduct the investigation with impartiality and thoroughness. The American people deserve no less and no one should be above the law.

Clintons defenders, meanwhile, accused the FBI of playing politics and handing Clintons opponent a major boost.

I was shocked to read Director Comeys letter, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in a statement, calling the FBI directors decision to disclose the information so close to the election appalling.

This is particularly troubling since so many questions are unanswered. Its unclear whether these emails have already been reviewed or if Secretary Clinton sent or received them. In fact, we dont even know if the FBI has these emails in its possession, Feinstein said.

She continued, Director Comeys announcement played right into the political campaign of Donald Trump, who is already using the letter for political purposes.

Rep. Elijah Cummings, the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, also said he was surprised by Comeys letter given how obvious it was that Republicans would immediately misconstrue and mischaracterize it. The FBI Director did explain in his letter that none of this information may even be significant, but that did not stop Republicans from hyperventilating and making wild accusations.

Comey has vehemently objected to allegations that the FBIs investigation was influenced by election year politics and that the bureau had erred in concluding after its lengthy investigation that there was no crime to prosecute.

You can call us wrong, but dont call us weasels. We are not weasels, Comey said last month at a hearing of the House Judiciary Committee. We are honest people and whether or not you agree with the result, this was done the way you want it to be done.
In the two years since her explosive gang-rape story shocked the country, Jackie has been a cornerstone in our national debate about campus sexual assault and is currently at the center of defamation suit filed against Rolling Stone, which published the now-discredited article on her alleged sexual assault.

Yet the full identity of the University of Virginia student who, evidence suggests, may have fabricated a harrowing story to a Rolling Stone reporter, remains an open secret: While known to many people, Jackies full name continues to be protected by both the court and the mainstream media.

The medias decision not to expose Jackies full identity rests on a long-standing journalistic standard against naming alleged victims of sexual assault, so as to protect their privacy and livelihoods. Likewise the courts decision to allow Jackie to remain pseudonymous during trial proceedings in the defamation suit brought by former UVA dean Nicole Eramo, who once counseled Jackie as an alleged survivor, against Rolling Stone and Sabrina Erdely, the journalist who failed to do due diligence in reporting Jackies story.

Indeed, Erdely admitted to relying almost entirely on Jackiea single, unreliable sourceto mount a series of damning accusations against UVA, Eramo, and Phi Kappa Psi, the fraternity where Jackie claimed she was raped (Phi Kappa Psis $25 million defamation suit against Rolling Stone is scheduled to go to trial next year).

But given that many aspects of Jackies story have repeatedly been shown to be false, through reporting following the articles publication and a subsequent, extensive police investigation, does protecting her identity now seem questionable?

Police found no evidence to corroborate Jackies story that she was assaulted at Phi Kappa Psi or any other fraternity, as she told Dean Eramo, friends, and Erdely, giving inconsistent accounts to these parties.

Instead, they found evidence suggesting shed serially lied about various details of her alleged assault, some of which werent included in the Rolling Stone article. Jackies roommate denied pulling shards of glass from Jackies face, as Jackie said shed done, after claiming male bullies on campus threw a bottle at her after the alleged assault; Jackie also claimed shed phoned her mother after she was hit by the bottle, but phone records showed no calls were placed at the time.

Police determined there was no party at Phi Kappa Psi on Sept. 28, 2012, the night of her alleged assault, and found no evidence that Haven Monahan, the junior Jackie told friends shed been on a date with the night she was supposedly raped, is a real person.

Eramos attorneys have presented texts in court filings between Monahan and Jackies friend Ryan Duffin, arguing that they were part of a catfishing scheme by Jackie to win Duffins affections.

Yet we dont know for sure that Jackie isnt a victim of sexual assault. After concluding a five-month investigation, Charlottesville Police Chief Timothy Longo made it clear that just because they found no evidence of the rape and other violence she described to Rolling Stone, that doesnt mean something terrible didnt happen to Jackie were just not able to gather sufficient facts to determine what that is.

Jackie and her attorneys have consistently maintained that she is a victim of sexual assault, though theyve provided no evidence or further details in court filings beyond simply claiming victimhood.

In a deposition played before the court earlier this week, Jackiewhose face was not shown to jurorsoccasionally contradicted her own testimony. At one moment she suggested Rolling Stone had skewed her words and that she remembered reading the story and thinking I probably would not have written it that way; at another, she said she stood by the account she gave the magazine and believed it to be true at the time.

When asked if she still believed her story to be true, Jackie replied that she has PTSD and its foggy, attributing her memory issues to trauma resulting from her alleged assault. Critics have argued that her fogginess is convenient, given that she wasnt foggy when recalling her story to The Washington Post following the Rolling Stone articles publicationtwo years after the alleged assault.

Yet strange as it is for a person at the center of this lawsuit (though neither a defendant nor the plaintiff) to remain unidentified both in court and in the media, its debatable whether naming her would serve the public.

Jackies allegations and interactions with the reporter are absolutely critical in the case, but publishing her name for the whole world to see is a different issue altogether, said Robert Drechsel, professor emeritus at the University of Wisconsin-Madisons School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

Drechsel noted that, for the time being, he couldnt articulate any overwhelming public interest in identifying her.

There might be future developments in the case which could change that, but it seems the right thing to do at this point is to not name her, he said.

The judge presiding over the case has taken the same position, since shes referenced only as Jackie in court documents.

Andrew S. Boutros, a former federal prosecutor and national co-chairman of Seyfarth Shaw LLPs White Collar Group, said courts are careful not to subject alleged victims of sex crimes to additional scrutiny or to victimize the victim again.

The same rule generally applies in cases like Eramo v. Rolling Stone, where Jackiethe alleged sexual assault victimis a central witness rather than a plaintiff.

Courts are very mindful of policy implications and will insist on certain rules that will transcend one particular case in order to avoid the potential for a slippery slope scenario, he noted. These same policies sometimes apply in other areas, such as in prosecutions of street gangs or cartel members, where the government will also seek to ensure the anonymity and safety of cooperating sources by avoiding having them named in open court or any court documents.

The fact that this case is so unusual gives the judge all the more reason to not name Jackie, which could set a precedent on a rare case and potentially loosen policy standards.

One case for Jackie to come forward herself is that doing so might change the climate of silence and shame surrounding sexual assault and rape.

Take, for instance, the cascading number of women who have publicly accused Donald Trump of sexual assault and misconduct since the first woman went on the record in The New York Times saying Trump assaulted her.

Or Chessy Prout, the former student at St. Pauls School who appeared on the Today show with her family to contradict the not-guilty verdict handed down to Owen Labrie: No matter what the jury said, Labrie had raped her.

Geneva Overholser, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning 1991 series in the Des Moines Register about an Iowa woman who was raped (the woman, Nancy Ziegenmeyer, gave Overholser permission to use her full name in the story), has since argued that the standard of not identifying accusers is a particular slice of silence that I believe has consistently undermined societys attempts to deal effectively with rape, and that not naming victims hasnt seemed to reduce the number of unreported sexual assaults.

The longstanding nudge (by journalists and others) toward anonymity that women who have been raped have been experiencing has no doubt comforted some, at least for a period, she writes. But, increasingly, the underside of this approach even for the individual is acknowledged. Painful as the truth can be, absorbing the notion that you cant tell it can be worse.
How do you assess the age of someone with no passport, no birth certificate, and no identity papers of any kind?

How can you know if someone who claims to be a child, but looks much older than 18, is lying when they may have been prematurely aged by having spent the best part of five years living rough, sleeping in camps, fleeing warzones, or walking across the Sahara?

These are problems that the British government is grappling with in the wake of the controversial clearing of a vast, illegal, makeshift refugee camp of unimaginable squalor and deprivation in Calais, France, nicknamed the Jungle.

The Jungle was estimated to be home to up to 7,000 refugees, mostly from Africa and the Middle East. They were in Calais because they were trying to get to the U.K., just 20 miles away across the English Channel.

This week, the camp was emptied and razed to the ground by the French authorities. Thousands of refugees have been bussed to dozens of official holding centers around France.

As part of the political settlement around the closure of the camp, the U.K. agreed to welcome over 200 hundred unaccompanied childrenmeaning under-18sinto Britain.

While humanitarians focused on the appalling violations of basic human rights and societal norms at Calais, several British newspapers found a different angle when it came to covering the levelling of the Jungle. They published photographs of several migrants among the 224 children who appeared to be well above the age of 18.

The toxic tone of the debateright-wingers have called for immigrants to have their teeth examined prior to being granted asylum to establish their agewas amped up when a charity accused The Sun of manufacturing the crisis.

The U.K.s largest fostering charity, TACT, tweeted a Sun snap of a child migrant whom the paper estimated to be 38, and claimed The Sun had gotten its facts wrong, and that he was an adult interpreter working for the Home Office.

Thousandsincluding BBC Match of the Day presenter Gary Linekerretweeted the message on social media, calling those who questioned the ages of refugees hideously racist and utterly heartless.

Then the Home Office stepped in and declared The Sun was right; the individual in question was an asylum seeker claiming to be a child.

The Sun ran a self-righteous editorial the next day which took to task, celebrity imbeciles who, took joy spreading their leftie lies on Twitter, adding, for good measure, that the celebs who had retweeted the TACT claim were too dim to see the irony of slating the accuracy of papers like The Sun, then tweeting unsourced and un-checked fiction to millions of followers because it suits their political prejudices.

(On the subject of unobserved ironies, it should be noted that The Sun carried but slender coverage that day of the news that their once-star undercover journalist Mazher Mahmood, also known as the Fake Sheikh, had been jailed for 15 months for tampering with evidence in the collapsed drugs trial of a pop star he had tried to frame for the Sun on Sunday newspaper.)

British officials insisted that the migrants had undergone rigorous screening, which included psychological tests, to establish they were aged under 18, but that argument was undermined when The Telegraph revealed that as of the year ending in June, of 933 asylum applicants recorded as having had an age assessment, fully 636 (68 percent) were deemed to be over 18.

One of the few points in this story on which both sides agree is that those who made it to the U.K., whatever their ages, are the lucky ones.

It is estimated that up to 1,000 migrants, including many minors, remain in and around the wreckage of the Jungle camp.
Thursday night, with just 11 days to go until this endless election is over, Seth Meyers decided to take a closer look at the full-on crackup that Donald Trump has caused within the Republican Party. And he began with Trumps decision to lean into his reputation as a groper by hugging the American flag at a campaign event this week.

That image pretty much sums up the state of the Trump campaign, Meyers said. Clumsy, fake patriotism, and unwanted physical contact. Its only a matter of time before that flag is giving a press conference with Gloria Allred.

The problem, as Meyers sees it, is that Republicans have decided to nominate someone who embodies the very ideas of toxic masculinity and male entitlement. This is evident in everything from Trumps views on sexual harassment in the workplace to the disturbingly sexualized comments he has made about his daughter Ivanka.

Meanwhile, Trump has enlisted right-wing media figures like Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh to paint Hillary Clinton as an election-rigging, criminal sex freak in order to make her look illegitimate from Day One, just like they tried to make President Obama look illegitimate.

Nothing encapsulated this mind-set more than the recent tweet from former GOP Xongressman Joe Walsh, which read, On November 9th, if Trump loses, Im grabbing my musket. You in?

Hes gonna grab it? Meyers asked. Sounds like Gloria Allred just got herself a new client!
Marco Chacon had only spent about $20 on his conservative news website, RealTrueNews, when he heard his words in prime time on Fox News The Kelly File.

Yeah, Chacon said. That was an accident.

Just as hed done for the last few months, Chacon had read the latest explosive conservative newsthis time it was Hillary Clintons leaked speeches to Wall Street banksand typed up an imagined transcript of his own.

So in the transcript, shes explaining Bronies to the Goldman Sachs board of directors, said Chacon. Do you know what Bronies are?

Bronies are hard-core, usually adult fans of the cartoon My Little Pony.

In this one, [Bronies] are part of a threat of subalterns who are going to take over the election. And people believe all this, he said. And Im just Im telling people, How can you believe this!?

Somewhere in the middle of that block of text about My Little Pony, Chacons transcript contained the phrase bucket of losers, attributed, falsely of course, to Clinton, which legitimate conservative news websites picked up as real.

Sure enough, by 9 p.m. that day, Trace Gallagher was on Fox News telling viewers that Clinton had apparently called Bernie Sanders supporters a bucket of losers. (Megyn Kelly later apologized after the Clinton campaign vehemently denied Clinton said it.)

Taking official-looking documents at face value isnt just burgeoning among alt-right media. Its a tactic now endorsed by the Republican candidate for president.

Two weeks ago, GOP nominee Donald Trump implored supporters in a speech in Colorado Springs to forget the press. Read the internet.

The internet is filled with verifiable information from journalists at places like The New York Times and The Washington Post, who face real consequences if a story turns out wrong. But, especially this election cycle, the web is equally saturated with factually inaccurate disinformation, verified by no one, turning up on Facebook and Twitter feeds across all demographics and party lines with no way to stop it.

An analysis conducted by BuzzFeed last week found that Facebook posts from 38 percent of right-wing and 20 percent of left-wing news sites published false or misleading information.

Chacon, a 47-year-old veteran infantryman, father, bank executive, and moderate Republican, saw it all over his Facebook feed, and he was sick of it.

I saw something posted sincerely with a headline like, Obama Issues Executive Order to Take Over U.S., he said. How do you counter that? You can try to debunk it, but nobody cares about that. They just say its liberal media bias.

So, three months ago, after a conversation with a childhood friend, he bought a domain name, RealTrueNews.org. He was going to come up with the most ludicrous right-wing conspiracy theories he could think of, give them a narrative and timeline, and put them into quasi-official looking documents.

Then he and that childhood friend, Mike, would post the website on his alt-right friends Facebook walls to prove how ridiculous they looked.

That was it. That was the whole plan.

Its two weeks before the election now and those documents have accrued millions of views across his website, the document drop site Scribd, and various social media accounts. Theyve appeared on cable news. Theyve trended on Facebook and Twitter. Two polling companies, barraged with hatemail from Trump supporters about leaked memos created for RealTrueNews articles, have had to put out official statements denying the existence of such memos. Chacons stories are regularly accepted as fact in the pro-Trump message board canon. YouTube videos with tens of thousands of views exist solely to reinforce sentences and ideas Chacon dreamed up on his laptop in the middle of the night.

How did this happen?

I dont know. Im stunned, said Chacon. If you can, maybe call Monmouth (University polling) and see if theyd accept an apology.

***

Mike Klasfeld has known Marco Chacon for 30-plus years. They went to middle school together and never really lost touch, especially on Facebook, where they have a couple of mutual friends who are very right-wing.

Every time I opened up my Facebook page there would be 20 new, complete bullshit right-wing articles, said Klasfeld. Either the title would be an outright lie, or the article would have nothing do with the title.

Most of them, Klasfeld said, came from a website called TruthFeed. Nothing in TruthFeed had any truth in it, he said. So he thought itd be funny if he and Chacon had a right-wing blog of their own, called Truthinessfeed, like the Stephen Colbert-coined term about how feelings are the new facts. Klasfeld even bought the domain name.

But by the next day, Chacon had already cooked something up. What do you think of this? he asked. It was a fake right-wing news article, replete with forged documents to back it up.

I said, Holy shit, this is good! Klasfeld said.

RealTrueNews was born. And right away, the stories were obviously too good to be true.

I am absolutely not trying to fool people the way some of these conservative sites are. Everything on there is satirical. Its all funny, said Chacon. Well, its supposed to be.

Chacon is right: Most of it is a pretty obvious gag, filled with traditional, bang-you-over-the-head obvious references to the occult. One of his documents is filled out on Illuminati letterhead.

I know conspiracy stuff cold. But this is all 30 years of Dungeons & Dragons, he said. Theres stuff in there thats just obviously fiction. I dont mean absurd potential news. I mean, theres no shred of believability. One of the nations thats paying for Hillarys hitmen is the one Doctor Doom runs.

But heres where it gets messy. After years in IT and white collar jobs, it turns out Chacon is very, very good at the Microsoft Office Suite. Nothing fancyPowerPoint, Excel, that kind of thing. But when he would upload those documents to RealTrueNews Scribd pagea sort of document-dumping cloud service that makes PDFs and PowerPoint presentations visible in your browserthats where those good-looking documents lost all satirical context.

From RealTrueNews Scribd page, anybody can screenshot a somewhat believable portion of the document and post it on Twitter, then link to the full document, which nobody takes the time to read.

Then all hell breaks loose.

The first time it happened was in August, when Chacon created a fake Public Policy Polling internal memo that talks about purchasing Republican Disapproval from policymakers and shows that Donald Trump has a secret 74 percent lead in Florida.

Notably missing from these screenshots? The conclusion section, which includes these sentences.

The question is going to be how far we can maintain this charade. It might be time to find other jobs. I bet those fuckers at Monmouth are living it up with their interns, it reads. I also have some contacts at Quinnipiac. I hear theyre all smoking up Bernie-grade weed. Fucking College polls.

Still, many Trump-backed message boards and Twitter supporters believed the memo, and began bombarding PPPs Twitter account, demanding answers.

Hey @ppppolls saw a post that had this on Scribdany comment? wrote one user.

Yes, PPPs Twitter account replied. Its really a commentary on the credulity of Trump supporters that so many think this memo could be real.

Monmouth Polling, when faced with a RealTrueNews leak of its own, took it a lot more seriously. Chacons fake Monmouth memo had Hillary Clinton losing in the polls to a potato.

One alumnus, an assistant campaign manager for the Republican Party in Pennsylvania, demanded answers from the university for a memo it didnt create.

If its true then its a disgrace and there needs to be action, said Tyler Vandegrift. He is potentially sacrificing the academic reputation of my Alma Mater in favor of partisan politics. People need to have faith in polls.

For the record, the purported Monmouth University poll memo being circulated is a photoshopped fakeand not a very good one at that, the Monmouth polls Twitter account wrote. The Washington Post even wrote the whole thing up, calling RealTrueNews a pro-Trump site. Scribd forced Chacon to pull the memo down.

He felt bad about that one. And the Megyn Kelly story, which happened a month later.

After all, Chacon is a guy with young kids writing truly ludicrous fanfiction on the internet. Its only being construed as fact by people who really, desperately want to believe the world is run by a shady, nefarious cabal.

Theres no better proof than the source material for one of his latest leaks, focused on a failed coup attempt by Mike Pence and Paul Ryan to take over the Republican ticket. One pro-Trump message board posted about 100 messages about the leak until an anonymous user noticed something fishy.

He signed one email -Chase, No Job Is To [sic] Big, wrote the user. Chase is a character from a popular kids show called Paw Patrol, their motto is no jobs too big, no pups too small.

Chacons kids watch Paw Patrol, which is on Nickelodeon.

The countless pages of commenters agonizing over his leaks on websites like 4chan and Reddit have started to make more sense to Chacon over the course of the last few weeks.

Im sympathetic. I have family that are Trump supporters. This makes peoples lives more exciting. From reading these posts, it seems like people get energized and kind of excited, said Chacon, who said he was a lifelong Republican until the party lost him at [Sarah] Palin.

Theyre researching them all as sort of an augmented reality game, and the goal is to catch the bad guys. Like Hillary Clinton and the Illuminati.

But Chacons goal isnt just to get the people who fall for it on Facebook to be discerning, although he admits that would be nice. Hes trying to catch websites who play to their userbases wildest fears on Facebook and Twitterand do it for profit.

***

Chacon has only twice ever seeded his documents to websites like 4chan, an anonymous white supremacist message board where Trump is referred to as God Emperor. But screenshots of his documents frequently wind up there and on Reddits /r/The_Donald anyway, where theyre met with reverence and not much skepticism.

A screenshot of Chacons latest leak appeared on those sites before landing on conservative news sites and prominent alt-right Twitter feeds earlier this week. The document appears to show a confidential memo from pro-Clinton super PAC Correct the Record imploring staff to flood Reddit and Twitter with high-frequency recent polls.

In the memo, he calls the practice poll-flogging.

I thought poll-flogging would be a pretty obvious joke, but I guess it wasnt, said Chacon.

Duped by this, again, was Paul Joseph Watson, an editor at the alt-right conspiracy website Infowars. His tweet of the screenshot received thousands of retweets and, hours later, that same screenshot appeared on conservative blogs like YoungConservatives and Gateway Pundit, who later corrected their stories. Watson pulled the tweet about a day later.

Eleven months ago, Trump himself appeared on Infowars daily online video show to give the website a half-hour interview and sing its praises.

I just wanted to finish by saying that your reputation is amazing. I will not let you down, said Trump. Youll be very, very impressed, I hope, and I think well be speaking a lot.

But this wasnt the first time Infowars fell for Chacons intentionally fake news. The website also fell for Bucket of Losers before wiping the story off its website without a correction. (The story still appears on Watsons Infowars sister site, PrisonPlanet.)

The Daily Beast repeatedly asked Watson if he had time to be interviewed on the phone.

No, I dont. Id rather boil my own nuts in a pan of steaming hot water, Watson responded via email. If youd have been honest in the first email and admitted it was a hit piece, I would have done it. This is why no one trusts the media. You suck, you lie and you mislead people. Youre dishonest, smarmy and two faced.

The Daily Beast then asked if he didnt want [his] readers to know information that you can prove was incorrect.

Ill correct it when your publication corrects itself and admits that Clinton is a warmongering, continent destroying, ISIS-arming, migrant crisis starting, Saudi Arabia money taking, fake feminist, child molester defending, corrupt as fuck, Wall Street owned, career politician cunt, said Watson.

Compared to that, a mistaken tweet about a hoax story pales.

He then screenshotted the exchange, and posted it on his Twitter account.

***

Chacon had always been into elaborate pranks, Klasfeld remembers. When Chacon and his identical twin brother, Eric, used to work at the same white-collar job in their 20s, Klasfeld said, there was one guy who acted like he was better than the place and didnt much like either of them.

So they decided to drive him insane.

Chacon confirmed this account. He was a slightly arrogant guy who went to MIT, he said. We made it look like there was some mysterious force sending messages from inside the network directly to him.

It kept escalating and escalating, but this guy didnt have a clue, said Klasfeld. At one point in time, he actually thought it was them, but he said something like, This is beyond your abilities. And that just coaxed them into making it all the worse.

Thats basically how it went, Chacon remembers.

He did say, I suspect you guys are doing this, but youre not smart enough, he said. When it was all over, he was kind of pissed for a couple of days. Then he was like, Damn, that was kind of cool.

And RealTrueNews, Chacon said, isnt much different from that prank. It was a gag with a mission of dragging people away from their own extreme self-importance by deploying brilliant stupidity. Chacon called it art.

The website, Chacon said, will end after the election, but he has one more big story in him. If Clinton wins, he says, this will be the headline:

TRUMP LANDSLIDE.

On Wednesday, 13 days before the election, Infowars already beat him to it.

Its headline? DONALD TRUMP HAS WON THE 2016 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION.
"Our legal conclusion is that Cook County lacks the home rule authority to enact such an ordinance," the state's attorney wrote in an opinion on the ordinance.

Another opponent, Commissioner Sean Morrison told the board that in response to questions he asked the county's state's attorney office, they opined that the ordinance was not within the board's parameters.

And while proponents celebrated the passage, municipalities within the county suggested they will appeal opt-out of the minimum wage hike, just as they will do for the newly-required sick pay mandate, County Commissioner Tim Schneider told the board members.

CHICAGO - Wednesday, after heated debate, Illinois' most populated county passed an ordinance requiring profit and non-profit employers throughout the county to raise starting minimum wages to $10 per hour by July 1 of 2017 and increase $1 per year until $13 per hour in 2020.

However, supporting commissioners argued, the business community did not appeal the Chicago minimum wage hike, which suggests they will not argue with the Cook County Board's ordinance approval.

And if they do, the effort is worth the legal costs, one commissioner said.

Not only should the city of Chicago and Cook County have such an ordinance, so should the state of Illinois, other said.

"All 102 counties should be on the same playing field," Commissioner Bobbie Steele told his county colleagues. "We're trying to move forward."

The Board overwhelmingly passed the ordinance with 12 for, 3 opposed and 1 present.

Before the vote, Tonya Triche, Vice-President and General Counsel of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association laid out the issues stemming from federal, state and county mandates on employers.

She said that while serving on a committee that assessed the mandated Chicago minimum wage hike, employees said they hadn't seen much change in their wages because their hours had been cut, and employers said they had decreased hours.

The wage hike was added to a growing burden being placed on Chicago employers, making it more difficult than ever to meet the new requirement and serve their customers while keeping their businesses profit-making.

Triche told the Board in testimony before the vote:

The wage increase, coupled with the expenses related to the Affordable Care Act, had put them in the position to move a certain percentage of employees so that they now worked less than 30 hours on a consistent basis. An increase in the starting wage, plus a reduction in hours worked, equals the same or less money in an employee's check. It's simple math. Let's take a look at the environment that a Cook County employer is running his or her business in today. ACA mandates kick in January 1, new federal overtime regulations, the cost of which will mean many people who are salaried managers today will be moved to hourly positions - especially in the grocery sector - the recently passed sick leave and FMLA ordinance that was written in such a way that small businesses will have a hard time trying to afford the software its going to take to comply with that system. And now a starting wage ordinance that will increase wages to an unprecedented rate in a condensed time frame, according to a model for increases that is still yet unproven. If this ordinance goes into effect, it will go into effect the same day as paid sick leave - exacerbating the cost and depression of hours worked as employers try to anticipate their losses in a very unstable legislative environment. At least in Chicago, there was a two-year window between the implementation of the two ordinances. In part, it was an admission that these mandates do have a cost, and there will need to be a period of recovery. If the board passes this ordinance, it will be at the expense of that recovery, so that employers will cut deeper into hours and trim headcount much faster. You are catapulting your small business owners into essentially an untested experiment on wage at an unprecedented level, on an unprecedented time frame, and expect that there not be any consequences. Suburban small business owners are really concerned about the level to which you are willing to experiment with their livelihoods and their ability to employ people in this county. We need restraint. And there needs to be some consideration given to their ability to adapt in the unstable environment that you are helping create. We ask that you vote no.

A copy of the legal opinion was entered into the Board's record:

Download SA Opinion Minimum Wage Increase (2)

And the board discussion is worth a listen starting at 1:35:00
This is payback for the Speicher massacre, a Shia soldier said to a Sunni as he stomped all over him and some other helpless Sunni prisoners, his colleagues hitting them with whatever came to hand: metal rods, shovels, pipes, cables. He was referring to a notorious mass execution of Shia military cadets by ISIS in June 2014. In August this year, the Baghdad government executed dozens of people for the atrocities at Speicher. But that was not enough for these Shias seeking their own revenge.

With Iraqi forces inexorably advancing on Mosul, more and more villages are being liberated from the rule of ISIS. Ever more Sunnis are fleeing into other areas of Iraq (if they are not first killed by ISIS snipers or mines). The opportunities for such revenge are growing every day, and they are being taken not just by the Shia militias operating in this war but by the state apparatus, too, fuelling a cycle of violence which can only lead to the next insurgency, whatever form that will take.

A recent report from Amnesty International details this and many other atrocities: cases of torture and extra-judicial executions with hundreds upon hundreds of Sunni men still missing; 643 from one tribe following the liberation of Saqliwa in June, with a further 49 definitely killed. What the report implicitly shows is that Iraq after ISIS promises to be more, not less, unstable, even after this global battle for Mosul and the inevitable military defeat of ISIS.

Unable to escape before Iraqi and Coalition forces attacked, these fleeing Sunnis are treated with suspicion, and not without cause. Some 100 infiltrators launched a bloody attack in Kirkuk a few days ago. But to be detained and questioned in order to assess the threat they pose as undercover ISIS fighters is one thing; to be treated with hatred, tortured and killed in revenge for the barbarity of the Islamic State, held responsible for all ISISs sectarian killings and atrocities, is not just horrifying and illegal but bodes ill for the future of Iraq.

History is repeating itself with this mass detention and ill-treatment, and as my own interviews with ISIS fighters in prison show only too clearly, the humiliation of arbitrary detention by American forces or by the Iraqi government has been a major driver to violence and to ISISand not just for the victims, but also for their children.

The Sunnis now witnessing the disappearance of their fathers, brothers, cousins and uncles are the insurgent fighters of the future. Unless this endless cycle is somehow broken, the Islamic State in Iraq 3.0 is just around the corner.

And there is a further revenge cycle waiting which has been under-reported until now: the intra-sectarian violence between Sunnis.

There are many who escaped the Islamic State much earlier in the conflict in fear for their lives for various reasons, like working for the Iraqi state as policemen, or for the Americans as interpreters. They often took up arms to fight their previous neighbors, even tribes and families, and so the cycle continues.

One such fighter told Hoshang Waziri, a researcher based in Washington, D.C., and Erbil, of the way his family divided in 2003, and the anger that has built up ever since. He said he couldnt wait to get back to his village. But when asked if he could forgive his cousins, who had fighting under ISIS, he paused: ISIS beheads people from their front of the neck, right? he finally responded. Well, I will behead my cousins from the back of the neck, where the hard meat is.

Who will be policing such Sunni-Sunni violence? Given the states own actions against the Sunnis, it doesnt seem there will be an appetite for such protection. To put it bluntly, the government may be pleased someone else is doing this dirty work.

Some of the missing Sunnis will be returned to their families eventually, but they will be even more alienatedif this is possiblefrom their Iraqi identity. They will have been pushed further into their Arab Sunni identity, ready to turn to the next group claiming to fight for their rights or promising revenge.

The Sunnis in Iraq, rightly or wrongly, once again feel as if they have nothing to lose. What that means is that even an overwhelming victory in Mosul could signal nothing more than a pause in the longindeed, potentially endlessfight against the Islamic State.
When a white uniformed cop hassled a black man at an Indiana homeless camp, he assumed he was one of them. In fact, Raymond Barbour was a skilled, taxpaying welder who was spending his Sunday afternoon under a bridge feeding the homeless.

That didnt matter to South Bend Police Officer Erik Schlegelmilch.

Schlegelmilch on Sept. 18 positioned his squad car along a road that had been under construction and passed under a bridge. The area had become a homeless encampment and was located in the center of town on South Main Street.

He took several photos of the penniless men and women sheltering in donated tents and lining up for a hot lunch at around noon. The lawman, with 16 years on the beat, argued with Barbour before driving off and then returning minutes later to the opposite side of the bridge.

Then Schlegelmilch exited his car and snapped in a raspy smokers voice: You want to play a game?

Schlegelmilch didnt know who he was up against. Barbours a 37-year-old native son of South Bend who struggled with homelessness as a child, but grew up to be a welder and father of seven daughters.

Im not homeless by a longs hot, he told The Daily Beast this week. I got a home to go to and these people dont, so why you talking to them like that?

Indeed, Barbours $30,000 truck was parked up the road, loaded with water and home-cooked meals.

The menu that day was chicken stew, rice, and biscuits, according to John Winston Jr., who heads the JDubbs Helping the Homeless group and whose volunteers like Barbour happened to have squared off against the mouthy South Bend cop.

And when he spotted the cop taking photos, Barbour simply asked him to lend a hand.

I told him, Excuse me sir, instead of taking pictures, how about you help me pass out some of this food and water I brung out for these people?

But the patrolman apparently told Barbour: Get your bum selves out of here Nobody wants you down here!

Winston remains furious by the police officers bullying, harassing, and shaming of his volunteers like Barbour, but he is concerned that the cop acted disrespectfully even though he was clearly being recorded.

Thats the scary part of it, he said. If he thought he could do that to the homeless people and theres cameras around then what does he do when theres no cameras around?

Fellow volunteer Charles Smith painted it as not your normal police stop.

He was looking to escalate the situation, said the waiter who grew up homeless and whose mom he says still lives on the streets in L.A.s Skid Row.

Smith pulled out his phone to document the incident soon after the cops temper sparked.

There was no justification for [Off. Schlegelmilch] to come back around, Smith said. I wanted to make sure that he didnt pull a gun out. You never know.

Barbour acknowledges the cellphone camera trained on him helped. It might have been a lot worse if Charles wasnt recording, he said. So worse I might not have be here now. I dont know.

You can tell just by his attitude he is itching for something to happen. He wanted commotion because he came back.

The cop did drive out of his way to the opposite side of the overpass, then ditched his cruiser in the middle of the road to start jawing with Barbour and company.

You want to play a game? Schlegelmilch asked. Shut your piehole.

He dismissed Barbours suggestion to put down his phone and pitch in. I just take pictures for the mayors office, he said.

Barbour can be heard saying: I said there is nothing wrong with it. I was saying instead of taking pictures why dont you come up instead and help?

Barbour hoped the cop would take him up on his offer.

What better than to help and serve and protect us like the police say theyre supposed to do, he said. You know thats a good look for the law.

But Schlegelmilch snubbed him. I work at the homeless shelter, he said, pointing his right thumb behind him. OK, you understand me?

Barbour asked, Why the attitude though?

Schlegelmilch replied, Dont scream at me.

Barbour wasnt.

But the cop claimed he was suffering from a medical condition and again made sure to remind Barbour who was in charge. Shut your mouth about my mouth and condition, you dont need to know.

The South Bend police officer pointed at Barbour and kept boasting about how hes devoted time to helping the homeless. Shut-up for a second. Ive been at the homeless shelter for two years; check the log.

How many times have you been in there? Schlegelmilch retorted. None.

Schlegelmilch was referring to the Center for the Homeless, a shelter that has numerous University of Notre Dame administrators on its board. The cop, according to an email sent to The South Bend Tribune the charitys director Steve Camilleri, was employed on an on call basis but hadnt logged a shift at the shelter for months.

He also wasnt offering the charity his charity. It was a paid side gig, according to Chief Crittendon.

The homeless shelter is something totally didnt and not connected with us, he said. That is separate from the South Bend Police Department.

But announcing his ties to the shelter was supposed to be Schlegelmilchs master stroke to silence this pestering backtalker.

It backfired. Badly.

Barbour knew all too well about this shelter because he spent some of his hardest years as a child under its roof.

Its the same homeless center I stayed there with me my mom and two little sisters, Barbour said. We were there for a couple of years and my friends they never knew that about me when I was growing up.

Naturally, It means a lot to me to help these people.

The cop that talked down to him was clueless.

He didnt know and its not my place to have to explain it to him, Barbour said. You can be on the log books so to speak but there is no log book for the streets.

You dont check in no log book or check my signature. Dont nobody care about nobodys signature while these people are on the streets.

After appearing before the South Bend Board of Public Safety, Schlegelmilch was suspended and docked a days pay.

Police Chief Scott Ruszkowski wrote on Oct. 11 that his officer was rude and discourteous and did not compose or portray himself in a manner that reflects favorably on the police department.

Patrol Division Chief Eric Crittendon echoed his superior when contacted by The Daily Beast stating that Schlegelmilch was not acting on behalf of the department when he confronted them and that he violated one of our guidelines set forth in our the duty manual.

Every civil servant in the department including Schlegelmilch are held to a high standard.

We expect all our men and women of the South Bend Police Department wearing our badge to respect every person, every citizenregardless of race color or creed or economical status, Chief Crittendon said.

A spokesman for Mayor Pete Buttigieg expressed that accountability when it comes to officer courtesy.

The mayor expects police officers to treat anyone they encounter, from a CEO to a homeless person, with courtesy and respect.

The board relied heavily on their exchange being captured by Charles Smiths cellphone footage.

The disciplinary action came as the department has been battling some harsh headlines in the recent past.

Four years ago, 17-year-old Deshawn Franklin was wrongly accused and rousted from his slumber in his house and tased by South Bend cops.

More recently the department settled a defamation case brought by a handful of officers who argued they were illegally taped during phone call recordings purportedly featuring racist chatter.

Barbour believes his mistreatment stems from this culture.

They think because they wear that badge they think theyre above what they are, which is the law. And its not right by far, he said. Dont sit up there and try to intimidate me and trying to belittle me as a person. No, Im a man before you even got that badge!

Indeed, Schlegelmilch has been pegged at least two times where his policing conduct was questioned.

One active federal lawsuit involves Schlegelmilch and other officers inflicting a beating caught on dash cam against Royce Love back in 2013.

The assailant took South Bend police on a chase before they halted him with spike stripes. Love obeyed officers commands, and was vindicated when footage proved he was lying on the concrete with his hands raised in the air before he was bludgeoned. Thats when Schlegelmilch and his fellow officers allegedly tased him multiple times and punched him and then sicced a police K-9 who bit the man.

In an affidavit Love begged for mercy. I yelled out to them that I was sorry.

And Schlegelmilch was named along with two other officers for beating up a Mitchell Burton inside of his car back on Christmas morning in 2010. In a leaked video at least one officer is seen striking the car multiple times and two officers pull a screaming Burton from the drivers seat before the staticky crackle tick-tick-tick sound of stun gun silences him.

Burtons won his freedom on appeal (PDF).

As for Barbour, he said he wants to fulfill his dream of opening up a barbeque joint and shine a spotlight back on the plight of the homeless.

And hes challenging cops to do more.

Instead of hassling these people and putting them down why not go back to the police station and say Look all these people are down here and its about to get cold. I got some old work boots I dont use no more and can give them we might not be able to provide them with a house but we can give them something to keep their feet from freezing.

That one day ding that Schlegelmilch received seems light for Charles Smith, but he says it was something.

Im impressed that the chief did come out and say point blank it was wrong, he said.

Barbour, on the other hand, believes the cops behavior called for a stiffer penalty.

Hes at work right now doing whatever he wants to do, he said. Its a slap on the hand.

Barbour does wonder how Schlegelmilch sleeps at night.

You clock out your shift and you go home but how can you go home living with yourself knowing you degraded human being?
Donald Trump has signaled hes done with the Reince Priebus and the RNC. And the RNC might soon be done with Reince Priebus.

With two weeks to go before Election Day, Trumps campaign announced that he was done with the large, joint fundraisers he was doing for the Republican Party.

Weve kind of wound down, Trump national finance chairman Steven Mnuchin told The Washington Post, adding that the joint fundraising committee held its last fundraiser on Oct. 19.

This might signal the death knell for the chairmanship of Reince Priebus, who has headed the Republican National Committee since he ousted sitting chairman Michael Steele in 2011.

The Trump campaigns move deals a blow to the partys efforts to aid Republicans in down-ballot races all across the nation, especially with measures to get voters out to the ballot box on Nov. 8and might portend disaster at the polls, and severely undercut the case Priebus might make to argue he had a successful chairmanship.

The RNC is a 168 member body representing every state and territory with three members, and elects its chairman every two years with a focus on fundraising and campaign strategy. The next election for chairman will be in 2017, after this ongoing presidential race is over. Priebus has been said to be interested in another term as chairman. The RNC did not respond to a request for comment.

Publicly, RNC members assert that they are focused on helping the GOP win races, and will talk about party leadership after the elections are over. Many have supported Priebus in the past, and praise his work in fundraising and grassroots organization.

[R]ight now he and all of us on the RNC are focusing on the next two weeks. There will be plenty of time to discuss the future leadership after the elections are over, said Stephen Duprey, a national committeeman and a former chairman of the New Hampshire state party.

There will be plenty of time after November 8th to discuss 2020 or 2024, said Matt Moore, the chairman of the South Carolina Republican Party. Chairman Priebus has been the best nuts and bolts chairman in the partys history. Hes raised piles of money and given candidates and state parties the tools they need to be successful.

More privately, the knives are already out.

One prominent national Republican strategist began listing the anti-Priebus talking points that will no doubt be repeated over and over again in an effort to oust him: under his leadership, the Republican Party lost two winnable presidential races, alienated key constituencies, and totally failed to implement the autopsy supported by Republican leaders after their defeat in 2012.

The core of the opposition to Priebus comes from conservatives who never felt that Trump was one of them, and the #NeverTrumpers that to this day stand opposed to the Republican nominee.

Ive yet to meet a GOP operative who thinks Priebus will be around after November. Even if Trump wins hell have the skunks stink on him, said John Noonan, a former national security aide to Jeb Bush and a prominent #NeverTrumper.

Others are opposed to Priebus management style, and have a sour taste about how he ran the Republican Partys convention in July.

"Reince thinks hes the king of the party, said Curly Haughland, who until recently was a member of the RNC from North Dakota. As soon as the election is over, no matter which way it goes, there is going to be a tremendous amount of interest in seeing someone else run the RNC Whether the Republicans win or lose, Reince will not be the chairman.

Haughland clashed with the chairman over whether delegates could vote their consciencerather than for Trumpduring the Republican convention. A longtime member of the committee, he believes that Priebus will receive his most serious challenge ever.

Theres going to be several people who will be interested in running for chairman next time, he told The Daily Beast, listing off Ohio state chairman Matt Borges, Arizona state chairman Robert Graham, RNC staffer Matt Pinnell, and former North Dakota state chairman Gary Emineth.

Free the Delegates, which worked with Republican National Committee members to prevent Trump from getting the nomination at the convention, has reached out to its supporters through text to ask whether they support tossing Priebus as chairman.

If Donald Trump loses, as I have personally thought from Day One, I believe that Reince Priebus is going to have a day of reckoning. Its the second presidential election he presided over that could have been won, that was not won, said Regina Thompson, the groups executive director.

Whoever wins the chairmanship will inherit a fractured party, deeply divided by Trumps political campaign and the alienation it created for major voting blocks.

Im not sure theres going to be anything [for Priebus to] be reelected to. People that matter dont carry about the Republican Partys internal processes anymore. Its going to be a bankrupt shell of the conservative party in this country and its going to be completely defined by the hideousness of Donald Trumps racist and xenophobic campaign, said Rick Wilson, a GOP strategist who is working on independent presidential candidate Evan McMullins campaign.

In fact, the party is so divided that McMullin may win the state of Utah, which the GOP has won in every election since 1964.

Trump just busted out the RNC. He just completely pillaged them. He destroyed their brand and now hes walking away, Wilson said, adding that he supported Priebus when he first ran for RNC chairman, but that Priebus has total responsibility [for] capitulating to the worst presidential candidate in modern history.

The campaign has been a long grind, having started 19 months ago when Ted Cruz became the first major candidate to enter the GOP nomination contest. There is a sense that Republican leaders are ready to move past the months of Trump-related controversy that theyve endured, and confront whatever reckoning might come their way after the election.

November 8th is undoubtedly a referendum on the partys direction and its candidates, Moore said. Well see on November 9th.

Only 14 more days, Duprey added. Thank goodness.
SPRINGFIELD - Republican incumbent U.S. Senator Mark Kirk is getting heat nationwide Friday morning after an exchange with Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth Thursday night in which Kirk ridiculed Duckworth's assertion that her family's roots stem back to the Revolutionary War era.

Duckworth was born in Thailand, but her father was American - something Senator Kirk must not have known when the following exchange took place:

Tammy Duckworth: My family has served this nation in uniform back to the revolution. I am a daughter of the American Revolution. I've bled for this nation. But I still want to be there in the Senate when the drums of war sound because people are quick to sound the drums of war and I want to be there to say this is what it costs and this is what you're asking us to do. And if that's the case, I'll go. It's families like mine that bleed first. But let's make sure that the American people understand what we are engaging in and let's hold our allies accountable because we can't do it all. Mark Kirk: I forgot that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington.

Kirk's comment was followed with an awkward silence, and then the panel at the Sangamon County Convention Center moved to another question.

Before the debate, Kirk's chances of being re-elected were listed by FiveThirtyEight.com as being 8%, with Duckworth at 91%. By Friday morning, Kirk's chances dipped to 7.4%.
Unlike Trump, Hillary can't even define the enemy as Islamic extremist terrorists and her support of the Iran nuclear deal is the worst appeasement policy in modern American history and has compromised our security.

Fifty Republicans , claiming to be national security experts, signed a letter predicting that Trump would be the worst president in history when it comes to keeping America safe. I'm confused! Isn't the first duty of the president to keep the American people safe? How will Hillary's call for opening the nation's borders through which murderers, drugs, drug lords, cartels, and hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants flow and extending a welcoming mat to thousands of un-vetted Syrians for whom we could query our database until the cows come home and yet draw blanks when no records exist, keep Americans safe?

The shameless "borking" of Trump to paint him as a woman hater, one who supports violence, a loony-tune, and so much worse, has become non-stop since he became the Republican presidential nominee this past July, fostered by print media and TV networks which have unabashedly joined forces with the Democratic Party for the election of Hillary. Rightly perceived by Republican establishment elite is that Trump, not of the establishment, would shake up the status quo and the power and money that flows to those who support the globalist agenda of the rich and powerful working behind the scenes to control this nation's destiny, such as George Soros, Bill Gates, the U.N., Bush and Clinton cartels, members of the elite Republican establishment in the U.S. House and Senate, and foreign countries who gave to the Clinton Foundation in what is known as Pay for Play.

Establishment Republicans Foster Trump Movement

Spineless and incompetent establishment Republicans created the Trump movement when it allowed Obama to ran the show leaving this nation with a $20 trillion plus unsustainable debt and an economy where Obama looks to be the only U.S. president in history who will fail to deliver a single year of 3.0%+ economic growth, lucky if he'll averages overall a 1.55% GDP growth rate. Hillary's promise to raise taxes, which instead of increasing the GDP or fostering job growth, will cripple business expansion and thus job creator.

Im still trying to comprehend how Republicans, and anyone else, could imagine Trump being worse than Clinton, especially when the main criteria for choosing or rejecting a candidate so often stems from the offensiveness of a candidate's language.

In the final debate between Clinton and Trump moderated by Chris Wallace, Trump called Hillary a nasty woman. Immediately women took offense. Maybe if women knew the about Hillary (She also pays women staff members less than men.), they wouldn't be so judgmental about Trump's pubic statements. It has been reported that Hillary is a rotten person, a really nasty woman when she is in a private situation. Hillary's abusive behavior towards people has been noted by many X-secret service agents. Byrne even wrote a book about how Hillary treats , Crisis of Character. Hillary was described by Byrne as one type of person when in the public, but a total bitch behind the cameras. Further remarking, "Without doubt Hillary is the biggest phony in politics today."

If corruption is a troublesome happening, Hillary is the one who steals the show. In his Project Veritus project, James O'Keefe has exposed corrupt practices with ties to Hillary's campaign. O'Keefe's first video explained the dark secrets and the hidden connections and organizations the Clinton campaign uses to incite violence at Trump rallies. His second video exposed a diabolical step-by-step voter fraud strategy discussed by top Democratic operatives and showed one key operative admitting that the Democrats have been rigging elections for fifty years. In Part III, the conversations with Democrat operatives Bob Creamer and Scott Foval suggest Secretary Hillary Clinton may have been illegally consulted and given her approval for adults dressing up as Donald Duck to appear at various Trump activities to antagonize the Republican presidential candidate and his supporters.

Contest Between Globalists and Grass Roots Americans

The upcoming November election is about neither candidate; it is between the globalists and grass root Americans who want to take their country back from the globalists who have charted a new direction for this nation, one that does not align with this nation's Constitution. Sometimes called the New World Order, the Globalist Agenda isn't really new. Its the merger of communism and the capitalism system where economic control remains and is concentrated in private hands, and social control is based on collectivism.

Tens of millions are being poured into the Clinton campaign by those who deem it essential, at any cost, for Hillary to win. Some of the main globalist operatives include the shadowy figure of George Soros who as a billionaire is sponsoring ads through front groups; Bill Gates who through his Foundation is responsible for the failed Common Core agenda in our public schools; and the U.N. with its globalist sustainability policies which Clinton has already signed on to.

Meanwhile, Trump is on the campaign trail speaking to record audiences every day who believe in him and are aware of the numbers stacked against him with a print and TV media that refuses to report on Hillary missteps, her health problems, or the damaging WikiLeaks that have surfaced during the past few weeks.

Trump's First 100 Days List

Consider what happened on Saturday, October 22, 2016 at a Trump rally in Gettysburg, Pa. where Trump laid out a list of 28 things he would do if elected president in the first 100 day. The first five are:

Propose a Constitutional Amendment to impose term limits on all members of Congress Institute a hiring freeze on all federal employees to reduce federal workforce through attrition (exempting military, public safety, and public health) Require for every new federal regulation, two existing regulations must be eliminated. Institute a five year-ban on White House and Congressional officials becoming lobbyists after they leave government service Create a lifetime ban on White House officials lobbying on behalf of a foreign government.

I watched the rally on my TV, but when checking the Chicago area newspapers the next day there was no mention of Trump's 100 day pledge to restore prosperity to our country, secure our communities, and bring honesty to our government. Instead, every newspaper and TV account, to my disgust, but not totally unexpected, avoided any mention of Trump's 100-day plan, but instead covered the remarks he made about possibly suing the women who came out of the woodwork at just the right time to make sexual accusations, some of which have already been proven false.

If Hillary is the victor, might the stupidity and shallowness of the American people be blamed who are being led like sheep, grossly misinformed, to their own slaughter? I only wish the American people were being fooled. The tragedy is that there are millions of middle-class Americans who have signed on for food stamps, millions more who only care about having their college tuition paid for by others, and millions of others who are scamming the system by receiving disability checks they're not entitled to receive.

Trump Represents Last Line of Defense to Secure Our Freedoms and Restore Nation's Greatness

What a far cry this is from the country I grew up in when in school the "Pledge" and the singing of "America" always started each school day. I was taught to love my country, to respect the flag, and to cherish freedom and liberty. We had a society who believed in the rule of law, moral values were respected, and it was shameful to receive benefits from the government if not merited.

The world is more dangerous than when Obama became president. His weakness as President has aroused evil, when it is through a show of strength that respect is gained. Trump is the last line of defense against a continuation of Obamas failed policies, which would happen should Hillary be elected to preside over Obama's third term. A Hillary election would render the Second Amendment (gun rights) meaningless and would imperil religious liberty through Hillary's Supreme Court appointees.

Trump desires to help this country without any competing interests other than his love for this nation and its people. His business acumen is also needed.

Trump doesn't need to prove anything, he doesn't need to become famous, he doesn't need to become rich, he is already there. What Trumps is convinced remains to be done in his life is to secure our freedom and restore our nation's greatness, militarily and economically.
UPDATE 5:19 PM: Mr. Walsh will be on CNN with Anderson Cooper tonight at 7:30 PM CST to discuss this controversy, he just told Illinois Review. "I haven't been contacted yet by the Secret Service, although I've been told that I was reported to them once again," he said.

CHICAGO - A provocative Tweet by Chicago radio talk show host Joe Walsh created a stir among Leftist critics Wednesday afternoon. Thursday, Walsh's comment was used by Democrat U.S. Senate candidate Tammy Duckworth to boost a last minute campaign fund drive for her bid against incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Mark Kirk.

In 2012, Duckworth beat then-Congressman Joe Walsh's re-election bid, after being for his first term in the 2010 Tea Party Revolution year.

First, the Duckworth campaign posted Walsh's controversial Tweet:

And then Duckworth's campaign attempted to boil Walsh alive, tying him to Trump's "sore loser" talk:
LOVELAND, Colo. - Speaking to reporters after a campaign rally for a Republican U.S. Senate candidate here, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said that there was "precedent" for a Supreme Court with fewer than nine justices - appearing to suggest that the blockade on nominee Merrick Garland could last past the election.

"You know, I think there will be plenty of time for debate on that issue," said Cruz, when he was asked whether a Republican-controlled Senate should hold votes on a President Hillary Clinton's nominees. "There is certainly long historical precedent for a Supreme Court with fewer justices. I would note, just recently, that Justice Breyer observed that the vacancy is not impacting the ability of the court to do its job. That's a debate that we are going to have."

Cruz's remarks put him at odds with several colleagues on the Senate Judiciary Committee, including its chairman, Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa. "If that new president happens to be Hillary, we can't just simply stonewall," Grassley told reporters last week.

But Grassley made those remarks after Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., told a Pennsylvania radio station that Republicans would be "united against any nominee" put forward by a President Clinton. McCain walked back the remarks, but the threat of a liberal justice replacing the late Antonin Scalia - a move that would create a liberal Supreme Court majority for the first time since the 1970s - has kept many Republicans in Trump's camp.

In the days since McCain's gaffe, several conservative legal writers have argued that the threat of a Clinton presidency should get Republicans thinking about a long-term blockade on nominees. Last week, in National Review, Minneapolis law professor Michael Stokes Paulsen argued that a new Congress should pass a law shrinking the Supreme Court from nine to six seats. "A smaller court means diminished judicial activism," Paulsen wrote. "As the Court's size shrinks, activist majorities become mathematically harder to put together. Four votes out of seven is harder to achieve than five of nine."

On Wednesday, in an essay in the Federalist, Cato Institute legal scholar Ilya Shapiro went further, suggesting that Republicans refuse to appoint any high court nominees put forward by Clinton.

"As a matter of constitutional law, the Senate is fully within its powers to let the Supreme Court die out, literally," Shapiro wrote. "I'm not sure such a position is politically tenable - barring some extraordinary circumstance like overwhelming public opinion against the legitimacy of the sitting president - but it's definitely constitutional."

In Colorado, making a series of stops for underdog Senate candidate Darryl Glenn, R, Cruz said that voters needed a "check and balance" on the president, no matter whether Clinton or Trump won.

"I think for those of us who care passionately about the Constitution and Bill of Rights, who care about free speech and religious liberty and the Second Amendment, the best way to protect those rights is to win on Election Day so that we see strong conservatives nominated to the court, and maintain a Republican majority in the Senate to confirm those strong conservatives," Cruz said. "And that's what I'm fighting to do."
Vote for a candidate who backs progressive legislation

Add my name to those urging a vote for Bill Matta for Congress. Bill spent 30 years in the U.S. Air Force, retiring as a colonel, and he now is a teacher and administrator at McLennan Community College in Waco.

Matta is disgusted that legislation to help working-class people has been blocked by Republicans in Congress again and again. Bill believes we need a representative who will look for solutions, rather than automatically vote no on everything progressive.

Bill Matta's opponent is a multi-millionaire whose wealth is greater than that of about 90 percent of members of Congress. He supports Donald Trump and big business. He has opposed legislation that would help ordinary Americans pay for health care, education and protection from gun violence, predatory lenders and environmental pollutants.

It's time to elect Bill Matta for Congress.

TERI METCALF

College Station

Reasons not to vote for Hillary Clinton, but is Donald Trump any better?

Rick Jamison listed numerous reasons why he felt Hillary Clinton would not be an acceptable president, but I noticed he couldn't bring himself to say Donald Trump would be acceptable either. Maybe that's because, since he ends his letter with "your children's future is in your hands," he believes, as many do, that Trump would be a terrible role model for our children.

DAVID BARROW

College Station

Kudos to letter writers who support Donald Trump

Kudos to James Irick, Weldon Kennedy, Johnnie Griffin and Dean Thompson for sharing their opinions with The Eagle readers. I agree wholeheartedly and it's all too often our voices get "Trumped" by the media.

Kudos to The Eagle for publishing your letters.

DEAN RAMSDELL

Bryan

Comparing Trump to Hitler is fear mongering from the left

Comparing Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler is about as fear mongering as it can come from the left.

Our choices for president are, to use one of Donald Trump's favorite words, disastrous.

Hillary Clinton's socialist-leaning policies and demeaning and degrading of her "enemies" could be compared to another dictator of the same era (Uncle Joe Stalin). That too is a bit extremist.

No matter what the outcome of the election, God still will be in charge.

W.K. TRUETT

College Station

Two law enforcement officers work hard to keep people safe

Recently I was traveling Texas 6 into College Station with an airport shuttle van in front of me. Suddenly that van pulled over to the outside lane revealing that right in front of me was a tire, complete with rim! Choosing not to swerve and seeing there was traffic in the outside lane, I drove over the tire with my right back wheel hitting it. This caused my tire to flatten immediately.

Long story short, there was only a small space on the side of Texas 6 to pull to, trying to be safe. I sat there with traffic whizzing by, never slowing, when I noticed in my rear view mirror a patrol car pulling up behind me. Officer Garrett Birdwell of the College Station Police Department began changing my tire. Then my husband arrived, then Highway Patrol Trooper David McKeehan stopped to flag cars to a slower speed while the tire was being changed.

There is too much bad publicity is publicized these days in regard to law enforcement while wonderful acts such as these go unnoticed or advertised. These two law enforcement officials are a great testament to the fact that conscientious men and women are working constantly to keep people such as me safe!

My husband and I sincerely thank these two men.

PEGGY HENSON

College Station

The only conservative in the College Station City Council race

I have known Barry Moore for more than a decade and am excited that he has chosen to run for College Station City Council.

I'm voting for Barry not only because he is an honest, caring and thoughtful leader, but because I think it is important for my generation to be represented in local government.

College Station has grown a lot in the past 10 years and likely will continue that growth for the foreseeable future. Barry is focused on making sure that the future is as bright as it can be. We need leaders who understand all of the issues facing our city.

Barry is committed to making sure our public infrastructure and first responders are prepared to meet the needs of a growing city. Barry also has a deep understanding of economic development and how it can impact a city. Barry understands that tax dollars belong to the taxpayers and would work to provide the highest possible quality of life at the lowest possible cost to citizens.

I'm voting for Barry Moore, the only conservative in this race, for Place 4 on the College Station City Council.

CLINT CAMP

College Station

Mayor hopeful is a proponent of public health and safety

With the rapid growth of the city of College Station, we will need a mayor who is an avid proponent of public health and safety. Karl Mooney is dedicated to improving public safety by making sure that College Station has an adequate police force with well-trained officers working in an environment that promotes good morale as well as officer retention.

Karl is also an advocate for revitalizing the Neighborhood Watch Program to help protect residents from crime. His vision for health and safety prompted him to recruit successfully the YMCA to come to College Station in order to offer an opportunity for residents to take part in affordable exercise and recreational programs including a natatorium that will be available to the public as well as the schools.

Karl's understanding of complex issues affecting the city would benefit all of College Station. He would protect our residents both young and old by making sure that public safety is always part of the decision making process when it comes to growth.

His experience as an educator at Texas A&M, a city council member, chair of the Planning and Zoning Committee and former police officer make him well qualified to be our next mayor. Karl Mooney would advocate for responsible growth that protects the quality of life that we have become accustomed to expect in our city.

BEV KELLNER

College Station

Makes decisions that are fair and reasonable

When envisioning a leader, John Nichols comes to mind. During my time as an undergraduate student, I had the blessing of meeting Nichols at a Habitat home wall raising ceremony.

Nichols took great interest in me and saw my potential as an aspiring economist. He has mentored me for the past three years, helping me reach my academic and professional goals. While at A&M, John motivated me to begin doing research through the economics department. He then helped me secure an internship with the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. And, most recently, he helped me become a research scholar at Harvard University.

Nichols' genuine interest in me helped me get to places that I never expected I would one day be. He opened doors that I never expected to be available for students of my socioeconomic status.

Nichols brings out the best in me. The time and attention he has dedicated in mentoring me is shown in how successful I've been.

When I needed advice he was there to guide me. Nichols never asked anything in return. I knew he genuinely cared for my future success and did what he could to help me become the person I strive to be. These leadership qualities are exactly what the city of College Station needs. He is a selfless, caring, intelligent, and dedicated individual.

I strongly believe that John Nichols has what it takes to be mayor of the city of College Station. He has the drive and heart to do what is right for our entire community. His experience as a member of the city council and his economics background would be essential in making budgetary decisions.

I'm confident that the city of College Station would be in excellent hands with John Nichols as our mayor.

CESIA SANCHEZ

College Station

Candidate makes decision that are fair and reasonable

I met John Nichols many years ago in Lions Club functions. In the years I have known him, he always has demonstrated good judgment in everything he does. In the past five years, I have served as chairman of the Senior Advisory Committee for the city of College Station and attended many council meetings where John was serving as councilman. He always listened and made decisions that were reasonable and fair.

I encourage all of my fellow seniors to support and vote for John Nichols as mayor of College Station. We in College Station are fortunate to have a candidate who is already trained and ready to lead us in new directions for success and growth in College Station.

FRANK DUCHMASCLO

College Station

Hopeful is a powerful advocate for neighborhoods

We recently had the privilege of attending an excellent candidate forum organized by the Eastside Homeowner Associations, and want to congratulate the organizers and each of the candidates for demonstrating how democracy is supposed to work.

The moderator kept the event on time and on topic, and everyone present was attentive and civil. The city of College Station is fortunate to have such fine individuals willing to serve our community.

Few have shown greater commitment to the city than Linda Harvell. She has been active in city affairs over many years as a powerful advocate for neighborhoods and for our quality of life.

Please vote for Linda Harvell for Place 3 on the College Station City Council.

VALERIE and DAVID WOODCOCK

College Station

College Station needs someone young, with new ideas

I would like to endorse Jeremy Osborne for the College Station City Council.

Jeremy is a graduate of Texas A&M and a local businessman. Because he cares for what happens to the future of College Station, Jeremy is running for a position on the College Station City Council. We need young men with new ideas to serve on the city council. This is a volunteer position, yet Jeremy is willing to give back to the community with his service.

Jeremy has studied the issues and walked the neighborhoods to introduce himself to constituents.

Jeremy is a young man with Christian values. We need someone such as Jeremy on the city council, someone young with new ideas to represent all of the young families who are here or who are coming to live here in the near future.

Please cast your vote for Jeremy Osborne for College Station City Council.

JENNIFER HURD

College Station
The controversial trade deal between Canada and the EU was due to be signed on Thursday, but was postponed following opposition from one of the regional Belgian parliaments. An agreement was later reached to appease the Wallonian parliament, but the deal has still yet to be signed.

Nick Dearden, the director of Global Justice Now says: "Essentially the EU's trade policy now lies in tatters. It's true that CETA has been brought back from the dead for now - but it is a ticking time bomb.

"The Wallonia parliament has been promised it will be able to stop the ratification of CETA when it gets a formal vote on it, and unless there are substantial changes, it - and hopefully other parliaments - will use that veto. What's more, the whole corporate court' concept will now go to the highest European court to adjudicate on its legality - something which risks invalidating the EU's entire trade agenda.

"This is a good example of democracy in action. Meanwhile Liam Fox should hang his head in shame. While Wallonia has managed to spend days scrutinising CETA, and prioritising the concerns of its citizens, the British parliament has been entirely overridden by our government. It has not had a single debate. So much for taking back the power."

Critics have argued that:

CETA contains a Regulatory Cooperation' chapter which threatens to hand multinationals a greater role in the formulation of making laws, and sparking a race to the bottom in standards for important areas like food safety and environmental regulation.

CETA will make it more difficult for governments to regulate the banking sector to prevent the sort of financial crises experiencedin 2008.

CETA negotiations have already laid the basis for tar sands oil - one of the world's most environmentally destructive fossil fuels - to flow into Europe. If CETA comes into effect, the import and production of this toxic fuel will increase, devastating the environment.

CETA's locks in privatisation and deregulation at current levelsfor a wide range of services.



http://www.globaljustice.org.uk/resources/ceta-ttips-ugly-brother
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Grab a homebrew with these Burlington Makers of Beer

The Burlington M.O.B.  Makers of Beer  meets nearly every month to discuss and sample each other's beers.
contributed / contributed

University of Bridgeport student organizations, along with area restaurants, invite the community to a fundraising luncheon to support the people of Haiti in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew.

The all-you-can-eat buffet runs from noon to 2:30 p.m., Wednesday, November 2 at the John J. Cox Student Center, 244 University Avenue, Bridgeport.
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With less than two weeks left until the 2016 election, the number of active eligible voters in Connecticut is at a high.

The office of Connecticut's Secretary of State announced recently that the state has passed the 2 million voter threshold, with 2,080,383 active voters. This compares to 1,923,103 active voters recorded in Oct. 2015.

The office reported that 261,166 voters have registered since the beginning of 2016.

Check out the gallery above for a voter count of Connecticut's major and third parties.

Since the beginning of 2016, Democratic voter registrations have outpaced Republican voter registrations, 97,792 to 49,609. But the two pale in comparison to unaffiliated registrations, of which the state has recorded 107,708 so far this year.

The three leading registration types each saw an increase from last year. Active Democrats jumped from 703,851 to 785430 (+81,579), active Republicans increased from 400,216 to 448,750 (+48,534), and unaffiliated voters went from 798,426 to 820,603 (+22,177).

More News '#MyVoteCT' leads to surge in Connecticut voter registration

While unaffiliated voters may not have seen the largest increase over the past year, they continue to be the biggest section of Connecticut's voter population.

Though Christopher Kukk, professor of political science at Western Connecticut State University, said the trend in unaffiliated voters in Connecticut is practically a tradition by now.

"It's kind of this 'land of steady habit' thing," Kukk said. "We kind of have this yankee spirit that's been around 100 years or so. People don't want to be tied down."

The current political climate is alsoperhaps, most obviouslyat play.

"There's a lot of people protesting the two-party system," Kukk noted. "One of the big surprises for me was seeing some of the Sanders supporters going over to Trump. They were giving this 'Sopranos salute' to the two-party system."

According to the state, new voters between the ages of 18 and 29 are leading the charge with almost 110,000 new registrations in 2016, most of which were as unaffiliated.

Despite this, state figures show that active voters over the age of 60 are the largest voter segment, with 700,481 registered active voters. Next are voters 45 to 59, with 614,886 registered active voters and voter 30 to 44, with 416,850 registered active voters.

Active voters, compared to inactive voters, have voted in at least two consecutive federal elections.

Minor parties in Connecticut retained a foot hole as well, the statistics show. However, these parties may offer little to change the climate even locally, Kukk said.

"It's a way of moving the system, especially on the local level to your party position," Kukk said. "I think some of it is local politics...Even having these small parties doesn't make a dent in terms of constructing policy."

The state saw a surge in voter registration on Sept. 27, after running a social media campaign, "#MyVoteCT," to encourage residents to register. The state saw 6,099 new voter applications, compared to 696 new applications during the same period a week before.

The state also registered 15,000 new voters thanks to a three-day Facebook campaign from Sept. 23 to 26.

"More people are registering to vote in Connecticut than ever before," Secretary of State Denise Merrill said in a release. The office also said this is the first presidential to use online voter registration, which was introduced in 2014. "We will reach out to people however we can to register every eligible citizen in Connecticut."

The optimists of America would hope this surge in Connecticut voters would translate into high voter turnout, which is typically the case anyways in federal elections compared to state elections. Kukk said "optimism" may be all those figures provide.

"I wish that was the case. But we've seen these blips before," Kukk said. "My hope is that we have a civically-engaged population. But our recent history has shown this isn't the case.

"I'm cautiously optimistic."

Residents still have until Nov. 1 to register to vote online or by mail. Residents can also register in-person on Election Day, though are being warned to expect long lines.
NORWALK  Dont be duped by a robocall telling you that Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is coming to Norwalk and further details will be forthcoming from Mayor Harry W. Rillings office.

The Mayor wanted everyone to know that this fake robo call has nothing to do with this office, wrote Norwalk City Clerk Donna I. King in an email. There is no connection to the Mayors office to this false campaign announcement.

King said Rillings office has asked police to investigate the matter if possible.

The office learned of the robocall from Norwalk resident Elsa Peterson Obuchowski, who received the call and afterward reported it to the State Elections Enforcement Commission.

A minute ago (Thursday, 10/27/16 about 3 PM) I just got a robo call on my cell phone from Victoria in the Mayors Office announcing that Hillary Clinton will be visiting our town, Peterson Obuchowski wrote the commission. The voice goes on to say that for Hillary Clintons visit everyone is required to display an American flag, display only an American car (no Chinese-made cars allowed), and that all members of your family are required to memorize the National Anthem.

The caller added that further details about Clintons visit would be coming from the Mayors Office and thank you for your cooperation, Peterson Obuchowski wrote.

The caller ID number, she continued, showed as (203) 074-8045. The caller ID location indicated the call came from within United States, she added.

Calls to the telephone number on Friday answered with a beeping sound similar to a hang-up or lost connection.

Michael J. Brandi, executive director and general counsel at the SEEC, said the commission cannot confirm or deny the receipt of a complaint until it has voted to investigate it. Pending investigations are confidential, he said.

Speaking broadly, Brandi said the SEEC has the authority to issue fines and penalties against anyone who violates the election laws of the state of Connecticut.

Included in that would be referral to criminal authority for prosecution, Brandi said.
Update: According to court documents, the case against Ellis Reid was dismissed.

NORWALK  Police say an untimely kiss led to a New Jersey mans arrest early Friday morning.

Ellis Reid, 36, of Monmouth Street, Jersey City, N.J., was charged with operating under the influence and improper parking.

Police said they found his car stopped in the middle of West Avenue at about 1 a.m., spotting the man slumped over in his seat.

Upon closer examination, however, police saw he was apparently kissing a female passenger.

The officer knocked on the window, but Reid didnt respond. He knocked again, then finally banged on the roof before Reid took notice.

Police said there was an overwhelming smell of alcohol and Reid subsequently failed a standard field sobriety test.

Bond was set at $100 and he is due in court on Nov. 8.
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NORWALK  The city's Harbor Management Commission is vowing to hold the Connecticut Department of Transportations feet to the fire on keeping oil and other pollutants from entering Norwalk Harbor from Interstate 95 and the Yankee Doodle Bridge.

The DOT plans to repair the bridge and repave and overhaul Interstate 95, replacing the grass median with a standard-height concrete barrier between the bridge and the Saugatuck River in Westport.

At issue for the Harbor Commission is what stormwater drainage improvements the department will incorporate into the work. The bridge along carries 44 unfiltered drains that feed runoff into the harbor.

"Why are municipalities being held by a different standard than the state?" asked Commissioner John T. Pinto, distinguishing between mitigation requirements for municipalities and those for the DOT.

Commissioner John T. Romano, owner of swimming pool business, concurred.

I have to pay $1,000 for a license to discharge a pool, he said.

To move forward with the projects, the DOT needs approvals from the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. On Wednesday evening, the harbor commission withheld its support of the DOTs plan for the highway portion.

Instead, the panel recommended that the DOT combine the highway overhaul and bridge rehabilitation and submit a single permit application to the DEEP.

"The work on the I-95 bridge should be included in this application, because drainage from the I-95 bridge goes down into the area that they're working on as part of the (highway work)," said Geoffrey Steadman, planning consultant for the commission.

Steadman noted that Interstate 95 slopes downward well east of the Yankee Doodle Bridge and all roadway runoff likely flows into the harbor through a large outfall pipe at Hendricks Avenue.

The commission also wants the DOT  prior to applying to the DEEP  to sample and test sediment in and near the outfall pipe, and quantify the water-quality improvements of the proposed work. Lastly, the commission wants the department to delineate the catchment area draining into the harbor through the pipe.

On Monday evening, the DOT's consultant engineer presented to the commission's Application Review Committee its water-quality improvement plan for the highway overhaul. A 1,000-foot vegetated channel and upgrades to the outfall pipe are key elements of the plan.

Pinto praised the concept but asked if the measures will adequately keep oil, gasoline and other pollutants from entering the harbor.

Is that going to handle the concentration that's going to come off that bridge or effluent from the side roads?" Pinto asked. "You have a mishmosh of chemicals that are coming off the road and the DEEP holds our feet to the fire with regard to heavy metals, hydrocarbons, etc."

Kimberly Lesay, Northeast Manager of Environmental Resources for BL Companies, said the designer of the proposed system is working on water-quality measurements.

"Do I think we're going to meet the standards in the book?" Lesay said. "No, probably not. Again, keep in in mind the scope of the project and that this is a safety and a rehabilitation project."

She said it would be a "completely different ballgame" if the DOT were rebuilding the roadway from scratch.

"Now, we've got room. We can change pipes, we can (create) our drainage systems," Lesay said.

The highway overhaul entails 14 acres of road surface and the state lacks adequate right-of-way land to fully address the amount of drainage, according to the DOT.

Commissioners on Monday located one area they consider ideal: a large, DOT-owned retention pond on the west side of the bridge.

According to the DOT, the pond lies outside the scope of the bridge overhaul and the bridge slope would prevent using the pond for runoff from the east side of the bridge.

As for the unfiltered bridge drains, the DOT has stressed that the bridge overhaul will not alter the geometry of the drainage system. Draining the highway to ensure safe travel is foremost when considering the drainage system, according to the DOT.

For the commission, keeping oil and other vehicular pollutants out of Norwalk Harbor isn't only about protecting shellfish beds and keeping the harbor clean. The city had to contribute $220,000 to the recent dredging of the harbor to bury pollutants.

The DEEP found the dredged material from beneath the bridge too contaminated to be buried in Long Island Sound. The city money was used to create special disposal cells within the harbor.
Democrats saw a surge in new voters in Pennsylvania as midterms near
Community enhancement is the focus of this weeks episode of Segue, as Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Chancellor Dr. Randy Pembrook welcomes Jesse Dixon, executive director of the SIUE East St. Louis Center, to the show. The administrators discuss a variety of topics, including program offerings through the East St. Louis Center, campus and community collaboration, involvement options for donors and volunteers, future initiatives for the East St. Louis Center and its surrounding communities, and how the East St. Louis Center is addressing critical community needs.

Since earning his masters in education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Jesse Dixon has constructed a national reputation as a leader in urban education reform. Prior to joining SIUE, Dixon previously worked as special assistant to the superintendent of the St. Louis Public Schools, as well as chief of staff to the members of the New York City Council, New York State Legislature and Massachusetts State House of Representatives.

Dixon has also served as an education policy consultant to states, districts and schools, consulting with the U.S. Department of Education, Cleveland Metropolitan School District, University of Missouri - St. Louis (UMSL), Saint Louis University, Harvard professional education programs and the Illinois State Board of Education. Dixon also directed the launch and management of the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Educations Office of District and School Turnaround.

I was absolutely blown away when I found out about the SIUE East St. Louis Center and the wide range of programs being offered for students and families, Dixon shares. I had been working in urban education reform for a number of years, and I saw problems with trying to help students meet their education and career goals through education and preparing them with just the K-12 years.

Many kids would leave high school as what we thought were prepared, but experienced several challenges when they went on to college. I am thrilled that the SIUE East St. Louis Center stays with children from six weeks old through adulthood. I truly believe theres nothing like it in the country. There are several universities playing a role in urban education, but Ive never seen any role as comprehensive and committed to meeting the educational, social and emotional needs of a community the way SIUE does with the East St. Louis Center.

The SIUE East St. Louis Center serves 2,000 children from St. Clair County each day through a variety of programs. The Centers Head Start program supports 1,400 kids through 14 early childhood centers and more than 200 staff. They work with children and families to establish educational goals and provide early childhood education to better prepare children for elementary education. The Center also partners with community colleges and employers to provide professional development and opportunity for families to meet their professional goals.

Project Success supports more than 70 children with open cases through the Department of Children and Family Services each day through an after school program.

Originally founded by Katherine Dunham, the Centers performing arts program involves more than 100 children through a rigorous program of music, dance and other expressive arts.

As an SIUE music performance alumni, Chancellor Pembrook expresses particular interest in the revitalization of the Centers performing arts programming.

When asking the people of East St. Louis, when they think of the SIUE East St. Louis Center, they think of performing arts, Dixon explains. Theyre valued not only in the community, but the alumni have gone on to do incredible things. The original choreographer for the Lion King on Broadway is an SIUE East St. Louis Center alumnus.

Its a rich legacy, and weve been working to bring that back with arts funding and youth programs. We have launched a six-week summer camp, now going into its second year. This fall, weve revitalized the after school program, which allows us to deeply engage with those students who truly want to hone their craft.

The SIUE East St. Louis Center Upward Bound program serves more than 300 students grades 9-12 to provide resources for college access and preparation. As part of this program, students are housed on SIUEs campus for five weeks each summer throughout high school to provide additional higher education resources.

The SIUE East St. Louis Center further serves as a community support ambassador for the SIUE East St. Louis Charter High School, the SIUE WeCARE clinic, the SIU East St. Louis Dental Clinic and the UMSL Center for Eye Care. As a result of these collaborations, students involved at both the East St. Louis Center and the Charter High School have on-site access to registered health practitioners - a feature not typical to most community service centers.

In addition to supporting the East St. Louis community, the SIUE East St. Louis Center and the Universitys support clinics also allow SIUE faculty and staff unique opportunities, while providing a setting for student practicum and a cross-collaborative environment for healthcare professionals.

Its unusual, and were just scratching the surface on how those partnerships can take shape, says Dixon. We have SIUE faculty providing emotional therapy and meditation exercises for our children. We are working with the SIUE STEM Center to provide education to our students through the Digital East St. Louis project.

Next year, the Center will host a six-week summer program for kids not active in Head Start or other high quality childhood programs, so they can learn how to attend school, learn social skills, and learn early math and reading skills. On their first day of kindergarten, theyre ready to learn.

As a professional coming to the Metro East from St. Louis, Dixon takes pride in connections and outreach initiatives to gain support for the SIUE East St. Louis Center from the metropolitan area.

When I was working in St. Louis, I didnt know the SIUE East St. Louis Center even existed, he admits. When I tell former colleagues in St. Louis about what Im doing now, theyre blown away. This program is a well-kept secret, and it shouldnt be. Because Im coming from the St. Louis education circle of philanthropies, foundations and practitioners, I feel part of my job is to help create understanding for the enormous potential of what can be accomplished at the SIUE East St. Louis Center to serve kids of all ages.

We serve adults and older students who will soon be professionals. Whatever shortages organizations have, they can work with our kids to educate them and pique their interest through career exploration activities and work-based learning opportunities. The more we get to know businesses and the more they know us, they realize its an unusual partnership that can be forged with the SIUE East St. Louis Center that isnt just giving money to a good program - its more than that.

Discussion closes with the administrators disclosing future strategic planning initiatives for the SIUE East St. Louis Center, including the establishment of further programming that allows the Center to make a more intimate and prolonged impact on East St. Louis children throughout their education and professional lives.

Visit siue.edu/eslc or call (618) 482-6912 for more information on how to support the SIUE East St. Louis Center through gift giving, mentorship, volunteer assistance and more.

Tune in to WSIE 88.7 FM every Sunday at 9 a.m. as weekly guests discuss issues on SIUEs campus.

By Logan Cameron, SIUE Marketing & Communications
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This is the first of two stories about Scott Air Force Base's centennial.

Scott Air Force Base is celebrating its centennial in 2017, and there are several events planned throughout the year, including an air show featuring the Air Force Thunderbirds in June.

As part of the celebration, the base is highlighting several of the functions it performs. Recently Colonel Laura Lenderman, Commander, 375th Air Mobility Wing, hosted a tour and demonstration of the KC-135, used for refueling and for aeromedical evacuation, and the C-21, used to transport Air Force personnel.

The KC-135 Stratotanker has provided refueling service for the Air Force for over 50 years. It also provides refueling support to other branches of the military. Four turbofans power the KC-135. A cargo deck above the refueling system can hold cargo and passengers. It can take off at gross weights of 322,500 pounds.

The Boeing Companys model 367-80 was the basic design for the commercial 707 passenger plane and the KC-135.

When used for refueling, the KC-135 carries a three person crew, a pilot, co-pilot and boom. Pilot Capt. Jessica Streiler and Boom A1C Alberto Ayala explained how the plane is used, both stateside and abroad.

When we deploy, we go to Qatar for 30, 60, or 90 days, Streiler said. We normally have three people, but we may add more on some missions.

Ayala said that his role as Boom includes doing the actual refueling, as well as handling any passengers the plane may have. Ayala recently returned from Turkey, where he was deployed during the recent coup there.

During flights, Ayala sits near the pilot and co-pilot. When it is time to refuel another plane, he goes to the back of the aircraft and down a few steps. Then he lies down on his stomach so he can operate the refueling boom. He has a window so he can see the fuel line under the plane and manually steer it to the other plane. The plane can carry 200,000 pounds of fuel.

The plane can also be used for cargo, and it is also used to transport Air Force members and family members. The seats fold down from the sides of the plane so passengers face the center. The plane is not air conditioned.

Beds also fold down from the sides so the plane can be used for aeromedical evacuation. Staff Sergeant Errington NeySmith is an instructor for the air evacuation crew.

We can turn this jet into a flying hospital in about an hour, he said. It normally carries a crew of two nurses and three medical technicians, in addition to the pilot and co-pilot. We can add specialized care teams if needed, he said. We move everything from pediatric patients to the elderly and everything in between.

There are several advantages to a quick evacuation, Lenderman said. There are less doctors and medical personnel at risk, less space to defend, and less supplies to move, she said, as compared to setting up a field hospital.

We recently flew into Iraq and moved a patient with heart problems from Baghdad to Qatar, NeySmith said.

Every other week, NeySmith said, a crew goes out over the Pacific, where over 500,000 people rely on their help in medical emergencies.

Captain Jessica Looft works with the medical evacuation team. I take care of the flying, she said. She was recently deployed in Qatar and Iraq. I like this job because we get to take people home, she said. The team has moved pre-term babies and other Air Force family members with medical issues.

One of the best parts of the job recently was seeing a wife meet a guy who had been gone for six months, NeySmith said. It was rather satisfying to see that happen."

Each stretcher along the side of the plane has lifesaving equipment next to it. We plug directly into the plane for power, NeySmith said.

Another plane that flies out of Scott is the C-21. 1st Lieutenant Alex Beveridge and 1st Lieutenant Robert Fritsch pilot the plane, which is used to fly high ranking Air Force members.

We transport the senior leaders of the Air Force wherever they need to go, Beveridge said.

The C-21 is a twin turbofan-engine aircraft. It is the military version of the Lear Jet 35A business jet. It can carry eight passengers and has a range of 2,000 miles.

It can also be used for medical evacuation, said Fritsch. The plane can hold two stretchers. Most of what we do is carrying around 4-stars (generals) in the Air Force.

It can be an interesting challenge flying them, Beveridge said. Youve got a guy in back who is also a pilot with more experience. He said that one advantage is that their passengers rarely complain about delays due to weather or other circumstances because they are also, in most cases, pilots. Its so much fun to fly them, he said. Theyre all very nice and personable.

The plane can fly for about four hours at a time, Beveridge said. He explained that this was usually long enough, as there is no plumbing on board, just a portable toilet that looks like a camper toilet.

Beveridge recently returned from the Middle East. I flew in Pakistan and Afghanistan and did some medical evacuation, he said.

Lenderman said that the C-21 was usually flown by younger pilots. The fact that they are able to fly senior officials shows the confidence that the Air Force has in them, despite their young age. These are young pilots, Lenderman said. Its rare to see two first lieutenants alone flying.

Fritsch said that flying the plane was a great opportunity. You get a lot of experience under your belt flying this, he said.

A third transportation plane flown out of Scott is the C-40 b/C. This plane, painted similarly to Air Force 1, is used to provide transportation to U.S. leaders to locations around the world. These planes are used by the First Lady and congressional delegations.

The C-40 B/C is based on the Boeing Company commercial 737-700 business jet. The cabin has a sleep accommodations and work space. It is designed to act as an office in the sky.

Some of these planes will be on display at the Open House and Air Show on June 10 and 11.
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Linkedin Kamia Handayani (The Jakarta Post) Enschede, The Netherlands  Fri, October 28, 2016

Indonesia celebrates National Electricity Day on Oct. 27, marking the date when President Sukarno established the Electricity and Gas Bureau soon after our independence.



At that time, the power supply capacity was only 158 megawatts (MWs). After 70 years of independence, the supply capacity has reached 53,000 MWs. Yet more than 10 million Indonesian households still do not have access to electricity.



The government takes this problem seriously. In 2006, then president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyonos administration launched phase one of the 10,000 MW fast-track program (FTP-1), followed by another 10,000 MW program (FTP-2) in 2010. Five years later, Jokowi set an even more ambitious target, to complete building 35,000 MWs worth of power plants by 2019.



Despite its great benefit to society, the provision of electricity has consequences for the environment. The electricity production directly leads to emission of carbon dioxide ( CO2 ), one of the greenhouse gasses responsible for global climate change.



According to the Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), 25 percent of global CO2 emissions were the result of electricity and heat production.



In Indonesia, the power sector is highly dependent on fossil fuels. According to the Electricity Supply Business Plan 2016-2025 (RUPTL), 89 percent of electricity production in 2016 is sourced from fossil fuels. This results in more than 200 million tons of CO2 emissions.



At the same time, as an archipelagic country with extensive low-lying and small islands areas, Indonesia is highly vulnerable to the adverse impact of climate change. Indonesia is included as one of the 30 countries at extreme risk due to climate change.



The risks include the increased mean of wet season rainfall, increased length of the dry season, increase in the intensity and frequency of extreme events such as El Nino, the increase of floods during the rainy season, as well as the increase of drought in the dry season. All these will affect a wide range of activities in Indonesia.



There seems to be a dilemma between electrification and mitigation of climate change. But do we really need to choose one over the other? First, let us see from the policy perspective. The National Energy Policy 2014 (NEP) aimed at nearly 100 percent of electrification by 2020.



The NEP also aimed at a mixed energy use with 23 percent coming from new and renewable energy by 2025. Hence, the NEP promotes renewable energy for electrification. This will result in lower carbon emissions compared to the business as usual. Based on this we can conclude that policy framework is in place to address low carbon electrification.



Second, let us take a look from the implementation perspective. The draft of the National Electricity General Plan 2015-2034 (RUKN) translates the NEP into long-term power sector planning. The RUKN promotes the development of renewable energy and the use of clean coal technology (CCT) as the measures to reduce CO2 emissions.

Nuclear power is also considered as an option.



Taking RUKN as a reference, the RUPTL provides more pragmatic planning and covers a shorter period. The RUPTL confirms that it is achievable to have nearly a 20 percent share of renewable energy in power generation mix by 2025. Accomplishment of this plan will reduce 22 percent of CO2 emissions compared to the business as usual scenario. Hence, we can conclude that low carbon electrification is realistic.



However, low carbon electrification leads to higher costs. The RUPTL estimates a cost of US$110 billion to achieve 20 percent share of renewable energy in the power generation mix. Furthermore, adding the renewable energy share up to 25 percent will increase the cost to $160 billion.



The question is then, who will pay for these costs? Business-wise, the independent power producers (IPPs) aim to gain profit from producing electricity. Hence, they sell electricity to PLN at its economic price.



Referring to feed in tariff policies, state power operator PLN is obliged to purchase renewable energy at determined ceiling prices. The policies intention is to attract more IPP investment in renewable energy. However, the electricity generation costs from renewable energy are generally higher compared to the electricity rate paid by the consumers. Since PLN is wholly owned by the government, it is up to the government to decide whether they will increase the electricity subsidy or increase the electricity rates.



Most consumers would be reluctant to pay more for electricity. However, in some countries such as the Netherlands, consumers voluntarily sign up for a green electricity product. This product sets a higher price for electricity. With this price, an energy utility company ensures that they produce the electricity from renewable energy sources.



This kind of product is not available in Indonesia. However, it does not mean that we as consumers cannot participate in reducing carbon emissions. There are alternative measures such as changing the way we consume electricity and using energy-saving electric appliances. The former action is relatively easy and free and includes unplugging non-used electric appliances, turning off unneeded lighting and setting the air conditioner at 25Celsius instead of 20Celcius. The latter action may be costly at the beginning but it will be paid off through the reduced amount in monthly electricity bills.



Installation of solar panels on the rooftop can be an option for consumers who have enough capital. They can consume the electricity produced by the solar panel and thus lower their monthly bill paid to PLN. We can learn from Germanys experiences about citizen involvement in energy transition. German households and citizens are able to cover half of investments required for the countrys transition to renewable energy.



Low carbon electricity may seem costly, but dealing with the adverse impacts of climate change will be even more costly. If we act now, we prevent the worst impact of climate change. But if we do not care, our future generations will bear a higher fare.

***

The writer is conducting research on climate change mitigation and adaptation in the Indonesian power sector for a PhD degree at Department of Governance and Technology for Sustainability, University of Twente, the Netherlands. Her research is funded by the Indonesian Endowment Fund (LPDP).

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Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.
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Linkedin Siswo Pramono (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

The future of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) free trade for Papua New Guinea (PNG), the Solomon Islands, Fiji and Vanuatu lies in Asia. Indonesia, as an associate member of the MSG, would play a pivotal role for the Melanesian bridge to the fastest-growing Asian economy.



As the MSGs total GDP is about US$23 billion, an understanding of the nature of the economies of scale would help the MSG rightly position itself in the APEC.



How the MSG could benefit from the APEC, a forum for 21 economies with a combined GDP of more than $31 trillion, is a case in point.



Well-established ties between Indonesia and PNG both are parties to APEC and members of the MSG would help provide political leverage for the MSG to also benefit from APEC.



APEC aside, the Asia Pacific region sees the conclusion of the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations this year. TPP represents an economic conglomeration of more than $28 trillion. None of the MSGs members are parties to TPP, but Indonesia has expressed its intention to join.



Another rapidly forming regionalism in Asia is the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). This economic grouping represents a total GDP of $21 trillion. All ASEAN members are committed to be parties to RCEP, together with China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand. Through its ties with Indonesia, the MSG can benefit from RCEP.



Center to RCEP is the recently implemented ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). The AEC represents a single production base with a total GDP of about $2.3 trillion. As Indonesia is essentially part of AEC, the economic community then has geographical proximity to PNG, the Solomon Islands, and hence the MSG.



APEC, the TPP, RCEP, and the AEC represent the geopolitical shift toward East Asia. As such, the political reorientation of the members of the MSG toward Asia the Look North Policy is not only sensible but also sine qua non.



PNGs Look North Policy is based on the fact that 50 percent of its export destinations are in Asia, particularly Japan and China; whereas 55 percent of its import origins are also in Asia.



Fijis main export destinations, aside from its traditional market of Australia, are China and Japan; while 60 percent of its imports come from Asia.



Last but not least, the Solomon Islands main export destination is China, and the bulk of its imports are from Singapore, China and Indonesia. The Solomon Islands economic ties with Taiwan have always been strong.



Indonesias membership in the MSG is represented by the five Indonesian Melanesian provinces of Papua, West Papua, Maluku, North Maluku and East Nusa Tenggara.



The total regional GDP of the five Indonesian Melanesian provinces is about $21 billion, which is almost equal to the GDPs of PNG, the Solomon Islands, Fiji and Vanuatu combined.



The average growth of the four MSG member countries is about 5 percent, while the average growth of the five Indonesian Melanesian provinces is about 8 percent. The five Indonesian Melanesian provinces thus provide better economic leverage for the MSG to deal with the ASEAN market and beyond.

Connectivity between Indonesia/ASEAN and the MSG is also being developed. There is a direct Air Niugini flight between Bali (Indonesia) and Port Moresby (PNG), with onward flights from Port Moresby to Honiara (Solomon Islands), Nadi (Fiji), or Port Vila (Vanuatu). Direct flights between Singapore and Port Moresby are also available.



As Papua represents Indonesia in the MSG, there is also a direct flight between Jayapura (Papua) and Mount Hagen (PNG), with onward flights from Mount Hagen to the rest of the MSG region.



It is important to note that infrastructure development in Papua has contributed to better connectivity between ASEAN and the MSG.



Of the total 4,325 kilometers of Trans Papua roads, about 3,625 km have been completed and about 700 km is in progress. About 533 km of road from Waropko, through Tanah Merah, to Merauke, along the southern border with PNG has been completed. Along the northern border, half of the road between Oksibil and Jayapura has also been completed. While still far from perfect, Papua-PNG cross-border economic activities have now been made easier.



The marine tollway is now able to well-connect the main hubs of Jayapura, Biak, Sorong, Misool, Timika and Merauke. There are ample opportunities to connect hubs in Papua with hubs in PNG and, in the future, with the rest of the MSG as well. In total, West Papua and Papua provinces are now equipped with 16 seaports.



New airports have just been commissioned in Segun, Sinak, Koroway and Manggelum. Airports in Kebar, Senggeh and Kepim have been renovated and 12 runways have been extended. In total, West Papua and Papua provinces are now equipped with 105 airports, some are potential air hubs to the Pacific.



The MSG and Indonesia cannot escape the fact that their economic interests are geopolitically interlinked. Working together, both can tap the benefits of the Asian Century.

***

The author is director general/ head of the Policy Analysis and Development Agency, Foreign Affairs Ministry. The views expressed are his own.

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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

Google Indonesia has displayed a Sumpah Pemuda (Youth Pledge)-themed doodle to mark Youth Pledge Day, which falls on Oct. 28.

The doodle portrays a group of men and women dressed in various traditional outfits, including Balinese, Javanese and Sundanese costumes, one of whom is waving the Red-and-White flag. The characters are seen to be chanting the three ideals promoted in the pledge: satu tanah air (one motherland), satu bangsa (one nation), satu bahasa (one language).

(Read also: Palace to celebrate Youth Pledge with video mapping, cultural shows)

Youth Pledge Day commemorates the conclusion of the Second Youth Congress on Oct. 27-28, 1928, in then Batavia (Jakarta), when youth of the yet-to-be independent country expressed their wish for a nation named Indonesia and recited a pledge containing the three ideals. The national anthem Indonesia Raya was also heard for the first time at the Second Youth Congress.

Google Indonesia often displays theme-specific doodles to commemorate special days in the Indonesian calendar. In addition to the Youth Pledge-themed doodle, other examples of Googles theme-specific artwork are the sketch of flag raisers during Independence Day and a sketch of national heroine Raden Adjeng Kartinis portrait on Kartinis Day, tempo.co reports. (mas/kes)
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Linkedin Michael Liedtke (Associated Press) San Francisco, United States  Fri, October 28, 2016

YouTube has emerged as a break-out star in Google's cast of services as the online video site upstages cable television for a younger generation of viewers looking for amusement, news and music on their smartphones.

The trend is contributing to an advertising shift away from traditional network television programming to the more eclectic and diversified mix of clips ranging from cute cat videos to sobering shots of street violence found on YouTube.

(Read also: Twitter cuts staff, kills off Vine app amid pressure to grow)

As more advertising dollars flow to YouTube, it's making the already hugely profitable Google even more prosperous. In a third-quarter report released Thursday, Google's corporate parent, Alphabet Inc., said it earned $5.1 billion, or $7.25 per share, a 27 percent increase from the same time last year. After subtracting advertising commissions, revenue climbed 21 percent to $18.3 billion. Both figures topped analyst projections.

All that money is providing Google with more financial firepower to buy the rights to stream cable networks' shows on YouTube, too, something likely to reel in even more viewers. It also is helping to finance Alphabet's investments in far-flung projects ranging from self-driving cars to internet-beaming balloons. That segment, known as "Other Bets," lost $865 million during the July-September period, narrowing from a $980 million setback last year as Alphabet imposed more expense controls.

SMART DEAL

YouTube already has proven to be one of the best bets that Google has ever made since it bought the video site for $1.76 billion a decade ago. At that juncture, YouTube consisted mostly of crudely made videos shot by amateurs and clips pirated from movie and TV studios that were threatening to sue the site into oblivion. It had built a worldwide audience of about 72 million viewers when Google took control in November 2006.

(Read also: Apple adds keyboard touch functions to Mac in major refresh)

Since then, YouTube has evolved into a far more polished channel that has spawned unlikely stars such as "PewDiePie" (Swedish comedian Felix Arvid Ulf Kjellberg) while largely making peace with studios by creating an automated screening system that detects pirated content. YouTube says it has paid more than $2 billion to studios that have chosen to leave their material on the site and share in the ad revenue generated by their clips.

Meanwhile, YouTube's audience has surpassed 1 billion, with 80 percent of the viewers outside the U.S. YouTube also boasts that its site reaches more people between the ages of 18 and 34 years old  the "millennial" generation  than any cable network. That segment of YouTube's audience is a major reason why more than half its video clips are watched on mobile devices.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai likened YouTube to prime-time TV "for the mobile world" in a Thursday conference call that was streamed on YouTube. He told analysts that YouTube "continues to shine" as more major advertisers promote their brands on the site.

Alphabet doesn't disclose how much money YouTube is making, but RBC Capital analyst Mark Mahaney estimates YouTube's annual revenue has now reached $10 billion and is increasing by as much as 40 percent a year. The growth makes YouTube "one of the strongest assets fundamentally on the internet today," Mahaney wrote in a research note earlier this week.

(Read also: Lenovo may release more Motorola smartphones in Indonesia)

STILL LACKING

Despite its progress, YouTube has been slow in realizing its full potential, leaving it vulnerable to new challengers for viewer's attention, such as Facebook's Live video feature, says Edward Jones analyst Josh Olson.

The problem, as Olson sees it, is that YouTube has had trouble persuading TV and movie studios to license more of their content on their site, something that that might have made YouTube as dominant in video as Google is in search.

But YouTube could be on a major breakthrough, according to a report published earlier this month in The Wall Street Journal. Citing unidentified people familiar with the matter, the newspaper said Google had reached an agreement with CBS to include its network in a cable-like service called "Unplugged" that will debut on YouTube next year. Google is also negotiating for the rights to the Fox network, ESPN and NBC, among others, the Journal said.

Google cited YouTube licensing rights as one of the reasons that its costs to generate revenue, excluding ad commissions, rose by $1 billion, or 30 percent, from last year.

"The dam appears to be finally cracking" for even better content to come to YouTube, Olson said.
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Linkedin Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Medan, North Sumatra  Fri, October 28, 2016

The Islamic University of North Sumatra (UISU) plans to throw a vibrant welcome for Ariska Putri Pertiwi following news that its student won the Miss Grand International 2016 pageant in Las Vegas, the US, on Tuesday.

UISUs School of Medicine first dean assistant Tri Makmur told The Jakarta Post that Ariskas accomplishment brought glory not only to the university but also to Indonesia. We are very proud of her, he said in Medan on Friday.

(Read also: Indonesia brings home Miss Grand International 2016 title)

The schools student executive body (BEM) head Akbar Amrizali Nasution said the students planned to welcome Ariska, who is part of the class of 2012 for medicine, at Kualanamu International Airport before marching to the campus on Jl. Sisingamangaraja, Medan.

We have coordinated [this plan] with Ariska, but we dont know yet when she will be back from the US. We are still waiting for confirmation, said Akbar.

Ariska was named Miss Grand International 2016 after outdoing contestants from the Philippines, Thailand, Puerto Rico and the US in the pageants final stage. She also won the Best National Costume title, wearing sparkling gold traditional attire from Lampung themed Royal Sigokh, designed by Dynand Fariz. (mas/kes)
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, October 27 2016

The city administration should not follow through with its sewer rat eradication program, in which residents would be rewarded Rp 20,000 (US$1.54) for each sewer rat they exterminated, as residents were also responsible for keeping their environment clean, a sociologist says.

University of Indonesia sociologist Imam Prasodjo said residents  young and old, rich and poor should work together to purge the city of pests carrying diseases, including rats.

Rats, which can spread diseases through their fur, saliva, urine and droppings, are known as vectors of various diseases including rat-bite fever that can cause a rash, headache and muscle and joint pain.

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Linkedin Liza Yosephine (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

Acting Jakarta Governor Sumarsono has stressed the importance of civil-servant neutrality prior to the Jakarta gubernatorial election on Feb. 15, 2017.

Sumarsono, who spoke at the Youth Pledge commemoration ceremony in his first task as acting governor on Friday, called on civil servants not to get involved in politics even though they were permitted to exercise their voting rights to elect one of the candidates.

"Bureaucracy is neutral and the elected pair will be the people's choice and the best choice for Jakarta," Sumarsono said in his remarks in reference to a law that requires government employees to remain neutral.

He further noted that sanctions against violators depended on the severity of misconduct, ranging from a delay in promotion to dishonorable dismissal.

"I think the rules are clear. Those who are seen to be involved in politics, either proven [as reported] in the media or in photographs, will be immediately called in," he told reporters.

During his first day as acting governor, Sumarsono attended meetings at the Jakarta General Elections Commission (KPU Jakarta) and the Elections Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) and a plenary meeting at the Jakarta Legislative Council. (bbn)
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Linkedin Muhammad Syarifullah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28 2016

When local governments are bidding for recognition as smart cities in accordance with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), they should no longer only chase the smart brand but, more importantly, the trademark of sustainable regions.

The different branding of smart cities and sustainable cities has prompted each municipal government to create a different set of priorities. This happens although the environment is already known as one of the smart city indicators.

The achievement indicators for sustainable cities, however, exceed those needed to achieve the title of a smart city. In transportation issues, for example, to be sustainable a city must not only operate an integrated transportation concept, but also promote the use of renewable energy in the transportation sector.

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Linkedin Julie Bykowicz and Chad Day (Associated Press) Washington  Fri, October 28, 2016

Hillary Clinton entered the final phase of her presidential bid with a resounding campaign cash advantage over Donald Trump.

New fundraising reports show her campaign and joint accounts with Democrats had US$153 million in the bank as of last week. That's more than double the $68 million Trump's campaign and partnership committees had on hand.

Clinton's continued fundraising advantage helps ensure the Democratic nominee can keep her sprawling political operation at full strength in the frantic final days of the race. She maintains a staff of more than 800  several times larger than Trump's  and has spent more on advertising than the Republican has every single week of the race.

Over the course of the primary and general elections, Clinton's campaign has hauled in $513 million, roughly double what Trump's has.

She outpaced him again in the first 19 days of October, the new reports show, when her campaign reaped $53 million as his brought in about $30 million.

While Trump, a New York businessman who says he is worth $10 billion, typically makes a personal contribution of about $2 million each month, he had not done so yet in October. The latest contribution reports, up to date as of Wednesday, show he had given only about $33,000.

The candidates and many outside groups involved in the presidential race are filing their final pre-election fundraising reports on Thursday. The filings cover the first 19 days of the month.

Outside groups backing Clinton are better funded than those supporting Trump, the reports show. Super PACS can take unlimited contributions from wealthy donors, but they may not coordinate with the campaigns.

The pro-Clinton Priorities USA raised $18 million in 19 days. Some of its biggest most recent donors include Facebook co-founder Dustin Moskovitz and Susan Mandel, the wife of a hedge fund founder, who each put in $2.5 million this month.

Priorities USA has been spending most of its money on TV ads. It plans to spend $21 million on ads this week and next, according to Kantar Media's political ad tracker.

Rebuilding America Now, one of several pro-Trump groups, raised only about $215,000 through the early part of this month. As of last week, the super PAC only had about $1.2 million in cash on hand. Another, Great America PAC, raised $2 million and had about as much left to spend.
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Linkedin Indra Budiari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

Jessica Kumala Wongso leaned back on her seat in the courtroom of the Central Jakarta District Court, gulped a few times and looked uncomfortably to her right where members of her defense team were sitting, sensing that the day would not end well for her.

From her seat she could listen as the three members of the panel of judges read out their verdict, which mostly consisted of reciting lines from the prosecutors demands.

Nothing from her defense statement or those of her lawyers was included in the consideration of the verdict.

She tried to make eye contact with her lead counsel Otto Hasibuan as the three judges took turns in describing her as a disturbed girl who left Australia to run away from a host of problems and sought to channel her anger onto a friend she knew back home.

The 27-year-old blinked rapidly when the judges declared that she was guilty of the premeditated murder that took the life of her former friend Wayan Mirna Salihin, and her face visibly flushed when presiding judge Binsar Gultom sentenced her to 20 years in prison for her crime.

I dont accept this verdict because this is unfair and one-sided, she said.

The verdict marked the end of a months-long media circus and personal drama that was played out on national television and which captivated millions of viewers across the country and abroad.

Many in Australia, where Jessica held permanent-residency status, closely followed the trial especially as the Australian Federal Police (AFP) had agreed to help Indonesian police with their investigation, on the condition that the death penalty would not be sought. Australian media reported that the Indonesian government gave a guarantee that Jessica would not face execution.

Three Australian experts testified in the trial that there was no evidence to suggest Mirnas death was caused by cyanide poisoning.

Mirna died after sipping a Vietnamese iced coffee while hanging out with Jessica and another friend in the Grand Indonesia shopping mall one evening last January.

The theory that her death was caused by sodium cyanide placed in her drink was circulated by the police but no direct witness nor video surveillance footage could confirm that Jessica was the culprit.

Detectives argued that because Jessica picked the venue and ordered the iced coffee for Mirna that proved her culpability in the case.

This verdict is a death knell for our judicial system, Otto, the leader of Jessicas defense team, told reporters after the court concluded its session on Thursday.

During the trial Otto submitted 3,000 pages of defense testimony in an attempt to exonerate his client, but which the panel of judges completely ignored during the reading out of the verdict.

Otto said that he would file an appeal in response to the verdict.

As Jessica was whisked away from the courtroom, relatives of Mirna gathered to celebrate the verdict.

Some were overwhelmed by joy after learning about the verdict from a television set that broadcast the hearing in a live telecast.

Dressed in white T-shirts bearing Mirnas face and slogan Justice for Mirna, family members and relatives saw the verdict as a victory.

Mirnas outspoken father Edi Darmawan Salihin, who dispatched hundreds of his employees to the court with posters and distributed Justice for Mirna pins and T-shirts to courtroom visitors, raised his fist as the judges read their verdict.

Once the judges had finished, Mirnas relatives began cheering and delivered a round of applause celebrating their victory.

Thank God Sandy, she got 20 years, a number of Mirnas supporters told the dead victims twin sister Made Sandy Salihin.

Sandy was soon mobbed by television crews who prepared her for a live interview to get her response to the verdict.

I am tired but finally I am very happy with this verdict, Sandy told reporters.

A few meters from Sandy was Mirnas widower Arif Soemarko, who also had to go live on national television to give his comments about the trial.

Speaking to reporters after it was all over Arif said no verdict could return Mirna to his side, but he believed that justice had been served as the judges agreed to the sentence demand made by prosecutors.

There is no way Ill forgive her. She killed my wife and has shown no remorse, he said of Jessica.
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Linkedin Indra Budiari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28 2016

Jessica Kumala Wongso leaned back on her seat in the courtroom of the Central Jakarta District Court, gulped a few times and looked uncomfortably to her right where members of her defense team were sitting, sensing that the day would not end well for her.

From her seat she could listen as the three members of the panel of judges read out their verdict, which mostly consisted of reciting lines from the prosecutors demands.

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Linkedin Haeril Halim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

The East Java Prosecutors Office detained former state-owned enterprises minister and media mogul Dahlan Iskan for his alleged role in a graft case centering on the sale of a company owned by the East Java provincial administration on Thursday.

The detention of Dahlan, who was once a presidential hopeful at the Democratic Party presidential convention in 2013, was made immediately after investigators declared him a suspect.

I am not surprised at being declared a suspect, and to be detained shortly afterward. As you know, I have become a target by [those] in power, Dahlan told reporters in Surabaya, East Java, on Thursday evening, as quoted by kompas.com.

The East Java Prosecutors Office charged Dahlan under articles 2 and 3 of the 2001 Corruption Law, which carry a maximum punishment of 20 years in prison.

Dahlan was named a suspect in his capacity as former director of the province-owned company PT Panca Wira Usaha (PWU) that he led from 2000 to 2010. Investigators found irregularities in the sales of 33 assets belonging to PWU during his tenure as director.

He was declared a suspect today and detained with regard to the sales of PWU assets in Kediri and Tulungagung, in East Java, said intelligence assistant of the East Java Prosecutors Office Edy Birton.

He is responsible because he was a director of the company, he said, adding the Development Finance Comptroller (BPKP) had yet to finish calculating the total in state losses caused by the problematic sales.

Dahlan claimed he had never benefited from the sales, pointing out that for 10 years he never took a salary from the company.

I have become a suspect not because I embezzled money or received bribes, but simply because I signed documents provided by my subordinates at that time, Dahlan said.

Dahlan claimed his arrest was politically motivated, especially after president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyonos regime ended in Oct. 2014. Dahlan was a close aide to Yudhoyono, the chairman of the Democratic Party who had appointed Dahlan as the director general of state-owned electricity company PLN from 2009 to 2011.

Previously, Dahlan also faced several charges that were eventually dropped.

He was once named a suspect by the Jakarta Prosecutors Office in 2015 in a case related to irregularities surrounding the procurement of electricity transformers worth more than Rp 1.3 trillion (US$99.5 million) in 2009.

The Jakarta Prosecutors Office appeared to have built a weak case against him as he managed to win a pretrial ruling at the South Jakarta District Court. The court declared his graft suspect status to be illegitimate because of weak evidence and ordered the case to be dropped.

The Attorney Generals Office also pursued Dahlan in the procurement of 16 electric vehicles worth up to Rp 32 billion to be used in the 2013 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit held in Bali, but it had failed to name him a suspect.

Earlier this year, the National Police also questioned him several times in a graft case related to the establishment of rice fields in Ketapang, West Kalimantan, in his capacity as former state-owned enterprises (BUMN) minister. The police however have yet to name him a suspect.
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Linkedin Anton Hermansyah (The Jakarta Post) Surabaya  Fri, October 28, 2016

Deutsche Banks default and its litigation problems may pose a threat to the Indonesian financial market, but on a very limited scale as Europes biggest bank has shown progress in its debt restructuring program, an Indonesian central bank official has said.

According to data from the Financial Services Authority (OJK), Deutsche Bank manages 42 percent of custody funds in Indonesia, for both stocks and bonds. Its name is used to register almost a quarter of stocks traded in the country, or 24.5 percent of total market capitalization on the Indonesian Stock Exchange (IDX).

"There will be an effect as Deutsche Bank is a major custodian bank in Indonesia, but as they are making profits again, we do not have to worry so much," BI senior deputy governor Mirza Adityaswara said during the Indonesia Sharia Economic Festival in Surabaya on Thursday.

The bank posted 278 million Euros (US$303.15 million) in profit during the third quarter, debunking the market consensus that initially predicted another net loss. This will help the bank restructure its debt and face its litigation problems, according to Mirza.

After posting a net loss of 6.8 billion Euros in 2015, Deutsche Bank was punished with a $14 billion fine by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) for its misconduct in subprime mortgage sales a decade ago.

"Discussions with the DoJ are moving forward and we are working hard to achieve a resolution in this matter as soon as possible," Deutsche Bank CEO John Cryan said in a statement, on Thursday. (ags)
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Linkedin Christine Susanna Tjhin (The Jakarta Post) Beijing  Fri, October 28 2016

Many recent debates surrounding Indonesias supposed leadership in the region have been framed in terms of how Indonesia could (or should) engage China. One of the most heated debates concerns the South China Sea (SCS) issue.

The highly charged tensions in the SCS have cast serious doubts on Chinas peaceful rise. Recent articles by Evan Laksmana and Klaus Raditio have brought up timely conversations on how best to engage China, to which the author will attempt to contribute.

Whether the term hegemonic is deemed as pejorative or neutral, Chinas behavior in the SCS ought to be understood through its domestic context. Inability or unwillingness to understand this would seriously undermine our ability to formulate effective policies of engagement.

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Linkedin Liza Yosephine (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

Acting Jakarta governor Sumarsono has vowed to cooperate with the City Council in deliberating the 2017 city budget, with the hope that deliberations run smoothly.

Sumarsono began his duties on Friday as Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama went on leave to campaign for reelection.

"With good partnership with the council in the duration of my duties, Insya Allah [God willing] the city budget will be finalized on Dec 30 at the latest," he said in his remarks.

Following a hearing, Sumarsono noted with concern that city budget planning had often lagged in the past, adding that he would maintain close coordination between relevant bodies to promote smooth deliberation.

He stressed the importance of maintaining the city working plan (RKPD) as the parameters of discussion. "As long as the [deliberations] are in line with the RKPD, we keep it moving forward," Sumarsono told reporters.

Jakarta Development Planning Board (Bappeda) head Tuty Kusumawati, whom has been entrusted by Ahok in the deliberation of the city budget while he's away, said the administration had submitted earlier its improvements to the budget to include strategic programs not realized in 2016.

"Examples of the strategic programs include several low-cost apartments that failed to be auctioned and must be budgeted again, as well as school renovations," Tuty said.

The city administration submitted in June a draft budget amounting to Rp 68.6 trillion for 2017, up from the Rp 67.1 trillion proposed in 2016. (bbn)
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Linkedin Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Medan/Jakarta  Fri, October 28 2016

In his doctoral dissertation, Kornelius Simanjuntak, a veteran insurance business player and scholar, said Indonesia urgently needed a national insurance scheme for natural disasters because the country was prone to such calamities.

Citing the experiences of other countries, such as Japan, Kornelius pointed out that insurance payments were instrumental in helping victims start over.

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Linkedin Marguerite Afra Sapiie (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

Former members of a 2004 fact-finding team (TPF) have urged state officials to immediately resume a pro-justitia process to unravel the case of slain rights defender Munir Said Thalib, as the State Palace received on Wednesday a copy of the TPFs investigative findings.

The copy of the TPF report was submitted by former State Secretary Sudi Silalahi, following the recent fiasco of the report being "lost" at the State Secretariat. TPF chairman Marsudi Hanafi authenticated the copy, saying it was same as the orignal.

Attorney General HM Prasetyo earlier insisted the original document had to be found before determining further measures. While the AGO should continue to look for the original, it should not be a reason for prosecutors to delay a new legal process into the case, former TPF member Hendardi of the Setara Institute said.

"[The copy] can be used to assist a pro-justitia process. Originality of a document is not a requirement in continuing a legal process since [proceeding to a new investigation] only depends on political willingness," Hendardi told journalists on Thursday.

The government should immediately disclose the TPFs findings, including publicly announcing the names of the two individuals alleged by the TPF to have been involved in Munir's murder, but were exempted from the legal process. Hendardi, however, refused to hint at the names.

Similarly, Amirudin al-Rahab, also a former TPF member, urged the government to make a concrete breakthrough in resolving Munir's murder after a decade of darkness. He further said President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo should form a new fact-finding team to evaluate the TPFs 2005 findings.

The fact-finding team, formed by former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in 2004, identified the alleged role of National Intelligence Agency (BIN) officials in the Munirs murder, including then BIN chief Abdullah Mahmud Hendropriyono.

Purportedly, the report revealed that Hendropriyono was found to have exchanged telephone calls with Pollycarpus Budihari Priyanto, a former Garuda Indonesia pilot who was found guilty of murdering Munir, around the time of the incident. Hendropriyono has repeatedly denied any role in Munirs death, who was poisoned with arsenic on a Garuda flight to the Netherlands. (dmr)
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28 2016

A worker renovating the Islamic Center in Koja, North Jakarta, was electrocuted after touching a lamp used to illuminate the site.

Panji, 22, died on the way to the hospital, North Jakarta Police spokesman Comr. Sungkono said on Thursday.

The incident occurred when Panji and other workers were digging a drain on Wednesday night, he said. A lamp fell over and Panji went to pick it up. When he picked up the lamp, he suddenly went into a convulsion and then dropped, he said, as quoted by kompas.com.

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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

The election campaign started on Friday, but Jakartas gubernatorial candidates continue to move slowly, as though they want to conserve their energy for what promises to be a dramatic and lengthy campaign. The campaign period lasts from Oct. 28 to Feb. 11, 2017, and voting day is scheduled for Feb. 15, 2017.

Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama has said he has not been informed by his campaign team about his schedule.

It seems as though my campaign didnt begin on Friday, said Ahok, who handed over his office temporarily to an acting governor on Wednesday.

But Ahoks running mate, Djarot Saiful Hidayat, was scheduled to meet with residents in Pasar Rebo, East Jakarta, after Friday prayers.

There are three candidate pairs in the Jakarta gubernatorial election: Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono-Sylviana Murni, Ahok-Djarot and Anies Baswedan-Sandiaga Uno.

Most of the time, candidates and their campaign teams have to organize their own events because the Jakarta General Elections Commission (KPU Jakarta) has only scheduled six open campaign rallies for the four-month campaign.

On Thursday, Anies was still in Yogyakarta to get permission from his mother before starting his campaign on Friday.

Tomorrow I will return to Jakarta after meeting with my mother, asking her to pray for me, Anies said in Yogyakarta on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Agus and Sylviana only engaged in internal activities on Friday morning. Agus went to Friday prayers at the Sunda Kemapa Mosque in Menteng, Central Jakarta. (bbn)
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Linkedin Liza Yosephine (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

Indonesia and Australia are set to continue strengthening the security ties they have developed in various areas, an official has said.

"Indonesia and Australia are committed to strengthening cooperation in counterterrorism and maritime affairs and exploring new cooperation in the field of cybersecurity," the Foreign Ministry's director general for Asia Pacific and Africa, Desra Percaya, said on Friday.

Desra represented Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi at the 2+2 Dialogue attended by foreign and defense ministers of both countries to discuss strategic security talks in Bali.

He said the meeting took place at a time when relations between Indonesia and Australia continued to improve.

Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu earlier said at the meeting that Australia and Indonesia could take advantage of their geographic proximity to jointly maintain security and promote the welfare of people and the region.

The Foreign Ministry said several agreements were raised at the Bali meeting, including Australia's support for Indonesia's initiative to build a deradicalization center in Sentul, Bogor, as part of the implementation of a memorandum of understanding on international terrorism eradication cooperation signed by the two countries at the same forum last year.

Both parties also agreed to forge a cooperation on capacity building within the framework of security and cybercrime.

A joint statement resulting from the meeting noted defense and military weaponry system cooperation.

"Ministers welcome increased defense industry and military modernization cooperation such as through the agreement between leading Indonesian and Australian defense industry members to develop an armored vehicle, based on the Australian Bushmaster design and customized for the Indonesian Militarys operational needs," it stated. (ebf)


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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu has said Indonesia and Australia are set to discuss efforts on strengthening military ties in an upcoming meeting involving foreign and defense ministers of each respective country.

Ryamizard said the meeting on Friday, which would take place in Bali, was expected to discuss regional and security issues, including the disputed South China Sea, where neither country was a claimant, as well as how to address terrorist threats. He noted that terrorism was an issue of common concern and an enemy that must be faced together.

"We'll talk about the South China Sea, we'll talk about terrorist threats. These are issues that we have to discuss together. We'll strengthen the good relationship we have [with Australia]. There are no other issues," Ryamizard said on Thursday, as quoted by Antara news agency.

He went on to say that the Australian Defense Minister, Marise Payne, had also invited him to visit military bases in Australia, such as a marine headquarters in Darwin, the Northern Territory. He noted that the move demonstrates the openness of each country's military.

Ryamizard further said he would discuss with Australia the issue of countries that had expressed support for an independent Papua, for them to not interfere.

Further in the meeting, the minister said he would not refuse if Australia suggested a joint military exercise to ward off regional and global security threats.

The meeting on Friday would be the fourth occasion involving the four ministers of both countries since it was first initiated in 2010.

Foreign Ministry officials had previously said the ministers were set to discuss the strengthening of cooperation on strategic security issues between the two countries, including possible collaboration in cybersecurity. (liz/dmr)
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Linkedin Anton Hermansyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

The government and central bank have expressed disappointment over Standard & Poor's (S&P) uncertain stance, making it less likely to grant Indonesia an investment grade rating in the near soon, ducking behind "additional concerns" on bad debts.

Bank Indonesia Governor Agus Martowardojo insisted Indonesian banking had kept non-performing loans (NPLs) far below the 5 percent level, despite a slight increase to 3.22 percent in August from 3.18 percent in July.

"S&P is not supposed to set a 'moving target' for Indonesia. That is not objective. We will clarify when we meet them," he said during the Indonesia Sharia Economic Festival (ISEF) in Surabaya on Friday, adding that banks had also built up capital to anticipate the bad loans.

In an interview with Bloomberg on Tuesday, S&P director of sovereign ratings Kyran Curry said Indonesias rising bad debts might hinder it from upgrading Indonesias rating. The global rating agency on June awarded Indonesia a BB+ rating, one notch below investment grade with positive outlook.

Coordinating Economic Minister Darmin Nasution expressed his disappointed over the agencys uncertainty in affirming Indonesias rating. "I am confused. They asked [use to improve] this, and we did. But then they said we're still lacking in another areas," he said on Thursday.

Previously, Darmin said, S&P declined to upgrade Indonesias rating to investment grade, on the back of fiscal concerns, but after Indonesia shaped the state budget to a more realistic one, S&P brought up another issue to settle. (ags)
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Linkedin Anton Hermansyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

Bank Indonesia (BI) unveiled on Thursday a waqf (Islamic endowment)-based sukuk (Islamic bond), aimed at developing social property assets to be commercially self-sustaining.

BI Deputy Governor Hendar said the sukuk could further finance the development of commercial buildings such as office towers or shopping centers over waqf land. The coupon will be paid from the recurring income of the assets.

"There are many prospective waqf plots of land in Indonesia. If we build something productive there, it will generate more economic activity," he said during the Indonesia Sharia Economic Festival in Surabaya.

Hendar highlighted the Menara 165 office tower in Jakarta, a commercial building that was built over mortmain properties under waqf. Sukuk, he further said, could be issued by using the building as the underlying asset and the proceeds could be used to develop other assets.

According to Muhammad Anwar Basori, BI head of the sharia economic and finance department, waqf land was traditionally used for social and public purposes such as cemeteries, mosques, or pesantren (Islamic boarding schools).

Due to maintenance needs, the waqf asset manager usually collects money through spontaneous crowdfunding mechanisms such as asking for donations at the Mosque and even on the street. Waqf-based sukuk could be a solution for that, providing cash to cover maintenance costs.

"There are 400,000 hectares of waqf land in Indonesia, 90 percent of which are cost centers. In Kuwait and Singapore, they have built many productive assets on waqf land," he said. (ags)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

The first group of Indonesian teachers will leave for Australia to undertake a new work-study program on Friday, says a press statement issued by Australian Embassy in Jakarta.

It says 136 teachers will travel to Australia to study the Australian education system in a short course at the University of Melbourne.

Theyll also undertake work placement in an Australian school and stay with a local family. The teachers will experience local teaching practices firsthand.

The three-week course will provide practical examples on how participants can implement these methods and share this material with their colleagues on their return to Indonesia, the statement says.

Australias universities and technical colleges have become the destination of choice for Indonesians looking to study abroad. In 2015, there were 19,300 Indonesian enrolled in Australian education institutions.

Meanwhile, under the Australian governments New Colombo Plan, in the last two years, 2,000 young Australians have lived, worked and studied in Indonesia. (bbn)
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Linkedin Anton Hermansyah (The Jakarta Post) Surabaya  Fri, October 28, 2016

Development of the countrys sharia finance industry will increase female participation in the economy as its financing is conducive to womens economic empowerment, government official has said.

Economic Coordinating Minister Darmin Nasution said Indonesian fashion and halal cosmetics were among the well-performing industries financed by Islamic lenders. Most businesspeople in the two industries were women.

"Women automatically dominate the female-related businesses, aside from other male designers who also produce sharia fashion lines," he said during the Indonesia Sharia Economic Festival (ISEF) in Surabaya on Thursday.

Indonesia is one of the top five Islamic fashion industries in the world, with a total spending of US$12.7 billion annually. It is also in the world's top five regarding the sharia cosmetics/pharmaceutical industry with an average spending of $4.8 billion per year, according to data from Bank Indonesia (BI).

"Amid the global slowdown, [the nations] sharia industry is still giving positive signals," BI deputy governor Hendar said. (ags)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

Karpowership Indonesia, which operates floating power plants, has sealed a cooperation deal with state-owned ship builder PAL Indonesia to manufacture power ships with a total capacity of 5,000 megawatts (MW).

The subsidiary of a Turkey-based company will transfer the power ship technology to PAL ranging from installation, construction and design to procurement and maintenance.

The aim is to cooperate with PAL for the transfer of technology, for the local-content increase, so power ships can become a solution for Indonesia, Karpowership CEO Orhan Remzi Karadeniz told journalists in Jakarta on Friday.

Karpowership has supplied power ships to provide electricity in remote areas of the country such as Amarang, North Sulawesi. We will continue delivering power ships to Ambon, Lombok, Kupang and Medan in the next couple of months, he said.

PAL president director Muhammad Firmansyah Arifin said the collaboration could support the governments ambitious program to generate an extra 35,000 MW of electricity for the nation within five years.

Floating power plants are very suitable for Indonesia, which consists of many islands. We will first learn about the technical and management aspects from them and build the vessels soon, he said, adding that it would take about a year for PAL to build a power ship. (win/ags)
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Linkedin Nethy Dharma Somba (The Jakarta Post) Jayapura  Fri, October 28 2016

Nearly a week after President Joko Jokowi Widodo visited Yahukimo, Papua, where he promised lower fuel prices and infrastructure development, a clash broke out in Manokwari, West Papua, late Wednesday, leaving one person dead and some injured.

The fatal incident created anxiety among locals, with residents in Manokwari, the capital of West Papua province, choosing to remain at home.

The city was gripped with fear and the streets were deserted. Residents preferred to stay at home because they felt more secure inside, Manokwari resident Rustam told The Jakarta Post by phone Thursday.

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Linkedin Lita Aruperes (The Jakarta Post) Manado, North Sulawesi  Fri, October 28, 2016

Various societal elements in North Sulawesi have expressed their support for Munirs widow, Suciwati, and the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) to seek justice for the death of Munir Said Thalib during Suciwati and Kontras three-day visit to the province, which will end on Friday.

We, members of society and activists in North Sulawesi, are calling on President Joko Jokowi Widodo as the head of the government to immediately publicize the results of its fact-finding teams [TPF] investigation, said customs and traditions council presidium member Bert Supit on Thursday.

This release [of the report] has been ruled on by the Central Information Commission [KIP] on Oct. 10, based on an adjudication request filed by Ibu Suciwati, Kontras and the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute via the commission.

Bert said activists in North Sulawesi had paid close attention to the Munir case because it touched on past rights abuses that the government must resolve.

The alleged conspiracy and involvement of state institutions in this case must be investigated, he said.

Information in the report must be conveyed to the public. The legal process in Munirs case really depends on the contents of the report, he added (ebf)
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Linkedin (Associated Press) Peshawar, Pakistan  Fri, October 28, 2016

A Pakistani prosecutor says National Geographic's famed green-eyed 'Afghan Girl' has made her first appearance before a court, insisting she did not fraudulently obtain Pakistani nationality.

Manzoor Aalam said Sharbat Gulla, during Friday's court hearing, essentially retracted the confession that investigators say she made after her arrest. She was detained Wednesday in the northwestern city of Peshawar on charges of holding a fake Pakistani identity card.

Gulla was an Afghan refugee when she gained worldwide fame in 1984 after war photographer Steve McCurry's photograph of her, with piercing green eyes, was published on the cover of National Geographic.

McCurry found her again in Afghanistan in 2002.

She surfaced in Pakistan in 2014, but went into hiding when Pakistani authorities accused her of buying a fake Pakistani identity card.
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Linkedin Moses Ompusunggu (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

Local spouses of foreigners can now purchase a plot of land or a building without having to create a prenuptial agreement separating the ownership of their property, a 42-year-old policy that has just been declared unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court.

The court decided on Thursday to eliminate the requirement for a prenuptial marriage agreement in Article 29 of the 1974 Marriage Law, paving the way for thousands of Indonesians who are married to foreign nationals to own property as they can now create an agreement on separate ownership during their marriage.

The Indonesian Mixed-Marriage Society (PerCa), which supported the judicial review petition against the law, welcomed the landmark decision, saying it was a ruling that upholds the principal of justice and gives local spouses the constitutional rights they are entitled to.

We fully welcome the ruling by the Constitutional Court, which shows that it cares about and sides with mixed-marriage couples who are often subject to discrimination, PerCa said in a statement made available to The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

The 1974 Marriage Law treats a husband and a wife equally, allowing them to create a marriage agreement before a civil registry official or notary. Prior to Thursdays ruling, the agreement, under which a married couple could agree on things such as the separation of property and debt, could only be made before a marriage took place.

The court, however, declared the requirement for a prenuptial contract to be unfair, as it prevented a married couple from separating property ownership during the marriage, thus violating Article 28E of the Constitution. In fact, many couples mull whether to draw up a marriage contract after their marriage for many reasons, said presiding judge Wahiddudin Adams, while reading the ruling at the Constitutional Court in Central Jakarta.

Property ownership in a marriage is one of the factors behind many conflicts between a husband and wife, Wahiddudin said.

Plaintiff Ike Farida, a PerCa member, said the ruling made it possible for locals who were married to foreign nationals to own property by creating a marriage contract that stipulated the separation of property ownership.

A lot of marriages, including mixed marriages, took place without the prenuptial contract, because most married couples were unaware of the regulation, Ike said.

Ike is a Jakarta-based lawyer married to a Japanese citizen.

In May 2012, she finished paying for an apartment in Casablanca, South Jakarta, but the developer did not give her ownership rights to the unit after it became aware her husband was a foreigner.

The case went to the East Jakarta District Court but Ike lost. The developer refunded the payments, but Ike refused to accept them, because she still wanted to fight to change the law.

Some friends have been advised by their lawyers to divorce first and get married again just to create a marriage contract that enabled them to own property. They dont need to do that after this ruling, Ike said.

Apart from the 1974 Marriage Law, Ike also filed a review of Article 21 and Article 36 of the 1960 Agrarian Law, which prohibit foreigners, and Indonesians in mixed marriages who do not separate their property ownership, from possessing right-to-own permits and right-to-build permits, respectively.

The court decided to uphold the said provisions, citing the principle of nationality used by the Agrarian Law, in which only Indonesians can own property in the country.

There is no way for foreigners to own property. The principle of nationality is still relevant at present when capital ownership has a pivotal role for Indonesians looking to bounce back from the sluggish economic situation, Wahiddudin said.
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Linkedin Moses Ompusunggu (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28 2016

Local spouses of foreigners can now purchase a plot of land or a building without having to create a prenuptial agreement separating the ownership of their property, a 42-year-old policy that has just been declared unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court.

The court decided on Thursday to eliminate the requirement for a prenuptial marriage agreement in Article 29 of the 1974 Marriage Law, paving the way for thousands of Indonesians who are married to foreign nationals to own property as they can now create an agreement on separate ownership during their marriage.

The Indonesian Mixed-Marriage Society (PerCa), which supported the judicial review petition against the law, welcomed the landmark decision, saying it was a ruling that upholds the principal of justice and gives local spouses the constitutional rights they are entitled to.

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Linkedin Corry Elyda (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28 2016

In his first days substituting for incumbent Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama, who is on leave to campaign for his reelection, acting governor Sumarsono will focus on resolving the problems plaguing the Bantar Gebang landfill in Bekasi, West Java.

The Home Ministrys regional autonomy director general said during a meeting with city administration officials at City Hall on Thursday that resolving the Bantar Gebang situation would be his first priority.

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Linkedin Corry Elyda (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

In his first days substituting for incumbent Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama, who is on leave to campaign for his reelection, acting governor Sumarsono will focus on resolving the problems plaguing the Bantar Gebang landfill in Bekasi, West Java.

The Home Ministrys regional autonomy director general said during a meeting with city administration officials at City Hall on Thursday that resolving the Bantar Gebang situation would be his first priority.

Pak Ahok especially asked me to solve one problem, which is [Bantar Gebang in] Bekasi, he said.

Sumarsono said he was ready to hold discussions with the various stakeholders involved in the matter.

I will visit the Bekasi mayor to discuss the problems and seek possible solutions, he said.

Ahok had previously said that he hoped that there would be no friction between Jakarta and Bekasi. Jakarta dumps around 6,500 tons of waste in Bantar Gebang every day.

Bekasi and Jakarta have often clashed over Bantar Gebang Landfill, which is located in Bekasi, but owned by the Jakarta administration. After previously being managed by a private entity, the landfill is now run by the Jakarta Sanitation Agency.

The rift started when a number of garbage trucks from Jakarta were stopped by Bekasi city councilors and the Bekasi Transportation Agency for violating working hours and using a prohibited road.

Bekasi councilors threatened to close access to Bantar Gebang over the violations. The city administration and the Bekasi administration have since renewed the contract for the Bantar Gebang landfill.

A new problem, however, has arisen as the garbage trucks now often have to queue for hours to enter the landfill as too many trucks arrive at the same time. The resulting stench has angered local residents.

The Sanitation Agency is trying to solve the problem by better managing the trucks schedule.

Sumarsono said besides Bantar Gebang, he also would take care of issues such as the city budget deliberation, as well as guiding the process of determining the new minimum wage (UMP).

I will solve those things that cannot be delayed, he said. He added that issues that were not time-sensitive could wait until the duly elected governor could take care of them.

Sumarsono, who once served as the acting governor of North Sulawesi, has said his goal is running the administration in accordance with Law no. 23/2014 on regional government for the next three-and-a-half months. The administration should be business as usual, especially relating to the permit issuance process, he said.

He said he asked city agencies and working units to filter which issues needed his immediate attention.

Sumarsono said he also emphasized the importance of civil-servant neutrality. The neutrality of the [city] staff can help to create a safe and stable election, he said.

He encouraged officials to actively communicate with him. We can use text message groups to consolidate our work, he said.

Meanwhile, Ahok, who will take leave until February, also asked for his subordinates to be neutral during the election. I hope all officials can work in accordance with their job description. Do not take part in politics, that would be a problem, he said.

Besides Ahok, who is paired with Deputy Governor Djarot Saiful Hidayat, former governors assistant for culture and tourism Sylviana Murni will also run in the gubernatorial election, as running mate of Agus Yudhoyono, the son of former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

The final candidate pair is former education and culture minister Anies Baswedan and businessman Sandiaga Uno.

On his last day before taking leave as governor, Ahok officially saw off 50 mosque attendants, known locally as marbot, on a minor haj pilgrimage.

He also signed an agreement with eight private companies pledging to revitalize the fountain of the Hotel Indonesia Traffic Circle, known as Bundaran HI.

We signed it today because they [the companies] did not want to sign it with the city secretary. They wanted it with me, he said.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

An article in the newly revised Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law, which establishes a right for electronic information deemed no longer relevant to be deleted, will potentially threaten press freedom, an activist warns.

The head of research and networking for the Legal Aid Institute for the Press (LBH Pers), Asep Komaruddin, said the provision, called the right to be forgotten, could become a government tool to curb freedom of the press in Indonesia.

Article 26 of the newly revised ITE Law states that Every electronic system organizer is required to delete electronic information deemed no longer relevant by someone who requests the deletion based on a court ruling.

Asep said this article could effectively curb press freedom if it was used together with Article 40 on content blocking, which gave the government authority to prevent the spread and use of electronic information with prohibited contents.

This article will become a new problem. It can become a new way for the government to restrict press freedom, said Asep as quoted by kompas.com in Jakarta on Friday.

He said it was his opinion that Article 26 would allow misuse by the government to censor news reports. This regulation can have negative impacts because it can become a new tool to censor news reports published by the media and journalists in the past.

Asep said Article 26 contradicted Law No. 40/1999, which gave no right to anyone to delete negative news reports published in the past.

The House of Representatives passed the draft revision of Law No. 11/2008 on ITE into law in a plenary meeting on Thursday. (ebf)
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Linkedin Jon Gambrell (Associated Press) Dubai  Fri, October 28, 2016

Shiite rebels in Yemen fired a ballistic missile toward the holy Muslim city of Mecca overnight, Saudi Arabia said Friday, the insurgents' deepest strike yet into the kingdom amid the country's stalemate civil war.

Rebel media in Yemen said the missile targeted an international airport in Jiddah, though Saudi Arabia said it was "intercepted and destroyed" 65 kilometers (40 miles) from Mecca, which is home to the cube-shaped Kaaba that the world's Muslims pray toward five times a day.

The missile launch shows the capability of Yemen's Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, and their allies to continue to strike Saudi Arabia. It also drew the immediate anger of Saudi citizens, as the protection of Mecca is a key pillar of the Saudi royal family's prestige and the country's national identity.

The Saudi military said the missile, fired Thursday night from Yemen's northwestern Saada province bordering the kingdom, caused no damage. The Saudi military has a supply of US-made, surface-to-air Patriot missile batteries it previously has fired at Houthi-launched missiles.

The military said in a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency that it immediately targeted the area where the missile was launched in airstrikes.

The Houthis and their allies, including forces loyal to former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, have a stockpile of Soviet-era Scud missiles and locally designed variants. The Houthi-controlled satellite news channel Al-Masirah published a bulletin saying its forces had fired a Volcano-1 variant missile at Jiddah's King Abdulaziz International Airport, without mentioning Mecca. That airport is 75 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Mecca.

The Houthi-controlled SABA news agency said the missile "directly hit" the airport and caused massive destruction. There were no immediate delays or diversions affecting the airport Friday.

A Houthi ballistic missile fired earlier this month targeted Taif, home to Saudi Arabia's King Fahd Air Base, which also is near Mecca.

Yemen, on the southern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, has been in the midst of a civil war since September 2014 when the Iranian-backed Houthis swept into the capital of Sanaa and overthrew the country's internationally recognized government. In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition of Arab countries began a military campaign against the Houthi forces, saying its mission served in part as a counterbalance to Iran's influence following its nuclear deal with world powers.

The Saudi-led campaign initially had the logistical and intelligence support of the US, but mounting civilian casualties from its airstrikes led to America pulling back, especially after a Saudi strike earlier this month on a funeral in Sanaa killed some 140 people and wounded over 600. The US also fired Tomahawk missiles at mobile Houthi radar sites after reporting its warships came under fire in the Red Sea near the crucial Bab al-Mandeb strait.

In recent days, two commercial ships reportedly have come under fire in the same area.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

The State Palace has brushed off claims by former state-owned enterprises minister Dahlan Iskan about political motives behind his arrest at the hands of the East Java Prosecutor's Office over alleged graft.

"I am not sure whether what Dahlan said about being targeted by [those] in power was aimed at President Jokowi [Joko Widodo]. Because in law enforcement efforts, the President never targets anybody," Presidential Spokesman Johan Budi Sapto Prabowo said on Friday, as reported by kompas.com.

Law enforcement was under the authority of law enforcement institutions, namely the Attorney General's Office, the National Police and the Corruption Eradication Commission, he added.

"The President never interferes with law enforcement officials in anyone's legal process," Johan further said.

Dahlan was named as a suspect on Thursday evening in his capacity as former president director of East Java-owned enterprise PT. Panca Wira Usaha (PWU) following an investigation into alleged irregularities in the sale of 33 company assets during his time at the helm of the company from 2000 to 2010.

He is detained at Surabaya Penitentiary after being declared a suspect. He said he was not surprised about his arrest, claiming it was politically motivated.

"I have become a target by [those] in power," the media mogul said soon after being questioned by investigators.

Dahlan was the minister of state-owned enterprises in the administration of former President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and before that served as the president director of state-owned electricity company PLN, from 2009 to 2011. (rin)
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Linkedin Fedina S. Sundaryani (The Jakarta Post) Nusa Dua/Bali  Fri, October 28 2016

Ministers of nations bordering the Indian Ocean have stressed the need to increase cooperation to ensure maritime security, as issues like piracy, poaching and terrorism jeopardize economic development.

At the senior officials meeting of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), Indian Minister of State for External Affairs VK Singh said maritime safety and security needed greater emphasis []. It is relevant to deliberate an action plan.

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Linkedin Lita Aruperes (The Jakarta Post) Manado, North Sulawesi  Fri, October 28, 2016

Suciwati, the widow of murdered human rights activist Munir Said Thalib, has called on the government to immediately make public a report composed by a fact finding team (TPF) into the death of Munir. She also urged President Joko Jokowi Widodo to be consistent in resolving the murder case.

It is Jokowi who bears most of the responsibility to reveal the case. We are calling on the government to open up the TPF report to the public, said Suciwati.

Accompanied by Yati Andriyani from the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence, Suciwati expressed this hope in a discussion with the Alliance of Independent Journalists in Manado, North Sulawesi, on Thursday.

Suciwati said she saw alleged carelessness and legal disobedience within the Presidents administration.

The current government claimed it did not have the TPF document while former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono earlier admitted it had been officially received on June 24, 2015.

Suciwati said the governments response, which stated that it could not publicize the Munir report because it did not have it in its possession, and then defended itself by saying that the document was probably being kept by Yudhoyono, showed that it was in a state of panic.

This case shows that a citizen, who should have been protected by the state, was instead killed by a state institution. This is an injustice, perpetrated by the state. We have to fight against this, said Suciwati.

Yati said they would visit 10 other cities across Indonesia to call for more government openness.

This is to show that Indonesians want the government to be transparent. (ebf)
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Linkedin Marguerite Afra Sapiie (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28, 2016

The governments task force against illegal levies for public services has received more than 2,000 reports in just a week since commencing its work.

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo introduced the Illegal Fee Eradication Task Force (Saber Pungli) on Oct. 21.

Saber Punglis member Ali Hasny said the task force had received 1,087 reports through Saber Punglis text message number, 936 reports by email, 88 reports via its hotline and 73 reports through its online reporting system as of noon on Friday.

He said the data would be submitted to its central unit set up under the Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Ministry on Friday to be sorted and evaluated in order to determine whether the reports were backed by sufficient evidence to be followed up by law enforcers.

If the evidence suffices, the reports will be brought to the enforcement unit. Otherwise, they will be submitted to the intelligence unit that will take further measures to probe the alleged illegal levies, Ali told the journalists.

The Saber Pungli smartphone app allowed members of the public to monitor progress on complaints they filed, including whether the authorities were taking steps to follow up on their reports or not, Ali said.

People get a registration number when they file complaints; that way it is easier to track the reports, he added.

Aside from the smartphone app, people can report alleged illegal levies demanded at government institutions through the task forces call center at 193, via text message to 1193 or through the website saberpungli.id. (bbn)
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, October 28 2016

Even after the Central Jakarta District Court sentenced Jessica Kumala Wongso to 20 years in jail on Thursday, members of the public may still be questioning whether the defendant really killed her friend Wayan Mirna Salihin.

The case unfolded on Jan. 6 when Mirna collapsed suddenly, and later died, after drinking Vietnamese iced coffee at an upscale restaurant in Central Jakarta with Jessica and Boon Juwita, or Hani.

The Jakarta Police, led by then general crimes chief Sr. Comr. Khrisna Murti, took nearly four weeks to build their case, leading to Jessica being named a suspect on Jan. 29.

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Linkedin Taufik Hanafi (The Jakarta Post) Leiden, The Netherlands  Fri, October 28 2016

Exactly five years ago, on Oct. 28, a scholar wrote in The Jakarta Post about the Youth Pledge and the dream for a better Indonesia. His writing was nuanced with a personal and surreal longing for a great Indonesia. However, the article was shot through with disenchantment leading to apathy about the weakening spirit of the Youth Pledge.

In the writers view, this weakening of spirit was mainly caused by the deteriorating use of the Indonesian language.

Many students, he says, are no longer patriotic because they would rather speak English than Indonesian. With all due respect, such a view, aside from being expressed in English, is elitist and erroneous.

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Linkedin Ni Komang Erviani (The Jakarta Post) Badung, Bali  Fri, October 28, 2016

Customs and Excise officers at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport in Denpasar, Bali, have arrested two Malaysian nationals for allegedly attempting to smuggle drugs onto the resort island.

Aliff Affan Bin Azhar and Muhammad Shahzadi Bin Shariff were arrested upon their arrival at the airport on Malaysia Airlines flight MH 851 from Kuala Lumpur on Oct. 20.

Ngurah Rai Customs and Excise chief Budi Harjanto said officers found 70.67 grams of marijuana, 2.89 grams of crystal methamphetamine (locally called sabu-sabu), 15 ecstasy pills and 150 nimetazepam (Happy 5) pills.

"They [allegedly] hid the marijuana inside their socks. Meanwhile, the crystal meth, ecstasy and Happy 5 pills were found in Aliff's luggage," Budi claimed during a press conference on Friday

He said the two suspects showed suspicious behavior when their luggage passed through an X-ray machine. The Customs and Excise officers then conducted a further examination on their bags. The officer also conducted body searches on both suspects.

The Bali Police's drug division is set to continue the investigation as both suspects and evidence were handed over by the customs officers to the police on Friday. If they are found guilty, the two suspects could face a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and Rp 10 billion (US$765,404) in fines each. They will be charged with violating Article 113 (1) of the 2009 Narcotics law.

The Ngurah Rai Customs and Excise Office has thwarted 38 attempts to smuggle drugs into Bali since 2014. The total drugs seized weighed a total of 18,891 kg. (ebf)

Suspected  Two Malaysians, Muhammad Shahzadi (left) and Aliff Affan Bin Azhar (right), arrested during an alleged attempt to smuggle drugs, walk to a press conference room under tight escort by Ngurah Rai Customs and Excise officers on Oct. 28. (JP/Zul Trio Anggono)
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Linkedin Susannah George (Associated Press) Qayara Air Base, Iraq  Fri, October 28, 2016

The Islamic State group appears to be using tens of thousands of people as "human shields" in and around Mosul, where Iraqi forces are waging a large-scale offensive aimed at retaking the country's second largest city, the UN human rights office said Friday.

It has received reports of more than 200 people being killed for refusing to comply with IS orders or previously belonging to Iraqi security forces. It said "credible reports" suggest IS has been forcing tens of thousands from their homes in districts around Mosul.

"ISIL's depraved, cowardly strategy is to attempt to use the presence of civilian hostages to render certain points, areas or military forces immune from military operations, effectively using tens of thousands of women, men and children as human shields," spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said in Geneva.

She said 232 people, mostly former officers, were reportedly shot Wednesday, and 24 on Tuesday.

The Associated Press reported earlier this week that IS militants were going door to door in villages south of Mosul, ordering hundreds of civilians at gunpoint on a forced march north into the city, apparently using them as human shields.

Iraq launched a massive operation on Oct. 17 aimed at retaking Mosul, which fell to IS in a matter of days in the summer of 2014. Iraqi forces are advancing from several directions, but are still well outside the city itself.

The UN and rights groups have expressed fear that more than 200,000 civilians could be displaced in the opening weeks of the offensive. Mosul is still home to more than a million people.

IS has built up elaborate defenses on the outskirts of the city, including an extensive tunnel network, and has planted large numbers of explosive booby traps to slow the troops' progress.

The US military says Iraqi forces have retaken 40 villages from IS near Mosul since the operation began. But most of the fighting has taken place in a belt of sparsely populated farming communities ringing the city.

US Air Force Brig. Gen. Matthew C. Isler said Iraqi troops on Friday were consolidating gains made east and south of the city earlier this week, but insisted "momentum" was still on their side.

Isler says the US-led coalition has stepped up airstrikes against the militants, and is carrying out three times as many as it did during previous campaigns to drive IS from other Iraqi cities.

___

Associated Press writer Joseph Krauss in Baghdad contributed to this report.
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Linkedin (Associated Press) Koronadal, Philippines  Fri, October 28, 2016

Philippine anti-narcotics officers gunned down a town mayor and nine of his men in a clash Friday in one of the bloodiest operations since President Rodrigo Duterte launched a crackdown on illegal drugs.

Mayor Samsudin Dimaukom of Datu Saudi Ampatuan town, who was killed with the nine others, has been publicly named by Duterte among many politicians he accused of involvement in illegal drugs as part of a shame campaign.

In August, Duterte read out the names of more than 150 officials allegedly linked to illegal drugs. He ordered them to surrender to authorities immediately or be hunted down. The mayor had turned himself in to police and denied he was involved in the illegal drug trade. He had told the media that he was fighting illegal drugs himself and supported Duterte's crackdown.

"It was a legitimate anti-drug operation but the subjects opened fire on our troops," regional police official Superintendent Romeo Galgo Jr. told reporters.

They were killed before dawn when they opened fire from three cars on officers at a checkpoint in Makilala town in North Cotabato province, another officer, Superintendent Bernard Tayong, said.

Ahead of the deadly firefight, police received information that Dimaukom's group was planning to transport a "huge" amount of methamphetamine  a prohibited and extremely addictive stimulant drug locally known as shabu  from Davao city, Duterte's hometown, to Maguindanao province, where Datu Saudi Ampatuan town is located.

Police estimate more than 3,600 suspected drug dealers and addicts have been killed since Duterte took office on June 30. The crackdown has drawn international concern over extrajudicial killings, but Duterte has repeatedly dismissed criticism and vowed to keep his election promise to rid the country of drugs.

___

Associated Press writer Jim Gomez in Manila, Philippines, contributed to this report.
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Linkedin Trinna Leong (The Straits Times) Kuala Lumpur  Fri, October 28, 2016

Malaysia has launched an anti-terror unit, comprising officers from the police, armed forces and the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, to act as first responders to local terror threats, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said on Thursday.

The 170-strong National Special Operations Force (NSOF) includes 17 officers and will act to counter land, air and water threats.

It is based at the Sungai Besi military camp just outside capital city Kuala Lumpur.

The launch of the NSOF comes at a time of heightened security in the region amid concerns of the possible return of Malaysian militants who have been fighting in Syria and Iraq, and possible fresh attacks.

Iraqi forces and their allies are battling to retake the Iraqi city of Mosul, the capital of ISIS' self-styled caliphate in Iraq.

An offensive is being planned within weeks to retake Raqqa in Syria, the de facto capital of the so-called caliphate of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

Since 2013, the Malaysian authorities have arrested more than 250 men and women for their alleged connections to ISIS.

"NSOF acts as a quick-reaction force to curb terrorism in the early stages. The land, air and maritime units will be mobilized as the early group and will confront, fight and eliminate the threats," said the Ministry of Defense in a statement.

"Once the threat has been eliminated, NSOF will hand over the operation to security forces," it said.

Officers are seconded from the three forces involved, with designated posts to be assigned once the unit becomes fully operational.

"Without peace and security, all bets are off," said Datuk Seri Najib in his speech at the launch of the NSOF.

Malaysia has several other special operations forces handling counter-terrorism, but the NSOF is the first to involve multi-agency cooperation.
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Linkedin Shannon Teoh (The Straits Times) Kuala Lumpur  Fri, October 28, 2016

Malaysia will start collecting the RM20 (US$4.8) road charge (RC) from Singaporean motorists on Nov. 1 after a series of delays, although a radio frequency identification (RFID)-based Vehicle Entry Permit (VEP) system is still undergoing tests.

The Ministry of Transport said in a statement the RC will be applied on private-registered cars entering via the Causeway and Second Link and must be paid with Malaysia's Touch n' Go electronic payment cards.

"The RC will be collected each time motorists enter Malaysia... initial collection exercise will only involve foreign private-registered vehicles, excluding foreign-registered motorcycles," said Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai.

A ministry official told The Straits Times that government and commercial vehicles including public transportation will be exempted.

Singaporean counterparts have said that the levy is discriminatory and warned that it will consider matching the RC.

However, Datuk Seri Liow said the RC and VEP will be extended from the Johor border to the other 10 road entry points across Malaysia in stages.

Unlike Singapore's S$35 (US$25) per day VEP fee that is levied on foreign cars entering the island, Malaysia's VEP will cost motorists an expected RM10 to install an RFID tag that lasts five years "to improve border control and monitoring".

Although the system is not yet in place, Malaysia has asked foreign vehicle owners to register their vehicles since last year, with 144,000 having done so as of July.

The charge will increase the cost of crossing the border for Singaporean cars from S$13 currently. Malaysian cars entering Singapore get 10 free VEP days before incurring the S$35 per day charge.

Calls for Malaysia to levy a charge on Singaporean cars entering the country gained traction after Singapore raised the VEP from S$20 in 2014.
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Linkedin Jim Gomez (Associated Press) Manila  Fri, October 28, 2016

The foul-mouthed Philippine president, who once called the pope a "son of a bitch" and told Barack Obama to "go to hell," says he has promised to God he won't spew expletives again.

President Rodrigo Duterte's profanities have become a trademark of his political persona, especially when threatening to kill drugs dealers as part of his war on illegal drugs that has left thousands dead since he took office at the end of June.

Duterte made the stunning pledge on arrival in in his southern hometown of Davao city late Thursday from a trip to Japan.

He said that while flying home, he was looking at the sky while everyone was sound asleep and he heard a voice that said "'if you don't stop epithets, I will bring this plane down now."

"And I said, 'Who is this?' So, of course, 'it's God,'" he said.

"So, I promise God to ... not express slang, cuss words and everything. So you guys hear me right always because (a) promise to God is a promise to the Filipino people."

Duterte's vow was met with applause, but he cautioned: "Don't clap too much or else this may get derailed."
Rabbi Yitzchok Dershowitz, who remains in serious condition as a result of a injuries sustained during a fall on Yom Tov, was flown early this morning to Minnesota for emergency surgery. The patient was flown by ParaFlight EMS, run by Lakewood Hatzolah Paramedic Simcha Shain.

UPDATE: The surgery is set to take place 11:30 AM on Friday morning.

We need major Tefillos, a family member said.

Please continue being Mispallel for Refoel Yitzchok Mordechai Ben Chana.

[TLS]
Former prime minister Tony Blair has weighed into the debate over Brexit by suggesting that people should have the opportunity to change their minds over the vote.

Blair, who has described the decision to leave the European Union as a catastrophe, said: There is absolutely no reason why we should close off any options. You cant change this decision, unless it becomes clear in one way or another, that the British people have had a change of mind because they have seen the reality of the alternative.

The former PM met French president Francois Hollande in France to discuss the future of Brexit negotiations (Thomas Samson/AP)

We are entitled to carry on scrutinising, and, yes, if necessary, to change our minds, because it seems sensible to us to do so. This is not about an elite over-ruling the people.

The former Labour leader stopped short of actively campaigning for the Remain camp in the build-up to the referendum in June, admitting that his involvement could have had a toxic effect on the outcome due to controversies concerning his time as PM and his decision to follow America into war in Iraq in 2003.

At the beginning of 2016 Blair admitted that he was frustrated by the lack of vigour from the Remain camp and called for more muscularity from the centre ground in British politics. He has been a strong opponent of Jeremy Corbyns leadership and shift to the left in the party he once led.

Blair in Iraq in 2003. He decided against formally campaigning for Remain due to fears controversy around the Iraq War could cause a negative result (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Speaking to BBC Radio 4s Today programme, he said: The bizarre thing about this referendum is that we, obviously, took the decision we wanted to leave the European Union, but we dont yet know the precise terms of our new relationship with Europe. Once we get clarity on that then we can decide between two alternatives, and not simply decide what we dont like about Europe.

Blair met with French president Francois Hollande earlier this week to discuss the future negotiation regarding leaving the union, and came away feeling gloomy about its prospects.

David Cameron and Angela Merkel at a meeting in Berlin. Tony Blair has criticised the Remain campaign, and previously called for more muscularity in the centre ground of British Politics (Markus Schreiber/AP)

He said: It convinced me that its going to be very, very tough. We have to understand that we are not going to be conducting this negotiation with a group of European businessmen who may well decide that what they want is the maximum access into the UK, and they may be prepared to be quite forgiving, as it were.

The people we will be conducting this negotiation with will be the political leaders of the European Union, and their parliaments, so this is going to be a negotiation, in my view, of enormous complexity.
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I feel for the people of Flint that were poisoned, sickened and some may have died because of man-made mistakes- and, according to the Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette  criminal behavior.

We also owe it to the families impacted to fairly compensate them for their damage and be diligent in righting the wrong and holding people accountable who are responsible for this mess.

There remains much finger pointing at the local, state and national levels regarding responsibility for this fiasco. Gov. Rick Snyder, has acknowledged his responsibility for this mess and is committed to fix what he and his team let go terribly wrong.

He has assigned perhaps his top two colleagues, Lt. Gov. Brian Calley and his Mr. Fix It, Rich Baird, to work to fix the Flint disaster. Both have taken up near residence in Flint to work with local officials to address the damage. Both care and have rolled up their sleeves to solve problems.

For the people harmed, the fix cant come quick enough.

Justice must prevail

Schuette is holding state governments feet to the fire. To date, nine current and former government workers have been accused of breaking the law around the Flint water crisis.

The AG has a fine line to walk to follow the facts where they take him and being perceived with playing politics with the lives of the vulnerable people of Flint and good, decent state workers.

Most recently, a good man, the Department of Health and Human Services director, Nick Lyon, has been pulled under the Flint undertow and has become a criminal target for his role in this catastrophe. This is shocking for those of us that know and respect Lyon.

The media reported the health department and its boss are under investigation for the handling of a deadly Legionnaires disease outbreak in the Flint area and allegedly suppressing information about elevated lead levels in children that many suspect was tied to the water crisis in Flint.

Perhaps equally unbelievable, this threat of a criminal charge may be inaccurate or premature or a snafu, evidently on the part of the investigation team in Schuettes office, according to MIRS News Service.

One would hope they would get this straightened out and fast, a good mans reputation and life hang in the balance.

Justice must not be drip, drip, drip

The wheels of justice will turn  but I hurt for Nick and his family for this ugly turn of events. As a former director of two major departments of state government  mental health and education, I cant fathom Nick purposely doing anything that would knowingly hurt a soul.

There are several who wanted to stand witness for Nick when they learned I was writing this article. For brevity, I include three:

Jim Haveman, former director, Michigan Department of Community Health: Nick is honest, transparent, a proven leader, hard working, focuses on the consumer and citizens of this state. What happened in Flint in awful and its being addressed. Nick is above reproach and not capable of a coverup.

Bob Sheehan, CEO, Michigan Association of Community Mental Health Boards: Nick Lyon represents the kind of leader that is needed now, in both the pubic and private sectors, in these times of newly emerging challenges and rapid change. One who is selfless and clear headed; a visionary and a consensus builder with a keen intellect.

Rick Murdock, executive director, Michigan Association of Health Plans: Character and integrity mean more in todays world than ever before. Nick Lyon embodies these concepts and has throughout his professional career. His values are at the heart of public service and his vision for serving those most in need cannot be questioned.

We must demand the legal process for Nick and others will be fair and everyone remembers he and others accused are innocent until proven guilty. I hope and trust all will seek truth from facts and Nick Lyon will be vindicated.

Collateral damage

There is much innocence being capsized as this sorted tale unfolds. Good men and women  state workers  are being adversely affected by this sad saga.

Again, the real victims are the people of Flint and that is where our collective focus must remain. Yet, we can walk and chew gum at the same time.

Being in the state Capitol and walking the halls of various departments is like walking onto the set of Deadman Walking. There is a feeling that good people are being thrown under the bus and scapegoated by political pariahs willing to take a bite out of others hide to protect their backside or to further their career.

Having held leadership roles in the public and private sectors, I can say without equivocation that Michigan state bureaucrats, as a whole, are some of the brightest, most capable, values driven, ethical, decent, hardworking employees I have worked with. They are deserving of our respect and praise not disrespect and scorn.

Of course, if it is proved they neglected their responsibility or broke laws, they should be held accountable.

Let me end where I began. The victims of this man-made mess are the people of Flint that have been harmed, physically and psychologically by their government at all levels. Our focus must remain on the people of Flint.

Yet, we ought to pause and assure we dont do additional harm to good people who do not deserve to be thrown under anyones bus.

The people of Michigan must demand accountability along with truth, fairness and justice  for all.

Tom Watkins is the president and CEO of the Detroit Wayne Mental Health Authority. He has served the residents of Michigan as state superintendent of schools and state mental health director.
Indonesian handed 20 years in poisoned coffee murder

INDONESIA: An Indonesian woman was jailed for 20 years yesterday (Oct 27) for murdering a friend from an Australian college with poisoned coffee in a sadistic fashion, capping a sensational trial that has gripped the country.

crimedrugsdeathhomicidepolice

By AFP

Friday 28 October 2016, 10:19AM

Convicted murderer Jessica Kumala Wongso arrives at the Central Jakarta court yesterday (Oct 27). Photo: AFP

Jessica Kumala Wongso, 28, who is also an Australian permanent resident, was found guilty of murdering Wayan Mirna Salihin by slipping cyanide into her drink at an upmarket Jakarta cafe, sparking applause from spectators in the packed courtroom.

The soap opera-style tale of two members of Indonesias wealthy elite having a dramatic fallout that culminated in murder has captivated the country, with the trial dubbed the poisoned coffee case and broadcast live on national TV for months.

The murder, which Wongso carried out in January after becoming angered at 27-year-old Ms Salihins criticism of her boyfriend, also generated huge interest in Australia, where the women studied together at a Sydney design college.

After hours reading the verdict in a courtroom overflowing with hundreds of journalists and members of the public, a three-judge panel declared Wongso guilty of premeditated murder and handed down the lengthy jail sentence.

The defendants action was deplorable and sadistic because it was committed against her own friend, presiding judge Kisworo, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, told the court.

The defendant did not regret her action and claimed she did not do it.

Wongso, who denies carrying out the crime, was emotionless as the ruling was handed down, then told the court: I cannot accept the verdict, its very unfair.

Her legal team said they would file an appeal.

Some of Ms Salihins relatives sobbed with relief after the verdict, with her twin sister Sandy telling journalists: This is very hard, I am grateful.

The victims supporters had rallied outside court throughout the day waving signs that read Justice for Mirna, and when the hearing concluded gave out white roses to police and journalists.

After drinking the iced Vietnamese coffee at the cafe in one of Jakartas fanciest malls, Ms Salihin collapsed and began convulsing, then died soon afterwards in hospital.

Prosecutors said Wongso decided to murder Ms Salihin after she advised the defendant to break up with a boyfriend as he was using drugs, saying that the cruel crime was planned meticulously.

Police say that she placed bags on the table to prevent CCTV cameras in the cafe from filming her slipping the poison into the coffee.

Wongso had vehemently denied murdering her friend, breaking down in tears as she took the stand during the trial to reject the allegations.

She had testified that she could not remember key details about the day and her defence team asserted the case against their client was weak and lacked evidence to prove guilt.

During the months-long trial, which began in June, three forensic experts called by the defence testified there was no proof Ms Salihins death was caused by cyanide poisoning.

Australian authorities assisted with the case after receiving assurances that Wongso would not be handed the death penalty if found guilty of murder, a capital crime in Indonesia.
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Officials silent on Phuket Airport immigration mess

PHUKET: Officials at Phuket International Airport have fallen silent on why long immigration queues persist at the islands key tourism portal, frustrating tourists by taking hours for them to clear entry to the country.

tourismtransportimmigration

By The Phuket News

Friday 28 October 2016, 05:37PM

Tourists wait by the hundreds as immigration counters in the arrivals hall at Phuket Airport stand unattended by officials.

Tourists cram the immigration arrivals hall at Phuket Airport while waiting hours to be cleared by officials.

Tourists cram the immigration arrivals hall at Phuket Airport while waiting hours to be cleared by officials.

Tourists cram the immigration arrivals hall at Phuket Airport while waiting hours to be cleared by officials.

The long delays continue despite promises by Transport Minister Lt Gen Arkhom Termpittayapaisith last month that more officers had been assigned to bolster immigration at Phuket Airport to reduce long queues of tourists waiting to enter and leave the country. (See story here.)

First-hand reports provided to The Phuket News over the past two weeks have detailed how travellers were forced to wait hours to be cleared by immigration officers.

I picked some friends up on Wednesday night (Oct 19) and their flight landed at 11:16pm from Korea and I was still waiting for them at 12:40am, one expat told The Phuket News.

They said only three desks were open and 300 passengers had arrived on a 777  and they had only three staff to get them through immigration! Its crazy! They know what passengers and planes are arriving so why not more staff? he mused.

A week later, on Wednesday morning (Oct 26), The Phuket News received a similar report, with the Immigration Arrivals hall crammed with passengers at 8:30am while they waited to have their passports stamped.

Apparently only four desks were open to clear the arriving tourists, despite the new International Airport terminal boasting a total of 19 immigration counters for 38 officers in total in the Arrivals Hall.

As recently as last night (Oct 27), one Australian tourist described pandemonium in the immigration arrivals hall as hundreds of tourists arrived in Phuket at the same time.

Four planes had just landed but there were only two immigration desks open, he said.

Also, there were no immigration arrival cards for people to fill out. Finally, when one official did arrive with the cards, he was nearly mugged by a mob of passengers waiting to get out of there, he added.

Pol Lt Col Arom Kwannet, Deputy Chief of the Phuket Airport Immigration Office, explained to The Phuket News today (Oct 28) that he was unauthorised to comment on the issue.

We dont have permission to reply media, only the chief can do that, Col Arom said.

Phuket Airport Immigration Chief Col Supphachoke Yongstar, however, was repeatedly not unavailable for comment throughout this week.

Phuket International Airport Director Monrudee Gettuphan declined to respond specifically about the current long delays for tourists clearing immgration.

Ms Monrudee instead cited the Phuket International Terminal fact sheet as saying, The terminal provides 17 passport checking points with 34 counters at Outbound Passport Control and 19 passport checking points with 38 counters at the Inbound Passport Control.

The new terminal, built at a cost of B5.67 billion and offering more than 73,000 square metres of floor space, is projected to double the airports passenger capacity to 12.5 million travellers a year.

Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha officially opened the new terminal to much fanfare on Sept 16 during his first official visit to Phuket. (See story here.)

The long delays to enter and leave the country via Phuket Airport come as Phuket braces for the annual return of the tourism high season, which begins next month. (See story here.)
Phuket food vendors at Patong Beach plea for mercy

PHUKET: More than 30 vendors who operate stalls at Loma Food Centre on Patong Beach yesterday (Oct 27) appealed to the Phuket Governor to allow them to continue serving food to tourists on Phukets most popular beach.

patongeconomicstourism

By The Phuket News

Friday 28 October 2016, 06:13PM

Patong Municipality is not renewing the vendors' leases to continue operating their restaurants at the Loma Food Centre on Patong Beach.

Patong Municipality is not renewing the vendors' leases to continue operating their restaurants at the Loma Food Centre on Patong Beach.

Patong Municipality is not renewing the vendors' leases to continue operating their restaurants at the Loma Food Centre on Patong Beach.

Patong Municipality is not renewing the vendors' leases to continue operating their restaurants at the Loma Food Centre on Patong Beach.

Some of the vendors leases on their stalls have expired and Patong Municipality will not renew them, explained Suriya Sinsoke at a meeting at Phuket Provincial Hall yesterday.

More vendors fear the same  that their leases will not be renewed, and they will lose their sole source of income.

More than 100 people will lose their jobs. We come here to ask the Patong Mayor to reconsider the plan (to evict the vendors), Ms Suryia said.

After our leases expire and are not renewed, all that will happen to the centre is that it will become a municipal building.

Please be careful and think about the people affected by this. The centre well known among tourists, and can serve as an attraction in itself, she added.

Phuket Provincial Chief Administrative Officer (Palad) Thawornwat Khongkaew said he would request Patong Municipality to reconsider the plan to evict the food vendors.

This area belongs to Patong Municipality, and is their responsibility, but I will ask them to reconsider their plan, and I will pass this case on to the Damrongdhama Centre (Ombudsmans Office), he said.

This issue will also be raised at the next meeting of the Phuket Provincial Committee, he assured.
Phuket lifeguards issue surf warning after spate of near-drownings

PHUKET: Lifeguards have warned swimmers to beware strong surf at Kata and Karon beaches after several people needed rescuing earlier this week, and one tourist was revived on the beach earlier this month.

tourismmarineaccidentsChinese

By Tanyaluk Sakoot

Friday 28 October 2016, 10:03AM

The surf danger warning follows several people nearly drowning at Kata and Karon beaches in the past few weeks. Photo: Royal Thai Navy

The surf danger warning follows several people nearly drowning at Kata and Karon beaches in the past few weeks. Photo: Royal Thai Navy

The surf danger warning follows several people nearly drowning at Kata and Karon beaches in the past few weeks. Photo: Royal Thai Navy

The surf danger warning follows several people nearly drowning at Kata and Karon beaches in the past few weeks. Photo: Royal Thai Navy

The warning follows Thai tourist Atittan Kanchanawatthana, 27, being rescued on Wednesday (Oct 26), explained Phuket Lifeguard Club Chief Prathaiyut Chuayuan.

The Royal Thai Navy 3rd Area rescue team and the Karon Municipality rescue team called to help recover Mr Atittan at 4:20pm.

He was administered first aid on the beach and taken to Patong Hospital for further medical attention, Mr Prathaiyut told The Phuket News.

He was overpowered by strong waves and pulled awy from the beach, and he nearly drowned, he said.

Mr Prathaiyut said lifeguards had saved 10 tourists at Kata Beach and seven tourists at Karon Beach since the beginning of October.

The worst case was a Chinese tourist who was rescued from the water at 7:30am on Oct 18. He was unresponsive and lifeguards had to revive him on the beach, Mr Prathaiyut added.
Phuket man found dead on bus

PHUKET: A Phuket man was found dead on a Bangkok-Phuket bus earlier today (Oct 28), police have yet to confirm the cause of death but suspect a heart attack may be to blame.

deathhealthpolicetransport

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Friday 28 October 2016, 02:35PM

Piyawit Supanam, 36, was found dead on a Bangkok-Phuket bus at around 8am today (Oct 18). Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Lt Suporn Muangkhai of the Thalang Police was notified at 8am today by staff at the Kusoldharm rescue foundation station in Baan Muang Mai that a passenger had died on a Bangkok-Phuket bus.

Police arrived at the area to find a bus parked on the side of the road in front of the Muang Mai police box. On the left-side of the bus was the body of a man sitting alone in a seat. Police later named him as 36-year-old Piyawit Supanam from Wichit.

Lt Suporn said, The man had no pulse and we found no signs of a struggle or assault on his body. He had been dead for at least two hours.

We discovered that Mr Piyawat boarded the bus in Bangkok and was travelling to Phuket. The bus arrived on the island this morning and stopped at Baan Muang Mai to let some passengers off. Staff thought Mr Piyawat, who was sitting alone, was sleeping so they tapped him on his shoulder to let him know the bus has stopped but Mr Piyawat did not respond.

They checked his pulse then notified rescue workers he said.

Police believe the man died of a heart attack or was suffering from some health issue.

The body was taken to Thalang Hospital for doctors to confirm the time and true cause of death.
Phuket Police ordered to boost security for tourism high season

PHUKET: More than 150 officers from law-enforcement agencies, including the Royal Thai Police, assembled on Phukets premier party street, Bangla Rd in Patong, on Wednesday night (Oct 26) in a show of strength to boost tourist confidence in safety ahead of the coming tourism high season, which begins next month.

tourismpatongpolicecrime

By Yutthawat Lekmak

Friday 28 October 2016, 02:23PM

More than 150 law-enforcement officers joined the assembly on Bangla Rd in Patong on Wednesday night (Oct 26). Photo: PR Dept

More than 150 law-enforcement officers joined the assembly on Bangla Rd in Patong on Wednesday night (Oct 26). Photo: PR Dept

More than 150 law-enforcement officers joined the assembly on Bangla Rd in Patong on Wednesday night (Oct 26). Photo: PR Dept

More than 150 law-enforcement officers joined the assembly on Bangla Rd in Patong on Wednesday night (Oct 26). Photo: PR Dept

More than 150 law-enforcement officers joined the assembly on Bangla Rd in Patong on Wednesday night (Oct 26). Photo: PR Dept

Region 8 Police Deputy Commander Lt Gen Chalit Thinthanee and Phuket Provincial Police Chief Maj Gen Teeraphol Thipjaroen joined Patong Police Chief Col Chaiwat Uikum in leading the assembly, which began at 7pm.

Gen Chalit ordered all police in Phuket to be on standby in case of emergency and to strengthen their stance in preserving the lives and property of citizens.

The important measure is raise security to prevent crime, which should not happen during the high season, Col Chaiwat added.

The Royal Thai Police has mandated that security be increased to protected tourists and citizens, especially during this period, when tourists come to our island, he said.

There are many threats to peoples lives and property, and this includes road accidents, Col Chaiwat said.
Thais, Russian charged with assault following Phuket street brawl

PHUKET: Police have confirmed to The Phuket News that four Thais and one Russian have been charged with assault following a street brawl in Karon last Sunday (Oct 23).

crimepolicetourismtransportviolence

By The Phuket News

Friday 28 October 2016, 10:07AM

The brawl is said to have started after a taxi driver asked the Russian tourists to slow down when driving through Karon Centre. Photo: Screengrab

Karon Police Chief Col Sanya Thongsawas told The Phuket News yesterday (Oct 27) that five people involved in the street fight have been charged with assault.

The four Thai nationals were named as Mr Sangown Saeing, 37; Mr Wutthichai Sanghala 36; Mr Ewe Salag 26, and Mr Jaran Noosong, 38, the Russian was named as Mr Edgar Khetagurov, 26.

Last Sundays brawl between local taxi drivers and a group of tourists on motorbikes happened at about 2:40pm on Kata Rd, near the main three-way intersection in Kata Centre. Four taxi drivers involved in the brawl were injured, while the tourists suffered only scrapes and bruises. (See story here.)

Chief Col Sanya said, Jaran suffered the worst injuries as he was hit in the face with a brick by Khetagurov. Jaran was taken to the emergency room that day, but he is out of the hospital now.

We were told that the fight started when one of the taxi drivers told the group of tourist to slow down, but the group revved up the engines on their motorbikes. The two groups then exchanged words and it escalated into a brawl, he said.

From the video, it appears that Khetagurov was slapped first, then Jaran was hit in the face with a brick, after that it escalated into a brawl. The other taxi drivers had minor injuries and some had their teeth broken.

All five have been charged with assault and the case is now with Phuket Provincial Courty, he added.
Two dealers arrested with drugs and gun in Phuket Town

PHUKET: Two drug dealers were arrested in Phuket Town yesterday (Oct 27) as part of polices pre high-season anti-drug and crime campaign announced yesterday afternoon.

crimedrugspolice

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Friday 28 October 2016, 12:21PM

Peeraphat Lapawachirakul, 47, (left) was arrested with .81grams of ya ice and five ya bah pills, Theerayuth Sarueg, 27, was arrested with 334.05g of marijuana, a handmade pistol and 23 rounds of .38 bullets. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Anti-narcotics police led by Phuket City Polices Maj Rittichai Chumchuy arrested two men yesterday who were found in to be in possession of drugs, a gun and ammunition.

Police revealed that at 11:30am they arrested 47-year-old Peeraphat Lapawachirakul with .81grams of crystal meth (ya ice), five methamphetamine pills (ya bah) and other illegal items at a rented home in Moo 3, Rassada.

Then at 6:30pm, 27-year-old Theerayuth Sarueg was arrested with 334.05g of marijuana, a handmade pistol, 23 rounds of .38 bullets and other illegal items including a bamboo bong at a rented home in Soi Yodsanae, Chalong.

Maj Rittichai explained that the arrest of Peeraphat and Theerayuth came after police received a tip-off from undercover officers that the two men have been selling drug to locals from their rented homes. Police put them under surveillance in mid-October and searched their homes yesterday.

In the police statement, Peeraphat told police he bought the ya ice from a man named O (he did not know the real name) whom he contacted by mobile phone. He said he bought 1g and paid B3,000 when O delivered it to his home at 8pm on Oct 26.

Peeraphat said he also bought ya ice via mobile phone from a man named Wang.

Meanwhile, Theerayuth told police he bought his marijuana from a man named Gun who lives in Bangkok. He recently paid B8,500 for 1 kilogram which Gun sent in a parcel to his home on Oct 24.

Theerayuth added that the gun and ammunition were his and that he bought them via Facebook two months ago for B13,000.

Peeraphat was taken to Phuket City Police to face a charge of possession of Category 1 Drugs with intent to sell, while Theerayuth was taken to Chalong Police Station to face charges of possession of a Category 5 Drug with intent to sell and illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition.
UN special session to honour the King

UNITED STATES: The United Nations (UN) will hold a special assembly session this evening (Oct 28) (Thailand time) to honour His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, according to Virachai Plasai, Thailands ambassador to the UN.

culturedeathreligiontransport

By Bangkok Post

Friday 28 October 2016, 09:19AM

Their Majesties the King and Queen visited United Nations headquarters in New York City in 1967, escorted by UN Secretary-General U Thant (between the royal couple). Now the entire UN will hold a special session to honour the late King Bhumibol. Photo: UN Multimedia via Bangkok Post

Mr Virachai said the rare special session in the UN building in New York would begin at 10am today (9pm Thailand time). Representatives of member countries would have the opportunity to speak in honour of the late King.

The special session is expected to last 15 minutes, Mr Virachai said.

It would begin with an address by the chairman of the UN General Assembly, followed by the chairs of five regions and Samantha Power, the US ambassador to the UN.

Mr Virachai said he would be the last person to make a speech.

The event would be broadcast live on the UNs webcast, the ambassador said.

Meanwhile, Deputy Bangkok Governor Amnuay Nimmano said that the governments joint peace-maintaining command centre has concluded that the number of mourners who will pay their respects before the late monarchs body in the Dusit Maha Prasat Throne Hall in the Grand Palace will be limited to 10,000 each day.

Starting tomorrow (Oct 29), mourners will be allowed to pay their respects before the Royal Funeral Urn of the late King from 8am to 9pm after the 15-day royal merit-making ceremony is completed today.

Those who participate must obtain queue numbers at Wat Maha That Yuwarat Rangsarit near the Grand Palace and groups of 150 at a time will be led inside the throne hall, Lt Gen Amnuay said, adding that authorities will assess whether more mourners will be allowed in the Grand Palace.

Lt Gen Amnuay also said security has been beefed up around Sanam Luang, with police deployed on the top floors of nearby buildings as part of security measures.

Col Winthai Suvaree, spokesman for the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), said that those queuing to get inside the Grand Palace must initially wait at 20 tents set up outside Wat Maha That which can accommodate up to 20,000 people.

National police chief Chakthip Chaijinda said about 3,000 police officers will be on hand to ensure the safety of mourners and to facilitate their movement from tomorrow onwards.

Gen Chakthip added that 1,300 closed circuit television cameras installed around Sanam Luang are fully functional.

Metropolitan Police Bureau Chief Sanit Mahathavorn said that he has instructed police officers to be more thorough when searching people entering the Grand Palace.

In addition to the existing eight checkpoints, nine more checkpoints have been set up to screen people around Sanam Luang, Lt Gen Sanit said, adding that soldiers will also be asked to assist police in carrying out checks.

Security checkpoints have also been set up on the outskirts of Bangkok to search suspicious-looking vehicles and people heading into the capital, Lt Gen Sanit said.

Lt Gen Sanit also suggested that people be allowed to request a queue number to enter the Grand Palace in advance via the internet.

Army deputy spokeswoman Sirichan Ngathong said yesterday (Oct 27) that army chief Gen Chalermchai Sitthisart has ordered army camps in all regions to provide rest areas for people heading to Bangkok to pay their respects to His Majesty the late King.

Col Sirichan said army units had been ordered to work with local government officials to assist mourners from the start of their trips until they return home.

Rest areas will be provided for travellers from the North at Jiraprawat Camp in Nakhon Sawan; at Sripatcharin Camp in Khon Kaen and Suranaree Camp in Nakhon Ratchasima for people from the Northeast; Thanarat Camp in Prachuap Khiri Khan for those from the South; and at a location on Buddha Monthon Sai 4 Rd for people from the East, West and Central Region.

All rest areas will offer parking for vehicles and mourners will be provided with food, water, toilets and medical services, Col Sirichan said.

In the outskirts of Bangkok, mourners will be able to stop over at Impact Arena in Muang Thong Thani in Nonthaburi and at a location in the Buddha Monthon area in Nakhon Pathom. They will be provided with free transportation to Ratchadamnoen Ave and Sanam Luang from both locations. They will also be advised on how to properly pay their respects before the Royal Urn.

From tomorrow, about 200 personnel  territorial defence students, cadets and nursing students from all the armed forces, and army medical students  will be assigned each day to ensure that mourners pay their respects to the late King properly, Col Sirichan said.

Read original story here.
Summit Carbon files lawsuits against Brown, Edmunds counties

Two South Dakota counties are facing federal lawsuits from one of the companies planning a carbon capture and sequestration pipeline.
Teresa Fleming

flemingt17@grinnell.edu

In the Smith Gallery show Unfolding, artistic evolution plays out over time through a series of ink and charcoal drawings. The detailed line work by Taffe Tang 17 suggests a significant time investment, but Tang explained that the creative process for her Smith show was surprisingly off the cuff.

I applied for having a Smith show last semester, and I didnt hear back, so I thought, okay, Ill just wait and maybe apply next year or something, and then I got the approval during the summer, Tang said. I was in China at the time  and then I started thinking about what to do because I had nothing, and I already had given up on my last set of projects.

Tang faced practical concerns as she developed her project: any work created over the summer had to be portable enough to carry from her home in Anhui back to Iowa. Inspired by her space constraints, she began working on a series of drawings in a codex, or folded rice paper notebook, that could travel with her compactly but unfold to showcase her collected works on a single long strip of paper. The result is a record of Tangs summer that unfolds from left to right, featuring a series of images connected by a single black line that extends off the page.

I thought it was kind of interesting to work separately on each piece of paper without looking at what I did earlier, Tang said. What I enjoyed the most of this piece is that I could bring it with me over time, and I could, you know just start drawing whenever I wanted.

Tang noted that although the show is a first point of contact between her work and the wider world, the pieces featured in Unfolding are distinctly personal.

For me, I know how long it took, what was going on at the time I was drawing. And so I think that part is very personal, and completely about the artist, Tang said. When I was little, I was told, if you really have something important to say, draw it instead of writing it into words, because words will disappear.

So when I was little, I used drawings as a way to express my feelings. Most of the time I dont have a concept of my drawings. So for me, its like a visual diary, like written things, but written down in a different, abstract way. Its like a timeline for me.

Despite the time crunch she faced in preparing her show, Tangs pieces highlight the time investment required by detailed works. Her larger pieces, completed later in the semester, represent an effort to incorporate more abstract techniques into her body of work.

I was in the studio for 16 hours, working on this one piece. I was trying to push more of myself, because of the larger scale, more details, more time and effort, Tang said. For most of the time, I measure my effort in terms of time, so I know how many hours I spent on each piece, and it was about time. I really enjoy sitting down and working without stopping.

For Tang, the labor and time intensive aspects of her work are a uniquely rewarding return to more analog forms of creativity.

There are a lot of new technologies, printers, laser prints, vinyl cut prints and people are using those to create art. Im a big fan of technology, but I didnt want to use any of those for my show, because I wanted it to focus on the original state of art, Tang said. I think thats how most people started with their art life: they started drawing, and they started with simple lines, points, shadows and textures.
By Michael Cummings

cummings@grinnell.edu

Many Grinnell students have fond memories of their first-year tutorial, but for some, tutorial had an especially big impact. Deborah Swackhamer 76, who returned to campus this week to give the Danforth Lecture in Chemistry, was inspired by her tutorial on water 40 years ago to dedicate herself to the topic, becoming a professor of chemistry at the University of Minnesota.

The lecture was introduced by Professor Luther Erickson, Chemistry, the professor of that same tutorial. Erickson related to the audience how Swackhamer had been placed into his course in the very first year that tutorials were offered at Grinnell.

Among the 12 students assigned to that tutorial was Deb Swackhamer, and the rest is history, Erickson said, speaking of Swackhamers decision to major in chemistry and pursue knowledge in water and environmental issues. [The chemistry department] continued to encourage her interest in environmental issues.

Swackhamer spoke about her research at the confluence of chemistry and policy, examining the ways in which water is used, how it is polluted and how people can work to make water use more clean and efficient.

In particular, Swackhamer sought to break down public perceptions about water usage. Posing a multiple choice question to the audience, she asked whether domestic use, irrigation, livestock or thermoelectric cooling was the biggest source of water usage in Minnesota and Iowa. When the audience overwhelmingly voted for either irrigation or livestock, Swackhamer displayed some shocking statistics.

The biggest use of water in both [Minnesota and Iowa] is thermoelectric cooling. Its to generate electricity, she said.

Thermoelectric cooling was the only one of the four options that made it above single digits in either state.

Swackhamer also spoke about being conscious of how much water was used in products you may use every day.

It takes 300 gallons of water to make a gallon of beer, Swackhamer said. It takes almost a thousand gallons of water to make a gallon of wine.  A pair of blue jeans, to grow the cotton, to irrigate that cotton, 2,100 [gallons of water]. A chocolate bar, one regular chocolate bar, almost 4,000 gallons.

While Swackhamer stressed that she wasnt asking us to give up these items cold turkey, it is extremely important to remain conscious of how much water you are actually using in your day to day life, and to be aware that water usage goes beyond what you use in the shower or at the sink.
By Michael Cummings

cummings@grinnell.edu

Grinnell received a visitor of Olympic proportions this week when the Hillary Clinton campaign brought two-time Olympic medalist Michelle Kwan to Saints Rest on Wednesday to promote early voting.

Kwan, who won medals for figure skating in the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan as well as the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, has been hitting the campaign trail hard in recent weeks on behalf of Clintons campaign for president.

The choice could not be more clear, Kwan said. The contrast between the two candidates could not be more clear. We have a candidate who is talking about building walls that divide us with dangerous, divisive rhetoric, but you have, luckily, Hillary Clinton.

Kwan spoke about her parents status as immigrants who lived the American Dream, working hard and creating a better life for themselves and for her.

I think plain and simple, this is why Hillary Clinton is running, to ensure that her grandkids, and your children, that all of us have that ability to dream the American Dream, Kwan said.

Kwan noted her reasons for taking on political activism, considering how different this work is from her past as a figure skater. But as she explained, campaigning for a candidate she believes in is similar to performing at the Olympics on behalf of her country.

I had to ask myself what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.  I think the transition was hard, but it was simple in so many ways. I wanted to build on what was always the highest honor, and that was representing this incredible country, you know, going to the Olympic Games, Kwan said.

Between her figure skating years and her time on the 2016 campaign, Kwan worked with Hillary Clinton in the State Department, an experience that influenced her belief in Clinton as a candidate.

I really saw firsthand her leadership, her vision for the country and how she is the most qualified, experienced  person to ever run for President.

Kwan went on to tick off Clintons many accomplishments, including her many fights for childrens and womens rights as a lawyer, as First Lady of Arkansas, as First Lady of the U.S. and more recently as Secretary of State.

Kwans visit seems to have paid off, as the early voting station at JRC 101 on Wednesday saw approximately 660 voters, according to County Auditor Diana Dawley.

 Contributed reporting by Jenny Dong 17.
Jackie Stenson and Diana Jue Rajasingh (2016 Grinnell Prize winners) are the founders of Essmart, an American for-profit company operating in Bangalore, India. Their mission is to disseminate essential technologies to rural communities in South India. As Indians (Sapru was born in Bombay and spent most of her life in New Delhi, and Ravishankar was born in Hyderabad, but grew up in Bangalore), we applaud their work. Our concern, however, and motive for writing this article, is the manner in which they presented this work to our class.

Stenson and Rajasingh talk about experiencing and understanding the hardships faced by people in rural communities during their backpacking experiences in Indian and African villages. They then proceeded to use these experiences to make broad, sweeping and, frankly, problematic statements about nuanced issues people, especially women, face in these villages. Working and middle-class woman in India struggle with very serious threats to their safety on a daily basis  even more so for women living in rural areas. Despite rising female literacy and education enrollment rates, India today has lower levels of female workforce participation than many countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East. India ranks 127th on the gender inequality index and 108th on the global gender gap index. These figures demonstrate a very real problem that needs to be addressed.

Given these concerns, Ravishankar questioned Stenson and Rajasingh in her class about gender dynamics within the organization, as well as the opportunities available to rural women. They responded with a statement on how arranged marriages and pregnancy forced women out of employment and pushed them towards oppressive familial obligations. This comment on the patriarchal structure of Indian society is not entirely inaccurate and presents a simplistic view of women in rural India. It assumes that women in these predicaments have the choice to reject the situations imposed upon them, without dealing with very real consequences (Indian women who push back against these structures stand to lose their agency, as well as social and economic capital). Though they addressed a desire for more female employees, and stated that they hoped to find more brave women in the future, there was no real action taken toward this end. We wished that instead of diminishing and simplifying a real and complex problem, they would have taken an extra step to understand and work with it.

As Grinnellians, we are trained to be culturally sensitive and to be committed to social justice and diversity. We were caught off guard then by the surprising lack of these values in the talks that we heard. Through discussions with peers we realized that there seemed to be a general consensus of uneasiness with the lack of cultural sympathy displayed. There were certainly elements of a reductive seduction of other peoples problems (the idea of dangerously oversimplifying problems in other parts of the world and assuming that they are easily solvable). It is easy to advocate for a group of less fortunate people, however, even well-intentioned activism can do more harm than good when it exists outside the realities of the cultural context. Many of these issues arise with the perennial problem of the insider-outsider debate. The debate has profound implications in the way each of us conducts ourselves in relationship with the people around us, and is something especially important to think about for all of us Grinnellians who want to address social justice issues in various parts of the world. There is a need to be socially conscious and aware in the manner in which we talk about the cultures we live and work in, and this need is especially prescient for all of our worldly Grinnellians.

-Meghna Ravishankar 17 and Sarojini Sapru 17
Defendant Neil Wampler speaks as he leaves federal court in Portland, Ore., Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. A jury exonerated brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy and five others of conspiring to impede federal workers from their jobs at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. (AP Photo/Don Ryan)
New rules aim to help students clear loans in cases of fraud
India needs to tell the world about the valour of its soldiers who fought China

By Claude Arpi
Three civilians were injured on Friday morning when Pakistan resorted to heavy shelling on the International Border in Hiranagar sector in Jammu and Kashmir, police said.

The victimstwo girls and a manwere injured due to mortar shell splinters in Lallai Chak village.

Heavy mortar shelling by Pakistan Rangers continued till 6 am, in Lallai Chak, Pansar, Pahadpur and Londi villages where shells damaged over two dozen houses.

Over a dozen cattle have also perished in these villages.

Reports said that over 400 families have migrated from these areas to safer locations.

The entire population of Abdullian village in R.S.Pura sector has also migrated after Pakistan Rangers targeted civilian and Border Security Forces facilities in the area during the last five days.
India on Thursday told a Pakistani diplomat to leave by Saturday for running a spy ring after he was caught receiving secret information about Indian military deployments from two Indians who were arrested. A third accomplice was caught later.

Copy of the forged Aadhar card of Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar who used to hire spies to get sensitive information and documents related to Army deployment from a spy network he had created

Pakistan denied the espionage charges as "false and unsubstantiated", alleging that Indian police "manhandled" Mehmood Akhtar, a visa officer at the Pakistan High Commission. His expulsion could deepen tensions between the two countries over Kashmir and cross-border terrorism.

External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar summoned Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit to inform "that India had intercepted an official of the High Commission in the pursuit of espionage and that he was being declared persona non grata".

"The Pakistan High Commission has been informed that Akhtar and his family must return to Pakistan by October 29 (Saturday)," Swarup said.

Akhtar, detained on Wednesday and let off because of diplomatic immunity, had served in the mission for over two years during which he recruited Indians to spy for Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Delhi Police Joint Commissioner Ravindra Yadav said.

He was caught near the Delhi Zoo receiving defence-related vital information from two Indian nationals, Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir, who were also allegedly working for the ISI, Yadav said.

One more person, Sohaib Nagaur, was arrested in Jodhpur on Thursday evening. The three are residents of Rajasthan and were being interrogated.

"They had collected information regarding defence, BSF (Border Security Force) deployment on the borders" in Rajasthan and Gujarat and also carried deployment charts and maps of some Indian positions, Yadav said.

The documents, including information about several retired Indian Army personnel and BSF officers serving on borders, were given to Akhtar in exchange of money, he said.

The police officer said Akhtar initially presented himself as an Indian citizen and also showed a fake Aadhar card, claiming he was Mehboob Rajput of Chandni Chowk in Old Delhi.

Yadav said after sustained questioning he admitted that he was a soldier with Pakistan Army's 40 Baloch Regiment since 1997 and was deputed to India by the ISI in 2013.

"He was a kingpin" of the spying network that was active for 18 months, the police officer said, adding the involvement of other staff members in the ring was not being ruled out.

The Pakistan Foreign Ministry said the diplomat was detained for three hours on "false and unsubstantiated" charges of espionage before he was returned to the mission.

"We condemn the detention and manhandling of our diplomatic official," a statement said.

"This act clearly reflects Indian actions to shrink diplomatic space for the working of the Pakistan High Commission," the statement. It noted that Akhtar's detention violated the Vienna Convention.

India categorically denied that the accused officer was mistreated. "He was treated with courtesy befitting his diplomatic status," Swarup said.

"In fact, it was Akhtar who resorted to subterfuge by concealing his real identity. Pakistan must ensure that none of its members indulge in activities inimical to India or behave in a manner that is incompatible with their diplomatic status."

The incident comes as India and Pakistan are locked in bitter diplomatic tensions after militants attacked a military base in Jammu and Kashmir last month.

The attack prompted the Indian Army to carry out surgical strikes in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, destroying seven terror launch pads and killing an unknown number of terrorists and their sympathizers.
One person was arrested on Friday for planting a 'tiffin bomb' in the premises of Allahabad High Court, police said.



The accused has been identified as Santosh Kumar Agrahari and he has admitted to planting the bomb.



He told the police during questioning that he had planted the bomb in anger as his services had not been made permanent despite his working for the last 14 years.



Earlier, jitters went down the spine of the security and police personnel when explosives were found, packed in a tiffin box, in the high-security court premises.



The suspicious packet was spotted by a passerby who immediately informed the police.



ATS, district and senior police officials rushed to the court premises and a bomb disposal squad was pressed into service. The bag and the tiffin contained concrete, 'sutli' bombs, some explosive material and pellets, an official said.



Senior Superintendent of Police(SSP) Shalabh Mathur said that the white-coloured powder recovered from the tiffin would be sent to forensic lab for testing the nature of explosives.



There are more than 200 CCTV cameras in the court premises and the recordings of all were watched.



Meanwhile, security of the Allahabad High Court premises and other courts in the state has been beefed up.



An official of the state home department ruled out any terror angle to the incident. But he added that instructions have been issued to step up vigil since courts have been prone to terror attacks in the past.
The Iraqi army was trying on Thursday to reach a town south of Mosul where Islamic State has reportedly executed dozens to deter the population against any attempt to support the US-led offensive on the jihadists' last major city stronghold in Iraq.

Eleven days into what is expected to be the biggest ground offensive in Iraq since the US-led invasion of 2003, army and federal police units were fighting off sniper fire and suicide car bombs south of Hammam al-Alil, the site of the reported executions, an Iraqi military spokesman said.

The militants shot dead dozens of prisoners there, most of them former members of the Iraqi police and army, taken from villages the group has been forced to abandon as the troops advanced, officials in the region said on Wednesday.

The executions were meant "to terrorise the others, those who are in Mosul in particular", and also to get rid of the prisoners, said Abdul Rahman al-Waggaa, a member of the Nineveh provincial council. Some of the families of those executed are also held in Hammam al-Alil, he said.

UN human rights spokesman Rupert Colville on Tuesday said Islamic State fighters had reportedly killed scores of people around Mosul in the last week.

A Reuters correspondent met relatives of hostages south of Mosul. One of them was a police officer who had returned to see the family that he had left behind when his village fell under the militants' control two years ago.

"Im afraid they will keep pulling them back from village to village until they get to Mosul. And then they will disappear," he said, asking not be identified to protect family members still in the hands of the fighters.

Reuters also spoke to a woman and an elderly man who were part of group of families forced to march two to three days to reach Mosul from the villages of Safiya and Ellezaga, about 30 km (nearly 20 miles) and 50 km (30 miles) to the south.

Children and the elderly were released when they arrived in Mosul, on Tuesday, and told to stay with relatives, they said, speaking on the phone from one of the few places where there is still telephone coverage, on the city's edges.

A resident of Mosul, Rayyan, said he saw the families when they arrived in the city, "their bare feet bleeding and covered with dust as if coming from under the rubble."

"We cried when we saw them," he said.

Fierce defence

Islamic State fighters are keeping up their fierce defence of the southern approaches to Mosul, which has held up Iraqi troops there and forced an elite army unit east of the city to put a more rapid advance on hold.

The fall of Mosul would mark Islamic State's effective defeat in Iraq.

The city is many times bigger than any other that the ultra-hardline militant group has ever captured, and it was from its Grand Mosque in 2014 that the group's leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, declared a "caliphate" that also spans parts of Syria.

US Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Tuesday an attack on Raqqa, Islamic State's main stronghold in Syria, would start while the battle of Mosul is still unfolding. It was the first official suggestion that US-backed forces in both countries could mount simultaneous operations to crush the caliphate.

The front lines east and north of Mosul have moved much closer to the edges of the city than the southern front and the combat ahead is likely to get more deadly as 1.5 million residents remain in the city.

Worst-case U.N. forecasts see up to a million people being uprooted. UN aid agencies said the fighting had so far forced about 16,000 people to flee.

"Assessments have recorded a significant number of female-headed households, raising concerns around the detention or capture of men and boys," the office of the U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Iraq said on Wednesday.

The coordinator, Lise Grande, told Reuters on Tuesday that a mass exodus could happen, maybe within the next few days.

Chemical weapons

It was also possible that Islamic State fighters could resort to "rudimentary chemical weapons" to hold back the impending assault, she said.

The militants are suspected of setting on fire a sulphur plant south of Mosul last week, filling the air with toxic gasses that caused breathing problems for hundreds of civilians.

A senior US official said about 50,000 Iraqi ground troops are taking part in the offensive, including a core force of 30,000 from the governments armed forces, 10,000 Kurdish fighters and the remaining 10,000 from police and local volunteers. About 5,000 to 6,000 jihadists are dug in, according to Iraqi military estimates.

Roughly 5,000 US troops are also in Iraq. More than 100 of them are embedded with Iraqi and Kurdish peshmerga forces advising commanders and helping coalition air power to hit targets. They are not deployed on front lines.

The warring sides are not giving casualty figures in their own ranks or among civilians, each claiming to have killed hundreds of enemy fighters.

The Iraqi army said it killed 772 insurgents since the start of the offensive on Oct. 17, and captured 23. About 100 towns, villages and hamlets were taken back, it added in a statement.
Autistic people have a way of flapping their hands, says the mother of a special teenager. She goes on to add that when she saw Donald Trump flapping his hands and making fun of such people she was disturbed. And though she was a registered Republican, she had decided to vote for Hillary. She owed this to her children.

This is one of the most poignant advertisements on television in the US right now. Paid for by Hillarys campaign, it is part of the ad wars that occupy whatever television footage is left over from analyses, polls and expertspeak.

There is another advertisement of a young girl who is not afraid to be out alone. She has a gun, she is protected. But Hillary wants to snatch that gun from her. She will not succeed if Donald Trump becomes president. This is among the best advertisements from the Trump team.

They say in the US that the elections are won by the party which spends the most on advertising. Indian publicity is all about jingles, slogans, loudspeakers, posters and buntings. In the US, it is a little different. Yes, there are songs and there is dance, but only in venues, not streets. However, rallies do get boisterous and noisy, specially when the crowds are protesting against Trump.

On television, moreover, the advertisements are not so much about the promises of a particular candidate, but those of the rivals. They take names, loud and clear. And say rather nasty things about each other. Each advertisement ends with the compulsory accredition about who is paying for or endorsing the advertisement.

The Hillary camp recently released Barbershop, an advertisement featuring African Americans at a barbershop, endorsing her candidature. It coincided not just with Clintons reenergised efforts at wooing the African American voter base, but also with Oprah Winfreys endorsement of her. Meanwhile, Trump has just featured in an advertisement celebrating Diwali with the American Hindu community. "I look forward to working with Prime minister Modi," he says, signing off with : Ab ki baar Trump Sarkaar.
Most view the fact that the Vishnitzer Rebbe Shlita HaGaon HaRav Yisrael Hager called to meet with Agudas Yisrael MKs as significant. The rebbe took time from his busy schedule to meet with members of the chassidish faction of Yahadut Hatorah to discuss the critical nationwide housing shortage. The meeting took place on Wednesday evening 24 Tishrei.

It is reported it was clear to all present just how much the rebbe is concerned over the housing issue, amid an awareness new couples do not have affordable housing options, with many living in storage rooms or other makeshift living alternatives.

The rebbe instructed the MKs that something must be done to address the shortage in the chareidi community. Health Minister Yaakov Litzman told Kol Chai Radio on Thursday morning that in essence, the meeting with the rebbe was a continuation of the Moetzas Gedolei Hatorah meeting that was held a number of weeks ago. He added that efforts are underway to enlist the coalition of Degel Hatorah and Shas towards working as a united chareidi front in the coalition.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
MK Yisrael Eichler, who is a member of the Agudas Yisrael faction of Yahadut Hatorah spoke with Kol Chai Radio on Thursday morning 25 Tishrei. He was asked to address the Thursday evening meeting in which Agudas Yisrael MKs were summoned to meet with the Vishnitzer Rebbe Shlita. (Link to article number 2)

When asked to attribute the reason for the rebbes decision to meet, Eichler explained this is simply indicative of the rebbes growing concerns over the housing problem that impacts the entire tzibur.

Eicher feels that all chareidim in Knesset, including Shas and the Degel faction of Yahadut Hatorah must join and present a united front in the coalition. He explains the chareidim must not vote for the billions of shekels being allocated for construction unless there is a minimum of ten percent being allocated exclusively for the chareidi tzibur.

Eichler admits one of the problems today is the legal experts have prohibited building exclusively for a special sector, citing this is what occurred in Charish, which was designated to be exclusively chareidi but this was overruled by the courts and today, a mixed community.

Eichler angrily explained that there are other projects that were scraped due to the legal opinion prohibiting construction exclusively for chareidim, since this is discriminatory. Eichler adds this is exacerbating the situation and the chareidim must unite and refuse to vote for any housing until the interests of its tzibur are secured as part of any deal.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
German airline Lufthansa canceled hundreds of flights Thursday at its budget unit Eurowings, affecting some 40,000 passengers, because of a strike by cabin crew.

The airline said that about 400 flights were canceled, including most connections inside Germany.

Many of its European flights also were canceled but long-distance flights and those from Frankfurt and Munich werent affected.

The UFO union called the 24-hour strike starting at midnight after failing earlier this week to reach an agreement with management on various contractual issues and on conducting arbitration proceedings. Members are seeking concessions on issues including pay, working conditions and pensions.

Senior UFO official Nicoley Baublies stepped up the pressure on Thursday, telling news agency dpa that the union plans to call members out on strike on two days next week as well. He didnt specify which days.

Eurowings also operates flights under the Germanwings brand. The airline said customers should check its website to see whether their flight is affected.

Lufthansa is trying to cut costs amid rising competition from Gulf state airlines and European budget carriers. The expanding Eurowings operation is an important element in its strategy.

(AP)
The final weeks in the battle for control of the Senate are shaping up as a sharp strategical contrast in which one group of party operatives could look like geniuses  or fools.

Democrats made an early decision to hold onto their most precious campaign cash for the final weeks, hoping their liberal super PAC allies would help out wherever and whenever they could. Republicans calculated that, given the headwinds their incumbents faced with Donald Trumps emergence as their presidential nominee, they needed to drain their party treasury earlier than usual.

That crucial decision leaves Senate GOP campaigns remarkably reliant on late cash from Republican-leaning super PACs that by law cannot coordinate with GOP candidates and party leaders.

By Sept. 30, according to new filings with the Federal Election Commission, the National Republican Senatorial Committee had spent $28.3 million from its independent advertising unit. Its counterpart, inside the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, had spent just $14.4 million at that point. The Democratic outfit entered the last five weeks of the campaign with twice as much in its war chest as its GOP counterpart.

The two parties contrasting strategies are playing out in several media markets critical to determining control of the Senate in 2017. The Las Vegas market, home to almost 70 percent of Nevadas voters, is right now awash in all manner of political ads.

In the Senate race, however, Democrats have the edge in terms of ad spending by their nominee, Catherine Cortez Masto  as well as in DSCC advertising. Combined, the candidate and the DSCC are spending about $5 million in the final four weeks on the Las Vegas airwaves, according to an ad overview provided to The Washington Post by a Republican not directly connected to any Senate campaign. The data was confirmed by strategists in both parties and in some instances updated to reflect new reservations.

On the Republican side, Senate candidate Joe Heck is spending about $1 million over the last four weeks in Las Vegas, backed up by about $1 million from the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Thats a disparity of $3 million in the most critical media market in the state for a race that has remained neck-and-neck all year in the fight to succeed retiring Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid, D.

The same thing is happening in Philadelphia, where the City of Brotherly Loves airwaves reach more than 40 percent of Pennsylvanias voters. There, the Democratic nominee for the Senate, Katie McGinty, is spending about $1.5 million in the final four weeks on ads in her hometown. The DSCC has somewhere near $3 million in ads reserved over that span, according to a GOP source monitoring the race.

Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., is spending a bit more than $1.5 million in that media market, slightly more than McGinty. But the NRSC is essentially dark the final three weeks in Philadelphia. That gives the McGinty-DSCC combo an edge of well in excess of $2 million in this crucial market for the homestretch of the campaign.

This Democratic edge in key states is evident in almost every other big market for Senate races. Thats why the Republican herd of super PAC cash is coming to the rescue, injecting record levels of cash into key states.

The Senate Leadership Fund, the super PAC designed to support Majority Leader Mitch McConnells, R-Ky., candidates, unveiled a $25 million ad purchase this week in six Senate races certain to decide whether Republicans hold the majority: Nevada, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Missouri, North Carolina and Indiana.

As Politico reported Tuesday night, the PAC will more than level the overall playing field of advertising in the final weeks of these campaigns. The infusion of cash comes on top of more than $46 million already spent throughout this 2016 campaign by the group mostly on behalf of Senate GOP candidates.

Hecks campaign, for instance, is getting a late jolt of $7.5 million in super PAC advertising, while Toomeys race will benefit from more than $5 million in Senate Leadership Fund support in just the last two weeks before Nov. 8.

The DSCC derided the move as a last-minute bid to prop up campaigns wounded by Trumps limping candidacy in several battleground states. Republicans have hit the panic button. The Senate Leadership Funds last-minute spending spree cant erase the records that made this bailout necessary, Sadie Weiner, the DSCC spokeswoman, said in a statement.

Democrats are quick to note that, over the entire course of the 2016 cycle, Republican outside groups have spent far more than Democratic-aligned groups, particularly those affiliated with the industrialist brothers, Charles and David Koch.

Privately, however, Democrats acknowledge they feel better off financially than they expected for the final stretch. The Koch groups stopped advertising altogether a couple months ago and have invested entirely on the effort to knock on doors and turn out voters through in-person persuasion.

Moreover, Democrats believe theyve spent their money more wisely. Candidates, by federal law, get the cheapest advertising rates available and also get preferential placement on ad timing  whether it be during local TV news or marquee events like the World Series.

Party committees like the DSCC and NRSC do not get such treatment, but the operatives running those outfits map out their plans months in advance. They place reservations well ahead of Election Day and gobble up ad spots at the next best time available.

The late burst of super PAC cash, for example, will result in Senate Leadership Fund ads in Las Vegas that cost exponentially more than what Cortez Masto pays. And those super PAC ads might run at times not optimal to reach potential voters.

Republicans privately defend their strategy, insisting they had no choice but to spend early from the NRSCs campaign coffers because they needed to defend their candidates in Trumps wake.

In the Cleveland market, for instance, the NRSC spent more than $4 million in August and September to boost Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, who polls show has a sizable lead over his Democratic challenger. Portmans relative strength forced Democrats to abandon that state altogether, virtually assuring the senators reelection and freeing up GOP funds for other crucial contests.

In Philadelphia, the NRSC spent roughly $3 million in August and September, helping Toomey maintain what they contend was an ever-so-slight lead heading into the last weeks of his campaign despite Trump trailing Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton there.

Moreover, because the official party organizations are forbidden from coordinating with super PACs, the NRSCs early investment showed their allies in the outside money world what messages and themes they want pounded home in the final stretch.

It may all come down to whether the Republican super PAC money is too little, too late.

(c) 2016, The Washington Post  Paul Kane
Hillary Clintons confidence could cost her the US presidency, according to a leading American political scientist who claims that Donald Trump is on course to win the US election in 12 days.

The warning comes amid concerns from the Clinton campaign team that voter turnout will yet prove critical, despite many polls suggesting that the Democratic candidate is ahead of her Republican rival.

The latest results from the poll considered to have most accurately predicted the results of the last three elections, by IBD/TIPP, suggest that Ms Clinton may have a lead of just 0.6 per cent over Mr Trump, with 41.8 per cent backing the former US Secretary of State compared with 41.2 per cent for Mr Trump.

In Florida, a key state for signalling the winning candidate in previous elections, Mr Trump may be ahead of Clinton, with 45 per cent compared with 43 per cent for his opponent, according to a Bloomberg Politics poll released yesterday.

Professor Helmut Norpoth, from the Department of Political Science at Stony Brook University in New York, has correctly predicted the past five US presidents.

Using a statistical model based on previous election results, he is predicting that Mr Trump will triumph next month. Professor Norpoth told i: My forecast says that hes going to win 52.5 per cent of the two-party vote, that would give Hillary 47.5 per cent. I attach something like 87 per cent certainty that hes going to win.

Professor Norpoth admits that his prediction is not shared by many pollsters, with most showing Ms Clinton just ahead of Mr Trump  one by as many as 12 points.

But he added: My forecast is not poll-driven  I dont live by the polls so I dont die by the polls.

READ MORE: i News
Yemens Shiite rebels and their allies fired a ballistic missile deep into Saudi Arabia, an overnight strike that they said on Friday had targeted an international airport while the kingdom claimed that it flew toward the holy Muslim city of Mecca.

Saudi Arabia said the missile was intercepted and destroyed 65 kilometers (40 miles) from Mecca, which is home to the cube-shaped Kaaba that the worlds Muslims pray toward five times a day.

Angry Saudis soon denounced the missile fire online with hashtags questioning the faith of Yemens Shiite rebels known as Houthis, as other Sunni Arab leaders in the Gulf linked the attack to Shiite power Iran.

Invoking Mecca also invigorated support for Saudi Arabia as it leads the stalemated war in the Arab worlds poorest country, as well as turned attention away from those starving under a kingdom-led blockade and the civilians killed in its airstrikes.

The Saudi military said the missile, fired Thursday night from Yemens northwestern Saada province, which borders the kingdom, caused no damage. The Saudi military has a supply of U.S.-made, surface-to-air Patriot missile batteries it previously has fired at Houthi-launched missiles.

The kingdoms military said in a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency that it immediately targeted the area where the missile was launched in airstrikes.

The Houthis and their allies, including forces loyal to former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, have a stockpile of Soviet-era Scud missiles and locally designed variants. A Houthi ballistic missile fired earlier this month targeted Taif, home to Saudi Arabias King Fahd Air Base, which also is near Mecca.

What the missile fired Thursday night targeted, however, quickly became a controversy.

The Houthi-controlled satellite news channel Al-Masirah said the Yemeni rebels had fired a Volcano-1 variant missile at Jiddahs King Abdulaziz International Airport, without mentioning Mecca. That airport is 75 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Mecca.

The Houthi-controlled SABA news agency said the missile directly hit the airport and caused massive destruction, though there were no delays or diversions affecting the airport Friday.

The Saudi military, however, stressed the missile was fired toward Mecca, without elaborating  the protection of the holy city is a key pillar of the Saudi royal familys prestige and the countrys national identity.

Gulf Arab countries allied with Saudi Arabia immediately began condemning the attack, suggesting the Houthis intentionally targeted the Islamic worlds holiest site. Many also immediately linked the attack to Iran, further inflaming regional sectarianism.

The Iranian regime supports a terrorist group that launched its rockets on Mecca, Emirati Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nayhan wrote on Twitter. Is this regime Islamic as it claims?

While analysts suggest Tehran doesnt have direct control over the Houthis, the U.S. Navy says it is has intercepted Iranian arms heading to the rebels.

In Iran, state media reported on the ballistic missile fire citing international reports, without any government comment.

Yemen, on the southern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, has been in the midst of a civil war since September 2014 when the Houthis swept into the capital of Sanaa and overthrew the countrys internationally recognized government. In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition of Arab countries began a military campaign against the Houthi forces, saying its mission served in part as a counterbalance to Irans influence following its nuclear deal with world powers.

The Saudi-led campaign initially had the logistical and intelligence support of the U.S., but mounting civilian casualties from its airstrikes led to America pulling back, especially after a Saudi strike earlier this month on a funeral in Sanaa killed some 140 people and wounded over 600.

The U.S. also fired Tomahawk missiles at mobile Houthi radar sites after reporting its warships came under fire in the Red Sea near the crucial Bab el-Mandeb strait. In recent days, two commercial ships reportedly have come under fire in the same area.

United Nations efforts to strike a peace deal to end the conflict have been slow. The most recent plan apparently sidelines President Abed-Rabbo Mansour Hadi of Yemens internationally recognized government. Saudi Arabia launched its coalition campaign to restore Hadis rule, so thats likely a deal breaker for the Sunni-ruled kingdom.

In the meantime, Yemen stands on the brink of famine. More than 10,000 people have been killed or wounded and 3 million of the countrys 26 million people have been driven from their homes by the fighting.

(AP)


On Friday, October 28, 2016 at approximately 8:20AM, the NYPD Emergency Service Unit 2 responded to a call of a suicidal 54-year-old male on the George Washington Bridge. Upon arrival, Detectives from the ESU were met by Port Authority Police who informed them that a male was climbing up the cables to the top of the westside tower. The ESU Detectives with the assistance of PAPD officers ascended the tower via the elevator. Once they reached the top of the tower the male was standing at the edge threatening to jump. Det. Raul Gonzalez of ESU 2 established a dialogue with the male. Det. Brandon Watson and Det. Raul Gonzalez were able to rescue the male and place him into custody. The male was removed to Bergen Regional Hospital for evaluation and charges are pending by Port Authority Police.
By Rabbi Yair Hoffman for the Five Towns Jewish Times

It is time to take seriously the Mitzvah  the obligation rather, of doing the weekly Torah portion with the Tzibbur.

The purpose of this article is to make available, in an easily understood format, the laws of Shnayim Mikreh VeEchad Targum -Reviewing the Weekly Parsha in order to spread the observance of this Mitzvah. It is an unfortunate reality that this particular Mitzvah is still neglected, even during these times, when Boruch Hashem, we are experiencing a resurgence of Torah observance.

The Mitzvah of Shnayim Mikreh VeEchad Targum is an important one. It is one of the few Mitzvos where our Chazal assure us longer life if we but perform it. It is a Mitzvah that, according to many authorities (Netziv, Sheiltos, Meseches Sofrim), including the Aruch HaShulchan, was, for the most part, ordained by Moshe Rabbeinu himself, later being augmented by Ezra.

The Bach (Orech Chaim 685) writes that a Takanas Moshe, an enactment of Moshe Rabbeinu, has the status of a Mitzvah DeOraisa, a Biblical Mitzvah.

According to this view, Shnayim Mikrah is a biblical Mitzvah. Although the halacha is not in accordance with the Bach on this, it does not need to be stated that a Takanas Moshe carries a high degree of significance.

It is also a Mitzvah that has a deep qualitative effect upon our commitment to Torah and to Hashem. The Chofetz Chaim writes (chapter 21 of Zachor LaMiriam) that the performance of this Mitzvah strengthens Emunah -faith. In a similar vein, the Taamei HaMinhagim (page 160 of Kuntrus Acharon) writes that one who grooms himself for the Shabbos and completes the Shnayim Mikreh VeEchad Targum before midday is assured that he will not come to an Aveirah Chamurah the entire week.

It should be noted that this Mitzvah should not be performed in a perfunctory manner. Great care and attention should be placed to every verse and every Rashi or Targum. The Chsam Sopher writes in a responsa that his comments on Chumash were primarily conceived while he was reviewing the weekly Parsha. The Chofetz Chaim states that one who performs it should be very careful in reading the words of Rashi, as it states (Shmos 15:26), And you shall listen to His Mitzvos and Rashi explains, Turn your ear to study it most carefully.

In this booklet, the Aruch HaShulchans comments on these Halachos, found in the Orech Chaim section of Shulchan Aruch chapter 285, have been translated. The Aruch HaShulchan was written by Rabbi Yechiel Michel Epstein ztl and was published piecemeal by his daughter, the impoverished widow, Rebbitzen Breina Wolobrinsky.

The text of this translated section has been re-paragraphed and paragraph headings were inserted to facilitate greater readability. The Mishna Brurahs opinions and the rulings of other Poskim were added in the footnotes.

THE MITZVAH

1] The Gemorah (Brachos 8b) states:

A person should always complete the weekly parsha with the Tzibbur. It should be done twice with the text and once in Targum, One must even recite the names of the cities Atros and Divon. . For everyone who completes the parsha with the Tzibbur, twice with the text and once in Targum, his days and years are extended.

In other words, before the congregation reads the parsha in Shul, a person should read it in his home, whether it be on that Shabbos itself in the morning or throughout that week. However, he may not read it earlier than that week. Some individuals have the custom to read a small section of it each day of the week, and they complete it on Shabbos (Talmid Rabbeinu Yonah).

Therefore, even though every person hears the Torah portion read publicly each Shabbos from the reader, there is, nevertheless, an obligation to read to oneself, each week, the parsha of that week twice in the text and once in Targum . [The Levush cites an allusion to this in the Torah. It states,VeAileh Shmos Bnei Yisroel and Shnayim Mikrah VeEchad Targum in abbreviation spells Shmos..And those that are obligated are all Bnei Yisroel .]

THE REASONS

2] The reason for it is not known, but certainly when Moshe Rabbeinu ordained that we read the Torah , he ordained this edict as well , that each person read it twice in the text and once in the Targum.

THE LEVUSHS REASON

The Levush writes that the reason is to ensure that everyone be proficient in the Torah, but as is understood this reason is insufficient [6].

THE ARUCH HASHULCHANS REASON

It would seem that the obligation in Torah is listening and studying as we say in the blessing of Ahava Rabba, To listen and to study. The listening is [to be done] on Shabbos from a kosher Sefer Torah written properly and according to Halacha. Therefore, one should study it beforehand from a Chumash [7] and one should ascend in holiness to listen to it from a Sefer Torah.

It is stated in Sotah (37b) that the generalities and the specifics [of the Torah] were said at Sinai and were repeated a second time in the Ohel Moed and were repeated a third time in Arvos Moav (refer there). We must therefore study it three times, even a verse that does not have a Targum (as will be explained) corresponding to these three [times that the Torah was taught]. However, where there does exist a Targum they chose that the third time be in Targum so that he will understand what he is studying. The [language of] Targum is similar to Lashon HaKodesh and was given at Sinai, as we say in Nedarim (37b), And they shall read it in the Torah of Hashem mefurash  Mefurash is Targum, and it was given at Sinai as explained there. However they had forgotten it and Unkeles returned it and re-established it as we say in the beginning of Megillah [I saw it similarly stated in the Ohr Zaruah in the name of the Maggid Mishna but it was not sufficiently explained].

THE RAAVANS REASON

Some say that it [Shnayim Mikrah VeEchad Targum] corresponds to the two readers [of the Torah as it is being read] and the one translator.[Raavan] [8]

TARGUM LAST OR ALSO IN MIDDLE?

3] There is to wonder whether we specifically require that it be read twice in the text and [only] afterward it be read in the Targum or whether he also fulfills the obligation if he read it once in the text, then the Targum and then [the second time] in the text.

From the words of the Levush it is clear that this [the second way] is his opinion. For he wrote:

It appears to me that if a man read once the text and once the Targum alone, and afterward when they read the parsha in shul he read it with the Chazan word by word, he has fulfilled the obligation of Shnayim Mikrah VeEchad Targum.

We see that he writes explicitly that the Targum could be in the middle. Even though he writes that our Master the Beis Yosef does not agree that he fulfills his obligation in this manner, that is because he holds he cannot fulfill his obligation through the Shliach Tzibbur, but not because the Targum is in the middle.

The Gedolim have already written that even the Beis Yosef does not disagree with this, rather, he is referring to [mere] listening where he does not fulfill his obligation, but if he recites it with the Chazzan word by word he does fulfill his obligation [Prisha and Ohr Zaruah] [9].

SAYING OR LISTENING?

There is an opinion that even regarding listening he fulfills his obligation [Magen Avrohom subparagraph 8 quoting the Lechem Chamudos]. Similarly there is an opinion that if he heard the Shnayim Mikrah VeEchad Targum he also fulfills his obligation if he made sure to hear it (word by word) [10] [Shaarei Teshuvah citing the Radbaz].

According to my humble opinion [11] we require specifically learning and not listening as we have written and see paragraph 13.

THE METHOD OF STOPPING AT EACH PARSHA IN THE SIDRA

4] There is an opinion that states that the reading of Shnayim Mikrah VeEchad Targum is in the following manner: To read each parsha, that is every psucha or stumah two times, and then afterward the Targum [Magen Avrohom subparagraph 1 quoting the Maharshal and Shla] [12].

STILL ANOTHER REASON

It would appear so logically [that the method should be to stop at each Parsha in the Sidra], because the Holy One blessed be He related to Moshe each parsha at one time, and between each parsha there was a break, as it says in Toras Kohanim in the beginning of VaYikra (1:1):

What purpose did the interruptions have? In order to give Moshe a period to reflect on each parsha.

Rashi cites it in his commentary on Chumash.

Perhaps because of this reason, they commanded us to read Shnayim Mikrah VeEchad Targum, for it says in the Midrash [Yalkut Shimoni Iyov 28], Each and every item that the Holy One Blessed be He told Moshe, He would say twice in His heart and afterward he told it to Moshe. What is the reason? [Az Raah Vayisaprah Haichina VeGam Chakrah]  He saw it then and recited it [is] one time [He prepared it and also inquire into it [is] another time and afterwards it states, and He said to the man..  this is Moshe] etc [13]. Nevertheless, the Holy One Blessed Be He did relate to Moshe each Parsha by itself.

In the beginning of Megillah [4a] they state, I will review this Parsha and teach it.. refer there. Parsha is defined as a psucha or a stumah, and that which is referenced in the Chumashim, third [aliyah] or fourth [aliyah] is not considered with any significance. [And in Brachos 8a where they state that a person should always complete his parshios with the congregation, which indicates that each sidrah is called a parsha, this is not so. For this is the explanation:  the parshios of that sidrah.]

PARSHA IN MIDDLE OF VERSE QUESTION

5] However according to this, there would be a question when there is a new parsha in the middle of a posuk. As in Pinchas, And it was after the plague (BaMidbar 26:1). And in Parshas VaYishlach, And the sons of Yaakov were twelve..(Bereishis 35:22) And in Dvarim, ..from Eilat and from Etzyon Gvar (Dvarim 2:9). What should be done? If he stops there and reviews the Parsha, he is in the middle of a Posuk!

Nevertheless, it appears that he should do this [14]. And if a problem is raised of, any verse that Moshe did not stop at, we do not stop at.. [15] here, Moshe did, [in fact], stop. Similarly in regard to the ten commandments in Do not murder (Shmos 20:13) there is a parsha etc., refer there [16].

THE METHOD OF STOPPING AT EACH VERSE

6] There are those that wrote to read each verse twice and afterward the Targum [17], [Arizal and Maadnei Yom Tov] and at the end of the Sidrah he should also read a posuk after the Targum so that he will end with Torah [Magen Avrohom ad locum].

A proof to this is found in the language of the Gemorah, Two times [Shnayim] Mikreh and one time Targum the language is in masculine and Parsha is feminine while Posuk is masculine. However, there is to answer that it is referring to the man, for the man says two times Mikreh and one time Targum.

It appears to me that this depends on the reasons. For according to the reason that we wrote in paragraph 4, it is certainly referring to the Parshah, and so too according to the reason that we wrote in paragraph 2 [See Aruch HaShulchans Reason.] However, according to the other opinion at the end of paragraph 2 [Raavans Reason], it certainly is referring to each posuk.

THE METHOD OF THE ENTIRE SIDRAH AT ONCE

7] There are those that read the entire Sidrah and afterwards a second time, and afterwards the Targum. And it is somewhat indicative that this is the correct method from the language of Rashi in Brachos there, and from the Gemorah where it states that Rav Bibi Bar Abaye wished to complete the parshios of the entire year before Yom Kippur etc. The reference is to all the sidros, after which it says he wished to say them early. Rashi explains that he wished to do all the parshios on one Shabbos, see there. So we see explicitly that he calls a sidrah parsha.

And so it is seen from the words of the Ohr Zaruah HaGadol (Siman 12): He wished to complete all the parshios of the year. Rabbeinu Chananel had the text the parshios of the Kallah (semi-annual gathering for study purposes) that is the four parshios that we read in Elul and the four that we read in Adar. We see that he calls a Sidrah parsha.

ALL THREE METHODS ARE ACCEPTABLE

Therefore, it would seem to my humble opinion that there are no restrictions [18], and that one may perform it in whichever manner that one wishes, as each of them have halachic backing.

It is also possible that at times one may perform it one way and at times the other way. And if you might think that there would be a restriction to perform it in one particular way, the early Rabbis would not have refrained from stating this [19].

READING IT FROM A SEFER TORAH

There is an opinion that wrote that if he is fluent in the taamim [20], he should read it from a Sefer Torah [21], and he should immerse after reading it and cut his fingernails before the reading [Magen Avrohom there]. And this is a Midas Chassidus, and it follows the opinion of those who read it on Friday.

SPEAKING DURING SHNAYIM MIKREH

There is an opinion that it is prohibited to speak during the reading of Shnayim Mikreh VeEchad Targum [Be-er Haitev subparagraph 1]. And it is strange to say this, for without a blessing of what significance is an interruption, as the Tosfos have written in Brachos [14a Yamim] in regard to Hallel? And if it is because it is prohibited to interrupt Torah study for mundane things, this is inapplicable to Shnayim Mikreh VeEchad Targum, for it may be assumed that he is stopping for an important matter. And furthermore those that read the Parsha each day, they are interrupting repeatedly. Therefore, there is no halachic significance to this [opinion] [22].

WHEN IT MUST BE DONE

8] What is called, With the assembly? The Tur writes:

The entire week from day one onward is considered with the assembly [23], since we start the parsha on the Shabbos at Mincha [and this is considered with the congregation in other words, that the congregation begins]. And it is a Mitzvah Min HaMuvchar to complete it before he eats [24] on Shabbos [The Ohr Zaruah writes that we suspect that on account of abundant eating he may not read at all]. If he did not complete it before he eats, he should complete it after the meal before Mincha, but from that point on since we begin the next one, the time for this one has passed.

9] It is clear from his words that there is no importance in completing it before the reading of the Torah, just before eating. For this is referred to as Mitzvah Min HaMuvchar  the ideal manner in which to perform the Mitzvah.

It is also clear from his words that after Minchah the time has already passed, as the congregation already began the next one and it is no longer called with the congregation.

It is further clear from his words that when he completes it on Friday it is not considered Mitzvah Min HaMuvchar. And so wrote the Mordechai in the first chapter of Brachos that it is only [a Mitzvah Min HaMuvchar] on Shabbos morning before the meal, refer there [see further the Bach].

THE FRIDAY OPINION

10] However, there are those that wrote that the essential Hiddur is on Friday. Some say before midday and some say after midday. And so was the custom of the AriZal to read in a Sefer Torah on Friday after davening24b [see Be-er Heitev and Shaarei Teshuvah #1]. Some say that the Mitzvah Min HaMuvchar is to read a little bit each day and to complete it on Friday, as is printed in the book, Chok LeYisroel.

IF ONE DID NOT COMPLETE IT ON SHABBOS

Similarly, there are those who said that one who did not complete it on Shabbos may complete it until Wednesday [25], for this is called after Shabbos as we say at the end of the seventh chapter of Gittin.

Some say that he may further complete it until the end of the year until the completing of the Torah [26]; in Israel this is Shmini Atzeres and outside of Israel this is Simchas Torah, and then all the sidros that he did not read he reads Shnayim Mikreh VeEchad Targum [27].

And so it appears from the words of our Rabbis, the Shulchan Aruch and the Achronim, and this is how we should conduct ourselves [28].

TARGUM FOR EACH AND EVERY WORD

11] The statement of the sages has already been explained that everything requires a translation. Even verses with names such as Reuvain and Shimon require translation; and not on account of translation, for also in the language of the Targum the words are equivalent to the words in the Hebrew. Rather, it is because we require it to be read three times in accordance with the reasons we have explained. In the Gemorah it states, even Atros and Divon, and with this there is a greater insight, as Rabbeinu Bachya wrote, that in the Targum they are names of places of idolworship, and I would have thought that it would be better not to mention them, therefore it teaches us that this is not the case. [And the commentaries struggled much in this matter [29] see TaZ, Mogen Avrohom, Tur, and Talmid Rabbeinu Yonah. However, according to what we wrote it is understood beautifully.]

RASHI VERSUS TARGUM

12] The Tur writes:

If he studied the Parsha with the explanation of Rashi it is considered like Targum [30]. For the intent of Targum is only to understand the matter. However, if he reads it in another language [31] it is not considered [like Targum].

The reason for this is that other languages do not reproduce the meaning as it was handed down from Sinai [32], but Targum explains it in accordance with the way it was given from Sinai as we have written in the end of paragraph two. Similarly, the explanation of Rashi is based upon the expositions of our Rabbis of blessed memory, which is the clear truth as if it was from Sinai.

Our Master the Beis Yosef in paragraph two (Shulchan Aruch 285:2) wrote that a G-D-fearing individual should read [both] Targum and Rashis explanation [33]. For the Targum was given at Sinai, and Rashis explanation [should be read] to understand the Parsha properly.

The Gedolim have agreed that only the Targum of Unkeles [may be used] and one does not fulfill the obligation with anything else [34]. For the Targum is holy and was given at Sinai. This is also [the ruling] according to the wisdom of the Kabbalah. And this is the custom of all Israel. And Heaven forbid to deviate from this.

WHAT TO DO WHEN ONE DOES NOT HAVE A TARGUM

If at the present time he does not possess a Targum, he should recite the text twice and when he obtains a Targum he should say it [Mogen Avrohom subparagraph 4]. If he does not anticipate that he will be able to obtain a Targum it appears to my humble opinion that he must read the text three times according to the reasons that we have explained [35].

DURING THE READING OF THE TORAH

13] He may read the Shnayim Mikreh and Echad Targum at the time of the reading of the Torah. So wrote the Beis Yosef [Shulchan Aruch] in paragraph five [36]. And the explanation is that he may say the Shnayim Mikreh and Echad targum at the time of the reading of the Torah even though he does not say it in unison with the reader. And the reason is explained in the Mordechai there, that it is because he is dealing with the same matter, refer there. There is an opinion that even if he merely hears it, he has fulfilled his obligation, but we have already written [end of paragraph 3, see notes there as well] that this is not so [and so wrote the Knesses HaGedolah and the Olas Shabbos].

TEACHERS

Teachers of children that read the Sidrah each week with the children a few times fulfill through this their obligation of reading. And if they read with them the targum or Rashi, they also fulfill their obligation of targum, and see what is written in paragraph 12. Similarly, anyone who studied the Sidrah in the middle of the week twice, does not need to go back and read the Parsha on Shabbos.

HAFTORAS AND OTHER READINGS

The Haftoras do not need to be read by an individual [37]. However, it has become the custom to read it after Shnayim Mikreh VeEchad Targum. Similarly, what we read on Rosh Chodesh, the holidays [38], and the Yomim Noraim, the individual does not have to read [in Shnayim Mikreh VeEchad Targum], for each one was read on its Shabbos. The Ramah writes that on a Shabbos of a Chasunah (wedding) he should read the Haftorah of Shabbos and not Sos Asis (Yishaya 61:10). For in his days there was a custom to read for a bridegroom Sos Asis, but in our days we do not know of such a custom. [All that the Mogen Avrohom wrote in subparagraphs 11 and 12 we do not know of such customs. Also, that which he wrote citing the Knesses HaGedolah that One who reads Shnayim Mikreh VeEchad Targum should read the haftorah of .the parsha and not the haftorah of the four parshios.. requires further scrutiny.]

I.

AriZal Pri Eitz Chaim

Shaar HaShabbos chapter three

The Mitzvah of Shnayim Mikreh VeEchad Targum in its time is on Friday after midday. For it is in this time that the Klipah  the outer shell separates from the realm of Kedusha. With the secret of Shnayim Mikreh VeEchad Targum we remove the outer shell from the holiness. After which, with the proper intentions of immersion we effect the light of the holiness of the Shabbos.

II.

Piturah DeAbba

Erev Shabbos

Chapter Ten

The custom of my teacher my Rabbi of blessed memory (the AriZal), was immediately after the Friday morning prayers, he would go to the synagogue or to his house of study, if there was a Sefer Torah there he would take it out and read in it the Parsha twice in the text and once in Targum. He would read the text from the Sefer Torah and he had a student that would read to him the Targum from the book of the Targum and he would repeat it after him.

This is what he would do for each and every verse until the end of the Parsha. He would not do as others brazenly read the whole Parsha in the text entirely one time, and then read it again a second time and then read it entirely in the Targum a third time. Rather, he would read each and every verse by itself, twice in the text and once in the Targum.

He would exert himself to read it on Friday and would say that this is the fundamental principle behind And it shall be on the sixth day that they prepare what they shall bring. Otherwise, if some great emergency would happen he would read the Shnayim Mikreh Echad Targum on Shabbos after the morning prayer and before the meal, as Rabbeinu HaKadosh commanded. He did not do it like those that do it in the middle of the Shabbos morning service.

After reading the Parsha he would immerse himself with the Friday immersion etc. My teacher and Rabbi used to say that once a person read the Parsha he has the strength to accept upon himself the additional holiness of the Shabbos. He would not immerse until he finished the Parsha.

III. Maharal Nesivos Olam I

Chapter 13

One may ask, why twice in the text and once in translation? The answer is that we find that the Torah was given at Mount Sinai, taught once again in the Ohel Moed, and a third time in Arvos Moav. At Arvos Moav, the Torah was explained, as it is stated (Dvarim 1:5), Moshe initiated the explanation of the Torah  Rashi adds into seventy languages. We, therefore, do it twice in the text and once in translation  which is an explanation of the Torah, for there is no need for seventy languages, rather each person should understand it in his own tongue, and the language of the multitude of Israel was Targum [Aramaic]. Therefore it must be done twice in the text and once in the Targum.

One must understand the fundamental principle behind the matter. Shnayim Mikreh VeEchad Targum corresponds to the three worlds. Torah is from the celestial world, and therefore one should read it twice in the text corresponding to this world and to the middle world. The third one is Targum which corresponds to the celestial world.

And do not wonder how it could be that Targum,which is insignificant,is a more lofty language than the Holy Tongue, for this is not the case. The language of Targum is not a private language specific to any one nation, rather it is all-encompassing to everyone. The Targum teaches to the entire world, encompassing all. On account of this, the Torah was given to everyone.

This also teaches why the third time it should be read in Targum, which is all-enclusive -the Torah belongs to everyone. However, the nations of the world did not wish to accept it. This is the significance of the loftiness of Torah, when it is for all. Thus, on account of the fact that the Torah comes from the celestial world to the lower world to Israel, we are therefore obligated to read it simultaneously with the congregation [of Israel] twice in the text and once in Targum. This is the essence of why the Torah was given at Sinai, retaught at the Ohel Moed and taught a third time in Arvos Moav in seventy languages. And understand this, for the matter is quite clear.

The author can be reached at [email protected]
Pakistan Rangers suffered heavy loss of life in retaliatory firing by the Indian forces in response to unprovoked violation of ceasefire from across the border.

By India Today Web Desk: Reports from the across the border suggest that 15 Pakistan Rangers were killed in the retaliatory firing by the Border Security Force. All the loss of lives were reported along the international border in the counter-firing by the Indian forces.

Earlier, Pakistani troops continued the ceasefire violations with firing and mortar shelling on Indian posts and civilian areas along the LoC and international border in Jammu, Kathua and Rajouri districts.

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READ: Pakistan trying to push in terrorists before snowfall: Intelligence reports

BEFITTING RESPONSE BY BSF

BSF and Army responded "appropriately and befittingly" a defence spokesman said. "There was unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan Army in Sunderbani, Pallanwala and Nowshera sectors of Rajouri and Jammu districts today," the spokesman said.

They used small arms, automatics, 82 mm mortars and 120 mm mortars in the firing and shelling, he said. "They are being responded appropriately and befittingly. No casualties to our troops have been reported," he said.

READ: Inside story of Indian Army's daring surgical strikes against Pakistan

FIRING CONTINUED THROUGH THE NIGHT

Firing and shelling continued overnight along the international border. A girl was injured in the firing from Pakistani side.

"At 1720 hour yesterday, Pakistan Rangers started unprovoked heavy firing and shelling in Katgus Sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba.

"It continued till 0500 hours till today in area of 24 BSF posts," a senior BSF officer said, adding the BSF responded strongly after which the firing stopped.WATCH:





PAK INTERNAL NOTE ON FIRING

Meanwhile, an internal note on cross-border firing prepared by the Pakistan Army confirms heavy loss due to Indian Army's action. However, it alleges that mortal shells fired by the BSF landed in villages damaging properties and injuring at least 12 people.

The Pakistan Army's note does not talk about the losses suffered by the Rangers in BSF's retaliatory firing.

(With inputs from PTI)

ALSO READ:



Pakistan spy racket: 2 Indians arrested, embassy staff asked to leave India

Another Pakistani spy working for ISI arrested in Rajasthan



Pak analyst confirms India's surgical strikes, says Pakistan itself to blame



--- ENDS ---
Not so long ago, Sanjaya Baru was a comet in the stratosphere of central power; now he is back on earth and has the time to look back. Some years ago he wrote a book about Manmohan Singh, for whom he acted as press advisor. Now, he has written one about Narasimha Rao, a friend of his father, whose career he watched for four decades. Narasimha Rao precipitately demolished licence permit raj. He had shown no earlier signs of such impetuosity. But then, he was thrust into a role he could have never imagined stepping into and was faced with the worst economic crisis in independent India's history. Soon after he stepped down as prime minister, he was erased from India's history by the return of the Nehru-Gandhi family. After the general election of 2014 removed the N-G family from power, there have been a couple of books about Rao-conventional, fawning biographical studies. This book, however, seeks to recall the one dramatic moment in the life of a reclusive politician, and of a nation that has since then forgotten its addiction to crises.

1991: How P. V. Narasimha Rao Made History By Sanjaya Baru Aleph Book Company Price Rs 371 Pages 224

The book is divided into chapters named after months. They do cover the events as they unfolded, but the events had a complex background, which too Baru seeks to cover. So, 1991: How P.V. Narasimha Rao Made History is also a compendium of what went wrong over the decades and why. In particular, Indira Gandhi's alignment with the Soviet Union in 1970 made India dependent on it for oil and military equipment. The Soviet Union's collapse in 1990 deprived Narasimha Rao of this prop, and he had to reconstruct India's external relations.

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There are some errors in the book. For instance, Narasimha Rao did not have a parliamentary majority in 1991 as Baru says (p. 14); he reached majority by persuading or buying some non-Congress members' support. Licence-permit raj was not post-Nehruvian (p. 15); it was introduced by the British government in 1939 on the outbreak of World War II, and retained by Nehru to construct his brand of socialism. Those in pre-Rao governments have claimed that they would have been great reformers but for Rajiv Gandhi's obstruction (p. 16). I know from notes in finance ministry files I read, for instance, that someone in the government preceding the one I served opposed obviously necessary policy changes, but he claimed later on that he was a sabotaged reformer; Baru accepts his and others' claims. A review, however, is too short to list too many of the shortcomings.

Baru thinks that the root cause of the 1991 crisis was private commercial borrowings. It may look like that from the Reserve Bank's balance of payments statistics, but that is a mistake. It was borrowings of public sector undertakings that were at the bottom of the crisis. In the 1980s, Japan was running huge payments surpluses, and its banks had mountains of cash. Latin America had bankrupted itself in the previous decade; India was the only major country that was still solvent. It had easy access to Japanese loans, and those in power in the 1980s encouraged the PSUs to take them to shore up reserves. This borrowing game ran into trouble when Iraq invaded Kuwait and the US beat it back; that led to a sharp rise in oil prices, worsened India's balance of payments, and made potential lenders wary. Trade credit became scarce for importers, exporters started delaying receipt of proceeds, and non-resident Indians began to withdraw their deposits with Indian banks. All these developments combined to cause the crisis. However, these are mere details; Baru's account of the year in the life of Narasimha Rao, based as it is on his personal rapport with him, is riveting nevertheless.





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The author is a columnist and a former chief economic advisor

--- ENDS ---
HSBC's vastly wealthy head of global banking Matthew Westerman has been throwing his ample girth around since arriving from Goldman Sachs in May.

Having cleared out several senior members of staff, he's now ruffled feathers by implementing an Orwellian-sounding system, which tracks how bankers use their time, how many clients they visit and how many deals they bring in.

Is pinguid Westerman, 51, carefully setting out his stall? He's mooted as the bank's next chief when brusque Stuart Gulliver finally shuffles off.

The fate of British steel, battered by cut-price Chinese imports, is of great concern to the Queen.

I'm reliably informed HM has instructed courtiers to keep her abreast of developments in the crisis-hit industry.

Did the bungling Duke of York raise the subject during his visit to China this week, I wonder?

We must excuse steelworkers who aren't entirely brimming with confidence if so.

Barclays 8.25million-a-year boss Jes Staley was chatty and affable with journalists as he announced the bank's third-quarter results yesterday.

Quite unlike his equally well-remunerated Lloyds counterpart, Antonio Horta-Osorio, who the day before made his first media appearance since his alleged tryst with sexy femmes d'affaires Dr Wendy Piatt. Tetchy and irritable, the erstwhile smoothy, 52, behaved like he had a hornet in his tights.

Trouble a casa Antonio?

Deutsche Bank trader Selasi Gbormittah, who was eliminated from the BBC's Great British Bake Off semi-final, was said on this week's final episode to be embarking on an 'epic motorbike trip around Europe'.

Has the charming Ghanaian packed in his job in the city? 'No comment,' says a Deutsche spokesman.

Faced with a whopping 11.5bn fine for mis-selling securities, it's possible there may be more pressing matters being dealt with at the struggling bank.

Incoming Moneysupermarket boss, stylish ex-John Lewis retail director Mark Lewis, says he's looking forward to delivering 'a clear mission' to customers of the price comparison website.
The protesters entered the theatres and forced cinegoers out.

By Rahul Noronha: Hindu right-wing organisations staged protests against the screening of Karan Johar's Ae Dil Hai Mushkil in theatres in Gwalior and Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh and in some parts of Chhattisgarh as well. In Jabalpur, hooligans forced people out of a theatre and compelled the theatre owner to stop the show.

In Jabalpur, activists claiming allegiance to a little-known body called Hindu Sewa Parishad disrupted the show of the film at a multiplex located in Samdariya Mall. The activists forced patrons out of the theatre as well.

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ALSO READ: Ae Dil Hai Mushkil provokes silent protest at Kalyan multiplex in Mumbai

Incidentally, both the Chief Secretary and Additional Chief Secretary, Home, were in Jabalpur on Friday.

The police, however, denied that the show was disrupted. "As of now, there is no information that the show was stopped," said SP, Jabalpur, Dr Ashish.

In Gwalior, Shiv Sena activists staged a protest outside Shree Talkies and a multiplex inside DD Mall. The protestors tore down posters of the movie and set them ablaze. Police arrived at the spot and detained the protestors and the show continued unhindered after that.

Protests were held outside a cinema hall at Rajnandgaon in Chhattisgarh as well.

The protests were held because Ae Dil Hai Mushkil stars Fawad Khan, a Pakistani actor. However, after peace was brokered between director Karan Johar and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, it seemed the film will be screened without a hitch.

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: Gaya (Bihar), Oct 28 (PTI) With the Supreme Court staying his bail, Rakesh Ranjan alias Rocky Yadav, who allegedly shot dead a Class XII student for overtaking his SUV, police today could not trace him.

A manhunt has been launched and raida are being conducted at various places in order to put him back to jail, Senior Superintendent of Police Garima Malik told PTI.

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"As soon as the Supreme Court judgement reached us the police raided Rocky Yadavs house in A P Colony, but did not find him there," the SP said.

The police has filed an application in the court of Additional District Judge SP Mishra seeking non-bailable arrest warrant against Yadav to send him back to jail in accordance with the apex court judgement.

Rocky Yadavs lawyer also filed an affidavit in the court of the ADJ during the day stating that he was out of Gaya and would come before the court tomorrow.

Rocky Yadavs mother and suspended JD(U) MLC Manorma Devi and her husband Bindi Yadav said the family respects the judiciary and their son would appear before the ADJ court tomorrow.

The apex court today stayed the bail granted by the Patna High Court on October 19 to Rocky Yadav in connection with the death of Aditya Sachdeva in the road rage incident- and thus making clear he will have to go back to jail.

Rocky is accused of shooting and killing Aditya Sachdeva, a Class XII student who was driving his Maruti car, for overtaking his SUV on May 7 this year near Gaya. The incident had triggered outrage across the country.

The Nitish Kumar government filed an appeal in the Supreme Court challenging the Patna High Courts granting bail to Rocky Yadav. PTI CORR SNS MD TIR

--- ENDS ---
The following companies are subsidiares of Illinois Tool Works: A V Co 1 Limited, A V Co 2 Limited, A V Co 3 Limited, ACCU-LUBE Manufacturing GmbH - Schmiermittel und -gerate -, AIP/BI Holdings Inc., Accessories Marketing Holding Corp., Advanced Molding Company Inc., Allen France SAS, Alpine Engineered Products, Alpine Systems Corporation, Anaerobicos S.r.l., AppliChem GmbH, Avery Berkel France, Avery India Limited, Avery Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Avery Weigh Tronix, Avery Weigh-Tronix Finance Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix International Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix LLC, Avery Weigh-Tronix Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix Properties Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix Suzhou Weighing Technology Co. Ltd., Azon Limited, B.C. Immo, Beijing Miller Electric Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Berkel Ireland Limited, Berrington UK, Brapenta Eletronica Ltda., Brooks Instrument B.V., Brooks Instrument GmbH, Brooks Instrument KFT, Brooks Instrument Korea Ltd., Brooks Instrument LLC, Brooks Instrument Shanghai Co. Ltd, Buell Industries Inc., CCI Realty Company, CFC Europe GmbH, CS Australia Pty Limited, CS Mexico Holding Company S DE RL DE CV, Calvia Spolka z Ograniczona Odpowiedzialnosci, Capital Ventures Australasia S.a r.l, Capmax Logistica S.A. de C.V., Celeste Industries Corporation, Coeur, Coeur Asia Limited, Coeur Holding Company, Coeur Inc., Coeur Shanghai Medical Appliance Trading Co. Ltd, Compagnie Hobart, Compagnie de Materiel et d'Equipements Techniques-Comet, Constructions Isothermiques Bontami C.I.B., Crane Carrier Company, Denison Mayes Group Limited, Despatch Industries, Diagraph Corporation Sdn. Bhd, Diagraph ITW Mexico S. de R.L. De C.V., Diagraph Mexico S.A. DE C.V., Dongguan Ark-Les Electric Components Co. Ltd., Dongguan CK Branding Co. Ltd., Duo Fast de Espana S.A.U., Duo-Fast Korea Co. Ltd., Duo-Fast LLC, E.C.S. d.o.o., E2M Production B.V.., E2M Technologies B.V.., E2M Technologies Inc.., ECS Cable Protection Sp. Zoo, ELRO Grosskuchen GmbH, ELRO Holding AG, ELRO-WERKE AG, Elro Group, Eltex-Elektrostatik-Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Envases Multipac S.A. de C.V., Eurotec Srl, Exhibit 21, FEG Investments L.L.C., Filtertek De Mexico Holding Inc., Filtertek De Mexico S.A. de C.V., Filtertek SAS, GC Financement SA, Gamko B.V., Gun Hwa Platech Taicang Co. Ltd., HOBART Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Hartness International, Hobart Andina S.A.S., Hobart Belgium B.V., Hobart Brothers International Chile Limitada, Hobart Brothers LLC, Hobart Dayton Mexicana S. de R.L. de C.V., Hobart Food Equipment Co. Ltd., Hobart International Singapore Pte. Ltd., Hobart Japan K.K., Hobart Korea LLC, Hobart LLC, Hobart Nederland B.V., Hobart Sales & Service Inc., Hobart Scandinavia ApS, Hobart Techniek B.V., Horis, ILC Investments Holdings Inc., ITW AEP LLC, ITW AOC LLC, ITW Aircraft Investments Inc., ITW Ampang Industries Philippines Inc., ITW Appliance Components EOOD, ITW Appliance Components S.A. de C.V., ITW Appliance Components S.r.l.a, ITW Appliance Components d.o.o., ITW Australia Holdings Pty Ltd, ITW Australia Property Holdings Pty Ltd., ITW Australia Pty Ltd, ITW Automotive Components Chongqing Co. Ltd., ITW Automotive Components Langfang Co. Ltd., ITW Automotive Japan K.K., ITW Automotive Korea LLC, ITW Automotive Parts Shanghai Co. Ltd, ITW Automotive Products GmbH, ITW Automotive Products Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Bailly Comte, ITW Befestigungssysteme GmbH, ITW Belgium B.V., ITW Brazilian Nominee L.L.C., ITW Building Components Group Inc., ITW CER, ITW CP Distribution Center Holland BV, ITW CS UK Ltd., ITW Canada Inc., ITW Celeste Inc., ITW Chemical Products Ltda, ITW Chemical Products Scandinavia ApS, ITW China Investment Company Limited, ITW Colombia S.A.S., ITW Construction Products AB, ITW Construction Products AS, ITW Construction Products ApS, ITW Construction Products CZ s.r.o., ITW Construction Products Italy Srl, ITW Construction Products OU, ITW Construction Products OY, ITW Construction Products Shanghai Co. Ltd., ITW Construction Products Singapore Pte. Ltd., ITW Construction Services Manila Inc., ITW Contamination Control B.V., ITW Contamination Control Wujiang Co. Ltd., ITW Covid Security Group Inc., ITW DS Investments Inc., ITW DelFast do Brasil Ltda., ITW Denmark ApS, ITW Deutschland GmbH, ITW Diagraph GmbH, ITW Dynatec, ITW Dynatec Adhesive Equipment Suzhou Co. Ltd., ITW Dynatec GmbH, ITW Dynatec Kabushiki Kaisha, ITW EAE B.V., ITW EAE Mexico S de RL de CV, ITW EF&C France SAS, ITW EF&C Selb GmbH, ITW EU Holdings Ltd., ITW Electronic Business Asia Co. Limited, ITW Electronic Components/Products Shanghai Co. Ltd., ITW Electronics Suzhou Co. Ltd., ITW Epsilon Sarl, ITW Espana S.L., ITW European Finance Co. Ltd., ITW European Finance II Co. Ltd., ITW European Finance III Co. Ltd., ITW FEG Hong Kong Limited, ITW FEG do Brasil Industria e Comercio Ltda., ITW Fastener Products GmbH, ITW Fluids and Hygiene Solutions Ltda., ITW Food Equipment Group LLC, ITW GH LLC, ITW GSE ApS, ITW GSE Inc., ITW Gamma Sarl, ITW German Management LLC, ITW Global Investments Holdings LLC, ITW Global Investments Holdings Y Compania Sociedad en Comandita por Acciones, ITW Global Investments Inc., ITW Global Tire Repair Europe GmbH, ITW Global Tire Repair Inc., ITW Global Tire Repair Japan K.K., ITW Graphics Asia Limited, ITW Graphics Thailand Ltd., ITW Great Britain Investment & Licensing Holding Company, ITW Group France Luxembourg S.ar.l., ITW HLP Thailand Co. Ltd., ITW Holding Quimica B.C. S.L. Sole Shareholder Company, ITW Holdings Australia L.P., ITW Holdings I Limited, ITW Holdings II Limited, ITW Holdings III Limited, ITW Holdings IV Limited, ITW Holdings IX Limited, ITW Holdings Inc., ITW Holdings V Limited, ITW Holdings VI Limited, ITW Holdings VII Limited, ITW Holdings VIII Limited, ITW Holdings X Limited, ITW Holdings XI Limited, ITW ILC Holdings I Inc., ITW IPG Investments LLC, ITW Imaden Industria e Comercio Ltda., ITW India Private Limited, ITW International Holdings LLC, ITW Invest Holding GmbH, ITW Ireland Holdings Unlimited Company, ITW Ireland Unlimited Company, ITW Italy Holding Srl, ITW Japan Ltd., ITW Korea LLC, ITW LLC & Co. KG, ITW Limited, ITW Lys Fusion S.r.l., ITW Materials Technology Shanghai Co. Ltd., ITW Meritex Sdn. Bhd., ITW Metal Fasteners S.L., ITW Mexico Holding Company S. De R.L. de C.V., ITW Mexico Holdings LLC, ITW Morlock GmbH, ITW Mortgage Investments II Inc., ITW Mortgage Investments III Inc., ITW Mortgage Investments IV Inc., ITW Netherlands Administration BV, ITW Netherlands Beta B.V., ITW Netherlands Finance Alpha BV, ITW New Universal LLC, ITW New Zealand, ITW Ningbo Components & Fastenings Systems Co. Ltd., ITW Novadan Sp. Z.o.o., ITW PPF Brasil Adesivos Ltda., ITW Packaging Technology China Co. Ltd., ITW Participations S.a r.l., ITW Pension Funds Trustee Company, ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids Japan Co. Ltd., ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids Korea Limited, ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids OOO, ITW Performance Polymers ApS, ITW Performance Polymers Wujiang Co. Ltd., ITW Performance Polymers and Fluids Group FZE, ITW Peru S.A.C., ITW Poly Mex S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Polymers Sealants North America Inc., ITW Pronovia s.r.o., ITW Pte. Ltd., ITW Qufu Automotive Cooling Systems Co. Ltd., ITW Real Estate Germany GmbH, ITW Residuals III L.L.C., ITW Residuals IV L.L.C., ITW Rivex, ITW SMPI, ITW SPG Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Simco-Ion Shenzhen Co. Ltd., ITW Slovakia s.r.o., ITW Spain Holdings S.L., ITW Specialty Film LLC, ITW Specialty Films France, ITW Specialty Materials Suzhou Co. Ltd., ITW Sverige AB, ITW Sweden Holding AB, ITW Test & Measurement Equipment Shanghai Co. Ltd, ITW Test & Measurement GmbH, ITW Test and Measurement Italia Srl, ITW Test and Measurement Services Industry and Trade Ltd., ITW Texwipe Philippines Inc., ITW Thermal Films Shanghai Co. Ltd., ITW UK, ITW UK Finance Beta Limited, ITW UK Finance Delta Limited, ITW UK Finance Gamma Limited, ITW UK Finance Limited, ITW UK Finance Zeta Ltd., ITW UK II Limited, ITW Universal II LLC, ITW Welding, ITW Welding AB, ITW Welding GmbH, ITW Welding Products B.V., ITW Welding Products Group FZE, ITW Welding Products Group S. DE R.L. De C.V., ITW Welding Products Italy Srl, ITW Welding Products Limited Liability Company, ITW Welding Produtos Para Solgdagem Ltda., ITW Welding Singapore Pte. Ltd., ITW de France, ITW do Brasil Industrial e Comercial Ltda., Illinois Tool Works Chile Limitada, Illinois Tool Works ITW Nederland B.V., Illinois Tool Works Inc., Impar Comercio E Representacoes Ltda., Industrie Plastic Elsasser GmbH, Inmobiliaria Cit. S.A. de C.F., Innova Temperlite Servicios S.A. de C.V., Innovacion y Transformacion Automotriz S.A. de C.V., Instron Brasil Equipamentos Cientificos Ltda., Instron Foreign Sales Corp. Limited, Instron France S.A.S., Instron GmbH, Instron Japan Company Ltd., Instron Korea LLC, Instron Shanghai Ltd., Instron Thailand Limited, International Leasing Company LLC, Isolenge - ITW Sistemas de Isolamento Termico Ltda., Itw Spraytec, KCPL Mauritius Holdings, Kester, Kleinmann GmbH, Krafft S.L., Loma Systems, Loma Systems BV, Loma Systems Canada Inc., Loma Systems sro, Lombard Pressings Limited, Lumex Inc., Lys Fusion Poland Sp. z.o.o., M&C Specialties Co., MAGNAFLUX GmbH, MEHB Holdings Limited, MGHG Property LLC, MTS 2 LLC., MTS 3 LLC., MTS China Holdings LLC, MTS Europe Holdings LLC, MTS Holdings France S.a.r.l., MTS Japan Ltd.., MTS Korea Inc.., MTS Systems China Co. Ltd., MTS Systems Corporation, MTS Systems Danmark ApS., MTS Systems Europe B.V., MTS Systems Finance C.V.., MTS Systems Germany GmbH, MTS Systems Holding B.V.., MTS Systems Hong Kong Incorporated, MTS Systems Limited, MTS Systems Norden Aktiebolag, MTS Systems S.r.l, MTS Systems., MTS Systems.., MTS Sytems Do Brazil, MTS Testing Solutions India Private Limited., MTS Testing Systems Canada Ltd., Manufacturing Avancee S.A., Meritex Technology Suzhou Co. Ltd., Meurer Verpackungssysteme GmbH, Miller Electric Mfg. LLC, Miller Insurance Ltd., NDT Holding LLC, NOVADAN APS, North Star Imaging Inc., Nova Chimica S.r.l., Orbitalum Tools GmbH, PENTA-91 OOO, PR. A. I. Srl, PT ITW Construction Products Indonesia, Pacific Concept Industries Limited Enping, Panreac Quimica S.L., Paslode Fasteners Shanghai Co. Ltd., Peerless Machinery Corp., Polyrey, Premark FEG L.L.C., Premark HII Holdings LLC, Premark International, Premark International LLC, Prolex Sociedad Anonima, QSA Global Inc., Quimica Industrial Mediterranea S.L., R&D Engineering A/S., R&D Prague s.r.o., R&D Steel ApS., R&D Test Systems A/S., R&D Tools and Structures A/S., RDGDK Engineering Private Limited, Ramset Fasteners Hong Kong Ltd., Rapid Cook LLC, Refrigeration France, S.E.E. Sistemas Industria E Comercio Ltda., ST Mexico Holdings LLC, Sealant Systems International Inc., Sentinel Asia Yuhan Hoesa, Shanghai ITW Plastic & Metal Co. Ltd, Simco Japan Inc., Simco Nederland B.V., Societe de Prospection et dInventions Techniques  SPIT, Speedline Holdings I Inc., Speedline Holdings I LLC, Speedline Technologies GmbH, Speedline Technologies Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Speedline Technologies Mexico Services S. de R.L. de C.V., Stokvis Celix Portugal Unipessoal LDA, Stokvis Danmark ApS, Stokvis Holdings S.A.R.L., Stokvis Promi s.r.o, Stokvis Prostick Tapes Private Limited, Stokvis Tapes B.V., Stokvis Tapes Benelux B.V., Stokvis Tapes Deutschland GmbH, Stokvis Tapes France, Stokvis Tapes Hong Kong Co. Limited, Stokvis Tapes Italia s.r.l., Stokvis Tapes Limited, Stokvis Tapes Limited Liability Company, Stokvis Tapes Norge AS, Stokvis Tapes Oy, Stokvis Tapes Polska Sp Z.O.O., Stokvis Tapes Shanghai Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes Sverige AB, Stokvis Tapes Taiwan Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes Tianjin Co. Ltd., Stolvis Holdings II S.A.R.L., Subsidiaries, Technopack Industria Comercio Consultoria e Representacoes Ltda., Teknek China Limited, Teknek Japan Limited, Teksaleco Ltd., The Miller Group Ltd, Thirode Grandes Cuisines Poligny, Tien Tai Electrode Co. Ltd., Tien Tai Electrode Kunshan Co. Ltd., Unichemicals Industria e Comercio Ltda., VR-Leasing Sarita GmbH & Co. Immobilien KG, VS European Holdco BV, Valeron Strength Films B.V., Veneta Decalcogomme S.r.l., Versachem Chile S.A., Vesta, Vesta Global Limited, Vesta Guangzhou Catering Equipment Co. Ltd, Viltronics Soltec, Vitronics Soltec B.V., Wachs Canada Ltd., Wachs Subsea LLC, Weigh-Tronix Canada ULC, Weigh-Tronix UK Limited, Wilsonart International Holdings LLC, Wynn Oil South Africa Pty Ltd., Wynn's Automotive France, Wynn's Belgium BVBA, Wynn's Italia Srl, Wynn's Mekuba India Pvt Ltd, and Zip-Pak International B.V..

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Koninklijke Philips N.V. operates as a health technology company in North America and internationally. It operates through Diagnosis & Treatment Businesses, Connected Care Businesses, and Personal Health Businesses segments. The company provides diagnostic imaging solutions, includes magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography (CT) systems, X-ray systems, and detector-based spectral CT solutions, as well as molecular and hybrid imaging solutions for nuclear medicine; integrated interventional systems; echography solutions focused on diagnosis, treatment planning and guidance for cardiology, general imaging, obstetrics/gynecology, and point-of-care applications; proprietary software to enable diagnostics and intervention; and enterprise diagnostic informatics products and services. It also offers acute patient management solutions; emergency care solutions; sleep and respiratory care solutions; and electronic medical record and care management solutions. In addition, the company provides power toothbrushes, brush heads, and interdental cleaning and teeth whitening products; infant feeding and digital parental solutions; and male grooming and beauty products and solutions. It has a strategic collaboration with Ibex Medical Analytics Ltd. to jointly promote the digital pathology and AI solutions to hospitals, health networks, and pathology laboratories worldwide, as well as a strategic partnership agreement with NICO.LAB. The company was formerly known as Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. and changed its name to Koninklijke Philips N.V. in May 2013. Koninklijke Philips N.V. was founded in 1891 and is headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
The following companies are subsidiares of Bristol-Myers Squibb: 1096271 B.C. ULC, 345 Park LLC, A.G. Medical Services P.A., AHI Investment LLC, AbVitro LLC, Abraxis BioScience Australia Pty Ltd., Abraxis BioScience Inc., Abraxis BioScience International Holding Company Inc., Abraxis BioScience LLC, Abraxis BioScience Puerto Rico LLC, Acetylon Pharmaceuticals Inc., Adnexus, Adnexus a Bristol-Myers Squibb R&D Company, Allard Labs Acquisition G.P., Amira Pharmaceuticals, Amira Pharmaceuticals Inc., Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Apothecon LLC, B-MS Generx Unlimited Company, BMS Benelux Holdings B.V., BMS Bermuda Nominees L.L.C., BMS Data Acquisition Company LLC, BMS Forex Company, BMS Holdings Sarl, BMS Holdings Spain S.L., BMS International Insurance Designated Activity Company, BMS Investco SAS, BMS Korea Holdings L.L.C., BMS Latin American Nominees L.L.C., BMS Luxembourg Partners L.L.C., BMS Omega Bermuda Holdings Finance Ltd., BMS Pharmaceutical Korea Limited, BMS Pharmaceuticals Germany Holdings B.V., BMS Pharmaceuticals International Holdings Netherlands B.V., BMS Pharmaceuticals Korea Holdings B.V., BMS Pharmaceuticals Mexico Holdings B.V., BMS Pharmaceuticals Netherlands Holdings B.V., BMS Real Estate LLC, BMS Spain Investments LLC, BMS Strategic Portfolio Investments Holdings Inc., Blisa Acquisition G.P., Bristol (Iran) S.A., Bristol Iran Private Company Limited, Bristol Laboratories Inc., Bristol Laboratories International S.A., Bristol Laboratories Medical Information Systems Inc., Bristol-Myers (Andes) L.L.C., Bristol-Myers (Private) Limited, Bristol-Myers Middle East S.A.L., Bristol-Myers Overseas Corporation, Bristol-Myers Squibb (China) Investment Co. Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb (China) Pharmaceuticals Co. Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb (Israel) Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb (NZ) Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb (Proprietary) Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb (Shanghai) Trading Co. Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb (Singapore) Pte. Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb (Taiwan) Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb (West Indies) Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb A.E., Bristol-Myers Squibb Aktiebolag, Bristol-Myers Squibb Argentina S. R. L., Bristol-Myers Squibb Australia Pty. Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb Axia Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb B.V., Bristol-Myers Squibb Belgium S.A., Bristol-Myers Squibb Business Services Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Canada Co., Bristol-Myers Squibb Canada International Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Delta Company Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Denmark Filial of Bristol-Myers Squibb AB, Bristol-Myers Squibb EMEA Sarl, Bristol-Myers Squibb Egypt LLC, Bristol-Myers Squibb Epsilon Holdings Unlimited Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb Farmaceutica Ltda., Bristol-Myers Squibb Farmaceutica Portuguesa S.A., Bristol-Myers Squibb GesmbH, Bristol-Myers Squibb GmbH & Co. KGaA, Bristol-Myers Squibb Holding Germany GmbH & Co. KG, Bristol-Myers Squibb Holdings 2002 Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Holdings Germany Verwaltungs GmbH, Bristol-Myers Squibb Holdings Ireland Unlimited Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb Holdings Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Holdings Pharma Ltd. Liability Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb Ilaclari Inc., Bristol-Myers Squibb India Pvt. Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb International Company Unlimited Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb International Corporation, Bristol-Myers Squibb Investco L.L.C., Bristol-Myers Squibb K.K., Bristol-Myers Squibb Kft., Bristol-Myers Squibb Luxembourg International S.C.A., Bristol-Myers Squibb Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Bristol-Myers Squibb MEA GmbH, Bristol-Myers Squibb Manufacturing Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb Marketing Services S.R.L., Bristol-Myers Squibb Middle East & Africa FZ-LLC, Bristol-Myers Squibb Norway Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb Nutricionales de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Bristol-Myers Squibb Peru S.A., Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharma (HK) Ltd, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharma (Thailand) Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharma Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharma EEIG, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharma Holding Company LLC, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharma Ventures Corporation, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceuticals Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceuticals Unlimited Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb Polska Sp. z o.o., Bristol-Myers Squibb Products SA, Bristol-Myers Squibb Puerto Rico Inc., Bristol-Myers Squibb Puerto Rico/Sanofi Pharmaceutical Partnership Puerto Rico, Bristol-Myers Squibb Romania S.R.L., Bristol-Myers Squibb S.A.U., Bristol-Myers Squibb S.r.l., Bristol-Myers Squibb SA, Bristol-Myers Squibb Sanofi Pharmaceuticals Holding Partnership, Bristol-Myers Squibb Sarl, Bristol-Myers Squibb Service Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb Services Sp. z o.o., Bristol-Myers Squibb Spol. s r.o., Bristol-Myers Squibb Theta Finance Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb Trustees Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Verwaltungs GmbH, Bristol-Myers Squibb de Colombia S.A., Bristol-Myers Squibb de Costa Rica Sociedad Anonima, Bristol-Myers Squibb de Guatemala S.A., Bristol-Myers Squibb de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Bristol-Myers Squibb/Astrazeneca EEIG, Bristol-Myers Squibb/Pfizer EEIG, Bristol-Myers Squibb/Sanofi Pharmaceuticals Partnership, Bristol-Myers de Venezuela S.C.A., CHT I LLC, CHT II LLC, CHT III LLC, CHT IV LLC, CR Finance Company LLC, Cardioxyl Pharmaceuticals, Cardioxyl Pharmaceuticals Inc., Celem LLC, Celem Ltd., Celgene, Celgene A.B., Celgene AS, Celgene Ab (Finland), Celgene Alpine Investment Co. II LLC, Celgene Alpine Investment Co. III LLC, Celgene Alpine Investment Co. LLC, Celgene ApS, Celgene B.V., Celgene BVBA, Celgene Brasil Produtos Farmaceuticos Ltda., Celgene CAR LLC, Celgene CAR Ltd., Celgene Chemicals Sarl, Celgene China Holdings LLC, Celgene Co., Celgene Corporation, Celgene Distribution B.V., Celgene EngMab GmbH, Celgene Europe B.V., Celgene Europe Limited, Celgene European Investment Company LLC, Celgene Financing Company LLC, Celgene Global Holdings Sarl, Celgene GmbH [Austria], Celgene GmbH [Germany], Celgene GmbH [Switzerland], Celgene Holdings East Corporation, Celgene Holdings II Sarl, Celgene Holdings III Sarl, Celgene Ilac Pazarlama ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Celgene Inc., Celgene International Holdings Corporation, Celgene International II Sarl, Celgene International III Sarl, Celgene International Inc., Celgene International Sarl, Celgene K.K., Celgene Kft., Celgene Limited [Hong Kong], Celgene Limited [Ireland], Celgene Limited [New Zealand], Celgene Limited [Taiwan], Celgene Limited [UK], Celgene Logistics Sarl, Celgene Ltd, Celgene Luxembourg Sarl, Celgene Management Sarl, Celgene NJ Investment Co, Celgene Netherlands B.V., Celgene Netherlands Investment B.V., Celgene Pharmaceutical (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Celgene Pte. Ltd., Celgene Pty Ltd, Celgene Puerto Rico Distribution LLC, Celgene Quanticel Research Inc, Celgene R&D Sarl, Celgene RIVOT LLC, Celgene RIVOT Ltd., Celgene RIVOT SRL, Celgene Receptos Limited, Celgene Receptos Sarl, Celgene Research Incubator At Summit West LLC, Celgene Research S.L.U., Celgene Research and Development Company LLC, Celgene Research and Development I ULC, Celgene Research and Development II LLC, Celgene Research and Investment Company II LLC, Celgene S. de R.L. de C.V., Celgene S.L.U., Celgene S.R.L., Celgene SAS, Celgene Sarl AU, Celgene Sdn Bhd, Celgene Services Sarl, Celgene Sociedade Unipessoal Lda, Celgene Sp. Z.o.o., Celgene Sro [Czech Republic], Celgene Summit Investment Co, Celgene Switzerland Holding Sarl, Celgene Switzerland II LLC, Celgene Switzerland Investment Sarl, Celgene Switzerland LLC, Celgene Switzerland Sarl, Celgene Tri A Holdings Ltd., Celgene Tri Sarl, Celgene UK Distribution Limited, Celgene UK Holdings Limited, Celgene UK Manufacturing II Limited, Celgene UK Manufacturing III Limited, Celgene UK Manufacturing Limited, Celgene d.o.o., Celgene sro [Slovakia], Celmed LLC, Celmed Ltd., ConvaTec Divestiture, Cormorant Pharmaceuticals, Cormorant Pharmaceuticals AB, Crosp Ltd., Delinia Inc., Deuteria Pharmaceuticals Inc., DuPont Pharmaceuticals, E. R. Squibb & Sons Inter-American Corporation, E. R. Squibb & Sons L.L.C., E. R. Squibb & Sons Limited, EWI Corporation, EngMab Sarl, F-star Alpha, FermaVir Pharmaceuticals L.L.C., FermaVir Research L.L.C., Flexus Biosciences, Flexus Biosciences Inc., Forbius, Galecto Biotech, GenPharm International L.L.C., Gloucester Pharmaceuticals LLC, Grove Insurance Company Ltd., Heyden Farmaceutica Portuguesa Limitada, IFM Therapeutics, Impact Biomedicines Inc., Inhibitex, Inhibitex L.L.C., Innate Tumor Immunity Inc., JuMP Holdings LLC, Juno Therapeutics GmbH, Juno Therapeutics Inc., Kosan Biosciences, Kosan Biosciences Incorporated, Linson Investments Limited, Mead Johnson (Manufacturing) Jamaica Limited, Mead Johnson Jamaica Ltd., Medarex, Morris Avenue Investment II LLC, Morris Avenue Investment LLC, MyoKardia, O.o.o. Bristol-Myers Squibb, Oy Bristol-Myers Squibb (Finland) AB, Padlock Therapeutics, Padlock Therapeutics Inc., Pharmion LLC, Princeton Pharmaceutical Products Inc., Receptos LLC, Receptos Services LLC, RedoxTherapies Inc., Route 22 Real Estate Holding Corporation, SPV A Holdings ULC, Seamair Insurance DAC, Signal Pharmaceuticals LLC, Sino-American Shanghai Squibb Pharmaceuticals Limited, Societe Francaise de Complements Alimentaires(S.O.F.C.A.), Squibb Middle East S.A., Summit West Celgene LLC, Swords Laboratories, VentiRx Pharmaceuticals Inc., Westwood-Intrafin SA, Westwood-Squibb Pharmaceuticals Inc., X-Body Inc., ZymoGenetics, ZymoGenetics Inc., ZymoGenetics LLC, ZymoGenetics Paymaster LLC, iPierian, and iPierian Inc..

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In an attempt to maintain Army officers; superiority in the Military Engineering Services, the military's Engineer-in-chief refused to implement Defence Ministry's orders to appoint three civilian Additional Director Generals there.

By Ajit Kumar Dubey: The Indian Army may have been seeking parity with 'babus' in terms of status and salary but when it comes to giving equal treatment to civilians working under them, they are not so generous.

While military officers are complaining over downgrading of their status vis-a-vis civilian officers in the Defence Ministry headquarters, they are creating obstacles for appointment of civilian officers over them in the Military Engineering Services (MES).

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In an apparent attempt to maintain Army officers' superiority in the MES, Army's Engineer-in-Chief is not even implementing Defence Ministry's orders to appoint three Additional Director Generals there.

Also Read: After outrage over downgrading military ranks, Manohar Parrikar says discrepancies will be addressed

CIVILIAN OFFICERS DISCRIMINATED AGAINST?

The MES is one of the largest government construction organisation which carries out works worth over Rs 16,000 crore annually, which is much more than the work done by the Central Public Welfare Department.

The MES is an inter-service organisation and functions directly under the Defence Ministry and is manned by both civilian and military officers. However, MES is headed by a Lt General-rank Army officer known as the Engineer-in-Chief.

According to civilian officials of the Indian Defence Service of Engineers cadre, their officers were under-utilised and despite seniority, they were not involved in any decision-making or policy formulation in MES.

"Based on the frequent complaints and representations by officers of IDSE, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar gave approval for creation of three new posts of ADGs for our officers," the officials said.

In view of the given directions, Defence Ministry's Joint Secretary (Works and Lands) Manish Thakur-an IAS officer, issued an order on August 16 saying, "Defence Ministry has approved the creation of posts of Additional Director General (Northeast Infrastructure) for overseeing work of Command Chief Engineering Services of Army located in the Northeast."

Similarly, the Ministry also informed the Engineer-in-Chief that approval has been granted for creation of such posts in the Coast Guard and Northern Command also and the orders should be carried out with immediate effect.

Also Read: Defence Ministry finally initiates action for procurement of bullet proof helmets

'MILITARY OFFICERS DEFIED ORDERS, TRYING TO GET ORDERS SCRAPPED'

"Military officers in the MES not only defied the Defence Ministry orders but are also trying to get the orders scrapped in their favour," the officials alleged.

Military officers in MES contend that the Defence Ministry move may prove to be "counterproductive" and may create command and control problems in the organisation's functioning.

Civilian officers say Army officers looking after MES functioning in military commands are also responsible for combat duties in their respective areas and IDES officers would have helped in reducing their work load.

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CIVILIAN-MILITARY RIFT GROWS

The conflict situation in MES has led to a situation in field areas where civilian and military officers are not taking orders from each other and are waiting for the issues to be resolved at the top level, adversely impacting the functioning of the MES, the officers alleged.

The two warring factions have now reached the Defence Minister's court after the civilian officials complained.

Manohar Parrikar is now trying to settle the issues between the two parties, Defence Ministry officials said.

It is learnt that the Minister has held meetings with the Engineer-in-Chief to resolve the issue for the smooth functioning of the Defence Ministry agency.

The tussle in the MES is happening at a time when military officers are opposing a Defence Ministry letter in which their status has been downgraded with respect to civilian officers.

Also Read:

We used to hear about Israeli army, now world talking about India: Modi



Punjab's Amarinder Singh says Manohar Parrikar worst defence minister ever, calls him a joker



--- ENDS ---

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Axalta Coating Systems Ltd., through its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes high-performance coatings systems in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. It operates through two segments, Performance Coatings and Transportation Coatings. The company offers water and solvent-borne products and systems to repair damaged vehicles for independent body shops, multi-shop operators, and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) dealership body shops. It also provides functional and decorative liquid, and powder coatings used in various industrial applications, including architectural cladding and fittings, automotive coatings, general industrial, job coaters, energy solutions, HVAC, appliances, industrial wood, coil, and oil and gas pipelines; and coatings for building materials, cabinet, wood and luxury vinyl flooring, and furniture market under the Voltatex, AquaEC, Durapon, Hydropon, UNRIVALED, Tufcote, and Ceranamel for liquid coatings; and Alesta, Nap-Gard, Abcite, Teodur, and Plascoat brands for powder coatings. In addition, the company develops and supplies electrocoat, primer, the basecoat, and clearcoat products for OEMs of light and commercial vehicles; and coatings systems for various commercial applications, including HDT, bus, and rail under the Imron, Imron Elite, Centari, Rival, Corlar epoxy undercoats, and AquaEC brands. It also sells its product under the Audurra, Challenger, Chemophan, ColorNet, Cromax, Cromax Mosaic, Durapon 70, Duxone, Harmonized Coating Technologies, Imron ExcelPro, Lutophen, Nason, Spies Hecker, Standox, Stollaquid, Syntopal, Syrox, Raptor, U-POL, and Vermeera brand names. The company was formerly known as Axalta Coating Systems Bermuda Co., Ltd. and changed its name to Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. in August 2014. Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. was founded in 1866 and is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Here's how much BB10 aam aadmi contestants are being paid.

By India Today Web Desk: This season of Bigg Boss is creating a lot of waves, thanks to its super-entertaining contestants. Obviously, one would think that its contestants (both aam aadmi and celebrities) must be receiving a heavy amount for their contribution to the controversial reality show.

Also read:Bigg Boss 10 Day 11: Bani J calls Indiawale 'gande log'; Om Swami, Mona Lisa in jail again



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But looks like our assumptions were wrong.

According to Bollywoodlife, aam aadmi contestants are not getting a dime for their appearance on the show. Yes, you read that right.

Meanwhile, celeb contestants like Bani J and Rahul Dev are the two highest paid contestants of the show.

"The celebrities were given a signing amount, plus they are also being paid a fixed weekly remuneration. But the commoners are not being paid anything. Their pay scale will depend on the weeks they spend inside the house. But obviously, if a commoner manages to win the show, he/she will get the winning amount," a Bollywoodlife quoted a source as saying.

We wonder how much Priyanka Jagga received for creating all that drama in the Bigg Boss house.



Bigg Boss Season 10 airs every Mon-Fri at 10:30 pm and every Sat-Sun at 9 pm.



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Wells Fargo & Company, a diversified financial services company, provides banking, investment, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance products and services in the United States and internationally. It operates through four segments: Consumer Banking and Lending; Commercial Banking; Corporate and Investment Banking; and Wealth and Investment Management. The Consumer Banking and Lending segment offers diversified financial products and services for consumers and small businesses. Its financial products and services include checking and savings accounts, and credit and debit cards, as well as home, auto, personal, and small business lending services. The Commercial Banking segment provides financial solutions to private, family owned, and certain public companies. Its products and services include banking and credit products across various industry sectors and municipalities, secured lending and lease products, and treasury management services. The Corporate and Investment Banking segment offers a suite of capital markets, banking, and financial products and services to corporate, commercial real estate, government, and institutional clients. Its products and services comprise corporate banking, investment banking, treasury management, commercial real estate lending and servicing, equity, and fixed income solutions, as well as sales, trading, and research capabilities services. The Wealth and Investment Management segment provides personalized wealth management, brokerage, financial planning, lending, private banking, and trust and fiduciary products and services to affluent, high-net worth, and ultra-high-net worth clients. It also operates through financial advisors. Wells Fargo & Company was founded in 1852 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.
Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc., an offshore energy services company, provides specialty services to the offshore energy industry primarily in Brazil, the Gulf of Mexico, North Sea, the Asia Pacific, and West Africa regions. The company operates through three segments: Well Intervention, Robotics, and Production Facilities. It engages in the installation of flowlines, control umbilicals, and manifold assemblies and risers; trenching and burial of pipelines; installation and tie-in of riser and manifold assembly; commissioning, testing, and inspection activities; and provision of cable and umbilical lay, and connection services. The company also provides well intervention, intervention engineering, and production enhancement services; inspection, repair, and maintenance of production structures, trees, jumpers, risers, pipelines, and subsea equipment; and related support services. In addition, it offers reclamation and remediation services; well plug and abandonment services; pipeline abandonment services; and site inspections. Additionally, the company offers oil and natural gas processing facilities and services; and fast response system, as well as site clearance and subsea support services. It serves independent oil and gas producers and suppliers, pipeline transmission companies, renewable energy companies, and offshore engineering and construction firms. The company was formerly known as Cal Dive International, Inc. and changed its name to Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. in March 2006. Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. was incorporated in 1979 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
The following companies are subsidiares of PPG Industries: AIPCF V Texstars Blocker Inc., AkzoNobel, Alpha Coating Technologies LLC, Alpha Coatings Inc., Broad Range Development Limited, CG Holdings Manufacturing Co., Centro de Investigacion en Polimeros S.A. de C.V., Chemfil Canada Limited, Chorlton Trade Paints Limited, Comercial Mexicana de Pinturas S.A. de C.V., Comex, Comex Industrial Coatings S.A. de C.V., Consorcio Comex S.A. de C.V., Cristacol S.A., Cuming Microwave Corporation, Deutek SA, Dexmet Corporation, Dexmet Holding Corporation, Distribuidora Kroma S.A. de C.V., EPIC Insurance Co. Ltd., Eberle Design Inc., Empresa Aga S.A. de C.V., Ennis Canadian Holding Company, Ennis Paint Canada ULC, Ennis Paint Netherlands Holdings LLC, Ennis Paint U.K. Holding Company Limited, Ennis Traffic Safety Solutions Pty Ltd, Ennis-Flint, Ennis-Flint Inc., Foshan Bairun Chemicals Co. Ltd., Fpu Industrial S.A. de C.V., Grupo Comex S.A. de C.V., Hemmelrath Automotive Coatings (Jilin) Co. Ltd., Hemmelrath International Trade (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Hodij Coatings B.V., Homax Products, Industria Chimica Reggiana I.C.R. SPA, Johnstones Paints Limited, Kalon Investment Company Limited, Kalon South Africa Proprietary Limited, Karl Woerwag Lack-und Farbenfabrik GmbH & Co. KG, Masterwork Paint, MetoKote Corporation, MetoKote Mexico Holdings Inc., MetoKote UK Limited, MetoKote de Mexico S. de RL de CV, Milamar Coatings LLC, OOO Tikkurila, PPG A P Resinas S.A. de C.V., PPG AC - France SA, PPG ALESCO Automotive Finishes Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., PPG Aerospace Materials (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., PPG Architectural Coatings (Puerto Rico) Inc., PPG Architectural Coatings Canada Inc./PPG Revetements Architecturaux Canada Inc., PPG Architectural Coatings Ireland Limited, PPG Architectural Coatings Italy S.r.l, PPG Architectural Coatings UK Limited, PPG Architectural Finishes Inc., PPG Asian Paints Private Ltd., PPG Business Services S.A. de C.V., PPG COATINGS SINGAPORE PTE. LTD., PPG Canada Inc., PPG Cetelon Lackfabrik GmbH, PPG Cieszyn S.A., PPG Coatings (Hong Kong) Co. Limited, PPG Coatings (Kunshan) Co. Ltd., PPG Coatings (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., PPG Coatings (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PPG Coatings (Thailand) Co. Ltd., PPG Coatings (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., PPG Coatings (Wuhu) Company Ltd., PPG Coatings (Zhangjiagang) Co. Ltd., PPG Coatings B.V., PPG Coatings Belgium BV, PPG Coatings Danmark A/S, PPG Coatings Deutschland GmbH, PPG Coatings Europe B.V., PPG Coatings Nederland BV, PPG Coatings S.A., PPG Coatings South Africa (Pty) Ltd., PPG DYRUP S.A., PPG Deco Czech a.s., PPG Deco Polska sp. z.o.o., PPG Deco Slovakia s.r.o., PPG Deutschland Business Support GmbH, PPG Deutschland Sales & Services GmbH, PPG Distribution S.A.S., PPG Europe B.V., PPG Finance B.V., PPG Finland Oy, PPG France Business Support S.A.S., PPG France Manufacturing S.A.S., PPG Guadeloupe SAS, PPG Hemmelrath Lackfabrik GmbH, PPG Holdco SAS, PPG Holdings (U.K.) Limited, PPG Holdings Argentina USA LLC, PPG Holdings Latin America USA LLC, PPG Iberica S.A., PPG Iberica Sales & Services S.L., PPG Industrial Coatings B.V., PPG Industrial do Brasil - Tintas E. Vernizes - Ltda., PPG Industries (Korea) Ltd., PPG Industries (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., PPG Industries (UK) Ltd, PPG Industries Argentina S.R.L., PPG Industries Australia PTY Limited A.C.N. 055 500 939, PPG Industries Colombia Ltda., PPG Industries Delfzijl B.V., PPG Industries Europe Sarl, PPG Industries France S.A.S., PPG Industries International Inc., PPG Industries Italia S.r.l., PPG Industries Kimya a Sanayi VE Ticaret AS, PPG Industries LLC, PPG Industries Lackfabrik GmbH, PPG Industries Lipetsk LLC, PPG Industries Middle East FZE, PPG Industries Netherlands B.V., PPG Industries New Zealand Limited, PPG Industries Ohio Inc., PPG Industries Poland Sp. Z.o.o., PPG Industries Securities LLC, PPG Industries de Mexico S.A. de C.V., PPG Investment (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., PPG Italia Business Support S.r.l., PPG Italia Sales & Services S.r.l., PPG Japan Ltd., PPG Kansai Automotive Finishes Canada LP, PPG Kansai Automotive Finishes U.K. LLP, PPG Kansai Automotive Finishes U.S. LLC, PPG Luxembourg Finance S.aR.L., PPG Luxembourg Holdings S.aR.L., PPG Management (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PPG Packaging Coatings (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., PPG Paints Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PPG Performance Coatings (Hong Kong) Limited, PPG Powder Coatings (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PPG Refinish Distribution Limited, PPG Romania S.A., PPG Reunion SAS, PPG SSC Co. Ltd., PPG Switzerland GmbH, PPG Trilak Korlatolt FelelosseguTarasasag (PPG Trilak Kft.), PPG Vietnam Co. Ltd., PRC-DeSoto Australia Pty Ltd., PRC-DeSoto International Inc., PT. PPG Coatings Indonesia, Painter's Supply, Paintzen, Peintures de Paris SAS, Plasticos Envolventes S.A. de C.V., Polymeric Systems Inc., ProCoatings B.V., ProCoatings BV, Protec Pty Ltd, Reno A&E LLC, Revocoat France SAS, Revocoat Holding SAS, Revocoat Iberica SLU, Revocoat S.A.S, Road Infrastructure Investment Holdings Inc., SEM Products Inc., Sealants Europe SAS, Sierracin Corporation, Sierracin/Sylmar Corporation, Sigma Marine & Protective Coatings Holding B.V., SigmaKalon (BC) UK Limited, SigmaKalon Group, Sikar (Shanghai) Trading Co. Ltd., Spraylat International Ltd, Texstars LLC, The Crown Group Co., The Crown Group Inc, The Homax Group, Tikkurila Group, Tikkurila Oyj, Tikkurila Sverige AB, Traffic Safety Intermediate LLC, Traffic Safety Parent LLC, VF Specialty Products LLC, Vanex Inc., Vernisol S.p.A., VersaFlex Acquisition Corp., VersaFlex Inc., VersaFlex Intermediate Holdings LLC, Versaflex, Viasa S.A. de C.V., Whitford, Whitford B.V., Whitford Corporation, Whitford Jiangmen Ltd., Whitford Ltd. (HK), Whitford Ltd. (UK), Whitford Pte. Ltd., Whitford S.r.l., Whitford Worldwide Company LLC, and Worwag Coatings.

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Knoll, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, markets, and sells commercial and residential furniture, accessories, and coverings for the workplace and residential markets in the United States, Canada, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through Office and Lifestyle segments. It provides systems furniture, including integrated panels or table desks, work surfaces and storage units, power and data systems, and lighting products; office seating products comprising various work chairs; and files and storage products, such as lateral files, mobile pedestals and other storage units, bookcases, and overhead cabinets. The company also offers adjustable tables, as well as meeting, conference, training, dining, and stand-alone and table desks; conference furniture product platforms; height desks, tables, and ergonomic seating and accessories principally for individual home offices and small businesses; technology support accessories, desktop organizational tools, and lighting and storage products; seating and lounge furniture, as well as side, cafA, and dining chairs; conference, training, dining, and occasional tables; and lighting, rugs, textiles, fabrics, felt, leather, upholstery, drapery, and related architectural products. It serves Fortune 1000 companies, governmental agencies, and other medium-to-large sized organizations in various industries, including financial, legal, technology, entertainment, accounting, education, healthcare, and hospitality through its direct sales force and showrooms, distribution partners, and independent dealers and retailers, as well as online. The company was founded in 1938 and is headquartered in East Greenville, Pennsylvania.
OPKO Health, Inc., a healthcare company, engages in the diagnostics and pharmaceuticals businesses in the United States, Ireland, Chile, Spain, Israel, Mexico, and internationally. The company's Diagnostics segment operates BioReference Laboratories that offers laboratory testing services for the detection, diagnosis, evaluation, monitoring, and treatment of diseases, including esoteric testing, molecular diagnostics, anatomical pathology, genetics, women's health, and correctional healthcare to physician offices, clinics, hospitals, employers and governmental units; and a novel diagnostic instrument system to provide blood test results in the point-of-care setting, as well as 4Kscore prostate cancer testing services. Its Pharmaceutical segment offers Rayaldee to treat secondary hyperparathyroidism in adults with stage 3 or 4 chronic kidney disease, and vitamin D insufficiency; OPK88004, an orally administered selective androgen receptor modulator; OPK88003, a once-weekly administered peptide for the treatment of type 2 diabetes and associated obesity that is in Phase IIb trials; and hGH-CTP, a once-weekly human growth hormone injection that completed Phase III clinical trial in partnership with Pfizer, Inc. This segment develops and commercializes longer-acting proprietary versions of already approved therapeutic proteins. The company also offers specialty APIs; develops, manufactures, markets, and sells pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, veterinary, and ophthalmic products; commercializes food supplements and over the counter products; manufactures and sells products primarily in the generics market; and imports, markets, distributes, and sells pharmaceutical products in a range of indications, including cardiovascular products, vaccines, antibiotics, gastro-intestinal products, hormones, and others. In addition, it operates pharmaceutical platforms in Ireland, Chile, Spain, and Mexico. The company was founded in 1991 and is headquartered in Miami, Florida.
By India Today Web Desk: Rohan Mehra, who's doing extremely well in Bigg Boss 10, has been nominated for elimination this week. The dashing actor is getting the audiences' love in the show, but there are a couple of housemates who want him out of the show for obvious reasons.

This childhood picture of Rohan Mehra has been posted by his PR team on Twitter, along with a voting request.

So cute! Rohan Mehra's childhood picture is going viral

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Also read: Bigg Boss 10 fails to make it to the Top 10 despite all the hype



The Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai star, before entering the Bigg Boss house, had exclusively told India Today Online that he would show his honest side on the show as he feels it's the best strategy. He also spoke to us about his realationship for the first time, with YRKKH co-star Kanchi Singh. "I'm not looking for love in BB house as I'm already dating Kanchi," he had said.

We feel it will not be difficult for the actor to get sufficient votes from the viewers, thanks to his immense popularity as Naksh in the popular Star Plus soap.

Bigg Boss airs Mon-Fri at 10:30pm and Sat-Sun at 9pm on Colors TV



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Nabors Industries Ltd. provides drilling and drilling-related services for land-based and offshore oil and natural gas wells. The company operates through five segments: U.S. Drilling, Canada Drilling, International Drilling, Drilling Solutions, and Rig Technologies. It provides tubular running, wellbore placement, directional drilling, measurement-while-drilling (MWD), equipment manufacturing, and rig instrumentation services; and logging-while-drilling systems and services, as well as drilling optimization software. The company also offers REVit, an automated real time stick-slip mitigation system; ROCKit, a directional steering control system; SmartNAV, a collaborative guidance and advisory platform; SmartSLIDE, an advanced directional steering control system; and RigCLOUD, which provides the tools and infrastructure to integrate applications to deliver real-time insight into operations across the rig fleet. In addition, it manufactures and sells top drives, catwalks, wrenches, drawworks, and other drilling related equipment, such as robotic systems and downhole tools; and provides aftermarket sales and services for the installed base of its equipment. As of December 31, 2021, the company marketed approximately 301 rigs for land-based drilling operations in the United States, Canada, and in 20 other countries worldwide; and 29 rigs for offshore platform drilling operations in the United States and internationally. Nabors Industries Ltd. was founded in 1952 and is based in Hamilton, Bermuda.
The following companies are subsidiares of Tyson Foods: APF Legacy Subs LLC, Advance Food Company LLC, AdvancePierre Foods, AdvancePierre Foods Holdings Inc., AdvancePierre Foods Inc., Aidells Sausage Company Inc., Allied Specialty Foods Inc., American Proteins Inc, Artisan Bread Co. LLC, Australian Food Corporation Pty Limited, Australian Food Corporation Trust, BRF, Barber Foods LLC, Bosco's Pizza Co., Bryan Foods Inc., C.S. Grain LLC, C.V. Holdings Inc., CBFA Management Corp., Central Industries Inc., Chefs Pantry LLC, Clovervale Farms LLC, Cobb (Hubei) Breeding Co. Ltd., Cobb (Shanghai) Enterprise Management Consulting Co. Ltd., Cobb Ana Damizlik Tavukculuk Sanayi Ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Cobb Columbia S.A.S., Cobb Europe B.V., Cobb Europe Limited, Cobb Peru (Andina) S.A.C., Cobb-Heritage LLC, Cobb-Vantress Brasil Ltda, Cobb-Vantress Inc., Cobb-Vantress New Zealand Limited, Cobb-Vantress Philippines Inc., Coominya AFC Pty Limited, Coominya AFC Trust, DFG Foods Inc., DFG Foods L.L.C., Don Julio, Egbert LLC, Equity Group - Georgia Division LLC, Equity Group - Kentucky Division LLC, Equity Group Eufaula Division LLC, Equity Meat Corp., Flavor Corp., Flavor Holdings Inc., Foodbrands America Inc., Foodbrands Supply Chain Services Inc., Gallo Salame Inc., Global Employment Services Inc., Grow-Out Credit LLC, Grow-Out Holdings LLC, Haimen Tyson Poultry Development Co. Ltd, Hudson Foods Company, Hudson Midwest Foods Inc., Hybro Genetics Brasil Ltda, IBP Caribbean Inc., IBP Foodservice L.L.C., IBP Inc., International Affiliates & Investment LLC, Jiangsu Tyson Foods Co. Ltd, Keydutch Finance B.V., Keydutch Holdings I LLC, Keydutch Holdings II LLC, Keydutch Investments B.V., Keystone CLJV Holdings Limited, Keystone County House Road LLC, Keystone Foods, Keystone Foods (AP) Limited, Keystone Foods Holdco LLC, Keystone Foods Intermediate LLC, Keystone Foods LLC, Keystone Foods Pty Limited, Keystone Management Inc., Keystone Trading (Shanghai) Company Limited, LD Foods LLC, M & M Express LLC, M&M Restaurant Supply (MI/OH) LLC, MFG (USA) Holdings Inc., Mac Food Services (Malaysia) SDN. BHD., Madison Foods Inc., McKey Food Services (Hong Kong) Limited, McKey Food Services (Shandong) Limited, McKey Food Services (Thailand) Limited, McKey Food Services Limited, McKey Luxembourg Holdings APMEA S.a.r.l., McKey Luxembourg Holdings S.a.r.l., McKey Luxembourg S.a.r.l., McKey VI Holdings Limited, Myung Seung Food Company Ltd., National Comp Care Inc., New Canada Holdings Inc., Oaklawn Capital Corporation, Oaklawn IT Solution Private Limited, Original Philly Holdings Inc., PBX inc., Pierre Holdco Inc., River Valley Ingredients LLC, Rizhao Tyson Foods Co. Ltd, Rizhao Tyson Poultry Co. Ltd, Rural Energy Systems Inc., Sara Lee - Kiwi Holdings LLC, Sara Lee Diversified LLC, Sara Lee Foods LLC, Sara Lee Household & Body Care Malawi Ltd., Sara Lee International LLC, Sara Lee International TM Holdings LLC, Sara Lee Mexicana Holdings Investment L.L.C., Sara Lee TM Holdings LLC, Sara Lee Trademark Holdings Australasia LLC, Saramar L.L.C., Shandong Tyson-Da Long Food Company Limited, Smart Chicken, Southern Family Foods L.L.C., Southwest Products LLC, TF 20 B.V., TF 5201 B.V., TFA Leasing LLC, TFA Opportunity Zone Fund LLC, TFI of California Inc., Tecumseh Poultry LLC, Texas Transfer Inc., The Bruss Company, The Hillshire Brands Company, The IBP Foods Co., The Pork Group Inc., TyNet Corporation, Tyson (Shanghai) Enterprise Management Consulting Co. Ltd., Tyson Americas Holding Sarl, Tyson Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Tyson Breeders Inc., Tyson Chicken Inc., Tyson China Holding 2 Limited, Tyson China Holding 3 Limited, Tyson China Holding Limited, Tyson Deli Inc., Tyson Europe Holding Company, Tyson Farms Inc., Tyson Farms QOZB LLC, Tyson Foods Brasil Investimentos Ltda., Tyson Foods Canada Inc., Tyson Foods Europe (Netherlands) B.V., Tyson Foods Europe GmbH, Tyson Foods France S.A.R.L., Tyson Foods Germany GmbH, Tyson Foods Group Limited, Tyson Foods Holland B.V., Tyson Foods Huadong Development Co. Ltd, Tyson Foods Iberia Alimentos S.L.U., Tyson Foods Italia S.p.A., Tyson Foods Korea, Tyson Foods Netherlands B.V., Tyson Foods Products Limited, Tyson Foods Scotland Europe Limited, Tyson Foods Scotland Sales (Europe) Limited, Tyson Foods UK Limited, Tyson Foods Wrexham Limited, Tyson Foods oosterwolde B.V., Tyson Fresh Meats Inc., Tyson Fresh Meats Sales and Distribution LLC, Tyson Global Holding Sarl, Tyson Hog Markets Inc., Tyson India Holdings Ltd., Tyson International APAC Ltd., Tyson International Company Ltd., Tyson International Holding Company, Tyson International Holding Sarl, Tyson International Service Center Inc., Tyson International Service Center Inc. Asia, Tyson International Service Center Inc. Europe, Tyson Mexican Original Inc., Tyson Mexico Trading Company S. de R.L. de CV., Tyson New Ventures LLC, Tyson Opportunity Zone Fund LLC, Tyson Pet Products Inc., Tyson Poultry Inc., Tyson Prepared Foods Inc., Tyson Processing Services Inc., Tyson Refrigerated Processed Meats Inc., Tyson Sales and Distribution Inc., Tyson Service Center Corp., Tyson Shared Services Inc., Tyson Storm Lake Holdings LLC, Tyson Warehousing Services LLC, Tyson of Wisconsin LLC, Uninex SA, Universal Meats (UK) Limited, WBA Analytical Laboratories Inc., Wilton Foods Inc., Xamol Consultores e Servicos, and Zemco Industries Inc..

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The following companies are subsidiares of Novartis: 1 A Pharma GmbH, Abadia Retuerta S.A, Admune Therapeutics, Advanced Accelerator Applications, Advanced Accelerator Applications, Advanced Accelerator Applications International SA, Advanced Accelerator Applications S.A., Advanced Accelerator Applications S.r.l., Advanced Accelerator Applications USA Inc., Aeropharm GmbH, Alcon, Alcon  Couvreur NV, Amblyotech, Amblyotech Inc., Arctos Medical, Arctos Medical AG, Australia Pty Ltd, Beijing Novartis Pharma Co. Ltd., BioMedical Research Co. Ltd., CELLforCURE, Cadent Therapeutics, Cadent Therapeutics Cambridge, Cellerys, Cellerys AG, CellforCure, Chiron Corporation, Ciba-Geigy Japan Limited, Co. Ltd, CoStim Pharmaceuticals, CoStim Pharmaceuticals Inc., Coalesce Product Development Limited, Corthera, Development Co. Ltd., EBEWE Pharma Ges.m.b.H Nfg. KG, Encore Vision, Endocyte, Endocyte Inc., Eon Labs Inc., Farmanova Saglik Hizmetleri Ltd, Fougera Pharmaceuticals, Fougera Pharmaceuticals Inc, Gyroscope Therapeutics, HEXAL AG, Hexal, IDB Holland BV, Iberica S.L.U., Ilaclari Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S, JSC Sandoz, Japat AG, Kedalion Therapeutics Inc., Lek Pharmaceuticals d.d., Lek S.A., Manufacturing Pte Ltd , Navigate BioPharma Services Inc, Neutec Pharma Limited, Novartis (Hellas) S.A.C.I., Novartis (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Novartis (Taiwan) Co. Ltd, Novartis (Thailand) Limited, Novartis Argentina S.A., Novartis Australia Pty Ltd, Novartis Austria GmbH, Novartis Biociencias S.A., Novartis Biosciences Peru S.A., Novartis Bioventures AG, Novartis Business Services GmbH, Novartis Capital Corporation, Novartis Chile S.A., Novartis Corporation, Novartis Corporation Sdn. Bhd., Novartis Deutschland GmbH, Novartis Ecuador S.A., Novartis Farma S.p.A., Novartis Farma  Produtos Farmaceuticos S.A., Novartis Farmaceutica S.A, Novartis Farmaceutica S.A. de C.V., Novartis Finance Corporation, Novartis Finance S.A., Novartis Finance Services Ltd, Novartis Finland Oy Espoo, Novartis Gene Therapies, Novartis Gene Therapies EU Limited, Novartis Gene Therapies Inc., Novartis Grimsby Limited, Novartis Groupe France S.A., Novartis Healthcare A/S, Novartis Healthcare Philippines Inc., Novartis Healthcare Private Limited, Novartis Holding AG, Novartis Hungary Healthcare Limited Liability Company, Novartis India Limited, Novartis Inflammasome Research, Novartis Integrated Services Limited, Novartis International AG, Novartis International Pharmaceutical Investment AG, Novartis Investment Ltd, Novartis Investments S.a r.l., Novartis Ireland Limited, Novartis Israel Ltd, Novartis Korea Ltd., Novartis Middle East FZE, Novartis Netherlands B.V., Novartis Neva LLC, Novartis New Zealand Ltd, Novartis Norge AS, Novartis Ophthalmics AG, Novartis Optogenetics Research Inc., Novartis Overseas Investments AG, Novartis Pharma (Logistics) Inc., Novartis Pharma (Pakistan) Limited, Novartis Pharma AG, Novartis Pharma B.V. , Novartis Pharma GmbH, Novartis Pharma GmbH, Novartis Pharma K.K., Novartis Pharma LLC, Novartis Pharma Maroc SA, Novartis Pharma NV, Novartis Pharma Produktions GmbH, Novartis Pharma S.A.E., Novartis Pharma S.A.S., Novartis Pharma Schweiz AG, Novartis Pharma Schweizerhalle AG, Novartis Pharma Services AG, Novartis Pharma Services Romania S.R.L., Novartis Pharma Stein AG, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc., Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Limited, Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Limited, Novartis Poland Sp. z o.o., Novartis Portugal S.G.P.S. Lda., Novartis Ringaskiddy Limited, Novartis Saglik Gida ve Tarim Urunleri Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S, Novartis Saudi Ltd., Novartis Securities Investment Ltd, Novartis Services Inc., Novartis Slovakia s.r.o., Novartis South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Novartis Sverige AB, Novartis UK Limited, Novartis US Foundation, Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics Inc, Novartis Vietnam Company Limited, Novartis de Colombia S.A., Novartis de Venezuela S.A., Novartis s.r.o., Oriel Therapeutics Inc., PT. 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BlackRock, Inc. is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to institutional, intermediary, and individual investors including corporate, public, union, and industry pension plans, insurance companies, third-party mutual funds, endowments, public institutions, governments, foundations, charities, sovereign wealth funds, corporations, official institutions, and banks. It also provides global risk management and advisory services. The firm manages separate client-focused equity, fixed income, and balanced portfolios. It also launches and manages open-end and closed-end mutual funds, offshore funds, unit trusts, and alternative investment vehicles including structured funds. The firm launches equity, fixed income, balanced, and real estate mutual funds. It also launches equity, fixed income, balanced, currency, commodity, and multi-asset exchange traded funds. The firm also launches and manages hedge funds. It invests in the public equity, fixed income, real estate, currency, commodity, and alternative markets across the globe. The firm primarily invests in growth and value stocks of small-cap, mid-cap, SMID-cap, large-cap, and multi-cap companies. It also invests in dividend-paying equity securities. The firm invests in investment grade municipal securities, government securities including securities issued or guaranteed by a government or a government agency or instrumentality, corporate bonds, and asset-backed and mortgage-backed securities. It employs fundamental and quantitative analysis with a focus on bottom-up and top-down approach to make its investments. The firm employs liquidity, asset allocation, balanced, real estate, and alternative strategies to make its investments. In real estate sector, it seeks to invest in Poland and Germany. The firm benchmarks the performance of its portfolios against various S&P, Russell, Barclays, MSCI, Citigroup, and Merrill Lynch indices. BlackRock, Inc. was founded in 1988 and is based in New York City with additional offices in Boston, Massachusetts; London, United Kingdom; Gurgaon, India; Hong Kong; Greenwich, Connecticut; Princeton, New Jersey; Edinburgh, United Kingdom; Sydney, Australia; Taipei, Taiwan; Singapore; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Washington, District of Columbia; Toronto, Canada; Wilmington, Delaware; and San Francisco, California.
CoreLogic, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides property information, insight, analytics, and data-enabled solutions in North America, Western Europe, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates in two segments, Property Intelligence & Risk Management Solutions (PIRM) and Underwriting & Workflow Solutions (UWS). The PIRM segment combines property information, mortgage information, and consumer information to deliver housing market and property-level insights, predictive analytics, and risk management capabilities. It also offers proprietary technology and software platforms to access, automate, or track the information and assist its clients with decision-making and compliance tools in the real estate and insurance industries. This segment primarily serves commercial banks, mortgage lenders and brokers, investment banks, fixed-income investors, real estate agents, MLS companies, property and casualty insurance companies, title insurance companies, government agencies, and government-sponsored enterprises. The UWS segment combines property, mortgage, and consumer information to provide comprehensive mortgage origination and monitoring solutions, including underwriting-related solutions, and data-enabled valuations and appraisals. This segment also provides proprietary technology and software platforms to access, automate, or track the information and assist its clients with vetting and onboarding prospects, and meeting compliance regulations, as well as understanding, evaluating, monitoring property values. It primarily serves mortgage lenders and servicers, mortgage brokers, credit unions, commercial banks, fixed-income investors, government agencies, and property and casualty insurance companies. The company was formerly known as The First American Corporation and changed its name to CoreLogic, Inc. in June 2010. CoreLogic, Inc. was incorporated in 1894 and is headquartered in Irvine, California.
The Patna High Court had granted bail to Rocky Yadav in October.

By India Today Web Desk: The Supreme Court today stayed the bail of Rocky Yadav, son of suspended JDU leader Manorama Devi, the prime accused in the Aditya Sachdeva road rage case.

Rocky Yadav is accused of shooting Aditya Sachdeva, a class-XII student in a road rage incident on May 7 this year. Rocky is the son of suspended JDU MLC Manorma Devi.

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Besides the Aditya murder case, Rocky is also facing a case under the Excise Act for recovery of liquor bottles from his mother Manorama Devi's house.

The Patna High Court had granted bail to Rocky Yadav in October.



THE CASE



In the Gaya road rage case, accused Rocky Yadav, son of JD(U) MLC Manorama Devi and dreaded gangster Bindi Yadav, had gunned down 16-year-old Aditya Sachdeva who had allegedly overtaken Rocky's SUV while he was coming back home from a birthday party.

When Aditya and his friends had overtaken Rocky's SUV, angery Rocky chased them and then gunned down Aditya.

After the incident, Rocky had gone on the run. Few days after the gruesome killing, Rocky was arrested by the Gaya police from a factory owned by Rocky's father Bindi Yadav.



Also Read: Bihar teen shot dead by JD-U leader's son for overtaking in Gaya



Also Read| Bihar road rage: Rocky Yadav arrested, legislator mother suspended

Also Read| All you need to know about Rocky Yadav's dad Bindi, known as Terror Of Gaya





--- ENDS ---
Top military and security officials believe India's massive retaliation has left the Pakistani Rangers demoralised. 15 Pakistani Rangers have been killed.

By Manjeet Negi: The BSF's retaliatory firing has inflicted heavy casualties on the Pakistani Rangers and damaged the neighbourhoods of Sialkot and Shakargarh across the border, images obtained exclusively by India Today reveal.

Hospitals in Pakistan's border villages have been filled up with people wounded by Indian firing, photos accessed by India Today show.



IMAGE SHOWS PROOF OF BSF'S ATTACK



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An image shows a building with a large hole in its roof possibly from the BSF's mortar shelling in response to Pakistan's provocation.



Top military and security officials believe India's massive retaliation has left the Pakistani Rangers demoralised.

Also read: 15 Pakistan Rangers killed in retaliatory firing by Indian forces

According to top BSF sources, the Pakistani border guards have now been seeking immediate army support.



Radio intercepts from the other side of the border also revealed the impact the offensive launched by India in Shakargarh and Sialkot had, highly-placed military officials said.



15 PAKISTANI RANGERS KILLED



At least 15 Pakistani Rangers have been killed in the BSF's return fire, they added.

According to radio intelligence gathered by Indian agencies, Pakistani guards were heard explaining the entire scope of the damage caused to their superiors.



Meanwhile, India has intensified the vigil along the borders over secret inputs that the Pakistani army was attempting to infiltrate terrorists around Diwali.

Also read: India, Pakistan engage in tit-for-tat, expel mission staffers

India Today's crew embedded with a BSF patrol party along the international border in Jammu's Samba sector.

Heavily armed jawans trekked up to three kilometres of a tough uphill terrain winding through thick forests to reach the forward posts.



BSF TROOPS MOVED INTO CONCRETE BUNKERS



At a time when it was pitch dark, the BSF troops in top gear moved into their concrete bunkers without putting a foot wrong.



"If our fellow citizens are safe, it's Diwali for us," remarked a jawan, as he took an aim with his rifle in hand.

With his finger on the trigger of his light machinegun, another BSF guard told India Today how the troops respond to enemy fire. "We retaliate ferociously if they fire on the Indian side," he said.

Also read: Ex-NSA wanted to hit Lashkar terror camps in Pakistan after 26/11



While patrolling along the border, BSF jawans took position immediately as they suspected any movement from across the border. They walked ahead only after they had thoroughly inspected the surroundings.

INDIA'S RETALIATION FOUR-FOLD

Top security officials told India Today that the BSF's retaliation to any Pakistani firing was four-fold.

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Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar have given the local commanders full authority to retaliate in a befitting manner to enemy assaults, official sources said.

--- ENDS ---
By Samonway Duttagupta: For those who are passionate about exploring new destinations, travelling must never stop. But to be on the move at all times requires money and one of the major things that can help you save it is to cut down on your flight expenses.

If you are someone who wants to travel all the time, there's no way that you would wait for that festive season or off season when most of the major airlines come up with special fares. The truth is, you can discount on your flight bookings at any time of the year. All you need to do is follow these simple tricks every time you are looking to book your flights.

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#1 Book early

That might sound cliched, but there's no better way to get a cheaper flight ticket than to plan your travel well in advance and book the tickets at that time. No matter whatever discounts or deals come by, booking early has always proved to be the best way to get discounted airfares.

#2 Use incognito mode

Why do you think you see a raised amount almost every time you visit a flight booking website. Well, don't take these portals for fools. Your cookies and server details are automatically recorded with these portals. So the moment the system reads that you are visiting the website for the second time and after a few days, it is bound to give you raised airfares. The best way to avoid this is use the private browsing mode or the popular Incognito mode in Chrome browsers. In case you are using the browser in the normal made, make sure you clear the cookies or simply open the website from a different browser or computer.

#3 Use flight comparison websites

Always remember to use a couple of flight comparison websites before you book your flight tickets, no matter how much of hurry you are in. Websites like Skyscanner, Kayak and Momondo are there to provide a detailed listing of flights to your desired destination, along with the comparative fares offered by different airlines. Also, avoid selecting a specific date for your departure--instead select the entire month to know which is the cheapest time to fly.

Also read: 8 things you must never eat or drink before a flight



#4 Opt for different airlines

Agreed, the easiest to book flights for your trip is to book for a return journey. Besides, the general perception suggests that return flights are cheaper. But the truth is rather different. Make that extra effort to go through the flights offered by other airlines and be a more open about the time of your flight. Trust us, you will surely crack a cheaper deal.



#5 Don't book on the weekend

Contrary to popular belief, booking flights on the weekend is not at all a good idea. If you notice carefully, airfares usually go up on a Friday and starts plummeting on a Monday or a Tuesday. According to my observation over a six-month period, Wednesdays and Thursdays are the cheapest days to book a flight ticket.



#6 Use the airline website to book

Given the increasing number of travel booking websites, it is always easier to opt for a Makemytrip or a Goibibo for booking a flight. But these websites are smart and no matter how much of discount they show you at the moment they show you the search results, the moment you try to book, you will end up paying an increased amount. This is because they include their service charges at the time of preparing your final bill--very smart, aren't they? Well, they also need to earn their revenues. So the next time, make that extra effort to visit the airline's official website and book your desired flight from there. Trust us, you will surely save at least few hundred bucks, if not more.

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Happy globetrotting, folks!



--- ENDS ---
Despite the call to boycott Chinese firecrackers, wholesale markets in Delhi as also those in other far-flung towns and cities in India are selling these goods.

By Amit Kumar Chaudhary: India's crackdown on smuggled fireworks, especially the ban on those Made-in-China, is far from over.

Let alone far-flung towns and cities, Delhi itself has been unable to enforce the ban on imported firecrackers that an India Today investigation found have inundated the capital's wholesale markets ahead of Diwali.

CHINESE CRACKERS CRACKLING IN DELHI MARKETS



Despite special teams and police patrols conducting surprise raids, Chinese "Pop Pop" crackers crackling in Sadar Bazaar and Jama Masjid markets, India Today's undercover reporter observed.

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Most of these Chinese crackers were found to be packed in their trademark yellow boxes, but with fake "Made in India" stamps. They carried no batch number, manufacturing date or MRP.

CHINA's POP-POPS HIGHLY DANGEROUS



China's friction-sensitive pop-pops are believed to be highly dangerous because of their substandard composition and packaging.

As many as 2,500 crackers are tightly packed in a rectangular box. The tiny fuse-less explosives can mass-detonate and cause serious injuries if the box drops accidentally or is pressured.

"These crackers are made in India. But we cannot keep them here. They can explode any time," admitted a fireworks wholesaler in Sadar.

Also read: Despite boycott call, shopkeepers selling made-in-China goods this Diwali to avoid losses



He said he had, however, stocked them in his secret, makeshift warehouse. "We can show you our stock," he told India Today's reporter.

But the banned firecrackers were there on display at various other shops and outlets.

UNDERAGE BOYS SELLING CRACKERS



Hawkers and even underage boys have been seen selling these firecrackers in Jama Masjid and Sadar markets, the investigative journalist found.

A cardboard case carrying 50 matchbox-sized containers was priced at Rs 500.

"How much is it for 100 boxes?" the reporter, posing as a customer, asked a wholesaler.

Also read: Delhi government forms 11 teams to crackdown on illegally imported crackers



"Rs 47,500," replied the storeowner, suggesting discounts and supplies were no issue.

He even promised that he would organise 2,000 boxes of pop pops in 30 minutes.

Their forged "Made In India" labelling was aimed at deceiving customers wary of buying Chinese products because of Beijing's support to Islamabad, explained a shopkeeper.

NO ONE WANTS CHINESE GOODS, SAYS SHOPKEEPER



"No one wants Chinese goods. They all ask for "Made in India". You know the reason. No one wants to be seen as anti-national," he said.

Cheaper Chinese fireworks, experts say, contain potassium chlorate, a compound that has been tightly regulated in India since 1992. It's highly sensitive and can go off at the slightest friction.

Indian firecrackers, on the other hand, are filled with safer potassium and sodium nitrate.

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Foreign-made fireworks are banned across India. "It is illegal in India to possess and sell fireworks of foreign origin and punishable under the law," according to a press statement issued by the Commerce and Industry Ministry in 2014.

--- ENDS ---
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By Bill Parry

A compromise has been reached on the controversial redesign of 111th Street along the western side of Flushing Meadows Corona Park, the city Department of Transportation announced last week. Last month, City Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras-Copeland (D-East Elmhurst) led a rally on the steps of City Hall demanding action on the long-sought-after improvements she fully funded in 2013.

For too long, 111th Street has been a dangerous barrier for families visiting Flushing Meadows Corona Park. Our community deserves safe street streets and easy access to their local park, Ferreras-Copeland said. I have rallied with local mothers, heard the concerns of residents, and put out capital money where it matters to fund this project. Im pleased the mayor has heard our voices and will bring Vision Zero to Corona. This phase of safety improvements will make one of New York Citys largest parks more welcoming to pedestrians, cyclists and drivers.

The updated proposal follows an intense community engagement process, which included a series of community workshops focused on transportation issues in Corona. The proposal includes an improved roadway design with a two-way protected bike lane and 25 additional parking spaces.

After almost two years of advocating for a compromise plan to take into account the concerns of residents of 111th Street as well as the need to improve pedestrian safety, I am happy to have worked with the mayors office and DOT to reach this new proposed design, Assemblyman Francisco Moya (D-East Elmhurst) said, As a lifelong resident of Corona, I look forward to watching the plan move through the community board process and feel confident that in the end we will have achieved greater safety in a way that our entire community can appreciate.

In the original DOT plan, the thoroughfare would have been remade into one lane in each direction for vehicular traffic. Moya was opposed because of the heavy traffic during events inside the park and the compromise for two southbound lanes was struck.

New, wider spaces for pedestrians at the medians will be added at 14 intersections from 46th Avenue to Corona Avenue. Transportation safety groups that were involved in the compromise were pleased that a plan has been agreed on.

Were happy to see that this plan has been worked out, Make Queens Safer Co-founder Cristina Furlong said. By shortening the crossing distance through wider medians and bike lanes, the Corona community is seeing some progress in advancements for walkers, cyclists and mass transit users.

The DOT plans to go back to Community Board 4 with the agreed-upon proposal shortly, officials said. CB4s vote will be advisory.

Between 2010 and 2014, there were 23 pedestrian injuries, 24 bicycle injuries and 92 motor vehicle injuries between 43rd Avenue and Corona Avenue.

We look forward to improving 111th Street for the thousands of pedestrians and cyclists who want to safely access and enjoy the jewel that is Flushing Meadows Corona Park, DOT Commissioner Polly Trottenberg said. And we thank all of our partners who worked with us over the past years.
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By Patrick Donachie

The real concern in the upcoming presidential election is not the specter of voter fraud, often alluded to by Republican nominee Donald Trump in his warnings about a rigged election, according to Councilman Rory Lancman (D-Hillcrest). In fact, he contended that voter suppression will be the greatest threat come Election Day.

Lancman joined with other elected officials, including Councilman Costa Constantindes (D-Astoria) and the New York Democratic Lawyers Council on the steps of City Hall Monday to criticize voter intimidation in swing states throughout the country as well as in swing districts in New York state.

Every American citizen who wants to vote deserves the right to cast their ballot free of intimidation and needless obstacles. Its crucial to protect the vote, especially in places where it is most threatened, since black and Latino voters are disproportionately impacted by these laws, Lancman said. Together were going to ensure that casting a ballot on Election Day is just as easy and exciting as its supposed to be.

Lancman and others are concerned about attempts by state legislatures to disqualify potential voters as well as potential intimidation from Trump supporters. In recent weeks, the presidential candidate has continued to talk about the possibility of a rigged election that would deliver a victory to his Democratic opponent, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. In response to these claims, Trump has suggested that his supporters monitor polls to keep track of potential voter fraud.

In a speech on Oct. 10, Trump asked his supporters to watch other communities in order to stop voter fraud from occurring. On his website, supporters can also sign up to be a Trump Election Observer to monitor poll stations.

Critics of Trumps rhetoric assert he is trying to suppress the vote in communities that polls indicate will vote against him by significant margins, including communities of color. Jarret Berg, the executive director of the New York Democratic Lawyers Council, said voter rights were also being impugned by legal precedents that critics maintain target specific demographics.

Those who care about election integrity should be alarmed that 20 states since 2010 have enacted laws that make it more difficult for certain groups of perfectly eligible Americans to vote, he said. Voter protection is a great way for lawyers and others to help guarantee that elections are fair and our core civil rights are not infringed.

Lancman plans to travel to Philadelphia during the election to monitor potential cases of voter suppression, according to his office.
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By Lenore Skenazy

In 20 years they can tell it to their therapist is a line parents hear  and say  a lot.

Especially in New York.

Most of us  somewhat jokingly, somewhat earnestly  believe that our kids are keeping track of all the little things weve said and done wrong, and will someday divulge these while free-associating on a couch. If only we could be raising our kids with the expert wisdom of the real child experts: Psychiatrists.

Well, a new book should make us all breathe a little easier. Great Psychologists as Parents by David Cohen looks at 10 towering shrinks and child-development experts, including Freud and Dr. Spock, and finds that their track record is, well, mixed. In fact, the British Cohen told me in a phone interview, the shrinks odds of raising happy, well-adjusted offspring were not very different from the rest of ours.

The idea that if you study child psychology you become a better parent? Historically, theres no evidence for it, said Cohen. To illustrate, he added, I went to a funeral not long ago and met the son of a very famous British psychologist and I said to him, You must miss your dad. And he said to me, You must be joking! 

Which makes me feel kind of good.

Not that I want any child to suffer a traumatic upbringing. I just like knowing that there isnt necessarily a cheat sheet that the experts get that the rest of us dont. And I say this as someone sometimes described as a parenting expert myself, since I write the blog Free-Range Kids. (I always say Im not an expert on how to parent, Im an expert on how we got so afraid for our kids.)

So anyway: How did Freud fare as a papa?

He was very close with his daughter Anna  perhaps too close, Cohen writes. He actually analyzed her. And since Freudian analysis deals with childhood sexuality and fantasies, you have to assume this was awkward. These days, theres no way a father could ethically analyze his own child. But back then it was all new  Freud basically founded the field  so you cant hold it against him. And rather than castigate her dad, Anna followed in his footsteps and became another distinguished psychoanalyst.

The same dynamics are not found in the Klein family. Melanie Klein was a student of Freuds who became famous for her work on play therapy  the idea that children express their fears and frustrations through play. (For instance: a toddler angrily punishing her doll for being a bad girl.)

Like the Freud family, Mama Kleins daughter also went in the family business. That meant that mother and daughter were sometimes at the same psychoanalytic conferences, where theyd be shrieking at each other.

It was a soap opera, Cohen says.

They didnt speak for 20 years, and when the mom died, daughter Melitta refused to go to her funeral, and she wore special red shoes to celebrate.

Darwin and his children go to the other side. Although Darwin was not really a psychologist, since the field had not yet been invented when his kids were born in the mid-1800s, he was a keen observer of species, including his own. He lost three of them, but the children who survived felt very warmly toward him and were at his bedside when he died.

Not so the kids of John B. Watson, one of the first scientific psychologists, as well as one of the founders of modern advertising. Watson wrote a book on the psychological care of the infant that was hugely influential in the first half of the 20th century. And yet, he was a harsh disciplinarian who only shook hands with his kids. In fact, Cohen says, He accused American mothers of hugging their children and making them homosexual  a good reminder that accepted truths in one generation do not always last into the next.

Nor do parenting books. When Dr. Spocks Common Sense Book of Baby and Childcare came out 1946, it quickly supplanted Watsons as the most popular guide around. Thats in part because it sounded so much more gentle  even though Spock, too, was a quite severe father.

Whether he practiced what he preached, Spocks book famously begins: Trust yourself. You know more than you think you do.

Maybe he should have added, And we dont really know what were doing either.
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By Patrick Donachie

Emmett Wigglesworths career in the arts has spanned multiple decades and locales, from his upbringing in Philadelphia to his stint in the United States Marines and his participation in the Civil Rights Movement. But throughout his life, one of his goals has stayed the sameimparting an optimistic tone to his work.

When you go into the arts, you really go in to make a positive impact, he said during an interview at his workshop in the basement of the Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning. I dont think an artist is important, but I do think what an artist has to say is important.

Wigglesworths work is featured in a new exhibition at the center titled It Is Not Enough to See, One Must See Through to Find Truth. The exhibition, which features work from every stage of Wigglesworths career, is scheduled to run through the end of December.

Wigglesworth described his process as an act of sharp inspiration, comparing that inspiration to a message that needs to be translated by the artist. He took pencil to paper, briefly scribbling what seemed like indiscriminate lines, and then after a moments appraisal he started finding hands, feet and facial expressions in the lines.

Since I was a kid, all I do is scribble, and Im trying to figure out what those scribbles mean, he said, showing final drafts of such scribbles. When I try to draw, I dont get any messages, but when I respond to what I scribble, I do.

When Wigglesworth finds the art in the scribbles, he said he is often struck by a phrase that encapsulates the theme for which he is striving, and will write it underneath the piece. Beneath some of the sketches were written short phrases like angels watch over the children lest they stray too far, if they had all known the truth, he need not have died, and raise a child with love, produce an adult at peace.

Wigglesworth said his work in the Civil Rights Movement helped solidify his belief in the ability of the arts to impact the world, as he saw young white men and women who joined the movement for integration, influenced by their unifying love for music made by black artists. He said he was saddened that the arts is often given short shrift in some schools.

The thing about the arts is that they humanize, he said. We all have all of these things in all of us.

Wigglesworth was complimentary of JCAL, saying he was extraordinarily happy to have space for a workshop at the center. He was working on a piece that would feature evocative figurines of jazz legends that could surround the fountain at the Jamaica Performing Arts Center, even thinking of utilizing lighting that could offer the illusion of movement for viewers.

More information on the Wigglesworth exhibition as well as JCALs other programs can be found at www.jcal.org or by visiting the space at 161-04 Jamaica Ave.
Eurozone officials announced Tuesday they have approved 2.8 billion euros for Greece from its huge third bailout after the cash-strapped nation delivered the needed reforms.

Following the latest disbursement approved by the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), Greece will have received 31.7 billion euros of the 86-billion-euro bailout granted in July 2015, its third since being engulfed by debt in 2010.

"Today\s decision to disburse 2.8 billion euros ($3.0 billion) to Greece is a sign that the Greek people are steadily making progress in reforming their country," the ESM\s managing director Klaus Regling said in a statement.

An ESM spokesman told AFP the funds would likely be disbursed Wednesday.

The left-wing government of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has reached milestones in pension reform, bank governance, the energy sector, and revenue collection, according to the director of the ESM, the Eurozone body controlling Greece\s bailout loans.

The government won office in January 2015 initially opposed to creditor demands.

"It has also taken further steps in making the new privatisation and investment fund operational," Regling said of the government which won office in January 2015 initially opposed to creditor demands.

If Greece implements more of the reforms under the bailout programme, its economy could "accelerate next year and the government may be able to start issuing bonds again next year," Regling said.

Athens has not issued bonds since 2014, the only time that has happened since the start of the crisis in 2010.

Two weeks ago Eurozone finance ministers unlocked 1.1 billion euros for Greece but held back the other 1.7 billion over Athens\s mountain of unpaid bills over doubts from Germany.

The eurozone had demanded more data before approving disbursement. The 1.1 billion euros is to be used for debt servicing, while the 1.7 billion euros will go to a dedicated account for clearing arrears, the Luxembourg-based ESM said.

Athens has also lived up to pledges to clear arrears, which will boost the economy, Regling said.

"I hope our good cooperation with the Greek government continues, so that the second review of the programme can be completed in a timely manner," he added.

Athens is eager to win the latest bailout cash and complete a second review by the end of the year, which would then trigger talks on reducing the country\s huge debt load.

Germany, Europe\s economic powerhouse and paymaster which holds elections next year, is loath to forgive any of Greece\s debt, but tackling the problem is a firm demand of rescue partner, the International Monetary Fund.

The Washington-based IMF, a key player in Greece\s three bailouts, has said it won\t give a penny to the latest one until it sees a concrete plan from the Europeans to substantially cut Greece\s massive debt burden.

But the IMF and EU creditors disagree sharply on how much Athens can improve its finances through ongoing reforms.

On top of last year\s bailout of 86 billion euros, Greece received two earlier bailouts costing 240 billon euros.

SOURCE: AFP
An Indonesian court on Tuesday sentenced an Australian retiree to 15 years in prison for sexually abusing girls on the tourist island of Bali. Robert Andrew Fiddes Ellis was arrested in January and accused of abusing 11 girls as young as 8. Some of the victims said Ellis gave them small amounts of money and gifts such as a bicycle in exchange for letting him bathe them. Ellis admitted to bathing the girls, but in comments made to media last week he also defended his actions as harmless. The Denpasar District Court found him guilty of violating Indonesia\s Child Protection Law, and the panel of judges, led by Wayan Sukanila, also fined Ellis 2 billion rupiah ($153,000) or a further six months in prison if the fine wasn\t paid. "The defendant has been proven guilty of persuading children to perform obscene acts repeatedly," Sukanila said. "There are no excuses for the defendant\s deeds." The panel also said that Ellis had damaged the image of Bali\s tourism industry. His lawyer, Yanuar Nahak, said Ellis would appeal. He said the sentence was too heavy because Ellis confessed and promised not to reoffend. Ellis came to Bali in 2013 on a five-year retirement visa. The case involves crimes committed in 2014 and 2015. SOURCE: AFP
Militants wearing suicide vests stormed a Pakistani police academy in the southwestern city of Quetta overnight, killing at least 59 people, mostly police cadets and recruits, and waging a ferocious gunbattle with troops that lasted into early hours Tuesday.

Pakistani officials feared the death toll could rise further, as the four-hours-long siege  one of the deadliest attacks on Pakistan\s security forces in recent years  left 117 wounded, some of them in critical condition.

The assault caught many of the recruits asleep in their dorms and forced cadets and trainers to jump off rooftops and run for their lives to escape the attackers.

By mid-day Tuesday, conflicting claims of responsibility emerged. The Islamic State group, which is waging war in Syria and Iraq where it has declared a self-styled caliphate, posted a claim on the group\s media arm, the Arabic-language Aamaq news agency. It said three IS fighters killed 60 police recruits in Quetta but the claim was not confirmed by Pakistani officials and IS did not offer any previously unknown details about the assault.

Earlier, a little-known breakaway faction of the Pakistani Taliban, known as the Hakimullah group, also issued a statement claiming responsibility for the attack. Pakistani officials, doubting the group\s capabilities in staging such a coordinated and spectacular assault, also could not confirm that claim.

While most of the casualties were police cadets and others at the academy, some of the army personnel who responded to the assault were also among those killed, said Shahzada Farhat, police spokesman in Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan province.

The attack in Quetta began at 11:30 p.m. on Monday, said Baluchistan Home Minister Sarfraz Bugti, with the militants shooting and killing a police guard at the watch tower before storming into the academy, located on the outskirts of Quetta.

Baluchistan officials had earlier received "intelligence reports that some terrorists have entered the province" but had no indications about possible targets.

"We had tightened security, which is why they could not do it in the city and chose a target on the outskirts," said Baluchistan\s chief minister, Sanaullah Zehri.

There were also disparate figures as to the number of attackers. Provincial police chief Ahsan Mahboob said four gunmen were involved in the assault while a military statement later said there were up to six attackers.

About 700 cadets, trainees, instructors and other staff were inside the academy when it was attacked, Bugti said, adding that the gunbattle with the militants lasted for at least four hours.

Once inside the academy grounds, Pakistani media said the gunmen headed straight to the dorms housing the cadets and trainees and opened fire, shooting indiscriminately. Some of the cadets jumped off the rooftops and through windows to try to escape.

"They were rushing toward our building, firing," one cadet told Pakistani Geo TV news channel. "We rushed for safety toward the roof and jumped down in the back of the building."

Another recruit, his face covered in blood, told the station the gunmen shot at whoever they saw. "I ran away, just praying God might save me," he said.

After the attack, Pakistani forces tightened security around the academy and Quetta hospitals were the wounded were taken. Footage aired on local television stations showed ambulances rushing out of the main entrance of the academy as fire engines struggled to put out fires set off by the explosions from the attackers\ suicide vests.

Most of those being treated at the city hospitals had gunshot wounds, although some sustained injuries jumping off the rooftop of the hostel housing the cadets to escape the gunmen.

"This war isn\t over," said Pakistani Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan. "The enemy is weakened, but not eliminated."

Maj. Gen. Sher Afgan, head of the Pakistani paramilitary force which is primarily responsible for the province, claimed the attackers had received instructions from commanders in neighboring Afghanistan. He said they were most likely from the banned Lashker-e-Jhangvi Al-Almi militant group affiliated with al-Qaida and the Taliban. The Sunni militant group has mainly targeted minority Shiite Muslims whom its members consider to be infidels.

The paramilitary chief spoke before the Islamic State and the Hakimullah group\s claims surfaced.

Afghanistan condemned the attack and dismissed Pakistan\s allegations that the assault was planned from bases inside Afghanistan. "Afghanistan is the biggest victim of terrorism and denounces all terrorist attacks," said Mohammad Haroon Chakhansuri, spokesman for Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.

In a separate statement, Ghani also condemned the attack, saying that "terrorism is a threat throughout the region, which is reflected in the brutal act today in Quetta."

Pakistan maintains that militants fleeing army operations in the tribal regions regularly escape across the border, finding safe havens inside Afghanistan. For his part, Ghani has been deeply critical of Pakistan, saying it has provided safe havens to the Taliban and in particular the violent Haqqani network.

For over a decade, Baluchistan has been the scene of a low-intensity insurgency by nationalist and separatist groups demanding a bigger share in the regional resources. Islamic militants and Sunni sectarian also have a presence in the province.

Pakistan has carried out several military operations against militants in country\s lawless tribal regions along Afghanistan border, including a major push that started mid 2014 in North Waziristan, a militant base. The Islamic militants have killed tens of thousands of people in their bid to overthrow Pakistan\s government and install their own harsh brand of Islamic law.

Later Tuesday, a roadside bomb killed a police official escorting a polio team that was travelling in northwestern Pakistan as part of a vaccination campaign, according to Furqan Bilal, a police superintendent in Peshawar. Militant attacks on polio teams are common in Pakistan as Taliban and other extremists denounce such vaccination campaigns as a Western conspiracy.

SOURCE: AP
By Javed M. Ansari : Notwithstanding the frantic attempts being made by Mulayam Singh Yadav's Samajwadi party, the Congress party is not in hurry to tie up with it. The party intends to wait for the squabble within Yadav parivar and the SP, to reach its logical conclusion before taking a call on whether or not to align with it, and whether there are gains in it, if at all the Congress does decide to go in for an alliance.

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"We are in no hurry. We do not want to be a part of the factional feud, left there be some clarity on the issue on then will we take a considered view on the issue " says a senior party leader.

Several factors appear to be weighing in on the Congress party's decision making on the issue. It's political managers believe that the situation is still fluid and it's unclear which way the the feud will pan out.There is a huge trust as far as Mulayam Singh Yadav is concerned and the party does not want to end up being used by wily wrestler turned politician from Safai.

"Ideally Rahul Gandhi would favour an alliance with Mayawati, but despite attempts at the highest level, she has refused to budge from her position of not entering into a pre-poll alliance with any party including the Congress party. As far as the SP is concerned the Congress would be much happier tying up with Akhilesh Yadav provided he forms his own party ."Akhilesh minus Mulayam and Shivpal would appeal to Rahul " says a Congress party political manager.

A section of the Congress party MLA's have told the party leadership that there should seriously consider working out an arrangement with secular forces on the lines of what happened in Bihar to prevent they BJP to coming to power in UP. "While it's important for the Congress to regain lost ground in the state, it's far more important to prevent the BJP from coming to power in the state. If we can do that it will make our task in 2019 that much more easier" says a Rajya Sabha MP of the party.

--- ENDS ---
Looking for deals at annual Pittsburgh airport auction

More than 800 appeared and about 700 participated in annual event last month.
Torin Halsey/Times Record News Tiffany Oliver of Home Instead uses a selfie stick to take a picture with Judy Morgan, left, Kendra Ball and Danette Craig at the Work Force Solutions booth thursday afternoon during the Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce & Industry's Business Expo at the Ray Clymer Exhibit Hall. The theme of this year's event was A Night at the Movies.

SHARE Michelle Schenck, left, and Tara Cantrell share a laugh with Michael Luttrell as he plays the part of Cousin Eddie from National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. The Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce & Industry's Business Expo used the theme of A Night at the Movies to help local businesses connect with the community and each other. Luttrell had fun while representing Patterson RV Sales in front of a 2017 Winnebago Vista RV. Torin Halsey/Times Record News The Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce & Industry's Business Expo brought out a wide range of characters, superheroes and stars with a theme of, A Night at the Movies. The annual event helps businesses like Hearing Aid Express connect with the community. Representing the company are Rob Kirkland, left, Dusty Potter, Katie Britt and Cory Walker.

By John Ingle of the Times Record News

The lights were on, cameras rolling and stars walking the halls of the Multi-Purpose Events Center Thursday afternoon and evening during the Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce & Industry's annual Business Expo.

Whether Marvel Comics super heroes, the disgustingly lovable Cousin Eddie from "Christmas Vacation" or old-timey movie ushers, local business embraced this year's theme of "Night at the Movies" to talk with guests about their products and network with other businesses. About 100 vendors set up booths in the main room of the Ray Clymer Exhibit Hall, including a few automobiles, new and old.

"One of the chamber's most important roles is that of a connector," said chamber CEO and President Henry Florsheim. "This event gives us a chance to help our members get in front of thousands of people in a short period of time  both the general public and the other participating businesses.

"It's something a business could not do on their own."

Representatives from businesses in home health, home improvement, auto sales, media, banking, casinos, assisted living and more were on hand to educate folks about what they do.

A benefit of being a member of the chamber, Florsheim said, is being able to participate in the annual expo. For a full list of chamber benefits for businesses, visit wichitafallschamber.com and click on the "Explore the Chamber" button on the left side of the page, then click on the membership guide hyperlink.
SHARE Cooper

By Patrick Johnston, pjohnston@gannett.com

A man has been arrested after a woman accused him of assaulting her in a dorm on the campus of Midwestern State University earlier this week.

Bryan Keith Cooper, 18, is charged with burglary of a habitation. He was out of Wichita County Jail Thursday afternoon on $15,000 bail.

According to an arrest warrant affidavit:

Around 2 a.m. Monday, a woman was leaving the lobby of Legacy Hall to go to her room on the third floor. She was followed to the elevator by Cooper, who is described as an acquaintance.

Cooper asked to talk to her multiple times, but the woman kept declining and said she was tired. Cooper, who lives on the second floor of the dorms, didn't get out on his floor but instead followed the woman to her room.

When she got there, she opened the door and went inside. Cooper followed her in the room despite being asked to leave. Cooper told the woman he wanted "a good-night hug" and said he would leave if he got one.

The woman went to hug Cooper, at which time he grabbed her, picked her up and threw her onto her bed. He then began to grope her through her clothing. The woman told police Cooper ignored multiple requests to stop and leave. He then grabbed her hair and choked her.

She told officers Cooper picked her up off the bed and carried her around the room. She pushed him and told him she was not OK with what just happened after he finally set her down. She threatened to raise her voice if he didn't leave, and Cooper left the room after the 10- to 15-minute incident.

The woman texted her roommate, who was in Dallas, and told her she felt like she was almost raped. The roommate returned to the campus around 9 a.m. and they talked about the incident. The woman told officers she tried to process what had happened all day before finally reporting the incident to MSU police around 10:19 p.m.

Cooper admitted to detectives that he went into the woman's room and held her and touched her but he denied choking her or touching her breasts.

Cooper is charged with burglary of a habitation for entering a residence without the owner's permission and assaulting her.
Thornberry

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Hack Alexander CMSgt. Ret. USAF, Iowa Park

Imagine how great and secure our nation would be if Congress and the Senate, spent their days working for the people who elected them, instead of the people who own them.

In the beginning I was not in favor of Donald Trump, but by the second Republican debate I knew he would be the last one standing.

The biggest fear congress has is Trump and term limitations. They would rather have Clinton in the White House than have to give up their cushy positions.

How many times have the republicans broken their promise to us. What happened to give us both Congress and the senate and we will govern?

Trump is not only running against Clinton and the Democratic Party, he is running against the establishment. Neither party wants Trump in the White House; he will end their strangle hold on America.

If Paul Ryan was a leader he would be doing all he could do to stop Clinton from becoming president and supporting Trump, but instead he is doing all he can to make sure he's defeated.

As Americans we need to know what is at stake. Just the appointment to fill the vacancies on the Supreme Court alone should be enough to get your attention.

Anyone who has ever held a security clearance, knows Clinton broke the law. Our gutless leaders in Washington as always make a little noise and does nothing.

We will never get the answers on Benghazi, IRS, securing our borders, VA, etc. How many hearings have we had on all these issues? All smoke and mirrors. They want us to believe they are doing something. The Republicans have failed us.

Even our own Mac Thornberry is riding the fence. Get off the fence and either lead, follow or get out of the way.

I challenge Mr. Thornberry to have an open town hall meeting and answer every question asked of you. Mr. Thornberry you told me the first time you ran for office you supported term limitations. I challenge you to introduce a bill for term limitations.

You want to preserve America vote for the outsider.
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MEMO TO: Donald Trump

RE: A clear and present danger

In the final daze of this tumultuous, mad-as-hell presidential campaign, America suddenly seems to be hurtling toward a clear and present danger, a prospect so perilous I want to call your attention to it. Before it is too late.

For too long you've been inciting your true believers with carefully chosen code words and unsupported claims that the election and system are "rigged." And you've attacked journalists at your rallies, calling them "a bunch of phony lowlifes" and berating them with similar schoolyard taunts. As a result, some of your faithful have become so frenzied with pent-up frustration that it's very well possible one of them, filled with vengeance, may commit a violent act against a political figure or maybe even a journalist.

The perpetrator may justify his vigilante vengeance as vigilante justice. But if tragedy happens, history will remember you were America's inciter-and-fomenter-in-chief. You have chosen to inflame the folks who, in the phrase made famous by the 1976 movie "Network," were urged to yell into the streets: "I'm as mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore."

I've understood from the outset that your campaign had that potential wellspring of support. When your campaign was just a month old and you were being dismissed as just a political punch line by late-night TV comedians and 24/7 media pundits, I wrote that we might discover on Election Night 2016 that the mad-as-hell voters just elected our next president. We know why you started these inflammatory attacks  because after your polls sagged, you were afraid you'd be called your favorite insult for others (even ex-POW John McCain)  "a loser!" Well, since we learned Obamacare premiums will be soaring for many, I believe your defeat isn't certain (but your panicky attacks sound like you don't agree with me).

But mainly, before you inflame and attack again, you must understand that today millions of Americans are not just mad-as-hell, but also firearmed-as-hell. And your incendiary words, accusations and name-calling may inflame some who have access to weapons  and who think they have heard in your coded words about a "rigged" election and nasty news media a signal to commit vengeful violence.

We will always remember the painful tragedy of 2011, when a gunman gravely shot Rep. Gabrielle "Gabby" Giffords of Arizona and 18 others in Tucson, Ariz.; her courageous recovery inspires us still. In 1968, as a young Newsday reporter, I covered the assassinations of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy; and later that year, the presidential campaign of Alabama's segregationist Gov. George Wallace, in which he used phrases similar to the ones you now favor as he also turned crowds against the news media. At times Wallace's crowds got so hostile he had to tell them he didn't mean the reporters who travel with him.

(And yes, once Wallace came to my rescue: I was the only reporter outside a Wallace rally in Cleveland as police officers started moving Vietnam War protesters off a sidewalk. One policeman lost his cool, smashed a protester's head with his club because the youth wasn't moving fast enough, kept hitting him on the ground, and when a young woman screamed for him to stop, the policeman whirled, hit her head and she too crumbled. Just then, Wallace's motorcade sped off to the airport with me still the lone reporter. On the tarmac, Wallace shook hands with his police escort and I did my job: I told Wallace what I'd seen and asked for his comment. He said police are usually "too lenient" and climbed up his plane's steps. The police surrounded me and asked for my identification. One policeman slapped my wallet to the ground, scattering my cards; another grabbed my notebook from my hand, and a third hit me with a kidney punch  then it stopped. Wallace, having seen what was happening, had reappeared at my side. "Hey, Marty, I just wanted to say I enjoyed having you travel with me this week. You're always fair. You'll be there again on Monday, right?" Well yes, I said, if I survived Cleveland's finest. Wallace smiled, winked, and re-climbed the stairs. "Sorry, sir," one cop said. "We didn't know," said another handing me my notebook. "We didn't understand," said a third, having picked up my cards and returned my wallet.)

Mr. Trump, no one can tell Gabby Giffords they're sorry and make her suffering all better. Guns, fired in rage, often become the tragic final comment. But you can stop now. Stop repeating your incendiary, vengeance-fomenting comments that could become triggers of tragedy in 2016.

Martin Schram, an op-ed columnist for Tribune News Service, is a veteran Washington journalist, author and TV documentary executive. Readers may send him email at martin.schram@gmail.com.
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My Model Maid just launched last Friday and owner Josh Dailey, 31, has already been interviewed by several news outlets. He was even asked to come back for a second radio segment on "Chaz & AJ in the Morning."

Why all the attention? Dailey's Bristol, Conn.-based cleaning service doesn't hire regular house cleaners. The maids are actually models aged 19-30 who clean people's houses in costume.

After a 40 or 50-hour work-week, the last thing Dailey, a Bristol resident, wanted to do was clean his house. That's how the idea was born.

"I wanted a fun alternative to housecleaning," he said.

The My Model Maid website allows customers to choose from 10 models (and counting), four costumes (French maid, cheerleader, school girl or Wonder Woman) and hourly, weekly, bi-weekly or monthly cleaning services. An hour session is $79. The maids make about $30 an hour, Dailey said.

Taglines on the website include:

"Our exquisite model maids will roll out the red carpet for you (after vacuuming it)."

"Hate housecleaning? Start loving it today."

"One visit from one of our lovely ladies and youll be looking for ways to make a mess."

"Choose one or have them bring a friend."

Customers pick their top choices for maid and costume, and the final decision is based on which maid lives closest to the house and if she is comfortable wearing the costume selection. Dailey said he picked costumes based on "universal appeal," and the maids have a say in the matter. He hopes to add more soon, especially in the cosplay vein.

Model Maid Katie Weinstein, a 29-year-old actress from Stratford, Conn., is experienced in the cosplay world having worked various ComicCons. She actually has her own closet full of costumes.

She saw a Google ad for the position and applied to the job. "I'm a costume fanatic. I thought it would be fun to cosplay a maid," she said.

For her, the cleaning aspect was not an issue.

An idea like this does not come without backlash. Fox 61 did a story on My Model Maid and reports that one Facebook user wrote "Sick and perverted. What kinda creep would go for this and what kinda woman would lower herself to this?"

"This is demeaning to Women," another user wrote.

Weinstein said she finds the reaction humorous. "I find it a little funny. In Connecticut, it's a little conservative," she said. "This would be wonderful to have in Manhattan."

Dailey said his business, which is a member of the Bristol Chamber of Commerce, is a professional environment, and hopes any criticism is directed at him personally and not the maids.

"I have a mother just like everybody else. Despite the business model, I have tremendous respect for everyone I work with. The girls are like family," he said.

All the maids are from Connecticut. Most of them are professional models that Dailey found on modeling sites and some are just "beautiful women." He has 12 women on board and is interviewing more.

Preliminary interviews are conducted via phone or email; from there the women go on to a series of group interviews.

"While cleaning can be taught to most anyone, there was a huge focus on hiring the right personalities for the job. I truly couldn't ask for a better group of ladies to work with," he said.

Weinstein has already done three cleaning appointments: a retired couple in which the wife bought her husband a gift certificate, a retired single man, and a middle-aged man who has a girlfriend. Dailey says he will only accept unmarried people unless the spouse is on board.

"There's potential for a wife to be jealous; I want to avoid that," he said.

She said when she first arrives at appointment, the customers ask her about herself and want to get to know her. She wore the maid outfit to her appointments.

"They're like 'Oh my God, I can't believe you're here,'" she said. "People just love costumes. It's a novelty; it's no different than a singing telegram. It's similar to having a clown at a children's birthday party."

From there, she goes on to clean the house and says the customer did not watch her the whole time.

Every customer that books a maid is required to complete a background check and sign a contract stating that if at any time during a session, the maid feels uncomfortable or unsafe, she is allowed to leave. The maids also wear life alert watches.

Weinstein said there is no physical contact allowed and if anyone touched her or tried to touch her she would leave. So far, she has not had an issue at her appointments.

"Safety always comes before profit," Dailey said.

Weinstein, who travels around for acting jobs, including a recent role as a showgirl in the Netflix series, "The Get Down," likes the flexibility of the job; there is no minimum requirement for appointments and the maids can take on gigs at their availability.

As for the actual house cleaning, Dailey said it's no joke. All the maids get hands-on training on how to clean every room in the house and take video courses from "industry standard" cleaning companies. They also have a 300-page manual and use eco-friendly products and commercial-grade appliances, including a $400 vacuum.

"It's not just some novelty concept having people just come in and push dust around," he said. "At the end of the day, people pay good money and expect the house to be cleaned."

My Model Maid completed seven appointments in its first week and has five more booked. Dailey said six of the seven customers requested repeat sessions.

The maids are also available for private parties and game-day viewing parties where they will serve drinks and food as well as clean up after the party.

As of now, My Model Maid serves all of Connecticut (and one customer in Massachusetts), but with the help of some of his more "business savvy" maids who have connections, Dailey said he hopes to expand to New York City and Boston. Dailey, who works in sales, hopes to make My Model Maid a full-time job in the coming months.
Cannon Ball, N.D.

Law enforcement officers dressed in riot gear and firing bean bags and pepper spray evicted protesters Thursday from private land in the path of the Dakota Access oil pipeline, dramatically escalating a months-long dispute over Native American rights and the project's environmental impact.

In an operation that took nearly six hours, hundreds of armed state and local police and National Guard  some on foot and others in trucks, military Humvees and buses  pushed past burning barricades to slowly envelop the camp. No serious injuries were reported.

More than a dozen protesters who refused to leave were arrested and taken to the Morton County Jail, Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier said.

Among those arrested was a woman who pulled out a .38-caliber pistol and fired three times at officers, narrowly missing a sheriff's deputy, according State Emergency Services spokeswoman Cecily Fong. Kirchmeier said that the camp had been cleared by nightfall although police were still dealing with protesters on the perimeter. Though officials earlier said they planned to turn the site over to private security, Kirchmeier said police would stay for now.

"We're not leaving the area," he said. "We are just going to make sure that we maintain a presence in the area so the roadway stays open, and to keep individuals from camping on private land."

Opponents of the pipeline over the weekend set up camp on private land owned by Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners, which is working to complete the 1,200-mile pipeline to carry oil from western North Dakota to Illinois. The route skirts the Standing Rock Reservation and the tribe says it could endanger water supplies and disturb cultural sites.
By PTI: From Yoshita Singh

United Nations, Oct 28 (PTI) Cuba, China, Egypt and Saudi Arabia were among 14 members elected today by the UN General Assembly to the world bodys human rights council, but Russia failed to garner enough votes to win the re-election amid rights groups campaign against its role in the war in Syria.

The 193-member General Assembly voted here to elect Brazil, China, Croatia, Cuba, Egypt, Hungary, Iraq, Japan, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Tunisia, UK and the US to the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council.

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The elected members will serve in the 47-member Council for a three year term beginning January 1, 2017. India is a member of the human rights body and its term will expire in 2017.

China, Cuba, South Africa, Saudi Arabia and the UK were seeking re-election to the Council as their terms were set to expire in December.

Russia too was seeking re-election but did not garner enough votes to win.

The Council members are elected directly and individually by secret ballot by the majority of the members of the UNGA. The Council membership is based on equitable geographical distribution, and seats are distributed among regional groups of Africa, Asia-Pacific, Eastern Europe, Latin American and Caribbean, Group of Western Europe and other states.

The members of the Council serve a period of three years and are not be eligible for immediate re-election after two consecutive terms.

Rights body Human Rights Watch had strongly opposed candidacies of Saudi Arabia and Russia for the Human Rights Council, criticising the two nations for "their widespread unlawful attacks" on civilians in Yemen and Syria.

Human Rights Watch had said accepting Saudi Arabia and Russias bids for membership would be contrary to the basic standards for which the Human Rights Council was created 10 years ago, and risk undermining the credibility of the UN?s top human rights body and its ability to hold abusers accountable. Human Rights Watch had also expressed serious concerns about the "poor human rights records" of China and Egypt running for three-year council terms.

"The UN Human Rights Councils ability to successfully expose and hold violators to account is under threat because a number of countries use it to thwart attempts to expose their own crimes and abuses," UN director at Human Rights Watch Louis Charbonneau had said.

"Electing council members that are truly committed to improving human rights is the responsibility of each and every UN member country, and Saudi Arabia and Russia dont honour the ideals that underpin the UN Human Rights Council." PTI YAS ABH

--- ENDS ---
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Republican candidate Chris Boyark has centered his campaign on ethics reform. But one of the first donations he received came from Bruce Tanski, a Halfmoon builder and political operative who was convicted of concealing political donations.

Boyark, who is running for the 113th Assembly District seat, accepted a $500 contribution from Tanski a year after he pleaded guilty to the charges.

That has not stopped Boyark from asserting that he is the anti-corruption candidate. "I'm the only candidate in this race with any credibility on this issue." He says his Democratic opponent, incumbent Carrie Woerner, failed to complete state ethics reform in her first term.

Woerner rejects the criticism. "I've been outspoken on the need for far-reaching ethics reforms, and I'll keep working until we have real change," said Woerner. "I co-sponsored and passed the bipartisan bill to strip corrupt politicians of their taxpayer-funded pensions. I also passed legislation to limit legislators' outside income and I'll keep pushing to ban it completely to prevent conflicts of interest."

She also wants to close the LLC loophole, which permits donors who own limited liability companies to give more money to candidates than they could as individuals. She said she is also striving for greater transparency in lobbying and has sponsored a term limit bill.

Boyark's platform called for 10-year term limits on legislative leaders and committee chairs, limiting special interest money in politics by lower the maximum contribution from $100,000 to $10,000 and banning donations from individuals and businesses that are awarded state contracts.

Boyark acknowledged he accepted the contribution from Tanski, whom he calls a "local business owner," but the candidate said Woerner accepted donations from the Democratic Assembly Committee and is "pretending" to be for ethics reform.

Boyark is running with support from New Yorkers for Independent Action, a super PAC that has paid for television commercials trying to link Woerner with former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver who was found guilty of corruption.

The Assembly group's campaign contributions came in 2014 before Silver was convicted.

Boyark also received campaign contributions before he registered his campaign with the state Board of Elections, and he was late in filing financial disclosure papers to the state ethics commission, which deemed that to be "delinquent."

Todd Kerner, Saratoga County Democratic Committee chair, said Boyark's focus on ethics is an attempt to bypass discussion of the issues. "Carrie Woerner has a demonstrated record of working with people from both parties, something sorely lacking in today's world of politics," Kerner said.
Albany

A group of anti-nuclear activists on Thursday delivered a letter to Gov. Andrew Cuomo, signed by more than 100 organizations, urging him to rethink the Public Service Commission's plan to keep three aging nuclear power plants in northern New York operating with subsidies as part of the state's new energy plan.

"They are more than 40 years old," Russ Haven, staff attorney for NYPIRG, said of the plants.

The PSC in August approved a "clean energy standard" that emphasizes renewable and nonpolluting energy sources going forward. But the commission also agreed to subsidize nuclear plants near Rochester and in Oswego County for the next 12 years.

Because there are no carbon emissions, nuclear plants are viewed as a way to combat global warming, although the danger of using radioactive materials remains controversial.

The opponents note that, in addition to the plants' age, they are controlled by the Chicago-based Exelon Corp. which they say will benefit from a subsidy that could cost $7.6 billion over the next dozen years.

"That's a shocking amount," Haven said.

The subsidy will come from a surcharge on New Yorkers' utility bills. While just a few dollars a month, opponents said that adds up over time and is significant given the state's already high power prices.

Cuomo and PSC experts have said the nuclear plants can amount to a fifth of the state's energy production and are needed to meet goals for lowering greenhouse gases.
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ROTTERDAM  Town police are asking for the public's help investigating a bank robbery.

Police received a call around 6:20 p.m. Thursday for a robbery at the Pioneer Savings Bank at 1828 Altamont Ave. The robber was gone when they arrived.

Employees told police that the man had entered the bank and passed a note to a teller that said he had a gun, and to hand over money or he would cause them harm. No gun was displayed. The teller handed the man an unknown amount of cash, and he ran off toward Altamont Avenue. No one was injured.

The robber is described as a thin white man in his mid-30s, 5'4", with dark makeup circling his eyes. He was wearing a dark hooded jacket and dark jeans.

Anyone with information is asked to contact detectives at 518-355-7397.
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Khazer, Iraq

Iraqi special forces east of Mosul probed a network of underground tunnels and uncovered a bomb-making facility on Thursday in a village recently retaken from the Islamic State group as their allies battled the militants in a push toward the city from the south.

Special forces commanders said the operation was proceeding as planned, but that they were waiting for forces in the south to advance further before resuming their push toward the country's second largest city, which fell to IS in 2014.

"The operation has not been stopped and is proceeding as planned," special forces Brig. Gen. Haider Fadhil said.

Iraqi army Maj. Gen. Najim al-Jabori said forces south of Mosul retook the town of Staff al-Tut in the Tigris River valley the day before, and are now 20 miles from the city. He said local tribal and militia forces have been deployed to protect the gains while his troops regroup for their next push toward the city.

The special forces, who are 51/2 miles east of the city, continued cleanup operations in the village of Tob Zawa. They found a tire shop that had been converted into a factory for making roadside bombs and attaching armor to vehicles.

They also found a tunnel equipped with fans and lights that ran from beneath a mosque out to a road. Iraqi forces have found extensive tunneling networks in areas retaken from IS, which the militants used to elude U.S.-led coalition warplanes. IS has also rigged homes and other buildings with explosives to slow the troops' advance.

Many fear IS may resort to more brutal tactics as the forces converge on the city.

The U.N.'s public health agency said Thursday it has trained 90 Iraqi medics in "mass casualty management," with a special focus on chemical attacks. The extremist group is believed to have crude chemical weapons capabilities.
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Forget about Election Day. If you want to see the latest changes in Albany County legal circles, the big day is Halloween.

So long, Albany County Judge Stephen Herrick. Hello, Albany County Public Defender Stephen Herrick.

And hello, acting Albany County Judge William Carter.

Officially, Carter cannot work as an elected county judge until he is formally elected and sworn onto the bench Jan. 1  a fait accompli considering Carter faces no opponent Nov. 8.

But Law Beat has learned that Carter will step into the role of acting county judge to replace Herrick on Monday, which means his tenure basically starts at that time. Carter  a former state trooper, prosecutor and defense attorney  has already been spotted in the Albany County Judicial Center preparing for his new role.

Carter will be no stranger to local defense attorneys or Albany County prosecutors; the legal wrangling between Carter and District Attorney David Soares' office over the minor arrests of four Occupy Albany protestors took on a life of its own before the Court of Appeals ultimately sided with Soares.

And one top prosecutor, Chief Assistant District Attorney Cheryl Fowler, just ran against Carter for the Democratic nod to replace Herrick (she ultimately did not have enough petition signatures to get on the ballot).

It may sound like an awkward transition  and who is to say it will not be. But if ever there was a time to shelve past animosity, now is the time. Soares is still recovering from a serious heart procedure that will keep him out of work until he is well enough to return.

Carter is heading into a new role.

"I'm not expecting any issues," Chief Assistant District Attorney David Rossi told Law Beat when asked about Carter's arrival.

Herrick will take over a public defender's office that has been run of late by senior counsel Terry Kindlon, whom the judge has known for decades.

Kindlon, as Law Beat previously reported, has overhauled the office with new assignments and roles for attorneys, right down to transforming the former media room on the first-floor of the judicial center to an office where public defenders can meet their clients.

"I'm extremely proud of the prevailing attitude among the assistants in the office," Kindlon said. "You can see it in everybody's faces. There is an attitude of optimism and hard work that is refreshing and wonderful."

Sign up for The Knick  Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter.

Veterans Law Day, free legal information

Speaking of Kindlon, the Vietnam War veteran and Purple Heart recipient will deliver a keynote speech on Saturday at a Veterans Law Day being held at Albany Law School.

The Law Day event, which goes from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., will allow veterans and their families an opportunity to get free legal information from volunteer lawyers on a first come, first served basis, the law school announced.

The day, which will include a community resource fair and free breakfast and lunch, is being held by the law school's Pro Bono Program and student-led Veterans' Rights Project.

rgavin@timesunion.com  518-434-2403  @RobertGavinTU
The Enforcement Directorate has decided to probe the Rs 22 crore fraud allegations against Air Asia made by Cyrus Mistry. The ED said the allegations would be investigated under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999.

By Virendrasingh Ghunawat: After stock exchanges and market regulator raised its antenna on ousted Tata Group chairman Cyrus Mistry's allegations against Tata Sons, the enforcement directorate(ED) has pulled up its socks and decided to probe the fraud allegation.

The ED would primarily investigate the Rs 22 crore fraud allegations under Section 3 of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999.

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On Tuesday, Mistry had alleged that "a recent forensic investigation revealed fraudulent transactions of Rs 22 crore involving non-existent parties in India and Singapore."

Senior ED official told India Today that the allegation made by Cyrus Mistry in writing, which was published by various newspapers/media across the country, has prepared the ground for "examination" of the case, suo motu under FEMA provisions.

READ: No Cyrus mystery: All you need to know about sacked Tata chairman

WHAT DOES FEMA SAY

The ED said the allegations would be probed under Section 3 of FEMA, 1999.

The section 3 of the act has four provisions, which read as follows:

a) no person shall deal in or transfer any foreign exchange or foreign security to any person not being an authorised person;

b) no person shall make any payment to or for the credit of any person resident outside India in any manner;

c) no person shall receive otherwise through an authorised person, any payment by order or on behalf of any person resident outside India in any manner, and

d) no person shall enter into any financial transaction in India as consideration for or in association with acquisition or creation or transfer of a right to acquire, any asset outside India by any person.

ALSO READ: Ratan Tata-Cyrus Mistry boardroom war enters the courtroom, Tatas file multiple caveats WAS AN FIR FILED?



In his explosive email to board members of Tata Sons, Mistry said, "Executive trustee, Venkatraman, who is on the board of Air Asia and also a shareholder in the company, considered these transactions as non-material and did not encourage further study. It was only at the insistence of independent directors, one of whom immediately submitted his resignation, that the board decided belatedly to file a first information report (FIR)".

The investigative agency would question both Tata Sons and Air Asia, on whether "the FIR was filed or not".

Further, if the FIR was filed, as is claimed by Mistry, then, an ED official said, "The case would get investigated under the prevention of money laundering act (PMLA), with serious action plans".

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Queries sent by India Today to both, Tata Sons and Air Asia to understand whether the FIR was filed or not, remained unanswered.

The spokespersons of Tata Sons declined to react and said "It is Air Asia's domain to reply.

On the other hand, Air Asia said, "We are not responding to any media queries".



Why did Mistry stop being blue-eyed boy of Ratan Tata? All you need to know in 10 points

Also read: Cyrus Mistry sacking from Tata: Tale of family discord since 1930s

TATA CAPITAL ALSO UNDER RADAR

Another allegation made by Mistry on the bad loans, Tata Capital, is also under ED's radar.

Mistry had alleged that Tata Capital had given a "loan to Siva under the strong advice of Executive Trustee Venkataraman, which has since turned into a non-performing asset (NPA)."

In an interview given to The Hindu, C Sivasankaran of the Siva Group admitted that the money lent to him by Tata Capital was against a pledge created on shares held by him in Tata Teleservices Ltd (TTSL).

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"Tata Capital have given Rs 200 crore against Rs 600 crore worth of TTSL shares, " Sivasankaran said.

Fact remains, till now, the Chennai-based Siva Group has not repaid the loan amount due to bankruptcy issue.

Sivasankaran was quoted saying, "Tata Capital have written it off in their books of accounts and kept the shares with them".

But for ED officials, more than the loan amount, the name "Siva" is of great concern.

ALSO READ: Cyrus Mistry sacked as Tata Sons chairman, Ratan Tata to head for 4 months

ALSO READ: Factors that might influence the selection of Tata Sons' next chairman

ALSO READ: Be your own man, Ratan Tata's advice to his successor Cyrus Mistry

SIVASANKARAN'S QUESTIONABLE PAST



In 2011, Sivasankaran named had cropped up in 2G scam.

According to ED's investigation report, Sivasankaran had indirectly funded mobile-phone company S Tel and later, he bought the telco and bagged licences to offer cellphone services.

The ED had alleged that the companies used by Sivasankaran to fund S Tel had provided a Rs 50 crore loan to Kalaignar TV, owned by family members of DMK leader M Karunanidhi.

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Even in those days, CBI had alleged that Dayanidhi had "pressurized" and "forced" Sivasankaran to sell his stakes in Aircel and two subsidiary companies to Malaysian firm Maxis Group in 2006.

Now, when Cyrus Mistry have blamed Siva Group for rising NPAs in Tata Capital's book of accounts, the ED has decided to probe these allegations as well.

"This case is similar to Vijay Mallya's Kingfisher Airlines, where loans got converted into debt. Unless there is any criminal complaint filed against Siva Group, it would be difficult for us to investigate it under FEMA or PMLA", the official said.

In its statement, Tata Capital Financial Services Limited said, "Tata Capital had extended secured term loans to Siva Industries and Holdings Ltd (SHIL) and Siva Ventures Limited (SVL) aggregating Rs 200 crore. Due internal processes as applicable for sanctions of loans of such nature and value were followed. The facility had a security cover significantly in excess of the loans granted and was backed by a personal guarantee of C Sivasankaran. The facility was settled in June 2014, and due disclosures were made in the audited financial statements of the company."



Also Read:

Ratan Tata looking for a buyer for Cyrus Mistry's stake: Reports

READ: No Cyrus mystery: All you need to know about sacked Tata chairman

READ: Factors that might influence the selection of Tata Sons' next chairman

--- ENDS ---
Andrew Theodorakis

The editorial "OTB bailout a bad bet," Oct. 20, ignores the significant contributions that Resorts World Casino has made for New York state since opening its doors five years ago. While the editorial's focus is on the casino's payments to Nassau County's Off Track Betting, the reader is left with an incomplete picture of how the casino's success is chiefly to the state's benefit.

Since 2011, Resorts World has paid a 70 percent tax rate, making New York state our senior partner. Since opening, we have created more than 1,000 good-paying jobs, fostered economic development in our community and generated more than $1.7 billion for the state's education fund  a number that, according to independent analysis, will grow exponentially with the proposed expansion.
Toomevara author Brendan Lynch is appealing to Irish filmmakers to step forward, after a US companys failure to progress a proposed movie on John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Browns first non-stop 1919 Atlantic flight from St Johns, Newfoundland to Clifden.

The film was to be based on Mr Lynchs account of the pioneering flight, Yesterday We Were in America, which was praised by authors Len Deighton and Colum McCann.

I signed a holding agreement with a New York company, who initially informed of their progress with screenwriters and producers. But they have now gone cold and I hope an Irish filmmaker may step in to record the dramatic flight which put Ireland on the world aviation map, he said.

The author spent two years researching his book on both sides of the Atlantic.

He met the late Steve Fossett, who replicated the flight in July 2005, and also Clifdens Harry Sullivan, who witnessed Alcock and Browns June 1919 arrival.

With the 2019 centenary looming, planning would have to start soon, if a film were to be made, said Brendan.

Alcock and Brown survived continuous cloud, snow and ice and a near-fatal stall in their open-cockpit Vickers Vimy, as well as a damaged exhaust and a non-functioning wireless, before landing at Derrygimla, near Clifden on Sunday morning, June 15, 1919.

Mr Lynch insisted that the all-action John Alcock and his introspective navigator, Arthur Whitten Brown, were the two of the worlds most successful and, sadly, most neglected aviation pioneers. Their 16-hour flight was probably the most significant and dramatic aviation feat, after the Wright Brothers early efforts.

transatlantic tourism

It marked the first crossing of an ocean and, at 1,880 miles, the longest distance ever flown up to that time. Though the Atlantic was not flown again until Charles Lindberghs 1927 crossing, it was Alcock and Brown who pioneered the route we all take for granted today, he said.

With Failte Irelands assistance, a boardwalk was recently erected on the landing site to make the area more accessible to aviation fans and those interested in the early Marconi station which once stood there.

A film on this great flight could also boost the number of transatlantic visitors to Ireland, maintained Mr Lynch.

Brendan Lynch was born in 1937, and is the son of late Garda sergeant Patrick Lynch and former schoolteacher Siobhan Lynch.

After a year in St Flannans College, Brendan studied at Nenagh CBS, where his teachers, Bill Small and Rodney Bent, inculcated a love of literature and the written word. His first job was with CIE in their Thurles office.
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Tipperary Minor Hurling Manager Liam Cahill and Tipperary U-21 Hurling Manager William Maher, together with All Ireland Minor Hurling medallist Dylan Walsh - all from Ballingarry and 6 time Tipperary All Star Eoin Kelly from nearby Mullinahone will act as patrons to this Road Hurling Tournament taking place on Bank Holiday Monday 31th October commencing with registration at 12 noon in the local GAA Clubhouse in O Sullivan Park, Ballingarry.

The All-Ireland Minor hurling Irish Press Cup will be on display for the day with the likelihood of the presence of the Liam McCarthy Cup at some point during the afternoon.

Route: The competition will commence outside Our Lady's Primary School in Ballingarry village, proceeding out to Croke's Cross (on The Commons Rd) , up the hill on the Farrenrory Rd, then taking a further right turn at the top of the hill and returning to the village by the top road - a total distance of 2.8 kilometres (approx.) . Refreshments will be served to all competitors in the Clubhouse afterwards.

Hedges and road margins along the entire route have been trimmed for easy retrieval of the 'sliothars' and to ensure smooth and steady progress along the route. The local Civil Defence team will help to monitor and steward the outing.

Teams: A team will consist of 3 players of any combination (male /female, senior /juvenile etc.). We will have teams participating from local clubs in Tipperary and across the border in Kilkenny. Cost per team is 30 or 10 per person. A Juvenile team will cost just 15 or 5 each. There will be 4 team prizes to include best overall, best Tipperary & Kilkenny Clubs and best juvenile. A good turnout is expected on what should be a very enjoyable day. Teams can be booked in advance by contacting MaryAnne at 086 1547484
Silvermines Historical Society will launch its fifth local history journal, Mining the Past, in as many years in the Eagle's Nest, Dolla, this Friday, November 4.

The book will be launched by well known local historian, author and former teacher Danny Grace, a popular journal contributor in the past.

The 2017 publication contains the writings of over 30 local contributors, covering a wide range of subjects.

Among the stories told is the life of Sgt Joseph Gaynor, who lived in Dolla Garda station in 1938, as well as the account of Det Sgt Matthew McLoughlin from Foilnadrough, Kilcommon, and a valued member of the staff of Field Marshal Kitchener, who perished with Kitchener on the HMS Hampshire in June 1916.

Other stories tell of A family of Survivors  The Kennedys of Poullanorman and their connections to Thomas Francis Meagher, an article extensively researched by Paddy Ryan, Malahide and formerly of Killeen.

Winning the Sweep, Going to the Creamery and Cart-Makers in Silvermines parish are some some of the other topics covered.

Of the many photos, the most notable one, captured by Donal Quinn, is members of SHS in Kilmainham Gaol, on a special day trip to Dublin on April 30, 2016.

Mining the Past is priced at 10, ,and, neeedless to say, it will make a great Christmas gift for anyone who has associations with the parish. It will be available on launch night and afterwards in local shops and bookstores.

All are welcome to the launch and light refreshments will be served afterwards.
[October 28, 2016]

Aeris to Present at 4th Annual Internet of Things Summit Chicago

CHICAGO, Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aeris, a pioneer and leader in the Internet of Things (IoT) market, today said Raj Kanaya, its chief marketing officer and managing director of automotive, will be presenting at the 4th Annual Internet of Things (IoT) Summit Chicago.

Chief Marketing Officer and Managing Director of Automotive, Aeris





A photo accompanying this announcement is available at //www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b6610833-29fd-41ba-8235-da98282ec33c

The IoT Summit Chicago, which takes place here Nov. 9 and 10 at the Chicago Mart Plaza, will feature more than 50 sessions and provide insights on everything from IoT in clothing and jewelry to driverless cars to industrial implementations. The conference will also feature 27 presentations from innovative IoT companies seeking investment, bringing together executives from IoT companies and venture capital and private equity investors.

Kanaya, who also serves as CEO of Aeris Japan, a joint venture formed in Japan by Aeris and SoftBank to provide IoT and telematics services globally using the Aeris IoT solutions platform, will present at 3:00 p.m. (CST) on Wednesday, Nov. 9.

The IoT Summit Chicago, hosted by the Illinois Technology Association (ITA) and featuring the First Analysis Capital Conference, is a convergence of IoT thought leadership and investor engagement.

CLICK TO TWEET: #CMO Raj Kanaya of @AerisM2M to present Nov. 9 at #IoTSummitChi hosted by @ITAbuzz in #Chicago. #IoT http://www.aeris.com/news/

Supporting Quotes

Raj Kanaya, chief marketing officer and managing director of automotive, Aeris, and CEO, Aeris Japan







Fred Hoch, CEO, ITA

This years Summit will explore some of the timeliest issues impacting the Internet of Things, such as data ownership and governance. We will simultaneously be showcasing local IoT companies including Aeris, and attracting investors and capital to the region.

Digital Assets

Supporting Resources

About ITA

The Illinois Technology Association (ITA) scales Illinois tech companies. With innovative resources that allow members to collaborate with each other, build their talent networks and elevate their local and national presence, ITA is the regions strongest advocate for fostering innovation and growth. Founded in 2005 and supporting 500-plus growth-stage tech companies, ITA has a rich history of driving the business forward. For more information, visit illinoistech.org, follow @ITAbuzz on Twitter or find us on LinkedIn.

About First Analysis

First Analysis has a 35-year record of serving emerging growth companies, established industry leaders, and institutional investors in its focused areas of domain expertise, both through its venture capital investments and through First Analysis Securities Corp. (FASC)*, which provides investment banking services and institutional equity research. Integrated public and private company research underpins our success, yielding a deep, comprehensive understanding of each segment's near-term and long-term potential. We excel at uncovering and leveraging the best opportunities in emerging high-growth segments in health care and technology for the benefit of the investors and growth companies we serve. (*Investment banking services are offered through First Analysis Securities Corporation, a registered broker/dealer with FINRA and member SIPC.)

About Aeris

Aeris is a pioneer and leader in the market of the Internet of Things  as an operator of end-to-end IoT and machine-to-machine (M2M) services and as a technology provider enabling other operators to build profitable IoT businesses. Among our customers are the most demanding users of IoT services today, including Hyundai, Acura, Rand McNally, Leica, and Sprint. Through our technology platform and dedicated IoT and M2M services, we strive to fundamentally improve their businesses  by dramatically reducing costs, improving operational efficiency, reducing time-to-market, and enabling new revenue streams.

Tags/Keywords: Aeris, Internet of Things, IoT, machine-to-machine, M2M, Raj Kanaya, Illinois Technology Association, ITA, Fred Hoch, First Analysis, IoT Summit, Chicago





For more information, contact: Kevin Petschow Aeris +1.312.985.9182 [email protected] Julia Kanouse ITA +1.312.924.1443 [email protected]
The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader has been invited to visit the state in March 2017.

By Ananth Krishnan: China today hit out at India's statement saying the Dalai Lama was "free to travel" to Arunachal Pradesh, warning that any visit would "damage" relations.

The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader has been invited to visit the state in March 2017, and the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday that as a "revered spiritual figure and an honoured guest of India" the Dalai Lama is "absolutely free to travel to any part of the country".

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China claims 90,000 sq km in Arunachal, which it refers to as "south Tibet", and has especially voiced strong claims on Tawang because of its links to Tibet and as the birthplace of the 6th Dalai Lama.

Beijing on Monday hit out at the US Ambassador in India Richard Verma for his visit to Tawang last week, blasting US "meddling" in the border dispute.

Reports of the 14th Dalai Lama's upcoming visit brought an even sharper response on Friday.

"We are seriously concerned about the relevant information," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said, adding that "China's position on the eastern section of the China-India border is consistent and clear".

"The Dalai clique is engaged in anti-China separatist activity and has very disrgaceful behaviour on issues relating to China-India boundary question," he said.

"The Indian side is well aware of the severity of the Dalai Lama issue as well as the sensitivity of the China India boundary question. Under such circumstances, India's invitation to the Dalai Lama for activity in the disputed areas between China and India will only damage peace and stability of the border areas, but as well as the bilateral relationship between China and India."

India had said that the Dalai Lama had a "sizeable following" among Buddhists in Arunachal Pradesh and that considering he had visited the state in the past, there was "nothing unusual if he visits again".

The Foreign Ministry however said that "making one mistake does not mean that you can make another mistake" referring to past visits.

It said the visit would be "providing a platform for anti-China separatist activities". China views the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader as a political figure campaigning to separate Tibet. The Dalai Lama however has rejected those claims, saying he is not campaigning for independence, has relinquished his historical political role and only wants China to guarantee the protection of Tibetans' rights.

The Foreign Ministry said it "requires the Indian side to honour their political commitment on Tibet related issues and abide by the bilateral consensus on the boundary question, refrain from taking any action that may complicate the issue, to not provide any platform for anti-China separatist activities by the 14th Dalai Lama. "By only doing so," it added, "can we maintain sound and steady growth of the bilateral relations."

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Dalai Lama's visit to Arunachal Pradesh not a problem: Centre



--- ENDS ---
[October 28, 2016] New Co-located Contact Center Expands iQor's Technical Customer Service Operations in Bydgoszcz, Poland

iQor (News - Alert), a global provider of customer interaction solutions and product support services, announced today that it has officially opened a customer contact center at its Central European product support facility in Bydgoszcz, Poland. The new co-located center occupies a dedicated, newly built mezzanine level of the 15,400-square-meter facility above current product support operations creating the industry's first integrated services hub. "iQor's 1,300 employees in Bydgoszcz have supported global brands in nine countries across Europe since 2005," said Hartmut Liebel, CEO of iQor. "This expansion fulfills a commitment to reshape service operations and set a new standard for customer experience by integrating both customer and product support in one central services hub." "The expansion allows iQor to offer clients the unique capability to provide integrated multi-channel contact center services, technical support and product repair all co-located under one roof," said Peter Sykora, iQor COO, Electronics & Infrastructure. "With the unique real-time exchange of information and knowledge we can achieve through co-location, we can provide our clients with higher agent accuracy, improved customer experience, and lower total cost to serve." iQor's new contact center operates on a fully virtualized, cloud-based telephony solution that meets ll EU compliance requirements. The company has also embedded its proven knowledge management solution to seamlessly integrate data and analytics from customer interactions and product support operations.



iQor currently supports leading technology brands in 12 languages including English, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and others. Bydgoszcz, located at the intersection of Eastern and Western Europe about three hours from Warsaw, recently topped a World Bank ranking of Polish cities for its business-friendly atmosphere.

The center adds to the company's existing European footprint, which includes additional facilities in Poland, Hungary, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Russia, and Turkey. About iQor iQor provides global customer interaction and product support solutions in 18 countries. Our 40,000 employees partner with many of the world's best-known brands to deliver product and customer support solutions that span the consumer value chain, from product diagnostics and repair services to customer care and receivables management. Our award-winning technology, logistics and analytics platforms enable us to measure, monitor and analyze brand interactions, improve business process and find operational efficiencies that lead to superior outcomes for our partners across the customer and product lifecycles. For more information, please visit us at www.iqor.com or follow us at www.twitter.com/iqor. For more information about iQor Poland, please visit http://poland.iqor.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005152/en/

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[October 27, 2016] BuildTech Asia 2016 Unveils Transformation of Building and Construction Sector Through Technology and Building-IoT

SINGAPORE, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The sixth edition of BuildTech Asia 2016, the region's leading trade show for the building and construction industry, recorded an increased visitor attendance of 35% over the three-day event. Organised by Sphere Exhibits and hosted by the Building and Construction Authority (BCA), the annual trade show was held from 18 to 20 October, in conjunction with the Singapore Construction Productivity Week (SCPW). Over 100 exhibiting brands showcased the latest productive and cutting edge technologies from construction machinery to quality finishes, building and architectural solutions. Robotics and Internet of Things (IoT) technology were also on display alongside 3D concrete printers, immersive Big Data and Virtual Reality applications. Some 7,000 visitors from 32 countries had the opportunity to learn about the future of construction with the use of applied technology and building materials. Mr Lawrence Wong, Minister for National Development and Second Minister for Finance, graced the opening of the Singapore Construction Productivity Week and BuildTech Asia. He announced that the Singapore government is committed to help firms harness the full potential of Building Information Modelling (BIM) and Virtual Design Construction to improve collaboration and enhance the construction management process. Mr Chua Wee Phong, Chairman of Sphere Exhibits Pte Ltd, said: "The pace of digital transformation in this domain is accelerating across multiple sectors within construction. We are very pleased that BuildTech Asia, in its sixth year, has continued to attract strong interest and support from exhibitors and visitors alike and we hope that the increasing uptake of these technologies will spur the construction industry towards greater productivity." "BuildTech Asia provides a good learning experience to understand more about the building space and its evolution over the years. We are also happy to note that the trade platform now plays a strong role in bridging knowledge gaps through its ancillary conferences and associated trade activities. This is the future of the built environment industry and BuildTech Asia is at the very heart of it." Thirty-five key technologies under seven R&D clusters were identified to enable the built environment sector to sustain productivity improvements in the long term. These areas include Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DfMA), automated equipment and robotics, info-comm technology, Building Information Modelling (BIM) and Virtual Design and Construction (VDC), 3D printing, advanced construction materials and productive solutions for civil engineering works. Additionally, BCA's announcement to fund S$2 million for four research projects will focus on solutions that drive DfMA in the sector with much on-site construction works shifted to off-site prefabrication and automation in a factory environment as well as improving integration across the construction value chain. Dr John Keung, CEO of BCA, said that the built environment sector needs to constantly develop and harness innovations and new technologies to improve construction productivity and resource efficiencies, given the tightened manpower supply in this sector. This shift in approach will result in better job creation in the sector. Visitors were delighted to see the array of exhibits demonstrating best practices in productivity and sustainability. Alfred Griffioen, founding partner at Alliance Experts, said: "Professionals in this industry do not normally associate cutting edge technology with construction, but it is highly applicable. The exhibition this year included exciting technology elements such as a 3D concrete printer, a crane that doesn't sway and a booth which, aided by Virtual Reality applications, gave a walk through experience in a project that hasn't yet been brought to life. I would encourage anyone in this sector to attend BuildTech Asia to get a feel of the current landscape and its emerging trends in the future." Strengthening knowledge-based platforms for regional exchange As Singapore is in a leadership position as a hub for developing Southeast Asian markets such as Indonesia, India, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines, BuildTech Asia plays a facilitation role in knowledge sharing. Some 100 trade delegates were present at site visits to the BCA Skylab, a state-of-the-art rotatable test facility pivotal to developing innovative energy efficient building technologies as well as a construction site for a residential estate comprising of nine blocks of 22 storey buildings. This site is the first in Singapore to implement the use of productive technologies such as Prefabricated Volumetric Construction (PVC) modules for three blocks, conventional 2-D precast panels for the remaining six blocks and the use of Prefabricated Bathroom Units (PBUs) for all units. The project is based on first generation (Concrete PVC) proposal using columns, beams and slabs. Property developers are creating customer-centric one-to-one (O2O) experience through sensor technology, Internet of Things, cloud, RFID technology, social media and data analytics to develop touchpoints with consumers. The inaugural Building Internet of Things Asia (B-IoT Asia) Conference, by a panel of well-respected speakers from the region, demonstrated how such knowledge and technology can be applied and how buildings can be constructed to cater for evolving technology requirements. Delegates engaged in deep discussions on how to apply technologies like Big Data and Internet of Things to the building and construction sector. The Environment Sustainability Conference educated delegates on how to think, build and operate 'Green'. Speakers showed building information modelling (BIM) that can pave the way to creating a building sustainably; how machine-based learning contributes to energy management; and how to design with a view to achieving Green Mark 2015 certification. The Conference also discussed how acting sustainably while constructing a building was as important as creating a building that is inherently sustainable.

Forging productive practices in innovative construction from ground up Innovation and technology have strong impact on a company's productivity. The inaugural SCAL Productivity and Innovation Awards (PIA) 2016 which took place at BuildTech Asia saw some 1,000 visitors cast their votes on 10 finalists for the coveted Productivity & Innovation Awards by Singapore Construction Association Limited (SCAL). PIA 2016 is an industry-led initiative designed to raise productivity in the construction sector through a ground-up approach for innovative ideas that aims to generate significant improvements at the workplace. Three winners were announced at the Environmental Sustainability Conference, held on 20 October, in conjunction with BuildTech Asia. The winners were: Gold: Lian Soon Construction Pte Ltd - Innovative Drain (iDrain) - The Durable Reusable ECM Drain

Silver: Samwoh Corporation Pte Ltd - Productive and Green Solution for Pavement Retexturing & Spillage Removal

Bronze: S C Ang Consortium Pte Ltd - GNSS for Piling Project All winning organisations acknowledged the significance of this award in encouraging the industry to strive towards innovative work processes through a ground-up approach. Ariola Ruel Penaflor, Head, Lian Soon Construction Pte Ltd, who clinched the gold award, said: "The Productivity & Innovation Award (PIA) is an excellent platform for construction companies to come together and showcase their latest innovations and developments. Winning the gold brings us one step closer to commercialising our drain system and we hope to see the industry benefitting from this recyclable and reusable model. The iDrain will be a game-changer, by reducing wastage and manpower with its extreme sustainability. This award has given companies like us various opportunities to create impactful changes in the building scene from our small ideas." Mr Kenneth Loo, President of Singapore Construction Limited (SCAL), said: "We are happy to note that the inaugural PIA Awards kicked off to a good start in our efforts to drive productivity and innovation to a different level in the built environment sector. The award has provided professionals with something to look at and something to move forward with in practice. It recognises these efforts as important and integral to build a productive culture from the grounds up, allowing practitioners greater involvement in their efforts to increase productivity and innovative solutions. BuildTech Asia provides the ideal platform to showcase and broadcast these ideas and prototypes within the industry, in line with government collaborations in this sector. SCAL will be happy to explore continued involvement as we strive to grow and develop the awards with a common vision towards driving productivity and innovation." Forging partnerships and collaborations in SMART construction Besides exploring the latest technologies and materials, delegates and exhibitors fostered new business relationships as well as commercial partnerships at BuildTech Asia. The trade exhibition was well received as it generated qualified leads for the exhibitors and much needed awareness for vendors in an industry that may otherwise not offer a lot of visibility. Visitors saw a wide range of new innovations that could help them gain construction productivity and reduce manpower expenses at the Public Sector Co-ordinated Pavilion, amongst exhibiting country pavilions and exhibiting companies. Five government agencies - LTA, HDB, IMDA, HDB and NTU, showcased cutting edge and future technologies which were used within their respective organisations. BuildTech Asia 2016 also provided a conducive springboard for exhibiting companies to launch new products, services and technologies into the local and international market. Various industry players announced new initiatives and partnerships aimed at elevating construction productivity in Singapore and the region: Bointec, a Taiwanese company, launched their latest IoT product, HC818K, aims to launching it in the Southeast Asian (SEA) market.

In its second return to BuildTech Asia, FINALCAD announced a USD20m funding to help expand its suite of services in SEA. This new round of funding aims to assist the development of new technology such as object recognition, predictive analytics and augmented reality and complements their existing mobile apps in BIM for the field.

funding to help expand its suite of services in SEA. This new round of funding aims to assist the development of new technology such as object recognition, predictive analytics and augmented reality and complements their existing mobile apps in BIM for the field. Korean company, Two Cap, launched a patented dual cap protector for the first time in Singapore and around the region. This product meets the standards of most countries in Asia and Europe . BuildTech Asia will return to the Singapore Expo in October 2017. Premium spaces are now available. Organisations which are keen to exhibit at BuildTech Asia 2017 are welcome to reserve their spaces early. Issued by Singapore Press Holdings Limited

(Co. Registration No. 198402868E) For media queries, please contact:







Sphere Exhibits Pte Ltd Rabita Jamal Senior Manager, Trade Marketing Sphere Exhibits Pte Ltd DID: +65 6319 1675 Email: [email protected] Vanni Cheong Assistant Manager, Corporate Communications & CSR Singapore Press Holdings DID: +65 6319 1553. Email: [email protected]



Illka Gobius Director PINPOINT PR +65 9769 8370 [email protected]



About BuildTech Asia 2016 Hosted by Building Construction Authority of Singapore (BCA), and held during the Singapore Construction Productivity Week (SCPW), BuildTech Asia 2016 is now into its 6th edition and focuses on technologies that address the challenges of building and construction across different vertical industries. BuildTech Asia 2016 is 3-day trade event dedicated to make a difference to the future of the industry. For more information, please visit www.buildtechasia.com About the Singapore Construction Productivity Week (SCPW) Organised by the Building and Construction Authority of Singapore (BCA), the Singapore Construction Productivity Week (SCPW) is an industry hallmark event for developers, architects, consultants, builders and suppliers to exchange ideas on construction productivity, as well as share the latest developments in new productive technologies, best practices and success stories. Held from 18 - 21 October 2016, key events this year include the BuildTech Asia Exhibition, Build Smart Conference, Skilled Builders Project, inaugural SCAL Productivity Innovation Competition and Awards, Experiential Workshop, as well as the Productivity Workshop, Productivity Challenge and Productivity Race to engage tertiary students on construction productivity concepts. For more information, please visit www.scpw.sg About Sphere Exhibits Pte Ltd A wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore Press Holdings (SPH), Sphere Exhibits, which stands for "SPH Events, Roadshows and Exhibitions", aims to be the leading events company catering to a diverse mix of trade and consumer clientele. Backed by a committed and experienced team of professionals and SPH's comprehensive range of media platforms, Sphere Exhibits' shows, events and exhibitions centre on unique concepts that attract local audiences and regional participants. Among the 20 Sphere Exhibits' events are The IT Show, COMEX, Licence2Play, Asian Masters and Kidz Academy. Leveraging on its expertise in event conceptualisation, planning and execution, Sphere Exhibits delivers memorable and quality events that meet the objectives of its clientele and partners. For more information, please visit www.sphereexhibits.com.sg About Singapore Press Holdings Ltd Incorporated in 1984, main board-listed Singapore Press Holdings Ltd (SPH) is Asia's leading media organisation, engaging minds and enriching lives across multiple languages and platforms, ranging from print, digital, radio and out-of-home media. SPH owns award-winning newspapers, magazines and best-selling books in both print and digital editions, as well as online classified businesses in the region. In addition, SPH has two English radio stations and one Chinese radio station, an out-of-home digital advertising unit, a regional events and conferences arm, and runs a chain of modern retail convenience stores. SPH also has a 20 per cent stake in MediaCorp TV Holdings Pte Ltd, which operates free-to-air channels 5, 8 and U, and a 40 per cent stake in MediaCorp Press Limited, which publishes the free newspaper, Today. SPH REIT comprises Paragon, a premier upscale retail mall and medical suite/office property in Orchard Road and The Clementi Mall, a mid-market suburban mall. SPH's latest retail development is The Seletar Mall located in Sengkang. For more information, please visit www.sph.com.sg

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[October 27, 2016] IMPORTANT INVESTOR ALERT: Lundin Law PC Announces Securities Class Action Lawsuit against Adeptus Health Inc. and Encourages Investors with Losses to Contact the Firm

Lundin Law PC, a shareholder rights firm, announces a class action lawsuit has been filed against Adeptus Health Inc. ("Adeptus Health" or the "Company") (NYSE: ADPT) on behalf of purchasers of Adeptus Health securities pursuant and/or traceable to the Company's secondary public offering (the "SPO") on or about July 31, 2015, or purchasers of common shares between April 23, 2015 and November 16, 2015, inclusive (the "Class Period"). Investors, who purchased or otherwise acquired shares during the SPO or the Class Period, are encouraged to contact the firm in advance of the December 27, 2016 lead plaintiff motion deadline. To participate in this class action lawsuit, click here. You can also call Brian Lundin, Esquire, of Lundin Law PC, at 888-713-1033, or e-mail him at [email protected].



No class has been certified in the above action. Until a class is certified, you are not considered represented by an attorney. You may also choose to do nothing and be an absent class member. The complaint alleges that Adeptus Health made material false and/or misleading information and/or failed to disclose: that the Company engaged in widespread predatory billing practices, particularly with respect to lower acuity level patients; that Adeptus Health's predatory billing practices subjected the Company to numerous known but undisclosed risks, such as financial risks, reputational risks, risks associated with improper financial reporting, civil or criminal sanctions, and even exclusion from federal and state healthcare programs; that the Company's financial statements were not prepared in conformity with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles; that contrary to the Company's representations about its practice of referring lower acuity patients to urgent care facilities, Adeptus Health routinely treated lower acuity patients and excessively billed them for services; and that as a result of the above, Adeptus Health lacked a reasonable basis for its statements about its business and future financial prospects at all relevant times. On November 17, 2015, KUSA, an NBC-affiliated television station located in Denver, Colorado, aired an investigative report about the predatory billing practices at Adeptus Health's Colorado First Choice emergency rooms. When this news was announced, shares of Adeptus Health fell in value, causing investors harm.

Lundin Law PC was founded by Brian Lundin, a securities litigator based in Los Angeles dedicated to upholding shareholders' rights. This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161027007021/en/

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[October 28, 2016] Acucela Issues Notice of Listing Approval of Kubota Pharmaceutical Holdings

Acucela Inc. (Tokyo:4589) (the "Company"), a clinical-stage ophthalmology company that specializes in identifying and developing novel therapeutics to treat and slow the progression of sight-threatening ophthalmic diseases, hereby gives notice that the merger agreement regarding its proposed redomicile transaction was adopted at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders of the Company held on October 18, 2016 Pacific Time in Seattle, Washington. Upon the completion of the merger, Kubota Pharmaceutical Holdings Co., Ltd. ("Kubota Holdings") will become a publicly listed Japanese holding company. Please refer to the press releases dated March 28, 2016 "Announcement on Proposed Conversion of Japanese Subsidiary into the Holding Company of Acucela Inc. through Triangular Merger" and August 9, 2016 "Acucela Announces Official Name of Acucela Japan as Kubota Pharmaceutical Holdings Co., Ltd." for further information. Following the resolution at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders stated above, on October 28, 2016 Japan Time, the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Inc. ("TSE") approved the listing of Kubota Holdings on the TSE Mothers market.







1. Overview of the listing entity 1) Name of the listing entity: Kubota Pharmaceutical Holdings Co., Ltd. (Name is anticipated to change on December 1, 2016 (Japan time)) 2) Scheduled date of listing: December 6, 2016 (Japan Time) 3) Security code: 4596 4) Trading unit: 100 shares per unit

2. Anticipated schedule of the listing November 25, 2016 (Friday) (Japan Time) Final trading date for Company common stock November 28, 2016 (Monday) (Japan Time) Delisting date for Company common stock December 1, 2016 (Thursday) (Japan Time) Merger effective date December 6, 2016 (Tuesday) (Japan Time) Listing date for Kubota Holdings common stock and commencement date for trading Kubota Holdings common stock Note: Kubota Holdings' common stock will be technically listed on the TSE. Technical listing is a procedure that follows a corporate reorganization that creates a newly listed company on the TSE. 3. Others The merger is scheduled to be effective on December 1, 2016 (Japan Time), however the listing date for Kubota Holdings' common stock is scheduled to be December 6, 2016 (Japan Time). The reason is due to administrative requirements following the issuance of Kubota Holdings' common stock in exchange for the Company's common stock. The Company's common shareholders are able to trade on the TSE until the final trading date, which is anticipated to occur on November 25, 2016 (Japan time). However, after the delisting date scheduled on November 28, 2016 (Japan Time), the Company's shareholders will be unable to trade their shares until the listing date for Kubota Holdings' common stock scheduled on December 6, 2016 (Japan Time). Upon the completion of the merger, each share of the Company's common stock will be cancelled and converted into the right to receive one share of Kubota Holdings common stock. Therefore, shareholders will receive the same number of shares of Kubota Holdings common stock as the number of shares of the Company's common stock that they held at the time of delisting. About Acucela Inc. Acucela Inc. (http://www.acucela.com/ or http://www.acucela.jp) is a clinical-stage ophthalmology company that specializes in identifying and developing novel therapeutics to treat and slow the progression of sight-threatening ophthalmic disorders affecting millions of people worldwide. The Company's pipeline includes drug candidates and therapeutics for the treatment of age-related macular degeneration, cataracts, presbyopia, diabetic retinopathy, retinitis pigmentosa and Stargardt disease. Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This communication contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including with respect to the ability of the Company to consummate the proposed redomicile transaction (the "Redomicile Transaction") and the anticipated timing thereof. Such forward-looking statements typically can be identified by the use of words such as "expect," "estimate," "anticipate," "forecast," "intend," "project," "target," "plan," "believe" and similar terms and expressions. Forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and assumptions. Although the Company believes that its expectations and assumptions are reasonable, it can give no assurance that these expectations and assumptions will prove to have been correct, and actual results may vary materially. For example, (1) the Company may abandon the Redomicile Transaction; (2) conditions to the closing of the Redomicile Transaction may not be satisfied; (3) problems may arise in connection with the relocation of the Company's headquarters to Japan, which may result in less effective or efficient operations; (4) the Redomicile Transaction may involve unexpected costs, unexpected liabilities or unexpected delays; (5) the Company's business may suffer as a result of uncertainty surrounding the Redomicile Transaction; (6) the Company may not realize the anticipated benefits of the Redomicile Transaction; (7) the Redomicile Transaction may negatively impact the Company's relationships, including with employees, suppliers, collaborators, competitors and investors; (8) the Redomicile Transaction may result in negative publicity affecting the Company's business and the price of the Company's common stock; (9) the Redomicile Transaction may have negative tax consequences to the Company and holders of the Company's common stock; (10) the Company may be adversely affected by other economic, business, and/or competitive factors; and (11) the anticipated schedule for the delisting of the Company's common stock and listing of Kubota Holdings common stock may be subject to changes or delays, as well as the other risks identified in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC (News - Alert)"). The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. You should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other risks and uncertainties that affect the business of the Company described in the "Risk Factors" section of its Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other documents filed by the Company from time to time with the SEC, as well as the risks and uncertainties described in the "Risk Factors" section of the Registration Statement on Form S-4 (File No. 333-210469) (the "Form S-4") filed by Acucela Japan KK (to be renamed Kubota Pharmaceutical Holdings Co., Ltd. in connection with the Redomicile Transaction) with the SEC on March 30, 2016, as amended on August 12, 2016, in connection with the Redomicile Transaction, which Form S-4 was declared effective by the SEC on August 17, 2016. All forward-looking statements included in this document are based upon information available to the Company on the date hereof, and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise any such forward-looking statements. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee that the future results, performance or events and circumstances reflected in those statements will be achieved or will occur, and actual results could differ materially from those anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, we do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise. You should read the documents we have filed with the SEC for more complete information about the Company. These documents are available on both the EDGAR section of the SEC's website at www.sec.gov and the Investor Relations section of the Company's website at ir.acucela.com. "Acucela" and the Acucela logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of Acucela Inc. in various jurisdictions. Additional Information and Where to Find it This communication does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, or a solicitation of any vote or approval, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. Acucela Japan KK filed the Form S-4 with the SEC on March 30, 2016, as amended on August 12, 2016, that includes a preliminary prospectus of Acucela Japan KK and a preliminary proxy statement of the Company, and each of Acucela Japan KK and the Company also plans to file other relevant documents with the SEC regarding the Redomicile Transaction. The SEC declared the S-4 effective on August 17, 2016 and the definitive proxy statement/prospectus was first mailed to the shareholders of the Company on September 15, 2016. INVESTORS AND SECURITY HOLDERS OF ACUCELA INC. ARE URGED TO READ THE PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS (INCLUDING ALL AMENDMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTS THERETO) CAREFULLY AS WELL AS ANY OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS THAT WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE, BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT ACUCELA JAPAN KK, ACUCELA INC. AND THE REDOMICILE TRANSACTION. Investors and security holders may obtain a free copy of the proxy statement/prospectus and other relevant documents (when available) filed and to be filed with the SEC from the SEC's web site at www.sec.gov or at the Company's web site at ir.acucela.com. Investors and security holders may also read and copy any reports, statements and other information filed by Acucela Inc. or Acucela Japan KK, with the SEC, at the SEC public reference room at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20549. Please call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 or visit the SEC's website for further information on its public reference room. Investors and security holders may also obtain, without charge, a copy of the proxy statement/prospectus and other relevant documents (when available) by directing a request by mail or telephone to Investor Relations, Acucela Inc., 1301 Second Avenue, Suite 4200, Seattle, WA 98101, telephone (206) 805-8300. Participants in the Merger Solicitation Acucela Inc. and its directors and executive officers may be deemed to have participated in the solicitation of proxies from the Company's shareholders in connection with the proposed Redomicile Transaction. Information about these persons is set forth in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed by the Company with the SEC on March 11, 2016, and is included in the Form S-4 and in any documents subsequently filed by its directors and officers under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These documents can be obtained free of charge from the sources indicated above. Investors and security holders may obtain additional information regarding the interests of such persons, which may be different from those of the Company's shareholders generally, by reading the proxy statement/prospectus and other relevant documents regarding the proposed inversion to be filed with the SEC when they become available. "Acucela," the Acucela logo and "Kubota" are among the registered trademarks or trademarks of Acucela Inc. in various jurisdictions. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161027007067/en/

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[October 28, 2016] Software Testing Company Infuse to Sponsor the EuroSTAR Test Lab 2016

LONDON, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Stevan Zivanovic to consult in the Test Lab. Infuse to exhibit, as will partner Hewlett Packard Enterprise. Infuse Consulting, a modern software testing consultancy, is pleased to announce its sponsorship of the Test Lab at EuroSTAR 2016. Web video: https://youtu.be/y-2eLceCnHE The Test Lab is a dedicated environment inside the EuroSTAR expo area that allows attendees to actively participate and do some real testing in a live testing environment. There are real systems to test, the kit needed to test it, and expert assistance on hand from experienced Test Lab staff. Lab sponsorships fund investment in the lab's technology. The founders of the world's first Test Lab, which started at EuroSTAR, will return to launch the new look Test Lab 2.0. James Lyndsay and Bart Knaack will bring new and updated features to an already hugely popular part of EuroSTAR. As a seasoned software testing profssional, Infuse's Stevan Zivanovic, Service Delivery Director and Product Owner for useMango[TM], will be in the Test Lab on 2nd November as a consulting resource for Test Lab participants. He will help them with their testing challenges and experiments.



Infuse will also have a stand (#50) in the event expo. At the stand, there will be demos of their test automation tool, useMango [TM]. This test automation tool has a certified integration with Hewlett Packard Enterprise ALM, but is also open for integrations with other test management tools. Among other offerings, Infuse will also be promoting its Service and Network Virtualisation solution (see video), powered by HPE Software, with whom Infuse is a gold-level partner. "There are a number of trends that are driving a need for more modern software testing: digital transformations, Agile and DevOps adoptions, more sophisticated test environment management, and continual improvements in test automation," explains Nalin Parbhu, Founder and CEO of Infuse Consulting. "We see EuroSTAR as a great forum to share knowledge on these key topics and learn from others."

EuroSTAR 2016 will begin on 31st October in Stockholm. For more information, visit the EuroSTAR 2016 page. About Infuse Consulting Infuse is a UK software testing company that provides modern software testing, transformation consulting and test environment management. We specialise in test automation and performance engineering. For more information, visit infuse.it

Contact: Nalin Parbhu, Founder and CTO, [email protected] , +44(0)20-3755-5135

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[October 28, 2016] Rosegal Engineers Working Towards Secure Payment Options

SHENZHEN, China, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Rosegal is a well-respected name in the fashion ecommerce niche by customers and competitors alike. Rosegal takes its customers shopping online seriously and are now putting together measures to ensure they feel safe making payments online. Today Rosegal engineers discuss the latest in payments and what Rosegal is doing to keep customers secure. PayPal is one of the most secure ways for both Rosegal and customers to make payments. PayPal is trusted by most online shoppers as it is one of the most secure ways of making payments online in the world. Most customers even consider it as the safest way to shop online. In addition to that, PayPal users can choose to pay with PayPal credit and even pay with installations. Customers who do not want to open a PayPal account have the option of paying directly with credit card. Rosegal has created a secure payment system that ensures customers ae confident that their data is safe. Some cards that are accepted for direct payment at the moment include MasterCard, Visa, American Express, Discover, JCB and Dinasclub. Rosegal will look to import more credit card types as soon as they are made available.



People from certain countries usually make local payment. This form of payment often has lower fees for users and they are mostly loyal to their own countries. Brazilian customers for example can pay using Boleto Bancario, which often leads to reduced fees with credit cart due to Brazil's high import and export rates for businesses outside the country. Rosegal currently uses this as its only form of local payment, but it is just a start because Rosegal will begin carrying more local payment types with increasing demand. It is expected that in the near future, Rosegal will accept payments from the following local payment companies: Cashu, which is accepted for customers from the Middle East and North America. Webmoney or Qiwi for customers from Russia, Ideal for Netherlands and softbanking for Europe. Finally customers without cards or are scared to make payments online can pay using Western Union or wire transfer. Rosegal will ensure customers paying with this method receive their money to the right accounts during the process of the transaction. You can visit SammyDress and Zaful to learn more about these sites.

Website: http://www.rosegal.com/

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[October 28, 2016] Opiant Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Licenses Heroin Vaccine From Walter Reed Army Institute of Research and National Institute on Drug Abuse

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Opiant Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Opiant) (OTCQB:OPNT), a specialty pharmaceutical company developing pharmacological treatments for substance use, addictive and eating disorders, announced that it has obtained exclusive development and commercialization rights to the heroin vaccine invented by scientists at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Aggressively addressing heroin addiction is part of Opiants mission, said Roger Crystal, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Opiant. In our view, this vaccine fits our plan to develop innovative treatments for this condition. The vaccine has promising preclinical data. Scientists at NIDA in Rockville, Maryland, and at WRAIR in Silver Spring, Maryland, developed a vaccine candidate that induces antibodies that then bind to heroin in the bloodstream, thereby preventing the drug from crossing the blood-brain barrier and blocking the euphoria and addictive effects. Because heroin is too small a molecule to induce antibodies on its own, the researchers worked closely with organic chemists to join the heroin analog to a carrier protein to improve its immune-inducing effect. The preclinical research was funded by NIDA. WRAIR also leveraged its expertise in novel adjuvants research to increase the immune response of the vaccine. If further pre-clinical testing is successful, Opiant plans to work with researchers at the U.S. Military HIV Research Program at WRAIR to eventually combine the heroin vaccine with their HIV vaccine candidate. This innovative dual-vaccine model would concurrently address the entwined epidemics of heroin abuse and HIV and could provide considerable public health benefit, said Gary Matyas, Ph.D., the WRAIR principal investigator.



With the heroin epidemic reaching astonishing levels, we are driven at Opiant to develop new treatments for this addiction, said Dr. Crystal. We look forward to completing the preclinical work conducted by WRAIR and advancing into the clinic. Whilst our development of NARCAN Nasal Spray to reverse opioid overdose has been a significant effort to address the unfortunate consequences of heroin addiction, we see the vaccine as having potential in addressing the disease itself. About Opiant Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Opiant Pharmaceuticals, Inc., is a specialty pharmaceutical company developing pharmacological treatments for substance use, addictive and eating disorders. Over 45 million people in the U.S. have one of these disorders. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), describes these disorders as chronic relapsing brain diseases which burden society at both the individual and community levels. With its innovative opioid antagonist nasal delivery technology, Opiant is positioned to become a leader in these treatment markets. Its first product, NARCAN Nasal Spray, is marketed in the U.S. by the companys partner, Adapt Pharma Limited. Currently, Opiant is developing opioid antagonists for the treatment of substance use, addictive and eating disorders, with a near term focus on eating disorders and cocaine use disorder. For more information please visit: www.opiant.com. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or our future financial performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our or our industrys actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed, implied or inferred by these forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as may, will, should, could, would, expects, plans, intends, anticipates, believes, estimates, predicts, projects, potential, or continue or the negative of such terms and other comparable terminology. These statements are only predictions based on our current expectations and projections about future events. You should not place undue reliance on these statements. Actual events or results may differ materially. In evaluating these statements, you should specifically consider various factors. These and other factors may cause our actual results to differ materially from any forward-looking statement. We undertake no obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this press release to conform those statements to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by applicable law.

CONTACT INFORMATION: Corporate Contact: [email protected] Media Relations and Investor Relations: Scott Stachowiak Assistant Vice President [email protected] (646) 942-5630

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[October 28, 2016] Iron Mountain Upgrades, Expands Western Pennsylvania Data Center Campus

Iron Mountain Incorporated (NYSE:IRM), the global leader in storage and information management services, today announced the expansion of its underground data center campus in western Pennsylvania, located outside of Pittsburgh. The expansion includes additional data center capacity and a new customer welcome center. The data center now has 20,000 square feet of new space and three megawatts of move-in ready capacity built to support the comprehensive compliance requirements of Federal Agencies, FORTUNE 1000, healthcare and financial services companies. Iron Mountain (News - Alert) today breaks ground on the new welcome center, which will further enhance the physical security capabilities of the underground facility. State Senator Scott Hutchinson (21st District for the Pennsylvania State Senate) and Representative Tedd Nesbit (8th District for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives) today joined Iron Mountain at a groundbreaking ceremony to commemorate the start of construction of the welcome center. The new facility, located outside the underground data center, will provide a comfortable setting for authorized visitors without increasing the occupancy of the data center campus. It enhances security of customers' shipments to the data center, such as servers and other hardware components, with RFID tracking added to the data center network operations. The welcome center also offers amenities such as conference rooms, office space, a lounge and kitchen and extended parking. "For years Iron Mountain's facility in Boyers has had a major impact on our local economy and it's encouraging to see the company continue to make significant investments in our community," said Sen. Hutchinson. "I look forward to finding new ways that the Commonwealth can partner with Iron Mountain to promote job growth in our region." Rep. Nesbit remarked: "For more than 30 years, Iron Mountain has been a great partner here in Butler County, becoming one of the county's largest employers and working hard to ensure those jobs and the resulting economic impact benefit our local area. Iron Mountain continues to invest in its Boyers facility, and that signals good news for the company's continued presence in western Pennsylvania." The expanded data center offers customers three megawatts of wholesale and retail colocation options and is part of a 200-acre Iron Mountain campus that is one of the most secure multi-tenant dta centers in existence. Located more than 200 feet below the surface of the earth, the underground data center leverages geothermal cooling for optimal Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE). Additionally, the entire underground campus will feature 100 percent renewable power sourcing by December 2016. These features - combined with metered power options, data center infrastructure management and real-time utilization transparency - create an ideal option for Federal Agencies looking to comply with the August 1, 2016 memorandum that enforces the Data Center Optimization and Consolidation Initiatives, as well as immediate action taken to comply with Data Center Optimization and Consolidation Initiatives, as well as Executive Order 13693 for sustainability energy usage and greenhouse gas reductions.



"Demand continues to be strong for Iron Mountain colocation and wholesale data center services at our Western Pennsylvania location, driven by local customers and from FORTUNE 1000 companies and Federal Agencies across North America," said Mark Kidd, senior vice president and general manager of Iron Mountain Data Centers. "Our customers appreciate the reliability gained operating 200 feet below the earth's surface, sales tax incentives available from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and regulatory and security support that complies with the most exacting Federal and private sector requirements." For more information on Iron Mountain's Western Pennsylvania data center, please visit http://www.ironmountain.com/Services/Data-Centers/Locations/Pennsylvania-Data-Center.aspx.

About Iron Mountain

Iron Mountain Incorporated (NYSE: IRM) is the global leader for storage and information management services. Trusted by more than 220,000 organizations around the world, Iron Mountain boasts a real estate network of more than 85 million square feet across more than 1,400 facilities in 45 countries dedicated to protecting and preserving what matters most for its customers. Iron Mountain's solutions portfolio includes records management, data management, document management, data centers, art storage and logistics, and secure shredding, helping organizations to lower storage costs, comply with regulations, recover from disaster, and better use their information. Founded in 1951, Iron Mountain stores and protects billions of information assets, including critical business documents, electronic information, medical data and cultural and historical artifacts. Visit www.ironmountain.com for more information. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005167/en/

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[October 28, 2016] Aqua Security Announces Support for Windows 2016 Containers

TEL AVIV, Israel, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Aqua Security, the leading platform provider for securing virtual container applications, today announced support for Windows Server 2016 containers as well as integration with Microsoft Visual Studio Team Services (VSTS). These latest additions to Aqua's Container Security Platform make it the first true multi-OS container security solution. "Aqua's support for Windows Server 2016 and integration with VSTS enables our customers to natively develop and run Windows containers to deploy inherently secure applications that evolve their businesses at cloud speed," said Amir Jerbi, CTO and co-founder, Aqua Security. "As Microsoft users begin to adopt containers on a large scale, we will continue to provide native cross-platform support." Previewed by Amir Jerbi in a talk at Microsoft Ignite last month, the Aqua Container Security Platform (CSP) now provides the same automated security controls for containers running natively on Windows as it does for Linux containers. Key functionality includes: Image assurance that prevents running vulnerable images and tracks image use throughout the lifecycle.

Runtime security that utilizes multiple layers of defense, starting with least-privilege defaults that are thenenhanced using behavioral analytics to whitelist good behavior and prevent anomalous behavior.

Cyber intelligence that provides protection against various attack vectors

Granular access control that prevents unauthorized access by users



Aqua's image scanner for VSTS is available at https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=aquasec.aquasec).

With its security platform now offering both runtime security for Windows containers and a secure development process via VSTS, Aqua now makes it possible for enterprises who rely on Microsoft Windows infrastructure to accelerate their adoption of container technology while improving application security and compliance. About Aqua Security

Aqua Security enables enterprises to secure their virtual container environments from development to production, accelerating container adoption and bridging the gap between DevOps and IT security. Aqua's Container Security Platform provides full visibility into container activity, allowing organizations to detect and prevent suspicious activity and attacks in real time. Integrated with container lifecycle and orchestration tools, the Aqua platform provides transparent, automated security while helping to enforce policy and simplify regulatory compliance. Aqua was founded in 2015 and is backed by TLV Partners, Microsoft Ventures, and IT security leaders, and is based in Israel and San Francisco, CA. For more information, visit www.aquasec.com or follow us on twitter.com/AquaSecTeam. To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/aqua-security-announces-support-for-windows-2016-containers-300353019.html SOURCE Aqua Security

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[October 28, 2016] Vivo and SM Supermalls Announce Christmas Season Treats for Consumers

MANILA, Philippines, Oct. 26, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Top 5 global smartphone brand Vivo and retail giant SM Supermalls are teaming up again to kick-off the holiday season at SM Supermalls nationwide. Starting November 4, mall-goers can expect great deals and fun activities from Vivo whenever they visit their nearest SM mall. "We at Vivo recognize how deeply ingrained the Christmas season is in the Filipino culture, so much so that Filipinos start preparing for the festivities as early as September. This is why we chose to partner with SM Supermalls, which is an equally huge part of the Filipino tradition when it comes to the holidays. This will help us give mall-goers a more enjoyable experience in the coming months, and provide them with more avenues to get everything they need in their Christmas shopping list," said Vivo Brand Director Annie Lim. The collaboration aims to provide consumers with an enhanced mall experience every time they visit SM malls through Christmas-themed dsplays from SM Supermalls and Vivo. Customers will also be able to join fun promos and activities in Vivo booths, including a contest where they can take a "Selfie with Santa" in selected SM malls and post them in Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter using the hashtag #VivoSantaSelfie for a chance to win 1 out of 20 Vivo smartphones this Christmas season.



Consumers can also avail of exclusive deals and freebies with every purchase of Vivo's latest smartphones in the booths throughout the holiday season. This includes the Vivo V3Max, Vivo V3, and the Vivo Y51, as well as the recently-launched Vivo Y55 smartphone. More activities will be held in the coming weeks designed to provide consumers with great experiences whenever they visit an SM mall with their family.

"We at SM Supermalls recognize the tradition of Filipino consumers who visit our malls during the holiday season to pick out well thought-of presents for their loved ones for Christmas. Our partnership with Vivo during the SM Cybermonth celebration has shown strong success and interest among mall-goers, and we're optimistic that our Christmas season partnership will provide consumers with a more meaningful celebration this year," said Shopping Center Management Corporation (SM Corp.) Senior Vice President, Jonjon San Agustin. About Vivo

Vivo is a leading global smartphone brand focused on introducing products with professional-grade audio, extraordinary appearance, and a fast and smooth user experience. The company is committed to developing dynamic and stylish products for energetic and passionate young people. The company has retained its position as a top 5 global smartphone brand in the IDC Q2 2016 report. Visit us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/vivophilippinesofficial

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Doctors at AIIMS said there is a strong indication of increase in autoimmune diseases, like arthritis, due to air pollution.

By Priyanka Sharma: Delhi's worsening air pollution is not only causing respiratory disorders, but also posing a high risk of autoimmune diseases, rheumatoid arthritis and sarcoidosis.

According to doctors at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), there is a strong indication of increase in autoimmune diseases due to air pollution, which is 2.5 times higher in developing countries.



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Health experts said there is not much awareness about air pollution triggering autoimmune diseases.

Dr Uma Kumar, head of the department of rheumatology at AIIMS, told Mail Today: "A study was conducted at AIIMS in which we treated patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis, and corelated with air quality and data provided by the India Meteorological Department. The findings were such that when particulate matter was high, prevalence of the disease was more in patients."



Also Read: Delhi government to install machines to check air pollution

STUDY SHOWS SHOCKING AND WORRYING RESULTS

According to the study, out of 500 Delhi residents examined, 432 women and 65 men were suffering from rheumatoid arthritis. These people have been living in the city for over 10 years.

"Prevalence of the disease was more among those who were staying on the main road, compared to those in the lanes," Kumar said.

Also Read | World Osteoporosis Day: Not just women, men can also get osteoporosis



Doctors say due to rheumatoid arthritis, a state of ongoing inflammation in the body leads to premature atherosclerosis, hypertension, coronary artery disease, cerebrovasular accidents and reduces lifespan by 10 years. For those already suffering from respiratory diseases, life would be even more difficult in the coming days.

Dr Vikas Maurya, HOD, respiratory medicine at BLK Super Speciality Hospital, said: "Due to seasonal change, patients have started complaining about respiratory complications. As the city's air quality is deteriorating each day, people with preexisting lung diseases are going to face more problems."

Dr Lalit Duggal, senior rheumatologist at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, said people also suffer from sarcoidosis, a disease triggered by several environmental factors, one of them being air pollution.

Also Read:

Winter's here, but definitely not with good air quality

Air purifiers, mist fountain to curb air pollution in Delhi



--- ENDS ---
[October 28, 2016] Revitas Announces Gross-to-Net Conference for Pharmaceutical Manufacturers

Revitas, Inc., the leader in enterprise-class solutions for compliance, revenue, and contract management, along with Breakaway Technologies, Inc., has opened registration for Transforming the Gross-to-Net Process Through Automation, a half-day conference being held Nov. 15 from noon to 6 p.m. in Philadelphia. This event is being offered as a pre-conference session to the CBI GTN 2016 Summit being held Nov. 16-17 at the DoubleTree by Hilton. Hosted at The Hub at Commerce Square, Transforming the Gross-to-Net Process Through Automation will explore how current trends in government contracting, biosimilars, and the increasingly complex spectrum of rebates are driving gross-to-net automation. Experts and industry leaders will share experiences and best practices on how implementing automated gross-to-net processes can optimize operational efficiency, improve forecasting and accrual management, enhance reporting accuracy, and ensure regulatory compliance.



"As contracts become more complex and pressures on pricing and margins rise, accurate and consistent gross-to-net analysis, forecasting, and reporting are becoming ever more paramount," said Brian Madocks, President and CEO of Revitas. "Automating those processes enables pharmaceutical manufacturers to protect against revenue leakage and maintain audit compliance." Attendees of the Gross-to-Net Conference will discuss the state of the industry, receive demonstrations of automation software, and provide feedback directly to vendors on how to improve technologies.

"Automation holds the key for pharmaceutical manufacturers looking to improve their contracting strategies, particularly in the face of mounting industry pressures and more stringent regulations," said Michael Grosberg, Director of Industry Solutions for Breakaway Technologies. "The Revitas and Breakaway Gross-to-Net Conference is a great opportunity for generic and branded pharmaceutical manufacturers to learn about best-in-class solutions and compare notes with like-minded peers on best practices in gross-to-net automation." The Revitas and Breakaway Technologies Gross-to-Net Conference is geared toward finance, contract management, managed markets, and pricing professionals at generic, branded, and specialty pharmaceutical manufacturers. Register today. About Revitas, Inc. Revitas is the leading provider of enterprise-class solutions for channel and contract management, on premise and in the cloud. Revitas solutions enable organizations to accelerate revenue through diverse, multi-level sales channels and attain maximum value from contracts. For over 25 years, Revitas has empowered companies in channel-intensive industries to achieve best-in-class performance and sustainable competitive advantage. For more information, please visit www.revitasinc.com. About Breakaway Technologies, Inc. Breakaway Technologies is a business performance management (BPM) firm specializing in custom analytic solutions for more than a decade. Breakaway builds processes and works with software to improve budgeting, planning, forecasting, and consolidation processes. We assess processes rapidly and thoroughly, and commit chief thought leaders with both technology and business analysis backgrounds to each project to ensure success. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005106/en/

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[October 28, 2016] ProtectWise CTO to Demonstrate Enterprise Security Platform at SINET Showcase

ProtectWise, provider of the enterprise security platform that delivers pervasive visibility, was named a SINET 16 Innovator Award Winner and as such, CTO and Co-founder Gene Stevens will provide a demonstration of the capabilities and functionality of the ProtectWise Grid at the SINET Showcase in Washington D.C. on November 3. Stevens' presentation will demonstrate how the ProtectWise Grid harnesses the power and scale of the cloud to deliver unprecedented visibility and detection of enterprise network threats, dramatically accelerating incident response. The platform provides an intuitive visualization of all network activity in addition to comprehensive retrospective analysis. This technology enables security professionals to more efficiently and effectively respond to threats at every stage of an attack.







What: As a member of the SINET 16, ProtectWise will present its cloud enterprise security platform at

the SINET Showcase. Coordinated by the Security Innovation Network, the event provides a platform to

identify and highlight "best-of-class" security companies that are addressing the most pressing needs

and requirements in cybersecurity. When: November 3, 2016; 1:30 p.m. Where: The National Press Club 529 14th St NW, Washington, D.C.

The SINET Showcase attracts senior information security personnel and members of the public and private sector buyers, builders, investors and researchers to learn how technical innovations are addressing the most pressing needs in information security. For additional event details, visit www.security-innovation.org/events/dc/. About ProtectWise

ProtectWise is disrupting the security industry with The ProtectWise Grid, its network security platform that captures high fidelity network traffic, creates a lasting memory for the network, and delivers real time and retrospective alerting and analysis in a rich, innovative visualizer. By harnessing the power of the cloud, The ProtectWise Grid provides an integrated solution with complete detection and visibility of enterprise threats and accelerated incident response. The ProtectWise Grid delivers unique advantages over current network security solutions, including an unlimited retention window with full-fidelity forensic capacity, the industry's only automated smart retrospection, advanced security visualization, and the ease and cost-savings of an on-demand deployment model. Founded in April 2013, the company is based in Denver and led by a team of security and SaaS (News - Alert) industry veterans from McAfee, Palo Alto Networks, and Symantec. ProtectWise has raised more than $42 million in funding and was named to Network World's list of "10 Security Start-Ups to Watch." For more information, visit www.protectwise.com. About SINET Showcase

SINET Showcase provides a platform for the business of Cybersecurity to take place as emerging technology companies are able to present their solutions and connect with a select audience of nearly 400 venture capitalists, investment bankers as well as industry and government buyers. The program, which is supported by the Department of Homeland Security, Science & Technology Directorate, also features commentary on the latest investment and Cybersecurity trends from the industry's foremost experts. The program includes educational workshops, panel sessions, an interactive luncheon hour and a networking reception. To register for SINET Showcase and to see a complete list of speakers and a program agenda, see here. About SINET

SINET is a "super connector." We provide a series of platforms for the business of Cybersecurity to take place within the global ecosystem of the entrepreneur including venture capital, investment banking, system integration, academia, science, legal, policy, and industry as well as Government intelligence, military and civilian departments and agencies. Our programs consistently attract the highest level of international industry and government executives. SINET is well known for its coveted and unparalleled networking opportunities. SINET programs are supported by Department of Homeland Security, Science and Technology Directorate. Learn more at www.security-innovation.org. Connect with us on Twitter (News - Alert) at @SINETconnection. Follow the conversation about SINET 16 at #SINET16 and this year's SINET Showcase at #SINETDC. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005158/en/

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[October 28, 2016] Magneti Marelli Celebrates 40 years of Powertrain in Sanford, NC

MILAN, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Magneti Marelli celebrates the 40th anniversary of its plant in Sanford, North Carolina - USA. Inaugurated in 1976, the plant is dedicated to the production of automotive powertrain technologies. Over its 40 year history, the plant has evolved from producing carburettors into modern powertrain systems including intake manifolds, electronic throttle bodies and engine control systems for automobiles, motorcycles, powersports, and industrial engines. This important anniversary is celebrated with a Family Day that involved all employees and their families. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150122/726967 ) (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161028/433792 )

The plant is located in Sanford, about 30 miles from Raleigh (the capital of North Carolina). It covers an area of almost 90 thousand square meters. The site is also a technical center for product development. There are currently about 400 employees in the facility. Over the years, the Sanford plant has obtained TS 16949 and ISO 9001 quality certifications, ISO 14001 environmental certification and OHSAS 18001 health certification, a proof to Magneti Marelli's dedication to quality and safety. Core operations within the Sanford facility include aluminium die casting, complex machining, injection molding, and assembly. Such vertical integration is rare for these components and promotes the ability to be highly flexible to customer volume fluctuations. Sanford produces various components including highly technical air intake manifolds. These types of intake manifold uses sophisticated electronic control systems to regulate air and gas fluid dynamics aimed at maximizing perfomance, reducing fuel consumption and CO 2 , and reducing engine noise.



The production, carried out for major manufacturers such as FCA, VW, Harley-Davidson, Polaris, and Mercury Marine, illustrates the level of innovation and technological development of Magneti Marelli. Its attractive location is just a short distance from the Research Triangle Park and the nation's premier automotive hubs. Magneti Marelli can rely on a longstanding presence in North America in the Powertrain, Lighting, Electronic Systems, Suspension Systems (Shock Absorbers), Exhaust Systems, After Market and Motorsport businesses. Magneti Marelli's North American headquarters are located in Auburn Hills, Michigan.

Magneti Marelli sites in North America: U.S. Auburn Hills, Michigan: Headquarters, Application Engineering & Sales for Powertrain, Lighting, Electronic Systems, Suspensions Systems (Shock Absorbers), Exhaust Systems, After Market and Motorsports; Clarkston, Michigan: Exhaust Systems manufacturing Pulaski, Tennessee: Suspensions Systems (Shock Absorbers) and Automotive Lighting manufacturing Sanford, North Carolina: Powertrain manufacturing; El Paso, Texas: logistics and warehouse. MEXICO Juarez: Automotive Lighting manufacturing Tepotzotlan: Manufacturing for Electronic Systems and Automotive Lighting Saltillo: Manufacturing for Suspension Systems and Powertrain Milan, 28th October 2016 Magneti Marelli designs and produces advanced systems and components for the automotive industry. With 89 production units, 12 R&D centres and 30 application centres in 19 countries, approximately 40,500 employees and a turnover of 7.3 billion Euro in 2015, the group supplies all the major carmakers in Europe, North and South America and the Far East. Business areas include Electronic Systems, Lighting, Powertrain, Suspension Systems and Shock Absorbers, Exhaust Systems, Aftermarket Parts & Services, Plastic Components and Modules, and Motorsport. Magneti Marelli is part of FCA.

Follow Magneti Marelli on:



The Company Website: http://www.magnetimarelli.com Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MagnetiMarelliTechAndRacing Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/magnetimarellit LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/magneti-marelli Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/magnetimarellit YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/MagnetiOfficial WeChat: QR on http://www.magnetimarelli.com.cn Weibo: http://www.weibo.com/u/5582153639 Youku: i.youku.com/magnetimarelli Iquyi: http://www.iqiyi.com/u/1163676930

SOURCE Magneti Marelli SpA

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[October 28, 2016] CBSET Appoints Rami Tzafriri PhD as Director of Research and Innovation

CBSET Inc. announced today that it has appointed Dr. Rami Tzafriri as Director of Research and Innovation. Since 2009, Dr. Tzafriri has held the position of Principal Scientist at CBSET, where he developed quantitative computational and experimental methods for evaluating combination drug and energy delivery devices. He is best known for his publications on the mechanisms underlying the biological effects of drug-eluting stents and renal denervation RF catheters. In his new role, Dr. Tzafriri will provide scientific direction to CBSET's cutting-edge translational research programs, leveraging institutional strengths in histopathology, interventions, imaging, bioanalysis and computational modeling. In support of this mission, Dr. Tzafriri has established postdoctoral fellowship and predoctoral internship programs, where promising young scientists are hosted for 1-3 years to work alongside CBSET researchers and key opinion leaders (KOLs). The program aims to accelerate the development of novel in vivo and bench models and help CBSET's sponsors translate their ideas into breakthrough therapies. These efforts will allow CBSET to continue to generate high-profile research publications that impact medical innovation. "CBSET offers a unique opportunity for top innovators to evaluate novel therapies in an environment that combines high-level scientific expertise, speed in innovation, and rigorous regulatory compliance. Our approach to translational reserch has enabled shortened product development timelines and impactful product differentiation for several novel technology platforms. The appointment of a Director of Research and Innovation aligns with CBSET's corporate vision of growth through investment in scientific collaboration, technology advancement, and novel method development," said Peter M. Markham, President and CEO. "Dr. Tzafriri's wealth of experience in directing complex quantitative research programs in a fast-paced CRO environment combined with his ability to effectively communicate our novel findings to R&D scientists and clinicians throughout the world makes him a perfect fit for this role."



"I am excited by this opportunity to direct CBSET's research and education missions and look forward to collaborating with an expanding array of industry, academic partners, and KOLs," said Dr. Tzafriri. "Medical therapies are inherently complex and best understood using an integrative approach that combines quantitative experiments with computational modeling. CBSET is a leader in this area, and the new role and the associated resources will allow us to use this paradigm in an expanded range of therapeutic areas for the benefit of our sponsors and the advancement of innovative therapies." Dr. Tzafriri holds an M.Sc. in Physics and received his Ph.D. from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem for his research on biodegradable controlled-release devices and their use in the treatment of gingivitis and mammary tumors. He later held a postdoctoral research position in Dr. Elazer Edelman's (News - Alert) laboratory at MIT, with a focus on the development of ex-vivo and computational models to examine how blood flow and receptor-ligand interactions affect drug distribution in arteries and in the myocardium.

For more information about CBSET Research and Innovation program, contact Dr. Tzafriri: +1-781-541-5589, [email protected] About CBSET

CBSET Inc. - 500 Shire Way, Lexington, Mass. - is the preclinical research leader in critically important therapeutic fields such as interventional cardiology, renal disease and dialysis, chronic drug-resistant hypertension, women's health, minimally invasive surgery, orthopedics, biological and synthetic tissue repair, drug delivery, bioresorbable devices, and combination medical device and drug-eluting products. Learn more about CBSET's expert biomedical research services or please contact us. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005526/en/

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[October 28, 2016] Google Canada launches $5M prize for nonprofit innovation

Google.org Impact Challenge will fund nonprofits that are using technology to tackle complex challenges TORONTO, Oct. 28, 2016 /CNW/ - Google announced today that it is bringing the acclaimed Google.org Impact Challenge to Canada for the first time. Google.org Impact Challenge is a nationwide competition to find and fund the most innovative nonprofits that are using technology to make Canada and the world a better place. Google.org, Google's philanthropic arm, will award $5 million across 10 organizations to help bring their ideas to life. Five winning organizations will receive $750,000 grants, and five additional finalists will receive $250,000. "We created the Google.org Impact Challenge because we truly believe that technology has the power to transform lives," explained Jacquelline Fuller, director of Google.org. "We have seen firsthand the incredible impact that innovative technology can have in addressing complex and difficult social issues, and we are excited to see how Canadian nonprofits will respond to the challenge." Eligible nonprofits are invited to submit their proposals before November 26, 2016. The shortlist of grantees will be announced in February, after which time Canadians will have theiropportunity to vote on which project has the most power to change lives.



"We want to make a better world, faster. That's what this Challenge is designed to do," said Sam Sebastian, Managing Director, Google Canada. "We have huge expectations for what Canada can deliver through the Google.org Impact Challenge. Not only is Canada home to some of the world's smartest and most talented tech innovators, but we also have a deep commitment to humanitarian causes both as a nation and as individuals." One of the five winners will be selected based on votes from the public, and the remaining winners will be selected following a live event at the end of March, when shortlisted projects will pitch their projects to a panel of judges.

The judges for Google.org Impact Challenge: Canada all bring a unique perspective on Canada and deep commitment to charitable causes: The Honourable Melanie Joly , Minister of Canadian Heritage

, Minister of Canadian Heritage Dr. Samantha Nutt , Bestselling author and Founder of War Child Canada/War Child USA

, Bestselling author and Founder of War Child Canada/War Child Joseph Boyden , award-winning author and professor

, award-winning author and professor PK Subban , NHL Defenceman and philanthropist

, NHL Defenceman and philanthropist Hani Al Moulia , member of the Prime Minister's Youth Council

, member of the Prime Minister's Youth Council Don Harrison , Vice President, Corporate Development, Google

, Vice President, Corporate Development, Google Jacquelline Fuller , Director, Google.org Nonprofit organizations across all sectors are invited to submit their proposals no later than November 26, 2016. About Google.org Impact Challenge

The Google.org Impact Challenge is an opportunity for registered nonprofits and charities to share their vision for using technology to change the world. Winning organizations will share $5 million CAD in grant funding, as well as mentorship from Google and our challenge support partner, the LEAP Centre for Social Impact. About Google Canada

Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful. As a global technology leader, Google's innovations in web search and advertising have made its website a top internet property and its brand one of the most recognized in the world. Google Canada has offices in Waterloo, Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa with nearly 1,000 'Canooglers' working on teams across Engineering, Sales, Marketing, PR, Policy, and HR. SOURCE Google Canada

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[October 28, 2016] The City of Spokane Defeats Monsanto's Motion to Dismiss PCB Lawsuit, Baron & Budd Reports

On Wednesday, the City of Spokane defeated Monsanto's motion to dismiss the City's lawsuit alleging PCB contamination of the City's stormwater system. Judge Salvador Mendoza in the Eastern District of Washington ruled the City of Spokane properly alleged public nuisance, negligence, equitable indemnity, and products liability under the Washington Products Liability Act. The lawsuit seeks monetary damages to reimburse the City for costs to remove and reduce PCBs from the City's stormwater system. The case is City of Spokane v. Monsanto Company, et al., Case No. 2:15-cv-00201-SMJ, filed July 31, 2015. Judge Mendoza writes, "The public harm at issue here comes from PCBs reaching the River, but the nuisance itself is Monsanto's production, marketing, and distribution of the PCBs." Scott Simmons, Public Works & Utilities Director, said, "This ruling is a critical first win for the City of Spokane and its residents. We believe Monsanto should have a responsibility for cleaning up this mess." <> "It's time Monsanto steps up and does the right thing. Enough is enough. Corporate responsibility used to mean something in this country, and Monsanto is trying to push the cost of its pollution back onto city residents," said Scott Summy of Baron & Budd, P.C.



John Fiske, also of Baron & Budd, said, "This ruling will allow the case to move toward trial in January 2018, when it will be decided who should pay for polluting the public stormwater system." On July 31, 2015, the City of Spokane sued Monsanto Company alleging its PCBs have contaminated the City's stormwater system, causing a public nuisance in the Spokane River. Due to Monsanto's PCB contamination, the City of Spokane will spend millions of dollars to retrofit the stormwater system to reduce, remove, and manage the PCB contamination.

Monsanto was the sole U.S. manufacturer of PCBs from the 1930s to the 1970s when Congress banned the manufacture of PCB-containing products. PCBs are carcinogenic and can contaminate food supplies, including consumable fish in the Spokane River. Monsanto's PCBs are toxic, cannot be contained to their original application, and last decades in the environment. The City is represented by Baron & Budd, P.C., a national law firm, and by Gomez Trial Attorneys, of San Diego, Calif. The two firms also represent seven other cities, including Seattle, Portland, San Jose, Oakland, Berkeley, Long Beach, and San Diego. For more information, contact John Fiske at 619-261-4090. ABOUT BARON & BUDD, P.C. The law firm of Baron & Budd, P.C., with offices in Dallas, Baton Rouge, New Orleans, Austin and Los Angeles, is a nationally recognized law firm with a nearly 40-year history of "Protecting What's Right" for people, communities and businesses harmed by negligence. Baron & Budd's size and resources enable the firm to take on large and complex cases. The firm represents individuals and government and business entities in areas as diverse as dangerous pharmaceuticals and medical devices, environmental contamination, the Gulf oil spill, financial fraud, overtime violations, deceptive advertising, automotive defects, trucking accidents, nursing home abuse, and asbestos-related illnesses such as mesothelioma. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005741/en/

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[October 28, 2016] Primus Technologies Increases Donations for Veterans of US Armed Forces, Local Health Care and Scholarships

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa., Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Primus Technologies Corp. increased its donations for veterans of the United States Armed Forces, health care for kids and local high school scholarships. "At Primus, giving back to people in need is core to our mission. We seek to expand and optimize how we help every year," said Chris Sullivan, Primus Technologies Chairman and CEO. Highlights of Primus' philanthropy include: Now totaling $1.5 million in Primus donations, Primus donated an additional $300,000 in 2016 to the Diocese of Scranton Scholarship Foundation. This $1.5 million helps fund scholarships for students in need at St. John Neumann Regional Academy in Williamsport , PA.

in Primus donations, Primus donated an additional in 2016 to the Diocese of Scranton Scholarship Foundation. This helps fund scholarships for students in need at St. John Neumann Regional Academy in , PA. Primus committed $100,000 to the Geisinger Pediatric Special Services Clinic in South Williamsport , PA. This clinic provides kids in the community with specialized care. Clinic specialties include Immunology, Cardiology, Neurology and Infectious Diseases.

to the Geisinger Pediatric Special Services Clinic in , PA. This clinic provides kids in the community with specialized care. Clinic specialties include Immunology, Cardiology, Neurology and Infectious Diseases. Primus previously donated $300,000 to Susquehanna Health, a local four-hospital integrated health system.

to Susquehanna Health, a local four-hospital integrated health system. The Wounded Warrior roject approved Primus as a Corporate Champion, with Primus' increased donation level. Primus has donated to the Wounded Warrior Project since 2013 to help support and recognize these heroes. The company also employs veterans as part of its commitment to all who have served our country.

Primus now offers every employee an additional paid day off each year for local community service. This makes it easy for employees to give back and creates the opportunity for 4,000 hours of Primus-paid community service per year.

Primus contributes to the Special Olympics, Little League World Series and many other local causes.



$20 million in profit sharing paid to employees in the past ten years. About Primus Technologies Corp.

Primus Technologies is the largest privately-held Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) provider in the United States. All manufacturing is Made in the USA. For more than 50 years Primus and its predecessor companies have supplied mission-critical electronic assemblies, test development, design, engineering, and aftermarket services to Fortune 500 and other leading corporations in industries including Aerospace, Defense, Medical, and Industrial Controls. AS9100 and Nadcap certified, Primus is consistently #1-rated by customers. More information is available at www.primus-tech.com or by calling 570-326-6591.

CONTACT: Chris Sullivan, (570)321-6281, [email protected] Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161028/433864

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160902/403933LOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/primus-technologies-increases-donations-for-veterans-of-us-armed-forces-local-health-care-and-scholarships-300353536.html SOURCE Primus Technologies Corp.

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[October 28, 2016] Globalstar, Inc. Third Quarter 2016 Earnings Call Release Notice

COVINGTON, La., Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Globalstar, Inc. (NYSE MKT:GSAT) will announce its third quarter 2016 financial results on Thursday, November 3, 2016 after the markets close. The Company will conduct an earnings conference call that evening at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time to discuss third quarter 2016 results. Details are as follows: News Release: To be released on Thursday, November 3, 2016 at 4:15 p.m. ET. The release will be available over Globe Newswire and from the Globalstar, Inc. website at www.globalstar.com. Earnings Call: 5:00 p.m. ET







Investors and the media are encouraged to listen to the call through the Investor Relations section of the Companys website at www.globalstar.com/investors.



If you would like to participate in the live question and answer session following the Companys conference call, please dial 1 (888) 771-4371 (US and Canada), 1 (847) 585-4405 (International) and use the participant pass code 43443951. Audio Replay: A replay of the earnings call will be available for a limited time and can be heard after 7:30 p.m. ET on November 3, 2016. Dial: 1 (888) 843-7419 (US and Canada), 1 (630) 652-3042 (International) and pass code 4344 3951#. About Globalstar, Inc.

Globalstar is a leading provider of mobile satellite voice and data services, leveraging the worlds newest mobile satellite communications network. Customers around the world in industries such as government, emergency management, marine, logging, oil & gas and outdoor recreation rely on Globalstar to conduct business smarter and faster, maintain peace of mind and access emergency personnel. Globalstar data solutions are ideal for various asset and personal tracking, data monitoring, SCADA and IoT applications. The Company's products include mobile and fixed satellite telephones, the innovative Sat-Fi satellite hotspot, Simplex and Duplex satellite data modems, tracking devices and flexible service packages.

Note that all SPOT products described in this press release are the products of SPOT LLC, which is not affiliated in any manner with Spot Image of Toulouse, France or Spot Image Corporation of Chantilly, Virginia. For more information, visit www.globalstar.com. For investor inquiries, email [email protected].

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[October 28, 2016] Family Research Council Action Unveils iVoter Guide Tool To Inform Values Voters

WASHINGTON, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, Family Research Council Action (FRC Action), announced a new voter tool, iVoter Guide, providing values voters with comprehensive information on all federal elections in all 50 states, and all statewide races in 9 states. The nine states included in this effort are: Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington state, and Wisconsin. FRC Action plans to finish distributing over 4 million election guides prior to Election Day. The voter guide rates the candidates in each race tracked by FRC Action on a scale of "very conservative," "conservative," "somewhat conservative," "moderate," "somewhat liberal," "liberal," and "very liberal." The voter guide was compiled using legislative vote ratings, campaign finance data, virtual vote ratings, endorsements from around 300 libeal and conservative organizations, and candidate issue surveys to determine how each candidate would potentially govern given publically available data. The voter tool also includes a tool in which users can search their state and district candidates, find their polling location and share their research with others.



FRC Action president Tony Perkins commented: "Conservatives can't afford to sit back and watch their country go over the edge with four more years of ultraliberal policies under a Hillary Clinton presidency, a Democratic controlled House and Senate and Democratic controlled state level governments. For America, this cannot be an election about two people running for president. It's about two fundamentally different visions for our country at the national and state levels. If polling has shown us anything, it's how razor-thin the margin of victory may be. In a nation this divided, even one vote can make a difference.

"The outcomes of this year's elections will have a major impact on the future of religious liberty, family values, sanctity of life, and the Supreme Court. In 2012, there were 39 million voting-eligible Christians who did not vote. As we travel the nation, we are telling values voters this is not a time to stand on the sidelines. If we, as values voters, do not stand up and exercise our freedoms now, we may lose them tomorrow," concluded Perkins. Please see ivoterguide.com for more information: http://votevalues.com To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/family-research-council-action-unveils-ivoter-guide-tool-to-inform-values-voters-300353636.html SOURCE Family Research Council Action

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[October 28, 2016] ICYMI: The Intercept - "Big Pharma Paid LGBT Groups and Others That Opposed California Drug-Price Ballot Measure (Prop. 61)"

Today, The Intercept published an article by investigative reporter Lee Fang titled "Big Pharma Paid (News - Alert) LGBT Groups and Others That Opposed California Drug-Price Ballot Measure," also know as Proposition 61, the California Drug Price Relief Act. In the article, Fang notes that two competing San Francisco-based LGBT Democratic groups - "the leftist Harvey Milk Democratic Club and the centrist Alice B. Toklas Democratic Club," both "announced in September that they would be opposing Proposition 61, the high-profile initiative to lower drug prices." "Unknown to many activists in the city," Fang wrote, "this act of political camaraderie appears to have been rewarded by the pharmaceutical industry, which cut each club a $5,000 check from a fund set up to defeat the drug price initiative. Neither LGBT group, both of which have sent voter guides to city residents, revealed the donation on their website." Fang added, "The money was disclosed in filings made on Thursday that showed 19 different civic oganizations, from the Foreign Legion to a bilingual voter guide organization, taking drug industry funds and endorsing No on Prop 61." "Over half a million dollars flowed to groups sending out a variety of voter guides urging a vote against Prop 61," Fang revealed. "The practice of selling voter guide endorsements, though shunned by many consultants, is a common trick for interest groups seeking to buy the appearance of widespread support."



The Intercept also notes that "Three of the veterans groups that endorsed No on Prop 61 and appeared in a television advertisement against the measure - the American Legion of California, Veterans of Foreign Wars of California and the Vietnam Veterans of America CA (News - Alert) State Council - all received direct payments from the PhRMA fund, the filings reveal. Other veterans groups that have campaigned against the initiative, including the American GI Forum, also received drug industry money." Read the article in its entirety here: https://theintercept.com/2016/10/28/lgbt-drug-price/

"We've been highlighting the bought-and-paid-for opponents of 61 for months," said Garry South, lead strategist for Yes on Prop. 61. "Most of the opposition to Prop. 61 comes from Big Pharma itself, who has bankrolled the entire effort to save their drug profits, or from groups that have serious financial ties to the drug lobby. Californians aren't fooled. They can't be bought and paid for like so many of these so-called advocacy groups that are acting as shills for Pharma." For more details on the financial links to the drug industry of those opposed to Proposition 61, visit www.FollowTheDrugDollars.com Prop. 61 is the only vehicle available in this election year for Californians to address the high cost of life-saving drugs. Proposition 61 would require the state of California to negotiate with drug companies for drug prices that are no more than is paid for the same drugs by the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs (DVA). Unlike Medicare, the DVA negotiates for drug prices on behalf of the millions of veterans it serves, and pays on average 20-24 percent less for medications than other government agencies, and up to 40 percent less than Medicare Part D. Prop. 61 empowers the state, as the healthcare buyer for millions of Californians, to negotiate the same or an even better deal for taxpayers, saving the state billions. www.Yeson61.com

Paid for by Yes on Prop. 61, Californians for Lower Drug Prices, With Major Funding by AIDS Healthcare Foundation and California Nurses Association PAC. FPPC ID#1376791 View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005939/en/

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The court said, "To put it pithily, IHCL (which runs the hotel) has no right under the license for a renewal thereof and therefore no further issue needs to be considered." Ratan Tata;s IHCL had gone to the court challenging the hotel's proposed auction by NDMC.

Taj Mansingh Hotel was leased out to IHCL by NDMC on October 10, 1978, for 33 years and the lease expired on October 10, 2011, following which the Tata Group company went to court challenging the 3.78-acre property's proposed auction by NDMC.

By Mail Today: Ratan Tata's Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) has no right for renewal of the license of iconic Taj Mansingh Hotel.

Plus, it will also not get the benefit of 'Right of First Refusal (ROFR) when its owner, the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC), auctions it, said the Delhi High Court on Thursday.

'Right of first refusal' would have entitled IHCL to enter into negotiations with NDMC for a fresh contract, first.

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Only on the event of its breaking down, NDMC could have then opened up Taj Mansingh Hotel for an auction with other interested hospitality companies. The five-star luxury hotel is a landmark of Lutyens' Delhi.



Also Read: Tatas fight for rights over iconic Taj Mahal Hotel on Mansingh Road

WHAT IS THE CASE ABOUT

The 3.78 acre prestigious property was leased out to IHCL by NDMC on October 10, 1978, for a period of 33 years. It was a joint venture between the two, wherein land and construction cost was borne by NDMC and operation and maintenance was with IHCL.

The lease expired on October 10, 2011, following which IHCL went to court challenging the hotel's proposed auction by NDMC.

A bench of Justices Pradeep Nandrajog and Pratibha Rani observed that NDMC was within its power to secure maximum consideration for grant of licence for the property at the prime location of 1, Man Singh Road.

It said, "To put it pithily, IHCL (which runs the hotel) has no right under the licence for a renewal thereof and therefore no further issue needs to be considered and decided."

It further said, "In exercising its right/discharging its duty to secure maximum consideration for grant of licence in relation to property bearing No.1, Man Singh Road, New Delhi, NDMC is within its power to ensure that such measures are adopted by it which fetch the maximum revenue."

Also Read: Why did Mistry stop being blue-eyed boy of Ratan Tata? All you need to know in 10 points

NO SOCIAL PURPOSE OR PUBLIC INTEREST INVOLVED

"Unless there is a social or a welfare purpose or any other public interest which is served, an asset held for the benefit of the public, if commercially exploited should be by way of an auction or an open competitive bidding because it would then fetch the maximum revenue," the bench added.

The bench also dealt with IHCL's contention that even if the fair consideration was determined at a public auction, it must be with right of first refusal to it.

"It overlooks that such a negative stipulation qua the right of the highest bidder would obviously have an adverse impact on the bid amount for the reason the right of the highest bidder would be subject to a right created in favour of IHCL and common sense and logic dictates that why would a person bid for something which he is told is to be his subject to somebody else not matching his bid price," the bench said.

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Mail Today had reported on January 29 this year that NDMC was in the process of assessing the assets of Taj Mansingh Hotel in preparation for its much-delayed auction. The consultant hired for the auction by NDMC, SBI Capital Markets, was ironing out the finer details.

Also Read:

'Lame duck chairman' Mistry attacks Ratan Tata directly in explosive letter

Cyrus Mistry sacking from Tata: Tale of family discord since 1930s

No Cyrus mystery: All you need to know about sacked Tata chairman



--- ENDS ---
Two candidates seeking NLCS Board District 2 seat

In this year's general election, two candidates are seeking election to the district two seat on the NLCS board: Adam Parsley and Michael Patton.
It's Diwali time and everyone is in celebration mode, including these television beauties.

By India Today Web Desk: Diwali is just round the corner and it's the time to indulge in all the fun, shopping and festivities. Taking a break from their respective shooting schedules, these telly beauties were seen chilling with friends and family last night.

Newlyweds Divyanka Tripathi Dahiya and Vivek Dahiya were seen partying with Aditi Bhatia, Mahhi Vij and other friends. Divyanka looked different as she took a break from her usual traditional attire.



....and one more from last night! A photo posted by Divyanka Tripathi Dahiya (@divyankatripathidahiya) on Oct 27, 2016 at 4:17pm PDT

It was so much fun last night... Thanks @shruti_aaryan @aaryankakkar_celebrity_manager @celebritymanager_kriti A photo posted by Divyanka Tripathi Dahiya (@divyankatripathidahiya) on Oct 28, 2016 at 3:04am PDT

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#Dahiyas and #Manaktalas #Repost @guunjanvm @officialvivekdahiya A photo posted by Divyanka Tripathi Dahiya (@divyankatripathidahiya) on Oct 27, 2016 at 4:12pm PDT

?????? A photo posted by Divyanka Tripathi Dahiya (@divyankatripathidahiya) on Oct 27, 2016 at 3:03pm PDT

Aamna Sharif, Aamir Ali and Sanjeeda Sheikh attended Meer Bros Diwali party and happily posed for selfies.





Thank you karishma and @meetbros for being such wonderful hosts... with @iamsanjeeda and @aamirali555 ....was a wonderful night ?????? A photo posted by aamna sharif (@aamnasharifofficial) on Oct 27, 2016 at 11:22am PDT

Bigg Boss 7 winner Gauahar Khan also had loads of fun during a card party last night.

Mommy-to-be Shweta Tiwari is gearing up for Dhanteras shopping today.

Dhanteras Shopping ??????#happydhanteras A photo posted by Shweta Tiwari Kohli (@shweta.tiwari) on Oct 28, 2016 at 2:37am PDT

Brahmarakshas actress Krystle Dsouza was also seen all decked up for Diwali festivities.

Festive Details from Diwali day 1 Jewellery by @karishma.joolry ? clutch by #Rossoyuki at @shopviolla Styled by - @shreyajuneja ?? A photo posted by Krystle D'souza (@krystledsouza) on Oct 28, 2016 at 3:53am PDT

--- ENDS ---
Chief of the Fire Department, Prabhat Rahangdale had written to Mumbai Police asking them to ban the use of these flying lanterns as they carry fire and often whiz around without any control.

By Mayuresh Ganapatye: Mumbai police have now banned the Chinese flying lanterns in the city after the Chief Fire Officer wrote to them about increasing cases of fire accidents caused by these lanterns.

During Diwali, it is usually a common site to see droves of flying lanterns light up Mumbai's night sky. These lanterns are also known as Chinese flying lanterns.

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These lanterns are usually sold at Marine Drive ,Dadar Beach, Juhu Beach and a few other popular tourist places but after the police order, Mumabikars will not be able to fly them any more.

FIRE DEPARTMENT CALLS FOR BAN

Chief of the fire department, Prabhat Rahangdale had written to Mumbai Police urging them to ban the use of these lanterns as they carry fire and often whiz around without any control.

"After the Fire Chief wrote to us raising concern over possible fire incidents due to this, we have decided to ban these flying lanterns. Those who sell or fly them will face strict action against them." said Ashok Dudhe, DCP Mumbai Police.

In a two page letter, the CFO raised his concern about the high rise buildings and installations like BPCL, HPCL getting affected due to these lanterns.

CFO had also written about last year's incident where a building which was under construction caught on fire due to these lanterns. So to avoid such incidents, the CFO has asked the Police to ban them.

FIRE ACCIDENTS ON THE RISE



According to data gathered by Fire Department, during Diwali time every year, they receive more than 40 calls reporting fires of various kinds. However, during recent years, as these flying lanterns have grown in popularity, the fire department has noted a drastic increase in the number of fire emergencies reported. The number of distress calls shot up to 69 in 2014 and a staggering 99 last year.

Many residents staying in high-rise buildings and near the sea shores Of Mumbai had also raised the similar concerns in past. All this coupled together convinced the Mumbai Police to take the decision to go ahead with the ban.

ALSO READ:

Delhi: 1 killed, 4 others injured in firecracker blast in Old Delhi's Naya Bazar

illegal firecrackers seized





--- ENDS ---
With less than a week to go until Western Australias biggest ever four days of music kicks off, the organisers of WAMFest 2016 have now unveiled their full program, which features some 159 acts playing across 26 venues, with 35 shows, and loads more.

Of course, the annual WAMAwards will be a big part of the upcoming festivities. The winners will be revealed Thursday, 3rd November and this years Hall of Fame inductees have now been unveiled as the legendary Rick Steele and The Triffids.

Meanwhile, with more than 80 acts, including Stillwater Giants, Sugar Army, Verge Collection, Whisky Au Go Go, Hussy, Belgrade, and more, taking over some 11 venues, the return of the Saturday Spectacular is not to be missed.

In an Australian Festival first, WAMFest will be partnering with Parlour, Australias premier organisers of home gigs, to let you create your own WAMFest adventure by registering as the host or act of your very own WAMFest gig.

Western Australias favourite music photography competition, Kiss My Camera, will make its return too, with the finalists now announced. The comp will showcase selected music photographs, both live and press shots, from both WA amateur and professional photographers, with $11k+ worth of prizes up for grabs.

Oh, and dont forget about WAMFests Friday Showcases, a series of live music showcases presented in conjunction with WAs best promoters, organisations and venues. This year will feature some 13 events set to take over the city from Freo to Basso.

Head to the official WAMFest website for more details and the full program.
Party In The Paddock is set to celebrate its fifth birthday next year in style, with a freshly announced lineup featuring the likes of Sticky Fingers, Hermitude, The Smith Street Band, and more.

Punters heading down to Burns Creek this February will also get to see sets from Tash Sultana, Remi, Opiuo, Kim Churchill, Vera Blue, Montaigne, Luca Brasi, Boo Seeka, and The Bennies.

After launching in 2013, Party In The Paddock has evolved into not only one of Victorias premier music festival destinations, but one of Australias favourite events on the summer festival calendar.

In 2017, Party In The Paddock will be supporting beyondblue, with $1 from each ticket sold from general sale going to aid beyondblues work in helping those suffering from anxiety and depression.

Party In The Paddock 2017

Sticky Fingers

Hermitude

The Smith Street Band

Tash Sultana

Opiuo

Remi

Kim Churchill

Vera Blue

Montaigne

Luca Brasi

Boo Seeka

The Bennies

Sampa The Great

Skegss

KLP

Lyall Moloney

The Vanns

Trophy Eyes

The Pretty Littles

Gold Member

Planet

Guthrie

PITP Allstars

Sheriff

Denni

Chase City

Elegant Shiva

The Saxons

Sumner

The Bad Dad Orchestra

Banquet

Bad Beef

Isla Ka

The Sleepyheads

Sundaze

Sofala

Friday, 10th February  Sunday, 12th February 2017

Burns Creek TAS

Tickets: Party In The Paddock
"Mike Shanin interviews Bill Lacy, Director of the Dole Institute of Politics, about the upcoming election. Then Ron Freeman, Mary O'Halloran, Gwen Grant and Steve Mirakian discuss the future of the GOP if they lose the presidency and both houses of congress, the current status of the Mission Gateway project and the KCMO city council hiring consultants to study the impact of tax incentives."

This evening theof Kansas City political talk and its panel of distinguished guests contemplate the upcoming election and the consequences of a divided GOP.This election conversation is exceptionally important as exit polling and rhetoric from pundits grows more intense:Tonight's KCPT discussion is more of a thoughtful conversation for tonight that's worth consideration aswhilst the civic elite and chattering classes discuss the merits of looting public coffers for slightly different ideological purposes . . . Which is probably important even if the broke-ass residents of flyover country are on the hook for it all anyhoo . . .Here's the description . . .You decide . . .




Prosecutors consider charges in toddler's shooting death: The shooting is the second homicide at that complex this year . Its also not the first time this year that a toddler died because a gun went off in a home.





INCREASING POLITICAL CORRUPTION IS THE LEADING CAUSE OF KANSAS CITY'S RISE IN CRIME!!!

- Corrupt Kansas City politicos justify paltry funding for police salaries while pushing forward expensive development projects at the behest of their corporate cronies.





- Corrupt council members have not only openly defied police but also have engaged in allegedly violent and deviant sexual misconduct inside City Hall.





- Corrupt elected officials tout reform and revitalization efforts inside the urban core that benefit only a handful of their most influential constituents.

While there are MANY more examples, generally, rampant Kansas City corruption in 2016 emphasizes political and financial gain over public safety. And more than any other factor, this common practice among local leadership has pushed violence to its highest level in nearly a generation.

TKC EXCLUSIVE: THE FIRST WORD FROM THE CITIZENS TASK FORCE ON CRIME SEEMS TO BE AN OVERWHELMING FOCUS ON GUN CRACKDOWNS AND LIMITING 2ND AMENDMENT RIGHTS!!!

Meanwhile, Kansas City has transformed from a decent Midwestern metropolis to a place that, statistically, is every bit as violent as Chicago, Baltimore, Detroit and Washington D.C.

Kansas City has recorded one hundred murders so far during an exceptionally violent 2016 election year.Our blog community is theto make this call and the number of people who have died violently this year is actually a lot higher.The shooting death of a child and deadly gunfire last night pushed Kansas City toward this tragic century mark.Here's the news link evidence of the count . . .And so . . .Remember that at the start of this month,and we asked our community to consider the carnage and its origin.The answer from our blog community . . .Don't worry, we've got examples . . .Accordingly . . .What's truly frightening about the current spate of homicide and violence is that even so-called solutions are politically charged and merely repeat failed efforts.Locally, this strategy hasn't helped bigger, better cities and, again, most anti-crime efforts funded by local governments are also, essentially, politically motivated kick-backs directed toward influential constituents. Politicos pushing theare probably the worst example of elected leaders using public safety funding to secure alliances with politically savvy residents smart enough work the system for personal gain with very little empirical evidence of effectiveness in reducing violence in communities and neighborhoods.And while a great deal of hype surrounds the effort to push Kansas City toward national prominence, misplaced civic priorities have only served to create a lawless environment wherein rampant bloodshed on local streets is the byproduct of so many despicable elected leaders focused only on career advancement and patronage of their corporate masters.You decide . . .
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has requested a new legislative initiative concerning the licensing of television stations, which should be presented by Monday (Oct. 31)

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has requested a new legislative initiative concerning the licensing of television stations, which should be presented by Monday (Oct. 31) and asked Parliament president Nikos Voutsis to convene the Conference of Presidents in order to set up the new board of the TV regulator (NCRTV), government spokeswoman Olga Gerovasili said on Thursday.

Tsipras called a meeting earlier this morning with Justice Minister Nikos Paraskevopoulos, Labour Minister George Katrougalos, State Minister Nikos Pappas, Alternate Minister for Corruption Issues Dimitris Papangelopoulos and close aides to discuss the governments next steps after the Council of State ruled on Wednesday night that the current TV licensing law is unconstitutional.

During the meeting, the governments new legislative initiative was examined thoroughly, in order to temporarily regulate the television landscape until the licensing tender and the final announcement of the licensees from the National Council for Radio and Television, the spokeswoman said.

The prime minister asked that the new legislative initiative be ready to submit by next Monday and he also spoke with the parliaments president and asked him to convene the Conference of Presidents, ahead of the submission of the new bill, to set up the new board of NCRTV, she added, noting the government is bound by the courts decision regardless of whether it agrees with them or not.

Gerovasili also called on the main opposition to assume its constitutional responsibilities in setting up the new board.

Read more here.

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
The United States is fully committed to Greeces success and this commitment will be confirmed by the U.S. President Barack Obama during his visit to Athens

The United States is fully committed to Greeces success and this commitment will be confirmed by the U.S. President Barack Obama during his visit to Athens in November, the U.S. Ambassador to Greece Geoffrey Pyatt said on Thursday, during a visit to Thessaloniki. Pyatt, accompanied by U.S. Consul General Rebecca Fong, held a meeting with Deputy Minister for Macedonia-Thrace Maria Kollia-Tsarouha.

According to Kollia-Tsarouha, the ambassador said the European Union cannot be successful if Greece I not successful and expressed his satisfaction with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Defence Minister Panos Kammenos position on issues of regional security. He also reassured the minister that Greece constitutes a pillar of stability in a particularly important geographical region.

Pyatt also said the United States recognize the great effort made by the Greeks to overcome the crisis and tackle the refugee issue and hailed the stance of ordinary people who gave what little they had to help those in need, overcoming xenophobia and extreme-right rhetoric.

On her side, the minister discussed the issue of debt relief for the country and said:

I spoke with the ambassador as a representative of Macedonia and Thrace and as a Greek citizen. I stressed the burdens shouldered by the Greek people and their difficulties that derive from the high taxation imposed on them and the public debt. I stressed that w, as a country, are bearing the brunt of the refugee crisis, without having the infrastructure or the financial ability and with the refusal of many European Union countries for a joint management of the crisis.

She went to say that she also told the ambassador that some EU policies make this weight unbearable to Greeks and stressed the need to move quickly with debt relief and substantial assistance in helping the economy recover.

Read more here.

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
UAE-based Pearl Initiative and United Nations Global Compact yesterday (October 27) hosted their second regional forum on Sustainability in Action: Business and the Sustainable Development Goals, in Dubai, UAE.



Pearl Initiative is the leading Gulf business-led organisation fostering a corporate culture of accountability and transparency.



The forum served as a successful call to action - encouraging collaborative strategy and practical action towards creating diverse, prosperous and competitive economies, said a statement.



The event was held under the patronage of Sheikh Nahyan bin Mabarak Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Culture and Knowledge Development, it said.



As part of his keynote address, Sheikh Nahyan thanked the UAE President HH Khalifa bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, as well as HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and HH Mohammed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al-Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces for their dedication to supporting a corporate culture of accountability and transparency leading to a sustainable and inclusive global economy.



He also acknowledged Ban ki-Moon, secretary general, United Nations for his leadership and efforts in leaving a notable legacy through the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals to transform the world.



Sheikh Nahyan said: The UAE is deeply involved with both Pearl Initiative and UNGC. Within our country, 143 countries, business associations, SMEs, NGOs and education institutions are already participating in the United Nations Global Compact.



We are also seeing increased cooperation with other nations in developing solutions to important environmental issues that impact all human societies, now and in the future, he added.



Sheikh Nahyan emphasised how the power of global cooperation can work wonders. He cited the successful negotiations of the Montreal Protocol, which is widely considered one of the most important environmental treaty, ratified by 197 UN member countries.



The official also credited both Pearl Initiative and UN Global Compact for their understanding of the complex relationship between corporate responsibility and corporate profits.



A critical bottom line for the SDGs is that private enterprises must be somehow persuaded to commit to sustainability. Corporate leaders must develop a new, shared understanding of what sustainability leadership requires, or face the prospect of becoming irrelevant, remarked Sheikh Nahyan.



Ki-Moon added: Governance failure, humanitarian crises and persistent economic inequality have devastating consequences. That is why, we must redouble efforts to help businesses recognise that sustainable development creates immense opportunities.



The private sector is crucial to realising the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. More and more leaders understand that sustainable development is not just the right way forward, but serves long-term interest of business and stakeholders by improving stability and prosperity, Ki-Moon concluded.  TradeArabia News Service


The Noida Toll Bridge Company Limited had challenged the High Court's order asking it to stop collecting toll from commuters plying on the DND flyway connecting Delhi and neigbouring Noida.

By India Today Web Desk: The Delhi-Noida Direct (DND) Flyway remains toll free after the Supreme Court today rejected a petition that sought to challenge the Allahabad High Court's order declaring the 9.2 km stretch free for commuters.

The Noida Toll Bridge Company Limited had challenged the High Court's order asking it to stop collecting toll from commuters plying on the DND flyway connecting Delhi and neigbouring Noida.

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The Supreme Court indicated that it will appoint an auditor or ask the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) to audit the NTBCL accounts.

The apex court said it will pass its order on the matter after the court's Diwali vacation on November 6.

On Wednesday, in what was a pre-Diwali cheer in the national capital, the Allahabad High Court said there will be no toll collected henceforth from those using the eight-lane Delhi-Noida Direct (DND) flyway.

The order was passed following a Public Interest Litigations (PIL) filed by the Federation of Noida Residents' Welfare Association in 2012.

The 100-page order said the "right to levy and collect user fee from the commuters as conferred upon the Concessionaire under the concession agreement suffers from excessive delegation and is contrary to the provisions UP Industrial Development Act".

Watch the video



--- ENDS ---
Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC), the government authority on trade, has signed three significant commodity partnerships with China during the Dubai Week in China, a major event that aims to boost bilateral ties.



It announced the first yuan-denominated gold future product to be offered outside of China, obtaining a license from the Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE) to list Shanghai Gold Futures in Dubai using the Shanghai Gold Benchmark Price.



It also announced that Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) has become the first market maker for the Shanghai Gold Futures contract to be listed on the Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX).



DMCC signed an agreement with Mega Capital Halal (MCH), a Hong Kong-based holding company, to import coffee annually from Chinas Yunnan State Farms Group to Dubai for world distribution. The agreement will see MCH export up to 140,000 tonnes of Chinese Arabica beans from the Yunnan State Farms Group to Dubai, UAE.



Gautam Sashittal, chief executive officer at DMCC, said: The DMCC partnership agreements we announced at Dubai Week in China, Shanghai, today, is evidence of the deep links between China and Dubai, and the growing role the Dubai trade has in bringing our worlds closer. China is Dubais number one trading partner.



The relationships that we have cemented here with the Shanghai Gold Exchange, Agricultural Bank of China, Mega Capital and Yunnan State Farms Group will further underpin the role that DMCC is playing in boosting the commodities trade along the West to East corridor  connecting directly into Chinas Belt and Road Initiative, he added.



DMCC will also develop a Coffee Centre. Based on the highly successful DMCC Tea Centre, which has enabled the UAE to become the largest re-exporter of tea in the world, the DMCC Coffee Centre will offer storage and warehousing facilities, offices and co-location space within a 4,500-sq-m temperature controlled facility.



DMCC also launched the latest in a series of reports on The Future of Trade, hosting a roundtable of experts to discuss the ways that trade is changing the world. The report focus heavily on the potential for digitalisation to impact trade, stating that as many as 350 million businesses would begin exporting goods for the first time if they were to adopt an end-to-end digital strategy.



There was also considerable interest in DMCCs Free Zone, named the Global Free Zone of the Year 2016 by The Financial Times fDi Magazine for the second year running, and its Business Panel debate Making Business Happen in Dubai. Together.  TradeArabia News Service
National Geographic Abu Dhabi is set to premiere Before the Flood, a 96-minute documentary that captures Academy Award-winning actor and UN Messenger of Peace Leonardo DiCaprios inspiring journey as he outlines the real impact of climate change.



Created over a two-year period, the documentry unveils the shocking reality of climate change, including increasing dangers of temperature rise and drought in regions such as the Middle East.



Before the Flood premieres Sunday, 30th October, 2016 at 10.00 pm on National Geographic Abu Dhabi and at 10:30 pm on Emirates TV channel. The documentary will also be airing on the same day in English on all National Geographic Channels as well as on Star Movies. The airing will be commercial-free and the film will be made available online for one week after the premiere so that the widest possible viewership can become aware of the imminent challenges posed by climate change.



DiCaprio interviews individuals from every facet of society in both developing and developed nations who provide unique, impassioned and pragmatic views on what must be done today to prevent and lessen the impact of climate change. Key interviewees include a range of global leaders such as President Barack Obama, Former President Bill Clinton, Secretary of State John Kerry, Pope Francis, Ellon Musk and United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, as well as top NASA researchers, forest conservationists, revered scientists, community leaders and fervent activists working to save the world.



Audiences are presented with visual evidence of a worsening environmental crisis that is inflicting irreversible damage on pristine landscapes from Greenland to Indonesia, disturbing the balance of our planets climate and hastening the extinction of beloved animals. The film presents an informative and engaging account of how society can prevent the demise of endangered species, ecosystems and native communities across the globe.



Climate change is the most fundamental threat facing our planet, said DiCaprio. We must work together as a collective voice to demand major action now. Our very survival depends on it. This documentary translates the symptoms and solutions of climate change before information is distorted, as it often is, by those with a financial interest in fossil fuel production.



Abdul Hadi Al Sheikh, executive director of the Department of Television at Abu Dhabi Media, said: Before the Flood highlights the core purpose of National Geographic Abu Dhabi which is to raise awareness about our world and the environment. Abu Dhabi Media is proud to support Before the Flood as it is also part of our CSR policy to create audience awareness of the challenges of climate change and related issues. Our partnership with National Geographic Abu Dhabi has led to the airing of this inspiring documentary on our TV channel networks at the same day as internationally.



Sanjay Raina, general manager, National Geographic Abu Dhabi Mena said: National Geographic Abu Dhabi has a long history of inspiring others to care about the planet. Climate change is a pressing issue which we need to act upon immediately rather than sometime in the future. Before the Flood is an eye opener and a must watch as it puts climate change in the front seat and inspires us to act now.



Before the Flood is produced by Fisher Stevensfilmmaker behind the Academy Award-winning Best Documentary The Coveand Executive Producer Martin Scorsese. - TradeArabia News Service
Three Indian informers have been arrested till now in the alleged espionage case.

By India Today Web Desk: The Delhi Police has nabbed the third Indian informer involved in the alleged espionage case after a massive manhunt. Shoaib Nagaur, was arrested in Jodhpur.



A Pakistan High Commission official was questioned and two Indian nationals were arrested on alleged espionage charges and working for the Pakistani intelligence agency, the ISI.

Mehmood Akhtar, the Pakistan official in the High Commission, was briefly detained at Chanakyapuri police station and later let off because of diplomatic immunity. He has been asked to leave India immediately.

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However, the two Indians, identified as Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir, both residents of Rajasthan, were still being questioned for working with the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

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The arrests were made late Wednesday night by the interstate cell Crime Branch following a tip off from the Intelligence Bureau, sources said.

HONEY TRAP

Female partners, handsome money and expensive gifts: these were the tools used by a ring of Pakistani spies to lure Indian defense personnel and extract sensitive details about deployment of forces.

The multiple ISI modules running across the country have their headquarters inside the safe confines of the Pakistan high commission in New Delhi.

Crime branch sleuths are also probing the role of two Delhi-based women, who were "too friendly" with Akhtar.

Officials are trying to establish if they were used to gather defense-related classified information.



PAKISTAN EMBASSY STAFF ASKED TO LEAVE INDIA

India has asked the Pakistan High Commission staffer to leave the country immediately over his alleged involvement in a major espionage ring that was busted with the arrest of two Indians working for the ISI.

Vikas Swarup, spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, tweeted that Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar summoned Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit "to convey that (a) Pakistan High Commission staffer has been declared persona non grata for espionage activities".



Also Read | Pakistan spy racket: 2 Indians arrested, embassy staff asked to leave India



Also Read | 46 arrested since 2013: Timeline of Pakistan's spy game in India



Also Read: Another Pakistani spy working for ISI arrested in Rajasthan

--- ENDS ---
 Jan Berkelder

It's been said that the most important lessons in life are not learned in the classroom, and perhaps in no place is that more true than in the Netherlands where the act of heading to school is itself so enriching. In an age of rising gas prices and skyrocketing cases of childhood obesity, Dutch educators have devised a wonderfully positive way to get kids to and from school -- by letting them pedal there themselves on a brand new fleet of bicycle buses.

Cycling has long been the preferred way of commuting in the Netherlands, thanks in part to their world-class system of bike paths, but now even young schoolchildren can get in on the action. With the purchase of what may be the first-ever fleet of bicycle school buses, Dutch kids as young as 4 years old are experiencing just how fun and easy getting around without a car can be.

Each bike bus is designed to hold eleven kids up to the age of 12, who along with an adult driver, provide the pedal-power to carry them to school and back. For times when the team of youngsters isn't enough, like on steep inclines or when just a handful of passengers are left to be dropped off, a built in electric motor is there to provide an extra boost.

 Jan Beeldrijk

So far, Dutch manufacturer Tolkamp Metaalspecials has sold around two dozen of the bicycle buses across the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany -- and the idea seems to be catching on. In an interview with FastCo.exist, bike bus creator Thomas Tolkamp says that orders have begun pouring in from around the globe.

We have gotten interest from the press all over the world and all people are positive.

I hope I can sell the bike in the near future to a foreign country and see how people at other countries react on the bike. I think it will work well in other countries, because as more and more people [are] becoming fat and "green living" becomes more important, ideas like this get more popular.



 Jan Beeldrijk

So far, the brilliant little bicycle buses have yet to cross the pond, but that soon could change, particularly in cities where cycling infrastructure continues to expand. And the bike buses are actually quite affordable at $15,000 each -- just over twice the cost of fuel consumed by each regular school bus per year in the United States.

In some ways, the notion that children should be equipped with a way to pedal themselves to school isn't just a nicety -- it is actually perfectly aligned with what we want from our educational system. After all, it's one thing to teach children to dream of a brighter, healthier future, and another to show them how to get there.
Recovery of over 40 kg of explosives from Palghat has raised security concerns for Tarapur Atomic Power Station, which is located not very far from the spot.

By Saurabh Vaktania: Recovery of over 40 kg of explosives from Manor, Palghar in Maharashtra has sent the security officials in a tizzy. The explosives were received from an abandoned PWD building. The place is not very far from the Tarapur Atomic Power Station, which is also located in Palghar district.

Sources in the ATS said that the material seized at Palghar included RDX, gelatine, detonators, white and black powder (which could be ammonium nitrate), but there is no official word on the nature of explosives. However, sources said that such explosives were mainly used by terrorists to carry out strikes.

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READ: Navi Mumbai terror alert: Police releases sketches of suspects after kids spot masked gunmen

COMBING OPERATION AFTER RAID

The officials of the Maharashtra ATS and the crime branch of Mumbai have maintained utmost secrecy about their operation. The officials are not speaking about the raid that was conducted with the help of dog squads on Thursday morning.

The ATS officials did not even inform the local police, who came to know about the raid several hours later. According to police sources, the combing operation is still on in the surrounding area.

Over 100 km from Mumbai, Manor in Palghar is close to the Arabian Sea, which was used by the terrorists in 2008 to enter Mumbai and carry out terror attacks, which killed 166 people and injured many more.



READ: Navi Mumbai: Indian Navy ends search operation, maintains high state of alert

ATS KNEW THE EXACT SPOT

An interesting thing about the seizure was that the ATS knew the exact place, where the explosives were dumped. Dressed in plain clothes, the cops precisely dug the spot and recovered the explosives. The seized explosives were put in the truck and taken to FSL for further examination.

Over 100 officials including several senior IPS officers visited the place of recovery of explosives.

READ: Mumbai: Security tightened after school kids spot men with arms near ammunition dump



ATS officials got a tip off about huge quantity of explosives having been dumped in the ground in Manor, Palghar. The structure is an old PWD building, which lies abandoned for several years. It is on the Mumbai-Ahmadabad highway.

Huge quantity of drugs was also dumped in separate rooms of the deserted PWD building. Over 40 kg of explosives was kept hidden in this isolated structure, the police said.WATCH:



--- ENDS ---
By PTI: From Youssra El-Sharkawy

Cairo, Oct 28 (PTI) Egypts 2011 revolution that toppled long-time dictator Hosni Mubarak from power was Gandhian in "spirit and practice", an Indian expert said at a roundtable here to discuss the relevance of his ideas in modern day Egypt.

The roundtable entitled "Gandhi @ Tahrir" is part of three-day celebration organised by the Indian Embassy at the Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture (MACIC) to commemorate the birth anniversary of Gandhi (1869-1948).

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The speakers of the roundtable were Prof. Zikrur Rehman, director of India-Islamic Cultural Center in New Delhi, Prof. Hassan Nefaa from the Faculty of Economics and Political Science, Cairo University, and diplomatic editor Gamal Nkrumah.

Zikrur Rehman spoke about the Gandhian ideology and philosophy at the event moderated by Shubham Singh, the third secretary in the Indian Embassy.

The professor related "Selmia" (peaceful), the slogan which was chanted by the 2011 revolution protesters in Tahrir square, to Gandhi.

"The Selmia protest was Gandhian in spirit and practice," said Rehman.

Hassan Nefaa spoke about the significance of Gandhi for Egypt and the historical incidents that took place during the time of Gandhi.

"Gandhi is of a universal value and had a tremendous effect on society," said Nefaa.

Journalist Gamal Nkrumah spoke about the relevance of Gandhian philosophy in modern time.

Indias Ambassador to Egypt Sanjay Bhattacharyya thanked the speakers and said that the presentations were very thought provoking.

The celebration featured events, which were organised in cooperation with Port Said Governorate, Suez Canal authority and gathered eminent intellectuals and friends of India from 25 to 27 October in Cairo and Port Said.

The Embassy of Indias MACIC film club also screened the movie "The Making of Mahatma" by renowned India director Shyam Benegal on October 25.

The movie shows the life of young Gandhi in South Africa and how he helped the natives to fight for their rights.

On October 26, a photography exhibition and a seminar titled of "Reliving the history: when Gandhi and Egypt met on a boat" was held in el-Nadi el-Bahari port.

The seminar, which was moderated by Ambassador Bhattacharyya, focused on Gandhis visit to Egypt, his interactions with Egyptian intellectuals, the developments that have taken since then and influence of Gandhian philosophy has on Indian and Egypt. PTI YES SUA AKJ SUA

--- ENDS ---
Tribune News Service

Amritsar, October 28

The Health Department today denied claims of the Joint Platform of Mass Organisations (JPMO) regarding the death of a Class II student of a private school due to dengue.

The state committee to review the dengue deaths has confirmed only one death due to the disease so far. We had received reports of two such deaths, but one was not confirmed, said district epidemiologist Dr Madan Mohan.

He said they had contacted the authorities at the private hospital where the death of the child was claimed to have occurred. The hospital categorically stated that no child suffering from dengue was admitted at their hospital, he said.

Earlier, the JPMO had demanded from the state government to send teams of doctors to schools to check the students for dengue. The organisation spokesperson Jarmanjit Singh Bath said Parminder Singh, a student of Choghawan Sadhpur, had died due to dengue.
Tribune news Service

Bathinda, October 28

Renowned academician and researcher Dr Buta Singh Sidhu joined as Dean of Maharaja Ranjit Singh Punjab Technical University (MRSPTU) today.

He was serving as the Dean academics at IK Gujral Punjab Technical University (IKGPTU), Jalandhar. During his tenure, he emerged as a good administrator and gave new dimensions in the field of academics.

Dr Sidhu has worked toward the upgradation of technical education. To promote research and development activities, he initiated various schemes at IKGPTU like partial financial assistance for the faculty of affiliated institutions to present research papers at the international level.

The financial support for conducting conferences at affiliated institutions was also initiated by him.

He has also played a crucial role in collaboration of IKG PTU with international universities, including University of California; Santa Cruz Campus, US; Pennsylvania State University; San Joses State University; University of the Fraser Valley, Canada; Brock University, Canada; McGill University, Canada and the University of Toronto.

Dr Mohan Pal Singh Isher, Vice-Chancellor, MRS PTU, congratulated Dr. Sidhu on his joining.

Dr Sanjeev Aggarwal, Dr Balwinder Singh, Dr Anupam Kumar, Dr Rajesh Gupta and Prof JS Tiwana, senior professors, also gave a warm welcome to the newly-elected Dean of the university.
By PTI: Kolkata, Oct 27 (PTI) The ruling Trinamool Congress today got a shot in the arm as Greater Cooch Behar Peoples Association (GCPA) today extended its support to the party for the upcoming by-election in the Cooch Behar Lok Sabha seat.

TMC, however, had made it clear that it will never support the demand for a separate state that GCPA had been fighting for the last few decades.

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Greater Cooch Behar Peoples Association (GCPA) leader Bangshi Badan Barman met Trinamool vice-president Mukul Roy at TMC Bhawan and extended their support for the Cooch Behar Lok Sabha seat.

"The GCPA has decided to support TMC in the upcoming by-election in Cooch Behar Lok Sabha seat. They are very much impressed by the development work done by the state government. They have never demanded for a separate state and we will neither accept it," Roy said.

A few months back, Trinamool had alleged that the BSF was "training" Narayani Sena, a private army of the erstwhile Maharaja of Cooch Behar. The allegation was denied by BSF.

Asked about the issue of Narayani Sena, Roy said, "Those who were imparted training dont belong to GCPA. We have protested against it as it is unconstitutional. They have no relation with GCPA."

The Lok Sabha seats of Tamluk in Purba Medinipur and Cooch Behar in Cooch Behar district along with Monteswar Assembly seat in Bardhaman will go to polls on November 19. PTI PNT MD NSD

--- ENDS ---
Nihal Singh

THE main actors pursuing their interests in the farce the country has been witnessing in Uttar Pradesh seem to be wedded to the Oscar Wildean adage, Nothing succeeds like excess. Yet at the level beyond snatching microphones and abusing one another lies the tragedy of Indian politics: hereditary power transfers foretell the decline of Indian democracy.

Indeed, Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav has the distinction of bringing his whole brood into the states power structure. We are familiar with the practice of the son acceding to the throne, despite the trappings of democracy. But to transform the states administrative and power structure into a pen for uncles and wives and children and their children is Mr Mulayam Singh Yadavs unique achievement.

The practice is so gross that it is no longer a matter of Uttar Pradesh alone, but a crisis the whole country has to try to resolve before Indian democracy is overwhelmed by uncles and their wives and siblings quarrelling among themselves on how to divide the pie.

Indeed, the time has come to frame regulations enforceable in law to limit the countrys political rulers in the number of relatives he or she can have in his or her government in New Delhi or in the states. Mr Lalu Prasad in Bihar is keeping company with Mr Mulayam Singh in having asked his wife take his chief ministers post when he was debarred and has imposed his callow sons on Mr Nitish Kumars coalition government.

A set of measures can be refined before being debated by Parliament. No more than one son or daughter can be a member of the leaders administration and power structure. The penalties could extend to the leader losing his or her job. Second, any entrant to the leaders administration must certify that he is not a direct relative of the leader in power.

There are other refinements that can be made to ensure that there are no loopholes left to enable clever politicians to smuggle their relatives in one guise or another. But the main question this raises is why parliamentarians would pass legislation that goes against their grain when they have long successfully stalled passage of a bill giving fair representation to women in Parliament.

The only alternative that presents itself is a mass movement primed by activists promoting fair democratic practices. After all, the mass movement built up in the Nirbhaya brutal rape case was an impressive demonstration of the power of mobilisation. There is no reason why men like Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav, who have now floated a new party after leaving the Aam Aadmi Party long ago, should not embrace a worthy cause which is poisoning the well of democracy in India.

There is no doubt that the Nehru-Gandhi family must bear a large share of the blame for starting a trend that has been reduced to the Mulayam Singh formula: the more family members in the government, the better. So family quarrels become crises of state and Mr Akhilesh Singh Yadav, the beleaguered Chief Minister of the state, proclaims that he is in his post because his father willed it and he would resign if his father told him to. What about the people who are supposed to vote parties and candidates to power?

Logically, it would appear that for the main protagonists it is a question of seeking truce among family members to set the government on the straight and narrow. The people seem redundant to the exercise, except at election time, which is approaching far too quickly for the Samajwadi Party. Yet the family farce that is being enacted by individuals seeking power is so self-consuming that no one seems concerned over the spectacle they are making to almost universal derision.

The deeper question that must be asked is whether there is something in the Indian genes that places the welfare of progeny above all considerations of the welfare of the nation. The classic case is, of course, of Rahul Gandhi, heir to the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty, who is being forced into a leadership role by his mother Sonia, despite his make-up, which is inimical to the world of politics.

This raises the question that if Indians accept the belief that entire families should sup at the fountain of government largesse, what is the point of agitating? One would like to believe there are many, if not the mass, who feel that in a modern democracy a distinction must be made between family rule and the welfare of the state and the people. In fact, Mr Mulayam Singh has done a service by highlighting the absurdities of adding relations to the administrative structure; the score at last count was 18.

We live in evolving times, with a new BJP government in power at the Centre and in many of the states, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi being in a unique position, having foresworn dealings with his wife and is only publicly fond of his old mother. Few in the country would agree to such a drastic remedy, but there must be a consensus that the governments till is not to be raided by the leaders retinue of relations.

Is it in the end a contest between the old and the new Jawaharlal Nehru tried so hard to bridge? The jury is still out. Whatever the methods employed, it is time to bell the cat before the country is dotted with replicas of Mr Mulayam Singh all over the country. We must recognise that there is a difference between how power was traditionally wielded and the demands of a democracy. If we are not to regress after the revolution brought about by Mahatma Gandhi, Nehru, Balasaheb Ambedkar and other greats of the Independence era, we must say no to family rule.

The next chapter of the Mulayam Singh family drama will be watched with more than ordinary interest. Thus far, UP has outdone Bollywood in the tearjerkers it has produced.
Regrettably the Chief Justice of India has found himself constrained to suggest  that too in an open court  that the government is creating a situation where the courts are being locked out. He has gone to the extent of accusing the government of trying to decimate the judiciary and lock justice out. These are strong words and were not spoken lightly. Nor should these be taken lightly. Ever since the apex court has struck down the National Judicial Appointments Commission law, the NDA government has been widely perceived to have embarked on a go-slow policy in the matter of filling the judicial vacancies. The government has studiously ignored the recommendations, made under the collegium-based ancien regime. The idea seems to be to let these self-appointed intrepid judges stew in the juices of huge vacancies. The numbers are staggering as they are revealing: 424 vacancies against the existing strength of 1044 judges in 24 high courts. And, in a kind of battle of wits, the government appears to be in no hurry to frame a new Memorandum of Procedure for Judicial Appointments. A complete deadlock has cast its dark shadow over Tilak Marg.

The rub is not the number of vacancies but the politicians' dormant desire to tame the judiciary. Every stable and strong government, sooner or later, becomes susceptible to the idea that the judiciary ought to be domesticated. The impulse is both institutional and political. And this current stand-off will not get resolved easily. It is possible that the government feels that, post surgical strikes, it has the masses approbation and approval behind it and that it is entitled to have its way vis-a-vis the judges. Hence, the itch to confront the court.

Not since when Indira Gandhi was accused of wanting to browbeat the judiciary by fiddling with promotions and appointments in the apex court has the country witnessed this kind of stand-off between the Supreme Court and the government. Indira Gandhi, of course, has been judged by history as an authoritarian ruler. Since, then, the democratic discourse has vehemently insisted on an independent judiciary as the sine qua non of our republican vibrancy. And so it shall be.
Saurabh Malik

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 28

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed Haryana to form a high-powered committee to remove anomalies in pay scales of attorneys/public prosecutors. The Chief Secretary will head the committee.

The order came on a petition filed against Haryana and other respondents more than a year after the plea for revised pay scales was turned down. The All-Haryana Attorneys Welfare Association had filed the plea through counsel Ravinder Malik.

Taking up the matter, Justice Anupinder Singh Grewal asserted that it would be in the interest of justice if the petitioner-Associations case was considered by a high-powered committee as the Pay Anomaly Commission was not in existence any more.

Therefore, I dispose of the petition with a direction to the respondents to constitute a committee headed by the Chief Secretary, which will also comprise the Principal Secretaries, Departments of Home and Finance, as well as Director (Prosecution), as its members, to examine the case of the petitioner-Association and decide the same in accordance with law, Justice Grewal said.

For the purpose, Justice Grewal has set six months deadline.

During the course of arguments, the counsel for the petitioner-Association had earlier contended that the Haryana Principal Secretary (Finance) had, on May 14, 2015, rejected the petitioners case.

He added the matter was required to be considered by the Pay Anomaly and Grievances Redressal Committee. He also contended the case of the petitioner-Association deserved to be referred to a committee for its consideration, as was done in the case of their counterparts in Punjab.

He also drew the courts attention to an order dated March 5, 2012, passed in the case of District Attorneys Associations versus Punjab and others, wherein a co-ordinate Bench of the High Court referred the matter pertaining to pay scales to a committee comprising Principal Secretaries of Finance and Home Affairs, Director, Prosecution Litigation, and Advocate General.

After hearing arguments, Justice Grewal said that although the petitioner-Association was not found entitled to the upgraded and revised pay scales as demanded by them, it was observed in the May 14, 2015, order that the petitioner-Association may make a representation to the Pay Anomaly Commission constituted vide a notification dated September 11, 2014.

Indisputably, the Pay Anomaly Commission has submitted its report on completion of its term, Justice Grewal added.
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 28

The Haryana Police have busted a gang which used to take women from Kurukshetra and nearby districts to Uttar Pradesh (UP) for getting the sex-determination tests done. Seven persons, including three members of the gang, two women who opted for sex determination and their husbands, have been arrested.

Stating this here today, a spokesman of the Police Department said that the accused had been identified as Kewal Kishore, a resident of Daya Nagar in Karnal district, Yogesh, a resident of UP, car driver Anil, a resident of Rohtak, women Suman and Mukesh, residents of Kharak Pandwa, and their husbands Rishipal and Satish.

The police received information that some persons were coming to Kurukshetra in a car and on a motorcycle after getting sex determination tests done in UP. Acting swiftly on the tip-off, the police, along with a team of the Health Department, laid a naka near Ladwa and arrested the accused.

During interrogation, Kewal Kishore said that he, along with Yogesh, used to take patients from Kurukshetra and nearby districts to a doctor in Saharanpur, UP, for conducting sex determination tests. The police recovered eight Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) kits from Kewal Kishore, two kits from Yogesh and impounded the car and the motorcycle.

A case has been registered against the accused under Section 420 and 120B and various sections of the MTP Act and Pre-conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act at the Ladwa police station. Other members of the gang would also be arrested, he added.
Dipender Manta

Tribune News Service

Mandi, October 28

Local potters have been finding it hard to make ends meet. Reason: The rising demand for Chinese lights. They said people preferred buying Chinese items to earthen lamps, which had hit their business hard.

Pottery art is a source of livelihood for a large number of families in Mandi district, but with the advent of Chinese products in the market, their business has seen a sharp decline.

Dhani Ram, a potter of Behna village, said: There were days when me and my family overworked to prepare clay lamps for Diwali, but with the arrival of Chinese products in the market, our business has seen a sharp decline.

He said that the cost of earthen lamps ranged from Rs 2 to Rs 20. There has been a sharp decrease in the sale of earthen lamps in the past few years, he added.

Khem Singh, another potter, said The festival of lights has lost its traditional charm. People prefer to decorate their houses with Chinese lights rather than using earthen lamps.

The potters rues that the successive governments failed to protect their business of pottery.
Tribune News Service

Shimla, October 28

Himachal Pradesh was today declared open-defecation free (ODF), a first amongst the big category states in the country, making it eligible for award under the Rs 9,000 crore World Bank fund meant for recognizing the efforts of states achieving milestones in cleanliness.

The declaration of Himachal becoming the second state after Sikkim and the first among big category states to become ODF was made by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, Union Rural Development Minister Narender Singh Tomar, Union Health Minister JP Nadda and Secretary and Union Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation Parmeshvaran Iyer.

Lauding the efforts of Himachal, Tomar said it was creditable that state had achieved this target. The fact that HP has become ODF makes the state eligible for the award from the World Bank which has kept aside a sum of Rs 9,000 crore for states doing a good job in declaring itself ODF and proper solid waste management, said Tomar.

The union minister hoped that Himachal would also take lead in disposal of solid and liquid waste management soon. He congratulated the Chief Minister for making Himachal the most progressive state and for community-led total sanitation drive adopting bio-digester techniques.

The Chief Minister congratulated the people of the state who supplemented the cause of the government in its mission for achieving the feat. It would not have been possible without the active support of the people of the state, who took it up as a movement, Virbhadra Singh. He said Sikkim was the first state to achieve the distinction of becoming ODF, but it was in the small category states.

We are very fortunate to become the second state leaving behind Kerala, which was also in the race and I suppose would be declared ODF after four days on November 1 on the occasion of Kerala Day, the Chief Minister said. He added that he insisted that the Union Minister should somehow make it to Shimla for the ODF declaration so that Himachal takes the lead.

Union Health Minister, JP Nadda congratulated the state for achieving the rare feat six months before the stipulated target. He said that the Central government would share the experience of the Himachal Government and the sustainable mechanism adopted by them with other states. He said the Union Health Ministry would be keen to launch a joint programme with the state government to mitigate water-borne diseases in the state.

Secretary, Rural Development, Himachal Pradesh Onkar Sharma in his address revealed that all 12 districts, 78 development blocks, 3,226 panchayats and 18,465 villages have been declared ODF. He said that information, education and communication programmes by the department were given the much-needed impetus from September 28 to October 20, 2016 to achieve the target of total sanitation and astonishing results were witnessed in the direction of making the state ODF.
Majid Jahangir and Amir Tantray



Tribune News Service

Srinagar/ Jammu, October 28

A soldier was beheaded by a militant in Kupwaras Machil near the Line of Control on Friday while Indian troops were engaged in cross-border firing with Pakistan army, sources in the Army have said.

A militant was also killed in the exchange of fire, a spokesperson said.

The official statement initially was: "In a despicable act, the terrorist mutilated the body of the Indian Army soldier before fleeing into PoK."

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

The spokesperson said that Pakistan Armys firing at army outposts provided cover for the militant.

"This barbarism is a true reflection that pervades official and non-official organisations across the border. This act will invite an appropriate response," he said.

The cross-border firing was still under way when this report was filed.

BSF claims 15 Pak soldiers killed

The Border Security Force claimed on Friday that they killed 15 Pakistani troopers this past week as continual cross-border shelling along the International Border and the Line of Control has ratcheted up tensions between India and Pakistan. Two civilians have been killed in the firing in Jammu.

BSF Additional Director General Arun Kumar told reporters: "Fifteen Pakistani soliders have been killed in retaliatory firing and shelling by BSF. We have destroyed their OP (outposts) and damaged a few."

The BSF and Army have responded appropriately and befittingly, a defence spokesman said.

There was unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan Army in Sunderbani, Pallanwala and Nowshera sectors of Rajouri and Jammu districts, the spokesman said.

They used small arms, automatics, 82 mm mortars and 120 mm mortars in the firing and shelling, he said.

They are being responded to appropriately and befittingly. No casualties to our troops have been reported, he said.

Firing and shelling continued overnight along the international border.

At 5.20 pm on Thursday, Pakistan Rangers started unprovoked heavy firing and shelling in Katgus sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba. It continued till 5 am on Friday in areas of 24 BSF posts, a senior BSF officer said, adding that the BSF responded strongly after which the firing stopped. Some Pakistani posts and villages had suffered heavy damage," he said.

One civilian was killed in Jammus Khor belt of district and a second was killed along the Line of Control in Poonchs Mendar sector as Pakistani troops continued truce violations on Friday with firing and mortar shelling on Indian posts and civilian areas along the LoC and international border in Jammu, Kathua and Rajouri districts. A civilian was injured in RS Pura.

BSF said it appeared from the mortar shells fired from across the International Border that Pakistans Army was supporting its paramilitary rangers.

'Propaganda'

Pakistan however denied India's claims of having killed 15 paramilitary rangers.

"Indian claims of killing any Pakistani soldier at the Working Boundary is absolutely baseless and untrue," the ISPR said in a statement. "India's claim is part of their propaganda campaign aimed to hide their losses at the Working Boundary and also divert world attention from the Kashmir issue," it said.

On Thursday, a Pakistani Ranger was killed and another injured in the retaliatory firing by the BSF, as Pakistani troops heavily shelled five sectors along the LoC and IB in J&K in which one BSF jawan died and 13 other civilians were injured.

While Pakistani troops pounded BoPs and hamlets along IB in Kathua, Hiranagar sectors (Kathua), RS Pura and Arnia sectors (Jammu) and Samba sector, they also targeted forward Indian posts and villages along the LoC in Krishnagati, Balakote and Mankote sectors (Poonch) and Sunderbani sector (Rajouri) on Thursday.

Since surgical strikes by army on terror launch pads in PoK on September 28-29, five Indians, including four security personnel, have been killed and 34 injured in ceasefire violations.

On October 21, the BSF killed seven Pak Rangers and a terrorist opposite the Hiranagar sector along IB in Kathua, in which one BSF jawan was injured.

On October 25, at least two to three Pakistani armymen are believed to have been killed in retaliatory firing by Indian troops in the Noushera sector of Rajouri district. (With PTI)
By PTI: Hyderabad/New Delhi, Oct 28 (PTI) Infrastructure major GMR Group along with Greece-based GEK Terna has bid for around 850 million Euro airport project in Greece. GMR Airports and GEK Terna have bid for the development, operations and management of the new international airport of Heraklion at Crete Island. In a release, GMR Infrastructure said, "It is understood that this is the sole bid for this concession". Upon award, GMR Airports would be the airport operator for this project, it added.

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"The project is a concession agreement that concerns the study, construction and management of the new international airport of Crete (biggest island in Greece) and of all the necessary road connections. The construction cost is estimated by the Greek ministry of Infrastructure at around 850 million euro," a spokesperson of GEK Terna told PTI. Heraklion airport, located in Crete and the second largest in Greece, is facing capacity constraint. According to the release, Heraklion aerodrome would be closed once the new airport is operational. "The scope of the project involves design, construction, financing, operation and maintenance of the airport for a concession period of 35 years," it added. A GMR Airports spokesperson said the bid submission is in line with the groups asset light growth strategy "with value build up from this project coming to GMR more from leveraging the airport platform, leading to enhanced revenue based services, than just equity". Currently, GMR operates airports in the national capital and Hyderabad apart from bagging the right to develop and operate Mopa aerodrome in Goa. Besides, GMR Infrastructure in partnership with Megawide Construction Corp is developing Mactan Cebu international airport in the Philippines. GEK Terna Group was formed through the merger of GEK and Terna, two of the largest construction companies in Greece. It is now one of the leading Groups in Greece combining expertise in the areas of construction, energy production, concessions, mining and real estate. PTI RAM GDK MR

--- ENDS ---
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, October 28

While curfew was imposed in the areas falling under six police stations of Srinagar to prevent any law and order situation after Friday prayers, clashes between protesters and police erupted at some places across the Valley on day 112 of the current unrest today.

Stone-throwing incidents after Friday prayers were reported from Srinagar, Pulwama, Kulgam and Sopore while clashes between the protesters and police took place in the Soura and Batamaloo areas of Srinagar district and in Bandipora town of north Kashmir.

Intense clashes were also reported from north Kashmirs Palhallan area soon after congregational Friday prayers ended as the protesters tried to march on the Srinagar-Baramulla highway.

Some miscreants lobbed a petrol bomb at the police and security forces deployed in the Pirchoo area of Pulwama district in south Kashmir today. However, no one was injured in the incident, the police said.

The authorities foiled separatists call for march to Jamia Masjid by imposing restrictions in the areas falling under five police stations of downtownNowhatta, Khanyar, Rainawari, MR Gunj and Safakadaland the Batamaloo area in the uptown to prevent any law and order situation after the Friday prayers. In view of Jamia Masjid Chalo call given by some separatist organisations, restrictions were imposed as a precautionary measure in some parts of Srinagar, a police spokesman said this evening.

The police prevented moderate Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq from marching towards the Jamia Masjid, where no Friday congregational prayers have been held since July 8.

This is unfortunate that the interference in our religious affairs continues. For the 16th consecutive Friday, congregational prayers at Jamia Masjid have not been held, which amounts to hurting the religious sentiments of Muslims, Mirwaiz told media.

PDP workers vehicle set ablaze

Unidentified persons set ablaze the vehicle of a PDP worker, Umar Kumhar in Habba Kadal area in Srinagar on Friday evening. The incident took place in Chinkral Mohalla of Habba Kadal, in which the white coloured Ford Figo car was damaged, police sources said. TNS

Militants kill soldier, mutilate his body

A soldier was killed in a gunfight close to the Line of Control in north Kashmirs Machil sector in Kupwara district. A militant was also killed in the exchange of fire, the Army said. An Army spokesman said the encounter took place in the sector late Friday evening in which a soldier was killed. "In a despicable act, the terrorists mutilated the body of the soldier before fleeing to PoK," the spokesman said. The spokesman said militants were supported by covering fire from Pakistani army. "This barbarism is a true reflection which pervades official and non-official organisations across the border. This act will invite an appropriate response," he said. TNS

Woman shot dead

A 45-year-old woman was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in south Kashmir's Pulwama late on Friday. The police said militants fired upon Bebee, wife of Mohammad Yousuf Matoo of Naiana Batpora, Pulwama, at her residence. TNS
Rifat Mohidin

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, October 28

The police in Kulgam district have finally arrested over a dozen persons involved in the torching of seven government school buildings in the district in the last three months.

The maximum number of schools (seven) were set ablaze in Kulgam district. Police officials in Kulgam said that they had made breakthrough in most of the cases and over a dozen people were arrested.

We have arrested people involved in torching seven school buildings. The arrested are anti-social and separatist elements who wanted to destroy the future of poor students whose education is dependent on government schools. The attacks have been particularly made on government schools, said Superintendent of Police, Kulgam, Sri Dhar Patel.

Patel said FIRs had been lodged in all cases. Besides the seven schools in Kulgam, four school buildings have been set ablaze in Budgam, two in Srinagar, three in Baramulla, two in Shopian, four in Anantnag and one each in Ganderbal, Pulwama and Kupwara districts.

As many as 25 schools buildings have been torched in the ongoing unrest in the Valley. Investigations are going on separately in all districts. In some cases, we have already got clues, said Special Director General of Police, Coordination, Law and Order, S P Vaid.

In almost all cases, the schools were targeted during night. The current unrest in Kashmir has affected more than 15 lakh school students. According to the Directorate of School Education Kashmir (DSEK), there are 11,766 government schools and 2,610 private schools in the Valley.

First private school burnt in Kashmir

Srinagar: Miscreants set ablaze a private school in the Dooru area of Anantnag district of south Kashmir on Friday evening. The police sources said Iqra Public School at Batgund in the Dooru area of Anantnag district was set ablaze by miscreants. With this the number of schools set ablaze by miscreants during the recent weeks of current unrest has gone up to 25. This is the first private school that has become the target of the ongoing violence in Kashmir.  TNS
Deepanker Gupta

Udhampur, Oct 28

Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today said her state would continue to suffer if a conducive atmosphere was not created for talks between India and Pakistan. Asking Pakistan to keep its promise to not support militancy in Jammu and Kashmir, the Chief Minister said it was now the turn of Pakistan to initiate talks with India. There should be good relations between the two countries as both were the worst affected when there was a war-like situation on the borders, she added.

Mehbooba was speaking at a passing out-cum-attestation parade at Sher-e-Kashmir Police Academy here.

Placing the onus on Pakistan to ensure that cross-border infiltration does not take place, Mehbooba said, During the time of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, for the first time, Pakistan said it would not allow its land to be used for anti-India activities. There was ceasefire on the borders, militancy was down and there was less infiltration. But, unfortunately, that process did not move forward.

Our Prime Minister Vajpayee went there (Pakistan). Now, they have to keep the promise of then Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf to not support militancy in J&K and help create a conducive atmosphere for dialogue, she said.

Without naming any separatist leader or group, the Chief Minister targeted them: Why did you push youth towards camps and towards violence, using them as shields while you fled the scene yourself? School buildings were being burnt in the Valley so that youth could not get education and it would be easy for such people to involve illiterate youth in militancy, she added.

Seeking the support of the police and security forces for restoration of peace in J&K, Mehbooba lauded the role of the police forces during more than three months of unrest in the Valley. The police should act as parents to misguided youth, the Chief Minister said. She urged policemen to make efforts to ensure the return of Kashmiri youth who had joined militancy or had gone missing and give them education, and bats and balls in their hands instead of guns.

Seventeen Deputy Superintendents were among 103 police officers who attended the passing out-cum-attestation parade.

Mehbooba, who was Chief Guest, took the salute from the fresh trainee officers and conducted the inspection of the parade.
Alia Bhatts mother, Soni Razdan, turned 60 on October 25. The darling daughter that Alia Bhatt is, she has a special present for her mother.

On a television chat show, Alia was present along with her father Mahesh Bhatt. They were discussing about a magazine which had Sidharth Malhotra and Alia Bhatt on the cover. It was a hot photo-shoot done on a beach in Maldives.

Daddy Bhatt was all praise for the cover shot and even reminded his daughter that it was clicked in Maldives. To this, Alia excitedly replied, Where Im taking you, for a holiday! Its my mothers birthday! Well, we cannot wait to see the vacation pictures.
Nonika Singh

Its a familiar landscapejet owning hero, raees heroine, plush settings and a plot that takes you from one beautiful country to another. And the emotional ground is no different either. Love vs friendshipKaran Johars time-old ruse is put to use here too. But what worked like magic in Kuch

Kuch Hota Hai in its 2.0 version is more deja vu here. Ayan (Ranbir Kapoor) loves Aleeze (Anushka Sharma). She too does and together they have some rocking time and vicariously we too have some fun moments. So whats the catch? For her its platonic love. If that is not cause enough for conflict there is an ex-boyfriend Ali (Fawad Khan) and a future girl-friend Saba (Aishwarya Rai Bachchan). In between are some wonderful original songs, especially Channa mereya and the title track and a whole lot that pay a tribute to yesteryears chartbusters. Indeed, this ode to heartbreak, as Johar puts it, is more like one to Bollywood.

Besides incorporating SRKS iconic dialogue naam to suna hoga, the Badshah of Bollywood is right there to light up the screen as only he can in a bit part and walks away with the most original dialogue on one-sided love. The most cheesy one belongs to Aishwarya, who calls herself a shayara, writes poetry and listens to Farida Khanum. Holding a British passport, she lives in Vienna, dresses up like a diva and looks like an ethereal goddess too. Sadly she makes her entry only in the second half and is let down by a script that does no justice to her beauty or emotive skills. As

for Fawad Khan, Raj Thackeray ji please watch the movie if only to know aapka bawal bematlab tha. The good-looking import from Pakistan actually gets a short shrift here and even his diehard fans are unlikely to root for him in the film. For the film essentially and intrinsically belongs to Ranbir and Anushka alone. While she gets into the groove by and by, Ranbir is spot on from the word go. Never mind that he is reprising many of his previous roles. Some of the dialogues seem even straight from Rockstar. Only unlike Rockstar, ADHM has no heartbreaking moments. Despite all the philosophizing and a twist a la Kal Ho Na Ho, there is nothing that will make your heart ache.

Where Johar deserves credit is that though ideally familiarity should breed contempt, he makes the old wine pleasing enough with a contemporary fix. In this day and age, sex is not taboo. Nor is it here, rather scenes between Ranbir and Ash are sensuous, handled sophisticatedly. But then you can only expect class from KJO. Yes, like all his films this one is no revelation either.

Behind the unprecedented hype over ek tarfa pyar, all it says is that love means different things to different people and true love neednt be consummated. But dont you dare delude yourself that this is a modern day love ballad. In fact, this isnt even a trademark two-hankie film of Johar. Now, whether that is good thing or bad depends entirely upon how you like your love stories to be served.

All we can reveal is the mush here may not leave you teary-eyed but nor would it make you tear you hair in desperation. Since you are already in the festive mood, go ahead and indulge yourself even if that partially means indulging Johar and clan.

Hey, before you get caught in our rambling, here is the assurancethe film is watchable fare, not the least because of its high energy music, breathtaking locales and fine performances, not to miss the sassy Lisa Haydon.
Washington, October 28

The five Indian call centres charged with defrauding thousands of Americans, stole more than USD 300 million from their victims, US Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson has said.

The official on Thursday said an inter-agency effort resulted in the indictment of all five call centres and 56 people, including 31 from India, as well as the arrest of 20 others in the US, most of whom are Indians.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

Johnson said these were engaged in defrauding thousands of victims, stealing more than a total of USD 300 million.

The scheme involved a network of call centres based in Ahmedabad, where associates of the ring would call victims in the US impersonating Department of Homeland Security, Internal Revenue Services, or other government officials, demanding payment in order to clear fictitious arrest warrants, orders of deportation, or unpaid income tax, Johnson said.

The five Ahmedabad-based call centres that made calls to people living in the US are Hglobal, Call Mantra, Worldwide Solution, Zoriion Communications and Sharma BPO Services.

The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), Department of Homeland Security, Department of Justice, the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Trade Commission announced the indictments, the result of a three-year investigation that was the largest single domestic law enforcement action connected with the impersonation scam.

To date, more than 1.8 million people have reported to TIGTA that they have received an impersonation call; more than 9,600 victims reported that they paid the impersonators a total amount that exceeded USD 50 million, TIGTA Inspector General J Russell George said.

The largest single amount paid as a result of the IRS impersonation scam as charged in the indictment is USD 136,000, paid by a victim in California, George said.

The US Senate Aging Committee, that studies issues related to older Americans, received more than 1,100 calls from senior citizens across the country on its fraud hotline in 2015.

The most common complaint reported to the fraud hotline continues to be the IRS impersonation scam. PTI
Amir Karim Tantray

Tribune News Service

Jammu, October 28

Fifteen Pakistani Rangers and two Pakistani soldiers have been killed in retaliatory fire along the border in the past one week, the Border Security Force claimed today.

We have learnt that 15 Pakistani soldiers, including 13 Rangers, have been killed in retaliatory fire. Pakistan has been continuously violating the ceasefire agreement and we are giving a befitting reply, Additional Director General Arun Kumar said after a wreath-laying ceremony here.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

Pakistans Inter-Services Public Relations rejected the BSF assertion as absolutely baseless and untrue.

Meanwhile, Asma Bibi (50), wife of Abdul Rehman of Goulad village in Mendhar sector, and Ajay Kumar (18), son of Rattan Lal of Gigrial village in Pallanwala sector, were killed in fresh shelling along the international border. A civilian was also injured in RS Pura sector.

Sources said Major Ajeet Singh of 21 Punjab and a constable of 50 BSF were injured during firing in Balakote and Mankote sectors late last night. However, this is yet to be confirmed. In Sunderbani, Pallanwala and Nowshera sectors, the Pakistani troops have been using small arms, 82 mm mortars and 120 mm mortars, said Lt Colonel Manish Mehta, PRO, Defence, Jammu.
Ruchika M Khanna

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 28

Ahead of the Assembly poll in Punjab, the SAD-BJP government has appointed the brother-in-law of Baba Gurinder Singh Dhillon, head of the Radha Soami Dera, Beas, as Adviser to CM Parkash Singh Badal. He has been accorded the status of minister.

Parminder Singh Sekhon, the fifth adviser to the CM, is the brother of Dera chiefs wife. He is married to the daughter of former Advocate General HS Mattewal, Badals one-time aide. Sekhons appointment at the fag-end of the government tenure is significant. The Beas dera has a massive following, with devotees across the state.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

The Dera, which has never come out in support of a political party, has had a pro-Congress tilt with several Congress men among Dera chiefs circle of friends. Hence, the importance of a kin of the Dera chief being allotted a prominent position in the government cannot be ignored. Sources in the SAD say the move to have Sekhon as the CMs adviser was orchestrated by Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia.The latter has been engaging with the Dera leadership over the past few years.

A management expert, Sekhon has had the experience of working with corporate entities in India and abroad. Also, he has been involved in the welfare of Sikhs in Singapore through the Khalsa Club Association.
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 28

China reacted with anger and a threat over Indias decision to allow the Dalai Lama to travel to Arunachal Pradesh. The Ministry of External Affairs yesterday gave its nod to the Dalai Lamas plans to visit the state early next year. China today warned India that bilateral ties and peace along the border will be hit because of this decision by India.

China regards Arunachal Pradesh to be a part of South Tibet and has consistently protested visits by the Dalai Lama or other foreign dignitaries to the region.

Last week, US Ambassador to India Richard Verma visited the state and China again saw red. This time, the situation is worse because the Dalai Lama represents one of the last real threats to the Chinese attempts to submerge Tibet into its territory.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang in Beijing said: The Dalai clique is engaged in anti-China separatist activity and has very disgraceful behaviour on issues relating to China-India boundary question.
Despite gold having become 20 per cent costlier than it was during this time last year, eager shoppers came out in huge numbers to purchase gold coins, jewellery and sovereign gold bonds on the auspicious occasion of Dhanteras.

By Mail Today Bureau: Eager shoppers came out in huge numbers to purchase gold coins, jewellery and sovereign gold bonds on the auspicious occasion of Dhanteras on Friday despite the fact that the yellow metal is so costly.

"Even though the price of gold is 20 per cent higher than what it was last year, there has been brisk buying throughout the day. The rush of customers picked up after noon and even at 8 pm, all the jewellery shops in Mumbai were still crowded,'' Kumar Jain, vice president of the Mumbai Jewellers Association told Mail Today.

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COSTLIER GOLD NO DETERRENT



Jain said the price of gold was Rs 30,500 per 10 grams this year as compared to Rs 25,400 last year during Dhanteras, but this had not been a deterrent as buyers were very enthusiastically making their purchases.

Also read: Gold zooms to retrace Rs 28k mark, silver surges past Rs 37k

"In Maharashtra alone, I expect the value of gold bullion, jewellery, and diamond jewellery to be around Rs 450 crore for the day,'' he added.

Prominent bullion dealer Ketan Shroff said buyers had turned out in large numbers for both bullion purchases and to buy sovereign gold bonds. "I expect the quantity of gold purchases for this year's Dhanteras to be the same as they were last year, despite gold having become costlier,'' he added.

GOLD BUYING PICKED BY EVENING

Shroff said the price of bullion had fallen in the morning by around Rs 150 or so, but towards the evening it rose again on the back of brisk buying by shoppers.

After subdued gold demand in the last six months, jewellery and coin sales surged on the auspicious day today and in value terms could be 20 per cent higher than last year.

According to Delhi jewellers and MMTC-PAMP India, gold demand has picked up in the wake of good monsoon and favourable price levels. There was positive response and more footfalls.

Also read: Indian Gold Coin becomes preferred investment option: WGC



"There is a robust demand for gold and silver coins as also bars. People are buying for investment purpose. We expect 15-20 per cent increase in sales from over the last year,'' MMTC-PAMP India President (Marketing) Vipin Raina said.

Silver traded at Rs 42,700 per kg as compared with Rs 35,410 per kg last year. Kalyan Jewellers Executive Director Ramesh Kalyanaraman said, The advance booking for jewellery is up by 20-25 per cent compared to last year. The update on sales figures will be known in the evening.



GOLD DEMAND HAS REVIVED



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Prices are lower when compared to the last two months. Prices are more or less stable now and also demand has revived in view of the good monsoon, he said.

World Gold Council (WGC) MD Somasundaram PR said, It appears that, as is widely expected, this Dhanteras has ushered in a new phase of optimism around gold, particularly after an unusually difficult first half.

He said in a statement: Consumers who have been deferring gold purchases are back and the demand for gold jewellery and branded coins seems to be much higher than during Dhanteras and Diwali in previous years.

--- ENDS ---
Beijing, October 28

China on Friday warned India that bilateral ties might suffer damage and affect peace and stability of the border areas if it allowed Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama to visit Arunachal Pradesh, which Beijing claimed was part of southern Tibet.

We are seriously concerned about the relevant information, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang told a media briefing here replying to a question about reports that India had granted permission to the Dalai Lama to visit Arunachal Pradesh at the invitation of the Chief Minister.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

Chinas position on the eastern section of China-India border is consistent and clear. The Dalai clique is engaged in anti-China separatist activity and has very disgraceful behaviour on issues relating to China-India boundary question, Kang said.

The Indian side is well aware of the severity of the Dalai Lama issue as well as the sensitivity of the China-India boundary question, he said.

Under such circumstances Indias invitation to the Dalai Lama for activity in the disputed areas between China and India will only damage peace, stability of the border areas as well as the bilateral relationship between China and India, Kang said.

We require the Indian side to honour the political commitment to Tibet-related issues and abide by the bilateral consensus on boundary question, he said.

India also should refrain from taking any action that may complicate the issue, do not provide any platform for anti-China separatist activities by the 14th Dalai Lama, he said.

Only by doing so can we maintain sound and steady growth of the bilateral relations, he added.

Asked about assertions by External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup that Dalai Lama had visited the state in the past, Kang said making one mistake does not mean that you can make another mistake.

As I just said, Indias invitation to the Dalai Lama for activity in the disputed area between China and India is like providing a platform for anti-China separatist activities. It does no good to peace and tranquillity in the border areas as well as the development of China-India relations, he said.

China considers Arunachal Pradesh as part of southern Tibet and routinely objects to visits by the Dalai Lama, Indian leaders as well as foreign dignitaries.

The border dispute covers the 3,488-km long Line of Actual Control (LAC).

India asserts that the dispute covered Aksai Chin area which was occupied by China during the 1962 war.

On October 24, China took exception to the visit by Richard Verma, the US envoy in India, to Arunachal Pradesh which it claimed as southern Tibet, saying any interference by Washington in the Sino-India boundary dispute would make it more complicated and disturb the hard-won peace at the border.

Objecting to Vermas visit, Lu had told a media briefing here that China is firmly opposed to the visit.

Verma visited the province on October 22 at the invitation of Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu, who has also invited the Dalai Lama to the state early next year.

We have also noted that the place visited by the senior US diplomatic official is a disputed region between China and India. We are firmly opposed to his visit, he had said.

Rebuffing China for objecting to Vermas visit to Arunachal Pradesh, India had said there was nothing unusual about his trip to a state which is an integral part of the country.

The US Ambassador visited Arunachal Pradesh, a state which is an integral part of the country to which he is accredited. There is nothing unusual in it, Swarup had said.

Lu said both India and China are resolving the issue though bilateral consultations and negotiations and any third party with a sense of responsibility should respect efforts made by China and India for peace reconciliation and tranquillity rather than the opposite.

The behaviour by the US contrasted the efforts made by China and India, he had said.

It will only make the dispute more complicated, disturb the hard-won peace and tranquillity of border areas and sabotage peaceful development of the region.

We urge the US to stop its interference in the boundary issue between China and India and make more contribution to regional peace and stability, he said. PTI
Simran Sodhi and Mukesh Ranjan



Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 27

The recent India-Pakistan straining of relations on Thursday took a nosedive with Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar summoning Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit here.



Delhi Police had detained an official of the Pakistan High Commission on charges of espionage. He has been identified as Mehmood Akhtar and was in possession of sensitive documents. But since he enjoys diplomatic immunity, the police released him.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

Meanwhile, Jaishankar told Basit that the staffer had been declared persona non grata. According to sources, Basit protested against the treatment meted out to the official saying his detention was in violation of the Vienna Convention. Sources said the High Commissioner rejected all allegations saying the Pakistan High Commission never engaged in any activity that is incompatible with its diplomatic status.

Delhi Police had been tailing Akhtar for the past few months and arrested him from near the Delhi Zoo. Two Indian nationals, Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir, have also been arrested. They were in possession of sensitive defence-related documents and information and allegedly handed them to the official.

A fourth person, Shoaib, who is a Jodhpur-based passport and visa agent, was detained by Rajasthan police this evening and was being brought to Delhi. Shoaib was present at the meeting at the Delhi Zoo yesterday but had managed to give a slip to police.

Sources in Delhi Police said they did not rule out possible involvement of some BSF troopers in the racket as they believethat Akhtar and his accomplices could not have got hold of deployment details unless somebody in BSF was leaking them.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a statement in which they have alleged that this act by India reflected Indian actions to shrink diplomatic space for the working of Pakistan High Commission. It claimed that these were attempts by India to deflect international attention from the human rights violations being conducted by the Indian army in Jammu and Kashmir.

Since the Uri attack last month, the bilateral relationship has gone from bad to worse. After India responded with surgical strikes against terrorist launch pads in Pakistan, Thursdays busting of the spy racket being run from the Pakistan High Commission is expected to further strain the relations.

Meanwhile, according to sources in the security agencies, Mehmood Akhtar used to Rs 2,000 to Rs 2 lakh to identified agents who used to provide sensitive information and documents. These agents were identified and hired by Pakistans ISI, they said.

Sources said Akhtars favourite place for meeting the Indian agents was Delhi Zoo.

A Delhi court remanded Jangir and Ramzan to 12 days in police custody.

The Ministry of External Affairs has said that Mehmood Akhtar and his family have been given 48 hours time to return to Pakistan.

In a statement issued on Thursday evening, India also denied Pakistans accusations that they were Indias attempts to divert attention from rights abuses in Kashmir.

Today morning Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar summoned the Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit and informed him that India had intercepted an official of the Pakistan High Commission in the pursuit of espionage and that he was being declared persona non-grata," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.

"The Pakistan High Commission has been informed that Mehmood Akhtar and his family must return to Pakistan by October 29. The Foreign Secretary also strongly conveyed to the Pak High Commissioner that the Pak High Commission must ensure that none of its members indulge in activities inimical to India, or behave in a manner that is incompatible with their diplomatic status," Swarup said.

He also rejected Pakistani allegations of "mishandling" Akhtar, saying he was treated with "utmost courtesy". "When he was handed over to the Pakistan High Commission in the presence of a ministry official, Akhtar himself said he was treated well," he added.

Swarup said Akhtar told the police that he had joined the Baloch Regiment of the Pakistan Army in 1997 and came on deputation to the Inter Service Intelligence (ISI) in 2013 and posted in September 2013 to the Pakistan High Commission where he is presently working as Assistant to Farukh Habib, Counsellor (Trade).

Recently, Akhtar provided details on the Indian Army unit movement in Kashmir to his masters in Pakistan. The details provided were so specific that it is feared that if ISI passed them on to Lashkar-e-Taiba and Hizbul terror groups, they could target Indian Army convoys and camps.

Pakistan called the charges false and unsubstantiated and said it was in violation of the Vienna Convention.

(With inputs from PTI)
New Delhi, October 29

Reacting strongly, India on Friday condemned Pakistans decision to expel its High Commission staffer in Islamabad, saying the action further confirmed that Pakistan continued to be in denial of its anti-India activities, including cross-border terrorism.

External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said no justification had been provided by Pakistan except for the completely baseless and unsubstantiated allegation that his activities were not in keeping with diplomatic norms.

(Read: Pak spy racket: Visa agent from Jodhpur arrested)

Government notes with regret the Government of Pakistans decision to declare Surjeet Singh, Assistant Personnel and Welfare Officer in the High Commission of India in Islamabad, persona non grata and expel him and his family members.... The Government condemns Pakistans step.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

It is obvious that the step is an afterthought following Thursdays apprehension of Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar in Delhi while indulging in anti-India activities. Pakistans action further confirms that it continues to be in denial of its anti-India activities, including cross-border terrorism, Swarup said.

Within hours of India expelling Akhtar on Thursday, Pakistan, in a tit-for-tat action, declared Singh as persona non grata and asked him to leave the country within 48 hours.

The Pakistan Foreign Secretary, who had summoned Indian High Commissioner Gautam Bambawale to convey the decision, expressed deep concern over the activities of the Indian official that were in violation of the Vienna Convention and the established diplomatic norms, the Pakistan Foreign Office said in a statement. PTI
New Delhi, October 28

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will begin a two-day official visit to Japan from November 11.

This will be the third annual summit meeting between Prime Minister Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe.

Modi will also be meeting Emperor Akihito during his visit.

The annual summit meeting will be an occasion for both prime ministers to have in-depth exchanges on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest to further deepen the broad-based and action-oriented partnership between India and Japan.

Modi met his Japanese counterpart in Laos earlier in September this year and discussed ways to strengthen bilateral ties.

Earlier in December 2015, Abe paid a three-day official visit to India during which both leaders discussed various issues of strategic importance besides outlining a vision of working together for peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific Region and the world.

The Japanese Prime Minister also rendered his country's support to India in its bid to join the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).

Earlier in 2014, Prime Minister Modi visited Japan on a five-day visit beginning on August 30 for the Annual Summit meeting with his Japanese counterpart.

During the visit, the two sides decided to upgrade the relationship to a Special Strategic and Global Partnership' and launched an IndiaJapan Investment Promotion Partnership under which Tokyo announced its intention to invest in New Delhi approximately USD 35 billion over the next five years.

Sticking to his 'Make in India' initiative, Prime Minister Modi gave an open invitation to the Japanese companies to consider New Delhi as a 'competitive low-cost manufacturing hub'.  ANI
New Delhi, October 28

The Pakistan High Commission official accused of spying may have been trying to gather classified information on Indian security forces along the western coast for a militant strike similar to the 2008 Mumbai attack, an official of the Home Ministry said on Friday.

(Also read: Pak spy racket: Visa agent from Jodhpur arrested)

Mehmood Akhtar was trying to gather information pertaining to deployment of security forces along the western coast, Sir Creek and Kutch areas and also about military installations in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Goa, a Home Ministry official said.

"There have been intelligence inputs that Pakistan's ISI was planning to send terrorists through the sea route to carry out a Mumbai-type terror attack in India. Akhtar's activities and his interests to gather information about the western coast buttress the intelligence inputs," the official said.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

More than 160 people died when 10 gunmen struck mayhem for three days in Mumbai in November 2008. The gunmen had come to Mumbai from Karachi by sea.

Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir were handing over information to Akhtar about security forces deployment in the Sir Creek area and Kutch region when they were arrested on Friday.

The Pakistani official was to hand over the duo Rs 50,000 for getting information, the official said.

Before being let off because of diplomatic immunity, Akhtar confessed to police about his role in the spy ring.

Delhi Police also had a recorded video of his statement.

In his statement to police, Akhtar admitted that he was part of the spy ring for more than a year.

He has named a few officers of the Pakistani High Commission to whom he had reported the information he collected but police have no direct evidence and therefore have yet to take action.

Acting on a tip-off, Delhi Police on Friday nabbed Akhtar, along with Ramzan and Jangir, at Delhi Zoo while a visa agent from Rajasthan, Shoaib, had managed to escape.

Shoaib was detained near Jodhpur last evening and after being brought here, he was arrested.

India declared Akhtar persona non grata on Thursday. Subhash and Maulana have been arrested on charges of passing on sensitive information and defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border. They were sent to 12-day police custody.

A local court remanded them to police custody for 12 days. Akhtar enjoys diplomatic immunity but has been asked to leave India.  PTI
Islamabad, October 28

Pakistan High Commission summoned the Indian deputy high commissioner to protest truce violations on the India-Pakistan border on Friday  the third time this past week, as cross-border shelling since the past few days raise tensions between the two countries.

"(Pakistan) strongly condemned the unprovoked ceasefire violations on October 27 by the Indian Forces at the Working Boundary in Shakargarh sector and on the LoC in Nikial sector, Pakistan Foreign Office said, claiming six civilians had been killed and 22 injured in the incident after Director General (South Asia and SAARC) Mohammad Faisal summoned India's Deputy High Commissioner JP Singh.

Pakistan has asked India to investigate the continued truce violations and stop "targeting" villages and civilians, the statement said.

Pakistan has violated truce more than 50 times since Indian Army struck terrorist launch pads in Pakistan on September 28. The military raid came within 10 days of a militant strike on an army camp in Kashmir.  PTI
Greater Noida, October 28

Home Minister Rajnath Singh accused Pakistan of indulging in a proxy war and terrorism, as heavy cross border shelling between the two countries has ratcheted up tensions in the Indian sub-continent.

"The neighbouring country has been carrying out proxy war. But terrorism is not a weapon of the brave but of cowards. Those who fight from behind are called cowards...they take the help of terrorism," he said.

Speaking at the 55th raising day event of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) at its camp here, he said strict vigil by the force has resulted in 60 per cent less transgressions into the Indian territory by the Chinese People's Liberation Army this year.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

He referred to the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan as he accused the the neighbour of trying to destablise the country through terrorism and casting an evil eye on its economic progress.

The relationship between India and Pakistan has cooled considerably in the past few months, first due to the unrest in Kashmir, then a militant attack on a military camp in Kashmirs Uri and a retaliatory strike by the Indian Army on terrorist launch pads in Pakistan in September. More recently, there have been frequent cross-border shelling between the two countries due to repeated truce violations by Pakistan, worsening the ties.  PTI
R Sedhuraman

Legal Correspondent

New Delhi, October 28

The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Centre to clear its Collegium proposals on appointment of high court judges without waiting for finalisation of the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP).

A 3-member Bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur told Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi that the government had no right to sit over the proposals indefinitely awaiting a fresh MoP.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

The Bench said there was no logic in the governments MoP theory as it had anyway accepted some of the recommendations of the Collegium by appointing high court judges under the old MoP.

The Bench made the remarks while going through the Centres status report on the appointment of high court judges based on the proposals of the Collegium comprising five senior most judges of the SC headed by CJI Thakur. The Centre had filed the report in compliance with the court order on two PILs over the delay in judicial appointments.

A 5-member Constitution Bench headed by Justice JS Khehar that restored the Collegium system by striking down the law for setting up a National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) had clarified that appointment of judges would not have to await finalisation of a fresh MoP by the Centre in consultation with the SC Collegium as the vacancies had mounted to about 50 per cent of the sanctioned strength in most of the HCs, the Bench pointed out.

Anyway the MoP under revision had been in use for more than 20 years and there was nothing wrong in following this procedure till a fresh one was put in place to ensure greater transparency and accountability in the appointment process, the Bench said. Justices DY Chandrachud and L Nageswara Rao are its other members.

Further, the Collegium at the Surpeme Court and high courts had tightened the norms for choosing and approving the candidates to be appointed as judges to ensure that only deserving lawyers were selected, the Bench said.

Pointing out that half of the courtrooms in most of the high courts were locked due to the vacancies, the Bench said the Centre appeared to be hell bent on bringing the judiciary to a grinding halt.

"You seem to be waiting for a system change and expecting us to capitulate. We won't let this happen," the Bench told the Centre. There was a time when judges had no courtrooms, but now courtrooms had no judges, it lamented.

Initially, it threatened to summon the secretary responsible for processing the proposals, but changed its mind after the Attorney General pleaded for posting the PILs for hearing after the Diwali break.

The PILs will be taken up again on November 11.

The Bench, however, clarified that it would be compelled to re-convene the Constitution Bench if the deadlock over the appointments persisted. If the government had reservation over any of the recommendations it should return the names to the Collegium for reconsideration, instead of sitting over it, it said.

Any ego clash or confrontation would be detrimental to national interest, it clarified.

Even as the MoP is stuck over the differences between the government and the Collegium over its provisions, Justice J Chelameswar has stopped attending the SC Collegium meetings demanding that its proceedings be recorded.
R Sedhuraman

Legal Correspondent

New Delhi, October 28

The Supreme Court today directed the Centre to clear its Collegium proposals on appointment of high court judges without waiting for finalisation of the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP).

Edit: Locking courts out

A three-member Bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur told Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi that the government had no right to sit over the proposals indefinitely awaiting a fresh MoP.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

The Bench said there was no logic in the governments MoP theory as it had anyway accepted some of the recommendations of the Collegium by appointing HC judges under the old MoP.

The Bench made the remarks while going through the Centres status report on the appointment of HC judges based on the proposals of the Collegium, comprising five seniormost judges of the SC headed by CJI Thakur. The Centre had filed the report in compliance with the court order on two PILs over the delay in judicial appointments.

A five-member Constitution Bench headed by Justice JS Khehar that restored the Collegium system by striking down the law for setting up a National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) had clarified that appointment of judges would not have to await finalisation of a fresh MoP by the Centre in consultation with the SC Collegium as the vacancies had mounted to about 50 per cent of the sanctioned strength in most of the HCs, the Bench pointed out. The MoP under revision had been in use for more than 20 years and there was nothing wrong in following this procedure till a fresh one was put in place to ensure greater transparency and accountability in the appointment process, the Bench said. Justices DY Chandrachud and L Nageswara Rao are its other members.

Further, the Collegium at the SC and HCs had tightened the norms for choosing and approving the candidates to ensure that only deserving lawyers were selected, the Bench said.

Pointing out that half of the courtrooms in most of the HCs were locked due to the vacancies, the Bench said the Centre appeared to be hell-bent on bringing the judiciary to a grinding halt.

You seem to be waiting for a system change and expecting us to capitulate. We wont let this happen, the Bench told the Centre. There was a time when judges had no courtrooms, but now courtrooms had no judges, it lamented.

Initially, it threatened to summon the Secretary responsible for processing the proposals, but changed its mind after the AG pleaded for posting the PILs for hearing after the Diwali break. The PILs will be taken up again on November 11.

The Bench, however, clarified it would be compelled to re-convene the Constitution Bench if the deadlock over the appointments persisted. If the government had reservation over any of the recommendations, it should return the names to the Collegium for reconsideration, instead of sitting over it, it said.

Any ego clash or confrontation would be detrimental to national interest, it clarified. Even as the MoP is stuck over the differences between the government and the Collegium over its provisions, Justice J Chelameswar has stopped attending the SC Collegium meetings demanding that its proceedings be recorded.
Kulwinder Sangha

Mohali, October 28

As many as 6,565 teachers were given appointment letters by the government at a function held at Modern AC Mandi near Phase XI here today.

Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal personally handed over a few letters to newly recruited teachers. As many as 4,560 teachers belonged to the master cadre while 2005 were ETT teachers.

The teachers and others had been waiting patiently since 10 am for the Deputy Chief Minister to arrive, but he reached the venue around 12.45 pm.

According to reports, the function proceeded in a rather disorganised way after the Deputy Chief Minister and the Education Minister left as teachers didnt form queues to take their appointment letters.

Addressing the gathering, Sukhbir said becoming a teacher was a big responsibility as the future of Punjab lay in the hands of the teaching community. He said the Punjab Government wanted to invest more in the education sector to make future strong.

Sukhbir said in the past nine years the government had provided 2.5 lakh jobs in various departments.

The Deputy Chief Minister said about 95 per cent of promises made to people by them had been fulfilled.

Power had been made surplus in the state and was now being supplied at rates lower than those prevalent in many other states.

An excellent road infrastructure had been provided apart from better sewerage and clean drinking water.

Earlier, Education Minister DS Cheema said the Deputy Chief Minister wanted to give Diwali gift to teachers, therefore the letters were given before the festival.

Cheema said 22,000 teachers had been recruited as the government had directed that not a single post should be left vacant.

During the past nine years the Education Department had recruited 84,000 teachers. The recruitments had been done on the basis of merit and the place of posting would also be determined accordingly, added Cheema.
A 'polythene awareness rath' has been flagged off with an aim to create awareness among people about the dangers of plastic and polythene. The Municipal Corporation of Gurgaon is distributing free cotton bags made by jail inmates.

The polythene awareness 'rath' provides cotton bags made by Bhondsi jail inmates.

By Ajay Kumar: The Municipal Corporation of Gurgaon (MCG) is making efforts to turn the township plastic-free. And to this end, it is distributing cotton bags to negate the impact of plastic bags.

The bags are being made by inmates of Bhondsi jail.

Over the last 15 days, about one lakh cotton bags have already been distributed among residents.

advertisement

On Friday, MCG commissioner TL Satya Prakash flagged off a 'polythene awareness rath' aiming to create awareness among people about the dangers of polythene.

COTTON BAGS MADE BY JAIL INMATES BEING DISTRIBUTED FREE OF COST

"The MCG in collaboration with the district jail is committed to provide cotton bags made by inmates. We have managed to distribute one lakh cotton bags among residents to make the city pollution free," Satyaprakash said.

The MCG has also sought help from women's self help groups to manufacture these cotton bags which the civic body will buy. The civic body has also joined hands with the Red Cross Society for the campaign.

"Polythene bags are common sources of soil contamination. They affect animals too. We are hopeful that distribution of cotton bags would make some difference and make the people aware," Satyaprakash said.

Red Cross district secretary Shyam Sundar said that the rath will visit every locality.

Cotton bags will be distributed free of cost till 10 pm every day.

Meanwhile, activists demanded that the Bandhwari waste treatment plant be restarted and capacity enhancement of three sewerage treatment plants is ensured.



--- ENDS ---
Anirudh Gupta

Ferozepur, October 28

Even as the state government is busy setting up memorials, the existing ones remain in a sorry state.

The move has not gone down well with the Congress party that alleged that notwithstanding empty coffers, the SAD was trying to play memorial card with an eye on the upcoming Assembly polls.

Instead of focusing on the upkeep of the existing ones, the government is on a memorial-expansion spree despite its poor fiscal condition which casts aspersion on its real intentions, said Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi, Congress MLA.

On the other hand, despite promises the government has failed to develop various historical sites in this border town, including National Martyrs Memorial, Hussainiwala, Anglo-Sikh War Memorial and Bhagat Singhs hideout, he added.

Earlier, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had announced to release Rs 13.50 crore for the development of the Hussainiwala memorial, which included the construction of an auditorium, installation of light and sound system besides provision of other amenities. However, the project is stuck in red tape, besides the desired funds are awaited.

Even the historic Anglo-Sikh War Museum constructed in memory of valiant Sikh soldiers, who died during the Anglo-Sikh Wars of 1845-46 continues to remain neglected in the absence of adequate manpower and resources. This memorial is located on the banks of twin canals on the NH-95, where the two Anglo-Sikh wars were fought in nearby villages of Sabraon, Mudki and Ferozeshah. Union Minister Maneka Gandhi during her visit to this border town a few months ago had expressed resentment over the poor upkeep of this memorial which was dedicated to the nation by her late husband Sanjay Gandhi in 1976.

The process to develop the secret hideout of Bhagat Singh and his revolutionary comrades situated in the city into a museum has still not gained momentum despite a public interest litigation filed by advocate HC Arora. The condition of other Anglo-Sikh war memorials in Mudki, Ferozeshah, Mishriwala and Sabraon also suffer from negligence. So many war memorials and museums are fighting a battle for survival, but the government is upbeat only about the new projects, said Parminder Singh Pinki, Congress legislator.
Varinder Singh

Tribune News Service

Jaitu (Bathinda), October 28

The Punjabi Suba celebrations held no meaning for the family of Seth Ram Nath, a well known freedom fighter and former Punjab minister who was the champion of the Punjabi Suba movement.

Nath was perhaps the lone Congress leader who had broken the party lines by supporting the Punjabi Suba movement of the Akalis in early 60s and who kept persuading the then Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, to go in for creation of a language-based state of Punjab where the Sikhs were in a majority.

He also acted as one of the two emissaries (the other being Sardar Harcharan Singh) of Sant Fateh Singh, the main architect of the Punjab Suba movement. It was through these two emissaries that Nehru had appealed Sant Fateh Singh to give up his fast unto death for carving out of the Punjabi Suba movement in 1961.

Interestingly, the role of the two emissaries and Nehru sending a letter to Fateh Singh was duly and regularly highlighted by The Tribune in its issues of January 5, 6 and 7, 1961.

What has pained us the most is that both Congress and the Akali Dal have forgotten the contribution of Seth Ram Nath towards the movement. It was he who was successful in persuading Nehru to create Punjabi Suba on linguistic basis at a time when almost every Congress leader was opposed to the idea, said Advocate Ashok Seth (64) and Avinash Goyal (60), two of three sons of late Seth Ram Nath. His third son Amar Kant Goyal was a labour commissioner based in Chandigarh.

The successive state governments, led by both Congress and Shiromani Akali Dal, almost did nothing to perpetuate the memory of Nath except for naming the sub-divisional civil hospital after him in 1988.

Nath had breathed his last on November 6, 1986. No memorial has been raised in his memory. We have no vested interests. But, why is this discrimination with an all-acceptable personality like Nath, we cant understand, rued Ashok Seth.

Intriguingly, though Nath enjoyed a close relationship with Fateh Singh, but no member of his family was invited to participate in the birth anniversary celebrations of Fateh Singh at his native Badiala village in the district on Thursday.
Amaninder Pal

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 28

Manmeet Alisher (29), who belonged to Alisher village of Sangrur district, was scheduled to return to India in December. He was planning to get married in January.

He was burnt to death while he was driving a bus in Brisbane (Australia) today.

Manmeet, who was a known face among Punjabi writers and cultural activists settled in Australia, also acted in two short films, A Remarkable Day and Helpless, which are based on experiences and problems being faced by Punjabi taxi drivers in Australia. Helpless was based on a story written by him.

Manmeets elder brother Amit Alisher, who is also national senior vice-president of the Youth Akali Dal, said Manmeet had recently informed the family that he would land in India on December 15.

We were planning his marriage in January. We were very happy. But he left us. All our wishes vanished in one jolt, Amit said.

Amit, however, stopped short of terming the tragedy as an incident of hate crime or racial discrimination.

How can we comment on the reasons that have led to my brothers death? Family members are leaving for Australia tomorrow. We can comment only after reaching there, he added.

Son of retired teacher Ram Saroop and block samiti member Krishna Devi, Manmeet was youngest of his four siblings. He was granted Australian citizenship a year ago and he was selected for the job of bus driver around six months ago.

The family said he had moved to Australia in 2009 after completing BSc degree from Khalsa College, Patiala, in 2007. He would dominate cultural events during inter-college youth festivals.

Meanwhile, the Punjabi community in Brisbane expressed shock over the death of Manmeet.

Australia-based Punjabi poet Sarabjit Sohi, who has included Manmeets poetry in Samundroon Paar de Deeve, anthology of poems written by Punjabi writers settled in Australia, said like his college days, Manmeet was equally active both in organising and performing at cultural events organised by the Punjabi community in Brisbane.

He was described as a soft spoken, courteous and genuine man.
Bollywood has been successful in beautifully capturing the festive spirit of Diwali, not just on screen but off screen too. In real life too our B-town actors make special plans to celebrate the auspicious occasion.

We got in touch with Bollywood celebrities and checked on how would they be celebrating Diwali this year. Heres a look at the Diwali plans of our Bollywood stars...

Across India

Ranbir Kapoor & Anushka Sharma: They are busy promoting Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. They would be on tour, visiting theatres across various cities, including Chandigarh, Delhi, Ahmedabad and return to Mumbai celebrating Diwali with fans in the local flavour of these particular cities.

Working period

Arjun Kapoor & Shraddha Kapoor: They are busy shooting the Mumbai schedule of Half Girlfriend.

Prep time

Ranveer Singh: He is busy this Diwali prepping for Padmavati for which shoot will start from November 1.

Short break

Deepika Padukone: She is back to Bangalore with family for Diwali. The actress wants to spend quality time with family before she joins Padmavati shoot.

Wishes from Singapore

Varun Dhawan: He is in Singapore shooting for Badrinath Ki Dulhania. He shared his love and wished in a video, all the way from Singapore.

Double the fun

Navneet Kaur Dhillon: This year Diwali will be different for me. It is my first cousins wedding right after Diwali. So, the festival is going to be double fun. A lot of music, dancing, celebrations, prayers, full family affair.

Religious fervour

Tamannaah Bhatia: This Diwali I am going to spend time with my family. Like every year we will go to Mahalakshmi temple in the night after all the puja is done and seek blessings of goddess Mahalaxmi.

Rangoli & food

This year it will be just me and my sister in Mumbai. I have non-stop work, so couldnt fly down to Delhi. Me and Shagun will try explore our artistic side by making a rangoli and decorating the house with diyas. And then, of course, have some good food together or with friends in the city.

So much to do

Purab Kohli: Diwali is always very special for me. I love everything about it though Ive stopped bursting firecrackers. But diyas, the food, the parties and playing cards, I totally love. Also, getting to spend time with the family and meeting friends that you dont see so often in your busy life. Im looking forward to do all these things this Diwali. Especially since Ive been working a lot through this year and hardly seen family and friends...

No crackers

Rajneesh Duggal: This Diwali, in fact, every Diwali, I make sure that I am with my family and close friends ... We light diyas and candles and then do Mahalakshmi puja. Then eat lots of goodies and eventually play cards. Its been three years that I havent burst crackers and I intend not too.

Happy Diwali folks!

Vivek Oberoi: I wish this Diwali, may your lives be filled with love, light and happiness. Wishing you all and your families a very happy and prosperous year ahead!

Puja & paiyasam

Adah Sharma: I will be doing Lakshmi puja at home this year and then go out with friends for dinner. I will also attempt doing rangoli which I usually am terrible at. I will also consume a lot of coconut paiyasam.

Home coming

Yami Gautam is heading to her hometown Chandigarh to celebrate the festival with her parents and sisters.

Sanjay Dutt

This Diwali is Sanjay Dutts first Diwali post release from Jail. The actor and his family have extensive Diwali plans which begin Dhanteras onwards. Sanjay along with wife Manyata, twins Sharaan and Iqra will perform a puja for Dhanteras at their residence, the rituals will be attended by his sisters Priya and Namrata Dutt. Post which there will be a special family dinner hosted by Sanjay and Manyata. The duo is also gearing up for Diwali day and have been making extensive arrangements for the Lakshmi puja at home amidst family. The arrangements for the puja are being personally looked into by Sanjay himself. Sanjay and Manyata will also be attending Amitabh Bachchans Diwali bash, later in the night.

Tiger Shroff

Tiger, who is currently shooting for Munna Michael has made sure to be close to his family this festive season. The actor will take part in all Diwali rituals and Lakshmi puja with parents and sister Krishna.

With hubby dearest

Radhika plans to have a quiet Diwali. The actress is flying to London to be with her husband and celebrate the festival of lights privately.

Sound advice

Alia Bhatt: The diva has a strong message for all. She says, When you light these noisy crackers, you are taking away a basic right of a living being that does not want to hear these sounds

Private celebrations

Hrithik Roshan: He will be taking time off to celebrate Diwali with his kids Hrehaan and Hredaan. The actor is known to be a doting dad and makes the most of his free time by spending it with his two bundle of joys.

Delhi bound

Kriti Sanon: The actress who is currently in Lucknow shooting for her upcoming film Bareilly ki Barfi is planning to travel to the capital city to celebrate Diwali with friends and family. She is looking forward to it.

On the cards

Freddy Daruwala: For him Diwali is either a card party or just chilling together and having a feast. He will celebrate this festival of togetherness, positivity and prosperity with friends and family.

All planned

Tara Sharma: Spending time with our family eating yummy festive food, dressing our kids up in Indian clothes and a fun evening with family and friends and giving back either by donating or having a party for less privileged ...Family affair

Richa Chadha: For me Diwali means a time to spend with my family and friends. Memories of Diwali revolve around the time spent with family with all my cousins. And an opportunity to meet extended family and exchange gifts.

Away from family

Vir Das: He connected with us from London. The stand-up comedian-turned-actor said, I will be here in the UK for my show. My family is in India and I would be celebrating Diwali this year here in the UK, away from family.

On a social note

Anushka Ranjan: This year Ill be at home for Diwali. The day starts with me visiting St. Catherines Orphanage in Bandra. Ill be celebrating an eco-friendly Diwali with 90 kids there; followed with family brunch as its my dads birthday on the same day. Then in the afternoon Ill do the rangoli as I do every year. And evening theres puja at my place.
Shalu Verma

Until a decade back, breast cancer was largely considered to be a disease of the developed world. Not anymore. Not only is incidence of breast cancer rising in India, doctors are also reporting the manifestation of more aggressive cancers in relatively younger women today.

Breast cancer is, today, the leading cause of cancer related deaths in women. According to estimates of the World Health Organization, roughly 1,44,937 women in India were detected with breast cancer in 2012 and 70,218 died of it, making it one death for every two new diagnoses. With the incidence of the disease rising by more than 20 per cent since 2008, India is expected to have a whopping 2,00,000 new cases of breast cancer per year by 2030.

The rise in incidence can partly be attributed to an increase in recorded numbers due to more women being diagnosed. At the same time, a number of lifestyle factors such as increasing urbanisation, adoption of western lifestyles, rise in obesity, sedentary ways of living and changing reproductive behavior, like delayed childbirths, are also believed to be propelling the incidence.

It is important to note here that breast cancer can also strike men. More on it later.

Does early detection matter?

Do you know that in North America, Sweden and Japan, survival rates of breast cancer patients are as high as 80 per cent? In western countries, regular screening programs have succeeded in early identification and treatment of a large number of women. However, absence of a community-based screening program in India puts the onus on individuals. No wonder, survival rates here are among the lowest in the world.

More than 60 per cent of breast cancers in India are diagnosed in stage III or stage IV. By this time, it is too late to cure the patient or significantly prolong her life. Early detection not only presents a good chance of cure and long term survival, but also allows for breast conservation.

Breast cancer can be detected early only if a combination of self and clinical breast examination coupled with mammography is conducted regularly by women. It is extremely important for women to keep a close track of any changes occurring in their bodies. Any lump in the breast or underarm area, any unusual discharge from the nipple, any change in the shape or size of the breast should be taken note of and immediately reported to a doctor for further examination.

Modifiable risk factors

You would be surprised to know that obesity can be directly linked to increased risk of 13 types of cancers. Breast cancer is one of them. Apart from excessive weight, there are other modifiable and preventable risk factors such as physical inactivity, smoking, unhealthy eating habits and reproductive behaviours like late pregnancy and reduced duration of breast feeding. In fact, a study cited by WHO concluded that, 21 per cent of all breast cancer deaths worldwide were attributable to alcohol use, overweight and obesity, and physical inactivity.

While you cannot eliminate the risk of breast cancer, reducing it is certainly in your hands. Having the right Body Mass Index, indulging in 30 minutes of exercise daily, avoiding smoking and alcohol and trying not to delay childbirth are active ways of curtailing your risk.

Can genetic testing help?

While you can modify some risk factors of breast cancer, the most significant risk factor lies in your genes. In normal cells, the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes help prevent cancer by making proteins that keep the cells from growing abnormally. However, in case there is a genetic mutation in these genes, the risk of breast and ovarian cancers is high. To better illustrate this point: In people with normal genes, the risk of breast cancer is 12 per cent. The same risk is as high as 50-80 per cent in a person with BRCA1 gene mutation and 40-70 per cent in a person with BRCA2 gene mutation. The BRCA 1/2 mutations run in families. There is a 50 per cent chance that a child born to a parent who carries a mutation in one of these genes shall inherit the mutation.

While the genetic test to determine gene mutation cannot predict if or when a woman will develop breast cancer, it can certainly determine if she is at risk because of faulty gene(s). If the test puts you in the latter category, you can be better prepared and adopt screening strategies to ensure early diagnosis and good prognosis. You can also make radical informed choices. Angelina Jolie, for example, underwent preventive mastectomy (surgical removal of breast) after discovering in a genetic test that she had mutated BRCA1/BRCA2 genes.

Breast cancer might be a deadly disease but it is not undefeatable. By adopting a healthy lifestyle and staying alert to your bodys needs, you can fight off the disease.

Not just a womans disease

Breast cancer should not be mistaken as just a womans disease. Men too can develop breast cancer, though it is rarer in men. Breast cancer manifests in men in the same way as it does in women, in the form of a lump or a discharge from the nipple. Lack of awareness about their susceptibility makes many affected men ignore the signs of the disease. It is as much important for men as women to stay alert to abrupt changes in bodies and report to a doctor immediately.

The risk factors for men include a strong family history and high levels of estrogen hormone, which stimulates breast cell growth. Men can have high estrogen levels if they have consumed hormonal medicines or have a high alcohol intake, which impedes livers ability to regulate estrogen levels in the blood. Having excessive weight can also increase estrogen production in the body.

We recommend

Perform regular self-examination every month after 25 years of age

Undergo annual clinical breast examination after the age of 35

Undergo annual mammography screening after the age of 40

Those with a family history of breast cancer must get their genetic testing done for BRCA1/BRCA2 gene mutations

The writer is a molecular scientist with Core Diagnostics, New Delhi
BD Kasniyal

Pithoragarh, October 28

A wreath was laid at the Kumaon war memorial at Panchashul Brigade here today to celebrate the 70th Infantry Day and paying respect to the brave soldiers who had made the supreme sacrifice for the sake of the country on this day in 1947 while fighting Pakistani Razakars in Srinagar.

The celebration took place at the Kumaon war memorial here. Panchashul Commander Brig Rakesh Manocha laid the wreath on the memorial and remembered the sacrifices made by the soldiers of the Infantry in various wars.

Infantry Day is celebrated on October 27 in remembrance of the 1st Sikh Regiment that landed at the Srinagar airport to expel Pakistani Razakars from Kashmir. The brave Sikhs expelled the Razakars and saved the country from their attack, said Navin Rajan, Commander of 28th Punjab Regiment. Infantry officers, veteran Army officers and personnel were present.

India, Nepal police to jointly check human trafficking

India and Nepal will chalk out a special strategy to stop human trafficking, besides taking measures to jointly check smuggling of narcotics and counterfeit currency notes across the border. This was agreed upon at a meeting of police officers from both countries at the Banbasa border in Champawat district on Friday.

Kumaon DIG Ajay Rautela and his counterpart from Nepal DIG Vijay Raj Bhatt attended the meeting.

Rautela said the police officers from both countries agreed to cooperate in checking smuggling across the border by exchanging intelligence and information. The police officers from both countries have agreed that they will help each other in nabbing absconding criminals in the other country and stopping humiliation of Nepalese at the hands of the Indian authorities on the pretext of security and customs checking at border posts, he added.

The Nepalese police officers sought help from their Indian counterparts in checking frequent incidents of looting of Nepalese in the Tanakpur and Banbasa region of India. We have also sought Indias help in opening canal gates at the Banbasa border at the time of any medical emergency with Nepalese when they want to go to India for immediate treatment and their security while they are working in interior villages in Kumaon, said Bhatt.
Bhopal, October 28

A 77-year-old former soldier from China, who entered India during the 1962 Sino-India war after allegedly losing his way and later settled in Madhya Pradesh, is longing to go back to his native land and reunite with his siblings.

Septuagenarian Wang Qi, who lives with his wife and children in Tirodi area of naxal-affected Balaghat district, has been harbouring a desire to see his relatives since the last five decades but his wish hasnt been fulfilled for want of a permit from the Indian government and other procedural roadblocks.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

Wang who has grown frail over the years might now face more hardships in visiting his homeland given the prevailing tension in Indo-China relations but he is still hopeful.

His younger son Vishnu Wang (35) told PTI that his father had joined the Chinese army in 1960 and he entered India from the eastern frontiers after losing his way in pitch darkness one night.

He landed in Assam where he was caught by Indian Red Cross Society and handed over to Indian Army on January 1, 1963.

My father spent six years in different prisons in Assam, Ajmer and Delhi. The Punjab and Haryana High Court finally released him in March 1969, he said.

The Indian government had promised to the court that it would rehabilitate my father. He was taken to Delhi, Bhopal, Jabalpur and then finally handed over to Balaghat police, he said.

After coming to Balaghat, Wang, in order to eke out a living, started working as a watchman with a mill where his colleagues started calling him by name Raj Bahadur apparently due to his Nepali features, Vishnu said.

But little did he know that the enemy nation against whom he had waged a war would become his home, where he would rear a family. Qi married his wife Sushila in 1975 but his desire to live a comfortable life was short-lived.

Soon after my father married my mother, the Indian government stopped his monthly pension of Rs 100, Vishnu, who works with a small business unit as an accountant said.

My father faced a lot of hardships, wanting to go to China. He tried very hard and even entered into correspondence with the then prime ministers but in vain, he said.

According to Vishnu, Wang also moved a plea in Madhya Pradesh High Court in 2009 for going to China but couldn't succeed.

"His life has been difficult as he couldn't get Indian citizenship because of his Chinese origin. Hence, he couldn't buy land or avail other facilities," he said.

Home sick Wang's mother died in 2006 but he could not be with his dear ones in the time of grief, Vishnu added.

Three years later he met his nephew Yun Chun, who had come to India as a tourist in New Delhi and narrated his ordeal to him.

After returning home, Chun got in contact with Chinese politicians and authorities to bring his uncle home. Finally, he met then Chinese Foreign Minister who helped Wang to get a Chinese passport in March 2013.

He said his father wants permission from the Indian government to go to China to see his four brothers and two sisters before he dies but is not getting any help.

"My father talks to them over phone often in his native language," he said.

Wang will return to India after meeting them, he added.

Vishnu lost his elder brother Shyam for lack of money for his treatment in 2007. He had suffered from epilepsy. He has two sisters.

Meanwhile, Balaghat Inspector General of Police G Janardhan said he was aware of Wang's situation.

Another police officer said as the matter relates to External Affairs Ministry and the Chinese Embassy, they couldnt help him.

However, BSP leader and former MLA of Lanji area, Balaghat, Kishore Samrite said he would seek an appointment with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and help Wang get permission to travel to China.  PTI
Washington, October 28

The FBI today said it has reopened investigations into Hillary Clinton's use of private email server when she was Secretary of State due to the likelihood of new information coming to light, immediately drawing praise from the White House frontrunner's Republican rival Donald Trump.

FBI Director James Comey, in a communication to the Congressional leadership, said the FBI has learned of new "emails that appear to be pertinent" to their investigation.

"In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to this investigation," Comey wrote.

"I am writing to inform you that the investigative team briefed me on this yesterday and I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation," Comey said.

Clinton has previously apologised for using a private email server as Secretary of State between 2009 and 2013 during the first term of President Barack Obama. Her act was criticised as tantamount to compromising national security.

The FBI announcement today was an unexpected development just ahead of the November 8 US presidential election in the race to which several opinion polls have indicated Clinton was ahead of Trump and her lead was moving northwards decisively.

But the FBI's decision to reopen the investigation was immediately latched on to by her rival Trump, who immediately welcomed the announcement as a big day.  PTI
Quetta, October 28

Pakistani security forces raided a compound in the countrys troubled southwest and killed four militants linked to an attack on a police academy earlier in the week, officials said on Friday.

The raid in Quetta, the capital of strife-riven Balochistan province, was carried out late yesterday following an intelligence tip-off about the presence of fighters from the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) militant group.

A team of anti-terrorist force (ATF) raided the compound and killed four militants after an exchange of gunfire, a senior local police official Abdullah Afridi told AFP.

Speaking off the record, a police official said the militants belonged to the LeJ  a faction of which claimed it had worked with the Islamic State group to carry out the Monday night raid that killed 61 people, the deadliest assault on a security installation in Pakistans history.

IS had previously also claimed the raid and released photos of the fighters involved, one of whom bore a strong resemblance to a attacker who was killed by security forces in the assault.

The extent of any material support to local groups from IS remains unclear, but affiliation with the notoriously brutal outfit brings the promise of a far higher profile.

The Balochistan government has also formed a joint investigation team (JIT) comprising officials from the army, police and intelligence agencies to probe Mondays attack.

Pakistan has been battling a homegrown Islamist insurgency since shortly after the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, though overall levels of violence have dropped following a series of militatry offensives in the countrys western tribal regions.

Monday nights raid though served as a grim reminder that militant groups are still able to carry out major assaults from time to time.

The emergence of IS in Pakistan is seen as a major blow to the countrys long-running efforts to quell the insurgency, and comes as the groups key rival Al Qaeda is losing strength in what was once its home ground.  AFP
Kidapawan, October 28

A Philippine mayor accused of drug trafficking was killed along with nine bodyguards in a shootout with police today, authorities said, hours after President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to intensify his crackdown on crime.

Samsudin Dimaukom, the mayor of the southern town of Saudi Ampatuan, was one of more than 150 local government officials, judges and police identified by Duterte earlier this year as being involved in the illegal drug trade.

The deadly crime war has claimed more than 3,800 lives and drawn criticism from the United States, the United Nations and international rights groups who have accused police of summarily executing suspects.

Police spokesman Superintendent Romeo Galgo said that Dimaukom and his security personnel opened fire after anti-narcotics police stopped their vehicles at a checkpoint on suspicion they were transporting illegal drugs. Officers returned fire, killing the men in the town of Makilala, about 950 kilometres south of the capital Manila.

"Suspects (were) heavily armed and fired upon the law enforcers, which prompted them to fire back," Galgo said.

Duterte, who swept to power in May elections on a pledge to eradicate drugs, has described his critics as "fools" and said he is not breaking any domestic laws by threatening to kill criminals. After returning from a trip to Japan late Thursday, he threatened to step up police killings of drug suspects.  AFP
By PTI: Hyderabad, Oct 27 (PTI) Hundreds of home guards today held a dharna at Indira Park here and later marched towards the Secretariat demanding regularisation of their jobs and fulfilment of other demands.

The home guards have been demanding that their jobs be regularised, salaries be increased and they be paid on par with police constables.

"We are demanding job security first," a home guard, who was on dharna said. Some of the protesting home guards claimed that Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao had assured of regularising their job and requested him to look into the matter.

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Earlier, a delegation of home guards met Telangana Chief Secretary Rajiv Sharma.

After the dharna, they marched towards the Secretariat.

However, police foiled their attempt to lay siege to the Secretariat, prompting the protesters to hold a sit-in in front of the Secretariat. PTI VVK DK NSD SDM

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J.B. Hunt is one of several carriers petitioning the FMCSA to allow hair-testing results in lieu of urinalysis to comply with pre-employment drug testing regulations for truck drivers. Photo: Drivewyze

Rather than wait for a rulemaking, several major motor carriers have petitioned the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration for exemptions that would allow them to use hair-testing in lieu of urinalysis to comply with pre-employment drug testing regulations for truck drivers.

The petitioners are Maverick Transportation, Knight Transportation, J.B. Hunt Transport Services and Dupre Logistics, all members of the Alliance for Driver Safety & Security (aka the Trucking Alliance), along with two unaffiliated companies. While all of these businesses use hair-testing protocols, the Trucking Alliance estimates that fewer than 30 U.S. transportation/logistics firms employ hair testing for pre-employment drug testing.

The petitioners contend that if FMCSA grants exemptions to these companies, drug users could be more readily identified because these transport/logistics companies could then share failed hair-test results with other firms when they inquire about former drivers and applicants. Currently, federal regulations do not allow transportation companies to share these results.

While the FAST Act highway bill passed last year includes a pathway to permitting hair-testing, it is a winding and potentially long one. The provision authorizes hair-testing as an acceptable alternative to urinalysis in pre-employment screening for use of controlled substances and when conducting random testing for use of controlled substances if the operator was subject to hair-testing during pre-employment testing.

However, as the conference committee that signed off on the FAST Act stated at the time, FMCSA has informed the conferees and the conferees agree that nothing in section 5402 authorizes the use of hair testing as an alternative to urine tests until the Department of Health and Human Services establishes federal standards for hair testing.

That hairbrush is in the hands of HHS. In its press release on the petition, the Trucking Alliance argues that HHS is expected to request more time to develop its guidelines and after that further steps will require the Department of Transportation and FMCSA to announce notices and rulemakings before a final rule enabling hair-testing as an alternative to urine testing is issued, a process that could take years.

Rather than wait for a rule, the petitioners want exemptions to enable to share the results of the hair-testing they have already chosen to conduct in addition to the required urinalysis. This petition clearly shows the loophole in FMCSAs desire to keep drug users out of trucks, Lane Kidd, managing director of the Trucking Alliance, told HDT.

The agency already has its drug test protocols in place, he continued. All it must do is allow the results of hair-testing to be shared with other companies and to submit those results into the [upcoming drug/alcohol] clearinghouse. Otherwise, the worst drug abusers will be able to skirt the system. The agency has indicated that it will have the clearinghouse created by years end. So, that would also be an opportune time to do it and also give Administrator Darling a true mark for improving highway safety.

Per the Trucking Alliance, although the hair tests cost the petitioners almost twice as much, about $75.00 per test vs. $35.00 for a urine exam, they are willing to spend more because hair exams have proven more effective at identifying lifestyle drug users. The petitioners also object to being forced to also fund the redundant and less effective urine testing process along with [hair tests].

Maverick has had 108 people apply for truck driver positions who cleared the mandatory urine exam but failed our hair test, said Steve Williams, president of the Trucking Alliance and Maverick Transportation Chairman and CEO. We denied them employment, but they likely found work at other trucking companies, because we cant share those positive hair test results with those businesses.

We have a responsibility to the general public that our industrys drivers are drug- and alcohol-free, he added. But this loophole enables drug users to skirt the system.

J.B. Hunt Transport said it has voluntarily conducted hair exams on CDL applicants for over 10 years and in that time, more than 4,700 applicants who passed the required urinalysis were identified as lifestyle drug users by analysis of their hair samples.

There is no place for illegal drug use in the transportation industry, said Greer Woodruff, J.B. Hunts senior vice president-- Safety and Security. Hair tests substantially reduce the chance that lifestyle drug users are behind the wheel endangering the public.

Asked to comment on the petitions merits, Bill Sullivan, executive vice president of advocacy for the American Trucking Associations, told HDT that ATA was pleased to help several trucking companies secure language in the FAST Act that permits hair-testing as an alternative to urinalysis, but unfortunately did not permit these types of exemptions.

These companies are pioneers of hair testing and are to be commended for their leadership, he continued. ATA will continue to work with DOT and the Department of Health and Human Services to implement the requirements put forth in the FAST Act in an expeditious and scientifically sound fashion and we will encourage adoption of this important safety policy as quickly as possible.

David Heller, vice president of government affairs for the Truckload Carriers Association, also cheered the endeavor. I applaud their efforts as there does need to be some urgency applied [to hair-testing] for a regulatory change. Its a no-brainersuch a program would help the industry as a whole. This is a case of technology outpacing the regulatory process.

Heller said that TCA would prefer to see an industry-wide rule on hair-testing, rather than company-by-company exemptions, as that would give all carriers the option to participate. He did acknowledge that such a rulemaking would take a long time especially because HHS must act on it first.

However, he stressed that any such rule should make hair-testing an optional means of complying with drug-testing requirements for driver applicants. We do want to make sure it would become an and/or option as hair-testing is more expensive [than urinalysis alone], Heller explained.
The year before its acquisition by Con-way, CFI chairman and CEO Glenn Brown posed with the companys original Kenworth T600 (right) and a 2006 version, celebrating the "Anteater's" 20th anniversary. Photo courtesy Kenworth

Longtime employees of TransForces new acquisition in Joplin, Mo., are proudly digging out their old CFI shirts, as the company founded in 1951 as Contract Freighters Inc. goes back to its roots and its name under its new ownership.

Late Thursday, the Canadian-based trucking giant TransForce announced it had bought the former Con-way Truckload business from XPO Logistics for $558 million. Its the third acquisition for CFI in the past decade. In 2007, CFI was purchased by Con-way and became Con-way Truckload. A little over a year ago, XPO bought Con-way. It looked into selling off the truckload operation, which didnt fit well into its global logistics business, but decided earlier this year after looking at several offers that it would keep it.

Then TransForce, as part of its strategy to expand further into the U.S., approached XPO about an acquisition.

Katlin Owens, communications coordinator senior, told HDT that CFI will operate as a stand-alone company, and that longtime employees are thrilled.

We have a lot of CFI employees who have been here a long time; we have an extremely long tenure for our employees, she said. The building is full of people who have brought out their CFI shirts from before 2007 when we were bought by Con-way.

Owens notes that through both the Con-way and XPO acquisition, the Joplin-based operations maintained their own IT, communication, HR departments, etc. Theyre basically going to wind us up and let us go, she says. Theres going to be a bit of untangling, but we are in a fantastic position as far as our employee base. Weve got the skills and experience to be successful.

Publicly traded, TransForce operates across Canada and the United States through its various subsidiaries. With approximately $3 billion in revenue in truckload, package and courier, LTL, and logistics, TransForce has grown rapidly through a number of acquisitions. Truckload is now its largest segment, representing nearly 50% of its total revenue. CFI will be its largest truckload company in the U.S.

In a letter to customers, CFI President Tim Staroba said, TransForces acquisition strategy of acquiring standalone entities that operate independently has proven to be extremely successful and we are honored to be part of the TransForce group of companies going forward.

A standing-room-only crowd of CFI employees at the Joplin, Mo., headquarters learn about the transition. Photo: CFI

While being part of a global company such as XPO gave CFI employees a new global perspective, an appreciation for the world of publicly traded companies and for business measures such as EBITDA, Owens noted that CFI employees are looking forward to being able to focus more on the communities where it is located, both in its headquarters city of Joplin, as well as at terminals in Michigan, Arkansas, Texas and Mexico. (CFI has a long-established cross-border operation with Mexico and that will continue.)

Charity is a huge part of who we are, Owens said. Employees just raised nearly $40,000 to distribute to its local communities to make the holidays brighter for children and elderly in need, but some programs had been put on hold after the XPO acquisition.

We have charitable programs we have put on for 20 years that were put on hiatus when XPO came. Were going to be able to return to being more involved.

Will CFI go full retro and bring back the old font for the logo? Too early to say, Owens said -- after all, they've only known about this for less than a day.
Photo: XPO

XPO Logistics Inc. (NYSE: XPO) announced Thursday that it has sold its truckload business to Canada's growing trucking concern TransForce Inc. (TSX: TFI) for approximately $558 million in cash.

After XPO bought Con-way Inc. a year ago, Con-way Truckload's operations appeared to many observers to be an odd fit for XPO, which bills itself as the second largest freight brokerage provider in the world.

In February, the Wall Street Journal reported that after evaluating and rejecting bids from three trucking companies, XPO would instead hold onto the unit. "I think we can improve it by integrating it and bringing it lots of new customers from our other service lines, CEO Bradley Jacobs told a WSJ reporter.

Then TransForce approached XPO about a deal, according to the Wall Street Journal in an article Thursday.

The company said it will use the proceeds from the transaction to pay down debt. It has some $5 billion of outstanding debt after making more than a dozen acquisitions since 2011, including French logistics firm Norbert Dentressangle.

The divested truckload operation encompasses approximately 3,000 tractors, 7,500 trailers and 29 locations.

TransForce is getting the 19th largest asset-based truckload carrier in the U.S., a highly experienced workforce, and a presence in the cross-border Mexico freight corridor," Jacobs said. "We divested these assets to concentrate on growing our value to customers in the areas where were leaders in the industry: contract logistics, truck brokerage, less-than-truckload, last mile, intermodal, drayage, expedite and managed transportation.

TransForce said in its announcement that the acquisition, being made by a wholly owned subsidiary, "represents an important expansion of TransForce's truckload and logistics services across North America,"

Canadian publication The Globe and Mail noted that "TransForce has long searched for an acquisition that would accelerate its trucking presence in the United States to complement its large scale in Canada." TransForce offers package and courier, less than truckload, truckload, and logistics services.

TransForce said the acquired business is expected to generate annual revenue of approximately $530 million and EBITDA of approximately $115 million in 2016.

The divested operations, which have been reported as part of XPOs Transportation segment, were expected to generate approximately $10 million of operating income for XPO for the remaining two months of 2016, and depreciation and amortization of approximately $10 million.

XPO noted that it will continue to offer full truckload services to customers in North America through its brokerage network.
Mayor Dewey Bartletts fourth  but not necessarily final  summit of area leaders on Friday highlighted Oklahomas infamously high incarceration rate of women.

A year ago, Bartlett promised to convene summits of local and state leaders to focus on Tulsas most glaring public safety problems. Previous gatherings focused on spousal abuse, prescription-drug abuse and alcohol abuse.

Fridays summit looked at Oklahomas decades-long standing as No. 1 in the country for female incarceration. Since 2011, with the exception of one year, Tulsa Countys rate of incarcerated women has declined.

Much of the meetings substance derived from the Mayors Commission on the Status of Women report on female incarceration, which identified the local and state gaps in programming to help women leave or avoid imprisonment.

Kimberly Cummings, who was arrested in 2009 and spent 40 days in the Tulsa Jail, said she is in recovery from addiction and childhood trauma, which led to her felony-drug conviction.

Cummings shared her story Friday, including her success through a rehabilitation program for women.

Cummings said that, in many ways, female incarceration statewide is getting worse  not better  in terms of overpopulation.

We are in a worse state than before, she said. It has a devastating impact.

Cummings said the cost of housing inmates is just one way to calculate the cost of jailing women. Other issues include the complete lack of taxes women in prison will pay, as well as an immeasurable toll on families.

About 90 percent of the women we incarcerate have children, Cummings said. That devastation, which you cant put a price tag on, is exponential.

Bartlett said Tulsa needs to set an example for the rest of the state and take action on reducing the number of women in jail.

If we can identify the problem, we can come up with good solutions, he said.

Bartlett said the issue isnt just criminal justice reform but a social issue to improve the community.

When the mother is taken away  ripped away  from her family, its hard for the family to regenerate itself, he said.

Asked if Fridays summit was the last, Bartlett said he has been proud of the work his administration has done to highlight important public safety issues, and he hopes it continues with Mayor-elect G.T. Bynum, who takes office Dec. 5.

As a former mayor, I could call for a summit, Bartlett said. And I guarantee you we could get a good crowd, because we are focusing on the societal issues that really matter in our city.
BIXBY  Having piloted about every kind of aircraft imaginable at one time or another, Red Stevenson enjoyed a little change of pace.

And Breezy offered him just that.

You dont need instruments and you cant get lost. You just fly along the interstates and look for the exit signs, Stevenson told the Tulsa World once, describing what it was like to be at the controls of his 1912 Curtiss-Wright Pusher airplane.

A throwback to aviations earliest days, Breezy, as hed christened the open-air flying machine, cruised along at about the height of a housetop.

You can talk to people (on the ground) as you fly, Stevenson added.

For Stevenson, that was a big part of the fun with Breezy. After all, there was nothing the high-flying raconteur liked better than a chance to shoot the breeze.

A former pilot and aircraft dealer whose adventurous life and the stories it spawned elevated him to almost-mythical status in his hometown of Bixby, Harold D. Red Stevenson died Sunday. He was 87.

A celebration of life is set for 2-4 p.m. Saturday at Reds Roost, 205 N. Armstrong St. in Bixby. Leonard & Marker Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Stevensons son, Cash Stevenson, knows how hard it could be to believe his fathers stories.

Some were so outlandish, he said. But they all were true.

Its just that Dads life was bigger than life. He lived more in his life than 99 percent of people do.

That life started out without much promise. Born in southern Oklahoma, Stevenson spent his first few years in an orphans home after his family was split up during the Great Depression.

Eventually, he was adopted and moved to Bixby.

But it wasnt until age 16, when he ran away and joined the Army Air Corps, that his fortunes would take a dramatic turn. For the rest of his life, he would credit the military with having set him on the right path.

After 10 years of service, including World War II in the Pacific, Stevenson went on to a number of careers. From cross-country truck driver, he would later operate a wrecker service and a chain of tire stores. Eventually, he founded Red S Aircraft, and would become one of the countrys top sellers of small aircraft.

However, for Stevenson, it was as a dealer in the odd and unusual that Tulsa-area people would best remember him. A far-roving traveler and frequenter of auctions, he came home with one curiosity after another over the years, and at different times owned everything from Elvis Presleys Cadillac to a hot air balloon. Most memorable among his transactions, he once brought back to Bixby 31 red cabooses hed bought from the defunct Rock Island Railroad.

With such items and his flair for showmanship, Stevensons own auctions and sales became major public events, earning area news coverage.

What Stevenson didnt sell usually found a home at Reds Roost, as his longtime residence and office in downtown Bixby was known. Something of a local landmark, its equal parts museum and menagerie, with perhaps its strangest conversation piece being the custom-made pine coffin that doubled as Stevensons work desk.

You should see peoples faces when I come up out of that thing and say, Please come in,  Stevenson joked once with the Tulsa World.

An avid storyteller and writer, Stevenson had no shortage of material from his own life, which he summed up once in a self-published autobiography, Up Up and Away, or My Life and How I Flew It.

Among the stories he enjoyed relating was one about his 1950 trip to the North Pole. Just 21 at the time, he earned a nod and a plaque from National Geographic for being the youngest person to set foot at the Pole.

Fond of expressing himself in words, Stevenson sought out other forums as well. Possibly topping them all was his Red Says billboard series, which popped up along local roadsides in the 1980s bearing samples of his wit and wisdom.

Throughout Stevensons life, flying remained a passion. He owned and flew thousands of planes over the years, including some 400 war aircraft.

Stevenson's son still remembers what became a Saturday morning ritual  his dad trying out his latest purchase.

"I can still see him," Cash Stevenson said, "taxiing out on the runway in some exotic aircraft from around the world."

He continued to fly up until recently, as long as his health allowed.

More than even flying, though, Stevenson loved the people in his life, his son said.

Chief among them was his wife. Before she died last year, Betty Margaret Stevenson had been the devoted and able companion in her husbands adventures for 64 years. Stevenson talked about dealing with losing her in a World story earlier this year.

Stevenson also loved his community and was one of its biggest boosters. A recent sign on his office door proclaimed him to be the "luckiest man" for being from Bixby.

But then, Stevenson had always seemed to have a little luck going for him.

Of the diverse experiences that came his way, he told the World once, "Most people live their lives one time. I've relived my own life hundreds of times."

Stevensons survivors include a daughter, Debbie Stevenson; two sons, Cash Stevenson and Stacy Stevenson; and five grandchildren.
By PTI: Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 28 (PTI) With a tussle continuing between Vigilance Director Jacob Thomas and top IAS officials in Kerala, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan today expressed confidence in Thomas and said "certain forces were working to oust the director from the post."

However, Vijayan said the petition of Additional Chief Secretary (Finance) K M Abraham against Thomas for conducting a search in his house in connection with a case was of "serious nature" and it would be examined.

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He made the statement in the Assembly while replying to a submission of opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala that the administration had come to a standstill in the state due to the fight between top bureaucrats.

Vijayans remarks assumes significance as it came in the backdrop of the search conducted this morning by the Vigilance at the residence and office of another top officer Tom Jose, Principal Secretary (Labour) in an alleged disproportionate assets case.

The chief minister said there was no difference of opinion about the capability of Abraham and "that is why he is still continuing as Finance Secretary".

On the controversial inspection conducted at the house of Abraham, Vijayan said, "What happened here was the examination of allegations in a complaint."

However, he said the government would also examine whether all procedures were followed while conducting such an examination at the house of a senior official.

"In this regard, already an explanation has been sought from the official concerned with the inspection. Some lapses have happened," he added.

But at the same time, Vijayan said Jacob Thomas is an official fir for the post of the Vigilance director. The "government did not have the feeling that he had done anything unbecoming of his position as the Vigilance director."

"Certain forces were operating in the state to oust Jacob Thomas from the post of VACB director, he said. (More) PTI LGK JRK UD RC SC

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This Sunday on 60 Minutes, Liz Hayes reports on Hillary Clinton on the cusp of history, more on the Indonesian case against Australian Jessica Wongso, and Peter Stefanovic hears from the partners of paedophiles.

Married to a Monster

In Australia there has been an explosion in the number of cases of men arrested for trading child sex abuse material online. Its a sickening crime and those involved in viewing, producing and peddling sexually explicit images of children on their computers face substantial penalties, including prison, if caught. On 60 Minutes, Peter Stefanovic meets some of the hidden victims of these crimes  the unsuspecting partners of the perpetrators. They are women whose lives have been ruined because the men they loved, and thought they knew, were really monsters.

Reporter: Peter Stefanovic

Producers: Garry McNab, Gareth Harvey



Gem of Africa

When Gemma Sisia used to tell people her dream was to build a school for the poorest of the poor kids of Africa, shed be told it was a nice idea but that she was mad and it would never happen. However, for the farm girl from Armidale in northern New South Wales, all those doubters were exactly the incentive she needed to start raising money. Gemma still remembers the first donation she ever received  ten dollars from a woman called Agnes  and she hasnt stopped fundraising since. Fourteen years ago she opened her St Judes school in Arusha, which quickly established itself as a showpiece of education in Tanzania. Today, every one of the hundreds of pupils who have studied at St Judes has just one person to thank for their success: the priceless Aussie Gem of Africa.

Reporter: Liam Bartlett

Producer: Nick Greenaway



Hillary

For months presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have given each other such an almighty battering its surprising they are both still standing. The extent of their hatred of each other is unprecedented and only matched by a willingness to expose the most sordid and embarrassing details of their opponents pasts. Their behaviour even has critics accusing them of demeaning the standing of the high office both covet. The election of the 45th President is now just over a week away, and the polls  which Trump says are rigged  suggest Hillary Clinton will become the first female leader of the United States. If that happens, it wont just be momentous for America. It will be history-making for the entire free world.

Reporter: Liz Hayes

Producer: Phil Goyen

Death in a Cafe: Guilty

Three weeks ago Ross Coulthart investigated the bizarre case of Jessica Wongso, the Australian resident accused of killing her best friend, Mirna Salihin, by poisoning her with cyanide in an upmarket cafe in Jakarta. The court case has intrigued the people of Indonesia for months, and last Thursday a panel of judges delivered their stunning verdict  guilty.

Reporter: Ross Coulthart

Producers: Sean Power, Laura Sparkes

Sunday at 8.30pm on Nine.
For the last 18 months or so the Free to Air lobby has been reminding us -and the government- that Netflix doesnt spend any money on production in Australia.

Its a fair argument -if the company is spending millions around the world, and happily taking subscriptions from Aussies, then its reasonable to ask when they will invest here?

While they have screened Australian titles internationally, these have been acquisitions not funding investment.

However that all changes with Glitch season 2.

Netflix is financially invested in production with ABC on the second season of the Matchbox series. And it is creatively involved. And it is not a token amount.

Thats a first.

So it means network execs, FreeTV, Screen Producers Australia will need to start phrasing their argument with new language. It is now technically incorrect to say Netflix is not spending on investment here. Sure there is a long -very long- way to go to achieve any kind of true equity.

Netflix takes the view that it wants the best TV from around the world so it takes a fairly agnostic approach to where the production is based.

Fingers crossed they ramp up their interest here sooner rather than later.
At its AGM this week royalties agency Screenrights announced collections totalling $47.8 million, an increase of $2 million, with distributions to members of $43.1 million, an increase of 11.7% on the previous year.

Earlier this year the Australian Writers Guild accused Screenrights of not properly paying screenwriters, launching a multi-million-dollar legal case in the Federal Court.

This week Screenrights Chairman Jill Bryant said providing a high level of member service while continuing to innovate and prepare for the future is central to Screenrights ethos and key to maintaining our ongoing success. Screenrights continues to explore ways in which it can provide value to the screen industry. Disbursements by Screenrights is quickly securing its position in the disbursements market and providing a valuable service for Australian filmmakers and their investors.

Also joining the Screenrights Board was writer Geoffrey Atherden (Mother and Son, Grass Roots) a former President of the Australian Writers Guild.

Re-elected to the Screenrights Board were:

 Ben Grant, Managing Director of Goalpost Pictures

 Chris Oliver-Taylor, Managing Director, Matchbox Pictures

 Dean Ormston, Head of Member Services Group APRA AMCOS and Deputy Chair of the Australian Copyright Council.
Channel Seven has apologised to boxer Danny Green after a Seven News report incorrectly suggested he referred to rival Anthony Mundine as a terrorist.

Captioning software has been blamed for incorrectly attributing his remarks.

He was saying some things and I was saying some things  he said all this stuff and I said Yeah no worries, youre scaring me  Im terrified,' Green has said on Facebook.

Its something Im really unhappy about. I contacted the heads of the Seven Network and they immediately took action and rectified it.

Im really upset about it. I have a lot of mates in the Muslim community (and) I spoke to a couple of them today and they were very surprised.

They never thought Id say something like that  which I completely didnt, and would never. Im not like that, Ive not been raised that way. My eyes are well and truly wide open to the world.

Seven issued an apology on air and on Yahoo:

In our initial video reporting of this story, captioning software changed Danny Greens remark terrified to terrorist and may have conveyed the impression the Danny was calling Anthony Mundine that.

It was not intended and Seven apologises to Danny Green who we accept was trying to be sarcastic about the upcoming bout and not use the word stated in the caption.

Via: news.com.au
Police stormed a youth convention of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in Islamabad and arrested scores of party workers, even as a defiant Imran Khan vowed to go ahead with his protest demanding PM Nawaz Sharif's resignation.

By Reuters: Pakistani police raided Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party youth rally in the capital Islamabad on Thursday night and arrested about 40 people ahead of a planned protest that party leader Imran Khan has said would shut down the city, a party spokeswoman said.

The raid came hours after a city order banned all public gatherings ahead of Khan's planned protest set to begin on November 2 in what he described as a final push to force Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to resign over corruption allegations.

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Khan has said it will defy the order, raising the stakes in a political standoff.

The arrests on Thursday night were at a youth meeting of Khan's PTI party in a convention hall in Islamabad's E-11 district, spokeswoman Anila Khawaja said.

"All of a sudden police arrived and started arresting people," she said.

READ: Imran Khan unveils 'occupy Islamabad' plan, demands Nawaz Sharif's resignation



Video images on local Geo TV and on Dawn newspaper's website showed police in uniform beating activists with batons and leading those detained away to waiting buses.

A spokesman for the Islamabad district administration said the raid was enforcing the order issued earlier in the day by Deputy Commissioner Mushtaq Ahmed, the city's top administrator, outlawing gatherings of more than five people.

"For any convention, you need to seek permission from the district administration, even if it is indoors," said the spokesman, who said he could not be identified under protocol.

"They have done a convention without permission, which is against the law. So police have carried out an operation there," he said.

READ: Pakistan security forces use brute force to silence Black Day protests in PoK



IMRAN KHAN CALLS FOR PROTEST

Khan vowed in a televised speech late on Thursday that he would risk arrest today by defying the ban on public gatherings to attend a rally for a political ally, Sheikh Rashid of the Awami Muslim League.

"Then, whatever (the government) does, we will see," he said.

Khan, who led a weeks-long occupation that paralysed much of Islamabad in 2014 after rejecting Sharif's runaway election win, has said the new protest would bring a million people to the streets.

He has said that sit-ins would force the closure of schools, public offices and the main international airport.

READ: Pakistan Minister Nisar Ali Khan meets leaders of banned groups over Imran Khan's protest march



An Islamabad court on Thursday issued orders for both police and Khan's party not to block roads or public spaces during the planned protest.

KHAN'S LATEST CHALLENGE

At the centre of Khan's latest challenge to Sharif's government are leaked documents from the Panama-based Mossack Fonseca law firm that appear to show that Sharif's daughter and two sons own offshore holding companies registered in the British Virgin Islands. Sharif's family denies wrongdoing.

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Holding offshore companies is not illegal in Pakistan, but Khan has implied the money was gained by corruption.

Khan acknowledged in May that he used an offshore company to legally avoid paying British tax on a London property sale.

WATCH VIDEO



Also Read:

Pakistan risks global isolation in purchasing defence tech: Report

Nawaz Sharif's daughter pokes Musharraf on coup anniversary, says it has come full circle

Pakistan imposes complete ban on airing of Indian content

Imran Khan claims India trying to derail his party's 'reform movement'





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The scheme involved a network of call centers based in Ahmedabad, where associates of the ring would call victims in the US impersonating Department of Homeland Security, Internal Revenue Services, or other government officials, demanding payment in order to clear fictitious arrest warrants, orders of deportation, or unpaid income tax.

By PTI: The five Indian call centres charged with defrauding thousands of Americans, stole more than USD 300 million from their victims, US Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson has said.

The official yesterday said an inter-agency effort resulted in the indictment of all five call centers and 56 people, including 31 from India, as well as the arrest of 20 others in the US, most of whom are Indians.

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Johnson said these were "engaged in defrauding thousands of victims, stealing more than a total of USD 300 million."

AHMEDABAD BASED CALL CENTRES

The scheme involved a network of call centers based in Ahmedabad, where associates of the ring would call victims in the US impersonating Department of Homeland Security, Internal Revenue Services, or other government officials, demanding payment in order to clear fictitious arrest warrants, orders of deportation, or unpaid income tax, Johnson said.

The five Ahmedabad-based call centers that made calls to people living in the US are Hglobal, Call Mantra, Worldwide Solution, Zoriion Communications and Sharma BPO Services.

The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), Department of Homeland Security, Department of Justice, the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Trade Commission announced the indictments, the result of a three-year investigation that was the largest single domestic law enforcement action connected with the impersonation scam.

IRS IMPERSONATION SCAM



"To date, more than 1.8 million people have reported to TIGTA that they have received an impersonation call; more than 9,600 victims reported that they paid the impersonators a total amount that exceeds USD 50 million," TIGTA Inspector General J Russell George said.

"The largest single amount paid as a result of the IRS impersonation scam as charged in the indictment is USD 136,000, paid by a victim in California," George said.



The US Senate Aging Committee, that studies issues related to older Americans, received more than 1,100 calls from senior citizens across the country on its fraud hotline in 2015.

The most common complaint reported to the fraud hotline continues to be the IRS impersonation scam.



--- ENDS ---
Russian-backed militants launched 54 attacks on positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in Donbas over the past day.

This is reported by the ATO Headquarters press center.

The militants launched 34 attacks on ATO troops in Mariupol direction. The enemy used 82mm and 120mm mortars to fire at Novotroitske (32km south of Donetsk). The enemy also shelled Ukrainian positions in Marinka (35 km south-west of Donetsk), Krasnohorivka (29 km west of Donetsk), and Shyrokyne (20km east of Mariupol), using mortars of both calibers, machine guns, and grenade launchers.

In Donetsk direction, the enemy violated ceasefire17 times. The militants used machine guns, grenade launchers, mortars of various calibers to shell Ukrainian defenders of Zaitseve (67km north-north-east of Donetsk) and Butovka coal mine (11.4km north-west of Donetsk).

Three more attacks were launched at ATO troops in Luhansk direction. The militants used small arms to shell Stanytsia Luhanska (16km north-east of Luhansk) and Novooleksandrivka (65km west of Luhansk).

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Since the beginning of October, the German government has been assisting in clearing the territories from explosive items and remains of fighting equipment in former conflict areas in Luhansk and Donetsk regions.

This has been reported by the Embassy of Germany in Ukraine.

For this purpose, it [the German government] has commissioned the non-governmental organization HALO (Hazardous Area Life-support Organization) to clear minefields near Severodonetsk, Mariupol, and Kramatorsk. Special expert teams and three EOD squads will be involved in the operations, reads the report.

The German government will allocate 488,000 euros for mine clearing operations. Also, the financial support is foreseen for the following years as well, according to the embassy.

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The Ukrainian Defense Ministry under the current contracts on international technical assistance has received medical equipment and medicines from the United States, China, Great Britain and some other countries.

Ukrainian Defense Ministry's Spokesperson Oleksiy Chornobay stated this at a press briefing, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

According to Chornobay, under the humanitarian aid program, the United States provided medicines and medical equipment worth over $14 million, China provided the aid worth over $3 million, and the United Kingdom granted about 326,000 pounds. Ukraine also received financial assistance from France, Hungary, Poland, Switzerland and Germany, the defense ministry's spokesperson added.

In addition, another medical humanitarian assistance to the Ukrainian Armed Forces is expected from Canada, Switzerland, Great Britain, Germany, US and Pakistan.

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The independence of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) is a cornerstone of the policies that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) can support going forward.

IMF Communications Department Director Gerry Rice has stated this at a briefing in Washington, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

The establishment of an independent central bank has been a major achievement under the ongoing program with Ukraine and is a cornerstone of the policies that the IMF can support going forward. It is critical therefore that this achievement - that is the independence of the central bank [of Ukraine - Ed.] - be protected, Rice said.

He also confirmed that the IMF mission is expected to arrive in Kyiv in early November.

A mission will visit Kyiv in early November. And I can tell you that will be to do two things: to conduct the discussions under the third review under the IMF program but also to conduct the 2016 Article IV Consultation, Rice noted.

In addition, he has not ruled out the possibility of allocating another tranche for Ukraine by the end of the current year.

I think it is possible. Again, depends on progress under these discussions that will take place in early November, Rice said.

mk
Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman has called on the French businesses to actively invest in Ukraine.

He said this, opening the French-Ukrainian Business Forum in Paris, Government portal reports.

"Invest in Ukraine, make profit, reinvest, and be successful, and we will make every effort to facilitate this process," Groysman said.

Ukrainian Prime Minister assured that the Government would do its utmost to promote protection and success of foreign business in Ukraine, which would be the key to national economic growth.

Volodymyr Groysman noted that the priority sectors for investment in Ukraine were energy sector, machine building, agricultural sector, pharmaceutical field, IT, wood processing industry, consumer goods industry, and infrastructure.

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Ukraine has the potential to show one of the best economic growth rates in Europe in the medium term.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman said this, opening the French-Ukrainian Business Forum in Paris, Government portal reports.

"We have a very large stock of capacities, which we need to use qualitatively. I am convinced that we will show one of the best economic growth rates in Europe in the medium term," Groysman said.

According to the Ukrainian PM, the business forum has revealed great interest of the French business in investing in Ukraine. As Groysman noted, the forum was attended by about 250 companies.

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The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine condemns the decision of the Moscow City Court to reject a petition of appeal submitted by a lawyer of Ukrainian citizen, Ukrinform correspondent Roman Sushchenko, who was illegally arrested in Moscow, against the previous decision of the Lefortovo District Court on taking Sushchenko into custody, the ministrys press service reports.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine expresses strong protest regarding decision of the Moscow City Court to dismiss a petition of appeal of a lawyer of illegally detained in Russia citizen of Ukraine Roman Sushchenko in relation to the decision of the Lefortovo District Court in the city of Moscow dated October 1, 2016 on the arrest of the Ukrainian national, reads the report.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stresses that the case of journalist Sushchenko from Ukraines National News Agency Ukrinform, who was illegally detained in Russia under politically motivated and fabricated charges in espionage, has become another notorious evidence that there is no legal system and the right for fair justice in the Russian Federation.

Denial of access to the court room of the Ukrainian consular official causes a particular indignation. This is another evidence of Russias biased and unfair court, reads the report.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged the Russian Federation to immediately release Roman Sushchenko and other citizens of Ukraine who have become hostages of Russias aggressive policy and to ensure their return to Ukraine.

As reported, on October 27, the Moscow City Court rejected an appeal against the arrest of Ukrinform journalist Roman Sushchenko. The defense wanted to change the measure of restraint from custody in the Lefortovo District Court to another one, for example house arrest.

Ukrinform correspondent in France Roman Sushchenko was arrested in Moscow on September 30, where he arrived on a private visit. He was accused of espionage, allegedly being a member of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry. The Ukrainian Main Intelligence Directorate denied allegations of Russian Federal Security Service.

The court ruled at its closed hearing on October 1 to arrest the journalist for two months  until November 30.

On October 7, the Russian Federation officially charged the Ukrainian journalist with spying. Sushchenko denies any guilt.

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Ambassador of Ukraine to Australia Mykola Kulynych has met with representatives of the Australian police, who are directly involved in the investigation into MH17 crash, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

As the press service of the Embassy of Ukraine informs, the meeting was attended by the officers of the police mission for protection of the crash site, participants in the joint investigation team, psychologists, who work with the families of the victims.

During the meeting, the Ambassador thanked the Australian officers for their diligent and responsible work and expressed confidence that the joint efforts of the international community would make possible to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Australian Federal Police Assistant Commissioner Justine Saunders, in turn, thanked the Ukrainian government for its openness and comprehensive cooperation at all stages of the investigation and confirmed unconditional commitment of the Australian side to bringing the perpetrators to justice.

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The Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organizations (AFUO) has written a letter to the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, H.E Mark Rutte urging him to unblock the full and unconditional ratification by the Netherlands of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement (Agreement), an Ukrinform correspondent reports referring to the AFUO press service.

Australias Ukrainian community states that the ratification of the Agreement will be beneficial not only for Ukraine.

Economically the Agreement would open up new markets for the Netherlands as Ukraine is open for business with over 45 million potential consumers. Currently the Netherlands is the second largest investor in Ukraine. Ratifying the Agreement can only enhance the opportunities for Dutch businesses and strengthen the Dutch economy, reads the report.

According to AFUO Chairman Stefan Romaniw, strategically Europe and its neighbors will become more secure.

It will send a strong message to the Russian Federation that its aggression will not be tolerated and that Ukraine is a key partner in a secure alliance, he said.

Thus, the Ukrainians in Australia have joined a large-scale campaign in support of the ratification of the Agreement, which is also being held by the Ukrainian World Congress (UWC).

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Crime Branch sleuths were shocked when at the last minute of execution of their operation, they found out that Prime Minister was supposed to take the same route where they had to execute a massive operation to catch ISI spy red handed.

By Atir Khan: Pakistani staffer Mehmood Akhtar, could have easily escaped from the clutches of Crime Branch sleuths because of the route the Prime Minister took. PM had to travel via Mathura Road near Delhi Zoo.

Crime Branch sleuths were shocked when at the last minute of execution of their operation, they found out that Prime Minister was supposed to take the same route where they had to execute a massive operation to catch ISI spy red handed.

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At around 9:45 am on Wednesday, ISI agent and Pakistani High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar was supposed to meet his two Indian recruits - Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir, outside Delhi Zoo. A team of Crime Branch sleuths had been tailing them from the time latter alighted from a train at Sarai Rohilla Railway Station at 4am.

The targets then went to Jama Masjid area to while away time as they had pre-decided to meet Pakistan staffer Mehmood near Delhi Zoo at around 10 am. While waiting for Mehmood Akhtar, Maulana Ramzan all of a sudden decided to visit Matka Pir Dargah, while leaving Subhash Jangir behind at the bus stop outside Delhi Zoo on Mathura Road.



Also read:

Pakistan spy racket: 2 Indians arrested, embassy staff asked to leave India

When Maulana moved to the dargah, some three hundred meters away from the pre-decided meeting place, sleuths thought there was a change in plan of spies and perhaps Mehmood would meet them at the dargah premises. However, they were confused as they saw Subhash Jangir still waiting at the bus stop.

Crime Branch sleuths then had to take a call and decide to tail Maulana Subhash inside the dargah premises. A couple of team members wore skull caps and entered the dargah premises. As luck would have it, Maulana Ramzan got a call from Mehmood saying he would meet him at the bus stop outside Zoo, the original meeting place.

Just as Maulana Ramzan started moving towards Delhi Zoo, Crime Branch sleuths were shocked to know that the Prime Minister would be taking Mathura Road route.

A per PM's route protocol, the entire stretch has to be cleared and nobody should be allowed to stay at least 50 meters near the area.

Also read:

46 arrested since 2013: Timeline of Pakistan's spy game in India

Sleuths were worried that seeing the security arrangements, Maulana Ramzan, Subhash Jangir would get scared and would abort the operation. Even the Crime Branch sleuths had to move out of the proximity of PM's route due to security requirement. Moreover, they knew Mehmood had been trained by ISI in evasive tactics and slightest doubt could have aborted the operation. The sleuths had been waiting for this moment for last six months when they started the counter intelligence operation and now it was time their targets could be caught red-handed.



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Both the targets moved away for sometime but came back to the designated place later. Crime Branch sleuths were closely monitoring each movement, and discovered Mehmood Akhtar approaching them in Pakistan High Commission CD car.

Seconds after documents were exchanged between Akhtar and his two associates, three Crime Branch sleuths grabbed Akhtar, who was shell shocked to see him being surrounded. When he was asked to show his identity card, he displayed his Aadhar card. Sleuths then acted hastily and signaled their vehicles to approach the target.



Akhtar and his two associates were hastily bundled in the police cars and were taken straight to Chanakyapuri Crime Branch office.

Also read:

Another Pakistani spy working for ISI arrested in Rajasthan



--- ENDS ---
President Petro Poroshenko has had a phone conversation with President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker. During the conversation, the European leader, inter alia, noted that the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, including the FTA, remained in force, despite the fact it had not been yet ratified by the Netherlands.

This is reported by the press service of the Head of State

"The parties discussed the ratification of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement by the Netherlands. Jean-Claude Juncker emphasized that the Agreement, including the free trade area agreement, remained in force," the statement reads.

The President of the European Commission once again confirmed that Ukraine had fulfilled all the criteria necessary for granting visa-free regime.

In addition, the parties discussed the agenda of the next Ukraine-EU Summit scheduled for November.

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At the Mae Sot-Myawaddy border crossing, UNHCR staff based in Thailand say emotional goodbyes to the refugees returning to Myanmar after decades in exile.  UNHCR/Vivian Tan

MYAWADDY BORDER CROSSING, Myanmar  More than 70 refugees have arrived safely back in Myanmar in the first voluntary return organized by the governments of Thailand and Myanmar in over 30 years.

Earlier this week, a total of 71 refugees left Thailands Tham Hin and Nupo camps to return home to Yangon, Tanintharyi region, Kayin, Bago, Mon and Rakhine states.

The return from Nupo camp started early on Wednesday. Shuffling at dawn, 65 refugees pushed carts piled high with bags containing their worldly possessions  mostly clothing and household items, with the occasional bicycle and wheelchair. They received an assistance package to help with their return and initial reintegration, before boarding trucks that would take them on a winding five-hour drive to the Mae Sot-Myawaddy border crossing point. As friends and relatives clung on to say goodbye, many started crying at the thought of leaving behind the only life theyve known in recent years and moving on to a new chapter.

Ive been waiting for years for the government to welcome us back. The day has finally come.

One man, however, was grinning. Ive been waiting for years for the government to welcome us back. The day has finally come, said a betel-nut seller who is heading to central Myanmar with his wife and two children.

Im very excited as I think things will be better there, he added. But at the same time Im worried about how well be treated in Myanmar, how well survive in the future.

Such mixed feelings were common among the returnees, who expressed confidence in Myanmars reforms, and uncertainty over how they would cope back home.

What will happen when the assistance money runs out? asked returnee Pu Let, referring to the assistance packages provided by the Myanmar government, UNHCR, the World Food Programme, Myanmar Red Cross Society and other agencies. His in-laws have some land in Kayin state, and he hoped they could grow enough crops to feed themselves.

Myanmar: Refugees return home from Thailand

Livelihood was less of a concern for Yangon-bound Thant Zin Maung, 48. With the 15 certificates he acquired in the camp for trainings such as cooking, sewing, business and auto repair, he plans to use his return assistance to set up a small business. His first priority, however, is to enrol his two sons in school and to seek treatment for his wifes health problems.

As the refugees crossed back into Myanmar in the afternoon heat, many were exhausted but visibly emotional as government officials welcomed them back at a processing centre in the border town of Myawaddy.

Naw Lah Kyi, 72, was reunited with her son who works in Myawaddy. After five years apart, she was relieved to see him as he supported her to the centres clinic to monitor her high blood pressure.

Maung Saw Schwe, 63, is also heading back to his wife and three children in western Myanmar. Asked if he would hug his wife upon his return, he smiled, Im too old for that. After I drop off my luggage, I will contact my old colleagues. I have a lot to catch up with as I want to do more for my people.

I hope that in five years  Ill be successful in business with the skills I learnt as a refugee.

On Thursday, the returnees underwent health and document checks for national identity cards at the Myawaddy centre. Some of them were then assisted to their final destinations in Yangon, Mawlamyine and Sittwe.

As 45-year-old grandmother Ei Pay sat waiting for transportation home to Kayin states Mae Pra area, she shared that she and her husband had actually visited the area four months ago to start planting vegetables. They came back last weekend to escort their 11-member extended family home.

Our village is peaceful now, no problem, she said. Theres more freedom there than in the camp. We can grow our own food. In fact, I put on some weight there because my appetite was so good!

Yangon returnee Thant Zin Maung has called his sister, who is cleaning up a place for him in Myanmars commercial capital. I hope that in five years, my wife will be walking, my children doing well in school and that Ill be successful in business with the skills I learnt as a refugee, he said.

This weeks pilot voluntary return programme was supported by Thailand and Myanmar, as well as UNHCR and its partners, which include the International Organization for Migration and Handicap International. While modest in number, there is hope that these returns will help to build peace and pave the way for lasting solutions to one of Asias longest-running refugee situations.
Chilli pepper growers receive training on the different products that can be produced and marketed from the chilli peppers they are growing at Rwamwanja settlement in south west Uganda.  UNHCR/Eunice Ohanusi

RWAMWANJA, Uganda  At home in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, police reservist Kwizera Gasigwa farmed cassava and maize for his family to eat and to sell, to help his meagre income stretch a little further each month.

But when war forced them to flee to neighbouring Uganda, it was difficult for Gasigwa, 39, to see his family depend on food rations from humanitarian agencies.

He dreamt of being independent again and was determined to change the circumstances for his wife, Nyiranzabi, 36, and their three children aged between eight and 20.

That opportunity came with a project from UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and the Japan International Cooperation Agency, which aims to boost refugees' self-sufficiency by training them how to farm rice more efficiently, and connecting them to markets for their harvests.

Congolese refugees plant rice seed in the fertile land at Rwamwanja settlement in south west Uganda.  UNHCR/Eunice Ohanusi

Gasigwa was among 50 refugees in Rwamwanja settlement who benefited from the programme. Two years later he has earned enough money to start a series of other small businesses.

Growing rice has enabled my family to purchase a motorcycle that I use to carry passengers, he says. My wife has opened a grocery shop and things are looking good for my family. They have also started rearing pigs and ducks.

Farming is not only a means to an end, but a way to use the profit to establish oneself in other livelihoods activities, Gasigwa says. Now I can make choices. My dream to improve my familys income has been realized."

He took advantage of Ugandas innovative settlement approach to managing and protecting refugees, where they are given plots of land to build a home and farm. Their movement is not restricted, and they can earn money as they have the right to work and establish businesses.

UNHCR is supporting refugees to live with greater dignity by providing training in modern ways of farming crops, allowing them to earn money, help them adjust to their new environment and peacefully co-exist with their Ugandan neighbours, says Albert Akandonda, UNHCR's livelihoods specialist who focuses on agriculture in Rwamwanja.

During the training, Gasigwa received one kilogramme of rice seedlings, which he nurtured into an eventual harvest of more than 900kg of rice.

"There is nothing like cultivating crops that can earn you a lot of money," says Congolese refugee John Bosco Kalaginla as he waters his chilli pepper crop in his garden at Rwamwanja settlement in south west Uganda.  UNHCR/Eunice Ohanusi

Gasigwa's success means he has been able to train others, and he has even started a savings and loans group for both refugee and Ugandan farmers. The group gives credit to its members, especially women looking after their families on their own, to set up small businesses to improve their earnings.

Ugandans have learnt a lot from the refugees in respect to rice farming" says Christopher Ndyamuhaki, a Ugandan and member of the group. "The refugees have benefited from Ugandans, who have rented out five acres of land to the rice farmers.

There are still challenges, however. The price the rice farmers can charge is low because they cannot store their harvests to wait for higher prices in the market, and they rely on middle-men.

These are challenges that can be overcome. The Lutheran World Federation, which partners with UNHCR, taught another group of refugee farmers how to grow chilli peppers and linked them directly to exporters to give them a ready market without falling victim to unscrupulous brokers.

"Cultivating crops that can earn you a lot of money is rewarding," says John Bosco Kalaginla, one of the Congolese refugees farming chilli pepper. Like Gasigwa, he is grateful for the money the cash crops bring his family for difficult times. "We want to plant crops that will enable us survive hardships," he adds.
Yalappa, 28, was working as a police constable at Kulagod police station in Gokak taluk of Belagavi district in Karnataka.

By Rohini Swamy: Yalappa Handibagh, the brother of Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Kalappa Handibagh who killed himself in July this year, also allegedly committed suicide on Thursday night by hanging himself.

Yalappa, 28, was working as a police constable at Kulagod police station in Gokak taluk of Belagavi district in Karnataka.

In a suicide note that he left behind, Yalappa said that he was frustrated with life and hence was ending his life.

The suicide note.

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His elder brother Kallappa Handibag, DSP of Chikkamagaluru sub-division had committed suicide on July 6 after he was suspended over his alleged involvement in a kidnap case.

Kallapa was found hanging in Murgod area of Belagavi after a complaint was registered against him accusing him of kidnapping and extortion.

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National Conference President and Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Dr Farooq Abdullah called on PM Modi to discuss the prevailing situation in the Valley.

By Naseer Ganai: National Conference President and Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Dr Farooq Abdullah today called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi and discussed the prevailing situation in the Valley and also various challenges being faced by the state.

"The Prime Minister was receptive and the meeting was cordial," Dr Farooq Abdullah said after the meeting ended.

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In past one week, Dr Abdullah issued several statements calling for dialogue and welcoming the unofficial outreach by a delegation led by former foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha to Kashmir. Sinha led delegation met separatist leaders including Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and held deliberations with the Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti during their four-day visit to Kashmir, which ended today.

READ: Farooq Abdullah welcomes visit of Yashwant Sinha-led delegation



Dr Abdullah had said he hopes the visit of the delegation would pave way for the initiation of official talks to find a lasting solution to the Kashmir issue. Farooq has been asking the Central Government to engage with stakeholders of diverse ideological views to end the ensuing political stalemate in the State.

"This is a welcome gesture of outreach and it's a positive development. It is also a good sign that Hurriyat leaders warmly welcomed the delegation and held discussions with them. While this is an unofficial initiative, we hope this paves way for a credible, meaningful and formal dialogue between New Delhi and various stakeholders in the State," Dr Farooq Abdullah said on Thursday.

READ: Hurriyat leader Syed Geelani's son arrested, family barred from meeting ailing leader

Dr Abdullah said National Conference was a strong votary of sustained political engagement between New Delhi and various stakeholders in Kashmir including Hurriyat leaders and would welcome any forward movement in this direction. "Every small step is welcome and a step in the right direction. This complex political issue will require a sustained, sensitive and structured engagement that works its way towards an effective resolution. I am glad Hurriyat leaders decided to meet members of the delegation and hope this will set the tone for the future and I hope the broad-based feedback gathered in meetings with other organiSations and individuals is also conveyed to the relevant quarters," Dr Abdullah had said.

READ: Demands and reminders: Separatists leader Geelani meets Yashwant Sinha with list of concerns



Today Kashmir entered into 111th day of the unrest. The protests erupted in the valley after the killing of Hizbul commander Burhan Wani. Since then 94 civilians, mostly youth, have been killed and over 10,000 injured, by government forces firing bullets and pellets at protesters. The police have arrested over 6000 youths involved in various cases including stone pelting and over 400 political activists and separatist leaders have been booked under preventive detention law called Public Safety Act. Since July 8, Hurriyat Conference and other separatist leaders are regularly calling for strikes and shutdown, which has affected normal life with schools, colleges and all other educational institutions remaining closed for past 100 days.

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Also read: Watch how Kashmiri youth rescued an army jawan trapped inside a mangled vehicle



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UNICEF/UN019996/Gilbertson VII Photo

ROME/LAMPEDUSA, 27 October 2016 UNICEF is calling on the Italian parliament to urgently pass an historic bill that would strengthen support and protection for the record number of unaccompanied and separated children  at least 20,000  who have arrived in Italy this year. Near daily reports of migrant drownings on the Mediterranean show clearly that passage of the bill cannot come a moment too soon for children risking their lives to reach Italian shores.

Since the EU-Turkey deal dramatically reduced the flow of refugees and migrants into Europe through the Eastern Mediterranean, the Central Mediterranean from North Africa to Italy has become the main route for those fleeing war, persecution and desperation, as well as the longest and most dangerous.

Over one recent 24-hour period on the small Italian island of Lampedusa  often the first disembarkation point for those rescued at sea  a three-year-old boy died of asphyxiation just after arrival; a young woman lost her life from severe burns caused by exposure to fuel in one of the boats; and a nine-months-pregnant woman in advanced labour was evacuated by helicopter to Palermo, Sicily. While in separate incidents, a teenage girl and two teenage boys with gunshot wounds, and four young people with third degree burns were evacuated off the island for emergency medical care.

They were among 4,300 people rescued by the Italian Coastguard (17 people were found dead on boats) on 25/26th October.

The draft bill C.1658, or Proposta Zampa, now before the Senate is the first comprehensive act on reception and protection of unaccompanied children in Italy. Together with other organizations UNICEF has been strongly supporting the formulation of the bill for the past three years.

The basic principles of the bill are fully aligned with actions recommended by UNICEF to protect displaced, refugee and migrant children, including:

 Unaccompanied and separated children will not be subjected to refoulement or returns that may cause them harm;

 Reduce the time unaccompanied and separated children spend in first-line reception centres;

 Harmonize and improve procedures for age detection in a child-sensitive manner;

 Establish a structured and streamlined national reception system, with minimum standards in all reception facilities;

 Roll out extensive use of qualified cultural mediators* to communicate and interpreter needs of vulnerable adolescents; and

 Support foster care and host families for children as well as the timely appointment of volunteer guardians.

The Government of Italy has also allocated  600 million to municipalities who bear the brunt of hosting migrants and refugees. The long-awaited funds will help caregivers, groups and associations who manage reception centres and facilitate activities for migrants and refugees. The Italian National Committee for UNICEF, as part of the Italian NGO Forum, has been campaigning for the Government to include such plans for adolescents "Legge di stabilita" (Financial Stability Act) for 2017.

On Lampedusa, UNICEF has supported the deployment of a gynaecologist and cultural mediator* to support the Italian health and sanitary services in the treatment of unaccompanied children and young women who may be pregnant or otherwise in need of physical, psychological care and support. UNICEF has also set up a child friendly space in the local hospital.

Fast Facts

 The Libya-Italy route is now the most deadly for refugees and migrants traveling to Europe, with one dead or missing for every 47 arrivals in 2016.

 In 2015 - when most took the far shorter Aegean route - the fatality rate was 1 in 269 in total.

 In 2016, at least 3,740 refugees and migrants have died or gone missing in the Mediterranean Sea - 88 per cent (3,252) along the Central Mediterranean route.

 An estimated 660 children have lost their lives at sea this year alone. Many are buried in unmarked graves in southern Italy as attempts are made to trace family.

 So far this year, 157,000 (source: UNHCR, updated to 24 October 2016) migrants and refugees arrived in Italy by sea from north Africa, with record numbers of unaccompanied children among them  at least 20,000.

 12,530 unaccompanied and separated children arrived in Italy over all of 2015.

 The total number of arrivals in 2016 (as of today) has already exceeded the total for 2015.

*Footnote  cultural mediators work as interpreters of cultural needs and practices

###
A Korean sitcom features this girl who's pretending to be Indian. What she says to prove it is hilarious!

By India Today Web Desk: So, you think you've seen it all? In this age of information overload, that is quite possible, really. But wait till you see what you're about to see.

A Korean sitcom, High Kick 3, features a girl in one of their episodes who's pretending to be Indian. And trust us, she's trying her level best.

The serial's plotline resolves around two Korean girls--Soo-jong and Ji-won--who are in the said episode on the way back from an audition for an advertisement. While Soo-jong is pretending to be American for the audition, Ji-won is pretending to be Indian. On the way back, the girls get caught by the police for taking a wrong turn, and end up in the police station, where they're answerable to a police officer.

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Though the police officer does figure out their Korean identities--thanks to their ID cards--the girls choose to stick to their respective characters.

And Ji-won, to prove her "Indian-ness", keeps repeating the one dialogue she knows: "Mujhse shaadi karlo, main khoobsurat hoon."

When the officer refuses to buy her "Indian-ness", she goes on to do a rather weird dance she thinks is Indian. Watch the laugh riot right here:







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By PTI: Colombo, Oct 28 (PTI) A parliamentary panel in Sri Lanka today recommended action against the former Governor of the countrys Central Bank for an alleged bond scam at the bank.

Committee on Public Enterprise (COPE) presented its report in parliament this morning and called for measures to recover the loss from those involved.

The report was an embarrassment for Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe who had had-hand picked Mahendran as Governor.

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The governor is accused of letting his son-in-law linked primary dealer firm Perpetual Treasuries make massive profits from bonds issued in February 2015 and March 2016.

The COPE chair Sunil Handunneththi said Mahendran had a direct involvement in the scam.

Wickremesinghe UNP, the dominant party in power, is accused of trying to absolve Mahendran, who was not allowed to continue in the job by President Maithripala Sirisena when his term lapsed in June this year. PTI Corr NSA

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It's that time of the year again and hiring of seasonal employees ahead of the holidays is in full swing. Nordstrom is in need of 11,400 extra pair of hands at its traditional retail stores, Nordstrom Rack stores and its fulfillment and distribution centers.

Of the 11,000 plus seasonal employees, 1,200 position will be for the retail stores in Southern California and 1,900 will be for the distribution and fulfillment centers to help with the expected volume of online shoppers. Nordstrom has a fulfillment center located in San Bernardino and distribution centers in Newark and Ontario.

Go to careers.nordstrom.com if you want to apply.

Other companies looking to hire more seasonal employees include:

The Postal Service

The USPS plans to hire 35,000 to 40,000 seasonal workers ahead of the holiday season. About 500 positions is in Orange County. Interested parties can go to usps.com to apply

Target

In light of the holiday shopping rush, the retail giant is looking to hire 70,000 additional team members to man its 1,800 stores across the country. The company is looking at around 14,300 positions in California and hundreds in the greater Los Angeles area. There will be in-store hiring events every Friday and Saturday in all branches where candidates can apply or you can go to Target.com/Careers.

Toys "R" Us

The toy chain store is also looking for thousands of hire this season with 5,500 employees for its California stores. The company will have in-store hiring events on Nov. 11 and you can find additional information at Toysrusinc.com/holidayjobs. Also, Toys "R" Us expects 15-20% of its traditional hires to become permanent employees.

JC Penny

The store will be hiring 800 associates in Orange County before the holiday rush. Positions for seasonal employees will include customer service and support staff. What's more is associates will will receive a store discount up to 25% off. Go to jcpcareers.com to apply.

OptumRx

UnitedHealth Group's free standing pharmacy business is looking to hire 120 pharmacy customer service representatives in Costa Mesa. Positions include bilingual customer representatives. Go to careers.unitedhealthgroup.com to apply.
A secondary villain will be featured in "Doctor Strange," and it has the name Dread Dormammu that was called by Mikkelsaen's Kaecilius. This villain has a remarkable role in the finale part of the film; however no actor who played the character was identified in the film's end credits.

Scott Derrickson, who also partially played the role of the villain Dormammu, was interviewed and he confirmed that Benedict Cumberbatch was also part in bringing the iconic Marvel villain Dormammu to reality. Derrickson said that a British actor's voce was used for the character, and Benedict made the facial capture for Dormammu, according to IGN.

No actor was given the role of Marvel's grand villain Thanos upon its debut, right after the end of The Avengers. Two year had passed, the Guardians of the Galaxy was produced then it casted Josh Brolin to play the role as mad titan. Derrickson was asked if this was a method of deferring the casting for the role, but he said it was not so. He said that they knew beforehand that it was an all CG character. However during the production, Benedict pushed with the idea.

Derrickson claimed that what they had was an interesting idea, since he had creatively pictured out how he would approach playing the character. As he plays this character, he could not imagine it to be bound into the Dark Dimension. He said that this character takes on a person's form for the purpose of communicating with Strange, as posted in the Screen Rant.

He also said that no one understood the character Dormammu better than how Benedict saw it. He also intend for the role to have an ultra-inflated version of Strange. He said that an interesting confrontation with this little, tiny guy and this monstrous conqueror can be expected. Benedict Cumberbatch will be playing both the hero and the villain in Marvel's Doctor Strange.
Apple rolled out iOS 10.1 a few days ago and it becomes news in the jailbreaking community as they are anticipating the release of iOS 10 jailbreak Pangu. Here's what to expect.

iOS 10.1 update: Bug fixes and improvements

Apple just released iOS 10.1 update - addressing cellular problems and bringing better system to things for improvements, Forbes reported. From a jailbreak point of view, this would be good news as the update brings more stable system - something seen as a benefit in jailbreaking software on the work.

iOS 10 jailbreak: Pangu's wait is over after Apple released iOS 10.1?

There is no official statement from the Chinese hacker but Pangu could be working to break the restriction on iOS 10 and releasing the software soon, GottabeMobile reported. Many reports suggest that Pangu has given up on iOS 10 jailbreak, but the demonstration at MOSEC event a few months ago (only days after Apple dropped iOS 10) seem to be a strong indication that the team is relentlessly finding a way to jailbreak the newest iOS version.

As of this moment, iOS 10 has been jailbroken by an Italian hacker but iPhone 7 users are not recommended to jailbreak their devices. Find out why.

The jailbreaking community has made speculations that Pangu could be waiting for the iOS 10.1 update before launching the jailbreak tool for public. It makes sense since an iOS jailbreak is extremely dependent to what Apple is rolling out to the public with its firmware.

With the new iOS update being more stable, it may be the right time for Pangu to release iOS 10 jailbreak.

iOS 10 jailbreak Pangu release date is approaching?

It is highly likely for a jailbreak tool to be released at least two weeks after a major iOS upgrade. That happened in the previous iOS 9 where Pangu launched its jailbreaking tool soon after. However, the case is different with the iOS 10. Pangu seems to be making a slow move in updating the jailbreak community with new software to break the restriction.

It does not mean that Pangu is raising white flag as rumored because it is just a previous schedule that cannot be seen as a pattern.
New York City's Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) reported that 1,538 students were able to get paid private sector internship through the Ladders for Leaders program from last summer.

The Ladders for Leaders program provides high school and college students opportunities to participate in summer internship programs with the many prestigious and dynamic businesses in NYC. Participants, youth aged 16-21 need to apply to the program.

Applicants are evaluated based on their resume, academic performance and an essay question. After participants have been selected they then have to go through 30 hours of pre-employment training which is designed to give them essential workplace skills as well as basic business etiquette. The participants are then interviewed by partner community-based organizations (CBO) from different industries and the hiring decision is made by partnering employers. The internship runs for 6 weeks.

The number of participants have grown significantly from a few hundreds back in 2014 to 1,035 interns in 2015.

The number of companies that offered paid internships have also grown to 475 this year from 191 last year. The city hopes to get a larger number of partner companies for 2017. Partner companies include Citi, AOL, KPMG, Deloitte and JPMorgan Chase.

The program is funded by the Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City and is supported by NYC's Center for Youth Employment - a public-private initiative dedicated to preparing the city's youth for the job market by creating career opportunities for young people.

Apart from being a summer activity for young people, the program aims to prepare them for their careers and success in the future by providing these kids with a meaningful work experience. It is also meant to inspire kids to cultivate their dreams and pursue them.

An event have been organized in the Gracie Mansion to celebrate this summer's success together with New York City's Mayor Bill De Blasio, business partners, city educators and former Ladders to Leaders interns.
Scientists aim to free millions of Zika bacteria-infected mosquitoes in Brazil and Colombia. This bacteria decreases the mosquitoes' ability to spread viruses.

The bacteria named Wolbachia will be injected to the mosquitoes, that is responsible for removing their capacity to pass on viruses to humans.

This $18 million plan will be funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Wellcome Trust. This is done in cooperation with the governments of the United States, United Kingdom, and Brazilian governments along with the World Health Organization, as reported by The Guardian.

Sixty percent of insect species around the world has Wolbachia in their system. However, this is not existent in Aedes aegypti mosquitoes that bring Zika, chikungunya, and dengue viruses that affect humans.

Scientists with the Eliminate Dengue Program have created a method of transferring bacteria to Aedes mosquitoes. Various trials in small scale level have been done in Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Australia that have demonstrated the mosquitoes infected with Wolbachia have stopped the spread of dengue.

Researchers were catapulted by the rapid spread of Zika and obtained funding to plan large-scale experiments in cities of Colombia and Brazil. This also includes Rio de Janiero, which is according to a press release from Wellcome Trust. This project will be self-sustaining as the mosquitoes infected with Wolbachia are presumed to breed with local mosquitoes and pass the bacteria on to their offspring.

Dr. Trevor Mundel, president of the global health division of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, reiterates that Wolbachia has a great potential in protecting against disease brought and carried about by mosquitoes. Its (Wolbachia) affordability, sustainability, and appearance in providing protection against dengue, Zika, and other viruses makes it a great topic for study and has made researchers desire to study its influence and how it can help nations.
The need for computer technicians, coders, programmers and even scientists are now on the rise due to the evolving technology ecosystem. This is why New York City is not just coping but aims to be the tech powerhouse of America.

The city is not hesitating to spend even a triple of its annual budget just to support programs that would encourage students particularly females to take up computer science initially.

Cornell Tech on Roosevelt Island will soon rise, accommodating 2,000 graduate students, manpower team, researchers and investors. It is a venture with CUNY or City University of New York supported by technology firms. Its main aim is to entice women to get involved with technology, according to VOA News.

Brittany Greve, a STEM student (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) student attending Hunter College in New York City observes that very few women are seen at the campus. It's not just something that they would consider as their pathway to future careers.

Technology companies are also doing their share in motivating women to succeed in STEM-related careers despite not having the degree for it. 40% of Accenture employees are women.

Lynn McMahon, managing director of the company explains that to have more women in the field they have to hire them when they are still as young as Junior High school students. That way, they will be exposed to the job making it easier for them to seek for advancement.

Terry Morreale, associate director of NCWIT believes that the education system must also be improved to entice girls in continuing their computing studies. Extra-curricular programs can serve as its campaign channel through from summer camps to student support groups.

These STEM-related professions are so unpopular that a woman would be hesitant to take part unless they see their own kind succeeding in this endeavor. Cornell Tech's first class will definitely be held already at Roosevelt Island in 2017, as disclosed at Cornell's website.
Michael Sheen knows what it is like to get into acting. He even warned that if a young person chooses a career path in acting, then he is going to face a closed road for many young people. Especially those coming from the working class backgrounds.

Which is why Michael Sheen explains that there should be support in drama schools for working class actors. The actor is known for his portrayal of Tony Blair in "The Queen." And with his experience in the industry, he knows the stakes and the heart aches.

Coming from a low income background, working class children and students are most likely not going to get the chance of becoming professional actors, cites Independent. Sheen was speaking at an event at the Houses of Parliament. He points out that United Kingdom's "professional elite" is still disproportionately educated at private schools and at Oxbridge.

Their chances are slim unless they can study drama at school. This advice comes from veteran actor Michael Sheen directly. His warning comes from a place of experience and concern. Amid criticism that acting is increasingly dominated by people who were educated at public school, he called for greater support for drama in the state. He even points to the school system to address this as well as address youth theatre.

Sheen says that if a school wants to have working class actors, then their education system should have a drama department or something similar. If a school does not have a place for actors in schools, then according to Sheen people can just forget it.

He states that there are working class actors who decided to try their hand at acting. And because acting is a craft that needs to be honed, there has to be an educational venue for it. Which is why he urges the school system to support youth drama groups. He hopes to see this addressed for the future of working class actors everywhere and the youth, too.

In the meantime, check out Michael Sheen in a funny interview below:
A university in Ontario is already making sure that this Halloween 2016 is going to be a clean and non-offensive one. Brock University has released guidelines on what kind of costumes are allowed and not allowed on campus during Halloween.

This year, Brock University has sent out a list of prohibited Halloween costumes. The list includes ankle-length robes that is usually worn by Arab men. Japanese inspired Geisha costumes and make-ups are also not allowed. Any costume that includes the confederate flag is prohibited. And costumes that portray Caitlyn Jenner is not allowed, cites Toronto Sun.

The guidelines were created by the student union. The costume protocol considers the traditional or religious views, too. This event was prompted after an event two years ago spurred concerns. A group of students were dressed in blackface as the Jamaican bobsled team.

Students at Brock University have been informed that if they are not allowed entry in the campus because of their costume at the time, they will be escorted to an area so they can change. They may also be asked to remove any offending items on them.

Brock University is just one of the many schools that are using political correctness in the campus. Last year, Yale University sent out an e-mail memo regarding inappropriate costumes during Halloween. For Yale, it is to ensure that the students exercise "self censure through social norming." Even University of Florida issued a memo that they can submit a "bias incident report" and seek counselling if they encounter an offensive costume.

Last week, Brock University encourages their students to follow the set guidelines. They also congratulated the student union's efforts to create awareness about social norms when it comes to Halloween and the costumes being presented. Brock University prides itself as a community of different religions, cultures and orientations. The school hopes to set the standard for the campus and its students regarding self-censure.
Thursday, October 27, 2016, Oxford officially announced the appointment of Tim Berners-Lee, the World Wide Web inventor, as a professor in Oxford University for the Computer Science department.

Berners-Lee, who graduated 40 years ago with a degree in physics, will be working together with Nigel Shadbolt as a member of Christ Church College which was founded in 1524.

Berners-Lee, who invented the World Wide Web in 1989 in CERN Switzerland, will carry out research in Computer Science for the university. He is also working as a full time professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which is where he is currently based.

Being the pioneer of the internet, he was able to create a system that allowed the transfer of information within computer networks through the communication between Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) client and the server. Since then, he has led a powerful authority on the web and made a momentous change in the society.

The head of the Computer Science at Oxford, Mike Wooldridge said ""Few living individuals have changed our world as profoundly as Tim did with his invention of the World Wide Web. We are delighted and honored to welcome Tim back to Oxford and are tremendously excited about what we will be able to do together in the years to come."

Berners-Lee was recognized as one of the 100 most important people of the 20th century by the Time Magazine.

In 1989, he wrote in a memo, the explanation on how hypertext could be combined with the internet and be used to share and distribute information worldwide.

Martyn Percy, the dean of Christ Church, expressed his gladness for having Berners-Lee as part of the university. "We are delighted that Professor Sir Tim Berners-Lee will be joining us. As one of the most significant innovators and scholars of our time, his work with us here in Oxford will continue".
Google has conducted a two-year study within the company to find out what the secret to success is and the answer they found out was very simple: being nice. Being nice encompasses the feeling of security and acceptance within a group. However, success is not just about niceness because if this is the case, all the nice people in the world should have been successful by now.

Another team of researchers has conducted a study among university students to find out what makes other successful than others. They have found out that it's not really about the goals people set for themselves because a great number of people didn't have the motivation to follow through their goals. Instead, it is all about their implicit beliefs.

Implicit beliefs, according to the researchers, are those beliefs that people have but are unaware of, but greatly impact their decisions. For example, studies have shown that people who say they are egalitarian actually posses strong prejudices. These beliefs are also what impacts a person's view of success.

Using this as their basis, the researchers measured the participants' implicit beliefs about certain areas in their lives to predict whether they have what it takes to succeed. To do this, they used a computer-based questionnaire called the Implicit Association Test, which takes seven minutes to finish. The test asks the students to rate a certain word associated to schoolwork as synonymous to important or unimportant.

Aside from the negative and positive associations, speed also is an important element in answering the question. How fast or slow the student answered the question makes a difference in the result, even a millisecond mattered.

The test was also used among people who go to the gym to find out those people who are likely to exercise regularly and intensely, and the results are the same. Those who implicitly believe that schoolwork or exercise is important are those who are more likely to succeed.
While speaking at the opening ceremony of the Madhya Pradesh Global Investors Summit (GIS-2016) at Indore, Union minister for IT and electronics Ravi Shankar Prasad described Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan as the opening batsman of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Team India. "Shivraj can play inswingers, bouncers and outswingers with equal ease," he said. Besides reading the statement as a compliment to the CM's political skill, delegates saw another message: that Chouhan, having successfully batted for farmers, was now bringing his batting abilities to bear on other sectors of the economy.

But first, some context. In 2014-15, MP had a GDP of about Rs 5 lakh crore, of which about Rs 1.8 lakh crore came from the primary sector (agriculture, animal husbandry, forests and fishing), Rs 1.1 lakh crore from the secondary sector (industries, manufacturing, etc.), with the balance Rs 2.1 lakh crore coming from the service sector. In doing so, the primary sector had grown by almost 30 per cent that year, the secondary by 7.8 percent, and the tertiary by 12.2 percent. Broadly speaking, these trends have held steady for some time: MP has clocked GDP growth of almost 10 per cent over the past four years, with agriculture maintaining over 20 percent growth over the same period. As a result, agriculture is perceived to have reached the potential of its growth, prompting the political leadership to consider developing other sectors in order to maintain the growth momentum. With this objective in mind, CM Chouhan and his team played host to nearly 5,000 delegates, from more than 40 countries, on October 22-23, at GIS-2016. The event was attended by several captains of industry, among them Gopichand Hinduja, Anil Ambani and Kumar Mangalam Birla. Political heavyweights were roped in too: finance minister Arun Jaitley inaugurated the event, and the valedictory session was presided over by minister for external affairs, Sushma Swaraj. This was not the first time that MP was laying out the red carpet for investors-GIS-2016 was the fifth summit of its kind, with earlier editions held in 2007, 2010, 2012 and 2014.

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GIS-2016 began with the state chief secretary, Anthony de Sa, making a presentation on developments in the state. The MP government had identified key sectors that it wished to aggressively develop, including agri-business and food processing, textiles, renewable energy, defence, pharmaceuticals, IT/ ITES and electronic systems design and manufacturing (ESDM), not to mention urban development, tourism and automobile engineering. One takeaway was the new, sector-based approach: traditionally, industries in MP have been based in clusters located close to the divisional headquarters of Bhopal, Indore, Ujjain, Gwalior and Jabalpur. More importantly, each industrial area features a mix of industries that are mostly ancillary units catering to bigger units elsewhere in the state. Another takeaway was the focus on integrating new development with existing sectors. While MP already holds pole position in the production of certain agri-commodities, it expects to vertically integrate these by setting up food processing units.

The pitch at GIS-2016 was based on easily available land and resources. The state government claimed to have earmarked an industrial land bank, 120,000 acres in size, an installed capacity of 18,900 MW, up from 12,600 MW two years ago, with 4,200 km of national highways and 10,000 km of rural roads added or repaired in the past two years. These plans were matched by sector-specific policies like interest subvention, rebates on land registration, transport reimbursement and entry tax exemptions to investment projects. The GST Bill was also pitched as a game-changer in the attempt to develop MP into a logistics hub. "Once a single taxation regime is implemented across the country, what was a location disadvantage will turn into an advantage for Madhya Pradesh," said finance minister Jaitley.

Doing what he often does during elections - seeking to leverage his personal rapport with folks into public support-CM Chouhan said that industrialists should remember that MP has him as its CM. In turn, the big guns of industry heaped fulsome praise on him: "I have grown more in the seven years I have spent in Madhya Pradesh than in my 30 years in Punjab, from where I come," says Rajendra Gupta of Trident Group, promising a Rs 2,500 crore investment.

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PR exercises aside, the chief minister is no doubt aware that investment has not been arriving in MP in proportion to expectations. The opposition made much of this: a day before GIS-2016, state Congress president Arun Yadav said previous summits had been utter failures: "They provide an opportunity to officers and ministers for foreign junkets, crores of rupees are spent and the state doesn't get anything," he said. He added that the state government had claimed the summit in 2007 would yield Rs 1,20,000 crore, but only Rs 4,744 crore actually materialised. He offered figures for 2010 and 2012 as well, saying Rs 2,37,836 crore and Rs 1,22,300 crore were promised, while actual investment was under four percent of that. GIS-2014 should have brought in Rs 6,79,000 crore, he said, but there was no way to know the final sum, since no MoUs were signed that year.

Towards the end of the second day of GIS-2016, the chief minister announced that investment proposals totalling Rs 5,62,847 crore had been received. While no one doubted the CM's sincerity, the bureaucracy in MP does not have the best reputation for efficiency, prompting Anil Ambani to mention that in an age of competitive federalism, when all states are wooing investors, the pace of decisions has to quicken, and that a "CM is as good as his team", adding, "it is better to tell us something can't be done rather than delaying".

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The Hindi heartland has a saying: 'Uttam kheti, madhyam vyapar, nikrishth chakri, bheekh nidan (when it comes to work, farming is the best)'. Vyapar, it seems, still has a long way to go.

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SpaceX is expected to launch another rocket at the LC 39A by early November or December. This comes as Elon Musk and his team are investigating the explosion of the Falcon 9 rocket last September.

It was previously reported that SpaceX is still continuing the investigation on the explosion of its Falcon 9 rocket. All angles were examined - even sabotage implications.

There were speculations by Elon Musk and his company that its rival, the United Launch Alliance (ULA), may have something to do with the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket blast last September. Apparently, something suspicious happened during the launch and the company's officials wanted to check it out. A SpaceX employee was denied access to ULA's building, though.

Recently, the investigation found that SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket explosion may have been caused by a fueling error. Elon Musk and his company are still waiting for the investigation to be completed with the final conclusions, though, before announcing the details to the public.

Spaceflight Insider reported that, according to SpaceX COO and president Gwynne Shotwell, the company will still be able to conduct as many as two flights before the year ends. There are speculations that Musk's space company will use Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex 39A.

SpaceX has a 20-year lease with NASA for the LC 39A. It is believed that this is where the Falcon 9 will resume its flights.

The publication noted that SpaceX was planning on conducting a launch from the LC 39A on Dec. 17-18. It has not been revealed which mission is supposed to take flight during the next attempts.

"We are continuing to make progress with our anomaly investigation and working to return to flight safely and reliably," a spokesperson of the company told Spaceflight Insider. "We anticipate launching as early as November, but [we] have not announced any specific dates at this time."

Elon Musk's company has stated in an update on its website that the Falcon 9 rocket explosion was caused by a "large breach" in the cryogenic helium system of its second stage liquid oxygen tank. The company is continuing investigation.
Fraternities have been given a bad rep due to the scandals that some members were involved in. These Greek groups, however, are not inherently bad. Joining these organizations can allow students to socialize, engage in philanthropy and be a part of a bigger community.

It was reported that Tufts University has warned students, specifically members of its fraternities and sororities, that they could face "serious disciplinary sanctions" if they wear Halloween costumes that are deemed as offensive. This would include a possible investigation by the campus police if they wear said costumes that make the campus community "feel threatened or unsafe."

The warning was part of a letter signed by several Greek Life council leaders. It was sent to the presidents of fraternities and sororities on campus. It was then relayed to chapter presidents who passed the message to their members.

According to U.S. News, there are more than 6,100 fraternity chapters that exist on about 800 college campuses in the United States and Canada during the 2014-2015 academic year. This data is collected by the North-American Interfraternity Conference.

It is possible that the presence or absence of fraternities could be one of the factors that a student would look for when deciding on a university or college. The publication listed down the top universities where the most students join fraternities.

DePauw University in Indiana took the top spot with 79 percent of male undergraduates being a part of a fraternity. It has a total undergraduate enrollment rate of 2,265.

It is followed by Washington and Lee University, which is based in Virginia, with a percentage of 78. Welch College in Tennessee comes in third with 65 percent.

Millsaps College in Mississippi has 62 percent of its male undergraduates in fraternities. It has a total undergraduate rate of 761. Completing the top five is Tennessee-based school Sewanee - University of the South with 60 percent and an undergraduate count of 1,710.

Other schools on the list are Wabash College, Ohio Valley University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Westminster College, Dartmouth College and Ohio Wesleyan University.
The secretary spoke at a hangar on the flightline of the base. He thanked the airmen at the base, and by extension, thanked the thousands of other technicians who man, maintain, guard and operate the bombers, ICBMs, ballistic missile submarines and the command-and-control systems around the world.



As you know, everyone has their role to play, he said, and while each physical piece is important, it's really the people who make the whole greater than the sum of the parts.



September 26, 2016 - Defense Secretary Ash Carter speaks to troops at Minot Air Force Base, ND. Carter is traveling to North Dakota and New Mexico to highlight the nation's nuclear enterprise, an area of critical importance to the long-term security of the United States. (DoD photo by Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brigitte N. Brantley) Bedrock of U.S. Security



The secretary emphasized throughout his talk with the airmen that America's nuclear deterrence is the bedrock of U.S. security and the highest priority mission in the Defense Department.



Because while it is a remarkable achievement that in the more than seven decades since 1945, nuclear weapons have not again been used in war, that's not something we can ever take for granted, he said. And that's why today, I want to talk about how we're innovating and investing to sustain that bedrock.



Carter has a long history with the nuclear mission, working in the 1980s on basing for the MX missile system. He speaks from experience when he says the deterrence mission has both remained the same and changed.



At a strategic level, of course, you deter large-scale nuclear attack against the United States and our allies, he said. You help convince potential adversaries that they can't escalate their way out of failed conventional aggression. You assure allies that our extended deterrence guarantees are credible -- enabling many of them to forgo developing nuclear weapons themselves, despite the tough strategic environment they find themselves in and the technological ease with which they could develop such weapons. And, if deterrence fails, you provide the president with options to achieve U.S. and allied objectives -- a responsibility that I know President Obama takes with the utmost seriousness, as you do -- all to reduce the risk of nuclear weapons being used in first place.



The nuclear deterrent also provides an umbrella under which service members accomplish conventional missions around the world, the secretary said.



Changed Nuclear Landscape



But the nuclear landscape has changed and it will continue to pose challenges, Carter said.



One way the nuclear landscape has changed: we didn't build new types of nuclear weapons or delivery systems for the last 25 years, but others did, at the same time that our allies in Asia, the Middle East, and NATO did not, the secretary said, -- so we must continue to sustain our deterrence. Russia has modernized its nuclear arsenal, and there is some doubt about Russian leaders' strategies for the weapons.



Meanwhile, North Korea's nuclear and missile provocations underscore that a diverse and dynamic spectrum of nuclear threats still exists, Carter said. So our deterrence must be credible, and extended to our allies in the region.



North Korea is building nuclear warheads and the means to deliver them, the secretary said. The North Korean threat spurs spending on missile defense in the United States and the deployment of systems to South Korea, he added.



We back all of that up with the commitment that any attack on America or our allies will be not only defeated, but that any use of nuclear weapons will be met with an overwhelming and effective response, Carter said.



India and China are behaving responsibly with their nuclear enterprises, the secretary said.



In Iran, their nuclear aspirations have been constrained and transparency over their activities increased by last year's nuclear accord, which, as long as it continues to be implemented, will verifiably prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, Carter said. The last example I'll cite is Pakistan, where nuclear weapons are entangled in a history of tension, and while they are not a threat to the United States directly, we work with Pakistan to ensure stability.



Nature of Deterrence Remains the Same



Despite the changes since the end of the Cold War, the nature of deterrence has not changed, the secretary said. Even in 2016, deterrence still depends on perception -- what potential adversaries see, and therefore believe -- about our will and ability to act, he said. This means that as their perceptions shift, so must our strategy and actions.



A large-scale nuclear attack is not likely, the secretary said. The most likely scenario is the unwise resort to smaller but still unprecedentedly terrible attacks, for example by Russia or North Korea, to try to coerce a conventionally superior opponent to back off or abandon an ally during a crisis, Carter said. We cannot allow that to happen, which is why we're working with our allies in both regions to innovate and operate in new ways that sustain deterrence and continue to preserve strategic stability.



NATO is reexamining the nuclear strategy to integrate conventional and nuclear deterrence to deter Russia, he said.



Meanwhile, across the Pacific, the United States engages in formal deterrence dialogues with its allies Japan and South Korea, Carter said, to ensure we're poised to address nuclear deterrence challenges in Asia.



Carter said the U.S. is taking steps to ensure that its nuclear triad -- bombers, ICBMS and ballistic missile submarines -- do not become obsolete.



We're now beginning the process of correcting decades of under-investment in nuclear deterrence, the secretary said.



Nuclear Underfunding



DoD has underfunded its nuclear deterrence enterprise since the end of the Cold War, Carter said.



Over the last 25 years since then, we only made modest investments in basic sustainment and operations, about $15 billion a year, he said. And it turned out that wasn't enough.



The fiscal year 2017 budget request invests a total of $19 billion in the nuclear enterprise, Carter said. Over the next five years, he said, plans call for the department to spend $108 billion to sustain and recapitalize the nuclear force and associated strategic command, control, communications, and intelligence systems.



The budget also looks to modernization, the secretary said. Plans call for replacing old ICBMs with new ones that will be less expensive to maintain, keeping strategic bombers effective in the face of more advanced air defense systems, and building replacements for the Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines, the secretary said.



If we don't replace these systems, quite simply they will age even more, and become unsafe, unreliable, and ineffective, Carter said. The fact is, most of our nuclear weapon delivery systems have already been extended decades beyond their original expected service lives. So it's not a choice between replacing these platforms or keeping them. It's really a choice between replacing them or losing them. That would mean losing confidence in our ability to deter, which we can't afford in today's volatile security environment.



While these plans are expensive, they are only a small percentage of total defense spending, the secretary said.



In the end, though, this is about maintaining the bedrock of our security, Carter said. And after too many years of not investing enough, it's an investment that we as a nation have to make, because it's critical to sustaining nuclear deterrence in the 21st century. By Jim Garamone

DOD News

Copyright 2016 Comment on this article
The mother of an 8-year-old girl in Malaysia shackled her to a lamp post as a punishment for missing school.

By India Today Web Desk: Mother of an 8-year-old in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, thought the best way to discipline her child would be by shackling her to a lamp post on the street.

The woman did so because the young girl gave her school a miss.

Passersby, who found the child weeping and sucking her thumb in distress, failed to help as the shackles were tethered to the lamp post with a lock. Hence, the little girl remained stuck to the post outside her mother's apartment in Kuala Lumpur for over an hour, until the police arrived.

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"The girl was quite clearly upset and didn't know what to do," a passer-by told the UK Mirror. "She was sucking her thumb and had tears in her eyes."

"We reported it to police and we hope that they look into the family further to make sure that the girl is not harmed again." he said.

Also read: Parents booked for keeping boy chained to keep him at madrasa



The child told the police that her 30-year-old mom chained her as a punishment for skipping school. She remained locked up even after that, until her mother arrived some time later and unlocked her.

Reports have it that police let the mother go with a mere warning since it was her "first time" of tying her daughter up publicly.

"We established that it was the first time the girl was chained," said Assistant Police Commissioner Mohammad Azlin Sadari. "It was decided to let the mother go home with her daughter, warning her not to do it again."

"There is such a thing as tough love but this is taking it too far," said a witness.



--- ENDS ---
Published: October 27, 2016

Ethical Hacking Course Preps Students for the Art of Cyber War

When asked to describe the ethical hacking course, both its administrators and students quoted the ancient Chinese military work, The Art of War.



Know the enemy and know yourself; in a hundred battles you will never be in peril, Anthony Bilotto 08, 16 quoted Sun Tzu. The information learned in class provides the foundational knowledge to successfully defend oneself or business by learning the tactics, strategies and actions that nefarious individuals may utilize. Thus, knowing your opponent, or cyber adversary, allows for the ability to be better prepared to defend against them.



There are no PowerPoint slides or handwritten notes on the wipe board in ITM 480.



Its like one endless lab, said Ken Knapp, director of cybersecurity programs, of the course. Its all very hands on and experiential.



Knapp defined ethical hacking as hacking with permission. Any time you hack or break into a system without permission, youre probably violating the law, and you can get in big trouble, but here we have permission. Its a sandbox environment where we can hone our skills and develop our talents within a safe place.



On the very first day of class, the students hacked into a system. Knapp said it was intentional so the students could see the end game, and give them a frame of reference for the methodology.



Its definitely pretty cool to say that after the first day youve already compromised and managed to access a target, said Bilotto, who is majoring in management information systems with a minor in cybersecurity.



Working out of the first floor of the Daly Innovation and Collaboration Building, the class lab has been transformed into a cyber range built by Ryan Burcel, the cybersecurity lab coordinator who is a Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP).



Knapp described it in terms of a gun range.



You have to learn proper training, safety, how to use your gun and then you fire it down range at the targets, Knapp said. Here at a cyber range, its somewhat like that. The weapon is Kali Linux. The targets are a variety of virtual machines  different types of computers that are run virtually.



Knapp said Kali Linux, which is an operating system like Windows, was built for the whole purpose of hacking and penetration testing. Its a state-of-the-art tool that allows students to use the same hacking tools that the malicious attackers are using.



The cyber range Burcel built is comprised of virtual machines that run different types of operating systems. Students run their scans against these to figure out what the machine is, what the machine does and what kind of traffic is coming out of that virtual machine.



The size that we can build our classes out to is very large because of our virtual infrastructure, Burcel said. Were not size restricted with anything that we can do in here with targets or attack machines.



Ethical hacking is a required course for the cybersecurity major. There are two pre-requisite courses, as well as the need to be in good standing with the University. Students also sign a user agreement acknowledging the serious nature of what they are learning and the consequences if used in a malicious manner.



I think the cautious approach is essential, because anyone who is working in an information and security role has a very high degree of trust placed in them. So its very important I think that you ensure the people entering into that field are of good moral character, Bilotto said. When in the proper hands, this knowledge is a very powerful way to ensure that you can protect against the nefarious people.



Interest in the cybersecurity program has grown in the year since it began, with nearly 130 students now in the major. Career options are plentiful and varied, Knapp said.



Its very dynamic. Its always changing, Knapp said. The threat is changing, the attack vectors are changing, the systems are changing. Youll never be bored in cybersecurity.



UTs program prepares students for professional security certifications, such as the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) exam, a credential Knapp holds.



After meeting with Dr. Knapp to discuss the program and see what was going to be offered, I knew immediately that I wanted to come to UT. The program was everything I was looking for and was better than what was being offered at the state schools, said Michael Merrick 17, a cybersecurity major. UT has a cutting-edge cybersecurity program housed in an AACSB accredited business school, the best of both the business and technical worlds.



Merrick is interning this semester at MacDill Air Force base working with the deployment and support of Windows 10 in an enterprise environment. Bilotto interned with Raymond James Financial this summer in information security and was offered a full-time job starting in January after he graduates.



One of the things I have desired most, both personally and professionally, is a stable, enjoyable and rewarding career, Bilotto said. Thanks to my education and experiences at UT, I believe the University has helped to put me on that path. The information learned in my MIS and cybersecurity classes have already proved invaluable in my past internship experiences, and will undoubtedly assist in providing a foundation for future growth and learning.





Have a story idea? Contact Jamie Pilarczyk, Web Writer

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German Consul General to Speak Oct. 31 at UW

Stefan Schlueter

Stefan Schlueter, German consul general, will give a free public presentation on race and immigration issues in Europe Monday, Oct. 31, at the University of Wyoming.

Schlueter will discuss Immigration, Nationalism, and Racism: How is Europe Coping? at 2 p.m. in the Wyoming Union Senate Chambers. He plans to give a 15-minute presentation, followed by a 45-minute question-and-answer session with UW faculty, staff, students and community members.

Populism is a challenge we are facing on both sides of the Atlantic, and the answer (hopefully) is Wir schaffen das or Yes, we can, Schlueter says.

Schlueter has served as the German consul general in San Francisco since August 2014. Before that, he was ambassador to the Eastern Caribbean region. From 2007-10, he was the director for conflict prevention, peace-building, democracy promotion and state-building at the German Foreign Office in Berlin. In that position, he repeatedly visited failed and fragile states -- mainly in Africa -- and promoted assistance programs and projects worldwide.

He has served as deputy ambassador in Buenos Aires; as deputy consul general in New York City and Los Angeles; and as deputy director of the unit working on Germanys foreign policy toward the southern part of Latin America. At the German Foreign Office in Bonn, he was the desk officer for the Maghreb countries. He also was the spokesman for the German Embassy in Tel Aviv.

Schlueter studied political science at the University of Hamburg, Germany.

His visit to UW is related, in part, to Germany Meets the U.S., a grant-funded project with the German Embassy.

For more information, call Tracey Patton at (307) 766-3857 or email topatton@uwyo.edu.
UW-Sponsored World Languages Day Starts You Fund Campaign

Sponsors for World Languages Day 2017 are turning to the popular trend of crowdfunding to help support the program that attracts nearly 350 students from across the state each spring to the University of Wyoming.

The goal is to try to raise $6,000 to help eliminate the $15 registration fee for participants, says Laura De Lozier, UW Department of Modern and Classical Languages assistant chair. The department has sponsored the event the past five years.

World Languages Day, which is typically scheduled the first Friday and Saturday of March, celebrates second language -- or more -- acquisition and cultural awareness for students in grades 6-12. Last year, 360 participants were involved in 80 competitions and 24 workshops. Students also attended a resource fair.

The annual event provides a venue for students to showcase their language talents in judged competitions. This years event is March 4-5.

De Lozier says the funding campaign will help offset the conferences biggest expense: the cost of meals for the more than 350 students and the staff members who lead the programs.

These meals provide more than sustenance. They allow students in grades 6-12 to envision a place for themselves at UW, build community with other Wyoming language-learners and hear music from a range of cultures during the Saturday luncheon, she says. Our picking up the tab for these meals also stretches the tight budgets that our colleagues in Wyoming school districts have for extracurricular activities in the humanities.

To help support World Languages Day, visit the UW You Fund website at www.uwyo.edu/YouFund.

For more information, call Mollie Hand, the events co-director, at (307) 766-4177 or email mhand4@uwyo.edu.
Wyoming Business Tips for Nov. 6-12

A weekly look at Wyoming business questions from the Wyoming Small Business Development Center (WSBDC), part of WyomingEntrepreneur.Biz, a collection of business assistance programs at the University of Wyoming.

By Cindy Unger, WSBDC business adviser

With the holiday season fast approaching, can you provide some information about customer service? Christina, Casper

Strategic planning for the New Year also is looming in many organizations. Customer service, experiences and engagement are current considerations. Good customer service can change a customers entire perception of an organization.

Customer service is an important part of the entire customer experience. The customer experience consists of the customers perception of all interactions with an organization during the duration of the relationship. Other aspects of the customer experience include the product itself, the product packaging, the image portrayed by the physical store, any guarantees or warranties, return policies and customer support after the sale.

A companys customer service and customer experience should be designed to engender customer engagement. How does one define customer engagement? A simple synonym would be customer loyalty.

If an individual has a positive experience with a business, the customer should become more engaged, exhibiting loyalty behaviors and attitudes. Loyal customers tend to represent no more than 20 percent of the customer base, but comprise more than 50 percent of sales.

Attracting new business is certainly important, but focusing on this 20 percent that are the best customers will reap continuing rewards. To maintain that engaged customer base, customer service is key.

Some simple customer service tips include:

-- Listen to customers, and suggest how to solve their problems. Help even if there is no immediate profit attached. Your customer will remember your assistance and return.

-- Answer your phone. Customers prefer to speak with a human, as opposed to a recording.

-- Dont make promises unless you know you can keep them. Reliability is key to a good relationship.

-- Deal with complaints quickly and efficiently. View complaints as opportunities.

-- Train your staff to be knowledgeable about your products, helpful and courteous.

-- Put forth extra effort on behalf of your customers. They will remember the extra help in the future.

-- Throw in something extra with the sale. People love to get more than they thought they were getting. Add a coupon, additional information about how to use the product, a shopping bag, etc.

Remember, attitudes and behaviors are the primary components of loyal customer relationships. Good customer service results in a positive customer experience and creates engaged customer relationships. Engaged customers return again and again, and not only spend, but promote your business to others.

As your business becomes part of your customers lifestyle (think Starbucks), your profits will soar.

A blog version of this article and an opportunity to post comments are available at www.wyomingsbdc.org/blog1/.

The WSBDC is a partnership of the U.S. Small Business Administration, the Wyoming Business Council and the University of Wyoming. To ask a question, call 1-800-348-5194, email wsbdc@uwyo.edu, or write 1000 E. University Ave., Dept. 3922, Laramie, WY, 82071-3922.
Former Bigg Boss contestant Kushal Tandon is not too fond of BB10 aam aadmi contestant Manu Punjabi, and thinks that BB10 is the worst season of Bigg Boss.

By India Today Web Desk: Television actor and former Bigg Boss contestant Kushal Tandon is not at all happy with the way things are shaping up in the present season of popular reality show Bigg Boss.

Kushal, who had participated in Season 7 of the show, recently took to Twitter to express his disappointment.

Also read:Bigg Boss 10 Day 11: Bani J calls Indiawale 'gande log'; Om Swami, Mona Lisa in jail again



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Kushal wrote, "Worst worst worst season of BiggBoss?besides two things Salman bhai and channel Colors, period."

Worst worst worst season of Bigboss .... Beside two things Salman bhai and the channel Colors ??period KUSHAL TANDON (@KushalT2803) October 26, 2016

In fact, the talented actor, who is currently starring in a new show called Beyhadh, was asked by his co-star Aneri Vajani to re-enter the show to put things back in order.

Aneri had tweeted, "Tandon u shld go as a wild card entry in #BB10 at least for a week! It would be next level."

Kushal reminded her that he is currently starring in a show, and he can't leave that for Bigg Boss. But he is certainly following it.

Is mannu ko tho main marongha .... If ever I c his face ??Coz he has BMW 4 series .. Areee bhai there is no series called 4 series in BMW ??? KUSHAL TANDON (@KushalT2803) October 26, 2016

And guess who is the good-looking actor's least favourite contestant in the house? It is Manu Punjabi, people. Yes, it is true. Kushal made that quite clear with one of his tweets.

Well, that is Kushal's opinion about Bigg Boss Season 10. Which is your favourite Bigg Boss season?

Bigg Boss Season 10 airs every Mon-Fri at 10:30 pm, and every Sat-Sun at 9 pm.

--- ENDS ---
Top Maoist leader Ramakrishna alias RK has been arrested after Malkangiri encounter, claims secretary of CPI-M's East Division Committee Kailash.

By Ashish Pandey: Has top Maoist leader and the most well-known face in the Maoist Central Committee Akkiraju Haragopal alias RK (Ramakrishna) been nabbed by the Greyhound after the Malkangiri encounter?

The secretary of CPI (Maoist) East Division Committee Kailash claims so.

In an audio release, the Maoist leader said that security personnel had taken top naxal leader Ramakrishna alias RK in their custody.

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MAOIST LEADER BLAMES ODISHA, ANDHRA CMs FOR ENCOUNTER



Holding the Odisha and Andhra Pradesh Chief Ministers responsible for the encounter under Panasput gram panchyat of Malkangiri district on October 24 in which 30 red rebels were killed, Kailash alleged that the Andhra Pradesh government was undertaking 'Operation Green Hunt' in the area with the aim of resuming mining operations to safeguard the interests of industrialists.

The Left-wing extremists have threatened the SPs of Malkangiri Mitrabhanu Mohapatra and Visakhapatnam Rural SP Rahil dev Sharam with dire consequences.

Also read: Naxals threaten to kill Andhra CM Chandrababu Naidu, son in revenge for Malkangiri



Earlier, various Maoist sympathisers had claimed that RK had managed to escape from the site of the encounter and was safe, but now Hyderabad-based Naxal sympathiser Varavara Rao, along with Telangana Democratic Forum conveners Professor Haragopal, PV Vishweswara Rao, J Malayya, Justice Chandrakumar, Chikkudu Prabhakar and others say that RK has been arrested by Andhra Pradesh police.

They demanded that the police immediately produce RK and another senior Maoist commander Ganesh before the court of law.

ANDHRA DGP DENIES DETENTION CLAIM



However, refuting the claim, Andhra Pradesh Director General of Police N. Sambasiva Rao denied that the police had detained top Maoist leader Ramkrishna alias RK.

Speaking to India Today, the top cop said, "We are clueless about the whereabouts of RK. Our operation is still on in the forest area as we belive over 20 Maoists fled after the encounter."

An early Monday morning encounter completely wiped out the top Maoist leadership in the strategically-important Andhra-Odisha Special Zonal Committee of the banned organisation.

MALKANGIRI ENCOUNTER



The joint operation carried out by Andhra Pradesh's elite anti-Maoist force Greyhound and Odisha Police killed 30 Maoists, including East Division Secretary Appa Rao alias Chalapathi, his wife and Maoist leader Aruna, the military head of AOB zone Gajarala Ashok alias Uday, the son of central committee member Ramakrishna alias RK identified as Munna.

Akkiraju Haragopal aka RK, who had represented the Maoists during talks with the then YS Rajasekhara Reddy-led Andhra Pradesh Government in 2005, is one Central committee leader of the banned CPI (Maoist) who carries a combined reward of over Rs 1 crore in Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Odisha.

--- ENDS ---

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Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte will protect the country's business process outsourcing (BPO) industry, a Cabinet official said Thursday, as he urged stakeholders to "forget the political noise."

The BPO industry, which employs 1.2 million, has sought clarification from the President on his tough rhetoric against its main client, the United States.

"I assure you that the BPO sector will be protected not only by me, but by the President," Secretary Rodolfo Salalima of the Department of Information and Communication Technology said.

"Contracts that have been enforced and still existing shall be respected and will continue until their full implementation," he added.

Salalima told a BPO summit that his agency would ensure policies are in place to sustain the industry's growth.

"It is clear that the creation of the DICT will make the country a prime spot for the BPO industry and we assure you that the same objective and mandate of our department will remain and be pursued," he said.

During the summit, the Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP) presented its roadmap for the next six years.

Industry revenues had the potential to reach $38.9 billion in 2022 from $22.9 billion this year, said IBPAP vice chairman Lito Tayag.

The Philippine outsourcing industry aims to increase its share of the global market to 15.5 percent in 2022 from the current 12.6 percent, he said.

Tayag said the industry would continue to be a key job generator, accounting for one in every seven jobs created in the next seven years.

It also aims to expand outside the capital, where it aims to grow employment by 11 percent and plans to hire more workers with post-graduate qualifications, he said.

The group plans to increase its non-voice offerings to 42 percent from 34 percent. The industry had been preparing to weather the impact of the automation of voice-based services.

The industry would rather focus on the President's economic agenda and on their foreign business counterparts, Philippine Call Center and Outsourcing Alliance founding President joji Bian Ilagan told ANC's "Market Edge with Cathy Yang."

"As a sector we would like to focus on that so that our outsourcing partners would realize, it makes good business sense doing outsourcing in the Philippines," she said.

Duterte announced last week the country's "separation" from the US, while on a four-day state visit to China, capping weeks of verbal attacks on Washington for criticizing his bloody war on drugs.

He has also threatened to curse at US President Barack Obama, forcing the cancellation of their planned meeting in Laos in September, and ordered a stop to joint sea patrols between Filipino and American troops.


Robosaurus, a 40 foot tall monster that weighs 29 tons, shoots a 20 foot flame from its nostrils and can crush 20,000 pounds in its stainless steel teeth, rolled down The Las Vegas Strip this week to kick off the Barrett-Jackson Auto Auction being held Oct. 16-18, 2008, at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.

Robosaurus has been destroying countless cars and airplanes since its invention by Doug Malewicki in 1988. A human pilot inside the monsters head guided it down the Las Vegas Strip to launch the Barrett-Jackson Auto Auction.

For more news about the auction, read these stories:
Vietnams digital economy has seen significant growth over the last decade and is expected to be valued at US$57 billion by 2025. The countrys digital...
Swimmer Michael Phelps, the most decorated athlete in Olympic history, declared that the Rio Games would be his last.

By Reuters: Olympic swimming star Michael Phelps, unbeknownst to the world, competed at the 2016 Summer Games in Brazil as a married man, having quietly wed his fiancee, former Miss California Nicole Johnson, weeks earlier, court records made public on Thursday showed. (Rio 2016: Michael Phelps signs off with 23rd Olympic Gold)



Phelps and Johnson, both 31, tied the knot in Paradise Valley, Arizona, on June 13, but have not publicly announced the nuptials, the Arizona Republic newspaper reported, citing a marriage document the paper published on its website.

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Phelps revealed the couple's engagement in February 2015.

Representatives for Phelps could not be immediately reached for comment on Thursday. (Michael Phelps now has as many medals as India have since 1900)



According to the newspaper, the former Miss USA contestant posted a photo on Instagram of herself, Phelps and their months-old son, Boomer, in casual clothes on the day of the marriage with a caption reading: "Such a memorable night with my lil fambam."

Shortly after, Phelps competed in the Rio de Janeiro Games, where he won the 23rd, and presumably final, Olympic gold medal of his career.

Phelps, the most decorated athlete in Olympic history, declared that the Rio Games would be his last.

--- ENDS ---
Vietnam will be the first stop on Hogans itinerary, where he will visit Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, on November 2-4, 2016. This visit comes at an opportune time when the European Union and Vietnam concluded the negotiations for the bilateral Free Trade Agreement and expect to sign soon. Apart from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, other stops as part of this regional tour will include Singapore and Jakarta, Indonesia.

Accompanying Commissioner Hogan will be a 41-member strong business delegation of European food and beverage (F&B) companies who are seeking business opportunities in the local market. The visit aims to promote the strengths of European F&B products as being safe, high in quality and nutritious.

The accompanying business delegations are from different EU countries, including Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain and the UK. They will be promoting a wide variety of agricultural and F&B products from fruits and vegetables to fresh meat, poultry, processed foods, from milk and dairy products to wine & spirits.

During the visit, in Hanoi, Commissioner Hogan and the business delegations will attend a seminar on the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) where topics on food safety, investment, distribution, licensing of F&B products and wider business opportunities will be discussed.

A working lunch will serve as a networking platform for the high level delegates, ambassadors, trade officials from EU Member States embassies in Vietnam, and local buyers and importers. The lunch will feature a number of high quality European F&B products on the menu. The delegation will also visit local and international retail outlets to gain first-hand insights on the local market place.

In Ho Chi Minh City, Commissioner Hogan and the delegates will attend a seminar focusing on quality food concepts such as Geographical Indications and business opportunities in Vietnam. A business forum will equip the delegation with better understanding of market access, local rules and regulations, as well as Vietnamese consumers trends and appetite for quality food products. Complementing these events will be B2B meetings where EU producers and Vietnamese importers, distributors and retailers will discuss business deals.

The high level trade mission demonstrates the strong interests of the European business community in Vietnam's F&B businesses. With this visit, it is hoped that the EU companies will be able to explore new business opportunities in Vietnam market and in return, local consumers in Vietnam will soon have the opportunities to experience a greater range of quality, tasty and safe European F&B products.

Vietnam has experienced a radical economic and social transformation over the past two decades alongside integration into the global economy. As a rapidly developing and fast growing ASEAN economy, Vietnam holds substantial potential for EU businesses.

In 2015, EU-Vietnam trade in goods was worth over 38.4 billion ($42 billion), with 29.9 billion ($32.6 billion) in imports from Vietnam into the EU, 8.4 billion ($9.17 billion) in exports from the EU to Vietnam. In 2015, Vietnam ranked 21st among EUs trading partners. Conversely, the EU was Vietnams second largest trading partner of Vietnam after China. The EU was also the second largest overseas market for Vietnamese products after the US. Vietnam has become the EUs second largest trade partner in ASEAN after Singapore and ahead of Malaysia.

Vietnam's key export items to the EU include telephone sets, electronic products, footwear, textiles and clothing, coffee, rice, seafood, and furniture. EU exports to Vietnam are dominated by high tech products including electrical machinery and equipment, aircraft, vehicles, and pharmaceutical products.

At present, Vietnam continues to enjoy trade preferences with the EU under the Generalised Scheme of Preferences  but this will be replaced by the EVFTA once it enters into force.

The EU is one of the largest foreign investors in Vietnam. In 2015, EU investors committed a total of $1.54 billion in Foreign Direct Investment and thus became Vietnam's third largest foreign investor partner.
The Electronic Dance Music (EDM) party, co-organised by Anternation, Kingdom Corporation, and Green House, will attract the participation of two renowned EDM stars, Alesso and KSHMR.

Born in Northampton, England, Alan Walker is best known for the electronic dance music single "Faded", which struck gold in international markets, receiving Platinum certification in over 10 different countries.
The high tech industrial park (IP) and township complex in the northeastern Quang Ninh Province is expected to start its construction before Lunar New Year of 2017.- Photo cafef.vn

The province's chairman, Nguyen Duc Long, on October 26 held a meeting with the group on the project's progress.

Amata said it is planned to complete the project at Uong Bi City and Quang Yen Town by 2035.

According to the plan, in the 2016-20 period, under the project, the IP would be built in Quang Yen Town's Song Khoai Commune. The IP's detailed plan was submitted to authorities for approval. In addition, Amata would co-operate with the province to submit a proposal to the Prime Minister to change the location of the approved Phuong Nam IP to Song Khoai Commune.

Long hailed the efforts of the group and relevant departments in resolving difficulties.

He said the province had established a special board to implement the project. The board would give support to the investor in completing procedures to shorten time for the start of the construction.

According to the initial plan, the project has a total area of 6,403ha, of which, the Song Khoai IP covers 700ha. The investor has not provided the project's total investment.

At the previous meeting with the province, the project was valued at US$1.5 to $2 billion when the IP was planned to be located in Phuong Nam Commune.

Amata Viet Nam was established in December 1994 as a joint venture of Amata Corp. PCL and Vietnamese Sonadezi Bien Hoa, a State-owned industrial estate developer in Dong Nai. Till date, they have completed Bien Hoa 1, Bien Hoa 2, and Go Dau IZs.
The ceremonies were attended by Minister and Deputy Head of the Australian Mission to Vietnam, Layton Pike and the Australian Consul-General in Ho Chi Minh City, Karen Laynon, representatives from the Ministry of Finance, the State Audit Office of Vietnam, senior leaders from local professional bodies, including the Vietnam Association of Certified Public Accountants (VACPA), the Vietnam Association of Accountants and Auditors (VAA) and the Vietnam Tax Consultants' Association (VTCA), global and local accounting and auditing firms, major universities and hundreds of new and existing CPA and FCPA members.

Mr. Layton Pike, Minister and Deputy Head of Australia Mission to Vietnam and Mr. Adam Awty, Chief Operating Officer of CPA Australia awarded the certificates to new CPA members in Hanoi

Adam Awty, chief operating officer of CPA Australia awarded certificates to more than 100 new members in both in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

The number of candidates advancing to CPA status in Vietnam has significantly increased over the past few years and there are now more than 800 members across the country, he said. Our success in Vietnam can be attributed to the strong support from the Vietnamese government our recognised employer partners, local professional bodies, and local universities. We expect to continue to grow strongly in the years to come, given the increasing demand for accountants and auditors in Vietnam and our strong investment in the local market.

CPA Australia new members and fellows at Certificate Presentation Ceremony 2016 in Ho Chi Minh city.

The CPA designation is recognised throughout the world and represents financial, accounting, and business advisory professionals of the highest calibre and training. I am looking forward to seeing our members on-going, positive contribution to the Vietnamese business community, Awty added.

CPA Australia also presented certificates to its 16 new Recognised Employer Partners (REP) in Vietnam.

In becoming recognised employers, these organisations have undergone a comprehensive assessment and validation of their professional development, and in doing so, they demonstrated a genuine and on-going commitment to best practice learning and development. CPA Australia now has more than 400 REPs across the globe, Awty said.

About CPA Australia

CPA Australia is one of the worlds largest accounting bodies, with more than 155,000 members across 118 countries. Our core services to members include education, training, knowledge exchange, networking and advocacy. We have a rich 130 year history of demonstrating thought leadership for education and the profession. Our emphasis on leadership is reflected in our demographics. Collectively, around 25,000 of our members hold senior leadership roles such as CEO or CFO. Visit our website: www.cpaaustralia.com.au



For more information about the CPA Australia, please contact:

Hanoi Representative Office

Ms Tran Thien Huong

CPA Australia, Vietnam Chief Representative

Phone: (+84) 913581829

Email: huong.tran@cpaaustralia.com.au

HCMC Representative Office

Ms. Phan Minh Thy

Phone: +84 (0)8 3520 8320

Email: hochiminh@cpaaustralia.com.au
The country's cotton output meets only 2 per cent of domestic fibre enterprises' demand, the remaining 98 per cent was covered by import. The land area of cotton plantations is gradually receding because farmers seem to have accepted inferiority in this segment.

According to statistics compiled by the General Department of Vietnam Customs, in the first three quarters of this year, Vietnam spent $1.245 billion to import 787,000 tonnes of cotton. The figure is expected to reach $1.6 billion by the end of the year. In September alone, despite a light decrease compared to the monthly average, the total volume stood at 75,400 tonnes.

During the nine months of this year, Vietnam imported cotton from 11 countries. The US is the largest cotton supplier, providing 50 per cent of the total cotton import volume, equalling 400,000 tonnes and worth $635 million. The runners-up are India with 90,100 tonnes (worth $131.3 million) and Australia with 68,000 tonnes (worth $119 million).

Phan Tien Dung, director of fibre factory Vinatexs Nam Dinh branch, domestic cotton does not meet the domestic industrys quality and quantity requirements, forcing all domestic fibre factories in general and Vinatexs fiber factory in particular to look for foreing sources.

Along with the usual risks associated with dependence on import materials, domestic fibre enterprises face the risk of missing delivery times or a strong change in material prices when they import cotton from the US, South Africa, and India.

According to Jonathan Devine, senior economist at the Corporate Strategy & Program Metrics Department at Cotton Incorporated, in 2016, fibre enterprises have seen continuous fluctuations in material prices due to numerous reasons, including unstable material sources. Unreasonable price swings will impact enterprises decision to continue to buy cotton. Meanwhile, unstable material sources can cause serious delays in delivery, impacting enterprises reputation.

However, according to a representative of a fibre enterprise in Thai Binh Province, the Vietnamese fibre industry is on the upswing, generating larger appetite for cotton. In the context of a lack of domestic cotton suppliers, imports will continue to be the major source, despite risks of delivery time, low quality, as well as shifting material prices.

In Mid-October, Vietnams fiber industry met a break-down on importing cotton. Notably, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development issued a decision on halting raw cotton imports from Ghana.

The decision was made after a large volume of raw cotton was found infected with living khapra beetles (Trogoderma granarium Everts).

The decision will come into effect 60 days after the October 11 issuance.

The Plant Protection Departments representative said, from July 2 to September 26, relevant authorities detected 58 containers of raw cotton, weighing more than 1,384 tonnes, imported from Ghana via Haiphong port to be infected with the very dangerous beetle not native to Vietnam.

A khapra beetle infestation can cause serious damage to various kinds of agricultural products, such as cereals, vegetables, and rubber. It is considered one of the 100 worst invasive species in the world.
The VN Index extended gains this morning as energy firms continued to benefit from an uptrend of oil prices.-VNA Photo

It rose 0.4 per cent to close at 679.30 points, boosted by a positive performance of blue chips with two-thirds of the 30 largest companies making gains.

The oil and gas producers on the southern bourse made slight gains following the uptrend in global crude prices, after some of the OPEC's members agreed to cut 4 per cent of their production.

US crude West Texas Intermediate was up 4 cents to trade at US$49.76 a barrel and Brent Crude traded at $50.54 a barrel, up 7 cents from Thursday.

Of the energy firms, PetroVietnam Gas Corp (GAS) inched up 0.3 per cent, PetroVietnam Drilling and Well Services Corp (PVD) went up 0.8 per cent and PetroVietnam Transportation Corp (PVT) rose 0.4 per cent.

Other large-cap stocks also bounced back after a series of gloomy trading days, including dairy producer Vinamilk (VNM), Bank for Investment and Development of Viet Nam (BID), Vietinbank (CTG) and property firm Vingroup JSC (VIC).

The HNX Index was volatile on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, ending slightly lower at 82.65 points, dragged down by Tien Phong Plastic JSC (NTP), Sai Gon-Ha Noi Bank (SHB) and Vicostone JSC (VCS).

Market trading liquidity remained low, with nearly 70 million shares worth VND1.06 trillion ($47.2 million) being traded.
EU leaders agreed last week to increase sanctions against President Bashar al-Assad's regime, citing devastating attacks on Syria's second city of Aleppo AFP/George Ourfalian

"The persons... include high-ranking military officials and senior figures linked to the regime," it said in a statement.

EU leaders agreed last week to increase sanctions against President Bashar al-Assad's regime, citing devastating attacks on Syria's second city of Aleppo.

Suggestions they might also sanction Russia, which has backed long-time ally Assad's offensives against rebel forces and flown many of the missions against Aleppo, were dropped after sharp differences emerged.

The European Council of member states said the new Syrian sanctions would hit those "responsible for the violent repression against the civilian population in Syria, benefiting from or supporting the regime, and/or being associated with such persons".

The decision brings to 217 the number of individuals hit with travel bans or asset freezes, it said.

Another 69 entities are affected by asset freezes while the EU also has in place other sanctions against Syria as a whole, including arms and oil embargoes plus investment restrictions.

These broader measures were extended in May and run through to June 1 next year.

The name of the 10 officials targeted Thursday will be released in due course.
By Anusha Soni: It continues to be an all-out battle between the executive and the judiciary over key judicial appointments. Expressing anguish over the delay in procedure of appointments, Chief Justice of India TS Thakur today slammed the Centre, alleging that "executive inaction was decimating the judiciary". Thakur further observed that the "institution of judiciary must be saved from any onslaught".

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While the top judge minced no words in making his displeasure against the Centre clear, sources in the government say that key judicial appointments are stuck because of no consensus on the Memorandum of Procedure. Sources in the government say that lack of transparency has been one of the reasons why key judicial appointments have been stuck in limbo. The Centre has recommended that a committee be formed for assisting the collegiums at the High Courts and the Supreme Court, recommendations of which will not be binding.

REASONS FOR REJECTION OF JUDGES BE RECORDED, RECOMMENDED CENTRE

The Centre has also recommended that reasons for rejection of judges be recorded by the collegiums once a decision has been taken. A similar demand was also put earlier by a top Supreme Court judge, who is also a member of the collegium. According to sources, Justice Chelameswar has refused to participate in the collegium's proceedings until the process is made more transparent.

Also read:No one can meddle in the process of judicial appointments: President



While hearing the public interest litigation on the appointment of judges, the apex court asked the Attorney General why the names suggested by the Supreme Court's collegiums had not been processed ahead by the government. "If there is a problem, you must send the names back," said CJI Thakur to Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi. The court did not stop at that, it further warned the government that if no substantial step was taken, the top court would ask the Secretary from the Ministry of Law and Justice to come to the Supreme Court to explain the delays in the appointment process.

Sources within the government also say that most of the times less than half of the names suggested by the High Court collegiums are accepted by the Supreme Court and hence, there is a need to streamline the entire process to bring accountability and ensure transparency.



BACKGROUND TO THE TUSSLE

Ever since the historic judgment of the apex court came out in 2015 striking down National Judicial Appointments Commission and ruling out any executive interference in judicial appointments, the two pillars have not seen eye to eye. In the judgment, a five-judge bench of the apex court declared the new law framed by the Centre on judicial appointments as 'unconstitutional' on the ground that it brings undue interference from the executive. The bill was also given assent by the President, including ratification by many states.

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Also read: CJI Thakur breaks down in front of PM Modi, calls for increasing judge strength

The Chief Justice of India has categorically pointed out how the Government is dragging its feet on judicial appointments. Earlier, he also directly took a dig at the Prime Minister for not mentioning the long-pending issue of judicial appointments in his Independence Day address. He spoke to the media in a candid interview, highlighting how the judiciary was not about undue interference but about correcting the errors of the executive.



WHAT DID THE GOVT TELL SC TODAY

The Supreme Court today was informed by the Attorney General that about 18 appointments had been cleared at the Allahabad High Court and the others were in the process. Rohatgi further pointed out that in the absence of a consensus on the memorandum of procedure, the process has slowed down. He argued that the law required that an MOP (Memorandum of Procedure) be finalised within a year, but that had not happened.

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Hearing this, the Chief Justice of India expressed his anguish and observed that despite the fact that there was no new MOP, judicial appointments must not be brought to a halt.

Also read:Only 10 judges for 1 million people against 40 as recommended, laments CJI Thakur



Thakur said, "The situation in high courts is really bad. For example, the Karnataka High Court has court rooms which are locked down. If the government wants the memorandum of procedure, it shouldn't have cleared any names at all. The court also mulled calling the relevant Secretary of Department of Justice to the court if the Attorney General couldn't give any assurance.

The Attorney General has said he will inform the Supreme Court about the latest on this issue on November 11 and has sought time from the apex court until then. The AG added that the Supreme Court's judgment striking down the National Judicial Appointments Commission required that some steps be taken about bringing some transparency in judicial appointments.

--- ENDS ---
More than 150 Vietnamese and 50 French companies met at the France-Vietnam Business Forum that wrapped up on October 28 in HCM City.  Photo Thanh Vu

Numerous business opportunities exist in various fields, such as infrastructure, health care, tourism, information technology and climate-change adaptation, the ambassador said at a France-Vietnam Business Forum that wrapped up on October 28 in HCM City.

In addition, Viet Nam has signed many free trade agreements with other countries, making it an appealing market for foreign investors.

The EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement, to take effect in 2018, will boost bilateral trade through the removal of tariffs and non-tariff barriers as well as streamline import-export procedures.

The city government pledged to give the most favourable conditions to foreign investors to develop their business in the city.

For sustainable development, the city is focusing on reducing traffic congestion, flooding and pollution as well as urban renewal.

France is among the 10 largest investors in HCM City, with 185 projects worth a total of US$848 million, as of the end of July.

Last year, two-way trade between HCM City and France reached $746 million, an increase of 8.5 per cent compared to the previous year.

More than 150 Vietnamese companies and 50 French companies attended the two-day forum.
The reason for the approval is the thermal power plants important role in the Southern energy grid and Formosas factories as well as 17 other factories in Nhon Trach 3 IP. Besides, since the thermal power plant came into operation, it has used been importing coal for electricity production.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) has issued guidance on implementing the PMs directions. The MoIT also requested the General Department of Vietnam Customs to help Formosa deal with difficulties during the importing procedures.

On September 2, Dong Nai provinces Nhon Trach Customs Branch guided the company in completing procedures to import coal. However, the company was legally required to go through two major Vietnamese importers, Vietnam National Coal-Mineral Industries Holding Corporation Limited and Dong Bac Coal Corporation, and would only be able to import directly upon receiving the PMs approval.

Formosa requested importing its own coal because domestic coal is not only low-quality but also not suitable with the technology line of the plant. In addition, Formosa has vast experience in the import sector and has its own coal sources with high-quality and suitable prices.

Following Formosa, Vedan Vietnam Enterprise Corporation Limited (Vedan Vietnam) is the second 100 per cent foreign-owned company that submitted a proposal to the PM, the MoIT, the Ministry of Finance, and the General Department of Vietnam Customs to import coal for electricity production in its coal-fired boiler without going through domestic intermediaries. However, the PM has yet to give directions regarding Vedans proposal.
Signing ceremony of MoU on Netherlands - Viet Nam aviation cooperation.- Photo VNS

A Memorandum of Understanding wason Mondaysigned between Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) Director General Lai Xuan Thanh and Royal HaskoningDHV Director and Netherlands Airport Consultants (NACO) Chairman Craig Huntbatch.

Under the leadership of NACO, a group of Dutch companies together with experts from the Netherlands Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment will organise the dedicated transfer of know-how for attracting and managing private investment for financing, development and operation of large civil (airport) infrastructure projects, for example the new greenfield project of Long Thanh.

The programme includes a large component of capacity building for CAAV, Viet Nam Air Traffic Management, Vietnamese airlines and pilot training providers.

"The entire Southeast Asian region is important for aviation development due to the growth in travel. Vietnam is of particular importance because of the high GDP growth and the recent signing of trade agreements with the European Union and the United States," Huntbatch said.

"This will accelerate the flow of travel and tourism, which means that airport infrastructure will need to be adapted in parallel to meet this demand," he added.

"The partnership between the Dutch and Vietnamese airlines, airports and aviation service providers will contribute to Viet Nam's ambition to become a regional hub for both passenger and cargo services," ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands Nienke Trooster said.
First Lady Michelle Obama, pictured campaigning on Oct 20, 2016, will join forces with Hillary Clinton for the first time at a rally in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. (Photo: AFP/Mark Ralston)

Obama has emerged as a compelling force in the hard-fought campaign, delivering powerful arguments against Republican Donald Trump and in support of Clinton's bid to become the first female US president.

"She is ready to be commander-in-chief on Day 1, and yes, she happens to be a woman," Obama said of the former first lady to a roar from a crowd of 11,000 people in North Carolina, one of the swing states in play.

Clinton has basked in the results of new polls showing the former secretary of state with an impressive lead just 12 days from the November 8 vote.

But new revelations about how former president Bill Clinton took in millions of dollars from "for profit" activities as he led the Clinton family's non-profit foundation weighed on her campaign.

Michelle and Hillary joined forces on the trail for the first time at a rally at Wake Forest University in North Carolina, where early voting is already under way.

"First ladies, we rock!" said Obama, one of the most popular Democrats in America. "Here's where I want to get real. If Hillary doesn't win this election, that will be on us," the current first lady said, emphasising that voter turnout is vital.

The 52-year-old wife of President Barack Obama has energised the Democratic camp with a series of speeches taking Trump to task for his strident rhetoric and for what she brands his "frightening" attitude towards women.

She warned that Trump's strategy was "to make this election so dirty and ugly that we don't want any part of it" and opt to stay home.

"Do not let yourself get tired or frustrated or discouraged by the negativity of this election, as you're out there working your hearts out for my girl," she said of Clinton.

North Carolina voted for Obama in 2008, then Republican nominee Mitt Romney in 2012, but the southeastern state is leaning back toward the Democratic side in 2016.

Clinton holds a two-point lead here and the state's Republican leaders worry that Trump's slow collapse will hurt them in congressional races. "It doesn't get any better than being here with our most amazing first lady," Clinton said.

COMBATIVE TRUMP

The latest rolling poll average compiled by tracker RealClearPolitics showed Clinton with a 5.8 point lead in a national race against Trump and two outsiders - pointing to a likely electoral college victory for the Democrat.

"I feel really good, energised, working hard," she told reporters aboard her plane Wednesday, her 69th birthday.

Trump's standing has been hit hard, particularly among female voters, since the release earlier this month of a 2005 video in which he boasts that his celebrity allows him to grope women with impunity.

But the 70-year-old Manhattan real estate mogul took heart from a new survey that shows him with a two-point lead in Florida, a state where presidential races are often won and lost - and a must-win state for him.

"We don't want to give this away," a combative Trump promised supporters in battleground Ohio on Thursday. "We are going to Washington, DC. And we are going to drain the swamp."

POLLS NARROW

The RealClearPolitics poll average still puts Clinton ahead in the Sunshine State by 1.6 percentage points, but she wants to lock it in.

The president, who narrowly won Florida in 2008 and 2012, campaigns for her there Friday, while Clinton is scheduled to join pop star Jennifer Lopez on stage Saturday in Miami.

Trump also appears to have clawed back ground in Nevada, where a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll has the western state in a dead heat.

As Clinton called on voters to rise above the nastiness of the race, new WikiLeaks disclosures threatened her campaign, notably an email in which aide Douglas Band detailed his own moneymaking efforts both on behalf of Bill Clinton personally and on that of the foundation.

Band wrote of helping the former president "secure and engage in for-profit activities - including speeches, books, and advisory service engagements."

Trump pounced, calling the activity "outright corruption."

"If the Clintons were willing to play this fast and loose with their enterprise when they weren't in the White House, just imagine what they will do if they are given the chance to control the Oval Office," he said in a statement.
Photo: VGP

The deputy PM made the statement at a reception for Sergey Kuderyasov, General Director of Russias Zarubezhneft oil and gas group, in Ha Noi on October 27.

He spoke highly of Viet Nam-Russia cooperation in the field of oil and gas over the past years, which, he said, was one of the major and effective pillars in bilateral relations, generating huge revenues for the two countries respective budget.

Highlighting the effective cooperation projects between the Viet Nam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroViet Nam) and Zarubezhneft, including Vietsovpetro (in Viet Nam) and Rusvietpetro (in Russia), Deputy PM Dung asked the two groups to seek measures to reduce costs and enhance the operational efficiency of Vietsovpetro and Rusvietpetro joint ventures, and exert greater efforts to make optimal use of the existing oil fields as well as search for new ones.

For his part, Kuderyasov thanked the Vietnamese and Russian governments for closely directing the removal of difficulties for oil and gas joint ventures between the two sides. On the occasion, he also asked the deputy PM to instruct relevant ministries and sectors to remove a number of existing obstacles.

Deputy PM Dung assigned the Ministry of Industry and Trade and PetroVietnam to work with Zarubezhneft to handle the hindrances in the spirit of creating favorable conditions for oil and gas companies of the two countries to strengthen bilateral cooperation.
By PTI: Washington, Oct 28 (PTI) Have a dental emergency? Your smartphone may be able to help you avoid an unnecessary trip to the hospital, thanks to a new app developed by scientists including one of Indian origin.

Researchers developed a new smartphone application that allows users to capture and transmit images from inside the mouth, along with details on the dental emergency, to provide the information dentists need to make a decision on what - and how urgently - care is needed.

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A team mentored by Thankam Thyvalikakath, now at the Indiana University in the US, developed a cellphone application called DentaCom that enables dentists to make decisions when they cannot see the patient.

The new app guides individuals with real or suspected dental emergencies through a series of questions designed to capture clinically meaningful data via familiar smartphone functions.

In the study, all participants were able to complete a guided report on their dental emergency and take photos of the problem region within four minutes. All clinical information was successfully entered by prospective patients via DentaCom.

"It is a challenge for the patient to get the dental emergency appropriately managed, and not just treated by painkillers in a busy hospital ER by a clinician who is not a dental specialist," said Thyvalikakath, who was at University of Pittsburgh at the time of the study.

"It is also a challenge for the dentist to get details of the problem," said Thyvalikakath.

Dental emergencies frequently occur when dental offices are closed. Patients often turn to hospital emergency departments or urgent care centres.

However, most patients who go to these facilities are simply treated for their pain and referred to their dentist for proper care during office hours.

Valuable time may be lost before actual treatment is received, and the patient is billed for the emergency or urgent care visit in addition to whatever dental fees will be incurred.

In contrast to a physicians office, a dentists office is hands-on and procedure based, and it can be difficult to add an emergent patient to the schedule.

The DentaCom app provides the detailed guidance the dentist needs to determine the urgency of, and appropriately treat, the problem.

"We developed this app as a communication tool linking patients and dentists during emergency situations," said Thyvalikakath.

The study was The Journal of the American Dental Association. PTI MHN SAR MHN

--- ENDS ---


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Mindful Eating: Slower Consumption for Better Health

With tight schedules and busy lives, sitting down to a meal free of distraction can be more of a luxury than the norm. Mindful eating gets pushed aside for many reasons. Taking a break to satisfy your hunger may also seem like the perfect opportunity to catch up on social
A screenshot from a video recorded by a motorist in Lebanon, N.H., on Oct. 26, 2016. Lebanon police said the woman started recording the video when the black car was driving erratically. It eventually hit a telephone pole, which was shown on the video. The driver, Jeffrey Caron, 48, of Plymouth, N.H., faces misdemeanor reckless driving and driving under the influence charges.

This story was first posted Wednesday night. An updated version ran in Thursdays newspaper. The following version was updated at 1:50 p.m. on Thursday.



Lebanon  Two employees of an independent treatment and academic facility in Grafton County that works with at-risk youth have been placed on leave following their arrests in connection with a car crash on Route 4 in Lebanon that was caught on camera.

Jeffrey Caron, 48, is the executive director of Mount Prospect Academy in Plymouth, N.H., and also works for its affiliate, Vermont Permanency Initiative Inc.

Kellen Fitzgibbon-Bizel, 31, of Thornton, N.H., also works for both of those agencies, according to a news release issued by David Chabot, the legal affairs director of Becket Family Services, which is the umbrella organization of the two entities. Fitzgibbon-Bizel is the facilities director for the school in Plymouth.

Lebanon police said Caron, of Plymouth, N.H., was drinking and erratically driving westbound around 9:15 a.m. Wednesday morning when his car drifted off the edge of the road near Bagleys Corner and slammed into a telephone pole.

Fitzgibbon-Bizel, who was a passenger in the car, had several drugs in his possession at the time of the crash, according to a police news release.

Caron sustained minor injuries and was transported to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center for treatment.

The motorist who was driving behind Caron and Fitzgibbon-Bizel had her video camera rolling for at least one minute prior to when Caron struck the utility pole, police said. She followed the vehicle from Enfield into Lebanon.

The video shows the vehicle swerving back and forth and tailgating the vehicle in front of him as he continues west toward the new Route 4/4A bridge.

The vehicle then drifts over the white line on the right side of the roadway while rounding a corner and drives onto the dirt shoulder. Seconds later, the vehicle slams into the pole, lurching upward.

The woman recording the video, Christine Eggleston, appears to drop the camera and the video cuts out. She was relatively silent throughout the video, only uttering the words oh my God on one occasion.

In an email, Eggleston said she saw the car swerving just before the elementary school in Enfield, but didnt think too much of it until the car began driving more erratically. She took out her phone to snap a picture of the cars license plate, she said, and thats when the car really swerved into traffic, prompting her to hit record.

Just before the car struck the pole, I thought, my God, he thinks he can pass there, she said. Lebanon police shared Egglestons video on the citys YouTube account.

Caron and Fitzgibbon-Bizel both were released on $10,000 personal recognizance bail pending their arraignments in Lebanon District Court on Jan. 9, according to the release.

Caron faces misdemeanor reckless driving and driving under the influence charges. Fitzgibbon-Bizel faces five felony counts of possessing a controlled drug. He allegedly had several unprescribed narcotics in his possession, police said.

Route 4 was shut down for several hours while crews worked the scene. One travel lane was reopened around 1 p.m. Wednesda

Lebanon Police Chief Richard Mello said he doesnt know whether the woman who recorded the crash had her camera in her hand while she was driving, an act that is illegal in New Hampshire.

But even if she did, he said, she wouldnt face repercussions. The greater good rule would apply, Mello said.

The crash remains under investigation. Mello said the exact reason that Caron drifted into the pole is unclear but impairment played a role.

Jordan Cuddemi can be reached at jcuddemi@vnews.com or 603-727-3248.
[Editors note: Princess Norodom Serei Soma, the daughter of Prince Norodom Vatvani, third cousin of King Norodom Sihamoni, is a newspaper columnist and philanthropist. In 1975 her family moved to the United States, where she went to university and worked in media and marketing before returning to Cambodia in 2010. She began writing regular columns for the Phnom Penh Post, drawing the ire of the government with a 2012 article which saw her charged with incitement. She returned to the US in 2014 and wrote a book about her experiences, titled Royal Rebel, which was released on October 21.]

Princess Norodom Serei Soma was interviewed by VOA Khmers Seourn Vathana via email.



VOA: When did the idea for writing Royal Rebel first come to you? What was the inspiration?

Norodom Serei Soma: The inspiration of Royal Rebel came when I left Cambodia in February 2014. I went back to the U.S. because my mom needed me as she was about to have surgery. Coming back to the U.S. made me realize that I needed time to mourn the death of my father, alone, and not in the public eye. The book was my medicine to heal, to forgive those who hurt me, and to pray for Cambodia and our people.

VOA: What do you want to let the public know through writing this book?

Norodom Serei Soma: The public will get a better understanding of my hopes and dreams for Cambodia. We must have hope for a better future for all Cambodians. Also, to stand up for what you believe in even if nobody is on your side. Be honest and truthful to yourself and have faith in your decisions, and be ready to take criticisms from all sides.

VOA: How important is this book to Cambodian Americans and Cambodian people?

Norodom Serei Soma: The book is important to Cambodian Americans because they can relate to me as I was [among] the first group of refugees to arrive in  California in April 1975. It is a personal account of my adventures stepping foot onto my homeland after 35 years living in the U.S. I had to learn to speak Khmer, learn the culture, and become acclimated to my new home, Cambodia. People who have never been to Cambodia can read my book and this can help as a guide book of what to expect, places to go and visit, and just know the culture, and especially the history of Cambodia. For Cambodians, they will have a better understanding of our history, the royal family, and ways of life in the U.S. as I recount my childhood in the U.S. as a refugee.

VOA: How long have you spent on writing Royal Rebel? And is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?

Norodom Serei Soma: When I returned to the U.S. in February of 2014, I started compiling my notes and information to start writing the book. But it took two years, and I had the challenge of writing, called "writer's block". I couldn't even write one chapter. I had to do a lot of soul searching and prayed a lot. One day I woke up and just started writing. The hardest part was going back to those moments and writing the details, and going through that painful time again. It happened when my father died, and I had to write from the time he died to the cremation ceremony. As a writer, it is easy to write about topics once you have done the research and interviews, but it is harder when the topic is close to you.

VOA: Why do you launch this book in the U.S.? And are you planning to publish it in Khmer?

Norodom Serei Soma: I launched the book in the U.S. because I was here and did self-publishing, which meant I paid for the publishing and distribution with my own money. It's better to self-publish as you have full control of your book, from the chapters, to the pictures, and to the creation of the book cover. I'm thinking ahead as the book will become a movie, and this is where self-publishing is more beneficial than traditional publishing. You don't have to buy out your contract from the publishing company and you can negotiate 100% with anybody to produce the movie.

VOA: Personal growth is a theme throughout the book. How did your experiences while living in Cambodia help you grow as a person?

Norodom Serei Soma: I learned meditation through the Buddhist religion. My father was Buddhist and we had to fulfill his last wish by going through the Buddhist rituals and ceremonies. But it was living in Cambodia, and not taking things for granted, like food on the table, a roof over your head, which made me appreciate the little things in life. Its not the material things that matter, but why you are here, and what is your purpose in life.

VOA: Have you had any challenges, being a Cambodian American and a Cambodian royal family member, in expressing social or political opinions?

Norodom Serei Soma: Yes, as you recall, back in October 2012, my Phnom Penh Post column annoyed the Prime Minister and the Government, and I was accused of incitement as they accused me of dividing the country during the time of mourning for King Father Norodom Sihanouk. I wrote the truth and defended my freedom of expression, which we don't seem to have in Cambodia. It's hard to be in the public eye and have everybody scrutinize everything you do and what you say. You lose your privacy if you are a public figure. You know who your real friends are during these tough times.

The interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Civil society groups on Monday expressed concerns that Cambodia is becoming a major trafficking route and production hub for illegal narcotics.



The groups noted an increasing number of reports of drug trafficking in the country and regionally.



Yong Kim Eng, president of the People Center for Development and Peace, said drug trafficking groups had also moved into rural areas, whereas in the past they had largely kept to urban centers.



If there is a person using drugs in the family, everything will be destroyed  poverty, insecurity, both in the society and family, youths addicted to drugs, a shortage of human resources, which will slow down development and economic growth. 



He added that there was mounting evidence that drug cartels were turning to Cambodia as a production base, drawn by lax law enforcement and prevention.



[D]rug trafficking is a serious issue, especially when only small-time people are arrested, but not the big guys, he added.



Pin Sokhom, a project coordinator with NGO Mith Samlanh, said advances in technology had made producing drugs easier and harder to detect.



The more advanced technology is, the easier it is to produce drugs I think in the future Cambodia will become a drug production country while it does not yet have up-to-date tools to crack down on drug dealing.



Officials estimate there are 17,000 regular drug users in the country, although the figure is likely far higher, according to NGOs.



Khieu Saman, director of the Interior Ministry's anti-drug trafficking department, said the government was doing all it could to go after drug pushers. We have put down many big cases since 2007... Our authorities are quite competent.



Earlier this month, Hun Sen called for a nationwide crackdown on drug dealers and traffickers, following a meeting with Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, whose own war on drugs has led to thousands of extra-judicial executions since he took office.
Editors Note: Keep digging and researching, and trust your gut instinct when reporting stories that people may not want to believe are true. That was the message award-winning author and scholar of Cambodian history Elizabeth Becker had for journalists during a recent interview with VOA Khmers Ten Soksreinith. Becker spoke about a recent article in the Columbia Journalism Review about her 1978 visit to Pol Pots Cambodia and her decades long dispute with another reporter on their starkly different coverage of the country following their trip. That year Becker and veteran journalist Richard Dudman, of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, were granted rare access to visit Khmer Rouge-controlled Cambodia and report on what they found. Dudman and Becker left the country after escaping an assassination attempt that claimed the life of left wing British academic Malcolm Caldwell. They also left Cambodia with two very different stories. Dudman believed Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge was similar to other post-conflict countries struggling to rebuild after a devastating war. Becker, guided by instinct and the experience of living in Cambodia before the Khmer Rouge take over, knew that what she had been shown by the regime was not the Cambodia she had known before the war. Almost four decades later, while giving evidence at the war crimes trials of former Khmer Rouge leaders Noun Chea and Khieu Samphan, Dudman finally admitted that his account of Cambodia from 1978 had got it very wrong. Beckers reporting from that trip had been right all along about the brutality of the Khmer Rouge regime.



VOA: What made you write for the Columbia Journalism Review about your and Mr. Dudmans reports on Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge in 1978?

Elizabeth Becker: Because it was an unusual circumstance where you had two reporters disagreeing about something as profoundly important as genocide two reporters who had seen exactly the same things and had the same interview. But that was a long time ago. What makes it especially important for the Columbia Journalism Review is that, nearly 40 years later, that disagreement came out in the tribunal, the Khmer Rouge tribunal, and one journalist admitted that he was wrong. It was almost a classic case for journalists to look at a difficult situation like that and possibly learn a lesson about how you cover such a difficult topic.

VOA: What came to mind when Mr. Dudman accepted, during his testimony, that his report after the visit to Cambodia was too positive or too uncritical?

Becker: It was interesting. I was already back to the United States and I watched on my computer. It [was a] live-stream because it was almost several months after I had appeared [at the tribunal]. The defense had thought that he would discredit me. They were trying to use him to discredit me. At first, he said he stood by his reports because thats what he believed at that time. It was only later in his testimony that he said he had subsequently, after he read other things, he said he realized that, in fact, there was genocide under Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge.

I just thought, oh, one is that hes an honest man, and two, it made me sad that it took so long because his reporting was important and people believed it.

VOA: How and when did people start to change their perception about the Khmer Rouge and Pol Pot?

Becker: The first major, major big change was when the Vietnamese overthrew Cambodias Khmer Rouge in 1979 and gradually opened [the country] up to journalists and researchers. So, we were able to go to places like Toul Sleng [the Khmer Rouges interrogation center in Phnom Penh] and find the documents. That was critical, that all of a sudden we had documents and [could] prove that, in fact, they [the Khmer Rouge] were that bad. But, and this is a big BUT, in those days, the United States, Europe, and most of the Southeast Asia [nations] did not like the Vietnamese occupying Cambodia, and therefore, they didnt want to discuss the issue.

So, you had journalists and writers, usingresearch to write books, such as I did, my book When the War Was Over.At the same time, you had the political forces that were so anti-Vietnamese that they didnt want to discuss the Khmer Rouge. So, it took forever for justice to be brought, to come, to Cambodia. And the tribunal didnt start until 2005, and they were overthrown in 1978. Thats the horrible stain, the horrible record.

VOA: You mentioned in your article that you read articles about Cambodian refugees telling stories of forced labor, starvation, killing. If you had not read those reports, do you think you would have investigated the possible crime of genocide during your visit in 1978?

Becker: First of all, when I lived there [in Cambodia], it was during the war for two years. During the war, I watched how things changed, and that was very important because I got to know Cambodia, Cambodian life, Cambodian culture, and I knew what the war was doing to the country.

The refugee reports only came out after the war, when I was back to Washington DC and there were many [reports], there wasnt just one. There were many stories and a lot of my colleagues in the press wrote about what the refugees said those who escaped the Khmer Rouge. The problem was that not many people could escape [Cambodia] a few thousands, not hundreds of thousands. People didnt know what to expect. They didnt know if this is true or exaggerated, and there were so few refugees who could get out.

So, I read all the stories and I read the reports in the UN human rights commission, which [was] pretty new at that stage. So, I took it seriously and, of course, those are very important stories because that told me one very important channel of information about what was going on in the country.

[Cambodia] was even more closed than North Korea is today. I could not exaggerate how hard it was to know what was going on. There was no communication to the outside world, separated from the government. There was no mail. There was no telephone. This is way before the Internet or email. There was no way to reach normal people. The only way you [could] contact anything or anyone in there was sending a cable to the government. That was it. So it was very closed off.

VOA: During your testimony at the Khmer Rouge Tribunal, what was going on in your head while the defense attorney questioned the credibility of your report? Even though there were thousands of documents used against Khmer Rouge leaders as evidence of crimes against humanity and war crimes.

Becker: Well, what was interesting was that the defense was so weak that they had to bring this up, because, as you said, the documents proved the case. They had very little defense, but it still made it very uncomfortable. When the defense tries to discredit you, it is no fun. However, I became more comfortable and I realized, regardless of ourselves, the important thing was to be as strong and convincing as I could be, in order to make sure that the truth came out. So, something happens to you when you testify that your own personal comfortableness starts to disappear, and you say: This is bigger than me. I have to make sure that the court understands the truth, and that sort of kicks in and sort of carries you.

VOA: At the end of your article you say that it is not enough to report what you saw, and writing or telling a story of genocide is not something any leader would want to hear or be told. What do you mean by that?

Becker: I think its very timeless and very relevant that when the government tries to control what you see and who you talk to, you had better do your homework. First, to know [what] it used to be like, and second, to understand what rights are being abused. If there is no freedom of speech, write that. If there is no freedom of religion, write that. Make the government bring out people who could say Yes, Im the Monk, and you can worship here in the Khmer Krom.

I asked all of that stuff [in 1978] and they could not do it.

So, its very important to know a lot about the country before you go there, to know a lot about what was before and to push, push, push for answers. This is not a normal reporting assignment. If you cannot control your schedule, if you cannot control who you see when they control everything, which is the case often in these things thats important.

We got used to the idea [of] being embedded which sometimes is good. But embedding can also mean that you dont get to see what you really should be seeing. You have to fight that all the time. I think its very relevant.

VOA: From your time to today, how do you think journalism has changed in relation to gender?

Becker: The period in the seventies, I was one of the very few female reporters. Most of the time, I was the only one in Cambodia. Yes, people were not used to women reporters. Its changed fortunately, because there are a lot more women like you covering the news and thats very good, because people [are] getting used to women being reporters, to being authoritative and responsible and respected.

Mr. Dudman was 30 years older than me. He was the foreign affairs correspondent for St. Louis Post-Dispatch. So, he had seniority. But more than a few women have come [forward]saying this is what women used to have to go through. Its a different era, but still something to be considered.

VOA: The headline on your Columbia Journalism Review story states: Two reporters escaped with their lives, but left Cambodia with a different story. History shows one was right. What is the message?

Becker: I think journalists today often have similartraumatic situations. I wanted them to know that even if the world doesnt believe you, dont give up. I want journalists to know if journalists write stories that people dont want to believe, stick to your gut. If you are confident and you keep showing through your research and reporting that you were right, just stick to your gut. Even when the rest of the world doesnt believe you, and that happened to me, it doesnt matter. Fortunately in this case, history has proved me right. Thats why I wrote the book to encourage people to keep digging.
Cambodias main opposition leader has hit back at the government after it issued an order in an attempt to ban him from returning to the country ahead of a general election scheduled for 2018.

Sam Rainsy, president of the Cambodia National Rescue Party, said that the move was a symptom of the authorities increasing fear of democratic change and his enduring popularity.

Cambodian authority on October 12 issued a request to airline companies offering flights to the country not to allow the CNRP chief to board planes heading to its airports.

Rainsy, however, told VOA he still planned to return ahead of the election, without providing details, adding that eventually nearly everybody would want to see democratic change.

Since November last year he has lived in France in self-imposed exile after his parliamentary immunity was removed and an arrest warrant issued over a years-old defamation ruling that could see him spend two years behind bars.

Sok Eysan, a ruling Cambodian Peoples Party spokesman, said Rainsy had misinterpreted the governments actions deliberately to weaken the ruling party.

Meas Ny, a political analyst, called for new negotiations to end the tense standoff between the CNRP and CPP.

I think [the dispute] doesnt provide any benefits. Its only a political game between politicians and not in the interests of the nation, he said.

A senior government official on Monday said the decision to bar Rainsy from entering Cambodia was made over safety concerns that ensuing demonstrations could damage property.

Wan-Hea Lee, country representative for the U.N.s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, reportedly labeled the decision unjustified and arbitrary.
By PTI: From Aditi Khanna

London, Oct 28 (PTI) The first legal challenge against the UKs decison to leave the European Union was today rejected by the high court in Northern Ireland which ruled that Brexit can happen without lawmakers giving it final approval, dealing a blow to opponents of the historic move.

Those behind the case had argued that British Prime Minister Theresa May did not alone have the right to trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, launching a two-year countdown to Britain leaving the European Union (EU) after the country voted for an exit from the economic bloc in a referendum in June.

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Butafter several days of hearings, the court in Belfast threw out the case brought by a cross-community group of politicians and human rights campaigners.

Justice Paul Maguire said that "in respect of all issues, the court dismissed the applications", adding that the implications for Northern Ireland were still too uncertain to rule in its favour.

He said: "While the wind of change may be about to blow, the precise direction in which it will blow cannot yet be determined.

"So there is a level of uncertainty, as evidenced by the discussion about how the Northern Ireland land border with Ireland was affected by withdrawal from the EU."

Lawyers behind the case tried to argue that decision-makers at Northern Irelands devolved Stormont Assembly could veto Brexit, assert influence over triggering Article 50 and protect peace process guarantees enshrined in the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, which largely ended violence in Northern Ireland over devolution.

The challenge was brought by politicians from Sinn FAin, the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), the Alliance Party and the Green Party.

They said the Brexit decision should be examined and voted on by Parliament or, failing that, by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

They have indicated they intend to appeal against the decision at the Supreme Court, and that this could be heard as early as December.

The UK government welcomed Fridays ruling, which marks the first court win in relation to Brexit.

A UK government spokesperson said: "As we have always made clear, we stand by our commitments under the Belfast Agreement and the outcome of the EU referendum doesnt change this."

The case has been closely watched by the Theresa May led government, especially as similar hearings in the High Court in London are due for judgement in the near future.

In London, an investment manager and hairdresser are taking legal action opposing the right of the government to trigger Article 50 without a vote in Parliament. PTI AK NSA AKJ NSA

--- ENDS ---
Diplomatic and legal efforts are underway in Pakistan to secure an early release from police custody of a green-eyed Afghan woman whose photograph as a young refugee was published on the cover of National Geographic in 1985.

Police arrested 46-year old Sharbat Gulla this past Wednesday at her residence in the city of Peshawar on charges of fraudulently obtaining Pakistani national identity cards for her herself and her two sons.

On Friday, Pakistani prosecutors said that Gulla was brought before a Peshawar court for the first time where she pleaded not guilty. But the court remanded her in judicial custody for further interrogation.

People caught with possessing illegal Pakistani nationality cards could face up to 14 years in prison and a financial penalty of up to $5,000 if convicted.

Afghan ambassador to Pakistan, Hazrat Omer Zakhilwal, told VOA their legal team is in contact with relevant authorities and we expect Sharbat Gulla to be released when the court reconvenes on Tuesday (November 1)."

Rights activists outraged



Gullas arrest has outraged human rights and civil society activists in Pakistan while authorities in Afghanistan criticized it as part of an alleged ongoing harassment campaign trying to force Afghan refugees to leave the country.

Pakistani officials maintain that a nationwide crackdown on Afghan refugees with illegal national identity cards has led them to Gulla and other Afghans holding the documents. They say Pakistani officers involved in facilitating the Afghans get the cards have also been detained.

Ambassador Zakhilwal says he spoke to Pakistani foreign policy advisor, Sartaj Aziz, on Friday to convey Kabuls concerns and was able to receive assurances to get Gulla released as quickly as possible.

The Afghan envoy lamented that the arrest of "one of the worlds most recognized and famous and Afghanistans most beloved image has deeply saddened all Afghans without exception and has hurt their emotions."

Gullas image published on the cover of National Geographic magazine 30 years ago won her international fame and symbolized the troubles facing Afghanistan under the occupation of invading Soviet forces at the time.

Steve McCurry, the war photographer who captured the image of the his Afghan Girl with piercing green eyes, found her in Afghanistan in 2002.

Hiding to avoid arrest



Gulla resurfaced in Pakistan in 2014 but went into hiding to avoid arrest after local authorities accused her of buying a fake Pakistani identity card.

Top authorities, however, admit that with the help of "corrupt" officials working in the National Database and Registration Authority, tens of thousands of Afghans have obtained Pakistani nationality cards.

The crackdown on Afghans with illegal cards and officials involved in facilitating the process has intensified since May when fugitive chief of Afghanistans Taliban insurgency, Mullah Akhtar Mansoor, was killed in a U.S. drone strike while he was traveling through Pakistans border province of Baluchistan with forged Pakistani travel documents.
A proposed U.S.-backed offensive on the Islamic State terror groups Syrian stronghold of Raqqa is encountering problems, because Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan insists the Syrian-Kurdish YPG  the only militia currently up to the task  can play no part.

Americas European allies also are raising objections and expressing strong skepticism about any major role for the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units, or YPG. They fear that having the Kurds in the vanguard of an assault on Raqqa, historically a predominantly Arab city, would fuel sectarian rivalries.

Speaking to the news channel France 24, Britains defense secretary, Michael Fallon, warned that using anything but an Arab force would court rejection by the Sunni Arab residents of Raqqa. He said the liberation of the city would have to be done by an essentially Arab force.

Otherwise, he warned, the liberation is not going to be welcomed by the people of Raqqa and would worsen tensions between Arabs and Kurds.

U.S. officials are eager to liberate Raqqa sooner rather than later because they fear IS is planning to prolong its already stiff defense of the Iraqi city of Mosul by sending reinforcements from Raqqa  something it may already be doing.

Earlier this week, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter called for a simultaneous attack on IS self-styled capital of Raqqa alongside the push, started more than a week ago, to retake Mosul.

We want to see an isolation operation begin around Raqqa as soon as possible, Carter said during a visit to the Iraqi city of Irbil. We are working with our partners there [in Syria] to do just that.

Two fronts

In the runup to the launch of the assault on Mosul, some U.S. officials and analysts argued that to speed up the end of the jihadist caliphate, a better strategy would be to attack Raqqa and Mosul at the same time, forcing an already stretched terror group to fight off two major assaults on different fronts.

I think Raqqa is more important to IS than Mosul is, because of how central Raqqa is to the groups administration of its declining state, Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington-based research group, told VOA before the Mosul assault unfolded.

Control of Raqqa and its surrounding province has supplied IS with considerable revenue, from the sale of oil from nearby oil fields and cash the group demanded from the Assad government in Damascus for the electricity generated by the Euphrates and Baath dams.

Only in recent days have U.S. officials started to talk publicly about a Raqqa assault being unleashed within weeks. But as with the planning for the Mosul offensive, with Raqqa, U.S. officials are faced with a host of problems as they try to discipline unruly alliances of local sectarian rivals that mistrust each other and fear they will be outmaneuvered and weakened for what may follow the defeat of IS.

Turkeys Erdogan has said he told U.S. President Barack Obama in a phone call to exclude the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its militia, the YPG, from the proposed Raqqa offensive.

We do not need terrorist organizations like the PYD and YPG in the Raqqa operation. Let us work together to sweep Daesh [the Arabic acronym for IS ] from Raqqa, I told him, Erdogan said.

In a written statement after the phone call, Turkish officials said the two leaders agreed to support the territorial integrity and independence of a post-Assad Syria.

Assad first, IS second

Ankara fears the Kurds are planning to fashion an independent state in northern Syria running along the border with Turkey and sees the PYD as an extension of Turkeys outlawed separatist group, the Kurdistan Workers Party, with which it is locked in a vicious conflict in southeastern Turkey.

But without the YPG, it is unclear who could muster a strong enough assault on Raqqa to recapture it from the jihadists.

Since the YPGs successful 2014-15 defense of the border town of Kobane from IS, Washington has considered the YPG its most reliable ground ally against the jihadists. But backing the Syrian Kurds has damaged Washingtons relations with both Ankara and the mainly Sunni Arab Syrian rebel militias that have battled to oust President Bashar al-Assad for more than five years. Arab insurgents see Assad as their main enemy and IS as a secondary foe that can be defeated once Assad has been driven from power.

Syrian rebel militias have clashed with YPG forces, which took the opportunity to seize traditionally Arab towns north of the city of Aleppo during a Russian-backed Assad offensive last February. Both Kurdish-dominated forces and Syrian rebels backed by Turkey are converging on al-Bab, northeast of Aleppo, in a race to take the town from IS.

Speaking in Ankara to the families of veterans, Erdogan reiterated his determination to maintain the push toward al-Bab. After that, he said, the rebels, with Turkish air, artillery and special forces support, would turn their attention to Raqqa.

I had a long conversation with Mr. Obama last night and I told him that well take these steps, he said.

But it remains unclear whether Syrian rebel militias want, at this stage, to be drawn into what would be a prolonged and bloody fight over Raqqa. Rebel commanders working with the Turks told VOA that after al-Bab they want to bolster their comrades in the besieged city of Aleppo, where insurgents Friday announced they were mounting a new offensive to try to break a months-long siege by Assads forces, their second bid to do so.

The Turkish and American defense ministers, Fikri Isik and Carter, met in Brussels Thursday on the sidelines of a NATO meeting to discuss the anti-IS battles in Iraq and Syria. Isik told reporters that Ankara was pressing the U.S. to drop the PYD and to embrace the Free Syrian Army as the local force to liberate Raqqa.

We will be insistent on this issue up to the end, he said.
Iceland's anti-establishment Pirate Party is in a tight race to become the largest party in parliament after an election Saturday called when the prime minister resigned as a result of the Panama Papers scandal.

The Pirates have been riding a wave of anger against the establishment in a country that was one of the hardest hit in the 2008 financial crisis when its banking system collapsed, hitting thousands of savers.

Polls put it in close second place to the Independence Party, currently the junior partner in the governing coalition.

It wants, among other things, to give asylum to U.S. whistleblower Edward Snowden, accept the bitcoin virtual currency and clean up corruption.

The Pirates  founded less than four years ago as a protest movement against global copyright laws, and whose election campaign is partly crowdfunded  have 21 percent in a Morgunbladid poll published Friday.

The Independence Party polled 22.5 percent.

The governing coalition's senior partner, the Progressive Party, polled only 10 percent. It was hurt badly when Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson resigned as prime minister in April after documents leaked from a Panamanian law firm linked him to an offshore company that held millions of dollars in debt from failed Icelandic banks.

Other recent polls show a similar pattern, with some giving the Independence Party a bigger lead. Another poll published Friday by research company MMR showed the Independence Party had 25 percent support with the Pirates at 20.5 percent.

The Pirates would look to form a majority with the current opposition parties  the Left-Green Movement, the Social Democratic Alliance and Bright Future.
The grinding war in Syria this week registered a new low, when the United Nations reported that an airstrike that killed dozens of students and teachers was the deadliest attack on a school in nearly six years of fighting. U.N. Special Envoy for Education, Gordon Brown, called for the U.N. Security Council to refer the attack on the school in Idlib, Syria to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for investigation. If the attack is deemed deliberate, it could be a war crime.
U.S. network security experts say Chinese hackers recently launched a network attack targeting people attending a U.S.-Taiwan Defense Industry Conference.

Officials say the attempted attack took place this month at the conference in Williamsburg, Virginia, attended by defense officials, defense industry representatives, defense security experts and think-tank scholars.

Steven Adair, founder of Washington-area network security company Volexity, said the hacking attempt was based on a Chinese phishing email, asking recipients to open the message. The email contained malicious software that would have allowed the hackers to enter all systems connected to that computer network.

Lotta Danielson, vice president of the U.S.-Taiwan Business Association, which sponsored the conference, told VOA the association has been a target of hacking for years, and has been vigilant about hacking attacks. She said she immediately notified all participants of the conference when she saw the suspicious email.

Danielson said the email "was directed at Taiwans defense industry. Some recipients were attending the conference, some not. I immediately found it suspicious. She said she forwarded the email to security experts.

Hacker identity

Adair told a seminar organized by Washington-based think tank Global Taiwan Institute that while it is not possible to prove China was behind the hacking attempt, there are ways to infer the identity of the hackers.

Weve seen the same kinds of attacks and malware that have specific Chinese features, and some malware that only Chinese hacker groups use, Adair said.

Mark Stokes, executive director of the Project 2049 Institute, said Taiwans democratic government is a real threat to the legitimacy of Chineses communist government. He said that Taiwan faces huge challenges, and that cyberattacks from China are one of them.

However, Stokes said Taiwan has excellent network talents, and that the United States and Taiwan should strengthen their cooperation on cybersecurity issues because they face the same threats.

Taiwan to up its security

Taiwans Ministry of Defense plans to set up a special cybersecurity unit within the army, because of the increasing cyberattacks against Taiwan in recent years. Taiwans government said the new plan is highly necessary because Chinese hackers have attacked Taiwan more often than they have attacked the United States, Hong Kong and mainland China itself.

Taiwan believes Chinese hackers have infiltrated Taiwans defense, foreign affairs, air traffic control and communication systems, saying the scale has reached quasi-war level.
Colombia delayed peace talks with Marxist ELN rebels until they free a politician held captive for six months, President Juan Manuel Santos said on Thursday, as he struggles to refloat another peace deal with FARC guerrillas after it was rejected in a plebiscite.

The National Liberation Army (ELN), the nation's second-biggest insurgent group, must release Odin Sanchez to the International Committee of the Red Cross before talks can begin in Ecuador, Santos said, reiterating a condition he set months ago.

The opening ceremony had been scheduled to take place in Ecuador's capital, but it was canceled at the last minute. The government said the talks could still go forward as early as Friday or Saturday if the rebels free Sanchez, however.

The 2,000-strong ELN, considered a terrorist group by the United States and European Union, has kidnapped hundreds of people during its 52-year insurgency to raise war funds and use hostages as bargaining chips with the government.

Peace Prize winner

Santos won the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize earlier this month for his efforts to end a conflict with the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), a surprising choice given voters narrowly shunned the deal he signed with them.

More than 220,000 people have been killed in Colombia's long-running armed conflict, which has pitted leftist guerrillas against right-wing paramilitary groups and the security forces.

Founded by radical Catholic priests and inspired by Cuba's 1959 revolution, the ELN has been in on-and-off closed-door talks with the government since 2014 on how the two sides would conduct negotiations.

The rebels have remained active during that time, kidnapping and bombing oil installations, though in recent months they have released some captives.

Formal peace talks would likely mirror those held with the FARC. The peace agreement, signed on Sept. 26 with the FARC, was internationally lauded but criticized by many in Colombia for being too lenient on the rebels.

'No' side wins referendum

Former President Alvaro Uribe is now leading the effort to change the agreement that would have given the FARC guaranteed congressional seats and immunity from traditional jail sentences. The "no" side won the plebiscite by less than half a percentage point.

Peace with the two groups is unlikely to put a complete end to violence in a country also ravaged by unrest from drug trafficking and other crimes, but it would allow economic development in once off-limits areas and shift more military resources to fight growing criminal gangs.
Protests were relatively calm in the U.S. state of North Dakota Friday, following a day that turned violent between police and demonstrators opposing the construction of an oil pipeline across what police say is private property that has been occupied by Native Americans.

Thursday, over 100 police in full riot gear marched through a camp of protesters who then moved about a kilometer away and set up barricades near a river across from tribal land that is considered sacred.

As police moved in from the north, almost simultaneously, pipeline construction resumed to the west of the protest site near the city of Cannon Ball, North Dakota .

Authorities had dismantled the camp and arrested more than 100 people, including tribal elders who were praying peacefully. A new front line was established by protesters Friday.

Water bottles and one or two logs were thrown at police as they dismantled barricades and evicted protesters on a bridge, but most protests were non-violent.

The demonstrators are not a cohesive unit. Some insist on falling back and reject building barricades, while others push for more demonstrations or other actions. But no call for violence has been issued from either group of protesters. An officer said one of the protesters fired three shots Thursday, but it has not been verified.

As the protests died down late Thursday, a herd of buffalo came over a nearby hill, driven by men on horseback. Police are claiming it was an attempt to cause a stampede, and helicopters chased away the men.

Native Americans and their supporters, who include Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein and veteran civil rights activist Jesse Jackson, say the pipeline will put the local water supply at risk and damage areas sacred to the local Standing Rock Sioux Indian tribe.

Protests had been intensifying since July when a permit was obtained to route the pipeline beneath the Missouri River at Lake Oahe, less than 1 kilometer from the Standing Rock Sioux Indian Reservation.

Hundreds of supporters came to Lake Oahe to support the local Sioux protesters. More than half of all Native American tribes in the U.S. have expressed support for the Standing Rock Sioux, and a number of members of Congress have written letters urging the Obama administration to stop the pipeline.

The federal government did ask the pipeline crews to stop construction work voluntarily near the Sioux reservation, while authorities reconsider the plans, but courts have refused to enforce the stop work order.
U.S. authorities said Friday that the unexplained death last year of a Russian media executive in a Washington hotel was accidental and caused partly by alcohol poisoning after days of heavy drinking.

Following a yearlong investigation by city police along with assistance from the FBI, District of Columbia authorities said the death of Mikhail Lesin, a former adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin, was partly attributable to "acute ethanol intoxication."

A statement by D.C. police and the U.S. attorney's office for the District of Columbia said, "Based on the evidence, including video footage and witness interviews, Mr Lesin ... sustained the injuries that resulted in his death while alone in his hotel room."

Officials said Lesin was injured in successive falls due to alcohol poisoning. The chief medical examiner for the case ruled the cause of Lesin's death on November 5, 2015, was "blunt force injuries to his head, with contributing causes being blunt force injuries of the neck, torso, upper extremities and lower extremities, which were induced by falls, with acute ethanol intoxication."

Lesin, who was 57 at the time of his death, was a founder of the Russian English-language television network RT. His death in a hotel in Washington's fashionable Dupont Circle neighborhood sparked a host of theories about how he died, including speculation he was murdered.

Russian officials complained in March that they were not receiving information about the U.S. investigation.

Lesin had served as Russian press minister from 1999 to 2004 and was presidential media adviser from 2004 to 2009. He also was a senior executive at Gazprom-Media, Russia's largest media holding company, from 2013 to 2014.

In 2014, U.S. Republican Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi called for an investigation into Lesin for alleged money laundering and corruption. Wicker said Lesin accrued multimillion-dollar assets in the United States and Europe while serving as a Russian government minister, including $28 million worth of real estate assets in Los Angeles.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Friday said his government may submit a bill revoking his country's support for the treaty establishing closer ties between the European Union and Ukraine.

Rutte has said rejection of the association agreement would be a mistake and would weaken European unity, but that if efforts to find a compromise failed at the weekend, he would have no choice.

The Netherlands is the only EU state not to have ratified the bloc's agreement on closer political, security and trade ties with Kiev following a referendum in April in which the Dutch voted overwhelmingly to reject it.

Rutte wants to find a compromise between Ukraine, the EU and domestic opposition parties that will enable the treaty to be implemented and respect the outcome of the referendum.

The agreement with Kiev, reached after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in March 2014 and then backed rebels fighting government troops in the east of the country, is being provisionally implemented now, but its future hinges on the Netherlands.

Dutch rejection "would cause great damage and I need to do everything to bring that view across and to convince the parties still not convinced," he said.

"This is larger than the Netherlands alone. We are part of a broader international community acting as one front for stability on our borders and against aggression," Rutte told journalists at a weekly briefing.

Rutte in June sought "legally binding" assurances from EU leaders to address his country's concerns over the deal.
On Philippines President Rodrigo Dutertes recent state visit to China, he proclaimed that America had lost him and that in this venue, I announce my separation from the United States. To a room that erupted in applause, the so-called Punisher from Davao also claimed that it was China, the Philippines and Russia against the world and it was the only way.



In the Philippines, Dutertes calls for separation from the U.S. resonated with with some, which led to protests against the United States.

Renato Reyes, a leftist leader and political activist, organized roughly 1,000 individuals on October 19 for a rally in front of the U.S. Embassy in Manila.

"We have to understand the reason why the people were protesting, said Reyes, the secretary general of the New Patriotic Alliance. This had to do with U.S. troops. This had to do with U.S. bases, U.S. military facilities and military exercises. So to be able to resolve that, the president will have to make true his commitment to say goodbye to the U.S. in terms of the VFA (Visiting Forces Agreement), the EDCA (Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement), the Mutual Defense Treaty and all other unequal agreements."

The protest turned violent when a police van rammed through the assembled group. According to Reyes, at least three were hospitalized and 23 arrested.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Daniel Russel, was in Manila and discussed what he called the succession of controversial statements.

"For our part, he said, the United States remains a "steady, and I hope trusted partner, strong ally. We stand ready to honor our commitments. We stand by international law and we stand by the Philippines."

President Duterte took to the podium in his hometown of Davao to clarify the remarks he made in China, stating that it wasnt a severance of ties, but rather he was simply charting a new course.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay, Jr. further clarified, "There is a continuing need for us to make sure that we get to talk to each other and try to resolve whatever differences and clarifications that will have to be made, and I have committed myself to that, because it is very important that we continue to also talk to make sure that there will be no misunderstanding on how our friendship and our strong relations would proceed."

While in Japan, Duterte continued to send mixed messages when he announced that hed like see to the Philippines free of foreign troops, noting that if he had to revise or abrogate agreements, executive agreements, I will.



Filipino reactions

From the Philippine city of Cebu, Lorna Bondoc, a local businesswoman, told VOA by phone that she saw a brighter horizon with Dutertes pivot.

Overall, I think the presidents trip to Beijing is beneficial in establishing and stabilizing bilateral ties, ushering in an environment supporting the economic agenda. Overall, yeah, I think its going to be beneficial economically for us in terms of investment setting aside the military or the territorial dispute, said Bondoc.

Eddie, a 29-year-old computer science graduate who didnt want his last name used, said, In my view, it will be basically good for us. He is trying to develop relations with China. So I think it will give us benefit. Basically in my view, it will help with our independence. Perhaps in the long run, it will be for the betterment, but it will take a lot of sacrifices.

However, Bondoc was unsure what lasting effects may manifest if President Duterte follows through on his plans.

If it is true that the country (the Philippines) disengages from the U.S., it could be detrimental for the Philippines if we should shift to China or Russia, said Bondoc who works in an industry where a large portion of her clients are in the United States. Personally, I dont think the Philippines is ready to go against the world So its a question whether the country is ready for it and willing to embrace it or not, Bondoc added.

The United States and the Philippines will meet in late November for their annual discussions about the upcoming year - something that may provide clarity to Dutertes often contradicting comments.




American military aid accounted for 21 per cent of Pakistan's defence spending between 2002-2015, allowing the country to maintain high levels of military spending while easing the burden on its federal budget and overall economy.

By PTI: As India's purchasing power and geopolitical influence increases, Pakistan risks increasing global isolation when it comes to purchase of high-tech defence items, an American think-tank has said.

"Over the long term, Pakistan may be unable to access the most advanced weapons systems in the global marketplace. Instead, it may have little choice but to continue to rely on Chinese and possibly Russian military systems, which may or may not be the most appropriate for Pakistan's defence needs," the Stimson Center said in a report.

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"Pakistan's access to high-end technology could be constrained by India's purchasing power and growing geopolitical influence," said the report entitled Military Budgets in India and Pakistan: Trajectories, Priorities, and Risks.

American military aid accounted for 21 per cent of Pakistan's defence spending between 2002-2015, allowing the country to maintain high levels of military spending while easing the burden on its federal budget and overall economy.

"The US has begun to gradually downgrade its assistance to Pakistan in the near to medium term," it said, adding that the support in Washington for the bilateral relationship has declined as Pakistan seems unable or unwilling to address concerns about violent extremist groups that direct their focus to Afghanistan and India.

INDIA, AN ATTRACTIVE MARKET

India is a larger and more attractive market for global defense companies, and will continue to be for the foreseeable future, the report said, adding that the country has become the world's largest arms importer.

India accounted for 14 percent of global arms imports from 2011-2015, a 90 per cent increase over the previous five years.

"Countries and companies who otherwise would be interested in having a defence relationship with Pakistan may be reluctant to do so out of concerns about falling out of favor in New Delhi," the report said.

"In the long run, Pakistan will have to make tough choices about purchasing big-ticket weapons systems unless it can do so at concessionary rates," it said.

The "almost-certain decline" in military and financial support from the United States will force Pakistan to carry a greater share of its defence spending, it said.

Also read: Rafale to give Indian Air Force edge over Pakistan



--- ENDS ---
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte says he will no longer curse, after he had a talk with God.

Duterte said late Thursday in his southern hometown of Davao that God spoke to him on the plane during his recent return trip from Japan.

He said the people on the plane around him were all sleeping when he heard a voice that said "If you don't stop epithets, I will bring this plane down now."

"Who is this," Duterte asked. "So, of course, it's God."

Not one to chance a crash landing, the Philippines leader said he promised the Almighty that he would stop cursing.

"A promise to God is a promise to the Filipino people," the president said.

Duterte has famously used curse words when talking about drug addicts and dealers, and has called world leaders like Pope Francis and U.S. President Barack Obama a "son of a bitch." He also told Obama to "go to hell."

There are indications, however, that his promise could be short-lived.

When reporters asked if his promise to God meant he would drop the profanity he sometimes uses when referring to the United States or the European Union, the president said. "It's all about timing."
After Facebook's removal of an iconic Vietnam war photo stirred an international uproar last month, the social network's executives quickly backtracked and cleared its publication.

But the image  showing a naked Vietnamese girl burned by napalm  had previously been used in training sessions as an example of a post that should be removed, two former Facebook employees told Reuters.

Trainers told content-monitoring staffers that the photo violated Facebook policy, despite its historical significance, because it depicted a naked child, in distress, photographed without her consent, the employees told Reuters.

The social network has taken great pains to craft rules that can be applied uniformly with minimal discretion. The reversal on the war photo, however, shows how Facebook's top executives sometimes overrule company policy and its legions of low- and mid-level content monitors.

Facebook has often insisted that it is a technology company  not a media company  but an elite group of at least five senior executives regularly directs content policy and makes editorial judgment calls, particularly in high-profile controversies, eight current and former Facebook executives told Reuters.

One of those key decision-makers  Justin Osofsky, who runs the community operations division  wrote a Facebook post acknowledging that the removal of the war photo was a "mistake."

"Sometimes," he wrote, "the global and historical significance of a photo like 'Terror of War' outweighs the importance of keeping nudity off Facebook."

Facebook spokeswoman Christine Chen declined to comment on the company's use of the photo in training sessions.

Facebook has long resisted calls to publicly detail its policies and practices on censoring postings. That approach has drawn criticism from users who have had content removed and from free-speech advocates, who cite a lack of transparency and a lack of an appeals process for many content decisions.

At the same time, some governments and anti-terror groups are pressuring the company to remove more posts they consider offensive or dangerous.

High-level review

The current and former Facebook executives, most of them speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters in detail how complaints move through the company's content-policing apparatus. The toughest calls, they said, rise to an elite group of executives.

Another of the key decision-makers is Global Policy Chief Monika Bickert, who helped rule on the fracas over the war photo.

"That was one we took a hard look at, and we decided it definitely belonged on the site," said Bickert, a former federal prosecutor.

She declined to elaborate on the decision-making process.

Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg followed up with an apology to Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg, who had posted the photo on her own account after Facebook removed it from others in her country.

In addition to Sandberg, Osofsky and Bickert, executives involved in sensitive content issues include Joel Kaplan, Facebook's Washington-based government relations chief; and Elliot Schrage, the vice president for public policy and communications.

All five studied at Harvard, and four of them have both undergraduate and graduate degrees from the elite institution.

All but Sandberg hold law degrees. Three of the executives have longstanding personal ties to Sandberg.

Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg, a Harvard drop-out, occasionally gets involved with content controversies, Bickert said.

These executives also weigh in on content policy changes meant to reflect shifting social context and political sensitivities around the world, current and former executives said.

Facebook officials said the five people identified by Reuters were not the only ones involved in high-level content decisions.

"Facebook has a broad, diverse and global network involved in content policy and enforcement, with different managers and senior executives being pulled in depending on the region and the issue at hand," Chen said.

Chen declined to name any other executives who were involved in content policy.

War over free expression

The company's reticence to explain censorship decisions has drawn criticism in many countries around the globe.

Last month, Facebook disabled the accounts of editors at two of the most widely read Palestinian online publications, Shehab News Agency and Quds. In keeping with standard company practice, Facebook didn't publicly offer a reason for the action or pinpoint any content it considered inappropriate.

The company told Reuters that the removal was simply an error.

Some Palestinian advocacy groups and media outlets condemned the shutdowns as censorship stemming from what they described as Facebook's improper alliance with the Israeli government.

Israel's government has pushed Facebook to block hundreds of pages it believes incite violence against Jews, said Noam Sela, spokesman for Israeli Cabinet Minister Gilad Erdan. Sela said the Israeli government "had a connection" at Facebook to handle complaints but declined to elaborate on the relationship.

"It's not working as well as we would like," Sela said. "We have more work to do to get Facebook to remove these pages."

Ezz al-Din al-Akhras, a Quds supervisor, said that Facebook's head of policy in the Middle East had gotten in touch after the uproar over the shutdowns and that three of four suspended accounts were restored.

"We hope the Facebook campaign of suspending and removing Palestinian accounts will stop," he said. "We do not practice incitement; we are only conveying news from Palestine to the world."

Facebook said the restoration of the accounts was not a response to complaints. It declined to comment on whether top executives were involved.

The company has cited technological glitches in other recent cases where content was removed, then restored, including the takedown of a video that showed the aftermath of a Minneapolis police shooting.

Chen declined to explain the glitch.

She said the company was reviewing its appeals process in response to public feedback. Facebook currently allows appeals of company actions involving entire profiles set up by people or institutions, or full pages on those profiles, but not for individual posts.

Thick rulebook

To manage the huge volume of content complaints  more than a million a day  the company employs a multi-layered system. It starts with automated routing of complaints to content-policing teams in Dublin, Hyderabad, Austin and Menlo Park, who make initial rulings, current and former executives said.

These low-level staffers and contractors consult a thick rulebook that interprets the comparatively spare "community standards" that Facebook customers are asked to follow. The company trains front-line monitors to follow rules and use as little discretion as possible.

When a removal sparks more complaints, regional managers function as a mid-level appeals court. Continuing controversy could then push the issue to top U.S. executives.

Senior executives also weigh in on policy updates. Osofsky and Kaplan, for instance, wrote a blog post last week, in response to "continued feedback" on content removals, explaining that the company would start weighing news value more heavily in deciding whether to block content.

In an earlier post, responding to the Napalm-girl controversy, Osofsky said Facebook's policies usually work well, but not always.

"In many cases, there's no clear line between an image of nudity or violence that carries global and historic significance and one that doesn't," Osofsky wrote.

The Vietnam war photo  depicting horrors suffered by a girl named Phan Thi Kim Phuc  was first removed from an account in Norway by a front-line monitor.

In protest, the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten printed the image on its front page and posted it on Facebook, which removed it. That prompted the prime minister to post the photo  only to have Facebook remove it again.

Facebook then issued a statement defending the action, saying it was "difficult to create a distinction between allowing a photograph of a nude child in one instance and not others."

The next day, executives reversed the call, with Sandberg telling the prime minister: "Even with clear standards, screening millions of posts on a case-by-case basis every week is challenging."
As the Islamic State terror group faces territorial losses in the Middle East, there are signs that the group is increasing its cooperation with local militant groups in Southeast Asia.

A new report from researchers at the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC), warns that supporters of the terrorist group are networking in Southeast Asia and law enforcement agencies appear unprepared for the new threat.

Over the last two years, ISIS has provided a new basis for cooperation among extremists in the region, said IPAC director Sidney Jones, using an acronym to describe the Islamic State, which is also known as IS, ISIL, and Daesh.

Focus on Philippine extremist groups

Four extremist groups are increasingly focusing on the southern Philippines Mindanao region, with fighters, instructors or funding at times from Indonesia or Malaysia. In turn, the groups have provided refuge, training sites, combat experience or arms.

That cooperation could take on new importance as ISIS losses in the Middle East increase the incentive to undertake violence elsewhere, Jones said.

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, since taking office in June, launched negotiations to end long-running violence in the southern Philippines, offering multiple options to groups in terms of proposals to end the violence.

Ehud Yaari, an Israel-based military analyst and political commentator, sees a growing threat for Southeast Asia as military defeats for ISIS in the Middle East lead to hundreds of fighters returning to Asia.

Once ISIS is defeated in the Levant ... some of them, many of them, I dont know, are coming to the islands, Yaari said at a regional security seminar at Bangkoks Chulalongkorn University.

They see the islands of Indonesia, Philippines, etcetera, as a promising new base and they dedicate a growing amount of investment in the literature and propaganda to this region, he added.

Elina Noor, director of the Malaysia-based Institute of Strategic and International Studies, said the southern Philippines will be a regional hub for the extremist operations.

But the IPAC report said while ISIS-driven unity among the groups may be only temporary, it could leave behind a hard core of Mindanao-based jihadists who are more ideological than their predecessors and look to like-minded associates in the region for support.

'No Single Profile' for IS supporters

Analysts, including Noor, see a threat from the numbers of people from Asia traveling to the Middle East to join the Islamic State.

Malaysian authorities have reported a rising trend in terrorism-related arrests since 2013, citing some 80-plus arrests in Malaysia in 2015, and 90 detentions as of August 2016.

Noor says the crackdown points to a broad profile of those supporting militant groups. There is no single profile," she said. "They come from different age groups, they come from different professional and non-professional backgrounds.

Arrests included an Islamic religious teacher, senior government officials, military and security forces personnel, as well as teens and children as young as 14, including girls.

A primary reason many travel to the Middle East is a motivation to "redress injustices in Syria and Iraq, as well as in other countries. But, she added, there is a rising tone of a more conservative view of Islam in Southeast Asia among the groups.

What many are now seeking is a puritanical brand of Islam. So thats the ambition," she said. "And who are Southeast Asian [militants] turning to for that direction  West Asia, the Middle East.

To tackle the issue of extremism, Noor says governments need to counter an ideology "rooted in political grievances, not religious ones, often rooted in a failure of good governance."

She also calls for the de-politicization of religion in which governments need to step back from "manipulating religion for political purposes."

Riad Kahwaji, head of the United Arab Emirates-based Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis, warns against the import of the sectarian divisions within Islam that have deeply divided communities in the Middle East, at a terrible cost to human life.

The states here [in Southeast Asia] should work hard to prevent any division between the Islamic sects  the Sunnis and the Shias," Kahwaji said. "They should work much harder to prevent any spill over from the troubles in the Middle East into Southeast Asian countries,

Analysts say the internet and social media have led to self-radicalization among some individuals capable of carrying out so-called lone wolf attacks. Australias has faced a spate of such attacks and threats, with the national terrorism threat currently set at probable.

More than 100 Australian nationals are reportedly fighting alongside or supporting the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

Colin Rubenstein, executive director of the Australia-Israel and Jewish Affairs Council, says the concerns for Southeast Asian countries will come after military action against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq concludes.

Theres no suggestion they will disappear [after the fighting ends]. As weve seen, it will globalize and in terms of [militants] coming back to their [home] countries; obviously that process unfortunately can include Australia, Rubenstein said. So eternal vigilance and staying ahead of the curve  thats what the authorities are well aware they need to do.
A former first lady running for president shared the campaign stage for the first time with a current first lady Thursday as polls showed a tightening race for the White House.

Michelle Obama rallied voters in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with another rousing and emotional speech of the kind that has become her trademark since she started actively campaigning for Democrat Hillary Clinton.

"She has more experience and exposure to the presidency than any candidate in our lifetime," Obama said. "More than Barack [Obama], more than Bill [Clinton]. So she is absolutely ready to be commander in chief on day one. And, yes, she happens to be a woman."

Without mentioning anyone by name, Obama urged the crowd not to believe anyone who is trying to make the election "dirty and ugly" by saying it is rigged.

WATCH: Don't Be Swayed by Trump Strategy, Michelle Obama Says

'The voters decide'

"They are trying to get you to stay home, they are trying to convince you that your vote doesn't matter, that the outcome has already been determined. ... They are trying to take away your hope. ... In this country, the United States of America, the voters decide our elections. Period, end of story," she said to huge cheers from the crowd of supporters.

The past and present first ladies hugged and called each other "friend."

"There are so many things I admire about our first lady," Clinton said. "Michelle reminds us to work hard, stay true to our values, be good to one another and never stop fighting for what we believe in."

WATCH: Michelle Obama: 'We Want a President Who Takes This Job Seriously'

North Carolina is one of several battleground states  states a candidate must win if he or she wants to get to the White House.

An average of polls taken in North Carolina gave Clinton a 3-percentage-point lead over Republican Donald Trump, with one of those surveys, conducted by Remington Research, giving Trump a 3-point advantage.

Trump was in another battleground state Thursday  Ohio  where he had a slight 1 percent lead, according to some national surveys.

He boasted he was going to win the election on November 8, but said he didn't want to take anything for granted.

"Early voting is under way, so make sure. Get out and vote. We don't want to give this one away," he said Thursday.

'In a time loop'

Trump told supporters in Toledo that it was time for new leadership in the United States because the country was "like, in a time loop."

"We keep electing the same people over and over again, who keep making the same mistakes," he said.

Trump vowed to fight for all Americans from every background if elected.

He again called his opponent a "liar" and the Clintons corrupt after another hacked Democratic Party email was leaked to the public.

This one showed a longtime aide to former President Bill Clinton encouraging wealthy clients of his firm to contribute to the charitable Clinton Foundation and provide big-money speaking fees to the former president.

The memo, written by Doug Band, also suggested "in-kind" services for Clinton and his family, including vacations and travel-related hospitality. The Band memo called the arrangements "Bill Clinton, Inc."

WATCH: Trump in Geneva, Ohio: 'We Are Going to Drain the Swamp' in D.C.

The memo was part of a release by WikiLeaks of Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta's hacked emails.

Bad image

While what Band did was not illegal, it simply looked bad for the Clinton campaign, which has denied allegations that big donors to the foundation got special access to Hillary Clinton when she was secretary of state.

"If the Clintons were willing to play this fast and loose with their enterprise when they weren't in the White House, just imagine what they'll do in the Oval Office," Trump asked voters in Springfield, Ohio, Thursday.

The campaign has neither denied nor confirmed the authenticity of the emails. Democrats have blamed Russia for hacking party emails in an effort to manipulate the election.
Korean carmakers Hyundai and Kia reached a settlement with 33 states and Washington, D.C., Thursday on charges it inflated the fuel economy numbers of 2011 to 2013 models.

The companies will pay $41.2 million in fines.

Hyundai and Kia have paid out $300 million to the federal government and compensated some car owners.

The states and Washington, D.C., attorneys general say the carmakers claimed their models got up to 100 kilometers for every 7.1 liters of gasoline when the actual number was less.

Hyundai and Kia deny breaking the law and blame the discrepancy on what they say were flawed government tests.

Consumers who do thoughtful research and purchase a vehicle in line with their budget and their desire to protect the environment should be able to trust what automates say about their cars, Washington, D.C., Attorney General Karl Racine said.
South Africa and Burundi have sent letters of intent to withdraw from the International Criminal Court to the U.N. secretary-general. Gambia says it will do the same.

These threats are nothing new, says Angela Mudukuti, international criminal justice lawyer at the Southern Africa Litigation Center.

"Every year, about this time, we see the same thing, where states say they are going to withdraw but then they never actually do it," said Mudukuti. "Namibia did it last year, Kenya's been talking about it for years, Uganda's spoken about it as well, and there are various states who have threatened to leave the ICC but never actually done anything.

But, she adds, "now that there's someone who has actually started the process, it is a different ballgame and there could be more."

African leaders upset

African leaders have long decried a perceived bias by the court, arguing they are being unfairly targeted.

The Hague-based court has served a warrant for the arrest of Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir, who is wanted for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide in the Darfur region

Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta and his now-deputy William Ruto were accused of crimes against humanity in connection with Kenya's 2007 and 2008 post-election violence, although the charges were subsequently withdrawn and vacated.

All but one of the 10 investigations by the ICC have taken place in African countries.

"A critical question comes to your mind, why are other atrocities around the world not brought to the attention of ICC? Why is the focus only on Africa? So this is a question which attracts a discussion," said John Seka, president of the Tanganyika Law Society in Tanzania.

Seka says that he believes an African court, such as the Arusha-based African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights, would be a better option than the ICC.

Court's end is near?

But Kenyan international law expert and University of Nairobi lecturer Herman Manyora disagrees, saying he does not believe that an African court can supplant the ICC.

"For now, no, it can't work. Africa is home to impunity," said Manyora. "The lords of impunity cannot be expected to come up with a court of justice, who can try the very same people who are the perpetrators, with impunity."

Manyora argues that more progressive forces are coming into leadership positions, and they don't like the impunity.

"You know, they are beginning to take government. Buhari is in Nigeria. There are others elsewhere. And I don't think, it's a sad situation to say, that those with the agenda to leave will remain in power. So I don't think Africa will leave en masse. It's not possible," Manyora said.

Seka agrees that the ICC will not see its end in Africa any time soon.

"I'm not envisioning a dead ICC in the next 10 years, I think it will continue to exist for quite awhile, and it will be with us for more time to come," said Seka.

Mudukuti says that state parties have the power to amend the Rome Statute, so they should instead work to fix the problems, not leave.

"And states that have signed up for the Rome Statute have the capacity and the potential to affect change from the inside," said Mudukuti. "But once you leave the system, there's nothing you can do about it."

South Africa, Burundi and Gambia are planning to leave anyway. The question now -- will other African nations follow?
A vote on whether to change the constitution is set for Sunday in Ivory Coast, but a lack of public debate about the issues has left many voters frustrated.

"We are not informed, one man said, after being visited by a member of a civil society group working to spread the word on the proposals. My parents call me from the village, they are not informed. My dad tells me 'What do I vote for? A text I don't know the content of?' We need to be informed in local languages, so my dad can know what he should do."

The government put the full draft online in French, but the outreach has fallen short, as half of Ivorians are illiterate and many others have limited access to the internet. As for newspapers, many people only read the front pages, which are displayed at the newsstands for free.

Consequently, many potential voters are unaware that the proposed changes in the new constitution include the creation of a senate and a position of deputy president, and the softening of a controversial clause on nationality, which contributed to years of political unrest in the West African nation.

The "vote yes" campaign, however, has been impossible to miss. Big billboards reading "I vote yes to modernity, to development, to social cohesion, to peace" can be seen all across Abidjan.

"There is no debate, all I hear is 'yes,' one woman said. If there was a debate, with each side saying why we should vote yes or no, that would help. We've already accepted the yes, since it's the only thing that we hear."

The opposition asserts that the coverage of the campaign has been unbalanced, with the government monopolizing radio and TV.

"We only have the street to express our point of view, so that's what we're doing," said opposition member Jean-Gervais Tcheide.

The opposition has rejected the proposal for changes on grounds there has not been a national consensus around it. Some leaders are calling for a boycott of the ballot box Sunday, while others are campaigning for the referendum to be canceled.

Last week, Ivorian authorities dispersed an opposition protest with tear gas and arrested dozens of people. Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have called for authorities to respect the right to freedom of expression and association.

"I don't feel concerned," one man in Abidjan said about the outcome of the vote. "That new constitution is useless."

Next to him, another man interjects.

It's one of the most important for the evolution of our country, he said. Even more so that the presidential elections. We elect a president for five years, but this new constitution might stay on for decades to come.

The result of Sunday's vote is expected to be known by the middle of next week.
In congressional races across America, Republicans are beginning to echo Democrats on a core assumption: Hillary Clinton will be president.

With Donald Trump lagging in the polls, Republicans running for Congress are urging voters to elect them as a check on a Clinton presidency. Democrats, meanwhile, argue Hillary Clinton will need allies on Capitol Hill to enact her agenda.

In a hotly contested Minnesota congressional district, Republican Stewart Mills all but concedes his partys presidential nominee will lose on November 8, but he tries to turn that prospect to his advantage in a television ad against his opponent, Democrat Rick Nolan.

Nolan would give Hillary Clinton a blank check to run up trillions in new debt and job-destroying taxes, the advertisement asserts while flashing a series of cropped images of Nolan and Clinton superimposed against the U.S. Capitol building and other backdrops.

Rick Nolan and Hillary Clinton: wrong on spending, wrong on national security, wrong for Minnesota families, the ad concludes.

Republicans in the Senate, like Missouris Roy Blunt, are using the tactic, as well.

One Hillary in Washington would be bad enough, a television ad in support of Blunt asserts while showing a split screen with identical photos of the Democratic presidential nominee. Then, one of the Clinton images morphs into the face of Jason Kander, the Democrat challenging Blunt.

Reject Jason Kander, the ad urges.

Republicans are in survival mode, hoping a Trump loss will not torpedo the partys congressional candidates, according to one political analyst.

It [the Republican ad campaign] says that the Republican Party is coming to terms with the fact that they are going to lose the White House in a couple of weeks, said John Hudak of the Brookings Institution in Washington. Donald Trumps falling poll numbers are starting to infect down-ballot races.

Democrats, sticking together

While Trump usually walks on stage alone, shunned by Republican lawmakers in states where he holds rallies, Democratic congressional candidates are flocking to Clinton for a moment in the spotlight.

It is so important that we elect Hillary Clinton and Democrats up and down the ticket on November 8, said New Hampshire Senate candidate Maggie Hassan, the first speaker at a recent Clinton rally in her state.

Moments later, Clinton took the podium and returned the favor.

What I love about Maggie is that shes independent, she knows how to find common ground, the Democratic presidential nominee said.

President Barack Obama is also campaigning for Democrats around the country, and mocking the Republican message about the need for a legislative counterweight to a Clinton presidency

'You should vote Republican anyway because we will check Hillarys power. We will be a counterweight. No, no, no, Obama said while campaigning for Democrats in Nevada. A vote for them is a vote for more gridlock. That is their [the Republican] argument. That is not a good argument.

Republicans' dilemma

Trump, meanwhile, is not hiding his annoyance with Republican lawmakers.

You have to get out and vote, and that includes helping me elect Republicans all over the place, Trump said at a Florida rally earlier this week. I hope they help me, too. It would be nice if they helped us, too, right?

Publicly dismissing Trumps chances of winning could be risky for congressional Republicans.

They are really stuck between a rock and a hard place, said Hudak. If they run away from Trump completely, they are going to alienate one important group. If they fail to run away from Trump completely, they will alienate another group.

While Democrats would have to pick up 30 seats to win a majority in the House of Representatives, they would need a net gain of just four to control the Senate if Clinton won the White House.

If Trump won the presidential contest, Democrats would need to pick up five Senate seats to control the chamber.
Being in a wheelchair has never slowed Jon Forbes down. But for 14 years after his spinal cord injury, Forbes says something else nearly broke his will to live. It was pain - electric shocks of pain - in areas of his body that were paralyzed. It was horrible. Excruciating. And it never stopped," he recalled. "You wake up, its there. All day, its there. You go to bed, its there. 

According to the World Health Organization, roughly 25 million people around the world live with a spinal cord injury. The injuries are well-known for causing paralysis and difficulty with using legs and hands. Less recognized is the common side effect Forbes described -- neuropathic pain, which creates feelings of electric shocks and stabs in parts of the body that no longer have regular sensation. In roughly 10 percent of cases, this neuropathic pain can be so relentless, victims consider suicide. Forbes did.

I had tried pretty much every kind of drug, tried exercise, tried you name it. Anything and everything to try and get this pain to stop. And it wouldnt. And I was working at an investment bank and decided this was it." He starts to tear up as he remembers that time of his life. "Quit my job, and decided, this was going to be the end. I just couldnt take it.

But then, he learned about a Denver neurosurgeon who uses spinal surgery to stop so-called suicidal pain.

The last resort

Scott Falci acknowledges, Patients, when they ultimately come to me, Im kind of a last resort. As the chief neurosurgical consultant at Denvers Craig Hospital, which specializes in spinal cord injury rehabilitation, Falci has helped hundreds of paralyzed patients who suffer excruciating neuropathic pain.

You could cut them with a knife, they wouldnt feel it. You could put a blow torch on their foot. Im being extreme here. They wouldnt feel it," he stresses. "Yet theyll tell me, 'my foot is on fire, as if someone has set it on fire.' 'Battery acids on my foot', and they can be very site specific. Theyll say, 'I have electricity running from my hip to my knee,' or 'the bottom of my foot, its on fire.' 'At the ankles its somebody stabbing me with a knife.' They feel the pain precisely in very specific areas, but if you were to touch them on those areas, they couldnt tell you.

For spinal cord patients, conventional pain therapies frequently fail, so often doctors suggest the pain is in their head. But, Falci says, it's actually in their spinal cord. He resolves it with surgery.

Revolution in the OR

Under lamps as bright as the sun, half a dozen surgical assistants help Falci for hours, just to reveal the spinal cord. He explains, "You have to open up the skin, the muscles, you have to get to the skeleton, and you have to remove some bone in the back of the skeleton to even get to see the spinal cord."

Finally, the spinal cord is revealed, glistening, white, alive. Falci seeks out pearl-colored root entry zones, each the size of a small button, filled with thousands of cells. These are where nerve bundles bring sensations from the body and root into the spinal cord. These nerve cells that come from different parts of the body dont travel all the way up to the brain," he notes. "They connect first with other nerve cells in the spinal cord and let them communicate signals to the brain.

Using a pin-sized electrode, Falci carefully probes two millimeters into these areas, to touch relay nerves in the spinal cord that speed sensory information toward the brain. Mostly he gets a calm electric signal. Then, theres a spike, the sign of hyperactive nerve cells. Falci calls them "hot spots" -- seizure-like areas of the nerve cells firing with high energy when they shouldnt be firing.

He says hot spots can trigger suicidal pain. So you can imagine, the hyperactive areas of the spinal cord, almost every second of their life, bombarding their brain and telling them theyre with pain.

Using heat, Falci kills each hot spot. There can be hundreds, so meticulously, he moves up the spinal column, killing hot spots.

He also does something that neurosurgeons have considered out of the question. We didnt believe the spinal cord below the level of injury could possibly send signals to the brain," he explains, but even if an injury has completely cut the spinal cord in half, Falci finds and kills hot spots below the injury.

He explains that nerve signals coming in from the body can detour around a spinal cord injury. He likens this to how highway drivers detour onto local lanes to avoid an accident, then after the accident, they merge back on the highway. When its hyperactive nerve signals creating a detour in the body, Falci says they carry false pain signals. So by killing hot spots below the injury, he eliminates more pain. Eight-five percent of the time, we can get rid of sharps, burns, electricals, stabs.

New lease on life

Falci says this can be life changing. It was for Jon Forbes, who got this surgery two years ago, and reports, Im a pretty happy person these days. Just two months after the operation, Forbes landed a new job  as the deputy treasurer for the state of Colorado. Im not 100% without pain," he admits, "but I can live, and I want to live, which is . . . thank God for saving my life, Dr. Falci.

Falci plans to publish new research that maps this detouring nervous system. His work makes him confident that theres more to discover about how the human body deals with injury and pain.
Britains decision to leave the European Union survived a legal challenge Friday when Northern Irelands High Court dismissed arguments that could have prevented Prime Minister Theresa May from beginning the process of exiting the EU.

It was the first court ruling on the Brexit decision, approved by 4 percentage points in a vote in June.

In their suit, a group of local lawmakers claimed the Northern Ireland legislature must be consulted before the British leadership triggers steps to separate from Europe.

Disengaging from the EU will take two years, and the prime minister has said she intends to begin the process by the end of March when she invokes Article 50 of the Lisbon treaty.

We welcome the courts judgment this morning and that it agrees we can proceed to trigger Article 50 as planned, said a spokesman for the British leader Friday.

Good Friday accord

Arguments heard by the Northern Ireland court were based on claims that Brexit could undermine parts of the 1998 Good Friday agreements. The accords ended decades of sectarian violence between nationalist Catholics who wanted reunification of the island with the Republic of Ireland, now a part of the EU, and Protestants who favored British rule.

The peace accords eliminated border controls and guaranteed freedom of movement across the boundary that separates the Republic of Ireland from British-ruled Northern Ireland.

Arguments in the court challenge were based on parts of the accord that say any changes must be with the consent of the people in the Northern Ireland jurisdiction.

In his ruling, high court judge Paul Maguire said it is plain that Britains parliament has retained to itself the ability to legislate for Northern Ireland without the need to resort to any special procedure.

More challenges likely

What that means is that the U.K. parliament is sovereign, and until now there is no move in the U.K. parliament to challenge Brexit  currently, said Keith Boyfield a London economist and commentator on Brexit. But there will be, he said.

The countries that form Britain have their own legal systems, and other court challenges against Brexit are pending.

Analysts say Fridays ruling in Northern Ireland is an important test.

Opposition to Junes decision is getting louder. In a newspaper commentary and radio interview this week, former Prime Minister Tony Blair, a Brexit critic, said we have to build the capability to mobilize and to organize.

The issue is not whether we ignore the will of the people but whether, as information becomes available, and the facts take the place of claims, the will of the people shifts, Blair wrote the New European newspaper.

Economic turbulence

The drop of the British currencys value, continuing stock market instability, and the prospect of inflation could bolster the arguments of the opposition and change the minds of some.

But some economists and British leaders say the turbulence will be offset by long-term gains.

A weak pound has helped boost tourism and exports, while a large number of nations have expressed interest in negotiating separate trade deals with Britain. The British economy grew by half a percentage point from July to September. It was a modest figure, but it beat analysts forecasts.

In releasing the growth figures, Britains Office for National Statistics said there is little evidence of a pronounced effect in the immediate aftermath of the vote, allaying concerns among many that Britain might slip into recession in the coming year.

Analysts see little chance that court challenges or politicians calls for a new vote will succeed in derailing the Brexit disengagement process that is underway. Leaders, starting with May, say there is no turning back.

But the debate is far from over.

Analysts say continued opposition to Brexit could fuel separatist movements in Northern Ireland and Scotland where the June vote was for remaining in the E.U.

In the case of Northern Ireland, it could mean old matters that appeared to be have been settled by the Good Friday accords could be reignited, and the question of an independent Scotland reawakened.

You can argue that in the long term, it may well lead to a more united Ireland, and some Scots might feel like they will be better off running their own affairs, Boyfield said.
The security of Cabinet ministers, senior BJP leaders and Army chief has been reviewed and tightened after inputs suggest a possible attack by Pakistan in retaliation to the surgical strikes carried out by the Indian Army.

Due to heightened threat, the security of all VVIPs and VIPs have been reviewed.

By Atir Khan: The security at the residence of top Cabinet ministers, senior BJP leaders and Army Chief has been reviewed and strengthened after intelligence inputs suggested there could be terror strikes in retaliation of surgical strikes on Pakistan.

In a major security revamp, security of Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, MoS PMO Jitender Singh and senior BJP leaders LK Advani and Subramanium Swamy have been restructured.

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Top intelligence sources told India Today Group security of Army Chief Dalbir Singh Suhag, Vice-President Hamid Ansari and LG Najeeb Jung has also been reviewed. Sources said rear gate at Home Minister's Akbar Road residence has been closed from both sides and Quick Reaction Teams have been deployed outside his residence with commando deployment.

Also Read | Pakistan army launches multiple attacks along LoC and international border, India retaliates aggressively

Also Read | Drones filmed operation, 2 soldiers hurt by mines: All you need to know about the surgical strike

SNIPERS DEPLOYED, VERIFICATION OF ALL STAFF UNDERWAY

Snippers have also been deployed inside his residence to ward off any terror attempt.

Similarly, rear gate of Prithvi Raj Road residence of LK Advani has also been closed due to security reasons.

The verification of all resident quarters at the residence of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is also being carried out.

Background of four domestic helps at the residence of Subramanium Swamy is being done on priority. The servants will be allowed inside the house only after thorough frisking and checking.

The police verification of three private sweepers deployed by CPWD at the residence of Army Chief Dalbir Singh Suhag at Kamraj Marg is being done. The parking of vehicles outside Vice-President house on Maulana Azad Road has been disbanded.

Verification of all the staff and service providers at the residence has also been ordered.

A permanent PCR van has been deployed at the residence of Delhi L-G Najeeb Jung. Due to heightened security threat to VVIPs/VIPs in the aftermath of Uri attacks and surgical strikes, the security of all protected persons have been reviewed.

Also Read:

Pak analyst confirms India's surgical strikes, says Pakistan itself to blame

Inside story of Indian Army's daring surgical strikes against Pakistan

Opinion: Indian Army's surgical strikes should make Pakistan think twice before trying another Uri

Why India didn't strike Pakistan after 26/11

Apocalypse alert: How India-Pakistan nuclear war will kill 12 million, destroy two countries



--- ENDS ---

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In several gift stores in the bowels of the U.S. State Department, diplomats, civil servants and authorized visitors can purchase clothing, key chains, coffee cups and knickknacks emblazoned with the departments eagle logo.

Also on offer by the concessionaire of the Foreign Affairs Recreation Association are friendship pins on which the Stars and Stripes is twinned with the flags of friendly nations  and one very unfriendly one: the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, with which the United States has never had diplomatic relations.

The U.S.-Korea North flags pin (order number EC-128) sells for $3.95 (buy 10, get one free).

(Full disclosure: VOA correspondents Steve Herman and Nike Ching purchased eight of the prized pins Thursday, so supplies may be limited.)

Shocking and weird

The State Department, notified by VOA News of the unusual item for sale in its basement, said it was looking into the matter.

Friendship, hmmm, was the initial reaction of Yonho Kim, senior researcher of the U.S.-Korea Institute at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.

Its just shocking news and a little weird to me, said Kim, a former senior reporter for VOAs Korean Service. I really want to find out how this happened.

Kim said there are no diplomatic developments on the horizon that would justify stocking such a pin.

Rare so-called Track 2 talks between former U.S. officials and current North Korean diplomats were held last week in Malaysia, but officials at the State Department termed the discussion independent of U.S. government action.

North Korea is under numerous U.N. sanctions for its series of ballistic-missile launches and test detonations of underground nuclear devices.

Pyongyang in recent years has routinely threatened to launch a nuclear attack on the United States.

The United States and North Korea fought each other during the three-year Korean War in the early 1950s. An armistice was signed, but there has been no peace treaty.

Diplomatic unrealities

Little care seems to have been paid at the State Departments basement gift stores to other diplomatic realities. Also for sale are separate pins banding the American flag with those of Yugoslavia (which dissolved in 2006), South Vietnam (conquered by North Vietnam in 1975) and Taiwan (with which Washington cut official ties in 1979).

Theyre a little out of date down there, remarked one State Department official who works in the building.

All of the pins, incidentally, are marked made in China.
Syrian rebel groups say they have begun their large-scale offensive in Aleppo to break the government's siege on neighborhoods in the eastern part of the divided city.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Friday rebel shelling in west Aleppo Friday killed 15 civilians and wounded 100. No other information was immediately available.

On Thursday, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for an investigation into an airstrike on a school in Syria that killed nearly 30 people, most of them children.



"If deliberate, this attack may amount to a war crime," Ban's office said in a statement.



War crimes investigation



Former British prime minister Gordon Brown, who is the U.N. special envoy for education, also called for a war-crimes investigation of the incident.



It really is now incumbent on the Security Council to investigate this, to prosecute if there is a war crime, to get the International Criminal Court on board for this, and to have an investigation, Brown told VOA in an interview.



Warplanes carried out six strikes Wednesday on a village in rebel-held Idlib and hit a school complex, leaving six teachers and 22 of their students dead, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

WATCH: UN correspondent Margaret Besheer on school attack

Who is to blame?

Both the observatory and the White House have said that either the Syrian or Russian governments were responsible for the attacks.



"We dont know yet that it was the Assad regime or the Russians that carried out the airstrike, but we know it was one of the two," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.

Russian defense ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said Russian warplanes were not in the airspace over the school at the time in question. Russian news agencies also quoted him as saying that images of the damaged site photographed by a Russian unmanned aircraft indicated the damage was not due to an airstrike.



Western diplomats at the United Nations backed calls for an independent investigation.



Its an appalling attack. We condemn it, British Ambassador Matthew Rycroft told reporters. It is a good idea to establish a proper investigation. I hope the whole of the Security Council would be able to support that, and I hope the whole the Security Council would also support proper accountability for whoever is deemed to have been responsible for such an outrageous attack, he added.

'Barbarian acts'



If this is not a war crime, frankly, what is a war crime? French Ambassador Francois Delattre asked reporters. We must hold the perpetrators of those barbarian acts accountable. We will be firm on that. We will also keep up the pressure on the Syrian regime and its allies to stop the bombing.

The United Nations says some two million Syrian school-aged children are out of school and 52,000 teachers have left their jobs. Since January, there have been up to 40 attacks on schools in the war-torn country, and one-third of all schools are unusable because they have been damaged, destroyed or occupied.


Comfort Amos is one of the 21 girls released from the grips of militant group Boko Haram last week in Nigeria, after being held hostage for nearly two and a half years.

When her father, known simply as Amos, saw her after the ordeal, he couldn't believe his eyes. "Oh my daughter, you are still alive! I wasn't optimistic about the possibility of seeing you again," he told VOA Hausa Service, recounting his first words to his daughter.

Amos said he had lots of questions for Comfort about her treatment, and she assured him that she was not abused or forced to marry any of her abductors. She said the girls had adequate food until recently when there were shortages.

She also said, contrary to some published reports, the other abducted Chibok girls are still alive and were not harmed during bombing raids. Those selected to be released were done so practically at random.

"They were called and asked to form a line, and after a number of them were counted, it was stopped," Amos said. "Fortunately for her, she was among those released. They were told that the total of girls to be released was 21 and that by the grace of God, the rest would be released later."

Boko Haram's abduction of more than 200 girls from Chibok, an area located in the Borno state of northeast Nigeria, garnered global outrage, including a call for action by U.S. first lady Michelle Obama. The inability to rescue the girls became a campaign issue, and helped propel President Muhammadu Buhari to victory over former President Goodluck Jonathan.

Yakubu Nkeki, chairman of Abducted Chibok Girls' Parents Association, told VOA that he believes the ordeal is finally taking a positive turn after so much frustration. Nkeki's daughter is still being held captive.

"Even though my daughter was not among those released, I am happy seeing those children," he said. "As the chairman, even if one girl is released, I will join other parents in celebration for that would mean that God has started answering my prayers for all of them. And so I am optimistic that my daughter will be released if she is alive, as there is no reason why she would not be. The way the government pushes for their release now makes us optimistic."

Negotiations with Boko Haram

The government's negotiations with Boko Haram have been both secretive and controversial. After taking office in 2015, Buhari signaled a willingness to negotiate with the group if a "credible leader" could be identified.

During last month's U.N. General Assembly in New York, Buhari expressed frustration over not knowing who, in fact, led the terror group and could be counted on to uphold the other end of a bargain.

Nigeria's Information Minister Lai Mohammed said he believes the release of the 21 girls is the first step in a deal to release all of the girls, but he declined to give details of the terms of negotiations.

"Already we are on phase two and we are already in discussion," Mohammed told Reuters. "But of course these are very delicate negotiations. There are some promises that we made also about the confidentiality of the entire exercise, and we intend to keep them."

Alex Thurston, a scholar of Islam and politics at Georgetown University's African Studies Program, has followed the ordeal and believes negotiations with the group are appropriate if done correctly.

"There have been at least two major incidents where ransoms were paid before, so there is a precedent for negotiating with Boko Haram in a very limited way," he said. "But the Nigerian government has tried in the past to open up a broader kind of dialogue and, for me, I think that those attempts  even though they said all of them ended in failure  I think it would be worth it to keep trying [that approach] to see what might happen."

Details unknown

It is unknown whether the latest captives' release was part of a prisoner exchange, ransom payment or some other deal.

Thurston acknowledges the moral ambiguity of negotiating with terror groups and the argument that it could offer an incentive for Boko Haram to make future abductions.

He also believes, however, that if negotiating with the group could bring an end to the insurgency that has decimated the northeast of the country and displaced over two million people, it is worth exploring.

"I think that at some point, there's going to need to be some kind of a political settlement to this conflict," Thurston said. "Maybe the diehards in Boko Haram are so far beyond whatever the Nigerian government might say that it wouldn't be possible, but I do believe there must be elements and segments of Boko Haram that might be persuaded to lay down arms under some kind of political settlement."

Ibrahim Garba and Grace Abdu contributed to this report.
Ethiopian human rights activists, members of opposition parties and those working in the media say their freedom of movement has been severely limited since the government declared a state of emergency three weeks ago. Many are afraid to speak out while others had to stop working.

Ethiopias government has insisted the six-month state of emergency  declared so authorities can deal with protests in the Oromia and Amhara regions  does not affect the constitutional rights of citizens.

But while things might seem calm in the streets of Addis Ababa, those perceived as challenging the government's views say they are often blocked from carrying out their activities.



Assefa Habtewold is the chairman of the opposition All Ethiopian Unity Party. He says it has become almost impossible for his party members to operate.



We cannot go from region to region and visit our members," said Habtewold. "We cannot conduct meetings with our members at different districts. All this is prohibited. All in all we cannot make a meeting of more than two persons. Totally our movement is halted. Until the end of the state of emergency we cannot do anything.



The party, like other opposition parties, says dozens of its members have been detained or are being harassed.



Addis Standard, a weekly independent magazine, announced last week it is suspending its print edition. No printing house is willing to print their magazine following the state of emergency, says editor-in-chief Tsedale Lemma.

It makes everybody hung onto this unspecified fear of whats going to happen if this material is published," said Lemma. "Will it be misunderstood, will it be used against me? So this has a huge impact on doing journalism for us. As we have seen it now with Addis Standard, it even extends to vendors, and printers, and pretty much everyone involved in making a print product.



Tsedale says the magazine will continue online, despite the countrys internet being mostly switched off.



Ethiopias largest ethnic group, the Oromo, has been demonstrating for nearly a year demanding more freedom, economic inclusiveness and proper compensation for land disputes. Hundreds have been killed during clashes with police.
In a non-descript, three-room apartment in the town of Noginsk, outside Moscow, Syrian kids are learning Russian. Their teachers, who also give classes in English and Arabic, are a mix of Syrians, Russians, and Syrian-Russians.

Most of the Syrian families with children at this makeshift school fled Aleppo before Russia began its bombing campaign there.

They try not to discuss that with us, says Laila Rogozina with the Civil Assistance Committee charity, which runs the classes. That is why I can't say what they think about this conflict. I do not think they are happy. They have some relatives living there who either disappear without any news from them, or flee in an unknown direction.

Before Russia began its air campaign in Syria in support of President Bashar al-Assad, many Syrians ended up in Russia, given the business and family ties that the long-standing relations between Damascus and Moscow have produced.

Despite the war, the Russian authorities have granted refugee status to only two Syrians, leaving thousands with only temporary legal status, including children.

Women and children are turned down in getting temporary asylum during the war period, while all the mass media report that we keep bombing Aleppo and the majority of the refugees come from Aleppo, says Rogozina in exasperated disbelief.

Many of the Syrians in Noginsk and nearby towns overstay their temporary visas, remain undocumented, and work illegally in sewing factories to earn a living.

Afraid of authorities, their children are shut out of Russian schools.

Even Syrians who have lived in Russia for decades and have become Russian citizens say there is little sympathy from officials.

The people among themselves don't complain and take it all for granted, says Arabic translator Khadizh Ismail Muhkamed Basil Adib. But the officials treat them badly. In a word, it is hard to be a Syrian here right now.

Adib has lived in Russia more than twenty years but only received Russian citizenship two years ago. He says his brother was killed in the war in Syria.

The Syrian community tells him their biggest challenge in Russia is getting the legal documents allowing them to live and work here.

Unfortunately the migration service here is very corrupt and in Moscow they don't receive Syrians at all, says Adib. If Syrians go to apply [for legal status] they say they'll deport them out of the country.

Riyad, a Syrian-Russian businessman who did not want to give his last hame, moved from Aleppo to Russia in 1989 and became a citizen.

When the war in Syria began, I invited my family here," he says. "They came, we thought the war would be over soon within a month or two, but it's been going on for a long time - six years.

Since the war in Syria started, the visas the Russian authorities have granted his family, including his wife, are only temporary.

Then the authorities refused its extension and suggested we go back," he says. "We said we couldn't, as it was impossible to return to a country at war.

Riyad says their home in Aleppo was destroyed and one son, a soldier in the Syrian army, was killed.

One son married a Russian and was able to get Russian citizenship.

Two other sons joined a boatload of migrants on the dangerous journey from Turkey to live in Germany.

Although they are safe, the familys separation has left Riyad bitter about what it means to be a Russian citizen.

We don't like it here as it's not our country, he says. We want to live where we were born and where we have grown up. Let us live here while the war is raging. When it's over, we'll take the first plane. Why don't we have respect for one another here in Russia? Why don't we understand one another here?

Meanwhile, Syrian kids play outside of their charity-run school and a neighboring prison.

But their classes may have to be relocated, because winter is coming and they lack central heating.
A U.S. federal jury has acquitted seven anti-government protesters who led an armed takeover of a wildlife refuge in the northwestern state of Oregon earlier this year.

The jury in Portland, Oregon, handed down acquittals for all seven defendants Thursday. They had been charged with conspiring to impede federal employees through intimidation or force at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in January.

If convicted, they could have been sentenced to up to six years in prison on the conspiracy charge.

The defendants held a 41-day standoff at the wildlife refuge, drawing attention to their complaint about what they saw as mismanagement of federal land.

The land is subject to restrictions on logging, mining and ranching in an effort to protect the environment. Brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy, who led the occupation in January, are ranchers who argue that cattle should be allowed to graze on public land.

During the occupation, group members held numerous news conferences to promote their cause. Their spokesman, Robert LaVoy Finicum, was shot and killed by police January 26 during a traffic stop, and the Bundys and several other leaders were arrested.

Four holdouts continued the occupation until February 11, when they surrendered to police.

Of 26 people charged with conspiracy in the case, 11 pleaded guilty, one had the charge dropped, and seven others chose not to be tried in the session that concluded Thursday. Their trial is scheduled to begin February 14.
Educators in Turkey are at the center of a crackdown, with more than 12,000 teachers suspended for alleged links to the Kurdish PKK rebel group.

"At a very early hour in the morning, police came banging on my door," one teacher said of the intimidating tactics employed. "They violently entered and told me that there is an order for my 'detention.' You go through a big worry and fear at that time, but you also know that you have not done anything wrong. Yet you know you still can get such a harsh treatment."

The teachers are accused of supporting terrorism because they participated in a strike last year calling for an end to fighting between the Turkish state and the PKK. However, Saliha Zorlu  co-head of the Diyarbakir branch of Egitim-Sen, the educators union  says there is a wider agenda behind the crackdown.

"We are very worried," Zorlu said. "Egitim-Sen is the guarantee of secularism both in the field of education and in society in general. If there is no active opposition by Egitim-Sen, I believe the education system will be pushed away from secularism and transformed into a religious system under the hegemony of religion.

"We are already seeing the signs of this today, she added. "During the attack on us, we saw that imams were appointed to state-run dormitories."

Kurds in Turkey traditionally are religious conservatives. Religious groups in the region backing the government have recently stepped up their activities, advocating for the region's return to its Islamic roots as a counter to the pro-secular, Marxist-rooted PKK  the Kurdistan Workers' Party. As is the case in the rest of the country, there has been an expansion of religious schooling in the Kurdish region.

However, the government insists its suspension of teachers is only about fighting terrorism.

"In the upcoming days, those who made propaganda for the terror organization, who boycotted schools and who encouraged students to join the terrorists will be separated from the innocent teachers," said Muhammed Akar, the head of the ruling AKP party in Diyarbakir.

"I can say that a significant percentage will be reinstated to their duties, and the others, those who are guilty, will be charged," he added.

The arrests and suspensions of teachers are continuing to provoke anger and protests; many parents complain that their children are without teachers.

Idris Baluken, a parliamentary group leader of the pro-Kurdish HDP party, warns the suspensions are adding more tension to the region.

"The position of the Kurdish teachers is like cartilage between two bones," he said. "Yes, when you go to school, you can't have education in Kurdish, but still, Kurdish-speaking teachers can help with the problems faced by children who do not speak Turkish.

"By taking out this cartilage," Baluken said, "President [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan is causing friction, making two bones rub against each other."

The conflict-strewn region appears to have a new front line: education, with children and teachers destined to become caught in the crossfire.
The U.N. human rights office reports Iraqi civilians are increasingly being used as pawns by Islamic State militants in their battle for Mosul. The agency says it has received credible reports of hundreds of executions, mass abductions, and the use of civilians as human shields.

The agency reports Islamic State militants have been forcing people living in the outskirts of the city of Mosul out of their homes and pushing them into the city to be used as human shields. It says that has been going on since the Iraqi government offensive to retake Mosul began October 17.

Human Rights spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani says IS, also known as ISIL, has abducted nearly 8,000 families or more than 47,000 people and forced them at gunpoint into strategic IS locations.

ISILs depraved, cowardly strategy is to attempt to use the presence of civilian hostages to render certain points, areas or military forces immune from military operations, effectively using tens of thousands of women, men, and children as human shields," said Shamdasani. "Many of those who refused to comply were shot on the spot. And, even among those who did comply, many of them, including 190 former ISF (Iraqi Security Forces) officers and 42 other civilians were shot dead.

Shamdasani says the cruel behavior is provoking revenge killings of people suspected of being members of IS. She says some individuals have embarked on revenge killings and have vowed there will be eye for eye revenge.

She says the high commissioner for human rights is urging people to refrain from vigilante justice and to treat captured IS fighters in accordance with international human rights law. However, she tells VOA his appeal is failing to deter some people from attacking those they believe to be members of IS.

However, what is very encouraging is that there are tribal leaders who actually are encouraging their people not to exact revenge attacks," said Shamdasani. "They are saying let us hand them over to the criminal justice system because otherwise we will be making things worse. And, this is extremely wise and really it is the only way forward towards peace.

Shamdasani agrees some people claiming to be internally displaced are actually IS militants. She says it is important to screen everyone who arrives at camps for IDPs to separate those who have run from IS in fear of their lives from the men responsible for their suffering.
A two-day search for missing Chinese mariner Guo Chuan ended late Wednesday, according to U.S. Coast Guard Hawaii Branch officials.

They said they did not find the missing sailor and expressed deep condolences to Guo's family, friends and sailing team.

Guo, considered the best mariner in China, set out from San Francisco on October 18, trying to set a solo sailing record across the Pacific to Shanghai, China.

After receiving reports that Guo had missed his Hawaii arrival time Tuesday, rescue operations began.

Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules surveillance crews conducted six search patterns covering nearly 12,000 square kilometers of water in the vicinity of the charted course of Guo's 30-meter super trimaran.

The amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island deployed an MH-60 Seahawk helicopter Wednesday, once rescuers were in range to attempt contact with Guo, whose craft was located 1,000 kilometers northwest of the Hawaiian island of Oahu.

Radio calls went unanswered, so rescuers deployed an inflatable boat and crew. The boat crew found a life jacket on board the trimaran but no sign of Guo.

This report was produced in collaboration with VOA's Mandarin service.
Two Anchor Bay School Board members will be challenged for their seats in the upcoming general election.

On Nov. 8, incumbents Heather Bade and Steve Mittelstadt will face off against challengers Shawn Elliott and Karla Hagemann in the race for two open seats on the Anchor Bay Board of Education. The district comprises about 6,400 students in eight elementary schools, two middle schools, one high school, an alternative high school and various early childhood programs in the Anchor Bay area.

To verify voter registration information or view a sample ballot, go to michigan.gov/vote.

The Voice sent questionnaires to the candidates asking them to provide information about themselves and responses to the following three questions: 1) What do you think makes you the most qualified candidate? 2) If elected, what changes  if any  do you envision taking place while in office? 3) As many school districts across the state continue to face an overall decline in revenue, what is your plan for maintaining the districts budget? The following responses were received.

MEET THE CANDIDATES

Bade: I have lived in the school district for 43 years and am a graduate of Anchor Bay High School. I also have four children who have attended Anchor Bay. I currently have a daughter attending Anchor Bay High School. I am a licensed master social worker and a member of the National Association of Social Workers. Over the past two years, I have been involved with the suicide prevention efforts at the high school.

Elliott: Hi, my name is Shawn Elliott. I have lived in the Anchor Bay School District for 12 years. For the past 16-plus years I have been a high school teacher and a college instructor for eight and a half years. I am married to an elementary teacher and have two children in ABSD. Memberships: MEA, retired; AFT; LSCWA, and USBC. Alumni of: SCCC, KVCC, Walsh, WSU and SVSU. Doctoral candidate at CMU in educational leadership.

Hagemann: I grew up in New Baltimore and graduated from Anchor Bay High School. I went on to college and graduated from the University of Michigan. I currently live in Chesterfield Township and work at Greystone Assisted Living in New Baltimore. I have two children who attend Anchor Bay Schools. I have been involved in their education since they started school by volunteering in their classrooms, being active in the PTO and attending school board meetings.

Mittelstadt: My family has lived in the district for 35 years. I earned my engineering degree from General Motors Institute and graduated with distinction. Working for GM for over 40 years, I have managed people and projects within its engineering organization. Ive been a foster parent and member of the Michigan Foster Care Review Board and Advisory Committee, reviewing foster care placements for the Michigan Supreme Court. I have volunteered time supporting the H.S. JROTC program.

Question 1

Bade: I have over a decade of experience as a current member of the Anchor Bay School Board. This helps me to be able to identify trends and implement best practices to ensure the highest quality of education for our students.

Elliott: I believe I am the best candidate for the position for many reasons. The first reason is that I am familiar with the educational system. I have not only taught in public schools for 16 years, but I am also a parent of children in the district. My second reason is that I can offer a fresh perspective to an established school board.

Hagemann: I am a lifelong resident and committed to the community and district. I will bring a new perspective and fresh ideas to the board. I come from a family of educators: My mother was a teacher in the district for over 30 years; two of my sisters work in neighboring districts. I have very strong communication skills and plan on utilizing these skills to develop stronger, more collaborative relationships with school staff and community members.

Mittelstadt: I have children attending Anchor Bay, including five who have graduated. With 30 years of board experience, including 19 years as president, I have a proven track record of dedicating my time and energy to maintain and improve the quality of our schools. When making decisions, I keep in mind what impact it will have on the students and the classroom. I have received both Michigan Association of School Boards Certification and Award of Merit.

Question 2

Bade: I am certain that we will continue to work together with the teachers, maintenance and administrative staff to ensure effective communication and collaboration. I have always been supportive of the staff that provide high quality service to our students.

Elliott: The board isnt made up of one person; its a team of individuals working for the greater good. I can provide different perspectives that are lacking. I do feel there are some issues in the district that may need to be addressed, the education of special needs students and technology. As a parent of a special needs child, I have had opportunities to interact with other special needs parents, in our community and outside.

Hagemann: I would like ensure that educators have input in regard to what materials and training are required to properly educate our children. I would also strive to increase the transparency of the board and get more involvement from the community. I would let community members know that their ideas are valuable and their voices are important. The more transparent the board is, the more informed the community becomes regarding the districts challenges and opportunities.

Mittelstadt: We need to maintain the districts strong academic focus while continuing to offer our students opportunities such as band, sports, clubs, choir, JROTC and the arts. It is important that we continue to support our staff and provide the resources necessary to help prepare our students for lifes challenges. We should be integrating technology where it makes sense and is effective. We need to create relationships with local businesses to provide apprentice and intern opportunities.

Question 3

Bade: As a board, we have always set a balanced budget that takes into consideration all of the facets of providing a high level of quality education to our students. I will continue to play a role in implementing a budget that is consistent and fair to ensure the best use of tax payer money while providing the best educational experience possible for our students.

Elliott: Unfortunately, revenue continues to drop as schools are expected to do more with less. In these trying financial times, it is the school districts responsibility to manage money sensibly. Looking forward, what creative ways have other school districts investigated to bring in outside revenue to lessen the states cuts? What is the school district already doing? What will they do moving forward to bring in the needed revenue and think outside of the box.

Hagemann: It is critical that the board focus on ways to create revenue and increase enrollment to prevent the need to continually make cuts. However, when cuts are necessary, I would advocate to keep them as far away from the classroom as possible. Our teachers require manageable class sizes and adequate resources to educate our children.

Mittelstadt: Having the states lowest per pupil funding, we need to scrutinize our budget, making sure our decisions protect the programs for our students. By continuing to offer innovative programs, we can motivate students and maintain interest in coming to Anchor Bay. We have used an outside accreditation review and a community strategic plan process to enable us to focus our funds and energy to give our children the best education for the taxpayers dollar.

Katelyn Larese is the associate editor of The Voice. She can be contacted at (586) 273-6196 or katelyn.larese@voicenews.com.
The Army said Pakistan has violated ceasefire along LoC in Sundarbani and Pallanwala sectors in Rajouri and Jammu districts.

By India Today Web Desk: Intelligence intercept suggests that the firing across the LoC and International border from the Pakistan side is going to continue for next three days. Intelligence reports also suggest that Pakistan is trying to infiltrate terrorists before snowfall.



Since last three-four days Pakistan have deployed SSG commando near LOC. Around 14 to 15 SSG platoon has been deployed near LoC and a colonel rank officer is leading SSG platoon.

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Reports suggest that Pakistan is trying to take revenge of surgical strike.

PAKISTAN VIOLATES CEASEFIRE

Pakistan continues to provoke India by targeting various places across the LoC as well as the international border. Heavy shelling by Pakistan troops in Jammu and Kashmir's Nowshera since 05:00 am was reported.

The Army said Pakistan has violated ceasefire along LoC in Sundarbani and Pallanwala sectors in Rajouri and Jammu districts. It said, "It continued till 0500 AM this morning intermittently in area of approximately 24 BSF posts. BSF gave a strong & befitting reply. Small arms, automatics, 82 mm mortars and 120 mm mortars being responded appropriately and befittingly, no casualties to own troops."

Last night there was massive shelling and firing by the Pakistani Army at Kathua, Heeranagar, Samba, Arnia, RS Pura and Akhnoor on International border. On the LoC, the Pakistani forces targeted Tangdhar and Poonch sector.

The BSF said one girl injured in overnight ceasefire violation in Kathua and Jammu districts.

Pakistan has reportedly suffered heavy damages across Kathua sector in Jammu after the BSF retaliated with heavy shelling and firing.



Pakistan spy racket: 2 Indians arrested, embassy staff asked to leave India

Another Pakistani spy working for ISI arrested in Rajasthan



Pak analyst confirms India's surgical strikes, says Pakistan itself to blame

--- ENDS ---
Woman seeks compensation after driving into sink hole

Clay Township police received a report on Oct. 19 from a woman seeking compensation from a local gas station owner for damage to her vehicle after she drove into a sink hole around a storm drain at the business, according to a police report. She told police the owner would not compensate her. The woman said she was asked by a delivery truck driver to move her vehicle so they could unload. While doing so, she did not see the plastic container that was positioned over the storm drain in order to alert people not to drive over it. She states the container was only a couple of feet high and could not be seen when parked next to it. Police advised the woman on small claims and told her to follow up with her insurance company.

Lost elderly man found at Algonac gas station

On Oct. 21, Clay Township police were dispatched to an Algonac Sunoco gas station in response to a report of a lost elderly male, according to a police report. The man told police he was lost and trying to get to his home in Dearborn. Police were allowed to look inside the mans vehicle, finding a cell phone and contacting the mans son to advise him of the situation. The man was taken back to the station to await the arrival of his family.

Missing license plate found at DNR boat launch

Clay Township police returned a trailer license plate that was reported found on Oct. 19 at the DNR boat launch across from the Kroger in Algonac, according to a police report. An unidentified caller reported the location of the plate to the station. Dispatched checked the lien on the plate and located its owner. The owner said he had noticed the plate was missing a day or two before, but had not made a report.
Well, good evening, everybody. And thank you, very, very much to Ivo Daalder. Thank you, sir, Mr. Ambassador. And thanks to the Chicago Council for Global Affairs for inviting me here. And a profound thank you to Ambassador Lou Susman for his very generous introduction. And most importantly, Marge and Lou, thank you for many, many years of extraordinary friendship. I really value it. And I think everybody is grateful for the service of both of these ambassadors. Thank you.

With respect to my being here, I have to tell you I was surprised that you guys showed up given the Cubbies. (Laughter.) I figured that  I was surprised at the generous welcome, because I thought the only people who would come would be White Sox fans  (applause)  but Im pleasantly, pleasantly surprised. More to say about that.

Ivo is one of our top foreign policy experts of the generation, and I had the occasion to be at his residence in Brussels with President Karzai and the then chief of staff of Pakistans armed forces, and we abused his premises significantly for hours while we negotiated. But Im grateful for the job he did. He was an outstanding United States ambassador to NATO.

And Lou, folks, if you dont know it, is a Chicago fixture. He is a former emissary to the United Kingdom to the Court of St. James, a lawyer, a businessman, and as I mentioned, a longtime friend. He is also one of those very irritating people who no matter what he tries he succeeds at it. (Laughter.)

So Ambassador Daalder and Susman, you guys make a great team. And my deepest respects to you, and thank you for continuing with the council in providing leadership. We really appreciate it.

To my former colleague on Capitol Hill, Senator Dick Durbin, to Secretary Bill Daley, to Ambassador Jim Dobbins, members of the consular corps, and to all of you, thank you very much for your warm welcome to Chicago, the hometown of my boss. (Applause.)

Im not saying this for your consumption; I say it anywhere and everywhere. President Obama is going to go down in history as one of Americas significant and most accomplished chief executives. (Applause.) And lucky guy, hes only in his fifties. Hes got a lot more to contribute to the country, so were all lucky.

And over the years, I have heard President Obama talk a lot about Chicago, as you could imagine. And I am sure he has heard me as a champion of Boston complaining about Chicagos unconscionable kidnapping of Theo Epstein and Jon Lester. (Laughter.) Envy is a terrible thing, folks. (Laughter.)

We all know that for many decades, Boston and Chicago were linked by an evil curse hatched by demons dwelling thousands of miles beneath the Earths crust. (Laughter.) And a dozen years ago, with Theos help, Boston broke from the spell. And skies opened, the lotus blossoms fell like rain. (Laughter.) And because some of you may be superstitious  which actually means all of you are superstitious  I will say no more except to say: Forget about yesterday. Your Cubbies are wicked awesome, as we say in Boston. (Applause.) And I promise to get you home tonight before the seventh inning stretch. (Laughter.)

Now, my focus this evening is on diplomacy, the art of negotiating and building relationships. It is a skill that some people have and others do not. For example, when Ulysses S. Grant was a boy, he lived across the state in Galina. And at the age of eight, he got permission from his dad to buy a neighbors horse. So he went to the neighbors farm and he told the guy there, Papa says I can offer you $20 for the colt, but if you dont take it, Im to offer twenty-two-and-a-half. And if you dont take that, Im to give you 25.

Now, my friends, with that kind of transparency, we could put WikiLeaks out of business. (Laughter.) But Ive got to tell you, it makes you wonder how the North ever won the Civil War. (Laugher.) Now, we can all read about the Civil War and have, and we can all sit in the grandstands and watch the World Series, but actually, were here tonight not as spectators. Were here as real-life participants in a troubled world. And we know that we have choices to make as citizens and as a country that can spell the difference between security and suffering, progress and stagnation, in an era of rapid, breathtaking transition. And that breathtaking transition is at the heart of a lot of the discontent that we see playing out in the most disturbing and unattractive ways.

But we have to take seriously whats underneath it. The stark and bipolar divide of the Cold War that I encountered when I first arrived in the United States Senate that I grew up with, as a kid who grew up through the Cold War, but which I arrived at in the Senate more than 30 years ago, that bipolar, simple world has disappeared, and I dont think anyone regrets that. But we are confronted today by a globe that is both no less dangerous and far more complex, where the power to influence events is less hierarchical, far more broadly dispersed, and change is at least as likely to be driven from the bottom as it is from the top.

For better and often for worse, non-state actors have assumed a more prominent role on the global stage. Chicagos MacArthur Foundation is one of the happier examples. And the astonishing march of technology has and continues to revolutionize the workplace, and seemingly it has shrunk time and space, and that makes neighbors of all of us. Political instability, economic hardships, and even climate change have caused record numbers of people to migrate across borders in search of a better life. And all of this has made the job of governing in a way that meets public expectations harder than it has ever been before.

Here in the United States, we saw our nation attacked on 9/11 and our armed forces enter a fight at great cost in Afghanistan and Iraq. In recent years, we have witnessed the rise of Daesh/ISIL and again experienced the tragedy of terrorist murders close to home. We are confronted as well by the specter of cyber warfare, and by the unwelcome return of vicious sectarian violence and extreme nationalism.

It is little wonder that some yearn for what seems like a far simpler time. But it would be foolish to think that we can move ahead with our eyes firmly fixed on the rearview mirror. International challenges cant be wished away, they cant be ignored. They have to be met with honesty and determination and confidence. And that is the approach that our country at its best has always taken. As a famous son of Illinois once said, optimist is just another name for an American. And I agree  on at least this point  with Ronald Reagan. (Laughter.)

Put simply, the tasks that we face in the world today are more diverse and more complicated than those that our predecessors wrestled with. And frankly, our strategies have to reflect that and they dont always. Some problems are relatively narrow in scope or theyre confined to a particular region, but a few  such as those that are posed by poor governance, of which there is far too much in this world right now  corruption, climate change, violent extremism; these are problems and challenges that are literally generational in their scope, and they require both short-term and long-term actions  something that our politics is finding it really difficult to deal with to our great detriment as a country.

At times we will be able to count on global institutions, but more often were going to have to do a lot of the heavy lifting ourselves. Thats what Ive learned as Secretary. In every case, we have to act with our nations values and our best interests in mind. And I want to be crystal clear that is exactly what we are doing.

Now, weve all heard some people accuse the United States of standing aloof from the worlds problems or somehow being in retreat. Ive heard that narrative. I hear people say why is the United States disengaging? Why are you pulling back? And I scratch my head, and I say, where are these people coming from? But those assertions are, to use a diplomatic term of art, absolute nonsense. The truth is that the United States today is more deeply engaged in more places simultaneously on more critical issues with greater consequence than ever before in the history of this nation, and I know that. (Applause.)

Now, let me run through that a little bit so its not just a sentence, its not rhetoric. Consider for a moment the worlds most dynamic region.

The Asia Pacific is essential to the security and the prosperity of the United States  period. Of our top ten trading partners in the world, five of them are in Asia. The globes most populous country and its largest democracy are located there. In East Asia, we have enduring defense alliances with Japan and the Republic of Korea that we continue to strengthen and reaffirm and that we have strengthened and reaffirmed in this administration twice since I have been Secretary.

We have a regional diplomatic agenda that covers everything from nonproliferation to the prevention of human trafficking. Just two days ago I chaired  because I chair the Interagency Task Force  we had the Attorney General of the United States, the head of the FBI, the Treasury Department, the entire government  Education Department, Commerce  all at the same table talking about how were going to deal with human trafficking and end the scourge of modern-day slavery in the year 2016. I dont know any other nation. (Applause.) You tell me what other nation has every arm of its government sitting around the same table on the same day wrestling with a global international issue and offering leadership as we have been on the issue of trafficking. Young women who are sold into slavery and sex traffics; a young man with a shackle around his neck that The New York Times chronicled so effectively, who was two years at sea, shackled to a boat where he was made to fish illegally and as a slave. You can run through 27 million stories, folks. I dont know them all, but I know that each is as horrible as the other, and so do you. And these are people who are powerless; people from whom it is only a country like us that is willing to work to try to stand up and bring them out of the shadows and liberate them that we are their only hope, their only possibility of survival in situations where otherwise they might be forgotten to anybody and everybody  a speck of history that disappeared in some horrible moment that we dont even witness.

We are cooperating with local (inaudible) leaders to restrain North Koreas dangerous nuclear program and were adding muscle to one of the toughest economic sanctions regimes ever imposed, and we led the effort to achieve that. We consult regularly with regional partners to prevent misunderstandings that would lead to even greater tensions in the South China Sea. And we are helping to guide Myanmars historic transition from global outcast to emerging democracy. Just yesterday, I met with leaders from Vietnam to deepen our ties to a one-time adversary with whom we have found areas of common ground that not long ago would have seemed literally unimaginable.

Yesterday, I sat across a man who told me he fought in Quang Tri in the north of Vietnam while I was in the south, improbable as it might have been years ago for me to imagine we would sit across the table from each other and talk about how we really make peace. We left there in 1975  as you all know, 73  we left in 75, the fall of Saigon, then-Saigon, and the rest is history. Well, Im proud that the United States saw the President of the United States Barack Obama, together with the Secretary of State who fought in that war in Hanoi, in Ho Chi Minh City, forging stronger ties with what is now a raging capitalist country that is changing rapidly. And that is how you really make peace, my friends  by building, by diplomacy. (Applause.)

In September, I sat down with New York  in New York with representatives from many Asian nations, and they reiterated a message that I have heard over and over again as Secretary of State. They welcome Americas presence in their region. And they dont go to bed at night wondering about when were going to leave; they worry that we might leave. They dont want any one country to try and dictate to others what they can and cannot do. And they see the United States of America as a balancing and stabilizing force, but theyre also concerned about what the future is going to bring. And the question they ask, the critical test of our commitment above all others, is whether we will formally approve the Trans Pacific Partnership or the TPP.

Now, let me tell you, this 12-nation agreement which we sought, which we led to create, which we have put our credibility on the line in order to build this 40 percent of global GDP entity that will create a race to the top, not a race to the bottom. Its a global economy, and this agreement includes three of the biggest trading partners of Chicago  Canada, Mexico, and Japan. Unlike any trade agreement that our country has ever previously signed, TPP includes unprecedented labor and environmental protections within the four corners of the agreement, unlike the others. It mandates a level playing field between private sector companies and state-owned companies. Who do you think benefits from that? We dont have state-owned companies. Other countries do. And now we create a level playing field. And provided Congress approves it, this pact will abolish 18,000 foreign taxes on American goods and services, making it easier for our farmers, our ranchers, and our businesspeople to be able to export overseas.

That is why the TPP is both a good deal for the American economy and it is a litmus test of our countrys capacity to lead. Make no mistake; if were going to live up to our responsibilities in Asia, if were going to treat our partners with the respect that they deserve while earning their respect at the same time, and if were going to do what is necessary to protect our interests, we have to maintain a steady and a reliable presence in that region. And Ill just share with you our involvement cant be in one sector and not in others. We cant focus on one country and not be inclusive. We cant focus on security at one moment and then ignore the economic dimension. You cant turn it on and off like a faucet. Whenever and wherever vacuums exist in this world today, others will move to fill them in ways that may not embrace the rule of law and that will certainly not reflect the kind of high trading standards that we, the United States, seek.

If we were to see the TPP rejected, it would be a gigantic self-inflicted wound on our nation  a setback to our own interests in the region, where our credibility as a country on any agreement were trying to negotiate would be in doubt. It would amount to a conscious turning of our backs on the Asia Pacific at the very moment that we ought to be linking arms. It would be an act that would hurt American workers, slow our economy, hinder our ability to advance the full range of U.S. objectives in a region that is just, by common sense, with five of the fastest-growing nations in the world, a region that is important to our future.

Now, the good news is most of our citizens realize this. A recent survey by this council showed that a majority of Americans favor the TPP and believe that free trade is beneficial  and as I say free, I say fair, because its important that it be an agreement like the TPP, where you have labor standards and environment standards. But it is beneficial to our economy and is helpful to Americas standard of living.

And those people who are the majority in America who say they do support it realize that if America is going to keep growing  just think about this, its sort of basic common sense. You want the economy to grow, folks? Then you have to be able to sell to the places where 95 percent of the worlds customers live, and thats not in the United States. Ninety-five percent of the worlds customers live in other countries  beyond our borders  and we cant grow our economy unless were willing to engage in trade. So dont throw the baby out with the bathwater. Thats not what this is about. The problem is not that the average American worker is penalized by trade itself. The average American worker is penalized by a system that doesnt allow them to share in the benefits of that trade, which sees the top 1 percent take most of the benefits away with them. And what we need is a measure of fairness in our tax structure, in our social structure, education, ongoing education, that provides opportunity for all Americans, so that whatever disruption or dislocation might come is adjusted for because we understand what were doing.

So I call on Congress when it returns to Washington after the election to take up and approve the TPP. It is the right thing to do for America  and no matter what the loudest voices may be shouting  it is also the popular choice. (Applause.)

Now even  but even as we demonstrate sustained leadership on the rebalance of our national security policy towards the Asia Pacific, we have to confront a lot of other tests as well. And none is more urgent than responding to the threat that is posed by violent extremists. This is a danger that has evolved steadily since 9/11 and we work constantly to defend against it, both here and at home; and in helping Nigeria to push back against the terrorist kidnappers of Boko Haram, which we are doing successfully; of helping Somalia to reclaim land from al-Shabaab, which we are doing successfully; of helping Afghanistan to safeguard its citizens from the Taliban; to help friends in the Middle East who are confronted by the most ruthless terrorist organization of all.

I want you to think back to the summer of 2014, ask yourself who is retreating. In 2014, Daesh terrorists were rampaging across Syria and Iraq, and you remember seeing on TV the Toyotas and the black flags and the sweeping columns moving through town after town plundering cities, murdering and torturing the innocent, and claiming to establish a caliphate that would rule all Islam. We heard dire predictions that Baghdad was about to fall and that young people from every single corner of the globe were going to flock to Daesh to kill and die in the name of hate.

It was a time to provide leadership, and that is exactly what President Obama did when he ordered U.S. planes to engage and bomb those terrorists and help rescue an endangered group of Yazidis on Mount Sinjar in northern Iraq, where we stopped a slaughter from taking place. We led the effort to mobilize a diverse coalition that now numbers 67 countries. And together with our partners on the ground, we took on the terrorists and began to liberate the cities that they had occupied  Kobani, Tikrit, Fallujah, Ramadi, and more. And today, the citizens who were driven out have returned to those communities. Day after day, we have been eliminating the leaders of Daesh, choking their finances, disrupting their supply lines, hammering their oil facilities, and reducing their recruitment to a trickle.

And from the outset, we warned that eliminating Daesh completely wasnt going to happen overnight; it was going to take a number of years. And that remains the case. But Im telling you, the terrorists havent been able to launch a significant offensive and hold territory since May of last year. We have closed off the strategic border between Syria and Turkey.

And just last week, Iraqi and Peshmerga forces began a campaign to free Mosul, the so-called spiritual capital of Daeshs phony caliphate and its largest remaining stronghold. Now this is going to be a difficult and consuming assault against a dug-in foe; but Ill tell you this, our resolve could not be more firm. Daesh is opposed to every value human civilization aspires to. Daesh kills Christians because they are Christians; Jews because they are Jews; Yazidis because they are Yazidis; Shiite Muslims because they are Shiite Muslims; and Sunni Muslims if they reject Daeshs ugly view of the world. Daesh sells little girls into slavery and brags about it. It cuts off the heads of innocent people in public, and sometimes forces children to watch and to even participate in executions. I said it earlier this year and I will say it again: Daesh is guilty of genocide and we will hold Daesh accountable. (Applause.)

My friends, it matters that every time we defeat these terrorists in one place, we seize files that help us to disrupt the networks that they are trying to establish in others; we learn more about how Daesh operates and who is aiding or conspiring with them. No one hears much about the attacks that dont happen. Were glad; we like it that way. But by sharing information, our coalition is helping to deter and break up plots on a regular basis before anyone gets hurt.

We are also engaged in a nonstop effort to rebut the lies that fuel propaganda. Here, too, we are making gains. Daeshs presence on social media has plummeted and it has become apparent that its pledge to create Paradise on Earth is crumbling into a hand full of dust.

So heres the bottom line: Because of the determined use of our diplomacy backed by our armed forces and the commitment of our partners, and the leadership that we have provided, we are going to win the fight against Daesh. And we are going to prevail without altering the nature of our societies, without succumbing to bigotry, without closing our borders, without betraying the democratic values that terrorists have vowed to destroy.

We will also persist in our effort to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict in Syria, and I believe we will find a way to ultimately end the most severe humanitarian crisis since World War II. It is a crisis, I might add, that is not going to be solved by just writing checks for refugees. Were the largest donor in the world to the Syrian refugees. But what we have to do is stop the flow of refugees; we have to end the war. And this is as complicated a bit of diplomatic business as Ive ever seen.

The situation in Syria is made worse by the multi-sided nature of the fighting as well as the utter depravity of the Assad regime, and there are so many different forces there. But precisely because the war is so complex, clear principles are required to end it. And because some outside powers have been playing an unhelpful role, international cooperation is essential as well. Thats why a year ago, we, the United States, brought together a group of stakeholders  the International Syria Support Group. It includes every single country that is involved in the conflict, including Russia and Iran.

And some people say, Well, why are you sitting at the table with those guys? Because theyre involved. Because without them being part of the solution, they are part of the problem. Each and every one of those countries promised to support a cessation of hostilities, the unfettered delivery of humanitarian aid, and negotiations that would lead to a political transition. Now, these remain the right principles for ending the war; but as the world knows far too well, the promises made on paper have not yet been matched by actions on the ground.

And this failure to keep faith has been both deeply tragic and unbelievably frustrating, piling misery on top of misery, and squandering opportunities for progress when theyre staring us right in the face. And despite the many setbacks, my friends, theres a simple reality. The need for diplomacy remains, because the fact remains that a military solution in the judgment of most people is simply not possible  at least not if Syria is ever to be a whole country again.

This is complicated because there are many wars taking place simultaneously in the same place  Kurd on Kurd, Kurd on Turkey, Iran versus Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia versus Iran; Iran and Hizballah versus Israel versus us and those who have labeled Hizballah a terrorist organization; a lot of people against Assad; the whole world against Daesh; Daesh against Assad and civilization and everybody else; Shia versus Sunni; Persian Shia versus Arab Sunni. I think thats more than six.

So let me be clear: Theres nothing inevitable about this war. The Syrian disaster resulted from choices that people made. And what people have the power to choose, they have the ability to change. I dont think its hard to envision the changes that we need: a real and lasting ceasefire, representatives from both sides coming together in Geneva and coming together in the country, coming together in the country to defeat the terrorists and coming together in Geneva to define the transitional governing body of the Geneva Communique; to agree on new leadership and on new forms of governance; and to prepare for elections.

And why can I say that? Because every single country at the table of the International Syria Support Group has said they support that  elections, a transition government, a whole Syria, respect for rights of all minorities, secular, non-sectarian. The problem is there remains a mountain of mistrust between where we are and where we need to get to. And as we try to chip away at that mountain, we will make  I will make and President Obama will make zero apology for using every single diplomatic tool at our disposal to try to end this war. And we make no apology for not giving up when hospitals are being bombed, when children are still dying in the streets, and more and more refugees are added to the most horrific mass exodus in modern times. We owe the world our best effort to end this war, and we will continue to provide it. (Applause.)

Now, the impact of our diplomacy is also being felt in Europe, which is in the process of responding to an array of economic and other dilemmas, including the influx of refugees from Syria, from the Middle East, from Afghanistan, from Africa, and the decision, of course, by Great Britain to leave the European Union.

And we take these concerns very seriously, but they dont diminish our faith in the future of the European project or the resilience of the transatlantic relationship partnership. I was in Brussels earlier this month, and I found that the sense of common purpose across the Atlantic is being demonstrated every single day. The United States and Europe continue to maintain tough economic sanctions against Russia because of its aggression in Ukraine, and our unity has been made even stronger by Russian President Putins repeated efforts to interfere in the functioning of our democratic systems. In July, at the NATO Summit in Warsaw, we agreed to bolster our security efforts in the Baltics and in Central Europe, and were doing that. Were emphasizing energy diversification, helping to lead countries that have a one-place energy source and try to diversify for them in order to avoid the potential of being exposed to economic blackmail. And as Ive said clearly on both sides of the English Channel: Brexit does not alter in the least Americans unwavering commitment to a strong Europe, a strong United Kingdom, and close diplomatic cooperation on matters of importance to all of us.

One illustration of that kind of diplomatic cooperation was the nuclear agreement that was referred to in Lous introduction regarding Iran. The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action would never have gotten off the ground without firm European support for the sanctions that helped to bring Iran to the bargaining table. And that support was critical because before negotiations began, Iran had developed the ability to produce enough fissile material for a nuclear bomb in just two months. In fact, they had enough nuclear material for 12 bombs. Thats where we were. The clock was ticking. So we made the decision to negotiate, and it is a good thing we did.

Under the plan that we reached, Iran agreed to ship 98 percent of its enriched uranium out of the country, to shut down two-thirds of its centrifuges, to take the core of its plutonium nuclear reactor and fill it with concrete rendering it unusable forever, and they acceded to a state-of-the-art, rigorous verification regime.

Now, as we know, this was a contentious debate here in this country. Many people argued against negotiating with Iran, let alone coming to an agreement, saying it would be a terrible mistake. Ill tell you, to my core, I still believe they were and are wrong. The Iran agreement wasnt a miscalculation. It has made the whole world safer, and it shows the value of diplomatic engagement even  and perhaps especially  when the governments involved disagree with another on as many issues as we did. When we came together to begin this negotiation, we hadnt even talked formally to an official of Iran in 35 years.

Now, Im not standing here pretending to you that diplomacy can solve every problem. It cant. But the peaceful breakthroughs that it can provide are well worth the attempt. Nothing has ever been accomplished by an unwillingness to try. And Ive always said Id rather be caught trying.

Our diplomacy is also making a difference on global issues, and at the top of that is the historic progress that we are now beginning to make with regard to climate change.

Here in Chicago, as elsewhere around the world, youve experienced record high temperatures. If the present trend continues, average thermometer readings in the Midwest are going to reach those traditionally associated with the deep South. Each last month was the hottest month in human history  July the hottest month in recorded history. May, June, run the list  so much so that the last 10 years add to the fact that not only was last year the hottest year in human history, the last 10 years are the hottest year  or the hottest decade. And guess what? The decade before that is the second-hottest in human history, and the decade before that is the third-hottest in human history. Youd think with those trend lines that everybody would catch on. But in fact, we had a political party in our country that didnt allow  not one single candidate running for president  to say anything about climate change. And in the debates that we just had for president, out of six hours of debates, the vice president and president combined, not one single question was asked about climate change.

Now, here in Chicago, youve been responding to this challenge by implementing flood protection measures, by planting trees, by committing to green technology. But for these steps to be fully effective, theyre going to have to be matched by a concerted international campaign that is now, because of our efforts, gathering steam. And no one country can solve this problem alone. If we went to zero tomorrow, wed still have a major problem.

Last December in Paris, the United States joined governments from nearly 200 nations in approving the most far-reaching agreement on climate change ever negotiated. And to arrive at that point, we had to put the environment where it belonged: right at the top or near top of our foreign policy agenda.

In 2009 in Copenhagen  I remember being there  the world convened to talk about climate change but adjourned in total disarray, a famous implosion where the Chinese were involved with the G77 in moving in the opposite direction. So recognizing that, one of my first initiatives as Secretary of State was to prevent that from happening again. I went to Beijing to create in the early  within a month and a half or so of being Secretary, we created a bilateral working group in order to see if it was possible for us to find a different way to move forward with the exact purpose of trying to have our presidents be able to announce the level of reductions that we would jointly engage in.

Well, that effort paid off when, in January of 2015, President Obama and President Xi stood side by side in Beijing, representing the worlds two largest economies and the two biggest emitters of greenhouse gases, and together we set ambitious targets for action while encouraging other countries to do the same. That is what broke open the possibility of the Paris Agreement.

And the Paris Agreement was a diplomatic milestone, but its still far from the finish line. We began this year hoping to take additional strides. First, we wanted to ensure that enough countries would formally ratify the Paris Agreement so that we could bring it into force by the end of the year. That required a whirlwind effort to gain the approval of cabinets and parliaments, the kind of process that often consumes  ask Ivo or ask Lou  could consume a decade. We did it in 10 months.

Our second goal was to map out a path towards carbon-neutral growth for the international aviation industry. We achieved that goal in September.

And two weeks ago, I flew to Rwanda in pursuit of our third goal: a plan to phase down the use of heat-trapping hydrofluorocarbons in air conditioners, refrigerators, and other devices. And this is probably the single-most important step that we could take to limit the severity of global warming in ways because it, by itself, if properly implemented, will save one-half a degree Centigrade in the warming of Planet Earth. This negotiation also was the product of years of painstaking diplomacy, and it, too, had a positive outcome.

So as I said earlier, shielding our planet from the worst consequences of climate change is a generational challenge. But in the three decades that I have been working on this issue, I have never seen the kind of positive momentum that we have now. Across the globe, leaders from the private sector, from civil society, the scientific community, the religious organizations, and governments at all levels are all together moving in the same direction. Yes, there are still pockets of blindness and denial, some right here in America, as I mentioned. And yes, the agreement does not by itself guarantee that we will halt the temperature increase at 2 degrees Centigrade.

But by acting boldly on all three fronts  Paris Agreement, civil aviation, hydrofluorocarbons  we have sent an unmistakable, powerful message to entrepreneurs and investors everywhere in the world that now is the time to revolutionize the way we produce and use energy. And as I have said many times, the solution to climate change is staring us in the face. Its not something we have to discover in the future. Its here, its now, its energy policy, its moving to make better choices about how we power our transportation, our buildings, our electricity. Thats the solution. And the sooner we move to a low-carbon, no-carbon economy, the sooner we will solve this problem for future generations. (Applause.)

And by the way, it is the biggest market in the history of human beings. The market that grew my state of Massachusetts unbelievably and even our country in the 1990s was a $1 trillion market with a billion users. That was the high-tech market  computers, personal computers, and communications. This market is a 4 to 5 billion user market today going up to 9 billion users, and its a multi-trillion-dollar market today and its going to go up into the 40, 50 trillion mark in terms of investment over the course of the next years. This is the way you put people back to work. If there is one piece of advice I will have for my successor, it will be to ensure that environmental diplomacy remains an integral part of our foreign policy, because we cannot safeguard the future of this planet for our children and our grandchildren if we fail to defend the fundamental principles of a safe and clean Mother Earth. (Applause.)

Now, you should know  now, maybe youre beginning to get the sense of our engagement. What Ive discussed so far is really just the tip of a very big iceberg. Every day, the State Departments Foreign and Civil Service professional are hard at work on issues affecting places like Colombia, where were aiding President Santoss effort to end a 50-year war, the longest-running civil conflict in our hemisphere; Cuba, where we have restored diplomatic relations for the first time in more than half a century; Yemen, where were trying to work every day now to establish a roadmap towards a durable peace; Libya, where we are working to strengthen the government of national accord, and I will be meeting in London on Monday of next week on that very subject; Sub-Sahara Africa, where were training young leaders, promoting connectivity, supporting the empowerment of women; Central Asia, where were engaged on energy security and helping civil society to take root.

And as the men and women who work in our countrys diplomatic posts can attest to you, being the face of America abroad is an honor, yes, but its also a continual challenge filled with personal sacrifice and even risk. I have nothing but admiration for the members of our overseas teams, which is why I think the Chicago Councils new Youth Diplomats program to help prepare the leaders of tomorrow is a fantastic idea. Let no one doubt the effort by the United States to assist people in other nations makes a major difference to them, but also it makes a major difference to us. And it has done much to shape what our country means to the world.

Back in 1949, a junior State Department official named Benjamin Hardy had an idea. He thought that some of the concepts behind Americas New Deal might work if they were applied internationally. He proposed a large-scale program that would harness popular, quote, enthusiasm for social and economic improvement, and thereby repulse Communism and create a decent life for the Earths millions.

Mr. Hardy sent his suggestion up the State Department chain-of-command only to see it come back down with the deadly words, Needs further study. He sent it up again; it came down again. And here I assure you that nothing like this would ever happen in the flawlessly managed State Department of today  (laughter)  but after trying and failing a third time to get support from above, he did something which I do not recommend to anyones whos aggrieved in my department, he reached directly out to the White House. And the next thing he knew, President Harry Truman was unveiling a program of international assistance as the featured fourth point in his Inaugural Address.

This was truly something new. Never before had a country launched a major effort to help people to whom it had no special ties except a shared interest in peace and prosperity. And its no accident that that country was the United States of America.

Im not going to tell you that in the time since weve solved every problem or that every indicator of international progress is due to America. No, its not. But I do know, because Ive seen it firsthand in country after country, the difference that our leadership and our resources have had a lot to do with what is happening for the good in so many places in the world today. Children born today can expect to live longer and healthier lives than in any previous generation. Did you know that? Compared to just 20 years ago, we have cut in half the number of mothers who die during childbirth and the number of infants who perish because of malnutrition. Weve vastly expanded access to education for girls and boys. In Afghanistan in 2001, only about a million kids went to school, and they were all boys. Now there are more than 9 million kids in school, and 40 percent of them are girls. (Applause.)

We have driven extreme poverty below 10 percent for the first time in human history. We defied predictions to save hundreds of thousands of people who were at risk of Ebola. Remember they said a million people were going to die two Christmases ago, and we never got close to that because President Obama dared to send 3,000 troops over to build health care delivery capacity, and doctors and nurses and aides provided courageous assistance to save lives. We joined forces with the global health community to turn the tide in the fight against HIV/AIDS. I remember 15, 20 years ago it was death sentence and people didnt even want to talk about it. Now we can look forward, thanks to our program that we put together first in the Senate and then globally, to the first born free from AIDS generation in more than three decades. (Applause.)

And with the help that we have just received from Congress, you can bet we are going to go after the Zika virus with all the energy that we have, because the prospect of becoming a parent should be a source of joy for everyone everywhere, not a source of fear. (Applause.)

This, my friends, is really just scratching the surface of a record in which all Americans can take pride. And yes, it comes at a cost. But do you know that amazing surveys show that many of our citizens think we devote a full quarter or even a third of our federal budget to foreign aid? Do you know what the reality is? One single penny of every dollar that our government spends abroad in terms of diplomacy and all of the programs and all of our aid  one single penny of every dollar is used for international operations and includes everything from counterterrorism to assistance to providing security at our embassies and paying for the staffs of embassies around the world. One penny out of every dollar. One percent. Without doubt, the biggest and best single bargain in the government today.

Now, in October of 1937, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt arrived in Chicago to dedicate the Outer Drive Bridge. He was expected to talk about local issues, but instead he had a global message in mind. Congress had earlier approved a neutrality law prohibiting the Executive from sending aid to the democratic countries of Europe. And there were many in our country who said that to remain safe, America should close its eyes to the storms gathering abroad and avoid making an enemy of Hitler.

Standing in front of an array of microphones, legs supported by clamps, hands gripping the podium for support, Roosevelt warned that a reign of terror and international lawlessness was threatening the very foundations of civilization. In vivid terms, he denounced the rise of fascism in Europe, aggression in the Pacific, and the slaughter of defenseless civilians in Abyssinia and China. He said that trying to ignore these outrages would bring not peace, but more of the same  and he compared them to a disease that people everywhere should join in isolating.

FDRs so-called quarantine speech, as it came to be known, was denounced by many as warlike, and his summons to action was rebuffed by the European advocates of appeasement. But as history was soon to demonstrate, Roosevelts every word was proven true.

As I enter my final three months as Secretary of State, I am as convinced now, as FDR was then, of the need for peace-loving people on every continent to band together to reject the apostles of hate, the authors of aggression, the manipulators of truth who threaten to hold us back and do us harm. We need to fulfill the responsibility that we all share to uphold the global norms, to defend freedom in all of its dimensions, and to respect the rights and the dignity of every single human being.

Also like Roosevelt, I recognize  as I think everyone here does  the importance of flexible and creative U.S. leadership in making that happen. Our country is blessed with an $18 trillion economy. We should be asking ourselves not how quickly or sharply we can shed the responsibilities of leadership, but rather how much more can we do. We have our own storm clouds and our own foundations of civilization to protect. And let us never forget that America is the exceptional nation that so many people in public life like to talk about, but were not exceptional because we make speeches about being exceptional, and were not exceptional when we shove our face in other peoples faces and tell them how exceptional we are. We are exceptional when and because we do exceptional things. Thats what makes America exceptional. And America can do more, even today, with greater impact. But we have to be willing to put resources on the table and empower people to live our vision  not view it with envy from the outside.

I believe that we should look to the future with every ounce of optimism that has always inspired and energized our nation, but we should also acknowledge that we will not be able to chart a sure course for others unless we are at peace with ourselves.

A great American from this state once warned, in the words of the scriptures, that, a house divided against itself cannot stand. Whatever happens in the next two weeks, our country is going to have to begin a process of healing, of reconnecting with one another, of listening, of forgiving, and remembering that every action we take is being carefully observed by our global allies and adversaries, and that what they see will have a direct impact on our future ability to be able to lead.

I think that we have one of the greatest stories in the world to tell. The strength of America, unlike some places where theyre defined by ethnicity or by centuries of homogeneity  we are not. We are defined by an idea, unlike most other countries, and that idea is about freedom and the pursuit of happiness and all people being created equal with the opportunity to make the most of themselves.

Ladies and gentlemen, American greatness is not an entitlement and it cannot be taken for granted. It has to be demonstrated; it has to be earned by every generation. And one of the great strengths I hear from other people whenever I travel is how they see in America a country that is always changing, always moving forward, always looking to the future, always able to redefine itself. That effort demands the best from us and it demands the best within us. The world will be watching to see whether we, the American people, remain up to that challenge. There is not a scintilla of doubt in my mind that the answer is yes, but we are going to do a better job  all of us together, I believe  or we need to all do a better job in proving it to people.

This Administration still has miles to go before we pass into history, and I intend to work with the president as he does until January 20th to advance the cause of our country. And in doing so, I will be grateful for as long as I live for the privilege I have been given to serve, just as I am now grateful for your hospitality in welcoming me to the matchless city of Chicago. Thank you and go Cubs. (Applause.) Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Please, please, please (inaudible).

MR DAALDER: Mr. Secretary, I think I speak for all of us here to thank you for your service and for this really rousing call for continued strong American leadership and engagement in the world. We have a couple more minutes, so weve gotten some questions that weve collected, and I wanted to start with a question of a young man who is a political science student here in  at DePaul University who wants to think about his future by asking you something about his past. He asks: How has your experience as a Vietnam veteran influenced you not only throughout your life, but particularly your service as Secretary of State?

SECRETARY KERRY: Well, its a great question. Thank you for the question. I did a podcast earlier today with David Axelrod in which we talked a little bit about this. It requires a little bit of biography. But when I  I signed up for the United States military in 1965, not too long after Lyndon Johnson said we need 500,000 troops in Vietnam and the Gulf of Tonkin incident had allegedly happened. And I was, like many, many, many of my classmates, actually, I was surprised when I went back and looked in our reunion book how many classmates served. And I think it was part of our generations sense of responsibility  lucky enough to go to great university, mindful of President Kennedys call to action that we would bear any price and  pay any price, bear any burden, and recognizing we were in the Cold War and seeing things in a fairly simplistically defined way  East, West, Soviet Union versus the West, bipolar, pretty simple stuff, defend against Communism  and we tended to see most of our challenges within that lens.

Well, by time  the first draft card hadnt been burned. I think it was first burned in about 1967. And by 1968, when I was training  when I left for Vietnam for a tour of duty in the Gulf of Tonkin in a ship, and then when I went over as skipper of a small gun boat, 1968 was an incredible year, as you all know from history and some of you from living it. Medgar Evers was assassinated, Martin Luther King was assassinated, Robert Kennedy was assassinated. There was tumultuous convention right here in this city. And I was in uniform and watching all of this and listening to the stories of those who were coming back from Vietnam and sharing with us what their experience was.

So when I went over in-country as we called in October, I think it was, of 1968, I saw a very different set of circumstances from those that we had mostly read about or had described to us. And I really found myself  as we did all of us who were there  wrapped up in a civil war with very few options in a sense and a war that, in my judgment, we were simply not going to win the way it was being fought and with the choices and options that we had, and perhaps couldnt be in the long run depending on how you saw the North-South civil component of it.

So what I learned was, in answer to your question, and what I vowed was as a young man, that if I was ever in a position of responsibility to make a judgment about putting people like me in harms way again, I was going to make sure that we understood what we were doing, and I was going to make sure that we had the right lens and the right understanding of what it was. We havent done that, obviously, in every case, but I think that the notion  I think  when I testified before Congress and before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 1971, I laid out my reasons for opposition to the war as a veteran. As I was leading a group of veterans and a small group of my friends  we brought about 5,000 veterans to Washington. We camped out on the Mall and we stared down the Supreme Court and the Washington police and the administration, and stayed on the Mall and delivered a message to Congress about the war. And it was a breakthrough moment where people began to really understand what was happening.

I think that the lesson I learned is  are several. Number one, make sure you really ask the right questions, examine all the possibilities, and get an understanding of the place youre thinking about going so you understand what the dynamics are, what the downside risks are, and what is the what then, what next. Once youve succeeded in your immediate goal, how do you manage it as you go forward?

I also learned that not everything is Vietnam, and thats a very important lesson, folks. Some people get trapped in that place in history, and I thought it was very important not to be trapped, that sometimes we do have to use force. I supported what we did in Kosovo and Serbia. I thought it was critical to save lives. And as you all know, President Clinton greatly regrets the fact that they didnt respond in Rwanda. There are times when I think we do have a responsibility and we have to do some things that we dont like to do. But it depends on what the stakes are, and you have to examine them very, very carefully.

So the real  I also learned an indelible lesson, because we were the veterans who first called to attention of the nation the treatment of vets in the VA hospitals, the lack of adequate allowances to go to school, the lack of adequate staffing in the hospitals, the absence of any kind of thank you or homecoming for a group of veterans who fought as hard as any other people in war at any other time, and I learned indelibly that this country should never, ever again confuse the war with the warriors. And I think we have learned that lesson, and its a good one. (Applause.)

MR DAALDER: Mr. Secretary, thank you for your service. Thank you for joining us here today. I very much appreciate you coming to Chicago. Particularly on this night, youve kept an audience for a long time, and particularly whats going on right now.

SECRETARY KERRY: Do we have a score?

MR DAALDER: Theyre winning, 2-nothing. Thank you. (Applause.)

SECRETARY KERRY: Two-nothing. Thats a good note to end on. Thank you. (Applause.)
I will get straight to the heart of the issue. I do not think it possible to speak of relations between the European Union (the EU) and China independently of the influence the United States wields over the EU directly and [indirectly], through Nato.

Today 22 of the 28 (27 once Great Britain has left the EU), EU member states with more than 90% of the EU population, are members of Nato, recognized as the foundation for collective defence. And Nato is under US command: the US Supreme Allied Command in Europe is always appointed by the US President and all the other key commands are in the USs hands. Accordingly, the EUs foreign and military policy is fundamentally subordinated to the US strategy to which the major European powers have aligned themselves.

Such a strategy, clearly announced in official documents, is sketched out at that moment in history when, following the dissolution of the URSS, the world situation changes. In 1991, the White House declares in the National Security Strategy of the United States:

The United States remains the only State with the force, capability and influence in every dimension  political, economic and military  that is effectively global. Nothing can substitute for US leadership.

In 1992, in the Defense Planning Guidance, the Pentagon emphasizes:

Our primary objective is to prevent any hostile power dominating a region whose resources would be sufficient to generate a global power. These regions include Western Europe, Eastern Asia, the territory of the former Soviet Union and South-West Asia.

In 2001, in the report Quadrennial Defense Review  published a week before the US/Nato war in Afghanistan, an area of primary geostrategic importance in relation to Russia and China - the Pentagon announces:

It is possible that a military rival may emerge in Asia with a formidable resource base. US armed forces must maintain their capabilities to impose the USs will on any adversary, so as to change the regime of an enemy state or to occupy a foreign territory so that US strategic objectives can be realized.

On the basis of this strategy, US-led Nato, has launched an offensive on the Eastern front: after demolishing by war the Federation of Yugoslavia, from 1999 to date, it has subsumed all the countries of the former Warsaw Pact, three of the former Yugoslavia, three of the former URSS and very soon will incorporate others (starting from Georgia and Ukraine  the latter a de facto Nato member), moving bases and forces, nuclear included, ever closer to the Russian borders.

At the same time, on the Southern front, closely connected to the Eastern front, the war waged by the US-led Nato has demolished the Libyan State and has tried to do the same thing with the Syrian State.

USA and Nato have tried to make the Ukraine crisis explode and, accusing Russia of destabilizing European security, have dragged Europe into a new Cold War, intended particularly by Washington (at the cost of European economies damaged by sanctions and counter-sanctions) to fracture EURussian political and economic relations damaged by US interests. This same strategy also includes an increasing deployment of US military forces in the Asia/Pacific region for anti-Chinese reasons. The U.S. Navy has announced that in 2020 it will concentrate 60% of its naval and air forces in this region.

The US strategy is focused on the South China Sea and Admiral Harris, head of the US Command for the Pacific, emphasizes the importance of this: through this sea passes maritime trade with an annual value of more than 5,000 billion dollars, including 25% from global export of oil and 50% of natural gas. The US wants to control these routes in the name of which Admiral Harris defines the freedom of navigation fundamental for our way of life here in the US, accusing China, in his very words of aggressive actions in the South China Sea, similar to Russian action in the Crimea. For this, the US Navy is patrolling the South China Sea. Riding on the back of the US, the biggest European powers arrive: last July, France has requested the European Union to coordinate the naval surveillance of the South China Sea to ensure a regular and visible presence in these waters over which China has illegally asserted title. And while the US established in South Korea anti-missile systems which are also capable of launching nuclear missiles, similar to those installed against Russia in Romania and very shortly in Poland, as well as on board the war ships in the Mediterranean, on 6 October, the Nato Secretary General Stoltenberg receives South Koreas Minister for Foreign Affairs at Brussels, to strengthen Natos partnership with Seoul.

These and other facts demonstrate that the same strategy is implemented in Europe and Asia. It is the extreme attempt of the United States and other Western Powers to maintain their economic, political and military supremacy in a world, radically transformed, where new states and social subjects are emerging. The Shanghai Organization for Co-operation, born out of a strategic Chinese-Russian agreement, provides resources and working capacities, making it the biggest integrated economic area in the world. The Shanghai and BRICS organizations are capable, with their financial organizations, of largely displacing the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund that, for more than 70 years, have allowed the USA and major western powers to dominate the global economy through loans that fetter the economic sovereignty of indebted countries and other financial instruments. The new organizations can, at the same time, achieve a de-dollarization of their trade agreements, depriving the US of its capacity to off-load its debt on the other countries, by printing dollar notes used as the dominant international currency.

To maintain its supremacy, increasingly wavering, the US relies not only on the strength of its weapons, but also weapons more efficient than weapons in the strict sense of the word.

The first weapon: the so-called Free Trade Agreements such as the Transatlantic Partnership on Trade and Investment (TTIP) between the USA and the EU and the Transpacific Partnership (TPP), both of which have economic, geopolitical and geostrategic objectives. This is why, Hillary Clinton defines the EU-US partnership the biggest strategic aim of our transatlantic alliance, proposing an Economic Nato that integrates that the political with the military. The plan is clear: to form a political, economic and military US-EU block, increasingly under US command which acts as a countervailing force to the following:

 the Eurasiatic area, now on the rise and based on cooperation between China and Russia;

 the Brics; and

 Iran and any other country that manages to escape Western domination.

The TTIP negotiations are struggling to make headway due to a conflict of interests and vast opposition in Europe. But that obstacle is now circumvented through the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between Canada and the EU: a TTIP in disguise, given that Canada is already party to NAFTA which also binds the USA. The EU will probably sign off CETA when the Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau visits Brussels this 27 October.

The second weapon: penetrating the target countries from within. Leverage is drawn from the weak points that each country has to varying extents: corruption, a greed for money, political ascent, secessionary movements fed by local power groups, religious fanaticism, the vulnerability of the great masses for political demagogy. Playing as well, in certain cases, on a justified popular dissatisfaction with the actions of their own government. The instruments used to penetrate? The so-called non-governmental organizations. These are, in actual fact, the long hand of the Department of State and the CIA. These NGOs, endowed with deep pools of financial resources, have organized the Eastern European colour revolutions and replicated the same operation with the so-called Umbrella Revolution in Hong Kong, aiming at developing similar movements in other parts of China where the national minorities live. The same organizations operate in Latin America, with the primary objective of subverting Brazils democratic institutions, thereby threatening Brics from within. Instruments to achieve the strategy are terrorist groups, such as those armed and infiltrated in Libya and Syria to sow seeds of chaos, contributing to destruction of whole States attacked at the same time from outside.

The third arm: Psyops (Psychological operations), launched through the global media chains, defined as follows by the Pentagon:

Planned Operations to influence, through specific information, the emotions and mindset, and thus the conduct of public opinion, organizations and foreign governments, so as to induce or strengthen conduct favourable to pre-established objectives.

Such operations, prepare public opinion for warlike escalation and create the impression that Russia is responsible for tensions in Europe just as China is for the tensions in Asia, as well as accusing them at the same time of violating human rights.

A final consideration: during the sixties, my wife and I worked in Peking, contributing, inter alia, to the publication of the first Chinese journal in the Italian language. I experienced a life-changing learning experience when China  liberated from the colonial, semi-colonial and semi-feudal conditions for at least 15 years  was completely isolated. Neither the West nor the United Nations recognized it as a sovereign state. This period imprinted on my mind, the ability of the Chinese people (at the time totalling 600 million), to resist, their consciousness and commitment under the guide of the Communist party to constructing a society with a brand new economic and cultural foundation. I think that this capacity is today still needed so that todays China, that is developing its enormous potential, can resist new plans for imperial domination and contribute to the decisive struggle for the future of humanity: a world free of wars; where peace, inextricably linked to social justice, prevails.
Photo: Gabe Ginsberg/WireImage/Getty Images

The last movie Warren Beatty appeared in was 2001s Town and Country, and hes kept a low profile ever since, declining most interviews except for the 2010 one he gave to Leonard Maltin in character as Dick Tracy. But now hes back with a new film to sell  next months Rules Dont Apply, which he directed and in which he gives a semi-autobiographical performance as Howard Hughes  and he once again finds himself submitting to journalists questions, most recently those of Cara Buckley from the New York Times, whose profile went up online yesterday. Beatty has lived one of the most fascinating lives in Hollywood history, so youd expect that hed have lots of great anecdotes from the past two decades to share with his fans. Youd be totally wrong, though, as Buckley found out: We also spent two hours talking before he consented to being recorded. Inquisitive and engaging, Mr. Beatty said he wanted to get to know me. But when he finally did go on the record, the colorful tales vanished, the free-flowing chat dried up, and his speech became so tortuously stilted that I had to ask why he was suddenly talking like a robot. If you think I am being careful, you are correct, he said in a slow drip.

Well, Rules Dont Apply isnt going to promote itself, so if Beatty isnt going to tell any fun stories about himself, we guess its up to us. Weve searched the archives and found 11 great tales about Beatty, told by himself and others.

1. He called Carly Simon to thank her for writing Youre So Vain about him.

Its no secret that Carly Simons Youre So Vain is in part about Beatty, specifically the second verse. The two dated in the early 70s, and Simon confirmed the songwriting inspiration in her memoir Boys in the Trees. (She also reveals that after sleeping with Beatty and telling her therapist about it, the therapist told her: You are not my first patient of the day who spent the night with Warren Beatty last night.) Of course, thats not even the most patently Warren Beatty part of the story. Long before Simon publicly IDed Beatty as one of the songs subjects, Beatty supposedly assumed it was so and actually called Simon to thank her.

2. He carried around a list of the main loves of his life in his pocket.

The Beatty section of Simons memoir totally has Beattys number, thanks in part to this most excellent detail about his pickup strategies. Apparently, Beatty used to keep a list in his pocket that he called the main loves of his life. The illustrious designation included ladies like Catherine the Great, Marie Curie, Maria Tallchief, and Lillian Hellman. When Beatty met Simon, Simon says he showed her the list and added her name to the top of it in a bit of effortful flirtation.

3. He used to start every phone conversation with, Whats new, pussycat?

This detail is so cemented in Beattys image as to have inspired the Peter Sellers film of the same name. As good as Beatty was with women, he was known to be extraordinarily charming over the phone, beginning every conversation with a woman with, Whats new, pussycat? The line became so well-known in the industry that producer Charles Feldman paired with Beatty to develop a film somewhat based on Beattys womanizing lifestyle, and although Beatty eventually left the project because of creative discord with writer Woody Allen, the title stuck.

4. Bob Dylan thought he was a Freemason.

Bob Dylan and Warren Beatty were neighbors in the late 80s, but it seems their relationship wasnt all that neighborly. According to Peter Biskinds book on Beatty, Star: How Warren Beatty Seduced America, Beatty found himself at Dylans place quite a lot while trying to woo Joyce Hyser. And while Beatty liked Dylan because Dylan made him feel normal, Dylan did not feel as at ease. Instead, he found Beatty so secretive that he suspected him of being a Freemason.

5. He missed the moon landing because he was fooling around with Edie Sedgwick.

The It girl was one of the few he didnt aggressively pursue. Instead, as he told Vanity Fair recently, Sedgwick just showed up at his hotel wearing a yellow rain slicker and nothing else. Beatty says he was initially reluctant to engage, but just as he and Sedgwick started getting it on, they heard someone say, One small step for a man. One giant leap for mankind. They turned to the TV to find Neil Armstrong had just taken the first steps on the moon.

6. He was one of the last people to see Marilyn Monroe before her death.

In the same Vanity Fair piece, Beatty remembers his one meeting with Marilyn Monroe, which took place at Peter Lawfords house. Monroe and Beatty walked along the beach, he played piano for her, and they enjoyed a connection that was more soulful than romantic. The next day, Beatty got a call informing him that Marilyn Monroe had died.

7. He once found himself on a nearly lethal car ride with a very drunk Hunter S. Thompson and a pollster for George McGovern.

In the oral biography Gonzo: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson, George McGovern pollster Pat Caddell remembers ending up on a wild car ride with Beatty and Hunter S. Thompson after a party at McGoverns house in 1972. Thompson was driving drunk, with a bottle of Wild Turkey between his legs. In addition to driving a police car off of the road, Thompson nearly steered Beatty and Caddell into the sea, almost veering off of a half-finished bridge and into the Potomac. According to Caddell, Beatty survived the ordeal looking whiter than a sheet.

8. Hes a demanding boss.

While making Reds, the movie that netted him a Best Director Oscar, Beatty was allegedly strict with his cast. When playwright Trevor Griffiths attempted to leave the project, citing the reason that his wife had died in a plane crash and he needed to take care of their children, Beatty refused to let him go. According to Biskinds book, he allegedly told Griffiths: You cant go home. Once you sign on with me, you surrender all rights to your life.

9. He initially wanted his relation to sister Shirley MacLaine kept a secret.

When Ira Beaty confirmed the relationship between his children, Warren Beatty and Shirley MacLaine, to the Washington Star, it was apparently against the wishes of his son. Beatty told the paper, Warren asked me not to reveal this. He wanted to make it on his own, and not trade on his sisters reputation. And by the account of Suzanne Finstads Warren Beatty: A Private Man, the secrecy was something more than a matter a pride. In the aftermath of the reveal, a press agent once referred to Beatty as MacLaines brother, causing Beatty to flip out. Beatty supposedly insisted that from there on MacLaine be referred to as his sister, not the other way around, a demand that started something of a cold war between the siblings.

10. Hes happy to attend a party barefoot.

While on Jimmy Kimmy Live! earlier this year, comedian Jim Jefferies told a fun story about a party run-in with Beatty and Al Pacino, both of whom were barefoot. After hitting it off, Beatty told Jefferies to keep in touch, but when Jefferies gave Beatty a call, he overheard Beatty telling his assistant to get rid of him. Pretty curt behavior for a guy who likes the feeling of sand beneath his toes.

11. He has slept with 12,775 people.

Okay, Beatty has attempted to debunk this one himself, but itd be blasphemy to the Beatty mystique to forego mention of the estimation altogether. The number comes from Biskinds biography,using simple arithmetic to get to a total of 12,775 women, give or take, a figure that does not include daytime quickies, drive-bys, casual gropings, stolen kisses and so on. In disregarding the count, Beatty told AARP: That would mean not just that there were multiple people a day, but that there was no repetition. But, still. With a list of rumored paramours  beyond those mentioned above  that includes Jane Fonda, Diane Keaton, Madonna, Melanie Griffith, Daryl Hannah, Mary Tyler Moore, Janice Dickinson, Iman, Joni Mitchell, Goldie Hawn, Julie Christie, Faye Dunaway, Natalie Wood, Joan Collins, Diana Ross, and wife Annette Bening, among many, many more, you get the picture. A lot of women.
Photo: Jeff Spicer/Getty Images

Amy Schumer apparently has been keeping tabs on the immediate backlash she received on the internet for her video parody of Beyonces Formation. After initially brushing off the critiques with the help of a line from the song (You know youre that bitch when you cause all this conversation), shes now taken a moment to pen a piece on Medium further explaining her point of view.

For starters, she clarifies that she loves Lemonade and [believes] it is one of the greatest pieces of art of our time. Also, she writes that it was most definitely not a parody and was instead a way to celebrate bringing us all together. To fight for what we all want. And to do it together.

Schumers video, initially widely referred to as a parody, showed the comedian dancing, twerking, and lip-syncing to Formation alongside Goldie Hawn, Wanda Sykes, Joan Cusack, and Raven Goodwin. Critics slammed her portrayal as racist and ignorant of the deeper message in the song, which many interpret as a celebration of black culture and women, specifically. Schumers video, by contrast, featured mostly white women, in seemingly dirty clothing, with women of color as almost secondary characters.

In her piece on Medium, Schumer describes how the video was filmed while in Hawaii during a time when she and her castmates and co-workers had Lemonade in heavy rotation and were excited about Hillary Clinton. All of the women on set were bonded together from this music and from the election simultaneously, she writes. It was such a powerful time. She continued:

Lemonade brought us all together. We listened to the album and danced every day, always making everyone feel better no matter what we were going through. We were so into it that we learned the dance to Formation. It got us through this summer. 



It was NEVER a parody. It was just us women celebrating each other. The video Beyonce made was so moving and I wouldnt ever make fun of that. There is absolutely no way to. I make fun of myself a few times in the video as I do in everything I am a part of. I loved every second of working with those women to make this thing that lifted us up.

Schumer adds that if people interpreted the video in a different way, it was not her intention. The movie we made is fun and the women in it are strong and want to help each other, she writes. Thats what it was about for me. Oh, and she had Jay Z and Beyonces approval, too. Just to clarify.



Read her full response here and watch the video below.
Photo: Fred Tanneau/AFP/Getty Images

To all of those Nobel obsessives out there, Bob Dylan has heard your cries, and he is here to relieve you from your anguish  kind of. After receiving a Nobel Prize in Literature, and then proceeding to duck the Nobel Academy thereafter, Dylan has now commented on his considerable achievement for the first time. He thinks its cool! Talking to the Telegraph, Dylan said: Isnt that something ? He also called the news hard to believe and amazing, incredible, asking, Whoever dreams about something like that? So, given that, hes definitely going to show up at the awards ceremony in Stockholm, right? Because, um, last we knew, Academy secretary Sara Danius hadnt heard back. Per Dylan, the answer is absolutely. Awesome! If its at all possible, he added. Oh. All right. Well  well take it! And as for that little matter of why Dylan couldnt have just made his joy about the honor known in the first place, the talented troll explains, Well, Im right here. In body, maybe, but Mr. Dylan, it sure feels like that spirit of yours is off blowin in the wind.
The Danish Quartet at Carnegie Hall. Photo: Julien Jourdes

On any given night, New York is full of extraordinary rites performed in basements and second-floor rooms. On Monday night, the Danish String Quartet carried out its regular professional duties, performing works by Shostakovich and Schubert at Carnegies underground Zankel Hall, and at the same time administered a raw kind of splendor. The concert opened with an almost intolerably dark and stripped-down performance of Shostakovichs 15th and final quartet, from 1974. Its a work of ravishing bleakness: The violin sings a cracked and lonely tune, struggling to get past its opening notes. The Danish quartet made it feel as though the voice could be snuffed out at any moment, and then the quartet would have ended, a whisper in the wind. Instead it stubbornly played on, as other instruments gathered, building the piece up from gasp to gasp until it formed the outline of a damaged soul. The funeral march in the final movement didnt mark a passing, but rather described a burdensome existence. In these players hands, music accomplished what life often fails to do: fashion beauty out of pain. Shostakovich lived in a Soviet Union that honored and oppressed him, filling his days with dependency and fear. As I listened, I began to feel that if things go badly on November 8, this should be my Election Night song. I might even have to start each day with it for the next four years.

Replete, rich, and full of tragic euphoria, Schuberts C Major Cello Quintet offers an antidote to Shostakovichs bleakness. In the Adagio second movement, a quarter-hour of music I cant imagine doing without, a quiet surf of melody rolls above lilting pizzicatos. The quartet, supplemented by cellist Torleif Thedeen, indulged Schuberts rhythmic obsessiveness (dum-dum-DUM, dum-dum-DUM) and at the same time softened it into a heartbeat. The hardest thing about performing complex chamber music is to know the score so well that you create the illusion youve never heard it before. The Danes shot Schuberts straits with bravado, letting the syncopations lurch a little on an upturned wave, jacking the intensity of a crescendo until it rattled, or planing into a pool of quiet. Every revelation felt inevitable; each repeated passage told a new tale. How can four thin blond men fuse so completely into a nimble, multi-bowed, poly-stringed organism that tracks the flitting shadows of a dead composers mind?
Photo: Imagine Entertainment

Warning: This article discusses key plot points of Inferno. If you havent seen the film yet, stop reading.

In a Dan Brown novel, the twists are just part of the formula: Da Vinci was actually  part of a centuries-old conspiracy! The Vatican is  threatened by an antimatter bomb! Dantes writing  holds clues to the location of a bioweapon! Also part of that formula? The presence of a spunky brunette partner for Browns hero, brilliant symbologist Robert Langdon. These women arent love interests, exactly  Langdon only sleeps with one of them, in Angels & Demons, and even then only in the book  but theyre still mostly around to satisfy the common masculine fantasy of a beautiful woman whos happy to follow you around Europe without complaining, and listen attentively to your lectures on the Western canon.

In the first two Langdon films, this spot was filled by Audrey Tautou and Ayelet Zurer, and judging by the poster for Inferno, you would be forgiven for expecting new co-star Felicity Jones to play the same basic role in Tom Hankss third outing. For the first two-thirds of the film, that holds true  until, in a stunning twist, Joness character reveals that she isnt Hankss sidekick at all. Shes the villain.

Yes, it turns out Felicity Joness Sienna was only using Langdon to help her get to the bioweapon theyve been chasing  because she was in love with evil genius Bertrand Zobrist (Ben Foster) all along! The first two-thirds of the movie were a setup: Sienna had Langdon act out a typical Dan Brown mystery, so she had to play the typical Dan Brown sidekick. The twist is the best thing about the movie, which is not very good. The reveal gives Felicity Jones a whole lot more to do, and also helps make room for the films other surprise: a much more age-appropriate love story between Hanks and Sidse Babett Knudsen, who plays an operative for the World Health Organization, which in the world of Inferno has the resources to chase criminals across Europe.

Knudsens character was dating Langdon at some indeterminate point in the past, but the pair split apart for career reasons: She got a job in Geneva, while he stayed at Cambridge. Inferno isnt a particularly coherent movie, but the scenes between Hanks and Knudsen (who led the great Danish TV drama Borgen and now spends her time mumbling in a pantsuit on Westworld) are the closest it gets to subtlety. When the two of them share the screen, the movie changes from office-hours fantasy to something more mordant, and a little sad. These are two old friends who know better than to think theyre going to get together at the end. And, of course, they dont.

If you know Tom Hanks, this love story isnt all that surprising. Where his peers prefer love interests in their 20s and 30s, Hanks is the rare A-lister whose onscreen partners have aged with him. (In fact, the 47-year-old Knudsen is 13 years younger than Hanks, a larger-than-usual gap for him.) Liam Neeson, George Clooney, or Tom Cruise might get the girl at the end of their films, but the more respectable Hanks gets a more respectable plot. In movies like Sully, Hanks has started to carve out a path as a wise, reluctant Baby Boomer hero, and Inferno continues that narrative: The movies millennials, Jones and Foster, die for the sake of love, idealism, and harebrained disruption schemes; Hanks and Knudsen, the people old enough to compromise, win. At the end of the movie, theyre still just muddling on, wrapped in their emergency blankets, laughing about Dante.

This isnt to say that Inferno is particularly self-aware  it isnt  or even especially innovative, but with this love story, its stumbled upon a way to improve the standard aging-male action movie. A good next step: an action vehicle for Sidse Babett Knudsen herself. Just call it WHOs Got Your Back.
Christian Borle and Andrew Rannells in Falsettos. Photo: Joan Marcus

The heartbreaking revival of the William FinnJames Lapine musical Falsettos that opens tonight on Broadway comes, by chance, just a day after scientists reported in Nature that the longstanding popular narrative of AIDS in America is mistaken. A new analysis of decades-old blood samples, including some from the airline steward known as Patient Zero, shows that the infection arrived in New York long before he did, probably from multiple sources, including clotting factor for hemophiliacs. In other words, though 658,000 people (and counting) have died in the United States alone, there was no Man Who Gave Us AIDS, as the tabloids called the steward, Gaetan Dugas. It was mostly our need for a monster that made him one. Have we outgrown the need?

I cant help asking that question, through tears, after seeing this revival of Falsettos, which implicitly asks it too. A revival today could hardly avoid doing so because Falsettos is, among other things, about the moment when AIDS switched the focus of the gay movement, and theater that took up its themes, from a tradition of looking narrowly inward to a new way of looking angrily out. Act One (originally produced as March of the Falsettos, in 1981) is set in 1979, when the gay agenda, to the extent there was one, largely concerned itself with personal liberty. The musical explores this through the domestic menage of a self-involved 30-something Jew named Marvin, who as the action begins has divorced his wife, Trina, left their 10-year-old son, Jason, and taken up with Whizzer, a non-monogamous pretty boy who refuses to be tamed. This closet-crashing narrative might have been uplifting in the traditional manner of early gay-lib material if Finn and Lapine werent so determined to upend that kind of piety by making Marvin such an entitled asshole. I want it all, he tells his shrink, Mendel, who while counseling Trina through Marvins departure falls in love with her. This was not part of Marvins plan, nor was the decision to end things with Whizzer. Even so, by intermission, he has achieved some form of what he wanted: sexual freedom (even if mostly unexploited) and a tight-knit family despite its unorthodox composition.

But Act Two (originally produced as Falsettoland, in 1990) is set a crucial two years later. Its now 1981, and as Marvin and Whizzers new neighbor Dr. Charlotte puts it, Something bad is happening. (The first news report of what would later be called AIDS appeared in the Times that July.) At first this something bad seems disconnected from the main action, in which Marvin, having taken up again with Whizzer, learns to be a better partner, while Jason attempts to navigate the amusing shoals of his hormonal Bar Mitzvah year. But the generally comic and peppy tone of the material turns vastly darker and more elegiac as Whizzer falls ill, reconfiguring once again the characters around him. This may seem like small potatoes. But if Whizzer, Marvin, Trina, Mendel, Jason, Dr. Charlotte, and her lover, Cordelia, are a teeny tiny band who live and die fortissimo, in another way, they are representatives of a much larger phenomenon of loss that would soon reach the whole country, and world.

Together, the two halves of Falsettos (which debuted on Broadway in 1992) work as a hinge, opening a door beyond the smallish dramas of individual accommodation that had characterized so many pre-AIDS gay stories. This show is the opposite of those, with their special pleading; like Larry Kramers The Normal Heart, but less violently, it almost dares you to love it and its gay men despite their constant obnoxiousness. The dare isnt idle, either: The level of selfishness among the characters, mitigated only slightly by their cute Jewishness, is dauntingly high. The shrink not only sleeps with but marries his patient. The kid calls his father a prick. At one point, Marvin even hits Trina, whom he has already infected with syphilis and hepatitis.

Finns songs work in much the same way, so subverting the norms of Golden Age ingratiation and lyrical etiquette that I sometimes find myself gasping at their relentless opportunism. (Finn grabs at a rhyme as if it were the last canape on a tray.) Because the book, by Lapine and Finn, is more of an armature than a text  the show is almost completely sung  much of the backstory and character motivation is left at the mercy of Finns zigzag lyrics; if hepatitis did not rhyme, sort of, with excite us, would Trina have it? But this apparent randomness turns out to be dramatically apt for a show about the accidental collisions that shape both individuals and societies. If, after 24 years, I still dont understand what the male characters mean when they describe themselves, in the shows first lines, as four Jews in a room who plot a crime  theres no crime  well, do we ever understand what people mean? Finn isnt a pinner-downer, hes a mixer-upper; he shakes the soda cans and lets them spritz and effervesce.

So when the men sing March of the Falsettos in Day-Glo outfits, apropos of nothing, you are forced to investigate its relevance for yourself. (I think Finn and Lapine use the notion of falsetto to represent new ideals of maleness informed by feminism and gay liberation  but your mileage may vary.) In any case, as the show advances toward its almost unbearably moving conclusion, the manic jokiness and indirection of the earlier material give way to plainer, sadder language, lyrically and musically. The effect is paradoxical, shining a beam on the characters specific pain while also broadening out to include them in a world of it. Its hard to get through the last half hour intact, but then it was hard to get through the 80s, too. Falsettos is ultimately liberating though, perhaps in the way AIDS liberated the gay movement from its adolescent solipsism: It does not allow us to look at people as monsters, but doesnt let us see saints, either.

If this Lincoln Center Theater production, directed (like all the earlier New York incarnations) by Lapine, has any serious faults, they arise from that agenda. As written, Marvin is so nasty and erratic in the first act that the plot, which depends on so many people wanting his love, wont turn. Christian Borle cant resolve that contradiction and thus comes off a bit unsteady, at least until he regains his footing in the second act. The other principals, whose roles are more tightly written, are excellent throughout: Andrew Rannells delivering a super-high-gloss Whizzer without reducing him to a boy toy; Stephanie J. Block deftly coloring in Trinas insecurity (and stopping the show with Im Breaking Down); Brandon Uranowitz offering an unusually sexy Mendel; and Anthony Rosenthal making a crazy-confident Broadway debut as a sweet-but-not-too-sweet Jason. (In the second half, Tracie Thoms and Betsy Wolfe are lovely as the lesbians from next door.) As for the negative buzz about David Rockwells scenic design, which builds on the reconfigurable, multicomponent playground equipment his architecture firm designed for real-world use, I found it more than apt metaphorically, even at the expense of some excessive grayness. (Even that became powerful, at the end.) Similarly, the gesture-based choreography of Spencer Liff proved more illuminating than odd, in a tight race.

But you dont go to Falsettos for the decor and dancing. You go because it reminds you that the world can change  and how, at great cost, it once did.

Falsettos is at the Walter Kerr Theatre through January 8.
The Crime Branch is now investigating the Pakistan spy racket and the honeytrap angle. While the detained Pak High Commission staffer went to Islamabad on Friday, the cops are trying to identify those who were passing on the secret information to the spies.

Subhash Jangir (left) and Maulana Ramzan, who were arrested for alleged espionage activities, at Delhi Police headquarters on Thursday.

By Atir Khan: With the Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar allowed to go to Pakistan on Friday due to diplomatic immunity, Crime Branch sleuths now have a tough task at hand as they try to identify the source that was passing on secret information about BSF deployment on the Indo-Pak border.

Sleuths have started interrogation of the three Indian nationals arrested on charges of espionage in order to plug the loopholes in the system that allowed ISI agent Mehmood Akhtar to easily get access to the classified defence information.

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Sohaib, one of the key associates of Akhtar was caught from Rajasthan on Friday.

He was produced in court and has been remanded to eleven days in police custody. Sohaib's father was a visa agent and he had met Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar in

Delhi in the garb of some official work, officials said.

Also Read | Pakistan spy game busted: Women, money used to lure Indian officers, Pak high commission staff involved

Also Read | Pakistan spy racket: 2 Indians arrested, embassy staff asked to leave India



WOMEN USED TO HONEYTRAP INDIAN OFFICIALS

Sources said Sohaib had introduced the Pakistani staffers to some women, whom they would often meet privately in hotels.

Sleuths suspect these women were being used to honeytrap Indian officials to extract classified information. Sohaib along with the two other men already arrested - Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir - are being interrogated, officials said.

According to officials, while Maulana Ramzan said Subhash Jangir used to collect information from his sources in border areas, Subhash said it was Maulana who had contacts in border areas and he used those contacts to get classified information.

Now that sleuths have got custody of Sohaib they hope to confront the three and find out the source who fed them the information. Sleuths have seized a Samsung tab from the possession of Sohaib.

The sleuths are hopeful of getting some vital information regarding the spy ring from it. Investigators suspect involvement of some serving and retired BSF officers, sources said.

Also Read:

46 arrested since 2013: Timeline of Pakistan's spy game in India

Another Pakistani spy working for ISI arrested in Rajasthan



--- ENDS ---
In a major security revamp, security of Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, MoS PMO Jitender Singh and senior BJP leaders LK Advani and Subramanium Swamy have been restructured.

By Atir Khan: Security at the residences of top Cabinet ministers, senior BJP leaders and Army Chief have been reviewed and strengthened after intelligence inputs suggested there could be terror strikes in retaliation of surgical strikes on Pakistan.

In a major security revamp, security of Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, MoS PMO Jitender Singh and senior BJP leaders LK Advani and Subramanium Swamy have been restructured.

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Top intelligence sources told India Today Group security of Army Chief Dalbir Singh Suhag, Vice-President Hamid Ansari and LG Najeeb Jung has also been reviewed.

Sources said rear gate at Home Minister's Akbar Road residence has been closed from both sides and Quick Reaction Teams have been deployed outside his residence with commando deployment. Snippers have also been deployed inside his residence to ward off any terror attempt.

Read: Pakistan trying to push in terrorists before snowfall: Intelligence reports



Similarly rear gate of Prithvi Raj Road residence of LK Advani, who is chairman of Committee of Ethics, has also been closed due to security reasons. Commandoes have been deployed inside and outside the house.

The verification of all resident quarters at the residence of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Todar Mal Road is also being carried out. Background of four domestic helps at the residence of Subramanium Swamy is being done on priority. The servants will be allowed inside the house only after thorough frisking and checking.

The police verification of three private sweepers deployed by CPWD at the residence of Army Chief Dalbir Singh Suhag at Kamraj Marg is being done. On the left hand side of his bungalow there is a vacant bungalow having bushes and grass. The vacant bungalow is being used by private persons. The local police has been asked to ensure that the vacant bungalow is vacated.

The parking of vehicles outside Vice-President house on Maulana Azad Road has been disbanded and it is being ensured that parking space is allocated away from the bungalow. Verification of all the staff and service providers at the residence has also been ordered.

A permanent PCR van has been deployed at the residence of Delhi L-G Najib Jung to cover both the gates of his residence.

Due to heightened security threat to VVIPs/VIPs in the aftermath of Uri attacks and surgical strikes by India, the security of all protected persons have been reviewed. Therefore to strengthen the security cover of high value targets these preventive measures have been undertaken.

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PM Modi will leave for Chamoli in Uttarakhand on Saturday to celebrate Diwali with the troops of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP).

By India Today Web Desk: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will leave for Chamoli in Uttarakhand on Saturday to celebrate Diwali with the troops of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP).

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval will accompany the Prime Minister in his trip to the border area.

SEND GOOD WISHES TO ARMY ON DIWALI: MODI



Modi had on Monday urged people to send their good wishes to the Army and security forces personnel on Diwali saying such messages will boost their morale.

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Also read: #Sandesh2Soldiers campaign: Post surgical strikes, will Modi celebrate this Diwali in Uri?



Speaking at a rally in Mahoba, Modi said, "I call upon the people to boost the morale of our soldiers - the Army, Naval forces, Air Force and all security forces - by sending them good wishes on Diwali."

SANDESH2SOLDIERS CAMPAIGN



A campaign through which people can send their Diwali greetings and messages to soldiers guarding the nation's frontiers to boost their morale is already being run by the government.

People can send messages under the #Sandesh2Soldiers campaign on the Narendra Modi App, through MyGov.in, and also through All India Radio.

Also read: Service HQ at war with bureaucracy over pay parity: #Sandesh2soldiers fight to restore honour



The campaign comes against the backdrop of the surgical strikes carried out by the Army on terror launch pads in the PoK and the heightened border tension with Pakistan.

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A young downtown Waco company will revamp a fairly new mural after the business and a former freelance graphic designer separately filed trademark documents for the saying Waco Feels Like Home.

Word made way to Boston shortly after a brightly colored mural depicting the Waco Hippodrome, the Magnolia Silos, the ALICO building and the phrase Waco Feels Like Home was painted across the back portion of The Findery, which opened a year ago in the former Percy Medicine building at South Eighth Street and Webster Avenue.

Mark Rockwell, who moved to Boston in September, had lived in Waco since 2005 and recently started receiving calls inquiring if hed engaged in another Waco project.

He had not.

Rockwell said he quit his job in 2012 to begin freelancing and, without a steady income and in an effort to raise money for a mission trip, he began making and selling shirts that read: Waco Feels Like Home, which can still be purchased at wacofeelslikehome.com.

So Rockwell said he was surprised and hurt to see his phrase lifted for another business use without credit.

But it wasnt until after the mural at The Findery was complete that officials at the downtown antiques and home decor store realized someone else laid claim to the phrase, said Shelby Pipken, with Four Columns Marketing, which represents The Findery.

Pipken said the company wanted a piece of art that connected various significant parts of Waco. She said her company designed the mural, and did a trademark and copyright search with legal counsel for the phrase, finding no ownership, and then proceeded. Within a week, the mural was designed, painted and revealed, she said.

Thats when Rockwell reached out, Pipken said.

We feel its unfortunate, the way hes reacted, she said.

Pipken said the company offered Rockwell credit for the phrase on the mural and offered to promote his website, but said they have yet to hear a response. Regardless, as of Wednesday the company agreed to paint over the portion of the mural that says Waco Feels Like Home, she said.

Its not worth the fight to us, she said.

Fight continues

But the fight is ongoing for Rockwell.

Rockwell disputed Pipkens claim that he was offered credit on the mural, saying that he repeatedly asked for it to be included on the mural, and also said he asked that The Findery stop selling products with the phrase.

Since the mural went up, Rockwell said, he has connected with many local artists who have shared similar stories of larger companies taking credit for their work. Rockwell said its important to stand up and fight for ones work, talents and creations.

Small-town creative types deserve to be recognized and paid for their talents, and larger companies need to be aware they cant get away with stealing ideas, he said.

If you rip off one of us, word travels to all of the others and we wont continue to work with you. I dont know if people in Waco realize how small it is, Rockwell said. Its not large enough to burn bridges or take from people that are trying to build a community also.

Both parties this week took to social media to air their takes on the situation, with both Pipken and Rockwell claiming the other failed to work out the situation, and both saying they have filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for ownership of the phrase.

Pipken said Thursday it is her understanding The Findery will drop the trademark fight and will file another trademark claim on the soon-to-be-new mural design. The phrase that will be added to replace Waco Feels Like Home has not be finalized, she said.

Weve tried to cooperate (with Rockwell), but it was taken from a really peaceful and, honestly, kind cooperation to, pretty much overnight, just mean, she said.

Pipken referred to an Instagram account mocking The Findery which dubbed itself The Blindery Waco and has posted fake pictures insulting the downtown business.

Our heart in this piece was just really to make something on this wall, this blank wall, that people could love and it could be appreciated by both Wacoans and people (from) outside Waco that are just visiting, she said.

Rockwell said he had nothing to do with the vulgar Instagram postings and tried contacting the owner to ask them to remove the account.

Overall, Rockwell said, all he ever wanted was credit for the phrase and for The Findery to stop selling products with the phrase on it.

Pipken said work will begin Tuesday to change The Finderys mural.

She said products with images of the mural were only sold for a few days and were pulled off the shelves when Rockwell called.

Were not here to fight with other people in our own small city, she said.
Waco Independent School District trustees will attend a training session the Texas Education Agency is requiring as a condition of approving turnaround plans for three of the districts struggling campuses.

When the board learned of the requirement last week, some members balked at the training. One trustee initially refused to go.

The decision passed unanimously at Thursday nights regular board meeting, two days after the states deadline for Waco ISD and 10 other districts to let the TEA know whether they would go through with the training. The trustees will attend the two-day training from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Nov. 12 and 13 at the Education Service Center for Region 12.

Board vice president Allen Sykes said a conversation between him, the states deputy education commissioner, Waco ISD Superintendent Bonny Cain and board President Pat Atkins alleviated his concerns about the training. Sykes, Trustee Larry Perez and Trustee Cary DuPuy were outspoken in their opposition to the training during an Oct. 20 meeting.

Clearly, he (the deputy commissioner) went above and beyond in helping us resolve questions. He was very open and candid about it, so I think were clearly ready to proceed, Sykes said during the meeting.

If trustees had decided not to agree to the training and the turnaround plans were denied, the state would have had the option to implement alternative management of the campuses, close them or go as far as appointing a board of managers to take over the district, according to a letter the TEA sent to inform the district it was not immediately approving the turnaround plans.

I can understand theres a very difficult statute in place with some very hard consequences that maybe werent thought through in terms of the timeline, to the extent they cant say those plans will result in a turnaround in two years, Atkins said on his theory behind the training. They feel like theyve got to order those closures or alternative management or replace this board, where we lose total control of our schools. To avoid that, they offered this.

As of Oct. 21, the trustees had not heard back from the TEA about how the training would improve their turnaround plans and how the turnaround plans dont meet state requirements when TEA officials had direct input as they were developed. The district had also asked about an extension on the deadline to get other questions answered before making a decision.

The TEA also initially did not plan to offer the training in Waco.

By Oct. 24, board members said almost all their questions were answered by the deputy commissioner, and the TEA was willing to hold the training in Waco.

In the letter, received by the district Oct. 10, the TEAs deputy commissioner of governance wrote he could not approve the proposed turnaround plans for Brook Avenue Elementary School, Alta Vista Elementary School and G.W. Carver Middle School. The deputy commissioner said he could reconsider the plans after the board went through the training.

The campuses have had failing academic performance ratings for multiple years, and district officials were required to develop turnaround plans in 2015 to be implemented during the 2016-17 school year, according to the letter.

The ordered training is directly related to statements Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath made in August about cutting the number of failing Texas schools in half by using more and stronger interventions for districts with failing schools, TEA spokesperson DeEtta Culbertson said last week.

The training is expected to focus on specific positive and negative governing practices that can directly impact student achievement, Atkins said. The board may also have to do some prep work beforehand, and theres a high expectation to follow through with the implementation of whats learned at the training within a certain time period afterward, Atkins said.

The district also will have three other administrators attending the training to ask questions, make sure the training is well-understood and put it into practice. Six school districts in addition to the initial 11 have received letters for the state-mandated training, board members said. As of Thursday night, further specifics on the training and the implementation deadline were unavailable, but more should be revealed next week, board members said.

That still left DuPuy on edge.

Im still extremely skeptical of this effort for a lot of reasons, DuPuy said. But Im going to vote for this and Im going to because I care about the administrators that are on those affected campuses and I dont want to be perceived as getting in the way of their success. And if these guys follow through on the threats theyre making, it gets pretty severe. I kind of think thats cowardly of them, and Ill be straight forward, but theyve got the power, I guess.
Retired Lt. Col. Richard Cole doesnt consider himself a hero, but almost a dozen local law enforcement officials who met with Cole on Thursday disagree.

The 101-year-old World War II veteran is the last surviving member of the Doolittle Raiders, who struck Tokyo months after the Pearl Harbor attack.

There was a whole group of us and a whole lot of people involved in the war, Cole said. When your freedom is at stake, you just got to do your job. Thats it.

Several members of the McLennan County Sheriffs Office surprised Cole on Thursday at the Rockys Roadhouse, where Cole planned to meet with his son Sam Cole, a Rockys employee, before Richard Cole made his way to Dallas for an airshow this weekend. Sheriff Parnell McNamara said meeting Cole was an honor.

I can only imagine what he and his men went through flying over Japan, knowing that they most likely wouldnt make it back, McNamara said. Ive known of him for several years and of course, Ive known about the Doolittle Raiders my entire life and to finally meet him, to meet the last surviving raider, is such an honor.

On April 2, 1942, Cole, 26 at the time, boarded the carrier USS Hornet after volunteering for an unknown mission, about four months after the Japanese led a deadly attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941.

Under the leadership of 45-year-old Lt. Col. James H. Jimmy Doolittle, Cole learned about the attack, later to become known as the Doolittle Raid, that was meant to be the first U.S. attack on Tokyo and other Japanese industrial cities to avenge Pearl Harbor.

Cole said the plan was to boost the morale of Americans and to show the country would not accept defeat. On April 18, 1942, 80 men boarded B-25 Mitchell medium bombers and flew to Japan for what has historically been described as a suicide mission.

I was always in a state of awe (flying with Doolittle), Cole said. He was my idol as a kid. He was an all-around good person. I couldnt think of a better man or pilot.

Sitting inches away from Doolittle, Cole flew with crews and dropped incendiary bombs on military and industrial targets in Tokyo, Yokohama, Kobe, Nagoya and Osaka. The attack lasted a few minutes before crews pushed on toward China, where Doolittle and Coles crew bailed out of the plane as it ran out of gas.

When the parachute opened, I landed in a tree, but I was just happy it opened, Cole said when asked what he remembered most about the raid.

All bombers lost

All 16 of Doolittles bombers were lost in the mission. Cole, Doolittle and crews of nine other B-25s bailed out over China and made their way to safety. One man was killed bailing out, and two others drowned trying to swim in a lake to escape potential capture.

Two planes landed in China but in areas occupied by Japan. Eight crewmen were captured, resulting in three men being executed and five being sentenced to life in prison.

One man in prison starved to death, according to an account of the raid on doolittleraider.com. Three planes crashed on Chinas coast, but their crews were safe.

The last plane had to land in the Soviet Union, where authorities took the bomber and interned the crew.

After the raid, Cole said Doolittle was certain the mission failed because none of the planes landed. President Franklin D. Roosevelt awarded Doolittle the Medal of Honor, and Cole and other raiders were honored with the Distinguished Flying Cross.

He is a hero in the truest sense of the word, McNamara said after listening to Coles memories. There was a lot of blood spilled on our shores and foreign shores so that we would be free, and I am very honored and humbled to meet him.

Cole returned the appreciation and thanked members of the sheriffs office for their service. When asked why he volunteered, Cole said his reasoning was simple.

Freedom is worth fighting for, Cole said.
"The nature of crime today is changing. It is no longer just conventional crime. Terrorism is a great curse for society. You have to deploy all models of tools in order to learn how to fight terror" said Arun Jaitley.

By Ashish Pandey: The 68th passing-out parade of Indian police service probationers was conducted at Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel national Police academy in Hyderabad on Friday.

Union Minister Arun Jaitley was the chief guest for the passing out parade. This year 109 Indian Police Service probationers, including 26 women, beside 15 foreign officers came out from the academy after completed the basic training of 45 weeks.

Click here to Enlarge Passing-out parade of Indian police service probationers

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JAITLEY WARNING



Speaking at the ceremony, the Union Finance minister warned the officers about the challenge of global terrorism and new age crime.

"The nature of crime today is changing. It is no longer a conventional crime. Terrorism is a great curse for society. You have to deploy all models of tools in order to learn how to fight terror ", said the minister.

He also added that young officers are "pillars of the society" as they are ones who protect law and order. He said that that maintaining the law of the land should be their prime responsibility.

Passing-out parade of Indian police service probationers Click here to Enlarge Passing-out parade of Indian police service probationers

BATTLE AGAINST TERROR



Earlier, the Director of National Police Academy, Aruna M Bahuguna, reminded the officers of the challenges and opportunities they faced. Mentioning the recent terror attacks in Paris, Brussels and Bagdad, the chief of the academy said that the officers are the ones that stood between between evil and peace. He added that the newly graduating batch of officers were equipped not just to win the battle against crime and terror but also the hearts and minds of the people who they are serving.

The 2015-batch had 124 probationers including 15 foreign cadets from Nepal, Bhutan and Maldives with 20 per cent among the graduated being women.

ALSO READ:

Espionage case: Delhi Police nabs Indian informer Shoaib

Brand Pakistan identifies itself with global terror: Jaitley





--- ENDS ---
A Tennessee mother pulled over for a traffic violation in Waco in July 2014 was arrested Friday after police determined she was driving while allegedly under the influence of several drugs, an arrest affidavit states.

Tracy Nicole Clark, 34, of Memphis, Tennessee, was pulled over by a Waco police officer on July 5, 2014, for a traffic violation near South 17th Street and Dutton Avenue, the arrest affidavit states. Clark had her two children in the vehicle with her when her actions began to concern the officer.

The defendant acted delusional and officers feared she was having a mental health crisis, the arrest affidavit states. It was later found out through a drug test at Providence (Health Center) that the defendant was under the influence of amphetamines, benzos, THC and opioids.

A Child Protective Services referral was made to Waco police, and the Crimes Against Children unit began to investigate. Police issued two warrants for endangering a child in August.

Clark was arrested and was booked into McLennan County Jail on a total surety bond of $10,000. It was unclear where she was living at the time of her arrest.

She remained in custody Friday afternoon.
The trial of a lawsuit over the amount an insurance company paid the West school district for damages sustained in the April 2013 fertilizer plant explosion has been postponed while the company appeals a judges ruling from earlier this week.

Chris Martin, a Houston lawyer who represents Argonaut Insurance Co. and Trident Insurance Services, filed what is known as an interlocutory appeal with Wacos 10th Court of Appeals and asked 170th State District Judge Jim Meyer to stay the trial until the appeal is resolved.

Meyer denied a request from Martin on Monday to throw out all or parts of the lawsuit, which Argonaut and Trident are appealing. The trial was set to begin Monday.

Additional $24M

West ISDs lawsuit against the insurance carrier and its administrator and adjuster seeks an additional $24 million in insurance proceeds for the school, plus attorneys fees and alleges the insurance company acted in bad faith in handling the districts claims for damages.

Martin said the school system inflated its loss totals to the Federal Emergency Management Administration and asked Meyer at Mondays pretrial hearing to reduce its claims in the lawsuit by 58 percent.

The judge denied the request.

The schools claim focuses on damage to the intermediate school, the high school and the middle school.

Complex litigation

West ISDs suit is not part of the complex West explosion litigation also pending in 170th State District Court and involving more than 200 plaintiffs, an apartment complex, nursing home and the city of West. However, Argonaut and Trident have subrogation claims pending in the other lawsuits, asking to recoup the almost $30 million it paid the West school system.

Martin did not return phone messages Friday seeking comment on the appeal and postponement of the trial.

Frivolous motion

Matthew Pearson, a San Antonio lawyer who represents West ISD, called the motion earlier in the week completely frivolous, arguing the insurance company hired an insurance defense-oriented engineering firm to keep the damage totals low. Pearson said the company didnt conduct a blast analysis to determine the viability of the structures before submitting its estimates.

Pearson also did not return phone messages Friday.
When told that the New England transcendentalist Margaret Fuller had grandly declared I accept the universe, Scottish philosopher Thomas Carlyle dryly remarked: Shed better. Much ink and indignation has been spilled concerning whether Donald (I am much more humble than you would understand) Trump will accept the elections outcome. The nation, like the universe of which it is the nicest part, will persevere even without the election result being accepted by the fellow who probably will be the first presidential candidate in 16 years to receive less  probably a lot less  than 45 percent of the vote.

When the Jimmy Carter/Walter Mondale ticket lost 44 states in 1980, Mondale used his elegant concession remarks to herald a chance to rejoice: Today, all across this nation  in high school cafeterias, in town halls, and churches, and synagogues  the American people quietly wielded their staggering power. ... Tonight we celebrate above all the process we call American freedom.

Today, such political grace notes are rare as the nation slouches toward its first dyspeptic landslide  an electoral vote avalanche for a candidate regretted by a majority of the electorate.

Abraham Lincoln was elected in 1860 with the lowest percentage of the popular vote (39.9) of any electoral winner in history. He received fewer than the combined votes for two Democratic rivals, the Northerner Stephen Douglas and the Southerner John Breckinridge. This did not prevent Lincoln from becoming the nations greatest president. Majorities, however helpful, are not necessary. In 14 of the 39 elections since 1860 the winner did not get a majority of the popular vote, including Woodrow Wilson (twice), Harry Truman, John Kennedy and Bill Clinton (twice), Democrats all.

Carters 50.1 percent of the popular vote in 1976 was the only time in the 40 years after 1964 that a Democratic presidential candidate would win a majority of the popular vote. Ronald Brownstein of The Atlantic notes, Since the 1828 election of Andrew Jackson, which historians consider the birth of the modern two-party system, no party has ever won the presidential popular vote six times over seven elections. By the evening of Nov. 8, the Republican Party will have lost the popular vote for the sixth time in seven elections and will have lost three consecutive elections for the first time since the 1940s.

In the last four elections (2000-2012), no loser has fallen below 45 percent of the vote and no winner has reached 53 percent. This years winner is unlikely to become just the fourth nominee of the worlds oldest party (following Andrew Jackson, Franklin Roosevelt and Lyndon Johnson) to win more than 53 percent. The loser, however, could plunge close to the 37.4 percent that George H.W. Bush received in 1992 when Ross Perot took 18.9 percent of the vote.

This years winner probably will be the first Democrat since Grover Cleveland to become president without enjoying Democratic control of both houses of Congress. (Cleveland, the last conservative Democratic president, vetoed more bills during his two, non-consecutive terms than all of his predecessors combined.) This year will be the fourth of a particular kind of Republican disappointment since World War II. In 1946, 1994, 2010 and 2014 Republicans won huge victories in off-year elections but two years later lost the presidential election.

Jefferson said the boisterous sea of liberty is never without a wave, but some waves have become less turbulent. For example, in 2004, 13 states enacted  11 of them by referendums  prohibitions on same-sex marriage. Three elections later, this issue has virtually disappeared from political discourse.

Americans might feel as though they are living through an unceasing and unprecedented political maelstrom, but by one measure there is unusual stability: The nation is nearing the end of a third consecutive two-term presidency, something that has occurred only once before in U.S. history  the Virginia dynasty of the third, fourth and fifth presidents (Jefferson, Madison, Monroe). Of the five presidents in office from the inauguration of John Kennedy in 1961 through the departure of Jimmy Carter in 1981, not one served two full terms.

The last Democrat directly elected (that is, not counting Harry Truman or Johnson, who were elected after inheriting the office) to succeed a Democrat was James Buchanan, arguably the worst president ever. One hundred and sixty years later, Republicans fearing four Clinton years can reasonably hope there will be no more than four: The likelihood of Democrats winning a fourth consecutive presidential term will be reduced if the Republican Party reverts to its practice, adhered to since it chose John C. Fremont in 1856, of actually nominating a Republican.

George Will, who serves as a conservative commentator on Fox News, including Special Report with Bret Baier and FOX News Sunday, is the author of several books, including One Mans America: The Pleasures and Provocations of Our Singular Nation and Statecraft as Soulcraft: What Government Does. This past summer he left the Republican Party due to Donald Trumps presumptive nomination for president.
As Trib opinion editor, Bill Whitaker has carte blanche to print whatever he chooses. As an American, he has the right to state his opinions and interpretations, even when they are incorrect or formed from a biased starting point. This rang clear in last Sundays column targeting the local Republican Party featuring Congressman Bill Flores. Mr. Whitaker employed the terms despair, dejection and even desperation and long faces amid gloomy prospects and somber.

I was present at that meeting and saw no such thing. Mr. Whitaker was either at a different meeting or had a pre-planned agenda for which he only sought interpretive support. He referred to my misuse of the name Bush rather than Trump, as though I was harking back to happy times. He failed to mention my additional slip when I referred to Barbara Kent as Barbara White. To what was I harking then, Bill?

On a menu at a restaurant in New Hampshire some years ago, under the dessert section, I read: Its not over until the fat lady sings. The fat lady in this case does not sing until Nov. 8.

More disconcerting than his interpretation of this meeting is Mr. Whitakers employment of inaccurate terms. His reference to anarchic Republicans such as Donald Trump is grossly misplaced. It was anarchists heading the Democratic Party who hired other anarchists at $1,500 per person to initiate riots at a recent Trump rally. Patriotic Republicans striving to protect the constitutional republic are not anarchists. Mr. Whitakers statement of Trumps boasts, demagogy and outrageous falsehoods eclipsing even those of the Clintons is particularly egregious. Nothing said by Mr. Trump has led to or been used to cover up the deaths of four Americans in Benghazi. Yet the clear and known falsehood by Hillary Clinton of blaming their deaths as a result of a video is given no weight by Mr. Whitaker.

Mr. Whitaker asserts the Republicans are way out of touch with millennials on social issues. Evidently, he absented himself from the meeting when I reported to the group that the party booth at the Heart of Texas Fair & Rodeo was inundated by young Americans eagerly supporting Mr. Trump and the party. No, Mr. Whitaker, the Republican Party is not imploding and has not lost its way as you claim. Our platform states where we stand and we stand by it. We are neither disheartened nor dejected. We still have plenty of fight for what is right.

Retired Army Col. Jon Ker, a local attorney, chairs the McLennan County Republican Party.
During a telephone town-hall program with Republican Congressman Bill Flores this week, I heard many voices identifying issues that must be addressed through a strong vote of We the People. However, we Republicans have been betrayed by many in our own Republican-led Congress, particularly through their failure to unite and lead in supporting their partys admittedly beleaguered presidential nominee.

Granted, no nominee has been brought forward to meet all of our moral and ethical criteria as Americans. No one has completely met our standards of personal and professional integrity. And that is what is so desperately needed to reverse the daunting defeat our party faces in continuing disunity. Yet, in failing to carry the nation on Nov. 8 with the nominee we have, we plainly consign ourselves to an equally questionable nominee in the other political camp, one who will likely continue in the same sorry direction that our country has gone the past eight years.

My feeling is that the last chance we as Republicans have to stand against the wrongs of our Democratic adversaries depends on our lawmakers, some of whom balk in supporting Donald Trump. Given that members of Congress already have so little credibility left at that level of the Republican Party, they should now rise up and help mentor the presidential nominee of our party and his flailing campaign. In short, they must demonstrate more leadership themselves.

Granted, after a particularly strong start to land the Republican Party in the White House, the Trump campaign settled into a disappointing pattern. Granted, the nominee himself has said some idiotic and stupid things. Granted, he has made conflicting statements about his policies, some of which must be ignored as over-the-top showmanship. When one considers the disastrous option in Hillary Clinton, one can only think of the drowning man who reaches frantically for the first strong log to save himself. In this metaphor, that happens to be Mr. Trump.

Yes, Mr. Trump must apologize for his moral misdeeds  and with more sincerity than he has. He must then remind other Americans that the support he has received thus far, even amidst all his campaign pratfalls, nonetheless justifies our greater recognition of the many serious issues threatening our country. All that means standing at this critical moment with Donald Trump. And that includes Republicans in Congress.

Born in Germany before World War II, Walter Seeger is retired after many years as an engineer at Lochridge Priest.
Half-baked

I write in response to the Saturday article, Facebook reacts to shutdown of vacation site, which showed that many people were incensed by the Lacy Lakeview City Councils decision ending operations of Barndominium as a vacation rental. Residents complaining about the Barndominium are referred to as old grumpy people with nothing better to do and are called selfish. One of the Facebook writers implies that we, the residents, were mad because we couldnt afford to buy the place and profit from it.

One aspect of Facebook that many of us find objectionable is that it affords someone with no real knowledge of the facts of the matter, or any stake in what is at hand, the opportunity to spout opinions and malign other people with impunity: in other words, nosy know-it-alls spouting opinions about things that do not concern them without knowledge of the facts.

We, the homeowners of the subdivision in question, exercised our rights as citizens to address our local government regarding a matter that we saw as a negative. It is our right as citizens of this country and as residents of Lacy Lakeview. Many of us probably could have purchased the Barndominium but would not have dreamed of setting it up as a short-term rental facility, since our zoning was for single-family dwellings with minimum lot sizes of one acre. We all built or bought here because of that zoning and because of the fact that most of us live on one or the other of the several lakes in the subdivision. We bought because the lakes were privately owned lakes and not places where paid access might be sold to the public.

Its our right to retain these expectations and to fight for them. Someone spouting off half-baked opinions on Facebook and making rude and ugly remarks will not deter us.

Lester H. Beaird, one of the admittedly old and sometimes grumpy residents of Lacy Lakeview

Clashing subsets

Once again the news media has made an attempt to upset unity by investigating the under-representation of a certain subset of the population in Texas Latinos underrepresented in local politics.

If we are all equal, then Hispanics are represented by the people who have been duly elected. That can also be said for men, woman, gays, straights, blacks, whites, Native Americans, Jews, Christians, agnostics, Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, doctors, lawyers, coal miners, ranch hands, cotton pickers, etc. To investigate based on ethnicity, gender, religion, party affiliation, sexual preference, job status and the like is racist and prejudicial.

When the media and politicians stop dividing the population into one subset against another and start accepting the premise that all citizens have equal value, maybe citizens can focus on the unity that once made this country the envy of the rest of the world.

William Smith, China Spring
WAVERLY  School District 145 board members held a special meeting Oct. 19 with a very big thing on the agenda.

The board began to hear plans on how we will handle Phase III of the bond issue, Superintendent Bill Heinmann said. Phase III includes the updating of Waverly Intermediate School.

That phase will be much bigger than Phase I and Phase II and wont be completed over the summer months he said. And that is one reason the board has began to review plans now.

We want to let bids out in January or February, hire a contractor and then have him work on getting everything here and ready to begin work on the last day of school, he said.

And even then all the work scheduled wont be competed in the summer months.

We have plans to replace the air and heating in the school, which means that we will pull out of the units, the currently run loudly, from each room, he said.

Replacing them will make each room much quieter as well as be energy efficient.

Replacing the air and heating will be the biggest part of the phase, but not the only one.

We plan to update the bathrooms and turn a couple of rooms into bathrooms that will make it more convenient for use in parts of the building, Heimann said. Rooms near the lunchroom and gym will be turned into bathrooms he said.

Along with that they plan to remodel a few classrooms, replace carpet in some areas, and redo lighting.

We want to make it energy efficient and over the long term save operating costs, he said.

And we are looking ahead to future growth.

But right now he is looking at how he can still educate intermediate students while construction is going on.

The project will not get done in a year, so right now we have plans to move third graders to Hamlow Elementary School, he said adding that there was room in that school for the additional four or five classrooms.

One hallway at the intermediate school will be worked on at a time he said.

So we will move all fourth and firth graders to classrooms on one side of the building and come Christmas break will move those classes to the other hallway, he said.

Our emphasis will be the air and heating, restrooms and lighting, he said. Security will be updated, but the updating of the technology that was done this past summer in all buildings included the intermediate school.

Heimann said he didnt know what kind of machinery would be brought in to replace the air and heat units, but once it was completed the district would then repave the parking lots.

Right now, we are talking about moving the bus lane to the west side of the building where I understand it was at one time, he said. The front of the school will be used for parent pick up and staff parking.

It will make it all safer, he said. The paving would also include redoing the sidewalk from N. 145th Street to N. 148th Street.

What is making the project a challenge is that the building has been added on to so many times, that contractors, and the board, were making allowances for anything that might show up.

We are on budget with the bond money voted on and we did include some for any inconsistency in case we hit something at the intermediate school, he said.

With all the add ons, the building has a different physical structure to it that a person thinks so we are ready for any surprises. Its a solid building.

He said that remodeling at both the high school and Hamlow Elementary School were near completion and that it was time to focus on the intermediate school.

The voters gave us permission to do the remodeling with that bond issue, he said. Now its time for the intermediate school.
A former Armyman has moved the National Green Tribunal alleging dumping of human waste by aircraft over residential areas near the IGI airport in Delhi.

By PTI: Imagine human excreta falling on you from airplanes flying above!

A former senior Armyman has moved the National Green Tribunal alleging dumping of human waste by aircraft over residential areas near the IGI airport in Delhi, which led the green panel to order an inspection of his South Delhi house.

THE ACT VIOLATES SWACHH BHARAT ABHIYAN



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Lt Gen (Retd) Satwant Singh Dahiya has sought criminal proceedings against commercial airlines and levying of hefty fines on them for endangering the health of residents, terming the act a violation of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

Noting the submission of the petitioner, the green panel directed Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to depute a senior environmental engineer to inspect his house and check the existence of human excreta on the walls.

COLLECT EXCRETA SAMPLES: NGT ORDERS CPCB



It also asked CPCB that if excreta was found, samples should be collected for analysis and the report placed before the tribunal.

A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar also issued notices to the Ministries of Environment and Forests and Civil Aviation and also to the CPCB, seeking their replies within two weeks.

Also read: NGT serves notices to Agra authorities for failing to protect Taj Mahal from pollution



Plane toilets store human waste in special tanks. These are normally disposed of by ground crew once the plane lands, but aviation officials acknowledge that lavatory leaks can occur in the air at times. There have been instances, including in India, when people have been injured.

HELPLINE FOR REPORTING THE INCIDENT MUST BE SET UP



In his petition, Vasant Enclave resident Dahiya has sought creation of a 24-hour helpline for immediate reporting of the incident and a monitoring mechanism to check that no aircraft drops "human soil or excreta" while landing.

"For more than the last 7 days early in the morning, we found that walls and floors of the terrace of our house were splattered with large patches of excreta dumped by aircraft flying in front of the Palam airport at night. This is the second time this has happened. Last time it had occurred in early October when we had spent Rs 50,000 to get the entire exterior resurfaced with fresh paint.

Also read: NGT's scrappage policy for old vehicles with incentives for each owner sparks row



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"Diwali is only a few days away. As the festive season is going on, we recently finished fresh coating of the house exterior at a considerable cost to clean up the premises. We will have to get our house whitewashed again as its walls have been completely spattered with waste. We are retired people and cannot allow this defacement of our houses to take place everyday," the plea said.

--- ENDS ---
The following editorial appears on Bloomberg View:

Voters in Washington state will be asked next month whether they want to adopt the nations first carbon tax -- a powerful way to curb greenhouse-gas emissions. Youd think environmental groups would be doing everything they can to back that idea. Youd be wrong.

Initiative 732 will be on the ballot on Election Day. It calls for a $25-per-ton carbon tax, and it says how the proceeds should be spent: Trim the states sales tax, cut taxes on manufacturers, and give tax rebates to low-income households.

Oddly enough, this plan has failed to impress some environmental campaigners. Washington Conservation Voters, an influential local organization, opposes it because none of the revenue will go toward funding clean energy. Climate Solutions, another local group, agrees. The Sierra Club wont back the plan, saying its help for low-income households and minorities is insufficient.

Those groups havent put their own proposal on the ballot, so theyre saying its better to do nothing than vote for Initiative 732. This position is absurd. Curbing carbon emissions is, or ought to be, the primary goal, and the plan would do that. In addition, its an opportunity to prove the viability of the carbon-tax approach and set a valuable example for the rest of the country.

The part of the plan that seems to offend the campaigners -- how the carbon-tax revenues ought to be used -- is worth debating, but what matters most is to put a price on carbon, reflecting its true cost to the environment. Promising that the revenues from the carbon tax will be used to cut taxes and support low-income working families seems wise, in fact, because it lends the idea bipartisan appeal. But that isnt the main thing. The main thing is that the measure shouldnt fail merely because it doesnt please every group on every point.

The latest polling shows 42 percent of respondents supporting the plan, with 37 percent against and 21 percent undecided. In other words, local groups could well decide the outcome, persuading undecided voters to lean one way or the other. It would be bad enough for the measure to be voted down because climate change wasnt seen as an urgent problem. If it fails for lack of support from climate campaigners, thats worse -- and those groups should be ashamed.
By PTI: (REOPENS DEL 68)

(REOPENS DEL 68)

Madhesis constitute about 35 per cent of Nepali population and are connected with India through social and family bonds.

He said India has welcomed these efforts and hopes that they will further "consolidate" democracy in Nepal and will bring security peace and prosperity there.

The then President K R Narayanan was the last President to visit Nepal in 1998 and before him, Giani Zail Singh had visited the country in 1986.

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Dalela said there will no new agreements signed during the visit as the emphasis is on to implement the projects which have already been signed with Nepal.

On the question of Nepal not coming forward with post-earthquake development projects where they needed Indias help, Dalela said,"I must say we are moving forward now....We have received some projects in cultural heritage sector and we are trying to work with Government of Nepal to put in place implementation modalities."

India has extended grant assistance of 250 million USD in addition line of credit to the tune of 750 million USD has been extended for the reconstruction projects for the earthquake ravaged country, he said.

A strong earthquake in Nepal on April 25, 2015 had killed nearly 9,000 people and injured nearly 22,000.

When asked about cooperation on anti-terror and porus border with Nepal, Dalela said both countries have very strong security cooperation with Nepal.

He referred to statement issued by Foreign Office of Nepal, as Chair of Saarc, condemning cross border terror.

He said security agencies of both the countries cooperate very closely and in future this cooperation will be strengthened further. PTI ABS RG

--- ENDS ---
President Mukherjee is going on a 3-day state visit to Nepal starting November 2 which is being seen as "special goodwill visit."

By Press Trust of India: President Pranab Mukherjee will be the first Head of State from India in 18 years to visit Nepal on a three-day state visit starting November 2, first after democratic constitution was adopted by Nepal last year, which is being seen as "special goodwill visit."

Mukherjee is likely to hold discussions on "full range of bilateral, regional and multinational" issues with the political leadership of the Himalayan neighbour ranging from post-earthquake reconstruction projects, concerns of Madhesi community among others.

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Among other reasons, political instability in Nepal is seen as a reason for such a long gap in the state visit to the neighbour.

During the three day visit, Mukherjee will be meeting host of political leaders including President Bidhya Devi Bhandari, Vice President Nanda Kishor Pun and Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal besides civil society members including Madhesi leaders and ex-servicemen of Indian army belonging to Gurkhas.

ADDRESSING ANTI-INDIA SENTIMENTS



When asked about anti-India sentiments in Nepal, Joint Secretary (North) Sudhakar Dalela said, "We are in a phase of very intensive engagement at a political level and functional level. We are trying to work with government of Nepal in different areas.

"There have been, in the field of trade or economics, cases where we have concerns about our people working there but we are working with Nepal."

Mukherjee will be accompanied with high-level delegation of Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre, Members of Parliament L Ganesan, Jagadambika Pal, R K Singh besides one more MP whose name is getting finalised, he said.

WILL COVER ALL ISSUES



Besides Kathmandu where the President will hold diplomatic discussions with the Nepalese government, he will be visiting Janakpur, on the Indian border, considered as hub for Madhesis where he will be accorded a civic reception and Pokhara where he will interact with ex-servicemen of Indian army from Gurkha community.

Mukherjee will also be accorded honorary Doctorate by Kathmandu University.

"I assume discussions will cover all range of issues covering all aspects of bilateral issues, regional issues, international issues...

"During the high level political exchanges we had recently, the government of Nepal has shared with our leadership its priority and efforts to address all the Constitutional issues by taking all sections of society on board," Dalela said on the question of Madhesi community's concerns in Nepal.

--- ENDS ---
Xavier Richards remains hopeful of finding a new AFL club as a delisted free agent after his bizarre fortnight took another turn on Thursday when he was delisted by Sydney.

Richards, 23, requested a trade early last week after knocking back a two-year contract extension with the Swans. The young forward - who breathed life into his career by playing the last 10 games of Sydney's 2016 campaign including the grand final - wanted to move back to Melbourne, with his agent Phil Mullen claiming the decision was based around the cost of living in Sydney.

Xavier Richards is looking for a new home Credit:Getty Images

However the former rookie attracted little interest in the final days of the trade period, and was left in limbo. Mullen spoke to the Swans earlier this week, with Fairfax Media reporting that Richards had changed his mind and wanted to return to the club where his recently-retired brother Ted was a premiership player in 2012.

But any hopes Richards had of staying in Sydney were extinguished on Thursday when the Swans announced that he had been cut, along with fringe youngsters Jack Hiscox and Abaina Davis.
ANZ Bank's bottom line will take a $360 million hit in the second half after the lender unveiled new charges for at-risk debts and restructuring costs.

ANZ, which will report its full-year earnings next Thursday, said the results would include a new $168 million charge relating to derivatives exposures in its institutional banking business.

ANZ Bank's results next week will be dragged down by $360 million in charges. Credit:Jessica Shapiro

The charge, called a derivative credit adjustment, is similar to a provision for at-risk loans, or debts expected to go sour.

It comes after chief executive Shayne Elliott had already unveiled more than $700 million of one-off charges when he delivered his first result in charge of the bank, six months ago, at which he reduced the bank's dividend for the first time since the global financial crisis.
Macquarie Group is rewarding investors with a bigger-than-expected dividend as a global infrastructure boom sparked by cheap credit helps maintain earnings near record highs.

Shares in the Sydney-based investment bank bucked Friday's falling share market, rising 1.6 per cent after Macquarie delivered first-half profits of $1.05 billion and announced an interim dividend of $1.90 a share.

Macquarie Group CEO Nicholas Moore ... the investment bank is benefiting from investor demand for infrastructure assets. Credit:Louie Douvis

Earnings for the half were down 2 per cent but managing director Nicholas Moore signalled the bank was on track to roughly match the previous year's record profit of $2.06 billion, saying profits would be "broadly in line" with last year.

While other banks are struggling with lack of growth opportunities, Macquarie's biggest and star-performing division, asset management, helped underpin the result. Assets under management rose 3 per cent to $493.1 billion. That rise helped the bank net $857 million in income from Macquarie Asset Management.
Mermaids, according to the grandmother, live for 300 years. People live a shorter time, but when they die, their souls live on forever. Not so for mermaids.

In Hans Christian Andersen's original, the mermaid of The Little Mermaid doesn't go back for her prince because he is such an irresistible dream-nugget, as in the Disney version. She goes back because she wants a soul. Credit:Disney

This was the first that I had heard of mermaids (the book came into my life before the animated Disney movie), and the opening conversation between a bevy of teenage mermaid sisters and their grandmother hooked me immediately. The youngest sister, who has just witnessed a shipwreck and helped a drowning human prince to shore, wants to know: How long do humans live? How long do mermaids live? What happens when you die?

Seven-years-old and driven by boredom to pillage our living room bookshelves in search of something to read, I knocked over a dusty, leather-bound book of short stories by Hans Christian Andersen. It fell open on the floor to The Little Mermaid.

"Is there anything I can do to get an immortal soul?" the mermaid asks.

Not much, the grandmother answers. You'd have to marry a human, but that's darn near-impossible because mermaids can't walk on land. Tough tail-fins, sister.

Among the many ways the original short story differs from the cartoon film (see also: singing crabs, oyster-shell bikinis) there is one whopper of a distinction, and you get a hint of it in this line: "She could not forget the charming prince, nor her sorrow that she had not an immortal soul like his." See, in the story, the little mermaid thinks the prince is cute, but she doesn't go back for him because he is such an irresistible dream-nugget. She goes back because she wants a soul.

The way I read it, she is not lovesick. She's ambitious.

But to get what she wants, she has to strike a raw deal with a bad witch and trade away her voice to get feet. From there, everything goes wrong. Once she is on land, she can't tell anyone who she is or what she needs - she can't say anything - and she ends up standing mutely by as the prince meets and marries someone else. The real bummer is that, according to the witchy bargain, she can't cut her losses, grow her tail back and revert to mermaid life. Failing to seal the deal means she is doomed to die.
The cover, illustrated by Joelle Jones and featuring series star Barbara "Bobbie" Morse (AKA Mockingbird), became the target of online trolls who didn't like the shirt Mockingbird was wearing, which read, "Ask Me About My Feminist Agenda".

On Wednesday, Cain removed herself from Twitter, citing the reaction to the cover of her final issue of Mockingbird, a Marvel Comics series that represented her first foray into writing superheroes at a mainstream comic-book publisher.

Despite industry gains in both diversity among creative talent and heroes on the page, there are still some within the comic-book-reading community who enjoy being bullies.

The fact that a cult of cavemen-like comic-book readers can be so vitriolic online that the industry now stands to lose the talent of a writer such as Chelsea Cain is disheartening.

As soon as the cover hit, Cain began receiving a slew of online harassment.

I wouldn't be surprised if many of these "gentlemen" who thought they were big macho studs by tweeting their displeasure of the f-word even knew this series existed. Unfortunately, the very well-written Mockingbird has been cancelled by Marvel. (The company rolls out new series multiple times a year, and if the sales aren't there, they usually move on. It's a good way to see what works and what doesn't, but at times, great series such as Mockingbird are casualties.)

The character was most recently portrayed by actress Adrianne Palicki on ABC's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and was known for fighting alongside Avenger archer Hawkeye in the '80s. I roam the comic book-loving section of Twitter daily, and up until Wednesday's release of Mockingbird No. 8, I wasn't seeing tweets to "make comics great again" by getting the book off of shelves.

Certain comics aren't for certain folks. If you don't like a comic, or what it represents, or the artwork, or just aren't a fan of the character featured, you're more than welcome to not buy it. That doesn't give you the right to harass an author online to the point that they feel it's necessary to delete their social-media account because of a new lack of faith in humanity.

The comic-book industry as a whole isn't completely innocent, either. For a very long time, comic books only catered to and were created by men -- mostly middle-aged and white -- who gave us tales of female heroines wearing next to nothing with certain exaggerated body parts. To this day, there are artists that remain famous not because of their visual storytelling, but because of their ability to draw sexy women.
By PTI: New Delhi, Oct 28 (PTI) The Supreme Court today directed Rajasthan government to respond to a plea of self-styled religious figure Asaram Bapu, facing trial in rape cases, seeking modification of the courts order directing him to undergo treatment at AIIMS in Jodhpur.

A bench of Justices A K Sikri and N V Ramana directed the state government to file a reply to the plea along with full details of the hospital it proposes for treatment of Asaram.

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During the brief hearing, Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appearing for Rajasthan government said there was a Mahatma Gandhi hospital where Asaram could undergo treatment for his ailments.

"There is a Mahatma Gandhi hospital, where all the judges of the High Court undergoes treatment and it has all state-of- art facilities. We can take him there," Mehta said.

"The investigating officer of the case was cross-examined by the defence 89 times and recently they even recalled the prime witnesses in the case, and since then all these sickness things have started," the ASG alleged.

The bench, however, asked the state to file its reply in one week with full details of the hospital.

Asaram had yesterday approached the apex court, seeking modification of its October 24, order directing him to undergo treatment at AIIMS in Jodhpur.

He had said that AIIMS, Jodhpur does not have in-patient facility and sought direction from the court to bring him to All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS), Delhi for further treatment.

The apex court had on October 24 rejected his interim bail plea sought on health grounds.

A seven-member medical board of AIIMS Delhi had told the apex court that Asarams health condition was stable and that he had refused to undergo several tests.

Asaram was arrested by Jodhpur Police on August 31, 2013 and has been in jail since then.

On August 9, the High Court had rejected his bail application in the rape case.

A teenage girl had accused him of sexual assault at his ashram in Manai village near Jodhpur. The girl, who belonged to Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh, was a student living in the ashram. PTI MNL SJK RKS ARC

--- ENDS ---
The family of two Dreamworld ride victims say they are facing financial difficulties and are struggling to stop blaming themselves for the tragedy on the Thunder River Rapids on Tuesday.

Sandra Brookfield, a close friend of Kim Dorsett's for 58 years, set up a MyCause fundraising page on Thursday to help the devastated family following the deaths of Ms Dorsett's children Kate Goodchild, 32, and Luke Dorsett, 35, as well as Mr Dorsett's partner, Roozi Araghi, 38, and Sydney mother Cindy Low, 42.

Ms Goodchild's 13-year-old daughter Ebony survived the accident but watched on, screaming, as her father tried to save his wife.

David Turner had been watching the ride from nearby with the couple's eight-month-old daughter, Evie, and jumped in the water as soon as he saw his wife's raft crash into another raft and flip over backwards onto a wooden conveyor belt.
Dreamworld's claim that it decided to cancel its reopening on Friday based on advice given by police is inaccurate, Queensland police say.

A statement released by Dreamworld on Thursday afternoon outlined that the cancellation of Friday's reopening was to give the police service the time it needed for its investigation.

"Dreamworld has been advised by Queensland Police Service that we are unable to proceed with tomorrow's memorial service as planned," the statement read.

"Obviously the integrity of the Coronial Investigation is of paramount importance and postponing the service will give QPS the time it needs to conduct this investigation."
Washington: Get a good idea and someone always wants to blab  even when it's a nasty one.

And so it is with Republican Donald Trump's presidential campaign which, in acknowledging that he can't garner enough votes to win, has embarked on a sophisticated, individually-targeted social media campaign to drag Hillary Clinton's vote down to his level.

"We have three major voter suppression operations underway," a Trump campaign official says of the plan, hatched at Trump's data centre in San Antonio, Texas, to discourage key Clinton demographics from voting  young white liberals, young women and African Americans.

The project was devised once Trump's limited in-house polling confirmed the trend in national polls  he's losing. Published polls show Clinton generally hovering above a floor at about the 48 per cent mark; and Trump continues to bump against a ceiling at around 44 per cent.
Interim chairman of Tata Sons Ltd Ratan Tata is seeking potential buyers- who could be trusted in turn- for stakes held by the family of Cyrus Mistry, who was sacked as chairman of the group.

By India Today Web Desk: Responding to its ousted chairman Cyrus Mistry's allegations, Tata Sons said on Thursday that it would respond to the charges in "appropriate manner". Tata Sons Ltd seems to be preparing its response now.

According to a Bloomberg report, Ratan Tata, who returned to the head the business conglomerate, is looking for a partner, who could buy out the stake held by Cyrus Mistry and his family.

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The Tatas are said to have approached a sovereign wealth funds and a few other long-term investors to ascertain if they are interested should such an opportunity arise.

READ: No Cyrus mystery: All you need to know about sacked Tata chairman

MISTRYS VERSUS TATAS

Mistry's family holds about 18 per cent of Tata Sons stake, which Ratan Tata wants to be taken over by some other entity/entities.

However, the Bloomberg report cited people close to the family saying that Mistrys may not be interested in selling out their shares as they may not give in without a fight.

Tata Sons owns more than USD65 billion worth of listed company shares. In total, the Tata trusts currently own about 66 per cent of Tata Sons.



READ: Factors that might influence the selection of Tata Sons' next chairman

Tata Sons holds major stakes in Tata Consultancy Services Ltd- Asia's largest provider of software services, and Tata Motors Ltd- the maker of Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles.

It also controls Indian Hotels Co- the luxury hospitality company that operates New York's Pierre hotel, as well as steelmaking operations, the Tetley tea brand and a power producer.

READ: Why did Mistry stop being blue-eyed boy of Ratan Tata? All you need to know in 10 points

MYSTERY AFTER MISTRY

In a sudden move, the Tata Group removed its chairman Mistry, replacing him with his predecessor Ratan Tata for an interim period of four months.

Later developments suggested that the trouble was brewing for months in the Group. Mistry has alleged that due to Ratan Tata's interference in the company's affair, he was reduced to the level of a lame duck chairman.

READ: 'Lame duck chairman' Mistry attacks Ratan Tata directly in explosive letter



Mistry also raised serious issues of corporate governance in the Tata Sons Ltd. He said that because of unsound business decisions, the group would have to write down about Rs 18,000 crore over time fueling speculations about the health of the most iconic business house of the country.

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WATCH:





ALSO READ:

Ratan Tata-Cyrus Mistry boardroom war enters the courtroom, Tatas file multiple caveats





--- ENDS ---
Setting aside speculation that Tata Steel would review its decision to sell its European operations, the company has said that it 'continues to pursue its European consolidation strategy'.

By India Today Web Desk: Setting aside speculation that Tata Steel, under interim Group Chairman Ratan Tata, would review its decision to sell its European operations, the company has said that it "continues to pursue its European consolidation strategy". It also said that talks with Thyssenkrupp AG for a potential joint venture of its European steel business are currently ongoing and progressing, adding a caveat that there was no guarantee that the talks will result in a definitive agreement between the two parties.

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READ| Ratan Tata looking for a buyer for Cyrus Mistry's stake: Reports



The company is also pursuing a separate process for the potential sale of the South Yorkshire-based Specialty Steels business in the UK, it said in a statement to the bourses. Tata Steel shares were up close to 1 per cent to Rs 401 on the Bombay Stock Exchange at 2 pm today. The company's shares were battered on the days following the ouster of Cyrus Mistry as Tata Sons Chairman on Monday, falling as much as 3 per cent on Tuesday.

READ| No Cyrus mystery: All you need to know about sacked Tata chairman



In an explosive letter to Tata Sons board post his ouster, Mistry had warned that the salt-to-software giant may face $18 billion (Rs 1.18 lakh crore) in write downs because of five unprofitable businesses he inherited. Mistry alleged that the foreign acquisition strategy of the Tata Group, with the exceptions of JLR and Tetley, had left a large debt overhang. Corus faced potential impairments of over $10 billion. Foreign properties of Indian Hotels and holdings in Orient Hotels have been sold at a loss. The UK and Kenya operations of Tata Chemicals "needs tough decisions", he said.

READ: Factors that might influence the selection of Tata Sons' next chairman



Tata Capital, meanwhile, had a huge pile of bad loans on its books from the infrastructure sector, that had to be cleaned up. Not to talk of the telecom business, which has been "continuously haemorrhaging," and where any distress sale or shut down would have cost the group $4-5 billion. Non- performing assets at Tata Motors Finance mounted to an excess of Rs 4,000 crore, Mistry said. The Nano project has been consistently losing money, as much as Rs 1,000 crore, he said, and questioned the Group's move to remain emotionally attached to loss-making projects.

Also Read:



'Lame duck chairman' Mistry attacks Ratan Tata directly in explosive letter

Ratan Tata-Cyrus Mistry boardroom war enters the courtroom, Tatas file multiple caveats



WATCH:







--- ENDS ---
Gold, silver, brass, iron or copper, Dhanteras is the day to invest in something made of metal, this is why...

By Hemul Goel: You are in the final stages of cleaning your house of the grime and the negative energy, the diyas have been purchased and the markets are full of idols of Lakshmi and Ganesha, waiting to find a new abode.



Also read: 15 pieces of jewellery to make you shine and sparkle this Diwali

In short, you are set for Diwali, the five-day festival that kickstarts on Friday with Dhanteras. Dhanteras, an amalgamation of Sanskrit words dhan, that stands for wealth, and teras that refers to the 13th day of the Hindu calendar, is marked by praying to goddess Lakshmi and the purchase of objects made of metal.

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Depending on their budget, those who celebrate Diwali use the occasion to buy jewellery, coins of gold or silver or household items made of iron, copper or brass. Some even go ahead and buy simple utensils, but the main emphasis is placed on buying something made of metal.

The logic behind buying that something made of metal is the fact that it is considered the harbinger of good luck and is supposed to keep negative energy at bay. This belief is said to have been originated from a legend according to which the God of Death, Yama, was enticed by the sight of gold. It is said that King Hima's 16-year-old son's death had been predicted on the fourth day of his marriage, through a snake bite. However, as the new bride got to know about it, she placed a heap of her ornaments on the entrance of the room and kept her husband awake throughout the night by singing and narrating stories. When Lord Yama visited King Hima's son in the guise of a snake, in order to bite him, he was blinded on seeing the dazzling metal, and instead sat on the pile listening to the new daughter-in-law's tales.

Also read: Kareena to Anushka: 11 Diwali outfit ideas to steal from B-town beauties

Since Yama missed the time set for the boy's death, he slinked away in peace and the prince was saved, leading to the celebration of Dhanteras.

So, don't forget to welcome lady luck to your house by buying some metal and light tons of diyas to ward-off any evil spirits that may be lurking in unseen corners.

Happy Dhanteras!

P.S: Here's a sneak peak into the jewellery actress Nimrat Kaur wants for herself this Diwali.



--- ENDS ---
By PTI: President to undertake three day State Visit to Nepal

New Delhi, Oct 28 (PTI) President Pranab Mukherjee will be the first Head of State from India in 18 years when he embarks on a 3-day trip to the Himalayan nation on November 2.

This will be the first visit by an Indian President to Nepal after it adopted a new, democratic constitution last year.

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Mukherjee is likely to hold discussions on "full range of bilateral, regional and multinational" issues with the political leadership of the Himalayan neighbour ranging from post-earthquake reconstruction projects, concerns of Madhesi community among others.

During the visit, Mukherjee will be meeting a host of political leaders including President Bidhya Devi Bhandari, Vice President Nanda Kishor Pun and Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal besides civil society members including leaders of Indian-origin Madhesi community and Gurkha soldiers who had worked in the Indian army.

When asked about anti-India sentiments in Nepal, Joint Secretary (North) Sudhakar Dalela said,"We are in a phase of very intensive engagement at a political level and functional level. We are trying to work with Government of Nepal in different areas.

"There have been, in the field of trade or economics, cases where we have concerns about our people working there but we are working with Nepal."

Mukherjee will be accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising of Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre, Members of Parliament L Ganesan, Jagadambika Pal, R K Singh besides one more MP whose name is yet to be finalised, he said.

Besides Kathmandu where the President will hold diplomatic discussions with the Nepalese Government, he will be visiting Janakpur, close to the Indian border, with large Madhesis population where he will be accorded a civic reception. He will also visit Pokhara where he will interact with ex-servicemen of Indian army from Gurkha community.

Mukherjee will be accorded honorary Doctorate by Kathmandu University during the trip.

"I assume discussions will cover all range of issues covering all aspects of bilateral issues, regional issues, international issues...

"During the high level political exchanges we had recently, the Government of Nepal has shared with our leadership its Governments priority and efforts to address all the Constitutional issues by taking all sections of society on board," Dalela said on the question of Madhesi communitys concerns in Nepal. PTI ABS RG RG

--- ENDS ---
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Inc., Rosemount LLC, SPD Development Company Limited, SPD Swiss Precision Diagnostics GmbH, Series Acquisition B.V., Seven Seas Limited, Shulton Inc., Snowberry, Snowberry New Zealand Limited, Sunflower Distributing LLC, TAOS - FL LLC, TAOS Retail LLC, THIS IS L, TULA, Tambrands, Tambrands Inc., Temple Trees Impex & Investment Private Limited, The Art of Shaving, The Art of Shaving - FL LLC, The Dover Wipes Company, The Gillette Company, The Gillette Company LLC, The Gillette co., The Iams Company Inc., The Procter & Gamble Distributing LLC, The Procter & Gamble Global Finance Company LLC, The Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Company, The Procter & Gamble Paper Products Company, The Procter & Gamble U.S. Business Services Company, This is L., This is L. Inc., Thomas Hedley Co, US CD LLC, Vidal Sassoon Shanghai Academy, VitaminHaus Pty Ltd, Walker & Co. Brands Inc., Walker & Company Brands, Wella AG, Zenlen Inc., Zirh, and iMFLUX Inc..

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Navigant Consulting, Inc. provides professional services worldwide. It operates through three segments: Healthcare, Energy, and Financial Services Advisory and Compliance. The Healthcare segment offers consulting and business process management services to healthcare providers, payers, and life sciences companies. This segment helps clients respond to market legislative changes, such as the shift to an outcome and value-based reimbursements model, ongoing industry consolidation and reorganization, Medicaid expansion, the implementation of a electronic health records system, and product planning and commercialization expertise. The Energy segment provides life-cycle solutions that help clients businesses in changing energy environment, manage complexity, accelerate operational performance, and meet compliance requirements, as well as transform its organizations and systems; and various benchmarking, and data and market research services. This segment serves utility and energy companies, government and nongovernmental organizations, large corporations, product manufacturers, and investors. The Financial Services Advisory and Compliance segment provides strategic, operational, valuation, risk management, investigative, and compliance advisory services to financial services industry, including financial and insurance institutions. This segment also offers anti-corruption solutions and anti-money laundering consulting, litigation support, and tax compliance services. Navigant Consulting, Inc. was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.
Speaker at WSU to Discuss Demands of Equality in Declaration of Independence

October 28, 2016

OGDEN, Utah  The Declaration of Independence as a clarion call for equality is the subject of this years Haven J. Barlow Fall Civic Leadership Forum, sponsored by the Olene S. Walker Institute of Politics & Public Service at Weber State University, the WSU student association and WSU Convocations.

The public is invited to hear Harvard professor, political philosopher and MacArthur Genius recipient Danielle Allen present Our Declaration: A Reading of the Declaration of Independence in Defense of Equality, in the Shepherd Union Wildcat Theater, Nov. 11 at 11:30 a.m.

Allen will outline the history of democracy through the framework of the Declaration. She makes the case that Americans cannot have freedom without equality. Based on extensive research, Allens work underscores the significance of Americas founding text, detailing what democracy actually means and what it demands of its citizens.

We are fortunate to have professor Allen during a critical juncture in our American history. This election cycle has drawn our nation into a false dichotomy, leaving us to believe that if we have equality that we cannot have liberty, and, conversely, if we have liberty, we cannot have equality, said Adrienne Andrews, WSUs chief diversity officer. I look forward to her ability to work us through this false dilemma and help us understand how these two ideas are critical aspects of our democratic culture and can help us move forward together, using our Declaration of Independence as a guide.

While teaching the Declaration of Independence to low-income night school students in Chicago, Allen rediscovered the power of the document. Her presentation at WSU will focus on her book, Our Declaration, which won the Francis Parkman Prize from the Society of American Historians and the Chicago Tribunes Heartland Prize for Nonfiction.

She is the author of six books, including her most recent, Education and Equality, which underscores the importance of education to democratic life and makes a strong case for humanities in education. She also wrote Talking to Strangers: Anxieties of Citizenship since Brown v. Board of Education.

Allen is the director of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University as well as a professor in Harvards Department of Government and Graduate School Education. She worked on Barack Obamas first presidential campaign and founded the Civic Knowledge Project to offer university lectures to Chicagos poor.

She is a member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences and the American Philosophical Society and a 2001 winner of a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship.

Danielle Allen has dedicated herself to thinking about the relationship between liberty and equality in America, said Carol McNamara, director of the Walker Institute. Her work compels us to think about how we can respect and promote both, as critical goals in American democracy through civic education and engagement

The annual event is made possible with the generous support of Haven J. Barlow, whose 42-year stint in the Utah Senate was the longest in state history. This years cosponsors include the Walker Institute, WSUSA, Convocations, Diversity and Inclusive Programs, the Department of Political Science & Philosophy and the College of Social & Behavioral Sciences.

The Walker Institute is a non-partisan center dedicated to promoting leadership and public service among WSU students and in the community. The Walker Institute provides opportunities for civic education, public forums on current issues and ideas for political reform. A robust program of internships in local, state and national politics, and government and public service organizations is central to the Walker Institute mission.

Visit weber.edu/wsutoday for more news about Weber State University.
The Bahamas has dropped from a rank of 22 to 95 in the Doing Business index, primarily as a result of introducing Value Added Tax, but other tax increases like Business License are also taking a toll.

See the data on Paying Taxes here...

The report estimates that 233 hours are spent a year with paying the various taxes on business houses totaling some 33.8% of net profit.

Meanwhile, some businesses like many in the automotive industry are taxed at 125% of their net profit.

The entire tax structure is inequitable.

Why?

a. VAT is harmful to the consumer and hurts sales for legitimate businesses.

b. Business is now forced to be the tax collector, and

c. Business License taxes are charged as a percentage of gross sales. Something that is not done in any other country.

The Bahamas Government has grown far too unwieldy and costly as it attempts to be all things to all people.

Government has a specific and limited role.

To quote Ludwig von Mises:

"People who do not agree with [my conception] of the functions of government may say: This man hates the government. Nothing could be farther from the truth. If I should say that gasoline is a very useful liquid, useful for many purposes, but that I would nevertheless not drink gasoline because I think that would not be the right use for it, I am not an enemy of gasoline, and I do not hate gasoline. I only say that gasoline is very useful for certain purposes, but not fit for other purposes. If I say it is the governments duty to arrest murderers and other criminals, but not its duty to run the railroads or to spend money for useless things, then I do not hate the government by declaring that it is fit to do certain things but not fit to do other things."

In other words, we need government, but we do not need a bloated, ineffective behemoth that taxes the citizenry at such unconscionable rates.

When the question was put to the Acting Financial Secretary if the government was going to pay a commission to business for collecting their taxes, the silence was deafening. Now maybe it is understood why the question was so important.
By Siraj Qureshi: In an attempt to truly develop a secular outlook, the BJP and RSS are making full efforts to end their communal and anti-Muslim image and are in search of new ways to attract the largest minority community in India towards the party. PM Modi's "Pradhanmantri Nayi Manzil Yojna" has been formulated to assist Madrassa students in going for higher education and while it has been praised by the Muslim community, they are still not ready to embrace the BJP.

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Now, the Bhartiya Muslim Rashtriya Manch, a unit of the RSS is planning to organise a national convention of Islamic clerics in Agra in November, to make the Muslims aware of the true intentions of the BJP government towards the welfare of Muslims. In the light of the current controversy over triple talaq and Common Civil Code, this convention is being seen as an effort at damage control by the RSS and the BJP, just before the announcement of the assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.

Mohd Ashfaq Saifi of the Manch told India Today that, in 1967, a large number of cowherds had assembled at the Jantar Mantar to make the government aware of their problems. At that time, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had ordered a lathicharge of the assembled crowd injuring many. The Manch will try to revive the memory of such incidents in the minds of the people.

"RSS WANTS MUSLIMS TO DEVELOP PATRIOTISM"

He said that the RSS wants the Muslims to develop a sense of patriotism that transcends religious boundaries. The RSS is trying to involve the Muslims in helping make India a terrorism-free, riot-free and highly literate country through the Manch and the November Convention of the Islamic Clerics being held in Agra is a big step in that direction.

Also read:

Agra Muslims slam Modi government's stand on triple talaq

Reforms in Muslim marriage laws is an idea whose time has come



Ashfaq said that the convention has been kept totally apolitical, but the political parties are welcome to attend it. Clerics from various Islamic like Deoband, Bareilvi, Shia and Sunni as well as clerics from Ajmer Sharif and Kaliyar Sharif Dargahs have been invited to this historic convention.

However, the Samajwadi Party is looking at this convention as a pathetic attempt by the RSS to whitewash its blood-stained image. Agra Samajwadi Party City President Raisuddin told India Today that this was merely an attempt by the RSS and BJP to enter the good books of Muslims just before the 2017 UP assembly elections. But the Muslims cannot and will not ever tolerate the BJP and RSS as their hands were stained in the blood of millions of Muslims since independence. He said that just like 2012, the Muslims will vote en masse in favour of the Samajwadi Party in 2017 as the SP was the only party that truly thought about Muslim welfare and the development of the state.

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Also read:

Muslims shying away from SP in view of current internal strife



"BJP, SP DECEIVED UP MUSLIMS"

Bahujan Samaj Party's Gufran Qureshi said that both the BJP and the SP had deceived the Muslims of UP and now the eyes of the Muslim community have opened. The Muslims will now take every step after deep deliberation and will not allow themselves to be waylaid by any political party. The Muslims will exercise their right to vote in the favor of the party which they think is going to be their best option against the BJP and since both the SP and the Congress are in tatters at present, the BSP was the natural option left.

Also read:

Triple talaq case: Muslim activists snub clerics on Uniform Civil Code

Triple talaq: Muslim personal law board to boycott law panel, irks BJP



--- ENDS ---

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:: By Jona Jone ::

A company should not only be concerned with short-term revenues and profits. One important tool that helps ensure long-term success is retaining the right customer relationshipsthose that impact a companys financial health. This is done by measuring customer lifetime value (CLV), which is a term used for the projected total net profit a company makes from any given customer. This reveals how much as customer relationship is worth over a period of time. If you know how to wield the power CLV, you will have a deeper understanding of a customers journey that will help you change their lifetime value from unprofitable to profitable.

Why do you need to determine CLV? The following are some hypothetical situations of calculating CLV and increasing it.

To better understand your customer base

Company ABC is an investment management firm that has a long history of servicing army veterans, pensioners, and retired school teachers. As its core customer base dwindle in recent years, its marketing team worked with an advertising startup to entice a new breed of customers: cash-rich millennials. Company ABC analyzed its acquisition strategy via customer lifetime value analysis. One simple way of computing CLV is by multiplying the profit generated by a customer per year by the number of years that he/she is a customer of that brand and deducting the cost of acquisition. The CLV analysis enables company ABC to understand the investing behavior of its millennial investors as well as their customer journey.

To save on marketing budget

Before using CLV, online clothing retailer DEF spent roughly 40% of its annual budget on ads, fashion shows, and sponsorships. Its profit stream was gradual primarily because of the high marketing expenses. Knowing the right customers enable companies to develop targeted marketing programs, reducing unnecessary marketing expenses. In some cases, a firm might decide to discontinue service to certain customers or to reward other customers, thereby increasing the retention rate, according to Harvard Business School.

To influence your customers behaviors and change their lifetime value

Ken Smith, the sole proprietor of coffee shop XYZ, thought that he knew his customer base very well until he used CLV analysis. Each week, an average of 165 customers visit his coffee shop to spend roughly $10 dollars per transaction. Using CLV, he learned that he was giving gift vouchers (rewards) to the wrong people, the higher spenders, but less to frequent visitors. For an instance, customer 1 spends $15 per week and $60 per month, while customer 2 buys coffee and food worth $25 per visit, but rarely visits twice in any given month. Moreover, the cost of acquiring patrons like customer 2 is much higher than retaining the likes of customer 1. Ken realized that while he wants to gain more big spenders, he is determined to convert more regular-spending customers. Thus, he introduced a rewards program that will encourage people to spend in his coffee shop more often.

To identify problems at the early stages

Company QRS is a life insurer with sales agents operating in the U.S. and parts of Asia. On its eight years of operations in East Asia, its new business posted a sharp decline. Through CLV analysis, it was able to detect cross-selling practices of sales agents in Japan and South Korea. It analyzed recent buying patterns in regions it used to consider as profitable territories. Company QRS did not have to wait for another year of poor performance to confirm that a problem is brewing in one of its business segments.

To invest in essential customer service channels

Spouses Ana Maria and Carlos Diaz export furniture pieces from Colombia to North Carolina. They service households, interior designers, restaurants, and hotels. Their 23-year-old daughter Carina proposed setting up an online customer support based on a CLV analysis. The spouses were initially adamant as they felt comfortable with taking inquiries and orders via two landlines in their corporate office in Bogota. According to Carinas CLV report, their clients with the highest CLV were interior designers in Raleigh and Asheville who are tech-savvy, mobile, and demand urgent attention to their needs.

Digital marketing and CLV

From the above-mentioned examples, CLV is most relevant in devising cost-effective marketing programs. Efforts are streamlined and customized to the right customersthose who impact the long-term health of a company. The uses of CLV on traditional marketing programs are similar on digital marketing. A company is able to map out a strategy specific to a target audiencewhat type of message, in what format, and on what platform. As an example, life insurer QRS which is facing sales hurdles in East Asia may work with a digital marketing agency in the Philippines to target new customers in the country and the Southeast Asian region.

CLV and technology

CLV is only one of the many ways you can understand and utilize the market to your advantage. The advent of social media and mobile apps opened the doors to a wide array of tools that can help you with your customer acquisition and retention efforts. Some companies are capitalizing on customers online habits. Companies are beginning to craft offers based on where a customer is at any given moment, what his social media posts say about his interest, and even what his friends are buying or discussing online, Harvard Business School reported. Some online social platforms even create offers based on the frequency a consumer checked in to a certain retail store.

As an entrepreneur in the digital age, its imperative that youre well-equipped with the right tools to help you compete for the attention of distracted customers. The first question that you should answer is not how but who. Who are your customers? Know the right customers using CLV analysis. This tool will help you better understand the peopletheir needs, queries and future demandswho bring in long-term profitability. CLV also cuts down unnecessary expenses on marketing and customer support; you only spend on target programs. This measurement helps you identify and solve problems early on, and most importantly, enables you to convert an unprofitable customer to one who contributes to your long-term success.

Jona Jone was a mortgage originator in Philadelphia, PA and is now a business and property Specialist. She writes about real estate investment, business and digital marketing in general.
By PTI: Bengaluru, Oct 28 (PTI) Holding the Communists responsible for instigating the political violence in Kerala, RSS today said the Centre and the state government should urgently take action against the perpetrators and ensure that rule of law prevails.

"Government records and various judicial and police reports clearly established the fact that the Communists started violence in Kerala, not only against RSS but also against those who did not accept their ideology," V Nagaraj, RSS Kshetriya Sarsangchalak of Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh told reporters here.

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Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had recently targeted BJP and RSS for the violence in the politically volatile Kannur district of the state, saying the saffron party and its outfits were "deliberately" causing breach of peace in the district.

"Indulging in violence, brainwashing and hoodwinking is the method of Communists, but they dont know it does not work any more," Nagaraj said.

He also asked the Kerala government and the Centre to take appropriate action urgently against the perpetrators of violence and necessary measures to ensure the rule of law in Kerala.

"Actually the law and order is a state subject, but when the killings are of terrorist dimensions in various statesincluding Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, we request the Central government also to pitch in because it threatens the integrity of the country," he said.

Asked about the RSS opposition to Genetically-Modified crops of certain varieties, Nagaraj said they will oppose it unless some trials take place and an opinion is given thereafter.

"Unless some trials take place and an opinion is given, we want to oppose it (GM crops) and should not be brought into the country," he said.

Moreover, the products of Monsanto have not only been opposed by India, but also by many western countries like France and Germany because nobody knows what would be the long-term outcome of it, the RSS functionary said, adding the agricultural scientists are themselves divided over the issue. PTI BDN RA RC ASV

--- ENDS ---
By West Kentucky Star Staff Oct. 27, 2016 | 11:55 PM | MCCRACKEN COUNTY, KY

A crash Thursday night in McCracken County left a Boaz man injured and facing a DUI charge.According to the McCracken County Sheriff's Department, the wreck happened at approximately 7:45 pm near the 8000 block of Old Mayfield Road. Deputies said 42-year-old Anthony W. Chester of Boaz was southbound on Old Mayfield Road when he failed to negotiate a curve and his vehicle dropped off the shoulder of the road.Police said Chester's vehicle continued off the roadway and struck a large tree. Deputies determined that Chester was under the influence of alcohol.

Chester was transported to Lourdes Hospital for treatment of his injuries. Due to his injuries, he was cited for operating a motor vehicle under the influence with aggravating circumstances and released.
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By West Kentucky Star Staff Oct. 28, 2016 | 06:59 AM | MCCRACKEN COUNTY, KY

An anonymous tip led to a woman's arrest Thursday on drug charges.

The McCracken County Sheriff's Office said deputies were dispatched to a home on Clarks River Road to investigate possible drug activity. Upon arrival, deputies made contact with the home owner who told them there were two others inside the home.

One of the deputies reportedly saw 46-year-old Penny Baines of Paducah actively smoking out of a glass pipe. Deputies said a search revealed crack cocaine, a glass pipe, and other paraphernalia.

Baines was arrested and transported to McCracken County Regional Jail. She's charged with possession of cocaine and possession of drug paraphernalia.
By West Kentucky Star Staff Oct. 27, 2016 | 09:37 PM | BENTON, KY

Three juveniles have been charged with vandalizing two Marshall County cemeteries.

According to the Benton Police Department, officers responded to the Benton Cemetery on Monday in reference to a vandalism complaint. Officers found 55 headstones that had been knocked over and damaged at the Benton Cemetery and the Strow Cemetery.

Officers spoke to Benton Fire Chief Harry Green, who told them that someone had also broken into the fire department and stolen some items.

The investigation led to three juveniles being charged with 3rd degree burglary, 3rd degree criminal mischief and 55 counts of violating graves. The juveniles were lodged in the McCracken County Juvenile Detention Center.
By West Kentucky Star Staff Oct. 28, 2016 | 12:25 PM | WATER VALLEY, KY

A Graves County man has been charged with a home burglary from earlier this month.

According to the Graves County Sheriff's Office, a home in Water Valley was burglarized on Oct. 12 and several weapons were stolen. Over the last few weeks, deputies said they were able to recover all but one of the stolen weapons.

According to deputies, 32-year-old James M. Futrell of Water Valley came to the sheriff's office on Friday and confessed to burglarizing the home. He also turned over the last remaining stolen weapon to detectives.

Futrell was arrested and charged with 1st degree burglary. He was lodged in the Graves County Jail.
By The Associated Press

By The Associated Press Oct. 28, 2016 | 05:10 AM | FRANKFORT, KY

Kentucky will receive nearly $800,000 to settle claims against Hyundai and Kia for misrepresenting fuel economy ratings on some vehicles.

Kentucky was one of several states that reached a settlement with the car companies. Attorney General Andy Beshear says the automakers violated the state's Consumer Protection Act. The model years were 2011, 2012 and 2013 vehicles.

Beshear says Hyundai and Kia misled consumers by giving inaccurate data on thousands of cars. The $781,833 settlement will go to the state's General Fund.

As part of a separate class action lawsuit, Hyundai and Kia have already offered restitution totaling $1.1 million to more than 6,300 Kentucky consumers.

In 2012, Hyundai and Kia announced they were adjusting and restating the fuel economy ratings for a number of their vehicles.
By Javed M. Ansari : Mulayam Singh Yadav's efforts to rally support amongst the erstwhile Janata Parivar appears to have made some head way with the Rashtriya Lok Dal. Party Chief Ajit Singh has indicated his willingness to attend the foundation day celebrations of the Samajwadi Party in Lucknow on November 5. The assurance came during his meeting with the state SP chief and Mulayam Singh's favourite Shivpal Yadav today afternoon.

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In the wake of the unrelenting factional feud within his party and his family, the SP chief has been sending out feelers to like-minded parties to come together on the lines of the mahagatbandhan in Bihar to keep the BJP from wresting power in UP. So far his efforts have borne mixed results. The RJD has not only promised not to put up candidates in UP, it has also indicated that party chief Lalu Yadav will travel to Lucknow to attend the SP's founders day function on November 5. It is not clear whether Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will attend the function but according to the sources from Patna, he might send a senior leader to represent him.

The SP's offer of a mahagatbhandan, however is likely to take time to shape up. The Congress has decided to wait and watch while the JD(U) too is treading cautiously. Most parties are waiting for the family feud within the SP to play itself out before deciding on whether or not to go in for a electoral tie up. "All of us want to prevent the BJP from coming to power, but we need to sit and devise a proper strategy on how to go about it," said a senior RLD leader.

Most of these parties have at some time or the other worked together and therefore they carry their own baggage and have a history together. Getting over past experiences and their personal ambitions is not something that can be achieved overnight. Most of them believe that the sudden change of heart in the SP leadership is more an act of self preservation and driven less by the larger goal of keeping the BJP out. They also believe that the SP needs to demonstrate its bonafides by adopting a flexible and generous attitude when it comes to seat distribution, something that it has been loath to do in the past. "They will need to be more accommodative or else this may go the way of similar abortive attempts in the past," says a former JD(U) MP.



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The title of Tony Kushner's latest play knocks it out of the park in the length department. The play itself doesn't fare so badly in those stakes either  at three and a half hours, with two intervals, it's a little daunting. But, lest we forget, this is Pulitzer-winning Kushner  also responsible for the masterpiece Angels in America. His new play may be long and wordy, but it's also really good.

Hampstead Theatre have got round this tricky-to-market name by giving it a more convenient, social media-friendly subtitle  iHo. So let's save on word count and call it this from now on. The play is a family saga; an epic depiction of an American Italian immigrant family's fading radical socialism roots. It is also about legacy and how kids can be the hope and despair of their parents, while parents can be stones around their children's necks.

iHo follows the calling together of the Marcantonio family to their Brownstone house in Brooklyn in 2007. Patriarch and radical communist Gus has decided he's going to kill himself because he has Alzheimer's and wants the approval of the entire clan. Gus' favourite of his three kids is labour lawyer MT - pronounced Empty - (played by Tamsin Greig); then there's his gay, unhappy history teacher son PL - pronounced Pill - (played by Richard Clothier) and his working-man labourer youngest V (played by Lex Shrapnel). Shortened from their original Italian, their names are symbolic of the sort of people they are. With them is Gus' zen-like sister, one-time nun and Maoist Clio (played by Sara Kestelman).

This is an exceptionally American family and an exceptionally American play. The Marcantonio's talk non-stop over each other, there's no British restraint or unhealthy suppression here: the kids say what they think and rage and rant. It's made all the more acute because Gus has brought them up to be inherently political and fiercely intelligent. While their family dilemma rages, their ex and current spouses turn up at the house and they are as opinionated as anyone else. There are several hilarious scenes where you literally cannot hear what anyone is saying because they are all talking at such speed and volume.

This family is from old-American socialist stock  cousins, fathers and grandads were involved with labour strikes, the campaigning for rights for workers and they had a congressman in the family. His portrait hangs over them in the kitchen  a constant reminder of the better, prouder, political days. And, it turns out, Gus' intention to die is not just an attempt to remove the burden he will be on his kids once he gets more ill; his declaration is political. It is partly an attempt to force his kids out of their safe, numb worlds into the harsh realities of life.

Kushner's dialogue is packed and furious, but it's beautifully constructed. There are nods to several of the great American family plays  All My Sons, A View from the Bridge  tied up within it, but this is very much a 21st century work which sets out to reflect what has become of us. His humour is both raucous - almost slapstick at times - and more subtle and though the play's ending tails off unsatisfactorily, the rest of the piece is meaty and brilliant.

The cast help. David Calder as Gus is a rock at the centre of choppy waters. He is grumpy and loud and full of brash love for his kids. Greig is restless, angry and unhappy as MT and her performance is superb, shot through with pain and anguish at the thought of losing her dad, but realistic and ruthless too. There's great work elsewhere including a splendid Kestelman as the enigmatic and wise Clio and a very impressive Luke Newberry as Eli, PL's young lover.

Tom Piper's excellent three-tiered set which evokes a Brownstone apartment with fire-escape stairs towers over the action and allows director Michael Boyd to work wonders with the dynamics within the piece. Boyd's careful, steady hand is clear in everything; he manages to stage a complex, knotty, angry play with great grace and agility. It zooms through its three and a half hours.

The Intelligent Homosexual's Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures runs at Hampstead Theatre until 26 November.
NOVEMBER 4TH WILL BE "GLENN MARLOW SCHOOL CELEBRATION OF SUCCESS" DAY

In a formal proclamation Thursday night October 27th, Mills River Town Council declared Friday November 4th this year will be Glenn C. Marlow Elementary School Celebration of Success Day.

The school was recently recognized as one of the top 4 per cent of all schools in North Carolina to achieve A Plus status for the 2016-17 school year.

A large group of teachers, parents and students from the school, along with Principal John Hart, attended Thursday nights town council meeting as the principal was awarded the official proclamation. He credited the entire school family with that success and a school-wide assembly is set for Friday November 4th to celebrate the event.

Mills River Mayor Larry Freeman pointed out that the man for whom the school was named back in 1999, the late county school Superintendent Glenn Marlow, would have been proud of the teachers, staff, and students for achieving A Plus recognition. And Principal John Hart added that Marlows widow, Mrs. Dot Marlow, would be present at the school for the assembly and celebration on November 4th.
A 19-year-old Texas girl rammed her car into a squad car, and when the cops demanded an explanation, she said she was concentrating more on taking a topless selfie.

Woman who rammed her car into a police vehicle. Photo: AP

By AP: The selfie mania continues to throw up bizarre cases. Police say a 19-year-old Texas A&M University student who rear-ended a squad car told an officer she was taking a topless selfie.

Miranda Kay Rader posted $200 bond after she was charged with drunken driving and possessing alcohol as a minor.

Also watch:



A police report says an officer was checking a reported disturbance when he heard brakes squeal and an SUV slam into the patrol car behind him.

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Rader told the officer she was taking a topless selfie of herself to Snapchat to her boyfriend.

Police say an open bottle of wine was in her console cup holder.

Also read: 10 selfies we would love to see in Kim Kardashian's selfie book aka Selfish

Also read: Man tries to take selfie with python, python tries to take piece of man



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By Suhani Singh: Director: Ajay Devgn

Cast: Ajay Devgn, Abigail Eames, Erika Kaar, Sayesha Sehgal, Girish Karnad, Saurabh Shukla

Ratings: (1.5/5)

"You are one piece," "Ooh, he is so hot and sexy," are some of the lines that Devgn, in his second directorial effort, includes to describe the titular character which he also plays. Self-aggrandizement is easier when you've also co-produced the film. Shivaay is Devgn's way of reminding audiences that he is Bollywood's true last action hero who made his debut doing a split balanced on two bikes in motion. This time around though he is the leather-clad Tarzan of the Himalayas.

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SHIVAAY REVIEW: Ajay Devgn tries hard but fails to save this film

ALSO READ: Shivaay makers to take legal action against Kamaal R Khan



Shivaay is an experienced mountaineer who can navigate snow-capped peaks and hilly terrain with the ease of a traceur. He hangs like a bat, jumps like Spider-Man from one slope to another and performs back flips and other acrobatics with the pluck of a Daredevil. But he is not a fan boy of Marvel or DC comics. He is a Lord Shiva devotee and he has got three tattoos -Shiva's long hair, snake and trishul - to make his case.

On a trek, the man of Landour meets Olga (Erika Kaar), a Hindi-speaking woman from Bulgaria who is acclimatised enough to wear tiny shorts in cold mountain. It doesn't take them too long to break the ice with what else but talking about the lord. When a natural disaster unfolds - an avalanche comes roaring down - the hero comes to the lady's rescue. The two end up in a tent suspended perilously between two cliffs. "I cannot afford to die," says Olga with her leg broken. At which point Shivaay indulges in India's favourite pastime - make love. Shivaay is the sort of action drama where even lovemaking has to be a dangerous activity. Stuck in India with a cast on her leg, Olga is nursed back to health but has to visit the hospital once again because she is pregnant. Only she doesn't want the child for she has more people to be responsible for in Bulgaria. Funny then she wasn't more careful. Shivaay emotionally blackmails her - in her own words -to keep the child and agrees to let her leave India after the delivery. Without the child of course.

From here on, Devgn the director decides to throw in some drama by focusing on the bond between a single father and his daughter. She is the eight-year-old Gaura (Abigail Eames) and in Bajrangi Bhaijaan-fashion she is another girl who can't speak. Though in Eames' case it works well for it saves the filmmakers time to train her in Hindi. Trouble brews as soon as Shivaay and Gaura leave India in search of Olga. Their visit starts on a terrible note as Shivaay witnesses an act of child prostitution. The very next day Gaura is TAKEN and Shivaay becomes the father in NOT WITHOUT MY DAUGHTER mode. By the end of two hours and fifty minutes, Bulgaria's population is considerably lower, its roads are a mess with car crashes and its police officials are hunting in vain for a fugitive.

Bulgaria doesn't come out looking prettier. If one is to go by Shivaay, it is the land of child traffickers, organ traders, prostitutes, corrupt police officials, violent gang members and Russian mafia. The bad white guys also seem to think the desi superhero is in fact a child trafficker which only makes him go all Hulk on them. There is no attempt made to showcase viewers a new land so much so that no subtitles are included when the characters speak in Bulgarian. In fact the only good people in Bulgaria it appears are the Indians residing here: a mawkish young woman working in the Indian embassy (played by Saiyesha), her wheel-chair bound father (Girish Karnad left with some of the film's most unintentionally funny lines) and an ethical hacker (Vir Das) whose attempts at humour fall flat.

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The action sequences are the saving grace of this film with Devgn either up in the air or being a one-many army on land. To inspire more awe, Devgn frequently resorts to unfolding the stunts in slow motion which explains the film's protracted running time. They also do require some suspension of disbelief. In one of the many chase sequences, Shivaay has his lower body dragged across the road but there is no sign of blood let alone a scratch or tear in the jeans. In another, after falling down a good thousand metres with multiple stabs and a bullet wound, Shivaay climbs back up in a breeze.

The exaggerated background score which includes piano, violins, sirens and operatic music instead of heightening the drama makes it a more taxing viewing. The women here don't have much to do other than be damsels in distress who witness Shivaay's brawn and his wrath. Only child actor Eames walks away with something more substantial to do such as punch her father in the stomach and hug him repeatedly. The performances, much like the locations, are high... on theatrics. Devgn sure has imagination when it comes to action with many fast and furious stunts set in beatific backdrops. While he occasionally wows with the action, he never succeeds in touching the hearts.

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By PTI: New Delhi, Oct 28 (PTI) Months after walking out of it, a faction-ridden Samajwadi Party (SP) today continued its efforts to stitch an alliance in Uttar Pradesh ahead of the Assembly election due early next year.

SP state unit chief Shivpal Yadav today met RLD chief Ajit Singh to invite him to the partys 25th anniversary celebrations on November 5.

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On Wednesday, Shivpal had called up Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar and met his partys senior leaders Sharad Yadav and KC Tyagi.

A weakened SP is now looking for an alliance to take on the BJP and the BSP in the Assembly polls. The difference between Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and party chief and his father Mulayam Singh Yadav has taken an ugly turn. While Mulayam, Shivpal and Amar Singh represent one camp within the party, Akhilesh has the support of Mulayams cousin Ram Gopal, who has been expelled from the party.

Carrying an invitation from Mulayam, Shivpal had been meeting "socialist friends" in the national capital.

Sources in the JD(U) and the SP said the idea behind the invite was to stitch an alliance in Uttar Pradesh, on the lines of Bihar, ahead of the polls.

An earlier attempt to stitch an alliance of "like-minded" parties had failed after the SP had backed out. Shivpal was involved in roping in the various constituents of the grand alliance till Mulayam himself decided to walk out of it months before the Bihar polls.

"I have come to invite Ajit Singh for SPs foundation day. All the secular parties do not want the BJP to enter Uttar Pradesh. It is an effort to bring together all Lohiawadis and Charanwadis. If it succeeds, we will stop the BJP," Shivpal told reporters after meeting the RLD chief.

On Wednesday, he had said that he had tried to form an alliance earlier too, but Ram Gopal Yadav did not allow it to happen "fearing the CBI".

"RLD has welcomed the statement of Samajwadi Party leader Shivpal Yadav, calling for a coalition of parties against communal forces in Uttar Pradesh," the partys general secretary, Trilok Tyagi, said.

Asked about the alliance, he said, "No decision has been taken yet. RLD will consider the proposal before taking a call."

He, however, said his party was "exhorting" all the Lohia-ites to come together to fight the "communal forces".

RLD had already announced a coalition with Janata Dal (United), Sharad Pawar-led NCP and ex-BSP leader RK Chaudharys BS4 for the crucial Uttar Pradesh polls.

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The mega alliance, which was announced earlier this month, has projected Ajit Singhs son and former Mathura MP Jayant Chaudhary as its chief ministerial candidate. PTI KIS NAB RC

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Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 27/10/2016 (2196 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A trip to the supermarket is getting easier on the pocket book, as a combination of oversupply and cutthroat retail competition is driving down prices on everything from T-bone steaks to a box of cereal.

Thats good news for consumers. Better news is these lower prices could be here for a while, according to one industry analyst.

Ill be able to tell you more in about a month, Prof. Sylvain Charlebois, dean of the faculty of management at Dalhousie University, said in an interview Thursday. But I suspect it might last at least until Christmas, and perhaps beyond (that).

No XMP or IPTC Header Found

Charlebois and University of Manitoba economist John McCallum said a combination of factors have helped to create a kind of perfect storm for Canadian food buyers. One is an oversupply of food in Europe and the United States.

Livestock, grain  you name it, inventories are high, Charlebois said.

That oversupply is driving down prices and leading to food deflation in much of the industrialized world, he said. Canada, for example, saw a 0.9 per cent year-over-year decline in food prices last month. Statistics Canada said it was the first year-over-year decline in food prices in Canada since March 2008.

Charlebois said food deflation is happening on an even bigger scale south of the border, where theyve had 10 consecutive months of year-over-year price declines. Thats the longest stretch for them in more than half a century, he added.

He said Europe has too much food because of the effects of an ongoing embargo imposed by one of its biggest customers  Russia. So its trying to sell some of that surplus food at a discount in North America.

But the United States has an oversupply of its own because the high value of the U.S. dollar has resulted in Asia buying less of its food products, he added.

No XMP or IPTC Header Found

So a lot of U.S. food is coming north at a discount.

Another major factor, according to Charlebois and McCallum, is the fierce competition in Canada among the big-box grocery retailers such as Costco, Walmart, Sobeys/Safeway and Loblaw Companies Ltd.

McCallum said Walmart and Costco run great businesses. They are just relentlessly innovating and controlling costs and increasing productivity, and they demand the same from their suppliers.

They also watch each other and they know that the consumer is very pressed financially because of the slow growth in wages and rising taxes and their high level of debt, McCallum said.

They are also aware brand loyalty isnt as strong as it used to be, and todays cost-conscious shopper tends to go where the bargains are. That forces retailers to sharpen their pencils and offer the lowest possible prices, or run the risk of losing market share.

No XMP or IPTC Header Found

So I think what youre seeing is the marketplace in its full competitive glory, he added.

Statistics Canada data released late last week showed food prices are down virtually across the board in Manitoba.

Baked goods, cereal, dairy products, fresh fruit, fresh vegetables  they all cost less last month than in September 2015. The declines ranged from 1.1 per cent for dairy products to as high as 9.3 per cent for cereal products. Two notable exceptions were eggs, which cost 3.9 per cent more, and meat (in general), which cost 0.7 per cent more.

Munther Zeid, whose family owns five FoodFare stores in Winnipeg, said while chicken prices havent come down much, his local wholesalers recently slashed prices for many of their beef products.

Some of the prices that are coming through (from suppliers) are just amazing, he said, which has allowed him to pass on some of those deals to his customers.

No XMP or IPTC Header Found

For example, T-bone steaks that used to sell for $10.99 a pound or more in his familys stores are on special this week for $5.99 or $6.99 a pound, depending on the day. And cross-rib roasts that used to cost $5.99 a pound and up are on sale for $2.99 or $3.99 a pound.

Zeid said he has asked his suppliers why beef is such a bargain right now, and they just tell me prices for cattle are down.

He said some of his other suppliers have also told him theyll also be lowering their prices for things such as produce and canned goods. But it hasnt happened yet.

So were just waiting. Its coming, but thats all I can tell you.

He agreed retail competition is fierce as some of the big players try to grow or protect their market share. Its about to get even more intense when another major player  Vancouver-based Save-On-Foods  enters the Manitoba market next month with the simultaneous opening of three stores in Winnipeg, he added.

PHOTOS BY Wayne Glowacki / Winnipeg Free Press FILES Fresh vegetables  in addition to baked goods, cereal, dairy products and fresh fruit  cost less in Manitoba now than they did a year ago. The outliers were eggs and meat, which increased in price over the past year.

The next six months in Winnipeg are going to be really interesting. Everybody is waiting to see what Save-On is going to do to the market once they open up their doors, he added. How are people going to react to it and how are their prices going to be?

murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca
Shivshankar Menon, who was then foreign secretary in the Manmohan Singh government, has revealed in a book that he pressed for military action on Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror camps after the 26/11 attacks as it would have "would have been emotionally satisfying".

By India Today Web Desk: As the Narendra Modi government revels in the spotlight of the surgical strikes, the situation is trickling back to square one. Pakistan has resorted to heavy cross-border shelling and terrorist attacks continue in Kashmir.

Meanwhile, it has come to light that India seriously considered attacking terror camps in Pakistan's Punjab province and the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in 2008 after the deadly terror attacks in Mumbai that left 166 people dead.

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Shivshankar Menon, who was then foreign secretary in the Manmohan Singh government, has revealed in a book that he pressed for military action on Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror camps after the 26/11 attacks as it would have "would have been emotionally satisfying".



RIGHT DECISION TO NOT ATTACK

In his book, 'Choices: Inside the Making of India's Foreign Policy', Menon, who went to become the National Security Advisor in the UPA government, writes: "On sober reflection and in hindsight... the decision not to retaliate militarily and to concentrate on diplomatic, covert, and other means was the right one for that time and place."

"The simple answer to why India did not immediately attack Pakistan is that after examining the options at the highest levels of government, the decision-makers concluded that more was to be gained from not attacking Pakistan than from attacking it," he writes.

NO PRACTICAL UTILITY OF SURGICAL STRIKES

According to Menon, an attack could have weakened the then Yousaf Raza Gillani government and boosted the power of the Pakistani military.

"A limited strike on selected terrorist targets - say, the LeT headquarters in Muridke or LeT camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir - would have had limited practical utility and hardly any effect on the organization," he writes.

READ: Crossing a red line

READ: Inside story of Indian Army's daring surgical strikes against Pakistan

ISRAEL ANGLE

This month, speaking at an election rally, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had compared the surgical strikes in the PoK to actions of the Israeli military.

"Our army's valour is being discussed across the country these days. We used to hear earlier that Israel has done this. The nation has seen that Indian army is no less than anybody," he had said.

Menon disagrees with this style of tactics in his book. The Israel model "often quoted or misquoted in support of military action as the answer is limited in time and effect," he writes.

"The use of deterrence in asymmetric warfare is questionable unless the non-state actors take over territory and act as governments," Menon writes.

READ: Surgical strikes in PoK: How Indian para commandos killed 50 terrorists, hit 7 camps



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How Ghatak platoons from units attacked in Uri helped commandos in surgical strike



--- ENDS ---
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/10/2016 (2195 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

If there is one thing Ive learned while working as a patient-safety champion over the last 12 years it is simply this: medication mix-ups happen far more often than people realize.

I was reminded of that lesson again recently while I was reviewing some material in preparation for Canadian Patient Safety Week, which ends today.

It involved a 72-year-old woman on home care who was finding it difficult to live her life to the fullest because she experienced extreme dizzy spells when standing or walking.

Eventually, one of her home care workers decided to sit down with the woman and go through all of her medications, a process known as medication reconciliation.

As it turned out, Mrs. As medications were the source of her problem. Somewhere along the line, she had been prescribed multiple blood pressure medications, and it was the combination of different pills that was actually at the root of her deteriorating health.

After consulting with a doctor, Mrs. As medications were changed, her blood pressure became stable and her health improved to the point she no longer needed home nursing care.

Yes, medication mix-ups happen, and they happen often.

Consider these numbers:

An estimated 40 to 50 per cent of patients in hospital and 40 per cent of patients discharged from hospital experience potential medication errors that could lead to health issues. In Manitoba, it is estimated medication-related incidents are the third leading cause of all harmful patient incidents. These injuries can result in emergency department visits, admission to hospital and death.

Seniors are particularly vulnerable to medication mix-ups.

In 2008, the Canadian Institute of Health Information found two-thirds of seniors were on five or more drugs, and 21 per cent of these took at least 10 drugs. Its easy to see how the average person can lose track of what they are taking and how often.

Fortunately, there are ways to reduce the risk of harm from medication mix-ups.

One is to ask questions. The Institute for Safe Medication Practices (Canada) suggests five important questions to ask your doctor, nurse and pharmacist about your medications. They are:

 1. What has changed about your prescription and why?

 2. What medication do I need to continue taking? Why?

 3. What is the correct way to take the medication? How long?

 4. How do I know the medication is working? What are the side-effects?

 5. What followup do I need?

Seniors should ask these questions every time they are prescribed a new medication, given a medication and when they buy medications without a prescription (over-the-counter medications). They should also ask questions in the hospital, at the pharmacy and with the nurse or doctor during health-care appointments.

A second way to reduce the risk of a potential mix-up is to review medications at transition points, such as when moving into a personal care home, at discharge from hospital, picking up new prescriptions from the pharmacy and when receiving home care.

Health experts say this action alone would significantly reduce the potential for harm from medication incidents. Seniors should work with their doctor, nurse or pharmacist to make sure nothing is missed and that all differences between what you are taking compared to written instructions is talked about.

The health-care system does its best to ensure the right medication information is communicated each time a patient moves from one health-care setting to another. However, when medication mix-ups occur, it is most often from miscommunication or lack of communication.

To assist seniors with both of these important actions, the Manitoba Institute of Patient Safety has created a special card that can be used to list all of your prescription and over-the-counter medications, including vitamins, minerals and herbal/natural products.

The Its Safe to Ask medication card can be obtained by visiting www.safetoask.ca.

Print the card and fold it into a handy wallet size. Let family members, friends and loved ones know you have the card. Keep it up-to-date and share it with your doctor, nurse and pharmacist.

Laurie Thompson is the executive director of the Manitoba Institute for Patient Safety.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/10/2016 (2195 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Pallister government has told the University of Manitoba and its professors to extend their collective agreement by one year at zero per cent to stabilize public pay levels.

Word broke Friday afternoon when U of M president David Barnard and U of M Faculty Association president Prof. Mark Hudson said in a joint statement that the Pallister government has directed them to extend collective agreements one year at zero per cent.

The two sides at the U of M were in their second day of mediation in a bid to avert a 7 a.m. strike deadline Tuesday. Mediation will continue throughout the weekend.

BORIS MINKEVICH / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS The U of M Faculty Association will set up picket lines at 7 a.m. on Nov. 1 if there is no agreement on a new deal.

Finance Minister Cameron Friesen later issued a statement in which he said the government has a responsibility to issue parameters to fix the provinces finances, but the statement made no mention of a zero per cent increase, and the premiers office would not elaborate.

The Manitoba Government and General Employees Union has called for an emergency meeting with Premier Brian Pallister to find out whats happening.

It wasnt clear what other public-sector bargaining units would be affected or what the Tories would do if the order is ignored.

The university and UMFA said in a joint statement, Bargaining has been presented with an unexpected complication, but both parties are resolved to continue discussions.

Said Barnard: Over the past several days, the province has made clear to the university that it has established fresh mandate parameters that seek co-operation in achieving a compensation pause throughout the public sector. Public bodies, including the University of Manitoba, are being asked to extend existing contracts for an additional year at zero per cent in order to stabilize publi- sector compensation levels.

We now find ourselves in the unusual circumstance of having a newly articulated provincial mandate regarding public-sector compensation levels that will have a profound impact on the final compensation levels that we will be able to negotiate, despite having already made what we believe to be a fair and reasonable offer on Sept. 13, Barnard said.

The (U of M) is indeed challenged by these circumstances coming at the end of what has been a difficult but advancing series of discussions since March 2016.

Hudson said in the joint statement: This 11th-hour action represents illegitimate government interference in a constitutionally protected process of collective bargaining.

Mediation continues, and our focus is to advance our members priorities through that process. The U of M is an independent body whose board must have the autonomy to engage in all aspects of negotiation, said Hudson. The province has unnecessarily endangered a complex negotiation through this misguided interference, and its action has jeopardized the educational goals of every U of M student.

UMFA is currently exploring legal options and continues to focus on negotiating a fair deal for its members.

New Democrat MLA James Allum, a former education minister, said its clear the government is interfering with collective bargaining at the U of M.

Thats sending a chill right across the province, he said. Its quite a shocking development.

Allum said governments are entitled to set mandates of the wage increases with which theyd be comfortable, but not at the 11th hour of bargaining.

I cant speculate on the actions theyre (Tories) going to take, said Allum. Were looking for exactly how theyre going to react.

MGEU president Michelle Gawronsky said Friday afternoon: The government has not told us anything about a unilateral wage freeze. Just yesterday (Thursday) , the premier said in the legislature, I have tremendous respect for collective bargaining. And all summer he told our members that he would not be interfering in the bargaining process.

We need to hear from the government directly, and thats why we are requesting an emergency meeting with the premier. We need assurance from the province that the bargaining will be fair and free from interference, Gawronsky said.

Because a mediator has imposed a media blackout, said Barnard and Hudson, they wont comment this weekend. Neither the university nor the union will say who in the government issued the order.

Our negotiations comprise many issues of grave importance to valued faculty members, and these will be addressed as the mediation process continues this weekend, they said in their joint statement.

Both parties recognize the impacts a strike can have on students and will work diligently to avoid such an outcome before the Nov. 1 strike deadline. The university administration and UMFA take our responsibility to the larger University of Manitoba community very seriously. We are united in caring deeply about the universitys mission to create, preserve and apply knowledge contributing to the well-being of this province, Canada and the world.

Their contract expired March 31.

The university has offered seven per cent over four years; for one-third of faculty still eligible for incremental raises, the total package would be 17.5 per cent over four years. UMFA has asked for a 6.9 per cent overall increase over one year, with improvements in benefits.

nick.martin@freepress.mb.ca
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/10/2016 (2195 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It is one of the rules of the political jungle that the amount of influence you have in any one level of government is directly proportional to the quality of the relationships you have within that government.

That is to say, if you work and play well with others, you are more likely to get ahead. If you are in constant conflict with your colleagues, it can be a long and lonely existence.

Coun. Janice Lukes and Coun. Jeff Browaty are learning this painful lesson now. On Thursday, Mayor Brian Bowman removed the two from the citys powerful executive policy committee just a day after they voted against his controversial development fee.

WAYNE GLOWACKI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Mayor Brian Bowman promised voters he would turn over responsibility for picking EPC to council

Thats not to say either councillor was being punished just for that one vote. Each had put themselves in harms way with the mayor.

For Browaty, transgressions included his participation in a poorly conceived radio attack-ad campaign engineered by Transcona Coun. Russ Wyatt over plans to build more bicycle lanes, a project the mayor put his stamp on. It did not help later on when he stridently criticized efforts to reopen Portage and Main to pedestrian traffic, another issue close to the mayors heart.

Lukes raised eyebrows with critical comments about the process that brought council to the development-fee vote. She likened Bowmans handling of the issue to some of ex-mayor Sam Katzs biggest messes, including the huge over-budget police headquarters. She said the process was disorganized and unaccountable and many councillors were denied basic information about why the mayor was forging ahead with this exact plan, in this exact way.

In an interview, Lukes said she had accepted Bowmans decision to remove her from EPC and that she had an obligation to speak her mind on mayoral initiatives she believed were weakly conceived and executed. This is the byproduct of the strong-mayor culture around here, she said. The mayor has all the power and isnt afraid to use it.

On the one hand, it probably makes some sense that if you sit on the mayors cabinet committee, and then vote against one of his most prized initiatives, you are going to pay a political price. Except that not everyone who uttered a nay for the growth fees got punished.

Coun. Scott Gillingham also voted against the growth fee, and his reward was being promoted to EPC. Coun. Cindy Gilroy, who voted for the fee, was the other councillor promoted to EPC.

When the smoke clears from this move, there is no getting around the fact that in removing two dissidents from EPC, Bowman is carrying on a tradition that goes back through decades of mayoral power brokering. A tradition he vigorously opposed and promised to change if he was elected mayor.

Bowman promised voters he would turn over responsibility for picking EPC to council. It was a huge concession in the power structure at city hall and would have been one of the most progressive measures ever introduced by a mayor. Except that he couldnt do it.

We are going to have a much more inclusive council than weve ever seen before, Bowman said in the wake of his election.

Bowmans plan ran into trouble when it was learned just a few weeks after the election that legislation requires the mayor to appoint councillors to sit the most powerful committee at city hall and chair the remaining standing committees. He could have allowed council to advise him on who to appoint, but he did not. He promised vaguely to ask the provincial government for legislative amendments to allow council more input into future EPCs. He didnt get around to doing that.

The important point, however, is that during the 2014 election, Bowman expressed support for changing the way EPC is appointed and managed. As mayor, he has found it impossible to resist exploiting the same power his predecessor Katz wielded on numerous occasions.

Maybe Bowman has learned city hall doesnt work if councillors have too much influence, or he cant get things done if hes surrounded by naysayers.

On the other hand, part of leading is finding common ground with critics. During the election, he promised to end the practice of using EPC as a parking lot for sycophants and lackeys. He said merit would trump allegiance to a particular politician.

There is nothing inherently wrong with the mayor exerting his influence over the composition of EPC. In municipal government, where the talent level on council tends to vary wildly, someone has to be in charge and push the city in the direction of progress.

However, it would be appreciated if the mayor would let everyone know now that he is rescinding his earlier pledge to allow council to form EPC. And then, operating under a more traditional power structure and culture, he can get back to moving his agenda forward with people who see the world the same way he does.

dan.lett@freepress.mb.ca
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/10/2016 (2195 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree, how lovely of Gail and Gerald Bordian of North Kildonan to donate you.

The couple is donating the 40-foot-Colorado spruce tree from their yard on Louelda St. While the family will certainly pine for it, the tree will be branching out into the community.

On Sunday at 8:30 a.m., the tree will be cut and lifted out of the yard by crane. The tree, which will transported on a flatbed, is expected to arrive at City Hall at 510 Main Street between 10:30 a.m. and 11 a.m.

BORIS MINKEVICH / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS This tree will be cut and lifted by crane from 904 Louelda Street on Sunday and transported on a flatbed to City Hall. The 40-foot Colorado spruce will be donated by North Kildonan homeowners Gail and Gerald Bordian.

We moved here in 1989 and the tree was about 10 feet tall at that time. My son would climb up on a ladder to decorate it with Christmas lights, Gail said in a media release. Over the years its grown too big so we decided to donate it to City Hall for their Christmas tree.

City forester Martha Barwinsky said the tree is an excellent choice for Christmas 2016.

This spruce has a beautiful, dark green colour and cylindrical form which make it a great choice to be the centerpiece of City Halls holiday display this year, Barwinsky stated.

The tree will be positioned by crane and then decorated with over 9,000 multi-coloured LED lights by a crew from the citys urban forestry branch over the next several days.

The ceremonial lighting of the tree will take place at an event on Nov. 14, at 6 p.m.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 27/10/2016 (2196 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There will be no racing pigeons in River Heights.

A dozen neighbours on Mathers Avenue flocked to city hall Thursday, dead set against a new neighbours plan to keep nearly 50 racing pigeons in his backyard.

They filed out with a clear victory two hours later, after making one passionate argument after another against the birds at a council appeal committee hearing.

WAYNE GLOWACKI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Karim Lowen holds images of a racing pigeon (left) and a street pigeon (right). He wanted to build a coop for 44 racing pigeons in his yard on Mathers Avenue. But his plan was grounded.

Even the Queen of England was dragged into the discussion  the British monarch keeps racing pigeons at her Sandringham estate. If she lived in River Heights, she wouldnt be allowed to keep the birds, residents told the council committee.

It was Coun. Ross Eadie (Mynarski) who finally tabled the motion against the pigeons for a vote, after uttering the only defence of the birds to come from the committee, a singular remark about sparrows probably being a bigger health hazard than pigeons.

Ive sat here and listened to both sides, and Im going to be supporting the appeal, Eadie said. I dont agree with all the arguments. Coops can be clean. But its quite clear in this particular area that its not wanted.

Im pleased, Im so relieved, said Toby Shapiro afterward. She and her family live two doors down from the property where the 95-square-foot backyard racing pigeon loft was going to be built. Ive lost a lot of sleep over this, she said.

Shapiro told council she and her husband have a 14-year-old son who is autistic. Any sudden change in his environment, any new noises or smells trigger him, she told council.

Were afraid this will cause meltdowns. My life is not a hobby. I have to live with the repercussions if this aviary goes ahead, she told the committee.

Shapiro was among 108 residents who petitioned city hall, launching a determined appeal against their neighbour and his pigeon plan.

Karim Lowen wanted to construct a loft to house 44 racing pigeons at the rear of his Mathers Avenue home.

The proposal was approved by the board of adjustment  a citizen panel that considers requests to amend zoning restrictions  and the citys planning department.

Current zoning only allows flightless birds to be kept on private property in an aviary, and Lowen needed a variance to build the coop.

An administrative report stated city hall has approved five pigeon coops and city planners supported Lowens application on the grounds his coop would be smaller than what would be allowed for flightless birds, and they didnt believe it would be disruptive to the neighbourhood.

Thursdays appeal was the last stand for pigeons on Mathers Avenue.

Theres no one in the neighbourhood who said one day, Gee whiz, we want pigeons.

We went around the neighbourhood and got every single neighbour to say they didnt want this aviary. There wasnt one exception, David Peters told the committee.

Peters went on to cite filth, noise concerns and health hazards to mark his disapproval.

Another neighbour wondered if pigeons moved in, did that mean chickens, pigs or snakes were next?

Lowen expressed disappointment. Its not his first time trying to win approval from city hall to build a loft for racing pigeons.

The first effort was about five years ago in the Royal Road area of St. Boniface. City hall turned him down then, too, a fact River Heights residents raised in their defence.

After the vote, Lowen seemed resigned. Its sad. Theres a bylaw in place to allow this. People can say they just dont want it, and (the city) will say No.

Everybodys worried its not like theyre street pigeons that hang out. Theyre racing pigeons, they race, and then they want to come back home to their loft. Theyre not hanging out on a roof, Lowen said.

Over two hours, the delegations got down to some pretty arcane details about pigeons and swung around to cover equally broad philosophical arguments over what takes priority, people or animals in an urban setting.

One after another, neighbours compared the pigeon loft project to a chicken coop, calling it filthy a health hazard and noisy.

We live in a crazy world. You have heard an autistic child lives two doors away. Are you ready to take the risk? What is more important, people or a man with his hobby? Im sorry about (my) emotion but I just cant contain it. Im outraged, Ariel Karabelnicoff said.

Even Transcona Coun. Russ Wyatt questioned the birds pet appeal, holding up photocopied pictures of a feral pigeon with a racing pigeon that Lowen filed as part of his defence.

One looks rougher than the other, (but) theyre both birds, Wyatt said. I dont see any difference.

alexandra.paul@freepress.mb.ca
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/10/2016 (2195 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA  A Winnipeg MP is pushing legislation to create a day to commemorate the residential school experience, but the reality is unless Prime Minister Justin Trudeau intervenes to make it a government initiative, it isnt going to happen any time soon.

Robert-Falcon Ouellette will introduce his first-ever private members bill Monday, requesting to designate June 2 of each year as Indian Residential School Reconciliation and Memorial Day.

Its important for us to remember this part of our history, said Ouellette. It has caused a terrible price on the Canadian state, on the Canadian people and particularly on indigenous people. We need to take a day out every year and think about how we treated each other.

BORIS MINKEVICH / FREE PRESS FILES Winnipeg Centre MP Robert-Falcon Ouellette

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission listed a statutory holiday to remember residential schools as one of its 94 calls to action in its report delivered last year. Trudeau has promised to implement the commissions recommendations.

Ouellette picked June 2 because it is the anniversary of the release of the executive summary of the commissions report and all 94 recommendations.

The bill was based on the work of Maeengan Linklater, a community volunteer from Winnipeg whose parents were residential school survivors. Ouellettes father and grandparents also attended residential schools.

Because of his place in the priority line for private members bills to be debated, Ouellette doesnt anticipate his bill will get anywhere near a vote before the next election.

He said Indigenous and Northern Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett has expressed support for the bill but he hasnt specifically asked whether a cabinet minister might take it on.

If it is introduced as a government bill instead, it would be almost assured of passing not just before the next election, but possibly even before June 2.

Id love the government to take up a bill like this, said Ouellette.

Trudeaus office has yet to respond about whether it would consider doing that.

Last year, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, led by Justice Murray Sinclair, released a report into Canadas Indian residential schools, which operated from 1870 to 1996, and saw 150,000 First Nations, Metis and Inuit people pass through their doors. Some parents were forced by the federal government to send their children to the schools, emptying indigenous communities of their children.

Many children never went home again. Many died, the victims of physical, sexual, mental or emotional abuse, starvation and diseases such as tuberculosis that were contracted in the schools. The death rate was high enough schools were designed with cemeteries.

The legacy of the schools has been blamed for a large number of the social problems facing First Nations people in Canada, including high rates of addiction, suicide and family breakdowns.

mia.rabson@freepress.mb.ca
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/10/2016 (2195 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

TOO often, well-meaning journalists get it wrong when they write about autism. Its not so much the content of their stories that misses the mark as the language they use to describe autism itself.

It can be easy to unintentionally offend  or worse, misrepresent  the autism community they are meant to be describing.

Media stories that get it wrong can contribute to how others perceive those with autism  and even perpetuate potentially dangerous stereotypes. For this reason, Autism Canada has recently developed a guide to help journalists navigate the language of autism in a balanced and accurate manner.

The guide also contains a few important facts everyone should know about autism and will help you separate fact from fiction.

Autism or autism spectrum disorder is a complex neurobiological condition that impacts brain development and is characterized by communication problems, difficulty with typical social interactions, a tendency to repeat specific patterns of behaviour and a markedly restricted repertoire of activity and interests.

While it may be more dramatic for a news story to call for a war on autism, this portrays autism as an enemy to be defeated, not a condition someone lives with on a daily basis that may confer identity and that may include benefits, too.

At the same time, however, living with autism can be a daily struggle for many individuals and their families  so media depictions of autism as a special gift are not balanced depictions either.

In other words, autism is often associated with both positive and negative attributes for those affected by it and the families that support them. It is complex and multi-faceted. So dont buy into depictions of autism that too often oversimplify the lived experience.

A great many more supports are available for individuals with autism and their families than in past decades. It is very rare when nothing can be done to improve the quality of life and functional capacity of an autistic person. We should reject depictions that imply nothing can be done for individuals with autism or depict the outlook or potential of an autistic life as bleak.

There are now evidence-based supports and options available that can improve the health and independence of those with autism.

Autism also intersects with many other complicated social issues such as health and well-being, education and employment, acceptance and identity. Be sure to separate what is autism and what is often thrust upon those with autism but could be changed through social, economic and community supports or even a change in outlook.

Terms such as slow, simple, special or abnormal are inaccurate and demeaning. Autistic individuals are different. Their minds work differently. When talking about someone with autism, you can acknowledge or describe the challenges they face without defining them as lacking or deviating from the norm.

When you talk about someone with autism, keep in mind you are discussing an individual and not just a neurobiological condition. You can be respectful of the individual by using such terms as has autism, is autistic or is on the autism spectrum. Avoid saying suffers from autism because this assumes autism is a negative part of a persons life.

Individuals who have autism dont look a certain way. Describing someone by saying that they dont look like they have autism can leave the impression they dont deserve the supports they need. You can learn a lot by asking individuals with autism  and their families  how autism affects them instead and what type of supports or accommodations they require.

Reflecting on autism in a more nuanced manner using these basic pointers can help you avoid simplistic depictions and understand the true, lived experiences of those on the autism spectrum and those who support them.

Laurie Mawlam has been executive director of Autism Canada since 2006 and has been a champion of the issue since one of her three sons was diagnosed with autism in July 2000.
Chinese firecrackers are dangerous and risky, while those made in India make are safe, say residents of Chennai in the run-up to Diwali.

By Akshaya Nath: With preparations for Diwali in full swing, the most visited destination in Chennai for people of all age groups is a cracker store.

City residents Bharat and wife Divya are busy shopping for their kids and have been shop-hopping to pick the best of products for the festival.



While family get-togethers and sharing of sweets are a common phenomenon, Divya says what excites her kids the most is crackers. She says, "Diwali is the festival of light. All that children want is crackers to celebrate. Our kids will feel very happy that we have got so many of them for them."

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Also read: 9 killed as godown containing firecrackers catches fire in Tamil Nadu's Sivakasi



CUSTOMERS ADAMANT ON BUYING INDIAN FIRECRACKERS



With a lot of cheap, bright and fancy Chinese products entering the market, there are several issues that Indian-made products have faced. But in most parts of Chennai, customers have been adamant on buying only Indian-made products.

Bharat, who has taken leaves from work to complete shopping, says, "We trust Indian products totally. We have used Chinese items. They are loud and bright but are very dangerous to use. We have used Indian crackers very often and we know they are safe. We don't need Chinese products."

Also read: Traders selling Chinese firecrackers under fake 'Made in India' labels to woo customers



Corporate professional Shrivatsan too visited a cracker store in Chennai. He has only a specific item to buy for his kids. "Only sparklers, no crackers." He adds, "I have brought only standard firecrackers. We have grown up using Indian crackers. Those of Chinese make tend to be more explosive. I don't want to take any risk."

SHOPKEEPERS ALSO BOYCOTTING CHINESE GOODS

Not only consumers, even sellers are keen on only selling Indian products. According to reports, Chinese fireworks worth Rs 1,500 crore are smuggled into India each year. Earlier this month, crackers worth Rs 9 crore were seized from the inland depot in Tughlakabad.

Mohammad Basith, (co-owner of YMCA Royapetta cracker sales), said, "As a policy, we don't sell Chinese products and we stick to Indian goods made in Sivakasi. So far, sales have been good."

Compared to last year, sellers say that there has been a 10 per cent increase in sale of crackers and in most places and that buyers specifically demand Indian goods.

--- ENDS ---
Konnichiwa was a word that rang out in Winona many times on Thursday, as the Japan ambassadors from Misato arrived for a four-day stay in their sister city.

The student ambassadors from Japan had a full tour of Winona on Wednesday, beginning with a visit to the Winona City Hall and ending with a welcome assembly at Winona Middle School.

When the Japan delegates arrived at Winona Senior High School, the students and band greeted them, gathered around the balcony above the cafeteria and at lunch tables.

The delegates smiled, laughed, and pulled out their phones and cameras to record the moment.

They get a grand welcome here when they come, said Gay Mortensen, WAPS publications and promotions director.

After the warm welcome to the high school, the Winona and Misato student ambassadors went into the schools library to exchange gifts, talk about the program, and give thanks.

Abbey Kline, who participated in the program in 2014 and created a Herky Winhawk picture book this summer based on her trip to Japan, spoke to the delegates and gave each of them a copy of the book translated into Japanese.

The Misato ambassadors and representatives were excited to bring the book back to Japan when they leave on Monday, and show their peers back home, they said.

The Winona students participating in the program this year met the Misato ambassadors for the first time Wednesday night at Nate and Allys Frozen Treat Creations in downtown Winona.

Tara Ziegeweid and Caroline Lawing said they were nervous but excited to meet their soon-to-be friends at the frozen yogurt shop.

It was kind of nerve-wrecking, but still really exciting, Ziegeweid said.

They also said theyre very excited to head to Japan for their visit in the spring, to step outside their comfort zones and experience a different part of the world far from Winona.

Im excited to be exposed to a new culture and try new food, Lawing said.

But mostly the food, Ziegeweid said. Its a good program to keep students in touch with people from a different.

The students plan to continue their tour of Winona throughout the weekend, visiting Winona State, Metz Hart-Land Creamery, a culture fair at the Winona County History Center and shopping in the downtown area, among other activities.
ALMA, Wis.  A 56-year-old Fountain City, Wis., man accused of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old boy was bound over for trial and scheduled to have a case status hearing in circuit court on Nov. 10.

Thaddeus (Tad) A. Powers has pleaded not guilty to a felony charge accusing him of sexually assaulting a child under the age of 16 in Fountain City. Powers pleaded not guilty after a preliminary court hearing in September, where a sheriffs department investigator testified to sexual abuse allegations raised by the boy.

The assault allegedly happened at Powers residence in Fountain City in late June, according to sheriffs investigator Lee Engfer.

The alleged assault was reported to the sheriffs department on July 7, and Engfer interviewed the boy on July 11, according to court records.

Powers allegedly put his hand down the front of the boys pants and underwear and fondled him, the boy told authorities.

The violation charging Powers is a serious sex offense because it involved conduct seeking his own sexual arousal or gratification, Engfer said in his report.

Powers is free on a $10,000 cash bail bond with conditions that he have no contact with children under 18, and no contact with St. Johns United Church of Christ and Pastor Greg Ferris.

Powers was formerly the director of Habitat For Humanity for Winona-Fillmore counties. Powers came to the Winona area a few years ago from New Mexico, and had served as Habitats director for a little more than two years after initially taking a part-time job with the organization.
Jeanne Nelson and Karl Sonneman, the candidates running for the 4th District to represent the Winona Area Public Schools Board, both have student-first mindsets but different approaches.

Nelson is a retired educator of 30 years who received her masters in education from Winona State and has been a school board member since 2012. She currently lives in Homer with her husband.

She said she thought she was done with education after retiring, but a friend suggested she run for school board, and she did  and now, after four years of work and with a desire to implement new programming in the district, shes running for re-election.

I think theres certain things the district needs, Nelson said, I wanted to be able to offer my perspective.

She said her main focus is the students, and she tries to look at things from the perspective of what the children need. That includes a push to implement Title I programming in the district, in part to address the achievement gap. She said she has been appreciative of the efforts that district superintendent Stephen West and others have done to address the gap, and sees the programming as an important next step.

Providing choices for parents and students, including the STEM school at Jefferson and Spanish Language Immersion Program (SLIP) at Madison, also holds high importance to Nelson. She said allowing parents, students and teachers to have choices will help boost the educational experience of all parties.

Being open to provide choices is crucial, Nelson said. We need to make sure students educational experience is meaningful and productive.

That includes advocating for building a new elementary school, Option C of the facilities proposal, to attract young families moving into the area. The option would use Rollingstone and Goodview elementaries and look at building a new elementary school (or remodeling an existing one) in the citys core.

Sonneman is a private practice attorney in Winona. He is married to Winona County Attorney Karin Sonneman and graduated from Winona Senior High School in 1967. He volunteers at the Winona public schools and his children went through the Winona school district.

He said he believes that the education of the children should take precedence over building new schools.

The board has to develop a better plan when it comes to the facilities issue, Sonneman said. As we move forward, rehabilitating existing schools can be cheaper and more effective than building new ones.

He said any potential building bond to create a new, larger elementary school would distract from the more important issue of improving student education and test scores.

We have to look at the numbers and ask Are these reasonable expenditures? he said. It seems like the numbers are thrown around loosely ... I have experience in public financing and want to offer ideas as to how we can get this done.

Sonneman also said its important that the board and administration work together and communicate better. The board should give administration a better sense of direction and hold them accountable when it comes to moving forward in the chosen direction, he said.
Minnesota Department of Transportation project funding, including work on rehabilitating Winonas interstate bridge, is tied up in a tug-of-war between lawmakers and the governors office.

Two future projects in Winona, the final segment of the bridge rehabilitation and the replacement of the pedestrian bridge near Saint Marys University, are planned to be funded at least in part through the use of federal money  which hasnt arrived in Minnesota because of the Legislatures inability to pass major bills during this years session.

Nearly 30 highway, road and bridge projects in across the state are in the same boat, which would receive together $105 million in federal funds. Since the Legislature failed to pass a transportation funding bill in the past session, there wasnt a way to otherwise approve the federal funds to use in the projects. In addition, a large part of the money and projects had been looped into the capital investments bill, which was not passed, either.

Last week, House Rep. Tim Kelly, R-Red Wing, the chair of the House Transportation Policy and Finance Committee (who is not running for re-election), lodged an objection to MnDOTs request that the Legislative Advisory Commission approve the funding independently.

In his objection, Kelly said that the money was usually allocated by the Legislature, and called the work-around unprecedented.

He said MnDOT has not been clear with him as to whether there is a need to approve the money prior to the 2017 session. He also noted that Gov. Mark Dayton wouldnt call a special session to approve the capital investment bill, which had $20 million and $70 million for fiscal years 2016 and 2017, respectively.

Dayton responded this week with his own letter, calling Kellys reasons lacking in substance and merit and describing the failure to pass a transportation bill as a wasted opportunity by Kelly.

With the FAST Act, passed in 2015, Minnesota received an increase in funding for highway construction, amounting to a $105 million reimbursement of federal funding for the latest biennium. Federal law requires states to commit to the increase, or lose the federal funding. However, the Minnesota Legislature, or alternatively a Legislative Advisory Commission, must authorize MnDOT to get the reimbursement.

In order for the residents of these communities to enjoy the benefits of improved transportation infrastructure, I call on you to be responsible, withdraw your objection to this LAC request, and allow these projects to proceed on schedule, Dayton said in his letter.

Terry Ward, bridge project manager with MnDOT, said crews are shooting for starting Work Package 6 in the spring of 2017 on the interstate bridge in Winona, and havent heard of any problems with funding.

The last work package, which hasnt been bid out yet, will concentrate on the rebuilding of the approach spans, the remaining roadway work and site work under and around both bridges. Thats expected to take construction all the way to the end of the project, in 2019.
State and local leaders discussed the challenges and opportunities faced by Wisconsin manufacturers Thursday during a tour of Teel Plastics in Baraboo.

During the visit to recognize manufacturing month, officials from the Department of Workforce Development and the Department of Financial Institutions discussed the future of Wisconsins workforce.

Among the state officials in attendance were DWD Secretary Ray Allen, DFI Secretary Lon Roberts and DFI Assistant Deputy Secretary Alex Ignatowski.

Gov. Scott Walker declared October Manufacturing Month to highlight the importance of the industry to the states economy. Wisconsin manufacturing accounts for more than $50 billion of the states economic output and employs more than 450,000 workers, according to the National Association of Manufacturers.

While Wisconsin is one of the nations leading manufacturers, the state faces a workforce problem: relatively low unemployment rates mean a smaller pool of potential employees for businesses. Manufacturing companies also say those who apply for jobs dont have the necessary skills to succeed.

To combat the issue, Teel Plastics has partnered with the Baraboo School District to train students for careers.

The company was an employer partner in a 2015 Wisconsin Fast Forward-Blueprint for Prosperity grant, which was awarded to the Baraboo School District. Fast Forward grants support projects that bring together school districts, technical colleges and businesses to provide high school pupils with certifications in high demand fields.

The grant awarded $60,000 to the districts Business-Education Partnerships program to partner with CESA 5, Madison College and four local businesses, including Teel Plastics, to train 22 high school students for careers as machine operators, technicians and welders.

Teel Plastics CEO Tom Thompson said the partnership provides graduating students with more options.

There are a lot of people who dont necessarily want to attend a four-year school, and I think thats fine, he said. There are a lot of opportunities for those people to work at a company like Teel.

Allen commended the company for its partnership with the school district and added that its important to bring parents as well as students into its factories. You have a factory here thats cleaner than my office, he said. Once we change that imagery, it makes it more acceptable for young people to take those apprenticeship programs.

Following the discussion, Teel Plastics Director of Quality Joel Soenksen led Allen, Roberts and Ignatowski on a tour of the factory. During the tour, Roberts stressed the importance of the manufacturing industry to the states financial sector.

When manufacturers expand their operations and add jobs in Wisconsin, this can have a positive impact on the local economies, which by extension gives our banks and credit unions more opportunities to sell their products and services to consumers, he said. And thats good for the Wisconsin economy.
A new program to provide advocates for Sauk County children who have been abused or neglected is up and running.

Court Appointed Special Advocates Program Manager Mary Jo Elert said 11 people have volunteered and undergone training since the initiative went online earlier this month.

Two of those volunteers were active in a prior CASA program that was a joint venture between Sauk and Columbia counties. The former program disbanded in 2013 mainly due to dwindling donations and contributions from state and federal governments.

The Sauk County Board approved funding to resurrect the program locally in November 2015 during deliberations on the 2016 budget. Former Supervisor Tut Gramling of Baraboo won support for an amendment to set aside $50,000 for the program this year.

The funds were distributed to Hope House of South Central Wisconsin, a nonprofit group that provides shelter and other assistance to people affected by domestic violence and sexual assault, which will manage the Sauk County CASA program.

Elert said her goal is to have 17 volunteer advocates by the end of 2017. I think were way ahead of our target at this point, she said.

Volunteers are not required to have any special training or educational background. They undergo 30 hours of training before they are sworn in as an officer of the court and assigned a child.

CASA advocates then study the childs case, meet with him or her once or twice a month, and provide verbal and written reports to the court to help judges make decisions that protect the interest of the child.

CASA serves children who are in jeopardy of being removed from their home, or already have been removed and placed in foster care. Volunteers assist them within the legal system to either be reunited with their family or put up for adoption.

Hope House Executive Director Ellen Allen said the program will ensure that vulnerable children have more support within the social service and judicial systems.

Such support is shown to reduce the need for juvenile detention and future incarceration, as well as other taxpayer-funded services as the children grow into adulthood, she said. It will have a meaningful impact not only on our systems and in our community but more importantly, in positively affecting the lives of each child appointed to a CASA volunteer. This is what caring communities do.

Elert said the biggest future challenge will be finding a way to maintain funding. The countys proposed 2017 spending plan includes funding for the program within the Register in Probates budget.

Hope House is planning open house events this winter in order to help educate the public about the CASA program.
Zach Hays of West Allis faces five counts of recklessly endangering safety and fleeing an officer in Columbia County. Online court records indicate Hays stood mute during an arraignment Friday. Judge Todd Hepler entered not guilty pleas for him.

Hays also faces reckless homicide and endangering safety charges in Milwaukee and Sauk counties. Prosecutors allege Hays killed his neighbor, Gabriel Sanchez, on May 1. Later that day he drove northwest. As he was heading south on Interstate 90/94 he allegedly opened fire on a car, killing Tracy Czaczkowski. Hays allegedly shot at another car and fired into the air as police chased him through Columbia County.
By PTI: Washington, Oct 27 (PTI) Competing on social media may increase peoples fitness dramatically, according to a new study which also found that support from friends could make one less likely to go to the gym.

For the study, researchers recruited about 800 students for an 11-week exercise programme.

The fitness initiative included weekly exercise classes, fitness mentoring and nutrition advice, all managed through a website built by the researchers.

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After programme completion, the students who attended the most exercise classes for activities like running, spinning, yoga and weight lifting, among others, won prizes.

"We found that social media can increase peoples fitness dramatically," said Damon Centola, associate professor from University of Pennsylvania in the US.

Participants did not know that the researchers had split them into four groups to test how different kinds of social networks affected their exercise levels.

The four groups were - individual competition, team support, team competition and a control group.

In the individual group, participants could see exercise leaderboards listing anonymous programme members and earned prizes based on their own success attending classes.

For each team group, participants were assigned to a unit. In the team support group, they could chat online and encourage team members to exercise, with rewards going to the most successful teams with the most class attendance.

In addition, those in the team competition group could see a leaderboard of other teams and their team standing.

Participants in the control group could use the website and go to any class, but were not given any social connections on the website; prizes in this group were based on individual success taking classes.

Competition motivated participants to exercise the most, with attendance rates 90 per cent higher in the competitive groups than in the control group.

Both team and individual competition equally drove the students to work out, with participants in the former taking a mean of 38.5 classes a week and those in the latter taking 35.7. Members of the control group went to the gym far less often, on average 20.3 times a week.

The biggest surprise came in the number of workouts a week by members of the team support group - just 16.8, on average - half the exercise rate of the competitive groups.

"Framing the social interaction as a competition can create positive social norms for exercising," said Jingwen Zhang, a former graduate at University of Pennsylvania.

"Social support can make people more dependent on receiving messages, which can change the focus of the program," said Zhang, now an assistant professor at the University of California, Davis in the US.

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The study was published in the journal Preventative Medicine Reports. PTI NKS MHN SAR MHN

--- ENDS ---
CAMBRIA  Residents in the Cambria-Friesland school district will see a significant increase in their school taxes after the district lost $144,000 in state aid.

The district, which passed its final budget Monday, reported a school tax rate of $11.53 per $1,000 of equalized value, an increase of more than $1 from last years rate of $10.32.

At a time when state aid bumps helped bring down school tax rates for rural districts like Portage and Pardeeville, superintendent Timothy Raymond said his districts drop in aid raises questions with less-than-satisfying answers.

When I first talked to the state (the explanation) was increased property value and losing kids, and that is one reason, he said. But we have neighboring districts in similar situations who saw significant increases in aid. Theres a discussion at DPI (Department of Public Instruction) about the rate of spending, and how you compare to the rest of state, which is an interesting concept, in that youre comparing us to Madison and Milwaukee.

But thats not comparing apples to oranges  thats a freight train and a thumbtack.

Cambria-Friesland at 389 students again saw a slight decline in enrollment this year, losing nine students, while property value climbed 1.7 percent to $213 million.

The districts total budget is balanced at $5,115,000 with a total tax levy of $2,460,000.

The (states) reasoning is stretched, Raymond said regarding aid. Right now I dont have an explanation where a seventh-grader can understand it. What we are seeing is more and more of your small schools, your small rural schools, really being told to do more with less without going to referendum.

The state legislators are saying you shouldnt be going to referendum so much. Well, number one, we live in a democracy, so let the people decide. Number two, create some different levers for us to pull for equal funding.

Cambria-Friesland  a single-building, K-12 school district  is in its second year of a three-year operational referendum, allowing the district to exceed the revenue limit by $450,000 this year after using $350,000 last year.

Next year it will use $650,000.

Though the impact of the states expanded voucher program this year is minimal for Cambria-Friesland at only one student, Raymond said the issue deserves more attention statewide.

State representatives have said vouchers are here to stay  I certainly hope not, Raymond said. We cant support a two-tier system.

Having attended a parochial school as a child, Raymond said he thinks the conversation about vouchers shouldnt be about which school is better  which seems to be the unstated attitude of some legislators in Madison.

Looking at what taxpayers in Wisconsin are paying, I think we really need to have the conversation with elected leaders: Is this really what the Constitution (allows)? Is joining church and state really a good idea?

We deserve to have that conversation, and not just in the chambers in Madison. That should be a statewide discussion.

Salaries

Salary raises for teachers this year were limited to the Consumer Price Index of just 0.12 percent, but using stipends Cambria-Friesland was able to give a 1.36 percent increase to teachers across the board.

Were very proud of that, Raymond said. We have a great staff at Cambria-Friesland.

Support staff received a 2 percent raise.

Raymond, as superintendent and K-5 principal, will make $110,000, up from last years salary of $107,100.

Deb Torrison, in her first year as the 6-12 building principal, will make $88,000.
In a recent front page story in the Daily Citizen, State Sen. Scott Fitzgerald acknowledged that our roads are crumbling and specified that this issue will top the legislative agenda, concluding that Wisconsin is in good shape financially, with $280 million in the rainy day fund and a statutory balance of $65 million.

However, buried on page nine of that same edition was an Associated Press article that informed readers that the state faces a $940 million shortfall to pay for road projects already approved. Let that sink in a minute. Sen. Fitzgerald believes that we are in good shape, knowing that we need nearly a billion dollars to pay for projects already approved, not to mention new projects, but still tells constituents that fixing roads will be a priority. Ha!

We need some new faces in our statehouse to counteract some of the damage that has been done by our current batch of legislators.

One excellent candidate is George Ferriter, who is running for the 42nd Assembly District seat, against an opponent who chairs the transportation committee. George is a retired engineer, and a veteran, with municipal experience, who has made the condition of our roads a signature issue, and who has ideas about how to address the problem. He is a knowledgeable, hard-working, trustworthy person, who listens to the concerns of the community and takes them to heart. When you go to the polls to cast your ballot, make voting for George Ferriter one of your top priorities.

Sally Litka, Juneau
Plans for a new low income housing development in Mauston moved forward after it was approved by the citys plan commission Wednesday.

The development still has to be approved by the city council. On Wednesday, the plan commission granted a conditional use permit to the Central Wisconsin Community Action Council to use the property at 700 Herriot Drive to construct a multiplex that will house 10 apartment units. Representatives from Community Action attended the meeting on Wednesday.

The location will be near the corner of Sherman Street and Highway G, said Mauston Mayor Brian McGuire. We met last week to address some of the concerns with the unit. We are going to aim for people who need the housing who are already in the community. Were talking 10 units, not 70 and thats a big difference.

The apartment will feature both single and two-bedroom units, measuring 700 and 900 square feet.

Comprehensive plan updated

The plan commission recommended the updated comprehensive plan for approval by the city council during a public hearing on Wednesday.

Katherine Westaby, a city planner for Vierbicher Associates in Madison, gave a slideshow presentation on the updated plan. The city has worked on it for nearly a year and the original plan was developed in 2000. Westaby said the comprehensive plan is a blueprint for the short and long-range growth and development for the city.

This plan is designed to be used by city officials as a policy guide to direct community development decisions, to assist with community facility budgeting, and as a tool to focus and stimulate private housing, business and industrial investment, Westaby said.

The plan also noted past accomplishments in the city since 2000, which included enhancing the downtown area and implementing a common directional signage system.

Maustons population increased by just .50 percent from 2010-14. However, Vierbicher expects the city to grow by 13 percent by 2025. The average age of a Mauston resident is 41.3, and 31.1 percent of the population is over age 65.

To help identify critical issues, Vierbicher and the city conducted a community survey. Sixty percent of respondents would like to see a better mix of housing, while 78 percent feel the development and construction process in Mauston could be easier.

The updated plan also addressed goals, initiatives and actions the city plans to implement. The top goal was to protect and enhance the citys identity, while another major goal was to preserve and reestablish Maustons visually attractive development.

Other goals included the ability to respond to emerging land development needs within the community, establish mutually beneficial intergovernmental relations with other jurisdictions, and to ensure land use compatibility protects residents and balances activities. Finally, the plan outlined several implementation initiatives through the next 15 years.

Housing is a big issue, but it was good the plan commission approved the (Community Action) development tonight, Westaby said.

McGuire said the process to update the plan was long, but went fairly smoothly.

Ken Van Doren was the only Mauston resident at the public hearing to oppose the plan. A former Tempe, Arizona resident, Van Doren has lived in Mauston for 23 years. He claimed the plan follows a smart growth pattern that Tempe implemented, which stifles small business development.

Through this plan, youre more likely to have a good old boys network develop and that leads to less power for people in the city, Van Doren said. If you want to help our economy develop than get out of the way.

The updated comprehensive plan will proceed to the city council for approval on Nov. 8.
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The lawyer representing Columbia County in state and federal lawsuits over eminent domain says auto repair business owner John Gruber is costing taxpayers money, with a barrage of litigation that wont, in the end, get the results that Gruber says he wants.

Mark Hazelbaker said Gruber has been acting on unsound advice in his ongoing litigation with Columbia County and other defendants (including the city of Portage) over the countys acquisition of Gruber Automotive, 208 E. Edgewater St., for construction of a parking lot to serve the new Administration and Health and Human Services buildings, going up on opposite sides of the Portage Canal.

Both the county and the city, he said, have moved for dismissal of the federal lawsuit. A similar suit against the county and other defendants, filed in Columbia County Circuit Court, is pending, with a scheduling conference set for Nov. 7 in Dodge County Circuit Court.

Mr. Gruber, who says hes a friend of the taxpayer, is causing taxpayer money to be spent at an alarming pace, over nothing, Hazelbaker said.

Columbia County Corporation Counsel Joseph Ruf said last week that Hazelbaker  whom the county had hired to negotiate the acquisition of two land parcels for the $45.51 million building project  is representing Columbia County in the federal litigation, after county officials agreed to waive his conflict of interest.

The conflict: Hazelbaker is also a defendant in the same lawsuit.

Hazelbaker said its a common tactic, but ultimately an ineffective one, to sue the opposing partys lawyer, in an effort to force the opposing party to hire other outside counsel.

Ruf said its too early to know yet how much time and money Columbia County will spend in addressing Grubers lawsuits. He also said its likely that any money the county spends for the litigation wont come from the $45.51 million that the County Board agreed to borrow for the new three-story Administration Building, the two-story HHS building, extensive remodeling of the courthouse and smaller projects for the countys Highway and Solid Waste departments. (Expenses related to property acquisition is one of the authorized purposes for which the borrowed money can be spent.)

But the litigation is not, in any way, slowing or stopping the canal-side construction. The Administration Building is on track to open in June 2017, and the HHS Building  which will be the temporary location of the court-related offices during the courthouse renovation  is scheduled to open in July 2017.

Hazelbaker said he hadnt been served with notice of Grubers most recent addition to his litigation, filed last week in Columbia County Circuit Court.

The filings are assigned the case number of his Columbia County case, but the allegations in them relate to the federal case.

Among the newest contentions is that Hazelbaker cost Gruber a $1,500 sale because he frightened away a customer during an Oct. 13 visit to Grubers place of business.

According to the legal papers filed Oct. 21 in Columbia County Circuit Court, Hazelbaker walked into Gruber Automotive while Gruber was with a customer in the process of accepting agreement to rebuild a transmission for payment of $1,500.

The papers said Hazelbake stated he was upset over being sued in federal court and he created a disturbance that was abusive, boisterous and unreasonably loud, causing the customer to flee the business

Hazelbaker said he remembers the visit as having a tone of civility, though he has told Gruber that he intends to seek sanctions from him for filing the federal lawsuit, which he said has no factual basis and no basis in law.

In fact, he said, he still hopes to negotiate a settlement for Grubers property that will satisfy Gruber.

I want to keep the lines of communication open, he said.

Gruber continues to occupy and operate his business, although it has been deeded to Columbia County. The countys Condemnation Commission awarded him $140,000 for the property, and the county has deposited the money with the circuit court, where it will stay until the matter is resolved.

Hazelbaker said Gruber has never presented him with an amount that he thinks the property is worth. Gruber had expressed intention to hire an appraiser who would analyze the propertys value as a business.

But if Gruber keeps filing legal actions against the county, Hazelbaker said, then the county is forced to spend money to defend itself.

Every dollar that Columbia County spends on this frivolous lawsuit, he said, is a dollar that they shouldnt have to spend.
Fortunately for most citizens of Columbia County, they havent had contact with the district attorneys office. I say fortunately because that means that they havent been accused of, or been a victim of, a crime. Unfortunately, however, this means that most citizens are not familiar with what it takes to successfully run that office. I am writing to offer some insight into why Jane Kohlwey should be re-elected as your district attorney.

I worked as an assistant district attorney under Jane for 10 years and I know something about her not only as a DA, but also as a person. Two areas seem to be central in this election: staffing of the DAs office and discretion in charging cases. Let me start by offering some facts about staffing levels.

In 2006, the Columbia County DAs office employed 4.5 prosecutors (four full-time and one half-time). At that time, the state Legislative Audit Bureau determined that the optimum staffing level for the office was 6.41 positions, or almost two full-time positions short. Almost every county statewide had a similar shortage. An updated study in 2016 shows Columbia County short by 3.32 positions. Every year, Jane has submitted budget requests to the state that asked for an increase in prosecutors. Every year, however, Jane and other district attorneys in the state were turned down.

Many others, including defense attorneys, support Janes request for more prosecutors. An Oct. 14 article in the Appleton Post-Crescent quotes Chad Lanning, president-elect of the Wisconsin Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, who opined, I think prosecutors are understaffed across Wisconsin. I dont know anyone who disagrees with that position, actually. Jane understands that running an efficient office doesnt mean firing three attorneys on your first day in office  a dangerous proposal put forth by Janes opponent.

When it comes to exercising discretion in charging a case, Jane and other prosecutors rely on their expert judgment. The discretion given to a prosecutor is considerable and Jane always has been aware of the amount of power that her position has. In the 10 years that I worked for her, I never saw her abuse that discretion to charge a case that was not supported by evidence. The evidence may be the sworn statement of a witness, whose memory was influenced by the stress of the crime being committed against them. Several months after a crime has been charged, that witness may very well remember the event differently. Its Janes job to use her judgment to determine what can be proven or not. It has never been her intention to simply get a conviction or to bring frivolous cases to trial. To do so runs the risk of convicting an innocent person and Jane has repeatedly said to me that she would rather let 10 guilty people go free, than wrongly convict one innocent person.

A jury trial is one of the most fundamental rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution. Its a check in our system of checks and balances that shouldnt be taken lightly. Its an exercise of constitutional importance that is afforded to every defendant in a criminal case. Part of a prosecutors job is to make sure that right is protected. To suggest otherwise shows a distinct lack of understanding of the criminal justice system.

As a Columbia County taxpayer, mother of two, partner of a combat veteran, and experienced attorney, I fully support Jane Kohlwey for district attorney and I urge you to do so as well.
Journalists are by no means perfect. We publish the first draft of history, and first drafts sometimes have errors. Reputable news outlets acknowledge their errors and correct them.

Irresponsible journalism can be punished in a court of law, but journalism itself is not a crime. In fact, journalism is one of the freedoms our Founding Fathers thought so highly of, and wanted to make a point of protecting, that they included freedom of the press  with the freedom of speech, religion, assembly and to petiton the government to address grievances  in the First Amendment to the Constitution.

We were happy to see a judge in North Dakota uphold freedom of the press on Oct. 17.

Democracy Now! reporter Amy Goodman wont face a riot charge stemming from her coverage of a protest against construction of the Dakota Access oil pipeline in North Dakota, with a judge saying Oct. 17 that there was no cause for it, the Associated Press reported.

Judge John Grinsteiner refused to sign off on the misdemeanor riot charge, which prosecutor Ladd Erickson had pursued after dismissing a misdemeanor criminal trespass charge against the journalist.

Erickson has said Goodman was acting like a protester when she reported on a clash between protesters and pipeline security last month. Her defense attorney, Tom Dickson, maintains Goodman was doing her job.

The protests have drawn thousands of people to the area where Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners is trying to wrap up construction on the $3.8 billion, 1,200-mile pipeline from North Dakota to Illinois. Opponents of the pipeline worry about potential effects on drinking water on the Standing Rock Sioux reservation and farther downstream, as well as destruction of cultural artifacts.

Goodman is one of about 140 people who have been charged in recent weeks with interfering with the pipelines construction in North Dakota.

An arrest warrant was issued for Goodman after she reported on a clash on Sept. 3, when Standing Rock Sioux officials said crews bulldozed several sites of significant cultural and historic value on private land. Energy Transfer Partners denies those allegations.

Goodman reported live from the scene of a clash as an observer, not an active participant.

When asked to explain the grounds for arresting a working journalist, Erickson told the Grand Forks Herald that he did not, in fact, consider Goodman a journalist. Shes a protester, basically, Erickson told the newspaper.

Everything she reported on was from the position of justifying the protest actions.

Its not hard to read between the lines and infer that, had Goodman reported from a pro-pipeline perspective, Erickson probably would not have filed rioting charges.

The Bismarck Tribune later quoted Erickson: I think she put together a piece to influence the world on her agenda, basically. Thats fine, but it doesnt immunize her from the laws of her state.

The First Amendment would beg to differ, Mr. States Attorney. As would Judge Grinsteiner, who did differ justly when he tossed out the charge.

Regardless of whether a reporter has what is perceived to be a bias in favor of the protesters or in favor of the pipeline construction, that reporter has a First Amendment right to be present in that part of North Dakota where the conflict is taking place. Questions of bias are for readers and viewers to decide, not states attorneys.

Its right there in the name: The attorney represents the state, also known as the government. The one which shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.
Pat Eschmann spent part of her summer visiting Wisconsin Dells, checking on the construction of her new apartment.

I came up every week (from her west Madison home) in the summer to watch (its) progress, she said with a laugh.

On Friday, Eschmann finally began moving into her new place, along with her fellow occupants of the sixth and final building of the new Pioneer Ridge Cottages apartment complex.

The long-awaited, affordable housing complex officially marked its full occupancy Wednesday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, and residents of the complexs sixth building began moving in Friday.

It will be fully occupied as of Saturday, reported Jean Bartz, Pioneer Ridges property manager.

In the works for almost four years and under construction since last fall, the 72-unit complex on Wednesday received its Certificate of Occupancy from the state of Wisconsin.

Mayor Brian Landers and state Sen. Luther Olsen joined a group of dignitaries representing the projects numerous partners for the ceremonial ribbon-cutting in the complexs clubhouse.

On hand for the ceremony in addition to the two elected officials were Brian Schimming, chief operating officer of Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA), Chris Jaye and Kristi Morgan, president and chief operating officer, respectively, of developer Mirus Partners, and Tim Radelet, executive director of Madison-based Movin Out.

Its outstanding, and we need more of it  I think its just the start, Landers said Thursday. We worked really hard to get this developed, in a place that needs affordable workforce housing, and I think the speed that they filled this up with definitely shows the need for it.

The Pioneer Ridge development began moving forward in late spring of 2015 when the state approved $724,000 in Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) for the project, which on two earlier occasions was rejected for LIHTC funding. The tax credits combined with $715,000 in Tax Increment Financing (TIF) from the city allowed project developer Mirus Partners to proceed.

Each of the six buildings contains 10, 12 or 14 units with a combination of one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments. Each apartment cottage comes with an attached garage and washer and dryer, with heat and water included.

The first of the complexs six, single-story buildings was completed in June, with one each of the remaining five units opening in successive months and concluding this weekend.

Monthly rental prices range from a little more than $400 to almost $1,000, with those prices determined by each tenants income qualifications, according to Bartz. The most expensive units are market-priced, she said.

The complex includes apartments for those with disabilities, with a reported 18 units going to tenants with disabilities or veterans, thanks to the assistance of development partner and statewide non-profit Movin Out, whose mission is to provide affordable housing for people with disabilities.

Many of Pioneer Ridges residents were on hand for Wednesdays ribbon cutting, including Eschmann, who learned about the development when visiting the Dells and the Kilbourn Public Library one afternoon last winter.

Bartz happened to be in the library that day as part of her winter-long effort to recruit and sign up tenants  a process that went quickly, as evidenced by this weeks full occupancy.

Im a senior, Im semi retired, I work from my home and it was very difficult finding something that was this nice and one that I could afford, Eschmann said. I looked up (complex management company) Commonwealth Management, and I was really impressed with their desire to create good, affordable homes for hardworking people. They wanted to build quality residences for hard-working people who couldnt afford luxury apartments.
The problem Crime Branch sleuths are facing is that both Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir are blaming each other over who collected secret information regarding deployment of BSF and defence forces on the border.

By Atir Khan: While Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar has been allowed to go to Pakistan due to diplomatic immunity, the Crime Branch sleuths of Delhi Police are now facing a tough task... They have to identify the source, which was passing on secret information about BSF deployment.

ROLE OF 3 INDIANS BEING PROBED



In order to plug loopholes in the system, due to which ISI agent Mehmood Akhtar was able to get access to classified defence and paramilitary information, Crime Branch sleuths have started interrogation of three Indian nationals arrested on the charges of espionage.

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Sohaib, one of the key associates of Akhtar, was caught by Crime Branch sleuths from Rajasthan on Friday. He was produced in court and remanded to eleven days police custody. Sources said Sohaib along with already arrested Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir are being interrogated.

ALSO READ | Exclusive: Crime Branch probing role of two mysterious women in ISI spy ring

THE BLAME GAME



The problem Crime Branch sleuths are facing is that Maulana Ramzan is saying that Subhash Jangir used to collect secret information from his sources in border areas. However, Subhash is saying it was Maulana who had contacts in border areas and he used those contacts to get classified information.

Now, that sleuths have got custody of Sohaib they are hopeful of confronting the three and arriving to the conclusion on the source who fed them classified information. Sources say Sohaib's father was a visa agent and he got into family business and that's how he met Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar in Delhi.

MYSTERIOUS WOMEN



Sources say Sohaib had introduced Pakistan staffers to some suspected women, whom they would often meet privately in hotels. Sleuths suspect these women were also being used in honey traps for extracting classified information from Indian sources. Pakistan High Commission staffer had spoken to those women on several occasions.

Among other things sleuths have also seized a Samsung tablet from the possession of Sohaib. The sleuths are hopeful of getting some vital information regarding the spy ring from the gadget. Investigators suspect involvement of some serving and retired BSF officers.

ALSO READ:

How sincere efforts, good luck helped Delhi cops nab ISI spy Mehmood Akhtar red handed



--- ENDS ---
Swamy said that Tata should be dragged to court over the various allegations made by Mistry in response to his dramatic sacking as Tata Sons chairman on Monday.

By India Today Web Desk: BJP's Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy has joined the Tata-Mistry boardroom war with his letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking for a Special Investigative Team (SIT) to probe the allegations levelled by Cyrus Mistry against Ratan N Tata.

India Today has exclusive access to Swamy's letter to Modi in which he has said Ratan Tata should be dragged to court over the various allegations made by Mistry in response to his dramatic sacking as Tata Sons chairman on Monday.

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Tata Sons has accused Mistry of making "unsubstantiated claims and malicious allegations" against the conglomerate as the gloves came off in a bitter and highly public row over his sacking.

MISTRY ACCUSES COMPANY OF FAILURES OF GOVERNANCE



Subramanian Swamy's letter to PM Modi.

Mistry's parting shot, in a blistering five-page letter written after he was ousted in a boardroom coup late on Monday, accused the company of failures of governance that he said had destroyed billions of dollars in shareholder value.

ALSO READ: Swamy claims Ram temple is on BJP agenda, India Today-Axis poll finds 0 per cent UP voters want it



He also alleged inappropriate interference by Ratan Tata, the 78-year-old patriarch who hired him and has come out of retirement to run the business in a caretaker role.

The Tata group, in an eight-paragraph statement on Thursday, dismissed Mistry's claims.

"The correspondence makes unsubstantiated claims and malicious allegations," Tata Sons said in the statement emailed to reporters a day after Mistry's letter was leaked to the press.

"These will be responded to in an appropriate manner," the company said without elaborating, raising the prospect that the war of words could lead to a legal battle.

ALSO READ:

Review UPA's amendments to GST, Subramanian Swamy writes to PM Modi





--- ENDS ---
Free mobile data for students

Telkom, Cell C, Vodacom and MTN have agreed to provide mobile data services for students to access academic material until the end of the year.

Telkom is already active and Vodacom should be active by Friday. MTN and Cell C are still to be activated.

How does it work?

Students with a mobile prepaid or post-paid SIM card will be allowed to access selected Wits websites, Sakai and e-learning sites without paying for data consumption. The service is free within the borders of South Africa. Any roaming charges will have to be paid for by the subscriber (student). The network will log and monitor the data usage and report on it but will not charge the user or the University for the use.

Which sites can students access without paying?

Students will not pay for access to the following sites:

Sakai - LMS https://cle.wits.ac.za

Library https://www.wits.ac.za/library/

Library resources https://innopac.wits.ac.za

MyWits https://www.wits.ac.za/mywits/

Bus timetable http://www.witsbus.co.za

Password reset registration https://passwordregistration.wits.ac.za

Password reset https://passwordreset.wits.ac.za

Self-service for students https://self-service.wits.ac.za/

Wits dining https://witsapps.wits.ac.za/witsdining/

School of Therapeutic Sciences - LMS http://stselearning.health.wits.ac.za/moodle

Update from the Senior Executive Team (17:00):

Academic programme

The academic programme continued today without disruption.

Incidents

A fire was started in the Library on the Wits Education Campus this morning resulting in the burning of a shelf of books. Fortunately the fire was extinguished quickly and the damage was minimal. The police and Campus Control are investigating the incident.

Arrests and suspensions

The University has learnt that two individuals, one of whom is a Wits student, were arrested by the police on charges related to public violence and arson two days ago. We have been informed that they are being held at the Hillbrow Police Station.

We have initiated the suspension process for the Wits student. In the last four weeks, 13 students have been suspended.
Finance Minister juggles both the books and the politics

South Africas Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan delivered his medium-term budget with a lot more than balancing the books on his mind.

The Conversation Africas Charles Leonard asked David Everatt how well the beleaguered minister scored on managing the political sums.

Pravin Gordhan went to talk to the protesting #FeesMustFall students outside Parliament before delivering his medium-term budget speech. Was it clever politics or political grandstanding?

Both. Plus one thing otherwise completely lacking  leadership. He also called on students to stop burning and return to class and exams - another missing message. Leadership and courage  going out to meet the students, face to face, which has been one of their key demands. One wonders: why is he the only minister willing to do so?

Clever politics. Sure, hes showing that he has broad-based support, which I suspect will have grown as a result of meeting the students, and basically saying to others, come get me if you dare. That message of course goes to the National Director of Public Prosecutions, Shaun Abrahams and the police unit, the Hawks, who have laid rather spurious charges of fraud and theft against him, as well as President Jacob Zuma and his political allies in the African National Congress. They see Gordhan as an obstacle to their alleged attempts at state capture.

What does the medium-term budget tell you about South Africas political landscape?

The fact that Gordhan kept mentioning the risk environment, and kept repeating the dangers posed by state-owned enterprises, speaks volumes about the crony capitalist environment in which he is operating, and by which he is constrained.

In his speech Gordhan said: What we seek - and more - can be done. If we collectively make the right choices; support confidence and investment in our economy; create a predictable and stable policy and political environment; and put the national interest first. Its up to us. Is this a plea for his numerous enemies to back off?

Quite clearly, at a political level, he was saying pretty much that. But I think at base he is caught between a desire to grow the economy and meet his governments National Development Plans goals, and those of his cabinet colleagues who seem to ignore the plan and have little interest in economic growth.

What is missing is the need for the private sector to come to the table without preconditions so that the R500 billion - R600 billion cash pile they are said to be holding onto can be mobilised to stimulate domestic investment.

Second, while it is important to be sensitive to the ratings agencies criticisms, South Africans cannot allow them and the countrys old capital to determine and drive economic policy. Its time for Gordhan and the government in general to lead, rather than follow, on economic policy.

Gordhan has to balance between development and growth  did he pull it off?

He did not. We have neither growth nor development. The social development indicators, for example for health and education, are appalling especially in terms of access and quality for the poor. This is particularly true for people who live outside the cities. There is no clear policy to address social and economic inequality  or the implications of inequality for growth and development.

The minister allocated a massive R17.6 billion more than projected for post-school education and training over three years. This is in addition to the R16 billion added in February. The money will be used to subsidise the fee increases for poor households. Do you think he would have pleased the students?

No, because the demand has escalated to free post-school education for all. But there is a need to be sensitive to the broader ramifications of this increase. South Africas economy is not growing, and is not expected to grow in the short to medium terms. On top of this there are no tax increases (yet). Increased funding for post-school education therefore means less for others  such as schooling, health, housing  further contributing to inequalities.

Gordhan has indicated a cut in spending on civil servants. Are we heading for a clash with the powerful public sector unions come wage negotiations?

I think he was talking about a freeze on posts  already in place in many departments  and not replacing retirees. The real challenge will be meeting the goals of the National Development Plan with a depleted civil service, and one disheartened by our current, unpleasant politics.

David Everatt, Head of Wits School of Governance, University of the Witwatersrand.This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
"I don't give a s*** if you don't like me," says Sunny Leone at one point in Mostly Sunny, photographer-turned-filmmaker Dilip Mehta's documentary about her journey from the quiet, small town of Sarnia in Canada to big city Mumbai. It is one of the many provocative statements that the porn star-turned-Bollywood actor makes in the 94-minute film, in which Karenjit Kaur Vohra tells it as it is. It's a film she doesn't want Indians to see. At its India premiere in the Mumbai Film Festival, there are some clues why Leone and Daniel Weber, her husband, manager and confidant, are upset. There are brief clips from her porn films as well as footage from a brazen interview she gave to The Howard Stern Show, declaring that she knew she was a bisexual since she was 13. Whatever be Leone and Weber's sentiments, Netflix has acquired the worldwide rights for Mostly Sunny and plans to release it in early 2017.

Sunny Leone's present rests on her past and it is that very past that she now wants to be represented in ways that she is comfortable with. But Mehta, who sought complete creative control and total access, won't budge. He can be as unapologetically frank as Leone. "The only reason for her success, and I'm not being unkind about it, is her past as a major porn star," he says. "She is not particularly a good actor as yet, she is not particularly a good dancer though she has improved significantly; she is good-looking, but then this is Bollywood which has attractive women a dime a dozen." That Leone is a rank outsider who, against all odds, has found a foothold in the Hindi film business drew Mehta to her story.

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Sunny Leone shoots for the song 'Pink lips'

Mostly Sunny benefits greatly from the complete participation of Leone and Weber, who gave Mehta access to their home, both in Mumbai and Los Angeles, the set of Leone's Hindi films and even a porn film for their banner, SunLust Productions-a threesome shot in an apartment in Los Angeles. "I said I'd only do it if they'd give everything, because if you withhold then what's the point," says Mehta. In the film, Mehta travels with the couple to her family home in Canada and attends a wedding where Leone dances for the groom while his wife stands by the side. "It's insane," says Leone about how people pay to watch her perform at events.

Sunny Leone the star is known to all, but Karenjit Kaur Vohra the daughter, the sister and the Sikh girl from Sarnia is not. Brother Sundeep Singh Vohra aka Sunny, the California-based chef, provides the most insightful bits about her life before she became famous. It is his pet name that Karenjit adopted as her porn moniker in her late teens. The surname comes from Italian filmmaker and spaghetti western genre legend Sergio Leone. The younger sibling went on to sell her scantily-clad, autographed photographs to his collegemates for pocket money. He was the first person she confided in about acting in porn films. "They are remarkably close," says Mehta, who shares a similar rapport with his filmmaker-sister Deepa Mehta. "She has his back and he has hers."

Sundeep is also the only family member willing to talk about Sunny as most of her Indian relatives, both in Canada and the US, where she moved at the age of 14, have abandoned her. Leone explains that when entering the adult film industry, she didn't think of her family or the moral repercussions of her choice. "The Indian community here doesn't want to talk to me," she says. Later, she speaks of how they told her she was "a disgrace to every Indian".

It's Leone's resilience ("Get used to my body because it's not going anywhere") and her vulnerabilities ("I was a loner") that lend Mostly Sunny some of its best moments. They include Leone reminiscing about her father at the gurdwara in Sarnia and her brother's moving revelation of their mother's alcohol addiction, which worsened after she learned of Leone's vocation. Mostly Sunny is also clear that Leone ventured into pornography not because of a traumatic childhood or impoverished conditions at home. "He didn't have to force or cajole me," says Leone about her meeting with the owner of a porn site. More than greed, it was easy money that powered her. "They [the family] definitely didn't get what we wanted," says Leone. She was naive enough to believe that the amount she earned for being Penthouse Pet of the Year in 2003-$100,000-would convince her parents to support her decision.

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Mehta almost didn't make the film. Son of a film distributor, he studied in Dehradun, then pursued graphic design in advertising in Toronto. He took up photography, shot for Time and National Geographic magazines and was signed on by Contact Press Images agency. His first film, The Forgotten Woman-on the widows of Vrindavan-caught the attention of the producers. After initially agreeing, Mehta backed out in the aftermath of the Nirbhaya gang-rape case, when Leone was blamed for propagating rape culture because of her earlier work. "Rape existed long before pornography," says Leone. "Stop freaking blaming me."

A meeting with Leone and Weber in Mumbai made Mehta change his mind. He says, "She grew up in a Sikh household, which makes her more Indian at heart than Indians who live here [in India]. She grew up watching Hindi films; so for her it was, and is, a dream come true. In my opinion, her ascending star was on the wane in North America. Out here, they were falling over each other wanting to embrace her." Mehta followed his subject for two years, covering the highs (chartbuster Baby Doll) and lows (film Jackpot) of her career and interviewing lesser-known professionals from the industry, such as three background Bollywood dancers "who want the luxurious life of Leone" as opposed to the dream of wanting to be like Leone.

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Mehta covers Leone's continental shift well, but when it comes to her stint in Bollywood-Leone has at least two releases a year-he doesn't have all the answers. So then, why does Sunny Leone still shine? Adman Suhel Seth and filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt offer a few theories. "You can be a porn star and still be shy," says Bhatt about her appeal. Seth says Leone's marriage to Weber, her musician boyfriend who became her co-star in porn films, brought her social acceptance.

Mostly Sunny avoids being a hagiographical account and is also non-judgemental of Leone's choices. On Leone and Weber rejecting the film, Mehta says: "Disappointing. It was such an intimate collaboration." The absence of a narrator and Mehta's fly-on-the wall approach brings to the film some much-needed droll moments, which are saved for the last when Leone is shooting for Ek Paheli Leela in Rajasthan. Her co-star Rajneesh Duggal brags about how, unlike him, many actors have reservations working with her.

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Bollywood may have welcomed her into its fold, but Leone knows her boundaries or perhaps her limitations. "I'm not a part of the group," she says, giving a glimpse of her loneliness and struggle to fit in. Aamir Khan will stand up for her after she is judged in a news channel interview and Shah Rukh Khan may dance with her (in the forthcoming Raees), but when it comes to being their leading lady, there is still a long way to go.

It's not always sunny in Bollywood.





Follow the writer on Twitter @suhani84



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By PTI: From Aditi Khanna

London, Oct 27 (PTI) A 19-year-old, who was arrested by counter-terrorism officers for plotting an attack on the London Underground network, was today remanded in custody for three weeks by a local court.

Damon Smith is accused ofunlawfully and maliciously making or having in his possession an explosive substance with intent to endanger life or cause serious injury to property.

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The student from London Metropolitan University appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court today and smiled and waved towards the public gallery.

Senior district judge Emma Arbuthnot refused bail and said Smith would be remanded in custody until his next hearing at the Old Bailey court in London on November 17.

"He has been charged following the discovery of a suspicious item on a tube train at North Greenwich Underground Station on Thursday, 20 October," a Scotland Yard statement said.

North Greenwich station in south London was shut down on October 20 after passengers spotted an unaccompanied rucksack.

It was initially treated as lost property and handed to the driver, who looked in the bag and saw it contained a homemade explosive device, at which point he raised the alarm.

The Metropolitan Police has described the device as "viable".

A second suspicious but un-viable device was discovered by detectives at the back of a garage at an address in Newton Abbot, south-west England, on Saturday, causing evacuations of nearby properties as counter-terrorism officers sealed off the street.

Smith has been charged under the UK?s Explosive Substances Act 1883 with making or owning an explosive substance with intent to injure or endanger lives. PTI AK ZH

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BT Group plc provides communications services worldwide. Its Consumer segment sells telephones, baby monitors, and Wi-Fi extenders through high street retailers, online BT Shop, and Website BT.com; and offers home phone, copper and fiber broadband, TV, and mobile services in various packages. The company's EE segment offers 2G, 3G, and 4G mobile network services; broadband, fixed-voice, and TV services; and postpaid and prepaid plans, and emergency services network. This segment also sells 4G mobile phones, tablets, connected devices, and mobile broadband devices from various manufacturers. Its Business and Public Sector segment provides fixed voice, mobility, fiber and connectivity, and networked IT services to retailers, utilities, public sector, healthcare, sports, construction, finance, and educational sectors. The company's Global Services segment offers business communications and ICT services comprising BT Connect, BT Security, BT One, BT Contact, BT Compute, BT Advise, and BT for financial markets. This segment serves approximately 5,500 customers in 180 countries. Its Wholesale and Ventures segment enables communications providers and other organizations to provide fixed or mobile phone services. Its ventures provide mass-market services, such as directory enquiries and payphones; and enterprise services comprising BT Fleet and BT Redcare. This segment also provides broadband and Ethernet, voice, hosted communication, mobile virtual network operator, managed solutions, machine-to-machine, roaming, and media services. The company's Openreach segment engages in the provision of services over the local access network; and installation and maintenance of fiber and copper communications networks that connect homes and businesses. The company was formerly known as Newgate Telecommunications Limited and changed its name to BT Group plc in September 2001. BT Group plc was incorporated in 2001 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.
By PTI: New Delhi, Oct 28 (PTI) Questioning Jawaharlal Nehrus policies, Union Minister Jitendra Singh today said if Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel had been given a free hand to deal with Jammu and Kashmir, as in case of other princely states, the situation there would have been different.

Delivering the 59th Sardar Patel Memorial Lecture here, the Minister of State in the PMO said just as Nehrus "midnight arrival" heralded a new era for India, the "twilight arrival" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi can also be described as the beginning of a new era.

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Singh said Nehru, free Indias first Prime Minister, believed that he knew Jammu and Kashmir better than Patel and thought he should take care of it rather than the Home Minister, who integrated over 560 other princely states into the Indian union.

"The common opinion is that the course of events would have been different if Sardar Patel was given the liberty to handle, like other (princely) states, Jammu and Kashmir as well. Because Nehru believed that he knew Jammu and Kashmir better than Sardar sahab and therefore he should take care of it. And then going to UNO and all those things...," he said.

Noting that the UN resolution was not against the accession of Jammu and Kashmir to India but Pakistans aggression against the country, Singh said the document itself became "infructuous" as one of its conditions was that Pakistan also had to withdraw from the territory it had occupied, something it refused to do.

"Nevertheless it (UN resolution) gave rise to another school of thought which said that Jammu and Kashmir was something which could be discussed internationally and even at the UN which I personally do not agree. We have no such issue as Jammu and Kashmir," he said.

"It is an integral part of India, it always was. If at all there is an issue it is how to free the part of Jammu and Kashmir which continues to be under illegal occupation of Pakistan," he said.

"I have no hesitation to say time unfortunately proved Nehru wrong. The example of Pir Panjal and Hindi-Chini bhai bhai...that experiment failed in his own lifetime and unfortunately also weighed on him," Singh said.

About the non-aligned movement, Singh said, in less than ten years of Nehrus passing away, Indira Gandhi had to enter into an accord with the Soviet Union because of the growing threat from the US. Nehru was one of the founding leaders of the NAM whose main objective was to build a grouping of nations which were not formally aligned to either the US or the Soviet Union, the two major powers during the cold war. MORE PTI MRJ NES SK SK

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By PTI: Pak soldiers in one week

Jammu, Oct 28 (PTI) As military confrontation increased on the border, two civilians were killed in Jammu region of India in cross-border shelling and firing overnight even as BSF today claimed to have killed 15 Pakistani soldiers over the last one week.

BSF, which primarily guards the International Border with Pakistan, said it had also foiled two infiltration bids in Samba district two days back. Besides, BAT (Border Action Team) attacks from Pakistani side along the Line of Control have also been thwarted during the past 24 hours.

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Firing mortar shells and using automatic weapons, Pakistani troops targeted civilian areas and forward security posts along the International Border and Line of Control in Jammu, Kathua, Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu and Kashmir.

"At 1720 hour yesterday, Pakistan Rangers started unprovoked heavy firing and shelling in Kathua sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba. It continued till 0500 hours today in the area of24 BSF posts," a senior BSF officer said.

"In the Pakistani shelling, one civilian died in Khour belt of Pallanwala sector today," Jammu Deputy Commissioner Simrandeep Singh said, adding another civilian was injured in R S Pura sector.

Similarly, one woman Usma Bi, aged 50 years, was killed in shelling by Pakistan on Gohlad village in Mendhar tehsil of Poonch district today, Defence spokesman said.

Another civilian was injured in area, the reports said.

BSF Additional Director General Arun Kumar said as per the ammunition used, it seems Pakistani Army Army is backing the Rangers and has taken over the posts of paramilitary force, which is further cause of escalation.

Kumar, who laid wreath at the moral remains of the BSF martyr Head Constable Jitendra Singh here, said "they (Pakistani side) are resorting to heavy firing and shelling and we are giving them befitting reply."

He said BSF has inflicted heavy damage on Pakistani side.

"As far the number of casualities on other side is concerned, which our men have seen through our eyes and instruments, 15 Pakistani soldiers have been killed after the sniping incident of Constable Gurnam Singh (on October 21)," he said. Gurnam was injured in the sniper firing and then succumbed to the injuries.

"They (Pakistani side) have suffered damage but are hiding them in public domain and they do not accept it. Last night we have destroyed their OP (observation post) towers and some OP towers caught fire due to our firing," Kumar said.

He said Pakistani Rangers, Pakistani regulars and civilian population on their side have suffered heavy damage because of the Indian retaliation.

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"The damage to civilian population is much more (than us)... We have seen large number of ambulances coming and picking up injured. They have been making announcements from mosques asking people to assemble for last rites. All that points that they suffered a lot," the BSF officer said. (MORE) PTI AB AKK AKK

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Your challenge is a 10-year-old boy on the street with whom you need to deal with compassion, the Chief Minister tells police cadets.

By Ashraf Wani: Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today said policing in Jammu and Kashmir involved many challenges as, more than just law and order, the police force had to deal with extraordinary situations in the state, unlike in other states of the country.

"I must admit that our police force works in very peculiar and difficult circumstances, unlike their counterparts in other states," the Chief Minister said while addressing cadets at the Attestation-cum-Passing out Parade of 17 Probationer Deputy SPs and 106 Prosecuting Officers at the Sher-e-Kashmir Police Academy (SKPA) in Udhampur.

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WHO ALL PRESENT AT THE PASSING-OUT PARADE



Also present on the occasion were Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh, Minister for Industries and Commerce Chander Parkash, Udhampur MLA Pawan Gupta, Director General of Police K Rajendra Kumar, Director General of Prisons SK Mishra, Special DGP of Coordination Dr SP Vaid, CVC Kuldeep Khuda and Director of SKPA Rajesh Kumar among other senior officers of the Army, police and civil administration.

Felicitating cadets for successfully passing out of the academy as officers, Mufti said that passing out of the academy would mark a new beginning for them and that they needed to prove their mettle and be worthy of the uniform that they are clad in. Complimenting the excellence shown by the women cadets during their training period, Mufti said that women in the police force were second to none in performing professional duties in an efficient manner and had an important role to play in maintaining law and order.

Also read: Mehbooba Mufti to Kashmir police: Take bullet instead of using pellet guns on protesters



Observing that being a part of the police force gives one the best opportunity to serve the nation, the Chief Minister said, "It is the police that brings a sense of security to the people. The state of Jammu and Kashmir presents itself as a beautiful land of diversity that exhibits a unique sense of oneness and brotherhood, which is also reflected and symbolised in our police force.

The chief minister said that when the nation was being divided on the basis of religious lines, Jammu and Kashmir provided a unique window of hope, rejecting the religious divide and sided with India on the basis of multi-culturalism, secularism and inclusiveness. And unfortunately, it was the baggage of 70 years of that division that Jammu and Kashmir had been carrying along, resulting in several untoward incidents in the state. "The problems that we are facing today have been inherited since the time of partition," she said.

MEHBOOBA STRESSES ON BETTER POLICING



Emphasising on the need for better policing, Mehbooba told the cadets that it was not only policing that they would be expected to carry out. "Cadets must also, as parents, take up the responsibility of guiding the ill-advised youth, who seem to have gone astray. This is a bigger challenge. Your challenge is the 10-year-old boy on the street whom you need to deal with greater compassion and as a younger sibling", she said. She said that since common people in the state had realised the futility of the gun, resulting in cases of militancy going down over the years, forces averse to peace were now instigating youngsters to indulge in violence by pelting stones."

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She said, "War is no solution to the issues between India and Pakistan. Pakistan should initiate a dialogue for peace. Ultimately we must reconcile differences and be friends. Pakistan should initiate dialogue with India, instead of indulging in cross-border firing", she said.

Also read: Removal of AFSPA necessary for peace in Kashmir: Mehbooba Mufti



"India and Pakistan need to sit together like civilised nations and talk, and I think there is a need for Pakistan to take the initiative," she added.

KASHMIR VALLEY TURMOIL

Referring to the recent turmoil in the Kashmir valley and particularly its impact on the education sector in the state, Mufti said that certain people had exploited school-going children for their vested interests by keeping them away from schools.

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Expressing pain and anguish on the recent reports of schools being gutted, the Chief Minister slammed those instigating poor children and misguiding them to act violently so that the reaction leads to injuries or fatalities and becomes the reason to prolong the turmoil, which has over a period of time only brought miseries to the people.

She added that students were keen to attend schools but feared being intimidated by miscreants.

Urging the police to deal with the situation with self-discipline, the Chief Minister said that the police had a big role to play in maintaining peace and tranquility.

HAVE WORKED FOR RIGHTS OF THE PEOPLE: MUFTI

The Chief Minister said that she considered herself a more active human rights activist as she had actually worked for the people on the ground at a time when militancy was at its peak and had travelled across the state to campaign for upholding the rights of the people.

Mufti said, "Violence has never helped address any situation. Holding dialogue is the only way out." She added that certain political groups, who had earlier shut their doors to talks, agreed to meet the recent civil society group from New Delhi, something that should have been done earlier to save the turmoil from extending so long.

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She said, "The government is all for the welfare of the police personnel. Certain reforms are required to be brought about in the police acts. However, such reforms should start right from the academy itself. Government will work towards providing the best facilities at the academy. You need to be the best among the lot and develop as an elite police force."

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8 persons were killed in the incident. The injured have been shifted to hospital.

By India Today Web Desk: A major fire broke out at a fire crackers shop in Rustampura village of Vaghodia tehsil in Vadodara today evening.



8 persons were killed in the incident. The injured have been shifted to hospital.

#SpotVisuals 8 dead, many injured after fire broke out in fire crackers shop in Vadodara, police team at spot. Injured being shifted to hosp pic.twitter.com/3Z5IODc1aa ANI (@ANI_news) October 28, 2016

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More details awaited



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By PTI: From Sajjad Hussain

Islamabad, Oct 28 (PTI) Pakistan today said it will attend the Heart of Asia conference on Afghanistan to be held in Amritsar in December but has not decided on the "manner and level" of participation, a day after India welcomed Islamabads decision to take part in the meet.

"The Heart of Asia Conference is aimed at bringing development in Afghanistan with the collaboration of other regional countries, which is in line with Pakistans commitment of supporting all efforts towards peace and stability in Afghanistan. We will be attending the conference," Foreign Office spokesman Nafess Zakaria said during his weekly briefing here.

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The spokesman, however, did not specify the manner and level of Pakistans participation in the meet that comes amidst rising tensions and loss of life due to heavy firing across the Line of Control (LoC).

"However, the decision on the level and manner of participation in the Heart of Asia Conference is yet to be taken," he said.

Yesterday in New Delhi, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup has welcomed Pakistans participation at the meet to be held on December 4.

To another question, he said that the expelled Indian staffer at the Indian High Commission was involved in activities that were directly against the national security interests of Pakistan.

"Unlike India, which has no proof but it keeps levelling baseless accusations against Pakistan, we have irrefutable proof of Indian state involvement in activities against Pakistans territorial integrity and national security," he said.

Commenting on reported comments of BJP leader Subramanian Swamy said that India might be pushed to a war with Pakistan if the latter continues its support to terrorism, Zakaria said that in the past too, Indian politicians have cast aspersions on Pakistan and have used this as a tool in domestic politics.

"We see the current political debate about Pakistan in India, in the same backdrop as also its desperation to deflect the world attention from its atrocities in Kashmir. The timing and pattern of heating up LoC by India are suggestive. Pakistan condemns such crass attempts to malign it," he said.

He also said that the 2008 Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) waiver has helped India to embark on a nuclear buildup and increase its military nuclear programme and lamented that the waiver was granted without requiring India to make "any worthwhile non-proliferation commitments". MORE PTI SH SUA AKJ SUA

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Court rejects EDF works council appeal against Hinkley

28 October 2016

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The High Court of Paris has rejected an appeal by EDF's Central Works Council (CEC) over the court's earlier rejection of its request to suspend the final investment decision for the Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant project in the UK.

A consultation process between EDF and the CEC on the Hinkley Point C project began on 2 May. However, the works council claimed it had not been sufficiently informed and consulted by EDF and submitted its request to suspend any final decision to the Paris High Court on 22 June. EDF's board subsequently made its final investment decision on 28 July to go ahead with the 18 billion ($21.8 billion) project to construct two EPR reactors at Hinkley Point.

The works council's request was, however, rejected by the Paris High Court on 5 August and CEC subsequently appealed the court's ruling.

The court yesterday rejected CEC's appeal, citing a 21 September decision by France's supreme court of appeals, the Cour de Cassation. This decision stated that, for an appeal to be valid, a judge must make a ruling in such cases before the deadline for the works council to give its feedback.

A hearing for CEC's appeal was held in the Paris High Court on 22 September, the day after that decision. The judge said at that time the legal deadline for CEC to respond to EDF - 4 July - had already passed, so its appeal was declared inadmissible.

In a statement, CEC said, "This judgement makes it very difficult indeed for recourse in the courts, as [under] the Sapin [anti-corruption] law of June 2013, the judicial calendar does not correspond to the timetable for works council consultations." It added, "Indeed, the court proceedings are usually over two or three months (three months in our case) which automatically puts the works councils out of time under the set deadline."

Immediately after the long-awaited final investment decision for Hinkley Point C from the EDF board, the UK government said a review of the project would be carried out before the government committed its support. On 15 September, the government announced it had signed a revised agreement in principle with EDF for the project. The final agreements enabling construction of two EPR units at Hinkley Point C to proceed were signed by the UK government, EDF and China General Nuclear on 29 September.

Consisting of two European Pressurized Reactors, Hinkley Point C in Somerset, England will be the first new nuclear power station to be built in the UK in almost 20 years and will provide about 7% of the country's electricity. The first unit is currently expected to be commissioned in 2025-2026.

Researched and written

by World Nuclear News

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Consortium secures record fusion robotics deal

28 October 2016

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An earlier version of this story incorrectly referred to the members of the consortium as companies of the Vinci Group. Nuvia and Cegelec CEM are part of the Vinci Group, while Airbus Safran Launchers is a joint venture between Airbus Group and Safran Group.

A consortium of Airbus Safran Launchers, Nuvia and Cegelec CEM is to develop a remote handling system for the Iter project under the largest fusion energy robotics contract ever awarded, Fusion for Energy (F4E) has announced.

Cut-away image of the Iter machine showing the CPRHS casks (blue) inside the multi-level building (Image: F4E)

The framework contract is worth nearly 100 million ($109 million) and will be implemented over a period of seven years. It covers the design, procurement, manufacture, delivery, installation, testing, commissioning and acceptance of Iter's Cask and Plug Remote Handling System (CPRHS). Franco-German company Airbus Safran Launchers will head the consortium as lead contractor, with partners Nuvia of the UK and Cegelec CEM of France. The UK Atomic Energy Authority, Portugal's Instituto Superior Tecnico, AVT Europe of Belgium and Millennium of France will also be part of the consortium.

The remote handling system will support the maintenance and repair of the Iter fusion machine, transporting irradiated components from the reactor's vacuum vessel - where space is very limited and human intervention is prohibited because of radioactivity - to the Hot Cell building for maintenance. The system will also be used to deliver remote handling equipment into the vacuum vessel.The multi-level reactor and maintenance buildings are connected by a service lift.

European Parliament renews Iter support



The European Parliament yesterday gave its final approval of F4E's accounts for fiscal 2014. financial year of 2014, formally signifying its ongoing support of the project. The parliament had postponed discharging the accounts in April pending a revised schedule and cost estimate of the Iter project. In June, the Iter Council - representing the seven Iter parties - endorsed an updated integrated schedule for the project identifying the date of first plasma as December 2025.

The CPRHS will use about 15 double-door transport casks which will provide primary containment during the transportation of the irradiated components. Resembling a slightly larger version of a standard shipping container, a fully loaded cask can weigh up to 100 tonnes and will need to be self-powered, remotely controlled with a positional accuracy of millimetres, and self-recoverable in the event of a failure.

The system will be underpinned by technologies including various high-tech skills, and must comply with nuclear safety requirements. Proven manufacturing experience in similar fields and the development of bespoke systems to perform mechanical transfers is therefore essential, F4E said.

The consortium combines the space expertise of Airbus Safran Launchers, Nuvia's experience in project management dating back to the beginnings of the UK nuclear industry, and Cegelec CEM as a specialist in mechanical projects.

As consortium leader, Airbus Safran Launchers is tasked with the industrial coordination of the CPRHS. "Space is an extreme environment in which no human intervention or repair work is conceivable, and we took our space know-how, developed on the Ariane launchers and the fully-automated European ATV space cargo, and adapted it for the remote-handling project of Iter. We are pleased to see that our know-how in complex projects is being recognized," Christine Francillon, head of complex systems and infrastructure programs at Airbus Safran Launchers, said.

Nuvia will bring to the project its international project management, engineering and services capabilities, supported by cross-discipline experience. CEO Keith Collett said the company was pleased to be playing a key role in "this important global objective".

Cegelec CEM, through its Cegelec CEM Nucleaire business group, provides engineering, design, manufacture and integration of equipment in the nuclear field and has a unique skill set in the development of mechanical and multi-expertise equipment. The company's areas of expertise include the design and manufacture of remote-operated tools, the design and supply of special equipment and processes, and maintenance work in limited access areas. "Iter offers our company a unique opportunity to demonstrate its ability to develop and build bespoke remote-handling equipment for a nuclear application in such complex context. Working with Airbus Safran Launchers and Nuvia will generate considerable added value, in which we are particularly proud to be part of," CEM Nucleaire sales director, Pascal Champ, said.

F4E is the European Union organization responsible for Europe's contribution to the international Iter collaboration alongside China, Japan, India, Russia, South Korea and the USA. The world's largest experimental nuclear fusion facility is under construction at Cadarache in the south of France. Nuvia and Cegelec CEM are companies of the Vinci group. Airbus Safran Launchers is a joint venture between Airbus Group and Safran Group.



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by World Nuclear News

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What Is Somaliland, And Who Controls It?

Somaliland has remained largely unrecognized following its self-declared independence from Somalia in 1991. Even so, many countries continue to send delegates or invite the government to important official events. As an Islamic state, the country abides by Sharia laws and the constitution prohibits any promotion of practices contradicting Islam. Somali is the national language, and Arabic makes up the education curriculum, and some schools speak and teach English. The Republic of Somaliland has no recognized currency. However, the countrys conditions continue to improve. Somaliland has had many disputes with Puntland. However, the current instability that has afflicted Somalia rarely affects Puntland, and so far the country is stable.

Overview Of Somaliland

Somaliland is a self-declared state. It lies northwestern of Somalia and southeastern of the Gulf of Aden. The autonomous area of the Puntland lies to the east, Ethiopia to the west and south, and Djibouti to the northwest. The county has an area size of about 53,100 square miles and a population of 4 million. Hargeisa is the largest and capital city with a population of approximately 1,200,000 residents. Like most of Somali, Somaliland is an Islamic country. The citizens adhere to Sunni Branch of Islam, and there are also Sufism believers. As per the constitution, Islam is the countrys religion governed by the Sharia laws. As such Arabic and Somali are the national languages and English is also taught in schools.

Disputes Related To Somaliland

Somaliland is in control of the Western half of Somali, but the government continues to claim the entire former British Somaliland region. Between 2002 and 2009, tensions between Somaliland and Puntland resulted into severe violence. More clashes between armed forces of the two regions took place in October 2004 and October 2007 in Sool capital city of Las Anod. The city has been a major feud for the two states. However, while Somaliland aims at splitting Somalia into independent states, Puntland fight for the reestablishment of federal Somali State. As such, they are always in constant arguments. The Awdal and Khatumo State established in 2010 and 2012 respectively do not also recognize the Somaliland sovereignty claims.

Politics And Government

Under the constitution of Somaliland, the country has a hybrid system of governance which combines the aspects of traditional and western institutions. The current system of governance was established in 1993 at the Boorama Conference. Under the constitution, there are three branches of the Puntland government, the executive, judiciary, and the legislature. An elected president leads the executive and comprises of the Council of Ministers and the vice president. A president serves a maximum of two five-year terms, and the National Elections Commission confirms the elections. Somaliland has a bicameral Parliament with the House of Elders as the Upper House and House of Representatives as the Lowe House. Each house has 82 members and functions in passing laws and solving external conflicts. The Judicial branch is made up of the district, regional, local appeal courts, and the Supreme Court. The constitution also allows a maximum of three political parties in the country namely; Peace, Unity, and Development Party, Wadani, and For Justice and Development Party. The constitution prohibits any parties defined by religion or clan. President Mohamed Silanyo is the current president of Somaliland as from July 2010.

Economy Of Somaliland

Since Somaliland is not an internationally recognized Country, the currency Somaliland shilling has no official exchange rate. Also, the territories of Ayn, Sanaag, and Sool do not recognize it. The bank of Somaliland and Central Bank regulate the shilling. The country economy relies heavily on remittances from the Somali Diaspora that come to the country through money transfer companies like Dahabshiil. The Wolrd Bank estimates that about US$1 billion remittances from emigres working in the US, Europe, and the Gulf States reach Somalia. Over the years, service provisions have improved. Limited government regulations and financial contributions from NGOs, international communities, religious groups, and the private sector have grown the economy of Somaliland. The public sector has also developed gradually with local and municipal governments facilitating clean water supply in Hargeisa and electricity, security, and education in Berbera. Golis Telecom Somalia has a branch in Somaliland and offers services such as internet access, GSM, and fixed line. Its extensive network covers major Somalia cities and many districts in Somaliland and Puntland regions. Other telecommunication firms in the region include Telcom, Somtel, and NationalLink. Livestock rearing is the backbone of Somalilands economy. The country exports are sheep, camels, and cattle from Berbera to the Gulf States. Other key contributors to the economy are Agriculture especially the production of cereals and horticulture, mining, and tourism.

International Relations

Even though it is widely unrecognized internationally, Somaliland has maintained relationships with Ethiopia, Djibouti, and South Africa, as well as the UK and Sweden. The Welsh Assembly also recognizes Somaliland as a separate entity, and in early 2006 it had invited the government to the Senedd royal opening in Cardiff. The African Union and the European Union have also sent delegates in the country to discuss plans on how to have the state acknowledged internationally. The country has pending Commonwealth application, but even so, the government was represented by a presidential delegate in Kampala, Uganda at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 2007. Even though the US does not extend former recognition to Somaliland, Johnnie Carson the State for African Affairs Assistant Secretary on September 24, 2010, stated that the US seek a deeper relationship with the Somali and Puntland Governments and will continue to support and aid the Somali Transitional Government. In 2011, Somaliland and Puntland Government entered a security-based memorandum of understanding with Seychelles.
In the aftermath of the 1991 Somali Civil War, Puntland declared itself an autonomous state in 1998, and its recognition remained unseen. However, unlike Somaliland, Puntland wishes to form a united but federal Somali State. Puntland is recognized by the Independent Federal State of Somali. It has a constitution that governs the country. Under this constitution, the government has three branches; the executive, legislature, and judiciary. Puntland is also in constant disputes with Somaliland in some regions such as Sool and Sanaag. Apart from the civil strife that hit the country in the early 2000s the country remains economically and politically stable. Since it does not seek any independence from Somali, Puntland has little international relations apart from development-based associations with other nations such as the UK and Djibouti.

Background And Overview

Since mid-1998, the northeastern part of Somalia has been regarded as the Puntland region of Somalia. The pre-colonial Somalian community had no national governments nor did clearly defined borders exist. However, the northeastern parts did have a traditional system of government dating back to the 19th century. The Sultans ruled these areas. In 1923-1927, the British and Italian ruled out the Sultanate, suppressing any resistance and destroyed any political, commercial and economic activity. Italian trade companies replaced import-export sector. Puntland was formed at the onset of the 1991 Somali Civil War. The constitutional conference held in Garowe in 1998, formed Puntland so that it can offer services like security to the people, control trade, and facilitate domestic and international relations. On August 12, 2014, the semi-autonomous state of Puntland cut all ties with the Somali government. Puntland area is composed of Bari, Mudug, Nugal, Sool, Karkaar, Sanaag, and Ayn regions. It occupies one-third of northeastern Somalia and almost half of Somalis coastline. Puntland has a population of about 3 million people. The country has a functional constitutional government, security system, public sector, and it is a democratic state. The 2009 elections were peaceful, and there was a smooth transition followed by peaceful power transfer.

Politics And Government

On April 15, 2012, Puntland inaugurated a new constitution overseen by the Puntland Electoral Commission. This action led to finalizing the regional democratization process which had started in the 2009 draft constitution. On September 12, 2012, PEC allowed for party registration. On January 8, 2014, Abdiweli Mohamed Ali was elected as the 5th president with Abdihakim Abdullahi Haji Omar as the Vice President. The Puntland government has three branches; the executive which consists of the President, Vice-president, and nine ministers, the Legislature comprising of 66 members, with five women, and the judiciary. On June 21, 2009, Puntland adopted a new constitution with 141 provisions which allow for a multiparty political system. Puntland has a state flag and a national anthem. The flag has three colors; the blue stripe with a white star represents the Somalian flag, the white line lies at the center symbolize peace and unity, and the Green at the bottom represents Puntland natural wealth.

Economy

Puntland has 1600 km of coastline with abundant fish and other marine resources. Livestock rearing, frankincense, myrrh, manufacturing, and agriculture also contribute largely to the countrys economic activities. Bosaso has a large commercial market that opened in December 2011. The Golis Telecom Somalia is also located in Bosaso, and it supplies GSM, internet services, and fixed line. The services extend to forty other districts in Somaliland and Puntland and cover the major cities of Somalia. Other telecommunication services include Netco, Telcom, and NationalLink. More projects underway include the construction of a fish market in Garowe with collaborations from the UK and UNDP and the development of new seaports within the region. The last project is an association involving Djibouti and a China-based international construction firm. As of 2012, oil mining started in Puntland and Somali. The country has its Television and radio station. Private stations include the Somali Broadcasting Corporation and Eastern Television Network broadcasting from Bosaso.

Disputes And Boundaries

Over the years Puntland and Somaliland have engaged in violence clashes. The most disputed areas are the boundaries between Somaliland and Puntland, and also the fact that whereas Somaliland wants to split Somalia into independent states, Puntland works towards a united but federal Somalia. Tensions with Somaliland over Sool and Sanaag regions have persisted. Puntland also disputes over Cayn, Sanaag, and Sool with the independent state of Khatumo. As of January 2009, Maakhir is part of Puntland. In general, Puntland consists of Bari, Ayn, Sool, Mudug, Nugal, Karkaar, and Sanaag.
Stefano Brizzi (L) and Gordon Semple

By: Mahesh Sarin

A man was arrested on a charge of murder after killing a police officer following a sexual encounter, according to police in the United Kingdom.

London police said that they have arrested 50-year-old Stefano Brizzi, after being accused of killing and dismembering 59-year-old Gordon Semple.

In court, Brizzi pleaded not guilty to a charge of murder, claiming that the police officer died while they were having sex.

According to the police investigation, Brizzi and Semple met through the dating app Grindr. The police officer went to the suspectas apartment, where they had sex.

The suspect and the victim also arranged for other men to join them. At some point, Brizzi strangled Semple. He then dismembered the police officer and dissolved his body in acid.

Neighbors called police after noticing a foul order coming from his apartment.
Sad boy (illustration)

By: Chan Yuan

People in Austria, are angry after the Supreme Court overturned a rape conviction because the rapist may have thought the his victim wanted sex.

20-year-old Amir A. of Vienna, arrived in the country from Iraq, and sought asylum.

One day, Amir visited a public swimming pool, where he raped a 10-year-old boy. The boy was taken to a hospital, where he was treated for injuries in his backside.

Amir was arrested and charged with serious sexual assault and rape of a minor.

Amir admitted to having sex with the boy, saying that he suffered a sexual emergency as his wife stayed behind in Iraq and he did not have sex in four months.

A lower court found him guilty of the two charges, and he was sentenced to serve six years in prison. He was also ordered to give the boy 4,500 euros ($4,910).

However, this week, the Supreme Court overturned the rape conviction, saying that the lower court did not hear evidence that the boy did not want to have sex with Amir, and the rapist might have thought that the child wanted to have sex.
Halloween Comes to Wrexham With Jam Packed Day of Spooky Activities!

This article is old - Published: Friday, Oct 28th, 2016

Get ready for a spooktacular day of celebrations with a bumper day of Halloween activities taking place across the town centre this weekend.

The Halloween fun kicks off from 10am tomorrow morning with businesses across the town centre getting in the scary celebrations!

Take a trip to Wrexhams three indoor markets where the Halloween celebrations will be in full swing. Start your day with a visit to the Peoples Market on Chester Street for scary animal handling some terrifying tales by the Story Teller.

You can also help The Wrexham Independent Gallery to create a special Wrexham Halloween community painting and join in the Halloween art workshop at the Oriel Gallery.

Just around the corner take a visit to the General Market on Henblas Street for some free painting and a browse through a range of spoooooky fancy dress costumes before popping across the street to the Butchers Market for a day of Halloween themed crafts for all ages.

The ghoulish events coincide with the return of the monthly Wrexham Street Festival which as usual will see local independent traders on Regent Street and Hope Street. Outside QD Stores, Splash Magic instructors will also be delivering a free join in zumba session at 11.30 am.

The terrifying Henblas Street is hosting a Halloween fancy dress competition  arrive any time between 11 am and 4 pm to be judged and have your photograph taken on the spooky stage. Simon ORourke will be doing an amazing Halloween wood carving live at 1 pm.

Youll find the Woodland Trust, the UKs largest woodland conservation charity, here too and you can join in with bark rubbing and making crowns and wands from willow on their stall.

Just seed will also be there with some of their seed range and will be able to offer tips and advice on growing from seed. You can also take part in fun apple bobbing.

If all that wasnt enough a wealth of town centre traders have joined forces to bring you the first Trick or Treat Trail  each business taking part will have a sign in the window, so keep an eye out.

Businesses taking part include ones in the Bus Station, Chester Street, Henblas Street, Bank Street, Lord Street, Egerton Street, Yorke Street and Regent Street  and of course the towns markets. We encourage all readers to have a walk through the town and enjoy the shop fronts!

Local Conservative campaigner Andrew Atkinson, who has led a group of local volunteers to arrange Saturdays Street Festival Halloween fun said: Wed love to see as many local people as possible coming into town on Saturday to join in the Halloween fun and support Wrexham town centre. Youll find everything you need for Halloween in the town centre shops and the markets.

The monthly Street Festivals have built up huge momentum this year and theres going to be so much going on that I am sure everyone will have a spooktastic time.

For up-to-date information about Wrexhams Saturdays Halloween Street Festival, visit Wrexham Street Festival on Facebook.
After announcing in April a $2.5 billion investment to build a new small-vehicle plant in Mexico and confirming in September that it would relocate its small cars manufacturing there in the next two or three years, US auto giant Ford is now temporarily suspending production in both the US and Mexico due to an alarming decline in sales.

The decision follows a company statement last week that it would stop production of the Mustang for a week at a Detroit plant amid slumping sales. Third quarter revenues registered a 6 percent decline, while profit for the quarter was down a whopping 55 percent from a year ago. Total year-to-date US sales are down 8 percent from 2015. Retail sales declined 4 percent while fleet sales are down 21 percent.

Four plants are affected by the decision. In the US, these include the Kansas City assembly plant, where the bestseller F-150 is made, and the Louisville assembly plant, where production of the Escape and Lincoln MKC will also be suspended.

In Mexico, the Cuautitlan Stamping and Assembly Plant in the State of Mexico, which puts together the Fusion and MKZ sedans, and the Hermosillo Stamping and Assembly Plant in the State of Sonora, where Fiestas are assembled, were temporarily shut down for, respectively, one and two weeks. It was announced that last Monday operations would resume in both plants.

A total of 9,000 workers in the US and 4,000 workers in Mexico are affected by the suspensions. While it was announced that US workers with at least one year of experience would receive about 80 percent of their paycheck, it is unclear whether Mexican autoworkers received any compensation.

In the US, new hires with less than a year on the job are going to suffer more severely the immediate consequences of the United Auto Workers betrayals, as new contracts have created a multi-tier workforce and include substantial wage reductions and benefit losses. As for Mexican workers, they are told that they should be grateful for keeping their jobs after the shutdowns.

Mexico has undergone a sizable industrial expansion in recent years. Employment growth from 2010 to 2015 hit 186 percent for certain sectors. The auto industry increased employment 41 percent in that period.

International capital has targeted the Latin American country for its cheap labor and its desirable geographical position. It serves as an ideal base for shipping to the 45 countries that are parties to its 10 free trade agreements, the signatory countries of some 32 bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements with Mexico and all the countries participating in the nine trade agreements (Economic Complementation and Partial Scope Agreements) within the framework of the Latin American Integration Association (ALADI). Mexico is also a member of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP).

Auto giants have taken full advantage of a vast low-paid labor force. According to some estimates, the average manufacturing wage is little more than US$2 an hour, not only a fraction of that paid to European and American workers, but 40 percent less than the prevailing wage in China.

Enormous profits are extracted in Mexico through the exploitation of its workers, often toiling in slave-like conditions. The unions are viewed as either impotent or complicit in the exploitation of workers by these large corporations, while local governments are famous for offering investors free land, tax breaks and infrastructure while workers are subject to police repression.

The temporary shutdowns highlight a critical economic slump and the interconnectedness of world economy. Mexico exports vehicles to the US, Canada, China, South Korea and most countries in Latin America. So far this year, Mexican auto industry output is down 5 percent compared to 2015.

The Ford F-150 is the best selling vehicle in the US and made up 90 percent of the automakers global profits during the second quarter. However, Ford registered a 3 percent decline in sales of that model in September from a year before, in addition to substantial consecutive contractions in the recent two quarters.

Such a decline is a clear sign of decreased consumer purchasing power, especially when one considers that more than half a billion dollars of pre-tax profit in the third quarter is derived not from manufacturing, but from Ford Credit, the companys finance arm.

The contradictions of capitalism are bursting at the seams: on the one hand, the system seeks to transfer onto workers the brunt of the crisis; on the other hand, by diminishing workers ability to buy commodities, it further escalates the crisis by inhibiting demand and precluding a further development of the productive forces.

Moreover, as in the case of several expanding economies, growth in Mexico is dependent on the ability of the world market to absorb its industrial output. The US is a major market: a contraction in sales there snowballs to all countries which supply US demand. The result is a shrinking economy with a likelihood of further suspensions or closures.

The Mexican economy shrank 0.2 percent in the second quarter this year, following a timid 0.8 percent growth in the previous period, falling below the modest market expectations of 0.1 percent growth. It was the first contraction since the second quarter of 2013, due to a drop in industrial output.

Worse yet, Mexican workers are some of the most impoverished in the world. According to the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the gap between wealth and poverty is larger in Mexico than in any other OECD country. Mexicos richest 10 percent make more than 30 times what the poorest 10 percent earn. The countrys bottom 20 percent does not make enough to ensure three meals a day.

At the end of 2014, Mexicos 16 billionaires were worth $9 billion on average, where the 25 million people who make up the bottom 20 percent were worth an average of $8. Moreover, in 2014, Mexican workers toiled an average of 2,327 hours, compared to US workers, who labored 1,796 hours, or German workers, with 1,302 hours.

Living conditions in 25 percent of Mexican towns are similar to sub-Saharan Africa in terms of healthcare, illiteracy, and homes without toilets or solid floors.

These figures elucidate why international capital seeks investments in countries like Mexico. Its also clear that workers must draw conclusions from the world situation. In the US, they are being pitted against their Mexican brothers and sisters in a race to the bottom, as companies and trade unions collude in a relentless assault on workers living standards under the guise of global competitiveness.

Such is the bankruptcy of nationalism, which seeks to transfer profit losses derived from international competition onto workers. In the US this was the foundation of the Obama administrations insourcing, a restructuring process that essentially brings labor costs in America in line with Third World levels.

US workers, like their Mexican brothers and sisters, are paying for a world crisis thats not of their making with closures, job losses and a decline of living standards. In other words, they are all getting poorer.

The unions, and in particular the American United Auto Workers (UAW), saw to this bitter pill being force-fed to workers, blackmailing them with the prospect of losing jobs to non-American workers. Hence, the repeated betrayals: in 2009, Obama and the UAW ensured the halving of wages for newly hired autoworkers and the dismantling of health and pensions benefits. Then, last year, the new contract created a sub-tier of unprotected workers who stand to lose wages, if not jobs.

Within the context of North America, Canada is no exception: Unifor, the Canadian autoworkers union, is defending the rotten contracts with General Motors and Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles and preparing for the imposition of a similar deal at Ford based on the two-tier model developed by the UAW.

The crisis requires an independent international mobilization of workers across North America, joining together US, Mexican and Canadian workers against their common enemy: world capitalism and its supporters, including the trade unions, facilitators of capitalist exploitation.
Documents released by WikiLeaks Wednesday give the fullest picture so far of the way that Bill and Hillary Clinton built up their private fortune during the years after they left the White House in 2001. Hundreds of memos and emails detail how corporations and banks were recruited to funnel millions into the for-profit activities of the enterprise that a top aide, Douglas Band, called Bill Clinton Inc.

As detailed in a devastating 12-page memo written in November 2011, Band established a consulting firm called Teneo to recruit corporate CEOs and bankers to give large donations to the Clinton Foundation. At the same time, he would urge them to provide lucrative speaking fees for an address by the former president, usually in the six-figure range.

As the Washington Post described it in its front-page report Thursday, the Band memo detailed a circle of enrichment in which he raised money for the Clinton Foundation from top-tier corporations such as Dow Chemical and Coca-Cola that were clients of his firm, Teneo, while pressing many of those same donors to provide personal income to the former president.

Band wrote the detailed memorandum, supplying precise figures for the flow of funds into the pockets of Bill Clinton, as the result of a bitter internal feud inside the Clinton camp. Chelsea Clinton, who married hedge fund executive Marc Mezvinsky in 2010, after working on Wall Street, became a board member of the Clinton Foundation in 2011 and began to question Bands activities.

According to the email exchanges made public over the past month, Chelsea Clinton accused Band and his business partner, Declan Kelly, of profiting personally from Bands longstanding connection with her fatherhe was Clintons personal aide, who travelled with him everywhere, during the final years of his presidency.

Band drafted the memo to the law firm of Simpson Thacher, which had been called in to conduct an internal review of the Clinton Foundations operations, in an effort to refute the charge of profiteering. He even turned it back on the Clintons, pointing out that Bill Clinton had made far more money on his own account than Band or Teneo.

Band complained that he was required to sign a conflict of interest document for the Clinton Global Initiative, disavowing any personal profit from the charitys activities, but Oddly, WJC [William Jefferson Clinton, the ex-president] does not have to sign such a document even though he is personally paid by 3 cgi sponsors, gets many expensive gifts from them, some that are at home etc.

More important than the large sums Band helped to raise for the Clinton Library and the Clinton Foundation were the companies he recruited to direct a portion of their funding to Bill Clinton personally.

The CEO of UBS Wealth Management, Bob McCann, was a longtime client of Declan Kelly, Bands partner. According to the Band memo, Kelly introduced Mr. McCann to President Clinton at an American Ireland Fund event in 2009. Mr. Kelly subsequently asked Mr. McCann to support the Foundation, which he did via the Clinton Economic Opportunity Initiative. Mr. Kelly also encouraged Mr. McCann to invite President Clinton to give several paid speeches, which he has done.

According to press reports, UBS paid Clinton about $2 million in speaking fees between 2011 and 2015, frequently pairing him with his Republican successor, former president George W. Bush. UBS paid Hillary Clinton $225,000 for a 2013 speech.

The most lucrative single relationship brokered by Band was with Laureate International Universities, the largest for-profit chain of private colleges worldwide. Laureate was the only institution that actually paid more to Bill Clinton personallya whopping $3.5 million a year to provide advice and serve as their Honorary Chairmanthan it donated to the Clinton Foundation.

One section of the Band memo is headlined, Independent For-Profit Activity of President Clinton ( i.e., Bill Clinton, Inc.) The former Clinton aide writes, In that context, we have in effect served as agents, lawyers, managers and implementers to secure speaking, business and advisory service deals. In support of the Presidents for-profit activity, we also have solicited and obtained, as appropriate, in-kind services for the President and his familyfor personal travel, hospitality, vacation and the like.

All told, this amounted to more than $50 million in for-profit activity and $66 million in future contracts, should he choose to continue with those engagements. This included four business deals in effect for the former president at the time the memo was written, in late 2011, as well as numerous paid speeches and appearances.

What Band outlines in the memo is the real substance of capitalist politics. Bill Clinton, as a former president, was being richly rewarded for his services to the American capitalist class. At the same time, the business connections facilitated the political career of Hillary Clinton, who was a U.S. Senator from New York from 2001 until 2009, an unsuccessful presidential candidate in 2008, and Secretary of State from 2009 to 2013.

All the information made public by WikiLeaks on the Clinton campaign comes in the form of emails and attached documents sent to and from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta. A fixture in the Democratic wing of the political establishment, Podesta was White House chief of staff under Bill Clinton from 1998 to 2001, founded and ran the Center for American Progress, a Democratic Party-aligned think tank, from 2002-2011, and returned to the White House as counselor to President Obama in 2014-2015.

The Clinton campaign has made no response to the latest WikiLeaks revelation, other than to reiterate its denunciation of all the leaked documents as material hacked by the Russian government and weaponized by WikiLeaks.

Both the US government and the Democratic campaign have claimed Russian responsibility for the hacking, without offering the slightest evidence. Instead, the presumed Russian interference in a US election campaign is being incorporated into the overall campaign to demonize Russian President Vladimir Putin over the civil war in Syria, the conflict in east Ukraine, and the mounting tensions between NATO and Russia all along Russias western border.

Perhaps the most explosive aspect of the latest WikiLeaks documents is the suggestion, for the first time, of concrete evidence of a link between fundraising for the Clinton Foundation and payments to Bill Clinton personally, and Hillary Clintons actions as Secretary of State.

One of Teneos main customers, Dow Chemical, carried out a major investment in Northern Ireland during Hillary Clintons tenure at the State Department. Clinton named Declan Kelly, the partner of Douglas Band in fundraising for Bill Clinton Inc. as a State Department representative for encouraging US investments in the British-controlled territory. Dow paid Teneo $2.8 million in 2011, soaring to $19.4 million in 2012, according to internal Dow documents reported by the Washington Post. An investigator hired by the company later wrote, It appears Dow is paying Teneo for connections with Clinton.
Major questions over safety and maintenance have emerged just days after a fatal accident at the Dreamworld theme park on Queenslands Gold Coast claimed four lives. Press accounts, witness testimony and previously suppressed safety reports have all pointed to a culture of official cover-ups and intimidation against workers who spoke out, which may have contributed to the tragic incident.

Three of the victims, Roozbeh Araghi, 38, Luke Dorsett, 35, and Kate Goodchild, 32, had been on holidays from Canberra. Cindy Low, a 42-year-old from Sydney also lost her life. The theme park has been a popular destination for Australian and international tourists and holidaymakers.

The accident occurred on the Thunder River Rapids ride on Tuesday. An apparent malfunction caused the raft that the victims were travelling on to collide with another, stationary raft. As a result, their raft flipped back onto the conveyor belt. Two of the adults were thrown from the ride and another two were caught in the moving belt. All four were pronounced dead at the scene.

Two young children, who had been on the vessel, scrambled to safety and survived. They are thought to have seen the death of their parents. Witnesses reported deeply distressing scenes in the incidents aftermath.

The park, owned by Ardent Leisure, had been set to reopen today for a memorial day. That was cancelled after a public backlash. The park remains a crime scene and the tragedy will be the subject of a coronial inquest. Representatives from the law firm Maurice Blackburn have foreshadowed that the incident could result in substantial lawsuits.

The police investigation is still seeking to determine the cause of the accident. However, Jon Armstrong, who worked as an operator on Thunder River Rapids in 1987 when it first opened has said that the ride may have had a potentially fatal flaw. He told Sky News that the ride did not have an automatic shutdown mechanism if one raft became stuck on the conveyor belt, causing those behind to collide with it and potentially flip over.

According to news.com.au the ride had malfunctioned twice on Tuesday before the fatal accident. One park-goer who was on Thunder River Rapids earlier in the day told the news outlet that he had concerns about the Velcro straps that are used as seat belts on the ride.

Jade Dunlop, who went to the park in July, told ABC Radio that staff had dismissed her concerns after the raft that she was travelling on collided with stationary rafts in front of it. According to Dunlop, staff told her that All the empty rides get stuck there. Another man said that he was on the ride last month when the water pump stopped working and his raft was stuck in the same spot as the recent accident.

Parkz, a theme park news site, reported that the ride has fewer wooden slats supporting the rafts than on most similar rides and that many of them were removed during modifications.

The questions over Thunder River Rapids have emerged amid indications of other safety issues at Dreamworld. At least two other serious accidents have occurred this year.

In January, a young child was caught by the foot and the neck in an improvised partition that staff had erected on one ride. Paul Hastings, a senior inspector of Work Health and Safety Queensland verified aspects of the complaint about the incident but did not issue a safety notice or audit.

In April, a 19-year-old was thrown from the parks log ride. He was run over by two other boats, and almost drowned, suffering serious head and neck injuries and acute respiratory failure. On Thursday, the Brisbane Times reported that court documents showed the park had faced almost $2 million in lawsuits over a string of incidents and injuries since 2010.

Ben Swan, the Queensland secretary of the Australian Workers Union (AWU), which covers a number of the parks staff, has responded to the tragedy by stating that this accident will not come as a surprise to Dreamworld management.

Swan claimed that the union had been complaining about safety practices at the park for a year and a half. We did hold some very grave concerns about safety of equipment and the operation of equipment and as [of] about three weeks ago we were still raising issues with the company about safety, he said. Swan stated that the unions complaints had met with resistance from the company, and that workers who spoke out were intimidated.

An anonymous complaint to Workplace Health and Safety Queensland in August 2014 stated, Unfortunately employees at Dreamworld are too frightened to raise these issues themselves for fear of reprisals from management. In my opinion Dreamworld target employees who speak up.

The AWU claims that over an 18-month period, it sought access to safety reports to Workplace Health and Safety Queensland in a Right to Information claim, but was blocked by Dreamworld, along with the Queensland Department of Justice and the states attorney-general. According to the Guardian, the union gained access to some of the documents last year.

The AWU has not explained why it never publicly exposed the safety practices at the park or took any action against them.

On Wednesday, the day after the accident, the safety regulator released the documents in an apparent act of damage control. The documents reveal that in 2012, a private inspector found that air compressors on 13 rides were not fit for service. Air compressors can potentially explode and cause serious injury if not adequately maintained.

In an email to Workplace Health and Safety Queensland, the inspector reported that he had issued corrective actions for the air compressors, but that Dreamworlds engineer had stated that the park was exempt from registration requirements.

The inspector wrote that, The engineering department at Dreamworld did not produce any evidence of having a quality management system in place or any previous vessel inspection reports. When Dreamworld refused to correspond with him further, he appealed to Workplace Health and Safety Queensland to intervene. They declared that licenses were not necessary for each of the compressors.

An anonymous report from October 2012 stated that, Several rides and water slides are in dire need of fixing, rust visible and falling into pools and major leaks, cracks, chips on slides. Tape is used to cover rides, Queensland licence stickers out of date at rides.

One document, from August 2012, detailed a dangerous incident on the Cyclone rollercoaster. When the ride stalled, one employee instructed patrons that they would need to evacuate. Tradesmen seeking to fix the ride reset the variable speed drive and the roller coaster unexpectedly restarted. Some of those on board had removed their secondary restraints, which function as back-up seatbelts.

Broader questions have been raised about the safety certification process for theme parks. It is not legally required that government officials directly inspect rides. Instead, the companies are supposedly investigated privately. They hire an accredited engineer, whose report is then subjected to a desk audit by a representative of Workplace Health and Safety Queensland. These practices, which could be described as self-certification, have led to widely documented safety problems in the building industry and elsewhere (see: Australia: Bankstown fire points to safety de-regulation).

Ardent Leisures shares fell by as much as 22 percent on Tuesday. Reports that the companys CEO, Deborah Thomas, was in line for a bonus of $850,000 sparked widespread anger. Despite the many revelations that have emerged since the accident, the company continues to insist that there was nothing wrong with its safety practices. Ardent Leisure owns a portfolio of 100 assets in Australia, New Zealand and the US. In August, the company registered a net profit of $42.4 million, up 32 percent, and outlined plans for a further expansion in the US market.

While assorted politicians have responded to the latest tragedy with crocodile tears, their prime concern is the stability of the Gold Coast tourist industry, worth up to $4 billion a year.

Gold Coast mayor Tom Tate declared, Were going to have to help the family of Dreamworld the day after the accident. Labor premier Annastacia Palaszczuk cynically stated that the Gold Coast is safe, and pathetically pleaded with tourists, please dont alter your holiday plans.

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Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban commemorated the 60th anniversary of the Hungarian uprising with a nationalist tirade against immigrants on Sunday. The prime minister spoke at the official celebrations in front of the parliament to several thousand supporters of his right-wing Fidesz Party.

Alongside a number of Hungarian and European politicians, Orban presented the revolution, which was bloodily suppressed by Soviet troops, as an anti-communist uprising in support of capitalism and the nation. In reality, it was a tragically failed attempt by the Hungarian working class to overthrow the ruling Stalinist bureaucracy and establish a socialist society.

The introduction of capitalism, which the Stalinist bureaucracy carried out 25 years ago, has proven to be a catastrophe for workers. Hungary is an impoverished country, socially polarised and governed by a right-wing regime that is increasingly adopting authoritarian forms of rule, managing only to hold onto power by stoking xenophobia and chauvinism.

Orbans speech was full of nationalist pathos. He spoke of the Hungarians fight for freedom and linked the struggle of Christian Hungarians against the Ottoman Empire to the invasion of refugees over the past year. Certain passages of the speech recalled the fascist propaganda of the Miklos Horty regime. We have decided in favour of our own children instead of immigrants. We have chosen work instead of speculation and assistance. We are standing on our own feet instead of being debt slaves. We support defending borders instead of an open hand, Orban proclaimed.

Orban strongly attacked the European Union (EU), which Hungary has been a member of since 2004. He was opposed to a Europe imprisoned by lethargy and illusions, while Hungary had taken the road of the good and confronted new challenges. He accused the EU of being led by deluded elites who behaved like the Soviet Union had once done. People who love freedom must protect Brussels from Sovietisation; from people who want to tell us how we should live in our countries, he stated. There can be no free Europe without national states and the thousands of years of Christian wisdom.

Although Budapest maintains generally good relations with Moscow, the government incited anti-Russian sentiment. The Hungarian foreign ministry demanded a meeting with the Russian ambassador to complain about the portrayal of the 1956 uprising in a bad light by the Russian media. At the meeting, it would be made clear that we will not accept anyone speaking in a denigrating manner about the revolution of 1956 and its heroes, a statement from the ministry declared.

A decade ago, the heads of 20 European States as well as high-ranking NATO and EU officials participated in the 50th anniversary celebrations, but the Hungarian government was largely isolated this time around. The sole foreign head of state at the central commemoration was Polish President Andrzej Duda. He promised Hungary Polands support on the refugee issue. You can count on Poland, we stand together in the most difficult times, he stated.

Orban also has high-ranking supporters in Germany. He received an invitation from Bavarian Minister President Horst Seehofer (Christian Social Union) to speak to the Bavarian state parliament about the Hungarian uprising on October 17.

Orban described the opening of the border in 1989 (the Hungarian government opened its borders to refugees from East Germany who wanted to reach the West, thereby accelerating the breakup of the GDR) and the current closing of Hungarys borders as two sides of the same coin. In both cases, the issue was protecting freedom. In 1989, Hungary had to open the borders to secure freedom; today, it had to close them to protect freedom. Closing borders to refugees was a duty.

On Tuesday, the Minister President of the German state of Saxony, Stanislav Tillich (Christian Democratic Union), spoke in his capacity as president of the Bundesrat (upper house of Germanys federal parliament) at a commemorative ceremony at the Hungarian parliament.

Although a massive police operation protected the official commemorations on Sunday in Budapest, there was a counter-demonstration. Several hundred supporters of the liberal opposition shouted dictator, dictator, and drowned out Orban with whistles. Some clashes broke out between government supporters and protesters.

The protest was called by the Egyutt Party (Together), the product of a split from the Socialist Party (MSZP). The successor organisation to the Stalinist state party ruled Hungary from 1994 to 2010, with a break of four years, before breaking apart in the face of hostility to its anti-working class policies and corruption scandals.

Orbans main goal with his right-wing agitation against immigrants and the EUs refugee policy is to divert attention from the social tensions in his country. UNICEF confirmed last year that no other EU country has such a high rate of child poverty. One in three children in Hungary lives in conditions that pose a health risk, the UN child aid agency reported. Thirty-six percent of the Hungarian population is considered poor by EU standards, amounting to 3.5 million people.

Hungary is currently building a new fence on its border with Serbia to prevent refugees on the so-called Balkan route from crossing into the country. Hungarian media reported that different construction methods are being tested before the final building process commences. Last year, Hungary began installing 175 kilometres of barbed wired fencing on the borders with Croatia and Serbia.

Hungary leads the way among European states in rejecting refugees. On October 2, a referendum supported by Orban to anchor his policy in the constitution failed. Despite an unprecedented media campaign and large sums of money spent in support of the campaign, the required quorum was not achieved.

Although the refugee referendum result was invalid, Orban still plans to change the constitution. For the necessary two-thirds parliamentary majority, Orban requires the support of the fascist Jobbik Party, which collaborates with Fidesz on other issues. This is an additional reason for his far-right rhetoric.

In exchange for supporting the constitutional amendment, Jobbik is demanding that no more entitlements to reside in Hungary, and therefore within the EU, be granted to foreigners purchasing Hungarian government bonds. The government initiated this practice four years ago. Anyone who invests in Hungarian government bonds can practically buy the right to reside. In this way, Hungary raised an estimated 1 billion. We require neither poor nor rich terrorists, stated Jobbik leader Gabor Vona after a meeting with Orban.
Mass Shootings: The Holocaust from the Baltic to the Black Sea 19411944, September 28, 2016March 17, 2017

A small, but nonetheless very significant exhibition75 years after the invasion of the Soviet Union and the massacre of thousands of Jews at Babi Yar in Ukraineis currently on display at the Berlin Documentation Centre, a history museum in Berlin located on the site where the Gestapo and SS had their headquarters from 1933 to 1945. The Documentation Centre displays documents, photos, videos and audio exhibitions related to the Nazi crimes.

The exhibition, Mass Shootings: The Holocaust from the Baltic to the Black Sea 194144, draws attention to the little known fact that shortly after the invasion of the Soviet Union by the German military on June 22, 1941, Nazi paramilitary death squads collaborated with the military and police in a systematic campaign of mass shootings of Jews, other civilians and Soviet Red Army members. The commanders later introduced the use of special vehicles for gassing victims so as to spare the soldiers the images of screaming women and children.

One feature of the Second World War that generally goes unexamined is the fact that of the 6 million Jews who were exterminated, more than 2 million died in the Soviet Union as a result of such mass executions and not in concentration camps.

The visitor in Berlin stands shocked and shaken in front of a map near the entrance to the exhibition. The Babi Yar massacre of September 2930, 1941, in which 34,000 Jews from Kiev in Ukraine were killed, is notorious. But the sheer scale of the mass shootings marked on the map by black points is less well known.

Some 570 locations are marked on the map on territory that stretches from Riga in Latvia to the Black Sea. In this area, according to current research, there were 1.5 million victims. As a text explains, the black points only count the towns, cities and villages where at least 500 Jewish women, children and men were shot. In addition, there were many crime scenes where non-Jews were massacred: Communist officials, Roma, or patients of psychiatric institutions. There were also a great number of massacres with smaller victim totals that remain to be examined sufficiently by researchers.

The documents at the Berlin exhibition include shocking pictures of the mass shootings at Babi Yar and other locations, which were taken secretly by Wehrmacht [German military] soldiers and not handed in to the commanders in violation of orders. There are also operational reports from the heads of various army units, which detail the numbers shot, and documents from legal proceedings after the war, in which many of the convicted commanders of the Wehrmacht units were rapidly set free. The German armys participation in the mass shootings was kept quiet for years.

A large portion of the exhibition treats the destruction of the Jewish community of Mizocz in the western Soviet border area of Volhynia (which today straddles Poland, Ukraine and Belarus). The Polish section of Volhynia, which includes the small town of Mizocz, was given to the Soviet Union in the secret protocol of the Stalin-Hitler pact in 1939. In Volhynia alone, some 160,000 Jews were murdered between May and December 1942.

With its timeline of events in Mizocz, the exhibition gives the mass shootings a face. Photos from the period prior to 1941 show a Catholic kindergarten; women taking a walk; a sugar factory, in the vicinity of which the mass shootings occurred in October 1942; pictures from family albums; members of the Socialist-Zionist youth association Gordonia with a sign reading Workers Group.

Executions in the forest, public executions and finally the brutal mass shooting in October 1942, in which all 1,500 Jewish men, women and children lost their lives, are all documented. A gendarmes post captured the shooting in photos. The rescue efforts of one Grabe, a leading engineer in the firm of Josef Jung that employed many Jewish forced labourers, are documented, as is the formation of a youth resistance group in September 1942, which armed itself with axes, knives and iron bars.

In addition, the Mass Shootings exhibition makes clear the central role played by the Ukrainian Resistance Army (UPA) in the persecution of the Jews. It was the UPA that drove the Jews out of Mizocz to the trenches. In the subsequent period, members of the UPA, who are celebrated today by Ukrainian fascists as heroes, hunted down Jews who survived.

The Berlin exhibition, however, is not limited to documenting the horror. It makes clear that the mass shootings were not the result of excesses by one or several commanders, but rather the outcome of a policy deliberately pursued by the Nazi leadership.

Prominent place is given to a June 6, 1941 order. More than two weeks before the beginning of Operation Barbarossa [the invasion of the USSR by the German military], it was issued by the Wehrmacht leadership and ordered that all political commissars in the Red Army be in principle eliminated immediately.

It cannot be expected that in the struggle against Bolshevism, the enemy will behave according to the standards of humanity or international law, the order of the OKW (supreme command of the Wehrmacht), which was signed by Alfred Jodl, declared by way of justification. Leniency and the respecting of international law when dealing with these elements would therefore be wrong, and further, The originators of the barbaric-Asiatic methods of combat are the political commissars. Therefore, all ruthlessness must be used immediately and without restraint.

On July 2, 1941, the chief of the security police and the SD [SS intelligence agency], Reinhard Heydrich, issued an order to the leading SS and police commanders, All officials of the Comintern, (as well as all professional communist politicians) are to be executed; the middle and radical officials of the party, the central committees of regional party organisations; peoples commissars; Jews in the party and state positions; other radical elements (saboteurs, propagandists, snipers, attackers, agitators and so forth.)

Two things become clear as a result. First, the central goal from the outset was to exterminate the Jewish-Bolshevik leadership of the Soviet Union. Hitler hated the Jews above all because they had played an important role in the October Revolution and the workers movement. A left-wing journalist during the Weimar Republic, Konrad Heiden, summarised this point, Not Rothschild the capitalist, but Karl Marx the socialist provoked Adolf Hitlers anti-Semitism. (Konrad Heiden, Der Fuehrer, 1944, p. 58)

Second, the war against the Soviet Union, unlike the war in the West, was planned as a war of annihilation. This was underscored by the opening lecture of the current Berlin exhibition titled Barbarossa: strategic planning and political decisions, June 1940June 1941, delivered by the Freiburg-based historian Ulrich Herbert. Already in July 1940, less than a year after the Hitler-Stalin pact, Hitler informed the army leadership of his decision to eliminate Russia.

Herbert noted that under the slogan Lebensraum [living space] in the east, Hitler intended to conquer colonial territory for German big business to exploit raw materials and create space for settlement and the securing of foodstuffs. To this end, long before the beginning of the war, SS leader Heinrich Himmler requested a group of academics at Berlin University, led by agricultural scientist Konrad Meyer, to prepare the Generalplan Ost [General Plan East]. It envisioned the conquered territories to be free of people, thus requiring the extermination or deportation of the existing population.

Herbert rejects the claim by the German revisionist historian Ernst Nolte in the 1980s that the Nazi war of annihilation was a preventive strike and an understandable reaction to the violence of the Bolsheviks, which triggered the famous historians dispute.

Stalins terror in the late 1930s directed against the Bolshevik leaders of the October Revolution, which also virtually decapitated the Red Army, played into Hitlers hands. When the Wehrmacht invaded, the Soviet Army was taken by surprise and suffered severe losses. The numbers of dead in the USSR, 27 million in total, including 14 million civilians, speak for themselves.

Nolte justified his position in words almost identical to those of the Nazis commissar order: Did Hitler perhaps carry out an Asiatic act because they and others like them feared becoming potential or real victims of an Asiatic act? (Ernst Nolte, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, The Past That Will Not Pass, June 6, 1986)

Today, this historical revisionism in Germany is being revived and intensified by the occupant of the chair of Eastern European history at Humboldt University, Professor Jorg Baberowski. In his books Scorched Earth: Stalin s Reign of Terror and Spaces of Violence, he attacked the mass violence of the Bolsheviks, which allegedly laid the basis for the acts of violence by the Wehrmacht. In a 2007 publication, Baberowski went on to claim, Stalin and his generals imposed a new type of war on the Wehrmacht, which no longer spared the civilian population. Unlike Nolte, Baberowski removes the question mark.

The Berlin exhibition on Mass Shootings provides a stunning refutation of this historical falsification and demonstrates how similar it is to the propaganda of the Nazis themselves.
About 700 people rallied last Sunday in the New South Wales (NSW) regional city of Maitland to oppose state Liberal-National government moves to replace the citys public hospital with a private, for-profit facility. The demonstration followed a protest a week earlier by about 2,000 workers, retirees and youth at Wyong on NSWs Central Coast.

Last month, NSW Health Minister Jillian Skinner suddenly announced that the government planned to place five regional hospitalsMaitland, Wyong, Shellharbour, Goulburn and Bowralin the hands of profit operators.

Called by the unions, the rallies were a calculated attempt to divert popular concerns over the assault on public health into various futile appeals to Premier Mike Bairds conservative government, and for the election of a state Labor government in two years time.

Central to this political dead-end were bogus claims that Labor and the unions oppose the privatisation of public health and health funding cuts.

UnionsNSW, the Health Services Union (HSU) and the NSW Nurses and Midwives Association made clear at both rallies that they would not tolerate discussion on Labors political record or the political alternative advanced by the Socialist Equality Party (SEP).

In fact, Labor and union organisers banned all participants and representatives of other organisations at the Maitland protest from speaking from the platform. UnionsNSW secretary Mark Morey told the demonstration that organisers had made the decision to allow only local members [of parliamentfive of them] to speak.

Union officials twice refused SEP supporters the right to address the Maitland event. When the SEP challenged them, a UnionsNSW official declared, We know who you are and what you are sayinga reference to the leaflets the SEP had distributed at both rallies and to health workers last week at Maitland Hospital.

In a clumsy attempt to cover up this attack on the SEPs democratic rights, Morey announced that there were other parties in attendance, naming the Greens and the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party as well as the SEP. Give them a round of applause for turning up as well, he declared.

Moreys attempt to lump the SEP with the Greens and the right-wing Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party, which have both backed the governments escalating assaults on the social rights of the working class, was aimed at diverting attention from the SEPs exposure of the political record of Labor and the unions.

The main speakers at the rally were Andrew Holland of the Australian Salaried Medical Officers Federation of NSW, HSU secretary Gerard Hayes and Nurses Union general secretary Brett Holmes.

These officials insisted that the cause of the current assault was the ideological obsession of the Liberal-National coalition with privatisation, which would lead to the Americanisation of the health system. The clear implication was that blame for the attack on public regional hospitals lay solely with the state government, which could and should be pressured to change course. Not a word was mentioned about the record of past federal and state Labor governments.

Holmes and Hayes referred to an announcement by Health Minister Skinner last week that the privatisation of Goulburn hospital had been taken off the agenda due to a lack of interest by the private sector.

This, according to Holmes was evidence that Premier Baird could be pressured to reverse the privatisation of the regional hospitals, if only the Maitland communitys voice were louder and stronger.

The reality is that Skinners claim is a patent lie. The privatisation of Goulburn hospital will be reintroduced just as soon as new private sector tenderers step forward.

For decades the health unions and every other section of the union apparatus have collaborated with both Liberal-National coalition and Labor governments alike, state and federal, to assist in the sale of state-owned assets and associated cuts in jobs, working conditions and services.

Labor has led this pro-market agenda, privatising state-owned assets and providing lucrative new areas for investment and profit.

The sell-off of the state-owned power industry in NSW, for example, began when the last Labor state premier, Kristina Keneally, privatised electricity retail companies, opening the way for the current Baird government to do likewise with power stations and the transmission grid. Union protests over privatisation were a smokescreen behind which the power unions collaborated with management to axe jobs and conditions in preparation for the sell-off (see: Australian power union calls off New South Wales strike).

Last July, NSW Labor leader Luke Foley explicitly backed the privatisation of public services in a state budget reply speech, assuring big business that he backed their demands.

Before this years federal election in July, Labor leader Bill Shorten reneged on previous promises that if elected his party would restore the $57 billion that the federal Coalition government had cut from hospital funding over the next 10 years, as well as another $33 billion the Coalition had cut from public spending over the next four years.

At the same time, Labor has endorsed the federal governments plans to boost military spending to at least $495 billion over the next decade, along with massive funding of bases for US long range bombers, cruise missile-equipped ships and nuclear powered submarines in northern and western Australia, to help finance Washingtons preparations for war against China.

As the SEP has explained, the union-controlled protests over the privatisation of NSW regional hospitals have a specific political aim: to keep the mounting opposition of workers and youth to the governments privatisation agenda trapped behind the Labor Party. That is why the first step for all those seeking a way to defeat the assaults on healthcare and other vital social services is to make a complete political break from the Labor Party and the trade unions.

The defence of public health can only be taken forward through the development of an independent political movement of the working class, based on the fight for a workers government, which will implement socialist policies, including the nationalisation of the banks, the giant pharmaceutical companies and the private healthcare providers, and the provision of billions of dollars for free, high-quality, healthcare, under the democratic control of the working class, that will deliver the best and most advanced health services to all.

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An article in the British Guardian newspaper on October 20 outlining the role of Kurdish Peshmerga soldiers in the US-led assault on Mosul, Iraqs second largest city, noted that British, Australian and New Zealand elite SAS commandos are active in northern Iraq, along with US forces, where they have been calling in airstrikes to support both Kurdish and Iraqi advances. Their role at the frontline has not been well documented, however.

The information, attributed to Peshmerga officers, is the first report that New Zealand troops are active in a combat role in Iraq. In early 2015 the National Party government sent around 140 army troops to Iraq as part of a joint Australia-New Zealand mission to train Iraqi soldiers. The government has repeatedly described this as a non-combat deployment, even though the vast majority of the 140 soldiers are not involved in training but in vaguely defined force protection.

The government and opposition Labour Party justify support for the war, like earlier deployments to Afghanistan, on the basis of combating terrorism. In reality, the Obama administration aims to cement its control over Iraq and Syria and to roll back Russian and Iranian influence in the Middle East. In Syria, the US and its allies, including Saudi Arabia, are supporting Al Qaeda-linked militias to carry out a proxy war against the Assad regime, which is backed by Russia. The brutal five-year-long conflict is threatening to escalate into a direct confrontation between nuclear-armed powers.

The Guardians statement that the New Zealand SAS is fighting in Iraq prompted denials from Prime Minister John Key and Defence Minister Gerry Brownlee.

Keys statement was highly ambiguous, however. He told the media on October 22 that from time to time, you will get very small numbers of SAS that may go [to Iraq] for a VIP visitor, for instance, or force protection or other particular thingstheyre very small numbers  We can categorically point out that we havent deployed the SAS in a combat capability (emphasis added). A spokesman for Brownlee was similarly quoted by Fairfax Media saying the SAS are sometimes sent to provide advice on issues like force protection but not for combat operations such as planning air strikes.

Washington has previously requested elite combat troops from its allies, including New Zealand, for the war in Iraq. The SAS consists of highly-trained killers who are greatly valued by the US. In 2004 a NZ unit was personally commended by then-President Bush for its role in the war in Afghanistan, where they have been repeatedly deployed by Labour and National Party governments.

The operations of the NZ SAS are shrouded in secrecy but well-informed commentators have questioned the governments assertions about its role in Iraq. Paul Buchanan, a former US intelligence official and now a prominent media pundit in New Zealand, told Fairfax: Notwithstanding the New Zealand Governments semantic gymnastics, reports of NZSAS involvement in the fight to liberate Mosul are not surprising and to be expected. A country does not maintain such a force without the intention to use them in conflict zones, and as a member of the anti-Daesh coalition New Zealand is no different in this regard.

Fairfax noted that in the past, Buchanan has said he had received credible reports that New Zealand SAS was carrying out missions in Iraq.

In February 2015, when Key announced the non-combat deployment, investigative journalist Jon Stephenson told RadioLIVE that according to very reliable sources SAS commandos were already secretly operating in Iraq.

Stephensons previous reporting has exposed the complicity of the SAS in war crimes in Afghanistan, where the government had similarly claimed the commandos were only operating in an advisory and training capacity. In 2010 the SAS participated in a US-led assault on a defenceless village, which resulted in six innocent civilians killed and 15 injured.

The Guardians report has been met with almost complete silence by the main opposition parties, including the Greens. According to Newstalk ZB, Labours associate defence spokesman David Shearer merely stated that the SAS directing air strikes in Iraq would go against previous commitments made by the government.

Labour Party leader Andrew Little has openly supported US bombing in Iraq, and previously said that Labour would endorse sending the SAS to join the war.

The attack on Mosul, which is likely to kill thousands of innocent people and turn tens of thousands into refugees, has been welcomed by the Labour Party. Speaking to Radio NZ on October 26, Little criticised the New Zealands military training deployment on the grounds that the Iraqi Army forces being trained were not disciplined enough.

He instead praised the Iraqi governments Counter Terrorism Service (CTS), saying it had done a very good job and was doing the heavy lifting in the battle of Mosul. The CTS, led by officers who are often trained in the US, is known for its ruthlessness and brutality, including torture and execution of captured fighters.

Little also said he supports the governments plan to extend the armys mission in Iraq to train security and police forces in parts of the country taken back from ISIS. This underscores the utter fraud of Labours initial decision to vote against the deployment last year.

When Prime Minister Key announced the deployment following the September 2014 election, he repeatedly stated that it would be limited to a two-year mission. Speaking to Radio NZ recently, however, Defence Minister Brownlee declared that the commitment weve got in Iraq is not going to stop simply because Mosul is taken.

New Zealand has now been involved in 15 years of the so-called war on terror, which has served to justify US interventions in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia and Syria, and shows no sign of ending.

Every party in parliament supports the alliance with the US, including the visit by a US navy vessel during the New Zealand navys 75th anniversary celebrations in Auckland in November. The Greens support the governments recently-announced $20 billion in spending to upgrade navy ships, warplanes and other military hardware, in order to integrate New Zealand into US war preparations against Russia and China. Labour and NZ First have denounced the government from the right, for not spending enough.

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The United Nations Security Council was the scene Wednesday of a bitter exchange over the ongoing war in Syria, with the Western powers indicting Russia for war crimes over its operations in the northern city of Aleppo.

The UN aid chief and former Tory member of the British parliament Stephen OBrien set the tone by declaring himself incandescent with rage over the inability of the Security Council to take action. Aleppo has essentially become a kill zone, he said.

The fact that both Russian and Syrian warplanes have halted their strikes against the Al Qaeda-affiliated Islamist militias that control eastern Aleppo for the past 10 days was brushed aside by Samantha Power, the US ambassador to the United Nations, who represents the living embodiment of imperialist human rights hypocrisy.

Taunting Russian ambassador Vitaly Churkin, she declared. You dont get congratulations and credit for not committing war crimes for a day or a week. Continuing her tirade, Power asked, Does Russia believe that all of the children in eastern Aleppo are Al Qaeda members?

Such outrage over the fate of civilians and children is highly selective. None of the representatives of US imperialism and its allies evinced even a spark of rage over the killing of men, women and children in government-controlled western Aleppo, which is regularly bombarded by mortars and rockets provided to the Al Qaeda rebels by the Pentagon and the CIA.

On Thursday, rocket fire claimed the lives of six children in the west of the city, where the vast majority of the population lives. Three Syrian children died at their school, where 14 other students were wounded. In a separate attack, three young brothers died when a rocket struck their home.

Nor for that matter, as far as the human rights imperialists are concerned, can the slaughter of civilians in US air strikes elsewhere in Syria be compared in any way to the deaths caused by Russian bombs in Aleppo.

Amnesty International issued a report Tuesday on 11 separate strikes by the US-led coalition in which it said some 300 civilians were killed. The Pentagon has acknowledged only one death in these bombing raids. Other monitoring groups have put the civilian death toll inflicted by the US air war in Syria at well over 1,000. All told, the Pentagon admits to killing only 55 civilians in two years. Powers jibe that the Russians view every child in Aleppo as a member of Al Qaeda applies with equal force to the Pentagon, whose bombs apparently kill only members of ISIS.

Power is herself a veteran practitioner of this kind of grotesque double standard. This crusader for human rights took the effective position that every child in Gaza was a member of Hamas during the 51-day Israeli siege of 2013 that killed over 2,100 Palestinians and wounded another 11,000. During this one-sided slaughter, the US ambassador used her post at the UN to relentlessly proclaim Israels right to defend itself.

Waving the filthy imperialist human rights banner, she was also one of the leading proponents of the US-NATO war in Libya that killed tens of thousands and left the country in ruins, as well as the war for regime change in Syria, which has killed over 300,000 and driven millions from their homes.

The hypocrisy and double standard of the war crimes denunciations against Russia over Aleppo emerge most starkly in relation to the launching earlier this month of a US-led siege of the Iraqi city of Mosul, just over 300 miles to the east, which was overrun by ISIS in 2014.

While the Russians are indicted for turning Aleppo into a kill zone, the Western media routinely refers to the American onslaught as the liberation of Mosul. To that end, US warplanes, rocket launchers and heavy artillery are relentlessly pounding the city of over a million, which analysts acknowledge will be reduced to rubble. The head of the US militarys Central Command, Gen. Joseph Votel, boasted in an interview with AFP that his forces had killed 800 to 900 Islamic State fighters. He said not a word as to how many civilians had died under the US bombardment; nor has the US corporate media shown any interest in that subject.

When one horrific incident did come to lightthe bombing of a Shia mosque near Kirkuk last Friday in which 17 women and children lost their lives and scores were woundedthe Pentagon brushed it aside and the media largely ignored it.

Even as US officials, parroted by the press, indict ISIS for using Mosuls population as human shieldsa timeworn alibi for the slaughter of civiliansthey ignore and tacitly support Al Qaedas use of terror and violence to prevent civilians from fleeing from the besieged neighborhoods of eastern Aleppo.

While the actions carried out by the Russian military against the civilians trapped in eastern Aleppo are no doubt reprehensible, they are not the real concern of those screaming about war crimes. Their fear is that the Al Qaeda-linked militias that serve as the principal proxy force in the war for regime change are facing a final rout.

More fundamentally, the crimes of Russia in Aleppo pale in comparison to those carried out by Washington in the region, and for that matter, around the globe.

Have those who feign shock and rage over the Russian bombs dropped on Syria forgotten shock and awe? The US invasion and occupation of Iraq took an estimated 1 million Iraqi lives.

Are these champions of human rights unaware of the ongoing slaughter in Yemen, where over 10,000 people have died under Saudi airstrikes carried out with US supplied bombs and missiles and made possible by extensive intelligence and logistical aid from the Pentagon? Why is there no rage over a war by the ruling monarchy of the Middle Easts wealthiest nation against the regions poorest, in which the systematic destruction of civilian infrastructure and a blockade imposed with the aid of US forces are threatening the population with starvation?

When it comes to war crimes, the Kremlin oligarchy represented by Vladimir Putin is in the minor leagues. Since the end of World War II, and the US atomic bombs that killed some 200,000 in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, virtually every US president has engaged in wars of military aggression that entailed war crimes, many of them on a scale surpassed only by the atrocities carried out by Hitlers Third Reich.

The Korean War resulted in 3 million civilian deaths; in Vietnam, the US killed some 3 to 4 million civilians. Afghanistans tragic and protracted encounter with US imperialism, dating back to the CIA-orchestrated war of regime change of the 1980s, claimed the lives of between 1.5 and 2 million more.

Meanwhile, Washington remains at war in at least seven different countries, where civilian deaths continue to mount daily: Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, Libya, Yemen and Somalia.

The source of the feigned rage and tears over Aleppo is the fact that the US war for regime change in Syria has turned into a debacle. Moscow launched its intervention in defense of the interests of Russias ruling capitalist oligarchy, not those of the Syrian masses. Nonetheless, it has presented an obstacle to the US drive to assert its hegemony over the entire oil-rich region of the Middle East.

The unrelenting human rights propaganda and demonization of Russia over Aleppo stand as a warning. US imperialism is preparing a major escalation, not only of the US intervention in Syria, but of its confrontation with Russia itself, carrying with it the real and present danger of a nuclear war.
A protracted legal case, in which the Queensland University of Technology (QUT), some staff members and three ex-students are being sued by a QUT indigenous employee, highlights the reactionary role of the offensive behaviour provisions of Australias Racial Discrimination Act.

In May 2013, several QUT students allegedly wrote Facebook posts objecting to three students being asked to leave an indigenous-only computer room on QUTs main Brisbane campus by a staff member, Cindy Prior. She is now seeking about $250,000 in damages in the Federal Circuit Court from the university and three of the students who posted comments. A decision in the case is still pending.

In a formal complaint to the Australian Human Rights Commission in May 2014, Prior accused QUT and the students of violating section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act. This provision makes it an unlawful act to do anything reasonably likely, in all the circumstances, to offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate another person or a group of people because of their race, colour or national or ethnic origin.

The students were not informed of the complaint until just before a compulsory conciliation conference in August last year. After the commission failed to resolve the dispute, Prior launched her law suit. She is suing Alex Wood, one of the students she asked to leave the computer lab, for posting: Just got kicked out of the unsigned indigenous computer room. QUT stopping segregation with segregation?

Jackson Powell is being sued for writing: I wonder where the white supremacist lab is. Another student, Calum Thwaites, has denied posting the words ITT Niggers, saying a prankster set up a false Facebook site in his name.

Upon becoming aware of Woods post, Prior asked that QUT take action against the students. A university equity officer contacted Wood and asked him to delete the post, to which he agreed. QUT later ruled that the students had committed no disciplinary offence under the universitys rules.

In court affidavits, the students have denied any intent to racially vilify Prior or indigenous students. According to the court documents, one of the students raised issues about the funding of separate facilities for indigenous students. His post reportedly stated: My Student and Amenity fees are going to furbish rooms in the university where inequality reigns supreme? I believe if we have to pay to support these sorts of places, there should at least be more created for general purpose use, but again, how do these sorts of facilities support interaction and community within QUT? All this does is encourage separation and inequality.

These comments point to the frustrations among students over the deteriorating conditions in universities after years of funding cuts by successive governments. They also show such legitimate grievances can be channelled against other students, on the basis of race or colour, because of the establishment, alongside the overall cuts, of special programs for indigenous or other groups, in the name of positive discrimination.

Over the past five years, as universities and their students have suffered punishing cuts, there has been a growth of facilities, like QUTs Oodgeroo Unit, reserved for particular groups of students, defined in terms of race, religion, ethnicity, gender or sexual preference.

Between 2011 and 2013, the previous Labor governments of Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard, slashed a total of $6.6 billion from higher education and research. This intensified the fight between universities to attract more fee-paying students, while retrenching staff, driving up class sizes and increasingly relying on lower-wage casual teachers.

Both the Coalition and Labor opposition are committed to further cuts. The government is seeking to slash $3.2 billion from the sector, and Labor has helped the government impose an initial wave of attacks on universities and students, having pledged to support at least $320 million in funding cutbacks during the campaign for the July 2 election.

Under federal funding rules, introduced by Labor, universities are also required to implement strategies to improve the access, retention and success of indigenous students, or they can be financially penalised. These programs are generally presented as progressive initiatives to assist Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, who remain severely under-represented in tertiary education enrolments.

The truth is that these programs provide only pittances, compared to the needs of many indigenous students for personal and financial support. More fundamentally, all students should be entitled to decent facilities and services. This is particularly so for those from working class backgrounds, who suffer systemic disadvantages regardless of race or ethnicity, including in the funding of schools and other educational services.

First-class and free education is an essential social right that must be available to all young people, not rationed on the grounds of racial identity. Instead, students increasingly confront over-crowded facilities, massive class sizes, and the replacement of lectures and tutorials by on-line programs.

The elevation of supposed positive discrimination on campuses, based on race, ethnicity, gender or sexuality, is part of a broader promotion of identity politics. By provoking resentments against alleged special privileges, it serves to divide students and working people, and obscure the underlying class issues. This pits them against each other as public education and the basic rights and social conditions of the entire working class come under mounting attack.

The invocation of the Racial Discrimination Act against objections or criticism of these policies serves to reinforce this divisive agenda. It is a fundamental attack on freedom of political expression. In effect, any member of a racially or ethnically defined group can launch proceedings against anyone whose comments they claim have offended or insulted them, or any other member of that group.

For example, socialist commentary opposing positive discrimination, on the basis that everyone should have access to decent education, healthcare, housing and other social services, could become an unlawful act on the grounds that it offended a member of a certain group.

Already, section 18C has been used to threaten critics of Israels military aggression, such as former Fairfax Media columnist Mike Carlton, who has been falsely accused of anti-Semitism.

In 2011, right-wing commentator Andrew Bolt was found guilty of racial vilification for having accused "fair-skinned" Aboriginal people of taking advantage of indigenous programs.

In opposition to Labor, the Greens and pseudo-left groups, which proclaimed Bolt's conviction as a "victory," the Socialist Equality Party (SEP) insisted that the task of fighting racism could not be ceded to the very state apparatus that was founded on the oppression of Aborigines, and has always been central to the promotion of racism.

Now, the Murdoch media and the most conservative elements within the Liberal-National Coalition, led by Liberal Senator Cory Bernardi, are demanding that Section 18C be repealed, not in order to uphold free speech, but to encourage and fan racism and xenophobia to scapegoat the most vulnerable layers--Moslems, immigrants, refugees and Aborigines--for the ever-deepening social crisis.

The SEP opposes Section 18C from the left, and warns that any attack on the fundamental democratic right to freedom of speech, incuding punitive measures against the students at QUT, will be exploited as a precedent to muzzle any opposition to the political establishment from the working class, students and young people, and especially from socialists.

The author also recommends:

Freedom of speech and the debate over Australias Racial Discrimination Act

[10 June 2014]
Europe

Italian workers hold 24-hour general strike

Hundreds of thousands of Italian workers took part in a 24-hour general strike on October 21. The strike was organised by the major unions, the USB, USI, SI, Corbas, Unicorbas, ADL and the CUB Transporti Lazio. It involved private and public-sector workers, such as teachers, nurses, bus drivers, flight attendants, fire fighters and administrative staff.

The strike was called to oppose proposed legislation that will weaken labour rights. Workers also demonstrated against education cuts and attacks on welfare provisions being imposed by the government of Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.

Participating public transport workers in Rome brought traffic to a halt. A march took place in Rome, as well as demonstrations in front of the Education and Economy ministries. Marches also took place in Milan and Turin and demonstrations were held in other cities including Genoa.

In Rome, marches culminated in the Piazza San Giovanni, and some of the protestors remained overnight to take part in the No Renzi Day demonstration, which took place on Saturday.

Irish teachers action may lead to school closures

Secondary school teachers in Ireland are in dispute over newly qualified teachers being taken on at a lower pay rate and the deterioration of conditions.

The Association of Secondary Teachers in Ireland (ASTI) members are due to take a series of one-day strikes over the next three months. In addition, from November 7 they will refuse to carry out supervision and substitution duties.

The Joint Managerial Body, representing nearly 400 voluntary secondary schools, warned that after the teachers return to work next week, after the current half-term break, the refusal to carry out supervision and substitution duties might lead to the closure of schools. Without teachers carrying out such duties, schools would be in breach of health and safety regulations.

The teaching body at voluntary secondary schools is mainly ASTI members and the action will have a major impact on them.

Norwegian train drivers strike

Train drivers employed by the Norwegian State Railways (NSB) and CargoNet have been on strike since the end of September. The strike is in opposition to plans by two railway companies to cut back on the training for drivers.

The train drivers are members of the National Union of Norwegian Locomotivemen (NLF). The strike is impacting mainly commuter services, especially around Gothenburg. Around 20,000 commuters have had no train service during the strike.

Talks aimed at resolving the dispute, which included the state mediator, began on Tuesday. They lasted 16 hours but failed to end the dispute. A further round of talks began Thursday.

Polish women in further protest over abortion laws

Polish women held a further demonstration outside the Polish parliament on October 23. They were protesting changes to proposed abortion laws in Poland, which would further restrict access to safe abortions. Protesters also demanded full access to birth control.

Those attending collected signatures to petition the Polish government to provide comprehensive birth control.

Strike by security staff at Portuguese airports

Security guards employed by companies such as Securitas and Prosegur went on strike at airports throughout Portugal Thursday. The strike led to disruption of flights.

The guards, who are responsible for screening passengers and scanning baggage, are demanding the rights to collective bargaining. They are also imposing an overtime ban.

Further strike by UK refuse collectors in Sheffield

Refuse collectors in the northern English city of Sheffield held a half-day strike Tuesday. The members of the GMB trade union are seeking a higher pay increase than the one offered by their employer Veolia. Veolia holds the contract from Sheffield city council to collect household refuse in the city.

The half-day strike follows two 24-hour strikes earlier in the month. The GMB accused Veolia of bringing in staff from London to cover the work of the Sheffield strikers.

Walkout by UK post office staff next week

Workers at Crown Offices, as well as Crown Office admin and supply chain staff, will hold a one-day strike October 31. The Crown Offices are the only part of the post office still in state control, all other branches of it having been privatized.

The Members of the Communication Workers Union (CWU) are opposing plans by Crown Office management to push through staff cuts and downgrade their pensions. Management plans to end the direct benefit pension scheme.

Manchester Fujitsu staff vote to take action

Staff working for the Japanese technology firm Fujitsu in Manchester will strike over the issues of pay, pensions and job security.

Earlier in the month, Fujitsu announced it intended to cut 1,800 jobs in the UK. This figure represents 10 percent of its UK workforce.

On October 31, Unite union members will begin a work-to-rule and ban overtime, among other measures. This will be followed by other stoppages, including a 24-hour strike on November 1 and a 48-hour strike to begin November 8.

Fujitsus main UK sites are in Manchester and Belfast.

Middle East

Israeli teachers threaten strike

Israeli teachers belonging to the Israeli Teachers Association are threatening to strike. There are a range of issues in the dispute, including late payment of salaries, problems with pensions and failure to pay teachers for additional duties.

General strike threat in Tunisia

The UGTT Tunisian labour union is threatening to call a general strike over the governments plans to freeze public-sector wages.

On October 21, lawyers in Tunisia held a strike in the capital, Tunis. They were protesting new taxes and tighter financial control of the legal profession by the government. Several hundred demonstrated outside the Palace of Justice where they chanted slogans denouncing the governments plans.

Africa

Gabonese oil workers return to work

Gabonese oil workers employed at the Oanl Field site of French firm, Maurel and Proms, returned to work Wednesday. The ONEP oil workers union members came out on strike October 17, protesting the dismissal of their colleagues. They returned to work after the company agreed to reinstate the dismissed employees. The strike cut production at the site by around a third.

Strike by Ghanaian dock workers

Dock workers in Ghana employed by the Ghana Dock Labour Company went on strike Tuesday. The dockers, who are employed on a casual basis, were awarded a pay rise after negotiations.

The increase, which was due in March and deferred until September, gave them a 10 percent pay increase. Workers are now demanding the increase be backdated to March.

The dockers accuse the leadership of the Maritime and Dock Workers Union of conniving with the company to deny them their back pay.

Kenyan doctors resume strike

Doctors in Nairobi County, Kenya have vowed to march each day to the Governors office from Wednesday of this week to push their demands.

They had returned to work on September 30 following a three-week strike after which the county agreed to their demands. They came out over unpaid wages and delayed promotions, but resumed their strike on October 14 after the agreement was not honoured.

The doctors are members of the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists union.

Kenyan health workers in Meru county end strike

Nurses in Meru County came out on strike on October 5 after their employer failed to implement staff promotions. After talks between management and a legal officer from the Kenya National Union of Nurses (KNUN), they returned to work Wednesday.

The employer agreed all promotions will be implemented by December 16. KNUN said if the employer fails to honour the agreement, they will resume their strike on December 26.

Mali gold miners suspend strike

Gold miners in Bamako, Mali suspended their strike, which was due to have started Monday. The miners are protesting the unfair treatment of their colleagues, especially union members. Some have been sacked or disciplined.

They suspended their strike after the intervention of the Mali mines minister.

Nigerian judiciary workers strike continues

Judiciary workers in Nigeria are continuing their strike. The Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN), representing Nigerian judiciary workers, announced this week that the strike in the state of Abia would continue. JUSUNs chairman said state government representatives failed to attend a scheduled meeting to discuss the issue.

The judiciary staff are calling on the state government to comply with a 2014 court order regarding government financing of the courts. Their other demands include payment of outstanding salaries and arrears from the 2015 CONJUSS agreement.

Nigerian teachers suspend their strike

Nigerian primary and secondary teachers in the state of Bayelsa have suspended their strike and returned to classrooms in time for the start of the new teaching session.

They had struck after the state government reneged on an agreement to pay salary arrears. The Nigerian Union of Teachers said the state government had agreed to further talks to try to resolve the issue.

Strike by South African clothing workers

Clothing workers employed by Queenspark in Cape Town went on strike at the end of last week. The members of the South African Clothing and Textile Workers Union are seeking a 15 percent pay increase. The company is only offering 6 percent.

The Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration failed to resolve the dispute and issued a certificate of non-resolution granting a legal strike.
ATLANTA (AP) - A Georgia voting machine apparently malfunctioned as a voter tried to cast an early ballot for Hillary Clinton, but Donald Trump's name kept showing up instead. But election officials say they still have confidence in the state's voting machines.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (http://on-ajc.com/2fbzNPM ) first reported the account on Thursday.

The newspaper says an unnamed Bryan County voter complains that a touch-screen machine incorrectly showed his presidential selection. The voter said he touched the screen to vote for Democrat Clinton, but instead it selected Republican Trump - twice. On his third try, the voter said he was able to select Clinton.

A spokesman for Secretary of State Brian Kemp says the county improperly tested the machine. The unit won't be used again this year but ballots on it will be counted.

(Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (The News Service of Florida) - Florida elections officials have finished most of their work on voter registrations, they said Friday, ensuring that the Department of State meets a self-imposed deadline to clear the way for the first day of statewide early voting.

After a federal judge ordered a one-week extension in the voter-registration deadline following Hurricane Matthew, state and local employees have been working on the registrations of more than 100,000 voters.

By Friday morning, 106,706 voters had been registered, while 21,068 applications were still pending.

Of those, more than 19,000 had been sent to county supervisors of elections because the information on the applications was incomplete or needed to be corrected. A little less than 1,900 were being reviewed by state officials.

"We will be even ahead of our schedule," Maria Matthews, director of the Florida Division of Elections, told U.S. District Judge Mark Walker during a hearing Friday morning.

Walker held the telephone hearing to make sure that a slowdown in the number of applications being processed didn't mean there were problems.

Walker seemed satisfied with Matthews' answers, thanked elections officials for their work and didn't order any additional steps.

While early voting for the Nov. 8 elections is already underway in most counties, it is required to be held in all counties starting Saturday.
LEON COUNTY, Fla. (WTXL) - Leon County school officials have announced a special meeting about recent water quality concerns in county schools.

In an email, officials announced that School Superintendent Jackie Pons has called a special meeting of the school board for Nov. 3. at 6 p.m.

Organizers said that the meeting will focus on the LCS Quality Water Assurance Program.

I look forward to announcing the Quality Water Assurance Program during this special meeting of the school board. This program will be a first of its kind project designed to provide clean water for generations to come," said Superintendent Jackie Pons. "The research project completed over the summer, while students were off campus, was the first step in the projects development. Part of the next recommended steps include expanded water testing on all school sites. We look forward to discussing next Thursday.

Pons statement came after water testing at some schools in Leon and Wakulla counties showed high levels of lead, based on a recent study by local researchers.

Read more about the high levels of lead at some schools in Leon and Wakulla counties in the link below.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - Tallahassee Community College has been recognized as one of the nation's top five entrepreneurial colleges for its impact on Tallahassee's economic health according to the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE).

The college announced in a press release that they and four other schools were chosen out of 300 schools to be honored at the 2016 NACCE Awards in Sacramento, California earlier in the month.

The awards focus on showcasing the role of community and technical colleges in building up economic vitality through in their communities.

They school said that the recognition could not have been achieved without the work of the Colleges Workforce Development Standing Committee in developing the TCC Spark entrepreneurial initiative.

The committee is led by Kimberly Moore, TCC vice president for workforce development, and is comprised of faculty, staff members and administrators.
TIETON, Wash.  In less than two weeks, Trae Oyler was supposed to go to Thailand.
WAPATO, Wash. -- A Wapato police sergeant will receive a training update on the proper maintenance of his Taser, as suggested by a policy revi
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Heavy rains swept across Eilat overnight Thursday, causing serious flooding and forcing the local airport to announce an indefinite closure due to dangerous quantities of water on the runways. The airport reported shortly before noon that it would be reopened and resume regular operations.

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Booms of thunder accompanied the giant lightning bolts that could also be see lighting up the night skies.

Flooding paralyses southern port city of Eilat (:  ,   ,  )

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A number of other roads leading to hotels in the popular holiday resort were also closed as tractors were deployed in an effort to remove the huge quantities of water drenching the streets across the city.

Tractors sent to remove huge qunatities of water (Photo: Meir Ochion)

Since midnight, 27.7mm of rain fell in the port city, according to facts provided by the National Weather Service, with not less that 21.4mm falling over the course of two hours in the morning.

Cab enveloped by the floods (Photo: Meir Ochion)

The amount of rain which saturated the city in just one night therefore, is similar to the entire annual average of rain that usually sunny Eilat sees.

What is more, the torrential rains contrast heavily with the temperatures in the area which are expected to reach up to 31 degrees celsius on Friday.

Photo: Aviram Levi

Staff at the U Coral Beach Club Eilat were hit hard as they were forced to contend with the flow of rain seeping into the dining hall. Similar scenes of water-filled rooms took place at the Orchid Reef Eilat hotel.

Floods at U Coral Beach Club Eilat (:  ,  )

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Orchid Reef Eilat hotel (Photo: Amichai Mordechai)

Tractors struggle with the flooding (Photo: Meir Ochion)

Runways too hazardous for flight activity (Photo: Airport Authority)

In addition to forcing authorities to shut down a number of roads and popular squares, two vehicles were reported to have become trapped in deep puddles. Moreover, one vehicle set on fire. No injuries were reported and rescue teams were called to the scene.

Photo: Shay Safon

The airport authority released a statement explaining that some of the runways had become too hazardous as a result of the inclement weather conditions, necessitating the indefinite halt to airport activities.

Photo: Aviram Levi

The closure of the runways is disrupting, and will continue to the disrupt, flight activities to and from the city, the statement read. Today, 21 commercial flights are expected to take place to and from Eilat...We call upon the public flying from Eilat to Sde Dov Airport in Tel Aviv and from Tel Aviv to stay updated via the airlines.
BOGOTA- Colombia is delaying peace talks with Marxist ELN rebels until they free a politician held captive for six months, President Juan Manuel Santos said on Thursday, as he struggles to salvage a peace deal with FARC guerrillas that was rejected in a plebiscite.

The National Liberation Army (ELN), the nation's second-biggest insurgent group, must release Odin Sanchez to the International Committee of the Red Cross before talks can begin in Ecuador, Santos said, reiterating a condition he set months ago.

The opening ceremony had been scheduled to take place in Ecuador's capital at 6 p.m. EDT (2200 GMT) but it was canceled at the last minute. The government said the talks could still go forward as early as Friday or Saturday if the rebels free Sanchez, however.
NEW YORK- Two men from Turkey and Syria have been extradited to the United States to face international arms trafficking and drug charges, authorities announced Thursday.

The men could face life in prison if convicted of conspiracy to import cocaine into the U.S. and other charges, federal prosecutors said.

Authorities said their arrests stemmed from a sting operation carried out by the Drug Enforcement Administration. The men, Memet Gezer, 49, of Turkey, and Saber Karimch, 50, of Syria, were held for an initial appearance in Manhattan federal court. It was not immediately clear who will represent them.

They were charged with conspiracy to sell large quantities of military-grade weaponry to individuals they believed were representatives of a Mexican drug trafficking organization.

They were arrested April 14 by Montenegrin authorities and were extradited from Montenegro to New York City on Thursday.
Fijian President George Konrote was forced to land his plane in Eilat while on his way to Sharm el-Sheikh due to the hostile weather conditions in the region on Thursday night.

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He was on his way to visit Fijian soldiers serving in the Multi-national Force and Observers mission (MFO) in the Egyptian town of Sharm el-Sheikh.

The Fijian president's plane lands in Eilat (:  ")

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The president and his entourage were in the air above Sinai when the pilot contacted the tower in Eilat and requested to land.

The Fijian president's plane in Eilat (Photo: Meir Ochion)



The entourage included some 20 people, and was met at the airport by the head of the Eilat Airport.

Fijian President George Konrote (Photo: AFP)

"The president and his entourage were received in accordance with their status and were referred to a hotel in Eilat," the Airport Authority said in a statement.

The MFO is an international force which oversees that the terms and conditions of the Israel-Egypt peace treaty are being followed, and operates primarily in the Sinai Peninsula.
DUBAI- Shiite rebels in Yemen fired a ballistic missile toward the holy Muslim city of Mecca overnight, Saudi Arabia said Friday, the insurgents' deepest strike yet into the kingdom amid the country's stalemate civil war.

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Rebel media in Yemen said the missile targeted an international airport in Jiddah, though Saudi Arabia said it was "intercepted and destroyed" 65 kilometers (40 miles) from Mecca, which is home to the cube-shaped Kaaba that the world's Muslims pray toward five times a day.

The missile launch shows the capability of Yemen's Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, and their allies to continue to strike Saudi Arabia. It also drew the immediate anger of Saudi citizens, as the protection of Mecca is a key pillar of the Saudi royal family's prestige and the country's national identity.

The Kaba'a in Mecca (Photo: Shutterstock)

The Saudi military said the missile, fired Thursday night from Yemen's northwestern Saada province bordering the kingdom, caused no damage. The Saudi military has a supply of U.S.-made, surface-to-air Patriot missile batteries it previously has fired at Houthi-launched missiles.

The military said in a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency that it immediately targeted the area where the missile was launched in airstrikes.

The Houthis and their allies, including forces loyal to former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, have a stockpile of Soviet-era Scud missiles and locally designed variants. The Houthi-controlled satellite news channel Al-Masirah published a bulletin saying its forces had fired a Volcano-1 variant missile at Jiddah's King Abdulaziz International Airport, without mentioning Mecca. That airport is 75 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Mecca.

The Houthi-controlled SABA news agency said the missile "directly hit" the airport and caused massive destruction. There were no immediate delays or diversions affecting the airport Friday.

A Houthi ballistic missile fired earlier this month targeted Taif, home to Saudi Arabia's King Fahd Air Base, which also is near Mecca.

Yemen, on the southern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, has been in the midst of a civil war since September 2014 when the Iranian-backed Houthis swept into the capital of Sanaa and overthrew the country's internationally recognized government. In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition of Arab countries began a military campaign against the Houthi forces, saying its mission served in part as a counterbalance to Iran's influence following its nuclear deal with world powers.

The Saudi-led campaign initially had the logistical and intelligence support of the U.S., but mounting civilian casualties from its airstrikes led to America pulling back, especially after a Saudi strike earlier this month on a funeral in Sanaa killed some 140 people and wounded over 600. The U.S. also fired Tomahawk missiles at mobile Houthi radar sites after reporting its warships came under fire in the Red Sea near the crucial Bab al-Mandeb strait.

In recent days, two commercial ships reportedly have come under fire in the same area.
Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz is the first Israeli minister to visit the home of the Turkish Ambassador to Israel since the Mavi Marmara incident in 2010, which deepened already fragile rifts between the two countries.

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Steinitz paid the visit to the ambassador's home as of celebrations for Turkey's Republic Day.

Approximately 100 people were invited to join in the festivities, amongst them Turks who made Aliyah to Israel, businesspeople, and diplomats.

Energy Minister Steinitz at the Turkish Embassy

Steinitz praised the renewed diplomatic friendship, saying that "the fact that Israel and Turkey are reaching out a hand of peace and cooperation again is important news. Today is evidence that Israel and Turkey not only want to re-establish diplomatic and formal relations, but strengthen economic ties and cooperation in the field of energy. This includes exporting gas from Israel to Turkey, and from Turkey to the rest of Europe. I hope that in the future, this will lead to a strengthening of trust, security cooperation, and political cooperation between the two countries."

The Commissioner of the Turkish Embassy, Jem Tukan, read out a greeting from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan which talked about Turkey's strength and promised that enemies of the state would not be able to subdue it.

Steinitz himself returned from Turkey two weeks ago after meeting with the Turkish Energy Minister , where the two spoke about building a gas pipeline between Israel and Turkey.

The discussions between the two countries are said to have progressed well, with both deciding to hold working groups in each country that will discuss the details of how the pipeline will work. Among other things, they also spoke about geo-strategic and security issues.
An event held in the British House of Lords has caused outrage in Britain and among its Jewish community after a series of anti-Semitic remarks were made, including accusations that Jews brought on the Holocaust.

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The event, which took place in the upper legislative chamber, was organized and hosted by Baroness Jenny Tongea figure known for her vociferous opposition to Israeland the Palestine Return Council (PRC).

Among other things, participants called on the British government to issue an apology for the 1917 Balfour Declaration which committed the government to the creation of a Jewish state in Ottoman-ruled Palestine.

British parliament (Photo: AFP)

Three years ago, former Prime Minister David Cameron rejected a similar attempt to solicit a retroactive apology from the British government and his successor, Prime Minister Theresa Maywho has already demonstrated herself to be ardently pro-Jewish and a friend of Israelis expected to follow suit without further discussion.

It took little time before the inflammatory meeting descended into an Israel-bashing spectacle which included overtly anti-Semitic slurs. For example, one speaker claimed that if anybody is anti-Semitic, its the Israelis themselves a comment which received applause from those in attendance and from Baroness Tonge.

Another speaker told listeners that the Jews were responsible for the Holocaust and brought it on themselves, a statement which also managed to bring about a round of applause.

According to one individual present at the meeting, Tonge herself revealed her conspiratorial analysis of Zionism, warning her audience that there were Zionist ears in the room and urging speakers to watch their words while failing to issue a categorical condemnation of the unambiguous anti-Semitism.

Baroness Jenny Tonge

Notably present at the meeting were members of the Neturei Karta, a group of radical ultra-orthodox Jews with an ideology vehemently opposed to Zionism and Israels existence.

Among their many affronts to Israelis and Jews alike, delegates from the group attended a Holocaust denial conference in Iran several years ago.

During the House of Lords event, they compared the State of Israel to ISIS and even said that the Holocaust was a Zionist invention.

The Israeli embassy in London condemned the meeting, with one official describing it as a shameful event which gave voice to racist tropes against Jews and Israelis alike.

Tonge was subsequently suspended from the Liberal Democrats Party. However, her permanent membership as peer in the House of Lords remains unchanged.
MANILA/KUALA LUMPUR- Malaysia will sign a contract to purchase Littoral Mission Ships from China when Prime Minister Najib Razak visits Beijing next week, according to a Facebook posting by the country's Ministry of Defence.

The text of a speech to be delivered by Malaysian defence minister Hishammuddin Hussein was posted on Facebook on Tuesday, but was later removed after Reuters asked a defence ministry spokesman for comment.

The purchase of the patrol vessels, if it proceeds, would be Malaysia's first significant defence deal with China and comes amid rising tensions in the South China Sea and as the United States and China compete for influence in the region.
An official with al-Qaida's branch in Syria says a French member of the group carried out a suicide attack in the northern city of Aleppo against government positions.

The Fatah al-Sham Front official said the French citizen drove a tank rigged with explosives and parked it near government positions then detonated it from a distance. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to brief the media, said the Frenchman then drove another tank into the same place and detonated himself. He did not reveal the identity of the Frenchman.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed that a Frenchman carried out a suicide attack.
GENEVA - The number of suspected cholera cases in Yemen has ballooned to 1,410 within three weeks of the outbreak being declared, the World Health Organization said on Friday, as 18 months of war has destroyed most health facilities and clean water supplies.

Yemen's Health Ministry announced the outbreak on Oct. 6 in Sanaa city, and by Oct. 10 the WHO said there were 24 suspected cases. The following day, a WHO official in Yemen said there was "no spread of the disease".

But on Friday, WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic told a Geneva news briefing that as of Thursday there were 1,410 suspected cholera cases in 10 out of Yemen's 23 governorates - mostly in Taiz, Aden, Lahj, Hodeida and Sanaa.
ATHENS- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will launch a new phase of peace talks between the leaders of ethnically-split Cyprus in Switzerland on Nov. 7, the United Nations said on Friday.

It was a "critical juncture" in the talks process, Ban's special adviser, Espen Barth Eide, said in a statement.

The leaders of the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities are due to discuss territory trade-offs during the week-long consultations at the resort of Mont Pelerin.

"The meeting will concentrate on the chapter of territory, as well as all other outstanding issues interdependently," Eide said.
A memorial in southern Mount Hebron for IDF fallen soldiers 2nd Lt. Yoav Doron and Staff Sgt. Yehuda Ben Yosef was vandalized overnight Thursday.

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The families of the two victims, who were both accidentally shot dead in a friendly fire exchange during the Second Intifada when IDF forces mistook them for terrorists, discovered the desecrated memorial on Friday morning during their customary weekly visit to the site. The vandals had set fire to the olive tree planted in their honor and damaged the memorial plaque itself.

The damaged memorial (Photo provided by the family)

Ben Yosef had already been discharged from the military and worked guarding a military antenna installed on a hill adjacent to Ma'ale Hever in Mount Hebron. Doron, who had finished the officers' training course and was on furlough before beginning his new position, had passed the night guarding with his friend.

Yoav Doron and Yehuda Ben Yosef (Photo courtesy of the family)

On March 13, 2003, the date of the incident, an IDF Maglan force identified the two as terrorists and fired on them from a helicopter, killing them both. The fallen soldiers' families and friends erected a memorial at the place, with the assistance of the Mount Hebron Regional council, which was inaugurated in 2004.

The damaged olive tree (Photo provided by the family)

The memorial was already vandalized twice in 2012.

Family members praying at the memorial (Photo provided by the family)

Doron's mother, Esther, told Ynet, "They've committed a pogrom against us. I wasn't surprised by it." She continued to say that "if a Jew had uprooted an olive tree, everyone would have been called" to the scene.

She insisted that the IDF, though busy, "should patrol the memorial regularly and not give up, and look for (the perpetrators" and punish them.
After more than 20 years, the world-famous band Aerosmith is expected to return to Israel in May 2017 in a single performance in Tel Aviv's Yarkon Park.

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The band's management is current in final negotiations with Israeli producers, Ynet learned, and the contract is to be signed shortly.

Aerosmith (Photo: Getty Images Image Bank)

A few months ago, the band's lead vocalist Steven Tyler said that the band intended to cease its activities after a tour that will take place next year. Aerosmith was once before in Israel, also in the Yarkon Park, in the summer of 1994.

Blustone Productions commented, "We are holding negotiations with dozens of artists, we don't have confirmation from any artist and when we have something to announce, we will do so."
Haaretz journalist Ari Shavit was accused by the American Jewish Journal writer Danielle Berrin in a column that she published last week of having sexually assaulted her when she came to interview him at his hotel.

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Berrin's article, the cover of last week's Jewish Journal , covers the particulars of the encounter, though she refrained from naming Shavit. She explained on her Twitter account , "My story about sexual assault is not about a person; it's about an issue. To treat it otherwise is to miss the point entirely." However, Shavit released a statement of apology that

Allegedly, after asking several questions at the beginning of their encounter, Shavit "lurched at (Berrin) like a barnyard animal" and tried to to physically force her to kiss him.

Danielle Berrin and Ari Shavit (Right photo: US Embassy)

Berrin continued that she attempted to talk her way out of the assault, bringing up Shavit's wife and children, but the Israeli correspondent, who was in town for a book event, turned such conversation to lasciviousness, stating that he was "not done yet" having children.

The Los-Angeles based American continued that she managed to leave the hotel despite Shavit's overt attempts to keep her there and convince her to join him in his hotel room to "hug." Though she was in a crowded lobby, the journalist wrote that she felt unsafe.

Her article goes on to draw parallels to Shavit's actions and those boasted by US presidential candidate Donald Trump in a 2005 recording , addressing the greater societal issues of rape culture and violence against women. She wrote, "In the end, I guess, I consider myself 'lucky.' Very, very 'lucky.' Because although I was groped and grabbed and pulled  sexually assaulted  I was not raped or otherwise harmed. Many women do not emerge from such situations still whole."

Shavit publicly admitted to being the Israeli journalist Berrin had met, apologized and minimized the encounter as a misunderstanding.

In a statement published on Haaretz , Shavit said, "More than two and a half years ago, in February 2014, I met with Danielle Berrin in Los Angeles for a conversation. Today, I sadly understand that I misconstrued the interaction between us during that meeting."

He claimed, "Prior to reading Berrin's article, I thought that we had had a friendly conversation that included some flirtation.

"I did not for a moment think it involved any sexual harassment. But what I saw as flirtation, Berrin saw as inappropriate, even harassing behavior on my part.

"As a person who deeply respects every woman and every human being, and as a person who abhors any form of sexual harassment, I apologize from the bottom of my heart for this misunderstanding. I did not mean to say anything unwelcome to Berrin, and I certainly never meant to cause her distress or hurt her feelings."

Friday morning, Berrin published an article entitled, "My response to Ari Shavit's 'apology'" (scare quotes her own) in which she discounted Shavit's claim that their encounter was based on a misunderstanding as "absurd."

She ended the article, "I am glad Ari Shavit has at least acknowledged an encounter took place. As a committed Jew, I am always open to the possibility of forgiveness and redemption.

"But Ari Shavit has yet to apologize for what he actually did; he did not apologize for committing sexual assault."







Ran Boker contributed to this report.
Legendary American cyclist Lance Amstrong, who came to visit Israel this week, toured the Gaza border region on Friday, where he met with the IDF's Gaza Division commander, Brig. Gen. Yehuda Fox, and even stepped inside one of the Hamas tunnels in Israeli territory that were uncovered during Operation Protective Edge .

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Fox gave Armstrong a security assessment of the area. The tunnel was in the Eshkol Regional Council.

Lance Armstrong in a Hamas tunnel (Photo: OR Movement)

Roni Flamer, the CEO and co-founder of the OR movement, which escorted Armstrong on his visit, said that the cyclist and the group that he was travelling with came to the area to learn about the situation there and to express solidarity with Israel on the southern border. Amstrong, whose group was brought by the businessman and philanthropist Martin Franklin, also visited the Ramon Crater this week, where he went on a 36-kilometer cycle.

Armstrong today outside Gaza (Photo: OR movement)

Up until a few years ago, Armstrong was considered one of history's greatest competitive cyclists, having won the Tour de France seven times after having overcome advanced testicular cancer.

(Photo: OR Movement)

However, it came to light in 2012 that Armstrong had been using forbidden, performance-enhancing drugs that entire time, and his winning titles were stripped of him. He only admitted to having doped in 2013 after years of rumors.
BEIRUT - Russian president's spokesman says Vladimir Putin has rejected the military's request for the resumption of airstrikes in Syria on the rebel-held eastern part of the city of Aleppo.

Dmitry Peskov says the president turned down the Russian military's request on Friday amid a new rebel offensive underway in the contested Syrian city.

Peskov says that Putin considers it "inadvisable to resume airstrikes on Aleppo," and wants to have humanitarian corridors out of Aleppo's rebel-held districts stay open both for rebels and civilians to leave the city.

Peskov noted that the "humanitarian pause" will give Washington time to honor its pledge to separate moderate rebels from al-Qaida linked militants in eastern Aleppo. He added, however, that Russia retains the right to offer all possible support to the Syrian army.
BEIRUT - Russia says its embassy in Damascus has been shelled by militants holed up on the outskirts of the Syrian capital, but no one has been hurt.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said one of the mortar rounds landed Friday near the embassy's main entrance and another exploded outside its fence. It said the building was damaged and four vehicles were also hit.

The ministry said the perpetrators of the attack will be tracked down and punished.

It added that Moscow will carefully monitor the international reaction to the shelling to see "who of our partners denounces terrorism, and who protects ... terrorists and points (out) 'convenient' targets to them."
An Israeli speaker's talk at University College London on Thursday evening was disrupted by reportedly violent anti-Israeli protesters to such an extent that police had to be called to evacuate barricaded-in Jewish students.

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The CAMERA on Campus event, hosted by KCL Israel Society and UCL Friends of Israel Society, had invited 27-year-old Hen Mazzig to speak about his experiences as a former IDF officer in a talk entitled "Sitting on the Fence." His talk had been met by controversy even before he arrived, with nominally pro-Palestinian student groups seeking to cancel his event.

Video by Craig Dillon & Jacob Diamond

X

The Independent reported that UCL's student union (UCLU) had made the decision that Mazzig would not be allowed to speak, but the university's administration overruled that. However, a statement released by the UCL Friends of Israel Society corrected this, stating that the event eventually had obtained "the consent of both UCL and UCL Union."

Still, in an attempt to minimize the campus disruption, the organizers only emailed the final location of the talk to ticket-holders two hours before the event. These efforts were fruitless.

Some 100 protestors gathered outside the room where the event was being held. They chanted slogans like "Shame!" and "Free Palestine!" bearing banners, and some entered the room by crawling in through windows.

The Telegraph reported that two Jewish students reportedly were assaulted and that the Metropolitan Police is investigating. One claimed to have been knocked down by a protestor who jumped in through a window, and the other alleged that a panic attack was triggered when a different protestor pushed her against a door.

X

Those who had come to participate in the event barricaded themselves in a room and were escorted out by police. The speaker posted on his Facebook timeline, "I had to leave, running with the security, just to get off the campus. Yes, the streets were the safe place."

Mazzig also confirmed that all the attendees were safe, including the two who had filed police reports. UCL security found a new location for the event to take place, and it proceeded peacefully.

UCL released a statement on Friday that read in part, "UCL and UCLU do not condone acts of intimidation or violence under any circumstances and, as a university with a longstanding radical history, we fiercely support the right to exercise free speech within the law."

UCL also stated, "We are aware that the Metropolitan police attended following accusations of assault and support them fully in their investigations. As this was a public event, it is unclear how many UCL students were present but we are instigating an enquiry and we will take appropriate disciplinary action where there is clear evidence that students may have breached our disciplinary regulations."
MANCHESTER, NH  The FBI says it will investigate whether there is classified information in newly discovered emails that appear to be related to its probe of Hillary Clinton's email practices, reinjecting one of the most toxic political issues into the presidential campaign less than two weeks before Election Day.

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The new emails came from a sexting investigation of Anthony Weiner, a US official said, speaking only on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to comment publicly. Weiner is the estranged husband of Huma Abedin, a longtime Clinton aide who now is a top official on her campaign team.

Trump on the development

X

Donald Trump immediately pounced on the turn of events, seeing an opportunity to press the argument he's long tried to make against Clinton: That she thinks she's above the law and that she put US security at risk by using her personal email. The GOP nominee told cheering supporters at his first campaign rally of the day that he has "great respect" for the fact that the FBI and the Department of Justice are now "willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made" in concluding the investigation earlier. The GOP nominee told cheering supporters at his first campaign rally of the day that he has "great respect" for the fact that the FBI and the Department of Justice are now "willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made" in concluding the investigation earlier. Trump said of Clinton, "We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office. ... This is bigger than Watergate." Trump said of Clinton, "We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office. ... This is bigger than Watergate." The Friday afternoon disclosure raises the possibility of the FBI reopening the criminal investigation involving the Democratic presidential nominee, which the agency said was complete in July.



Hillary Clinton (Photo: Reuters) The Friday afternoon disclosure raises the possibility of the FBI reopening the criminal investigation involving the Democratic presidential nominee, which the agency said was complete in July.

In a letter sent Friday to congressional leaders, FBI Director James Comey said that new emails have emerged, prompting the agency to "take appropriate investigative steps" to review information that flowed through the private email sever Clinton used while serving as secretary of state.

Clinton's email use has been one of the biggest vulnerabilities in her campaign for the White House. Even if she wins, Republicans have vowed the issue will follow her, promising continuing investigations.

She made no mention of the FBI development at a rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Friday, though she warned her supporters, "Anything can happen" in the campaign's closing days.

She told the crowd that Trump is particularly trying to get women, young people and minorities to stay home"part of his scorched earth campaign, the last refuge of a bankrupt candidate."

But her campaign was fending off other political problems as well, still trying dismiss the revelations in thousands of messages stolen from the private account of a top Clinton aide, part of a hack the Democratic campaign has blamed on the Russians.

Correspondence made public on Wednesday showed longtime Bill Clinton aide Doug Band describing overlapping relationships of the Clintons' global philanthropy and the family's private enrichment.

FBI Director James Comey (Photo: Getty Images)

"These are illegally stolen documents," Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook told reporters on her campaign plane. "We're not going to spend our campaign fighting back what the Russians want this to be about."

So far, the email-related controversies haven't seemed to hurt her campaign in the final weeks.

Recent surveys show Clinton retaining her lead in national polls and making gains in some swing states. Her campaign announced plans to hold a rally in Arizona next Wednesday, a traditionally red state put in play by Trump's deep unpopularity among minority voters, Mormons and business leaders.

Feeling confident, she's begun focusing on helping Democrats win control of the Senate, expand their margin in the House and lay the groundwork for future victories in demographically-shifting states like Arizona.

Her campaign will also get a boost from President Barack Obama, who will hold an evening rally in Orlando, a key battleground area of the crucial swing state of Florida.

White House officials say Obama will be traveling to boost Clinton nearly every day until Election Day, reflecting his rising popularity ratings.

Trump, meanwhile, was holding Friday events in New Hampshire, Iowa and Maine, one of two states that split their electoral voters by congressional district. Facing an increasingly narrow path to the 270 electoral votes needed to win the White House, his campaign is shooting for one of the traditionally Democratic state's four electoral votes in the more rural, conservative 2nd District.

His campaign said the billionaire businessman is plowing an additional $10 million of his personal fortune into his presidential bid, after new federal filings that show Clinton with an $85 million cash advantage in the final stretch.

The latest fundraising records, which cover the first 19 days of the month, show Trump had given only about $33,000 this monthfar less than the $2 million he typically gives and still $44 million short of the $100 million he's repeatedly promised to contribute over the course of the campaign.

Clinton's campaign and joint accounts with Democrats had $153 million in the bank as of last week. That's more than double the $68 million the Republican's campaign and partnership committees had on hand.

There are signs that Clinton's team is at least partly turning to postelection thinking. Vice President Joe Biden has emerged as a surprise name on a list of possible contenders for secretary of state, according to a person familiar with Clinton's transition planning.

It's unclear how many people are under consideration or whether Clinton herself has asked for Biden to be vetted for a job she once held. A person familiar with Biden's post-White House plans says the vice president has not been contacted by the Clinton campaign.
UNITED NATIONS - Three African nations that have said they will quit the International Criminal Court could send the wrong message about their commitment to justice, the UN Secretary-General said Friday.

Ban Ki-moon said that he understands concerns about the court, including how prosecutions can drag on for years, not all countries recognize the ICC's jurisdiction and that it has only convicted Africans despite crimes in other parts of the world.

"These challenges are best addressed not by diminishing support for the court, but by strengthening it from within. Deterring future atrocities, delivering justice for victims, and defending the rules of war across the globe are far too important priorities to risk a retreat from the age of accountability that we have worked so hard to build and solidify," Ban said.

South Africa and Burundi have already sent Ban official letters communicating their desire to leave the court. Gambia has said it plans to quit the court but the UN has not yet received an official letter, Ban's spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
RAMALLAH  In a divorce court where a man's testimony is worth twice a woman's, victory for lawyer Reema Shamasneh is rare and often bittersweet.

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On this morning, a young nurse is desperate to end her marriage to a truck driver who she says beat her, doused her with scalding tea and kept her from seeing her dying mother. But her husband will only agree if she forgoes all alimony, including the $14,000 stipulated in the marriage contract.

Eager to escape and claim her young son, she says yes. The man stands before a copy of the Quran, the Muslim holy book, and repeats after an Islamic judge: "You are divorced."





Reema Shamashneh, (R), argues a case in the Islamic family court in Ramallah (Photo: AP)

"This is not a big victory," the 39-year-old lawyer says with an air of quiet determination. "I gave her what she wanted, but at the same time I am not happy because she gave up her rights."

Dressed in the headscarf and long robe of a devout Muslim, Shamasneh fights for Arab women in the most intimate arena of their lives: marriage and divorce.

While countries such as Tunisia and Morocco have introduced reforms, brides in others must still be represented by male guardians who sign marriage contracts. Men can divorce on a whim, while women must prove cause. And polygamy is legal only for men.

Such notions enjoy strong support, even among women. In a 2013 poll by the Pew Research Center, large majorities in seven Arab countries said a woman should obey her husband, from 74 percent in Lebanon to 87 percent in the Palestinian territories and 93 percent in Tunisia.

"We cannot copy the Western laws because the Western societies are different and they have very complicated problems," says Maryam Saleh, a representative of the Islamic fundamentalist group Hamas in the now-defunct Palestinian parliament.

But Shamasneh believes the laws are the way they are because they were passed by men.

"They were raised in a certain culture that says men are better than women, and this is reflected in the laws," she says.

Reema Shamashneh talks to her client in the Islamic family court in Ramallah (Photo: AP)

Independent by avoiding marriage

As a girl in the farming village of Qatana, Shamasneh would see women get the leftovers at wedding feasts, after the men. And while her four brothers could come and go, she and her five sisters had to account for their limited movements.

"Until now, there is discrimination, even with simple things," she says. "This makes me angry."

However, her father Mohammed, a retired contractor, wanted all his children, including the girls, to get an education. Shamasneh chose law, a profession that turned out to be a good fit for her pragmatic, analytical nature.

Her 74-year-old mother Amneh, sitting across from Shamasneh, says she is proud of her daughter's success. But her mother was against her studies, Shamasneh interjects.

"At the time, it was shameful for a woman to study and have a job," Amneh says apologetically.

Amneh herself was married off at age 13, without her consent, and had her first child at 15. Four of Shamasneh's sisters married in their 20s. A fifth was forced into an arranged match at 16 and endured a prolonged divorce two years later.

Shamasneh was a child at the time. She says the bitter experience, including the lack of empathy displayed by her sister's male lawyer, fueled her interest in law.

Reema Shamasneh poses for a photo in the office of her legal aid center in Ramallah (Photo: AP)

As a single woman, Shamasneh's only socially acceptable option is to continue living with her parents. She says she would move out if she wanted to, but she likes spending time with her parents. In her childhood bedroom, law books are lined up on a shelf above her dresser.

She is fiercely protective of her relative independence. For her, this means not getting married.

"I can take care of myself," Shamasneh says. "I am a strong woman. I hate traditional marriage."

Growing number of female lawyers

On a typical day, Shamasneh arrives before 9am at the Islamic courthouse in Ramallah. One recent morning, she meets a 25-year-old client, a thin, pale woman in a frayed green robe who says she wants a divorce from her abusive husband.

Her father is also there to testify on her behalf, but her brother didn't turn up because he was sick. Shamasneh sternly cautions her client that this may hurt her case, because the court usually requires two male witnesses or a man and two women.

In a small victory, the judge rules later that day that the case can move forward.

The growing presence of female lawyers like Shamasneh has helped create more empathy for women going through divorce. When Shamasneh began practicing 15 years ago, female lawyers were rare.

Reema Shamashneh (R) speaks with her colleagues during a break at the Islamic family court in Ramallah (Photo: AP)

Now women occasionally outnumber men in the courthouse.

There's even a female judge. Kholoud al-Faqeeh defends the law in principle, saying that it reflects different gender roles, and that women sometimes fail to exhaust their legal rights.

Still, the judge occasionally reins in men appearing before her. When a witness in a custody hearing portrays a sister-in-law as an unfit mother because she holds down two jobs, the judge, a mother of four, snaps, "Palestinian women work. Do you want us all to give up our children?"

On another day, Shamasneh challenges a male colleague's claim that Islamic law gives the same rights to men and women seeking divorce. She refuses to give in. When he appears to run out of arguments, he resorts to "It's in the Quran."

Mahmoud Habbash, the head of the Islamic courts in the West Bank, warns that the views advocated by Shamasneh and other activists could lead to the collapse of society. He argues that men and women are different by nature and require different rules.

"The problem is that in the West, you don't understand how we treat women," Habbash says. "We treat them like queens."

Only one-third of Palestinians support a wife's right to divorce at all, according to the Pew survey. Across the region, support for divorce rights for women is even lower in Jordan, Egypt and Iraq, but is backed by a majority in Lebanon, Morocco and Tunisia. Some countries allow "khula" divorce, where a wife pays the husband compensation to get out of a marriage.

A Palestinian woman, second from left, seeking custody of her son, listens to proceedings in her case in the Islamic family court in Ramallah (Photo: AP)

'If women are free in divorce, they will divorce every day because they are emotional, while men are rational'

With so much opposition, Shamasneh knows that a long road lies ahead. Progress on legal reform has stalled, because the Palestinian self-rule government has limited authority in a West Bank that is largely controlled by Israel.

At home, her village remains deeply conservative. The local mosque preacher, Yacoub al-Faqeeh, says that while he respects Shamasneh, he sharply disagrees with demands for equal marriage and divorce rights.

"If women are free in divorce, they will divorce every day because they are emotional, while men are rational," he says.

Shamasneh could emigrate and join two brothers in Douglasville, Georgia. She has visited the area seven times, traveling without a male chaperone. "People talk, but I don't care," she says.

Yet life in the West holds no allure. Everything is too easy, she says. The struggle for women in her community gives her life meaning, and she couldn't imagine doing anything else.

"People in the village are resisting change," she says. "Therefore, I invest my energies in the court."
This has been a long time in the making, but in our continuing pursuit to bring only the best of firearms, 2nd Amendment and defence related news to our readers, we are very excited to announce the next step in our evolution as a company.

As of 2020, Minuteman Review is now the proud owner and operator of Your Defence News, a website with a long history of breaking huge news stories and investigative journalism.

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Keep an eye. Big things are coming soon. We couldn't be more excited.

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The Asbestos Education Committee  in partnership with the Asbestos Diseases Research Institute and the Heads of Asbestos Coordination Authorities  urges Australians not to play renovation roulette. November has been deemed National Asbestos Awareness Month, and the campaign aims to educate homeowners, renovators, handymen, and tradespeople about the dangers of asbestos and how to manage it safely.

According to the campaigns official press release, asbestos can be found anywhere: Under floor coverings including carpets, linoleum and vinyl tiles, behind wall and floor tiles, in cement floors, internal and external walls, ceilings and ceiling space (insulation), eaves, garages, roofs, around hot water pipes, fences, extensions to homes, garages, outdoor toilets, backyard and farm structures, chook sheds and even dog kennels.

Unless the public knows where these asbestos-containing products might be located, or how to manage and dispose of them safely, they expose themselves to great danger if they disturb asbestos-containing materials.

If tampered with, asbestos-containing materials could release lethal fibres, which can be inhaled and cause asbestos-related diseases, including malignant mesothelioma.

There is no cure for mesothelioma, a cancer that can develop between 20-50 years after inhaling asbestos fibresthe average survival time is just 10-12 months following diagnosis. Inhaling asbestos fibres can also cause lung cancer, asbestosis and benign pleural disease. Because there is no known safe level of exposure to asbestos fibres, its extremely important for all Australians to safely manage asbestos-containing materials that might be found in and around their homes.

The public is encouraged to visit the campaigns official website (asbestosawareness.com.au) to learn more about the proper detection, as well as the safe management and disposal of, asbestos.

Related stories:

Calls To Remove Loose-Fill Asbestos Properties From Rental Market

Calls For Mandatory Asbestos Disclosure
LIVE-2 Inning |01-5

ENGLAND VS NEW ZEALAND

ENG 179/6 VS 62/2 NZ

New Zealand need 118 runs in 66 balls at 10.72 rpo
Washington: Hillary Clinton is "absolutely ready" to be the US' commander-in-chief on day one as the Democratic presidential nominee and former secretary of state has more experience and exposure than any candidate "in our lifetime", First Lady Michelle Obama has said.

During a rare joint appearance with Clinton at a North Carolina election rally yesterday, Michelle contrasted Clinton's vision of a "powerful, vibrant and strong" nation with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's vision of "hopelessness and despair".

"I am out here first and foremost because we have never had a more qualified and prepared candidate for president than our friend Hillary Clinton. Never before in our lifetime. I say this everywhere I go," she said.

"I admire and respect Hillary. She has been a lawyer, a law professor, First Lady of Arkansas, First Lady of the US, a US Senator, secretary of state. She has more experience and exposure to the presidency than any candidate in our lifetime. Yes, more than Barack (Obama). More than Bill (Clinton). So she is absolutely ready to be commander-in-chief on day one. And yes, she happens to be a woman," Michelle said yesterday.

In the past few weeks, Michelle, 52, has emerged as a strong advocate of Clinton, 69, and has made several impressive speeches in some of the key battle ground states.

"It takes a level of generosity of spirit to do what Hillary has done in her career, in her life, for our family, for this nation. If people wonder, yes, Hillary Clinton is my friend. She has been a friend to mine and Barack, Malia, Sasha and Bill and Chelsea have been embracing and supportive from the very day my husband took the oath of office," she said.

The First Lady called this election unprecedented.

"I do not think we have ever had two candidates with such dramatically different visions of who we are and how we move forward as a nation.

"One candidate has a vision that is grounded in hopelessness and despair, a vision of a country that is weak and divided, where our communities are in chaos, our fellow citizens a threat. This candidate calls on us to turn against each other, to build walls, to be afraid," Michelle said without mentioning Trump, 70.

"And then there is Hillary's vision for this country that you just heard, a vision of a nation that is powerful and vibrant and strong, big enough to have a place for all of us, a nation where we each have something very special to contribute and where we are always stronger together.

"That is the choice we face between those who divide this country into us versus them and those who tell us to embrace our better angels and choose hope over fear," she said.

Michelle said this year's election is not about Republicans versus Democrats, but about something much bigger.

"We know the influence our president has on our children, how they turn on the TV and they see the most powerful role model in the world, someone who shows them how to treat others, how to deal with disappointment, whether to tell the truth," Michelle added.
Karachi: In a case of honour killing, a couple was shot dead on the orders of a tribal court in this Pakistani city for eloping to marry.

Azmat, 30, and Irfana, 18 were killed in the Shah Latif township on the outskirts of Karachi on Wednesday, a police officer said.

They had eloped and got married a year back.

"The couple was living in Banaras colony in Orangi town after getting married. Apparently few days back their families located them and convinced them everything will be forgiven and they just have to appear before a Jirga to settle the matter," the Station House Officer (SHO) of the area said.

He said when the couple appeared before the Jirga it passed an order that since they had brought dishonor their families they deserved to be given the death penalty.

The SHO said according to an informer who was present at the Jirga the couple were lined up and shot dead by three persons identified as Arshad, Nizam and Saeed.

"Their families than took their dead bodies and buried them in the local graveyard but we have now got orders from the court to get their bodies exhumed for post mortem," he said.

Police have arrested seven persons involved in the case.

Honour killing is a menace still prevalent in many parts of Pakistan.

In July British Pakistani woman, was allegedly killed by her parents for marrying a man of her choice in Jehlum district of Punjab.

In April, police arrested a young man in Karachi?s Orangi Town for slitting his teenage sister?s throat and watching her bleed to death.

In March this year, a man shot dead both his sisters in Sahiwal district in Punjab after suspecting them of having affairs.

The government recently passed a bill in the parliament invoking stronger punishments for those involved in honour killing after model and social media celebrity Qandeel Baluch was strangled to death by her brother and two other relatives in Multan.
Jakarta: An Indonesian woman has been given a sentence of 20 years in jail for murdering her college friend by poisoning her coffee, media reports said.

Jessica Kumala Wongso, 27, an Indonesian citizen and permanent resident of Australia, was accused of lacing her friend`s coffee with cyanide in order to kill her.

On Thursday, after months of hearings, a panel of three Jakarta judges ruled that she was guilty of premeditated murder, Daily Mail reported.

The judges found that Wongso had personal problems in Australia and hence decided to return to Indonesia.

Judge Binsar Gultom said Wongso was still hurting over her break-up with Australian man Patrick O`Connor in late 2014 and when she first met up with Mirna and her husband Arif Soemarko last December and saw them `so happy` something was `triggered`.

`I don`t accept this decision because for me, it`s not fair and very one-sided,` Wongso said after the verdict.

On January 6, 2016, Wongso and her college friend Wayan Mirna Salihin were meeting at a Jakarta cafe when Salihin took a sip of a cyanide-laced drink, collapsed on the floor and went into convulsions. She died by the time she arrived at hospital.
Islamabad: Former Pakistan president General Pervez Musharraf has described Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar as a "terrorist", saying he has been involved in bomb blasts even in his country.

He, however, he did not give a clear reply as to why Pakistan has not been asking China to get Azhar declared as an international terrorist by the United Nations.

"Why should China be involved when it has nothing to do with him (Azhar)," Mr Musharraf told a Pakistani TV channel.

A proposal is pending before the UN Security Council for declaring Azhar as an international terrorist but China has been blocking it, claiming that there is not enough evidence to prove that he is a terrorist.

When asked about the espionage case busted today in Delhi involving an employee of the Pakistan High Commission, the former Pakistan Army Chief initially parried the issue saying, "I am not aware of it". But then he added that "if at all it has happened, (it) shouldn't be encouraged", the release said.

It also quoted Mr Musharraf as saying that the Nawaz Sharif government lacks aggression.

The channel said Musharraf accepted Pakistan government's diplomatic failure on international front. He, however, said it does not mean that Pakistan should be taken for granted.

To a question on whether a political leadership or Army is better suited for Pakistan's development, Mr Musharraf said the country had witnessed growth when Army was in power.

When asked about terror camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), he feigned ignorance saying "I don't know". However, with a smile, he said, "I will let you know only once I get the count of these camps which you are talking about".

On Pakistan's diminishing relations with United States, he said there are certain contentious issues which are being addressed by Pakistan Army.

When referred to the 'surgical strike' and military might of India, he said, Pakistan is a nuclear power with a strong army which can't be bullied.

On Prime Minister Narendra Modi's sudden visit to Pakistan and his meeting with Sharif, he said shaking hands is just an artificial move, but for a formal solution, something concrete needs to be done.
United Nations: Russia dismissed as "unconvincing" the findings of a UN-led investigation showing that Syrian forces had carried out three chemical attacks, and said no sanctions should be imposed.

"We believe that the proof is not there for any punitive action to be taken. It's simply not there," Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told reporters following a closed-door Security Council meeting yesterday.

A joint United Nations-Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) panel concluded that government forces carried out three chlorine gas attacks on villages in 2014 and 2015.

It was the first time an international probe blamed President Bashar al-Assad's forces after years of denial from Damascus.

But Churkin told the council that the findings were not strong enough to trigger sanctions.

The conclusions "in most cases... Are not substantiated by sufficient testimonial basis, first of all material proof, they are full of contradictions and therefore unconvincing," he said, according of a text of his remarks.

The findings are "not definitive, have no legally binding force and cannot serve as accusatory conclusions for taking legal decisions," he added.

Britain and France pressed demands for sanctions, arguing that UN resolutions provided for such action in response to the use of chemical weapons.

"Those responsible for using chemical weapons must be sanctioned. There is no other way," French Ambassador Francois Delattre told reporters.

"There should be accountability for every single person involved in any use of chemical weapons in Syria or indeed anywhere else," British Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said.

Government helicopters flying from two regime-controlled air bases dropped chlorine barrel-bombs on the villages of Qmenas, Talmenes and Sarmin, in rebel-held Idlib province, the panel's latest report said.

Chlorine use as a weapon is banned under the Chemical Weapons Convention, which Syria joined in 2013 under pressure from Russia, Assad's ally.

Although previous OPCW reports concluded that toxic gases were used as weapons in Syria's five-year war, they stopped short of identifying the perpetrators.

The panel identified the 253 and 255 squadrons of the 63rd helicopter brigade, which flew from the Hama and Humaymim air bases, and the 628 squadron based in Humaymim as the perpetrators.

The UN-OPCW panel also found that the Islamic State group used mustard gas as a weapon in August 2015.

"We stand firmly behind the report and its conclusions," Virginia Gamba, who led the investigative panel, told reporters.

Russia also rejected a US proposal to extend the panel's mandate - which ends on Monday - for a year, arguing that more time is needed to discuss the experts' future work.
Guwahati: Assuring Union minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy that Assam was on track to achieve its goal of building skilled manpower, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal Friday said his government was "earnestly pursuing" the skill development plan for the state.

At a meeting with the Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship here, Sonowal apprised him of the status of the recently-opened Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendra (PMKK) in Guwahati among others.

Rudy underlined the need for structuring of the Directorate of Skill Development in the state and asked for submission of the state's plan for the Skill Development Mission, assuring a "100 per cent support" of the Centre for the same.

To the Union minister's request for a 10-acre land on lease for setting up a drivers' training centre in the state, Sonowal assured him of providing land of Assam State Transport Corporation for setting up such centres all over the state.

An MoU in this regard would be signed between the state and the Centre for jointly operating these centres.

Sonowal told Rudy that 10 buildings constructed by the Industries Department would be handed over to the Skill Development Ministry which would be turned into state-of-the-art skilling centres.

Rudy said 'job melas' for entry-level jobs would be organised shortly in the state which would give a "huge fillip" to the employment scenario.

The chief minister advocated a "synergising approach" between the government and corporate houses wherein, the government would impart skill development training to the youth and the corporate houses would absorb them in various vocations.

Stating that PMKKs would be opened in all the districts of the state in a phased manner and the respective MPs would be entrusted with the task of monitoring the functioning of these centres, Rudy said the funds for the same would be entirely provided by the Centre.

Appreciating the state government under the leadership of Sonowal for taking swift action to implement the Skill Development Mission, the Union minister said setting up of the Skill Development Department by the state government was a step in the right direction.
Washington: US President Barack Obama will launch a campaign blitz for Democrat Hillary Clinton next week as the race against Republican Donald Trump for the White House enters the final stretch.

The Clinton camp announced Friday that Obama will make the case for his former secretary of state for three straight days in as many key battleground states.

Obama's appearances could be crucial after the Federal Bureau of Investigation said it was reviewing newly discovered emails that "appear to be pertinent" to the investigation into Clinton's use of private email while at the State Department.

On Tuesday, Obama will stump for her in Columbus, Ohio. The president will campaign in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Wednesday, followed by swings in southern Florida, including the Jacksonville area, on Thursday.

The three states account for 62 of the electoral college votes needed to reach the 270-vote minimum to win the White House in the November 8 election.

Obama won the states in 2008 and 2012, except in the case of North Carolina, which he won the first time but lost in his re-election bid.

The Clinton team has intensely targeted voter campaigns in those states, where a defeat of Trump would virtually ensure his loss in the election.

Clinton is also scheduled to campaign in Ohio, North Carolina and Florida next week, but has added an unusual stop to her calendar Arizona, a Republican Party stronghold where she is leading in several public opinion polls.

"Arizona is another battleground state that is now on the map," campaign manager Robby Mook told reporters aboard her plane as the candidate flew into Iowa, another swing state that had been leaning toward Trump but where the polls have tightened into nearly a dead heat.

The southwestern state of Arizona, home to the 2008 Republican nominee John McCain, is "a contest that I think we can win and that's why we want to spend some time there," Mook said.

"But it's a toss-up, and so are Ohio, Iowa."
Chennai: In a major setback to the Karnataka government, the National Green Tribunal, Friday, put on hold the proposed construction of a steel flyover that links Basaveshwara Circle to Esteem Mall.

Staying the project for four weeks, the green tribunal said the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) had not sought Tribunal's clearance to cut 812 trees, a mandatory requirement for the work to commence on the ground.

The state government had planned to begin work on the link from November 1.

Reacting to the NGT order, Bengaluru Development and Town Planning Minister KJ George told a news channel: We respect the court verdict and we will submit all details. We are confident that we will get clearance.

The 6.7 km steel flyover had become a prestige issue for Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

"The steel flyover project has been totally transparent, as its details were put up on the website of the BDA (Bangalore Development Authority) and 73 percent of the people have favoured the bridge," Siddaramaiah had said.

However, thousands of Bangaloreans have openly protesting against the flyover - about 8,000 Bengalureans even staged human chain to protest the proposed flyover for a signal-free ride to the airport on the city's northern outskirts.

The protesters included including prominent personalities like actor and film maker Prakash Belawadi and BJP MP Rajeev Chandrashekhar.

Flaying the project, Belawadi said the forum wants the project to be shelved as it was sanctioned without public consultation.

"We want the project to be shelved as it was sanctioned without public consultation, that is a very arrogant attitude as our questions are unanswered," he said.

He alleged that the government had bypassed Bangalore Metropolitan Planning Committee in sanctioning the project.

He also said the Bangalore Vision Group had not spoken in favour of it as they were doubtful about it's feasibility.

"The project cost is too high," he said.

Belawadi also alleged that government was misusing tax payers' money to build the flyover when citizens have several modes of transport, including a railway station at Devanahalli.

The flyover was not a part of the master plan as well,he said.

JDS State President H D Kumaraswamy alleged that the project was being used to raise party funds for next year's Uttar Pradesh assembly election.
Patna: Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar Friday said he had not received any invitation to take part in the November 5 programme of the Samajwadi Party (SP) in Uttar Pradesh.

Replying to a question on the political development in Uttar Pradesh in the wake of the feud within the ruling SP, Kumar dwelt on the unsuccessful efforts for the unification of the old Janata Parivar.

"A step was taken to form a strong party after the merger of the six erstwhile splinter parties of the old Janata Parivar. To a great extent, progress was also achieved," he said.

"Talks were progressing under the chairmanship of SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, but they did not succeed," he added.

"But, it will be wrong to assume that such efforts will not be made again or will not succeed in the future," Kumar, who had played an important role in the unification of the Janata Parivar before the Bihar Assembly polls last year, said.

The SP has decided to invite the prominent leaders of the old Janata Parivar at its foundation day programme on November 5.

Efforts to bring together the socialist leaders of the Janata Parivar are being seen as an attempt to achieve a Bihar-like potent alliance of the secular parties to defeat the BJP in the crucial Uttar Pradesh Assembly election early next year.

Kumar, whose election as JD(U) national president was ratified by the party's national council at Rajgir earlier this month, has made at least eight trips to Uttar Pradesh in the recent past and has shared the dais with Ajit Singh of the RLD and rebel BSP leader RK Choudhary.

He has also held talks with Mohammad Ayub of the Peace Party.

Replying to another question, Kumar said the legislature, judiciary and executive had important roles in a democratic set-up and all the wings should cooperate with each other.
Iowa: The FBI dealt Hillary Clinton`s seemingly unstoppable White House campaign a stunning blow Friday by reopening a probe into her use of a private email server while secretary of state.

With just 11 days to go until America votes, Clinton`s rival Donald Trump seized triumphantly on the shock decision, declaring her unfit for office in front of a crowd chanting: "Lock her up!"

Clinton was on a flight when the news broke and ignored reporters` shouted questions about the probe as she landed -- smiling and waving -- in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for campaign events of her own.

Clinton`s vice-presidential running mate Tim Kaine, appearing in Tallahassee, Florida, appeared to be caught off guard by the decision, telling reporters: "I`ve got to read more. I`ve got to read a little more."

FBI director James Comey dropped the bombshell in a letter to congressional committees investigating allegations that Clinton put US secrets at risk during her time as secretary of state.Comey had previously told lawmakers the FBI probe into Clinton`s unusual decision to use a private server instead of a government email while in office had concluded without finding wrongdoing.

But, writing to "supplement" this assessment, he said that "in connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation."

The FBI will thus take "appropriate investigative steps" to decide whether a new batch of mails contains classified information "as well as to assess their importance to the investigation."

The 70-year-old Trump, trailing in opinion polls both nationally and in the key swing states he must win to secure the White House, seized triumphantly on the news.

"We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office," he told cheering crowds at a campaign rally in Manchester, New Hampshire.

"I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the Department of Justice are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made," he added.

The news took the shine off what should have been a good day for Clinton, with President Barack Obama`s Democratic administration announcing stronger than expected economic growth numbers.While the 69-year-old former first lady holds an overall poll lead and remains on course to become America`s first female president, a handful of states -- including Iowa -- could be close-fought.

Both candidates were to be in the battleground of Iowa within hours of each other as they vie to drum up support across the rolling plains of the Midwest.

From there, Clinton was to head to the state capital Des Moines to rally voters.

Trump kicked off the day in New Hampshire, jetting to Maine and was to wrap up with a rally for 5,000 people in an open-air amphitheater in Cedar Rapids.

While Trump draws the biggest crowds, he is failing to pull in donations to match: contributions to his campaign slumped in October.

Both camps filed their campaign accounts Thursday night for the period leading up to October 19. These confirmed the Democrats` overpowering lead in the money game, even though the total sums raised fall short of the records set in 2012.For the home stretch, Clinton has at her disposal a party war chest almost four times that of her rival: $62 million against $16 million.

When secondary sources of funding are taken into account, the Clinton treasury rises to $172 million against $73 million for the Republican, making it an exceptionally unbalanced race in financial terms, according to Politico.

What does this mean in practice? That American television screens will be awash in Democratic ads in the days leading up to November 8.

The other surprise from the figures reported to the Federal Election Commission: the billionaire Republican donated a measly $31,000 to his own campaign this month -- despite promises to contribute $100 million by Election Day.

The Manhattan real estate mogul -- who claims to be worth $10 billion -- has forked out $56 million of his own money since launching his maverick White House bid last year -- but so far no sign of the other $44 million he pledged to spend.

Trump`s White House bid was sent into a tailspin this month by the release of a 2005 video capturing him bragging about the ability to grope women with impunity, followed by a string of accusations of sexual misconduct -- which he denies.

As his campaign faltered, the nominee piled on the defiant rhetoric, claiming the allegations were part of a plot to rig the election, and threatening not to recognize the outcome if he loses.
Chennai: Eating cats and dogs may sound strange in this part of the country but a joint team of police and an animal rights organisation here has made some startling revelations.

They have found out that some roadside eateries in Chennai's Pallavaram area sell cat meat biryanis to a special group of customers.

According to the Times of India, volunteers from the People for Animals (PfA) along with police have rescued 16 cats which were kept for their meat from the Narikorava settlement in Pallavaram on Friday.

PfA volunteer Sagar Sheth, who was part of the operation, said they received information that pet cats were trapped by the narikorvas,

It is alleged that on weekends narikorvas, a south Indian gypsy tribe, skin the cats and sell the meat to roadside eateries in and around Pallavaram.

The meat is reportedly used in biryani.

The report said that two PfA volunteers befriended a couple of narikorava youths after visiting their settlement on Thursday.

They reportedly asked them to demonstrate how the cats are trapped and then skinned. The volunteers recorded the demonstration and the footage was later handed over to the police.

At the time of the raid on Friday morning at the narikorava settlement, all the 16 cats were kept in a single cage, and they were not provided water to drink, the report claimed.

Police had received complaints about pet cats being stolen from various residential areas and kept in narikorava settlement, the report said citing Pallavaram police inspector G Venkatesan.

"When the PfA volunteers approached us for help, our team went and rescued the cats," he was quoted as saying.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court will on Friday hear a plea filed by the Noida Toll Bridge Company Ltd. (NTBCL) challenging the Allahabad High Court order to make the Delhi-Noida-Direct Flyway toll free with an immediate effect.

The order to make the DND Flyway toll free was passed by the Allahabad High Court on Wednesday.

The NTBCL had on Thursday challenged the verdict before the Supreme Court which agreed to grant an urgent hearing and posted the matter for Friday.

The company mentioned the case before a bench headed by Justice A R Dave and urged the court to list the matter for Friday as the SC would be on a week-long vacation for Diwali thereafter.

The DND Flyway is a 9.2 km, access-controlled, eight-lane road connecting south Delhi to Noida and east Delhi. On Wednesday, the Allahabad HC said NTBCL had earned back the construction cost of the Flyway and there was no need to continue collecting toll.

The high court order came on a PIL filed by Federation of Noida Residents Welfare Associations (FONRWA), which had moved the court in 2012. In April, FONRWA filed a special leave petition in the Supreme Court seeking an order to restrain NTBCL from collecting toll on the DND Flyway.

In June, the SC directed Allahabad HC to decide on FONRWA's plea in three months.

The HC held that "right to levy and collect user fee from commuters as conferred upon the concessionaire under the concession agreement suffers from excessive delegation and is contrary to the provisions of UP Industrial Development Act".

"The user fee which is being levied/realised is not supported by the legal provisions relied upon by the concessionaire (Noida Toll Bridge Company), Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services (promoter and developer of the project) and the Noida Authority," the HC said.

The DND Flyway is the shortest route between Noida and Delhi, the other routes being via the Nizamuddin Bridge and Okhla Barrage.

The eight-lane expressway is 9.2 km-long. The project was commissioned on February 7, 2001.

The DND Flyway - which is one of the better-run toll plazas - connects Delhi on the west bank of the Yamuna with Noida and East Delhi.

It has witnessed several protests and demonstrations seeking scrapping of the Rs. 28 toll following allegations that the operator of the 9.2-km-long stretch (including the Mayur Vihar link) has already made significant profits.
The Hague: Far-right Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders, who goes on trial Monday on hate speech charges, believes he is on a mission to stop an "Islamic invasion" of the West.

Reviled and supported in equal measure for his anti-Islam rhetoric, the 53-year-old firebrand has become a divisive figure in the Netherlands, which prides itself on its long but fading tradition of consensus politics and multi-cultural tolerance.

"We are not xenophobes, but we are against the influx of a culture that is against everything we stand for," Wilders recently told AFP.

Now the platinum-haired politician is facing charges of inciting racial hatred after pledging in local elections in 2014 he will ensure there will be "fewer Moroccans" in the country.

The creator of the anti-Islam film "Fitna" ("Discord" in Arabic) has previously said his popularity in the Netherlands is due to the fact that "we dare to talk about sensitive subjects like Islamisation and we use plain and simple words that the (Dutch) voter can understand."

The 17-minute film, featuring shocking images of attacks in New York in 2001 and Madrid in 2004 combined with quotes from the Koran drew outrage in several Muslim countries when it was screened in 2008.

In 2011, Wilders was acquitted on five hate speech and discrimination charges because of "Fitna" -- as well as other anti-Islamic remarks made on websites, Internet forums and Dutch newspapers.

Local prosecutors at the time were reluctant to press charges against Wilders, saying his comments criticised Islam as a religion and not Muslims as a people.Wilders says it is "nonsense" that he is branded as "far-right", but has no hesitation branding the Koran a "fascist" book.

He wants to halt Muslim immigration, close mosques and ban the Koran -- which he has infamously compared to Hitler`s "Mein Kampf" -- should he win next year`s elections.

But Wilders cares little for the opinion of what he terms "the political elites", or the media. He prefers to tweet his thoughts in snappy short sentences.

"Prosecuted for voicing the opinion of millions," Wilders tweeted two weeks ago after judges ruled his trial should go ahead, adding the hashtag "#pleurop," a vulgar Dutch way of telling someone to "go away."Wilders created his Freedom Party (PVV) in 2006, when he won nine out of 150 parliamentary seats on a ticket to "limit the growth of Muslim numbers".

The party last year was riding high in the polls on a wave of anti-immigrant sentiment, but has slipped from first to second place in recent weeks. But it is still predicted to rake in between 25 to 29 seats in March elections.

Wilders` outspoken views have seen him given round-the-clock protection and he is often described as the "best guarded man in the Netherlands" especially after the 2004 murder of outspoken Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh by a radical Islamist.

His lawyer Geert-Jan Knoops recently told judges his client was "on hit lists drawn up by Al-Qaeda, the Taliban and the Islamic State" group.

Wilders does not talk about his private life -- his second wife is Hungarian -- and has remained mum on speculation that his bloodline is part Indonesian and that he dyes his hair to hide his roots.

He has also worked hard to build his profile abroad and often travels to the United States and Australia to speak to conservative audiences.

"I want to defend freedom, which I think will disappear into thin air the moment the Islamic ideology gains a stronger foothold in (The Netherlands)," Wilders has told AFP.
Panaji: Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar on Friday denied any politics behind the timing of filing a chargesheet against former Chief Minister and Congressman Digambar Kamat in connection with the $976,630 Louis Berger bribery scandal.

Speaking to IANS on the sidelines of a media event at the State Secretariat, Parsekar admitted that there was a delay in the filing of charges against Kamat, but also added that the corruption case was complex and needed a thorough investigation, which took time.

"The law takes its own course. I feel it is delayed... But for not any..." Parsekar said, when asked if the delay in filing the chargesheet, until a few months before the state legislative assembly elections, could give rise to speculation that the move was political.

Digambar Kamat was the Chief Minister of a Congress-led coalition government, who along with then state PWD Minister Churchill Alemao and other government officials, has been accused of allegedly accepting a $976,630 bribe in 2010 from officials of US-based Louis Berger consultancy firm.

While Alemao was arrested in 2015 and formally charged subsequently before a special court, Kamat has managed to evade arrest, even as his anticipatory bail has been challenged by the state Crime Branch before the apex court.

Kamat has been charged with criminal conspiracy and tampering with evidence under the provisions of the Indian Penal Code and sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Kamat is also being probed by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the Louis Berger scam.

Parsekar said that the corruption case was complex, and added that another reason for the delay could have been Kamat`s constant petitioning to courts for bail.

"The matter had even reached the Supreme Court," Parsekar said.


Vadodara: Eight persons were killed and three others injured in a fire at a fire crackers shop here in Gujarat on Friday, officials said.

The incident took place in Rustampura locality of Vadodara`s Vaghodia area and the cause of fire is being ascertained.

Officials said since the shop was being run from a house, the fire also engulfed the second storey of the building. An LPG cylinder also exploded due to the fire.

Fire tenders were on the spot trying to douse the flames, fire brigade officials said.
Columbia: Hillary Clinton`s presidential campaign angrily demanded Friday that the head of the FBI clarify his statement about again looking into her use of a private email server while secretary of state.

Campaign chairman John Podesta said FBI director James Comey "should immediately provide the American public more information" after a letter to lawmakers announced the bureau would review newly discovered emails.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation had recommended in July not to prosecute Clinton for sending unsecured emails with classified material through the server, though it found her to have been "extremely careless."

But on Friday, Comey said new emails that "appear to be pertinent" to the investigation would be reviewed -- a bombshell reveal with less than two weeks to go before Election Day.

"It is extraordinary that we would see something like this just 11 days out from a presidential election," Podesta said in a statement.

"The director owes it to the American people to immediately provide the full details of what he is now examining. We are confident this will not produce any conclusions different from the one the FBI reached in July."
New Delhi: A day after busting a major espionage ring with the arrest of two Indians, police on Thursday evening arrested third Indian involved in the racket.

Shoaib, the Jodhpur-based passport and visa agent allegedly involved in espionage racket, was detained near his hometown last evening.

Earlier in the day, police revealed that a Pakistan High Commission official, identified as Mehmood Akhtar, was detained on Wednesday for his alleged involvement in an espionage racket involving sharing of sensitive defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border with Pakistani spy agency ISI.

Two people, identified as Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir, were also arrested for sharing sensitive information and defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border with Pakistani spy agency ISI.

"He (Shoaib) was responsible for recruiting Subhash and Maulana in the module. He was detained near Jodhpur today (Thursday) evening," said Ravindra Yadav, joint commissioner of police (Crime), yesterday.

Shoaib had come in contact with Maulana around a one-and-a-half year back, who lured the latter to join him in collecting vital information about the installations of Army and para-military forces in Gujarat and Rajasthan, the officer said.

On Wednesday, after getting a tip-off about the presence of Akhtar along with Shoaib, Ramzan, and Jangir at Delhi Zoo, the police had nabbed Akhtar along with Ramzan and Jangir but Shoaib had managed to escape, said the officer.

"We had sent a request to Jodhpur Police about detaining Shoaib and today (Thursday) evening he was detained. He will be brought to Delhi soon," said the officer.

Shoaib's questioning is likely to reveal about the network of other spies who were recruited in the module.

Police has also got to know Nagaur-based Ramzan used to recruit locals which included Army and para-military forces personnel to pass on information/documents, said Yadav.

He had introduced Subhash as a para-military officer to Mehmood for getting high money for sharing of important documents, police said.

(With PTI inputs)
New Delhi: India on Friday condemned the expulsion of its High Commission staffer in Islamabad, saying Pakistan has not given any justification.

The Ministry of External Affairs said that Pakistan's action further confirms that it continues to be in denial of its anti-India activities, including cross-border terrorism.

"Government notes with regret the government of Pakistan`s decision to declare Surjeet Singh, Assistant Personnel and Welfare Officer in the High Commission of India, in Islamabad, persona non grata and expel him and his family members," the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

"No justification has been provided by the government of Pakistan except for the completely baseless and unsubstantiated allegation that his activities were not in keeping with diplomatic norms," it stated.

"The government condemns Pakistan`s step."

In a tit-for-tat action, Pakistan on Thursday declared an Indian High Commission official as persona non grata and asked him to leave the country within 48 hours.

Earlier yesterday, India had declared a Pakistan High Commission staffer 'persona non grata' for spying and asked him to leave the country within 48 hours after he was caught by Delhi Police with sensitive defence documents, including those about deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border.

"It is obvious that the step is an afterthought following yesterday`s apprehension of Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar in Delhi while indulging in anti-India activities," the External Affairs Ministry statement said today.

"Pakistan`s action further confirms that it continues to be in denial of its anti-India activities, including cross-border terrorism," it added.

On Thursday, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Vikas Swarup had said: "The Pakistan High Commission has been informed that Mehmood Akhtar and his family must return to Pakistan by October 29. The Foreign Secretary also strongly conveyed to the Pak High Commissioner that the Pak High Commission must ensure that none of its members indulge in activities inimical to India, or behave in a manner that is incompatible with their diplomatic status."

Also Read: How Delhi Police busted Pakistan espionage ring - Know the details here

Swarup had said that Akhtar told the police that he had joined the Baloch Regiment of the Pakistan Army in 1997 and came on deputation to the Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI) in 2013 and posted in September 2013 to the Pakistan High Commission where he is presently working as Assistant to Farukh Habib, Counsellor (Trade).

Asserting that terror has become the "central motive" in India's interactions with Pakistan, Swarup said it was important that Pakistan takes action to honour various commitments it has made, including at the highest level, that it will dismantle the terror infrastructure and will not allow its soil to be used for such activities against any country, including India.
New Delhi: Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday confirmed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will celebrate Diwali this year in Mana Gaon village of Chamoli sector in Uttarakhand with Indo Tibetan Border Police Force (ITBP) and said that this efforts will boost the morale of the Army men.

"People are very excited on the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Mana Gaon on the occassion of Diwali. Several Indian Army personnal belong from here. The roots of this village is connected to Indian Army," Pradhan told ANI.

PM Narendra Modi will celebrate #Diwali in Uttarakhand's Mana town: Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan pic.twitter.com/hV3RBEHm7a  ANI (@ANI_news) October 28, 2016

PM Modi will leave for Chamoli on Saturday to celebrate Diwali with the troops of the ITBP.

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval will accompany the Prime Minister on his trip to the border area.

Earlier, PM Modi urged the nation to send their Diwali wishes to the Army and security forces personnel to boost their morale.
New Delhi: "You cannot bring the entire institution (of judiciary) to a grinding halt," the Supreme Court on Friday told the government while expressing anguish over the delay in appointment of judges in high courts despite recommendations made by the collegium in this regard.

"Courts rooms are locked down. Do you want to lock down the judiciary," a bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur said, adding "you cannot bring the entire institution to a grinding halt."

Maintaining that the appointment process "cannot be stalled" due to non-finalisation of the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP), it criticised the tardy progress in processing files pertaining to judges' appointment and even warned that it may summon the Secretaries of the PMO and the Ministry of Law and Justice to ascertain the factual position.

"There should not be any deadlock. You have committed to process the files for appointment of judges without finalisation of the MoP. Finalisation of MoP has nothing to do with the appointment process in the judiciary," the bench, which also included Justices D Y Chandrachud and L Nageswara Rao, said.

Referring to the deficiency of judges in various high courts, it said that in Karnataka high court, several court rooms were locked because there were no judges.

Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the Centre, said that non-finalisation of the MoP was one of the issues and assured the bench that more progress will be seen in the near future on the appointment of judges.

The court fixed the matter for further hearing on November 11.

The Centre had on September 14 told the apex court that there was "no blame game" or "logjam" in appointments and transfer of judges for higher judiciary but blamed the high courts for "pretty much delaying" in starting the process.

Earlier, the apex court had said it would not tolerate "logjam in judges' appointment" and would intervene to "fasten accountability as the justice delivery system is collapsing".

The bench had said that if the government had reservation about any name, it could always come back to the collegium.

The Attorney General had also pleaded that no notice

should be issued for the time being on the PIL filed by 1971 war veteran Lieutenant Colonel Anil Kabotra on the issue, saying he would get back with the facts and figures.

The PIL has referred to the huge backlog of cases and vacancies in the judiciary and sought a direction to the authorities in this regard.

Kabotra, in his PIL, has sought a direction to Ministry of Law and Justice to take "immediate steps" to facilitate filling up of existing vacancies in the judiciary across the country.

He has also sought a direction to consider and implement 245th report of the Law Commission on reforms in judiciary and to increase the judges' strength and infrastructural facilities in courts in the country.

The plea has further said "the respondent (Centre) is duty-bound to facilitate filling up of existing judges strength across the country and to consider increasing the same substantially in terms of the Law Commission's report."
Shimla: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on Friday declared the state free of open defecation under the `Swachh Bharat Mission`, thereby ensuring a clean state.

The hill state is the first state in the category of big states to become free of open defecation.

The Chief Minister announced this at a function here where Union Rural Development Minister Narendra Singh Tomar and Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda were also present.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said it was not possible without the support of the people.

He said though Sikkim was the first state to achieve the distinction of becoming free of open defecation, but it was in the small states` category.

"We are lucky enough to become second state, leaving Kerala behind, which is also in the race and I suppose would be declared free of open defecation after four days on November 1, while celebrating Kerala Day," Virbhadra Singh said.

"I insisted upon the Union Rural Development Minister to be with us despite his busy schedule, as I always wanted that our state should be the first amongst the big states to be free of open defecation."

"It was also a matter of pride that we accomplished the feat six months before the target of March 2017, and we are committed to maintaining the status in times to come," he said.

"It`s more important now to keep the momentum going," he added.

Toeing Mahatma Gandhi`s ideology of observing cleanliness, the Chief Minister said: "The state is fully cooperating with the central government in implementing the centrally-aided development programmes and policies."

The hill state has 12 districts, 78 development blocks, 3,226 Panchayats and 18,465 villages and all have been declared free of open defecation.

Under the `Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan` -- a demand-driven and community-led programme to achieve the `Nirmal` or free of open defecation -- the aim is to achieve 100 per cent access to sanitation for all rural households by 2022 by constructing individual, institutional, cluster and community toilets.
Bhopal: A septuagenarian former soldier from China, who entered India during the 1962 Sino-India war after allegedly losing his way and later settled in Madhya Pradesh, is yearning to go back home and reunite with his siblings.

The 77-year-old Wang Qi lives with his wife and children in Tirodi area of Naxal-infested Balaghat district and harbours a long unfulfilled desire to see his relatives for the past five decades but his wish hasn't been fulfilled for want of a permit from the Indian government and other procedural roadblocks.

A frail looking Wang might face more hardships in visiting his homeland given the prevailing tension in the Indo-China ties but the old man is still hopeful.

His younger son Vishnu Wang (35) said that his father had joined the Chinese Army in 1960 and he entered India from the eastern frontiers after losing his way in pitch of darkness one night.

He landed in Assam where he was caught by Indian Red Cross Society and later handed over to Indian Army on January 1, 1963.

"My father spent six years in different prisons in Assam, Ajmer, Delhi and the Punjab and Haryana High Court finally released him in March 1969," he said.

"The Indian government had promised to the court that it would rehabilitate my father. He was taken to Delhi, Bhopal, Jabalpur and then finally handed over to Balaghat police," he said.

After coming to Balaghat, Wang, in order to make out a living, started working as a watchman with a mill where his colleagues started calling him by name Raj Bahadur apparently due to his Nepali features, Vishnu said.

But little did he know that the enemy nation against whom he had waged a war would become his home, where he would rear a family. Qi married his wife Sushila in 1975 but his desire to live a comfortable life was short-lived.

"Soon after my father married my mother, the Indian government stopped his monthly pension of Rs 100," Vishnu, who works with a small business unit as an accountant said.

"My father faced a lot of hardships, wanting to go to China. He tried very hard and even entered into correspondence with the then prime ministers but in vain," he said.

With PTI inputs
New Delhi: Questioning Jawaharlal Nehru's policies, Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Friday said if Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel had been given a free hand to deal with Jammu and Kashmir, as in case of other princely states, the situation there would have been different.

Delivering the 59th Sardar Patel Memorial Lecture here, the Minister of State in the PMO said just as Nehru's "midnight arrival" heralded a new era for India, the "twilight arrival" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi can also be described as the beginning of a new era.

Singh said Nehru, free India's first Prime Minister, believed that he knew Jammu and Kashmir better than Patel and thought he should take care of it rather than the Home Minister, who integrated over 560 other princely states into the Indian union.

"The common opinion is that the course of events would have been different if Sardar Patel was given the liberty to handle, like other (princely) states, Jammu and Kashmir as well. Because Nehru believed that he knew Jammu and Kashmir better than Sardar sahab and therefore he should take care of it. And then going to UNO and all those things...," he said.

Noting that the UN resolution was not against the accession of Jammu and Kashmir to India but Pakistan's aggression against the country, Singh said the document itself became "infructuous" as one of its conditions was that Pakistan also had to withdraw from the territory it had occupied, something it refused to do.

"Nevertheless it (UN resolution) gave rise to another school of thought which said that Jammu and Kashmir was something which could be discussed internationally and even at the UN which I personally do not agree. We have no such issue as Jammu and Kashmir," he said.

"It is an integral part of India, it always was. If at all there is an issue it is how to free the part of Jammu and Kashmir which continues to be under illegal occupation of Pakistan," he said.

"I have no hesitation to say time unfortunately proved Nehru wrong. The example of Pir Panjal and Hindi-Chini bhai bhai...That experiment failed in his own lifetime and unfortunately also weighed on him," Singh said.

About the non-aligned movement, Singh said, in less than ten years of Nehru's passing away, Indira Gandhi had to enter into an accord with the Soviet Union because of the growing threat from the US. Nehru was one of the founding leaders of the NAM whose main objective was to build a grouping of nations which were not formally aligned to either the US or the Soviet Union, the two major powers during the cold war.
New Delhi: While Indian Army's surgical strikes along the Line of Control last month made much news, former Foreign Security Shivshankar Menon has claimed that a proposal to attack Lashkar-e-Toiba's headquarters in Muridke in Pakistans Punjab province, or their camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir was made before the Congress-led UPA government after 26/11 carnage in Mumbai in 2008.

According to Indian Express, Menon who later became National Security Advisor to the UPA government, had actually pressed for immediate military retaliation soon after the Mumbai terror attacks.

Menoin claimed that an immediate military retaliation would have been emotionally satisfying.

In view of rising public anger in the aftermath of the 26/11 attacks in 2008, Menon thought that a military retaliation would have gone a long way in erasing the shame of the incompetence that Indias police and security agencies displayed in the glare of the worlds television lights for full three days.

On sober reflection and in hindsight the decision not to retaliate militarily and to concentrate on diplomatic, covert, and other means was the right one for that time and place, Menon had written in the chapter titled Restraint or Riposte: The Mumbai Attack and Cross-Border Terrorism from Pakistan in his book Choices: Inside the making of Indias Foreign Policy.

The book has been released in the United States and the United Kingdom.

The simple answer to why India did not immediately attack Pakistan is that after examining the options at the highest levels of government, the decision-makers concluded that more was to be gained from not attacking Pakistan than from attacking it, he stated.

An Indian attack on Pakistan, he says, would have united that country behind the Pakistan Army and weakened the recently elected civilian government of Asif Ali Zardari.

A limited strike on selected terrorist targets - the LeT headquarters in Muridke or LeT camps in PoK - would have had limited practical utility and hardly any effect on the organization.

Between November 26 and 28 in 2008, 166 people, including 26 foreigners, were killed in spectacular terror strikes at different locations in Mumbai by ten Pakistani terrorists from Lashkar-e-Taiba.

Menon also claimed that there had been other, more deadly terrorist attacks in Mumbai before 26/11, all linked to Pakistan, but nothing matched the level of organization, the sheer savagery, and the television-style spectacle of this terror attack.

The cross-border terrorists pose no existential threat to India, he said, but failure in Indias nation-building endeavour or prolonged economic failure would be.

Arguing against the idea that one military action will end the conflict, he cautions that Indias immediate political objective must recognise that this is a long conflict that cannot be solved.

India-Pakistan relations are one of the few major failures of Indian foreign policy, he maintains.

He laments the failure of efforts during 2004-07 between Manmohan Singh and Pervez Musharraf which were stymied in 2007 by Pakistani domestic politics.
New Delhi: A Delhi court today sent Shoaib Hasan, the third accused arrested in connection with the alleged Pakistan espionage case, to 11-day police custody after the agency said he was to be confronted with two other arrested men to unearth the larger conspiracy.

The investigating officer said the accused, who was allegedly working for an ISI spy ring, was produced before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Satish Arora and remanded for custodial interrogation till November 8.

Delhi Police claimed that Hasan was involved in the espionage ring in which Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar, described as the kingpin working for Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence, was detained by police for alleged possession of sensitive defence documents.

Akhtar, who worked in the visa section of the High Commission, was yesterday released after questioning as he enjoyed diplomatic immunity, police said.

A court had yesterday sent two persons -- Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir -- to the police custody till November 8.

During the proceedings today, police alleged that more persons were likely to be apprehended in the case and recovery of certain documents and others items was also to be made with the help of the accused.

The agency also said that all the three accused persons would be confronted with each others and taken to various places for the investigation.

Hasan was arrested here today after being brought from Jodhpur, with police claiming that he was in touch with Akhtar for the last three-four years and had visited the neighbouring country six times.

Investigators said they will try to recover data from a 'phablet' seized from his possession, which he had tried to damage when police in Jodhpur detained him last evening.
Jammu: The Border Security Forces have killed at least 15 Pakistani soldiers in the past one week in retaliatory cross border firing, a media report said on Friday.

The fatalities took place after the BSF responded with heavy weapons fire in retaliation to the repeated Pakistani ceasefire violations, the NDTV reported.

Two Pakistani Frontier Force soldiers and 13 Rangers were reportedly killed.

Also Read: India, Pakistan need to solve issues themselves: US on diplomat row

Citing sources, the report said that Indian intelligence agencies have intercepted calls from hospitals asking for help to treat the injured.

"There are ceasefire violations repeatedly, we are giving a befitting reply. As far as our people have seen, what we have assessed is at least 15 rangers have been killed," NDTV quoted Arun Kumar, a senior BSF officer, as saying.

The latest casualty figure comes after the BSF reportedly killed seven Pakistani soldiers along the Border exactly a week ago.

Quoting officials, the report said that cross-border firing has been on for the last 24 hours in Rajouri, Samba, Abdullia, RS Pura and Suchetgarh.

The fresh clashes reportedly erupted after heavy shelling from the Pakistani side that began around 5 am along the Line of Control in Nowshera, Sundarbani and Pallanwala districts.

Also Read: Pakistan resorts to heavy shelling along LoC, International Border in J&K; girl injured

On Thursday, BSF soldier Jitender Singh died when Pakistani Rangers fired a mortar shell in RS Pura sector.

"Yesterday, unprovoked ceasefire violation continued till night. It again started at three places this morning. We are giving them an appropriate response," the report said quoting Defence Ministry spokesperson Manish Mehta.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday had urged the BSF to give a "fitting response".
Srinagar: Six suspected militants, including a policeman, were arrested during two separate operations by security forces in the city and Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday.

Acting on an intelligence input about the presence of the Lashkar-e-Toiba militants, the security forces launched a search operation in Batamaloo police station area of the city, official sources said.

Five suspected militants of LeT were arrested during the operation, they said, adding weapons and explosives were recovered from their possession.

One of the arrested persons is a policeman hailing from Karnah area of Kupwara district.

In another operation, police arrested a militant of Hizbul Mujahideen from Wampora area of Kulgam district, the sources said.

Police officials, however, refused to confirm the arrests.
Srinagar: Moderate Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was today taken into custody after he defied the curfew order and tried to take out a march from his residence to offer Friday prayers at Jamia Masjid in downtown Srinagar.

Mirwaiz, who was shifted from sub-jail Chashma Shahi after two-months detention on October 24 and placed under house arrest, defied the curfew this afternoon.

He tried to take out the march towards the historic Jamia Masjid, where no Friday prayers could be offered during the past 15 weeks due to the restriction. Soon after the separatist leader came out from his Nigeen residence, police took him into custody and lodged him at Nigeen police station, officials said.

The separatist camp, comprising of Mirwaiz, hardline Hurriyat chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani and JKLF chairman Mohammad Yaseen Malik, had called for the march to Jamia Masjid to end the "seige" of the grand old mosque.

However, authorities imposed curfew in six police station areas of the city to scuttle the proposed march.
Srinagar: In yet another instance of ceasefire violation, Pakistan forces resorted to heavy shelling along the Line of Control and the International Border at several places in Jammu and Kashmir on Friday morning.

As per reports, Pakistan troops violated ceasefire along LoC in Sundarbani and Pallanwala sectors in Rajouri and Jammu districts.

A girl was injured in overnight ceasefire violation by the Pakistani troops along International Border in Kathua and Jammu districts.

Reports said that over 400 families have migrated from these areas to safer locations.

The entire population of Abdullian village in RS Pura sector has also migrated after Pakistan Rangers targeted civilian and Border Security Forces facilities in the area during the last five days.

Border forces of the two countries have been regularly trading fire as India-Pakistan ties soured first in July after an ongoing unrest erupted in the Kashmir Valley following the death of a militant commander.

The ties deteriorated further after militants killed 19 Indian soldiers at a military base in Uri of Jammu and Kashmir on September 18.

In response, the Indian Army on September 29 carried surgical strikes at terror launch pads, killing an unspecified number of militants and their sympathisers in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

Since then, the forces of the two countries have regularly targeted each other's military posts along the International Border and the 740-km-long LoC that divides Jammu and Kashmir between India and Pakistan.
Udhampur: Lashing out at separatists, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday alleged they were not allowing schools in the Valley to function because they wanted a new generation of young uneducated people who can pelt stones and can be used as "cannon fodder".

She said separatists were exploiting children from poor families by instigating them to attack Army camps, police stations and CRPF camps and were using them as shields, while their own children were safe.

"If the youth gets education they won't pelt stones for them. The (separatist) leadership want a generation of uneducated youth who can pelt stones for them," Mehbooba Mufti said in a scathing attack on separatists during a passing out parade of police officers in Udhampur.

"Today I see that big leaders feel if schools open, poor children will get education and then they will not have time for stone pelting or might not be ready for that," she said.

Stressing that leaders who give preference to the future and education of the children are needed and not the ones who use them as cannon fodder, she said, "for three months our schools are closed, we tried and even Delhi sent big delegations.

"Our Home Minister (Rajnath Singh) came thrice, our Finance Minister (Arun Jaitley) went there and an all-party delegation also went to meet them but they closed doors for them.

"The reply to the request of a civil society delegation led by Yashwant Sinha, which completed its three-day visit to Kashmir yesterday, was given by burning of two schools," the chief minister said.

"A civil society delegation went to meet them (separatists) and they opened their doors for them.The team requested them that the future of children was getting spoiled and for God's sake help to let the schools open and the reply came in the form of burning of two schools," Ms Mufti said.

With the unrest in the Valley continuing for over a hundred days, she alleged that the separatists wanted that the children should get hurt to keep the "pot boiling".

"They feel that let the children of poor people die. What will happen if they get injured or die they are not rich kids. It is a big challenge for us because till now they have handed over the gun to poor children and now they are using them as shields," she added.

"Amongst all those killed or injured, 99 per cent were small kids, not one from the rich family, not a single child of those leaders have been injured, only poor kids" Ms Mufti said.

She said that first the separatists thought that the uneducated youth would pick guns for them, but the youth in the past 25 years has realised that gun will not solve any problem.

"Children are not ready to pick up guns. Now they want a generation of illiterate children who can pelt stones for them, not only pelt the stones but in the process lose their lives.

"I was told that girl students want to go to school but are afraid that they would be attacked by stone pelters when they see them in the white uniform," Ms Mufti said.
Srinagar: An army jawan was on Friday killed in an encounter with terrorists who later mutilated his body near the Line of Control in Kashmir's Kupwara district, even as the Pakistani troops intensified their cross-border fire over the past two weeks, killing and injuring several people on the border.

The terrorists fled to Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK) after the attack. One militant was also killed in the gunbattle.

In a brief statement, the army said that an "appropriate response" will be given.

The army said a gunfight took place close to the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir`s Machhal sector on Friday evening, in which one soldier and a terrorist were killed.

"In a despicable act, the terrorists mutilated the body of the Indian army soldier before fleeing into POK, supported by covering fire from Pakistani Army posts.

"This barbarism is a true reflection which pervades official and non-official organisations across the border. This act will invite an appropriate response," it said.

Also Read: Border Security Forces kill 15 Pakistani soldiers in retaliatory cross-border firing

He said the incident reflected the barbarism pervading in official and unofficial organisations in Pakistan.

Meanwhile, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and the PMO have been briefed about the situation on the border.

The development comes even as the Border Security Forces have killed at least 15 Pakistani soldiers in the past one week in retaliatory cross-border firing.

The fatalities took place after the BSF responded with heavy weapons fire in retaliation to the repeated Pakistani ceasefire violations, the NDTV reported.

Also Read: Defence Ministry on foreign shopping spree; eyes assault rifles, body armour, helmets for soldiers: Report

Two Pakistani Frontier Force soldiers and 13 Rangers were reportedly killed.

Citing sources, a media report said that Indian intelligence agencies have intercepted calls from hospitals asking for help to treat the injured.

"There are ceasefire violations repeatedly, we are giving a befitting reply. As far as our people have seen, what we have assessed is at least 15 rangers have been killed," the report quoted Arun Kumar, a senior BSF officer, as saying.

The latest casualty figure comes after the BSF reportedly killed seven Pakistani soldiers along the Border exactly a week ago.

Also Read: Surgical strikes: SC says armed forces answerable to govt, otherwise there will be martial law

Quoting officials, the report said that cross-border firing has been on for the last 24 hours in Rajouri, Samba, Abdullia, RS Pura and Suchetgarh.

The fresh clashes erupted after heavy shelling from the Pakistani side that began around 5 am along the Line of Control in Nowshera, Sundarbani and Pallanwala districts.

On Thursday, BSF soldier Jitender Singh died when Pakistani Rangers fired a mortar shell in RS Pura sector.

"Yesterday, unprovoked ceasefire violation continued till night. It again started at three places this morning. We are giving them an appropriate response," the report said quoting Defence Ministry spokesperson Manish Mehta.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday had urged the BSF to give a "fitting response".

(With agency inputs)
Bengaluru: The prosecution had failed to prove there was a meeting of mind and dominant object of a conspiracy between B S Yeddyurappa and 12 other accused, the CBI court has held while acquitting him and others in its verdict in a Rs 40 crore graft case related to illegal mining.

The court which pronounced its judgement on Wednesday, copy of which was available today, also did not find even an "iota of evidence" to prove that the former chief minister has abused his official position as a public servant.

"The prosecution has failed to prove there was a meeting of mind and dominant object of a conspiracy between accused? Number One, Yeddyurappa and 12 others including B Y Vijayendra and B Y Raghavendra, his sons," Judge R B Dharmagoudar said? in his order.

The judge observed that an offence of conspiracy cannot be deemed to have been established on mere suspicion and surmises or inferences which are not supported by cogent?evidence.

He also said the prosecution failed to prove each and every circumstances so as to complete the chain and "suspicion cannot take the place of a legal proof".

The petitioner had alleged that Yeddyurappa in furtherance of a conspiracy, by abusing his official position as a public servant, had illegally denotified Rachenahalli land here to obtain pecuniary advantage to his kin and fixed premium of iron ore at 50 per cent and suppressed the loss suffered by state-owned Mysore Minerals Ltd (MML).

The petitioner had also alleged Yeddyurappa had imposed ban on export of iron ore to favour JSW Steel Limited and in turn obtained a pecuniary advantage to his kin as a quid-pro- quo from South West Mining Limited and other two accused in the form of inflated?sale price and in the form of donation to Prerana Educational and Social Trust, run by Yeddyurappa's family.

Pronouncing his judgement, Dharmagoudar said the? prosecution has failed to prove that Yeddyurappa abused his? official position in denotifying Rachenahalli land for? obtaining a pecuniary advantage to his two sons and son-in-law Sohan Kumar.

CBI had filed a charge sheet in 2012 against Yeddyurappa, his sons and son-in-law, Prerana Trust, M/s South West Mining Company and Bellary-based M/s JSW Steel for alleged abuse of official position and corruption invoking Section 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 420 (cheating) of the India Penal Code and various sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
New Delhi: A 28-year-old man killed his parents-in-laws and injured his wife, minor daughter and brother-in-law in Malviya Nagar area of south Delhi this evening in a fit of rage.

The accused, identified as Chintu, also sustained severe injuries as he was held and thrashed by neighbours who managed to catch hold of him, said a senior police officer.

Chintu allegedly had strained relations with his wife Renu who had left him and was staying at her parents' place and had even filed for divorce from him, the officer added.

Chintu attacked Renu with a large tent nail at her parents' house in Jatav Basti around 7.45 pm and when his mother-in-law Roshan intervened, he hit her on the head, police said.

His father-in-law Trilok Chand, who was undergoing treatment at AIIMS, died in hospital.

Chintu's daughter Neha, Renu and brother-in-law are currently undergoing treatment at AIIMS where their condition is stated to be critical, said the officer.

While Chintu was attacking his wife Renu, his children Neha (7) and Laddoo (5) started crying for help and in a fit of rage, he pushed Neha off the terrace.

When neighbours heard cries for help from the house, they came and managed to catch hold of Chintu who was trying to flee and beat him up, police said.

He is currently admitted in AIIMS and is in a critical condition, police said.

Renu's family members claimed she was being harassed by Chintu and his family for dowry and upset by their constant demands, she had left him and was staying at her parents' place, said the officer.

Renu and Chintu's families had arrived at an arrangement that she would stay at her parents' house but Chintu didn't accept this arrangement.

In a fit of rage, he attacked Renu and his family.
Bhubaneswar: Suspense over the whereabouts of Maoist leader Ramakrishna alias RK deepened with the CPI(Maoist) today claiming he is missing since the October 24 encounter at Malkangiri, where 28 ultras were gunned down.

"Top Maoist cadre Ramakrishna is missing and he could be in police custody," CPI(Maoist) East Division Committee secretary Kailash said in an audio tape released to the media in Odisha.

In the audio tape the chief ministers of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh were blamed for the killing of the 28 Maoists. Kailas said the Maoists haven't weakened and will continue to fight.

He also alleged that operation Green Hunt is being conducted for the benefit of industrialists and mining mafias.

RK, a central committee member of the outlawed outfit, was last sighted at Jantri in the cut-off area of Malkangiri district on October 1. He had addressed a public meeting, and asked people to boycott the ensuing three-tier panchayat elections in Odisha.

Based on an intelligence report about the presence of RK and other top Maoist leaders in Panasput gram panchayat of Malkangiri, a joint operation was launched by Andhra Pradesh's Greyhound force and Odisha Police.

However, security personnel failed to get RK even as his 25-year-old son Munna alias Sivaji was killed in the encounter. RK's wife has received the body of Munna from Malkangiri SP's office.

This apart, one Budri, a cadre of RK's protection group, was also killed in the incident indicating the presence of the Maoist leader at Malkangiri on the day of the joint operation.

Meanwhile, police have sealed all routes and kept vigil in the forests of the cut-off area, besides continuing combing operation since October 24.

Odisha Police has denied having any information on the reported killing of two more ultras in a fresh encounter with the rebels in the Panasput forest.

"We have no such information on the killing of two more Maoists in the cut-off area," said Malkangiri SP Mitrabhanu Mohapatra.

On the claim that six villagers have gone missing since the day of the encounter, Mohapatra said an inquiry is being conducted to verify it.

Villagers had yesterday claimed that six people did not return to their homes after they were forcibly taken by the Maoists to their camp.
Bhubaneswar: Odisha government Friday said it has set up a fitment committee for implementation of 7th Pay Commission recommendations for its employees and pensioners.

"I am happy to announce that the state government will implement the 7th Pay Commission recommendations. A fitment committee is formed for working out the modalities. This will benefit the state government employees and pensioners," Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said.

Around four lakh state government employees and over three lakh pensioners would benefit from the move, officials said.

The 7th Pay Commission headed by Justice A K Mathur had recommended a 23.55 per cent overall hike in pay, allowances and pensions for central government employees with effect from January 1 this year.

An official estimation has pegged the pay revision requirement at about Rs 5,500 crore annually. Currently, the state government dishes out Rs 29,836 crore annually towards salaries and pensions.
Bhubaneswar: A court here on Friday granted conditional bail to Sum Hospital owner Manoj Ranjan Nayak and medical superintendent Pushparaj Samantasinghar, who were arrested following a fire tragedy at the medical facility which claimed 26 lives.

While granting bail, Khurda Additional District Court-II Judge Shyam Sundar Das asked both Nayak and Samantasinghar to furnish a bail bond of Rs one lakh and two sureties each and asked them to cooperate in the investigation, refrain from tampering evidence and appear at the police station as and when required by the investigating agency.

The duo was among five persons arrested in the aftermath of the fire incident.

Nayak was arrested on October 20 while Samantasinghar was taken into custody on October 18.

All five arrested have been booked under sections 304, 308, 285 and 34 of the IPC. The case was registered on an FIR filed by the Fire Services Department for laxity in fire safety measures.

Earlier, the Commissionerate Police had secured a two-day remand for Nayak to interrogate him.

Meanwhile, the police have issued summons to Saswati Das and Arati Nayak, trustee members of Sikshya O Anusandhan Charitable Trust that runs Sum Hospital, to appear before them.

The Odisha government has ordered an inquiry into the fire incident by the Revenue Divisional Commissioner (RDC) under the Commission of Enquiry Act of 1952.
Ramallah: Palestinian president and Fatah leader Mahmud Abbas has met the head of Hamas and his deputy in Qatar, a Palestinian official said today, in a sign of easing tensions.

Yesterday's meeting in the Qatari capital was the first between Abbas and Doha-based Khaled Meshaal in two years, and the second between him and the Hamas chief in the Gaza Strip, Ismail Haniya, since 2012.

Abbas's secular party Fatah and the Islamist Hamas have been at loggerheads since the latter seized Gaza in a near civil war in 2007.

The Doha meeting provided the opportunity to "insist on the need to resume dialogue between Fatah and Hamas", Palestinian presidency spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina said.

Abbas stressed the need for "Palestinian national reconciliation", as well as "forming a national unity government and holding elections".

The Palestinian government postponed the first municipal polls in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip in 10 years earlier this month after the high court ruled they should be held only in the Fatah-run West Bank.

The Palestinians have not held an election in which both Hamas and Fatah have taken part since 2006. They have also not held a simultaneous vote in both the West Bank and Gaza since then.
Moscow: A Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman on Friday said an expert examination of pictures showing a strike on a Syrian school that UNICEF said killed 22 children, had shown they were fake.

"Today after expert analysis of photographs from the Syrian village of Hass, it turned out that there was no strike on the school and there were no victims either," Maria Zakharova wrote on Facebook.

"The photographs are computer graphics," she said, without giving any details.

Air strikes on a school in Hass village in Syria`s rebel-held Idlib province killed 22 children and six teachers, the UN children`s agency UNICEF said on Wednesday.

Russian defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said Thursday that photographs taken by a Russian drone showed that the roof of the school reportedly hit in the strikes showed no damage and that there were no craters attributable to bombs in the area.

And he said that "not one Russian warplane entered that area" on that day.

"This is an absolute fact."

Zakharova had on Thursday initially described the attack as a "terrible tragedy," while insisting that reports of Russian involvement were untrue after the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the strikes were carried out by "warplanes -- either Russian or Syrian".

Syrian government forces and their Russian allies have been accused by Western powers and rights groups of carrying out indiscriminate attacks on civilian infrastructure.
United Nations: Russia on Friday failed to win re-election at the United Nations Human Rights Council in a vote rights groups said reflected international disapproval of Moscow`s involvement in the war in Syria.

The UN General Assembly elected Hungary and Croatia instead to represent eastern Europe at the 47-nation council, which monitors and investigates rights violations worldwide.

The outcome was an upset for Russia, which has been a member for all but one year since the council was set up in 2006.

Asked about the defeat, Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin quipped: "We need a break."

"Croatia and Hungary fortunately, because of their size, they are not as exposed to the winds of international diplomacy. Russia is quite exposed," he said.

"We have been there a number of years. I am sure next time we are going to get it."

More than 80 human rights and aid organizations had urged UN member-states to vote Russia off the council for its military support of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria`s bloody civil war.

Russia has been accused by Western powers and rights groups of indiscriminate bombings in the Syrian government operation to seize rebel-held eastern Aleppo.

Some 250,000 civilians in east Aleppo have been living under siege since July and food rations are expected to run out soon, the United Nations has warned.

"It clearly will be a wakeup call to Moscow," said John Fisher, Human Rights Watch`s Geneva director.

"We sincerely hope that the message they will take from today`s vote is the need to make sure their engagement in Syria corresponds with international human rights and humanitarian law."

Russia picked up 112 votes, while Croatia won 114 and Hungary 144. The three countries were competing for two regional seats.

It was only the second time that a permanent Security Council member was voted off the council after the United States in 2001.

"They bomb a hospital one day, they run for the Human Rights Council the next. And they wonder why they missed the cut?" commented a Western diplomat, who declined to be named.

The 193 member-states voted to fill 14 seats at the Geneva-based council.

Human Rights Watch had warned that the return of Russia and also of Saudi Arabia risked weakening the council in its work to hold abusers to account.Saudi Arabia, which was re-elected with 152 votes, was almost guaranteed to retain its seat as part of a clean slate of four countries vying for four regional seats.

China, which has been criticized for its rights abuses, was also re-elected, while Cuba and Egypt, also cited for their dubious rights records at home, won seats as well.

Croatia, Iraq and Rwanda were elected for the first time.

The other elected members were Brazil, Britain, Japan, South Africa, Tunisia and the United States.

Saudi Arabia secured its seat despite an outcry over the military campaign waged by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, where has left nearly 7,000 dead, mostly civilians.

The coalition has carried out air strikes in Yemen that have hit civilian targets such as a community hall in Sanaa that was recently destroyed during a funeral, killing more than 140 people.

"The non-election of Russia shows that the nations of the world can reject gross abusers if they so choose. This makes the election of Saudi Arabia, China and Cuba even more preposterous," said UN Watch executive director Hillel Neuer.

Created in 2006, the rights council monitors violations and in particular set up a groundbreaking commission of inquiry on North Korea that led to calls for war crimes prosecutions of the Pyongyang regime.

The council this month asked the commission of inquiry for Syria to carry out a special investigation of rights abuses in Aleppo.
Coimbatore: A total of 80 prisoners, undergoing life sentence in the Central Jail here, were released on parole to celebrate Diwali with their respective families.

The parole for three days was given considering their good behaviour during their term in the jail and they will join their families in this district, Erode, Tirupur, Nilgiris and Salem, jail sources said.

Stating that the parole was granted with the surety of two persons, they said that 16 prisoners were released yesterday and 64 today.

Moreover, they were given money, ranging from Rs 500 to Rs 2,000 as part of their emoluments for working in the jail and all of them will be brought back in by those signed the surety, the sources said.
New York: Wall Street stocks took a sudden turn lower today on news that the FBI had reopened a probe into Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's emails.

US stocks had been comfortably in positive territory prior to news that Federal Bureau of Investigation head James Comey informed lawmakers that he was restarting the probe.

Comey in June sharply criticised Clinton's handling of classified information as Secretary of State on a private email server, but did not recommend charges be brought against her.

Near 17.30 GMT, the S&P 500 was down 0.3 per cent at 2,127.70 after hitting a session high of 2,140.72 shortly before the news broke.
New Delhi: Noted election strategist Prashant Kishor, who has been hired by the Congress party to design its campaign for the upcoming assembly polls, is most likely to be the chief architect of a grand alliance or 'mahagathbandhan' of secular parties in Uttar Pradesh where elections are likely to be held early next year.

Kishor's presence in a meeting between Samajwadi Party leader Shivpal Yadav and JD (U)s KC Tyagi has triggered speculations that the acclaimed campaign manager is being roped in to stitch a grand alliance of secular parties against BJP in the Uttar Pradesh.

It was also reported that Shivpal after meeting KC Tyagi yesterday also went to meet JD (U)s Sharad Yadav.

He is alos reported to have had a telephone conversation with Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, RJD supremo Lalu Yadav and RLD leader Ajit Singh, fuelling speculations of a grand alliance in UP .

Shivpal's meeting and reported discussions with like-minded political leaders outside Lucknow where he is engaged in a bitter power struggle with his chief minister and nephew Akhilesh Yadav has surprised everyone.

Tyagi, who hosted the Shivpal-Kishor meeting, didnt elaborate on what all transpired except that it was all about SP completing 25 years.

Shivpal Yadavs visit was about the silver jubilee celebrations of the SP slated for November 5. All those who believe in the ideals of Ram Manohar Lohia and Charan Singh have been invited, he said.

The Bihar 'Mahagathbandhan' comprising JDU, RJD and Congress had emphatically trounced the BJP in the assembly elections held last year. Ironically, the SP under Mulayam Singh had pulled out of the alliance at the last moment after being an active participant in the initial stages.

Kishore, who began his political career as a strategist for then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, had shifted base to the Nitish Kumar camp before the Bihar elections.

A JD (U) leader said he expected Kishore to initiate talks with the Congress leadership for a grand alliance.
New Delhi: Expelled Samajwadi Party general secretary Ram Gopal Yadav has been rushed to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here after he complained of severe chest pain and uneasiness on Friday afternoon.

The SP leader is being attended by doctors at the moment. More details are awaited.

Ram Gopal Yadav, who has firmly backed his nephew and young Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, who is locked in a bitter power struggle with his uncle Shivpal Yadav, was recently expelled from the party led by his elder brother and SP veteran Mulayam Singh Yadav.

SP general secretary Amar Singh, who is being largely blamed for the ongoing rift in Uttar Pradesh' first family, had yesterday claimed that he was scared of Ram Gopal Yadav as the latter had openly threatened him of dire consequences over his alleged interference in the Samajwadi family's internal matters.

Ram Gopal Yadav has recently said that minus Akhilesh Yadav there is no Samajwadi Party and pledged to everything to make him the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh again in case his party wins the 2017 assembly polls.
Nicosia: When Cypriots wake up on Sunday they will find that their Mediterranean island is divided not only by a UN-patrolled ceasefire line but also by a time difference.

When the clocks go back in the Greek Cypriot south, the time will not change in the Turkish Cypriot north of the island, creating two different time zones on the ethnically split island.

In September Turkey agreed to end the practice of Daylight Saving Time (DST) permanently.

The Turkish-held north of the island decided to follow suit as it is linked to Turkey through the banking sector, aviation, business and commerce.

But the Cyprus Republic, in line with its fellow EU members, will implement daylight saving time by putting the clocks back one hour pre-dawn Sunday.

This lack of unison on time will ensure Cypriots being out of sync with each other.

According to the Cyprus employers federation, the time difference will cause inconvenience mainly to the 5,000 Turkish Cypriots doing business in the south while only a few dozen Greek Cypriots engage in commercial or other activities in the north.

It will also have an impact on the hundreds of Turkish Cypriots who cross the divide to attend schools in the south.

The development comes at a time when Cypriot leaders are engaged in crucial UN-backed peace talks to reunify the island under a federal system. Rival Cypriot leaders have pledged to reach a solution this year.

"The UN remains focused on facilitating the sides with their efforts to reach a comprehensive settlement as soon as possible. The two sides will decide when and how to address the time zone difference," Aleem Siddique, a UN spokesman in Cyprus, told AFP.

A campaign to draw awareness to the one-hour time difference -- effective from October 30 until April -- has been launched on social media.

People are being asked to take a selfie on Sunday with the Cyprus sunset as a background and upload on to social media with the hashtag #UnitedByHope and the slogan "divided by time united by hope".

Cyprus will also be one of the few places in the world where you can celebrate New Year`s twice, in some cases just by walking down the street.
Illinois: Eight people were injured when an American Airlines Boeing 767 bound for Miami caught fire Friday as it attempted to take off from Chicago`s O`Hare airport, the company said.

The blaze broke out on American Airlines Flight 383 -- with 161 passengers and nine crew on board -- as the plane was on the runway at one of the nation`s busiest airports.

Seven passengers and one flight attendant suffered minor injuries and were taken to a hospital, the airline said.

"We are taking care of our customers and crew and are re-accommodating our passengers on another flight to Miami this evening," the airline said.

The cause of the incident was not immediately clear, with the Federal Aviation Administration and the airline offering conflicting information.

The FAA said the plane suffered a tire blowout, but spokesman Tony Molinaro told AFP that that information was preliminary and based on initial reports from the plane`s pilots.

In a written statement, American Airlines blamed the incident on an "engine-related issue."

Bystanders posted photos and videos on social media showing black smoke billowing from the airliner.

One video showed passengers coming down emergency slides and running away from the aircraft, with black smoke and flames visible on the right side of the plane.

Emergency crews surrounded the jet, which appeared to be intact on the runway, though its right side and right wing were charred.

The FAA said it was investigating the incident and the National Transportation Safety Board had been notified.

Service was not interrupted at O`Hare.
Calais: France demanded on Friday that Britain take in hundreds of minors from war-torn countries after the British interior minister suggested that Paris should do more for them following the closure of the "Jungle" migrant camp in the northern French port city of Calais.

Bulldozers are flattening the sprawl of ramshackle huts and tents which had been home to about 6,000 refugees and migrants from Asia, the Middle East and Africa hoping to cross the English Channel and start new lives in Britain.

Most have now been bussed to other centres across France pending examination of their cases. But the plight of hundreds of minors roaming the area, nearly 1,500 of whom have signed up for temporary lodging in container-boxes in Calais, has become a point of dispute.

British Home Secretary (Interior Minister) Amber Rudd told her French counterpart Bernard Cazeneuve on Friday that his government must guarantee the protection of youngsters left in limbo after the evacuation of the "Jungle".

"Any child either eligible or not in the secure area of the camp should be cared for and safeguarded by the French authorities. We understand that specialist facilities have been made available elsewhere in France to ensure this happens," Rudd`s spokesman quoted her as saying.

Cazeneuve replied that Britain should "quickly execute its responsibilities to take in these minors, who hope to come to the United Kingdom. This is the best way to give them the protection they are due," he said.

The head of France`s Ofpra refugee agency, Pascal Brice, put it more bluntly.

"We`ve done Britain`s work in tending to the adults," he told Reuters. "The least they can do is take care of the isolated minors who are now at the CAP (temporary lodgings) and who have an interest in going to Britain."

French government officials in the region say that 1,451 minors are in the container-box lodgings. Britain has so far accepted 274 children from among this group, France says.

European Union rules say Britain must take in unaccompanied children who have family ties there. An amendment to those rules adopted in Britain this year states that such minors whose best interests are served by doing so should also be admitted.

DEBRIS

Aid groups say hundreds if not thousands more adults and minors may have fled into the hinterland around the "Jungle", ready to return when the heavy police presence wanes.

Smoke and dust floated over the heart of the site on Friday as bulldozers cleared mounds of debris and rubbish, watched from afar by a group of youngsters who had slept outdoors in an area that once serve as a school for camp-dwellers. Charity workers gave them food on Friday.

Abdul Hadi, an Afghan youth who gave his age as 16, said he spent 10 months in the Jungle but failed to register with the French authorities for help when the evacuation on Monday.

"I hope I can get to the UK this week," he said.

Serge Szarzynski, head of social affairs in the Calais area, told Reuters a solution would be found for Hadi and the youths with him.
Geneva: Islamic State group fighters slaughtered at least 232 people in and around Mosul this week as Iraqi troops advanced on the city, the UN rights office said on Friday.

"Last Wednesday 232 civilians were reportedly shot to death. Of these there were 190 former Iraqi Security Forces officers," rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva.

"These reports have been corroborated to the extent possible," she added, stressing that the number of people killed in recent days could be higher.

Shamdasani said the execution-style killings came as IS was pushing forward with its strategy of forcing people living near the northern Iraqi city into Mosul, the group's last bastion in Iraq.

The rights office has said the jihadists aim to use these people as "human shields" in the ensuing battle for Mosul against US-backed elite Iraqi troops.

"ISIL has been forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes in some districts around Mosul," Shamdasani said.

Those being executed have included civilians who have refused to comply with the relocation orders and those who previously worked for the government security services.
Reacting to this unjust punishment, Taheri commenced upon a hunger strike. He has since fallen into a coma, and is being held in Baqiatollah hospital in Tehran.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) reports that the followers of Taheri gathered in front of the hospital on Thursday October 20, following news of his condition.

On Friday evening, October 21, the second day of their vigil, Tehran security forces and anti-riot units attacked the demonstrators, attempting to disperse them by beating them and using tear gas. Women and children became ill, due to inhaling the pepper spray.

The third night, Saturday, October 22, the demonstrators clashed again with law enforcement. Beatings ensued once more, and 15 demonstrators were arrested and taken to an unknown location. One of them, a 16-year old teenager, whose mother was severely beaten while trying to prevent her son from being arrested.

On Monday October 24, reports from the NCRI say that some of the demonstrators had to be transferred to medical centers because of their critical condition as a result of beatings by the Security Forces. More than 3,000 supporters had gathered peacefully in front of the hospital, keeping silent and holding flowers. according to eye witnesses. After visiting hours, they planned to leave the area peacefully. A Security Forces special unit suddenly attacked and started beating them. They targeted women, and were merciless.

At least three women were arrested, according to the NCRI Womens Committee. They were transferred to Fashafouyeh and Qarchak prisons on October 25, 2016. Three of the women have been identified as Baharak Azarnia, Zahra Shafii, and Nahid Babazazeh. Before being transferred out to Varamin and Fashafouyeh, the detainees were interrogated at Evin Prison.

Followers of the political prisoner of conscience held protest rallies in several cities, such as Shiraz, Mashhad and Urmia. Protesters asked for Taheris freedom by holding his photos and a number of hand-written signs.

In a letter to the international community and human rights organizations, students of Mohammad Ali Taheri, wrote that they considered the regime responsible for the consequences of Taheris life threatening situation, after he fell into a coma induced by his hunger strike. They demanded his release.

Additionally, Amnesty International had previously issued a statement calling for the immediate and unconditional release this prisoner of conscience.
Mosul: Islamic State fighters have killed more than 250 people and kidnapped nearly 8,000 families around Mosul in recent days as Iraqi troops advanced on the northern city, the United Nations said Friday.

UN rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva that the jihadists are forcing civilians living in districts around Mosul into the city, hoping to use them as human shields in an upcoming battle.

Those targeted in mass killings have especially included civilians who refuse relocation orders and people who previously worked for the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), Shamdasani said.

The IS jihadists slaughtered 24 ex-ISF officers on Tuesday and another 190 on Wednesday, according to rights office reports. The latter group were shot dead at the Al-Ghazlani military base inside Mosul, Shamdasani said.

Also on Wednesday, "42 civilians were reportedly shot in the head at the al-Izza military base" outside Mosul, a UN rights office statement said, apparently for refusing to follow the IS group`s instructions.

The rights office earlier in the week had listed a series of purported IS atrocities around Mosul but described the allegations as "preliminary" and needing more investigative work. Shamdasani said Friday that the fresh allegations had been "corroborated", but may not reflect the full toll as there were likely other atrocities that have gone unreported.

Meanwhile, the rights office said the extremists had kidnapped nearly 8,000 families around Mosul, the majority from the Al-Shura sub-district.

"Credible reports suggest that ISIL has been forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes in sub-districts around Mosul," said Shamdasani, using another acronym for IS.

She said the jihadists were using a "depraved, cowardly strategy" in the face of a US-backed Iraqi government offensive to retake Mosul, the IS group`s last bastion in Iraq.

The offensive, launched on October 17, has seen tens of thousands of Iraqi soldiers advancing on the city from the south, east and north.

Last week, the rights office reported dozens of execution-style killings in villages near Mosul, including the shooting of a physically disabled girl who failed to keep up on a forced march.
Geneva: Islamic State group fighters killed at least 232 people in and around Mosul last week as Iraqi troops advanced on the city, the UN rights office said on Friday.

"Last Wednesday 232 civilians were reportedly shot to death. Of these, there were 190 former Iraqi Security Forces officers," rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva.

"These reports have been corroborated to the extent possible," she added, stressing that the number of people killed in recent days could be higher.
Kidapawan: A Philippine mayor accused of drug trafficking was killed along with nine bodyguards in a shoot-out with police Friday, authorities said, hours after President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to intensify his crackdown on crime.

Samsudin Dimaukom, the mayor of the southern town of Saudi Ampatuan, was one of more than 150 local government officials, judges and police identified by Duterte earlier this year as being involved in the illegal drug trade.

The deadly crime war has claimed more than 3,800 lives and drawn criticism from the United States, the United Nations and international rights groups who have accused police of summarily executing suspects.

Police spokesman Superintendent Romeo Galgo said that Dimaukom and his security personnel opened fire after anti-narcotics police stopped their vehicles at a checkpoint on suspicion they were transporting illegal drugs.

Officers returned fire, killing the men in the town of Makilala, about 950 kilometres (600 miles) south of the capital Manila.

"Suspects (were) heavily armed and fired upon the law enforcers, which prompted them to fire back," Galgo said.

Dimaukom made a name for himself by funding the construction of a pink mosque in Saudi Ampatuan in a plea for peace in the town which has been wracked by violence.

Muslim rebels have been waging a separatist insurgency in the southern Philippines for decades.

Duterte, who swept to power in May elections on a pledge to eradicate drugs, has described his critics as "fools" and said he is not breaking any domestic laws by threatening to kill criminals.

After returning from a trip to Japan late Thursday, he threatened to step up police killings of drug suspects.

"If my wish to get rid (of illegal drugs) in my country is not granted, you can expect about 20,000 or 30,000 more. There is a war going on," he said.
Kidapawan: A Philippine mayor accused of drug trafficking was killed along with nine bodyguards in a shoot-out with police today, authorities said, hours after President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to intensify his crackdown on crime.

Samsudin Dimaukom, the mayor of the southern town of Saudi Ampatuan, was one of more than 150 local government officials, judges and police identified by Duterte earlier this year as being involved in the illegal drug trade.

The deadly crime war has claimed more than 3,800 lives and drawn criticism from the United States, the United Nations and international rights groups who have accused police of summarily executing suspects.

Police spokesman Superintendent Romeo Galgo said that Dimaukom and his security personnel opened fire after anti-narcotics police stopped their vehicles at a checkpoint on suspicion they were transporting illegal drugs.

Officers returned fire, killing the men in the town of Makilala, about 950 kilometres south of the capital Manila.

"Suspects (were) heavily armed and fired upon the law enforcers, which prompted them to fire back," Galgo said.

Dimaukom made a name for himself by funding the construction of a pink mosque in Saudi Ampatuan in a plea for peace in the town which has been wracked by violence.

Muslim rebels have been waging a separatist insurgency in the southern Philippines for decades.

Duterte, who swept to power in May elections on a pledge to eradicate drugs, has described his critics as "fools" and said he is not breaking any domestic laws by threatening to kill criminals.

After returning from a trip to Japan late Thursday, he threatened to step up police killings of drug suspects.

"If my wish to get rid (of illegal drugs) in my country is not granted, you can expect about 20,000 or 30,000 more. There is a war going on," he said.
Aleppo: Syrian rebels launched a major assault Friday aimed at breaking a months-long siege of opposition-held districts of Aleppo, as regime ally Russia held off on renewed air strikes.

Rebel groups including the powerful Ahrar al-Sham faction and former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front fired waves of rockets into government-held western Aleppo, killing at least 15 civilians, a monitor said.

The rebels also targeted government positions east of Aleppo city and in the coastal province of Latakia, including the Hmeimim military base used by Russian forces allied with the regime.

Moscow says it has not bombed Aleppo since October 18, but senior Russian military official Sergei Rudskoi told a briefing Friday that the military had asked President Vladimir Putin for authorisation to resume its air strikes.

"We have appealed to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation with a request to resume air strikes," Rudskoi said.

But the Kremlin said Putin did not agree.

"The Russian president considers it inappropriate at the current moment to resume strikes on Aleppo," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding that Putin thought it was necessary to "continue the humanitarian pause" in the war-ravaged city.

"The Russian side retains the right in case of extreme necessity to use all the troops and facilities it has to carry out support of the Syrian armed forces at the necessary level," he added.

Friday`s rebel assault comes more than three months into a government siege of eastern Aleppo, where more than 250,000 people live, and several weeks after the army began an operation to retake the rebel east.

Rebel groups "announce the start of the battle to break the siege of Aleppo", said Abu Yusef Muhajir, a military commander and spokesman for Ahrar al-Sham.The assault "will end the regime occupation of western Aleppo and break the siege on the people trapped inside", he told AFP.

"The breaking of the siege is inevitable," said Yasser al-Yusef, a member of the political office of the Nureddine al-Zinki rebel group.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said at least 15 civilians, including a woman and two children, had been killed, and more than 100 wounded in rebel fire on western Aleppo.

The monitor reported fierce clashes on multiple fronts on the western and southern outskirts of west Aleppo, with three suicide car bombs targeting a checkpoint in the Dahiyet al-Assad neighbourhood.

Fighting was continuing in the area near a military academy, it said, but had no immediate toll.

An AFP correspondent in east Aleppo said the assault had boosted morale in rebel-held districts, with mosques broadcasting "God is greatest" from loudspeakers.

He said residents burned tyres to create smoke and provide cover against air attack.

Heavy rain put the fires out but also hampered Syrian air operations, creating what one rebel dubbed "a divine no-fly zone".

The Observatory said rebels had also fired dozens of rockets at the Nairab military airport and Aleppo international airport, both east of the city and government-controlled.

Rebels also fired rockets from Idlib province into the government stronghold of Latakia, killing one person and wounding six.

Rockets struck close to the Hmeimim military airport, as well as near President Bashar al-Assad`s ancestral village Qardaha, the monitor said.State television said "the army has foiled an attempt by terrorists to attack Aleppo city from several axes with suicide bomb attacks and has inflicted losses on them".

State news agency SANA said government planes were carrying out air strikes south and west of Aleppo.

Once Syria`s economic powerhouse, Aleppo has been ravaged by the conflict that began in March 2011 with anti-government protests and has since killed more than 300,000 people.

Aleppo has been divided between government control in the west and rebel control in the east since mid-2012, and in September the army announced an operation to recapture the whole city.

The UN`s aid chief Stephen O`Brien this week said Aleppo had become "a kill zone", adding that "nothing is actually happening to stop the war, stop the suffering".

Last week, Russia implemented a three-day "humanitarian truce" intended to allow civilians and surrendering rebels to leave the east.

But few did so, and a UN plan to evacuate the wounded failed because security could not be guaranteed.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused UN agencies Friday of "not being professional enough" over Aleppo.

Speaking in Moscow after meeting the Syrian and Iranian foreign ministers, he said: "Their inaction allowed the medical evacuation to be sabotaged."

UN chief Ban Ki-moon, meanwhile, condemned an attack on a school in government-held west Aleppo on Thursday that killed at killed at least six children, according to state media.

"Such attacks, if deliberate, may amount to war crimes," he said in a statement.
Yangon: Rohingya Muslims say Myanmar soldiers raped or sexually assaulted dozens of women in a remote village in the northwest of the country during the biggest upsurge in violence against the persecuted minority in four years.

Eight Rohingya women, all from U Shey Kya village in Rakhine State, described in detail how soldiers last week raided their homes, looted property and raped them at gun point.

Reuters interviewed three of the women in person and five by telephone, and spoke to human rights groups and community leaders. Not all the claims could be independently verified, including the total number of women assaulted.

Soldiers have poured into the Maungdaw area since Oct. 9, after an insurgent group of Rohingyas that the government believes has links to Islamists overseas launched coordinated attacks on several border guard posts.

Citing evidence garnered by interrogating suspected militants, the government blamed the attacks on an armed group it says is made up of some 400 Rohingya fighters.

The militants, who have identified themselves as the previously unknown Al-Yakin Mujahidin in videos posted online, are accused of killing nine police officers and five soldiers, and of stealing a cache of weapons.

The crisis in northern Rakhine marks the biggest challenge Myanmar`s six-month-old civilian government has faced and raises questions over de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi`s ability to maintain control of the country`s military, observers and diplomats say.

Suu Kyi`s relationship with the army remains strained because of the constitution, drafted by the military in 2008, which bars her from the presidency. It also guarantees the army key ministerial posts, including defence, border affairs and home affairs.

Diplomats and United Nations officials say privately that the Oct. 9 attacks and subsequent crackdown have shattered years of work rebuilding trust between the Muslim and Buddhist communities in Rakhine after ethnic and religious violence broke out there in 2012.

A forty-year-old woman from U Shey Kya told Reuters that four soldiers raped her and assaulted her 15-year-old daughter, while stealing jewellery and cash from the family.

"They took me inside the house. They tore my clothes and they took my head scarf off," the mother of seven told Reuters in an interview outside her home, a cramped bamboo hut.

"Two men held me, one holding each arm, and another one held me by my hair from the back and they raped me."

Zaw Htay, the spokesman for Myanmar President Htin Kyaw, denied the allegations.

"There`s no logical way of committing rape in the middle of a big village of 800 homes, where insurgents are hiding," Zaw Htay said.

Zaw Htay telephoned a military commander in Maungdaw, whose name he did not disclose, during an interview with Reuters this week. The commander said troops conducted a sweep of U Shey Kya village on Oct. 19, but left without committing abuses.

The military did not respond to an emailed request for comment about the accusations.

The escalation of violence threatens to derail Suu Kyis goal of ending years of ethnic war in Myanmar, undermining the nation`s surprisingly smooth democratic transition that started a year ago with her historic election win, observers and diplomats say.

Though feted as a champion of democracy, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate has faced international criticism for not doing enough to ease the plight of around 1.1 million Rohingya living in Rakhine, most of whom are denied Myanmar citizenship.

After the first attacks, Suu Kyi urged the army to act in accordance with the law.

The military - which oversaw decades of authoritarian rule and now presents itself as a responsible partner in Myanmar`s transition - has declared an "operation zone" in northern Rakhine.

Residents and activists say civilians are being caught up in the security crackdown, and say scores more have been killed than the 33 alleged attackers that official reports have acknowledged.

U Shey Kya village`s official administrator, Armah Harkim, said he was working to verify the latest accounts, adding most residents believed them to be true.

Zaw Htay, the president`s spokesman, accused residents of fabricating the allegations as part of a disinformation campaign led by the insurgents, which he compared to the tactics of Islamist groups Islamic State and al-Qaeda.

Colonel Sein Lwin, the police chief for Rakhine State, dismissed the claims as "propaganda for Muslim groups."

Reuters reporters traveled to U Shey Kya village on Thursday - passing nearby villages where dozens of houses were recently burned down - and interviewed three women who said they were raped by soldiers.

Five other women from U Shey Kya have also detailed in a series of telephone interviews how Myanmar soldiers raped them. The accounts are backed up by at least three male residents of the village and a Rohingya community leader in Maungdaw who has gathered reports about the incident.

The residents said some 150 soldiers arrived near U Shey Kya on Oct. 19.

Most male residents left the village as they believed they would be suspected as insurgents. The women said they stayed behind in the belief the military would burn down empty homes.

Soldiers dismantled the fences around homes, residents said, removing possible hiding places as part of what authorities called a "clearance operation."

A 30-year-old woman described being knocked off her feet by soldiers and repeatedly raped.

"They told me, `We will kill you. We will not allow you to live in this country,`" she said.

The women said soldiers took gold, money and other property, and spoiled rice stores with sand.

"We can`t move to another village to find medical care," said a 32-year-old survivor. "I don`t have clothes now or food to eat. It was all destroyed. I`m feeling ashamed and scared."
Moscow: The Kremlin said Friday that President Vladimir Putin did not think it was time to resume air strikes on Aleppo after the defence ministry requested that a moratorium on bombing be lifted.

"The Russian president considers it inappropriate at the current moment to resume strikes on Aleppo," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding that Putin thought it was necessary to "continue the humanitarian pause" in the war-ravaged city.

The announcement came shortly after the defence ministry said it had asked Putin to allow the Russian air force to resume air strikes in Aleppo after a 10-day halt in bombing.

It also followed the launch by Syrian rebels of an assault on government forces to break a months-long siege of rebel-held eastern Aleppo.

Peskov stressed that in spite of the halt in bombing in Aleppo, Russia would deploy all its means to support the Syrian army if necessary.

"The Russian side retains the right in case of extreme necessity to use all the troops and facilities it has to carry out support of the Syrian armed forces at the necessary level," he said.

Russia`s defence ministry has said that Syrian and Russian warplanes have not bombed Aleppo for the past ten days to allow civilians and rebels wishing to leave the city to do so via humanitarian corridors.

The halt in bombing was initially declared ahead of a short ceasefire that ended at the weekend, with Moscow on Monday ruling out a truce extension for the time being.

The West has accused Moscow of committing possible war crimes in Aleppo through indiscriminate bombing to support Syrian government efforts to retake total control over the city.
Aleppo: Syrian opposition fighters on Friday launched a major assault on government forces to break a months-long siege of rebel-held neighbourhoods of the battered city of Aleppo.

Rebel groups including the powerful Ahrar al-Sham faction and former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front fired waves of rockets into government-held western Aleppo, killing at least 15 civilians, a monitor said.

The rebels also targeted government positions east of Aleppo city and in the coastal province of Latakia, including the Hmeimim military base that is used by Russian forces allied with the regime.

The assault comes more than three months into a government siege of eastern Aleppo, where over 250,000 people live, and several weeks after the army began an operation to retake the rebel east.

Rebel groups "announce the start of the battle to break the siege of Aleppo," said Abu Yusef Muhajir, a military commander and spokesman for Ahrar al-Sham.

The assault "will end the regime occupation of western Aleppo and break the siege on the people trapped inside," he told AFP.

"The breaking of the siege is inevitable," said Yasser al-Yusef, a member of the political office of the Nureddine al-Zinki rebel group.

"We will protect the civilians and schools and hospitals from Russian attacks and bring our people food and medicine," he said.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said at least 15 civilians, including two children, had been killed, and more than 100 wounded in rebel fire on western Aleppo.

The monitor reported fierce clashes on multiple front on the western and southern outskirts of western Aleppo, with three suicide car bombs targeting a checkpoint in the Dahiyet al-Assad neighbourhood.

It had no immediate toll in the clashes or bomb attack.

An AFP correspondent in east Aleppo said the assault had boosted the mood in rebel-held districts, with mosques broadcasting "God is greatest" from loudspeakers to hail the battle.

He said residents were burning tyres, sending smoke up over the city in a bid to provide cover for rebel forces from government and Russian warplanes.

The Observatory said rebel forces had also fired dozens of rockets at the Nairab military airport and Aleppo international airport, both east of Aleppo city and under government control.

And rebels also fired rockets from Idlib province into the government stronghold of Latakia, killing one person and wounding six.

The rocket fire hit near the Hmeimim military airport, as well as near Qardaha, the ancestral village of President Bashar al-Assad, the monitor said.Syrian state television reported the assault, saying "the army has foiled an attempt by terrorists to attack Aleppo city from several axes with suicide bomb attacks and has inflicted losses on them."

"Terrorist groups have made no advances and clashes are continuing," it added.

State news agency SANA said government planes were carrying out airstrikes south and west of Aleppo.

Once Syria`s economic powerhouse, Aleppo has been ravaged by the conflict that began in March 2011 with anti-government protests and has since killed over 300,000 people.

Aleppo has been divided between government control in the west and rebel control in the east since mid-2012, and in September the army announced an operation to recapture the whole city.

The assault, backed by Russian forces, has killed hundreds of civilians and destroyed infrastructure including hospitals, prompting international outrage.

The UN`s aid chief Stephen O`Brien this week said Aleppo had become "a kill zone", adding that "nothing is actually happening to stop the war, stop the suffering."

Last week, Russia implemented a three-day "humanitarian truce" intended to allow civilians and surrendering rebels to exit the east through passages to western neighbourhoods.

But few left, and a UN plan to evacuate the wounded failed because security could not be guaranteed.

Russia says it has not bombed Aleppo since October 18, and accuses rebel groups of preventing civilians from leaving.

On Friday, Syria`s foreign minister was in Moscow meeting with his counterparts from key allies Russia and Iran.
Beirut: Syrian rebels including jihadists began a counter-attack against the army and its allies on Friday aiming to break a weeks-long siege on eastern Aleppo, insurgents said."

The assault, employing heavy shelling and suicide car bombs, was mainly focused on the city`s western edge by rebels based outside Aleppo. It included Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, a former affiliate of al Qaeda previously known as the Nusra Front, and groups fighting under the Free Syrian Army (FSA) banner.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based war monitor, said more than 15 civilians had been killed and 100 wounded by rebel shelling of government-held western Aleppo. State media reported that five civilians were killed.

There were conflicting accounts of advances in areas on the city`s outskirts.

Aleppo, Syria`s biggest pre-war city, has become the main theatre of conflict between President Bashar al-Assad, backed by Iran, Russia and Shi`ite militias, and Sunni rebels including groups supported by Turkey, Gulf monarchies and the United States.

The city has been divided for years between the government-held western sector and rebel-held east, which the army and its allies put under siege this summer and where they launched a new offensive in September that medics say has killed hundreds.

Photographs showed insurgents approaching Aleppo in tanks, armoured vehicles, bulldozers, make-shift mine sweepers, pick-up trucks and on motorcycles, and showed a large column of smoke rising in the distance after an explosion.

Rebels said they had taken several positions from government forces and the Observatory said they had gained control over a checkpoint at a factory in southwest Aleppo and some other points nearby.

But a Syrian military source said the army and its allies had thwarted what he called "an extensive attack" on south and west Aleppo. A state television station reported that the army had destroyed four car bombs.

Abu Anas al-Shami, a member of the Fateh al-Sham media office, told Reuters from Syria the group had carried out two "martyrdom operations", after which its fighters had gone in and had been able to "liberate a number of important areas". A third such attack had been carried out by another Islamist group.

A senior official in the Levant Front, an FSA group, said: "There is a general call-up for anyone who can bear arms."

"The preparatory shelling started this morning," he added.

Heavy rebel bombardment, with more than 150 rockets and shells, struck southwestern districts, the Observatory said.

Fateh al-Sham played a big part in a rebel attack in July that managed to break the government siege on eastern Aleppo for several weeks before it was reimposed.

Abu Youssef al-Mouhajir, an official from the powerful Ahrar al-Sham Islamist group, said the extent of cooperation between the different rebel factions was unusual, and that the largest axis of attack was on the western edge of the city.

"This long axis disperses the enemy and it provides us with good cover in the sense that the enemy`s attacks are not focused," he said.

The powerful role played by Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, listed by many countries as a terrorist group, has complicated Western policy towards supporting the anti-Assad opposition.

The United States has prevented more powerful weapons such as anti-aircraft missiles from being supplied to rebels partly out of fear they could end up in jihadist hands.

The Syrian military source said Friday`s attack had been launched in coordination with Islamic State, a group against which all the other rebels, including Fateh al-Sham, have fought.

Islamic State fighters did clash with the Syrian army on Friday at a government-held airbase 37km (23 miles) east of Aleppo, next to territory the jihadist group already controls, the Observatory reported.

Syria`s civil war, now in its sixth year, has killed hundreds of thousands of people, displaced half the country`s pre-war population, dragged in regional and global powers and caused a refugee crisis in the Middle East and Europe.

Mouhajir, the Ahrar al-Sham official, said cloudy weather was helping to reduce the aerial advantage enjoyed by the Syrian military and its Russian allies. Inside Aleppo, tyres were also burnt to create a smokescreen against air strikes.

Grad rockets were launched at Aleppo`s Nairab air base before the assault began said Zakaria Malahifji, head of the political office of the Aleppo-based Fastaqim rebel group, adding that it was going to be "a big battle".

The Observatory also said that Grad surface-to-surface rockets had struck locations around the Hmeimim air base, near Latakia.
Washington: Donald Trump has given $10 million of his personal money to his presidential campaign in an effort to boost his White House bid 11 days before the Nov. 8 election, according to media reports.

The Wall Street Journal, citing two advisers, said the Republican presidential nominee wired the money on Friday morning. A Fox News reporter said Trump told him he would give $10 million to the campaign on Friday.
Rep. Ed Royce, R-Calif., told the Washington Examiner Wednesday, Just as I feared, the Iranian regime now has more American hostages and wants more money. The Obama administrations $1.7 billion cash payment to Iran wasnt just bad policy  it put additional lives at risk.  Iran should release all American hostages immediately and unconditionally.

It should be noted that President Obama threatened to veto Royces bill to bar additional ransom payments.

Lebanese citizen and permanent resident of the United States, Nizar Zakka, was imprisoned in Iran for over a year and was was sentenced to 10 years in Iranian prison on charges of spying, last month. Through his attorney, Zakka said that he was told by Iranian officials that it would take $4 million from the U.S. to win his release, and that he will remain in prison until the payment is received.

Many Republicans, including Royce, have argued that the Obama administration gave an incentive to Iran via the $400 million cash payment to Iran in January in order to ensure the release of four American hostages, along with a $1.3 billion cash payment just days later.

The administration said that that the payment was unrelated to the hostages release. It was paid to resolve a longstanding dispute over money Iran had paid to the U.S. to buy jets, which didnt happen, once the Shah of Iran was overthrown in 1979. However, officials admit that the payment was delayed to gain leverage in the hostage negotiations.

Republicans fear that the decision will lead to more hostage situations.

Former Chair of the House Foreign Affairs panel, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., said that the prisoners held in Iran are pawns in a dangerous game as Iran continues to use the nuclear deal as leverage to extract more and more concessions from the U.S. She told the Examiner, The obvious consequence of paying ransom to terrorists is that you have just demonstrated that hostage taking can be financially beneficial. The administration and all responsible nations must take a stand and take immediate action to secure the unconditional release of all hostages and put an end to Irans repeated violations of human rights.

The Obama administrations view of the $1.7 billion in cash payment matters far less than what the Iranians think about it, said Jonathan Schanzer of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. What was more important to ask is whether the Iranians viewed it that way [as a ransom payment], and now, it appears clear that they do. Schanzer said that the nuclear deal between Tehran, Washington, and other world powers, has not fully yielded the benefits Iran was expecting, as foreign investment in Iran has been slow to materialize. Global banks harbor lingering concerns about the risks associated with Irans ongoing support for terrorism and other illicit financial activities, he said, and added, Demands for ransom will hardly assuage their fears.
Ankara: The Turkish Interior Ministry on Friday suspended a total of 265 officers of the Gendarmerie and Coast Guard for alleged links to the failed coup in July.

The measure is a part of the investigations of the Turkish Justice Ministry into the network of supporters of exiled preacher Fethullah Gulen, whom Ankara accuses of orchestrating the attempted coup, an accusation he denies, Efe news reported.

According to Anadolu news agency, a total of 153 officers have been dismissed in the Gendarmerie, a service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces which is dependent on the interior ministry.

Among those affected by the decision are 42 officers, 56 sub-officers and 30 sergeants.

Meanwhile, 112 persons have been suspended from the Coast Guard, including 52 officers and 56 sub-officers.

Until 2013, Gulen`s supporters had formed a network that was occupying a large number of important posts in the administration, judicial and police apparatus with the government`s backing, but their presence in the armed forces only came to light after the coup.
Hello dearies! This is the Mistress of Spize, cooking up a lot of salt n sour, sweet n saucy stories and observations for you. Sniff! Can you smell, my preparation? Aroma is in the air and smoke is already rising from my hot pot.<br/><br/>Lets talk about eye-candy! The latest would be Hrithiks sword brandishing scene from Jodhaa Akbar. Man! how his muscles flexed as he challenged Aishwaryas defiance. That perfectly carved body language said it all without a word. It drew sighs from women across all ages. It was so amusing to hear a huddled group of aunty jis chatting about that perfectly chiselled body. And I was shocked to see the teeny-weeny teenagers just ogling. The sword-brandishing scene kind of bonded all females. And, let me tell you, it is that scene which will be remembered when all would be forgotten about Jodhaa Akbar. <br/><br/>For the male species, well, the latest eye-candy is the catty eyed Katrina Kaif and her sizzling item-numbers.<br/><br/>Dearies, I am sure you would be bursting with excitement to relate such stories and add on to the story-churning pot. Do interact and relate your rare observations through comments. Mistress of Spize is all ears! <br/>Love ya!<br/>
LIVE-2 Inning |01-5

ENGLAND VS NEW ZEALAND

ENG 179/6 VS 64/2 NZ

New Zealand need 116 runs in 62 balls at 11.22 rpo
Brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy and five followers charged over a 41-day armed takeover of the Malheur federal wildlife sanctuary in Oregon last January were today acquitted of federal conspiracy and weapons charges.

All seven are free to go at it all over again, should they choose to, and perhaps inspire other disgruntled white guys with guns to stage militant takeovers of other public property.

From the New York Times:

The verdict brings to a close a case that gripped the nation earlier this year with its public debate about government powers, public lands and constitutional rights. There was a Wild West quality to the episode, with armed men in cowboy hats taking on federal agents in a tussle over public lands and putting out a call for aid, only to see their insurrection fizzle. In a monthlong trial here, the defendants never denied that they had occupied and held the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters for nearly six weeks, demanding that the federal government surrender the 188,000-acre property to local control. But their lawyers argued that prosecutors did not prove that the group had engaged in an illegal conspiracy that kept federal workers  employees of the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau of Land Management  from doing their jobs.

And from Reuters:

In an emotional climax to the trial in U.S. District Court in Portland, Ammon Bundy's lawyer, Marcus Mumford, was tackled to the floor by U.S. marshals as he became involved in a heated verbal exchange with the judge over the terms of his client's release. The verdict came hours after a newly reconstituted jury, with an alternate seated to replace one panelist dismissed over questions of bias on Wednesday, renewed deliberations in the case. Jurors previously had deliberated over three days.

White guys really can get away with just about anything they want to in America.

Also known as White Dudes Getting Away With Crazy ShitCase #5,000,000,000,000,000 https://t.co/oBTuBWASYV  Shane Bauer (@shane_bauer) October 27, 2016

The coincidental timing of the Standing Rock raid and the Malheur acquittal emphasizes the continued power of settler colonial enclosure.  Jacob Remes (@jacremes) October 27, 2016

Worth noting that the leaders of the Oregon takeover were acquitted, but 11 others have pleaded guilty already https://t.co/q1BC2wqLDd (1/2)  Mark Berman (@markberman) October 28, 2016

Armed militia Oath Keepers suggest members patrol polls incognito, perhaps in Bob Marley T-shirts or Carhartt pants: https://t.co/N4mR4BG4cx  Jenna Johnson (@wpjenna) October 28, 2016

Luckily this doesn't come right at a time in our nation where antigovernment extremists might be emboldened to do some other bad things.  J.M. Berger (@intelwire) October 27, 2016
Donald Trump's grandfather Friedrich Trump operated a wild and crazy restaurant/bar/brothel in British Columbia during Canada's gold rush era.

Bloomberg writer Natalie Obiko Pearson reports quite the story today on the origins of the Trump clan's wealth in a late 19th-century subarctic outpost.

Snip:

The Trump family's gold-rush story began when Fred, as he was known, left Germany at the age of 16 with little more than a suitcase. He headed to New York to work as a barber before venturing west in search of riches. Following stints in Seattle and now-defunct Monte Cristo, the gold fever carried him to Bennett, where he and partner Ernest Levin built the Arctic Restaurant, which touted itself as the best-equipped in town. It was open around the clock with "private boxes for ladies and parties," according to an advertisement in the Dec. 9, 1899 edition of the Bennett Sun newspaper. The boxes typically included a bed and scale for weighing gold dust used to pay for "services," according to a three-generational biography by Gwenda Blair, who traced the origins of the Trump family's wealth. Of course, in the rough-and-tumble frontier towns of that era, the Arctic's business model built on food, booze and sex was common. The Arctic sat a stone's throw from Bennett Lake in the heart of the township, amid a row of similar establishments and a sea of white canvas tents set up by prospectors. It was constructed of milled lumber and stocked fresh oysters, extravagant luxuries in a place where supplies were brought over arduous overland routes. "I would advise respectable women travelling alone, or with an escort, to be careful in their selection of hotels at Bennett," according to a letter penned by "The Pirate" in the Yukon Sun on April 17, 1900. For single men, the Arctic offered excellent accommodations but women should avoid it "as they are liable to hear that which would be repugnant to their feelings and uttered, too, by the depraved of their own sex."

On the subject of the Arctic Restaurant and alleged sexybusiness therein, Donald Trump previously told the New York Times that reports of prostitution at his grandpappy's establishment are 'totally false.' Dear reader, please note that Donald Trump was born 28 years after the Yukon entrepreneur's death, and that 'totally false' is a thing he says all the time about things that are not totally false.

The Bloomberg piece follows the footsteps of earlier original reporting at Canada news daily Macleans' feature, "Inside the wild Canadian past of the Trump family."

"Before there was a Trump Tower, there was a gold-rush hotel in Bennett, Yukon, where the Trump family dynasty began," Jason Markusoff reported earlier this month.

Snip:
FBI Director James Comey writes in a letter sent Friday to congress that the bureau is investigating more emails related to Hillary Clinton's use of a personal email server.

In previous congressional testimony, I referred to the fact that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had completed its investigation of former Secretary Clinton's personal email server. Due to recent developments, I am writing to supplement my previous testimony In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation. I am writing to inform you that the investigative team briefed me on this yesterday, and I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation. Although the FBI cannot yet assess whether or not this material may be significant, and I cannot predict how long it will take us to complete this additional work, I believe it is important to update your Committees about our efforts in light of my previous testimony.

The letter's vague. Everyone is losing their shit over it, either thinking it's saying more than it is (there's no suggestion that it's her email), or finding its lack of detail suggestive of a partisan effort to spread fear and doubt days before an election.

If we don't hear more from Comey, we just have to conclude that he was trying to swing election. And *that* should be the story.  Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) October 28, 2016

The earlier investigation led to Comey announcing that Clinton's use of personal email was inappropriate but not worthy of charges.

UPDATE: Get this: it's apparently got something to do with Anthony Weiner's teen sext stuff.

Federal law enforcement officials said Friday that the new emails uncovered in the closed investigation into Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server were discovered after the F.B.I. seized electronic devices belonging to Huma Abedin, a top aide to Mrs. Clinton, and her husband, Anthony Weiner. The F.B.I. is investigating illicit text messages that Mr. Weiner sent to a 15-year-old girl in North Carolina.

The implication is that Huma Abedin's device has email to or from Hillary on it, and therefore vanishingly unlikely to make a difference to anything.

Details of FBI: They found 3 emails that "might" be relevant to the case. None of them were withheld by Clinton.  Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) October 28, 2016

Here's Newsweek on why Comey might have been forced to turn this into an October surprise.

UPDATE: Looks like a dead dud.
Shane Bauer, the investigative journalist whose four month stint in a privately run Louisiana prison was one of 2016's most important pieces of journalism, has published a new piece in Mother Jones, this one detailing his time patrolling with the Three Percent United Patriots and other right-wing militias that are preparing for an epic civil war in which the US government will be overthrown and they will be the only citizens of a new country, with everyone else serving as "worker beesdown in the field growing food, gathering wood."



The militias patrol various southwestern borders, heavily armed and in camou, looking for "drug cartels" and palling around with the actual border patrol. Many of them are veterans, some obviously traumatized. Despite the official anti-racist position of the militia unit Bauer patrolled with, there are open neo-Nazis in their number, and a lot of use of the n-word, particularly in referring to Obama.

Bauer's report paints a picture of intense paranoia, fuelling violent fantasies, mixed up with a kind of camping-weekend camaraderie in which these hyper-macho guys kid themselves that every "Mexican male" they encounter is a secret undercover agent for the "cartels" making "soft contact." They joke about raping each other, and are especially hostile to the women in their number. They also deeply mistrust one another, worrying that rival factions will turn on them.

New initiates are enthusiastically tortured to teach them to "resist questioning" if they're ever captured by enemy troops, and the militiamen approach this task with sadistic, infantile relish.

Despite this, Bauer's portrait of the militia is pretty sympathetic, depicting them men as often traumatized, deeply worried and alienated.



The recruits are told to imagine they are out in Arizona and have been captured by a drug cartel. They're put in a stall in a horse barn and subjected to sleep deprivation. "We keep 'em up. Keep 'em hungry," Showtime says. The mock detainees are cuffed to a table sloped at an angle and asked questions like how many people are in their group and what radio frequency they use. Their task is to resist giving any information. "We got a stress box," Showtime says. "We put 'em in there. Stick a cattle prod through the holes. One guy, he tried to turn around and we got him right between his legs in the ball sack." "Yeah, too much fun," Destroyer says. "How long were they sitting there?" I ask, trying not to sound alarmed. "Couple hours," Showtime says. "We got a stress box," Showtime says. "We put 'em in there. Stick a cattle prod through the holes." "I don't think we've kept anybody in the stress box that long," Captain Pain interjects. "It gets cold, but they get warm right away if you put three of 'em in there," Showtime says. Sometimes when Showtime interrogates people, he cuffs them to a metal chair. "I'll take battery charger cables and hook it up to the chair," he says. "The cord is broke, but they don't know that." Showtime will occasionally stand a habanero-covered dildo on the table in front of them and tell them to suck it. If they resist, he shoves it into their faces. One time, he says, they tied a man upside-down on the tilt-table with his arms stretched over his head. Fifty Cal filled a syringe with hot sauce, dripped some hot sauce on the man's lips, and said, "This is going in your dick hole." Then Fifty Cal took a syringe full of water and dripped some on the man's penis. The man, thinking it was hot sauce, shouted, "I quit! I quit! I quit!" Captain Pain stresses that the recruits can drop out anytime they want during the roughly 40-hour training, and many do. They're also recorded on camera consenting ahead of time.

Undercover With a Border Militia [Shane Bauer/Mother Jones]





(via The Gruqq)
UPDATE: After CBC Toronto posted this story, Edmundson heard from a senior manager at Bell Canada, who gave a sincere apology and details about why the problems occurred. The manager said he will review the file this weekend and get back to the trucking company about the outstanding bill and compensation.

Andrew Edmundson's connection to Bell Canada is as old as his family's trucking company. For 39 years, Edmundson Transportation Services of Mississauga, Ont., has had the same phone number.

Recently, he signed up for a new service  Bell Total Connect. But not only did he never receive the service he paid for, Bell also disconnected his number altogether and said it was "lost."

"They actually said, 'We've lost your phone number.' Like, how do you lose a phone number?," said Edmundson, who has discontinued his Bell service and signed with a competitor.

He learned of the disconnection from a client who had been trying to reach his trucking company for days and kept getting an "out of service" message.

Edmundson was alarmed and angry, "because it sounds like you've gone bankrupt."

"And that's the last thing I want, rumours flying around saying we disappeared," he said.

- Northern Ontario First Nation without phones for months

Edmundson contacted CBC News after reading about a Toronto woman's recent battles with Bell Canada to fix her landline.

He said he feels he has no recourse and has been disregarded as a long-time, loyal customer.

"It seemed the only way to let other people know or get some kind of justice was by going public with it," he said.

No phone, erratic internet

What happened with Bell Canada was something akin to a Franz Kafka novel, he said.

Edmundson Transportation Services went almost four weeks with erratic internet service and no phone line. Edmundson says his operations manager logged 70 hours trying to troubleshoot the problem as seven Bell technicians tried to fix it.

Story continues

In the meantime, the company received service bills totaling $857.02 for the Bell Total Connect hardware it had ordered and service that was never delivered. The company also lost revenue when customers couldn't reach them.

"We have no idea what we missed," Edmundson said.

He said new customers often call the next-day shipping company giving little notice to request a load moved.

"If we lost a truck for a week because of this service it's [$5,000] a week, easily," he estimated.

Taking care of business

The company has six trucks and eight employees. That's small by trucking standards but Edmundson's mother, Barbara, said that's by choice to provide personal, loyal service.

"I don't care how big your company is, you have to take care of your customers. Without them, you have no business. And Bell is not doing that," she said.

She said the company received no compensation. "Not even an apology, which would have been nice," she said.

CBC News contacted Bell Canada for an explanation and asked for an interview.

After two days, the company issued a one-line statement through spokeswoman Isabelle Boulet, who wrote: "We're certainly sorry to lose them," and that Bell regrets "the inconvenience they were caused."

In his office, looking at Bell paperwork, Andrew Edmundson noted a line that read, "Your business phone is more than just a phone line it's your connection to your customers and suppliers."

He questions whether Bell Canada actually believes that.

"If this is going to be your mantra, it has to go through all of your company. It can't just be something that your sales guys pitched on a Monday morning meeting."
The United Overseas Bank (UOB) Plaza building is pictured in the central business district in Singapore July 24, 2015. REUTERS/Edgar Su/File Photo

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore's United Overseas Bank (UOBH.SI) posted a 7.8 percent drop in third-quarter net profit on Friday, hurt by a jump in bad debt charges due to losses from its exposure to the oil and gas sector.

Singapore banks are facing mounting risks as credit woes deepen for the offshore services sector, which has been hit hard by an almost two-year rout in oil prices and a slowing economy.

UOB CEO Wee Ee Cheong said the bank expected subdued global economic growth and volatile market conditions in the months ahead.

UOB, the city-state's third-biggest lender, said net profit came in at S$791 million ($567.15 million) in the three months ended September, versus a profit of S$858 million a year earlier. Bad debt charges rose 15.7 percent.

The result was slightly better than the average forecast of S$747 million from five analysts polled by Reuters, as loans grew at a 7 percent pace compared with a decline of 2 percent for rival Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp (OCBC) (OCBC.SI).

OCBC on Thursday reported a better-than-expected 5 percent rise in third-quarter profit, helped by gains from its insurance unit and wealth management which offset a rise in provisions for bad debt.

($1 = 1.3947 Singapore dollars)

(Reporting by Saeed Azhar; Editing by Stephen Coates)
Business & Adminstrative

Laserfiche Debuts Higher Ed Package of Business Automation Processes

Laserfiche has introduced a version of its Laserfiche Business Process Library that is specifically designed to provide services for higher education institutions.

The Business Process Library is a collection of prebuilt forms-based business process templates designed to eliminate many of the steps organizations take in conducting their business by deploying faster automation.

A package of higher education-specific process templates within the Business Process Library provides some of the most common business processes used by colleges and universities. In most cases, this means automation now takes less time and resources that can be redirected toward other duties.

The Business Process Library has a large inventory of process diagrams, workflows, template fields and reports that can be reconfigured to an institution's specific requirements to aid such administrative functions as application review, transcript processing, changes of major or minor and diploma requests.

Other templates in the higher education package include:

Course add or drop requests;

Faculty and staff requisition;

FERPA authorization;

Transcript evaluation; and

Tuition payment agreements.

Functions can be customized so, for instance, some can be accessed on mobile devices and others cannot and to accommodate the varying demands for authorization. Once each process is complete, built into the system is archiving of documents on a predetermined retention schedule designed to meet compliance requirements.

The Business Process Library is part of Laserfiche 10, an enterprise content management system that includes analytics and performance dashboard that give colleges and universities insight into workloads and staff performance.

The Texas A&M University system uses Laserfiche as a shared service across 11 university campuses, three state agencies and a health science center.

"IT is usually seen as a spender of money," said Chris Huff, network systems administrator at Texas A&M's College of Engineering, in a prepared statement. "But by reengineering our onboarding process, we saved about 45 minutes per new hire. This allows our employees to invest the time saved into other job duties."
SIIX Expanding in China, Europe Published: 28 October 2016 by Mike Buetow by Mike Buetow

TOKYO -- SIIX, Japan's largest EMS company, plans to invest a total of nearly $12 million toward new plants in Europe and China.

The firm said it will spend 50 million yuan ($7.37 million) to set up SIIX Hubei in east-central China. It will also spend 4 million euros ($4.38 million) to set up SIIX Hungary Kft.

Both units will manufacture printed circuit board assemblies, the firm added.

SIIX said it is expanding in China to accommodate its local business there, which has been growing rapidly over the past several years. It selected Hubei Province because of its ties to the automotive and high-tech industries, plus an abundance of young labor. The company intends to locate in Xiaogan, Hubei Province, and pursue customers in the consumer electronics and industrial markets. The 63,819 sq. ft. site will employ 100 workers to start.

SIIX also has plants in Dongguan and Shanghai.

In Europe, the pending Nagykoros, Hungary, site will employ 100 persons to start. Operations at the 181,275 sq. ft plant are set to begin in September 2017.

SIIX has a manufacturing site in Slovakia as its production center in Europe.
Colorado Town Improves Water Efficiency with Real-Time Meter Data

Local water utility in Snowmass, Colo. looks to empower customers with water consumption data.

FATHOM Water Management, Inc., a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) provider for water utilities, recently announced that the Water and Sanitation District for Snowmass, Colorado (Snowmass or SWSD) has selected FATHOM Prime and U2You products to allow customers to manage their bills and provide them with access to water consumption data to improve conservation efforts and customer service. These products will integrate seamlessly with Snowmass existing smart meter infrastructure from Neptune, a pioneering advanced metering infrastructure developer.

A small ski town located just eight miles from Aspen, Snowmass sees significant seasonal population changes. With the FATHOM system, homeowners can now get early detection of water leaks, insights into water use of their homes and rental properties, and access the FATHOM mobile platform to view account activity and pay bills. Working together, FATHOM and Neptune enable residents to gain more insight into and control over their water consumption.

We immediately saw the benefits of accessing real-time meter data for both our customers and our staff, said Christie Duckett, billing manager of SWSD. With the new platform, our team can view meter data and water usage in many different ways, from an individual account to city trends, and identify consumption trends. We are also thrilled to provide our customers access to their individual consumption data and alerts to empower them to proactively manage their water usage.

In just five months, SWSD has seen a significant reduction in customer calls asking for billing information and a breakdown of individual water consumption.

Information is the key to success for water utilities and helping customers manage their usage is quickly become an obligation in the water sector, said Trevor Hill, CEO of FATHOM. As we move toward a world of connected devices, like smart water meters, and the massive amount of data they generate, it is increasingly important to empower water utilities and their customers with FATHOMs cutting-edge technologies and services.

The FATHOM software was deployed in March, 2016 and included 1,300 meters.
This Immigrant Doctor Is Reimagining Health in the American City

Sundarbans. The word means beautiful forest in Bengali, and its an accurate description of the 540 square miles of lush jungle, meandering waterways, and abundant wildlife straddling the southern end of the Bangladesh-India border. The worlds largest mangrove forest, a swath of dense verdant green bifurcated by thousands of rivers and streams, occupies the mouth of the river system that supports more people than any other on Earth, giving life to millions who inhabit the fertile alluvial lands surrounding it.

Intense population pressureBangladeshs 160 million people make their home in an area slightly smaller than Iowahas caused the forests to shrink, but they are still vital in feeding this huge population: The Sundarbans Reserve Forest and Indias Sundarbans National Park protect the land that provides three annual harvests of rice from the severe cyclonic storms that strike the region an average of three times a year. An enigmatic sentry, the Bengal tiger, patrols the barrier. The national animal of both Bangladesh and neighboring India can navigate the waterways and disappear amid the otherworldly vegetation; its one of the reasons the Sundarbans region was awarded UNESCO World Heritage status. But despite nominal protections, it islike the forestsendangered.

One reason is that Bangladesh and India plan to build the 1,320-megawatt Rampal coal power plant about 10 miles from the Sundarbans Reserve Forest; activists say part of the project falls within an exclusion zone that bars nearby development.

The plants emissions will include 7.9 million tons of carbon dioxide per year and large amounts of mercury. Coal ash from the plant has a high risk of containing various toxic metalsall of which may cause serious damage to humans and the environment, according to a report from the International Union of Conservation of Nature, Report on the Mission to the Sundarbans World Heritage Site, Bangladesh, from 22 to 28 March 2016, released last week. Mercury contamination is of particular concern, the report states, as current projected control mechanisms and technology are not sufficient to prevent contamination of surrounding areas.

Story continues

The IUCN report is only the latest in a catalog of serious concerns that scientists have brought about the project. All have been summarily dismissed by Bangladeshs government, which conducted the environmental impact assessment on its own project. The IUCN report notes that the EIA was conducted with limited stakeholder consultation, uses a process that is inconsistent with globally accepted EIA practices, does not address effects of the plant on the [outstanding universal value] of the [UNESCO World Heritagelisted portions of the forest] and does not seem to reflect key concerns raised by national and international experts and scientists. The report continues: Air and water pollution have a high likelihood to irreversibly damage the OUV of the world heritage property. The possible threats arising from the power plant on the OUV of the property are not addressed adequately and the plant itself is not applying the best available technology or the highest international standards for preventing damage commensurate with its location. As a result, the IUCN scientists recommend that the Rampal power plant project is cancelled and relocated to a more suitable location, where it would not impact negatively on the Sundarbans Reserve Forest.

Rampal, however, is not a purely South Asian investment. About 70 percent of the money required to build the plant will be borrowed, and that means a lot of money will come from banks overseas: UBS, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan Chase, Barclays, Prudential Financial, HSBC, BlackRock, and Societe Generale have all bought bonds that India sold to finance infrastructure essential to the plants operation, according to analysis of Bloomberg and ThomsonReuters data by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, an independent research group. It isnt the developing worlds only such planned or recently built coal plant to rely on financing or advice from wealthy nations: In India, a coal plant was financed in part by loans from the U.S. government. Germanys development bank provided funding for another coal plant in India. Japans development agency, the Japan International Cooperation Agency, practically wrote Bangladeshs plan to boost its power-generating capacity using coaleven as the government has helped expand the reach of distributed solar power to at least 18 million people in the country, according to The New York Times. These wealthy nations' attempts to ease construction of heavily polluting coal plants occurs while the cost of new onshore wind farms has fallen 30 percent between 2010 and 2015, according to International Energy Agency data released Tuesday, and the cost of large solar panels fell by two-thirds over the same period.

While much of the developed world is breaking the coal habit, with the U.S. seeing the share of electricity so derived fall from nearly half to less than a third in under a decade, and Canada and the United Kingdom planning to phase it out entirely, wealthy nations are selling expertise and helping to pay for poor countries like Bangladesh to adopt the dirty fuel, locking them in to emissions that poison their populations for decades and threaten the stability of the earths climate. Governments, taxpayers, and investors thousands of miles away will therefore assist in paying for plants like Rampaloften couched as development aid or even financed with green bondsand their subsequent pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. A lending unit of the World Bank has provided banks that invest significantly in coal projects in developing nations with hundreds of millions of dollarseven as another arm of the Bank loans Bangladesh $2 billion to fight climate change. Countries including the U.S., and companies headquartered in them, are ratifying the Paris agreement with one hand while pushing coal in Bangladesh and elsewhere with the other.

Yet a report released this week by Overseas Development Institute, a British research organization, and the Vasdudha Foundation, based in New Delhi, says off-grid renewable electricity is "the cheapest and quickest way of reaching over two-thirds of those without electricity." Building just one-third of the coal plants now planned, the report found, will bring about climate change that will plunge millions into poverty.

Though scientists pegged the amount of warming since preindustrial times that civilization can withstand at 2 degrees Celsius, and despite Paris declaration of a goal to keep warming below a 2-degree increase, ODI researchers the calculated that planned coal development, mostly in the developing world, will singlehandedly max out the worlds two-degree carbon budget. The World Bank seems to agree: Its president, Jim Yong Kim, noted in September that if all the new coal plants on the books earlier this year were constructed, especially in Asia, it would be impossible to stay below two degrees.

Rampal is the most controversial element of a highly coal-reliant plan to quadruple power-generating capacity in Bangladesha country regularly found to be one of the most at risk from climate change, facing displacement of 18 million people by 2050 and the loss of more than 17 percent of its land mass. Rampal will burn around 4.72 million tons of coal annually. This cargo will most likely come by boat through the supposedly protected forests, via a river that will require dredging at a price of $26 million a year, bringing the cost to Bangladeshi taxpayers to about $1.87 billion over the course of the plants life, according to IEEFA. The IUCN investigators found that dredged material will likely be deposited into a Marine Protected Area within the habitat of the endangered Irawaddy dolphin. As Yadvendradev V. Jhala, a wildlife biologist at the Wildlife Institute of India and the Smithsonian Institution, told TakePart, the boats carrying coal will fragment the population of tigers by preventing the hydrophilic cats from crossing key rivers. There are only around five viable wild tiger habitats left in the world for long-term hope of the species survival, he said. This is one of them. If you break these up into smaller parts, you lose that, not ecologically but biologically, by reducing genetic diversity. Boats that capsize in cyclones or run aground and leak fuel or cargo are also a concern of environmental groups; the IUCN report noted a lack of any plan for a concerted and coordinated maritime traffic management and response.

As Bangladeshs economy grows and the government seeks to provide electricity to the 40 percent of the population who in 2012 did not have it, Bangladeshs energy shift will see it transform, from producing around 2 percent of electricity from coalthe single greatest threat to our climate, according to Greenpeaceto 50 percent by 2030.

The national power companies have said they will each cover 15 percent of the plants initial costs; the remaining 70 percent, about $1.6 billion, will be borrowed. The national power companies have a problem, thoughwhats known in the world of finance as reputational risk. Many banks dont want to be seen enabling construction of a project posing risks to a UNESCO World Heritage site and the planet.

As a result, much of the burden for funding the plant and its associated infrastructure, such as rail lines, will fall on Indias Exim Bank. The government-owned banks primary purpose is to assist Indias exporters and Indian companies operating abroad. Its chairman and managing director, Yaduvendra Mathur, admits that the project poses a reputation risk.

Many nations have similar institutions. Known as export credit agencies, they are a means of encouraging companies to sell products or services abroad by insuring their risks and helping pay for their activities up front, before they are able to collect from the overseas client. So while India stumps up money for Indian companies costs in Bangladesh, the United States own EXIM Bank has done the same for the 3,960-megawatt Sasan plant in Madhya Pradesh, India. With $650 million in loan guarantees from the U.S. EXIM Bank, American companies bids to sell equipment to the project could beat foreign competition. ECAs spent about $73 billion globally subsidizing the coal industry between 2007 and 2014, according to a 2015 report from the World Wildlife Fund, Oil Change International, and the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Indias ECA has been selling bonds to finance Rampal, describing some of them as green. According to Catalina von Hildebrand of the watchdog group BankTrack, international shareholders have already divested from [Indias national power company] on account of Rampal, and this could happen again [to Exim Bank]. Big French lenders BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole, and Societe Generale have all said they will not advise or lend to the project, The Guardian reported last year.

But Exim Bank began marketing green bonds for Rampal in March 2015, with an initial tranche of $500 million. Green bonds are usually sold to finance projects such as mass transit; in this instance major banks and private equity firms from New York to Zurich are riding this investment vehicle to provide funds for rail lines essential to the Rampal plants operation. BNP bought $3.67 million worth of Exim Bank bonds in February, adding credence to the Bangladesh Power Divisions statement, first reported by the Daily Sun in Dhaka, that the news of rejection by the French banks to finance Rampal Project is irrelevant.

Other countries hard at work bolstering their companies prospects to build and supply fossil fuel projects overseas include Germany and Japan. Japan funded about $20 billion worth of coal generation internationally between 2007 and 2014, tops worldwide, according to the WWF report. Tokyo Electric Power Company, owner of the Fukushima nuclear power plant that leaked radioactive material after the 2011 tsunami, helped the Japanese government devise a plan to power Bangladesh with around 13 new coal-fired plants in coastal areas of one of the most flood- and storm-prone countries on Earth. Japan loaned Bangladesh $3.6 billion to build a plant that will provide less electricity than the Rampal project despite being twice as costly. Taku Yamabe, senior representative for the Japan International Cooperation Agency, which is behind the huge ramp-up of coal in Bangladesh, said in an email exchange with TakePart that the bids would be mostly open. (The project has stalled because of security fears after six Japanese contractors were killed in a terrorist attack in Dhaka on July 1.) The principal contractor on the Matarbari coal project in southeast Bangladesh is a group comprising the Tokyo Electric Power Company, Nippon Koei, and Fichtner GmbH & Co. of Germany, according to Yamabe. Bangladeshi officials have shortlisted two prominent Japanese companies to construct the plant, local media reported in February. One of them pleaded guilty in 2014 to bribing Indonesian officials to build a coal plant and paid an $88 million fine.

Despite Germanys vaunted Energiewende, or energy transition, which has seen enormous investments in renewable energy at home, the country spent almost $1.5 billion subsidizing coal-fired power abroad in 2013 and 2014, according to ODI. It also subsidizes coal mining in other countries, most notably Serbia. Germanys official development bank, the KfW, which is tasked with lending money to poor countries to alleviate poverty, has helped fund the construction of the Krishnapatnam coal plant project in India, due to come online in 2017. Climate change in India is believed to be responsible for a drought that this year alone affected more than 330 million people.

At Rampal the engineering consultant is Fichtner GmbH. The decision to allow its participation came from on top, says a former official of Germans embassy in Dhaka, speaking on condition of anonymity. Fichtner GmbH is also involved in Krishnapatnam and dozens of other coal power projects across India. The coal lobby in Germany is very, very powerful, said Claudia Kemfert of the German Institute for Economic Research. There is no other explanation why there is no coal phaseout in Germany.

As environmental groups increase pressure on the government, tensions in Dhaka are mounting. Anu Muhammad, professor of economics at Jahangirnagar University and a vocal critic of the project, reportedly started receiving death threats in the early hours of Oct. 13. Say yes to Rampal, one text message read, otherwise you must will be hacked to death incredibly by us!

Sign the Petition: You Can Tell the EPA You Support Strong Climate Regulations

Related stories on TakePart:





 Only 100 Tigers Are Left in Bangladeshs Famed Forest

 Devastating Oil Spill Threatens Rare Dolphins and Bengal Tigers

 Hidden Connections: Bangladesh's Climate Crisis

Original article from TakePart
GLEN ELLYN, Ill., Oct. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- College of DuPage student Marco Hartnett gained valuable experience working in his own lab space during a summer chemistry internship at the University of Split in Croatia.



A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/7b9274ba-5499-42c2-96f3-5386de1861a1

The Naperville resident, who is pursuing a career in chemical engineering, conducted research on the crystallization process in the Universitys Chemistry and Technology department. In addition to manning his own lab, Hartnett worked with an assistant who provided an extra set of hands.

To be given the freedom and opportunity to have my own space and equipment was very new and different, he said. By the end of the internship, I felt like an actual working scientist.

Hartnett discovered the internship through his mother, Nina, an adjunct chemistry professor at College of DuPage. Originally from Croatia, she attended the University of Split and knew the head of the Chemistry and Technology department as a former colleague. He was able to guide Hartnett through the application process.

Although Hartnett had spent summers as a boy in Croatia, he had not returned in 13 years.

I was very nervous going into it, because I wasnt sure what to expect, he said. Everyone I worked with was amazing. They were all so helpful, and they all made it clear that if I had any questions I shouldnt be afraid to ask. My professor would sit down with me every day and explain the days topic and what the experiment would be. Then I would be left alone for several hours. The professor was great about checking in with me and making sure I understood all of the calculations.

Click here to read more.
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[October 27, 2016] Fitch Removes HCP from Rating Watch Negative; Affirms 'BBB' IDR

Fitch Ratings has removed HCP, Inc. from Rating Watch Negative and affirmed the company's Issuer Default Rating (IDR) and debt ratings at 'BBB'. The Rating Outlook is Stable. A full list of rating actions follows at the end of this release. KEY RATING DRIVERS The 'BBB' IDR and Stable Outlook reflect Fitch's expectation that HCP's leverage and liquidity will stabilize pro forma following its spin-off of HCP's HCR ManorCare Inc.'s (HCR) real estate into Quality Care Properties (NYSE:QCP). The recently completed $1.75 billion debt issuances by QCP and subsequent dividend to HCP, along with significant progress on dispositions resolve the uncertainty and execution risk that the previous Rating Watch Negative captured. Round-trip, Fitch views the HCR investment as having been a distraction to management and a headwind against relative access to capital over the past few years. The lease amendment in 2015 and the QCP spin-off in 2016 will have increased leverage by approximately 1x. HCP will be a predominantly private-pay healthcare REIT focusing on senior housing, medical office and life science with some debt and hospital investments pro forma for its permanent separation from HCR. LEVERAGE TO SUSTAIN IN LOW 6x RANGE Fitch projects that leverage will sustain in the 6x - 6.5x range in 2017 and 2018 pro forma for announced dispositions and assuming $750 million per year of acquisitions. Fitch views leverage sustaining between 6x - 7x as being appropriate for the 'BBB' rating. Leverage could migrate lower depending upon acquisition volumes and funding mix, though Fitch expects the issuer's primary focus will be demonstrating accretive growth to shareholders. This compares to leverage in the high-4x to mid-5x range in 2012 through 2014 before the lease amendment and spin-off. Fitch projects fixed-charge coverage (FCC (News - Alert)) will sustain in the mid-to-high 3x range through 2018, which is strong for the 'BBB' rating and comparable to prior years (3.5x in 2015 and 3.8x in 2014). AMPLE LIQUIDITY WHILE RE-ESTABLISHING ITSELF WITH INVESTORS HCP will have ample liquidity to retire maturing debt obligations through 2018 which provides it time to re-establish itself with debt and equity investors. HCP has not issued non-bank debt or issued equity since late 2015. Fitch views HCP as having weaker access to capital relative to its higher rated peers, which is another factor driving the ratings differential, and Fitch does not expect this will change meaningfully through the rating horizon. However, the differential should stabilize, if not improve, given the removal of the HCR overhang and return to growth. HCP will receive approximately $1.7 billion as a dividend from QCP, which recently completed its debt issuance along with at least $700 million of additional proceeds from announced dispositions on a net basis. These proceeds, when combined with unrestricted cash, availability under the $2 billion revolving credit facility due 2018 and Fitch's estimate of pro forma retained cash flow from operations after dividends, cover uses by 1x assuming no access to external capital for the period July 1, 2016 through Dec. 31, 2018. Fitch considers uses to be debt maturities, development expenditures, maintenance capital expenditures and announced acquisitions. Fitch's projections assume HCP will return to the unsecured debt capital markets in 2017 to re-establish itself with investors and fund growth. HIGHER QUALITY PORTFOLIO BUT COST OF CAPITAL INFLUENCES COMPETITIVE POSITION HCP's portfolio will be of a higher quality going forward focusing on senior housing (54% of net operating income), life science (21%) and medical office buildings at 19%. Government reimbursement risk will decline with NOI backed by private-pay sources comprising approximately 95% of revenues. While improved, Fitch expects management will look to resolve or dispose of assets with thinner coverage (e.g. the Brookdale assets, certain debt investments in the United Kingdom) and to reduce tenant concentration. Fitch believes there is some risk that HCP will be incentivized to acquire weaker assets or ones with more execution risk (i.e. higher yielding) as it is pressured to demonstrate growth while at a competitive disadvantage to do so given its relative cost of capital. Cost of capital is a key differentiator between healthcare REITs given their acquisitiveness. Fitch expects HCP's cost of debt and equity capital will remain higher than its peers as a result of weaker metrics, lower ratings and the uncertainty surrounding operating and financial policies until the permanent management team is finalized. CONTINGENT LIQUIDITY TO REMAIN BELOW AVERAGE Unsecured bondholders will be supported by less contingent liquidity after the spin-off and asset sales as the HCR portfolio was one of the largest contributors of wholly-owned unencumbered net operating income. Fitch estimates that unencumbered assets (assuming a stressed 8% - 10% cap rates) will cover unsecured debt by 1.4x - 1.7x pro forma. This compares to 1.7x - 2.2x at Dec. 31, 2015 and from 2x - 2.4x before the rent reduction earlier in 2015. HCP's contingent liquidity will likely sustain below the 2.0x typically carried by investment grade REITs. Unencumbered assets are REITs' primary sources of contingent liquidity to raise proceeds via a sale or pledge against during a time of stress. Moreover, this metric may fluctuate depending on the extent to which HCP uses joint ventures. EVOLVING MANAGEMENT TEAM HCP will have new leadership at the CEO, CFO and CIO positions once a permanent CEO is hired. Fitch recognizes the potential for new leadership to change strategic goals and financial policies but expects the Board of Directors will have an active role given the continuity in financial policies during prior management changes. Fitch expects HCP's initial investments will receive more scrutiny than its peers' from debt and equity investors. Highly successful or unsuccessful outcomes may play an outsized role in shaping investors' perception of the company, its deal sourcing and underwriting expertise and, as a result, its access to capital. Fitch generally views the additions of J. Hutchens (CIO) and K. Hsiao (EVP - Senior Housing) favorably given their prior roles at operating companies (COO of Emeritus Corporation and CEO of Holidy Retirement, respectively) considering the higher degree of interconnectedness between healthcare REITs and their tenants than other REIT sectors. Prior leadership at HCP came from banking, commercial real estate services and life science / office backgrounds.



KEY ASSUMPTIONS Fitch's key assumptions within its rating case for the issuer include:

--Operating fundamentals remain favorable with low single digit growth in same-store net operating income despite supply in some senior housing markets; --The issuer completes the QCP spin-off and announced dispositions; --The issuer manages acquisition volumes and capital markets activity to sustain leverage between 6x-6.5x; --The issuer's access to debt and equity capital improves but remains below prior levels and peers. RATING SENSITIVITIES The following factors may result in positive momentum for the ratings and/or Outlook: --Fitch's expectation of leverage sustaining below 6x; --Fitch's expectation of HCP restoring its access to unsecured debt and equity capital to levels consistent with years prior to 2016 and consistent with higher rated peers. The following factors may result in negative momentum for the ratings and/or Outlook: --Fitch's expectation of leverage sustaining above 7x; --Fitch's expectation of unencumbered asset coverage of unsecured debt sustaining below 2x; --Fitch's expectation of HCP having weak absolute or weaker relative access to capital than its peers. FULL LIST OF RATING ACTIONS Fitch has removed from Rating Watch Negative and affirmed the following ratings: HCP, Inc. --Long-Term IDR at 'BBB'; --Unsecured bank credit facility at 'BBB'; --Unsecured term loans at 'BBB'; --Senior unsecured notes at 'BBB'. The Rating Outlook is Stable. Summary of Financial Statement Adjustments - Financial statement adjustments that depart materially from those contained in the published financial statements of the relevant rated entity or obligor are disclosed below: --Historical and projected recurring operating EBITDA is adjusted to add back non-cash stock based compensation and include operating income from discontinued operations. --Historical recurring operating EBITDA referenced in prior press releases calculated DFL income on a cash basis rather than GAAP increasing leverage by 0.2x to 0.3x. This adjustment became less relevant when HCP began to report the HCR DFL on a cash basis; --Fitch has adjusted the historical and projected net debt by assuming the issuer requires $25 million of cash for working capital purposes which is otherwise unavailable to repay debt. Additional information is available at 'www.fitchratings.com'. 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EFFINGHAM -- In the wake of Hurricane Matthew, the American Red Cross is recruiting new volunteers to assist with the response efforts. Thousands of Red Cross workers are currently in Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas and Virginia helping with the response efforts and the recovery will be a long process.

The American Red Cross Central and Southern Illinois Region will be hosting a HotShot training event for new volunteers on Friday in Effingham. Registration is required for the Hot Shot training. To register, contact Pam Tish at 217-428-7758, ext. 7478 or at Pam.Tish@redcross.org.

HotShot is a one-day training that will provide new volunteers with the skills needed to be a part of the Hurricane Matthew response. Upon completion of the HotShot training, new volunteers will be eligible to deploy to help with the Hurricane Matthew response.

HotShot attendees will complete two online courses that will introduce information pertaining to disaster services and care of those who have experienced a natural disaster. The first online course is the Disaster Cycle Services: An Overview, which discusses how disaster services helps individuals, families and communities prepare for disasters, as well as help them to respond to and recover from disasters.

The second online course is Mass Care: An Overview and it will educate new volunteers on the multiple services that are provided to those who have been affected by disaster.

At the training, new volunteers will complete Shelter Fundamentals, which introduces the guidelines and procedures that are necessary for setting up, running and closing a shelter during a disaster. Hot Shot attendees will also complete Psychological First Aid, which will provide insight necessary to understanding the factors that affect stress responses in disaster relief workers and the people they serve.

Anyone interested in becoming a Red Cross Volunteer, now is the timethe need is great. To learn more about Red Cross volunteer opportunities, or to register for the HotShot training, contact Pam Tish at 217-428-7758, ext. 7478 or at Pam.Tish@redcross.org.
Microsoft has been showing off its HoloLens mixed-reality headset for almost two years, but if you want to get your hands on a HoloLens you currently need to spend $3,000 for a Development Edition device.

The companys virtual reality/mixed-reality strategy isnt just limited to HoloLens though. In June Microsoft announced that it was opening up Windows Holographic software so that it could run on third-party VR headsets. And this week the company announced that a group of PC makers were building Windows-ready VR headsets that would sell for as little as $299.

We didnt get a lot of details about those headsets but we will soon. Microsofts Alex Kipman tells gaming blog Polygon that the company will hold an event in December to provide more information about the devices.

Acer, Asus, Dell, Lenovo, and HP have all committed to launching headsets. Specs will vary from device to device: while the cheapest will be $299, there will likely be some higher-priced options.

But overall, the goal is to offer VR hardware thats more powerful than what youd get with a phone-based system like Googles Cardboard or Daydream platform, but less expensive than a high-end system like an Oculus Rift or HTC Vive.

In other words, these headsets are kind of like a PC-compatible version Sonys PlayStation VR.

We already knew that the headsets would include sensors for six degrees of freedom, meaning theyd be able to track your location in a room movements through space without the need for external cameras or other sensors placed in a room. This means that in addition to adjusting the imagery based on the direction youre looking in, the headsets know when youre moving forward, backward, left, right, or up or down.

Polygon reports that the headsets will also have a high field of view, but theres no word on the screen resolution or exactly how many degrees of visibility youll get from the headsets.

Like the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive, the new headsets are designed to be connected to a PC via wires. So while the Hololens is a computer, these new devices are accessories.

But Kipman says you dont need a super-speedy computer to use the headsets: a $500 PC should be able to provide a decent experience, which brings the total cost of a headset + PC to about $800.

What remains unclear is what kind of experience you should expect from an $800 system. Odds are that there will some games or VR apps that require higher-performance graphics cards or headsets much as some bleeding edge video games require an expensive gaming PC to run smoothly.

Still, people have gotten used to the idea that PCs come in wide variety of prices/performance levels, and its possible that the same thing will be true of VR accessories like these upcoming headsets. Just dont expect a $299 HP model paired with a cheap desktop to offer all the features youd get from a $2000 PC + Vive setup.

via Neowin
Sonys PlayStation Vue service allows customers to watch live and on-demand TV programming over the internet. When it first launched, PS Vue required PlayStation Hardware. Then it expanded to additional hardware including Amazon Fire TV, Roku, and Chromecast devices as well as Android an iOS apps.

Now PlayStation Vue is also available for Android TV devices like the Xiaomi Mi Box and NVIDIA Shield. And soon youll be able to use the service on a PC or Mac through a web browser.

While it doesnt look like Sony has any plans to launch native PC or Mac apps, the web app will have a few features to make the service a bit more PC-friendly, including a mini player option that lets you shrink the TV window to a corner of the web browser allowing you to watch shows while you surf the web.

PlayStation Vue service is available across the United States, with plans starting at $30 per month for a package of more than 55 channels in some markets. Those same plans cost $10 more in areas where Sony has deals with local broadcast stations, allowing it to carry the major network channels.
Here's where I think you can help your niece.

Help her practice saying, "No." And then help her understand she doesn't "owe" her parents anything for doing what parents are supposed to do. They don't get credit for doing their job!

If they were low income working minimum wage jobs I could see a case being made for her to "help" the household. But she's doing what you guys did and then realized was wrong.

I would not talk to her parents because that has only ending -- BAD!

You be her refuge for financial sanity. And if she caves to give them money help her realize that it's always a gift and if she gets it back fine.

Can she come live with you and go to college?

Sounds like she needs better influences.
AVO Training Showcases Cable U at Open House

The new Cable U facility offers training in three key areas of the "future proofing" process for new and aged power cables: cable splicing and terminating, cable fault location and tracing, and cable testing and diagnostics.

The Dallas-based AVO Training Institute, a Megger subsidiary, held an open house on Oct. 28 at its training facility and offices -- shared with Megger -- to introduce customers and safety trade media representatives to the new Cable U facility, which is located at the site and offers training in three key areas of the "future proofing" process for new and aged power cables: cable splicing and terminating, cable fault location and tracing, and cable testing and diagnostics. Officials at the Dallas company said it's a one-of-a-kind cable maintenance training field that cost more than $500,000 to create.

AVO trainers and other staffers provided a walk-through of Cable U, which welcomed its first classes this fall, and the facility. They explained that cables in many industrial locations are not well mapped by their owners and are sometimes prone to failure because of faulty initial installation, making it imperative for those employers to have technicians on staff or contractors who can safely locate, assess, and repair power cables.

A key market in need of this training and certification is the wind energy sector, AVO officials said, explaining that some wind turbine owners employed inadequately trained installation crews and now realize they could face enormous financial losses if their power cables fail.

The company also is offering National Electrical Code 2017 multi-day training courses.
Top Features of a Solid Retail POS System On-premise vs Cloud

Editors note: This article comes to us from Ace POS, a Canadian based point of sale specialist.



New start-ups and small businesses alike need a Point of Sale system thats practical and wont break the bank. The best POS systems should do much more than just accept payments and process sales. Good point of sale systems designed for retail should include time-saving features such as inventory management, marketing tools, customer tracking, EMV PIN pad integration and accounting management. But with hundreds of features possible, where does one start?

1) Advanced Import / Export Functions



While it seems obvious, its a fact that there are POS solutions that still exist without proper import / export functions. For any retailer considering a new Point of Sale software, this is a key feature as it determines how quickly you will be able to load your products into a new system and, even more importantly, whether you can retrieve your data should you wish to eventually switch systems. A solid POS will include the option to save import mapping as templates so that you can more easily import standardized spreadsheets such as new product lists from suppliers.

2) Taxation & Exemptions by Department, Products, Customers

Taxes are one of those necessary evils for any business owner. For a retailer, it is a business requirement that can be a headache if not properly managed. Make sure that your POS system includes the ability to manage single and multiple taxes, tax refunds and tax exemptions. With a top notch POS system taxes can be managed and customized by location, department, product or even by customer!

3) Built-In Management Control

Nowadays, data is one of the most important assets of a business. Besides minimizing the need to clean up unauthorized changes made by your staff, you need to be able to control how your employees use your point of sale system. This involves more than just restricting staff from certain areas of the software. You should have the ability to limit what each staff member or group can do within any given area of your system. Besides built-in security and user rights, POS software should include optional manager override on discounts which give stores the ability to offer both set promotions and controlled exceptions.

4) Maintenance & Support

There are nuances to every business that define success. Small business-owners dont have the time to make their business work with their POS. This is where support comes in. While it should be easy to operate and start selling with your POS from day one, a good software will be well supported by local specialists who understand your industry and can quickly customize your point of sale to meet the needs of your existing business.

5) Flexible Payment Integration

As credit and debit cards continue to grow in popularity, it is increasingly important for business owners to manage the cost of their monthly processing fees. Merchant services like card processing are an important added value as they offer better cashflow and minimize theft, but depending on the provider, processing fees can easily eat into profit margins. A good POS solution will integrate with many different processors thereby allowing you to shop around for the provider best suited for your business.

6) Return on Investment: Windows-based vs. Cloud

We hear about how affordable trendy cloud-based POS systems are nowadays but whats often overlooked is the fact that cloud solutions require ongoing licensing payments that add up over time, especially when compared to the return on investment of Windows-based solutions with one-time licensing fees.

While there are certain advantages to cloud POS systems such as easier multi-platform accessibility, these advantages cannot overcome the fact that if you compare them feature-by-feature, basic cloud plans still dont have the combination of versatility and robust features that come with established on-premise point of sale systems. In a quality installed solution, the basic version will include the features you need to get a new business off the ground or manage an existing store without unnecessary and often pricey add-ons.

As you can see from the graph below, with one-time licensing fees, a sample on-premise two-user system is a better value than most starter cloud editions, especially when you compare the ROI over several years. And this graph already includes the discounted annual cloud pricing. If you were to sign-up on a monthly basis, your cloud licensing costs would increase by an average 20%!

On-premise system ( in orange ) vs a Cloud POS system ( in blue )

For business owners looking for a dependable, hardworking Point of Sale system, an on-premise approach offers a comprehensive bundle of standard features for affordable one-time licensing fees.

By Karen Wong, Director, ACE POS Solutions



ACE POS Solutions Ltd. is a Canadian-based specialist for the ACE Retail Point of Sale system used by 10,000 stores worldwide since 1981. A workhorse of a POS system, the ACE Retail software was designed by an accountant to allow small business owners to take control of their business to deliver on the bottom line. Our fully integrated approach to point of sale means that were here to serve all of your business needs from accounting, inventory control and purchasing to EMV PIN pad integration.

Other original and exclusive POS content:
SPRINGFIELD -- Budding young writers can learn to unleash their inner animal when the Vachel Lindsay State Historic Site presents a workshop with noted poet Matt Rasmussen on Nov. 5.

The three-hour workshop  made possible with a grant from the Illinois Arts Council  is meant to help participants write poems that may be submitted for VOLTA, an innovative arts program sponsored by the Vachel Lindsay Association and the Springfield Youth Performance Group Foundation each spring.

Animals are the theme of the next VOLTA performance, so Rasmussen will offer writing prompts to help bring out the lion, eagle or platypus within.

The free class will examine poems, songs and stories about animals to help inspire participants. Students are not required to submit their poems for possible inclusion in the VOLTA program unless they so desire.

It is open to students ages 13-18. Space is limited. To register, email the Vachel Lindsay Association at vachellindsay@gmail.com. Include your full name, grade, school and hometown.

Rasmussen is the author of Black Aperture, which won the 2013 Walt Whitman Award and 2014 Minnesota Book Award for Poetry and was a finalist for the National Book Award. He also has received a Pushcart Prize and Holmes National Poetry Prize. A founding editor of the independent poetry press Birds, LLC, he lives in Robbinsdale, Minn.

The Vachel Lindsay Home State Historic Site, located at 603 South Fifth Street in Springfield, was built about 1850. Poet, author and artist Nicholas Vachel Lindsay was born there in 1879 and died there in 1931.

Operated by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, the home is now open by appointment only.
CHICAGO, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/  Today VTech announced its Ring & Learn Cash Register received an esteemed Platinum Award from the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio. The interactive cash register, which comes with a shopping basket and play food to encourage little ones with role-play fun, was recognized as one of the most innovative and engaging products of the year.

We are very excited that our Ring & Learn Cash Register has been acknowledged by the respected Oppenheim Toy Portfolio, said William To, President, VTech Electronics North America. This product is a wonderful example of how we develop engaging toys that enrich childrens development through play and discovery, and its an honor to see our efforts recognized with a Platinum Award.

Little shoppers will love filling their basket with healthy play food and pretending to buy it with this interactive Ring & Learn Cash Register. They can weigh the food, ring up the order and use the credit card to pay for the groceries. Each interaction is rewarded with a variety of playful phrases, fun sounds, songs and music. Children can press the light-up number buttons to introduce numbers, colors, food and hear healthy-eating phrases. For even more role-play fun, they can press the open button to pop open the cash register drawer.

Our toddler testers loved the Ring & Learn Cash Register and the shopping basket of play food that comes with it, said Stephanie Oppenheim, publisher of the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio. Its a great, age-appropriate prop for role-playing that helps children explore concepts of cause and effect as they press buttons and are rewarded with fun lights and sounds.

The Ring & Learn Cash Register is designed for ages 12-36 months and retails for $24.99. Additional information can be found at www.vtechkids.com/learning.

About VTech

VTech is a world leader in age-appropriate and developmental stage-based electronic learning products for children. As a pioneer in the learning toy category, VTech develops high-quality, innovative educational products that enrich childrens development and make learning fun. With a rich, almost 40 year history, VTech has not only established itself as a learning authority but also consistently remains at the forefront of innovation with multiple award-winning products. The company also has a broad range of award-winning infant and preschool products available in 24 different languages worldwide, with more than 100 new products introduced every year. VTech was awarded a prestigious 2015 Toy of The Year (TOTY) Award for its Go! Go! Smart Animals Zoo Explorers Playset. In order to further strengthen VTechs position as a learning authority, the companys Expert Panel, with esteemed experts in reading, language arts, science, math, and child development, consult on new product introductions.

VTech Electronics North America, LLC is based in Arlington Heights, Illinois. VTech Electronics Limited is headquartered in Hong Kong with distribution globally.

About the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio

Founded in 1989 by child development and toy experts, Joanne Oppenheim and her daughter Stephanie Oppenheim. The independent organization does not accept entry fees for reviewing products. Their awards are the benchmark of excellence with consumers, media and the toy industry. The Oppenheims are Contributors to NBCs TODAY Show. For more information, visit toyportfolio.com. read more

Other point of sale news:
Reuters

The U.S. dollar sank from a one-week high against a basket of major peers on Tuesday as the mood in financial markets brightened ahead of key Federal Reserve and Bank of England (BoE) meetings this week. The Fed is widely expected to raise its benchmark rate by 75 basis points (bps) on Wednesday, its fourth such increase in a row. Over in Britain, the BoE is also expected to raise rates by an outsized 75 bps on Thursday before slowing back down to hike by 50 bps in December.
And check out increasing investments in the fintech sector.

Singapore is home to 37 billionaires, making it the third country with the most billionaires in the Asia-Pacific region and sixth globally, reported AsiaOne citing Wealth-X and CNBC. Around 1.5% of the 2,473 billionaires worldwide live in the city-state. Check out this story here.

In the United States, the January Effect suggests that there will generally be a drop in price in December before stock prices increase during the month of January the following year. One possible explanation is that investors are selling off securities that had incurred a loss for the year in order to offset taxes on their gains and income. This is known as tax-loss harvesting.Will it be applicable to Singapore? Click here to find out.

The financial technology sector has been gaining traction now in Singapore, with investments pouring in at a rapid pace. Singapore has recognised the immense potential that fintechs hold. A number of initiatives have been launched in the country to give new companies an opportunity to make their ideas a reality. Click here to know more about the story.





More From Singapore Business Review


AFP file photo of an e-bike.



Two men have died following an accident involving a trailer and three power-assisted bicycles along West Coast Highway on Thursday (27 October) evening.



The 34-year-old male trailer driver was arrested for causing death by a negligent act, police said.

Police were alerted to the accident at 11.56pm on Thursday, while the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) dispatched two ambulances to the site of the accident at the junction of Pandan Crescent and West Coast Highway.

A 25-year-old man was pronounced dead at the scene. Two men aged 18 and 17 were conveyed to National University Hospital, where the former succumbed to his injuries.

The 17-year-old sustained minor injuries. All three casualties are male Chinese, said SCDF.

Police investigations are ongoing.
After a fair bit of time since the last Footage Feast, a glut of vert skating footage over the last week or two saw me delving through the prodigious output from Creature Skateboards/Skeleton Key overlord and Rumble in Ramona mastermind Darren Navarrette. The Vertical Vampire has been killing it for years, from the classic Etnies video High Five (back at a time when the vert side of their team was lumped into one short section) through to the various incarnations of Creature, the happy death of the term vert button and the current acceptance of all skateboarding disciplines. Enjoy a selection of his output below, from certified classics and well known big budget videos to more obscure VHS ripped gems

Creature Skateboards  I Was A Teenage Skateboarder

OG, lo-fi Creature business to kick things off. Chris Russell sums it up pretty well with his introduction, loads of backside airsflips into everything. If you ever wanted a solid lesson in backside airs you could do worse than this, but things get tech on the lip as well
Gal-Dem Zine catch up with Brixtons Baddests Daphne Greca to discuss the South London shops current Gyaldem sale, aimed at addressing the institutionalised gender inequality and embedded prejudices in late capitalism. Hit the image below to read the interview and make sure to check out the sale while it runs and the shop in general  its grass roots action like this which our scene needs to retain its hard fought identity

Flipping Youth and Brixton's Baddest present a night at Buster Mantis raising money to help fund Jamaica's first skatepark - taking place on Thursday 1st...

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Read our full Privacy Policy as well as Terms & Conditions.
VHS Mag presents a slice of downright steez with Yuma Takei, filmed mostly during recent travels to London and Melbourne. Powerfully stomped high speed skating is always a treat, as was the regular Stockwell destruction which occurred during his visit.

The Cirencester Skatepark Scratch and Skate Jam 2018, organised by Decimal Skateshop, can now be seen courtesy of James Harris' lens.

Power moves from Bromley here as Blast Skates welcomes Joe Howard to the team with two minutes of RWTB assisted DIY quarterpipe shredding.

Here are our favourite shots from the #CanonFirsts competition, including the two winners

Newsletter Terms & Conditions

Please enter your email so we can keep you updated with news, features and the latest offers. If you are not interested you can unsubscribe at any time. We will never sell your data and you'll only get messages from us and our partners whose products and services we think you'll enjoy.

Read our full Privacy Policy as well as Terms & Conditions.
Are you a small business owner who is looking for financing? If so, you may want to consider applying for a microloan. These types of loan funds can help new and existing businesses grow and thrive. In this article, well chat about the many different programs available to your business. Lets dive in!

What are Microloan Programs, and How Do They Work for Small Businesses?

A microloan program is designed to provide a small business with access to capital. These loans are typically smaller than traditional bank loans and have shorter repayment terms. In most cases, microloans are made through community-based lenders, such as credit unions or community development organizations.

To qualify for a microloan, new or existing businesses typically need to meet certain eligibility requirements, such as having a personal guarantee and being willing to provide collateral. Borrowers also need to have a good credit history and a strong business plan. Once approved, borrowers typically receive the loan amount in one lump sum and then begin making regular monthly payments.

READ MORE: How to Get a Business Loan with Bad Credit

Microloans can be used for a variety of purposes, such as start-up costs, inventory, equipment purchases, or working capital. These loans can be an important source of funding for businesses that may not qualify for traditional bank financing.

The Role of an Intermediary Lender in Microloans

Small businesses are the lifeblood of the American economy, but they often have a hard time accessing the capital they need to grow and thrive. Thats where intermediary lenders come in.

An intermediary lender is a financial institution that provides loans to businesses through the Small Business Administration (SBA) microloan program. SBA microloan program loans are typically for smaller amounts than what a bank would lend, and they often come with a personal guarantee from the borrower.

This means that if the borrower defaults on the loan, the intermediary lender is on the hook for the entire amount. However, these loans can be an important source of funding for small businesses, helping them to grow and create jobs. And thats good news for everyone.

10 of the Best Microloans for Small Businesses

The SBA Microloan Program is one of the most popular options for business owners. The program provides loans to for-profit small businesses and nonprofit organizations. The loans can be used to purchase real estate and for various other purposes. Here are 10 of the best microloans loan programs for small businesses:

1. SBA Microloan Program

The SBA microloan program offers loans for up to $50,000 and can be used for working capital, inventory, or the purchase of furniture, fixtures, and equipment. Intermediary lenders make the loans through the SBA microloan program and provide technical assistance and support services to borrowers.

2. Accion USA

This global nonprofit organization has offices in almost 30 cities all over the country and theyve provided over 50,000 loans of a combined $450+ million. However, they arent limited to microloans. They have regular loans available for up to $1 million.

3. Kiva

Kiva partners with nonprofit community-based lenders to expand access to capital for entrepreneurs around the world. More than 2.5 million people have raised over $1 billion on Kiva, with loans as low as $25. Kiva offers up to $15,000 at 0% interest, and repayment terms vary depending on the entrepreneurs location and business sector.

4. California Finance Lender Loans

These loans are for California-based businesses only and can be used for various purposes, including working capital, inventory, or the purchase of machinery and equipment.

5. Micro Angel

A Micro Angel is an individual who provides capital to a business in exchange for an equity stake in the company. Micro Angels typically invest between $5,000 and $25,000 in a company and often receive mentorship and guidance as well as a financial return on their investment.

6. LiftFund

LiftFund has been an integral part of the SBA microloan program since its inception, with over $210 million dollars lent to small businesses in 13 different states. They offer loans as small as $500 and up to $1 million dollars.

7. Grameen America

Grameen America provides low-interest loans to women in the U.S., starting at 15% with no extra fees added. Theyve issued more than $1 billion in microloans to over 100,000 women with low income.

8. Opportunity Fund

They are only available in California and Nevada, but they offer loans from $2,600 to $250,000 depending on the type of finance you require. Your loan must be repaid within one to five years with an easy repayment plan thats right for your needs.

9. CDC Small Business Finance

This company is proud to offer microloans ranging from $20,000 to $50,000. Their competitive interest rates start at 8% and go up to 10%, making them a great choice for small businesses in need of financing. Their loans are available in select counties in California.

10. Accompany Capital

Accompany Capital offers microloans to small business owners in New York City. The loans are available in amounts ranging from $500 to $50,000 and have an interest rate of only 3%.

How and when should you use a microloan program to finance your small business?

There are a number of ways to finance a business, but not all methods are created equal. One option that can be particularly helpful for some entrepreneurs is a microloan program. Microloans are small business loans that are typically used to fund startup businesses or businesses that are in the early stages of growth. While microloans can sometimes be difficult to obtain, they can be a great option for those who qualify.

One of the biggest advantages of using a microloan to finance your business is that they tend to have lower interest rates than traditional loans. This can save small business owners a significant amount of money over the life of the loan. Additionally, microloans can often be approved more quickly than traditional loans, which can be helpful if you need funding fast. Finally, because microloans are typically used to fund smaller businesses, the application process is often easier than it is for larger loans.

Of course, there are also some drawbacks to using microloans. One downside is that they usually have shorter repayment terms than traditional loans, which means youll need to be diligent about making your payments on time.

READ MORE:
Oct. 31-Nov. 4

Mid-Illinois Senior Services, Inc.

114 E. Jefferson, Sullivan, 217-728-8521

Monday  11:30 a.m., Peace Meal; 1 p.m., Halloween party.

Tuesday  8:30 a.m., coffee and donuts; 11:30 a.m. Peace Meal; 12:30 p.m., Bridge/Quilters.

Wednesday 10 a.m., Rules of the Road refresher course, Secretary of State presented by Ed Behovic; 10 a.m., Sewing Club; 11:30 a.m., Peace Meal; 1 p.m., Wii bowling.

Thursday Noon, Peace Meal Birthday Party; 12:30 p.m., hand & foot card game.

Friday  11:30 a.m. Peace Meal; 1 p.m., pool tourney; 2 p.m., Wheel of Fortune w/Leanna Stickels from Mason Point

Shelby County Senior Center

325 E. N. Ninth St., Shelbyville, 217-774-2251.

Monday  8:30 a.m., coffee; 11:30 a.m., Peace Meal.

Tuesday  7:30 a.m., exercise; 8:30 a.m., coffee/shuffleboard; 8:30 a.m., Quad County B/P; 11:30 a.m., Peace Meal.

Wednesday  8:30 a.m., coffee; 11:30 a.m., Peace Meal & Canasta; 1 p.m., Medicare assistance.

Thursday  7:30 a.m., exercise; 8:30 a.m., coffee/shuffleboard; 11:30 a.m., Peace Meal.

Friday  11:30 a.m., Peace Meal.

Call Margery, 217-774-5595, to make reservations.

Arcola Senior Center

107 W. Main, Arcola, 217-268-3442

Senior Center is open Monday-Friday from 8:30 a.m.-12 p.m. for anyone who wants to walk. For Meals on Wheels delivery, contact Arcola Health Care Center at 217-268-3022.

Wednesday  1-4:30 p.m., marbles.

Thursday  1-4 p.m., quilting

Life Center of Cumberland County

507 E. Main St., Toledo, 217-849-3965

Lunch, prepared by Peace meal staff, is served at noon each week day. Please RSVP at 217-849-3965 by 10:30 a.m.

Monday  8 a.m., coffee, Skip-Bo, jigsaw puzzles, visiting, and working on creating blankets for shelters and the needy; noon, Peace Meal.

Tuesday  8 a.m., coffee, Skip-Bo, jigsaw puzzles, visiting and working on creating blankets for shelters and the needy; noon, Peace Meal.

Wednesday 8 a.m., coffee, Skip-Bo, jigsaw puzzles, and visiting and working on creating blankets for shelters and the needy; noon, Peace Meal. Rides Mass Transit will take seniors to Effingham today. Call 866-389-7536 by noon Monday before the trip.

Thursday  8 a.m., coffee, Skip-Bo, jigsaw puzzles, and visiting and working on creating blankets for shelters and the needy; 10:30 a.m., Bingo; noon, Peace Meal.

Friday  8 a.m., coffee, Skip-Bo, jigsaw puzzles, and visiting and working on creating blankets for shelters and the needy; 11 a.m., November birthday party  drawing for two $10 checks; noon, Peace Meal.

Saturday  Shop Tuscola, then head to Arthur for the Amish Country Christmas Kickoff & Light Parade. This trip will start later in the day than normal. Call 866-389-0503 Monday before the trip.

Anyone who attends specially announced fund-raising events held by the Life Center will receive a free ticket to enter a drawing for a valuable collectors silver dollar. Drawing will be held at the next board meeting following such an event, which is at 5:30 p.m. on the third Tuesday of each month. The public is welcome to attend board meetings. Call 217-849-3965 for more information. To serve on the board, talk to one of the board members.

In addition, Joannie Roberts, senior information specialist, can help in filling out forms or applying for insurance, Medicare, Social Security, Medicaid, license-plate sticker discounts or supply other information. Call 217-849-3965 for information or appointment.

Peace Meal menu

Oct. 31-Nov. 4

All meals are served with wheat or whole wheat bread, margarine, and milk.

For additional information or reservations call 1-800-543-1770.

Monday  Sloppy Joe, German potato salad, green bean casserole, bun, Hawaiian salad.

Tuesday  Swedish Meatballs w/gravy, mashed potatoes, broccoli, whole grain wheat, fresh fruit.

Wednesday  Cheese tortellini alfredo w/ham, buttered peas, tomatoes and zucchini, whole grain wheat, pears.

Thursday  Fried chicken, mashed potatoes w/gravy, mixed vegetables, Texas toast, peaches.
Mats Karlsson Leads Final 14 After Day 4 of EPT13 Malta Main Event

October 28 2016 Frank van der Weck

Day 4 of the2016 PokerStars.com EPT Malta Main Event is on the books. Thirty players returned to Casino Portomaso; only 14 will return on Friday for Day 5. Mats Karlsson tops the leaderboard after winning multiple big pots off German superstar Ole Schemion during the final level of the day. With 2,033,000 in chips, he's in pole position for the 355,700 first prize, which will be handed out on Saturday.

Behind the Swede, Russian's Dmitry Yurasov (1,709,000) and PCA 2014 champion Dominik Panka (1,411,000) from Poland round out the top three. The top five also contains Belarusian Aliaksei Boika (1,1195,000) and Elie Saad (1,089,000) for Lebanon, making it an international affair. Start-of-the-day chipleader Tomas Macnamara sits in eight position with 943,000.

On his way to the chiplead, Karlsson clashed with Schemion on multiple occasions. In his first of several big confrontations with Schemion, Karlsson took down a big pot with ace-king where top two pair was good. After winning some more from the German, the two clashed for a fourth time near the end of the day. Karlsson bet ace-eight on a board that contained a king, a ten and an eight, and got a call from worse to win another pot.

Schemion, who entered the last level as chipleader, barely managed to survive the day. The German juggernaut has his work cut out for him, as he will return with just nine big blinds tomorrow.

The day started with several bust outs in quick succession. Walter Treccarichi was the first to go when he ran pocket tens into Karlsson's pocket queens. Dong Zhao also left the building after a hand with pocket tens; he couldn't crack Martin Nikolov's aces.

Ismael Bojang, Guillaume Valle and Usman Siddique busted before the end of the first level. Sarah Herzali did survive the first 90 minutes, but was left with only one big blind after losing ace-queen against Frederik Jensen's ace-king.

The last woman standing busted in 25th place just a few minutes into the second level of the day. The last hope for Maltese, Konrad Abela, followed her to the rail shortly after. Chi Zhang ended in 23rd place. He became the third man of the day to bust out of the tournament with pocket tens. Bastian Dohler had ace-queen and flopped a queen to send Zhang to the rail.

Davidi Kitai, one of the three former EPT champions left in the field, was the next one to bust. It was a brutal exit as Louis Cartarius rivered an ace with his ace-ten to beat Kitai's queens. Short-stacked Brian Altman busted a couple of hands later and Sergey Sergeev followed.

The action slowed down after that, as Armin Mette and Diaz were the only ones to bust in level 21. Meanwhile, PCA 2014 winner Panka fought himself back into contention for the title. He gained a lot of chips, while he was left with only four big blinds earlier in the day.

Panka became the last former EPT champion left in the field when Frederik Jensen busted in 17th place. The Dane's ace-seven fell short against Xixiang Luo's king-ten. Yury Gulyy had been a short stack since the bubble and saw his adventure come to an end in 16th place. Martin Nikolov was the last to leave the tournament on Day 4 and the fourth one to bust with pocket tens. Peter Ockenden had ace-queen and flopped an ace to send Nikolov to the rail.

The fourteen survivors will return tomorrow at 12 p.m. local time to play down to six players. The blinds will be 12,000/24,000 with an ante of 4,000. Follow all the action live on PokerNews.com throughout the day as we reach the final table of the EPT13 Malta Main Event.
AUSTIN, Texas  The commissioner of the states Department of Family and Protective Services has proposed giving $12,000 raises to each Child Protective Services caseworker, supervisor and administrator.

The raises are part of a plan Commissioner Hank Whitman submitted to lawmakers late Thursday. Whitman submitted the plan after a Texas Senate committee ordered him to provide a revised plan for caseworkers or law enforcement officers to visit thousands of youth reported as abused or neglected.

Committee Chairwoman Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, had given Whitman until the close of business Thursday to submit the new plan and demanded that higher pay be a key part of it, as most caseworkers are paid starting salaries as low as $34,000. Whitman said last week that he wanted to hire more than 800 investigators, caseworkers and staffers at a cost of $53 million.

Get the National Guard or the Texas Rangers or whoever out to each house to see these kids now, Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston, told Whitman.

Records show that as of Oct. 17, more than 15,000 children had not been seen by Child Protective Services investigators, as required, between 24 and 72 hours after an abuse report. More than 2,800 at-risk children have not yet been seen by CPS staff. After a Dallas newspaper reported that through early September half of the children referred to Harris Countys CPS investigators werent being seen on time, two legislative leaders called for action plans to improve face-to-face visitations. Whitman acknowledged that as of early last week, not much has changed.

Department consultant John Stephen testified that child abuse complaints have increased to about 240,000 a year, compared to fewer than 200,000 four years ago. Currently, there are 211 vacancies for caseworker positions.

I cant imagine why we would want to do anything more than go find these children tonight, Nelson said.
TOKYO  Senior officials from Japan, the United States and South Korea agreed Thursday to step up pressure on North Korea as they stick to their goal of persuading the communist state to abandon its nuclear weapons.

Their pledge comes just two days after U.S. National Intelligence Director James Clapper publicly called that goal a lost cause. He said the best hope is capping its capability instead.

The deputy foreign ministers who held talks in Tokyo made clear that North Korea now poses a new level of threat and requires broader international pressure and tougher sanctions.

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken, after meeting with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts, said their policy has not changed.

We will not accept North Korea as nuclear state, we will not accept North Koreas possession of nuclear weapons, period, Blinken said. We are focused on increasing the pressure on North Korea with one purpose: to bring it back to the table to negotiate in good faith. Denuclearization. That is the objective.

Getting North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons program has long been a headache in multilateral diplomacy with Pyongyang.

Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Shinsuke Sugiyama, who hosted Thursdays talks, cited North Koreas recent tests showing the countrys missile and nuclear capability had entered a new level of threat. We need to respond differently than in the past, he said.

Officials cited the sanctions and missile defense that have been already in place, but did not elaborate on their different approaches other than fresh sanctions pending at the United Nations and possible separate additional measures by the three countries.

Meanwhile, South Korea said Thursday it plans to restart talks with Japan on a military intelligence sharing agreement to better cope with threats from North Korea.

Information from Japans network of satellites and other intelligence-gathering systems would be critical in monitoring and preparing against North Koreas fast developing nuclear weapons and missile programs, South Koreas Defense Ministry said.

The United States, South Korea and Japan signed a joint intelligence-sharing pact in 2014, but under the framework Seoul and Tokyo only share intelligence about North Koreas nuclear and missile programs via Washington. A bilateral agreement between South Korea and Japan would enable a quicker transfer of information between the countries in urgent situations.

In Washington, State Department spokesman John Kirby welcomed the resumption of talks on a new pact.

We believe that this potential agreement would strengthen cooperation between our two closest allies in Northeast Asia, particularly in light of the threat posed by North Korea, Kirby said.

South Korea and Japan nearly signed a bilateral intelligence sharing pact in 2012, but Seoul backed off at the last minute following political outcry at home. Many South Koreans hold resentment over Japans brutal occupation of the Korean Peninsula before the end of World War II and express uneasiness about the countrys military role in the region.

___

Associated Press writers Tong-hyung Kim in Seoul, South Korea, and Matthew Pennington in Washington contributed to this report.

___

Follow Mari Yamaguchi at https://www.twitter.com/mariyamaguchi

Find her work also at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/mari-yamaguchi
To the general public, the phrase bankers hours, is something of a derogative term referring to somebody who starts work late and leaves early. For father and son team Ron and Alan Shettlesworth of Main Bank  Albuquerques last remaining local, independent bank  it means something completely different. Like most of the employees, the Shettlesworths arrive shortly after the sun rises and leave as it sets.

The family duo oversees a strong, growing commercial bank that focuses on local projects. For instance, it recently underwrote the development of Tiburon Estates, a Westside housing project by Rhett Ashley Homes that will bring 39 new, quality homes into the booming area west of the rinconada near Volcano Vista High School.

Local focus

Its projects like that, Alan said, that is at the heart of the business. Weve been offered plenty of deals out of state that we could have taken, said Alan, who was recently named bank president. But thats not what we do. Were a community bank committed to Albuquerque and New Mexico. We believe in this market.

And its something that local businessman appreciate, said Brett Ashelys Brett Waterman. Main Bank has done all the financing and they have been fabulous, he said. Absent Main Bank, this would have been a whole lot more challenging. Theyre great to work with. Theyre a true, homegrown, Albuquerque bank.

Alan donned the mantle of president from his dad, although Ron retains the titles of CEO and vice chairman of the board that is comprised primarily of New Mexicans. Ron helped form an investment group in 2005 that initially planned to start up a bank before eventually buying Interamerica Bank from an out-of-state group.

Simple plan for growth

That saved us two years, he said of buying an existing enterprise as opposed to starting one up. At the time of the purchase, Main Bank had less than $30 million assets and has now grown to about $120 million, Ron said. The growth was achieved through a simple and effective plan  even as the banking and real estate industries writhed under a collapse that plunged the country into a recession. Basically, Main Bank put their money into viable enterprises with income and growth potential, said Alan, who had served as the banks senior vice president and chief credit officer since the bank was purchased. Prior to returning to New Mexico, he had been working at a bank in the Dallas area.

That was a quite a change, Alan said, because he frequently worked deals upwards of $30 million and he was coming back home to work for a bank with that amount as its assets limit. But this was too good an opportunity to turn down, he said. And he came armed with the solid business practices that have served Main Bank well.

Lending the right way

Because of who we were competing against, we had to put together good, quality deals, he said. We had the money to lend, we just had to make sure we did it the right way. And as the economy shrunk, rather than following the lead of the rest of industry that tried to recover from a series of bad investments, Main Bank was able to slip through virtually unharmed as it was stuck with virtually no bad debt.

In 2010, we thought that created opportunities, Alan said of the flailing economy. But we also just continued doing what we were doing, looking for good, local investments. Being a smaller bank with local management and ownership gave the Main Bank the flexibility to act quickly on deals, he said.

Creative financing

One of our advantages was if we saw a deal we liked and made sense, we were willing to be creative in the financing, Alan said. Were willing to work with outside groups, like partnering with the New Mexico Finance Authority to make things happen. Sometimes we would have two or three other groups helping to get the deal done.

One of the deals Main Bank converted during this time frame was acquiring another bank, which helped boost its assets even more, Ron said. Again, it was the type of deal that made financial sense because it was helping to keep those assets local and available. That bank has continually supported the real estate industry, Alan said, be it acquisition, land development or actual home business construction.

Good mix of energy and experience

It was really made apparent that a lot of homebuilders couldnt keep going and things in the real estate industry were really piling up, he said. It made sense for us because you cant build homes if you have no more lots.  What also makes sense, Ron said, was finding the right time to transition Main Banks leadership to a new group of leaders, which was the basis for Alans recent bump up the corporate ladder.

For me, Im starting to think about retirement in the next two or three years, Ron said. We wanted to start gradually preparing for the future. Right now the bank officers and the board, we have two guys in their 60s, two in their 50s and two 40 or younger. Thats a good mix of energy and experience. So were setting the stage for the next generation.

In addition to his other duties, Alan oversaw development of the banks new home, which opened in April. The two story, 17,000-square-foot modern building with an open floor plan represents a roughly $6 million investment. The ground floor houses the bank while the second story is lease space. It sits on the grounds of the old Rowlands Nursery on Menaul near Louisiana.

Regardless of the new digs or the new leadership, the focus of Main Bank will remain the same, the Shettlesworths said. The market is starting to come around, Alan said. And homes are still affordable. The home building industry is doing better. And were well positioned.
Have a spooktacular time this Halloween at a number of events throughout Albuquerque. Here are a few of the events:

DRESS UP

If youre looking for a safe environment to trick-or-treat, then Zoo Boo is the place for the entire family.

Zoo Boo, which is celebrating its 28th year, will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29, at the ABQ BioPark Zoo, 903 10th SW. It will feature Halloween fun with games, haunted habitats, costumes and plenty of candy.

Eventgoers can trick-or-treat from dozens of sponsoring businesses and civic organizations throughout the zoo.

The event is included with regular admission. Up to four children in costume get in free with each paying adult.

General admission is $12.50 for ages 13 to 64, $5.50 for ages 65 and older, $4 for ages 3 to 12 and free for ages 2 and younger. Admission for New Mexico residents is $9 for ages 13 to 64, $4.50 for ages 65 and older, $4 for ages 3 to 12 and free for ages 2 and younger.

New Mexico BioPark Society members receive free admission for the adults and children on their pass. For more information, call 768-2000 or visit cabq.gov.

CARVE IT OUT

Check out the talents of BioPark divers from 2 to 3 p.m. Monday, Oct. 31 at the ABQ BioPark Aquarium, 2601 W. Central.

The divers, who are expert fish care providers, will carve jack-o-lanterns underwater. The divers will carve the pumpkins inside the shark tank.

Watch as the sea turtles snack on bits and curious fish swim through the carved areas of the pumpkins. The event is included with regular admission. For information, call 768-2000 or visit cabq.gov.

GLOWING FUN

Enjoy an incandescent celebration today at Boo!-lloon Mania at the Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum.

The family-friendly event will be held from 3 to 9 p.m. today. Admission is free. The event will feature a Jack-O-Lantern Glow and a special Balloon Glow on the Balloon Museum lawn.

Eventgoers also can carve their own pumpkins or decorate their own Boo!-luminaria. You can choose to bring them from home or make them at the museum. Glow sticks will be given to all participants in the glow activities. Candles are not allowed.

Pumpkin carving and luminaria decorating is open to all ages. There also will be an all-ages costume contest for humans and pets, as well as crafts, Halloween treats and more.

Head over to the Tim Anderson 4-D Theater and see and hear an action-oriented animated aerobatic film on a giant screen as well as feel the sensations that are being experienced by those on-screen, according to the event website.

In addition to the fun, the event also will help those in need. Donations of canned and nonperishable food items will be collected for the Roadrunner Food Bank, and donations of school supplies will be accepted by the Boys and Girls Club of Central New Mexico. For more information on this event, call 768-6020 or visit cabq.gov.

Light up the sky tonight with the release of glowing lanterns as part of the Albuquerque Jack-O-Lantern Fest at Sandia Speedway, 100 Speedway Park Blvd. SW. Gates open at 3 today.

Before the lantern release at sundown, the community can enjoy food, live music, a stage show, face painters, balloon artists and more. When the sun goes down, lanterns will take to the sky, creating a beautiful glow above eventgoers.

Latern passes are $50 for adults. The Lantern Pass includes a wristband to grant you entrance into the event, a lantern, a marker, a lighter, and a Smores kit.

Each adult needs to register with a Lantern Pass. Ages 4 to 12 need to register with a $7 kids pass, which is good for entrance to the event and a small gift. Ages 3 and younger get in free. For more information on the event and for tickets, visit thelanternfest.com.

GET SCARED

Jump out of your skin at local haunted houses, including the NM Slaughter House, 1909 Bellamah NE, across from Hotel Albuquerque, and Quarantine, at Expo New Mexico, 300 San Pedro NE. NM Slaughter House is recommended for ages 18 and older.

Enter the home of the demented couple, where you will meet the young female, Nina, the NM Slaughter House website reads. The couple believed her to be the perfect child and the only one thus far to be unharmed, having met the expectations of the couples rules, hear no evil, see no evil and speak no evil. Follow (Nina) throughout the secret passages that the children made in order to survive this terrifying house of slaughter.

Guests will walk between walls, climb steps, enter and exit through vents, closets and cabinets, as well as encounter booby traps that Leather Head installed, to eliminate their chance of escape, according to the website.

For hours of operation, tickets and warnings, call 764-2868 or visit nmslaughterhouse.com. Quarantine takes visitors through the Forrester Home for Girls, which is scheduled to reopen in honor of its founder.

However, rumors have plagued the homes history, and something evil with a craving for blood resides within its walls. Quarantine is a live performance horror show created by Blackout Theatre Company. It is open to ages 12 and older. For tickets and information, call 672-8648 or visit quarantineabq.com.
Justin Timberlake did it.

So did the spokesman for the New Mexico attorney general.

Timberlake posted a selfie of himself in a Tennessee voting booth on Instagram; AG spokesman James Hallinan posted his ballot  complete with his vote for Hillary Clinton  on his personal Twitter account. They and others would argue its a matter of transparency and pride in doing your civic duty.

And in fact 44 states allow photography in a polling place, while 32 allow you to share a photo of your ballot. Federal judges have struck down Election Day selfie bans in New Hampshire and Indiana, and rules have been changed in California and Rhode Island. New Mexico law prohibits voters from showing their marked paper ballot to any person in such a way as to reveal its contents, but there are no penalty provisions that would make a ban enforceable.

The American Civil Liberties Union of New Hampshire argues the issue goes to the core of democracy and The First Amendment needs to be guarded rigorously. These old laws cannot and should not be applied to the modern technology.

But old political intimidation could be.

Theres a sound reason behind the secret ballot, and it has nothing to do with not being proud of your vote  it has to do with ensuring your vote is yours and yours alone and that you are not influenced by any other individual or organization.

The Verified Voting Foundation, Electronic Privacy information Center and Common Cause point out the right to cast a secret ballot in a public election is a core value in the United States system of self-governance. Secrecy and privacy in elections guard against coercion and are essential to integrity in the electoral process.

Sure, you can argue persuasively that your ballot is yours to share. But it is not hard to imagine an employer  public or private  demanding to see a selfie of your completed ballot and then basing workplace decisions upon it. Or a college professor requiring it and then adjusting grades based on what it reveals. Or an abusive spouse demanding proof you voted the right way.

In fact, it is not hard to imagine anyone who could abuse their power using it to get you to vote their way instead of your way. Allowing one person to take selfies of a ballot means everyone can.

Even if they do so under duress.

The ACLU is right that modern technology has made social media a part of many aspects of our lives. But an organization based on protecting civil liberties should ensure it is not sacrificing a core one our democracy is based on in favor of one that provides fleeting satisfaction to a segment of the electorate.

This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.
SANTA FE  A sign hanging from the side of St. Anne Parish church not far from downtown Santa Fe reads Vote Catholic, Vote Pro-Life.

But the churchs pastor recently took that message one step further, blasting Planned Parenthood in a letter to parishioners that also appeared to urge them  without using her name  not to vote for Hillary Clinton because of her support for abortion.

Since the legalization of abortion in 1973, Planned Parenthood ended the lives of at least 6,803,782 babies, the Rev. Larry Brito wrote in the Oct. 19 letter, obtained by the Journal from a parishioner.

We have one candidate who has been endorsed by this evil organization and has proudly embraced their endorsement, he wrote.

Clinton supports abortion rights and has received the endorsement of Planned Parenthood, a national nonprofit that provides health care to women and also performs abortions.

Brito went on to write that candidates who are pro-abortion, or as they sheepishly call themselves, Pro-Choice,  should be disqualified from receiving the Catholic vote.

Internal Revenue Service code governing nonprofit organizations precludes nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) status from directly or indirectly endorsing or opposing candidates for federal office.

The IRS code does not allow nonprofit groups governed by the ban to participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distributing of statements), any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office.

Violation can put an organizations tax-exempt status at risk.

Critics of the so-called Johnson Amendment, which was adopted in the 1950s, say the provision infringes on the constitutional right of free speech.

Brito, who was installed at St. Anne Parish in July after having served in at least two other northern New Mexico parishes, did not return a phone message to the Journal on Thursday. A woman answering the phone at the parish later in the day referred questions to the Archdiocese of Santa Fe.

The Archdiocese provided a statement from the Most Rev. John C. Wester, Archbishop of Santa Fe, that said the church follows a United States Conference of Catholic Bishops document called Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship.

One of the fundamental points that is made in Faithful Citizenship is that the Churchs leaders are to avoid endorsing or opposing candidates or telling people how to vote,  Wester wrote. Rather, This is a decision to be made by each Catholic guided by a conscience formed by Catholic moral teaching. 

The archbishop went on to say that considerations may be nuanced and contextual, and require serious study.

It is our sacred duty as Catholics to form our consciences properly and to make decisions that take into account our religious and political beliefs, giving priority to the former. In any case, no one has the right to censure the conscience of another that has been formed with good will, prayer and Catholic teaching.

The Santa Fe New Mexican, which first reported the story Thursday, did speak with Brito, who said he didnt think he violated IRS rules because he didnt mention the name of any candidate in his letter.

Theres several candidates that are running for president, for example, who are pro-choice, and so I think theres several who are pro-life, so you know, thats up to the individual. Were not campaigning for one candidate over another, he told the New Mexican, adding, Do you think its right to be silent when something like the Holocaust is going on?

In his letter, Brito wrote, We as Catholic voters must stop supporting candidates who are Pro-Choice. We have to insist that any of our representatives (whether Democrat, Republican or Third Party) will be advocates for the unborn child and thus Pro-Life. I challenge you to take a look at the voting records of your national and local legislators on the issue of Life. Where do they stand?

Voting Pro-Life is not a vote against womens rights or against womens health care; it takes a vote in favor of human dignity. Please consider your vote as a spiritual adoption for saving an unborn child, Brito wrote in closing.

IRS rule debate

The 2016 national Republican Party platform calls for repeal of the Johnson Amendment. Donald Trump, the GOP candidate for president, criticized the amendment over the summer.

You are absolutely shunned if youre an evangelical if you want to talk religion; you lose your tax-exempt status, he was quoted as saying by several media outlets. Were going to have to get rid of that horrible Johnson Amendment and were going to let evangelicals, were going to let Christians and Jews and people of religion, talk without being afraid to talk.

Since 2008, a group called Alliance Defending Freedom has urged clergy to offer election sermons on Pulpit Freedom Sunday. No participating churches have been prosecuted by the IRS. The agency did revoke a churchs tax-exempt status in the 1990s after it took out a newspaper advertisement calling a vote for Bill Clinton a sin. In 2009, the IRS lost a lawsuit over a procedural issue after it investigated a church that endorsed former U.S. Rep. Michele Bachman, R-Minn.

Defenders of Planned Parenthood say the organization does a lot more than perform abortions, including providing breast, cervical and ovarian cancer screenings, infertility treatments and general health care for women.

Messages left with Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains were not returned Thursday. The Democratic Party of New Mexico also did not respond to a request for comment.
Copyright  2016 Albuquerque Journal

A pair of Albuquerque attorneys this week accused Bernalillo County Commission candidate Patricia Paiz of accepting donations that go well beyond the $2,500 limit allowed in local campaigns for each election cycle.

They have asked the Secretary of States Office to investigate about $20,000 in donations to Paiz from her father, Ronald Paiz Sr., and a series of companies hes affiliated with, according to a complaint filed by attorneys Ahmad Assed and Greg Payne.

Paiz, a Republican and retired police officer, is competing with Democrat Steven Michael Quezada for an open seat on the County Commission. The winner will succeed Democrat Art De La Cruz in a district that covers the South Valley and southwest mesa.

Paiz said Thursday that her campaign hasnt violated the limits. State officials, she said, advised her campaign that each person and each company is allowed to donate $2,500 during the primary election cycle and another $2,500 during the general-election campaign.

We will be looking into it and have an attorney look it over, Paiz said. We would never want to violate the law.

The companies that donated arent simply fronts for her dad, she said. They are their own entities, with other people involved in the ownership, she said.

He is not the only person in these entities, Paiz said. Its not coming from his personal checking account.

Payne, an attorney and former city councilor in Albuquerque, said he and Assed support Quezada but arent being paid by him. They simply believe the campaign limits should be enforced, he said.

It looks like we have an individual whos running for office and breaking the campaign finance laws of our state and breaking them badly, Payne said. These appear to be pretty egregious.

Campaign records show that Patricia Paiz accepted a $2,500 donation from Ronald and Bernadine Paiz in late March, a few months before the June primary election.

Also that month, she accepted donations from four limited liability companies  $1,500 from La Villa Belen and $2,500 each from Casa Robles, Dynasty on Central and La Villa Allegre, each of which has ties to a Ronald Paiz Sr., either as an organizer or registered agent.

As for the general election, Paiz accepted $2,500 each from four companies  Pueblo de Paiz, Casa Robles, Dynasty on Central and La Villa Alegre, all with some tie to Ronald Paiz Sr.  on the same day, July 25, according to state records and the complaint filed this week.
The U.S. Department of Energy wants to use nearly 2 acres of desert in southern New Mexico to temporarily store containers of radioactive waste coming from around the country while it works to reopen the governments only underground nuclear waste repository.

The agency is asking state regulators to approve construction of an aboveground storage area at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant where waste can be kept for up to a year before it is hauled deep underground and permanently stashed in vaults carved out of a thick salt formation.

Critics on Thursday called for the state to reject the proposal.

The plant has been closed since February 2014 when a radiation release contaminated parts of the facility. The closure has created a backlog of shipments from Los Alamos National Laboratory, Idaho National Laboratory and other government sites.

The release was caused by a chemical reaction inside an inappropriately packed drum shipped from Los Alamos. Investigators determined the incident could have been prevented and a slew of new policies and procedures followed as the government reached a multimillion-dollar settlement with New Mexico over damages.

Officials have said some operations at the repository are expected to resume by years end, but its unclear when shipments will be accepted again.

The Energy Department has detailed its plan for the aboveground storage area in a request to the state Environment Department. Public comment is due in early December, and some watchdog groups are lining up to fight the proposal.

Special casks designed to withstand the force of tornadoes and seismic events would be used to store packaged waste on an open concrete pad that would cover more than 2 acres.

Federal officials say the storage area would give the plant more flexibility to handle incoming waste if an event delayed it from being taken underground or if workers needed to do maintenance belowground.

It would also expand the repositorys storage capacity by more than 25 percent, officials say.

Despite assurances of the robustness of the concrete containers, critics of the plan said Thursday they are asking for the departments request to be withdrawn or rejected by state regulators.

If the proposal moves forward, watchdog Don Hancock said his group, Albuquerque-based Southwest Research and Information Center, will seek a public hearing.

Members of the Northern New Mexico Citizens Advisory Board, which monitors activities at the Los Alamos lab and makes recommendations to federal officials, discussed the proposal at a meeting Wednesday. Some board members had questions about the cost of the storage area and how soon it would be built, if approved.
About 60 Hillary Clinton supporters gathered Thursday afternoon for a town hall meeting with Anne Holton, the wife of Clintons vice presidential nominee, Tim Kaine.

The intimate setting at the Thomas Bell Community Center in the predominantly black neighborhood off University south of Gibson focused on education, kids and families. The hourlong meeting allowed a panel of local education and child welfare advocates and leaders to share the states strengths and struggles with Holton, who said she would take ideas back to Hillary.

The group discussed the states strengths and struggles regarding poverty, generational trauma, extreme testing in public schools, home visiting programs for new parents and child abuse.

The advocates and leaders all said the state needs more money to pay educators properly and fund child welfare programs adequately.

An audience member asked how best to get this increased funding in place.

When it comes to money, Democrats are your friends, Holton told the crowd.

So vote, she said, and vote early.

She said her experience as an attorney and juvenile court judge, and most recently as the secretary of education for Virginia, gives her a true understanding of the needs of such important efforts to care for children, their education and help their families succeed.

In her conversation with the panel, which included Ellen Bernstein, president of the Albuquerque Teachers Federation, Claudia Randolph, a social worker, Marisol Atkins, former deputy secretary for Children, Youth and Families, and Erica Gallegos, an early childhood education advocate, Holton advocated for a more reasonable approach to testing in classrooms, increased access to broadband internet service, and increasing early education and teacher pay.

After the event, Holton, who said she and Kaine have loved their vacations in New Mexico, participated in phone calling and canvassing.
Standing straight-on, arms crossed, a Pueblo man grimly stares at the viewer, appearing as a protective shield to women and children seated in a semi-circle behind him, chatting among themselves.

The image in this oil painting produced by Taos artist Ernest L. Blumenschein in 1922 was practically revolutionary  so much so that people on the East Coast assumed it depicted a Pueblo woman greeting a tourist, according to Sascha Scott, an associate professor of art history at Syracuse University. Its a mistake people on the East Coast would make, she said.

Maybe thats because a Native American man boldly confronting the viewer was not often found in scenes produced by white artists at the time and such an image didnt fit with the perceptions people far from the scene held of Native circumstances.

But the image did fit with Blumenscheins own activities at the time, when he was actively fighting for preservation of Pueblo culture against national assimilation efforts, she said. Its a provocative statement, she said, of the artists painting. It resonates with his belief that Pueblo people have a right to protect their culture and lands.

Thats the kind of thing Scott is going to discuss when she presents a talk, A Strange Mixture: The Art and Politics of Painting Pueblo Indians, sponsored by the School for Advanced Research on Thursday at the James A. Little Theater. She also wrote a recently published book of the same title.

Scott is no stranger to Santa Fe; in 2011, she was a summer scholar at SAR, where she took advantage of that centers extensive collection of Native American art to do research. During that time, she gave a talk about Native artists representations of their culture, so this time she will focus on works produced by Anglo artists, she said in a telephone interview between classes at Syracuse.

Most of the artists she is looking at produced art between the two World Wars, especially those in Taos, such as Blumenschein and John Sloan, a practitioner in the Ashcan School of gritty, urban realism who generally is studied more for his New York scenes, but who spent 30 summers in New Mexico and produced many works rooted there, she said.

Among Sloans paintings were many scenes of Pueblo ceremonial dances, with the depictions changing as he began to understand more about the culture. The first year, (he painted) uncomfortably close images of the dancers, she said.

But as he began to understand that such graphic depictions of religious rites were not appropriate for the eyes of outsiders, Scott said, Sloan increased the distance in his scenes, until they communicated the rhythm and beauty of the ceremonies without revealing details.

Overall, the strange mix that emerges in the art at the time is the desire to portray Pueblo culture as beautiful and worth preserving, while also sometimes romanticizing that culture and trying to freeze it in time. Anglo patrons decided what to preserve  what got saved and what wasnt authentic, Scott said. They acknowledged Pueblo people as part of the present, but also created the idea of what the present should look like.

After all, she noted, art buyers were more likely to buy portraits of Native Americans in traditional garb, not in suits or jeans.

This tension isnt news to Native Americans, who have fought to present their own views of their culture. That was reflected as the Institute of American Indian Arts was founded in the 1960s with a cross-cultural and modern approach to the arts, freely adapting current trends in style and mediums to tell their stories.

Also, over the years, participants in the Santa Fe Indian Market have chafed against boundaries of tradition imposed on what works were acceptable, causing the market to increasingly allow more innovative works to be included.

Also, Native cinema is expanding with stories being told from inside tribal communities rather by commentators looking in from the outside.

The period examined by Scott also was a time when Pueblo communities became tourist attractions. When World War I shook the globe, people in the United States looking for exotic adventure were urged to go to the Southwest, where they could find Native people living in communities and homes that have endured for centuries, Scott said.

Art shifted from showing Indians in battle with whites to scenes of peaceful practices within their own communities. Some of the works, such as scenes E. Irving Couse created for railroad advertisements, were considerably romanticized, she noted.

So while such art celebrated the culture and pushed for its preservation, it also tended to objectify it and attempted to seal it in amber.

In this fraught historical context, these pictures are stranger and more ambivalent than such narratives suggest and have the ability to surprise, frustrate and unsetttle, Scott summarized, in a news release previewing her talk.
SPRINGFIELD -- With a little more than a week to go until Election Day, more than 6 percent of Illinois record 8 million active registered voters have already cast their ballots, according to the Illinois State Board of Elections.

As of Thursday morning, 485,410 Illinoisans had voted in the Nov. 8 election either by mail, in person or using grace period registration, which allows people to register and cast their ballots at the same time.

In the 2014 general election, about 6.6 percent of registered voters cast their ballots early, accounting for 13 percent of the overall turnout of nearly 3.7 million. In 2012, the last presidential election year, nearly 16 percent of active registered voters voted before Election Day, representing 22 percent of the nearly 5.3 million ballots cast.

Jim Tenuto, a spokesman for the elections board, said early voting has become increasingly popular as the state has expanded opportunities for people to cast ballots ahead of time.

Voters could begin casting ballots Sept. 29 by mail and at the offices of local election authorities. More early voting locations opened across the state Monday and will remain open daily through Nov. 7.

Given the contentious presidential race and the fact that this is the first general election in which residents of Illinois more populated counties will be able to register at their polling places on Election Day, its hard to predict what the overall turnout will be, Tenuto said.

It just seems like with all the registrations going up that hopefully that translates to a big turnout, he said.

The previous state record for active registered voters was a little less than 7.8 million in 2008, the year then-U.S. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois won the presidency. Overall turnout that year was nearly 72 percent.

So far this year, Rock Island County is among the top five jurisdictions for early voting, with 10.6 percent of the countys 98,732 active registered voters having already cast ballots.

The northwestern Illinois county is also one of the areas from which the Illinois attorney generals office has heard complaints about voters not receiving mail-in ballots after sending in applications they received from third parties, spokeswoman Eileen Boyce said.

Advocacy groups, political parties and others often distribute applications for mail-in ballots, which is legal, but voters who send in the applications should make sure theyve been received by their local election authority, the attorney generals office said Thursday in an alert.

Those wishing to vote by mail must fill out an application, which their local election authority must receive by Nov. 3, the attorney generals office said. Once voters receive their ballots, they must fill out, sign and postmark them by Nov. 8. They can also be hand-delivered to the local election authority by 7 p.m. on Election Day.

The attorney generals office and the state elections board encourage those who have requested or submitted a mail-in ballot to follow up with their local election authority to make sure theyve been received. Contact information can be found at elections.il.gov.

Those whove applied and havent received a ballot or received one but havent sent it in are allowed to vote in person, either early or on Election Day.

Aside from Rock Island County, early voting rates are higher than the statewide average in several downstate jurisdictions.

The early voting rate so far is 8.1 percent in Coles County, 7.5 percent in Jackson County and 7.3 percent in Macon County.
Four years ago, Democrat Stephanie Garcia Richard grabbed what had been a longtime Republican state House of Representatives seat in a district based around Los Alamos.

In 2016, its Los Alamos County Clerk Sharon Stover  also a former county councilor  whos trying to put the swing seat back in GOP hands.

The race is considered among those crucial for deciding control of the House, where Republicans currently hold a slim 37-to-33 advantage, and that translates to a lot of money being sent the candidates way.

Garcia Richard had raised $135,000 for the campaign through Oct. 11, when the last reports were filed. Stover has raised a still-substantial $85,000.

The candidates have also gotten help in other ways. The state Republican Party has attacked Garcia Richard for voting against a bill that would have made it easier for people with subject-matter expertise to teach in public schools.

And a Democratic super-PAC, Patriot Majority New Mexico, has put out mailers hitting Stover for how she, as county clerk, initially declined a marriage license application from a same-sex couple as the issue played out in courts around the state in the months before the New Mexico Supreme Court ruled that gay marriage was legal in December 2013.

Garcia Richard, curriculum coordinator for Pojoaque Valley schools, has broken ranks with her Democratic House colleagues in a few areas, notably when she voted with Republicans to repeal drivers licenses for undocumented immigrants.

The district I represent is where true democracy happens, she said in an interview. I dont have a cushion; I dont have a margin to hide behind. I have to be representative, I have to be as truly representative as I can be to the people I serve  .

I truly believe that these swing seats represent true electoral politics, true representative democracy. This is where you cant vote with interests.

Stover emphasizes her public service in Los Alamos, which, besides her elected roles as county clerk and a Los Alamos County councilor, includes working with community groups like Leadership Los Alamos, along with her roots in northern New Mexico as a self-described coyote  half-Hispanic, half-Anglo  whose parents ran the popular La Mesita restaurant in Pojoaque.

Ive been invested in this community for 33 years; Ive built programs, she said.  I think I have a track record where I bring factions or issues to closure. Stover notes that she was in County Council leadership positions when two huge wildfires burned into or near Los Alamos. So I know what it is to serve during a crisis, she said.

House District 43 encompasses Los Alamos but, with about 25 percent of the precincts scattered among parts of Sandoval, Santa Fe and Rio Arriba counties.

It was considered a Republican stronghold during the long tenure of Rep. Jennette Wallace, who died in 2011. Garcia, whod lost a close race to Wallace in 2010, narrowly beat James W. Hall, appointed to succeed Wallace by Gov. Susana Martinez, in 2012, and followed up with an easy win  57 percent to 43 percent  in 2014 against Republican County Council chair Geoff Rodgers.

The districts voter registration now trends Democratic, with 42 percent of voters registered as Democrats and 33 percent Republican, but with 25 percent either independent or registered with other parties.

Stover downplays the idea of a partisan battlefield. For me, it doesnt come up at all, she said. Ive always believed its what that person stands for, what they are going to do, what theyve done in their community. Conversations with the two candidates reveal splits between them:

Stover criticizes Garcia Richard for voting along party lines for Senate Bill 10 in the recent special legislative session to take $25 million from schools, specifically from savings accounts used to cover essential services. The bill, which didnt become part of the enacted budget solvency plan, would have had a huge impact on Los Alamos schools and other school districts, Stover said.

Garcia Richard responds that Stovers critique is a perfect example of expertise versus non-expertise. She said school district superintendents themselves, expecting to take a hit as the Legislature considered ways to balance the stressed state budget, proposed taking money from cash balances as an alternative to above the line operational funding. The superintendents were saying we understand that we need to take our fair share of hits, we do not want it to impact our ability to keep our doors open, our ability to keep our lights on, said Garcia Richard.

Garcia Richard and campaign manager Tarin Nix said they asked Patriotic Majority, the pro-Democratic super PAC that has sent out mailers against Stover on the same-sex marriage issue, to stay out of the race. But Garcia Richards said she is friends with the lesbian couple that tried to get a marriage license in Los Alamos in 2013 and that the issue is one thing that really sets me apart from my opponent.

During the tumultuous months of legal wrangling before the Supreme Court settled the legality of gay marriage in New Mexico, the couple applied to Stovers county clerks office for a marriage license. Stover rejected the application on the grounds that the existing state law called for a bride and groom on the application. The couple sued and a district court judge ordered Stover to either grant the license or appear in court to say why not.

Stover noted then in a statement that she had joined in with other county clerks with the New Mexico Association of Counties to seek guidance from the Supreme Court on the issue and that piecemeal litigation across New Mexico is not good governance. After a hearing, the district judge stuck with the order that Stover issue the license to the lesbian couple, and Stover did so.

This week, Stover noted that Bernalillo County Clerk Maggie Toulouse Oliver  now the Democratic candidate for secretary of state  also was sued after refusing to issue a same-sex marriage license, and county clerks as a group intervened in that case and filed a petition asking the Supreme Court for clarification.

Our duty as county clerks is to uphold the law, not interpret the law or resolve legal ambiguities, Stover said in email. There was a tremendous amount of legal uncertainty surrounding the issue and we asked the Supreme Court to establish one standard for all of New Mexico rather than having a patchwork of up to 33 different interpretations or approaches.

As I said back in 2013, I respect and value the rights of each person to be treated equally and fairly as an individual as our Constitution states, Stover added. I have friends who have been able to marry their partner and are now enjoying happy lives with the person they love.

Stover attacks Garcia Richard for her vote in the regular legislative session this year against House Bill 145, of which the Republican Party has also made an issue. The bill would have allowed local school boards to contract up to half-time with adjunct instructors for grades seven through 12. The adjuncts would be required to have a bachelors degree and three years experience in the subject area, pass a state teacher assessment in the subject matter and complete a state-approved pedagogy course of unspecified duration.

Stover said the bill, which passed the House and stalled in the Senate, would have been particularly helpful in Los Alamos and could help plug hundreds of teacher vacancies across the state with experts in various subject areas. Instead of substitute teachers, you could use the brain power of our national laboratories, she said.  We need to be serving our kids and this is one tool to serve them.

Garcia Richard said the state already has an alternative teacher certification program with teacher-training requirements. This would be anyone with a bachelors degree, after a week of 40 hours of whatever boot-camp training, whatever that is, putting them in a classroom to handle classroom management, she said of the bill.

The one thing I have fought the hardest against is lowering of standards for kids, especially, Garcia Richard said. This has nothing to do with teachers, this is lowering standards for kids, and every shred of evidence Ive seen on unqualified teachers results in lower student achievement.

Stover said she wants to be in the Legislature to continue her public service work. When I started this campaign, I knew living here so long and knowing so many people, at the end of the day, I wanted to walk into our grocery stores and restaurants, and look people in the eye and be proud of the work that Ive done, she said.  New Mexico is at the bottom of so many of those lists, and I think I have the skills and the commitment and the dedication to do something about that.

Garcia Richard said she has been an independent voice for District 43. The reason I stand apart in this is my expertise, she said. I first ran as a classroom teacher to bring the teacher voice to the Legislature and to educational policy. And so I have a lot of in-the-trenches, on-the-ground experience with how educational policy impacts the classroom.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  Yemens Shiite rebels and their allies fired a ballistic missile deep into Saudi Arabia, an overnight strike that they said on Friday had targeted an international airport while the kingdom claimed that it flew toward the holy Muslim city of Mecca.

Saudi Arabia said the missile was intercepted and destroyed 65 kilometers (40 miles) from Mecca, which is home to the cube-shaped Kaaba that the worlds Muslims pray toward five times a day.

Angry Saudis soon denounced the missile fire online with hashtags questioning the faith of Yemens Shiite rebels known as Houthis, as other Sunni Arab leaders in the Gulf linked the attack to Shiite power Iran.

Invoking Mecca also invigorated support for Saudi Arabia as it leads the stalemated war in the Arab worlds poorest country, as well as turned attention away from those starving under a kingdom-led blockade and the civilians killed in its airstrikes.

The Saudi military said the missile, fired Thursday night from Yemens northwestern Saada province, which borders the kingdom, caused no damage. The Saudi military has a supply of U.S.-made, surface-to-air Patriot missile batteries it previously has fired at Houthi-launched missiles.

The kingdoms military said in a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency that it immediately targeted the area where the missile was launched in airstrikes.

Washington condemned the attack and called for a cease-fire that would enable all sides in the Yemen conflict to work toward concluding a comprehensive political agreement that ends the war.

These types of attacks are unacceptable, said U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner. There is no military solution to this conflict and (we) urge all sides to exercise restraint and immediately and publicly agree to an unconditional cessation of hostilities.

The Houthis and their allies, including forces loyal to former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, have a stockpile of Soviet-era Scud missiles and locally designed variants. A Houthi ballistic missile fired earlier this month targeted Taif, home to Saudi Arabias King Fahd Air Base, which also is near Mecca.

What the missile fired Thursday night targeted, however, quickly became a controversy.

The Houthi-controlled satellite news channel Al-Masirah said the Yemeni rebels had fired a Volcano-1 variant missile at Jiddahs King Abdulaziz International Airport, without mentioning Mecca. That airport is 75 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Mecca.

The Houthi-controlled SABA news agency said the missile directly hit the airport and caused massive destruction, though there were no delays or diversions affecting the airport Friday.

The Saudi military stressed the missile was fired toward Mecca, without elaborating  the protection of the holy city is a key pillar of the Saudi royal familys prestige and the countrys national identity.

Gulf Arab countries allied with Saudi Arabia immediately began condemning the attack, suggesting the Houthis intentionally targeted the Islamic worlds holiest site. Many also immediately linked the attack to Iran, further inflaming regional sectarianism.

The Iranian regime supports a terrorist group that launched its rockets on Mecca, Emirati Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nayhan wrote on Twitter. Is this regime Islamic as it claims?

While analysts suggest Tehran doesnt have direct control over the Houthis, the U.S. Navy says it is has intercepted Iranian arms heading to the rebels.

In Iran, Irans Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi dismissed the claims that the Houthis targeted Mecca as ridiculous.

We advise officials of the (United Arab) Emirates and Saudi Arabia not to use Islamic holy sites for their mean political intentions and not to resort to this sort of hypocritical, rift-making and dangerous hyperbole, Ghasemi was quoted on Friday as saying by Irans semi-official ISNA news agency.

Yemen, on the southern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, has been in the midst of a civil war since September 2014 when the Houthis swept into the capital of Sanaa and overthrew the countrys internationally recognized government. In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition of Arab countries began a military campaign against the Houthi forces, saying its mission served in part as a counterbalance to Irans influence following its nuclear deal with world powers.

The Saudi-led campaign initially had the logistical and intelligence support of the U.S., but mounting civilian casualties from its airstrikes led to America pulling back, especially after a Saudi strike earlier this month on a funeral in Sanaa killed some 140 people and wounded over 600.

The U.S. also fired Tomahawk missiles at mobile Houthi radar sites after reporting its warships came under fire in the Red Sea near the crucial Bab el-Mandeb strait. In recent days, two commercial ships reportedly have come under fire in the same area.

United Nations efforts to strike a peace deal to end the conflict have been slow. The most recent plan apparently sidelines President Abed-Rabbo Mansour Hadi of Yemens internationally recognized government. Saudi Arabia launched its coalition campaign to restore Hadis rule, so thats likely a deal breaker for the Sunni-ruled kingdom.

In the meantime, Yemen stands on the brink of famine. More than 10,000 people have been killed or wounded and 3 million of the countrys 26 million people have been driven from their homes by the fighting.

___

Associated Press writers Maggie Michael in Cairo, Matthew Lee in Washington and Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.

___

Follow Jon Gambrell on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jongambrellap . His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/jon-gambrell .
A 4-year-old girl named Isabella was sitting in her car seat crying for half an hour behind the Bernalillo KOA campground office Friday morning before a camper found her and called police.

Now, a woman accused of stealing the car Isabella was in and abandoning her at the campground is facing child abuse charges.

The incident began in Albuquerque near Zuni and San Pedro SE, to which police were called just after 6 a.m.

Isabellas father, Joe

Bermudez, told officers that he and his wife, Sarah Schultz, were driving in southeast Albuquerque earlier Friday morning when they saw a woman, later identified as 26-year-old Brittany Castro, and offered to give her a ride to Interstate 25 and Paseo del Norte.

After Castro got in the car, the group went to a property on Cochiti SE to meet a man who had given Schultz a gate code for the property. When she and Bermudez got out of the car to unlock the gate, Castro drove away with Isabella in the back seat, according to Bermudezs statement to police.

Officers launched a massive search for the girl and were in the process of putting out an Amber Alert when she was found.

A camper at the Bernalillo KOA found her around 7:15 a.m. after shed been heard crying for half an hour.

(Isabella) was left alone and in a car seat in an isolated section of the property.  behind the front office building next to propane tanks, an officer wrote in the criminal complaint filed against Castro.

A Bernalillo police officer found the stolen car, a Ford Fiesta, near downtown Bernalillo around 8:30 a.m. Castro was inside a nearby home, according to investigators.

Castro gave police a slightly different story. She said she met Bermudez and Schultz because she wanted to buy a cigarette from them, and they offered her a ride.

Castro said the group got into a fight when they went to a nearby business, and she claimed that both Schultz and Bermudez punched her. She took off in their car, then freaked out because she said she didnt know Isabella was in the car. So she left her at the KOA.

Castro was charged with child abuse, child abandonment, unlawful taking of a motor vehicle and false imprisonment.

Neither Bermudez nor Schultz is facing charges in connection with the incident.
PHILADELPHIA  Six months into Hillary Clintons presidential campaign, she met with a group of Black Lives Matter activists in Washington to make her case and seek their support.

DeRay Mckesson left disappointed, feeling Clinton lacked a grasp of the issues he had spent the previous year protesting in cities like Ferguson, Missouri, and Baltimore, including police brutality and income inequality. He came out of the October 2015 meeting unwilling to support her publicly.

On Wednesday, though, The Washington Post published an op-ed by Mckesson announcing his plans to vote for her after meeting again with her last week in Cleveland. He said he heard a candidate well-versed in the things that matter to him.

There was no platform the first time, the 31-year-old Mckesson said in a telephone interview. There is a platform now. I reflected on the things Ive heard her say, commit to and seen in writing, and thats how I came to my decision.

A growing number of black millennials who were initially skeptical of Clinton  questioning her commitment to end mass incarceration, confront racial bias in policing and repudiate her husbands tough policies on welfare and crime during the 1990s  now support her.

Some do so enthusiastically, others pragmatically, because they find Donald Trump so repugnant with his talk of violence in inner cities and the need for law and order.

But other activists are still not convinced that Clinton will address their priorities and are withholding their votes and public support as she makes a final push to enlist a group seen as key to her path to victory in November.

Its a challenge and were just facing it head-on, said Clinton aide Christopher Huntley, who focuses on millennials. He said the candidate is mounting a full-court press to reach young black voters and is being helped by folks who have been skeptical now realizing and coming to that Aha! moment that shes the best one to carry our water.

Clintons platform includes establishing national guidelines on police use of force; police training in recognizing implicit bias; legislation to end racial profiling; increased funding for body cameras; sentencing reform; and federal aid to create jobs for young people, ex-convicts and small businesses in poor communities.

To help make her case to black voters, she has enlisted the Mothers of the Movement, a group of black women who have lost children to violence. They include the mothers of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown. The mothers joined Clinton on the campaign trail in North Carolina last weekend.

Clinton is also reaching out to Black Lives Matter activists, several of whom have social media platforms that give them tremendous influence, and is campaigning at historically black colleges, deploying surrogates like New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and tapping the likes of rapper Jay-Z to perform a get-out-the-vote concert.

On her 69th birthday on Wednesday, Clinton stopped by The Breakfast Club, a popular urban radio show. Over the weekend, she tweeted a shout-out to historically black Howard University, which was celebrating its homecoming.

According to a new GenForward poll of Americans ages 18 to 30, 49 percent of blacks say they will definitely vote in November. Thats similar to the percentage of all young people. Eighty percent of the likely black voters say they plan to cast their ballots for Clinton, versus 4 percent for Trump.

Clinton has enjoyed strong support from older African-Americans, particularly in the South, where she defeated primary rival Bernie Sanders with 77 percent of the overall black vote in states with exit polling. But in the GenForward poll, black millennials reported supporting Sanders over Clinton during the primary season 46 to 28 percent.

In endorsing Clinton last week in an Elle magazine interview, Brittany Packnett  a St. Louis organizer who was also at both Clinton meetings  voiced some of the conflict felt by young black voters during the election season.

These young people are understandably asking, What is the point of continuing to participate in this system that assaults me?' Packnett said. I have been wrestling with the same frustrations, but I have a responsibility to young people, to my community and to our work. The best way I can use my platform is to support Secretary Clinton.

Many black millennials had doubts about Clinton early in the campaign because of a 1996 speech in which she referred to young super-predators in the black community. She has since apologized for the remark.

In a heated moment on the campaign trail in April, Philadelphia activist Erica Mines confronted former President Bill Clinton about his support for welfare reform that activists say punished poor people and a crime bill that put many blacks behind bars.

Mines said she plans to vote for an independent next month.

I do not believe she is someone who can be trusted, Mines said of Clinton. She has been pushed because of Bernie Sanders to be more left than she has in the past. I do not trust her to do what is right for our communities. I only hear her talk about the middle class, which is not representative of those living at or below the poverty line.

Ferguson protester Johnetta Elzie said Clinton has done nothing to earn her endorsement. Elzie was among the protesters who met with Clinton in October 2015, but did not meet with her last week.

There is no way I could promise to black people that shes not going to be horrible for us, she said. Thats not the hill I want my credibility to die on. Im not going to guilt-trip people. Im encouraging people to vote however you want on Nov. 8  or dont vote.

___

Errin Haines Whack covers urban affairs for The Associated Press. Follow her on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/emarvelous.
BEIJING  Filipino fisherman were able this week to fish in waters near the disputed Scarborough Shoal without being chased away by Chinese vessels, the Philippines said Friday, suggesting signaling a potential deal between China and the Philippines on the South China Sea.

The news comes about a week after President Rodrigo Duterte made a high-profile visit to Beijing, praising his Chinese hosts while calling for a separation from his longtime ally, the United States.

In the run-up to Dutertes visit, there were rumors that Beijing and Manila were close to a deal on fishing rights at Scarborough, which China has controlled since 2012, however the trip ended without any agreement announced.

Earlier this week, however, Duterte hinted that Filipino fisherman may be able to return. Well just wait for a few more days, he said  he may have been right.

Filipino fishermen told reporters from ABS-CBN News, a local TV station, that they were allowed near the shoal on Oct. 25 and fished there for three days without interference from Chinese coast guard vessels. A report by the Inquirer, a local newspaper, said eight groups of fisherman were able to fish at the shoal on Oct. 26.

Duterte spokesman Ernesto Abella on Friday appeared to confirm those reports, telling journalists in Manila that Filipino fishermen were operating at Scarborough Shoal without harassment from Chinese boats.

It is not clear yet whether the reported return is part of a formal deal between Manila and Beijing. Even a provisional or informal arrangement, if confirmed, would signal a major shift in an issue of consequence for the Philippines, China and the United States.

Scarborough is a flashpoint in the South China Sea conflict. The shoal, which the Chinese call Huangyan and the Filipinos call Panatag, is a u-shaped chain of reefs and rocks that lies about 120 miles off the coast of Luzon, not far from Subic Bay, the former U.S. naval base that still sees regular visits from U.S. ships.

China seized control of the shoal in 2012. Since then, Filipino boats approaching the shoal have been routinely chased away by Chinese coast guard ships, rammed, or hit with water cannon  a source of anger to many Filipinos.

The standoff between Manila and Beijing came to a head this summer when a European court issued a sweeping rebuke of Chinas claims to most of the South China Sea, including Scarborough.

But rather than press China on the ruling, the Philippines new president, Rodrigo Duterte, surprised many by downplaying  though not outright dismissing  the ruling.

Duterte has said he will not relinquish territory, but is willing to talk to China about ways to diffuse tension and get economic ties back on track. A deal on fishing, if confirmed, would be a domestic political victory.

Ian Storey, a senior fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore, said he would not be surprised to see a return of Filipino boats.

Duterte requested this concession during his trip to Beijing last week, and if China had refused his request he would have had egg all over his face and nothing to show for his pro-China stance, he said.

An agreement on fishing would allow China and the Philippines to press ahead with rapprochement, potentially driving a wedge deeper into U.S.-Philippine relations.

It would also send a message to other countries in Southeast Asia that have clashed with China on maritime issues, Storey said. The message: Dont challenge our claims and in return we will be magnanimous and allow you to share the resources that rightfully belong to us.

Richard Javad Heydarian, an assistant professor of political science at Manilas De La Salle University, said a change in the status quo at Scarborough Shoal would ease tension between China and the Philippines in the short term, though the long-term picture looked less clear.

China remains unlikely to compromise on the key question  sovereignty  meaning the dispute stands. Its too early to say whether this will stand over time, he said.

philippines
BEIRUT  Syrian rebels launched a broad offensive for Aleppo Friday as the Russian, Syrian, and Iranian foreign ministers vowed to intensify their fight against terrorism in the country.

The battlefield allies met in Moscow as the Syrian government is looking to cement its authority over the divided northern city and the contested suburbs of the capital, Damascus.

Fighting for Aleppo appeared to have calmed by the afternoon after rebels assaulted the citys government-controlled western side with three vehicle bombs and at least 150 rockets in the morning. The Syrian military said the rockets were Russian-made Grad missiles.

At least 15 civilians were killed in the volley, according to pro-government TV stations. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group also said that 15 civilians were killed, and over 100 injured.

A reporter inside the city for the Lebanon-based Al-Mayadeen TV channel had reported attacks on all sides of the city, from the furthest points north to the furthest south.

Sounds of heavy gunfire, mortar fire, and explosions were heard in the background of his broadcast, as dark smoke was seen rising above the city on the overcast morning. Presumed government or Russian jets were also heard flying overhead.

An afternoon broadcast from the city on Lebanon-based Al-Manar TV depicted a quieter scene, though sporadic gunfire and missile attacks were heard in the background.

Rebels said they seized a factory and pushed into government-held neighborhoods in southwestern Aleppo, but the Syrian military said through SANA that it had repelled the offensive from all fronts, with support from allied militias.

The Syrian army and its allies are in control on the ground and armed groups were not able to change the map, the military statement said. Fighting is still ongoing but the intensity has dropped.

This is the second attempt by rebels to break the governments siege of Aleppos opposition-held eastern districts, where the U.N. estimates 275,000 people are trapped. U.N. Special Envoy Staffan De Mistura has estimated 8,000 of them are rebel fighters, and no more than 900 of them affiliated with the al-Qaida-linked Fatah al-Sham Front.

The area has been subjected to a ferocious campaign of aerial attacks by Russian and Syrian government warplanes, and hundreds of people have been killed in recent weeks, according to opposition activists and trapped residents.

Rebels opened a corridor to the east for the month of August after pro-government forces first applied a blockade in July, but they were not able to hold it as the government and its Russian ally pounded the gap with artillery and airstrikes. Pro-government forces reapplied the siege in early September.

The setback caused the rebels to pursue a different tack, and they are trying to draw government forces into street fighting in the densely-inhabited western part of the city, according to rebel spokesman Ammar Sakkar. They are hoping this will dissuade the government and Russian air force from using heavy weapons and aerial munitions.

We want to force the regime into street battles, in addition to opening several fronts, said Fastaqim spokesman Ammar Sakkar. It may go beyond lifting the siege to liberating the whole city.

Fridays attack began with rebels detonating three vehicle-borne explosives against government positions to the citys southwest and attacking with hundreds of rockets, the Observatory said. It said at least one of the vehicles was driven by a suicide bomber for Fatah al-Sham, which also announced the offensive.

Fatah al-Sham claimed credit for two car bombs, saying in a statement that a martyrdom-seeking fighter drove a tank laden with explosives and parked it, before it was detonated and the fighter returned to his brothers.

The Islamic Front rebel coalition also announced on Twitter that the ultraconservative Ahrar al-Sham group targeted a military airport to the east of the city with Grad rockets and destroyed a government position to the west of the city.

Sakkar, said all the revolutionary factions, without exception, are participating in the battle. He said hundreds of fighters were participating in the attack, adding that the total number of participants was much higher.

What the rebels did today, it was very much a technical thing to try to tell the regime  we can get more weapons and get to Aleppo, said Bassam Barabandi, political adviser to the Syrian oppositions High Negotiations Committee, in an interview in Washington.

The Syrian army depends on battlefield assistance from Lebanese and Iraqi militias, as well as Russian air power and Irans elite Revolutionary Guard forces.

The Russian military says it has asked President Vladimir Putin to allow the resumption of airstrikes in Syria on the rebel-held eastern part of Aleppo due to the fresh rebel offensive there.

Lt. Gen. Sergei Rudskoi said the opposition fighters took advantage of a 10-day moratorium on military flights over the city to attempt to break the siege of the eastern rebel-held part of the city. He says all attacks have been repelled, but 43 civilians have been killed and 96 wounded in the rebel shelling.

Putin rejected the militarys request for the resumption of airstrikes on the rebel-held eastern part of Aleppo. The presidents spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said that Putin considers it inadvisable to resume airstrikes on Aleppo, and wants to have humanitarian corridors out of Aleppos rebel-held districts stay open both for rebels and civilians to leave the city.

The Syrian government has labeled the countrys armed opposition terrorists. Syria has sunk ever deeper into a costly civil war since security forces cracked down brutally on popular demonstrations in 2011.

Near the capital Damascus, meanwhile, the Syrian army captured an army missile base that was held by rebels, as well as a castle. Syrian troops have been on the offensive near Damascus for weeks.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in a news conference with his Syrian and Iranian counterparts the intensified fight would come in parallel with efforts to improve humanitarian aid access.

But U.N. official Jan Egeland said Thursday it was the Syrian government that had denied humanitarian access to eastern Aleppo as part of a monthly U.N. plan to access 25 besieged and remote areas in Syria.

Western nations accuse Russia of deliberately attacking a U.N.-backed aid convoy in September in rebel-held territory, killing over a dozen humanitarian workers and destroying hundreds of tons of cargo.

Aleppo is the focal point of the war. President Bashar Assad has said he is determined to retake the countrys largest city and former commercial capital.

___

Associated Press writers Bassem Mroue in Beirut, Maamoun Youssef in Cairo, Vivian Salama in Washington and Jim Heintz in Moscow contributed to this report.
On Oct. 26, 2014, a 14-year-old Texas boy named T.G. Garcia told his stepfather he wanted to clean a firearm the man kept in the house. While his stepfather showered, T.G. obtained the key to the gun case.

The teenager went to his bedroom and locked the door. There, he shot himself.

It was a final act in the face of mounting abuse from fellow classmates, as described in a lawsuit his mother, Roxanne Jones, filed on her deceased sons behalf.

That Sunday in 2014, Jones, according to the suit she recently filed in the federal court for the Northern District of Texas, heard a noise as though T.G. had dropped his weights. When Jones saw the gun in his bedroom, she told her husband to phone the police. The authorities could not save T.G., who died from the self-inflicted gunshot wound.

T.G. was a high school student enrolled in the Iowa Park Consolidated Independent School District, which Jones sued Tuesday. Before T.G. attended school at Iowa Park, he was sexually assaulted by two boys, according to Jones.

The trauma of that incident would haunt T.G.: The Thursday three days before his death, an Iowa Park student  identified only by his initials, J.T.  taunted T.G. about the assault on a school bus, according to the complaint.

J.T. was threatening to tell other students about the assault, the suit alleged. He called T.G. a slur for gay people and a wetback who should kill himself.

The suit alleged that T.G., as well as two other students who had witnessed the abuse on the bus, approached a vice principal in the school district named Tim Jetton.

The lawsuit alleges that Vice Principal Jetton had dismissed attacks on T.G. before, saying that boys will be boys and calling him, according to the suit, the little Mexican boy rather than his name. The Iowa Park Consolidated Independent School District was unable to respond to a telephoned and emailed request for comment from The Washington Post early Friday morning. School officials had previously declined to comment to KAUZ, citing the pending litigation.

The October taunts were no different. Jetton did not take disciplinary action after the school bus threats, Jones said. The next day, T.G. told a fellow students parent of his intention to commit suicide. The parent contacted Jetton, who, according to the lawsuit, promised to discuss the matter with T.G. and telephone T.G.s parents.

The vice principal did neither of these things, according to the complaint.

A student named Robbie Kenyon warned the school that T.G. was contemplating suicide, she told KFDX 3 this Thursday. The school did not take action, she said, instead suspending Kenyon and threatening to withhold her diploma after she refused to let the matter go.

I guess theyre trying to put the fear into us, Kenyon said, that you cant say anything or stand up to the administration.

This was not the first time T.G. had been bullied in school. He had been teased about looking feminine, girly and slender, Jones said, and about his dark complexion that broke out after spending time in the sun. He was also harassed for his race  T.G. had Hispanic, Native American and Caucasian heritage  in addition to a persona the lawsuit described as girlish.

He was a target of violence. Previously, students cracked T.G.s ribs using a cowbell as a weapon, according to the lawsuit. Although the injury warranted treatment in an emergency room, Jones said that Jetton failed to investigate the attack after she and her son brought it to the vice principals attention.

T.G., his mother, Roxanne Jones, and even fellow students, reported multiple incidents of harassment to Vice Principal Tim Jetton, Jones claimed in the suit, but neither he, nor anyone else with the School District took any action to stop the bullying or provide a safe environment for T.G.

The lawsuit says that the school violated numerous laws, including Title IX as well as the Civil Rights Act, the Education Amendments Act and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment of the Constitution.

Though Jones is seeking punitive damages, she told KAUZs News Channel 6 that she is not motivated by money. Instead, she hopes to raise awareness about bullying and make schools safe from what happened to T.G.

They did nothing. They didnt offer any help at all to him. They said that boys will be boys,  Jones said in an interview with KFDX 3. I would like to see schools change. Theres too many kids dying.

texas-suicide
We will no longer surrender this country, or its people, to the false song of globalism.

That was then-Republican presidential candidate  now nominee  Donald Trump, delivering his first full speech on foreign policy in April. The address latched onto a theme that Trump has voice repeatedly in the months and weeks since. It is the specter looming above whenever he grandstands over the dangers of globalization, the perfidy of jet-setting elites, and the pitfalls of multiculturalism. The nation-state, not the international order, Trump declared in April, was the true foundation for happiness and harmony.

No candidate in the election cycle had made such a direct nationalist clarion call: By denouncing the false song of globalism, Trump threw down the gauntlet. Here was the right-wing sovereigntist, championing America First. His opponent, Hillary Clinton, was the globalist  a politician, he argues, in thrall to interests beyond the nations borders and eager to let the alien hordes within them.

For a number of years, the term globalism or globalist has been bandied about the fringes of American political discourse as a catchall phrase for a host of perceived evils: The collusion of international finance with Washington insiders, the anti-national agendas of multinational corporations and conglomerates, the indifference of coastal elites to the concerns of ordinary folks in the hinterland.

Globalism didnt always carry this valence. In most contexts, globalization has been the more loaded, charged word  and the prompt for outraged left-wing protests at summits of international power-brokers for the past two decades.

Harvard political scientist Joseph Nye laid out the distinction between the terms in 2002.

Globalism, at its core, seeks to describe and explain nothing more than a world which is characterized by networks of connections that span multi-continental distances. It attempts to understand all the interconnections of the modern world  and to highlight patterns that underlie (and explain) them. In contrast, globalization refers to the increase or decline in the degree of globalism. It focuses on the forces, the dynamism or speed of these changes. In short, consider globalism as the underlying basic network, while globalization refers to the dynamic shrinking of distance on a large scale.

But in 2016, the underlying basic network  the simple fact of the worlds interconnectedness  seems to have come under attack. Its been fueled by American conspiracy mongers on the far-right like Alex Jones of the Infowars website, who has decried globalism writ large for at least half a decade.

And it has been made mainstream by Trump, who, while tapping into a long-standing vein of nativism in conservative American politics, has also cloaked his campaign in the rhetoric of right-wing European populism.

We literally have lost our sovereignty, lost our borders, lost our ability to regulate, intoned Nigel Farage, a leader of Britains xenophobic United Kingdom Independence Party, on the floor of the European parliament in June. The problem youve got in the U.S. is illegal immigration. Our problem is legal immigration to half a billion people.

Farage got his way this year: He was one of the champions of the pro-Brexit movement in Britain, which won a shock referendum in June when Britain voted by a narrow margin to quit the European Union. Trump hailed the referendum as a great thing and has gone on to liken himself to Mr. Brexit.

As other pro-Brexit figures backed away from the mess they created, Farage journeyed to America and campaigned on the trail with Trump. Anything is possible if enough decent people want to fight the establishment, Farage said at a rally in Mississippi in August.

In recent months, the Republican nominees many surrogates in the media have also embraced this stance. Fox News host Sean Hannity railed against the globalism that embodied all of Trumps foes, including both the Democratic and Republican establishment. Irked by Trumps struggles in Utah, Lou Dobbs growled against the globalist, Mormon mafia. Trump ally and financier Roger Stone warned that globalists intend to start a new World War in the Middle East. Some Christian pastors even deemed globalism demonic and the anti-Christ.

Whatever the dubious and rather hysterical ideas underlying these claims, they feed into the broader message conveyed by Trump  that the system, as a whole, is rigged against his supporters.

The problem is never the populists imperfect capacity to represent the peoples will; rather, its always the institutions that somehow produced the wrong outcomes, writes Princeton academic Jan-Werner Muller in a new book on populism. So even if they look properly democratic, there must be something going on behind the scenes that allows corrupt elites to continue to betray the people. Conspiracy theories are thus not a curious addition to populist rhetoric; they are rooted in and emerge from the very logic of populism itself.

To be sure, disquiet about the forces of globalization and growing economic inequality within societies is not unique to the American right-wing. It animated Bernie Sanderss campaign on the left and will have to be reckoned with no matter who wins the election next month.

I think we havent organized ourselves for the 21st century globalization, Clinton admitted in an interview with the New Yorkers George Packer.

In a somewhat desperate plea, the conservative Federalist website urged Sanders voters to choose Trump and reject dynastic globalism. But the idea of globalism  as it has been invoked by Trump and his backers  isnt simply an economic critique. As many now have already noted, the antiglobalist messaging of Trumps supporters in social media and on right-wing talk shows echoes a very dark past.

Trumps denunciation of a cabal of international bankers, his campaigns rejection of cosmopolitanism and multiculturalism and his supporters invocation of Nazi-era vocabulary to attack the media borrow from the language of an earlier era of fascism and have drawn charges of anti-Semitism.

The conspiracy theories Trump has been talking up recently play on long-standing tropes used against Jews for decades or even centuries, and the echoes are unmistakable for many of Trumps alt-right followers and for Jews who are familiar with the history of anti-Semitism, writes Cheryl Greenberg, professor of history at Trinity College.

She goes on: Whether Trump is intentional about spreading anti-Semitism is, of course, largely beside the point. Like his more overt expressions of racism, sexism and Islamophobia, Trumps anti-Semitic comments have made such conversation acceptable again.

And its almost certain that, no matter the victor on Nov. 8, the scaremongering over the globalist menace will continue.

trump-globalism
An analysis of eight states released Thursday found more than half of young children in rural Zip codes live in a child care desert, where kids under 5 years old outnumber the day-care spots by at least 3 to 1.

The problem is even worse in some urban areas, the report found. Five out of six Chicago kids younger than age 5 live in child-care deserts.

Researchers at the Center for American Progress , a left-leaning think tank, examined chunks of land they said offer a window into Americas child-care shortage. Parents in Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio and Virginia grapple with the paucity of options. (The issue is likely more widespread, the researchers said; other states wouldnt provide them the data necessary to conduct a national investigation.)

In many parts of this country, working families face a deep shortage of child care options, the authors wrote, which are often of inconsistent quality and at a financial cost that is out of reach.

The analysis suggests that about 1.8 million babies and preschool-age children in CAPs sample live in child-care deserts.

Parents nationwide already complain about the mortgage-rivaling costs, low-quality options, long waiting lists and far drives they endure to find day care for their children. The researchers uncovered another impact: The labor force participation rate is 1.1 percentage points lower for mothers of young kids who live in a child-care desert. What that means, exactly, is complicated: The women who disproportionately opt out of work in these areas may have simply chosen to raise their kids at home, or they may not work because they cant find or afford child care.

A September report from Minnesota shined a light on that dilemma. Marnie Werner, research director for the Center of Rural Policy and Development, described the states day-care dearth as a quiet crisis that stalls womens careers. The supply of infant care spots is now squeezed to a point where it is not unusual for families expecting babies to contact dozens of providers only to come up empty or be put on waiting lists of several months to a couple years, she wrote. This has serious implications for women who would like to go back to work after the birth of their child.

Even where child care is relatively plentiful, its pricey. The average cost for a year of center-based infant care in Washington, is nearly $22,000, according to a study from the Institute for Womens Policy Research. The cost is about $14,500 in New York, $16,500 in Massachusetts and $11,628 in California.

As the price of child care soared, more than three-quarters of American mothers and half of fathers said theyve passed up work opportunities, switched jobs or quit altogether to care for their kids, a 2015 Washington Post poll found.

The issue has become central to the presidential election, with both Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump addressing the expense and proposing policy solutions.

Clinton said she wants to invest federal money into states to create more high-quality child-care spaces. She said her plan will keep the burden below 10 percent of a households income and will reach that goal with a comination of tax credits and subsidies. (Clinton has not released full details on how, exactly, that would work.) Trump, breaking from his partys norms, said hed allow parents to deduct the cost of care from their taxes.

CAP recommends creating a hefty new child-care tax credit to help parents manage the cost. When it comes to filling in the coverage gaps, however, the researchers put forth a more ambitious idea: Just as policymakers recognize the need for long-overdue infrastructure investment in our roads, bridges, and public buildings, they wrote, it is crucial that the nation also invests substantially greater public resources in child care infrastructure and supply.

childcare-repeat
Angry Trump kept coming back.

Alexandra Avilas work computer usually displayed a smiling picture of her daughter. But when she logged in one morning last summer, she was greeted by a belligerent looking picture of Donald Trump, a lawsuit says.

Again and again, she switched the desktop back to her daughters photo. But two co-workers got an IT employee to break into Avilas computer to re-upload a sneering, pointing picture of Trump, according to the lawsuit.

One co-worker told Alexandra that Mr. Trump was saying (Expletive) you! specifically to her, the lawsuit says.

The harassment only got worse for Avila, who was born in the United States and is of Mexican descent.

The people Avila worked with at Sedgwick Claims Management Services in Iowa bombarded her with racist memes, embarrassing her on group chats of more than a dozen people, the suit says.

One pictured a Hispanic man in an oversized sombrero. No books, it said. Only Manuels.

Avilas co-workers signed her up to volunteer for Trumps campaign, according to her lawsuit.

Once, a supervisor asked the team to vote on what food they wanted for a congratulatory potluck.

Alex cant vote, a co-worker replied. Shes an illegal immigrant.

Avila started working in 2012 for Sedgwick Claims Management Services, which administers employee benefit programs for other companies. At Sedgwick, the Memphis-based company likes to note, caring counts.

Sedgwick employs 14,000 people in about 275 offices in the United States, Canada, the U.K. and Ireland, according to company literature.

Avila worked in Sedgwicks Iowa office, in Johnson County, where less than 6 percent of people identify as Hispanic, according to census data. Every day, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Avila handled family leave requests for Walmart employees.

She was fired by the company last November.

Her harassment and discrimination lawsuit was filed Monday and names her company and two former supervisors as defendants.

The supervisors did not respond to requests for comment.

Sedgwick Claims Management Services said in a statement sent to The Washington Post that we are aware that a suit has been filed by Alexandra Avila, a former colleague in our Coralville, Iowa, office. Prior to her dismissal for cause in 2015, Ms. Avila never reported any such activity to management or our colleague resource team. Sedgwick consistently maintains fair employment and workplace harassment practices, and we are confident the facts will prove Ms. Avilas case has no merit.

Our company fosters a diverse, inclusive workplace in which all colleagues are encouraged to achieve their full potential; this is the foundation of our success.

Avilas alleged workplace troubles paralleled Donald Trumps political rise: According to the lawsuit, the harassment started in earnest after Trump announced he was running for president in June 2015.

During a speech declaring his candidacy, he made incendiary comments about Mexicans and immigration.

When Mexico sends its people, theyre not sending their best, the man who would become the Republican nominee for president said.   Theyre sending people that have lots of problems, and theyre bringing those problems with us. Theyre bringing drugs. Theyre bringing crime. Theyre rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.

As the Associated Press noted, Trumps rhetoric has contributed to racial tensions across the country.

Build a wall chants have been used by high school students to taunt Latino opponents at sporting events in multiple states, including Iowa, Wisconsin and Indiana, the AP noted.

With the political climate the way that it is, its a little more charged, said the principal of the Iowa school whose players were taunted. Dan Marburger, the principal at Perry High, told CNN that some of his students, at a school with an usually high percentage of minorities for that part of the state, feel that this inflamed rhetoric is happening and its okay. No one is stopping it. They see it in a presidential campaign and now its okay for everyone to say this. Its almost a sense that you feel that you dont belong in your own country.

The only Hispanic person on her team of about a dozen, Avila was born in California and moved to Iowa as a child, her attorney said.

Trumps comments about Mexicans bothered Avila, and she confided in her co-workers, according to the lawsuit.

Alexandras coworkers knew she was upset by Mr. Trumps bigoted remarks, so they needled her about them, the lawsuit says.

The ensuing harassment took all forms  a snide illegal immigrant comment here, a dancing Trump GIF there, according to the lawsuit.

Avila told supervisors about the comments and messages, but they did not take action, the lawsuit says. Sometimes, they laughed too.

It just kept getting worse and worse, Avilas attorney, Paige Fiedler, told The Washington Post. She tried to pretend that these things werent bothering her for a while because she had to work with these people. Shes not someone who likes to make waves. . . . Until she got fired, I dont think she ever would have gone and complained outside the company.

The lawsuit says Avila was fired after a supervisor claimed she lied on timecards, although the suit says her supervisors attitudes toward Hispanics factored into Avilas termination.

The lawsuit claims that she and other employees often worked overtime or through their unpaid lunch break and that a supervisor told them to find a way to get all their work done and that they were not allowed to write down any overtime hours.

The 2015 meeting where Avila was fired marked the first time she had heard about the timecard issue, the lawsuit says.

She was terminated and escorted out of the building; her now-former employers said they would send her personal property to her home, the lawsuit says.

Even though she was fired, the harassment did not stop, Avila claims.

When the company mailed her a box with some of her belongings, a piece of paper was included that read: Just call me La Trumpa.

On the back of the paper, someone had written: Illegal immigrants cant vote or work. Good luck finding a job.

In January, the lawsuit alleges, Sedgwick employees continued to harass Alexandra on her Facebook page  greeting her with Hola Alex and inviting her to a rally to see Donald Trump, the next president of the United States.'

In the lawsuit, which was filed Monday, Avila is suing for harassment and discrimination based on race and national origin. Her attorney said she is also entitled to damages for wage theft and emotional distress.

Fiedler said Avila sobbed as she recounted how she had to replace her daughters picture on her computers desktop over and over again:

The fact that they went into her computer and they replaced this beautiful, beautiful picture of her child and they replaced it with a photo of Donald Trump yelling and shaking a finger at her, really struck her and makes her feel violated, the lawsuit says.

iowa-lawsuit
Saint David's Episcopal Church, South Yarmouth, MA





The Travel





It was a three day/two night escape from the warmth of Sarasota to the bone-chilling and windy Cape Cod (I am getting soft in my old age).





I flew Delta, SRQ-ATL-BOS and back.





Travel is a pain.To be sure Delta gave top flight service with each of the four flights departing on time, and arriving on time (or earlier). But I find flying to be stressful, especially when it involves a change of flights in Atlanta.





Everyone goes to heaven or to hell, but they all change in Atlanta.





One can feel the tension increasing about 45 minutes before boarding time. Travelers begin to crowd at the gate, anxious lest they fail to board; worried lest the flight be late. Boarding is increasingly troublesome, especially since some flyers attempt to convince the gate agent that their steamer trunk is small enough to fit in an overhead bin. I wish that checked baggage was free, and that there was a stuff fee for the use of an overhead bin!





Many begin to get crabby. Pity the gate agents and flight attendants. I make it my practice to smile and greet these airline employees with a cheerful "Good morning/afternoon" etc.





Pity the flight attendants. My ATL-SRQ crew had started their day at 3:00 a.m. for a Phoenix to Atlanta flight, then after a rest break they were flying to Sarasota, then immediately turning around for a flight back to Atlanta. Remember that their work begins long before the plane boards. Remember that they are on their feet for the entire flight (except for take off and landing).





Once in Boston I picked up a rental car. The trip to South Yarmouth went smoothly enough (with a break in Plymouth to get and eat a sandwich).









The flights home were fine (I had a bulkhead seat from ATL - SRQ). On arrival at SRQ my patience quotient was almost exhausted. The friend who had promised to meet me didn't show up, nor was he answering his 'phone. He had my door key.



So I took a cab. The charge from the airport to my home was $23 (a bit steep I think). I had no small bills, so I had to proffer $40.



The driver "suggested" that he should give me $10 in change, essentially giving him a $7 tip. I was too tired to protest.



Fortunately a neighbour has a key to my home, so I entered to a display of irrational exuberance from Penne! (My dog sitter said that she had been well behaved but morose during my absence).



We walked off her exuberance, then I fed her and the cat. Their tension disappeared, but mine stayed with me until I drifted off to sleep.



The trip.



I was in South Yarmouth to preach at a celebration of ministries for my dear friend the Revd Andrea (Andi) S. Taylor who was until recently the Associate Rector at St. Boniface Church here in SRQ. It was a gorgeous and spirited celebration, and it is clear that Andi is already deeply loved. My sermon was well received - the nicest comment after service was that I preach with joy. (I'll publish it tomorrow)



All that apart it was so wonderful to be with Andi and Jonathan. We had time enough to enjoy a good and relaxed dinner on Tuesday, with the usual lively conversation.





Drool over this delicious Risotto with peas and Lobsta!



As well as the joy of being with Jonathan and Andi, I was blessed to see "Bibs"(Alan) and Shirley Taylor I've known them for almost forty years; with Nelson Wirtz (at whose wedding to Meredith I officiated in 2005); and with Bishop Alan Gates; Alan and I knew each other when we served congregations in Western Mass in the 1990's.



He is now my Bishop - even though I live and serve in Florida I am what we call "canonically resident" in the Diocese of Massachusetts. We had a good catching up time after the service.









Bishop Gates, Andi and Jonathan.









Returning to the airport was less happy. Traffic on I-93 north for the eleven miles from Quincy to Boston was bumper to bumper. It always is! (I had anticipated this so had allowed more than enough time for the journey).The flights home were fine (I had a bulkhead seat from ATL - SRQ). On arrival at SRQ my patience quotient was almost exhausted. The friend who had promised to meet me didn't show up, nor was he answering his 'phone. He had my door key.So I took a cab. The charge from the airport to my home was $23 (a bit steep I think). I had no small bills, so I had to proffer $40.The driver "suggested" that he should give me $10 in change, essentially giving him a $7 tip. I was too tired to protest.Fortunately a neighbour has a key to my home, so I entered to a display of irrational exuberance from Penne! (My dog sitter said that she had been well behaved but morose during my absence).We walked off her exuberance, then I fed her and the cat. Their tension disappeared, but mine stayed with me until I drifted off to sleep.I was in South Yarmouth to preach at a celebration of ministries for my dear friend the Revd Andrea (Andi) S. Taylor who was until recently the Associate Rector at St. Boniface Church here in SRQ. It was a gorgeous and spirited celebration, and it is clear that Andi is already deeply loved. My sermon was well received - the nicest comment after service was that I preach with joy.All that apart it was so wonderful to be with. We had time enough to enjoy a good and relaxed dinner on Tuesday, with the usual lively conversation.Drool over this delicious Risotto with peas and Lobsta!As well as the joy of being with Jonathan and Andi, I was blessed to seeI've known them for almost forty years; with(at whose wedding to Meredith I officiated in 2005); and withAlan and I knew each other when we served congregations in Western Mass in the 1990's.He is now my Bishop - even though I live and serve in Florida I am what we call "canonically resident" in the Diocese of Massachusetts. We had a good catching up time after the service.Bishop Gates, Andi and Jonathan.












TROY, N.Y. -Its after dark when Adam Frelin, an artist and college professor cruising through one of the worst sections of the capital region, pulls over. The lights are out in an abandoned bungalow on Fifth Avenue.Sorry, Frelin says, jumping out of his gray Subaru. Ive got to go in there.Nobody lives in 2435, which is padlocked and set back from the street. But Frelin has the key. Hes wearing a headlamp that pushes back his curly hair, and hes clutching what looks like a doctors bag in his right hand. It contains a 12-volt battery.

Hello, hello, he bellows, checking to make sure nobody is squatting inside.

The white house is one of 200 empty properties that make up Breathing Lights, a $1.2 million art project created by Frelin and architect Barbara Nelson in the browned-out, former manufacturing hub of Albany, Troy and Schenectady, N.Y. Using LED strips, portable batteries and programmed Arduino boards, they have built light panels and had them installed inside window frames. Theyre looking to draw attention, through art, to abandoned spots once called homes.

The lights dont just go on. They rise and fall in eight-second waves, from dark to glowing to dark again, creating a breathing effect. The glow is hard to miss. It radiates over beaten-down brick and peeling clapboards in the regions hardest-hit neighborhoods.

I thought it was some kind of electrical surge, said Deryck Barker, who pulled over recently when he first saw the light coming from a crumbling brick building on Clinton Avenue in Albany.

Barker, 37, just paid $25,000 for a two-family home hes renovating down the street. He views Breathing Lights as more than an art project. For him, its an illuminated for-sale sign, a potential beacon in a place where you can buy a brownstone for less than a used car.

What its really about is bringing light to a place thats underdeveloped, he said. Its an opportunity. The amount of money it costs to light up these houses is not much compared to what it can actually do.

Nelson and Frelin met for coffee and doughnuts late in 2014 and came up with a plan.

They knew the concept would have local connotations, with General Electric having once been headquartered in Schenectady, and the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institutes Lighting Research Center being in Troy. It was Nelson who made the suggestion.

Why dont we just light up all the buildings, she said.

Easy enough, until the pair encountered the same issues faced by residents in these blighted neighborhoods. Ownership records are spotty, making it hard to determine who has authority to sell empty houses or let in artists. In the end, the duo partnered with the Albany County Land Bank, a nonprofit organization formed in 2014 to help people sell and buy vacant properties.

The ever-shifting property rolls require Frelin and Nelson to remain flexible. Sites for Breathing Lights can emerge at any moment or be lost to demolition with little notice.

Frelin has been particularly sensitive to another challenge. As part of the project, Breathing Lights organizers have held building reclamation seminars and handed out fliers to give the public information about the Land Bank. But that can draw attention away from the key purpose of Breathing Lights. It is supposed to be art.

Frelin was reminded of that in March, when Bloomberg Philanthropies held a workshop for grant recipients. He remembers the words of guest speaker Maya Lin, the artist famous for designing the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Dont let your project be more about the social good it may bring than being good art, she told him. Once it flips, we all lose.

Work on a recent weekday started about noon, when Frelin and Judie Gilmore, the project director, make their rounds. They check in with contractor Matt Montesano, a retired city police officer, about the progress being made on the 5,000 square-foot building being outfitted on Clinton Avenue. Inside, they gingerly stepped over crumbling plaster and holes in the floor boards. Frelin pointed out where inside walls had been smashed open to steal copper pipes.

Montesano tells Frelin that hed recommend skipping one of the houses they had planned on in another section of town. When Montesano visited it that morning, there was a dog barking, and it looked as though the house was a hangout for drug users.

They are met with a variety of reactions.

Some of the locals admit they find it insulting that so much money is being spent  even if it is private money  on an art project in neighborhoods that have been so long neglected.

I mean, I dont know, said James Tucker, 60, who was sitting outside talking with friends on Albanys South Side. Turning on a light. Anything is good. But theres so much thats been ingrained in people here.

When the white outsiders started showing up at the abandoned buildings on Elizabeth Street, Gilmore and his friends figured they were real estate speculators.

Thanks for coming, said Tucker, who works as an inspector for the Albany Housing Authority. Thats all that I can tell you. Hope it works. But when youve been somewhere for so long, youve seen so much bulls for so long. Theyre here now. But later on, theyre going somewhere nice. Theyre going to get a nice meal tonight and a nice warm bed to sleep in.

That might be true, but Breathing Lights is, at the least, drawing new eyes to a problem thats existed for decades.

Money will only go so far to fixing individual buildings, says Kate Levin, the former New York City cultural affairs commissioner who oversees Bloombergs arts program. This is potentially of much greater use because its creating a high level of conversation and focusing interest on something.

  

On Colonie Street in Albany, Frelin checks the batteries inside a house in which the living room walls are covered in black mold. Outside, a neighbor noticed activity and approaches to explain why.

James McKenzie, 71, has lived next door for more than 30 years, raising four children with his wife. But hes been frustrated by the empty house, unoccupied for years. Hes called the city, and a number of banks over the years. Nobody has been able to help, he says. At one point, the pipes burst, causing water to flood out of the house and into his basement.

Before that, the house could have probably been saved, McKenzie says. Now, its cheaper to knock it down and rebuild it.

Gilmore gives him a flier with information about the Land Bank, which has just taken ownership of the house.

On Fourth Avenue in Troy, Frelin and Gilmore encounter something they havent heard a lot during the day: praise. Jill Testa, 63, says she was thrilled to see the lights go on in the empty house next to the apartment she recently began renting.

It doesnt look like a run-down abandoned building, and thats the end of it, she said. It looks like somebodys there.

  

The sun has gone down, and the moon hangs over the house, which will remain lighted until 10 p.m. Frelin has taken off the semester at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Albany to make sure he can make his rounds. Hes tinkered with the brightness of the lights and the locations of the batteries. The concept of the piece, he said, has been influenced as much by light master James Turrell as Anna Halprins 1960s piece, Ceremony of Us, which brought black and white dancers together in response to the Watts riots.

On Seventh Avenue, as he finishes his rounds, Frelin stops at 3036. He unlocks the door and walks up the stairs. And there, under the roof, is a scene that could pass as a Joseph Beuys installation. Soggy floor has given way to a blanket of ankle-high plants, organic growth mixed with crumbling plaster. The green is illuminated, in waves, as the panels glow.

Dont walk too far in, Frelin cautions, noting the floors weakness.

Then its back into the car.

The night will end on Fifth Avenue, at the bungalow set back from the street. Frelin checks and determines that the batteries are dead. Theres a simple solution. The battery team will head back the next day to recharge the pair of six-volts wired into the light panels. As Frelin and Gilmore walk back to his car, a neighbor arrives home with her two little girls.

The smallest one, holding a doll, sees theres activity in the lot next door and says, loud enough for everyone to hear, Look, theyre going to buy the house.

breathing-lights-repeat
Republican supporters of Donald Trump and Latino immigrants backing Democrat Hillary Clinton during this contentious presidential campaign will converge at polling sites on Nov. 8, and that has election workers in Prince William County preparing for the worst.

If something is amiss and you feel the need to call 911 right away, call 911 right away, Michele L. White, general registrar of the Northern Virginia countys elections office told about 30 election workers during a recent training for Election Day duty. Please use your sixth sense; dont hesitate.

A county with a rapidly growing immigrant community and a ratio of Latino residents that is more than twice the state average, Prince William is also home to Corey A. Stewart, chairman of the board of supervisors and a GOP candidate for governor in 2017. Stewart, who until recently was Trumps Virginia chairman, has celebrated Trumps heated rhetoric against illegal immigration and likes to say I was Trump before Trump was Trump.

Hoping to ease tensions during an Election Day that is expected to draw about 80 percent of the countys 270,000 registered voters, election officials are taking measures to speed up voting and minimize disruptions.

For the first time, each of the countys 91 precincts will have line chasers whose job will be to check IDs outside the polling station to ensure everyone is in the right place and lines move quickly. Those people will also keep an eye out for potential disturbances, officials said.

Inside the stations, precinct chiefs will monitor election observers from both major parties  essentially watching the poll watchers. If those observers are overzealous in their scrutiny of voters, they may be kicked out of the polling station, county officials said.

Also for the first time, every polling station will be in direct contact with county officials through special walkie-talkie radios to coordinate actions in the event of an emergency.

Honestly, I expect people to behave themselves in public; I know my expectations may be unrealistic at this point, said Rosanna West, a precinct chief who will oversee voting in the Bristow Run district, the countys busiest with 4,796 registered voters. I try to keep a smile on at all times.

Keith A. Scarborough, chair of the county electoral board, said the more aggressive measures stem from the bad karma brought on by this presidential race. Election officials around the country are taking novel steps, including those in Denver who trained their poll workers how to respond to an active shooter situation for the first time.

For weeks, Trump has warned that the general election will be rigged. And he has called on his backers to get everybody to go out and watch polling sites on Election Day, particularly in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Ohio. But generally, he said that voting locations should have the sheriffs and the police chiefs and everybody watching.

Scarborough, a Democrat, said those suggestions coming from the top of a ticket may fuel suspicions and compel people to try to interfere with voting in a way that hasnt happened before.

We have one of the major candidates talking about having a rigged election, Scarborough said. Thats never happened before. Theres a lot of bad rhetoric coming down.

The groups that plan to send volunteers to the polling stations say they want to avoid conflict.

Immigration activists are deploying several dozen volunteers to Prince William County and nearby Manassas, mainly, they say, to insure against voter intimidation. Other nonprofits, including the progressive New Virginia Majority organization, also plan to send volunteers.

Were just going to go from polling station to polling station making sure that everything is OK, said Fernanda Durand, spokeswoman for the CASA In Action immigrant advocacy group.

John Fredericks, chair of the Trump campaign in Virginia, estimated that about 1,200 people have signed up so far to work as poll watchers.

Weve got more volunteers coming in by the day than we can figure out where to put them, Fredericks said. We dont expect any confrontations with anybody legitimate. If the Hillary campaign decides to hire people to do things like throw eggs or start fights, I guess our volunteers will have to deal with it in a professional manner.

The countys electoral board briefly considered asking private groups that host polling stations to impose a one-day ban against guns on Election Day, but abandoned the idea when local state Del. Robert G. Marshall, R-Prince William, raised objections, citing the states open carry gun law.

Under that law, weapons are already prohibited inside public schools, of which 70 in Prince William County will function as polling stations. Prince William County schools will also be closed on Election Day.

Scarborough said election officials are now being instructed to treat a voter carrying a gun in the same way theyd treat one with a loud hat or T-shirt: Ignore it.

Theyre legally entitled to do that, he said. As long as they dont do anything to cause disruption.

Kimball Brace, chief of the countys newly created Sudley precinct just north of Manassas, said he anticipates some disturbances.

The precinct of 2,054 voters is located in the heart of Prince William Countys rapidly growing Latino immigrant population.

I would imagine well have a target on the door or something along that line, Brace said.

To guard against any confrontations outside the polling station, Brace  a former general registrar in the county elections office  said he is prepared to move the line of voters completely inside the Sudley Elementary School.

If Im hearing reports of people feeling like theyre being intimidated or that sort of thing, then we end up going outside and talking to people, he said. Ultimately, under Virginia law, we do have the right to call 911.

At a recent county training session, several polling station workers said they were unsure what theyll face on Election Day.

Im expecting hecticness, said Ross Fontana, 17, who decided to help with elections in the Manassas area upon the advice of his high school government teacher.

Safiya Samman, 70, who has worked several previous elections in Prince William County, said she expects some hostilities to be directed toward her because shes a Muslim who covers her head with a hijab.

During the state elections last year, one voter angrily refused her help when there was a problem with a ballot scanner.

I just stepped back and I waited, Samman, a U.S. citizen for 41 years, recalled.

But, she said, shes eager to work this presidential election.

I want them to see my face, Samman said. To see that were all part of this.

voting-virginia
Why are celebrities like actor Mark Ruffalo, civil rights leader Jesse Jackson, liberal television anchor Amy Goodman and scores of Native Americans from the Standing Rock Sioux tribe all converging on a isolated spot along the Missouri river of North Dakota?

To block the construction of an oil pipeline. But theres much more to it than that.

On Thursday, the group was met by scores of police wearing riot gear and riding in military-style armored vehicles. By the end of the day, after firing tear gas, dismantling teepees and seeking to disperse the crowd, police said they had arrested 141 people, according to news reports.

Heres whats behind the burning tires and riot shields.

Q: What is this pipeline project?

A: The segment of pipe near the protest site is just part of the Dakota Access Pipeline Project, a new 1,172-mile, 30-inch diameter $3.7 billion pipeline that will carry high quality crude oil from the rapidly expanding Bakken and Three Forks basins in North Dakota to existing pipeline networks in Patoka, Illinois, and refineries in the Midwest, East Coast, Texas and abroad.

Q: Who wins  or loses  from building it?

A: The pipeline would save money for oil producers in North Dakota, many of whom ship their crude oil in rail cars across Canada and the northern United States. The Dakota Access pipeline could transport as much as 570,000 barrels per day  representing approximately half of Bakken current daily crude oil production.

The reduction in oil transported by rail would also bring down rates for transporting grain out of South Dakota. The competition for transportation has driven up the cost of shipping corn as much as $1 a bushel.

The losers? Railroads that, with little competition, have been charging hefty rates. They include companies such as Burlington Northern Santa Fe, owned by Warren Buffetts Berkshire Hathaway.

The winners would also include the Dakota Access owners: a partnership called Energy Transfer, and its investors.

They include: Donald Trump. His financial disclosure forms in May said he owned between $500,000 and $1 million of the company. Energy Transfers chief executive Kelcy L. Warren this year has made $1.53 million in campaign contributions to Super PACS and $246,900 to individual campaigns and the GOP, according to the Center on Responsive Politics. In June 2015, he gave $5 million to Opportunity and Freedom PAC, which supported Rick Perrys presidential campaign. The Trump Victory Fund, a joint fundraising committee that includes Trumps campaign, the Republican National Committee and some state parties, received a $100,000 contribution from Warren on June 29.

Q: Why do people oppose the pipeline?

A: Lots of reasons.

The biggest opponents are environment groups who have built a Keep It in the Ground movement that favors throwing up obstacles to companies seeking to extract oil, natural gas or coal.

We do not want, nor do we need, an expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure, Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune said in a blog post. We have the technology and ability to continue and complete our transition to 100 percent clean renewable energy and leave dirty fuels like Bakken crude oil where they belong  in the ground.

Another chief critic is Bill McKibben, a Middlebury College professor and leader of climate action group 350.org,

Since the pipeline has won its expedited fast-track approvals, the climate science has made it very clear that we simply cant build any more fossil fuel infrastructure, McKibben said in an email.

Then there are the Native American Groups, nursing grievances dating back to the 19th century treaties in which tribes ceded much of the Dakotas to the U.S. government. The protestors say the 1851 and 1868 Fort Laramie treaties left areas west of the Missouri River to the Lakota or Sioux tribes.

Energy Transfer says it obtained right of way from private landowners. And the Army Corps of Engineers, which approved the route, says the pipeline crosses half a mile north of the modern day Standing Rock Sioux reservation.

Native American groups have also raised two other objections: danger to water supplies and the distruption of sacred grounds including Lake Oahe. Many of the Standing Rock Sioux live downstream from the spot where the pipeline would cross under the Missouri River, and they cite dangers of a leak similar to ones in Montanas Yellowstone River or Michigans Kalamazoo River.

The protestors also say that Energy Transfer moved the route of the pipeline, which originally passed through wealthier areas of the state close to Bismarck.

This is the clearest example of environmental racism in action that youd ever want to see, McKibben said.

Q: Why do some people support the pipeline?

A: Many people support the pipeline, even those who worry about climate change. One reason, they say, is that the pipeline would be safer than trains, which have derailed with oil cargos on several occasions.

Another reason, they say, is that we still need the oil and producers will find ways of getting it to market.

With oil you can barge it, tanker it or put it on railroad cars or on trucks, said Frank Frank A. Verrastro, a senior fellow on energy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Typically people figure out another way.

Q: What happens next?

A: In September, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg said that while he was aware of the indignities visited upon the Tribe over the last centuries, he could not grant them an injunction against the construction. He said concerns about sacred grounds could be addressed through the use of tribal monitors or laying the pipeline well below areas with artifacts.

The ultimate resolution could depend on who becomes president. On Thursday, Hillary Clintons campaign weighed in.

Now, all of the parties involved  including the federal government, the pipeline company and contractors, the state of North Dakota, and the tribes  need to find a path forward that serves the broadest public interest, campaign spokeswoman Xochitl Hinojosa said in a statement.

McKibbens interpretation of the Clinton statement? I think the technical term for it ispap, he said. It literally says nothing.

pipeline-qanda
Star, a petite 6-year-old sheltie who competes in dog agility shows, almost missed a contest this month. She had spent the previous night at the vet, totally stoned on pot.

Her drug trip was an accident. Star lives in Oregon, where recreational use of marijuana became legal last year. Her owners husband had left some loose-leaf pot on the dining room table, and Star got curious. That was days after her sister, Kicker, gobbled up a pot-infused hard candy she found in the car, leaving her wobbling and incontinent. A veterinarian gave both dogs activated charcoal to absorb the toxin, which contributed to nearly $3,000 in medical bills and caused Star to poop in the ring during her competition.

It was a bad week, said the dogs owner, Susan Fry, of South Lebanon, Ore.

But it was probably a fairly routine week for the clinic that treated the dogs. As more jurisdictions legalize marijuana, veterinarians across the country say they are seeing a sharp increase in cases of pets accidentally getting high. Tasty edibles such as muffins and cookies that people consume for a buzz are also appealing to animals, who cant read warning labels, and, in the case of dogs, rarely stop at just one pot brownie.

Dogs used to kind of chew on the stash growing in the basement. Now theyre finding a big bag of gummy bears, said Heidi Houchen, a veterinarian at VCA Northwest Veterinary Specialists in a suburb of Portland, which treats a few marijuana cases a week. Dogs are Hoovers. Dogs are the rock eaters.

These incidents, which are rarely fatal, have driven a 330 percent increase over the past five years in calls about pets on pot to the Pet Poison Helpline, said Ahna Brutlag, a veterinary toxicologist who is associate director of the Minnesota-based animal poison control center. Two-thirds of the calls involve marijuana edibles, and nearly all involve dogs, she said. Veterinarians also cited examples of chihuahuas lapping up bong water, cats being exposed to vaping, and even rabbits, ferrets and birds getting accidentally stoned.

In the year after pot became legal for recreational use in Oregon, DoveLewis, a large emergency veterinary clinic in Portland, saw a 63 percent increase in marijuana toxicity cases despite a client base growth of just 7 percent, said Alaina Buller, a clinic spokeswoman. Those findings echoed the results of a 2012 study that found such cases quadrupled at two Colorado veterinary clinics in the five years after medical marijuana was legalized in that state.

As several YouTube videos illustrate, baked pets look a lot like really high people: Glassy-eyed, teetering, lethargic and pretty pathetic. In the case of Nigel, a 1-year-old pet teacup pig who was vacationing with his family in Nantucket this summer, it led to a serious case of the munchies. One member of the family  none of whom would agree to be identified in this article  had recently been in Colorado, where he had acquired pot peanut butter cookies that were in his backpack. Nigel, who was described as having a voracious appetite when sober, rooted them out and left the empty package as evidence.

Very soon, we had a very stoned pig on our hands, said one witness, a 54-year-old writer who lives in New York City. Hes just wandering around the kitchen desperate for food, doing a lot of whining and oinking. Then eventually, he just passed out.

Animals can sleep off a marijuana high in many cases, according to veterinarians interviewed, all of whom said they immediately suspect the substance when an incontinent pet shows up. Other common toxins, such as caffeine or pesticides, can be far more dangerous. But veterinarians say theres growing concern about the increased potency of todays marijuana edibles, many of which are made with butters or oils infused with highly concentrated tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC. Many also contain chocolate, which can be fatal to dogs.

Marijuana ingestion by animals can lead to vomiting, racing or slowed heart rates, tremors or even seizures. Veterinarians said it is usually treated by inducing vomiting or administering intravenous fluids or anti-nausea medications. In some cases, medications to control heart rates or tremors are necessary.

Most of them just need a night of detox, said veterinarian Shawn Thomas, who owns Tanasbourne Veterinary Emergency near Portland. The worst cases, Thomas said, involve owners who have also partaken. He recalled one standard poodle that was hospitalized for more than two days after devouring THC-infused butter. Its owner, Thomas said, didnt quickly realize the dog was suffering because he was blitzed out of his mind, too.

Ten years ago, we would have told you theres no chance your dog is going to die of this, he said. But now, I tell people, its so much stronger, and you have a four-pound Chihuahua and it could die.

Anson Graves, whose three-pound Chihuahua mix ate most of a pot brownie in August, said he really started to worry when the dog still could not walk 12 hours later. Rusty had fallen under the influence  accidentally, according to Graves, a 25-year-old waiter  amid the revelry of Bourbon Street in New Orleans, which recently decriminalized marijuana possession. Graves and his friends had stopped for beers and cocktails known as Hand Grenades when, he said, he looked down to see Rusty inhaling a packaged brownie lying on the curb. The label indicated it contained 60 milligrams of THC, he said.

Ive had my experiences, said Graves, who lives in Patterson, La. Thats quite a bit for a dog.

Half an hour later, Rusty was so lethargic that Graves headed home. The next morning, he was like a slinky, said Graves, who posted a video of the stoned dog on his Facebook page. He called his vet, who advised rehydrating Rusty by offering him Pedialyte. That helped, but the dog wasnt fully recovered until the fourth day, Graves said.

He was trying to run and jump on the bed. But hed just hit the bed, said Graves, who added that Rustys New Orleans visits are over. That was too much hassle.

The upshot to widening legalization and tolerance of marijuana, veterinarians say, is that pet owners now readily admit when they know their animals have consumed it. In some cases, they even acknowledge having given their pets pot for medical purposes, said Lisa Parshley, a veterinary oncologist in Olympia, Wash. Veterinarians are not allowed to prescribe medical marijuana, but Parshley said she had a client who used her own topical cannabis balm on her dog, which had end-stage cancer.

The dog got a little drunk on the THC, said Parshley. I convinced her to reduce the dose, and darn if the dog didnt do well for almost another month.

Veterinarians say the biggest lesson from the increase in stoned pet patients is an obvious one: Pot, like any potentially dangerous substance, needs to be kept out of a pets reach.

Fry said shes now enforcing that with her husband, John, who she said began using marijuana when he contracted multiple sclerosis 30 years ago  before it was legal in Oregon. He isnt noted for being a super clean guy, she said, explaining why hed left the candy in the car cupholder and the pot on the dining room table.

Kicker, the candy-eater, had a particularly strong reaction that left Fry  who said she tried marijuana once and was not a fan  in tears and worried she would lose the feisty little thing.

But both dogs bounced back  Star so well that she performed two of her agility events flawlessly just two days after her inadvertent overdose. Next month, both dogs are competing at a national event in Arizona where, luckily for them, there are no drug tests.

pets-marijuana
One of the mundane aspects of reading John Podestas emails is getting a sense of how Hillary Clintons network operates. When it comes to Clintons ties to the progressive left, however, the mundane takes on special meaning.

Podestas emails provide a window on Clintons inner circle as it grappled with the risks and rewards presented by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and the liberal wing of the Democratic Party in 2014 and 2015. The emails were hacked from his account and published online by the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks.

Here are five takeaways:



1. Clinton relies heavily on a few individuals to communicate with and provide advice about Warren.

Mandy Grunwald, a political strategist who has worked for both the Clintons and Warren, and Gary Gensler, a Warren favorite and the Clinton campaigns chief financial officer, appear to be critical players for bridging the two camps.

I am still worried that we will antagonize and activate Elizabeth Warren by opposing a new Glass Steagall, Grunwald wrote Oct. 2, 2015 as the Clinton team finalized an op-ed about Wall Street. The Glass-Steagall Act was a 1933 law separating commercial and investment banking that progressives want reinstated.

Grunwald continued: I worry about defending the banks in the debate . . . I worry about Elizabeth deciding to endorse Bernie [Sanders].

Later in the day, Gensler wrote he spoke with EW twice this week and numerous earlier times re: Glass Steagall as well as possible other financial reform proposals in coordination with Clinton aide Jake Sullivan.

As a side note, Clinton ultimately dismissed the idea of bringing back Glass-Steagall less than a week later on the campaign trail, and the issue did become a flash point in her primary debate the next month with primary opponent Sen. Bernie Sanders. Clintons campaign argues she has a stronger, more comprehensive approach to reforming Wall Street.

2. Two prominent women apparently put pressure on Warren on Clintons behalf when shes critical or not effusive enough.

Those women are Center for American Progress President Neera Tanden and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y. Heres how we know.

After Clinton and Warren met privately at Clintons Chappaqua, N.Y. home in early December 2014, Huma Abedin emailed a summary of the discussion to Podesta. The summary included the desire of Warrens team to communicate more directly with Clinton.

I think every time EW says something interpreted as not being effusive enough or critical, she hears from a Neera, Gillibrand, Mandy or we suggest that [Clinton speechwriter] Dan [Schwerin] talk to her policy person. Basically, her people are saying say enough already, lets just talk direct, Abedin wrote.

3. Podesta also communicates with Warren directly on occasion.

On Feb. 26, Warren sent him a brief message from her personal email account asking to speak on the phone. The two connected by the end of the day after Podesta got off a flight. Ill call in one minute, Warren wrote.

4. Warren and her team are proactive in communicating their views to Clinton. And Clintons team has been eager to meet with Warrens suggested candidates for appointments.

Warren sent Clinton a list of potential administration appointees in December 2014 or early January 2015, according to an email sent by Dan Schwerin after he met with a Warren adviser.

We have already been in touch with a number of [those candidates] and I asked if he would be comfortable introducing me to the others, to which he seemed reasonably amenable, Schwerin wrote Jan. 6, 2015.

Schwerin and the Warren adviser, Dan Geldon, met to follow up on the Clinton-Warren meeting in Chappaqua. Heres how Schwerin described their talk:

We spent less time on specific policies, because he seemed less interested in that. (Although he did express some flexibility on Glass-Steagall, said too big too fail is the bigger issue, and was open to our ideas on addressing through the tax code assuming it actually works.) He spoke repeatedly about the need to have in place people with ambition and urgency who recognize how much the middle class is hurting and are willing to challenge the financial industry . . .

Overall, it was a polite and engaged but not exactly warm conversation. They seem wary  and pretty convinced that the Rubin folks have the inside track with us whether we realize it yet or not  but open to engagement and to be proven wrong. He mentioned that everyone will be watching carefully any leaks about who HRC is meeting and talking to.

Rubin folks refers to what progressives see as a group of leaders with moderate attitudes toward Wall Street cultivated by former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin.

5. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio is very eager to help Clintons team.

De Blasio, a noted progressive, gave Podesta regular updates throughout 2015 about his work on Clintons behalf.

I am pleased to note that I have used the specific word hopeful (along with the word optimistic) many times recently with our friends in the media who have asked about Hillary, he wrote April 28, 2015.

De Blasio also passed along intelligence like this, regarding his plan to decline Sanders request for support on Sept. 18, 2015:



As I mentioned to Robby, I accepted Bernie Sanders request for a mtg today. Will try to keep it low-key but assume it will leak out. My message to him (saying this in confidence to you) is that I will always want to work with him in the future and will never have a bad word about him, but wont be supporting him in this campaign.

This year, Podesta asked de Blasio on March 17 what he thought of the idea of a super PAC promoted by Sanders to funnel small-dollar donations to progressive candidates and to Clinton.

I am sure our team would view it as competition and try to strangle it, but I think it might have merit, Podesta wrote.



On first blush, I think it has A LOT of merit, de Blasio replied later. It would give Bernie followers a way to connect that would then be a good gateway to getting them more comfortable with Hillary. We need to keep continuity with them. And the money will be left on the table otherwise . . . I stand ready to help build this.

clinton-emails-explain
The states largest utility saw net earnings drop more than 16 percent in the third quarter compared to the same time a year ago, driven in part by the recent rate case decision as well as decreased electric demand at Intels Rio Rancho plant.

Public Service Company of New Mexico posted third-quarter net earnings at $40.9 million, compared to $49.2 million in the third quarter of 2015. PNMs net earnings for the first nine months of the year dropped as well, from $80.6 million last year to $60.9 million this year.

PNM Resources, the energy holding company that owns PNM and Texas-New Mexico Power Company, also saw net earnings decline, from $61 million in the third quarter last year to $54.4 million this year. Year-to-date earnings were $92 million, compared to $107.1 million last year.

In a conference call with investors, President and CEO Pat Vincent-Collawn said the earnings were in line with the companys expectations, and focused primarily on the decision by state regulators to approve a customer rate hike below what the company requested.

The (PRCs) determinations do not provide full recovery of all the investments we have made in our system, said Vincent-Collawn. We do not believe these determinations are consistent with either the law or the facts.

PNM has appealed the decision to the state Supreme Court. The company also plans to file a new rate case in December.

The past case, one of the most contentious in recent memory, hinged on whether PNM acted prudently by purchasing $163.5 million worth of nuclear power from the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station, extending several Palo Verde leases for $19.5 million per year, and installing $52.3 million worth of air pollution controls at San Juan Generating Station that other parties called excessive. The PRC eventually determined the company was entitled to an increase in annual revenue of $65.7 million, far less than the $123.5 million PNM requested.

That decision wasnt the only variable affecting PNMs earnings. While investor materials show the company benefited from lower operations and maintenance costs, they also depict a company grappling with, among other things, decreased load from industrial customers.

When asked by an investor what was driving the drop in industrial load, Chuck Eldred, PNMs CFO, said it was mainly due to a single, large customer slowing its operations. Eldred said he had been asked not to name the company, but he went on to a describe a customer consistent with the profile of the Intel plant in Rio Rancho. Intel began laying off an unknown number of employees at the plant earlier this year, as part of a plan to reduce its global workforce by 11 percent.

We dont have a strong industrial base in New Mexico to begin with, so that customer is really the driver (of PNMs industrial load), said Eldred.

PNM reaffirmed its 2016 consolidated ongoing earnings guidance of $1.55 to $1.65 per diluted share.
PHOENIX  A Mexican man accused of selling heroin and methamphetamine in Arizona has been sentenced to eight years in prison.

State prosecutors announced Friday that Carlos Vasquez-Franco also was ordered by a judge Friday to pay more than $21,000 in fines.

The 37-year-old Vasquez-Franco had earlier pleaded guilty to possession of dangerous drugs for sale and possession of narcotic drugs for sale.

An Arizona grand jury indicted Vasquez-Franco after his arrest in February.

Vasquez-Franco is from Nogales, Sonora, Mexico.

Prosecutors say he traveled to the Phoenix area to deliver heroin and methamphetamine to customers of a Mexico-based drug trafficking organization.

Authorities reported seizing about 34 pounds of heroin and 25 pounds of methamphetamine from Vasquez-Franco.
The leaders of the armed takeover of an Oregon wildlife refuge were acquitted Thursday, a stunning series of verdicts that cleared Ammon Bundy, the groups leader, as well as his brother Ryan and five others. But that surprising outcome may have overshadowed the reality that this saga is far from over.

While a jury acquitted the Bundy brothers, most of the people charged with the Oregon takeover already pleaded guilty or still have to stand trial on federal charges  a group that includes both Bundys, who are still in custody because they are facing another federal trial in Nevada stemming from a different standoff between the family and the government.

The occupation at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, a remote federal facility in southeastern Oregon, began in the aftermath of peaceful protests in January aimed at supporting two ranchers sentenced to prison for arson. The siege eventually blossomed to a sizable number of people who came and went through the snowy outpost, their activities and comments documented by reporters and occupiers alike, drawing national attention to the takeover and the decades-long dispute over federal land rights in the West.

During the trial, prosecutors described the takeover as a long-plotted occupation, while attorneys for the occupiers  who did not deny they were there  insisted they were not trying to prevent people from doing their jobs, but were instead protesting government actions.

More than two dozen people involved in the Malheur takeover were charged with conspiring to use force, intimidation, and threats to keep federal employees from working at the refuge during the takeover. So far, 11 people have already pleaded guilty to this charge, a series of pleas entered during the months before the Bundy trial got underway.

In at least one case, a lower-level occupier was sentenced to more time behind bars. Corey Lequieu, an Army veteran from Nevada, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two and a half years in prison along with three years of supervised release. Another person who pleaded guilty  Brian Cavalier, who was said to provide security to the Bundys  was sentenced to time served. Others are still set to be sentenced in the coming weeks and months, court records show.

In February, a little more than a year after the takeover ended in dramatic fashion, others who maintain their innocence will head to court much as the Bundy brothers did.

It is not immediately clear how federal prosecutors high-profile loss this week will impact this upcoming trial. Billy Williams, the U.S. attorney for Oregon, acknowledged in a statement that we had hoped for a different outcome to this case. He had been expected to address the media later Friday.

One juror in the case defended the acquittals Friday, telling the Oregonian in an email that the verdicts were a statement regarding the various failures of the prosecution to prove that there was a conspiracy. This juror also told the publication that the verdicts were not any form of affirmation of the defenses various beliefs, actions or aspirations.

The most high-profile people charged for the takeover were the two Bundy brothers, who were among the group of seven found not guilty of the conspiracy charge as well as a count of possessing firearms in a federal facility. (That one seems odd to many people, given the voluminous evidence of the occupiers wandering around the refuge with guns, but the charge was specifically for having a gun in a federal facility with the intent that it be used in the commission of a crime.)

Both Bundy brothers are being transferred to Nevada, officials said, where they are set to stand trial again in February, just days before the next trial stemming from the Oregon standoff is scheduled to begin.

Ammon and Ryan Bundy were charged in Nevada along with their father, rancher Cliven Bundy, for an armed standoff with government officials there in 2014 that also drew national attention.

That standoff seemed to presage the Oregon takeover in many ways. Authorities had gone to Bundys ranch planning to round up livestock that had grazed on federally owned land for years without a permit, but his armed supporters threatened to go to war. The federal government backed down from the confrontation, and the elder Bundy remained free for more than two years after that episode.

Experts say right-wing extremists were emboldened by the outcome of that standoff. The Southern Poverty Law Center issued a report stating that the Bundy ranch standoff invigorated an extremist movement across the country.

Ultimately, Cliven Bundy was arrested as he arrived in Oregon at the tail end of the refuge occupation. His arrest came after his sons were already behind bars. For weeks during the occupation, people were allowed to come and go from the refuge, but in late January authorities moved to arrest the Bundy brothers and others while they traveled outside Malheur.

During the same operation that saw the Bundy brothers arrested, state troopers shot and killed LaVoy Finicum, an occupier who had served as a de facto spokesman for the group. Officials said that the state troopers feared for their lives when Finicum reached toward his jacket, where they later said they found a loaded 9mm handgun. Activists decried Finicums death as an ambush, and the FBI took the unusual step of quickly releasing video footage of the shooting to try to explain what had happened and dispel unrest.

This shooting was deemed legally justified by authorities, but multiple investigations are still ongoing into FBI agents who were present and have been accused of firing shots and never reporting them. While the Bundy brothers were cleared for their role in the Oregon siege, it still remains possible that federal law enforcement officials could face discipline or legal action for the sole armed confrontation between police and the occupiers.



This story, first posted at 10:40 a.m., has been updated.



VIDEO:

(This video was updated on Oct. 28, 2016.) Heres a look at the Bundy familys history of anti-government actions.

http://wapo.st/1O4tbXX

oregon-bundy
A former University of Maryland student who pleaded guilty to throwing a fatal punch outside a College Park bar was granted a new sentence this month, a decision that will allow the conviction to disappear from his criminal record.

Prince Georges County Circuit Court Judge Albert Northrop ordered the manslaughter conviction of Arasp Biparva in the 2014 killing of Jack Godfrey to be modified. The judge also granted Biparva probation before judgment, which means the charge can later be expunged from the record.

The modified sentence will help Biparva, 25, as he finds a job in accounting, his attorney said.

Currently, the conviction will interfere with the application process and prevent Mr. Biparva from obtaining the certifications he needs to advance his career, his attorney, Barry Helfand, said in a request for the modified sentence.

The judges decision has devastated Godfreys family, which already was distraught that Biparva received no prison time when he was sentenced for manslaughter in April.

My family feels like he [Biparva] shouldnt be able to get a highflying job in finance, Godfreys mother, Nicola Bridges, said. He should have a McDonalds hat on his head or a janitors mop in his hand. Jack wont have a career, a wife, a life.

Godfrey, 21, was sucker-punched and knocked unconscious outside Cornerstone Bar in College Park when a brawl involving 15 to 20 people began about 2 a.m. in March 2013, according to police and prosecutors. Godfrey, who was not involved in the fight, happened to be standing in the area when Biparva struck him.

Godfrey survived the blow, but after several operations and physical therapy, he died in his sleep in November 2014. A state medical examiner determined that he had suffered a seizure and other injuries as a result of the assault.

Christopher Griffiths, a longtime criminal lawyer in Maryland who is not involved in the case, said it would be difficult to determine how common or unusual it is for judges to grant modified sentences in manslaughter cases, because each case presents a unique set of facts and defendant background. Reconsideration is a completely discretionary act on the part of the court, Griffiths said. It is usually a case-by-case determination.

Biparva pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the death and in April was sentenced to three years of probation and no prison time.

At Biparvas sentencing hearing, Helfand said his client had no criminal record and had taken responsibility for his actions. Helfand said Biparva had been assaulted during the brawl and was reacting to the violence around him when he accidentally punched Godfrey. My client is genuinely remorseful for the incident and is grateful to the judge for his decision, Helfand said of the modified sentence. At the sentencing, the judge said he would be open to revisiting the sentence at later date.

After a second hearing in September, Northrop issued an order Oct. 11 in response to the request for a new sentence.

There is no question but that this is a tragic and most unfortunate case, the judge wrote. Having reviewed once again the entire matter along with the numerous letters offered and the arguments of counsel, the court is satisfied that the balance of justice is on the side of the Defendants motion.

Biparva, a University of Maryland student at the time of the incident, was expelled from the school but earn a degree in New York. Prosecutors sought a six-year term at his April sentencing hearing. At the more recent hearing, prosecutors opposed Biparvas request for any changes, said John Erzen, a spokesman for the Prince Georges County states attorneys office.

Those injuries were caused by the punch that Mr. Biparva threw, Erzen said. We felt that because somebody actually lost their life, this was a conviction that needed to stay with Mr. Biparva for the rest of his life.

Godfreys mother, who runs a special-needs nonprofit group in California called Capability Ranch, said she is upset that the manslaughter charge will one day be erased from Biparvas record as if the incident never happened. She also said the judges decision shows deep disparities and inconsistencies in the legal system.

This sends a message to any young person that if you seriously injure somebody and they ultimately pass away . . . it doesnt matter. You can get off, she said.

Now its like nothing happened, Bridges said. The guilty is gone.

maryland-punch
A jurys stunning rejection of the governments case against seven people charged in connection with this years armed occupation of a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon has reignited the combustible debate in America over the federal governments authority and its land use policies in the West.

While land rights and anti-Washington activists greeted the jurys decision as a long-overdue victory for American liberty, others called it a terrifying invitation for armed protesters to occupy federal land and buildings with impunity, potentially putting federal workers at risk.

People are starting to pay attention to the narrative that the government is trying to push upon the people, and theyre not buying it. The government is overreaching, and its time for that to stop, said B.J. Soper, an Oregon activist who closely monitored the trial and also was present at the 41-day occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge this January and February.

The acquittal after a six-week trial comes at a time when tensions across the nation are already amped up because of the vitriolic presidential campaign and growing fears of potential violence on and after Election Day.

This absolutely shocking verdict is sure to embolden armed paramilitary groups in the white-hot political environment in this country, said Tarso Luis Ramos, executive director of Political Research Associates, a human rights organization that has studied the anti-government activism in Oregon. This sends a signal that not only is it appropriate to challenge the rule of law through armed militancy, but that it is effective to do so.

The defendants argued that their occupation was a peaceful act of civil disobedience, in the tradition of Martin Luther King Jr., in protest of vast federal land ownership in the West. They said they acted after years of frustration with government agencies that they say strangle local economies with over-regulation and pay little attention to local concerns.

Federal prosecutors charged that the well-armed occupiers, led by brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy, illegally occupied the property and used guns and the threat of force to hold it in an incident that drew international attention to the remote, snowy plains of far Eastern Oregon.

The six men and one woman acquitted Thursday were officially charged with conspiracy to prevent federal employees from doing their job, an argument rejected by a federal court jury in Portland.

That decision was vindication for everyone who has stood up and said to the government: What you are doing is wrong, and we want you to stop,  Soper said.

The jurys full reasoning remained unclear Friday, however. One juror wrote to the Oregonian newspaper after the trial, saying, It should be known that all 12 jurors felt that this verdict was a statement regarding the various failures of the prosecution to prove conspiracy in the count itself  and not any form of affirmation of the defenses various beliefs, actions or aspirations.

Mark Heckert, of the Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, a sportsmens group, could barely control his rage at the decision, which he said did not represent the rural values cited by supporters of the defendants.

Negotiating at the barrel of a gun is not a rural value; thats just intimidation, said Heckert, who visited the refuge during the occupation as a public lands advocate. It emboldens these guys who think if something doesnt go your way, grab a gun and go out and force people to change it. Im disgusted at the actions that people can take without any consequences.

In addition to the seven people acquitted Thursday, 11 others charged have already pleaded guilty; seven more face trial in February.

But most attention has been focused on the trial of the Bundy brothers, whose father, Cliven Bundy, has become a potent symbol for activists angry over land policies in the West, where the federal government owns more than 50 percent of the land in many states.

Hundreds of armed activists faced off with armed Bureau of Land Management agents and other federal authorities at Bundys Nevada ranch in 2014 in a dispute over Bundys refusal to pay more than $1 million in overdue fees to graze his cattle on federal land.

Fearing bloodshed, federal authorities backed off for almost two years before filing federal firearms and other charges against Bundy and 18 other people, including Ammon Bundy, 41, and Ryan Bundy, 43. Despite their acquittal Thursday, the brothers were ordered held in jail pending their trial in Nevada in February.

That withdrawal from the land in 2014 has been seen as emboldening militia groups, including the Oath Keepers and the 3 Percenters, to stage armed confrontations with authorities at mines on federal property in Oregon and Montana  as well as the wildlife refuge occupation.

Critics said the jurys verdict would encourage them further.

Its disastrous; what this verdict is very likely to do is to unleash these people, said Mark Potok of the Southern Poverty Law Center, which monitors anti-government extremism. The danger is that we get armed invasions of all kinds of public lands and similar institutions, to push the completely bogus idea that the states are the real owners of public lands. The real danger is bloodshed.

Michele Fiore, a Nevada state assemblywoman and high-profile supporter of the Bundys, said that such predictions were groundless. She said that many of the defendants had spent nine months in jail awaiting trial, so their activism has come with a heavy price despite the acquittal.

Personally, I dont see anyone just going in and taking over federal buildings because we got a not-guilty verdict, she said.

J. David Cox Sr., president of the American Federation of Government Employees, the largest federal employee union, representing 670,000 workers  including hundreds of BLM agents  disagreed.

This acquittal sends a very dangerous message that members of the public can engage in an armed takeover of a federal facility and face no consequences, Cox said in a written statement.

Interior Secretary Sally Jewell sent a note to all employees Friday, including those at the Bureau of Land Management, saying she was profoundly disappointed in the decision and concerned about its potential implications.

In the coming days and weeks, I encourage you to take care of yourselves and your fellow employees, she wrote. The armed occupation in Oregon was and continues to be a reminder that employees in all offices should remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity.

Jamie Clark, president of Defenders of Wildlife, issued a statement Friday saying the jurys decision represented a day of national sorrow for all who care about our countrys magnificent public lands, and a time for deep concern among our nations law enforcement officers who will confront increased threats of violence across the West.

Bob Dreher, another official of that organization, said, The signal that it sends is that they got away with it. He said the verdict adds validation to statements by Ammon Bundy and others about how the federal government is illegitimate, which puts everybody at risk  federal workers at risk, federal lands at risk of intrusion.

Joseph Rice, a local Republican official in Southern Oregon, noted that Americans have a constitutionally protected right to redress grievances with the government.

It doesnt say how or when its done. Its at the individuals choosing, Rice said.

Rice said history suggests that civilians have more to fear from the government than vice versa. He said federal authorities instigated violence at the 1990s standoffs at Ruby Ridge, Idaho, and Waco, Texas, which resulted in scores of deaths and energized the anti-government militia movement. At the Oregon standoff, he said, Oregon State Police troopers fatally shot LaVoy Finicum, who had been a spokesman for the group.

Finicum was killed when state police and the FBI stopped a car in which he and other occupation leaders were driving. Officials said Finicum was shot when he appeared to reach for a loaded gun in his jacket, and the troopers were later cleared of wrongdoing.

Lavoy Finicum was basically set up and assassinated, Rice said. That man was denied his day in court, and, as we saw yesterday, would have been found innocent. He broke no law yet was murdered by the government.

Rice faulted the BLM for failing to make good-faith efforts to communicate with and work with local people who feel that their traditional means of earning income  including grazing, timber-cutting and mining  are threatened by federal environmental policies that they believe favor endangered species over the economic well-being of communities.

The acquittal came as a shock to black activists in Portland. Earlier this month, during the Malheur trial, police used pepper spray to break up a peaceful sit-in over a police union contract at City Hall.

We were all thrown down the stairs and out the door by riot cops because our mayor said he didnt feel comfortable with us being in a public space, said Teressa Raiford, a community organizer active in the Black Lives Matter movement who is also running a write-in campaign for Multnomah County sheriff.

Its very racist out here, and this is a serious message to everybody that says, You know what, if you dont look like us, if you dont stand for America  and I guess America is white  youre an insurgent and well treat you as such,  she said. Its horrible.

Thursdays verdict came on the same day that Native American protesters of an oil pipeline in North Dakota were tear-gassed, which came as no surprise to Jarvis Kennedy, an official with the Burns Paiute Native American tribe, which lived on the land where the Oregon wildlife refuge is now located.

I kind of figured theyd get off because there were no minorities there, Kennedy said. Its all about white privilege.

  

Sottile reported from Portland. Lisa Rein in Washington contributed to this report.

oregon
Yes, Simon's Cat is between the covers again The new book is called Simon's Cat vs the World and you can win your own copy, acco...
Tech and government investment specialist Veritas Capital has made another deal in the wake of its weighty $10.65bn Fund VIII close from earlier this month with the buyout of analytics provider Verisk's energy business.
It was announced today that HBAN (Halo Business Angel Network), the all-island organisation responsible for the promotion of business angel investment and a joint initiative of InterTradeIreland and Enterprise Ireland, will invest 2 million in craft beer company, Wicklow Wolf.

HBANs Food Syndicate is one of the leading stakeholders in the deal, which is also supported by Enterprise Ireland and a number of private investors.

Wicklow Wolfs owners will use the investment to open a new, larger brewing site in Wicklow, which will enable a 15-fold boost in production capacity.

This will support Wicklow Wolfs plans to expand domestically and into international markets including the US, Asia and Europe. As it grows over the next five years, Wicklow Wolf will increase its staff base by 20. In doing so, Wicklow Wolf will increase its role in Irelands burgeoning craft beer industry, which is expected to see a turnover of 58M in 2016  up 48% from last year.

Founded by Quincey Fennelly and Simon Lynch, the company started brewing in August 2014 and sold its first beer one month later to The Harbour Bar in Bray, Co. Wicklow. The business now supplies to 150 pubs and 550 off-licenses across the island of Ireland.

Speaking about todays announcement, CEO at Wicklow Wolf Brewing Company, Quincey Fennelly said, "Its not just about funding; the angel investors from the Food Syndicate have years of experience in the food and beverages industry. Theyll have a big role to play when we expand overseas, helping us to avoid the mistakes and pitfalls that others before us have fallen into. Their knowledge and experience in manufacturing, distribution and international marketing will be of enormous value to the future of our business."

Source: www.businessworld.ie
The Future of Data Analytics Forum took place in Dublin City University last month.

A horizon-scanning report from the Future of Data Analytics Forum, hosted by the Insight Centre for Data Analytics, contains key recommendations and observations on the direction of Irish and global data science research.

The conclusions are based on contributions from almost 50 attendees representing research, industry and government agencies. Companies in attendance included Accenture, Citi, Creme Global, Deutsche Bank, HPE, Huawei, IBM Research, Intel, Microsoft, SAP, Zalando. Enterprise Ireland and Science Foundation Ireland also contributed to the event.

Proceeding were led by Insight senior leadership and members of the Insight Scientific and Industry Advisory Boards. A key focus of the forum was the role of machines in future decision-making.

According to the report, "Data privacy and ownership is particularly relevant in Ireland given the companies based here whose business is about personal data and it is thus important that Ireland shows international leadership in this area."

They added, "The data environment is Ireland is fast-changing, global and talent-dependent. Keeping abreast of technical developments in the field is not enough; Ireland needs to be ahead of that developmental curve."

Source: www.businessworld.ie
Opening

Toyotas first generation of Innovas in India had a short stint with a petrol engine but it didnt last for long as it wasnt a great proposition back then. However, the Delhi-NCR diesel ban that was lifted some time ago highlighted the problems diesel mills could encounter in time. Since then, some car makers have gone on the back foot and a range of petrol engine variants have made it to our market to compensate for any future shortcomings.

Toyotas Innova Crysta petrol will cater to those consumers who aspire for a petrol engine in their favourite MPV, and will also work as a back-up plan for the car maker in case there are any future proceedings against diesel engines. We drove the petrol version of the Innova Crysta and heres what we think about it.

Appearance Exterior

The styling of Toyotas petrol Innova Crysta is identical to the diesel variants, so you get the same fascia that consists of a huge two-slat hexagonal grille with wide double barrel projector-halogen headlamps (with DRLs) on either side. In profile, the unmistakeable MPV silhouette is clearly visible along with the angular quarter glass design.

A set of boomerang shaped tail lamps can be found under the rear windscreen along with neat sheet metal curves, a roof spoiler, and a bumper design which allows for easier and wider access to the boot. Overall, the Innova Crysta has design cues that impart a superior appearance to the overall stance.





Appearance Interior

Similar styling to the diesel version means the same curvy dashboard with silver outlines that accentuate the flowing design. Theres a feel-good factor linked to the dual coloured leather seats, chunky multi-functional steering and soft touch door pads, but it is not consistent through the cabin and the quality levels is not exactly what youd expect from a Rs 20 lakh car. That said theres quite a bit of space to stash one's belongings on the centre console, two gloveboxes and the door pads.

We noticed that the visibility while backing up is a bit hampered due to the angular window line at the quarter glass section. That said, reading the temperature off the raked air-con display is difficult with the reflections in broad daylight. Once seated in the front, occupants will find a decently contoured seat thats well bolstered for comfort and lend good back and thigh support, along with lots of knee and head room.

Move on to the middle row, and buyers will rejoice over the large seats that impart proper support with liberal shoulder room, head room and adjustable kneeroom since theres a lever to move the front seats back and forth. Adults can be seated in the last row albeit with limited kneeroom, so comfort over longer stints is questionable with the low seat squab and high floor. That said, boot space is just about enough for some slim hard baggage and soft bags with all the rows up.

The petrol Innova Crysta will be available in seven and eight seater options with variants called GX, VX and ZX. Just like the diesel sibling, one will get three airbags (includes driver knee airbag), ABS and brake assist as standard. The ZX variant features an integrated touch screen infotainment system with navigation, Bluetooth, USB and aux-in. Theres also power mirrors with electric retract, two-zone automatic climate control with rear air-con digital display and adjustable ambient roof lighting. Safety features include seven airbags, stability control and hill-start assist.

Performance Drive

Toyotas Innova Crysta in petrol guise hides an inconspicuous 2.7-litre motor thats good for 166bhp at 5200rpm and 245Nm of torque at 4000rpm, and is offered with either a five-speed manual or a six-speed automatic. We got to drive the automatic version and once you start the motor, theres no running away from the fact that it is on the noisier side, especially when revved. On the contrary, being a petrol means the refinement levels are better than the diesel sibling straight off the bat, so it comes without the vibration and harshness thats usually associated with diesels.

As a result, if this is a car youre planning to drive, rather than being driven around in, this MPV is definitely for you. However, this motor lacks the sheer punch that the diesel mill enjoys and is hence not as exciting to drive as one would expect a petrol to be. Nevertheless, once youre off the mark, keep the throttle depressed and the engine will respond with a clean and linear rush to the 5800rpm redline with a slight surge in performance at around 2000rpm. 100kmph comes up in a relatively brisk 12.42sec (diesel auto takes 11.67sec).

Theres three drive modes to select from, called Eco, Normal, and Power. Come off the accelerator pedal in Eco and Normal mode and the system lets the rpm spring back just above idle revs and in the process lets the Innova Crysta coast. All modes are basically remaps and one wouldnt be able to notice the difference between Eco and Normal mode while driving. However, responses in Power mode are crisper and the gears downshift as soon as more throttle input is detected to build up on the momentum.

Our Vbox recorded the 20-80kmph and 40-100kmph sprint in 7.2sec and 9.24sec (diesel auto- 6.73sec and 8.56sec). The transmission is decently quick barring a few low speed kickdown instances where the gearbox took a little longer to select a gear to downshift. With most of the useable torque concentrated around 3000rpm, one can hear the gearbox working hard to keep this MPV going when you demand more of it. While at it, the Innova Crysta recorded a dismal 7.9kmpl in the city and 10.4kmpl on the highway, and is mainly due to the large capacity petrol engine and weight (1870kg).

Just like the diesel variant, the softly sprung setup makes for a decent low speed ride but expect the constant shimmy over sharper bumps which is characteristic of a ladder frame. Also, one will hear the suspension only when the roads turn from bad to worse which is when it filters into the cabin with a thud. Be prepared for some sideways rocking and a bit of bobbing on uneven patches as these are traits of a ladder frame chassis setup.

With this suspension setup, the Innova Crysta invites loads of grip and great straight line stability. Though it tends to roll a fair bit, the steering does a good job in controlling its manners around bends. We did feel that the steering was a bit light and slow off the dead centre once youre on the move, but as speeds rise it weighs up decently. That said, at much slower speeds like while navigating through tighter lanes or parking, you will witness the steering to become exceedingly heavy and cumbersome to manoeuvre. With the Innova Crysta, one will find the brakes to offer a reassuring sharp bite, however, a little more feedback from the pedal would have been welcome.

Tech Specs

Make Toyota Model Innova Crysta Fuel Petrol Variant ZX auto Engine Capacity 2694cc Max. Power (bhp@rpm) 166 @ 5200 Max. torque (Nm@rpm) 245 @ 4000 Gears Six speed automatic Length mm 4735 Width mm 1830 Height mm 1795 Wheelbase mm 2750 Fuel Capacity (in litres) 65 Tyre size 215/55 R17

Features

Features 7 SRS airbags Yes ABS with EBD and BA Yes Vehicle Stability Control Yes Hill Start Assist Control Yes Seat back folding tables Yes Push Start/Stop button Yes Auto air-con with digital display for second row Yes Ambient lighting Yes Leather seats Yes

Competition All Specs

Specifications Toyota

Innova Crysta Hyundai

Elantra Variant ZX auto SX (O) auto Fuel Petrol Petrol Engine Capacity 2694cc 1999cc Max. Power (bhp) 166 @ 5200 152 @ 6200 Max. torque (Nm) 245 @ 4000 196 @ 4000 Gears Six speed automatic Six speed automatic Length mm 4735 4570 Width mm 1830 1800 Height mm 1795 1465 Wheelbase mm 2750 2700 Fuel Capacity (in litres) 65 50 Tyre size 215/55 R17 205/60 R16

Conclusion

Of course, theres no denying that Toyota will benefit by having a viable option to diesels in case things go south with emissions the next time. However, the petrol Innova Crysta is also meant for those buyers who will be driving themselves and want an exceptionally reliable MPV with great packaging and smoothness but will not be covering a lot of mileage due to the low fuel efficiency. Such buyers prefer these traits over the frugality, NVH characteristics and the extra maintenance that diesels attract. Only time and upcoming diesel bans can show us how the petrol Toyota Innova Crysta will fare in our market.

Pictures: Kapil Angane

Toyota Innova Crysta  18.09 Lakh Onwards

Toyota | Innova Crysta | Toyota Innova Crysta
CDC Foundations New Business Pulse Focuses on Reducing Tobacco Use

Media Advisory For Immediate Release: Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Contact: CDC Media Relations

404-639-3286

Business Pulse: Tobacco Useexternal icon, launched today by the CDC Foundation, focuses on how employers can improve employee health by reducing tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke. Business Pulse: Tobacco Use also features an interactive infographic with facts to help employers protect and promote the health of all workers and a link to online CDC resources.

Smoking hurts the U.S. economy, costing more than $300 billion annually in direct medical care and lost productivity, including $5.6 billion a year in productivity losses from exposure to secondhand smoke. However, there are practical steps businesses can take to protect workers health along with overall business health.

To access Business Pulse, visit http://www.cdcfoundation.org/businesspulse.

###

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICESexternal icon
CDC, Miami-Dade and Miami Beach collaborate and make progress on better understanding and stopping the Zika outbreak

Media Statement For Immediate Release: Thursday, October 27, 2016

Contact: Media Relations,

(404) 639-3286

CDC continues to support local efforts to prevent new infections of Zika in Miami-Dade County. To see the latest situation firsthand, Dr. Frieden traveled to Miami on Tuesday, October 25. He met with Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez and Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine, toured areas with known, active Zika transmission, and discussed strategies to combat Zika in Little River, Miami Beach, and throughout South Florida during the coming months.

CDC has collaborated with Florida in its response since Zika was first reported in Miami in July 2016. In addition to our support for the state, a strong partnership with the mayors of the affected areas has advanced our understanding of the virus and helped reduce the risk of infection for people living in and traveling to those areas. We have evidence that the response is working:

Miami-Dade County officials interrupted the spread of Zika virus in Wynwood with a comprehensive integrated pest management program that included aerial spraying. Aerial spraying of ultra-low volumes of pesticide along with natural larvicide knocked down mosquitos rapidly and was associated with interrupting transmission of Zika in Wynwood.

Miami-Dade County and Miami Beach currently report low mosquito trap counts.

CDC has been working with Miami-area officials on plans for Prevention, Detection, Response since Zika was first reported and expects to continue to do so. In particular, CDC applauds the intensive case investigation and vector control efforts of our colleagues in Florida.

Despite this progress, Zika remains unpredictable, and we cant let down our guard. CDC is committed to working with state, city and county officials to provide people living in or traveling to Miami-Dade County with transparent, timely and complete information, and to prepare for possible continued spread of Zika in the months to come. On October 27, CDC and the Florida Department of Health will present a seminar, Zika Clinical Considerations for Obstetrics and Gynecology Practitioners: Updated Guidance to ensure Florida clinicians have the latest information to protect their patients. To date, CDC has provided Florida with more than $38 million in emergency preparedness and Zika funds, technical assistance and staff to support the response, thousands of Zika test kits and materials for Zika Prevention Kits, and educational materials.

As this collaboration with Florida shows, an effective Zika response must be tailored to each affected community. Going forward, the optimal approach includes intensive surveillance of mosquito populations, rapid response with effective mosquito control, and a continuing search for new methods of vector control. We are committed to working with local and state authorities to prevent infections and provide the protection pregnant women deserve.

To further enhance response to Zika outbreaks, wherever they occur, CDC will continue to rely on partners to share information about:

New locally acquired cases of Zika

Mosquito-trapping data

Number of pregnant women being tested for Zika

The US Zika Pregnancy Registry

###

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICESexternal icon
Key Fund has today announced 10m worth of funding available for community and social enterprises across the North and Midlands.

The North of Englands specialist investor in community and social enterprises says that it aims to invest in 100 enterprises per year, for the next three years.

The 10m includes a 5.5m Northern Impact Fund, supported by Access  the Foundation for Social Investment, with funding from Big Society Capital and the Big Lottery Fund, which offers blended loan and grant investments up to 150,000.

Key Fund have also secured 4.5m of new finance direct from Big Society Capital, to support general investment activity.

The Northern Impact Fund is open to applications from social enterprises operating in the Midlands, North East, North West and Yorkshire and the Humber.

Matt Smith, chief executive of the Key Fund, said: With this fund were offering finance of up to 150,000, but typical investments will be around 50,000, with up to 20 per cent of the amount available as grant. The Key Fund was one of the early pioneers in this space, and our original model was based on a grant and loan mix, so were really excited to be going back to that original model.

Its long been our belief that grants can play a very important role in helping new and smaller social enterprise become more robust.



The Northern Impact Fund has received support from the Growth Fund, an initiative of Access  the Foundation for Social Investment.

Key Fund announced the new funding at its offices in Sheffield this morning, while also releasing its Social Impact Report 2015/16.

The report said that the last year saw Key Fund invest a total of 10m in 201 enterprises, which received funds ranging from 5,000 to 300,000. The investments created 37 new businesses, created 293 jobs and safeguarded 188 jobs.

Smith said: Our Social Impact Report demonstrates what a significant impact the sector has. There are inspiring businesses and individuals, who are not only generating jobs in some of the most disadvantaged communities, but are also tackling deep-rooted social issues. Were now looking for 300 more community and social enterprises to come forward over the next three years, whether they are start-ups or existing enterprises looking to expand, diversify or grow.

More infomation on the funding and how to apply can be found on Key Fund's website.
Our weekly round-up of interesting and outlandish information, collected from the corners of the charity sector.

Charity finds itself in the downward doghouse

Let Diary pose you, dear reader, a serious question. Did you know that the British Wheel of Yoga (BWY) was in fact a registered charity? No, neither did this column.

A cursory glance at the charity register though will confirm this to be the truth. Its a charity that provides, according to its charitable activities, a portfolio of courses for class-based and distance learning students of the ancient art of yoga and also runs a number of teacher training and accreditation centres across the UK. Last year it had an income of nearly 1m and purports to have over 7,200 subscribing members.

In its capacity as the UKs governing body of all things yogary, the BWY has begun a year-long consultation with yoga enthusiasts to create national standards for teachers. In essence, the BWY is concerned that unlicensed yoga practitioners are causing grievous bodily harm to portly middle-management types, and Shoreditch hipsters alike, in their race to cash in on a national rise in yogas celebrity-driven popularity.

These accusations have got some yogis in a bit of a twist however  The Times has quoted certain yoga traditionalists who have hit back at the charity saying that one cannot regulate a religion and that any attempts to do so are neo-colonialist.

Swami Ambikananda, a Hindu monk and chairwoman of the Traditional Yoga Association, is quoted in The Times as saying: This is dividing the world of yoga. We are not insensitive to peoples safety but yoga is a 7,000-year-old religion and a quasi-governmental organisation cannot regulate a religion. Attempts to do so are the height of hubris.

"The height of hubris!" This column is so fond of a good turn of phrase.

So it seems the worm  or wheel, as the case may be  has turned. For those really interested, The Times has really gone in with both feet on this tiff. The article is vast, and summing it up would take far too long. Diary will however draw your attention to a very helpful four-point guide (printed about halfway down) for first-timers seeking to achieve inner peace within the comfortable confines of their own home.

Diarys favourite deals with the downward dog pose. Quote: Watch the hamstrings. Its easy to overstretch, especially if they are usually tight. Wiser words were never spoke.

This story has got it all really: a neo-colonial governing body, an outspoken traditionalist running to the warm embrace of the Murdoch press with a witty turn of phrase and a four-point guide designed to protect the hamstrings.

The charity sector in 2016 folks, you've got to love it.

Without knowing the ins and outs, Diary would say that the BWY could probably afford to be a little more flexible about this, right?

It aint easy being cheesy

This column has exclusively seen leaked communications between a senior member of the Charity Finance Group and a journalist. The conversation surrounds the CFG teams recent team run, which appeared at first glance to be a team-bonding exercise in every sense of the word.

Andrew OBrien, head of policy and engagement at CFG, and lovingly referred to across the editorial desks of CSM as the Big Cheese (for reasons that have never been entirely clear) is reported to still be recovering from his exertions.

I'm still recovering from the run, just about walking properly again, OBrien said, three or four days after the fact. In the end we all split up so I didn't see much of them [the CFG team], but at the end we all met up...it wasn't quite as happy an occasion as it looked on Twitter.

Certain elements of the leaked communication have been deliberately redacted by this column on account of there being a rude word in it Who knew the Big Cheese was capable of such language, even when quoting others?

Diary is sure youll agree that he and the CFG team look positively spiffing in trackies though. It is, after all, a kind of suit.

Get to the point!

Finally, from the heady world of charity shops, a Plymouth-based shop was forced to call the local constabulary, when an unknown person decided to make a decidedly sharp donation. Yes, they donated an actual sword.

The Plymouth police force have subsequently tweeted a picture of the weapon, with the caption There are some things that just arent suitable to donate to a charity shop. Heres one of them with an embarrassed-monkey emoji.

While the weapon has been described by an employee of the shop as purely decorative, the Plymouth Herald still ran with the headline: Terrifying sword handed in to Plymouth charity shop is seized by police.

Diary probably shouldnt be throwing stones in glass houses, however. It's never once used purely clickbait headlines to drive readership...
Talking Points:

- Several JPY-crosses face longer-term downtrends as USD/JPY attempts breakout.

- GBP/JPY and GBP/USD each may have established a short-term bottom (hourly timeframe).

- See the DailyFX Economic Calendar for Thursday, October 27.

On a broad basis (as measured by either DXY Index or USDOLLAR Index), the US Dollar remains well-supported as Fed funds futures confidently point to a December rate hike. For now, as long as these rate expectations remain firm, the US Dollar should remain insulated; the November FOMC meeting next Wednesday should do little to move the needle in context of the US elections around the corner the following Tuesday.

With such significant event risk ahead, several key FX crosses find themselves at potential inflection points. USD/JPY, for example, may be pivoting through the key 104.35 area outlined on Monday, which has implications for other JPY-crosses like AUD/JPY and GBP/JPY.

Speaking of GBP/JPY, the GBP-crosses have had a nice little kick higher the past few days as a few developments in the ongoing Brexit saga have relieved some growing concerns about the BOE's independence and Mark Carney's job security. However, after reassurances from UK Prime Minister Theresa May and from member of her cabinet, markets are shrugging off the notion of a politically-driven agenda for the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street.

Concurrently, with the kick higher in UK economic data the past few days - CPI and GDP have surprised to the topside - there is scope for short-term bottoming in both GBP/JPY and GBP/USD (look at the 1-hour or 4-hour timeframes).

See the video (above) for technical considerations in EUR/USD, AUD/USD, USD/JPY, GBP/USD, AUD/JPY, GBP/JPY, DXY, and the USDOLLAR Index.

Read more: In Short-Term, Fed Rate Hike Expectations Driving US Dollar Rally

--- Written by Christopher Vecchio, Currency Strategist

To contact Christopher Vecchio, e-mail cvecchio@dailyfx.com

Follow him on Twitter at @CVecchioFX

To be added to Christopher's e-mail distribution list, please fill out this form
Fundamental Forecast for CAD: Neutral

In a world in which Central Banks have become the primary driver of most global economic trends, markets have built-in a tendency to draw inference from the slightest of suggestions. We saw such an example of a theme at the most recent Bank of Canada rate decision when the head of the BoC, Stephen Poloz, said that the bank had discussed the prospect of more monetary stimulus. Keep in mind that no commitments were made, no timeframes were given nor were any actual specific details disclosed; just a simple hint that the bank talked about the possibility of adding more monetary stimulus in the future.

Almost immediately after that statement dropped, the Canadian Dollar put in a quick and aggressive reversal that lasted into the early afternoon of Monday. After USD/CAD had moved to just 5 pips above the vaulted psychological level at 1.3000 during that most recent Bank of Canada rate decision, the pair had traded all the way up to almost 1.3400 before finding resistance early this week. And again, all that happened here was a simple hint from Stephen Poloz that the bank had discussed the prospect of additional dovishness.

But this didnt just come out of nowhere, did it? This has long been the general expectation after Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus fiscal stimulus measures have been slow to show results. In January as the Canadian Dollar was in the midst of a threatening sell-off, Mr. Poloz announced that the bank was going to take a backseat to monetary stimulus in order to allow newly-installed PM Justin Trudeaus fiscal measures to get to work. This started a bout of CAD strength under the presumption that the BoC wasnt going to be coming to the table with any more dovish policy options in the near-future, and that CAD strength brought USD/CAD all the way down to below 1.2500 in May after having been as high as 1.4690 not even a full four months earlier. This is the type of aggressive movement in a currency that can begin to wreak havoc with exports, and thats precisely what weve seen out of Canada as exports have been historically weak over the past few months.

This had begun to build-in the expectation that, eventually, the Bank of Canada would come back to the table with more monetary stimulus; and since May weve seen USD/CAD develop an upward sloping trend-channel as the currency gradually weakened against the Greenback. So when Mr. Poloz dropped the mere mention that QE was even discussed at the most recent BoC meeting, markets pounced and sold the Canadian Dollar at a breakneck pace.

But more Canadian stimulus is far from a foregone conclusion: At a follow-up speech on Monday of this week, Mr. Poloz offered more definition to the previously-opaque mention of additional QE by saying that the Bank of Canada was going to take a wait-and-see approach towards policy adjustments. Mr. Poloz went on to say our best plan right now, we think, is to wait for the next 18 months or so. He also alluded to the fact that markets may have overreacted to that quick mention of QE at the previous BoC rate decision.

So, this would appear to be far from the expectation that was drilling the Canadian Dollar lower to finish last week; in which markets were beginning to look for a near-term ramp-up in monetary stimulus efforts. This also places more focus on near-term Canadian economic prints, as the BoC is apparently taking an evaluative and passive approach, watching data in the effort of molding future policy decisions. Should data print especially weak, this could lead to considerable CAD weakness as markets are well-aware that additional stimulus is, at a minimum, a relevant option for the BoC.

Next week brings two major economic prints that could certainly add volatility into the Canadian Dollar. On Tuesday, GDP numbers will be unveiled and on Friday, at the same 8:30 release as U.S. Non-Farm Payrolls, Canadian employment data for the month of October will be released to markets.

On Tuesday Canadian GDP for the month of August will be released, and of recent this has become a disconcerting data point for Canada after Julys contraction of -.4%; and this followed a 2nd quarter print that also saw GDP shrink by -.4%. The expectation for GDP is to come in at a gain of .2%, annualized at 1.3%. Should this come in below expectations, well likely see some additional CAD weakness enter the picture as markets factor in a slightly-higher probability of an eventual increase in QE.

On Friday, employment numbers will be released and markets are looking for the unemployment rate to stay flat at 7% while the net change in employment is expected to contract by approximately -11,500 jobs. However, this report will be released at the same time as U.S. Non-Farm Payrolls and that will likely lead to an environment of considerable volatility in which more than just Canadian employment numbers are driving price action. So traders should be really careful around the 8:30 AM ET period if trading anything with the Canadian or U.S. Dollars.
Molecular Therapy, the official journal of The American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT), has a new home at Cell Press, a leading publisher of biomedical and chemical research and reviews. This exciting new publishing partnership, to begin in January 2017, will see Cell Press produce and distribute ASGCT's four journals, which include its flagship title along with open-access options Molecular Therapy -- Methods & Clinical Development, Molecular Therapy -- Nucleic Acids, and Molecular Therapy -- Oncolytics.

"We are delighted for this premier collection of journals in the exciting areas of genetic and cellular therapeutics to join the Cell Press family as a society partnership reflecting our shared interest in the translation of basic science into therapeutic advance," says CEO Dr. Emilie Marcus.

ASGCT (@ASGCTherapy), established in 1996, is a non-profit organization based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin that represents the largest community of basic researchers and clinicians devoted to the discovery of gene and cell therapies in the United States and worldwide. The Society launched Molecular Therapy in 2000, which has since become the most cited journal in gene therapy, and has expanded its offerings to the scientific community with new journal launches and special issues.

"ASGCT is excited to bring the Molecular Therapy family of journals to Cell Press," says President Dr. Cindy Dunbar. "This new relationship between the ASGCT and Cell Press should improve the dissemination of research breakthroughs in gene and cell therapies, thus enhancing our mission of using these therapies to alleviate human disease."

"The expertise of Cell Press and its reputation of excellent, world-leading quality couples well with Molecular Therapy's position as the leading international source for original research in gene and cell therapies," says Molecular Therapy Editor-in-Chief Dr. Seppo Yla-Herttuala. "These collective efforts will serve as the vehicle driving new science as it transforms the practice of medicine to the benefit of patients and society."

With the addition of ASGCT, Cell Press now publishes a total of 38 journals, including the flagship Cell, Neuron, Current Biology, and most recently Chem. Other selected society partners include: The American Society of Human Genetics (AJHG); the Biophysical Society (Biophysical Journal); the International Society for Stem Cell Research (Stem Cell Reports), and the Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Chinese Society of Plant Biology (Molecular Plant).

###

About the Molecular Therapy Collection:

Molecular Therapy (@MolTherapy) is a monthly journal for international research on the development of molecular and cellular therapeutics to correct genetic and acquired diseases, including but not limited to research on gene transfer and editing, vector development and design, stem cell manipulation, vaccine development, pre-clinical target validation, safety/efficacy studies, and clinical trials. Editor-in-Chief: Seppo Yla-Herttuala, University of Eastern Finland.

Molecular Therapy -- Methods & Clinical Development is a monthly, open-access journal publishing new methods and significant improvements to established research techniques in basic, translational, and clinical cell and gene therapy. Editor-in-Chief: Roland W. Herzog, University of Florida.

Molecular Therapy -- Nucleic Acids publishes open-access research each month targeted to the advances in nucleic acid-based therapeutics to treat and/or correct genetic and acquired disease. Editor-in-Chief: John Rossi, Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope.

Molecular Therapy -- Oncolytics is a monthly, open-access journal focusing on the development and clinical testing of viral, cellular, and other biological therapies targeting cancer. Editor-in-Chief: Yuman Fong, Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope.

For table of content alerts, please sign up at http://www.cell.com/molecular-therapy-family/home.

Learn more about ASGCT at http://www.asgct.org/.

Cell Press (@CellPressNews), an imprint of Elsevier, is a leading publisher of scientific research and reviews. We drive science forward and promote cross-pollination of ideas with our passion for excellence and commitment to innovation. Our aim is to engage the scientific community by communicating important, exciting discoveries made today that will impact the future of research. Visit http://www.cell.com/. To receive Cell Press media alerts, contact press@cell.com.
ITHACA, N.Y. - New Cornell University research suggests an economically viable model to scrub carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to thwart global warming.

The researchers propose using a "bioenergy-biochar system" that removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in an environmental pinch, until other removal methods become economically feasible and in regions where other methods are impractical. Their work appeared in the Oct. 21 edition of Nature Communications.

"If we continue on current emissions trajectories, we will need to draw down excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere if we're going to avoid catastrophic levels of climate change. We're offering a mitigation model that can do that. It's not a silver bullet, but it may be among the tools we need in a portfolio of carbon dioxide mitigation strategies," said Dominic Woolf, Cornell University research associate in crop and soil sciences and lead author of the study.

The new study suggests a system using biochar, carbonized plant matter made by charring organic material - burning without using air - in a process called pyrolysis. The bioenergy-biochar system, called BEBCS, is stable and lowers sequestration losses when carbon is captured. After the organic matter is turned into carbon-sequestering biochar, it can be placed into the soil as a fertilizer substitute and improve crop production.

Although it has been omitted from major atmospheric mitigation scenarios until now, the new model shows that including biochar in a suite of options unlocks the ability to achieve cost-effective carbon dioxide removal earlier and deeper than would otherwise be possible.

Woolf sounds a hopeful note: "We need a full suite of mitigation strategies. It's quite possible to scrub the atmosphere and remove carbon dioxide to avoid runaway climate change - where we could transition to manageable climate change," he said. "This isn't purely about advocating completely for biochar, but we need to recognize that we have technologies in place that can help our atmosphere, and we should create an optimal portfolio for ideas."

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OAK RIDGE, Tenn., Oct. 28, 2016--The gap between the computational science and open source software communities just got smaller - thanks to an international collaboration among national laboratories, universities and industry.

The Eclipse Science Working Group (SWG), a global community for individuals and organizations who collaborate on commercially-friendly open source software, recently released five projects aimed at expediting scientific breakthroughs by simplifying and streamlining computational science workflows.

While computational science has made a great impact across the scientific spectrum, from climate change to astrophysics to genomics, today's data-centric simulation environments require enhanced analysis, visualization, and workflow management to further reduce time to solution and increase the frequency of research breakthroughs. Hence Eclipse's software release.

"Oak Ridge National Laboratory is renowned for its hardware--like Titan, the world's third fastest supercomputer--but we are also leaders in scientific software development," said Jay Billings, the SWG Chair and a research scientist at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. "The Science Working Group has not only helped us create software to simplify complex computational science but it has also allowed us to become a part of a thriving community that focuses on collaboration, interoperability, and cutting edge research."

That community extends far beyond Oak Ridge into the wider national laboratory complex.

"The Eclipse Science Working Group provides an open, international forum for design and development of critical components of scientific software, bringing together a diverse set of application requirements drivers and software architects to address the challenges of next-generation scientific computing," said Robert Clay of Sandia National Laboratory.

Likewise, small businesses are also engaged as either members of the group or consumers of its software. Dr. Gerald Sabin from RNET Technologies, Inc., a Dayton Ohio-area firm focused on high-performance computing research noted: "The ICE workflow environment is an ideal platform for us to develop a cutting-edge, cloud-based collaboration environment to support scientific computing. The licensing model and openness of the Science Working Group is to our advantage."

The open source projects, which represent years of development and thousands of users, are the product of intense collaboration among SWG members including ORNL, Diamond Light Source, Itema AS, iSencia, Kichwa Coders, Lablicate GmbH and others. The five projects are:

The Eclipse Integrated Computational Environment (ICE). Led by Billings, this scientific workbench and workflow environment was developed to improve the user experience for computational scientists and make it possible for developers to deploy rich, graphical, interactive capabilities for their science codes and integrate many different scientific computing technologies in one common, cross-platform user environment. It is easily extended to new problems and has been successfully deployed for additive manufacturing, advanced batteries, advanced materials, nuclear energy, neutron science, quantum computing, and other areas.

The Eclipse Advanced Visualization Project (EAVP). Likewise led by Billings, EAVP provides advanced visualization technologies for plotting, geometry and meshing and 3D visualization to address the needs of projects in the working groups. It provides a simple framework for exposing and developing visualization services.

January. Led by Jonah Graham of Kichwa Coders and Peter Chang of Diamond Light Source, this set of libraries was created for handling scientific data in Java. It includes support for n-dimensional arrays, hierarchical data, and 3D geometry and mesh data. Originally created as a spin-off of other group projects to provide a common data structure library, January promises to provide a large portion of the common code base of the group in the future.

Triquetrum. Led by Erwin De Ley of iSencia and Christopher Brooks of the University of California, Berkeley, Triquetrum delivers an open platform for managing and executing scientific workflows. Its goal is to support a wide range of use cases, from automated processes based on predefined models to replaying ad-hoc research workflows recorded from a user's actions in a scientific workbench UI.

Chemclipse. Led by Philip Wenig of Lablicate GmbH, Chemclipse supports users who analyze data acquired from systems used in analytical chemistry. In particular, chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS) or flame-ionization detectors (GC/FID) are used to identify and/or monitor chemical substances, which is important for quality control issues.

The software downloads are available here:

Eclipse ICE - https://projects.eclipse.org/projects/technology.ice/downloads

EAVP - https://projects.eclipse.org/projects/technology.eavp/downloads

January - https://projects.eclipse.org/projects/technology.january/downloads

Triquetrum - https://projects.eclipse.org/projects/technology.triquetrum/downloads

Chemclipse - https://projects.eclipse.org/projects/technology.chemclipse/downloads

"Open source is having tremendous impact on both productivity and innovation in industry, government, and academia," explained Eclipse Foundation Executive Director Mike Milinkovich. "The Eclipse Science Working Group is a great example of how world-leading scientific research organizations like Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Diamond Light Source, and others can collaborate on delivering free software that will enable the next major scientific breakthrough. This is an important advancement for the scientific research community, and we are proud to be hosting the collaboration at the Eclipse Foundation."

More information on the Science Working Group is available on their website.

ORNL's Eclipse projects are currently supported by DOE's Advanced Manufacturing Office and have previously received support from DOE's Office of Nuclear Energy.

DOE's Advanced Manufacturing Office supports applied research, development and demonstration of new materials and processes for energy efficiency in manufacturing as well as platform technologies for the manufacturing of clean energy products.

UT-Battelle manages ORNL for the DOE's Office of Science. The DOE Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, visit the Office of Science website.

Eclipse is a community for individuals and organizations who wish to collaborate on open source software. There are over 300 open source projects in the Eclipse community, ranging from tools for software developers, geo-spatial technology, system engineering and embedded development tools, frameworks for IoT solutions, tool for scientific research, and much more. The Eclipse Foundation is a not-for-profit foundation that is the steward of the Eclipse community. More information is available at eclipse.org.

###

Image 1: https://www.ornl.gov/sites/default/files/Softwarerelease_image1.jpg

Caption 1: The Eclipse Integrated Computational Environment (ICE) is a scientific workbench and workflow environment developed to improve the user experience for computational scientists.

Image 2: https://www.ornl.gov/sites/default/files/softwarerelease_image2.jpg

Caption 2: Additive manufacturing researchers at DOE's Manufacturing Demonstration Facility at ORNL use the ICE workbench and EAVP 3D visualizations to analyze pre- and post-processing in thermomechanical simulations of binder jet-printed cantilevers.

NOTE TO EDITORS: You may read other press releases from Oak Ridge National Laboratory or learn more about the lab at http://www.ornl.gov/news. Additional information about ORNL is available at the sites below:

Twitter - http://twitter.com/ornl

RSS Feeds - http://www.ornl.gov/ornlhome/rss_feeds.shtml

Flickr - http://www.flickr.com/photos/oakridgelab

YouTube - http://www.youtube.com/user/OakRidgeNationalLab

LinkedIn - http://www.linkedin.com/companies/oak-ridge-national-laboratory

Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/Oak.Ridge.National.Laboratory
Dispersal plays a key role to connect populations, and contrastingly, its moderate limitation is one of the main processes to maintain species coexistence and promote regional biodiversity. A study recently published in Scientific Reports has explored whether neutral theory predictions with respect to marine biological connectivity are correct or not.

Under the assumptions of Stephen P. Hubbell's neutral theory of biodiversity and Motoo Kimura's neutral theory of molecular evolution, dispersal limitation and demographic changes in populations due to chance (stochasticity) determine genetic and ecology drift, respectively. So these processes would shape not only the genetic structure of the populations within the space, but also the structure of communities and their spatial beta-diversity patterns. These aspects compared have scarcely been explored empirically in the marine ecosystem, in particular.

In a recent study published in Scientific Reports, a team comprising 17 scientists from 14 centres and led by the Spanish R&D centre AZTI have gathered large data sets on the genetic structure of populations (98 benthic macroinvertebrate species and 35 plankton species) and biogeographical data (2,193 benthic macroinvertebrate species and 734 plankton species) with the aim of confirming the predictions of the Hubbell and Kimura theories in marine biological connectivity.

"Better understanding the regional patterns of the populations and communities are essential aspects in protecting and managing marine biodiversity," explained Guillem Chust, an AZTI researcher. "With these data and based on the genetic differentiations relative to geographical distance and the diversity of species that comprise a community, we have been able to estimate the dispersal distances."

The most significant result found by this research team stems from the fact that "the estimated dispersal distances ranked the biological groups in the same order at both genetic and community levels, as predicted by organism dispersal ability and seascape connectivity, as predicted by the type of dispersal and the connectivity of the seascape it inhabits," stressed Chust.

Specifically, according to the results of the research, in the species that inhabit or are found associated with sediment (macrobenthos) and whose larvae are not dispersed in the plankton display shorter dispersal distances than those whose larvae are dispersed in the plankton. Likewise, both groups displayed smaller dispersal scales than the plankton species (including phyto- and zoo-plankton). This range of dispersion scales is associated with the limitations of movement by the macrobenthos on the seabed, compared with the pelagic habitat where the plankton populations are more connected through the marine currents owing to passive dispersal.

These results show that "the limitation in the dispersal of individuals similarly determines the degree of connectivity not only of species between communities but also of the genes in the subpopulations of the same species, thus supporting the predictions of the neutral theories in marine biodiversity patterns," says the AZTI researcher. "Dispersal therefore emerges as a key element in generating biogeographical distribution patterns above other processes also involved, such as environmental differentiation by ecological niche and speciation through natural selection," he concluded.

###

This piece of research has been conducted within the framework of the DEVOTES European project (DEVelopment Of innovative Tools for understanding marine biodiversity and assessing good Environmental Status; http://www.devotes-project.eu), coordinated by Basque research institute AZTI.

Reference:

Chust, G., E. Villarino, A. Chenuil, X. Irigoien, N. Bizsel, A. Bode, C. Broms, S. Claus, M. L. Fernandez de Puelles, S. Fonda-Umani, G. Hoarau, M. G. Mazzocchi, P. Mozetic, L. Vandepitte, H. Verissimo, S. Zervoudaki, and A. Borja. 2016. Dispersal similarly shapes both population genetics and community patterns in the marine realm. Scientific Reports 6:28730.
WASHINGTON -- A new probe into why colorectal surgery patients end up back in the hospital after surgery suggests that it has less to do with the hospital or treatment received but rather more determined by patient factors such as race, income, and insurance status.

The study underscores the vast challenge in leveling health disparities especially as some hospitals that serve these populations face disproportionately harsh penalties for outcomes directly impacted by such factors.

The Hospital Readmission Reduction Program (HRRP), put in place in 2012 by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), penalizes hospitals for higher-than-expected readmission rates for six conditions: heart attacks, heart failure, pneumonia, COPD, and hip and knee replacement. To date, it has penalized more than half of the nation's hospitals for failing to meet expectations, imposing more than $500 million in fines.

Under debate is whether hospitals treating a large number of socially disadvantaged patients -- individuals who may not be able to afford their medications or lack a supportive social environment -- should receive extra consideration. CMS posits that all hospitals should be held to the same standard, says the study's senior investigator, Waddah B. Al-Refaie, MD, FACS, surgeon-in-chief at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center and chief of surgical oncology at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital (GUH).

According to Al-Refaie, numerous studies, however, have shown that patient factors do make a difference in the risk of readmission.

"Minority-serving status of a hospital is important," he says. "These hospitals typically serve as a safety net in low-income communities; their patients tend to have more co-morbidities and less resources to support their health."

Writing in the journal Surgery published online Oct. 28, the investigators say the federal government should take these patient factors into account in their push to reduce hospital readmission rates.

"If these factors are not balanced out, we fear minority-serving hospitals will face substantial, crippling financial penalties, and may end up being selective about the patients they admit," says Al-Refaie.

Al-Refaie, along with a team of researchers at MedStar GUH and MedStar Health Research Institute, set out to look at outcomes in colorectal surgery, a common procedure in the U.S. each year as treatment for colorectal cancer, inflammatory bowel disease and diverticulitis. This procedure has a high risk for postoperative complications and hospital readmissions within 30 days of discharge.

The researchers examined outcomes and patient factors in more than 168,000 colorectal surgery patients treated in 374 California hospitals from 2004-2011. Forty-seven (47) of these hospitals were considered minority-serving hospitals for having a high percentage of minority patients. Hispanic and black patients comprise 63 percent of the patient population in minority-serving hospitals, compared with 17 percent in other hospitals.

After discounting patient's age, sex, comorbidities, and year and type of procedure, the researchers found that, overall, 30-day, 90-day, and repeated remission rates were 11.6 percent, 17.4 percent, and 3.0 percent, respectively. The rate in minority-serving hospitals, in comparison, was 13.6 percent, 20.1 percent, and 4.0 percent, respectively. Inpatient mortality was also significantly higher at minority-serving hospitals (4.9 percent) compared to non-minority-serving hospitals (3.8 percent).

Mining the data further, the investigators found that patient factors (race, low income and insurance status) accounted for up to 65 percent of the observed increase in odds for readmission at minority-serving hospitals, while hospital-level factors (such as procedure volume and procedure type) accounted for up to 40 percent.

"These findings suggest that CMS should account for patient socio-economic factors when they compare readmission rates," says Al-Refaie.

"We know that safety-net hospitals -- those providing healthcare to a large proportion of uninsured and patients with Medicaid -- are more commonly penalized under the HRRP program, and we worry that imposing unfair fines for surgery readmission on hospitals that are already financially vulnerable will have unintended consequences on patients," he says. "These hospitals may become less inclined to take in sicker patients and reduce spending necessary for patient safety, and that puts more patients' health at risk."

###

Study co-authors include Elizabeth M. Hechenbleikner, MD, Chaoyi Zheng, MS, Samuel Lawrence, Young Hong, MD, and Lynt B. Johnson, MD, from MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, and Nawar Shara, PhD, of the MedStar Health Research Institute.

The research was supported by a National Cancer Institute Cancer Center Support Grant (#P30 CA051008) to Georgetown Lombardi. The authors report having no personal financial interests related to the study.

About Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center

Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center is designated by the National Cancer Institute as a comprehensive cancer center -- the only cancer center of its kind in the Washington, DC area. A part of Georgetown University Medical Center and MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, Georgetown Lombardi seeks to improve the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of cancer through innovative basic and clinical research, patient care, community education and outreach, and the training of cancer specialists of the future. Connect with Georgetown Lombardi on Facebook (Facebook.com/GeorgetownLombardi) and Twitter (@LombardiCancer).

About Georgetown University Medical Center

Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC) is an internationally recognized academic medical center with a three-part mission of research, teaching and patient care (through MedStar Health). GUMC's mission is carried out with a strong emphasis on public service and a dedication to the Catholic, Jesuit principle of cura personalis -- or "care of the whole person." The Medical Center includes the School of Medicine and the School of Nursing & Health Studies, both nationally ranked; Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, designated as a comprehensive cancer center by the National Cancer Institute; and the Biomedical Graduate Research Organization, which accounts for the majority of externally funded research at GUMC including a Clinical and Translational Science Award from the National Institutes of Health. Connect with GUMC on Facebook (Facebook.com/GUMCUpdate), Twitter (@gumedcenter) and Instagram (@gumedcenter).
NEW ORLEANS - A complication of measles that kills children years after they have the infection is more common than thought, according to a study being presented at IDWeek 2016. The research underscores the vital importance of herd immunity by vaccination: All who are eligible should be vaccinated to protect those who can't be immunized, including infants.

Subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) is a neurological disorder that is 100 percent fatal. Infants younger than 12 months, who are too young to receive measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, can get infected with measles and later develop SSPE, which may lay dormant for years. While it was once thought the risk of post-measles SSPE was one in 100,000, recent research identified a rate as low as 1 in 1,700 in Germany among children infected with measles before they were 5 years old, and the new study found it is about one in 600 for those who get measles as infants before being vaccinated.

There is no cure for SSPE and the only way to prevent it is to vaccinate everyone against measles.

"This is really alarming and shows that vaccination truly is life saving," said James D. Cherry, MD, MSc, an author of the study, and a distinguished research professor of pediatrics and infectious diseases at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California Los Angeles. "Measles is a disease that could be eliminated worldwide, but that means vaccinating at least 95 percent of all who are eligible with two doses of measles vaccine in order to protect everyone, including those who aren't old enough to get the vaccine."

Researchers identified 17 cases of SSPE in California between 1998 and 2016, all of whom had measles prior to being vaccinated. Although all got measles as children, SSPE did not develop right away: The average age at diagnosis was 12, but the range was from 3 to 35 years old. In a subanalysis of California children who got measles while living in the United States, 1 in 1,387 who got it younger than 5 years and 1 in 609 who got it younger than 12 months developed SSPE. Many of these patients had ongoing cognitive or movement problems before they were definitively diagnosed. A majority of the children (67 percent) were living in the United States when they got measles.

Measles infection causes fever, runny nose, cough, red eyes, sore throat and rash. The virus spreads throughout the body and is cleared within 14 days. In rare cases the virus spreads to the brain, but then becomes dormant. Eventually it can lead to SSPE, resulting in deterioration and death. Researchers don't know what causes the virus to reactivate.

Vaccinating a very high portion of the population ensures herd immunity, meaning even those who can't be vaccinated are protected because the disease is less likely to spread. The MMR vaccine isn't recommended until infants are 12 months old because they retain some of their mother's antibodies until that age, making the vaccine less effective, but leaving them vulnerable to measles. Others who can't get vaccinated include those with immune system disorders.

The first dose of MMR is given between 12 and 15 months old. Because there is a 5 percent vaccination failure rate, a second dose is given to children before they begin school. Measles is so contagious that 95 percent of people need to be vaccinated with two doses to protect those who aren't, said Dr. Cherry. Therefore, all who are eligible - including adults who had not previously been vaccinated - should receive two doses of the vaccine. Nearly 92 percent of U.S. children 19-35 months old have received the MMR vaccine, according to the CDC.

"Parents of infants who have not yet been vaccinated should avoid putting their children at risk," said Dr. Cherry. "For example, they should postpone trips overseas - including to Europe - where measles is endemic and epidemic until after their baby has been vaccinated with two doses. It's just not worth the risk."

###

The lead author of the study is Kristen Wendorf, MD, MS. The co-authors are Kathleen Winter, MPH, PhD, Kathleen Harriman, PhD, MPH, RN, Jennifer Zipprich, MS, PhD, Robert Schecter, MD, Jill Hacker, PhD, MPH, Chris Preas, BA, Carol Glaser, DVM, MPVM, MD, and Dr. Cherry.

About IDWeek

IDWeek 2016TM is the annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA), the HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA) and the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society (PIDS). With the theme "Advancing Science, Improving Care," IDWeek features the latest science and bench-to-bedside approaches in prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and epidemiology of infectious diseases, including HIV, across the lifespan. IDWeek 2016 takes place October 26-30 at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. For more information, visit http://www.idweek.org.
NEW ORLEANS - A new biologic medication - the first for HIV - is showing promise in treating patients with multidrug resistance, according to phase 3 research being presented at IDWeek 2016.

Administered intravenously once every two weeks, ibalizumab is a biologic medication called a monoclonal antibody, a genetically engineered molecule that coats immune system cells to protect them from HIV entry. Eighty three percent of patients with multi-drug resistant HIV (MDR HIV) had a virologic response to the drug, according to the study.

When taken as directed, combination treatment called antiretroviral therapy (ART) is highly successful in combatting HIV. However, of the 1.2 million Americans who have HIV, about 10,000 have MDR HIV, meaning they are resistant to all medications used to treat HIV.

"This is the first drug in a long time for patients with multidrug resistance," said Jacob Lalezari, MD, lead author of the study and medical director for Quest Research, a division of eStudySite, San Franscisco. "This therapy showed good activity in patients who were resistant to everything else, which is very exciting for these vulnerable patients and those who care for them."

He noted that ibalizumab is the first of what promises to be many long-acting anti-viral treatments. While most ART therapy is once a day, researchers are testing medications that are taken less frequently, which will make it easier for patients to take them as prescribed.

The study included 40 patients with MDR-HIV who had been infected with HIV for an average of 21 years and had been treated with many medications. More than one in four (28 percent) had been treated with 10 or more HIV medications. All were given ibalizumab: 35 percent required an additional investigational medication due to resistance to all HIV medications. Most patients benefitted after seven days of treatment: 24 (60 percent) achieved a significant decrease in viral load of 1.0 log10 or greater and 33 (83 percent) achieved a decrease in viral load of 0.5 log10. The average decrease in viral load after seven days of treatment was 1.1 log10. During the control period at the beginning of the study before ibalizumab was added, only one patient (3 percent) had achieved a significant decrease in viral load on the existing ART regime. After one week, all patients continued with ibalizumab and began taking optimizing HIV medications as part of the ART regimen. The combination therapy varied by patient.

"This drug benefits a small but challenging population of HIV patients who are highly treatment experienced," said Daniel R. Kuritzkes, MD, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Brigham and Women's Hospital and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, Boston. "This will not be a first- or second-line therapy for those who are infected with HIV, but it may be helpful for certain patients."

The bi-weekly regimen is beneficial for these patients, said Dr. Lalezari. "There's higher compliance because they have a place where they can go and are cared for, and it really works for them," he said.

Some patients are infected with a multidrug resistant form of HIV, but most others develop resistance after periods of time when they are unable to take their ART medication as directed, he said.

###

The study was supported by TaiMed Biologics, the manufacturer of ibalizumab, and the study authors include employees from that company. In addition to Dr. Lalezari, co-authors of the study are W. Jeffrey Fessel, MD, Shannon Schrader, MD, Princy Kumar, MD and Gary Richmond, MD, all of whom received research funding from TaiMed Biologics. Additional authors are Stanley Lewis, MD and Steven Weinheimer, Ph.D. of TaiMed Biologics and Christian Marsolais, PhD of Theratechnologies, Inc.

About IDWeek

IDWeek 2016TM is the annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA), the HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA) and the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society (PIDS). With the theme "Advancing Science, Improving Care," IDWeek features the latest science and bench-to-bedside approaches in prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and epidemiology of infectious diseases, including HIV, across the lifespan. IDWeek 2016 takes place October 26-30 at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. For more information, visit http://www.idweek.org.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - A Michigan State University researcher is challenging a widely held African belief that a spinal tap, a procedure safely used to treat other diseases, could suck the brain from the base of the skull and cause death in malaria patients.

Douglas Postels, a pediatric neurologist and a lead author of a new study, has shown that the common medical procedure used to diagnose brain infections and also treat nervous system illnesses that lead to increased pressure around the brain, is safe in patients with cerebral malaria.

Increased pressure in the brain can lead to death in many children who fall into coma from cerebral malaria, which is the most severe form of the disease.

"The thought has been not to use the procedure, especially if any increased pressure in the brain or swelling seen in the eye is present in comatose malaria patients," Postels said. "But based on our evidence, even children with severe brain swelling had no change in the likelihood of dying, whether or not they had a spinal tap."

The study is now published in the online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Postels, an associate professor in the College of Osteopathic Medicine who travels to southeastern Africa to treat patients and to further his research, realized that performing a spinal tap in children with the disease was not a universal practice across the continent. Many local doctors were concerned that the procedure could force the brain out of the hole at the base of the skull because of the potential pressure difference it could cause.

Questioning the validity of this way of thinking, Postels, along with co-author Christopher Moxon from the University of Liverpool, United Kingdom, set out to show that a spinal tap was not dangerous.

The researchers analyzed the outcomes of 1,827 cerebral malaria patients admitted to the hospital in Malawi between 1997 and 2013. They found that children who were sicker upon arrival at the hospital were more likely to die from their illness, not from the spinal tap, which did not change their risk of death.

Based on these findings, Postels said educating the African population and other areas that have similar beliefs is crucial in treating the disease since it's estimated that malaria kills a child on the continent every minute.

"This actually is an important procedure that may help patients survive," he said.

He hopes to further test these findings in a future randomized, controlled clinical trial to see if a spinal tap can actually be used as a therapy to lower brain pressure in children with cerebral malaria.

"The important thing to remember is it's not the spinal tap that causes death, it's the underlying illness. Rather than being harmful, we believe the procedure could be beneficial for these critically ill children. Anything we can do to help decrease death and disability rates for children with severe malaria is a positive for everyone."

###

Other MSU researchers involved in the study include Chenxi Li, assistant professor in epidemiology and biostatistics, Karl Seydel, assistant professor of internal and tropical medicine and Terrie E. Taylor, University Distinguished Professor in tropical medicine.

Michigan State University has been working to advance the common good in uncommon ways for more than 150 years. One of the top research universities in the world, MSU focuses its vast resources on creating solutions to some of the world's most pressing challenges, while providing life-changing opportunities to a diverse and inclusive academic community through more than 200 programs of study in 17 degree-granting colleges.
East Hanover, NJ, October 28, 2016  Novartis has been awarded the prestigious 2016 Prix Galien USA Award for Best Biotechnology Product for Cosentyx (secukinumab), as well as the Prix Galien Foundation Discovery of the Decade Award for Best Pharmaceutical Product for the drug Gleevec (imatinib mesylate). The awards were presented at a ceremony in New York City on October 27.

We are honored to receive these prestigious awards for Cosentyx and Gleevec, which not only have changed the practice of medicine for certain conditions, but also represent years of hard work by our scientists, said Joseph Jimenez, CEO of Novartis. These wins underscore our commitment to addressing the unmet medical needs of patients through science-based innovation.

Cosentyx was the first fully human interleukin-17A (IL-17A) antagonist approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2015 for the treatment of adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis1. Psoriasis affects an estimated 7.5 million people in the US2. It is a chronic immune-mediated disease characterized by thick and extensive skin lesions (plaques), which can cause itching, scaling, and pain2. Cosentyx was also approved for the treatment of active ankylosing spondylitis and psoriatic arthritis in 20161.

The discovery of Gleevec marked the first time in the history of cancer treatment that scientists were able to identify a chromosomal abnormality and then develop a drug that would target that specific protein. Gleevec, a molecularly targeted treatment, rapidly became a therapy of choice for Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia (Ph+ CML) and KIT (CD117)-positive gastrointestinal stromal tumors (KIT+ GIST)3. By showing that certain diseases can share a drug-sensitive target with seemingly unrelated ailments, and that molecular targeting can be medically and commercially successful, Gleevec helped establish a new paradigm for drug development.

###

About the Prix Galien Awards

Considered the pharmaceutical industrys Nobel Prize, the Prix Galien rewards excellence in scientific innovation that improves the state of human health. The award was first established in 1970 by French pharmacist Roland Mehl and was inaugurated in the United States in 2007 to recognize the technical, scientific and clinical research skills necessary to develop innovative medicines. Since 1970, Novartis has received more than 40 national Prix Galien awards in fifteen countries for innovative therapies such as Gleevec (imatinib mesylate), Rimactane (rifampin), Parlodel (bromocriptine mesylate), Sandimmune (cyclosporine), Sandostatin (octreotide acetate), Simulect (basiliximab) and Visudyne (verteporfin)4.

The Discovery of the Decade is a special once-in-10-years recognition for distinguished industry achievement in medical innovation. The awards honor extraordinary human health impact in three categories  Best Pharmaceutical Product, Best Biotechnology Product, and Best Medical Technology. In addition to Gleevec (imatinib mesylate), two other Novartis products were nominated for Discovery of the Decade, including Coartem (artemether/lumefantrine) for Best Pharmaceutical Product and Promacta (eltrombopag olamine) for Best Biotechnology Product. Gleevec won the Prix Galien International Prize in 2002, and was recognized again in 2009 by the Prix Galien USA committee for Best Pharmaceutical Product5.

About Cosentyx and interleukin-17A (IL-17A)

Cosentyx is a fully human monoclonal antibody (mAB) that selectively binds to the interleukin-17A (IL-17A) cytokine and inhibits its interaction with the IL-17 receptor1.

Cosentyx is approved in more than 65 countries for the treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis which includes the European Union countries, Japan, Switzerland, Australia, the U.S. and Canada6. In the U.S., Cosentyx is approved for the treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis in adult patients who are candidates for systemic therapy or phototherapy (light therapy). Cosentyx is also approved in the US for adult patients with active ankylosing spondylitis and active psoriatic arthritis1.

More than 10,000 patients have been treated with Cosentyx in clinical trial settings across multiple indications, and over 50,000 patients have been treated in the post-marketing setting worldwide7.

About Gleevec (imatinib mesylate)

Gleevec (imatinib mesylate) tablets are indicated for newly diagnosed adult patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia (Ph+ CML) in the chronic phase (CP). Gleevec is also indicated for the treatment of patients with Ph+ CML in blast crisis (BC), accelerated phase (AP), or in CP after failure of interferon-alpha therapy.

Additionally, Gleevec is indicated for Patients with KIT(CD117)-positive gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) that cannot be surgically removed and/or have spread to other parts of the body and for adult patients after surgery who have had their KIT (CD117)-positive GIST completely removed.

INDICATIONS

COSENTYX (secukinumab) is a prescription medicine used to treat adults:

with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis that involves large areas or many areas of the body, and who may benefit from taking injections or pills (systemic therapy) or phototherapy (treatment using ultraviolet or UV light, alone or with systemic therapy)

with active psoriatic arthritis

with active ankylosing spondylitis

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION

Do not use COSENTYX if you have had a severe allergic reaction to secukinumab or any of the other ingredients in COSENTYX. See the Medication Guide for a complete list of ingredients.

COSENTYX is a medicine that affects your immune system. COSENTYX may increase your risk of having serious side effects such as:

Infections

COSENTYX may lower the ability of your immune system to fight infections and may increase your risk of infections.

Your doctor should check you for tuberculosis (TB) before starting treatment with COSENTYX.

If your doctor feels that you are at risk for TB, you may be treated with medicine for TB before you begin treatment with COSENTYX and during treatment with COSENTYX.

Your doctor should watch you closely for signs and symptoms of TB during treatment with COSENTYX. Do not take COSENTYX if you have an active TB infection.

Before starting COSENTYX, tell your doctor if you:

are being treated for an infection

have an infection that does not go away or that keeps coming back

have TB or have been in close contact with someone with TB

think you have an infection or have symptoms of an infection such as: fevers, sweats, or chills muscle aches cough shortness of breath blood in your phlegm weight loss o warm, red, or painful skin or sores on your body diarrhea or stomach pain burning when you urinate or urinate more often than normal



After starting COSENTYX, call your doctor right away if you have any signs of infection listed above. Do not use COSENTYX if you have any signs of infection unless you are instructed to by your doctor.

Inflammatory Bowel Disease

New cases of inflammatory bowel disease or flare-ups can happen with COSENTYX, and can sometimes be serious. If you have inflammatory bowel disease (ulcerative colitis or Crohns disease), tell your doctor if you have worsening disease symptoms during treatment with COSENTYX or develop new symptoms of stomach pain or diarrhea.

Serious Allergic Reactions

Serious allergic reactions can occur. Get emergency medical help right away if you get any of the following symptoms: feeling faint; swelling of your face, eyelids, lips, mouth, tongue, or throat; trouble breathing or throat tightness; chest tightness; or skin rash. If you have a severe allergic reaction, do not give another injection of COSENTYX.

Before starting COSENTYX, tell your doctor if you:

have any of the conditions or symptoms listed above for infections

have inflammatory bowel disease (Crohns disease or ulcerative colitis)

are allergic to latex. The needle caps contain latex.

have recently received or are scheduled to receive an immunization (vaccine). People who take COSENTYX should not receive live vaccines.

have any other medical conditions

are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. It is not known if COSENTYX can harm your unborn baby. You and your doctor should decide if you will use COSENTYX.

are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. It is not known if COSENTYX passes into your breast milk.

Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Know the medicines you take. Keep a list of your medicines to show your doctor and pharmacist when you get a new medicine.

How should I use COSENTYX?

See the detailed Instructions for Use that comes with your COSENTYX for information on how to prepare and inject a dose of COSENTYX, and how to properly throw away (dispose of) used COSENTYX Sensoready pens and prefilled syringes.

Use COSENTYX exactly as prescribed by your doctor.

If your doctor decides that you or a caregiver may give your injections of COSENTYX at home, you should receive training on the right way to prepare and inject COSENTYX. Do not try to inject COSENTYX yourself, until you or your caregiver has been shown how to inject COSENTYX by your doctor or nurse.

The most common side effects of COSENTYX include: cold symptoms, diarrhea, and upper respiratory infections. These are not all of the possible side effects of COSENTYX. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects.

You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch, or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

Please see accompanying full Prescribing Information, including Medication Guide

Gleevec Important Safety Information

Gleevec can cause fetal harm when administered to a pregnant woman. Women should not become pregnant, and should be advised of the potential risk to the unborn child.

Gleevec is often associated with edema (swelling) and serious fluid retention. Studies have shown that edema (swelling) tended to occur more often among patients who are 65 and older or those taking higher doses of Gleevec.

Cytopenias (reduction or lack of certain cell elements in blood circulation), such as anemia, have occurred. If the cytopenia is severe, your doctor may reduce your dose or temporarily stop your treatment with Gleevec.

Severe congestive heart failure and left ventricle dysfunction have been reported, particularly in patients with other health issues and risk factors. Patients with heart disease or risk factors or history of renal failure will be monitored and treated for the condition.

Severe liver problems (hepatotoxicity) may occur. Cases of fatal liver failure and severe liver injury requiring liver transplants have been reported with both short-term and long-term use of Gleevec.

Reactivation of hepatitis B can occur in patients who are chronic carriers of this virus after receiving TKI treatment.

Bleeding may occur. Severe gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding has been reported in patients with KIT+ GIST. GI tumor sites may be the cause of this bleeding; therefore, GI symptoms should be monitored at the start of treatment.

In patients with hypereosinophilic syndrome (a condition with increased eosinophils, which are a type of white blood cell) and heart involvement, cases of heart disease (cardiogenic shock/left ventricular dysfunction) have been associated with the initiation of Gleevec therapy.

Skin reactions, such as fluid-filled blisters, have been reported with the use of Gleevec.

Clinical cases of hypothyroidism (reduction in thyroid hormones) have been reported in patients taking levothyroxine replacement with Gleevec.

Long-term use may result in potential liver, kidney, and/or heart toxicities; immune system suppression may also result from long-term use.

GI perforation (small holes or tears in the walls of the stomach or intestine), in some cases fatal, has been reported.

Growth retardation has been reported in children taking Gleevec. The long-term effects of extended treatment with Gleevec on growth in children are unknown.

Cases of tumor lysis syndrome (TLS), which refers to a metabolic and electrolyte disturbance caused by the breakdown of tumor cells, have been reported and can be life-threatening in some cases. Correction of clinically significant dehydration and treatment of high uric acid levels are recommended prior to initiation of Gleevec.

Reports of motor vehicle accidents have been received in patients receiving Gleevec. Caution patients about driving a car or operating machinery.

Almost all patients treated with Gleevec experience side effects at some time. Some common side effects you may experience are fluid retention, muscle cramps or pain and bone pain, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, vomiting, diarrhea, decreased hemoglobin, abnormal bleeding, nausea, fatigue and rash.

Gleevec is sometimes associated with stomach or intestinal irritation. Gleevec should be taken with food and a large glass of water to minimize this problem. There have been rare reports, including deaths, of stomach or intestinal perforation (a small hole or tear).

If you are experiencing any of the mentioned side effects, please be sure to speak with your doctor immediately.

Do not take any other medications without talking to your doctor or pharmacist first, including Tylenol (acetaminophen); herbal products (St. Johns wort, Hypericum perforatum); Coumadin (warfarin sodium); rifampin; erythromycin; metoprolol; ketoconazole; and Dilantin (phenytoin). Taking these with Gleevec may affect how they work, or affect how Gleevec works.

You should also tell your doctor if you are taking or plan to take iron supplements. Patients should also avoid grapefruit juice and other foods that may affect how Gleevec works.

Please see full Prescribing Information.

Disclaimer

The foregoing release contains forward-looking statements that can be identified by words such as commitment, or similar terms, or by express or implied discussions regarding potential new indications or labeling for Cosentyx, Gleevec, Coartem, Promacta and the other Novartis products which have received or been nominated for a Prix Galien award, or regarding potential future revenues from Cosentyx, Gleevec, Coartem, Promacta and the other Novartis products which have received or been nominated for a Prix Galien award. You should not place undue reliance on these statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on the current beliefs and expectations of management regarding future events, and are subject to significant known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. There can be no guarantee that Cosentyx, Gleevec, Coartem, Promacta or any of the other Novartis products which have received or been nominated for a Prix Galien award will be submitted or approved for any additional indications or labeling in any market, or at any particular time. Nor can there be any guarantee that Cosentyx, Gleevec, Coartem, Promacta or any of the other Novartis products which have received or been nominated for a Prix Galien award will be commercially successful in the future. In particular, managements expectations regarding such products could be affected by, among other things, the uncertainties inherent in research and development, including unexpected clinical trial results and additional analysis of existing clinical data; unexpected regulatory actions or delays or government regulation generally; the companys ability to obtain or maintain proprietary intellectual property protection; general economic and industry conditions; global trends toward health care cost containment, including ongoing pricing pressures; unexpected safety, quality or manufacturing issues, and other risks and factors referred to in Novartis AGs current Form 20-F on file with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Novartis is providing the information in this press release as of this date and does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this press release as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

About Novartis

Novartis provides innovative healthcare solutions that address the evolving needs of patients and societies. Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Novartis offers a diversified portfolio to best meet these needs: innovative medicines, eye care and cost-saving generic pharmaceuticals. Novartis is the only global company with leading positions in these areas. In 2015, the Group achieved net sales of USD 49.4 billion, while R&D throughout the Group amounted to approximately USD 8.9 billion (USD 8.7 billion excluding impairment and amortization charges). Novartis Group companies employ approximately 118,000 full-time-equivalent associates. Novartis products are available in more than 180 countries around the world. For more information, please visit http://www.novartis.com.

Novartis is on Twitter. Sign up to follow @Novartis at http://twitter.com/novartis

For Novartis multimedia content, please visit www.novartis.com/news/media-library

For questions about the site or required registration, please contact media.relations@novartis.com

References

1. Cosentyx (secukinumab) [prescribing information]. East Hanover, NJ: Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp, 2016.

2. National Psoriasis Foundation. Psoriasis fact sheet. https://www.psoriasis.org/sites/default/files/publications/PsoriasisFactSheet.pdf. Accessed February 29, 2016.

3. Gleevec (imatinib mesylate) Prescribing Information. East Hanover, New Jersey: Novartis Pharma.

4. Prix Galien - Winners Sorted by Company." Prix Galien Global Website. http://www.prixgalien.com/en/05/01/winners-sorted-by-company.htm. Last accessed October 2016.

5. Prix Galien  Discovery of the Decade Candidates." Prix Galien Global Website. http://candidates.prix-galien-usa.com/docs/Discovery.pdf. Last accessed October 2016.

6. Novartis data on file. May 2016.

7. Novartis data on file. September 2016.

Novartis Media Relations

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SALT LAKE CITY, UT (Oct. 2016) - Soft tissues such as hearts and muscles are very rarely preserved in the fossil record. For that reason, nearly all study of dinosaur soft tissue has to be reconstructed from fossil bones. However, researchers in the United Kingdom recently identified a genuine fossilized brain from a roughly 133 million-year-old dinosaur in Sussex, England. The brain likely belonged to a close relative of the Iguanodon, a spike-handed herbivorous dinosaur. According to the researchers, this is the first example of a natural endocast (in-filling) of the braincase that preserves fossilized brain tissue from any dinosaur.

The unassuming small fossil was originally discovered in 2004 on a beach in the town of Bexhill, but without the rest of the skeleton to help identify it. Only recently was a team of researchers, including Dr David Norman of the University of Cambridge, able to determine it was a fossilized dinosaur brain. Martin Brasier, of the University of Oxford, led the early work on this fossil, before his untimely death in 2014. In order to visualize very small features of the fossil brain Professor Brasier brought in researchers from the University of Western Australia to obtain high resolution images of parts of the brain, revealing its outer layers (meninges) as well as remnants of capillaries (tiny blood vessels) within the cortex of the brain itself. The brain structure and in particular the arrangement of meninges, shows remarkable similarity to modern birds and crocodilians, and likely functioned in fairly similar ways.

In regard to the truly rare preservation of the fossilized dinosaur brain, Dr Norman said "Brain tissues are incredibly fragile and it is quite incredible that the animal died in circumstances that uniquely led to their preservation - through a process of 'pickling' and then mineral replacement". Dr Norman continued, "What we think happened is that this particular dinosaur died in or near a body of stagnant water, and its head ended up partially buried in the sediment at the bottom. Since the water had so little oxygen and was so acidic, the soft tissues of the brain were likely preserved and cast before the rest of its body was buried in the sediment." Circumstances such as these are astonishingly rare in fossilization, meaning this discovery can provide unique insight into the mind of this 133 million-year-old dinosaur.

###

Dr Norman and colleagues presented their research at the international meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology in Salt Lake City, Utah. More details of their work will be released in an upcoming article to be published in a Special Publication of the Geological Society of London*. *Earth System Evolution and Early Life: a Celebration of the Work of Martin Brasier.

Images

Image 1: Surface scanned image of the unassuming 'pebble' recently revealed to be a roughly 133 million-year-old fossil dinosaur brain, discovered in Sussex, England.

Image 2: High resolution magnifications of surface texture from the fossil dinosaur brain, showing the remarkable preservation of the fine network of blood vessels preserved.

About the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology

Founded in 1940 by thirty-four paleontologists, the Society now has more than 2,300 members representing professionals, students, artists, preparators, and others interested in VP. It is organized exclusively for educational and scientific purposes, with the object of advancing the science of vertebrate paleontology.

Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology

The Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology (JVP) is the leading journal of professional vertebrate paleontology and the flagship publication of the Society. It was founded in 1980 by Dr. Jiri Zidek and publishes contributions on all aspects of vertebrate paleontology.

CORRESPONDING AUTHOR CONTACT INFORMATION

David Norman (at the SVP in SLC 26-29 October)

University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom

dn102@cam.ac.uk

OTHER EXPERTS NOT DIRECTLY INVOLVED WITH THE STUDY

Ashley Morhardt

Washington University in St. Louis

amorhardt@wustl.edu

Ariana Paulina-Carabajal

Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas &

Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente

a.paulinacarabajal@conicet.gov.ar
SALT LAKE CITY, UT (Oct., 2016) - The reproductive behaviors of birds are some of their most conspicuous and endearing qualities. From the colorful mating display of some birds, like peacocks, to the building of nests by nearly all birds, these are the characters we use to define birds and make them popular study subjects. One peculiar aspect of some birds is communal nesting, where multiple breeding pairs lay eggs in the same nest. This most famously occurs in ostriches, who can have several females lay their eggs in one nest that is tended by one dominant female.

The reasons why this behavior may have evolved are unclear, especially when it's known that the females who share a nest are often unrelated. Knowing when this behavior evolved may help elucidate its evolutionary history. Now, thanks to research by Tzu-Ruei Yang and his colleagues, we know this behavior may have its origins back in the ancestors of birds, dinosaurs.

Dr. Yang, of the Universita?t Bonn in Germany, and his colleagues, Jasmina Wiemann and Beate Spiering also of Universita?t Bonn, Anneke Van Heteren of the Zoologische Staatssammlung Mu?nchen in Germany, and Chun-Jung Chen of the National Museum of Natural Sciences in Taiwan, used the chemical composition of the fossil eggs shells in one nest to determine if they were laid by different mothers. This had been proposed before, but wasn't backed by multiple lines of evidence. "Dinosaur behaviors that are unlikely to be preserved in fossilization could be elucidated by chemical analysis more unambiguously", said Yang.

The team used a peculiarity of egg laying physiology: birds of different ages lay eggs with different phosphorous content in their shells. Also, different birds lay eggs of different shapes. It turns out that the same was true for dinosaurs. So by examining the eggs from one nest, they could determine if they were laid by different mothers, and they were. The nests that were examined were of oviraptorid dinosaurs, two-legged carnivorous dinosaurs (theropods) closely related to the group that evolved into modern birds. Said Dr. van Heteren, "This research shows how important interdisciplinary collaborations are to unveal the truth about the past."

###

About the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology

Founded in 1940 by thirty-four paleontologists, the Society now has more than 2,300 members representing professionals, students, artists, preparators, and others interested in VP. It is organized exclusively for educational and scientific purposes, with the object of advancing the science of vertebrate paleontology.

Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology

The Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology (JVP) is the leading journal of professional vertebrate paleontology and the flagship publication of the Society. It was founded in 1980 by Dr. Jiri Zidek and publishes contributions on all aspects of vertebrate paleontology.

AUTHOR CONTACT INFORMATION

Tzu-Ruei Yang Universitat Bonn Bonn, Germany lereage@gmail.com

Jasmina Wiemann

Yale University

jasmina.wiemann@hotmail.com

Dr. Anneke van Heteren

Curator in Zoologische Staatssammlung

Munchen, Germany

vanheteren@zsm.mwn.de

Dr. Chun-Jung Chen

Curator in National Museum of Natural Sciences

Taichung, Taiwan

cjchen618@mail.nmns.edu.tw

Dr. Beate Spiering

Steinmann-Institut fur Geologie, Mineralogie, Palaontologie

Universitat Bonn

Bonn, Germany

b.spiering@uni-bonn.de
SALT LAKE CITY, UT (Oct. 2016) - Have you ever spotted something unexpected while walking down the street? Last December, paleontologists literally stumbled upon a new discovery of a fossil sea cow in a very unexpected place - in a limestone paving stone in Spain! Research presented this week at the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah, describes this remarkable find and how it is changing our understanding of sea cow evolution.

The unusual pavement was spotted in the picturesque town of Girona, northern Spain. A local geologist first noticed the fossil and submitted it to the website 'http://www.paleourbana.com', an online database of urban fossils worldwide. As word of the fossil spread, paleontologists Dr. Manja Voss and Dr. Oliver Hampe, from the Museum fur Naturkunde, Berlin, visited Girona to take a look.

Closer inspection of the paving stones by Dr. Voss and Dr. Hampe revealed that the complex array of shapes was slices of the backbone and skull of an ancient marine mammal. Based on the skull and teeth, they concluded that it was a sirenian, or sea cow, a member of a group of large, plant-eating marine mammals represented today by the living manatee and dugong.

Once the significance of the fossil was understood, Dr. Voss and Dr. Hampe worked with the mayoralty of Girona and local geologists to have the 50x30cm large paving stones removed for study. Since the rock was cut into slices to form the paving stones, the paleontologists had a cross-sectional view of the sea cow's skull, revealing many details of its anatomy. However, they also wanted to see inside the stones, so they took them to a medical hospital, the Clinica Girona, where they were CT-scanned.

The scientists discovered that the 'Girona Sea Cow' is most likely a representative of Prototherium, a genus of extinct sea cows from Spain and Italy. However, this find is particularly important because the rocks from which the paving slabs were quarried are 40 million years old, explains Voss. "Hence the find represents one of the oldest sea cows in Europe, making it a unique opportunity to enhance our knowledge on the evolution and diversity of this marine mammal group that arose about 50 million years ago."

Next the scientists will use the CT scans to try to digitally piece together the separate skull slices of Prototherium. This can help them answer more questions, such as the animals' age when it died and its potential relationship to other fossil sea cows.

The Girona Sea Cow, which is providing clues into the evolution of sea cows in the ancient oceans of Europe, shows that fossils can be found in surprising locations. Voss says "While the limestone used to build the city of Girona are enriched by fossils -- it is quite common to identify invertebrates for example--finding a marine mammal on which thousands of people walked over for the last two decades is indeed very peculiar."

###

Images

Image 1: Scientist Oliver Hampe examines fossil remains of Prototherium in paving stones in Girona, Spain. Image by Manja Voss and Oliver Hampe.

Image 2: The skull of Prototherium exposed on the paving slab, in cross-section, showing parts of snout and tooth sockets. Image by Manja Voss and Oliver Hampe.

Image 3: Paving slabs were scanned in a medical CT scanner to reveal more about the fossils anatomy. Image by Manja Voss and Oliver

About the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology

Founded in 1940 by thirty-four paleontologists, the Society now has more than 2,300 members representing professionals, students, artists, preparators, and others interested in VP. It is organized exclusively for educational and scientific purposes, with the object of advancing the science of vertebrate paleontology.

Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology

The Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology (JVP) is the leading journal of professional vertebrate paleontology and the flagship publication of the Society. It was founded in 1980 by Dr. Jiri Zidek and publishes contributions on all aspects of vertebrate paleontology.

AUTHOR CONTACT INFORMATION

Manja Voss

Museum fur Naturkunde

Leibniz-Institut fur Evolutions- und Biodiversitatsforschung

Deutschland

Manja.Voss@mfn-berlin.de

Oliver Hampe

Museum fur Naturkunde

Leibniz-Institut fur Evolutions- und Biodiversitatsforschung

Deutschland

oliver.hampe@mfn-berlin.de

OTHER EXPERTS NOT DIRECTLY INVOLVED WITH THE STUDY

Daryl Domning

Howard University, Washington DC.

ddomning@howard.edu

Jorge Velez-Juarbe

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County

jvelezjuar@nhm.org

Lars Werdelin

(SVP Media Response Team)

werdelin@nrm.se
SALT LAKE CITY, UT (Oct. 2016) - The ancient coastal waters of the Pacific, roughly 11 to 5 million years ago, were home to a bizarre and fascinating species of giant salmon with large spike-like teeth. This spike-toothed salmon reached sizes of 3 to 9 feet in length (1-3 meters), much larger than the typical salmon found in the Pacific today. These hefty spike-toothed fish would have made for a difficult catch at nearly 400 pounds (177 kg). The spike-like teeth of the salmon could be over an inch long (3 cm), much longer than modern Pacific salmon teeth, even after compensating for their larger size. Researchers from California State University in Turlock, California have been studying the strange teeth of these unusual fish and discovered some tantalizing clues into their past behavior and life history.

Much like modern Pacific salmon, the giant salmon was likely primarily a filter-feeder, so the spike teeth were probably not part of catching prey. Modern salmon go through physical changes in their body, especially their skull, before migrating upriver to spawn where males will fight to defend the eggs they have fertilized. To see if these teeth played an important role in breeding of the giant fossil salmon, the team of researchers, led by Dr. Julia Sankey, compared 51 different fossils from ancient deposits of both freshwater and saltwater environments. The teeth of these salmon found in past freshwater environments consistently had longer, more recurved teeth with much larger bases, as well as showed clear signs of wear. Fossil salmon teeth from saltwater deposits were much smaller and less worn. This indicates that they changed prior to migration upriver to spawn.

These results help show that these impressive spike-like teeth of the giant salmon are indeed used as part of the breeding process in these extinct fish. Researchers think it is likely these hefty bruisers were using their spike-like teeth for fighting and display against each other during the spawning season, up in the ancient rivers of California. "These giant, spike-toothed salmon were amazing fish. You can picture them getting scooped out of the Proto-Tuolumne River [near Modesto, California] by large bears 5 million years ago." said Dr. Sankey "Scientifically, our research on the giant salmon is filling in a gap in our knowledge about how these salmon lived, and specifically, if they developmentally changed prior to migration upriver like modern salmon do today. This research is also helping paint the picture of this area 5 million years ago for the general public and my college students, and it excites them to think of this giant salmon swimming up our local rivers 5 million years ago!". Dr.Sankey and colleagues presented their research at this year's meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology in Salt Lake City, Utah.

###

Images

Image 1: Salmon (illustration by Jacob Biewer)

Image 2: Salmon in "Proto-Tuolumne River" (illustration by Jacob Biewer)

About the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology

Founded in 1940 by thirty-four paleontologists, the Society now has more than 2,300 members representing professionals, students, artists, preparators, and others interested in VP. It is organized exclusively for educational and scientific purposes, with the object of advancing the science of vertebrate paleontology.

Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology

The Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology (JVP) is the leading journal of professional vertebrate paleontology and the flagship publication of the Society. It was founded in 1980 by Dr. Jiri Zidek and publishes contributions on all aspects of vertebrate paleontology.

CORRESPONDING AUTHOR CONTACT INFORMATION

Julia T. Sankey

California State University, Stanislaus

jsankey@csustan.edu

Jacob Biewer

California State University, Stanislaus

jake.biewer@gmail.com

OTHER EXPERTS NOT DIRECTLY INVOLVED WITH THE STUDY

Kerin M. Claeson

Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine

kerincl@pcom.edu

Brian Sidlauskas

Oregon State University

brian.sidlauskas@oregonstate.edu
In a study published online by JAMA, Rafael Harpaz, M.D., M.P.H., of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, and colleagues analyzed data from the 2013 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS; an annual health survey conducted via household interviews) to estimate the prevalence of self-reported immunosuppressed adults in the United States. The study is being released to coincide with its presentation at IDWeek 2016.

The number of immunosuppressed adults in the United States is unknown but thought to be increasing because of both greater life expectancy among immunosuppressed adults due to improvements in medical management, as well as new indications for immunosuppressive treatments. Immunosuppression increases the risks and severity of primary or reactivation infections; its prevalence has implications for food and water safety, tuberculosis control, vaccine programs, infection control strategies, outbreak preparedness, travel medicine, and other facets of public health.

In 2013, NHIS respondents were asked whether they had ever been told by a "doctor or other health professional" that their immune system was weakened. Those responding yes were asked follow-up questions to assess whether that status was current (i.e., at time of response) and to report additional evidence of immunosuppression. Those reporting use of immunosuppressive medications or treatments or occurrence of immunosuppressive medical conditions (i.e., hematopoietic cancers or human immunodeficiency virus [HIV] infection) were considered immunosuppressed in this analysis, but those reporting only frequent colds or infections or attributing immunosuppression solely to chronic diseases or to solid cancers (i.e., in absence of immunosuppressive treatments) were not.

The total 2013 NHIS household response rate was 76 percent, consisting of 41,355 eligible households. Of 34,426 eligible adult respondents within these households, 4.2 percent (n = 1,442) had been told at some time by a health professional that their immune system was weakened. Of these, 2.8 percent (n = 951) reported current immunosuppression and additional evidence of immunosuppression, translating to an estimated U.S. prevalence of 2.7 percent. Prevalence was highest among women, whites, and persons age 50 to 59 years.

"This study was not designed to explore the attributable causes of immunosuppression, although prevalence is likely driven by frequency and chronicity (e.g., life-long immunosuppression due to HIV infection, treatment for autoimmune conditions, or solid organ transplantation vs short-term cancer chemotherapy). The higher prevalence of immunosuppression among women may reflect their higher risk for autoimmune conditions. Age-specific immunosuppression increased with age, in parallel with the epidemiology of prevalent conditions that require immunosuppressive treatments, but it is unclear why it peaked at ages 50 to 59 years," the authors write.

"This study addresses an underappreciated phenomenon and serves as a call for additional data from other sources to complement and fill the gaps in the study. Tracking immunosuppression over time is particularly important given the hundreds of clinical trials now under way to assess the use of immunosuppressive treatments for prevention or mitigation of common chronic diseases in highly prevalent risk groups."

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(doi:10.1001/jama.2016.16477; the study is available pre-embargo at the For the Media website)

Editor's Note: This work was funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The authors have completed and submitted the ICMJE Form for Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest and none were reported.

To place an electronic embedded link to this study in your story This link will be live at the embargo time: http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/10.1001/jama.2016.16477
ANN ARBOR -- While public interest in science continues to grow, the level of U.S. scientific literacy remains largely unchanged, according to a survey by the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research.

Funded by NASA, the study found that 51 percent of Americans are interested in science, but only 28 percent have a sufficient level of scientific understanding to follow and engage in debates about current science and technology policy issues.

The level of scientific literacy has remained constant for nearly a decade.

Recent reports from the National Science Foundation reinforce the U-M findings. Analyses since the 1980s have shown that the adult literacy rate is driven primarily by the completion of college-level science courses and completion of a baccalaureate degree. It is this group that follows science and technology news closely in the media, both traditional and online.

After NASA's 2011 Mars Curiosity Landing and 2015's first-ever close up images of Pluto, Americans' interest in science spiked--but scientific literacy still lagged. Why the disconnect? NASA wanted to know.

In September 2015, NASA's Science Mission Directorate selected 27 organizations across the nation to implement a new strategic approach to more effectively engage learners of all ages on NASA science education programs and activities.

U-M was one of those selected and was tasked to study ways to boost science literacy, with the support of a $5.2 million five-year cooperative grant from NASA.

"NASA plays a key role in addressing these issues because of the exciting and accessible activities that their earth and space science activities afford," said Jon Miller, director of the International Center for the Advancement of Scientific Literacy at U-M's Institute for Social Research.

NASA's current science portfolio consists of more than 100 missions. In 2015, SMD required all of its science education-related activities to compete in a reassessment to better align science content and experts with learners' needs.

An examination of the pattern of growth in adult scientific literacy indicates that levels increased steadily between 1988 and 2008, but has plateaued since then.

"The stability observed in these results suggests that less growth in these factors may, in part, reflect the impact of the recession on educational enrollments," U-M's Miller said. "We will continue to examine the factors associated with the stalled rate of growth in scientific literacy and expect to be able to identify and discuss causal factors in subsequent reports."

The U-M survey builds on several decades of work that was initiated by a survey sponsored by the National Association of Science Writers in 1957, with funding from the Rockefeller Foundation, and conducted by the Survey Research Center at the University of Michigan.

The 1957 study was conducted only a few months prior to the launch of Sputnik and provides an essential baseline. In 1979, Miller and colleague Kenneth Prewitt resumed the series with support from the National Science Board.

With the issuance of the five-year NASA grant, Miller is continuing this work with an eye to the future.

"NASA has provided lifelong learners around the globe the information to become science literate, a key asset being the inspiration NASA science missions provide," said Kristen Erickson, director of Science Engagement and Partnerships at NASA. "Our diverse portfolio gives us the opportunity to accomplish that mission in many ways--not only to the scientific community but to the public worldwide."

Full report and data: myumi.ch/JYk4N

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Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), the most common liver disease worldwide, is increasing in prevalence and is currently estimated to affect approximately one-quarter of the general population. A recent study published in the journal Hepatology reveals the clinical and economic burden of NAFLD in the United States and Europe. The findings will help clinicians and policy makers develop strategies to deal with this serious chronic disease.

NAFLD, which is characterized by the build up of extra fat in liver cells, is associated with obesity and diabetes, and it occurs with minimal or no symptom until the disease is advanced. When Zobair Younossi, MD, MPH, of Inova Fairfax Hospital in Virginia, and his colleagues constructed models to assess the potential burden of NAFLD, they estimated that there are 64 million individuals with the disease in the United States and 52 million in the four European countries examined (Germany, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom). Annual direct medical costs were estimated to be approximately $103 billion ($1163 per patient) in the United States and  35 billion (from  354 to  1163 per patient) in the four European countries. The economic burden of NAFLD would be even higher when including societal costs and indirect costs.

"Given the growing epidemic of obesity, diabetes, and NAFLD, this study brings to the attention of policymakers, providers, pharmaceutical companies, payers, and patients the critical importance of understanding NAFLD and establishing a policy for prevention, early detection, and effective therapy," said Dr. Younossi. "This requires a multi-faceted national and possibly international policy to deal with this common, debilitating, and expensive liver disease."

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A distressing account of rape and torture of a 5-year-old Hindu girl by a 42-year-old rapist, Saiful Islam, has come in from Dinajpur, Bangladesh.

As per site, eibela24.com, the 5-year-old from the minority Hindu community has been barbarously raped & her private organs torn and burnt with a cigarette, after locking her up for 18 hours by a paedophile jihadi rapist Saiful Islam at Parvatipur (a former Hindu majority colony once, named after Goddess Parvati), in Bangladesh last Tuesday, 18 October.

There are lots of injuries by sharp weapon on the little girls cheek, throat, hand and leg, bite marks on the body, and wounds of cigarette burns on her face and thighs. Presuming that her death is inevitable, her body was disposed off finally at an adjacent field by the perpetrator Saiful Islam.

As per police reports, at Parvatipur upazillas Rampur Unions Jameerhat areas Takkiapara village  Subhash Chandra Das and Mrs. Rupali Ranis 5-year-old baby daughter went out for playing at the adjacent fields on Tuesday at around 11 am. She is also said to have headed for buying Chutney a local spicy sauce, at a nearby eatery. However, when she did not return even after a few hours, her parents became anxious and proceeded to search for her.

But she was nowhere to be found. Finally, they resorted to make a loudspeaker announcement in the area and registered a general complaint with the local police. But still, throughout the day and till late night she could not be found. It was only around early dawn on Wednesday that at a nearby field her bruised body was found.

She was rushed to Rangpur Hospital, where according to her statement, the primary accused, Saiful Islam, a man of 42 and a resident of her area itself who happens to be the son of the local wood seller Jasim Uddin, was identified. Saifuls picture was uploaded and even after 6 days when he was not arrested, the role of police was questioned. Finally, after much pressure from all sides, police finally arrested the absconding criminal Saiful on 24 October at around 7:30 p.m.

Parvatipurs Model Stations Officer In Charge Mahmudul Alam has confirmed the news of his arrest.

On the other hand, Dr. Golam Azam at Rangpur Medical College has said, that a beast-like torture has been inflicted upon the child. Maggots/Myesis have been detected in her private parts. Everyday dressing of the same is being done. Sometimes the child is opening up her eyes and staring blankly and closing in minutes. She has not been saying anything. The trauma is still well prevalent. She will take much time to recover.

The child is only 5 year old. There are lots of injuries by sharp weapon on her cheek, throat, hand and leg. Bite marks on body. Wound of cigarette burns on thigh. The raped child of Dinajpur was admitted in One-stop crisis center(OCC) of DMCH yesterday (Tuesday) at 11 a.m.

Bilkis Begum, Co-ordinator of One-stop crisis center (OCC) of DMCH where the child is currently admitted, told that We meet different victims regularly. Its usual to us. But we cant be normal after seeing this child. Inspite of being a doctor, its difficult to control myself.

Sexual crimes against Hindu girls & women, confiscation of Hindu property, desecration of Hindu temples are common in Bangladesh  of late there has also been a spate of brutal murders of Hindu priests. Ironically, while this child was brutalized and police took belated action against the accused, a visiting BJP woman MP just this week declared that Hindu minorities are safe in Bangladesh.

Source : Hindu Post
New Delhi : India on Thursday declared a Pakistan High Commission staffer, detained earlier in the day for espionage activities, as persona non grata.

Acting on inputs, the Delhi Polices Crime Branch detained the staffer, identified as Mehmood Akhtar, after he was found in possession of certain defence documents. Akhtar was released after questioning as he enjoys diplomatic immunity, police said.

The crime branch has also arrested two persons, residents of Rajasthan, for allegedly passing on sensitive information to Akhtar, they said.

Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar told Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit, who was summoned by the Ministry of External Affairs, that Akhtar has been declared persona non grata for espionage activities. It means Akhtar has been given 48 hours to leave the country.

Pakistan`s High Commissioner Abdul Basit lodged a strong protest with the Indian Foreign Ministry and said the detention contravened diplomatic conventions, news agency AFP quoted a source as saying.

Pakistan never engages in activity that is incompatible with its diplomatic status, he said.

The other two persons arrested on espionage charges are from Rajasthan.

The spies are residents of Rajasthan working for Pakistans ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence). The spies were in touch with the staff here at Pakistan High Commission and were providing sensitive information, said a senior police officer.

Those arrested have been identified as Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir, he said.

The arrests were reportedly made following a tip-off from the Intelligence Bureau.

According to a report, crime branch officials have briefed Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung on the matter.

This is not the first time that employees of the Pakistan High Commission have come under the radar over alleged espionage in India.

Last years, police claimed to have busted an ISI spy ring in the high commission and five persons were arrested.

Source : Zee News
New Delhi : An NGO promoted by controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik will soon be banned under the anti-terror law, with the home ministry preparing a draft cabinet note for it.

Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) will be declared an unlawful association under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act after investigations by the home ministry found it to be allegedly having dubious links with Peace TV, an international Islamic channel, accused of propagating terrorism, an official source said.

According to the draft note, which is also based on the inputs from Maharashtra Police, Naik, who heads the IRF, has allegedly made many provocative speeches and engaged in terror propaganda.

Maharashtra Police has also registered criminal cases against Naik for his alleged involvement in radicalisation of youths and luring them into terror activities, a source said.

Naik also transferred IRFs foreign funds to Peace TV for making objectionable programmes. Most of the programmes, which were made in India, contained alleged hate speeches of Naik, who had reportedly urged all Muslims to be terrorists through Peace TV, sources claimed.

Two educational trusts run by Naik have also come under the scanner of the home ministry and agencies are looking into their activities.

The draft note will soon be placed before the Union Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for its approval, sources said.

Naik is accused of radicalising youths into terror and receiving foreign funds and spending those to lure young people into terrorism.

He came under the scanner of the security agencies after Bangladeshi newspaper Daily Star reported that one of the perpetrators of the July 1 terror attack in Dhaka, Rohan Imtiaz, ran propaganda on Facebook last year quoting Naik.

Naik in a lecture, aired on Peace TV, had reportedly urged all Muslims to be terrorists. The Islamic orator is banned in the UK and Canada for his hate speech aimed against other religions. He is among 16 banned Islamic scholars in Malaysia.

He is popular in Bangladesh through his Peace TV, although his preachings often demean other religions and even other Muslim sects. The Mumbai-based preacher has not returned to India ever since the controversy came to light.

Stay updated on the go with Times of India News App. Click here to download it for your device.

Source: TOI
New Delhi : Dr. Vijay Kumar Williams, the Director of Mount Carmel Schools, New Delhi regularly addresses students of the school during morning assembly. Dr. VK Williams routinely delivering Christian sermons to the students, encouraging them to convert, and he can be seen openly rubbishing well-established scientific theories.

Pseudo-scientists have been trying for centuries to find out how everything began. In the later 19th century, Charles Darwin proposed the theory Origin of species which means that life began somehow. Then a psuedo-scientist from Russia talked about a space soup suggesting that life originated from this space soup. This theory caught like wildfire among the psuedo-scientists who had been searching desperately to deny existence of God with some kind of proof.

Very recently, there was an attempt made to find out how Mass originated  so they constructed a 27 km long tunnel, 100 feet deep between the boundaries of Switzerland and France. The matter was broken into protons and positrons..almost at the speed of light, they calculated about 10 billion times the positrons collided with each otherfor a fraction of a millisecond somebody saw a Boson particle, they said, which existed for only one millionth of a second. And so they said that the Boson article was the one which created mass  now, if it itself cannot exist more than a billionth of a second, I really dont know how it could give mass to other particles. Nevertheless, mans search goes on.

If I say, how did this microphone originate, and I discount the possibility of somebody designing this microphone, of somebody connecting the live wiresthen I keep on thinking how did this microphone originate. Then I have theories that in Delhi there was an earthquake which brought ferrous matter (iron) to the surface  then the sun melted that iron, and then wind passed through and brought water and that water cut the melted iron into this shape (of the microphone). Now, how did the wire and life come into the microphone  I have some other scientists to supplement my theory.

So ultimately the theory comes that this is how microphone came, because of a big bang or earthquake. Now, you may go on believing this kind of silly theory, but I believe that somebody designed this microphone  its pedestal, the wire that could convert sound waves into electric waves.

When I look around, I see everything is designed. I should accept as an intelligent human being that there is a designer behind me. And I call this designer God, the world calls him God.

Many people say they believe in the existence of God, but they say we can call him by any name  God, Goat, Bull etc. Their theories come forward  you call him by any name, he is God. I cant understand this confused thinking. I believe this God who created me is Lord Jesus Christ, who claimed that he is Alpha and Omega  the beginning and the end.

Many people say they believe in the existence of God, but they say we can call him by any name  God, Goat, Bull etc. Their theories come forward  you call him by any name, he is God. I cant understand this confused thinking. I believe this God who created me is Lord Jesus Christ, who claimed that he is Alpha and Omega  the beginning and the end. Last week, I was amidst 500 people and there must have been 300 B.Tech, M.Tech, Phd  when I interacted with them, I found quite a few had resigned their well-paying jobs to become servants of Lord Jesus Christ, i.e. missionaries. I was so amazed to see that in North India, there is only one option  study, get into a good college, get a good job, get good money, and die. In that crowd I found another option  study hard, get a good job, resign you job and serve the Lord Jesus Christ. Because they found something of eternity, of Gods callthey came to know their Creator. I was happy that so many successful people had resigned their jobs to become missionaries.

These people said, We heard the voice of God calling us ..that millions of people are dying without the knowledge of Lord Jesus Christ, without the knowledge that their sins can be forgiven, that they can be saved from Hell and brought into HeavenGod told us to become missionaries.

And so my 12th standard children would also have an aim in life, of career or job..but at the end of all this success in their career, it is death awaiting them. But for the 300 strong crowd of people I met, at the end of their life is life everlasting, is the joy of having completed the race of bringing the message of salvation to hundreds and thousands of people.

I wish children passing out of Mt. Carmel, they settle with thes questions  What is their aim in life? What does the future hold for them? Who is the person who holds this future? Do they know him? Was he historical? Whatever he uttered, has it changed the lives of people? Has it produced missionaries all over the world? What are the results of this persons life and ministry?

Some of you even at young age have met the Lord Jesus  I am so happy about it. But some have denied his knocks at the doors of your heart, and said, No, my religion is what I will follow. The choice is yours  but I am so grateful that one day I made a choice to turn to the Lord Jesus Christ and give my heart to him. From that day, I have a living hope that if I die right now, I will go to heaven  not because I am a good man, but because the Lord Jesus Christ forgave my sins, he paid the penalty of my sins on the cross. God bless you.

Dr. V.K. Williams rubbishes Hindu mantras, implores teachers and students to convert

In this video, Dr. Williams can be heard saying 

We have been seeing that prayer is talking with God. It is not mantras, recitation of some useless words, meaningless words. God is our Father who is expecting us to speak to him for our problems, the deepest pains..the Bible wants us that we should acknowledge this fatherbut we have chosen another father, i.e. the Devil  we have chosen to ape him, in our behavior of speaking lieswe have become people who have decided that I will make own God through a religion, and that is what I will worship. So we have turned away from the reality of God my father, to Devil my fatherBible tells us that every human being can be a child of God. That we saw in John, chapter 1, verse 12if salvation is so simple, if becoming a child of God is so simple, why dont you do it? Why do you ignore it?..a person called Jesus was born of virgin birth, he lived 33 years..historically, he did those things.I want you to all, teachers and students, to try Jesus  to give him one chance. He wants to be your father. May God bless you.

As per the Mount Carmel school website 

Mount Carmel School Society is a protestant, church-based society, registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860, running Unaided Minority educational institutions in the Nations capital, New Delhi.

The first Mount Carmel School started in July 1972 with 12 students in a small residential house in Anand Niketan. Today the school has over 3000 students with a staff of 150 in 2 beautiful buildings.

The Dwarka Branch was started in April 1997, the Silver Jubilee year of the mother school, with 165 students. This too has over 3000 students and staff of 150.

It is not rocket science to understand what impact such dangerous, delusional indoctrination must be having on impressionable minds. Should Bharat allow such bigotry-spewing, proselytizing individuals & institutions to run schools, to sow seeds of hate for their own culture & way of life in generations of Hindus, Sikhs, Jains etc? Shouldnt MHRD act against such schools, and monitor the kind of divisive teachings being imparted. How is this convent any better than a madrassa where children are brainwashed about fundamentalist Islam and taught to despise kafirs (non-believers).

With a sectarian, deeply flawed law like RTE, introduced as a pet project of Sonia Gandhi by UPA-2 in 2010, slowly strangulating Hindu run schools, will the Hindus of Bharat soon be left with no other choice than to send their wards to convent schools like Mount Carmel, where the children are exposed to predatory conversion tactics and brainwashing of authority figures like Dr. VK Williams?

Source : Hindu Post
Cannonball, ND, October 28, 2016 - Over 300 police officers in riot gear, 8 ATVs, 5 armored vehicles, 2 helicopters, and numerous military-grade humvees showed up north of the newly formed frontline camp just east of Highway 1806. The 1851 Treaty Camp was set up this past Sunday directly in the path of the pipeline, on land recently purchased by DAPL. Today this camp, a reclamation of unceded Lakota territory affirmed as part of the Standing Rock Reservation in the Ft. Laramie Treaty of 1851, was violently cleared. Both blockades established this past weekend to enable that occupation were also cleared.

In addition to pepper spray and percussion grenades, shotguns were fired into the crowd with less lethal ammunition and a sound cannon was used (see images below). At least one person was tased and the barbed hook lodged in his face, just outside his eye. Another was hit in the face by a rubber bullet.A prayer circle of elders, including several women, was interrupted and all were arrested for standing peacefully on the public road. A tipi was erected in the road and was recklessly dismantled, despite promises from law enforcement that they would merely mark the tipi with a yellow ribbon and ask its owners to retrieve it. A group of water protectors was also dragged out of a ceremony in a sweat lodge erected in the path of the pipeline, wearing minimal clothing, thrown to the ground, and arrested.A member of the International Indigenous Youth Council (IIYC) that had her wrist broken during a mass-arrest on October 22nd was hurt again after an officer gripped her visibly injured wrist and twisted it during an attempted arrest. At least six other members of the youth council verified that they had been maced up to five times and were also shot and hit with bean bags. In addition to being assaulted, an altar item and sacred staff was wrenched from the hands of an IIYC member by police. Several other sacred items were reported stolen, including a canupa (sacred tobacco pipe).Two medics giving aid at front line were hit with batons and thrown off the car they were sitting on. Then police grabbed another medic, who was driving the car, out of the driver side while it was still in motion. Another water protector had to jump into the car to stop it from hitting other people.Members of the horse nation herded around 100 buffalo from the west and southwest of the Cannonball Ranch onto the the DAPL easement. One rider was reportedly hit with up to four rubber bullets his horse was reported to be hit in the legs by live rounds. Another horse was shot and did not survive.A confirmed DAPL private security guard was spotted among the protectors with an automatic rifle heading towards camp. Water protectors acted swiftly to stop the man who was attempting to flee the scene in his pickup. One protector stopped the assailants vehicle with their own before the security guard fled to nearby waters, weapon in hand. Bureau of Indian Affairs police arrived on scene and apprehended him.Three water protectors locked themselves to a truck in the middle of the road and surrounded it with large logs. After several hours of standoff, the police advanced in a sweep line and moved people approximately 1 mile back down the highway towards the main encampment on the Cannonball River. Water protectors then retreated to the bridge over Highway 1806 and erected a large burning blockade that the police were unable to cross.Law enforcement from at least five states (North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wyoming, Nebraska) were present today through EMAC, the Emergency Management Assistance Compact. This law was passed by the Bill Clinton administration and allows states to share law enforcement forces during emergencies. It is intended for natural disasters and has only been used twice for protests; once in the summer of 2015 during the demonstrations in Baltimore and here on the Standing Rock Reservation. Over 100 were arrested today in total.Kandi Mossett, Indigenous Environmental Network states, I went to the frontline in prayer for protection of the Missouri River & found myself in what I can only describe as a war zone. I was sprayed in the face with pepper spray, the guy next to me was shot by something that didn't break the skin but appeared to have broken the ribs & another guy beside me was randomly snatched violently by police shoving me into the officers who held me off with batons then tried to grab me. I'm still in shock & keep waiting to wake from what's surely a nightmare though this is my reality as a native woman in 2016 trying to defend the sacredEryn Wise of the International Indigenous Youth Council stated, Today more than half of our youth council were attacked, injured or arrested. In addition to our brothers and sisters being hurt and incarcerated, we saw police steal our sacred staff. I have no words for what happened to any of us today. They are trying to again rewrite our narrative and we simply will not allow it. Our youth are watching and remember the faces of the officers that assaulted them. They pray for them.Shotgun into the crowd (video): https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BysUexxOGui6a3BXQ3NWdDJ5TTQ/view?usp=sharing Camp of the Sacred Stones
A Limerick criminal threw down the gauntlet to gardai warning, if they did not back off, a certain detective's house would be burned down, writes Jimmy Wolfe from the Irish Examiner.

As a result, special security measures were put in place to protect the family of Det Garda Pat Whelan and their home, Limerick Circuit Court was told.

Darren O'Halloran, aged 31 of Aurea Cottage, Dublin Road, Limerick was found guilty by a jury last Friday to charges of threatening to kill Det Garda Whelan and threatening to damage property.

At a sentencing hearing yesterday, Insp Padraic Byrnes said Det Garda Whelan was among a party of gardai who went to the address of the accused on March 29, 2015. They had an arrest warrant for Halloran's brother who they found hiding in the attic.

As the gardai left, O'Halloran made a remark to Det/Garda Whelan about being on a white horse clip-clopping at Christmas time through a village near to where he lived.

Det Garda Whelan took a phone call at Henry Street garda headquarters in Limerick on April 2, 2015, and put the call on loud speaker.

O'Halloran identified himself and said: "Look Pat, we'll do no more crime if ye back off me and Aaron (O'Hallolran's brother)."

Det Garda Whelan made it clear to the accused he would not back off and O'Halloran became aggressive.

O'Halloran told Det Garda Whelan: "I will kill ye, you c.. with your big yellow house and I will burn it to the ground. Don't be coming to my house in the middle of the night." O'Halloran, with 76 previous convictions, was on bail at the time.

Insp Byrnes said: "The threat was taken very seriously as it was known O'Halloran had the capacity to carry it out. Steps were taken and garda patrols were put in place near Det Garda Whelan's house until the time of his arrest."

Judge Tom O'Donnell, sentencing O'Halloran to four years, said it was unacceptable for a serving member of An Garda Siochana and his family to be subjected to serious threats.
Bord Bia has confirmed Ms McCarthy will leave her current role as CEO of Bord Iascaigh Mhara, and will replace Aidan Cotter, when he retires as Bord Bia CEO in January.

In the months after the UK publics June vote to leave the EU, both Bord Bia and BIM have been hosting exhaustive briefings and workshops with food and fisheries exporters.

BIM hosted briefings at which the Killybegs Fishermens Organisation and the British National Federation of Fishermens Organisations discussed the main options open to UK and Irish fisheries, namely shared fish quotas, negotiations on shared stocks and a possible super-regional advisory council in which coastal states including Ireland, the UK and Norway would agree upon new fishing rules for shared waters.

Britain has traditionally been a partner with Ireland for quota swaps, trading around 4,000 tonnes of fish annually. Given the complex fishing boundary issues BIM is currently teasing out with the UK, Tara McCarthy seems a natural choice to lead Bord Bia through its most immediate challenges.

Michael Carey, Bord Bia chairman, said: Tara has clearly demonstrated her leadership capabilities during a 20-year career in the agri-food industry. The competition for the role was very intense and throughout the robust process, the panel was hugely impressed by the high calibre of candidates.

Tara is exceptionally well qualified to take the organisation to the next level, with a deep understanding of the work of Bord Bia. She has proven to be a strong leader and fully appreciates the need to build close relationships with the organisations key stakeholders.

"I am confident that Tara will meet any challenges facing the sector, and pursue new opportunities, with vision, determination and imagination.

Prior to taking up her BIM role in September 2015, Ms McCarthy worked with Bord Bia for 20 years, notably as consumer foods senior manager (200111), and food and beverage director (201115). She holds a BComm from NUIG and an MBS from UCDs Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School.

A native of Clonakilty, Co Cork, she has been a regular contributor to the Government-led Food Harvest 2020 and Food Wise 2025 growth plans for Irish food and drink exports. She has also played lead roles in initiatives in the Pathways for Growth programme. She is also an affiliate of Harvard Business School and IMD Business School, Switzerland.

Ms McCarthy said: It is an honour to be asked to lead Bord Bia during what is a very exciting time for the Irish food and drink industry.

"Our total exports target of 19bn in FoodWise 2025, is ambitious, yet achievable, and I am looking forward to working with all stakeholders, including farmers, food manufacturers and producers in order to reach that goal. I want to pay tribute to my predecessor, Aidan Cotter, and I hope to build upon his outstanding work over the coming years.

Mr Cotter became Bord Bia CEO in 2004. His salary for this year was around 149,000. During his tenure, Bord Bia has worked with processors and farmers to introduce quality assurance schemes for beef and dairy.

While Ireland is a small player in global food and drinks markets, Mr Cotter played a lead role in launching Origin Green, which highlights Irish agri-foods commitment to sustainably produced food.

Mr Cotter has also led Bord Bias bid to help Irish exporters diversify into new markets.

Bord Bia continues to open new global bases to promote Irish produce, most recently a Warsaw office to lead supports for exporters to Eastern Europe, while its new Singapore office will service eight emerging markets in Southeast Asia.
This was a wise move, and a recognition of the fact that housing is currently one of the biggest economic, social and political issues facing Ireland.

In many ways, housing has subsequently been replaced by an even more significant issue, namely Brexit.

The problem with Brexit is that we really have no understanding of how it will evolve over the coming years and the impact it could possibly have on the Irish economy and every business.

Anybody who claims to know the answers is a charlatan, such is the political complexity of the process at both an EU and UK level.

The first thing we need to do is face up to the fact that we do not understand the complexity of the topic and then to plan on the basis of the worst possible outcome.

The UK prime minister has repeatedly stated that Brexit means Brexit and has committed to begin the process of leaving the EU by invoking Article 50 before the end of March.

This will set in train an incredibly complex and protracted period of negotiation led by the EU Council to determine what sort of relationship the UK will have with the EU after it exits the system.

At a recent conference on Brexit, which for me is the gift that keeps giving, I suggested that a UK exit is not a foregone conclusion.

I was put very firmly in my place by a British diplomat who stated categorically that it will definitely happen following the expression of the democratic will of the UK electorate.

Only time will tell if this assertion is correct, but the important point is that Irish business should operate on the basis that it will happen and that it will be a hard Brexit rather than a soft Brexit.

A hard Brexit would mean the UK would leave the EU and that it would not agree to make financial contributions to the EU budget and would not agree to sign up to the rules and regulations of the Single European Market.

Consequently, the UK would not have free access to the EU market. Tariffs and quotas could become a reality of life for UK companies trading with the EU and for EU companies trading with the UK. There are many such companies in Ireland.

The more immediate issue is obviously the weakness of sterling, but the longer-term issue is the possibility that trade will be restricted.

Given how important the UK market is for Irish-owned companies in particular, such a development would arguably pose the most significant challenge to Irish business since the break with sterling in March 1979. We survived that and we will survive Brexit, but we need to prepare.

As well as the obvious threats and challenges for Irish trade with the UK, there are also considerable opportunities. The obvious opportunity is to lure those companies in the UK who will need some presence in an EU country after the exit.

This will be challenging on a number of fronts. Other EU countries will compete aggressively. Secondly, does Ireland have the necessary structures to entice people to come here?

The availability and cost of housing, the creaking infrastructure in Dublin, and the very strained public services such as health and education immediately spring to mind. And the personal tax system in this country is totally punitive for anybody with any ambition.

Maybe, this will present some opportunities for the regions, where the cost of living is lower and the Dublin congestion is less apparent.

If so, a regional strategy should be put in place. This is just a tiny snapshot of the profound challenges and opportunities facing Ireland.

The least we should do is create a government department and appoint a minister with full responsibility for Brexit. A year or two down the road would be too late.
The Kerry TD, who previously denied the notion of climate change, putting rising temperatures down to God, yesterday told the Dail that untruths have been bandied about for many years concerning climate change.

They told us about the ozone layer, greenhouse gases, and cans of hairspray or whatever, but they never told us that it was nuclear testing, he said.

Denis Naughten, minister for action on climate change, quipped that he does not have to worry about hairspray.

Mr Healy-Rae, addressing a Dail debate on the ratification of the Paris climate change agreement, replied: The minister and I are the same in that we have nothing on our heads to spray. Anyway, we are managing.

They never told us that nuclear testing in the Pacific Ocean 50 years ago actually caused the serious damage to the ozone layer. I am thankful it is now mending and curing.

It has nothing to do with policies in any country in recent times.

There was changes in the climate, way back in times when there was no industrialisation and way less animals on farms and no intensification of farming.

Yet we had intense heat, long periods of very cold, wet weather which culminated in many lives being lost in the famine in the 1740s, caused by two years of incessant rain and extremely cold winters.

Mr Healy-Rae said he was very worried about the Paris agreement, as it would have a severe negative impact on farmers.

Farmers must be protected because of the consequences if the farming industry goes down, he said. Farming is facing a serious crisis at present. If it is impacted negatively any further, it will hurt the whole country.

Responding, Independents4Change TD Catherine Connolly said the Sarah Palin type of politics is over.

She said: That debate is gone. The debate is no longer on whether our emissions are having an effect; it is on the severity of the impact and the window of opportunity we may still have as we learn to take responsibility for our rates of emission, which are contributing to global warming.

Green Party leader Eamon Ryan said he would speak to Mr Healy-Rae later in the corridor.

That will be an interesting conversation, said Mr Naughten responded. Mr Healy-Rae clarified that both TDs share a corridor in Leinster House.

Fianna Fail TD John Brassil described the comments of Mr Healy-Rae, his constituency colleague, as absurd and without any basis in science.

Deputy Healy Raes approach to climate change smacks of US Republican nominee, Donald Trump. However, I suspect that even Donald Trump wouldnt want to be associated with the comments made.
It is understood that the IDA has received a significant amount of interest from large London-based companies now seeking to relocate here.

Around half of the companies that have made inquires to the IDA are in the financial sector. It is understood tech companies and manufacturing firms have also expressed interest in Ireland.

A significant number of these firms have already made site visits to Ireland, with technical teams travelling here to explore in more detail our infrastructure, workforce, and regulations.

Conversations with the IDA are at various stages but sources say one company at the most progressed stage of moving here would be looking at bringing hundreds of jobs to Ireland.

While many multinationals, especially financial firms, would maintain bases in London, it is believed they would have to establish a significant base in Ireland or another European state and would not get away with hot-desking in a European country.

The potential jobs boost comes as Taoiseach Enda Kenny yet again ruled out any possibility of appointing a Brexit minister.

Enda Kenny

Mr Kenny said he does not agree that there should be a Brexit minister as he said co-ordination through the Department of the Taoiseach is far stronger.

We cannot give this any higher political status than the Office of the Taoiseach, he said. I chair these meetings. Every single minister is a Brexit minister, as is every minister of state. Every political party has a duty to consult with their own individual European partners and European agreements.

Government sources believe the UK would not be looking to restrict freedom of movement but would put restrictions on the rights of EU citizens. For example, it could be more difficult for Irish and other Europeans to obtain pensions, work permits, or social security numbers in the UK.

Meanwhile, the Norths first minister, Arlene Foster, has aimed a stinging broadside at the Governments all-Ireland Brexit forum, saying she has better things to do than listen to a lot of grandstanding remoaners.

The Democratic Unionist Party leader has already declined an invite to attend next weeks civic dialogue event in Dublin, which has been organised by Mr Kenny to discuss the fall-out from the referendum.

Explaining her reason for staying away, Ms Foster portrayed the gathering as little more than a talking shop for those who refuse to accept the UK is leaving the EU.

Arlene Foster

Its a complete grandstanding exercise, she said.

It will be full of people who quite frankly havent accepted the referendum result going down to talk about how dreadful it is and how awful it is. Mark my words, thats exactly what will happen at the grandstanding forum that will come about.

Im not going to be a part of that. I am in this to do real business and to have outcomes, not to sit around talking about how dreadful it is.

Mr Kenny has said the event will facilitate an all-Ireland conversation among the business community, wider civic society, and politicians.

Asked whether it would be valuable to put the argument for Brexit to forum delegates, Ms Foster said: To be a lone voice among a whole lot of remoaners? No thank you  I have better things to do with my time.
The University of Pittsburgh Medical Centre (UPMC) will fund half the cost of the 13m centre at the Bon Secours Hospital in Cork. The centre will be wholly owned by BSHS and UMPC and a new company will be formed to reflect the partnership.

UPMC Ireland Ltd previously owned the Beacon Private Clinic in Sandyford but sold it a couple of years ago at a loss. It continues to operate the Whitfield Cancer Centre in Co Waterford.

Details of UPMCs involvement came yesterday at a BSHS conference where the groups chief executive, Bill Maher, launched a 2020 Plan which will see a 150m capital investment over five years in Bon Secours hospitals in Cork, Dublin, Galway, and Tralee as well as its Care Village on Lee Rd in Cork.

A 64m investment in the groups Cork hospital was first mooted in 2009 but Mr Maher said it was put on hold due to the economic crash.

The latest investment will fund a six-storey wing as well as three operating theatres and additional intensive care beds.

A 400-space multi-storey car park, which was part of the original plan in 2009, has been shelved.

The hospital has acquired the site that was formerly home to the Western Star pub on Western Rd and this will be a key access point as part of the new development.

Mr Maher said the number of additional patients the new extended services would cater for has yet to be agreed with health insurers.

In terms of the radio- therapy centre, he said it would help address significant deficits in the public service where some patients have to leave Cork to get treatment.

The most recent HSE performance report shows Cork University Hospital is not meeting the national target in terms of referring patients for radiotherapy treatment within 15 days of being deemed suitable by their doctor.

The target is 90% but CUH was at 73.4%. In fact, failure to reach 75% over three consecutive months meant the matter was escalated to the HSEs national performance oversight group.

Mr Maher said there was not enough capacity in the public system and they wanted to work collaboratively to address this.

The groups Care Village in Cork will benefit from an 11m investment creating 33 additional beds, all ensuite, by January 2013.

The Tralee hospital will have two additional theatres this side of Christmas at a cost of 2.2m. Additional monies are being invested in diagnostics and consultant suites. Dublin has a new endoscopy suite and Galway will have a new cath lab from next January thanks to a 6m investment.
More than 500 of the countrys 735 second-level schools remained closed yesterday as the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) members held the first of seven strikes in a bid to fully restore pay for newly qualified teachers.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny has said he is very disappointed at schools being closed on foot of unnecessary actionby the ASTI.

He said the action is deeply regrettable and upsetting which he said is causing huge inconvenience to parents throughout the country.

Earlier, the Dail heard that the country is facing the complete and utter shutdown of the education system next month unless an immediate solution is found to the school strikes crisis. Fianna Fails Dara Calleary said the Governments response to the reasonable ASTI pay parity request has been a shambles.

But as teachers went ahead with strike action, Mr Bruton said he is very disappointed that the dispute has not been resolved.

I feel disappointed for students and parents; parents discommoded in their work but students more particularly. Its a tense time, people are preparing for an important year in their career and this disrupts their learning.

He said his department will continue to engage with the ASTI in a bid to come up with a solution and avoid the industrial action from November 7, when ASTI members will also withdraw from supervision and substitution. But he could not give an end point for these talks, if agreement is not reached.

We have made huge strides in respect of restoring equality of treatment for young teachers, we have closed the gap by virtually three-quarters at this stage.

The minister said that over the next two years, newly qualified teachers will receive up to a 22% pay increase bringing pay up to 37,700 for a teacher recruited last year.

We are well on the way to do that, but we cannot commit to an individual union, a sectoral deal for one union who has decided to not negotiate around these issues but to unilaterally withdraw from commitments that every teacher is committed to as part of their core duties.

He said if the withdrawal from supervision and substitution from November 7 results in schools closing then teachers will be docked pay.

Where there is withdrawal of supervision and the school remains open then the industrial action hasnt resulted in the withdrawal of labour and they will continue to work and continue to get paid. But where industrial action has resulted in the closure of the school that will be different, Mr Bruton said.

Fianna Fails education spokesman, Thomas Byrne, said the minister is hardening his position at a time when we should be moving towards de-escalation.

In the Dail, Fianna Fail and Sinn Fein outlined the seriousness of the situation as they repeatedly warned that action is needed now to address the stand-off.

Mr Calleary said the Government is sleep walking on the issue because for all your talk of negotiations, schools are still on strike today and no pay guarantees have been given to teachers. But warning that an even worse situation is on the horizon, he said the country is facing the complete and utter shutdown of the education system within weeks over concerns that hundreds of schools may be unable to re-open if ASTI action continues.

Sinn Fein deputy leader Mary Lou McDonald said the demands of teachers and gardai are not insurmountable, and said the Government sounds like a broken down record on the issue. She said there is no roadmap and you seem to have walked us into a cul-de-sac of a public pay stand-off that will not be resolved.

In response, Tanaiste and Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald repeated her view that a pathway is available to address the strike.

Youre talking about cul-de-sacs. Im saying there are offers on the table, she said, adding it would not be fair on other public servants and taxpayers for a deal to be struck with one group to the detriment of others.

President flies the kite and gets it tangled up

- Niall Murray, Education Correspondent

The presidency of the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) rotates on a yearly basis but Ed Byrnes turn to lead was known about since he was elected vice-president in early 2015.

When handed the chain of office by Cork-based Maire Ni Chiarba in August, he knew from many years on the unions standing committee of the challenges facing him during his term.

Ed Byrne

A teacher of geography and business studies at Colaiste Choilm in Swords, Co Dublin, he has managed to make quite a coherent argument in public of ASTIs position on the various issues on which industrial action was recently voted by its 17,500 members.

But an ability to slip from a strict strategy was evident in the flying of a kite, in his own words, at the picket line yesterday.

He spoke to the media about the possibility of a temporary suspension of the planned withdrawal from supervision and substitution if the Department of Education were to grant the same fast-track to secure positions for recently qualified teachers which are already available to Teachers Union of Ireland members.

While the idea sounds reasonable in principle, the Government is unlikely to grant a permanent concession for a temporary moderation of the ASTI action.

And with the supervision and substitution withdrawal linked to a different pay issue to the campaign for younger teachers  on which the seven one-day strikes are being held  his confusion of the two matters shows the difficulties facing elected officers of any union when placed in the spotlight.

Christies baptism of fire is far from over just yet

- Niall Murray, Education Correspondent

Kieran Christie has had quite the baptism of fire since taking over as ASTIs general secretary in January.

Succeeding long-serving official Pat King, he assumed the effective chief executive role of the union at a time when it was already on industrial action over junior cycle reform and in uncertain territory over its relatively isolated position in the public sector  being not signed up to the Lansdowne Road Agreement.

What he brings to the job from a long career as a teacher of construction, woodwork, and communication design and graphics in Sligo may be counter-balanced by a lack of hard experience as a full-time official.

Kieran Christie

Mr Christie has served on ASTIs standing committee as a regional representative, and has also held the important role of national organiser. But a longer history of being inside the room in past talks with Department of Education officials and other groups would be more ideal for the union, given the general secretarys role in helping to guide and advise the unions elected officers on strategy.

As they try to manage an ambitious and complicated campaign, and are currently engaged in several industrial actions on curriculum, pay, and conditions, he will have his work cut out steering the organisation in the weeks and months ahead through a path that could make or break its standing  in the views of members and of the public.

INTO and TUI protest pay inequality at the Dail

- Niall Murray, Education Correspondent

Members of the Irish National Teachers Organisation and Teachers Union of Ireland protested against pay inequality for entrants to the profession since 2011 at the Dail yesterday  after completing their day at school.

Last month, both unions finalised a deal with the Department of Education to see some restoration of pay cuts for newly-qualified teachers, even though TUI members rejected the Lansdowne Road Agreement a year ago,

With ASTI trying to progress the issue through strikes, the other two teacher unions are keen to show they are continuing to press for equal pay scales for all in the profession. As older teachers retire and schools hire new staff to match rising enrolments, teachers on lower post-2011 pay scales make up an increasing proportion of union membership every year, meaning the issue will become a bigger one for their leaders  and for Government.

Whats available to teachers

While some of the points made by Education Minister Richard Bruton about the detail of what is on the table are questioned by teachers, the following are measures available to ASTI members in talks with his officials.

The union did not agree to accept the Lansdowne Road Agreement (LRA) last year.

The wording below is an edited version of information supplied by the Department of Education:

Under the proposed deal for new entrant teachers which is being implemented for the INTO and the TUI, and which is potentially on offer to the ASTI:

The starting pay for new entrant members will increase by 15% between August 31, 2016 and January 1, 2018 (from 31,009 to 35,602).

An individual member recruited since September 1, 2015 will see a 22% increase in their pay between August 31, 2016 and January 1, 2018 (from 31,009 to 37,723).

The benefits of the LRA are not just for new teachers. Teachers with longer service will benefit too. For example, a teacher with 11 years service who is co-operating with the LRA will see her/his pay rise 9% from August 2016 to January 2018 from 45,222 to 49,436. This includes salary increases worth 5.7%, rising to a 9% increase when the payment of salary increment is factored in.

In terms of career earnings, these deals which have been done restore approximately three quarters of the reductions for new entrants put in place since 2011.

In addition to the agreed improvement in pay for new teachers, the following benefits apply to teachers covered by the LRA:

Avoiding a two-year increment freeze;

Addition of the supervision and substitution allowance of 1,592 into the teacher pay scale;

The Ward Report measures and a revised sequence for filling posts which enable fixed-term and part-time teachers to gain permanent, full-time jobs more easily and quickly than before;

Continued alleviation of the FEMPI Act pay reductions;

An increase in the quantum of the Croke Park hours that can be worked on other than a whole-school basis;

A review of the usage of the Croke Park hours;

Protection against compulsory redundancy.

The ASTIs decision in July to withdraw from carrying out the Croke Park Hours  33 hours per year, agreed to allow schools to carry out activities like school planning meetings and parent-teacher meetings  had the effect of repudiating the LRA and precipitating the current dispute.

ASTIs decision to withdraw from the Croke Park hours and thereby repudiate the LRA resulted in the department withdrawing from ASTI members the benefits of the LRA, including additional payment for supervision and substitution  supervising breaktimes, lunchtimes etc.

The minister has indicated previously that if the ASTI suspends its directive to not work the Croke Park Hours, then his department would immediately make available the benefits of the LRA, including payment for supervision and substitution duties.

The Croke Park hours are part of wider productivity measures introduced under the LRA that require all public servants to work additional time for no additional payment.

Across the public services  education, health, local authorities, civil service etc  the additional time being provided represents about 450,000 additional hours per annum or the equivalent of between 12,000 and 13,000 public service posts. That is a serious productivity benefit for the exchequer. Replacing those hours would cost hundreds of millions of euro.

Before the Croke Park hours were introduced, these activities ate into tuition time. This meant that schools closed for full days or half days in order to carry them out, causing interruption to tuition and significant inconvenience for parents, as well as childcare costs  particularly for primary parents.

In response to teacher concerns regarding the use of the Croke Park hours, the department agreed with TUI and INTO to carry out a review of their usage.

This review, which also involves the school management bodies, began earlier this month.

The review provides for an up-front increase in the quantum of time allowed for planning and development work on other than a whole-school basis.

The original Croke Park Agreement provided that all Croke Park hours (36 for primary and 33 for post- primary annually) would be worked on a whole-school basis.

The Haddington Road Agreement provided that up to five of the hours could be worked on a less than whole-school basis (eg small groups of subject teachers). The recent agreement increases this maximum to eight hours in September 2016 and 10 hours in September 2017.
Brisbane, Australia (FSCwire) - Orocobre Limited (ASX:ORE) (TSX:ORL) (OTCMKTS:OROCF) is pleased to provide the company's latest Quarterly Activities Report.

HIGHLIGHTS

OLAROZ LITHIUM FACILITY (ORE 66.5%)

- Sales revenue of US$33.5 million; representing the first full quarter of commercial production and up 45% quarter on quarter

- Average FOB price received for the September quarter was up 24% from May/June 2016 to US$9,334/tonne. Cash operating costs were US$3,579/tonne resulting in strong operating margins

- September quarter production was 3,013 tonnes* with record monthly tonnage of 1,125 tonnes achieved in September

- Sales de Jujuy S.A. self-funded a US$12.8 million principal and interest payment for the Mizuho project loan during the quarter

- The scoping study for the Olaroz Stage 2 expansion of 17,500 to 25,000 tonnes per annum lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) is complete, results are being compiled and will be released shortly

BORAX ARGENTINA

- Sales volume in the quarter was 11,940 tonnes, representing a 29% increase quarter on quarter and a 47% increase on the corresponding quarter last year, excluding sales of low value tincal ore

- Unaudited Earnings before Interest Tax Depreciation Amortisation and Forex ( ''EBITDAX'') breakeven, negatively affected by the commissioning of the modifications at the boric acid plant in Campo Quijano

- Tincalayu borax plant expansion and modifications completed in the previous quarter were fully commissioned and ramping up in production rate during the quarter. The changes at the Campo Quijano boric acid plant were completed in July and undergoing commissioning during the quarter. These modifications are expected to result in improved unit costs at both facilities

- Expansion studies to achieve increased production at Tincalayu commenced in the June quarter with a scope of 100-120,000 tonnes per annum borax decahydrate equivalent production and development of a circa 25,000 tonne integrated boric acid plant

CORPORATE

- As the Company now generates signficiant revenue and cash flow from production activities, the ASX has re-classified it a production company and as such it will no longer lodge an Appendix 5B. The company will disclose key financial performance indicators in this Quarterly Operations Report

- Orocobre has a strong cash position of US$32.2 million from a corporate perspective excluding restricted cash on hand (i.e. cash committed to Standby Letters of Credit (SBLC) at the end of the quarter)

- The Orocobre share price has been negatively impacted by a significant increase in short selling activity since late August, which now exceeds historical levels at more than 7% of issued capital. A significant portion of this has been bought by the Company's Top 20 shareholders

OLAROZ LITHIUM FACILITY

The Olaroz Lithium Facility is Orocobres flagship project located in the Jujuy province of Argentina. Together with partners, Toyota Tsusho Corporation (TTC) and Jujuy Energia y Mineria Sociedad del Estado (JEMSE), Orocobre is now operating the first large scale lithium brine plant to be commissioned in approximately 20 years.

The Olaroz Lithium Facility joint venture is operated through Argentine subsidiary Sales de Jujuy SA (SDJ SA). The effective equity interests are: Orocobre 66.5%, TTC 25.0% and JEMSE 8.5%.

PRODUCTION, SALES AND GUIDANCE

Sales revenue for the September quarter was US$33.5 million representing the first full quarter of commercial production and sales from the Olaroz Lithium Facility. Pro-rata sales tonnes (based off May/June) were up 17% while the average price received was up 24%. Cash operating costs were US$3,579/tonne resulting in strong operating margins.

Strongly positive operating cash flow continued in the September quarter which allowed Sales de Jujuy S.A. to self-fund a US$12.8 million principal and interest payment for the Mizuho project loan. Positive operating cashflow is now expected to be an on-going feature of the business.

Production in the month of September was a record 1,125 tonnes. September quarter production and operating costs were impacted by a 10 day mechanical outage in the drying circuit during August but still remained higher than the June quarter. Production in the December quarter is forecast between 3,500 and 4,000 tonnes.

The focus continued to be on improvements in operating practice, plant optimisation and process control. With the operation consistently achieving good performance in the primary circuit, the focus has been the purification circuit. Following various minor modifications, the circuit is now operating with improved control, increased residence times in reactors and good temperature profiles through all parts of the circuit. In addition, changes to carbon dioxide injection points and diffusor design modification have resulted in the elimination of "in process" material and the achievement of more stable operating conditions throughout the circuit.

Production in the purification circuit is currently limited due to restricted thickener residence time post the purified product crystallisers. Throughput will be increased in the December quarter by adding a cyclone bank to augment the thickener capacity. The thickener is the final step in the purification circuit prior to product entering the drying circuit.

BRINE INVENTORY

At the end of the quarter, brine inventory was approximately 39,900 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent.

SALES ORDERS

Commercial shipments of lithium carbonate continue to be dispatched from the Olaroz Lithium Facility to Europe, Asia and the USA. Normal production is sold as either battery, technical or industrial grade products and sold into the chemical manufacturing, industrial and battery application sectors. Commercial dispatches of high purity product to battery market customers continued during the quarter and additional customers will be supplied in the December quarter.

The September quarter sales price was up 24% against the June quarter to US$9,334/tonne. The customer orders fulfilled during the quarter included a significant number of back orders that were priced at levels much lower than current contract levels and the weighted average price achieved is of course dependent upon the mix of customer orders fulfilled during the quarter which is influenced by a number of factors including shipping schedules. The Company maintains price guidance on an FOB1 basis for the December quarter at approximately US$10,000/tonne. Strong market demand and supply side constraints are expected to maintain robust market prices for lithium carbonate.

SHORT-TERM LITHIUM MARKET OUTLOOK

Contract prices increased from the June quarter to the September quarter. Following strong demand thoughout the year China's spot prices softened slightly during the quarter but contract prices continued to strengthen including those achieved by Orocobre.

The Chinese EV market has softened on the back of a review of the government subsidy policy which is due to be completed in the next month. It is expected that there will be some consolidation of EV manufacturers with a resultant decrease in the total number of EV manufacturers in China. There is some inventory build occurring at cathode manufacturers in China in anticipation of an upturn in battery demand in Q4 2016 and into Q1 2017.

All available forward indicators of market demand remain positive including:

- Announcement of subsidy policy changes in China for electric vehicle production expected shortly

- China EV targets remain at five million vehicles by 2020 including 200,000 buses and three million EVs per annum by 2025

- On-going replacement of lead acid batteries by Li-ion batteries, even in traditional uses such as automotive SLI (starter, lights, ignition) batteries

- Continued construction of EV gigafactories with seven plants currently being built and 12 expected by 2020

- There are more than 100 Li-ion battery manufacturers in China

- Growing demand for energy storage as evidenced with Southern California Edison committing to an 80MWh Li-ion storage system for management of peak electricity loads

- Glocal consumer interest in EV's continues to grow - over the next two years, 25 new makes and models of electric cars have been announced for release

- Continuing strong demand from other (non-EV) battery applications including mobile phones, laptops and tablets

- Healthy demand from traditional end-use markets

The Company's short term outlook is for increasingly tight market dynamics in lithium markets with new supply being further delayed.

EXPANSION STUDY FOR OLAROZ

A scoping study to evaluate a potential Stage 2 expansion of 17,500 to 25,000 tonnes per annum has been submitted to the joint venture partners for review and will be released shortly. The study assessed construction of a similar plant to the existing Olaroz Lithium Facility. Lithium hydroxide production is also considered.

PLANS FOR CAUCHARI

Further drilling of Cauchari is planned in FY17 to define a larger resource and conduct pumping tests. The Environmental Impact Study is being considered by Unidad De Gestion Ambiental Minera Provincial (UGAMP) in November. Cauchari is immediately south of the Olaroz plant, with an inferred resource of 470,000 tonnes lithium carbonate equivalent, 1.6 million tonnes potassium chloride and 122,000 tonnes boron. Cauchari has potential for incremental production to feed into the expanded facilities at Olaroz.

MOU FOR DEVELOPMENT OF LITHIUM HYDROXIDE PLANT

Orocobre continues negotiations in relation to the next stage under the MOU. For further details, please refer to the Company's announcement "MOU for Development of Lithium Hydroxide Plant", 13 November, 2015.

BORAX ARGENTINA

Unaudited EBITDAX was breakeven and negatively affected by the commissioning of modifications at the boric acid plant. Borax Argentina is expected to move into positive EBITDAX in the December quarter as operations achieve greater stability.

The focus this financial year (FY17) is to improve production rates and unit costs following the optimisation projects at Tincalayu and Campo Quijano and improve efficiencies, build suitable inventory levels, improve response times, delivery performance and reinforce Borax's value proposition as the producer integral to a customer's security of supply strategy.

OPERATIONS

A total volume of 11,940 tonnes of combined product was sold during the quarter. This is an increase of 2,666 tonnes on the previous quarter and 3,816 tonnes on the corresponding quarter last year, on a comparable basis excluding sales of low value tincal ore. There were no tonnes of tincal ore sold this quarter.

PRODUCTION IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS COMPLETED

The Tincalayu borax plant expansion and modifications completed in the previous quarter were fully commissioned and ramping up in production rate during the quarter. On-going benefits of the recent works include lower unit production costs for both decahydrate and pentahydrate and additional options to export finished product directly from Tincalayu to international markets via Chilean ports.

Modifications of the boric acid plant at campo Quijano were completed in July and undergoing commissioning during the quarter. Recent production rates above 30tpd have been achieved, in line with expectations.

The modifications at both Tincalayu and Camp Quijano are expected to result in improved unit costs at both facilities.

TINCALAYU EXPANSION STUDY

A study commenced in Q2 CY2016 to evaluate a potential expansion of the Tincalayu refined borates operation from its current production capacity of 30,000 to 100-120,000 tonnes per annum and an integrated 25,000 tonne boric acid plant.

It is anticipated that the potential expansion will further enhance efficiencies in the production of refined borates at Tincalayu and contribute to improved manufacturing unit costs. This study will consolidate the work already undertaken on a new gas pipeline, for which permitting is underway.

It is anticipated the study will be completed early in CY2017.

MARKET CONDITIONS

Tonnes sold in the quarter are up 47% on the corresponding period last year (11,940 tonnes vs 8,124 tonnes).

Borax Argentina has also been pursuing an ongoing geographic and product diversification strategy in order to better insulate the business from localised economic and market cycles. In addition to its traditional markets in South America, the Company now has a geographically and market diverse range of customers.

To view the report, please visit:

http://abnnewswire.net/lnk/210Q1Z9C

About Orocobre Limited

Orocobre Limited is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange and Toronto Stock Exchange (ASX:ORE) (TSX:ORL) (OTCMKTS:OROCF), and is building a substantial Argentinian-based industrial minerals company through the construction and operation of its portfolio of lithium, potash and boron projects and facilities in the Puna region of northern Argentina.

The Company has built, in partnership with Toyota Tsusho Corporation and JEMSE, the first large-scale, greenfield brine based lithium project in 20 years at the Salar de Olaroz with planned production of 17,500 tonnes per annum of low-cost battery grade lithium carbonate.
VANCOUVER, BC--(Marketwired - October 28, 2016) - Macarthur Minerals Limited (TSX VENTURE: MMS)

THIS NEWS RELEASE IS NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES

Macarthur Minerals Limited (TSX VENTURE: MMS) (the "Company" or "Macarthur Minerals") is pleased to announce that the board has resolved to progress an Australian Securities Exchange ("ASX") Initial Public Offering ("IPO") of its Australian lithium and iron ore projects, subject to regulatory approval. Macarthur Minerals will maintain majority ownership and control of the ASX IPO listed entity.

David Taplin, President, CEO and Director of Macarthur Minerals, commented:

"The board of Macarthur Minerals believes that an ASX IPO of its Australian subsidiaries, which hold its Australian 'hard rock' lithium and iron ore projects, will provide improved price realisation for those projects more consistent with its ASX listed peers. Work has already commenced on the ASX IPO process for the Australian subsidiaries. Australian investment and wealth management firm, Shaw and Partners, has expressed interest in acting as lead manager for the ASX IPO. An IPO of the Australian subsidiaries will provide Macarthur Minerals with a well-funded listed entity to advance development of the Australian lithium and iron ore projects."

The Company's wholly owned subsidiary, Macarthur Lithium Nevada Limited, will continue to advance the Stonewall Lithium Project, located in Nevada.

Australian 'Hard Rock' Lithium Projects

The Company has one of the largest lithium hard rock acreage packages in Australia, covering an area of 2,029 square kilometres (501,376 acres) across the Pilbara, Ravensthorpe and the Yalgoo/Edah regions of Western Australia. Initial reconnaissance across the Company's acreage has been encouraging, including initial assay results from rock chips of up to 3.75% lithium (Li 2 O) received at the Yalgoo Lithium Project (see the Company's announcement dated October 12, 2016).

Australian Iron Ore Projects

The Company owns the Ularring Hematite and the Moonshine Magnetite Projects in the Yilgarn region of Western Australia. The Company has previously invested over A$60 million in progressing the Ularring Hematite Project beyond Pre-Feasibility(1) and the Moonshine Magnetite Project to a Preliminary Economic Assessment(2). The Ularring Hematite Project has received approval to develop an iron ore mine under Western Australian and Australian Federal environmental laws.

The Company believes that the iron ore projects remain valuable assets with the recovery of the global iron ore market, with a spot price of $US63.04 a tonne today(3).

QUALIFIED PERSONS

Mr David Williams, a member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists, is a part-time employee of CSA Global Pty Ltd and is a Qualified Person as defined in National Instrument 43-101. Mr Williams has reviewed and approved the technical information in relation to the Iron Ore Projects contained in this news release.

Mr Ralph Porter, a member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists, is a full-time employee of CSA Global Pty Ltd and is a Qualified Person as defined in National Instrument 43-101. Mr Porter has reviewed and approved the technical information in relation to Macarthur's lithium acreage contained in this news release.

ABOUT SHAW AND PARTNERS

Shaw and Partners is one of Australia's preeminent investment and wealth management firms. With a national presence and approximately $10 billion of assets under advice, Shaw and Partners offers the intimacy of a boutique investment firm with the resources and scale of a major financial group. Shaw and Partners are privately owned and client focused, having helped its clients manage and grow their financial assets for over 25 years.

ABOUT MACARTHUR MINERALS LIMITED (TSX VENTURE: MMS)

Macarthur Minerals Limited is an exploration and development company that is focused on identifying and developing high grade lithium and counter cyclical investments, with significant lithium exploration interest in Australia and Nevada. In addition, Macarthur has two iron ore projects in Western Australia; the Ularring hematite project and the Moonshine magnetite project.

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

MACARTHUR MINERALS LIMITED

"Cameron McCall"

Cameron McCall, Chairman

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.

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Certain of the statements made and information contained in this press release may constitute forward-looking information and forward-looking statements (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable securities laws. The forward-looking statements in this press release reflect the current expectations, assumptions or beliefs of the Company based upon information currently available to the Company. With respect to forward-looking statements contained in this press release, assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, the timely receipt of required approvals, the reliability of information, including historical mineral resource or mineral reserve estimates, prepared and/or published by third parties that are referenced in this press release or was otherwise relied upon by the Company in preparing this press release. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct as actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include fluctuations in exchange rates and certain commodity prices, uncertainties related to mineral title in the project, unforeseen technology changes that results in a reduction in iron ore demand or substitution by other metals or materials, the discovery of new large low cost deposits of iron ore, uncertainty in successfully returning the project into full operation, and the general level of global economic activity. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements due to the inherent uncertainty thereof. Such statements relate to future events and expectations and, as such, involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release and except as may otherwise be required pursuant to applicable laws, the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

(1) NI43-101 Technical Report filed October 1, 2012, titled "NI 43-101 Technical Report, Macarthur Minerals Limited, Pre-Feasibility Study, Ularring Hematite Project, Western Australia" -- this report is not current.

(2) NI43-101 Technical Report filed March 25, 2011, titled "Macarthur Minerals Limited: Moonshine and Moonshine North Prospects, Lake Giles Iron Project, Western Australia, NI43-101 Technical Report -- Preliminary Assessment" -- this report is no longer current.

(3) Australian Financial Review, October 28, 2016.
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Oct. 28, 2016) - Argentina Lithium & Energy Corp. (TSX VENTURE:LIT)(FRANKFURT:OAY1)(WKN:A0RK7E) ("Argentina Lithium" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has entered into an option agreement to acquire a 100% interest in the Arizaro lithium brine project located on the Arizaro Salar within the prolific "Lithium Triangle" in the Province of Salta, Argentina.

"We are very excited to start this new chapter of exploration with a project that meets all the best starting requirements - location, size, geology, infrastructure, jurisdiction and potential. As a member company of the Grosso Group, we plan to draw on our experience and past success in Argentina to become a leader in exploration for the green energy sector, starting with the Arizaro Project," stated Nikolaos Cacos, President and CEO of Argentina Lithium.

The Arizaro Lithium Brine Project consists of 20,500 hectares in the central core of the Arizaro Salar, the largest in Argentina (and third largest in the Lithium Triangle). Analysis of the Salar indicates that the central area has the geologic conditions and thickness to be the most prospective for quality brine resources.

Argentina Lithium plans to initiate aggressive exploration on the property. In addition, a strategy is underway to further expand the property holdings on the Arizaro Salar, and acquire additional high-potential lithium brine projects.

The Arizaro Salar benefits from a strategic location for infrastructure, including: a railway that connects to the deep water port of Antofagasta, nearby advanced mining projects that are expected to bring significant development of access routes and power, and the availability of water for development.

The terms of the option agreement include $6M in staged payments and $4.2M in expenditures over a four year period. Additionally, the Company must issue 2.5M common shares with certain resale restrictions.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Nikolaos Cacos, President & CEO

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.

This news release may contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements. Readers are encouraged to refer to the Company's public disclosure documents for a more detailed discussion of factors that may impact expected future results. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements.

The securities being offered have not been, nor will they be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons absent U.S. federal and state registration or an applicable exemption from the U.S. registration requirements. This release does not constitute an offer for sale of securities in the United States.
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Oct. 28, 2016) - Advantage Lithium Corp. (the "Company" or "Advantage Lithium") (TSX VENTURE:AAL) has, further to the news release of September 14th, now signed the definitive agreement to acquire 100% interest in the Stella Marys project, Salta Province, Argentina (the "Property"). Stella Marys in an advanced lithium brine project, comprising 1,472 ha, located in the western sector of the Salinas Grandes salar within Argentina's "Lithium Triangle" of developing and producing projects, including the country's two lithium producers. The property is adjacent to Orocobre's Salar de Salinas Grandes lithium-potassium-boron brine project, which hosts a near-surface, low sulfate inferred resource estimate of 56.5 million cubic meters of brine grading 795 mg/l lithium (239,200 tonnes lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE)) and 9,547 mg/l potassium (1.03 million tonnes of potash equivalent) and 283 mg/l boron.

Orocobre's shallow inferred mineral resource potentially extends onto the Stella Marys property, where a previous operator is reported to have completed a comprehensive exploration program of mapping and sampling, geochemistry, some drilling with pump tests, and preliminary engineering.

David Sidoo, President and CEO, of Advantage Lithium, commented: "The acquisition of the highly-strategic Stella Marys project is an important milestone for Advantage Lithium and establishes our presence in this important lithium district. We plan to aggressively develop our key projects and we have the funds to do so. Just as we have commenced drilling at our Clayton NE project in Nevada, just a few months after closing the agreement, so we expect to begin exploration work at our exciting Stella Marys property within a short period of time."

Project Highlights

1,472 ha lithium brine project immediately adjacent to a significant shallow depth, inferred resource, which has substantial grades and good chemistry

Prior exploration work includes mapping, sampling, geochemistry, drilling with pump tests and preliminary engineering

Salta province of Argentina is ranked by Fraser Institute (2015 survey) as one of the most favourable jurisdictions in Central and South America for exploration

Near to excellent infrastructure corridor of road, rail, and power

Details of the Agreement

In order to acquire the Property, the Company must pay: (a) a non-refundable deposit of US$100,000 upon signing of the LOI (which has been paid); (b) a further US$250,000 and 300,000 common shares of the Company on the earlier of the date of TSXV acceptance and 90 days from date of the LOI; (c) a further US$250,000 and 300,000 common shares on the six month anniversary of TSXV acceptance; and (d) a further US$650,000 and 900,000 common shares on the first anniversary of TSXV acceptance.

The technical information in this news release has been prepared in accordance with the Canadian regulatory requirements set out in National Instrument 43-101 and reviewed on behalf of the company by Ross McElroy, P.Geol., Technical Director for Advantage Lithium Corp., and the Designated Qualified Person for the company.

Further information about the company can be found at www.advantagelithium.com.

About Advantage Lithium Corp.

Advantage Lithium Corp. is a resource company specializing in the strategic acquisition, exploration and development of lithium properties and is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. Common Shares are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "AAL". The company is earning an interest from Nevada Sunrise Gold Corp., in a portfolio of five lithium brine projects in the Clayton and Lida Valley regions of Nevada, USA, together with certificated water rights in the Clayton Valley. The company has also entered into an LOI agreement to earn interest from Radius Gold Inc. in four lithium brine projects in the states of Chihuahua and Coahuila, Northwest Mexico. In addition, the company has entered into an LOI to acquire 100% of the Stella Marys lithium brine project in Argentina's Lithium Triangle.

Source: Advantage Lithium
im Se-jin and THSS's video performance "A Hermit" as part of MMCA-Hyundai Motor Museum Festival: Madang / Courtesy of MMCA





By Kwon Mee-yoo

The Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA) celebrates the third anniversary of its Seoul branch in November with a handful of new exhibitions and a museum festival this week.

"MMCA-Hyundai Motor Museum Festival: Madang" running through Sunday reflects the museum's efforts to take a step closer to the public with convergence arts.

MMCA director Bartomeu Mari explained why the festival is named "madang," the Korean word for courtyard, an important element of Korean traditional culture as well as a keyword for MMCA Seoul's architecture.





"Ob.scene 5: Void" by Ob.scene is a participatory performance exploring architecture of MMCA Seoul.



"Madang is a space open to all and welcomes everyone. It is a space of freedom and sharing. It is a place to be with others, to enjoy, to learn, to discover and to exchange," Mari said Wednesday. "The festival will take place in several madang of the building, inside and outside of MMCA Seoul. 'Madang' is about offering another way of enjoying the museum other than exhibition. The audience becomes a user, the user becomes an actor, the actor becomes an author and the authors become witnesses of their creations."

The director also said, "the MMCA festival is an event to make MMCA  the center of Korean contemporary art and culture  more urban, more part of the city and more part of the country that has become a global cultural voice as well."

The festival is sponsored by Hyundai Motor and Mari appreciated the partner believing in the potential of art. In addition to the festival, Korea's largest carmaker supports the annual MMCA Hyundai Motor Series, funding new works and an exhibition of leading artist of Korea, and internationally at the Tate Modern in London and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.





Choon Choi's "A Genealogy of X" / Courtesy of MMCA



The festival consists of a wide range of performances, site-specific installations and audience participation programs.

The highlight will be "Continues Verb," a three-day performance combining sound art and humanities lectures. On Friday, Robin Mackay talked about "Perception of Sound" with performances by Lee Gamble and Florian Hecker; on Saturday, Mattin from Spain will lecture on "Sociality of Sound" with Korean groups Transistorhead and Damirat, Marcus Schmickler and Thomas Lehn from Germany and Mark Fell from the U.K.; and Timorthy Morton will discuss "Ecology of Sound" accompanied by Species pluralis, Dakim and Mika Vainio.

Artists will present site-specific works  Yoo Mok-yon will hand out flyers inviting the public to the museum and Yoon Ka-lim will bake geometrical bread in the museum's lobby. Photographer Koo Young-jun will take pictures of the museumgoers and Studio Gorm's John Arndt and Wonhee Jeong Arndt designed furniture for the museum.

Visitors can go up to the museum's rooftop and enjoy evening events and concerts through Rooftop Moonlight Festival until Sunday. The museum opens its loading dock, which is usually closed to the public, and throws dance parties on Saturdays.

VOID

Meanwhile, the "VOID" exhibit sheds light on open, archipelagic architectural traits of the MMCA Seoul.

The museum's architecture curator Jeong Da-young invited artists from various genres, not just architects, to gain a new understanding of MMCA Seoul.

"It begins with a void, or empty space, of MMCA Seoul, but it provides a new perspective to see the museum," Jeong said. "The exhibition centers on architecture, but it doesn't have to be told by architects. So I chose artists with different backgrounds."

Artist Jang Min-seung joined hands with Jung Jae-il to create "Light Chamber," an installation in Gallery 6 with music and light to experience architecture in a synesthetic way.

OPENHOUSE Seoul, a nonprofit organization researching the architecture and urbanity of Seoul, presents "Void Form, Void Connection." The project documents voids inside and outside the museum, which were unrecognized.

Architect Choon Choi comes from an architectural background, but his work is more theatrical. Choi's creation "A Genealogy of X" is in fact a set for a play, "Architecture Theater X," written by Choi exploring the voids of MMCA Seoul.

Ob.scene is a magazine focusing on subjects out of the scene. Their fifth edition breaks out from paper form and makes its readers to turn space  instead of page -- to read the magazine accompanied by an audio guide.

Kim Hee-cheon's "From Cradle to" takes MMCA Seoul as a giant phone cradle for a smartphone, providing a new sensibility on the museum by looking at the building in different scales.

For more information, visit www.mmca.go.kr or call 02-3701-9500.
Cho In-geun, a former senior presidential secretary in charge of speeches and records, replies to questions from reporters about the scandal over Choi Soon-sil in Seoul, Friday. / Korea Times photo by Oh Dae-geun



By Jun Ji-hye

President Park Geun-hye's former speechwriter denied rumors Friday that he had been aware of Park's confidant Choi Soon-sil's editing of presidential speeches.

Cho In-geun, who served as the senior secretary for speeches and records from February 2013 to July of this year, told reporters that he knew nothing of Choi and that he never doubted that somebody edited the presidential speeches.

It was the first time for Cho, currently an auditor for the Korea Securities Finance Corp., to speak about the scandal since President Park admitted Choi had prior access to draft speeches on Tuesday.

"I learned of Choi only after the recent media reports," he said.

When asked about why he did not check the reason for changes in the presidential speeches, he said, "It is the President who makes the final decision about speeches. I did not doubt that there were strange changes in the speeches."

Cho added that he did not consult with Cheong Wa Dae before he met reporters.
The top American intelligence official's remarks on North Korea's nuclear weapons program are creating a stir. Speaking at a seminar organized by the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, Tuesday, U.S. National Intelligence Director James Clapper said the notion of persuading North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons was a "lost cause.''



"The best we could probably hope for is some sort of a cap (on the North's nuclear capabilities),'' the former U.S. Air Force lieutenant-general said. This was taken as meaning that Washington may feel the need to acknowledge Pyongyang's nuclear arsenal and choose to set the freezing of the nuclear weapons as a policy objective.



But Clapper's remarks clearly contradict the policy goal of South Korea and the U.S. of denuclearizing the reclusive North. In response to a question about Clapper's comments, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said that "only by negotiation and consultation can the nuclear issue be brought back to the track of settlement.''



Even so, that Clapper, who oversees 16 U.S. intelligence agencies, officially raised the need to change the policy toward North Korea must be heeded.



Clapper's comments reflect America's more realistic assessment of Pyongyang's nuclear capabilities. As he pointed out, it is widely believed that North Korea would never give up its nuclear weapons. And the North is moving closer to having nuclear-tipped missiles through two nuclear tests and over 20 ballistic missiles launches this year.



True, few believe that sanctions alone will thwart the North's nuclear ambitions. The stark reality is that the hostile regime in Pyongyang has been upgrading the North's nuclear capabilities.



So it is tempting to alter the policy toward North Korea's weapons of mass destruction from "no tolerance'' to "freezing.'' Should Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton be elected, the next U.S. administration may drop Obama's "strategic patience'' and seek dialogue with the North. The recent so-called Track 2 discussions in Malaysia between former U.S. diplomats and North Korean officials may also signal a possible shift in American policy.



The most important thing here is whether our diplomats are well prepared for America's sudden policy change. They must be on high alert, keeping a close watch on possible changes in Washington's North Korea policy.



South Korea has no reason to be too rigid concerning the North's nuclear issue, bound by the current goal of denuclearization. Depending on the circumstances, it's possible to consider freezing the North's weapons program as an intermediate goal. But Seoul cannot afford to let Washington change its policy toward the North without consultation.




I was planning my wedding and honeymoon when the terror attacks on the United States transpired in 2001. Like many others, I felt worried and anxious about the future of our country and about my own personal safety. Would dodging bombs and bullets be the new norm for Americans? Would I have to watch my back the minute I stepped outside my front door? I was working as a physician assistant (PA) for a gastrointestinal practice in New Jersey when I met a patient who would challenge my thinking.

Before the attacks, I had never feared flying. I would happily plan my vacations, jump on a plane, and relax. But in the aftermath of the attacks, I was deathly afraid of dying in a crashing plane and thought my days of air travel were over.

On a day at work like any other, a new patient came in to my office. I don't recall his name, his chief complaint, or what he looked like. But his words that day did something amazingthey changed my life.

I was chatting with this patient about mundane things, as I usually did to relax the patient, when the attacks came up in conversation. I mentioned how I was planning a honeymoon in some exotic locale such as Hawaii or Tahiti but was now afraid to fly. I told him I had resigned myself to the fact that the only option for me now was a cruise out of the closest port or a destination I could drive to, but I hated feeling so limited by fear.

After I completed his history and physical and as we waited for my supervising physician to come and see the patient, he told me stories about people who were due to fly but didn't get on the plane for some reason and died that day anyway. He told me I should live my life without fear, enjoy every minute of it, and go ahead and take that honeymoon to Hawaii or Tahiti or any other place that made me happybecause life is short, and nothing is guaranteed. Death is inevitable, he said, and when it's your time, the party is over.

After my supervising physician had evaluated him, I sent him on his way, thanking him for his encouraging words. During my drive home, I mulled over my discussion with the patient, realizing that the only way to resolve my fear was to face it head on. When I got home that evening, I called my travel agent and booked a honeymoon to the British Virgin Islands.

Was I afraid when I got on the plane? Yes. But I let this man, and his words, occupy my troubled mind, and before I knew it, my new husband and I had landed in paradise.

I've thought about that patient several times over the years since that encounter. He will never know it, but as much as I hope I helped him, he helped me more.

This kind patient reminded me of a similar experience I had during PA school. Whenever I think of that man, I also remember the wise words of this woman.

During my internal medicine rotation, I met an older woman who had just had a transient ischemic attack. I was assigned to do her history and physical, but as I sat by her bedside, she spent a lot of time reminiscing about her life. I had always enjoyed listening to stories from older people, so I hung on her every word and spent more than an hour with her, completely engrossed in her life story. I had mentioned putting off travel until retirement, and she nearly jumped out of bed. She told me that she and her husband had the very same plans, but the day after he retired, he died. She attempted some traveling herself, but soon after became less mobile and had difficulty with traveling, so she gave up. She advised me not to wait; to live life now and enjoy doing things while I was still young and healthy enough to enjoy them.

And I did. I've traveled a lot and enjoyed every minute of it.

What these patients don't knowwhat I wish I could tell them now, all these years lateris that they saved me. They saved me from giving in to the terrorists and their scare tactics. They saved me from having to look back and say, I wish I would have.... They saved me from letting my fears get in the way of living my life. And I am so very grateful for having met them.

As much as we save our patients, sometimes they save us too, even if only from ourselves.
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When a man hits the road to success, he becomes exposed to a lot of enemies; people who will go to every extent to sabotage his progress. Most of these people are very close to us; we call them family, loved ones and even friends.

These are the people that know us too well to know exactly where it will hurt,they are called Frenemies- Enemies in Friendsskins.

when www.razzonline.com published that ace broadcaster Odifour Asare aka Otwinoko is blind,many were astonished and wondered how he became blind since he was not born with it.

In a one on one interview with Rossy of www.razzonline.com ,Odifour Asare in connection with how he got blind revealed that he was poisoned by people he trained in the radio business.

Its a long story but I will try to make it short for you.I was poisoned by my own people,people i trained in the radio business some seven years ago in Kumasi. I was having a severe chest pain after returning from a journey outside the country. i use to go to the hospital for some medication but it wasnt getting better, so a friend suggested I see some physician in Kumasi, so i did.The Doctor gave me some intravenous but not knowing the whole bag was full of poison.

My body started peeling off, my ten nails also came outi was hospitalised for three months at Okomfo Anokye Teaching Hospital emergency unit.I was on oxygen for the entire period, and it has not been easy for me since. They have my records are at the hospital, so you can go and check,Odifour sorrowfully told Rossy.

Odifour Asare, who is the hosts of Nyaasem Hwe and Raggae School on Accra based Hot 93.9fm, stressed further that,he wouldnt be specific about whether those who poisoned him were from Fox Fm where he was working before coming to work at Hot Fm but he now feels the pain so he has decided to come out and share his sad story.

Kindly watch the full interview below!


Not everyone knows the value of having a good mother but for Nollywood actor, Mike Ezuruonye, a mother and family at large is the best gift he can ever ask for as he celebrates his mother who turns a year older.

The actor disclosed that he was just one kid who gave his mother tough time while young and yet she never gave up on him and made him the person he is today.

He describes his mother as an international mother who trained him while going through various challenges without any help and support.

Happy birthday to the woman GOD selected from HEAVEN to bring me to the world...I feel so privileged to be called your son. Because you are indeed an epitome of the true ABC's of womanhood. Taught me that motto of "NO ONE FOR US BUT GOD". I and your other children, hold that motto firm. No sorry enough for the pains I caused you while a Juvenile.

"Still not enough Thank You now Im a Man you moulded above troubled Waters. I love you forever Mum and I still pray GOD keeps you alive to continually reap the fruit of your Labour because you too suffer for us oooo. Happy Birthday my dearest Mama. Mother and Super Mum a.k.a international Mummy, he wrote.
BRUSSELS, ACCRA, Oct. 27 - (UPI/GNA) - NATO countries, including the United States and Britain, on Wednesday pledged to increase their military presence in Eastern Europe to levels rivaling the Cold War to counter Russian aggression.

Britain said it would send fighter jets to Romania in 2017, also contributing to a 4,000-strong ground force along with Germany, Canada and other allies to be deployed in the Baltic states and Eastern Europe.

The United States pledged tanks, artillery and more than 900 ground troops to Poland as part of a "battle-ready" task force ordered by President Barack Obama.

The announcement follows an agreement of a NATO summit in Warsaw in July in which NATO said it would deploy four battalions by early 2017 in the region. NATO defense ministers met on Wednesday and Thursday in Brussels to discuss how to handle NATO's "deterrence and defense, and also on how to project stability beyond our borders."

"Close to our borders, Russia continues its assertive military posturing. Including with massive, non-notice exercises," NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said during a press conference. "This month alone, Russia has deployed nuclear-capable Iskander missiles to Kaliningrad and suspended a weapons-grade plutonium agreement with the United States. And Russia continues to destabilize eastern Ukraine with military and financial support for the separatists. These moves do not lower tensions or restore predictability to our relations."

Stoltenberg also criticized Russia's actions in Syria, particularly in Aleppo. In September 2015, Russia began aiding Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a longtime ally, by carrying out airstrikes against Assad's enemies -- which include the Islamic State and rebel forces, some of which are considered moderate by the United States.

Stoltenberg said that although NATO is working to deescalate tensions and increase dialogue with Russia to establish a "more cooperative and constructive relationship" -- adding that NATO does not "want a new Cold War" or a "new arms race" -- the alliance must react to Russia's "substantial and significant military buildup."

"Russia has tripled defense spending. Russia has invested heavily in a modern military equipment," Stoltenberg added. "They are conducting a large scale no notice exercises close to NATO boarders, but perhaps most importantly Russia has been willing to use military force against neighbors. We have seen that in Georgia and we have seen it in Ukraine with illegal annexation of Crimea and the continued destabilization of Eastern Ukraine."

GNA
Will the market for physician assistants (PAs) reach saturation some day? Will there be so many PAs and NPs that adding one more will lower the value of their services? According to applied labor theory, when the ratio of physicians to PAs is high (that is, approaching 1:1), one additional full-time equivalent (FTE) PA might offset one FTE physician. After 50 years of PA presence in the United States, the demand continues to exceed supply. However, as the ratio becomes lower, with fewer physicians and many PAs, the value of each additional PA might be small. That begs the question; what MD-to-PA ratio is optimal such that the marginal cost of a PA equals the marginal value of a PA? The marginal cost of the PA is what it costs an employer to hire an extra PA (salary and benefits). The marginal value of an additional PA (in terms of substitution) is the savings from not having to pay salary and benefits for an additional physician. If, for example, a family medicine physician costs, on the average, the employer twice as much as a family medicine PA, the optimal staffing ratio is that point where two PAs can substitute for one MD. If the ratio is below that optimum in terms of hiring too few PAs, either a practice could financially benefit from hiring more PAs or the salary and benefits of PAs are below what the PA is worth.

Cautionary tales about an oversupply of PAs and NPs are beginning to emerge, at least in the United States, and in this issue of JAAPA, Salsberg and Quigley offer their predictions based on the theory of healthcare organization efficiency (Are we facing a physician assistant surplus? page 40). Will the predicted annual supply of 30,000 physicians and 25,000 PAs and NPs in 2024, on top of perhaps 708,000 clinically active physicians and 235,000 clinically employed PAs and NPs in 2015 already in the population, adequately address the scarcity of medical labor in the American market, or will it exceed demand?1,2 With a national ratio of clinically active physicians to licensed PAs and NPs of about 3:1, the capacity of a clunky entrepreneurial and socialized healthcare system will likely hold more providers of all types. Conversely, will the lower employment cost of a PA edge out a physician, or will the traditional dominance of a doctor squeeze out the PA? Will supply induce demand, or will a rational market seek some optimal ratio? A model for what constitutes an ideal medical supply and demand that incorporates all who are at the top of their license has only been theorized and never observed.3

All three professions are experiencing growth (albeit differently) but concurrently the physician career arc is shortening.4 At the same time, extraordinary statistics on the demand side of the equation are also emerging. For example, one-third of all baby girls born in this century are predicted to live to be centenariansan unprecedented phenomenon that has significant demand implications.5 The global burden of disease study reveals trends in ailment and injury incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability that will affect regional and national health policies at rates never imagined.6 Larger populations of older adults and better treatments for diseases, coupled with newer technology, may tax healthcare professionals and systems in ways for which we are not prepared. Changes in age groups, sex, and lifestyle have already altered the annual and career productivity of physicians.7 Nor have the promises of medical homes and accountable care organizations delivered what they purport.8,9

In the end, little is predictable about PA and NP supply and demand because the practice patterns of these professionals are dynamic and poorly tabulated. Health services research into the activity and productivity of PAs and NPs is still in its early childhood, in part because the professions are young and in part because of tepid attention from national professional societies and their leaders. If the substitution of physician services is to be understood, then more prospective, granular, and sophisticated research needs to be undertakenotherwise, the debate about how many PAs are enough will go on endlessly. More advanced modeling of the American health workforce in general, and of PAs specifically, is required for understanding where demand, cost savings, and value lie. The issue of medical shortages has emerged as critical if society's health is to be maintained and at no time has there been a greater demand for PAs.10 Salsberg and Quigley are right in addressing the question about PA market saturation. Needed is focused research on work style, team-based roles, and career trajectories more than wishful thinking that healthcare organizations are on the brink of efficient breakthroughs. They are wrong that graduation rates of PAs can be controlled any more than physician or NP rates in a highly capitalized system.
The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) has signed the second Compact with Government for the release of $498 million to strengthen power distribution in Ghana.

The completion of the deal Thursday comes after a one-year delay. The delay was due to Ghanas inability to satisfy all the requisite conditionalities demanded by the United States-administered MCC.

The five-year Ghana Power Compact seeks to create a financially viable power sector that will meet the current and future needs of households and businessesand ultimately help fight poverty across the country.

The Ghana Power Compact was signed in August 2014 but a 2015 date set for the disbursement of the funds was missed. Two other dates in 2016  June and September  were also missed.

With the soon-to-be-released $498 million, it brings total support to Ghana under the Power Compact to $1.4 billion.

CEO of the MCC, Dana Hyde, said on Thursday, October 27 at a short ceremony to mark the signing of the second Compact that the funds will strengthen operations of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and make it more efficient.

The second Compact is coming at a time when workers of the ECG have been agitating against plans to inject funds into the company.

The workers fear they will lose their jobs when the power distribution company is restructured, fears government have been at pains to dispel.

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | GN
Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings has filed a new suit against the EC over her disqualification from the December polls barely 24 hours after a similar suit was struck out at an Accra High Court.

Mrs Rawlings this time filed the lawsuit at the Human Rights Division of the High Court to challenge the Electoral Commissions decision.

The Human Rights Court has set Tuesday, November 1, 2016, to hear the case.

The National Democratic Party (NDP) and the former First Lady are seeking an interlocutory injunction, prohibiting and restraining the Electoral Commission and its agents from going ahead with the balloting of presidential candidates until the court settles the matter.

They are also praying the Court to compel the EC from doing the following:

- Posting any notices at any constituency centres, specifying the names of candidates purportedly nominated and the persons who have proposed and supported each of the purportedly nominated candidates for the 2016 presidential election, without including name of the 2nd application;

- Allocating symbols and colours to the purportedly nominated candidates for the 2016 presidential election, without allocating symbols and colours to the 2nd applicant; and

- Publishing any notices of poll in the Gazette and in places in constituencies around the country with respect to the 2016 presidential election, without including the name of the 2nd applicant.

The NDP flagbearer in another suit prayed the court to declare as illegal the deadline the EC set for receiving nominations and a further declaration that the EC erred in law when it decided not to accept the applicant's nomination thereby wrongfully and illegal disqualifying the applicants from contesting in the 2016 presidential elections.

She is also seeking an order quashing the ECs decision not to accept Mrs Rawlings nominations and an order compelling the EC to accept her nomination and to include her name on the ballot for the 2016 presidential election.

At an Accra High Court Thursday Presiding Judge, Justice George K. Koomson, struck out the NDPs suit citing the wrong procedure used by Mrs Rawlings to file, hence making the case incompetent.

The Judge also indicated that the applicants were wrong to include an application for judicial review and the enforcement of fundamental human rights in one writ.

The NDP presidential candidate was among 12 other candidates disqualified from contesting the December elections.

Chairperson of the Commission, Charlotte Osei said the disqualified aspirants did not meet the criteria for filing as presidential candidates.

The other rejected political parties are; Ghana Freedom Party (GFP), United Progressive Party (UPP), Reformed Patriotic Democrats (RPD), Progressive Peoples Party (PPP), and the Great Consolidated Peoples Party (GCPP).

The rest include; United Front Party (UFP), All Peoples Congress (APC), and the Independent Peoples Party (IPP).

The National Democratic Congress (NDC), the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the Convention People's Party (CPP) and one independent presidential candidate have been cleared to contest the December polls.

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | GN
The management of St. Peter and Paul School at Denu in the Volta Region are worried over the increasing incident of dumping of human excreta in the school's classrooms.

The school says although it has devised various means to halt the unscrupulous activity it continues to suffer such attacks from residents in the community.

Citi News gathered that the school recently received funds and court clearance to construct a fence wall to avert such situations but that did not materialize due to resistance from the locals.

Chairman of the School Management Committee, Mr George Awago said the school was forced to create an alternative access route in the area, residents forced their way to make the school a thoroughfare by pulling down a portion of its fence wall and removed the gate.

He lamented that the development was hampering school activities as pupils and students had to spend hours clearing the mess before the start of academic activities.

He added that it had become very common for mentally challenged persons to invade school premises and motor riders recklessly riding through the school during class activities.

When Citi News visited the school on Thursday morning [October 27], human excreta had covered the floor of a classroom with the school's gates laying on the ground.

A teacher who spoke to Citi News, said the situation here is very bad, every morning when we come to school we see human excreta on the floor. Because of that the entire day we don't use the classroom.

Mr George Awago said there have several failed attempts to draw the attention of stakeholders in the district to salvage the situation.

People just walk through the school anyhow and when you talk to them, they abuse you. Some are even selling at the school's entrance. We informed the district and other people that matter but nothing is being done, he said.

He is therefore, appealing to the government and other relevant stakeholders to help solve the problem and ensure an academic friendly environment is created for school.



By: King Nobert Akpablie/citifmonline.com/Ghana
A renowned political scientist is rooting for a public debate between presidential aspirants, surmising that without a healthy debate of ideas between contestants of the December polls Ghanas democratic advancement will suffer a setback.

Professor Ransford Gyampo says since 2000 presidential candidates have engaged in a public debate prior to elections, wondering why there is a surreptitious attempt by political elites to break the trend.

The Senior Political Science Lecturer and Director of the Centre for European Studies at the University of Ghana, Legon said the public debate is important because it serves as a foundation for the countrys quest for issues-based politics.

We cannot achieve [issues-based politics] unless we have a healthy contest of ideas on an independent and credible platform where [the presidential candidates] know that they will be subjected to strict proof of whatever they say; where people know that they cannot lie, he said.

He was speaking on PM Express on the Joy News channel on Multi TV, Thursday evening.

Professor Gyampo was commenting on a challenge that was thrown by President John Mahama to opposition presidential contest, Nana Akufo-Addo. Nana Akufo-Addo has declined the challenge thrwon at him, explaining that the move by the President was just propaganda.

Related: Akufo-Addo will not debate a flip-flop President  Hamid

However, speaking on PM Express, Professor Gyampo suggested that the Presidents challenged must be taken up in earnest.

On partisan rallies, you can go and hurl insults, you can go and say all manner of things and your supporters will support you but on a debate platform, you will be subjected to strict proof.

Debate is good because it promotes the discussion of issues within the body politic instead of insults; debate is very good because it provides an accountability mechanism, he said.

Professor Gyampo also said the debate is good because it contributes to lowering political tension that always peaks to the lead up to elections.

Seeing presidential aspirants on one platform engage in a healthy contest of ideas and exchanging pleasantries and smiling and cracking jokes here and there sends a calming down effect to their supporters that after all look at the people we are supporting they are not even fighting, he said.

He said the debate must come on because it empowers the right of voters to the exercise of choice.

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | George Nyavor | [email protected]
Cairo (AFP) - Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has said the government will look into revising a protest law under which hundreds of activists have been jailed.

Sisi's comments came at the end of a two-day "youth conference" on Thursday, an effort to reach out to young Egyptians as the country braces for austerity reforms to salvage its battered economy.

Reading a series of conclusions at the end of the conference, Sisi said the government would look into revising the law passed in 2013, months after the former army chief overthrew his Islamist predecessor Mohamed Morsi.

"The government will undertake, in coordination with the relevent agencies, to study suggestions and proposals to amend the protest law," Sisi said, before he was interrupted by applause from the audience.

Sisi laughed and said "you really love protesting," adding that the revisions would be presented to parliament.

He also promised another youth conference in November.

The law, which bans all but police-sanctioned protests, has been used to jail activists for up to two years.

The United Nations and rights groups had asked the Egyptian government to reconsider the law.

A crackdown on Islamist supporters of Morsi after his ouster saw hundreds of demonstrators killed and thousands jailed, including secular dissidents.

Jihadist attacks have since killed hundreds of soldiers and policemen.
[27th October, 2016] Airtel Ghanas CEO and current Telecoms CEO of the Year, Lucy Quist has called for more strategic partnerships and investment in Africas telecommunications sector.

Speaking at the Africa Development and Investment Convention (ADIC) 2016, an annual gathering of seasoned global business leaders and investors, she cited the growth in the industry, Africas youthful population and the majority of the continents population who are yet to be connected as opportunities for investment in the sector.

Africas place in the global telecom economy

Sharing her views on Africas place in the global economy, Lucy Quist said Africa is one of the fastest growing regions in the world with a burgeoning middle class. According to the African Development Bank, between 2000 and 2010, the number of middle class Africans grew by 130m and projected to increase to 230m by 2020.

She continued Africas telecom industry remains the fastest growing in the world with a ripple effect on most economies on the continent. In 2015 telecommunication contributed $153 billion to Africas GDP, the equivalent of 6.7% of total GDP. In some countries such as Nigeria, it was 8.7% overtaking its mainstay  oil for the first time in the countrys history.

What you find is that telecom penetration in Africa is driving productivity and growth in line with a recent report by Deloitte and GSMA which shows that for developing economies, every 10% increase in mobile penetration is likely to increase productivity by 4.2%.

54% of Africans are still not connected

Citing research findings from the GSMA, Mrs. Quist explained that although more than 557 million unique subscribers have been connected as at the end of 2015  the equivalent of 46% of Africas total population  the continent still remains the least penetrated mobile market in the world.

More than half a billion Africans are still not connected providing opportunities for investment in infrastructure, rural connectivity and data services to serve the remaining 54% of the current population without access. She indicated.

Challenges in power supply and technology

Lucy Quist highlighted some of the supply side challenges confronting the telecomm industry in Africa such as power supply, population density and technology and proposed ways these can be converted into investment opportunities.

Unreliable power supply means most operators on the continent rely on alternative sources  primarily expensive diesel which adds to their operational costs.

According to the Green Power for Mobile report authored by the GSMA in collaboration with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), energy cost constitute a major chunk of network operations cost (OPEX) for mobile operators in Africa. The energy cost for a typical tower site, according to the report, constitutes as much as 40% of the overall network OPEX.

This presents investment opportunities in green energy sources and models suited for Africa. Not only will green energy reduce operational costs, it will also lead to a reduction in carbon emissions by more than 60% Lucy Quist said.

Lucy Quist speaking at Africa Development and Investment Convention (ADIC) 2016 in Switzerland

Telecommunication becoming the epicenter for healthcare and financial services in Africa.

Speaking to how telecommunications is changing access and delivery of healthcare in Africa. Lucy Quist referred to the recently launched drones delivery programme in Kigali, Rwanda where Zipline  a California based Technology firm  is running the worlds first drone service for medical deliveries to remote townships and Airtels partnership with Apollo Hospitals in India to launch Ask-Apollo a telemedicine initiative designed to provide quality health care for millions across the continent without the associated cost expended to travel outside of their home countries to access medical care as examples of how telecommunications is shaping healthcare delivery in Africa.

She said The challenges of inaccessible road networks to remote townships will no longer be a barrier to accessing quality health care. Through the drones delivery service launched in Rwanda, which is likely to be replicated across the continent, essential medical deliveries can be transported to remote areas in minutes instead of days. Meaning patients can receive their much needed blood transfusions for example, when they need them.

She continued Ask Apollo, the telemedicine initiative by Airtel and Apollo Hospitals enables many Africans to access healthcare from the comfort of their home countries. With this web & mobile enabled patient-centric service, the expertise of world-renowned doctors are now available in many local health centers, through face-face video conferencing, saving money, time and energy.

Telecommunications is at the center of it all  from the data services that power coordination of Zip flights to the voice and messaging services that connect medical teams to patients across continents. Without a vibrant telecom industry, this would not have been possible

Tracing the history of mobile financial services in Africa, from the mid-2000s, she shared the success story of Mobile Money initiated in Kenya to extend financial services to majority of Kenyans who were outside the formal financial system to the current state where the platform has transformed the financial system and has become the dominant medium for financial transactions in the country and across the continent, offering direct and indirect employment to thousands of Africans.

Concluding, Lucy Quist encouraged investors to be open to the opportunities Africa presents in telecommunications infrastructure, Fibre, LTE, rural connectivity and Wi-Fi access in open places. She said Africa will remain the desired investment destination for many industries, including telecommunications for the foreseeable future. The time to take that bold step and invest on the continent is now.

The Africa Development and Investment Convention is an annual event organised by the African Infrastructure Development Partnership, a Swiss-based organization offering alternative approaches to Africas development.
A five-member Supreme Court panel presided over by Justice Julius Ansah, yesterday, in a unanimous decision dismissed an application by embattled High Court justices- Paul Dery and who was challenging the capacity of Tiger Eye PI to petition the President, John Dramani Mahama, for their removal over the judicial corruption scandal.

Amongst other things, the judgment, which was read by Justice Akamba chided the Plaintiff for making unwarranted academic conjectures by calling Tiger Eye a non-existent company.

The judgment also considered their suit as a ruse meant to sway us from the substantive issue."

Calling the plaintiff's action as "uninformed and unwarranted", the final judgement said "the Plaintiffs action fails and is dismissed.

Counsel for Anas, Kissi Agyabeng of Cromwell Gray LLP told this paper in an interview after the judgment that he was happy about the unanimous decision that had brought them the victory and added that he and his firm are always prepared to defend their client, with ease any day and in any forum.

We are prepared for any legal battle on this judicial scandal. We have carefully gone through the video evidence and we know as a matter of fact that our client (Anas) has always been on the right course, he asserted.

"The suit represents a classic case of a solution in search of a problem whereby the plaintiffs purported to create non-existent problems in respect of the identify of the person who petitioned the President for their removal as justices of the superior courts as a ruse to prolong the disciplinary proceedings against them." Kissi Agyabeng added

Lawyer Nii Kpakpo Somuah, counsel for Justice Dery, after the ruling, looked visibly disappointed and shocked that at some point he reportedly murmured, Oh my God, when Justice Ackamba ruled that Plaintiffs action fails and is dismissed.

More so, signals picked from the judiciary are that Paul Dery would in the coming week come face-to-face with Anas at the Chief Justices Committee set up to investigate the judiciary scandal.

Justice Dery had sued praying the court for a declaration that Tiger Eye PI has no capacity to file a petition for his removal from office on the grounds that the company is not a registered entity and, therefore, has no legal personality. The applicants were asking the court to declare that Tiger Eye PI is not licensed to carry out investigations under the laws of Ghana.

They were also seeking a declaration that the audio-visual recordings and the transcripts thereof were fraudulently and unlawfully obtained by Tiger Eye PI.

DERY 'S MAGICAL SUITS AND M.ANIFEST THE HIP LIFE 'DONS' FIGHT

Already, Justice Dery has sued the Ghana Journalist Association for awarding Anas the Journalist of the year.

Signals that the Crusading Guide has picked up indicated that M.anifest, one of Ghanas top Hiplife musicians is also likely to be dragged to the dock by Justice Dery over a track on his latest album Nowhere Cool that makes reference to the defeat he has suffered in the hands of Anas. We could not get lawyer Nii Kpakpo Addo to comment on this.

Before all this, Justice Dery Sued Anas, And Accra International Conference Center For Showing the Anas video.

The legal team further whisked in local television station UTV in the contempt case for telecasting parts of the video. Lawyer Nii Kpakpo Addo explained then that, the action by the management of the AICC was a clear disrespect to the high court considering the then injunction application pending.

He again filed a writ seeking to restrain Kumasi-based Ultimate 106.9FM, Tiger Eye PI and the Golden Tulip Hotel from going ahead to show the video in Kumasi.

Justice Paul Dery also asked the Accra Fast Track High Court to imprison the Managing Director of Global Cinemas, Ernest Boateng for contempt for showing the Anas video.

Dery has in the past sued Anas, the Chief Executive Officer of Starr fm Nathaniel Kwabena Anokye Adisi [Bola Ray] and the Media Foundation for West Africa for contempt.

The judge wanted the people and their institutions to be convicted and punished for contempt of Court .

Stay tuned for more
States must heed the pleas of countless victims of crimes against humanity for justice and accountability, Sheila Keetharuth of the former UN Commission of Inquiry on human rights in Eritrea urged the UN General Assembly today. The Commission has recommended that the situation in Eritrea be referred to the International Criminal Court.

Speaking for the Commission of Inquiry, Keetharuth, who is also UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea, highlighted the Commissions clear findings that crimes against humanity have been committed since 1991 by Eritrean officials, adding that such a dire assessment left no room for business as usual in the international communitys engagement with the Government of Eritrea.

The crimes of enslavement, imprisonment, enforced disappearances, torture, other inhumane acts, persecution, rape and murder have been committed as part of a widespread and systematic campaign against the civilian population. The aim of the campaign has been to maintain control over the population and perpetuate the leaderships rule in Eritrea, Keetharuth told the UN General Assembly.

The Commission has concluded that the Government of Eritrea has neither the political will nor the institutional capacity to prosecute the crimes we have documented. The Commission therefore recommends that the UN Security Council refer the situation in Eritrea to the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court and that the African Union establish an accountability mechanism.

My plea to you, Excellencies, on behalf of the three members of the former Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in Eritrea, Mike Smith, Victor Dankwa and myself, is for you to pay heed to voices of victims of crimes against humanity in Eritrea.

Keetharuth said the Commission had found that there was no material change in the country that could potentially have a positive effect on the situation of human rights.

There is still no constitution, no parliament where laws are discussed, enacted, and where questions of national importance are debated; indefinite national service persists, with its adverse impacts on individual rights; there is no free press and no NGOs, except for Government-sponsored ones. The population lives in fear and the Government still controls their daily life, making the enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all Eritreans a remote possibility, she said.

She noted that while several foreign delegations, journalists and others had been invited to visit Eritrea over the past year, the rampant human rights violations taking place in isolated locations and detention facilities were not apparent to the casual visitor.

Keetharuth noted that Eritreans were among the largest numbers of African nationals seeking asylum in Europe and that the overall recognition rate for Eritrean asylum seekers in European countries remained high.

The findings of the Commission underscore that it is not safe to forcibly return those who have left Eritrea. The Commission, in its first report, documented that individuals forcibly repatriated, with a few exceptions, have been arrested, detained and subjected to ill-treatment and torture, she said.

I appeal to Member States to grant Eritreans access to their territory and asylum procedures. I strongly reiterate my call to protect all Eritrean asylum-seekers from refoulement and to refrain from any forced repatriation to Eritrea or to third countries where they may still be at risk or unwelcomed.
President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, has received the credentials of newly appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Ghana to Azerbaijan, Dr. Kodzo Kpoku Alabo, in a ceremony in Baku, capital city of Azerbaijan.

Dr. Alabo reviewed a guard of honor before presenting his credentials to President Aliyev. President Aliyev had a conversation with the ambassador.

Ambassador Dr. Alabo conveyed greetings of President of the Republic of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama, to President Aliyev and noted that the President of Ghana instructed him to develop bilateral relations between the two countries.

Dr. Alabo stressed the importance of signing the agreement on political consultations between Azerbaijan and Ghana, and conducting negotiations on the elimination of visa regime for diplomatic and service passport holders.

The ambassador said that during his diplomatic tenure he would spare no efforts to expand relations between the two countries.

They emphasized the existence of good opportunities for developing cooperation between the two countries in various areas, including energy and sport.

The head of state expressed deep gratitude for the warm greetings of President John Dramani Mahama and asked the ambassador to extend his greetings to the President of Ghana.

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The Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union (AU), Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, has condemned in the strongest terms an attack that killed at least 12 people in the northeastern border town of Mandera on 25 October 2016. The attack, which was claimed by the Al Qaeda linked terrorist group Al Shabaab was the second in Mandera in less than three weeks.

The Chairperson expresses the AUs heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and wishes speedy recovery to the injured. She assures the Government and people of Kenya of the AUs full solidarity and support in these difficult circumstances. She reiterates the AUs readiness to support Kenya and the countries of the region through the existing regional and continental mechanisms including, the Djibouti process on the Enhancement of Security Cooperation in the East Africa region and the AU Convention on Cross Border Cooperation, known as the Niamey convention, which contains provisions relation to border security.

The Chairperson of the Commission once again appeals to the international community to renew its commitment to defeat terrorists groups, whose only agenda is to cause havoc, destruction and death by providing the necessary support to the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) engaged in efforts to defeat the terrorist group in Somalia.
WELLINGTON, New Zealand  The countries that decide the fate of Antarctica reached an historic agreement on Friday to create the world's largest marine protected area in the ocean next to the frozen continent.

The agreement comes after years of diplomatic wrangling and high-level talks between the U.S. and Russia, which has rejected the idea in the past.

Proponents of the reserve say it sets a precedent for multiple countries working together to protect a large swath of ocean which falls outside any single nation's jurisdiction.

The agreement covers an area about twice the size of Texas in the Ross Sea.

The deal was clinched after 24 countries and the European Union met in Hobart, Australia, this week. Decisions on Antarctica require a consensus among the 25 members, a hurdle which has confounded past efforts.

The U.S. and New Zealand have been pushing for a marine reserve for years. They first submitted a joint proposal in 2012, but it was rejected five times before Friday's agreement. Ukraine, China and Russia had expressed concerns in the past, with Russia becoming the final holdout before the deal was made.

The marine protected area covers 1.6 million square kilometers (617,000 square miles). There will be a blanket ban on commercial fishing across about three-quarters of that area. In the remaining ocean zones, some commercial fishing will be allowed.

A small amount of fishing for research purposes will be allowed throughout the protected area.

Several countries fish in the waters surrounding Antarctica for lucrative toothfish, which are often marketed in North America as Chilean sea bass.

Evan Bloom, who led the U.S. delegation in Hobart, said that U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has been a passionate advocate for the reserve and has been pushing for it in high-level talks with Russian leaders, including President Vladimir Putin.

Bloom said he was "thrilled" with the result.

"We've been working on this for so many years and had so many disappointments trying to get here," he said. "This is a real win for marine conservation."

In a statement, Kerry said the agreement "will safeguard one of the last unspoiled ocean wilderness areas on the planet  home to unparalleled marine biodiversity and thriving communities of penguins, seals, whales, seabirds, and fish."

New Zealand's Foreign Minister Murray McCully said the final agreement included some concessions to Russia, including adjusting the reserve's boundaries and allowing a little more commercial fishing outside the no-take zone.

Nevertheless, he said, he was pleasantly surprised that Russia and the U.S. had managed to reach any kind of agreement, given the current tensions over Syria.

"It goes to demonstrate that you can never jump to conclusions," he said. "Every now and then you get lucky."
By the grace of God Almighty, Nana Akufo Addo will win the upcoming Election 2016 with such a huge margin that any ear that hears it will tingle. This win is in line with the saying, third time lucky same as it holds true in an Akan proverb hereby expressed in the Akan parlance as, Obosom anni wo ho yi, eye a yebo no mmprensa.

There is no doubt about Nana Akufo Addo, our biblical Joseph and David in waiting emerging victorious in the end to save Ghanaians from their socio-politico-economic slavery under the hands of President John Dramani Mahama and his NDC government and party.

Some Ghanaians, especially those affiliated to the NDC, had not only always sought to denigrate Nana Akufo Addo because he is incorruptible but also, to level all sorts of unfounded allegations against him. They do this in the expectation of not allowing him to realise his Gods ordained dream of becoming the President of the Republic of Ghana to release Ghanaians from their socio-economic bondage.

No matter how far they go with their evil plans against him, similarly as done by the brothers of biblical Joseph against him, Nana Addo will rise up to the challenge to become the President of Ghana. As Joseph lived to become whom and what God had purposed for him, so shall Nana Akufo Addo.

However, people are to help with bringing about Gods ultimate purpose for Nana same as at various stages some people intervened to save Josephs life until he finally became what he should be, with his brothers finally kneeling down to him.

Check Genesis 37 onwards especially Chapter 37:5-8 (Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. 6 He said to them, Listen to this dream I had: 7 We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it

8 His brothers said to him, Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us? And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said.)

With this in mind, I shall entreat any Ghanaian seeking the collective interests of all Ghanaians to save us from the ruinous corruption, practice of selective justice and the obvious lawlessness in perpetration and orchestration by President Mahamas NDC government, to go out there to canvass for Nana Akufo Addo and NPP.

God uses people to let certain things happen to glorify his name. He has the power to let things happen at the crack of his fingers yet, He many a time prefers going through certain mortal beings to let things that make Him great happen.

Therefore, God needs Ghanaian electorates to go to the polls en masse to cast their votes for Nana Akufo Addo and the NPP. God is using you, the electorate, to bring about Nana Akufo Addos third term lucky existential prophecy.

May I by this belief plead with all my Facebook friends to not only vote for (those who have registered to vote anyway) Nana Akufo Addo and the NPP but also, to go out to campaign to win more voters unto him. This is how God wants us to do to bring to materialisation his purpose for his ordained servant Nana Akufo Addo.

Nana will surely come to power no matter what the EC and the NDC do in attempts to rig the election. Should they put in place any secret plans and machines to rig the election, with time, all shall be foiled.

That uncouth and near-murderer ex-convict Salifu Maase aka Mugabe can continue with spitting his avowed fire directed at denigrating Nana Akufo Addo but his plans shall not wash for him who is blessed by God, no mortal being can curse.

Nobody can reverse that strong blowing wind of change about to effect a change in government from NDC to NPP come 7 December 2016. Now is the time for anyone sitting on the fence as an undecided voter to join the Nana Addo campaign team before they find themselves guilty of what Mark Twain once said, thus, In the beginning of a change the patriot is a scarce man, and brave, and hated and scorned. When his course succeeds, the timid join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot".

Change is coming. Change is coming. Change is coming!

To understand how the change is coming and how an American lady is effectively campaigning to bring about that positive change, please watch a YouTube video via this link

Check again this other video link



Nana is coming. Nanaana, Nana Sure!

Rockson Adofo
28.10.2016 LISTEN

A crying voice from the wilderness drowns every sound at its surroundings. It is one voice crying for many supposedly in trouble from far away home. Theyre like widows stigmatised and victimised, facing rejection, worried by the horror theyve to deal with on a daily basis.

Terror stares at them. Daylight seems like a forgotten friend, they hardly sight her--- confined to the depths of darkness pressured to swallow the bitter pills that are often thrown at them in a disgusting and disdainful manner.

Help never approaches!

And it appears to them hope is losing its last breath. In a strange land they live like slavesthey go without food at times, no water to drink and no medication when theyre sick.

Bodies strewn on cold floors, some twitched, some helpless and some dealing with urinary incontinence. Theyre Ghanaian women (young and precious) trapped at the jaws of Saudi Arabia being mauled by the angry and heartless beast.

They sojourned here in search of greener pastures. But that ambitious dream has since become an illusion.

Their story has never been told, their story has never been heard and their calls have gone unanswered. Time is of essence.

This is an untold story of distressed Ghanaian womenyet to be told and yet to be heard.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

About one hundred troubled Ghanaian women believed to be in Saudi Arabia are appealing to the president John Mahama to do everything humanly possible to rescue them from a place they call a living hell.

Were locked up. Were starved. Were raped and were beaten on a daily basis, says a distressed woman on recording tapes currently trending on social media. Its not known when both recordings-- audio and video were made, but experts believe they could be recent.

Its also unclear whether Ghanas ambassador to the oil-rich kingdom is aware of the situation of these women who live in perpetual fear.

Two women are later heard speaking Twi a Ghanaian language (among the Akans) amid their importunate calls on the president to come to their aide. They alleged one Alhaji Iliasu resident in Achimota (near the New Overhead bridge) a suburb of Accra sponsored their trip to the Arabian kingdom. According to them, they were promised jobs, good health facilities, good accommodation but it turned out to be empty promises.

Their cracking voices and emotive plea send quivers down the spine as they further appeal to the government of Ghana to ensure that immediate action is taken to stop tens and hundreds of Ghanaian youth who are desperate seeking to travel to Saudi.

Saudi is a living hell. Its a desert. It doesnt rain here and our skins are dry. Please nobody should consider seeking greener pastures in Saudi. Life here is extremely difficult, its tough and rough, she warned.

Thank goodness theyve managed to let their untold story out. And it is hoped that their unanswered calls perhaps will soon be answered. .

In another development a Ghanaian woman based in the US is calling on republican presidential nominee Donald Trump to deport all Africans back to Africa if hes elected president. Her shameful call captured on a minute or less video posted on Facebook has attracted many comments some of them harsh.

Ironically she received some likes too. According to the 20-something year-old woman shes a tanned body and so she wouldnt face deportation if Trumps presidency calls for a mass deportation. Glad Ive a tanned body. See, look at me, and see how beautiful my skin looks, she bragged.

Thats a disguised rat there. She thinks she can be a mole, forgetting that its ratish tail will soon betray her.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Tema East constituency is staging a fierce contest to unseat the New Patriotic Party candidate and incumbent Titus Glover.

Citi FM's election coverage team in charge of the Southern Zone the Samurais, which included Marian Ansah, Fred Djabanor and Elvis Washington in this edition of the Constituency Watch, bring you a report on the interesting dynamics that could influence the votes on December 7.
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) Presidential Candidate, Nana Akufo-Addo has said he is above making promises as a mere political gimmick.

Nana Akufo-Addo assured Ghanaians his promises to make Ghana a better place for all was not just a campaign message to win votes.

He said to the people of Hohoe in the Volta Region during a rally that the NPP has a competent team to execute all the promises made on the campaign trail Ghanaians.

All these promises, I have come here to Hohoe to let you know. These are not election gimmicks. They are not empty promises. If I could not do them, I would not stand before the people of Ghana and say I am coming to do it. I know the NPP and I, we have worker out what we need to do. We know we an do it, the NPP Flagbearer said.

That is why I have the courage to stand before you to tell you I am coming to implement these policies, all of them so we can bring jobs to our young people.

Notable Nana Addo promises

As part of plans to industrialize and transform the Ghanaian economy, Nana Akufo-Addo indicated that his government plans to help establish a factory in each of the 216 districts across the country, if he wins the 2016 elections.

Nana Akufo-Addo also promised to establish one dam in every village in the northern part of the country to boost agriculture through a well planed irrigation policy.

The NPP Flagbearer also promised to create another region from the Western Region, should he emerge winner in the December polls.

Nana Akufo-Addos promises have however been met by questions of feasibility and criticism from the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) with the party largely accusing him pandering for votes.



By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Small scale miners or artisanal miners in Obuasi have agreed to relocate to a new site designated for them by the Minerals Commission.

It comes after last weeks demonstration by small scale miners who destroyed public and private property in protest of mode of executing the relocation plan.

There has been a long stand-off between the small scale miners and AngloGold Ashanti over illegal occupation of the companys concession.

The situation compelled AngloGold Ashanti to sue government of Ghana over security concerns within its concession.

Agreement was however reached after officials of Minerals Commission met with leadership of Small Scale Miners in Obuasi.

AngloGold Ashanti has released 60 per cent of its concession to the artisanal miners but officials are worried small scale miners continue to trespass into the remaining 40 per cent retained.

The small scale miners argue the relinquished area was not fully prepared for mining.

Minerals Commission then drew a roadmap to facilitate the relocation of 3,734 registered small scale miners to occupy these areas.

The roadmap gives each specific date for which each location should have been vacated.

The affected areas include Nyamebekyere, Kotopreso, Abedwam, Ademanu, Suhyenso, Juabeso, and Amponyase.

Pegs have been sunk into holes in the lands indicating the space given to each miner being relocated meant to ease the process.

The illegal miners embarked on a demonstration last week, accusing AngloGold Ashanti of acting contrary to the roadmap.

Sustainability Manager, Nana Ampofo denies the claim.

The Minerals Commission had earlier on Wednesday, met with leadership of the miners who agreed to leave but they want AngloGold to further deepen mining pits for them.

Executive Member of the Artisanal Miners Association, Chief Saaha-Naa Yahuza says the deposits at the new place are too deep in the ground.

Though they appreciate AngloGolds effort, they therefore want AngloGold to help them further by digging deeper for them.

Nana Ampofo says the mine can only begin operation when they declare their remaining concession safe for work.

I cannot put my finger on any specific date we have declared the area a no-go area for our employees, it only when security forces are able to secure the area and declare to us that it is now a go-area.

After it has been declared, That is when we can go back there and assess the extent of damage caused to our infrastructure and every other thing that is there, he stressed.

According to him, the company is looking for an investor but it is after they have done all these things that we will be able to go out there and say that the mine is safe for business.

Meanwhile, the miners want authorities to allow them go for their equipments left on Anglo Gold Ashanti concessions for peace and cordiality to prevail between the two parties.
If you are planning your next holiday to the land of unending adventures, Africa, you need to know what places have the experiences you are looking to have. From the very simple tasks as a walk in the park, to the adrenaline filled jaunts that are likely to leave you completely breathless, Africa is an all-inclusive package. These adventure ideas will help conclude your itinerary for your next holiday to Africa.

Camel trekking in the Sahara

Set out on a camel trek in the endless desert of Morocco. Let the humped animals take you around the villages where you can comfortably interact with the warm locals. It is an opportunity to learn one or two things about the countrys culture and customs; while traversing the grand minarets. Do not miss a ride to Merzouga village in the Sahara Desert, where you can camp at the Nasser Palace . Here, after a days activities, engage other guests or your troupe to outdoor fireside activities such as dances and storytelling.

Shark Cage Diving in South Africa



If being with the marine mammals gives you the chills, then South Africa is the place to go. Cage diving with the great white sharks is a common adventure for the audacious travelers, teasing the worlds most admired water creatures behind the confines of the cage. Mossel Bay is perhaps the most sort after by cage divers, who seek to come eye to eye with the predators; as it provides a white-knuckle experience that will forever be embedded in your memory.

Experience the Namib Desert

The Namib Desert, the oldest in the world offers a platform for numerous adventures; from mountain biking on the mountainous areas to climbing the enormous red sand dunes. Photographing the white clay pans of Deadvlei and Sossusvlei, horse riding, sandboarding and skydiving are just some of the most enthralling adventures to undertake in the Namib desert. As for the romantic lot, you will never have enough of the stunning sunrise and sunset that excitingly reflects the red of the dunes.

Gorilla Trekking in Rwanda



Had to include this one from Rwanda. Gorilla trekking into the deep and dense Virunga Mountains will give you an electrifying escapade. Waylaying through thick groves of the rain forests into the waiting congregate of dark hairy giants. You are in a habitat that is home to more than half of the world's (about 900) remaining mountain gorillas. That fact alone leaves you gasping in awe, even as you fervidly search through the thickets to locate those hopping from one tree to another.

Water Rafting in Kenya

The adrenaline junkies would want to head to Sagana in Kenya for an exhilarating white water rafting experience. Navigating the rough waves requires valor, resolve and the oomph to sail through; which is a great opportunity to build teamwork. Water rafting in the Sagana also gives a chance to view different bird species found along the river valley.
Two Ghanaian academics have waded into the controversy surrounding what they call the 'questionable' doctoral degrees of the disqualified All People's Congress (APC) flag bearer, Hassan Ayariga.

They are also insisting that the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service cannot gloss over a similar 'fake' doctorate degree allegedly conferred on the Inspector General of Police John Kudalor, if the police have to investigate Hassan Ayariga who has been reported by the Electoral Commission (EC).

The two dons, Prosper Yao Tsikata, PhD (Assistant Professor of Communication) and A. Kobla Dotse, PhD (Director, Chemical Research & Development) are saying that, looking at the circumstances surrounding the issue, the CID might not even have the capacity to investigate Hassan Ayariga.

Lingering Doubt

A statement they jointly issued last week following publication about Ayariga's certificate stated, The only lingering doubts in our minds about the CID expediting action on this case are in multiple folds. First, does the investigative arm of the Ghana Police Service have the capacity to investigate this issue effectively? This naturally leads to the second question. Even if they do, would the same proceedings apply to its head, the IGP (Dr) John Kudalor?

John Kudalor reportedly travelled to the United States to pick the degree from US-based Dayspring Christian University, a school not recognized by Ghana's National Accreditation Board (NAB).

He has since been using the title, having organized a thanksgiving service for it.

The Dayspring Christian University is one of four universities listed by NAB as not meeting the Board's accreditation criteria.

The Accreditation Board subsequently warned the public against such universities after they have conferred honorary degrees on some high-ranking individuals in the country.

According to Messrs Prosper Yao Tsikata and A. Kobla Dotse, the time has come for the Minister of Education, Prof. Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang, to act swiftly and not sit back and watch the education system get infiltrated with these fake degree holders, especially those who are using the fake degrees to teach and get tenure and promotions as professors in our universities.

They said the NAB declared some institutions as unaccredited and unworthy to issue higher degrees such as PhDs, but a state-owned newspaper as well as prominent private radio stations celebrated such individuals and their questionable awards saying, What these institutions and their managers fail to realize is the fact that the negative impacts these acts have on our reward and honour systems can be far-reaching.

Ayariga Analysis

Digging into Hassan Ayariga's 'fake' degrees, the dons said, In our appraisals of materials on Ghanaians who flaunt questionable doctoral degrees, we came upon the Great Achievers Institute of Theology and Seminary, located in Spain. From available artifacts, (Dr. Dr.) Hassan Ayariga received a doctorate degree (honoris causa) from this university. He also received a PhD from the Atlantic International University in Hawaii.

According to them, Hassan Ayariga insisted in radio and TV interviews that he must be addressed a doctor, adding, Since honorary doctorate holders are not normally entitled to be referenced as such in public communication, we turned our attention to his so-called earned PhD from the Atlantic International University.

Our view was that it must be the institution that gave him the gravitas to insist on being addressed a doctor. However, this is where the problem is. The NAB declares the Atlantic International University unaccredited to confer doctoral degrees in Ghana. Rightly so, the Atlantic International University is a diploma mill.

Ayariga Admission

Now, for (Dr. Dr.) Hassan Ayariga to turn round to say that his PhD in Political Science was conferred on him by the Great Achievers Institute of Theology and Seminary, we can only think of the inconsistency of his own information, first, before delving into issues of accreditation, course content, and the recognition he so badly needs to project himself politically.

The dons said that while it was a step in the right direction that the EC had referred the case to the CID, those canvassing for the reinstatement of disqualified presidential candidates, including Hassan Ayariga, should not confuse (Dr. Dr.) Hassan Ayariga's case with the others who might have committed genuine errors in their application forms, a situation that can easily be rectified by the courts.

They asked the agitators to steer clear of the Hassan Ayariga case and allow the investigative wing of the Ghana Police Service to do its job.

Delusion

With regard to the person (Dr. Dr.) Hassan Ayariga, it is becoming clear that the man must be living in his own reality, a reality constructed on a delusion of grandeura psychological state in which the victim entertains false beliefs that he or she possesses superior qualities such as genius, fame, omnipotence and wealth, admitting that this has only been possible because he has been aided by media outlets that either lack the capacity to research these issues before publication or carry out publications that seek to celebrate what is questionable for economic gains.

As we await the determination of the CID, we will also urge the CID to contact the NAB or contact us if they need help in unravelling some of the hidden aspects of the issues of accreditation and the flaunting of questionable degrees. We believe that the nature of the case, especially being election-related requiring expeditious investigation and determination, will set the stage for the police to begin to look into these issues of fraud. Our investigative report has details about the various issues in it.

Meanwhile, Hassan Ayariga has threatened to sue the EC over the issue. The commission referred his case to the CID for investigation, claiming that his educational certificate appears to be fake.

By William Yaw Owusu


Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has indicated that although it encountered hitches in the distribution of electricity recently in certain parts of Accra, the problems have been addressed.

Customers along the Spintex Road and the western parts of Accra experienced power cuts which stoked fears that the power crisis had resurfaced.

Speaking at a press conference yesterday, Tetteh Okyne, Director of Operations at ECG, said that the power cuts had nothing to do with load shedding and that maintenance works on its bulk supply points (BSPs) ended on Sunday .

According to Mr Okyne, the power distributor embarked on planned maintenance works following interruptions at ECG's bulk supply points which culminated in the power cuts.

The company assured the customers that it would work hard to ensure that Ghanaians enjoyed uninterrupted power supply in the afore-mentioned areas.

In order to reduce power outages in future, Mr Okyne said his outfit had decided to complete all planned maintenance works by the middle of next month, adding that it would deploy a lot of third party contractors to help cut down trees that interfere with ECG's overhead transmission lines as soon as practicable.

In addition, the ECG plans to position engineers at strategic locations to promptly attend to emergency calls to shorten the intervention time and re-schedule non-critical projects to reduce power cuts.

Recently, customers in Weija, Kokrobite, Bortianor, Tokuse, Aplaku, Dunkonaa, Tetegu, McCarthy Hill, Kwashieman, Fadaman, Tabora, Abeka Lapaz, Santa Maria, Mallam, Korlebu, Awoshie, Dansoman, Odorkor, Ablekuma, Asofa, Anyaa, Ofankor and Sowutuom, have been affected by the power cuts resulting from faulty lines.

Also, other areas such as Tantra hills, Amranhia, Mayera, Oduman, Dome, Kasoa, Nsawam, Regimanuel estates, Teshie, Baatsona and all factories and residences on the Spintex road have also experienced power cuts.

Mr. Okine said the ECG had to change some equipment at Baatsona in order to steadily supply power from the Baatsona Station, adding that some equipment at the Mallam Station, which developed faulty, had been fixed.

[email protected]

By Samuel Boadi


Former Member of Parliament for New Juaben South, Hackman Owusu-Agyeman says Parliament should not have approved the nomination of controversial deputy Local Government minister John Oti Bless.

Mr Owusu-Agyeman believes that the issues that led to the suspension of the approval of the nominee are serious enough to have informed a decision not to approve his appointment.

Speaking on Joy FMs Super Morning Show on Friday, the former Interior Minister in the Kufuor government said Parliament could have done better.

In this instance, there was no quorum, the issue was raised and the Speaker put the question. I believe that having been a member of the House, there are times that the membership should rise above partisanship and look at issues objectively.

The issue that occasioned this confirmation being put aside was basically to do with the Montie 3 and all the unfortunate issues surrounding them and the things that were said against the Chief Justice and some members of the bench, he said.

Oti Bless, the MP for Nkwanta North was nominated together with the former Executive Director of the West Africa Network for Peace Building (WANEP), Emmanuel Bombande and a former District Chief Executive of Upper Manya, Joseph Agmor Tetteh in July by the President for deputy ministerial positions.

Oti bless

Parliaments Appointments Committee vetted the nominees after which a recommendation was made for their approval by the whole House.

The approval of Oti Bless was suspended because of unsavoury comments he made against the Chief Justice and other justices of the Supreme Court during a political talk show programme on Accra-based Montie FM.

Other members who contributed to the political discussion were tried and sentenced to four months imprisonment after they were found guilty of criminal contempt.

Related: Supreme Court contempt judgment on 'Montie 3'

Although Oti Bless has apologized to the Chief Justice for the comments, many were of the view that his appointment as deputy minister should not be approved.

But their wishes did not materialise. His appointment was approved by Parliament on Wednesday, October 26, sparking outrage by sections of the public who question if Mr. Oti Bless can make any meaningful contribution to the Ministry with just a month to elections.

For Mr Owusu-Agyeman, the approval is disappointing.

If this has happened and you put it away for three months, with one week more for parliament to rise and thereafter for electionswas it really necessary to go through this, he queried.

He believes that this situation only happens because the Standing Orders of the Hosue clothes the Speaker with too much power.

Mr Owusu-Agyeman is of the view that it is about time we took a look at the powers of the Speaker and to avoid extreme partisanship.

Speaker of Parliament, Edward Doe Adjaho

If for all the hullabaloo that surrounded this Montie 3 and what Oti Bless was supposed to have said or not to have said, wouldnt it have been better - for the sanctity of the Parliament and for us as a people - to have continued to shun this thing for one week, he questioned.

As far as the former MP is concerned, Parliament did not have the quorum to approve the nomination and I am disappointed as a former MP that these things should happen at this time, whatever the reasons are. Parliament should have done better.

A Political Economist and Analyst who also contributed to the show doubts if Oti Bless can make any major contribution to governance with just a month to the elections.

Dr Eric Oduro Osae said although the substantive minister or the president may have some engagement awaiting his attention, theres not much he can contribute.

Practically and objectively, it will add lesser value to governance because one month is too short a time for a deputy minister to make any meaningful impact, he said.

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Naa Sakwaba Akwa | [email protected]
The EC has been ordered by the High Court to allow the Presidential Candidate of the PPP to correct the mistake on his nomination papers.

The Court quashed the Electoral Commission's decision to disqualify Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom from contesting this year's election, citing errors on his nomination papers.

More soon...

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com
Despite talk of a slowdown nationally in the craft brewing industry, there doesn't seem to be any evidence of a drop in business locally.

One new brewery opened this year in Lincoln and three others are scheduled to open in the coming months. Two established brewers -- Blue Blood and Zipline -- also have expanded.

On a national level, things don't look as rosy. Friday, the world's biggest brewer, Budweiser maker Anheuser-Busch InBev, for the first time acknowledged what it says is a slowdown in the industry, saying the sector has been decelerating for more than three months.

Some of the early pioneers of the craft-beer movement in the U.S. are starting to feel the pain. Stone Brewing, the 20-year-old Escondido, California-based brewer of Stone IPA, laid off about 5 percent of its 1,200 employees this month, citing a less predictable business environment. The news came less than two weeks after Craft Brew Alliance Inc., owner of the more than 30-year-old Redhook Brewery, said it was halving the number of workers at its Woodinville brewery in Washington state.

The stress is partly due to the sheer number of beer makers competing to entice drinkers. A thirst for more local and flavorsome beers swelled the number of breweries in the U.S. to a record 4,656 in June, yet the volume of beer produced is growing at less than half the 18 percent rate it boasted two years ago, according to the Brewers Association, a trade body for the American craft beer industry. The U.S. now has more breweries than it did at its high-water mark of 1873, according to the group.

"There's a natural point where it can't grow anymore and this might be it," Anthony Bucalo, an analyst at HSBC, said by phone. "Consumers are overwhelmed by too much choice; the industry has been swamped. There's too many brands, too many styles, not enough quality."

Locals don't see it that way.

Brian Podwinski, owner of Blue Blood Brewery, said business is "up a ton," since he opened his new brewery and restaurant location on the site of Robber's Cave near 10th and High streets.

Podwinski said talk of a slowdown among large national craft brewers didn't surprise him, though.

"I'd say I think your going to see a continued focus on local," he said.

Thad Aerts, taproom manager at Boiler Brewing Company downtown, which opened earlier this year, said craft brewing has grown so large so fast that a slowdown of some kind was inevitable. However, he said if there is a slowdown, it's affecting, "the big boys of the craft industry."

"I do think there is still plenty of room to grow for the local, neighborhood brewery and tap room to do their thing and make top notch beer for the community in which they reside," Aerts said."

Lincoln companies that make brewing equipment would be more likely to see the effects of a slowdown, since they have customers not just throughout the U.S. but worldwide, but they do not see signs of a slowdown either.

"From the perspective of it slowing down, we still haven't seen it," said Bruce Kucera, vice president of Norland International, which makes brewing, bottling and canning equipment. The company completed an expansion earlier this year to keep up with business.

Jon Marco, who co-owns Alpha Brewing Operations and is an investor in Boiler Brewing, said the Brewers Association's own projections have the number of craft breweries in the U.S. doubling to 10,000 locations in five years.

"Alpha Brewing Operations adds one brewhouse per week to that total, and the orders keep flowing in," he said.
The negative impression about Africa across the world is negatively affecting the flow of foreign direct investments into the continent.

International Financial and Risk Management expert, Komi S. Klu said this on Wednesday in Accra in a presentation on the first day of the Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana (CIMGs) two-day annual strategic marketing conference  2016.

The marketing conference is an annual programme organized by CIMG after the yearly marketing awards.

Speaking on the topic: 'Managing Political Risk in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), Mr. Klu, who previously worked with Capital One Finance and HSBC, said countries in the sub-region are perceived as risky because of some historical factors.

All of Africa, we suffer from reputational deficit. When you talk of Africa, people think something negative about it, he said.

He defined political risk as any losses that are caused by governments action or inaction.

Most countries in the sub-region, including Ghana, he said, still remain highly corrupt, while others continue to experience violent conflicts.

Most investors are afraid to use their credit cards in Africa due to the perception of fraud, the Financial Services Executive, who has over 15 years of experience, disclosed.

The perception, according to him, makes it difficult for foreign investors to do business on the continent.

In order to overcome this negative image, he said both governments in the sub-region and economic actors have to take steps.

Governments responsibilities in ensuring a stable investment climate, he said, include building strong institutions, not strong men; fighting corruption, especially in the corridors of power, as well as dismantling what he termed as crony capitalism.

He also stressed the need for the promotion of the rule of law and a strong, trustworthy judiciary.

Touching on the role of corporate organizations in helping to change the negative perception, he said businesses must trust and deal with the countrys institutions not just political authorities.

He warned business leaders to detach their personal political affiliations from their corporate operations.

President of the Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana (CIMG), Kojo Mattah, explained that the choice of the theme for this year was premised on the fact that Ghana must exist for us to have peace of mind to practice our profession and also for us to push forward the agenda of developing a lasting democracy.

By Melvin Tarlue


The Greater Accra Regional National Democratic Congress (NDC) Campaign Taskforce has stated that the party will emerge victorious in the December elections.

According to Sylvester Mensah, the Coordinator of the taskforce, Ghanaians will re-elect President Mahama due to his achievements.

Speaking in an interview with journalists in Accra, Mr. Mensah, who is also a former Chief Executive of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), said the power crisis is over.

He said we would take this opportunity to profusely congratulate President Mahama for the courageous step he has taken to finally stabilize the power situation in the country which disrupted business as well as the social life of our people.

Mr. Mensah stated that the government had tamed the monstrous Dumsor of elephant proportion.

The former NHIA boss disclosed that Kpone Thermal Power, Sunon Asogli Phase II, Sunon Asogli Coal fire plant, Cen Power and Amandi power projects would soon come on stream to boost power production in the country.

On health, he said the performance of the government could only be compared to that of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, insisting that the government has constructed the University of Ghana Teaching Hospital with 617 beds, the Greater Accra Regional Hospital, (Ridge) 420, Damgbe West Hospital (120 beds) and the Police Hospital with 100 beds.

Mr. Mensah disclosed that the government has also made strides in the housing sector.

He specifically cited the 5,000 unit spectacular Saglemi affordable housing project at Ningo, Nyamedua Estates project, the security services housing scheme, the New Labadi Villas housing projects, among others, to address the housing deficit in the country.

The coordinator of the 25-member taskforce, which includes Dr. Kpesah Whyte, the Acting Director of the National Service Secretariat (NSS), indicated that the government had also improved access to potable water.

[email protected]

By Jeffrey De-Graft Johnson


As part of the stakeholders of the country's democracy, we now know the benefactors of the motivation for the Montie 3 pipers' descent into the gutters.

Before Salifu Mase aka Mugabe's lamentation a couple of days ago, speculations were rife about the sponsors of the scathing occupation.

All of the conjectures were directed at the ruling party.

It is instructive though that Mugabe had hinted about how he was working for the President, having come to Ghana from the UK where he was sojourning to undertake the occupation which by implication was supporting the Number One Gentleman's political mission.

It was not surprising therefore that the brief incarceration of the trio and therefore their departure from the frequency created a worrying vacuum which their motivators filled through a complex web of ruses cumulating in the Presidential pardon.

Their terms of reference were clearly spelt out, including perhaps the monetary dividend for their dirty operations against political opponents and occasionally selected public officials, whose work were perceived not to be inuring to the interest of the ruling party.

Today, the squad leader, representing his colleagues on the infamous programme, is disappointed at the non-adherence to the terms of the deal with the President and his team in whose interest they have been engaged in the insulting spree.

We now know that those behind Mugabe's return to Ghana from the UK listen to him each time he sits behind the console and spews the garbage against political opponents; definitely relishing the circus.

This is how bad politics has become in this country.

We shudder to think that society's elites and the educated on whose shoulders the development of the country lies would descend so low as to countenance and indeed support the growth of such crap in our body-politick.

It is shameful that this has continued for this long with little or nothing being done about it by institutions or civil society organizations: we are yet to witness such bodies descending heavily on the anomaly which has changed the pattern of politics in the country.

We now appreciate the enormity of the stress the President had to endure when the trio was incarcerated after falling foul of the law and why he eventually, against popular dissent, invoked the constitutional powers bestowed upon him, albeit, erroneously to have them released after the remission of their sentences.

The Montie 3's dirty political operation is an NDC project, part of the overall strategy of the ruling party to spew mendacious tales about political opponents in a manner that would better their electoral chances and attract public opprobrium for the largest opposition party, especially its flag bearer.

Life is always in a flux, no condition being permanent. The freebies are not flowing as consistently as they should, leaving the trio famished, especially, after their brief stay in incarceration and the unenviable tag of ex-convicts.

Mugabe claimed rather interestingly that for those who think having done some days in prison and now out they are enjoying some special goodies, such persons must review their expectations since, for him, nothing special has been extended to the trio.

He lamented also about non-receipt of advertisements to sustain their station.

The poor guy does not know that decent businesses do not want to associate with their assignment.

Perhaps the sponsors, following this turn of events and the possibility of further pissing in, would push some fat wads of cash to the Montie 3 so the verbal fabrications can continue.

Wo pampaso nie, Mugabe nie, nkwasiasem nie!
The Supreme Court (SC) in a unanimous decision yesterday dismissed the case in which two high court judges cited in the Anas Aremeyaw Anas judicial bribery and corruption scandal are challenging the capacity of the journalist to investigate them.

The five-member panel of justices presided over by Justice Julius Ansah, held that the petition from Anas to President Mahama seeking their (investigated judges') removal was signed by Anas himself as a citizen, investigative journalist and lawyer.

The judgement read by Justice J. B. Akamba, indicated that the case by the plaintiffs that the said letter on the letterhead of Tiger Eye PI  the company which authenticity they were challenging  is immaterial.

The judge, while indicating that it was with trepidation that the judges sat in judgement of a case concerning their colleagues  Justices Paul Utter Dery and Habib Logoh  noted that the plaintiffs were concerned about the form of the letter and not the content.

He said the plaintiffs embarked on their own investigation about the company at the Registrar General's Department where the name was different from what was found.

The court again said that at the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), there were no records of Tiger Eye PI as an entity.

Nevertheless, Justice Akamba stated that the application had been filed and same dismissed.

In their suit the plaintiffs argued that investigative journalist Anas' Tiger Eye PI firm lacks the capacity to petition President Mahama for their removal from the bench.

They wanted a declaration that the petition that Tiger Eye PI sent to the President of Ghana for their removal as justices of the Superior Court are inconsistent with and in contravention of Article 146 (3) of the 1992 Constitution as Tiger Eye PI lacks the legal capacity to file the said petitions.

The two judges (plaintiffs) also sought a declaration that the president's referral of the Tiger Eye PI's petitions to the Chief Justice to determine whether there is a prima facie case against the plaintiffs are inconsistent with and in contravention of Article 146 (3) of the 1992 Constitution as the company lacks the legal capacity to file the said petitions.

Lawyers for the two also requested the court to declare that the determination by the Chief Justice that there is a prima facie case for the plaintiffs to answer is inconsistent with and in contravention of Article 146 (3) of the 1992 Constitution as Anas lacks the legal capacity to file the said petitions.

The two also wanted an order of perpetual injunction against any investigative or adjudicative body howsoever or whatsoever described, from determining any issues arising out of the petitions filed by the 1st defendants against the plaintiffs.

[email protected]

By Jeffrey De-Graft Johnson
28.10.2016 LISTEN



News Desk Report.

China is to donate military equipment, valued at 20 million Yuan to Ghana, to boost defence cooperation between the two countries.

The equipment will comprise four patrol boats with spare parts, four vehicle-mounted machine guns plus mounting racks, tools and spare parts, as well as 120,000 rounds of amour-piecing incendiary (API) over a three year period.

This was made known, when a Protocol on the provision of Military Aid Gratis to the Ghana Armed Forces covering the donation was signed at the Ministry of Defence on this week.

The Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, Her Excellency Madam Sun Baohong, signed for China, and the Minister for Defence, Dr Benjamin Kunbuor, signed for the Ministry of Defence.

According to the Chinese Ambassador, in the past few months, the Chinese Ministry of National Defence identified equipment and materials to be donated to Ghana, hence the need for the signing of a Protocol and a new starting point for military cooperation between China and Ghana.

Madam Sun Baohong further stated that China was looking forward to having more engagements with Ghana in military, peace and security, after the up and coming elections in December.

On his part, Dr. Kunbuor extended the appreciation of the Commander-in-Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces, His Excellency President John Dramani Mahama, to His Excellency the President and the people of China.

He noted that his visit to China last year accorded him and his team the opportunity to deliberate on various issues with their Chinese counterparts, one of which led to the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on Defence Cooperation, which was very much appreciated.

Dr. Kunbuor was confident that the equipment will help the navy in particular and other auxiliary military activities.

Also present at the ceremony were the acting Chief Director, Mr. Vincent Adzato-Ntem, and Principal General Staff Officer to the Minister, Commodore Osei Asante, both of the Ministry of Defence, Ghana, Mr. Jiang Zhouteng Tang, and Mr. Tang Ruiqun of the Chinese Embassy.
28.10.2016 LISTEN



By Maxwell Ofori, Parliament House

[email protected]

A bill that seeks to amend the Presidential (Transition) Act, 2012 (Act 845) to address the loopholes identified in the Act, and ensure an effective and smooth presidential transition, has been passed by Parliament.

The amendment became necessary, as the Act 845, when implemented for the first time, experienced some challenges, a memorandum to the bill stated. Arguments were advanced to the effect that even though Act 845 made provisions in section 1 for the transfer of power to an incumbent President re-elected for a second term, it appeared vague in some respects, and needed elaboration, said the memoranda.

The Bill, in clause one, amends section 1 of Act 845, by providing for the constitution of a transition team within twenty-four (24) hours after the declaration of the results of the presidential election, in accordance with article 63 of the Constitution.

The clause also makes provision for the membership of the transition team in a situation where the incumbent is elected as President, as well as in a situation where a new person is elected as President.

Meanwhile, in the case where an incumbent is re-elected, Act 845 simply states that the President shall designate members of the transition team.

However, a limit was not set on the size of the transition team, and Act 845 did not make provision for the tenure of office of the transition team.

Therefore, the number of the transition team in this Bill has been reduced from twenty-two to thirteen to help limit the cost, relating to persons appointed to the Transition Team.

According to the Bill, where members of the Transition Team numbered thirteen, a quorum of one-third is specified to make it easier for the transition team to transact business.

This Bill also introduced, in clause 3, a new section 3(A), which provides for the tenure of office of members of the transition team. The tenure has been limited to within six-weeks after the election of the President.

The Deputy Attorney General, Dominic Ayine, on behalf of his boss, moved the motion on Wednesday, for the third reading of the Presidential (Transition) (Amendment) Bill, 2016, after which the Bill was passed into law.
28.10.2016 LISTEN



By Richard Kofi Attenkah.

Fifty-seven chiefs in the Nkwanta South constituency of the Volta Region, comprising five paramount chiefs and 52 sub-chiefs have declared their unflinching support for the 2016 presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in the December presidential elections.

Led by Nana Obonbo Sewura Lipuwura II, Paramount Chief of the Nkwanta Akyode Traditional Area, they stated that they have had the opportunity to witness governance under the NPP and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) over the last 16 years, and are under no illusion that a government led by the NPP represents Ghana's best hope of offering her citizens progress and prosperity.

The Paramount Chief of the Nkwanta Akyode Traditional Area made this known on Wednesday, when Nana Akufo-Addo and the leadership of the NPP in the Volta Region paid a courtesy call on him at his palace in Nkwanta.

Under President Kufuor's tenure, I can say with all certainty that, all was well with Ghana. There was money in the land and in the pockets of people. However, under President Mahama men are crying, women are crying, the youth and old are all crying, the Nkwanta Chief lamented.

He continued; There's a saying that you visit two markets before one can tell which the best is. We have, indeed, visited two markets over the last 16 years and we know which is best. We know it is the NPP that can help us.

With majority of the youth of Nkwanta unemployed, Nana Obonbo Sewura Lipuwura II endorsed Nana Akufo-Addo's 1-District-1-Factory policy, adding that we know you can do it. We have already allocated a parcel of land for the factory to be sited. We know you can do it.

Akin to the pledge made by Nana Akufo-Addo to create the 'Western-North' region out of the Volta Region, the Chiefs of Nkwanta appealed to Nana Akufo-Addo to create the Oti Region, and site the capital in Nkwanta.

Continuing, Nana Obonbo Sewura Lipuwura II, reiterated the unwavering support of the 56 other Chiefs in the Nkwanta Akyode Traditional Area, praying for good health, wisdom, long life for Nana Akufo-Addo.
28.10.2016 LISTEN



From Issah Alhassan, Kumasi

THE FLAGBEARER of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has received an overwhelming endorsement from the Queen mother of the Asante Kingdom, Nana Afua Serwaa Kobi Ampem II.

The Queenmother has stated emphatically that she is for change and is backing the NPP Presidential candidate, ahead of the crucial elections.

Speaking through her spokesperson, Nana Afua Agyemang Kromo, the Asantehemaa said she was in full support of the change agenda.

The Asantehemaa made the endorsement when the wife of the NPP flagbearer, Mrs. Rebecca Akufo Addo paid a courtesy call on her at the Manhyia Palace to formally announce her presence in the Ashanti Region for a five day tour.

Doing the change (Yeresesamu) gestures, whilst addressing the entourage, Nana Afua Kromo said the Asantehemaa wishes to see progress and development in the lives of her subjects particularly, and that she hopes the NPP leadership under Nana Addo will deliver to the satisfaction of all.

Tell your husband we are in full support of him, Nana Kromo stated, amidst cheers and applause from the gathering that thronged the Asantehemaa Palace.



Earlier, Mrs. Akufo Addo had paid a courtesy call on the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.

Mrs. Rebecca Akufo Addo told Otumfuo Osei Tutu II that, she was in the region to mobilize support for her husband.

She indicated that her husband has good vision for Ghana and that she would plead with the King to give him the needed spiritual backing to be able to confront the battle ahead of him.

Mrs. Akufo Addo also conveyed her husband's appreciation to the King for the warm reception accorded him anytime he visits the region.

My husband has told me a lot about the love and support you offer him anytime he is in the region. I wish on my personal behalf to express much appreciation to you and plead with you to continue to protect him, She said.

Mrs. Akufo Addo is expected to visit about five constituencies to meet and interact with Queenmothers and traditional rulers to court their support for the NPP.
Cote dIvoire: Authorities must stop arbitrary arrests and mobile detention of opposition supporters ahead of referendum

Authorities in Cote dIvoire must stop targeting opposition members by curtailing their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, Amnesty International said ahead of Sundays referendum on constitutional changes.

On 20 October, at least 50 opposition members were arbitrarily arrested at a peaceful protest and detained for hours in moving police vehicles. Some of them were dropped in several places in the main city Abidjan, others around 100 km away from their homes and forced to walk back in a practice known as mobile detention.

This form of inhumane treatment is at odds with international and regional human rights law and standards. Whether people campaign yes or no for the referendum, everyone, including opposition members, has the right to peacefully express their opinion and to have their dignity respected at all times. Members of the security forces responsible for this must be identified and held to account, said Gaetan Mootoo, Amnesty Internationals West Africa researcher.

Cote dIvoire needs to focus on creating a safe and enabling environment in which all voices can be heard. By unduly restricting the rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly of mainly opposition members and other dissenting voices, the authorities are failing to be on the right track.

On 20 October, as anti-referendum protesters started to gather, police fired tear gas, clubbed the leaders and arrested at least 50 people.

An opposition leader who escaped to the arrest told Amnesty International:

Security forces seized the cell phones of those arrested and loaded them in police vehicles that have circulated for hours throughout the city and outside Abidjan. After hours, they told them they were released but clearly indicated that since they wanted to protest they only had to walk all the way from there to the city. They called the practice mobile detention.

Amnesty International urges the authorities to stop this practice of arbitrary detention and calls on them to ensure that opposition members can freely express their views.

Those who are still in detention solely for the peaceful exercise of their rights, must be released, including Tahouri Wase Marius, who was arrested after the 20 October protest and charged with disturbing public order. His trial is due to begin on 28 October, according to his lawyer.

The former President of the National Assembly, Mamadou Koulibali, has been arrested twice since referendum campaigns began on 22 October before being released.

Amnesty International has noted a worrying pattern of arbitrary arrest and detention of opposition members during peaceful protests or gatherings.

During last years presidential election period, more than 50 opposition supporters were arrested and detained solely for their political beliefs and for peacefully expressing their views. They were released after months in detention.

Amnesty International delegates, including Alioune Tine Regional Director for West and Central Africa, met the Ivorian Human Rights Minister in February to raise concerns, including on the detention of prisoners of conscience, secret detention places and selective justice. The Minister requested 100 days to consider Amnesty Internationals recommendations.

However, the government has failed to take any action, despite receiving a follow-up letter from the organization in April. Meanwhile arrests of opposition groups still continue.
The Mahama led administration has been caution to jilt its incessant whet of appetite for contracting loans as a major alternative means government financing of budget apart from tax revenues.

Several economist and financial analyst have in recent times admonish government to cut the rate of borrowing which has leaped the countrys debt stock to over GHC110 billion.

Dr. Kofi Amoah, business mogul who is much concerned about government

strong appetite for borrowing, has said, it is high time government tame the attitude of borrowing which has left the country whirling under a huge public debt.

His comment comes in the wake of parliaments approval for government to spend some GH1.9 billion in interest payments for the first quarter of next year  an amount which dwarfs the GH1.2 billion to be spent on critical infrastructure.

Current, public debt is in excess of GH110 billion and interest payments of more than GH10 billion per annum.

Quite apart from the rising public debt stock, it is worrying to note that the debt, mostly short-term, is not being invested in projects what will yield immediate returns to be used in repayments.

Much of government short-term borrowing, he argued, have been spent on consumption expenditure or projects that will take a long time to pay for themselves  leaving the country struggling to repay those debts with either fresh borrowing or tax revenues.

However, the Finance Minister, Seth Terkper has strongly indicated that the government is seriously considering issuing diaspora bonds to raise cheaper funds in a bid to tap into the wealth of Ghanaian emigrants after the countrys first domestic dollar bond issued recently was deemed a success.

Diapora Bonds is feasible. We are looking at it. Everything is feasible with planning and with stabilization of the economy.

There have been long standing suggestions that we should be doing diaspora bonds given the large number of Ghanaians who are living outside. We are going to see the extent to which there could be an interest in Diasporans who are holding money, said Mr. Terkper at a media interaction in Accra.,

These are all just plans. We are not going to rush into it but we could see whether this could be a step towards making them buy bonds, he added.

He explained that, such bonds have been successful when a particular group of people from a country living abroad are targeted to invest in the bonds aimed at raising funds to support growth of the economy.

Again, the government has expressed willingness to enter into agreement of mortgaging one of the countrys oil and gas block with China in line with governments self-financing loan strategy to secure a loan from the China Development Bank (CNB) for a period of 19 years starting in 2018.

This was a recommendation following the negotiations with the CNB by a task force mandated to discuss the utilization of the US$500 million remaining US$1.5 billion of the US$3 billion deal.

The Finance Minister has explained that, The premise for the CDB facility, which is in tune with our self-financing loan strategy is that proceeds from any commercial project must be used to pay for any loans that are used to finance the project.

The payment was to be from revenue flows from crude oil which is sold on the international market at bench mark prices but crude oil prices fell and that source of financing the loan became inadequate, Mr. Terkper noted in unison with the NPPs narration.

He noted that the strategy of self-financing loans was to avoid putting any burden tax payers.

So we had indicated that once the processes start, there could be other source of financing repayment for the facility. That is the discussion that we are holding now, to see how we can use the proceeds from lean gas and from other gas sources to finance any infrastructure that is built and not put the load for such infrastructure on the tax payer and increase public debt.

Meanwhile, Dr. Amoah is strongly posited that, We must become honest with ourselves and admit that borrowing to this extent was a mistake and discontinue the trend. After the debt forgiveness of the 2000s, the country returned to market to borrow from China and the Eurobond and what have you, and these loans have now become an albatrosses around our necks. If we must borrow at all, we must do so to invest in agriculture or agribusiness which yields immediate returns.

Are we making the right judgements in our selection of projects for capital expenditure so that five years from now we will not be saddled again with another prospect of going HIPC -- begging for debt forgiveness?

You must always be cautious about what you put borrowed money into. We are borrowing to spend on consumption such as health service, education among others. These are important investments but they are rather long-term investments and if care is not taken the country may not be able to service debts used in taking them, he said.

The gap between the monies spent on infrastructure and interest paid on government debt has been growing, with this years gap expected to be about 33 percent and next years, using the first quarter alone, points to more than 50 percent.

According to Dr. Amoah, debt is not a bad thing, so long as it ends up in areas that can yield immediate returns and help in repayments.

We should look at other areas where we could invest borrowed money where immediate returns would be accrued to service the debts and used to finance other forms of infrastructure. When we borrow, or use tax revenue and invest in agriculture, the returns will be almost immediate, he said.

For instance if we buy hybrid seeds or invest in agric extension officers to go to assist in good farming practices, the returns will be almost immediate. When we produce enough food, we will be able to curtail the US$1.5 billion food import bill  thats revenue. And most important apart from reducing the food bill, this will create jobs, he added.

Without creating value in the people through job creation via manufacturing or agribusiness or any other means, some of the infrastructure being put up will not only be outside the means of the people but also maintenance will be a huge burden on government, Dr Amoah argued.
Lancaster County head hunters have narrowed down their list of candidates for corrections director to four people.

The list includes names from Omaha, Lincoln, Pittsburgh and Hot Springs, Arkansas.

The search for a new director, which has been done in house, generated an initial list of 10 candidates worthy of first-round phone interviews out of a total of about 30 applications, said Lincoln/Lancaster County Human Resources Director Douglas McDaniel.

The four finalists will be interviewed in Lincoln before the five-member County Board decides which one to hire. Interview dates with the candidates have not yet been set.

McDaniel said it will cost about $1,000 each to bring the two out-of-state candidates to Lincoln for their interviews.

Lancaster Countys previous corrections director, Mike Thurber, left the position amid controversy. He had held the job since 1993, and the County Board suspended him April 26 after launching an internal investigation. He resigned May 10. Officials have not said why Thurber was investigated.

The Nebraska Attorney Generals Office declined to prosecute Thurber and this summer handed the case over to the state Accountability and Disclosure Commission, which has not commented on the situation. The commission typically investigates violations of state law related to such issues as conflicts of interest, misuse of government resources and nepotism.

Here are the finalists.

Brad Johnson, Lincoln. He has been leading county corrections as interim director since Thurber left and started his career as a correctional officer in 1992, working his way up and serving as both a sergeant and lieutenant. When the Lancaster County jail moved in 2013 from downtown to a new building at Southwest 40th and O streets, he acted as transition coordinator, overseeing all aspects of the undertaking.

Most recently he has served as jail administrator. He has a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and masters degree in public administration from University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Barry DeJong, Omaha, is vice president of child and family programs for Heartland Family Service, a nonprofit organization that focuses on education, counseling and support services and serves more than 40,000 people at more than 15 locations in east-central Nebraska and southwest Iowa.

DeJong began his career in corrections with the State of Nebraska, then became a police officer in Omaha in 1984. He retired as a lieutenant in 2007 and went on to work for Nebraska Health and Human Services as an administrator in the child and family division, later becoming general manager for a private security company that operated in four states.

He has a bachelors degree in criminal justice administration from Bellevue University.

LaToya Warren, Pittsburgh, is chief deputy warden of the Allegheny County Jail in Pittsburgh, which has a daily population of more than 2,000 inmates. She is responsible for both operations and programming functions at the jail, and has worked to reduce recidivism through participation in a multidisciplinary team representing corrections, human services and the courts.

Warren previously served as the policy and planning administrator and holds masters degrees in public administration and social work, as well as a bachelors in psychology from the University of Pittsburgh.

Mark Chamberlain, Hot Springs, Arkansas, Mike Chamberlain runs the Garland County jail and got his start in corrections at the Palm Beach County, Florida, Sheriffs Office in 1985.

He is chief deputy of corrections for the Garland County Sheriffs Office in Arkansas and has been involved in transitioning jail operations there to a contemporary direct supervision program. He holds a bachelors in business administration from Northwood University and a masters in public administration from Barry University.
The government of Ghana two years ago adapted a number of economic management policies brainstormed and proposed by Ghanaian experts from various fields of profession to help salvage the then ailing economy.

This saw a pool of most prolific economists, industrialists, financial experts, academia, health practitioners, legal luminaries, agriculturists and politicians to gather at Senchi to arrive on a number of consensus which has later refined into policies.

Government since the forum set up a committee to help in advising the government on the implementation modalities. Most of these policies were those adopted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for Ghana when the country sought for a relief from it.

Years, after the implementation, the Minister of Finance, Mr Seth Terkper, has stated that Ghanas economy is getting back on the path of growth as a result of a sustainable home-grown policy that has been adopted by the government.

The Finance Minister expressed optimism that for the first time, Ghana would see a home-grown IMF programme that would result in turning the economy around and backed by a plan to lower debts, to bring massive investments in terms of oil and gas.

Already, the World Bank had projected a growth rate of between seven and eight per cent in the next two to three years.

Moreover, he indicated for instance that the government had slowed down on borrowing in order not to increase the countrys debt stock which currently stands at about US$28 billion, while it had resolved to concentrate on completing pipeline projects so as not to put pressure on the budget.

Mr Terpker explained that, the factor that mostly affected growth of the Ghanaian economy was the disruption in gas supply from Nigeria, which also resulted in massive layoffs, as businesses could not get power to work.

Tax revenue also reduced because employment lowered due to the layoffs but, nonetheless, the government decided not to give handouts because that was not sustainable, he said.

Mr Terkper further explained that, a moratorium had been imposed on all new projects except where they were very necessary. This is to ensure that only pipeline projects were tackled, he said.

He disclosed that to make good its plan to execute only projects that had already been started, a contract data base had been compiled on all outstanding projects across the country.

Ghana never knew how many contracts were in the system and that is one of the biggest headaches Ghana has always had - overshooting the budget. So when we did that data base, we realised that we had nearly about 3,000 or so projects here and there from education to health to others, he stated.

Meanwhile, government has expressed willingness to enter into agreement of mortgaging one of the countrys oil and gas block with China in line with governments self-financing loan strategy to secure a loan from the China Development Bank (CNB) for a period of 19 years starting in 2018.

This was a recommendation following the negotiations with the CNB by a task force mandated to discuss the utilization of the US$500 million remaining US$1.5 billion of the US$3 billion deal.

The Finance Minister has explained that, The premise for the CDB facility, which is in tune with our self-financing loan strategy is that proceeds from any commercial project must be used to pay for any loans that are used to finance the project.

The payment was to be from revenue flows from crude oil which is sold on the international market at bench mark prices but crude oil prices fell and that source of financing the loan became inadequate, Mr. Terkper noted in unison with the NPPs narration.

He noted that the strategy of self-financing loans was to avoid putting any burden tax payers.

So we had indicated that once the processes start, there could be other source of financing repayment for the facility. That is the discussion that we are holding now, to see how we can use the proceeds from lean gas and from other gas sources to finance any infrastructure that is built and not put the load for such infrastructure on the tax payer and increase public debt.
The current unstable electricity supply to consumers, has ignited a worry to many Ghanaians who are suspecting that, it is an unannounced officially but a form of load shedding of electricity in most cities and towns of the country.

This has pushed some energy experts to caution the NDC led government to be conscious and put in place immediate measures to curtail any emergent of load shedding since it will have great impact on the direction of the December 2016, elections result.

However, the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has declared that the current power outages are not indications of power crisis or the return of load shedding, otherwise known as dumsor.

Rather, the management said the recent power outages were as a result of distribution challenges which arose from scheduled maintenance of some equipment or repair of technical faults of some of their equipment.

Admittedly, we have taken note of series of outages in some areas within our distribution system, but we wish to state as a matter of fact that it is not load shedding, it said.

Addressing the media on the situation in Accra yesterday, the Director of Operations at the ECG, Mr Tetteh Okine said the power distribution company was receiving enough energy for supply.

Apparently, the Head of Policy Unit at the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP), Dr Ishmael Ackah, and Kojo Poku, an Energy Expert both agree the country is not likely to sustain the high cost of importing crude oil to feed power barges.

Kojo Poku says Ghanas huge debt to Nigeria Gas (N-Gas), about $300 million, for which reason gas supply to power thermal plants has been cut, could have been avoided.

We are spending so much in importing crude oil to power the plants because we are not paying our debts to NGas to get the gas in as we should.

"We are spending [about] 30 million dollars every four months to bring in 600, 000 barrels of crude oil. That works out 90 million a year. What is our debt to N-Gas? he was baffled.

Currently, the Sunon Asogli Power Plant, which produces 200 MW of power and the CENET Power Plant (126MW) have been shut down due cut in gas supply from N-Gas.

ACEPs Dr Ishmael Ackah also said a fall in power supply is very likely next year when a routine shutdown of the FPSO Kwame Nkrumah starves Karpower and Ameri power plants of gas.

Early next year, for eight to four weeks, we are going to fix the FPSO, so it is going down for about three months. If we do the repairs on-site, there will not be any trouble. If we do it off-site, we are going to lose gas to Ameri, it means Ameri too will not be working so these are some of the reasons why they are saying that next year there may be dumsor, he explained.

Meanwhile, the government has dismissed as false, reports that Ghana is purchasing power from Ivory Coast to end the painful power-rationing regime endured by Ghanaians for almost four years.

Deputy Power minister John Jinapor has explained Ghana does not need its western neighbour to end load-shedding, rather it buys power from Ivory Coast for strategic reasons.

"The assertion that load shedding is over because we are importing power from Cote D'Ivoire is not true", he said on Joy FM's Super Morning Show Wednesday.

There are media reports from the Finder newspaper Ghana is importing 185megawatts of power from Cote d'Ivoire while thermal power plants lie idle in Ghana.

According to the paper, this is because power from the western neighbour is cheaper than power produced in Ghana.

Cote d'Ivoire generates thermal power at the cost of 9 cents per kilowatt hour and sells it to Ghana for 11 cents while thermal plants in Ghana sell their power from 14 cents and above, the paper reported.

"If you don't do the analysis well, you might look at it from a flawed point of view...we give power to Ivory Coast...we give power to Togo, we give power to Benin and sometimes we take power from Ivory Coast," he explained.

The deputy minister explained that West African countries have entered into a power pool to share electricity. In that spirit, Ghana may take hydro-power from Ivory Coast if it proves cheaper than power from Ghana's Kpone Thermal Power Plant.

The deputy minister has emphasised that "with or without Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana is self-sufficient with power production".

He explained that the arrangement with Cote d'Ivoire is a power-sharing deal. "Anytime we take power we pay and anytime we give them power, they pay us," he said.

"There is nothing wrong with sharing power," he said and referred to enduring power-sharing arrangements between Britain and Germany.

He admitted however that sometimes power from Ivory Coast is cheaper. Cost is however not the only reason why government buys power. "In business, you don't just look at cost alone. We look at sustainability and market penetration," he said.

Explaining why Ghana has entered into a power-sharing deal with its neighbour, the deputy minister said it is for strategic reasons.

Ghana is sharing because it wants to conserve its own sources of power for a rainy day, he indicated.
Accra, 28th October, 2016: The Ministry of Petroleum has observed with concern media reports on false allegations made by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) suggesting that:

1. In 2017 gas supply from the Jubilee Fields will stop as the FPSO is expected to shut down for a period of six months and therefore this will plunge the country into power supply challenges;

2. Ghana plans to export all its gas to China in return for $2 billion.

The Ministry views these statements as reckless, untrue and are calculated at best to create fear amongst Ghanaians. The Ministry therefore, wishes to clarify these issues.

1. In 2017 gas supply from the Jubilee Fields will stop as the FPSO is expected to shut down for a period of six months and therefore this will plunge the country into power supply challenges.

This is not true. In Ghana, gas supply is routed to our power plants through the gas plant in Atuabo. Gas Supply shutdowns are part of normal maintenance regimes on fields. Thanks to the hard work of the NDC Government, under the able leadership of President John Mahama, gas supply in 2017 will no more be from one field but from both the Jubilee and the TEN Field. Therefore, any shutdowns on one field would be substituted by Gas supply from the other field. Due to diligent planning, any shutdowns for maintenance on the Jubilee field would be more than compensated for by supply of gas from the TEN Field.

2. Ghana plans to export all its gas to China in return for $2 billion. There is no basis for the assertion that Ghana's gas would be exported for $2 billion. All of Ghana's gas are being used and would continue to be used in Ghana for power generation.

We should not confuse the use of proceeds or revenues from the sale of gas or its derivatives to support financing arrangements with the actual sale of lean natural gas and liquids. It is ridiculous to say that Ghana's gas would be sold to China.

The CDB facility simply anticipates the use of revenues from the sale in Ghana to power plants of lean natural gas to support financing. No natural gas would be sold to Chinese to facilitate the financing. Any excess lean gas which is not sold to power plants in Ghana would be dedicated to petrochemical industry development including fertilizer production to support Agriculture in Ghana. Any excess LPG or other natural gas liquids not used in Ghana can also be exported either to our neighbours or to any potential buyer.

The Ministry therefore entreats Ghanaians to disregard these reports as they do not represent the facts.

We once again assure Ghanaians that our offices are opened to all persons who genuinely seek information on the happenings in the sector.

Signed:

Edward A. Bawa

Head, Communications


An All-Yoruba Congress has been scheduled to be held in Kumasi between 9th and 11th March 2017, organisers have announced during a press conference held at the Accra International Press Centre yesterday.

The media programme simultaneously kicked off activities prior to the main event next year.

In his address to the media, Alhaji Musa Baba, President of the Yoruba Community in Ghana said the programme was mooted by elders of the large population of the ethnic group across the country.

The elders want to, through such a congress, showcase the rich Yoruba culture and to prevent the youth from losing touch with their ancestry according to Alhaji Musa Baba who is one of the close to a million Ghanaian Yorubas born in the country.

The congress will also afford Yorubas in Ghana the opportunity to travel to one big town where, especially the youth, will mix together and engage in all forms of contests, singing, dancing, dressing, cooking and what have you. It will also afford Ghanaians the opportunity to appreciate the true Yoruba culture. This will surely promote unity between the Yorubas and Ghanaians that will lead to national unity and cohesion, he said.

He announced that organizers have sought and received the blessings of the traditional authorities of the Yorubas in the persons of the Alafin of Oyo and the Ooni of Ife who are the two most powerful Yoruba rulers.

Many Yorubas from Nigeria and the Diaspora will troop to Kumasi for the programme; an opportunity to showcase the country to those coming here for the first time.

As to why the programme is being held in Ghana and Kumasi in particular, he said the country has the largest concentration of Yorubas and their descendants outside Nigeria, the population put at conservatively a million. Kumasi, considered central location in the country will afford Yorubas from the Northern regions and South to converge upon a central location with little or no inconvenience, he said to a question.

The chairman of the conference Alhaji Sidiku Buari who is a descendant of Yoruba migrants but a Ghanaian by birth recalled how he and others of Nigerian extraction have contributed immensely towards the development of the country.

I am an athlete of repute having competed in international competitions in the early 70s for Ghana. In one such instance, I ran an event in which a single point was needed to define the difference between the winner and the loser. I made that difference to make Ghana beat Nigeria he said.

Alhaji Gafaru, a retired soldier and a Ghanaian of Yoruba extraction showed his decorations from his long service in the Ghana Armed Forces.

It is also expected that the about two hundred years of the history of Yorubas in this country would be adequately highlighted through such a congress and subsequent ones.

Present at the conference were Alhaji Razak El Alawa, a veteran Ghanaian journalist also of Yoruba extraction and a former Press Secretary to the late President Hilla Limann, Sidiku Buari, former President of MUSIGA, Chiefs of Yorubas in Kasoa, Ashaiman, Konongo and a representative of Chief Brimah family in Accra.

By A.R. Gomda
28.10.2016 LISTEN



A Board Member of the Ghana Peace Council, Bishop James Saah, has urged journalists to be agents for promoting peace and unity, not destruction and confusion.

According to him, journalists are the mouth and ear piece of the public, through which the country can continue to enjoy peace and economic tranquility, if they avoid statements that would create tension among the populace.

According to him, Ghana is currently at a stage where individuals hold divergent opinions about issues and event s.

Speaking under the theme Reportage on hot spots for Election 2016: Conflict map of Ghana, he said disagreements, problems, disputes, conflicts, violence and war would occur if the citizens fail to accept and tolerate one another's opinion.

Bishop James Saah added that journalists hold the responsibility, as the agents of change, to inform and educate the citizenry on issues that would promote peace and development.

The renowned motivation speaker made this statement at a special media training workshop on Peaceful Election 2016 this week in Accra.

Dr. Enyonam Canice Kudonoo, Senior Assistant Professor, Ashesi University College, addressed the journalists on Why the media must play a positive role for Peaceful Election 2016.

She advised journalists to take precautions on their choice of words in their reportages, and for them to communicate effectively, they should prepare, engage and analyse concerns to explicate the kind information they pass out into the public domain.

The workshop, which was attended by 40 journalists selected from the southern belt of Ghana, had the Director of Communication, National Commission for Civic Education, addressing the topic Why peace matters before, during and after Election 2016.

The work shop was powered by Creative Storm and United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and was aimed at raising awareness about the critical need for peace before, during and after the elections.
28.10.2016 LISTEN

By Tinkaro Asare, former NUGS President for University of Ghana.

I have monitored proceedings with respect to the upcoming 2016 general elections in Ghana.

I have spoken with different groups of people especially the youth who feel disgruntled with issues of interest in this country.

There are a majority of people who are not involved in political issues but who take delight in discussing political matters and how such discussions can cause a change in government policy for the best in this country.

Its very inspiring to see passionate youth pay much attention to governance issues.

It gives us much hope that we have young folks who have the desire to make things right in this country even though our country seems to be moving towards the wrong direction under our current government led by President John Dramani Mahama.

According to Herbert Hoover, Blessed are the youth for they shall inherit the national debt.

In simple terms, let us be ready to pay the cost and debt of bad policies under our current President.

Many have the urge to change the face of governance in this country.

There are people who are of the belief that things will be better in the future to come and a time will come that they can have full trust in the government of this country.

Getting yourself involved in the governance of your country is an individual right that must be well expressed and voting during an election must be well exercised with moral and civic responsibility as a citizen of a State.

There is a huge fraction of our youth who have lost interest in deciding who leads them and how their policy of governance should be directed.

There are others who have no interest in getting themselves involved in the political decisions of their country which directly and indirectly involves voting during elections and most importantly making the world know their point of view during any key decision of government for the larger populace.

There are several people who are of the conviction that their vote makes no difference in deciding who leads them.

They feel their single vote makes no impact and a single vote from them will have no bearing to decide who leads in any elections but the question l ask is simple;

If each person believes that his/ her single vote will have no impact in the general outcome and decides not to vote during election days, will there be a single vote in the ballot box to declare someone a winner of any elections?

Your guess is as good as mine.

A key reason why people fail to Vote during an elections is not just because they feel their vote will have no impact but simply because of the lack of confidence in the people they have reposed confidence in, largely because of previous bad governance and policies from people who should have acted positively and in utmost good faith but did otherwise.

But in deciding to vote outrightly, what should be your focus and what should be the measure to make your Vote count?

I guess this is a general question that many would ask especially new voters who are desperate to be part of decision making processes in this country.

Voting alone is not a measure of influencing a decision but essentially voting rightly.

Being influenced to Vote as a result of things that are given out during the electioneering period cannot be equalled to any proper sense of voting.

Proper voting in my view is taking these items from the particular person or politician who wants to buy your Vote and yet still voting on a clear conscience because you are of the conviction that such act is virtuous.

There are several people who fear to vote against people who give out money to buy their votes since they are of the view that they have already given their words.

I must say it would be politically and morally wrong to think that taking money from a politician and voting with your conscience but not at the dictate of the politician's whims and caprices is a sin and morally wrong.

Regrettably, I must say people are victims of such thinking but my advice to the youth is that take the money and still vote with your conscience and nothing will happen to you because its your own money that is being given out.

Lastly don't think of not voting because having the desire not to Vote will lead to continuous suffering in our part of the world.

People will wrongly go and elect leaders for us and we will all generally pay the worse consequences for it.

Join a queue and vote well and make sure your vote counts!
The African Centre For Energy Policy- ACEP over the week led citizens of Ghana to discuss the Manifesto of the various political parties.

The Citizens Energy Manifesto Monitor gives Ghanaians from all walks of lives the opportunity to make an input into how state actors should manage our natural resources

The platform seeks to provide citizens the avenue to hold whoever emerges victorious in the 2016 elections accountable and their manifesto promises binding

In an event organised at Alisa Hotel to seek the views of expert on the various promises, the resourced persons noticed notable similarities between the various political parties view of our energy situation and how to resolve them

For instance in the area of Generational Capacity, the NDC promised to increase the capacity in excess of 5000 MW by 2021 and ensure there is universal access to electricity by 2025. The NPP on the other hand promised to increase capacity by implementing a 10 year Energy Master Plan to take care of our energy needs in the medium term to the long term

The Convention Peoples Party promised to explore, depending on the cost, technical feasibility and environmental friendliness: wind, nuclear, bio-mass, gas, hydro as sources of generating energy to increase the capacity

All the parties agreed on the need to resort to renewable energy to help meet the required capacity

Energy conservation was also common in the various manifestos. Most of the energy generated in Ghana gets lost through the process of transmission, illegal connection and abuse by end users

To avert the wastage of energy, the CPP will embark on nationwide campaign including writing energy conservation tips on every electricity bill to keep users informed about the need to conserve power and how it can be done

NDC will develop more energy sources and encourage conservation whereas the NPP made reference to the introduction of compact fluorescent bulbs by the Kufour government in 2007 as an example of some of the measure to be adopted to ensure energy is conserved

To analyse the various Manifestos Energy Promises, The African Centre for Energy Policy- ACEP instituted a 3 member panel of experts to lead the discussion and answer questions on the promises and how they can be achieved

The Panel member were; Mr Kweku Awote- Founder of Precious Minerals Ltd and former Chief Executive of Volta River Authority, Mr Emmanuel Kuyale an active player in the Mining Sector and Mr Ismael Edjekumhene- Executive Director of Kumasi Institute of Technology and Environment with ace Broadcaster Evans Mensah serving as the moderator

From the panellists, the positive aspect of the various Manifestos is that they agreed on most of the issues and in some cases fashioned out similar solutions.

This according to them will auger well for building consensus in the future and help approach our energy situation with a common voice

The Citizens Platform provides Ghanaians the opportunity to make input into how they should be government and how natural resources should be managed for benefit of all

ACEP has over the years served as a major player in the energy sector and it was therefore not surprising that almost all the manifestos contained recommendations by the organisations

The Executive Director of ACEP, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, said that the monitor, which will help in tracking the energy manifestos of the various political parties, sought to help better inform the electorate.
An Accra High Court has asked Ghana's Electoral Commission to adhere to its own rules in the conduct of the 2016 general elections.

The court made the remark when it gave a judgment in a case brought by the Progressive People's Party (PPP) which was challenging the disqualification of its flagbearer, Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom form this year's presidential race.

The EC disqualified the PPP flagbearer because according to it Nduom's nomination forms were not properly completed.

But lawyers of the PPP argued in court that the EC did not give them the chance to correct the errors on their flagbearers nomination forms.

They had also prayed the court to stop the EC from going ahead with balloting of presidential candidates on the ballot paper.

Meanwhile the court presided over by Justice Eric Kyei Baffour on Friday ordered the EC to give the PPP the chance to make the necessary corrections on the nomination forms.

Citi News' Fred Djabanor reported that according to the judge, the regulations, C.I. 94 [the law governing the conduct of the 2016 elections] states clearly that if there is an error within the nomination period or nomination day, any candidate must be afforded the opportunity to correct his error.

The judge further said the EC failed to state clearly what a nomination period was and that what they only did was to just use two days for acceptance of nominations. He said the EC also failed to define what a nomination day and nomination period washence the EC couldn't disqualify Dr. Nduom based on that, added Djabanor.



By: Godwin A. Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana

Follow @AlloteyGodwin
The Progressive Peoples Party (PPP) has won its case against the Electoral Commission (EC), challenging the disqualification of its flagbearer, Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom in Ghanas elections.

An Accra High Court ruled on Friday ordering the EC to allow Dr. Nduom to make corrections on his nomination forms.

The ruling was marked by wild jubilation from hundreds of supporters who had thronged the court premises.

Citi News Fred Djabanor who was following proceedings in court on Friday said the judge sitting on the case, Justice Eric Kyei Baffour, ruled that the EC breached the regulation governing Ghana's elections (CI 94) by not allowing Dr. Ndoum to correct the mistakes on the forms he submitted.

Dr Nduom now stands the chance of contesting alongside four other presidential candidates; the New Patriotic Partys (NPP) Flagbearer, Nana Addo, President John Mahama who is also the Flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the Convention Peoples Partys (CPP) Ivor Greenstreet and Jacob Osei Yeboah, an independent Presidential Candidate.

Background

Dr. Nduom was disqualified from the presidential race along with 12 other aspirants after anomalies were sighted in their nomination forms.

At a hearing of this case on October 20, the court granted an application by the EC to abridge the time for the hearing of the injunction suit from going ahead with the processes to conduct elections in December.

According to its writ, the PPP was seeking an order of prohibition to restrain the EC from proceeding with balloting for position of presidential candidates for the 7th December elections.

The plaintiff also sought an order directed against the 1st Respondent in her capacity as Returning Officer for Presidential elections to grant the Applicant the opportunity to amend and alter the one anomaly found in his nomination papers as well as accept his nomination papers as amended or altered to enable him contest as a Presidential Candidate for the 7th December 2016 elections.

The suit had Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom as the exparte applicant, Charlotte Osei, the EC Chairperson, as the first respondent, and the EC as the second respondent.

Prior to this court action, Dr. Nduom met with the EC boss to get her to rescind her decision, but the meeting ended with no hope for the renowned entrepreneur who was making a third and last attempt at the presidency.

We'll go to Supreme Court if

Lawyer for the PPP, Oyikoi Otoo had earlier told Citi News' court correspondent, Fred Djabanor that the party will head to the Supreme Court if the ruling did not go in their favour.



By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana
After hearing that the court had ordered the reinstatement of Progressive People's Party (PPP) Presidential candidate Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom, one party supporter could not contain her excitement.

Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom can now contest the 2016 presidential elections, after the Electoral Commission's (EC) decision to disqualify him was reversed.

Story by Ghana|myjoyonline.com
Imagine a less spry and agile Indiana Jones and you have Professor Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks), a Harvard professor of religious iconography and symbology (not a real academic discipline). Hes riddled his way from the page to the screen in the wildly popular The DaVinci Code, and Angels & Demons, adapted from Dan Browns series of quasi-religious, art history-inspired mystery novels most likely to be found on the shelf of an Airbnb rental. Now imagine a less spry and agile Indiana Jones in The Hangover, with shades of Contagion wafting about, and you have the third film in the trilogy, Inferno.

In Inferno, Langdon wakes up in a Florence hospital bed with one heck of a hangover. Hes beset by horrible visions of wrecked bodies with backwards heads covered in skin pustules, men in beaked masks, a mysterious woman on a fiery street. Hes got a head wound, no idea where he is, and the worst migraine of all time. Director Ron Howard, who also helmed the previous two installments, takes the head trauma as an opportunity to experiment with an edgier form and style. The screeching noises, flashing lights, rapid editing and queasy camera movements will make you too feel like youre experiencing head trauma.

Amnesiac Langdon is rapidly whisked out of the hospital by an attentive doctor, Sienna Brooks (Felicity Jones), who happens to be a fan of his work. Hes got a Faraday pointer secreted in his clothing (essentially a laser that projects an image of Dantes Inferno). They decipher the coded image and link it to an eccentric billionaire bioengineer, Betrand Zobrist (Ben Foster), who has conveniently laid out in a YouTube lecture his radical theories about global overpopulation and thinning the herd with a weaponized virus, for the good of the planet.

So off run Robert and Sienna, jogging around Italy, pursued by SWAT teams of the World Health Organization, as they go on a scavenger hunt from precious antiquity to precious antiquity, looking for clues as to how Robert got this Faraday doo-hickey and where Zobrists deadly, apocalyptic virus might be deployed that night at midnight.

The twists in the story keep on coming, at the expense of the plots structural integrity. There are a few moments where youll want to puzzle something out, but the story is relentless and doesnt pause for a minute  suddenly Tom Hanks is wrestling a Turkish thug in a pool of water in the sunken baths in Istanbul, so theres not one second to consider the plot holes.

The best thing going for Inferno is Hanks, who plays his befuddled professor Langdon with the right modicum of bafflement and brilliance. He cant believe hes in this situation but also cant turn his brain off. Jones makes a fine counterpart as a prim English child prodigy, an heir to his throne if only she can find the right motivation.

The cast is stocked with international talent including French actor Omar Sy as a questionable WHO agent and Danish actress Sidse Babett Knudsen as Langdons old friend and possible love interest. But its Bollywood star Irrfan Kahn who slyly steals the show as a private security operative. He brings possibly the only humor in the film playing an exasperated corporate type fed up with his client. Its a levity thats much-needed in the cacophonous chaos of Inferno.
28.10.2016 LISTEN

I am virtually concerned about the youth of our generation and their attitude towards the history of our nation. It is like no one reminds them of the former generation, their deeds, sweat and blood that they spilled to form a unified state that we enjoy today. History informs us of the past so we are able to learn to live in the present and later guides us into the future. This article is written out of a sudden sad heart; - fear and panic that may arise should the present generation is not well acquainted with the history of this Continent; we would lose ourselves as a whole. History defines the identity, culture and way of life of the people.

Ghana is rich in so much history but little is known to the present youths. This generation is becoming perverse in ways that I cannot fathom even though we are advancing in technology. For some reason I dont know if technology and the globalization is the reason for the youth not having interest in the history of the African culture and our way of life. That I cant best tell. I have seen lots of foreigners come in seeking to know the history of this continent, yet it indigenes do not show any interest in it countries history.

Our educational system has virtually been drafted to fit in in the curriculum of the West and Europe. I think this is as a result of us trying to emulate them, but the truth is we are emulating them blindly, we end up learning the history of other nations when our own history is kept in the drawers and we have no idea of how it begun. For example in the case of Ghana; should you ask a recent graduate about his knowledge of the struggle for independence he probably might have no clue about it, secondly the shooting of the veterans is even a mystery because we only know that three members of the veterans were killed, but do we know that the March involved all the veterans-this is critical, this part of history has eluded the average Ghanaian and the university graduate. I fear soon we would be producing a generation of ignorant graduates who have no sense of their countries history. Consider this if am wrong them tell me-

 How many of us know the currency that was used after we gained independence, migrating from spending the British pound if you put two hundred graduates who studied the same course would produce about only 5 student who would have knowledge about it after they have graduated.

Am not saying we have no idea about our history but the trend of which this generation is heading soon we would lose all our history and nothing would be left to teach the next generation. We have forgotten about folk tales and oral history. Pan- Africanism is a start, it teaches us the unification of the Africa continent, but today we have lost that we no-longer yearn to learn about our own culture and live it but rather that of a borrowed culture. It as though we have been brain washed. African history tells us that the African life has always been self-reliance on ourselves that what we call Ubuntu other than over-dependency on foreigners. But now it as though the African child has been taught to rely on others instead of believing in his own ability and talents.

My encounter with many students in Ghana has taught me no other thing that we have lost our history to white supremacy. We do not know our culture at heart

Like Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah said, weve been brain washed we do not think for ourselves we let others think for us.

History makes the continent what it is today without the history the continent has no culture traits. A friend of mine from Europe once said; Africa has no history. At that point I nearly got angry because he was insulting me but I realized now that he was telling the truth. Where is the history to be told if no one knows about it? The youth cant tell of an African culture because he knows nothing about it , our music has been transformed from hip-life and Afro music to cools, and R&B. our way of dressing has changed drastically because we prefer clothing from outside Africa than what is Africa all these traits sets pace for the growth of Afrocentricism. Afrocentric Africa tells us of how great our identity is. An African would be known by our culture and this is imbedded in our history.

I challenge our leaders and the ministries to encourage our history be taught to the coming generation. The educational system must be made to fit the African curriculum. After all we are Africans and what we learn about as African would enable us to identify the flaws in Africa and correct them. Mother Africa has been drained of it milk for far too long, let do our best to cover her nakedness with our history, and we hold in esteem the rich culture of our people. We are the best the world has.

LONG LIVE MY HOME LAND AND LONG LIVE MOTHER AFRICA.

Mark Sanchebe

SOCIAL ACTIVIST, AUTHOR AND PASTOR
President John Dramani Mahama has provided $6 million (GH23m) to cater for the expenses of his Presidential Special Task Force set up to pursue the release of the outstanding balance of $2 billion from the controversial $3 billion Chinese loan.

According to a Cabinet Memo in possession of the Daily Statesman, the $6million covers three main cost components, with the areas of expenditure listed to include Catered breakfast for Ghana team and visiting guests at negotiating venue; catered snacks for day-long meeting breaks; catered lunch for Ghana team and visiting guests as (sic) negotiating venue; courtesy dinner for visiting CDB team upon closure of negotiation meetings.

Chinese fried rice is the most popular food served for lunch and dinner in a typical Chinese restaurant, while among the popular snacks is prawn crackers.

Membership of the Presidential Task Force, which is currently in China, consists of Ato Ahwoi (Chairman), Amarquaye Armar (Vice Chairman), Cassiel Ato Forson (Deputy Minister of Finance, member), Ambassador William Ntow Boahene (member) and Ambassador Anani Demuyakor (member).

Other important areas of expenditure for the Task Forces travel to Beijing include Hotel costs in Beijing for team members, as well as per diem for subsistence (DSA); Local Beijing in-city transportation for team from Hotel to CDB scheduled events or trips, comparable projects familiarization visits, etc., that tends to be mandatory in the course of negotiation visits.

The mandate of the taskforce is principally to see to the release of the $2 billion. They are to first of all see to the release of the $500 million for the three projects already agreed and also for the release of the remaining $1.5 billion, which, according to a May 2016 Decisions Memorandum, The President would determine the utilization of the $1.5 billion that will remain after the commitments above are made.

It was in March 2016 that the President agreed to pay the amount of $6 million. He instructed that the Ghana Infrastructure Fund should be responsible for the funding of the work of the Task Force established by the President to pursue the $3 billion loan, and as a consequence of GIIF taking over GoG obligations, for GIIF to allocate an amount equivalent of $6 million to fund the work of the Task Force.

Meanwhile, the there is no sure sign that the Chinese will agree to reactivate the Chinese Development Bank facility.

In October 2015, the President set up the Task Force to re-engage CDB with the aim of utilizing the remainder of the US$3 billion CDB loan.

The $3 billion commercial loan was hastily signed, against the advice of the Parliamentary Minority, under a master Facility Agreement between the Government of Ghana and the CDB on December 16, 2011, following parliamentary approval in July 2011.

Since then, $1 billion has been released. $850 million was used for the Ghana Gas project in a deal that was awarded to Sinopec, a Chinese firm, without a competitive tender.

In addition, a whopping $150 million was also awarded to the Chinese to install IT Enhanced Surveillance Project to provide aerial security for the oil and gas enclave in the Western Region. Experts say the entire ICT infrastructure could have been done with $50 million, if it was not sole-sourced.

The agreement meant Ghana allowing the Chinese to lift 13,000 barrels of the countrys share of crude oil from Jubilee Fields everyday. Even then, the Chinese saw that as insufficient.

The hastily signed facility, as was warned by the opposition New Patriotic Party, suffered persistent disagreement between GoG and CDB, with the Chinese refusing to release any more funds.

Finally in 2015, the Mahama Cabinet approved a recommendation to reduce the facility to $1.5 billion to cover the two projects already under development and three, pending subsidiary agreements.

The three were: (1) spending $200 million to build just 12 fishing landing sites, (2) using $100 million in a dangerously discretionary manner as loans for SME Projects Incubation and (3) spending another $200 million on a scheme described as Accra Intelligent Traffic Management Project.

However, CDB did not agree to the Cabinet decision and refused to disburse any funds beyond the $1 billion.

When Cabinets decision was transmitted to CDB, CDB in turn decided to reduce the facility to US$1.0Billion to cover the two projects that were under development, and crystallize it at that amount, as in the CDBs opinion, the 13,000 barrels per day of crude oil that GoG had committed to the repayment of the Facility was not even sufficient to support the repayment of the committed US$1.0Billion, a Cabinet Memo signed by Finance Minister Seth Terkper discloses.

Several other offers from the Ghana Government in 2014 went unheeded, until last year when Government saw a glimmer of hope, leading to the set up of the special Task Force.

The Mr Terkper confirms this in his memo to Cabinet: At a meeting in Beijing in July 2014, GoG offered other resources such as LPG for CDB consideration; however, this was turned down by CDB. In April 2015, however, CDB by letter dated 30 April 2015, informed GoG that they would consider the suitability of LPG only after their own due diligence to determine its suitability as security for repayment of the Facility. Further communication between GoG and CDB stalled at that point, until the appointment of the new Presidential Special Task Force, which revived discussions with CDB on the outstanding issues.
28.10.2016 LISTEN

Courtesy: USAID Ghana Sustainable Fisheries Management Project Reporting Grant

The issue of a device to instantly determine chemicals contamination has become sensitive in the country, especially given the fact that majority of fishes arrive at shore harvested through unapproved means. Fish processors and fishermen alike definitely wholeheartedly welcome an initiative that can help identify these once brought to shore.

The minister in charge of fisheries and aquaculture development has indicated at a forum the acquisition of such device to aid women identify fish harvested through unapproved means and reject them when they are brought to shore or market. This would help to promote responsible fish harvesting in Ghana. But research has shown that there is none of such device on the market.

The stakeholders in the industry particularly women fish processors are eagerly waiting for this technology to be roll out, because pollutants in the marine environment, which can be organic and inorganic sources over the years, pose challenges to fish processors among others in the value chain.

Organic sources, such as faecal contamination in the form of bacteria, decomposing materials being either from wood or animal sources from dead animals get washed off into the marine environment. In addition, inorganic sources in the form of heavy materials, such as mercury, pesticides, or oil from oil stations and oil exploration activities and detergents from car wash could all go into the marine water to harm fishes.

Cornelius Adablah, National Project Coordinator of West Africa Regional Fisheries Programme at the Fisheries Commission says recognising the problem associated with fish contamination in the country, the ministry directed the head of the fish health unit to quickly run and investigate the issue.

"Upon investigation, it was discovered that there was very sporadic instances of fish contamination, it was not consistent and so the ministry quickly directed for a remedy and test kits were ordered and the women used it in catchment areas.

"They were trained in the use of such test kits, they deployed such test kits and once they realised there was a counter measure to the supply of such fish, the development ceased. The ministry had therefore opted for the use of fish test kits, Mr Adablah states.

He said there is also a programme under the World Bank project to continue training women on fish health, as well as fish handling.

"There is a fish health unit at the fisheries commission at the ministry and this is their remit to ensure proper fish handling practices and use of devices including test kits in detecting the health state of fish supplied in the country.

"The ministry has gone into putting five health laboratories at vantage positions countrywide , first one was opened by the minister less than two months ago in Accra and is regarded as one of the best in Africa and there are four more to go to be built, he says.

Grace Bondzie, a District President for the National Fish Processors and Traders Association (NAFPTA), Grace Bondzie, says as fish processors we have never seen fish test kit before, adding, "we were told by the minister that some will be given to us to see to identify fishes that are contaminated.

"She said she would make provisions for us to have some but we are yet to get some. As part of NAPFTA, we recently went for a workshop and we were told some will come, western region fish processors and others have not had any device that can determine the presence of dynamite in fishes, Bondzie said.

"Pollutants have an impact on fish. The fish obviously live in the water, eat and get into contact with these things either through feeding. For the organic aspect some of them are able to get degraded but for the inorganic ones don't degrade, says Dr Denis Aheto, Head, Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences at University of Cape Coast (UCC) and Project Director of the USAID Ghana/UCC Fisheries and Coastal Management Project.

"As time goes on it remains in the system through bioaccumulation and over time gets accumulated and other organisms feeds on it and end up picking it up and in the end if we catch those fishes and eat them it becomes sources of cancers, he adds.

According to him it is a big problem, and explains that, "so if we want to do testing, it depends on what we want to test, either to test for bacteria or fungal infection or test for viral infections and other forms things such as physical and chemical parameters, Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) or pesticides. For some of these there are snapshots application where you can easily test and get the information.

Dr Aheto states that "PAH you can easily do it, there are sensors and handheld devices you can use to test for physical and chemical parameters. But things to do with heavy metals or pesticides, I have not as yet come across rapid assessment tools, these are more rigorous lab work that requires heavy equipment. Even here at UCC we don't have the equipment to estimate heavy metals, let alone a fishmonger.

Dr Aheto notes that he is yet to come across rapid assessment of protocol to test chemicals in fish, but adds that "in any case I am not saying it is not possible, it can be developed, once you challenge the scientists to do that, they can do it. Even at UCC if you put the experts together to come up with protocols to estimate heavy metals or pesticides it can be done.

He points out that training one or two of fishmongers or fish processors to manage the system can be done but ideally it can provide some kind of challenge and can be misused or abuse. "We need certified laboratory to tell us what the state of the fish and not to leave it to the ordinary man to tell us what is happening, he adds.

Dr Aheto said UCC is in the process of establishing a laboratory equipped with state of art equipment such as to support research in relation to fish contamination.

Mr Sam Quaatey, Director of the Fisheries Commission mentioned that: "In fact we brought in the formalin test kits and the fish health unit do monitoring of the health status of fishes, they buy the fish at selected landing sites and if you compare outcry initially and now, there have been reduction in this issue.

"Secondly it is illegal to do that and through the initiative of minister, we have formed an association of national fish processors and traders association and the project is giving them capacity building. We intend to equip them with some of the fish test kit, in fact the last evaluation we did for fish harvest and post-harvest test kit was part of it, so occasionally we have been monitoring the issue and educating them on how to detect spoils fish, and is under control,  Mr Quaatey said.

The Dean of the School of Physical Sciences, UCC, Prof David K. Essumang also says test kits are developed for specific chemicals, so to say that there is a test kits for fish that is too broad.

"We usually develop test kits for specific chemicals, so that the test kits are able to pick those chemicals of concern and that what test kits are all about.

"So if we want to train the fish mongers to use these test kits to test for DDT when fish is brought from the sea, they may have to go through some laboratory training, where they can extract the DDT and go along with the test to be sure that the DDT is present.

"Indeed it will be good if we have certain kits that can help fish mongers to detect at first hand if there is contamination in the fish so that they dont process them at all but need further work and support before we can archive what we are looking for, he says.

The Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, Ms Sherry Ayittey says every fish smoker cannot be given a fish test kit.

"We brought some when there was crisis and that stabilised it. We are training the women in how to handle fish and then also importantly we also have fish health unit at the ministry and also at the district and zonal levels. Any fish processor or fish monger who feels that she suspects that the fish is not in good quality can invite the extension officer to inspect the fish and advise them.

"In addition, in order to improve, we are building five fish laboratories because sometimes you must identify the particular bacteria and that has to go through laboratory and these five laboratories will be five vantage, in Greater Accra, Central, Western, Northern and Ashanti regions. We are also collaborating with the universities of Cape Coast, and University of Ghana on this project.

"The women have gone through several workshops to identify causes that contaminate fish. The open defecating at the beach by people consistently poses problems to fishes in the country. We also advise them to dry the fish on shelves and not directly on the ground to avoid any sort of contamination.

"We have also urged women to send complaints to the ministry or districts and zonal offices on fish contamination for testing at laboratories, and we can also send fish health unit to inspect the fish and advise them.

"We also buying the mobile fish laboratory, we are bringing in two and will arrive any time from now. That one when we get a call, they can drive to the location because it is equipped mobile laboratory and can do all the laboratory test and assist the women, the minister notes.
Transformational leadership is a style of leadership where a leader works with subordinates to identify needed change, creating a vision to guide the change through inspiration, and executing the change in tandem with committed members of a group.

President John Dramani Mahama is a transformational leader, who is transforming Ghana with landmark projects that will benefit Ghanaians today and in the future.

A time has come that as a developing country we should choose a leader, who has been tried, tested and proven that he has the tenacity, the zeal and passion and has the energy and be mentally and physically prepared to steer the affairs of this country.

A time has come that as a nation we need to applaud the first gentleman of the land and his team who together have put in place formidable developmental projects and infrastructure across Ghana. Projects and infrastructure that bring positive benefits that transcend beyond generations.

A time has come that as a country recognition should be given to a president, who is respected internationally. A president, whose good works has earned him some enviable international positions with responsibilities that demand serious decisions to positively affect humanity.

A time has come that as a country we should continue to put trust and confidence in a president, who is peaceful and democratic. A president, who is tolerant and listens to divergent opinions. A president, who is a team player, working with people from all walks of life to make sure the welfare of the citizens of the country is not jeopardized.

It is time for a nation that yearns for monumental economic transformation to realize that the president who was given the mandate has not failed this country and should be given another four more years to continue to provide basic and essential amenities for Ghanaians.

It is time to acknowledge that His Excellency, President, John Dramani Mahama has been excellent within the first four years given him, despite the myriad problems he encountered because the enormous projects speak for themselves. Another four years would be good for this country as it longs for more development.

It is time for Ghanaians to communicate clearly to the whole world that we appreciate the good works of President, John Dramani Mahama by giving him another one-touch victory come December, 2016. As the international community recognizes our President in many positive disciplines, so must we do greatly for a transformation of this country.

The has time come for the youth of this country to realize that Ghana has a president, who is pursuing projects that will drive massive economic growth for them and their children. Things might be difficult but what the president is doing right now will address and arrest many of the problems facing the youth in Ghana. Children today and yet unborn will benefit greatly from the visionary leadership of President John Dramani Mahama.

It is time to vote for a president, who looks forward to transforming Ghana to a modern country with everything a modern country should have.

It is time to vote for a president, who thinks about the education of your children and provides solutions for them. A president, who thinks about your healthcare and acquires and builds modern facilities for it deserves a second term.

Elections belong to the people. It's their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they will just have to sit on their blisters. (Abraham Lincoln)

#Jmtoaso

#Jmtoado

#Changinglives

#Transformingghana

2016, Godwin-Xavier Ayeebo
28.10.2016 LISTEN

The St. Augustine's Past Students Union has been monitoring events in its alma mater, the St. Augustine's College over the last couple of days with great anxiety. Having apprised itself of the sequence of events, the National Executive Council is of the view that the interdiction of Mr. Connel as the College's Headmaster for allegedly charging unapproved fees is grossly unfair and violated laid down procedures as well as rules of natural justice. The unpopular decision of the GES has elicited sharp condemnation from APSUnians, the Board of Governors and well-wishers, all of whom have described the decision as hasty and ill-advised.



The Union is in full agreement with the Governing Board's letter of 17th October 2016, in response to the GES directive. We therefore call upon the GES to urgently rescind its decision on Mr. Connel.

If the GES remains adamant we are confident that the Union's consideration of a boycott of activities and programmes of the College, will be understood. If the situation is not sanitized, the Union may consider a suspension of support to the College. This could include a boycott of all Ghana Education Service supervised programmes until the unfair interdiction is reversed.

That proposal is scheduled to be discussed shortly. If pursued, these actions by APSU could have far-reaching consequences, as the Union remains a major financial contributor to the development of the College. Such an action has the potential of derailing many years of diligent work and stifling participation of APSUnians from student-centred activities such as the mentorship and counselling programme and the repercussions of such actions are not far-fetched.

As a major stakeholder in the College, APSU together with its individual APSUnians have contributed over One Million Dollars towards the College's development as shown below:

Refurbishment of the Dining Hall by APSU 1991 costing GH340,000.00

Refurbishment of the Geography Block by APSU 1990 at a cost of GH110,000.00

Refurbishment of the Assembly Hall by APSU 1989 costing GH96,000.00

Refurbishment of the Classroom Blocks A and B by APSU 1988 at a cost of GH112,000.00

Construction of two Gate Houses by APSU 1984 and 1969

Construction of a Laundry Bay by APSU 1985

Construction of a Nduom House by Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom costing GH500,000.00

Upgrading of the Sports Oval into a Mini Stadium (Phase 1) by Prof. Joseph Adjaye at the cost of GH300,000.00

Renovation of Computer Laboratory and Donation of ten Computers by APSU 1986

Conversion of a facility into second Computer Laboratory with sixty-three computers by Adjaye Brothers (Prof. Joseph and Ing. Dr. Robert) costing GH200,000.00

Donation of 32-Seater Hyundai Bus costing US$63,000.00

Donation of BMW saloon car for office of Headmaster by Benson Poku Adjei.

This is very much line with the aims and objectives of the Union which among others include To uphold and promote the ideals for which the College was founded; To promote and enhance the welfare and progress of the school; To liaise and maintain funds, from which aid for the steady development of the College may be provided; and To promote and encourage learning and high standards of education in the college and the country at large.

APSU stands in solidarity with our Headmaster, who is doing a fantastic job as is verifiable from the academic and other records. The synergy and collaboration between the headmaster and the Union is at its best, resulting in increased financial, technical, and moral support from the Union.

Meanwhile, we urge all APSUnians and well-wishers to rally together at this difficult time to support a good cause.

ERNEST ANTHONY OSEI

APSU PRESIDENT

20th October 2016
28.10.2016 LISTEN

PANDEMONIUM broke out during the sitting of the first session of the Ahanta West District Assembly (AWDA) on Tuesday morning, when the elected members who form two-thirds of the Assembly walked out of the meeting, thus throwing the process into disorderliness.

The sitting, which was to approve the 2016/2017 budget for the Assembly was greeted with confusion, following the decision by the elected members to walk out of the meeting in strong protest against what they described as deliberate attempt on the part of management, particularly the District Chief executive (DCE) to go contrary to some arrangements in the House.

According to them, the DCE was deliberately hoarding 1000 pieces of gas cylinders and their accessories meant to be given to them (elected Assembly members) for onward distribution to their electorates.

The Assembly members said they became alarmed when after taking delivery of the gas cylinders on behalf of the Assembly, the DCE and his team refused to hand them over to them (elected Assembly members).

It is against this backdrop that they decided to throw the session to approve the 2016/2017 budget into disarray, until the gas cylinders had been distributed to them, the irate Assembly members noted.

Several attempts made to speak to the DCE yielded no result, as calls to his phone were not answered.

However, one of the elected Assembly members, Barnabas Yankey, who represents the Beahu electoral area confirmed to this reporter that the decision to walk out of the meeting was a deliberate one, orchestrated by the elected Assembly members to push for the gas cylinders to be released to them.

He said their action stems from the fact that they could not understand why they (Assembly members) have been registered and made to pay for the cost of the gas cylinders, yet the Assembly was still keeping them.

Narrating how the elected Assembly members were registered, Barnabas Yankey told this reporter that each Assembly member was made to register through their zonal areas with a specified amount of money.

He explained that each zonal area was to receive 100 gas cylinders based on the number of elected Assembly members making up the zonal area.

For instance, in the Apowa electoral zonal area, which has a total of nine elected Assembly members, 100 gas cylinders would be distributed to the Assembly members for onward distribution to their electorate.

Interestingly, after paying for the cost of the 100 gas cylinders, no word had come to them as to when exactly the items (gas cylinders) would be presented to them, even though they have been informed that other districts, including Shama, Sekondi-Takoradi, Ellembelle and Jomoro have already received their consignments.

Consequently, they decided to use the Assembly sitting to register their dissatisfaction over the decision of the Assembly to keep the items.

Information available to this reporter indicates that following the intensity of the noise that emanated from the disturbances at the Assembly, the DCE, Joseph Dofoyena had to step in to calm down tempers.

The DCE assured the Assembly members that he was going to make sure that they receive the gas cylinders next week Monday.

The assurance from the DCE eventually calmed tempers down resulting in the Assembly members return to continue the meeting.

The distribution of the gas cylinder, cook stoves and their accessories is the idea of the Ministry of Petroleum to discourage the use of fire wood for cooking by rural folks. It is under the Rural Promotion Programme.

Currently 60,000 cylinders, cook stoves and their accessories have been distributed since the prelaunch of the promotion programme.

From Alfred Adams, Takoradi.
28.10.2016 LISTEN

Chiefs in the Greater Accra Region have descended heavily on the Minister of Chieftaincy and Traditional Affairs, Dr. Henry Seidu Danaa, for being inconsistent in dealing with them.

This was disclosed at a press conference held last Monday on 24th of October 2016, at the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs, Dodowa.

The Chiefs minced no words when they asked if the Minister would treat their colleagues in Northern Ghana, from where he hails, with the same contempt as he is exhibiting to them.

The anger of the traditional leaders stemmed from the fact that the Minister had gone to change signatories to their account at the Bank of Ghana, thereby blocking allowances due them.

The Acting President and Mankralo of the Prampram Traditional Council, Nene Atsure Bentah III, briefing the media, said that when their registrar, Mr. Harry Anthony Attipoe was sent to the house a few years ago, they discovered the potential in him and that would be for the good of the Region.

According to him, they allowed Harry Attipoe to conduct seminars on chieftaincy in their traditional areas which were greatly helping in resolving the numerous chieftaincy disputes bedeviling the Region and thus was hailed by stakeholders.

Nene AtsureBentah III stated that for strange reasons, the Minister caused the registrar to stop the seminars, which to him, were making Attipoe more popular than him the Minister.

Few days later, the Manklalo said, a secular came from the Minister transferring Harry Attipoe to the Volta Region, a situation which did not go down well with them.

According to him, they sent delegation, led by the President of the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs, Nene Abraham Akuaku, to plead for the decision to transfer the registrar to be rescinded since they called on him to hold the seminars that was making him popular.

Also, Harry Attipoe has 3 years to retire so his knowledge in chieftaincy matters must be imbibed by continuing with the seminars.

The Minister, Nene Atsure Bentah III said, rendered apology for listening to outside influence hence the transfer, and promised to immediately write another letter to withdraw same.

Surprisingly, the spokesperson of the chiefs said that, instead of the withdrawal letter as promised, Dr Danaa went to hold a press conference in Koforidua and castigated them for meddling in the transfer of staff.

He went on to say that, before they could realize, the Minister had gone to change signatories to their account at the Bank of Ghana.

According to him, they were shocked at the turn of events and wondered why the Minister could treat them with such outright contempt.

To them, the Minister could keep their allowances for the number of years that pleases him, but one day, they will have access to it because it is their legitimate remuneration.

The correspondence from the Minister to the Central Bank, dated 12th August, 2016, captioned CHANGE OF SIGNATORY reads;

The Ministry of Chieftaincy and Traditional Affairs writes to request you to change the signatory on the Account with the following details; Account Name  Greater Accra Regional House Of Chiefs, Dodowa, Account No: 1018631472087.

This request has been necessitated by the posting of the current signatory to the account, Harry Anthony Attipoe, to the Volta Regional House of Chiefs, Ho.

The new signatory to the Account is Emmanuel Tetteh Addoquaye and his signature specimen is shown.

The Minister then wrote to the chiefs captioned  CHANGE OF SIGNATORY, GREATER ACCRA REGIONAL HOUSE OF CHIEFS , DODOWA, ACCOUNT NO 1-918631472087 as follows;

Following the discussion held with the President and four (4) Paramount Chiefs of the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs, Dodowa, on the 11th of October 2016, at the Ag. Chief Director's office, the Ministry wishes to state that the payment of monthly allowances of Paramount Chiefs and Queen mothers in the region is not blocked.

The posing of the current signatory to the account, Mr. Harry Anthony Attipoe to the Volta Regional House of Chiefs, Ho, necessitated the change in signatory to the account.

The new signatory to the account is Mr. Emmanuel Tetteh Addoquaye, Assistant National Registrar.

It would be appreciated if you could take note and deal with Mr. Emmanuel Tetteh Addoquaye on all issues on financial transactions on the account of the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs, Dodowa.

In response, the chiefs stated that -Reference is made to the above topic dated 11th October, 2016, with reference No.MCT/10045/SF.7 and we wish to state that, at an emergency meeting of this house on 17th October, 2016, the following resolution was made:

Harry Anthony Attipoe has not handed over the Administration of the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs, neither has he taken over the Volta Regional House of Chiefs, therefore, he is still our Registrar. We members of this house have petitioned His Excellency the President of the Republic against Mr. Attipoe's transfer, the Minister for Chieftaincy, Dr Henry Seidu Danaa subsequently invited the president of the House, Nene Abram Kabu Akuaku III, the Osu Mantse, Nii Okwei Kinka Dowuona VI and Nene Kanor Atiapah III, Ag. President of the Ningo Traditional Council to his office at the Ministry and assured them that he will reverse the transfer.

We were waiting patiently to receive the reversal letter only for him to grant a media interview in Koforidua and stated that, Demonstration by the chiefs of Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs is needless and again surprisingly, he changed the signatory to the account without our consent.

We see the Minister's action as an insult to us members of the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs. The Minister cannot impose any staff on the House and we want to make it clear that we cannot work with Mr. Emmanuel Tetteh Addoquaye. The Ministry can keep the money if it will not restore the signature of Mr. Harry Anthony Attipoe.



By John Bediako .
Africa needs an integrated approach to implement its development agenda. The year 2016 marks a double transition period, from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) or Agenda 2030, and at the continental level, from the New Economic Partnership for Africas Development (NEPAD) to Agenda 2063.

This is one of the recommendations of the MDGs to Agenda 2063/SDGs transition report launched today in Kigali, Rwanda by the UN Economic Commission for Africa, the African Union Commission, the African Development Bank and the United Nations Development Programmes Regional Bureau for Africa.

Africa as a whole has achieved good progress in five out of eight MDGs, especially in improving net primary enrolment, enhancing gender equality, empowering women, reducing child mortality, combating the spread of HIV and AIDS and ensuring environmental sustainability.

However, the report argues several challenges remain, particularly regarding economic and social inequalities and the incidence of extreme poverty: 42.8% of the African population are still living in poverty. The partial fulfillment of Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) commitments by development partners is also an area of concern.

Reflecting on the recent trends on the MDGs, Paul Mpuga, ECA Economic Affairs Officer called on African countries to accelerate efforts to diversify their economies and add value to their primary commodities so as to expand decent employment opportunities for their population.

To ensure effective implementation of the new global and continental agendas, the report stresses the need for countries to incorporate these agendas into national frameworks. In this regard, the report highlights the example of Rwanda which has made strong progress and managed to integrate the SDGs into the elaboration framework of the Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy 3 and the Post-2020 Vision.
28.10.2016 LISTEN

The Ghana Police Service says it has all security arrangement are far advanced ahead of the mammoth rally of the two biggest parties; governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) and opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) in Tema.

Tema Regional Police Commander ASP, Juliana Obeng, says they are very much ready for the event such that if the elections were to be held today, they would have covered every blade of grass.

The harbor city will be the centre of intense presidential political activity this Sunday as the flagbearers of the two parties will pitch their campaign trails.

For an area which traditionally votes NPP, the NDC is fighting to win the three seats and the political rallies will take place within one hour difference.

While the NPP will hold its Greater Accra Rally at the Akojo Park in Community 1 at 2 p.m with the three-time Presidential Candidate Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the NDC's Ebi Bright will launch her campaign with the President expected in attendance at 1p.m at the Coca-Cola Park in Community 7.

Party faithful is expected to show up in their numbers to show support for the two parties some 39 days as party activities reach fever pitch.

ASP Obeng has assured supporters of both parties to be confident as their security is guaranteed with a lot of police on the ground.

Story by Ghana| Myjoyonline.com
28.10.2016 LISTEN

Ho, Oct 28, GNA - The Ministry of Health (MOH) is introducing the MenAfricVac-1 vaccine into the country's immunization programme to help combat the outbreak of meningitis.

Dr. Yaw Ofori Yeboah, Deputy Director, Public Health, at the Volta Regional Health Directorate, said the MenAfricVac-1 would be the 13th vaccine to be made available to children throughout the country to protect them against a specific subgroup of meningitis - the Sero-group A.

Dr Ofori Yeboah at a press briefing in Ho on the introduction of the vaccine into the routine immunisation nationwide, said the Sero-group A was a major cause of meningitis, which had killed over a 1,000 people in Ghana.

He said the vaccine was safe and had been tested in the three northern regions of the country, and gave the assurance that systems were in place within the Health Service to manage issues during the immunization.

He expressed concerns about increasing number of women, especially the rural folk, delivering outside health facilities, and called for intensified education for all expectant mothers to deliver at health facilities and have their children immunised.

Mr. Godwin Afegle, Co-ordinator, Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI), said starting from 1st November, this year, infants would receive a single dose EPI immunisation intra-muscularly on the upper right arm.

In 2012, Ghana was among the first meningitis belt countries in Africa to introduce MenAfricVac with a mass vaccination campaign targeting 3 million people in the three high-risk northern regions with very positive results.

This has led to the introduction of the vaccine in accordance with a World Health Organisation (WHO) directive to be included in the routine childhood immunisation programme within one to five years.

The vaccine was developed in 2001 between WHO and the Programme for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH) with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

GNA
Former Speaker of the Legislature Mike Flood hasn't been publicly speaking about specific legislative issues since he left his elected job at the Capitol in 2013.

But on Thursday, the death penalty referendum and his alma mater drew him out to debate the issue with three others in front of about 125 students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Law.

As he did when he introduced legislation in 2009 to adopt lethal injection for state executions, and when he debated proposed repeals of the death penalty in the Legislature, Flood recalled the 2002 bank robbery in his hometown of Norfolk that left five people dead and three men on death row.

"I hated this time in the Legislature, because it's an awful topic to have to discuss," he said.

Reasonable people can differ on the death penalty, he said. He wasn't there to try to change minds about it. He's not against due process and not against mercy.

But he believes it to be an appropriate sanction for unconscionable behavior, he said.

Four bank employees and a customer were killed within 40 seconds that Sept. 26 morning.

Flood told the students he was at the U.S. Bank branch in Norfolk within 10 minutes after the incident.

"I saw the gun smoke coming out of that place. ... I saw a victim who had been shot in the back as she ran out. I saw where the bullet hole landed in the Burger King drive-thru across the street. And I watched as first responders came out of that bank, that I know, horrified," he said.

One thing that's hard to talk about, but is relevant, he said, is that the public's horror over what happened in the bank was expressed through the court system.

Pastors, farm women, school teachers, bank tellers, sat on the juries that sent three men to death row.

Flood joined Lincoln attorney Bob Evnen speaking for the death penalty and Lincoln Sen. Colby Coash and UNL political philosophy professor Ari Kohen speaking against it.

Kohen told those gathered the death penalty is on its way out, both in the United States and in the international community.

Thirty-one states, the federal government, the military and Washington, D.C., have either abolished it or haven't carried out an execution in at least a decade. If you narrow the range to five years, the number grows to 36, Kohen said.

Last year, only six states carried out executions, 90 percent of those in three states. Twenty-eight executions took place last year and 15 so far this year, 12 in Texas and Georgia.

"We're not seeing a desperate public safety problem," he said.

The death penalty has made the United States out-of-step with the rest of the world, Kohen said.

The top five executing countries last year were China, Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and the United States, he said.

Evnen responded that Kohen had just noted the death penalty was on its way out, as if it were a fashion statement.

"It is not," he said. "It's a just punishment for the most heinous crimes that are committed by the most depraved criminals."

Evnen said law enforcement supports the death penalty, and he believes it to be a deterrent.

Coash countered that when he asks law enforcement and those who work in prisons what tools they need to be safe and do their jobs effectively, resources and pay are top among them.

"They won't tell you that they need the death penalty to do their job well," he said.

Later in the afternoon, the Lincoln Unitarian Church of Lincoln held a small anti-death penalty rally on the north Capitol steps, with signs and T-shirts saying "Standing on the Side of Love."

About 20 people gathered to face the drive-time traffic promoting a vote to retain the law passed by the Legislature in 2015 that would put an end to the death penalty.
Accra, Oct 28, GNA - The National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidate for klottey Korle constituency, Dr. Zanetor Rawlings, has cautioned politicians to desist from maligning people in the name of politics.

Zanetor was speaking at a prayer retreat organized by the Young Adult's Fellowship (YAF) at Adabraka Official town Presbyterian Church as part of their 10th anniversary celebrations.

The YAF prayer retreat dubbed 'Ghana My Motherland' was aimed at bringing people from different political parties and churches to pray purposely for the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections in December.

In an interview with GNA, Zanetor lauded the idea behind the programme.

'It has been a very successful programme; the objective was to make sure those participating in the upcoming elections are actually going to pledge peace in the process.

'As the various leaders in our various parties, we have a responsibility to pave the way and that is what the programme is about.

'So we came to support to put the elections into the hands of God and it has been successful so farit's not over yet but what I have witnessed today is very successful,' she added.

She further cautioned fellow politicians to desist from making empty promises and respect the populace.

'We must respect and be truthful to one another in our campaigning and must desist from making false promises to people.

'We must also desist from maligning others in the process of being politicalI don't think politics should be an excuse to insult other people's reputationsand have a peaceful campaign.

'We must remember that we are Ghanaians and no matter the outcome of the election results and whatever parties we belong to, we have to show respect and work together as one community,' she added.

The prayer retreat was attended by Philip Addison of the New Patriotic Party, Mr. Opare Addo of the Convention People's Party, Nii Noi Nortey, an independent candidate, and Dr. Zanetor Rawlings of the National Democratic Congress.

GNA
Accra Oct. 28, GNA - An Accra High Court on Friday overturned the decision of the Electoral Commission (EC) to disqualify Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP) flag bearer from contesting the December presidential polls.

The court ruled that the denial of Dr Nduom by the EC was fatal and incurably bad and ordered the EC to allow him to make amends and alterations on his nomination form and same accepted by the commission.

Quashing the decision of the EC, the court presided over by Mr Justice Eric Kyei Baffour ruled that "the EC had no basis to complain that the nomination period had closed when they had not set any dates.''

'They (EC) only set nomination day under the regulation 7 but not nomination period under regulation 96 of CI 94...I trust and hold that this ruling would dissolve the perception about CI 94 especially regulation 7 and 9 that had been area of controversy.'

According to the court the PPP had made case for the grant of the order of certiorari and prohibition, adding, the EC could not claim immunity of the court's direction.

It noted that 'No man shall be condemned until he has been given opportunity to be heard.''

The court said in a release by EC, the date for submitting the nomination form was conspicuously missing, adding, the EC on receipt should have informed parties of any anomaly.

The court, however, did not award cost to any of the parties.

Soon after the ruling, Mr Ayikoi Otoo, lead Counsel for Dr Nduom, prayed the court for cost.

Mr Thaddeus Sory who represented the EC said there was no need for the court to award cost because all their reliefs they sought had been granted by court.

The court's decision was greeted with joy and jubilation by hundreds of PPP supporters who had thronged to the court.

The emergence of Dr Nduom and his wife and running mate, Mrs Bridgette Dzorgbenuku the party"s supporters sang to praise Dr Nduom. It took the Police hell of time to walk them through the crowd to join his car.

Addressing the crowd in open top of his vehicle, Dr Nduom thanked God and his supporters for rallying behind him.

He told the crowd that 'We took the action because the situation was beyond me. This case is important for our democracy and development. Today our rights have been restored by the court. I am grateful to everyone.'

The PPP had gone to court to challenge the EC's decision to disqualify its flag bearer Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, from contesting the presidential elections.

Dr Nduom represented the PPP in court while Mrs Georgina Opoku Amankwa represented the EC.

Mr Otoo, had earlier prayed the court to grant their application to amend any anomaly found in his client"s nomination forms and directs the EC to accept the forms.

He prayed the court to further grant them an order of prohibition to restrain the EC from balloting for positions in the December polls.

Mr Otoo urged the Court to grant the request because the EC's disqualification breached the rules of natural justice and that the case was about quashing the decision of the EC.

Mr Sory who represented the EC opposed the application and noted that on the face of law, the EC 'who is the Returning Officer shall inform the candidate it had disqualified and it did that.

According to Mr Sory the EC had not erred and rather the PPP should have come to the court to apologise for the error committed.

PPP had gone to court seeking an order of the Court to restrain Mrs Charlotte Osei, Chairman of the EC from disqualifying Dr Nduom from contesting the December Presidential election.

On October 10, the EC disqualified the PPP and 12 others for various errors on their nomination forms submitted to the Commission.

GNA
28.10.2016 LISTEN

By Sampson Adu-Poku, GNA

Kumasi, Oct 28, GNA - Fifteen (15) people died of rabies in the Ashanti Region, last year, Dr. Albert Kwansah-Filson, the Regional Director of Veterinary Services Department (VSD), has announced.

He told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that the figure could be higher as 'many cases in the communities are not reported'.

He put the number of cases of the preventable viral disease transmitted through the bite of rabid animals, seen during the period at 1,000.

Compared with the previous year's total of 704, he said, the rise gave cause for concern.

Ashanti is estimated to have a dog population of about 327,704 but only 10,747 of them were vaccinated, last year.

Dr. Kwansah-Filson expressed discomfort with the disinterest of pet owners to get them immunized.

To help prevent rabies cases, the VSD has established 30 centres backed by five private facilities to efficiently handle dog bites and provide other veterinary services.

He encouraged the people to report any dog bite to the designated centres for action.

He reminded the private veterinary facilities to make sure they submitted regular reports to the regional VSD office for proper documentation and action against rabies.

Dr. Kwansah-Filson called for strong support for the anti-rabies campaign. GNA
Maputo (AFP) - The impact of the most severe drought to hit southern Africa in 35 years is expected to worsen in the coming months, a UN climate envoy warned Friday.

"The crisis has yet to peak," Macharia Kamau, special envoy on El Nino and climate, said at the end of a four-day trip to Mozambique.

The devastation, which has affected some 18 million people across the southern African region, will be at its worst around January next year, he said.

Mozambique, with 1.5 million people reeling from the drought, is one of the worst-hit countries, along with Zimbabwe, Malawi, Lesotho and southern Madagascar.

"For many children, women and the elderly, the next few months will be about looking at survival straight in the face," Kamau told reporters in Maputo after visiting water-starved districts a few hours' drive from the capital.

"Frankly, what I saw there saddened and shocked me. We saw stretches of land, bone dry and desolate," he said.

Some parts in Mozambique have not seen rains for three years, according to the country's natural disaster management agency.

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) in August launched an emergency aid appeal for $2.9 billion (2.7 billion euros).

For Mozambique, $200 million is required "immediately" but only 57 percent of that has been secured, said Kamau.

Drought in the region has been blamed on the El Nino weather phenomenon which occurs every two to seven years, affecting rainfall patterns by causing both drought and flooding.
28.10.2016 LISTEN

Ghana will witness one of the biggest gatherings of young and potential entrepreneurs tomorrow, Saturday, October 29th, as the 2016 edition of the Young Entrepreneurs Summit comes off.

Scheduled to be held at the auditorium of the African University College of Communication (AUCC) in Adabraka, Accra, the one day summit will start at exactly 10am, and it includes a conference and an exhibition.

Organizers of the event have stated that all is set to impact generations as all the three seasoned entrepreneurs billed to speak have confirmed their full participation.

Hon. Kojo Yankah; the Founder of Ghanas premium university; AUCC, also a board member of Vodafone Ghana, TV3, among others will be sharing his ocean of experiences to inspire the youth as he talks about key strategies to succeed as an entrepreneur.

The CEO of Occupational Management Ltd. (OML Africa & UK); Mrs. Anita Wiafe-Asinor will also teach the audience on practical ways to start a business with little or no money at all, whiles the Executive Director of European Business Organizations in Ghana (EBO-Ghana): Mr. Nico van Staalduinen will inspire the young entrepreneurs on how to think globally, and to attract investors.

The event will also witness the presence of 10 more successful young entrepreneurs as they share their experiences to inspire their colleagues.

In an interview, the President of Youth Business Network, the organizing body of the summit, Solomon Adjei stated that all is set for a wonderful event tomorrow.

He noted that apart from the strategic networking and the capacity building opportunities, attendees of the summit will benefit from a fully funded corporate websites and facebook account boasting of over 1,000 likes, plus many more.

Exhibitors will have the opportunity to attract investors, mentors, and to make sales, as the general public is invited to shop at the exhibition stands.

Interested persons are to call or text their full names to 0243158017 to get registered for the summit.

Young Entrepreneurs Summit 2016 is powered by the Youth Business Network, in collaboration with the Ministry of Employment and Labor Relations, GIPC, NYA, with support from African University College of Communication (AUCC), Nallem Clothing, Special Ice Mineral Water, iWebAfrica, Dipity Ltd, Ghanaweb, ModernGhana, Zit Social Media and BizAfrica.
28.10.2016 LISTEN

The search.

Young people should be at the forefront of global change and innovation (Kofi Annan, Former UN Secretary General)

In less than 3 generations 41% of the worlds youth will be African, By 2035, Africas labour force will be larger than Chinas (Mo Ibrahim Foundation)

It was the above statements amongst others that were the catalyst behind the creation of the Future of Ghana initiative in October 2014. A time to celebrate, mobilize and invest in young people of Ghanaian heritage around the world on an annual basis at a critical time in Africas growth.

Now in its 3rd cycle Me FiRi Ghana once again begin a mission to find the pioneers and innovators of the Future through the first objective of the Future of Ghana initiative by undertaking a global search for the top 30 Ghanaian talent aged 18  30 years - impacting industries around the world. The search will consist of an open nomination process driven through Ghanaian Diplomatic missions, Ghanaian Associations/Organisations, Commonwealth secretariat, media partners and social media using the official hashtag #FOG2017

Nominations for Future of Ghana 2017 are NOW OPEN to the public until 2 December 2016 via the website. Once closed nominees will be whittled down to a top 30 by a select judging panel, and featured in our annual online publication to be released in March 2017.

This cycles esteemed judging panel will be revealed in the week commencing 21 November 2016 so look out for the announcements across our platforms. Previous judges include Dentaa Amoateng MBE, Andy Ansah, Ethel Cofie and Isaac Babu-Boateng amongst others.

The initiative has been endorsed by the Ghanaian High Commission UK and British High Commission in Accra. Who both recognize its merits for capacity building and future prosperity of Ghana. Ghanaian High Commissioner to the UK H.E Victor Emmanuel Smith said of the initiative upon its inception; It is heart-warming to realise that young people of Ghanaian heritage are mobilizing themselves to contribute to the development efforts of their motherland, Ghana"

Future of Ghana Patron and pioneering photographer James Barnor says of the initiative;

I am privileged to be chosen as patron for the Future of Ghana initiative. It is refreshing to see young Ghanaians in the Diaspora so forward thinking and genuinely passionate about our nations future. This initiative will mobilize and inspire a generation of Ghanaians to come together and utilize their skills for the development of Ghana. I see History in the making!

The Publication.

Me Firi Ghana annually produce the Future of Ghana publication which celebrates excellence by recognising the Top 30 under 30 talent of Ghanaian decent, pioneering in industries around the world. The publication also features forward thinking articles highlighting key industries, innovators and organizations visions for Ghana and Africa.

The Publication is the beginning and one that we hope will act as a catalyst to encourage greater youth participation with the development of Ghana whilst also act as a visual source of inspiration for the emerging generation and a talent resource for investors and organizations.

ABOUT Me FiRi Ghana :

Multiple award winning company Me FiRi Ghana is a members advisory network providing routes to access and invest in Ghana. We consult individuals and organisations recommending opportunities and tailored strategies to engage Ghana and African communities.

For Further Information

Press features: [email protected] Interview requests: [email protected]

FOG Website: www.futureofghana.com Company Website: www.mefirighana.com
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidate for Klottey Korle constituency, Dr. Zanetor Rawlings, has cautioned politicians to desist from maligning people in the name of politics.

Zanetor was speaking at a prayer retreat organized by the Young Adult's Fellowship (YAF) at Adabraka Official town Presbyterian Church as part of their 10th anniversary celebrations.

The YAF prayer retreat dubbed Ghana My Motherland was aimed at bringing people from different political parties and churches to pray purposely for the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections in December.

In an interview Zanetor lauded the idea behind the programme.

It has been a very successful programme; the objective was to make sure those participating in the upcoming elections are actually going to pledge peace in the process. As the various leaders in our various parties, we have a responsibility to pave the way and that is what the programme is about, she said.

So we came to support to put the elections into the hands of God and it has been successful so farit's not over yet but what I have witnessed today is very successful, she added.

She further cautioned fellow politicians to desist from making empty promises and respect the populace.

We must respect and be truthful to one another in our campaigning and must desist from making false promises to the people. We must also desist from maligning others in the process of being politicalI don't think politics should be an excuse to insult other people's reputationsand have a peaceful campaign, he said.

We must remember that we are Ghanaians and no matter the outcome of the election results and whatever parties we belong to, we have to show respect and work together as one community, she added.

The prayer retreat was attended by Philip Addison of the New Patriotic Party, Mr. Opare Addo of the Convention People's Party, Nii Noi Nortey, an independent candidate, and Dr. Zanetor Rawlings of the National Democratic Congress.


A private legal practitioner has said a ruling by the court to have the flagbearer of the Progressive People's Party reinstated in the upcoming election does not necessarily present hope to others disqualified aspirants.

Samson Lardy Anyenini says he does not believe the grounds for the disqualification of all the12 presidential candidates are the same in that the recall of one might necessitate the comeback of all of them.

"I don't think that the facts are the same. You would find that in Nduoms case the court found as a matter of fact that he was simply not given the opportunity that the law said he ought to have been given required," he told Francis Abban, host of Joy FMs Midday News programme, Friday.

The ruling by Justice Eric Kyei Baffuor in a matter in which presidential candidate of the Progressive People's Party (PPP), Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom was challenging his disqualification by the Electoral Commission (EC) has been hailed by some Ghanaians as a victory for democracy.

The judge directed the Commission to act in accordance with Regulation 9 of C.I.94, the law governing this years election, by giving the business mogul the opportunity to amend his nomination form for resubmission.

He failed to uphold the argument by the EC lawyer, Thaddeus Sory that the economist's lawyer, Ayikoi Otoo used the wrong procedure to have the issue addressed. Mr Sory had argued in court Tuesday that the disqualification of Dr Nduom should have been done through a petition and not a certiorari or writ as was done.

But Justice Baffuor explained before delivering the judgment that it was never the case that C.I.94 requires aggrieved individuals to seek justice exclusively by a petition. He was emphatic that as long as Dr Nduom was seeking a review of a decision by an administrative body, in this case the EC, he used the right procedure.

He also added that arguments that the court has no power to order the EC to execute its functions as dictated by the law was pedestrian and false.

Just when some Ghanaians have argued that the ruling presents a good opportunity for the other candidates who are in court challenging their disqualification, the lawyer has disagreed.

Mr Anyenini who hosts Joy FM/MultiTVs flagship programme on Saturday Newsfile said the grounds the candidates were disqualified varied.

Nonetheless, he said the responsibility lies on the Commission to make a determination regarding how it would address the complaints of the other candidates.

The EC was required to do two things according to the law not only to set a nomination day, but also a nomination period, he said, adding if the Commission had been minded to follow the law, it would have set a nomination day and a period to afford the parties the opportunity to make amendments.

He suggested the EC might consider using an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) to examine the various issues and find an amicable way of meeting the demands.

Mr Anyenini also said the EC boss, Charlotte Osei's claim that she granted a five-minute hearing to Dr Nduom was to take the issue not serious because the opportunity required by the law has to be before the disqualification and ought to end in amendment or correction.

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Austin Brakopowers | Email: [email protected]
An Accra High Court on Friday ordered the Electoral Commission (EC) to allow the Presidential Candidate of the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP) , Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom to correct mistakes on his nomination forms.

The Infographic below captures specific orders from the High Court to the EC and the factors that earlier accounted for Nduoms disqualification.



By: Sandister Tei/citifmonline.com/Ghana
As the struggle for votes ahead of the 2016 general elections continue, campaign messages are not the only stories in the headlines this week but court rulings and judgements too.

On Monday, it emerged that the Economic and Organised Crime Unit was investigation the Presidential Candidates for the Progressive People's Party (PPP) and All People's Party (APC). The political parties launched an attack on the organisation, calling the probe a political witch-hunt.

And it was the same day on which the Presidential Candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), commenced a five-day tour of the Volta Region.

Nana Akufo-Addo charged 'Voltarians' to change President John Mahamas government on December 7 and return the country to the path of progress and prosperity.

Related: NDC's 'World Bank' tumbling as thousands turned out at my rallies - Nana Akufo-Addo

All this while, President John Dramani Mahama had also begun campaigning in the home region of the three-time NPP flagbearer in the Eastern region.

He commissioned the Kyebi town road which was constructed under phase one of the Cocoa syndicated road projects in the region.

Related: Samira Bawumia chases Mahama into NPP stronghold, Eastern Region

Tuesday was the day for the first face-off between the lawyers of the Electoral Commission and the disqualified PPP candidate, Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom.

Counsel for the EC, Thaddeus Sory challenged the procedure used by the PPP Presidential candidate to challenge his disqualification.

But the lawyer for Dr. Nduom, Ayikoi Otu said they had a solid submission and did not expect the Accra High court to uphold the reliefs of his client.

On Wednesday, the Ghana Armed Forces commenced investigating claims that brother of President Mahama, Ibrahim Mahama was using a military escort.

It also emerged that the University of Cape Coast had developed a device which could detect breast cancer disease.

Also during the midweek, there was a revelation from the NPP about the return of load shedding should Ghanaians retain the NDC in power.

Related: Dumsor: 'frankly, money is a challenge' - Deputy minister confesses

Again, a controversial Presidential nominee for the Deputy Minister for the Local Government position, John Oti Bless was approved by parliament.

Also, some twelve labour unions including the Ghana Medical Association, GNAT, NAGRAT threatened a massive industrial action by November 15 if their tier-2 pension plans issues are not addressed.

On Thursday, an Accra High Court struck out a case brought before it by the disqualified Presidential Candidate of the National Democratic Party, Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings.

Facing one of the numerous cases against the Electoral Commission, the Supreme Court ordered it to make collation sheets for Presidential elections available to parties and their agents after the closing of polls.

Meanwhile, the EC chair Charlotte Osei was in the Ashanti Region to meet the Asanteman Traditional Council.

In her address to the Council, she promised to conduct a credible election this year.

Related: Asantehene blames EC for mushroom political parties

On Friday, there was the Progressive People's Party's arguably biggest victory in court . The EC was ordered to allow the party's disqualified Presidential Candidate to correct the mistake on his nomination papers.

Story by Ghana| Myjoyonline.com | Akosua Asiedua Akuffo | [email protected]
Nebraska's economic forecasting board got a pessimistic look Friday at the state's revenue growth in the next couple of years, and substantially lowered tax collection projections.

The upshot is an estimated $910 million shortfall in general funds for the next two-year state budget, based on the Legislature's spending projections.

Gov. Pete Ricketts issued a quick statement, saying he would continue to work with state agencies to curb spending and prepare budget cuts for the legislative session that begins in January.

Todays downward revision for this fiscal year is consistent with the trajectory set by the revenue gap in the first quarter of this fiscal year and affirms the need to cut the budget," he said.

The revised tax collections forecast for the current fiscal year, with eight months to go, went from $4.567 billion to $4.395 billion. That shouldn't be a problem for state general fund cash flow, said legislative fiscal analyst Mike Calvert.

Most of the problem with projected tax collections, forecasters said, is the result of a flat or even downward trend in the agricultural economy.

"Commodity prices are unbelievably distressed, all the major commodities, soybeans, cattle ... corn," said Fred Lockwood of Scottsbluff.

David Ochsner of Geneva said his question is whether Nebraska has a diversified enough economy to withstand what's going on in the ag sector or will be a victim of it.

Appropriations Chairman Heath Mello said the challenge of the shortfall won't be easy and will require a focus on priorities and limited spending growth.

Only six returning senators -- Burke Harr, Lydia Brasch, Paul Schumacher, Jim Smith, Tyson Larson and Bob Krist -- were around when the Legislature faced a shortfall in 2011 of more than $1 billion. Only one, Krist, was there in 2009 when senators held a special session to deal with needed budget cuts.

The difference now is that the state is in a better position, with more than $600 million in its rainy day fund, he said.

OpenSky Executive Director Renee Fry said the forecast highlights economic uncertainty in Nebraska, particularly in the ag sector. It reinforces the need for a serious discussion about strategies and investments needed to promote economic prosperity and opportunities in the state, she said.

"Talk of income tax cuts and reducing revenue further is a distraction from the real challenges and issues that our state faces," Fry said.

Platte Institute for Economic Research CEO Jim Vokal said the fiscal office predicts a projected budget shortfall nearly every year. But every year the state funds its priorities and balances the budget.

Vokal said those who want to increase government spending will use the forecast as a scare tactic, but the way to grow the economy is through tax cuts.

The Rebuild Nebraska coalition and the Center for Rural Affairs issued a statement saying a significant budget shortfall is unsettling and could harm Nebraskas ability to invest in areas such as education, health care and corrections.

State leaders should focus on policies that will spur economic growth -- not "tax relief" disguised as a way to benefit the wealthiest Nebraskans, the coalition said.

The next Nebraska Economic Forecasting Advisory Board meeting is scheduled for Feb. 27.
By Isaac Arkoh, GNA

Jacobu (Ash) Oct 28, GNA - The Amansie Central Assembly has been applauded for sticking to best practices in its award and implementation of capital development projects.

A performance audit carried under the Ghana Strengthening Accountability Mechanism (GSAM) project, rated the assembly high in the areas of project planning, monitoring and costing.

The findings of the audit were made known at a stakeholders' forum held in Jacobu - the district capital.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded project seeks to promote citizens oversight responsibilities over capital development projects, to improve local government transparency, accountability and performance.

Mr. Louis Acheampong, the Coordinator, said the assembly was found to have complied with the rules governing the award of contracts and saw to it that there was also value for money.

Additionally, it actively involved the beneficiary communities in the selection of the projects.

He recommended that the assembly established client service unit, where people could channel any complaints they had about its operation.

That, he noted, would deepen and strengthen governance at the local level.

Mr. Emmanuel Dede Appiah, the District Chief Executive (DCE), said the report would inspire the assembly to continue to do the right things and work hard to bring progress to the people.

They were determined to make sure that every project started was completed on schedule and met the contract specifications, he added.

GNA
By Ken Sackey/Benjamin Mensah, GNA

Accra, Oct 28, GNA - Parliament has approved the nomination of John Kwabena Bless Oti as the Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development designate.

The Appointments Committee of the House had vetted Mr Oti, nominated by President John Dramani Mahama for the position, but withheld the approval of his appointment following unsavoury allegations and verbally attacking against the Supreme Court, and Chief Justice Georgina Theodora Wood, on Montie FM, a radio station in Accra.

Three other persons, Godwin Ako-Gunn, Alistair Nelson and Salifu Maase, aka Mugabe, who made similar remarks about the Chief Justice and Justices of the court, were imprisoned after they were found guilty of contempt of court.

The Minority then posited that comments of the appointee made him unfit for the position.

Mr Edward Doe Adjaho, the Speaker of Parliament asked the House to put deliberations on Mr Oti's nomination on hold, and further directed that he Mr Oti apologised to the Chief Justice and members of the Judiciary.

Mr Oti, who is also MP for Nkwanta North, rendered the apology.

He also explained that he had been 'misled' to make the comments, and added that he was carried away by the moment.

'I was misled in a way as a young guy with youthful exuberance, you can understand. That is not my nature, that's not how I was brought up.

'I'll plead that it won't happen again. This will be the last time. They should kindly forgive me in the name of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit,' he said in his apology.

At its sitting on Wednesday, October 26, the House approved the nomination of the appointee after a vote.

'The ayes have it,' Mr Doe Adjaho said, to seal the appointment of the nominee.

On August 5, Mr Oti was expected to render unqualified apology to the Judiciary and the Chief Justice on the floor of Parliament but such a move did not come on until the House adjourned sine die.

On October 20, Mr Oti expected approval cropped up again on the floor but the Minority kicked against it claiming the Legislature lacked the numbers to consider his approval.

Mr Adjaho, however, directed for further consultations over the matter in order to reach a consensus.

At sitting on Tuesday, October 25, when it was thought that consensus had been reached to approve Mr Oti's nomination, Dr Anthony Akoto Osei, MP for Old Tafo stepped in and kicked against it on the basis of some provisions of the Standing Orders of Parliament.

Order 172(4) of the Standing Orders of the House states that 'The Committee shall report to Parliament within three days after it has concluded its proceedings when Parliament is sitting. Parliamentary approval of persons recommended for appointment shall be by secret or by consensus.

(5) Each Member shall be provided with a sheet of paper on which appears the names of all candidates for approval or rejection. Against the name of each candidate shall be two columns, one for AYES indicating approval and the other for NOES indicating rejection.'

It was expected that Mr. Oti's approval was likely to be determined through a ballot, but both sides of the House ayed to the nominee's endorsement when the Speaker called for the vote over his nomination.

GNA
By D.I Laary / Doris Ablordey, GNA

Accra, Oct. 28, GNA - An e-Commerce expo and summit seeking to transform online business in the country opened in Accra with more than 100 delegates and 2000 exhibition visitors attending on Thursday.

The two-day conference, which is being organised, the third time by OML Africa was on the theme: 'Transforming Ghana's online businesses through technology, innovation, and opportunity.'

The expo also provides a unique platform for more than 30 exhibitors to share and learn from leading online business and security experts and to update their knowledge on the latest trends on e-commerce.

It was to create opportunities for business leaders to build new contacts offline and showcase latest technologies with major players in Ghana's fast growing online business market.

Mr Paul Asinor, the Event Director of OML Africa, noted that Ghana's mobile money business ecosystem had expanded tremendously, making it an attractive business avenue for investors.

He quoted latest statistics that showed that the total value of all transactions made on mobile money networks climbed to GHa 37.07 billion by July, 2016, representing more than 118 per cent growth since July 2015.

The growth in the value of transactions is also matched by a similar rise in the number of mobile transactions over the same period - rising from 132.5 million to around 265.2 million, indicating 100 per cent jump.

The Bank of Ghana has reported that from July 2015 to July 2016, registered mobile money subscribers increased from 10.4 million to 17.2 million with active subscribers growing to more than 5.3 million.

Mr Asinor urged industry players to take advantage of the new business environment to expand their activities and shore up their profit margins.

The emergence of social media has made business transactions faster and convenient, he said, which used to pose delivery and payment challenges to business transactions in Africa.

He, however, raised concerns over rising cybercrimes, which threatened online business transactions, and called for adoption of robust measures to safeguard businesses.

Mrs Veronica Boateng, the Director of IT Applications of the National Information Technology Agency (NITA), said the Agency was poised to introduce results-oriented approaches that would fuel e-Commerce operations.

NITA 2008 Act and the ICT Blueprint, she said, had been initiated to help engineer ICT-led socio-economic development projects.

The initiatives are expected to help transform Ghana into a middle income country through information, knowledge and technology as government was contributing largely towards e-Commerce growth.

'The key drivers of online business including internet, network and legal framework have been provided by the government and the private sector to help speed the growth of this emerging business', she said.

E-services and Ghana E-Payment Platform aimed at accelerating online payment services, she said were being implemented by the Agency with the World Bank also committed to financing priority projects.

The Director outlined various infrastructure policies and the establishment of trusted digital identity framework and improving functionality.

She said there were also moves to scale up various government online service portals and portals that provided information and service delivery access as well as developing regulatory framework for electronic transactions.

The e-Commerce conference would see the exhibition of various technologies and solutions.

The expo is said to be the largest gathering of companies and professionals from the electronic commerce industry.

GNA
By A.B. Kafui Kanyi, GNA

Ho, Oct.28, GNA - The National Chief Imam, Sheikh Osmanu Nuhu Sharubutu, has reiterated the call on young people to resist temptations to foment trouble in the impending elections.

'Christian and Muslim youth must strongly resist any move to use them to fuel hate speech, violence and anything that will have the capacity to jeopardise the peace of the nation as we prepare for the general election,' he said.

The National Chief Imam said this, in a speech read on his behalf, at an interfaith youth dialogue on peace, by the Christian Council of Ghana and the Office of the National Chief Imam in the Volta Region, at Ho.

The interfaith peace event has support from the UNDP and DANIDA and includes peace walk and fun games.

Sheikh Sharubutu noted that the country had a relatively stable democracy with noteworthy advancement in good governance and progress towards achieving economic growth and warned against acts of electoral violence that could hamper that progress.

He, therefore, asked the youth to be agents of 'healing and reconciliation' and not instruments to be used by the 'rich and powerful' to cause problem during the electioneering.

Sheikh Sharubutu also emphasised the importance of religious and ethnic coexistence and tolerance ahead of the polls.

The Reverend Dr. Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong, General Secretary, Christian Council of Ghana, said peace was a collective responsibility and so religious leaders could not leave the peace of the country to politicians alone.

He, therefore, charged Christian and Muslim leaders to demonstrate that they could go beyond their differences and identify issues of common good for peace to prevail in the country.

'Silence is not an option in the fight for peace,' he said. 'Let's put issues that divide us behind and dwell on our common good and show NDC and NPP that if they can't manage their differences for a common good, we can,' Rev. Dr. Opuni-Frimpong stated.

He said, 'The country needs the NDC, NPP, Muslims, Christians and every soul, so we must all act peacefully.'

Hajia Ayisha Abdulkadir, the National Secretary, Muslims Women Union of Ghana, urged women to engage their husbands and children regularly on peace ahead of the polls.

Mr Alfas Anas Hamidu, the Volta Regional Chief Imam, stated the resolve of Muslims in the Region to act and promote peace at the December Polls. GNA
28.10.2016 LISTEN

Accra, Oct. 28, GNA - The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) and two other organisations have apologised to the people of the Weija/Gbawe Constituency in the Greater Accra Region for the cancellation of the scheduled parliamentary debate last Saturday.

The NCCE together with two NGOs; the Coalition of Domestic Election Officers (CODEO) and CDD-Ghana, described the situation as unfortunate.

In a statement signed by representatives of the three institutions, they expressed regret to the parliamentary candidates, the Gbawe Mantse and opinion leaders of the constituency for the incident.

They explained that the general understanding at the national level was a partnership between the three institutions to undertake such debates in 60 selected constituencies across the country.

The confusion that resulted in the subsequent decision to reschedule the programme for a later date, according to the statement, was because of a miscommunication on the respective duties of each institution in the collaboration.

That notwithstanding, the representatives have reiterated their commitment to support credible elections this year.

They have given an assurance to the public that the NCCE, CODEO and CDD-Ghana would, in their joint efforts, continue to promote civic and voter education as well as issue-based electioneering.

The NCCE, CODEO and CDD-Ghana, the statement said, have joined forces on many occasions over the past decade on matters concerning citizen involvement with the electoral process and democratic citizenship.

They promise, therefore to formalise their partnerships in their bid to support Ghanaians in the exercise of their civic and voting duties.

They encourage all constituents and candidates across the country to maximise the opportunities presented to them on the different platforms to engage with citizens to ensure that the aim to deliver successful and credible elections are achieved.

GNA
( From Kester Klomega, Moscow Bureau Chief)

Moscow (Russia), Oct. 28, GNA - The President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, has received the credentials of newly appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Ghana to Azerbaijan, Dr. Kodzo Kpoku Alabo, in a ceremony in Baku, capital city of Azerbaijan.

Dr. Alabo reviewed a guard of honour before presenting his credentials to President Aliyev. President Aliyev had a conversation with the ambassador.

The envoy conveyed greetings of the President of the Republic of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama, to President Aliyev and indicated that the President of Ghana instructed him to develop bilateral relations between the two countries.

Dr. Alabo stressed the importance of signing the agreement on political consultations between Azerbaijan and Ghana, and conducting negotiations on the elimination of visa requirements for diplomatic and service passport holders.

The Ambassador said that during his diplomatic tenure he would spare no efforts to expand relations between the two countries.

They emphasized the existence of good opportunities for development cooperation between the two countries in various areas, including energy and sport.

President Aliyev expressed deep gratitude for the gesture of friendship extended by President John Mahama. GNA
28.10.2016 LISTEN

By Patience A. Gbeze, GNA

Accra, Oct. 28, GNA - The Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) has held graduation parade for 106 Cadet Intake XIII in a coluorful ceremony in Accra, with a call on Cadet Officers to exhibit high professionalism, dedication, and loyalty to the Service and Subordinates.

Mr Prosper Douglas Bani, Minister of the Interior, who made the call, Ghana's firefighters are one of the best trained and best-equipped on the African continent.

He said: 'it is the hope of the Government to make the Service the best on the continent and as such, Government is going to help put up the new Fire Academy and training School at Duayaw Nkwanta in the Brong-Ahafo Region, which is intended to train Firemen in the country and others from our sister ECOWAS countries'.

The Minister commended the Command of the GNFS for being innovative in their efforts to ensure that the Service offers Rescue, Evacuation and fire Protection services to the people of Ghana.

'We have followed and monitored the various initiatives, innovations and creativity ventures which the service has embarked upon in the recent past.

'It is therefore not surprising that the public has come to admire and appreciate the improved professionalism exhibited by the GNFS,' he added.

The 106 graduands, consisting 31 females and 75 males, were the last batch of personnel who have spent between 12 and 14 years on their respective ranks, thus, the graduation paves way for them to join the Officer Corps of the Service.

It also paves way for other Officers who have acquired Tertiary Certificates to also go through the cadet programme in the year ahead.

Mr Bani also commended them for the laudable Home Fire Safety Certification Project embarked upon by the Command of the Service, which is aimed at reducing home fires in the country.

He said the project which is being undertaken under a Public private Partnership Agreement, would go a long way to ensure that families do not lose their lives and property to fires.

He, therefore, pledged the Ministry's support to the Service to develop its human resource and equipment by providing personnel, training, necessary equipment and other logistical support to make the Service more effective in delivering fire and rescue services in Ghana.

'The Government will continue to enhance the logistical base of the Service to enhance its operational preparedness. In this direction, Government has granted approval to the Service to recruit personnel to augment its manpower strength,' he added.

The minister noted globalization has led to the world developing fast technologically and implored the GNFS to take advantage and design training programmes which take cognizance of modern trends in fire prevention and management.

Awards were presented to four deserving graduands. The Overall best award went to Cadet Officer Ebenezer Kwesi Andrews, Reverend Emma Esi Riverson, received the Commandant Award, Officer Cadet Charlotte Annor received Foot drill Award, and Officer Cadet Theophilus Nii Okaija Ayibontey received the Academics Award. GNA
28.10.2016 LISTEN

By Christabel Addo / William Fiabu, GNA

Accra, Oct. 28, GNA - Dr Lawrence Tetteh, an International Evangelist, says it is unfortunate that successive governments have neglected their responsibility to invest in the Ghana News Agency (GNA) to enable it carry its mandate to project the African agenda.

He said the values and personality as envisioned by Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, the first President were very noble and still relevant to the society's well-being, and there was no reason why any government should lose sight of the importance of funding and equipping such a national asset for the common good.

'When I walk through the offices of the GNA, I am perplexed by what I see regarding the kind of working environment, the furniture and broke down vehicles' he said during a prayer session with staff of the Agency at the Headquarters in Accra on Friday,

'What are we doing to ourselves, because as the largest news gathering organisation, which other media houses rely on for their news, the GNA's fortune would greatly impact the media landscape and our societal values and well-being,' he added.

He said the GNA was also set up by Dr Nkrumah to disseminate information from every corner of the county through other media houses towards national unity and development.

Dr Tetteh, the Founder of the UK based World Miracle Outreach therefore accepted an invitation by the staff to be the GNA's ambassador to the world, using his platform to enlighten the society on the critical role and relevance of the Agency in the provision of sound and moral education on divers social issues, rather than what currently pertains on other social media landscapes.

He said the critical role of the media as the fourth estate of the realm must not be toyed with and called for greater circumspection in media reportage, knowing the power it possesses.

He encouraged the media, particularly the GNA to uphold their integrity and maintain truthfulness.

He said the media should eschew prejudices and resist the various forms of temptations especially from politicians to distort their reportage.

'Do not be cheapen by the little things and lose your integrity, but you must reach out for the highest value of your professional standards as a media person,' he said.

He said it would take a single misguided word from the media to throw the country into a serious state of chaos.

"As they wield such great power that if not well managed, could take a single misguided word from a member to throw the entire country into a serious state of chaos."

He said the clergy and media have a collective responsibility to ensure that values and morals were enhanced among the citizenry so they would not be lost.

'Yet the media is often forgotten when prayers are being said by Ministers of God for the leadership and persons in authority'.

The media, he said, played a key role in nation building and also in the molding of social morality among the citizenry, and the GNA being the single most largest news organisation must be greatly supported by Government by providing the requisite funding and other resources including staff motivation, to help revamp the Agency to compete favourable in the current competitive news market.

He encouraged the staff of the Agency to maintain their confidence in the virtues that the institution stands for and work hard to promote the course of the GNA in spite of the poor salaries and stretched budgets to contribute their quota.

GNA
By Godwill Arthur-Mensah, GNA

Sekondi (W/R), Oct. 27, GNA  The Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Charity, a welfare unit of the Church, has donated assorted items valued at GH5, 875.00 to the Ghana Red Cross Society in the Western Region.

The items comprise 50 reflective jackets, five stretchers, first aid kits, crepe bandages, fire blankets, arm slings, surgical gloves and ice chests.

Making the presentation in Sekondi, Elder Henry Baker, a volunteer from the United States of America, said the donation formed part of the Church's humanitarian service to humanity, especially those in need.

He said the funds were contributions from the church members, explaining, 'On every first Sunday of the month, the church members fast and the money that is meant to buy food are donated towards the fund to support the poor in the society'.

Elder Baker stated that the Fund was also used to support health facilities, orphanages and educational institutions by making life comfortable for people.

He commended Ghanaians for their hospitality towards the Church's foreign volunteers, who had been providing various humanitarian services in the country.

Dr. Patrick Kobla Quist, a Patron of the Ghana Red Cross Society, expressed gratitude to the Church for the gesture and assured them that the items would be put to good use.

Mr. Matthew Boateng, the Regional Manager of Red Cross, said the Society had been providing first aid services during premier league matches, road crashes and other emergency situations.

He said the items would enhance the quality of services they rendered to humanity.

Some of the Red Cross volunteers performed a simulation exercise on how the items would be used in their operations.

GNA
By Iddi Yire, GNA

Accra, Oct. 28, GNA - Churches and civil society organisations have been urged to encourage Ghanaians to develop interest in foster parenting and to help promote community awareness and involvement in the lives of orphans and vulnerable children.

Mr Benjamin Otoo, the Acting Director, Department of Social Development (DSD), Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection said orphans and vulnerable children should not be kept in children's home for more than three years under normal circumstances.

He explained that such victims should have a sense of belonging within the Christian family environment through kinship care, foster care and adoption.

She said children must grow up in families for proper psycho-socio-emotional development.

Mr Otoo made the call in a speech read on his behalf at the official launch of the 2016 edition of Orphan Sunday in Accra.

The initiative, hosted by the Ghana Without Orphans (GWO), an offshoot of World Without Orphans; aims at creating awareness and sensitising the public on the need to support orphans and vulnerable in the society.

It is marked in every second Sunday in November each year; seeks to remind all Christians around the globe to celebrate the love of God.

The 2016 edition would be marked on Sunday, November 13.

Events lined up for the celebration include sermons, congregational prayers for orphans, promotion of support orphans, visit to orphanages, recruit families for fostering/ adoption, prayer for foster parents, among others.

The Acting Director noted that the Department in collaboration with the then Ministry of Employment and Social Welfare now Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations, with support from United Nations International Children's Fund established the Care Reform Initiative Unit at the Head Office of DSD to control the rate at which these Homes were springing up, enforce standards and close down those operating below standards.

'The DSD wishes to inform all well meaning citizens of Ghana who intend to or are planning to establish children's homes or orphanages to desist from it and rather channel their resources into family based care," he said.

Mr Otoo said in extreme cases, some children grow up into adulthood in children's homes and such persons must be supported to settle down in life, also stated that DSW therefore welcomes the Ageing out policy initiated by All God's Children International to support children in orphanages to settle down in life as adults.

Reverend George Abaidoo, the National Coordinator of GWO, in his presentation, said the need to understand the biblical concept of the 'orphan' and 'fatherless' included more than a boy or girl who had lost one or both parents.

He said it rather described the child who faces the world without the provision, protection, and nurture that parents uniquely provided, whereas, no statistical analysis would ever capture the global number of children fitting this description.

Rev Abaidoo said GWO was hopeful that a local church in every region in Ghana increasingly plays a central role in meeting the needs of the orphans in distress, from family preservation and adoption; to provision for specific physical, social, emotional and spiritual needs; to advocacy for government policies.

'This includes a distinctive call to local families to foster, mentor and adopt children within their local foster systems," he said.

Rev David Kwadwo Ofosuhene, the National Coordinator for Orphan Sunday Ghana, also described fostering as deciding to take care of a child who probably might have lost one parent or both parents.

He said there were lots of biological parents who have abused their children to the extent that these offspring did not feel comfortable living with them, which implied that they may have relatives but due maltreatment and abuse they no long want to be with them and so fostering should be encouraged.

Rev Ofosuhene, who is also the Chairman of All God's Children International, said the problem for the need for fostering was due to the fact that these children lacked good parental care; however the church could easily spearhead the campaign of establishing a common link between families and orphans in the society.

GNA
Months after taking his beloved terminally ill Labrador, on a journey of a lifetime, Robert Kuglers Bella peacefully died Friday.

Kugler, a Lincoln native, photographer, blogger and military veteran, left Lincoln last November to travel the country with Bella, 9.

The two hiked national forests, splashed in the ocean and watched sunrises and sunsets from the peaks of majestic mountains.

Kugler knew Bellas time was short. Bone cancer had claimed her left front leg in 2015. It had spread to her lungs, she was given three to six months at most.

Kugler decided to take her on an epic road trip.

And so it began.

The affable former Marine and his irresistible three-legged pooch, hiking mountains, cruising the back roads, splashing on sandy beaches, visiting coffee shops, veterans centers and hospitals along the way.

A reporter caught up with them in Florida.

Kugler and Bella went viral. And Bella thrived.

In August, the two embarked on a new mission: to visit every national park.

By fall, the cancer continued its nasty march. Bella had difficulty eating. Surgery was not an option.

Still Bella prevailed.

And as long as she was up for it, Kugler would make sure every day was the best day.

On Thursday, Rob nestled Bella in her Burley attached to his bike and they rode through Colorados trails. He filmed the journey -- Bella smiling from her cart.

That night, Kugler warned his 114,000 followers on Instagram that this was probably their last full day in the beautiful outdoors.

He wrote: Bella started shivering today and her breathing became labored. There was actually a time after our bike ride that I looked into her eyes as I held her head in my lap and saw what they were telling me. I told her that I would be okay ... that I'm ready if she is ... and that I'll be holding her every step of the way. For a moment, I thought she may fall asleep right there in my arms. Yet, she held on ... and we got up and chased some geese, and she went for another swim. Nonetheless, her breathing and shivering became worse and we zoomed up from the park in Denver to the FourSeasons Vet Hospital in Loveland. She's on oxygen right now and has been given a sedative to help. The X-rays showed that her lungs simply cannot produce enough oxygen ... the time is near.

Thursday night, Kugler posted a second photo of them settled in for the night at the veterinary hospital. Kugler on a sleeping bag on the floor, Bella at his side.

Friday morning he posted his last picture with Bella, his hand holding her soft graying ear and wrote:

Goodbye my Love. Thank you for never abandoning me .. .never judging me ... never giving up on me ... Thank you ... for Loving me with every beat of that beautiful heart. Now go, become one with all ... dance in the wind, flow in the ocean, and give warmth to the hearts of all you've touched ... for your Love is now eternal and immeasurable.

"To my brother Mike, sister Charity and all my grandparents ... give this girl some tummy rubs, would you? For all the spirits young and old who were brought to the other side far too soon due to some type of ailment or disease that took you before your time ... welcome this girl as I'm sure she's greeting you with a wagging tail.

To follow Kuglers journey, go to his website RKLifeIllustrated.com, Facebook (Robert Kugler) or Instagram (RobKugler).
Accra, Oct. 28, GNA - Ghana is the first country in Sub-Saharan Africa to have met the MDGs to cut extreme poverty by half in relation to the Millennium Development Goals initiative, which ended in 2015.

Ghana also made substantial progress in reducing the prevalence of HIV, increasing access to primary education for girls and boys equally, and also reducing hunger.

These were contained in a release from the Office of the Resident Coordinator of the United Nations, which outlined the report on the implementation of the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF).

The report summarises key development results achieved in Ghana in 2014 and 2015 with UN support.

It also highlights how the UN is contributing to agricultural modernisation, food security and nutrition, environmental sustainability, water and sanitation, expanding effective public social services to reach the marginalised and institutional capacity for good governance.

The release stated, 'Ghana has been a strong partner of the UN through its leadership in the consultation process to develop the Sustainable Development Agenda 2030, and in the fight against Ebola by hosting the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response, to support the affected countries in West Africa in 2014 and 2015.'

It said the UN's support in Ghana took many forms from making available global expertise and adapting good practices to national circumstances and needs.

Facilitating South to South exchanges, providing technical assistance, advocating and enabling compliance with international standards ratified by Ghana, undertaking research and applying it to policy issues, and building up capabilities in data collection and use to inform policy decisions and monitor their implementation, are also some forms of UN support in Ghana, the release said.

It quoted Christine Evans-Klock, the UN Resident Coordinator as saying, 'The 25 UN agencies working in Ghana are most effective when we harmonise our efforts.'

He said the commitment to delivering as one, served as a guide on how working together across the UN mandate could promote development in every area of human endeavour, the release added.

The release said the UN Country Team counted on strong partnerships in completing the implementation of the 2012-2017 UNDAF and developing its successor, the strategic framework for UN work 2018-2021.

This framework is expected to focus support on localising and implementing the Sustainable Development Goals through Ghana's national development plans, the release said.

GNA
By Emmanuel Asante Attakora, GNA

Accra, Oct 28, GNA - Reverend Edward Agyekum Kufuor has lauded the Young Adult's Fellowship (YAF) of the Adabraka Official Town Presbyterian Church for organising a prayer retreat ahead of the December elections.

YAF as part of their 10th anniversary celebration has organised a prayer retreat dubbed: 'Ghana My Motherland' aimed at seeking the face of God for a peaceful 2016 presidential and parliamentary elections.

Rev Agyekum of Action Chapel International, Beacon Light Temple Branch, East Cantonments who led a prayer session for a peaceful upcoming election noted with joy the success of the retreat.

'I am honoured to be hereI wasn't expecting something like this, it has been a very successful programme.

'It's very important especially since this was organised by the youth, I think that statistics show that by far the youth are the greater number in terms of population.

'The youth is the group where our next leaders will come from and it is important that we acknowledge them in our prayer.

In an interview with GNA, Rev Edward, a renowned motivational speaker, that it was important the youth and Ghanaians in general be agents of change through prayer.

'We should pray without ceasingGod cannot step into the affairs of man unless someone stands in with prayer.

'The youth coming up with such a programme to stand in for Ghana in the upcoming elections and beyond is very important and I am honoured to be part of it and I hope it will continue.

Rev Kufuor who takes delight in mentoring the youth through his teachings and motivational talks advanced that he is engaged in similar programmes that seeks to mobilise them and empower them.

He advanced that the direction of God was the most important for each and every individual.

Rev Kufuor, son of the former President of Ghana Kufuor is an award winning actor, a farmer, a philanthropist and a motivational speaker whose work has touched many lives in Ghana.

GNA
By Morkporkpor Anku, GNA

Accra, Oct. 28, GNA - Dr Seth Osafo, Legal Advisor to the Africa Group of Negotiators in the ongoing United Nations Negotiations on Climate Change, has called on government to invest into adaptation strategies to address the issue of climate change.

He said government had signed the Paris Agreement on April 22 and had ratified the treaty on September 21, which came into force.

Dr Osafo was speaking at the United Nations United Development Programme (UNDP)'s 'Nkitahodie' Policy Dialogue with Political Parties on the Paris Climate Change Agreement in Accra.

He said Political Parties played a crucial role to advocate climate change and promote ideas, concepts and solutions for Ghana's future economic and environmental development.

"As political parties develop their manifestoes leading to the December election, it is critical that issues of climate change and environmental challenges in the country are given prominence in their developmental agenda," he added.

He said the agreement set the goal to enhance the countries' capacity to adapt to climate change, strengthen resilience and reduce vulnerability.

'It is also to establish a dedicated framework, separate from adaptation to address all related issues,' he said.

Professor Chris Gordon, Director of Institute for Environment and Sanitation, College of Basic and Applied Science, University of Ghana said adaptation and mitigation were the two strategies to address climate change.

He said Ghanaians were mostly interested in adaptation more than mitigation in addressing climate change.

He said Ghana had 11 adaptations and 20 mitigation programmes and five priority action plans expanding 2015 to 2020.

Mr Mulugeta Abebe, the Deputy Country Director of UNDP, commended government for the ratification of the agreement.

He said with the agreement all countries were committed to reducing the greenhouse gas effect.

He said the UNDP supported Government to develop the Ghana's intended nationally determined contribution and accompany explanatory note.

He said effect were underway to support government to develop strategic plan for the implementation of the explanatory note.

He said the agreement needed strong commitment from political parties to implement the Paris agreement.

Political parties present to explain their policies on issues of climate change in their manifestoes included the Governing National Democratic Congress, the Opposition New Patriotic Party, Progressive People's Party, Convention People's Party and the People's National Convention. GNA
By Morkporkpor Anku, GNA

Accra, Oct. 28, GNA - SEND-Ghana in collaboration with the ONE Africa has called on Presidential candidates contesting the December 7 elections to invest in Food and Nutrition Security of the country.

Mr Siapha Kamara, the Chief Executive Officer, SEND West Africa speaking at a press conference in Accra said political leaders could do something about increasing investments to treat and prevent malnutrition.

In an open letter to presidential candidates jointly singed by the two organisations, he said Ghana had done well in reducing stunting from an all high of 35 per cent in 2003 to 19 per cent in 2014 but there was still much to be done.

He said according to a recent Africa Union Cost of Hunger in Africa study; Ghana's economy was losing more than two billion dollars per year due to the impact of child malnutrition.

'With a 16-fold return on investments, tackling this silent killer is one of the best buys in development,' he added.

Mr Kamara said despite the higher dividend that was provided by investing in nutrition, the two organisations still observed that in 2015, seven out of 10 children in Ghana suffered from Vitamin A deficiency and seven out of 10 children under age five and two out of five women were anaemic.

He said there was still lack of cohesion on laws concerning food fortification, baby foods, salt iodisation and other food standards.

The CEO said there was the need a legislative instrument to assist with the smooth implementation of the National Nutrition Policy and National Nutrition Scale up Plan.

He urged political leaders to commit to the accelerating the implementation of aggressive plans to combat malnutrition if elected President of Ghana.

Madam Dorine Nininahazwe, the ONE Africa Representative to the African Union, said the organisations would be keen to hear the Presidential candidate's perspective and plan on this important issue once elected.

She said a future, productive, well-nourished and health workforce in Ghana depended on tackling malnutrition and promoting nutritional well-being.

She said close to three million children die due to malnutrition in Africa and had called on African leaders to feed their citizens and feed them right.

He urged political and stakeholders to increase their nutrition specifics, since it's their major concern.

Mr Michel Majid, an Actor and Nutrition Campaigner, called on stakeholders to continue the conversation on eating right and promote issues on nutrition for national development.

He said leaders should be committed to the issues of nutrition and have the will power to drive the implementation of various policies.

GNA
A former flower shop owner who sexually assaulted, tortured and held a Texas man captive in the basement of his store lost his appeal Friday.

Roger Van had asked the Nebraska Supreme Court to vacate his conviction because his victim agreed to such treatment.

Van was sentenced to up to 30 years in prison on several counts, including sexual assault and false imprisonment, related to the 2001 incident at his flower shop in Wayne.

Defense lawyer Melissa Wentling alleged that Van's conviction was unconstitutional because the "Nebraska Legislature did not intend these statutes to apply to conduct that occurs during a private, consensual relationship" involving bondage and torture.

Van's lawyers had argued that the 36-year-old Houston man, identified in court papers as J.G.C., consented to being beaten, bound and branded.

Before meeting in Wayne, Van and the man exchanged scores of messages and negotiated a no-limits relationship involving torture and bondage, defense lawyers said.

In one e-mail message, J.G.C indicated he might try to escape and that Van should prevent that from happening.

The man also acknowledged writing an e-mail saying that he needed to be afraid of Van, who also sent him a photo of the small cell where he would be kept.

Defense lawyers said the two agreed not to have a customary "safe word" that signals to the master that the slave can no longer stand the pain and that the session is to end.

"As stated by the United States Supreme Court, homosexuals' right to liberty under the due process clause gives them a right to engage in consensual sexual activity in home without intervention of the government," Wentling said earlier.

The Texan said that after a light flogging administered the first day in Wayne, he was ordered to write why he deserved punishment and decided to get out.

But he said Van then refused to believe that he no longer wanted to participate and kept him captive.

The man testified that on one occasion he was placed face down on a table, restrained and branded with the letter "w" on the back of one of his thighs. The pain was so intense that he became ill and broke one of his wrist restraints, the man said.

The high court said that while the evidence presented showed that J.G.C. initially consented to a master-slave relationship, consent was withdrawn the day after he arrived in Wayne.

"Because J.G.C. testified that he told Van that he wished to go home, there was sufficient evidence upon which the jury could conclude that Van acted with the requisite knowledge and intent" to be convicted of false imprisonment, wrote Judge Kenneth Stephan.

As for the sexual assault conviction, Stephan wrote:

"The mere fact that J.G.C. did not verbally or physically resist is not determinative of whether he consented to the acts," he said. "The record includes evidence that J.G.C. was subject to beatings for disobeying Van and that he revoked his consent to the  relationship prior to the acts of sexual penetration."

Police said the Texas man escaped with the help of Jerry Marshall, an employee at the flower shop who initially participated in assaulting the Texan but later backed out. Marshall served about six months in jail for misdemeanor assault.
The second daughter of President Muhammadu Buhari, Hajiya Fatima, will be getting married to former managing director of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, Malam Gimba Yau Kumo today Friday, October 28.

Their Islamic wedding will take place in Katsina state, her fathers home state.

Fatima is one of the presidents children from his first wife, Safinatu Muhammadu Buhari.

But what many are not aware is that Fatima will become the 4 wife to the 57-year-old. Under the Islamic tradition a man is allowed to marry up to four wives, but that doesnt seem to concern one of the senior wives, Gimba Aishatu.

Gimba doesnt look thrilled with welcoming another wife into the family who happens to be the daughter of the president.

The light skinned lady took to her Instagram page to post series of pictures showing off herself with her husband and more comparing herself and Buharis daughter in what looks like a shade.

See photos below:

READ ALSO: Romantic photos of Buhari's daughter and her fiance

Source: Legit.ng
One of the country's major music-licensing companies is starting a legal brawl over the music played at Lincoln's 501 Bar & Grill.

In a federal lawsuit filed this week, Broadcast Music Inc. accuses the bar at Folsom and West A streets of copyright infringement for playing licensed songs without paying the annual fees to do so.

Kurt Kontor, 501's co-owner, said Thursday his jukebox is licensed, and he doesn't control what the bands play inside his bar each week.

"Im not ripping them (the songwriters) off," said Kontor, "because Im not doing anything.

Broadcast Music and a host of music publishers suing the bar contend he's violating copyright protections for the songs he's allowing to be played in his bar.

"The specific acts of copyright infringement alleged in the complaint, as well as (the) defendants' entire course of conduct, have caused and are causing plaintiffs great and incalculable damage," Jill Robb Ackerman, the licensing company's Omaha lawyer, said in the lawsuit.

Ackerman didn't respond to a request for comment.

Since September 2014, Broadcast Music officials have contacted Kontor 85 times, attempting to educate him on copyright laws and later demanding the bar cease playing the music licensed by the company, the lawsuit said.

They allege Kontor willfully violated the protections Sept. 15, the lawsuit said.

That night, Broadcast Music-licensed songs played at the bar included "Folsom Prison Blues" by Johnny Cash, "The Way You Make Me Feel" by Michael Jackson, "Rehab" by Amy Winehouse and "Gun Powder and Lead" by Miranda Lambert.

The lawsuit doesn't say whether the music was performed by a band or played on the jukebox.

Broadcast Music has asked a judge to stop 501 Bar & Grill from playing the licensed music and to order it to pay damages for willfully violating the law.

Kontor doesn't think he should be forced to pay the licensing fee since he isn't the one performing the songs.

Broadcast Music, a New York City-based company, sells licenses to businesses covering 12 million musical works by 750,000 artists, according to its websites.

According to the company's online music policy form, the annual cost of a license for a 260-person capacity bar like Kontor's would be about $2,000.

The bar's regular crowd ranges from 20 to 200, with more people coming Friday nights for live bands, Kontor said.

Similar lawsuits across the country have resulted in thousands of dollars in penalties, according to media reports.

That's unnerving to Kontor, who will be celebrating his third year as owner of the bar and grill on Monday, he said.

Duffy's Tavern owner Scott Hatfield said the license disputes are becoming another expense and headache for bar owners.

At his bar near 14th and O streets, he pays for a license on his cable streaming, a license for a satellite music-streaming service and a license for his jukebox service, he said.

He no longer hosts cover bands to skirt the problem involving live music, he said.

That includes the popular Thursday night regular, Sh*thook, which celebrated 20 years of live karaoke at Duffy's in 2014.

Only local groups playing original music take the Duffy's stage now, Hatfield said.

"Theyre horrible, Hatfield said of the licensing companies, which tried to charge him a higher rate because the bar's stage gets used a lot. "Theyre actually destroying live original music.

In 2011, a different, major music-licensing company sued Hatfield, alleging he hadn't paid licensing fees for several months.

Hatfield fought the lawsuit but lost and had to pay $22,000, including the judgment and attorneys fees, he said.

His business could swallow the loss, he said, but "it definitely set me back."

For smaller bars, the burden is heavier, he said.

If Broadcast Music can prove Kontor willfully infringed on the song's copyrights, federal law states a judge can grant as much as $150,000 in statutory damages.

There's a cost no matter what. If he shuts off the music, he might not make it, he said.

"It'd be dead on the weekends," Kontor said.
A former flower shop owner who sexually assaulted and tortured a Texas man in the basement of his Wayne store was approved for parole Friday.

Roger Van, 69, has been in prison for 13 years since being convicted of first-degree sexual assault, first-degree assault, second-degree assault, first-degree false imprisonment, terroristic threats and failure to appear.

He was accused of holding a 36-year-old man captive in 2001, but maintained his innocence, arguing that Nebraska law doesn't apply to a private, consensual relationship involving bondage and torture.

During an appeal hearing in 2004, Van's lawyers said the Houston man consented to being beaten, bound and branded. The appeal was denied.

Before they met, Van and the man exchanged hundreds of messages and negotiated a no-limits master/slave relationship involving torture and bondage, defense lawyers have said.

In one exchange, the man told Van he might try to escape, but that Van should prevent that from happening. He told Van he needed to be afraid. They exchanged pictures of the small cell in which he would be kept.

Defense lawyers also argued the two agreed not to have a "safe word," which signals to the master that the slave can no longer stand the pain.

After the first day, the man said he wanted out, but Van refused to believe him. At trial, he testified that Van placed him face down on a table, restrained him and branded him with the letter "w" on the back of one of his thighs.

The man eventually escaped with the help of flower shop employee Jerry Marshall, who initially participated in the assault but later backed out. Marshall spent about six months in jail for assault.

Before the trial started, Van escaped and lived in California for about two months, resulting in the failure to appear charge.

On Friday, members of the Nebraska Board of Parole asked Van why he fled. He answered that he "just kind of gave up at the time."

The board voted unanimously to release Van, who would have otherwise been in custody until June 2018 and appeared before the board with two cousins who were there for support.

Board member Teresa Bittinger told Van she voted to release him for several reasons -- mainly because letting him out before he reached a mandatory release date would allow the board to monitor him.

"We want to watch you as long as we can, and make sure you're successful," she said.

As a condition of his parole, Van must register as a sex offender and wear an electronic monitoring device.

He won't be released from Community Corrections Center-Lincoln until the board gets word he's been approved to live in a apartment complex that allows sex offenders. Van said he plans to stay in Lincoln and get a job.

He said he was working at a local pizza restaurant through work release until recently.

During the hearing on Friday, Van said he participated in the prison system's "I Help" program for three years and it helped him learn what his risk factors are. They include sex, power, control and low self-esteem, he said, and the program showed him how to deal with them through making lists of pros and cons, praying, meditating, socializing, reading and completing acts of kindness among other safe activities.

"They really do work," he told board members, who called his crimes bizarre and egregious.

"It's not something I'd want to do again," said Van.
- A recent report states that not one out of the 21 released Chibok schoolgirls was assaulted by Boko Haram insurgents

- There are speculative reports about the state of the freed captives, which is creating stumbling blocks to further talks with Boko Haram

Released Chibok girls dancing

A recent report states that not one out of the 21 released Chibok schoolgirls was assaulted during the two years they spent in Boko Haram captivity.

Quoting a source close to negotiations to free the remaining of those abducted in April 2014, NAN dismissed reports that the only girl who came back with a child was impregnated by an insurgent.

READ ALSO: Man set to sacrifice self for one of the released Chibok girls

The source said: The girl and her parents have confirmed this. The child is not a Boko Haram Child. None of the girls released was sexually harassed or abused while in captivity by their abductors.

The current state of the girls is a source of joy as they are receiving the best medical, psychological and other forms of support from the authorities as directed by the federal government.

All groups including the families, The Bring Back Our Girls (BBOG) and Chibok Community are happy with their condition as medical experts work to address their health conditions.

The girls have been visited by members of International Committee of the Red Cross, which played a great role in getting the girls freed. It is obvious to everyone that having been in captivity, the girls were traumatised but since their release, they are showing signs of recovery.

There are speculative reports about the state of the freed captives, which is creating stumbling blocks to further talks with the insurgents.

The insurgents were said to be angry with government for breaching some understanding reached with them when the Chibok girls were released.

In another development, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has advised the Federal Government to involve experienced clerics to assist in counselling the girls.

READ ALSO: 7 Boko Haram terrorists killed by hunters in Adamawa

Speaking for the association, the Niger state chapter chairman, Mathias Echioda said that the call became necessary to help rebuild morals and lives of the affected girls.

Recall that the 21 Chibok girls who were kidnapped by the dreaded Boko Haram terrorist group were released on Thursday, October 13.

More than 200 girls were abducted from their schools in Borno state in 2014 by the terrorists and while some of them have reportedly died, the rest have been held by the dreaded group.

Source: Legit.ng
- The governor of Lagos state, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode, has said the completion of the $2.6bn Badagry deep sea port project will help revive the nation's economy

- He said that the port was expected to generate 500,000 jobs directly and indirectly when completed

- He also promised that the state government would ensure the protection of the interests of the host communities

$2.6bn Badagry deep sea portll transform Nigerias economy  Ambode

The governor of Lagos state, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode, has said the completion of the $2.6bn Badagry deep sea port project would help develop the growth of the nations economy, Punch reports.

According to a statement by the chief press secretary, Mr Habib Aruna, the governor said this after a meeting with Mr Morten Engelstoft, the chief executive officer designate, APM Terminals (Maersk Group) in Copenhagen, Denmark.

The meeting centered on the advancement of the deep sea port, a statement by his According to the governor, the project will also complement the emergence of Lagos as the fifth largest economy in Africa.

This port and free zone, situated on over 1000 hectares is expected to be the largest deep sea port in Africa upon its completion.

The project will include a container terminal, oil & gas services and a liquid bulk terminal, with general cargo and Ro-Ro facilities, Ambode said.

READ ALSO: FG can no longer employ Nigerians, Adeosun reveals

He said that the port was expected to generate 500,000 jobs directly and indirectly when completed.

He also promised that the state government would ensure the protection of the interests of the host communities.

Ambode also said decisions over the funding of Lot 3 of the Mile 2 to Seme 10-lane highway expansion, are almost concluded as it would complement the ongoing Badagry Deep Sea Port Project.

The Governor, who said the Lot 3 would run from Okokomaiko-Badagry-Seme, affirmed the commitment of his administration to providing an enabling environment for businesses to thrive in the State.

It is no longer news that the recession in the country keeps biting harder by the day.

READ ALSO: We are responsible for current economic problem  APC quits blaming PDP

Earlier, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has finally admitted to being responsible for the economic challenges that Nigeria is going through.

The party has always pointed accusing finger at the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the cause of Nigerias recession which it said could have been avoided if the party had saved for the rainy day.

Source: Legit.ng
Some Nigerian girls can be mean. They just know how to make a man lose his confidence with their responses. Imagine telling a girl how you feel about her and she just looks at you, smiles and changes the subject.

Getting a Nigerian girl to tell you I love you too can be harder than JAMB.

Below are some of the replies Nigerian girls give when you tell them I love you.

1. Wow that's nice

So, she doesnt want to hurt your feelings. Just manage the reply.

2. Thank you

Of cause, shes grateful for your love. Keep loving and one day e go better.

3. Awww you are so sweet

Thats her being nice and trying to make you feel a little appreciated.

4. Ok

She clearly has no reply for you.

5. How much?

They say love dont cost a thing, but definitely not in Naija.

READ ALSO: 6 indecent ways some Nigerian girls dress to church

6. Lol

Some girls are just mean. Later they'll say Nigerian me are not romantic.

7. Oh really

After all the shakara, they will love you back some day.

8. Are you serious?

Thou shalt not answer this question, I repeat dont answer.

9. I know

She just needs more time. One day, she will be able to say those words.

10. Good for you

Dont give up, its just Nigerian women and their initial gragra

11. And so

Just forgive her arrogance and manage the ela.

READ ALSO: 15 things Nigerian girls say when you compliment them

12. Thats good to know

After all, it's always nice to hear that someone loves you.

13. Who love epp?

My brother, no hope for you. Just move to the next one

14. Laughs

Haba, cant a man love again?

15. No response

Its not easy to respond to someone who says the words when youre not ready to say them back.

So we have come to the end of the 15 responses Nigerian ladies give when a man says I love you. If you know any lady who has never given any of the above answers, please congratulate her for being abnormal.

Source: Legit.ng
Stephanie Bohlke-Schulte grew up with a dad who taught school before he started farming, then served four terms on the board of the rural school district where his three children learned to read and write.

The daughter and oldest child saw in herself the same desire to teach, to be a leader.

So I went that direction, she said, and left her central Nebraska hometown of Kenesaw for Lincoln, where she earned a bachelors degree in education at Nebraska Wesleyan University.

She would go on to earn two masters degrees and spend 26 years in education as a teacher, counselor, principal and school board member.

Both Bohlke-Schulte, 63, and her opponent, Patsy Koch Johns, devoted their careers to education and want to continue that work as the District 1 representative on the Nebraska Board of Education.

Lillie Larsen, who represents the district that spans much of Lincoln and Lancaster County, is not running again.

After earning her first degree in 1975, Bohlke-Schulte taught for one year in the Tri County Public Schools in DeWitt, then spent several years working for a nonprofit ministry and raising her three boys.

A decade later, she taught music at Lincoln's Rousseau Elementary, then part-time at Saratoga Elementary while she earned a masters in educational psychology at UNL. She worked as a counselor for a year at Clinton Elementary before moving to Grand Island, where she spent a decade as a counselor with Northwest Public Schools.

After earning a masters in educational administration she became an elementary school principal in Grand Island, retiring in 2011.

During her tenure as a counselor, Bohlke-Schulte served two terms on the neighboring Grand Island Public Schools board. She said she ran for that seat for much the same reason shes running for the state Board of Education.

I had a lot of experience and knew about education, she said. If you have some knowledge and you have some interest, its a way you can serve your community."

One of the biggest strengths shed bring to the state board, she said, is her experience, including helping write district assessments before the state initiated statewide tests.

She got even more experience aligning goals, tests and curriculum when she worked at the Nebraska State Patrol Training Academy after retiring, she said.

"Ive dedicated my whole life to public education professionally and as a volunteer," she said.

Her campaign has included meeting with district administrators in Lancaster County, including private schools, and she said she heard positive comments about the states new accountability system and the decision to use the ACT college entrance exam for high school juniors in lieu of statewide tests.

Bohlke-Schulte supports both, especially the fact that the accountability system looks at improvements students make from year to year, not simply test scores.

Finding ways to increase parent involvement, providing preschool for students who need it most and finding ways to extend the school day or school year are ways the state could narrow the achievement gap between affluent and poor students and between white and minority students, she said.

Bohlke-Schulte said she wouldnt promote authorizing charter schools in Nebraska, an idea thats gotten some traction in recent years, including support from Gov. Pete Ricketts. But she thinks the Legislature should explore the idea because of public interest and some success.

Ive just dedicated my whole career to public education and I think we have good quality public schools in Nebraska, she said.

Nebraska allows students to transfer to different schools and districts already, she said.

I just dont see a need for charter schools here at this point."

She opposes state standards for comprehensive sex education. In the past year, the issue has drawn large, often angry, crowds to Omaha Public Schools board meetings during an update of the health curriculum, and to a legislative hearing on the subject last year.

I think that should be handled as a local control issue and school districts should decide what the students in their school districts need to know about that, she said. I dont think the state should mandate it.

Bohlke-Schulte said conservative, pro-life values are important to her, and while she might view some issues from that perspective, she looks at all issues objectively and is not a one-issue candidate.

I can listen to all sides of issues and look at things real objectively and weigh them, but at the core I will be a conservative family person, she said.

Before the primary, she said in response to questions that creationism should be taught as an alternate theory to evolution in science, during lessons on the origin of life.

But she said creationism -- or intelligent design -- should not be part of state science standards, which are being revised.

"There's nothing objectionable in (the proposed standards)," she said. "I don't think it should be part of them."

While she might look at some issues from a conservative, family perspective, thats not the focus of her campaign, Bohlke-Schulte said.

I have a general knowledge about education and a general interest in education and doing the best I can to provide a good education to students in Nebraska.
- The Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF) says it is not ready to toy with the unity of the northern part of Nigeria

- The group, through Yerima Shettima, its head, says it has discovered plans by some people to cause disaffection between some notable people in the region

The Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF) says it has unearthed a plan by some people in the north to cause a major disaffection between former head of state, Abdulsalami Abubakar and Hamza Al-Mustapha, a former chief security officer to late dictator Sani Abacha.

In a statement made available to Legit.ng by Alhaji Yerima Shettima, the head of the AYCF, the group warned those carrying what it called the fake news of a possible revelation by Al-Mustapha to desist from it.

Shettima Yerima, the president of Arewa Youth Consultative Forum

"In recent weeks, a bellicose statement credited to former Chief Security Officer to late General Abacha  Major Hamza Al-Mustapha - has gone viral online. We learnt that it is still being massively spread on WhatsApp chat groups.

"The statement claimed that Al-Mustapha is threatening to make revelations in order to expose former military head of state Abdussalami Abubakars purported bad past, as a form of revenge.

"This infantile claim is clearly a deliberate ploy to create bad blood among the Northern political elite, as a calculated strategy of ruining the peace we are currently enjoying," the AYCF said.

According to the northern group, Major Hamza Al-Mustapha has since made peace with Abubakar in the spirit of brotherhood and progress and the matter has since been thrown into the dustbin of history.

READ ALSO: Why Emefiele cannot resign -Arewa youths

The group also vouched for Al-Mustapha describing him as a man of his words who would never bring back past bickering, for whatever reason.

"We strongly believe that bringing back an issue that was already resolved, was politically-motivated as a strategy for destabilising the northern region, at a time all hands are on deck to confront the multiple challenges facing the North and its people

"We urge all well-meaning northerners and indeed the north as a whole,, to disregard these ranting of enemies of our unity, peace and progress.

"We are convinced that the promoters of this hate message are targeting the good and unsuspecting lovers of the north and its development, at a critical point in the history of this nation

"We condemn in the strongest possible terms, the attempt to use the social media as a ladder for drawing back the hand of the clock.

READ ALSO: Anti-grazing law: Fayose faces opposition from ACF

"The goal of the promoters of this already-forgotten issue is obvious to all by now and we need to join hands to stop them in their tracks.

"We hope and pray that Nigerians and indeed the North, see through the thin veil of spreading hate messages in the social media and put the mischief-makers where they truly belong.

"Major Hamza Al-Mustapha has moved on and so did General Abdussalam Abubakar, in brotherhood and for the good of all. In due course, we will unmask these fringe groups, working to destabilize our region at a critical point in time. We have warned. Whoever has ear, let him hear!" The statement read.

Source: Legit.ng
- A father in Akwa Ibom, John Friday Akpan accuses, his children of taking his money to their master in a witchcraft coven

- Akpan locks his children in a dark thatch hut without food for weeks as punishment

Elisha Friday Akpan ,12, and Esther Friday Akpan ,6, were starved of food by their father over allegations of being witches.

A 40-year-old man, John Friday Akpan from Akwa Ibom state is now explaining to the police why he nailed his two children to the cross.

READ ALSO: Wizard crashes into Sapele River while flying to UK

According to reports by the Child's Right And Rehabilitation Network (CRARN), Akpan who tagged his two children, Elisha Friday Akpan ,12, and Esther Friday Akpan ,6, as witches and wizards heeded the advice of a herbalist, Dr. Okokon in committing the act, the Nigerian Eye reports.

Their father accused them of taking his money to their master in the witchcraft coven and as punishment, he decided to nail his two children to a cross, lock them in a dark, thatch hut without food for weeks.

READ ALSO: 'My wife has tied my manhood with Juju'

Recounting her ordeal at the hands of her father said: "Our sister, Peace usually bring us water inside the hut when our father and our mother had gone out," Esther said.

"My mother (stepmother), said the woman who used to live near our house in Akpabuyo gave us food and she put something (witchcraft spell) in the food and when we ate it we changed to bird at night and took our fathers money to 'our master' in the witchcraft world," Elisha who is a JSS one student said.

According to the kids, Elisha was alleged to have taken 4,000 Naira while Esther took 2,000 Naira.

Video: Starving child abandoned because of "witchcraft"

In a related development, thousands of stigmatized witch children have found refuge at CRARN center, in Akwa Ibom. The children were branded as witches by church ministers and have been cast out by their families and shunned by society.

One of them is 6-year-old Israel Effiong from Ikot Uso Ekong, Eket, who was accused of being responsible for his fathers illness. Fearing for his life, he ran away and hid in a bush for a year before he was rescued by Edoho, a volunteer with the organisation.

Source: Legit.ng
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded nearly $20 million to the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Nebraska Medicine to develop a training, simulation and quarantine center to teach federal health care personnel procedures in treating highly infectious diseases.

The $19.8 million grant announced jointly late Friday by UNMC and Rep. Brad Ashford also would create a place to monitor people who have received high-risk exposure to highly infectious diseases including Ebola.

This is both a tremendous opportunity and responsibility, and I know our medical center will rise to the challenge, UNMC Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold said in a news release. Given UNMC and Nebraska Medicines successful experience during the Ebola crisis, our state-of-the-art biocontainment unit and the planned Interdisciplinary Experiential Center for Enduring Learning, we are perfectly positioned to deliver on this project."

Rep. Brad Ashford, D-2nd District, helped lead the push for the funding in Congress.

UNMC is a worldwide leader in the fight against Ebola and other highly infectious diseases and this funding will strengthen their ability to share their knowledge with the broader health care community, he said. This federal investment in UNMC is the result of strong collaboration between UNMC, the entire Omaha community, the state of Nebraska and our federal delegation.

UNMC qualified for the funding because, according to HHS stipulations, only U.S. hospitals that safely and successfully cared for patients with Ebola, for the full duration of their illness were eligible. The medical center treated three patients with the dreaded disease in 2014-15 and received nationwide attention for its work during the crisis.

Several members of the team who treated patients infected with Ebola will lead the project: Chris Kratochvil, associate vice chancellor for clinical research; John Lowe, director of research for the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit; and Shelly Schwedhelm, executive director of emergency preparedness for Nebraska Medicine.

"Our campus is dedicated to the mission of preparedness, training and treatment, and we are pleased to have the support of the state and county officials, our community, our district Congressman Ashford and the entire Nebraska delegation," Kratochvil said in a statement.

Language Ashford added to the annual appropriations bill in December allows the partial reimbursement of facilities for renovation and alteration undertaken in preparation for, or in response to, the need to improve preparedness and response capability at the state and local level.

The center will be part of the Global Center for Advanced Interprofessional Learning, a $102 million facility to be built 42nd and Emile streets. Construction is likely to begin next year and be complete by September 2018.
Tammy Duckworth, Democratic hopeful for the U.S. Senate from Illinois, is an Iraq War veteran who lost both of her legs in 2004 when a rocket-propelled grenade hit the helicopter she was flying. Shes also the daughter of a U.S. Marines veteran who can trace his lineage back to the Revolutionary War, and a Thai motherher parents met after her father served in Vietnam. Duckworth was born in Thailand, and later immigrated, along with her mother, to Hawaii.

Mark Kirk, the Republican incumbent, has quite a different military story. He claimed that he served in Iraq, and he also claimed that he won an Intelligence Officer of the Year award, but both of these claims turned out be total bullshit.

Which makes this interaction, from yesterdays debate, so interesting:

Boy, that was dumb!

Heres a tip, Mark: Sometimes, a person from one country can marry another person from a different country, and if they have a child, that child is the genetic product of both heritages. Does that make sense? And if that child, say, serves her country and wins a Purple Heart and loses her legs, she can rightly claim to be the latest in a line of military veterans that have served in that countrys wars. Evenand this is critical, Markif her skin looks more brown than you would prefer.

Duckworth already held a healthy lead in polls taken before this debate, but you have to think (hope?) that the few remaining people who didnt already see Kirk as a national disgrace will learn their lesson from this clip.

And as a parting shot, heres salt for Kirks wound, courtesy of Trumps campaign manager:
Speaking on the campaign trail with First Lady Michelle Obama, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton announced that dignity and respect for women is on the ballot this election. Republican candidate Donald Trumps obscene remarks about women have been a saving grace for Clinton, who has been mired in controversy from the inception of her campaignespecially regarding the role played by her namesake charity, the Clinton Foundation, while she served as Secretary of State.

Last month, Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) accused Clinton of misleading lawmakers during her 2009 confirmation hearings with regards to questions about the foundation. As he was quoted by The Hill:

When I put a hold on Mrs. Clintons nomination as secretary of State, she reassured me that they would take appropriate steps [to avoid conflicts of interest]. As seems to be usual for the Clintons, they crossed the line and all the concerns that she reassured me would not occur did in fact occur.

Back then, Cornyn had stalled the confirmation process over concerns about potential conflicts of interest given the charitys ties to foreign powers. He was not alone.

Then-GOP Senator Dick Lugar (R-IN) expressed his reservations, stating, The core of the problem is that foreign governments and entities may perceive the Clinton Foundation as a means to gain favor with the secretary of state. Although neither Senator Clinton nor President Clinton has a personal financial stake in the foundation, obviously its work benefits their legacy and their public service priorities.

Even then-Senator John Kerry expressed his concerns over the less-than-forthcoming way in which the charity approached disclosure of its foreign donations. Nevertheless, he supported and indeed encouraged her confirmation.

Clinton sought to allay the concerns of the holdouts granting assurances that she would take proper steps to keep the foundation and State Department separate, eschewing even the appearance of overlap.

However, we now know that that never happened.

In one of Clintons paid private speeches, which came to light thanks to the release by Wikileaks of thousands of hacked emails from Clinton campaign chair John Podesta, Clinton bemoaned ethics rules designed to prevent conflicts of interest for public servants. There is such a bias against people who have led successful and/or complicated lives, she lamented.

This attitude appears to have informed her behavior while serving as the nations top diplomat.

In a newly released email dated January 25, 2012, Clinton aide Cheryl Mills tells Laura Graham, COO of the Clinton Foundation, that both former President Clinton and Secretary Clinton were trying to be better partners to the foundation.

wjc and hrc do a lot of giving, to their family, to their staff, and to their friends. They are trying to be better partners to the foundation and save some of their resources  not an unreasonable thing for them to choose to do given where they are, how much theyve made and how little they have saved.

Other emails obtained earlier this month through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit by the Republican National Committee, and reported on by ABC News, revealed that in the immediate aftermath of the devastating 2010 earthquake in Haiti, while the State Department was reviewing applications for federal grant money to provide assistance, Clinton gave preference to those applicants marked FOB (for Friends of Bill) or WJC VIPs (William Jefferson Clinton VIPs) by Clinton Foundation employees. Those who were not flagged were directed to the generic government website, cidi.org.

These are just the latest revelations; the ethical questions surrounding the foundationespecially whether or not Clinton used it for pay-to-play dealings at the State Departmentare legion.

In August, the Associated Press pointed out that when government officials were excluded, over half of the people Clinton met with as Secretary of State were foundation donors. Moreover, Clinton had given special assistance to a foundation donor and personal friend applying for a passport.

Before that, in June, ABC News published a story about how Rajiv K. Fernando, who lacked any experience or expertise in the field, wound up on a top secret nuclear security board with a number of experts. Turns out, his promotion came at the request of Clintons chief of staff, Cheryl Mills, a Clinton Foundation donor. Whats more, Fernando stepped down following ABCs inquiry.

An International Business Times investigation from May found that throughout the course of her tenure as Secretary of State, countries that had donated to the foundation saw increases in weapons sales from the State Department at higher rates than non-donor nations. At the same time, defense contractor donors, or those who had paid Bill Clinton for speeches, were more likely to receive contracts authorized by the department.

These reports comport with several previously reported stories.

The Wall Street Journal reported in July of 2015, that shortly after becoming Secretary of State in 2009, Hillary Clinton helped the Swiss bank UBS out of hot water with the Internal Revenue Service after it donated to, and partnered with, the Clinton Foundation. UBS then paid Bill Clinton the largest speaking fee hed ever received at the time the article was published.

Then, in 2010, an incident bearing a striking resemblance to the UBS affair became public: As the Washington Post later reported, Secretary Clinton helped Boeing secure a $3.7 billion deal to sell aircraft to the Russian government. Two months later, Boeing turned around and donated nearly $1 million to her public charity.

Yet another interesting story, with all the same trappings, was reported by The New York Times in April, 2015: Between 2009 and 2013, as Russia slowly gained control of Uranium One, the worlds largest uranium production company, UOs chairman donated millions to the Clinton Foundation, and a Kremlin-linked investment bank paid Bill Clinton $500,000 for a speech. The donations continued right up to the approval of a final deal which involved a number of agenciesincluding Clintons State Departmentbut were not disclosed to the Obama administration.

More than a charity, the Clinton Foundation is obviously a vehicle for personal and political advancement. It represents unchartered waters for American electoral politics. The conflicts of interest it has raised are historic. Many foundation donors are also campaign donors helping to put the former Secretary in the White House. And yesterday, news broke that former top Bill Clinton aide, Douglas Band, solicited speaking fees and gifts for the former president from donors to the foundation.

Hillary Clinton has long defended her familys foundation, arguing that its benevolent works around the world speak for themselves. Such was the response she delivered at the final general election presidential debate when asked about the apparent pay-to-play. However, that answer is unlikely to satisfy voters as time goes onespecially if she is elected president, and Donald Trump is no longer a concern.

House Republicans are already gearing up to investigate Clinton if she wins the election. That news should worry Democrats looking ahead to the midterms in 2018, and the Census year presidential election in 2020especially given the likelihood that they will subpoena the former Secretary to testify under oath. Hearing this news, its hard not to remember the presidential impeachment that dominated the news in 1998.

Although 2016 may soon see the election of another President Clinton, history may repeat itself in more ways than one.
Mats Karlsson Leads Final 6 of EPT13 Malta Main Event

October 28, 2016 Yori Epskamp Senior Content Manager

The curtain has been pulled up and the stage is set. The final six players of the 2016 PokerStars.com EPT Malta Main Event are known. They'll duke it out on Saturday in Casino Portomaso for one of the last chances to capture EPT glory and will play for a massive first prize of 355,700.

It took slightly more than three levels of play to get down from 14 to six. Sweden's Mats Karlsson, who started the day as chipleader, kept ruling with an iron fist and extended his chip lead to a massive 3,795,000 (78 big blinds). Karlsson instantly got on the phone with loved ones to tell them the good news.

Behind Karlsson, Russia's Dmitry Yurasov sits in second place with 2,845,000 (58 big blinds). Among others, Yurasov eliminated 2014 PCA champion Dominik Panka on the penultimate day of the Main Event.

Britain's Peter Ockenden, who qualified via a $27 qualifier on PokerStars, rounds out the top three with 2,300,000 (46 big blinds) after a late-day surge. Ockenden eliminated Xixiang Luo with pocket aces versus ace-king to take a big jump up the leaderboard.

Lebanon's Elie Saad is in fourth with 2,065,000 (41 big blinds). Saad survived a crucial coin flip with ace-king versus pocket jacks in the later stages to get to the final six. Britain's Tomas Macnamara has the fifth stack with 1,835,000 (37 big blinds). Macnamara tripled up in the final hand of the day, winning jack-eight suited versus ace-king and pocket sevens.

Aliaksei Boika of Belarus will return tomorrow as the short stack (960,000 - 19 big blinds). Boika held ace-king in the hand versus Macnamara, which dropped him to the bottom of the barrel. All six remaining players are guaranteed at least 76,790 for surviving five grueling days of play.

The day started off with 14 players, but the field was quickly whittled down to 10. Benjamin Pollak was the first one to go. The Frenchman was left crippled when he doubled up Luo in the first hand of the day. Pollak's pocket eights failed to hold against Luo's ace-king. The next hand, he lost his last chips with king-seven against Luo's ace-ten.

Start-of-the-day short stack Ole Schemion found his much-needed double up in the second hand of the day, when he rivered a flush with ace-four against Boika's pocket nines. The German got it in again moments later, this time against Karlsson. The Swede, who earned the moniker "Schemion Slayer" on the live stream, finished what he began yesterday and eliminated the German with king-ten versus ace-king when he rivered a straight.

Daniele Colautti moved all in with pocket nines and was up against Yurasov's pocket sixes. The Russian flopped a set and Colautti hit the rail in 12th place. Shortly after, Marco Bartolini followed the same route. He ran his tens into Luo's queens and became the 11th-place finisher.

The second level of the day had just one player hit the rail. It was the level of the short stacks surviving with the worst of it. Both Macnamara and Ockenden survived all-in situations. Someone had to go eventually. It was Germany's Louis Cartarius who fell in 10th place. Cartarius shoved pocket sevens into Boika's pocket aces and couldn't catch up.

With nine players left, the unofficial final table was set. One more player needed to go before the final table was official, and it was 2014 PCA winner and EPT11 Malta finalist Panka who finished in the dreaded ninth place. Panka reshoved pocket sixes all in after Yurasov had opened. Yurasov called with pocket kings and held up to send Panka to the rail.

In the last hand of the third level of the day, Luo ran his ace-king into Ockenden's pocket aces. It was a cooler for the Chinese pro and he failed to improve, sending him packing in eighth place.

Directly after the break, short stack Bastian Dohler got involved in a three-way all in. Dohler held pocket sevens against Boika's ace-king and Macnamara's jack-eight suited. The sevens weren't lucky for Dohler, as Macnamara found both a jack and an eight to send the German 10 Spin & Go qualifier to the rail in seventh place.

With one hour and twenty minutes left in the level 25,000/50,000 with a 5,000-chip ante, play was suspended for the day. Saturday at 1:00 p.m. CEST, the six remaining players will resume their quest to capture the EPT gold. The final table will be streamed with hole cards and will be on an hour delay. Follow hand-for-hand coverage live on PokerNews.com as we play down to a winner.

Seating and Chip Counts Final Table

Seat Player Country Chip Count BB 1 Aliaksei Boika Belarus 960,000 19 2 Mats Karlsson Sweden 3,795,000 78 3 Peter Ockenden United Kingdom 2,300,000 46 4 Dmitry Yurasov Russia 2,890,000 58 5 Elie Saad Lebanon 2,065,000 41 6 Tomas Macnamara United Kingdom 1,835,000 37

Sharelines The Stage Is Set: Karlsson leads the Final 6 of the EPT13 Malta Main Event.
Looking at Lancaster Countys one- and six-year roads and bridges draft construction program makes it clear that current funding isnt up to the task, said County Engineer Pam Dingman.

The plan really shows were not able to meet the needs of our crumbling infrastructure with the monies that have been allocated, she said. Were going to need to find another funding source or were going to have to accept closing roads and bridges as the new norm.

The plan, which is updated and approved annually, calls for $7 million in road work and one $900,000 bridge project to be completed this fiscal year.

The bridge to be replaced is on West Raymond Road over Little Salt Creek.

Its the worst bridge in our county," Dingman said Tuesday. "It also has a very high traffic count. Closing this bridge would be highly detrimental to the citizens who live in the area, and we really need to do something to get it replaced.

The list of funded projects does not include a dozen bridges in the county that have been closed indefinitely, nine this year, and considered critical because flooding has scoured away rocks, sand and dirt around piers or abutments, threatening their structural integrity.

I dont have funding for any of them, Dingman said.

State law requires planning forward only for projects that can be completed at current funding levels, she said.

Ten of the 12 closed bridges are listed as standby projects, which means they will be done when funding becomes available.

Thats likely to be an unpopular answer with some County Board members, including Larry Hudkins, who has pressured Dingman to prioritize the closed bridges and create plans to get them reopened.

Hudkins has urged her to make the West McKelvie Road bridge that crosses Oak Creek east of Northwest 40th Street a top priority.

I want to see a plan of action, how were going to get these roads open and bridges open, said Hudkins, who will leave the board in January.

Earlier this year, the board balked at Dingmans request for an extra $9 million to replace five bridges and pave 11 miles of new roads. Board members voted July 28 to reduce that request to an additional $1 million.

The department's total annual budget is about $32 million, of which about $7.2 million comes from property tax dollars.

The remainder of the funding comes from a combination of state and federal sources, including motor-vehicle fees, gas tax, federal highway allocations, Federal Emergency Management Agency reimbursements and road and bridges buyback programs.

Dingman, looking to have a public dialogue on county roads, held four town hall-style meetings in the past couple of months in Hickman, Denton, Malcolm and Waverly.

Everybody wants more bridges and more pavement. It becomes a matter that we dont have enough funding to build all the bridges or pave all the roads that people want funded, she said this week.

We have 90 miles of asphalt that is in need of overlay. We have 76 bridges that are in need of replacement, and we need about 32 additional miles of pavement in the county.
Met should keep counter-terror powers and take over BTP and City, review says

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan commissioned the examination of the capital's terrorism capabilities.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan and Lord Toby Harris (left) hold a copy of an independent review of London's Preparedness to Respond to a Major Terrorist Incident, during a tour of a Special Operations Room in London. Photo: Victoria Jones/PA

Date - 28th October 2016

By - Ian Weinfass - Police Oracle - 28th October 2016

0203 119 3303

or alternatively get in touch via the Do you have an interesting news story? Contact the newsdesk onor alternatively get in touch via the contact form

The Met Police should hang on to national counter-terror responsibilities and take over the functions of the City of London Police and British Transport Police inside London, an independent review has recommended. Lord Toby Harris review of...
By: Biggest Little Fashion Truck

Contact

Sierra Nevada Cosmetic + Laser Surgery

***@sierracosmeticsurgery.com Sierra Nevada Cosmetic + Laser Surgery

End

-- Sierra Nevada Cosmetic + Laser Surgery will be co-hosting an event with Biggest Little Fashion Truck outside of their office in Reno, Nevada this Saturday, October 29, 2016, from 1:00  3:00PM. This will be the first event that the business has co-hosted. Complimentary refreshments will be available starting at 1:00PM.Biggest Little Fashion Truck is Reno's first fashion truck. Attendees will be able shop for fall clothes and accessories and receive brief complimentary consultations about skincare and possible procedures. If attendees spend $150 with Biggest Little Fashion Truck, they will get $25.00 off a facial at Sierra Nevada Cosmetic + Laser Surgery. Alternatively, if attendees spend $100.00 with Biggest Little Fashion Truck and book an appointment with Sierra Nevada Cosmetic + Laser Surgery, they will get a gift bag.Located conveniently in the heart of Reno in the Plumgate Shopping Center, Dr. Yamamoto and his staff are excited to help give each patient a personalized experience. To schedule a complimentary consultation, contact the office at (775) 525-1712, or visit their website at http://www.sierracosmeticsurgery.com
By: GZA

GZA Matt Smith lr

End

-- GZA, a leading environmental and geotechnical consulting firm, announces that Matthew Smith, P.E., LSP has been promoted to Associate Principal in the Norwood, Massachusetts office.A resident of Franklin, Massachusetts Smith joined GZA in 1993; he specializes in environmental and geotechnical assessment, design and construction/development in addition to solid waste design, construction and permitting.Smith earned a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Norwich University, Military College of Vermont and his Master's degree in Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering from Northeastern University. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in Massachusetts and Connecticut and a registered Licensed Site Professional in Massachusetts.Founded in 1964, GZA is a multi-disciplinary firm providing Environmental, Geotechnical, Ecological, Water, and Construction Management services. GZA maintains corporate offices at 249 Vanderbilt Avenue, Norwood, MA 02062. The firm has over 560 employees and operates 28 offices in the New England, Mid-Atlantic, Great Lakes and Appalachian Regions of the United States. For additional information, please call William Hadge, CEO at 781-278-3808 or visit the company's website at www.gza.com
This "Roof of the World" country is now officially on "Top of the World" too as the prestigious travel guide brand Lonely Planet also includes Nepal in its Top Ten "Best in Travel" selection too.

Contact

Mark Knowles - Sales Manager

Snow Cat Travel

***@snowcattravel.com Mark Knowles - Sales ManagerSnow Cat Travel

End

-- Snow Cat Travel are on standby by for a big increase in Nepal bookings.Nepal has scooped not just one but two "Best" acknowledgments by the renowned and highly respected Lonely Planet for 2017.With Number One for "Best Value Destination"and Number Five for "Best in Travel", such recognition from Lonely Planet is certain to boost tourism.In fact Nepal is the only destination in South Asia to have been featured in the list of Top Ten Countries to visit in 2017.Mark Knowles from Snow Cat Travel says, "I'm delighted that Nepal has received the recognition it deserves and from the world's largest travel guide publisher".Mark adds, "Nepal has always been well known as a budget destination, but in recent years it has been quietly going upmarket too. You can get 5* Luxury Hotels at 3* prices compared to Europe".Indeed Mark claims, "it's actually even better than that as many of our customers say that Nepal provides a 10* visitor experience!"With Nepal featuring strongly in the new movie Doctor Strange too, this Roof of the World country feels like it's on Top of the World too.To see the beauty of Nepal and the sheer variety of experiences it can offer visit: http://snowcattravel.com
By: UK & Ireland SAP User Group

Contact

Aimee Lynn, Spark Communications

***@sparkcomms.co.uk Aimee Lynn, Spark Communications

End

-- The UK & Ireland SAP User Group, an independent voice that represents the SAP user community, is holding its annual conference at the ICC Birmingham, between 20and 22November 2016. The newly named UKISUG CONNECT will connect over 900 SAP professionals, including 500 SAP customers, 65 exhibiting companies and in excess of 200 SAP experts from across the UK & Ireland, to exchange their past experiences and gain insight from SAP professionals.UKISUG CONNECT kicks off on Sunday 20November and boasts an agenda full of interactive workshops, keynote speeches and networking opportunities. These will allow delegates to discuss experiences and pose questions to SAP and industry experts on a variety of IT and business related topics. Delegates will also hear keynote speeches from Philip Adams, Chairman of the UK & Ireland SAP User Group; Hala Zeine, Senior Vice President of SAP Portfolio and Commercialization Strategy; Cormac Watters, Managing Director of SAP UK and Ireland; Colin Brookes, Chief Operating Officer of SAP UK and Ireland, and Will Kintish, the acknowledged UK leading authority on the subject of networking.Over 100 breakout sessions will also be taking place, covering areas such as Digital Transformation, Big Data and S/4 HANA, User Experience, Supply Chain, Payroll and Business Objects Analytics & Reporting. Furthermore, the User Group will be running SAP BusinessByDesign and SAP Business One Special Interest Groups during the conference."UKISUG CONNECT is all about connecting the entire SAP ecosystem. This conference gives attendees the opportunity to share insights, network with peers and learn more about the future direction of SAP's products. This event remains the only one of its kind and shouldn't be missed!" commented Craig Dale, Chief Executive, UK & Ireland SAP User Group.UKISUG CONNECT is open to all SAP customers, with discounted rates for member organisations. For more information go to: http://www.sapusers.org/ conference/ or follow @SAPUserConf ( https://twitter.com/ SAPUserConf ) or #UKISUG16 on Twitter.-END-The UK & Ireland SAP User Group's membership is open to users of SAP products in the UK and Ireland. Membership consists of organisations of all sizes and includes some of the largest private companies and significant public sector organisations in the UK and Ireland.If you would like further information regarding the UK & Ireland SAP User Group, please visit www.sapusers.org
Luke Stafford and James Valente honored with this year's award

Contact

Erica Haye

***@mondomediaworks.com Erica Haye

End

-- Luke Stafford and James Valente, both businessmen in Brattleboro, have been chosen for Vermont Business Magazine's Rising Stars of 2016. Stafford, founder and Chief of Mondo Mediaworks, Inc. and Valente, Managing Partner of Costello, Valente & Gentry, P.C. are the only 2 honorees from Windham County, Vermont.Out of 140 nominees, a panel of judges selected 40 young professionals in Vermont under the age of 40. The 2016 Rising Star Graduating class consists of 20 men and 20 women whose commitment to their place of employment and communities are significant and largely valued."Mondo Mediawork's mission has always been to support the community's economy and growth through job creation and economic stimulation. To know that we are being acknowledged for this is really rewarding", says Stafford. "I am truly honored to accept this award among these other outstanding 39 Rising Stars.""I am honored to receive the Rising Star award because I think it recognizes the growth of our firm, in terms of both people and expertise within the last few years," said Valente. "I hope we can continue to grow and serve our clients because when we are able to help them seek justice, under very trying circumstances, it's extremely rewarding."The Rising Star Graduates of 2016 will be honored at a ceremony on November 10, 2016 in South Burlington, Vermont.About Luke StaffordLuke Stafford owns Mondo Mediaworks, Inc., a digital marketing agency specializing in content development for the web. His love for Vermont began on a snowboarding trip to Stratton as a kid. He later earned a BA in Journalism at Saint Michael's College. After landing in Brattleboro with his wife, an artist, he worked in the marketing department at Mount Snow until 2009. He then founded Mondo, and in the six years since it has grown into a 16-person shop. The company's Values Statement is to build its surrounding community through economic development. Stafford also sits on the board of SeVEDS (Southeastern Vermont Economic Development Strategies). https://www.mondomediaworks.com/ About James ValenteJames Valente practices law with Costello, Valente & Gentry, P.C. in Vermont, New Hampshire, and at the Federal level. He specializes in the trial of civil, criminal, and family cases. Valente has been with the firm since 2006just after college. He undertook a four year clerkship under the supervision of Thomas W. Costello, and was admitted in 2011. Since that time, he has taken over management of the firm as President and managing partner, and the firm has grown to five lawyers, serving individual and corporate clients throughout New England. http://www.cvglawoffice.com/
United Country | Birdsong Auction & Real Estate Group, LLC to conduct live event November 5

By: United Country Real Estate

Contact

Jill Vaughan

***@unitedcountry.com Jill Vaughan

End

-- Buyers have the opportunity of a lifetime to bid on 84 acres of development land with a unique history just East of Albuquerque, NM. United Country | Birdsong Auction & Real Estate Group, LLC, a nationwide Auction and Real Estate company with offices in Chama, New Mexico and Poplar Bluff, MO will offer this property to the highest bidder during a live event November 5at 12 Noon MT."We believe that auctions are one of the best ways to bring properties to the public," said Travis Birdsong auctioneer with United Country | Birdsong Auction & Real Estate Group, LLC. "This format allows qualified buyers the opportunity to see the available properties and determine their current fair market values through the bidding process.""We are excited to present this developmental land property to the public that has an unusual background,"Birdsong said. "This tract is held by the Chapter-11 Estate of the Vaughan Company Realtors -- Case no. 10-10759-ja11. The Vaughan Company Realtors received national attention when it was featured on CNBC'sepisode '.' The Vaughan Company Realtors was the conduit for the largest Ponzi scheme is New Mexico history. This prime New Mexico property is being sold to benefit the creditors of the Chapter 11 Estate of the Vaughan Company Realtors."Located just off I-40 and Hwy 14, this scenic tract is adjacent to residential developments with great potential for a developer, investor or landowner. On November 5, we will auction off this property at the Los Vecinos Community Center located at I-40 Exit 175 to 478 Old Hwy 66 in Tijeras, New Mexico, 87059. Ready for development or private use, this offering is in a great location for those wanting scenic views just minutes from Albuquerque, Sandia Ski Area and the Cibola National Forest!Property details, photos, property viewing, directions, as well as terms and conditions can be found at BirdsongAuction.com ( http://www.colemanandpatterson.com/ auctions/Properties,ca... ). Travis Birdsong can be reached at 573-429-7069.United Country Real Estate  a division of the United Real Estate Group  is the leading, fully integrated network of conventional and auction real estate professionals. The company has been an innovator in lifestyle and country real estate marketing since 1925. United Country supports nearly 500 offices and 5,000 real estate professionals across four continents, with a unique, comprehensive marketing program that includes the highest ranked and largest portfolios of specialty property marketing websites, the largest real estate marketing services company, an extensive buyer database of more than 550,000 opt-in buyers and exclusive global advertising of properties.
Ohio-licensed speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are required to earn 20 hours of continuing education (CE) every 2 years to renew.

End

-- Ohio-licensed speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are required to earn 20 hours of continuing education (CE) every 2 years to renew. The current license renewal deadline is December 31, 2016.Ten continuing education hours must be specific to clinical practice in the area of licensure. Ten continuing education hours may be acquired in areas related to speech language pathology or audiology or both. The area of licensure is speech-language pathology or audiology as indicated by the license. Related areas are topics not specific to the area of licensure but would enhance the practice of the licensee.Effective January 1, 2015, licensed speech-language pathologists and audiologists must complete 20 clock hours of continuing education with at least two clock hours related to ethics.CE Required: 20 hours every 2 yearsOnline CE Allowed: No limit if ASHA-approvedLicense Expiration: 12/31, even yearsNotes: 10 hours must be in area of licensure, 10 may be related. 2 hours must be related to ethics (effective 1/1/15).is approved by the Continuing Education Board of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association () and theand iscompliant (all courses are reported within 1 week of completion).is a 2-hour online continuing education (CE/CEU) course that presents an overview of ethical issues that arise in speech-language pathology and audiology practice. Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) and audiologists encounter ethical issues across the spectrum of practice settings, from pediatric treatment to care of elders in skilled nursing facilities. This course will discuss barriers to ethical thinking, evidence-based ethics, economics, discrimination, abuse, bullying in the workplace, boundaries, confidentiality, social media, and infection control. Course #21-04 | 2015 | 30 pages | 15 posttest questionsis a 4-hour online continuing education (CE/CEU) course that discusses the social skills children and adolescents will need to develop to be successful in school and beyond. It will demonstrate the challenges and difficulties that arise from a deficit of these crucial skills, as well as the benefits and advantages that can come about with well-developed social skills. This course will also provide practical tools that teachers and therapists can employ to guide children to overcome their difficulties in the social realm and gain social competence. While there are hundreds of important social skills for students to learn, we can organize them into skill areas to make it easier to identify and determine appropriate interventions. This course is divided into 10 chapters, each detailing various aspects of social skills that children, teens, and adults must master to have normative, healthy relationships with the people they encounter every day. This course provides tools and suggestions that, with practice and support, can assist them in managing their social skills deficits to function in society and nurture relationships with the peers and adults in their lives. Course #40-40 | 2016 | 62 pages | 35 posttest questionsis a 2-hour online continuing education (CE/CEU) course that provides a framework for SLPs providing care in a skilled nursing facility. As the population of the United States ages, more healthcare professionals find themselves treating elders. Schools, private practice, and hospitals will always be major practice settings, but the demographics of our country point to a growing need for geriatric treatment. In 2014 there were an estimated 1.5 million people in 16,000 skilled nursing facilities. By 2030 this number may be as high as 2.6 million. There is a significant need now for treatment provided by speech-language pathologists in the skilled nursing facility setting which will only grow in the years to come. Every practice setting has unique characteristics that affect clinical practice. Skilled nursing facilities have a multitude of regulations, complicated billing practices, and a culture of care that must be learned and integrated into the SLP's treatment habits. This can make it difficult for the SLP working part-time or PRN in a skilled nursing facility. This course is intended to give the SLP an overview of the important aspects of long-term care that affect treatment. The average resident and common treatment areas will also be discussed. Course #20-91 | 2015 | 27 pages | 14 posttest questionsClick here to view more courses available: https://www.pdresources.org/ profession/index/ 3 Visit PDResources:
Banks, unions, NGOs and government working together on human rights

Dutch banks, unions, NGOs and the Dutch government concluded an exceptional agreement in The Hague today. The agreement makes it possible for banks to do more to ensure respect for human rights in investment and financing matters, for example with regard to working conditions, freedom of association in trade unions, child labour and land use rights. The agreement has been signed by 13 Dutch banks and covers their worldwide financing activities.

The Social and Economic Council of the Netherlands (SER) facilitated the banking sector agreement, with the relevant committee being chaired by Prof. Jacqueline Cramer. The key point is that banks, unions, NGOs and government have agreed to pool and share their individual expertise and experience in the field of human rights risks. Their aim is to help banks identify human rights risks and take the appropriate action in their operations.

International leadership

The agreement reached in the Banking Sector Agreement is the first of their kind worldwide between NGOs, government and a national banking sector concerning the actual implementation of the UN Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. To increase their impact, the parties have agreed to work together to reach similar agreements internationally. They intend to approach the European banking sector, the EU and the OECD with that aim in mind.

Joint research

The parties intend to learn from one another by undertaking a joint programme of research and by sharing best practices, i.e. successful methods of influencing businesses in high-risk sectors. The research will be concluded by late 2017. The parties have also agreed to conduct analyses of specific high-risk sectors, starting with the palm oil, cocoa and gold sectors. A Steering Committee will be established to support implementation of the agreement.

Expertise, experience and transparency

Up-to-date, detailed information is needed about human rights situations and any factors that might have a positive or negative impact on them, as well as a willingness to share that information. This will require close cooperation between the parties, with each having access to this information. That is why the parties plan to develop a joint database for collecting reliable information about human rights risks across countries and sectors. Banks can use this information when taking decisions about project and business financing.

Banks will themselves be more transparent about the way in which they fulfil the responsibility to respect human rights, about their investment portfolios, about their client screening programmes, and about their dialogue with clients in the event that they become involved in human rights violations. Banks will also insist that clients receiving project finance set up a complaints mechanism for actual or potential victims of human rights violations, as stipulated in the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the UN Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights. In addition, when financing businesses where there is a high risk of human rights violations, banks will encourage their clients to give those exposed to such risks an opportunity to voice their complaints. Using examples, the parties will explore where the banks shared responsibility for their business partners policy reasonably begins and ends.

Second agreement

The Banking Sector Agreement on International Responsible Business Conduct regarding Human Rights is the second such agreement to be concluded in the Netherlands in a short space of time. On 4 July, a broad coalition of parties signed the Sustainable Garment and Textile Sector Agreement. In the months and years ahead, similar agreements are expected in a number of other sectors. The agreements are a response to the SERs 2014 advisory report, in which it argues that sectors and businesses should take the initiative to conclude such agreements with government, unions and civil society organisations.



List of signatories:

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Dutch Banking Association, FNV, CNV, Oxfam Novib, Amnesty International, Pax, ABN AMRO, ASN Bank, ASR Bank N.V., BNG Bank, F. van Lanschot Bankiers N.V., FGH BANK N.V., ING Groep N.V., Intesa Sanpaolo Bank Luxembourg S.A., Amsterdam Branch, Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden N.V., NWB Bank, Rabobank, SNS Bank N.V., Triodos Bank N.V.
The recent slowdown experienced by the auto sector seems to be in the past. Most auto showrooms and dealers have been experiencing increased sales during the Diwali season. On the eve of Dhanteras, which is a very auspicious day for purchase of vehicles, auto dealers across India saw a spate of customers all ready to buy cars.

On top of the list is Indias largest car maker Maruti Suzuki India, who has revealed that they have sold a record 30,000 units in a single day. This means that Maruti has managed to sell more cars in a day, than every other car maker (except Hyundai) manages to sell in an entire month. This years figure of 30,000 units sold on Dhanteras is higher than last years figure by 20%, reveals Maruti.

Maruti, Hyundai, Renault, Mahindra, Tata Motors, almost every car maker in India has experienced increased sales. Special offers, cash discounts and attractive schemes launched in time for Diwali have made purchases of cars even more attractive. However, buyers will have to wait for some time before deliveries are finally made. Especially in the case of cars like Maruti Baleno, Vitara Brezza, Tata Tiago, Renault Kwid, Hyundai Creta as these are the most in-demand cars in India today.

Maruti Suzuki India continues to outperform competition, in spite of growing competition. One way or the other, Maruti Suzukis market share is growing in Indian auto industry. Of the 2,74,659 passenger vehicles sold during the past month, MSIL sales stood at a total of 1,32,321 units indicating that for every 2 cars sold in domestic markets, MSIL sold 1 model. At a 30% growth in domestic sales, it was MSILs highest ever sales to date.

The month of October 2016 will see an even higher number from Maruti Suzuki. Only a few days more to find out.
WASHINGTON -- Take the baby boomers. Please.

The idealists of the 1960s have come a long way from Woodstock. After a quarter-century of mismanaging the country, they have produced Donald Trump, who with his narcissistic and uncompromising style is a bright orange symbol of what went wrong with the massive generation. And polls show that boomers are the biggest source of support for Trump.

Among voters between age 50 and 64, Trump leads Hillary Clinton by three points in Washington Post-ABC News polling and by a point in NBC-Wall Street Journal polling, equal to the older, smaller Silent Generation's support of the Republican nominee in the latter poll. The generational support for Trump's burn-it-all-down campaign is the latest reminder of why the baby boomers are in the running to be remembered as the Worst Generation.

But, if I may claim a rare moment of generational pride, there is good news in the polling, too. Generation X -- my much-maligned generation -- has turned emphatically against Trump. The NBC poll shows Clinton leading by 22 points among those between 35 and 49 -- a more lopsided rejection of Trump than even the millennials mustered.

This raises hope after the debacle of boomer governance. "It's really the boomers that are driving the hyperpartisanship and polarization and gridlock," says David Rosen, a consultant specializing in generational effects in politics. Beginning with the boomer-led 1994 Republican Revolution, "that's where you see the origin of the insane politics that we have right now. Trump is in some ways taking that style to its most absurd and ridiculous extremes."

But maybe this is the boomers' last gasp. "Hopefully," Rosen tells me, "when Gen X comes to power it will repudiate the boomers and the entire legacy of this style of politics and move us toward something that is more pragmatic."

Before the emails start pouring in, let me make clear that this isn't an indictment of individual boomers, nor of boomers' contributions to art and science. But as a generation of leaders, they have been disastrous. Boomers seized the White House in 1992 and the House in 1994 and have generally dominated government since. Clinton, like Trump, is a boomer, which guarantees that the generation will control the White House through at least 2020.

And what does this generation have to show for its quarter-century of leadership?

Boomers inherited the sole superpower after the Greatest Generation won the Cold War -- and squandered U.S. influence with two long and inconclusive wars.

They gave us the financial collapse of 2008, the worst economy since the Great Depression, a crushing federal debt and worse inequality. They devoured fossil fuels and did little about global warming while allowing infrastructure and research to deteriorate. They expanded entitlement programs and are now poised to bankrupt those programs. Their leadership has led to declining confidence in religion, the presidency, Congress, the Supreme Court, banks and big business, schools, the media and the police. They may leave their children (the millennials) worse off than they were.

Boomers, coddled in their youth, grew up selfish and unyielding. When they got power, they created polarization and gridlock from both sides. Though Vietnam War-protesting boomers got the attention, their peers on the right were just as ideological, creating the religious right. Boomers are twice as likely to identify as conservative than liberal, a figure that hasn't changed much in two decades.

Generational patterns repeat over time, as researchers William Strauss and Neil Howe showed. A "civic" generation is followed by an "adaptive" one, then "idealist" and "reactive" generations. The boomers are idealists -- same as the generations that led the United States into the Civil War and the Great Depression. Gen Xers are reactive -- cynical and pragmatic -- and clean up idealists' messes. Millennials, like the Greatest Generation, rebuild institutions.

Happily, Gen Xers, the cleanup crew, could become the plurality in Congress as soon as 2018. The question is whether my generation, working with the millennials, can break the boomers' gridlock and deal with the many crises boomers left us.

Gen Xer that I am, I'm not convinced my cynical cohort has what it takes. But Rosen is hopeful. "When we see national emergencies arrive, Generation X will be able to get things done when it needs to," he says.

And this much is for sure: After a quarter-century of boomer mismanagement and the monstrosity that is Trump, we can't possibly do worse.
A coordinated replication effort conducted across 17 labs found no evidence that surreptitiously inducing people to smile or frown affects their emotional state. The findings of the replication project are published as part of a Registered Replication Report (RRR) in Perspectives on Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

The RRR project, proposed by University of Amsterdam psychology researchers Eric-Jan Wagenmakers, Titia Beek, Laura Dijkhoff, and Quentin Gronau, aimed to replicate a 1988 study conducted by psychological scientists Fritz Strack, Leonard Martin, and Sabine Stepper.

In the 1998 paper, Strack, Martin, and Stepper reported two studies in which they surreptitiously changed participants' facial expressions. Their goal was to test the idea that our facial expressions can trigger emotional reactions -- the so-called "facial feedback hypothesis" -- even when people are unaware that they are making that expression. Participants who held a pen between their teeth, inducing a smile, rated cartoons as funnier than did those who held a pen between their lips, inducing a frown.

The study is cited frequently in the scientific literature and in introductory psychology courses and textbooks. Although other studies have tested the facial feedback hypothesis using different methods, this influential study had not been directly replicated with the same design and outcome measure. This RRR paper describes a rigorous, multilab replication of that study, with each lab following a vetted protocol that was registered online prior to data collection.

The aim was to replicate the original study as closely as possible, but the RRR differed in several ways from the original. Fritz Strack provided the materials from the original study, including the original Far Side cartoons. The RRR study also used a set of Far Side cartoons after first conducting a study to ensure that they were moderately funny by today's standards. The RRR protocol also standardized the instructions to participants and stipulated that they be delivered via computer in order to minimize interactions with the experimenter. Based on guidance from an expert reviewer during the protocol vetting process, participants were recorded on video during the experiment to ensure that they were holding the pen correctly on each trial.

All of the materials, the protocol, the data, and the analysis scripts are publicly available on the Open Science Framework.

As in the original study, participants were told they would be completing different tasks with parts of the body not normally used for those tasks. Per the instructions provided, they held the pen in their mouth (between their teeth or between their lips) and completed the tasks presented in a booklet, which included drawing lines between various numbers, underlining vowels, and indicating how amused they were by cartoons.

The combined results from 1,894 participants were inconsistent with the findings reported in the original study. The data provided no evidence that inducing participants to have particular facial expressions led them to rate the cartoons differently.

"This RRR did not replicate the [Strack, Martin, Stepper] results and failed to do so in a statistically compelling fashion," the contributing researchers write in their report.

"Nevertheless, it should be stressed that the RRR results do not invalidate the more general facial feedback hypothesis," they conclude.

In a commentary accompanying the RRR report, Strack commends the efforts of those involved in the RRR. He notes his surprise that the original finding was not replicated, especially given that his and colleagues' labs have confirmed the results in "numerous operational and conceptual replications." Strack speculates about some possible reasons for the different outcomes, including that the presence of a camera in the RRR experiments might have affected how participants reacted to the cartoons.

Daniel Simons, the acting editor for this RRR project, commended the care taken by the proposing authors: "This team's exceptional rigor and care in developing the study protocol, teaching other researchers how to follow it, and fully documenting every step of the process set a standard that I hope future large-scale studies like this one will emulate."
Common swifts are known for their impressive aerial abilities, capturing food and nest material while in flight. Now, by attaching data loggers to the birds, researchers reporting in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on October 27 have confirmed what some had suspected: common swifts can go for most of the year (10 months!) without ever coming down.

While there had been examples of birds remaining in flight for periods of months, including frigate birds and alpine swifts, the evidence on common swifts sets a new record, the researchers say.

"When the common swifts leave their breeding site in August for a migration to the Central African rainforests via West Africa, they never touch ground until they return for the next breeding season 10 months later," says Anders Hedenstrom of Lund University in Sweden. "Some individuals may roost for brief periods, or even entire nights in mid-winter, but others literally never landed during this period."

Hedenstrom says the birds likely save energy during the day by gliding in upward currents of warm air. But they also ascend to high altitudes each day at dawn and dusk.

Scientists had long ago proposed that swifts might spend most of their lives in flight. To find out, Hedenstrom and colleagues developed a new type of micro data logger. The data loggers record acceleration to monitor the birds' flight activity. Later, the researchers added light sensors for use in geolocation. The researchers attached the data loggers to 19 common swifts that were later recaptured.

The data showed that swifts spend more than 99 percent of their time during their 10-month non-breeding period in flight. While some individuals settled down at some point, others never did. The birds' flight activity often appeared lower during the day than at night, most likely because the birds spent their days soaring on warm air currents.

Hedenstrom says the researchers don't yet know whether or how the birds sleep. But, "the fact that some individuals never landed during 10 months suggests they sleep on the wing." Perhaps they find time to nap during slow descents at dawn and dusk, he suggests. That's one possibility he and his colleagues hope to explore in future research.

Despite the high energetic costs associated with all that flight, common swifts also manage to live surprisingly long lives, contrary to popular notions about living hard and dying young. There are documented cases of common swifts living to the age of 20.

In that time, "the accumulated flight distance equals seven round-trip journeys to the moon," Hedenstrom says. And that, he says, means there are many more intriguing questions to ask and answer about the birds' physiology.
What happens in intestinal epithelial cells during a chronic illness? Basic research conducted at the Chair of Nutrition and Immunology at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) addressed this question by generating a new model system. Functioning mitochondria play a decisive role in cellular homeostasis, but what happens when an important player of the anti-stress program in mitochondria is switched off? On the one hand, this leads to the loss of stem cells, but on the other, it sets healing processes in motion.

The human intestinal system covers an area of approximately 300 to 500 square meters due to its many protrusions (villi). This inner intestinal wall full of tiny bumps renews itself completely once every four to five days, a process which is guided by stem cells. Mitochondria are the powerhouse of a cell and provide energy through respiration, and play a crucial part in this process.

When the self-renewal of intestinal epithelial cells is interrupted, for example due to defective mitochondria, chronic inflammation may result under extreme conditions. "We then speak of cell stress," explains Professor Dirk Haller from the Chair of Nutrition and Immunology and Executive Director of the Institute for Food and Health (ZIEL) at the Technical University of Munich (TUM). If cell stress occurs, then -- to put it graphically -- helpers so called chaperones are activated to ensure that the proteins involved in the renewal process fold properly in cells in order to maintain homeostasis of the intestinal mucosa. Heat shock protein (HSP) 60 is one of these regulators and is essential to maintain the status quo in mitochondria of intestinal epithelial cells.

Study with deactivated heat shock proteins

In a study just published in Nature Communications by Haller and his team, this protein HSP60 was examined more closely. It is deeply involved in the unfolded protein response (UPR), as scientists call it -- it can be understood as a component of the anti-stress program in cells. What happens when precisely this crucial regulator HSP60 is deactivated in the gut? How do mitochondria react in the cells when it is absent?

On one hand, the respiratory capacity and the cellular ATP levels were reduced, both key tasks of the mitochondrion, the powerhouse of the cell. At the same time, Professor Haller and his team observed that all cells without HSP60 presented changes. Stem cells lost their ability to self-regenerate, while surrounding epithelial cells initiated a growth program.

Tissue regeneration due to the induction of a growth environment

"But the reaction to the lack of HSP60 was startling," says Haller -- "because although stem cells lost their characteristic properties, the stressed cells in the surrounding intestinal mucus wall activated a growth program leading first to hyperproliferation that finally ended in tissue regeneration." The cells with disrupted mitochondrial functions send out growth factors as a "call for help." Using the stress response program, they ensure that the residing stem cells with intact mitochondria divide abundantly; these new, intact cells then replace the other stressed ones.

The lack of HSP60 therefore led to the establishment of communications from one cell to another, triggering a previously unknown healing mechanism which could be of significance after injuries to or inflammation of the intestine. "This shows what a fundamental role functioning mitochondria have in regulating intestinal tissue renewal and how they might contribute to chronic intestinal diseases," says Haller about the findings. Consequently, when the intestine is in a permanent inflammatory or stressed state, the stem cells are permanently over-stimulated to self-renew and this could facilitate the development of tumors.
Astronomers using observations from NASA's Kepler and Swift missions have discovered a batch of rapidly spinning stars that produce X-rays at more than 100 times the peak levels ever seen from the sun. The stars, which spin so fast they've been squashed into pumpkin-like shapes, are thought to be the result of close binary systems where two sun-like stars merge.

"These 18 stars rotate in just a few days on average, while the sun takes nearly a month," said Steve Howell, a senior research scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, California, and leader of the team. "The rapid rotation amplifies the same kind of activity we see on the sun, such as sunspots and solar flares, and essentially sends it into overdrive."

The most extreme member of the group, a K-type orange giant dubbed KSw 71, is more than 10 times larger than the sun, rotates in just 5.5 days, and produces X-ray emission 4,000 times greater than the sun does at solar maximum.

These rare stars were found as part of an X-ray survey of the original Kepler field of view, a patch of the sky comprising parts of the constellations Cygnus and Lyra. From May 2009 to May 2013, Kepler measured the brightness of more than 150,000 stars in this region to detect the regular dimming from planets passing in front of their host stars. The mission was immensely successful, netting more than 2,300 confirmed exoplanets and nearly 5,000 candidates to date. An ongoing extended mission, called K2, continues this work in areas of the sky located along the ecliptic, the plane of Earth's orbit around the sun.

"A side benefit of the Kepler mission is that its initial field of view is now one of the best-studied parts of the sky," said team member Padi Boyd, a researcher at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, who designed the Swift survey. For example, the entire area was observed in infrared light by NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, and NASA's Galaxy Evolution Explorer observed many parts of it in the ultraviolet. "Our group was looking for variable X-ray sources with optical counterparts seen by Kepler, especially active galaxies, where a central black hole drives the emissions," she explained.

Using the X-ray and ultraviolet/optical telescopes aboard Swift, the researchers conducted the Kepler-Swift Active Galaxies and Stars Survey (KSwAGS), imaging about six square degrees, or 12 times the apparent size of a full moon, in the Kepler field.

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"With KSwAGS we found 93 new X-ray sources, about evenly split between active galaxies and various types of X-ray stars," said team member Krista Lynne Smith, a graduate student at the University of Maryland, College Park who led the analysis of Swift data. "Many of these sources have never been observed before in X-rays or ultraviolet light."

For the brightest sources, the team obtained spectra using the 200-inch telescope at Palomar Observatory in California. These spectra provide detailed chemical portraits of the stars and show clear evidence of enhanced stellar activity, particularly strong diagnostic lines of calcium and hydrogen.

The researchers used Kepler measurements to determine the rotation periods and sizes for 10 of the stars, which range from 2.9 to 10.5 times larger than the sun. Their surface temperatures range from somewhat hotter to slightly cooler than the sun, mostly spanning spectral types F through K. Astronomers classify the stars as subgiants and giants, which are more advanced evolutionary phases than the sun's caused by greater depletion of their primary fuel source, hydrogen. All of them eventually will become much larger red giant stars.

Forty years ago, Ronald Webbink at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign noted that close binary systems cannot survive once the fuel supply of one star dwindles and it starts to enlarge. The stars coalesce to form a single rapidly spinning star initially residing in a so-called "excretion" disk formed by gas thrown out during the merger. The disk dissipates over the next 100 million years, leaving behind a very active, rapidly spinning star.

Howell and his colleagues suggest that their 18 KSwAGS stars formed by this scenario and have only recently dissipated their disks. To identify so many stars passing through such a cosmically brief phase of development is a real boon to stellar astronomers.

"Webbink's model suggests we should find about 160 of these stars in the entire Kepler field," said co-author Elena Mason, a researcher at the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics Astronomical Observatory of Trieste. "What we have found is in line with theoretical expectations when we account for the small portion of the field we observed with Swift."

The team has already extended their Swift observations to additional fields mapped by the K2 mission.
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When they found the baby bat, she was clinging to her dead mom.

Sarah Curran

The mom had gotten electrocuted on electric wires in a suburb of Sydney, Australia. She'd dangled from the wires for several hours, but eventually dropped to the ground. Bats (also known as flying foxes in Australia) are placental mammals who give birth to one baby - or pup - each year. The pups fully depend on their mothers for the first five weeks of their lives, so the mothers carry them wherever they go. But bats don't have special pouches to carry their babies in like marsupials do - the babies hold onto their moms by clamping their mouths around the moms' nipples ... and they hold on for dear life as their moms fly around!

Sarah Curran

Someone noticed the bat lying on the ground and called Sydney Wildlife, a rescue organization that cares for sick, injured and orphaned native Australian wildlife. When rescuers arrived at the scene, the baby still had her mouth around her mom's nipple, even though the mom had died hours ago. "I picked [the baby bat] up, removed her very carefully off the mother's teat," Sarah Curran, a volunteer for Sydney Wildlife, told The Dodo. "Then I quickly attempted to substitute her mum's nipple with a bat-sized dummy, wrapped her securely, and let her gently warm up and settle down before doing a more thorough assessment once I was home."

Dodo Shows Dodo Heroes Woman Devotes Her Life To The Stray Dogs Of Bali

Sarah Curran

Since the baby bat had been hanging onto her mom on the electric wires - probably for several hours - she was dehydrated and exhausted. Curran also noticed swelling and bleeding near the baby's wrist. First thing the next morning, she took her to the vet. An x-ray showed that the baby bat - whom Curran had named Zyggi - had fractured her wrist.

Sarah Curran

The vet bandaged Zyggi's wrist, and Curran wrapped it in a sock for extra support.

Sarah Curran

Then Curran bundled Zyggi up in a pink blanket. "We wrap them up in what we call 'mumma rolls,' which reflect Mums body, encased in her wings as would happen in the wild," she said.

Sarah Curran

She also placed a pacifier in Zyggi's mouth to make the baby feel like she's sucking on her mother's nipple.

Sarah Curran

Zyggi's only been in Curran's care for about two weeks now, but she's already getting much better. Curran anticipates that Zyggi will make a full recovery, and be released into the wild once she's older and learns how to fly.

Sarah Curran

"She appears to be tolerating the treatment very well," Curran said. "She's also an excellent feeder, chows down a bottle like a Hoover!"

Sarah Curran

After Zyggi drinks her milk, she falls fast asleep. "She has the most vivid bat-dreams and squeaks and twitches like a little puppy," she said. "I love it when bats dream. They're all jerky limbs, twitchy noses, flickering eyes and adorable squeaks and grumbles." While Curran is grateful to the person who called Sydney Wildlife about Zyggi and her mom, she warns that only licensed rescue professionals who have been vaccinated against Australian bat lyssavirus (which some bats carry) should rescue bats.

Sarah Curran
Amanda Herring met her husband when she was a teenager in middle school in Northern Virginia, where both did musical theater. "We were friends, never dated," Herring tells The Dodo. "I would have said you were crazy if you told me I'd be married living with Greg Selz 14 years later, and we'd have an old dog."

Bri & Wes Photography

That vision doesn't seem so crazy now, even if it took a spell to get here.

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bubbethechow

Herring and Selz were kids when they met, and went off on different paths before reconnecting in 2010. Then came long-distance dating for two years after that. After several more moves together for work and school, last year, they settled down in Washington, D.C., not far from where they'd grown up. "Our first priority was to find an apartment where we could have a dog," says Herring.

Bri & Wes Photography

Bubbe, then known as Brendinie, was one of four chows likely used for breeding, then given up to the Fairfax County Animal Shelter in Northern Virginia in the fall of 2015. Herring first spotted one of the chows on the shelter website. By the time they visited the shelter, that dog had just been adopted - but, like a movie love story, her older sister was available!

bubbethechow

Bubbe, the older sister, wasn't much interested in her visitors (and, frankly, needed a bath). Because she wasn't the friendliest, the couple knew this old, finicky dog would be a tough sell for most potential adopters. "She would need a lot of time to get adjusted, wouldn't do well with kids, and was already probably 9 years old," says Herring. "Our hearts melted."

bubbethechow

The transition wasn't easy. In the beginning. Bubbe - whose name means "grandma" in Yiddish - had some health issues, wouldn't eat and "barked, bared teeth and growled whenever we came in the room," says Herring. After a few days, when Herring got Bubbe to lick a little baby food off a spoon, it seemed like the tide was beginning to turn. Soon she was working on basic commands. They were building a relationship. It was clear that "she wanted to make us happy, and she was trying so hard," says Herring.

bubbethechow

Now, Bubbe wakes up in the morning when Herring does, and starts wagging her tail right away. She still doesn't love strangers, but she does love walks, cuddles, peanut butter and playing with Selz's mother's dog. "I think she loves us, and loves when we're happy," says Herring.

Bri & Wes Photography

And of course when Herring and Selz planned their wedding, which took place last month - Selz changed his name to Herring after it; mazel tov! - they knew Bubbe would be involved in a big way, and in a way that would make her comfortable. Bubbe was excused from the busier parts of the event, instead sharing some special quieter time with her people. "She was right next to me all morning while I did my makeup, got dressed and got my hair done," says Herring. "We took her out for a walk during dinner."

Bri & Wes Photography

Amanda Novotny, placement coordinator for the Fairfax shelter, is moved seeing Bubbe embraced by her family. "They knew Bubbe would need time and patience, and they were willing to commit to her. And she has blossomed into such a good dog, thanks to their care and love," she says.

Bri & Wes Photography

And if adopting an elderly dog means that heartbreak will likely come sooner than it otherwise would, Herring says she wouldn't give up this time for all the world. Not just because she and her now husband were able to give their crabby, elderly dog the life she deserves, that she might not have otherwise gotten. But because Bubbe's changed their lives as well. If previously they could come and go as they pleased - out to dinner anytime, or even moving to a new city - those days are over for now. Because of Bubbe, who needs walks, and vet visits, and to be tended to and pampered. "It sounds like a chore, but it's actually what makes our lives more meaningful," says Herring. "Before Bubbe, it was just the two of us," she says. "She's made the two of us into a family."
This week, Judy Obregon, locally known as the "dog lady," was out walking around Echo Lake Park in Fort Worth, Texas, yet again - the area is an infamous dumping ground for unwanted dogs. This time, she had someone else with her - a writer who, interested in what Obregon does, decided to shadow her for the day. "I was actually being interviewed by someone here locally and suddenly she was like, 'Oh my god, I just heard something,'" Obregon told The Dodo. "I walked toward the trash where they dump them all."

The dumping ground in Fort Worth, Texas, where dozens of dogs are abandoned each year | The Abandoned Ones

There was at least one carcass rotting nearby. The smell permeated the area. Suddenly a pit bull came out of the rubbish. Her teats were bulging. "She actually walked out once she saw me," Obregon said. "I kneeled down and she literally came up to me and started licking me. I had the smell of death and trash all over my face but I wasn't going to turn her away."

Because the dog was obviously a mom, Obregon and the interviewer went up and down the street looking for puppies. "We didn't think there were any since a lot of dogs used for breeding are dumped here." They got in the car with the emaciated, starving dog and started to drive away. She needed to get to the veterinarian right away. But then they noticed something moving in a ditch behind them, almost a block away from where they'd found the mother dog. "I got out and ran over there," Obregon said. "Here was this puppy, just lying there. No doubt, that's her puppy."

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"The first thing I do is pick him up and run over to her," Obregon said.

The mother dog immediately recognized her baby. "She started licking him. And I just started crying," Obregon said.

As Obregon rushed the mom and puppy to the experts at V.E.T. Care Hospital and Pet Resort in southeast Fort Worth - who made time and space for the two to come in as an emergency - the reunited pair curled up together in the backseat.

When Obregon glanced back she saw the exhausted pair had fallen asleep almost immediately.

The mother dog, whom Obregon named Hope, was in rough shape when the vet saw her. They discovered she has heartworm on top of being emaciated. She has scars around her face. And most heartbreaking of all, she has just two teeth - and they've been intentionally filed down.

"This suggests that she could have been a bait dog," Obregon said. Bait dogs are dogs used as targets so people can force more dominant dogs to practice fighting on them. "Or, maybe her teeth were filed down so she couldn't fight the humans who were forcing her to breed," Obregon said. "We just don't know for sure."

"Look how sweet she is despite what they did to her," Obregon said.

The two dogs are now recovering in a temporary foster home. "We're definitely going to keep them together until they're healthy and ready for adoption," Obregon said. Obregon named Hope's puppy Future. "Pit bulls shouldn't be judged for who they are. They're so abused and so many people judge his breed," Obregon explained. "But his future could be one where people change how they think about dogs like him. That's the whole meaning behind his name."
The state should work with Gage County officials to help them cope with the unprecedented $28.1 million judgment in the Beatrice 6 case, called the biggest false confession case in the nations history.

The possibility of a loan from the state was suggested by Jeffry Patterson, one of the attorneys representing the six people who were convicted in the 1985 murder and rape of Helen Wilson in Beatrice.

Patterson noted the existence of a state law that allows any Nebraska political subdivision to apply to the State Treasurers Office for a loan at one-half of 1 percent interest.

No application for a loan has been made since it was put on the books almost half a century ago.

State Treasurer Don Stenberg didnt sound too enthusiastic about granting a loan. He questioned whether the law could be used to pay judgments in federal court and also raised the possibility that the maximum loan under the law might be $5 million  the cap for claims paid out by the state.

Stenberg has asked Attorney General Doug Peterson whether the state is obligated to make the loan.

Meanwhile the judgment has been appealed to the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals. Its not unlikely the jury award could be reduced on appeal, but even half the original amount is still a staggering sum. Gage County officials also have been poring through old records hoping to find some evidence the judgment will be covered by insurance. Chances seem slim.

Theres no doubt that if the judgment awarded by a federal court jury is affirmed, the taxpayers in Gage County are in a world of hurt.

The county, which has a population of about 22,000, collects about $9 million a year in property taxes. The Gage County Board would have to quadruple the property tax rate just to cover the bill, assuming that it would continue to provide the usual services of county government, such as the court system, sheriffs office, road maintenance and so forth.

The county board might not even be allowed to raise the property tax rate by that much because it would bump up against the state-imposed lid. The tax rate lid that applies to Gage County is about 50 cents per $100 of valuation, according to Larry Dix, executive director of the Nebraska Association of County Officials. Gage County is at 29.7 cents per $100 of valuation.

Theres no doubt the case of the Beatrice 6 was a horrible miscarriage of justice. Combined, they lost more than 70 years of freedom before being exonerated by DNA evidence from the crime scene.

But if Gage County has to come up with this enormous sum in a short time, its residents will be financially devastated. The impact will be a major drag on the economy of the entire state. The state has an interest in keeping the damage to a minimum. If a low-interest loan is not possible under current state law, the Legislature should consider a change to allow it.
Inferno

Starring Tom Hanks, Felicity Jones, Sidse Babett Knudsen, Omar Sy and Irrfan Khan. Directed by Ron Howard. Opens Friday at major theatres. 120 minutes. 14A

Inferno finds Tom Hanks dashing and decoding with more frantic propulsion than ever, as this latest Dan Brown novel adaptation shifts from artistic puzzling to rote planet-saving.

Yet amongst all the many head-scratching images and ciphers his symbol sleuth Robert Langdon squints at, there is but one that should concern us.

Its the number three, which hovers like a spectral presence over the proceedings. This is the third Robert Langdon movie, following The Da Vinci Code (2006) and Angels and Demons (2009). Once again directed by the reliable Ron Howard, its by far the worst of this less-than-stellar trio.

You dont need a degree in cryptology or cinema studies to suss out that, with rare exceptions, the third movie in any franchise is not a treat. Characters and plotlines that initially engaged begin to breed contempt, unless creative changes are made to freshen the concept.

Alas, the shift from the cloistered chicanery of the first two films into faux 007 territory does this series no good at all. Brown deserves as much blame for this as Howard and screenwriter David Koepp (Angels and Demons).

Robert Langdon is no James Bond, and neither is the 60-year-old Hanks, although Inferno lamely tries to set them up as such. Langdon awakes in a hospital room in Florence, Italy, bleeding from a head wound and suffering from memory lapses and apocalyptic visions that will conveniently kick in when the ludicrous plot needs a boot.

He barely gets to meet cute with attending physician Sienna Brooks (Felicity Jones on autopilot) before bullets start flying, and the two are on the run from numerous pursuers, who all apparently studied Dantes Inferno and Botticellis Map of Hell in high school.

As we soon learn, the billionaire biotech guru seen in the prologue, played by a scary-eyed Ben Foster, has created a disease called Inferno to kill half the world, because humanity is the disease; Inferno is the cure, amirite?

Like innumerable pinky-sucking Bond villains before him, he doesnt want to just unleash his killer cooties. Hes taken the time to hide the bug in an oh-so-clever spot and to leave clues to it like an evil Easter egg hunt.

This gives licence to Langdon and Brooks to tear around the globe, backed by a pounding Hans Zimmer score while shouting out gobs of obvious exposition: Theyre going to wipe out half the worlds population unless we find this virus! (Is that concern on Hankss face, or boredom?)

The mob of scowlers on their tail include a very nasty woman (Ana Ularu), two nattily attired assailants (Omar Sy and Irrfan Khan, who deserve better) and a World Health Organization boss (Sidse Babett Knudsen, suitably intense), who of course has a previous romantic connection to Langdon.

An age-appropriate one at that, which is something this franchise sorely needs, along with CGI effects better than the bog-level ones on view here.

More than anything, though, this series needs closure, while it awaits the inevitable reboot.

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OTTAWACanadian troops will not face Russia alone when they begin to arrive in Latvia early next year.

Four countries  Albania, Italy, Poland and Slovenia  have promised to contribute troops and equipment to a Canadian-led NATO force being organized in Latvia in response to recent Russian actions in Eastern Europe.

Canadas partners were revealed by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg following an alliance meeting in Brussels this week.

The Liberal government announced in July that Canada would lead one of four multinational NATO forces in Eastern Europe, where the military alliance has been beefing up its presence in response to recent Russian actions.

Germany, the United States and Britain are leading similar forces in Lithuania, Poland and Estonia, respectively.

Eastern Europe allies had asked NATO to bolster its footprint in the region as a deterrent against Russia trying to destabilize them in the same way it did in Ukraine  with cyber attacks and by crossing into their territory and inciting Russian speakers within their borders.

Russia has denied any such intentions, and instead accused NATO of instigating the current standoff by expanding into former Soviet territory and trying to undermine its sphere of influence. It has also warned against any military build-up on its borders.

Canada will deploy 450 troops as well as light armoured vehicles and other military equipment to the force while Italy has said it will send 140 soldiers.

It wasnt immediately clear what the other countries will contribute, though media reports have indicated the Polish contribution will include tanks.

The Canadians will form the nucleus of the battle group, which will be based at the Adazi military base, about half an hour northeast of the capital Riga.

The first troops will arrive in the spring, but the bulk wont touch down until fall. They will stay six months, before another group of Canadians replaces them.

Officials have said the four battle groups are intended to make Russia think twice before taking any aggressive action. But they are also being kept small to prevent any provocation or escalation in tensions between Russia and NATO.

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OTTAWAThe federal Liberals attempted Thursday to fend off criticism of their response to a landmark human rights tribunal decision by announcing talks about First Nations child welfare.

A new special representative will lead national discussions on the reform of First Nations child welfare services, Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett said before the start of a Commons debate on an NDP motion about the delivery of care on reserves.

Cynthia Wesley-Esquimaux  a Lakehead University professor  will advise the government as it works with provinces, territories and child welfare agencies on an overhaul of the system, Bennett said.

Our job now is to engage with the provinces and territories to change the way the services are delivered, Bennett said outside the Commons.

There are more children in care today than at the height of residential schools, she added.

That has to stop, and that will only stop by engaging with the provinces and territories and the agencies that deliver those services, and we are . . . therefore committed to do that.

Late Monday, the Manitoba legislature passed a motion condemning the federal government for its response to the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal ruling.

I say that Manitobas got to sit down with us and fix the system, Bennett said Thursday in response.

Last January, the tribunal found that the federal government discriminates against First Nations children in its delivery of child welfare services.

It has since issued two compliance orders urging the Liberals to act.

The federal NDP motion, which will face a vote on Tuesday, calls for the government to comply with the ruling  first with an immediate $155-million investment, then with a funding plan for future years.

It also calls for the government to adopt Jordans Principle, which says no aboriginal child should suffer denial, delay or disruption of health services available to other children simply because of jurisdictional feuds.

The principle is named for Jordan Anderson  a Cree boy from Norway House, Man., who died in hospital in 2005 after jurisdictional disagreements kept him from spending his last years in home care.

Implementing the tribunals historic decision should not be a matter of consultation because it is legally binding, Charlie Angus, the NDP indigenous affairs critic, said at the onset of Thursdays debate.

There is a complete discrepancy between the services that children on reserve are treated to and children off reserve, Angus said. Thats why it is systemic, racist discrimination.

The discussions announced Thursday do not simply involve a bunch of bureaucrats talking, said Margaret Buist, director general of the child and family services branch at the Indigenous Affairs Department.

Its a bunch of bureaucrats listening to the people who provide this service as to how best to reform the program so as not to discriminate, but more importantly, how best to inform the program so that First Nation children and families are getting the service that they need, she said during a briefing.

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JENNER, ALTA.Thirty ranches near an army base in southeastern Alberta are now under quarantine as food safety officials test for bovine tuberculosis.

A Canadian Food Inspection Agency confirmed that one animal shipped to the U.S. for slaughter in September was found by American inspectors to have the disease.

The CFIA says the animal came from a ranch near Jenner, about 100 kilometres northwest of Medicine Hat, and which borders on Canadian Forces Base Suffield.

It announced on Oct. 19 that it put that farms herd under quarantine.

Producers have for years blamed an elk herd estimated at about 7,000 animals living on base land for ruined fences and pillaged crops on nearby farms.

Elk also carry bovine tuberculosis, which is a chronic, contagious bacterial disease that in advanced stages presents as weight loss, fever and hacking cough.

It can spread to humans, according to CFIA fact sheet, though thats rare in countries such as Canada which have eradication programs.

As additional information about the movement of potentially exposed animals is gathered, the CFIA investigation may involve additional locations and individual farms, said a statement from CFIA.

Cypress-Medicine Hat MLA Drew Barnes raised the issue of the elk herd in the legislature last spring, arguing that Albertas government had not done enough to control the elk population.

Its up to the government to ensure cattle and ranchers are protected and that consumers are protected, Barnes said Thursday. Its the fear of something like this that was the concern originally.

Barnes said its important to keep in mind the source of the disease is not yet known, adding the situation appears to be well under control. He added ranchers are under stress.

Alberta Agriculture Minister Oneil Carlier said he expects no market disruption or trade issues due to the detection. He said hes been in close contact with industry groups and federal agencies about the issue, he told the News.

We know that the industry is strong and resilient, he said. We know that this is a challenging time for the affected producers and our government continues to monitor this situation closely.

About 200 elk were reintroduced at the 2,700-square-kilometre military base in the 1990s for rangeland management, which up until 2013 also hosted cattle grazing.

The most recent case of bovine TB detected in Canada was five years ago in British Columbia.

The disease is also in elk and bison herds around Wood Buffalo National Park in Alberta and among elk at Rounding Mountain National Park in Manitoba.

Producers in that province called for a cull to control the spread of the disease in 2011.

Currently producers around that park are still required to have periodic testing in order to manage the disease.

Livestock producers are eligible for compensation if animals are ordered to be destroyed.

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VEGREVILLE, ALTA.The mayor of an Alberta town says he will fight the relocation of the federal immigration and refugee processing centre that has been the communitys major employer since it opened in 1994.

Vegreville Mayor Myron Hayduk says workers at the Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Case Processing Centre were told Thursday it will be relocated to Edmonton in 2018 when its lease expires.

He says federal department officials didnt inform him about this and he only learned about the meeting with workers via an anonymous call.

Hayduk says the move and loss of more than 200 jobs will devastate the town of 6,000, as well as surrounding towns.

When you take the ratios, were losing a minimum of 200 jobs and if you took that same ratio population-wise to Edmonton, it would be like Edmonton losing 3,500 jobs, Hayduk said.

We are not going to take this lying down. If I have to make a trip to Ottawa myself and jump up and down in front there, I will do it. This is, this is just too damn much for a town of our size.

Immigration Minister John McCallum responded that the plan would be more efficient and result in a net increase of jobs in Alberta.

Shannon Stubbs, the Conservative MP for the area, says the town has been blindsided by the move and she wants McCallum to reconsider.

The centre has been a major employer in Vegreville, processing temporary and permanent residency applications, work permits, visitor records and study permits, while also backing up other centres across the country.

McCallum says there is a strong business case for the decision  an argument Stubbs angrily dismissed Friday during question period in the House of Commons.

Thats the jobs of 280 people gone, 250 spousal jobs impacted, three local businesses owned by worker families  a quarter of the students in the towns schools are kids of workers, Stubbs thundered.

No consulting, no consideration of costs or spinoff consequences. Will the minister stop this out-of-touch, deliberate attack?

McCallum insisted there are good reasons for the decision.

It is a responsibility of the government to spend taxpayers money wisely, to improve the efficiency of immigration, to reduce processing times and that is what this move will do, he said.

He said everyone working in Vegreville will be given the opportunity to work in Edmonton  a solution Stubbs warned could make matters even worse in the town, where the real estate market is already depressed.

There are already 100 houses for sale in the town and forcing workers to move could add another 200 to an existing glut, she said. Vegreville cant take another hit.

McCallum said its simply a matter of improving service.

There are pressures in immigration, there are inefficiencies that have to be improved, he said.

Therefore, it is incumbent on us to accept a strong business case which will actually result in a net addition of jobs, but will also result in much greater efficiency that will allow us to provide better customer service and to reduce processing times over time.

And I point out that all of those currently working in Vegreville will have an opportunity for alternative employment in Edmonton.

Not everyone can commute to Edmonton or afford to relocate, Stubbs said.

Sonia Lesage, spokeswoman for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, said the decision to move the centre was a difficult one.

In negotiating a new lease, the department has made the difficult decision to move its case processing centre from Vegreville to Edmonton, the closest major city, where the proximity to universities, the availability of public transit and housing options, and career growth opportunities within the federal government will make it easier to recruit and retain both qualified and bilingual employees and to meet our growing needs, Lesage said in a email late Thursday night.

This decision was made in an effort to respond to increased demand in various lines of business, and to expand operations, Lesage said.

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MONTREALWhat draws young Muslim women to an extremist strain of Islam and a life dodging bombs and bullets in Syria or Iraq?

A new report into the realm of female Islamic radicalization in Quebec has found it is a matter of adolescent socialization and the fraught search for an identity as much as a matter of faith.

The study is based on a dozen interviews conducted with those who tried to leave, who thought about leaving, or with family of those who have fled. It tells of teenage girls in Montreal wearing the niqab  a full face covering  to attract male suitors; of the pressure to show religious piety on social media; and of a virtual sorority of radicalized females around the globe helping to plan a foreign  and illegal  voyage.

Prepared for Quebecs Conseil du Statut de la Femme by Montreals Centre for the Prevention of Radicalization, the report comes after a wave of young left or tried to leave the country to join jihadist groups in 2015.

Overall, the report said, between three and seven females from Quebec are believed to have left the country for Syria or Iraq since 2013. Nationally, the researchers estimated that 10 females have gone abroad.

Of the young women interviewed, all performed well in school and were raised in comfortable, middle-class households. But many complained of feeling caught between the demands and expectations of their immigrant families and those of francophone Quebec society.

Some of them forged an identity shell that resulted in an eventual rupture with the outside world, including their family, their friends and the rest of society, the report said.

Interventions and criticisms of this identity only pushed them further along their path. One young woman recounted her mother scolding her for wearing terrorist clothing. Another spoke of the argument that ensued when her mother learned of her secret conversion to Islam.

Each incident or confrontation at the family level reinforces their feeling of being on the right path and having chosen the good group over their parents, adults and a society that seems to want to reject them, the report said.

The relationships between members of the group were nurtured at one place in particular, described as a religious and community centre where young males and females formed friendships and relationships over their shared religious and world views.

Described by many as a big family, this place accentuated the process among some of adopting a new identity, of the attraction of certain proposals by jihadist groups in Syria and the gradual emergence of the idea of hijra (emigrating to an Islamic land).

The report describes the role played by charismatic figures at this centre, who have implicitly authorized the growing interest in leaving for Islamic lands.

Even though such figures dont call directly for the young people to leave Quebec to go to Syria and join jihadist groups, they seem nonetheless to have contributed to the legitimization of hijra, the report said.

A participant told researchers that one religious leaders speeches during a series of 30 conferences on the life of the Prophet emphasized that there was a conflict between Muslims and the enemies of Islam.

Among females convinced that life in Syria or Iraq would be better than in Canada, there were still reservations, based on reports of temporary marriages intended to fulfil the sexual needs of fighters.

They seemed to be preoccupied by certain real risks, like being forced into a marriage if they didnt arrive as a couple in the territory occupied by jihadist groups in Syria, or even suffering sexual assault if they were not accompanied by a man, the report said.

Several participants spoke about drawing on the advice of other young women who had already travelled to Syria or Iraq and were offering their experiences via social media. The report said this advice  about travel, about what to expect once there  acted like a virtual sorority.

Paradoxically, the perception that they were receiving an honest account that didnt try to minimize the brutal reality of the conflict helped convince the young Quebec women a little bit more of the necessity of going to Syria, the report said.

The young women did seem content with the idea of restricted or traditional roles for the sexes that would be enforced once abroad.

In the near majority of cases, they did not want to fight like the boys of the group wanted to do, but to start a family, the report said. In a mix of realism (the poverty) and idealism (the ability to live normally) the young women ultimately wanted to adhere to a very traditional vision of gender roles that they did not think they would be able to fulfil in Quebec without being judged.

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Justin Trudeau named nine new senators on Thursday. Its said hell name 12 more within days. Live in Ontario or Quebec? Check the mail. You may already be a winner!

This is especially likely if youre one of 2,700 people who applied for a seat in Parliaments plush red upper chamber. This is the first time applications have been accepted. Well, the first time theres been a formal process. Its not as though Canadians in decades past were strictly forbidden from asking for a seat in the great beyond. Its just that their method used to be looser and more improvised, often over an umpteenth round of libations at the National Press Club or in a corner booth at Hys.

The latest nine seem a worthy bunch. Party bagmen and famous broadcasters are conspicuously under-represented among their number.

One new senator, Winnipeg psychiatrist Harvey Chochinov, is particularly hard to square with the notion that a Liberal-designed process will pick conspicuously Liberal senators. His previous government appointment, to a panel examining options for physician-assisted dying, came from Stephen Harpers Conservative government. Chochinov had argued earlier that the legislated ban on assisted suicide should remain in place.

The background of these senators is less important than their number, because they bring the Senate closer to the day when senators with no formal allegiance to a party will form a plurality in the red chamber. Already this non-aligned faction is feeling its oats. Senator Andre Pratte, who was a newspaper editorialist before Trudeau appointed him a few months ago, welcomed the newcomers by sending out a news release to complain that the non-aligned bloc has only half as many seats on Senate committees as its numbers would indicate. Time to change the rules, Pratte said.

Indeed there will be many changes to the rules. Divorced from allegiance to party whips, the newly frisky Senate could cause all sorts of trouble, indefinitely stalling legislation by sending bills back to the Commons heavily amended. The Commons can, of course, ignore the amendments and send back the version MPs passed first. But what if the Senate sends the bill back down, amended again?

Now, up to a point, this is precisely what Trudeau had in mind when he booted Senate Liberals from the partys national caucus nearly three years ago, and again when he campaigned on a promise to appoint new senators at arms length. Let em judge bills by their own lights, he said. Caucus discipline isnt the worlds only virtue.

But even some of the new senators think there should be reasonable limits on their exercise of their independence. They came up with a decent compromise in June when they considered the Trudeau governments assisted-dying legislation. Many senators thought the bill, as sent up from the Commons, restricted access to assisted dying too narrowly. They sent it down with amendments.

But when the Commons passed the bill again without the amendments, Senator Peter Harder, the Trudeau appointee who acts as the governments representative in the Senate, called on his colleagues to approve it this time, to accept the message passed by the House of Commons. And enough of them did that the bill passed that way.

Lets be clear here: here was a triumph of the party line, handed down by Prime Ministers Office and obeyed in these days by nearly 100 per cent of MPs nearly 100 per cent of the time, over the right of senators to think independently. And thats the way it should be. Prime ministers and their caucuses are elected and can be unelected. Even when theyre annoying they should win these confrontations.

The Senate would do well to codify the rule it improvised for the assisted-dying bill: Senators can send a bill back with amendments once, but not twice, or at least not forever. MPs may even choose to accept the odd Senate amendment, but it must be their choice.

But if that becomes the rule, strange things may start happening. An upper chamber where members could be thoughtful, entrepreneurial, free from groupthink but responsible in their exercise of modest power, would present a tempting contrast to the whipped and disciplined life most MPs live during office hours in Ottawa. Surely the Senate cant have all the fun forever before MPs start to want some of what their colleagues down the hall enjoy. The Senates new-found independence may turn out to be contagious.

Paul Wells is a national affairs writer. His column appears Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

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Toronto Police Services have located the car that plunged off a bridge into the Toronto Harbour Shipping Channel in Downtown Toronto on Thursday afternoon.

Emergency response units believe that there may be a person or people trapped inside the car.

The Toronto Police Services Marine Unit had not been able to locate the vehicle in the water for close to two hours. They believe that visibility and depth of the water were factors in the time it took.

TPS received a call from witnesses shortly before 4 p.m. that there had been a car in the water around.

The incident occurred around the Cherry Street Strauss Trunnion Bascule Bridge. Search and rescue operation have left Cherry St. closed, southbound from Commissioners St. The operation has later been renamed to a recovery operation. Cherry St. will remain closed over night.

Emergency Medical Services said that directly after the plunge, when the car was still on the surface of the water, a passing bicyclist jumped into the water to try to help whoever was inside. Toronto Fires Platoon Chief Kevin Aucoin said that that would-be rescuer was subsequently transported to hospital for hypothermia.

The recovery operation was suspended for the night at 6:30 p.m. and will resume in the morning. TPS explained that there would be no visibility in the water and that continuing the operation was deemed too dangerous.

Aucoin explained that he believed that the vehicle was going at a high speed and that the vehicle was most likely northbound on Cherry St. before hitting the rail and falling into the water.

Aucoin explained that the water is 25 feet deep where the car fell in.

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Two city councillors are demanding answers from Toronto Hydro about the hiring of key figures from Mayor John Torys 2014 election campaign as consultants on a possible privatization of the city-owned utility.

Gord Perks and Janet Davis sent an administration inquiry to the city clerk Thursday regarding Hydros use of public affairs firm Edelman Canada and pollster Campaign Research.

The Star reported last week that Edelmans Bob Richardson, who co-chaired Torys successful 2014 mayoral campaign, is working on issues related to the Hydro privatization push with Campaign Research co-owner Nick Kouvalis, a key strategist in Torys election win whos also expected to run the mayors 2018 re-election bid.

The councillors want to know what work the firms are doing, when they were hired, how much they are being paid, when Hydros board of directors were notified of the hiring and if Hydro consulted any city council members or city staff on the decision to seek external expertise.

Im deeply troubled that former political operatives of Mayor Tory are being paid with public money to do undisclosed work around the privatization of Toronto Hydro, Perks said in an interview.

However, Perks noted that Toronto Hydro might not have to answer the questions. Administrative inquiries go to the city manager but he does not control Hydro, an arms-length agency with its own board of directors.

If Hydro refuses to answer the questions, that would be a bad sign about privatization, he added.

Richardson declined last week to confirm his role, saying its up to firms to decide if they want to reveal their contractor list. Kouvalis has not responded to the Stars inquiries.

Tory spokeswoman Amanda Galbraith last week called Richardson and Kouvalis two of the best and brightest in their respective fields but added The mayors office has no role in hiring decisions at Hydro or any other city agency.

In the 2014 campaign, Tory seemed to reject Hydro privatization  likening the idea to a fire sale  when rival Karen Stintz proposed a 10 per cent sale to help fund transit expansion. But in the fall of 2015, sources say, Torys office took a keen interest in city council appointments to Hydros board.

Appointees confirmed by council last December included: David McFadden, former Progressive Conservative MPP and chair of the pro-privatization Ontario Energy Association; and Tamara Kronis, a lawyer-turned-goldsmith who was operations director for Torys campaign.

Appointed to the Toronto Hydro-Electric System Ltd. board was Case Ootes, a former city councillor who was named to Torys transition team immediately after the election.

Last January the Star revealed that Tory advisers and senior staff had started laying groundwork for a partial sale of the utility, and that Hydro executives had initiated extensive financial analysis and research on the case for a partial sale.

Tory said at the time he knew of no such plans. In May he joined city manager Peter Wallace in saying city council should consider the partial sale of city assets including Toronto Hydro to help fund transit expansion and social housing repairs.

Council voted in July to direct city staff to study and report back on possible asset sales. In September, Tory used a major speech to argue, We have an obligation to look at all the options including unlocking the value that already exists in Toronto Hydro, while keeping (a majority of) it in public hands.

In response to the Stars requests for an interview with Toronto Hydro chief executive Anthony Haines on privatization plans, the utilitys communications director Brian Buchan has replied: The decision to sell any part of Toronto Hydro is the decision of our sole shareholder, the City of Toronto. Toronto Hydro does not comment on market speculation or rumour.

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In a courtroom overlooking the scene of the alleged crime  a massive spaceship-shaped evangelical church known as the Prayer Palace  a 20-year-old woman described being inappropriately groped and kissed by the pastor she saw as a grandfather.

Paul Melnichuk, 83, is accused of sexually assaulting both the woman and her mother on separate occasions in 2014.

In a quavering voice far removed from that of the flamboyant, controversial Pastor Paul who founded the Prayer Palace more than 30 years ago, Melnichuk pleaded not guilty to two charges of sexual assault at the start of his trial at the Etobicoke courthouse on Finch Ave. W on Thursday.

Its a church, a family church, a multicultural congregation of thousands, said the young woman, whose name is covered by a court ordered publication ban, when asked to describe the Prayer Palace.

Her family joined the church after moving to Toronto in 2005.

When she was around 15 or 16, Melnichuk and his wife Kathleen encouraged her to join the choir and sing on stage during the church services on Sunday.

I always looked up to Mr. Melnichuk, she said. I respected him very mucheverything that he said for me to do, I would do out of respect and love, thinking that was what was best for me.

After she went to college for a year and returned for the summer in 2014, his behaviour towards her changed, she said. His hugs became longer, they became tighter, his hands more wandering, she said, wiping away tears.

Melnichuk would sometimes give her and others money in what she called a Pentecostal handshake  usually while she was on stage.

About a month after she got back to Toronto, she says someone told her Melnichuk wanted to speak to her in his office. Melnichuk told her he wanted to bless her and gave her $100. Then he kissed her on the mouth, she said.

She froze, she said, then left, trying to rationalize what happened.

Maybe you are the one taking it the wrong way, she said she thought. He is a man of God, he would never do this.

But, she testified, it happened twice more. Once in June, Melnichuk gave her $1,000 to pay for driving lessons and told her not to tell anyone, she said.

After he gave her the money, she said, he kissed her and ran his hands over her body, touching her buttocks and between her legs.

It took less than ten seconds, she said. After that, she said, she stopped going to church as often and told her mother she didnt want to sing on stage.

In July 2014, when she brought her brother to church very early in the morning, she said she encountered Melnichuk in a hallway.

He hugged her again, this time grabbing her neck and kissing her, she said, adding that she could feel his tongue in her mouth. She said she could not recall where exactly he touched her.

She told her brother what had happened, but swore him to secrecy. Melnichuks behaviour had left her feeling hurt and betrayed after knowing him half her life, she said.

I couldnt even think of how it would hurt other people, she said of why she didnt tell her parents or anyone else.

Shortly after she started college in the fall of 2014, her brother insisted she tell her parents what happened and she said he could tell them.

Her parents asked her to fly back to Toronto for the weekend and, in a family meeting, told her that something similar had also happened to her mother. They left the church at that time, she said.

They reported the incidents to the police in January 2015 after much discussion, she said.

During cross-examination, Melnichuks lawyer Nathan Gorham suggested the complainants family was in conflict with Melnichuk in September 2014 and made up the sexual assault allegations to discredit him.

In a board of directors meeting, Melnichuk said the complainants mother was being rebellious and trying to take over the church, Gorham said. Her mother was then told she was not going to be part of a financially lucrative church scheme, he said.

Gorham suggested her family left the church because they were angry over that, not because of inappropriate touching.

The complainant said she was mad about the comments but her family left the church because of Melnichuks actions.

If nothing had happened to my mom, if nothing had happened to me, we wouldnt have left. Wed been there for eight years, she responded, adding that she still respects many of the other people involved in the church.

(Melnichuk) did hug you many times, but he never touched your bum, grabbed your crotch or put his tongue down your throat, Gorham said. You and your brother and your mother have exaggerated the hugs.

The complainant maintained the sexual assaults happened.

The complainant and her family were urged by others to take down Paul Melnichuk, and that was why they eventually went to the police, Gorham suggested.

Not necessarily taking down, more like expose, the complainant said.

The Crown is not proceeding with three charges of sexual assault that were initially laid but will be asking the judge to consider the allegations as similar fact evidence, prosecutor Stuart Rothman said.

Gorham told the court that Melnichuk has a terminal illness that causes him significant pain. As a result of treatment for the illness he is not in a condition to testify, Gorham said, which may result in the trial being adjourned until 2017 after the Crown has completed their case.

The Prayer Palace and the lavish lifestyles of Melnichuk and his family were the subject of a 2007 Star investigation that found the church raked in money from its many loyal congregants but spent little on charitable works.

The trial continues.

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Tell me with a straight face that Donald Trump is not a sexual predator who openly admitted to committing sexual assault repeatedly! Where is the moral outrage of "socially conservative" Republicans, of evangelicals, of the Moral Majority, of Newt Gingrich, Bob Livingston, Dennis Hastert, Dan Burton, who fathered a child with his mistress, the torchbearers of former House Judiciary Chairman Henry Hyde, and Rep. Helen Chenoweth (R-Idaho), all six of whom had sexual affairs but didnt let immoral behavior slow them down one whit from driving the impeachment of Bill Clinton?

Where is the moral outrage of Catholic bishops who have been outspoken in condemning anyone disagreeing with Catholic pronouncements? Where is Liberty Universitys Jerry Falwell Jr.? Where are the Christians who claim they believe in the sanctity of marriage? Where is Ted Cruz? Where are talk radio hosts Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Ed Schultz and Mark Levin?

For more than 30 years, Republicans screamed morality, nonstop. Where are they now?

Where are Nebraskas officials? Rep. Jeff Fortenberry and Sen. Deb Fischer proclaimed support for Trump ("Fortenberry, Fischer say theyll vote for Trump despite disgust," Oct. 13). Rep. Adrian Smith jumped on the bandwagon early. Long before Trump bragged about sexually assaulting women, Sen. Ben Sasse said his conscience would not permit him to vote for the Republican nominee.

I appreciate Sasses stand of conscience. My conscience will not allow me to remain silent. My conscience will not allow me to vote for any candidate who is supporting an admitted sexual predator.

JoEllen W. Polzien, Lincoln
One of Paul Melnichuks two alleged sexual assault victims testified Friday that it felt like a strong animal had grabbed her the day she and the popular pastor were walking alone in a church hallway.

You dont even have a second to react or think, the woman, whose name is covered by a publication ban, testified in a Finch Ave. courtroom, right next door to Melnichuks Prayer Palace, the massive evangelical church he founded decades ago and also the scene of the alleged crime.

The flamboyant 83-year-old pastor pleaded not guilty on the first day of his trial Thursday to sexually assaulting the woman and her daughter, who were once members of the congregation.

The woman said she was walking to Melnichuks left one day in 2014 when she testified he suddenly grabbed her shoulders, pressed his genitals up against her buttocks and made a shaking motion with his hips. She said she then jumped and turned around and he did the same.

The woman demonstrated all of this in court on her Spanish interpreter.

The woman had been working in an office at the church for several months at that point. She testified Melnichuk eventually followed her back into her office, where she sat behind the desk.

I was very confused, I was in shock, I was trembling, she testified in her examination-in-chief.

She said she told him: You need me in this place. Dont you ever dare do what you just did to me.

He then bent down and hugged her, she said, and told her: Only hugs. Only hugs.

By that point she had already felt uncomfortable being alone with Melnichuk, the woman testified under questioning from Crown attorney Stuart Rothman.

She had been volunteering at the church, and her children were also active in the congregation. The woman said she felt that Melnichuk was very kind and generous, like a father to her. He had given money to help the family, and she had invited Melnichuk and his wife over for dinner once.

Anything that they asked of us, we were a family that was there for them, she said. I trusted him as a spiritual figure, as a father for me, and grandfather for my children.

But before the alleged hallway incident, there were two hugs that the woman recalled made her uncomfortable. She said Melnichuk hugged her and then gave her a slight slap on the buttocks.

It was always very quick, she said.

She also spoke of being quickly grabbed on several occasions, where she said Melnichuk touched her breast.

Becoming emotional on the stand, she testified about the day in the fall of 2014 she learned from her son that her daughter was claiming that Melnichuk had sexually abused her.

Thats when I said to everyone that he had done the same thing to me, she testified.

At first her daughter did not want to go to the police, but after several months of discussion amongst family members, the woman said she and her daughter decided to file a report.

I am a woman who seeks out God and perhaps this might not be relevant to any of you, but I know it was the right thing to do in front of God, because a man who is prophesying about justice and truth cannot continue doing what he was doing, she said.

I dont know if he was doing this with other people, but I could not allow him to do this to another person. We gave my daughter timeIts not easy to be here, especially to accuse someone who meant a lot to me, but it was the right thing to do.

Melnichuks lawyer, Nathan Gorham, objected, saying the woman was pontificating, but Justice Gerald Lapkin allowed it, saying the woman was explaining the delay in reporting to the police.

The womans daughter, 20, testified Thursday that she had been inappropriately kissed and groped by the pastor in 2014.

During cross-examination Thursday, Gorham suggested the family was in conflict with Melnichuk in September 2014 and made up the sexual assault allegations to discredit him, which the daughter denied.

Earlier on Friday, Gorham wrapped up cross-examination of the daughter.

She testified there had been six or seven incidents of hugging that she considered inappropriate. Gorham pressed her for details, such as where and when some of the hugs took place, but the woman could not recall.

If I dont remember when it happened, how would I possibly know where it happened? the woman said after Gorham asked about the first hug, in a sometimes tense exchange.

Im not going to try to come up with an answer to please you right now, the woman said when Gorham again asked for details.

From the first time you went to police in January 2015, youve made this allegation about the hugs. Its not as if youre being asked about it for the first time today, Gorham said.

I know, but it was also two years ago, she replied.

The trial continues Monday with cross-examination of the mother.

With files from Alyshah Hasham

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After weeks of silence from the York Region public school board, two trustees are asking top officials to clarify if proper policies were followed in the investigation into allegations that a Markham elementary school principal put anti-Muslim posts on social media.

In September, the York Region District School Board said it was investigating after becoming aware of postings on the Facebook page of Ghada Sadaka, a principal at Sir Wilfrid Laurier Public School.

Last week, the board told concerned parents that because the investigation was a personnel issue, they could not tell them the status or outcome of the investigation.

Parents say Sadaka continues to work at the school. The principal didnt respond to a request for comment for this article.

In emails obtained by the Star, two Markham trustees have asked the board chair, Anna DeBartolo, and the director of education, J. Philip Parappally, for transparency.

Although the incident is classified as a personnel matter and the investigation had been done, I believe that transparency is the solution to address concerns of the Community, wrote Markham trustee Allan Tam in an email sent Monday night.

Please confirm the Board had followed Policy 240 to meet with the witnesses of Sir Wilfrid Laurier Public School who complained about the Principal, he wrote, referring to the boards respectful workplace policy, which explains how complaints of this nature are to be dealt with.

The next day, trustee Billy Pang also asked for answers in an email.

As the trustee serving Sir Wilfrid Laurier Public School community, I concur with the request of trustee Tam, he said. The constituents of Sir Wilfrid Laurier Public School community deserve an answer.

Neither DeBartolo nor Parappally responded to a request for comment for this story.

Board spokesman Licinio Miguelo said in an email that the investigation is a personnel matter and I cannot discuss specifics.

However, I can confirm that in any case where such allegations are brought forward all applicable policies and regulations are strictly followed, Miguelo said.

Pang and Tam didnt respond to request for comment from the Star.

Some of the Facebook posts the principal is alleged to have shared and commented on include: videos purportedly showing violent Muslim takeovers of Paris and London, one claiming the government will build refugee camps in Canada, and one headlined: Must see: Dutch mayor tells fellow Muslims they can f------ if they dont like freedom.

Parents who raised concerns about the postings were told by trustees through emails that the board had followed its policy for investigations, which outlines procedures that should be followed if a community member reports harassment or discrimination.

Among the procedures in the policy:

The person investigating must hold a meeting with the persons involved within five business days of receiving the complaint.

In the case of a complaint against a principal or vice-principal, the superintendent of schools will submit a copy of the written complaint and a summary report of the action taken to the superintendent for human resources.

The resolution of the complaint will be communicated in writing to the parties involved within five business days of the conclusion.

The community member who initially filed the complaint in August says she wasnt contacted by board.

They never followed up with me, said the community member, who asked her name not be used for fear of the repercussions. I havent heard anything at all, she said, adding that she had identified herself to the board in the original complaint.

Given how diverse the board is, I cant believe this is how they are dealing with this incident, she said. How am I supposed to trust their words, if I dont see any action?

Correction- October 28, 2016: This article was edited from a previous version that misspelled the name of Sir Wilfrid Laurier Public School.

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A review of the first 350 high priority child protection cases has found that discredited Motherisk alcohol and drug tests played a substantial role in 10 families where children were taken from parents and placed into foster or group homes.

Judith Beaman, head of the Motherisk Commission of Inquiry, released the figures for the first time Thursday during a speech at a legal workshop on child protection.

Members of Beamans team made clear the 10 cases uncovered so far might be the tip of the iceberg. Motherisk commission lawyer Lorne Glass said he expects another 2,000 cases will be reviewed where the faulty hair tests might have significantly influenced decisions to remove children from their families.

Beaman said the evidence so far also indicates that indigenous and racialized communities were most affected by the discredited hair tests, conducted by a now disbanded Hospital for Sick Childrens Motherisk laboratory.

Its our belief that these communities were disproportionately impacted by the tests, Beaman told the Law Society of Upper Canada workshop.

She noted that the Childrens Aid societies in Algoma and Hamilton often used the Motherisk tests on aboriginal parents, while societies in Peel region and Toronto used them on black people and other visible minority groups.

Scientific studies have suggested there could be a racial bias to drug hair tests because drugs seem to be more readily incorporated into darker coloured hair.

The problem that has occurred here, I would say, represents a dark chapter in the world of child protection, Beaman told the lawyers at the workshop.

And as is so often the case, the wrong has affected people who are already vulnerable and marginalized, who struggle with issues of mental health and poverty and addictions.

Beamans comments are the first glimpse into a likely fraught process with no easy fixes or clear path to justice for families who lost their children because of faulty tests.

We understand that very few people are going to walk away from this in a better position from where they are today, she said. We know that the remedies are extremely few.

Before it was shut down last year, Motherisk was a primary provider of hair drug and alcohol tests in Canada, serving mainly child welfare agencies. The results were accepted by courts across the country  in thousands of cases where children were considered at risk of abuse  virtually without question.

Motherisks tests were deemed by an independent review last year to be inadequate and unreliable. That review was sparked by a Star investigation that found that prior to 2010, Motherisk was using a test that was not considered to be the gold standard. Sick Kids CEO Dr. Michael Apkon later apologized to any families who felt they may have been affected.

The provincial government then appointed Beaman to review affected cases. The commission began its work in January.

In the first phase of its work, the commission is focused on reviewing what it considers high priority cases. They are cases where the Motherisk tests likely played an important role throughout the process to remove a child from their family, including the temporary removal orders made by courts along the way.

Beaman described the 10 cases found so far that fit the criteria as very few, but added that even one case is too many.

Beaman blamed systemic failure throughout the child protection system. She noted that the Motherisk lab never met the standard applied to forensic evidence used in court.

The tests were a lucrative business  each cost $700 to conduct  and the lab was heavily marketed, Beaman noted. You could imagine how much money was made, she said, adding that more than 16,000 people were tested between 2005 and 2015.

Beaman described child protection workers with societies as sometimes lacking adequate training. The turnover rate among them is high and many burnout, she added.

She suggested child protection workers used the tests as levers with parents. The parent would not get back a child unless a hair test was done, and a refusal to do a hair test becomes in and of itself a strike against the parent, she said.

She described a child protection system where society workers and judges relied on the faulty hair tests as proof the parents were doing drugs, while paying less attention on the ability of a parent to be a good caregiver.

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Around this time every year, Canadians learn to live with the fact that warm and sunny days dont last forever. The same is true for sunny-ways government.

A year after being sworn into office, Justin Trudeaus Liberal government is weathering some storms this fall: expense and fundraising controversies, fights with the provinces, even some heckling directed at the prime minister in the past week.

None of this should be unexpected  running a country is hard. Politicians are going to get criticized. What separates good governments from bad ones is how they react to it.

This weekend, Carleton Universitys School of Indigenous and Canadian Studies is holding a conference about this whole business of criticizing the government. Its called After the Deluge: Reframing/Sustaining Critique in Post-Harper Canada.

Conservatives might well see this conference as evidence that they did indeed have lots of enemies in the ivory tower over the past decade. Or at least many of them saw it that way.

Several years ago, for instance, one of Stephen Harpers former communications directors publicly advised a student: If you have a teacher or examples of teachers who are trying to jam lefty philosophy down your throat, please send me an email . . . Id love to make them famous.

But these were years in which many Conservatives saw enemies everywhere, including academia.

In its call for papers to be presented at the event, organizers wrote:

The loss of the Harper government for Canadian academics is not unlike the loss of George W. Bush for American comedians: the question in this moment of optimism (which may well have passed by the time this conference comes around) is  What do we do now?

Ive done some courses in this school at Carleton, along the way to a degree (still incomplete,) so I was asked to open the gathering with a few words  presumably about how the media has adjusted its critical lens in the post-Harper era.

What I plan to say is that while the government has changed, the medias job hasnt  and criticism is as important today as it was in the past decade, and the decades before that.

First of all, Canada now has an activist government, determined to make itself relevant in peoples lives again. The ways in which it is inserting itself into the economy (slowing down the housing markets, for instance) need scrutiny to see whether results match the intent.

Its also a government that has invited criticism and measurement, and for the first time in history, publicly releasing the marching orders for every cabinet minister.

Now we dont have to guess or opine on whether a minister is doing his or her job  we have a published to-do list for every one of them. Those lists could well be stamped with the same words politicians put on their prepared texts for speeches: Check against delivery.

Checking against delivery isnt just for media and academics either. Armed with the multitude of Liberal promises in the platform and mandate letters, citizens also can keep a critical eye on this government.

One of the most extensive such efforts is an online initiative called trudeaumetre.ca, a running progress report on 219 promises of the Liberal government. When I checked it this week, it was reporting 34 promises kept, 64 in progress, 26 broken and 95 not yet started.

When it comes to numbers, meanwhile, we should also remember that we now have a government in Ottawa with an avowed, fierce embrace of data and evidence. The prime ministers own chief of staff, Katie Telford, asks people to come to meetings with a number  any number that tells the story of what the Liberals are doing right or wrong. Anyone wanting to criticize the government would be wise to do the same  its easier to argue with numbers than it is with anecdotes.

The answer to the question posed by this conference  what do we now?  is actually pretty simple: carry on, as usual. The best criticism, whether directed at Conservative or Liberal governments, is constructive and corrective. Not every critic is an enemy of the state.

Politicians and their supporters can be thin-skinned (almost as thin-skinned as journalists) and it would be a surprise if this government was an exception.

So far, however, for the most part, the current government doesnt seem to be overtly hostile to criticism. No one is threatening journalists jobs, as far as Ive heard, and no one is promising to make political critics famous or infamous. When we want to see that kind of thing, all we need to do is look southward, in Donald Trumps direction.

Thats maybe the best reason to keep up the critical heat in post-Harper Canada: not just because we should, but simply because we can.

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A Nigerian man who was awarded $60,000 by an Ontario judge who ruled his Charter rights were violated by multiple lockdowns at a Milton jail is slated to be deported before he even gets his money.

Jamil Ogiamien, 46, was awarded the compensation by Superior Court Justice Douglas Gray in a decision in May. But the ruling is under appeal and not scheduled to be heard until February.

Trouble is, Ogiamien has just found out hes going to be kicked out of the country next Friday.

I feel so oppressed. They must respect the law. They must respect the court, Ogiamien told the Star in a phone interview from the Toronto East Detention Centre, accusing the government of pulling a fast one on him by scheduling his deportation months ahead of the appeal. He fears he will never see the money he feels is rightfully his.

In a case considered a rarity, Justice Gray ruled that the numerous staffing-related lockdowns at Maplehurst Correctional Complex violated Ogiamiens rights to freedom from cruel and unusual punishment and that the treatment he received was excessive as to outrage standards of decency.

The court awarded him and another detainee, Huy Nguyen  who was awaiting trial on a firearms-related charge  a total of $85,000 for their suffering. Ogiamiens share  $60,000  was to be paid by the province and the federal government.

But with an appeal of the decision underway by both the federal and provincial attorney generals offices, what will happen to Ogiamiens case  and the cash  if hes not in court, or even in the country, to fight for it?

Thats the $60,000 question.

Andrew Morrison, spokesperson with the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services, said Ogiamien can apply to the Court of Appeal for advice on how to make a submission in absentia. He added that if the award is ultimately upheld, the province would abide by the order of the court and pay out the damages.

Speaking in general terms, Toronto litigation lawyer Neil Wilson, who is not involved in Ogiamiens case, said the appeal court can still proceed with a hearing by video conference. However, he said the physical absence of a litigant in court puts him at a disadvantage, especially if hes not represented by counsel.

The litigant can still make the same arguments at the hearing. Its always better to be at the meeting in person than by video conference, Wilson explained, adding that the government would still need to pay the monetary award to Ogiamien if the appeal is dismissed.

However, Wilson said Ogiamien would have to pursue the payment from abroad or appoint someone to pursue it on his behalf.

What his deportation means is he wont be able to effectively advance his own interests at the hearing, and the government knows that, said lawyer Barbara Jackman, who does not represent Ogiamien, but was appointed by the court to assist in the case. He could do it from Nigeria, but it is just not realistic.

According to court documents, Ogiamien moved to the United States in 1980. He came to Canada in 2001 and got in trouble with the law when he was arrested for using forged documents at an Ontario drivers licensing office. He pleaded guilty and received a six-month sentence in 2002.

Although he filed an asylum claim while behind bars, the claim was deemed abandoned when he was extradited to the U.S. to face charges there of forgery and identity theft. He had several other run-ins with the law on both sides of the border over the next few years.

In 2013, he was arrested by Peel Regional Police and charged with impaired driving, possession of marijuana, robbery and prostitution related charges. He was subsequently detained at Maplehurst in Milton.

Although he was ultimately acquitted of all of the charges in 2014, he was held in immigration detention until June when he won his lawsuit over the conditions created by jail lockdowns and was released on a court order under a separate proceeding. He was detained again in early October for allegedly violating his bail conditions.

A class action lawsuit by inmates has been commenced against the province alleging that jail lockdowns have caused them physical and psychological damage.

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Progressive Conservative Leader Patrick Brown denies he is keeping a teen Tory candidate under wraps.

Sam Oosterhoff, 19, has been unavailable to the Queens Park media since stunning the Conservatives on Saturday by winning the nomination for the Nov. 17 byelection in Niagara West-Glanbrook.

The social conservative outflanked PC party president Rick Dykstra, the ex-MP for the neighbouring federal riding of St. Catharines, in a key seat that had been held by former Tory leader Tim Hudak.

But instead of touting a political prodigy, the Tories have since last weekend shielded him from the mainstream press.

Asked on Thursday whether his office has instructed the candidate to keep mum, Brown said: I certainly have not told him.

Well make sure hes available to the Queens Park media, said the PC leader, who made a similar pledge to reporters on Tuesday.

I actually will be seeing him for the first time today and well make sure hes available. Im going to knock on doors in Niagara, Brown added.

Im sure right now hes studying all the party policy positions and well make sure he is well-briefed and excited to talk to . . . everyone who wants to talk to him, he said.

Sam will make a great MPP. He is a sharp, very capable young man and I think youre all going to be surprised at the maturity of this 19-year-old. Were confident in Niagara.

But Conservative sources, speaking on condition of anonymity in order to discuss strategy, confide that Brown and his advisers have concerns Oosterhoff may say something in an interview to undermine the leader.

There are fears the home-schooled devout Christian will speak out against Premier Kathleen Wynnes updated sex-education curriculum, same-sex marriage, or abortion rights.

While Brown once enjoyed the support of social conservatives, he publicly broke with them last month, saying he now supports Wynnes modernized health lesson plan, LGBT relationships, and a womans right to choose.

The PC leader has insisted that Oosterhoff absolutely supports the direction Im taking the party.

However, some of the part-time, first-year Brock University students backers were at Queens Park for a Sept. 21 protest against sex education where Brown and Wynne were denounced from the stage.

During the nomination battle, he pledged to be a voice for common-sense, pro-family policies and concerns in the byelection against Liberal lawyer Vicky Ringuette and the NDPs Mike Thomas, a retired police officer.

On Sunday, Oosterhoff said in an email that he was really busy, but he promised to follow up on Monday.

The teen did not, and he has ignored requests for interviews every day this week.

An apparent gag order on Oosterhoff is not indicative of any Tory policy of limiting access to byelection candidates.

Andre Marin, 51, the former Ontario ombudsman running for the Tories in the Ottawa-Vanier contest also on Nov. 17, has made himself available to reporters from across the province.

Marin is up against Liberal Nathalie Des Rosiers, a dean of law at the University of Ottawa, and the NDPs Claude Bisson, a retired bureaucrat, in a riding that had been held by retired Liberal attorney general Madeleine Meilleur.

If Oosterhoff wins in Niagara West-Glanbrook, he would break the record held by MPP Reid Scott, who was 21 when elected in 1948 for the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation, the NDPs precursor, in the old Toronto riding of Beaches.

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A key Liberal facing criminal charges in the gas plants scandal has lost a bid to have an OPP detective censured for neglect of duty in a probe over the alleged destruction of government documents.

Ontarios Superior Court of Justice ruled Det.-Const. Andre Duval acted properly in not disclosing why Laura Miller  once deputy chief of staff to ex-premier Dalton McGuinty  refused to provide a statement to police.

He (Duval) considered it would have been unfair to Ms. Miller to provide the additional information that she wanted immunity in exchange for her co-operation with police, a panel of three judges ruled in an eight-page decision Oct. 20.

He could imagine the firestorm that would have been created if he had provided that information and . . . there could have been a lot more damage to her if he had done so.

Miller is now based in Vancouver, serving as executive director of the governing British Columbia Liberals as the party prepares for a provincial election next spring.

Toronto lawyer Brian Shiller, who initially represented Miller, disputed the contention she was seeking immunity from prosecution in 2014 as the OPP investigation proceeded.

My client never asked for protection against charges in exchange for an interview. The record is crystal clear on that, he told the Star in an emailed statement Friday.

The lawyer now representing Miller said he is reviewing the Superior Court ruling by justices Anne Molloy, Ian Nordheimer and Carolyn Horkins.

She wanted to help the police, because she had done nothing wrong, Scott Hutchison, from the Toronto firm Henein-Hutchison, said of Miller.

But she also simply wanted what every other person interviewed by the police would want  an acknowledgement that her words wouldnt be twisted and used against her.

The court ruling followed a complaint by Miller to a watchdog agency  the Office of the Independent Police Review Director, headed by Gerry McNeilly  about the conduct of Duval and a colleague in regard to a search warrant for computer hard drives and testimony to a legislative committee two years ago.

Miller alleged that Duval and Det.-Sgt. Brian Mason deliberately and falsely suggested she had refused to assist the OPP after advising police she would give a statement provided that it was agreed that nothing I said would be used against me in any proceeding, according to the court ruling obtained by the Star.

She further alleged the OPP was using its superior power to override her right not to give a statement.

That was before Miller and former chief of staff David Livingston were charged in December 2015 with breach of trust and mischief in relation to data and misuse of a computer system following the McGuinty governments controversial cancellation of two gas-fired power plants before the 2011 election.

Both Miller and Livingston deny any wrongdoing in the case, which goes to trial next Sept. 11. McGuinty was never a suspect and faces no charges.

Following Millers complaint, the police review office ordered OPP Commissioner Vince Hawkes to hold a misconduct hearing for Duval under the Police Services Act on neglect of duty, but not on Millers allegations of discreditable conduct against Duval and Mason.

Hawkes challenged that order, resulting in this months court decision that McNeilly acted outside his jurisdiction in ordering a hearing on this allegation.

The failure of an officer to include in an ITO (information to obtain a search warrant) information about a suspect that was both irrelevant and potentially incriminating is the opposite of misconduct, a panel of three judges ruled.

McNeillys office said in a statement Friday that he has not reached a final decision as to whether he will appeal the decision.

On behalf of the police, Hawkes said the court decision in his favour is well written and speaks for itself.

The OPP has a very positive working relationship with Mr. McNeilly and the Office of the Independent Police Review Director. We look forward to continuing that relationship, Hawkes added in a statement.

After she was charged in late 2015, Miller issued a news release saying her complaint to McNeillys office created a clear bias by the OPP against me. Officers involved in a substantiated complaint should not have been allowed to continue investigating.

Every Canadian expects and deserves impartiality and fairness in police charging decisions. I do not believe that to be the case here, she added at the time.

Seeking help to fund her defence, Miller started a FundRazr crowdfunding campaign online. It has now raised $77,711 toward a $100,000 target, with individual contributions as high as $12,500.

Some donors have said the Ontario Liberal party should be covering her expenses, and lament on the FundRazr page that a political staffer finds herself in a challenging situation: on the hook for legal bills.

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WASHINGTONWith a dozen days left until Election Day, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are refusing to commit to working with each other after the election, putting in question the winners ability to heal the countrys wounds after a volatile presidential race.

I just want to make that decision at a later date, said Trump, when asked whether he would co-operate with a Clinton administration. Hopefully I wont have to make that decision. He spoke in an interview broadcast Thursday on ABCs Good Morning America.

Clinton, meanwhile, dodged a question about whether she would meet one-on-one with Trump after the election.

I certainly intend to reach out to Republicans and independents, and the elected leadership of the Congress, Clinton told reporters on her campaign plane Wednesday.

Traditionally, presidential candidates hold a well-publicized meeting in the weeks after the election. While the moment of bipartisanship is often short-lived, the public appearance sends an important signal to the country that both parties are ready to accept the will of the voters and move forward.

In 2012, President Barack Obama and defeated Republican nominee Mitt Romney shared an hour-long White House lunch of turkey chili and chicken salad. Four years earlier, Obama and Arizona Sen. John McCain pledged to work together on economic issues and national security after meeting in Chicago.

Privately, the 2016 candidates may be striking a more conciliatory tone. Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the New York Archbishop, has said that in a warm private exchange at an otherwise testy charity dinner last week, Clinton had told Trump that whatever happens, we need to work together afterward. Trump, he said, told Clinton you are one tough and talented woman.

In the final weeks of the campaign, both candidates have begun to focus more on their post-election plans. Trump made two appearances at his hotels this week, raising questions about whether hes trying to shore up his corporate brand, amid signs that his campaign has hurt his family businesses.

Trump has largely refused to back down from his defiant assault on the elections integrity, remaining unwilling to say whether hed accept the results if he loses. Dont worry about it, he told ABC. He will visit Ohio for three campaign rallies on Thursday.

Clinton, too, has turned some of her focus to what happens after Nov. 8, though her efforts assume she wins. Deep in transition planning, shes begun retooling her campaign message to emphasize unifying the country after a divisive race.

A new Associated Press-GfK poll released Wednesday found Clinton on the cusp of a potentially commanding victory, fuelled by solid Democratic turnout in early voting, massive operational advantages and increasing enthusiasm among her supporters.

The survey shows her leading Trump nationally by a staggering 14 percentage points among likely voters, 51-37. That margin is the largest national lead for Clinton among recent surveys. But its consistent with trends in the race: Most polls have generally shown her ahead of Trump for the past several weeks.

Clinton will unveil a new policy plan aimed at reducing bullying at a campaign stop with Michelle Obama today in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, marking the first joint appearance for the two first ladies on the campaign trail. Obamas appearances have become a key part of Clintons effort to fire up women, particularly black women for whom shes a model and a source of pride.

Her plan would provide $500 million in new funding to states that develop comprehensive anti-bullying efforts. The campaign said states must address spoken and cyber bullying, establish a process for addressing incidents and ban bullying on the basis of race, colour, national origin, sex, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and religion.

It would be paid for through Clintons proposed tax increases on the wealthy.

The presidential candidates and dozens of outside groups involved in the race are also due to file their final major fundraising reports before Election Day. These documents will show fundraising and spending between Oct. 1 and Oct. 19, giving a sense of what resources each side had available as the campaign entered its frantic final stretch.

More on thestar.com:

Trump accuses Clintons of corruption, Michelle Obama boosts Hillary

Support for my girl Clinton is personal, Michelle Obama says

Trumps campaign has become a litany of complaints

You cant buy that. Its Ivanka: How Trumps campaign is hurting his daughters clothing line

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With 12 days to go, Hillary Clinton holds a six-point edge over Donald Trump among an electorate fixated on the campaign and nervous about their candidate losing, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News Tracking Poll.

More than three in four Clinton and Trump supporters say they are very anxious at the thought of the other candidate becoming president, fears that underscore perceptions of the elections high stakes and stark contrast between contenders.

Among all likely voters, 56 per cent are anxious about Clinton becoming president while 61 per cent are anxious about Trump. While anxiety for Trump is slightly higher than for Clinton, the five-point gap has shrunk from a 15-point difference August when 67 per cent were anxious about Trumps presidency following the Democratic National Convention and a high-profile dispute with a Muslim Gold Star father. Then, 52 per cent of likely voters said a Clinton presidency made them anxious.

In the new poll, two-thirds of likely voters are anxious about just one of the two party candidates  almost always the one they dont support  while just over one-quarter express anxiety about both Clinton and Trump becoming president.

In overall vote preference, Clinton tops Trump 48 per cent to 42 per cent among likely voters in the tracking poll conducted jointly by the Washington Post and ABC News. Clintons margin in the survey is little different than her 47-43 edge in a mid-October Post-ABC poll, but less than the double-digit leads in earlier waves of the tracking survey reported by ABC News through Monday.

The Post-ABC Tracking poll finds 57 per cent of registered voters are following the election very closely and 85 per cent say theyre absolutely certain to vote or have already cast ballots. Both measures are similar to four years ago, and nearly identical percentages of Clinton and Trump supporters are reporting high attention to the race.

The poll underscores how widespread concerns about Clinton make it difficult for her to expand beyond a single-digit edge over Trump, as well as Trumps continuing challenges in appealing beyond a core base of supporters.

Clinton inspires anxiety among at least half of voters in a variety of swing voting groups, as well as some who lean Democratic, including 67 per cent of independents, 56 per cent of Catholics, 52 per cent of women, 53 per cent of voters under age 40 and 55 per cent of moderates. Uneasiness about a Trump presidency is higher among all of these groups except independents, though not always by wide margins.

For Trump, women represent the most formidable barrier to catching Clinton in the campaigns final days and continue to see the businessman in a sharply different light than men do. A majority of women, 55 per cent, say they are very anxious about Trump becoming president, compared with 38 per cent of men. The gender gap is smaller when asked about Clinton, with 44 per cent of men and 36 per cent of women saying they are very anxious if she takes office.

Womens resistance on this question translates to the vote choice, where Trump trails Clinton by 53 to 37 per cent among women overall. If the 16-point margin holds through Election Day, it would be the widest for a presidential candidate since Bill Clintons decisive victory in 1996, according to exit polling. Trumps margin among men is a narrower 47 to 43 per cent, handicapped by the fact men have consistently turned out at lower rates.

Beyond women, Trump faces renewed struggles in party unity since dozens of Republican leaders called on him to drop out earlier this month. He leads Clinton by 82 to 8 per cent among Republican likely voters, while Clinton holds a wider 89-8 margin among Democrats. Trumps support with Republicans has dipped from 90 per cent just before the first debate in September, while Clintons standing is little changed from 88 per cent at that point.

This Washington Post-ABC News poll was conducted by telephone Oct. 22 to 25, 2016, among a random national sample of 1,775 adults, including landline and cellphone respondents. Overall results have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 2.5 points; the error margin is plus or minus 3 points among the sample of 1,135 likely voters. Sampling, data collection and tabulation by Abt-SRBI of New York.

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As Ontarians grapple with one of Canadas worst alleged serial killings, Japanese authorities are investigating their own string of suspicious elderly deaths  involving as many as 48 victims and a culprit still at large.

A month before Elizabeth Wettlaufer was charged in the deaths of eight nursing home residents in Ontario, a police investigation was triggered in Japan after two 88-year-old patients died at a hospital in Yokohama, the countrys second-largest city.

According to news reports, an autopsy found that a patient named Sozo Nishikawa had been fatally poisoned by a hospital disinfectant on Sept. 18. Two days after his death, a second male patient from his hospital room, Nobuo Yamaki, died after his heart rate dropped and triggered an alarm.

Both patients died shortly after their drip bags were replaced. Police suspect the deaths could be the work of a mercy killer, or a so-called angel of death.

Police searched 50 unused IV bags at the hospital, local media reported, and ten had small holes pierced into the rubber seal connecting the IV bag and tube. The bags were all stored in the nurses station.

There could also be more victims  many more. According to reports, 46 other patients also died between July and September, all from the same hospital floor.

Workers at the 85-bed facility initially attributed the sudden spike in deaths to the fact that the hospital had recently been accepting more seriously ill patients, the Japan Times reported last month.

We see many people pass away due to the nature of this hospital but had the impression that the number of those dying was increasing a bit, a hospital official told the newspaper.

However, the two poisoning deaths follow a string of disturbing incidents at the hospital this summer, including a nurse whose apron was slashed and an employee whose lips were blistered after drinking a beverage laced with bleach.

According to a recent Japan Today editorial  which calls for more security and oversight of health-care facilities  local government authorities were notified of the disturbing incidents over the summer and urged hospital officials to notify police. This advice was reportedly ignored because the hospital wanted to resolve its problems internally.

Police have yet to announce a suspect but its believed the killer could have medical expertise or connections to the hospital. A source told Japan Today that its difficult to imagine a situation that an outsider entered the nurse station and tampered (with the drip bags).

Japan has experienced a number of other attacks at health facilities in recent years, all in the same Kanagawa prefecture as the two poisoning deaths.

In July, Satoshi Uematsu, a former nursing care attendant, stabbed and killed 19 residents at a facility for mentally handicapped people in the city of Sagamihara. He also injured 27 other patients and staff and told police he euthanized the patients for the benefit of society.

In 2014, an ex-employee of a nursing care facility in Kawasaki city was also charged after he allegedly admitted to throwing three elderly residents off their balconies.

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It is always problematic to see the term family values tossed around as if it has one clear and specific definition in our very diverse community of families. However, I will draw upon my familys values when, on Nov. 8, I cast my ballot for Patsy Koch Johns for Nebraska State Board of Education, and here is why.

Patsys No. 1 reason for choosing to run for a place on the state school board is to continue her lifelong work as an educator of and advocate for children and young people. She is my former Lincoln High colleague and forever friend; I know her heart well, for she wears it on her sleeve. What family value could rank higher than to nurture our communitys kids? I can think of none.

Patsy had a long and very successful career as a teacher. The presence of so many of her former students and their parents working hard on her campaign speaks volumes about the love and respect she garnered over the course of that career. After she retired, it came as no surprise that she didnt want to stop working for Nebraskas students and their families.

Patsys professional experience makes her exceptionally qualified to understand the needs of those in the classrooms of our state, the students and teachers. Her superior communications skills enable her to advocate effectively for students, educators and families. Her personal experience of childhood poverty and subsequent work for the benefit of students with similar challenges will provide a needed voice among board members with a variety of agendas. I know she can work well with any group of people to serve her constituency.

Most of all, I know with every ounce of my being that Patsy will lead with love. She knows no other way and love is the ultimate family value.

Julia Doerr, Lincoln
SACRAMENTO, CALIF.California parole officials were considering Thursday whether Charles Tex Watson, the self-described right-hand man of murderous cult leader Charles Manson, should be released from prison 47 years after he helped plan and carry out the slayings of pregnant actress Sharon Tate and six other people.

Watson, 70, is serving a life sentence for the murders of Tate and four others at her Beverly Hills home on Aug. 9, 1969. The next night, he helped kill grocer Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary.

Watson was initially sentenced to death in the stabbing and shooting rampage, but the sentence was later commuted to life when the California Supreme Court ruled in 1972 that the death penalty was unconstitutional. He currently is in Mule Creek State Prison, near Sacramento.

Sharon Tates sister, Debra Tate, the last surviving member of her immediate family, planned to attend Watsons 17th parole hearing and fears officials may recommend freedom for the man she called the most active, the most prolific killer in the Manson family.

The authorities in this state want to let out predatory people, she said, citing recent parole recommendations for other Manson followers that were overturned by Gov. Jerry Brown.

All of these people were deemed either sociopathic or psychopathic back in the day. You dont come back from that ... They cant be rehabilitated.

In July, Brown reversed a Board of Parole Hearings recommendation that the state release Manson follower Leslie Van Houten, 67, who is serving a life sentence for the La Bianca killings.

In January, he blocked the release of Bruce Davis, 74, another Manson devotee who was convicted in the killings of musician Gary Hinman and stuntman Donald Shorty Shea.

In prison, Watson wrote the book, Mansons Right-Hand Man Speaks Out, saying the charismatic Manson offered utopia then persuaded his followers to act out his destructive worldview. Watson has apologized for the killings.

Watson says he converted to Christianity in 1975, founded Abounding Love Ministries in 1980, and ministers to other inmates. He also obtained his college degree behind bars.

Watson wrote that he was raised in Texas and headed to California at 21 against his parents wishes in 1967 in search of drugs, sex and rock n roll.

Prosecutors said Manson ordered the murders in hopes of triggering a race war that he dubbed Helter Skelter, after a Beatles song. The words Death to Pigs were written in blood on the wall of the LaBianca residence; Helter Skelter was scrawled on the refrigerator; and rise was written in blood on the front door.

The idea, authorities said, was that Manson and his followers would rise from the rubble to rule the world.

Part of what torments me all these years and today is the severity of Charles Watsons crimes and how horribly the victims suffered, Anthony DiMaria, a nephew of Jay Sebring, who was killed with Tate, wrote in remarks he planned to read Thursday to parole commissioners.

He cited seven gunshots  all fired by Watson  along with 170 stab wounds and 13 blows to the victims with blunt objects.

Watson wrote in his book that there was no concern for the victims during the rampage.

There was a total disregard for life. I was concerned with destroying everyone and not getting discovered, he wrote. In some ways, punishment escaped my mind since Helter Skelter was coming down and society, as we knew it, was coming to an end.

If the parole board recommends parole, the governor would have about five months to block his release.

Watsons attorney, Kendrick Jan, did not respond to repeated requests for comment. A message left for supporters running Watsons Abounding Love Ministries website also was not returned.

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BEIRUTUN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Thursday for an immediate investigation of an attack on a school in Syrias Idlib province that the UNs childrens agency is calling one of the deadliest of its kind in the countrys six-year war.

UNICEF raised its toll for Wednesdays attack to 28 dead, among them 22 children and six teachers.

Ban said in a statement that the attack, carried out against rebel-held territory, may amount to a war crime if found to be deliberate.

If such horrific acts persist despite global outrage, it is largely because their authors, whether in corridors of power or in insurgent redoubts, do not fear justice. They must be proved wrong, he said.

Witnesses said overhead jets targeted the school in the town of Hass as many as 10 times, around midday Wednesday. Opposition activists blamed the strikes on Russian and government planes.

Meanwhile, a group of Russian warships, including the countrys only aircraft carrier, the Admiral Kusnetsov, reportedly refuelled of the North African coast en route to the eastern Mediterranean, the BBC reported Thursday.

Russia withdrew a request for NATO-member Spain to refuel the ships earlier this week.

On Tuesday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the Russian deployment raised concerns of more air assaults in Syria, notably in the besieged city of Aleppo. We are concerned and I have expressed that very clearly about the potential use of this battle group to increase Russias ability and to be a platform for airstrikes against Syria, he said.

Idlib is the main Syrian opposition stronghold, though radical militant groups also have a large presence there. It has regularly been hit by Syrian and Russian warplanes as well as the U.S.-led coalition targeting Daesh, also known as ISIS and ISIL.

The Russian military denied responsibility for the school attack, calling the accusations a sham.

Prior to Wednesdays attack, the deadliest assault on a school was reported in April 2014 when 30 children were killed in airstrikes that hit a school in the rebel-held part of Aleppo city, according to UNICEF.

UNICEF said it has verified at least 38 attacks on schools this year across Syria, whether in government-held areas or rebel-controlled territory, compared to 60 attacks last year.

In general there are one in three schools in Syria that cant be used anymore because they were damaged or destroyed or used for military purposes or sheltering the displaced, Touma told The Associated Press, speaking from Amman, Jordan.

Russias air campaign in support of the Syrian troops offensive on Aleppo has drawn international outrage. Moscow has denied striking civilians and has blamed Washington for failing to persuade the U.S.-backed rebels in the city to cut their ties with fighters from al-Qaedas branch.

Putin shrugged off calls to end the onslaught on Aleppo, saying the U.S.-backed offensive against Daesh in Mosul in Iraq would have to be halted, under the same logic.

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WASHINGTONAdam Crapser was born in South Korea, but, when he was 3 years old, an American couple adopted him.

Until recently, he lived in Vancouver, Wash., with his daughters and his pregnant wife. He has a son by an ex-girlfriend. He used to own a barbershop, but decided to become a stay-at-home dad, sometimes playing guitar and ukulele and watching a rescue dog.

But that will all soon change  Crapser is being deported back to South Korea, away from his family, away from the place hes spent 37 of his 41 years of life.

Currently, hes being held in an immigration detention centre in Tacoma, Wash.

He will be deported as soon as Immigration and Customs Enforcement makes the necessary arrangements, Crapsers attorney Lori Walls said. Adam, his family, and advocates are heartbroken at the outcome.

Crapsers deportation is a sad denouement to a life in the United States thats been anything but easy.

After being abandoned near Seoul, Crapser and his older sister were adopted by an unnamed couple. All he brought with him across the ocean were a pair of green rubber shoes, a Korean-language Bible and a stuffed dog.

That couple, as the New York Times Magazine noted in an extensive profile of Crapser, abandoned the kids to the foster system after many episodes in which they forced Crapser to sit in the dark basement as punishment.

He and his sister were split up, and after several foster homes, he found himself adopted by Thomas and Dollar Crapser, who had adopted two other children and were also caring for several other foster children.

According to Crapser, that family was more abusive than the first. They would slam childrens heads on door frames, tape their mouths shut with duct tape and hit them with two-by-fours. Eventually, they would be convicted in 1992 of several counts of criminal mistreatment and assault.

Before that, though, they kicked Crapser out of the house after an argument. It happened so quickly, he left his Bible and rubber shoes  the last remnants of his birth country  in the house.

He was caught breaking into that house, trying to retrieve the items and pleaded guilty to burglary. Twenty-five months in prison followed.

In the years following, Crapser committed a number of infractions. He was found guilty of unlawful firearm possession and, later, assault after getting into a fight with his roommate. In 2013, he called his son by an ex-girlfriend despite a protection order she had taken out against him.

I made a lot of mistakes in my life, and Im not proud of it, Crapser told the New York Times Magazine. Ive learned a lot of lessons the hard way.

In the past few years, hed been working to put his life back on track by getting married and focusing on family.

Now, thats over.

Difficult as his life here has been, he followed the courts ordered punishment for his crimes. Returning to a country that is completely alien to him was not a punishment handed down from a judge.

But thats whats happening.

He ended up on the radar of federal immigration officials after he applied for a green card in 2012. They dug into his background and found a criminal record, which makes him eligible for deportation.

In fact, its a circumstance created by the very parents who adopted, then abandoned, him in the first place. No family that adopted him, nor the adoption agency, ever registered the boy for U.S. citizenship.

Simple paperwork left undone.

Dae Joong Yoon, executive director of the National Korean American Service & Education Consortium, said this isnt uncommon  as many as 35,000 intercountry adoptees dont have U.S. citizenship, through no fault of their own but that of their parents and the agencies that handled their adoptions.

The Child Citizenship Act of 2000 fixed part of this problem by automatically granting citizenship to children adopted by U.S. citizens, but, as NBC noted, it only applied to those under the age of 18 at the time of its passing.

Crapser and many others, thus, were left in their strange limbo.

Currently Congress is considering the Adoptee Citizenship Act of 2015, which would grant citizenship to all children who have been adopted by U.S. citizens.

But itll be too late for Crapser, who still hopes it will pass.

While I am disappointed in the judges ruling and worried about my familys future, I hope that what has happened to me will further demonstrate the importance of passing the Adoptee Citizenship Act, Crapser said in a statement obtained by NBC.

Emily Kessel of the Adoptee Rights Campaign finds his deportation appalling.

We do not choose our families, Kessel told NBC. But the U.S. does choose to bring adoptees into the U.S. with a promise of placing these children in safe homes to grow up like any other American ... Adoptees are not disposable. We urge the community to call members of Congress and underline the need for a legislative fix now.

With files from the Associated Press

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POMPANO BEACH, FLA.The sounds at this biker bar explain why leaders of the Republican party tiptoe gingerly around Donald Trump, avoid criticizing him, and keep wavering back and forth over whether to endorse him.

The rage here rumbles like a vintage motorcycle.

At a rally of bikers for Trump, they roar against Republican elites. One after another, leather-vested orators lay rhetorical beatdowns upon the partys leaders, delivering one blow after another on the allegedly corrupt, the spineless, the disrespectful.

One such message comes with an extended middle finger.

Paul Ryan, Ive got something for you, Gabe Carrera says, drawing cheers from fellow bikers as he raises the discourteous digit.

We need Trump not only against Democrats, but against the false Republicans that are Democrats in (disguise). Theyre the ones screwing up our nation.

Those are the people that piss me off.

Its not often this sentiment gets expressed in a setting like this  a rally outside Mickeys bar, where patch-collecting patrons bop to classic-rock bass lines and swig beers next to a life-size cardboard cut-out of Trump.

But the split in the Republican party is real, its growing, and its affecting American governance.

The chasm between base and brass has already blocked projects like immigration reform and paralyzed the presidential ambitions of Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, and John Kasich. It may yet kill the Trans-Pacific Partnership, with the 12-country deal potentially sidelined by a caucus revolt against Ryan, the House speaker.

The fissures have widened with Trump.

The partys grassroots members support him and are turning on leaders who wont. It explains why a half-dozen Republicans have gone from rescinding their endorsement of Trump to declaring theyll vote for him. The partys golden boy, Ryan, has seen his poll numbers plummet among Republicans since he distanced himself from Trump; he now faces a rebellion. An NBC News poll found that almost two-thirds of Republicans trust Trump to lead the party, over Ryan.

At a presidential campaign rally in Florida, a group of friends said they werent even sure theyd vote for party star Marco Rubio. Their senator hasnt appeared at rallies with the nominee, even scolding him occasionally, including for his insistence that the election is rigged.

So theyre upset at Rubio.

The ones that come out hardest against Trump, I dont care if they lose to a Democrat or not, David Radford said outside a weekend rally in Naples, Fla. His buddy, Mike Marino, chuckled and added: Yeah, were done with that.

Trump has also had a sudden effect on Republican policy preferences.

The partys supporters are now less hostile to Vladimir Putin  and more hostile to trade. In a surprising reversal, one poll showed just 18 per cent of Republicans agreeing trade deals helped people, compared with 33 per cent of Democrats.

This week, Brian Mulroney predicted the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement was dead  and the former prime minister would have found ample anecdotal evidence at U.S. political rallies to support that assessment.

At the biker gathering, one speaker after another lamented the power of corporate and foreign interests. That includes Carrera, a former criminal-gang member who turned his life around to become a lawyer and Tea Party activist.

All those people that promise us, Were gonna do this, and were gonna do that, and then they get up there and vote with these corporations that are foreign corporations, Muslim corporations from the Middle East. They do not have the United States best interest in mind.

Another speaker at the biker event warned that if Trump loses, American kids will soon have to learn Chinese. In his passionate, profanity-filled address, Charley Blackwolf added that he doesnt care about Republicans winning Congress.

We do not, by the way, want to save Congress. That would include Speaker Ryan  along with the rest of the institutionalized losers that are currently scrambling to distance themselves from Trump, thinking it might save their chicken-st jobs, said the motorcycle journalist.

Establishment politicians have not done the job we elected them to do. As a result we the people must now kick their sorry asses down the road. Thats all of them, Democrat and Republican.

That attitude presents challenges for the party.

Republicans need their presidential voters to keep ticking the boxes all the way down the ballot  for the Senate, House of Representatives, and local races. People like Celeste Ellich are counting on Trumpers.

A realtor, former Navy intelligence specialist, and Republican official in Broward county, shes running for city commissioner. And her race could be decided by how many Trump voters keep ticking those boxes.

All the way down the ballot, Ellich said. If they dont get to Page 8, they dont vote for me.

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DODGE CITY, KAN.At 18, Mike Smith chose trucking over college. Hauling cattle feed was lucrative for a teenager, and it seemed he could have a pretty good life without a degree. Now, 40 years later his income is stalled as immigrants pour into western Kansas and depress wages.

To Smith, Donald Trump seems like the only guy who can stop it.

He speaks whats on his mind, to hell with the political correctness, Smith said. If Hillary gets in, there will be more illegals.

Rachel Ong, 31, who has a masters degree in education, isnt convinced. She lives in the conservative and prosperous suburbs west of Kansas City and voted for Mitt Romney in 2012, but has concerns about Trumps style.

Trump is really aggressive and it would really make me nervous if he was in office, she said.

The nomination of Donald Trump has opened up an educational divide among whites. Republicans have won a majority of white college graduates in every election since 1956 but the real estate mogul has accelerated movement of college educated voters toward Democrats.

Trump does best with whites who do not have a four-year college degree  he leads Clinton among that group 56-29 in the most recent AP/Gfk poll. Unlike Romney, who won with college graduates by six percentage points, Trump is losing to Clinton with that group 46-38.

In the past, weve had candidates who are acceptable to the political establishment of both sides, said Patrick Ruffini, a Republican strategist in Washington. The opportunities for a Republican to run up the numbers with very anti-establishment, anti-elite candidates were very limited.

Still, the migration of college-educated whites to Clintons corner is, at a minimum, cancelling out Republican gains with working class whites. Its been a zero-sum trade, Ruffini said.

The steep educational divide has helped redefine this years political geography. Traditional swing states of Colorado and Virginia  states with a high number of educated voters  are effectively off the table for Trump. Ohio and Iowa, with lower levels of white college graduates, remain tight.

States like Kansas and North Carolina are divided. In North Carolina, for example, Clinton is doing best in the so-called Research Triangle of educated workers clustered around universities near Raleigh, while Trump dominates less-educated, rural areas.

In Kansas, affluent Johnson County voters are a conservative bunch, but many cant stomach Trump. More than half of its residents have a bachelors degree or higher, compared to less than a third statewide, and its average household income of $82,000 is well above the states average of $53,000.

Jaylene Lambert is a lifelong Republican who grew up in rural Kansas. But she left the rural part of the state, got a nursing degree, worked as a school nurse and manager of health programs and lives in Johnson County, the affluent bedroom community outside of Kansas City. Shes voting for Hillary Clinton. Im intelligent enough to vote for the best candidate, Lambert said.

In western Kansas, the white population is aging and shrinking as young people move to cities. Jobs at the regions many slaughterhouses have drawn immigrants from Mexico, Asia, and more recently, Somalia. Last week, federal authorities arrested three white men in one western Kansas town and accused them of planning to bomb a Somali mosque the day after the election.

Its a three-hour drive from Liberal, Kansas, to the nearest university, and only 12.6 per cent of adults in the county have a bachelors degree or higher. While local publisher Earl Watts has a degree, he is supporting Trump and he understands why the Manhattan developer-turned-reality show stars message resonates well in an area where people rely more on hard work than credentials.

One candidate is running because they have the degree, the pedigree, Watts said, referring to Clintons long status as next in line for the presidency. The other guy because he got there building things up, working on the streets.

That certainly resonates with Rick Yearick, 49. He works two jobs  selling ads for Watts newspaper during the day and working as a clerk at the local Days Inn at night. Im not a doctorate  I dont have a masters degree or a bachelors degree but I do have a degree in common sense, said the Trump supporter. Putting America first is common sense. Taking care of our veterans is common sense.

Sitting with friends around the table of the local doughnut shop, Gene McElroy lamented the way society looks down on people like him who lack a 4-year degree. He and others at the table talked about how remote they were from elite society and agreed that Washington politicians cant fathom what life is like in their remote community.

They see the world completely different. Theyre wearing rose-coloured glasses, said McElroy, who is undecided in this election. Theres no way they would live in Liberal, Kansas.

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WASHINGTONThe presidential election has somehow gotten stranger. And it has gotten substantially worse for Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton.

In a significant surprise blow to Clinton, the Federal Bureau of Investigation announced Friday that it will now do more investigating of emails related to her private home server  because of Anthony Weiners sexting.

The FBI said it learned of new emails as a result of an unrelated case. That case, according to the New York Times, is the investigation of the serial sexter who is married to, but separated from, a top Clinton aide, Huma Abedin.

The New York Times reported that the emails were found on electronic devices seized from Weiner and Abedin as part of a probe into Weiners alleged sexual messages to a 15-year-old girl.

It is not clear if Clinton did anything wrong. Anonymous law enforcement sources told various U.S. news outlets that the emails in question were not sent by Clinton, nor found on Clintons server.

To the frustration of Clintons campaign, though, the vague letter from FBI director James Comey to congressional committee chairmen did not provide those specifics, leaving room for Republican candidate Donald Trump and his allies to fill in the blanks.

This is bigger than Watergate, Trump said at a rally in New Hampshire.

Clintons corruption is on a scale we have never seen before, he said. We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office.

At an evening news conference in Iowa, Clinton called on the FBI to explain this issue in question, whatever it is, without any delay. She said she was confident the emails would not change the FBIs decision not to charge her with anything.

Even director Comey noted that this new information may not be significant, so lets get it out, she said.

She laughed when asked if the matter could sink her campaign.

I think people a long time ago made up their minds about the emails, she said. I think thats factored into what people think.

Regardless, the news is the best in weeks for Trump, who has been staring at the possibility of a blowout defeat. With just 10 days left before election day, Clinton will now face a flurry of stories about the controversy that has reinforced voters concerns about her judgment and transparency. The apparent connection to Weiner, a favourite character of the tabloids, may give the news even more prominence.

Commentators saw irony in the possibility that the campaign of a woman vying to be the first female president could be derailed by the sexual behaviour of a male acquaintance. Trump had already been castigating Clinton for her response to sexual assault allegations against her husband, the former president.

Im sorry but these men and their penises imperiling this candidacy is just a little too on the nose for me, can I get a rewrite? New York Magazine writer Rebecca Traister wrote on Twitter.

Though election day is Nov. 8, early voting is well underway. More than 17 million people  or more than 10 per cent of the expected electorate  have already cast ballots. It is unclear how much another chapter in a long-running controversy might affect voting preferences at this late stage.

One consistent aspect of the hyper-polarized 2016 election: weve constantly overrated the impact of every bombshell on the polls, Cook Political Report editor Dave Wasserman wrote on Twitter.

Comey had appeared to close the case in July, when he rebuked Clinton as extremely careless in her handling of classified information as secretary of state but recommended against criminal charges.

He did not say Friday that Clinton had committed wrongdoing. Rather, in a letter to Congress, he said investigators would review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information and assess their importance to our investigation.

Although the FBI cannot assess whether or not this material may be significant, and I cannot predict how long it will take us to complete this additional work, I believe it is important to update your committees about our efforts in light of my previous testimony, Comey concluded.

The announcement undercuts Trumps evidence-free contention that the FBI, like many other government entities, is a corrupt arm of the Clinton campaign. But it is far worse for Clinton, and ends her hopes of cruising to victory without another major hurdle.

The system might not be as rigged as I thought, Trump said at a rally in New Hampshire.

The timing of Comeys declaration, and its lack of specificity, drew immediate criticism from Clinton allies and some non-partisan analysts. Even Republican Sen. John Cornyn, of Texas, wrote on Twitter, Why is FBI doing this just 11 days before the election?

Trump had for months hammered Clinton for her decision to set up an insecure private email account in the basement of her New York home, rather than use a standard State Department account, and her subsequent destruction of thousands of emails from it. At the second presidential debate, he promised that he would appoint a special prosecutor to investigate her situation, because there has never been so many lies, so much deception.

Weiner, the subject of a new documentary on the sexting-related failure of his 2013 run for New York City mayor, has long served as a Trump punching bag. Last year, then without evidence, Trump had linked Weiner to the email controversy.

It came out that Huma Abedin knows all about Hillarys private illegal emails. Humas PR husband, Anthony Weiner, will tell the world, he wrote on Twitter. Huma Abedin, the top aide to Hillary Clinton and the wife of perv sleazebag Anthony Wiener, was a major security risk as a collector of info.

Comeys letter had an immediate impact on stock and currency markets as investors reacted to the perceived decline in Clintons fortunes. The S&P 500 declined about 1 per cent; the Mexican peso, perceived to be threatened by Trumps promised tariffs, declined nearly 2 per cent.

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WARSAW, IND.An Indiana teenager originally sentenced to 25 years in prison for helping kill a friends stepfather when he was 12 could now be released in about three months.

Paul Gingerich, now 18, is believed to be the youngest person in Indiana to be sentenced as an adult. He was resentenced Friday under a state law named for him called Pauls Law, which allows alternative sentences for juveniles who commit serious crimes.

The new sentence Whitley County Judge James Heuer announced calls for Gingerich to be incarcerated for 300 days in a medium-security adult prison. With his participation in a community transition program that removes 120 days from his sentence and good behaviour that can cut defendants sentences in half, he could be released after 90 days, said his attorney, Monica Foster.

Assuming that Paul behaves as he has behaved in the past he will be released from that program after 90 days, she said following the hearing in a Warsaw, Indiana, courtroom.

Gingerich, who is currently in a juvenile facility, would then spend one year in home detention followed by 10 years of probation.

Jody Hill, the assistant to Kosciusko Countys prosecutor, said Gingerichs 90-day sentence wont just magically happen. There are things that need to done and fall into place before 90 days is actually the true number.

The Indiana Department of Correction has determined that Gingerich has a low risk of re-offending.

I know I committed a truly horrible crime and I am sorry for that, Gingerich told the judge Friday. I will never stop being sorry and I know sorry will never be enough.

Gingerich and then-15-year-old Colt Lundy shot and killed Lundys stepfather, Phillip Danner, in 2010 at his home near Lake Wawasee, about halfway between Fort Wayne and South Bend. Each boy fired two shots, hitting the 49-year-old man four times.

The slaying was part of a plot by the boys and another friend to run away to California or Arizona.

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WASHINGTONI had been telling my client you can count on being convicted, said Matthew Schindler, a lawyer for one of the men on trial for the armed takeover of Oregons Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. You dont walk into a federal court and win a case like this. It just doesnt happen.

But win they did and even Schindler thought it off the charts unbelievable, he told the Seattle Times.

John Horning, executive director of WildEarth Guardians, said in a statement, I fear this ruling will embolden other militants to use the threat of violence and I worry for the safety of employees at our public land-management agencies.

It is entirely possible there will be threats or intimidations from militants that believe such actions are justified by this verdict, he said.

As Leah Sottile reported for the Washington Post, the trial for the leader of the armed occupation, Ammon Bundy, his brother Ryan and five others took six weeks. The verdict  not guilty of federal conspiracy charges  came in five days. While Ammon and Ryan Bundy face charges in Nevada for a 2014 standoff with Bureau of Land Management officers at the familys ranch, and seven additional defendants face their own trial, the others walked free.

While many of Bundys 26 co-defendants pleaded guilty to charges of conspiring to impede federal officers from performing their duties  a charge that has also been used to prosecute extremist left-wingers and Earth First protesters  six others remained steadfast over their innocence.

When news of the verdict was announced, the Post reported, supporters whooped and hollered, waved flags and read from the constitution.

Defendant Shawna Cox issued a call to action: Wake up, America, and help us restore the constitution. Dont sleep with your head in the sand.

The six-week armed occupation of the refuge transfixed the nation in January, as did parts of its bloody conclusion. It began as a protest against the imprisonment of two Oregon ranchers convicted of setting fires and morphed into a protest against the federal governments ownership of Western lands, which Ammon Bundy and his followers contend the constitution prohibits.

It ended on Jan. 26, when, after federal agents surrounded the refuge, police stopped and arrested Bundy and some of his followers driving to a community forum. The groups spokesman, Lavoy Finicum, was shot and killed when he swerved to race past a police roadblock, reached for a weapon, according to authorities, and was shot dead by Oregon state police officers. After that, four remaining occupiers surrendered on Feb. 11.

While theirs was a movement of the West that reawakened long-standing resentment about the federal governments management of land coveted by private operators, it has broader potential implications that are especially relevant today on the extreme right, which has expanded dramatically since President Barack Obamas election and grown to even greater prominence by association with the presidential campaign of Donald Trump.

Collectively, theyve been referred to as the modern antigovernment militia movement.

As the Posts Kevin Sullivan reported in May, those in the movement call themselves patriots, demanding that the federal government adhere to the constitution as they interpret it and stop what they see as systematic abuse not just of land rights, but gun rights, freedom of speech and other liberties.

Law enforcement officials call them dangerous, delusional and sometimes violent, and say that their numbers are growing amid a wave of anger at the government that has been gaining strength since 2008, a surge that coincided with the election of the first black U.S. president and a crippling economic recession.

The Southern Poverty Law Center estimates that there are some 1,000 such groups across the country now  up from a few hundred in 2008  one of the most prominent being the so-called Oath Keepers.

For them, these are conspiratorial times, with their enemies plotting to rig elections, eliminate the second amendment and worse.

And they are on high alert, perhaps bolstered now by what they can interpret fairly or unfairly by a vote of confidence from a jury in Oregon.

The Oath Keepers, for example, a national group of former military and law enforcement officers, has urged its members to blend in with voters and do incognito intelligence gathering and crime spotting at polling places across the country on Nov. 8, the Posts Sullivan reported this week.

In particular, we are calling on our retired police officers, our military intelligence veterans, and our special warfare veterans (who are well trained in covert observation and intelligence gathering) to take the lead, group leader Stewart Rhodes said in a call to action on the groups website and in a YouTube video urging members to help stop voter fraud.

Among the tenets these groups share, besides their own interpretation of the constitution, is the belief that it is their job to enforce their vision, even by resort to extra-constitutional remedies for their grievances, like seizing federal land.

The extreme rhetoric is producing vows of extreme and even illegal actions on the part of ordinary people.

According to the Hill:

A woman attending a rally with the GOP nominees running mate Indiana Gov. Mike Pence in Albuquerque said to applause that If Hillary Clinton wins the election . . . and shes on that second amendment, taking your guns away, there is going to be a civil war in this state.

But, if President Trump would win, the woman continued, to hollers from the crowd, theres also going to be a war, because Obama is going to pull that martial law on the United States.

The political rhetoric of the extreme right pervaded the Malheur Refuge trial despite the efforts of the judge to keep the proceeding ideologically free.

According to Willamette Week:

Ammon Bundy and several other defendants took the stand in their own defence to detail their beliefs that the constitution prohibits the federal government from owning land, that the sentences given to two Burns-area ranchers convicted on federal arson charges were the result of government tyranny and that the 2014 standoff at Cliven Bundys Bunkerville ranch was a vindication of Bundys belief that the county sheriff is the ultimate law of the land.

Ammon Bundys attorney, Marcus Mumford, painted Bundy as a valiant patriot, fighting a David-and-Goliath battle against government overreach. He told the jury Bundy is in jail because of that same dark force.

Sympathizers and critics of the armed takeover agreed on only one thing, that the verdict was a surprise, considering that the takeover and the armed resistance to surrender was done in full public view.

Robert Salisbury, attorney for defendant Jeff Banta, told The Associated Press that the acquittals were stunning.

Im speechless, he said.

On the one hand, Lisa Ludwig, described as a standby counsel for Ryan Bundy, told the Oregonian that maybe this is a lesson that thats not the way to engage with these people who want nothing more than just to be heard . . .

By contrast, Jennifer Rokala, executive director of the Center for Western Priorities, said the decision puts park rangers and scientists at great risk just for doing their jobs and will undoubtedly embolden extremist groups.

Sen. Jeff Merkley agreed. While in our judicial system its important to respect a jurys decision, he told KOIN TV, I am troubled by this outcome. The notion that an armed occupation could take over a citizen-owned facility and cause extensive damage, and yet face no consequences within our legal system, is deeply concerning.

The verdict against open lawbreakers by an all-white jury raised racial issues as well and references to the protests among native American groups over the Dakota Access oil pipeline, who were forcibly removed Thursday night from their camp in the pipelines path.

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WASHINGTONThe U.S. Supreme Court will take up transgender rights for the first time in the case of a Virginia school board that wants to prevent a transgender teenager from using the boys bathroom at his high school.

The justices said Friday they will hear the appeal from the Gloucester County school board sometime next year. The high courts order means that student Gavin Grimm will not be able to use the boys bathroom in the meantime.

A lower court had ordered the school board to accommodate Grimm, but the justices in August put that order on hold while they considered whether to hear the appeal.

Grimm, a 17-year-old high school senior, was born female but identifies as male. He was allowed to use the boys restroom at his high school for several weeks in 2014. But after some parents complained, the school board adopted a policy requiring students to use either the restroom that corresponds with their biological gender or a private, single-stall restroom. Grimm is backed by the Obama administration in his argument that the policy violates Title IX, a federal law that bars sex discrimination in schools.

I continue to suffer daily because of the school boards decision to make my bathroom use a matter of public debate, Grimm said in a column published in Fridays editions of the Washington Post. I feel the humiliation every time I need to use the restroom and every minute I try to hold it in the hopes of avoiding the long walk to the nurses office.

The Education Department says that transgender students should be allowed to use restrooms and locker rooms consistent with their gender identities. Among the issues in the case is whether the departments guidance should have the force of law.

Similar lawsuits are pending around the country. The Obama administration has sued North Carolina over a state law aimed at restricting transgender students to bathrooms that correspond to their biological genders.

A federal judge in Texas has sided with Texas and 12 other states in issuing a nationwide hold on the administrations directive to public schools, issued in May. The directive tells schools to allow transgender students to use the bathroom and locker room consistent with their gender identity.

The Supreme Court split 5 to 3 in August to put the court order in Grimms case on hold. At the time, Justice Stephen Breyer said he was providing a fifth vote to go along with the four more conservative justices to preserve the status quo until the court decided whether to weigh in. Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan dissented.

Grimm had urged the court not to take up his case.

The school board asked the court to settle the matter now. It said that allowing Grimm to use the boys restroom raises privacy concerns and may cause some parents to pull their children out of school.

The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond sided with Grimm in April, saying the federal judge who previously dismissed Grimms Title IX discrimination claim ignored the Education Departments guidance on bathroom use.

The appeals court reinstated Grimms Title IX claim and sent it back to the district court for further consideration. The judge then issued the order in favor of Grimm.

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Scientists announced Wednesday that Gaetan Dugas, the Canadian flight attendant once described as the HIV epidemics Patient Zero, was not in fact the first person to carry the virus in North America.

This was confirmed through a breakthrough technique that allowed researchers to stitch together pieces of the virus found in a collection of 40-year-old blood samples and confirm HIV had been circulating in the United States since around 1970  long before Dugas was diagnosed. This is a remarkable piece of science, but the crucial lesson of this story is that viruses have social lives.

HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, probably emerged in western-central Africa about 100 years ago after mutating from a similar virus that infects primates. In humans, HIV mutates at a predictable rate. This means that by comparing the genes of various strains of the virus, scientists can count backward, clocking each blood sample and mapping out the branches in the viral family tree.

One problem with this strategy is that the genetic information in old blood samples degrades, making it hard to find usable genetic information. The new technique can actually cobble together a whole genetic sequence from stray bits. It is this complex technique that, curiously, seems to have exonerated Dugas.

Dugas was born in Quebec City in 1953. He was by many accounts a charismatic figure on the underground gay scene of the 1970s and early 80s. By his own admission he was highly promiscuous and his job with Air Canada had him travelling widely. In 1984, scrambling to understand the new disease exploding in the gay community, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control discovered Dugas was at the centre of a cluster of cases of AIDS.

What happened next is a tangled series of events that this weeks announcement finally helps to unravel. When Randy Schilts bestselling book, And The Band Played On, hit the shelves in 1987, he described Dugas, who died in 1984, as HIVs Patient Zero. This was partly an oversimplification and a simple misunderstanding: most of the other cases in that cluster were in California and Dugas, the lone Canadian, was labelled not Patient Zero but Patient O for Outside of California.

Scandalized readers and reviewers, however, ran with the narrative that Dugas was the villain of HIV. The reasons why Dugas made such an appealing scapegoat ultimately lie not in biology, but history.

Dugas story unfolded in the 1980s in Ronald Reagans America. The virus was reported in Americas medical journals just a few months into his presidency, in June of 1981, but Regan didnt make a formal speech on AIDS until 1987. The same year, he proposed cutting the federal AIDS budget by 11 per cent. For Reagan, AIDS was politically toxic  a problem only for gay men, immigrants, drug users, and others pushed to the margins of society. He saw no votes in the issue and ignored it for years, to disastrous effect.

Dugas was therefore irresistible in a media, political, and popular culture environment desperate to pin the blame on an immoral outsider. Dugas almost certainly did spread the disease to others, but it was his bad luck to be a gay Canadian in Americas time of crisis.

These are truly exciting times in the world of HIV research. In recent years a series of breakthroughs in basic science, treatment, and advocacy have ushered in a new era. Discrimination against patients has been greatly reduced, while survival times are vastly increased. But its important to use this as a chance for reflection: are we still making the same mistakes? Have we learned the lessons of the Patient Zero who never was?

The search for the true story of AIDS in America was never going to be limited to microscopes and mathematical models. Viruses find us as we are; at our strongest and our weakest, with prejudice and hatred, with compassion and courage. We still stigmatize those afflicted with HIV and countless other conditions, adding a brutal moral baggage to an already heavy burden.

Gaetan Dugas is not the first person to be vilified by a frightened and angry public, nor will he be the last. For every case that is eventually vindicated, there are thousands more relegated to the dusty corners of history as stigmatized scapegoats. At least the people who knew and loved Dugas may now rest knowing his name has been, to some small extent, cleared. The rest of us, hopefully, have learned a lesson that goes beyond biology.

Mike Callaghan is a social scientist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in England.

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By achieving his lifelong goal of being the center of the world's attention these past months, he's revealed his own embodiment of precisely what is not great about America. His faux appearance, greed, arrogance, opportunism, cynicism, racism, misogyny, hatred, self-promotion, judgmental attitude, disrespect, need for vengeance, unethical business practices, cheating on taxes, hypocrisy, crudeness and obsessive need to win at any cost are character defects that America must confess and begin to address if we are to deserve our place of honor in this world.
A Belgian regions decision to let the Canada-European Union trade deal go forward is being portrayed as victory for Canada. It is not.

The so-called Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between Canada and the 28-member EU was flawed before it ran into opposition from Belgiums francophone region of Wallonia. It is more so now.

In particular, the deal as written contains a fundamental imbalance. European firms would be able to challenge, at special investment courts, Canadian laws and regulations that interfere with profit-making.

But Canadian firms would have the same rights only in those EU countries that specifically allow such challenges. Thats because the EU treats the proposed Investment Court System as a matter of national, rather than Pan-European, concern.

In Canada, on the other hand, investment courts need only the imprimatur of the federal government to come into effect.

As Osgoode Hall law professor and trade expert Gus Van Harten notes, this is not a trivial matter. Many Europeans are wary of allowing foreign corporations to override domestic laws. Any proposal to set up investment courts is sure to run into tough opposition in European legislatures.

Such opposition was one of the reasons behind Wallonias initial decision to veto CETA. Under EU rules, the unanimous consent of all 28 member governments  including Belgiums  is needed to ratify the deal.

Under Belgian rules, the consent of the countrys regions  including Wallonia  is needed to sign any international pact. When tiny Wallonia (its population is 3.5 million) used those rules to hold up CETA, Ottawa was taken aback.

The Walloon move scuppered a carefully choreographed plan to have Prime Minister Justin Trudeau fly to Brussels to sign the agreement.

Theoretically, that signing can now go ahead. But as Van Harten points out, Ottawa may want to put the investment court portion of the deal on ice until the EU nations decide which of them will agree to it.

The Guardian reports that as part of its deal with Wallonia, Belgium has agreed to ask the European Court of Justice whether the investment court dispute settlement proposal is even legal.

It is possible that, in the end, the controversial dispute settlement system will be scrapped entirely.

If so, that would remove one of the worst elements of CETA. A similar dispute settlement system in the North American Free Trade Agreement has allowed foreign firms to override domestic environmental laws.

But even if the investor courts are scrapped, much else is wrong with CETA.

A 2010 study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives estimated that removing tariffs on European cars and trucks would cost the Canadian goods-producing industry between 28,000 and 150,000 jobs.

According to one 2013 estimate, drug patent rules envisioned by the treaty would end up costing both individual consumers and provincial governments up to $1.6 billion each year, making it even more difficult to set up a national pharmacare plan.

Canadian dairy farmers would be hurt as would fish processors. Canadian beef and pork producers would probably benefit from exporting more to Europe  although the scale of this has been called into question.

The government says the deal will create 80,000 net new jobs in Canada. But as economist Jim Stanford has pointed out, this number is based on the dubious assumption that no worker can ever be unemployed.

The main economic benefit of CETA may be that it would allow Canadians to buy European luxury goods at marginally cheaper prices.

Otherwise, this never was a compelling deal. Even without CETA, the EU is already Canadas second-largest trading partner.

Canada began negotiations with Europe seven years ago, largely to avoid being sidelined by any future EU trade and investment pact with the United States. Such a pact now seems most unlikely.

In short, the Walloons may not have done Canada any favours by deciding to reverse course and support CETA. Their consistent opposition could have allowed this flawed agreement to die a well-deserved and quiet death.

Thomas Walkoms column appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Correction  October 28, 2016: This article was edited from a previous version that mistakenly said the 2010 study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives estimated that removing tariffs on European cars and trucks would cost the Canadian auto industry between 28,000 and 150,000 jobs.

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Re: Blind workers set out to fight job inequity, Oct. 24

Blind workers set out to fight job inequity, Oct. 24

CNIBs program, EmployAbility, is welcome in a world where employers invariably consider any kind of disability a handicap.

My daughter is a chef and profoundly deaf. In my experience prospective employers focus on two things that prevent greater employment of people with disabilities: the cost of accommodation and disruption in the workforce.

We need to flip that around and convince them that most accommodation costs very little and that such workers are often a huge inspiration to other employees, bringing with them dedication, loyalty and a history of overcoming enormous odds.

In the meantime many individuals with disabilities, such as my daughter, try to keep it a secret for as long as possible in order to get a foot in the door and participate in the same opportunities as the rest of the population.

Alison Griffiths, Burlington

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Something is brewing in Italy, and it isn't cappuccino.

A perfect storm threatens the country, as its mismanaged economy sinks deeper into the kind of dysfunction for which Mediterraneans are famous.

Particularly vulnerable is the country's banking sector, which is teetering under a mountain of quickly souring and unsustainable debt.

What is worse is that Italy's woes could drag down the rest of the European Union. Events on Tuesday concerning a major Italian bank are the surest sign yet that the downward spiral is accelerating.

One way to make a easy and quick killing from this Roman spectacle is to short the iShares MSCI Italy Capped Exchange-Traded Fund (EWI) , the benchmark for Italy's economy.

But first, a little background.

Troubled Italian bank Monte dei Paschi di SienaTuesday announced a restructuring program that will include hundreds of branch closings, jettisoning toxic loans, new top management and thousands of job cuts. It is a last-ditch effort to lure investors into pumping up to 5 billion ($5.5 billion) in new capital into the troubled bank.

Trading of the bank's shares was suspended on Tuesday, after the stock plunged 23% in the wake of the news.

Bank Chief Executive Marco Morelli, who took the reins last month, said that the bank is seeking a new "anchor shareholder" to expedite the capital-raising effort, which had been announced under previous management.

Monte dei Paschi di Siena, Italy's third-largest lender, also happens to be the oldest surviving bank in the world, founded in 1472. It was the worst performer in a stress test this summer of EU banks.

The bank's shareholders are scheduled to vote on the austerity plan on Nov. 26, a week before Italy's crucial constitutional referendum on reforming the country's bloated government bureaucracy. If the referendum fails, the bank's prospective new investors would probably get spooked and the plan to raise capital would collapse.

Italy's prime minister, Matteo Renzi, has vowed to resign if he loses the referendum. Italy and Europe's leaders are unnerved by the latest polls, which show the "no" vote in the lead.

The upshot is that Italy is a mess and poses a danger to the entire eurozone. An Italian bank failure could be imminent, which in turn would spark financial contagion throughout the continent if not the world.

It would also fuel sentiment among white nationalists in Italy to follow the U.K.'s lead and agitate for leaving the EU, a disastrous scenario for Italy in particular and global investors as a whole.

The EU financial services sector is a ticking time bomb. The European Banking Authority estimates that struggling banks throughout the EU require as much as 470 billion euros ($517 billion) in financing to stay afloat.

The crisis is worst in Italy.

Italy is the third-largest national economy in the eurozone and the eighth-largest in the world. The economy is hobbled by anemic growth, astronomical unemployment, inefficient industries, political chaos and a banking sector that is plagued by ugly balance sheets.

Italy's banks are saddled with 360 billion in bad loans, of which 200 billion are considered insolvent. Tuesday's events surrounding Monte dei Paschi di Siena indicate that the day of reckoning is getting closer for both Italy and the EU.

Investors who are looking for under-the-radar opportunities in an overvalued and shaky global equity market, should look to short the iShares MSCI Italy Capped ETF.

The ETF holds the country's largest blue-chip stocks, including construction and transportation giant Atlantia; industrial-goods conglomerate CNH Industrial; oil behemoth Eni;Luxottica, the largest eye wear company in the world; and money center bank UniCredit.

With net assets of $403.31 million, iShares MSCI Italy Capped ETF is down more than 17% this year and more than 24% over the past year. In coming weeks, as Italy's economic, financial and political institutions dance on the edge of the abyss, the ETF should continue its path downward.

Act now, before the rest of the investment herd catches on.

---

We just explained that Italy is on the cusp of a disaster that could undermine the entire European Union. But don't get complacent about America! A gathering financial storm is about to hit U.S. shores, too. When it hits, weak companies and their investors will be washed away. You need to put yourself on solid ground. And that doesn't just mean changing your investment allocations or loading up on cash. I'll show you how to protect yourself and prosper when you click here.

John Persinos is an editorial manager and investment analyst at Investing Daily.

At the time of publication, he owned none of the stocks mentioned.

Persinos appears as a regular commentator on the financial television show Small Cap Nation.Follow him on Twitter.
While tech companies have hoarded hundreds of billions of dollars overseas, Qualcomm's (QCOM) $47 billion purchase of NXP Semiconductors (NXPI) is one of the few instances in which those distant funds were put to good use.

"It's a fantastic use of offshore cash, versus earning maybe 10 basis points on safe investments," Moody's analyst Richard Lane said.

"It's one of the few examples where we've seen tech companies be able to do that, in large part because there are so few substantial non-U.S. tech companies.

Qualcomm had nearly $29 billion in overseas cash in June, according to Moody's.

During a Thursday call with investors, Qualcomm CFO George Davis touted the strategic use of the funds.

"Our use of offshore cash enhances transaction efficiencies, unlocks value, and significantly improves our return on invested capital," Davis said. "We plan to use future offshore cash to service the transaction financing, enabling us to reduce leverage quickly and we remain committed to a strong investment- grade rating."

Overseas cash hoards are a hallmark of Silicon Valley.

Apple (AAPL) had the biggest stockpile, with $214.9 billion in cash held outside of the U.S. at mid-year. Microsoft (MSFT) was next, with $108.9 billion in cash overseas. Coming in under the $100 billion mark were Cisco (CSCO) ($59.9 billion), Oracle (ORCL) ($8.2 billion) and Alphabet (GOOGL) ($47.8 billion). Including chipmakers, Intel (INTC) had about $15 billion in offshore cash.

Alphabet, Apple, Cisco and NXP are holdings in Jim Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS Charitable Trust Portfolio. Want to be alerted before Cramer buys or sells GOOGL, AAPL, CSCO or NXP? Action Alerts PLUS Charitable Trust Portfolio

Silicon Valley's overseas cash holdings came into focus this summer, when the European Union told Ireland to slap Apple with a $14.5 billion bill for back taxes.



Microsoft has used overseas cash to fund acquisitions. The Seattle tech group paid $7.2 billion for the handset and services business of Finnish communications technology group Nokia in 2014. Microsoft would have been better off putting the money in a safe, low-return investment. The company took a $7.6 billion write down on the business last year.

Last year, Microsoft tapped overseas cash to buy Mojang, the Swedish developer of the Minecraft game, for $2.5 billion.

"Aside from that," Moody's analyst Lane said, "there are very few companies that have been able to use their offshore cash in this respect."

Qualcomm isn't funding all of the purchase with overseas cash. The company will issue $11 billion in debt to finance the deal. Moody's put the San Diego chipmaker on review for a downgrade.

"As a result of that debt raise, their leverage will increase a fair bit from about 1.5 times adjust debt to Ebitda to a little under 3 times, we believe,' Lane said.

Davis said Qualcomm will pay down debt to its level before the transaction within two years of the deal's close.
Belgium's regional parliament in Wallonia, representing mostly French-speaking citizens in the bi-lingual country, has voted to accept a free trade deal between Canada and the European Union.

Fifty-eight of the parliament's 63 lawmakers voted to accept terms of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) Friday, reversing an earlier decision that had threatened to scupper the multi-billion dollar pact.

The vote should clear the way for Belgium's full parliament to ratify the trade deal, which requires approval from all of the European Union's 28 members.

A study, published in 2011 by both Canada and the EU, estimated CETA would lift trade between the two regions by 20%.

The vote also has potential implications for negotiations between the EU and the United Kingdom, which voted to leave the bloc on June 23. Prime Minister Theresa May has said she'll begin the process of withdraw no later than March of 2017.

Proponents of a so-called 'Hard Brexit', in which the U.K. would completely disengage from the EU and only trade on the basis of WTO rules, had pointed to the Wallonia decision as an example of the dysfunction of EU rules.

Belgium's Walloon region accounts for around a third of the country's population and less than a fifth of its exports to Canada. Belgium itself only accounts for a little more than 2.2% of the EU's 350 million citizens.
NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Shares of Dean Foods (DF) were soaring 8.2% to $18.07 on heavy trading volume early Friday afternoon as Chinese beverage company Hangzhou Wahaha has pursued financing for a potential takeover of the company, the Financial Times reports, citing sources.

Hongsheng Beverage, which is a subsidiary of Wahaha, has approached banks in Hong Kong about financing help for a possible buyout, the FT added.

Dean Foods is a Dallas-based food and beverage company that specializes in dairy products.

More than 3.11 million of the company's shares changed hands so far today vs. its average 30-day volume of 1.31 million shares per day.

Separately, TheStreet Ratings Team has a "Hold" rating with a score of C+ on Dean Foods stock.

The primary factors that have impacted the rating are mixed. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its impressive record of earnings per share growth, notable return on equity and attractive valuation levels.

But the team also finds weaknesses including generally higher debt management risk, weak operating cash flow and a generally disappointing performance in the stock itself.

Recently, 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.

You can view the full analysis from the report here: DF
Deutsche Bank (DB) is continuing to slough off subsidiaries as CEO John Cryan streamlines operations and grappled with investor concerns about a multibillion-dollar settlement with the U.S. Justice Department.

InvestaBank S.A., Institucion de Banca said this week it would buy the largest German lender's banking and investment subsidiaries in Mexico, without disclosing terms. The announcement came just two months after Deutsche announced the sale of its Argentina subsidiary to Banco Comafi.

The sales help strengthen the bank's capital -- the buffer of extra assets that's supposed to protect depositors -- as the German lender grapples with concern about the size of a mortgage-backed securities settlement with the U.S. Justice Department. The agency proposed an amount as high as $14 billion, though Deutsche has said it will be much lower and that bringing the matter to a close is its highest priority.

"We are pleased to mark another major milestone in simplifying our bank by selling our subsidiaries in Mexico" as part of the company's long-term strategy, Karl von Rohr, Deutsche Bank's chief administrative officer, said in a statement. "We will work in partnership with our clients, regulators, employees and other stakeholders to ensure a smooth transition to the new arrangements."

The deal is set to close in 2017. Deutsche Bank was advised by Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom.

The Skadden team includes M&A partner Paola Lozano, Ralph Perez, Jose Vivanco and Daniela Badiola, Andrew Woodard, Rebecca Rodal, Edward Gonzalez, Jay Cosel, Timothy Nelson, Harvey Uris, Jonathan Frank and Julie Bedard.

Neither bank could be reached for comment on the deal Friday. Advisers for InvestaBank were not disclosed.

Deutsche Bank told investors this week that it had increased its litigation provisions to 5.9 billion ($6.4 billion) in the the three months through September from 5.5 billion, and the lender posted 278 million in profit, beating analysts' projections of a loss.

The bank's recent sale of $4.5 billion in bonds put it just over a goal announced in July of selling about 8 billion euros of senior unsecured bonds through private placements before Dec. 31. The latest issuances emanated from "reverse inquiries," in which investors approach a company with an offer to buy its notes. More often, companies decide of their own volition to sell bonds and then cast about for buyers.
A legal battle, possibly one reaching the Supreme Court, is the likely result of new privacy rules limiting broadband service providers' use of customer data.

The new rules, proposed by the Federal Communications Commission in March, were approved by its commissioners 3-2 along a party line vote Thursday.

The rules restrict how service providers such as AT&T (T) and Verizon Communications (VZ) use and sell customer data. They do not affect "edge providers" such as Google (GOOGL) and Facebook (FB) .

Broadband providers and their industry trade groups lobbied aggressively against the rules, whereas consumer advocacy organizations cheered their approval.

The rules could upend the business plans of broadband providers, particularly AT&T, which just placed a $107 billion bet on the value of its customer data by agreeing to acquire Time Warner (TWX) . AT&T believes the data from its more than 100 million customers can be used to target advertising to viewers of Time Warner's CNN, HBO and other content. Other big cable and broadband providers believe that model will work for them too and have said they will ask regulators to make AT&T share its customer data with them as a condition of regulatory approval of the Time Warner deal -- a request likely to be rejected if the privacy rules survive legal challenge.

The industry opponents say they haven't officially decided whether to challenge the privacy rules -- the first step would be to ask the FCC to reconsider them -- but players on both sides say they expect a federal appeals court eventually will be asked to overturn them. A related case against an earlier FCC decision claiming the agency's right to regulate broadband is already before the federal appeals court in Washington.

A three-judge panel of the court upheld the FCC's claim to jurisdiction over broadband service in June. The full line of the appeals court now is reviewing that decision. Regardless of how the appeals court ultimately rules, the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to be asked to rule on the FCC's authority to regulate broadband service. If the high court strikes down the commission's authority to oversee internet service, the new privacy rules would be struck down too.

Under the new privacy rules, internet service providers such as AT&T, Verizon and Comcast (CMCSA) must get their customers' permission to use and share "sensitive" personal information such as precise geolocation; financial, health and children's information; social security numbers; web browsing and app usage history; and the content of communications.

"Google and Facebook have built combined trillion dollar digital - specifically mobile - advertising empires, although that growth hardly came overnight. They not only have access to an unbelievable trove of data but have figured out how to extract meaningful insights from that data and apply it to their respective platforms - Facebook in social media/community engagement and Google in search - in order to better target users and in return deliver high ROI for advertisers," said Jack Mohr, TheStreet's chief investment strategist. Mohr and Jim Cramer also co-manage Action Alerts PLUS, a charitable trust that counts GOOGL and FB among its holdings. "AT&T and Verizon certainly have troves of data but are so far behind in their ability to utilize it effectively. AT&T's acquisition of Time Warner is an attempt to create a media powerhouse with leverageable data to provide better targeted advertising to its ad buyers (one of the main rationales behind the deal) but they will never be able to compete with FB/GOOGL at targeting, they're too far behind at this point so we expect FB and GOOGL to continue to take share away from traditional and digital TV cable/broadcast ad budgets (which still command vast majority of total U.S. ad spend) over foreseeable future."

According to the FCC's new rules, "nonsensitive" information such as email addresses or service tier information could be used and shared without upfront customer consent, but providers must allow users to opt out.

The only exemption to the restrictions are the providers' use of billing and collection information.

Although FCC Chairman Thomas Wheeler was confident in the commission's authority to impose the privacy protections, statements from industry groups and from the two dissenting Republican FCC members highlighted the grounds on which a possible legal challenge to the rules would be made.

Joan Marsh, AT&T senior vice president of federal regulatory, said there's no legal rationale for imposing a stricter regulatory regime on broadband providers than on Google and Facebook. "Consumers want their information protected based on the sensitivity of the information collected, not the entity collecting it," she wrote in a blog post reacting to the FCC move. "The FCC's divergent approach will ultimately serve only to confuse consumers, who will continue to see ads based on their web browsing history generated by edge providers even after they have been told by their service provider that their consent is required for use of such information."

AT&T shares were little changed Friday, down 1 cent to $36.51.

Republican FCC member Michael O'Rielly said even setting aside the dubious legality of the FCC's previous decision to declare jurisdiction over broadband service, the new privacy rules face "serious deficiencies" withstanding legal scrutiny. For starters, the FCC failed to adequately justify the rules, he said, highlighting that they go beyond the online privacy restrictions already established by the Federal Trade Commission and that they leave ISPs with greater burdens than Google and Facebook.

The FCC explanation that ISPs are able to see more information about their customers than edge providers is a "ridiculous notion that has been thoroughly debunked," he said.

"Requiring opt-in notice for web browsing history and application usage data is a significant departure from the FTC approach, which is the basis for current expectations," O'Rielly said, noting that there has been no evidence of any privacy harms, and businesses have been able to "provide great value to consumers in the form of discounts, convenient features and other new and innovative services."

Consumer advocates, however, say that the best way to level the playing field is for Google, Facebook and other websites to fall under a regime just like the one the FCC just passed for broadband service providers. Neither the FCC nor the FTC has authority to take that step, they acknowledge, but they plan to press Congress for legislation that would do just that. They also point out that Europe already was headed in the FCC's direction and it makes good business sense for ISPs to accept a global privacy framework rather than different ones for the U.S. and Europe.

"Europe is pressing the U.S. to do a better job protecting private data, and companies need to think about how aggressively they want to try overturning these rules," said Jeff Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy. "They'll be making a big mistake to take action that's out of touch with what their customers want and, ultimately, what their shareholders want."
News feed

Investment: HNA Group is snapping up a 25 percent ownership stake of the Hilton Worldwide hotel chain for about $6.5 billion. HNA will appoint two directors at Hilton, expanding the board to 10 members, and will have partial ownership of Hiltons planned spinoffs of Park Hotels & Resorts and Hilton Grand Vacations.

Teaming up: Reston-based Access National Corp., parent of Access National Bank, agreed to merge with Middleburg Financial of Middleburg, Va., in a deal valued at $233.1 million. Access National shareholders would own 53.5 percent of the combined entity.

Cutting jobs: Gannett, which publishes USA Today and more than 100 other newspapers, said it is reducing its workforce by about 2 percent to offset struggles in print and digital advertising. The cuts will include staff at the companys McLean headquarters.

the buzz

Im deeply disappointed in more delay. . . . I will continue to work my earrings off to put the funds in the federal checkbook for a new, fully consolidated headquarters.

Barbara A. Mikulski, retiring Democratic senator from Maryland, on the federal governments move last week to postpone until 2017 a decision on where to relocate the FBIs Washington headquarters.
Events of Note

Wednesday

The Economic Club of Washington D.C. hosts a forum on the presidential election featuring several well-known analysts and journalists. The event begins at 11 a.m. at the Ritz-Carlton Washington, D.C., 1150 22nd St. NW.

Wednesday

The Northern Virginia Technology Council hosts a Capital Cybersecurity Summit, with a reception Wednesday and all-day program Thursday. The reception begins at 6:30 p.m. at the Ritz-Carlton Tysons Corner, 1700 Tysons Blvd., McLean. Doors open Thursday at 7 a.m.

Thursday

The Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce and other organizations host a Green Business Forum on Pepcos commercial and industrial energy savings program. The event begins at 8 a.m. at the chambers offices, 51 Monroe St., Suite 1800, Rockville.
A former flower shop owner who sexually assaulted, tortured and held a Texas man captive in the basement of his store says his conviction should be vacated because his victim agreed to such treatment.

Roger Van of Wayne was sentenced to up to 30 years in prison on several counts, including sexual assault and false imprisonment, related to the 2001 incident.

In an appeal to the Nebraska Supreme Court, defense lawyer Melissa Wentling alleges that Van's conviction was unconstitutional because the "Nebraska Legislature did not intend these statutes to apply to conduct that occurs during a private, consensual relationship" involving bondage and torture.

The high court is to hear arguments in the case on Sept. 10.

During Van's trial, his lawyers argued that the 36-year-old Houston man consented to being beaten, bound and branded.

Before meeting in Wayne, Van and the man exchanged scores of messages and negotiated a no-limits relationship involving torture and bondage, defense lawyers said.

In one e-mail message, the Texas man indicated he might try to escape and that Van should prevent that from happening.

The man also acknowledged writing an e-mail saying that he needed to be afraid of Van, who also sent him a photo of the small cell where he would be kept.

Defense lawyers said the two agreed not to have a customary "safe word" that signals to the master that the slave no longer can stand the pain and that the session is to end.

"As stated by the United States Supreme Court, homosexuals' right to liberty under the due process clause gives them a right to engage in consensual sexual activity (in their homes) without intervention of the government," Wentling said in briefs filed in the case.

The Texan said that after a light flogging administered the first day in Wayne, he was ordered to write why he deserved punishment and decided to get out.

But he said Van refused to believe he no longer wanted to participate and kept him captive.

The man testified that on one occasion he was placed face down on a table, restrained and branded with the letter "w" on the back of one of his thighs. The pain was so intense that he became ill and broke one of his wrist restraints, the man said.

Wentling said: "Van is entitled to respect for his private life, and the state 'cannot demean his existence or control his destiny by making his private sexual conduct a crime.'"

Assistant Attorney General Kevin Slimp rejected that argument.

While the evidence presented showed the Texas man initially consented to a master-slave relationship, "that consent was withdrawn the day after he arrived in Wayne," Slimp wrote.
Booz Allen Hamilton said Thursday that it has hired Robert Mueller, a former FBI director, to conduct a review of the firms security processes after one of its employees was charged with stealing huge amounts of classified data from the National Security Agency.

We take the trust clients place in us seriously and are proud to support our countrys important national security missions, Craig Veith, Booz Allens vice president for external relations, said in a statement. We are committed to doing our part to detect potential insider threats, which are complex and constantly evolving.

In a complaint that was unsealed this month, Harold T. Martin was charged in what is alleged to be one of the largest thefts of classified material in U.S. history. Martins arrest follows the leaks of Edward Snowden, who also worked for Booz Allen while on contract to the NSA and walked away with troves of sensitive information.

Prosecutors have said that Martin took at least 50 terabytes of digital data, or as much as 500 million pages of information. He also had six boxes of files, many of which were left open in his house or car, prosecutors said.

Also on Thursday, in documents urging that Martin remain jailed, prosecutors alleged that they found the names of U.S. intelligence officers in the materials they recovered from Martin, which posed a particular threat to the safety of those operating undercover abroad. They said Martins communications were being monitored  except those with his lawyers  and they remained concerned about the damage he could do if he was able to reveal any of the information he took.

In this April 21, 2016 file photo, attorney and former FBI Director Robert Mueller, right, arrives for a court hearing at the Phillip Burton Federal Building in San Francisco. (Jeff Chiu/AP)

Last week, Martins attorneys painted a different picture of their client, saying he was not like Snowden, who leaked information on sensitive surveillance programs to journalists, including at The Washington Post. Rather, they described Martin as a voracious reader committed to being excellent at his work.

Gathering the information began as an effort to be better at his job, Martin attorney James Wyda told a U.S. magistrate judge last week.

On Friday, Martin is due back in federal court in Baltimore. His defense attorneys will argue that Martin is not a flight risk and should be released from jail. They are appealing a magistrate judges ruling from last Friday that Martin continue to be detained.

McLean-based Booz Allen said that it fired Martin as soon as it learned that he was arrested and that the company has been fully cooperating with the FBI.

In the statement, Veith said the company is confident that Mueller will conduct a fair, objective, and thorough review . . . We are an organization that prides itself on constant learning. If there are areas where Booz Allen can improve, we will address them.

In an email to employees Thursday afternoon that was obtained by The Post, Booz Allens chief executive, Horacio Rozanski, praised Muellers unparalleled reputation for integrity. Rozanski said that Mueller has been given broad authority to go where the review takes him and come back to us with recommendations.

The review began on Oct. 19, Rozanski wrote.

The company was founded in 1914 and has a long history working for the U.S. military. It began its government service by advising the secretary of the Navy in 1940 in preparation for World War II. Today, about 30 percent of the companys workforce of 22,600 people are veterans, including 48 senior leaders, the company says, and nearly 70 percent hold security clearances, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

In fiscal year 2016, 97 percent of the companys revenue came from the U.S. government through more than 5,000 contracts, according to the filing. Its biggest customer was the Army. Nearly half of the companys revenue  $2.6 billion  came from defense clients, and a quarter, or $1.3 billion, came from intelligence customers, such as the NSA. Seven of its 10 most lucrative contracts were classified.

The company has long and deep ties to many of the nations most secretive agencies, including the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, the National Reconnaissance Office and the Defense Intelligence Agency, and its employees often work alongside government employees at such organizations. In 2013, after the Snowden incident, an article in Bloomberg called it the worlds most profitable spy organization and noted that James R. Clapper Jr., the director of national intelligence, is a former executive at the company.

In the filing, the company noted its reliance on the U.S. government and said that if our relationships with such agencies are harmed, our future revenue and operating profits would decline.

Ellen Nakashima and Matt Zapotosky contributed to this report.
A driver rides hands-free in a Tesla Motors Inc. Model S vehicle equipped with Autopilot hardware and software in New York. (Christopher Goodney/Bloomberg)

ENERGY

Tesla to unveil roof

to boost SolarCity bid

Tesla founder Elon Musk is unveiling a solar roof to boost his case for the automakers planned acquisition of SolarCity.

Musks vision of a clean-energy society with smart solar homes has appealed to investors. But figuring out how to make a new rooftop power system viable economically is a challenge.

Designers have been reaching for a simple solar-powered roofing material for more than a decade. None have been practical because of higher costs and lower power output than traditional photovoltaic panels, said Jenny Chase, lead solar analyst at Bloomberg New Energy Finance in Zurich.

Musk is taking on the design of the solar panel itself. Tesla is expected to unveil what may best be described as a solar shingle.

 Bloomberg News

LEGAL

Madoff friends estate to settle with victims

The estate of one of Bernard Madoffs oldest friends agreed to pay the con mans victims $277 million to settle claims that the late Beverly Hills money manager got rich from Madoffs Ponzi scheme at the expense of thousands of investors, including his own clients.

Stanley Chais was one of Madoffs earliest investors. But after the Ponzi scheme collapsed in 2008, Chais insisted he had been duped along with everyone else.

The estate, which has battled lawsuits for years, will pay more than $262 million to Irving Picard, the trustee liquidating Madoffs firm, and an additional $15 million to Californias attorney general to resolve a related class-action suit, Picard said Friday.

Picard claimed in a 2009 lawsuit that Chais, his wife, Pamela, and entities they controlled, reaped about $1 billion in profit from fake securities transactions at Madoffs firm.

 Bloomberg News

Also in Business

 From news services
Demonstrators stand next to burning tires as armed soldiers and law enforcement officers assemble on Thursday, Oct. 27 to force Dakota Access pipeline protesters off private land where they had camped to block construction. (Mike Mccleary/AP)

Why are celebrities like actor Mark Ruffalo, civil rights leader Jesse Jackson, liberal television anchor Amy Goodman and scores of Native Americans from the Standing Rock Sioux tribe all converging on a isolated spot along the Missouri river of North Dakota?

To block the construction of an oil pipeline. But theres much more to it than that.

On Thursday, the group was met by scores of police wearing riot gear and riding in military-style armored vehicles. By the end of the day, after firing tear gas, dismantling teepees and seeking to disperse the crowd, police said they had arrested 141 people, according to news reports.

Heres whats behind the burning tires and riot shields.

What is this pipeline project?

Civil rights activist Jesse Jackson sits atop a horse Oct. 26, while visiting the protest camp against the Dakota Access oil pipeline outside Cannon Ball, N.D. (James Macpherson/AP)

The segment of pipe near the protest site is just part of the Dakota Access Pipeline Project, a new 1,172-mile, 30-inch diameter $3.7 billion pipeline that will carry high quality crude oil from the rapidly expanding Bakken and Three Forks basins in North Dakota to existing pipeline networks in Patoka, Ill. and refineries in the Midwest, East Coast, Texas and abroad.

Who wins  or loses  from building it?

The pipeline would save money for oil producers in North Dakota, many of whom ship their crude oil in rail cars across Canada and the northern United States. The Dakota Access pipeline could transport as much as 570,000 barrels per day  representing approximately half of Bakken current daily crude oil production.

The reduction in oil transported by rail would also bring down rates for transporting grain out of South Dakota. The competition for transportation has driven up the cost of shipping corn as much as $1 a bushel.

The losers? Railroads that, with little competition, have been charging hefty rates. They include companies such as Burlington Northern Santa Fe, owned by Warren Buffetts Berkshire Hathaway.

The winners would also include the Dakota Access owners: a partnership called Energy Transfer, and its investors.

They include: Donald Trump. His financial disclosure forms in May said he owned between $500,000 and $1 million of the company. Energy Transfers chief executive Kelcy L. Warren this year has made $1.53 million in campaign contributions to Super PACS and $246,900 to individual campaigns and the GOP, according to the Center on Responsive Politics. In June 2015, he gave $5 million to Opportunity and Freedom PAC, which supported Rick Perrys presidential campaign. The Trump Victory Fund, a joint fundraising committee that includes Trumps campaign, the Republican National Committee and some state parties, received a $100,000 contribution from Warren on June 29.

Who or what is Energy Transfer?

Energy Transfer is a master limited partnership, a type of corporation that does not pay corporate taxes but which passes profits through to the partners, who pay income tax. (Real estate is another business that often uses limited partnerships to avoid corporate taxes on top of individual income taxes.)

As the protests have intensified, the company shares have dropped from $42.85 on Aug. 8 to $35.42 on Friday.

Why do people oppose the pipeline?

Lots of reasons.

The biggest opponents are environment groups who have built a Keep It in the Ground movement that favors throwing up obstacles to companies seeking to extract oil, natural gas or coal.

We do not want, nor do we need, an expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure, Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune said in a blog post. We have the technology and ability to continue and complete our transition to 100 percent clean renewable energy and leave dirty fuels like Bakken crude oil where they belong -- in the ground.

Another chief critic is Bill McKibben, a Middlebury College professor and leader of climate action group 350.org,

Since the pipeline has won its expedited fast-track approvals, the climate science has made it very clear that we simply cant build any more fossil fuel infrastructure, McKibben said in an email.

He said the was no way the pipeline could pass the climate test that [Hillary] Clinton has promised in her new platform--it clearly would significantly exacerbate global warming.

He added that Keep it in the ground is not ideology; its math, and that makes clear that we cant build this pipeline.

Then there are the Native American Groups, nursing grievances dating back to the 19th century treaties in which tribes ceded much of the Dakotas to the U.S. government. The protestors say the 1851 and 1868 Fort Laramie treaties left areas west of the Missouri River to the Lakota or Sioux tribes. (Rocker Neil Young even has written a new song about it called Indian Givers.)

Energy Transfer says it obtained right of way from private landowners. And the Army Corps of Engineers, which approved the route, says the pipeline crosses half a mile north of the modern day Standing Rock Sioux reservation.

Native American groups have also raised two other objections: danger to water supplies and sacred grounds including Lake Oahe. Many of the Standing Rock Sioux live downstream from the spot where the pipeline would cross under the Missouri River, and they cite dangers of a leak similar to ones in Montanas Yellowstone River or Michigans Kalamazoo River. They also say that the pipeline would dig up sacred burial grounds and historic archaeological artifacts.

We have witnessed inspiring and brave acts by Native Americans and their allies who are defending and trying to protect their sacred sites and the safety of their sole source of water, Al Gore said in a statement Oct. 25.

The protestors also say that Energy Transfer moved the route of the pipeline, which originally passed through wealthier areas of the state close to Bismarck.

This is the clearest example of environmental racism in action that youd ever want to see, McKibben said. They were going to run the pipeline across the Missouri above Bismarck till someone said what if it leaks? Following the natural path of 400 years of American history, they said Oh, lets put it above Standing Rock. You dont like Flint? Meet Standing Rock.

Why do some people support the pipeline?

Many people support the pipeline, even those who worry about climate change. One reason, they say, is that the pipeline would be safer than trains, which have derailed with oil cargos on several occasions.

Another reason, they say, is that we still need the oil and producers will find ways of getting it to market.

With oil you can barge it, tanker it or put it on railroad cars or on trucks, said Frank Frank A. Verrastro, a senior fellow on energy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Typically people figure out another way.

Often that means sending trains with 100 tanker cars through little communities and cities. Im not sure its a better solution, he said. And it all plays back to the keep it in the ground movement. We cannot afford to keep fossil fuels in the ground for the foreseeable future because theres no scalable replacement. I think the direction is correct but we cant stop this tomorrow.

What happens next?

A lot depends on who becomes president.

In September, U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg said that while he was aware of the indignities visited upon the Tribe over the last centuries, he could not grant them an injunction against the construction. He said concerns about sacred grounds could be addressed through the use of tribal monitors or laying the pipeline well below areas with artifacts.

On Thursday, Hillary Clintons campaign weighed in on the pipeline.

Now, all of the parties involved  including the federal government, the pipeline company and contractors, the state of North Dakota, and the tribes  need to find a path forward that serves the broadest public interest, campaign spokeswoman Xochitl Hinojosa said in a statement.

Height Securities, an investment advisory firm, said We view this measured response as a positive sign that the candidate is unwilling to bend to environmentalists radical demands that the U.S. government invalidate permits it granted in July. Moving forward, we believe that continued consultations between the project and the Standing Rock Sioux tribe are the best option for reaching a timely conclusion to this conflict.

McKibben had a different interpretation of the Clinton statement. I think the technical term for it is...pap, he said. It literally says nothing.
Alzheimers, the most common cause of dementia, can wreak havoc on even the best financial planning for retirement. (lolloj/Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Chuck McClatchey had a sound retirement plan.

Already retired with pensions from two jobs  one as a U.S. Air Force master sergeant (E-7) and the other as an electrical operations superintendent for 20 years with the Arizona Department of Transportation  he landed another job with the state of Texas working on traffic signals and traffic intel systems.

He moved to Fort Worth at age 61 with his partner Bobbie Duncan, and they spent $25,000 in savings on a fixer-upper house. His plan was to work until he was 70.

But then things got strange. I was having trouble understanding new technologies and things that I should have known off the top of my head and having trouble using Word and Excel and PowerPoint, things I had known for years.

He left that job but had problems in another, simpler job at Lowes.

Then one day, amid growing confusion, came clarity.

I brought home a little desk for me to put together, he said. I love to put things together, the more complicated the better. It should have taken about half an hour. Instead, two hours later, the pieces just werent going together like I thought they should.

Duncan finally said what they both knew. He needed to see a doctor about what was going on in his brain.

The diagnosis was Alzheimers, the most common cause of dementia, which can wreak havoc on even the best financial planning for retirement. McClatchey, now living in Albuquerque, considers himself lucky that he was diagnosed in the diseases early stages, just eight months after his move to Texas. Some people founder for years and years because the doctors themselves are afraid to give the diagnosis of early onset Alzheimers because of what the disease is.

Alzheimers is incurable, and about 5.4 million people in the United States are now living with it, according to the A lzheimers Association . With the oldest of the baby boomers turning 70 this year, the number of people with dementia is expected to soar.

I think its important for people to have some awareness that financial problems can be some of the most notable symptoms of dementia, said Nina Silverberg, program director of the National Institute on Agings Alzheimers Disease Centers Program.

Dementia can manifest itself in unpaid bills, giving away money needed for living expenses to charities or to the phone and Internet scams or other poor financial decisions. One financial planner said he walked in to find a client with dementia sitting at his computer day-trading stocks.

Dementia can hurt retirement finances by knocking people out of the workplace early. Instead of continuing to work until 70, which would have increased his Social Security payments, McClatchey qualified for Social Security disability at age 61, losing not just the income he would have earned from working longer but also increased benefits.

The best way to avoid problems is to take steps when your mental abilities are sound to protect yourself if they fail in the future.

Its hard to contemplate. But heres a statistic that should help. According to unpublished Medicare data reviewed by the Alzheimers Association, 1 in 3 people 65 or older who die in any given year have been diagnosed with Alzheimers or another type of dementia, including those related to strokes or diseases such as Parkinsons or caused by brain injuries or conditions such as alcoholism that damage brain or nerve cells.

Even if you dodge that bullet, you can benefit from the recommended actions. They include having a health-care power of attorney or living will naming someone you trust to make health-care decisions if you are incapable, designating someone to take care of your finances and having a regular will to distribute your assets when you die. The National Institute on Aging has a very good fact sheet on legal and financial planning.

McClatchey, who since July 1 has been a National Early-stage Advisor for the Alzheimers Association, acted quickly after he was diagnosed. I wanted to make those decisions as to what was to happen so, when the time comes, those decisions wont have to be made by someone else.

Catherine Seal, a certified elder law attorney in Colorado Springs, recommended making sure the person designated to take over your finances understands your assets, even sitting down with your financial planner, if you have one. You really need to spend some time educating that person, she said.

Most people turn to family members to handle their money, she said, but its important to choose based on ability. You need to really look at your children and nieces and nephews and grandchildren. The oldest child may not be the best with money.

Being good with money isnt the only skill required to help dementia sufferers. Corey Purkat, an Oakdale, Minn., financial planner, found himself unable to help a couple in their 80s who hired him to help sort things out in the early stages of the wifes dementia. She had been a financial professional whose memory issues rapidly worsened. As they did, she got defensive that someone would have to help her with something she had done for a living. That put more stress on her husband, who decided he wasnt up to making the hard decisions.

I did what I could, and I did the best I could, he said of their amicable parting. But if a similar case comes up in the future, he said, my goal is to refer them to someone with more experience with dementia.

The biggest problems are when people have done no planning at all, said Hyman G. Darling, an attorney in Springfield, Mass. In those cases, the decision will be made in the courts, which is emotional, expensive and takes a lot of time if family members disagree whom it should be. In the meantime, the bills arent getting paid, and you cant sign them into any facility because they dont have a proxy.

One of Darlings cases was a battle between siblings of a divorced man and his children. The children institutionalized their father against his will, Darling said, and the siblings were fighting to get him back in his house with full-time care. They had to drop the fight when they ran out of money. In the institution his will to live went down quickly, and his mental capacity went down quickly, he said. It broke his siblings hearts and ours, too.

Patients with late stage Alzheimers and dementia of other types often need nursing home care, which is staggeringly expensive. A 2016 survey by insurance company Genworth Financial found the nationwide median costs for a nursing home to be $82,125 for a semi-private room and $92,378 for a private room.

In many cases patients and their families believe that costs are covered, when theyre not, said Ruth Drew, Director of Family and Information Services for the Alzheimers Association. About 2 in 3 people incorrectly believe that Medicare helps pay for nursing home care or were unsure whether it did, she said. Another 30 percent believe they have long-term care insurance, when national statistics show less than 10 percent actually do. In some cases Medicaid will cover costs, but in others families will need to go down the complicated path of spending down assets to qualify.

The costs of caring for a family member with dementia often outlives the patient. Family care givers may have to give up their jobs or reduce work hours. They may spend their own retirement funds or be unable to save for retirement or their childrens college. For 1 in 3 families, an annual income loss of $15,000 is not unusual, she said. Its never easy in the best of times.
Alicia Dunn spent 25 years in the advertising industry in Los Angeles before trading in that life for a beachside home with an art studio in San Diego County. (Courtesy of Alicia Dunn)

What do people dream of when they near the end of their careers and look ahead to retirement? For many, its to do the things they have dreamed of for much of their lives.

They might even hope to turn a lifelong hobby into a second career. All the better if its an income-producing second career.

Nyhaven, a painting by Robert Holewinski of Lake Mary, Fla. (Robert Holewinski)

Of course, thats not possible for all hobbies. But when people do find a way to make it work, it can be a dream come true.

That brings us to Alicia Dunn, Robert Holewinski and Diane Abt  three people who retired from corporate jobs to live their dreams as artists. Their work is sold on the San Francisco-based website UGallery.com.

Alex Farkas, the sites director, says UGallery was founded with the idea that it would feature young artists, but it has unexpectedly morphed into a baby boomer showcase.

Forty-five percent of the artists [who sell on the site] are 50-plus, he says. We have artists up to 84. Thats our customer base as well. Our average buying age is closer to 65 than to 45.

We have artists in their encore careers, Farkas says, artists who had professional lives in the corporate world. When they retired, they decided this was the opportunity to pursue their passion.

Here are three of them.

Shadows of Light, a mixed-media artwork on composite board by Diane Abt of Oakland, Calif. (Diane Abt)

Alicia Dunn, 56, Encinitas, Calif.

Dunn spent 25 years in the advertising industry in Los Angeles before trading in that life for a beachside home with an art studio in San Diego County.

I worked in advertising forever, she says. People assume I worked as an art director, but I worked in account management and strategic planning. My specialty was market research.

Dunns eventual passion was born when she took a brief break from work when her kids were young. Though she had never painted, she took a class.

It triggered something, something that was dormant, she says.

When she returned to work, she dabbled in art. I never thought of it as a career, she says.

Much later came the thoughts of early retirement from advertising.

What would I do? she asked herself. I didnt want to do what I had been doing, something that would consume my life. I didnt want to work in an office. I didnt want to work for people. I had no idea what it would look like.

What she did have was her paintings, which had accumulated over the years as she enjoyed her hobby. Someone offered to buy one. She held a garage sale and went on Craigslist. Little by little, her hobby was turning into a second career.

I came upon it more organically, she says. Before I knew it, I found what I would do. It wasnt so much by design. I wanted to do something that wouldnt be consuming. Now [art] is completely consuming. But its who I am. I feel passionate about it and I do well with the art business.

Dunn has now been a full-time artist for 10 years. Her advice to others: Its about identifying the things that make you happy and figure out how you can monetize that.

Robert Holewinski, 67, Lake Mary, Fla.

Holewinski starting painting at 18, when he was in the Army and stationed in Korea.

I started painting because in Korea there was nothing to do, he says. I didnt want to go to the NCO club and start drinking.

After the Army, he moved to Washington to take a job with Johnson & Johnson as a package designer. He stayed for 13 years. He also worked for the Franklin Mint and Astor Chocolate in New Jersey. Then he and his wife packed up and moved to Florida. His dream was to work for the Walt Disney Co., and a few independent contracting jobs there turned into a full-time job in a new department that was creating merchandise for Disneys parks.

When he retired a few years ago he was looking to rekindle his passion for painting. He joined UGallery in 2010 and has since sold 20 original paintings.

Holewinski is both an artist and writer. He started writing in 2013 about his experience in Korea, producing a book in narrative free-verse poetry. He has since written two more books and is working on a fourth. He sells them online through Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble.

Im just loving it, to be able to write my way of writing, he says.

Between his painting and writing, he is busy.

I finish one or two paintings a week, he says. I paint for eight to 16 hours a week. Writing takes up an equal amount of time. The remaining time is putting my paintings up on websites and promoting my books.

He says he tried to paint in several rooms in his home, but none of them seemed to work. So he paints in his two-car garage when his wife goes to work.

His advice: Keep a hand in what you really enjoy, whether its evenings or weekends. As you start getting closer to retirement age, start spending more time doing it. For me, it was gradual. I was painting when I was working full time.

Diane Abt , 75, Oakland, Calif.

Abt had a 35-year career in journalism before she turned her lifelong hobby of art into her encore career. Starting in 1968, she worked for CBS Radio, NPR, NHK in Japan and was the first Silicon Valley correspondent for Bloomberg News.

She began to draw, paint watercolors and studied calligraphy when she was in Japan for seven years while her husband was chief of the Knight-Ridder news bureau there. Thats also when a friend asked her what she was going to do next.

I said I would like to see what happened if I painted every day, she says. I was surprised that those words came out.

When they returned to the United States, they settled in Oakland, and Abt decided to get a studio outside the home. I didnt want to be isolated, she says. I looked for a studio in a building where there were other artists. That forced me to show my work.

She found the right space in nearby Berkeley. The first thing she had to learn, she says, was that art as a hobby was very different from art as work.

Art as a hobby is escapist and fun, she says. Art as work required me to improve my craft. I took classes.

She says she was pushed into selling her first piece before she was ready. She priced an abstract piece at $200 and got an offer of $180.

It was thrilling to know that someone wanted to put money down for something I created, she says.

Her advice: I say go for it, she says. We never know whats ahead  if I do this, what happens? You have to make a decision and live with it. I made a limited commitment to it. I said if it doesnt work out after a year, its been cool. Its been 13 years and there have been all sorts of surprises.
Most Americans have never heard of Mildred and Richard Loving. But next week, a Hollywood movie will introduce the country to a time and place  58 years ago in Virginia  when a sheriff could burst into a couples bedroom and arrest them for being married.

Loving, which opens in theaters Nov. 4, tells the story of Mildred and Richard, young romantics who became felons when they dared to wed in 1958. She was black, he was white, and that was a crime in Virginia and 23 other states. They were arrested, convicted and banished from their home state. But their legal fight led to the 1967 landmark Supreme Court ruling in Loving v. Virginia that ended miscegenation laws in the 16 states where they were still on the books.

The pair returned to Virginia and, slowly, Virginia began to look more like them. Black hands joined with white hands at altars from Hampton Roads to Herndon as the state that once served as the capital of the Confederacy grew more populous, more diverse and more tolerant. By 2010, Virginia led the nation in the rate of black-white marriages, according to the Pew Research Center. And while racism hasnt disappeared, the states marital melting pot now includes people from all over the world. Few heads turn at the sight of a Venezuelan-Indian couple or a Korean bride with her white groom or, since same-sex marriage became legal two years ago, lesbians of different colors exchanging vows.

Today, Virginia is for Lovings, as these portraits of five mixed-race marriages show.

 Steve Hendrix



Scott and Aisha Cozad were married on Loving Day. (Michael S. Williamson/The Washington Post)

Aisha and Scott Cozad: They met online. They married on Loving Day

A less brave man may not have pursued Aisha Bonner after reading her online dating profile, which was written to deter, not attract. Tired of wasting time on the wrong people, she was clear about whom she didnt want.

Her 11-year-old son was her priority, she wrote. So if a man couldnt deal with a child, he should move on.

She had a doctorate and loved reading, she wrote. So if a man couldnt handle a smart woman, he should move on.

Her list went on, each description followed by the same siren blaring move on, move on. But Scott Cozad didnt move on. He was swept in. He sent her an email that stretched for pages, and it was clear that despite their skin color  hes white, and shes black  the two shared much in common. Scotts profile had its own siren of sorts. His picture showed him in a suit of armor, a nod to his love of historical reenactments. Aisha was swept in.

If he had been born during the Renaissance, he would have definitely been a knight in shining armor, the 42-year-old social science researcher said one evening sitting in the couples Woodbridge home.

Eww, her now 13-year-old son Brandon jokingly gagged.

Last year, Scott and Aisha said their vows in front of friends and relatives who have shown them nothing but support. But in many ways theirs is not a marriage of two. It is a union of three.

On the couples wedding day, Brandon asked Scott if he could now call him Dad. Yeah, Scott replied.

Honestly, if I had tried to say more, I would have fallen to pieces, said Scott, 40, a systems engineer.

Aisha, who took her husbands last name, said Scott and Brandon share many similarities, among them a love of hamburgers, an ease talking to strangers and a penchant for cheesy jokes (although Brandon points out that his, at least, make people laugh).

But their union has not come without challenges. Scott, who has no children from a previous marriage, said he hasnt had to learn only how to be a father, but also how to be a father to a black son.

A simple conversation about buying toy guns in their home carries with it the weight of a national conversation about police shootings of unarmed African Americans.

They have all these cool Nerf guns, Scott said. But Im apprehensive about getting them for him and going out there.

Its more than apprehensive, Aisha said. Her son has never played with toy guns because Im not going to risk his life.

Everyone I know has Nerf guns, even younger kids, Brandon said, not complaining as much as explaining.

Scott also recalled how out of place he felt the first time he took Brandon to a black barbershop. By their second visit, he said he felt comfortable enough to ask the barber dumb questions. Now, he has the shops number programmed into his phone.

Before Scott met Aisha, he had never heard of Richard and Mildred Loving, the Virginia couple behind the Supreme Courts June 12, 1967, decision to legalize interracial marriage, a date celebrated nationally as Loving Day. Then the two watched a documentary that moved them both.

Not long after that, Scott was at Brandons soccer game when Aisha called to say she had almost been in a car accident. He decided then that he didnt want to move on  ever. Over the phone, he asked her to marry him. He said he knew the perfect date: Loving Day.

 Theresa Vargas



Yesica Suarez and Akshaan Arora met in college. She's from Venezuela; he's from India. (Michael S. Williamson/The Washington Post)

Yesica Suarez and Akshaan Arora: My Big Fat Indian-Venezuelan-American Weddings

Yesica Suarez cracked open the oven, flooding the Northern Virginia apartment with an unusual but intoxicating blend of aromas. Indian spinach patties sizzled on the top rack. Underneath, spicy lentil cakes called dhoklas sat next to a tray of fried cheese tequenos.

Inside the small Fairfax kitchen, Yesica set out the food as a dozen relatives of all ages and races revolved around her. Her beloved, Akshaan Arora, snacked on chocolate-covered strawberries. His aunt Savita served samosas. Spanish, Hindi and English mixed.

Its like My Big Fat Greek Wedding,  Yesica said. Or in their case, My Big Fat Indian-Venezuelan-American Weddings.

Yesica is from Venezuela. Akshaan is from India. Fifty years ago, their union might have confounded the defenders of Virginias Racial Integrity Act, which banned interracial marriage. Now the question isnt whether they should wed, but how  and how many times.

Yesica, 28, was raised Catholic in San Cristobal, Venezuela. Akshaan, 27, was raised Hindu in New Delhi. They both arrived in Northern Virginia as teens and wound up at George Mason University, one of the countrys most diverse campuses.

They met in 2008 through their business fraternity. She thought the tall, unshaven guy in a suit several sizes too big was handsome but grungy. He thought she was pretty and smart but also very uptight.

I thought I was going to marry a Venezuelan, Yesica recalled. I thought I couldnt connect with anyone else.

Her Indian roommate freshman year, however, made her realize how similar the two cultures were: the family get-togethers, the curfews, the nightly phone calls.

Falling in love meant learning about each others culture. In 2011, Yesica went to India for the wedding of Akshaans sister. The food was strange, and the ceremony was huge, yet the tight family bonds felt familiar. When Akshaans grandfather became fatally ill two years later, his family was touched when Yesica said a Catholic prayer at his bedside.

Akshaan proposed on July 13, 2013, aboard a boat on the Chesapeake Bay. When he shakily kneeled and produced the ring, she shrieked incomprehensibly and kissed him so hard they nearly fell overboard.

How they would get married was a harder question. Her family wanted a Catholic wedding. His family wanted a Hindu ceremony. The couple wanted to ensure that their friends all felt welcome. The debate dragged on for so long that Yesica, an accounting supervisor at George Mason, and Akshaan, a capital markets manager, secretly exchanged vows. (So, technically, theyre already married.)

Three years later, they have finally figured out the ceremony. Or ceremonies, rather. Yesica and Akshaan will wed at an oceanside resort in Cancun, Mexico, on Dec. 19. A week later, theyll repeat their I dos in a much smaller Catholic ceremony at a Virginia church. And on New Years Eve, they will don traditional Indian dress and walk around a fire pit seven times as part of their Hindu vows. Preparing for the triple wedding has been precarious, however.

It upsets them when they think one wedding is more important than the others, Yesica said of family members.

A blackboard in the kitchen hinted at the compromises already made and the cultural mash-ups still to come. Suarez-Arora House, it said above wedding to-do list including buying a sari, renting a tux, Catholic wedding counseling and punjabi + salsa dance classes.

Akshaan, youre taking salsa lessons? asked Yesicas mom, Florangel Pernia.

She said she wants to do a routine at the wedding, he replied.

Dont forget Spanish lessons for me, interjected his aunt. I want to learn.

 Michael E. Miller



Ron Campbell and Barbara Lawrence have been married for many years. He's running for city counsel in Leesburg. (Michael S. Williamson/The Washington Post)

Ron and Barb Campbell: Comfort can take time

Ron Campbell was wearing a full African robe when he met his future mother-in-law at the door and welcomed her to his Kwanzaa party. He usually wore sportswear and golf caps  and he never celebrated Kwanzaa. But it was his first Christmas with his white girlfriend, Barb Lawrence, and he wanted her Minnesota relatives to know: There was a new culture in the family.

I told her mom, Ron says 20 years later, This is not about you feeling comfortable with me; its about me feeling comfortable with you.

For Diane Lawrence, it was all new. There werent any African Americans in the tiny town near the Canadian border where she was the lunch lady at the all-white school.

When she visited her grown kids in the cities  where they had moved in search of careers, partners, a wider world  she locked her doors driving through black neighborhoods. It was just instinct, she says.

Her youngest daughter, Barbara, was working at the University of Minnesota when she met Ron. She was ending a go-nowhere relationship with a good-looking lawyer whom her mom adored. Ron was a vice president at the university and recently divorced. They were introduced at a conference happy hour. It was real from the start.

Ive never felt love like I feel from Ron, says Barb.

Ron, now 63, was never one to tiptoe around race. He came from a politically active family in the Bronx, went to Heidelberg University in Ohio and is the only black face in his fraternity photo. His first wife was a Puerto Rican woman, and they taught their four kids to Go where you want, shop where you want, be who you are.

Two of his sons are married to white women. His daughter, Serena Plaskett, said her only trepidation about her dad remarrying in 1999 was being presented with a stepmother, not a white stepmother. There was this new woman coming in, says Plaskett, a medical assistant in Richmond.

Now she describes the woman her kids call YaYa as amazing. I can talk to her more than I can my dad.

Barbs father was easy to win over, too. Soon he and Ron were playing golf. Barbs mother struggled. She was too Minnesota nice to say anything, but she struggled. Some of her small-town neighbors made comments. Some still do.

Comfort takes time. It took months before Barb, now 51, felt welcomed by the black wives and girlfriends in Rons circle. Maybe the Minneapolis Realtor who would talk only to her never felt it. Maybe the waiter who ignored them recently in a Northern Virginia restaurant never will.

The Campbells moved to Leesburg in 2001, a small city that is 70 percent white. They go to a black church. Barb works in health care. Ron, a semi-retired consultant, is running to become the only black member of the Leesburg Town Council. The lines are mixed and everywhere and unimportant, all at once.

We feel good here, Barb said, sitting in their townhouse, piles of campaign signs stacked around the walls.

Her mom feels good now, too. Now when Ron visits, she shouts, Theres a black man in my house! before giving him the huge hug. And in August, when everybody brought a hot dish to a Lawrence family party, she says her relatives asked,  Wheres Ron? Isnt Ron going to make it? They all love him. We all do.

 Steve Hendrix



Shirley Lesser, 53, and India Lipton, 44, got married live on the TV news the day Virginia allowed gay marriage. (Michael S. Williamson/The Washington Post)

India Lipton and Shirley Lesser, Richmond

Each year on Valentines Day, India Lipton and Shirley Lesser would head to Richmonds courthouse to protest the fact that they could not marry in Virginia.

The state that once banned interracial marriages still refused to allow lesbians of any color to wed.

On the day that finally changed, India and Shirley had been together 12 years and become the parents of a young son, Dylan, who had serious medical issues. Theyd been united in a civil union, but longed to wed, in part, so that Shirley could legally adopt their son.

When the news broke the morning of Oct. 6, 2014, that the federal courts had forced Virginia and several other states to allow same-sex marriage, India called Shirley ecstatic.

They hurried to the Chesterfield County courthouse for a marriage license. They had no time to buy wedding dresses. Friends would have to pick up the cake. They scrambled to get a minister. Whoever was available would do.

Shirley and I decided to do it quickly, said India, now 44. We thought, Why wait? 

Theyd waited long enough. They met online in 2003 and fell in love almost immediately. Their racial differences  Indias mother is black and her father is Native American and Italian, while Shirley, now 53, is white  didnt matter to either of them.

India gave birth to Dylan on Valentines Day in 2012. He was nearly three months premature, and suffered from hydrocephalus, commonly known as water on the brain. Now 4, Dylan has had 22 surgeries to drain the fluid that builds up beneath his skull. The condition triggered seizures and left Dylan with cerebral palsy.

Yet there were moments at the hospital when people questioned Shirleys presence at Dylans side. How, they wanted to know, was that her kid?

Shirley really wanted to adopt Dylan because she did not have legal rights to him, said India, who stays home to care for him. Even though we had planned him together, and I gave physical birth to him, she had no rights to him. There would have had to have been a legal dance for her to get rights.

Shirley, who works at a bank in Richmond, said she and India have always been aware of the parallels between their relationship and the Lovings, who married in defiance of Virginias Racial Integrity Act. The laws of the land have gotten in the way of us trying to live a normal ordinary life, Shirley explained.

Their gay, multi-racial household is confusing when people look at us as a family, she said, especially because Dylan looks more Asian than black. We get a lot of, Did you adopt him from another country? Having two moms makes it complicated. And the racial thing makes it complicated.

But their love for one another is simple.

When they were finally able to marry, they didnt care that they were exchanging their vows at their favorite deli. They didnt care that the local television station was there, cameras rolling. They didnt care that India had on a pair of black pants and a black shirt with white lace around the collar or that Shirley wore a black pullover a blue blouse and black pants. They held Dylan in their arms, and their friends cheered.

It was pretty crazy, India remembered.  It was surreal.

Less than three months later, Shirley became one of the first gay parents in Virginia to legally adopt a child. No one would be able to question their family ever again.

 DeNeen L. Brown



Theresa McLaughlin and son Mikey, age 4. They are making a volcano art project. Theresa's husband, Mike McLaughlin (in family photo at left) is stationed in Japan and the family communicates often via FaceTime on their phones. (Michael S. Williamson/The Washington Post)

Michael and Theresa McLaughlin, Virginia Beach

The boy stood amid his pile of dinosaur toys and waited, as he has almost every evening since April, for the cellphone to ring.

And when it did, Mikey McLaughlin looked up at his mother, eyes wide.

Thats Daddy, he announced, and minutes later the 4-year-old was staring at an iPhones video screen as he talked with his father, Michael, who had just woken up.

Hey, buddy, said the Navy lieutenant, hair matted and eyes rimmed with dark circles.

Mikey has never cared that his mother, Theresa, is Asian American and that his father is white. They met at the U.S. Naval Academy, falling for each other on a campus where interracial relationships are unremarkable. Only once that they can remember  before she first met his family  did race come up. This isnt an issue, right? asked Theresa, who had been adopted from South Korea at 3 months old by a white couple. He assured her it wasnt.

They realize Mikey may want to know more about his biracial roots as he grows older or may ask questions about the differences between him and his father. If he does, his parents will help explain, take him to Korea, whatever he wants. But for now, race isnt the McLaughlins biggest issue. Distance is. They want their child to have the support of two parents, even when one is deployed 7,000 miles away in Japan and hasnt held his boy for six months.

I want to do taekwondo, Mikey told his dad earlier this month as Theresa prepared dinner in their Virginia Beach kitchen.

Mikey, do you want tabbouleh? she asked, and the boy nodded.

Wait. What? Michael said, stunned by his sons new affinity for a healthy food. But he and his wife, both 29, are used to surprises like this  and to missing things. He didnt see Mikey start crawling, and, before she left the military earlier this year, Theresa didnt see his first day of preschool.

Even their sons arrival was followed by absence. Michael returned from a deployment in the Arabian Sea for the birth, but Mikeys umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck, forcing doctors to perform an emergency Caesarean section. Days later, Michael had to leave.

In one wrenching stretch of 2015, they both deployed at the same time  him to Europe, her to South America. And the challenges didnt end when Theresa left the Navy. The older he gets, the more Mikey misses his dad. At pools and parks, he often stares in silence at kids playing with their fathers.

But the McLaughlins have worked hard to parent together. Years ago, Michael recorded himself reading Rudyard Kiplings poem If  so Mikey could learn his voice. Later, father and son constructed a miniature display of the solar systems planets that now hangs above Mikeys bed and that, he said, always reminds him of Dad.

And, each day, they have their FaceTime calls.

On this night, Mikey discussed trick-or-treating plans, practiced spelling milk and spun around in the living room until his dad noticed hed grown as tall as the fireplace.

And when he coughed, his parents, on opposite sides of the planet, said in unison: Cover your mouth. And when he didnt, Michael offered a familiar instruction: Buddy, listen to your mother.

Then they talked a few minutes more before Michael said he had to shower and shave, so they exchanged goodbyes.

Love you in the morning, Dad, Mikey told him, and Theresa picked up the phone to end the call.

 John Woodrow Cox
Elementary (CBS at 10, Sunday) In the drama's 100th episode, Holmes (Jonny Lee Miller) and Watson (Lucy Liu) consult on a murder case with a motive related to asteroid research. (Michael Parmelee/CBS)

(All times Eastern.)

Amish Witches: The True Story of Holmes County (Lifetime at 8) A reality-TV crew is asked to document supernatural events plaguing an isolated community.

RETURNING

The Fall (Netflix streaming) Season 3.

SPECIAL

Pete Davidson: SMD (Comedy Central at 11) The Saturday Night Live comedian delivers deadpan riffs on Justin Bieber, growing up on Staten Island and his stint in rehab.

Sunday Listings

Fox News Sunday (Fox at 9 a.m.) Republican vice-presidential candidate Mike Pence and with Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.).

White House Chronicle (WETA at 9) Brown Universitys Richard Arenberg and the Providence Journals Edward Achorn.

Sunday Morning Futures With Maria Bartiromo (Fox at 10) Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics, and Ezekiel Emanuel, chairman of the Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy at the University of Pennsylvania.

This Is America & the World (WETA at 10 and WHUT at 7:30 p.m.) A roundtable on being Muslim in America.

Government Matters (WJLA at 10:30) Donna Roy, executive director of the Department of Homeland Securitys Information Sharing and Services Office.

Face the Nation (CBS at 10:30) Vice President Biden and Pence.

Primetime Listings

The Circus (Showtime at 8) The political series follows Biden as he campaigns for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

The Walking Dead (AMC at 9) A new, well-established community seems too good to be true.

Westworld (HBO at 9) Dolores, William and Logan are recruited for a dangerous mission after reaching the town of Pariah.

Divorce (HBO at 10) Frances and Robert meet with a mediator in hopes of keeping their split amicable.

Insecure (HBO at 10:30) Issa asks Daniel to help her with Career Day, and Molly faces a tough situation at work.


Marg Helgenberger as Regina Giddens in Lillian Hellmans The Little Foxes, closing Sunday at Arena Stage. (C. Stanley Photography)

The Friday morning feature of whats happening in D.C. theater. This week: first performances of Carousel at Arena Stage and Mary Poppins at the Olney Theatre Center; a flurry of hard-hitting dramas (Milk Like Sugar, Tame, The Girl in the Red Corner); last chance for Angels in America and The Little Foxes. Also check out the ETC. happenings at the end of this list for notable concerts, readings and beyond category events this week, including Laura Benanti  lately impersonating Melania Trump on Stephen Colberts The Late Show  at the Barns at Wolf Trap.

PREVIEWING

American Hero. The regional premiere of a dark comedy about struggling workers in a sandwich shop, by Bess Wohl (off-Broadways recent Small Mouth Sounds). Nov. 2-20 at Rep Stage, 10901 Little Patuxent Pkwy., Columbia. Tickets $40. Call 443-518-1500 or visit repstage.org.

Carousel. Arena Stage Artistic Director Molly Smith (South Pacific, Oklahoma!) returns to one of the Rodgers and Hammerstein classics. Oct. 28-Dec. 24 at Arena Stage, 1101 Sixth St. SW. Tickets $50-$119, subject to change. Call 202-488-3300 or visit arenastage.org.

[Molly Smith talks with Geoffrey Himes about Carousel]

Eurydice. Sarah Ruhls 2003 re-imagining of the Orpheus myth. Oct. 27-Nov. 20 at Next Stop Theatre, 269 Sunset Park Dr., Herndon. Tickets $35. Call 703-481-5930 or visit nextstoptheatre.org.

The Girl in the Red Corner. The D.C. playwrights collective The Welders launches its second generation with a premiere about a troubled young woman training in mixed martial arts, by Stephen Spotswood. Nov. 3-20 at the Atlas Performing Arts Center, 1333 H St. NE. Tickets $30. Call 202-399-7993 or visit thewelders.org.

Mary Poppins. The Disney musical flurry continues (see the new Freaky Friday at Signature Theatre) with this local staging of the 2006 Broadway hit. Nov. 2-Jan. 1 at the Olney Theatre Center, 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Rd., Olney. Tickets $43-$80. Call 301-924-3400 or visit olneytheatre.org.

Milk Like Sugar. Kirsten Greenidges drama of teenage pregnancy; Jennifer Nelson directs for the Mosaic Theater Company. Nov. 2-27 at the Atlas Performing Arts Center, 1333 H St. NE. Tickets $40-$60. Call 202-399-7993 or visit mosaictheaterdc.org.

Tame. Playwright Jonelle Walkers new play riffs on The Taming of the Shrew, focusing on a grieving lesbian in 1960s Texas. Nov. 3-Dec. 11 at Gunston Arts Center, 2700 South Lang St., Arlington. Tickets $30-$35, with pay-what-you-will performances. Call 703-418-4808 or visit wscavantbard.org.

CONTINUING



Heidi Blickenstaff (Katherine Blake) and the cast of Disneys Freaky Friday at Signature Theatre. (Jim Saah)

43: The Greatest Deaths of Shakespeares Tragedies. Nu Sass Productions revisits and revises its 2013 Fringe Festival compilation of the Bards death scenes. Through Nov. 13 at the Logan Fringe Arts Spaces Trinidad Theatre, 1358 Florida Ave. NE. Tickets $30. Visit www.nusass.com.

[Roger Catlin on the 2013 Fringe Festival 43]

Freaky Friday. The polished, peppy and predictable new musical adapted from the popular young adult novel and a couple of Disney movies of the same title, is an ideal show for grown-ups looking for a completely wholesome activity to share with the kids in their lives. Composed with aplomb by Next to Normal songwriters Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey and bookwriter Bridget Carpenter, the musical, in a world premiere at Signature Theatre, offers two marvelously sung, resonantly comical central performances by Heidi Blickenstaff and Emma Hunton. . . . The stakes are so clearly laid out, and the plot points so easy to anticipate, though, that Freaky Friday has about it a prefabricated feel. A highly accomplished, squeaky-clean after-school special is what it reminds you of. (Peter Marks) Through Nov. 20 at Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Ave., Arlington. Tickets $40-$99. Call 703-820-9771 or visit www.sigtheatre.org.

[Peter Marks reviews Freaky Friday]

The Gulf. A new two-character relationship drama unwinding in real time from Audrey Cefaly, whose Maytag Virgin made a splash at last years Womens Voices Theater Festival. Rachel Zampelli and Maria Rizzo play Southern lovers adrift on a small fishing boat, neatly realized in Signature Theatres extremely intimate Ark space by set designer Paige Hathaway. The audience eavesdrops on the women as they spend a lazy afternoon in Kendras beloved boat, with Kendra fishing for channel bass  and Betty fishing for a deeper commitment from Kendra. (Peter Marks) Joe Calarco directs. Though Nov. 6 at Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Ave., Arlington. Tickets $40-$89. Call 703-820-9771 or visit www.sigtheatre.org.

[Peter Marks reviews The Gulf]

Kiss. Plays rarely pull the rug out from under audiences as successfully as Guillermo Calderons Kiss is managing the trick at Woolly Mammoth. The funny, searingly topical show comes on like a campy melodrama as American actors stage a soap opera script they found online. Its by a Syrian writer who they think is hiding underground in the Middle East. Theyre mostly right, but what they dont know drives a lot of the surprises in Kiss, which is easily one of the most urgent and gripping performances of the new theater season. (Nelson Pressley) Through Nov. 6 at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, 641 D S t. NW. Tickets $20-$69. Call 202-393-3939 or visit www.woollymammoth.net.



Lelia TahaBurt, Shannon Dorsey, Gabriela Fernandez-Coffey, Tim Getman and Ahmad Kamal in Kiss at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company. (Teresa Castracane)

The Night Alive. Irish dramatist Conor McPhersons closely observed study of a down-and-out man and the battered woman he rescues from the street, staged only last fall at Round House Theatre and now revived just down the block by Quotidian Theatre. The smaller new production suggests the beautifully written dramas depressive and exuberant poles, but its haunted by the spectre of the sturdier Round House version, which still feels visible in the rear view mirror. Through Nov. 20 at the Writers Center, 4508 Walsh St., Bethesda. Tickets $30. Call 800-838-3006 or visit quotidiantheatre.org .

Rameaus Nephew. The stage adaptation of Enlightenment philosopher/critic Denis Diderots misanthropic dialogue, from Spooky Action Theater. The conversation, which includes some lively anecdotes, constitutes the plays entire dramatic action, more or less. Presumably to compensate for the lack of showier incident, Henrichs production abounds in conspicuous stage business. . . . The hyperbolic acting style eventually becomes grating. (Celia Wren) Through Nov. 13 at the Universalist National Memorial Church, 1810 16th St. NW. Tickets $30-$40. Call 202-248-0301 or visit spookyaction.org.

[Rameaus Nephew reviewed by Celia Wren]

Romeo and Juliet. Alan Pauls relatable staging is youthful and pulsing with club music, but Shakespeares accessible tragedy isnt as ablaze as it aspires to be, despite a giant hot red set. Jeffrey Carlson is a zesty, brooding Mercutio, and Andrew Veenstras Romeo and Ayana Workmans Juliet are appealing, yet the famous plot and its quick-burning romance dont quite find the urgent gear the play needs: The language seldom sings. (Nelson Pressley) Through Nov. 6 at the Lansburgh Theatre, 450 Seventh St. NW. Tickets $44-$118. Call 202-547-1122 or visit www.shakespearetheatre.org.

[Nelson Pressley on Romeo and Juliet]

Alex Mickiewicz as Tybalt, Jeffrey Carlson as Mercutio and Andrew Veenstra as Romeo in Shakespeare Theatre Companys production of Romeo & Juliet. (Scott Suchman)

Sense and Sensibility. Boss Austen at the Folger Theater, from the New York troupe Bedlam. Modeled closely on their hit off-Broadway production, still running in Greenwich Village, the Folger spinoff (with a completely new cast) successfully bottles the spirit of the 19th-century novelist afresh, in its rendering of the pure-hearted Dashwood sisters and the waves of cattiness and misfortune that batter them this way and that. Its an enterprise so fleet of conception that it quite literally glides through the stories of the romantic struggles. (Peter Marks) Through Nov. 13 at Folger Theatre, 201 E. Capitol St. SE. Tickets $30-$75. Call 202-544-7077 or visit www.folger.edu.

[Peter Marks reviews Sense and Sensibility]

The Whos Tommy. Russell Harvard of the New York productions of Tribes and Deaf Wests Spring Awakening is featured in the title role; the Open Circle Productions features a mixed cast of disabled and non-disabled performers. Through Nov. 20 at the Silver Spring Black Box Theater, 8641 Colesville Rd., Silver Spring. Tickets $30-$45. Visit opencircletheatre.org.

To Have Done With the Judgement of God. Theatre du Jour revives its surreal 45-minute staging from earlier this year. The visual shock tactics certainly fit the bill: If there ever was a text that called for surreal pageantry, it is this delirious rant by Antonin Artaud (1896-1948), the French thespian, theorist and sometime mental-asylum patient who is perhaps best known for his manifestos proposing a Theater of Cruelty. (Celia Wren) Through Nov. 21 at DC Arts Center, 2438 18th St. NW. Tickets $20. Call 202-462-7833 of visit theatredujour.org.

[Celia Wren reviews To Have Done With the Judgement of God]

The Year of Magical Thinking. Kathleen Turner returns to Arena Stages intimate Kogod Cradle in the solo adaptation of Joan Didions bestselling memoir about coping with her husbands death and her daughters illness. Turner cant help but heat up Didions frosty The Year of Magical Thinking. Her one-of-a-kind voice is a steady low boil, and as she fixes the Arena Stage audience with a commanding gaze and announces warningly that grief hits us all, you can tell Turners in for a fight. (Nelson Pressley) Through Nov. 20 at Arena Stage, 1101 Sixth St. SW. Tickets $40-$90. Call 202-488-3300 or visit www.arenastage.org.

[Year of Magical Thinking reviewed by Nelson Pressley]

CLOSING

Tom Story and Jonathan Bock in Round House Theatre/Olney Theatre Center Angels in America. (Danisha Crosby)

Angels in America, Part I: Millennium Approaches/Part II: Perestroika. Tony Kushners seven-hour, two-part epic about AIDS in the Reagan era is being presented at Round House Theatre in a co-production with the Olney Theatre Center. Bolstered by some extremely high-caliber performances, director Ryan Rilette picks up with aplomb at Round House where Jason Loewith, who staged Part I, left off. . . . Round House and Olney offer such a fully realized serving of Kushners epic that you would be inaccurate if you asserted youve had the Angels experience without seeing both. Its a big commitment, for sure. But Kushners a big thinker. (Peter Marks) Through Oct. 30 at Round House Theatre, 4545 East-West Hwy., Bethesda. Tickets $30-$61. Call 240-644-100 or visit www.roundhousetheatre.org.

[Peter Marks reviews Millennium Approaches]

[Peter Marks on Perestroika]

Dantes Inferno. Synetic Theatres return to Dante. Danced with nothing less than a demonic vengeance. . . . As in a pact with any devil, though, the rewards come at a price. In this case, being a movement piece with lovely extremities has too little going on now, as in 2009. (Peter Marks) Through Oct. 30 at Synetic Theater, 1800 S. Bell St., Arlington. Tickets $20-$60. Call 866-811-4111 or visit www.synetictheater.org.

[Dantes Inferno reviewed by Peter Marks]

The Little Foxes. Marg Helgenberger (CSI: Crime Scene Investigation) headlines the first of two Lillian Hellman revivals slated at Arena Stage this season as Regina Giddens, conniving sister of the avaricious Hubbard clan. The 1939 drama pivots on the intrigue around a Southern family angling against each other as a potentially profitable deal is about to be made. Edward Gero (Antonin Scalia in The Originalist) plays Reginas older brother; Jack Willis is Reginas weary, dying husband; and Reginas sister-in-law Birdie is played here with fluttery brilliance by Isabel Keating. . . . Staged by director Kyle Donnelly with a secure grasp of the diabolical brand of gentility practiced by the Hubbard clan, the production proves exemplary at milking the tension without falling prey  as it might  to outdated histrionics. (Peter Marks) Through Oct. 30 at Arena Stage, 1101 Sixth St. SW. Tickets $40-$118. Call 202-488-3300 or visit arenastage.org.

[Peter Marks reviews The Little Foxes]

Ruthless! The Musical. Pure diversion. . . . The saga is The Bad Seed meets Gypsy and All About Eve, so director Matt Conner  a performer himself, and the composer of several musicals at Signature Theatre  keeps his actors at a mostly amusingly high level of anxiety. (Nelson Pressley) Through Oct. 30 at Creative Cauldron, 410 S. Maple Ave., Falls Church. Tickets $30. Call 703-436-9948 or visit www.creativecauldron.org



Synetic Theater's "Dante's Inferno," closing Oct. 30. (Koko Lanham)

[Ruthless! reviewed by Nelson Pressley]

The Trump Card. The return of Mike Daiseys solo exploration of Donald Trump, updated since its first brief appearance this summer as a workshop performance. The free-floating, incredulous contempt suffusing The Trump Card, recalling the comedically sophisticated musings of an in-the-know satirist of another era, Mort Sahl, is in itself welcome at this unsettling moment. Because, more than anything else, what we all really want to do is vent. (Peter Marks) Through 30 at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, 641 D St. NW. $20-$74, subject to change. Call 202-393-3939 or visit www.woollymammoth.net.

[Peter Marks on Daiseys Trump Card at Woolly in June]

Witch. An hour-long adaptation of the Jacobean tragedy The Witch of Edmonton by the performance collective Convergence Theatre. Wields a double-edged sword as it emphasizes the themes of misogyny and sexism, which are implicit in the story. Those issues have loomed large in the presidential election, lending this show an extra sheen of topicality. But various details press the point too baldly. (Celia Wren) Through Oct. 30 at the Mead Theatre Lab at Flashpoint, 916 G St. NW. Tickets $18. Visit www.convergencetheatre.org.

[Celia Wren on Witch]

Zombie Prom. The campy 1990s off-Broadway musical about a high school zombie and the girl who loves him. Strictly for hardcore musical devotees who want to see what Dana P. Rowe and John Dempsey wrote before their musicals The Fix and The Witches of Eastwick. . . . The rock-and-roll quartet tucked up onto a platform in a back corner of the stage tries to capture the feel of the 1950s sock-hop score but cant quite swing it. Neither can much of the rest of the indifferently designed, unevenly performed show. (Nelson Pressley) Through Oct. 30 at the Randolph Road Theater, 4010 Randolph Rd., Wheaton. Tickets $10-$27.50. Call 301-337-8290 or visit www.unexpectedstage.org.

[Zombie Prom review from Nelson Pressley]

ETC.

Beertown. dog & pony dcs devised, interactive, quirky piece on democratic process, first seen in 2011, now revised and updated in time for the elections home stretch. It may be a mock proceeding, but Beertown really does hammer home, at a pivotal moment, the notion that every vote counts. (Peter Marks) Through Nov. 7 at the Thurgood Marshall Center for Service and Heritage, 1816 12th St. NW. Tickets $17-$27. Visit www.dogandponydc.com.

[Peter Marks on the updated Beertown]



The interactive, civic-minded "Beertown" by dog & pony dc. (Ryan Maxwell)

The Capitol Steps. The longtime political satirists, tearing laughs from the headlines. Fridays and Saturdays in the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center Amphitheater, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Tickets $40.50. Call 202-397-7328 or visit www.capsteps.com.

Dream Within a Dream: Madness. An immersive performance about Edgar Allan Poes madness after the death of his wife, re-imagined by Through the 4th Wall  which performed the show in a found building on New York Avenue NW during the 2014 Capital Fringe Festival  for Alexandrias Torpedo Factory. Through Oct. 31 at the Torpedo Factory, 105 N. Union St., Alexandria. Tickets $40. Call 703-838-4565 or visit www.torpedofactory.org.

Debbie Allen's Freeze Frame: Stop the Madness at the Kennedy Center. (Kennedy Center)

The Every28Hours Plays. Part of a national project of one-minute plays on the killing of black men and women by police, security guards and vigilantes. Presented Oct. 29 at 5 p.m. as a partnership between City at Peace and Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in the Great Hall of the Atlas Performing Arts Center, 1333 H St. NE. Tickets free. Call 202-399-7993 or visit atlasarts.org.

Freeze Frame: Stop the Madness. A hybrid dance-theater-music-cinema piece on violence and race, written, directed and choreographed by Debbie Allen. Through Oct. 30 at the Kennedy Centers Eisenhower Theater. Tickets $29-$109. Call 202-467-4600 or visit kennedy-center.org .

[Debbie Allen talks with Roger Catlin about Freeze Frame]

Laura Benanti. The Broadway performer (She Loves Me, Gypsy) with her concert Tales From Soprano Isle. Oct. 29 at the Barns at Wolf Trap, 1645 Trap Rd., Vienna. Tickets $40-$45. Call 877-9653872 or visit wolftrap.org.

[Bethonie Butler talks to Laura Benanti about playing Melania Trump]

On Stage With the Migration Series. Staged readings of short plays connected to painter Jacob Lawrences 60-panel Migration Series, which is being reunited in full at the Phillips Collection. The playwrights are Norman Allen, Tearrance Arvelle Chisholm, Annalisa Dias, Jacqueline E. Lawton and Laura Shamas. Nov. 3 at the Phillips Collection, 1600 21st St. NW. Tickets $12. Call 202-387-2151 or visit phillipscollection.org.

POTUS Among Us. A diverting interactive show . . . this nutty immersive spoof of a presidential campaign allows theatergoers to winnow down a field of (fictional) crackpot political candidates, based on mini-debates, mini-stump speeches and such game-show-style faceoffs as a competition to shamelessly curry favor with Walmart. (Celia Wren) Through Nov. 6 at Source, 1835 14th St. NW. Tickets $15 in advance, $20 at the door. Visit www.witdc.org.

[Celia Wren on POTUS Among Us]

Shear Madness. The indestructible interactive comedy whodunit, at 12,000-plus performances in the Kennedy Centers Theater Lab. Ongoing. Tickets $50-$54. Call 202-467-4600 or visit www.kennedy-center.org.

Warrior Class. Kenneth Lins 2012 hardball political drama about the rise of a so-called Republican Obama possibly running for Congress. Directed by Joy Zinoman and featuring Rick Foucheux, Isabel Keating, Tony Nam and Deidra LaWan Starnes. Part of Theatrical Selections, the series of free Monday night readings of politically themed works at several area theaters, Monday nights until the election. Oct. 31 at 7:30 p.m. in the Kennedy Centers Theater Lab. Call 202-467-4600 or visit kennedy-center.org .

[Peter Marks talks to Theatrical Selections organizers]
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa  Authorities say a driver injured earlier this month when his tanker truck burst into flames at an ethanol plant in Council Bluffs has died.

John Ticer with the Iowa State Fire Marshal's Office says 61-year-old Kenneth Dale Krumwiede of Walthill died Sunday at an Omaha hospital.

Ticer says the investigation into what caused the Oct. 7 fire and explosion continues. Officials are meeting with engineers at the facility next week to determine the cause.

Firefighters from multiple nearby departments were called to contain the fire, which required special foam to extinguish the ethanol-fueled flames.
Dear Amy: Our daughter is in her mid-20s. She is a college grad with a good job. She met a young man and started dating him.

Young Man showed some controlling tendencies. He is a hothead with anger issues.

Things were fine until Young Man punched in our daughters windshield in a jealous rage. My husband and I expressed concern, saying that this often leads to further violence. Our daughter broke up with him and moved into the city with her college roommate.

Time passed, and now she is back living at home to save money. She has reconciled with him, saying she has so much fun with him. I again stated my concerns about violence but reassured her that we love her unconditionally.

I know she is old enough to make her own choices. Should we welcome him back with open arms, knowing we have reservations?

I know the answer is not to alienate our daughter, but my concern is with her safety.

Concerned Parents

Concerned Parents: I would not welcome this man into the fold with open arms, but more with a resigned awareness that you cant choose your daughters friends for her.

Dont take her temperature every day about this, but maintain an open atmosphere where she can talk to you if she needs to.

If you become aware of ANY violence, you should not pussyfoot around with this couple, letting him explain away his behavior. You should call the police (and tell your daughter to always call the police if there is any violence). If you had gotten the police involved with the previous incident, things might (possibly) be different now.

Dear Amy: I am at a loss over what to do with my mother and her relationship with my kids.

Mom and I have always had a strained relationship, but we have both always tried hard. I am now a mom to a tween and a preschooler, and I want my kids to have a healthy relationship with their grandma, even if ours is not so great.

The problem arises when my mother is angry with me  whether from an instance happening at that moment or in the past  she demeans me and my parenting to my kids, the older one in particular.

Raising kids is hard enough to do without having your children lose respect for you. Ive told my mom to cut it out, and she agrees, only to do it again and again.

Ive not been letting my kids spend time with her because of this, but I dont want them to be punished. I dont want to punish my mother either. I just cant trust her to not betray her word and try to manipulate me through my kids.

Is there any way my kids can have a good grandma in their lives?

A Mother First

Mother First: The only way for your kids to have a good grandma in their lives would be to have a different grandma.

They  and you  are stuck with this one.

You alone can judge the true toxicity of these comments and the effect on your children. If your mother is in the grouchy complainer category, this might be tolerable. As the kids grow older, they will understand that this is just the way she is.

If your mother is deceitful, manipulative, poisonous and a vicious gossip, then yes  this can undermine your own relationship with your children, as well as cause them genuine emotional harm.

Be open with your oldest. Ask her how she feels when her grandmother does this.

She may have to train herself to say, Grandma, I dont want you to talk about mom, and repeat this often.

And, yes, if your mother cant respect your reasonable request, then you should limit visits to times when you will also be present.

Dear Amy: I caught your answer to the childish man who was humiliated when he was beaten by a woman in a chess game (Totally Embarrassed in Defeat), but you declined to address what a total baby he was!

Chess Player

Chess Player: Totally Embarrassed seemed to view his chess game as a battle of the sexes. I agree that he was a sore loser.


Ashton Sanders in Moonlight. (David Bornfriend/A24)

You might say Moonlight is this years Boyhood. Like Richard Linklaters best picture nominee, the drama follows a sensitive kid on his journey toward maturity, with a simple but loose narrative thats intensely moving.

But unlike Boyhood, the main character isnt one audiences are used to seeing. Chiron is black, poor and confused about his sexuality in a neighborhood where macho swagger is necessary for survival.

That might sound niche, but Moonlight isnt. It casts a wide net with sweeping themes. Thats why its making even hardened critics euphoric and, during its very limited opening weekend in New York and Los Angeles, before debuting in Washington on Friday, it brought in more than $400,000  an astounding number from just four theaters. It does what all coming-of-age movies have to do: take a well-worn archetype and make it its own, finding universal in the specific.

It does speak to so many people, and everyone who watches the film leaves feeling like there was a part of them in it, said actor Trevante Rhodes, who plays Chiron as an adult.

The movie unfolds in three acts during distinct periods in Chirons life  as a young boy, a teen and an adult  and the themes ripple out, giving viewers plenty to relate to: the loneliness of adolescence; the stifling reality of bullying; the labels that society slaps on people who dont conform; the presumptions about what makes a man a man; and the confusing process of discovering ones true self.

For a moment, its a revenge tale. But, at its core, its something even more familiar.

Its a love story, said actor Andre Holland, who plays the adult version of Chirons longtime friend Kevin. I think its easy to put it in a box of, oh, its a black film or a black, gay film about these poor kids, but really, at the center of it, its a love story, and I love that people can see past all that stuff on the exterior.

Moonlight isnt a revolutionary movie. Its a fairly typical coming-of-age story, featuring scenes movie fans know well, like schoolyard beatdowns and first sexual encounters, kind mentors and deadbeat parents. There are echoes, not just of Boyhood, but Blue Is the Warmest Color, The 400 Blows, Boyz N the Hood and Splendor in the Grass  some of the best dramatic representations of growing up. But Moonlight still keeps viewers guessing, subverting expectations at every turn.



Trevante Rhodes, who plays the main character as an adult: Everyone who watches the film leaves feeling like there was a part of them in it. (David Bornfriend/A24)

MacArthur genius Tarell Alvin McCraney, whose somewhat autobiographical play was adapted into the film, says its important to always stay just ahead of the viewer. He teaches a class on playwriting, and he warns his students that most stories have already been told  and thats okay.

We tell the same stories over and over again because they help us know who we are, and thats universal, he said. But when you tell a story, whats most important is you have to bring your full self, because your DNA is the only time its happened in this world.

Moonlight is poised to make screenwriter-director Barry Jenkins a household name, not to mention a major awards contender. This is only his second feature after 2008s charming romantic dramedy Medicine for Melancholy, yet his sophomore effort is exquisitely composed, complete with stunning cinematography and an evocative score thats heavy on the strings.

[Moonlight is both a tough coming-of-age tale and a tender testament to love]

It had to be perfect because it was so personal. He and McCraney didnt know each other as children, but they grew up in the same poor Miami neighborhood where the movie takes place, and both had mothers who were addicted to crack. Likewise, Chirons mother, Paula (Naomie Harris), is a user.

Already, the story threatens to become a cliche. Thats what nearly scared off Harris. The British actress made a pact with herself long ago that she would only take roles showing black women in a positive light. There were enough stereotypes on-screen without her participation, she reasoned.

The reason I changed my mind was Barry spoke to me and said, This is my story, and my story necessarily involves that my mother was addicted to crack,  Harris recalled. I thought, Here for the first time is someone whos invested in ensuring that this character is portrayed with her full complexity and her full humanity. 



Naomie Harris plays the main characters mother in Moonlight. (A24)

Harris, like many people associated with the movie, is quickly becoming part of the Academy Awards conversation and making another #OscarsSoWhite controversy look increasingly unlikely. Another acting standout is Mahershala Ali.

According to McCraney and Jenkins, Alis character is the one that most fascinates audiences. Hes a drug dealer named Juan, whos thoughtful and wise and, for a while, becomes Chirons father figure and protector. He also happens to be the person who feeds Paulas addiction.

Whats a faggot? a sad-eyed Chiron (played as a young child by Alex Hibbert) quietly asks Juan during dinner one night. Juan takes his time responding, explaining that its a word used to make gay people feel bad about themselves  and that theres nothing wrong with being gay. How do I know? Chiron follows up mournfully.

You just do, Juan tells him. You dont gotta know right now. Not yet.

[Can a movie about women be just a movie?]

The first time Juan and Chiron meet, the little boy is hiding from bullies inside a boarded-up drug den. Juan rips the plywood off the window and steps inside the apartment, and for a moment, the viewer doesnt know if hes trustworthy. Moments earlier, after all, he was doing illegal business.

Juan is a complex character who keeps audiences guessing, but he wasnt invented with the sole purpose of humanizing a drug dealer  he was based on a real person, the man who taught McCraney to ride a bike when he was young.

It isnt our intention to play with those expectations or flip them on their head, Jenkins said. Were just trying to do justice to the character Tarell created, who was modeled after a flesh-and-blood person who, yes, would defy expectations.



Alex Hibbert in Moonlight. (David Bornfriend/A24)

Thats part of what makes Moonlight so broadly appealing. None of it feels manufactured or stilted.

The success of the movie seems fated at this point. And it serves as yet another helpful reminder that inclusivity is good for the industry. People are drawn to human stories, regardless of whether the people on-screen look the same as the audience.

Thats what makes it such a treasure, Harris said. It strips away all the labels that society attaches to us or we attach to ourselves, and it says fundamentally were all grappling with the same issues and were all in search of the same thing, which is love.
A flurry of greetings  all colors, fonts and sizes  welcomed Alissa Wylie into the AOL teen chat room.

Hi! HELLO a/s/l?

It was 2003, and Alissa, 13 and an eighth-grader in Deerfield, Ill., had heard stories from friends about chat rooms. On a whim, she decided to see whether it merited the hype.

I guess I had nothing else to do but talk to the friends that I had just seen for hours and hours, recalls the 27-year-old interior designer. I remember we had dial-up back then, and Id get scolded by my parents if I was talking too long because it would use up our phone line.

[Are you getting married in the Washington region? Tell us why we should feature your nuptials here]

Alissa Wylie and Steve Casazza after they met at Chicagos O'Hare Airport in 2005. (Family photo)

Hundreds of miles away, Steve Casazza, then 15 and a sophomore in Long Valley, N.J., also was logging on to a chat room for the first time. It was the thing to do to rebel against your parents, says the 28-year-old, who manages defense trade policy at General Atomics.

Intrigued by Steves screen name, (cazaz71288), Alissa (wyliebird3) decided to private message him outside the chat. Their conversation was easy, and they quickly became online pen pals, exchanging messages about once a week.

Unlike such apps as Facebook and Snapchat that are popular with teens today, chat rooms offered anonymity. So Steve and Alissa fibbed and said they were 16, each wanting to sound more mature. To stay safe, they used fake names and locations.

As the year progressed, their conversations became longer and more frequent. Online, they felt comfortable sharing worries and concerns they wouldnt normally share with family and friends.

Shes the most genuine, generous and selfless person that Ive ever met . . . I had guy friends, but the things that I talked about with Alissa were things that made me feel emotionally vulnerable, Steve says. I felt safe discussing them behind the screen.

They kept their online communication hidden from their parents for two years. I swear, I was a very honest child up until that point. I consider it my rebellious phase, Alissa says with a laugh.

After a year of talking online, Steve and Alissa decided to reveal their real information, and they graduated to regular phone calls. But they still went to great lengths to keep their connection a secret from their parents, buying calling cards so long-distance fees wouldnt appear on their home phone bills.

I would save up all of my money from my babysitting jobs, Alissa says, and then bike over to Walgreens to buy phone cards.

But in winter 2005, when Steve began dating offline, Alissa realized her digital connection had developed into a real one. They decided it was time to tell their parents, who took the news shockingly well and mutually agreed to let the kids meet in person.

Their parents, Steve says, discussed the two scenarios of how this could play out. One, we would meet and decide this was all for naught and go our separate ways. Or two, the worst-case scenario, we would realize we were compatible and destined to years of a long-distance relationship and heartache.

For Christmas, Steves parents surprised him with a round-trip plane ticket to Chicago in late February to meet Alissa. As soon as they locked eyes at the airport, they were inseparable for the entire trip. I just kept touching him and saying, Youre real! Youre really real!  Alissa recalls.

Because of the distance and age difference, they agreed to stay together in a long-distance yet open relationship. Steve left for George Washington University in Washington, and two years later, Alissa enrolled at the University of Minnesota. They visited each other often but dated other people. The separation, however, led to jealousy, fights and, ultimately, a breakup during Alissas junior year in 2010.

At that point, we talked almost every single day, she says. It was terrible.

But the pair reconnected in 2011 after Alissa suffered a harrowing night her senior year. Doctors think she was slipped a drug at a bar in downtown Minneapolis. She was physically unharmed but emotionally distraught. When she awoke at the hospital the next morning, the first person she asked for was Steve.

I needed him . . . more than my parents, more than anyone, really. I wanted Steve there and I wanted his help, she recalls. I realized then . . . that I loved him and needed him in my life more permanently.

Soon, they agreed to be exclusive, and, in July 2013, Alissa moved into an apartment with Steve in Southwest Washington. It was a decade in the making, but they were finally in the same city and able to make a home together.

In October 2014, Steve decided to pop the question after a week-long vacation in Iceland. Tipped off by a friend that Alissa was predicting a wedding proposal during the trip, he decided instead to surprise her with an at-home proposal over a candlelit dinner.

Do you want to go on another adventure? he asked, taking a knee.

Steve and Alissa exchanged vows Sept. 25 in the Kogod Cradle theater at Arena Stage. Steves jiu-jitsu instructor, James Jay Coleman, officiated in front of 100 guests. As soon as I saw her for the first time in her dress, I just lost it. Tears, quivering lip, the works, Steve says. I ended up stealing the tissue in her hand.

After the ceremony, the celebration moved across the street to Cantina Marina, where decorations had a travel theme to reflect the couples interests and history. A few days later, they boarded a plane for a week-long vacation in Belize.

Looking back, Alissa credits the foundation they built as teenagers for the success theyve shared in their relationship as adults.

Steve and I were never looking for a relationship. We just wanted to connect with somebody. But lucky for us, it grew into much more, she says. Back then, I felt like I could confide in him about anything and everything. I still do.

More from On Love:

When she didnt feel a spark, her date wasnt bitter. In fact, he played matchmaker.

A fender bender brings a couple back together after 33 years

She was told 50 first dates was the key to relationship success. He was No. 98.

Are you getting married in the Washington region? Tell us why we should feature your nuptials here at wapo.st/weddings.


From left, Jay Mills, Chanda Macias, Shawnta Hopkins-Greene and Jennifer Culpepper meet regularly to talk about how they should discuss marijuana with their kids. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

Before Chanda Macias drops her 6-year-old son off at school, she spritzes some Febreze on herself. If anyone sniffs a trace of marijuana on her, the mother of four worries she would be labeled an unfit parent  or at least a mother unfit to host play dates.

Macias, a former cell biology specialist at Howard University, left her job last year to foray into Washingtons nascent pot industry by opening a medical marijuana dispensary. Her business is legal, but the stigma has her questioning how to discuss her profession with her children.

In the male-dominated industry, there are few mothers she can turn to. Macias connected with other moms in the local marijuana business, forming a support group to navigate child-rearing in the murky age of legalization.

The four mothers meet every other month or so and regularly call each other with questions ranging from how to avoid glorifying marijuana to stashing pot-related possessions during play dates.

The parents say they are proud of their professions, but they dont want their children to be inundated with marijuana talk  or, worse, to be judged at school by adults and children who disapprove of their parents work. Three of the mothers live in Maryland, where recreational marijuana use is illegal, and say they are not cannabis users.

I have a PhD and MBA, but I know if I pick him up smelling like marijuana, everyone will ask him, What does your mom do?  Macias said about her 6-year-old son, as she sat with other mothers during a recent gathering. She owns the National Holistic Healing Center in the Dupont Circle neighborhood, which has served as the groups meeting place.

Oh, the dreaded occupation question, Shawnta Hopkins-Greene, chief executive of CannX, a D.C. medical marijuana consulting company, said. I always just say Im an entrepreneur.



Chanda Macias, owner of the National Holistic Healing Center in Washington, shows her new product menu. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

Various strains of marijuana are available at National Holistic Healing Center. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

Such concerns arent unique to Washington, or even mothers, as people across the country consider whether to enter the fledgling marijuana industry.

Leah Heise, chief executive of Women Grow, a national networking group for women in the marijuana industry, said she frequently fields concerns about the challenges of juggling pot and parenthood. Her advice to moms: Be transparent about the drug and profession.

It can be a little scary, but I tell them that if they really believe that cannabis should be legalized, which I do, that the only way its going to happen is to convince other moms just like us that having a legalized cannabis industry isnt going to change our children into Sean Penns character from Fast Times at Ridgemont High,  Heise said. We as women have the ability to change the conversation politically like no one else does because were the moms.

Heise said she receives more questions from mothers in newly established marijuana markets, such as the District, than somewhere like California, which legalized medical marijuana in 1996.

[ Even where its legal for parents to smoke pot: What about the kids? ]

Medical marijuana was legalized in the District in 2013, and 4,283 residents have received authorization to buy medical marijuana. Recreational pot became legal in February 2015 after 70 percent of District residents voted in favor of a ballot measure that legalized growing and possessing small amounts of marijuana. But because of actions by Congress, it is not legal to sell or purchase the drug in the District.

Maryland legalized medical marijuana three years ago, but the program has been embroiled in controversy and remains in the early stages of making the drug available to patients. Virginia passed legislation in 2015 allowing the use of medical marijuana oil for people suffering from severe epilepsy.

[Everything you need to know to stay out of jail now that pot is legal in D.C.]

The drug is still illegal in the eyes of the federal government.

Having kids while were in this industry is kind of taboo, said Macias, who lives in Fort Washington, in Prince Georges County.

The mothers have different philosophies about how they broach the topic with their children.

With her youngest, age 6, Macias refers to marijuana as medicine, and tells him that marijuana is an inappropriate word to use.



Jay Mills, left, and Chanda Macias talk in a group of moms involved in the local marijuana industry. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

Macias and her husband, who also works at the dispensary, categorize some marijuana-related words alongside prohibited curse words. Banned words include dispensary and pre-roll, as in a pre-rolled joint that is sold at the Dupont Circle business. Her young son thinks she works at a pharmacy.

Her concerns are practical. She doesnt want his classmates or teachers to think she is a drug dealer or that she uses marijuana in front of him. A first-grader, after all, could have trouble distinguishing in conversation that his mother doesnt sell marijuana to everyone  only to those with a medical marijuana card.

He knows it as the medicine, Macias said. So when he has a cold, hes like, Mom, do I need the medicine? And I say, No, no, you need a cough drop. 

Hopkins-Greene, of Columbia, Md., said her 10-year-old son knows about the drug and its controversies, and she tries to answer his questions in age-appropriate ways.

Jay Mills, who lives in Northeast Washington, teaches classes on how to cook edibles and grow marijuana. She gardens at home with her 3-year-old son, and he helps with the tomato, onion and, yes, marijuana plants. As he grows older, she plans to be transparent about marijuana and her profession. But there are boundaries: His friends who come over cant see the marijuana plant.



The National Holistic Healing Center dispenses medical marijuana to registered patients. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

Chanda Macias displays products at the National Holistic Healing Center. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

He wanted to show his playmate the indoor plant. Im like, No, no no,  Mills said. So I now have locked the basement door to take care of that.

Jennifer Culpepper, of Annapolis, still isnt sure how to discuss her new profession with her 7- and 9-year-old children. They havent asked questions, so she hasnt said much.

Culpepper, a branding and market consultant, recently started a second company, Brand Joint, which focuses on branding marijuana-related products. Maciass dispensary is one of Culpeppers clients.

Im still developing how I want to handle it with my kids, and for me, its key to hear from other mothers, Culpepper said.

Her daughter once had a school assignment to write a business letter and tried to write it on Brand Joint letterhead. Culpepper swapped it with the letterhead of her non-marijuana-related branding firm.

When she started Brand Joint, she hesitated to publicize it on social media, even though she has shared her other companys Facebook page with friends.

Now Im like, this is who we are, and Im not doing anything illegal, she said.

The four mothers agree that marijuana is a complicated topic for any parent to discuss with their children. They want their children to understand its medicinal benefits but dont want them overexposed to it.

For me, my challenge with my kids is everything is black and white with them, nothing is gray, Culpepper said. Everything is good or bad. There is a lot of gray area here.


Anthony G. Brown, who is running for Maryland's 4th Congressional District, greets voters outside the Southern Regional Technology and Recreation Complex on the first day of early voting in Fort Washington, Md. on Oct. 27. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

The woman pushing her friends wheelchair at a Maryland early voting station recognized Anthony G. Brown immediately.

You shouldve been my governor, she said, pointing her finger and leaning in close to shake his hand.

Well, Im going to be your congressman, the Democratic House candidate replied.

Brown, a former two-term lieutenant governor, is getting a second chance in politics after losing the 2014 gubernatorial race to Republican Larry Hogan, then a little-known businessman in a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans more than 2 to 1.

Having survived a bitter six-way primary, Brown is the overwhelming favorite to win the 4th Congressional District seat being vacated by outgoing U.S. Rep. Donna F. Edwards (D), who unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. Senate.





The 4th District is one of the safest in the nation for Democrats, according to political analysts, who say Brown does not face a significant threat from Republican nominee George McDermott, a perennial candidate bent on reforming the local judicial system, or the Green Partys Kamesha Clark, a self-described millennial social entrepreneur who wants to create a federal agency called the Department of Sustainable Living.

If elected Nov. 8, Brown vows to emphasize constituent services, reestablish himself as a player in Maryland politics and bolster a state party that he and others see as in need of a reboot. Democrats, he says, need to demonstrate that their priority is easing the economic burdens on working families.

[As Hogans popularity soars, Md. Democrats clash over response]

The party has to give folks a reason to vote, said Brown, whose focus on social issues during the 2014 campaign made him and other Democrats seem out of touch. We need to say more clearly what we are for, because they know what we are against.

The 54-year-old lawyer and Army veteran rose quickly through the ranks during eight years in the Maryland General Assembly before becoming deputy to Gov. Martin OMalley in 2006.

But he finished two terms as lieutenant governor with few visible accomplishments and one glaring failure: the botched launch of the online health exchange for participants in President Obamas Affordable Care Act.

After losing to Hogan, Brown returned to his old law firm job in Prince Georges County, politically invisible for a few months until longtime Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski (D) decided to retire, setting off a chain reaction that included Edwards giving up her House seat.

As he threw his hat into the ring, Brown sought advice from Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.), a longtime lawmaker from Baltimore, on how to remake his image.

Tell your story, Brown recalled Cummings saying. Share with the voters who you are. Thats what people want to know. 



Anthony G. Brown, right, greets voters outside the Southern Regional Technology and Recreation Complex. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

The handlers who had surrounded Brown during the governors race disappeared. He drove alone to events across the district, which includes swaths of Prince Georges and Anne Arundel counties; rarely turned down an invitation; and invested $400,000 of his own money to stay competitive with primary opponents whose donor bases were stronger. Instead of attack ads and touting his Ivy League pedigree, he ran television commercials about his role as a father and appeared alongside his wife, Karmen Brown.

I think he went back to who he was, said Prince Georges County Executive Rushern L. Baker III (D), who endorsed Browns rival, former county states attorney Glenn F. Ivey, in the primary. You learn a lot more from losing than winning. He ran a great race, and he was hungry.

Brown, who defeated Ivey by seven percentage points, said, There is no such thing as a consolation prize in life. You get what is intended for you.

[Brown trying to reveal more of himself in this campaign]

His story, in some ways, parallels that of Rep. Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.), the House minority whip, who has represented the neighboring 5th Congressional District since 1981.

Hoyers political career came to a surprise halt in 1978 after he gave up a state Senate seat to run for lieutenant governor and lost. A few years later, when Rep. Gladys Spellman fell gravely ill, he won a crowded special election for her seat.

It turned out very well, Hoyer said in an interview. Brown, he added, is going to have a great career, and I think he can hold this seat for as long as he wants it.

Hoyer said Browns Army background means he could play a unique and important role if assigned to the House Armed Services Committee, which does not currently include lawmakers from Maryland, even though the state houses several military bases.

In what will likely remain a Republican-dominated chamber, Brown said, he doesnt expect to win cushy assignments or write blockbuster legislation. He plans to make a strength out of what critics called Edwardss greatest weakness, constituent services, and has promised to improve responsiveness, hire dedicated staffers and keep offices open in Prince Georges and Anne Arundel.

We are keeping him to his word, said Torrey Jacobsen, an Anne Arundel Democrat. We may be the small part of his district, but we are a very vocal part of his district.

Serving the 4th, which lies a few miles from the U.S. Capitol, will mean bringing federal dollars and projects  possibly including the long-planned FBI headquarters  to Maryland, Brown said.

He touted Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clintons plan for infrastructure investments, saying it would benefit the Washington suburbs by providing improvements and federal contracting opportunities for local businesses.

It might not be transformational change and progress, Brown said, but there ought to be incremental things that we can get done.

[Heres whats at stake for Maryland on Election Day]



Voters make their way through people handing out literature outside the Southern Regional Technology and Recreation Complex on the first day of early voting in Fort Washington, Md. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

The Democrats should take nothing for granted, Brown added  a lesson he learned well in 2014. That is why he plans to greet voters at early voting sites in his district every day until the election.

On Thursday, at the polling place in Fort Washington, Brown listened to a woman describe how a tree on county land was teetering over her newly replaced roof.

After referring her to local officials, Brown quipped that if he were already elected, he would be happy to help.

I know you cant wait until Jan. 3, but if you could, you can then call my office he said with a smile.
When Myron Haughton was picked up by authorities, he was an illegal immigrant with three felony convictions. Yet the Maryland resident convinced an immigration judge last year that he was a changed man, a husband and father who should be granted permanent residency, not be deported.

So why is he still behind bars?

That question places Haughton, of Silver Spring, in the thick of a debate playing out in courts across the country. He and more than 1,000 other immigrants in similar circumstances say they should have a chance to return to their homes and families while fighting deportation.

The government  which is appealing the immigration judges ruling in Haughtons case  firmly disagrees that he or any of the others deserves a bond hearing.

Recently, a U.S. district judge in Virginia sided with Haughton, 29, saying that his detention, already lasting more than a year, had become unreasonable and that he deserved a bond hearing. Although she was the first judge in Virginia to take that position in such a case, six of the nations federal appeals courts have issued similar rulings.

The broader controversy could be resolved this term by the Supreme Court, which is scheduled to consider the case of California inmates contesting prolonged detention in such instances. A decision, assuming the high court can put together a majority, is eagerly awaited.

According to the American Civil Liberties Union, the cases of about 4,500 detainees nationwide have been pending for more than six months. The ACLU estimates that 5,000 to 10,000 immigrants are being held because of criminal histories. Many of them, like Haughton, face consequences that they and their supporters consider disproportionate to their transgressions.

Myron Haughton is as American as any other American, his attorney, Alfred Robertson, said. He deserves to be with his family. Although hes made mistakes in the past, hes already paid for those mistakes.

Haughtons childhood was marked by trauma. He was abused by his stepmother in Jamaica, according to court records, and by his mother after he came to Maryland, illegally, at the age of 11. When a teacher noticed his bruises, he was sent to live with an aunt. But two years later, the aunt returned him to his mother, and the abuse resumed.

At 16, Haughton ran away from home and began living on the streets of Silver Spring with a group of petty criminals who broke into cars and unoccupied homes. Haughton was arrested after a break-in committed soon after his 18th birthday. He briefly escaped juvenile detention by stealing a teachers car keys and driving through a fence; then he pleaded guilty in 2006 to burglary and theft.

Haughton served 18 months of a five-year prison sentence and then was released on probation. He soon met Tatiana Barrow. She was raised in a Russian orphanage after being removed from her parents home because of neglect, and she was adopted by U.S. citizens at age 15.

Barrow and Haughton have two children  Adelina and Ayden, now 6 and 4. Haughton took care of the children and worked odd jobs, limited by his lack of legal status. Court records show that he received traffic tickets over the years for driving without a valid license.

It was one such incident that sparked his current troubles. In December 2013, he was arrested in Virginias Prince William County and charged with driving without a valid license. When Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) learned that he was in the country illegally, he was transferred to federal custody and slated for deportation.

Haughton was detained in the Arlington County jail until September 2014 as immigration officials struggled to put together the documents they needed to send him back to Jamaica. During that time, Barrow and Haughton were married. He was released under supervision for a year, until the paperwork was in order, and then he was taken back into custody in rural Farmville, Va. From jail, he applied for permanent residency through his wife, a U.S. citizen.

Barrow told an immigration court that because of the cost of day care, she had been living paycheck to paycheck since her husbands incarceration and had fallen months behind on her rent. She also said the separation caused the family emotional strain.

Because we grew up  he grew up with abuse, I grew up in an orphanage  . . . we dont want this for our kids, she told the court.

In May, an immigration judge agreed that separating the family would cause exceptional and extremely unusual hardship and granted Haughton permanent residency. The government appealed the decision. Haughton remained in custody but has asked a federal court for a bond hearing.

The Supreme Court ruled in 2003 that mandatory detention of noncitizens with certain criminal records is constitutional for the brief period necessary for their removal proceedings. At issue now is whether the many months that immigrants are spending in detention centers meet that standard.

[High court upholds immigrants custody]

The government argues that Congress chose to make detention mandatory and that delays caused by a detainees appeals should not be used to justify the detainees release.

It is a statistical certainty . . . that some of those criminal aliens will abscond and that some will commit further crimes that detention would have prevented, Solicitor General Donald B. Verrilli Jr. wrote in his brief to the Supreme Court.

A study by Syracuse University found that 14 percent of immigration detainees released on bond failed to return to court during fiscal 2015.

Advocates argue that the cases that last the longest are those in which the immigrant in question has the best chance of winning permanent residency  and thus is probably least deserving of indefinite detention.

A large percentage are lawful green-card holders who committed a crime that ICE thinks might make them deportable, said Cesar Cuauhtemoc Garcia Hernandez, a professor at the University of Denvers Sturm College of Law. These are people who are fully incorporated into U.S. society. . . . Its hard to justify treating them differently because theyre not citizens.

Haughton is not a green-card holder, and the government contends that his detention is not extraordinary or unwarranted. His continuing imprisonment is attributable to his own belated decision to seek an adjustment of status, prosecutors argued in one court filing. ICE vigorously disputes the decision to grant him permanent residency, Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Wetzler wrote.

Yet U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema found that Haughton deserved a bond hearing, using a multi-part test as four federal appeals courts have done in similar cases. Advocates would rather see the Supreme Court adopt a standard applied by two other appellate courts and require bond hearings for all detainees after six months. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, which includes Maryland and Virginia, is not one of those six appeals courts.

It really is night and day with the kind of remedy and the kind of system you end up with, said Michael Tan, an immigration lawyer with the ACLU. In California, where the six-month rule applies, he said thousands have received hearings. In Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, where there is no firm time limit, only about two dozen immigrants have.

The Supreme Court could embrace one of the standards applied by the federal appeals courts, set yet another standard or rule that bond hearings are not required at all.

The justices could also decide whether the burden of proof in such a hearing would fall on the government or on the detainee, an issue that has divided lower courts. Prosecutors in Virginia are fighting Brinkemas decision to force the government to prove that Haughton is a flight risk or a danger.

Another question is what the court will make of the governments admission that the statistics it relied on in 2003 were wrong. The solicitor general had said that appealed cases take an average of 233 days to complete, or a little less than eight months. In fact, the office acknowledged in August that, on average, cases took 382 days, or more than a year.

In 2015, according to the Justice Department, the average case took 313 days, but that does not include the time a person spent in detention before filing or any post-decision court action.

Haughton is scheduled to get his bond hearing before an immigration judge on Wednesday, after 395 days in detention.
An Uber driver has been arrested on kidnapping and assault charges after he took an unconscious female customer to a Maryland motel instead of dropping her at her home, police said.

The man is seen on a motel surveillance video pulling the woman from the back seat of a car and carrying her motionless body to a room, then staying in the motel for some time before leaving, police charging documents state.

Westagne Pierre, 29 of Greenbelt, was arrested Thursday and has also been charged with theft after he used the womans credit card, according to a statement of charges from Prince Georges County Police.

Esteban Gergely, an attorney for Pierre, said his client denies there was lack of consent the evening he took the woman to the motel.

The incident began Oct. 18 when the woman experienced an alcohol-induced blackout in the District, charging records state. A friend of the woman called an Uber for her and requested she be transported to her home in Fairfax County, Va., the records said.

Police said Westagne Pierre, 29, of Greenbelt, has been charged with kidnapping, assault and fraudulently using a victims credit card. (Prince Georges Police)

An Uber driver identified as Westange took the woman from the District to her home, but then drove her to a Budget Inn in College Park, Md., police said.

Surveillance video at the motel shows the driver went to the lobby and paid for a room.

Surveillance video then shows the Defendant go back to his vehicle and pull the Victim out of the back seat, charging documents said. The Defendant then lifts the Victim into the air, and wraps his arms around her so her feet are not touching the ground.

The man carries the woman into a motel room and spends time in the room before leaving and heading to a nearby 7-Eleven where he bought various items with the womans credit card, police said.

Authorities arrested the man after matching images of him from surveillance video at the motel and 7-Eleven with a drivers license photo, charging documents said.

Gergely said Pierre was released from custody after paying $250 in bond, which was lowered substantially from the $150,000 to be originally posted. Gergely said the reduced bond reflects lack of strong evidence in the case.

The facts of the case are very peculiar and they fall extremely short of being incriminating, Gergely said. There were no facts in the statement of charges that suggested he did any injury or trauma.

Gergely said that at a bail hearing Friday the judge questioned whether there was enough probable cause to detain his client.

Shes saying she doesnt remember anything, Gergely said. If she doesnt remember anything, she certainly doesnt remember saying, I dont want these things to happen. 

Uber confirmed Friday that the company contacted police and removed the driver from the app as soon as the rider reported concerns to the company on Oct. 19.

This is deeply upsetting, Uber spokeswoman Brooke Anderson said. The driver has been banned from the app and we have been working closely with police to support the investigation.
A former Alexandria resident was charged Thursday with voter registration fraud after falsifying applications while working for a local advocacy group, prosecutors said.

In the spring, Vafalay Massaquoi, 30, fabricated the applications while working for a group that sought to register new voters, forging forms and inventing the names of applicants, the Alexandria commonwealths attorney said in a statement.

The forms were filed with the Alexandria Office of the General Registrar, which alerted the commonwealths attorney, the statement said. A warrant for Massaquois arrest was issued in July, but he had left the area and was not arrested until earlier this month in Philadelphia, according to the statement.

Though prosecutors did not name the advocacy group Massaquoi worked for, New Virginia Majority, whose website says it is a powerful movement that transforms Virginia by organizing communities of color, women, working people, LGBTs, youth and progressive people, confirmed he was registering voters for it.

In June of this year, we terminated an employee in our voter registration program who failed to meet our high standards, the organization said in a statement. . . . Protecting the integrity of our elections so they remain free, fair, and accessible remains New Virginia Majoritys top priority.

Vafalay Massaquoi. (Alexandria Commonwealth Attorney's Office)

A spokesman for New Virginia Majority said Massaquoi was paid $15 per hour, and his compensation wasnt related to the number of voters he registered.

The Alexandria registrars office said the applications Massaquoi submitted were not used.

We just turned the applicants directly over to the commonwealths attorney, Anna Leider, Alexandrias general registrar, said. We did not attempt to register the people.

Massaquoi is charged with two felony counts of forging a public record and two felony counts of voter registration fraud, and faces up to 10 years in prison for each charge, prosecutors said.

The charges against Massaquoi come amid discussion of voter fraud or foreign interference in the Nov. 8 presidential election. Republican candidate Donald Trump has claimed the election is rigged, and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton has expressed concerns about Russias influence  concerns Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed Thursday.

[We dont want voters to be terrified: Officials seek to allay fears of a rigged election]

Alexandrias commonwealths attorney also sought to allay concerns about voter fraud.

Given the recent public attention to claims of election fraud, I think it is important to note that there is no allegation that any illegal vote was actually cast in this case, Commonwealths Attorney Bryan L. Porter said in a statement. Furthermore, since the fraudulent applications involved fictitious people, had the fraud not been uncovered the risk of actual fraudulent votes being cast was low.

Patricia Sullivan contributed to this story.
James Albert Harling Jr. spent much of his life on societys margins.

A rented room when he had money; a shelter when he ran out. A troubling bout with alcohol. Hobbled by a club foot that kept him in casts since birth and made it hard to find work. Time spent living on the Districts streets. A stable family with whom he kept in touch yet also kept a cautious distance.

Harling, 49, had stopped drinking and started talking about God, spending his days at a treatment center at Pennsylvania Avenue Baptist Church in Southeast Washington. He was in line for an apartment. The pastor, Kendrick E. Curry, said he was one who was really trying to improve his lot in life.

That sanctuary, though, proved to be anything but one.

Harling was fatally injured at the treatment center Wednesday morning in a dispute that broke out over 8 a.m. breakfast. Witnesses told police that another client, Perez Green, objected to Harlings joke that a new haircut made him look like a little boy, according to the arrest affidavit.

Police said Green, 37, hit Harling over the head with a metal folding chair twice and then ran. Harling died a little more than an hour later at a hospital in Maryland. The affidavit said the men joked with each other every day. But Perez had recently said, according to the affidavit, Im not playing with them people no more. He told police he was tired of being picked on.

Perez was arrested Wednesday at the Anacostia Metro station and charged with second-degree murder while armed. He was ordered detained until a preliminary hearing Nov. 8.

Harlings relatives said the victim was not mean-spirited, but they described him as the jokester of the family, leaving people smiling at the way Harling laughed at his own quips. His own jokes tickled him so bad you had to laugh with him, said Harlings sister, Renee Johnston, who lives in Laurel, Md.

Harling and Perez were among 200 clients who sought out help through MBI Health Services, which rents out space at the church in the 3000 block of Pennsylvania Avenue SE. Counselors help homeless people get jobs and provide treatment for mental health problems and drug and alcohol addiction.

In a statement, MBI said that both Harling and Green were well regarded and that they feel for the families of both men. The company said it could not comment extensively because of privacy concerns but said a counseling team was brought in to help other clients and staff.

Harling was living at a shelter when he was killed and getting his mail at a nutrition center run out of Washington City Church of the Brethren, near Eastern Market on Capitol Hill. It is what police listed as his home address in the report recording his death.

Curry, pastor for 13 years at Pennsylvania Avenue Baptist, described Harling as one of the more well-known members of the group. I always saw him as a pleasant fella, not one that was rambunctious in any way, Curry said.

The pastor lamented that the violence he works hard to stop in troubled neighborhoods outside the churchs front door had intruded inside the house of worship. It suggests that we need to pay more attention to the mental health and the challenged and look hard at how we build our community so we are better helpers and stewards, Curry said. We need to minister better to those who are considered on the margins.

Harling was born in the District but spent much of his childhood traveling. His father was in the Air Force; Harling attended elementary school in the District, middle school in Charleston, S.C., and high school in Germany.

He was the baby brother, said Johnston, who is a year younger. We teased him a lot. He was fun. He was kind. He was helpful. He was kind of quiet, but if you talked to him, he talked to you.

Johnston said Harling had an affinity for children, and when her two sons came along, he took them to the park. He let them run and play all over him. He was there for whatever they needed. He was always there. Harling was the person who took out the trash, ran to the store, hung the picture on a wall.

But Harling also fell into trouble. He struggled with drinking and, off and on, lived on the streets. He never married or had children. Alcohol abuse kept him away from some of his family, relatives said, but Johnston said her brother lived his life the way he wanted to.

He had a huge family thats all doing well, she said. His choice was his choice. He didnt have to live in a shelter. He chose to. He was independent, and his life was his. He was in control. He overcame drinking, and he found his own strength to do what he needed to do.

Johnston said Harling kept in touch in surprising ways. She might not hear from him for weeks, and then hed send you a nice little text, God bless you, today is a sunny day.  She added, Id be at work and all of a sudden get a text, Hey sis, I love you. 

Harling also kept in touch with his 70-year-old uncle, Willie Harling, who lives in Northeast Washington. The two had planned to get together this weekend at his home. I was looking forward to seeing him, Harling said. He talked to me about a lot but never his predicament. He would say, You my last uncle. I was the family to him. I had compassion for him.

Elaine Nesby, Harlings 75-year-old mother, who lives in Louisiana, described her son as a good person who contacted her often.

He would end texting sessions with, I love you, have a blessed day. She would reply, I love you too. She sent her last text to him on Sunday. Nesby said she doesnt know why, but she added three emoticons to the end of her usual sign-off.

Now, it seems prescient.

They were angels.
OMAHA  The CEO of Goodwill Omaha has resigned in the wake of an Omaha World-Herald investigation showing the charity's top executives being paid more than Goodwills nationwide  a practice that drastically ate into funds for its job programs for the needy and disabled.

Frank McGree, 64, announced Friday his resignation and plan to take early retirement. McGree had led the Omaha charity for 30 years. Goodwill's board accepted his resignation Friday.

The newspaper's investigation showed McGree received total compensation of $933,444 in 2014.

Also, 13 of the nonprofit's executives were paid more than $100,000 in 2014, so a significant portion of the $4 million generated from Goodwill's stores in eastern Nebraska and western Iowa went to administrative costs instead of its job-training programs.
Arasp Biparva had pleaded guilty to manslaughter after throwing a punch in the 2014 killing of Jack Godfrey. A new sentence will allow him to expunge the conviction from his records. (Prince Georges County Police)

A former University of Maryland student who pleaded guilty to throwing a deadly punch outside a College Park bar was granted a new sentence earlier this month, a decision that will allow the conviction to disappear from his criminal record.

Prince Georges County Judge Albert W. Northrop ordered the manslaughter conviction of Arasp Biparva in the 2014 killing of Jack Godfrey vacated. The judge also granted Biparva probation before judgment, which means the charges can later be expunged from public records.

The modified sentence will help Biparva, 25, as he finds a job in accounting, according to his attorney.

Currently the conviction will interfere with the application process and prevent Mr. Biparva from obtaining the certifications he needs to advance his career, his attorney, Barry Helfand, said in a request for the modified sentence.

The judges decision has devastated Godfreys family, which already was distraught that Biparva received no prison time when he was sentenced for manslaughter in April.

Jack Godfrey, 21, in between surgeries after being punched when a bar brawl he was not part of broke out near where he was standing. Between surgeries, Godfrey wore a helmet whenever he was walking to protect his brain before his skull was repaired. Godfrey survived the initial impact after several surgeries and physical therapy but died in his sleep in Nov. 2014. (Family Photo)

My family feels like he [Biparva] shouldnt be able to get a highflying job in finance, Godfreys mother, Nicola Bridges, said. He should have a McDonalds hat on his head or a janitors mop in his hand. Jack wont have a career, a wife, a life.

[The case of a sucker punch that became deadly]

Godfrey, 21, was sucker-punched and knocked unconscious outside Cornerstone Bar in College Park when a brawl involving 15 to 20 people began around 2 a.m. in March 2013, according to police and prosecutors. Godfrey, who was not involved in the fight, happened to be standing in the area when Biparva struck him.

Godfrey survived the impact after several surgeries and physical therapy but died in his sleep in November 2014. A state medical examiner later determined that he had suffered a seizure and other injuries stemming from the assault.

Biparva pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the death and in April was sentenced to three years of probation and no prison time.

At Biparvas sentencing hearing that month, Helfand said his client had no criminal record and had taken responsibility for his actions. Helfand said that Biparva had been assaulted during the brawl and was reacting to the violence around him when he accidentally punched Godfrey.

My client is genuinely remorseful for the incident and is grateful to the judge for his decision, Helfand said of the modified sentence.

At the sentencing, the judge said he would be open to revisiting the sentence at later date.

After a second hearing in September, Northrop issued an order Oct. 11 in response to the request for a new sentence.

There is no question but that this is a tragic and most unfortunate case, the judge wrote. Having reviewed once again the entire matter along with the numerous letters offered and the arguments of counsel, the court is satisfied that the balance of justice is on the side of the Defendants motion.

Biparva, who was a University of Maryland student at the time of the incident, was expelled from the school but went on to earn a degree in New York,

Prosecutors asked for six years in prison at his April sentencing hearing.

At the more recent hearing, prosecutors opposed Biparvas request for any changes, said John Erzen, a spokesman for the Prince Georges County States Attorneys Office.

Those injuries were caused by the punch that Mr. Biparva threw, Erzen said. We felt that because somebody actually lost their life, this was a conviction that needed to stay with Mr. Biparva for the rest of his life.

Godfreys mother, who runs a special-needs nonprofit group in California called Capability Ranch, said shes upset that the manslaughter charge will one day be erased from Biparvas record as if the incident never happened. She also said the judges decision shows deep disparities and inconsistencies in the legal system.

This sends a message to any young person that if you seriously injure somebody and they ultimately pass away . . . it doesnt matter. You can get off, she said.

Now its like nothing happened, Bridges said. The guilty is gone.
A nanny accused of fatally force-feeding a crying baby who woke the woman up from a nap will remain in jail without the possibility of bail.

Oluremi Oyindasola, 70, appeared in Prince Georges County District Court on Friday for a bond review hearing after she was charged this week with murder and child abuse in the death of 8-month-old Enita Salubi.

Oyindasolas attorney asked that she be released to her family on a $100,000 bond, but prosecutors objected, saying she is a flight risk.

She gave police various aliases and dates of birth and has been in the United States illegally with an expired passport, said Donine Carrington with the Prince Georges County states attorneys office.

Given the seriousness of the charges and the concerns of prosecutors, Judge Thurman H. Rhodes said Oyindasola should remain detained because she does present a significant flight risk and is a danger to others.

Oluremi Oyindasola, 66, is charged with murder and child abuse in the killing of 8-month-old Enita Salubi of Glenarden. ( Prince George's County Police Department)

Oyindasola, of Glenarden, Md., briefly appeared in court Thursday, but her hearing was postponed to Friday so that a Yoruba-speaking interpreter could be available for the native of Nigeria.

[8-month-old baby was killed simply because she cried, prosecutor says]

County States Attorney Angela Alsobrooks said after Oyindasolas appearance Thursday that the nanny was not licensed to care for children and was also watching two other toddlers, the girls siblings, at the time.

She was, from every indication, absolutely unfit to care for children, Alsobrooks said.

An in-home surveillance system in the Glenarden home recorded the live-in nannys interactions with the child before the unresponsive baby was rushed to a hospital Oct. 24, county police said.

Court charging documents indicate that the crying child in a toddler walker approached Oyindasola, who was napping on a couch. After trying to feed the child while the baby was still in the walker, Oyindasola pulled the child out, held her down and poured milk into the squirming girls mouth, police and prosecutors said.

[A crying baby woke up a napping nanny. So she force-fed her until the child died, police say.]

The baby resisted and showed distress, but Oyindasola forced the child to consume the contents of a second bottle full of clear liquid that was probably water, police prosecutors said.

After the child was pronounced dead at a hospital, a medical examiner discovered white liquid in the childs lungs during an autopsy and determined that the babys death was a homicide due to asphyxiation

Family for Oyindasola who appeared in court Thursday declined to speak with reporters.

[Do you know whos watching your children?]

Enita Salubi is the fifth child age 1 or younger who has died in Prince Georges this year, Alsobrooks said.

The number of child homicides has alarmed county officials, who created a public safety campaign urging parents to thoroughly vet caregivers or call the Maryland Department of Education for help finding subsidized child care.

The two parents in this case, Alsobrooks said, did the best they could.
D.C. police on Thursday arrested a second suspect in the March killing of a 27-year-old man in the Washington Highlands neighborhood of Southeast Washington.

Antwain Bailey, 47, of Temple Hills, Md., was charged with first-degree murder while armed. The first suspect, Anthony Wade, 29, of Southeast, was arrested in March and charged with second-degree murder while armed.

[Memorial to shooting victim highlights dangerous week in Washington Highlands]

The shooting occurred shortly before 5:30 p.m. on March 9 in the 800 block of Chesapeake Street SE. The victim, Aubrey Dansbury, 27, of Southeast, died at a hospital on March 17.

Dansbury was one of several people shot in Washington Highlands in early 2016, unnerving residents. Five people were shot between Feb. 29 and March 9, two of them fatally and several during daylight hours. One person was shot steps from an elementary school playground filled with children who rushed inside.

Police said at the time the shootings appeared unrelated and involved people who knew each other.

Wade remains detained until trial and has a hearing scheduled in his case on Nov. 4. Bailey could make his initial appearance in D.C. Superior Court later Friday. Police have not divulged a possible motive.

.
THE DISTRICT

Second man arrested in March slaying in SE

D.C. police on Thursday arrested a second suspect in the March killing of a 27-year-old man in the Washington Highlands neighborhood of Southeast Washington.

Antwain Bailey, 47, of Temple Hills, Md., was charged with first-degree murder while armed. The first suspect, Anthony Wade, 29, of Southeast Washington, was arrested in March and charged with second-degree murder while armed.

The shooting occurred March 9 shortly before 5:30 p.m. in the 800 block of Chesapeake Street SE. The victim, Aubrey Dansbury, 27, of Southeast, died March 17 at a hospital.

Police have not divulged a possible motive.

 Peter Hermann

Guard robbed of gun outside library in NE

An armed security guard was robbed of his weapon Thursday night outside a library in Northeast Washington, according to D.C. police.

The incident occurred about 9:15 p.m. in the parking lot of the Dorothy I. Height-Benning Neighborhood Library in the 3900 block of Benning Road NE. The library had closed at 9 p.m.

Police said the guard was walking to his vehicle in back of the library when he was approached from behind by a man who held a dark metal object to the victims head. The guard quoted the attacker as saying, This is a gun. This is a revolution. I want your gun! Get on the ground, according to the police report.

The guard told police he got on the ground and the assailant got on top of him, held the metal object to the back of his head and struggled to unstrap the guards weapon from the holster attached to his belt. The guard said the man unstrapped it and took the gun  a 9 mm Glock.

Police said the man jumped a concrete barrier and ran eastward.

 Peter Hermann

VIRGINIA

Man accused of voter registration fraud

A former Alexandria resident was charged Thursday with voter registration fraud after falsifying applications while working for a local advocacy group, prosecutors said.

In the spring, Vafalay Massaquoi, 30, fabricated the applications while working for a group that sought to register new voters, forging forms and inventing names of applicants, the Alexandria commonwealths attorney said in a statement.

The forms were filed with the Alexandria Office of the General Registrar, which alerted the commonwealths attorney, the statement said.

Although prosecutors did not name the advocacy group Massaquoi worked for, the progressive group New Virginia Majority confirmed he had been an employee. The organization said he had been terminated because he failed to meet our high standards.

The Alexandria registrars office said the applications Massaquoi submitted were not used.

 Justin Wm. Moyer
Metro officials said Thursday that they will change safety regulations after two federal inspectors and two track workers were nearly struck by a train near the National Airport station last week.

Poor radio communication probably factored into the near-fatal incident, as the train operator apparently wasnt aware of a speed restriction on the stretch of track where the workers were walking, Metro officials said.

It was one in a series of communication failures that have occurred in the system in recent months, including an incident in September that left a Red Line train stalled in a radio dead zone inside a tunnel for nearly 40 minutes, leading two passengers to self-evacuate.

This could have been a tragedy, said Metro board member Robert Lauby, who is chief safety officer for the Federal Railroad Administration. We could be having a very different type of meeting today.

The changes were announced at Thursdays board meeting, where members, Metro management and rank-and-file workers aired a range of concerns and grievances about issues that are affecting the safety of staff and riders.

Chief Safety Officer Pat Lavin outlined a plan to cap the maximum speeds allowed by trains at 59 mph, partly to prevent red-signal overruns, a chronic safety issue in the system. Lower speeds also could lessen the severity of collisions that might occur with signal overruns.

[Metros answer to train operators running red signals: Brighter bulbs]

Lavin said Silver Line trains had been recorded at speeds of 75 mph on some straightaways. The speed limit in most places in the system is 59 mph. Software changes being instituted over the next two years will prevent trains from exceeding 59 mph, and that limit will be systemwide.

Metro General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld called last weeks near miss, which was reported by the Federal Transit Administration, very concerning.

There were things there that should have been done differently, he said.

Lavin provided the board with a clearer picture of what took place. The incident occurred at a blind spot along the tracks, where the trains operator had a limited line of sight, he said. As the two inspectors and one Metro worker walked along the tracks, another Metro employee was stationed as a watchman about 100 feet away.

When the watchman saw the train approaching  moving faster than the temporary 10 mph speed limit in effect in the area  he shouted to the others to get off the track. They jumped onto the platform as the train operator saw them and began to slow down. When the train finally came to a stop, all but the rear car of the train had passed the inspectors.

Once the train stopped, the operator stuck his head out the window, made sure the inspectors were safe, then continued on his route, Lavin said. The Metro workers on the tracks then reported the incident to the Rail Operations Control Center; at that point, the operator was removed from service.

Before that incident, another train operator had been removed from service for exceeding the speed restriction on that stretch of track, Lavin said.

Lavin outlined his initial conclusions about what went wrong to make the near-miss incident possible: The train operator clearly did not understand that the speed restriction was in place at the time, Lavin said, because the discussion recorded on Metros radio network indicates that he did not properly repeat back the instructions provided by the control center.

Metro policy states that staff members are supposed to repeat any instructions they receive over the radio to ensure that they heard and understood the directions. If dispatchers do not hear a correct repeat-back, they are supposed to request additional confirmation from the train operator or track worker.

In this case, Lavin said, that didnt happen.

[Hes not getting on board: Metro operator abandons train because his shift was over]

Additionally, Lavin said, there probably should have been extra roadway protection procedures in place at that spot on the tracks because of the limited visibility. The FTA inspectors should have requested additional protections when they saw the layout of the tracks and the potential risks because of the limited visibility.

And after the incident occurred, the train operator should have reported it immediately rather than continuing on his route.

Lavin said officials are still investigating the incident and working on putting solutions in place. Federal inspectors will be provided with extra track-safety training so theyre aware of procedures for requesting extra protection in situations with clear risks. The agency also is taking steps to ensure that operators hear, understand and adhere to speed restrictions on the tracks.

But Lauby also said Metro needs to do more to ensure that workers are following existing requirements  not simply crafting new policies or instituting extra safety measures.

We can put some more requirements on top of existing requirements, but frankly, if existing requirements would have been followed, we wouldnt have had this issue, Lauby said.

Later in the meeting, a group of six track workers testified during the public comment period, arguing that managers often asked them to prioritize service over safety. They asked for a joint committee on labor and management, where Metro employees could offer ideas and feedback on how to increase safety and improve the quality of track repairs.

They pleaded with agency officials to address a number of safety concerns, saying managers have pressured them to put tracks into service before they were ready, forced them to use faulty and incompatible equipment that interferes with the repair process, and contracted with workers who dont have the necessary expertise to perform track work on the system.

Our members are tired of being ignored, said Raymond Jackson, second vice president of Amalgamated Transit Union 689, which represents 13,000 Metro workers.

For many years, frontline employees have made suggestions about how to properly maintain the track, added Marlow Franklin, a member of Metros track production department. Had [Metro] listened to us, the frustration of SafeTrack could have been avoided.

Union workers charged that they sometimes operate under conditions that leave them feeling unsafe, or are required to put safety at risk to follow managers directions.

They did not list any specific examples related to the allegations.

The workers said they were frustrated that Metro is relying on outside consultants, rather than longtime employees, to provide expertise on the system during SafeTrack repairs. They said their professional opinions arent valued.

Theyre bringing in these high-priced consultants, and these consultants who have never one day in their life worked out on the track gonna tell us how to fix the track, Jackson said.

[Metro board members dont see light at the end of the SafeTrack tunnel]

Wiedefeld defended the agency against the accusations in a news conference later, saying he disagreed with the unions assessment. He pointed to speed restrictions in place since a July 29 derailment and single-tracking being performed at the site of track issues  such as loose fasteners  as examples of how the system emphasizes safety over service.

Asked whether workers were being told to turn tracks over before they were ready, he replied: No. Theyre not.

He reiterated that Metro is not prioritizing service over safety, as the union alleges.

I dont agree with that, Wiedefeld said. That is not what were doing. We have met with every employee  every employee does now know that safety trumps service. Thats what we said, and thats what we mean. And weve done it with our actions.
Ryan Mulligan trains Prince William County poll workers on Monday. The heated rhetoric of the 2016 campaign has county officials taking extra measures to ensure safety at the polls. (Antonio Olivo/The Washington Post)

Republican supporters of Donald Trump and Latino immigrants backing Democrat Hillary Clinton during this contentious presidential campaign will converge at polling sites on Nov. 8, and that has election workers in Prince William County preparing for the worst.

If something is amiss and you feel the need to call 911 right away, call 911 right away, Michele L. White, general registrar of the Northern Virginia countys elections office, told about 30 election workers during a recent training session for Election Day duty. Please use your sixth sense; dont hesitate.

In a highly volatile campaign, in which Trump has called for his supporters to be on the lookout for voter fraud and civil rights leaders are pushing back against what they see as voter intimidation, election officials are changing their routines in an attempt to minimize conflict at polling places.

Nowhere in Virginia is that more apparent than in Prince William County, home to a fast-expanding Latino community as well as an active group of conservatives who have been vocal about their opposition to illegal immigration. More than 20 percent of residents are Latino, a ratio greater than twice the state average. At the same time, the chairman of the Board of County Supervisors is Corey A. Stewart (R-At Large), a 2017 candidate for governor who has celebrated Trumps heated rhetoric against illegal immigration and likes to say, I was Trump before Trump was Trump.

[Half of likely U.S. voters say they are concerned about Election Day violence]

In a speech in Gettysburg, Pa., on Oct. 22, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said voter fraud exists and that there are voter registrations in the United States that are invalid or significantly inaccurate. (The Washington Post)

Hoping to ease tensions during an Election Day that is expected to draw about 80 percent of the countys 270,000 registered voters, election officials are taking measures to speed up voting and minimize disruptions.

For the first time, each of the countys 91 precincts will have line chasers whose job will be to check IDs outside the polling station to ensure that everyone is in the right place and that lines move quickly. Those people will also keep an eye out for potential disturbances, officials said.

[Guns at polling places worry Virginia election officials]

Inside the stations, precinct chiefs will monitor election observers from both major parties  essentially watching the poll watchers. If those observers are overzealous in their scrutiny of voters, they may be kicked out of the polling station, county officials said.

Also for the first time, every polling station will be in direct contact with county officials through walkie-talkie radios to coordinate actions in the event of an emergency. All election workers will be wearing neon yellow or orange construction vests, so voters know where to turn for help.

Honestly, I expect people to behave themselves in public; I know my expectations may be unrealistic at this point, said Rosanna West, a precinct chief who will oversee voting in the Bristow Run district, the countys busiest with 4,796 registered voters. I try to keep a smile on at all times.

Keith A. Scarborough, secretary of the county electoral board, said the more aggressive measures stem from the bad karma brought on by this presidential race. Election officials around the country are taking novel steps, including those in Denver who for the first time trained their poll workers on how to respond to an active-shooter situation.

For weeks, Trump has warned that the general election will be rigged. He has called on his backers to get everybody to go out and watch polling sites on Election Day, particularly in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Ohio. But generally, he said that voting locations should have the sheriffs and the police chiefs and everybody watching.

Scarborough, a Democrat, said those suggestions coming from the top of a ticket may fuel suspicions and compel people to try to interfere with voting in unprecedented ways.

We have one of the major candidates talking about having a rigged election, Scarborough said. Thats never happened before. Theres a lot of bad rhetoric coming down.

The groups that plan to send volunteers to the polling stations say they want to avoid conflict.

Immigration activists are deploying several dozen volunteers to Prince William and nearby Manassas  mainly, they say, to guard against voter intimidation. Other nonprofit organizations, including the progressive New Virginia Majority, also plan to send volunteers.

Were just going to go from polling station to polling station, making sure that everything is okay, said Fernanda Durand, spokeswoman for the CASA in Action immigrant advocacy group.

John Fredericks, chairman of the Trump campaign in Virginia, estimated that about 1,200 people have signed up to work as poll watchers.

Weve got more volunteers coming in by the day than we can figure out where to put them, Fredericks said. We dont expect any confrontations with anybody legitimate. If the Hillary campaign decides to hire people to do things like throw eggs or start fights, I guess our volunteers will have to deal with it in a professional manner.

The countys electoral board briefly considered asking private groups that host polling stations to impose a one-day ban against guns on Election Day but abandoned the idea when Del. Robert G. Marshall (R-Prince William) raised objections, citing the states open carry gun law.

Under that law, weapons are already prohibited inside public schools, of which 70 in Prince William will function as polling stations. Prince William schools will also be closed on Election Day.

Scarborough said election officials are being instructed to treat a voter carrying a gun in the same way they would treat one with a loud hat or T-shirt: Ignore it.

Theyre legally entitled to do that, he said. As long as they dont do anything to cause disruption.

Kimball Brace, chief of the countys newly created Sudley precinct just north of Manassas, said he anticipates some disturbances.

The precinct of 2,054 voters is in the heart of Prince Williams rapidly growing Latino immigrant population.

I would imagine well have a target on the door or something along that line, Brace said.

To guard against confrontations outside the polling station, Brace  a former general registrar in the county elections office  said he is prepared to move the line of voters completely inside Sudley Elementary.

If Im hearing reports of people feeling like theyre being intimidated or that sort of thing, then we end up going outside and talking to people, he said. Ultimately, under Virginia law, we do have the right to call 911.

At a recent county training session, several polling station workers said they were unsure what they will face on Election Day.

Im expecting hecticness, said Ross Fontana, 17, who decided to help with elections in the Manassas area upon the advice of his high school government teacher.

Safiya Samman, 70, who has worked several previous elections in Prince William, said she expects some hostilities to be directed toward her because she is a Muslim who covers her head with a hijab.

During the state elections last year, one voter angrily refused her help when there was a problem with a ballot scanner.

I just stepped back, and I waited, said Samman, a U.S. citizen for 41 years.

But, she said, she is eager to work this presidential election.

I want them to see my face, Samman said. To see that were all part of this.
The latest Wason Center poll suggests the presidential race between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump is tightening in Virginia. (Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images)

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has pulled to within seven points of Democrat Hillary Clinton in Virginia, according to a new poll that finds more GOP voters belatedly getting on board with their partys nominee.

Clinton leads Trump by 46 percent to 39 percent in a poll released Friday by the Wason Center for Public Policy at Christopher Newport University.

Trump had trailed by 12 points in a Wason Center poll released a week earlier. He had been down 15 points in yet another Wason Center poll, released Oct. 16, conducted in the immediate uproar over comments Trump had made in 2005 about groping women.

[Poll: Trump recovers slightly in Va. but still trails Clinton by double digits]

True to form for the past several statewide elections in Virginia, Republican voters appear to be coming home late, but coming home, Quentin Kidd, director of the Wason Center, said in a written statement. Thats good news for Trump, and especially good news for the Republican candidates down-ballot.

The survey suggests the race is tightening in Virginia, whose 13 electoral votes could play a critical role in the race. Yet a Quinnipiac University Poll released Thursday still had Clinton up by 12 points.

[Poll: Clinton has 12-point lead over Trump in Virginia]

Virginia was supposed to have been a critical battleground in the presidential race, having morphed from reliably red into a swing state only eight years earlier. After helping to send Lyndon Johnson to the White House in 1964, Virginia went Republican in every presidential election until 2008, when Barack Obama broke that streak. He won again in 2012. But after nail-biter races for governor in 2013 and U.S. Senate in 2014, the state was considered a toss-up heading into 2016.

Trump has trailed Clinton in polls here for months. Following reports this month that Trump was pulling out of Virginia, Trump announced a last-minute push in the state. He held a rally in Virginia Beach on Saturday and days earlier announced a $2 million TV ad buy. Many political observers  Republicans among them  have questioned the strategy, but his campaign has noted that polls underestimated GOP strength in the most recent races for governor and Senate.

[Trump confounds many Republicans with last-minute push in Virginia]

The newest Wason Center poll showing Clinton with a 46 percent to 39 percent lead surveyed 815 likely Virginia voters and was conducted Oct. 23 through Oct. 26. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.2 percentage points.

While Clintons support has grown slowly and steadily  she was at 39 percent in a Sept. 26 Wason poll  Trump has seen a more dramatic rise, recovering 10 points since a dip that followed the first debate. At 39 percent, he now stands at his highest point since Wason began tracking the candidates in September.

Trump is drawing more support from Republicans, 84 percent of whom now back the GOP nominee. That rise nearly closes the party loyalty gap, as 87 percent of Democrats said they back Clinton.

Independents, having moved away from Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson, support Clinton 46 percent to Trumps 39 percent.

Clinton remains strongest in heavily populated, deeply blue Northern Virginia, where 51 percent of voters back her and 34 percent support Trump.

Clintons support rose in Hampton Roads and in the states solidly Republican, rural southern and southwestern corners. Yet Trump still leads in Southside and Southwest and has made gains in other regions.

The gender gap that at one point stood at 20 percent has shrunk by half, with 46 percent of women for Clinton and 36 percent for Trump. Men are evenly split, 44 percent for Clinton and 43 percent for Trump.

Republican women who were holding back or even considering a vote for Clinton appear to be making peace with Trump as the reality of a Clinton win sinks in, said Rachel Bitecofer, assistant director of the Wason Center.

Millennials strongly favor Clinton 53 percent to 33 percent.

Trump holds a very strong lead among white voters, 52 percent to 32 percent, while Clinton maintains a 46 percent to 38 percent lead among white, college-educated voters. White women surged to 50 percent for Trump, up from previous high of 41 percent in other Wason polls.

Among military households, Trump leads Clinton 48 percent to 40 percent. Clinton leads in nonmilitary households, 48 percent to Trumps 34 percent.
A jurys stunning rejection of the governments case against seven people charged in connection with this years armed occupation of a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon has reignited the combustible debate in America over the federal governments authority and its land use policies in the West.

While land rights and anti-Washington activists greeted the jurys decision as a long-overdue victory for American liberty, others called it a terrifying invitation for armed protesters to occupy federal land and buildings with impunity, potentially putting federal workers at risk.

People are starting to pay attention to the narrative that the government is trying to push upon the people, and theyre not buying it. The government is overreaching, and its time for that to stop, said B.J. Soper, an Oregon activist who closely monitored the trial and also was present at the 41-day occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge this January and February.

The acquittal after a six-week trial comes at a time when tensions across the nation are already amped up because of the vitriolic presidential campaign and growing fears of potential violence on and after Election Day.

This absolutely shocking verdict is sure to embolden armed paramilitary groups in the white-hot political environment in this country, said Tarso Luis Ramos, executive director of Political Research Associates, a human rights organization that has studied the anti-government activism in Oregon. This sends a signal that not only is it appropriate to challenge the rule of law through armed militancy, but that it is effective to do so.

Supporters of the armed occupation of Oregons Malheur National Wildlife Refuge took to the streets of Portland to celebrate the acquittal of Ammon Bundy, his brother Ryan, and five other defendants. (Instagram/the_mother_hempin_truth via Storyful)

The defendants argued that their occupation was a peaceful act of civil disobedience, in the tradition of Martin Luther King Jr., in protest of vast federal land ownership in the West. They said they acted after years of frustration with government agencies that they say strangle local economies with over-regulation and pay little attention to local concerns.

Federal prosecutors charged that the well-armed occupiers, led by brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy, illegally occupied the property and used guns and the threat of force to hold it in an incident that drew international attention to the remote, snowy plains of far Eastern Oregon.

The six men and one woman acquitted Thursday were officially charged with conspiracy to prevent federal employees from doing their job, an argument rejected by a federal court jury in Portland.

That decision was vindication for everyone who has stood up and said to the government: What you are doing is wrong, and we want you to stop,  Soper said.

[Bundy supporters celebrate acquittal after six-week trial]

The jurys full reasoning remained unclear Friday, however. One juror wrote to the Oregonian newspaper after the trial, saying, It should be known that all 12 jurors felt that this verdict was a statement regarding the various failures of the prosecution to prove conspiracy in the count itself  and not any form of affirmation of the defenses various beliefs, actions or aspirations.

Mark Heckert, of the Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, a sportsmens group, could barely control his rage at the decision, which he said did not represent the rural values cited by supporters of the defendants.

Negotiating at the barrel of a gun is not a rural value; thats just intimidation, said Heckert, who visited the refuge during the occupation as a public lands advocate. It emboldens these guys who think if something doesnt go your way, grab a gun and go out and force people to change it. Im disgusted at the actions that people can take without any consequences.

In addition to the seven people acquitted Thursday, 11 others charged have already pleaded guilty; seven more face trial in February.

But most attention has been focused on the trial of the Bundy brothers, whose father, Cliven Bundy, has become a potent symbol for activists angry over land policies in the West, where the federal government owns more than 50 percent of the land in many states.

Hundreds of armed activists faced off with armed Bureau of Land Management agents and other federal authorities at Bundys Nevada ranch in 2014 in a dispute over Bundys refusal to pay more than $1 million in overdue fees to graze his cattle on federal land.

Fearing bloodshed, federal authorities backed off for almost two years before filing federal firearms and other charges against Bundy and 18 other people, including Ammon Bundy, 41, and Ryan Bundy, 43. Despite their acquittal Thursday, the brothers were ordered held in jail pending their trial in Nevada in February.

That withdrawal from the land in 2014 has been seen as emboldening militia groups, including the Oath Keepers and the 3 Percenters, to stage armed confrontations with authorities at mines on federal property in Oregon and Montana  as well as the wildlife refuge occupation.

Critics said the jurys verdict would encourage them further.

[Fighting for liberty, armed with guns and the Constitution]

Its disastrous; what this verdict is very likely to do is to unleash these people, said Mark Potok of the Southern Poverty Law Center, which monitors anti-government extremism. The danger is that we get armed invasions of all kinds of public lands and similar institutions, to push the completely bogus idea that the states are the real owners of public lands. The real danger is bloodshed.

Michele Fiore, a Nevada state assemblywoman and high-profile supporter of the Bundys, said that such predictions were groundless. She said that many of the defendants had spent nine months in jail awaiting trial, so their activism has come with a heavy price despite the acquittal.

Personally, I dont see anyone just going in and taking over federal buildings because we got a not-guilty verdict, she said.

J. David Cox Sr., president of the American Federation of Government Employees, the largest federal employee union, representing 670,000 workers  including hundreds of BLM agents  disagreed.

This acquittal sends a very dangerous message that members of the public can engage in an armed takeover of a federal facility and face no consequences, Cox said in a written statement.

Interior Secretary Sally Jewell sent a note to all employees Friday, including those at the Bureau of Land Management, saying she was profoundly disappointed in the decision and concerned about its potential implications.

In the coming days and weeks, I encourage you to take care of yourselves and your fellow employees, she wrote. The armed occupation in Oregon was and continues to be a reminder that employees in all offices should remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity.

Jamie Clark, president of Defenders of Wildlife, issued a statement Friday saying the jurys decision represented a day of national sorrow for all who care about our countrys magnificent public lands, and a time for deep concern among our nations law enforcement officers who will confront increased threats of violence across the West.

Bob Dreher, another official of that organization, said, The signal that it sends is that they got away with it. He said the verdict adds validation to statements by Ammon Bundy and others about how the federal government is illegitimate, which puts everybody at risk  federal workers at risk, federal lands at risk of intrusion.

Joseph Rice, a local Republican official in Southern Oregon, noted that Americans have a constitutionally protected right to redress grievances with the government.

It doesnt say how or when its done. Its at the individuals choosing, Rice said.

Rice said history suggests that civilians have more to fear from the government than vice versa. He said federal authorities instigated violence at the 1990s standoffs at Ruby Ridge, Idaho, and Waco, Tex., which resulted in scores of deaths and energized the anti-government militia movement. At the Oregon standoff, he said, Oregon State Police troopers fatally shot LaVoy Finicum, who had been a spokesman for the group.

Finicum was killed when state police and the FBI stopped a car in which he and other occupation leaders were driving. Officials said Finicum was shot when he appeared to reach for a loaded gun in his jacket, and the troopers were later cleared of wrongdoing.

Lavoy Finicum was basically set up and assassinated, Rice said. That man was denied his day in court, and, as we saw yesterday, would have been found innocent. He broke no law yet was murdered by the government.

Rice faulted the BLM for failing to make good-faith efforts to communicate with and work with local people who feel that their traditional means of earning income  including grazing, timber-cutting and mining  are threatened by federal environmental policies that they believe favor endangered species over the economic well-being of communities.

The acquittal came as a shock to black activists in Portland. Earlier this month, during the Malheur trial, police used pepper spray to break up a peaceful sit-in over a police union contract at City Hall.

We were all thrown down the stairs and out the door by riot cops because our mayor said he didnt feel comfortable with us being in a public space, said Teressa Raiford, a community organizer active in the Black Lives Matter movement who is also running a write-in campaign for Multnomah County sheriff.

Its very racist out here, and this is a serious message to everybody that says, You know what, if you dont look like us, if you dont stand for America  and I guess America is white  youre an insurgent and well treat you as such,  she said. Its horrible.

Thursdays verdict came on the same day that Native American protesters of an oil pipeline in North Dakota were tear-gassed, which came as no surprise to Jarvis Kennedy, an official with the Burns Paiute Native American tribe, which lived on the land where the Oregon wildlife refuge is now located.

I kind of figured theyd get off because there were no minorities there, Kennedy said. Its all about white privilege.

Sottile reported from Portland. Lisa Rein in Washington contributed to this report.
PENNSYLVANIA

Amtrak agrees to settle claims from 2015 crash

Amtrak will pay $265 million to settle claims related to a crash last year that killed eight people and injured more than 200 others when a speeding train derailed on a curve.

The settlement allows victims to have their awards in hand by June instead of waiting years for lawsuits to play out, their lawyers said Thursday. The deadline to join the settlement program is Nov. 21.

U.S. District Judge Legrome D. Davis of Philadelphia approved the settlement Thursday.

Amtrak had previously taken responsibility for the May 2015 crash in Philadelphia of a Northeast Regional train traveling from Washington to New York. Federal law caps payouts for any one accident at $295 million.

Amtrak has agreed to put up the money by Feb. 28.

A Naval Academy midshipman, a college dean and several businesspeople  including Jim Gaines, an Associated Press video software architect  were among those killed in the mangled front cars. Award-winning chef Eli Kulp was left paralyzed and cant use his hands.

Federal investigators have concluded the engineer was distracted by word that a nearby train had been hit by a rock.

They say engineer Brandon Bostian accelerated full-throttle to 106 mph instead of slowing down for the curves 50 mph speed limit.

 Associated Press

MICHIGAN

Judge: Suit over Flints water can proceed

A Michigan judge ruled in favor of Flint residents who filed a class-action lawsuit against the state and state officials over the citys lead-contaminated water, rejecting a motion to dismiss the case entirely.

The ruling made public Thursday is the first major decision to be issued in a slew of civil suits stemming from Flints ongoing water emergency.

It lets the plaintiffs proceed under two constitutional claims: a violation of their right to bodily integrity and inverse condemnation, by which they are seeking compensation for plumbing damage and reduced property values.

The suit, filed in January, alleges that state officials caused and covered up the growing public health threat posed by tap water that was improperly treated after a 2014 switch to the Flint River while the city of nearly 100,000 people was under state management. Lead leached from aging pipes, and some people were expose people to deadly Legionella bacteria.

Court of Claims Judge Mark Boonstra said Wednesday that the alleged actions by officials, if proven to have taken place, would be so arbitrary, in a constitutional sense, as to shock the conscience.

State agencies and officials are generally immune from legal liability for exercising governmental functions. But Boonstra concluded that financial damages can be sought for alleged violations of the state constitution.

 Associated Press

Obama commutes sentences: President Obama commuted the sentences of 98 inmates Thursday, continuing his efforts to release federal inmates sentenced to harsh prison terms for nonviolent drug offenses. Nearly half the group  42 people  had been originally sentenced to life imprisonment. The latest announcement pushed the total number of commutations Obama has granted during his time in office to 872. That easily surpasses the combined number handed down by his 11 predecessors, who commuted a total of 715 sentences during their terms. In August, Obama commuted the sentences of 214 inmates, setting a single-day record for his administration.

 Juliet Eilperin and Mark Berman
OMAHA  Several Douglas County law enforcement unions have endorsed a judge despite controversy about bail he set for a man charged in a crash that killed a young woman.

The Omaha Police Officers Association and the unions representing Douglas County sheriff's deputies and corrections officers have endorsed Douglas County Judge Jeffrey Marcuzzo, who will be on the Nov. 8 ballot.

Opponents want Marcuzzo off of the bench or punished, saying the $50,000 bail he set for then-19-year-old Eswin Mejia was too low. Mejia, who was in the country illegally, fled after the judge set bail in the case against him for the accident that killed Sarah Root, 21.

Mejia, who was street racing at the time of the accident, and authorities say he had a blood alcohol content more than three times higher the legal limit to drive -- although at 19, that limit is zero. Mejia posted the required 10 percent of his bail and has been missing since.

The police union decided to endorse Marcuzzo because it saw his decision in the case as an outlier from an otherwise unblemished career. Union President John Wells said Marcuzzo based his decision for the bail on incomplete information, and had he had a fuller picture of Mejia he would have then set a higher bail.

"In his opinion, it's a decision a lot of other judges would have made," Wells said.

Michelle Root, mother of the collision victim, said she hopes voters remember Sarah when they go to the polls. She also called the union endorsement "comical."

"Not everyone in the Police Department feels that way," Michelle Root said. "I think the judge was wrong, and I think that he's lying if he said he didn't have the correct information."

Sarah Root had graduated from Bellevue University with a degree in investigations just hours before the crash.
INDIANA

Convicted of slaying, teen may be freed soon

An Indiana teenager originally sentenced to 25 years in prison for helping kill a friends stepfather when he was 12 could now be released in about three months.

Paul Gingerich, now 18, is believed to be the youngest person in Indiana to be sentenced as an adult. He was resentenced Friday under a state law named for him called Pauls Law, which allows alternative sentences for juveniles who commit serious crimes.

The new sentence that Whitley County Judge James Heuer announced in Warsaw calls for Gingerich to be incarcerated for 300 days in a medium-security adult prison. With his participation in a community transition program that removes 120 days from his sentence and good behavior that can cut defendants sentences in half, he could be released after 90 days, said his attorney, Monica Foster.

Gingerich, who is in a juvenile facility, would then spend one year in home detention followed by 10 years of probation.

 Associated Press

ALABAMA

Judge puts on hold antiabortion laws

A federal judge on Thursday blocked abortion restrictions in Alabama that limit how close clinics can be to public schools and ban a procedure used to terminate pregnancies in the second trimester.

Judge Myron Thompson in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama issued a preliminary injunction, ruling that the laws will probably be found unconstitutional, according to online court records.

The school-proximity law bans clinics within 2,000 feet of a K-8 public school.

Thompson wrote that the law would likely force the closing of clinics in Huntsville and Tuscaloosa, where the majority of abortions in the state are performed.

 Reuters

PENNSYLVANIA

Man gets 3 life terms for random slayings

A man who pleaded guilty to randomly killing three Pennsylvania residents as part of a string of shootings that police say also left four New Jersey residents dead told a judge he had no good reason for the slayings.

I just wanted to kill them, Todd West, 24, of Elizabeth, N.J., told Common Pleas Judge James Anthony in Lehigh County, Pa., who sentenced him Thursday to three consecutive life sentences.

West shot and killed Francine Ramos, 32, and Trevor Gray, 22, while they were riding in a car in Allentown, Pa., on July 5, 2015. He said he shot Kory Ketrow, 22, in Easton, about an hour earlier because Ketrow looked tired.

 Associated Press

Woman who claimed religious right to discipline son pleads guilty: An Indianapolis woman pleaded guilty Friday to beating her son with a coat hanger after earlier arguing Indianas religious objection law gave her the right to discipline him according to her evangelical Christian beliefs. Khin Par Thaing, 30, was sentenced to a year of probation after Marion County Superior Judge Kurt Eisgruber accepted a plea agreement in which she admitted committing battery when she struck the 7-year-old in February, the Indianapolis Star reported. She is accused of giving the boy 36 bruises and red welts.

 Associated Press
UNIVERSITIES, ESPECIALLY public ones, are forums for ideas and speech that may be brilliant, inspiring, disreputable, risible  or emphatically loathsome. Subjecting them all to scrutiny, rebuttal and the possibility of ridicule is central to a universitys mission; it is also an effective antidote for the most venomous views.

The way to contest speech and ideas, even if theyre obnoxious, is not to impede them, whether by overt censorship or  a popular contrivance on campuses lately  by imposing onerous fees to cover event security. Thats what the University of Maryland stands accused of doing following the cancellation of a speech by a notorious right-wing troll invited to speak by Terps for Trump, a student group. In this case, however, the accusation is patently phony.

Tellingly, the accusation was not first leveled by Terps for Trump, the sponsoring group, which consists of a handful of students. There is probably a reason for that: The group never applied to the universitys Student Government Association to cover the $5,000 cost of the event, which included $2,200 for six campus police officers to provide security. Had it applied, the money almost certainly would have been swiftly approved, according to Katherine Swanson, the student government president.

Instead, the anti-free-speech accusation was most loudly leveled by the proposed speaker, Milo Yiannopoulos, a provocateur who trades in racist, sexist and Islamophobic drivel to the delight of the alt-right segment of Donald Trumps base. (His hateful tweets got him evicted from Twitter this summer.)

Mr. Yiannopoulos has appeared at a number of college campuses lately, while others have blocked him on the bogus grounds that he imperiled campus security. In the case of Maryland, however, which he accuses of the destruction of free speech, Mr. Yiannopoulos seems unaware of the facts.

His speech at the College Park campus was canceled because Terps for Trump, the group sponsoring him, didnt have its act together. Apparently, it had not signed up 25 students, the minimum required to register and apply for funding on the 38,000-student campus. (The Student Government Association has an annual budget of $1 million, from activity fees paid by undergraduates, and funds some 700 events annually, including some sponsored by college Republicans.)

Defending the insufferable Mr. Yiannopoulos is a fools game. Yet he is a particularly instructive speaker to have at a college campus, where, in a free and open forum of ideas, his would be so roundly trounced and exposed for the repugnant blather they are.

Its disgraceful that some campuses have banned him based largely on his capacity for provocation. In effect, those universities are levying a tax on controversy, thereby tipping the scale of campus debate in favor of anodyne presentations delivered to appreciative galleries of the like-minded. That is no debate at all, and it is antithetical to a universitys mission.

Thats not what happened at the University of Maryland. Mr. Yiannopoulos has vowed to make the university suffer for supposedly suppressing free speech. First, he might want to find out what actually happened.
Stop celebrating, Democrats.

Yes, it looks likely that your party will soon have control of the White House and Senate and, at the very least, win the popular vote in House elections, if not actually a majority of House seats.

And, yes, it looks as if the Republican Party is paralyzed with dysfunction, trapped in a civil war about the fundamental mission, values and tone of the party. The GOP base is drifting further and further into crazyland, thanks to its many influential conspiracy theorists and witch-hunters wielding microphones and muskets.

Moreover, it looks like core pillars of the Republican platform  such as commitments to free trade, civil liberties, deregulation, entitlement reform, family values  have crumbled. And sure, it appears there are no longer any conservative principles uniting the party. And agreed, in the absence of any unifying principles or policies or general political philosophy, Republicans seem to have lost all interest in governing.

The schadenfreude must seem irresistible, Democrats. But resist you must.

From endorsing to un-endorsing and back again, here's a look at the Republicans who say they can no longer endorse Trump, but can still vote for him. (Jenny Starrs/The Washington Post)

The end of a principled, intellectually coherent, organizationally robust center-right party is bad for democracy. Its also bad for Democrats, given some of the dumb ideas flourishing on the left that desperately need a thoughtful counterweight.

Even before Donald Trump became their partys standard-bearer, Republican leaders were struggling to hold on to any consistent objectives beyond anti-Obama-ism.

The party turned off the spigot on judicial and other civilian confirmations well before Obama entered the final year of his presidency, for example. Intraparty infighting and tea party tussles brought the country to the brink of a debt default and led legislators to basically give up on budgeting. In the absence of common conservative principles, obstruction and delay became the only paths forward.

And, the way things are going, they will likely continue to be.

Already, multiple Republican senators have expressed a willingness to leave a Supreme Court seat vacant indefinitely. And already, Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), who heads the House Oversight Committee, has declared his intention to spend years investigating a President Hillary Clinton (something the Republican-led Congress has expended plenty of time, and taxpayer money, on already).

As Yale University political scientist Jacob Hacker put it recently: With no coherent vision or values, the GOP could well turn into a zombie party for the next few years, united only by the mantra eat brains, eat Hillary brains.

This would certainly make it more difficult to keep the trains running on time and to make any deals on policy issues of interest to liberals.

1 of 13 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  These GOP heavyweights endorse Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump View Photos Business executives, a former treasury secretary and John McCains biographer are among those who have opted to support the presumptive Democratic nominee. Caption Business executives, a former treasury secretary and John McCains biographer are among those who have opted to support the presumptive Democratic nominee. Former Secretary of State Colin Powell General Powell said at a meeting of the Long Island Association that he would be voting for Hillary Clinton, spokeswoman Peggy Cifrino confirmed on Oct. 25. Yuri Gripas/AFP/Getty Images Wait 1 second to continue.

But even on priorities on which liberals are likely to make progress, the lack of an honest, articulate, respected adversary is troubling. Thats because liberals need a worthy intellectual rival to sharpen their thinking and keep their own bad ideas in check.

Right now a number of bad ideas booming on the left need a credible, coherent, megaphoned rebuttal. These are ideas that may sound nice and perhaps appear helpful. But pursuing many of them would be, at best, irrelevant and ineffective, a waste of time and resources; at worst, they would be actively harmful to the marginalized groups that bleeding-heart liberals claim to champion.

These are proposals such as bringing back Glass-Steagall, a banking law whose repeal actually had nothing to do with the 2008 financial crisis. Its resurrection is perplexingly popular on the left.

Or banning genetically modified organisms.

Or instituting a $15-an-hour minimum wage nationwide, even though thats higher than the current median wage in four states and three territories.

Or free college for all, including rich people.

Or arbitrary tax carve-outs for items such as tampons (which constitute a giveaway to rich people, too, and ultimately require raising tax rates on everything else, which can disproportionately hurt poor people).

Many of these ideas have little chance of making it into federal law, given current Capitol Hill dynamics. But inspired states and municipalities are going forward with some of them. Additionally, liberal firebrands such as Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) have made clear their intention to pressure a President Clinton from the left when and where she would have policymaking power.

Kansas has provided a useful illustration of what happens when (in this case, conservative) ideologues get their policy wish lists, because theyve written off any objections from skeptics as unserious or motivated by ill intent. With the Republican Partys wholesale intellectual implosion, we may see the same temptations take hold on the left.

Which is why I caution Democrats not to dance on the grave of the conservative platform. The decline and disintegration of an intelligent adversary risks dooming them to decades of lazy thinking as well.
As this presidential election draws to its close, I keep wondering: Why has Donald Trump run such an ineffective campaign? Trump began with three big advantages. The Democrats were seeking a third consecutive term in the White House, something that a political party has achieved only twice in the past 80 years . In addition, economic growth and income gains remain sluggish. Plus, the Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton, a politician from the past with high unfavorable ratings, couldnt easily represent the desire for change. For these reasons, many models based on fundamentals that predict election results favored a generic Republican candidate this year.

But Trump is not a generic Republican. And his campaign has been even more atypical. Start with strategy. It was obvious that Trump needed to pivot to the center to grow his base from his core group of supporters to a majority or plurality of Americans. That meant reaching out to Hispanics, Asians, women and college-educated whites. Trump once said that his core supporters would stick with him even if he shot someone on Fifth Avenue in broad daylight. So he had ample scope in which to woo new supporters. Many Republican-minded voters were desperately waiting for the pivot and would have lapped up any small words or gestures. Instead, Trump alienated potential supporters from these new groups even more than he had during the primaries.

[Rudy Giuliani is 2016s Mr. Deplorable]

Or take the way he has managed his staff. In a few months, he went through two teams at the top and is now on his third campaign manager. He has fewer than half as many field offices as Clinton, limited fundraising, and consistently weak and poorly produced ads. The two biggest innovations in campaigning in recent years have been get out the vote efforts and big data. Trumps campaign is underinvested in both. Yale University political scientist Alan Gerber, who has pioneered research in this area, notes that converting potential voters into actual voters requires volunteer phone banks and face-to-face canvassing, tactics that require planning, supervision and sustained effort to undertake at scale. The Trump campaign scores very poorly on this front, he said.

Trump has been skeptical that big data mattered, dismissing President Obamas sophisticated analytics operation and insisting that the presidents personality was the chief reason for his electoral success. This has allowed Trumps campaign to center entirely around him  turning itself into something that looks more like a celebrity concert tour than a multifaceted electioneering operation. (As The Posts Philip Bump points out, Trump has spent more money on hats than on polling.) Senior Trump staffers tried to spin their way out of this by letting Bloomberg Businessweek report on its data analytics center in San Antonio. But experts noted to me that the Trump data office appeared to be a small outfit centered on reinforcing Trumps relationship with his core supporters rather than identifying and persuading new voters. That might be a good way to create a post-election political base or a new online TV platform, but its an unlikely path to winning a majority in a general election.

At a rally in Toledo, Oct. 27, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump criticized the agenda of his Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton, saying that her policies are so bad. (The Washington Post)

By contrast, Clinton has run a highly effective campaign that has raised massive amounts of money, stayed relentlessly on message, and used data analytics to target and convert voters. Her ads have been clever, well-timed and carefully targeted. Despite the WikiLeaks email dump, the campaign has stayed unified and disciplined.

[The just deserts of 2016]

The results are already in. CNN has analyzed the early-voting numbers, and they show that Democrats have gained considerable ground (compared with 2012) in almost all key states that allow early voting, including Arizona, North Carolina, Nevada and even Utah. In Florida, the Republican lead in early voting had shrunk significantly as of Monday, from five percentage points to 1.7, according to Politico. Karl Rove notes that, contrary to Trumps predictions, hidden Republicans do not appear to be emerging from the shadows. The country remains deeply divided, and anything can happen on Election Day, but for Trump, the early indicators are bad across the board.

One important test for the White House is the ability to run a modern presidential campaign, a 50-state start-up that requires hundreds of millions of dollars, a clear strategy, great talent and consistent, high-quality execution  all while being scrutinized daily by hundreds of reporters. By now it is indisputable that Trump has run the most poorly resourced, undisciplined, chaotic campaign in modern political history. He has embodied the quality that he regards as the worst failing for a leader: all talk and no action.

Read more from Fareed Zakarias archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
You have raised your voices in an unmistakable chorus, President Bill Clinton said on Inauguration Day in 1993. I earned capital in this campaign, political capital, and now I intend to spend it, President George W. Bush said upon being reelected in 2004. Most succinct was President Obama in 2009: I won.

With just over a week until the 2016 election results are tallied, it seems overwhelmingly likely that Hillary Clinton will be the next president of the United States. And her campaign clearly has mandate-building in mind as it makes its final push. Not content to merely fight for Florida or Ohio, just one of which would be needed to deny Donald Trump the presidency, the Clinton team has deployed surrogates like Michelle Obama to places like Arizona in hopes of running up the score. It is quite likely that if Clinton takes the stage to give a victory speech, she will make a claim similar to those of the presidents before her: that Americans have clearly endorsed her vision for the country.

Some political pundits and supporters are already laying out the case for her. Clinton is in a position to notch a resounding victory by historical standards, Frank Bruni wrote in the New York Times. Similarly, Damon Linker argued in the Week: The wider Clintons margin of victory and the closer she comes to winning an outright majority of the votes cast, the more persuasive her claim of a mandate will be. And if she actually crosses the 50 percent threshold, shell have one of the strongest claims to a mandate in nearly a century. Running mate Tim Kaine told CNN: Donald is still going to whine if he loses. But if the mandate is clear, I dont think many people will follow him.

Would a big Clinton win actually mean a mandate, though? In an election where voters are more disappointed than ever in the choices they face, where an astonishing number will cast a ballot primarily as a way to oppose a different candidate and where core issues have taken a back seat to tabloid headlines, even a legitimate landslide wouldnt necessarily clarify what, exactly, Clinton had been sent to the White House to do.

Mandates are often talked about in relationship to the decisiveness of victory. But in practice, the two may not have much to do with each other. Political scientist Julia Azari, the author of Delivering the Peoples Message: The Changing Politics of the Presidential Mandate , describes presidential mandates as elite constructions, more about credible claims than objective facts. They are grand narratives about support for a particular agenda  and serve as a threat that Congress ought to go along with that agenda or else face the wrath of the voters. They are a product of those eager to leverage election results to further political goals. Consider that when Bill Clinton invoked that unmistakable chorus, only 43 percent of voters had raised their voices for him.

Bushs presidency offers another good example of the disconnect between mandate and margin of victory. Despite his narrow win in 2000, his administration governed as if it had a mandate, and in its first term it enacted many of the policies he ran on, including tax cuts, education reform and Medicare Part D. After Bushs reelection, when he defeated Sen. John Kerry by more than two percentage points in the popular vote and by 35 electoral votes, Bush decided to devote his political capital to fixing entitlements. The effort failed. Peter Wehner, who headed up the Bush White Houses Office of Strategic Initiatives, says the White House had a false sense of comfort about the public willingness to rally behind the presidents proposals.

Even electoral landslides such as Lyndon B. Johnsons defeat of Barry Goldwater in 1964 do not protect presidents from political challenges, with Johnsons mandate curdling into a loss of Democratic seats in Congress in 1966 and his loss of control of his own party by the 1968 election.

The Clinton camp seems concerned that Trumps repeated claims that the election is rigged could chip away her mandate. But though doubts about legitimacy make a president more likely to assert a mandate  Azaris research has found that mandate claims have risen as trust in government and other institutions has declined  whether or not a president has a mandate is not the same as a question of legitimacy. Presidents can be fairly and legitimately elected and yet not have a mandate to push through their agendas.

A bigger factor undercutting Clintons claim to a mandate is the unprecedented level of negativity that voters feel toward both candidates in this election. According to Pew, a majority of Trump supporters say their vote is mostly about taking a stand against Clinton, and nearly half of Clintons voters say their vote is mostly to oppose Trump. Compare that with the 2012 election, which at the time felt like an incredibly negative race. Both Mitt Romney and Obama had positive net-favorables in polls, meaning more people liked them than disliked them. Only 10 percent of voters in the exit polls that year said their vote was primarily cast as a way to stop the opponent. At the very least, Obama could claim that the vast majority of those voting for him affirmatively wanted him to be president; it would be harder for Clinton to say the same.

Yes, voters may choose to stay home, vote for a third-party candidate or write in someone else if they dislike both Trump and Clinton. But the stakes may feel too high in this election  especially in swing states  to cast a protest vote just to feel good; better to hold ones nose and do the unpleasant thing to stave off an even graver threat to ones way of life. (No wonder the American Psychological Association found half of Americans expressing election-related stress.)

The concept of a mandate also relies on the idea that voters do not elect just a particular person but one with a specific vision. On this front, too, the Clinton campaign is lacking. While she does discuss policy a great deal, she rarely articulates clear priorities or which issues she would tackle first. And the media frenzy around Trump has pushed all positive messaging about policy agendas out of the headlines. I dont know that voters could name what her policies are, says former Obama speechwriter Jon Favreau.

Of course, elections are often more about personalities than policies, and voters may be drawn to candidates for a variety of reasons that may not overlap. But this election seems to be especially short on substance. Gallup has asked voters for decades whether or not presidential candidates are talking about issues you really care about. Typically as Election Day approaches, more and more voters say yes; in 2016, the trend has been the opposite. And whereas about three-quarters of voters said yes at the equivalent point in previous election years, less than half said yes in this months survey.

Even on the few issues that have broken through, its unclear that theres overwhelming support for Clinton. Take immigration. Kaine has expressly used the term mandate in this context, telling voters at a rally in Nevada that a Clinton win would affirm a strong preference for immigration reform over Trumps vision of a deportation nation. But while support for mass deportation is low , and a majority of voters reject Trumps proposal to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, The Washington Posts most recent polling shows voters fairly evenly divided between trusting Trump or Clinton on immigration issues, and Pew polling has found that the plurality of voters think there should be equal weight on border security and a path to citizenship.

If elections are a chance to sell voters on an issue agenda, both candidates have completely squandered that opportunity.

Some progressives have tried to head off debate about Clintons mandate by arguing that mandates are meaningless, given the toxic relationship between the parties. The truth is that the people who have to approve or reject the presidents agenda dont give a damn about mandates one way or the other  theyll support what they want to support and oppose what they want to oppose, whether because of their sincere beliefs or the political demands of their districts and states, Paul Waldman wrote in the American Prospect. And in New York magazine, Jonathan Chait called mandates an archaic holdover from a time when crossing the aisle was common and members of Congress could be influenced by moral pressure to pass the agenda of a president from the opposing party.

Actually, Azaris research  going back to 1928  shows that it is in a moment like this that mandates matter most. When party polarization is low, there isnt much need for talk of mandates. In periods of intense polarization, invoking mandates helps presidents defend what they want to do, especially when they cant do it alone.

And research has shown that legislators do change their voting behavior, at least temporarily, in response to perceptions of a mandate. For some it is a means of insulating themselves from the changing electoral landscape, write the authors of a 2003 paper published in the American Journal of Political Science. These members responses to the mandate election are, we believe, an attempt to stave off the possibility of electoral defeat. For other members the mandate provides new opportunities to vote their ideological preferences.

Its true that after this election, there will be little incentive for either side to bend to the will of the opponent on any particular policy issue, even in defeat, and it will be shocking if the next president gets anything resembling a honeymoon period.

But even if a Clinton win does not come with a clear mandate for her specific agenda, it should send a wake-up call to Republicans. It will at a minimum be a repudiation of the way Trump has conducted himself, and the anger and division he has sown, in this campaign. Clinton may be seen as unlikable and untrustworthy, and she may not represent significant majorities on key issues, but in polls she is at least viewed as having the temperament to serve as president. If she has a mandate at all, it would be to use that temperament to thaw relations with Capitol Hill and to take steps toward progress on the sorts of major challenges  tax reform, entitlements, infrastructure  both parties agree are facing us, even though they hold deep disagreements on how to solve them.

To the extent that any presidential election is ever about choosing an individual for the express purpose of enacting an explicitly articulated policy agenda, this election is most certainly not about that. Voters are fed up and frustrated, disappointed in their choices, and disheartened by how little they have heard about the issues that matter to them.

Clinton will probably win the White House in a large, legitimate victory in the ugliest election America has seen in decades  even if the unmistakable chorus is not exactly singing in unison. But once the cacophony of the election has died down and governing begins, the new president will have to work to earn the support of the people on the issues that matter most.

Twitter: @KSoltisAnderson

Read more from Outlook and follow our updates on Facebook and Twitter.
Historical truths emerge only with time, after which they are ours, particularly on Halloween, to mangle. Early on, the Salem witch trials disappeared from the record; a hush descended over 1692 for generations. The People of Salem Do Not Like to Be Questioned in Regard to the Witchery Affair reads a Philadelphia Inquirer headline  from 1895. It fell to others to resurrect the witchcraft, as the South did during the debate over slavery. Then came Arthur Miller, who made off with the story, or at least a version of it. A lush mythology grew up around the trials, one that reassured us that these events took place in a remote land in no way resembling our own. In truth, they are deeply woven into the American fabric. They are more relevant than the lore suggests  our earliest instance of conspiratorial fantasy and reckless demonizing, of the brand of national distemper that grips us in anxious times.

Myth No. 1

The convicted witcheswere burned.

Despite numerous debunkings, the idea that Salems witches burned at the stake persists everywhere from online forums to episodes of The Simpsons. Joan of Arc and tales of European witch hunts may flicker too brightly in our minds. Generally, French witches burned, while English witches hanged. (This posed a conundrum to the Channel island of Guernsey when three witches turned up there in 1617. The malefactors were hanged, then burned.)

The American South reinforced the burning-at-the-stake fiction in the 19th century. The North . . . having begun with burning witches, will end by burning us! screeched a popular magazine in 1860, after Lincolns election.

With one exception, however, all who went to their deaths in Salem hanged. (Giles Corey, an elderly Salem farmer, was crushed under stones for several days after refusing to plead guilty or innocent. He remains the only individual in American history to be pressed to death.) No one burned.

The Gallows Hill Project pinpointed the exact site of the infamous Salem witch hangings, which killed 19 people in 1692. The team identified Proctor's Ledge, not Gallows Hill, as the spot of the executions. (Jenny Starrs/The Washington Post)

Myth No. 2

The victims were all women.

Every October, Halloween confirms what we learned from The Wizard of Oz: Witches are women. Pop-culture depictions of the trials, such as the show Salem, focus almost exclusively on the female accused.

Indeed, misogyny powered the European witch hunts of the 15th and 16th centuries, but Salem was different. Of the 19 who hanged in Salem, four were men, including a feckless, fortune-telling carpenter and a 42-year-old Harvard-educated minister. Accused witches came in every variety, from the richest of Salem merchants to the dutiful wife of a blind farmer. The terror was all the greater for its very arbitrariness; no one, noted a letter to authorities from a group of men late in the summer, had cause to think himself safe. The youngest accused witch was a 5-year-old girl. Having spent most of 1692 in miniature manacles, she wound up insane.

Gender did play a vital role in the hysteria. Women would not incriminate husbands, while a number of men eagerly informed the court that they had long suspected their wives to be witches. Family fingers pointed in all directions, although no son ever accused a father, or father a son. The wizards, however, attracted more attention in contemporary accounts, both for their supernatural powers and for their dignity en route to the gallows. Even skeptics assumed the worst of the Harvard-educated minister. From the start, he was thought to have been the diabolical mastermind, a role for which no woman, however nefarious, seemed qualified.

Myth No. 3

The panic took

place in Salem.

Indeed, it began in Salem village, today Danvers, Mass., where two little girls convulsed. And indeed, the accused stood trial in the town of Salem. But witches turned up across the Massachusetts Bay Colony, ultimately in 24 communities.

One of the Salem girls named a total of 62 names; the bewitched denounced people in other towns who did not even know of their existence. They seemed to enjoy visionary powers. At his arraignment, a bluff Boston sea captain, a son of Plymouths founding family who was accused by someone in Salem, challenged the logic: Why would he bother to enchant people he neither knew of nor had ever met? Though he had done business with, sailed with and prayed with several members of the witchcraft court, they had no patience for his query. He went to jail.

Salem remained the epicenter of the crisis, but Andover, Mass., about 15 miles away, would be most severely affected. Nearly 1 in 10 of its residents were accused of witchcraft, often by their own family members, many of whom themselves confessed to having signed satanic pacts and flown over the treetops to a diabolical meeting. Andovers senior minister discovered that he was related to no fewer than 22 witches.

Myth No. 4

Superstition was the driving force.

As a Philadelphia reporter put it in 1895, blind, senseless superstition accounted for the trials, an idea that persists to this day.

In fact, piety played a greater role in Salem than superstition. The idea of witches came straight from scripture ; those who knew their Bible best believed most fervently in witchcraft. Not coincidentally, it tended to turn up in more pious homes.

The best minds in New England interpreted and adjudicated the epidemic. Those ministers and civic authorities pondered the cases scientifically. They read and reread the witchcraft literature, to which several of them had contributed. They parsed legal code. They knew their history. They worked in the sterling name of reason. The trouble was that the most literate in 1692 also happened to be the most literal. They were not so much out of their depth as they were swimming in information  poisoned, one critic later sniffed, in their education.

The Bay Colony may have qualified as the best-educated community in the history of the world in 1692. Piety correlated with literacy; rarely had so many been able to read. The majority of the adolescent girls in Salem village could read, even if they could not sign their names. Erudition and piety played greater roles in the crisis than did ignorance and superstition.

Myth No. 5

Ergot poisoning was to

blame for the witch trials.

Behavioral scientist Linnda Caporael proposed this elegant theory in 1976: A contaminated rye supply introduced ergot poisoning to Salem, causing convulsions and hallucinations in the accusing girls. Debunked, revived and debunked again, Caporaels theory nevertheless continues to pop up in articles about Salem and in footnotes in books about psychedelic drugs. And for good reason. If we could blame the rye, we could exonerate nearly everyone else. We would finally have a diagnosis for what might have caused a Salem girl to complain of prickling skin, to fling herself across a room, crash to the floor, fall into a trance  and report that she could see a fellow parishioner perching in the church beams above the congregations heads.

Some of the 17th-century symptoms do appear consistent with ergot poisoning. But the hallucinating girls shared meals with non-hallucinating adults and siblings. The girls were often symptom-free, lucid and robust. Their health did not deteriorate. And in the absence of any such convulsions, plenty of grown men reported winged beasts in the fields and goblins in their parlors. The bewitched girls also vouched for a coordinated set of hallucinations, which speaks to an unusual form of imagination. Nor does ergot explain the girls sermon-interrupting or their inability to pray. In an earlier case, a bewitched girl could read without trouble but seized up when handed a religious text. Ergot poisoning, or St. Anthonys fire, was moreover not unknown at the time.

The tenacity of the theory makes sense. Unresolved mysteries annoy us. When it comes to assigning blame, none of us draws a blank. If we could write the whole crisis down to ergot, we would at long last have a simple explanation for a host of oddities. We would also fall prey to the same kind of thinking that led a 17th-century New Englander  equally perplexed, equally intent on a tidy answer  to write ambulatory trees and flying neighbors down to witchcraft.

Twitter: @stacyschiff

Five myths is a weekly feature challenging everything you think you know. You can check out previous myths, read more from Outlook or follow our updates on Facebook and Twitter.
Will Englund is an editor on The Washington Posts foreign desk and the author of the forthcoming book March 1917: On the Brink of War and Revolution, which will be published in early 2017.

Donald Trump and his allies have spent the fall depicting Hillary Clinton as too much of a hawk and too much of a dove, as too reckless with American power and too weak at the same time. She voted for the war in Iraq. She wanted to go into Libya with guns blazing. No, wait: She quailed at confronting the Islamic State. She failed to override Iraqi objections to keeping American soldiers on the banks of the Euphrates.

From the left, she is criticized for being too eager to project American power abroad, often favoring military force when President Obama was resistant. Even within this critique, though, there is sometimes a suggestion that she is weak  susceptible to guidance from neoconservatives.

Its a bind thats familiar to other women in prominent government roles, especially in the realm of national security: They have to deal with skepticism that theyre tough enough to protect American interests and American citizens. Can a woman be as strong as a man? That puts them in a position of having to prove their toughness, which in turn puts them at risk of being declared overly aggressive.

Few have understood these pressures better than Jeannette Rankin. She was the first woman elected to Congress, exactly 100 years ago. She ran because she wanted to be a voice for women and children, to advocate for safer food, better health care and, most important, national womens suffrage. But on the day she took her seat, April 2, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson went to the Capitol to ask for a declaration of war against Germany.

Rankin had come to Washington amid a buzz of excitement. The Lady from Montana (one of only 11 states that had given women the vote) was a progressive Republican who campaigned against big corporations and the class known back then as the 2 percent. She was 36 and loved fast cars. Back East, it had been rumored that she was a man-hater and that she had flaming red hair, neither of which was true.

She did believe that men and women had different takes on the world. She thought that war reflected the inability of men to solve problems, that women are less likely to pull out the guns when they cant think of anything else to do. And she believed that American entry into World War I, as Wilson demanded, was foolish. Yet she came under intense pressure from the Eastern leaders of the suffrage movement to back the president. Carrie Chapman Catt, president of the National American Woman Suffrage Association, wanted to show that women were just as patriotic and tough as men. Dont be womanly was the message. But were women supposed to deny what Rankin believed to be their common nature  and their own good sense?

She knew that the eyes of the entire country were on her. She didnt want to hurt the cause of suffrage. But she felt that as a woman who wouldnt have to serve, it would be wrong for her to send young men off to die across the sea. At 3 a.m. on April 6, after days of anguish, she cast her vote.

I want to stand by my country  but I cannot vote for war, she told the House.

Forty-nine congressmen also voted no (Rep. Claude Kitchin of North Carolina, the Democratic floor leader, was in tears as he argued against war), but it was Rankin who drew the countrys attention. Afterward, Catt wrote that our Congress Lady is a sure enough joker and that the Montanan had cost the suffrage movement a million votes. Even those editorial pages that were ferociously critical of the antiwar faction tended to treat her gently  that is, condescendingly. She was a woman; what could you expect?

In large part because of that first vote, she had no chance of reelection when her term was up. It was only after 22 years had gone by, when the memories of World War I had been soured by the mess that followed, that she was able to return to Congress. That put her in a position to vote against war with Japan following Pearl Harbor  and this time, hers was the only no vote. She thought consistency demanded it. Visitors in the Capitol were so outraged that she had to hide in a phone booth afterward.

In the century since Rankin first won her seat, more than 300 women have served as members of the House or the Senate. As their presence has become more routine, and as broader cultural norms have shifted, the negative stereotypes of women in politics have ebbed.

A Pew survey conducted in 2014 found that Americans think that on the whole, women and men make equally good political leaders. In national surveys, voters evaluate the women and men running for Congress in their districts similarly. And they dont appear to change who they vote for based on a candidates sex.

The idea of womens issues as separate from mens issues still lingers, though. More than a third of respondents to that Pew survey said women are better at dealing with education and health (only 3 percent said the opposite), and a similar share said men are better on national security and defense (only 5 percent gave women the edge). Theres also a widely held expectation that women are more skilled at working out compromises, which puts a positive spin on the notion that women are less aggressive than men but is no more grounded a generalization.

Sometimes people view women as lacking the stereotypical directive and assertive qualities of good leaders  that is, as not being tough enough or not taking charge, social psychologist Alice H. Eagly wrote in 2007. Sometimes people dislike female leaders who display these very directive and assertive qualities because such women seem unfeminine  that is, just like a man or like an iron lady.

Stereotypes of women at the highest levels of government have been most stubbornly persistent, in the United States and elsewhere. Texas A&M political scientists Michael T. Koch and Sarah A. Fulton describe credibility challenges for these women. They write, Compared to their female counterparts in the legislature, female executives occupy more masculinized leadership positions, which may encourage them to be overly hawkish in their foreign policy behavior in an attempt to surmount gender stereotypes that depict women as weak and passive.

Their 2011 study of 22 countries over 30 years found that, while female legislators tend to resist military spending and the use of military force more than their male counterparts, women in executive office are just the opposite. On average, they increase military spending by more than 3 percent and are more bellicose in their foreign policy.

Three women who led their countries through times of conflict  Israels Golda Meir, Indias Indira Gandhi and Britains Margaret Thatcher  all displayed a masculine, hard-nosed attitude, notes a 2010 study on womens leadership styles by political scientists Farida Jalalzai and Mona Lena Krook. Further, the authors point out, none of those three had any particular interest in addressing womens issues. They were about as far from Rankins sensibility as you could imagine.

In the United States, the (admittedly few) women who have held prominent foreign policy posts have tended to meld the two approaches: speaking up for what are sometimes considered womens concerns while taking a hard stance on national security questions.

Madeleine Albright, as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and the first female secretary of state, argued that womens issues had to be central to American foreign policy, and she pushed the idea that rape should be considered a weapon of war . She also argued with then-Joint Chiefs Chairman Colin Powell over intervention in the Balkans: What are you saving this superb military for, Colin, if we cant use it? She acknowledges in her memoir: I found it hard to argue with Powell about the proper way to employ American force. Even though I was a member of the Principals Committee, I was a mere female civilian.

During the George W. Bush administration, Condoleezza Rice injected concern for womens rights and health into her roles as national security adviser and secretary of state. She argued for a presidential initiative to fight sex slavery, for leadership training for women in the Middle East and for rape crisis centers in Darfur. But she also became known as the administrations warrior princess. She advocated preemptive action if the United States felt threatened. And her legacy is most closely associated with the Iraq War.

A nd then theres Clinton, who in her presidential campaign has played up her commitment to children and families, while also frequently mentioning her role in the mission to kill Osama bin Laden.

When Clinton was elected to the Senate from New York in 2000, she had an ambitious agenda of issues concerning health care and women and children. She had staked out a clear role as an advocate of womens rights  at home and abroad  as early as 1995, with a speech in Beijing where she argued that womens rights are human rights.

But less than a year into her first term came 9/11, followed by Bushs buildup to the war in Iraq, and, much like Jeannette Rankin, Clinton was forced to confront an entirely different agenda. Although it is her vote for war that everyone remembers, when she voted in October 2002 to authorize military force, she said she was casting the vote to give Bush a strong hand when he went to the United Nations seeking support on the Iraq issue. It was a way, she said, to make a diplomatic solution more likely. She cautioned Bush: Use these powers wisely, and as a last resort.

It was also a way for Clinton to avoid appearing soft on Middle Eastern despotism. She would further burnish her national security credentials by accepting a seat on the Senate Armed Services Committee and, when she was secretary of state, by cultivating relationships with key members of the military brass. Then-Defense Secretary Robert Gates said he was impressed when, in a February 2009 meeting, Clinton dismissed any symbolic concessions to Russia, saying, Im not giving up anything for nothing. Gates later told the New York Times: I thought, This is a tough lady. 

Some conservatives  including Trumps running mate, Mike Pence, but emphatically not including Trump himself  have accused Clinton of being too soft on Russia for pursuing a reset in relations in 2009. That might amuse Russian President Vladimir Putin, who directly accused her of fomenting protests against him in Moscow and against his client in Ukraine in the years to follow.

Of course, Clintons tough stances have not always served her well domestically. Her Iraq War vote helped her lose the Democratic nomination for president in 2008. And her embrace of intervention while secretary of state has provided plenty of fodder for critics in this campaign.

Could the country elevate to its highest office a woman who would proudly say she was not as tough as a man? For her whole life, Rankin maintained that you couldnt fight an ideology with bullets. Thats what impelled her, at the age of 87, to lead a womens march on Washington against the war in Vietnam. Perhaps when we have seen more women in prominent national security roles, we will see more women comfortable taking that position. But in 2016, were not so far from 1916 on that question.

will.englund@washpost.com

Read more from Outlook and follow our updates on Facebook and Twitter.
Last week, the U.N.s premier cultural agency, UNESCO, approved a resolution viciously condemning Israel (referred to as the Occupying Power) for various alleged trespasses and violations of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Except that the resolution never uses that term for Judaisms holiest shrine. It refers to and treats it as an exclusively Muslim site, a deliberate attempt to eradicate its connection  let alone its centrality  to the Jewish people and Jewish history.

This Orwellian absurdity, part of a larger effort to deny the Jewish connection to their ancestral homeland, is an insult not just to Judaism but to Christianity. It makes a mockery of the Gospels, which chronicle the story of a Galilean Jew whose life and ministry unfolded throughout the Holy Land, most especially in Jerusalem and the Temple. If this is nothing but a Muslim site, what happens to the very foundation of Christianity, which occurred 600 years before Islam even came into being?

This UNESCO resolution is merely the surreal extreme of the worldwide campaign to delegitimize Israel. It features the BDS movement (Boycott, Divest and Sanction), now growing on Western university campuses and in some mainline Protestant churches. And it extends even into some precincts of the Democratic Party.

Bernie Sanders tried to introduce into the Democratic Party platform a plank more unfavorable to Israel. He failed, but when a couple of Hillary Clinton campaign consultants questioned (in emails revealed by WikiLeaks) why she should be mentioning Israel in her speeches, campaign manager Robby Mook concurred, We shouldnt have Israel at public events. Especially dem activists. For whom the very mention of Israel is toxic.

And what to make of the White Houses correction to a news release about last months funeral of Shimon Peres? The original release identified the location as Mount Herzl, Jerusalem, Israel. The correction crossed out the country identifier  Israel.

Well, where else is Jerusalem? Sri Lanka? Moreover, Mount Herzl isnt even in disputed East Jerusalem. Its in West Jerusalem, within the boundaries of pre-1967 Israel. If thats not Israel, what is?

But such cowardly gestures are mere pinpricks compared to the damage Israel faces in the final days of the Obama presidency. As John Hannah of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies recently wrote (in Foreign Policy), there have been indications for months that President Obama might go to the U.N. and unveil his own final status parameters of a two-state solution. These would then be enshrined in a new Security Council resolution that could officially recognize a Palestinian state on the territory Israel came into possession of during the 1967 Six-Day War.

There is a reason such a move has been resisted by eight previous U.S. administrations: It overthrows the central premise of Middle East peacemaking  land for peace. Under which the Palestinians get their state after negotiations in which the parties agree on recognized boundaries, exchange mutual recognition and declare a permanent end to the conflict.

Land for peace would be replaced by land for nothing. Endorsing in advance a Palestinian state and what would essentially be a full Israeli withdrawal removes the Palestinian incentive to negotiate and strips Israel of territorial bargaining chips of the kind it used, for example, to achieve peace with Egypt.

The result would be not just perpetual war but incalculable damage to Israel. And irreversible, too, because the resolution would be protected from alteration by the Russian and/or Chinese veto.

As for the damage, consider but one example: the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem, destroyed and ethnically cleansed of Jews by its Arab conquerors in the war of 1948-1949. It was rebuilt by Israel after 1967. It would now be open to the absurd judicial charge that the Jewish states possession of the Jewish Quarter constitutes a criminal occupation of another country.

Israel would be hauled endlessly into courts (both national and international) to face sanctions, boycotts (now under color of law) and arrest of its leaders. All this for violating a U.N. mandate to which no Israeli government, left or right, could possibly accede.

Before the election, Obama dare not attempt this final legacy item, to go along with the Iran deal and the Castro conciliation, for fear of damaging Clinton. His last opportunity comes after Election Day. The one person who might deter him, points out Hannah, is Clinton herself, by committing Obama to do nothing before he leaves office that would tie her hands should she become president.

Clintons supporters who care about Israel and about peace need to urge her to do that now. It will soon be too late. Soon Obama will be free to deliver a devastating parting shot to Israel and to the prime minister he detests.

Read more from Charles Krauthammers archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
If Donald Trumps presidential campaign were one of his beauty pageants, instead of a Miss Congeniality consolation prize there would have to be a Mr. or Ms. Deplorable. According to my score card, the winner is Rudy Giuliani.

Trump is the master of ceremonies, so hes ineligible. The competition among his enablers  to see who can most thoroughly squander credibility and reputation  has been fierce. There are so many worthy candidates for the Deplorable sash that its a shame only one aide or surrogate can win.

Begin with Mike Pence, a committed Christian, who disingenuously tells audiences that his running mate  known to be a bully, a bigot, a misogynist and a libertine  is a good man. Pretty deplorable.

Then theres Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, who let Trump steal his party and then became one of Trumps vassals. Allowing the traditions and honor of the party of Lincoln to be so horribly debased is definitely deplorable.

Chris Christie might get some points for his self-inflicted double humiliation: First he got embarrassed by Trump in the primaries, then he became the first also-ran to give the usurper his endorsement. Christie is smart; he must see Trump for the dangerous ignoramus he is. He has told friends that he hoped Trump could be taught and molded. Whatever his motive, history will judge Christies role among Trumps inner circle as both cynical and deplorable.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) is a big fan of Donald Trump  and he's said some strange things while campaigning for the Republican nominee. (Peter Stevenson/The Washington Post)

[Donald Trump has run the worst campaign in modern history]

And of course there is Kellyanne Conway, Trumps campaign manager. She has a kind of genius for assembling random words into very long sentences, which she wields against journalists questions the way a Jedi knight uses a light saber to deflect incoming fire. Somehow she is serenely unfazed by direct contradiction. After the first debate, she said that Trump had displayed the presidential virtue of restraint by not mentioning Bill Clintons affairs. But when Trump brought Clintons accusers to the second debate, well, she said that was presidential, too. Constant double-talk, however charming, is deplorable.

Serious contenders, all. But my runner-up for Mr. Deplorable is the inimitable Newt Gingrich. His over-the-top grandiloquence puts him in another league.

One recent illustration came Saturday when Trump went to Gettysburg and delivered a much-hyped major speech  mostly a repackaging of previously announced policies. The only real change, far as I could tell, was that now he expects the U.S. taxpayer to pay for his promised border wall, with Mexico later dunned for reimbursement. And the headline was that Trump, disgracefully, had used such a hallowed setting to threaten lawsuits against the women who say he groped or forcibly kissed them.

The irrepressible Gingrich tried to spin this debacle into something for the ages. Trumps most important speech, maybe the best reform speech since [Ronald] Reagan in 1980, he called it. Thats not hyperbole; its hallucination.

On Tuesday, Gingrich haughtily berated Fox News host Megyn Kelly for supposedly giving too much coverage to Trumps alleged sexual predations  and not enough to Hillary Clintons email problems. Kelly patiently explained that the accusers stories are clearly newsworthy. You want to go back through the tapes of your show recently? Gingrich demanded. You are fascinated with sex, and you dont care about public policy.

Yes, the Gingrich oeuvre of deplorability is rich and deep. But for sheer mean-spirited lunacy, it is Giuliani who deserves to wear the Mr. Deplorable tiara.

1 of 60 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  What Donald Trump is doing on the campaign trail View Photos The GOP presidential nominee is out on the trail ahead of the general election in November. Caption The GOP presidential nominee is pressing his case ahead of Election Day. Nov. 7, 2016 Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event at SNHU Arena in Manchester, N.H. Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post Wait 1 second to continue.

[Republicans are already plotting the next war against Hillary Clinton]

He all but sewed up the title at the Republican convention with a speech that was neither spoken nor shouted, but shrieked. The former New York mayor, who showed such inspiring steadiness and resolve after the 9/11 attacks, described a nation cowering in fear of jihadist terrorism and rapidly sinking into utter ruin.

There is no next election, he screamed. This is it. Theres no more time for us left to revive our great country!

When FBI Director James B. Comey decided that no reasonable prosecutor would file charges against Clinton over her use of a personal email system, Giuliani  a former federal prosecutor himself  went ballistic. On Wednesday, he had a verbal brawl with CNNs Chris Cuomo about that subject. Giuliani insisted on a conspiratorial theory about Clintons exoneration that is hard to briefly summarize; suffice it to say that his scenario requires either clairvoyance or time travel.

Giuliani called one rambling Trump address the best speech that any Republican, at the least, has ever given, which I guess includes Lincoln. He has repeatedly claimed, with zero evidence, that Clinton suffers from some serious undisclosed illness. He has even devoted time and energy to feuding with Beyonce.

You win, Mr. Mayor. Congratulations are not in order.

Read more from Eugene Robinsons archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook. You can also join him Tuesdays at 1 p.m. for a live Q&A.
SCOTTSBLUFF  Nebraska tourism officials said they've seen an uptick in the number of participants in a program that challenges travelers to explore the state and receive stamps in a passport-like book along the way.

The Nebraska Tourism Commission selected 80 stops throughout the state for its 2016 program, challenging travelers to explore Nebraska and collect stamps proving they've been to each site.

The tourism commission said more than 26,000 travelers participated in the Nebraska Tourism Passport program and 1,292 passports were submitted for prizes, more than double the amount submitted in 2015. Prizes include T-shirts, duffel bags, selfie sticks, coffee mugs and gift baskets containing Nebraska-made products.

Passport sites change each tourism season. The most visited stop on the challenge this year was the Museum of the Fur Trade in Chadron.

Margaret and Lucien Kicken of Scottsbluff participated in the program for the last two years. This year, they were among 168 participants who managed to get stamps from all 80 stops.

"Last year, we only made 43," Margaret Kicken said. "We had so much fun we thought we'd try some more."

Jo Hogan of Ponca was winner of the grand prize drawing.

Our friends who participated in the Nebraska Passport tour in the past were so enthused and complimentary that my daughter Kim and I decided to embark on a summer mother-daughter adventure across our great state," Hogan said. "Throughout the course of our journey we learned a lot about Nebraska. We laughed until our sides hurt, had numerous adventures and made many new friends along the way, proving how friendly Nebraskans really are.
In their Oct. 23 Sunday Opinion essay, Guns on campus only invite tragedies, Daniel Webster and Ronald Daniels claimed that letting college students carry guns for protection is a recipe for tragedy.

Permit holders commit firearms-related violations at a lower rate than even the very low rate for police officers. The rate is in the thousandths of a percentage point, and data for Michigan, Nevada and Texas show that the rate is just as low for college-age permit holders. But instead of looking at how young permit holders actually behave, Mr. Daniels and Mr. Webster simply point out that violence, alcohol abuse and reckless behavior are elevated among college-age youths.

The authors use the National Crime Victimization Survey as evidence that guns are not used defensively by victims of sexual assault. But the survey didnt include would-be victims who answered no when asked whether they had been a victim of violent crime. If a woman brandishes a gun and the criminal flees, she might not consider herself a victim. Thus, she will never be asked how she defended herself.

After each new state allows concealed carry on campus, the reaction is always the same: What was all the fuss about?

John R. Lott Jr., Swarthmore, Pa.

The writer is president of the

Crime Prevention Research Center.
Donald Trump  his fickle god of polling having generally turned against him  now looks for inspiration across the pond. I think were gonna have a Brexit situation, he has said, claiming Britains unexpected vote in June to leave the European Union as an example of poll-defying right-wing populist intensity.

Presented with this comparison, Michael Gove, a member of Parliament and one of the architects of Brexit, emphasized the dissimilarities. Gove told me that the Brexit majority did include nationalists concerned with sovereignty and working-class voters who blame stagnant wages on unskilled migration. But there were also free-market liberals focused primarily on the regulations and tariffs imposed by the E.U.

Euroskepticism, Gove argued, is broader than working-class populism. The most ardent free-traders are the most opposed to the E.U., he noted. A closer analogy, he said, is 1776, in which the colonists resented paying for a distant, inaccessible empire that bossed them around. This spirit of revolt against an unresponsive bureaucracy is different from Trumps authoritarian populism. For its breadth, Gove also compared Euroskepticism to the Cold War coalition, which included everyone from Ayn Rand to John Paul II. Because of this diversity, Brexit may mean free trade, or much less trade; it is an open question.

The political comparison between the Trump movement and the Brexit coalition is weak. (And the idea that polls in Britain did not register the strength of Brexit support is a myth.) But center-right parties in both countries are facing similar ideological pressures. Many Western nations are experiencing an intense reaction against economic globalization and multiculturalism by voters who feel forgotten. In Britain, according to Gove, this involves a sense that those who take [economic] decisions are insulated from the outcomes. That certainly has a transatlantic resonance.

But Britains Conservative Party has two great advantages over the Republican Party. While the success of Brexit brought down Prime Minister David Cameron (who staked his reputation on the fight against it), his party did not turn to an unelectable demagogue. The new prime minister, Theresa May, was notable for spending much of her career unnoticed. She rose by lying low. She speaks rarely, with the authority that accumulates in the silences. And she has turned out to be a subtle politician, putting the most vocal advocates of Brexit in charge of the Brexit negotiation process. If the result is a disaster (as it may well be), the public will know who deserves the blame.

The Conservative Partys other advantage over the GOP is the fact that its ideological opposition has essentially collapsed. The British Labour Party was so intent on rejecting Tony Blair and all his works that it chose as its leader a socialist ideologue with an expiration date of 1945. The field is essentially clear. Members of Parliament joke that Mays biggest opposition is the value of the pound.

So how does May intend on repositioning her party in the aftermath of Brexit? In her first statement as prime minister, she spoke directly to people who are just managing. I know youre working around the clock, she said. I know youre doing your best, and I know that sometimes life can be a struggle. The government I lead will be driven not by the interests of the privileged few, but by yours.

May has gotten the values part right  a conservatism that speaks to wage workers facing profound economic rupture  but the appropriate policies are yet to be determined. People involved in her policy development process variously talk of Mayism as the promotion of social mobility, as the development of an industrial policy that includes a massive skills step-up, and as the pursuit of social reform on issues such as human trafficking and mental health.

In Britain, the center-right party has been sobered into self-reflection. In the United States, it is on the verge of being destroyed. Instead of doing something essential and difficult  finding creative ways to help the just managing working class without alienating rising minorities  Republicans are working out internal grudges and dealing with the demons of a narcissistic misogynist. And there is little hope that Election Day will end the bitterness. A recent poll found that Republicans, by a majority of 51 percent to 33 percent, believe Trump to be a better representative of GOP views than House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (Wis.).

Only a leader larger than both is likely to turn the GOP toward necessary tasks. And he or she may be quieter than we imagine.

Read more from Michael Gersons archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook .
The Oct. 14 obituary Thai king, viewed as a near-deity, ruled for 7 decades  [Metro], about the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, did not mention his highly feted visit to Washington in June 1960. Everyone was excited about the visit of this handsome, young king, who was born in the United States, and his beautiful queen, Sirikit. The Post ran articles and photos every day in the forerunner of todays Style section (called at that time For and About Women ). In addition, on June 30, 1960, the king and queen dedicated a new building at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Building 29, for the Division of Biologics Standards. The dedication was held outdoors on a sunny day, with the Marine Corps band playing The Star-Spangled Banner and the royal anthem of Thailand.

Edward Tabor, Bethesda
Danielle Allen is a political theorist at Harvard University and a contributing columnist for The Post.

If you are reading this sentence, you participate in a minority cultural practice. You get your news by reading traditional newspapers, whether in print or online.

Let some facts sink in.

Barely more than a decade ago, the majority of Americans with a high school degree or above were daily readers of traditional print newspapers and their news sites. This is no longer true. Now, at best, about 40 percent of American adults often get their news from newspapers and their websites. In contrast, roughly 60 percent often get their news from television. Of course, television has dominated since the era of the broadcast big three. Whats new is readings precipitous decline.

The countrys conversational universe has split between those who primarily get their news by reading and those who primarily depend on watching and listening. I say primarily because of course few people are exclusively in one camp or the other, and many of us also participate in circulating news via social media. But where we spend most of our time matters. On that we are split.

For the past 12 months, the professional classes have been lamenting their failure to foresee the sea changes that lifted up Donald Trumps candidacy. I believe we failed to see what was coming because we who are readers first failed to notice our new minority status. The pages of Americas newspapers and their websites offer a minority report.

Understanding American public opinion now means discerning three things: what the conversation sounds like on TV and radio, what it sounds like in traditional text-based journalism, and how these two conversations differ. Understanding our political dynamics means spotting how those streams do or dont mingle, and tracking the eddies, riptides and surf storms their convergences generate.

Trumps crusade against political correctness makes sense against the backdrop of this split in the public conversation.

After the fall of the Berlin Wall, a number of political scientists described the rapidity of the change in the Eastern bloc and the seeming surprise of the sudden crumbling of the Soviet Union as the result of a puncturing of spirals of silence. A spiral of silence emerges when people hide their genuine preferences, and everyone comes to believe that he or she is alone in thinking a particular thing. For instance, if everybody hates a tyrant, but no one says so out loud, then no one can see the actual spread of public opinion, and everyone believes that the size of the resistance to the tyranny is smaller than it actually is. Then, when someone happens to say out loud that they hate the tyrant, and gets away with it, everyone else who agrees comes out of the woodwork, and there is a seismic shift in the perceived distribution of public opinion.

My hypothesis is that, as of summer 2015, the conversations in TV and radio land were barely visible within text-based journalism. Some of those conversations involved sustained criticism of the cultural authority of newspapers and universities. That criticism targeted the professional norms of these sectors, which now include a widespread commitment to gender and racial equality as well as to social equality in relation to sexual identity. That TV and radio land conversation also stirs up great attraction for towering figures of that landscape  Trump, for instance.

In launching his campaign, TV-titan Trump routinely exhibited disdain for the professional norms of newspapers and universities that require respectful language. He got away with it. A sizable number of Americans answered his call.

In the primary, his campaign tried to deploy the idea that he was puncturing a spiral of silence. They made widespread use of posters and signs claiming that Trump spoke for a silent majority. But those who answered Trumps call throughout the primary were neither silent nor a majority. In the primaries, he crossed over the threshold to victory by means of a plurality, not a majority. And his supporters do participate in a big, public conversation  whether through Fox News or on talk radio or by passing pieces of the Drudge Report and Breitbart through social media.

In this campaign, we havent seen a silent majority suddenly awoken. Instead, weve seen a coming-of-age of a vocal minority that was nearly invisible to another vocal minority, the community of readers of traditional text-based journalism, a community dominated by the professional classes. Over the past nine months, these two minorities have been battling for the countrys soul.

Where do we go from here? This democracy clearly needs transformation in its media, academic and cultural landscape to reunite streams of discourse that have separated. This is not a suggestion that we steer toward consensus or homogenization. The point is merely that we would be better off if divergent streams of discourse were visible to all of us and cut across each other. None of us can understand what this country is, or make good decisions about where we should go and how to get there, if we cant see the full spread of American opinion.

In this regard, Trump has done us all a service. Painful though it has been, he has obliged us to see and to talk to one another. Thanks to this convergence, we have, for instance, recently been litigating at a truly national scale the question of how we should talk to and about women. We will not come to full agreement about that, but because our divergent conversational streams have for once flowed together, we have the possibility of achieving a genuinely majoritarian view on that question, not limited to the perspective of any minority culture within our society.

On Nov. 8, we will know what the majority view is. It will not, however, rise to the level of a mandate. Such an outcome is impossible in a cultural universe this fragmented. In its approach to governance, may our new administration recognize our fragmentation and seek its remedies.
The idea of former House speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) offering advice to Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on how to improve employee relations in the federal government would be laughable if it werent so dangerous to our democracy [Gingrichs advice: Make it easier to fire federal workers, PowerPost, Oct. 21]. This is a man who forced a government shutdown in the 1990s after a perceived slight by then-President Clinton aboard Air Force One. When youve thrown such a costly and damaging fit, its no surprise that your management advice consists of firing those who dont agree with you. The governments hiring rules are designed to prevent such a scenario, whereby employees can be hired or fired over party politics and favoritism. These rules dont prevent the government from firing bad employees; on the contrary, they make sure punishments against bad employees are justified and good employees arent punished unfairly. They also protect employees who speak out against waste, fraud and abuse  whistleblowers who would never come forward if they could be fired at a moments notice. While firing workers makes for an interesting reality show, it should never become the way we run our country.

J. David Cox Sr., Washington

The writer is national president of the

American Federation of Government Employees.
Gavin Grimm sued the Gloucester County School Board, alleging that its policy  requiring that students use bathrooms corresponding with their biological sex  is discriminatory and violates his civil rights. (Steve Helber/AP)

The Supreme Court said Friday that it will decide whether the Obama administration may require public school systems to let transgender students use bathrooms that align with their gender identity, putting the court once again at the center of a divisive social issue.

School districts across the country are split on how to accommodate transgender students amid conflicting guidance from courts, the federal government and, in some cases, state legislatures that have passed laws requiring people to use public restrooms that match the sex on their birth certificates.

The justices accepted a petition from the School Board of Gloucester County, Va., seeking to overturn a lower courts order that 17-year-old Gavin Grimm, who was born female but identifies as male, be allowed to use the boys restroom during his senior year of high school.

In August, the Supreme Court voted 5 to 3 to temporarily stay that lower courts ruling while it remained on appeal. In that order granting the stay, Justice Stephen G. Breyer said he was joining the conservative justices as a courtesy that would preserve the status quo while the court considered whether to accept the case.

[Gavin Grimm just wanted to use the bathroom. He didnt think the nation would debate it.]

17-year-old student Gavin Grimm, a transgender male, was banned from using the boys restroom by the Gloucester County School Board. The U.S. Court of Appeals ruled in his favor, but a Supreme Court stay now prevents Grimm from using the facility while justices decide whether to hear the case. (McKenna Ewen,Adriana Usero/The Washington Post)

It is the most high-profile case the eight-member court has accepted since the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in February. The case will not be heard until next year, and it is unclear whether Scalias seat will be filled by then.

In an interview Friday, Grimm said it was unfair that he will continue to be barred from the boys bathroom at Gloucester High until the case is decided. He said he tries to avoid going to the bathroom altogether at school but uses the nurses bathroom when necessary.

It means Im going to have to spend another school year where I should be focused on college plans and prom and graduation . . . not able to use the bathroom at my school, Grimm said.

Grimm, referred to as G.G. in court papers, came out as a transgender boy in his freshman year of high school and, as a result of hormone therapy, has a deep voice and facial hair, his lawyers told the court.

Were prepared to make our case to the court and to make sure the Supreme Court and people in general see Gavin as who he is and see trans kids across the country for who they are, said Grimms attorney, Joshua Block of the American Civil Liberties Union. Grimm is not trying to dismantle sex-segregated restrooms. Hes just trying to use them.

[Grimm in his own words:The Supreme Court decides where I go to the bathroom]

Troy Andersen, chairmen of the Gloucester County School Board, said in a statement that the board is grateful that the Supreme Court has granted the School Boards petition in this difficult case.

It's been nearly two years since 17-year-old Gavin Grimm began his fight to use the boys' bathroom at his high school in rural Gloucester, Va. On Oct. 28, the Supreme Court decided to hear his case. Here are the key moments in Grimm's legal battle. (Claritza Jimenez/The Washington Post)

The board looks forward to explaining to the court that its restroom and locker room policy carefully balances the interests of all students and parents in the Gloucester County school system, he wrote.

Grimm sued the board, alleging that its policy  requiring that students use bathrooms corresponding with their biological sex  is discriminatory and violates his civil rights.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit sided with him in April, ruling that his case could move forward. It deferred to the Obama administrations position that Title IX, the federal law banning sex discrimination in public schools, protects the rights of transgender students to use school bathrooms that align with their gender identity.

A month after the 4th Circuit decision, the U.S. Education Department issued that same guidance to the rest of the nations public schools.

[School adopts gender-neutral homecoming court, so there might be no king or queen]

The move sparked a backlash and a lawsuit by several states, which argued that the administration had overstepped its authority. A federal judge in north Texas issued a preliminary injunction in August, meaning schools do not have to follow the departments guidance.

The Gloucester boards petition to the court says the departments position presents an extreme example of judicial deference to an administrative agencys purported interpretation of its own regulation. It was developed by a relatively low-level official in the Department of Education without proper notice and comment, said the petition filed by the boards attorney, Kyle Duncan.

The petition said the case provides the court an opportunity to reexamine a 1997 precedent, Auer v. Robbins, that affords deference to an agencys interpretation of its regulations. It has been criticized by several conservative justices, but the court earlier this year turned down a chance to revisit it and did the same in accepting the Gloucester case.

Conservative legal groups had urged the Supreme Court to take the case.

In light of the right to bodily privacy, federal law should not be twisted to require that a male be given access to the girls facilities, or a female to the boys facilities, said Gary McCaleb, senior counsel at the Alliance Defending Freedom. The Supreme Court should reverse the 4th Circuits ruling, which is out of step with the law and previous federal court precedent.

Transgender students say using bathrooms that correspond with their gender identity is a civil right and critical to protect their well-being.

This is one of the most important days in the history of the transgender movement, Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, said in a statement. Whatever the court rules . . . may ensure that transgender people are accepted and included as equal members of our society, or it may relegate them to outsiders for decades to come.

The case is Gloucester County School Board v. G.G.

Social-media ban

The court also announced Friday that the justices will consider whether a North Carolina law that bans convicted sex offenders from Facebook and other social-media sites violates First Amendment rights.

The court will take a case from Lester Packingham, who was convicted at age 21 of statutory rape involving a 13-year-old.

After serving his sentence, police noticed that Packingham had posted on Facebook his reaction to getting a traffic citation dismissed.

Thanks JESUS, he wrote.

Packingham was prosecuted under a 2008 North Carolina law that bars people on its sex-offender registry from accessing websites that could lead to contact with minors.

The state Supreme Court upheld the law, saying there were other channels of information open to those on the list.

A group of First Amendment scholars urged the court to take Packinghams case. Sites such as Facebook and Twitter have become a prominent and uniquely effective form of communication for which there is virtually no equivalent substitute, they wrote.
Liberal advocacy groups are preparing blacklists of candidates for appointments to a Hillary Clinton administration, with one organization even producing opposition research to torpedo contenders they consider too soft on Wall Street or other corporate interests.

Planning for a Democratic victory on Nov. 8, these interest groups and like-minded lawmakers are laying the groundwork to push Clinton, if she is elected, to prove her progressive bona fides through early legislation and personnel appointments.

One liberal group has already forwarded to Clintons transition team the names of 150 acceptable appointees for economic positions, while others on the left are engaged in opposition research against prospects for administration jobs whom they see as unacceptable.

Leading liberal lawmakers  including Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)  have also started conveying, privately and publicly, guidance on top prospective Clinton appointees and legislative priorities.

The activity reflects the fragile alliance between Clinton and the progressive wing of her party as she nears the end of a tumultuous race against Republican Donald Trump. Although Clinton has campaigned on several of their key issues, many liberals remain skeptical that she will push those priorities adequately if she wins the presidency  and wary that her ties to Wall Street might affect the administration she would build.

Speaking at a rally for Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in Manchester, N.H., Oct. 24, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-N.H.) said "nasty women" would prevent Republican Donald Trump from becoming president. (The Washington Post)

A lot of people are along for the ride through November 8th and will need assurances after that with big, bold action, said Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC). If you lose people early on, its hard to get them back on board.

Clinton and her aides have declined to discuss personnel issues, citing a policy of staying mum on that front until after the election. But its clear that conversations with the left started early: Warren sent Clinton a list of potential administration appointees before Jan. 6, 2015, according to an email hacked from the account of Clinton campaign chairman John D. Podesta and published by the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks.

Warren, Sanders and other leading liberals have proved loyal soldiers to Clinton during the general-election contest, campaigning regularly and urging their supporters to vote for her. Activists hope these efforts will provide the left with leverage if Clinton wins. But they foresee a very short honeymoon next year should she start nominating unacceptable candidates to positions such as treasury secretary.

[Sanders is prepared to be a liberal thorn in Clintons side]

Among more than a dozen liberal activists interviewed for this article, there is broad agreement that Mary Jo White, chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission and a frequent target for the left, should not remain in her post in a Clinton administration. At the Treasury Department, progressives see red flags for several potential leaders, including Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg and Federal Reserve Board member Lael Brainard.

One potential candidate whom Warren and others on the left have signaled to be acceptable is Deputy Treasury Secretary Sarah Bloom Raskin, who has a long history of consumer advocacy and is the wife of Jamie B. Raskin, a Maryland state senator running for Congress this year.

Gary Gensler, former chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, is also viewed favorably, although Genslers past work at Goldman Sachs has given some progressives pause. Gensler is the chief financial officer of Clintons presidential campaign.

Others whose service is being pushed include Tom Perez, President Obamas labor secretary; Rep. Donna F. Edwards (D-Md.), who lost a Senate primary in April; former senator Byron L. Dorgan (D-N.D.); Joseph Stiglitz, an economist and Columbia University professor; Heather C. McGhee, president of Demos, a liberal public-policy organization; and Lori Wallach, an expert on trade with the advocacy group Public Citizen.

You cant claim to want to rein in Wall Street if your Treasury Department is filled with Wall Street executives, said Jeff Weaver, president of Our Revolution, an organization launched to carry out the agenda of Sanderss presidential campaign.

Weaver, who served as Sanderss campaign manager, said progressive groups are prepared to mobilize people to put a tremendous amount of pressure on the new administration and the Senate in cases where confirmation of nominees is required.

[Progressives turn wary eye toward Sandberg as nomination rumors fly]

The assembly of a Clinton administration would be the first major test of power for progressives since Sanderss unsuccessful presidential run. Activists, guided by Warrens mantra that personnel is policy, are wary of a repeat of Obamas 2008 transition, in which their influence was muted and which led to an administration they view as disappointingly friendly to corporate interests.

There are some new challenges this time: a Clinton team on which some of the more influential voices are not part of the formal transition process; and a fear that some of Clintons choices could harbor policy aims less ambitious than the liberal advocates would like.

Emboldened by their success in blocking investment banker Antonio Weiss from the job of undersecretary of the treasury for domestic finance in 2014, liberals hope to see their influence reflected not only in first-tier fiscal roles under Clinton but also in picks for attorney general and lower-ranking yet powerful regulatory positions across the government. (Weiss withdrew his name from consideration for the post, which remains unfilled, and joined the Treasury Department as a counselor to the secretary.)

The proposed AT&T merger with Time Warner has highlighted what progressives see as the need for like-minded officials in the Justice Departments antitrust division. Advocates also see the U.S. trade representative, the SEC chair and the director of the National Economic Council as vital to their policy mission.

The Roosevelt Institute, a New York-based liberal economic advocacy group, has been particularly active in culling names of potential appointees, forwarding to the transition team about 150 who they say reflect the countrys ethnic and geographic diversity.

An array of other liberal groups are also involved in the effort, including the Center for Economic and Policy Research, which houses the Revolving Door Project, a shop devoted to investigating public figures for the left.

Some activists have described the projects executive director, Jeff Hauser, as the keeper of a list of undesirable candidates and a researcher into their backgrounds. Reached by phone, Hauser confirmed that he is researching many potential Clinton appointees.

While Warren has privately communicated her desires to Clinton on personnel, Sanders has started speaking out about his standards for treasury secretary and other positions.

Podestas hacked emails reveal Clintons inner circle maneuvering to attend to Warren and stay on her good side. Central to this effort are Gensler and Mandy Grunwald, a Warren strategist turned Clinton campaign consultant who communicated regularly with Podesta and others last year about actions that might alienate the progressive left.

Clinton speechwriter Dan Schwerin also pursued a working relationship with Warren adviser Dan Geldon, meeting with him in early 2015 about possible administration personnel. Schwerin described the meeting in a follow-up email as polite but not exactly warm.

They seem wary  and pretty convinced that the Rubin folks have the inside track with us whether we realize it yet or not  but open to engagement and to be proven wrong, Schwerin wrote to Podesta and others, referring to former treasury secretary Robert Rubin, who was an executive from Goldman Sachs.

As the prospective transition approaches, progressives are also keeping a close eye on Clintons approach to ethics.

Clinton has said she supports a bill proposed by Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) to prevent financial executives entering the government from receiving massive bonuses known as golden parachutes. But when asked by The Washington Post whether Clinton would choose to implement this policy for her own administration, the campaign declined to answer.

Progressive groups are also starting to weigh in on what legislation Clinton, if elected, should push once Congress returns in January.

Among the initiatives that she campaigned on, several are favorites of progressives, including a debt-free-college plan that Clinton revised with Sanderss input after the primaries. At his urging, she incorporated part of his plan to making public colleges and universities tuition-free for families making up to $125,000 a year.

A strong push for that plan by a President Clinton would send a positive signal that she is willing to go bold on a progressive agenda, PCCCs Green said.

If Republicans want to be the party of letting students graduate with debt, let them try that, he said.

Clinton has not pledged to make the college plan part of her first-100-days agenda. Instead, she plans to push two objectives with more centrist appeal: infrastructure investment and an overhaul of immigration policy. Clinton has also pledged to start the process of overturning Citizens United, the Supreme Court decision that opened the door for moneyed interests to participate heavily in elections.

Clinton spokesman Brian Fallon said that as president, Clinton would champion the same progressive priorities that she has since the Democratic primaries.

The same people who are trying to cast doubt on how she would approach her presidency were predicting shed make some sort of pivot in the general election, and that hasnt happened, Fallon said, adding that Clinton looks forward to working with progressive lawmakers to implement her agenda.

Karen Tumulty contributed to this report.
On Oct. 28, the FBI announced new inquiries related to Hillary Clintons private email server. The Fix's Aaron Blake breaks down reactions to the announcement and explains why it matters to her presidential campaign. (Sarah Parnass/The Washington Post)

On Oct. 28, the FBI announced new inquiries related to Hillary Clintons private email server. The Fix's Aaron Blake breaks down reactions to the announcement and explains why it matters to her presidential campaign. (Sarah Parnass/The Washington Post)

Hillary Clinton criticized FBI Director James Comey on Friday for failing to disclose additional information about the nature of a new inquiry into her private email server.

We are 11 days out from perhaps the most important national election of our lifetimes, Clinton said at a news conference in Des Moines, Iowa. The American people deserve to get the full and complete facts immediately.

Hours earlier, Comey had informed Congress that the FBI will investigate whether additional classified material is contained in emails sent over the private system Clinton used at the State Department.

[FBI to conduct new investigation of emails from Clintons private server]

After two campaign rallies in Iowa where the email issue went unmentioned by Cinton, an aide led the democratic nominees traveling press into the choir room at a high school in Des Moines about 15 minutes after Clinton spoke to the crowd. A lectern had been set up under bright lights with six American flags in the background and a sign with Clintons campaign logo, Stronger Together, on the front of the lectern.

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton spoke to reporters Oct. 28 in Des Moines about the FBIs new inquiries into the private email server she used as secretary of state. (The Washington Post)

Clinton noted that Americans across the country are already voting and that it is imperative that Comey explain the issue without delay.

We dont know all the facts, Clinton said. Even Director Comey noted that this information may or may not be significant, so lets get it out.

The newly discovered emails were found on a computer seized during an investigation of former U.S. representative Anthony Weiner, according to two people familiar with the situation. Weiner is separated from top Clinton aide Huma Abedin.

Asked about the connection to her aide, Clinton said that she had heard rumors but did not know any more facts than those contained in Comeys letter.

We dont know what to believe, Clinton said. Thats why its incumbent upon the FBI director to tell us what theye talking about.

Donald Trump cheered the new FBI inquiry into the Democratic presidential nominees private email system, saying the scrutiny offers a chance to correct a grave miscarriage of justice.

I have great respect of the FBI for righting this wrong, Trump said at the start of a campaign rally in a basketball gymnasium in Manchester, N.H. He said he was confident that the investigation will be properly handled from this point forward.

Later at a rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Trump denounced Clintons response to Comey, claiming that she sought to politicize the FBIs actions by claiming wrongly that his letter was sent only to Republican lawmakers. It was sent to both Democrats and Republicans.

The FBI would not have reopened this case at this time unless it was a most egregious criminal offense, Trump said. Justice will prevail.

The new development could reshape the presidential election in its final days.

Speaking at the campaign event, Trump  interrupted by chants of lock her up!  said that the new FBI probe is bigger than Watergate.

They are reopening the case into her criminal and illegal conduct that threatens the security of the United States of America, the Republican nominee said. Hillary Clintons corruption is on a scale we have never seen before. We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office.

But Clintons campaign characterized Comeys decision as one made in response to partisan prodding by Republicans. Clinton campaign Chairman John Podesta said that the campaign has no idea what those emails are and the Director himself notes they may not even be significant.

[Hillary Clintons campaign sounds pretty angry with the FBI right now]

Comeys announcement thrust the email issue back into the center of the presidential race with less than two weeks until Election Day, and as millions of Americans are already voting early.

In a letter to congressional leaders, Comey said that the FBI had, in connection with an unrelated case, recently learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the Clinton investigation.

The FBI had closed its first investigation in July with no charges, though Comey had concluded that there had been classified content exchanged on the server and that Clinton had been extremely careless.

Several Democratic lawmakers criticized Comey for making an announcement that had the potential to influence the election. But Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus countered in an interview with Fox News that Comey would not have taken such an extraordinary step if it wasnt a big deal.

Trump, who has been intensifying his argument that the system is rigged against him and in favor of Clinton, said the fact that a fresh investigation has been opened could prove him wrong.

It might not be as rigged as I thought, he said.

Senior staff flying with Clinton to campaign appearances in Iowa spoke with reporters earlier in the day Friday, before the news broke.

At Clintons outdoor Cedar Rapids rally, there were a few people outside the event perimeter chanting lock her up.

Inside, Clinton focused her remarks on Trump, criticizing him sharply for his treatment of women. She noted leaked tapes of Trump discussing making unwanted advances on women, and his comments to radio host Howard Stern in which he admitted to entering the dressing rooms at his beauty pageants while the contestants were partially clothed.

This is a man who relishes making women feel terrible about themselves, Clinton said.

Trump was set to campaign in the same Iowa city later Friday.

[The FBIs October surprise just made Hillary Clintons awful week even worse]

Meanwhile, President Obama planned to join top Democrats fanned out across battleground states.

Clintons campaign announced Friday that she will campaign in Arizona next week  the strongest indication yet that Democrats see an opportunity to pick up a state that has voted Republican in every presidential election since 1996. Clinton has already sent organizers and other field workers to Arizona and is airing television ads there. She plans to hold a rally in Phoenix on Wednesday aimed at encouraging early in-person voting.

This is another battleground state, Clintons campaign manager, Robby Mook, told reporters flying with her. We anticipate that Arizona is neck and neck.

For months, Arizona had not been on the Clintons campaign list of targeted states against Trump. But tightening polls prompted the campaign to send a string of high-profile surrogates to the state, including first lady Michelle Obama, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Chelsea Clinton.

Regardless of whether Clinton wins the state, the move is intended to make Trump defend what should be an easy state to win at a time when he is trying to make up ground in numerous other states.

In a tacit acknowledgment that he has not locked down Arizona, Trump is returning to campaign there Saturday.

Trump sought to gain ground in New Hampshire, where he trails Clinton but has narrowed the gap in recent weeks, before holding an evening rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He has held a persistent lead in most polls in Iowa, making a Clinton victory there less likely than in any of the other six battleground states where the Democratic nominee has concentrated efforts.

[Trump getting blown out in the Philadelphia suburbs, as Pennsylvania drifts out of reach]

A new Quinnipiac University poll shows Trump and Clinton tied in Iowa at 44 percent.

Clinton was attending a pair of women win early-vote rallies in Iowa on Friday  in the early afternoon in Cedar Rapids and later in Des Moines.

Trump also planned a stop in Maine, where students mostly too young to vote chose him over Clinton in a statewide mock election this week. Earlier this month, Maine Republican Gov. Paul LePage said he agrees with Trump that the national presidential election will be rigged.

I am not confident that we are going to have a clean election in Maine, LePage said during an interview with a conservative radio station.

He blamed Maine Democrats for blocking voter ID requirements.

Obama was headlining an early evening rally in Orlando to ask Florida voters to cast their ballots early. The Clinton campaign is encouraging early voting to bank Democratic votes and build what the campaign says could be an insurmountable lead in the battleground state that offers the greatest number of electoral votes.

Even before Obama arrived in Florida for Fridays event, Clintons campaign announced that the president would return to the state for more campaign stops Thursday, five days before the election. He will be in Ohio on Tuesday and North Carolina on Wednesday.

Democratic vice-presidential nominee Tim Kaine is also campaigning in Florida on Friday, while former president Bill Clinton is in Pennsylvania.

Obamas appearance on Clintons behalf is part of a tandem effort with first lady Michelle Obama to elect Obamas onetime rival as his successor. Clinton and Michelle Obama campaigned together in North Carolina on Thursday.

The presidents rally in Orlando marks his second visit to Florida this month as he seeks to boost enthusiasm and turnout among Democrats in a key swing state that he carried in the past two presidential elections.

The president is feeling very enthusiastic and optimistic both about Secretary Clintons campaign, about the campaign of Democrats up and down the ballot all across the country, and about the trajectory of the race, White House press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters Thursday. But hes not taking anything for granted. He certainly is going to do everything he can to warn against the perils of complacency.

The president in the Interstate 4 corridor, through the heart of the state, that has been seen as a crucial bellwether in past elections. His trip comes four months after he and Vice President Biden visited Orlando to lay wreaths at a memorial for the victims of a mass shooting at a gay night club.

Clinton holds a slim 1.6 percentage point lead in the RealClearPolitics average of recent polls in Florida, down from an average of 4 points a week ago. Obama is aiming to drive up enthusiasm and turnout among Democrats, especially young voters and minorities. Obama weighed in on the Senate race between Democratic challenger Patrick Murphy and Republican incumbent Marco Rubio, a White House foil.

Theres one big difference between Patrick and Marco Rubio. Marco Rubio still supports Donald Trump, Obama told a raucous crowd of 9,000 at the University of Central Florida, hammering the Republican senator for his continued support of Trump after allegations of sexual misconduct have emerged against the Republican nominee. You cant support somebody who brags about assaulting women.

In a 40-minute speech, however, Obama did not mention the news of the FBIs review of more emails from Clintons personal server, which could potentially impact the race.

You know, sometimes when you get a lead, whether sports or in politics, you start feeling good. You start celebrating too early, Obama said. The next thing you know, you look up and let it slip away. I dont want you all feeling too good. I want you hustling all the way until polls close on November 8. I dont want you taking things for granted.

Obama has been ramping up his activity in the campaign, with multiple trips to swing states each week, recorded phone calls to voters and interviews on television and radio stations. He also has been raising money for Clinton and the Democratic Senate and House candidates and features prominently in a new Clinton television ad aimed at turning out Democratic voters.

The Clinton campaign also announced a new six-figure ad buy in Wisconsin, her first in the general election, as part of an effort to fortify the Democrats Senate candidate there, Russ Feingold, and other down-ballot races.

In the campaigns final week, Obama will be on the road nearly every day, White House officials said, in a final blitz through the most competitive swing states.

Obamas appearance Friday comes as a new Washington Post-ABC News tracking poll shows Trump has gained on Clinton during the past week, solidifying support among core Republican groups as well as political independents.

[Clinton lead shrinks, even as nearly 6 in 10 expect her to win, Post-ABC tracking poll finds]

Roughly 6 in 10 still expect Clinton to prevail, while the poll finds shrinking concerns about the accuracy of the vote count and voter fraud in the election.

Clinton holds a slight 48-44 percent edge over Trump among likely voters, with Libertarian Gary Johnson at 4 percent and Green Party nominee Jill Stein at 1 percent in the survey completed Sunday through Wednesday. Clinton held a six-point edge in the previous wave and a 12-point edge in the first wave of the tracking poll by ABC News Sunday (50 percent Clinton vs. 38 percent Trump). In a two-candidate contest, Clinton holds a five-point edge over Trump, 50 to 45 percent.

Iowa is one of the few battlegrounds states in which Trump has continued to hold narrow leads in most polling in the aftermath of emergence of a 2005 video in which he bragged about his celebrity status empowering him to kiss and grope women.

The demographics of Iowa are favorable to Trump in several ways. It has among the largest shares of white voters in the nation, a sizable rural population and significant number of non-college educated residents, all groups with whom Trump polls relatively well. The state has also endured significant manufacturing job losses, making it more fertile ground for Trumps message than some other battleground states.

[Clinton doubles Trumps October fundraising and has dominant war chest in races final days]

Clinton, who would be the countrys first female president, was joined at her first rally by a slate of national womens rights leaders, including Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Action Fund; Ilyse Hogue, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America; and Stephanie Schriock, president of EMILYs List. They tailored their pitch to women, highlighting the issues at stake in the election, including child care and equal pay, as well as Trumps behavior and history of demeaning women, an aide said.

With close to a dozen women having come forward to say that Trump made unwanted physical advances over the years, Clintons campaign has stepped up its targeted outreach to women, including Republicans.

The campaign also announced this week that it had chosen a symbolic venue for Clintons election-night gathering: a convention center in Manhattan with a very large glass ceiling.

Anne Gearan, Matea Gold, Rosalind Helderman, David Nakamura and Anu Narayanswamy contributed to this report.
Responding to a report of unsafe working conditions, federal investigators found employees at an animal feed company in York were exposed to the risk of grain dust explosion, electrical shock and confined space hazards.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited Nutrition Services for 25 serious violations following its July investigation and proposed fines of $101,898.

In a news release, OSHA said Nutrition Services failed to:

* Implement a confined space program, practice safe entry operations and train workers.

* Test atmospheric conditions in grain bins before allowing workers to enter.

* Remove accumulations of grain dust and potential initial sources, exposing workers to the risk of grain dust explosion.

* Implement procedures to prevent sudden machine start-up or unintentional operation.

The company has 15 business days to comply, request an informal conference with OSHAs area director, or contest the findings.
The GOP presidential nominee is out on the trail ahead of the general election in November.

The GOP presidential nominee is out on the trail ahead of the general election in November.

What Donald Trump is doing on the campaign trail

What Donald Trump is doing on the campaign trail

A steep drop in support from wealthy donors has left Donald Trump dependent on small-dollar contributors in the final stretch of the 2016 race, creating an acute cash gap that could hurt down-ticket Republicans fighting for their political lives.

Supporters sent the GOP presidential nominee contributions of $200 or less at a faster clip this month than they did in September. But the businessman was still vastly outraised by Democratic rival Hillary Clinton because of tepid backing from those who write big checks, new campaign finance reports show.

The number of six-figure contributions flowing to a joint fundraising committee that benefits the Republican Party fell sharply in the first 19 days of October, with just 34 donors giving $100,000 or more, down from 167 in September. A dozen pro-Trump super PACs together raised just about $2 million. And the candidate himself gave less than $31,000 to his campaign during that period, leaving him nowhere close to the $100 million or more that he has repeatedly claimed he will spend to finance his White House run.

On Friday, Trump scrambled to combat the perception that he was holding back resources, saying he was wiring his campaign $10 million, as the Wall Street Journal first reported. But he also declined to confirm that his donations would end up reaching $100 million, telling Fox News, Well see whats needed.

Meanwhile, he and the GOP face a yawning financial disadvantage. Together with the national party and his allied super PACs, Trump brought in $795 million as of Oct. 19, compared with $1.3 billion raised for Clinton, campaign finance filings show.

The dearth of big-dollar donations hurts the Republican National Committee, which relies on the presidential nominee to pull in large contributions to finance its national get-out-the-vote operation.

Trumps fundraising efforts have generated just $57.6 million in transfers to the national party this cycle, less than half of the $130.6 million that 2012 nominee Mitt Romney helped raise for the RNC by this point four years ago, filings show.

[Donald Trumps fundraising falls off in October, putting him a severe cash disadvantage in final stretch]

There is unlikely to be a big surge of cash coming in the final days. The Trump campaign did not set up a formal schedule of high-dollar fundraising events for the last two weeks of the race, while Clinton had 41 on the books, The Washington Post reported this week.

RNC spokeswoman Lindsay Walker said party leaders continue to raise money for the entire ticket. She described the field organization as fully funded, with more than 3,100 paid staffers on the ground.

But veteran Republicans are worried.

I think its going to have a severe impact in tight races where there wont be the necessary funds to complete the organizational effort to ID voters and get them to the polls, said Fred Malek, the finance chairman of the Republican Governors Association. In tight races, its going to be pivotal.

Lisa Spies, a longtime party fundraiser who worked on Romneys campaign, said Trumps failure to win over major donors will damage the entire party.

His lack of a serious finance operation, combined with unexpectedly low personal funding, have not only left his campaign underfinanced, but also hurt the RNCs efforts, she said, adding that the reduced ground game is impacting all Republicans.

Trump campaign officials did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Meanwhile, Trumps outside allies are disorganized and underfunded. Altogether, pro-Trump super PACs have raised $60 million  less than one-third of the $188 million collected by pro-Clinton groups. Financial support for pro-Trump groups nearly collapsed this month as his billionaire backers showed little interest in plowing more money into the race.

The biggest haul was reported by Great America PAC, which pulled in just $1.9 million, including $100,000 from Wisconsin shipping magnate Richard Uihlein. The super PAC has raised an additional $3.5 million since Oct. 19, said co-chairman Eric Beach.

But Rebuilding America Now, a group founded by Trump friend Thomas Barrack, collected just $215,000 in October. And it appears that the Committee for American Sovereignty, which aimed to raise $20 million before the Republican convention in July, will amass barely half a million dollars in all after collecting $47,000 this month.

Its just gotten worse, said GOP strategist Doug Watts, who serves as the groups national executive director. The main problem, he said, has been mixed signals from Trumps campaign about whether supporters should give to super PACs  and if so, which ones.

There was a sense among people that if they didnt have a clear understanding of who, how and when to contribute, they just werent going to do it, Watts said.

[Trump stops holding high-dollar fundraisers that were raising big cash for the GOP]

There were no signs of further donations in October from Trumps biggest benefactors, Las Vegas casino owner Sheldon Adelson and his wife, Miriam, who so far have given more than $11 million to super PACs and the party to support him.

Also absent on the finance reports this month: the family of hedge fund manager Robert Mercer, whose members contributed $13.5 million to supporting Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas in the primaries but have given just $3.4 million for Trump to date.

And after spending $2 million on ads hitting Clinton this month, Wisconsin roofing billionaire Diane Hendricks turned her focus to her home state Senate race. Her super PAC, Reform America Fund, spent $2.2 million in the past 10 days hammering Democratic candidate Russ Feingold.

Dallas banker Andy Beal, who put $2 million into a super PAC to support Trump earlier this fall, said he decided not to spend any more money after his research showed that the ads did not have much impact. He said he is worried that unfair media coverage is distorting the image that the public has of the real estate developer, whom he has known for about a decade.

People are afraid of Donald Trump when they shouldnt be, Beal said. Donald is a good guy.

As the race has entered the final stretch, Trump has turned to his loyal base of supporters for financial resources, pelting them with email appeals and text messages asking them to contribute funds.

We need your help raising $1 million, read an Oct. 1 email signed by Trump. And because this is so important, I am going to EXTEND our TRIPLE-MATCH opportunity for the next 24 hours. Any donations of $75 of more, he would proudly triple match.

In the 19 days that followed, small donors gave nearly $35 million in contributions of $200 or less to support his campaign, more than half of the $61 million he raised in October.

Trump put in just $30,681.67 himself, all in-kind payroll donations  less than the $50,479 that Clinton gave in-kind to her campaign during the same period.

But the GOP nominee assured his supporters Friday that he was putting up tremendous amounts of money.

Im spending money like crazy, he said at a rally in Manchester, N.H. Ill probably have over maybe close to or over $100 million of my money spent on the campaign. But theres something nice about that.

Unless I lose, he added, in which case I say, What was that all about? 

Jenna Johnson contributed to this report.
A photo illustration shows the Uber app logo displayed on a mobile telephone, with a traditiional black taxi in the background in central London, Oct. 28, 2016. REUTERS/Toby Melville/Illustration (Toby Melville/Reuters)

In a landmark ruling Friday that could impact Britains wider gig economy, a London employment tribunal ruled that taxi drivers using the Uber ride-hailing app are workers and entitled to minimum wage and holiday pay.

The ruling is a major blow to the San Francisco-based company, which argued that it was a technology company that enabled self-employed drivers to connect with passengers through its smartphone app.

The question over whether Uber drivers should be classified as self-employed or as employees has been the subject of legal battles on both sides of the Atlantic.

Uber said Friday it would seek to appeal the judgment, which applies to the two drivers who brought the case to court. But analysts said it could also open the floodgates to claims from other Uber drivers in Britain, as well as the thousands of independent workers in Britains gig economy, in which temporary positions are the norm and independent workers perform short-term jobs.

This is a groundbreaking decision, said Nigel Mackay, a lawyer representing the drivers. It will impact not just on the thousands of Uber drivers working in this country, but on all workers in the so-called gig economy whose employers wrongly classify them as self-employed and deny them the rights to which they are entitled.

He told the BBC that his clients at one point were earning around 5 pounds ($6.10) an hour. In Britain, the minimum wage is 7.20 pounds ($8.78) an hour for anyone older than 25.

[How an anti-Uber backlash is spreading around the world]

Uber has grown rapidly in London since its arrival in 2012  London is one of the few major cities that doesnt limit the number of cabs  but the company has faced fierce resistance from the citys traditional black cabs.

The Licensed Taxi Drivers Association, a trade body for black cabs, appeared delighted by the ruling. Uber should now be made to pay minimum wage and stop exploitation of vulnerable workforce! the association tweeted.

In its judgment, the Central London Employment Tribunal said that Uber drivers should be treated as workers and entitled to holidays, rest breaks and the minimum wage. In Britain, there is a difference between a worker and an employee, the latter is entitled to additional rights, including sick pay and protection against unfair dismissal.

The tribunal also said that drivers do not clock in for work the moment someone climbs into their car, but rather when the driver has the app switched on, is in the territory in which he is licensed to use the app, and is ready and willing to accept trips.

Uberemphasized that the ruling applies only to the two individuals who brought the case.

Jo Bertram, the companys regional general manager in Britain, said: Tens of thousands of people in London drive with Uber precisely because they want to be self-employed and their own boss.

The vast majority of the 40,000 drivers in Britain who use the Uber app want to keep the freedom and flexibility of being able to drive when and where they want, she added. While the decision of this preliminary hearing only affects two people, we will be appealing it.

The legal case was backed by the GMB trade union, which called Fridays judgment a monumental victory.

Maria Ludkin, the unions legal director, said in a statement that it was reviewing similar contracts masquerading as bogus self employment, particularly prevalent in the so called gig economy. This is old fashioned exploitation under newfangled jargon, but the law will force you to pay GMB members what they are rightfully due.

Read more

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

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The house of Harold T. Martin III is shown in Glen Burnie, Md., on Oct. 5. The federal government contractor is accused of stealing highly classified information. (Jose Luis Magana/AP)

An attorney for the former National Security Agency contractor accused of stealing unprecedented amounts of classified government data said at a hearing Friday that his client has a compulsive hoarding habit that runs in the family and should not continue to be detained.

But U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett declined a request that Harold T. Martin III be released from jail, ruling that he was a flight risk. Bennett affirmed a magistrate judges ruling from last week that Martin continue to be detained pending an eventual trial or resolution of the case.

The former contractor was arrested Aug. 29 at his home in Glen Burnie, Md., and charged in a sealed complaint with felony theft of government property and the unauthorized removal of classified materials, a misdemeanor. The complaint was unsealed this month when word of his arrest leaked out.

Talks between Martin and the government have been less than satisfying, Assistant U.S. Attorney Harvey Eisenberg told the court. Theyre not always productive.

James Wyda, Martins attorney, portrayed his client as completely engaged in the process. Mr. Martin, he said, is remorseful for the risk that he took with the governments documents. He is ashamed of that. He is someone who, in every way, takes great pride in the mission of the intelligence community.

Martin, who sat quietly at the defense table, is accused of taking 50 terabytes of data and six full bankers boxes worth of documents over the years from a variety of agencies, including the NSA, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence.

Wyda conceded that Martin has taken classified material. But he said the former Booz Allen Hamilton employee was a compulsive hoarder, not a traitor.

He argued that the only consideration before the court was whether there is a serious risk that Martin would fail to appear in court if he is released  and not whether Martin is a danger to the community. The latter factor may be considered only in setting conditions of release, Wyda said in a filing earlier this week.

Wyda noted that Bennett had lived in the area for more than 20 years, that he has held a security clearance for 28 years with no issue and that he has no criminal history.

He acknowledged that Martin was taking medication for attention-deficit disorder, and said that was one of the triggers for hoarding. He said that Martins wife, Deborah Shaw, who sat in the audience, had tried to help Martin control his compulsive collecting. Martins mother was a hoarder, he said. And his sister has challenges in this area. Still, he said, there was no evidence that Martin intended harm with the hoarding. There is no evidence he passed any material to anyone else, including a foreign government, he said.

The judge cited several factors in his ruling that Martin not be released. One was the egregious nature of the offense. The weight of the evidence, he said, was overwhelming. Also, he said, Martins history and character gave him great pause. He said that the defense has pointed to mental-health issues but provided no professional analysis. We have no idea of what were dealing with this individual here. None.

He also accepted the governments assertion that in the face of a likely conviction, Martins job opportunities will be severely restricted, which prosecutors argued would make him more apt to want to flee.

The harm has already occurred in terms of the shock to the public and the shock to the intelligence community, in terms of loss of confidence to the public and loss of confidence to intelligence officials, Bennett said.

The ruling was clearly disappointing to Martin. But as he was led away in handcuffs by a U.S. marshal, he mouthed a message to Shaw: I love you, babe.

Matt Zapotosky contributed to this report.

Read more:

NSA contractor charged with stealing top secret data
Filipino fisherman were able to fish this week in waters near the disputed Scarborough Shoal without being chased away by Chinese vessels, the Philippines said Friday, suggesting a potential deal with China over the disputed South China Sea.

The news comes about a week after Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte made a high-profile visit to Beijing, praising his Chinese hosts while calling for a separation from his longtime ally, the United States.

In the run-up to Dutertes visit, there were rumors that Beijing and Manila were close to a deal on fishing rights at Scarborough, which China has controlled since 2012. However, the trip ended without any agreement announced.

Earlier this week, though, Duterte hinted that Philippine fisherman may be able to return. Well just wait for a few more days, he said.

[Duterte to U.S.: Time to say goodbye]





Philippine fishermen told reporters from ABS-CBN News, a local TV network, that they were allowed near the shoal on Tuesday and fished there for three days without interference. A report by the Philippine Daily Inquirer newspaper said eight groups of fisherman were able to fish at the shoal on Wednesday.

Duterte spokesman Ernesto Abella appeared to confirm those reports Friday, telling journalists in Manila that the fishermen were operating at Scarborough Shoal without harassment. All I can say is that at this stage, it has been observed that there are no longer any Chinese coast guards in the area, he said, according to Philippine news reports.

At a briefing later, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said that both sides are conducting official conversations on the issue.

It is not clear whether the apparent return is part of a deal between Manila and Beijing  none has been reported. Even a provisional or informal arrangement, if confirmed, would signal a major shift in an issue of consequence for the Philippines, China and the United States.

[Duterte wants U.S. troops out in the next two years[]

Scarborough is a flash point in the South China Sea conflict. The shoal, which the Chinese call Huangyan and the Filipinos call Panatag, is a triangular chain of reefs and rocks that lies about 120 miles off the coast of Luzon, not far from Subic Bay, the former U.S. naval base that still hosts regular visits from U.S. ships.

China seized control of the shoal in 2012. Since then, Philippine boats approaching the shoal have been routinely chased away by the Chinese coast guard, rammed or hit with a water cannon  a source of anger for many Filipinos.

The standoff between Manila and Beijing came to a head this summer when a European court issued a sweeping rebuke of Chinas claims to most of the South China Sea, including Scarborough.

But rather than press China on the ruling, the Philippines new president surprised many by playing down  though not outright dismissing  the ruling. Duterte has said he will not relinquish territory but is willing to talk to China about ways to defuse tension and get economic ties back on track.

A deal on fishing, if confirmed, would be a domestic political victory.

Ian Storey, a senior fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore, said he would not be surprised to see a return of Philippine boats.

Duterte requested this concession during his trip to Beijing last week, and if China had refused his request, he would have had egg all over his face and nothing to show for his pro-China stance, he said.

[International tribunal rejects Chinas claims to South China Sea]

An agreement on fishing would allow China and the Philippines to press ahead with rapprochement, potentially driving a wedge deeper into U.S.-Philippine relations.

It would also send a message to other countries in Southeast Asia that have clashed with China on maritime issues, Storey said: Dont challenge our claims, and in return, we will be magnanimous and allow you to share the resources that rightfully belong to us.



Richard Javad Heydarian, an assistant professor of political science at Manilas De La Salle University, said a change in the status quo at Scarborough Shoal would ease tension between China and the Philippines in the short term, though the long-term picture looks less clear.

China remains unlikely to compromise on the key question  sovereignty  meaning that the dispute persists. Its too early to say whether this will stand over time, he said.

Read more:

U.S. says Duterte is creating uncertainty in the Pacific region

Philippine leader wants U.S. troops out in the next two years

Philippines broadens claims of Chinese push into disputed South China Sea

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

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A smothering Syrian blockade and round-the-clock airstrikes have sought to starve and shock rebel-held areas of Aleppo into surrender. On Friday came the counterpunch: The rebels launched an apparent last-ditch effort to end the governments siege.

A failure by the rebels  a patchwork of militiamen and Islamist factions  to gain some breathing room could be a crippling blow to efforts to hold one of the last opposition strongholds.

Forces of the Syrian government and its partners, including Russia and Iran, have vowed to slam eastern Aleppo until the resistance is broken. A drawn-out fight in Aleppo, however, would display the resolve of opposition groups and force President Bashar al-Assad to decide whether to fight on or make an embarrassing pullback.

The gambit by the rebel forces seeks to take the battle to the government-held lines. The immediate aim is to open routes for supplies and reinforcements into rebel zones in eastern Aleppo, where more than 200,000 people face death in air raids and as a result of severe shortages of food and medicine.

[Gallery: Scenes from Aleppo]





Ahead of Fridays assault, rebel fighters released videos declaring that their offensive would deal a blow to Assad and his allies, including Shiite militiamen from Iran, Lebanon and Iraq. Russia backs Assad with warplanes and other battlefield equipment.

The rebels fired artillery indiscriminately at government-held neighborhoods in Aleppo, bringing a surge in violence to relatively calm areas. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the conflict, said the shelling killed 15 people and wounded more than 100 in western Aleppo.

Jabhat Fatah al-Sham  an al-Qaeda-linked, anti-Assad force formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra  said it carried out at least one suicide bombing. The various claims of casualties and attacks could not be independently verified.

Bad news for Bashar and his gangs. Our fighters love to die in the same way Bashar loves to live, a fighter from the Islamist Faylaq al-Sham unit says in a video, referring to the Syrian leader. The pronouncement is made against a background of Koranic verses.

The battle for Aleppo has become a crucial struggle in the more than five-year-old Syrian conflict because of its symbolic and strategic significance. It was Syrias largest city before the war, with a population then approaching 3 million. Many residents have since fled.

Rebels stormed Aleppos eastern districts in 2012, and the area is now their last major urban base.

[Aleppos children in the line of fire]

The city also has increasingly taken on international significance amid heightened friction between the West and Russia, which intervened militarily on Assads behalf last year.

Moscows aircraft have joined government warplanes in intensifying attacks on hospitals and residences in eastern Aleppo in recent weeks. Moscow has denied links to some airstrikes, including an air assault on a school in northern Syria this week that left more than two dozen people dead, many of them children.

Rising violence by Syria and its allies scuttled a cease-fire brokered last month by the United States and Russia. The bloodshed has drawn an international outcry because of widely circulated images from Aleppo showing devastation such as bombed-out hospitals and dead civilians, including children.

In Moscow on Friday, Syrias foreign minister, Walid al-Moualem, said the government could agree to a humanitarian pause in attacks on Aleppo if rebel forces allow civilians to leave areas they control.

But the foreign ministers of Russia and Iran told their Syrian counterpart that they would intensify the fight against terrorism in Syria, without giving specific details on potential targets.

The presence of al-Qaeda-linked fighters and other Islamist militants in battles for the city has introduced major political complications to the conflict. Syria and Russia claim they are seeking to fight terrorists, a term that they regularly use to describe most, if not all, of Assads opposition. And the West and its partners have been unable to draw clear distinctions between the militias they back and the extremist forces.

Relatively moderate rebels play down the role of the extremists, even as al-Qaeda-linked fighters and allied Islamist militants exert considerable sway over the rebellion, which began in 2011 with peaceful rallies during the Arab Spring uprisings.

Western officials have expressed concern about a flotilla of Russian warships  including an aircraft carrier capable of holding 40 planes  that appears to be making its way toward the Syrian coast, possibly to help Assads forces in Aleppo.

Lt. Col. Abu Bakr, commander of the Jaish al-Mujahideen rebel group, said the new offensive has yielded success.

Weve launched tens of rockets on regime positions, and weve broken through the governments first line of defense, said Bakr, speaking from Aleppo over the WhatsApp messenger service. There are about 5,000 rebels participating, and we think this will last a week until the siege is broken.

Syrian state media, however, reported that government forces repelled the rebel assaults.

Zakaria Zakaria in Istanbul contributed to this report.

Read more:

Syrian regime and Russia may have killed more children in latest bombing

A tale of two Syrias, told by drones

Four maps that explain the chaos of the Middle East

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

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Some of the 21 Chibok schoolgirls released by Boko Haram board a bus after their visit to President Muhammadu Buhari In Abuja, Nigeria October 19. (Afolabi Sotunde/Reuters)

The United Nations has negotiated the release this year of 876 children detained at a Nigerian army barracks because of suspicions of collaboration with the Boko Haram Islamic extremist group, the U.N. Childrens Fund announced Friday.

The agency fears that hundreds more children are still being held at the barracks in the northeastern city of Maiduguri, the UNICEF spokeswoman for Nigeria, Doune Porter, told the Associated Press.

Porter said many of the freed children were younger than 5, some still being breast-fed, and were detained because their parents were suspects. Nigerias military and police routinely lock up children along with parents suspected of a crime.

The detainees had been living in areas that were held by Boko Haram but then liberated, according to Manuel Fontaine, UNICEFs director for West and Central Africa.

This is the first time the United Nations has reported negotiating the releases, though Nigerias army routinely reports how many minors are among the detainees it frees after interrogations that it says establish they have no links to Boko Haram.

In the biggest single release negotiated by UNICEF, 560 people were freed in September, including 430 children and some of their mothers, Porter said.

The detainees have been held in Maiduguri, the birthplace of Boko Haram and the home of the Nigerian armys Giwa barracks. All the detainees at the barracks are held because of suspected support for Boko Haram.

The Associated Press has documented the deaths of thousands of detainees in unsanitary, overcrowded and inhumane conditions at Giwa barracks in recent years. Amnesty International has said 8,000 detainees died there between 2011 and 2015. This year, Amnesty called for the detention centers closure, saying babies and children are among the many detainees dying from disease, hunger, dehydration and untreated gunshot wounds.

Brig. Gen. Rabe Abubakar, a spokesman for Nigerias Defense Ministry, has called the charges by the London-based human rights group a distraction, insisting that our duty is to protect lives, and that is what we have been doing.

It was not immediately clear how long the newly released children had been held. The army routinely detains civilians who live in areas that had been ruled by the insurgents on suspicion that they, too, might be linked to militant activities. But rights groups say there is no proper legal process for such civilians.

Fontaine said the conflict, which has killed thousands and displaced more than 2 million, has separated about 20,000 children from their parents, of which 5,000 had since been reunited with their families. But Boko Harams use of child suicide bombers, often girls, has contributed to fear in communities.

Once we get children out, there is a major issue of stigmatization in the communities, Fontaine said. There is a sense that children who have been associated with Boko Haram for a while could be  and in some cases, we have some evidence, are  rejected by community and people around them.

 Associated Press

Read more:

Chibok leader: 100-plus girls unwilling to leave Boko Haram

75,000 children in Nigeria could die from hunger over the next year

Three months ago, it was a tiny Ugandan village. Now its the worlds fourth-largest refugee camp.

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news
Want to learn to be an active listener and reach out to others in a distinctively Christian way? Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, 3825 Wildbriar Lane, will host a Stephen Ministry Introductory Workshop from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. next Saturday (Nov. 5).

Registration begins at 8 a.m.;. refreshments will be served. The half-day workshop consists of three sessions designed to both enhance participants caregiving skills and to help congregations explore ways to expand their caring ministry.

The workshop is sponsored by Stephen Ministries, the St. Louis-based Christian training organization that has been providing congregations with training and resources for Christian caregiving since 1975. The workshop will be led by Mrs. Kathy Hollenbeck who is a trained Stephen Minister and Stephen Leader and has been a member of the staff at the Stephen Ministries Center in St. Louis since 2012.

In the first session of the workshop, Ministering to Those Experiencing Grief, participants learn about the grief processthe stages of grief and how to minister to people in each of those stages. The second session provides an introduction to the Stephen Series, a system of lay caring ministry through which congregation leaders can equip members to provide one-to-one Christian care to people in need. The final session of the workshop explains How to Care in a Distinctively Christian Way.

The cost of the workshop is $15 per person or $50 for a group of four or more from the same congregation. To register, contact Stephen Ministries at (314) 428-2600 or go online at www.stephenministry.org/workshop.
According to tightened state regulations regarding Germanys Hartz IV welfare benefits, the unemployed now have to deal with drastic penalties of up to 5,000 if the information on their applications is incomplete.

This regulation supplements Amendment 9 to the Social Security Codes II, which went into effect at the beginning of August. It was submitted by Andrea Nahles, Social Democratic Party (SPD) minister of social affairs and employment. It contains a far-reaching tightening of regulations for Hartz IV recipients.

The formation and content of the law demonstrates that, should a red-red-green coalition of the SPD, the Left Party and the Greens form the next government, social attacks will proceed and become even worse.

Under the title Tougher penalties for tricksters and dawdlers, Spiegel Online reported October 25 on the new internal directives of the Federal Labour Office. These determine how the amended law will be enforced. Among other things, sanctions against Hartz IV recipients whose application forms contain errors can include fines of up to 5,000.

The Hartz IV provisions, which amount to a single payment of 404 per month plus rent and heating costs, is not sufficient for a humane existence. Recipients have already been humiliated by sanctions, harassed, and robbed of their social rights. They have been punished by benefit reductions of 30, 40 andamong young peopleup to 100 percent. The new regulations represent a further escalation in the attacks against them.

Up to now, one would only be threatened with penalties if false information had been entered on applications. Now it is enough for information to be missing. Penalties can be imposed even when no damage has been done.

Imprisonment is also a possibility. The Bild newspaper quoted from the directives of the authorities, according to which Hartz IV recipients shall face prison time if they have clearly expressed their unwillingness to pay, a regulation which opens the door for arbitrary detentions and the deprivation of rights.

In addition to this, Job Centers must inform the relevant immigration authorities if a foreign Hartz IV recipient is penalized with fines of more than 1,000, a fact that could encourage their deportation. In the event of petty offences, the Job Centers will now impose fines of up to 55, instead of the previous 50 maximum.

The effect of these regulations will be devastating. No Hartz IV recipient can pay a fine of 5,000 and no bank will provide them with credit for such fines. The government is forcing complete subjugation to the Hartz IV regime, which will lead to deeper indebtedness, homelessness, illness, hunger, addiction and criminality.

Such laws are directed against the entire working class. They are meant to create an atmosphere of anxiety and fear among workers and youth. Any worker who is laid off must fear that they will wind up on the streets or in prison.

Around 4.3 million people of working age are Hartz IV recipients. The ongoing capitalist crisis is driving the numbers of the long-term unemployed especially high, with 1 in 3 (1.4 million) living on welfare for more than eight years.

When life at the minimum subsistence level becomes a permanent state, fear, worry and need become prevalent, which already makes it more difficult to fill out the complicated Hartz IV applications correctly.

According to information from the Federal Labour Office (BA), from April 2015 to March 2016, the Job Centers have imposed almost 1 million benefit reductions (950,000 against 414,000 beneficiaries). Nearly 7,000 people had their benefits cut completely in March 2016. Young people up to the age of 25, as well as minors, are especially affected by these brutal measures. In the last year, 1,800 persons sanctioned were only 15 years old and almost 15,000 between the ages of 16 and 17 years old. From 2007 to 2015, the Federal Labour Office saved 1.7 billion alone through sanctions.

The law, which was created under the auspices of Minister Nahles, exploits the desperate situation of those affected to place them under even greater financial and social pressure and finally to condemn them to misery.

Nahles actions are in keeping with the tradition of the red-green government of Gerhard Schroder and Joschka Fischer. During their period of rule (1998-2005), they used their Agenda 2010 reforms to begin a comprehensive assault on the social rights of the working class. The Hartz laws were a component of their sanctions regime.

For the federal elections in 2017, a new government of the SPD and the Greens is being prepared, but this time the Left Party will also be taken on board. In the state of Berlin and nationally, a red-red-green coalition government is currently being prepared.

Until now, the SPD and the Greens have repeatedly rejected a nationwide collaboration with the Left Party. Under conditions of deep economic and political crisis, however, sections of the ruling class see in an alliance between the Social Democrats, the Greens and the Left Party the only possibility for carrying out their program of social cuts and militarism domestically and abroad against the opposition of the working class.

Such an alliance would not be a left-wing alternative to a Christian Democratic Union/Social Democratic Party government. On the contrary, it would build on their right-wing policies and strengthen them further.

As far as the SPD is concerned, the initiative for tougher sanctions against Hartz IV beneficiaries comes directly from them. Gabriele Losekrug-Moller (SPD), the state secretary in the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, justified the sanctions by saying that without them there would be no way to make sure that welfare recipients were also committed to cooperation and ready to supply their own effort. Obviously, the SPD representatives voted both in parliament and the federal council for stricter laws.

The Greens have surpassed the SPD in hypocrisy and cynicism. As the junior partner of the SPD, they passed the Hartz IV legislation together with the sanctions regime. However, since the party congress in 2012 in Hannover, they have called for a moratorium on sanctions. Party head Cem Ozdemir warned at that time that the Greens should be identified with participation and justice on this issue, and denounced the humiliation of Hartz IV recipients.

Member of Parliament Brigette Pothmer (Green Party) conceded that this Hartz IV system [is] perceived as a very repressive system by the entire society, but especially by the unemployed.

In October 2015, the Greens in parliament requested the suspension of sanctions pending an expert evaluation of the sanctions process. This request was nothing but a publicity stunt to make it look like they opposed the awful situation in the Job Centres. In parliament, Nahles rejected the change in the law.

In the Federal Council vote, however, the Greens voted for a law that went far beyond the legislation Ozdemir had called a humiliation for the sake of publicity back in 2012.

However, the Left Party is playing an even more despicable role. It openly advocates a red-red-green coalition and recommends itself as a coalition partner by throwing all its platitudes about discriminatory welfare practice overboard and supporting Hartz IV. Recently, the Left Party participated in a joint meeting with the SPD and the Greens in parliament. The philosopher Oskar Negt opened the meeting by saying that the collapse of democratic institutions could only be prevented by means of a collaborative left working together.

The Left Party representatives of two states that have coalition governments with the SPD abstained from the parliamentary vote over Nahles law out of consideration for the coalition partners, as Katja Kipping put it.

The new attacks on Hartz IV recipients prescribed by Amendment 9 to the Social Security Codes II provide a foretaste of the kind of measures that would be carried out by a red-red-green federal government.
At the scary-fun time of year symbolized by jack-o-lanterns, black cats, and witches, its easy to forget that the latter have a serious backstory. Part of that comes from the infamous Salem Witch Trials that took place in colonial Massachusetts in 1692. Two hundred people were wrongly accused of witchcraft  20 of them were executed  based on flimsy or absolutely no solid evidence. It was such a dark spot in American history that Massachusetts formally apologized for the events in 1957.

More than 300 years after they took place, the Salem Witch Trials still fascinate in pop culture. Theyve inspired shows such as Salem, an episode of The Simpsons, and movies like Winona Ryders The Crucible (inspired by the Arthur Miller play). Interestingly, a few of todays celebrities have real-life family ties to the historical event.

Sarah Jessica Parker

Other than Sex and the Citys Carrie Bradshaw, Parker is arguably best known for her role as one of the villainous witches in the Halloween kiddie classic Hocus Pocus. In the flick, her character and her two sisters were hanged in the Salem Witch Trials and then brought back to life in 1993.

Parker discovered on the ancestry show Who Do You Think You Are? that one of her own relatives  her 10th great-grandmother, Esther Elwell, on her mothers side  actually was one of the many accused. When the actress appeared on the show in 2010, historical records and genealogists led her to the Massachusetts Historical Society and a copy of Elwells arrest warrant for being one of three women who allegedly caused a 17-year-old girl to fall sick and die.

Related: 20 Truly Spooktacular Celebrity Family Halloween Costumes

Honestly, Im so worried. Im kind of nauseous, Parker said while waiting to hear Elwells fate.

It turned out Elwell was one of the survivors of the ordeal. She was the last person formally accused of witchcraft, and the court that handled witches was dissolved less than three weeks before Elwells court date. SJPs ancestor lived to be 82.

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Who knows what wouldve happened to our family if the witch hunt had continued? a relieved Parker asked.

Scott Foley

The Scandal stars family roots also reach back to the Salem Witch Trials, but the ending is different. Foley discovered on an April 2016 episode of the same show that Samuel Wardwell, his eighth great-grandfather on his fathers side, was accused of afflicting a 16-year-old girl who believed him to be a wizard. Wardwell was also a suspected witch because, according to records, he had accurately predicted that a woman would give birth to five girls before she had a boy.

Related: Stars Celebrate Halloween the Disney Way

Wardwell was accused, convicted, and hanged over nine days in September 1692. His tombstone reads, God knows I am innocent.

The grave site was Foleys final stop on his journey of self-discovery.

I take his story from this day forward, everywhere I go, Foley said.

Tom Felton

Thats right  one of Harry Potters classmates at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry  has people accused of the dark arts in his family tree. In 2007, researcher David Nelson told the U.K. newspaper the Sun that Felton was a descendant of the first man accused in the Salem Witch Trials.

He is a distant relative of John Proctor  who was hanged on August 19, 1692, Nelson said. I have informed Toms manager about witches in his family tree.

Related: Celebs Scare Up Some Halloween Fun (Photos)

Historian Emerson W. Baker, a history professor at Salem State University, also cited Feltons connection to the ordeal in a 2014 book, A Storm of Witchcraft: The Salem Trials and the American Experience.

Calculations suggest that there must be well over 100 million living descendants of the accused in Salem, not to mention all the other people known to have been involved in the witch trials, he wrote. Descendants range from George W. Bush and the heir to the British throne Prince William to actress Sarah Jessica Parker and Tom Felton, the English actor who played Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter movies. Most Americans must either be a descendant or know someone who has such a connection. Salems trials truly are the trials of a nation, whether we realize it or not.

And the story reaches all the way to Hollywood.
A Lancaster, Pa., man was sentenced to 18 months in prison on charges of hacking into celebrity email accounts and obtaining nude photographs of Jennifer Lawrence, Ariana Grande, Kate Upton, and others.

Ryan Collins, 36, pled guilty in March to a felony violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.

Investigators said that they have not uncovered any evidence linking Collins to the actual leaks of the photos or that he shared or uploaded the information he obtained.

Authorities said that Collins engaged in a phishing scheme to obtain user names and passwords. He then sent emails that appeared to be from Apple or Google and asked users to provide user names or passwords.

Investigators said that he would use a software program to download the entire contents of victims Apple iCloud backups and that he also ran a modeling scam in which he tricked some into sending him nude photos.

U.S. Attorney Bruce Brandler, in a press release, said that he accessed at least 50 iCloud accounts and 72 Gmail accounts, many of which belonged to female celebrities.

The FBI launched an investigation into the hacked photos in September 2014, in what became to be known as Celebgate.

In July, a Chicago man plead guilty to charges of hacking into the accounts of 300 people, including 30 celebrities.

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From Esquire

Last week, Bernie Sanders went to Arizona to campaign for the candidate who beat him in the Democratic primaries. This is part of what he said, as brought to us by 12News out in those parts.

"This campaign is not about Donald Trump vs. Hillary Clinton. This campaign is about you, your future and the future of your families.Electing Donald Trump as president would be a disaster for this country and something we must not allow. In fact, I would suggest that Mr. Trump is the least qualified, the least qualified candidate in the history of this country to ever run for president. We will not elect a president who objectifies women, who boasts about sexual assaultsOn November 8 our job is to defeat Trump and elect Hilary Clinton as our president. This election is important, but politics and the fight for justice isn't just about election day, you got to get to work the day after too."

We should pause for a moment here and note that, ever since the Democratic National Convention last summer, Bernie Sanders has been as big a mensch as any politician ever has been. He has been a far bigger mensch than a lot of his supporters on and off your social media feeds and in and out of the actual media itself. He more clearly has his eye on the ball than do either of the most prominent third-party candidates, both of whom have embarrassed themselves in different ways.

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He has done so despite the revelations that (glorioski!) people in the Clinton campaign said unkind things about him in private e-mails. While many of his acolytes are crowding each for room on the fainting couch, Sanders has walked merrily on, keeping the whole thing in cool and blessed perspective, as The Daily Beast observed.

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"Trust me, if they went into our emails-I suppose which may happen, who knows-I'm sure there would be statements that would be less than flattering about, you know, the Clinton staff," Sanders said Wednesday, dismissing the current leaks as unsurprising. "That's what happens in campaigns."

This is not to say that he won't be holding a possible Clinton Administration's feet to the fire on the issues on which he campaigned. The same can (and should) be said about Senator Professor Warren, who has been even more ferocious in her support for the ticket. Which means I don't get this Jonathan Capehart piece in The Washington Post at all.

Now, here's what I find fascinating about these stories. Sanders is a general who wants to lead an army he hasn't seen fit to formally join. Warren is a fierce fighter in that army whose fellow troops want her to lead them. Not only did Sanders not join the Democratic Party to run for its presidential nomination, but after his defeat, he declared, "I was elected as an independent; I'll stay two years more as an independent." And his refusal to raise money for the party during his epic campaign has not been forgotten. To call on its members to follow him.

There is no more reliable Democratic establishment mouthpiece than Jonathan Capehart, so I am not surprised he so badly misreads the politics here. Sanders' formal party allegiance doesn't matter a damn. He is a man with a substantial public following who, in the main, supports everything that the progressive wing of the Democratic party stands for and then some.

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Senator Professor Warren did not arrive at Harvard Law on a turnip truck. She knows that, if there's going to be a progressive power bloc within what may be a Democratic Senate majority, it is going to need Sanders and his supporters to reach its full potential. And Capehart's transparent attempt to make Warren into the de facto Democratic establishment candidate in a fanciful "battle" for leadership of this bloc is disrespectful to the political acumen of both senators. Everything will be fine. We're all mensches on this bus.

Click here to respond to this post on the official Esquire Politics Facebook page.

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Is there a better use of your TV watching time than curling up with a great horror movie for a good scare? And if it happens to be Halloween, all the better.

And yet it's surprisingly hard to find the really great horror moviesthe true classics and the scary sleepers that cinephiles loveon most streaming services. Which is why we're making your Halloween watching easy with 10 great horror movies now streaming for free. (Some of the services do require a monthly membership, but all offer a free trial.)

Many streaming services treat horror movies as an afterthought, even around Halloween. The large outletswe're talking to you, Netflixhave a ton of movies but don't do a great job of curation, lumping in iconic titles with commodity slasher fare.

Is a free horror movie really free if you spend half an hour flipping through menus to find it? Since you're only going to watch a couple of horror movies between now and Monday, our list renders that question moot.

With that in mind, some smaller sites do a better job of steering you to exactly the right kind of horror movie you're in the mood for. Shudder ($4.99/month after a free trial) is a streaming service designed for the hardcore horror fan, and its menus, featuring quirkily specific categories like Bad Genes & Killer Kids or The End is Nigh, are a delight to use.

Shout Factory TV has a selection of free campy horror classics, available for streaming, like "The Atomic Brain" we selected for the list. Shout Factory's sister site features DVD and Blu-ray special editions of lots of classic horror movies, including several titles on this list well worth owning ("Carrie," "The Thing," "Babadook").

Among the Netflix competitors, Vudu features a surprisingly strong selection of Hollywood horror classics for free streaming (albeit with commercials), while Crackle features a few prime titles that are ready when you are.

Or you could just let us pick your Halloween fare. We selected 10 great films that run the gamut from 1950s camp to a Swedish vampire flick to some Hollywood titles that could be suitable to family viewing. Click through and add some chills to your Halloween weekend.

Story continues

1. Addams Family Values

Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, this 1993 sequel is an almost perfect family movie that plays softer than its 23-year-old PG-13 rating might indicate. Mature younger children will embrace the hijinks, older kids will love Christina Riccis smart and subversive portrayal of older daughter Wednesday, while parents will laugh at the camp (and the subtly sensual relationship between Raul Julias Gomez and Anjelica Houstons Morticia.) Wednesdays takeover of the Camp Chippewa play is a classic comedy setup that resonates even more strongly today. Roger Ebert called it "the rare sequel that is better than its original." Who it's for: Children of all ages. Where to find it: Netflix

2. The Atomic Brain

Originally released under the title "Monstrosity," this 1963 B movie has become a cult favorite in the so-bad-its-good genre of low-budget horror. So much so that a 2015 Kickstarter campaign raised $27,000 for a 4K restoration of the film. The plot: In some kind of twisted proto-feminist statement, a wealthy old woman uses atomic power to transplant her brain into the body of her sexy housekeeper. Need we say more? Who its for: Snarky tweens and teens and lovers of retro camp. Where to find it: Shout Factory/Hulu/YouTube

3. Babadook

This recent Australian indie, by debut filmmaker Jennifer Kent, has quickly earned classic status with its simple but terrifying premise: a young widow and her son are beset by supernatural forces. Or are they? The film goes light on the special effects but the performances of Essie Davis as Amelia and Noah Wiseman as her six-year-old son Sam are affecting and memorable. "You wonder if you should be afraid for Amelia or afraid of her," writes NY Times reviewer AO Scott, who included "Babadook" in his Top 10 films of 2014. Who its for: Couples without young children. Where to find it: Netflix

4. Carnival of Souls

Whats the first modern horror film? What marks the moment where the genre crossed over from Vincent Price camp to strange things happening to (mostly) normal people? It might just be this 1962 black-and-white cult classic. The photography is crisp and so is the acting, especially by steely, blond Candace Hiligoss. "It's impossible to know whether this movie was seen by such directors as David Lynch or George Romero," wrote Roger Ebert, when "Carnival of Souls" was re-released in 1989. "But in the way it shows the horror beneath the surface of placid small-town life, it suggests 'Blue Velvet.'" Who its for: "Twin Peaks" fans and students of the cinema. Where to find it: Shudder/Tubi/YouTube

5. Carrie

Steven King films have been notoriously hard to adapt to the big screen. Cinephiles love Stanley Kubricks "The Shining," but the author reportedly hated it. Which leaves "Carrie," directed by the underrated 1980s auteur Brian DePalma ("Scarface," "Blow Out"), as, arguably, the most successful film adaptation of Kings work. Sissy Spacek, who beat out Linda Blair, Jill Clayburgh, Farrah Fawcett, and Melanie Griffith for the title role, is not only brilliant, but shes game. Thats her hand reaching up from beyond the grave, with Spacek actually buried in a box below. Who its for:Anyone who hated high school. A lot. Where to find it: Vudu

6. Let the Right One In

Forget about those Stephanie Meyer movies. This 2008 subtitled Swedish import may be a vampire film, but its one that Bram Stoker could relate to. Its the story of gender-bending first love between two lonely, outsidery 12-year-olds, one of whom just happens to be a vampire. Roger Ebert describes them as kids washed up on the shores of despair," adding "We care for them more than they care for themselves." Needless to say, although this is a movie about tweens, its not a movie for tweens. Who its for: Fans of "Nosferatu," not "Twilight." Where to find it: Shudder

7. Night of the Living Dead

Are you one of the 15 million or so people who watch "The Walking Dead" every Sunday night? This George Romero low-budget feature is Robert Kirkman's inspiration. Filmed in gritty black and white, it's the touchstone of the zombie genre, establishing those relentless but slow-moving monsters as a metaphor for, well, us. Its also an early example of guerilla filmmaking that likely inspired subsequent lo-fi features from Steven Soderberghs "Sex, Lies, and Videotape" to "The Blair Witch Project." While it isnt particularly gory by modern standards, New Yorker critic Pauline Kaels admonition"one of the most gruesomely terrifying movies ever made"makes NOTLD unsuitable for younger kids. Who its for: "Walking Dead" fans and would-be filmmakers. Where to find it: Shudder/YouTube

8. Scream

By embracing the cliches of the horror film, this 1996 Wes Craven sleeper pretty much single-handedly reinvigorated the slasher film genre. Written in only three days by then-struggling screenwriter Kevin Williamson and originally titled "Scary Movie," "Scream" is built on the backbone of a stellar ensemble cast (from Drew Barrymore to Courteney Cox) playing characters who are as familiar with the tropes of the genre as we are. But despite these knowing nods, or perhaps because of them, "Scream" remains every bit as frightening as the films that its gently parodying. Who its for: Horror film fans who can recite Jamie Lee Curtiss performance from "Halloween" line for line. Where to find it: Netflix

9. Sleepy Hollow

Are horror films not really your thing? If so, this Tim Burton adaptation of the Washington Irving classic is a solid choice. For once declining to bring the weird, Burton largely plays things straight with lush, atmospheric production values that look especially great on an HD flat-screen, and an evocative Danny Elfman score. Johnny Depp as Ichibod and Christina Ricci as Katrina Van Tassel channel great leading couples of a bygone day, with just a dash of their trademark eccentricity to keep things interesting. While theres a bit of gorethis is a film about decapitation, after allthis R-rated film might be the perfect Halloween date night film if youd rather be thrilled than frightened. Who its for: Couples looking for a Hallows Eve film thats moody, rather than blood-curdling. Where to find it: Netflix

10. The Thing

Screen Rant calls this version of "The Thing" the best remake of all time and its hard to disagree. There was much to like about Howard Hawkes' 1956 original about aliens who can take any form they desire, and the paranoia that ensues. But the 1982 remake, by John Carpenter of "Halloween" fame, takes it to the next level. Largely panned upon its releaseNY Times critic Vincent Canby called it "the quintessential moron movie of the eighties" it has since achieved something of a classic status, and today it looks as great as Kurt Russells splendid beard. All that earned "The Thing" a lavish 4K remastering by Shout Factory, and an important new clue for viewers. The bonus materials contain an interview with cinematographer Dean Cundey about how he visually differentiated between the humans and the aliens: "We were looking for some kind of a subtle way, to say which one of these (men) might be human. You'll notice there's always an eye light, we call it, a little gleam in the eye of the actor. It gives life."Hmmmm. Who it's for: Heady horror fans not inclined toward paranoia. Where to find it: Crackle





More from Consumer Reports:

Top pick tires for 2016

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Consumer Reports has no relationship with any advertisers on this website. Copyright  2006-2016 Consumers Union of U.S.
From Cosmopolitan

Photo credit: Netflix

When it comes to interracial dating, the people whove been there will tell you there can definitely be struggles. In a recent Ask Reddit thread, interracial couples laid out the real obstacles they encounter daily that they werent expecting before they got together.

1. When literally no one thinks youre together. "My husband and I went to Disney World with my side of the family. So theres 11 black people and only one white man. Were in line and when its our turn for the ride, they always cut the line off when it got to him," says Reddit user captawesome1794. "Everyone had to explain that he was in fact part of our group and no, he wasnt trying to cut us...."



Photo credit: YouTube

2. When couple pics require more work than youre used to. "I am white, she is black. Taking selfies in the sun is a bitch," says Reddit user ehs5. "The picture either turns out way too dark or way too bright."



3. When you both have to adjust to a few linguistic differences. One white man with a Hindu wife explains that "theres a word in Tamil [her language] that literally translates to useless, but the Tamil word is often used colloquially to mean something closer to not currently needed," says Reddit user YWAK98alum. "But that doesnt stop my wife from describing all kinds of people (including me, frequently) as straight-up useless, including to their faces, and then wondering why these people either get angry or just avoid her."



Photo credit: Netflix

4. When people make backhanded comments about your significant others race. Reddit user PM_ME_UNIFORMS, a white woman married to a Southeast Asian man, explains, "The worst part for me is the number of people (OK, women) who, after learning Im married to an Asian guy, say something along the lines of Oh, I couldnt, Ive just never been attracted to Asian men! This is way worse than the people who ask things like does he speak much English? when hes lived in Canada longer than theyve been alive."

Story continues

5. When you have to deal with "jokes" about your race. Reddit user BananaTwinkie, an Asian woman, describes meeting her husbands father, who is of German descent. She says he told her, "You dont have to squint, its not that dark in here. This was meant as a joke and I took it as such since there was not malicious intent, just ignorant joking. I replied with, Fuck you! Wheres the beer?"

Photo credit: FX

6. When people try to "guess" your partners ethnicity. "Im a white woman married to a man whos half Egyptian and half Native ... The most surprising was how tactless some people are. What is he? just sounds so rude and I hear it way too damn often," says Reddit user CatherineAm. "Ive had people ask if hes Mexican, Columbian [sic], Middle Eastern, Singaporean, and at one point someone asked if he was a Syrian refugee. Like I know that Egyptian/Native is uncommon, but it was like the people asking that had never even seen people from the backgrounds they were guessing."



7. When people hit on you or your significant other because they dont think youre a couple. "I am a black woman married to a Korean man ... people assume we are never together in lines, at bars, or social events (cant tell you the amount of times men openly hit on me right next to my husband)," says Reddit user bflowyngz. "Usually only happens if we are just standing next to each other and not really talking. If we are talking, they assume we work together."

Photo credit: Hulu

8. When your kids arent sure of how to self-identify. "My wife is white, I am Asian. Children go through stages of self-identifying white or Asian," says Reddit user unreplicate. "When he was young, my son was annoyed when my wife visited him during school lunch because his friends found out he had a white mother. Now, older, he is not much into Asian culture."

9. When people dont believe your kids are actually your kids. "Im half-Korean and my wife is white. I have two kids. One kid is obviously of ambiguous ethnic heritage and the other is blond hair and blue-eyed ... I never thought I would have to explain to my daughter that she is really my daughter," says Reddit user gamerplays. "I have had people come up to me and tried to stop me from picking her up. Ive had people straight out ask me who her father is."

Photo credit: E!

10. When youre surprised by who accepts you as a couple and who doesnt. A white woman married to a South-Asian woman, Reddit user breakingupishard22, says, "The only thing thats ever stood out to me is that people are always surprised that her Muslim parents are cooler with us than my white atheist parents. My dad has practically disowned me and hasnt spoken to me in six years. My father-in-law is just happy his daughter married an accountant with a nice car."

Photo credit: ABC

11. When you can be harassed just for being in public together. "We were around a liberal town right outside NJ (New Hope) and we were spit on by a motorcyclist on his way out of main street," says Reddit user Zeroeh, a white man with a black wife. He also added, "I was stopped by the police before and the cop actually pulled me out of the car and asked me if she was a prostitute and would not believe me until I showed our wedding photo thats in my wallet."

Photo credit: CBS

12. When you learn that your relationship is so much more than what anyone else thinks. "At the end of the day, you are married to each other and not each others cultures or families," says Reddit user bflowyngz. "You have to respect and love the person you lie down with at night."



Follow Julia on Twitter.

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No one can credit Volkswagen for being earlyor even on timeto the crossover game, but soon the company wont be accused of ignoring it, either. Once it launches all of its planned entries (there are up to five on the way), VW will have one of the most comprehensive crossover lineups in the business. Leading the offensive as the fall leaves drop this year is the new 2017 Tiguan compact CUV, and by the time the leaves fully grow back next spring, VW dealerships should be selling the all-new, three-row 2018 Atlas, the largest and most U.S.-centric model VW has ever sold here. It will be produced at the Chattanooga plant, the first SUV that VW will build in America.

To say that the Atlas is highly anticipated is an understatement, previewed as it first was way back in January 2013 by the CrossBlue concept and subsequently as the CrossBlue Coupe concept and the Cross Coupe GTE concept. It rides on VWs prolific MQB bones, which have been stretched to the max: Overall length is 198.3 inches, width is 77.9 inches, and height is 69.6 inches. The first two numbers make the Atlas nearly four inches longer than a Honda Pilot but an inch narrower. (Its height falls between the Pilots two available heights, which depend on trim level.) Like the CrossBlue/Cross Coupe concepts, the Atlas is decidedly masculine, with a broad and flat nose, flat-topped wheel openings, a sloping rear window, and generally geometric formsit resembles a larger, snappier Jeep Grand Cherokee. Giving it some distinction among its established competitors are a body-side crease that rises over the wheels and standard LED headlamps underscored by LED daytime running lights. LED taillamps will be optional.

The Atlas will be offered in five different trim levelswe understand that none of them will be badged Sportand priced for the heart of the competitive SUV market, VW says. The interior is essentially the Passat writ large, with the driver and front passenger placed before a broad, flat, rather uninteresting dashboard. All Atlases will feature integration of Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and MirrorLink. VWs reconfigurable digital screen that replaces analog gauges, called Digital Cockpit (think Audi Virtual Cockpit), is on the options list, as is a 12-speaker Fender audio system that VW claims is the most sophisticated Fender system yet to appear in one of its vehicles. Also offered will be a slew of driver-assistance features, including adaptive cruise control, forward-collision warning, automated emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring, rear traffic alert, and lane-departure warning with steering assist. Theres also post-collision braking, which applies the brakes when a crash is detected, helping reduce the risk of a secondary collision, according to VW.

The Atlas will seat seven with its three-across second-row seat, while second-row captains chairs that reduce capacity to six people are likely to be on the options list. As we noted during our drive of a camouflaged prototype over the summer, sitting inside is more like sliding into a car than climbing into an SUV. The rather long rear doors, plus a clever folding rear seat, facilitate access to the two-person third row even with a child seat installed in the second. VW says it designed the third row so that two adults can fit with a modicum of luggage behind them, an effort that seems to have paid off, based on our experience on the early drive.

The 2018 Atlas will be available with two engines, neither of which are diesels. A 238-hp 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder is the standard offering, while the companys aging 280-hp 3.6-liter VR6 serves as the upgrade engine. Torque specs were not provided, but if we were betting folk, we would guess that the four-pot would make somewhere between 258 and 273 lb-ft of torque, while the VR6 probably will make the same 258 lb-ft as it does in the Passat. Each will pair with an eight-speed automatic transmission with manual shift mode. All four-cylinder models will feature front-wheel drive, while the VR6 will be available with VWs 4MOTION all-wheel-drive system. As we learned during our prototype drive, the Atlass 4MOTION system features a drive-mode selector that offers Snow, Sport, On-Road, and Off-Road settings.

Our prior experience also informed us of the Atlass Passat-like handling and sufficient acceleration, at least in VR6 form. Off-road dexterity met and, in certain respects, exceeded our expectations, although we dont expect it to outfox the Jeep Grand Cherokee in the dirt.

Since the Atlas was basically tailor-made for the United States, it appears to be well equipped to take on the myriad competitors in this contentious segment when it finally arrives next spring. Were looking forward to sliding behind the wheel of the production-spec model so we can tell you more.
There are many benefits to earning a college degree overseas, from lower or free tuition to earning a quality education from a top-notch global university. For computer science and engineering majors, some of the best colleges for these majors are outside the U.S.

Although many public universities in countries outside the U.S. -- such as Germany, Norway, Slovenia and Brazil -- don't charge tuition, others do. Some universities in countries that formerly did not charge tuition, such as Finland, now do for students who are coming from outside the European Union. And even if a university doesn't charge tuition, students may still be required to pay small program fees, in addition to covering their living and travel expenses.

[See global universities where tuition is low or free.]

Fortunately, scholarships are available to help you cover tuition and extra expenses you may encounter when attending a top-rated computer science or engineering university overseas.

The Women Techmakers Scholars Program, formerly known as the Google Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship Program, is for women around the world who are currently studying computer science, computer engineering, informatics or a closely related technical ?eld.

Female applicants must be attending an accredited university for the 2016-17 academic year and intend to be enrolled in or have been accepted as a full- or part-time student in a bachelor's or graduate program at a university in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Middle East, Africa or the Asia Pacific region for the 2017-2018 academic year.

Applicants must also demonstrate leadership and a passion for strengthening the role of women in computer science. Based on the region where the winner will be studying, awards range from $10,000 in the U.S., $5,000 in Canada and 7,000 euros (roughly $7,635) for students studying in Europe, Africa or the Middle East. The deadline to apply is Dec. 16.

[Find a STEM scholarship for each type of college student.]

Story continues

Microsoft offers the Microsoft Tuition Scholarship program to students pursuing computer science or science, technology, engineering and math -- or STEM -- degrees in North America. Recipients receive full or partial tuition for one year, but the funds may only be used for tuition. Recipients must also maintain at least a 3.0 cumulative grade point average. The deadline to apply is Jan. 26, 2017.

Students with disabilities who are currently studying computer science, computer engineering, informatics or a closely related field in Europe can apply for the Google Europe Scholarship for Students with Disabilities. Google has partnered with EmployAbility, a nonprofit that supports students with disabilities pursue education and careers, to offer this 7,000 EUR (roughly $7,635) award.

[Read more about how U.S. students can find college scholarships to study in Europe.]

In addition to being enrolled for a full- or part-time bachelor's, master's or doctoral program for 2017-18, applicants must have a disability, which is defined as a long-term or recurring issues that impacts their daily abilities, and must demonstrate a strong academic record, leadership and a passion for computer science and technology. The deadline to apply is Dec. 1, 2016.

Students who want to study at the University of Information Science and Technology at St. Paul the Apostle College in Macedonia can earn a full scholarship from the Republic of Macedonia to make this possible. Students must be younger than 22 years old and want to pursue a bachelor's degree in computer science and engineering, among other related programs, at UIST.

The Macedonia Ministry of Education and Science offers one full scholarship to a candidate from each eligible country, which includes the U.S. as well as a number of countries throughout Europe, Africa and Asia. Each award covers full tuition, visa and residence permit fees, return air fare from the applicant's home country, full board at a university dorm and a monthly allowance of roughly $120. The award is renewable given satisfactory academic progress.

Students from the 27 Colombo Plan countries -- including the U.S., Australia and Japan -- who wish to study engineering in New Zealand can apply for the $3,000 Colombo Plan Scholarship in Engineering.

Applicants must plan to pursue undergraduate or postgraduate engineering programs at the University of Auckland in New Zealand. Applicants are chosen based on finacnial need, academic merit, community involvement, communication skills, leadership potential and their desire to positively contribute to engineering. Applications are due Aug. 1 every year.

If you plan to or are already pursuing a computer science or engineering degree overseas, these scholarships and others can help lighten your financial burden.

Arthur Murray, a graduate of the University of North Carolina--Chapel Hill, is managing editor of the GoodCall.com newsroom. The organization provides access to information, data, technology and tools, including a scholarship engine, to help visitors make important decisions.
An empty house is just a collection of boxy rooms, but once you move in and make it your home, filling it with your belongings, its something elsea cozy place where you feel safe from the outside world.

But guess what? Your home may be harboring some visitors who were most definitely not invited, and they didnt come in through the front door, either. Heres a rundown of six creepy crawly intruders, and tips for how to get rid of them and keep them out for good.

Bats

These flying rodents are not only the stuff of nightmarestheyre also dangerous. They can also transmit a host of diseases, from histoplasma capsulatum, a fungus that causes lung disease, to Ebola. Bats can sneak into your home through even a quarter-inch-sized hole. And now that the weathers getting cooler, theyre actively looking for cozy new digs.

Your best scare tactic: If you hear the chilling squeal of bats in your attic, you must first determine how they are getting into your home. Look for brown or black stains (a telltale oil deposit from their fur) around suspected entry points near your roof. Once youve found their way in, you can install bat cones, which are like small, slippery funnels. These allow the bat to fly out of your house, just not come back in, says Ron Harrison, PhD, an entomologist for Orkin, which offers pest-control services around the world.

Rats

Back in the Middle Ages, these rodents were responsible for carrying bubonic plague, which killed off, oh, one-third of Europes entire population. Today, rats still carry the plague, which still infects people in the United States (although not hardly so rampant), as well as a gamut of other ugly diseases. Theyre also a danger to your home, since they can chew through electrical wires and start fires, says Harrison.

Your best scare tactic: A rat can squeeze into your home through a hole as small as a half-dollar, so fill any gaps with steel wool. If youve already got a rat infestation, set traps with a pea-sized amount of peanut butter, then position with the bait-end side next to a wall, where rats tend to travel.

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Cockroaches

Theres a reason spotting these insects in your home makes your skin crawl: If you see one roach, there are usually many more that youre not seeing, says Harrison. Hundreds more, thousands even. These critters can survive without food for a month, and without a head for a week. And with all the diseases they carryincluding E. coli, salmonella, and staphylococcusthey suck the health right out of you.

Your best scare tactic: Youve heard it before, but it bears repeating: Keep a clean house and regularly take out your trash. But you should also take protective measures outside your home as well.

Since roaches love wet, dark places to breed, keep bushes and plants trimmed at least a foot away from your home, to allow for more airflow around your foundation. And before you reach for a cheap over-the-counter roach spray, consider yourself warned: These products usually cant wipe out cockroach eggs, so youll need to get roach traps too or hire an exterminator.

Bedbugs

Bedbugs are true vampires: During the night, they crawl out of the nooks and crannies of your mattress, dig their needle-sized beaks into your skin, and feast on your blood. Plus, theyre notoriously tough to purge from your home.

Your best scare tactic: Since bedbugs are master hitchhikers that can follow you home from even the swankiest hotel, store your luggage in your attic or garagenot next to your bed. If you suspect youve got bedbugsas evidenced by welts on your bodycheck your mattress for insects the size of apple seeds. If you find any, dont mess around, advises Harrison. You need professional help not only to get rid of the bedbugs can you see, but the larvae that have yet to mature.

Spiders

Spotting these eight-legged creatures inside your home should freak you out, even if you dont have arachnophobia. Many spiders can biteand their venom can be lethal (hello, black widow). Even creepier, spiders can even take over a whole town, as they did to North Memphis, TN, back in 2015.

Your best scare tactic: Make sure your windows and door sweep are sealed, and caulk up any cracks that make good entry points for arachnids. Spray a few drops of peppermint oil mixed with water on windowsills, to deter other spiders from coming inside. To vacate anything that is lurking around now, vacuum your entire house, especially in dark corners and under furniture, then promptly dispose of the bag outside your home. Locating and getting rid of any other bugs in your homewhich spiders feed onwill also help.

Termites

Think these teeny bugs arent all that scary? On the contrary, they should make a homeowner feel very, very afraid. Termites are the No. 1 destroyer of property, says Harrison. Unlike other insects on this list, they can literally devour your home, making the wood structure so unstable youll have to vacate the premises. Each year, these devilish insects cause about $5 billion worth of damage nationwidewhich most insurance companies wont cover unless you have specifically bought termite insurance.

Your best scare tactic: Storing firewood away from your home will help keep termites at bay. But keep this in mind: In some parts of the country, the question isnt whose house termites will go after, but when, says Harrison. (Alaskas the only U.S. state thats termite-free.) Termites dig warmer climates, so if you live in the South, Southeast, Southwest, and West, it may be well worth your while to get termite insurance.

The post 6 Scary Things That Might Be Hiding in Your Home Right Now appeared first on Real Estate News and Advice - realtor.com.
Wisdom from the Oracle of Omaha.

Warren Buffett: Part investor, part enigma. This is a man who's simultaneously at the helm of Berkshire Hathaway (ticker: BRK.A, BRK.B) and can play the ukulele. This is a man who loves buy-and-hold stocks and crows that he eats like a 6-year-old, downing five servings of Coca-Cola (KO) per day. This is a man who's arguably the best investor ever and manages to get name-dropped in presidential debates. In short, he's a man that commands attention -- so we rounded up some of his best quotes.

On sleeping at night.

"We never want to count on the kindness of strangers in order to meet tomorrow's obligations." Buffett said this in his 2008 shareholder letter, vowing to shareholders, ratings agencies and himself to helm Berkshire Hathaway with an abundance of cash. He added, "When forced to choose, I will not trade even a night's sleep for the chance of extra profits."

On class.

"It's class warfare. My class is winning, but they shouldn't be." Buffett said during an interview with Lou Dobbs and CNN in 2005, which focused on challenges the U.S. and the American people were dealing with.

On doing the right thing.

Guy Spier, an investor based in Zurich, paid $650,100 to dine with Buffett at a Manhattan steakhouse in 2008. Spier took the opportunity to discuss his own struggle to do the right thing in lowering the fees he required of his fund's shareholders. Replied Buffett: "People will always try to stop you doing the right thing if it is unconventional."

On diet.

"If I eat 2,700 calories a day, a quarter of that is Coca-Cola. I drink at least five 12-ounce servings. I do it every day." Buffett told Fortune's Patricia Sellers in 2015, after she thought he was just describing his stock portfolio as one-quarter Coca-Cola.

On buying businesses.

"Time is the friend of the wonderful business, the enemy of the mediocre." Buffett wrote in his 1989 shareholder letter, discussing an approach to buying businesses.

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On the worst kind of business.

"The worst sort of business is one that grows rapidly, requires significant capital to engender the growth, and then earns little or no money," Buffett wrote in his 2007 shareholder letter. One industry example he gives? Airlines.

On America.

"It's never paid to bet against America. We come through things, but it's not always a smooth ride." Buffett said in a 2009 interview with NBC's Tom Brokaw that tackled the economy, honing in on President Barack Obama's leadership style, executive pay and more.





More From US News & World Report


The Daily Beast

STRINGER/ReutersVideo footage shows pedestrians attempting to sway an Indian suspension bridge in the moments before it catastrophically collapsed, leaving at least 141 people dead as of Monday.Rescuers expect the death toll to continue to rise after the bridge fell apart in the western state of Gujarat on Sunday. The majority of those killed were women, children, or elderly people, a local official told the BBC. Almost 180 people were successfully rescued, however, in an overnight operation inv
Draw buyers to your home, not away from your online listing.

Eighty-eight percent of homebuyers use the internet as part of their home search, according to a 2015 National Association of Realtors report. That's clearly a portion of buyers you can't afford to miss when selling your home. But what makes an enticing home description? Specifics and honesty are key, but with so many home listings out there, it's also important to avoid phrases and terms that have become cliche or have taken on a new meaning. Read on for real estate buzzwords to leave out of your listing.

'Quaint' or 'cozy'

Any description of a house pushing the "quaint" and "cozy" factor is likely trying to mask the fact that the house is uncomfortably small. And while the size of a home matters to most buyers, let them determine if it's the right size based on the square footage listed. "Consumers look through a lot of listings. They don't have the patience to decode all the cliches and euphemisms," says Steve Udelson, president of Owners.com, a website for self-directed homebuyers and sellers.

'Luxury'

High-end homes attract a whole new set of potential buyers, but "luxury" has been so overused it's hard to tell the difference anymore. "You'll find various listings that are by no means 'luxury' or 'luxurious,'" says Michelle Farber Ross, a broker and managing partner at MMD Realty, based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. "Agents use those buzzwords, and you look and think, 'Oh gosh, this would never be a luxury home.'" She notes the true luxury market begins at $1 million (and starts even higher in pricey cities such as New York and San Francisco).

'Up-and-coming'

The description of being in an "up-and-coming" neighborhood has taken on a whole new meaning -- and often not a positive one. This phrase is a veiled attempt at pointing out a high-crime neighborhood, which gets into dangerous territory, as the Fair Housing Act prohibits providing subjective information that may steer homebuyers toward or away from a neighborhood based primarily on race or any other form of discrimination. "You can't red-flag a neighborhood," says Tim Brinkman, owner and broker of The American Real Estate Co. in Keyser, West Virginia. He tells his agents that they should only share information about the neighborhood that's location-based, such as the home's proximity to a grocery store or park.

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'Priced to sell'

This all-too-common phrase has zero impact on a home description. Plus, Udelson explains, "priced to sell" raises awkward questions for online house hunters: "What does that mean? That means all other listings are not priced to sell?" A home description should remain focused on the home's qualities and let the listed price speak for itself. This phrase and others -- including "motivated seller" -- diminish the property's selling points and may leave you with lowball offers from buyers looking to score a deal.

'Updated'

Every homebuyer may want an updated kitchen and master bath these days, but the word is so vague that it can lead to major letdowns when it comes time to tour the house. "Take that down a notch and be more specific," Udelson says. New quartz countertops and recently installed stainless steel appliances should be described as such to differentiate from a kitchen that only got a fresh coat of paint.

'Needs TLC' or 'Handyman Special'

Overly vague terms get obnoxious when it comes to fixer-upper properties. Phrases like "needs TLC" and "great potential" fail to note how much work the home needs, often leading buyers to assume the worst so they don't even bother to see the home in person. Brinkman's least favorite home description is "handyman special." "Just how handy do they have to be?" he asks, noting this could be minor maintenance or a complete remodel.

'Walking distance'

Close proximity to stores, restaurants and public transportation can be a huge selling point for many homes, but clarity is essential because "walking distance" varies significantly by person. While anything less than a mile might be considered walkable by one buyer, any more than a block may be too much for another. "That's not bad, but you can be more direct," Udelson says. Note the physical distance to the nearby shopping center or explain that there are no major roads to cross, which makes walking much easier for those who are inclined to pay a higher price for convenience.

'This home has it all.'

Lacking an actual description of the property, this phrase does little to draw homebuyers to a home showing. Udelson notes this and other expressions like "the possibilities are endless," for example, are "vague, overused abstractions" that do little to sell to a new owner. You don't want to leave room for a potential buyer to doubt a description. Instead, ensure the home's features speak for themselves. A home with a pool, master suite and chef's kitchen might be everything a buyer wants, but if it's simply described as having "it all," the buyer may never check it out.

Remember: No need to repeat the basics.

When a property goes into a multiple listing service, the information that breaks down key details of the home, such as the number of bedrooms, bathrooms and age of the house, is presented in list form. Farber Ross warns against repeating those details again in the description you write: "They can see all those statistics on their own -- you don't need to reiterate any of that." Instead, use the description as an opportunity to describe the type of hardwood floors and countertops that may pique a buyer's interest.
WHITEWATER  The son of a former Racine County sheriff has been charged with first-degree homicide in Whitewater for allegedly shooting his brother-in- law with a gun apparently owned by his father.

Alan M. Johnson, 31, of Whitewater, appeared in Walworth County Circuit Court Wednesday facing a single felony charge of first-degree intentional homicide using a dangerous weapon, court records showed.

Johnson is the son of Eric Johnson, who served as Racine County Sheriff from 1992 to 1994.

According to the criminal complaint, Whitewater Police Department officers early Tuesday responded to a call at a home on West Peck Street about a 43-year-old man who fell and hit his head.

Officers discovered a .40 caliber cartridge shell case in the hallway as they approached the victim, according to the complaint.

The victim, later identified as Kenneth J. Myszkewicz, a 1991 Burlington High School graduate, appeared to have a gunshot wound in the arm, chest and back, the complaint said.

Officers spoke to the victims wife, Kimberly A. Myszkewicz, who told them she was woken by a thud noise and believed her husband had fallen down the stairs, the complaint said. She told officers she got out of bed to check on her husband and heard the back door closing, the complaint said. She discovered her husband on the floor in the office, according to the complaint.

Walworth County Sheriffs Department detectives interviewed Alan Johnson, who identified himself as the brother of Kimberly Myszkewicz, the complaint said. Johnson told officers he didnt know how Kenneth Myszkewicz died, the complaint said.

Detectives also met with Eric Johnson, father of Kimberly Myszkewicz and Alan Johnson. Eric Johnson turned over a .40 caliber Smith & Wesson pistol to detectives, the complaint said. According to officers, the pistol appeared as if it had not been cleaned since last being fired, the complaint said.

Eric Johnson told detectives he is a retired police officer and routinely cleans his guns after using them, the complaint said. He also told detectives he had .40 caliber ammunition in his home and found that some rounds were missing, the complaint said.

Later on Tuesday, Eric Johnson called detectives and told them to come over right away, according to the complaint. When detectives arrived at the Johnson home, Alan Johnson stood up and said, Arrest me, I killed him, the complaint said.

Alan Johnson allegedly told his father that he had taken his .40 caliber pistol and went to Kenneth Myszkewiczs home to kill him and commit suicide, the complaint said.

The State of Wisconsin Crime Lab examined the pistol and the shell cartridge recovered from the scene and determined the case was fired by the .40 caliber Smith and Wesson pistol, the complaint said.

Alan Johnson is being held at the Walworth County Judicial Center on $750,000 bail, court records showed. He is scheduled to make his initial court appearance Nov. 4.

Eric Johnson was elected Racine County Sheriff in November 1992, defeating then-Detective William McReynolds to replace the retiring sheriff Robert Rohner. McReynolds then defeated Johnson in the November 1994 election.
An Aerolineas Argentinas plane experienced a malfunction in one of its jet engines shortly after taking off from the Ezeiza International Airport in Greater Buenos Aires. The New York-bound flight had to make an emergency landing back at Ezeiza in the early hours of Friday, October 28. A fire was reported on the tarmac, prompting the temporary closure of the airport. No injuries were reported.

This video shows first responders near an Aerolineas Argentinas plane with its typical blue and white stripes. Credit: Facebook/Sebastian Arruarana
Affiliated Managers Group Inc. AMG is scheduled to report third-quarter 2016 results on Monday, Oct 31, before the market opens.

Last quarter, Affiliated Managers earnings outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Results reflected a decrease in operating expenses, partially offset by a fall in revenues.



Moreover, this earnings beat translated into a bullish share price movement, with Affiliated Managers' stock gaining around 4.5% during the three month period ended Sep 30, 2016.



Further, analysts seem to be happy with the companys performance in the just concluded quarter. Affiliated Managers witnessed four upward revisions in earnings estimates (versus no downward revision) over the last 30 days. Notably, the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.00 remained stable over the last seven days.



In addition, Affiliated Managers boasts a decent earnings surprise history, as evident from the chart below:

AFFIL MANAGERS Price and EPS Surprise

AFFIL MANAGERS Price and EPS Surprise | AFFIL MANAGERS Quote

Factors at Play



Will Affiliated Managers be able to sustain its earnings streak this time? Or will a tough industry backdrop hurt the bottom line? Lets check the factors that are expected to influence Q3 results.



Affiliated Managers holds an almost unbeaten track record of buying equity interests in asset management companies with strong performance-oriented products. Hence, we believe that the past equity investments should continue to boost the companys top line, driven by the excellent long-term performance of its affiliates.



Also, management expects the ratio of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) contribution to the end-of-period AUM for the third quarter of 2016 to be around 13.1 basis points, reflecting lower performance fees. Also, the company projects other economic items to be around $1 million per quarter.

On the cost front, management projects total interest expenses to be $24 million in the third quarter, up sequentially. The increase is expected due to the higher revolver balance from the closing of Capula.

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Further, the company expects amortization expenses to be $35 million, a marginal decline from the second-quarter 2016 level. Additionally, intangible-related deferred taxes are expected to be $21 million in the third quarter.



Earnings Whispers



Our proven model does not conclusively show that Affiliated Managers is likely to beat earnings in the third quarter. This is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or #2 (Buy) or at least #3 (Hold) to have a significantly higher chance of beating earnings.



Zacks ESP: The Earnings ESP for Affiliated Managers is 0.00%. This is because both the Most Accurate estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate stand at $3.00. Please check our Earnings ESP Filter that enables you to find stocks that are expected to come out with earnings surprises.



Zacks Rank: Affiliated Managers Zacks Rank #3 increases the predictive power of ESP. However, the companys ESP of 0.00% makes surprise prediction difficult.

Stocks That Warrant a Look



Here are some stocks worth considering, as according to our model they have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter.

PennyMac Financial Services, Inc. PFSI is slated to release results on Nov 3. The company has an Earnings ESP of +6.82% and a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks Rank #1 stocks here.

CNA Financial Corporation CNA has an Earnings ESP of +2.38% and a Zacks Rank #2. The company is slated to announce its results on Oct 31.

Ares Capital Corporation ARCC is slated to release results on Nov 2. The company has an Earnings ESP of +2.63 % and a Zacks Rank #3.

Confidential from Zacks

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KIGALI (Reuters) - The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has already secured more than the $3 billion it had sought to raise by the end of 2016 to fund its activities, with about $1 billion coming from Eurobonds, a senior executive said on Thursday. But Cairo-based Afreximbank Executive Vice-President George Elombi also told Reuters the bank did not have enough resources to meet the continent's soaring demand for financing from African economies hurt by a commodities price plunge. Speaking during a trip to Rwanda's capital Kigali, he said the bank was facing pressure from "parties to whom we provide financing. The request from them is enormous." African states were seeking trade and other facilities worth about $40 billion, which Elombi said meant other global institutions needed to step into help. He did not name them. Afreximbank is a multilateral body set up to help African states - many of them reliant on raw material exports - overcome difficulties with financing and developing trade. Afreximbank had said in May it aimed to raise $3 billion this year via Eurobonds, syndications and bilateral and institutional lending. [nL5N1806D7] "To date we have exceeded that amount," said Elombi, adding the bank had "exceeded $1 billion" raised from Eurobonds alone. Afreximbank also said in May it aimed to increase the amount deposited by central banks to $10 billion from about $3 billion. Elombi said that target was expected to be achieved by the end of this year or in the first half of 2017. (Reporting by Clement Uwiringiyimana; Writing by Edmund Blair; Editing by Toby Chopra)
In the late 1960s, only 53% of Americans said theyd vote for a woman for president if she were qualified in every other respect. There was no concept of sexual harassment, and many employers openly advertised jobs as for men only.

Amazons new series, Good Girls Revolt, begins just at the end of this Mad Men era, in 1969. But unlike AMCs hit show, Good Girls Revolt tells the story from the point of view of the women, focusing on a group of bright, young journalists as they have a feminist awakening and then push for change at work and at home.

The series is based on a non-fiction book of the same name. That book, by Lynn Povich, chronicled how a group of women, relegated to dead-end researcher jobs at Newsweek, organized and announced the first female class-action lawsuit alleging employment discrimination in 1970the same day Newsweeks cover story on womens lib hit the stands. Women at other media organizations were inspired to follow suit. ACLU attorney Eleanor Norton Holmes was their lawyer (she later became the first female chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission).

Starring Anna Camp (Pitch Perfect), Erin Darke (Still Alice), and Genevieve Angelson (House of Lies), the show depicts a world where unwanted sexual advances and office trysts are commonplace, and women have to grapple with how to be ambitious in a workplace made for men. At a time when Donald Trumps hot-mic comments about groping women have been seared into the national consciousness, the lack of women in Silicon Valley and pay inequity in Hollywood seem like intractable problems, and Fox Newss Roger Ailes resigned amid sexual harassment claims, Good Girls Revolt is attracting buzz for seeming weirdly--and depressingly--relevant.

It is surreal, how far weve come, yet how little has changed, and how difficult it is for things to change, says Dana Calvo, the shows creator. She added that in 2002, when she was a Los Angeles Times reporter, her bosses urged her to quit so that she could follow her then-boyfriend, now husband, to his new posting for the paper.

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Povichs book was published in 2013, and other producers had tried unsuccessfully to get the rights to the material. Lynda Obst, Good Girls Revolts executive producer, said she ultimately won over Povich because she was an acquaintance, had also been a journalist in the 1970s, and promised to fictionalize certain characters. (Disclosure: Lynn Povich was my boss in the early 1990s when she was editor of Working Woman magazine.)

The Amazon series gives a prominent role to writer/director Nora Ephron (in reality, Ephron worked only briefly at Newsweek and played no role in the suit) and Eleanor Norton Holmes. The main protagonists, all fictionalized, are depicted as sexy, smart women who just want to have the same opportunities as the men they love.

Obst said that was a goal of hers--to puncture the myth that feminists are angry, man-hating women--so that more of them adopt the cause of feminism. In 2016, when the first woman running for president on a major party ticket is called a nasty woman, as Clinton was by Trump, that might be as timely a message as ever. I wanted people to see the sexy fun version of feminism that we lived then [in the 1970s], Obst says. My idea was that if [people] saw what a liberated feminism was, theyd realize that feminism was just the inability to do what we wanted.

Still, the show may be a bit out of step when it comes to reaching millennials, especially. Good Girls Revolt has one person of color on the writing staff, and the first season of the show gives very little airtime to the black characters. In one particularly tone-deaf moment in the show, the Eleanor Norton Holmes character browbeats a young black woman into joining the class-action lawsuit, telling her that all second class citizens need to stand together. Is this a message that will resonate with Millennials, who have seen mainstream white feminists as unwilling to acknowledge the need for intersectionality, and the interplay of race and gender? (Then again, that may be asking a lot for a show about the 60s and 70s.)

Either way, the series, with its laser focus on a late 60s, early 70s workplace run for and by men, puts a smart spotlight how much further we have to go. As Calvo put it, Locker room talk happens because there are no women in the room. Lets open the doors and let the women in.

See original article on Fortune.com

More from Fortune.com
Amber Rose is getting candid about being sexually accosted by a countless number of recognizable men in Hollywood.

In the wake of Donald Trumps leaked Access Hollywood video in which he made lewd comments about women in a 2005 interview with then-host Billy Bush, the mother of one and former Dancing with the Stars contestant opened up to Yahoo Style about men having touched her inappropriately in the past  and shared her thoughts on the former Apprentice hostturnedGOP presidential nominee.

I want him to get in trouble for it because I cannot even count how many times a famous guy touched me inappropriately  seriously, Rose, 33, said when asked about Trumps 11-year-old locker room talk.

Imagine this. Donald Trump comes and touches me inappropriately, right. Im a regular ass girl. Do I call 911? Do I get on Twitter and tweet about it? How should I go about letting people know that this guy did it to me and whos actually going to believe me? You know what Im saying? Rose continued.

You just try to get over it and it happens to so many women. Thats why I started SlutWalk. We talk about all these issues at SlutWalk.

Rose  whos been growing closer to DWTS pro Val Chmerkovskiy since partnering with his brother Maks on the show  founded SlutWalk with the mission of Delivering a flawlessly executed event geared toward raising awareness about sexual injustice and gender inequality. The Amber Rose SlutWalk aims to impact and uplift while shifting the paradigm of rape culture, according to the events website.

On Oct. 1, Rose strutted her stuff against slut-shaming and sexual assault at the second annual SlutWalk in Los Angeles with BFF Blac Chyna by her side.

The number one misconception was people assuming that it was a walk to promote prostitution or promiscuity, which is really stupid, Rose previously told PEOPLE of the event. Thats the total opposite of what it was.




(Adds comments from CEO Pinto Paiva, share performance)

By Guillermo Parra-Bernal and Paula Arend Laier

SAO PAULO, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Ambev SA expects no net revenue growth this year and will cut investments, reflecting the challenges facing Latin America's largest beverage maker as the harshest Brazilian recession in eight decades and rising unemployment weigh down beer sales.

In a call to discuss third-quarter results, executives at Sao Paulo-based Ambev said they no longer hope to post flat growth in net revenue as demand remains tepid. Costs and sales, general and administrative expenses in Brazil are expected to rise in the low to high single-digits this year, they added.

"Consumption in Brazil in the short term faces downward pressure, but we expect a better 2017," Chief Executive Officer Bernardo Pinto Paiva said during the call. Another reason why Ambev cut guidance for net revenue growth this year was diverging annual pricing comparisons which he did not specify.

Shares posted their biggest drop in more than a year on Friday, reflecting doubts among investors whether Pinto Paiva has taken the right strategic approach to help Ambev navigate the downturn in Brazil and parent company AB Inbev SA's acquisition of SAB Miller Holdings Inc.

Ambev SA, Anheuser Busch Inbev SA's Latin American subsidiary, saw adjusted net income rise 3.6 percent to 3.198 billion reais ($1 billion) on an annual basis, 10 percent above a consensus estimate compiled by Thomson Reuters.

Even as net income beat analyst estimates due to a reversion of withholding tax provisions in Argentina and the booking of deferred tax assets at overseas units, Ambev's operational profit disappointed as volumes suffered.

Continuing weakness in Brazil led to a 20 percent annual slump in earnings before interest, tax, debt and amortization to 3.999 billion reais, about 16 percent below analyst consensus estimates. EBITDA, as the gauge is known, is a widely followed metric of operational profitability.

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The stock was down 2.1 percent at 19.10 reais in early afternoon trading in Sao Paulo. Ambev is up 7.2 percent this year, lagging behind the 48 percent gain in the benchmark Bovespa stock index.

While management stated that the third quarter was the toughest in a challenging year, growth opportunities are emerging outside Brazil - the company's home turf and Latin America's most populous country. As a result, Ambev plans to cut investment in Brazil this year, without providing a figure.

($1 = 3.1645 reais) (Additional reporting by Ana Mano in Sao Paulo; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Phil Berlowitz)
When Amgen Inc. (AMGN) reported its third-quarter financial results after the markets closed on Thursday, the company said that it had $3.02 in earnings per share (EPS) and $5.81 billion in revenue. Consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters had called for $2.79 in EPS and revenue of $5.74 billion. In the same period of last year, the biotech giant posted EPS of $2.72 and $5.72 billion in revenue.

In terms of guidance for the full year, the company expects to have EPS in the range of $11.40 to $11.55 and revenues between $22.6 billion and $22.8 billion. Both forecasts increased from their previous levels. The consensus estimates for the full year are $11.36 in EPS and $22.77 billion in revenue.

ALSO READ: Baby Boomers Retiring and Spending Big: 5 Companies May Benefit Huge

The company generated $2.5 billion of free cash flow in the third quarter, compared with $2.8 billion in the third quarter of 2015. The board of directors declared a dividend of $1.00 per share on October 14 that will be paid on December 8 to all stockholders of record as of November 16.

During the third quarter, the Amgen repurchased 4.4 million shares of common stock at a total cost of $747 million. In October 2016, the board of directors approved an increase in the remaining share repurchase authorization for an aggregate authorization of $5 billion.

On the books, Amgen's cash and investments totaled $38.0 billion at the end of the quarter, up from $31.1 billion in the same period from last year.

ALSO READ: Poorest Town in Every State

Robert A. Bradway, board chair and chief executive of Amgen, commented:

Our business is performing well and our double-digit earnings per share growth reflects the progress we have made through our transformation efforts. We are focused on growing several newly launched products and advancing the pipeline globally.

Shares of Amgen closed Thursday up 1% at $160.57, with a consensus analyst price target of $189.41 and a 52-week trading range of $139.02 to $176.85. Following the release of the earnings report, the stock was down over 4% at $153.02 in early trading indications Friday.

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SALT LAKE CITY  About 75 million years ago, a mosasaur  a dolphin-like, predatory, marine reptile that lived during the dinosaur age  bit another mosasaur so hard that it left its tooth behind, embedded in its foe's face, new research finds.

Now, paleontologists are studying the remains of the victim, a creature that sustained not one, but two attacks on its face, likely from different adversaries, said paleontologist Takuya Konishi, an assistant professor at the University of Cincinnati.

"The specimen represents the first direct, unequivocal evidence of nonlethal biting, and not predation, between mosasaurs," Konishi told Live Science, here at the 76th annual meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology. [T. Rex of the Seas: Images of Fierce Mosasaurs]

A mining company discovered the 21-foot-long (6.5 meters) specimen in southern Alberta, Canada, in 2012, and promptly shared the news with the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology. Museum researchers spent two years preparing the fossil, "during which [time] the specimen's unique scientific significance became clear: It had a tooth from another mosasaur embedded in its lower jaw," Konishi said. "We were all thrilled, and began working on it."

The 74.8-million-year-old mosasaur was fully articulated, meaning that all of its bones were preserved in place. An analysis of the creature's anatomy, with the help of a computed tomography (CT) scan, suggests that it was a species in the Mosasaurusgenus, Konishi said.

Look just to the right of the center of this skull to see where another mosasaur left a tooth in the jaw of this mosasaur. Courtesy of the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology

The remnants of the mosasaur attack  three lesions in all, including the still-embedded tooth  are visible on the left side of the mosasaur's face. All three lesions show signs of bone remodeling, indicating that the mosasaur survived the attack and began healing before the animal's demise, Konishi said.

However, two genuses of mosasaurs lived in the region where the specimen was found, and it wasn't immediately clear which had bitten the victim. Mosasaurs in the genus Prognathodon had powerful teeth that could crunch through turtle shells, so it's unlikely that one of them would have broken a tooth while attacking another mosasaur, Konishi said.

Story continues

Rather, a mosasaur in the genus Mosasauruswas a likelier assailant, as these animals had long and pointy teeth that were more prone to breaking, Konishi said. The researchers found no evidence of any Mosasaurus bites on the other side of the victim's face, suggesting that the attacker came at its target at an angle from below, Konishi added.

Perhaps competition for a mate sparked the Mosasaurus-on-Mosasaurus fight, Konishi said. Mosasaurs are related to squamates, scaled reptiles such as snakes and lizards. Mosasaurs are extinct, but their distant relatives, squamates called gila monsters (Heloderma suspectum) are known to fight when competing for female mates, Konishi said. The male monsters will bite the underside of their opponents' throats as a way to prevent the other from biting back, Konishi said.

"It is possible that a similar tactic was employed by the mosasaur individual that left its tooth in [the newfound specimen], where the bite was from one side of the jaw and from underneath  forceful enough to subdue the opponent but not to kill it," Konishi wrote in a preliminary draft of the study's abstract.

A magnified look at the tooth left in the lower jaw of the mosasaur. Courtesy of the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology

The right side of the mosasaur's skull also showed bite marks, but there was less bone remodeling, indicating that the animal was bitten not long before it died, Konishi said. Moreover, these bite marks did not come from another Mosasaurus, and the assailant's identity is still unknown, Konishi said.

This isn't the first time scientists have found evidence of mosasaurs going after their own kind. In 2013, researchers reported finding a fossilized mosasaur in Angola with the partial remains of three other mosasaur species in its gut.

The new study has yet to be published in a peer-reviewed journal.

Original article on Live Science.

Editor's Recommendations
Anita Hill is calling for a fair investigation into the new sexual harassment claim against Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

Hill  the law professor who famously accused Thomas of sexual harassment and testified against him during his 1991 confirmation hearings  is speaking out after an Alaska lawyer told the National Law Journal that Thomas groped her at a Truman Foundation dinner in 1999.

The woman, Moira Smith, was a young Truman Foundation scholar at the time of the dinner party, where she says Thomas cuppedand squeezed her buttocks several times.

Thomas denied the claim in a statement through the Supreme Courts spokeswoman to the National Law Journal, saying: This claim is preposterous and it never happened.

Smith said it was not Thomas, but the release of Donald Trumps 2005 hot-mic tape that motivated her to come forward. After listening to the tape, she said she decided enough is enough.

She posted her allegations on Facebook on Oct. 7, hours after it was revealed that Trump had boasted on tape about kissing and touching women without their consent.

When Justice Thomas touched me inappropriately and without my consent, I was 23 years old  and felt there was nothing I could do, Smith said in a statement released Wednesday, according to The Washington Post. Seventeen years later, it is clear that sexual harassment, misconduct and assault continue to be pervasive, having an impact on all women. I choose to speak out now in the hope that this will change.

RELATED VIDEO: Heres Every Current Accusation of Sexual Misconduct Against Donald Trump

She also told the National Law Journal, We now know that many men in power take advantage of vulnerable women. That willingness by men in power to take advantage of vulnerable women relies on an unspoken pact that the women will not speak up about it. Why? Because they are vulnerable. Because they are star-struck. Because they dont want to be whiners. Because they worry about their career if they do speak out. But silence no longer feels defensible; it feels complicit.

Story continues

Guests of the dinner party, including Louis Blair, the then-head of the Truman Foundation, told the National Law Journal they had no prior knowledge of the alleged groping. But friends said Smith told them about the incident that night and following morning.

Amy Hertel Buckley, 39, another Truman scholar at the dinner that night, told The Washington Post, I dont remember the specific timeline. But when I saw her Facebook post, it was instantly familiar to me. Its been a long time, but she definitely told me about that after it happened.

Smiths allegations come on the 25th anniversary of Thomas confirmation to the Supreme Court in 1991. In the midst of his confirmation hearings, Hill, then a law professor at the University of Oklahoma, came forward to accuse Thomas of sexually harassing her while she was working for him as an aide at the Department of Education and at the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission.

The scandal launched a nationwide conversation about sexual harassment in the workplace and nearly derailed Thomas appointment. But he was ultimately confirmed to the Supreme Court later that year.

Now, as some are already questioning the timing of Smiths allegations on Thomas 25th anniversary on the court and in the midst of the presidential election, Hill is pressing for a fair investigation  by an appropriate body.

To say that something like this is coming for political gains  and of course that was an allegation that was directed at me  is undermined by the fact that 16 years before, she went to friends and told people, Hill told the National Law Journal Thursday, according to Huffington Post. So this is not something that shes told for the first time at this point, this is something that people knew and they seem to be confirming.




A criminal investigation into a senior exec at Apple's European division has concluded with no jail time, but a rather hefty fine. Italian prosecutors have been investigating Apple's tax dealings through Apple Sales International, the Irish-based unit that controlled much of Apple's European profits.

According to Reuters, a settlement has now been reached, with the potential six-month jail term for the Apple exec converted into a $50,000 fine instead.

DON'T MISS: We have some bad news about next years iPhone 8

Reuters sources claim that the prosecutors have reached a settlement with Apple, which converts the potential six-month jail sentence into a 45,000 euro fine. Most importantly for Apple (and the executive), the settlement does not mean an admission of guilt.

Apple itself first had issues with Italian tax authorities back in 2013, with investigations being opened into withheld taxes from 2010 and 2011. Apple eventually paid the full $347 million that Italian tax authorities claimed they were owed, and now the case has been settled against the Apple exec, that should be the end of Apple's issues with Italy.

Its European tax situation is far from solved, however. Earlier this year, an investigation by the European Commission accused Apple of using tax mechanisms in Ireland to evade paying the true corporate tax rate, paying fractions of a percentage point instead. Apple denies any wrongdoing, but banks have put Apple's potential liability for the case at over $19 billion.

Trending right now:

See the original version of this article on BGR.com
ARIAD Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ARIA is expected to report third-quarter 2016 results on Nov 1.



In the last reported quarter, the company recorded a positive earnings surprise of 670%. Overall, ARIAD has posted an average positive earnings surprise of 153.54% in the four trailing quarters. Lets see how things are shaping up for third quarter.



Why a Likely Positive Surprise?



Our proven model shows that ARIAD is likely to beat earnings because it has the right combination of two key ingredients.



Zacks ESP: The Earnings Surprise Prediction or Earnings ESP, which represents the difference between the Most Accurate estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate, stands at +5.26%. This is very meaningful and a leading indicator of a likely positive earnings surprise for shares.



Zacks Rank: ARIAD carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Note that stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), #2 and #3 (Hold) have a significantly higher chance of beating earnings. The Sell-rated stocks (Zacks Rank #4 or 5), on the other hand, should never be considered going into an earnings announcement, especially when the company is witnessing negative estimate revisions.



The combination of ARIADs favorable Zacks Rank and positive ESP makes us reasonably confident of a positive earnings beat this season. Please check our Earnings ESP Filter that enables you find stocks that are expected to come out with earnings surprises.



Focus on Iclusigs Performance



ARIADs revenues are primarily generated by sales of its sole marketed product, Iclusig. The company expects Iclusig product and royalty revenues of $170$180 million in 2016. Sales should be driven by continued demand, new patient additions and launch in additional territories. Moreover, sequential growth in Iclusig sales should be driven by field team expansion, label expansion, increasing clinical experience and patient retention programs.



ARIADs divestment of its EU operations to Incyte Corporation INCY and out-licensing of the drugs rights in the region will allow the company to earn royalties on Iclusig sales in these regions.



In addition, the Japanese approval of Iclusig triggered a milestone payment of $10 million from Otsuka in the third quarter.



Apart from Iclusigs performance, investors focus should also be on its late stage candidate, brigatinib. The company has completed the rolling submission of the New Drug Application (NDA) for brigatinib in the U.S. for the treatment of patients with metastatic ALK-positive (ALK+) non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who are resistant or intolerant to Pfizer Inc.s PFE Xalkori (crizotinib). An approval would allow the company to launch the experimental cancer treatment in the U.S. in 2017.

Story continues

ARIAD PHARMA Price and EPS Surprise

ARIAD PHARMA Price and EPS Surprise | ARIAD PHARMA Quote

Stocks to Consider



Here is another health care stock that you may want to consider, as our model shows that it also have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter.



Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc. INFI is expected to report quarterly numbers on Nov 3. The company has an Earnings ESP of +5.81% and a Zacks Rank #1. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.



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Los Angeles (AFP) - A group of armed protesters who led a takeover of a remote wildlife refuge in the western US state of Oregon have been acquitted by a jury of felony charges.

The seven anti-government militants, including brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy, faced charges of conspiring to impede federal employees at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge through intimidation or force.

The six men and one woman each faced up to six years in prison on the conspiracy charge. Several also faced gun charges in the high-profile five-week trial.

Defense attorney Lisa Ludwig called verdict "stunning" as the group's supporters erupted in cheers, local news media reported.

But a scuffle broke out in the courtroom after Ammon Bundy's lawyer Marcus Mumford challenged the federal judge's decision not to let his client walk free because of another case pending against him in Nevada.

US Marshals tackled Mumford as he argued with the judge, taking him into custody while all those in the courtroom were immediately ordered out.

Social media, meanwhile, was buzzing about the verdict with one tweet describing it as "unreal" and another saying it marked "a sad day for America."

"No one could have scripted a more bizarre tale," a Twitter user identifying herself as Anne Kiser said.

Oregon Governor Kate Brown said that while she respected the jury's decision, she was disappointed.

"The occupation of the Malheur Refuge by outsiders did not reflect the Oregon way of respectfully working together to resolve differences," she tweeted.

- 'Embolden extremist groups' -

The Center for Western Priorities, a conservation group, also expressed disappointment with the verdict.

"The outcome of (the) trial will undoubtedly embolden extremist groups," it said in a statement carried by local media. "It's imperative that local, state and federal law enforcement ensure the safety of our land managers."

Story continues

However, many others hailed the verdict as a major win for ranchers throughout the West.

"It's a tremendous victory for rural America -- a disastrous, humiliating defeat for the corrupt federal government," one of the defendants, Neil Wampler, told The Oregonian newspaper.

The 41-day siege that began at the remote reserve on January 2 put the spotlight on a long-running dispute over millions of acres of western public land and Thursday's verdict was seen as a significant blow to federal prosecutors.

The takeover was led by the Bundy brothers, whose father Cliven Bundy had been involved in a similar confrontation with federal officials in 2014 over cattle grazing on public land in Nevada.

The Oregon takeover ended with the dramatic surrender of four holdouts, including one who threatened to commit suicide in a phone call with mediators that was streamed live.

Police had earlier fatally shot the group's spokesman Robert "LaVoy" Finicum during a traffic stop as he, the Bundys and several others were headed to a community meeting to plead their case.

The question of land rights has been a thorny issue for decades in western US states, where the federal government owns most of the land.

Many conservative politicians and ranchers like the Bundys argue that the land has been mismanaged and should be handed over to states or turned into private property.
A Russian serviceman walks past Russian Iskander-M missile launchers before a rehearsal for the Victory Day parade, with the Moscow International Business Center also known as

Russia's nuclear posturing has been off-the-charts high as of late, and Dr. Jeffrey Lewis, founding publisher of Arms Control Wonk, says the reason why is simple: "They do it periodically to irritate us."

On the defensive side, Russian media recently reported that 40 million defense officials and civilians recently took part in drills to help them survive a possible nuclear or chemical attack.

One official told The Wall Street Journal that they were taking steps to ensure that 100% of Moscow's population would be sheltered in the event of a nuclear blast.

But Lewis, in an interview with Business Insider, said that's almost certainly false.

"There's always been this talk about how they can use the subways for shelters," said Lewis. "But you still have to feed and clothe them, give them clean water."

Additionally, building collapse and lingering radiation after nuclear strikes can cause enormous risk to life, and it's simply hard to imagine that an entire city could reach subterranean hideouts in the 30 or so minutes it takes an intercontinental ballistic missile to cross the globe.

"Id be interested to see if that exercise was real or not," said Lewis, who was dubious of the reporting of Russia's state-run media.

However, Lewis did stress that the Russians do take steps to try and protect the lives of 100% of the leadership.

Russia Victory Day parade

"The Russians are investing heavily in leadership bunkers and modernizing them," said Lewis, who spoke of a general paranoia in Russia's leadership, where they think that they could be toppled at any moment from internal or external forces.

"Russians are very frightened by" possible attempts to overthrow the government, as Moscow has neither the democratic will of the people nor strong international alliances to support itself, said Lewis.

Story continues

As for Russia's deployment of nuclear-capable missiles to the European exclave of Kaliningrad, Lewis said there are two options: One is Moscow they did it temporarily to bother the US and NATO, and the other is that it did it permanently to destabilize the region.

"The Russians have turned Kaliningrad into a giant military garrison chalk full of airfields, naval bases, and missiles units," said Lewis. But far from being the type of covert move a government would undertake if it wanted to actually use the missiles, the Russians do it in a very visible way because "putting military equipment in Kaliningrad has no purpose but irritating NATO," said Lewis.

kaliningrad skitch russia

"Its pretty open," Lewis said of the deployment of the Iskander missiles and the training exercises done in Kaliningrad. "They let us see the ships come in and the missiles unload. You can find the training grounds where they fire them off."

But a full time deployment of Iskander missiles to Kaliningrad could trouble the region. Furthermore, experts like Lewis believe that Russia is working on an intermediate-range cruise missile that would violate an international treaty.

But still, even if the Kremlin has violated the treaty, or plans to keep nuclear-capable missiles in Kaliningrad full time, the move is "irritating, but not a direct threat to our security," said Lewis, who added that "Russians just dont want to cooperate on nuclear security" anymore.

"If the Russians decide they want to return to the arms race, there isnt a lot we can do. We can take steps to defend our allies, we can make sure we have capabilities to deter them, but theres not a lot we can do," said Lewis, as Russia has full sovereign rights within Kaliningrad.

So while Russian nuclear posturing may be deeply irresponsible, frightening, and counter productive to promoting peace and international cooperation, the US must simply watch, be prepared, and consider that it's "entirely possible that theyre just jerking our chain," said Lewis.

NOW WATCH: 'You're the puppet': The last debate spiraled out of control over Russia and Putin





More From Business Insider


Milan (AFP) - New York's Eighties art scene is coming to Milan with a show dedicated to the late Haitian-American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, whose works now sell for phenomenal sums.

From his child-like skull and crown paintings to his poetic and enigmatic anatomical depictions, the Museum of Culture in the north Italian city is holding a retrospective until February into the works of the art prodigy who died from a drug overdose aged just 27.

Born in 1960 in Brooklyn to a Haitian father and Puerto Rican mother, the young, handsome Basquiat became one of the most celebrated and influential artists of his generation, leaving more than 2,000 drawings or paintings.

"Basquiat conquered the world" with his "genius", said Gianni Mercurio, who co-curated the exhibition with Jeffery Deitch, who had been one of the painter's friends.

The retrospective, which runs near chronologically, exhibits works executed between 1980 and 1987, largely on loan from the private collection of prominent New York art dealer Jose Mugrabi, who also knew Basquiat.

Some 140 paintings, drawings and ceramics await visitors, from street art to the youngster's collaboration with pop art master Andy Warhol, who he met and formed a close relationship with in 1980.

Basquiat, who was a regular museum-goer as a child but dropped out of school at 16, first rose to prominence in the 1970s with graffitied statements across SoHo, done with friend Al Diaz and signed "SAMO" ("same old, same old bullshit").

His work then began to evolve into colourful paintings, using acrylics, oils, pastels and creating collages on paintings, tables or doors.

Many of his creations feature words and have been described as bridging traditional tribal art and socio-political missives.

- Pride and anger -

His friendship with Warhol would mark him forever.

"The relationship between Warhol and Basquiat was a very close one: Basquiat regarded Warhol as his spiritual father, and Warhol saw in Basquiat the son he never had," Mercurio told AFP.

Story continues

But the fruits of their collaboration, exhibited in Zurich and New York, "met with a negative reaction in the press".

"Some critics said it was a commercial ploy to revitalize Warhol and consolidate Basquiat's success, others said Warhol did what he wanted with Basquiat, criticisms which deeply hurt the already fragile" New York artist, he said.

Basquiat broke off the collaboration but appeared to suffer his decision. Warhol's death in 1987 worsened his depression and his heroin addiction spiralled, leaving him dead a year later of an overdose.

"Basquiat was an artist full of contradictions. His personality was based on pride. He wanted to be a famous artist, not just a famous black artist," said Mercurio.

"He said 80 percent of his work was done in anger. But at the same time, he was a sweet, hesitant person. His fragility came from his fear of losing his success from one moment to another," he added.

He need not have worried: his paintings and drawings today regularly beat the expected price at auctions. Between July 2015 and June 2016 his works were sold for a total of $139.4 million, according to specialists Artprice.

And a new record was set in May at Christie's in New York, with a huge self-portrait going for $57.2 million to a Japanese billionaire.

According to Artprice, between January 2000 and October 2016 the value of works of Basquiat rose a whopping 506 percent.
Stockholm (AFP) - The Swedish prosecutor's office on Friday said it had rejected WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's request to temporarily suspend an arrest warrant so he could leave the Ecuadoran embassy in London to attend the funeral of mentor Gavin MacFayden.

The 45-year-old Australian -- wanted for questioning in Sweden over a 2010 rape accusation -- has been holed up in the embassy since June 2012.

He had wanted to attend the funeral in London of MacFayden, a US investigative journalist and Assange defender who has died at the age of 76.

"The prosecutor has rejected the request, as there is no grounds in Swedish legislation to make an exemption from a courts decision of detention in absence or from a decision on a European Arrest Warrant, neither by granting a leave nor by any other means," the prosecutor's office said in a statement.

Assange sought refuge in the Ecuadoran embassy four years ago after exhausting all his legal options in Britain against extradition to Sweden.

He has refused to travel to Sweden for questioning over the rape allegation, which he denies, due to concerns that he would then be extradited to the United States over WikiLeaks' release of 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Assange said in a WikiLeaks statement that he would appeal the decision to Sweden's Attorney General, Anders Perklev.

"I am heart-broken that this official has rejected my request to attend Gavin's funeral," he said.

"Her rejection is consistent with the corrupt and frankly wicked manner in which she has exercised her 'discretion' over me," Assange said about the Swedish public prosecutor Marianne Ny.

In September, a Swedish appeals court ruled against his request to lift the arrest warrant, the eighth time a Swedish court has ruled against him.
"I'm just like really, really humiliated," an emotional Azealia Banks offered during an exclusive interview with Access Hollywood, where she shared her version of events in the alleged Russell Crowe altercation.

During an Oct. 15 party at the Beverly Hills Hotel earlier this month, the "212" rapper accused actor Russell Crowe of spitting on her, calling her the N-word and kicking her out of the event. Banks, who was a guest of Wu-Tang Clan's founding member RZA, said she would pursue charges against the actor.

After breaking down, Banks explained, "Because every time something like this happens, I'm always like being blamed for wanting this kind of attention. Like who the f--- wants to tell somebody they got spat on? You know, that's humiliating." Banks also claimed that Crowe took shots at her career, and when she fired back, the actor removed her from the suite.

RZA, who was also present at the party, took to Facebook on Oct. 20 to offer his side. "Azealia threaten to cut a girl in the face with a glass, then actually grabs a glass and physically attacks for no logical reason. Russell blocked the attack and expelled her from the suite." Banks was trying to sort out a record deal with RZA, who casted the Harlemite in his forthcoming film Coco.

The hotel was reportedly unable to provide surveillance footage of the incident because there were no cameras in the hallway. Crowe has since denied the allegations against him.

Watch the full interview below:
Baku (AFP) - Azerbaijani security services have killed two men suspected of plotting "terrorist attacks" in the secular ex-Soviet country with a mainly Muslim population, authorities said Friday.

The two Azerbaijani nationals were shot dead during a special operation on Wednesday night, the oil-rich Caucasus nation's State Security Service said in a statement, adding that another suspected "terrorist" had been arrested.

The three suspects had been mandated by "foreign radical religious terrorist groups" to create an armed group known as the Caucasus Jamaat to carry out attacks in the country of 9.5 million, authorities said.

"The armed group, the Caucasus Jamaat, has been planning terrorist attacks in Azerbaijan and had links with terrorist organisations involved in armed conflicts abroad," the statement said without giving further details.

One of the two suspects killed in the operation had allegedly attempted to detonate a hand grenade as security officers tried to apprehend him.

In February, Azerbaijan arrested eight men for fighting alongside the Islamic State jihadist group in Syria and Iraq.

Local media had previously reported numerous cases of Azerbaijani nationals fighting alongside IS jihadists, including within the ranks of the Jaish al-Muhajireen wal Ansar (JMA) group consisting mostly of Islamists from the former Soviet Union.
The Wisconsin Legislature pumps out laws on a regular basis and legislators are fully aware of the need to dot their is and cross their ts when it comes to the wording of those laws.

But in the case of a state law prohibiting adults from hosting alcohol parties for underage drinkers, the Legislature apparently crossed its is, instead.

That was the conclusion this week of the 2nd District Court of Appeals as it tossed the conviction of a Fond du Lac area man and his $1,000 fine for hosting a high school graduation celebration at his home for his son.

The ruling could undermine local social hosting ordinances against serving alcohol to minors across the state.

The parent, Stuart Muche, of Van Dyne, fought the fine and lost in Circuit Court before winning a 3-0 decision from the Court of Appeals. According to the opinion, Muche hosted a graduation party at his home for his son at which alcohol was served. Later that night, young people who had not been invited arrived with their own beer and began drinking.

According to the court records, Muche didnt stop the youths from drinking or make them leave, but he did collect their car keys. Deputies arrived at the party and gave Muche a citation.

Instead of paying the fine, Muche went to court and argued on appeal that the Fond du Lac County ordinance was invalid because it doesnt conform with a state law that bars adults from hosting underage drinkers on premises that the adult owns or controls. He argued that premises as defined by state law applies to an area described in a license or permit  a tavern or a liquor store  and not to a home.

He further argued that the local ordinance was invalid because the $1,000 ticket he was given exceeded state law which proscribes a $500 fine for first offenses and escalates to jail time and fines for subsequent violations.

The 2nd Court of Appeals agreed with him on both counts. Their opinion stated, the statute does not penalize social hosts for conduct in private residences. One judge said the court shouldnt have addressed the premises issue and the intent of the Legislature was clearly meant to apply to homes  but said he would have reversed the conviction solely on the penalty issue.

The ruling may well have resulted in a celebration at the Muche residence.

But for the myriad of counties that have adopted social hosting ordinances and for the state Legislature it will mean back to the drawing boards to craft new wording that carries out their intentions.

They might want to run spell-checker on those proposed laws and ordinances. Legal checker, too. If you cant get the law right, you cant enforce it.

We hope they get it right this time. June, and another round of graduations, is just around the corner.
By Jessica Resnick-Ault

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Industrial giant General Electric Co and oilfield services company Baker Hughes, both beset by difficulties during oil's two-year price rout, may have a clear path out of the doldrums: join forces.

GE <GE.N> said Thursday it was in discussions with Baker Hughes Inc <BHI.N> but not to acquire the company outright. Baker Hughes said Friday talks were ongoing. Both companies declined to comment on the talks beyond official statements.

GE's oil and gas division has fought to get the scale the conglomerate enjoys in other industries. Despite efforts to grow through a series of acquisitions, the division has faced weaker revenues during oil's downturn than other units of GE. Organic growth in oil and gas has lagged other sectors.

Baker Hughes had its own growth difficulties, spending a year and a half stuck in limbo amid a $28-billion merger with Halliburton that was ultimately scrapped after opposition from antitrust regulators.

Following the termination of the Halliburton merger, Baker Hughes CEO Martin Craighead has said the company is well positioned to focus on developing products that lower costs and maximize production for operators in the oil and gas industry.

Baker Hughes shares gained 8.4 percent Friday to $59.12, valuing the company at about $25 billion.

With oil prices rebounding to $50 a barrel, M&A activity could tick up as investors see the two-year rout in crude ending. A partnership with Baker Hughes could allow GE's oil and gas division to transform itself into a larger player in the sector to better compete with oilfield services leader Schlumberger Inc <SLB.N>, and could give Baker Hughes a chance to redefine itself following the failed merger.

If theres a time to double down on the sector, now is the time given the prices weve seen, said Jonathan Garrett, principal analyst for U.S. upstream research at Wood Mackenzie. The partnership would be formed at a time GE has been shrinking its capital markets division and is returning to its industrial roots, he said.

Story continues

For GE, which strives to be in the top of each industrial sector, oil and gas has been a harder area to develop, said Ed Hirs, energy fellow at the University of Houston. Baker Hughes offers good capitalization and scale for the smaller GE unit.

"This is a pretty good, intelligent bet on the future," he said, noting that it comes as the oil market's downturn appears to be ending. The downturn led oilfield service companies to cut their prices, curtailing profits.

Baker Hughes is "a much-emasculated industrial enterprise relative to its pre-HAL dalliance days," Bill Hebert, senior research analyst at Piper, Jaffray & Co, said in a note to clients.

Both companies have faced pressure from activist investors. ValueAct Capital is the largest shareholder of Baker Hughes, investing after the merger with Halliburton was announced and betting upon its success. After the collapse of that merger, ValueAct has remained Baker Hughes top shareholder.

Trian Partners is one of GE's largest shareholders, and has demanded that the company cut costs and be more disciplined about acquisitions.

The exact structure of a deal could determine the benefits for both sides. GE could gain breadth from Baker Hughes' strengths in downwell services, completion and artificial lift, while Baker Hughes could improve its services with technologies developed by other GE units, analysts said.

GE has forecast cost cuts at the division and has said it will "try to compensate" for the fact that the division has earned less than expectations given a year and a half ago. The company had purchased Lufkin, a pump maker, for $3.3 billion just one year before oil prices cratered.

"We still think it's a really good GE business," GE CEO Jeff Immelt said on the company's most recent earnings call. "I have every confidence we're going to come out of the cycle better than we went in."

(Reporting By Jessica Resnick-Ault with additional reporting from Terry Wade in Houston, Lewis Krauskopf, Michael Flaherty and Greg Roumeliotis; Editing by Nick Zieminski)
Nicosia (AFP) - UN chief Ban Ki-moon will launch crunch Cyprus talks in Switzerland next month that could determine whether a peace deal is achievable to end decades of division on the island.

United Nations envoy Espen Barth Eide said Friday that Ban will open the November 7-11 talks at which rival Cypriot leaders will discuss territorial adjustments for the first time.

Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades and his Turkish Cypriot counterpart Mustafa Aknc decided this week to move their negotiations launched 17 months ago to Mont Pelerin, near Geneva.

EU foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini, on a visit Friday to Nicosia, said a Cyprus settlement would amount to a "game changer" for the region at large.

"This would be a game changer not only for all Cypriots, not only the island also the European Union but also obviously for the entire southeast Mediterranean and for the Middle East," she told reporters.

"Its a regional but also global responsibility to try and do this last mile in the most positive way," Mogherini after talks with Anastasiades and Cyprus Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides, whose country has been an EU member since 2004.

Eide said the UN-brokered peace summit will "concentrate on the chapter of territory, as well as all other outstanding issues interdependently".

"The two leaders have jointly expressed their hope that the meeting in Switzerland will pave the way for the last phase of the talks, in line with their shared commitment to do their utmost in order to reach a settlement within 2016," said Eide.

"It is the first time that the two leaders are negotiating the issue of territory directly, marking a critical juncture in the current process," he added.

- Territory make-or-break -

Due to the make-or-break nature of the territory issue, the leaders agreed to hold talks outside Cyprus. The talks in Switzerland will be the first time that maps are brought to the table since the negotiations began.

Story continues

The two leaders will seek to agree on the internal boundary between two future constituent states allowing for the return of some areas in Turkish-held northern Cyprus to the Greek Cypriots.

Without an agreement on territory there can be no decision on how many refugees can return to their former homes or how the plans for restoration, exchange or compensation of property will work.

Territorial adjustments are essential for any peace deal for the EU member state.

The long-stalled peace talks -- in what is seen as the last best chance to reunify Cyprus after four decades of division - were launched in May 2015.

Any agreement reached will need to go to a vote in simultaneous referenda on either side of the divide.

Talks have failed previously due to a lack of agreement on property compensation, territorial adjustments and the security set-up of a post-settlement Cyprus.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkish troops occupied its northern third in response to an Athens-inspired coup seeking union with Greece.
Bangladesh has arrested more than 900 fishermen and deployed the army to patrol its waterways after introducing a temporary ban on catching hilsa in an effort to save the hugely popular fish.

Some 60 percent of the world's hilsa are caught in Bangladesh, but indiscriminate fishing has depleted much of the stock, driving up prices and putting the fish beyond the reach of the poor.

Anyone caught catching hilsa faces at least a year in jail under a 22-day ban that began on October 12, the start of the breeding season.

Armed forces have been deployed to patrol 7,000 square kilometres of rivers, estuaries and sea declared a breeding sanctuary.

"We are patrolling the rivers day and night. It's like a curfew," fisheries department official Iqbal Hossain said from the coastal river district of Patuakhali.

"One mother (hilsa) can lay two million eggs per year. So one can easily understand how big the production will be if the protection drive is successful," said Hossain.

Hilsa is the most sought-after delicacy for 160 million Bangladeshis and another 90 million Bengalis who live in eastern India.

Bangladesh has introduced temporary bans on catching it before, but they have never been enforced this thoroughly.

"A war is ongoing to keep the mother hilsa safe," said Jahid Habib, who is campaigning to save the fish.

Bangladesh has already banned fishermen from catching young hilsa at certain times of the year. Five years ago it banned the export of the fish to India.

Some critics said the drive will hit fishermen in the impoverished country. But Hossain said authorities were giving free rice to 32,000 fishermen during the ban to make up for the financial loss.
The last five trading sessions have seen a number of earnings releases by banks. Most of the industry participants were able to surpass estimates on the back of revenue strength. An improvement in top line, which had been under pressure over the past several quarters, was sufficient to boost investor sentiment and move the stocks higher.



Organic growth, driven by impressive rise in loan and deposit balances, also cheered investors.



Moreover, absence of substantial legal costs supported the financials of banks this time around. However, the persistent low-rate environment continued to adversely impact net interest margins for most of the banks.

Banks - Major Regional Industry Price Index

Banks - Major Regional Industry Price Index

(Read: Bank Stock Roundup for the week ending Oct 21, 2016)



Important Earnings of the Week



1. A rise in revenues drove SunTrust Banks, Inc.'s STI third-quarter 2016 earnings of 91 cents per share, which outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 89 cents. Results reflected an improvement in net interest income and a rise in non-interest income. Further, growth in loans and deposits acted as a tailwind. However, a jump in provision for credit losses and an increase in operating expenses were the downsides. (Read more: SunTrust Beats on Q3 Earnings; Provision Increases)



2. Capital One Financial Corporations COF third-quarter 2016 adjusted earnings of $2.03 per share surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.94. Continued improvement in net interest income and non-interest income were the primary reasons for the better-than-expected results. This was partially offset by a rise in expenses and higher provision for credit losses. (Read more: Why Capital One Stock Fell Despite Q3 Earnings Beat)



3. KeyCorp.s KEY third-quarter 2016 adjusted earnings of 30 cents per share outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 26 cents. Better-than-expected results indicate revenue synergies from the First Niagara Financial Group acquisition deal. However, higher operating expenses and a rise in provision for credit losses were the downside. Also, margin pressure persisted during the quarter. (Read more: KeyCorp Q3 Earnings Impress on First Niagara Synergies)



Price Performance



Here is how the seven major stocks performed:



Story continues

Company Last Week 6 months JPM 1.1% 8.0% BAC 1.4% 12.6% WFC 2.9% -8.9% C 0.7% 5.5% COF -0.1% 0.7% USB 1.9% 2.7% PNC 2.7% 7.2%



In the last five trading sessions, shares of Wells Fargo & Company WFC and The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. PNC increased 2.9% and 2.7%, respectively. On the other hand, Capital One edged down 0.1%.



Over the last six months, Bank of America Corp. BAC and JPMorgan Chase & Co. JPM have been the best performers, with their shares surging 12.6% and 8%, respectively. However, Wells Fargo declined 8.9% over the same time frame.



What's Next in the Banking Space?



Over the next five trading days, performance of banking stocks is likely to remain somewhat similar, unless any unprecedented event occurs.



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Barnes Group Inc. B is a manufacturer of precision metal parts as well as distributes industrial supplies worldwide. End-markets served include aerospace, transportation, industrial equipment, consumer products, packaging, electronics, medical devices, energy, medical/pharmaceutical, and personal care/health care industries. It currently has a $2.1 billion market capitalization.



However, this machinery company faces risks from regulatory issues in the aerospace business, unfavorable foreign currency movements and weak economic conditions in some developed and developing nations. Investors are eagerly waiting for the companys latest earnings report.

Over the last four quarters, Barnes Group delivered better-than-expected results in one, lagged in two and posted in-line results in one. Average earnings surprise was a negative 1.37%.

BARNES GRP Price and EPS Surprise

BARNES GRP Price and EPS Surprise | BARNES GRP Quote

Currently, Barnes Group has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), but that could definitely change after the release of its upcoming earnings report. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. We have highlighted some of the key stats from this just-revealed announcement below:



Earnings: Barnes Group adjusted earnings came in at 71 cents per share in third-quarter of 2016. The bottom line result surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 67 cents per share.



Revenue: Revenues lagged. Barnes Group generated revenues of $312 million, below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $315.3 million.



Key Stats to Note: For 2016, Barnes Group anticipates organic revenue growth to be flat while total revenue is predicted to grow 3.54.5%. Adjusted earnings is anticipated to be within $2.48$2.53 per share range.



Stock Price: Barnes Group shares were down 0.53% ahead of the report.



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Benedict Cumberbatch answered who Doctor Strange would have sided with in Captain America: Civil War

In the exciting anticipation of the upcoming Doctor Strange movie, Benedict Cumberbatch has been yielding a lot of questions about the mysterious doctor. Of course, since Dr. Stephen Strange is a part of the Marvel Universe, it only seems fitting that he be asked about the famous divide between some of the Avengers. During an interview with Yahoo Movies, Cumberbatch answered which Avengers side he thought Doctor Strange would have taken in Captain America: Civil War.

Cumberbatch said, I think he has to be Team Doctor Strangehis job title is Defender of the fabric of reality. I mean, he fights other dimensional threats that are beyond the perceptions of that very potent squabble.

Basically hes a little too busy right now with some multi-dimensional shenanigans to think about it.

Cumberbatch clarified that his answer was more positive than passive.

He added, Id like to think hes going to help them both rather than take sides.

The films director, Scott Derrickson, agreed with Cumberbatch that character, who tends do to his own thing, would likely not pick a clear side. Because hes being introduced after the rift takes place, its a somewhat null point. But the public registration of superheroes will be an ongoing issue in the Marvel Universe for some time, so it could eventually come up for him.

Until then, however, Doctor Strange will be busy protecting our world from multi-dimensional evils that only he can stop.

So, you know, his schedule will be pretty full for a while.

We cannot wait to see Cumberbatch in action on November 4 when Doctor Strange premieres.

The post Benedict Cumberbatch answered who Doctor Strange would have sided with in Captain America: Civil War appeared first on HelloGiggles.
Betty Who darts 3-1 on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart (dated Nov. 5) with her cover of Donna Lewis' '90s classic "I Love You Always Forever."

The song is the third No. 1 in as many tries for the Australian-born Who, who previously topped the chart with two other songs about "you": "Somebody Loves You" (March 2014) and "All of You" (February 2015).

Although the original Lewis version of "Always" never hit Dance Club Songs, it peaked at No. 2 for nine weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1996, blocked from the top by Los Del Rio's "Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix)." Remixes from Instant Karma, Pink Panda and Viceroy, among others, have helped lift Who's cover to the top.

WILLIAM IS IN CONTROL: William Control, the Seattle-bred, self-described "electronic darkwave, industrial goth" act, scores its first No. 1 on Top Dance/Electronic Albums with The Pale. The 3,000 copies sold of the EP, according to Nielsen Music, amount to Control's best career sales week, outpacing the 1,000 moved when Hate Culture started at No. 12 in 2008.

Among other top 10 debuts on Top Dance/Electronic Albums, BT (aka Brian Transeau) bags his sixth top 10, dating back to his first, 2001's R&R (Rare & Remixed), with his set titled _ (No. 9, 1,000 sold). Plus, Moby returns with his 10th top 10, These Systems Are Failing, with The Void Pacific Choir (No. 10, 1,000). Moby has notched two leaders on the list: 18 (three weeks, 2002) and Hotel (five, 2005).

BRUNO'S GOLDEN TOUCH: On Dance/Mix Show Airplay, Bruno Mars marches to his fifth top 10 with "24K Magic" (19-10). It's the fifth song this year to achieve top 10 status in two weeks or less; Calvin Harris' "My Way" is the year's lone top 10 debut, having entered at No. 9 on Oct. 8.

"24K" is the first Dance/Mix Show Airplay action for Mars since he scored his first No. 1 in February 2015 (for three weeks) as featured on Mark Ronson's "Uptown Funk!"
A Department of Natural Resources internal review found that the states handling of chronic wasting disease in deer was limited by funding and social/political factors, DNR staff said in a report made public Thursday.

The report was released to members of a citizens committee that met for the first time and heard scientists describe the diseases advance as an accelerating wildfire that has burned through growing swaths of southern Wisconsin and will be hard to slow down as it moves across the rest of the state in coming years.

Members of the Chronic Wasting Disease Response Plan Review Committee clashed over whether the state should continue the mostly passive approach it turned to several years ago after hunters, landowners and others objected to the DNRs initial efforts at controlling CWD by thinning the herd in outbreak areas.

The review committee is to meet three more times before issuing final recommendations early next year.

The separate internal DNR staff report reviewing CWD management concluded that since 2010 the DNR had taken at least some action on 22 of 24 items in its 15-year plan and that it had excelled by leading the nation in testing tissue from deer carcasses.

But in the reports executive summary, the department acknowledged shortcomings in progress toward the goal of minimizing the spread of the deadly disease, which was first detected near Mount Horeb in 2002.

The number of deer testing positive for CWD has increased sharply in the past five years. To date, the disease has been found in wild deer in 18 counties and in captive deer on 15 game farms, state officials said.

The report summary noted that five years ago the state greatly de-emphasized killing deer in high-infection areas and prohibitions on movement of carcasses were complicated by ongoing expansion of affected areas.

Baiting and feeding deer was banned in 41 of the states 72 counties to slow the diseases spread, but one of the 15-year plans key objectives  a statewide ban  was not pursued.

A new system of electronic registration of harvested deer made collecting tissue samples more difficult, a promising professional marketing campaign to educate the public was discontinued because of cost, and lack of funds prevented scientific surveys of public attitudes about the diseases spread, the report said.

Meanwhile, county-based advisory councils have been given great influence over DNR decisions at the 2012 recommendation of a Texas deer researcher, James Kroll, who was hired by Gov. Scott Walker as his deer czar in 2011. Kroll also recommended a passive approach to CWD control.

County councils

In 2015, advisory councils for nine counties facing CWD threats called for maintaining or increasing herds in their counties despite scientific evidence that reducing the herd would control the spread of disease.

The DNR questioned the groups reasoning but said it wanted to continue involving them in decision-making.

During Thursdays meeting, committee member Laurie Seale cited recent statements by Kroll indicating the state of the herd in southern Wisconsin isnt as bad as state scientists and CWD testing results indicate.

I just really have heartburn with the idea of killing healthy deer to save the herd, said Seale, who operates a deer farm near Gilman.

But veterinarian Dr. Mike Riggle of Medford said Kroll, who promotes himself under the name Dr. Deer, wasnt in the same league as researchers from three states who described CWD to the committee during Thursdays meeting.

One of the things we need to deal with is just denial of how serious the states CWD outbreak has become, said Riggle, who represented the Wisconsin Conservation Congress on the committee.

The committee heard about mounting evidence that CWD wont go away by itself anytime soon from researchers Margaret Wild, a National Park Service scientist from Colorado; Nicholas Haley, a microbiologist from Midwestern University in Glendale, Arizona; and Michael Samuel, a wildlife ecologist for the Wisconsin Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit.

Haley and Samuel said the disease was like a wildfire that is raging in the southern Wisconsin herds where it started and will eventually spread elsewhere.

Theres very little you can do to keep it from getting worse, Haley said of the core CWD areas around Mount Horeb and in southern Wisconsin. You have to be on the edge of the burn scar to do much.

Samuel and others said it was difficult to predict how long it will be before there are population declines in Wisconsins deer herd like those seen in the West, where the disease was detected in the 1980s.

New approach

After CWD was discovered near Mount Horeb in 2002, the DNR spent millions of dollars trying to eradicate it by killing as many deer as possible in the infection zone.

But the state changed course in 2010 and adopted a new 15-year plan focused mostly on monitoring the disease after hunters and landowners resisted the eradication strategy, saying it was impractical and a waste of deer.

In March the DNR said 9.4 percent of 3,133 deer tested in 2015 were infected, the highest rate yet, and calls for action have increased with criticism of fencing at deer farms where the disease has been found, questions about feeding of wild deer, and proposals to restore scientist positions that elected officials have eliminated from the department.

Critics have also pointed to Illinois, which has maintained a 1 percent CWD rate by killing as many deer as possible in infected areas.

When Walker campaigned in 2010 for his first term as governor, he was critical of DNR deer management, and he oversaw implementation of the new policies. But this year he called for more study and guidelines for deer farms without endorsing reductions of infected deer populations.

During the plan review committees daylong meeting Thursday, member George Meyer, Wisconsin Wildlife Federation executive director, asked why plans called for the group to create an addendum to the existing 15-year plan instead of revising it.

The DNRs Bob Nack said the department didnt expect a major overhaul of the plan unless the committee found gaping holes in it.

The plan is solid as it is, but there might be areas to adjust and tweak, Nack said.
Bill Cosby is now legally blind and his memory has substantially declined so he will have trouble defending himself and identifying his accusers, his attorneys said in a 13-page brief filed late Thursday.

How can a 79-year-old blind man defend himself against a claim that he sexually assaulted someone he supposedly met once, half a century ago? states the brief, filed by Cosby attorneys Brian McMonagle and Angela Agrusa and obtained by PEOPLE.

The answer is simple: He cannot, and the Commonwealth knows he cannot  Without his eyesight, Mr. Cosby cannot even determine whether has has ever even seen some of his accusers, let alone develop defenses and gather exculpatory evidence, the brief continues. Moreover, Mr. Cosbys memory has substantially declined in the last decade.

Cosby has been registered with the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind, according to the filing. A copy of this report will be introduced at a Nov. 1, 2016 hearing on the case.

In December, the Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, district attorney charged the 79-year-old Cosby with three counts of aggravated indecent assault for allegedly drugging and sexually assaulting former Temple University employee Andrea Constand, now 43, at his Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, mansion in January 2004.

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

Constand went to authorities a year later, but then-Montgomery County District Attorney Bruce L. Castor Jr. declined to file criminal charges.

Cosby has pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges and has denied similar claims from more than 50 women.

Cosbys attorneys argue that his due process rights were violated by the lengthy delay in arresting him so the case should be dismissed.

A hearing is set starting Tuesday to deal with this pre-trial issue and two others: Whether Cosbys depositions in a civil suit he settled in 2006, which became public in July 2015, should be allowed in as evidence; and whether 13 other women with similar claims as Constand be allowed to testify at Cosbys trial.

Story continues

In the latest filing, Cosbys defense team took issue with Montgomery District Attorney Kevin Steeles claims that Cosbys depositions contained three pieces of information not known in 2005, such as that Constands allegations of assault involved digital penetration, a key requirement for the felony charges Cosby now faces.

The defense argued the state had the exact same information in 2005.

Steele had no immediate comment on the latest filing. Cosbys trial is scheduled to begin in June.




Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fstory%2fthumbnail%2f26103%2fb9ca3ea026ec414297c9299d16522596

Need a foolproof winning entry for that Halloween costume contest? Take a note from these multi-year winners.

Reddit user aubra_cadabra and her six best friends won their costume contest with an homage to Bill Murray's biggest roles.

In the past five years, they've paid tribute to Robin Williams, Will Ferrell, Jim Carrey and Johnny Depp. This year's cast of characters includes nods to Ghostbusters, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zizzou and Space Jam.

SEE ALSO: 10 'sexy' Halloween costumes that offend the animal kingdom

Each year, the group shares its costumes to r/Pics to the tune of thousands of views, comments and upvotes. And as aubra_cadabra notes, the group is taking suggestions for next year.

BONUS: Adorable kittens recreate classic horror films
JAMMU and KASHMIR, India -- Cursory observers of political events in South Asia must be surprised at how quickly India-Pakistan relations, once seen to be on the upswing after a new government took over in India in 2014, have gone downhill in the last fortnight.

When Prime Minister Narendra Modi unexpectedly invited all heads of South Asian nations for his swearing in, almost all eyes were on the cordiality between him and Pakistan's prime minister, Nawaz Sharif. Similarly, when he decided to drop by Lahore last December to wish Sharif birthday wishes as he flew back from Afghanistan, Modi appeared to signal a resolve to address the perpetually vexed relations between the two nations.

Modi's visit to Lahore was followed by an attack on an important Indian air force base in the north Indian city of Pathankot by Jaish-e-Mohammad, or JeM, an outlawed militant group based in Pakistan. The Pakistan government's condemnation and its offer to assist with the investigations was seen to be an important step in recognition by the country's civilian establishment of Indian concerns regarding terror groups operating out of Pakistani soil. India accepted the offer by granting access to a Pakistani investigative team to the air base.

[ READ: India Trying Diplomacy in Dealing With Rival Pakistan]

So what exactly happened between 2014 and this autumn for the current situation to come to pass?

As the events around the attack in Pathankot unfolded, there was a grudging realization that the grand gestures that the Indian prime minister had undertaken were merely that, since no groundwork had been laid before and after those high-profile events and meetings. Indeed, immediately after the air base attack, the scheduled diplomatic talks between the two countries were postponed. India expressed concerns that the terrorists came from Pakistan, while the latter responded by asking India to not accuse it, as the country itself is one of the greatest victims of terrorist attacks.

Story continues

Soon reports in Pakistani media suggested that the investigation team that had visited the air base had concluded that the Indian government staged the attack to defame Pakistan. Additionally, the Pakistan government did not fulfill its promise of facilitating a reciprocal visit of the Indian investigators to their country. By this past August, the Indian government had ruled out any prospects of further dialogue with Pakistan until it showed its willingness to act against the perpetrators of the Pathankot attack.

The tense situation could be measured by the way the Indian home minister rushed back from a regional summit of countries he had attended in Islamabad after delivering a speech on why Pakistan should not make martyrs out of terrorists.

August is the month in which the two countries obtained their independence from the United Kingdom. It is usually marked by Pakistan's government advocating for self-determination in Jammu and Kashmir, the state that has been a source of contention between the two neighboring countries since they gained their political freedom. What was conspicuous this time was the ratcheting up of the rhetoric around Kashmir by the Pakistan government by dedicating its independence day to Kashmir's freedom. In turn, in an unprecedented move, Modi used his Independence Day speech to mention Pakistan's restive province of Baluchistan, and Gilgit and the regions of Jammu and Kashmir administered by Pakistan.

Commentators and observers noticed that Modi had alluded to issues that were outside the ambit of what would normally be considered acceptable for an Independence Day speech. The war of words didn't remain that when on Sept. 18 an Indian army brigade headquarters in the Kashmiri town of Uri, next to the Line of Control separating the two parts of Jammu and Kashmir, was attacked by suspected JeM terrorists. Nineteen soldiers were killed in one of the worst terrorist attacks on the Indian army.

In what was seen to be a retaliatory exercise, the Indian Director General of Military Operations announced on Sept. 28 that the army had undertaken surgical strikes on terrorist "launch pads along the LoC." The statement was carefully framed to indicate that the action was against the terrorists and not the Pakistan army, and that the same had been conveyed to his counterparts in Pakistan.

[ MORE: India, Pakistan Seen as Powerful Countries]

Since the announcement, there has been discussion about whether the strikes were indeed undertaken, with the Pakistani establishment accusing the Indian government of making up the incident. The Indian ruling establishment, in the meantime, has gone overboard taking credit for what it claims to be the first ever such action. In this time of heightened emotions led by social and visual media, a possibility of outbreak of full-fledged conflict between the two neighbours has become a concern for the international community.

In India, a break from the past

In India, the government, led by Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party, came to power promising a radical break from policies of the old guard. This was the first time that a self-declared rightist nationalist party unfettered by pressures of coalition politics was in power; most of its politics had been oppositional in nature. The BJP represented a new party with a new leadership unencumbered by politics of the past. That gave it the capacity to make bold moves.

But that also meant that it couldn't use or, in many cases, was unwilling to use institutional knowledge that was available to engage with longstanding problems. This was especially visible in its handling of relations with Pakistan and in dealing with the politics of Jammu and Kashmir, which both influences and is influenced by relations between the two countries.

So despite the right-wing anti-Pakistan rhetoric, Modi made ambitious overtures of friendship to the Pakistani leadership. Personal ties between individuals, however, only matter to a point in international relations. They have to be undergirded by a foundation of common interests, sustained engagements and dialogue. It is a slow process, especially when one is dealing with a country such as Pakistan, in which Indian leaders find it difficult to gauge which side the civil-military pendulum swinging at any given point in time. The BJP government's gestures were flamboyant, but lacked substance. And, therefore, were quick to lead to disappointment.

A similar dynamic was visible in how the BJP government handled politics in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. For the first time in its history, BJP became part of the state government, by virtue of its wins in the state elections that immediately followed the national elections. It partnered with a local Kashmir Valley-based People's Democratic Party (PDP) that for a long time was considered soft-separatist with a primary Kashmiri Muslim base.

Thus, two opposite ends of the political spectrum came together, promising an alliance catering to all the constituencies. Interestingly, they came up with a consociational-type arrangement with the BJP exclusively dealing with issues related to Hindu areas of the state, where it had won all of its electoral seats, and PDP with the Kashmir Valley and other Muslim-majority regions.

The direct result of this coalition was polarization in the state and a deep political vacuum. The inexperience of the new political dispensation led them to ignore the warnings of observers (and state institutions) that the young of the Kashmir Valley, the epicenter of separatist movement, were showing alarming signs of dissatisfaction. They were ill-prepared to deal with the situation that arose after a local militant leader, a popular recruiter for the Kasmiri separatist group Hizbul Mujahideen, was killed on July 8. Subsequent spontaneous protests and government's knee-jerk response resulted in an unprecedented number of killings and injuries.

The protests, clashes and the unrest continue today. More than 90 people have died; around 14,000 have been injured. The government seems to have run out of imagination and it seems, from all indications, to be waiting for fatigue to set in for the street protests to disappear.

It was in this context that Pakistan highlighted the Kashmir issue on the international stage. Yet it wasn't able to obtain much support. The world remains guarded given the Pakistani state's ambivalent relationship with terrorist organizations operating on its soil. India by contrast -- especially after 9/11 -- has been successful in linking the Kashmir problem with Islamic radicalism and, in the process, winning indifference from the powers that matter.

The broad contours of the issue and the different parties' stands remain the same. What has changed is the political guard in India, and increasingly radicalized political groups in the country. The BJP government came to power on a mandate of a muscular nationalism and when its overtures for peace didn't yield expected results, instead of disappointing its constituency, it decided to undertake surgical military strikes. As many commentators and retired army officials indicated, such actions have been undertaken earlier too, but the political establishments decided against claiming them.

By making an open declaration the Indian government has done two things: first, assuage the belligerent nationalists, most of who form BJP's core base; and second, set a new normal for response of the Indian government to actions undertaken by Pakistan-based non-state actors or renegades from within its army.

Another strike like Uri or Pathankot will force the Indian government to respond. It has decided to ride the tiger. Time will tell for how long and with what ramifications for the two nuclear neighbors.

Ellora Puri is a political scientist based in Jammu and Kashmir, India. Her areas of interest are South Asian politics, political violence and gender.
(Fixes garble, paragraph 1)

* Seeks to cut vehicle weight with new materials

* Says high cost of carbon fibre limits use

* Bets on mixing materials to make lighter, more efficient cars

By Edward Taylor and Alexandria Sage

LANDSHUT, Germany Oct 27 (Reuters) - German auto maker BMW Group is limiting its use of costly carbon fibre and turning to cheaper lightweight materials such as aluminium and steel for its biggest selling cars to keep profit margins high.

Lighter cars consume less fuel or if they are battery-powered can drive for longer on a full charge, vital attributes for manufacturers seeking to score points with consumers and regulators.

But there is a trade-off. Although carbon fibre is stiffer and lighter than aluminium, it is more expensive, and BMW faces tough choices on how to remain profitable as competitors close in with their own lightweight electric car offerings.

BMW is now combining carbon fibre with other lightweight materials to shave weight from cars without making them too expensive.

"The main equation is how much cost do I spend for a kilogram reduction in weight. It is not about one material it is about the combination of materials," Oliver Zipse, BMW's board member responsible for manufacturing, said at the opening of a new 20 million euro high-tech research facility specialising in lightweight materials.

The lighter you can make an electric car, the less you need a large battery to power it, saving costs. Batteries are the most expensive part of electric vehicles, which remain an unprofitable segment in the auto industry.

After launching two cars which made heavy use of carbon fibre including the i3 city car and the i8 hybrid in 2013, BMW's new 5-series, presented earlier this month, does not use the material for major components.

Sales of BMW's i3 electric car have failed to take off, analysts say, in part because of the extensive use of carbon fibre, which has made the vehicle expensive. It costs around 45,000 euros.

Story continues

Competitors such as Tesla are planning to launch models for around $35,000, and have received up to 400,000 pre-orders for these more affordable vehicles.

BMW is now working on ways to further reduce the costs of incorporating carbon components into mass production and is making good progress, Zipse said.

Carbon fibre, which needs to be bonded and glued together rather than stamped or welded, costs around 16 euros per kilo, compared with less than a euro for a kilo of common steel, according to consultants at Frost & Sullivan.

The costs of carbon fibre are expected to come down as its use becomes more widespread in industries such as aircraft manufacturing, Boston Consulting Group said. If luxury cars use only 1 percent of carbon fibre, the market for automotive components could grow from about $250 million to around $3 billion in the next 10 years.

Several carmakers have entered technology cooperation deals with specialist companies to push advances in carbon manufacturing. BMW has a cooperation deal with SGL Carbon , General Motors with Teijin, and Audi with Voith and Daimler with Japan's Toray Industries .

BMW already makes some components for its new 7 series out of carbon. But this is only possible because it is a high margin model.

BMW is under pressure to raise its game as German rivals Daimler AG, parent company of Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen AG, which owns Audi, as well as Tesla Motors Inc in the United States have outlined aggressive plans to court affluent buyers with new electric cars.

BMW said last month it would expand its electric offerings with all-electric versions of the Mini and its BMW X3 compact sport utility vehicle in 2019 and 2020, respectively.

Zipse declined to comment on whether future BMW and Mini vehicles will make extensive use of composite materials. BMW Chief Executive Harald Krueger was more direct, effectively ruling it out for smaller low margin cars.

"The material is still too expensive and for smaller segments and smaller vehicles it can be not competitive," Krueger said at an event in Los Angeles earlier this month.

Advances in battery technology have improved vehicle operating range by about 50 percent since 2013, taking some pressure off the need to use ultra expensive lightweight materials in manufacturing.

After investing between 1.5-2 billion euros to develop carbon-fibre based hybrid and electric cars, BMW is now working hard to develop "hybrid" methods, which combine carbon with other materials like steel and aluminium.

BMW's past investment in carbon fibre will be a great help, said Jochen Kopp, who specialises in product and process planning for carbon fibre reinforced plastics.

The Munich-based carmaker now has a two year lead on rivals in terms of carbon fibre mass production know-how, he said.

"It takes time to learn how it behaves in manufacturing, how it reacts to being bonded to other materials. This has implications for tooling, purchasing and manufacturing. We understand the complete development chain," Kopp said.

(Reporting by Edward Taylor; editing by Alexandra Hudson and Jason Neely)
(Adding recalls in Canada)

DETROIT, Oct 28 (Reuters) - BMW is recalling 154,472 vehicles registered in the United States and Canada for a fuel pump problem that could cause stalling, according to a filing with U.S. safety regulators and BMW.

BMW told regulators that no injuries have been reported. Since 2014, the German-based company has conducted safety recall campaigns in China, Japan and South Korea for the same issue, according to a filing posted on Friday by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Of the vehicles recalled in North America, 88 percent are registered in the United States.

BMW is recalling certain vehicles in the United States and Canada for model years 2007-2012. Among them in the United States are the X5 3.0si, X5 4.8i, X5 M, X5 xDrive30i, X5 xDrive35i, X5 xDrive48i and X5 xDrive50i, 2008-2011 X6 x Drive35i, X6 xDrive50i and X6 M, 2010-2011 X6 ActiveHybrid, according to the filing.

Also the 535i xDrive Gran Turismo, 535i Gran Turismo, 550i xDrive Gran Turismo and 550i Gran Turismo, 2011-2012 528i, 535i, 535i xDrive, 550i and 550i xDrive and 2012 535i ActiveHybrid, 640i Convertible, 650i Convertible, 650i xDrive Convertible, 650i Coupe and 650i Coupe xDrive vehicles.

BMW will notify owners and dealers to replace a fuel pump module free of charge beginning in early December. BMW owners can call BMW customer service for details.

(Reporting by Bernie Woodall; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
After 15 days of an apparent silent treatment, Bob Dylan has made his first public statements about winning the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Its hard to believe, amazing, incredible. Whoever dreams about something like that? Dylan told The Telegraph in his first interview since the Swedish Academy announced the honor on Oct. 13. Dylan was recognized for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition.

The award briefly got some airtime on his website before it was quickly removed, and the musician famously shuns media, but he made an exception for this.

If I accept the prize? Of course, Dylan said, according to a Nobel Prize news release. The news about the Nobel Prize left me speechless. I appreciate the honor so much, he told Sara Danius, Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy.

The prestigious honors unlikely recipient seemed to splinter the internet. President Obama took to Twitter to congratulate Dylan, but some authors took to Twitter to sound off about the crossover artist whose published works remixed literary traditions. Dylan is the first musician to be recognized for the honor. Without him, the protest movements of the60s would have happened, but they might have lost their soundtrack.

As for the question of whether hell attend the awards ceremony in Stockholm, his answer was non-committal. Absolutely. If its at all possible.
SAO PAULO, Oct 28 (Reuters) - The Brazilian government awarded licenses for companies to build and operate 6,126 km (3,829 miles) of power transmission lines, finding investors for 21 of 24 lots offered in an auction on Friday.

It was the best outcome for a licensing round of that type since 2012. Brazil's electricity regulator Aneel, which organized the auction, estimates the new licenses will require investment of 11.6 billion reais ($3.61 billion).

Local group Equatorial Energia SA was a featured player, snapping seven lots. The company controls two power distribution firms and two large oil-fired thermal power plants in northern Brazil. It has no prior presence in the power transmission sector.

Among other active investors were Canadian asset manager Brookfield, which won three lots in partnership with Spanish company Cymi, and energy firm Cteep, controlled by Colombian holding company ISA.

Chinese company State Grid, which had been active in previous rounds, refrained from bidding.

Brazil's state-run power holding company Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras SA, or Eletrobras, was also on the sidelines as its management is looking to downsize and to reduce debt.

Brazil's electric power secretary Fabio Lopes Alves said new conditions set by the government for that type of investment, with improved returns, were key to attracting a larger number of investors.

A detailed table with all lots offered and companies awarded licenses can be seen at Aneel's website (www.aneel.gov.br).

($1 = 3.205 Brazilian reais) (Reporting by Luciano Costa; Additional reporting and writing by Marcelo Teixeira; Editing by James Dalgleish)
By Brad Brooks CURITIBA, Brazil (Reuters) - A long-anticipated plea bargain deal with the construction firm at the center of Brazil's largest graft scheme is at least "months" away and could fall apart due to interference by fearful politicians, a top prosecutor told Reuters. Construction firm Odebrecht SA [ODBES.UL], the largest in Latin America, is accused of being the main corporate driver behind the long-running massive political kickback scheme at state oil company Petrobras. Local media reports of a nearly final plea bargain have heightened expectations of an impending political bombshell. If top Odebrecht executives turn state's witnesses, they could implicate scores of politicians who took bribes. "There is no signed deal. There is no agreement. There are many details large and small to work out," said Carlos Lima, a lead prosecutor in the sprawling kickback probe focused on Petrobras, formally known as Petroleo Brasileiro SA Petrobras. "All these negotiations are extremely complex and they take a long time to finalize because they involve many facts, many people," Lima said on Thursday in an interview at his office in the southern city of Curitiba, where federal police, prosecutors and a crusading judge have led Brazil's anti-corruption fight. Lima emphasized repeatedly there "is no agreement with Odebrecht, neither with the individuals nor a (leniency) deal with the company." Lawyers for Odebrecht said in an email they could not talk about the ongoing negotiations with prosecutors. Graft took place not just in Brazil, but in several other Latin American nations and in Africa where the company has infrastructure projects, some of which are already under investigation, according to investigators. Marcelo Odebrecht, the firm's former chief executive officer, is serving a 19-year jail term after he was convicted of corruption this year. For months after his arrest last year, Odebrecht steadfastly refused to consider turning state's witness. Prosecutors made clear that if he remained silent, they would dismiss any deal for dozens of company executives or the firm itself. Before he was sentenced this year, Marcelo Odebrecht told lawmakers running a congressional probe into the Petrobras scheme that "to snitch, you have to have something to snitch." He added that if one of his children had done something wrong, "I'd maybe have more of a problem with the one who snitched than the one who did it." NOT MUCH CONFIDENCE The company quickly changed its tune. In March police discovered through documents and records on executives' mobile phones that the company had created a department devoted to tracking billions in bribes paid out to politicians over the years in return for winning bloated government contracts. The company announced it was willing to cooperate "to help build a better Brazil." Odebrecht is further motivated to strike a leniency agreement because like other construction firms involved in the Petrobras scheme, it is blocked from winning any government contracts. Also, credit has dried up and the company is trying to restructure over 100 billion reais ($31.69 billion) in debt. That led Marcelo Odebrecht's father Emilio, the former CEO, to push his son to strike a deal with prosecutors, according to two government sources. Lima would not discuss details about the negotiations. While he said he is more optimistic now than a few months ago over a deal, he issued a warning. "I cannot say I have great confidence that any deal will be reached because we're living with incredible institutional instability," he said. "I don't know how much interest there is on the part of the federal government that these types of deals are reached." "A good chunk of what is discussed in these negotiations, not just with Odebrecht, involves politicians who are or were active in government." Critics have blasted new President Michel Temer's government and congressmen from his Brazilian Democratic Movement Party for trying to weaken the independence of corruption probes in an attempt to protect corrupt officials. Lima pointed to the updating of a 1965 dictatorship-era "Abuse of Authority Law" proposed by Senate leader Renan Calheiros, who is under investigation in the Petrobras graft scheme. The law would hold judges and investigators criminally liable if a high court overturns a decision ordering the imprisonment of a suspect or dismisses charges. The measure is currently in the Senate in a Congress dominated by Temer's party and its allies. Federal judges and prosecutors have held protests in recent weeks against the law, saying it is a direct threat against pursuing suspects in the growing number of complex corruption cases surfacing in Brazil. "It's really simple. They are trying to discourage people from investigating and to impede new cases," Lima said. "Why would someone stick their neck out to investigate and be punished if they would make the same salary by doing absolutely nothing?" (Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
By Anthony Boadle

BRASILIA, Oct 27 (Reuters) - A Brazilian prosecutor investigating potentially corrupt investments made by state pension funds said the real estate company run by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump appears to have benefited "suspiciously" from a massive redevelopment of Rio de Janeiro's port ahead of the Olympics.

The development, known as Porto Maravilha, or Marvelous Port in Portuguese, cost 8 billion reais ($2.5 billion) and developed run-down docklands into a plaza, museums, corporate and residential real estate. As part of the project, five 38-story buildings were meant to be erected under the Trump brand.

Public prosecutor Alselmo Lopes said in a court filing made public on Thursday that he is investigating the Porto Maravilha deal, in which the national employee severance fund FGTS, managed by state-bank Caixa Economica Federal, paid up-front for building rights which it then sold on.

The structuring of the Porto Maravilha deal "favored, in a suspicious way, the Trump Organization economic group", among others, Lopes said. The prosecutor gave no further details and was not immediately reachable for comment.

His spokeswoman, Dionne Tiago, said Lopes would not explain the basis for his suspicions until next week.

None of the five people Lopes sought to charge in the court filing for siphoning off 8 billion reais from the Caixa's pension fund were related to the Trump Organization.

The Trump Organization, which sold naming rights for the Rio towers but did not provide any funding for the project, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

A senior executive involved in the Trump Towers Rio dismissed the prosecutor's charge as baseless.

"Any allegations that the Porto Maravilha Investment Fund of Caixa Economica Federal has favored in a suspicious way the Trump Organization economic group are completely unfounded," the executive, who asked not to be named, said by email.

Not long after plans for the towers were first announced, Donald Trump tweeted in January 2013: "The Trump Organization is going revolutionize Rio de Janeiro's downtown port area with Trump Towers. Construction begins soon!"

Two of the five Trump Towers were supposed to be ready by the Olympics, but ground has yet to be broken. Developers say the project is still going ahead and has not been scrapped.

Trump Towers Rio on its website claims it is the first project in Brazil to bear the name of the U.S. real estate magnate and the largest urban office development in the BRICS group of leading emerging market countries. ($1 = 3.1494 reais) (Additional reporting by Stephen Eisenhammer; Editing by Daniel Flynn and Bill Rigby)
In the middle of her battle against terminal breast cancer, an Illinois woman was given the wedding of her dreams, thanks to the generosity of a nonprofit organization.

Read: Couple Marries in NICU So Their Baby, Once Given 0 Percent Survival Rate, Can Witness Wedding

On Sunday, Anne Carmean, 41, of Chicago, walked down the aisle after an eight-year engagement to Jon Harnish, 44.

"It was perfect," Carmean told InsideEdition.com.

Their wedding turned out to be the 100th granted by Wish Upon a Wedding, a charity that pays for nuptials to couples battling illnesses.

"They pulled off this wonderful, beautiful day," she said. "They granted me everything."

Even though Carmean she originally wanted a small wedding with a justice of the peace, she ended up inviting 50 people. She even had her father walk her down the aisle.

"There were no problems, except for my little son here, who wouldn't go down the aisle," she laughed. "He looked out there, and he ran away."

Read: Boy, 8, With Rare Illness Treated to All-You-Can-Grab Shopping Spree at Toys 'R' Us

Carmean told InsideEdition.com she and Harnish met online in 2008, shortly after she had a mastectomy when doctors found a lump in her breast. At the time, she was diagnosed with stage 0 breast cancer.

By Christmas of the same year, they were engaged.

"I didn't think it was important to get married," she said. "It was kind of like a piece of paper. I didn't really care."

Their lives together continued, and Harnish helped raise Carmean's special-needs son, who is 15 and requires round-the-clock care. She also has a 9-year-old boy and a son, 5, fathered by her new husband.

In 2014, during a routine examination, she was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer, and it had spread to her lungs.

"You're in disbelief," she said. "I was very mad. It's not fair. [My kids] need a mother."

Story continues

According to the Fred Hutch Cancer Research Center, Stage 4 breast cancer, or metastatic breast cancer, is incurable, and takes 40,000 lives annually. They estimate 155,000 people in the United States are currently living with it.

"When I asked my doctor the question, you know, 'How long do I have?' He said, 'You will be here in two years,'" she said. "All right. I'm here. I'm at two years now."

Read: Woman Diagnosed With Breast Cancer After Finding Abnormal Bruise: 'I Was Never Meant To Have Cancer'

Earlier this year, her best friend died of breast cancer.

"That's when it hit home. You're kind of in denial. You think you're invincible, and you're not," she said. "You think you're invincible, even though doctors tell you, 'You have two months to live.'"

When Harnish again suggested marriage, this time Carmean simply replied, "OK."

Watch: First-Time Dad Diagnosed With Aggressive Brain Cancer Weeks Before Fiance Gives Birth

Related Articles:
Newark (United States) (AFP) - Trailing in the polls and reeling from scandal, the Trump campaign is being further embarrassed by a trial portraying a key ally, Republican Governor Chris Christie, as a "bully" and his aides as criminals.

Federal prosecutors wrapped up their case Friday in a six-week trial accusing former aides of the New Jersey governor of unlawfully forcing a major traffic jam on the world's busiest bridge to punish a Democratic mayor for refusing to endorse their boss's re-election bid in 2013.

Thousands were affected in the town of Fort Lee, with children prevented from going to school and emergency response times seriously delayed when Christie aides cut traffic down to a solitary lane on the George Washington Bridge in September 2013, prosecutors said.

The scandal was lampooned by Bruce Springsteen on a late night chat show and ultimately cost Christie his then-status as a leading Republican hope in the 2016 White House race.

The trial has spotlighted a bruising political climate among some of those closest to Christie, who is now the chairman of Donald Trump's transition team should the New York billionaire win the White House next month.

Defense lawyer Michael Baldassare told the court Friday that the 54-year-old governor was a "bully" and a micromanager who "mistreated" his then deputy chief of staff, Bridget Kelly, who is now in the dock.

Kelly and Bill Baroni, whom Christie appointed deputy executive director at the Port Authority, which operates the bridge, pleaded not guilty to nine counts.

A third Christie aide, David Wildstein, has already pled guilty.

"Bill Baroni, Bridget Kelly and David Wildstein shared an intense commitment to the political success of Governor Chris Christie," prosecutor Lee Cortes told the federal court in his summation.

Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich, a Democrat, was deliberately punished after it became apparent that he would not endorse Christie's ultimately successful re-election bid, he said.

Story continues

Their "cruel and callous" scheme "disrupted and endangered the lives of thousands," the assistant US attorney added in Newark, New Jersey.

- Political revenge -

They "chose personal and political revenge over public safety," and repeated entreaties for help from the Fort Lee mayor fell on deaf ears as they ignored his voice messages, calls and emails, Cortes said.

The trio used government money, resources and employees "just to mess with people so they could send a clear and nasty message. That ladies and gentlemen is what makes it a federal crime," Cortes said.

The case rests on a trail of emails, text messages and phone calls between the three aides, which paint an unsavory picture of the climate in the governor's orbit.

Kelly was one of Christie's senior advisers, who saw him daily, sat 20 feet (six meters) away from his office and was "the eyes and ears of the Christie administration," Cortes said.

Wildstein, the court heard, was a bruiser handpicked by Christie to deliver tough messages to political opponents.

"Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee," Kelly wrote in one email to Wildstein. To cover up the crime, they claimed the lane closures were part of a traffic study, which the prosecution called a sham.

"Is it wrong that I am smiling?" Kelly wrote in a text message to Wildstein when told about Sokolich's complaints.

Baroni's lawyer Baldassare savaged Wildstein's reliability as a witness and said his client acted in good faith, believing there was a traffic study and trusted Wildstein, who was a close friend.

Kelly's lawyer will sum up Monday. Prosecutors will be allowed to rebut before the jury retires to deliberate.

Christie was the first heavyweight establishment Republican to endorse Trump, the maverick New York billionaire trailing frontrunner Hillary Clinton in the US election on November 8.
Its official: Britney Spears has finally gotten presidential nominee Hillary Clinton to discuss the topic Americans really care about  food.

In a new interview with Extras Mario Lopez, Spears revealed what went down when she met the former secretary of state in February.

We talked about food a lot, she told Lopez. We talked about jambalaya. We talked about our favorite restaurants here in Las Vegas.

Clinton and Spears got together in Las Vegas, where the former was campaigning, and the latter is currently starring in her own show at the Planet Hollywood hotel. At the time, Spears dubbed Clinton, 69, such an inspiration and beautiful voice for women around the world!!

Shes a great lady, the 34-year-old further told Lopez. I love the fact just that shes a great communicator with people and shes present and very aware. Her husband, Bill, was there as well.

While Spears wasnt sure if the former president and the Democratic candidate stuck around for her Piece of Me performance (they might have been in and out), she dubbed the encounter, a great conversation.

RELATED VIDEO: Britney Spears Drops Intense Electro Single Clumsy

Spears also spoke about the real commanders in chief in her life: sons Jayden, 10, and Sean Preston, 11.

The star said that every time she shares a photo of the preteens, she must get their approval: I have to ask permission from them  theyre very funny about what I put out.




(Adds portfolio manager comment, updates prices to close)

* TSX ends down 48.46 points, or 0.33 percent, at 14,785.29

* Seven of TSX's 10 main groups end up; energy and banks weigh

* Index fell 1 percent on week

By Alastair Sharp

TORONTO, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index fell on Friday, with a drop in oil prices weighing on energy stocks and heavyweight financial names also slipping as investors worried about the country's growth prospects.

The index shed 1 percent on the week, after closing last week at a 16-month high.

"There's still concern over weak growth in Canada," said Bryden Teich, portfolio manager at Avenue Investment Management. "You're seeing a little bit of a pause."

He said investor unease was brought into focus by the Bank of Canada last week saying it had actively discussed adding more monetary stimulus to speed up economic recovery.

The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index settled down 48.46 points, or 0.33 percent, at 14,785.29.

The index's energy group lost 1.3 percent, with Cenovus Energy down 3.3 percent at C$20.03 and pipeline operator Enbridge Inc off 1.2 percent at C$58.37.

"It's been a mixed bag for energy earnings, and it's still wait and see until what happens at the end of November with the OPEC decision (on oil production), but near-term you do have a floor for oil prices," Teich said.

Imperial Oil Ltd fell 3.3 percent to C$43.38, even as its quarterly profit beat the consensus forecast on lower costs.

Oil prices settled below $50 and marked their biggest weekly loss in six weeks on concerns OPEC will not fully carry out a planned output cut, even as data showed U.S. oil drillers removed rigs from production for the first time since June.

Heavyweight bank stocks fell, with Bank of Montreal down 0.9 percent to C$85.35 after announcing a shakeup of its senior management team.

Colliers International Group Inc fell 9.8 percent to C$47.81 after the commercial real estate company's quarterly profit and revenue missed expectations.

Story continues

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc slumped 7.9 percent to C$27.21.

The most influential gainer on the index was Barrick Gold Corp, which rose 1.5 percent to C$22.89. The world's biggest gold miner is in talks with two Chinese companies about potential deals involving some of its South American operations.

The materials group, which includes precious and base metals miners and fertilizer companies, added 0.5 percent.

Trucking and logistics company Transforce Inc jumped 9 percent to C$29.60 after it said it would buy the truckload operations of XPO Logistics Inc.

Seven of the index's 10 main groups ended in positive territory, although decliners outnumbered gainers by 1.35-to-1.

(Reporting by Alastair Sharp; Editing by Paul Simao and Jonathan Oatis)
By Matt Scuffham TORONTO (Reuters) - Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce has agreed to a no-contest settlement with the Ontario Securities Commission that will see CIBC compensate customers a total of C$73.3 million ($54.8 million) for excess fees, the regulator announced on Friday. The OSC said the settlement follows allegations by OSC staff that there were inadequacies in systems of controls and supervision at CIBC World Markets, CIBC Investor Services and CIBC Securities that resulted in clients paying excess fees that were not detected or corrected in a timely manner. CIBC had told regulators it had discovered that some clients who qualified for lower management fees on certain funds were inadvertently charged higher fees, according to a statement of claim filed by Canada's largest securities regulator on Tuesday. "Strong compliance systems are critical to investor protection and market confidence," said Jeff Kehoe, director of enforcement at the OSC. "We expect registrants to have effective controls in place to deal fairly with clients with regard to fees, and to correct non-compliant conduct in a timely manner." In addition to the compensation, CIBC has agreed to make a payment of C$3 million to the OSC to help fund investor education and C$50,000 toward the cost of the investigation. "We will begin reaching out to affected current and former clients to compensate them. We regret the inconvenience this has caused our clients and have taken corrective action by implementing additional controls to prevent it from occurring again," CIBC said in an emailed statement. Under the deal, CIBC said it neither admitted nor denied the accuracy of the facts and conclusions of the OSC, but would compensate clients a total of C$73.3 million. Other Canadian financial institutions have agreed to similar settlements. Fund manager CI Investments agreed to a C$156 million settlement in February. Toronto-Dominion Bank agreed to pay C$13.5 million to customers in 2014. Bank of Nova Scotia agreed a C$20 million settlement in July. (Reporting by Matt Scuffham; Editing by Will Dunham)
OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Friday he would fly to Brussels to sign a free trade deal with the European Union, which earlier in the day resolved the last in a series of challenges to the pact. "The Canada-EU Summit will be Sunday. Great news and I'm looking forward to being there," Trudeau said on Twitter. Separately, Trudeau's office said his plane would depart for Brussels at 7 pm eastern (2300 GMT) on Saturday. (Reporting by David Ljunggren; Editing by James Dalgleish)
Charlize Theron isn't afraid to poke a little fun at herself.

The 41-year-old actress was honored at the amfAR Inspiration Gala in Los Angeles on Thursday, and as she took the stage to accept her Inspiration Award, comedian and presenter Chelsea Handler made a joke about her fuller figure.

WATCH: Charlize Theron Doesn't Plan on Having Any More Kids

Getty Images

"Yes, I am very fat right now," Theron, who normally rocks body-hugging ensembles on the red carpet, responded. For this occasion, she opted for a loose-fitting black lace dress, which she paired with a tailored jacket, matching clutch and diamond chandelier earrings.

WireImage

Last month, a source confirmed to ET that Theron had gained 35 pounds for her new film, Tully, in which she portrays Marlo, a mother of three who recently gave birth. The actress was recently spotted on the Vancouver, Canada, set, donning a scoop-neck T-shirt, flannel, jeans and sneakers.

Theron was honored by amfAR for her work in fighting HIV/AIDS with the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project. She later took to Instagram to thank the organization for "an amazing night."

WATCH: Charlize Theron Shows Fuller Figure on Set of Her New Movie

"Your relentless work towards a cure is truly inspirational," she wrote. "The fight to end HIV/AIDS is far from over yet I am more motivated than ever to continue fighting through my work with @ctaop #amfARInspiration #genendit."

Thank you for an amazing night @amfAR! Your relentless work towards a cure is truly inspirational. The fight to end HIV/AIDS is far from over yet I am more motivated than ever to continue fighting through my work with @ctaop #amfARInspiration #genendit A photo posted by Charlize Theron (@charlizeafrica) on Oct 28, 2016 at 12:14am PDT

Hear more on another one of Theron's upcoming roles in Fast 8 in the video below.

Related Articles
Charlize Theron usually wows on the red carpet in super-sparkly, super-plunging, body-hugging gowns but on Thursday night she attended the amfAR Inspiration Gala in L.A. in something very un-Charlize-like  a loose-fitting black ensemble.

She attended amfARs Inspiration Gala in Hollywood wearing a lace empire-waist Dior dress topped off with a long blazer. While she still looked as jaw-dropping as ever, her style switch-up is likely due to the stars recent weight gain for her new role in the film, Tully.

A source confirmed to PEOPLE that the actress gained 35 lbs. for the role as Marlo, a mom of three and was recently spotted on set in Vancouver wearing a flannel shirt and baggy jeans.

RELATED PHOTOS: Last Nights Look: Love It or Leave It?

According to E! News, even Chelsea Handler quipped about Therons weight gain at Thursdays event, to which the actress candidly responded, Yes, I am very fat right now.

But last night wasnt all about fashion, she was on-hand to receive the Inspiration Award for her work with the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project.

Theron recently gave the opening ceremony speech at the 2016 International AIDs Conference in July, where she said not enough is being done to fight the ongoing epidemic in Africa. She urged people that its time to face the truth and that theres every tool available to fight the disease, but wondered why we havent overcome the epidemic yet. Could it be because we dont want to, she asked.

For more celebrity videos visit Yahoo View, available now on iOS.

And she brought up her call to action again during her acceptance speech at Thursdays amfAR gala. When I went home to speak at the opening of the International AIDS conference , I stood in front of an audience of thousands and made a plea to end the deadly stigma and discrimination that puts the burden of AIDS on the worlds most vulnerable people, Theron said. I argued that we should focus on the ones that are hardest to reach, the poor, young people, women, girls, gay and transgender peoplethe people bearing the brunt of the epidemic.

Story continues

But Theron added that she forgot to mention something very important. It wasnt long after I gave this speech talking about how we couldnt forget the most vulnerable among us that I realized I had forgotten someone. I had forgotten to mention sex workers, some of the most stigmatized people in the world and felt terrible. Despite our best intentions, sometimes people are still falling through the cracks and too many are not being seen.

Her hope is to think creatively to stop poverty. We need big bold ideas to fight poverty end discrimination in hard to reach places.

What do you think of Therons message? Share below.
U.S. energy giant Chevron Corp. CVX reported strong third quarter results, buoyed by the success of its cost savings initiatives. The company reported earnings per share of 68 cents, higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 39 cents.

However, the bottom line compared unfavorably with the year-ago adjusted profit of $1.09 amid the continued plunge in commodity prices and lower refining margins.

Quarterly revenue of $30,140 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $30,057.1 million but were down 12% year over year.

Chevron becomes the second integrated supermajor after Exxon Mobil Corp. XOM in reporting third quarter numbers. European behemoths BP plc BP and Royal Dutch Shell plc RDS.A are scheduled to report next week.

Segment Performance

Upstream: Chevrons total production of crude oil and natural gas edged down 1% from the year-earlier level to 2,513 thousand oil-equivalent barrels per day (MBOE/d). The U.S. output decreased 4% year over year to 698 MBOE/d, while the companys international operations (accounting for 72% of the total) remained essentially flat at 1,815 MBOE/d.

Contribution from volume increases from showpiece projects, shale assets and base business were more than offset by normal field declines, the effect of asset sales, production entitlement effects in different regions, maintenance downtime and disruptions in its Nigerian operations.

The decline on the production front were accompanied by lower oil and gas prices. But these were more than offset by a leaner cost structure, the net effect resulting in a huge jump in upstream segment earnings  from $59 million in the year-earlier quarter to $454 million.

Despite continued pricing pressure, Chevrons production outlook remains one of the most robust in its peer group, with a number of major initiatives scheduled to come online during the next few years. Major start-ups during the year include the Chuandongbei Project in China and the Gorgon natural gas project in Australia.

Story continues

Downstream: Chevrons downstream segment achieved earnings of $1,065 million, 52% lower than the profit of $2,211 million last year. The results were dragged down by lower margins on refined product sales.

CHEVRON CORP Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

CHEVRON CORP Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | CHEVRON CORP Quote

Costs & Expenses

Exploration costs fell from $315 million in the third quarter of 2015 to $258 million. The second-largest U.S. oil company by market value after Exxon Mobil spent $5,175 million in capital expenditures during the quarter, a considerable decline from the $7,965 million incurred a year ago. Approximately 90% of the total outlays pertained to upstream projects.

Balance Sheet

As of Sep 30, 2016, the San Ramon, CA-based Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) company had $7,351 million in cash and total debt of $45,585 million, with a debt-to-total capitalization ratio of about 23.7%. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Dividend Hiked: Earlier this week, the company announced a 1% increase in its quarterly dividend to $1.08 per share, or $4.32 per share annualized. The dividend is payable on Dec 12 to shareholders of record on Nov 18, 2016.

Confidential from Zacks



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Have you been eager to see how U.S. energy giant Chevron Corp. CVX performed in Q3 in comparison with the market expectations? Lets quickly scan through the key facts from this San Ramon, CA-based companys earnings release this morning:

About Chevron: Chevron is one of the largest publicly traded oil and gas companies in the world, based on proved reserves. It is engaged in oil and gas exploration and production, refining and marketing of petroleum products, manufacturing of chemicals, and other energy-related businesses.

Zacks Rank & Surprise History: Currently, Chevron has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) but that could change following its third quarter 2016 earnings report which has just released. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Coming to earnings surprise history, the company has a mixed record: its missed estimates in 2 of the last four quarters resulting in an average negative surprise of 50.30%.

CHEVRON CORP Price and EPS Surprise

CHEVRON CORP Price and EPS Surprise | CHEVRON CORP Quote

Estimate Revision Trend: Investors should note that the earnings estimate revisions for Chevron depicted pessimism prior to the earnings release. The Zacks Consensus Estimate fell 9% over the last 30 days.

We have highlighted some of the key details from the just-released announcement below:

A Higher-than-Expected Profit: Earnings per share came in at 68 cents, higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 39 cents. Lower costs led to the outperformance.

Revenue Came in Higher than Expected: Chevron posted revenues of $30,140 million, just ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $30,057 million.

Key Stats: Chevrons total production of crude oil and natural gas edged down 1% from the year-earlier level to 2,513 thousand oil-equivalent barrels per day (MBOE/d). The U.S. output decreased 4% year over year to 698 MBOE/d, while the companys international operations (accounting for 72% of the total) remained essentially flat at 1,815 MBOE/d.

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However, the marginal decline on the production front and lower commodity prices were more than offset by a leaner cost structure, the net effect resulting in a huge jump in upstream segment earnings  from $59 million in the year-earlier quarter to $454 million.

Chevrons downstream segment achieved earnings of $1,065 million, 52% lower than the profit of $2,211 million last year. The results were dragged down by lower margins on refined product sales.

Dividend Hiked: Earlier this week, the company announced a 1% increase in its quarterly dividend to $1.08 per share, or $4.32 per share annualized. The dividend is payable on Dec 12 to shareholders of record on Nov 18, 2016.

Check back later for our full write up on this Chevron earnings report later!

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Cheyenne Jackson is nothing short of gleeful about his new life as a dad.

The former Glee star and current cast member of American Horror Story: Roanoke talked to PEOPLE Thursday at amfARs Inspiration Gala in Hollywood, California, about life at home with 3-week-old twins Willow and Ethan.

Its every cliche in the book, says Jackson, 41. Theres nothing more powerful and more palpable than seeing your genes in this little soul. Its so beautiful.

And watching him be a dad, adds the actor of his husband of two years, entrepreneuer Jason Landau.

Want all the latest pregnancy and birth announcements, plus celebrity mom blogs? Click here to get those and more in the PEOPLE Babies newsletter.

The couple is like any other new parents in that they arent getting much shut-eye. But its worth the challenges, of course.

Were in a fog  a love fog, Jackson explains of the feelings he and Landau have experienced in their first three weeks of fatherhood.

Some days you think, What the F did I do? And then some days you think youre so full of love and emotion and you just cry all day. Today was one of the cry days.

Landau says his biggest surprise about fatherhood is the number of diapers the couple has had to change.

They definitely go to the bathroom way more than I thought, he says.

But they share that diaper duty is pretty even  kind of.

Eh  me, Jackson clarifies after a little bit of thought about who actually handles most of the diapers.

Yeah, probably, Landau agrees.

With reporting by REAGAN ALEXANDER


Alcohol and marijuana addictions are difficult to identify. Alcohol is legal in all 50 states, with the legal drinking age set to 21 years old. Marijuana has become an increasingly acceptable drug; recreational use is legal in four states, and medical marijuana cards are available in 24 states. Drinking and smoking marijuana are now considered a rite of passage for teenagers and young adults.

Less socially accepted drugs such as methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin and benzodiazepines are easier to identify as a "problem" than alcohol and marijuana because these "street drugs" generally cause the user to fall into a vicious cycle at a faster pace than alcohol and marijuana.

If my child drinks and smokes weed below the legal age limit, are they addicted?

Recreational use of marijuana and alcohol does not automatically qualify an individual as an alcoholic or an addict.

While as a parent you may not approve of your child's use of alcohol and marijuana, this does not mean he or she has a problem.

The pressures of being a teenager have consumed the best of us, often without the thought of consequences.

If you are familiar with your family tree and know for certain that alcoholism and/or addiction run in your family, then there is a risk that your child, too, may suffer from addiction or alcoholism. Your child may not, at present, suffer from an addiction to the alcohol or marijuana he or she uses on a recreational basis, but the possibility of a future addiction increases with the presence of a family history of addiction.

How do you know if your child is addicted to marijuana or alcohol?

There are a few major signs of alcoholism and addiction that the addiction industry has identified and that our outreach coordinators at New Method Wellness, the substance abuse treatment center where I work, ask the families of potential patients or the potential patients themselves:

[See: 10 Seemingly Innocent Symptoms You Shouldn't Ignore.]

1. Has marijuana or alcohol caused emotional, physical, financial or legal problems in your loved one's life?

Emotional problems can range anywhere from loss of friendships or romantic relationships to increased depression or anxiety.

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Physical symptoms of an addiction generally indicate a physical dependence on the drug and range from overdose and alcohol withdrawal shakes to less obvious physical symptoms such as headaches, dizziness or loss of appetite.

Financial and legal problems go hand in hand, from possession of marijuana charges warranting a fine to DUIs and DWIs also warranting a fine and potential jail time. Often, at the point of legal and financial problems as a result of marijuana or alcohol, the individual has developed a full-blown addiction.

There is a positive correlation between the amount and frequency of drug and alcohol use and the presence of consequences. When you notice that your child's marijuana use and consumption of alcohol has increased and his or her consequences have subsequently increased, this is a good indicator that he or she may have a problem, as this indicates that the use of drugs and alcohol has made life unmanageable.

[See: 10 Concerns Parents Have About Their Kids' Health.]

2. Has your child exemplified a significant decrease in responsibilities?

If your child has proven their ability to maintain a handful of responsibilities -- such as school, sports, homework and a social life -- simultaneously in the past, but their marijuana use and alcohol consumption has increased and their ability to manage responsibilities has decreased, he or she may have a problem.

Mind-altering substances used in high doses or high frequency have a way of negatively impacting one's ability to manage responsibilities. This happens in addiction cases because the priority shifts from taking care of legal, emotional, work or school responsibilities to the pursuit of alcohol or drugs.

Unfortunately, with the pressures and at times overwhelming responsibilities of today's youth, the drop in efficiency may be a result of burn out as opposed to the overuse of drugs and alcohol. Keep an eye on your child's behavior over time to determine whether this is a reflection of temporary burn out or a more severe addiction to alcohol or marijuana.

[See: 14 Ways Alcohol Affects the Aging Process.]

3. Have you noticed a personality change in your child?

Sometimes the personality changes that originate from an addiction or alcoholism are subtle, and sometimes they're blatant.

A few common characteristics of an addicted individual are:

-- Isolation

-- Depression

-- Heightened anxiety

-- Quick to anger

-- Frequent exhaustion

-- Distracted

-- Defensive

If you notice your child has suddenly started to exemplify one or more of these personality changes over an extended period of time, it could be a sign he or she has a problem.

To summarize, if you notice your child has experienced negative emotional, physical, legal or financial consequences as a result of drinking or using marijuana; he or she has exemplified a decrease in responsibilities; or your child has shown a change in personality over an extended period of time, he or she may be addicted to marijuana or alcohol.

The good news is you can catch addictions in their early stages. By remaining proactive about your child's alcohol and marijuana use, you can ensure exposure to recovery at an early age increasing the chances of a long-term sobriety.

7 Health Risks of Binge Drinking You Can't Ignore

DeAnna Jordan is the clinical director at New Method Wellness, a substance abuse treatment center in Orange Country, California. Jordan has over 20 years of experience working with clients in recovery and is a marriage and family therapist specializing in the maintenance of healthy relationships. As a recovering addict, Jordan brings a breadth of personal recovery experience to her clinical leadership and believes a comfortable, structured and supportive environment is an essential part of maintaining long-term sobriety. In addition to her passion for recovery, Jordan is extremely involved in the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. As a current Woman of the Year candidate, Jordan is campaigning to raise funds for LLS blood cancer research in honor of local children who are blood cancer survivors.
By Catherine Cadell and Paul Carsten

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese internet search giant Baidu Inc warned investors fourth-quarter revenue will slide, hitting shares, as a government crackdown on healthcare advertising that tipped the firm into its first-ever quarterly sales drop bites even harder.

Baidu said revenue could slip as much as 4.6 percent in the October-December period, following the 0.7 percent third-quarter drop it reported on Thursday. Though the latter was better than analysts had estimated, the warning was enough to send shares down as much 4 percent extended New York trading.

Though net profit remained robust last quarter, the revenue slowdown comes as China's biggest search engine, with a market value of about $60 billion, rides out a public and regulatory backlash. Earlier this year it was at the centre of a national media outcry when a student with a fatal cancer blamed Baidu ads for directing him to suspect, ultimately ineffectual treatment.

Regulators responded by slapping curbs on the firm's lucrative healthcare advertising business.

Chief Executive Robin Li said on an earnings call Baidu is unlikely to regain ground lost in the current "challenging" period until early next year. Baidu estimated fourth-quarter revenue will be 17.84-18.38 billion yuan ($2.63-2.71 billion) - 4.6 percent to 1.7 percent below the same period a year earlier.

"Q4 is what we consider to be the bottom," said Chief Financial Officer Jennifer Li. "We will see a more pronounced impact over the next quarter."

Reflecting the new regulations, Baidu said the number of advertising customer dropped 16 percent in the third quarter.

Jennifer Li said the pool of advertisers available to Baidu's core business was still large, but conceded the new regulations would have a lasting impact. "Because of this really strict control...some of the customers will not be able to do business with us," she said.

For the three months ended September, Baidu revenue fell to 18.25 billion yuan. The drop was slightly smaller than the 1 percent fall estimated by a Thomson Reuters survey of 15 analysts, while net profit rose 9 percent to 3.10 billion yuan.

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Having flagged earlier this year that the new rules would affect revenue, Baidu said this month it would establish a $3 billion investment fund focused on mid- and late-stage deals in the internet sector in a search for new business lines with growth potential.

Baidu has also placed long-term bets on fields like artificial intelligence and even automated driving, but these projects are still far from profitability.

During the conference call, Robin Li reiterated the company's commitment to research and development projects, saying that the company is on track to start small-scale production of a Baidu autonomous vehicle by 2018.

($1 = 6.7791 Chinese yuan renminbi)

(Reporting Catherine Cadell and Paul Carsten in BEIJING and Aishwarya Venugopal in BENGALURU; Editing by Maju Samuel and Kenneth Maxwell)
By Catherine Cadell and Paul Carsten BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese internet search giant Baidu Inc warned investors fourth-quarter revenue will slide, hitting shares, as a government crackdown on healthcare advertising that tipped the firm into its first-ever quarterly sales drop bites even harder. Baidu said revenue could slip as much as 4.6 percent in the October-December period, following the 0.7 percent third-quarter drop it reported on Thursday. Though the latter was better than analysts had estimated, the warning was enough to send shares down as much 4 percent extended New York trading. Though net profit remained robust last quarter, the revenue slowdown comes as China's biggest search engine, with a market value of about $60 billion, rides out a public and regulatory backlash. Earlier this year it was at the centre of a national media outcry when a student with a fatal cancer blamed Baidu ads for directing him to suspect, ultimately ineffectual treatment. Regulators responded by slapping curbs on the firm's lucrative healthcare advertising business. Chief Executive Robin Li said on an earnings call Baidu is unlikely to regain ground lost in the current "challenging" period until early next year. Baidu estimated fourth-quarter revenue will be 17.84-18.38 billion yuan ($2.63-2.71 billion) - 4.6 percent to 1.7 percent below the same period a year earlier. "Q4 is what we consider to be the bottom," said Chief Financial Officer Jennifer Li. "We will see a more pronounced impact over the next quarter." Reflecting the new regulations, Baidu said the number of advertising customer dropped 16 percent in the third quarter. Jennifer Li said the pool of advertisers available to Baidu's core business was still large, but conceded the new regulations would have a lasting impact. "Because of this really strict control...some of the customers will not be able to do business with us," she said. For the three months ended September, Baidu revenue fell to 18.25 billion yuan. The drop was slightly smaller than the 1 percent fall estimated by a Thomson Reuters survey of 15 analysts, while net profit rose 9 percent to 3.10 billion yuan. Having flagged earlier this year that the new rules would affect revenue, Baidu said this month it would establish a $3 billion investment fund focused on mid- and late-stage deals in the internet sector in a search for new business lines with growth potential. Baidu has also placed long-term bets on fields like artificial intelligence and even automated driving, but these projects are still far from profitability. During the conference call, Robin Li reiterated the company's commitment to research and development projects, saying that the company is on track to start small-scale production of a Baidu autonomous vehicle by 2018. ($1 = 6.7791 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting Catherine Cadell and Paul Carsten in BEIJING and Aishwarya Venugopal in BENGALURU; Editing by Maju Samuel and Kenneth Maxwell)
(Releads with warning of full-year loss, adds details)

By Brenda Goh

SHANGHAI, Oct 28 (Reuters) - China COSCO Holdings , owner of the world's fourth-largest container shipping fleet by capacity, warned of a loss for the year on Friday as it failed to capitalise on a market recovery in the third quarter.

Slowing global trade had saddled the sector with a glut of container ships, pushing freight rates below cost in some cases and inflicting heavy losses, until the collapse of South Korea's Hanjin Shipping in August caused a supply shock that allowed ship owners to push up rates.

But COSCO, among the most indebted of the global shipping firms, said its third-quarter losses widened to 2.01 billion yuan ($297 million), although they were less than in the second quarter.

It said the international market still lacked solid improvement to address the imbalance in supply and demand.

"The company grasped the opportunity of market recovery in the third quarter and endeavoured to restore the freight rates at (the) appropriate time," COSCO said.

"(But) the depression in the container shipping market persists and it is anticipated that the accumulated net result for the year may turn into losses," it said.

In the three months to end-September, COSCO's container shipping business shipped 4.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU), representing a year-on-year increase of 61.1 percent.

COSCO also said that it received a government subsidy of 307.6 million yuan during the period, its largest so far this year. The company has posted heavy losses this year due to a fall in government subsidies for scrapping ships and the sale of its dry bulk business.

Throughput at its container terminal business rose 4.72 percent to 24.2 million TEU.

COSCO's Hong Kong listed shares closed 1.45 percent lower on Friday, against a 0.77 percent fall in the Hang Seng Index .

Separately on Friday the company's sister unit, Cosco Shipping Energy Transportation which focuses on liquefied natural gas and oil shipping, posted a 67.4 percent rise in January-September profit. ($1 = 6.7790 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Editing by Jason Neely and Alexander Smith)
By Susan Taylor and Luc Cohen

TORONTO/BUENOS AIRES, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Chinese state-owned miners considering buying into Barrick Gold Corp's operations in Argentina would take on assets that are under regulatory scrutiny and entangled in lawsuits and investigations.

China's Zijin Mining Group Co and Shandong Gold Mining Co have held separate talks to buy a 50-percent stake in the Veladero gold mine, one of Barrick's core mines, four sources with knowledge of the process told Reuters this week.

Barrick would like any buyer to also make an investment in its nearby Pascua-Lama gold and silver project, two of the sources said. On Thursday, Barrick's president said the company will consider offers to buy some or all of its core mines.

After two cyanide spills since last year, Veladero is the focus of multiple court cases, a provincial investigation, criminal charges against current and former workers and environmental protests. Pascua-Lama has been suspended since 2013 due to political opposition, labor unrest and weak gold prices.

In the four years to 2014, 68 percent of the 210 "regulatory actions and incidents" reported by Barrick were in Argentina, according to company disclosures, though it has 13 other mines in nine countries.

"To invest in that seems like a crazy thing to me," said Enrique Viale, a Buenos Aires-based lawyer representing a group of residents near the Veladero mine who are seeking its closure.

Viale said the mine, high in the Andes Mountains, violates a 2010 Argentine law that limits activity on glaciers, and that the two spills could have been avoided if that law was properly applied. Barrick says it is in full compliance with the law.

But the quality of the assets may make it enticing enough for buyers to look past those issues -- Veladero boasts large, proven deposits and is profitable thanks to its relatively low operating cost.

Located in Argentina's San Juan province on the Chilean border, Veladero lies on the mineral-rich El Indio belt about 6 miles (10 km) away from Pascua-Lama, which straddles the border.

Story continues

"Any buyer is going to spend a lot of time understanding possible environmental issues, because the ramifications of getting it wrong can be huge," said Dan Denbow, portfolio manager at San Antonio-based USAA, which is an investor in Barrick.

"Especially if you are not going to have operational control, but be held responsible."

Given the global scarcity of large gold mines, Chinese buyers would not likely be deterred by the environmental incidents, said John Ing, president of brokerage Maison Placements Canada.

"The healthy competition for Barrick assets is because of quality and lack of meaningful (gold) ounces," he said.

Veladero, the biggest gold-producer in Argentina, is expected to produce between 530,000 to 580,000 ounces of gold this year, as much as some mid-sized gold miners produce from several mines.

The Chinese companies did not respond to requests for comment.

NO MARGIN FOR ERROR

Argentina has a long history of mining and many companies operate in the country, including Barrick rivals Goldcorp and AngloGold Ashanti, but Barrick's subsidiary Minera Argentina Gold SRL has drawn frequent regulatory scrutiny.

Between 2011 to 2014, the unit was the subject of 143 environmental regulatory actions, excluding those linked to Pascua Lama, out of 210 for all Barrick's global operations, according to company disclosures.

Barrick spokesman Andy Lloyd credited the high number of regulatory actions to San Juan province's rigorous regulatory system, saying that many of the actions were related to minor incidents.

"Veladero is the largest mining operation in the province, and is therefore a natural focus of provincial regulators. The mine is inspected frequently, every two weeks," he said.

"San Juan province has a robust and well-developed regulatory framework for mining, and that's a good thing because it provides assurance to people that the industry is well regulated."

The highest profile incident at Veladero was a September 2015 spill that sent more than a million liters of cyanide-contaminated liquid into a nearby river. Barrick paid a $10 million fine to the San Juan mining authority and earlier this year a provincial court approved criminal negligence charges against nine current and former employees, which are still pending.

Last month, after a second incident involving cyanide-contaminated liquid, the mine was shut by regulators for nearly three weeks. Barrick said the incident had no environmental impact, citing extensive water monitoring, and that it was confined to its property.

It was ordered to raise the height of barriers around a processing area to get the suspension lifted.

San Juan's mining authority is investigating the 2016 incident, and a provincial prosecutor has started a criminal investigation.

The very concept of mining in San Juan's mountains is controversial in Argentina, where environmental groups fear development could damage glaciers that supply drinking water when rain is scarce. A 2010 law restricts mining and petroleum exploration and production on glaciers and semi-glacial land.

Lawyers representing Jachal No Se Toca, a group of residents in Jachal, a town close to the mine, have brought two court actions seeking to halt production at the mine.

Last month, a federal judge asked the environment ministry to look into their claim that Barrick was operating illegally on glacial land and publish a national list of glaciers.

The ministry has since asked San Juan province to update an audit it conducted in 2013, which found Barrick's operations had no impact on glaciers.

Barrick has long maintained that previous government approvals give it the right to operate both projects, and that they have no impact on glaciers.

Last month, San Juan Governor Sergio Unac was asked what would happen if there was a third spill at Veladero.

"The company does not have any more margin for another grave error," he said, according to La Nacion newspaper.

(Additional reporting by Allison Martell in Toronto and Nicole Mordant in Vancouver; editing by Stuart Grudgings.)
By Manuel Mogato MANILA (Reuters) - Chinese ships are no longer at the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea and Philippine boats can resume fishing, the Philippine defence minister said on Friday, calling the Chinese departure a "welcome development". Philippine fishermen can access the shoal unimpeded for the first time in four years, Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said, capping off a startling turnaround in ties since his country rattled China by challenging its maritime claims at an international tribunal. The departure of the Chinese coast guard ships comes after President Rodrigo Duterte's high-profile visit to Beijing and his repeated requests for China to end its blockade of the shoal, a tranquil lagoon rich in fish stocks. "Since three days ago there are no longer Chinese ships, coast guard or navy, in the Scarborough area," Lorenzana told reporters. "If the Chinese ships have left, then it means our fishermen can resume fishing in the area." Though the Scarborough Shoal is comprised of only a few rocks poking above the sea some 124 nautical miles off the Philippine mainland, it is symbolic of Manila's efforts to assert its maritime sovereignty claims. Lorenzana did not explain the circumstances of the Chinese pullout from the shoal, the centrepiece of a case Manila filed in 2013 at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague that was decided in Manila's favour on July 12. And there was some confusion about the situation at sea, with a Philippine military spokesman earlier saying Chinese vessels were "still there". Some fishermen familiar with the area said the same. China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang made no mention of a coast guard withdrawal when asked about the return of Philippine fishermen to the shoal. The two countries "were able to work together on issues regarding the South China Sea and appropriately resolve disputes," Lu told a regular briefing. The United States backed Manila's arbitration case as part of its effort to stand up to what it sees as China's "excessive" maritime claims, only to come under repeated verbal attack from Duterte recently. Washington said it was still assessing Lorenzana's comments on the Chinese moves. "We hope it's certainly not a temporary measure," State Department spokesman Mark Toner told a regular news briefing. "We'd like it to be a sign that China and the Philippines are moving towards an agreement on fishing access at Scarborough reef that would be in accordance with the July 12 arbitral decision." Greg Poling, a South China Sea expert at Washington's Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank, said a Chinese pullout from Scarborough Shoal would be "a big deal, if it's true and if it's sustained." "But there is a lot that is still unclear," he said. "Is this a sign of a new status quo, whereby China will effectively comply with the arbitral award by allowing Filipino fishermen access to Scarborough? "Or is it just an olive branch while the two sides haggle over language for a long-term deal, which might prove impossible to reach if Beijing insists on language suggesting it is 'permitting' or 'allowing' the Philippines access?'" The Hague court declared that despite Scarborough Shoal being located within the Philippines' 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone, no one country had sovereign rights to it, so all claimants may fish there. PEACE OVERTURES China has refused to recognise the case or the award, which also invalidated the nine-dash line on Chinese maps denoting its claims to most of the South China Sea. China seized Scarborough Shoal - claimed by Beijing as Huangyan Island and by Manila as Panatag - in 2012. The previous Philippines administration's pursuit of the case infuriated China, but Beijing appears to have changed its stance since Duterte took office and started praising Beijing, often in the same sentences as his perplexing verbal attacks on longtime ally the United States. Reuters exclusively reported on the eve of Duterte's visit to China that Beijing would consider granting Philippine fishermen conditional access to the shoal. An end to the standoff over the shoal is still a potentially combustible issue for both countries. Some Philippine commentators say Manila may object to any reference to its fishermen being "permitted" to return, while Beijing might be wary of appearing to be softening its position on what it calls "indisputable" sovereignty. Duterte's spokesman, Ernesto Abella, offered no comment on whether the two sides had reached agreement. "All I can say, at this stage, it has been observed there are no longer Chinese coast guard in the area," he said. China's Lu hailed Duterte's recent visit as a success and said both countries were able to discuss the South China Sea impasse. "It is completely possible that the bilateral relationship can recover," Lu said. "I can tell you that the two sides are in communication." (Additional reporting by Sue-Lin Wong in Beijing and David Brunnstrom in Washington; Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by Clarence Fernandez, Paul Simao and Lisa Shumaker)
Just days before Halloween, Chris Hemsworth shares his biggest costume regret.

On Thursday, the 33-year-old actor posted a photo of himself dressed as his Avengers character posing alongside Thor: Ragnorak's director Taika Waititi. In the caption, Hemsworth announced that he would be supporting the Standing Rock protests in the U.S. "Standing with those who are fighting to protect their sacred land and water. #nodapl #waterislife #mniwiconi @taikawaititi," he wrote.

PHOTOS: Zac Efron, Chris and Liam Hemsworth, and More Male Stars Wear Nail Polish for a Good Cause

Hemsworth also expressed his deep regret for once dressing up as a Native American. "I would also like to take this opportunity to raise something that has been bothering me for sometime. Last New Year's Eve I was at a Lone Ranger-themed party where some of us, myself included, wore the traditional dress of First Nations people," he explained. "I was stupidly unaware of the offense this may have caused and the sensitivity around this issue. I sincerely and unreservedly apologize to all First Nations people for this thoughtless action."

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Instagram

The father of three added, "I now appreciate that there is a great need for a deeper understanding of the complex and extensive issues facing indigenous communities. I hope that in highlighting my own ignorance I can help in some small way."

MORE: Vanessa Hudgens Accused of Cultural Appropriation After Sharing Dreamcatcher Pic

Hemsworth isn't the only celebrity who's protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline that's being built at the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in North Dakota. His Avengers co-star, Mark Ruffalo, has also joined the efforts and Shailene Woodley was recently arrested for protesting at the site of where the pipeline is to be built.

"For me, it's not about helping the environment or saving the environment," the 24-year-old actress told ET after her arrest. "It's about recognizing that if I want my children to know a world where Manhattan isn't all the way under water -- because guess what, ladies and gentlemen, that world is not too distant and it's a reality that we must start facing and waking up to -- [then] we've gotta work our a**es off now to make that happen."

Related Articles
Chris Hemsworth stands with Standing Rock. (Photo: Instagram)

Chris Hemsworth has added his name to the growing list of celebrities speaking out against the Dakota Access Pipeline. Shailene Woodley was notably arrested earlier this month while protesting the 1,172-mile crude oil pipeline that will cross four states, passing near the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe reservation, and which opponents  including Susan Sarandon and Mark Ruffalo  say threatens to contaminate the Missouri River. Now Thor himself has taken up the cause.

The Aussie actor, 33, threw his support behind the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, and also apologized for being insensitive to Native American concerns in the past, including dressing up in traditional garments for sport.

Standing with those who are fighting to protect their sacred land and water. #nodapl #waterislife#mniwiconi @taikawaititi I would also like to take this opportunity to raise something that has been bothering me for sometime, wrote Hemsworth on Instagram. Last New Years Eve I was at a Lone Ranger-themed party where some of us, myself included, wore the traditional dress of First Nations people. I was stupidly unaware of the offense this may have caused and the sensitivity around this issue. I sincerely and unreservedly apologize to all First Nations people for this thoughtless action. I now appreciate that there is a great need for a deeper understanding of the complex and extensive issues facing indigenous communities. I hope that in highlighting my own ignorance, I can help in some small way.

Ruffalo, 48, who plays the Hulk alongside Hemsworths Thor in Marvels Avenger series, immediately saw the superheroic impact of Hemsworths move. He took to Twitter to write, Yo, we got a Hulk and a Thor #StandingWithStandingRock! #AvengersReassemble.

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Yo we got a Hulk and a Thor #StandingWithStandingRock! #AvengersReassemble chrishemsworth's photo https://t.co/QPMsO18IRD  Mark Ruffalo (@MarkRuffalo) October 28, 2016

Ruffalo has been part of the movement for months, having provided infrastructure and solar panels for the camp of protesters who call themselves water protectors, and frequently shares images from the front lines.

Peaceful resistance. #nodapl #standingrock A photo posted by Mark Ruffalo (@markruffalo) on Oct 26, 2016 at 3:06pm PDT

Friends listen to the words of Rev. Jesse Jackson from yesterday on the Frontline at #StandingRock with me. Situation could escalate today. Pray and call the Governor of North Dakota 701-328-2200. He is in charge of the militarized police. Let him know the whole world is watching! @barackobama #standwithstandingrock A video posted by Mark Ruffalo (@markruffalo) on Oct 27, 2016 at 8:44am PDT



Hemsworth has been in Australia shooting Thor: Ragnarok, so we dont think well see him at a protest anytime soon, but hes made it clear he stands with Standing Rock.


Dozens of women have come forward to accuse a student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison of sexual assault, prompting his suspension from campus, PEOPLE confirms.

Alec Cook, 20, has been charged with 11 counts of sexual assault and two counts each of strangulation and suffocation and false imprisonment. More charges are expected.

The criminal complaint against Cook  a copy of which was obtained by PEOPLE  states the Edina, Minnesota, native was initially arrested last week after a female college student came forward to accuse him of assault. News of the arrest appeared in local papers and was reported by local news stations, prompting other women to contact investigators.

I saw the news story and was empowered by another girl being able to tell what happened to her, that I thought I could now finally tell, the second woman to come forward told a police detective, according to Cooks criminal complaint.

Then a third woman contacted detectives with allegations she was assaulted by Cook a year ago. Then a fourth and a fifth. Together their accusations described multiple violent sexual assaults  unwanted groping, penetration and physical trauma, including being choked.

One woman described an encounter with him as one of the worst experiences of my life.

Court records show a search of Cooks apartment turned up a black leather book in which he described in detail how he had met several women, with notes on what he liked about each girl and what he wanted to with them.

Some entries included the word kill, according to the criminal complaint.

Cook is being held on $200,000 bail, according to USA Today. He has not entered a plea, according to court records, and his attorney did not respond to PEOPLEs requests for comment.

The initial complainant told police on Oct. 12 that she had known Cook two weeks before he allegedly forced himself on her. The alleged attack occurred in his apartment, according to the complaint, and began when Cook started kissing her forcibly to stop her from talking.

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Despite her insistence they slow down, the complaint alleged that Cook forced his hands down her pants and fondled her genitals. Next, he allegedly pushed her in the shoulder so her back was on the bed. He then pinned her to the bed and began taking off clothes.

Once they were both naked, the woman told police she accepted my fate and gave up a little bit  I realized he was bigger and stronger  I thought maybe I could just wait this out and then get away, according to the complaint.

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

Nearly three hours later, the sex was over. At times, the woman alleged that Cook started choking me by clenching my neck. Her vision started to go from a lack of oxygen, she told police, alleging Cook started slapping her in the face.

The victim said she later learned shed sustained vaginal abrasions and tearing.

Police questioned Cook days later, and, according to the criminal complaint, he told detectives he was uncomfortable discussing his sex life. Deep down, I am sexually insecure, he allegedly told police. It was hard to open myself to her, and it is hard to open myself to you here now.

According to the complaint, Cook allegedly denied the victim ever asked him to stop and couldnt recall choking her, saying, Sometimes I get lost in the heat of the moment.

More Women Come Forward

Beginning on Oct. 21, more women came forward to accuse Cook of sexual assault going back to at least 2015.

The second woman contacted authorities after recognizing Cooks picture in local news reports, according to his criminal complaint. She and the other women described allegedly being fondled, hit, harassed and intimidated by Cook against their will.

One woman told police she believes Cook drugged her drink while the two spent time together in February.

Another woman, who told police she met Cook in her ballroom dancing class, said he allegedly grabbed her breasts and butt as they two danced together after being partnered up. She told police she asked Cook to stop, but it changed nothing.

In yet another encounter, a woman accused Cook of turning violent during consensual sex in August.

He began pressing on the front of her throat with his hand, which she found uncomfortable, the criminal complaint states. She asked him to stop and he did, but within minutes he was allegedly again trying to choke her, she told police.

Before she ended the sex and left his apartment, she alleges Cook started striking her.

Cook, a junior majoring in business, has been suspended and banned from campus, University of Wisconsin officials said in a statement. Friends of his reached by PEOPLE declined to comment, and his family could not immediately be reached.

We were shocked and saddened to learn that several U.W.-Madison students have reported being sexually assaulted by a fellow student, the universitys statement reads.

Sexual violence is unacceptable in our campus and community.
HAVANA (Reuters) - Colombia's government and FARC rebels are incorporating changes into the peace deal that was rejected in a referendum earlier this month in a bid to swiftly salvage the accord, both sides said on Friday. The government and rebels are back at the negotiating table in Havana where they have been holding talks for four years on ending a 52-year old conflict that has killed more than 220,000 people. "We have analyzed the proposals of changes and precisions to the final accord that different sectors of the society have suggested," they said in a joint statement that they read out in a news conference in Havana. "The proposals are being discussed carefully and many are being incorporated into the texts of a new accord," the statement said, without describing the proposed changes. Colombian voters rejected the original deal by a razor-thin margin of less than half a percentage point, with opponents saying it was too lenient on the Marxist rebels. Led by hardline former President Alvaro Uribe, the "No" side was outraged the accord offered the FARC ten congressional seats and did not foresee jailing the rebels' leaders. Although the FARC leadership has said it is willing to hear new ideas, Uribe's proposals may be difficult to accept, given they have repeatedly refused to consider jail time and want to form a political party. On Friday, the FARC and government delegations said they would pick up talks next Thursday Nov. 3, "with the aim of reaching quickly and efficiently a new definitive agreement." Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, who has staked his legacy on ending the war with the FARC and earlier this month won the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts, said in a statement on Friday that time was of the essence. "The ceasefire we agreed is fragile," he said. "We need a new agreement right away." (Reporting by Nelson Acosta; Writing by Sarah Marsh; Editing by Andrew Hay)
As it becomes all but crystal clear that Hillary Clinton will be the next president and have the opportunity to fill multiple seats on the Supreme Court, which would cement a liberal majority on the panel for the first time in a generation, a Republican strategy of total war on her nominees is taking shape.

The court, currently down one of its nine members due to the death of Justice Antonin Scalia last year, has muddled through for months while the GOP refused President Obamas nominee Merrick Garland a hearing, much less a vote.

Related: With Friends Like These? GOP Party Loyalty Takes a Left Turn

Now, members of the GOP are seriously discussing the possibility of continuing to obstruct Democratic appointees indefinitely.

I promise you that we will be united against any Supreme Court nominee that Hillary Clinton if she were president, would put up, McCain said in an interview last week. This is why we need the majority.

After McCain, who is running for reelection, was criticized for his apparent promise to oppose Clinton Supreme Court nominees sight unseen, a spokesperson offered this walk back: Senator McCain will, of course, thoroughly examine the record of any Supreme Court nominee put before the Senate and vote for or against that individual based on their qualifications as he has done throughout his career.

However, this week Texas Sen. Ted Cruz was there to pick up the banner and carry it forward. In a discussion with reporters Wednesday, he said that there is a long historical precedent for a Supreme Court with fewer justices and suggested that Justice Stephen Breyer had said the loss of a single Justice is not impacting the ability of the court to do its job.

Related: Leaked Memo Shows Clinton Foundations Tangled Web of Money and Favors

Breyers point had been much narrower, in fact, pointing out that the basics of how the court reaches a decision were unchanged by the loss of one justice. However, the lack of a ninth Justice has led to stalemates in a number of cases so far, and that number will only grow in the future if the court remains deadlocked.

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To be clear, four years of deadlock are vastly preferable to Cruz and others rather than four years of binding opinions from a court with a more liberal majority.

For those of us who care passionately about the Constitution and Bill of Rights, who care about free speech and religious liberty and the 2nd Amendment, the best way to protect those rights is to win on Election Day so that we see strong conservatives nominated to the court, and maintain a Republican majority in the Senate to confirm those strong conservatives, Cruz added.

Sen. Harry Reid, the retiring minority leader from Nevada, used his Republican colleagues words to rally Democratic support at the polls on November 8. In an email circulated by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, he wrote, Ted Cruz and John McCain may have given away the Republican game plan on the Supreme Court. And we need to treat it like the constitutional crisis it will be if Democrats dont take back the Senate majority.

Related: Hillary Clinton Hints at a Health Care Takeover to Keep Obamacare Alive

Of course, earning the opprobrium of Harry Reid isnt exactly a new experience for either McCain or Cruz, and on Wednesday, there was a sign that some figures in right-wing think tanks might be ready to stand behind them, providing intellectual support to a total blockade on Democratic Supreme Court nominees.

As a matter of constitutional law, the Senate is fully within its powers to let the Supreme Court die out, literally, wrote Cato Institute fellow and attorney Ilya Shapiro. Im not sure such a position is politically tenablebarring some extraordinary circumstance like overwhelming public opinion against the legitimacy of the sitting presidentbut its definitely constitutional.

Shapiro argues that blocking non-conservative appointees would be not just legal, but the proper thing for a conservative senator to do.

If you truly believe that a particular nominee would wreak havoc on America, why not do everything you can to stop him? he wrote. I imagine this is what senators Obama and Clinton were doing when they voted to filibuster Judge Samuel Alito. While I think they were hopelessly misguided in their assessment of Justice Alito and his legal views, I dont fault them for pursuing an agenda they believed in.

Related: Looks Like Libertarian VP Candidate Bill Weld Is Supporting Clinton

In the end, he concluded, If Hillary Clinton is president it would be completely decent, honorable, and in keeping with the Senates constitutional duty to vote against essentially every judicial nominee she names.

The endgame here is ugly but predictable. In 2013, faced with a backlog of 59 executive branch appointees and 17 federal judicial nominees who were repeatedly filibustered by the GOP, Reid exercised what became known as the nuclear option. Invoking a point of order on the Senate floor, he forced a change in the Senate rules to bar filibusters of all executive branch nominees except for Supreme Court judges.

The distinction between Supreme Court nominees and all the rest was arbitrary, though, a sop to senators deeply uncomfortable with the move to overturn years of tradition. There would be nothing stopping the next Democratic Majority Leader -- likely New York Sen. Chuck Schumer, if the Democrats win the majority in November -- from changing the rules again, this time to block filibusters on Supreme Court nominees.

In fact, in a recent interview with Talking Points Memo, Reid indicated that is exactly what he expects will happen.

I really do believe that I have set the Senate so when I leave, were going to be able to get judges done with a majority. And, its clear to me that if the Republicans try to filibuster another circuit court judge, but especially a Supreme Court justice, Ive told 'em how and Ive done it, not just talking about it. I did it in changing the rules of the Senate. Itll have to be done again," Reid said.

They mess with the Supreme Court, he added. It'll be changed just like that in my opinion."

Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / October 28, 2016 / CopperBank Resources Corp. ("CopperBank" or the "Company") (CSE:CBK) is pleased to update investors and shareholders that a comprehensive review of CopperBank's existing portfolio has continued over the past several months. The purpose of the review is to maximize CopperBank's value which could be accomplished in various ways including continuing to hold or "bank" these and additional copper projects at low costs and/or seek a form of divesture of certain assets through spin-out or potential partnerships. CopperBank management is exploring these options to strategically enhance shareholder value. Investors are encouraged to view the interactive video presentation on the company's website - the lead video on the "energy zone" button - at www.copperbankcorp.com.

The company wishes to update that a total of CDN$100,000 owed to company management has been settled in common shares in the company at a deemed price of 0.10 per share. A total of 1 million shares will be issued to settle this amount and will have a four month hold from date of issuance.

The Company also announces that Mr. Todd Hilditch resigned, effective September 28, 2016, as a director of the company to focus on his own current endeavours and will remain as a strategic advisor to CopperBank. The Company wishes to thank Mr. Hilditch for the early-stage contribution he made in the formation of CopperBank and looks forward to his important input as a strategic advisor.

On behalf of CopperBank Resources Corp.

"Gianni Kovacevic"

Executive Chairman

Address: Suite 1500, 409 Granville Street, Vancouver, BC V6C 1T2

Tel: 604-889-0852

E-mail: gk@copperbankcorp.com

Website: www.copperbankcorp.com

Certain information in this release may constitute "forward-looking information" under applicable securities laws and necessarily involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking information included herein is made as of the date of this news release and CopperBank does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update forward-looking information unless required by applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information relates to future events or future performance and reflects management of CopperBank's expectations or beliefs regarding future events. In certain cases, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved" or the negative of these terms or comparable terminology. Examples of forward-looking information in this news release include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to the Company's ongoing review of its existing portfolio, the involvement of CopperBank in any potential divestiture, spin-out, partnership or other transactions involving the Company's portfolio assets, and the ability of the Company to complete any such transactions, the ability of CopperBank to enter into transactions that will ultimately enhance shareholder value, and the anticipated issuance of one million shares in connection with the satisfaction of certain loans between CopperBank and management. This forward-looking information is based, in part, on assumptions and factors that may change or prove to be incorrect, thus causing actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by forward-looking information. Such factors and assumptions include, but are not limited to the Company's ability to identify and complete one or more transactions involving the Company's portfolio assets that enhance shareholder value as part of management's ongoing review of strategic alternatives in the current market conditions. By its very nature, forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by forward-looking information. Such factors include, but are not limited to, the risk that the Company will not be able to identify and complete one or more transactions involving the Company's portfolio assets that enhance shareholder value as part of management's ongoing review of strategic alternatives in the current market conditions. Although CopperBank has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated by such forward-looking information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. For more information on CopperBank and the risks and challenges of its businesses, investors should review the continuous disclosure filings that are available under CopperBank's profile at www.sedar.com.

SOURCE: CopperBank Resources Corp.
From Esquire

Of all the implausible political theories blasted via late-night tweetstorms by Donald Trump supporters, one of the most bewildering came from Bill Mitchell, host of Your Voice Radio and post-truth activist. "So far Trump costumes are selling out while Hillary costumes are barely moving (like her). Just one more data point folks," he tweeted.

It bore all the hallmarks of a Trumpian claim: likely sparked by a single observation-why, yes, your co-worker Brad has told you a million times how awesome his "You're Fired Wig" and "Get America Stoned Again" snapback costume is going to be-generalized into a national trend, coated in a whole lot of exaggeration, and turned into an omen. And according to an unscientific SPY poll of Halloween stores in New York, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Chicago, Austin, and Los Angeles, the facts on the ground not only don't align, but paint a far spookier picture for Trump.

Retailers in these cities report doing brisk business with both Trump and Clinton masks for a simple reason: dressing up as both is a popular couple's costume. Usually it's a man dressing up as Trump and a woman as Clinton, but one of the managers at Lucy in Disguise with Diamonds declared its home city of Austin a "fun town" where gender didn't matter as much to those looking to get political on All Hallow's Eve.

Also, dressing up as a candidate does not indicate endorsement, in the same way that people who dress up as Kim Jong-un are not looking to move to North Korea. Derek Lee, owner of Philadelphia's D&J Costumes, sold out his masks for both candidates, but said customers were only speaking badly about one of them: Trump. That was also true at the Manhattan superstore Halloween Adventure, the only store that declared The Donald the winner in Halloween costume sales. "If we hid the Donald Trump masks we'd still sell out of them because people are coming in asking for them," says general manager Tony Bianchi. And from what he can tell from his customers, most of them are dressing as Trump to lampoon him. "They hate Trump in New York."

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In fairness, people dressing as Hillary aren't all fans, either. In much redder Cincinnati, a manager at Cappel's Costumes said that she sold Trump and Hillary costumes to a couple where the husband was going as the world's biggest consumer of gold bathroom fixtures and the wife as the former Secretary of State, wearing a prison uniform.

And there is another aspect to Mitchell's "as goes Halloween, so goes the nation" theory. Consider that all retailers agreed that the two most popular costumes this year-by a not-even-close margin-are: Harley Quinn, Margot Robbie's lunatic criminal in Suicide Squad; and the creepy clowns who have been terrorizing the nation. By that trend, Trump's success could be because there's a run on psychopaths. So if you're only following Halloween costume polling, the Harley Quinn/Creepy Clown ticket should prepare for a surprise victory on Election Day.

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By Marianna Parraga

HOUSTON, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Unpaid debts and broken promises are making Venezuelan oil giant PDVSA an outcast in several Caribbean countries where it had been a guest of honor.

The state-run company's crumbling finances are causing operational disruptions across one of its most essential regions, according to internal company documents, six sources with knowledge of its operations, and Thomson Reuters vessel-tracking data.

Business partners in the island nations of Curacao, Bonaire, Jamaica and the Bahamas are turning away from the firm as debts pile up to tugboat operators, ship brokers, maritime agencies and terminal owners, the sources and documents show.

The company's problems include blocked loading operations in the Bahamas and threats from the governments of Curacao and Jamaica to replace PDVSA as a partner of refineries in both places. Many vessels are also anchored offshore, blocked from discharging cargoes at ports because PDVSA has not paid suppliers and business partners.

The mounting Caribbean problems are adding to a broader crisis for PDVSA, which is already reeling from declining production, low crude prices and an unprecedented economic downturn at home. The company saw operating cash flow plummet by 63 percent, to $2.1 billion, in the first quarter compared to the same period a year earlier, according to its most recent financial report.

PDVSA's Caribbean operations represent a quarter of its global refining capacity and serve as a loading hub for a third of its exports of crude and fuel oil.

For a graphic on PDVSA's facilities in the Caribbean, see: http://tmsnrt.rs/2dEYaRb

"PDVSA has absolutely lost ground in the Caribbean," said Lisa Viscidi, director of Energy, Climate Change and Extractive Industries at the Inter-American Dialogue in Washington, noting falling oil sales in the region for the past two years.

PDVSA did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

In the latest mishap, a PDVSA fuel-oil cargo bound for Asia has been trapped in the Caribbean sea for more than a month after a court ordered the detention of the tanker "Hero" in Curacao, according to sources with direct knowledge of the situation and Thomson Reuters vessel-tracking data.

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Curacao's port authority barred the ship from leaving on Sept. 18 after a unit of Core Laboratories won the court order to force payment of delinquent debts, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter. PDVSA had allegedly failed to pay the unit, Saybolt, several million dollars for months of oil testing services.

Mark Elvig, general counsel for Core Laboratories, declined to comment.

REVERSAL OF FORTUNE

The problems reflect a stark reversal for a company that has been a trusted partner of governments in the Caribbean.

About a decade ago, Caribbean countries laid out red carpets for PDVSA executives, who came offering cheap oil under the Petrocaribe program that leftist President Hugo Chavez launched to win allies as a bulwark against Washington.

Petrocaribe worked well for years, as poor islands curbed the impacts of rising global oil prices and Venezuela bartered oil for everything from medical services to black beans.

PDVSA had used Caribbean facilities to offset frequent outages and incidents plaguing its storage, refining and port networks in Venezuela. The region offers vast storage capacity, ample refineries and crude blending facilities, and deep water docks to load Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC) for trips to Asia.

But the relationships of the past are now increasingly strained as suppliers and service providers go unpaid.

"PDVSA's cash flow problems are impacting routine operations," a trader at a private company that has worked with PDVSA in the Caribbean told Reuters on condition of anonymity. "You only accumulate several million dollars in debt for port services by not paying for months or even years."

The company has slashed its operating budget to $45 million monthly from $145 million monthly in 2015, the PDVSA trading team source said. That budget pays for all trade activities in Venezuela and overseas, the source said, including tanker cleaning, routine inspections, storage, brokerage, freight costs, port services and oil imports.

REFINERIES AT RISK

The tanker detention came days after Curacao's government signed a memorandum of understanding with Guangdong Zhenrong Energy, indicating the Chinese firm could soon replace PDVSA as the operator of the Isla refinery in 2019.

Officials in Curacao have said the move follows years of frustrated efforts to persuade PDVSA to invest $1.5 billion to upgrade Isla.

"We have decided not to wait any more and look for alternatives," said Ben Whiteman, the island's Prime Minister, in a broadcasted speech in September.

The island's government declined a Reuters request for comment, and the Chinese firm did not respond.

PDVSA said in a September news release that the renewal of its lease is not up for negotiation yet.

Isla is strategically important because its lease contract includes the Bullenbay terminal, with 17.75 million barrels of storage and blending capacity. Bullenbay is where PDVSA receives the imported light oil it mixes with its own extra heavy crude to create an exportable blend.

Also in September, Winston Watson, general manager of Petrojam - Jamaica's state company that owns the Kingston refinery - said he was fed up with PDVSA's foot-dragging on upgrading the plant.

"If they say no, then I guess we would have to go to the market and seek another investor," he said of PDVSA to lawmakers in parliament, according to a transcript.

Petrojam and the Jamaican government did not respond to requests for comment.

LATE RENT, STRANDED SHIPS

Another setback came in the Bahamas. For about a month starting in mid-September, PDVSA was blocked from loading cargoes at the massive BORCO terminal because of late rent payments for storage tanks, according to one of the PDVSA sources and a ship broker.

The BORCO standoff contributed to an ongoing decline in PDVSA's exports - and its ability to generate cash - just as payment delays snarled its imports.

In September, PDVSA's crude exports suffered an annual decline of 12 percent to 1.55 million barrels per day, according to Thomson Reuters Trade Flows data.

U.S.-based Buckeye Partners, which operates the terminal, did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Near other Caribbean and Venezuelan ports, about a dozen tankers carrying around 2.5 million barrels of light crude and products - including two cargoes supplied by BP - have been stuck at sea for weeks at a time, waiting for payment from PDVSA before discharging, according to traders from private firms and vessel tracking data.

In May, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro made an official visit to Jamaica and sought to reassure Caribbean dignitaries of PDVSA's long-term health.

"Be confident," he said. "Venezuela has faced situations even more difficult than the one we are passing through."

(Reporting by Marianna Parraga in Houston, with additional reporting by Sailu Urribarri in Aruba, Rebekah Kebede in Kingston and Alexandra Ulmer and Andrew Cawthorne in Caracas; Editing by Terry Wade and Brian Thevenot)
Protesters rallied and blocked roads in several Pakistani cities on Friday, October 28, a day after police raided the youth convention of Imran Khans Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf party and arrested dozens of activists. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharifs government had banned public rallies after Khan called for mass demonstrations following revelations that Sharifs family had offshore bank accounts.

After the arrests, Khan called for protests on Friday. The protests were relatively small, and Khan vowed to move forward with the larger demonstration planned for November 2 despite the ban on public rallies. Credit: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
This dad responded in the best way when his kids school asked for permission to read Fahrenheit 451

For anyone that isnt a die-hard book lover, literature can seem pretty boring. But thats not the case at all. From books that help change our understanding of the world to books that help with self-care, they do a whole more than just give readers a good story. Because literature does so much to enrich our lives, it is important that we fight for schools inclusions of books that have been banned for various reasons. So when this eighth grade student had to get parental permission to read Fahrenheit 451 in school, his dads response was perfect.

According to Huffington Post, Daniel Radish  a senior writer on The Daily Show  tweeted out his response after seeing the permission slip from his childs school in order to read Ray Bradburys classic Fahrenheit 451  a classic novel that famously questions censorship.

Ever the comedian, Radoshs response quickly gained popularity over the Internet. Check it out for yourself:

tfw your kid's school makes you sign a permission slip so he can read Fahrenheit 451 pic.twitter.com/t9lmD8vKTu  Daniel Radosh (@danielradosh) October 24, 2016

His response to the teacher reads:

I love this letter! What a wonderful way to introduce students to the theme of Fahrenheit 451 that books are so dangerous that the institutions of society  schools and parents  might be willing to team up against children to prevent them from reading one.

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A photo posted by Tin Bello (@vc_gb) on Oct 27, 2016 at 4:20pm PDT

Its easy enough to read the book and say, This is crazy. It could never really happen, but pretending to present students at the start with what seems like a totally reasonable first step is a really immersive way to teach them how insidious censorship can be.

Humor aside, the permission slip sheds a much-needed light on the limitations in literature that still exist today. Theres a long history of books being banned from schools and libraries for various themes, but most of the reasons seem pretty ridiculous now. Especially when it comes to classic novels like Fahrenheit 451, its ironic that were dealing with a novel and real-life issue of censorship. Permission slips to read novels in school (especially for eighth graders like Radoshs son) seem like they need to be a thing of the past.

The post This dad responded in the best way when his kids school asked for permission to read Fahrenheit 451 appeared first on HelloGiggles.
DALLAS, TX / ACCESSWIRE / October 28, 2016 / In many federal drug cases, a defendant's best option is to cooperate with the Government in order to try to earn a reduction in their sentence for "substantial assistance" to the Government, reports drug trafficking lawyer John Helms. The reduction occurs if a prosecutor asks the judge to sentence the defendant below the range called for by the federal Sentencing Guidelines and if the judge agrees to the request, which they usually do.

"Substantial assistance" is a phrase that comes straight out of section 5K1.1 of the Sentencing Guidelines. That is why the Government's request for a reduction in the sentence based on "substantial assistance" is often called a "5K" or a "5K" motion.

Many defendants, however, cannot realistically qualify for a "substantial assistance" reduction. "Substantial assistance" usually means either testifying in court against another person or giving law enforcement information about someone else that actually helps to arrest or prosecute them.

A lot of defendants may not be able or willing to testify against another person. For example, all of the people against whom the defendant could testify may plead guilty so that they do not go to trial. Or, a defendant may have a legitimate fear that testifying against someone could endanger them or their family, addsfederal drug defense attorney Helms.

As far as information goes, a defendant may give law enforcement information about other people's crimes, but if the Government already knows about it from their own investigation or from another defendant who talked to them first, then the defendant's information probably will not substantially assist the Government. Even if the Government does not already know it, if the defendant's information is not important enough or cannot be verified, it still may not be enough to get credit.

If a defendant cannot get "substantial assistance" credit, is there any reason to cooperate with the Government? In many cases, the answer is, "Yes." This is because cooperation may qualify the defendant for the Safety Valve.

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The Safety Valve is a federal law at 18 USC section 1335(f). It is also in section 5C1.2 of the Sentencing Guidelines. It allows a judge to sentence a defendant below a mandatory minimum sentence if the defendant meets five criteria:

The defendant has no more than one criminal history point under the Sentencing Guidelines. This is technical, but it generally means either no past criminal convictions or one conviction with a sentence of less than sixty days in custody. The defendant did not use, or encourage anyone to use, violence, a credible threat of violence, a firearm, or a dangerous weapon. The crime did not result in death or serious bodily injury to anyone. The defendant was not an organizer, leader, manager, or supervisor of others who were involved in the crime. Before sentencing, the defendant truthfully provides all information to the Government that the defendant has about the crime and the same criminal course of conduct and scheme.

Number 5 is about cooperation. It does not require testimony at trial. It also does not require that the information must be unknown to the Government or actually helpful to the Government. In fact, the law and the Sentencing Guidelines specifically state "the fact that the defendant has no relevant or useful information to provide or that the government is already aware of the information shall not preclude a determination by the Court that the defendant has complied with this requirement." 18 USC section 3553(f).

This means that someone who has no useful information about other people's crimes can still get a benefit. For example, in situations where a defendant is so low on the totem pole that he is kept in the dark about the other members of a drug organization and knows almost nothing, I have heard federal agents refer to a defendant's information as "safety-valve information, rather than 5K information."

It is important for defendants to realize that they still have to tell the Government everything they know. Some defendants think they can cooperate, but keep damaging information about others a secret. Federal agents will almost always test someone who is claiming to cooperate. I have seen it happen over and over again that they know much more about the criminal activity than the cooperator thinks they do.

I remember one meeting in which agents asked a defendant if he had ever been to a store owned by a member of the drug organization. Trying to protect that person, he said he had not. The agents casually asked if he was sure. He said he was. They then pulled out a surveillance photo of the defendant going into the store and put it on the table. "Is this you?" they asked, and it clearly was. So much for being truthful and complete.

The benefit of the Safety Valve is that the judge can sentence below a mandatory minimum sentence. Many federal drug crimes have a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years. Yet in many cases, especially for people with no criminal history, the Sentencing Guidelines call for a sentence of less than ten years. In this situation, the mandatory minimum trumps the Sentencing Guidelines, and the judge has to give a sentence of at least ten years, unless there is an exception to the mandatory minimum. The Safety Valve is an exception. When it applies, the judge can sentence below ten years, in this example.

Anyone accused of a federal drug crime should consult an experienced federal drug defense attorney about whether the Safety Valve applies to them, and what benefit they might receive if it does. More importantly, a skilled drug defense attorney, especially one who has been a federal prosecutor and knows how Government agents think, can prepare you so that you do well in your meetings with the Government. Even if you cannot qualify for a substantial assistance reduction, the Safety Valve might save you from the harsh effects of a mandatory minimum sentence.

If you or a family member have been charged with a federal drug crime or any other drug related crime in Dallas or the nearby counties and have any questions about drug laws, contact drug trafficking lawyer John Helms at 214-666-8010 or fill out this online contact form. We can talk about the situation, how the law could apply in your case and the best legal options to protect your rights and maintain your freedom.

Media Contact

Dallas Criminal Lawyer John Helms

214-666-8010

https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-helms-69172699

Photo courtesy of Heather Smith http://alloy-valves.com/

source: http://johnhelms.attorney/drug-trafficking-lawyer-explains-get-sentence-reduction/

SOURCE: John Helms Law Firm via Submit Press Release 123
Adequate supplies keep prices of dried fruits stable

Festive shoppers have been thronging the market to buy dried fruits and other items in preparation for Tihar, the festival of lights, which begins on Friday.
Danielle Jonas just gave birth, guys!

Looks like theres a brand new baby for the Jonas clan! Its been reported that Danielle Jonas just gave birth to a little girl named Valentina Angelina, and her family couldnt be happier. This marks the second child for Danielle and her famous JoBro husband Kevin, who had their first girl, Alena Rose, back in 2014. Alena and Valentina? How cute is that?

Of course, Kevins famous brothers were quick to post the good news on social media. It seems like Joe and Nick are definitely excited to gain the uncle title for a second time, and have more kids in the family to totally spoil.

Congratulations to @kevinjonas & @daniellejonas on the newest addition to the family! So beautiful!  J O E J O N A S (@joejonas) October 27, 2016

Congrats Kevin and Dani! We have another Jonas!! Can't wait to meet that beautiful baby girl very soon. @kevinjonas @daniellejonas A video posted by Nick Jonas (@nickjonas) on Oct 27, 2016 at 2:50pm PDT

Nicks tribute video is especially sweet.

My brother and his wife had their baby. I am overjoyed, Nick said while on location in Hawaii.

Kevin and Danielle have yet to post pictures (and we dont blame them, as Valentina was literally born yesterday) but Kevin did post this photo of little Alena the other day, and its making us melt.

She asked me where Cinderella's carriage was A photo posted by Kevin Jonas (@kevinjonas) on Oct 26, 2016 at 4:56pm PDT

Alena also helped announce that her little sibling would be another girl, way back in June.

Shes such an incredibly cute little girl, and shes going to be such a fantastic big sister!

Many congratulations to Kevin and Danielle Jonas! We look forward to hearing more about baby Valentina in the near future!

The post Danielle Jonas just gave birth, guys! appeared first on HelloGiggles.
Copenhagen (AFP) - The Danish ex-editor who commissioned the Mohammed cartoons that triggered deadly protests a decade ago on Friday accused the Jyllands-Posten newspaper of trying to silence him, saying it had let "the jihadists" win.

In a book to be released on Monday, titled "De besatte" ("The obsessed"), Flemming Rose accuses the paper's management of hypocrisy, claiming it backed him in public while doing everything it could to silence him in private.

"The drama and tragedy is that the only ones who have won are the jihadists," he told the weekly Weekendavisen newspaper.

Rose said that rules for what he could say and write about the controversial cartoons and related subjects had been outlined in a 2011 agreement proposed by former editor-in-chief Jorn Mikkelsen, the former chief executive of the company that owned the paper, Lars Munch, and the company's former chairman Jorgen Ejbol.

Among the rules were a ban on taking part in TV and radio programmes and refraining from commenting on the cartoons.

Rose, who left the paper last year, also said he had been accused of being "deeply disloyal" and "obsessed" with the debate prompted by the cartoons.

"You have grandchildren, don't you think about them?" Ejbol is alleged to have said in 2015 after Rose agreed to interview the Dutch and anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders at a public event.

Jyllands-Posten's owner, JP/Politikens Hus, did not comment on the book, but Munch, now the group's chairman, said in a statement that "it wasn't about Flemming Rose, it was about the safety of more than 2,000 loyal employees."

Rose was the culture editor of the right-wing Jyllands-Posten in 2005 when he commissioned 12 satirical cartoons of the Islamic prophet, triggering deadly protests in some Muslim countries.

The cartoons were also published in 2006 in French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, where Islamist gunmen killed 12 people last year.

Rose, 58, still lives under police protection because of death threats made against him, and there have been numerous foiled terror plots against Jyllands-Posten, which has had to take extensive security measures.
If You are Facing a Murder Charge, You Need an Aggressive Lawyer in Your Corner Right Away

DALLAS, TX / ACCESSWIRE / October 28, 2016 / Murder is a taboo in our society, and for good reason. Unlike other crimes, taking the life of another is something that can't be undone. When you're charged with murder, it's normal to feel a complex mix of emotions that range from fear and frustration to anger and anxiety. In Texas, a murder conviction carries severe penalties.

Despite advances in evidence-gathering techniques and crime scene investigation, innocent people are still convicted of murder every day. The recent popular Netflix series, "Making a Murderer" profiles the controversial case of a young man accused of a homicide he may not have committed. Another series looks at the case involving Amanda Knox, the American college student whose murder conviction was overturned in Italy, but not before she spent years in prison.

If you have been charged with murder, there is no question you need a knowledgeable, aggressive Texas criminal defense lawyer on your side. There are defenses available in your case. Your lawyer can help you create a defense strategy designed to get the best results possible.

Possible Defenses to a Murder Charge

Lack of intent - Prosecutors have a high burden of proof in a murder case. One of the main elements in any homicide case is the proof the defendant actually intended to take the victim's life. Accidents happen, including in murder cases. An example of an accidental killing is when a person shoots a family member returning home late at night because they mistook the family member for an intruder.

Insanity - The insanity defense is used far less often than most people realize, and there are different standards for proving insanity depending on whether a person is being tried in federal or state court. Generally, the defendant must show that he or she did not intellectually or mentally understand that his or her behavior was wrong at the time of the murder.

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Intoxication - High levels of intoxication may be sufficient to downgrade a murder charge to a lesser offense. The reason is that extreme intoxication can interfere with a person's judgment and mental capacity.

Self-defense - In Texas, homeowners do not have a legal duty to retreat when an intruder enters their home without permission. Courts in Texas have held that homeowners, owners of businesses, and even motorists have a right to use deadly force to defend themselves against an attack or the threat of harm.

Discuss Your Case with a Texas Federal Criminal Defense Lawyer

If you are facing a murder charge, you need an aggressive lawyer in your corner right away. At Broden & Mickelsen, we are Board Certified in Criminal Law and Criminal Appellate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Receive a free case evaluation from a Texas federal criminal defense lawyer today by calling 214-720-9552.

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Dallas Criminal Defense Lawyer on Facebook

Source: http://www.brodenmickelsen.com/blog/what-are-the-defenses-to-a-murder-charge/

SOURCE: Broden & Mickelsen, LLP via Submit Press Release 123
Most of the money behind an upstart Republicans for Clinton super PAC has come from billionaire Democratic megadonor Dustin Moskovitz, a co-founder of Facebook.

According to a Center for Public Integrity review of new campaign finance filings, Moskovitz has contributed $250,000 to the R4C16 super PAC. That represents about 70 percent of the groups income through Oct. 19.

R4C16 nevertheless touts itself as a grassroots movement of concerned Republicans who are committed to vote for Hillary Clinton for president to defeat Donald Trump.

During the final presidential debate last week in Nevada, the super PAC sponsored an anti-Trump mobile billboard with the message DONT GROPE. VOTE, which traversed the Las Vegas strip for hours.

It has also launched an app and website to encourage supporters of third-party candidates to trade their votes to ensure Clinton wins in critical battleground states.

This story is part of Source Check. Click here to read more stories in this series.

Don't miss another Politics investigation: Sign up for the Center for Public Integrity's Watchdog email.

The ads sponsor

R4C16 officially registered as a super PAC with the Federal Election Commission in early September. Super PACs may raise and spend unlimited amounts of money to advocate for or against political candidates. They may not coordinate their spending with those candidates.

Whos behind it?

R4C16 was co-founded by John Stubbs and Ricardo Reyes, who both previously worked in Republican President George W. Bush's administration.

Reyes, a former deputy assistant U.S. trade representative for media and public affairs, has also held senior positions at Silicon Valley companies including Google, Square and Tesla.

Stubbs, a former senior adviser to the U.S. trade representative, went on to found his own consulting firm, Romulus Global Issues Management. Hes currently a fellow at Harvard Universitys Berkman Center for Internet and Society.

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Then theres Moskovitz, the Facebook co-founder.

Last month, Moskovitz and his wife, Cari Tuna, pledged to spend $20 million to help elect Democrats in 2016.

Though weve voted for the Democratic nominee each of the times weve cast a ballot, weve considered ourselves independent thinkers who respect candidates and positions from both sides of the aisle, the couple wrote in an article on Medium at the time.

Like many Democratic voters, we dont support every plank of the platform, but it is clear that if Secretary Clinton wins the election, America will advance much further toward the world we hope to see, they continued. If Donald Trump wins, the country will fall backward.

In August, Moskovitz and Tuna each contributed $416,100 to the Hillary Victory Fund, a joint fundraising committee that benefits Clintons campaign as well as the Democratic National Committee and Democratic parties in several states. Campaign finance records show the couple has given more than $21 million to federal political candidates and groups so far this year. All are liberal-leaning.

Stubbs told the Center for Public Integrity that there was no disconnect for his Republican super PAC to be receiving so much money from a Democratic megadonor.

Our mission is country above party, Stubbs said, adding that the super PAC had attracted support from Republicans, Democrats and independents because our effort is about breaking down nonsensical Red Team vs. Blue Team barriers.

Related: R4C16 ad

Money in

In addition to Moskovitz, other big donors to the R4C16 super PAC include securities broker Robert A. Granieri of New York ($70,000) and philanthropist Martha Ehmann Conte of San Francisco ($25,000).

Campaign finance records show that both Granieri and Conte have donated $2,700 to Clintons campaign while having financially backed a non-Trump GOP presidential contender as well.

Granieri donated $2,700 in January to the failed presidential bid of U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida  and another $24,000 to a super PAC that backed him  before donating to Clinton in August.

Earlier this month, Granieri also donated $50,000 to the Congressional Leadership Fund, a super PAC focused on helping Republicans keep control of the U.S. House of Representatives.

For her part, Conte gave $2,700 to the failed presidential campaign of former New York Gov. George Pataki  and an additional $25,000 to a super PAC that backed Pataki.

Why it matters

Not only does the R4C16 super PAC want Republicans to vote for Clinton, the group is also encouraging all voters to consider voting strategically  especially if you live in a swing state and are leaning toward a minor-party candidate such as Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein or Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson.

Stubbs said that R4C16s website had already connected connected thousands of voters who plan on trading votes. The super PACs vote-trading gambit works like this: Stein and Johnson supporters living in swing states agree to vote for Clinton, and in return, Clinton supporters in non-swing states agree to in return to support a minor-party candidate.

One trade that Stubbs said the super PAC has helped initiate: An upcoming swap between Anlin Wang, a Stein supporter in Pennsylvania, where polls show Clinton with a narrow lead, and Sadiq Khan, a Clinton supporter in New Jersey, a state that Clinton is expected to carry handily.

Stubbs said the two voters will be meeting at Independence Hall in Philadelphia on Saturday, where they plan to fill out their absentee ballots and then walk to the post office together to mail them.

What do supporters of Gary Johnson, Jill Stein or Republicans for Clinton have in common? Stubbs continued. We all agree Donald Trump is the worst option in 2016.

A version of this story also appeared on Salon.

This story is part of Source Check. Click here to read more stories in this series.

Related stories

Copyright 2016 The Center for Public Integrity. This story was published by The Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit, nonpartisan investigative news organization in Washington, D.C.
By Kathrin Jones, Arno Schuetze and Karen Freifeld FRANKFURT/NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. and U.K authorities have made progress in their investigation into allegations that Deutsche Bank helped its clients in Russia disguise suspicious trades, and a settlement could come by the first half of next year, people familiar with the matter said. The U.S. Department of Justice, New York's Department of Financial Services and the UK's Financial Conduct Authority each launched investigations into the so-called Russian "mirror trades," which allegedly involved clients using Deutsche Bank to buy securities in rubles only to sell them shortly after in a foreign currency, Reuters previously reported. The bank has been making presentations to both U.S. and UK government officials on its findings and discussions are expected to begin soon on settlement terms, such as the size of a potential penalty, one of the people said this week. Deutsche Bank, the U.S. Justice Department, New York's Department of Financial Services and the Financial Conduct Authority all declined to comment on the matter. The probe into suspicious equities trading in Russia is yet another legal hurdle for Germany's largest lender, which is also in talks with U.S. authorities to settle claims the bank misled investors in selling mortgage-backed securities in the run-up to the financial crisis. The trades in question may have allowed Russian customers to illegally move money from one country to another, in violation of money laundering controls, people close to the matter have said. People have said the probe was also looking into whether clients transferred money in breach of Western sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine conflict which went into effect in 2014. But the focus of the probe is currently on alleged money laundering, rather than possible violations of the Western sanctions, two people familiar with the matter said this week. Deutsche Bank said last year it was investigating certain equity trades in Moscow and London, adding the total volume of the transactions under review is "significant." It also cut back on its investment banking activities in Russia last year. Reuters reported that the bank had found a total of $10 billion of suspicious trades in Russia, including $6 billion in mirror trades, citing people familiar with the matter. Germany's financial watchdog found no evidence to date that Deutsche Bank violated money laundering rules in Russia in connection with the case, people close to the matter told Reuters earlier this month. While Bafin, the financial supervisory authority for Germany, generally asks German lenders to improve internal procedures, it has no power to ask for hefty fines - unlike regulators in the U.S. and UK, who have made Deutsche pay out billions to resolve past missteps. Deutsche Bank raised its provisions for all outstanding legal cases to 5.9 billion euros from 5.5 billion euros in the third quarter, without specifying for which cases. People close to the matter have told Reuters that 1 billion euros of that has been set aside for the Russian case. (Reporting by Kathrin Jones, Arno Schuetze and Alexander Hubner in Frankfurt and Karen Freifeld in New York, Editing by Soyoung Kim and Andrew Hay)
For someone so unassuming and affable, Flemming Rose, the former foreign affairs editor of the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, has a prodigious talent for making trouble. And trouble, for its part, has a special talent for finding Rose.

On Sept. 19, 2005, Rose, the then culture editor at Jyllands-Posten, invited 42 Danish cartoonists and illustrators to draw the Prophet Mohammed as they see him for publication in the newspaper. Twelve artists took up the challenge, and on Sept. 30, that year, Jyllands-Posten duly published 12 editorial cartoons under the title, The Face of Muhammad. Of the 12, the most notorious was by Kurt Westergaard, depicting the prophet with a bomb in his turban. Another showed the prophet in heaven, remonstrating suicide bombers with the words, Stop, stop, we have run out of virgins! The purpose of this exercise, Rose later explained in a Washington Post article, wasnt to provoke gratuitously, but rather to push back self-imposed limits on expression that seemed to be closing in tighter.

The story of what happened next is well-known. On Feb. 4, 2006, the Danish and Norwegian embassies in Syria were set alight amid protests against the cartoons. A mob burned down the Danish embassy in Lebanon a day later. In total, 139 people were killed in demonstrations from Nigeria to Pakistan, and Rose and Westergaard were forced to live under armed guard, later appearing, in 2013, on an al Qaeda hit list, alongside the novelist Salman Rushdie and Stephane Charbonnier, the editor of Charlie Hebdo who was murdered with 11 others at the magazines office in January 2015.

It has been more than 10 years since the cartoons were published, and Rose is making trouble again. But this time it involves not an inflamed mob or wannabe jihadi assassins, but his former colleagues and bosses at the newspaper he worked for his whole professional life until his retirement on Jan. 1 this year.

Roses new book  his third  will be released in Denmark next Monday. His previous two books  The Tyranny of Silence, first published in 2010, and Hymne til Friheden (Hymn to Freedom), published last year to mark the 10th anniversary of the cartoons  are primarily about ideas, and the centrality of one idea in particular: freedom of speech. His new book, The Possessed, is also about ideas. But its not a defense of abstract principles so much as an attack on those who were once closest to him, whom he accuses of abandoning their convictions in the face of a growing climate of fear and intimidation fueled by the threat of terrorism in Europe. It is less a book than a brick aimed squarely at what he sees as the hypocrisy of his former colleagues at Jyllands-Posten, who, he claims, tried to silence him privately, all the while defending free speech publicly.

Story continues

Rose relayed all this to me when we met over coffee in Paris last week. The last time I interviewed him was in a cafe in Copenhagen last year, when he was flanked by his three bodyguards from the Danish security and intelligence service. This time Roses security detail was conspicuously absent: He was on vacation and didnt want them around. I tried hard to convey a look of insouciance as I nervously scanned the joint for suspicious activity. Rose, 58, looked unchanged from the last time we met, which is to say: in pretty good nick.

The Possessed contains a litany of accusations levelled at his former bosses: Jorn Mikkelsen, Roses editor in chief at Jyllands-Posten, Lars Munch, the former CEO of JP/Politiken, which owns Jyllands-Posten, and Jorgen Ejbol, the former chairman of JP/Politiken. They all hinge on a dual theme: the silencing of Rose, and the corrosion of free speech in a time of terror.

In public, Jyllands-Posten appeared to stand firmly by Roses side: It refused to apologize for printing the cartoons (though it did apologize for having indisputably offended many Muslims). In 2008, it reprinted the drawing by Westergaard, in response to death threats against the cartoonist. But it didnt take long, according to Rose, for the paper to decide it had had enough of the whole affair.

One of the most striking accusations Rose makes is that, in June 2011, he was issued with what he describes as a dictate, containing nine numbered points. In Roses telling, this was read out to him, from a printed email, by Ejbol in a meeting which his editor in chief and the CEO of JP/Politiken also attended. Rose told me that after Ejbol finished speaking, Rose asked for a copy of the document, since it was a lot to take in. So he gave it to me, very reluctantly, and I just put it in a cup on my desk at home, where it sat for three or four years. I asked Rose for an English translation of the document, which he sent to me via email. It reads:

1) No participation in radio and tv-programmes, national and international. 2) No participation in conferences and speaking engagements, national and international. 3) Do not comment on religious issues. 4) Do not cover OIC [Organization of Islamic Cooperation], The Islamic Conference 5) Do not comment on the cartoons. 6) Length: So far, one year from now. 7) Disputable questions are to be discussed by [Lars] Munch and [Jrn] Mikkelsen. Munch makes final decision. 8) If Roses book is to be published abroad a special plan has to be worked out. Munch makes final decision. 9) ??

The book alluded to in point eight is The Tyranny of Silence, which was published in Danish in 2010 and in English in 2014. It is unclear as to what the question marks in point nine allude. Revealingly, the document opens with the following statement: The company finds itself in an extraordinary situation. Security will always weigh the heaviest. Human lives are more important than principles. This was a reference to the terror threat that the publication of the cartoons had brought to the paper and its employees; it was also the justification for reining in Rose.

Of course, the company was in an extraordinary situation at the time at which Rose received the dictate. In December 2010, the Danish security services, in partnership with their counterparts in Sweden, neutralized a plot to attack Jyllands-Posten. The five plotters, four of whom Swedish citizens, had planned to launch what police called a Mumbai-style attack at the offices of the paper, in revenge for the publication of the cartoons. Rose mentioned this case in our interview: That incident was the height of the terrorist threat [against Jyllands-Posten], and it was one of the reasons why I accepted this eight-point dictate. Rose also told me that, having already been accused of disloyalty and running his own show in an earlier conflict with his employers, he didnt want to be charged with the accusation again, and so he felt an additional pressure to comply.

This meeting was not the first time Roses bosses had expressed their disapproval of his public visibility. In 2010, Rose had agreed with his employers that after the publication of The Tyranny of Silence, he would keep a low profile. But Roses definition of low profile was obviously at variance with that of his employers. He told me that two column-pieces he wrote  one on Kenan Maliks book From Fatwa to Jihad and the other on modern Russian art and insult  drew censure from his CEO: This is November/December 2010, and then in January 2011, the CEO comes into my office, he takes out these two columns, a lot of red underlining, and he says to me, you have to stop, youre obsessed, people up on the fourth floor [the offices of JP/Politiken] are up in arms and saying, isnt he able to stop? And I just laughed, and I said, Im just trying to find out why I believe what I do. And for me these two columns were not about the cartoons crisis; yes, they had some relationship to free speech but this is a very topical issue. Rose added, My editor in chief didnt say anything; it was the CEO who came down to speak to me.

The dictate was to remain active for a year, as per point six, after which it was to be reviewed. Rose accepted this, believing that after this period, his bosses would soften their line toward him. But this never happened, he says: We had that meeting in September 2012, the CEO, me and the editor-in-chief, and to my big surprise the CEO says to me, The list we agreed upon  agreed, Rose repeated this with heavy irony, last year will be paramount as long as youre employed by this company. Rose expressed his opposition to this, but nonetheless complied with it, bending the rules here and there during the remainder of his time at Jyllands-Posten. One such transgression was his decision to appear in a televised debate with the Dutch far-right politician Geert Wilders. Rose said that three weeks before the event, scheduled for June 13, 2015, he took a call from Ejbol, who was then deputy chairman of the board of JP/Politiken. Ejbol, in no uncertain terms, expressed his disapproval. In Roses version: He starts yelling at me, Why the fuck did you say yes to appear on stage with this terrorist target, are you stupid? Do you have a secret death wish? You have grandchildren now. Are you completely out of your mind? Its okay if you want to die yourself, but why are you taking the company though all this? The breaking point came in September 2015, when, he alleges, Ejbol warned him against promoting his new book Hymn to Freedom in digital media. It was shortly after this that Rose handed in his resignation.

Almost immediately he started the mental work of trying to make sense of what happened and how everything fell apart. When I interviewed him in December last year, he told me, off the record at the time: We [Rose and his bosses at Jyllands-Posten] had a conflict and thats why Im leaving. They basically presented me with an ultimatum: Either you are an editor or you are a debater. And its a false dichotomy, because most editors are also debaters. But it was a way of telling me to shut up and keep silent about these matters. Elaborating on his reasons for leaving, he said, After Charlie Hebdo and what is going on now, I feel that this is an historical moment for Europe and it could go bad in many ways. I just want to be part of that debate, because some of the basic issues I have been thinking about for the past 10 years. That turned out to be incompatible with my role as a foreign editor Im going to write a book about this. Which, true to his word, he has done. I asked Rose if it had been a cathartic experience, but he dodged the question. The point of the book, he said, is to defend the independence of the media. Rose, who is about to become a senior fellow at the Cato Institute in Washington, now spends most of his time writing and debating.

I contacted Lars Munch, now chairman of JP/Politiken, and Jorgen Ejbol, now vice chairman of JP/Politiken and chairman of the Jyllands-Posten Foundation, for comment on Roses allegations. Munch, who was also speaking on behalf of Ejbol said, via email: Mr. Rose gives his version, however, this was not about Mr. Rose but about the security of more than 2000 loyal employees. Rose, who is acutely sensitive to the charge of disloyalty and writes about this at length in his new book, will no doubt seize on the word loyal in this statement. It is notable that Munch doesnt engage with or contest the allegations in Roses version. When reached for comment, Mikkelsen said, I have nothing to add to this, referring to the joint response from Munch and Ejbol that I had forwarded to him via email.

As Rose sees it, the restrictions that were imposed on him amounted to a fundamental breach of journalist ethics. In his estimation: They [his former bosses at the paper] broke the law about media responsibility, according to which its only the editor in chief who decides what is to be written in the paper. Rose also thinks that his silencing, as he describes it, is a paradigm case-study in the sociology of fear, and of how terrorism erodes trust not only in distant others, but also among close friends. The political theorist Michael Walzer defines the ramifying evil of terrorism as not just the killing of innocent people but also the intrusion of fear into everyday life, the violation of private purposes, the insecurity of public spaces, the endless coerciveness of precaution. I relayed this quote to Rose, who is a keen admirer of Walzers work. Referring to the new book, he said, Its really about how the threat of terror destroyed professional communities, friendships and principles, because if the four key actors  me, the CEO, the chairman of the board, the editor in chief  if we, just 10 years ago, were sitting around this table and had talked about the principles we would agree on everything But when the pressure started to build we ended up on different sides of the barricades.

The book is also indirectly about the discrepant ways in which terrorism intrudes on the interior world of its victims. In October 2009, the FBI foiled a plot to assassinate Rose and Westergaard. One of the plotters, an American of Pakistani heritage, was linked to a terrorist attack in Mumbai the previous year and had visited Denmark twice on reconnaissance missions. Last year, within hours of the Charlie Hebdo attacks, al Qaeda reissued a hit list in which Rose appeared alongside a crossed-out Stephane Charbonnier. The threat on Roses life, in other words, was  and remains  real. It is not just the crazed fulminations of an obscure cleric. You would think that this would have an enervating effect on him. But the opposite seems to have happened: It has energized him. And it has had a radicalizing impact, making him even more defiant and vociferous in his defense of free speech. Im an atheist, and I can only say that the reactions to my drawing have made me stronger in my faith, Kurt Westergaard told Rose in an interview for The Tyranny of Silence. The same can be said of Rose: that the cartoons crisis made him stronger in his faith in free speech. But, if Roses account is to be credited, the opposite seems to have happened to his former bosses at Jyllands-Posten.

Rose also alleges that his former bosses accused him of being a fanatic. He is obviously still wounded by this. At one point in our interview, he insisted, I am not a fanatic, I am not obsessed by anything, the fanatics are those who want to attack us. He also reversed the charge, accusing his former employers of harboring a fanatical attitude toward him. The possessed, in the title of Roses new book, are his former bosses.

Im not sure if I entirely buy this denial. Of course, Rose is not a fanatic in the way his jihadi foes are. On the contrary: He is deeply humane and liberal, he is skeptical, and he has a voracious appetite for ideas and irony. But the cartoons, indisputably, are the story of his life. Like a war, they have given it a radiant meaning and purpose. They have animated it with a deep life-and-death drama. And, like all wars, they have intensified and put to the test personal relationships.

The cartoons cataclysm, for Rose, was the elevated emotional experience of his life. How could it have not been? And he has  thus far  survived it. Yet, as his new book demonstrates, he is not yet ready to let it go. Could boredom be more terrifying than all of wars terrors? asked the philosopher Hannah Arendt in her introduction to J. Glenn Grays classic war memoir The Warriors. The trouble with Flemming Rose is that he would probably answer yes.

Photo credit: Martijn Beekman/AFP/Getty Images
Airlines face shortage of 100 senior pilots

Nepali airlines are facing a shortage of senior pilots with the aviation industry ending a long period in the doldrums and suddenly taking off amid a spurt in travel demand.
JOHANNESBURG  Twenty-two years ago, when Nelson Mandela became the first democratically elected leader of a South Africa still emerging from the shadow of apartheid, hopes were high that the hero of the anti-apartheid struggle would lead the nation into an era of equality and prosperity.

Three years after his death, though, the country is wracked by turmoil, led by a deeply unpopular president who has stumbled his way through a string of embarrassing political scandals. The South African rand has tumbled to near-record lows. Inequality has only worsened in the years since Mandelas African National Congress (ANC) took power. Across the country, a wave of young activists is fighting bitterly against the status quo, even calling into question the legacy of one of the worlds most-beloved icons.

In the opening minutes of The Giant is Falling, the follow-up to his Emmy Award-winning Miners Shot Down, South African documentarian Rehad Desai asks a simple question: Where did it all go wrong?

Weve inherited an economic system which is in many ways rotten to the core, says Desai, on the eve of pics world premiere at the Joburg Film Festival Saturday (Oct. 29). Weve inherited a lot of trouble.

Giant maps the countrys political landscape from the birth of democracy in 1994 to the widespread student protests that have rippled across South Africa in the past year.

At its heart is a searing indictment of the broken promises and diminished expectations that have betrayed a post-apartheid generation whose notion of freedom went far beyond the ballot box, according to Desai.

The movies premiere takes place in the historic Alexander Theater, a stones throw from where students from the University of the Witwatersrand, calling for a wide range of institutional reforms, have faced off with riot police in confrontations that have turned violent in recent weeks.

Its a symbolic venue whose importance isnt lost on Desai, noting Johannesburg has long been the heart of resistancewhen it comes to South African politics.

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The son of a celebrated leader of South Africas anti-apartheid movement, Desai has protest in his blood. Born in Cape Town in 1963, he left South Africa at the age of one to join his father in exile in the U.K. In the 80s, Desai passed his formative years in Zimbabwe, where he became part of a vocal group of agitators who were openly critical of the rule of President Robert Mugabe.

When he finally returned to South Africa in 1990, the country was on the eve of transformation. Nelson Mandela had just been freed from Robben Island, where hed been imprisoned for 27 years. Four years later, he would become South Africas first black president, capping a tumultuous and ultimately hopeful period that would later inspire Desai in film.

It would be a decade before he found his voice as a director, training his lens on both his familys role in the fight against apartheid and the more prosaic duties of fatherhood in the 2004 Cannes selection Born Into Struggle.

In the years since, Desai has been a tireless provocateur, struggling to untangle the web of politics, power and corporate interest in contemporary South Africa, most recently with Miners Shot Down, an unflinching account of the 2012 massacre of 38 South African miners in the town of Marikana.

Co-directed by first-time helmer Jabulani Mzozo, Giant is a continuation of the themes that have preoccupied Desai as both an activist and a director. You think this is a snapshot in time, but all the issuesare ongoing, he says. It continues to speak.

One of the questions during production was whether the story  which delves deeply into the murky realm of political scandals and ANC infighting  would speak to global auds, with roughly 80% of the budget for Giant coming from foreign broadcasters.

But Desai sees the story of South Africas new struggle as a backdrop for whats happening everywhere else in the world, where a decade of global instability and unease has erode[d] our faith in the narrative that were all in this together.

In South Africa, those fractures have given rise to a new generation of activists who have managed to achieve more in the last two years than we have in the past two decades, says Desai, sparking a wide-ranging conversation about how the ANC  and the country as a whole  can live up to the high ideals born out of the liberation struggle two decades ago.

It is a conversation Desai hopes to have captured in Giant, and to continue with his next doc, which will dig deeper into the student protest movement.

Film has the abilityto promote a space where real dialogue can take place, he says. This is the conversation we need to start having.Who are we? Where do we want to go?

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After all the bombast and blunders. After Pussygate, Gropegate and Nasty Woman. After repeatedly disrespecting the parents of a heroic Muslim-American soldier. After suggesting he will not accept the results of the November 8 election.

After probably paying not a dime in federal income taxes for almost two decades. After allegedly flim-flamming Americans trying to get ahead with his so-called Trump University. After all that and more, does Donald John Trump, the 70-year-old New York real estate mogul and reality TV star still have a shot at being president of the United States? Really?

Related: 3 Issues Could Get Trump Elected, Starting with Obamacare

The answer, according to the data-intensive website FiveThirtyEight, is yes  despite Hillary Clintons 5.8-point lead an average of national polls.

According to the sites data calculations, out of 10,000 simulations of the Electoral College map, Trump comes out on top in 1,137 results. That gives him an 11.4 percent chance of winning. But to get to the magic electoral vote number of 270, FiveThirtyEight says Trump must almost certainly win six states: Arizona, Florida, Iowa, Nevada, North Carolina and Ohio.

Is that at all feasible?

In Florida, the RealClear Politics poll average today awards Hillary Clinton a 1.6-point edge. But a Bloomberg poll  the most recent there -- gives Trump a 2-point lead among all voters and the same advantage among critical independents. In 2012, Barack Obama took Florida by 0.9 percent, however he bested Mitt Romney by 3 points among independents. So for the sake of argument, cede Florida to Trump.

Related: WikiLeaks Emails Reveal Millions Raised Through Clinton Foundation for Bill Clinton Inc.

The most recent poll in Iowa is from October 3-6, but Trump has a 3.7-point edge in a state that Obama won in 2012. The RCP average there also shows 8.3 percent for Gary Johnson, whose candidacy looks to be in free fall. As more voters move away from Johnson, expect Trumps numbers to grow. Give him Iowa.

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In Ohio, despite the disapproval of popular Governor and vanquished primary rival John Kasich, Trump has a 1.1 percent lead, according to RCP. But in the six most recent polls, he and Clinton are tied in two and she is ahead in one. In two of the three others in which Trump is ahead  including the most recent  his margin is 4 points. Put Ohio in the Trump column, too.

That leaves Arizona, Nevada and North Carolina.

In Arizona, Clinton has a 1.5-point lead in the RCP average of recent polls, though the most recent has Trump ahead by 1 percent. As The Washington Post reported on Tuesday, Clinton has opened 32 offices in Arizona and Trump has little or no ground game. Besides that, he remains at odds with both of Arizonas senators, veteran John McCain and Jeff Flake.

Related: Hillary Clinton Hints at a Health Care Takeover to Keep Obamacare Alive

Perhaps his most ardent supporter there, controversial Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, was charged with contempt of court on Tuesday and faces a huge deficit in re-election polls. Arpaio has incited the opposition of Latinos, and that could blow back on Trump. Whats more the influential Arizona Republic has editorialized in favor of Clinton, its first Democratic endorsement in 120 years. Doesnt look good for Trump, but Arizona remains possible.

The most recent poll in Nevada says Trump and Clinton are in a dead heat. The second-most-recent poll  by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, which is owned by billionaire Trump backer Shelley Adelson and has endorsed the GOP nominee  has Clinton ahead by 7 points as of Sunday. But CNN, which had moved Nevada to leans Democratic today has returned its status to battleground state and says it remains a margin-of-error race. You cant count Trump out in Nevada.

Real Clear Politics gives Clinton a 2-point lead in North Carolina, which reflects her strength in five of the last six polls. But the most recent surveys are far apart. A New York Times/College poll conducted from Oct. 20-24 put her 7 points ahead. A Remington Research poll taken Oct. 20-22 gives Trump a 3-point lead. And a Monmouth University survey taken from Oct. 20-23 says Clinton has a margin-of-error advantage of 1 point. Trump held two rallies in North Carolina yesterday.

Related: Heres How NOT to Get Out the Millennial Vote

At one he pointedly appealed to African Americans, pledging a new deal for black Americans and promising never to take that community for granted. With his national support among blacks in the single digits, he must peel away some African American voters from Clinton or pray her perceived advantage leads to a low turnout. Of the six states he must win, North Carolina right now looks like the biggest leap but still winnable.

If Trump captured all the states Romney won (206 votes), plus FiveThirtyEights four must-win battleground states not on that list (Florida, Iowa, Nevada and Ohio), plus Maine where he leads, he would be at 267three votes short. If the polls turn out to be flawed in Colorado, Minnesota, Michigan, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania or Wisconsin -- where Clinton is ahead by from 5 points to 6.7 pointsTrump could claim victory.

Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
MANCHESTER, N.H.  Donald Trump seized on the FBIs Friday announcement that it is probing new emails related to Hillary Clintons private server, telling supporters here that perhaps justice will finally be served.

Kicking off a three-state swing here just as the FBI news broke, the Republican presidential nominee canceled a planned roundtable to immediately take the stage where, with a smile, he announced that he had a very critical breaking-news announcement.

Earlier in the afternoon, FBI Director James Comey said in a cryptic letter to Congress that his organization had learned of the existence of emails that appear pertinent to the investigation into Clintons server. Comey said investigators would review the messages, but revealed little else  just 11 days before Election Day.

But before he could say anything, the celebrity businessman was drowned out by a deafening roar from the crowd here. The audience broke into a loud chant of Lock her up, which has been a rallying cry for his supporters since the summer.

Donald Trump at a campaign event in Manchester, N.H. (Photo: Carlo Allegri/Reuters)

After telling the audience that the FBI was again looking into Clintons emails and her use of a private email server, Trump offered effusive praise for the FBI and Justice Department, which he has lambasted in recent days for being a part of the rigged system.

I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and DOJ are willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake they made, Trump said. This was a grave miscarriage of justice that the American people fully understood, and it is everybodys hope that it is about to be corrected.

He continued to trash Clinton, saying her corruption is on a scale we have never seen before. We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office, Trump said, adding that perhaps justice finally will be done.

For her part, Clinton campaign chair John Podesta released a statement Friday afternoon calling for the FBI to provide additional details about its investigation:

Story continues

Statement from @johnpodesta in response to Comey letter to GOP chairmen pic.twitter.com/egyUMl68ZC  Brian Fallon (@brianefallon) October 28, 2016

Trump has regularly attacked the FBI investigation of Clintons emails, suggesting that the Justice Department was operating as a political arm of the Clinton campaign in refusing to punish Clinton and her aides for putting classified information at risk on her private server.

Donald Trump in Manchester, N.H. (Photo: Carlo Allegri/Reuters)

The system is rigged. I think the biggest rigging of all is what has happened with the FBI and Justice Department with respect to Hillary Clinton because she is so guilty in so many ways, Trump told Fox News host Bill OReilly in an interview that aired Thursday night. She should not even be allowed to run for president.

But on Friday, Trump acknowledged the FBIs decision and said, Maybe the system is not as rigged as I thought?

Trump read his statement on the FBIs decision slowly and carefully, taking his time as his supporters went wild. Pivoting to his regular remarks, Trump joked that maybe he shouldnt even continue with the speech because it would be boring by comparison. Aides, he said, had told him that he could probably cancel the rally.

When it just happened a little while ago, they said, Mr. Trump,  we could skip your speech in New Hampshire, this is so big,' Trump said. But, he added, he didnt have the courage to.
Donald Trump got even with a former Miss Universe winner by chastising her and making sexual comments in front of a large audience at an event in 2011.

Get even with people. If they screw you, screw them back 10 times as hard. I really believe that, Trump said while speaking at the event in Sydney, Australia, according to a video published by the Huffington Post on Friday.

The video shows Trump calling 2004 Miss Universe Jennifer Hawkins up on stage with him. This is about getting even. I was so angry at her yesterday, Trump says, explaining that he thought Hawkins had declined to introduce him at the event.

I was actually going to get up and tell you that Jennifer is a beautiful girl on the outside, but shes not very bright. That wouldnt have been true, but I would have said it anyway, Trump says, with Hawkins standing beside him. Because I said, You know what, it would be great. I havent seen Jennifer in a couple of years. Shes so great and she did so well, and shes a big star here, and I helped her make it  I own the Miss Universe pageant. And I heard that she wouldnt introduce me.'

But I did, Hawkins interjects.

No, but you didnt. So what happens is  and you know what? She came tonight, she came  came, she came, she came, Trump says, as the audience laughs. See, so they have the same filthy minds in Australia.

As you, Hawkins says.

She later steps closer to the microphone to clarify that there had been a miscommunication with her management team. Im really sorry. I felt really bad, she says.

There arent too many women who are taller than me, Trump says about her, hugging Hawkins before dismissing her from the stage.

Trump has faced scrutiny in recent weeks for his lewd comments about women, after a leaked 2005 recording showed him boasting about groping women. Multiple women have since come forward to accuse him of inappropriately touching or kissing them without consent.

Trump also feuded last month with former Miss Universe Alicia Machado, who he first insulted in the 1990s when she gained some weight after winning the competition.
By Steve Holland GENEVA, Ohio (Reuters) - Donald Trump shrugged off tough talk from Vice President Joe Biden with a verbal counter punch of his own. At a rally in Geneva, Ohio, the Republican presidential nominee on Thursday night addressed Biden's remark last week that he would like to take Trump "behind the gym" to punish him for videotaped remarks in 2005 in which Trump boasted about groping women. "You know what you do with Biden? You go like this," Trump said, then turned to the side to blow out a puff of air from his mouth. "And he'd fall over." Trump is 70 years old. Biden is 73. Both have been known to delve into hyperbole. Biden had said at a campaign event for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in Pennsylvania that he is frequently asked whether he wished he had been debating Trump. Biden had flirted with running for president this year. "No, I wish we were in high school. I could take him behind the gym. Thats what I wish," Biden said. Trump said if he had ever made a statement like that about Biden the news media would be outraged. "Can you imagine if I ever made that statement? 'Donald trump is a bully! He threatened Vice President Biden!' But everybody said 'oh, that was a wonderful statement,'" Trump said. "I dream about Biden," Trump added. "Boy, that would be easy. That would be an easy one." (Reporting By Steve Holland; Editing by Bernard Orr)
Donald Trump says he could teach military leaders "a couple of things" about how to win a war.

Here's what he told ABC News' George Stephanopoulos in an interview that aired Thursday:

"Let me tell you, the element of surprise. I've been hearing about Mosul now for three months. Why do they have to talk about it? Don't talk about it. Element of surprise. General George Patton. You look at General George Patton, you look at MacArthur, you look at these great generals, and I say it all the time, they're spinning in their graves."

He added: "Why can't they win first and talk later? Why do they have to say three months before the attack, we're going in?"

The main problem with Donald Trump's criticism of the operation to retake Mosul from ISIS militants is not that his remarks are unpresidential  though they are, especially when he calls the operation a "total disaster" only a week into the fight.

The main problem with his critique is that it shows, again, that the man who claims to know "more about ISIS than the generals do" actually knows nothing about military strategy.

Surprise isn't everything

Mosul ISIS Iraq

To the civilian mind, Trump's idea that you shouldn't talk about an operation before you launch it might seem to make sense. But in modern warfare, and especially in trying to take back a city like Mosul, a surprise attack is neither feasible nor desirable  a point that actual military experts have been making for some time.

With tens of thousands of troops, artillery, and airpower to be assembled, an impending attack is not something that can easily be hidden.

"We didn't sneak up on Berlin in World War II, and we're not going to do a surprise attack on Mosul either," Michael Knights of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy told Vox.

Early warnings are also important for reducing civilian casualties.

Before the US attacked the city of Fallujah in late 2004 and cleared it of insurgents, numerous steps were taken to "shape the battlefield," including information operations such as dropping leaflets, conducting fake attacks before the real thing happened, and carrying out precision airstrikes.

Story continues

Just as in Fallujah, leaflets were dropped on Mosul before the attack to allow civilians a chance to escape. This was an important step needed to protect up to 1 million civilians, unless Trump believes we should just drop a nuke on the entire city and walk away.

Psychological warfare

Then there's the psychological advantage to be gained: The Iraqi Army and US forces want to scare the crap out of the ISIS fighters. ISIS' leadership had to have known from the moment the group took over Mosul in 2014 that it would one day have to defend it from the Iraqis, who obviously want it back. It's therefore useful to create as much anxiety as possible leading up to that moment.

Doing so is cheap and, often, very effective.

US Marines

As part of the shaping of the battlefield, the US military uses tactics like blasting Arabic messages over loudspeakers urging ISIS fighters to surrender. It drops leaflets saying much the same thing. This is the kind of thing every military does before large battles, since it often works pretty well to get at least some enemy fighters to surrender  and those fighters turn over intelligence.

"The information campaign was very effective and as important to this operation as the actual combat offensive to liberate the city," retired Marine Corps Lt. Gen. John Sattler and Col. Daniel H. Wilson wrote in their historical analysis of the campaign for Fallujah. "We stole the strategic communications initiative from the enemy and never gave it back."

It's even instructive to look back on how ISIS took Mosul in the first place. It wasn't a sneak attack at all. While logistical and political concerns contributed to the defeat of Iraqi security forces, the terrorist group was incredibly effective in using social media to "strike fear into the hearts of their enemies."

ISIS Mosul Parade 6

Its propaganda efforts ahead of the battle led roughly 30,000 Iraqi troops to just run away, even though they were facing only about 800 ISIS fighters, The Guardian reported.

"If we're getting ready for an attack, we want the enemy doing one of two things," said one senior Marine Corps officer, who could speak only on condition of anonymity. "Either spending no time at all thinking about the possibility of an attack or spending all their time feeling the impending attack."

Trump is guessing

I've been watching this election season from the sidelines, as I don't cover politics, but because I served in the military for eight years prior to this gig, I have something to say about this.

Trump's comments on Mosul are part of a broader theme from the campaign: He doesn't know a damn thing about military strategy. For months, he has repeatedly refused to provide even general themes on how he would defeat ISIS, using the need for surprise as cover for the fact that he has no plan at all.

"We've pretty much flogged to death the idea that [Trump] is out of his depth," the Marine officer said. "He's a 1980s businessman, so he's probably pretended to read Sun Tzu. That honestly might be why he thinks deception is so important."

NOW WATCH: The US struck radar sites in Yemen after rebels tried to attack a Navy ship with missiles





More From Business Insider


Gigi Hadid is set to join her little sister Bella on the Victoria's Secret catwalk in Paris this November.

The lingerie giant has confirmed the supermodel for its 2016 line-up, with Gigi taking to Instagram to announce the news. The US star posted a throwback video of her Victoria's Secret 2015 debut, alongside the caption: "There is no feeling in the world like walking down this runway. I'm elated to say I'll be returning to the @VictoriasSecret Fashion Show this year."

She went on to thank the brand's senior creative Ed Razek, saying: "Thank you @ed_razek for putting on the show that has been one of my greatest motivators since I was a teenage fan of the Angels, and for making this dream come true for me again. It will forever be an honor."

It was announced that Bella would be walking in the show for the first time earlier this week, and the news of Gigi's addition to the cast means they will allegedly be the first siblings to grace the brand's annual fashion show catwalk.

The duo will have to share the spotlight with the brand's coterie of 'Angels', including Adriana Lima, Alessandra Ambrosio, Lily Aldridge, Jasmine Tookes, Lais Ribeiro and Martha Hunt, among others.

It has been a busy week for Gigi, who unveiled her debut shoe design for Stuart Weitzman on Tuesday, before the news broke that she has a second design collaboration with Tommy Hilfiger in the works for February 2017.

The 2016 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show will air on CBS on December 5.
* Puts 800 mln eur European generic business up for sale

* Plans 3.5 bln euro share buyback

* Q3 adj net income up 9.7 pct at 2.3 bln euros, vs 2 bln poll avg

* 2016 adj EPS seen up 3-5 pct excl forex, previously seen flat

* Receives rebuke from U.S. regulators over sarilumab facility (Adds detail on generics unit, share buyback, M&A, blow for arthritis drug)

By Ludwig Burger

Oct 28 (Reuters) - French drugmaker Sanofi stepped up its overhaul on Friday, putting its European generic drugs business up for sale and saying that a planned 3.5 billion euro ($3.8 billion) share buyback would not suppress its appetite for deals.

Sanofi's announcement came as it posted better than expected earnings and lifted its profit guidance for the year on strong growth at its biotech arm Genzyme and an early start to the U.S. flu vaccine season.

Third-quarter net income adjusted for special items rose 9.7 percent to 2.3 billion euros, against analyst expectations of about 2 billion euros. Revenue rose 2.1 percent to 9.65 billion euros, also beating the market view.

Sanofi now expects 2016 adjusted earnings per share to grow by 3 percent to 5 percent at constant exchange rates, having previously said they would be broadly flat. It continues to predict a negative 4 percent currency impact.

Sanofi stuck to its guidance for currency-adjusted sales at its embattled diabetes division to shrink by 4-8 percent a year on average from 2015 to 2018, saying that business outside the United States was holding up.

Pressure on U.S. operations has been rising after U.S. pharmacy benefit manager CVS and medical insurer UnitedHealth Group recently took steps to replace Sanofi's main insulin drug Lantus for a cheaper Ely Lilly product.

The shares jumped 5.9 percent to 72.90 euros at 0759 GMT, their highest in more than two months.

Analysts at Bryan Garnier and Deutsche Bank pointed to strong vaccine sales and good management of operating costs, while Berenberg analysts said it was reassuring to see Sanofi contain the decline in diabetes drug revenue.

Story continues

Sanofi, which was trumped in August by Pfizer's $14 billion bid for U.S. cancer drug company Medivation, said the share buyback was mainly prompted by excess cash from an asset swap with Boehringer and did not constitute a retreat from the merger and acquisitions market.

READY TO SPEND

The company stands to receive 4.7 billion euros from the Boehringer deal signed in June.

CEO Olivier Brandicourt pointed to low debt levels and borrowing costs as well as strong cash flow.

"All of that will allow us to still act swiftly if attractive opportunites arise," he said in a conference call.

Quarterly sales at Genzyme grew 16.9 percent to 1.27 billion euros while the Sanofi Pasteur vaccines business lifted revenue by 14.4 percent to 1.8 billion euros, both adjusted for currency swings. Sales at the diabetes division were down 2.5 percent.

Along with the veterinary drugs business that Sanofi will transfer to Germany's Boehringer, the French group will also divest its European generic drugs business, which had sales of about 800 million euros in 2015.

Finance chief Jerome said profitability of the asset for sale, which excludes generic drugs in Russia, CIS and Turkey, is "not very far" from the group average, without elaborating.

The business requires investment in areas, such as complex generics, that Sanofi is not ready to make, he added.

In a setback for its experimental rheumatoid arthritis drug sarilumab, which analysts expect to generate more than 500 million euros in annual sales, U.S. regulators identified "manufacturing deficiencies".

Sanofi said it is unclear whether this will hobble the approval process for sarilumab, which Sanofi develops with U.S. biotech company Regeneron. ($1 = 0.9171 euros) (Editing by Maria Sheahan and David Goodman)
Dubfire and Oliver Huntemann have released music together periodically over the last eight years, but they suggest their precise, bare-bones, slow-burn techno is the result of a happy accident. "We never really had a master plan," Dubfire says. "We turned on the machines and let whatever we were feeling come out."

On Friday (Oct. 28), the pair released a compilation, Retrospectivo, that collects all their work and serves as an endpoint (maybe) for this phase of their work together. In addition to the original tracks, Retrospectivo contains a set of remixes from big names like Carl Craig and Joseph Capriati. Huntemann and Dubfire took a moment away from "the middle of ADE madness" last week to discuss their initial meeting, the reason behind the retrospective, and what the next iteration of their collaboration might look like. Read excerpts from the conversation below.

How did you guys originally meet?

Dubfire: I think I was responsible for that. This was back when Myspace was like the No. 1 social media vehicle for a lot of people. I was a big fan of Oliver's work; I was following everything he was doing from productions to remixes. Just on the off chance, I decided to send him a message on Myspace, and then he responded. First it was just talking about respect for one another's work, and then it turned into, if you're a fan of my work and I'm a fan of your work, it just seems logical for us to work on something together.

We weren't sure how it was going to turn out. We just wanted to give it a go. The whole point of the collaboration was to bring his production style and his influences in with mine and then try to create something new for both of us.

Huntemann: We don't put too much pressure on each other.

Dubfire: Exactly -- there was never a deadline. Sometimes he'd send something to me and I'd sit on it for months and months and months. I wasn't hounding him; he wasn't hounding me. It was, let's work on something and see how it sounds. The first track we did was "Diablo," and the reactions were amazing. We felt like it really captured the essence of our individual sounds at the time.

Story continues

Did you expect that strong positive response?

Huntemann: You can never expect anything about the success of a track. You do it by heart and then it works, it doesn't work, or la la. But we had a good vibe together, and it's important to us that we started producing in a different way -- we never went into the studio together. It was just sending samples and sessions back and forth. At that time, that was something completely new.

Dubfire: When you think of a collaboration, you think about people being in the same space. But Oliver being in Hamburg, and me being between Washington and Barcelona and Los Angeles -- and also we have crazy DJ schedules -- that was going to be difficult to coordinate. I remember having a conversation with Oliver about it where we both agreed we feel comfortable in our own studio environments, so why not create a session and bounce it back and forth between us. Cloud-based file sharing was not really around. Then later on, once we were able to use Dropbox, then it became really really easy to just keep that master session in the cloud. Whenever he had time in his schedule or he had time in his schedule, we would just go into the studio with our individual engineers and just work.

When you started a new session, did you agree on parameters or themes beforehand?

Huntemann: We start with some beats and sequences and then just send it back and forth.

Dubfire: Sometimes Oliver took the lead; sometimes I took the lead. I would send Oliver a session because I wouldn't know what to do, he would be inspired by one or more elements and take it in a new direction that I hadn't thought of.

Huntemann: With the Elements series [the duo named tracks after earth, air, fire, and water] there was a bit more of a plan behind it: we talked about how to realize something like this -- "Agua" has to sound different than "Fuego" for example. We are very picky and very critical with our own stuff. Not everything that we start has to come out. It needs to be special, at least for us.

Dubfire: We began with "Diablo," which is a very evil sounding track, there's a very sinister vibe to it. I had videos of Sven Vath on YouTube -- at Ibiza and other parties with his crazy antics -- in the background while I was working. Sven is a very inspiring character. We kind of wanted to do something reflective of the yin and yang that exists with Sven as a person and a DJ. The track reflected that, and we decided to call it "Diablo," and then we decided to keep the Latin name thing going. With exploring the four elements of life, we tried to make each track representative of that particular element. Then we decided to bring it full circle with "Humano" and finish the saga there.

Why did you decide to put together a retrospective now?

Dubfire: Every concept should have a beginning, middle and end. Both of us felt like we needed to find an endpoint. Once you do that, you're able to reflect on what you've done together musically over the years -- and maybe find a new path forward.

How did you pick the remixers?

Dubfire: It's a group of artists that we're friends with who we knew would maybe find new musical direction for a remix of those tracks. Every artist has a very particular sound and style, and we tried to connect that particular artist with a song that we had done that reflected some sort of a musical challenge to them.

Huntemann: We like music in all genres, and that's what we tried to do for the remixes as well.

What's next for you guys?

Dubfire: What we're trying to do now is do one gig that reflects each of the themes. We're trying to find the right venues and the places around the world. That's going to be our challenge -- a loose, sporadic tour that will closely tie in with each concept name.

We had a recent conversation where we were talking about The Fifth Element film, and the fifth element in that movie is love. So now, maybe, we'll finish the complete story with love -- maybe that will come out this summer as a single. Maybe we'll begin a new chapter.

We always knew in finishing this saga that we were leaving the door open for future collaborations. Those may have a completely different concept and sound to it. Symbolically it was nice to bring this to an end somehow. I guess love would be "Amor?" Or maybe we'd use the English term. Or another language -- maybe German? Maybe we then explore a German theme, then we go back to what influenced us when we were young as far as German artists. Maybe we'll do an ambient album with a hint of rhythm. Who knows?
Cautiously optimistic

The government has endorsed yet another ambitious school reform programmethe School Sector Development Plan (SSDP)that would, over the next seven years, invest Rs1.1 trillion,
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Geert Wilders, the Dutch anti-Islam opposition leader, said on Friday that he refuses to attend his trial next week and that he sees it as politically motivated. Wilders is accused of discrimination and inciting racism in remarks made on live television in 2014 when he led a roomful of people chanting that they wanted fewer Moroccans in the Netherlands. Dutch politicians are limbering up to campaign for elections on March 15, with opinion polls indicating that Wilders' Freedom Party is now neck-and-neck with the VVD Party of conservative Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte. "Next Monday, the trial against freedom of speech begins.Against a politician who says what the politically correct elite does not want to hear," Wilders wrote in a statement. "This trial is a political trial, in which I refuse to cooperate." Wilders faces a fine of up to 7,400 euros ($8,100) and a year in jail for the remarks, made during campaigning in local elections, which also included calling Moroccans "scum". "It is a travesty that I have to stand trial because I spoke about fewer Moroccans. It is my right and my duty as a politician to speak about the problems in our country," he wrote. In 2011, Wilders was acquitted of inciting racial hatred for calling for the Koran to be banned and for the deportation of "criminal" Moroccans. Judges said at the time that his remarks, while offensive to some, were within the bounds of legitimate political discourse. Legal experts believe prosecutors have a stronger case this time because he targeted a specific social group, rather than a religion. (Reporting by Anthony Deutsch; Editing by Louise Ireland)
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Friday said his government may submit a bill revoking his country's support for the treaty establishing closer ties between the European Union and Ukraine. Rutte has said rejection of the association agreement would be a mistake and would weaken European unity, but that if efforts to find a compromise failed at the weekend, he would have no choice. The Netherlands is the only EU state not to have ratified the bloc's agreement on closer political, security and trade ties with Kiev following a referendum in April in which the Dutch voted overwhelmingly to reject it. Rutte wants to find a compromise between Ukraine, the EU and domestic opposition parties that will enable the treaty to be implemented and respect the outcome of the referendum. The agreement with Kiev, reached after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in March 2014 and then backed rebels fighting government troops in the east of the country, is being provisionally implemented now, but its future hinges on the Netherlands. Dutch rejection "would cause great damage and I need to do everything to bring that view across and to convince the parties still not convinced," he said. "This is larger than the Netherlands alone. We are part of a broader international community acting as one front for stability on our borders and against aggression," Rutte told journalists at a weekly briefing. Rutte in June sought "legally binding" assurances from EU leaders to address his country's concerns over the deal. (Reporting by Anthony Deutsch; Editing by Richard Balmforth)
The Hague (AFP) - Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte Friday appealed to opposition parties to help find a compromise over amending a EU-Ukraine treaty, rejected by voters in April, or risk seeing the key cooperation pact fail.

If no solution is found, Rutte warned his government would have no choice but to propose a law perhaps as soon as Monday withdrawing the country's support for the accord between Kiev and the European Union.

"In the interests of our country, I call on all of those who feel responsible to find a solution," Rutte told journalists at his weekly press conference.

The Netherlands is the only member of the 28-strong bloc yet to ratify the accord, which aims to nudge Ukraine closer to Europe and away from the orbit of former Soviet master Russia.

Rejecting the agreement "will lead to greater instability and a suggestion of a divided Europe," Rutte said, highlighting the need for a united front on issues such as the war in Syria.

He has been walking a political tightrope since the April 6 referendum -- organised by eurosceptic groups -- in which 60 percent of voters rejected the accord, despite a very low voter turnout.

But he is in a Catch-22 situation having failed to convince opposition parties to back his proposals to amend the accord by adding a military "opt-out" clause and guarantees of no EU membership for Ukraine.

- 'Bigger than the Netherlands' -

The opposition wants him to negotiate with Brussels first and bring back an amended treaty for debate.

But Rutte said Brussels first wants assurances the accord will be passed by the Dutch parliament before asking other member states to accept any proposed changes.

His coalition government needs 38 votes in the 76-seat upper house of parliament for the accord to be ratified, but he only has 21 votes so far.

"Time is running out and I am not optimistic," said Rutte, who has been given until Tuesday by the lower house to come up with a solution.

But he warned "this issue is bigger than the Netherlands, much bigger. We are also part of a broader community and have to show a united front in the fight for stability on our borders and aggression in the world."

The European Union is battling deep divisions over various crises, including an unprecedented wave of refugees, financial woes in some member states and criticism over trade accords with Canada and the United States.
Porumbrei (Moldavie) (AFP) - With an economic crisis in neighbouring Russia and growing uncertainty in Europe, the hordes of migrant workers from ex-Soviet Moldova face a huge dilemma: whether to return home to grim prospects or ride out tough times abroad.

Wedged between Romania and Ukraine, the country of 3.5 million and one of Europe's poorest, has relied heavily on remittances from abroad to boost its agriculture-based economy.

But economic woes in neighbouring countries have seen remittances drop and migrants return in droves despite few opportunities in their country, which holds presidential elections on Sunday.

"I'm done with Russia. There is no more work there," said Pasha, a construction worker from Porumbrei, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) south of the capital Chisinau.

Like Pasha, 28-year-old Grigore returned home after receiving only a fraction of the $1000- (915-euro) salary he was promised.

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, mass emigration from Moldova has helped breathe life into its economy.

The figures are nonetheless grim. Some 41 percent of the country's people live on less than $5 a day while the monthly average salary stands at $240, according to the World Bank.

Olga Coptu, who heads the Bureau of Diaspora Relations, said 800,000 Moldovans -- nearly a quarter of the population -- live abroad.

Up to 500,000 Moldovans live and work in Russia, while nearly 200,000 work in Italy, she said.

The outflow of Moldovans in search of a better life, including highly-skilled young people, has seen villages and towns depopulated.

"One in 100 Moldovans leaves the country every year," Stela Grigoras, Moldova's minister of labour, social protection and family, told AFP.

"This is the highest emigration rate in the region."

- Remittances sliding -

Moldova is often viewed as a tug-of-war between Russia and the West, especially after it signed a historic EU free trade agreement two years ago despite bitter opposition from Moscow.

Story continues

In addition to facing political turmoil, the country has seen the remittances that once kept its economy afloat slide.

In 2008, Moldova received $1.66 billion in remittances from abroad, a figure that accounted for 27 percent of its GDP.

But last year, that figure dropped 30 percent.

Remittances from Russia, whose energy-dependent economy was battered by low oil prices and Western sanctions, have dropped 45 percent.

The Russian ruble lost nearly half its value in 2014 on the back of these economic troubles.

But the crisis in Russia is far from being Moldovan migrants' only concern.

Veronica, 32, had dreamt of joining her brother and three sisters in Italy but gave up on her plan because of economic problems there.

"Paradoxically, my sister is a cleaning lady and she makes more than her Italian husband who works in a real estate agency," she told AFP.

- 'Work live slaves' -

Moldovan authorities are striving to bring the country's citizens back home, offering them modest financial incentives if they make investments in the country.

Ioana Jumir, 23, had hopes these measures would finally allow her to open a small business in her native country after having sought work in Russia, Poland and Greece.

But she isn't optimistic.

"When I made some calculations, I saw that it wasn't worth it," she said.

Jumir, who was eight when her parents went looking for work in Russia and left her behind with her grandmother, dreams that one day her compatriots will no longer be forced to "work like slaves" abroad.

But she fears that politicians, "whose only goal is to get as rich as possible," would ultimately not help the population live better.
The musical follows the life and challenges of Hollywood director and transgender pioneer Ed Wood

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / October 28, 2016 / Ed Wood the musical announces its official intent to create an inspiring show that follows the life and achievements of one of Hollywood's most iconic movie makers, Ed Wood.

To learn more about Ed Wood the musical, please visit: https://goo.gl/1KG1yu.

In 1994, Tim Burton and Johnny Depp created the critically acclaimed movie, Ed Wood. The movie showcased the life and times of the famous director, but according to Michael Arabian, who is the creator of Ed Wood the musical, many important facts about Ed's life were left out.

"Ed Wood the Musical pulls back the tinsel town curtain of Ed Wood's life and pays tribute to his legacy," says Arabian. "Ed was a charismatic figure who created an ensemble of zany, lovable monsters, from Bela Lugosi to Tor Johnson, Vampira and the amazing Criswell. His life exemplified irony: a marine, a husband, writer, director and transvestite in a time when that was fraught with danger."

Arabian's musical will take popular genres from the 50s and 60s like surf, rock and roll, jazz, Latin, and turn them into pieces that outline Ed's life during his hayday.

The songs will explore Ed's most difficult challenges such as being a cross dresser- exemplified in such pieces as "Glen or Glenda" and "Angora," and dealing with the inevitable challenges of filmmaking in "Hollywood Rat Race."

The musical has attracted a wide variety of talent, including song writer Rick Tell. Michael Arabian, who will direct the musical, has directed and produced numerous world, West Coast, Los Angeles and New York premieres; achieving over 50 awards during his illustrious career.

Just as Ed would have wanted it, the musical aims to lift the spirits of all who see it. There will be a giant squid on stage, an oversized brain, tesla-like electrodes firing off in every direction, and even flying saucers buzzing the audience's heads as they sing along to catchy numbers.

Story continues

In order to offset some of the costs associated with bringing a musical of this size to stage, Arabian and his team have taken their idea to the pages of Indiegogo. Donators will be awarded a variety of perks, including tickets to the opening production, and even being listed as an executive producer while being welcomed with open arms to the production.

Ed Wood the musical is an inspiring show that hopes to motivate people to go after their dreams. According to Arabian, the audience will leave the theater thinking: "If Ed Wood could follow his dream, so can I."

About Ed Wood the Musical:

Ed Wood the Musical is a theater production that captures the life and achievements of the famous Hollywood director, Ed Wood. The producers plan to donate a portion of the full theatrical production net proceeds to LGBT community causes. To learn more, please visit: https://goo.gl/1KG1yu.

Contact:

Robin Henry

admin@rocketfactor.com

(949) 555-2861

SOURCE: Ed Wood the Musical
DoI hasnt made any recommendation to NRB

The Department of Industry (DoI) has clarified it has not made any recommendation to the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) to allow Ncell to repatriate dividend.
By Noor Zainab Hussain and Esha Vaish (Reuters) - Alice Newton was just 8 years old when she gave Harry Potter his big break. Her publisher father asked her to read the first book in J.K. Rowling's Hogwarts series, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, to test its appeal. "I let Alice read for me and she came down in an hour later glowing about how wonderful this book was," recollects Nigel Newton, who is also chief executive of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc . "I think it is now a classic like Winnie the Pooh or (the books of) Roald Dahl or C.S. Lewis, and it will go on," he told Reuters on Friday. The franchise accounted for over 7 percent of Bloomsbury's first-half sales. With a new play, a book of the script and a spin-off film "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" opening in November, Bloomsbury expects Pottermania to be a "big contributor" in the second half of its year ending February 2017. Newton said an illustrated version of the second Potter book, released on Oct. 4, had sold more copies in its first week than the illustrated version of the first book had in its first week on the stands a year ago. In-house broker Investec forecasts full-year sales of 133.7 million pounds and pretax profit of 11.8 million pounds for Bloomsbury. Bloomsbury plans to mark the franchise's 20-year anniversary next July with four special editions of the first Potter book with artwork from each of the houses in Hogwarts, Newton said. It also plans an illustrated version of the Fantastic Beasts book in 2017. He added that Bloomsbury was in talks with Rowling over potential future books, but declined to say when and if any future work would materialize. Newton said Bloomsbury had increased prices of some of its academic titles in August as the pound slid after Britain's vote to leave the European Union, but did not specify whether the price of the recently-released Potter book had been raised too. He said Bloomsbury could absorb any sterling impact over the short term because more than quarter of its sales are in the United States. (Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain and Esha Vaish in Bengaluru; Editing by Ruth Pitchford)
From Country Living

It's become the Halloween tradition we look forward to the most. No, we're not talking about trick-or-treating. We're talking about when Ellen DeGeneres sends her producer, Andy, into haunted houses with other staffers and celebrities and records the hilarious results.

[contentlinks align="center" textonly="false" numbered="false" headline="Related%20Story" customtitles="Ellen%20DeGeneres'%2010%20Best-Ever%20Halloween%20Videos" customimages="" content="gallery.3770"]

"I personally think that laughter is the best way to deal with scary stuff," Ellen said on her show. "Which is why my executive producer Andy volunteered to go through two mazes this year. And by volunteered I mean I made him do it, because it's funny to watch."

The first of the two videos aired today and features Andy and his assistant, Jacqueline, barely making it through The Exorcist-themed haunted house at Universal Studios Hollywood.

After introducing himself as the Ellen Show's "village idiot," Andy warns Jacqueline to "just know it's coming and then it's not scary," and then promptly losing it when a possessed Regan MacNeil jumps out at them.

Watch the whole video here:

And if you think Ellen would miss out on an opportunity to scare a celebrity with a haunted house (like she did to Eric Stonestreet last year), you're wrong. Ellen's Halloween episode on Monday will feature Andy returning to yet another haunted house, this time with Ariana Grande in tow.

We can only hope Ellen sends them through the American Horror Story maze

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What Were Following

Exercising Rights: As Donald Trump continued his attempts to appeal to black voters who overwhelmingly reject him, news broke today that his campaign is using voter suppression operations in the form of radio spots and Facebook videos to discourage black voters from turning out for Hillary Clinton. Its actually not that unusual to use negative ads in this way, but targeting black voters in particular sends a bad messageparticularly given the ugly history of repressive voting laws in key states like North Carolina. There, the battle for equal voting rights traces back from today to the Jim Crow era; you can read a comprehensive history here. Meanwhile, some of the states undocumented immigrants are trying to increase turnout among Latinos by helping others register to voteeven though they cant do it themselves.

Women at Work: In Iceland this week, thousands of women staged a protest against the pay gap by leaving work about 30 percent earlier than usualthat is, leaving after the amount of time it would take to earn their paychecks if they were paid at the same rate as men. In one of the worlds most gender-equal nations, it was a striking demonstration of a gap that, worldwide, may take another 170 years to close. Unequal pay isnt the only problem women face in the workplace; as our readers illustrate, many must deal with casual sexism and sometimes comply with gender stereotypes to succeed in the first place. Whats the solution? In an interview for our Women and Leadership series, Senator Amy Klobuchar explains what it takes for women to get electedand how that experience and perspective helps female legislators get things done.

Recommended: Milk Chocolate Is Better Than Dark, the End

Surprising Remedies: Scientists are preparing a large-scale test of a plan to combat the Zika virus withmore mosquitoes. These particular insects, to be unleashed over Brazil and Colombia, have been infected with a bacterium that stops them from spreading the virus. If all goes well, theyll infect other mosquitoes and thus stop Zika at its source. Fighting fire with fire is also the approach in the most successful therapy for OCD: exposure and response prevention, or ERP, in which sufferers must confront their obsessive thoughts until theyre able to ignore them. Those whove experienced ERP say its life-changingbut it also can be prohibitively expensive.

Story continues

Snapshot

Children displaced by the Syrian civil war attend school inside a cave on March 27, 2016. See more scenes from underground here. (Khalil Ashawi / Reuters)

Quoted

A chimp doesnt come with a ticket or a sign, so they dont know where to send it back to. Christina Hvilsom, who studies chimpanzees, on what happens when smuggled chimps are confiscated

Recommended: The Battle for North Carolina

Nobody is getting rich farming; thats important to know. Jane Harrod, a hemp farmer in Kentucky

I tried putting out non-carbonated ginger beverages, and I know: People like their bubbles. Chris Reed, who founded a craft ginger ale company

Evening Read

Megan Garber on Halloween-candy rankings:

The judgment, collectively, if I may sum it up, is that candy corn is disgusting and also weird-looking, and Mr. Goodbar is the superior selection in the Hersheys Minis bag, and Mounds are proof that God loves us, and Raisinets are proof of the opposite, and Reeses Peanut Butter Cups are proof that even in these turbulent times it could turn out that committed monogamy makes a certain sense. Also: Nerds are warty nonsense; Whoppers are okay but why are their coatings so shiny; Butterfingers are delicious but also possibly Illuminati-left clues about impending apocalypse; the best M&M color is red and the blue ones are trying too hard and the oranges are trying not hard enough and lets not even start on the green; Rolos are fine; Milk Duds are unacceptable; Smarties are good in an actually... kind of way; Twix are what they are, butwait for italso demand the plural verb; Snickers are, obviously, at the very tippy-top of the Halloween hierarchy, but only if theyre Fun-Sized, and if someone puts a regular-sized version into your bag, that person is most likely either over-compensating for something or trying to murder you with the tiny razor blade that has been lodged between the peanuts and the nougat  What these assessments havent fully accounted for, though, is the most fundamental division of all.

That division: Which is better, dark chocolate or milk chocolate? Keep reading here, as Megan makes the case for the latter.

Recommended: Election 2016: The Latest Updates

What Do You Know?

1. A pilot program in the nation of ____________ requires bankers to take an oath similar to American doctors promise to first, do no harm.

Scroll down for the answer, or find it here.

2. Each year, U.S. state and federal governments spend about $____________ on early-childhood education.

Scroll down for the answer, or find it here.

3. At the turn of the 20th century, the legal tort heart balm was often invoked by women who wanted to sue ____________.

Scroll down for the answer, or find it here.

Reader Response

Reader Dan Terzian submits this photo of a nuclear reactor near Avila Beach, Californiataken from the front seat of a biplane. See more aerial snapshots from our ongoing series here, and submit your own via hello@theatlantic.com.

Look Back

The New York City subway system opened its first underground line on this day in 1904. By July 1908, as Hollis Godfrey recorded in The Atlantic, it had already gained a reputation:

Its stifling heat during the terrific summer of 1905 is a matter of painful memory to thousands. That heat was made yet more intolerable by the peculiar subway smell.

But not every response to the transit system that New Yorkers love to hate was so jaded. In our February 1908 issue, Chester Firkins paid tribute to the ritual of the subway commutethe crowded dark, the thundering trainsin a poem that closed like this:

You that neath country skies can pray,

Scoff not at methe city clod;

My only respite of the Day

Is this wild ridewith God.

Read the whole thing here. Also: Watch a video of teen subway performers here, and find out here why the MTA never tells you when your train is coming.

Verbs

Bill Murray recognized, best Vines remembered, Inferno burned, Millennials mocked.

The Atlantic Daily is written by Rosa Inocencio Smith. To contact us, email hello@theatlantic.com.

Read more from The Atlantic:

This article was originally published on The Atlantic.
From House Beautiful

Game of Thrones fans know Daenerys is a conqueror and therefore always on the move. And just like the rightful heir to the Iron Throne is heading to King's Landing this season (you know, to get that throne), Emilia Clarke is making her own move to Venice, California.

The actress just bought a $4.64 million mansion and the first thing you'll notice when you walk into the 2,817-square-foot home is the towering bookcases (iGeorge R. R. Martin would totally approve). They line the sun-washed main floor, which also happens to have soaring ceilings. Honestly, we can't help but wonder if one of the Danys' dragons could even fit inside, they're that tall.

The first floor opens up to a welcoming backyard space, which features a 30-foot pool and ample space to entertain. But if Clarke needs to get away for some alone time, her bedroom is quite the escape: It faces a wall of glass windows and has a walk-through closet that opens directly to a master bathroom. Hopefully this tub will be much more relaxing than most of Danys' past soaks.

Take a look:

Photo credit: Trulia

Photo credit: Trulia

Photo credit: Trulia

Photo credit: Trulia

Photo credit: Trulia

Photo credit: Trulia

Photo credit: Trulia

Photo credit: Trulia

Photo credit: Trulia

Photo credit: Trulia

Photo credit: Trulia

Photo credit: Trulia

[h/t Trulia]

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Educating girls, and through them villages

Sujata Acharya used to worry that she would not be able to continue her education after passing the School Leaving Certificate exams. She knew her parents could not afford it.
Could Emiliano Rocha Minter, whose We Are the Flesh makes its Mexican premiere at this weeks Morelia Festival, be a standard bearer for a new generation of Mexican directors?

The last two waves have been shaped by both their leading figures and industry context. A first, that of the Tres Amigos, Alfonso Cuaron, Guillermo del Toro and Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, bowed in the 1990s when the Mexican industry was in crisis. They had to look abroad to develop their careers. The second, kick-started by Carlos Reygadas Japan in 2002, has risen on the back of Mexicos industry build and foreign festival recognition. A third, if it ever exists, may be defined by its style and its liberties.

World premiering at the 2016 Rotterdam Fest, and seemingly set at its get-go in some kind of starved, ruinous post-Apocalypse world, the drama is lead produced by Julio Chavezmontes production-distribution company Piano with Moises Cosios Detalle Films. It has an ageing satyr-man offer food to a teen sister (Maria Evoli) and brother (Diego Gamaliel) if they transform his building into a womb-like cave. He then pressures them to abandon any inhibition and indulge in acts of incest, bloodlust, rape, murder, onanism and cannibalism.

Rocha Minters story-boarded We Are the Flesh. The camera acts at times an invisible character, moving independently of the characters. He uses a steady zoom, a near retro effect these days in cinema, and not just to capture a character. Camera movements are not always necessary. Free-floating, the film echoes at times Spaghetti westerns (the zoom), plus post-apocalyptic genre, Pasolini and Andrei Zulawski.

But some things, for the good, do not change in Mexico. Citing the Tres Amigos, Gael Garcia Bernal spoke in Morelia at a press conference last week about a sense of brotherhood in Mexican cinema, how filmmakers support, advises and promote each other. We Are the Flesh was co-produced by Reygadas. It won public endorsements from Cuaron and Inarritu who told Mexican newspaper Reforma that We Are the Flesh is a very personal, very powerful film that deeply impressed me. Emiliano Rocha is part of a new generation [of filmmakers] with a potent talent and voice.

Story continues

Rocha Minter is represented by the Paradigm Talent Agency. Variety talked to him about his notable debut.

Theres a sense, having seen your shorts, such as Inside, that your We Are the Flesh develops themes that permeate your whole work: Sex, death. Were these the starting point for We Are the Flesh?

I really wanted to make a feature. I thought: If youre going to do a first feature you have to make it viable. Id always imagined a film with few characters, in one location. I didnt want to spend fifteen years trying to get an absurd amount of money. So make it small, make it enclosed. Also, I was very interested in the concept of the cave, the return to animality, a cave thats not only the uterus but someones skull. And to create characters that could stop being characters, returning to a much more primal state. I was reading Georges Bataille at the time. Also, I wanted a film where body performance would take over. Not a film full of dialogues but with the action taking place within the body of the characters. I followed these rules. The rest of the film came relatively easy.

The film shows humanity, for better or worse, what drives people

The movie had to be an affirmation of life, in all the senses, without fear or judgement, reaching some point between the terrible and the strange, a return to a moment where there arent so many moral questions. A portrait of human beings, their violence, sexuality, their comedy.

Most of the film seems set in a kind of post-apocalypse world. But that turns out to be modern-day Mexico.

Yes, in a way it shows what its like to live in Mexico, that is  and has always been  an almost post-apocalyptic place. Where theres so much madness. One Mexican newspaper that has a print run of millions always shows the corpse of the week, a kid who has been decapitated, for example. On the very same page, theres a picture of a naked woman! Thats the idea of Coatlicue, the Aztec goddess of life and death. Weve always been a place where life and death have mixed in an exuberant fashion.

The films finance came from tax breaks?

The financing came from risk capital, private investment and from the Imcine Mexican Film Institute, through its Foprocine finance line. And then when we had the film shot, we needed money for the post-production, so the Mexican film institute supported us. But mainly it was risk capital and investment.

Overall the acting is one of the highlights of the film, especially Maria Evolis work. How did you work with the actors to get the films brutal honesty and nudity?

For me, the key concerning the actors was the casting process. It didnt matter so much how good they were but how willing they were to join the adventure. In the end, thats whats most important: Have people that believe in what youre going to do. You have to excite them, that gives them certainty. Before the shoot, we did a workshop that wasnt exactly an acting workshop but afterwards I felt we were an army. I, Maria, Noe Hernandez, I felt that we could go rob a bank, grab three rifles and start the revolution. We did everything you can imagine in that workshop to throw down the walls that we had about nudity. The first reading they did completely naked, once again to break any barrier that the actors could have. While shooting I didnt let them watch the display, I didnt want them to start thinking of how they were looking.

The credits thank a wide range of names, including J. J. Abrams which was a bit of a surprise.

J.J the Master! I remember being 14 and watching Lost. I love this idea of a mysterious island, one mystery leading to another. I certainly feel we live in a very mysterious life. Lost was so powerful.

Talking of influences, are they people with whom you identify?

Filmmakers? The director that has impacted me the most lately is Andrei Zulawski, may he rest in peace. A great influence, a cinema that changed me because its half way between art cinema and genre and and has an incredible power in film language and the level of the performances. Each of his films is a cinema masterclass. Luckily I saw his films before doing WE Are the Flesh. They opened up a whole spectrum of thoughts, of camera movements, of acting performances. Isabel Adjani with whom he did Possession was absolutely brilliant.

And in literature?

Georges Bataille, I love his novels. I read a lot the Count of Lautremont: He is incredibly funny. Mexicos Jose Agustin, he has a wonderful novel called Grave that he wrote when he was eighteen.

And how did Alfonso Cuaron and Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu get to see your movie?

Alfonso and Alejandro saw the film because they are friends of Carlos. I did the post-production in a studio that Carlos has in Mexico, in the middle of the mountains. Its really a great place to work. Theres nothing more than mountains, color correction and woods. Carlos liked the movie and has supported it, so he sent it to his friends who have been incredibly warm and supportive.

Related stories

'Zeus' Helmer-Scribe Miguel Calderon on Falcons, Humans and Relationships

Mexico's Alberto Ordaz: 'Mexican Cinema Now Has a Vanguard, New Ideas'

Morelia: 'Wild Flowers' Director Pablo Perez Lombardini Sets 'El Kaiman'
Ingenico Revenue by Segment

This story was delivered to BI Intelligence "Payments Briefing" subscribers. To learn more and subscribe, please click here.

Point-of-sale (POS) terminal vendor Ingenico noted in its Q3 2016 earnings call that it is still feeling the pain from the switch to chip cards in the US, even a year after the initial shift in who's liable for fraud on non-EMV card transactions.

The firm posted a solid 7% growth constant currency overall, but its North American segment declined by 31% in the quarter, largely a result of delays in the EMV migration. That slowdown was so profound that the losses it caused overshadowed market share gains in key verticals made by the firm during the quarter.

To illustrate the impact of the US decline, growth would have been 18% overall excluding North America and Brazil, another weakness for the firm. This is an ongoing problem for Ingenico, which reduced its targets for the fiscal year last month.

Complexities in EMV terminal activation are hurting terminal vendors across the board.

Interest for EMV terminals is rising. Small business owners, which had previously been hesitant to upgrade to EMV, are becoming more willing to upgrade  over half of small businesses had upgraded to EMV terminals in Q3 2016, up from just 31% a year earlier. Thats likely because a proliferation of chip cards among consumers mean that it'll be easier to reap fraud benefits, which makes the cost of the upgrade feel more worthwhile.

But though that seems like a boon for firms like Ingenico, a backlog in the process is causing losses. Once a merchant receives an EMV-enabled terminal, they must still install, certify, and activate the terminal before it can begin accepting payments. That process is time-consuming and complex, and rising interest has caused a bottleneck thats led to an industry-wide slowdown in activations. That could deter interested merchants from buying, because they dont want to have to pay to upgrade only to wait months to gain the benefits. But it could also impact profits in other ways  Verifone, one of Ingenicos competitors, noted that it often bundles other services to EMV sales, but cant profit from them until the terminals are running. That could also be the case with Ingenico.

Story continues

Ingenico will have to rely on other strategies for growth as the migration resolves itself. The firm is developing a new, vertical-focused strategy, likely to try to gain ground in key areas as a move to offset some of the losses associated with EMV through the next several quarters. But the firm could also look to high-growth areas, like its revitalizing ePayments segment, which grew by 22% in Q3 2016 despite challenges earlier in the year, in order to post growth and offset EMV-related friction.

And yet despite all of these hurdles, EMV remains crucial for payments security.

Fraud cost U.S. retailers approximately $32 billion in 2014, up from $23 billion just one year earlier. To solve the card fraud problem across in-store, online, and mobile payments, payment companies and merchants are implementing new payment protocols that could finally help mitigate fraud.

John Heggestuen, senior research analyst for BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled a detailed report on payment security that looks at how the dynamics of fraud are shifting across in-store and online channels and explains the top new types of security that are gaining traction across each of these channels, including on Apple Pay.

Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:

EMV cards are being rolled out with an embedded microchip for added security. The microchip carries out real-time risk assessments on a person's card purchase activity based on the card user's profile. The chip also generates dynamic cryptograms when the card is inserted into a payment terminal. Because these cryptograms change with every purchase, it makes it difficult for fraudsters to make counterfeit cards that can be used for in-store transactions.

To bolster security throughout the payments chain encryption of payments data is being widely implemented. Encryption degrades valuable data by using an algorithm to translate card numbers into new values. This makes it difficult for fraudsters to harvest the payments data for use in future transactions.

Point-to-point encryption is the most tightly defined form of payments encryption. In this scheme, sensitive payment data is encrypted from the point of capture at the payments terminal all the way through to the gateway or acquirer. This makes it much more difficult for fraudsters to harvest usable data from transactions in stores and online.

Tokenization increases the security of transactions made online and in stores. Tokenization schemes assign a random value to payment data, making it effectively impossible for hackers to access the sensitive data from the token itself. Tokens are often "multiuse," meaning merchants don't have to force consumers to re-enter their payment details. Apple Pay uses an emerging form of tokenization.

3D Secure is an imperfect answer to user authentication online. One difficulty in fighting online fraud is that it is hard to tell whether the person using card data is actually the cardholder. 3D Secure adds a level of user authentication by requiring the customer to enter a passcode or biometric data in addition to payment data to complete a transaction online. Merchants who implement 3D Secure risk higher shopping-cart abandonment.

In full, the report:

Assesses the fraud cost to US retailers and how that fraud is expected to shift in coming years

Provides 5 high-level explanations of the top payment security protocols

Includes 7 infographics illustrating what the transaction flow looks like when each type of security is implemented.

Analyzes the strengths and weakness of each payment security protocol and the reasons why particular protocols are being put in place at different types of merchants.

To get your copy of this invaluable guide, choose one of these options:

Subscribe to an ALL-ACCESS Membership with BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report AND over 100 other expertly researched deep-dive reports, subscriptions to all of our daily newsletters, and much more. >> START A MEMBERSHIP Purchase the report and download it immediately from our research store. >> BUY THE REPORT

The choice is yours. But however you decide to acquire this report, youve given yourself a powerful advantage in your understanding of payments security.





More From Business Insider


BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union and Canada will hold a summit to sign a trade deal on Sunday, European Council President Donald Tusk said on Friday after Belgium had cleared the agreement with its regional governments.

"Mission accomplished! Just agreed with PM Justin Trudeau to hold EU Canada Summit this Sunday," Tusk said on his Twitter account.

The summit to sign the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) will be held in Brussels and the signing ceremony will take place at midday, a spokesman for the European Council added.

(Reporting by Robert-Jan Bartunek; Editing by Chris Reese)
By Alissa de Carbonnel

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union has lifted a cap on Gazprom's (GAZP.MM) use of the Opal pipeline in Germany which takes gas from its Nord Stream Baltic Sea pipeline to end-users in Germany and the Czech Republic, opening the way for Russia to expand Nord Stream's capacity and bypass Ukraine as a gas transit route.

Together with a separate move to settle an antitrust case against Gazprom, the resolution of key disputes with Moscow angers some EU nations who want a tougher stance taken towards Russia over its military actions in Ukraine and Syria.

"It's very good for Gazprom, it's very good for Europe and it's very bad for Ukraine," Thierry Bros, a senior researcher at Oxford Institute of Energy Studies, said of the Opal decision.

Russia's state gas exporter, which supplies around a third of the EU's gas, retains its access to 50 percent of the pipeline under the new rules.

But it gains the right to bid for another 7.7 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas carrying capacity or as much as 12.8 bcm if other suppliers do not take up a provision giving them access, a Commission official said on Friday.

Reuters reported earlier that rivals will be given access to up to 20 percent of Opal's 36 bcm of annual capacity.

Since its completion in 2011 Gazprom has only been allowed to use 50 percent of the Opal pipeline under an EU ruling to aimed at preventing dominance of the supply infrastructure.

The Commission said its latest decision, which applies until 2033, would improve competition: "This is not just a decision we've taken for political reasons, that we want to be friends with Gazprom," a Commission official said.

It modifies a proposal made by Germany in May that would have given Gazprom almost full access to the pipeline. A spokesman for the German energy regulator Bundesnetzagentur said it would now hold talks with the affected companies.

In giving ground on Opal the EU executive is seeking guarantees that Gazprom will keep piping gas across Ukraine after its contract expires in 2019, an EU source said. It also wants three-way talks with Kiev over winter transits, the source said.

Story continues

"We are not trading in a void," an EU source said.

European energy chief Maros Sefcovic said on Thursday he was "making a maximum effort" to broker a deal between Russia and Ukraine to ensure uninterrupted gas supplies for European and Ukrainian clients this winter.

"So far we haven't been successful," Sefcovic told Reuters, adding he hoped to meet with Russian official soon.

President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Russia was ready to resume supplies to Ukraine "any second" if Kiev agreed to pre-pay. .

NORD STREAM 2

Opening up Opal also removes a key hurdle for Gazprom's 9.9 billion-euro plan to double the capacity Nord Stream pipeline under the Baltic Sea that had stalled investment from European partners in the project.

With Russia's gas routes to Europe increasingly politicised since its annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region in 2014, many eastern European countries and the United States have opposed the project as threatening to sideline Ukraine as a transit route.

As a result of changes to Opal alone, Ukraine's state energy company said in a statement on Thursday it could stand to lose as much as 425 million dollars a year in transit fees.

Before Friday's decision the Polish state-owned gas company PGNiG (PGN.WA) threatened to sue the Commission over the Opal decision, saying it threatened its own security of supplies.

However, the Commission has said it sees no need for Nord Stream 2, with an official saying Friday's decision further reduces the rationale for a new big pipeline.

Gazprom's partners in the Nord Stream 2 project are Uniper , Wintershall (BASFn.DE), Shell (RDSa.L), OMV (OMVV.VI) and Engie (ENGIE.PA). But it said it might cancel the agreement after Poland's anti-monopoly watchdog objected to the consortium..

(Additional reporting by Vera Eckert in Berlin and Oleg Vukmanovic in Milan; Editing by Tom Heneghan, Greg Mahlich)
(Adds details, background)

By Julia Fioretti

BRUSSELS, Oct 28 (Reuters) - European Union antitrust regulators on Friday opened an in-depth investigation into state-owned Chinese chemicals group ChemChina's $43 billion bid for Swiss pesticides and seeds group Syngenta, China's biggest-ever foreign acquisition.

Syngenta's shares plunged over 9 percent on Monday after the European Commission said the companies had not allayed its concerns over the deal, raising the prospect of a longer investigation.

The Commission said the merger could harm competition as Syngenta and ChemChina, through its agrichemical subsidiary Adama Agricultural Solutions, had overlapping portfolios in the production of crop protection products like herbicides, insecticides, fungicides and plant growth regulators.

"This deal would lead to the combination of a leading crop protection company with one of its main generic competitors. Therefore we need to carefully assess whether the proposed merger would lead to higher prices or a reduced choice for farmers," said Margrethe Vestager, EU Competition Commissioner.

The Commission will decide by March 15 whether to approve the deal.

Clinching the deal is taking longer than planned amid a flurry of deals in the agriculture sector that Syngenta, the world's biggest pesticides maker, said had swamped competition watchdogs.

ChemChina submitted a proposal to the Commission in September, including a plan to divest some $20 million worth of assets from Adama Agricultural Solutions, a Beijing-based source told Reuters.

The company is ready to offer more concessions to win EU approval, the source said.

(Reporting by Julia Fioretti; Editing by Greg Mahlich)
By Jussi Rosendahl

HELSINKI (Reuters) - The European Union must ensure future trade deals do not require the approval of all national and regional parliaments, Finland's trade minister said on Friday, warning that, if not, Europe will never be able to get a deal with the United States.

Kai Mykkanen said the EU had to avoid a repeat of what had happened to an EU trade deal with Canada, which until this week looked like it could be killed off due to objections from a region of Belgium.

The European Court of Justice is due to rule next year on whether such deals can be done purely at an EU-level or whether they must be approved unanimously by parliaments, a so-called "mixed" approach.

"The path of mixed deals has reached its end. The EU must be able to negotiate progressive trade pacts without getting stuck in a single member state," Mykkanen told Reuters in an interview.

"It is absolutely clear that regarding TTIP (Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the United States) we can't even think of using the same method and throw the pact for the piranhas."

Initially, the deal with Canada was meant to be approved by the 28 national European governments as an EU-exclusive deal.

But pressure from some EU states, including Germany, led the European Commission to accept it as mixed - a victory for consumer, labour and environmental campaigners who say free trade deals can put hard-won safeguards at risk.

A mixed deal needs to be ratified by some 40 national and regional parliaments.

Mykkanen said trade pacts could be split into two parts, with one requiring approval from parliaments, and the other just needing support from a majority of EU governments.

"Issues under national jurisdiction would still need acceptance from all the member states, but at least those issues wouldn't hold the common trade policy hostage," he said.

"I call for leadership here. I think Europe has lacked vision on its common interest in these pacts and we have been stuck in some narrow questions which have no real meaning."

(Additional reporting by Tuomas Forsell; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
By Huw Jones

LONDON (Reuters) - Top executives at European banks would have to be screened before they take office under the latest batch of industry regulations designed to improve the sector's management in the wake of the financial crisis.

Since the 2007-09 meltdown, watchdogs have been attempting to tighten their grip on banks, insurers and fund managers in order to prevent a repeat of the excessive risk taking which led to a spate of multi-billion dollar taxpayer bailouts.

The latest proposal from the European Union's banking and markets watchdogs is that regulators in member countries check in advance the suitability of key management to improve the quality of staff.

The measure, due to go out for public discussion, goes beyond current rules introduced in 2012, under which national regulators are free to make suitability checks before or after a senior person starts a new job - risking the appointment of someone unsuitable who is then hard to fire.

Draft guidelines on Friday from the European Banking Authority (EBA) and the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) also set out common criteria for watchdogs to assess the knowledge, skills and experience of financial sector executives, as well as their good repute, honesty and integrity.

Top staff outside the boardroom, such as the heads of internal control functions, would also have to be scrutinized.

A key flashpoint for the sector is likely to be the new requirement for regulators to make all suitability checks in advance.

"The draft guidelines require that an ... assessment by competent authorities is performed and that a decision is taken before the appointment of members of the management body," the draft guidance said, noting other top executives should also be checked.

"An ex-post assessment by competent authorities may result in the need to remove member individuals, which could be difficult to implement."

An assessment should be done three to four months before a person is due to start a new job, the draft guidelines say.

(Editing by David Holmes)
LONDON, Oct 28 (Reuters) - European equities fell to their lowest in more than a week on Friday, with companies such as insulin maker Novo Nordisk and digital security firm Gemalto slumping more than 10 percent after their quarterly results.

Investors' tolerance have shown little tolerance for earnings disappointments in recent weeks with shares of companies missing estimates or warning on profits getting punished severely.

Denmark's Novo Nordisk shares slumped 14.5 percent and were on track for worst single-day loss in more than a decade after the company lowered its full-year profit growth forecast and said it saw ongoing market difficulties in the United States.

Gemalto shares were down 13.8 percent after a worse-than-expected outlook for 2017.

RBS shares rose 1.7 percent after its results, extending the recent run of banks outperforming broader markets.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index was down 0.7 percent after falling to its lowest level since Oct. 17.

Latest weekly funds flow data from Bank of America Merrill Lynch and EPFR showed European equities funds suffered outflows for a record 38th straight week, though the magnitude of outflows at $0.7 billion, were the smallest since January.

(Reporting by Atul Prakash, Editing by Vikram Subhedar)
Govt mulls letting security forces revive Hetauda textile mill

The government is mulling reviving the liquidated Hetauda Textile Factory and letting the countrys security forces operate it.
From Redbook

Rebecca Bakke was eight-and-a-half months pregnant with her first child when she came down with what she thought was a cold. She was 28 and working as a medical resident in a pediatric emergency room in wintry Ohio - germs came with the territory. In fact, she was so busy with work and so excited for the baby that she barely noticed her cough at all. Then, five weeks after Rebecca gave birth, her infant, Claire, started coughing. At first Rebecca assumed it was reflux, but she had cared for enough sick children to know after a few days that it was bad. Her mind started racing: How long have I been sick? By that point, it had been nearly two months. "Then I just knew," Rebecca says. "I knew I had whooping cough, and I knew I had given it to Claire."

Claire's pediatrician confirmed the diagnosis, and immediately put her on antibiotics, but there was no medicine that could soothe her symptoms. In the days that followed, Claire spiraled into hour-long coughing jags, stopping only to gasp for air. Sometimes she coughed so violently that her lips turned blue; she vomited so often that she struggled to gain weight. "It was terrifying," Rebecca says. She had seen infants with whooping cough in her hospital's intensive care unit - one, born just a few weeks before Claire, had even died. "I barely slept for weeks because I was afraid when I woke up that Claire would be gone too," Rebecca remembers.

Rebecca, now 35 and a pediatrician in Fargo, ND, recalls that time as the darkest of her life. Though Claire's health improved, the cough hung on for nine excruciating months. "The guilt made me crazy," she says. The most devastating blow: Rebecca learned that she could have protected her baby if only she had gotten a whooping cough booster. By the time she became pregnant, the vaccine she was given as a child had worn off. Now, every year when Claire blows out the candles on her birthday cake - seven this January - Rebecca says a prayer for the family of the newborn who died when her little girl was sick. "That could have been us."

Story continues

Adult vaccination rates are even lower for some of the most contagious and deadliest - yet preventable - infections in our history.

As the temperatures begin to cool, we'll all be bombarded with reminders to get a flu shot. Most of us will ignore them. Only about 30 percent of adults under 50 got a flu shot last year, well below the 80 to 95 percent (depending on the disease) that epidemiologists say is needed to shield those who are most vulnerable: infants, the elderly, and patients with cancer or another illness that weakens their defenses. Adult vaccination rates are even lower for some of the most contagious and deadliest - yet preventable - infections in our history. As a result, diseases like whooping cough that were once considered rare are resurging in the United States, with cases among adults spiking 400 percent since 1990. Measles, still a leading cause of death for children around the world, has sickened more than 1,300 people in the last five years. Health officials say the trend among some parents to wait to vaccinate their kids or not to vaccinate them at all is partly to blame. But some of the worst outbreaks - like the one in Disneyland in 2014, in which measles quickly spread to seven states, Canada, and Mexico - also gain traction among adults. After all, once an illness is introduced into a community, anyone who isn't vaccinated can catch it and spread it, says David Kim, M.D., deputy associate director for adult immunizations at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): "Things can get out of control quickly."

In addition, experts say that the dismal rates of vaccination can also hamper medical advances. Drug manufacturers work quickly to develop a vaccine when faced with a threat like Zika, knowing it'll turn a profit, says Litjen Tan, Ph.D., chief strategy officer for the Immunization Action Coalition, which seeks to increase immunization through education. Less publicized viruses, like West Nile or chikungunya, are far less likely to get the funding it takes to bring a new vaccine to the market because, generally speaking, adults just won't get vaccines. "If you're on the board of one of these companies, your first thought would be, How are we going to get a return on our investment when we're covering adults at only 20 percent?" Tan says. "If we want to have continued research and development, we need to show that we as a culture value adult vaccines."

So much is at stake, and women can help solve this crisis. We're society's caregivers: the ones who are still most likely to work in schools and health-care settings, or in the home tending to those most vulnerable to disease. We wield a lot of influence. "Women are the driving force that ensures that their spouses, kids, and extended families take care of their health," says William Schaffner, M.D., a professor of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. It's time to roll up our sleeves for vaccines.

First, What's Holding Us Back?

Incredibly, a discussion about vaccinations may never come up between a woman and her doctor. More than 40 percent of women depend on their ob/gyn for preventive care, where the focus tends to be on shots that are now recommended during pregnancy - specifically, the flu vaccine and the whooping cough booster Tdap. ("Both pass antibodies through the placenta, which helps protect babies during the first six months of life, when they're too young to be fully vaccinated," Schaffner says.) Many of the other specialists women frequent, like dermatologists, don't immunize as part of their care, Tan adds. But even when women do see a primary care physician, they may still face barriers: Roughly 40 percent of Americans skip an annual physical, and a 2014 study in the Annals of Internal Medicine found that only a third of doctors follow the CDC's guidelines to assess patients' vaccination status at every visit. It's likely a cost-cutting measure - it's expensive to keep vaccines in stock, and practitioners often aren't properly reimbursed for giving them. "Sometimes the compensation is so marginal that it's a barely break-even operation, which of course doesn't motivate the doctor," says Schaffner, who also serves as medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases.

If a patient isn't certain about what she's had in the past, she's out of luck, because record-keeping for adult vaccinations is spotty.

When doctors don't actively recommend vaccines, women might assume they don't need them, banking on the fact that they're young and healthy - and vaccines aren't always effective, anyway, right? They're not wrong, Schaffner says. The flu shot is only 50 to 60 percent effective, for example, while Tdap fully protects 7 out of 10 adults in the first year and begins to fade after that. Still, the reality is that vaccine-preventable illnesses can strike anyone at any age, and research shows that people who have been immunized are quicker to recover, and therefore less likely to spread disease. Gigi Bugsch of Woodland, CA, discovered this two years ago. She had never gotten a flu vaccine, figuring that as a teacher, she had been exposed to so many germs that her immune system was nearly infallible. Then, at age 45, she came down with H1N1. She was admitted to the hospital and, within 24 hours, put on a respirator, her lungs drowning in fluid. There were moments when her doctors didn't know if she'd make it. When she was finally discharged, a little over a month later, she had more than a million dollars in medical bills-yes, a million-and a fraction of the energy she'd had before she got sick. "Everybody thinks, It'll never happen to me," she says. "I had the same attitude, and it did."

The Cost Factor

A woman left on her own to decide what shots she needs faces a daunting maze, especially if she's not sure which vaccines she's already had. Even doctors think the CDC's adult vaccine schedule is complicated: Nearly 1 out of 3 physicians reported that many of the recommendations are difficult to follow, a study in Public Health Reports shows. Some shots are recommended for everyone, while others like pneumococcal, HPV, and hepatitis A depend on any number of things, from a woman's medical history to her travel plans. If a patient isn't certain about what she's had in the past, she's out of luck, because record-keeping for adult vaccinations is spotty - some states track them, some don't. With no documentation, a woman would have to dig out baby books, quiz her parents, or call health departments, previous schools, or doctors looking for answers. "No one has time to do that," Schaffner says. Blood tests can check immunity, but they're expensive and a hassle for doctors who have to send them out to labs. Fortunately, health officials say it's often safe to be re-immunized. The worst that can happen is your arm would be a little more red or sore afterward. "The reaction depends on which vaccine you're getting. Tdap is more painful, while the measles vaccine MMR doesn't feel as bad," Schaffner says. "In general, the longer it's been since you've had the previous shot, the smaller the reaction."

Photo credit: Getty

There's also the matter of how much a vaccine will cost. Prices range from just under $30 for a tetanus shot to nearly $200 for a zoster vaccine for shingles, and while the CDC says most insurers cover critical immunizations, some women may still have to fork over some cash. The Affordable Care Act guarantees full coverage for CDC-recommended vaccines as long as patients go to an in-network provider, but private insurance policies can vary. Depending on the plan, even a flu shot may carry out-of-pocket costs for those with co-pays or high deductibles. And without supplemental insurance, a woman on Medicare may not be fully covered for some suggested vaccines. Further, a woman with any insurance who wants a shot that isn't specifically recommended for her may have to foot the entire bill. Take the vaccine for HPV, the sexually transmitted infection that can cause cancer of the cervix, vagina, and vulva: It's only suggested for women up to age 26, because research has found that older women have likely already been exposed to the virus, rendering the vaccine less effective. But a newly single woman in her 40s may still want it, even if it doesn't work quite as well as it would have when she was 22. "Many women who are back in the dating game feel vulnerable and want some protection," Schaffner says. Still, most insurances would consider it optional, putting patients on the hook for $500 for the three-shot series. Travel vaccines, though recommended by the CDC, are also considered optional by most health plans. Kristin Meekhof, 42, went to a traveler's clinic two years ago before a trip to Kenya. Her vaccines for hepatitis A, typhoid, meningitis, and yellow fever totaled more than $400 - a cost she had to shoulder on her own. "I was surprised they weren't paid for by insurance, since it seems it would cost more if I caught one of these diseases and had to be treated with antibiotics and follow-up appointments," says Kristin, an author in Birmingham, MI. "You'd think they'd want to encourage safe travel." It's true: Illnesses are often traced to someone who traveled abroad.

Protecting Ourselves - And Everyone

It may feel like the obstacles are off-puttingly high, but it's important to remember that getting immunized is easier than most things we do for our health, like schlepping weekly to the gym. See your doctor once, and aside from your annual flu vaccine, you may not have to worry about shots again for another decade, when you're due for a tetanus booster.

Start by checking off the vaccines you need (see the schedule below), then call your insurance company to confirm what your plan will cover and whether you'll have to stick to a certain provider. If you don't have a primary care doctor, ask about pharmacists in your network who vaccinate. A call to the provider is next, to ensure they stock what you want. If they don't, ask for a referral, but double-check with your insurance company on how that impacts your coverage. Bring your checklist with you to the appointment, and be prepared to make your case if you fall outside the guidelines for any of the shots you want. The CDC recommendations carry the credibility of decades of research, so you'll want to explain why your situation is different, how the vaccine - though potentially less effective - will protect your health, and that you're willing to pay for it if necessary. "You may get some pushback, but if you're educated about the issues, you'll be fine," Tan says. Before you leave the doctor's office, ask for a printout of the vaccines to keep with your medical records, and bring it back each year when you return for your flu shot so you can review any new vaccines you may need. It'll vary as you age, and also as your circumstances (and even the CDC guidelines) change.

See your doctor once, and aside from your annual flu vaccine, you may not have to worry about shots again for another decade.

Since her daughter Claire's bout with whooping cough, Rebecca has made it her personal mission to ensure that no parent ever loses a child to a vaccine-preventable disease. "I should have known better," she says, noting that she was vaccinated with Tdap during her two subsequent pregnancies. "Now, as a pediatrician, I make sure that the families I take care of do know better." There are ways we non-doctors can help as well: After getting your vaccinations, tell anyone who notices your bandage about your appointment, and make copies of the checklist you brought to your doctor to hand out to your partner, parents, and friends. Bring up vaccinations if a neighbor tells you about her new teaching job or a cousin announces her pregnancy. At work, encourage your boss to sponsor an annual flu vaccination clinic, reminding them that it will cut down on sick days. And then work to ensure that everyone - even strangers - has equal access to basic health care: Write your congressperson and let him or her know that adult vaccination is important to you. "This preventive service should be available to everyone in the United States," Schaffner says. "Vaccinations for all makes the entire country healthier." That means your friends and family, and babies and grandmothers you haven't even met, will be safe. Because of you.

The Vaccine Schedule, Simplified

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends dozens of vaccines for adults, depending on your age, medical history, job, sex life - even your travel plans. You won't find them all here, but checking off the sections that apply to you can get the conversation started with your doctor. Print this page and bring it with you.

Influenza: It's a must-have every flu season, which starts in October.

Tetanus diphtheria (Td): Tetanus shots are recommended every 10 years, or after a bad wound.

Tetanus diphtheria pertussis (Tdap): Since 2005, the CDC has recommended that adults get a one-time Tdap booster, which protects against whooping cough.

Measles mumps rubella (MMR): Since 1989, children have gotten two doses of MMR. If you received only one dose before that, it has a slightly lower success rate, so get the second one if there's an outbreak in your area. Also, if you got the shot between 1963 and 1967, you may need to be revaccinated, as the formula was less effective those years.

Varicella (chicken pox): The two-dose chicken pox vaccine has only been given to children since 1995. If you had chicken pox, you're considered immune. Otherwise, you should get vaccinated - adults are more likely than kids to suffer serious complications.

Zoster (shingles): Zoster is essentially a chicken pox booster; it can prevent the virus from reactivating, causing painful shingles. The shot is only FDA-approved for ages 50 and up, but since it may only be effective for five years, the CDC suggests waiting until age 60, when the risk is greatest.

Major Factors

If you're pregnant: Be sure to get the flu shot, as well as Tdap. The CDC now recommends that women get a whooping cough booster during the third trimester of every pregnancy because of the protection it offers newborns. You should also insist that everyone who spends time with your baby - your partner, siblings, grandparents, caregivers - be current on both vaccines.

If you're dating: You may also want to be vaccinated for the sexually transmitted diseases human papillomavirus and hepatitis B. You can get the hep B vaccine at any age, and HPV up to age 26. Most older women have already been exposed to the virus, making the vaccine less protective. If you still want it, know that insurance probably won't cover the cost.

Also talk to your doctor if: You're planning to travel abroad or if you have any medical conditions that might up your risk for everyday infections. Some diseases, like hepatitis A and typhoid, are more common in other parts of the world, and it can take as long as four to six weeks for the vaccines to take hold. Meanwhile, people with long-term health problems like heart or lung disease may need to be immunized for risky illnesses they can catch at home, like pneumonia.

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The FBI announced Friday that it had uncovered new emails in the closed investigation into Hillary Clintons use of a private email server during her time as secretary of state. But The New York Times later reported that the new information is actually being reviewed in connection to another investigation.

According to the Times, the FBI seized electronic devices belonging to top Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin and her estranged husband, Anthony Weiner, as part of an investigation into illicit text messages the former New York representative allegedly sent to a 15-year-old girl in North Carolina.

Heres a refresher on the key facts about Weiners latest sexting scandal (For more on Weiners first two sexting scandals  which led to his resignation from Congress in 2011 and the implosion of his mayoral campaign in 2013  check out this timeline):

1. Weiners third scandal broke in August 2016, when the New York Post reported that he had been sexting another woman.

The Post reported on Weiners alleged text exchanges with the woman, including an image he sent of himself lying in bed next to his 4-year-old son with Abedin, Jordan. Asked for comment at the time, Weiner, 52, said he and the woman had been friends for some time, adding that she has asked me not to comment except to say that our conversations were private, often included pictures of her nieces and nephews and my son and were always appropriate.

2. Weiner and Abedin are separated.

Hours after the scandal broke, Abedin announced that she was separating from Weiner after six years of marriage. She said in a statement, After long and painful consideration and work on my marriage, I have made the decision to separate from my husband. Anthony and I remain devoted to doing what is best for our son, who is the light of our life.

RELATED VIDEO: Child Services Reportedly Launch Investigation Into Anthony Weiners Parenting of Son Amid Sexting Scandal

3. Child Services launched an investigation into Weiners parenting amid the scandal.

The New York Post reported in October that the Administration for Childrens Services had launched an investigation into Weiners care of his son. A worker at Weiner and Abedins Union Square apartment in New York City reportedly confirmed to the Post that child welfare officials showed up to the couples residence as a part of agency protocol to ensure that a possibly endangered child has a room to sleep in and food to eat.

Story continues

Weiner denied at the time that he had been visited or interviewed by ACS.

4. Clinton has remained loyal to Abedin throughout the sexting scandals and her marital troubles.

After the third scandal broke amid Clintons presidential campaign, many in the political press speculated that the Democratic nominee might cut ties with her longtime aide, who also serves as vice chairwoman of her campaign.

Asked about the rumors that Abedin had proved a distraction or political liability for the Democratic nominee, a Clinton campaign official told PEOPLE at the time, Thats ridiculous. Thats not who this campaign is, and thats not who Hillary Clinton is.

And a former adviser in President Bill Clintons White House who has remained close to the team told PEOPLE that Abedins troubles are a personal matter  not a political one: Anyone who knows the Clintons  and knows Humas relationship with with them  knows theyre not seeing this as political. There are lots of things youd call distractions in a political campaign, but this is not one of them.

This is the personal pain of someone who is valuable and who they adore, the source added. To the extent that Hillary and Bill Clinton are playing a role at all, its to be comforting to her and to offer her the space to deal with all of this.

5. GOP nominee Donald Trump seized on the scandal in August.

Trump was quick to link Weiners latest sexting scandal to Clintons presidential campaign. He released a statement at the time, saying, I only worry for the country in that Hillary Clinton was careless and negligent in allowing Weiner to have such close proximity to highly classified information. Who knows what he learned and who he told? Its just another example of Hillary Clintons bad judgment. It is possible that our country and its security have been greatly compromised by this.

But David Axelrod, former top advisor to President Barack Obama, now director of the University of Chicago Institute of Politics, told PEOPLE at the time, Its important to put this in its proper perspective. I dont think anyone in America is going to vote this fall based on Humas marital problems  Huma is essential to Hillary and, Im sure, will continue to be.

6. On the heels of the New York Post report, the Daily Mail reported in September 2016 that Weiner had allegedly been sexting with a 15-year-old girl.

The Mail reported that Weiner carried out a months-long online sexual relationship with a 15-year-old girl. Weiner did not deny the relationship at the time, telling the Mail in a statement, I have repeatedly demonstrated terrible judgement about the people I have communicated with online and the things I have sent. I am filled with regret and heartbroken for those I have hurt.

7. Federal and local law enforcement agencies began investigating Weiners alleged relationship with the 15-year-old girl in September.

PEOPLE confirmed in September that Weiners alleged online communications with the 15-year-old girl were being investigated by law enforcement agencies in New York and North Carolina.

A spokeswoman for Jill Westmoreland Rose, the U.S. attorney for the Western District of North Carolina in Charlotte, said the office had begun investigative efforts.

The Associated Press reported that an FBI task force in New York had also begun investigating Weiners alleged relationship with the girl.

RELATED VIDEO: Huma Abedin Splits from Husband Anthony Weiner After Hes Caught in Third Sexting Scandal

It is unclear how long the FBIs new investigation will take, FBI Director James Comey said Friday in his letter notifying congressional chairmen that the bureau was reviewing the emails in relation to the original Clinton probe. Comey also said he cannot yet assess whether or not this material may be significant.

The FBI closed its initial investigation into Clintons private email server in July, with Comey recommending to the Justice Department that no charges were appropriate in the case. He did however acknowledge that there was evidence of potential violations in Clintons extremely careless handling of classified information.




Icelands Pirate Party is hoping to win the largest share of the vote in the countrys Oct. 29 general election, not even four years after the fringe political group formed.

Until this week the esoteric political party had led the polls in Iceland, though the latest opinion poll puts the group a single point behind the center-right Independence Party, which is currently a junior member in the countrys coalition government.

The Pirate Partys rise against the perceived corruption of Icelands political elite is the latest and perhaps most colorful in a string of anti-establishment insurgencies throughout globe, from the far left to the far right. Heres a bit more about the group:

Anchors aweigh

The Pirate Party formed in 2012, in the wake of the collapse of Icelands hugely overleveraged banking industry following the 2008 financial crisis. The Party and its motley group of of anarchists, libertarians and internet activists is led by Birgitta Jonsdottir. The 49-year-old former Wikileaks activisits, web programmer and poetician has been an MP for different parties since 2009, but decided to help start the party, which part of an international anti-copyright movement that originates in Sweden, because Im often crossing paths with nerds as Im such a nerd myself she told the Financial Times.

Jonsdottir thinks Icelands population of about 300,000 are sick of corruption and nepotism. She also likens the country to Sicily and claims it is controlled by a handful of mafia-style families and their friends. That might explain why, when the banks were privatized in 2005, stern laws and promises of professionalism were tossed aside and the banks were handed over to bosses who pleased the mafia families she writes in the New Internationalist.

This anti-establishment message resonated with some Icelanders and the Pirates gained a seat in parliament in 2013. Support for the movement surged to 43% in an April poll after the Panama Papers revealed that former Prime Minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson held investments in offshore accounts which led to some of the largest protests the country has ever seen.

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Gunnlaugsson stepped down as leader, and his replacement called early elections. His party, the Progressives, is now wallowing at 8% in the polls.

An aye on power

While slim on policies, the Pirates espouse a set of core values, which include direct democracy, pushing civil rights and more transparency from companies and the creation of informed decisions. The party wants to be the Robin Hood of politics by handing power back to Icelanders, and seeks to make the country a haven for hackers and whistle-blowers (including Edward Snowden). It also hopes to make cryptocurrency bitcoin legal tender.

The Pirates have also created a crowdsourced draft of the constitution, which includes provisos to create new rules for governance and to renationalize the natural-resource industries of the small country. Like other European populist parties, the Pirates want a referendum on Icelands relationship with the E.U., but promise to not conduct the nativist, anti-immigrant stance seen in U.K.s iteration. We dont want to make the same mistakes that happened in Britain Jonsdottir told the Washington Post. You have to make sure that it is an informed campaign. People need to know what [membership] implies.

Close quarters

But forming a stable government could present a challenge for the company of radicals. Jonsdottir has no intention to become prime minister and the party has ruled out working with the current center-right coalition, which includes Gunnlaugssons Progressive Party. Jonsdottir has conceded in the past that once in power the Pirates might have to temper their idealism.

It currently looks like Saturdays vote may leave Iceland with a centre-left coalition of the Pirates and three, or possibly four, other parties. Iceland has historically never had a coalition government consisting of more than two parties survive a full four-year term says the BBC.

If the Pirates do plunder a win, it will be one more example of an outsider turning into the champion of establishment-weary voters.
The Iran nuclear deal is inherently flawed, but the state of Israel is under no existential threat and should respect United States sovereignty as a country, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak said Friday.

"We feel that it's a bad deal, but it's a done deal," Barak told CNBC's " Squawk Box ."

He said that while the situation in the Middle East is and will continue to be complicated, the impact of the Iran deal on surrounding countries will not be as chaotic as much of the current rhetoric suggests.

"There is a deal now. The Iranians are not going to break it in the coming five or six years because they want to harvest the benefits of it," he said.

And, while Barak said Iran is likely to continue developing its long-range missiles, sponsoring terror, and fine-tuning its cyberattacks  all of which were excluded from the deal  the former prime minister was confident in the welfare of his country and insisted that it is facing no existential threats.

"I do not underestimate the risk of Iran for a moment. I just keep thinking strategically and concretely," Barak said. "Israel is the strongest country, and I say [that] not just as political position, but as matter of professional judgment."

Any efforts to undo the accord, in Barak's view, would be disrespectful to United States sovereignty. He said the actions of current Israeli Prime Minster Benjamin Netanyahu , who lobbied Congress against the nuclear deal, were an overstep into U.S. politics.

Barak said he would have liked to see Netanyahu meet with President Barack Obama behind closed doors to resolve the issue or suggest changes instead of publicly involving the state of Israel in U.S. affairs.

He also said that any efforts to posthumously cancel the deal would be fruitless.

"All the talks about someone that can come out of the blue or through the ballots and just cancel it [are] a little bit hollow because it's not just [an] American-Iranian agreement. China will not follow, Russia will not follow, Germany and France will not follow," he said.

Story continues

Barak said he hopes that, moving forward, Netanyahu will be able to sit down with American leaders  behind closed doors  to discuss options for the future. He said it is essential for the countries to work together and make sure their intelligence communities are keeping an eye on Iran's moves.

When asked about the next leader of the United States, Barak chose not to respond definitively due to his personal ties to one of the candidates.

Still, he said, "all candidates  post-election ended up being supportive of Israel. It's based not just on world views, but on wide foundations of common and shared values between the Israeli people and the American ones."













More From CNBC


By Svea Herbst-Bayliss and Lisa Baertlein

BOSTON/LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc has turned to high-profile investment bankers and lawyers to help defend against activist investor William Ackman, according to two people familiar with the matter on Thursday.

Investment banks Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Morgan Stanley, as well as law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz LLP, are now working for the U.S. restaurant chain, the people said. Chipotle has also hired crisis public relations firm Joele Frank, they added.

Neither Ackman nor his New York-based hedge fund, Pershing Square Capital Management LP, have publicly made any demands of Chipotle after becoming its second-largest shareholder last month.

Billionaire Ackman is known for buying stakes in publicly traded companies and trying to force changes ranging from removing board members to selling off large parts of the company.

The sources asked not to be identified because the assignments are not public. Wachtell and Chipotle did not return calls seeking comment, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and Joele Frank declined to comment on Thursday.

In early September, Pershing Square said in a regulatory filing that it has a 9.9 percent stake in Chipotle, becoming its biggest shareholder after Fidelity Investments.

Chipotle is struggling to revive sales after a string of food borne illness outbreaks last year sent its shares tumbling. As a result, Chipotle on Tuesday posted another dismal quarterly earnings performance.

Executives have vowed to make the chain leaner and more efficient. They have laid out plans for long-overdue investments in digital ordering and payments, deeper cost cuts, and said they would pursue strategic alternatives for its 15-unit ShopHouse Southeast Asian Kitchen chain.

Chipotle in September said it welcomed Pershing Square's investment and appreciated its confidence in the company.

Since then, Pershing Square and Chipotle have met at least once and have had telephone conversations, two people familiar with the matter said. They declined to discuss what the two sides have said to each other.

Story continues

People familiar with Ackman's thinking have suggested that he believes Chipotle's long-serving board is due for an overhaul, and that it needs to beef up its marketing, cost controls and information technology.

Ackman has been relatively quiet about his latest investment and the company's share price has not moved in his favor. After the initial uptick following news of his stake, shares have fallen nearly 10 percent.

Activist-oriented hedge funds such as Pershing Square have been hit hard by redemptions, with investors pulling roughly 5 percent in capital this year alone, cutting assets under management to about $116 billion, divided among some 78 activist funds, data from Hedge Fund Research shows.

(Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss and Lisa Baertlein; Editing by Peter Henderson, Greg Roumeliotis and Lisa Shumaker)
By Jonathan Saul and Andreas Kroner

LONDON/FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) is among more than 20 bidders in talks to potentially buy a 3.2 billion euro ($3.5 billion) loan portfolio from state-owned rival HSH Nordbank [HSH.UL] as Germany's biggest lender tries to do deals despite its troubles, sources told Reuters.

HSH and Deutsche declined to comment.

Four finance industry sources with knowledge of the situation said on Friday Deutsche Bank was looking at the portfolio. Two of the sources said it included at least 500 million euros of non-performing loans related to HSH's shipping finance business.

"It could be an asset play for Deutsche where they pick up the debt and sell it on subsequently," one of the sources, who declined to be identified, said. "This whole process is still at an early stage."

Deutsche Bank chief John Cryan pledged to redouble restructuring efforts on Thursday, warning the bank faces tough times as it finalizes talks with U.S. justice authorities over a $14 billion fine, which has rocked confidence in the lender.

While it would be difficult for Deutsche to keep such loans on its books in the long term, as that would require the struggling bank to set aside scarce capital, such a purchase could be attractive if the loans were quickly sold on at a profit.

Deutsche may ultimately restrict any purchase to a small part of the billions on offer or pull out. But throwing its hat in the ring shows it wants to remain active in the market.

The sources said banks Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) and Citigroup (C.N), together with asset managers Apollo Global Management (APO.N), KKR (KKR.N) and Oaktree Capital Group (OAK.N), were also among the more than 20 bidders for the HSH portfolio, which are expected to submit their first offers shortly.

Credit Suisse, Citi, Oaktree and KKR declined to comment, while Apollo did not immediately respond.

The HSH portfolio also includes around 2 billion euros of loans related to real estate assets in Britain, Germany and other European countries as well as aviation and energy debt, two finance industry sources said.

Story continues

HSH turned to its state owners after risky assets turned sour in 2008.

In March, the European Commission approved a bailout which includes a plan to hive off a total of 8.2 billion euros in bad loans, 5 billion of which have been transferred to the state owners, while the lender must sell up to 3.2 billion itself. HSH had offered 4 billion euros of loans in total and is looking to sell 3.2 billion euros out of that.

SHIPPING TROUBLES

Many segments of the global shipping sector are struggling with their worst ever market conditions, caused by a glut of ships and slowing global trade, which have battered earnings and led to the collapse of South Korean container line Hanjin in August.

German lenders - among the biggest backers of shipowners over the past 20 years - are estimated to be behind up to a quarter of the world's $400 billion of outstanding shipping loans.

HSH, which is among Germany's biggest lenders to shipping, has struggled due to the sector turmoil. The bank said in August its total shipping finance business was 17.4 billion euros.

Rival German bank NordLB said in August it was selling a $1.5 billion portfolio of shipping loans to a unit of KKR and a sovereign wealth fund.

Two of the sources said Deutsche could look to potentially pick up further shipping loans from HSH beyond the portfolio.

The two sources added Deutsche had recently been buying and selling secondary shipping debt for a profit. These types of transactions typically involve smaller parcels of loans of around $100 million each.

"There was not much going on in the secondary market for ships in the first half of the year. But now there is very much movement," a shipping industry source said.

"Some private equity investors invested too early in shipping loans and burned their fingers. But there are other investors that are now shuffling their feet. They believe that the shipping market has reached the bottom."

In July, sources told Reuters that Deutsche was looking to sell at least $1 billion of shipping loans in its own portfolio.

(Additional reporting by Arno Schuetze, Anjuli Davies and John O'Donnell,; Editing by Dale Hudson and Mark Potter)
By Martinne Geller and Pamela Barbaglia

LONDON (Reuters) - The owners of Thom Europe are considering new ownership options to help finance expansion across Europe, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Thom, which is majority owned by private equity firm Bridgepoint alongside France-based Apax, says it is the leading jewellery chain in Europe. It is currently interviewing banks to advise it on a possible sale or initial public offering, the sources said.

Such a process, known as a "dual-track" to explore both exit routes, would probably kick off early next year, according to one of the sources, who noted that the company expected to appoint an advisor soon.

Officials at Thom Europe and Apax were not immediately available for comment while Bridgepoint declined to comment.

Spokesmen from Thom's other backers, Altamir (ALMP.PA) and Qualium Investissement, were also not immediately available.

Following recent acquisitions in Italy and Germany, Thom expects to have annual sales of more than 620 million euros (557.22 million) with close to 1,000 stores and e-commerce sites and over 5,000 employees.

The company - which operates in the market for affordable, rather than luxury goods - is expected to draw interest from other private equity funds, who could take over from Bridgepoint and Apax and help drive expansion across Europe, the source said. It could also appeal to Asian investors, he said.

Alternatively, Thom could explore a stock market listing in Paris, home to luxury groups such as LVMH (LVMH.PA) and Kering (PRTP.PA).

Created from the 2010 merger of French chains Histoire d'Or and Marc Orian, Thom Europe purchased Italy's Stroili earlier this year. Thom said earlier this month that it was buying Germany's Oro Vivo.

"After consolidating the French market, the group is now the natural consolidator for the entire European market," Thom Chief Executive Romain Peninque said in a statement on Oct. 14, which added that the newly enlarged company planned to continue to develop the identity of its brands and expand in a growing European market - in stores and online.

Story continues

Despite a large retail footprint, Thom does not yet rank as one of Western Europe's top 10 jewellery chains by retail sales, as tracked by Euromonitor International. That list is dominated by luxury groups like Cartier-owner Richemont (CFR.S), Pandora (PNDORA.CO) and Bulgari-owner LVMH.

Makers of luxury watches and jewellery were hurt this year by weaker demand in Europe, which drew fewer tourists following attacks in Paris and Brussels.

The global retail market for jewellery is expected to top $315 billion this year, according to Euromonitor, with nearly two-thirds of that coming from the Asia Pacific region. Western European sales are expected to touch $28 billion.

(Additional reporting by Sophie Sassard; Editing by Ruth Pitchford)
Holiday decision draws criticism

A government decision to declare public holiday on November 2 for Indian President Pranab Mukherjees scheduled visit to Nepal quickly became fodder for criticism with twitterati wasting no time to take a potshot at the move.
It's time to head back to the Big D!

ET has exclusively confirmed with Bravo that The Real Housewives of Dallas will return to the network for a second season of southern shade throwing in 2017. This announcement comes more than four months after the ladies wrapped up season one and left us wondering if we'd ever see them again.

WATCH: Andy Cohen Says Real Housewives of Dallas Is Not Dead!

For now, Bravo's keeping mum on who will -- and won't -- be back for season two. It's safe to assume we'll be seeing at least some of the first season cast, which included LeeAnne Locken, Brandi Redmond, Stephanie Hollman, Cary Deuber and Tiffany Hendra, when the show comes back. Judging by their social media posts, filming might be underway.

#TRIPLETROUBLE Last night at the 1st Grace Inspired Beauty Event with these 2 girls!! #WhatWillHappenNext? #RHOD #fun #funny #girlsnight  A photo posted by LeeAnne Locken (@leeannelocken) on Oct 13, 2016 at 7:40am PDT

It's also worth noting that Jesus Juice-drinking besties Brandi and Stephanie seemingly have had a falling out since the end of season one. Brandi is now spending more time with one-time rival LeeAnne, while Stephanie has gotten closer to Cary.

WATCH: 7 Reasons Why RHOD Is Our Favorite Housewives Expansion Ever!

Along with the RHOD renewal, Bravo also announced a fourth season of Southern Charm and a spin-off for the series, Southern Charm: Savannah. Shahs of Sunset will also be back for a sixth season, as will Million Dollar Listing: New York.

Story continues

Oh, and get this! Shear Genius and Tabatha's Takeover star Tabatha Coffey is making her triumphant return to the network with Relative Success With Tabatha Coffey. The no-nonsense stylist will be lending her expertise to family businesses in distress. First Family of Hip Hop, starring Sugar Hill Records founder Sylvia Robinson's family, will also join the channel's lineup.

WATCH: Housewives Happy Hour With The Real Housewives of Dallas

Related Articles
By Wa Lone and Simon Lewis U SHEY KYA/YANGON (Reuters) - Rohingya Muslims say Myanmar soldiers raped or sexually assaulted dozens of women in a remote village in the northwest of the country during the biggest upsurge in violence against the persecuted minority in four years. Eight Rohingya women, all from U Shey Kya village in Rakhine State, described in detail how soldiers last week raided their homes, looted property and raped them at gun point. Reuters interviewed three of the women in person and five by telephone, and spoke to human rights groups and community leaders. Not all the claims could be independently verified, including the total number of women assaulted. Soldiers have poured into the Maungdaw area since Oct. 9, after an insurgent group of Rohingyas that the government believes has links to Islamists overseas launched coordinated attacks on several border guard posts. Citing evidence garnered by interrogating suspected militants, the government blamed the attacks on an armed group it says is made up of some 400 Rohingya fighters. The militants, who have identified themselves as the previously unknown Al-Yakin Mujahidin in videos posted online, are accused of killing nine police officers and five soldiers, and of stealing a cache of weapons. The crisis in northern Rakhine marks the biggest challenge Myanmar's six-month-old civilian government has faced, and raises questions over de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi's ability to maintain control of the country's military, observers and diplomats say. The United States has raised the issue directly with Myanmar's Foreign Ministry and would like to see authorities "investigate these allegations fully and take whatever actions against the perpetrators are warranted," State Department spokesman Mark Toner told a briefing in Washington. A State Department official who spoke on condition of anonymity said Scot Marciel, the U.S. ambassador to Myanmar, "has been raising the issue consistently since the attack" and spoke to the Foreign Ministry about it on Thursday. Suu Kyi's relationship with the army remains strained because of the constitution, drafted by the military in 2008, which bars her from the presidency. It also guarantees the army key ministerial posts, including defence, border affairs and home affairs. Diplomats and United Nations officials say privately that the Oct. 9 attacks and subsequent crackdown have shattered years of work rebuilding trust between the Muslim and Buddhist communities in Rakhine after ethnic and religious violence broke out there in 2012. 'THEY TORE MY CLOTHES' A 40-year-old woman from U Shey Kya told Reuters that four soldiers raped her and assaulted her 15-year-old daughter, while stealing jewellery and cash from the family. "They took me inside the house. They tore my clothes and they took my head scarf off," the mother of seven told Reuters in an interview outside her home, a cramped bamboo hut. "Two men held me, one holding each arm, and another one held me by my hair from the back and they raped me." Zaw Htay, the spokesman for Myanmar President Htin Kyaw, denied the allegations. "There's no logical way of committing rape in the middle of a big village of 800 homes, where insurgents are hiding," Zaw Htay said. Zaw Htay telephoned a military commander in Maungdaw, whose name he did not disclose, during an interview with Reuters this week. The commander said troops conducted a sweep of U Shey Kya village on Oct. 19, but left without committing abuses. The military did not respond to an emailed request for comment about the accusations. SECURITY CRACKDOWN The escalation of violence threatens to derail Suu Kyi's goal of ending years of ethnic war in Myanmar, undermining the nation's surprisingly smooth democratic transition that started a year ago with her historic election win, observers and diplomats say. Though feted as a champion of democracy, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate has faced international criticism for not doing enough to ease the plight of around 1.1 million Rohingya living in Rakhine, most of whom are denied Myanmar citizenship. After the first attacks, Suu Kyi urged the army to act in accordance with the law. The military, which oversaw decades of authoritarian rule and now presents itself as a responsible partner in Myanmar's transition, has declared an "operation zone" in northern Rakhine. Residents and activists say civilians are being caught up in the security crackdown, and say scores more have been killed than the 33 alleged attackers that official reports have acknowledged. 'MUSLIM PROPAGANDA' U Shey Kya village's official administrator, Armah Harkim, said he was working to verify the latest accounts, adding most residents believed them to be true. Zaw Htay, the president's spokesman, accused residents of fabricating the allegations as part of a disinformation campaign led by the insurgents, which he compared to the tactics of Islamist groups Islamic State and al Qaeda. Colonel Sein Lwin, the police chief for Rakhine State, dismissed the claims as "propaganda for Muslim groups." Reuters reporters travelled to U Shey Kya village on Thursday, passing nearby villages where dozens of houses were recently burnt down, and interviewed three women who said they were raped by soldiers. Five other women from U Shey Kya have also detailed in a series of telephone interviews how Myanmar soldiers raped them. The accounts are backed up by at least three male residents of the village and a Rohingya community leader in Maungdaw who has gathered reports about the incident. The residents said some 150 soldiers arrived near U Shey Kya on Oct. 19. Most male residents left the village as they believed they would be suspected as insurgents. The women said they stayed behind in the belief the military would burn down empty homes. Soldiers dismantled the fences around homes, residents said, removing possible hiding places as part of what authorities called a "clearance operation." A 30-year-old woman described being knocked off her feet by soldiers and repeatedly raped. "They told me, 'We will kill you. We will not allow you to live in this country,'" she said. The women said soldiers took gold, money and other property, and spoiled rice stores with sand. "We can't move to another village to find medical care," said a 32-year-old survivor. "I don't have clothes now or food to eat. It was all destroyed. I'm feeling ashamed and scared." (Additional reporting by Yangon newsroom and Arshad Mohammed in Washington; Editing by Lincoln Feast and Will Dunham)
By Wa Lone and Simon Lewis U SHEY KYA/YANGON (Reuters) - Rohingya Muslims say Myanmar soldiers raped or sexually assaulted dozens of women in a remote village in the northwest of the country during the biggest upsurge in violence against the persecuted minority in four years. Eight Rohingya women, all from U Shey Kya village in Rakhine State, described in detail how soldiers last week raided their homes, looted property and raped them at gun point. Reuters interviewed three of the women in person and five by telephone, and spoke to human rights groups and community leaders. Not all the claims could be independently verified, including the total number of women assaulted. Soldiers have poured into the Maungdaw area since Oct. 9, after an insurgent group of Rohingyas that the government believes has links to Islamists overseas launched coordinated attacks on several border guard posts. Citing evidence garnered by interrogating suspected militants, the government blamed the attacks on an armed group it says is made up of some 400 Rohingya fighters. The militants, who have identified themselves as the previously unknown Al-Yakin Mujahidin in videos posted online, are accused of killing nine police officers and five soldiers, and of stealing a cache of weapons. The crisis in northern Rakhine marks the biggest challenge Myanmar's six-month-old civilian government has faced, and raises questions over de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi's ability to maintain control of the country's military, observers and diplomats say. The United States has raised the issue directly with Myanmar's Foreign Ministry and would like to see authorities "investigate these allegations fully and take whatever actions against the perpetrators are warranted," State Department spokesman Mark Toner told a briefing in Washington. A State Department official who spoke on condition of anonymity said Scot Marciel, the U.S. ambassador to Myanmar, "has been raising the issue consistently since the attack" and spoke to the Foreign Ministry about it on Thursday. Suu Kyi's relationship with the army remains strained because of the constitution, drafted by the military in 2008, which bars her from the presidency. It also guarantees the army key ministerial posts, including defense, border affairs and home affairs. Diplomats and United Nations officials say privately that the Oct. 9 attacks and subsequent crackdown have shattered years of work rebuilding trust between the Muslim and Buddhist communities in Rakhine after ethnic and religious violence broke out there in 2012. 'THEY TORE MY CLOTHES' A 40-year-old woman from U Shey Kya told Reuters that four soldiers raped her and assaulted her 15-year-old daughter, while stealing jewelry and cash from the family. "They took me inside the house. They tore my clothes and they took my head scarf off," the mother of seven told Reuters in an interview outside her home, a cramped bamboo hut. "Two men held me, one holding each arm, and another one held me by my hair from the back and they raped me." Zaw Htay, the spokesman for Myanmar President Htin Kyaw, denied the allegations. "There's no logical way of committing rape in the middle of a big village of 800 homes, where insurgents are hiding," Zaw Htay said. Zaw Htay telephoned a military commander in Maungdaw, whose name he did not disclose, during an interview with Reuters this week. The commander said troops conducted a sweep of U Shey Kya village on Oct. 19, but left without committing abuses. The military did not respond to an emailed request for comment about the accusations. (GRAPHIC: Conflicts along Myanmar's border http://tmsnrt.rs/2eP8Wpj) SECURITY CRACKDOWN The escalation of violence threatens to derail Suu Kyi's goal of ending years of ethnic war in Myanmar, undermining the nation's surprisingly smooth democratic transition that started a year ago with her historic election win, observers and diplomats say. Though feted as a champion of democracy, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate has faced international criticism for not doing enough to ease the plight of around 1.1 million Rohingya living in Rakhine, most of whom are denied Myanmar citizenship. After the first attacks, Suu Kyi urged the army to act in accordance with the law. The military, which oversaw decades of authoritarian rule and now presents itself as a responsible partner in Myanmar's transition, has declared an "operation zone" in northern Rakhine. Residents and activists say civilians are being caught up in the security crackdown, and say scores more have been killed than the 33 alleged attackers that official reports have acknowledged. 'MUSLIM PROPAGANDA' U Shey Kya village's official administrator, Armah Harkim, said he was working to verify the latest accounts, adding most residents believed them to be true. Zaw Htay, the president's spokesman, accused residents of fabricating the allegations as part of a disinformation campaign led by the insurgents, which he compared to the tactics of Islamist groups Islamic State and al Qaeda. Colonel Sein Lwin, the police chief for Rakhine State, dismissed the claims as "propaganda for Muslim groups." Reuters reporters traveled to U Shey Kya village on Thursday, passing nearby villages where dozens of houses were recently burned down, and interviewed three women who said they were raped by soldiers. Five other women from U Shey Kya have also detailed in a series of telephone interviews how Myanmar soldiers raped them. The accounts are backed up by at least three male residents of the village and a Rohingya community leader in Maungdaw who has gathered reports about the incident. The residents said some 150 soldiers arrived near U Shey Kya on Oct. 19. Most male residents left the village as they believed they would be suspected as insurgents. The women said they stayed behind in the belief the military would burn down empty homes. Soldiers dismantled the fences around homes, residents said, removing possible hiding places as part of what authorities called a "clearance operation." A 30-year-old woman described being knocked off her feet by soldiers and repeatedly raped. "They told me, 'We will kill you. We will not allow you to live in this country,'" she said. The women said soldiers took gold, money and other property, and spoiled rice stores with sand. "We can't move to another village to find medical care," said a 32-year-old survivor. "I don't have clothes now or food to eat. It was all destroyed. I'm feeling ashamed and scared." (Additional reporting by Yangon newsroom and Arshad Mohammed in Washington; Editing by Lincoln Feast and Will Dunham)
By Kristina Cooke, Dan Levine and Dustin Volz SAN FRANCISCO/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - After Facebook's removal of an iconic Vietnam war photo stirred an international uproar last month, the social network's executives quickly backtracked and cleared its publication. But the image - showing a naked Vietnamese girl burned by napalm - had previously been used in training sessions as an example of a post that should be removed, two former Facebook employees told Reuters. Trainers told content-monitoring staffers that the photo violated Facebook policy, despite its historical significance, because it depicted a naked child, in distress, photographed without her consent, the employees told Reuters. The social network has taken great pains to craft rules that can be applied uniformly with minimal discretion. The reversal on the war photo, however, shows how Facebook's top executives sometimes overrule company policy and its legions of low- and mid-level content monitors. Facebook has often insisted that it is a technology company - not a media company - but an elite group of at least five senior executives regularly directs content policy and makes editorial judgment calls, particularly in high-profile controversies, eight current and former Facebook executives told Reuters. One of those key decision-makers - Justin Osofsky, who runs the community operations division - wrote a Facebook post acknowledging that the removal of the war photo was a "mistake. Sometimes, he wrote, the global and historical significance of a photo like Terror of War outweighs the importance of keeping nudity off Facebook. Facebook spokeswoman Christine Chen declined to comment on the companys use of the photo in training sessions. Facebook has long resisted calls to publicly detail its policies and practices on censoring postings. That approach has drawn criticism from users who have had content removed and free-speech advocates, who cite a lack of transparency and a lack of an appeals process for many content decisions. At the same time, some governments and anti-terror groups are pressuring the company to remove more posts they consider offensive or dangerous. HIGH-LEVEL REVIEW The current and former Facebook executives, most of them speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters in detail how complaints move through the companys content-policing apparatus. The toughest calls, they said, rise to an elite group of executives. Another of the key decision-makers is Global Policy Chief Monika Bickert, who helped rule on the fracas over the war photo. "That was one we took a hard look at, and we decided it definitely belonged on the site," said Bickert, a former federal prosecutor. She declined to elaborate on the decision-making process. Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg followed up with an apology to Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg, who had posted the photo on her own account after Facebook removed it from others in her country. In addition to Sandberg, Osofsky and Bickert, executives involved in sensitive content issues include Joel Kaplan, Facebooks Washington-based government relations chief; and Elliot Schrage, the vice president for public policy and communications. All five studied at Harvard, and four of them have both undergraduate and graduate degrees from the elite institution. All but Sandberg hold law degrees. Three of the executives have longstanding personal ties to Sandberg. Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg, a Harvard drop-out, occasionally gets involved with content controversies, Bickert said. These executives also weigh in on content policy changes meant to reflect shifting social context and political sensitivities around the world, current and former executives said. Facebook officials said the five people identified by Reuters were not the only ones involved in high-level content decisions. Facebook has a broad, diverse and global network involved in content policy and enforcement, with different managers and senior executives being pulled in depending on the region and the issue at hand, Chen said. Chen declined to name any other executives who were involved in content policy. A WAR OVER FREE EXPRESSION The company's reticence to explain censorship decisions has drawn criticism in many countries around the globe. Last month, Facebook disabled the accounts of editors at two of the most widely read Palestinian online publications, Shehab News Agency and Quds. In keeping with standard company practice, Facebook didn't publicly offer a reason for the action or pinpoint any content it considered inappropriate. The company told Reuters that the removal was simply an error. Some Palestinian advocacy groups and media outlets condemned the shutdowns as censorship stemming from what they described as Facebooks improper alliance with the Israeli government. Israels government has pushed Facebook to block hundreds of pages it believes incite violence against Jews, said Noam Sela, spokesman for Israeli cabinet Minister Gilad Erdan. Sela said the Israeli government had a connection at Facebook to handle complaints but declined to elaborate on the relationship. Its not working as well as we would like, Sela said. We have more work to do to get Facebook to remove these pages. Ezz al-Din al-Akhras, a Quds supervisor, said that Facebook's head of policy in the Middle East had gotten in touch after the uproar over the shutdowns and that three of four suspended accounts were restored. We hope the Facebook campaign of suspending and removing Palestinian accounts will stop, he said. We do not practice incitement; we are only conveying news from Palestine to the world. Facebook said the restoration of the accounts was not a response to complaints. It declined to comment on whether top executives were involved. The company has cited technological glitches in other recent cases where content was removed, then restored, including the takedown of a video that showed the aftermath of a Minneapolis police shooting. Chen declined to explain the glitch. She said the company was reviewing its appeals process in response to public feedback. Facebook currently allows appeals of company actions involving entire profiles set up by people or institutions, or full pages on those profiles, but not for individual posts. THICK RULEBOOK To manage the huge volume of content complaints - more than a million a day - the company employs a multi-layered system. It starts with automated routing of complaints to content-policing teams in Dublin, Hyderabad, Austin and Menlo Park, who make initial rulings, current and former executives said. These low-level staffers and contractors consult a thick rulebook that interprets the comparatively spare "community standards" that Facebook customers are asked to follow. The company trains front-line monitors to follow rules and use as little discretion as possible. When a removal sparks more complaints, regional managers function as a mid-level appeals court. Continuing controversy could then push the issue to top U.S. executives. Senior executives also weigh in on policy updates. Osofsky and Kaplan, for instance, wrote a blog post last week, in response to continued feedback on content removals, explaining that the company would start weighing news value more heavily in deciding whether to block content. In an earlier post, responding to the Napalm-girl controversy, Osofsky said Facebook's policies usually work well, but not always. "In many cases, there's no clear line between an image of nudity or violence that carries global and historic significance and one that doesn't," Osofsky wrote. The Vietnam war photo - depicting horrors suffered by a girl named Phan Thi Kim Phuc - was first removed from an account in Norway by a front-line monitor. In protest, the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten printed the image on its front page and posted it on Facebook, which removed it. That prompted the prime minister to post the photo - only to have Facebook remove it again. Facebook then issued a statement defending the action, saying it was difficult to create a distinction between allowing a photograph of a nude child in one instance and not others. The next day, executives reversed the call, with Sandberg telling the prime minister: Even with clear standards, screening millions of posts on a case-by-case basis every week is challenging." (Additional reporting by Yasmeen Abutaleb and Joseph Menn in San Francisco, Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza and Terje Solsvik in Oslo; Editing by Jonathan Weber and Brian Thevenot)
unspecified 2

Facebook's full assault on Snapchat has begun.

On Friday, Facebook announced a completely revamped camera interface in its main app that can send goofy selfies that disappear after 24 hours.

The test, which Facebook simply calls "the new camera," is first being made available in Ireland before rolling out to everyone.

Like Snapchat, Facebook's new camera includes dozens of special effects including augmented-reality selfie "masks" that seem almost identical to Snapchat's Lenses. A camera button at the top of the News Feed will open the new interface, and swiping to the right of the News Feed will show photo and video direct messages with friends.

This particular camera redesign has been of personal interest to CEO Mark Zuckerberg, according to someone familiar with his thinking. He shared a new mantra, "the camera is the composer," during an all-hands meeting with Facebook employees this summer, the person said.

A Facebook spokesperson told Business Insider on Friday that the new camera design was in response to two trends the company observed: People are sharing more photos and videos than ever before, and they want a way to share them with only close friends, not their entire friend demographic.

Screen Shot 2016 10 28 at 10.39.18 AM

Chris Cox, Facebook's product chief, said earlier this week at The Wall Street Journal's tech conference that his team is "very invested" in making the camera "a creative tool."

"It's an area of work we're really invested in, which is making it easy for the camera to be an early application of AR," he said.

Facebook started wading into Snapchat's territory went it bought the selfie filter app Masquerade, known as MSQRD, earlier this year. Then Instagram introduced a clone of Snapchat's Story functionality; Facebook is currently testing a similar feature in the Messenger app in parts of Europe and Australia.

NOW WATCH: Teens reveal their favorite apps and the winner is clear





More From Business Insider


Global health officials are racing to better understand the Zika virus behind a major outbreak that began in Brazil last year and has spread to almost 60 countries. The following are some questions and answers about the virus and current outbreak: How do people become infected? Zika is transmitted to people through the bite of infected female mosquitoes, primarily the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the same type that spreads dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever. The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) said Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are found in all countries in the Americas except Canada and continental Chile, and the virus will likely reach all countries and territories of the region where Aedes mosquitoes are found. The virus can also be transmitted through sex, from either a male or female partner who has been infected, and a few cases of apparent infection via blood transfusion have been reported. How do you treat Zika? There is no treatment or vaccine for Zika infection. Companies and scientists are racing to develop a safe and effective vaccine for Zika, but a preventative shot is not expected to be ready for widespread use for at least two or three years. How dangerous is it? The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention concluded that infection with the Zika virus in pregnant women is a cause of the birth defect microcephaly, a condition defined by unusually small heads that can result in developmental problems, and other severe brain abnormalities in babies. The CDC said that since the causal relationship had been established, several important questions must still be answered with studies that could take years. The World Health Organization in an updated assessment said the "most likely explanation" is that Zika virus infection during pregnancy is a cause of congenital brain abnormalities including microcephaly. In addition, the agency said infection is a trigger of Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS), a rare neurological disorder that can result in paralysis. The update from the WHO came after considering months of research. Its previous statement, based on a rapid assessment of evidence, said there was strong scientific consensus that Zika virus caused GBS, microcephaly and other neurological disorders. Brazil had recently reported 2,063 confirmed cases of microcephaly believed to be linked to Zika infections in pregnant women. It was investigating more than 3,030 suspected cases of microcephaly. Current research indicates the greatest microcephaly risk is associated with infection during the first trimester of pregnancy, but health officials have warned an impact could be seen in later weeks. Recent studies have shown evidence of Zika in amniotic fluid, placenta and fetal brain tissue. What are the symptoms of Zika infection? People infected with Zika may have a mild fever, skin rash, conjunctivitis, muscle and joint pain and fatigue that can last for two to seven days. But as many as 80 percent of people infected never develop symptoms. How can Zika be contained? Efforts to control the spread of the virus focus on eliminating mosquito breeding sites and taking precautions against mosquito bites such as using insect repellent and mosquito nets. U.S. and international health officials have advised pregnant women to avoid travel to Latin American and Caribbean countries, sections of Miami, Florida in the United States and Singapore where they may be exposed to Zika. They are also advising that men and women who have traveled to Zika outbreak areas use condoms or abstain from sex for six months to prevent sexual transmission of the virus. How widespread is the outbreak? Active Zika outbreaks have been reported in at least 59 countries or territories, most of them in the Americas, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Brazil has been the country most affected. (http://1.usa.gov/1ovAJyh) Africa (1): Cape Verde Americas (49): Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Bonaire, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Curacao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saba, Puerto Rico, Saint Barthelmy, Saint Lucia, Saint Martin, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Eustatius, St. Maarten, St. Kitts and Nevis, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos, United States, U.S. Virgin Islands and Venezuela. Asia (1): Singapore Oceania/Pacific Islands (8): American Samoa, Fiji, Kosrae, Federated States of Micronesia, Marshall Islands, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Samoa and Tonga. What is the history of the Zika virus? The Zika virus is found in tropical locales with large mosquito populations. Outbreaks of Zika have been recorded in Africa, the Americas, Southern Asia and the Western Pacific. The virus was first identified in Uganda in 1947 in rhesus monkeys and was first identified in people in 1952 in Uganda and Tanzania, according to the WHO. What other complications are associated with Zika? Zika has also been associated with other neurological disorders, including serious brain and spinal cord infections. The long-term health consequences of Zika infection are unclear. Other uncertainties surround the incubation period of the virus and how Zika interacts with other viruses that are transmitted by mosquitoes, such as dengue. (Compiled by the Americas Desk)
georgehotz

Comma.AI, a startup run by famous hacker George Hotz, has shut down its project dedicated to building a Tesla-like semi-autonomous driving system after a warning from the federal government.

The startup tweeted Thursday night that it was cancelling Comma One, its semi-autonomous driving add-on that was said to give vehicles similar capabilities to Tesla's Autopilot.

The device, which was set to retail at $999, included front radar sensors and a camera. The Comma One would initially work on a select number of vehicles, but Comma.AI would gradually increase the number of cars it could work on.

The comma one is cancelled. comma.ai will be exploring other products and markets. Hello from Shenzhen, China. -GH 3/3  comma ai (@comma_ai) October 28, 2016

The cancellation was prompted by a letter Comma.AI received from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which asked the startup to provide information to ensure the product's safety or face civil penalties of up to $21,000 a day.

Comma.AI tweeted that the Comma One product was cancelled as a result and would be pursuing "other products and markets."

Would much rather spend my life building amazing tech than dealing with regulators and lawyers. It isn't worth it. -GH 2/3  comma ai (@comma_ai) October 28, 2016

Hotz is best known as the first person to hack the iPhone when he was 17, allowing people to use the phone on other networks aside from AT&T's. He also broke into the PlayStation 3 in 2010 when he was 20.

But Hotz first made headlines for his intention to enter the self-driving car space when Bloomberg published a lengthy feature about him building a self-driving car in his garage last December. That article mentioned an email between Hotz and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, where Musk offered him a "multimillion-dollar bonus" to build the product in-house as a replacement for Mobileye.

Story continues

Musk wrote in a blog post that the article was inaccurate and that Tesla found it "extremely unlikely that a single person or even a small company that lacks extensive engineering validation capability will be able to produce an autonomous driving system that can be deployed to production vehicles."

Mobileye is no longer a supplier for Tesla's Autopilot following a fatal crash involving a Tesla Model S that had Autopilot activated. Mobileye said Tesla was "pushing the envelope in terms of safety" following the crash and ensuing break with Tesla.

You can read the NHTSA letter to Comma.AI below:

2016-10-27 Special Order Directed to Comma.ai by Anonymous u1dPhdl on Scribd

NOW WATCH: Tesla made a big software update after a Chinese company remotely hacked the brakes of a Model S





More From Business Insider


Nepal, India agree to accelerate 7 projects

Nepal and India have agreed to expedite seven projects related to infrastructure, cross-border connectivity and utilisation of the Indian aid for Nepals reconstruction.
The FBI is probing new emails related to Hillary Clinton , FBI Director James Comey said in a Friday letter to lawmakers.

Those new emails were discovered during an FBI investigation in which the devices of former Congressman Anthony Weiner and Clinton aide Huma Abedin were seized, NBC News confirmed. The New York Times first reported the news.

While examining Weiner's laptop, investigators discovered Abedin also used the laptop, which contained some emails between Abedin and Clinton, NBC News reported.

"In previous congressional testimony, I referred to the fact that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had completed its investigation of former Secretary Clinton's personal email server. Due to recent developments, I am writing to supplement my previous testimony," Comey wrote.

"In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation. I am writing to inform you that the investigative team briefed me on this yesterday, and I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation," he added.

"Although the FBI cannot yet assess whether or not this material may be significant, and I cannot predict how long it will take us to complete this additional work, I believe it is important to update your Committees about our efforts in light of my previous testimony," Comey concluded in the letter addressed to several lawmakers who chaired committees.

In a letter addressed to Comey and Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Democratic congressmen Elijah Cummings and John Conyers called for full disclosure from the Department of Justice and the FBI "in order to debunk these conspiracy theories and correct the public record."



Stocks turned negative after the report of the new probe. Many analysts have said that markets were pricing in a Clinton victory in November.



Story continues

Clinton campaign chair John Podesta said in a statement, "it is extraordinary that we would see something like this just 11 days out from a presidential election."

"The Director owes it to the American people to immediately provide the full details of what he is now examining. We are confident this will not produce any conclusions different from the one the FBI reached in July," Podesta said in a statement.



The State Department declined to comment to Reuters.

NBC News reported that officials familiar with Comey's letter said it did not appear that anyone had intentionally withheld the new evidence. The letter was sent to lawmakers "out of an abundance of caution," a senior law enforcement official told NBC News. The official also told NBC News that these emails were not held by someone who was investigated in the Clinton email case.

NBC reported that the emails were not revealed by hackers or in the Wikileaks cache related to Clinton's team. The newly discovered emails did not come from her private email server, the Associated Press reported citing a U.S. official.

Comey had previously announced that his department was not recommending that the Justice Department bring charges against Clinton for her handling of classified information on a private server. In that July speech, Comey had insisted the decision was made without outside influence and that it was the professional judgement of the FBI which led to his announcement.



"Although there is evidence of potential violations regarding the handling of classified information, our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case," Comey said at the time.

That announcement came as a relief to Democrats who feared that charges against their party's presidential nominee would stymie her efforts to win the White House.

After a long campaign season, the November 8 elections were looking to go in Clinton's favor, according to most polling averages, but Friday's announcement could potentially offer a major political inflection point.

Even if Clinton were to win on election day, the pall of an ongoing investigation would likely weigh on the president-elect.

The White House said, however, that nothing has happened that would change President Barack Obama's view of Clinton.



For his part, Donald Trump celebrated the news at a Friday campaign event .



"They are reopening the case into her criminal and illegal conduct that threatens the security of the United States of America" Trump said to loud applause. "Hillary Clinton's corruption is on a scale we have never seen before, we must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office. I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the Department of Justice are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made."

"This was a grave miscarriage of justice that the American people fully understood, and it is everybody's hope that it is about to be corrected," Trump added.

Indiana Gov. Mike Pence commended the FBI's actions and called on the agency to "immediately release all the emails pertinent" to the investigation. He said at a rally in Pennsylvania that the American people have a right to know before they vote.

Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway tweeted that "a great day in our campaign just got even better."



Other prominent Republicans took to Twitter to celebrate the news of the FBI probe.

The FBI's July announcement that it would not recommend charges created instant backlash from congressional Republicans, who said they felt Comey had laid out a sufficient basis for criminal charges.

"The FBI's recommendation is surprising and confusing. The fact pattern presented by Director Comey makes clear Secretary Clinton violated the law," House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz, a Utah Republican, said in a release at the time. "Individuals who intentionally skirt the law must be held accountable."

Trump referenced that outlook Friday, saying that the system "might not be as rigged as I thought. I think they're going to right the ship."

NBC News reported that Judiciary Committee Republicans were not expecting Friday's news from the FBI, and it was not in response to any question from the Senate Judiciary Republicans.

"We're interested to know what else they're going to be looking at," a spokesman for the Judiciary Committee Republicans said.



"The FBI's decision to reopen its investigation into Secretary Clinton reinforces what the House Judiciary Committee has been saying for months: the more we learn about Secretary Clinton's use of a private email server, the clearer it becomes that she and her associates committed wrongdoing and jeopardized national security," House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) said in a statement. "Now that the FBI has reopened the matter, it must conduct the investigation with impartiality and thoroughness. The American people deserve no less and no one should be above the law."

Rep. Darrell Issa , R-Calif., said in a statement that Friday's news is "exactly why we need strong watchdogs in Congress to ensure thorough oversight of the executive branch."

"The federal government constantly needs to be held accountable to curb poor judgment  like using a private server to circumvent federal records laws  and incomplete investigations that fail to deliver justice and erode public faith in government," said Issa, a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee. "This decision also makes clear that Hillary Clinton's continued efforts to deceive the public on her actions that willingly put classified information at risk, need to come to an end."

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus said in a statement that the FBI's letter coming just 11 days before the election "shows how serious this discovery must be."

"This stunning development raises serious questions about what records may not have been turned over and why, and whether they show intent to violate the law. What's indisputable is that Hillary Clinton jeopardized classified information on thousands of occasions in her reckless attempt to hide pay-to-play corruption at her State Department," Priebus said in a statement. "This alone should be disqualifying for anyone seeking the presidency, a job that is supposed to begin each morning with a top secret intelligence briefing."

This story is developing. Please check back for further updates.

NBC News contributed to this report.





More From CNBC


The FBI investigation into Hillary Clintons use of a private email server during her time as secretary of state is being reopened, NBC News reported on Friday.

FBI director James Comey announced the news in a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee, writing, In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation  I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation.

Comey was briefed on the emails in question on Thursday, according to Politico. Asked for comment, a top Clinton campaign spokesperson told NBC News, No idea.

The email server investigation was initially closed in July. At the time, Comey recommended to the Justice Department that no charges were appropriate, but acknowledged that there was evidence of potential violations in Clintons extremely careless handling of classified information.

RELATED VIDEO: Hillary Clinton Says Colin Powell Advised Her To Use Personal Email

In 11 pages of notes later released from the investigations interview with Clinton, the Democratic nominee  who is now less than two weeks away from the election  claimed that she did not understand that emails marked with a C meant they contained classified information.

She further claimed that she relied on her subordinates judgement when emailing sensitive information on her private email system.

Minutes after news broke of the reopened investigation, GOP nominee Donald Trump spoke at a campaign rally in Manchester, New Hampshire, where he immediately brought up the FBIs announcement.

I need to open with a very critical breaking news announcement, he said to cheers. The FBI has just sent a letter to Congress informing them that they have discovered new emails pertaining to the former Secretary of State Hillary Clintons investigation. And they are reopening the case into her criminal and illegal conduct that threatens the security of the United States of America. Hillary Clintons corruption is on a scale we have never seen before, Trump added as the crowd chanted Lock her up! Lock her up! We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office. I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the Department of Justice are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made, he also said.

He added of the FBIs initial investigation, This was a grave miscarriage of justice that the American people fully understood. And it is everyones hope that it is about to be corrected.

Perhaps finally justice will be done, he added before moving on. With that being said, the rest of my speech is going to be so boring! Should I even make the speech?


Washington (AFP) - The FBI told US lawmakers Friday it has reopened its review of White House frontrunner Hillary Clinton's use of a personal email server when she was secretary of state, after discovering new mails "that appear to be pertinent."

FBI director James Comey said his agency would take "appropriate investigative steps" to decide whether a new batch of mails contained classified information "as well as to assess their importance to the investigation."

Clinton's Republican rival Donald Trump immediately jumped on the news, praising the FBI for reviewing its decision to close the inquiry and arguing that the Democrat's use of a private email server while in office should disqualify her from the presidency.

"We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office," Trump told cheering crowds at a campaign rally in Manchester, New Hampshire.

"I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the Department of Justice are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made," he declared.

Comey made his announcement in a letter to House and Senate committee leaders whom he had previously briefed that the FBI investigation was complete and had found no evidence Clinton broke the law.

Writing to "supplement" this assessment, he told lawmakers that "in connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation."

There was no immediate reaction from the Clinton campaign.
Just when Hillary Clinton thought the controversy over her use of private emails was done, the FBI has pulled her back in.

FBI Director James Comey said on Friday he would review new messages after the bureau has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to this investigation. He wrote this in a letter to several House and Senate committee chairmen.

Comey said he was briefed on the emails Thursday, and agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps to determine whether they include classified information and to assess their importance to our investigation.

The FBI chief cautioned that it is too soon to tell whether or not the new messages were significant. He also did not provide a timetable for the investigation, so theres a strong chance this inquiry wont be completed until after the presidential election on Nov. 8.

In July, Comey announced that the initial inquiry into Clintons use of a homebrew server while secretary of state would be closed without criminal charges, but he did criticize the Democratic presidential nominee for what he called the extremely careless handling of sensitive information.

The news comes at an inconvenient time for the Democratic nominee. Shes ahead in nearly every national poll, but daily leaks of her email have forced her campaign to constantly address the issue.

Already, Republicans were attempting to make political hay of the latest development. Not long after the news of the FBIs decision broke, House Speaker Paul Ryan said in a statement, Hillary Clinton has nobody but herself to blame. She was entrusted with some of our nations most important secrets, and she betrayed that trust by carelessly mishandling highly classified information. This decision, long overdue, is the result of her reckless use of a private email server, and her refusal to be forthcoming with federal investigators.

On the campaign trail, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, who has said he would seek to put Clinton in jail if he wins the Oval Office, also took his opponent to task. Speaking in New Hampshire, Trump praised the FBI for being now willing to right the horrible mistake that they made by not bringing criminal charges against Clinton. He added voters cant let her bring her criminal enterprise into the Oval Office, as the crowd shouted Lock her up!

Clintons campaign has yet to respond to the latest developments. The Democratic nominee had just landed in Iowa for a campaign stop when the news broke Friday afternoon.

Photo credit: MARK WILSON/Getty Images
(Reuters) - A U.S. federal judge on Thursday blocked abortion restrictions in Alabama that limit how close clinics can be to public schools and ban a procedure used to terminate pregnancies in the second trimester. Judge Myron Thompson in the District Court for the Middle District of Alabama issued a preliminary injunction, ruling that the laws are likely to be found unconstitutional, according to online court records. The school-proximity law bans clinics within 2,000 feet of a K-8 public school. Thompson wrote the law would likely force the closing of clinics in Huntsville and Tuscaloosa, where the majority of abortions in the state are performed, causing an undue burden for women seeking an abortion and other services. "This burden would become particularly devastating for low-income woman" who would need to arrange lengthy trips to one of the other three clinics in the state for the same services, Thompson wrote. Thompson wrote that Alabama's law restricting an abortion method commonly performed in the second trimester of a pregnancy, known as dilation and evacuation, also places an undue burden on women. The law requires the doctor stop the heart of the fetus before abortion, an "inadequately studied, potentially risky procedure," he wrote. The restrictions come amid a wave of laws being adopted by states as conservatives seek to chip away at the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion. In June, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a Texas law imposing strict regulations on facilities that perform abortions. Under the restrictions, Alabama could be left with three abortion clinics in a state where nearly one million women are of reproductive age, according to the ACLU of Alabama, which filed the lawsuit on behalf of the clinics. State and ACLU officials were not immediately available for comment. Alabama Republican Governor Robert Bentley signed the measures into law in May. The laws were to go into effect Aug. 1. No other states have enacted limits on the proximity of abortion clinics to public schools. (Corrects paragraph 4 to "undue" instead of "undo") (Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Toby Chopra)
(Reuters) - The landing gear of a FedEx Corp. DC-10 cargo plane collapsed on Friday at the main airport in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, causing a fire that was quickly extinguished, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration said.

Video from local broadcasters shows what appears to be a FedEx cargo plane that is intact with the fire having taken place near the tail section.

The company later said the pilots were safe.

The airport said on its Twitter feed it is currently closed as firefighters respond to the incident.

(Reporting by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Chris Reese and James Dalgleish)
Silent and enigmatic, China's emblematic Terracotta Warriors are at the centre of a bitter row, with patriots and scholars dismissing as impossible theories they could have been inspired by Greek sculpture.

The 8,000-man clay army, crafted around 250 BC for the tomb of Chinas first emperor Qin Shihuang, is a UNESCO world heritage site, a major tourist draw and a symbol of ancient Chinese artistic and military sophistication in a country that proclaims itself a 5,000-year-old civilisation.

Questioning their origins touches on deep sensitivities, as many take pride in China's early discovery of world-changing inventions, from gunpowder to the compass and movable type.

At the same time its history with the West is fraught with a sense of humiliation over the colonies and concessions established in the 19th century.

But theories put forward by art historian Lukas Nickel of the University of Vienna  and trumpeted in a recent documentary by National Geographic and the BBC  claim that Greek innovations in artistic naturalism, and perhaps even Greek artisans themselves, directly influenced the sculptures.

After the documentary aired earlier this month, netizens blasted the BBC and questioned how the Greeks could have impacted ancient China.

"Couldnt it be that Chinese people went first to Greece and influenced their sculpture?" one wrote.

At the tomb tourists from across China crammed observation platforms to view the ranks of soldiers, jostling for space to snap selfies against their serious, stony facades as guides briskly narrated the story of their discovery by farmers in the 1970s.

Several visitors were incredulous at theories of foreign influence. Dong Shenghua of Beijing said this was "impossible", pointing to the Asian features of the statues and the sophistication of the craftsmanship, which is "so good we cant even make them today".

"We have 5,000 years of history, how many does England have?" he asked.

Story continues

Ma Dongling, from Guangxi, said inspiration could not have come from abroad as China was "very innovative" at the time. "The emperor was the first in the world to do this."

The museum's lead archaeologist Zhang Weixing was similarly dismissive, saying the materials, technology, and ceramics techniques used for the Warriors were all Chinese.

"To say that the Qin tombs and ancient Greece had contact has no substantial evidence at all," he told AFP. "It merely exists in the scholar's conjecture."

As emperor, he added, Qin Shihuang "not only innovated the terracotta warriors, he also created a series of innovations" including standardised weights and measures, national roads, and a unified currency.

"Who influenced whom, it's tough to say. Ancient Greek sculpture had already also been influenced by Egypt."

- Scholarly gap -

For evidence Nickel points to historical records suggesting the first Qin emperor made casts of huge bronze statues seen in China's far west, realistic detailing of muscle and bone on some figures, and the absence of an extensive prior sculptural tradition in China.

Further research could show that foreign empires may have provided a model for the Qin state itself, he told AFP.

"I think its perfectly possible that there's much more influence in thought about statecraft, in how to run an empire, than people have been so far willing to admit."

He points to the rise of empires in central Asia before the Qin dynasty, with the Achaemenids in Persia followed by Alexander the Great and the Seleucids. "When I look at the map of Eurasia, what the Chinese do fits perfectly in the big picture."

But basing theories about transmission of cultural ideas on stylistic similarities in objects fails to convince some Chinese scholars, he acknowledged.

"This is an argument that works mainly in Europe and America," Nickel says. In China, researchers rely more on textual evidence for proof, he said, and so were "very hesitant to believe there were interactions before the mid 2nd century BC, when the Chinese emperor of the Han dynasty sent an envoy to central Asia".

And the idea of early Sino-Western exchanges threatens to undermine a cornerstone of Chinese identity: the Qin dynasty, while brutal in many respects, with book burnings and executions of literati, laid the foundation for China as a unified nation state that has persisted for two millennia.

"That is the moment when China is being made," said Nickel, acknowledging the sensitivity of his assertions.

"Saying there is such a link, it always brings up memories of colonialism, of Western domination of East Asia, which is totally understandable."

Zhang insisted the disagreement was based on academic rigour. "If he was an archaeologist we could discuss this issue," he said. "Archaeologists put more importance on historical documents and unearthed objects."

Li Xiuzhen, a fellow scholar at the museum, told AFP that while there may have been cultural contact, that did not imply influence and the warriors were completely Chinese.

"The terracotta army is unique in the world," she said, and the "creation of the Qin people".
Shes ready to turn up the heat in the upcoming thriller Inferno. But first, Felicity Jones is firing up some answers to our burning questions.

The actress, who stars in the latest book-to-film thriller chronicling the adventures of The Da Vinci Code symbologist Robert Langdon, stopped by for a chat on PEOPLEs Instagram Stories, where she shot the breeze on a barrage of topics while dishing on the films shoot in Italy.

One thing that cracked her up endlessly: Costar Tom Hanks penchant for selfies. Lots of them.

Tom loves small Italian cars , so it would probably be him posing for selfies at every opportunity, the 33-year-old actress said of the most memorable moments working with the two-time Oscar winner, who plays Langdon. Ive never seen someone stand by so many small Italian cars and have a selfie in my life.

(And yes: There is cold, hard, irrefutable evidence for that.)

The soon-to-be-ubiquitous actress  aside from Inferno, shell appear in A Monster Calls and Rogue One later this year  also revealed that her favorite Inferno shooting location definitely, 100 percent had to be Florence, and that shes since been back to visit other areas of Italy because I love being in the country so much.

As for her must-have travel accessory?

Its very serious, and if you forget this, its game over, she says with dire urgency. You have to have a bag of Yorkshire Tea bags. It is the best tea that England has to offer, and that comes with me everywhere I go.

Point taken: Our suitcases are loaded.

Check out PEOPLEs Instagram for more exclusive Instagram Stories.




American drivers used a record amount of gas in the first half of this year, thanks to low gas prices and an unprecedented number of drivers.

U.S. vehicles consumed 71.8 billion gallons of gasoline in the first six months of 2016, up 3 percent from the same period last year and the highest amount on record, according to a new report from the Federal Highway Administration. The gain also represents the sixth straight increase in national gas consumption in the first half of any year.

Drivers in the South Gulf area  which encompasses eight states that stretch from Texas to West Virginia  recorded the largest year-over-year increase of any region at 4.1 percent. Of all states, Oklahoma posted the biggest annual percentage gain in consumption at 8.2 percent, while North Dakota recorded the steepest decline in consumption at 5.9 percent.

California drivers gobbled up the most gas, consuming 7.65 billion gallons, followed by Texas at 7.1 billion and Florida at 4.57 billion.

Related: The 20 Most Dangerous US Cities for Drivers

In August, the FHWA reported that the American drivers traveled 1.58 trillion miles in the first half of the year, setting a new record and beating last years high of 1.54 trillion miles. There are also a record number of drivers on U.S. roads  an estimated 217.9 million, according to the administration.

While gas prices rose steadily in the first six months of the year, they remained relatively low. For instance, gas prices were at 11-year lows this Memorial Day, the unofficial start of the summer driving season. Prices hit a 2016 peak (so far) in June at $2.39 a gallon. This week, the national average is $2.22, a penny more than last year.

Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
Food prices have been falling for the last 10 months. In fact, this is the longest streak of falling food prices since the 1960s, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, or BLS, and it's expected to continue into 2017.

Why? The reasons are manifold, says Robert Ashbaugh, senior risk management consultant with Sageworks, a Raleigh, North Carolina-based company that provides industry data along with financial-analysis and risk-management solutions to private company chief financial officers, accountants and bankers.

Ashbaugh says that along with low and falling commodity prices and increased competition, "continued low fuel prices [are] keeping shipping and packaging costs down."

Another contributing factor is the health of the American economy. "A strong dollar makes American imports more expensive, which causes a higher supply of grain and meat here in the U.S., which takes prices lower," Ashbaugh says.

Granted, depending what you buy, you may have not noticed much of a decrease. From Sept. 2015 to Sept. 2016, overall prices at the grocery store only dropped 2.2 percent. Still, some staples have gotten significantly cheaper. In case you haven't noticed, here are some of them.

[See: 10 Meals to Make When You're Trying to Save.]

Eggs. Overall, egg prices have dropped 50 percent in the last year, according to BLS statistics, although the reason for that is because a year ago, egg prices were extremely high due to a bird flu outbreak that had decreased the supply. But with the avian flu in the rearview mirror, the price of eggs has come back down. ModernFarmer.com called egg prices "insanely low" earlier this month, and right now, the average price of a dozen eggs, according to the BLS, is $1.47. In recent weeks, eggs have been spotted in some discount grocery stores for 99 cents a dozen.

Milk. According to a Wall Street Journal report, based on U.S. Department of Agricultural data, in the first eight months of 2016, more than 43 million gallons of milk were thrown out by dairy producers and handlers, far more than normal. Once again, it is a case of too much supply and not enough demand.

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Why? Two years ago, milk prices were higher than ever, and so farmers increased the number of their dairy cows, just as prices for commodities like corn and soybeans dropped. Farmers were able to feed their dairy cows for cheaper and build up their herds, just as the popularity of milk alternatives, like almond, soy and coconut milk, began climbing.

But there are others you can thank for the country's cheap milk and eggs -- China and Russia. Usha Haley, a professor of international business at West Virginia University, says that the dairy and egg industries both miscalculated when considering their exports to China. Demand for milk and eggs was high, but this year, it's gone down, and so there have been more eggs and milk than the industry can sell.

"Russia's ban on Western food imports in August 2014, to a lesser extent, had the same effect," Haley says.

[See: 10 Ways to Shop Smarter at the Grocery Store.]

Cheese. Especially cheddar has been low this year, with prices 50 percent lower than they were two years ago, according to data on the website CheeseReporter.com. Underscoring how much excess cheese the country has, the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently made two $20 million purchases of cheese to go to food-assistance programs and to help dairy farmers.

Meat prices. In general, meat prices have been falling. It almost doesn't matter what your favorite meat is, as long as it isn't fish (those prices are up), it probably costs less than it did a year ago.

-- Beef. In May 2015, wholesale beef prices were at record highs, but ever since, they've been coming down. Industry experts blame a severe drought in 2012 across the southeastern U.S. and the Great Plains; farmers couldn't keep their cattle grazing, and so they either had to spend vast amounts of money on feed or sell them prematurely. After the drought finally ended in 2013, farmers built up their herd, and now we have a classic case of too much supply and not enough demand. Some industry experts have speculated that beef prices could keep falling through 2019.

-- Pork. Pork prices have gone down as well, but in this case, it's due to a virus in 2013 that killed millions of pigs. That hurt supply, and prices shot up. But the pig population on farms has rebounded -- new vaccines for the virus have helped -- and now there's more supply than demand.

-- Chicken. And chicken prices have gone down due to the aforementioned avian flu that, for a time, hurt egg production. Chicken flocks have been restored, and now there are too many.

[See: 11 Expenses Destroying Your Budget.]

Bread. It's a little cheaper to make a sandwich these days, if you go with white bread, which has dropped about 6 percent in price over the last year.

Some fruits and vegetables. Alas, most fruit and vegetable prices have increased slightly over the last year, but according to recent numbers from the BLS, broccoli is down 13.5 percent over the last year, strawberries have dropped 15.3 percent, peppers have plummeted 20.3 percent and iceberg lettuce is 22.3 percent cheaper.

Grocers and restaurants don't love the falling prices, which squeeze their profit margins further -- after all, they still have to pay for labor costs and their mortgages, expenses that aren't shrinking -- but Haley observes that China's demand for milk is already starting to increase. Still, before you start putting away money to save for future glasses of milk, Haley says "it will fall again as well. This sort of thing is something the world economy has to take in calculation."

So should you worry about falling food prices and how they may or may not affect the economy? Haley doesn't think so, advising consumers: "Enjoy it for now."
By Catherine Ngai VANCOUVER (Reuters) - Foreign buyers sharply scaled back Vancouver-area property purchases in September after British Columbia introduced a tax on international investors aimed at cooling the city's housing market, data from the Canadian province showed on Friday. Overseas investors made up 1.8 percent of home sales in September in Metro Vancouver, according to data from the province's finance ministry. That was slightly higher than 0.9 percent in August but well down from the 13.2 percent between June 10 and Aug. 1, the period before the tax took effect. British Columbia introduced the 15 percent foreign property transfer tax effective Aug. 2 in an effort to improve affordability in Canada's most expensive property market. The provincial government acted after many residents and housing advocates complained that foreign buyers, especially from China, were driving up prices and making homes unaffordable for local people. Critics of the tax have said it is unfair to existing property owners and will hurt the economy. The provincial data out Friday showed the total value of property transfers in the Vancouver area involving foreign buyers was C$79 million ($59 million), compared with C$2.3 billion between June 10-Aug. 1. There have been a number of cases involving foreign buyers purchasing a percentage of a property and a Canadian citizen or permanent resident purchasing the other portion, the government said. It added that since the tax was introduced, it received 166 additional property transfer tax returns. As part of its compliance process, 85 audit files have been opened to investigate if additional taxes should have been paid. Data out earlier this month showed overall Vancouver-area home sales fell 32.6 percent on a year-to-year basis in September in the wake of the tax. According to Vancouver real estate agent Tom Gradecak, detached home sales on Vancouver's affluent westside are down more than 50 percent in August and September compared with a year ago. He added that buyers and sellers appear to be at a standstill. "The sellers realize they missed the peak, so they're waiting," he told Reuters late last week. "The buyers, they're out there, but they're looking for a good deal." ($1 = 1.3396 Canadian dollars) (Reporting by Catherine Ngai; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
Temple Taggart, right, Miss Utah 1997, talks to the press with her attorney, Gloria Allred, in Salt Lake City. (Photo: George Frey/Reuters)

Former Miss Utah Temple Taggart vowed at a Friday press conference to stand up to Donald Trump with the help of Gloria Allred, an attorney who specializes in womens rights.

Speaking in Salt Lake City, Taggart, who has accused the Republican presidential candidate of kissing her on the lips without consent on two separate occasions in 1997, reiterated her allegations. She also told reporters that shed be represented by Allred in the event that Trump follows through on his recent threat to sue her and the 12 other women and counting who have accused him of sexual misconduct.

Im ready for this battle, but there shouldnt be one, Taggart said, reading from a statement directed at Trump. You should have the decency to admit what you did to me and take responsibility for what youve done to the other women.

Taggarts alleged encounters with Trump first came to light back in May, as part of a New York Times investigation into the Republican presidential candidates past behavior with women.

She has since been joined by a growing list of women who say that they were also the subjects of Trumps unwanted advances. The majority of the allegations emerged after the release this month of a 2005 Access Hollywood tape in which Trump is heard making lewd comments about women and boasting about groping them.

Trump apologized for his comments but fiercely denied ever engaging in such behavior. He has accused each of these women of lying and, during a speech in Gettysburg, Pa., last weekend, even declared that every one of these liars will be sued once the election is over.

Asked Friday about the theory  fueled largely by Trump  that the mounting sexual misconduct allegations, which include assault, are part of a concerted political effort to derail his presidential campaign, Allred noted that while she is a proud supporter of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, Taggart is not.

Im a Republican, the former pageant winner confirmed, adding that she has no intention of backing Clinton. Taggart said she is backing the conservative independent candidate Evan McMullin, a Trump critic who is performing surprisingly strong in polls of Utah.

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Allred, who also currently represents three of Trumps other female accusers, said Taggart contacted her following the candidates promise to sue after the election. (Trump frequently issues legal threats against his foes, often without following through.)

Women should not be intimidated into silence by threats of lawsuits, said Allred. This issue is not about sex. It is about the attitude and behavior of a man who seeks the highest office in our country.

Taggart agreed, adding that she feels Trump is trying to bully and frighten [his accusers] into silence.

Im not scared, she said. I know Im telling the truth, and the truth is the greatest defense.
Oregon stand-off: Wildlife refuge occupiers in shock acquittal

Seven leaders of an armed militia who led a 41-day stand-off at a US federal wildlife refuge in Oregon have been cleared of the charges against them.
PARIS (Reuters) - France has delayed a decision on promised nuclear reactor decommissioning, effectively putting on hold a process that could ultimately be overturned with a change of government next year. A government investment roadmap published on Friday stopped short of identifying reactors for closure under 2015 legislation that commits France to reducing atomic energy to 50 percent of its electrical power mix, from more than 75 percent currently. Instead, the Energy Ministry plans leaves it to state utility EDF to issue a strategic review of plants and energy requirements around April of next year. However, the final decision on whether the reactors are scrapped is a political one. France goes to the polls in the first round of presidential voting in April, followed by legislative elections in June - meaning the issue looks unlikely to be resolved before a new president and assembly has been elected. Former Prime Minister Alain Juppe, the conservative candidate currently leading the race, has called Socialist President Francois Hollande's 50 percent target absurd and vowed to scrap it, in common with several other right-wing candidates. Lawmaker Herve Mariton, a Juppe ally and prominent energy specialist among the conservative Les Republicains, has also rejected Hollande's plan to close EDF's ageing Fessenheim plant after a new reactor opens at Flamanville in 2018. Opinion polls show conservative candidates easily defeating any potential Socialist rivals in the presidential election, which takes place in two rounds, the second due in May. Environmental group Greenpeace said the French government was failing to implement the 2015 energy law and had betrayed last year's Paris Climate Agreement to curb climate-warming emissions by not doing enough to support renewable energy alternatives. In order to meet the 2015 commitment, France would have had to decide on the shutdown of 22 reactors by now, it said. According to the energy investment plan published on Friday, a decision to close Fessenheim, France's oldest nuclear plant, will be taken by the end of the year. The plan also pledged to almost double renewable power output to 150-167 terawatt hours (TWh) by 2030. The plan also seeks to cut nuclear power output by 10 to 65 TWh by 2023. (Corrects date of legislative elections to June in fifth paragraph) (Reporting by Michel Rose and Bate Felix; Editing by Laurence Frost and Alison Williams, Larry King)
By Matthias Blamont and Noemie Olive CALAIS, France (Reuters) - France demanded on Friday that Britain take in hundreds of minors from war-torn countries after the British interior minister suggested that Paris should do more for them following the closure of the "Jungle" migrant camp in the northern French port city of Calais. Bulldozers are flattening the sprawl of ramshackle huts and tents which had been home to about 6,000 refugees and migrants from Asia, the Middle East and Africa hoping to cross the English Channel and start new lives in Britain. Most have now been bussed to other centres across France pending examination of their cases. But the plight of hundreds of minors roaming the area, nearly 1,500 of whom have signed up for temporary lodging in container-boxes in Calais, has become a point of dispute. British Home Secretary (Interior Minister) Amber Rudd told her French counterpart Bernard Cazeneuve on Friday that his government must guarantee the protection of youngsters left in limbo after the evacuation of the "Jungle". "Any child either eligible or not in the secure area of the camp should be cared for and safeguarded by the French authorities. We understand that specialist facilities have been made available elsewhere in France to ensure this happens," Rudd's spokesman quoted her as saying. Cazeneuve replied that Britain should "quickly execute its responsibilities to take in these minors, who hope to come to the United Kingdom. This is the best way to give them the protection they are due," he said. The head of France's Ofpra refugee agency, Pascal Brice, put it more bluntly. "We've done Britain's work in tending to the adults," he told Reuters. "The least they can do is take care of the isolated minors who are now at the CAP (temporary lodgings) and who have an interest in going to Britain." French government officials in the region say that 1,451 minors are in the container-box lodgings. Britain has so far accepted 274 children from among this group, France says. European Union rules say Britain must take in unaccompanied children who have family ties there. An amendment to those rules adopted in Britain this year states that such minors whose best interests are served by doing so should also be admitted. DEBRIS Aid groups say hundreds if not thousands more adults and minors may have fled into the hinterland around the "Jungle", ready to return when the heavy police presence wanes. Smoke and dust floated over the heart of the site on Friday as bulldozers cleared mounds of debris and rubbish, watched from afar by a group of youngsters who had slept outdoors in an area that once serve as a school for camp-dwellers. Charity workers gave them food on Friday. Abdul Hadi, an Afghan youth who gave his age as 16, said he spent 10 months in the Jungle but failed to register with the French authorities for help when the evacuation on Monday. "I hope I can get to the UK this week," he said. Serge Szarzynski, head of social affairs in the Calais area, told Reuters a solution would be found for Hadi and the youths with him. (Additional reporting by Andrew Callus and Emmanuel Jarry, Writing by Brian Love,; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
Calais (France) (AFP) - Most of the migrants left wandering the Calais "Jungle" were relocated Friday following the camp's demolition, including dozens of the youngsters whose fate has deeply concerned Britain and France.

After being left to fend for themselves for two days in the deserted burnt-out shantytown, around 100 stragglers boarded buses for shelters around France as part of a government operation to shut down the notorious slum.

Around 50 minors, mostly Sudanese, were taken to a centre for refugee children, with another bus of 34 older youths leaving shortly afterwards.

Only around two dozen people who had spent the night in a disused part of the camp were still unaccounted for, following a clearance operation since Monday that has seen some 4,500 people transferred to hostels around France.

Some had been refusing to budge from the site near the northern port of Calais, where migrants have flocked for years in the hope of stowing away on a truck crossing the Channel to Britain.

They included a number of children, whose fate had sparked a war of words between France and Britain.

Among the last to leave Friday was Abdel Bassi, a Sudanese 17-year-old who had been clinging to dreams of a new life across the sea.

"All my friends are in England," the teen said disconsolately.

France sees the Jungle as a problem chiefly of Britain's making given that most of its inhabitants were seeking to reach British shores.

On Thursday evening, French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve reacted with "surprise" to a demand by his British counterpart Amber Rudd that children left in the Jungle were "properly protected".

"These people... had been planning to migrate to the United Kingdom," he said in a statement, insisting that France "had fulfilled its responsibilities out of solidarity and without trying to shy away" from its duty.

- Mixed welcome -

Britain has taken in 274 children from the Jungle since mid-October, mostly youngsters with relatives in the country.

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Hundreds of others seeking admission to Britain under a scheme for vulnerable children are waiting for their cases to be assessed.

Around 1,500 minors have been taken into a container park next to the Jungle as a temporary measure.

The UN refugee agency had asked that "special arrangements be made to ensure the safety and welfare" of children in the Jungle before it closed, a spokesman said.

On Friday, demolition teams continued tearing down the once bustling settlement of tents and shacks where an estimated 6,000-plus people, mostly Afghan, Sudanese and Eritrean men, had been living. Some set fires to their shacks as they left.

French authorities have said those migrants who agree to be relocated can seek asylum in France. Those who refuse risk being detained and deported.

The relocated Jungle residents have received a frosty reception in some French towns that have baulked at taking in foreigners in a climate of heightened tensions following a spate of terror attacks.

But others have welcomed them with open arms.

- Biding their time? -

More than a million people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East, Asia and Africa poured into Europe last year, sowing divisions across the 28-nation EU and fuelling the rise of far-right movements such as Germany's Pegida and France's National Front.

Many of the migrants in Calais had contacts in Britain and believed their job prospects there to be better than in France.

Many Calais locals fear the Jungle will simply spring back up again once the current clearance operation is over.

Aid groups estimated that between 2,000 and 3,000 migrants left the Jungle before the evacuation began.

Some are believed to be hiding out in the Calais area, biding their time before fresh attempts to stow away.

Police in northern France told AFP they had also seen signs of a move south to Paris, where a thicket of tents has been visibly growing under a railway bridge in the city's north in recent weeks.

Senior regional official Jean-Francois Carenco said more than 2,000 migrants were sleeping on the streets of Paris, but he denied that large numbers had been arriving from Calais over the past few days after slipping through the net.

"Controls are in place on the roads and the railways, and there is nothing at this stage to indicate an influx of migrants coming from Calais," he said.
From Cosmopolitan

Five former Ramapo College students have been indicted in connection with the alleged gang rape of Jane Jones, the Mahwah Patch reports. The lawsuit claims the victim was lured to a frat party in November of 2014, and brutally physically and sexually assaulted after she passed out from alcohol consumption.



According to the New York Daily News, the then-19-year-old was not planning on going to the Pi Kappa Alpha house that night but was convinced to come to their "Date Night" party by a fraternity member who knocked on her dorm door (it was allegedly the brothers job to get women to the party and get them drunk). Once she was unconscious, she was allegedly laid out on a fraternity members bed. The same brother whod convinced her to come to the party and another defendant "played the juvenile game of Rock, Paper, Scissors just outside of [the] bedroom door to determine who would get to sexually assault and rape" the victim first, and took turns doing so, the lawsuit claims. Other fraternity members reportedly stood outside the room as the assaults occurred and did nothing to intervene.

After the first set of alleged attacks, the still-unconscious victim was carried back to her freshman dorm without her shoes, underwear, or jacket, and assaulted again, NJ.com reports. According to the lawsuit, some of the male students who were allegedly involved in the dorm attacks "were falling-down laughing hysterically while also videotaping the sexual assault.

The other defendants named are Nakeem D. Gardner, 18, Christian A. Lopez, 24, Justin Sommers, 18, and Christopher Rainone, 18. Twenty-year-old Jordyn Massood is charged with encouraging or aiding assault as well, though its unclear at what point she became involved.

Ramapo College, along with its campus security officers, is also named as a defendant in the case. A vice president of the college Cathy Davey told NorthJersey.com the school had yet to be served with the suit and couldnt comment on it. She did say the fraternity charged is no longer on campus.

Story continues

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Donald Trump charlotte 10-26

Friday's advance estimate of US gross domestic product data, measuring the overall growth of the US economy, came in higher than expected at 2.9% annualized growth, above the projected 2.6% and the strongest number in two years.

While this is certainly good news for the US economy, it comes as a speed bump for the candidacy of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.

Trump has run on a platform of economic dissatisfaction and painted Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton as a continuation of President Barack Obama's administration with the hope that voters will view four more years of a Democratic presidency in a negative light.

A strong GDP number showing continued steady growth (though slower than that of most economic expansions) seems to run counter to the Trump narrative that America is no longer "great" and that the economy needs serious improvement.

Add on decent jobs-report numbers over the past few months  people returning to the labor force, unemployment near cycle lows, and wages beginning to pick up  and the economic case from Trump doesn't appear as strong.

Obama's approval ratings are near the highest of his administration. So making the election a referendum on his economic policies amid stronger economic data and Obama's improved popularity could be a risky proposition.

While most voters have already made up their minds, negative economic surprises in both data and headlines could influence those who are still undecided or inspire turnout from a so-far uncounted pool of disgruntled workers that could break for Trump. These surprises, however, don't appear to be materializing.

More Americans cite the economy in general as the most important issue in the election, and studies show that personal economic well-being is a strong influence in the voting booth. A CNN/ORC poll released in September found that Americans had the most positive outlook for the economy in the past nine years. And half of Americans said they approved of Obama's handling of the economy.

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Donald Trump Hillary Clinton

Now, there are some caveats. First, GDP and the unemployment rate don't necessarily have a strong correlation with who will win the election, though a higher raw number of jobs added does favor the incumbent party to a certain extent. On a qualitative basis, however, these indicators can be used to assess the general economic mood of the electorate.

Furthermore, the economic data is not overwhelmingly positive compared with that of other recoveries. But relative to this current cycle, it is strong.

And finally, there are regional variations to economic strength, so Trump's message of economic weakness is likely to resonate more in places like the industrial Midwest, where Trump has seen some of his most significant support.

The Trump campaign took a long-term view of economic growth in its response to the GDP number.

"America can do better than the modest growth of 2.9% recorded for the 3rd quarter and the dismal growth of 1.5% for the past year," wrote Dan Kowalski, Trump's deputy policy director.

He added: "Growth hasn't risen above 3% for a full year in any year of the Obama presidency. Decades of strong economic growth and global leadership have been replaced with low-paying jobs, global chaos and a national debt that has doubled under Obama-Clinton."

While it's true that economic growth was better in recoveries from previous recessions, many Americans view their economic situation relative to the recent past rather than to long-term trends. Or as Ronald Reagan put it when he was running for president in 1980, "Are you better off than you were four years ago?"

The last economic curveball before the November 8 election could be the October jobs report, which will be released just four days before Election Day. If the report disappoints, seizing on a worse-than-expected number could be a strong narrative push for Trump in the final days. There are expected to be some disruptions, however, since the survey was taken around the time Hurricane Matthew hit the Southeast; that could provide easy cover for Democrats to counter a bad surprise.

NOW WATCH: LIZ ANN SONDERS: The most unsettling outcome for the markets would be a surprise Trump win





More From Business Insider


New York (AFP) - General Electric is in talks to buy oilfield-services company Baker Hughes in a deal that could be the US industrial giant's biggest, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.

GE had approached Baker Hughes about a takeover, the Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter. Details about the talks could not be learned and the negotiations may not produce an agreement, they said.

Baker Hughes, based in Houston, Texas, has a market value of $23 billion, and could fetch more than $30 billion in a takeover, given the typical premium, the newspaper said.

GE has a market value of $259 billion.

Baker Hughes had struck a deal to be acquired by Halliburton for $34.6 billion in 2014. But the transaction died in May after the Justice Department filed a lawsuit to block the proposed merger on antitrust grounds.

GE is a sprawling industrial conglomerate with 333,000 full-time employees worldwide. Based in Fairfield, Connecticut, the company has businesses in the oil and gas sector, including surface and subsea drilling and production systems, and equipment for floating production platforms.

A takeover of Baker Hughes could dwarf GE's acquisition of French company Alstom's power and grid businesses last year for 9.7 billion euros ($10.6 billion).
Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fstory%2fthumbnail%2f26142%2f6d81913dc98d4d9ab300b9c026efa4a2

Starbucks does not want its brand to be associated with weed, which is unfortunate seeing as their distaste for the drug comes at the expense of a totally sweet bong.

The coffee giant has successfully won a copyright infringement lawsuit over a bong that resembles the classic Starbucks Frappuccino cup. The contraption, dubbed the Dabuccino, features clear glass for the chamber, a green mouthpiece that mimics a straw and a logo that resembles the Starbucks siren, except with pot leaves as a headdress.

SEE ALSO: Caffeinabis: If Starbucks sold weed

In two separate lawsuits, Starbucks held the website Hitman Glass company and bong designer James Landgraf liable for "trademark dilution, trademark infringement and copyright infringement." According to Eater, the product willfully intended to create an association with the Starbucks Marks and to capitalize upon the success and popularity of the Starbucks Marks to sell [their] products. The suit also claims this has caused and will continue to cause irreparable injury and damage to Starbucks Corp.s business, reputation, and goodwill.

Starbucks demanded that both Hitman Glass and Landgraf hand over profits from the bongs and pay for damages in fees.

We are pleased with the courts decision, Starbucks said in a statement. Starbucks has made significant investments to develop our brand and intellectual property over the past 45 years. We have an obligation to protect our intellectual property from infringement in order to retain our exclusive rights to it.

Vice notes that Starbucks won a separate lawsuit against the bong designer James Landgraf in a default judgement, which means that Landgraf did not appear in court or to a summons as scheduled, landing Starbucks an automatic win in the suit. He owes the coffee giant $410,580.

The suit with Hitman Glass is still ongoing.

Bonus: Colorado's Farm-to-Table marijuana
Police seize over 25 kilograms hashish in Saptari

Police confiscated 25 kilograms of hashish in Saptari on Friday.
By Caroline Copley

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's outspoken economy minister, Sigmar Gabriel, heads to China next week having ratcheted up tensions with Beijing by putting the brakes on the latest Chinese takeovers of German technology companies.

The five-day trip with 60 business executives comes a week after his ministry withdrew approval for Fujian Grand Chip Investment Fund (FGC) to buy chip equipment maker Aixtron (AIXGn.DE), citing new security concerns.

The government is also scrutinising the sale of Osram's (OSRn.DE) general lighting lamps business Ledvance to a consortium of Chinese buyers.

Gabriel has been making protectionist noises since Chinese home appliance maker Midea made overtures back in May for robot-maker Kuka (KU2G.DE) - a national champion in Germany's push to hook up machinery to the internet.

Despite his efforts to conjure up an alternative buyer, that deal went ahead. But the latest moves to stall Chinese acquisitions have unsettled some in business who regard it as a setback for Germany's image as an open economy.

"For many German companies, China is now the single most important market," said Thomas Heck, head of the China business group at PwC in Germany

"It may not be wise to pick a battle and tell China 'If you don't open up your markets like we have, then we will shut down our economy for you'."

The decision to put the Aixtron deal on hold followed a U.S. warning that the takeover could give Beijing access to technology that could be used for military purposes, Handelsblatt newspaper reported.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said on Friday that any third-party interference on deals "harms the China-Germany relationship".

One German M&A adviser said he was "astonished and concerned" about the move and would give Gabriel a piece of his mind at a meeting in Beijing next week.

Home to thousands of industrial firms, Germany is one of the most open and attractive markets in Europe for Chinese investors. They have racked up deals worth more than $10 billion (8.24 billion) in Germany so far this year, about 40 times as much as in 2015 as a whole, according to Thomson Reuters data.

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RUFFLED FEATHERS

It is not the first time this year that Gabriel has ruffled feathers ahead of a high-profile business trip abroad. After stressing the need for reform in Iran, he was snubbed by the speaker of the Iranian parliament.

Ahead of the China trip - where he will meet Chinese Premier Li Keqiang before heading to the Asian-Pacific conference in Hong Kong - Gabriel has protested against Chinese steel dumping and called for a more level playing field for foreign firms.

David Vos, capital goods analyst at Barclays, said it was right for Germany to try to keep its best companies: "They've already given too much away. It's German companies, it's German technology, it's German jobs, it's German capital."

Germany has benefited from China's rapid expansion - its automakers, in particular, enjoy access to the world's largest car market. But they complain they are only allowed to manufacture cars domestically in China through joint ventures with local partners.

While Beijing has repeatedly pledged to increase market access for foreign firms, critics accuse it of not following through on its reform agenda and introducing new regulations that are restricting market access even further.

For example, Beijing's Made in China 2025 plan calls for a progressive increase in domestic components used in priority sectors such as advanced information technology and robotics to 70 percent by 2025 from a target of 40 percent by 2020.

With Chinese appetite for German technology unlikely to abate, Bjoern Conrad, deputy head of the MERICS think tank in Berlin, said Gabriel had a duty to not shy away from confrontation.

"Europe still has a lot to offer in the field of high technology at present, which China needs. Germany and Europe must make use of this strength in the negotiations with China."

(Additional reporting by Georgina Prodhan in Frankfurt and Sue-Lin Wong in Beijing; Editing by Jeremy Gaunt and Alison Williams)
By Caroline Copley BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's outspoken economy minister, Sigmar Gabriel, heads to China next week having ratcheted up tensions with Beijing by putting the brakes on the latest Chinese takeovers of German technology companies. The five-day trip with 60 business executives comes a week after his ministry withdrew approval for Fujian Grand Chip Investment Fund (FGC) to buy chip equipment maker Aixtron , citing new security concerns. The government is also scrutinizing the sale of Osram's general lighting lamps business Ledvance to a consortium of Chinese buyers. Gabriel has been making protectionist noises since Chinese home appliance maker Midea <000333.SZ> made overtures back in May for robot-maker Kuka - a national champion in Germany's push to hook up machinery to the internet. Despite his efforts to conjure up an alternative buyer, that deal went ahead. But the latest moves to stall Chinese acquisitions have unsettled some in business who regard it as a setback for Germany's image as an open economy. "For many German companies, China is now the single most important market," said Thomas Heck, head of the China business group at PwC in Germany "It may not be wise to pick a battle and tell China 'If you don't open up your markets like we have, then we will shut down our economy for you'." The decision to put the Aixtron deal on hold followed a U.S. warning that the takeover could give Beijing access to technology that could be used for military purposes, Handelsblatt newspaper reported. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said on Friday that any third-party interference on deals "harms the China-Germany relationship". One German M&A adviser said he was "astonished and concerned" about the move and would give Gabriel a piece of his mind at a meeting in Beijing next week. Home to thousands of industrial firms, Germany is one of the most open and attractive markets in Europe for Chinese investors. They have racked up deals worth more than $10 billion in Germany so far this year, about 40 times as much as in 2015 as a whole, according to Thomson Reuters data. RUFFLED FEATHERS It is not the first time this year that Gabriel has ruffled feathers ahead of a high-profile business trip abroad. After stressing the need for reform in Iran, he was snubbed by the speaker of the Iranian parliament. Ahead of the China trip - where he will meet Chinese Premier Li Keqiang before heading to the Asian-Pacific conference in Hong Kong - Gabriel has protested against Chinese steel dumping and called for a more level playing field for foreign firms. David Vos, capital goods analyst at Barclays, said it was right for Germany to try to keep its best companies: "They've already given too much away. It's German companies, it's German technology, it's German jobs, it's German capital." Germany has benefited from China's rapid expansion - its automakers, in particular, enjoy access to the world's largest car market. But they complain they are only allowed to manufacture cars domestically in China through joint ventures with local partners. While Beijing has repeatedly pledged to increase market access for foreign firms, critics accuse it of not following through on its reform agenda and introducing new regulations that are restricting market access even further. For example, Beijing's Made in China 2025 plan calls for a progressive increase in domestic components used in priority sectors such as advanced information technology and robotics to 70 percent by 2025 from a target of 40 percent by 2020. With Chinese appetite for German technology unlikely to abate, Bjoern Conrad, deputy head of the MERICS think tank in Berlin, said Gabriel had a duty to not shy away from confrontation. "Europe still has a lot to offer in the field of high technology at present, which China needs. Germany and Europe must make use of this strength in the negotiations with China." (Additional reporting by Georgina Prodhan in Frankfurt and Sue-Lin Wong in Beijing; Editing by Jeremy Gaunt and Alison Williams)
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - German financial watchdog Bafin has launched an insider trading probe into a drop in the price of Hugo Boss (BOSSn.DE) shares in February, a spokeswoman for Bafin said on Friday.

Hugo Boss's stock dropped nearly 20 percent on Feb. 23, after the fashion house warned its full-year profit would decline.

Bafin looked into trade in Hugo Boss shares before and after the announcement as a matter of routine and found data that has prompted it to launch an insider trading probe, the spokeswoman said.

"We will see whether the investigation turns up concrete evidence of insider trading," she said, confirming a report by German weekly Der Spiegel.

An insider trading probe at Bafin commonly involves the regulator asking banks for the names of people who bought or sold trades ahead of a big move in a stock price. Then it examines whether these people may have had access to insider information.

If there was suspicion of insider trading, Bafin would hand over the evidence to public prosecutors, according to the spokeswoman.

Hugo Boss was not immediately available for comment.

(Reporting by Andreas Kroener; Writing by Maria Sheahan; Editing by Jason Neely and Mark Potter)
By Joseph Nasr COLOGNE, Germany (Reuters) - Hani Salam escaped civil war in Syria and survived the journey from Egypt to Europe. But when he saw men with bushy long beards at a mosque near his current home in Cologne last November, he was worried. The men's appearance reminded him of Jaish al-Islam, the Islamist rebels who took over his hometown near Damascus, said Salam, 36, who wears a mustache but no beard. One of them told Salam that "good Muslims grow beards, not moustaches," he recalled  a centuries-old idea that he dismisses. "Everything about this mosque made me feel uneasy," he said. Syrians in Germany say many of the country's Arab mosques are more conservative than those at home. Over two months, a dozen Syrians in six places of worship in three cities told Reuters they were uncomfortable with very conservative messages in Arabic-speaking mosques. People have criticized the way the newcomers dress and practice their religion, they said. Some insisted the Koran be interpreted word-for-word. It is a highly contentious issue in a country where Europe's migrant influx is already having deep political and social consequences. In Germany this year Alternative for Germany, a populist party that says Islam is incompatible with the German constitution, has gained ground. There have been several attacks by militant Muslims. Syrians and others say the mosque problem is adding to mistrust. In Germany, other different faiths are traditionally supported by the state. But most of the country's four million Muslims originally came from Turkey and attend Turkish-speaking mosques which are partly funded by Ankara. Last year around 890,000 asylum-seekers, more than 70 percent of them Muslims, entered the country. Around a third came from Syria. Many of them do not want to go to Turkish mosques because they do not understand the sermons. They prefer to worship where people speak Arabic. Yet in these mosques, other problems arise. They are often short of funds, or else supported by Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states. Some back ultra-conservative or highly literal interpretations of Islam, such as Wahhabism or Salafism. "Unfortunately it is true that a large majority of Arabic-speaking mosques are more conservative than Turkish mosques," said Professor Mouhannad Khorchide, who heads the Centre for Islamic Theology at Muenster University. That poses problems for integrating those who are less conservative. "How can one absorb these people if they are interested in their religion?" said Khorchide. "When there is a shortage of offers the Salafists try to fill the gap." "PURE ISLAMIC TEACHINGS" In Cologne, Salam said that 75 Syrians live in the same hotel as his family. Of them, only one veiled woman prays at the nearest Arabic mosque. "One time when I was there, a Salafist asked a young Arab man to leave because he was wearing shorts," he added. "At the Turkish mosque no one cares what you're wearing." In a windowless ground floor room inside the Arabic mosque one Friday in August, some 200 men, including about two dozen with bushy beards and trimmed moustaches typical of ultra-Orthodox Muslims, crowded for prayers. Afterwards, a worshipper scolded three Lebanese men for saluting him when he entered the mosque. They had interrupted the sermon, which he said was forbidden. "Your Friday is gone!" he told them, lifting his hands toward his face and pressing his fingers together to emphasize that their actions had made their prayers void. The imam who led the prayers said the community is not political or violent. Asked about the Syrians who felt uncomfortable at mosques like his, he said: "It's an honor to be called a Salafist. We are only interested in giving members of our community pure Islamic teachings." Even though Salam can't understand the sermons in Turkish, he said he has started going to a Turkish mosque instead. "BRAINWASHED" A 2008 survey of Muslims and Christians in Europe by the state-funded WZB Berlin Social Science Centre found fundamentalist attitudes were less prevalent among German Muslims than elsewhere in Europe, but still quite widespread: For example, nearly half the Muslims it surveyed in Germany felt religious law to be more important than secular law. Germany's domestic intelligence agency has recorded more than 320 attempts by Salafist Muslims to contact refugees last year, often by offering food, clothes, free copies of the Koran and help with German to asylum seekers living in shelters. Earlier this month, a Syrian committed suicide in prison after he was arrested on suspicion of planning to bomb an airport. His brother and friends in Germany have said he was "brainwashed" by ultra-conservative imams in Berlin. The intelligence agency has advised local authorities against housing asylum-seekers near Salafist or Wahhabi mosques. "We know of at least 90 Islamist mosques where activities aimed at refugees are taking place. These mosques are largely Arab-dominated and influenced by Salafism," said Hans-Georg Maassen, head of the agency. At the al-Nur mosque in Berlin, which is run by Wahhabis, Syrian Abed al-Hafian said he was alarmed by a strict interpretation of the Koran and Hadith, a collection of sayings of the prophet. He recalled a sentence from Hadith that the preacher quoted on his first Friday: 'Every novelty (in religion) is innovation, and every innovation is misguidance, and every misguidance leads to the hellfire.' "I had never heard that sentence in Syria," said the 42-year-old father of three, who arrived in 2014. "The message is clear and is directed at us Muslims: 'Don't you dare interpret your religion. Take the Koran word for word.' It's a problem." He said he decided to take what he wants from the sermons and "ignore the rest." Even though officials accept that not all Salafists are violent, some Syrians worry that if they go to Arabic-speaking mosques, they may be seen as radicals. In Hamburg, Syrian Kurd Abu Mohammad said he has avoided going to a mosque since he arrived in Germany two years ago because his parents, who came here a decade ago, told him it could only bring trouble. "The government is obviously monitoring Salafists," said the 32-year-old father of six, using a nickname because he said he fears for his safety and that of relatives still living in Damascus. "I have a two-year visa and the last thing I want is trouble." FUNDING GAP The problem may be rooted in the schisms in Islam, but it is made worse by the structure of religious funding in Germany. Since the start of the 20th century Germany has had a system of collecting taxes for worship, which are then paid out to religious groups like Catholics, Protestants and Jews. Muslims cannot benefit from this, because the four main organizations that represent Muslims in Germany can't agree to merge into one religious body, a requirement to receive taxes. "Most communities can't even afford a proper mosque ... And most can't pay a well-educated imam to serve their community," said Daniel Abdin, co-chairman of the Shura Council in Hamburg, an umbrella organization for the city's Muslim community. "So you end up with a situation where people with little or no knowledge of modern theology are serving as imams." Five years ago, the government set up five Islamic theology centers to train imams and Islamic educators with a 20-million-euro ($22 million) grant from the Education Ministry. The strategy has been partly successful: Islamic studies are taught to Muslim pupils in many schools. But few of the more than 1,800 students who have graduated from the theology centers have gone on to serve as local imams. Nonetheless, Khorchide and other Islam experts are hopeful that the influx of Muslim asylum-seekers with an open approach to religion is an opportunity to promote a more "moderate" Islam in the Arabic-speaking mosques. In Hamburg, Abu Mohammad says he has stopped attending mosque at all. "I pray at home," he said. "I'm sure Allah listens." (Additional reporting by Sabine Siebold and Andrea Shalal in Berlin and Lisa Barrington in Beirut; Edited by Sara Ledwith)
GNC Holdings Inc. GNC reported third-quarter 2016 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of 59 cents, reflecting a year-over-year deterioration of 21.3% despite an 18.6% drop in the companys weighted average number of common shares outstanding.



The quarters adjusted EPS also missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 16.9%.



Including one-time items, the companys reported EPS was 47 cents, down 12.9% year over year.

GNC HOLDINGS Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

GNC HOLDINGS Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | GNC HOLDINGS Quote

Total Revenue



Revenues dropped 8.1% year over year to $627.9 million and also missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $648 million. This decline can be attributed to lower sales in the companys U.S. & Canada and international segments, which was partially offset by sales improvement in the manufacturing/wholesale segment, excluding intersegment sales.



Same-store sales dropped 8.5% in domestic company-owned stores (including GNC.com sales) during the second quarter; while the same fell 8.9% in domestic franchise locations.



Segment in Details



Starting third-quarter 2016, GNC Holdings has been reporting its operations under three segments: U.S. & Canada  including company-owned stores in the U.S., Puerto Rico and Canada, franchise stores in the U.S. and e-commerce; International  including franchise locations in approximately 50 countries, The Health Store and China operations and Manufacturing / Wholesale including manufactured product sold to other segments, third-party contract manufacturing and sales to wholesale partners.



During the reported quarter, GNC Holdings revenues from the U.S. & Canada segment dropped 7% to $525.5 million, primarily because of a decline in same store sales in both company-owned and franchise stores. Domestic franchise revenues fell 2.7% to $85.8 million, mainly due to lower wholesale sales and royalties. Weakness in the food and protein categories, as well as significant decrease in e-commerce sales due to better aligning web promotions to the company's stores, largely affected this segments growth in the second quarter.



Revenues at the international segment declined 18.7% to $41.1 million despite an increase of 3.9% in international franchisees same store sales, at constant exchange rate. Revenues from franchisees decreased $11.3 million due to challenges in Chile, Saudi Arabia and Mexico. The termination of the company's franchise agreement in Turkey, which resulted in the closing of 85 stores, and the earlier timing of the annual franchise convention impacted sales by $4.0 million in the quarter. Partially offsetting the above decrease was an increase in revenue of $1.8 million associated with the company's China business.



Revenues at the manufacturing/wholesale segment (excluding intersegment revenues) decreased 0.5% to $61.3 million. Within this segment, third-party contract manufacturing sales increased 6.3% to $36.6 million, which was partially offset by a 9% decline in wholesale sales of $24.7 million and a 21.4% plunge in intersegment sales of $53.0 million.



Margin

Gross profit deteriorated 14.1% in the reported quarter to $215.4 million. Consequently, gross margin contracted 238 basis points (bps) to 34.3%, owing to lower sales and product margins in the companys GNC.com business and deleverage of occupancy costs as a result of negative same-store sales.



Selling, general and administrative expenses rose 5.1% to $148.4 million. However, adjusted operating margin deteriorated 535 bps to 10.7% owing to a wider decline in gross profit.



Financial Position



GNC Holdings exited the reported quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $37.2 million, compared with $48.2 million at the end of second-quarter 2016. As of Sep 30, 2016, the company generated cash of $169.7 million from operating activities, compared with $274.7 million a year ago.

Further, the company generated free cash flow of $162.8 million, reflecting a year-over-year decline of 80.8%.



Moreover, during the second-quarter earnings release, GNC Holdings declared a cash dividend of 20 cents per share of its common stock for fourth-quarter 2016; payable on or about Dec 30, 2016 to its stockholders of record at the close of business as on Dec 16, 2016.



Outlook Related Update: New GNC Plan



Post the third-quarter debacle, management announced several strategies to deliver improved performance in the near future. It plans to revamp its existing business model. The model, dubbed as the new GNC, would include the lower single product pricing policy, a new product pipeline, free and paid loyalty program, new customer friendly technology which includes terminals, tablets, Wi-Fi and a new mobile app that improves and personalizes the shopping experience. By the end of 2016, we expect more clarity on the entire matter.



Our Take



GNC Holdings ended third-quarter 2016 on a disappointing note as its revenue figure failed to meet the Zacks Consensus Estimate.

Not only did the company lag in the domestic market, its overseas operating results were equally disappointing. Foreign currency also played spoilsport, particularly in Mexico. In Turkey, macroeconomic challenges hampered growth. Weak pricing policy was also an issue for its brand. However, managements latest plan for operational improvement raises optimism.

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

GNC Holdings currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Better-ranked stocks in the medical sector are GW Pharmaceuticals plc GWPH, Baxter International Inc. BAX and Boston Scientific Corporation BSX. GW Pharmaceuticals and Baxter international sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), while Boston Scientific carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

GW Pharmaceuticals surged 67.4% year to date compared to the S&P 500s 4.4% over the same period. The companys four-quarter average earnings surprise is 41.6%.

Baxter international rallied 25% in the past one year, above the S&P 500s 2.1%. It has a trailing four-quarter average positive earnings surprise of 27%.

Boston Scientific recorded an 18.2% gain in the past one year, higher than the S&P 500s 2.1%. The company has a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 6.3%.

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To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
DailyFX.com -

Talking Points:

Gold prices stall as markets look to US GDP for Fed path guidance

Crude oil prices edge higher as Brazil joins output cut negotiations

Sideline comments from OPEC meeting may prove market-moving

Gold prices are locked in consolidation mode as markets wait for third-quarter US GDP figures to inform Fed rate hike bets. The annualized growth rate is expected to rise to rise to 2.6 percent, the highest since the second quarter of last year. A downside surprise in line with a recent string of disappointments on US economic news-flow may trigger a dovish shift in priced-in policy bets, weighing on the US Dollar and pushing the yellow metal upward.

Crude oil prices edged narrowly higher amid reports that Brazil  the fastest-growing producer outside of OPEC  will join members of cartel and outside exporters including Russia for output freeze negotiations. The participation of non-OPEC oil suppliers is essential to the success of any price-boosting effort. The groups own data  cited in a report from Bloomberg News  suggests it will be unable to meaningfully draw down an inventory glut alone.

OPEC officials are due to in Vienna to discuss the share of output reduction to be implemented by each member state as part of a deal struck in Algiers last month. Non-OPEC producers will meet with cartel representatives the following day to see if the many sides can find common ground, paving the way for operational details to be finalized at a meeting on November 30. Sideline commentary from the sit-down is set to emerge as a major driving force for prices into the week-end.

Where are gold and crude oil prices heading into the year-end? See our forecasts and find out!

GOLD TECHNICAL ANALYSIS  Gold prices have transitioned into digestion mode after bouncing from a four-month low (as expected). Near-term resistance is in the 1272.84-74.29 area (October 20 high, 23.6% Fibonacci retracement), with a daily close above that exposing the 38.2% level at 1292.37. Alternatively, a break below the 14.6% Fib at 1260.80 targets the June 24 low at 1250.11.

Story continues

Gold Prices Mark Time as US GDP Data Looms Ahead

CRUDE OIL TECHNICAL ANALYSIS  Crude oil prices continue to consolidate after reversing downward following a test resistance above the $51/bbl figure (as expected). From here, a daily close below the 23.6%Fibonacci retracement at 48.90 exposes the 38.2% level at 47.04. Alternatively, a move back above the14.6% Fibat 50.05 targets the June 9 top at 51.64.

Gold Prices Mark Time as US GDP Data Looms Ahead

--- Written by Ilya Spivak, Currency Strategist for DailyFX.com

To receive Ilya's analysis directly via email, please SIGN UP HERE

Contact and follow Ilya on Twitter: @IlyaSpivak



original source

DailyFX provides forex news and technical analysis on the trends that influence the global currency markets.

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From Town & Country

In 1970, a group of women working at Newsweek sued the magazine for discrimination. At the time, the weekly newsmagazine's female employees were relegated to administrative roles. They weren't allowed, despite their skill or experience, to become reporters for what was then one of the world's most important publications. Did we mention one of these women was Nora Ephron?

In 2012 Lynn Povich, who was a part of the landmark suit, wrote the book The Good Girls Revolt: How the Women of Newsweek Sued their Bosses and Changed the Workplace, and beginning October 28, the story will make its way to the small screen on Good Girls Revolt, an intelligent, engrossing new series from Amazon.

New York native Genevieve Angelson leads the cast, which also includes Anna Camp and Grace Gummer, and plays Patti Robinson, a free-spirited, brainy researcher whose ambition is a catalyst for the series' namesake insurrection. Here, she talks to T&C about the appeal of the role, the unbeatable costumes, and why she cried when she got her first audition.

Photo credit: Courtesy Amazon Prime Video

You had a connection to this project before joining it, right?

I happened to already know Lynn Povich; her daughter went to my college. And I knew this book, what it was based on and even the women who were part of the suit. This had an incredible amount of meaning to me, even when it was a book.

How did you feel when you first heard it was being developed into a television series?

When I got the appointment for this audition, I started crying. Ninety-nine out of 100 audition, you don't book. You just don't get the job. That's the most common thing about being an actor-you can audition for 10 things a week and get none of them. I started crying because I thought this was going to happen without me. I wasn't going to get to be a part of something so amazing.

Instead of being hopeful that it was going to work out, which, by the way, it did?

When I went on the audition and went into the room, I started crying again. It was like, Cast me in this or don't, but please take this pilot to series because I need to be able to watch it.

Story continues

Photo credit: Courtesy Amazon Prime Video.

The time period that the series takes place in has an impact on everything, from the fashion

Stop right there, because the fashion is absolutely phenomenal. As many romantic relationships as there are on this show, in my mind the real relationship was between me and Patti's outfits! I really mean that. This has always been my personal style-this kind of 1960s wild-child, L.A. thing-but this experience was just amazing, and I cannot wait for people to see what the costume designer, Laura Jean Shannon, put on Patti.

OK, and what else about the period makes it important for us to revisit now?

When I think about the civil rights movement and the women's movement and the youth movement, there's this incredible amount of joie de vivre and a courage and bravery that outweighed fear. To be 21 in 1970, it must have felt like anything was possible. There was such an explosion happening, perhaps in reaction to the conservatism to the generation that came before, but when you couple that with the fact that all of this stuff was happening in a time of raw, unmasked emotional availability, there's an inherent drama is the circumstances of the culture.

I must have watched 1,000 movies in preparing for this role. One of the most important was Love Story, which Patti Robinson would have definitely gone to see. When I was looking at Ali MacGraw, I was looking at this woman who doesn't flinch, whose chin is lifted, who wears her hair down. She was completely wide-eyed and available and open to possibilities. She was there without protecting herself, and I thought that was a perfect example of what it felt like to be young in that time period and how it doesn't feel today.

Patti's a big personality. She's smart and outspoken and seems to be very well developed. What about her spoke to you?

This is someone I never play: the wild one, the girl who's messy and doesn't care. She's not the pretty, well behaved one, which is what I'd have gone out for the in the past.

I wouldn't have had the balls to do Patti justice if I'd gotten her at an earlier moment in my career. She has this gift for acting first and thinking second, and so often, that's the quality that gets things done. It's so organic, and I find that I've only tried to be more like her in my life. She's not perfect, and I didn't always like her, but she's a really honest character.

How have you tried to be more like her?

Honestly, I wish I'd had as much fun as Patti does. Her life is so interesting-today she'd live in Brooklyn. She knows what's cool. In my real life, I don't make the decisions Patti is making on the show, but I do try to remember that feeling of where they came from.

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Google has teamed up with Netflix for a unique promotion of its Allo messenger app: New York City-based Allo users can head down to Soho this Friday, October 28, to take part in a Stranger Things scavenger hunt. There will even be 80s-themed prizes, including a BMX bike and a boombox.

Google introduced Allo earlier this year as an instant messenger with direct access to Googles artificial intelligence-powered assistant. Allo users can not only chat with each other, but also ask the assistant questions. In this case, asking Where is Barb unlocks the first clue, giving players the exact location to visit.

Apparently, theres a mind control vending machine waiting for players somewhere, according to Engadget, which was first to report on the scavenger hunt.

Allo users who dont live in New York wont be able to play, but there will still be some Upside Down goodness for them: Googles messaging app is also getting a Stranger Things sticker pack for those special moments when you just have to talk with blinking holiday lights.

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House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) arguably has one of the most thankless jobs in politics, and its likely to get a lot worse very soon.

Saddled with an unruly GOP majority in the House comprised largely of conservative malcontents eager to unseat Democrat Hillary Clinton if she is elected president and furious with Ryan for refusing to support Republican nominee Donald Trump, Ryan faces legislative chaos and gridlock assuming his party retains control of the House and once again picks him to lead.

Related: Paul Ryan Throws in the Towel on Trump

Ryan, an inveterate conservative policy wonk, spent the better part of the past year touting a Better Way laundry list of policies he intends to promote after the election -- from major tax cuts and an overhaul of the Affordable Care Act to regulatory reform and national security measures.

With this plan, everyone in our countrythe anxious and the eager, the Old America and the New America  can unite and build a confident America, Ryan said of the House GOP agenda in late June. A Hamlet-like politician who wavered before reluctantly agreeing to replace retiring House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio in October 2015, Ryan has counseled rank and file Republicans to fight to preserve their majority as a check on a new Clinton presidency.

However, his once towering hopes to be at the forefront of a sea change in federal policy have been pretty much washed away by an unprecedented and troubling presidential campaign in which Trumps scorched earth attacks on Ryan and other GOP leaders  not to mention women, Hispanics, blacks, Muslims, immigrants and the news media  threaten to take down their party.

If the Democrats succeed in winning the White House, taking back control of the Senate and substantially whittling down the House GOPs current 246 to 186 seat majority, then the one-time chair of the Budget and Ways and Means Committee will have little choice but to try to do business with Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California and Clinton herself.

Story continues

Related: Leaked Memo Shows Clinton Foundations Tangled Web of Money and Favors

Without Democratic help in the future, Ryan and his leadership lieutenants will have trouble amassing 218 votes  a bare majority of the overall House  for any major initiative.

So this is really a moment of decision for Paul Ryan, said William Galston, a government policy expert with the Brookings Institution. Does he want to be part of governing this country or does he want to be the leader of an obdurate minority in this country that simply wants to resist.

He has to decide whether he wants to rely on a minority of Democratic votes along with a majority of Republican votes, he added in an interview on Thursday. If he insists on getting to 218 votes based on Republicans alone, then his next year is going to be a lot like his last year  only worse.

The Republicans currently hold a 246 to 186 seat majority, with three vacancies. The Democrats would need an act of God to overcome that advantage, especially in many gerrymandered districts that were hard-wired for the conservative incumbents. University of Virginia political scientist Larry J. Sabatos Crystal Ball political blog is projecting a 10 to 15 seat gain for the Democrats. That would fall short of the 30 net seats they need to take over but enough to command the attention of Ryan and the rest of the GOP leadership.

InsideGov | Graphiq

Related: Forget Trump: Here's Who's Really Destroying the Republican Party

Yet consorting with the enemy like that  even when it comes to critical, must-pass legislation like annual appropriations bills and raising the debt ceiling -- would be a high crime and misdemeanor in the eyes of right-wing Freedom Caucus members. They are furious that Clinton escaped their clutches during her 11-hour testimony last October on her mishandling of State Department emails and her role in the run-up to and aftermath of the terrorist attacks on a U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya, that killed four Americans.

Whats more, there are signs the House GOP conference will emerge from the election even more conservative than it is now. Thats because many of the most vulnerable Republicans are relatively moderate, while members of the Freedom Caucus for the most part are in good shape. This will serve to strengthen the hand of the 15 or so hardliners in the caucus, Georgetown University political science professor Michele Swers recently told Vox.

Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah, the youthful chair of the powerful House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, made it clear this week how he intends to spend the next two years after the election: investigating every shred of evidence against Clinton and her allies that emerged from the release of State Department emails and a trove of hacked Democratic party and campaign emails that were posted by WikiLeaks.

Chaffetz told The Washington Post, Its a target rich environment and that even before the new president and the new Congress take office in January, Weve got two years of material already lined up.

Related: Hillary Clinton Hints at a Health Care Takeover to Keep Obamacare Alive

Ryans office issued a statement to the newspaper saying the Speaker supports investigative efforts following where the evidence leads. Such a tactic  essentially reprising a strategy of relentless investigations of the president and government agencies over the past several years  could once again lead the Republicans down a blind alley regarding expanding their political appeal and eventually taking back control of the White House.

If Ryan is serious about putting his stamp on meaningful legislation, he may have to find a way to accommodate a new Democratic president and revitalized Democratic Party on Capitol Hill.

I wouldn't want to be Paul Ryan, Sabato said in an email. A sizable portion of his caucus will want to oppose almost anything Clinton sends to the Hill. Apparently, some members want to punish Ryan for not backing Trump enthusiastically.

Indeed, Trump denounced Ryan as "Our very weak and ineffective leader who lacks the support of many in his own conference. Trump delivered that salvo after Ryan withdrew his support of the billionaire businessman and former reality TV host earlier this month following the release of the 11-year old NBC Access Hollywood videotape showing Trump bragging about using his star power to sexually assault or grope women.

Related: Why Paul Ryan May Have to Give Up on His Legislative Agenda

Breitbart, the alt-right news website headed by Stephen K. Bannon -- who doubles as Trumps campaign chairman -- published a lengthy article over the weekend with the headline, Hes With Her. The piece denounces Ryan for being in league with Clinton and helping her to defeat Trump.

Both Clinton and Ryan have said that they see themselves as representatives not only for American citizens but also for foreign nationals and foreign interests, the analysis complained. This view that the needs of foreign citizens are equal to the needs of American citizens reflects the belief that Americans are only part of many interest groups that a lawmaker ought to consider when crafting legislationeven as he or she negotiates with other countries, which always put their citizens first.

Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
Power Summit 2016 to kick off on Dec 15

Independent Power Producers Association, Nepal (IPPAN) on Thursday announced it will hold Power Summit 2016 in the Capital from December 15-16 under the theme 10,000MW by the Sunset.
Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fcard%2fimage%2f264214%2ftammyduckworth

During a debate Thursday night at the University of Illinois Springfield, Representative Tammy Duckworth began to discuss her experience as a veteran, only to have it attacked by her rival, Senator Mark Kirk, using inflammatory and racially charged rhetoric.

Duckworth, who is challenging Kirk for his seat in the Senate in this November's election, had been discussing her experiences as a war veteran when Kirk launched a bitter counterattack. The representative's parents, he claimed, didn't come "all the way from Thailand" just so that they "could serve George Washington."

SEE ALSO: The police technology intensifying racial discrimination

Duckworth, a Democrat, won a Purple Heart and lost both of her legs during the Iraq War. She was born to a Thai mother of Chinese descent and an American marine, whose ancestors served in the American Revolution.

"Ive bled for this nation. But I still want to be there in the Senate when the drums of war sound. Because people are quick to sound the drums of war, and I want to be there to say this is what it costs, this is what youre asking us to do . . . Families like mine are the ones that bleed first," Duckworth said.

"I forgot that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington," Kirk sarcastically responded.

In September, the Illinois senator was accused of inflating his own war record. His website claimed that he was a veteran of the Iraq War, when in fact, he stayed in the United States in the Navy Reserves throughout the course of the war.

Though Duckworth did not immediately respond on stage to the comment, she did follow up later with a photo posted on Twitter.

"My mom is an immigrant and my dad and his family have served this nation in uniform since the Revolution," Duckworth wrote.

My mom is an immigrant and my dad and his family have served this nation in uniform since the Revolution #ILSEN pic.twitter.com/ehEBHswFMs  Tammy Duckworth (@TammyforIL) October 28, 2016

The Kirk campaign has not offered any apology, but instead released the following statement:

Story continues

"Senator Kirk has consistently called Rep. Duckworth a war hero and honors her family's service to this country. But that's not what this debate was about. Rep. Duckworth lied about her legal troubles, was unable to defend her failures at the VA and then falsely attacked Senator Kirk over his record on supporting gay rights," Eleni Demertzis, a spokesperson for the Kirk campaign, said.

Public polls give Duckworth a comfortable lead over the incumbent.

RELATED: Obama laughs 'most of the time' Trump is on the debate stage
Tammy Duckworth and Mark Krik

Republican Sen. Mark Kirk apologized via Twitter on Friday for attacking his Democratic challenger Tammy Duckworth's Thai heritage during an Illinois debate on Thursday night.

"Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service," Kirk wrote.

Duckworth was sharing a story about her family's military service record during an Illinois debate Thursday night when Kirk made the racially charged remark.

"My family has served this nation in uniform going back to the Revolution. I am a daughter of the American Revolution," Duckworth said. "Ive bled for this nation. But I still want to be there in the Senate when the drums of war sound. Because people are quick to sound the drums of war, and I want to be there to say this is what it costs, this is what youre asking us to do."

"And if that's the case, I'll go. It's the families like mine that bleed first," Duckworth continued. "But let's make sure that the American people understand what we are engaging in and let's hold our allies accountable because we can't do it all."

Kirk rebutted, "Id forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington.

Awkward silence followed his rebuttal  Duckworth didn't respond to Kirk  and the moderator moved onto the next question.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee quickly bashed Kirk for his comments, saying his attack on Duckworth's family was "offensive, wrong and racist."

Duckworth's mother is Thai, but her family on her father's side has roots in America.

Watch the exchange blow:

Natasha Bertrand contributed.

NOW WATCH: Watch Trump repeatedly photobomb Clinton during the debate





More From Business Insider


The Great Indoors Jack Gordon is the outdoorsy type, a Gen-Xer who prefers hanging out with bears in the wild and who thinks that people still fax. The digital division of Outdoor Limits magazine are social media whizzes who unironically love participation trophies.

The tug of war between the two factions is at the heart of the new CBS comedy, which premiered Thursday and which mocks both stuck-in-the-old-ways Jack and thin-skinned millennials like his new co-workers Clark (Superbads Christopher Mintz-Plasse), Emma (Christine Ko) and Mason (Shaun Brown). Whose side you take likely depends on in what decade you were born. And in a moment, well want to know what you thought of the new series. But first, a quick recap:

RELATEDThe Great Indoors Review: Joel McHale Schools Millennials in CBS Comedy

Career adventure journalist Jack returns to the magazine at the behest of editor in chief Roland (Bones Stephen Fry), whos got some bad news: Outdoor Limits is about to stop printing its paper edition and will be, from here on out, an online-only publication. That means no more funded expeditions into the wilderness for Jack, whom Roland expects to oversee the enthusiastic (yet young) digital content team.

This new position is met with mixed emotions on both sides; Jacks hesitance to create a social media footprint means Its like he doesnt even exist, Emma remarks, while Jack complains to his bar-owning friend Eddie (Chris Williams, Silicon Valley) that his new assignment is lame. But Eddie points out that Jack might learn something from the kids, becauseTheyre smarter than you think they are. They hustle and know how to make money.

RELATEDJoel McHale: The Great Indoors Similar to How I Felt About Community

Jacks boss in this new endeavor is Brooke (British actress Susannah Fielding), Rolands daughter, with whom Jack hooked up at a corporate retreat a while back. Things are rough for a while  Jack makes Clark cry, for instance  but the aging writer later brings a baby bear into the office and everyone makes nice as theyre all inspired to create new content that will engage readers. Oh, and Jack learns that it was Brookes idea to install him in the Chicago home office, which is interesting.

Story continues

Now we want to know what you thought about The Great Indoors. Grade the premiere via the poll below, then hit the comments to expand your thoughts.

Related stories

Odd Couple Sets Garry Marshall Tribute, Happy Days Stars and More to Take Part

Ratings: Great Indoors Has Good Start, Chicago Med Hits Season High

Madam Secretary Sneak Peek: Elizabeth Talks Football With NFL Today's JB
Warning: This recap for the Roar episode of Greys Anatomy contains spoilers.

In the high-stakes world of Greys Anatomy, when do you forgive a mistake and when do you cut bait?

This weeks episode sees the return of a character who left under a cloud of disgrace. Shes back, new and improved, thanks to Richard giving her a second chance  but can she rise above the bad impression she made the first time around?

And then theres Alex. He did an awful thing to DeLuca, and maybe he deserves the punishment hes getting. That doesnt make him any less great of a doctor. Hes a fighter; that characteristic doesnt always serve him well in his personal, but it serves his patients well.

Heres a rundown of this weeks episode, including our live tweets:

Oh, mother

Alex is getting ready for another day in court, this time to set his trial date. Meredith fusses over him and offers to accompany him. He needs to show he has people, and shes his person. Alex refuses, though, explaining that itll take five seconds to resolve.

Glad that Meredith gets to mother Alex since her three children seem to have disappeared #GreysAnatomy  Yahoo TV (@YahooTV) October 28, 2016

In the courthouse, while waiting in the security line, Alex strikes up a conversation with Veronica, a pregnant woman trying to contest a traffic ticket. He notices she has a bad rash on her hands and encourages her to go to his clinic.

At the hospital, DeLuca updates Jo on the trial, and when he asks if she and Alex talk, Jo shakes her head. They arent on speaking terms, right now. Maggie, meanwhile, is raving about a new resident on her service and guess what? The new resident turns out to be a very familiar face!

Helloooo Leah Murphy! Let's hope this means some sexy time for Arizona. It's been too long #GreysAnatomy  Yahoo TV (@YahooTV) October 28, 2016

Of course, Arizona is all flustered (she did hook up with Leah quite a few times) and runs to Richard to complain. He says Leah turned her career around and hes a big believer in second chances.

Story continues

Photos: ABC

Amelia preps for surgery, when Owen comes by to ask her if she wants to talk a bit more about the negative pregnancy test. He reminds her that they only just started trying, and Amelia (fake) assures him that shes totally OK with it.

Whenever Amelia says "I'm fine!"  she is NOT fine #GreysAnatomy  Yahoo TV (@YahooTV) October 28, 2016

Alex returns from court to find Veronica waiting at the clinic. She nervously reveals that shes single and got pregnant with a friend (one of those pacts). Alex examines her hands and seems worried. This is no ordinary rash  it could be a sign of cancer. He tells her that maybe she should call in the baby daddy.

Meanwhile, Bailey has an unwanted headache in the form of Catherine Avery, who demands to know why Alex hasnt been fired or at least why they havent replaced him. She accuses Bailey of being lenient. Bailey sputters a bit  she was once nicknamed The Nazi!  and Catherine threatens to replace Alex if she wont.

Baily vents to Richard about it, and inadvertently insults Richard by calling him lenient. They both commiserate about feeling secure in their decisions to give people second chances  in his case, Leah; in her case, Alex. Well, Bailey is about to regret that decision when Alex storms up and demands her assistance on Veronicas case. Bailey is pissed, but goes along with him to the clinic. But when she and Jo, whos on her service, delve into the case, they inform Veronica that she has a possibly cancerous tumor on her pancreas.

Veronicas choice

Earlier, a trauma had come in  a car crash involving a father and son. April and Jackson work on the dad, while Amelia patches up the kid, Robby. He seems to be doing just fine, and Amelia gets all maternal with him and lets him cry on her shoulder about being scared for his dad. Suddenly, he passes out  something is terribly wrong and she rushes him to surgery.

At lunch, Maggie once again raves about what a great doctor Leah is. Alex and Arizona mention that they both slept with her, while Jo and Steph inform Maggie that Leah was a terrible intern who tried to sue the hospital when she was fired.

Forgot Leah also slept with Alex ???????????? And Jo and Steph talking behind her back is the best #GreysAnatomy  Yahoo TV (@YahooTV) October 28, 2016

Bailey, Alex, and Jo look at Veronicas scans. Yes, the tumor is cancer. Bailey is going to recommend chemo, but because the baby wouldnt survive the treatment, shes also going to suggest that Veronica terminate the pregnancy. Alex argues against it, knowing how much Veronica wanted this baby. Bailey dismisses him. Im the surgeon, she reminds him.

When Bailey informs Veronica of the diagnosis, Veronica asks how long shed have even with the chemo. Its only a year, maybe! She wants to try to save the baby, but her bestie Jeremy says she wouldnt survive long enough to give birth.

This poor pregnant lady with cancer is breaking our hearts ???? thanks @shondarhimes  Yahoo TV (@YahooTV) October 28, 2016

Alex cant stand not speaking up and blurts out that they could perform a risky surgery on her. Bailey takes him aside and yells at him  she gave him a second chance and now hes ruining it! Alex refuses to show remorse, though; he cares about his patients and is always going to fight for them. Bailey shuts him down. When I tell you to know your place, know your damn place, she says, storming off.

In surgery, Maggie continues to be impressed by Leah. But Leah can sense that Maggie is double-checking her work; she knows that Maggies heard about her past. When Maggie asks why she came back to Grey Sloan, Leah reveals that reading an article written by Maggie inspired her to go into cardio. And she wanted to work with Maggie, so she took the chance to ask for a place back in the hospital.

In another OR, Amelia works frantically on Robby in surgery, but to no cause  he dies on the operating table.

Amelia losing this kid after getting all maternal with him is going to totally mess her up about getting pregnant, isn't it? #GreysAnatomy  Yahoo TV (@YahooTV) October 28, 2016

Bailey talks again with Veronica, urging her to terminate the pregnancy and get the chemo. But Veronica replies that she can envision this child growing up with Jeremy  playing, watching Star Wars, etc. She doesnt want to take that from him. If shes doing to die anyway, doesnt Jeremy at least deserve a chance to be a father? Her speech moves Bailey, who decides to go ahead with the risky surgery. Score one for Karev.

Parental discretion

After Veronica goes into surgery, Jeremy freaks. Can he really raise this child on his own? He doesnt have the first clue what to do  this was Veronicas idea. Alex gives him a pep talk about how theres only one trick to being a parent:

"Show up. Be there." Alex's parenting advice. Also just good life advice #GreysAnatomy  Yahoo TV (@YahooTV) October 28, 2016

After Amelia informs Robbys parents of his death, she completely breaks down and flees to the lounge to sob. Shes not alone there, though  Alex compassionately asks if she wants to talk about it. Amelia opens up to him about the child she had, born without a brain (Private Practice fans know this whole story). And when she took that pregnancy test, she panicked. Owen wants a baby so badly, but when the test turned out negative, she was relieved. But she doesnt feel she can share the story or her feelings with her husband, because he might hate her.

Damn, that Amelia scene made us run out of tissues. Amazing stuff from @caterinatweets  Yahoo TV (@YahooTV) October 28, 2016

Arizona finally greets Leah and they have a civil conversation. Who knows, maybe sparks will fly again between these two?

April and Jackson head home with Harriet, and after witnessing what happened with Robby, are adorably nervous about driving home with their baby.

Owen finds Amelia to go home and make dinner, but she brushes him off again, claiming she has a surgery. Girl, cant you just talk to him! Hes your husband!

Meanwhile, Bailey is packing up when Catherine finds her again. This time, Bailey stands up for her decision to give Alex a second chance. After all, when she was first learning, her own teachers forgave her.

Catherine shrugs off the Alex thing. Turns out she is concerned about a bigger problem. Alex, Leah, April, Meredith  a lot of their doctors have made mistakes. Why is that? Why was Leah fired from Grey Sloan, but thrived elsewhere? Theres a problem with how they teach in the hospital. But a confused Bailey points out that the residency program is under Richards control. You know, Catherines husband.

Is Catherine hinting that Richard is a bad teacher? Nuh uh!! #GreysAnatomy  Yahoo TV (@YahooTV) October 28, 2016

Back at the Grey boarding house, Alex comes into Merediths room. He wants to start a Sunday morning waffle tradition  him, Meredith, the kids (wherever they are), Maggie, and Amelia, too. He urges Meredith to be nicer to her sister. Im not always going to be around, Alex says, thinking of the possibility he could go to prison. Youre going to need them.

Greys Anatomy airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on ABC. Watch clips and full episodes of Greys for free on Yahoo View.
Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) - Manchester Cityas form under Pep Guardiola is beginning to show similarities to their final season under his predecessor Manuel Pellegrini, with a fast start followed by an autumn stumble.

Last season, City won their opening five matches under Pellegrini, then fell away so badly that they only just secured Englandas fourth and final Champions League qualification place.

Guardiola, whose team visit West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League on Saturday, would not be satisfied with a repeat performance.

Yet having won his first 10 competitive games with the club, he has gone six without victory since.

It is the longest winless run of his managerial career, an unwanted record secured on Wednesday as his team were beaten 1-0 at Manchester United in the fourth round of the EFL Cup.

City have had some hard luck stories to tell during that run, as they should certainly have beaten Everton two weeks ago, missing two penalties in a 1-1 draw, and only took a point against Southampton last weekend despite controlling the second half.

It is also worth remembering that, for all their difficulties in recent weeks, City remain top of the Premier League and well placed to progress from the Champions League group stages.

Guardiola certainly did not field his strongest side at Old Trafford in midweek, making nine changes and fielding 19-year-olds Pablo Maffeo and Aleix Garcia in his starting line-up.

Those changes were made in the knowledge that more significant tests lie in wait, with Barcelona in Manchester for a pivotal Champions League Group C game next Tuesday.

There will be serious reasons for concern, though, if Guardiolaas lengthening wait for a victory is not ended at The Hawthorns.

"Every weekend we need to win and we need to show personality to play," defender Maffeo said.

"We have six games in a row without a win. I think we are going to win and we go in a good way.

"Barcelona is another game. We showed on Wednesday we can compete in tough games, very hard games, and I think we can go there (to West Brom) and we are going to win."

Story continues

The manager received a piece of good news on Thursday, with captain Vincent Kompany able to train despite coming off at half-time against United on Wednesday, complaining of tiredness.

Kompany, who has suffered persistent injury problems over the last two years, was making his second start in four days at Old Trafford, and there were concerns that he may have broken down again.

Winger Kevin De Bruyne may also be fit to play some part after recovering from a calf problem.

West Brom have proved awkward opponents in recent weeks, almost rescuing a point at Liverpool last Saturday, but ultimately losing 2-1, which ended a run of three successive 1-1 draws.

Saido Berahino remains out of the team, having not started a match since September 10, and has been placed on a fitness programme after manager Tony Pulis revealed the forward was eight pounds overweight.

In Berahinoas absence, Hal Robson-Kanu has established himself as the back-up to first-choice striker Salomon Rondon, playing 25 minutes at Anfield after midfielder James McClean -a who is a doubt for this weekend -a was forced off with a gashed leg.

Robson-Kanu, deployed as a winger last Saturday, is hopeful of more chances in a team he feels can improve on their current league position of 13th.

"Weave got all the ingredients, itas just about applying ourselves game in, game out and picking up points," said the 27-year-old Wales international, who scored a sensational goal for his country in their Euro 2016 quarter-final win over Belgium.

aWe probably felt we could have nicked a draw at Liverpool, but it wasn't meant to be. We move forward from that."
Bissau (AFP) - A former Guinea-Bissau navy chief convicted in the US of drug trafficking has asked to resume his military career after returning home having purged his sentence, sources said Friday.

Jose Americo "Bubo" Na Tchuto was sentenced to four years in jail by a New York federal court this month but was released for time already served.

Na Tchuto, who returned home on October 22, asked President Jose Mario Vaz about resuming his military career during an audience with the West African nation's head of state, sources said.

"I have returned from a trip which took me away from the country for three years. It's normal that on my return that I come and see the armed forces' commander in chief," he told reporters.

"I discussed my return to the army with (Vaz). Now everything depends on the president. I am a veteran of this country's war of independence, I gave everything for this country," he added.

Asked about his case, Prime Minister Baciro Dja said Na Tchuto was "a son of the nation, a veteran of the war of independence," adding: "He is always welcome in his country".

"I don't know the circumstances of his release, so I can't make a declaration on his case," he added.

A new navy chief, Carlos Alfredo Mandungal, was appointed in July to succeed Sanha Kluce, who died in May.

Na Tchuto was captured off the West African coast by agents of the US Drug Enforcement Administration in April 2013. He pleaded guilty at his trial in May 2014 and was detained in the US until his sentencing on October 4.

His arrest, and the US indictment two weeks later of General Antonio Indjai, head of the Guinea-Bissau army, highlighted the rise in drug trafficking in West Africa, and the country's role as a transit point for the cocaine trade.

Guinea-Bissau has been plagued by military coups and instability since its independence from Portugal in 1974, and in recent years has become a cocaine-trafficking hub.

But last November the UN's special representative for West Africa Mohamed Ibn Chambas praised the country's progress in fighting drug trafficking since President Vaz's election in 2014.
From Road & Track

Everest Base Camp in Tibet is a long way from the summit of Mount Everest, but it still sits at an astonishing 17,000 feet above sea level. Not exactly supercar territory, but that didn't stop Singaporean Kah Chuan Hoong and his Nissan GT-R. On Monday, Hoong's GT-R became the first supercar to ever reach the Base Camp.

Hoong's been posting about his exploits on Facebook, and you really ought to click through his incredible pictures. He started in Singapore earlier this month and drove all the way through mainland China to get to Tibet. Hoong hasn't detailed exactly how he prepared his GT-R for the trek, though pictures show a significantly increased ride height and a smaller front bumper.

Throughout the journey, Hoong had to navigate through thick mud, narrow dirt roads, and mountain passes. He made it to Everest Base Camp on Monday, took some pictures for proof, and is now headed back to Singapore. Hoong will have to drive through China, Malaysia and Thailand, and he anticipates arriving home sometime in November.

Hoong's journey would be a hell of a road trip in any carlet alone a Nissan GT-R. It says a lot about the Nissan that it was able to make it there at all, and we applaud Hoong for doing something this spectacularly wild. We wish him luck on his return trip.

via Carscoops

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From Harper's BAZAAR

Last night, Gwyneth Paltrow turned heads on the red carpet of Elle's anniversary party when she showed up wearing this Gucci gown. The floor-length number packed all the punches for high-end drama: a sheer bodice with a massive rosette cut-out, a see-through skirt with velvet paneling, ruffled sleeves and a subtly beaded neckline.

For accessories, she tied in the dress' forest green, black and blood red color scheme with dangling beaded earrings and matching bracelets. With this look, the actress joins the ranks of Cate Blanchett and other A-listers who have recently styled a highly-coveted Alessandro Michele design on the carpet.

This, however, is not the first Gucci look for the actress-Paltrow's had a long history with the Italian brand, dating back to the beginning of her career. Last fall, she stepped out in his sequined Michele design with faux frills in Los Angeles.

In 2007, she wore this bowed baby-pink dress to a United Nations event in New York City.

And back in 1996, a young Gwyneth made an iconic red carpet statement in this bright red velvet suit during Tom Ford's tenure at the label.

Let's hope last night's Paltrow-Gucci moment is not the last.

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By Ben Blanchard BEIJING (Reuters) - Hailing "mighty Uncle Xi", Chinese people have taken to social media using an old imperial term to welcome President Xi Jinping's naming by the Communist Party as its "core", despite party efforts to limit his cult of personality. Following a four-day plenum, the party late on Thursday gave Xi the title "core", putting him on par with past strongmen like Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping, though it also signaled his power would not be absolute by underscoring the importance of collective leadership. While a cult of personality had begun to form around Xi, he has moved to stop practices including adoring songs on the internet and references to him in state media as "Uncle Xi", sources with ties to the leadership say. Indeed, the party's lengthy communique after the plenum said "boasting" about leaders should be banned and all publicity about them based on fact. That message has seemingly been lost on enthusiastic users of the Weibo social media service, where posts about Xi praising him as "mighty Uncle Xi" - echoing an expression used to greet an emperor - have appeared despite online censorship blocking searches for the expression. "With Uncle Xi as the party's core, our Chinese dream will definitely be realized," wrote one user, referring to a broad, vaguely defined policy of Xi's to build a strong and prosperous country. The Global Times tabloid, published by the party's official People's Daily, said Xi's role as the core "in fact has long been in the minds of the Chinese people". "All Chinese know clearly that the Xi's leadership has played a critical role in the changes in China in the past four years," it said in an editorial, pointing to the success of his corruption fight and in tackling issues like terrorism. "It was beyond anybody's belief that corruption could be tamed and officialdom would progress toward less corruption a few years ago. But it is happening in China." Dozens of senior officials have been jailed in the campaign against graft. Xi has warned the problem is so severe it could affect the party's grip on power. That has made him immensely popular with ordinary Chinese, even if people who spoke to Reuters on Friday in a traditional hutong alleyway not far from the Zhongnanhai leadership compound were not entirely sure what the term "core" meant. "He's done things the other leaders could not do, and that's really fight corruption," said deliveryman Wang Hui, 40, who said he had not seen any news about the plenum the night before. For housewife Cui Huiping, Xi is simply a charmer. "He's so handsome. Such manly charm. It's very attractive," she said, before hurrying off to do some laundry. (Editing by Robert Birsel)
President hands over integrated settlement to quake survivors (with photos)

President Bidya Devi Bhandari on Friday handed over the integrated model settlement constructed by the Dhurmus-Suntali Foundation at Giranchaur, Melcmchi municipality-8, of Sindhupalchok district to the earthquake survivors.
Chimpanzees and bonobos are two species separated by about 2 million years and one impassible river that divides their range. New research, however, reveals that these two great-ape species mixed their genes in the ancient past.

In at least two separate events, about 200,000 and 500,000 years ago, chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) interbred with bonobos (Pan paniscus), researchers report today (Oct. 27) in the journal Science.

Chimps and bonobos split off from a common ancestor between 1.5 million and 2 million years ago, and the two species share about 99.6 percent of their DNA, making them close relatives. (Shared DNA doesn't necessarily translate to the ability to interbreed; humans and chimpanzees also share about 99 percent of their DNA.)

The finding echoes the recent discoveries that ancient humans sometimes interbred with their close relatives Neanderthals and Denisovans, said study co-author Christina Hvilsom, who studies great-ape genetics and conservation at the Copenhagen Zoo in Denmark. The chimp-bonobo breeding happened much longer ago than human-Neanderthal liaisons, which started around 50,000 years ago.

A river runs through it

Hvilsom and her colleagues launched their study by sequencing whole genomes of 65 wild chimpanzees from across their range in equatorial Africa, as well as 10 bonobos. Bonobos live only in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, separated from their chimp cousins by the Congo River. The river is a daunting barrier to interbreeding today.

An infant chimpanzee rests with its mother in Kibale National Park, Uganda. Kevin Langergraber

"They are terrible swimmers  both bonobos and chimpanzees," Hvilsom told Live Science. "They drown."

The two species do sometimes interbreed in captivity, but they've never been known to breed together in the wild. Hvilsom and her colleagues weren't looking for evidence of amorous apes, though. Rather, they were interested in finding out if the genomes of chimpanzees and bonobos hold enough information to link a specific genetic profile to a geographical range. That way, they could trace apes that have been confiscated from black-market trade and return them to their correct home in the wild.

Story continues

"It's a fantastic tool in the conservation toolbox," Hvilsom said. [8 Human-Like Behaviors of Primates]

Genetic surprise

To the researchers' delight, they were able to distinguish the geographical origin of individual chimpanzees from their DNA; those animals from the central and eastern parts of their range showed particularly distinct DNA. Broader sampling will be needed to more precisely pinpoint chimpanzees from Nigeria, Cameroon and the western portion of the range, the researchers wrote in Science.

"The current trend is toward extinction" of chimps and bonobos because of illegal trafficking and deforestation, Hvilsom said. "It is important that each time we have a live chimpanzee confiscated, we can send it back to the place where it came from in nature."

In the course of this conservation research, though, surprising signs of bonobo genes in chimpanzee genomes kept turning up. At first, the team thought the results were an error, Hvilsom said. But as they continued their research with different genetic approaches], they realized they were observing something real.

An adult male chimpanzee in Kibale National Park, Uganda. Kevin Langergraber

The climate has varied over the 1.5 million to 2 million years since chimpanzees and bonobos split from their last common ancestor. The instances when the two species met up to mingle after that must have been times when parts of the Congo River were shallow and narrow, Hvilsom said. In an editorial accompanying the study, A. Rus Hoelzel, a molecular ecologist at Durham University in the U.K., explained some of the climate shifts.

"This secondary contact was occurring during a period when the tropical African environment was changing through the Pleistocene epoch," Hoelzel wrote. "For example, from ~900,000 to 600,000 years ago, the longer glacial periods were cool and humid, interspersed with relatively brief hot and dry interglacial periods. By ~200,000 years ago, the glacial periods had become cold and dry, and the interglacials hot and humid."

The chance finding contributes to the ongoing debate in biology about how to define speciation and the moment when a species splits, or "speciates," Hvilsom said.

"We really need to take into consideration that interbreeding is something that could happen between species during their period of speciation," she said.

Original article on Live Science.

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Its hard to imagine America without the Statue of Liberty, but the icon of freedom didnt make official public debut until this day in 1886.

On October 28, 1886, the Statue made its debut as about 1 million New Yorkers gathered for the ceremony. Sculptor Auguste Bartholdi released a French flag that covered the Statue of Libertys face. And then President Grover Cleveland dedicated the Statue of Liberty, as a gift from France and a sign of mutual friendship.

The Statue of Liberty had arrived in New York Harbor June 17, 1885 to great fanfare, but to the surprise of no one familiar with the Statue project, its full public debut was put on hold for another year after a logistical problem cropped up: the statues mammoth pedestal didnt exist.

The project started in 1865 and it took 21 years for the Statue of Liberty to be conceived, built in pieces, shipped to America, and hoisted on its pedestal on Bedloes Island.

Edouard de Laboulaye, a leading French intellectual and an expert on the U.S. Constitution, dreamed that the statue would inspire the French people to follow the example of the American people, including the late President Abraham Lincoln.

Laboulaye also believed the 13th Amendment, which abolishing slavery in the U.S. in 1865, was proof that justice and liberty for all was possible.

It took 10 years for Laboulaye to come up with plan for the Statue. He enlisted Bartholdi to design the monument and Bartholdi helped to raise 400,000 Francs in conjunction with the Franco-American Union.

Bartholdi selected Bedloes Island as the spot for the Statue, and the plan included American fundraisers paying the pedestal, while the French said for the Statue.

The arm holding the torch was completed in 1876 and shown at Philadelphias Centennial Exposition. It was then moved to Madison Square Park in New York City until 1882 to help with the fundraising.

The Statue was built in Paris and presented by the Franco American Union to the United States Ambassador, Levi Morton, on July 4, 1884. The Statue was then taken apart, and sent to the United States aboard the French Navy ship, Isere.

Story continues

The Statue arrived in New York Harbor on June 17, 1885, well before the pedestal was completed. The next year, once the pedestal was finished, immigrant workers re-assembled the Statue, and on October 28, 1886, the Statue made its debut.

The 151-foot-tall Statue cost $250,000, paid for by the French. The pedestal, at 154 feet, cost $270,000 paid for by American sources.

One thing missing from the Statute and pedestal was the famous plaque with a poem from Emma Lazarus. She wrote the sonnet as part of the fund raising effort , and it was added in 1903.

Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp! cries she

With silent lips. Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!
traders phoning talking

Dave Lutz, head of Exchange Traded Funds at JonesTrading, has a brief guide to what traders are talking about on Friday.

In brief:

Stock futures are higher ahead of the Q3 GDP report due at 8:30 a.m. ET. The heavy sell-off in government bonds on Thursday, which took US Treasury yields to their highest level since May, has subsided a bit.

Energy commodities are weaker across the board as investors await earnings results from Chevron and Exxon.

Here's Lutz:

Good Morning! Spoos are bouncing from the bottom of their 4month range as the heavy selling in Sovs subsides. The S&P is up 20bp, but eyes remain on that Russell, lagging the move despite being pummeled the last few sessions. Mixed Bag in Europe, with the DAX down 5bp as Staples get whacked led by food and beverage shares on Inbev, and Fins weaker as investors digest UBS and BNP #s. London is unchanged as almost every sector is showing a slight bid with the Pound dropping. Volumes are decent, with the Periphery trading heavy. Mostly red in Asia - Hang Seng lost 70bp - Shanghai lost 20bp with Tech Heavy Shenzhen off nearly 1% - Aussie fell 20bp, wrapping its worst week since June, while Nikkei bucked the mood, adding 60bp as the Yen fell thru $/Y105.

Ahead of US GDP, the US 10YY remains near yesterdays peaks as German Bunds ripped towards 22bp overnight before reversing, while JGBs hit -3bp overnight on CPI data. The DXY is basically flat, with Euro bid as Economic Sentiment jumps, but Sterling remains weaker and Yen holds near yesterdays lows. Iron ore is rallying as coal prices jump, helping Base metals add to the weeks gains, but Gold and Silver are both slightly lower. Energy complex weak across the board, as Natty drops almost 1% and Oil drifts under $50 as we await reports from Oil Majors this AM. Softs look mixed to marginally weaker early.

Relatively quiet day of Catalysts today  with GDP, Personal Consumption, and Core PCE at 8:30 -  U. of Mich. Sentiment at 10  then the Energy complex awaits the Baker Hughes Rig Count at 1. 3:30 brings the Commitment of Traders data. Focus away from earnings remains on those Sovereign Bonds - The Fed, Bank of Japan and Bank of England all deliver their latest policy decisions next week.

Story continues

NOW WATCH: FEMA is tracking Hurricane Matthew using the 'Waffle House Index'





More From Business Insider


The Hershey Company HSY is one of the largest chocolate manufacturers in North America marketing some of the worlds leading brands like Hersheys, Reeses and Kisses which enjoy widespread consumer acceptance.



Investors should note that earnings estimate movement for HSY has been stable for the last 60 days. However, HSY has a impressive earnings surprise history. The company has posted positive earnings surprise in all the past four quarters, with an average positive surprise of 5.26%.



Currently, HSY has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell), but that could change following Hersheys earnings report which was just released. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here .

HERSHEY CO/THE Price and EPS Surprise

HERSHEY CO/THE Price and EPS Surprise | HERSHEY CO/THE Quote

We have highlighted some of the key stats from this just-revealed announcement below:



Earnings: HSY beat on earnings. Our consensus earnings estimate called for EPS of $1.18/share, and the company reported EPS of $1.29 instead. Investors should note that these figures take out stock option expenses.



Revenues: HSY reported revenues of $2003.5 million. This missed our consensus estimate of $2,016 million.



Key Stats to Note: Organically, excluding the impact of currency and acquisitions, sales rose 2.4%.



Share Price Impact: The companys share price was up 1.97% in pre-market trading (at the time of writing).



Check back later for our full write up on this HSY earnings report later!



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Before Democrat Hillary Clinton overturns Citizens United, curtails secret, unaccountable money in politics and ends the stranglehold that the wealthy and special interests have on so much of our government, she has some business left to do.

Namely, obliterating Republican Donald Trump with her historically massive, big-dollar, lobbyist-loaded campaign cash machine  one she says shell gladly disassemble once she wins the White House, but not before.

And new campaign finance reports show Clinton is sticking to that plan as Election 2016 enters its final days.

In the last campaign finance filing before the election Clinton and her super PAC allies have reported raising $702 million through Oct. 19, compared to Trump and his supportive groups, who have raised $312 million.

It is a startling rebuke to the no-longer-so-true truism that Republicans are the primary beneficiary of big political money.

Clintons advantage will likely to hold to the end, as she and her super PAC allies reported $79 million in the bank as of Oct. 19, according to a Center for Public Integrity analysis of new campaign finance reports. Compare that to Trump and his super PAC supporters, who have about $32 million in reserve.

Clintons campaign committee alone has raised more than twice as much money as Trumps: $513 million versus $255 million.

Her $62.4 million cash on hand as of Oct. 19 is nearly four times Trumps $16 million.

This story is part of Buying of the President 2016. Tracking the candidates, political committees and nonprofits that are making this presidential election the most expensive in history. Click here to read more stories in this investigation.

Don't miss another Politics investigation: Sign up for the Center for Public Integrity's Watchdog email.

And, in a reverse of four years ago when Republicans more quickly embraced super PACs and their ability to raise and spend unlimited amounts of money, Clintons cadre of supportive super PACs have outraised comparable pro-Trump groups by a more than three-to-one margin: $189 million to $57 million.

Story continues

Trump-backing super PACs filed anemic reports showing few big contributions in October, a sign donors are shifting money elsewhere as Trump falters.

Clinton has also utilized joint fundraising committees to a far greater extent than Trump. These political groups collect six-figure checks from donors and then split the proceeds among the candidates own campaign and national and state parties.

Clintons financial might, buoyed by her campaigns embrace of the Supreme Courts 2010 decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, has helped her play offense and defense against a billionaire who once pledged to invest $600 million of his own money on a presidential run.

Trump appears poised to actually spend just a fraction of that sum.

Its a special sort of indignity for Trump. He predicated his presidential run on his business brilliance and cunning. We need a leader that wrote The Art of the Deal, he said during his June 2015 announcement speech, referencing his 1987 best-selling book. His wealth, Trump reasoned, would both propel his presidential ambitions and inoculate him from politics seedier side, populated by super PACs, professional lobbyists and partisan hangers-on.

"I'm self-funding my own campaign. It's my money, Trump declared earlier this year.

I dont need anybodys money, he said another time.

Related story: How Citizens United is helping Hillary Clinton win the White House

But as Trump vanquished his remaining Republican primary opponents and turned toward the general election, his tenor changed.

No longer did he disavow political groups that sought to raise huge amounts of money to support him. Nor did Trump maintain hed be the overwhelming source of his campaigns cash. Instead, his campaign launched aggressive fundraising efforts aimed at filling his coffers, and quickly.

When Trumps campaign called Republican ad guru Fred Davis last year and reiterated that Trump would spend up to half a billion dollars of his own money to fuel a presidential campaign, Davis listened  but never found it credible, he told the Center for Public Integrity.

Davis instincts proved correct: Trump has only invested about $56 million into his effort overall, and just $10 million since June 1, when Trump had all but secured the Republican nomination. (If Trump changes his mind and gives his campaign more than $1,000 between now and the election, he must, by law, report the cash to the Federal Election Commission within 48 hours of making the donation.)

Perhaps only the political gods could ever divine whether an additional $100 million  or $500 million  could have helped Trump assuage the damage done to his campaign this autumn, much self-inflicted.

First came Trumps fat-shaming of a former Miss Universe.

The revelation of a lewd 2005 recording from Access Hollywood, in which Trump boasted of assaulting women, rocked his campaign  and poll numbers  soon thereafter.

Then, Trumps talk of genital grabbing on the tape prompted numerous women to accuse him of something far more sobering than locker room talk  attacking, groping or otherwise inappropriately touching them. Trump has denied the accusations as pure fiction.

One might almost forget about Trumps other problems. New York state is hammering his nonprofit Trump Foundation for fraud. Former clients of Trump University are arguing in federal court that Trump cheated them of their money. And Trump, as the Center for Public Integrity and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists reported, once rented space in one of his Manhattan skyscrapers to an Iranian bank that U.S. authorities have linked to terrorism.

So while Trump for months benefited from the outsized  and cost-free  attention news outlets showered on his candidacy, it all has turned into horrific, negative Trump free press made worse by Trumps limited ability to push back through paid advertisements, Davis said.

He gave Clinton so much ammo, said Davis, whose presidential campaign client list includes George W. Bush, John McCain and, most recently, a pro-John Kasich super PAC.

Team Clinton has gleefully spun Trumps scandals into attack ad gold bricks, using its massive cash machine to pummel Trump with them at his every tawdry turn.

Particularly in swing states, where the presidential campaign will be won and lost, Team Clinton has overwhelmed Team Trump in TV advertising, thanks in large part to Clintons campaign cash advantage.

Related story: Donald Trump's big money bait-and-switch

Don't miss another Politics investigation: Sign up for the Center for Public Integrity's Watchdog email.

Since the primaries ended in June, Clinton and her supporters have aired about 292,000 broadcast and national cable TV ads, compared to about 87,000 aired by Trump and his allies, according to a Center for Public Integrity analysis of data provided by ad tracking firm Kantar Media/CMAG.

Most TV ads have targeted traditional battleground states such as Florida and Ohio. Clinton and her allies have dramatically outgunned Trump in all of them.

Since mid-June, Team Clinton has aired more than five times as many TV ads as Team Trump in both Iowa and Nevada, according to Kantar Media/CMAG. In North Carolina, that ratio is nearly four-to-one.

In Florida and Ohio, Team Clinton has aired more than three times as many TV ads as Team Trump since mid-June. And in Pennsylvania, likewise, its nearly three-to-one as well, according to Kantar Media/CMAG.

And during the third week of October alone, the most recent week for which data is available from Kantar Media/CMAG, Team Clinton is even investing modest advertising dollars into several historically Republican-leaning states, such as Arizona, Georgia and Texas, where Democrats have a small, but growing chance of winning.

Trumps comparatively small advertising budget means his campaign isnt amplifying Clintons own set of troubles  her State Department email server scandal, foreign influence peddling within the Clinton Foundation, Wikileaks revelations of potential pay-to-play politicking, the for-hire private speeches she gave to Wall Street banks  nearly as much as it could be.

Consider that at comparable times in their campaigns, Bush in 2000 ($22.3 million), Bush again in 2004 ($22.4 million), McCain in 2008 ($21.3 million), Mitt Romney in 2012 ($52.7 million), all had more money on hand than Trumps campaign committee alone ($16 million) has in its account.

And although super PACs may theoretically raise as much money as they want, including from corporations, unions, certain nonprofits and individuals, Trumps collection of supportive super PACs are underperforming compared to those that aid Clinton. Thats particularly true in recent weeks.

Related: Money raised in the 2016 White House race

Take the Robert Mercer-backed Make America Number 1 PAC. The Mercer family has ranked among Trumps staunchest supporters. Nonetheless, it reported raising nothing from Oct. 1 to Oct. 19  a departure for the group, which has reported raising seven-figure amounts every month since the Mercer family threw their support behind Trump at the end of June.

The super PAC spent about $2.1 million during early- and mid-October, mainly on ads and other media opposing Clinton. It had less than $2 million on hand for the final run-up to Election Day.

In contrast, Priorities USA Action, the flagship pro-Clinton super PAC, had more than seven times the available cash. Priorities USA Action has raised more than $175 million this election cycle, including $18 million between Oct. 1 and Oct. 19 alone.

Justin Barasky, a spokesman for Priorities USA Action, said the big numbers reflect steady support from major donors. Donors have understood whats at stake and are invested in seeing Hillary win and Trump lose, he said.

Hillary for America Campaign Manager Robby Mook likewise struck a confident pose.

We are able to close out the final days of this campaign by running an unprecedented coordinated campaign to mobilize voters who will help elect Democratic candidates up and down the ballot," Mook said in a statement Thursday night.

A key indication of how primed Clinton is to help her partisan brethren down-ballot are her joint fundraising groups, particularly the Hillary Victory Fund.

Theyve raised about $516 million during the election cycle, while Trumps comparable joint fundraising committees with national and state Republican party affiliates have only raised about $292 million.

Clinton and Trump each transferred about 30 percent of those hauls back into their own campaign war chests, while the rest was spent by their respective parties on efforts that aided them and other candidates on their tickets.

Prior to the U.S. Supreme Courts 2014 decision in McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission, individual donors were prohibited from donating more than about $123,000 to joint fundraising committees. However, because of the McCutcheon ruling, that aggregate limit on individuals is gone.

Clintons joint fundraising group now collects money for 40 different beneficiaries and routinely brings in checks of more than $400,000. Meanwhile, Trumps raises money for about two-dozen groups.

Shaun McCutcheon, a Republican-backing Alabama businessman who successfully petitioned the Supreme Court in the McCutcheon case, says Trump and the Republicans only have themselves to blame for their financial lot.

Give it to the Democrats  theyve done a great job fundraising, McCutcheon said. And theyve taken advantage of the McCutcheon and Citizens United decisions. Trump said early on he was going to pay his own way, so now that hes not doing it, it hurts.

Chris Zubak-Skees contributed to this report.

This story was co-published with TIME.

This story is part of Buying of the President 2016. Tracking the candidates, political committees and nonprofits that are making this presidential election the most expensive in history. Click here to read more stories in this investigation.

Related stories

Copyright 2016 The Center for Public Integrity. This story was published by The Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit, nonpartisan investigative news organization in Washington, D.C.
Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton has placed Vice President Joe Biden at the top of the short list for the position of secretary of state should she win the presidency, according to Politico.

This is the first major Cabinet candidate to go public in the Clinton campaign after the former secretary of state remained firm on her stance that shell focus solely on winning the election.

Politico reports that neither Clinton nor her aides have informed Biden.

Hed be great, and they are spending a lot of time figuring out the best way to try to persuade him to do it if she wins, a source told Politico.

In October 2015, the vice president made a joke about being demoted to secretary of state or something after speaking to a group of labor leaders at the White House, according to The Washington Post.

We need your muscle, we need to move, Biden told the group. Then, he talked about leaving the podium so the labor activists could get to see the next speaker: President Barack Obama.

RELATED VIDEO: Hillary Clinton Through the Decades

If I dont move, Ill be demoted to secretary of state or something, he said, as a slow wave of laughter rose from the surprised crowd. Thats a joke! Thats a joke. Thats a joke.

Biden has spent a little over 40 years in politics, beginning with six terms in the Senate and then two terms as the presidents adviser, dealing with difficult international issues in Iraq and the Ukraine.

In August, the 73-year-old traveled to Latvia to assure NATO allies of the United States commitment to the group, despite Donald Trumps aggressive stance against the pact.

PEOPLE reached out to the Clinton campaign and Bidens staff but they could not be reached for comment.




Hillary Clinton speaks with senior aide Huma Abedin aboard her campaign plane. (Photo: Andrew Harnik/AP)

Hillary Clinton is heading to Phoenix on Wednesday to campaign in the traditionally red state less than a week before Election Day.

With more people voting in this election than any in history, Clinton will urge Arizona voters to take advantage of in-person early voting, the campaign announced Friday. Her campaign manager, Robby Mook, told reporters Friday that Arizona is now a battleground state and that early voting data suggests Latino voters are turning out in force for Clinton there. The race in Arizona today is tied, Mook said. The state has 11 electoral votes, the same as Nevada.

Clinton is up a point and a half on average in public polls in the state, which has elected a Republican for president in nine out of the past 10 elections. Polling also suggests Clinton has a shot in the traditionally Republican states of Texas and Utah, though she has not scheduled appearances there.

Donald Trump has a rally in Phoenix on Saturday.

Mook stressed that the campaign was not visiting Arizona because they are confident they will win other swing states and are expanding the map. Its not that these other races are put away, its just that the number of competitive races is increasing, he said.

Latinos are predicted to make up more than 20 percent of voters in Arizona this year, and the Clinton campaign has been reaching out to them and other potential Democrats aggressively, sending their high-profile surrogates Michelle Obama, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Chelsea Clinton to the state in recent weeks.

In speeches, Clinton has also highlighted the story of U.S. Army Pvt. Damian Lopez Rodriguez  an undocumented immigrant from Arizona who died serving in Iraq  to argue against Trumps immigration policies.
Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fcard%2fimage%2f263826%2f48cccb3d0a8c496187572b44f8545543

Countries around the world came together in the name of conservation this week.

Dozens of nations passed an agreement that sets aside more than 1.5 million square kilometres (932,000 square miles) of the Ross Sea in Antarctica as the world's largest marine protected area (MPA) after five years of drawn-out negotiations. The protected area is equal in size to an area larger than the UK, France, Germany and Italy combined.

SEE ALSO: The frozen beauty of Antarctica

Delegates from 24 nations and the European Union voted unanimously in favor of the MPA agreement at the annual meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) in Hobart, Australia this week.

Image: pew charitable trusts

The agreement comes into effect starting in December 2017, placing limits or prohibiting certain human activities in the area. Seventy-two percent of it will be a "no-take zone" which bans all fishing, while the remainder will allow some harvesting of fish and krill for scientific research, according to the CCAMLR.

Such a measure aims to protect species and habitat, which can help to rebuild fish stocks and sustain biological diversity.

"A number of details regarding the MPA are yet to be finalised but the establishment of the protected zone is in no doubt, and we are incredibly proud to have reached this point," CCAMLR Executive Secretary, Andrew Wright, said in a statement.

#CCAMLR to create world's largest Marine Protected Area (#MPA) in Antarctica's Ross Sea. Agreed today in Hobart. pic.twitter.com/7UcHldOaVk  CCAMLR Secretariat (@CCAMLR1) October 28, 2016

The area is home to 50 percent of the world's ecotype-C killer whales (a.k.a. Ross Sea orca), 40 percent of Adelie penguins and 25 percent emperor penguins, according to the UN Environment Programme.

Story continues

Ross Sea is the latest in a string of MPAs to be created in an increased effort to protect the world's oceans.

In 2009, the CCAMLR established the world's first high-seas MPA in the South Orkney Islands southern shelf, located in the south Atlantic.

In August, U.S. President Barack Obama expanded the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument off the coast of Hawaii. While the Hawaii marine national monument was the largest MPA at the time, it has now been eclipsed by the Ross Sea decision.
Even if offering cheaper drinks for women on some nights of the week is technically discriminatory, it doesnt mean a man can cash out his hurt feelings on the club.

Thats what one Hong Kong man found out Thursday, when a local court ruled against his claim  equivalent to about $6,450 in local currency  for compensation for injury to feelings because he was charged more than women were for entering the citys Legends club on a ladies night.

The judge ruled that awarding the plaintiff such a windfall would be absurd, according to the South China Morning Post, saying that he was not a true victim of discrimination.

The lawsuit alleged that Yiu Shui-kwong was discriminated against when the club had charged him about $40 for entry, as opposed to the $15 paid by women.

The court ruled in favor of Yiu on the discrimination case because the club did not bother to respond, the Post reports.

But on the matter of compensation, the judge found that Yiu obtained what he had bargained for in terms of the enjoyment, considering that he had spent four hours drinking, singing karaoke and playing darts when he visited Legends in 2014.

Not only that, the judge ordered Yiu to pick up legal costs  and the Chinese-language Apple Daily reports that he could be facing the bounce from most Hong Kong bars, which plan on resuming full-fledged ladies nights following the ruling.
Maury Povich, youre off the hook.

Thursdays installment of How to Get Away With Murder gave us a pretty strong clue about the identity of who got Laurel pregnant  thanks to a steamy, episode-ending hookup with Wes. (Bye, Meggie!)

RELATEDGreys Anatomys Caterina Scorsone on Owens Dangerous Love and Amelias Changing Relationship With Alex

Season 3, Episode 6 also ended with Asher alive and well (and drunkenly boogying down), which leaves Connor, Nate, Wes, Frank and the consistently dreadful Mr. Drake as the remaining candidates in the #WhosUnderTheSheet sweepstakes.

The other big whoppers from the hour?

* Wallace Mahoneys son Charles (AKA the Richie Rich whom Annalise defended in Season 2 flashbacks for allegedly killing his fiance) got arrested for his fathers death  and we learned it was Frank who planted the murder weapon in the dudes trunk. (All together now, Delayed karmas gonna get ya)

* As Wes contemplated submitting to questioning by visiting NYPD officers whod been tipped off that he might have been more than an innocent bystander during the Mahoney murder, Connor dropped by and gave him a stern warning to follow Annalises plan and keep his mouth shut. You mention my name, Connor hissed, and I swear to God, I will kill you. Knowing this pair of Middleton law-school students are still potential victims in the shows flash-forward death sequence, Im wondering if this scene shouldve been Rated F for foreshadowing.

RELATED2017 Renewal Scorecard: Whats Coming Back? Whats Getting Cancelled? Whats on the Bubble?

* Annalise came down hard  and crude  on Bonnie for colluding with the enemy. Did Frank finally spread your legs?! she raged. Did you miss Sam so much you threw yourself at the next most disgusting man in the house? Bad kitty Bonnie, though, returned from Coalport with a dead mouse, of sorts: Franks confession, taped without his consent, to being the triggerman who took out Mahoney. (Also, Bonnie dropped a perfectly placed I love you into her mentors lap  though her delivery wasnt quite convincing enough to convince me she wouldnt have abandoned La Keating and run off with Frank to a fantasy future in Oregon  had he not dropped her like a kindergartener with a Brussels sprout on his fork.)

Story continues

* Asher danced to Cotton Eye Joe, but Michaela inexplicably cut the performance short  making me question her sanity, her humanity and the entire HTGAWM teams sense of loyalty to its fandom.

* And Annalise, her license reinstated under strict oversight by the Pennsylvania Bar Association, found herself getting pummeled like Trump in a progressive northeastern state by ADA Renee Atwood (aka that Capital B whos sleeping with Nate)  but managed to pull off a win (of sorts) for her case-of-the-week client.

Below, Aja Naomi King breaks down Michaelas tear-jerking interaction with Asher, previews what to expect from upcoming scenes with her biomom Trishelle (Brett Butler) and teases the heartbreak of the shows approaching reveal of which central character is taking that grim walk off the plank of life.

TVLINE | Walk me through the big Michaela-Asher scene tonight: Her look of shock when he tells her shes not his woman, shes his family. And then finally, the way she breaks and whispers, I like you, too. I found myself actually getting teary-eyed  and I cant say I wouldve predicted that kind of reaction from a couple who, when they got together, were a little comical and ridiculous and crazy.

I loved that scene and I loved that we were able to get to that place, having a scene where Michaela and Asher could have that conversation openly and reveal whats going on with both of them. The way I see it, Michaela had been really caring about him and liking him, but she has this fear of opening herself up again. Weve watched her with some pretty big misses when its come to other guys on this show. [Laughs] Shes been wounded in the past, and its a scary thing to be really honest with someone about how you feel toward them. Hearing what you mean to them, too. For Michaela to hear Asher say that [about being his family] meant so much  because for her, family is this whole other thing. Shes hinted before  the people she grew up around, the word family isnt a right way to describe them. Its not how she feels about them. For Asher to say that to her, and what that could potentially be for the two of them to truly be family together, is huge.

Michaela constantly has to put on this facade and pretend to be something else, especially now with all this chaos happening in their lives. And the idea of being able to be open with someone and not have to hide anything is so meaningful and so terrifying. And because its so scary, it makes it harder to admit it. Shes really risking something opening her heart up to him in this way. You see Asher in these silly ridiculous moments and think, Ugh, why would Michaela ever like him? But then he has these touching, endearing, honest moments where you see where hes coming from and what his needs are and how his life has been turned upside down. And when you look at all the craziness in their lives, it starts to make perfect sense that the two of them would be together. I loved that scene. We got to really take our time and expose ourselves to each other in a really beautiful way.

TVLINE | Sometimes, Michaelas exterior is so convincing you forget how she was hurt by her last three love interests, or that weve gotten hints of her difficult upbringing. Last weeks episode when she dismissed her adoptive family as trash, it was such a harsh word. How much more of that family dynamic will we see in the weeks to come?

We are definitely going to see more of Michaelas mom, Trishelle, and thats really exciting. Its going to give us a better understanding of what Michaela was talking about [with that comment] and why she admires Annalise so much. Thank about the way the episode ended with Michaela saying to her mom, Dont steal anything. What?! That tells us a lot about what this relationship has been for her. To say that to anyone, but especially to your mother, its like What is happening here? [Laughs] Well get to see inside that a little more and how that informs the obvious reasons Michaela loves the idea of Annalise.

TVLINE | I dont know why, but I was surprised her adoptive mom was white.

I know! That was something [creator] Pete [Nowalk] and I had talked about from the very beginning  that Michaela would be adopted, and her parents would be a different race. That excited me, because then it hints about cultural differences that may have happened growing up, and that makes the story so much richer. Plus, casting Brett Butler? Awesome.

TVLINE | The sex scene at the end of the hour between Michaela and Asher  you actually see her defenses coming down. He tells her how it turns him on when she says I like you. And then shes almost giddy, repeating those words back to him. Like the Bonnie-Frank sex scene last week, this one almost felt like we should turn away, that this was too intimate a moment to be watching.

[Laughs] Because in real life I feel so close to Matt, these scenes become very easy. Its super simple to say, Im gonna start over here. Then Ill roll this way. Oh, yeah, you can touch me there. We have a different director every episode, so I like to be a part of arranging what the choreography is going to be, of what that scene is and what it should look like, and how to start it, navigate it, where the camera should be. Because were not wearing a lot of clothes and were rolling around. [Laughs] Youve got to make sure everyone feels comfortable. That way I can just live in that kind of giddiness and what that moment is for Michaela where the rest of the world slips away and its just them.

TVLINE | Michaelas friends called out her hillbilly side last week  which is really in contrast with this tightly wound, hard-charging law student she likes to present to the world. Will we see more of that side of her character this season?

We will get to see more of that side this season, but a seed thats been planted throughout each season of the show is that Michaela really does have a temper, she runs a little hot and can be just a touch violent. [Laughs] Its something I really like about her  if someones going to make an assumption about her, shes going to lose it and jump down your throat. Shes innately a fighter. Its allowed her to survive and get to where she is. She really doesnt take any stuff. But at the same time she can be graceful and polished and poised. It adds a nice dimension to her character.

TVLINE | Were working up to a reveal of whos under the sheet? How shocking, sad, over the top is that moment going to be? I know you cant tell us who dies, but what can you tease about that moment?

We are getting very close now. All I can tell you is that in real life, Im still grappling with it  and Ive known for a little bit of time now. It genuinely breaks my heart to think about it every time, because its going to be horrible. Its horrible. Its horrible. And I feel bad for everyone else whos going to find out when it happens. So, treasure these episodes before that knowledge becomes clear. [Laughs]

What did you think of this weeks HTGAWM? Did the Michaela-Asher scene leave you choked up? And #WhosUnderTheSheet? Sound off in the comments?

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Rara becoming popular destination

Nepal's biggest lake, Rara, has become a popular destination for both internal and external tourists with access to road reaching there.
Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee tweeted a racy joke Friday after it was announced the FBI was reviewing new emails that appear pertinent to the probe into Hillary Clintons former use of a private email server.

The emails were said to be tied to a federal investigation into Anthony Weiner, the estranged husband of top Clinton aide Huma Abedin.

Huckabee found that aspect of the situation ripe for a joke:

Who would have thought a Weiner would be HRCs undoing?  Gov. Mike Huckabee (@GovMikeHuckabee) October 28, 2016

Huckabee had said on Twitter earlier that "humorless libs" are often offended by his tweets.

Authorities opened an investigation into Weiner in late September after a report alleged he had engaged in a monthlong sexting relationship with a 15-year-old girl.

NOW WATCH: The FBI is back on the Clinton email scandal because of Anthony Weiner





More From Business Insider


The extensive damage to an amusement park roller coaster in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy is seen in Seaside Heights, New Jersey, November 13, 2012. REUTERS/Tom Mihalek

Hurricane Sandy was a freak storm.

The massive system was the costliest storm to strike the US since Katrina.

When it made landfall four years ago on October 29, 2012, it impacted a region from Florida to Ontario, Canada, flooded the New York subway system and wreaked havoc on coastal New Jersey. The total damage to New York City was worth $19 billion and to New Jersey $29 billion.

Now, the big question is: How likely is it that a Sandy-level storm will happen again in our lifetimes?

In the past, studies have pegged Sandy as anywhere from a 100-year storm to a 1,500 year storm. That means that in any given year there's a 1/100 to 1/1,500 chance of a storm causing Sandy-level flooding.

A new paper accepted for publication in the Journal of Geophysical Research October 21 offers a more precise estimate: Sandy was a 260-year storm, based on current ocean conditions. That includes tropical cyclones like Sandy as well as winter storms like northeasters, lead author Philip Orton, who studies ocean physics at the Stevens Institute of Technology, told Business Insider.

Calling Sandy a 260-year event doesn't mean it'll take 260 years to see another storm like it.

What that 260-year-storm label means is that in any given year there is a 1/260 chance of a Sandy-like storm flood happening. That's about the same chance that the 2016 presidential election will end in a tie, according to the website Fivethirtyeight.

To get this result, Orton fed data on past storms into a flood model of the area from Maryland to Cape Cod, then simulated thousands of storms to see what kind of flooding they would cause.

Severe hurricanes in the New York City area are pretty rare, so to make sure he had enough data he dug into the histories of storms dating back to 1700. In the process, he showed that no storm has caused as much flooding as Sandy in recorded history.

Story continues

Two Category 3 hurricanes, in 1788 and 1821, packed more of a wind punch than Sandy. But they were smaller and faster moving, so they caused less flooding. Sandy stands out because it remained in the area for about three days, pushing waving after unrelenting wave onto land to cause historic floods.

Orton set the model to generate results for conditions as they exist today, not accounting for future sea level changes due to climate change. The goal, he said, was to get a baseline for major flood risks in the area in the next decade

Future studies can run the same model with adjusted sea levels to see how bad things might get in our changing world.

His results, he said, show that people should take the threat of major storms like Sandy seriously, and work to protect against them in a changing world. But they also show that people shouldn't panic, and that smaller, more common floods are the more immediate concern.

NOW WATCH: Watch time-lapse video of a massive storm flooding a DC Metro station





More From Business Insider


After years as apartment-dwellers, my family moved into our first house this summer. Its a cozy 60s-era Cape in the suburbs, nothing like the gloomy Gothic mansions I used to spend time in as a kid courtesy of chilling childhood books and movies like The House With a Clock in Its Walls or The Watcher in the Woods. Since moving in though, Ive felt a distinct presence in our new home. Not in the paranormal sense; I think what Im feeling is the weight of the houses history and the lingering traces of past residents.

I shared this thought with Osgood Perkins, director of the new horror film, I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House, which premieres on Netflix on Oct. 28 after its successful debut at the Toronto International Film Festival in September. Good timing, then, for you to watch my picture, he says, with a laugh. Hes right, of course. Even if I wasnt coming off a major life milestone, I would have been delighted by the entrancing style and disciplined storytelling of Perkinss chilling ghost story about a caretaker named Lily (Ruth Wilson), who moves into an old farmhouse inhabited by the reclusive author Iris Blum (Paula Prentiss) and the centuries-dead phantom Polly (Lucy Boynton), whose short life provided the narrative for Iriss most famous novel The Lady in the Walls.

Watch the trailer:

As unnerving as the film is  and it is deeply, beautifully unnerving  what resonates most with me after the events of this past summer is the directors evocation of the unspoken lives our homes lead before and after we inhabit them. As Lily spends more time in the Blum homestead, she starts to notice signs of pretty Pollys presence: the stain on the wall that grows larger and darker each day and the moldy box of documents in the closet that outline the tragic, bloody story she whispered in Iriss ear. The spaces we live in absorb us, Perkins says. Nothing ever really leaves, because where would it go?

Perkins had a specific space in mind when he went to create the house that becomes Lilys tomb. (Thats not a spoiler: Lily informs us of her demise in the films opening minutes.) The house in the movie is based on a 1790s-era home in Cape Cod that his father bought in the 1960s and that the family still owns. I should know more about its history, but Im an incredibly lazy person when it comes to things like that, he says. It may just be that Im too overwhelmed by the enormity of my parents own histories and lineages.

Story continues

And Perkins, aged 42, does live in the shadow of two impressive legacies. The eldest son of actress/photographer Berinthia Berenson and horror icon Anthony Perkins, he lost his father to AIDS in 1992 and his mother in the 9/11 attacks nine years later. After starting his film career as an actor, he transitioned into directing with the horror film The Blackcoats Daughter, which premiered to strong reviews at Toronto in 2015. (The studio A24 picked up the distribution rights and plans to release the film sometime next year.)

Perkins says that his chosen genre isnt the direct result of his fathers career-defining performance as Psychos Norman Bates, the poster child for every cinematic serial killer to emerge after Alfred Hitchcocks towering classic. And yet, the spirit of the elder Perkins is very much present in his sons film. Its impossible to look at this shot of Wilson gazing into the camera lens, for example, and not see Norman staring directly at the audience in Psychos legendary final scene.

In another sequence, Lily vainly tries to fix the reception on Iriss ancient television, but can only catch fragments of an old movie that happens to be Friendly Persuasion, William Wylers 1956 Civil War drama that earned Anthony Perkins his first and only Oscar nomination. In fact, the central arc of the movie  Lilys quest to see Polly  grew out of the directors desire to understand his distant father. I didnt have a relationship with him where we sat around the table talking about movies, says Perkins, who was 18 when his father died. Its one of those cases where you become fascinated with someone you knew after theyre gone. This movie is about looking for someone you cant quite see, and I made it partly to feel closer to my father, to understand him better. (The movie is dedicated to him: An opening title card reads, For A.P. who gave me an old house.)

I Am the Pretty Thing demonstrates that Perkins stylistic influences extend well beyond Hitchcock. Throughout the film, Perkins makes excellent use of Stanley Kubrick-esque slow zooms into darkened doorways, inviting audiences to peer into the gloom. And one imagines that the directors careful eye for shot composition can be credited to his mothers career as a photographer. The movie is filled with individual images that could be framed and hung on a wall.

Take this shot from early on in the film, during Lilys first night in Blums house. Notice how everything in the frame is perfectly balanced, save for one off element  the chair hanging upside down in the background. My production designer had done enough research to know that old Quaker houses like this had these rows of knobs for hanging chairs, says Perkins. I love empty chairs anyway  both of my movies have a lot of empty chairs in them  so it was great to be able to hang one just upside down and have it be unsettling while also, in a weird way, historically accurate.

And then theres this shot from later in the movie, my pick for I Am the Pretty Things most haunting moment and one that Perkins describes as a personal favorite as well. While a visitor knocks repeatedly on the door, Lily stands on the staircase of the eerily silent house, slightly out of focus and with only her legs are visible in the frame. In this moment, you feel like youre the visitor at the door and, having gotten fed up with the lack of an answer, decide to peer in through one of the glass windows only to see  or think you see  a figure standing there, waiting. Its an obliquely frightening image that would make master illustrator of the macabre, Edward Gorey, proud. That came about because there was literally no upstairs to the set! says Perkins. We built the two levels on different sets, and they werent connected by a staircase, so Ruth couldnt go any further up those stairs! I dont mean to diminish the job, but theres so much that was dumb second movie luck.

The scripts carefully layered approach to storytelling, on the other hand, cant be chalked up to dumb luck. Perkins reveals that I Am the Pretty Thing grew out of a different story he had outlined, a tale of a woman who wakes up from a car accident in unfamiliar surroundings and pieces her fragmented memory together through voiceover. He eventually abandoned that premise, but retained the notion of a character observing her physical body from a distance. That forms the outer layer of I Am the Pretty Things narrative, with a ghostly Lily watching and commenting upon events in richly penned narration  evocatively delivered by Wilson  that has echoes of writers like Shirley Jackson and Mary Shelley. The second layer of the story is those events as Lily experiences them in the moment and with a minimum of spoken dialogue.

At a certain point, Iriss novel, The Lady in the Walls, joins the chorus, revealing bits of Pollys story save for the one thing Iris declined to describe on the page: the girls untimely demise. But Perkins does show the audience that moment in an artfully staged sequence that lies at the movies center. While Pollys end is violent, were never told the exact reason for her death, and frankly, the explanation isnt missed. Thats the way it so often goes with the distant past; specific details can vanish or change depending on the teller of the tale. What remains behind is the event itself, and perhaps, some of the evidence.

Perkins says he drew his inspiration for Pollys fate from the song Pretty Polly, one of the many so-called murder ballads that traveled from Europe to become an important part of early American folk music. That song is so uncompromising in its sparseness: Basically, a guy takes Polly out to the woods and says, Hey look, theres a grave I dug for you, and now youre getting in it, Perkins says. Theres no explanation. And thats the scariest part of living, isnt it? S happens and theres no reason for it. Its just, Theres your grave, now youre getting in it.

The closing moments of I Am the Pretty Thing that Lives in the House reveals yet another layer to Lily and Pollys now-shared experience as ghostly ladies who walk between the walls of Iriss house, and its one that speaks directly to the history you inherit when you make another persons house your own home. Ive seen the film twice now and the final scene never fails to stir my imagination about the house we now inhabit. In fact, Im sitting in my home as I type these final sentences. Its approaching midnight, my family is fast asleep, and Im once again sensing the presence of the past and thinking about something Lily says towards the end of the film: I have heard myself say that a house with a death in it can never again be bought or sold by the living  it can only be borrowed from its ghosts.
Tammy Duckworth and Mark Krik

Republican Sen. Mark Kirk sniped at his Democratic challenger Tammy Duckworth by questioning her family's heritage.

Duckworth was sharing a story about her family's military service record during an Illinois debate Thursday night.

"My family has served this nation in uniform going back to the Revolution. I am a daughter of the American Revolution," Duckworth said. "Ive bled for this nation. But I still want to be there in the Senate when the drums of war sound. Because people are quick to sound the drums of war, and I want to be there to say this is what it costs, this is what youre asking us to do."

"And if that's the case, I'll go. It's the families like mine that bleed first," Duckworth continued. "But let's make sure that the American people understand what we are engaging in and let's hold our allies accountable because we can't do it all."

Kirk rebutted, "Id forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington.

Awkward silence followed his rebuttal  Duckworth didn't respond to Kirk  and the moderator moved onto the next question.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee quickly bashed Kirk for his comments, saying his attack on Duckworth's family was "offensive, wrong and racist."

Duckworth's mother is Thai, but her family on her father's side has roots in America.

Watch the exchange blow:

NOW WATCH: Golf legend Greg Norman reveals the truth behind President Bill Clinton's late-night 1997 injury





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Illinois Sen. Mark Kirk has apologized for mocking his rival Rep. Tammy Duckworths Asian heritage during a debate.

Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her familys service, GOP Sen. Kirk tweeted Friday.

Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service. #ilsen  Mark Kirk (@MarkKirk) October 28, 2016

During Thursday nights debate, Duckworth, who was born in Thailand and is a veteran who lost both of her legs in the Iraq War, touted her familys long history of U.S. military service. I had forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington, Kirk replied. His comment sparked immediate backlash, including from Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, who tweeted at him, Its really not that hard to grasp.

Watch Duckworth tell TIME about her history of military service here.




Illinois Sen. Mark Kirk apologized early Friday afternoon after widespread censure for his racially charged quip against Democratic challenger Rep. Tammy Duckworth.

During Thursday nights debate, Kirk invoked her Thai-Chinese heritage to question her familys extensive military service. His campaign initially released a statement, in which he did not apologize, suggesting that her familys service is a distraction from the real issues. But, after pervasive condemnation, he acquiesced and issued an apology on Twitter.

Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service. #ilsen  Mark Kirk (@MarkKirk) October 28, 2016

At the debate, Duckworth, who was born in Thailand to a mother of Chinese descent and a white father from the United States, proudly cited the extensive record of military service on her fathers side of the family, stretching back to the dawn of the country.

Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran and former assistant secretary of Veterans Affairs, argued that its important that senators understand the burden carried by military families when debating whether to send the nations men and women in uniform into harms way.

My family has served this nation in uniform going back to the Revolution. Im a daughter of the American Revolution. Ive bled for this nation, she said at the University of Illinois in Springfield. But I still want to be there in the Senate when the drums of war sound, because people are quick to sound the drums of war, and I want to be there to say, This is what it costs; this is what youre asking us to do. And if thats the case, Ill go. Families like mine are the ones that bleed first.

When it was Kirks turn to respond, the Republican uttered a single sentence that was intended to be a zinger but merely resulted in awkward silence: I had forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington.

Story continues

Duckworth later responded to the wisecrack on Twitter with a picture of her in uniform standing with her mother and father, whose military decorations are clearly on display over his left breast pocket.

My mom is an immigrant and my dad and his family have served this nation in uniform since the Revolution #ILSEN pic.twitter.com/ehEBHswFMs  Tammy Duckworth (@TammyforIL) October 28, 2016

Yahoo News reached out to Kirks campaigns manager and spokesman to elaborate on what the senator meant by his remark and to address the subsequent controversy that has grown around it. The campaign manager provided the following statement via email:

Senator Kirk has consistently called Rep. Duckworth a war hero and honors her familys service to this country. But thats not what this debate was about. Rep. Duckworth lied about her legal troubles, was unable to defend her failures at the VA and then falsely attacked Senator Kirk over his record on supporting gay rights.

Duckworth served as a Black Hawk helicopter pilot for the Illinois Army National Guard in the Iraq War. She was awarded a Purple Heart in 2004 after an RPG hit her helicopter. She lost both her legs and partial use of her right arm in the attack. Afterward, Duckworth became an advocate for wounded veterans.

Kirks one-liner about Duckworths family and heritage was widely rebuked.

Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk, right, and Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth, left, face off in their first televised debate in whats considered a crucial race that could determine which party controls the Senate, Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016, at the University of Illinois in Springfield, Ill. (Photo: Seth Perlman/AP)

VoteVets, a nonpartisan political action committee dedicated to giving veterans a voice, said Kirk was already losing to Duckworth and that his racist debate remarks pushed his campaign over the cliff.

Jon Soltz, an Iraq War veteran and chair of VoteVets, released a statement saying the organization would call on Kirk to drop out but added it would rather see him get beaten handily at the polls.

There is no room for racism in the military, and no room for racism in America. Mark Kirk can say whatever he wants, Soltz said, but last night he made clear that he will run his campaign, and the office of senator, the same way Donald Trump has run his campaign  based on racial and ethnic slurs, insults and tarring nonwhites as not sufficiently American.

Kellyanne Conway, Donald Trumps presidential campaign manager, also lambasted Kirk.

The same Mark Kirk that unendorsed his party's presidential nominee and called him out in paid ads? Gotcha. Good luck. https://t.co/IV7miL317s  Kellyanne Conway (@KellyannePolls) October 28, 2016

In June, Kirk rescinded his support for Trump and said that the billionaire businessmans belief that a U.S.-born judge of Mexican descent would be incapable of presiding fairly over the Trump University fraud case was both dead wrong and un-American.

After much consideration, I have concluded that Donald Trump has not demonstrated the temperament necessary to assume the greatest office in the world, Kirk said.

Some found Conways insult disingenuous and hypocritical because Trump too has been taken to task for insulting veterans and mocking a reporter with a disability .

Many viewers watching the debate were simply astounded by Kirks comment, which they considered either tone-deaf or blatantly racist, and the senators apparent refusal to apologize for it.

Thankful for @TammyforIL'sand her family'sservice to this country. It's really not that hard to grasp, @MarkKirk. https://t.co/rKY0rberiB  Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) October 28, 2016

To be clear, GOP Sen. @MarkKirk just questioned the Revolutionary War service of Tammy Duckworth's family because she is of mixed heritage.  Brandon Friedman (@BFriedmanDC) October 28, 2016

My jaw dropped watching the video of @MarkKirk insulting remark about @RepDuckworth's family. Kudos to her for being all class in response.  Lisa Hinchliffe (@lisalibrarian) October 28, 2016

Racist @SenatorKirk tries to smear Tammy Duckworth. Vote kirk out of office. Illinois deserves so much better.  russell frost (@russellfrost) October 28, 2016
IRVINE, CA / ACCESSWIRE / October 28, 2016 / Khang & Khang LLP (the "Firm") announces that it is investigating claims against Banc of California, Inc. ("Banc of California" or the "Company") (BANC) concerning possible violations of federal securities laws.

If you purchased shares of Banc of California and want more information, and a free consultation, please contact Joon M. Khang, Esquire, of Khang & Khang, 18101 Von Karman Avenue, 3rd Floor, Irvine, CA 92612, by telephone: (949) 419-3834, or by e-mail at joon@khanglaw.com.

This investigation focuses on whether Banc of California and certain of its officers and/or directors violated federal securities laws. On October 18 2016, Seeking Alpha published an article alleging that certain Banc of California insiders had undisclosed ties to individuals accused of involvement with the collapse of Gerova Financial. When this information was disclosed to the public, shares of Banc of California fell in value.

If you have any questions concerning this notice or your rights, please contact Joon M. Khang, a prominent litigator for almost two decades, by telephone: (949) 419-3834, or by e-mail at joon@khanglaw.com.

This press release may constitute Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions.

Contacts

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Telephone: 949-419-3834

Facsimile: 949-225-4474

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SOURCE: Khang & Khang LLP
South Asian countries join hands to fight wildlife crime

Eight South Asian countries have agreed to promote and strengthen cooperation and collaboration to combat wildlife crime in a coordinated manner.
REUTERS - Indian banks' loans rose 8.9 percent in the two weeks to Oct. 14 from a year earlier, while deposits rose 10.4 percent, the Reserve Bank of India's weekly statistical supplement showed on Friday.

Outstanding loans fell 2.12 trillion rupees ($31.68 billion) to 73.62 trillion rupees in the two weeks to Oct. 14. Non-food credit fell 2.18 trillion rupees to 72.70 trillion rupees, while food credit rose 66.10 billion rupees to 920.70 billion rupees.

Bank deposits fell 2.45 trillion rupees to 99.63 trillion rupees in the two weeks to Oct. 14.

Source text: (https://www.rbi.org.in/scripts/BS_PressReleaseDisplay.aspx?prid=38438)

($1 = 66.8200 rupees)
A 23-year-old Texas man who police claim confessed to decapitating his 21-year-old wife and placing her head into their freezer allegedly described the killing as a battle between good and evil as he was being interrogated, PEOPLE confirms.

On Wednesday, a grand jury returned an indictment against 23-year-old Davie Dauzat, who allegedly stabbed Natasha Dauzat to death in August while their young children were in a separate room of their Bellmead, Texas, home.

The indictment charges Davie with a single count: murder for his wifes Aug. 25 death.

He remains in police custody on $500,000 bond.

According to the indictment, police received a call the morning of Aug. 25 from Davies brother, who told investigators he was worried about Davie after speaking with him on the phone. The brother told police Davie made weird statements during the call and asked funny questions.

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

He told police he wasnt sure if his brothers statements were drug-induced or serious.

Police were dispatched to the Dauzat home, but Davie refused to come out, the indictment alleges. Over time, officers were able to talk him into surrendering. Once inside the home, they found the couples children unharmed but drenched in their mothers blood.

The medical examiner ruled Natashas cause of death due to sharp-force injuries, including decapitation, according to the indictment.

Davie allegedly admitted to police that killing his wife was wrong but later defended the move, arguing the slaying was a battle between good and evil, according to the indictment.

Davie allegedly told investigators hed used drugs prior to the slaying, but the indictment doesnt list any substances other than marijuana, which he had smoked with his wife earlier that day.

Joseph Marcee, Davies attorney, did not return calls seeking comment. It is unclear if Davie has entered a plea.




KIEV, Ukraine  The European security organization tasked with monitoring deadly violence between government forces and Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine has lost its most effective surveillance tool in the conflict: long-range unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones.

The long-range drone program was crucial for spotting armed attacks, the stationing of prohibited weapons, and countless other cease-fire violations. But it was nixed two months ago, Foreign Policy has learned, after several of the aircraft were targeted by surface-to-air missiles and military-grade electronic jamming.

Long-range UAV operations were suspended in August following a series of hostile acts, said Natacha Rajakovic, a spokeswoman for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the group authorized by world powers to observe the conflict. The missions UAV strength has been severely undermined.

The OSCE would not assign responsibility for the drone downings, citing a lack of access to the crash sites. Senior U.S. and Ukrainian officials accused Russian-backed separatists of targeting the UAVs to conceal their actions. Russian officials declined to comment for this report after several requests, but Moscow has repeatedly denied involvement.

The OSCEs decision to suspend the drone program, which has not been previously reported, creates a major blind spot for the organization. It also raises questions about how a cease-fire can ultimately take hold without a capable third party to call out violations.

The long-range drones were often the only way to monitor the most contested and violence-prone areas in Ukraines two-year conflict. During the day, unarmed OSCE ground patrols are frequently denied access to hot spots by the warring parties. At night, they are required to decamp to hotels away from the fighting. The OSCEs Camcopter S-100 drones solved both problems, lurking over restricted areas in the daylight and using infrared cameras to capture violations after sundown.

Story continues

The long-range drones were the most important monitors, a former senior OSCE official told FP. They catalogued countless cease-fire violations, as well as the stationing and movement of prohibited weaponry.

But their effectiveness also made them a target for belligerents looking for an edge over opponents without notice.

In May, an S-100 drone flying over rebel-controlled Ozerianivka crashed shortly after spotting a surface-to-air missile system mounted on top of a multi-purpose tracked vehicle. OSCE workers chose not to inspect the site of the crash after being informed by Ukraines military and rebel separatists that the area was mined, according to an OSCE spot report.

One week later, another S-100 drone was downed while flying over rebel-held Korsun northeast of Donetsk. The day before the crash, the drone spotted an anti-aircraft gun and surface-to-air missile launcher in the area.

Other crashes point to the use of electronic warfare to take down aerial monitoring equipment. On July 25, the OSCE lost all communication with a long-range drone before it plunged to the ground mid-flight. Three days later, OSCE cameras photographed an R-330ZH Zhitel communications jamming system, which is designed and manufactured in Russia, in rebel-held Novohryhorivka near Donetsk.

SMM faces impediments in its work: UAVs shot at 4 times. SMM spots mil-grade jamming station https://t.co/A7AgFNBhtc pic.twitter.com/A8SQLBp7yT  OSCE SMM Ukraine (@OSCE_SMM) August 5, 2016

The former OSCE official said the drones captured images that rebels didnt want publicized. The fact that the rebels brought in state-of-the-art electronic jamming equipment attests to the capability of the drones, said the former official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Publicly, OSCE officials maintain that both sides in the Ukraine conflict are responsible for cease-fire violations, though their reports often provide clues to show whos responsible for a given incident. The organizations careful diplomatic language is a result of its diverse membership: The 57-nation group includes chief adversaries Ukraine and Russia and makes decisions by consensus.

The groups mandate is to monitor the conflict, not to keep the peace. Its unarmed monitors, most of them European diplomats, are authorized to record cease-fire violations, escort shipments of humanitarian assistance, and help broker local truces. The group reports dozens to hundreds of cease-fire violations every day, according to the New York Times, patrolling bumpy roads in armored Toyota Land Cruisers.

Though the conflict receives fewer headlines now than during the height of violence in 2014 and 2015, several Ukrainian army personnel are killed every week. The United Nations estimates that at least 10,000 people have been killed in eastern Ukraine since the start of the conflict in March 2014.

Despite clearly lacking key resources for peace monitoring, the OSCEs mission is viewed as essential to ending the fighting as prescribed by the 2015 Minsk accords forged by Ukraine, Russia, France, and Germany. As the only third party standing watch along the line of control, the OSCEs presence serves as a deterrent to major military flare-ups and civilian deaths.

Even so, most of the provisions in the Minsk accords remain unfulfilled, including the complete withdrawal of heavy weapons, a sustained prisoner exchange, and the granting of amnesty for separatists. The OSCE continues to have only limited access to certain separatist regions in the Donbass, and the notion of reinstalling Ukrainian border guards near the Russian border remains fanciful. There is also little progress on the passage of constitutional reforms in Kiev, which would grant autonomy to separatist regions.

A key weakness of the monitoring mission is the daytime work hours kept by OSCE personnel. The hostilities often begin after the monitors pack up and leave for the day. The violence might include a nighttime round of bullets zipping across the pro-Russian side toward a barracks for Ukrainian conscripts or heavy artillery shot from Ukrainian-controlled territory toward rebel targets.

What theyve found is that a lot of the cease-fire violations happen at night when the [OSCE] patrols arent there, Daniel Baer, the U.S. ambassador to the OSCE, told FP in an interview.

The long-range drones were crucial for creating a disincentive for Russian-led separatist forces to launch new attacks at night, Baer said.

They were also useful for spotting nighttime rail shipments of weapons to rebels and identifying the increasing number of unmarked mines and improvised explosive devices, or IEDs.

It was clear that this was a systematic Russian effort to limit the capacity of the [OSCE] to see all kinds of things, including the ongoing Russian resupply, Baer said.

Acknowledging the problem, Rajakovic, the OSCE spokeswoman, said the mission is working on negotiating a new service contract and is hoping to resume long-range UAV operations as soon as possible. But its unclear when that might happen.

Rajakovic declined to discuss the terms of the previous drone contract, but Baer said the dronemaker Schiebel works as a service provider for the OSCE, charging by flight hours. Because of concerted attempts to shoot down the S-100 drones or electronically jam the aircraft, the service became prohibitively expensive, he said.

My understanding is if you wanted to go buy [a drone] from the provider that they cost well upwards of a million dollars each, so the expense of a takedown is considerable, Baer said.

The former senior OSCE official said the Austrian dronemaker proved incapable of operating in a hostile wartime environment.

I truly believe that Schiebel was out of their depth in this one, the official said. Live fire and GPS jamming were the two main factors for the loss of the drones. The units did not have the capabilities to resist jamming. Moreover, winter weather meant that they were grounded days at a time.

Schiebel may not be the only drone provider wary of going toe-to-toe with hostile adversaries armed with military-grade equipment.

Baer said the OSCE found another drone provider, but the firm rethought their willingness to provide that service because of the hostile environment in Ukraine. The firms reluctance led to this gap in the capabilities, he said.

In the meantime, the OSCE mission continues to operate midrange and mini-UAVs over Ukraine. But they do not have the scope or capabilities that the long-range drones had and that are necessary to cover the most contested areas.

The drone gap isnt the only logistical snag for monitors.

In a key OSCE mission near the Russian-Ukrainian border, patrols have for several months asked permission to use a rather primitive tool: binoculars. But Russia has categorically refused those requests. In June, frustrated by the lack of cooperation, Britains ambassador to the OSCE, Sian MacLeod, took to Twitter to accuse Moscow of preventing the mission from doing its job. Whats to hide? she tweeted.

Now, in late October, the personnel seeking a closer look at two key checkpoints still dont have access to binoculars, prompting growing frustration among Western member states.

Russia has effectively put blinders on the observer mission, one Western diplomat said, curbing its operational effectiveness and providing continued cover for the military personnel, hardware, equipment, and other support it continues to push into Donetsk and Luhansk in blatant violation of the Minsk agreements.

Reporting for this story was collected in Kiev on a study tour supported by the German Marshall Fund of the United States.

Photo credit: ALEXANDER KHUDOTEPLY/Getty Images
Mike Pence and his family can thank one invention for saving them from total disaster after their campaign plane skidded off the runway at New Yorks LaGuardia Airport Thursday night.

Read: Pence Recalls Harrowing Moment His Plane Skidded Off Runway: '10 Seconds of Uncertainty'

"Arrestor beds" are designed to stop an aircraft safely if it overshoots a runway. It's made of crushable concrete blocks.

Sixty-one U.S. airports have arrestor beds installed. The invention has so far prevented 11 tragedies in America, saving nearly 300 lives.

Pence's plane skidded off the runway at LaGuardia after landing in a downpour Thursday night.

The chartered jet came to a halt about a hundred yards from traffic. Some 40 people were on board, including Pence, his wife and daughter, as well as journalists.

Read: Melania Trump Denounces Husband's Sexual Assault Accusers: 'Very Damaging and Unfair'

Nobody was hurt in the accident. Donald Trump's running mate shook hands with emergency crews on the tarmac.

Pence stayed at a hotel in Manhattan Thursday night and described the ordeal during TV appearances Friday, calling it "10 seconds of uncertainty."

He had a new plane by Friday afternoon and took off from Newark, New Jersey, to continue campaigning.

Watch: VP Debate Spoiled by Constant Interruptions as Tim Kaine, Mike Pence Face Off

Related Articles:
(Adds details on violations, Sarofim)

By Diane Bartz

WASHINGTON, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Fayez Sarofim, a billionaire darling of Houston high society known for running a Texas investment company, has agreed to pay a $720,000 civil penalty for failing to report the purchase of voting securities of Kinder Morgan and Kemper Corporation, the Federal Trade Commission said on Friday.

Sarofim, chairman of Fayez Sarofim & Co investment advisers, bought Kinder Morgan securities in 2001, 2006 and 2012, and Kemper Corp securities in 2007 but failed to notify antitrust enforcers, the FTC said.

Big mergers and large share purchases must be reported to the Federal Trade Commission, which works with the Justice Department to ensure that the transactions are legal under antitrust law.

The Egyptian-born, thrice-married Sarofim, whose life story rivals anything seen in TV soap operas, supported Jeb Bush in his run for the presidency.

He is one of 20 "investment professionals" listed on the web site of his Houston-based firm, Fayez Sarofim & Co.

The government said in its complaint that Sarofim's initial Kinder Morgan share purchases could be described as for investment only, and thus would be exempt from reporting to the FTC. But once he was on the board of directors, further share purchases needed to be reported, the government said.

Similarly, Sarofim was on the board of Unitrin, which later became Kemper, when he bought 10,000 shares of the company in 2007, as well as subsequent share purchases. He also failed to report these purchases to the FTC, the government alleged.

The Justice Department brought the case on behalf of the FTC.

Sarofim did not respond to a request for comment.

(Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Dan Grebler, Bernard Orr)
By Paul Kilby

NEW YORK, Oct 28 (IFR) - State-owned oil company PDVSA struggled last week to get bondholders on board with a debt exchange that may have won it some temporary cash flow relief, but did little to dispel fears of a looming default in the next 12 to 18 months.

Despite multiple deadline extensions and some strong arm tactics, creditors tendered just US$2.8bn of outstanding 2017s for about US$3.37bn of new 2020s backed by shares of PDVSA's US unit Citgo.

The value of bonds tendered accounted for just 39.43% of the aggregate principal amount of the 2017s, putting PDVSA short of its participation target of 50%.

"It is hard to escape the fact that the participation rate was far less than they had anticipated, and the market can't help but take that negatively," said Dylan Parker, a trader at broker Torino Capital LLC.

PDVSA's decision to complete the exchange even after the participation rate fell short of expectations was viewed by some as an act of desperation.

Fallout from the lackluster response was also exacerbated last week by violent protests over the suspension of a referendum to remove President Nicolas Maduro.

Those who held the new 2020s saw it drop from a high of around 77.50 on the break to 71.75-72.00 on Thursday.

"The problem is that we don't know where this is heading," said Siobhan Morden, head of Latin America fixed-income strategy at Nomura. "If we knew Maduro was leaving, we would be buying on weakness right now."

The fall in the 2020s was because investors were all too happy to take profits, after enjoying an over 10 point rally on some Venezuelan bonds since August, in an uncertain political and economic backdrop.

For some the exchange may have bought some short-term relief but they fear it won't be long before payment pressures start building again.

The liability management transaction cuts bond payments by US$1.9bn until the end of 2017, but the new security soon adds another US$1bn in annual payments between 2017 and 2020.

Story continues

DISTRESSED

The rating agencies were quick to call the exchange distressed, with S&P noting that investors would receive less than what was promised on the original securities.

With reserves dwindling to around US$12bn and little if any access to hard currency funding, PDVSA and the government are likely to struggle to cover maturities over the next year.

"Over the last six months reserves have flatlined," Richard Briggs, an emerging markets credit strategist at CreditSights, told IFR.

"They managed to get enough dollars to pay interest but didn't have big maturities over that period...but it is very difficult to see how they get past 2017."

Most investors think the company will pay a US$1bn principal payment due on October 28 on the 2016s and what is now a US$1.12bn amortization payment for 8.5% 2017s due on November 2.

"(The president of PDVSA Eulogio Del Pino) confirmed they would pay on the 2016s," Parker said.

"He stopped short of saying they would pay the amortization payment on the 2017s (this year). But the exchange should provide enough (relief) to get through that."

But doubts are growing about a US$2.06bn payment in April on PDVSA's 5.25% 2017s and a final amortization of US$1.12bn due November 2017 on the 8.5% 2017s.

"The lack of visibility regarding the company's investment and comprehensive refinancing plans exacerbates (PDVSA's) probability of default or debt restructuring in the next 12 to 18 months," Moody's said.

Analysts are predicting that it will be a close call next year as the sovereign seeks to cover billions of dollars in liabilities.

Morden calculates that both the sovereign and PDVSA face some US$41.158bn in liabilities between imports, debt payments and service deficits.

That compares to US$39.24bn in potential assets that come from exports, a reprofiling of Chinese debt, some liability management and gold reserves.

"It remains an extremely difficult year next year after exhausting one-off financing options and already compressing imports by 50% this year," wrote Morden.

(Reporting by Paul Kilby; Editing by Shankar Ramakrishnan and Matthew Davies)
Washington (AFP) - Iraqi forces are halting their advance on the Islamic State group's last urban stronghold of Mosul in order to consolidate gains before striking the fighters, a US military official said Friday.

"They are pausing and repositioning, refitting and doing some back clearing" in areas where the Iraqi forces have already made some headway, Colonel John Dorrian, a spokesman for the US-led coalition, told Pentagon reporters via videoconference.

"We think it will just be a couple of days and then we are back on the march toward Mosul. That's their game plan and we believe they will stick to it."

Dorrian said the pause was rather generalized, explaining that Iraqi forces were adjusting to IS tactics and moves thus far.

In the meantime the coalition is still conducting air strikes, including targeting tunnels the fighters use to assault Iraqi troops, as well as IS command centers, Dorrian added.

He said that since the Mosul offensive began last week, the coalition has dropped nearly 2,500 bombs, missiles, shells and guided rockets.

- Closing in -

As Iraqi forces have closed in on Mosul from the north, east and south, growing numbers of civilians have fled IS-held areas.

The International Organization for Migration said that as of Thursday, 15,804 people had been displaced since the operation began on October 17, the vast majority in the Mosul region.

The UN human rights office said that credible reports indicate IS has forced tens of thousands of people from their homes and forcibly taken civilians into Mosul, killing those who resist or who were previously members of Iraqi security forces.

For now, the battle for Mosul is far from over, and most of the advancing forces are still some way from the city limits.

The head of US military operations in the Middle East, General Joseph Votel, said the jihadists were suffering heavy losses, with an estimated 800 to 900 fighters killed so far.

Washington estimates there are between 3,500 and 5,000 IS fighters in Mosul and as many as 2,000 more in the wider area.

Story continues

The US-led coalition has said that the jihadists can still travel in smaller groups, but cannot move in large convoys -- hampering their ability to replace losses.

IS still controls a corridor of territory west of Mosul linking it with the Syrian part of the caliphate it declared in 2014.

But there too, the jihadists have come under mounting pressure, with Western leaders raising the prospect of an offensive to capture their Syrian stronghold of Raqa within the next few weeks.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday called for cooperation to prevent IS fighters leaving Mosul and heading to Syria, where Moscow is providing crucial military support for President Bashar al-Assad's forces.
By Saif Hameed and Maher Chmaytelli BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi Shi'ite militias backed by Iran said on Friday they would soon join the fight against Islamic State on a new front west of Mosul, a move which could block any retreat by the jihadists into Syria but might alarm Turkey and the United States. The Shi'ite militias, with thousands of battle-hardened fighters trained by Iran, would bring important extra firepower to what is expected to be the biggest battle in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. But their arrival on the battlefield in one of the most diverse parts of Iraq also creates worry for Western countries backing the Iraqi government offensive, who fear that the Shi'ite fighters could alienate residents in mainly Sunni areas. A spokesman for the paramilitary groups said the advance toward the Islamic State-held town of Tal Afar, about 55 km (35 miles) west of Mosul, would start within "a few days or hours". If successful, the offensive would leave Islamic State fighters - and the 1.5 million civilians still living in Mosul - encircled by an advancing coalition of forces which seeks to crush the hardline Sunni militants in their Iraq stronghold. As many as 50,000 Iraqi soldiers, police and Kurdish peshmerga fighters, backed by U.S.-led air strikes and support on the ground, have advanced on Mosul for nearly two weeks from the south, north and east. They have already recaptured scores of villages on the flat plains east of Mosul and along the Tigris river to the south of the city, Islamic State's last big bastion in Iraq. Until now, it has not been clear whether the Shi'ite paramilitaries would join the fight, or whether the western approaches of the city would be left open so that civilians and militants could escape. Rights groups have called on Baghdad to keep the Shi'ite militias away from the battlefield, accusing them of carrying out revenge killings and kidnappings in other areas freed from Islamic State. The militias and the Baghdad government say any such abuses were isolated incidents and not widespread. The battle for Mosul itself, a city many times larger than any other ever held by Islamic State, is expected to be the biggest military operation in Iraq since U.S. troops invaded to topple former president Saddam Hussein nearly 14 years ago. Adding to the challenges facing the advancing forces, retreating Islamic State fighters have forced women and children from outlying villages to march alongside them as human shields as they withdraw into the city, according to villagers who spoke to Reuters by telephone from Mosul. Older boys and men of fighting age were taken off to an unknown fate, they said. The United Nations said on Friday Islamic State had abducted 8,000 families from around Mosul to use as human shields, and had killed 232 people near the city on Wednesday who refused to comply with orders. The group's "depraved, cowardly strategy is to attempt to use the presence of civilians to render certain points, areas or military forces immune from military operations, effectively using tens of thousands of women, men and children as human shields," U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad al Hussein said. A man who was among those taken to Mosul from a village south of the city described the exodus for those forced to retreat with the fighters as human shields. "They put us in a trailer pulled by a tractor, and along the way we saw civilians shot dead with bullets in the head on both sides of the road; about ten, all of them men," said the man, speaking from one of the few parts of Mosul where mobile phone coverage still works. "We are in shock." CUTTING LINES TO SYRIA Ahmed al-Asadi, a spokesman for the Shi'ite forces known collectively as the Hashid Shaabi, or Popular Mobilisation, said the operation to cut off Mosul's western approaches was crucial to defeat Islamic State, also known as Daesh, ISIS or ISIL. "This is the most important and dangerous line because it connects Mosul to Raqqa and is the only supply line for Daesh," he told Iraqi state television. Mosul and Raqqa, Islamic State's main bastion in Syria, form the two symbolic capitals of a cross-border "caliphate" declared by the group's leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi from the pulpit of a Mosul mosque in August 2014. Iraqi and Western military sources say there has been debate about whether or not to close off the western route in and out of Mosul. Leaving it open would offer Islamic State fighters a chance to retreat, potentially sparing civilians inside the city who might otherwise be trapped in a bloody fight to the finish. Some civilians fleeing Mosul have used the roads to the west to escape to Qamishli, in Kurdish-controlled northern Syria. Just as the advancing army and Kurdish forces have had to battle to recapture even small villages on the road to Mosul, facing waves of roadside bombings, sniper fire and suicide car bombs, Asadi suggested the advance on Tal Afar may take time. It will be launched from the Qayyara military base, about 90 km (55 miles) to the southeast. "Tal Afar is the final destination ... it is the pyramids peak. But there are villages on the way that need to be liberated before reaching Tal Afar," Asadi said. Several hours after Asadi's announcement, Islamic State said one of its militants drove a bomb-laden car into a group of Popular Mobilisation fighters, killing 20 of them. It said the suicide attack took place west of the town of Shirqat, where the Shi'ite forces have been gathering ahead of the offensive. Spokesmen for the Iraqi army and the Popular Mobilisation forces could not be immediately contacted for comment. Islamic State fighters are enemies of all countries on earth, and many regional powers across the Middle East have claimed stakes in the fight against them. Part of the difficulty of managing the Mosul offensive is balancing the roles of the various local fighting forces and their foreign allies, to avoid breeding additional ethnic or sectarian hostility. A big role for the Shi'ite militias, with their strong ties to Iran, could be particularly challenging for the United States and other countries suspicious of Iranian influence. The Shi'ite offensive on Tal Afar will target an area which is close to Turkey and home to a sizeable population of ethnic Turkmen, with historic cultural ties to Turkey. Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said this week his country, which has troops deployed north of Mosul inside Iraqi territory, will take measures if there is an attack on Tal Afar. The population of Tal Afar was a mix of Sunni and Shi'ite ethnic Turkmen until Shi'ites fled the town after Islamic State's takeover two years ago. (Writing by Dominic Evans; Additional reporting by Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva; Editing by Peter Graff)
Syria rebels 'in push to break Aleppo siege'

Rebels in Syria have announced a big offensive aimed at breaking the government siege of east Aleppo.
ISIS militants in the Iraqi city of Mosul have reportedly executed at least 232 people and forced thousands of others to relocate at gunpoint in order to transform them into human shields, the United Nations human rights office said on Friday.

The apparent executions and forced movements suggest the jihadist group is turning to increasingly brutal measures as it attempts to defend Mosul from a large-scale military offensive launched on Oct. 17 meant to restore government control over the city, which was once Iraqs second largest.

The U.N.s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights said that Islamic State operatives forced thousands of families from four separate sub-districts of Mosul to move to ISIS strongholds. As a result, population of the town of Hammam al-Alil, south of Mosul recently swelled from 23,000 to 60,000. The document cited credible reports received by the U.N.

Read More: Iraqi Forces Find a Bomb Factory and Tunnels On the Long Road to Mosul

According to the U.N., the 232 people executed include 190 former members of the Iraqi security forces, who were killed last Wednesday at al-Ghazlani military base in Mosul. Reports indicate that another 42 civilians were shot in the head at al-Izza military base after they refused to join ISIS, the statement adds.

Supported by a U.S.-led international coalition, the Iraqi military and Kurdish militias mobilized tens of thousands of troops last week in an attempt to dislodge ISIS from Mosul, the largest city under the extremist groups control. The jihadists have held the city since they seized it in a lightning sweep across Iraq in June 2014. The battle signals the turning of the tide in the international war against the group, following months in which ISIS has lost control of major cities in Iraq and key sections of its territory in Syria. But ISIS is currently mounting a ferocious defense of Mosul including the use of snipers, improvised bombs, and dozens of suicide bombers. Weeks or possibly months of hard fighting lie ahead before the city is retaken.

Story continues

Read More: Iraq Takes on ISIS as the Battle for Mosul Begins

The U.N. statement issued on Friday is consistent with the testimony of Iraqi civilians who recently fled ISIS-held areas of northern Iraq interviewed by TIME in recent days. Their accounts suggest that in recent weeks, ISIS has tightened its system of social control in anticipation of the attack on Mosul, and also increased the number of executions of suspected smugglers, former members of the Iraqi security forces and others who ran afoul of the organization. Theyre putting the bodies on stockades so people walking in street can see them. Theres a bad smell in the city, said Mariam Mohamed Hamad, 21, who recently fled the ISIS-controlled city of Hawija, in an interview in the Debaga displacement camp outside the town of Makhmour. She said the bodies were executed smugglers, as well as members of the Iraqi army killed in battle.

Hawija, a city with an estimated population of 115,000, is now cut off from Mosul, the much larger city to the north, following an Iraqi army offensive that severed the north-south highway. As a result, residents who recently fled say the price of food has soared. A bottle of oil can cost as much as 100,000 Iraqi Dinars, or about $85. A kilo of rice cost up to $36 according to Hamad. In addition ISIS has tightened its ultraconservative restrictions on every day life. If they see anyone smoking theyll punish them immediately, maybe kill them. The system is tough, she said.

Read More: All Quiet on the Mosul Front as Iraqi and Kurdish Forces Hold Positions

Several former residents of ISIS-controlled areas said that increasingly severe treatment of civilians is eroding the degree of popular support that existed for the group. In the beginning people liked them. They treated people in a good way, but the punishments are harsh, says Omar Walid Mohamed, 20, from the town of Qayyarah, south of Mosul, which the Iraqi military retook last August.

Within the city of Mosul, some residents are also now actively resisting ISIS in anticipation of the coming battle, according to multiple reports and residents who fled the city. They dont show up, they just kill ISIS fighters and they hide themselves. No one knows who they are, said a 60-year-old man from Mosul who fled with his family about two months ago. In an interview in a displacement camp near Qayyarah, he asked to have his name withheld for fear of retaliation from ISIS.

ISIS officials have also intensified measures to cut civilians off from the outside world, confiscating satellite dishes and other equipment. ISIL has seized many SIM cards, and those who successfully managed to hide them, fear to use them, according to an anonymous blogger who writes under the name Mosul Eye and claims to be reporting from inside Mosul. Mosul has entered the atmosphere of the war. The bombardment is continuous on many areas of the city, the writer also said.
Rosh Haayin (Israel) (AFP) - An Israeli firm says a super-efficient engine it has created could drastically reduce fuel consumption and help power an auto industry revolution as manufacturers search for environmentally sound alternatives.

Industry analysts, however, question the reinvented internal combustion engine's chances of success at a time when purely electric car technology is advancing and attracting investors.

The invention from Israeli-based Aquarius Engines is currently being discussed by France's Peugeot, the firm said.

Aquarius says the cost of the engine will be as low as $100 (92 euros).

According to the firm, the engine can allow cars to travel more than 1,600 kilometres (990 miles) on a single tank of fuel, more than double current distances.

Such efficiency is vital as countries seek to reduce carbon dioxide emissions -- a main cause of climate change. Car engines are a major source of CO2 emissions.

Aquarius's technology works by stripping back the traditional engine under the bonnet.

It replaces the combustion engine with its multiple pistons thrusting up and down with a single piston that goes side-to-side.

It has fewer than 20 parts and a single action, the company said.

In tests by the German engineering company FEV, the Aquarius engine's efficiency was more than double that of traditional engines.

"It is the highest efficiency you will probably meet," co-founder Gal Fridman told AFP at the company's offices near the Israeli commercial capital of Tel Aviv.

"It has the lowest emissions and the highest power-to-weight ratio."

A Peugeot spokesman said: "We are discussing with them, as with many other start-ups, without obligation or a specific project."

For Peugeot and others, the engine could help them compete with the growing popularity of electric cars, John German, senior fellow at the International Council on Clean Transportation, said.

He said the engine would work best as part of a plug-in hybrid system, with manufacturers looking at "the idea of putting a smaller, inexpensive, range extender" alongside a battery and motor.

Story continues

But he said Aquarius's radical design, and the changes it would require to manufacturing lines, might make companies in a risk-averse industry hesitant.

- Undermining electric cars? -

The technology can also be used to make more efficient back-up generators and other products, the company says.

Aquarius is currently seeking its third round of funding and is aiming for $40-50 million.

But its challenge is to undermine the push towards electric-only cars, said Ana Nicholls of the Economist Intelligence Unit.

She said recent evidence suggested that "people are starting to trend away from hybrid cars towards fully electric vehicles".

US-based electric car maker Tesla is on course to sell around 50,000 vehicles in the second half of 2016, it has announced.

Nicholls said that automotive giants, with research and development budgets stretched thin, could be wary of investing in Aquarius.

"I think the feeling in the industry at the moment is very much that if they are going to put their resources behind something then probably fully electric engines are the way to go."

Aquarius's Fridman argued there is too much "hype" around purely electric cars, and that their actual popularity is limited because of small ranges and high prices.

"50,000 units is nothing," he said of Tesla's projected sales.

"It is amazing as there has been a push from governments, municipalities, etc. And still after 15 years the segment is not really successful."

Franco Gonzalez, senior technology analyst at the IDTechEx analysis firm, said Aquarius was entering the competition late and playing "catch up".

"Automotive companies take seven to 10 years to implement a new technology," he said.

"So Peugeot would need to accelerate their implementation very, very fast to at least catch up to what Tesla, BYD, Nissan and other companies supporting the electric car model are achieving."

German said it was too early to say if the engine could make a major dent.

"A lot depends on the path the electric vehicle revolution takes. If pure battery electrics sell well then there probably isn't much need for this kind of engine," he said.

"But if people balk at the long recharge time and high costs of battery-only cars, then systems like these might be the future."
Italy police seize 'Ndrangheta mafia cocaine in Mediterranean

Nearly 850 pounds of cocaine was found floating in the Mediterranean Sea on Thursday, after the crew of a freighter tossed the load into the water while on their way to the Calabrian port of Gioia Tauro, at the tip of Italy's boot.

The shipment, packaged in 17 waterproof bags and worth an estimated $84 million, was found floating attached to buoys, according to a police statement, first noted by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project.

According to Italian authorities, the cocaine was of very high purity.

The freighter, the Rio de Janeiro, had carried the drug load from Brazil, which is a major embarkation point for cocaine and other drugs bound for Europe. Nine crew members  all citizens of the tiny Pacific country Kiribati  have been arrested.

Italian authorities had been monitoring the shipment and detected when the crew members tossed the load overboard. The effort was attributed to the 'Ndrangheta, a Italian criminal group.

While transporting drugs by sea is not a recent innovation, tossing them overboard to float "is considered a fairly new trick used by traffickers to bypass authorities," the OCCRP noted.

Italy police cocaine seizure Ndrangheta mafia

The 'Ndrangheta, the Calabrian gang thought to be behind the smuggling attempt, is considered one of the wealthiest and most powerful European criminal groups, and its network is believed to include families in the US as well as partnerships with criminal groups in Latin America.

This summer, a multicountry effort rounded up 150 suspected members of a transnational drug-trafficking group allegedly led by two brothers suspected of being members of the 'Ndrangheta.

Smugglers are still believed to rely on shipping containers to move drugs into Europe.

"Since 2006, maritime seizures that involve containers have increased sixfold, with a particularly steep increase since 2010," the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction wrote in its 2016 report. "Container seizures made up three-quarters of maritime seizures in 2012 and 2013, compared with one-tenth in 2006."

Story continues

Spain cocaine seizure

Even though the amount of cocaine seizures and the amount of cocaine seizures are below mid-2000s levels, cocaine is the second-most intercepted drug in Europe, behind marijuana.

Southern and Western Europe are the main entry points for the drug.

"The countries that seized the most cocaine over the period 201114 were Spain (accounting for about 50 % of all seizures) and Belgium, followed by France, Italy, the United Kingdom and Portugal," the EMCDDA noted in its report.

In early September, Spanish police in Sevilla intercepted a shipment of Colombian bananas that had nearly 2,000 pounds of cocaine packaged among the fruit.

NOW WATCH: Why the price of cocaine in America has barely moved in decades





More From Business Insider


ROME, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Italy has defended its rule-breaking 2017 budget to the European Commission, saying the migrant crisis, post-earthquake reconstruction and lower-than-expected growth were to blame.

Euro zone countries are obliged to cut their structural deficit, which excludes one-off items and the effects of the business cycle, by at least 0.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) per year until it comes into balance or surplus.

But in Rome's draft plan, the structural deficit rises 0.4 percentage points to 1.6 percent of GDP, rather than falling 0.6 points as requested by EU finance ministers in July.

Brussels asked Italy's government this week to explain why its budget does not lower the deficit as the rules require.

Italy's Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan said in a letter published late on Thursday that a weaker global economic environment means "the Italian economy is still experiencing difficult cyclical conditions and thus suggests a more gradual adjustment toward the medium term objective, which remains a balanced structural budget in 2019."

He did not offer to change the budget, which must be passed by parliament by the end of the year.

The Commission could reject the budget plan, but no decision is expected before a Dec. 4 referendum over Prime Minister Matteo Renzi's flagship constitutional reform.

(Reporting by Steve Scherer Editing by Gavin Jones and Louise Ireland)
(Recasts lead, adds analyst, Eni management, shares)

By Stephen Jewkes

MILAN, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Italian oil major Eni reported a bigger-than-expected net loss in the third quarter but stuck to its growth targets encouraged by production prospects and disposals.

The group's adjusted net loss in the quarter widened to 484 million euros ($528 million) from a previous 127 million euro loss as low oil prices and production shutdowns in Italy and Norway took their toll.

The result fell short of a forecast from analysts, provided by the company, for a loss of 70 million euros.

Commitments by OPEC last month to restrain output to boost prices have helped buoy sentiment in the industry but oil companies are still feeling the impact of a fall in crude prices of more than 50 percent since mid-2014.

At 1233 GMT Eni shares were down 3.13 percent while the European sector was down 1 percent.

Despite the loss, Eni said it expected new fields and ramp ups, including the giant Kashagan oilfield in Kazakhstan, to add another 280,000 barrels per day this year.

Confirming it would cut investments this year by 20 percent, the group said it expected oil and gas output for the year to be substantially in line with 2015.

Analysts said the final quarter of the year would also be helped by resumption of production at the key fields of Val d'Agri in Italy and Goliat in Norway.

In a note to clients, Mediobanca said despite the third quarter results Eni was a must-have for long-term investors because of its upstream oil and gas portfolio.

"We also believe a potential sell down of its key assets in Egypt and Mozambique should underpin its share price near term, as it should allow the group to maintain the current dividend pay-out in 2017-2018."

Eni, whose cash flow fell 19 percent in the quarter, is committed to selling 5 billion euros of assets in the next two years, including stakes in its Area 4 field in Mozambique and its Zohr field in Egypt.

Sources have said Exxon Mobil has already clinched a deal to buy a stake in Area 4.

"Maybe we will have some news update (on asset sales) in the next few months," CFO Massimo Mondazzi said in a conference call. ($1 = 0.9173 euros) (Editing by Alexander Smith/Ruth Pitchford)
28 Oct - Actor Jake Cuenca has denied rumours that he caused a commotion at the recently held Star Magic Ball.



As reported on Coconuts Manila, previously, tabloids reported that the actor had a fight with someone at the Makati Shangri-La Ballroom before Gerald Anderson stopped it, while another report stated that he had also made a ruckus while Jericho Rosales was onstage to accept his award.



However, when asked about it recently, Cuenca said that he wasn't fighting with anybody at the Ball, adding that it could be a misunderstanding after he and actor Paulo Avelino got drunk.



"I had a little too much to drink, so my handler and my two road managers assisted me. It looked like a commotion, but in reality, I was just having way too much fun and they just wanted me to go up and rest," he said.



Cuenca has also spoken to Rosales regarding the incident, and that the actor told him that there was no issue at all.



As for the person who was seen dragging him back to his room, Cuenca said that it was just his handler.



(Photo source: instagram.com/juancarloscuenca)
James Bond would not be up to the job if he tried to get hired at the real MI6, according to the head of Britains Secret Intelligence Service (S.I.S.).

The stereotype of life as a spy couldnt be further from the truth, said Alex Younger in a rare interview for the U.K.s Black History Month website.

In contrast to James Bond, MI6 officers are not for taking moral shortcuts. In fact, a strong ethical core is one of the first qualities we look for in our staff,  he said. If a spy undermines British values even in the name of defending them, then we have failed.

Ultimately, he summed up the existence of a spy as more down-to-earth than the movies would have us believe. They are ordinary men and women operating in the face of complex moral, ethical and physical challenges, often in the most forbidding environments on earth.

[Black History Month]
Japans Prince Mikasa  uncle of Emperor Akihito  died in Tokyo on Thursday.

Born on December 2, 1915, he was the worlds oldest royal.

At 100, the youngest brother of Emperor Hirohito was fifth in line for the male-only throne. There are now only four heirs to the worlds oldest throne: Crown Prince Naruhito, 56, Prince Akishino, 50, (Akishinos 10-year-old son) Prince Hisahito and Prince Hitachi, 80.

According to news reports, Mikasa had been hospitalized since May, initially because of pneumonia. His wife of 75 years, Princess Yuriko, 93, was at his bedside when he passed away, the Imperial Household Agency said.

On his 100th birthday last December, he issued a statement thanking Yuriko for her support over their more than 70 years of marriage, according to The Japan Times.

Nothing will change just because I turn 100 years old, he said.

Mikasa studied ancient Asian history, teaching at Tokyo University of the Arts and Tokyo Womens Christian University and serving as the honorary president of the Japan-Turkey Society and Middle Eastern Culture Center in Japan.

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He also served in the military during World War II and became a vocal proponent of peace later in his life. He wrote in his best-selling memoir in 1984 that he constantly feel the sting of conscience over my failure to fully grasp the criminality of war.

Emperor Akihito, 82, hinted in August that he wanted to abdicate the throne. On Thursday, while announcing Mikasas death, a government spokesman restated opposition to reforming the Household Law to allow women to ascend the Chrysanthemum throne. (Specifically, that would be Naruhitos 15-year-old daughter, Princess Aiko.)

I cant bear the sense of sorrow facing the report of his death, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was quoted as saying by Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga at a news conference Thursday.

When asked if the government will ask the panel to discuss the issue of heirs, Suga said it would not.

Mikasa is survived by his wife and two children. The couple had three other children who died over the past 14 years.




Open from 11am to 4.30pm, visitors can explore the many delicacies from Japan, register for workshops or even try their hands at traditional Japanese crafts. Tickets are on sale at the exhibition venue at $4 per person. Open from 11am to 4.30pm, visitors can explore the many delicacies from Japan, register for workshops or even try their hands at traditional Japanese crafts. Tickets are on sale at the exhibition venue at $4 per person.

Japanese food lovers should head down this Saturday (29 October) to the Food Japan exhibition, which is in its fifth year, at Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre. Previously known as Oishii Japan, Food Japan again showcases items from across the Land of the Rising Sun, ranging from fresh seafood to snacks.


By Joseph Ax NEWARK, N.J. (Reuters) - Two former allies of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie deliberately closed access lanes to the George Washington Bridge in a "vicious" and unlawful political revenge scheme, a federal prosecutor said on Friday at the close of their criminal trial. Bridget Kelly, the governor's former deputy chief of staff, and Bill Baroni, the former deputy executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, abused their power to create a massive traffic jam in order to punish a local mayor for failing to back Christie's re-election campaign, Assistant U.S. Attorney Lee Cortes told jurors in Newark, New Jersey. "As cruel and callous as that scheme was, what makes it unlawful was that they misused government resources to carry it out," Cortes said in closing arguments at federal court in Newark, New Jersey. Baroni's lawyer is expected to deliver his closing argument later on Friday. The Port Authority operates the George Washington Bridge, said by the agency to be the world's busiest. Kelly and Baroni are charged with fraud, conspiracy and depriving residents of Fort Lee, New Jersey, of their civil rights. Former Port Authority executive David Wildstein has pleaded guilty and appeared as the government's star witness. Christie has not been charged and has steadfastly denied any advance knowledge of the plan. But Wildstein, Baroni and Kelly all testified that they told the governor some details about the lane closures either beforehand or while they were occurring. The so-called "Bridgegate" scandal tarnished Christie's national reputation, damaging his unsuccessful bid for the Republican presidential nomination. The trial has cast an unflattering light on Christie as a temperamental bully whose administration used the Port Authority to hand out favors, and penalties, to local officials. Kelly and Baroni, both of whom testified in their own defense, said they were duped by Wildstein and his claim that the lane closures were part of a legitimate traffic study. But Cortes warned jurors not to be fooled by that "preposterous" assertion, pointing to Kelly's now-infamous email to Wildstein in which she wrote, "Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee," as evidence of her guilt. During his closing argument, Cortes showed jurors numerous messages sent among Kelly, Wildstein and Baroni suggesting they deliberately ignored Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich's desperate pleas for help as the gridlock became untenable, delaying first responders and stranding school buses for hours. At one point, Wildstein told Baroni that his response to Sokolich should be "radio silence." (Reporting by Joseph Ax; Editing by Tom Brown)
Too young to marry

On October 22nd 2016, the Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare and a host of international donors marked the International Day of the Girl Child.
GettyImages-618891108

CHICAGO  Friday afternoons plane fire at OHare briefly shut down one of the worlds busiest airports, grounding dozens of flights and causing planes in the air to be diverted.

Among the passengers affected by the shutdown? Albina Beanie Maddon. The mother of Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon was stuck in the Philadelphia airport as she tried to travel to the Windy City for Game 3 of the World Series.

Beanie Maddon still lives in Hazleton, Pa., where Joe was raised.

I guess theres a problem at OHare right now, Joe Maddon said during his pregame press conference. So shes stuck in Philly. Hopefully shell get here tonight or tomorrow.

But thats tough for Beanie right now, hanging out in Philly airport.

American Airlines flight 383 caught fire on Friday afternoon. Seven passengers and one flight attendant were taken to the hospital for evaluation of minor injuries caused when the Boeing 767 was evacuated.

Were glad everyone is OK, but imagine waiting 71 years for the Cubs to return to the World Series, spending $10K on tickets and then having the worlds worst luck when your plane gets stranded because of a one-in-a-million runway fire? Its almost enough to make you believe in curses.

Planes began landing again around 5 p.m. giving lucky fans with tickets about two hours to navigate the Kennedy Expressway en route to Wrigley Field for first pitch.
A furry feline that had been deemed "unadoptable" now has a forever home and a new life, thanks to one womans act of kindness.

A small kitten, named Jon Snow, was found on a dark street in South Korea, suffering from several health conditions.

Read: Rescue Team Frees Stray Cat Who Got His Head Stuck in a Fence

The cat was starved, dehydrated, and suffering from a severe upper respiratory infection.

Little Jon Snow was taken to a public kill shelter to live out his final days in a small wire cage with a plate of food and a blanket, the kitty equivalent of death row.

But just when all hope was lost, Rachel Brown inquired about the winter-white cat for possible adoption.

She had spent several weeks in search of the perfect cat to welcome into her home.

When she arrived to finally meet Jon Snow, she saw just how tired and sad he was, but knew she finally had found the right kitten.

As soon as I saw him, my heart leaped and then sank, Brown told Inside Edition.com. I instantly loved him, but he looked so sick and so sad.

Brown said the minute she saw him, she couldnt get him off her mind. Although the employees at the shelter told her the cat wouldnt make it, she was determined to bring him home.

Read: Cat Found With Acid Burns on Face Finds Home: 'Half of His Face was Melted'

She filled out the paperwork to release her new four-legged friend and immediately rushed him to an emergency veterinary facility.

When I took Jon out of the shelter, I think he knew he had been saved, said Brown. While we were traveling on trains to the vet, he wanted to keep me in his sight; if he couldnt see me through the mesh, he would meow.

When they arrived to the vet, the doctors informed Brown that Jon had no chance of survival.

According to Brown, they discovered he had coronavirus, which is typically fatal and incurable.

They gave her an ultimatum to either treat Jon Snow to euthanize him. But luckily, Brown wouldn't listen.

Story continues

I couldnt give up on him, she said.

On the third day of his hospitalization, the cat began to eat normally after being placed on an IV drip. He had a surprising boost of energy and even began to play to his hearts content.

After the fifth day, Jon Snow was better than ever. The doctors took him off the IV and his blood tests came back completely normal.

The curious cat now lives peacefully, following his new owner around the house and sleeping soundly on several pillows.

He is the happiest kitty and that makes me so happy, Brown said.

Watch: Cat Survives Being Stuck Inside Spinning Washing Machine

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The release of Desierto marks a seven-year journey for Mexican writer/director/editor/producer Jonas Cuaron, who brings the story of a border crossing to the screen just as the national debate on immigration has reached fever pitch. The film debuted at the Toronto Film Festival in September 2015, but bowed this month in theaters.

FAMILY FRIENDLY

Cuarons inspiration came during a trip to Arizona when he heard hateful rhetoric toward immigrants. When he formed the films concept, he turned to his father, Gravity director Alfonso Cuaron, for advice. My dad became really interested in the idea of nonstop action intertwined with visual metaphors. It was important to create a narrative that turned the migrant into a hero. In many ways, they are the real modern hero.

HARSH CONDITIONS

Desierto tells the tale of Moises (Gael Garcia Bernal) and a group of men and women who encounter a merciless vigilante (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) as they attempt to cross the treacherous desert terrain at the U.S.-Mexico border. The desert plays a role in the film, with one the themes being the juxtaposition of characters and their actions with the landscape, says Jonas Cuaron of the Baja California Sur shoot. The location, well-suited for the story, was nevertheless a logistical nightmare. Crew members had to drive hours to get there, and there was no infrastructure and little available shooting time once they arrived. We had to film complicated action sequences without many hours of light, because temperatures quickly reached over 100 degrees, Cuaron says.

CREATING EMOTIONS

During the 10-week shoot, Cuaron and cinematographer Damian Garcia used the daylight to their advantage, relying only on available sun and bounce. Wide lenses captured scenic landscapes, in constrast to character close-ups. Even though theres not much dialogue, you want the audience to have an emotional connection with the characters, Cuaron says.

THREE-DOG MIGHT

A German Shepard named Tracker played alongside Sam, the rifle-toting villain. Cuaron tapped animal handler Javier Lecuna, who normally trains dogs for security, not cinema. Jonas was interested not only in what he wanted the dogs to do, but how they fulfill their tasks, says Lecuna. We used three dogs, not because they couldnt execute the action, but because of each dogs individual preferences toward people.

Story continues

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EXCLUSIVE: Josh Stewart, Delroy Lindo, Bojana Novakovic, Melissa Bolona and Yvette Yates have joined writer-director Michael Winnicks U.S.-set horror film Malicious, which will launch at the American Film Market next week.

The film follows a young college professor and his pregnant wife who find and open an antique box in their new home, unwittingly releasing a malevolent entity with murderous intentions.

Patrick Rizzotti and Brett Forbes of Fortress Features produce. Exec producers are Shaun Redick and Ray Mansfield of Movie Package Company. Lost Hills Film Fund, a venture launched this year by Forbes, Rizzotti, Redick and Mansfield to finance and produce director-driven, elevated genre films, is financing. Lost Hills is set to produce and finance 10 movies over the next three years that include comedies, thrillers, sci-fi and horror.

We are very excited that Lost Hills is wrapping production on Malicious, our first in a slate of 10 films, said Redick. We are actively acquiring IP and developing, producing and financing for a global theatrical marketplace.

Rizzotti added: This fund gives us the means to allow creative talent room to flourish. Collectively we have many years of experience making quality films at a certain budget level and look forward to finding the right material that can be made within our financial model.

London-based sales and financing entity The Salt Company is handling international sales on Malicious, while North American rights are being repped by Lost Hills.

Lindo is repped by APA.

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Machinery company Kennametal Inc.s KMT results were disappointing for first-quarter fiscal 2017 (ended Sep 30, 2016). The companys adjusted earnings of 11 cents per share lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 14 cents by 21.4%. Also, the bottom line fell 21.4% from the year-ago tally of 14 cents.



The companys share price has fallen roughly 6.68% since the earnings announcement on Oct 26.

Kennametals first quarter revenues totaled $477.1 million, below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $481 million. On a year-over-year basis, the top line decreased 14.1%. The year-over-year fall was triggered by a 3% decline in organic revenues, 2% adverse impact from foreign currency translation and 9% divestiture-related losses.



On a geographical basis, Kennametal generated sales of $215.2 million from its North American operations, decreasing 15% year over year. Business in Western Europe remained weak, with revenues of $120 million, declining 23% year over year. Revenues sourced from Rest of the World fell 3.1% year over year to $141.9 million.



Segmental Details



Effective from the start of fiscal 2017, Kennametal Inc. revised its reporting segments from the previously two segments, Industrial and Infrastructure, to three segments viz. Industrial, WIDIA and Infrastructure. The companys segmental performance is briefly discussed below:



The Industrial segments net sales in the quarter were $269 million, roughly flat year over year. Organic revenues growth of 3% was offset by 2% negative impact from foreign currency translation and 1% negative impact from divestitures.



Organic sales in aerospace & defense, general engineering and transportation end markets increased, while it decreased in energy end market. On a geographical basis, revenues grew 7% in Asia and 4% in the Americas, offset by 1% decline in Europe.



The WIDIA segments revenue totaled $41 million, down 4.9% year over year. The decline was due to 3% fall in organic revenues, 1% adverse impact from fewer business days and 1% negative impact from foreign currency translation. On a geographical basis, revenues fell 10% in Europe and 5% in the Americas, offset by 5% gain in Asia.



The Infrastructure segments revenue totaled $167.1 million, down 31% year over year. The decline was due to 10% fall in organic revenues, 20% adverse impact from divestiture and 1% negative impact from foreign currency translation.



Organic revenues declined due to weak sales in energy, earthworks and general engineering end markets. Geographically, revenues fell 16% in the Americas, 8% in Asia and 3% in Europe.



Margins



In the quarter, Kennametals adjusted cost of goods sold decreased 7.6% year over year, representing 69.5% of total revenue compared with 71.2% in the year-ago quarter. Adjusted gross margin improved 170 basis points (bps) to 30.5%.



Adjusted operating expense, as a percentage of total revenue, was 24.9%, up 130 bps year over year. Adjusted operating margin grew 40 bps year over year to 4.7%.



Balance Sheet and Cash Flow



Exiting the first quarter, Kennametal had cash and cash equivalents of $119.4 million, down from $161.6 million at the previous quarter-end. Long-term debt and capital leases were $694 million versus $700 million in the previous quarter.



In the quarter, Kennametal used net cash of $19.3 million from its operating activities versus $3.4 million generated in the year-ago quarter. Capital spending was $42.3 million compared with $37.2 million in first-quarter fiscal 2016. Free operating cash outflow in the quarter was $19.3 million versus $3.4 million in the year-ago quarter.



Concurrent with the earnings release, Kennametal announced that its board of directors has approved a quarterly cash dividend of 20 cents per share, payable on Nov 29 to shareholders of record as on Nov 11.



Outlook



For fiscal 2017, Kennametal anticipates total revenue to be flat compared with roughly $2 billion generated in fiscal 2016. Organic revenue is projected to decline 2% to grow roughly 2%. Adjusted earnings are expected within $1.20$1.50 from the previous projection of $1.10$1.40 per share. Effective tax rate will be within 2025% range versus 1317% expected earlier.



Cash flow from operating activities is projected in a range of $215$245 million, up from $190$230 million expected earlier, while capital spending is anticipated within $125$135 million versus the earlier projected range of $100$120 million. Free cash flow will likely come in a band of $90$110 million.



The company anticipates its restructuring programs, including headcount reductions initiatives and others, to yield pre-tax savings of approximately $140$155 million by Dec 2018, while savings related to these initiatives will likely be $155$175 million.



Of these programs, the company predicts its headcount reduction initiatives to result in estimated annualized savings of $65 million by Jun 2017. Related charges will be roughly $50 million. In addition, the other programs are likely to generate savings of $75$90 million by Dec 2018. Related charges will be $105$125 million.

KENNAMETAL INC Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

KENNAMETAL INC Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | KENNAMETAL INC Quote

Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider



With a market capitalization of $2.15 billion, Kennametal currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). Better-ranked stocks in the machinery industry include Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. AIT, Barnes Group B and Chart Industries Inc. GTLS. All these stocks carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.



Applied Industrial Technologies earnings estimates for fiscal 2017 and fiscal 2018 represent year-over-year growth of 2% and 5.9% respectively. Average earnings surprise for the last four quarters is +4.93%.



Barnes Group reported better-than-expected results in the last quarter, with a positive earnings surprise of 6.78%. Also, bottom-line expectations for 2017 have improved over the past 60 days.



Chart Industries financial performance has been impressive, with an average positive earnings surprise of 428.37% for the last four quarters. Also, earnings estimates for 2016 and 2017 have been revised upward over the last 60 days.



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To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
* Nissan to pick KKR as preferred bidder for 41 pct stake-Nikkei

* KKR would buy remaining shares from other shareholders - Nikkei

* Calsonic shares surge 29 percent

* Nissan accounts for 80 pct of Calsonic's global sales (Adds Calsonic stock price after resumption of trading)

By Junko Fujita and Naomi Tajitsu

TOKYO, Oct 28 (Reuters) - KKR & Co is set to be the preferred bidder to buy Nissan Motor Co supplier Calsonic Kansei Corp in a potential $3.8 billion deal, the Nikkei daily reported on Friday, sending shares of Calsonic surging 29 percent.

Nissan plans to sell its 41 percent stake in Calsonic and then the U.S. private equity firm would seek the remaining shares from other shareholders, the newspaper said, without citing sources.

Calsonic shares soared to 1,330 yen after their trading resumed in the afternoon. The shares were untraded most of the afternoon session on a glut of buy orders.

Calsonic shares closed at 1,030 yen on Thursday, valuing the company at 281 billion yen. If KKR buys the entire stake for 400 billion yen ($3.8 billion), the U.S. buyout firm would pay a 42 percent premium over the closing price of Thursday.

Calsonic Kansei said in a statement the company had nothing to comment about the report.

A spokesman for Nissan, which put its Calsonic stake up for sale earlier this year, said the report was not based on any announcement by the automaker. A spokeswoman for KKR declined to comment.

Bain Capital and MBK Partners were also bidding to buy the auto parts maker, which has a market value of about 280 billion yen ($2.7 billion), people with direct knowledge of the matter told Thomson Reuters LPC last month.

Calsonic specialises in interiors, electronics, air-conditioning units and compressors, and relies on Nissan for about 80 percent of its global sales. This heavy reliance on the Japanese car maker scared away other global private equity firms, sources have told Reuters. ($1 = 105.3300 yen) (Reporting by Junko Fujita and Naomi Tajitsu; Editing by Edwina Gibbs and Muralikumar Anantharaman)
The Standing Rock Sioux tribe has opposed the Dakota Access Pipeline since first learning about plans for the pipeline in 2014. But its only been in recent months that the issue has gained national attention, as thousands of protestersincluding many Native Americanshave gathered in North Dakota in attempt to block the 1,200-mile project. And, with both supporters and opponents vowing to fight through the harsh North Dakota winter, the battle shows no signs of ending anytime soon.

Heres what you need to know:

What is the Dakota Access Pipeline?

The pipeline is to be built by Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners and is designed to transport as many as 570,000 barrels of crude oil daily from North Dakota to Illinois. The pipeline would be a key conduit connecting oil wells in the states Bakken Shale, where the development of fracking has opened billions of gallons of new oil to recovery, to other valuable consumer markets, including the Gulf Coast, Midwest and East Coast. The nearly $4 billion project was first proposed in 2014 with an anticipated completion of this year.

Why are the Sioux and others protesting the project?

The pipeline has united a number of different interest groups with a variety of objections, but Native Americans have been at the center of the opposition. The pipeline would travel underneath the Missouri River, the primary drinking water source for the Standing Rock Sioux, a tribe of around 10,000 with a reservation in the central part of North and South Dakota. Builders of the pipeline insist that they have taken extraordinary measures to safeguard against disaster, but opponents point out that even the safest pipelines can leak. The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has reported more than 3,300 incidents of leaks and ruptures at oil and gas pipelines since 2010. And even the smallest spill could damage the tribes water supply. The Standing Rock Sioux also argue that the pipeline traverses a sacred burial ground. And while the land being used for the pipeline is not technically on its reservation, tribal leaders argue that the federal government did not adequately engage the Standing Rock Sioux during the permitting processa requirement under federal law.

Story continues

More broadly, environmental activists say the pipeline would contribute man-made climate change by building up the countrys oil infrastructure. They insist that fossil fuelsincluding the vast reserves in the Bakken Shaleneed to be kept in the ground to protect the world from the worst effects of climate change. Proponents of the pipeline argue that oil producers would likely ship the oil by rail line if construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline was halted, as much of the oil produced in North Dakota already isand argument that was also used in favor of the now canceled Keystone XL pipeline.

Read More: Shailene Woodley: The Truth About My Arrest

How have opponents and supporters responded?

Opponents of the project have responded with both protests and litigation in an attempt to slowand eventually stopthe pipeline. The protests began months ago with a core group of attendees, and have heated up recently as the issue gained more attention. There are now thousands of people at the construction site or in a nearby encampment, according to the tribe. Protesters have set up teepee and tent camps on land owned by Energy Transfer Partners to slow the progress of construction and have threatened to block the highway. More recently, celebrities and public figures like actor Shailene Woodley, actor Mark Ruffalo and civil rights activist Jesse Jackson have traveled to North Dakota in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux. The most dedicated protesters say they will remain through winter, even though the average low temperature in North Dakota reaches nearly 0 F (-17.8 C) in those months.

The tribe has also sued the Army Corps of Engineers, which permitted the project, alleging that the agency violated the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). NHPA requires the agency to consider the cultural significance of federally-permitted sites and NEPA to consider the implications for the waterways. The litigation is ongoing though a court rejected an argument that construction should be halted while the case winds through the courts.

Supporters of the pipelinewhich include state and local government leaders have showed little interest in accommodating the projects critics, particularly the protesters on the ground. North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple has called in the National Guard as well as an army of other police officials. More than 140 people were arrested this week, even as construction on the pipeline has continued.

Protesters and tribal leaders have accused officials of unnecessarily rough treatment. Police have used pepper spray, rubber bullets and concussion cannons, among other tactics, according to the tribe. Amy Goodman, a journalist with the Democracy Now! program, was arrested while covering the protest for allegedly trespassing. Footage she captured showed police officers allowing their dogs to charge protesters.

Read More: Does President Obama Want to Keep Fossil Fuels in the Ground?

How has the federal government responded?

The Obama administrationincluding the Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of Justice and the Department of Interiortemporarily blocked construction on the project in September in hopes of conducting a review, but a federal court intervened to allow the project to proceed. President Obama has taken no additional steps and has said nothing officially about the pipeline, but has come to the defense of protesters, saying youre making your voices heard at a White House event for tribal leaders.

What do the presidential candidates say?

The federal government has authority over the projects permits and the next Administration would have the power to cancel the projector at least revoke its permits after further assessment. Hillary Clinton declined to take a firm stance calling for both sides to find a path forward that serves the broadest public interest. Donald Trumpwho owns stock in Energy Transfer Partnershas called for the removal of regulations on the oil and gas industry but has not commented specifically on the pipeline.

Is the Dakota Access Pipeline the next Keystone XL?

The Dakota Access Pipeline has drawn parallels to the Keystone XL pipeline. Opposition to that project, which Obama eventually rejected, became a litmus test in the eyes of some activists for public officials to show their commitment to addressing environmental issues. But at the same time significant differences remain. Perhaps most importantly, Keystone crossed into Canada, making it an international issue that gave authority over its final approval to the State Department. The federal government has the authority over the Dakota Access Pipeline because it crosses interstate waterways. Stopping the project would be heavier lift for any administration.
From Cosmopolitan

Photo credit: Getty

Kristen Stewart and St. Vincent, aka falls hottest new couple (sorry, Hilary Duff and your hot trainer), made their first official public appearance together in Los Angeles on Wednesday. The pair, who were on hand to take in all the sights and sounds of the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Show, arrived in sleek ensembles and matching shades. Im pretty crazy about St. Vincents choker and KStews pants.



Photo credit: Getty

The pair sat near Emma Stone and Katy Perry during the show. This is pretty much the best-looking front row ever.



Photo credit: Getty

Photo credit: Getty

K-Stew also had a mini Twilight reunion with Nikki Reed.



Photo credit: Getty

But lets get back to Kristen and St. Vincent, whose real name is Annie Clark. The pair were first romantically linked in August after attending a comedy show in L.A. together. A source tells Us Weekly the two have been very romantic and K-Stew is always whispering closely in her ear and asking her opinion. The pair were most recently spotted at the New York Film Festival together, where K-Stews new film Certain Women screened. They have spent almost every day together since Kristen brought St. Vincent to her premiere on Oct. 3, according to a People source.



St. Vincent dated Cara Delevingne for more than one year before breaking up in the summer. Kristen was previously in an on-and-off again relationship with film producer Alicia Cargile. In Elle UKs September 2016 issue, K-Stew got candid about her relationship and said Im just really in love with my girlfriend Weve broken up a couple of times and gotten back together, and this time I was like, Finally, I can feel again.

Follow Peggy on Twitter.

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One of Argentinas highest-profile film-TV executives, Telefe movie division head Axel Kuschevatzky, a former director of Telefonica Studios, has been named the new president of Argentinas Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences.

Kuschevatzky heads up a new board of directors which includes actress Natalia Oreiro (Gilda, The German Doctor) as second vice president. Up-and-coming actor Joaquin Furriel (The Boss, Anatomy of a Crime) figures among its spokespersons.

Mauricio Macris government has sought to reverse many policies put in place under his predecessors. Argentinas film industry has bucked that trend. Its Academy is a case in point. Rather than abandoning the Academy, its president, Juan Jose Campanella, an Academy Award winner for The Secret in Their Eyes, will now serve as its first vice president.

The new boards appointment represents an ongoing project initiated under Juan Jose Campanellas leadership four years ago, Kuschevatzky said.

That includes a film restoration program. Part of our goal is to connect modern audiences with the Argentinian movie legacy, specially with movies that were huge box-office hits when they were released and deserve a close look today, Kuschevtazky added.

The Academys restoration department delivers new prints of 1974s The Truce, directed by Sergio Roman, and Argentinas first Oscar-nominated feature.

Its restoration overseen by Academy board members, Mujeres que Trabajan (Working Women, 1938), a classic comedy that made actress Nini Marshall a star, will screen at late Novembers Mar del Plata Festival, Latin Americas only A-grade event.

The Academy will go on taking Argentine cinema to the people, arranging screening in neighbourhoods, schools and federal prisons.

The new Academy board are likely to reach out to like institutions across Latin America, a move which is only natural given Kuschevatzky background as a co-producer via Telefe and Telefonica Studios of some of the most successful Argentine international co-productions of the last decade: The Secret in Their Eyes, Futbol, Wild tales, The Clan, Paulina.

Story continues

But challenges, and basic ones at that, still remain. Few Latin American countries have Academies of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences or their equivalent. Hence in part the huge rows that can brew when Oscar entry selection is left to committees. Apart from Mexicos Academy, created in 1946, those Academies that do exist  Colombias, created in 2010, Argentinas, founded in 2004  are still relatively young. Their multiple challenges and opportunities to launch aid programs, mean they have to run while still walking.

The Argentine Academy is concerned about membership, for example. But in Argentina this doesnt turn on diversity but merely firing up the Academys membership base, currently at more than 300.

Some branches  like casting directors  werent part of our institution or widely under-represented, said Kuschevatzky adding that, as Argentinas regional industries build, filmmakers from some other regions outside Buenos Aires dont have any presence at all.

Academies can serve ad-hoc purposes as well, When Macris new government put out the appointment of the new head of Argentinas Incaa Film Institute to industry consultation, it was Campanella who organised an industry forum, grouping industry associations and trade unions to discuss the matter. In a unified opinion, a first in our country, Kuschevatzsky commented, the forum put forward the name of Alejandro Cacetta, now Incaas president.

Argentinas Academy will continue organising the Premio Sur awards, its own Argentine Oscars, as well as supporting the pan-regional Platino Awards, which take in movies from Latin America, Spain and Portugal.

Its members also select Argentinas submissions to the foreign-language Oscars and Spanish Academy Goyas. Here Argentina has seen substantial success. Over the last 10 years, Argentina has won one foreign-language Oscar  2009s Secret  and been nominated for a second with 2014s Wild Tales. Since 2004, it has also snagged seven wins and four more nominations for best Spanish-language foreign film at the Goyas. Kuschevatzky will be crossing his fingers this year for Oscar entry The Distinguished Citizen, which won male lead Oscar Martinez a best actor Volpi Cup award at Venice in September. The new boards mandate runs through October 2018.

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Cannes: FilmSharks Brings 'Gilda' to the International Market

Jorge Estrada Mora, Argentinian Producer, Dies at 68
Marriage is all about compromise for Lauren Conrad and her husband, William Tell.

After the couple couldnt come to an agreement on a sofa for their cozy California home, they had one custom built based on a photo she found online. Tell, 36, gave in to Conrads request for white, but with one caveat:

The only way that my husband agreed to a white couch was if we had it upholstered in Sunbrella fabric, Conrad, 30, tells MyDomaine. Looking back, it was probably a good call.

RELATED: Lauren Conrad on Her Lifestyle Empire and Being the Next Martha Stewart: Those Are Some Big Shoes to Fill

WATCH THIS: Lauren Conrads Home Is Giving Us Major Kitchen Envy

Conrad has gone from starring on The Hills to living atop them, and her white, bright home that overlooks the Pacific Palisades is no exception to the fashion designers Instagram-worthy style.

I like my living space to feel clean but welcoming, she says. I feel like your home should be a representation of your style, so I like to include personal items throughout.

A clean-lined kitchen with stain-resistant Mystery White marble is perfect for Conrad, who calls herself, a hurricane in the kitchen. Above the generously sized dining room table sits her collection of vintage bottles and antique teacups that she somehow sneaked by Tell. Im not sure how my husband let me keep it there, she says. I just sort of unpacked it there and then didnt say anything, and he was really cool about it.

RELATED: WATCH: Kelsea Ballerini Shows Off Her Favorite Room in the World

Conrad was also dedicated to keeping the abodes Spanish style intact. I think when you try to completely change a space to be something its not, it doesnt look as natural; it looks look a little awkward, she says. So I wanted to work with what was here and customize it.

While the house is private enough to feel like a getaway, for Conrad, who admits she can tend to over-commit myself, the entertaining guru still loves to host her friends and family at her relaxing retreat. I love that its a great space to entertain both inside and out, she says.

For the full details of Conrads home, visit MyDomaine.




CAIRO (Reuters) - An explosive device detonated along a main road in Cairo on Friday as security forces passed by, killing at least one civilian passerby and injuring another, the interior ministry said on Facebook. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Egypt faces an Islamist insurgency led by Islamic State's branch in North Sinai, where hundreds of soldiers and police have been killed. There have also been attacks in Cairo and other cities. Last week, Brigadier General Adel Rajaaie, an armoured division commander who had served in northern Sinai, was shot dead in front of his home on the outskirts of Cairo. A newly-emerged militant group calling itself Louwaa el Thawra, or the Revolution Brigade, claimed responsibility for the attack on a Twitter account that was suspended shortly after the claim. Judges and other senior officials have increasingly been targeted by radical Islamists angered by hefty prison sentences imposed on members of the now-outlawed Muslim Brotherhood. The Brotherhood, which says it is a peaceful organisation, and its candidate Mohamed Mursi won Egypt's first free elections after the 2011 uprising that ended Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule. Since Mursi was deposed in 2013 after mass protests against his rule, former army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has overseen a crackdown in which hundreds of Brotherhood supporters have been killed and thousands jailed or sentenced to death. Another new militant group called the Hasm ("decisiveness") Movement has claimed responsibility for five attacks since July, including an assassination attempt on Zakaria Abdel Aziza, a senior Egyptian prosecutor. The group said the attack was in revenge for death sentences handed down to thousands of convicts. (Reporting by Ahmed Tolba; Writing by Amina Ismail; Editing by Tom Heneghan)
Have you been eager to see how Legg Mason Inc. LM performed in second-quarter fiscal 2017 in comparison with the market expectations? Lets quickly scan through the key facts from this Maryland-based investment management companys earnings release this morning:



An Earnings Beat



Legg Mason came out with earnings per share of 63 cents, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 58 cents. Results were aided by higher operating revenues and growth in assets under management (AUM).



The reported quarter result includes certain non-recurring charges and a tax benefit.



How Was the Estimate Revision Trend?



You should note that the earnings estimate for Legg Mason remained stable prior to the earnings release. The Zacks Consensus Estimate of 58 cents per share has remained unchanged over the last 7 days.



However, Legg Mason does not boast of a decent earnings surprise history. Before posting earnings beat in fiscal Q2, the company delivered positive surprise in only one of the trailing four quarters. Overall, the company lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate by an average of 59.4% in the trailing four quarters.

LEGG MASON INC Price and EPS Surprise

LEGG MASON INC Price and EPS Surprise | LEGG MASON INC Quote

Revenue Up Y/Y



Legg Mason posted total revenue of $748.4 million, which compared favorably with the year-ago number of $673.1 million. However, it missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $752 million.



Key Developments to Note:



Assets under management stood at $732.9 billion as of Sep 30, 2016, up 9% year over year.



Net income came in at $66.4 million, up 3.3% year over year.



Operating Expenses amounted to $620.7 million, up nearly 15% from year-ago quarter.



What Zacks Rank Says



The estimate revisions that we discussed earlier have driven a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for Legg Mason. However, since the latest earnings performance is yet to be reflected in the estimate revisions, the rank is subject to change. While things apparently look favorable, it all depends on what sense the just-released report makes to the analysts.



(You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 (Strong Buy) Rank stocks here.)



Check back later for our full write up on this Legg Mason earnings report!



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Zacks Investment Research
LinkedIn Corporation LNKD reported better-than-expected results for the third quarter of 2016. The professional networking company posted adjusted earnings (excluding accretion of redeemable non-controlling interest, amortization of intangible assets and non-cash interest expense but including stock-based compensation) on a proportionate tax basis of 39 cents. The Zacks Consensus Estimate was pegged at 27 cents. However, in the year-ago quarter, the company had incurred adjusted loss of 6 cents.

On a GAAP basis, LinkedIn reported earnings of 6 cents per share, while in the year-ago quarter, it had posted a loss of 36 cents.

LinkedIns third-quarter revenues surged 23.1% year over year to $959.8 million and came ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $956 million. The year-over-year upside was largely backed by the companys ongoing investments in mobile, global expansion of content and jobs, and the acquisitions of lynda.com and Connectifier.

Segment-wise, revenues at Talent Solutions surged 24% from the year-ago quarter to $623 million. Revenues at Marketing Solutions jumped 26% to $175 million driven primarily by higher sponsored updates. LinkedIn garnered $162 million in revenues from Premium Subscriptions, up 17%.

LinkedIns cumulative member count rose 18% to 467 million at the third quarter end. The company witnessed a 6% increase in unique visiting members and a 27% surge in member page views.

Geographically, LinkedIns revenues from the U.S. increased 21.4% on a year-over-year basis to $588.2 million. International revenues, which comprise Other Americas (Canada, Latin America and South America), the Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA), and the Asia-Pacific (APAC) regions, jumped 25.8% to $371.6 million. Meanwhile, revenues from Other Americas, EMEA and APAC increased 16.3%, 25.6% and 33%, respectively.

Total costs and expenses in the quarter rose 14.8% to $936.7 million. As a percentage of revenues, total costs and expenses were 97.6%, compared with 104.7% a year ago.

Story continues

On an adjusted basis (excluding amortization of intangible assets but including stock-based compensation), the company posted operating income of $66.2 million in the quarter under review, registering more than a six-fold jump over the year-ago quarters level of $9.8 million.

LINKEDIN CORP-A Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

LINKEDIN CORP-A Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | LINKEDIN CORP-A Quote

Balance Sheet & Cash Flow

LinkedIn ended the quarter with cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities of $3.365 billion, compared with $3.312 billion in the preceding quarter. During the quarter, the company generated approximately $373.3 million in cash flow from operations, while that for the first nine months of 2016 was $957.9 million.

Our Take

LinkedIn, a leader in the emerging online professional networking segment, enjoys increasing popularity and steady growth worldwide. The company posted better-than-expected results in the third quarter and witnessed a strong year-over-year improvement on both fronts. Moreover, it recorded an impressive 18% surge in the cumulative member count.

However, the company has neither updated its outlook for 2016 nor did it hold a conference call, all because of its pending merger with Microsoft Corp. MSFT. Notably, the two companies entered into a merger agreement on Jun 11, under which Microsoft will acquire LinkedIn for a total cash consideration of approximately $26.2 billion.

LinkedIns traction in the mobile segment is particularly impressive, owing primarily to the launch of its applications for Apples AAPL iPhones and Android-based smartphones. Synergies from its acquisitions  Lynda.com, Newsle and Bizo  are expected to contribute to earnings through targeted marketing strategies over the long term, apart from enhancing user experience.

We believe that LinkedIns initiatives to boost advertising revenues through product launches and partnership programs are noteworthy. Meanwhile, advertisers are taking note of the companys growing user base, in our view.

LinkedIns investments in strategic products are essential as its peers like Facebook FB and Twitter have started looking for opportunities to expand in the professional networking space.

On the flip side, continued investments in new and improved products and services might dent LinkedIns profits in the short term, even though, over the long run, these investments will drive member growth and user engagement.

Currently, LinkedIn carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
* Traders' ability to move quickly attractive to funds

* PE targeting 20-30 percent returns - source

By Clara Denina

LONDON, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Funds are taking large stakes in new, smaller, metal trading houses because they see potential for lucrative earnings in the sector, which investors had ignored due to poor returns.

The attraction of small trading outfits is their ability to move quickly when a profit-making opportunity appears and to trade typically in both physical and paper markets.

They can also take stakes in companies with high-quality assets, should cash be needed, and use offtake deals - an agreement to buy future output.

Among the new start-ups are Hartree, where private equity firm Oaktree Capital has a large stake, and Concord Resources, backed by commodities-focused Ospraie Management.

Surprisingly, these investments come at a time of low prices for industrial metals such as copper and aluminium , which hit 6-1/2-year lows in January this year and November 2015 respectively.

The metals industry is gathering in London for LME Week, with volumes on the London Metal Exchange tumbling as commodity markets struggle to emerge from a global slump.

The main driver of lower raw materials prices is a slowdown in economic and demand growth in top consumer China - behind the supercycle that ran from 2002 to 2011 - as the country aims to transition its economy away from manufacturing towards services.

Hartree Partners, founded by former Goldman Sachs energy traders, expanded into metals with a handful of traders in 2015.

"Hartree is a long-term investment for Oaktree Capital, they are probably looking at metals and mining from a distressed angle, getting ready to jump in when valuations come down," a source close to the company said.

"They may accept lower returns to get in, but eventually they would be looking for numbers near 20-30 percent."

Meanwhile, Concord Resources, which started to trade in January and has 36 employees globally, is on track to sell just below 1 million tonnes of refined metals this year.

Story continues

This compares with volumes of 5.2 million tonnes of non-ferrous refined metals traded by giant trader Trafigura in 2015, which retains a market share of 20-22 percent.

Dwight Anderson, founder of Ospraie, said larger trading firms had lost their appetite for smaller deals and "created a market opportunity for people who are customer-service focused, client-focused on small tonnage".

PREPARED FOR RISK

Most of the new trading shops are run by ex-management teams of larger merchants such as Noble, Gunvor and Mercuria, which have decided to focus on higher-margin commodities such as oil where volatility is rife.

"The downsizing of major trading houses means that new entrants won't need to build new trading teams, they can use the veterans' knowledge and connections," said Richard Jakob, client partner metals, at recruiter Commodity Appointments.

Investors prepared to consider metals and accept higher counterparty risks in the sector, which many firms and funds have abandoned, could reap rich rewards.

"As a fund you can effectively borrow at zero and capitalise or lend to a physical metals trading company and earn 11-12 percent," said Phillip Price, CEO at advisory firm Ferrometrics. "That's a very nice return compared with something like government bonds."

The yield on U.S. 10-year Treasury bonds is less than 2 percent, while that on 10-year German Bunds is less than 1 percent.

Also helping the newcomers are banks exiting metals, partly because of new regulations limiting their activities in physical markets.

Private equity and hedge funds' appetite for commodities and commodity assets - from copper mines to oil tankers - is not new, as this has always been deemed crucial information that can be used for punting in the futures market, and also as a means of diversification away from public equities.

However, during the so-called commodity super-cycle, when crude oil was above $100 a barrel and copper touched $10,000 a tonne, credit costs for private equity entities were exorbitant and often unmatched by profitability.

(Reporting by Clara Denina; Additional reporting by Pratima Desai; Editing by Veronica Brown and Dale Hudson)
London (AFP) - Horrified by the desperate plight of traumatised children in the "Jungle" migrant camp in France, one London borough is seeking to provide a new life in Britain for unaccompanied youngsters.

As bulldozers raze the sprawling camp in the northern French port city of Calais this week, busloads of children have been arriving in Britain.

With the UK promising to take in hundreds more, local authorities face the challenge of resettling these youngsters -- many of whom have fled war and poverty in countries like Afghanistan, Eritrea and Sudan.

But media reports say one in four local authorities have refused to take in any children of the Jungle.

One London borough, Hammersmith and Fulham, has been at the forefront of efforts to bring them to Britain under the so-called Dubs Amendment passed in May, vowing to accommodate 15 in total.

While children with family ties in Britain have the right to claim asylum here, the Dubs legislation allows vulnerable youngsters with no such ties to seek refuge.

Taking 15 of the 1,500 children housed temporarily in shipping containers in the Jungle may not seem like many.

But Hammersmith and Fulham hopes its example will encourage other local authorities to follow suit, as Paris and London squabble over who is to blame for their plight.

- 'Driven mad by fear' -

Stephen Cowan, the borough council's leader, visited Calais in August with other London officials and was shocked by what he saw.

"You had this acute urine stench that hit you in the back of the throat," he told AFP, describing the "dusty, intimidating environment".

One child in particular struck him: a nine-year-old boy from Afghanistan who was "shivering" despite the summer heat.

"He looked overcome with stress. I asked the interpreter why he was shivering and he said: 'This boy has been driven mad by fear'."

The boy told Cowan: "I want somewhere where I will be safe at night and I will not be hurt anymore."

Story continues

- Chaos and tears -

Moved by the experience, Cowan pledged that his plush west London borough would find homes for such vulnerable children -- though not all residents have supported the initiative.

A week before the camp was razed, the borough allowed 13 social workers to go to Calais to assess the needs of unaccompanied minors.

Social worker Rebecca Harvey recalled "chaotic" scene on arriving the day after police used tear gas during clashes at the camp.

She and her colleagues worked with an interpreter to take down key details: where the children were from, their state of mind and health, and hopes for the future.

One 13-year-old boy said he had left his home in Afghanistan after his father was beheaded and his mother shot dead in front of him by jihadists.

At the camp, "he was living in a tent with a man he didn't know and crying all the time.

"He said he just thought every day 'maybe it would be better if I threw myself under a truck and I didn't have to suffer anymore'," Harvey told AFP.

"His story was not unique by any stretch of the imagination."

Since mid-October, more than 200 children have arrived in Britain from Calais and more transfers are due in the coming days, the Home Office interior ministry says.

French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve has said all minors "with proven family links in Britain" will eventually be transferred there, and that London has committed to reviewing all other cases where it is "in the child's interest" to settle across the Channel.

On Thursday, the first five of Hammersmith and Fulham's quota -- boys aged 11 and 12 -- arrived in London to register for asylum and were placed immediately into foster care.

With foster places scarce in the area, the authority has secured them homes, using government funding, outside the borough where carers are more readily available.

There they will be provided with access to education, health care, and support services including English language tuition, a council spokesman said.

The challenge now is to find "safe houses" in Britain, France or elsewhere in Europe for "every single one" of the 1,500 children remaining in Calais, said Cowan.

"Those children can't be allowed to get lost."
A London pub has been named Michelin Pub of the Year - the first time the title has been won by somewhere in the capital.

Proper neighbourhood pub The Marksman in Bethnal Green won the title ahead of more than 500 establishments featured in Michelins latest Eating Out In Pubs Guide.

Chef-owners Tom Harris and Jon Rotheram won praise for their menus offering straightforward British dishes such as devilled mussels on toast, skate with shrimps and turnip tops, and pheasant and trotter pie.

Proper neighbourhood pub - The Marksman was praised by the Michelin Guide (Pictures: PA)

The Marksman, which also received a Michelin Bib Gourmand, was praised for its regular events with guest chefs, live music and DJs, and its summer roof terrace, friendly atmosphere and attentive staff.

The guides editor, Rebecca Burr, said: The Marksman cleverly combines a place to drink with new era pub food.

MORE: The 20 towns and cities in Britain that pay the most tax

MORE: Brrr! Winter to arrive in Britain next week with below freezing temperatures

She added: "One of the things we love about it is that its a proper neighbourhood pub first and foremost, with a cosy, traditional bar in which to enjoy a pint of local ale or a bottle of craft beer.

"The passion that Tom and Jon have for their first venture together is obvious and its great to see them using some lesser-known ingredients to create gutsy, keenly priced and wonderfully fresh dishes. This is British comfort food at its best.

Revamps - the pub reopened in 2015 after extensive refurbishment

Mr Rotheram said: Were absolutely thrilled to have been crowned Michelins Pub of the Year and this award is credit to the whole team who have worked so hard to create a pub that serves delicious food in a friendly, welcoming atmosphere.

"Having reopened the pub in 2015 following an extensive refurbishment, which included the creation of an upstairs dining room, its a massive coup to have scooped this prestigious title so soon afterwards. Needless to say were incredibly proud.

Story continues

Delicious food - the pub was praised for its food
By Huw Jones and William James

LONDON (Reuters) - Failing to maintain access for banks to the European Union market after Brexit would be an act of "economic sabotage" that would ripple across Britain, London Mayor Sadiq Khan will say on Thursday.

Banks in Britain have said they are preparing to move staff and activities to mainland Europe as soon as next year unless access to the bloc's single market is maintained.

Khan, a member of the centre-left opposition Labour Party, is due to make the remarks in a speech at a dinner in the City of London financial district. He will also say that mishandling Brexit might have the biggest impact on financial services since "Big Bang" deregulation 30 years ago.

That event helped to propel London to the top of the global financial centre league tables, a ranking that will be hard to keep without EU market access, bankers have said.

"If the proper agreements aren't negotiated, there will be serious knock-on impacts with jobs and billions of revenues lost - something that would hit the entire country, not just London," Khan will say.

"It's frustrating, to say the least, that much of what we are saying seems to be falling on deaf ears."

While Khan's remit as mayor does not include responsibility for setting financial policy in London, he is the capital's most high-profile advocate and one of the Labour Party's most influential figures.

But Khan's position jars with that of John McDonnell, Labour's most senior finance spokesman, underlining the rifts within Labour which critics say are watering down the party's influence on the Brexit process.

BANKERS' BREXIT

In a separate speech on Thursday, McDonnell accused the ruling Conservative party of looking to cut a special deal for Britain's financial sector.

"Tory (Conservative) cabinet members are looking to cook up special deals for their friends in the City of London," he said.

"They want a 'Bankers Brexit', in the interests of an elite few, not the majority."

Story continues

McDonnell, who was last month criticised by business groups for setting out a left-wing economic agenda, said that while he wanted to defend banks' access to the EU single market, in return they had to "show clearly that they are delivering for this country".

Khan will call for the government to aim for a "unique" deal with the EU that would avoid denting financial services, the economy's single biggest sector.

"If we fail to get a good Brexit deal, businesses are more likely to move to New York, Singapore and Hong Kong than to other cities in Europe," Khan will say.

A tenth of workers in the City are from other EU countries.

Banks in London have an "EU passport" allowing them to operate freely across the bloc, but bankers expect that after Brexit, any access to the European market will be on less favourable terms than now.

(Editing by Andrew Roche)
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Lufthansa's <LHAG.DE> budget airline Eurowings and cabin crew union UFO have agreed to hold talks on Sunday to try to resolve a years-long dispute over pay and working conditions and avert further strikes.

Eurowings said on Friday it aimed to hammer out an agreement with UFO quickly, adding mediation would be the best way to achieve this.

Lufthansa's Germanwings unit, which is being merged with Eurowings, has separately asked UFO to resume talks next week, Eurowings said.

Lufthansa cabin crew and pilots have embarked on a series of strikes over the last few years as the airline battles to reduce costs in order to compete with low-cost rivals and long-haul carriers with leaner cost bases.

On Thursday, cabin crew staged a 24-hour walkout at both Eurowings and Germanwings after talks on new contracts at Eurowings collapsed, forcing the two budget carriers to cancel hundreds of flights.

UFO has threatened to call for two more days of strikes next week.

Eurowings put forward a new offer last week that includes an average pay increase of around 7 percent. At Germanwings, UFO said it has failed to reach an agreement on part-time contracts.

(Reporting by Maria Sheahan; Editing by Edward Taylor and Mark Potter)
Apple

Apple debuted the new MacBook Pro and in America, prices are a bit steep, set at $2399 for the 15-inch version. But if youre looking in your wallet and wondering if you can live entirely on ramen for a month, which you cant, take a moment and be thankful youre not living in Britain.

British pricing for the MacBook Pro is through the roof, according to the Verge, and in fact, Apples store update yesterday boosted prices on Apple products across the board by hundreds of dollars. The Apple Tax, never cheap in the first place, seems to have gotten a massive hike in the United Kingdom. Why? Brexit, of course.

Ever since the Brexit vote surprised the world by going through, Britains economy has turned into a black hole not even billionaires can escape. The pounds decrease is causing problems across the board, but British consumers are feeling it most keenly in their pocketbooks, as the price of everything from household staples to luxuries like the MacBook Pro skyrockets.

Its not likely to improve, either. An attempt by a coalition of Northern Irish citizens rights groups and politicians to shut down Brexit just lost in court, and the pound is more volatile thanks to Brexit headlines. Part of this is just nobody knows where Britain, having jumped off an economic cliff, will actually land. No landing is good, but some are gentler than others. No matter what, though, if Brexit goes through, Apple fans in the UK can expect their stuff to cost much, much more.

(via The Verge)
By Jonathan Stempel

(Reuters) - The court-appointed trustee liquidating Bernard Madoff's firm said on Friday he has reached a settlement with the family of late Beverly Hills money manager Stanley Chais that will provide more than $277 million to victims of Madoff's Ponzi scheme.

Irving Picard, the trustee, said victims will receive at least $232 million of cash, and the rights to $30.7 million of assets that are expected to be sold.

A separate $15 million fund will pay claims by California investors, resolving litigation by that state's Attorney General Kamala Harris, and which had been brought in 2009 by her predecessor, California Governor Jerry Brown.

Friday's settlement requires approval by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Stuart Bernstein in Manhattan, who oversees the liquidation of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC. A hearing is scheduled for Nov. 22.

The cash payout would boost to $11.46 billion the sum that Picard has recovered for former Madoff customers, or 65 percent of their estimated $17.5 billion loss. Picard has said half of the 2,597 accounts with valid claims have been fully paid off.

Madoff, 78, is serving a 150-year prison term after pleading guilty to running a decades-long fraud uncovered in December 2008.

Chais, who died in September 2010 at the age of 84, once handled investments for elite Hollywood clients like Oscar-winning director Steven Spielberg, and had been a close friend of Madoff since the 1960s.

Picard had sought to recoup $1.32 billion of "fictitious profits" that he claimed the Chais defendants, including Chais' widow Pamela, withdrew from Madoff's firm.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in June 2009 filed a related civil lawsuit against Chais, claiming he ignored red flags that Madoff's seemingly steady returns were bogus.

In a court filing, Picard's lawyers said the settlement covered all of Stanley Chais' estate and substantially all of his widow's assets, and represented "a good faith, complete and total compromise."

Story continues

Chais had maintained that he was also a Madoff victim and had lost nearly all of his own money.

Lawyers for the Chais defendants did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Through Sept. 30, more than $1.42 billion has been spent on recovery efforts, including $824.6 million for legal fees for Picard's law firm Baker & Hostetler and $370.2 million for consultant fees, a Thursday court filing shows.

A $4 billion fund overseen by former SEC Chairman Richard Breeden will also compensate Madoff victims.

The cases are Picard v Chais et al, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of New York, No. 09-ap-01172; and In re: Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC in the same court, No. 08-01789.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Steve Orlofsky and Cynthia Osterman)
CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's top court on Friday ruled that President Nicolas Maduro is indeed Venezuelan, responding to years of opposition speculation that the socialist leader was in fact born in neighboring Colombia and has dual citizenship. "The incontrovertible evidence demonstrates with absolute certainty that the aforementioned Venezuelan head of state was born in Caracas," said the Supreme Court ruling, which also assured Maduro has no other nationality. The court did not say what evidence it reviewed. Opposition leaders have demanded that Maduro show a birth certificate, and have noted discrepancies between different statements by public officials regarding where he was born. Some have sought to remove him from office on the grounds that a second nationality would not allow him to hold the presidency. That effort has never advanced because opposition activists have been unable to obtain his birth certificate. The issue surfaced this week during a largely symbolic political trial of Maduro being carried out by the opposition-led National Assembly, which has accused him of violating democratic principles. "The president has been repeatedly asked to show his birth certificate to put an end to conjecture about his dual citizenship and until now he has not done so," said National Assembly President Henry Ramos on Thursday. Maduro, who over 20 years rose from a bus driver and union leader to foreign minister and then president, dismisses such claims as a smear campaign against him. (Reporting by Deisy Buitrago; Writing by Brian Ellsworth; Editing by Bernard Orr)
On Tuesday night , 43-year-old Jason Eaton strolled into Greensburg, Indianas police station and asked if he could talk to an officer.

Then something unusual happened: Eaton met with a detective and allegedly confessed to shooting his girlfriend  a woman hed tried proposing to, unsuccessfully, just hours earlier, according to court documents obtained by PEOPLE.

He has since been charged with murdering the mother of two.

An arrest affidavit alleges that Eaton was talking to his girlfriend  44-year-old Wendy Sabatini  in the upstairs bedroom of the couples Greensburg home on Tuesday afternoon when he pulled a velvety ring box from his pocket, opening it to reveal an engagement ring.

Eaton allegedly told investigators that Sabatini cut him off before he could even pop the question. Upon seeing the ring, Sabatini stopped Eaton and declined his imminent proposal, the affidavit alleges.

Eaton then retrieved a firearm from a nightstand and moved behind Sabatini, who was seated on the opposite side of the bed, he allegedly told investigators, according to the affidavit.

Eaton said the gun fired, striking Sabatini in the head, the affidavits allegations continue. Eaton said he left the gun in the bedroom, went back downstairs, and eventually left the house.

Not long after the shooting, Eaton allegedly told detectives he drove to the home of a female friend. Eaton said he told that he messed up and he thinks he killed Sabatini, the affidavit alleges.  transported Eaton to the Greensburg Police Department.

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

As soon as Eaton allegedly revealed to police he had shot his girlfriend, officers rushed to their home, according to the affidavit. There they found Sabatinis son, who was eating dinner after just returning home from a school-related internship.

Story continues

When asked where his mother was, the son told officers she was at work, according to the affidavit. He also told them he was unaware of any problems his mother may have been having with Eaton.

Police searched the home and found Sabatinis body in the bedroom she shared with Eaton, the affidavit states. She had a single bullet wound to the crown of her head, and officers recovered a gun at the scene that they believe was the weapon used.

Police confirm to PEOPLE that Sabatini had two children and was also a grandmother. She and Eaton worked the late shift together at an auto parts manufacturing plant in Greensburg.

Some of Sabatinis friends have launched a GoFundMe campaign to help fund her funeral. (PEOPLE could not immediately reach her friends or family.)

A court official tells PEOPLE Eaton has yet to enter a plea to the charges against him and has no defense attorney on record.




NAIROBI (Reuters) - A knife-wielding man who police described as a criminal was shot dead outside the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi on Thursday after he attacked and injured a Kenyan police officer. The motive was not immediately clear, but no U.S. embassy personnel were involved in the incident. National police spokesman George Kinoti said an investigation had begun and said the man was killed by the police officer in self defence. "It was a lone criminal who attacked a police officer," Kinoti told Reuters. "He was armed with a knife" A U.S. Embassy spokeswoman confirmed there had been a "shooting incident" outside the mission, which is located in a heavily secured compound in the north of the capital. "No embassy personnel were involved," U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Fiona Evans said, without giving further details. Kenyan media said the police officer had been guarding one of the entrances to the embassy compound when he was assaulted. (Writing by Edmund Blair; Editing by Kevin Liffey, Larry King)
People don't like change. Anecdotally, most of us know this. But there's a well-known behavioral phenomenon called the "status-quo bias" that shows why people prefer the current situation over something unknown.

In a 1991 academic paper, "Anomalies: The Endowment Effect, Loss Aversion, and Status Quo Bias," researchers Daniel Kahneman, Jack L. Knetsch and Richard H. Thaler showed people associated loss with change.

In layman's terms, it means people are happier to accept the status quo -- even if it's not ideal -- than make a change whose implications may be unclear. Think of it as the devil-you-know phenomenon.

This month, the change that has Americans worried is, of course, the upcoming presidential election.

[See: 13 Ways to Take the Emotions Out of Investing.]

Historically, October has been a choppy month in the U.S. markets. According to data from FactSet and State Street Global Advisors, October is the month in which the Standard & Poor's 500 index has both the highest volatility and lowest return on average from 1988 through 2015,. The second-most volatile month, with the next highest level of drawdowns? September.

September 2016 saw the S&P 500 decline just 0.50 percent, a number that may surprise some who believe the recent election-focused nail-biting has driven markets down sharply.

But fear remains, particularly given the contentious nature of this election. According to polling organization Rasmussen, only 30 percent of likely voters believe the country is "headed in the right direction" as of Oct. 10.

Polls are showing Democrat Hillary Clinton with a lead over Republican rival Donald Trump, and some forecasters are projecting a Clinton victory.

For markets, that's essentially the same as maintaining the status quo. Clinton is a well-known political figure, and she represents the party currently in the White House. Her policies and plans for an administration are fairly well understood.

In addition, with Congressional races also at stake, traditional divisions look likely to remain in place, potentially resulting in the gridlock so familiar to U.S. voters.

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Trump's potential effect on government spending are largely unknown, which worries markets in the short term, despite a possible long-term stimulative effect should he boost spending the way many expect.

[See: 7 Ways to Avoid Financial Stress Over the Holidays.]

Each side fears the opposing candidate can wreak havoc on the financial markets, for differing reasons. Yes, there are risks of a new, unknown president, such as an increase in market volatility and accompanying drop in Treasury yields. Market volatility often results in a spike in gold prices, as well.

Despite worries about a president gone wild, Trump would still have to work with Congress, and even members of his own party are at significant odds with him. That could hamper his ability to achieve some of his goals.

For example, he won't have the authority to build a wall along the border with Mexico, reverse the North American Free Trade Agreement, deport millions of immigrants all at once, exit the North Atlantic Treaty Organization or prevent Muslim refugees from entering the country.

If Trump were to win, some industries, such as energy and defense, may see investment inflows. Perhaps some regulatory burdens on other industries may be relieved, also spurring new investment.

Regardless of who is president, the country will feel the effects of the business cycle and market cycle. The economic recovery, although shallow, began in June 2009. The bull market for equities began in March of that same year.

Nothing lasts forever, and that's especially true for market and economic cycles. So it wouldn't be in the least bit surprising to see an economic slowdown and a market pullback, regardless of who's president, and having nothing to do with the election results.

Here's another thing investors may find surprising: According to the FactSet/State Street data, between 1976 and 2012, the S&P 500 on average rallied in the months immediately after an election. If the incumbent party lost, the rally was been more muted than if the incumbent party won. Keep in mind: 1988, when George H. W. Bush was elected, was the only year during that time period in which a new president replaced an outgoing president of the same party.

[Read: Halloween ETFs Haul: 3 Tricks, 3 Treats.]

In other words, markets typically rally following an election, perhaps manifesting a collective sigh of relief that all the campaign insanity is finally over. Markets abhor uncertainty, and elections are chock full of uncertainty about possible reforms, legislation, taxes and new leadership style. The election removes that wild card, potentially paving the way for either a simple relief rally or rally based upon the market's expectations for the new administration.





More From US News & World Report


By Kate Holton and Costas Pitas

LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May's deal to keep Nissan investing in Britain opened the floodgates on Friday to demands from rival car companies chasing their own assurances from the government that they won't be hurt by Brexit.

Britain's biggest car maker Jaguar Land Rover (TAMO.NS) and its biggest engine maker Ford (F.N) welcomed the news that the Japanese group would build two new models in the northeastern English city of Sunderland. Both said they too needed to avoid the risk of being hit with tariffs on trade with the European Union.

While the exact nature of the deal remains unknown, its announcement raised the prospect that Britain might be adopting an interventionist approach to placate exporters as it prepares to leave the world's biggest trading bloc - a stark change for a country known for its hands-off approach to business.

"In isolation this wouldn't be a big issue, but this could be the start of a slippery slope where the government gets much more drawn into individual deals and negotiations than historically they have," Andrew Sentance, a former Bank of England policymaker and adviser to PwC, said.

Dismissive of the more interventionist approaches of countries such as France and Germany, Britain became a leading destination for foreign investment by coupling a flexible labor market and low taxes with little state involvement in business.

But the shock vote in June to leave the EU has heralded the biggest change in the way corporate Britain is run for at least a generation.

A source told Reuters on Thursday the British government promised extra support to Nissan in a written assurance that Brexit would not hit the competitiveness of the Sunderland plant, which exports 55 percent of its cars to Europe.

The government refused to go into details but said there had been no "sweetheart deal". Last month Nissan's CEO Carlos Ghosn warned that he would need a guarantee of compensation to offset any tariffs. Following a meeting with May earlier this month, Ghosn expressed confidence that her government would ensure Britain remained a competitive place to do business.

Story continues

News of the deal prompted an immediate reaction from rivals, who also raised the question of recruiting foreign staff if the government curbs immigration, as it has promised.

"We are talking to government at every level and asking for a tariff-free trading environment, access to talent and the same legislative framework we have now," Jaguar Land Rover said. "We want a level playing field."

While Nissan's Sunderland factory made nearly one in three of Britain's 1.6 million cars last year, Indian-owned Jaguar Land Rover produces more vehicles overall at several sites.

Other exporters were keeping a close eye on the Nissan developments, with the boss of Airbus UK saying the agreement showed the aerospace and defense sectors needed to work together.

One leading London banker, who declined to be named, said May appeared to be "playing to the home crowd" by prioritizing the auto industry over financial services.

WINNERS AND LOSERS

U.S. automaker Ford (F.N) said it needed to sell its British-made engines into Europe without tariffs and that it was looking for similar reassurances from the government.

"I don't think the government will be picking winners and losers in our industry," Jim Farley, vice president for Europe, Middle East & Africa, told Reuters. "I would be very surprised if the UK government treats different companies differently."

Britain's big carmakers are nearly all foreign-owned and ship more than half of their exports to the other 27 countries of the EU, making the industry's future one of the big question marks hanging over Britain's plan to quit the bloc.

Late Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher lured Nissan to open the Sunderland plant in 1986, beginning a recovery in British car-making that had nearly collapsed in the 1970s.

Colin Lawther, a senior vice president at Nissan, said Brexit had posed a "big hurdle" for the car industry. "The UK government has been very good at working with us over the last few months to remove the uncertainty as much as they possibly can," he told reporters.

Like most parts of England's industrial north, Sunderland voted strongly in favor of Brexit on June 23.

The deal led to speculation as to what the government had offered Nissan to persuade it to make the next generation of its Qashqai and X-Trail SUVs at Britain's largest car plant.

Vince Cable, a former business minister who helped persuade General Motors to keep its north of England plant open in 2012, said he believed the Nissan announcement was a sign that the government would push for a "soft Brexit" deal with the EU that avoided the imposition of tariffs altogether.

"One of the key factors in keeping General Motors here was the confidence they had that we would stay within the European single market and the customs union," he told Reuters.

Countries such as Turkey are part of the EU customs union without being member states, enabling them to trade freely with the bloc.

"I think (the government) almost certainly made it clear that British negotiating objectives will be to remain within the customs union," Cable said. "I can't see how anything other than a customs union arrangement would satisfy the car industry."

(Additional reporting by Helen Reid in London and Laurence Frost in Paris; editing by David Stamp)
By Kate Holton and Costas Pitas LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May's deal to keep Nissan <7201.T> investing in Britain opened the floodgates on Friday to demands from rival car companies chasing their own assurances from the government that they won't be hurt by Brexit. Britain's biggest car maker Jaguar Land Rover and its biggest engine maker Ford welcomed the news that the Japanese group would build two new models in the northeastern English city of Sunderland. Both said they too needed to avoid the risk of being hit with tariffs on trade with the European Union. While the exact nature of the deal remains unknown, its announcement raised the prospect that Britain might be adopting an interventionist approach to placate exporters as it prepares to leave the world's biggest trading bloc - a stark change for a country known for its hands-off approach to business. "In isolation this wouldn't be a big issue, but this could be the start of a slippery slope where the government gets much more drawn into individual deals and negotiations than historically they have," Andrew Sentance, a former Bank of England policymaker and adviser to PwC, said. Dismissive of the more interventionist approaches of countries such as France and Germany, Britain became a leading destination for foreign investment by coupling a flexible labour market and low taxes with little state involvement in business. But the shock vote in June to leave the EU has heralded the biggest change in the way corporate Britain is run for at least a generation. A source told Reuters on Thursday the British government promised extra support to Nissan in a written assurance that Brexit would not hit the competitiveness of the Sunderland plant, which exports 55 percent of its cars to Europe. The government refused to go into details but said there had been no "sweetheart deal". Last month Nissan's CEO Carlos Ghosn warned that he would need a guarantee of compensation to offset any tariffs. Following a meeting with May earlier this month, Ghosn expressed confidence that her government would ensure Britain remained a competitive place to do business. News of the deal prompted an immediate reaction from rivals, who also raised the question of recruiting foreign staff if the government curbs immigration, as it has promised. "We are talking to government at every level and asking for a tariff-free trading environment, access to talent and the same legislative framework we have now," Jaguar Land Rover said. "We want a level playing field." While Nissan's Sunderland factory made nearly one in three of Britain's 1.6 million cars last year, Indian-owned Jaguar Land Rover produces more vehicles overall at several sites. Other exporters were keeping a close eye on the Nissan developments, with the boss of Airbus UK saying the agreement showed the aerospace and defence sectors needed to work together. One leading London banker, who declined to be named, said May appeared to be "playing to the home crowd" by prioritising the auto industry over financial services. WINNERS AND LOSERS U.S. automaker Ford said it needed to sell its British-made engines into Europe without tariffs and that it was looking for similar reassurances from the government. "I don't think the government will be picking winners and losers in our industry," Jim Farley, vice president for Europe, Middle East & Africa, told Reuters. "I would be very surprised if the UK government treats different companies differently." Britain's big carmakers are nearly all foreign-owned and ship more than half of their exports to the other 27 countries of the EU, making the industry's future one of the big question marks hanging over Britain's plan to quit the bloc. Late Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher lured Nissan to open the Sunderland plant in 1986, beginning a recovery in British car-making that had nearly collapsed in the 1970s. Colin Lawther, a senior vice president at Nissan, said Brexit had posed a "big hurdle" for the car industry. "The UK government has been very good at working with us over the last few months to remove the uncertainty as much as they possibly can," he told reporters. Like most parts of England's industrial north, Sunderland voted strongly in favour of Brexit on June 23. The deal led to speculation as to what the government had offered Nissan to persuade it to make the next generation of its Qashqai and X-Trail SUVs at Britain's largest car plant. Vince Cable, a former business minister who helped persuade General Motors to keep its north of England plant open in 2012, said he believed the Nissan announcement was a sign that the government would push for a "soft Brexit" deal with the EU that avoided the imposition of tariffs altogether. "One of the key factors in keeping General Motors here was the confidence they had that we would stay within the European single market and the customs union," he told Reuters. Countries such as Turkey are part of the EU customs union without being member states, enabling them to trade freely with the bloc. "I think (the government) almost certainly made it clear that British negotiating objectives will be to remain within the customs union," Cable said. "I can't see how anything other than a customs union arrangement would satisfy the car industry." (Additional reporting by Helen Reid in London and Laurence Frost in Paris; editing by David Stamp)
ARABISKA FORWARD OPERATING BASE, Somalia  It was 9:30 a.m., in a desolate corner of Somalia, and Lt. Cpl. Juliet Uwimana was taking her tank for a test drive. She and the rest of Ugandas Battle Group 18 had been in the war-torn Lower Shabelle region for only a week, but already the battle group was on high alert.

Al-Shabab militants had overrun three similar forward-operating bases in the last year, killing more than 100 soldiers. They had also attacked dozens of other bases, including one just six miles from their post in Arabiska. But this morning was a quiet one  hence Uwimanas test drive in the T-55 tank. She stood on a metal seat as the machine jerked forward, spewing smoke from its massive treads and rolling through sand so deep it threatened to swallow the vehicle whole.

Uwimana is one of roughly 500 women in the Ugandan contingent of AMISOM, the 17,000-strong African Union force tasked with battling al-Shabab and securing the troubled Horn of Africa nation so that a political process can take root. They serve as drivers, gunners, and technicians in the motorized infantry division  roles that women were barred from in the U.S. military until as recently as last year. But in Somalia, female peacekeepers have been serving in these positions for years.

This is remarkable not only because al-Shabab is among the regions most dangerous terror groups, but because Somalia is generally one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a woman, according to various rankings and polls. Somalia has the highest prevalence of female genital mutilation in the world at 95 percent, among the highest maternal mortality rates at 1,600 deaths per 100,000 live births, and, though official statistics are unreliable, anecdotal evidence suggests that sexual assault remains an inescapable threat for most women across the country.

But the fact that AMISOM features so many women in combat roles is neither a matter of oversight, nor desperation. Its a strategic gambit. The female peacekeepers have an unspoken but very clear mandate: to prevent their male colleagues from perpetrating sexual violence against civilians and to help nurture faint stirrings of gender equality in Somalia.

Story continues

After a bumpy swing around the bases green Hesco barriers, Uwimanas tank gunner, Lt. Cpl. Lehi Chebet, calls down for the tanks driver to cut the engine, her voice nearly drowned out by its roar. The vehicle lurches to a halt and the fresh-faced tank gunner nimbly maneuvers her way out of its small opening, giving a short nod. The machine is ready.

Ugandan Lt. Cpl. Juliet Uwimana takes her tank for a test drive at Arabiska Forward Operating Base in Somalia. (CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM | FOREIGN POLICY)

For nearly three decades, Somalia has been the worlds default example of a failed state. After the collapse of dictator Siad Barres regime in 1991, the country fell under the sway of a patchwork of local warlords whose bloody inter-clan fighting destroyed infrastructure and crops and produced one of the worst famines the world has ever seen. Out of this chaos came the terrorist group al-Shabab, which pledged allegiance to al Qaeda and seized control of large swaths of the country, including parts of the capital, Mogadishu.

AMISOM first deployed to Somalia in 2007 under an African Union Peace and Security Council mandate to protect Somali infrastructure and government officials as well as to deliver humanitarian aid. Since then, the missions size, mandate, and geographical presence have dramatically increased. AMISOMs mission is now more counterinsurgency than peacekeeping. Its troops have pushed al-Shabab militants out of most urban areas and into sparsely populated regions like Lower Shabelle, where the two forces are engaged in a deadly game of cat and mouse.

But as AMISOMs presence has grown, so too has the controversy surrounding it. A 2014 Human Rights Watch report documented widespread sexual exploitation and assault of women and girls by Ugandan and Burundian troops within AMISOM. Since the report was released, AMISOM has created mechanisms for survivors of sexual violence to report accusations against soldiers. But it has also worked to keep new allegations of sexual assault from becoming public. According to U.N. and nongovernmental organization sources working on gender-based violence in Somalia, a 2013 internal U.N. report that alleged sexual assault by AMISOM soldiers was buried after researchers involved in writing it received death threats.

Deploying female peacekeepers has been a part of the U.N.s official strategy to fight sexual violence since 2000, when the Security Council passed Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security. The logic behind that resolution, which called for greater female participation in peacekeeping missions as well as new safeguards to prevent gender-based violence, was simple: Women are generally more comfortable speaking with female authorities, so deploying female blue helmets should make it easier for women to report cases of sexual violence and enhance the ability of missions like AMISOM to investigate such cases. The presence of female soldiers within peacekeeping battalions is also thought to make sexual violence against civilians less likely.

But beyond the U.N.s impressive claim, made in a study of Resolution 1325s implementation last year, that not a single female peacekeeper has ever been accused of sexual exploitation and abuse on mission, there is little more than anecdotal evidence to support the idea that female peacekeepers are an effective antidote to sexual violence.

Tank gunner Cpl. Stella Rose in the turret of her T-55. (CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM | FOREIGN POLICY)

Tank technician Lt. Cpl. Juliet Uwimana at Arabiska Forward Operating Base in Somalia's Lower Shabelle region. (CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM | FOREIGN POLICY)

Tank gunner Lt. Cpl. Lehi Chebet climbs into the turret of her T-55. (CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM | FOREIGN POLICY)

Lt. Cpl. Lehi Chebet prepares for a test drive at Arabiska Forward Operating Base. (CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM | FOREIGN POLICY)

There is this idea that women are a civilizing influence, that maybe some men would be ashamed in front of their female colleagues to be engaged in that kind of behavior, said Mary Schwoebel, a professor of conflict resolution studies at Nova Southeastern University in Florida who has trained Ugandan peacekeepers in Somalia. But unless women are commanders and have the power to do something about it, Im not sure that makes any difference.

Sixteen years after the resolution was approved, women still account for only 3 to 4 percent of all U.N. peacekeepers. According to Pablo Castillo-Diaz, a peace and security analyst at U.N. Women, a United Nations agency dedicated to gender equality, many of them are in support roles, such as clerical support jobs, even if they have been trained to be much more in contact with the population or in protection tasks.

The proportion of women in AMISOMs Ugandan contingent is only slightly higher than the U.N. average of 6.6 percent. And Uganda consistently ranks near the bottom of the U.N. Development Programs Gender Inequality Index. But with more than 30 percent of those women serving in combat positions, the likelihood that they will eventually attain leadership positions is much higher. Many of these women not only aspire to be commanders, they view themselves as pioneers in a new generation of female fighters on the front line.

Ugandan Pvt. Scovia Nagun Mafabo, who drives a tank-like infantry combat vehicle known as a BMP, said there were no female BMP drivers when she arrived at the Kampala Armoured Warfare Training School in 2012. But when I arrived, they said let us see if these girls can also manage and they selected four of us to train with the men, she said. After we successfully finished the course and qualified to be drivers, the school said, From today we are going to be training more girls. Now we have trained six more girls in BMP.

Still, the number of Ugandan women training and serving in combat roles has begun to grow only recently, meaning that it will be a decade or more until they ascend the ranks to positions of power. And even when there are more female officers, many fear it wont do much to change the hyper-masculine culture that prevails in most militaries that contribute peacekeeping troops.

Ugandan Pvt. Scovia Nagun Mafabo poses for a portrait. (CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM | FOREIGN POLICY)

Ugandan Lt. Cpl. Juliet Uwimana in her military uniform. (CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM | FOREIGN POLICY)

A portrait of Ugandan Cpl. Maimuna Kahindo.(CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM | FOREIGN POLICY)

Ugandan Lt. Cpl. Lehi Chebet poses for a portrait. (CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM | FOREIGN POLICY)

[Military] culture is not being changed by women; its changing women, Schwoebel said. The culture is a really macho, sexist culture, and its not going to change easily. So to succeed as a woman and get promoted to higher echelons, you have to adopt a character or traits that are also macho.

This might be true in places like Arabiska, the remote forward operating base where Uwimana and Chebet work beside only a few female colleagues. But in Ugandas main AMISOM base in the Somali capital of Mogadishu, where the largest group of female soldiers is stationed, women have carved out a space where femininity becomes its own form of camaraderie.

You see this is our place; here we can just relax, Cpl. Maimuna Kahindo, who drives a non-armored vehicle transporting equipment and personnel, said recently as she and seven other female soldiers kicked back in a women-only dormitory on AMISOMs massive razor-wired complex at the airport in Mogadishu. Kahindo, who is stocky with a wide, infectious smile, plopped down on a bed made up with green-and-pink plaid sheets in their shipping-container-turned-barracks. She and the other soldiers were debating the merits of a jar of hair cream with a picture of a woman suggestively tilting her head on the label. The consensus was that nothing  not even the contents of the jar  could help their hair in Somalias oppressive heat.

Eventually tiring of the conversation, Kahindo turned on the large stereo next to her bed and a popular Nigerian pop song filled the room. She stood and started swaying to the beat, elbows hugging her hips, as the women on the bed cheered her on. One chorus in, Oliver Basalirwa, another driver, joined Kahindo and began crooning along to the song.

Kahindo laughed. You see, she said, still rocking her hips to the music. Here we are just at peace. Mogadishu, it is not too bad, yeah?

The view from inside an AMISOM armored vehicle in Mogadishu. (CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM | FOREIGN POLICY)

Driving through the Somali capital, its easy to forget that just a few years ago these streets were the front lines of the war against al-Shabab. These days, humid air from the Indian Ocean wafts over the shiny blue windows of brand-new office buildings and young girls jump around poorly painted but brightly colored playgrounds. The restaurant at the Beach View Hotel, a faded yellow building sandwiched between a wall of Hesco barriers and a white sand waterfront, is packed once again, only four months after an al-Shabab attack there killed at least 20 people.

Mogadishus peace is tenuous. In July, two suicide bombers tried to breach the AMISOM base where Kahindo and Basalirwa are stationed, killing 14 people. But for a country that has been at war for a quarter century, the change in the city feels dramatic. It just hosted its second annual international book fair, drawing hundreds of visitors and showcasing more than a dozen local and international authors. Residents can now stroll down the street and grab a slice of brick-oven pizza or watch a 3-D movie at the Pizza House Cinema.

Although most of the country outside the capital remains dangerous, the relative calm in Mogadishu has allowed a national discussion about gender roles and womens rights that was impossible during the height of the war. The Parliament has drafted and debated  though not passed  a bill that would criminalize sexual violence for the first time, and the National Leadership Forum, which is overseeing preparations for the countrys upcoming general election, has endorsed a 30 percent quota for women in Parliament.

Peacetime has many obvious benefits for Somali women; among the hardships of wartime, they were disproportionately affected by sexual violence and inadequate access to health care. But there are some who worry that the end of war could mean a step backward for women. Women routinely became heads of households out of necessity during the war, and many started businesses in order to survive.

You can always say conflict is an opportunity for gender roles to change, said Tanya Chopra, a contractor with U.N. Women in Somalia. In some areas women of Somalia have been more economically engaged because their husbands are fighting or have died, and women are wondering now if  they will have to go back to being in the house and have to give up their economic engagement.

Some, including Chopra, are looking to the female soldiers in AMISOM to inspire Somali women to fight to retain their wartime freedoms. They also hope that the presence of female AMISOM officers in the street, in U.N. conference rooms, and in meetings with top Somali officials will change mens perceptions about gender roles.

When we say we have a leader whos coming to meet you, [local leaders] expect to see a male and they are surprised when they see a female. Maybe because of the culture they thought as a female you cant be a leader, said Ugandan Capt. Mercy Ruhinda. But I think that is starting to change, at least they see that women can be in leadership positions, and we are trying to help address the problems here.

But where many see the presence of female AMISOM soldiers having the greatest impact is in changing the mindset of young Somali girls. According to Schwoebel, It could have a great impact on young women in Somalia because seeing women, especially from African countries, in these positions, they become like role models to these young girls.

A female officer in AMISOM's police force during a night patrol in Mogadishu. (CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM | FOREIGN POLICY)

Female AMISOM police officers patrol Mogadishu at night. (CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM | FOREIGN POLICY)

Pvt. Oliver Basalirwa drives an armored vehicle on the AMISOM base in Mogadishu. (CHRISTINA GOLDBAUM | FOREIGN POLICY)

Evidence from previous missions suggests that the example set by female peacekeepers can make a difference. In Liberia, for example, an all-female Formed Police Unit from India was credited by the U.N. with inspiring Liberian women to join the countrys police force, increasing the percentage of female officers from 13 to 21 in the five years after the Indian unit deployed in 2007. In Somalia, a similar trend is emerging, perhaps inspired by the women of AMISOM and perhaps by a 24-year-old member of the diaspora, Iman Elman, who as a captain is the highest-ranking woman of the Somali National Army (SNA). Elman was raised in Canada following the slaying of her father, the prominent human rights activist Elman Ali Ahmed, but returned to Mogadishu in 2009 to work at her mothers center for victims of sexual assault, the Elman Peace and Human Rights Center.

A lot of girls I talked to believed that they were physically incapable of doing what men could do, Elman said. I remember Googling woman bodybuilders and showing them the pictures because I wanted them to see that that wasnt true.

Elman soon realized the only way to convince young women of their potential would be to demonstrate it herself  by joining the military. When she enlisted in the SNA at the age of 19, she was one of only two women in her battalion of 350 soldiers. After a year of struggling through intense verbal abuse from her male colleagues, Elman went on to serve on the front lines of the war against al-Shabab, earning national recognition for her accomplishments. Though the number of women in uniform is still very low, she says, more young women are expressing interest in joining Somalias nascent military force.

Theres been an influx of girls, young girls, joining the army, and the boys are a bit more accepting of it than when I joined, she said.

But the SNA is still a long way from being considered a professional fighting force. Its estimated that 16,000 troops are poorly trained and equipped, and they often go months without pay. That poses a host of challenges for female troops like Elman that the women of AMISOM dont have to contend with. The Somali army doesnt have proper barracks, let alone reporting mechanisms or disciplinary procedures for gender-based discrimination and abuse.

We still dont have a gender department, we dont have a human rights department, Elman said. When I joined there wasnt a single channel where I could lodge any complaints about how the guys were treating me.

Somali female soldiers havent yet earned the same respect as their AMISOM counterparts, and young SNA recruits still complain about sexual harassment and mistreatment by their male colleagues, Elman said. But as AMISOM prepares to withdraw from Somalia and hand combat operations over to the SNA, perhaps as early as 2018, the role of female soldiers in both forces has never been more important. Gender norms are changing as Somalia inches toward peace, and women in uniform will play an important role in safeguarding what little progress was made toward gender equality during wartime  and leading the charge for full equality during peacetime.

For now, peace and equality seem a long way off. Though some stability has returned to Mogadishu, bombings and targeted assassinations are still commonplace. Outside the capital, al-Shabab still terrorizes huge swaths of the country and clan militias do as they please in the absence of government control. The outlook for women in these areas is grim; one out of every 12 women dies of pregnancy related-causes and nearly half of all Somali girls are married by the age of 18. Whether or not the government can wrest control over these regions will not just be decisive for women. It may be decided by women, since more of them are serving in uniform.

Women raised this country; they have been mediating peace throughout the war, said Leila Mohamoud Abdulle, a womens rights activist in Mogadishu. Now women have a chance to fight for peace on the frontlines and help build a culture of respect and gender equality in the armed forces.

If we want peace to last, she said, we are going to need the leadership from women.
CHICAGO  Eight hours before first pitch of the first World Series at Wrigley Field since just after World War II ended, there are sights and sounds everywhere. But one rings above the others: the clown-car horn on a Chicago Cubs-themed car that gets people to turn their heads immediately.

And then you see it. Theres a faux Bugatti decked out in Cubs stickers, posters, flags and even a stuffed Cubs bear fixed to the front of the car where a hood ornament normally would go. Its the bearded lady of this circus, which has been going strong in town now all season  and going strong for the past few weeks with the Cubs making history.

The driver of the Bugatti replica, Joe Limas, is becoming a celebrity quickly. In the span of an hour, he has driven around the park  up Sheffield Avenue, over on Waveland, down Clark Street and across Addison, basically as close as he can get as the crowd swells with anticipation. He also has done maybe a dozen interviews, in both Spanish and English, and has posed with just about everyone as Game 3 draws closer.

Joe Limas turned his replica Bugatti from an election car to a Chicago Cubs car, and fans outside Wrigley Field cant get enough of it. (Eric Edholm/Yahoo Sports)

Let me tell you this: If I collected a dollar from everyone I took a picture with, Id be a millionaire right now.

Alas, Limas, 64, is just happy to show off his baby for free and whip Cubs fans into a frenzy. Its typical Cubs shtick all over the body of the car:

I love Da Bears but their Cubs (sic) are awesome

Harry Caray is watching over us

And the latest addition: the I aint afraid of no goat slogan that Bill Murray, who is singing the seventh-inning stretch during Game 3, made famous a few weeks ago with a T-shirt saying just that.

The gauche car might not be authentic, or all that valuable really, but its a hit in these parts.

Jay Leno has one of these, I mean a real one. The one he has is worth about a million dollars. This one is not worth as much, Limas said, deadpan.

He knows his car is a bit too ostentatious to, say, drive it to church on Sundays.

I drive it on days like this, Limas said. This is an important day.

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This guy takes his fandom  and his transportation  seriously. #WorldSeries pic.twitter.com/04uaqXTaf9  Eric Edholm (@Eric_Edholm) October 28, 2016

Is it street legal? Well, not exactly. He has no clue how many miles it has (No odometer, he said) and its not even registered.

Ive never gotten pulled over, he said, fingers crossed.

It would be quite the cold-hearted, the-law-is-the-law police officer to pull him over now, right?

The police in Chicago are fair, I dont care what people say about them. We have the best police anywhere, Limas said. Theyre here to help us. Every time they see me, they wave at me and take pictures. Theyre super.

Smart man, covering his bases like that.

Limas bought the car five years ago in dilapidated condition. The original intent was to deck it out as a way to support Chicago mayoral candidate Chuy Garcia, a folk hero of sorts who made a strong push but ultimately fell short of unseating incumbent Rahm Emanuel in 2015. Limas drove it all over the city with Garcia stickers and did his best to show his support.

When Garcia lost, Limas was disappointed. To displace that feeling, he turned it into a Cubs car prior to the biggest season in franchise history. Now hes proudly stumping for the team he thinks is destined to win it all.

You can just feel it, he said. I am out here to celebrate with the people.

Limas is a veteran, proudly displaying his pride  for the military, for the Cubs and for his charitable passion, Toys for Tots. Hence the bear on the front of the car. He wants people to enjoy the car and wave, but he also wants people to remember with the holiday season approaching that there are still lots of children in this city who are needy.

I believe that every kid in the world needs a toy. Ive been doing this for 30 years. I ride all over this city and make sure people remember Toys for Tots. Its very close to my heart, Limas said, pointing to the Toys for Tots buttons that date all the way back to 1987 all the way down his Army jacket lapel.

Limas will not be attending the three games in Chicago. Hell spend his time before them riding around Wrigleyville, hoking his ridiculous sounding horn, taking more pictures and soaking up the scene. And, of course, adding his own little bit of wonderful weirdness to it, too.

I am going to make sure everyone has a lot of fun out there, and then they can have even more fun watching the Cubs win the World Series, he said.

      

Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at edholm@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!
(In first paragraph, deletes garble in ticker symbol)

MEXICO CITY, Oct 28 (Reuters) - The financial support the Mexican government has provided to national oil company Pemex is enough for the firm to keep operating, finance ministry chief economist Luis Madrazo said on Friday.

Like most oil companies, the Mexican oil giant has suffered from low crude oil prices and steep budget cuts over the past couple years.

Earlier on Friday, Pemex posted its 16th consecutive quarterly loss, as both oil prices and production slid.

(Reporting by Adriana Barrera; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
Michael Moore is self-distributing his latest film Michael Moore in TrumpLand, in which he tells Ohio residents to vote against Donald Trump.

However, an audio clip has been cleverly edited and is circulating as a pro-Trump title. Trump himself shared the clip on Thursday on his social media platforms: "I agree, Michael Moore- To all Americans, I see you & I hear you. I am your voice."

Moore then released the full clip to clarify the misconception: "I can't keep taking Trump's voters $$. Folks, your leader has deceived u again: 'Michael Moore In TrumpLand' is a funny love poem to Hillary," he tweeted. "Here's the actual end to that scene in my film Michael Moore In TrumpLand, the end Trump doesn't want you to see."

The clip in question is from the end of the film, during which Moore admits his understanding of why people might be inclined to vote for the Republican presidential candidate. "He's saying the things to people who are hurting, and that's why every beaten-down, nameless, forgotten working stiff who used to be part of what was called the middle class loves Trump. He is the human Molotov Cocktail that they've been waiting for; the human hand grenade that they can legally throw into the system that stole their lives from them. ... The dispossessed will walk into the voting booth, be handed a ballot, close the curtain, and take that lever or felt pen or touchscreen and put a big f - ing X in the box by the name of the man who has threatened to upend and overturn the very system that has ruined their lives: Donald J Trump. ... Trump's election is going to be the biggest f - you ever recorded in human history and it will feel good."

Read more: Michael Moore Talks Surprise 'TrumpLand' Film: "Look for the Good in Hillary Clinton"

However, Moore's speech actually goes on to note that the "feel good" moment will be brief and, like Brexit voters, those who vote for Trump in this way will come to regret their decisions. "You used the ballot as an anger management tool, and now you're f - ed," he says. "When the rightfully angry people of Ohio and Michigan and Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin find out after a few months in office that President Trump wasn't going to do a damn thing for them, it will be too late to do anything about it. But I get it: you wanted to send a message, you had righteous anger, and justifiable anger. Well, message sent. Goodnight America. You've just elected the last president of the United States."

Moore also shared another clip in which he outlines exactly why some men fear Clinton and love Trump. Watch the videos below.

Oct. 28, 10:30 a.m. PT Updated with Trump's Facebook post.
From Esquire

The Associated Press reports that a plane carrying Mike Pence skidded off the runway at New York City's LaGuardia Airport.

BREAKING: No one injured as plane carrying Republican VP candidate Mike Pence slides off runway at LaGuardia Airport in NYC. - The Associated Press (@AP) October 27, 2016

There were no reports of any injuries, and it's though it's unclear what caused the plane to skid, it could be the rainfall that has hit the area. Currently, the airport is closed until further notice. The plane was also carrying Pence's security team and press pool.

"There were no injuries tonight when a charter plane carrying Republican Vice Presidential Nominee Mike Pence and more than 30 others overshot a LaGuardia Airport runway," the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said in a statement.

So thankful everyone on our plane is safe. Grateful for our first responders & the concern & prayers of so many. Back on the trail tomorrow! - Mike Pence (@mike_pence) October 28, 2016

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Claims from two more alleged heirs vying for Princes estimated $250 million estate have been dismissed.

According to court documents obtained by PEOPLE, Judge Kevin W. Eide ordered that Brianna Nelson and are excluded as heirs of the late icons estate.

In previous legal filings, Brianna claimed to be the daughter of Princes reported half-brother Duane Nelson Sr., who died in 2011. Duane Sr. also had a son, Duane Jr., who died in 2005 and left behind a daughter, Victoria.

However, following genetic testing, it was determined that Brianna and Victoria are not blood relatives of Prince, as their father was not a genetic son of Princes father, John L. Nelson.

According to the documents, Brianna and Victorias counsel argued that their father was raised as a son of John Nelson and brother of Prince. But the judge decided: As it relates directly to the matter presently before the Court, there is no case law in Minnesota or, to the Courts knowledge, anywhere in the United States that establishes a parent- child relationship for intestacy purposes where there was a no genetic relationship but the parties to the relationship held themselves out to be parent and child.

Duane Nelson Sr. also allegedly had another son: Corey Simmons. The judge also dismissed Simmons heirship claims  on the same grounds he dismissed Brianna and Victorias. But, the judge is allowing Simmons time to provide evidence that, as his attorney has asserted in the past, John Nelson had plans to adopt Duane Nelson Sr., which could potentially position him for heirship.

Assuming Simmons cannot procure the aforementioned evidence, the only remaining heirs privy to Princes estate are his sister, Tyka Nelson, and five half-siblings: Sharon Nelson, Norrine Nelson, John Nelson, Alfred Jackson and Omarr Baker.

Prince was found dead in an elevator at his Paisley Park estate in April. In June, the Midwest Medical Examiners Office announced the musician died of an accidental opioid overdose.




Twenty-three years after Linda Iselers husband, Richard Hoagland, disappeared on Feb. 10, 1993, and was later declared dead, she received a call from Florida police saying her ex-husband had been arrested on a charge of fraudulent use of personal identification.

In a new interview with ABC News 20/20, Iseler says she cannot comprehend the reasoning behind such a destructive lie.

How do you walk away from your own children? How do you turn your back? she told 20/20.

Hoagland, who spent the last 20 years living as Terry Jude Symansky, was arrested in July after the Pasco County Sheriffs Office discovered he was actually Hoagland, who was declared dead in 2003.

Hoagland, 63, is accused of stealing the real identity of Symansky, who drowned in 1991 at the age of 33. Hoagland knew the dead mans father, deputies told the Tampa Bay Times.

Iseler and her former husband lived in Indianapolis, Indiana before his disappearance. They had two sons together, had a big home, steady income and enjoyed exotic vacations. It all ended in 1993 after 11 years of marriage.

He called me at work and told me that he was ill and that he needed to go to the emergency room, Iseler said. And I said, Well, why dont you just wait, and Ill go with you? He said, No, I dont have time to wait. 

Iseler said shed called hospitals in the area looking for him, but none had him listed as a patient.

 still there. He didnt pack any clothes. It was cold. It was in February, she said. He didnt take a coat.

The couples sons were young at the time: Matthew was nine and Doug was six.

Initially, you think, OK, this wont last long. Hell be back,  Matthew Hoagland told 20/20.

Ten years passed and Hoagland was declared dead. Iseler later re-married, but her world was shaken once more when she received a voicemail from detective Anthony Cardillo of the Pasco County Sheriffs Department.

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He asked me if I knew who Richard Hoagland was, and I said, Yes, thats my ex-husband,  Iseler said. He said, We have him in custody. 

After Hoagland fled to Florida, police told 20/20 that he rented a room from Symanskys father, where he found Symanskys death certificate and stole it. He later used it to obtain a birth certificate and drivers license.

Cardillo said Hoagland lived in Zephyrhills, Florida and married again to a woman named Mary. They had one son together.

He said Hoaglands only explanation for disappearing was family issues with his wife and children.

Hoagland is in jail awaiting trial on charges of identity fraud. He pleaded not guilty to the charges. Iselers 20/20 interview will air Friday, Oct. 28, at 10 p.m. ET.
A series of events that glorify racism and violence has left students at Xavier University in Cincinnati disturbed and infuriated. It started on Monday, when a female Xavier student posted a picture of herself in blackface, slyly grinning, to Snapchat. The creepy image was accompanied by the caption, Who needs white when black lives matter, referring to the growing Black Lives Matter advocacy movement.

Photo: Courtesy of Facebook/MsPandaBear

Then, on Tuesday morning, something horrifying appeared in a window of a dormitory in Xavier Universitys Fenwick building, facing the campuss main lawn, according to Raw Story. A student captured and shared an image of a skeleton dressed in a traditional African dashiki hanged by a noose. The scene was eerily reminiscent of a lynching  not your typical Halloween decor, to say the least.

The mock lynching was set up beside a poster emblazoned with the Donald Trump presidential campaign slogan, Make America Great Again.

Have You Been #HarassedMidrun? Youre Not Alone

Students of Xavier University expressed outrage. Xavier University your black students may not make up a large percent of your population but we do exist and we do demand the respect that our counterparts receive. We are tired of the blatant racism that is so comfortably shown to us on Xaviers campus, wrote Brianna Chenault, who posted a screenshot to Facebook of the student in blackface. We are tired. This is not okay. A simple apology will not do. There are too many resources readily available to explain why blackface is never acceptable, no matter the reason behind it, for this to ever be okay, Chenaults Facebook comment read in part.

Photo: Courtesy of Facebook.com/ryan.otoole.1485

A former Xavier student posted an image of the lynching display to Facebook with a caption that read in part, I am hurt, disappointed, and disgusted by events and pictures that have surfaced from my former home, Xavier University. For those who cant tell, this picture is of a skeleton wearing a dashiki (a traditional Western African garment). This is sending a clear message to anyone on Xaviers campus who is not white. Firm action must be taken immediately.

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On Wednesday, about 100 students of Xavier University stood in silent protest on campus, according to Cincinnatis WCPO news station. Of the white student in blackface, Jeremiah Pennebaker, president of Xaviers Black Student Association, said, She thought it would be funny, and she thought this would be acceptable in the culture.

White Teen Sent Home From School for Braids, Dad Blames Racism Against Their Own

WCPO first learned of the image from Xavier sophomore Simone Fluker, who said it makes her feel speechless and that she feels bad for the girl depicted in the photo, because she has made a mistake that will be with her for the rest of her life.

@FOX19 Blatant racism at #XavierUniversity black face and a skeleton dressed in a dashiki with a noose around its neck!! Please share pic.twitter.com/2CjhdtVyl2  Erica Smith (@urekaxoxo) October 25, 2016

Xavier president Michael J. Graham addressed the fear and anger of the student body and the community by sending a message to students that read:

I am outraged and deeply troubled by recent racist images connected to Xavier students. Racist actions are unacceptable on our campus, and we have mechanisms to respond in a responsible and thoughtful manner. When one of us falls short, we all fall short.

Many of our students, of all races, are in pain over this. Steps are being taken to make sure that all the members of the Xavier community know that we must act with integrity, justice and generosity, in solidarity for and with each other. Please be assured this is being addressed on campus through a variety of channels.

I will personally continue to stay on top of this and keep you updated.

Sadly, two other instances of blackface on campus made news just a month ago. One image, posted to Snapchat, showed four students at the University of North Dakota in the offensive makeup, with the words Black lives matter mockingly overlayed. Just days before, a Kansas University student posted a Snapchat image of herself and a friend in similar black masks with the caption, Feels good to finally be a nigga. The sick stunt led to the student being obliterated by social media users and ultimately kicked out of school.

University of North Dakota students mock #BlackLivesMatter in blackface pic.twitter.com/GhQZnjmLrh  Khaled Beydoun (@KhaledBeydoun) September 26, 2016

Students at the University of North Dakota (UND) struck again last month, taunting a black student on her own Snapchat. The photo showed three white students laughing and throwing up peace signs with the caption, Locked the black bitch out. The victims friend, Etonde Maloke, shed light on the awful situation by posting a screenshot to Facebook, explaining, My friend left her phone in her room and the three kids pictured below took her phone and took the Snapchat pictured below. The University of North Dakota needs to take action against these students for this blatant act of racism.

UND officials did address the two incidents. University president Mark Kennedy issued a statement that read, in part, It is abundantly clear that we have much work to do at the University of North Dakota in educating our students and the entire University community on issues related to diversity, inclusion, and respect for others.

Yahoo Beauty reached out to and heard back from representatives at Xavier University, but did not receive further comments.

Lets keep in touch! Follow Yahoo Beauty on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, andPinterest.
Oct 28 (Reuters) - Mondelez International Inc said on Friday it is recalling certain batches of two varieties of Oreo Fudge Cremes sold in the United States as their ingredient lists do not mention milk allergen.

The recall of the mint-flavored and 'original' Oreo Fudge Cremes was the result of an analysis conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Mondelez Global LLC said in a statement.

The company said people who have an allergy or severe sensitivity to milk run the risk of a serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they consume the product.

Mondelez said it had received one report so far of an allergic reaction related to the batches being recalled.

The company did not disclose the number of units being recalled in the United States, including Puerto Rico, St. Croix and St. Thomas.

Mondelez had in June recalled some batches of its Honey Maid Teddy Grahams Cinnamon Cubs Graham Snacks in the United States after a flour supplier said there could be undeclared low levels of peanut residue in the flour.

(Reporting by Gayathree Ganesan in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)
By Ingrid Melander PARIS (Reuters) - The number of migrants sleeping rough on the streets of Paris has risen by at least a third since the start of the week when the "Jungle" shanty town in Calais was evacuated, officials said. Along the bustling boulevards and a canal in a northeastern corner of Paris, hundreds of tents have been pitched by migrants - mostly Africans who say they are from Sudan - with cardboard on the ground to try and insulate them from the cold. While the presence of migrants there is not new, it has grown substantially this week, Colombe Brossel, Paris deputy mayor in charge of security issues, told Reuters. "We have seen a big increase since the start of the week. Last night our teams counted 40 to 50 new tents there in two days," Brossel said, adding that there was now a total of 700 to 750. This means there are some 2,000-2,500 sleeping in the area, up from around 1,500 a few days before, she said. "It's not a huge explosion in numbers but there is a clear increase," she said. "Some of them come from Calais, others from other places." After years as serving as an illegal base camp for migrants trying to get to Britain, the "Jungle" was finally bulldozed this week and the more than 6,000 residents of the ramshackle camp near the English channel were relocated to shelters around France. France's asylum chief Pascal Brice said the arrivals in Paris did not mean there had been a wholesale movement from the Jungle to the capital. "There might be some movements at the margins (toward Paris) but what is crucial is that those 6,000 people have been protected," he told Reuters. Between the Stalingrad and Jaures Paris metro stations, migrants who spent the night camped out on the median strip of a major road, with traffic passing on either side, had scattered on Friday morning, many carrying their tents while police patrolled the center of the boulevard. Migrants and officials said police checked ID papers and asylum requests and later let the migrants return to the central reservation of the avenue where they put their tents back up. "There's a lot of new people here," said Mustafa, 21, from Darfur, as he waited on the side of the road. Ali, also from Sudan, said: "I see more people than before. People came yesterday and before yesterday from Calais." Authorities said the newcomers did not come only from Calais. Others did but had arrived before the dismantlement of the camp. Ama, a 24-year-old Sudanese who is six months pregnant, said she had come to Paris from Calais, but that was months ago. "I was in Calais before but I did not find the route (to Britain)," she said. "I couldn't stay over there being pregnant, it was too hard." Deputy Mayor Brossel said it was up to the central government, and not city authorities, to act. "These people must be sheltered," she said. The city of Paris has plans to open two migrant centers but they would only have a total capacity of fewer than 1,000 beds. (Additional reporting by Charles Platiau and Emmanuel Jarry; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
Images of smoke plumes rising over the Iraqi desert as troops move to liberate Mosul from ISIS may seem very far removed from life in Europe. But the turmoil could spill into the continent as the offensive puts both refugees and foreign jihadists on the move, and strains delicate relations with Turkey.

The most urgent concern for Europe  voiced this week by French President Francois Hollande  is the presence of around 4,000 Europeans fighting with extremists in Iraq and Syria. If Mosul and ISISs Syrian stronghold of Raqqa fall, it could force legions of battle-hardened youths back to a continent already reeling from a wave of terror attacks.

Foreigners will not find it easy to go into the underground insurgency that the Iraqi members of ISIS will join, and it is similar in Syria, says Richard Barrett, a former British counter-terrorism official who is now an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute in London. People may move on elsewhere, or they may go back home. But many of them will not be able to stay or want to stay in Syria or Iraq.

Countries in Europe have insufficient policies for those that do come home, Barrett says. Simply jailing the most dangerous jihadists and returning the rest to the communities they came from will backfire, he warns, and could lead to further radicalization if the alienation and lack of connection which attracted the youngsters to extremist ideology in the first place is not addressed.

In their home conditions [the returnees] now have some cache they can exaggerate their story, possibly leading to more radicalization with younger ones who were not able to go, Barrett tells TIME. Maybe it will be difficult for them to get into Iraq and Syria anymore, but there are opportunities still for belonging to a radical violent extremist group, and even if its only a very small group of friends, it is still a risk.

Story continues

Read more: Iraq Takes on ISIS as the Battle for Mosul Begins

In Belgium, the European Union country with the highest per-capita number of fighters in Syria and Iraq, ISIS media is reported to be telling new recruits to stay at home and plan attacks there, rather than travel to Iraq and Syria where their territory is diminishing.

While E.U. nations are now sharing intelligence when it comes to stopping people joining ISIS in the first place, there is little agreement on best practice for reintegrating fighters who do return. Rik Coolsaet, an expert on radicalization from Ghent University, says the focus has largely been on the security aspects, rather than social reintegration.

For those who come back, there is a structure in place to try to identify them, but I think it is now urgent to develop tailor-made approaches to these individuals, because an overall one-size-fits-all does not work, he says.

Another concern for the E.U. is an influx of refugees, an issue which caused chaos for the bloc last year when more than a million people arrived seeking sanctuary.

The ferocity of the battle for Mosul has already forced nearly 11,000 people from their homes, says Leo Dobbs, a spokesman for the United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, has warned that up to a million people could flee the city. Right now, the displaced are staying close to home hoping to return when the fighting subsides, but Dobbs says refugee movement into Turkey and to Europe is a possibility that we have to take into consideration.

A key ally in managing any new refugee flows  and monitoring the borders for foreign fighters trying to sneak home  is Turkey, a NATO partner, member of the anti-ISIS coalition, and the country separating the E.U. from Iraq and Syria. But relations between Turkey and the E.U. are strained by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogans wide crackdown on supposed dissidents following the failed coup in July, and disagreements over issues like visa-free travel for Turks in the E.U.

Turkey has also proved a difficult partner to the U.S.-led coalition. Ankara views the Syrian Kurdish forces as a hostile group allied to Kurdish separatists in Turkey. But the U.S. and E.U. consider the Syrian Kurds a key ally in the fight against ISIS. Iraq also takes a dim view of Turkish incursions on its soil, and Erdogan has already rankled Iraqs leaders by implying they may take a more active role in the Mosul operation.

With the Raqqa and Mosul offensives, Turkey for its own domestic reasons has played a rather aggressive game, and in both cases, it is not exactly what the E.U. and the US would want Turkey to do, says Marc Pierini, a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Europe think tank.

While fear of foreign fighters or a repeat of last years migration crisis may be worrying Europes leaders now, managing the delicate geo-political balance in a region right on their doorstep may prove the more lasting challenge.
YANGON (Reuters) - Myanmar has halted an investigation into unconfirmed reports of an aircraft crashing into the sea off the country's west coast on Friday, a senior official with the Civil Aviation Department (CAD) said. Staff from CAD's office on Manaung Island off the coast of northwestern Rakhine state had been sent to the area where the plane was reported to have gone missing, but could not find any evidence of any crash taking place, CAD official Tin Maung Ni told Reuters. The department had not received any reports of missing aircraft from airlines operating in Myanmar airspace. "So far as we have heard from the CAD staff on the Manaung Island things are normal there, so were not doing anything," said Tin Maung Ni. The official had earlier told Reuters about "an unidentified aircraft" that had crashed into the sea off the west coast and that authorities were trying to locate it. Head of the Manaung Police Department contacted by telephone said he had checked reports of the plane crash "thoroughly" and not found anything to substantiate them. Myint Kyaw, the spokesman for the Information Ministry, denied any crash had taken place after checking with the Ministry of Transport and Communication. (Reporting by Aung Hla Tun and Shwe Yee Saw Myint; Editing by Nick Macfie)
By Amanda Ferguson BELFAST (Reuters) - Northern Ireland's High Court on Friday rejected an attempt to block Britain's exit from the European Union, saying that neither the province's parliament nor its laws could override a decision by the British government. But it said it would defer to English courts on the wider issue of whether the British government has the right to invoke Article 50 of the EU Lisbon Treaty to leave the bloc without the explicit backing of the British parliament. Prime Minister Theresa May welcomed the ruling, with a spokesman saying it would allow the British government "to proceed to trigger Article 50 as planned". One of the plaintiffs, human rights activist Raymond McCord, said he would appeal against the ruling in the Supreme Court, Britain's highest judicial body. The case is the first judgment in legal disputes over Brexit that are being closely watched by politicians and markets. It comes amid political tension among the four nations of the United Kingdom - England and Wales, which voted to leave the EU, and Northern Ireland and Scotland, which voted to remain. A case in London will rule on whether May can use the government's "royal prerogative" power to trigger Article 50 without consulting parliament. "The fact that the government has won in the Northern Ireland case could be seen to indicate that its prerogative power is holding up pretty well," said Stephen Tierney, director of the Edinburgh Centre for Constitutional Law. "I would personally be surprised if the High Court in England reached a different conclusion," he said. Scotland's pro-independence government said it did not believe the court ruling gave any clear pointers to its own situation. "We are considering the judgement, but it must be noted that this case examined the specifics of the situation in Northern Ireland and therefore has no automatic implications for Scotland," a spokesman for the Scottish government said. STERLING DIPS Sterling fell to an eight-day low against the euro after the ruling. Overall, 52 percent of the United Kingdom voted in favour of leaving the EU in June's referendum, but 56 percent of those voting in Northern Ireland backed remaining in the bloc. There are fears that Brexit could undermine a 1998 peace deal, the Good Friday Agreement, which ended three decades of bloodshed in the province, and could lead to the reintroduction of unpopular controls on the border with the Republic of Ireland, an EU member. But justice Paul Maguire said it was "not viable" that Northern Ireland should overrule the 52 percent of the United Kingdom as a whole that voted in favour of leaving. The regional parliament would have a say on legislation passed to enact Britain's exit, but the triggering of Article 50 itself was not a "devolved matter". "The UK Parliament has retained to itself the ability to legislate for NI without the need to resort to any special procedure," Maguire said. The arguments about May's rights to trigger Article 50 "have been held over pending the outcome of the English litigation", he added. SCOTTISH IMPLICATIONS Rights activist McCord told reporters that the ruling was just a setback and he would continue to fight Brexit. "I believe what we are doing is correct. Fifty-six percent of the people of this country (Northern Ireland) voted to remain." A group of politicians and rights groups who launched a parallel case that was merged with McCord's said they were "deeply disappointed" by the rejection of their case, but had not yet decided whether to appeal. Northern Ireland's largest Irish nationalist party, Sinn Fein, said it would study the judgment carefully and explore every option to ensure the remain vote was respected. That chimes with the stance of the devolved Scottish government, which is trying to drum up support to keep its membership of the EU's single market for goods and services. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said it would be an act of "constitutional vandalism" to try to ignore Scotlands voice. "The First Minister has made clear that any proposal to remove Scotland from the EU would need legislation at Westminster, and that legislation would require the consent of the Scottish Parliament," a Scottish government spokesman said. Her party has drawn up draft legislation on a second referendum on independence from the UK, which it says is an option to protect Scotlands position within the EU. (Additional reporting by Elisabeth O'Leary in Edinburgh, William James and Helen Reid in London; Writing by Conor Humphries; Editing by Larry King)
NASA discovered pumpkin stars just in time for Halloween

Using observations from NASAs Kepler and Swift missions, astronomers have discovered pumpkin stars  because the universe is clearly as excited about Halloween as we are. Specifically, NASA missions have harvested a passel of pumpkin stars that spin so incredibly fast, theyve been flattened into shapes that look like actual pumpkins.

But chances are, you wont be able to carve faces into or make pie out of these pumpkins.

For four years, NASA monitored a huge patch of the sky, specifically looking for brightness changes caused by exoplanets passing in front of their host stars. Because the Kepler field of view has been intricately studied, researchers used NASAs Swift to search for X-ray sources Kepler may have seen.

Astronomers ended up finding what they were looking for and it exceeded their own expectations.

The rare, pumpkin-like stars produce intense X-ray emissions at more than 100 times the peak levels astronomers have seen from the sun.

These 18 stars rotate in just a few days on average, while the sun takes nearly a month, said Steve Howell, a senior research scientist at NASAs Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, California. The rapid rotation amplifies the same kind of activity we see on the sun, such as sunspots and solar flares, and essentially sends it into overdrive.

The most extreme-spinning pumpkin star is the KSw 71, which is 10 times the suns size and spins four times faster (the sun being on a once-ever- 25-days rotation). Because of this, it produces 4,000 times the suns peak X-ray emission.

As for the pumpkin shape, it could be the result of close binary systems where two sun-like stars orbit faster as they grow closer, eventually merge together, and form the pumpkin star, according to NASA.

The transition might take 100 million years, which obviously sounds like a crazy amount of time. But 100 million years is a relatively brief phase in a stars life.

The Swift study also found 93 X-ray objects  half being active galaxies and the rest being various types of X-ray emitting stars.

Story continues

Check out NASAs video for more cosmic info:

All of this basically means that we are tiny, you guys. Teeny tiny specs on a rotating axis. And the universe is full of complex wonders that are ever-changing.

The post NASA discovered pumpkin stars just in time for Halloween appeared first on HelloGiggles.
The National Association of Television Programming Executives (NATPE) is adding three new tracks to its 2017 conference, the trade organization announced on Friday.

The three new initiatives are NATPE Music, NATPE Scripted and the creation of a NATPE Station Group Summit.

Lionsgates Kevin Beggs and Facebooks Matt Jacobson, as well as the President/Chairman of ASCAP, iconic composer Paul Williams, will deliver the keynote addresses for the new tracks at the Miami-based conference in January.

Also Read: NATPE Survey Predicts Scripted Programming Increase Over Next 2 Years

The organizations 2017 conference will have a new look and theme  Be a Part of It  and will run Jan. 17-19 at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach and neighboring Eden Roc Resort.

The new NATPE provides opportunity, inspiration and empowerment to content creators and buyers for the growth and success of their business across all platforms. As the definitive global television and digital content marketplace, NATPE Miami accelerates business opportunities with a vibrant global exhibition floor, inspires creativity through a series of engaging masterclasses and empowers its members to interact during targeted networking events on a daily basis, said JP Bommel, NATPE Managing Director & COO in a statement.

Also Read: NATPE Names Matt Palmer Chief Marketing Officer

The new tracks join the programs other offerings, which include NATPE Brands & Advertising, NATPE Reality, NATPE Platforms, NATPE Global and Storytellers & The Shaping of Pop Culture.

Read complete descriptions of the three new tracks below:

Exploring the vital longstanding link between TV and music, NATPE Music will assemble A-List musicians, songwriters, publishers, producers, supervisors and executives at the forefront of the music industry to provide actionable, and invaluable insights into the places where television and music meet. This track will be headlined by Grammy-Golden Globe- and Academy Award-winning songwriter and composer, keynote Paul Williams.

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NATPE Scripted will bring drama into focus  the new set of sessions will gather top-tier creators and executives from around the world to examine what goes into the creation of engaging stories. A keynote session with Kevin Beggs, Chairman, Lionsgate Television Group, in conversation with Matt Jacobson, Head of Market Development, Facebook, will be the centerpiece of the new track.

To round out the set of newest programming tracks, the NATPE Station Group Summit will recognize the industrys trendsetting executives who have led the transition of NATPE into a dynamic, multiplatform industry association. At the center of the summit will be a State of the Industry curated by Emerson Coleman, Vice President, Programming, Hearst-Argyle Television and Sean Compton, President of Strategic Programming and Acquisitions, Tribune Media. Executives speaking will share best practices, solutions and challenges as local stations and programmers look to think beyond the traditional broadcast model.

Related stories from TheWrap:

NATPE Doubles Down on Reality Programming in 2016

NATPE Survey Predicts Scripted Programming Increase Over Next 2 Years

Steve Harvey, Norman Lear, Quincy Jones to Receive NATPE's Brandon Tartikoff Legacy Award
Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Sushant Singh Rajput

The 42-year-old Nawazuddin Siddiqui of Gangs of Wasseypur will be joining MS Dhoni actor Sushant Singh Rajput on a mission to moon. Mumbai Mirror reported that writer-director Sanjay Puran Singhs upcoming sci-fi flick Chandamama Door Ke will follow a team of astronauts who set out on a mission in space, which eventually unites the country. Although Hollywood has made successful space movies, like Interstellar, Gravity and Armageddon among the many, it is a first of its kind in Bollywood. The producers of the film have even booked technicians who have worked on big Hollywood movies like the Star Trek franchise and Apollo 13. Siddiqui showcased his excitement about the movie to Mumbai Mirror, saying, The physical prep will be extensive. It is going to be a difficult role but I am super excited! Let us hope that this doesnt turn out to be an epic fail just like all superhero movies of Bollywood.
"He's a genius, a f - ing genius!" a concertgoer screamed in my ear when describing Nicolas Jaar, who was performing the first of two sold-out shows at the Fonda Theatre on Wednesday. This description of the Chilean-American electronic artist is hardly inaccurate, however, as best exemplified by Jaar's new album Sirens, the highly anticipated follow-up to 2011's Space Is Only Noise. Sirens, which peaked on Billboard's top dance/electronic albums at No. 8, is an intricate, complex collection of songs that are both personal and political.

Even its album cover is complex: Originally presented as a gray-and-white album cover, the surface scratches off (a quarter is packaged with the vinyl) to reveal "A Logo for America," a 1980s art installation by his father, Alfredo. The words on the album -- "Ya dijimos no pero el si esta en todo" ("We already said no but the yes is in everything") -- refer to the 1988 Chilean referendum on democracy.

Jaar's popularity stems from him elevating electronic music to a new and different level. "I feel an affinity with the political aspect of dance music - maybe it can increasingly become a place of protest," he has said while speaking with Pitchfork.

The unconventionality of Jaar was demonstrated at his show when he began the night with the ambient, quiet sounds of "Killing Time." This track is not as easily digestible as the other songs on Sirens, yet it clearly illustrates his music of contrasts: hard to soft, fast to slow, loud to quiet.

Fitting with his role as a composer (his 2015 album Pomegranates is an alternative soundtrack to the 1968 film The Color of Pomegranates, and he composed the soundtrack for Palme d'Or winner Dheepan), Jaar used his film soundtrack experience to craft an unexpected performance, engaging the audience with several moments of surprise and improvisation. He would begin with a familiar track, but it would suddenly dissolve into an array of percussion and crackling textures.

As with Darkside, his collaborative outfit with fellow producer Dave Harrington, the stage presentation was a key element of the show. Cloaked in darkness, with only strategically placed lights and occasional clouds of smoke, Jaar was focused on creating a mood for the concert -- and he succeeded. The minimalism of the production enhanced the music, rather than competing for attention.

Jaar did not address the crowd throughout the night, and he went from one song to the next without giving fans the chance to applaud, not allowing for the fluidity of his performance art to be broken. For the show's encore, he quietly introduced, "I am going to play some old tracks," before segueing to "Space Is Only Noise if You Can See." As the bass rhythms of that song inspired the packed crowd to dance along, it was clear that many more fans, hungry for forward-thinking music with a beat, had indeed been converted to Jaar's unique brand of genius.
By Chijioke Ohuocha LAGOS (Reuters) - Nigeria has $500 million of commitments for the planned $1 billion eurobond it intends to issue before the end of the year and any decision to increase the size of the offer will depend on pricing, Finance Minister Kemi Adeosun said on Thursday. Nigeria wants to sell a $1 billion in eurobonds by the end of the year although, as of Thursday, no bank had been appointed to arrange the issue. "At the moment am focused on the $1 billion," she said in a video recording to an investor conference in Lagos. Nigeria, Africa's largest economy, slipped into recession for the first time in 25 years in the second quarter, largely due to low global oil prices. Crude oil sales account for about two-thirds of government revenues. The government has laid out plans to spend a record 6.866 trillion naira ($22.5 billion) to help pull Nigeria out of recession in a draft 2017 budget sent to parliament for approval. Spending this year was 6.06 trillion naira, but the government has struggled to fund this, and analysts were sceptical that it would manage to meet the targets for overseas borrowing that it has set for the next few years. Adeosun said the country was "further along" with the African Development Bank for a $1 billion budget support loan than the World Bank due to scheduling issues. "We have pushed World Bank funding into next year's budget," she said. President Muhammadu Buhari has asked parliament to approve $30 billion of foreign borrowing to fund planned infrastructure projects until 2018, according to a letter read out to lawmakers on Tuesday. The proposed borrowing includes the sale of eurobonds worth $4.5 billion and budget support of $3.5 billion, according to the letter. The finance ministry said on Thursday the $30 billion borrowing was going to be phased over a three-year period to cover proposed projects between 2016-2018. Adeosun said Nigeria was interested in tapping funds at concessionary rates to develop infrastructure and that most of the funding it was seeking would carry concessionary terms. The funding is being sought from multilateral agencies including the World Bank, Africa Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank, Japan International Co-operation Agency and China Eximbank, the ministry said in a statement. Adeosun said expected taxes collection as a percentage of GDP which is currently at 5 percent to hit 7 percent within three-years and to reach 10 percent within 5 years. Nigeria's debt office has said the country can borrow up to $22 billion in 2017 from both local and foreign sources without breaching the debt threshold it has set for itself. (Additional reporting by Oludare Mayowa and Felix Onuah in Abuja; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
By Felix Onuah and Ulf Laessing ABUJA/LAGOS (Reuters) - Nigeria launched a $10 billion infrastructure programme on Thursday in its restive Delta region as part of a plan to end an insurgency that has hobbled oil production. President Muhammadu Buhari will meet representatives of militant groups and community leaders from the Niger Delta in Abuja next week in a bid to end the attacks, Oil Minister Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu said. Speaking to a forum in Abuja aimed at outlining strategy for the petroleum industry, Kachikwu described bringing the insurgency to an end as the first goal of a seven-point plan. "Our target is to ensure zero militancy in the area," he said. "This planned meeting shows the level of interest the president has to ensure peace in the area." The $10 billion investment is "not necessarily" going to come from the federal government, but rather from "oil companies, investors, individuals", he said. Militants fighting for a greater share of the OPEC member's wealth complain of poverty and a lack of development across the Niger Delta region, where most of Nigeria's oil is pumped. NATIONAL IMPERATIVE The seven-part strategy also envisages passing a long-delayed Petroleum Industry Bill by December. The bill, which covers everything from an overhaul of state oil company NNPC to taxes on upstream projects, was delayed by violence in the Delta, which at one point cut production to 30-year lows. The first part of the bill is already pending in the senate, and Kachikwu said the second part, which deals with fiscal aspects of the petroleum industry, is "almost completed" and will be presented to the oil industry in the next week or two. While the government has emphasized diversifying the economy, Buhari said on Thursday it would be impossible to move forward without the oil industry. "Oil and gas resources still remain the most immediate and practical keys out of our present economic crisis," Buhari said, and the plan for the industry is "a national imperative and a core thrust of our economic policy". To drum up financing and oil investments, Nigeria will hold a roadshow in the Gulf in January and in the United States by mid-2017, Kachikwu told reporters. One area of investment would be in improving outdated refineries to stop costly fuel imports, he said. "We are going to be licensing private refineries, to look at investing in private refineries." Kachikwu said Nigeria's oil output stood at 1.8 million barrels a day, compared with the 1.9 million bpd the Petroleum Ministry announced earlier this week. Still, he added that the government hoped to get back to 2.2 million bpd next year - the level seen at the start of 2016. "We have a capacity to produce 3 million," he said. (Reporting by Felix Onuah and Ulf Laessing, writing by Libby George; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Giles Elgood)
Basel (Switzerland) (AFP) - Top seed and US Open champion Stan Wawrinka slumped to a shock 6-2, 5-7, 6-1 defeat to German qualifier Mischa Zverev on Friday, limping out of the Swiss Indoors event in the quarter-finals.

Zverev, 29, and ranked 72 in the world, will now face Croatian fourth seed Marin Cilic, who beat Spain's Marcel Granollers 6-3, 6-3, for a place in the final.

Wawrinka has a poor history at the Swiss tournament played in Roger Federer's hometown, despite playing the event for 13 of the last 14 years.

He ended a run of four straight first-round defeats with a pair of wins this week having made his only real impression in 2011 with a semi-final against Federer.

Wawrinka was broken for 2-5 in the first set, got the tie back level by winning the second before going down a double break in the decider on his way to defeat in just under two hours.

"Zverev almost beat Novak Djokovic two weeks ago in Shanghai," Wawrinka said.

"He is an offensive player who likes to rely on the speed of the ball from the opponent."

Two-time champion Juan Martin del Potro hit 14 aces but still went down to a 7-5, 6-4 loss to Kei Nishikori.

Defeat wrapped up the ATP season for the Argentine, who will skip next week's Paris Masters to return home to train for the Davis Cup final against Croatia.

Nishikori will Saturday play to reach his second Basel final -- he lost the 2011 title match to Federer -- when he takes on Gilles Muller, a 6-7 (4/7), 6-4, 7-6 (7/3) winner over Argentine Federico Delbonis.

Wild card Del Potro, whose ranking of 42 is 1,000 places better than in February when he returned after almost a year of wrist problems and surgery, lost for the first time to third seed Nishikori.

The pair last played four years ago at the London Olympics.

Nishikori dealt out only seven aces, but fired his last one to earn a pair of match points -- one was enough as he put away a volley winner at the net.

"This was my best match of the week," said Nishikori as he ended a 12-match win streak for Del Potro at the Basel St Jakobshalle venue where the South American claimed the 2012 and 2013 titles over Federer.

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"It was a tough match. I had so many chances, so many break points that I could not convert," said Nishikori, who fended off all eight break points against his serve.

"I played good tactics today, everything was working well."

Del Potro was pleased with his week which came after he lifted his first title in nearly three years at Stockholm last Sunday.

"I've been trying to fix my problems for the past two years, and I didn't expect to win a title at this moment in my career. It's still a motivation for looking forward to the future.

"I felt exhausted during the whole match, I couldn't fight as I wanted. I had chances at the start of the first set, but Kei played very smart.

"I've played so many matches, it's too much for me. But I'm finishing the season well, I'm so glad for that."
Noble Energy, Inc. NBL is scheduled to report third-quarter 2016 results on Nov 2, before the market opens. Last quarter, the company reported a positive earnings surprise of 22.58%. It is worth noting that Noble Energy has outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three out of the trailing four quarters, with an average positive surprise of 296.11%.

Lets see how things are shaping up for this quarter.

Factors to Consider

Volatility in crude oil prices in the third quarter is expected to weigh on Noble Energys top line. In fact, the commodity price environment is expected to remain challenging through the second half of 2016 into 2017.

Late in the third quarter, Noble Energy entered into a gas sales and purchase agreement to supply natural gas from the Leviathan fields to Jordans National Electric Power Company Ltd. for electricity production. Gross revenue from this deal is expected to touch $10 billion, thereby substantially boosting Noble Energys revenues.

Further, in July, the company commenced production at the Gunflint oil development field in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, which is expected to boost crude oil production, going forward.

Additionally, seasonal demand in Israel is expected to peak in the third quarter and the governments mandate of reducing coal-fired power generation will drive demand for natural gas supplied by Noble Energy to the country.

For the third quarter, Noble Energy expects capital expenditure in the range of $400$450 million and total sales volumes in 405415 MBoe/d band. Nearly 80% of the planned third quarter expenditure will be directed toward the U.S. onshore assets.

However, Eagle Ford production volumes will be lower in the third quarter owing to shut-in impacts for offsetting fracking activity.

Earnings Whispers

Our proven model does not conclusively show that Noble Energy will beat estimates this quarter. That is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), #2 (Buy) or #3 (Hold) for this to happen. But that is not the case here, as you will see below.

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Zacks ESP: The Earnings ESP, which represents the difference between the Most Accurate estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate, is -9.09%. This is because the Most Accurate estimate is pegged at a loss of 24 cents and the Zacks Consensus Estimate stands at a loss of 22 cents.

NOBLE ENERGY Price and EPS Surprise

NOBLE ENERGY Price and EPS Surprise | NOBLE ENERGY Quote

Please check our Earnings ESP Filter that enables you to find stocks that are expected to come out with earnings surprises.

Zacks Rank: Though Noble Energys Zacks Rank #3 increases the predictive power of ESP, the companys negative ESP makes surprise prediction difficult.

Note that we caution against stocks with a Zacks Ranks #4 or #5 (Sell-rated stocks) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions.

A Peer Release

Murphy Oil Corporation MUR reported third-quarter 2016 loss of 18 cents per share, narrower than both the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 21 cents and the year-ago loss of 72 cents.

Stocks to Consider

Here are a couple of stocks in the Oil-U.S. Exploration & Production space worth considering on the basis of our model, as they have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter:

Cobalt International Energy, Inc. CIE has an Earnings ESP of +20.00% and a Zacks Rank #3. The company is expected to release third-quarter 2016 results on Nov 1.

Apache Corp. APA is expected to release third-quarter 2016 results on Nov 3. The company has an Earnings ESP of +7.14% and a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

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By Amanda Ferguson BELFAST (Reuters) - Northern Ireland's High Court on Friday rejected an attempt to block Britain's exit from the European Union, saying that neither the province's parliament nor its laws could override a decision by the British government. But it said it would defer to English courts on the wider issue of whether the British government has the right to invoke Article 50 of the EU Lisbon Treaty to leave the bloc without the explicit backing of the British parliament. Prime Minister Theresa May welcomed the ruling, with a spokesman saying it would allow the British government "to proceed to trigger Article 50 as planned". One of the plaintiffs, human rights activist Raymond McCord, said he would appeal against the ruling in the Supreme Court, Britain's highest judicial body. The case is the first judgment in legal disputes over Brexit that are being closely watched by politicians and markets. It comes amid political tension among the four nations of the United Kingdom - England and Wales, which voted to leave the EU, and Northern Ireland and Scotland, which voted to remain. A case in London will rule on whether May can use the government's "royal prerogative" power to trigger Article 50 without consulting parliament. "The fact that the government has won in the Northern Ireland case could be seen to indicate that its prerogative power is holding up pretty well," said Stephen Tierney, director of the Edinburgh Centre for Constitutional Law. "I would personally be surprised if the High Court in England reached a different conclusion," he said. Scotland's pro-independence government said it did not believe the court ruling gave any clear pointers to its own situation. "We are considering the judgment, but it must be noted that this case examined the specifics of the situation in Northern Ireland and therefore has no automatic implications for Scotland," a spokesman for the Scottish government said. STERLING DIPS Sterling fell to an eight-day low against the euro after the ruling. Overall, 52 percent of the United Kingdom voted in favor of leaving the EU in June's referendum, but 56 percent of those voting in Northern Ireland backed remaining in the bloc. There are fears that Brexit could undermine a 1998 peace deal, the Good Friday Agreement, which ended three decades of bloodshed in the province, and could lead to the reintroduction of unpopular controls on the border with the Republic of Ireland, an EU member. But justice Paul Maguire said it was "not viable" that Northern Ireland should overrule the 52 percent of the United Kingdom as a whole that voted in favor of leaving. The regional parliament would have a say on legislation passed to enact Britain's exit, but the triggering of Article 50 itself was not a "devolved matter". "The UK Parliament has retained to itself the ability to legislate for NI without the need to resort to any special procedure," Maguire said. The arguments about May's rights to trigger Article 50 "have been held over pending the outcome of the English litigation", he added. SCOTTISH IMPLICATIONS Rights activist McCord told reporters that the ruling was just a setback and he would continue to fight Brexit. "I believe what we are doing is correct. Fifty-six percent of the people of this country (Northern Ireland) voted to remain." A group of politicians and rights groups who launched a parallel case that was merged with McCord's said they were "deeply disappointed" by the rejection of their case, but had not yet decided whether to appeal. Northern Ireland's largest Irish nationalist party, Sinn Fein, said it would study the judgment carefully and explore every option to ensure the remain vote was respected. That chimes with the stance of the devolved Scottish government, which is trying to drum up support to keep its membership of the EU's single market for goods and services. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said it would be an act of "constitutional vandalism" to try to ignore Scotlands voice. "The First Minister has made clear that any proposal to remove Scotland from the EU would need legislation at Westminster, and that legislation would require the consent of the Scottish Parliament," a Scottish government spokesman said. Her party has drawn up draft legislation on a second referendum on independence from the UK, which it says is an option to protect Scotlands position within the EU. (Additional reporting by Elisabeth O'Leary in Edinburgh, William James and Helen Reid in London; Writing by Conor Humphries; Editing by Larry King)
DUBLIN (Reuters) - A Northern Ireland rights activist whose attempt to block Britain's exit from the European Union was rejected on Friday by the province's High Court said he would appeal to the British Supreme Court. The High Court on Friday ruled that the law of the province did not restrict the British prime minister's ability to trigger an exit from the European Union, and that the consent of the regional parliament was not required. "Today is a setback but we will see the judges in London," rights activist Raymond McCord told journalists at the court. "I believe what we are doing is correct. Fifty-six percent of the people of this country (Northern Ireland) voted to remain." A group of politicians and rights groups who took a parallel case that was merged with McCord's said they were "deeply disappointed" by the rejection of their case, but had not yet decided whether to appeal. (Reporting by Conor Humphries; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
Washington (AFP) - US President Barack Obama will launch a campaign blitz for Democrat Hillary Clinton next week as the race against Republican Donald Trump for the White House enters the final stretch.

The Clinton camp announced Friday that Obama will make the case for his former secretary of state for three straight days in as many key battleground states.

Obama's appearances could be crucial after the Federal Bureau of Investigation said it was reviewing newly discovered emails that "appear to be pertinent" to the investigation into Clinton's use of private email while at the State Department.

On Tuesday, Obama will stump for her in Columbus, Ohio. The president will campaign in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Wednesday, followed by swings in southern Florida, including the Jacksonville area, on Thursday.

The three states account for 62 of the electoral college votes needed to reach the 270-vote minimum to win the White House in the November 8 election.

Obama won the states in 2008 and 2012, except in the case of North Carolina, which he won the first time but lost in his re-election bid.

The Clinton team has intensely targeted voter campaigns in those states, where a defeat of Trump would virtually ensure his loss in the election.

Clinton is also scheduled to campaign in Ohio, North Carolina and Florida next week, but has added an unusual stop to her calendar: Arizona, a Republican Party stronghold where she is leading in several public opinion polls.

"Arizona is another battleground state that is now on the map," campaign manager Robby Mook told reporters aboard her plane as the candidate flew into Iowa, another swing state that had been leaning toward Trump but where the polls have tightened into nearly a dead heat.

The southwestern state of Arizona, home to the 2008 Republican nominee John McCain, is "a contest that I think we can win and that's why we want to spend some time there," Mook said.

"But it's a toss-up, and so are Ohio, Iowa."
Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) and Chevron (NYSE:CVX) on Friday detailed another tough quarter, although the bleak oil market turned a little brighter as commodity prices edged higher.

Energy companies have taken a beating during oils two-year-long slump, eliminating thousands of jobs and making other cost cuts to stem losses. Falling oil prices also ignited merger talks in the industry. General Electric (NYSE:GE) acknowledged on Thursday night that its discussing potential partnerships with oilfield services provider Baker Hughes (NYSE:BHI), whose proposed merger with Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) was scrapped earlier this year in the wake of regulatory pushback.

In recent weeks, crude oil has attempted a comeback amid expectations that OPEC will put a cap on production to reduce global supplies. U.S. futures rose to $51.60 a barrel to post a 52-week high on Oct. 19. Oil settled at $49.72 a barrel on Thursday, up 8% versus 2015.

The modest recovery took only some of the pressure off Exxon and Chevron.

Exxons third-quarter profit tumbled 38% year-over-year to $2.7 billion, which still topped the first two quarters of the year. Exxon Chairman and CEO Rex W. Tillerson warned that the operating environment remains challenging.

Chevron booked a profit of $1.3 billion, a 35% drop versus the same period last year. However, it marked Chevrons first profitable quarter of 2016, and earnings beat Wall Street estimates.

Third quarter results, though down from a year ago, reflect an improvement from the first two quarters of this year, Chevron Chairman and CEO John Watson said. Our operational performance in the third quarter was strong.

Chevrons average sales price per barrel of crude oil was $37, lower than last years $42 but up from $36 in the second quarter of 2016.

Shares of Chevron rallied around 4% on Friday morning, while Exxon retreated 1%.

Exxon also disclosed on Friday that it will need to reduce its tally of proved reserves by 4.6 billion barrels, or 19%, if oil prices remain near the current annual average. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating how Exxon reports the value of oil and gas wells.

Related Articles
By Jon Herskovitz

(Reuters) - Oklahoma County prosecutors filed first degree murder charges on Friday against a man who has been on the run for nearly a week after being suspected of killing two relatives and trying to decapitate them.

Michael Vance, 38, is also suspected of wounding two police officers in a shoot out and posting his getaway on social media. Police believe he was shot twice in a gunfight, in which he wounded two police officers and then stole a police vehicle.

The U.S. Marshal Service has joined in the search for Vance. He could face the death penalty if he is convicted of killing Ronald Wilkson, 55, and his wife Valerie Wilkson, 54, who were found dead in their home on Sunday about 30 miles northeast of Oklahoma City.

Vance is thought to have killed his aunt and uncle about three hours after the shootout with police, the Oklahoma County Sheriff's office said. He then stole their car.

The Sunday incident crime spree started with officers responding to a call of shots being fired. Both suffered wounds that were not life threatening.

Vance also has an infectious disease that he may be trying to spread. In July, he was charged with child sexual abuse, the office said.

In a video posted on Facebook Live while fleeing, Vance can he heard saying he is about to steal another car and that the chase has been "intense."

"This ain't a joke. This ain't a prank," Vance said, adding he was set up.

Vance also stated in the video that he was shot. The Oklahoma County Sheriff's Office said there appeared to be a large amount of blood on his shirt and a rifle or shotgun next to him in the vehicle.

Vance is suspected of shooting at least one person in attempts to steal vehicles. The shooting victim survived, local law enforcement said.

(Reporting by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Sandra Maler)
President Barack Obama is  yet again  shooting down rumors that wife Michelle will run for president.

 will never run for office, Obama said Thursday while calling into SiriusXMs Sway in the Morning, shooting down rumors of a political future for the First Lady. She is as talented and brilliant a person as there is and I could not be prouder of her, but Michelle does not have the patience or the inclination to actually be a candidate herself.

He added: Thats one thing yall can take to the bank.

Both Barack and Michelle have made it clear that the First Lady will not run for the highest office in the land. But Michelles recent round of masterful speeches condemning GOP nominee Donald Trump have sparked new speculation.

RELATED VIDEO: Michelle Obama Gets Emotional Condemning Trump in Barnstorming Speech for Hillary: It Has Shaken Me to My Core

Although the Obamas have shot down the rumors, it seems the pairs loyal supporters just wont take no for an answer. And perhaps with good reason, as the 52-year-old has received praised for her recent speeches in favor of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

Hillary has done her job, now we need to do our job and get her elected president of the United States because heres where I want to get real: If Hillary doesnt win this election, that will be on us, she said alongside Clinton on Thursday at a joint event at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Along with the rest of her supporters, Clinton praised Michelle for her way with words and powerful delivery.

Seriously, is there anyone more inspiring than Michelle Obama? Clinton asked. Maybe its especially meaningful to me because I do know something about being first lady of the United States.

The First Lady has been shutting down rumors of a run since at least 2012.

During the White Houses Take Your Daughters And Sons To Work Day in April 2012, Michelle said she would absolutely not run for president, ABC News reported at the time.

One of the things you learn about yourself as you get older are what are your strengths and what are your interests, she said. And for me, its other stuff, that is not being the President. So I probably wont run.




GettyImages 155662036

Dogs already keep communities safe, sniff out cancer, and perform cute stunts.

Now, one of the most well-funded super PACs on the left is hoping dogs can help accomplish a truly difficult trick: Motivate millennials to vote.

NextGen Climate, billionaire investor Tom Steyer's PAC dedicated to curbing the effects of climate change, announced on Friday that it will be bringing "puppies to the polls" at a series of get-out-the-vote early voting events in key battleground states.

The group told Business Insider that so far it has four events where puppies will be present in Iowa, 11 events in North Carolina, 12 events in Pennsylvania, two events in Nevada, and two in New Hampshire, and is launching a digital campaign to recruit puppy volunteers for more events.

"We want every young voter to make it to the polls by Election Day, so weve enlisted our most loyal companions to help during this historic election," said Nick Ellis, the group's "National Puppy Coordinator" who is keeping tabs on events where the group is using puppies. We are excited about this new approach to voter outreach."

A NextGen representative told Business Insider that the idea was conceived when the PAC noticed anecdotally at locations where staff and volunteers brought puppies, there were higher numbers of voter registrations and commitments to vote than locations that did not have puppies.

NextGen is one of a handful of groups on the left that have eschewed traditional television advertising in their attempts to draw young voters, a notoriously unreliable cohort, to the polls.

The group tasked campus organizers across the country with individually texting potential millennial supporters in six battleground states  Iowa, North Carolina, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Nevada, New Hampshire, and Ohio, and has used popular apps like Pokemon Go and Tinder to reach millennials on their cell phones.

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Earlier this year, Steyer's group pledged to spend at least $25 million aimed solely at engaging millennial voters this election cycle, money that's largely dedicated to direct voter contact on places like college campuses, but the group's overall spending this cycle has far exceeded that target.

In an interview, Steyer told Business Insider that NextGen believes it can activate Millennial voters, who he said are concerned about the impacts of climate change, but not so easily reached through traditional political advertising means.

"You're looking at the largest age cohort in the United States right now  bigger than the baby boomers  that is passionate about energy and climate, and doesn't participate at levels that are commensurate with its numbers," Steyer said. "It makes total sense to try and talk to them on the issues, get them involved, try and get them to understand the true significance of their vote, and encourage higher participation."

He added: "And it's not something that is susceptible to a 15-second TV commercial, it really is a question of 'How can you have this conversation in a way that is genuine and slightly longer and more personal from someone they trust?'"

NOW WATCH: Watch the brutal Hillary Clinton ad that pits Trump against himself





More From Business Insider


A diabetic applies an Insulin pen injection in Vienna November 13, 2012. Picture taken November 13, 2012. REUTERS/Heinz-Peter Bader

It hasn't been a good morning for the pharmaceutical industry.

As company earnings come out, stocks have been dropping across the supply chain.



Novo Nordisk, a Danish pharmaceutical company known for its diabetes medication was down 14% Friday morning after slashing its long-term profit growth target in half.

"The competitive environment in the U.S. within both diabetes care and biopharmaceuticals has become more challenging, negatively impacting the price of our products, especially for insulin and human growth hormone products," Novo's chief financial officer Jesper Brandgaard said in a call with investors Friday.

In the last decade, Novo's list prices for its insulin have gone up roughly 300%. The company also introduced a new insulin in 2015 called Tresiba.



But the pharmacy benefits managers  who manage relationships between drugmakers, insurers and pharmacies  have been taking an increasing cut of drug prices. Drugmakers pay the PBMs a "rebate" to offset price increases, and for insulin, this has been rising, according to ZS Associates, a sales and marketing firm that works in the healthcare industry.



ZS data shows that Novo's rebate rates were 47% in 2014, and 55% in 2015. Across the industry, ZS data shows that rebates paid out to PBMs and insurers have gone up from about $40 billion four years ago to $100-$130 billion by 2016. So while list prices continue to go up, net prices to the drugmakers have stayed mostly flat.

"If you want a little more money, you've got to increase the list price by a lot," ZS principal Pratap Khedkar told Business Insider earlier in October.





Screen Shot 2016 10 28 at 10.14.06 AM

Sanofi, which also reported earnings Friday and also makes insulin, has been facing similar issues for a few years. The company hasn't taken any price increases on its insulin, called Lantus, since 2014. Sanofi was up 4% Friday morning.

NOW WATCH: FEMA is tracking Hurricane Matthew using the 'Waffle House Index'





More From Business Insider


By Alex Lawler and Rania El Gamal

VIENNA/DUBAI (Reuters) - OPEC officials meeting in Vienna to work out the details of their plan to reduce oil production failed to reach agreement after hours of talks on Friday, amid objections by Iran which has been reluctant to even freeze its output, OPEC sources said.

The High Level Committee of experts will meet again in Vienna on Nov. 25 ahead of the next meeting of OPEC ministers on Nov. 30, to "finalise individual quotas", one source said.

They will also meet as scheduled on Saturday with representatives of non-OPEC producers, which OPEC wants help from in curbing supplies.

"Yes, we continue tomorrow with non-OPEC," one of the sources said. "(There was) no complete agreement today since Iran refuses to freeze production."

"We didn't finish all. We are looking to the next meeting on November 25 to finalise individual quotas," another source said.

The meeting of the High Level Committee is comprised mainly of OPEC governors and national representatives - officials who report to their respective ministers.

Talks lasted just over 11 hours on Friday with Iran appearing to be the main sticking point.

"There is no agreement yet, all agree except Iran," one OPEC source said, adding Iran was asking for an exemption.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries had agreed last month in Algiers to reduce their production of crude oil to a range of 32.50 million to 33 million barrels per day, OPEC's first output cut since 2008, in an effort to prop up prices.

But from the outset the proposed plan faced potential setbacks with Iraq wanting to be exempt from cuts and countries including Iran, Libya and Nigeria whose output has been hit by sanctions or conflict also wanting to raise their output.

"It is getting complicated," a delegate said before the meeting began on Friday.

"Every day there is a new issue coming up."

However, other OPEC officials including Secretary-General Mohammed Barkindo remained optimistic.

Story continues

"Our deliberations today, and tomorrow with some non-OPEC producers, could very well have fundamental ramifications for the market, as well as for the medium to long term of the industry," Barkindo said in a speech on the opening day of the two-day meeting, according to a text provided by OPEC.

The committee does not decide policy and will instead make recommendations to the next OPEC ministerial meeting on Nov. 30.

Iraq, OPEC's second-biggest producer, said earlier this week that it would not cut output and should be exempted from any curbs as it needs funds to fight Islamic State.

Meanwhile Iran has insisted on its right to recover market share after Western sanctions were lifted in January.

Non-OPEC nations sending representatives to Saturday's talks are Russia, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Oman, Azerbaijan, Brazil and Bolivia.

(Reflies to add 'on Friday' in first paragraph)

(Editing by Greg Mahlich)
Getting past the shock of a cancer diagnosis and through all the difficulties of treatment is a hard-won accomplishment for cancer survivors. Unfortunately for some, lingering guilt is another unwelcome side effect. A recent small survey of lung cancer patients found that more than half had negative feelings about surviving their disease when others did not. Guilt can also seep in when people believe they're a burden to family members, blame themselves for their diagnosis or feel down instead of "lucky" as others expect.

[See: 7 Things You Didn't Know About Lung Cancer.]

Sibling Survivor

Michael Levin, 71, an Atlanta business owner, has suffered more than his share of health problems. First, in 2007, he was diagnosed with right-sided lung cancer. Within two years, the cancer spread to his brain, causing four tumors requiring ultra-precise radiosurgery. Then, about two years ago, he developed a second primary lung tumor, this time on the left side. Between those bouts of cancer, he had a heart attack. "But I've survived them all and have done well," Levin says. "I am a very happy person, fully engaged in life."

With all Levin endured, he also felt a persistent sense of self-reproach. "I had a sister who was three years older than I was," he says. "Five months after I was diagnosed, she was diagnosed with the same cancer at the same location. Everything was exactly the same." But there was a big difference: His sister's cancer was inoperable. Less than a year later, she died. "I feel guilty that I survived and she didn't," he says. "I just feel a great sense of sadness that she didn't make it."

Many people who know Levin say he should consider himself lucky. "You have nine lives," he often hears. With two adult children to run the family in his absence, he was able to devote himself entirely to coping with cancer and recuperating. But in the chemo infusion clinic, he'd look around and see others, like young women with breast cancer, struggling to work and support families. "That gave me the guilts," he recalls.

Story continues

Getting over guilt was a gradual metamorphosis, Levin says. While his sister was alive, acting as one of her caregivers helped. About two years later, Levin became active in the nonprofit Lung Cancer Alliance. Giving of himself helps "enormously," he says, with a sense of making a positive contribution. "You also feel like you're making yourself worthy of the efforts that doctors, technologists and nurses made on your behalf," he says.

Last year, the Lung Cancer Alliance surveyed 108 lung cancer survivors online. Participants answered a series of questions on a scale used to assess guilt and also made individual comments. "Survivors repeatedly referenced the death of someone known to them, which kind of caused some feelings of guilt," says Tara Perloff, senior manager of support services.

Another dimension was a sense of depression associated with surviving lung cancer. "It was that opposite end of the coin," Perloff says. "Most people, when they're diagnosed with cancer, say, 'Why me? Why did I get cancer?' Survivor guilt is, 'Why not me? Why didn't I die?'"

Other respondents, for instance those diagnosed in early stages, felt bad that their treatment course was less difficult than that of other patients, Perloff says. Some blamed themselves for having been smokers.

In focus groups that followed the survey, survivors were happy to open up about their feelings. People would say, "Thank you; I felt like I was the only one," or "I felt like I was crazy," Perloff says. Talking provided relief to guilt-stricken survivors who realized that they weren't alone after all.

[See: When Health Treatments Go From Hospital to DIY.]

Relying on Others

For Angela Long of Sarasota, Florida, being diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer in 2004 brought "instant" guilt. "My kids were real little," she says. "Once cancer hit, I couldn't be Mom full time anymore. Now I was the patient. I had to take care of myself and treat the disease. So I relied really heavily on my husband. He stepped up and started taking on a lot more responsibilities with the kids, especially when I was sick or recovering from treatment or surgery." Friends pitched in too. While Long appreciated their efforts, accepting rather than giving help was a tough transition.

With more deep-seated guilt, Long recalls a fellow parent with whom she used to attend school functions for their small children. Her friend developed the same type of cancer, but sadly, she died of the disease. While recently attending her own son's high school graduation, Long was reminded of her friend's daughter, who was also graduating. "It still makes me choke up," she says.

Survivor guilt is less disruptive for Long than it used to be. "I've learned to cope with it more," she says. "I understand it more. It's been a process." She's immersed herself in helping others, including working as a patient and survivor advocate and hosting a website with information on breast cancer.

Realizing that people offer help willingly is another way to reduce survivor guilt. "This is a gift that they're giving you because they want to do something," Long says. "It makes them feel better to do these things for you. They can't fix your disease, but they can make your life a little easier for you."

[See: How Social Workers Help Your Health.]

Part of the Process

It's possible to overstate the prevalence of cancer survivor guilt, says Bradley Zebrack, a professor of social work at the University of Michigan School of Social Work. He makes a distinction between the emotion of feeling guilty and the cognitive process people use to draw meaning from their cancer experience.

"It's certainly a problem for people who feel it -- I don't negate that," Zebrack says. But, he says, survivors shouldn't feel that guilt is inevitable. Also, he adds, "If it gets overstated, then care providers and clinicians might start to think we have to do something about it. We have to quote-unquote treat it."

Choosing the right type of therapy -- if any -- depends on whether guilt is disrupting other elements of survivors' lives, Zebrack says. "There are some people who become paralyzed by the guilt," he says. "Or become very depressed." If so, depression-specific treatment would be needed.

For survivor guilt, Zebrack says, a talk therapy called meaning-making psychotherapy can help. As patients process what cancer means to them, he says, therapists help them shift their story in a more positive direction: "It's this recognition that, 'Wow, I must have survived cancer for a reason. Now let me figure out what that reason is.' It can be really powerful work."

7 Innovations in Cancer Therapy

Lisa Esposito is a Patient Advice reporter at U.S. News. You can follow her on Twitter, connect with her on LinkedIn or email her at lesposito@usnews.com.
Bran (Romania) (AFP) - Armed with courage and hopefully garlic, two horror fans dying for a thrill will become the first guests in almost 70 years to spend a night at Dracula's castle in Transylvania on Halloween.

More than 80,000 subscribers to the home-sharing service Airbnb have taken part in a global contest for the unique chance to stay at the brooding fortress, perched on a rock above the misty Carpathian valley in central Romania.

Officially called Bran Castle, the 11th-century mansion is a landmark tourist attraction made famous by Irish author Bram Stoker's 1897 Gothic novel "Dracula".

In the book's opening pages, unsuspecting London lawyer Jonathan Harker travels to the remote Transylvanian woods for business dealings with the mysterious Count Dracula.

Several blood-drenched chapters later, the reclusive aristocrat reveals himself to be an ancient vampire with an unsatiable appetite for young women's arteries.

Although Stoker never visited Romania, his description of the count's eery home matches that of the Bran fortress, thus giving rise to the myth.

Like young Harker in the novel, a horse carriage will take the Airbnb competition winners -- to be announced by Friday -- up a winding road to Bran Castle on October 31.

Here, they will be greeted by none other than Stoker's great-grandnephew who will play host for the evening.

After a candlelit dinner, the visitors will then be shown to their night's resting place -- two large velvet-lined coffins.

"We want to instil a sense of fear in an authentic way, not like some fairground attraction," Dacre Stoker, a self-proclaimed "vampire expert" and author, told AFP.

"During his first few hours at the castle, Harker had no idea about the horror that was about to befall him," he added with a conspiratorial grin.

But while the Airbnb pair may be the sole overnight guests, they certainly won't be the only living souls to haunt around the premises during Halloween.

Story continues

- Sorting fact from fiction -

Of the 500,000 annual tourists, many choose this time of year to cram inside the castle and explore its many spooky nooks and crannies.

"The castle has 57 rooms across four floors. But I can't tell you how many vampires there are," guide Anemona Todor told a group during a recent tour.

The fortress's fear factor left some visitors unfazed, however.

"We know that Dracula is just a legend so the situation is under control," said an Israeli woman Dorit who was visiting the place with her husband and five-year-old son.

For those more interested in real ghosts of the past, Bran also offers a rich treasure trove in history.

Built in 1212 by the Teutonic Knights, the property housed numerous aristocrats over the centuries before eventually becoming the summer residence of Queen Mary of Romania.

The Romanian communist regime seized the residence at the end of World War II.

It was only returned to the queen's grandson in 2006, who has since turned it into a profitable private museum.

Folklore has it that the castle's prison cells also once held the cruel 15th-century prince Vlad Tepes, who notoriously impaled his victims and inspired Dracula's character.

Managing the blurred lines between fiction and facts requires "surgical precision", confirmed the castle's marketing director Alexandru Priscu.

But, he added, the fortress "offers exactly what we expect from it: it's romantic and mysterious in equal measures."
Pakistani security forces raided a compound in the country's troubled southwest and killed four militants linked to an attack on a police academy earlier in the week, officials said Friday.

The raid in Quetta, the capital of strife-riven Balochistan province, was carried out late Thursday following an intelligence tip-off about the presence of fighters from the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) militant group.

"A team of anti-terrorist force (ATF) raided the compound and killed four militants after an exchange of gunfire," a senior local police official Abdullah Afridi told AFP.

Speaking off the record, a police official said the militants belonged to the LeJ -- a faction of which claimed it had worked with the Islamic State group to carry out the Monday night raid that killed 61 people, the deadliest assault on a security installation in Pakistan's history.

IS had previously also claimed the raid and released photos of the fighters involved, one of whom bore a strong resemblance to a attacker who was killed by security forces in the assault.

The extent of any material support to local groups from IS remains unclear, but affiliation with the notoriously brutal outfit brings the promise of a far higher profile.

The Balochistan government has also formed a joint investigation team (JIT) comprising officials from the army, police and intelligence agencies to probe Monday's attack.

Pakistan has been battling a homegrown Islamist insurgency since shortly after the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, though overall levels of violence have dropped following a series of militatry offensives in the country's western tribal regions.

Monday night's raid though served as a grim reminder that militant groups are still able to carry out major assaults from time to time.

The emergence of IS in Pakistan is seen as a major blow to the country's long-running efforts to quell the insurgency, and comes as the group's key rival Al Qaeda is losing strength in what was once its "home ground".
Ramallah (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) - Palestinian president and Fatah leader Mahmud Abbas has met the head of Hamas and his deputy in Qatar, a Palestinian official said Friday, in a sign of easing tensions.

Thursday's meeting in the Qatari capital was the first between Abbas and Doha-based Khaled Meshaal in two years, and the second between him and the Hamas chief in the Gaza Strip, Ismail Haniya, since 2012.

Abbas's secular party Fatah and the Islamist Hamas have been at loggerheads since the latter seized Gaza in a near civil war in 2007.

The Doha meeting provided the opportunity to "insist on the need to resume dialogue between Fatah and Hamas", Palestinian presidency spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina said.

Abbas stressed the need for "Palestinian national reconciliation", as well as "forming a national unity government and holding elections".

The Palestinian government postponed the first municipal polls in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip in 10 years earlier this month after the high court ruled they should be held only in the Fatah-run West Bank.

The Palestinians have not held an election in which both Hamas and Fatah have taken part since 2006. They have also not held a simultaneous vote in both the West Bank and Gaza since then.
A Chinese court on Thursday ordered Viacom's Paramount Pictures and a Chinese production partner to pay $295,000, or 2 million yuan, including incurred legal fees, to a tourist resort in a breach of contract dispute over product placement in Transformers: Age of Extinction.

The court in Chongqing found that Paramount and Chinese partner 1905 failed to fulfill their major obligations under the agreement, but later partially made up for it, the South China Morning Post reported, quoting China National Radio.

The management company for the Wulong Karst National Geological Park had brought the lawsuit, saying the two sides had agreed that a logo of the resort would appear in the fourth Transformers film's final edit.

The defendants had admitted that the logo didn't make the film, but they tried to make up for that by allowing director Michael Bay to make an advertising spot for the resort and leaving behind items built for the film as tourist attractions.

The court rejected a counter claim filed by Paramount due to Wulong Karst's decision to only pay part of the agreed-upon fees once it found out its name and logo did not appear in the film.

Read more: Paramount Pictures Sued for $27M in China Over 'Transformers 4' Product Placement
Paramount is back! At least that was the message studio chief Brad Grey tried to convey Thursday night at a slate preview for members of the media at Viacoms corporate headquarters in New York. It was a night that boasted sneak peeks at upcoming releases such as Denzel Washingtons Fences, Martin Scorseses Silence, and Robert Zemeckis Allied  films that are likely to factor into this years Oscar race.

The presentation came after a punishing period for the film studio. Not only has Paramount suffered through a string of flops such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, Zoolander 2, and Ben-Hur, but it has also become entangled in a bitter feud for control of its parent company, Viacom. That fight, between the Redstone family and former Viacom chairman Philippe Dauman, may have unfolded in a series of legal battles, but it sent shockwaves across the companys various divisions. It ended last month with Daumans ouster. Now, the Redstones and the Viacom board are moving forward with a plan to merge the company with CBS, another media company that the family controls.

I know our company has been in the news quite a bit recently and not for the movies, Grey said, shortly before the footage rolled. But I am excited for the changes being made here at Viacom, and I am really excited for what they mean for the next chapter of Paramount.

It may be too early to declare a revival underway at Paramount. The problems the studio faces are deep and the competition in the movie space is fierce. However, the upcoming releases did look promising. Allied, a World War II spy thriller with Brad Pitt and Marion Cotillard, had a glossy, erotic glow. The presentation included a scene between Pitt and Cotillard, who play husband and wife spies who may be double-crossing each other, that crackled with tension.

In his opening remarks, Grey said Silence, a look at monks in feudal Japan, was seminal Scorsese. The director is still toiling away in the editing room, but the footage screened on Thursday had a hallucinatory quality. There were shots of a gaunt Liam Neeson dropping to his knees in prayer, images of Japanese men being hung on crosses, and cloud-flecked vistas of stunning mountainous countryside. Its a film, Grey said, that Scorsese has been trying to make for 28 years.

Story continues

Fences included a powerful monologue delivered by a drunk Washington, in which he relays a fight with his father that caused him to strike out on his own. The picture is expected to compete in several Oscar categories, including for Washingtons acting and directing, as well as Viola Davis supporting turn as his long-suffering wife.

But the evening wasnt just about Oscar bait. There was also a first-ever look at The Ghost in the Shell, an anime adaptation featuring Scarlett Johansson as a cyborg policewoman, who shoots up criminal gatherings while wearing a skintight jumpsuit. The footage featured kinetic action sequences with Johansson in full-Lucy mode, mowing down armies of bad guys.

There was also a look at xXx: The Return of Xander Cage complete with Vin Diesel skating on the side of a bus.

The Paramount presentation closed with a rapid series of clips of upcoming titles such as Darren Aronofskys Mother with Jennifer Lawrence, Alexander Paynes Downsizing with Matt Damon, and George Clooneys Suburbicon. Paramount, it seems, is betting on filmmakers to push it out of its recent doldrums.

Related stories

Paramount Lands Pitch From Platinum Dunes and 'Saw IV' Scribes (EXCLUSIVE)

Leonardo DiCaprio to Play 1950s Music Pioneer Sam Phillips in New Film

Playback: Andrew Garfield on 'Silence,' 'Hacksaw Ridge,' Letting Spider-Man Go
Forty-seven years after he helped plot and carry out the slayings of pregnant actress Sharon Tate and six other people, California parole officials denied parole on Thursday to Charles Tex Watson, the self-described right hand man of cult leader Charles Manson, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Watson, 70, is currently serving a life sentence for the murders of Tate along with four other people at her Beverly Hills home on Aug. 9, 1969. He helped kill Leno LaBianca, a grocer, and his wife, Rosemary, the following night.

He was initially sentenced to death after the murder sprees, but after the California Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was unconstitutional in 1972, his sentence was commuted to life in prison.

Tates sister, Debra Tate, planned to attend Watsons 17th parole hearing and told the AP she fears officials may recommend freedom for the most active, the most prolific killer in the Manson family.

The authorities in this state want to let out predatory people, she said. All of these people were deemed either sociopathic or psychopathic back in the day. You dont come back from that. They cant be rehabilitated.

California Gov. Jerry Brown reversed the Board of Parole Hearings recommendation that the state release Leslie Van Houten, a Manson cult member, in July. Van Houten, 67, is serving a life sentence for the La Bianca murders.

In January, Brown blocked the release of Bruce Davis, 74, who was convicted in the killings of Gary Hinman and stuntman Donald Shorty Shea.

Watson wrote the book, Mansons Right-Hand Man Speaks Out, in prison, writing that Manson had offered his followers utopia.

He apologized for the murders, converted to Christianity in 1975 and obtained his college degree while behind bars. He also founded the Abounding Love Ministries in 1980 and ministers to other inmates, according to the AP.

Watson will be eligible for parole in five years.




Paul Krugman

Nobel Memorial Prize-winning economist and New York Times op-ed columnist Paul Krugman slammed the FBI's "disgraceful" announcement Friday that it will reopen its investigation into Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server while she was secretary of state.

"It's bad enough having the media do the 'raises questions,' substance-free innuendo thing. Worse when the FBI director does it. Disgraceful," Krugman, a Clinton supporter, wrote on Twitter.

"Comey needs to provide full info immediately. Otherwise he has clearly made a partisan intervention, betraying his office."

James Comey, the FBI director, wrote in a letter to congressional leaders on Friday that investigators had learned of "the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation" that compelled agents to continue their probe, which had ended in July with no charges recommended against Clinton.

"The FBI cannot yet assess whether or not this material may be significant," Comey wrote. "And I cannot predict how long it will take us to complete this additional work."

Krugman condemned how Comey handled the entire ordeal, calling his behavior "inexcusable" and "grotesque."

He added that "so far this is a story about Comey and his behavior. We know nothing at all about what if anything this has to do with HRC."

View some of his tweets:

Comey probably not trying to elect Trump. But is he trying to help R senators? If he just leaves this hanging, that will be best guess  Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) October 28, 2016

If we don't hear more from Comey, we just have to conclude that he was trying to swing election. And *that* should be the story.  Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) October 28, 2016

Journalist Twitter is full of shock at FBI behavior here. That same shock should make it into news reports; not doing so misleads public  Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) October 28, 2016

No, Comey needs to realize that he can't be cute. This is the second time he has put a finger on the scales without charges. Not OK. https://t.co/qLjPZqE0dA  Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) October 28, 2016

"The announcement has done measurable damage to the Clinton campaign," Krugman continued. "Which was predictable. Comey behavior inexcusable. If Pete Williams is right, this is probably nothing important. Yet here we are, with a potentially huge political impact. The bed has been fouled, and can't be un-fouled."

Story continues

NBC's Williams had reported earlier that none of the new emails had been found on Clinton's private server.

So does it even have anything to do with HRC? Will we even find out before 11/8? But all the public hears is "emails/Clinton/FBI" Grotesque. https://t.co/uxnUDkmNTT  Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) October 28, 2016

So this may be a nothing burger -- that could swing the election, for the Senate if not the WH. Great work, FBI. https://t.co/9j8AAE96qC  Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) October 28, 2016

Krugman was not alone. Many quickly condemned the FBI's handling of the announcement that it would reopen the investigation.

"I have zero faith that anyone will handle this responsibly," former Obama speechwriter Jon Favreau wrote. "It's insane. [Comey] at least owes the country a press briefing  anything more than a vague letter."

"Director Comey should give a more complete explanation. Is this reviewing newly found emails? Is this reopening? Too much at stake," wrote John Weaver, the former campaign strategist for Ohio Gov. John Kasich.

Democratic National Committee Interim Chair Donna Brazile called Comey's letter "irresponsible."

"The FBI has a solemn obligation to remain neutral in political matters  even the faintest appearance of using the agencys power to influence our election is deeply troubling," she wrote in a statement.

Comey explained why he sent the letter to Congressional leaders in a separate letter to his employees on Friday, acknowleding that "in a brief letter and in the middle of an election season, there is significant risk of being misunderstood."

"We dont ordinarily tell Congress about ongoing investigations, but here I feel an obligation to do so given that I testified repeatedly in recent months that our investigation was completed," Comey wrote. "I also think it would be misleading to the American people were we not to supplement the record."

Reports emerged later on Friday that the new emails, numbering in the thousands, were uncovered after the FBI seized devices belonging to top Clinton aide Huma Abedin and her estranged husband, Anthony Weiner. Prosecutors issued a subpoena for Weiner's cellphone and other records in late September amid allegations that he had been sexting with a 15-year-old girl.

In a press conference on Friday evening, Clinton implored the FBI to release more information about the newly discovered documents.

The American people deserve to get the full and complete facts immediately," she said.

NOW WATCH: The FBI is back on the Clinton email scandal because of Anthony Weiner





More From Business Insider


By Lucas Jackson

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A plane carrying U.S. Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pence skidded off the runway after landing in the rain at New York City's LaGuardia Airport on Thursday, halting flights for at least an hour, officials said.

No one was injured in the incident which occurred less than two weeks before the U.S. presidential election, crucial campaign days for Pence and running mate Donald Trump.

Pence pledged to hit the campaign trail again on Friday.

"So thankful everyone on our plane is safe," the Indiana governor said on Twitter after the incident. "Grateful for our first responders & the concern & prayers of so many."

The Boeing 737 was coming in for a landing and went off the runway at about 7:40 p.m. local time (2340 GMT). The plane was stopped by a crushable type of concrete runway that arrested the aircraft's movement, Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Jim Peters said.

The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board said they will investigate the cause of the incident.

Trump called his running mate before a rally in Geneva, Ohio.

"I just spoke to Mike Pence and he's fine," Trump told the crowd at the rally. "The plane skidded off the runway and was pretty close to grave, grave danger.

Trump and Pence have slipped in the polls in recent weeks, in part due to negative public reaction to the release of a decade-old video in which Trump made lewd comments about women and said he could grab them by their genitals because he was a celebrity.

Since then, numerous women have come forward to say that they were groped by Trump, claims that he has denied.

On Thursday, Pence had been scheduled to attend a fundraiser at Trump Tower in Manhattan, but was not able to make the event after his plane slid off the runway, a campaign aide said.

Pence will resume his normal schedule Friday using a different plane, the aide said.

Live television footage showed Pence standing in the rain near the plane among emergency vehicles, talking to police and other officials.

Story continues

Trump's opponent, Democrat Hillary Clinton, on Twitter said she was glad Pence and the rest of the passengers and crew were safe.

There were about 30 people onboard the plane, including Pence's wife, Karen, and daughter Charlotte, MSNBC said.

The plane was coming from Fort Dodge, Iowa, where Pence had participated in a campaign event.

The takeoff from Iowa was delayed for about two hours because of bad weather in New York. Pence had earlier posted on Twitter a picture of himself playing football in the bright sun on grass near his plane in Iowa, citing the delay in leaving for New York.

In 2015 a Delta Air Lines Inc jet landing during a snowstorm at LaGuardia Airport slid off the runway and struck a fence before coming to rest on a snow-covered embankment just feet from the frigid waters of Flushing Bay.

(Additional reporting by Eric Beech, Mohammad Zargham and Ginger Gibson in Washington; Steve Holland in Geneva, Ohio; Rory Carroll and Curtis Skinner in San Francisco; Writing by Sharon Bernstein; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
From Cosmopolitan

In must-see TV on Tuesday night, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich had a meltdown, furious that Fox anchor Megyn Kelly had devoted more time to Donald Trumps 2005 comments bragging about committing sexual assault than to Hillary Clintons leaked emails. In a combative exchange, Gingrich accused Kelly of being "fascinated with sex" and not caring "about public policy."

"You know what, Mr. Speaker? I am not fascinated by sex, but I am fascinated by the protection of women and understanding what were getting in the Oval Office," Kelly said.

Trumps treatment of women became a national issue after he was heard bragging about using his star power to grab women "by the pussy" in the leaked tape. Around a dozen women have come forward with allegations of sexual assault and misconduct. Since the fallout, polls show a potentially historic gender gap between Clinton and Trump supporters, with an overwhelming percentage of women supporting Clinton.

Yet Gingrich is far from the only Republican leader who believes that talking about the sexual assault allegations is a distraction from the issues that really matter.

1. Donald Trump. Though Trump apologized for the comments he made in the tape, in the same breath he also excused them as "locker room talk" and said, Lets be honest: Were living in the real world. This is nothing more than a distraction from the important issues were facing today.

2. Katrina Pierson. Trump spokesperson Katrina Pierson falsely equated sex (which is a consensual act) with sexual assault when she similarly dismissed Trumps 2005 comments in a CNN interview and called the tape a distraction. "We are talking about a society who puts women on a pedestal because of a sex tape," she said.

CNN host Carol Costello challenged Pierson, asking, "But that doesnt make what Mr. Trump said right. Right?

"Thats exactly why he apologized," Pierson said. "But this really is a distraction."

Story continues

3. Mike Pence. Trumps running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, maintained the campaign message on Trumps sexual assault when he told CBS: "We are simply not going to allow the slander and lies emerging from the Clinton political machine - and being propagated in the media - to distract from the real issues affecting the American people.

4. Scottie Nell Hughes. CNN commentator and Trump surrogate Scottie Nell Hughes tried to discredit the alleged victims when she told CNNs Don Lemon, Thats what makes this very questionable and there are holes in some of these womens arguments, but the whole point about this is, Don, weve spent all day, we spent this entire show talking about this instead of what really is the main issues, which we need to be focusing on.

Thats really insulting, especially as someone who is a survivor of sexual abuse, and who is a product of a single mother, and was raised with all sisters and aunts who looked after me, Lemon responded. I would say this is a very important issue in American society right now.

5. Ben Carson. Former Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson, who has endorsed Trump, said the conversation about sexual assault allegations against Trump was a distraction and said, while its "abominable," "lets move on." Carson said its "absolutely not" OK to talk this way but simultaneously believes perhaps the reason its gotten such attention is that not enough women have heard men talk like that.

As I was growing up, people were always trying to talk about their sexual conquests and trying to make themselves appear, you know, like the, Don - you know, Casanova, Carson told CNNs Brianna Keilar. Im surprised you havent heard that. I really am.

I havent heard it, and I know a lot of people who have not heard it, she said.

Well, maybe thats the problem, Carson said. The problem is that people havent heard this.

He continued, "Whether theyve heard it or not, the issue is the train thats going off the cliff. We can come back after we save the country."

6. Sean Hannity. Conservative radio host Sean Hannity dismissed the sexual assault allegations against Donald Trump as a distraction from the real issue at hand: Hillary Clintons leaked emails.

7. Dan Donovan. New York state representative Dan Donovan, R-NY 11, wants to move on from discussing sexual assault allegations because he believes that makes Trump even with Hillary Clinton.

"I think some of the things that have recently come out, some of the things that he has said, some of the things that people have said about him and things he did, are disgusting," Donovan said at a press conference in October. Then the double standard set in, when Donovan he compared a male candidate who faces sexual assault allegations to a female candidate who has never been accused of sexual assault. "I also think that what Secretary Clinton said about the women who her husband abused, that theyre liars, theyre pigs, theyre sluts is disgusting as well. So theyre even. Thats not the issue that people should be concentrating on." (But Trump has called women pigs - and worse - and has dismissed any concerns over that as an obsession with political correctness).

Its been a great distraction, he added.

8. Jeffrey Lord. Trump surrogate Jeffrey Lord doesnt see what all the fuss is about. Im a baby boomer. Its my generation where the sexual revolution and all of this sort of stuff - none of this stuff mattered. And now, all of a sudden it does, he said on AC360 essentially dismissing the outrage over Trumps comments as political correctness.

We need to focus on the issues, Lord said. What goes on in these [Clinton] emails, what is the economy, foreign policy?

9. Corey Lewandowski. Former Trump campaign manager and current CNN commentator Corey Lewandowski told CNNs Jake Tapper nobody cares about Trumps comments in the 2005 tape. He went to accuse the media of bias against Trump for covering the story and urged them to move on.

You guys have given a pass to Hillary Clinton because shes apologized for having a private server, he said. You want to relitigate, and hes apologized, so lets move on past it. Lets talk about [what] the American people care about.

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LIMA, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Chinese-owned miner MMG Ltd is using an alternate route to move copper from its Las Bambas mine to port as a key road in Peru remained blocked by protests on Friday, the company said.

Four communities in the remote Andean region of Apurimac oppose a deal that the government recently struck with other towns to lift protests that had shut down ground transportation from the mine, said Las Bambas spokesman Domingo Drago.

The four Quechua-speaking communities have demanded payment for the company's use of a local road that they say pollutes their lands when hundreds of trucks carrying copper concentrates pass by daily.

Talks between community leaders and government mediators broke down earlier this month after a protester was shot dead in clashes with police trying to end their weeklong blockage of the road.

Government officials said earlier this week that they expected the four communities to sign onto the preliminary agreement brokered with other towns that had joined protest in a bid to push for broader development in the province of Cotabambas.

The protest halted Las Bambas' exports from the port of Matarani as stocks were depleted and road blockages threatened to choke off supplies needed to keep operating the mine.

Drago said he was not sure if exports had resumed on Friday. The company said earlier this week that it expected to start shipping again at the end of October or beginning of November.

MMG said has said production has not been affected by the protests and that it still expects Las Bambas to churn out 250,000 to 300,000 tonnes of copper this year.

(Reporting by Marco Aquino; Writing by Mitra Taj; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
There was honesty in the air on Wednesday night.

Phil Collins, 80s icon and former Genesis frontman, proved he can be painfully honest about the more taboo subjects from his highly public life, and still toss out jokes like Halloween candy.

Dressed in a zip-up hoodie, dark jeans, sneakers and sporting a fedora, Collins addressed some of the boldest revelations from his new memoir, Not Dead Yet, to a crowd of fans in New York City.

Im a person who bears a lot of guilt, Collins told interviewer, columnist journalist Anthony Mason. But, beyond this type of soulful declaration, Collins also had funny comments about Donald Trump, erroneous critics, and his opinions of the music industry. Here are some of the best moments:

Collins regrets not joining the band The Who.

I was just a cheap slut, Collins said while remembering his conversation with Pete Townshend. Collins offered to be The Who drummer, even though he was still a member of Genesis (he had also thought about joining Yes). He loved their raw energy. Unfortunately for Collins, Kenney Jones had already taken up the job.

I would have left , said Collins. And I think I would have done the job very well.

Collins first divorce inspired him to write In the Air Tonight.

Collins wrote In the Air Tonight after failing to win back his first wife, Andrea Bertorelli. Mason further prodded, asking if he would have been able to write the famous track without experiencing heartbreak.

I never thought of myself as a songwriter, Collins said. So in my instance, it took a divorce to kickstart .

Eventually even his doodles became songs.

There was no real thought behind it, said Collins about adding the sound that would make In the Air Tonight famous. He said it wasnt until he started playing it for Hugh Padgham, a recorder producer, that they realized it was going to be hit. According to Collins, when Padgham first heard the song he yelled, What the hell is that?!

Story continues

I dont claim divine intervention, added Collins. I just claim right time, right place, a bit of luck.

For more highlights and full episodes from the Tonight Show visit Yahoo View, available now on iOS.

Collins compared watching Donald Trump to watching a kids movie.

A fan asked Collins what inspired him to work on the Tarzan soundtrack (which eventually won him an Oscar). Collins explained that because he has five children, he understands the importance of Disney movies. To him, theyre little works of art.

When Mason asked him why, Collins said, There was nothing good on Donald Trump, so I thought Id have a laugh at something different.

Collins considers music an enemy.

Mason asked Collins about a quote in which he called music the enemy.

I can go on stage and sing the songs and enjoy the reaction and enjoy the affection, said Collins. Im okay with it. If I was to go into the studio and started to write, Im sure I would fall in love with it again.

He admitted that people are surprised that he doesnt love the very thing that has brought him so much fame. But, he said, The Collins family is a family that gives itself a hard time.

RELATED VIDEO: Is Phil Collins Ready to Re-Marry His Ex-Wife Orianne?

Collins used to chase down bad critics.

When someone says bad things Im much better now, said Collins with a laugh. I used to phone people up.

He explained that after a gig in Indianapolis a reviewer made errors in the article  like listing band members and songs that werent in the show, Collins alleged. Collins claimed he called the journalist on the phone. The journalist preceded to sputter and was shocked when Collins said he had read the article.

Youre not very good at this, are you? Collins remembered asking the writer.

Ive been known to do that, but Im much better now, Collins added. Youre trying to make these people understand that there are repercussions to what you do. I didnt think youd read it is not an excuse. 

Towards the end of the talk, Collins discussed his upcoming tour in Europe  his first in a decade. He will perform with his 15-year-old son, Nicholas, who plays the drums. This is a big step for a performer who explained he once felt outdated, and used to wonder if anyone will miss me.

But with tour dates set, Collins explained hes eager to play with Nicholas. He also hinted at performing in the United States sometime in the future. Ever the entertainer, Collins wasnt done.

Next year we announced some shows, said Collins. They sold out very quickly. Thats great, but it also means Ive got to do it now.
A Philippine mayor accused of drug trafficking was killed along with nine bodyguards in a shoot-out with police Friday, authorities said, hours after President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to intensify his crackdown on crime.

Samsudin Dimaukom, the mayor of the southern town of Saudi Ampatuan, was one of more than 150 local government officials, judges and police identified by Duterte earlier this year as being involved in the illegal drug trade.

The deadly crime war has claimed more than 3,800 lives and drawn criticism from the United States, the United Nations and international rights groups who have accused police of summarily executing suspects.

Police spokesman Superintendent Romeo Galgo said that Dimaukom and his security personnel opened fire after anti-narcotics police stopped their vehicles at a checkpoint on suspicion they were transporting illegal drugs.

Officers returned fire, killing the men in the town of Makilala, about 950 kilometres (600 miles) south of the capital Manila.

"Suspects (were) heavily armed and fired upon the law enforcers, which prompted them to fire back," Galgo said.

Dimaukom made a name for himself by funding the construction of a pink mosque in Saudi Ampatuan in a plea for peace in the town which has been wracked by violence.

Muslim rebels have been waging a separatist insurgency in the southern Philippines for decades.

Duterte, who swept to power in May elections on a pledge to eradicate drugs, has described his critics as "fools" and said he is not breaking any domestic laws by threatening to kill criminals.

After returning from a trip to Japan late Thursday, he threatened to step up police killings of drug suspects.

"If my wish to get rid (of illegal drugs) in my country is not granted, you can expect about 20,000 or 30,000 more. There is a war going on," he said.
Independent oil and gas exploration and production company, Pioneer Natural Resources Company PXD, is expected to report third-quarter 2016 earnings on Nov 1.



Last quarter, the companys adjusted loss of 22 cents per share was substantially narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 34 cents. Notably, the company had posted adjusted earnings of 10 cents per share in the year-earlier quarter. In fact, the company posted an average positive earnings surprise of 46.49% in the last four quarters.



Lets see how things are shaping up prior to the announcement.

PIONEER NAT RES Price and EPS Surprise

PIONEER NAT RES Price and EPS Surprise | PIONEER NAT RES Quote

Factors Likely to Affect Earnings



Pioneer Naturals focus on oil and liquids-rich drilling is evidenced by the acceleration of activities in the horizontal Wolfcamp Shale play, where it holds the key position with more than 400,000 potential acres. The northern Wolfcamp/Spraberry acreage is expected to hold about 3 billion barrels of oil equivalent of resource potential. Moreover, the companys recent purchase of 28,000 Midland acres from Devon emphasizes its intention to make profitable deals to augment its acreage.



Turning to cost efficiency, Pioneer Natural continues to lower its drilling and completion expenses, while its production cost is also on a downswing  an impressive achievement amid the low commodity price scenario.



However, Pioneer Natural uses certain derivative financial instruments (like hedging) from time to time to manage price risks associated with production. These hedging arrangements expose the company to the risk of financial loss and limit the benefit of increase in natural gas and oil prices.



Moreover, crude prices declined persistently owing to high crude stockpiles, as imports increased and refiners scaled down their utilization rates. The price of West Texas Intermediate crude is now hovering around $50 per barrel and is expected to stay there in the near term. The plunge in crude prices provided little incentive to oil exploration and production companies to hire drilling rigs. This amplified the rig oversupply concern.



Earnings Whispers



Our proven model does not conclusively show that Pioneer Natural is likely to beat estimates this quarter as it does not have the right combination of two key ingredients. A stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) for this to happen. That is not the case here as you will see below.



Zacks ESP: Earnings ESP, which represents the difference between the Most Accurate estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate, is 0.00%. This is because both the Most Accurate estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate are pegged at 19 cents. Please check our Earnings ESP Filter that enables you to find stocks that are expected to come out with earnings surprises.



Zacks Rank: Pioneer Natural Resources currently has a Zacks Rank #3. Though a favorable Zacks Rank increases the predictive power of ESP, the companys Earnings ESP of 0.00% makes surprise prediction difficult.



We caution against stocks with a Zacks Rank #4 or 5 (Sell-rated stocks) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions.



Stocks to Consider



While an earnings beat looks uncertain for Pioneer Natural Resources, here are some firms that you may want to consider on the basis of our model. These have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter:



Vertex Energy Inc VTNR, which is expected to release earnings results on Nov 3, has an Earnings ESP of +37.50% and a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.



Devon Energy Corp DVN, which is expected to release earnings results on Nov 1, has an Earnings ESP of +20.00% and a Zacks Rank #2.



Spectra Energy Corp. SE has an Earnings ESP of +12.50% and a Zacks Rank #3. The company is expected to release third-quarter earnings results on Nov 2.

Story continues

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Google Maps; LA Times

Tech investor Braden Pollock recently closed on a four-bedroom, Spanish Revival-style mansion sitting atop a hill with an unobstructed view of downtown Los Angeles. The house, built in 1925, comes with a library and a ballroom and sits on nearly two-thirds of an acre in the hilly neighborhood of Los Feliz. Pollock got the place for a steal at a probate auction back in June.

There was a reason for the bargain. The home comes with something else, too: a history. An unfortunate one.

Known in popular imagination as The Los Feliz Mansion, the house was the site of one of the most haunting and highly publicized murders in L.A. history. Early one morning in 1959, cardiologist Harold Perelson beat his wife, Lillian Perelson, to death with a ball-peen hammer, and then triedand failedto slay his 18-year-old daughter by bashing in her head with the same weapon.

She screamed Dont kill me! so loudly that she woke up her neighbors as well as her younger brother and sister. The doctor told the children to go back to bed because they were having a nightmare. (True.) He then swallowed a lethal cocktail and was found dead in his bedroom beside the body of his wife. No one ever determined what brought on the murderous rampage.

Some believe the place has been haunted ever since. In the decades following the tragedy, the house sat mostly empty.

Inside the notorious Los Feliz home, post-cleanup, pre-renovation realtor.com

But thats about to change. Pollock and his wife, television legal analyst Lisa Bloom, are now renovating the property. When theyre finished next year, theyll move into the master bedroom where Lillian was killed.

It doesnt affect me, says Pollock, It was a great opportunity to get a rare property like this at a good price.

Opportunity or nightmare? Would you buy a home that was the site of an infamous atrocity?

More to the point: why would anyone?

New owners of the Los Feliz home, investor Braden Pollock and legal analyst Lisa Bloom (who is also the daughter of noted womens rights lawyer Gloria Allred) Michael Kovac/FilmMagic

As it turns out, buyers like Pollock, unfazed by dreadful crimes, are a rare breed. Many house hunters get the heebie-jeebies even setting foot in a home where someone died of natural causeslet alone one where someone was bludgeoned to death. Its just too much bad juju.

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And yet, eventually, even the most famous murder houseseven including the homes where Nicole Brown Simpson and JonBenet Ramsey diedwill usually get snapped up by all sorts of buyers. If they dont get razed to the ground, that is.

Let us count the (grisly) reasons: Penny-pinchers are lured by the steep discounts. Entrepreneurs see business opportunities. Some house hunters hope that they can transform the gory karma of these abodes. Others are true crime and haunted house junkies. And some buyers, like Pollock, are simply not perturbed by what happened, no matter how horrific.

Heres the killer truth: Buying a murder house might actually be a sound financial investment. If you can handle it.

Trying to save a few bucks? Buy a murder home!

Even the bloodiest murder homes may appeal to buyers on a budgetthe macabre residences are typically discounted by about 10% to 15%, says real estate appraiser Orell Anderson, who valued the Simpson and Ramsey residences.

If the crime involved a celebrity, or was so horrendous that it made national news night after night, that price cut could be even morebetween 15% and 50%.

Most people are creeped out and need to have an incentive to buy, says Anderson, president of Strategic Property Analytics in Laguna Beach, CA.

Heavens Gate leader Marshall Herff Applewhite.

Always check out the previous owner of the house youre buying. Brooks Kraft LLC/Sygma via Getty Images

For example, the seven-bedroom mansion where 39 Nike-shod members of the Heavens Gate cult killed themselves in 1997 in order to reach what they believed was an alien spacecraft, was sold for $668,000 in 1999. Thats less than half of the $1.6 million that the San Diego mansion was listed for before the mass suicide.

It was a significant tragedy, says Anderson, who was one of the appraisers. Another reason for the price cut was the stench of the decomposing bodies, discovered days after their deaths, that just permeated the walls of the structure.

Previous residents of the Heavens Gate home being removed. Axel Koester/Sygma/Sygma via Getty Images

Can a homes dark legacy be undone?

Some owners hope that by moving their families into a murder home, they can change its evil karma.

Pollock, for instance, believes that he and his family can offer their new abode a new narrative. I dont want to live in a murder mansion. I want it to be my home, he says. I want it to be associated with love and happiness.

Carol Schuller Milner bought JonBenet Ramseys Boulder, CO, home in 2004 for $1.05 million for similar reasons. The house where the 6-year-old beauty queen was found dead in 1996 had become a dark monument to something horrible that happened, she told Inside Edition. So she wanted to undo that legacy.

Its full of joy again. Its full of life again, she said.

Former residence of JonBenet Ramsey Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

Leaving the past in the past

Other buyers simply arent overly concerned with the appalling history of their dwellings.

Socialite Katharine Thompson Wood was beaten to death in her bed in 1967 in the Centerville, DE, house now owned by former Delaware Republican Chairman Terry Strine.

Its irrelevant, says Strine of the horror that occurred in the five-bedroom house all those years ago. After all, how many houses that are 50 years or older have not had someone pass away in them?

Strine, who lives there with his wife and three children, added that its a great home in a great area. The only history that counts is mine, he says.

Murder home premium? Only in New Orleans

In a handful of ghost-loving cities, a good horror story may actually boost the price of a home.

Just look at the five luxury apartments in the Sultans Mansion in the French Quarter of New Orleans. One of the furnished, two-bedroom units in the purportedly haunted building is going for $2,500 a month, as compared to the citys median price of $1,650.

Legend has it that the brother of a Turkish sultan rented out the property, also known as the Gardette-LePretre Mansion, in the mid-19th century. One morning, a neighbor saw blood oozing out of the front door. When police arrived, they reportedly discovered the mutilated body parts of the Turks harem, guests, and guards scattered throughout the house. The sultans brother was allegedly found buried alive in the courtyard.

LaLaurie Mansion Steven Wagner/Getty Images

Sometimes in New Orleans a house will bring a higher price because its documented as being haunted, says local Realtor Bryan Drude, of Keller Williams Realty, who rents out units in the building.

Another prime example is the LaLaurie Mansion, which had a starring role in the witch-centric Coven season of American Horror Story. It was owned by Delphine LaLaurie, a socialite with an evil appetite. The depths of her depravity were revealed when a fire swept through the mansion in 1834. Firefighters allegedly discovered more than a dozen slaves chained and caged in the attic who had been viciously tortured.

The atrocities didnt scare away one previous owner, Jay Monroe, CEO of satellite service provider Globalstar. He lived there for about half a dozen years with his wife and two children.

Its just a magnificent French Quarter mansion, says Monroe, who says he never experienced any paranormal activity there.

What he did find disturbing about the mansion were the ghost tours it attracted.

There would be a hundred people a night, looking up and telling absurd stories, he says. It was annoying with a capital A.'

In 2006, he sold the mansion to actor Nicolas Cage for top dollara cool $3.45 million. After Cage fell on hard times, it was foreclosed on in 2009. The mansion was sold to an energy investor for $2.1 million in 2010, according to realtor.com records.

Cashing in on a murder mystery

And sometimes, a famously unsolved homicide can present a sweet business opportunity for a homes new owners. Case in point: the Lizzie Borden house.

On Aug. 4, 1892, the mutilated bodies of her father and stepmother, Andrew and Abby Borden, were found in their Fall River, MA, home. Lizzie Borden was arrested for their murders, but acquitted a year later. The murderers identity remains a mystery.

Lizzie Borden house Wikipedia CC

Lee-ann Wilber, a former truck driver and retail store manager, capitalized on the unsolved crime when she bought the Lizzie Borden Bed & Breakfast Museum with a business partner in 2004. Tours of the home are now offered seven days a week, and guests can stay overnight in one of the B&Bs eight bedrooms. Axes not included.

One of the B&Bs main selling points is the belief among some guests that the joint is haunted. (Cue terrifying music.)

Suspected axe murderer Lizzie Borden; bodies of her stepmother and father, Abby and Andrew Borden; sign for the Lizzie Borden B&B (4.5 stars on Yelp). Wikipedia CC; Dennis K. Johnson/Getty Images

Wilber claims she was doing laundry in the basement soon after she bought the house, when I felt like I walked into a walk-in freezer. It felt like someone ran their finger down me.

Shes experienced other unexplained things as well, like bedroom furniture moving in the middle of the night or doors opening and closing on their own.

Martha McGinn, the former owner of the Lizzie Borden house, converted it into a bed and breakfast. Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

But just because someone died in a house doesnt mean its haunted, says Robb Phillips, founder of Paranormal Technology Investigations, a group of real-life ghostbusters based in Jonesborough, TN. The group, which accepts donations in lieu of fees, performs blessings and exorcisms.

If buyers arent looking for a ghost as an amenity in their new home, he recommends they ask their real estate agents about the homes history  and whether it was built on a burial site.

Sellers in three states are required to inform house hunters if someone has died on the premises. In South Dakota and Alaska, only murder and suicides that happened in the last year need to be revealed; in In California, all deaths in the last three years must be disclosed.

If someone just died a natural death in it from natural causes, I think it would be OK to go ahead and live in the home, Phillips says. But if there was a murder, there could be something evil there.

Why no one wants to buy Jeffrey Dahmers childhood home

Some murder homes, however, have a hell of a time finding a buyer. Musician Chris Butler, of the new wave band the Waitresses, has been trying to sell the Akron, OH, childhood home of serial killer/cannibal Jeffrey Dahmer for the last few years. This is the three-bedroom house home where Dahmer killed and dismembered his first victim, Steven Hicks.

Jeffrey Dahmer enters the courtroom in August 1991. EUGENE GARCIA/AFP/Getty Images

Butler, who declined to speak with realtor.com, told NPR that he bought it in 2005 because he wanted to live somewhere where I could make a loud musical racket and not bug my neighbors.

But Dahmer isnt the only thing scaring away buyers, says Realtor Richard Lubinski, who once listed the property. The high price and its lack of curb appeal played a part as well, he says.

The house, which is not currently for sale, was most recently advertised at $295,000, more than double the $132,400 median list price in the Akron metro area as of Sept. 1, according to realtor.com. It was also offered for rent during the Republican National Convention in July.

Exterior of Jeffrey Dahmers former home in Akron, OH realtor.com

Secrets of selling horror houses

Some agents roll out special tricks when their homicide homes arent leaping off the market. Addresses can be altered to make it harder for lookie-loos to find. And the exterior can be modified so that it doesnt look like the crime-scene photos anymore.

One famous example: The street number and trajectory of the walkway of Nicole Brown Simpsons four-bedroom condo were changed. Despite this, the property still initially sold for a 15% discount, Anderson says. It went for $595,000 in 1997 and then for $1.7 million in 2006.

Nicole Brown Simpsons condo AP Photo/Eric Draper

If theres a suicide or a murder [in a home], its a big deal, says Beverly Hills-based luxury Realtor Scott Tamkin, who sold the home where Simpson and Ron Goldman were killed in 1994. People feel uncomfortable that there may be a ghost in the house. Some people, anyway.

The post A Place to Die For: Why People Buy Homes Where Brutal Murders Occurred appeared first on Real Estate News and Advice - realtor.com.
A plane caught fire at OHare International Airport in Chicago on Friday after a tire blew on the runway while the aircraft was preparing to take off, federal officials said.

Passengers were evacuated through the airplanes chutes, and there were no serious injuries, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) spokesman Tony Molinaro told the Associated Press. However, the aircrafts engine was damaged in the blaze.

American Airlines Flight 383 was leaving Chicago and headed to Miami when takeoff was aborted due to an engine-related mechanical issue, American Airlines and the FAA said in a statement. There were 161 passengers and nine crew members on board the Boeing 767.

We are taking care of our customers and crew and are re-accommodating our passengers on another flight to Miami this evening, the airline said in a statement.

Images and video circulating on social media showed black smoke billowing from the plane as people gaze at the blaze from afar. Emergency responders were on the scene. Chicago Fire had announced an emergency at OHare, saying on Twitter that there was an aircraft down at the airport.

The FAA said it is investigating the incident.

Here's another video of the @AmericanAir plane in Chicago. pic.twitter.com/FCufW3BzDQ  Jose Castillo  (@Kryptonlogic) October 28, 2016
(Updates with number of arrests, details)

By Timothy Mclaughlin

Oct 27 (Reuters) - Police arrested 141 Native Americans and other protesters in North Dakota in a tense standoff that spilled into Friday morning between law enforcement and demonstrators seeking to halt construction of a disputed oil pipeline.

Police in riot gear used pepper spray and armored vehicles in an effort to disperse an estimated 330 protesters and clear a camp on private property in the path of the proposed $3.8 billion Dakota Access Pipeline, according to photos and statements released by the Morton County Sheriff's Department.

Some protesters responded by throwing rocks, bottles and Molotov cocktails at police, attaching themselves to vehicles and starting fires, police said.

"It was a very active and tense evening as law enforcement worked through the evening to clear protesters," the department said.

A female protester fired three rounds at the police line before she was arrested, the department said.

In another shooting incident, a man was taken into custody after a man was shot in the hand. That "situation involved a private individual who was run off the road by protesters," the department said in a Facebook post.

The 1,172-mile (1,885-km) pipeline, being built by a group of companies led by Energy Transfer Partners LP, would offer the fastest and most direct route to bring Bakken shale oil from North Dakota to U.S. Gulf Coast refineries.

Supporters say it would be safer and more cost-effective than transporting the oil by road or rail.

But the pipeline has drawn the ire of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and environmental activists who say it threatens the water supply and sacred tribal sites. They have been protesting for several months, and dozens have been arrested.

In all, 141 people were arrested on various charges including conspiracy to endanger by fire or explosion, engaging in a riot and maintaining a public nuisance, the sheriff's department said.

Story continues

Native American protesters had occupied the site since Monday, saying they were the land's rightful owners under an 1851 treaty with the U.S. government.

Video posted on social media showed dozens of police and two armored vehicles slowly approaching one group of protesters.

Reuters was unable to confirm the authenticity of the video, which showed a helicopter overhead as some protesters said police had used bean-bag guns in an effort to chase them out of the camp.

North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple said police were successful in clearing the camp.

"Private property is not the place to carry out a peaceful protest," he said.

Members of the Standing Rock Sioux asked Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on Thursday to oppose the pipeline. She has not taken a public position on the issue.

(Reporting by Timothy Mclaughlin in Chicago and Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Additional reporting by Valerie Volcovici in Washington; Editing by Peter Cooney and Nick Macfie)
By Timothy Mclaughlin (Reuters) - Police arrested 141 Native Americans and other protesters in North Dakota in a tense standoff that spilled into Friday morning between law enforcement and demonstrators seeking to halt construction of a disputed oil pipeline. Police in riot gear used pepper spray and armored vehicles in an effort to disperse an estimated 330 protesters and clear a camp on private property in the path of the proposed $3.8 billion Dakota Access Pipeline, according to photos and statements released by the Morton County Sheriff's Department. Some protesters responded by throwing rocks, bottles and Molotov cocktails at police, attaching themselves to vehicles and starting fires, police said. "It was a very active and tense evening as law enforcement worked through the evening to clear protesters," the department said. A female protester fired three rounds at the police line before she was arrested, the department said. In another shooting incident, a man was taken into custody after a man was shot in the hand. That "situation involved a private individual who was run off the road by protesters," the department said in a Facebook post. The 1,172-mile (1,885-km) pipeline, being built by a group of companies led by Energy Transfer Partners LP, would offer the fastest and most direct route to bring Bakken shale oil from North Dakota to U.S. Gulf Coast refineries. Supporters say it would be safer and more cost-effective than transporting the oil by road or rail. But the pipeline has drawn the ire of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and environmental activists who say it threatens the water supply and sacred tribal sites. They have been protesting for several months, and dozens have been arrested. In all, 141 people were arrested on various charges including conspiracy to endanger by fire or explosion, engaging in a riot and maintaining a public nuisance, the sheriff's department said. Native American protesters had occupied the site since Monday, saying they were the land's rightful owners under an 1851 treaty with the U.S. government. Video posted on social media showed dozens of police and two armored vehicles slowly approaching one group of protesters. Reuters was unable to confirm the authenticity of the video, which showed a helicopter overhead as some protesters said police had used bean-bag guns in an effort to chase them out of the camp. North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple said police were successful in clearing the camp. "Private property is not the place to carry out a peaceful protest," he said. Members of the Standing Rock Sioux asked Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on Thursday to oppose the pipeline. She has not taken a public position on the issue. (Reporting by Timothy Mclaughlin in Chicago and Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Additional reporting by Valerie Volcovici in Washington; Editing by Peter Cooney and Nick Macfie)
Abidjan (AFP) - Around 1,000 people demonstrated in the Ivorian capital Abidjan on Friday against a weekend referendum on a new constitution which the opposition has denounced as dangerously anti-democratic.

The proposed new constitution has been championed by President Alassane Ouattara, who claims it will "definitively turn the page on successive crises" in Ivory Coast.

But the opposition has called for a boycott of Sunday's referendum on the adoption of a new constitution that changes contentious rules on presidential eligibility.

There was a heavy police presence early on Friday as demonstrators took to the streets holding up banners reading "Two mandates is enough" and shouting "Power to the people".

But when several groups of protesters tried to make their way to a square near the presidential residence, police began firing tear gas to stop them, several witnesses told AFP.

An interior ministry spokesman confirmed police had tried to break up the demonstration, saying it was to prevent the protesters from causing a disturbance in Abidjan's business district.

"Some of them with negative intentions tried to go to Place de la Republique which would have disturbed business activity, so we stopped them from reaching these areas."

The Ivorian Popular Front, the party of former president Laurent Gbagbo, is fiercely opposed to the proposed new basic law, criticising the lack of consultation involved and warning it would worsen, not improve, security.

The draft constitution, which parliament overwhelmingly approved earlier this week, changes the rules on presidential eligibility and establishes a senate.

Critically, it would lift the current requirement that both parents of a presidential candidate must have been born in Ivory Coast.

Ouattara's father was born in neighbouring Burkina Faso and the question of parentage was one of the issues which led to months of deadly post-election violence in 2010.

Story continues

At the time Gbagbo, the defeated candidate, refused to cede power over the issue, triggering widespread violence in which around 3,000 people died.

Ouattara says the amendments will help end years of instability and conflict in the world's top cocoa producer.

The draft also sets up the post of vice president and allows the president to appoint a third of the senate, a provision the opposition is particularly unhappy with.

Gbagbo is currently on trial at the International Criminal Court for war crimes in connection with the deadly unrest that followed his refusal to concede his election to Ouattara in 2010.
Oct 28 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the business pages of British newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

The Times

Tata Sons, the ultimate parent company of Jaguar Land Rover and Tata Steel UK, could embark on a multibillion-pound asset sale or bring in friendly Asian or Middle Eastern sovereign wealth fund investors to buy out the stake held in Tata by the family of Cyrus Mistry, its deposed chairman. http://bit.ly/2dQKZf3

The Spanish parent of O2, Telefonica SA slashed its dividend for the next two years in an attempt to bring down its debt. Telefonica, which had stated it would pay 0.75 per share this year, announced it would instead provide dividends of 0.55 and 0.40 per share in 2016 and 2017 respectively. http://bit.ly/2dQOJwJ

The Guardian

Nissan Motor Co Ltd plans to turn its Sunderland car factory into one of the biggest car plants in the world, producing two new models, after winning "support and assurances" from Theresa May about Brexit. http://bit.ly/2dQJ9uz

Tata Sons has hit back at axed chairman Cyrus Mistry in an escalating war of words that pits two of India's most powerful business dynasties against each other. http://bit.ly/2dQMDgG

The Telegraph

Debenhams Plc profits have edged downwards as the retail group welcomes a new chief executive. The retailer reported a 7pc slide in pre-tax profits to 105.8m in the 53 weeks to September 3. http://bit.ly/2dQNKN5

Sky News

Hermes Investment Management signed up on Thursday to a consortium vying to buy a controlling stake in National Grid's gas distribution division. http://bit.ly/2dQNBJG

A group of software entrepreneurs are drawing up plans for a 300 million pound flotation or sale even as London's market for new share offerings continues to stall. http://bit.ly/2dQOfqr

The Independent

A post-Brexit airspace deal between the UK and the EU would be in both parties' interests, according to a director at Easyjet Plc, but the budget airline is still suffering from a downturn in bookings and is considering relocating its head office to within the EU. http://ind.pn/2dQO0vE (Compiled by Abinaya Vijayaraghavan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sandra Maler)
Oct 28 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories in the Wall Street Journal. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

- General Electric Co is in talks to merge its oil-and-gas business with Baker Hughes Inc, according to people familiar with the matter, a transaction that would dramatically reshape the industrial giant. http://on.wsj.com/2eVrG6s

- Apple Inc introduced new versions of its Macintosh personal computers Thursday, betting that smaller, thinner models and a touch screen on the keyboard will reverse declining sales. Apple refreshed its MacBook Pro laptops, adding a thin touch screen on top of the keyboards of some models. Users can slide and touch the bar to edit photos, navigate the web or authorize online purchases. http://on.wsj.com/2dMor3U

- CenturyLink Inc is in advanced talks to merge with Level 3 Communications Inc, a deal that would give the business-telecommunications companies greater heft in a brutally competitive industry. A deal could be announced in the coming weeks, according to people familiar with the matter. As always, there is a possibility the talks could fall apart. http://on.wsj.com/2eK4Z4z

- Qualcomm Inc's agreement to pay $39 billion for the world's largest developer of chips for automobiles represents a huge bet on cars becoming the next smartphone - a way to roll together communications and services once handled by dozens of other devices. Its deal for NXP Semiconductors NV , the biggest to date in the semiconductor industry, puts the spotlight on Qualcomm Chief Executive Steve Mollenkopf, who 20 years ago started at the company he now runs designing the unseen chips used in mobile phones. http://on.wsj.com/2e06CwB

- Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corp said Thursday it had launched an external review of its security and staffing processes in the wake of its second major personnel scandal in three years. The government services and defense specialist said it had hired former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Robert Mueller to conduct the review. http://on.wsj.com/2dMWTep (Compiled by Rama Venkat Raman in Bengaluru)
Ever dreamed of owning a piece of rock 'n' roll history? MICK, KEITH, CHARLIE & RONNIE: ART + OBJECTS, an exhibit opening on Nov. 3 at HG Contemporary Gallery in New York City, will feature rare memorabilia and art, created by or inspired by The Rolling Stones.

The 200-piece collection, amassed by a private collector and longtime friend of the iconic band, offers an intimate glimpse into The Rolling Stones' creative process and lifestyle -- depicted through original artwork, photography, handwritten set lists, manuscripts and collaborative projects. "The Stones aren't just musicians. They're immortal. They are the definition of rock 'n' roll," Gallery founder and director Philippe Hoerle-Guggenheim tells Billboard, "I am honored to do this show. I love how it ties in visual art, musical art and fashion art all in one space."

The anonymous collector, who has accumulated one of the largest private collections in the world, first met Ronnie Wood in London 20 years ago. The two became close friends and, as a longtime fan of the Stones, the collector began to accumulate Wood's art. Over the span of two decades, he has accrued hundreds of memorabilia and artwork related to the band. The very first piece in his collection was a Rolling Stones keychain - a tongue bottle opener - that to this day he still uses.

Some of the show's highlights include Mick Jagger's hand-written lyrics, a drawing co-created by Ronnie Wood and Keith Richards, and an original hand-painted "Bigger Bang" tongue guitar by Ronnie Wood - the band's most accomplished visual artist. The exhibit will also showcase collaborations with major contemporary artists who have worked closely with the Rolling Stones, including Andy Warhol, Peter Beard, Jeff Koons and Sebastian Kruger. Rare concert t-shirts, mugs and hats will also be available for sale; prices range between $5 for wristbands and $200,000 for paintings. Each item on display will be sold in the gallery and online through Paddle8. The show runs from Nov. 3 through December at HG Contemporary Gallery (527 West 23rd Street). Here, a sneak peek at what to expect.

Mick Jagger's Handwritten Lyrics to "Dancing in the Street," 1985.

This Motown hit was written by Marvin Gaye, William "Mickey" Stevenson and Ivy Jo Hunter. In 1985, Mick Jagger hand-wrote the lyrics for his duet with David Bowie to support a Live Aid fundraiser. Bowie and Jagger recorded this song and filmed the music video within the span of 13 hours.

Andy Warhol Collection of Nine "Love You Live" Photographs, 1977

Warhol and Jagger first met in 1963, before the Stones were well-known in the United States. Warhol designed the cover art for the band's 1971 album Sticky Fingers -- a risque photo of a man's crotch and half-opened zipper -- and designed their 1977 album Love You Live, which features photographs of the band sticking their tongues out, licking and biting one another, taken by Warhol. These iconic images were duplicated on bags, tablecloths and decor during the 1977 album launch party at club Trax in New York City.

Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood Original "Devil Keith" Drawing, 1989

Richards and Wood drew this in Montserrat during the recording of "Steel Wheels" at AIR studios. The drawing depicts a shirtless Keith as the devil, sitting on a balcony railing wearing no shirt, purple pants, horns and a spiked tail. "Ronnie and Keith both attended art school and drew together in a process similar to the musical 'weaving' they do on stage when both play lead guitar," gallery owner Philippe Hoerle-Guggenhem tells Billboard. "Ronnie would draw part of the picture and then pass it to Keith, and the two would continue to pass it back and forth until they created something beautiful."

Ronnie Wood Original "Muhammad Ali" Mixed Media Painting on Canvas, 2002

This original Ronnie Wood painting depicts Ali as he towers over Sonny Liston in the famous knockout during the heavyweight match on May 25, 1965. This painting is a study for the painting that Ronnie released as a limited-edition print, 100 of which were signed by both Wood and Ali. One of these prints, for sale at HG Contemporary, is embellished with an Ali quote, handwritten by Wood. Ali and Wood developed a close bond after the two met in 1978 in New York City before Ali's re-match with Leon Spinks. Ali has been the subject of several artworks by Wood, many of which were auctioned during fundraisers for Ali's charity, The Muhammad Ali Center for Peace.
With their second birthday coming up on December 2, the terrible twos are officially approaching for Monacos twins, Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella. The royal pair, however, arent showing signs yet, according to their father.

The kids are great, Prince Albert II tells PEOPLE exclusively. Theyre running around everywhere, still jumping in and out of the pool up at the ranch on a day like today when its still warm enough here.

Theyre still all smiling and laughing, he says. I still havent seen any tantrums, though those are probably coming, but for now, theyre very sweet and alert.

Jacques, for the moment, is a little boy of very few words. If he wants you to pick him up, hell say, Up! and then hell say, Down, but hes not into using full sentences.

Gabriella, like a lot of little girls, and is more talkative than her brother  both in English and French. She encountered the phrase cest pas possible! (its not possible) and has picked that up pretty quickly.

That one, he laughs. Im certain its going to serve her really well later on in life.

She has certain other phrases like, Ill miss you and I love you, Daddy, which make it really hard to leave the house in the morning.

These phrases have only intensified the constant battle Im having with my staff, he says. They keep insisting I accept this invitation or go to this event or travel here Im resisting and accepting only the essential ones.

Invitations are a current household topic, he says, as he and Princess Charlene have already begun planning for the childrens second birthday. Last year, the day was marked by Prince Jacques taking his first steps in public  and this year promises to be equally memorable.

Weve decided to have a little something here at home with some of the children in their daycare, he says. They go two, three times a week and theyve made friends and so weve decided on an early afternoon party in the palace.

Story continues

The proud father says his twins are increasingly comfortable, enjoying friends and public outings. Besides daycare, theyve been going out regularly to a public playground, he says.

Theyre encouraged to have contact with children they encounter and the other people they meet. We both want them to be as comfortable as they can be and to experience as normal an upbringing as possible.

The upcoming holiday season (and a prospective visit in 2017 to Philadelphia, where Prince Albert just purchased his late mother Princess Graces childhood home) is turning into a busy one for the young royals.

Theres a number of potential outings, their father says, mentioning the possibility of their second annual appearance for Monacos National Day on Nov. 19, and their birthday celebration.

Family plans also call for the pair to participate at both of the palaces legendary Christmas events  one for the principalitys children followed by an equally festive affair for palace employees and their families.

Confirming the upcoming round of holiday plans, the prince shares, Theres their birthday party and then theyll be coming to both Christmas parties. And after that I think well take a little needed private New Years vacation away.




The royal ginger genes sure are strong!

Prince Philip looks exactly like his grandson, Prince Harry, in a 1957 French magazine cover shared by Getty royal photographer, Chris Jackson, on Instagram on Tuesday.

"Just spotted this handsome chap on the front of an ancient copy of @parismatch_magazine in deepest, darkest France," Jackson captioned the nearly 60-year-old cover shot, before challenging his followers to identify the handsome royal. "Who do you think it is?!"

Just spotted this handsome chap on the front of an ancient copy of @parismatch_magazine in deepest, darkest France - who do you think it is?! A photo posted by Chris Jackson (@chrisjacksongetty) on Oct 25, 2016 at 7:37am PDT

NEWS: Prince Harry Is Headed to the Caribbean  Check Out the Royal Itinerary!

Jackson also tweeted the photo joking that the magazine's "handsome cover star" made him do a "double take."

From his red hair and scruffy beard to his military uniform, the Duke of Edinburgh's resemblance to Harry is almost scary, and Jackson's social media followers were rightfully freaking out over the similarities.

"It's Prince Phillip? Or it is Harry doing a spot of time travel?" a fan wrote underneath Jackson's post.

"Wow just like his grandfather," added another, while a Twitter user was clearly shocked by the throwback pic. "I thought that was Harry!"

MORE: Prince Harry Visits HIV Hospital Where His Mom Princess Diana Famously Kissed AIDS Patient

Prince Philip isn't Harry's only doppelganger. The 32-year-old royal recently met his adorable mini-me during an even in London. See more on Harry's pint-sized lookalike the video below.

For more Entertainment Tonight videos visit Yahoo View, available now on iOS.

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She may be a fashion icon, but Princess Kate wants people to remember that shes so much more than her clothes.

British Vogue editor-in-chief Alexandra Shulman, who featured Kate on the cover of the magazines centenary issue for this years June issue, revealed as much during an interview this week.

Kates first-ever posed magazine cover didnt showcase the royal in a couture gown or even a tiara. Instead, she sported a more casual look: A suede jacket from Burberry, a white button-down shirt and a vintage hat. This vision, Shulman says, was very much Kates.

I cant really speak for her, but in my experience, I think it was very much her feeling that she wanted to be what she felt she was comfortable with being, Shulman said during a visit to the U.K.s Lorraine show.

In fact, she said Kate hoped to convey that message through her fashion selections for the Vogue cover shoot.

She is not a clothes horse, Shulman said. The idea that she is a kind of silent mannequin that just wants to put on expensive clothes is so not what she is. And I think she wanted this cover to reflect that.

Shulman also shared that it wasnt the first time she had asked Kate to pose for the cover. She said the royals reluctance may have stemmed from her desire to be as seen as more than what she wears.

I had certainly asked her before, she said. It was only when I was writing to her saying: Its our centenary, its our 100 years of Vogue and we do have kind of a history of being able to feature the royal family that I realized we had another connection. It ticked the box and yes, it happened. It was the best news when I heard she was going to be on the cover.




Chisinau (AFP) - Ex-Soviet Moldova will cast ballots Sunday in a presidential election viewed as a tug-of-war between supporters of European integration and advocates of closer relations with former master Moscow.

The crisis-hit country of 3.5 million, wedged between Ukraine and Romania, will for the first time since 1997 elect a president by national vote instead of having parliament select the head of state.

The popular ballot now forces Moldovans to make a tough choice for their country, which has been rocked by protests and political turmoil since the mysterious disappearance of $1 billion (915 million euros) -- some 10 percent of the country's GDP -- from three banks last year.

Presidential candidates are pressing diametrically-opposed visions for the country's future: deeper ties with the European Union and closer relations with Moscow.

The country signed an historic EU association agreement in 2014 despite bitter opposition from Russia, and the result of Sunday's elections could fuel strife between pro-European and pro-Russian forces.

- Europe's dwindling appeal -

EU officials have admitted that Europe's appeal has dwindled in the ex-Soviet republic in spite of the 2014 association agreement.

Pirkka Tapiola, who heads the EU mission to Moldova, told AFP that 70 percent of Moldovans had supported a European course for the country's development but that this figure had dropped following a string of failed pro-Western government reforms.

"The fact that we have had successive governments that have called themselves pro-European (...) has taken a toll on the popularity of the European vector," Tapiola told AFP.

Presidential candidate Igor Dodon, who heads the Socialist Party, has vehemently advocated against turning toward Europe.

"What have we received from Europe? Nothing," said Dodon, who currently leads in voting intention polls, during a recent rally.

Dodon, who served as economy minister from 2006 to 2009 under a Communist government, has pledged to "restore a strategic partnership with Russia" and to void the economic portion of the association agreement with the EU.

Story continues

"I am not against the EU," Dodon told AFP, stressing that the implementation of reforms demanded by Brussels, including in the justice system, are in Moldova's interest.

Candidate Maia Sandu of the centre-right opposition, currently second in voting intention polls, has promised to make Moldova European.

"We advocate European integration because we see true democracy and prosperity for workers in the EU," Sandu told AFP.

Sandu, a former education minister who worked for the World Bank, conceded that authorities in Chisinau will have to convince "Moldovans and European partners of their sincerity" before even setting a timeline for the country's possible accession to the EU.

- A divided population -

Moldovan voters seem as divided as their political leaders, with half the population in favour of bolstering ties with the EU while the other looks east to Russia and hopes the country will enter a Russian-led customs union that also includes Belarus and Kazakhstan.

"Moldova needs to be part of the EU," said 66-year-old former construction worker Mihai Scutelnic. "But before that we need to put our country in order."

But for others like 67-year-old Ion Badii, the country's Communist past and strong ties with Moscow are more appealing.

"It's better to have close ties with Russia because Europe does not need our commodities," he said.

Factory worker Vladimir, 37, said the country was "psychologically closer to Russia" because of its Soviet past.

But Tapiola of the EU warned against attempts to label the country's different political factions as pro-Russian and pro-European, saying it made for "artificial polarisation."

"I think that some may have preferred to direct the discourse into pro-EU or pro-Russia because it is an easy discourse compared to the main discourse," he said.

"What are the reforms which are needed, what are we going to do with the justice system, how are we going to deal with corruption?"
You should probably buy these American Horror Story: Coven dolls ASAP

As any diehard American Horror Story fan is well aware, you can never have too much AHS in your life. Whether its fan-theorizing til the cows come home, or collecting amazing, one-of-a-kind American Horror Story: Coven dolls, Ryan Murphys horror anthology series is just the gift that keeps on giving.

With the recent news that Coven will be revisited in a future season and Murphys reveal that the freakiest Roanoke antagonist of them all, Scathach, is actually the original Supreme, the third season of the series is certainly a hot commodity at the moment.

As far back as 2014, high-end fashion doll company Integrity Toys announced their intention to manufacture the Coven dolls and guess what?? Theyre finally here! And they are flippin GORGEOUS.

Most anticipated release! Official Collector Dolls based on American Horror Story: Coven now available! Visit https://t.co/inxvQU4GcH pic.twitter.com/0PQtJ83wT6  Integrity Toys (@integritytoys) October 25, 2016

Integrity announced on Tuesday that the dolls would at last be made available. According to Integritys site, each 1:6 ratio dolls stand about 12-inches high. The collection includes six different characters, and its a limited edition collection  the number of each dolls varies depending on the character (there are 900 Fiona Goodes, compared to only 700 Kyles. We still love you, Kyle!).

The dolls are all currently available for pre-order through the companys authorized dealers, and the Marie Laveau doll is the first set for release, in December. Were geeking out a little bit about how perfect these dolls are. Like, from the expression to the fashion to even the body language, these dolls are *so* on point.

Fiona Goode, as played by Jessica Lange

Myrtle Snow, as played by Frances Conroy

Marie Laveau, as played by Angela Bassett

Madison Montgomery, as played by Emma Roberts

madison

Zoe Benson, as played by Taissa Farmiga

Kyle Spencer, as played by Evan Peters

There are six characters available  Fiona, Marie, Myrtle, Madison, Zoe, and Kyle. Id be lying if I didnt say I was just a ~tad~ flummoxed that Integrity decided on a Kyle Spencer doll in place of, say, a Misty Day or a Cordelia Foxx (both of whom were hugely popular characters), but these are still must-buys either way. Id never look an AHS gift horse in the mouth.

According to the PopHub, the high-end dolls are priced at around $130 each (did we mention theyre high-end?). Pricey, but definitely worth it if youre a doll collector or just your run-of-the-mill rabid AHS fan. Add these to your holiday shopping carts ASAP, before the limited editions run out!

The post You should probably buy these American Horror Story: Coven dolls ASAP appeared first on HelloGiggles.
The student who went to high school prom with accused University of Wisconsin-Madison rapist Alec Cook is speaking out.

Read: Gary Condit Denies Affair With Murdered Intern Chandra Levy in First Interview in 15 Years

Megan Couture says she went to prom with the rugby player two years ago.

"He definitely tried to persuade me to get in the mood to have sex with him when I didnt want to," she told Inside Edition.

Couture added that Cook once "threw me on a pool table in his basement." She said she was afraid of him, saying: He is a big person. I am 52, he is well above six foot. He's just big and powerful.

Cook is facing charges of sexually assaulting five women at the university.

"What he is doing is atrocious. It is disturbing and I think he needs to be locked up," Couture said.

After he was accused of raping a woman at the college, cops say dozens of women at the campus have come forward to describe their alleged encounters with him.

One of his classmates, Paige Harrington, knew him and said she is shocked by the accusations. She described Cook as "the class clown."

His lawyer Chris Van Wagner told reporters Friday morning, Everything that happened here was consensual.

The lawyer held up a page from a diary Cook kept of women he was interested in.

It lists their job or major, "What Makes Her Special," "What's My Next Step" and "Has It Come To An End? Another section read "Killed?" next to an unchecked box.

Read: Man Beaten and Robbed at Gunpoint as Girlfriend Watches on FaceTime

The prosecutor says the diary is evidence of stalking and grooming women but Cook's lawyer says there's been a rush to judgement.

He's 20 years old. Never been in trouble in his life. And now he's painted as the face of evil in Madison and now across the entire nation, across the globe. That's wrong, the lawyer said.

Story continues

Watch: UVA Dean Opens Up on Campus Rape Article Firestorm: 'I Was Afraid I Was Going to Get Fired'

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It was a story straight out of the Cold War, or a John le Carre novel. Mikhail Lesin, 57, former press minister to Russian President Vladimir Putin, was found dead last November in a Dupont Circle hotel room. His body was beat up. There had to be some foul play involved, right?

No. Thats according to Washingtons chief medical examiner and federal authorities, who released a statement Friday on the death nearly a year after it occurred. Their inquiry found Lesin died because he was on a days-long bender that left him dead on the floor of his room at The Dupont Circle Hotel.

Based on the evidence, including video footage and witness interviews, Mr. Lesin entered his hotel room on the morning of Nov. 4  after days of excessive consumption of alcohol and sustained the injuries that resulted in his death while alone in his hotel room, said a statement issued by the chief federal prosecutor in Washington. Lesin died as a result of blunt force injuries to his head, with contributing causes being blunt force injuries of the neck, torso, upper extremities, and lower extremities, which were induced by falls amid acute ethanol intoxication.

The statement should throw water on conspiracy theories that Lesin was killed by the Kremlin. Some Russian bloggers thought he could be in a witness protection program for agreeing to pass information about Putins inner circle to American authorities. Others thoughts he could have been involved in a drunken fight.

Lesin was in Washington to attend a dinner for the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars at the time of his death. He helped found RT, an international media outlet widely criticized for being a propaganda arm of the Kremlin. He also served as head of Gazprom-Media, a Russian state controlled media giant. In other words, he was a guy who would have known where some of Putins proverbial bodies are buried.

Lesin made enemies of all the heads of the federal TV channels, all the heads of advertising agencies and all media owners with his policies, Aleksei A. Venediktov, the editor of the radio station Ekho Moskvy, told the New York Times in April.

Story continues

His investments in the United States drew scrutiny both from Russias elite and American authorities. In July 2014, Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny publicized Lesins purchase of expensive homes in the Los Angeles area that seemed too expensive for someone on a government salary. The FBI was investigating Lesin for corruption and money-laundering charges at the time of his death, surrounding nearly $30 million in real estate investments in California with his son.

In the twilight of the Soviet Union, while oligarchs seized Russias natural resources, Lesin turned to television to make his fortune. He came to the national stage working for former President Boris Yeltsin and ousted competitors such as oligarch Vladimir Gusinsky, founder of Russian television channel NTV, during Putins rise to power.

In a 2014 letter to then-Attorney General Eric Holder, Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) requested the Department of Justice investigate Lesin for violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. In it, Wicker alleged that Lesin led the Kremlins effort to censor Russias independent television outlets and acquired multiple residences for $28 million in the Los Angeles area.

Other prominent Russians in Putins orbit have died in mysterious circumstances. Alexander Litvinenko, a former FSB officer who began informing to British intelligence, was murdered in London in the first-ever case of nuclear assassination when radioactive polonium-210 was found in his tea. A British public inquiry later determined that Putin likely approved Litvinenkos assassination.

Boris Berezovsky, a Russian business oligarch who helped orchestrate Putins rise to power, later became critical of Putins power grabs. He was found hanged in his apartment in London.

Earlier this month, British bank NatWest, a subsidiary of the Royal Bank of Scotland, closed RTs bank accounts after telling its London office, We have recently undertaken a review of your banking arrangements with us and reached the conclusion that we will no longer provide these facilities. The move was widely seen as a stand up to RTs propaganda.

FP Staff Writer Robbie Gramer contributed to this post.

Photo credit: Getty Images
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II visited a grocery store in Poundbury, England on Thursday, and no one seemed more surprised by the trip than the Queen herself.

Her Majesty flashed a fair amount of quizzical glances back and forth as she wandered up and down the aisles of the Waitrose supermarket.

Getty Images

Wearing a powder blue coat and flanked by her entourage (which included Prince Philip, Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall) The Queen perused the local products and greeted staff members.

She was reportedly fascinated by the selection of cheeses!

WATCH: The Trailer for 'The Crown,' Netflix's Ambitious New Original Series About Queen Elizabeth II

The royal tour of Poundbury, a new town that is an extension of the experimental village of Dorset, comes 20 years after work on the development began. Just before the grocery store run, the royal family saw the unveiling of a statue of Queen Elizabeth II's mother, Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, which was resurrected in the development's Queen Mother Square.

The new development is expected to be completed in 2025.

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BEIRUT (Reuters) - Shelling by Syrian rebels killed several children at a school in government-held western Aleppo on Thursday, state media and a monitoring group said, just a day after air strikes on a school in a rebel-held village in Idlib, 50km (32 miles) away. The shells hit two neighborhoods, Syrian state news agency SANA reported: the national school in the Shahaba area, killing three children and wounding more than a dozen others, and the other attack killed three people in Hamdaniya. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor of the five-year-old war, said six children under the age of 16 had been killed in the two attacks, including a baby. Syria's largest city before the war, Aleppo has been divided between government and opposition sectors for years. Wednesday's air strikes hit a school in the Haas village in rebel-held Idlib, killing at least 15 school children, an attack that Western countries have blamed on the Syrian military and Russian air force. Moscow has denied involvement. (Reporting by Ellen Francis; Editing by Angus McDowall and Louise Ireland)
We are now at the end of one of the busiest weeks in the current reporting cycle. This week has been full of activity for the real estate investment trusts (REITs) as well.



Several big shots including Avalonbay Communities Inc. AVB, Boston Properties Inc. BXP, Simon Property Group Inc. SPG and Kimco Realty Corporation KIM have come up with their earnings releases this week and now we have another chunk of REITs that are slated to report their results on Monday, Oct 31. Among them are General Growth Properties, Inc GGP, Vornado Realty Trust VNO, Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. ARE, Omega Healthcare Investors Inc. OHI and CyrusOne Inc. CONE.



REITs broadly benefit from the low-rate environment for their high debt-dependence nature. Hence, the Federal Reserves decision to keep the rate hike on hold in Septembers meeting comes as a boon. But with REITs catering to different asset classes, individual market dynamics of the underlying asset category play a pivotal role in defining their performance.



Now lets take a look at whats in store for these REITs which are slated to report their third-quarter 2016 results on Monday.



For doing this, we rely on the Zacks methodology, combining a favorable Zacks Rank  Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold)  and a positive Earnings ESP, to predict the chances of a beat this quarter. Please check our Earnings ESP Filter that enables you to find stocks that are expected to come out with earnings surprises.



Per our proprietary methodology, Earnings ESP shows the percentage difference between the Most Accurate estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Research shows that with this combination of rank and ESP, chances of a positive earnings surprise are as high as 70% for the stocks.



Headquartered in Chicago, IL, General Growth Properties is exclusively engaged in owning, managing, leasing, and redeveloping high-quality retail properties across the U.S. The companys portfolio includes mainly Class A malls and urban retail properties. Our model does not conclusively predict that the company will record a positive surprise as it has an Earnings ESP of 0.00% and a Zacks Rank #3. (Read more: General Growth's Q3 Earnings: What's in the Cards?)

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GENL GRWTH PPTY Price and EPS Surprise

GENL GRWTH PPTY Price and EPS Surprise | GENL GRWTH PPTY Quote

NY-based Vornado is the owner and manager of commercial real estate in the U.S., with a portfolio that is mainly located in the New York City and Washington D.C. areas. Our model does not conclusively predict that the company will record a positive surprise as it has an Earnings ESP of - 0.78% and a Zacks Rank #3. (Read more: Vornado Q3 Earnings: What's in Store for the Stock?)

VORNADO RLTY TR Price and EPS Surprise

VORNADO RLTY TR Price and EPS Surprise | VORNADO RLTY TR Quote

Pasadena, CA-based Alexandria Real Estate is a healthcare REIT which is mainly engaged in the ownership, operation, management, selective redevelopment, development and acquisition of life science properties. Currently, a surprise prediction is difficult as the company has an Earnings ESP of -0.73% and carries a Zacks Rank#2. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

ALEXANDRIA REAL Price and EPS Surprise

ALEXANDRIA REAL Price and EPS Surprise | ALEXANDRIA REAL Quote

Omega Healthcare Investors is a Hunt Valley, MD-based REIT which invests in income producing health care facilities. Our model does not conclusively predict that the company will record a positive surprise as it has an Earnings ESP of 0.00% and a Zacks Rank #2.

OMEGA HLTHCARE Price and EPS Surprise

OMEGA HLTHCARE Price and EPS Surprise | OMEGA HLTHCARE Quote

Carrollton, TX-based CyrusOne is engaged in providing enterprise data centre colocation, engineering facilities. Currently, company has an Earnings ESP of -1.59% and carries a Zacks Rank#5 (Strong Sell). Note that, we caution against stocks with Zacks Rank #4 or 5 (Sell-rated stocks) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions.

CYRUSONE INC Price and EPS Surprise

CYRUSONE INC Price and EPS Surprise | CYRUSONE INC Quote

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The Federal Bureau of Investigation is reviewing another slew of emails related to Hillary Clintons private server  apparently thanks to Anthony Weiner.

FBI Director James Comey sent a letter to congressional leaders Oct. 28 saying that his agency recently discovered additional emails that are pertinent to the previously concluded investigation into whether Clinton mishandled classified information using a private server from her home in Chappaqua, N.Y. Comey said these new emails were found in connection with an unrelated case.

Later in the day, the New York Times and the Associated Press reported that the additional emails were discovered on former New York Rep. Anthony Weiners electronic devices during the FBIs investigation of his sexting habits. According to the Times, the FBI is looking at inappropriate text messages Weiner allegedly sent to a 15-year-old girl.

Weiners estranged wife, Huma Abedin, is a longtime top aide to Clinton. Abedin announced earlier this year that she would divorce Weiner, whose political career has been rocked by multiple sexting scandals.

Friday evening, Clinton called for the Comey and the FBI to release the full and complete facts from the probe.

Then-New York city mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner and his wife, Huma Abedin, in 2013. (Photo: Eric Thayer/Reuters)

But her competitor for the White House, Republican candidate Donald Trump, capitalized on the FBIs announcement by releasing a statement that accuses Clinton of criminal and illegal conduct.

Hillary Clintons corruption is on a scale we have never seen before. We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office, Trump said. I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the DOJ are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made. This was a grave miscarriage of justice that the American people fully understand. It is everybodys hope that it is about to be corrected.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, tweeted that Americans were already aware of Clintons lifelong pattern of corruption and that elected officials should be held accountable regardless of how high they rise in politics.

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Elected officials, no matter how high their position, should be held accountable for criminal conduct. The rule of law matters. https://t.co/ftAB7aJ50l  Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) October 28, 2016

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, a Republican, also chimed in on Weiners surprising role in the controversy.

Who would have thought a Weiner would be HRCs undoing?????  Gov. Mike Huckabee (@GovMikeHuckabee) October 28, 2016

Weiner did not respond to a request for comment from Yahoo News.

John Podesta, the chairman of Clintons campaign, released a statement calling for the FBI to release more details about its announcement:
hurricane sandy

It's been four years since Hurricane (or Superstorm) Sandy made landfall, causing nearly $50 billion in damage across just New York City and New Jersey.

But researchers are still only just beginning to reckon with how historic and rare a storm Sandy was. The giant, slow moving monster hung around New York City for three days, pushing water onto land. The result was levels of flooding unseen in the modern era, swamping the subway system and causing damage that still hasn't been entirely repaired.

A new paper accepted for publication in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans October 21 shows that Sandy-level storm floods are intensely rare, probably only happening once in every 260 years.

Orton's model used present sea level conditions, and didn't directly account for climate change. In the future, he said, rising seas make the risk of a Sandy-like event significantly more likely.

Head researcher Philip Orton, who studies ocean physics at the Stevens Institute of Technology, collected data on past storms to create a model that estimated how often a storm like Hurricane Sandy would happen. In the process Orton showed that no hurricane, tropical storm, or northeaster had caused as much flooding in the New York City area since at least 1700.

Before that date, we simply don't know what happened, Orton told Business Insider.

Two hurricanes, in 1788 and 1821, probably hit New York and New Jersey as Category 3 storms. But they were smaller and faster-moving, and didn't stick around long enough to push anywhere near as much water onto land as Sandy did.

While the risk of a Sandy-like flood will creep upward over time, Orton said, it's important that people understand that the risk in the next is still fairly low. More urgent is the task of preparing for more common, mid-sized floods in the area. Down the road, with rising sea levels, the threat of a Sandy-like event will grow.

NOW WATCH: Pilots flew straight into Hurricane Matthew and caught this incredible first-hand footage





More From Business Insider


Ten years after launching her eponymous California-tinged clothing and lifestyle brand, Heidi Merrick is set to debut her first H. Merrick of California brick-and-mortar. Located on 9th and Broadway, the store - which opens on Thursday, Nov. 3 - is the latest addition to downtown L.A.'s buzzy new destination retail stretch, keeping company with the likes of Acne Studios and A.P.C.

Merrick is no stranger to the fashion-heavy block: She opened her ninth-floor studio here eight years ago, and when the ground-floor 1,500-square-foot space below became available, Merrick not only decided to open a boutique, but also to bring her production team - three sewers and a cutter - in house. Each piece hanging on the boutique's brass racks was crafted under the same roof.

Read more: Happy Hour: Boos and Booze Edition

Her line, she says, is as influenced by downtown as it is by her farm in Carpinteria, Calif., where she and her family camp on the weekends. "I swing both ways. I go from being a full-on farmer to being surrounded by sophisticated urban culture. I think my collection lies somewhere between," says the designer, who seeks to harness the "ease and elegance" of California living with breezy signature silhouettes, which have been worn by fans including Drew Barrymore, Gigi Hadid and Jessica Alba.

Courtesy of Heidi Merrick

As the daughter of Channel Islands Surfboards founders Al and Terry Merrick, the designer also spent her formative years on the beaches of Carpinteria outside Santa Barbara, before putting down roots in L.A.'s eastside. Her inaugural flagship takes cues from that coastal upbringing, as evidenced by the large-scale photos of the Pacific, taken by photographer Sharon Montrose ($1,350 unframed), which line one wall. Sculptor Josephine Wister Faure's The Source anchors the 1,500-square-foot space - a river rock with a gold-foil vein running through it, surrounded by sand ("I asked her for a water feature," explains Merrick. "I think it's just gorgeous").

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A floor-to-ceiling collage commands the back of the room, peppered with images from British and French Vogue from the 1990s and 2000s, layered with pages ripped from surf magazines - a nod to the ever-evolving inspiration board in the designer's studio upstairs, where Merrick and her team also dream up one-of-a-kind custom pieces, including wedding dresses.

Courtesy of Heidi Merrick

The boutique also serves as a showcase for pieces Merrick covets, from black peacock chairs ($625) to a queen canopy bed ($4,400) from L.A.-based MASHstudios' PCHseries that's laden with pillows from Merrick's home line. "I got this same bed for my 40th birthday," she explains. "It might be the best thing I own."

The most telltale sign of Merrick's surf lineage? A wall of hanging surfboards ($1,850 each) in the colors of her fall line, designed by her brother, Britt Merrick (head shaper for Channel Islands), which originally were crafted for world-class pro surfer Dane Reynolds. "I kept drawing the board I want. I told him I wanted it to feel like a '70s gun - a big-wave board," she explains of the saffron, black and blush-hued collection, which will be sold exclusively in her boutique for the next 18 months. Expect new surfboards to be released timed to each clothing collection.

"This is a combination of my home and studio," says Merrick, surveying the space with a smile. "This is my world."

115 W. 9th St., L.A. 90014

Read more: Shop Talk: Maria Cornejo's In-Store Appearance; Libertine's Sample Sale
The work of the police has come under tremendous scrutiny in the U.S. over the past few years, with the shootings of unarmed black men by cops leading to the birth of the Black Lives Matter movement. Then came the string of killings of police officers this past summer. In an environment where tensions run high, A&E tonight is launching Live PD, a weekly two-hour live documentary series that will show six police departments in action in real time. The network, which has tradition in documentary series, including the long-running Intervention and 2016 Emmy winner Born This Way, is looking to push the genre into new territory with the eight-episode Live PD, in which host Dan Abrams and two Dallas police detectives will comment on the live developments.

A&Es general manager Rob Sharenow admits it has been hard to get people to understand what the show really is  he calls it unmediated, live Cops with third-party journalistic context. In an interview with Deadline, he talks about the challenges (and price tag) of mounting a live production involving police work in multiple locations around the country, whether there will be limits to what they can show, what Live PD means for the evolution of the A&E brand, and what is the future of once-signature reality series Duck Dynasty on the network, which has been going through rough times, trying to make a ratings turnaround.

DEADLINE: What was your first reaction when a live cop show was pitched to you?

SHARENOW: Well, it was brought to us by our production partners Big Fish, and frankly when the idea first surfaced to me, I actually didnt think it would be possible; I didnt think it would be logistically possible. I didnt think any of the police forces around the country would participate in something like this, so I actually thought when we started to develop that I was sending my team and the producers on a fools errand. But it turns out, they came back with an overwhelming amount of police departments and municipalities that wanted to participate, which was really fascinating, and I think that was the first hurdle, knowing that it could be done and that we would get willing participation not one, not two, not three, not four, not five, not six, but many more cities around the country that wanted to do this.

DEADLINE: What was the motivation of those police departments that wanted to participate?

SHARENOW: Theres obviously a cultural conversation going on right now about policing in America. On the non-police side, theres a call for transparency. But interestingly, theres a call for transparency on the police side. They want the world to see what really goes on, and how they execute their job and what the realities that theyre up against and how they do it. Its sort of a validating mechanism for them, and they feel that the transparency will really show the heroic duty theyre performing.

DEADLINE: What are some of the cities featured and do they include areas where there has been tension between civilians and police?

SHARENOW: Our goal was to really have geographic diversity, because part of what we were trying to capture is that theres different challenges depending on where you are in the country. We do have some areas that are troubled by violent crime  Bridgeport, Connecticut; Tulsa, Oklahoma  and then we have some more rural areas  were in Utah, Arizona. Youll see a diversity of crime, a diversity of people and that was important. Policing isnt a cookie-cutter occupation. There is a lot of local nuance that goes on depending on where you are.

DEADLINE: Will every episode include the same police teams and all six locations?

SHARENOW: There is no set plan. its a very unpredictable show, and I think the idea is that well have our crew filming all six for the entire night and that will really follow where the story is. In some instances, we may touch upon all six areas, in some instances we may just focus on one or two for the whole episode depending on whats going on. I really think it depends on what the police were following come up against.

DEADLINE: Im sure youre going into it with some trepidation. You are using tape delay. What guidelines do you have about what you can show on TV?

SHARENOW: We did build this production very carefully. We have an incredible all-star team of veteran news and documentary producers making the show who are very used to following live events and know where the line is. We will have a team of legal experts with us as the show is transpiring to make the calls as they happen. But I think our protocols will not wildly diverge from what a new agency or a documentary crew normally does in terms of whats permissible.

DEADLINE: Could you extend the series by adding extra episodes as it goes?

SHARENOW: Yeah, we certainly have the ability and the opportunity to do that, and on a given night, we could run longer if we chose to. Its important to note that were not building ourselves up as a news agency, thats not what this is, this is a documentary series thats giving context and illuminating something right now. Our goal isnt to become CNN. Our goal is to provide context and exposure to an issue thats critically affecting the country right now. Its important to note that theres a lot of footage out there, and what were trying to do is bring journalistic insight to it, this isnt unmediated footage. I think we built our team very carefully to be able to give viewers insights to exactly what theyre seeing from all sides of it. It will be an enhanced, elevated experience, it wont be Hey, heres some footage, and that is again part of the mission of the show, to have it not just be shown, but explained.

DEADLINE: Do the policemen featured have the right at any point to request that filming stops?

SHARENOW: Yeah, for safety, [if] theyre being endangered or someones endangered. But no, not for some random editorial reason. I do want to emphasize something thats really important: we are filming it independently. This is not police cameras, this is not body cams or cameras that the police own or cameramen who are working for the police. These are independent documentarians and news crews doing this.

DEADLINE: With simultaneous live filming in six locations, what is the budget of Live PD?

SHARENOW: Its not a cheap show. I can tell you that. But I will tell you  and this gets a little wonky and technical  there was a major technological advancement over the past year that allowed us to produce the show at all. Frankly, there is a new technology that allows us to aggregate these live feeds and edit them in a way thats much more cost-efficient than what would have been a year ago. Im not tech savvy to explain it to you, but I think if we had been having this conversation a year ago, we might not be talking about Live PD, because [it would have been] prohibitively expensive, but our producers and our tech team on the network side have embraced a new technology that has allowed something pretty spectacular to be presented at a fairly reasonable price point.

DEADLINE: Reasonable price, but its still a high-end non-scripted series, correct?

SHARENOW: Its on the high-end for non-fiction, Id say mid- to high-end.

DEADLINE: When you realized that the show is feasible, why did you decide to do it for A&E?

SHARENOW: For me A&E is leading the charge with non-fiction with shows that speak to the cultural zeitgeist in a very elevated way, and I think weve seen that with shows like Intervention, Born This Way we just won the Emmy this year; these are shows that dare to go places that havent been breached in television in quite the way we do it. I think both in subject matter and form, this [Live PD] is an instance of wow, there is something really critical going on in our country right now, theres an incredible amount of debate, discussion and disagreement, and this is an opportunity for us to actually step into that conversation, and provide context and provide insight and provide transparency. Thats what gets me excited. To show, to bring to our audience something that is crucially important in their lives right now.

DEADLINE: It seems like A&E is going back to its darker, edgier, early days with shows like Intervention. The network went through a period with lighter fare like Duck Dynasty and Storage Wars. What does Live PD signify about the A&E brand and where you want to take it? Are you done with more comedic reality series?

SHARENOW: I think that A&E first and foremost is about non-fiction leadership, and part of what we are leaning into is that A&E is a fearless brand that is willing to tackle the most difficult subjects. Is there still room for stuff that isnt super heavy? Of course. And I do think, when I look back on our brand, the hallmark of A&Es non-fiction has always been a qualitative bar more than anything. When you look back at one of the original shows, Biography, which set the template for a whole genre of shows, there were I think eight imitators of that show. Biography always remained the most Emmy-nominated and -winning, and was the definitive brand, and whatever we do in non-fiction does have a leading edge and is raising the bar in a way that Live PD does.

Live PD is giving viewers the value proposition that they havent seen anywhere else. And I do think that Storage Wars, which remains a part of our brand, is very much in keeping with everything I just said. It was a very leading edge concept when we first introduced it. There were score of imitators of course, but it was a very real world thing that was happening and I think the executional excellence of that show explains its longevity.

DEADLINE: What is the future of Duck Dynasty?

SHARENOW: We have a new season coming up. We certainly have a very successful relationship with the family and were look forward to the upcoming episodes.

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A&E Sets Live Police Docuseries Hosted By Dan Abrams & Dallas PD Detectives

'The Killing Season' From Alex Gibney Set At A&E For November Premiere

Ellen DeGeneres' Reality Series Gets Green Light At A&E
Eight Rohingya Muslim women say they were raped at gunpoint by Burmese army soldiers during counterterrorism operations in the remote and conflict-ravaged Arakan state in the west of Burma, which is officially known as Myanmar.

Reuters reports that villagers claim dozens of women may have been sexually assaulted near the states northern Maungdaw township, though access to the area  which borders Bangladesh  is severely limited, making claims almost impossible to verify.

However, the news agency gained access to the village of U Shey Kya, where three women recounted their assaults in person. Five other women were reportedly reached by phone, and provided similar accounts of soldiers raiding their homes, looting their property and raping them.

One woman described being gang-raped by four soldiers. They also assaulted her 15-year-old daughter, she said.

A spokesman for the office of the President denied the allegations of sexual violence, according to Reuters. The military did not respond to the agencys request for comment. A state police official told Reuters that the allegations were propaganda for Muslim groups.

The allegations follow a military lockdown on the area that began after what appeared to be coordinated attacks on three border patrol posts that killed nine policemen and eight suspected attackers on Oct. 9. The Burmese government said the attacks were carried out by Islamic militants with ties to foreign terrorist organizations.

Since the attacks, additional troops have been deployed to the already militarized area and search for what the government says could be about 400 suspected jihadists. According to official figures, 33 suspects have been killed since the sweep began.

Humanitarian aid has been suspended to all villages in Maungdaw, though some assistance is reaching other parts of the state. Western journalists and aid workers are not allowed to travel in Maungdaw, and some local journalists who have reported on the situation have been subjected to online harassment.

Story continues

Arakan state, also known as Rakhine, is home to an estimated 1.1 million Rohingya, a stateless Muslim minority that is considered one of the worlds most persecuted peoples. Many Burmese view the group as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, as does the government, which does not use the name Rohingya on official documents.

Rohingya make up the majority of the population in northern Arakan, but they are a minority in other parts of the state, where the population is mostly ethnic Arakanese and Buddhist.

Communal violence in 2012 left more than 100 people dead and about 140,000 others displaced, with the Rohingya bearing the brunt of the damage. About 100,000 still live in squalid displacement camps where they are largely denied movement, education and health services.

The October attacks and the subsequent crackdown are the toughest test yet for Burmas new government, which is led by Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi following her landslide win in elections last year. Her party flushed out a military-backed government and ushered in a wave of international optimism about the former pariah state, though the army retains significant political and economic power.

[Reuters]
Moscow (AFP) - A Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman on Friday said an expert examination of pictures showing a strike on a Syrian school that UNICEF said killed 22 children, had shown they were fake.

"Today after expert analysis of photographs from the Syrian village of Hass, it turned out that there was no strike on the school and there were no victims either," Maria Zakharova wrote on Facebook.

"The photographs are computer graphics," she said, without giving any details.

Air strikes on a school in Hass village in Syria's rebel-held Idlib province killed 22 children and six teachers, the UN children's agency UNICEF said on Wednesday.

Russian defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said Thursday that photographs taken by a Russian drone showed that the roof of the school reportedly hit in the strikes showed no damage and that there were no craters attributable to bombs in the area.

And he said that "not one Russian warplane entered that area" on that day.

"This is an absolute fact."

Zakharova had on Thursday initially described the attack as a "terrible tragedy," while insisting that reports of Russian involvement were untrue after the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the strikes were carried out by "warplanes -- either Russian or Syrian".

Syrian government forces and their Russian allies have been accused by Western powers and rights groups of carrying out indiscriminate attacks on civilian infrastructure.
More than two months after the United Nations concluded that Syria attacked its citizens with chemical weapons, President Barack Obamas administration has yet to mount a concerted effort at the U.N. Security Council to impose biting sanctions on Damascus. The U.S. reluctance has put Washington at odds with its closest allies, Britain and France, which want to put Moscow on the spot for its support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The United States has never had as much proof as it now has that Assads regime deployed chemical weapons upon its own people. But Washington has repeatedly hesitated in recent months to put that evidence before the U.N. Security Council and press for sanctions. That caution acknowledges the likelihood that Russia, which like the United States wields veto power over Security Council decisions, would block any penalties against its ally Assad.

On Thursday, Russias U.N. ambassador, Vitaly Churkin, challenged the findings of international chemical weapons experts who concluded that Syrias regime had used chlorine bombs in at least three towns in 2014 and 2015. Speaking in a closed-door session of the U.N. Security Council, Churkin claimed that the attacks were likely carried out by anti-government terrorists, according to a copy of his remarks. The proof is not there for any punitive action to be taken against the Syrian government, Churkin told reporters.

The failure to punish Syria for repeatedly dropping chlorine bombs on towns controlled by opposition forces could have consequences reaching far beyond the nearly five-and-a-half-year war. Syria is the only member of the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention that has been found to have used chemical weapons. The United States and its allies fear that withholding action against Syria could encourage others to similarly violate the treaty.

Should the international community fail to take action to hold accountable those responsible for confirmed use, we risk lasting damage to this international norm, which is critical to international peace and security, Samantha Power, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said this month. Other actors, seeking to terrorize innocents, will be watching to see how the international community responds at this time.

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But Western allies have differed over their approaches. Britain and France have been pressing Washington since late August to move swiftly to pass a U.N. resolution sanctioning Syria for using chemical weapons during the countrys civil war and have dared Russia to veto it. The United States agrees that there is a need to punish Syria, and it has discussed a number of measures  including sanctions targeting the countrys chemical infrastructure and helicopter units used in attacks  with its European partners.

But it appears reluctant to pull the trigger  at least for now.

Two senior Security Council diplomats said they believe the United States is committed to pursuing sanctions. But they said Washington wants to ensure first that it can secure Russian agreement for an ongoing role for international chemical weapons inspectors in Syria. In Thursdays closed-door Security Council, Power said the council has to do something to hold those responsible for chemical weapons use to account.

The renewed debate over chemical weapons comes as the Syrian conflict has taken a turn for the worse. On Wednesday, the U.N. emergency relief coordinator, Stephen OBrien, bluntly accused Syria and Russia of pursuing a military campaign aimed at grinding the opposition into surrender.

Let me be clear  Eastern Aleppo is being besieged by the Syrian government, OBrien told the Security Council. Civilians are being bombed by Syrian and Russian forces, and if they survive that, they will starve tomorrow.

Syrian and Russian aircraft, he added, have dropped leaflets that read: This is your last hope. Save yourselves. If you do not leave these areas urgently, you will be annihilated.

Churkin fired back Wednesday, suggesting the leaflets may have been fakes designed to tarnish Syria and Russias reputation.

It was quite outrageous, Churkin said of OBriens remarks. You need to stick to facts, and the fact he didnt mention [is] that there have been no bombings in eastern Aleppo in the past seven days. Were not asking for praise, but failure to mention that to me was devaluing entirely his whole speech to the Security Council.

In August 2015, the Security Council established a Joint Investigative Mechanism  including specialists from the U.N. and The Hague-based Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons  to identify the perpetrators of nine documented cases of chemical weapons use in 2014 and 2015. A year later, the investigative unit, known as the JIM, concluded that Syrian air force helicopters had dropped barrel bombs, or other devices, containing a toxic agent  most likely chlorine  on the rebel-controlled towns of Talmenes and Sarmin.

The JIM also concluded that the Islamic State had shelled another rebel-controlled town, Marea, with mustard gas.

The findings spurred Britain and France to lobby for a tough resolution sanctioning Syrian air force units linked to chlorine attacks. But the United States  which at the time was engaged in sensitive negotiations with Russia over a cease-fire in eastern Aleppo  sought to defer action.

Instead, Washington urged its allies to wait until weapons inspectors had time to complete a final report in hopes that further evidence would strengthen the case for U.N. sanctions.

The report was distributed to the council last week. It found evidence that Syria used chlorine in a third attack on the town of Qmenas in March 2015 and identified the involvement of several air force units, including the 63rd Helicopter Brigade, and urged the council to hold them accountable.

It is crucial to hold those who use or intend to use chemicals as weapons accountable for their acts, as it is fundamental to deter all those who continue to believe that there is something to be gained in the use of toxic chemicals as weapons, the report concluded.

Shortly afterward, Britain and France publicly demanded imposing sanctions. The Security Council, said British envoy Matthew Rycroft, needs to make sure there is genuine accountability, and that means sanctions. French U.N. Ambassador Francois Delattre also weighed in: We call for a resolution of the council to sanction the authors of those crimes, he said. When the use of weapons of mass destruction are at stake, weakness and impunity are simply not an option.

The United States also called for holding perpetrators accountable for using chemical weapons. However, it found a new reason to delay action on a resolution to sanction Syria: Washington wants first to secure Security Council support for a separate measure extending the JIMs mandate for another year.

Its unlikely that Russia would reverse course and support sanctions against Assad, even if confronted with new evidence of the regimes chemical attacks. But in closed-door talks with Britain and France, the United States maintains the investigative unit has practical value: The JIMs 2015 creation has led to a reduction in chlorine attacks, and keeping it active could deter future attacks. Moreover, the United States has argued, maintaining the JIM would also keep the question of Syrias chemical weapons activities before the Security Council.

The United States had floated a draft Security Council resolution to require updates on the investigative units progress every 60 days. Britain and France say they will support the U.S. resolution but are hoping Washington can be persuaded to support a follow-up measure calling for sanctions.

Russia has expressed skepticism over the need to extend the JIMs mandate. On Wednesday, Churkin threw cold water on the U.S. call for extending the units mandate. A quick, technical rollover is not going to work, he told reporters at the U.N. headquarters in New York.

Churkin said any discussion of the JIMs future would require talking about expanding its scope to allow investigators assiduously to track possible preparations by various terrorist groups in Syria and Iraq for the production or use of chemical weapons. Following Thursdays Security Council meeting, Churkin added that the JIM would also have to expand the geographical scope of its investigations beyond Syria, focusing on terrorist efforts to develop chemical weapons in Iraq and potentially elsewhere.

The United States and its allies may not object to further scrutiny of chemical weapons use by Syrian extremists. But they will want to keep the focus of pressure on Assads chemical weapons attacks.

The latest report confirms yet again what we have known for nearly three years now, that the Syrian regime systematically uses toxic chemicals as weapons, Power said, accusing Assad of violating the Chemical Weapons Convention and Security Council Resolution 2118. These incidents fit a consistent pattern of other confirmed regime uses of chemical weapons across Syria.

Photo credit: ARMEND NIMANI/AFP/Getty Images
Aleppo (Syria) (AFP) - Syrian rebels launched a major assault Friday aimed at breaking a months-long siege of opposition-held districts of Aleppo, as regime ally Russia held off on renewed air strikes.

The European Union said late Friday its top diplomat Federica Mogherini was heading to Iran and Saudi Arabia for talks on Syria's five-year conflict.

Rebel groups including the Ahrar al-Sham faction and former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front fired rockets into government-held western Aleppo, killing at least 15 civilians, a monitor said.

The rebels also targeted government positions east of Aleppo city and in the coastal province of Latakia, including the Hmeimim military base used by Russian forces allied with the regime.

Moscow says it has not bombed Aleppo since October 18, but senior Russian military official Sergei Rudskoi said Friday the military had asked President Vladimir Putin for authorisation to resume air strikes.

But the Kremlin said Putin did not agree to the request.

"The Russian president considers it inappropriate at the current moment to resume strikes on Aleppo," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding that Putin thought it necessary to "continue the humanitarian pause" in the war-ravaged city.

"The Russian side retains the right in case of extreme necessity to use all the troops and facilities it has to carry out support of the Syrian armed forces at the necessary level," he added.

Mogherini will visit Tehran on Saturday and Riyadh on Monday for "senior level talks" continuing the EU's "outreach to key actors in the region on the Syrian crisis", an EU statement said.

- Fierce clashes -

Friday's rebel assault comes more than three months into a government siege of eastern Aleppo, where more than 250,000 people live, and several weeks after the army began an operation to retake the rebel-held east.

Rebel groups "announce the start of the battle to break the siege of Aleppo", said Abu Yusef Muhajir, a military commander and spokesman for Ahrar al-Sham.

Story continues

The assault "will end the regime occupation of western Aleppo and break the siege on the people trapped inside", he told AFP.

"The breaking of the siege is inevitable," said Yasser al-Yusef, a member of the political office of the Nureddine al-Zinki rebel group.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said at least 15 civilians, including a woman and two children, had been killed, and more than 100 wounded in rebel fire on western Aleppo.

The monitor reported fierce clashes on multiple fronts on the western and southern outskirts of west Aleppo, with three suicide car bombs targeting a checkpoint in the Dahiyet al-Assad neighbourhood.

Fighting was continuing in the area near a military academy, it said, but had no immediate toll.

An AFP correspondent in east Aleppo said the assault had boosted morale there, with mosques broadcasting "God is greatest" from loudspeakers.

He said residents burned tyres to create smoke and provide cover against air attack.

Heavy rain put out the fires but also hampered Syrian air operations, creating what one rebel dubbed "a divine no-fly zone".

The Observatory said rebels had also fired rockets at the Nairab military airport and Aleppo international airport, both east of the city and government-controlled.

- 'Kill zone' -

Rebels also fired rockets from Idlib province into the government stronghold of Latakia, killing one person and wounding six.

Rockets struck close to the Hmeimim military airport, as well as near President Bashar al-Assad's ancestral village Qardaha, the monitor said.

State television said "the army has foiled an attempt by terrorists to attack Aleppo city from several axes with suicide bomb attacks".

State news agency SANA said government planes were carrying out strikes south and west of Aleppo.

Once Syria's economic powerhouse, Aleppo has been ravaged by the conflict that began in March 2011 with anti-government protests and has since killed more than 300,000 people.

Aleppo has been divided between government control in the west and rebel control in the east since mid-2012, and in September the army announced an operation to recapture the whole city.

The UN's aid chief Stephen O'Brien this week said Aleppo had become "a kill zone", adding that "nothing is actually happening to stop the war".

Last week, Russia implemented a three-day "humanitarian truce" intended to allow civilians and surrendering rebels to leave the east.

But few did so, and a UN plan to evacuate the wounded failed because security could not be guaranteed.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused UN agencies Friday of "not being professional enough" over Aleppo, saying "their inaction allowed the medical evacuation to be sabotaged".

UN chief Ban Ki-moon, meanwhile, condemned an attack on a school in west Aleppo on Thursday that killed at least six children, according to state media.

"Such attacks, if deliberate, may amount to war crimes," he said in a statement.
Aboard a US military aircraft (AFP) - A Russian fighter flew dangerously close to a US warplane over eastern Syria, US defence officials said Friday, highlighting the risks of a serious mishap in the increasingly crowded airspace.

The "near miss" occurred late on October 17, when a Russian jet that was escorting a larger spy plane manoeuvred near an American warplane, Air Force Lieutenant General Jeff Harrigian said.

The Russian jet came to "inside of half a mile" of the US jet, he added.

Another US military official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the American pilot was buffeted by the turbulence from the Russian jet's engines.

"It was close enough you could feel the jet wash of the plane passing by," the official said.

It appeared the Russian pilot had simply not seen the US jet -- either on radar or visually. It was dark and the planes were flying without lights.

"I would attribute it to not having the necessary situational awareness given all those (planes) operating together," Harrigian said.

The incident raises serious questions about the extent to which pilots can track the complex airspace they operate in.

- Hotline to Russia -

Fearing a mishap, the US-led coalition last year set up a hotline with Russian counterparts to discuss the approximate locations and missions of planes.

In this case, the American pilot tried unsuccessfully to reach the Russian jet via an emergency radio channel.

The next day, US officers used the hotline to ask Russia what had happened, and they said "the pilot didn't see" the American plane, the official said.

The rate of close calls has increased over the past six weeks, Harrigian said, with Russian jets intentionally flying close to a coalition plane every 10 days or so.

"An intercept would be when an aircraft rolls in behind one of our aircraft. Could be a tanker, could be a B-52" bomber, Harrigian said.

US officers typically contact the Russians afterward.

Story continues

We'll "make sure they know we are concerned about that and try to get an understanding of why they felt the need to do it," Harrigian said.

"Typically, it's not a very satisfying answer."

Coalition planes and drones operate in the skies over parts of Syria on a near-continuous basis.

That air traffic will grow heavier still as coalition-backed forces ramp up operations to recapture Raqa, the de-facto capital of the Islamic State group's "caliphate".

Further complicating matters, Turkish and Syrian regime warplanes fly in the same air space too.

Russia conducts frequent air patrols over Syria, the vast majority of them over the devastated city of Aleppo, and routinely transits parts of the country the US-coalition operates in, officials said.

Russia says it has not bombed Aleppo since October 18.

The Pentagon periodically chides Russia for "unsafe and unprofessional behaviour" in air operations and aggressive intercepts.

This latest incident was deemed unsafe, but not necessarily unprofessional, officials said.

Coalition spokesman Colonel John Dorrian, in a videoconference from Baghdad Friday, said the coalition did not assess the incident as "something that was done with nefarious intent".

"Therefore they've continued discussing that incident, and those deconfliction calls continued to be conducted on a daily basis," Dorrian said.
From Popular Mechanics

Russia's only aircraft carrier, the Admiral Kuznetsov, has set sail for Syria. The vessel is leaving a long and unhealthy trail of smoke in its wake.

Moscow's symbol of power projection is old and in danger of breaking down as it make its way from the North Sea to the Mediterranean. The Russians have also discovered that this smoldering boat and her naval task force are unwelcome, as port after port along its route refuses entry now that human rights organizations and governments worldwide have accused the Russian government of war crimes.

[contentlinks align="left" textonly="false" numbered="false" headline="Related%20Stories" customtitles="Russia's%20New%20ICBM%20Could%20%22Wipe%20Out%20Texas%22%7CThe%20Zumwalt%20Is%20Here,%20Now%20What%20About%20the%20Railgun?" customimages="|" content="article.23547|article.23440"]

The full, grand name of Russia's sole carrier is the Admiral Flota Sovetskogo Soyuza Kuznetsov. The fifteen aircraft onboard include Su-33 air superiority fighters, Su-25UTG ground attack aircraft, and MiG-29KUB two-seater multi-role fighters. This is the carrier's second trip to the Mediterranean since the Syrian Civil War began. The aircraft will likely take part in Moscow's air war over Syria.

Kuztnetsov is a notoriously unreliable ship. She was built by the Soviet Union in the late 1980s and languished in Russian service after the Cold War. In 2009, a problem with the electrical system led to a fire that killed a crewman. The ship's propulsion system has never worked properly and breaks down so frequently that it, like many other large Russian Navy ships, always travels with an oceangoing tug. The ship broke down in early 2012 off the coast of Spain.

The carrier and her flotilla of seven ships are slowly making their way from their homeport north of the Arctic Circle to Syria. The task force sailed through the English Channel on October 21, shadowed by a Royal Navy destroyer and frigate. But today it was announced that Kuznetsov's battle group would not be stopping to refuel at the Spanish port of Ceuta, as had been previously announced. The Spanish government had given permission for three ships to refuel at Ceuta, but Russia withdrew the request after Spain's NATO allies complained. Malta also announced that the Russian fleet was not welcome.

Story continues

There's no telling how this will affect the Kuznetsov's voyage. The Russian Defense Ministry has brushed aside Spain's disinvitation, claiming the flotilla has enough fuel and supplies to make the voyage. That may be true, but it remains to be seen if the carrier and her entourage can make it back to Russia without a refueling.

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MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin will organise a gathering of domestic oil producers a week before the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries meets on November 30 to discuss possible output curbs, industry sources told Reuters on Friday.

The agenda for the November 23 meeting of the energy industries commission is not clear yet. A Kremlin spokesman did not respond to a request for comment and the Energy Ministry declined to discuss the matter.

Earlier on Friday, the Interfax news agency cited Energy Ministry documents prepared for the commission as saying that the market impact of any deal to cap Russia's oil production at current rates could be short-lived due to a quick recovery in shale oil production in the United States.

Igor Sechin, the head of Rosneft (ROSN.MM) and an ally of Putin, is secretary of the commission.

Russia is working with OPEC to try to hammer out a deal aimed at curbing oil production and oversupply, problems which have dogged global oil markets for the past two years.

A source close to one of the Russian companies, said the meeting had been postponed from Nov. 9 after discussions between Sechin and Putin's aide Andrei Belousov, who is also the chairman of Rosneft.

Sechin is known for his anti-OPEC stance and has repeatedly said that the group has lost its global influence due to a boom in shale oil production in the United States.

Saudi Arabia and its Gulf OPEC allies have expressed a willingness to reduce their peak oil output by 4 percent, energy ministers from the Gulf countries told their Russian counterpart this week.

The 4 percent offer was expected to be formally made at a meeting of OPEC experts and officials from other oil producers, including Russia, during a meeting being held in Vienna on Friday and Saturday.

Five leading Russian oil companies, responsible for three quarters of the output of the world's largest producer, all say they will be boosting output next year after reaching record output levels in recent months.

(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin, Nastya Lyrchikova and Katya Golubkova; Editing by Greg Mahlich)
By Darya Korsunskaya and Oksana Kobzeva

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian energy major Rosneft (ROSN.MM) is seeking government approval to buy up to 100 percent of oil firm Bashneft (BANE.MM) after acquiring a controlling stake earlier this month as a part of a state privatisation drive.

State-controlled Rosneft paid 330 billion roubles (4.32 billion) for a 50.1 percent stake in Bashneft, higher than other bidders offered, including privately-owned oil company Lukoil (LKOH.MM).

The process has caused much discussion in the government about whether one state firm may buy another. The region of Bashkortostan owns about 25 percent in Bashneft, with 4 percent being treasury shares and the rest freely tradeable shares.

Anatoly Golomolzin, a deputy head of Russia's anti-monopoly body, said the agency had received Rosneft's request to buy up to 100 percent of Bashneft and would review it within a month.

"The company has asked the anti-monopoly body for permission to buy 100 percent of Bashneft as that automatically gives us the right to purchase any minority stake as well," a Rosneft spokesman said.

A high-ranked source at the Russian government said on Friday it was unlikely Bashkortostan would decide to sell its stake in Bashneft.

"I think they (Bashkortostan) will not give up (its stake)", the source said.

A spokesman for the head of Bashkortostan told Reuters the region was not in talks with Rosneft on selling its stake.

Named after the region of Bashkortostan where its oil is produced and where it operates three oil refineries, Bashneft produces around 400,000 barrels of crude oil a day - about 4 percent of Russia's output.

Bashneft has changed hands repeatedly in the last three decades and ended up being taken over by the state in 2015..

On Thursday, Rosneft said it had asked Lukoil to cancel crude oil purchasing contracts with Bashneft. Lukoil and Bashneft also have a production joint venture in Russia's northern Timan Pechora region.

(Additional reporting by Denis Pinchuk, Olga Popova and Vladimir Soldatkin; Writing by Denis Pinchuk; Editing by Katya Golubkova and Mark Potter)
(Reuters) - Southampton manager Claude Puel has urged fans to be patient with record signing Sofiane Boufal as he bids to regain full fitness following a long-term injury. Boufal, who joined from French side Lille during the close season, ensured Southampton reached the quarter-finals of the League Cup in his first start for the club by scoring with a stunning long-range strike to knock out Sunderland on Wednesday. "I am not surprised by the goal because he has the technical ability to do that sort of thing but it's fantastic for him and for all the squad, and very important for the future of the squad," Frenchman Puel told British media. "It's important to stay patient with him because he is young and he cannot for the moment (show) everything he has got, but you can see through the goal that he is an interesting player. "It is important not to rush him and take it step-by-step but he will get chances to play in the future. It is important to keep him fit." The 23-year-old midfielder had to undergo an operation to rectify a knee problem he picked up while playing for Lille earlier this year. The Saints, who are eighth in the Premier League, host fourth-placed Chelsea on Sunday. (Reporting by Shravanth Vijayakumar in Bengaluru)
From Good Housekeeping

When a kid is sent home with a permission slip, a parent can usually expect a message like, "We're going a field trip, can your child participate?" or "It's flu shot season, sign here for your child to receive a shot!" Mostly friendly notices for a student's safety.

Daniel Radosh, a senior writer for The Daily Show, had to do a double take when his son Milo brought home a note asking for permission ... to read. The literature in question: Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. Milo wrote, on behalf of his 8th grade book club: "This book was challenged because of its theme of illegality and censorship of books," and went on to say that, "there is a large amount of cursing and profanity in the book."

Radosh couldn't help but flex his bull-detector muscles and responded by calling out the irony: "Pretending to present students at the start with what seems like a totally reasonable 'first step' is a really immersive way to teach them how insidious censorship can be."

You can read Milo's letter and his father's response in full by reading Radosh's initial tweet, which has racked up 10,000 retweets and 16,000 likes since it was first posted on Monday.

tfw your kid's school makes you sign a permission slip so he can read Fahrenheit 451   pic.twitter.com/t9lmD8vKTu - Daniel Radosh (@danielradosh) October" class="redactor-linkify-object">https://twitter.com/danielradosh/status/7905681160... 24, 2016

Historically, it's common practice for teachers to send a permission slip home with students before reading a book that is deemed "controversial," to warn of profanity, sex scenes or references to rape, abortion or abuse.

In 2014, the Dallas News reported a controversy at Highland Park ISD, where classics like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway all required permission slips. And of course, there was the great Harry Potter controversy of 2008. (At one time, Harry Potter was the most banned book in America.)

Story continues

Lynn Dickinson, a mother of another 8th grade student at Milo's school, told the Dallas News she believes these controversies often become a blame game, with parents getting angry at teachers who are just following the orders of the school administration.

Radosh likely gets that too, as he reassures his son at the end of his letter that his teacher will "have his back." We say, keep reading, Milo!

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(Photo: Getty Images)

Just give us a minute to calm down. Oooh, ok. This is real. This is happening. According to ElleUK, one lucky soul will win a date with Titanics Jack Dawson  wait, no sorry  Leonardo DiCaprio. All one must do to participate in the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity is donate $6 and fly to Edinburgh. Easy. We want in. Bring on the DiCaprio.

As if boozing and schmoozing with Leo isnt enough, the prize winner will also receive an overnight stay and dinner for two at The George Hotel, Edinburghs pinnacle of luxury hotels, as the website states. The winner will also gain free travel throughout Scotland via ScotRail, and last but not least, a 1,000 Champagne and shopping experience at ROX, George Street.

So what is this all about? Whats the catch? Is there a marriage ceremony involved?

cheers wolf of wall street

Red Granite Pictures / blog.giphy.com

Well, for starters, this raffle listing is up on itison.com, a similar site to our Groupon, but lists strictly deals in Edinburgh. The $6 (or 5 if you are already across the pond) goes to feeding the homeless at Edinburghs Home restaurant. Home has teamed up with Social Bite, a sandwich shop that donates 100% of their proceeds to a good cause, and employs the former homeless, to ensure that each donation goes towards a hot meal and drink for someone in need.

This means, theres no catch. Last year the Social Bite fundraiser pulled in over 400,000, allowing the shop to feed the Scottish homeless for an entire year. The team encourages the public to donate several times to this years raffle so they can outdo last years numbers. Each time you donate, you earn yourself an extra entry to wine and dine with your ~ one tru luv ~.

leo django

The Weinstein Company / www.reddit.com

Joining you on your DiCaprio date will be Sir Tom Hunter, Chairman of the Scottish Business Awards. Leo is the Business Awards keynote speaker this year, hence his involvement. So yes, youll have a third wheel. But Sir Tom Hunter would make an excellent witness to your possible elopement to Leo (just a thought).

Story continues

PLEASE NOTE: THIS RAFFLE ENDS TODAY, FRIDAY OCTOBER 28TH. As of the time this article was written, there is currently 18 hours left to donate. Please donate as many times as you can muster so the homeless can be fed for two years instead of one!

clapping leo

ABC / oscar.go.com

Good luck Leo lovers! Head over to itison to DONATE NOW!

The post You can score a date with Leonardo Dicaprio for $6  only really appeared first on HelloGiggles.
Fox News host Sean Hannity launched into a lengthy diatribe against critics of conservative media on Thursday night in response to a Business Insider story on the "conservative media industrial complex" and its role in the rise of Donald Trump.

hannity

He continued: "The big point you miss is in almost every primary exit poll, 65% of REPUBLICANS said they felt betrayed by DC Republicans. My fault? Rush [Limbaugh]?"

Hannity was referring to the notion that American conservatives feel more detached than ever from the Republican Party, arguing that right-leaning commentators like himself are the voice of conservatives  not Republican politicians, who he suggested are beholden to establishment ideals like political correctness and bipartisanship.

"Did the Republicans promise to repeal and replace Obamacare? When they had the majority did they use their enumerated power of the purse?" Hannity tweeted.

He then defended conservative media behemoths like internet mogul Matt Drudge and talk-show host Mark Levin: "When John Boehner was speaker why did the Republican majority allow the debt to go up nearly 5 Trillion? Drudge's fault? Mine? Rush? Levin?"

Many conservatives have lamented the extent to which figures like Hannity, Drudge, and Limbaugh have been able to turn the Republican base away from the party, as Business Insider has chronicled. Some think the party itself is partly to blame for failing to nip the conspiratorial rhetoric in the bud.

Sean Hannity

The GOP "has appeased it, they've sucked up to it, they've been afraid of going up against it," Charlie Sykes, an influential conservative radio host in Wisconsin, told Business Insider recently. "I think that you have seen that played out this year. Has there been any willingness on the part of any mainstream conservative to call out this alt-right media? I'm not seeing it."

"There is no autopsy this year that does not include dealing with the right-wing media," Sykes added. "There is none."

Story continues

Like Sykes, Hannity and his peers have also argued that Republican politicians have no one to blame but themselves for the alt-right media's popularity  but only because they have not kept the policy promises on which they were elected.

"The 2014 election was largely about 'stopping Obama's illegal and unconstitutional executive Amnesty,'" Hannity tweeted. "R's said just give us the senate. And? If R's in DC refuse to keep THEIR promises, refuse to fight or take a stand on principle, then why should anybody support them?"

Hannity went on to say that it wasn't the conservative media that created the opening for Trump's rise, but DC Republicans  by "breaking promises, being weak, and lacking vision. Now THEY are sabotaging HIS EFFORT. Republican or Democrat means nothing, Americans have been mistreated. That's my focus, unless people like YOU silence me, Rush, Drudge, and Levin."

hannity

NOW WATCH: Watch the brutal Hillary Clinton ad that pits Trump against himself





More From Business Insider


Seattles Hugh Nightmare2450 Norfolk pops off at Red Bull Proving Grounds finals (Red Bull)

It might be pretty and have terrific seafood, but when it comes to fighting game talent, the Pacific Northwest is overlooked.

Historically, California and New York produced the lion share of the countrys best players, but with renewed interest in the FGC with Street Fighter V, Red Bull Proving Grounds gave other regions a chance to prove their worth.

Three Seattle representatives made the most of their opportunity. Jonathan JLMN Ng, Hugh Nightmare2450 Norfolk, and Kyle KyleP Palsson battled through the Red Bull Proving Ground monthlies to earn the right to compete at the Proving Grounds finals in Santa Monica last weekend. All three had different aspirations for Proving Grounds, but all came with a common goal: Dont go 0-2 in the finals.

KyleP placed ninth, while JLMN and Nightmare2450 made top 8, finishing in seventh and fourth places, respectively. None of them went 0-2, and they definitely showed Seattle could play some Street Fighter V.

It ushered us onto a national level. It put us on the map, JLMN told Yahoo Esports, who beat NorCal Vega main and long-time Street Fighter veteran Rommel ROM Macatangay 3-0.

Seattles new blood

Of the three players, JLMN has the least amount of experience in competition. Street Fighter V lowered the barrier of entry, however, and it gave him something to work for while he battled health issues.

The past two years have been hard. I had a lot of downtime from surgeries so I thought Id take Street Fighter V more seriously and played more locally, JLMN said.

The Proving Ground final was the first time the M. Bison main got to play in a situation where thousands of people were watching on the livestream. It made him nervous, but its a situation every player must overcome to make any progress in competition. He also learned a tough lesson about overconfidence.

JLMN had previously dominated Canadas sole representative, Van Nguyen, in casual sets, but that didnt carry over to when play mattered most. Nguyen eliminated JLMN after putting himself in a 0-2 hole. JLMN underestimated Nguyen and allowed him to come back from that deficit to lose the set, 3-2.

Story continues

JLMN can learn a lot from KyleP, the player with the most competitive experience and recent success in the Seattle area.

Kyle KyleP Palsson (background) watches Kevin Dieminion Landon and Julian Squall Jones play casuals (Red Bull)

Ask questions first, punch later

KyleP might be one of the nicest guys in the FGC. The trading card game and Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 convert has a self-deprecating attitude that can disarm even the toughest competitors and lull them into a false sense of security.

Then he hits you with something ridiculous and because it hits, he looks like a genius. But if it misses, he looks like a fool. Thats the KyleP mix-up. You never really know whats coming. Thats what has made him successful in trading card games and Marvel, and hopefully, in Street Fighter V with Laura.

Im impatient. Thats the card game in me, KyleP told Yahoo Esports. Im used to forcing my turn.

Despite his experiences in competitive gaming, KyleP doesnt go into a tournament believing he can win. He expected to go 0-2 at the Proving Grounds final. Mark GLB Villanueva, a Chicago Ryu player, bodied KyleP straightaway on finals day.

However, he did have a competitive match against one of his favorite players, Proving Ground grand finalist Kevin Dieminion Landon, and he beat out top Atlanta representative Andre Dregamesta Philadelphia to avoid going 0-2.

Its a small victory, but it gave KyleP hope the Seattle scene is motivated to show up and improve.

I hope Seattle has the desire to get better, KyleP said. To improve, people have to have the motivation to play. Learning how to improve is very hard. I learned to improve because it got beat into me in Marvel. I got bodied until I asked questions. Most people fear asking questions and then the perception is you arent motivated.

Kyle KyleP Palsson hamming it up with the commentators at Red Bull Proving Grounds finals (Red Bull)

Nightmare mode

Motivation is even more important as players enter the phase of Street Fighter V in which the top pros are starting to pull away from the rest of the competitive scene.

I moved to Seattle about 5 or 6 years ago and I didnt know Seattle even existed, Nightmare2450 told Yahoo Esports. Theres no publicity up here. Thats why the Red Bull Proving Grounds event was cool because you got to see players from these scenes come out of nowhere.

Nightmare2450 had the luxury (or misfortune, depending on how you look at it) of coming up in SoCal with the original Wednesday Night Fights when Street Fighter IV rekindled competition. Back then, they had a three-tier system for players based on skill level. Group A was the pros, while Groups B and C were the scrubs. Nightmare2450 was in Group B.

I got into Group A one time. I lost to everyone and went back down to Group B and never saw Group A again, Nightmare2450 said. It made me really want to play because every game meant something.

Seattle doesnt have a grouping system quite that sophisticated, but Proving Grounds was a great chance for Nightmare2450 to show the world what he could do against a legitimate Street Fighter veteran like Dieminion.

The two met in top 16 and had a tight set that went 3-2 in Nightmare2450s favor. The set also provided plenty of meme-worthy moments as Nightmare2450 pounded the buttons on his fight stick, clapped enthusiastically, and popped off big-time after the win.

Nightmare2450 lost the runback to Dieminion in an equally competitive 3-2 set but if there was ever a moral victory to take away from a loss, having a good showing at the Proving Grounds final was it.

I told our guys I dont care if we win or lose, Nightmare2450 said. We have to show Seattle can play. I want the scene to grow.

Battle in Seattle

All three players have Red Bull Battle Grounds, which takes place November 4-6, in their sights. While Proving Grounds allows amateurs or lesser known competitors play through a tournament series, the ultimate goal was to reach Battle Grounds, where they will attempt to play their way into one of two spots in the Capcom Pro Tour North American Regional Finals.

The Seattle players put in great work at Proving Grounds, but now the stakes are higher. They need to show up big against players coming in from other regions, including Proving Grounds winner Dieminion. It wont be easy, because theyre all playing for a potential shot at Capcom Cup.

My goal was to show Seattle isnt free, Nightmare2450 said. I want people to know Seattle exists. I want Seattle to be on the same level as a Wednesday Night Fights or Next Level Battle Circuit.

Michael Martin beat KyleP in a tournament once and is not surprised he got bopped by a Ryu player at Proving Grounds finals. Follow him on Twitter @Bizarro_Mike.
Donald Trump EWTN

Donald Trump has settled a hotly contested debate surrounding his campaign: whether he's saying "big league" or "bigly" at his rallies and speeches.

Political observers and journalists have been arguing over the issue for months, and the Republican presidential nominee finally delivered some clarity in an interview with EWTN, a Catholic broadcasting network.

"In appearance after appearance, there is one bit of Trump syntax that has created debate in households across America," interviewer Raymond Arroyo said. "My final question, it is perhaps the most portentous ... are you saying 'bigly' or 'big league'?"

"Are you talking about for me?" Trump said. "I use 'big league.'"

Trump's answer jives with what linguists told The New York Times earlier this week  that "acoustic cues" indicated a second "g" sound when Trump used the phrase.





More From Business Insider


Shailene Woodley and Mark Ruffalo continued to speak out in support of the Standing Rock Sioux tribes opposition to the Dakota Access oil pipeline today as protests against the controversial project intensified.

North Dakota authorities dressed in riot gear began removing roadblocks set up by protesters to outline a camp that they claim is located on tribal land on Thursday, according to CNN.

Woodley, who was arrested and charged with criminal trespassing and engaging in a riot last week, called out to other celebrities this morning asking for support as protests escalate. Tagging Willow and Jaden Smith, Leonardo DiCaprio, Nikki Reed and Ruffalo, Woodley wrote, the fight of our lives happening now, along with a link to the Facebook page of a native protestor. Throughout the day, Woodley continued to update her Twitter with news from other protestors and journalists documenting the police efforts. Meanwhile, Ruffalo went on CNN this afternoon to explain why hes involved with protests. Ultimately, a lot of the work I do has to do with protecting water and thats what these people are doing there. And so I was invited by some of the folks I know there to deliver a solar system to power the camp for the winter time. He also described the conditions on the ground, saying that while he did not personally witness any police abuse, he has seen signs of the violence. I didnt witness and violence while I was there but I witnessed and heard the stories from the young people who had witnessed and felt the violence, he said. I met a girl who had her arm broken a few days ago. Many of the protestors had encounters with the police where they were thrown in jail cells naked strip searched, he added. Ruffalo also described speaking with police operating a roadblock yesterday: We went to one of the road blocks just to say hello and got a sense of the feeling there, and the feeling that the police were sort of emanating and it was definitely  there were two police officers with AR-15s, their fingers right next to the trigger with their dark sunglasses on, very, very aggressive. As for the protestors, Ruffalo said he was impressed by their maturity, despite their relative youth. I spent the day in the camp, the forward camp, where people were in engaged in prayer. Every single person you see there was trained in peaceful resistance, which means that no one is allowed out in that area unless theyve had some sort of peaceful resistance training. He added, The mantra of the place is its not the police, its the pipeline that were protesting or protecting ourselves against. And they spend basically the entire day doing prayers, chanting. I have never been around so peaceful a stand. Its led by young people, you can see these photos, the people who began this movement were young people from 10 years old to 17, 18 years old. And the tribal leaders are still taking their lead from them. Ruffalo, along with Susan Sarandon and Matt McGorry, were among hundreds who gathered in Los Angeles Sunday to show support for activists in North Dakota demonstrating against the oil pipeline. Not only is it an environmental, but its a problem in terms of social justice, Sarandon told the demonstrators, according to Reuters. We can do it. We can stop fracking. We can stop the pipeline. But really its only because of great numbers of people.


28 Oct - Shaina Magdayao has finally addressed the hot issue that is her viral dancing video with actor Piolo Pascual, which was taken at the 10th Star Magic Ball last weekend, according to ABS-CBN News.



Previously, the two stars set tongues wagging when Pascual shared a video of him and Magdayao enjoying a sexy dance to Justin Bieber's "Love Yourself" on his Instagram, only to delete the video soon after.



To recap, Pascual and Magdayao were previously linked to each other romantically back in 2012 after it was rumoured that they were acting chummy with one other during the concert tour of "ASAP" in Singapore.



When asked about the video, which sparked the romance rumours yet again, Magdayao stated that she sees nothing wrong with it at all.



"Everybody had fun, and I think the reason why we had the Ball was so we could all have fun. Since we had been busy, it's so nice to see our bosses and co-stars. It's so nice to see everyone once a year," she said.



Magdayao also stressed that she didn't just dance with Pascual that night, and enjoyed being in the company of so many colleagues and friends.



(Photo source: news.abs-cbn.com)
Welcome to Remote Controlled, Varietys new podcast series featuring the best and brightest in television, both in front and behind the camera.

This weeks episode features Variety executive editor of TV Debra Birnbaum in conversation with Emmy Rossum, star of Shameless on Showtime. Rossum reveals what is was like to direct her first episode, the biggest challenge she faced behind the camera  and the advice she got from her fiance, Mr. Robot executive producer Sam Esmail.

Rossum admits that she had harbored the ambition to direct an episode for while, and had mentioned it off the cuff to showrunner John Wells.

Emmy Rossum photographed exclusively for Varietys Remote Controlled Podcast

Dan Doperalski for Variety

He said in his friendly way, So what makes you think you can do that? And I said I have no idea but I think I can. Ive been watching everyone doing it for so long and I took this hiatus off and I took cinematography at NYU, so I felt much more ready this year than ever before, Rossum says.

The actress was assigned an episode which turned out to be the most expensive to shoot because of location and weather-related issues. I thought they would toss me a bone and go easy on me, but they threw me into the deep end without any waders and were kinda like, Swim, child,' Rossum reveals.

Listen to the full episode with Rossum below:

Rossums episode, which aired last Sunday, brought the series first transgender character into play.

Rossum says at first she was worried she wouldnt be able to find the right actor for the part of Trevor, Ians new love interest, because of the small pool of transgender candidates to choose from, but soon realized she had plenty of excellent choices for the part.

Emmy Rossum and Variety editor/podcast host Debra Birnbaum photographed exclusively for Varietys Remote Controlled Podcast

Dan Doperalski for Variety

We got so many incredible tapes that all of the anxiety dissipated, and we thought, are there more roles we can write for all these incredible people? she says. Elliot Fletcher was an immediate yes. He was charming and had a naturalism that fit the show perfectly and had a raw edge, a vulnerability and a fire inside him that suits the rough Chicago community.

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In terms of directing herself, Rossum says she found it easier because she was the one who chose when to roll the camera, allowing her to reach the right emotional place on cue.

Directing other people in a scene which I was in was harder because youre simultaneously making notes in your head about where you want the camera, what youre gonna tweak about their performance, when you also have to stay in the moment so theres a little bit of brain-splitting that happens, Rossum adds.

Rossum also discusses her characters sexuality  Fionas single this season for the first time  as well as her hopes for an eighth season, given that the casts contracts all expire at the end of this season.

New episodes of Remote Controlled are available every Friday.

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'Remote Controlled': Showrunner Julie Plec on Ending 'Vampire Diaries,' the Future of 'The Originals'

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For several years, Shane Carwin was one of the hardest-hitting heavyweights in the UFC. It looked like he was set to be a regular fixture in the leagues upper echelons, but back and neck problems kept forcing him to pull out of fights and he ended up retiring in 2011. But when Brock Lesnars return to fighting at UFC 200 was announced, Carwin popped back up and said he was feeling healthy enough to compete. And now hes gone ahead and signed with Japanese promotion RIZIN and will fight in their heavyweight grand prix on December 29th.

Heres Shanes post on Reddits MMA sub explaining why he decided to pick RIZIN, which is run by the same guy who used to run PRIDE over the UFC or Bellator:

I signed on the line which was dotted. I have been a long time friend of Pride. I used to watch late night Pride Fights with the US commentators like Bas and wish I was part of it. The only thing making me happy was the plate of Totinos next to me. I had better offers from a money stand point. Bellator made the best offer. It just wasnt entirely clear that they wanted me as much as I wanted them to want me. I made an agreement to fight Fedor but he did not agree. I have been told by several matchmakers that that fight is a unicorn and they do not see Fedor taking it. Maybe I can just go help him train for the next one. Still a fan! He is still GOAT HWT to me.

Its still unclear who Carwin will fight in December. According to him, They gave me a list asked me to pick one. I have no clue who they are so I handed it back and said you choose what the fans want to see. The RIZIN staff seemed to take that seriously, putting this out on Twitter:

Who do you want Shane Carwin to fight in 2nd round? Use hashtag #rizin2016 and make your dream fight happen! #rizinff pic.twitter.com/daKy1ET45E  RIZIN FF STAFF (@rizin_STAFF) October 27, 2016

Other men in the tournament include Valentin Moldavsky, Amir Aliakbari, Jiri Prochazka, Szymon Bajor, and former sumo wrestler Baruto. Mirko Crocop and Wanderlei Silva are also slated to fight each other in this round, which means Carwin could eventually fight one of them in the future.

Whatever happens, its great to see Carwin back and healthy. His first twelve fights all ended in first round knockouts, often in under a minute. It will be exciting to see if he still has that knack for separating people from their consciousness.
BALA CYNWYD, PA / ACCESSWIRE / October 28, 2016 / Law office of Brodsky & Smith, LLC announces that it is investigating potential claims against the Board of Directors of Pilgrim's Pride Corporation ("Pilgrim's Pride or "the Company") (PPC) for possible breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of state law.

Click here to learn more about the investigation http://brodsky-smith.com/1125-ppc-pilgrims-pride-corporation.html, or call: 877-534-2590. There is no cost or obligation to you.

The investigation concerns whether the Board of Pilgrim's Pride breached their fiduciary duties to shareholders, which has resulted in a depressed stock price. For example, a price collusion class action has been filed in the broiler-chicken market that named Tyson and Pilgrim's Pride as defendants. According to the complaint, beginning in 2008, Tyson, Pilgrim's Pride and other companies in the industry colluded by sharing proprietary data and reducing production to support prices. Consequently, the investigation seeks to determine if the Board's actions has damaged Pilgrim's Pride.

If you own shares of Pilgrim's Pride stock and wish to discuss the legal ramifications of the investigation, or have any questions, you may e-mail or call the law office of Brodsky & Smith, LLC who will, without obligation or cost to you, attempt to answer your questions. You may contact Jason L. Brodsky, Esquire or Evan J. Smith, Esquire at Brodsky & Smith, LLC, Two Bala Plaza, Suite 510, Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004, by visiting http://brodsky-smith.com/1125-ppc-pilgrims-pride-corporation.html, or calling toll free 877-LEGAL-90.

Brodsky & Smith, LLC is a litigation law firm with extensive expertise representing shareholders throughout the nation in securities and class action lawsuits. The attorneys at Brodsky & Smith have been appointed by numerous courts throughout the country to serve as lead counsel in class actions and have successfully recovered millions of dollars for our clients and shareholders. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

SOURCE: Brodsky & Smith, LLC
KARBALA, IraqThe inner sanctum of the Imam Hussein Shrine shines day and night, illuminated by jeweled chandeliers. Their light is reflected in the mirrored domes of the roof, and gleams across the gold-framed marble walls. At the center of the shrine, a stream of pilgrims presses against the gilded grating that surrounds the sarcophagus of Hussein, grandson of the prophet Muhammad. In 680 AD, Imam Hussein was killed in the Battle of Karbala fighting the forces of the Umayyad caliph, his death cementing Sunni political dominance across the Islamic world. The battle was the point of no return in the schism between Sunni and Shia Islam, becoming the basis for the Shiites distinct rituals and identity, at the center of which is Husseins sacrifice.

Arbaeen, the pilgrimage to commemorate Imam Husseins death, sees devotees walk to Karbala from the Iraqi cities of Najaf and Basra, and even from Iran. It has more than doubled in size since 2008, growing to over 20 million people in 2015. Imam Hussein fought against tyranny with his life, Sheikh Maitham al-Zaidi, commander of the Abbas Division, a unit of Iraqs Popular Mobilization Forces, explained to me on a visit to Iraq this fall. As a symbol he inspires our men and they wish to give their souls to protect Iraq. Owing to the ever-present threat of car bombs, only vehicles from the shrines or the police can enter the holy district in Karbala; so I traveled with officials from the shrine authorities.

With the growth of Arbaeen come donations and business opportunities that give the ayatollahs revenue to rival that of the provincial government. Half an hours drive from the Hussein Shrine, one of the three major Shia shrines in southern Iraq, is a camp housing around 7,500 internally displaced people (IDPs), who abandoned their homes ahead of ISISs devastating march through northwestern Iraq two years ago. For a time, the shrines and the government shared the cost of supporting the provinces 200,000 IDPs, as Nisayf Jasim al-Khattaby, the president of Karbalas provincial council, explained. But the burden has shifted dramatically. Whereas in 2015 the government provided IDPs across the province with medical care, housing, and water sanitation, this year we were dependent on the donations of wealthy families and businessmen to support the IDPs because of the fall in the oil price and the costs of fighting ISIS, al-Khattaby said. Their support [now] comes under the management of the shrines.

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To cover the shortfall in the governments budget, the shrines drew on gifts from around the world, donations from the ever-rising number of pilgrims, and a vast investment portfolio. We have houses, with fans and air conditioning in the summer, and heaters in the winter. We have food, said Shihab Jassam Mohammed, who fled Fallujah in January 2014 with 11 members of his family. All is supplied by the shrines.

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Today, Iraqi Shiites dominate the countrys political, social, and economic spheresan indirect result of the U.S. invasion in 2003, which unseated the Sunni dictatorship of Saddam Hussein. Under Saddam, Shia clerics were suppressed, driven into exile, or imprisoned; in 1991, Saddams soldiers stormed and looted the Imam Hussein Shrine. As Shiites fortunes have risen, so, too, has the prominence of the three shrines.

Now, Shia clerics control the richest institutions in Iraq. Beyond supporting the regions IDPs and running a vast network of charitable organizations, including schools, hospitals, and orphanages, the shrines have poured money into building infrastructure and investing in businesses. Shrine officials told me their printing presses produce the Iraqi Ministry of Educations textbooks. A construction company, owned by the shrines, not only works on charitable projects, but paves roads and competes for contracts to build airports. In a concrete sense, the shrines have begun to assume the functions of the state.

Perhaps the clearest manifestation of the shrines ascendancy has been the formation of the Popular Mobilization Forces, a parallel army composed largely of Shia volunteers brought into the Iraqi military under a 2014 fatwa issued by 86-year-old Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the senior-most cleric in Shia Islam. Although Sistani does not directly control all of the approximately 40 units that constitute the PMF, each of the three shrines sponsors and manages its own unit. The Abbas Division, currently battling the Islamic State, is one such unit. Its commanders told me that it boasts over 5,000 infantrymen trained by Iraqs special forces, and is supported by engineers, a logistical corps, armored units with over 80 tanks, and a reserve of approximately 44,000 trained personnel.

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How the shrines invest their money, and who they are perceived to support, has political consequences. That, in turn, is transforming how the ayatollahs understand their own role in Iraqi society. Under the leadership of Sistani and his predecessor, Grand Ayatollah al-Khoei, Iraqs Shia clerics have, for decades, regarded themselves as moral counselors, offering guidance in private to those that seek it, while evading the direct glare of the political spotlight. But there is a growing popular call for them to take a stand against a faltering government perceived to be ineffective and endemically corrupt. There is an increasing demand for the Grand Ayatollah to intervene, said Abdul Rahman, an editor at the Shrines magazine Hussein Revivalism, but they dont understand the role of the Grand Ayatollah, which is guidance.

Corruption is undoubtedly one of Iraqs foremost challenges. Iraq was ranked 161 out of 168 countries in Transparency Internationals 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index. From the pervasive culture of bribery, to nepotism in government contracts, to fake companies that allowed tax officials to siphon off over $250 million dollars in tax rebates, Iraqs government is riddled with graft. Even the Iraqi security forces collapse to ISIS can, in part, be traced back to a series of scams in which commanders kept soldiers on the books that had been dismissed, and pocketed their salaries. Troops that existed on paper were nowhere to be found on the battlefield. Moreover, the prevailing belief that politicians continue to channel government contracts to their friendsa process that disproportionately benefits Shiitesboth stoked resentment among Iraqs Sunni minority before 2014, and will present a barrier to a political settlement after the expected liberation of the ISIS stronghold of Mosul.

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The governments response does little to instill confidence. Parliament is subjected to problems as at the beginning for any other democracy, said Ibrahim al-Jafaari, Iraqs foreign minister, hardly doing justice to the seriousness of the problem. Al-Khattaby agreed that corruption remains a sizeable challenge for the Iraqi government, but feared that the way that it is portrayed will hamper efforts to stamp it out. The media is covering for corrupt people and suggesting that society has been corrupted. This will create no trust in the government, he said.

It is easy to see, then, why the shrines command such respect. Beyond their moral authority, they have proven to be effective. Mr. Hassan, who runs a mobile-phone shop in the bazaar near the Hussein Shrine, said that we do not talk to the government. Government corruption raises prices throughout the economy. We talk to the shrines about our problems, and they listen.

But Grand Ayatollah Sistani and his closest ally, Grand Ayatollah Sayid Mohammed Saeed al-Hakeem, say through spokesmen that they do not want to supplant the state. Instead, they want only to offer politicians private counsel on morality, as Sayid Riyadh al-Hakeem, Grand Ayatollah al-Hakeems son and spokesman, explained. We suggest to military commanders that they prioritize their responsibility to protect civilians, but it is not for us to decide what weapons or tactics must be used on the battlefield, al-Hakeem said. Whatever decision is taken, it should be taken with the aim of protecting civilians.

The issue of corruption, however, represents a unique challenge to this approach: In the eyes of many Iraqis, it is essentially a question of moral conduct, and not party politics. For this reason, many Iraqis like Dr. Zaid, a radiologist in Najaf, expect the shrines to take a stand. Why, if Sistani can see the corruption, does he not speak out and say not to vote for bad people? Dr. Zaid demanded to know. One word from Sistani would change everything on the ground.

Former Prime Minister Nouri al-Malikis fall from power in 2014 clearly demonstrated the influence of the clerical authorities. When it became apparent that he did not have Sistanis confidence, he was forced to step down. But if the Shia clerics saw it as their role to publicly denounce ministers or laws they deemed inconsistent with sharia, it would present a serious challenge to Iraqi democracy. Such a move would make a political settlement with Iraqs Sunni communities nearly impossible, for instance. And it could further antagonize Saudi Arabia, which views the encroachment of Shia power as an existential threat. The kingdom has already proven its willingness to push back against Shia revivalism in Yemen, where it is waging a war against Houthi rebels.

While Sistani has not gone as far in addressing corruption as Zaid would like, he has not been entirely silent. Once the laws are not respected, corruption is spread on earth, and those who have violated the laws are cursed, Sistanis representative Sayid Ahmed al-Safi declared from the pulpit of the Imam Hussein Shrine on September 30, in a sermon written by the Grand Ayatollah that emphasized respect for the law among elected officials. If there are no controls life will turn to anarchy.  If humans do not respect their laws they are worse than animals, al-Safi said.

Not all of the clerical authorities share Sistani and al-Hakeems stated view that the ayatollahs should steer clear of politics. Grand Ayatollah Bashir al-Najafi advocates wilayat al-faqih, or The Guardianship of the Jurist, by which the cleric becomes the supreme legal authority. Irans clerics practice the most extreme form of wilayat al-faqih. There, the supreme religious authority, Ayatollah Khamenei, is also the head of state, with executive power. None of the Grand Ayatollahs in Najaf advocate such a system. But where Sistani, like his predecessor, sees the clerics pronouncements on legal matters as advisory, two of his potential successors believe the clerics should speak with legal authority. Grand Ayatollah al-Najafi believes in this principle. Grand Ayatollah al-Fayadh is also sympathetic to the idea, said Sheikh Ali al-Najafi, the son of, and spokesman for, Grand Ayatollah al-Najafi.

Shia follow an Ayatollah who can update our interpretation of the law and respond to modern challenges.

We believe that Allah put sharia law in place to deal with society, and it is eternal.  The states law supplements Sharia law, al-Najafi explained. Sometimes sharia law and the law of the state conflict. Our duty is to make clear that this [state law] does not align with sharia.

Which direction the clerics turn will be decided by Sistanis successor, who will be chosen by the Shia community from among the other three Grand Ayatollahs in Najaf. The selection process is opaque and slow, but is aimed at establishing a consensus as to which Grand Ayatollah has the largest following and the recognition of his peers. Of Sistanis potential successors, al-Hakeem is currently believed to have the greatest support. Shia follow a living Ayatollah who can update our interpretation of the law and respond to modern challenges, Sayid Saleh al-Hakeem, another son of Grand Ayatollah al-Hakeem, said.

With the defeat of ISIS on the horizon, it may be that Iraqs future will be determined in theological debates in Najaf. Ironically, the institutions that have done the most to prop up the Iraqi state may, in an attempt to restore the moral integrity of the government, be its undoing.

Read more from The Atlantic:

This article was originally published on The Atlantic.
By Andrei Makhovsky MINSK (Reuters) - A Belarussian blogger known for his criticism of Russian foreign policy will be released next month after spending 10 months in prison on charges of inciting ethnic hatred and disseminating pornography, a rights group said. Edward Palchis was arrested in January in Russia and extradited to Belarus. His trial began on Oct 14. Human rights campaigners said Palchis, who is known under the pseudonym "John Silver", was targeted for criticizing Russian foreign policy, its annexation of Ukraine's Crimea peninsula and role in the east Ukrainian separatist conflict. The Minsk City Court sentenced him to one year and nine months of a "restriction of freedom" on Friday but taking into account the time he had already served in jail, said he would be released next month, the rights group Spring 96 told Reuters. "He will serve the remaining month of his sentence under house arrest," Spring 96's representative Valentin Stefanovic told Reuters. "We welcome the fact that the authorities have shown restraint." Seeking to improve ties with the West, authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko last year pardoned several political prisoners, prompting the European Union to lift five years of sanctions against the country once called 'Europe's last dictatorship' by the United States. Belarus, which is seeking up to $3.4 billion in loans from the International Monetary Fund and EU investment, has also tried to stick to neutral ground over the Ukraine crisis. It has not recognized the annexation of Crimea and regularly hosts peace talks. The charges against Palchis relate to an online article he wrote in April 2015 in which he reposted xenophobic, lewd and violent memes about Belarus from a Russian social media website to illustrate his argument against Russian internet policy. (Editing by Matthias Williams and Angus MacSwan)
ZURICH (Reuters) - Sika's (SIK.S) management won the latest round in its bitter takeover battle with Saint-Gobain (SGOB.PA) on Friday with a Swiss court ruling that the founding family's full voting rights could be restricted.

However, the Buckard family's holding company immediately said it would appeal against the ruling.

France's Saint-Gobain has offered 2.75 billion Swiss francs to buy the 16 percent stake held by the Burkards, which would give it control of the Swiss speciality chemicals company because it comes with nearly 53 percent of the voting rights.

The Swiss company's board responded to the offer by reducing the family's voting power to 5 percent, blocking the takeover, a move contested by the Burkards.

But a court in Zug ruled on Friday that the restriction was rightfully applied, denying the family's request to overturn the vote.

The case has been closely observed by investors, who see it as a test case for the rights of minority stakeholders. The takeover has also been opposed by Columbia Threadneedle Investments, Fidelity International and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust, who welcomed the court's decision on Friday.

Chief Executive Jan Jenisch and Chairman Paul Haelg said they hoped that the decision would put an end to the dispute between the company and the founding family.

"We wish to reach out to all of them and offer an open and constructive dialogue with the aim to find an amicable solution which achieves both their objective to sell while at the same time keeping Sika independent," Haelg said at a media conference in the company's Zurich office.

But the family's company, Schenker-Winkler Holding (SWH), said it would appeal against the decision at the canton's high court.

"SWH continues to be of the mind that the board's selective reduction of SWH's voting rights was unlawful," SWH said in a statement following the decision.

Saint-Gobain also said its board of directors remained committed to pursuing a deal.

Story continues

"Saint-Gobain is confident that the Swiss justice will, on appeal, restore the ownership rights of SWH, the Burkard family's holding company," the French company said.

The existing purchase agreement between the Burkard family and Saint-Gobain is valid through June 2017, while the French firm has the possibility of extending the deal through to the end of 2018.

(Reporting by Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi, Oliver Hirt and John Revill; Editing by Greg Mahlich)
A Singapore street-food chef who was awarded a Michelin star this year announced Friday a partnership with a multinational culinary company to offer customers across Asia a taste of his prize-winning braised chicken dish.

Chan Hon Meng announced in a joint press conference with Singapore-based Hersing Culinary, which holds the Asia franchise for the popular Tim Ho Wan chain, that the partners will collaborate on a new Singaporean restaurant before expanding across the region.

"I'm very happy to find the right partner," Chan told reporters. "It's important that they are very enthusiastic about the food and beverage industry and they put their customers first."

Their first venture will be a restaurant called Hawker Chan, which will offer the signature chicken dishes Chan currently serves at his stall in Singapore's Chinatown.

Malaysian-born Chan is one of two "hawkers" -- so-called because many started out as street peddlers -- awarded one star by the culinary bible when it launched its inaugural Singapore guide in July.

The 80-seater Hawker Chan, just three minutes' walk from the current stall, will feature air-conditioning and sit-down dining at higher prices.

Chan will get a 50 percent stake in the restaurant, whose set-up costs are estimated at Sg$1 million ($720,000).

Chan's stall, which serves up his award-winning dish for just Sg$2.50 ($1.80), has been called the cheapest Michelin-starred food establishment in the world.

His wife and other family members will continue to run his stall while he will oversee operations at both outlets.

Hersing chairman Harry Chua declined to give a timeline for international expansion, with financial terms for future outlets to be negotiated between the two parties.

Hersing holds the Asia Pacific franchise rights to Tim Ho Wan, a Hong Kong dim sum chain that has also been awarded one Michelin star.

It has 38 Tim Ho Wan restaurants in nine countries, including Australia, Taiwan and the Philippines.

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Chan in previous interviews indicated his desire to "be like Tim Ho Wan".

The diminutive cook saw his fortunes change after he was awarded a Michelin star, with diners lining up for hours just to order a plate of chicken and rice.

"I'm very happy that I can bring something small that belongs to Singapore to go across the world," he said Friday.

"If you work hard, you can be recognised and your day will come."
Healthy bidding for three Swiss Club estate has seen Q4 beat the rest of the year.

Auction sales have seen an uptick in numbers over the quarters, with total sales value of $45.0 million concluded by 3Q16, and SGD 44.0 million hammered thus far in 4Q16.

According to JLL, total auction sales in 4Q16 was given a boost by the sale of three vacant plots of land within the prime Swiss Club estate for $15.2 million, as well as a landed property at 4 Jalan Bahasa for $12.3 million.

JLL noted that three vacant lands within Swiss Club estate attracted a total of 14 bids. The three plots of land are flanked by Swiss Club Link, Jalan Kampung Chantek and Bukit Tinggi Road, off prime Dunearn Road / Bukit Timah Road and are surrounded by prestigious institutions such as Swiss Club, The British Club, Hollandse School, Singapore Korean International School and German European School.

JLL Singapore Head of Auctions Mok Sze Sze said this is a good start for the last quarter of the year, as October sales value making up almost half the total sales value of $88.9 million year to date.

"We see renewed interest in the auction market, especially for landed units in favourable locations with redevelopment potential, Mok stressed.

More so, the firm also also closed the estate sale of 21 Daffodil Drive, located off Upper Thomson Road, which was sold at $4.35 million after nine bids were received.

"The subject property is currently a single storey detached unit which is ideal for redevelopment, given its corner and square land plot, and its proximity to Thomson Plaza, MacRitchie Reservoir and Nature Reserve, Singapore Island Country Club, and upcoming Upper Thomson MRT station," the firm stated.





Meanwhile, 4 Jalan Bahasa, located off Dunearn Road, and near the Swiss Club plots, was the third successful landed property sold by JLL at $12.3 million. Also a corner and square land plot, the subject property is currently a 2-storey detached unit suitable for redevelopment, given its prime District 11 and CCR (core central region) locality. This unit attracted 18 bids after it opened at SGD 11.5 million.



"These three successful sales indicate that there are keen buyers in the market looking for landed units within good locations that are suitable for redevelopment. One such potential property is a two-storey beach-front bungalow along Pasir Ris Road, located directly opposite Pasir Ris Beach, on a land of approx. 10,991 sq ft, with opening price of $8.45 million. While not successfully auctioned off, it has garnered keen interest post auction," JLL explained.



JLL also auctioned off a 4-bedroom duplex penthouse unit at Seascape at Sentosa Cove for SGD 6.35 million or SGD 1,497 per square feet. The previous owner purchased the unit from the developer at SGD 11.0 million or SGD 2,594 per square feet in December 2011, translating in a loss of SGD 4.65 million or 42.3 per cent.







More From Singapore Business Review


Cairo (AFP) - Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has said the government will look into revising an anti-protest law and take recommendations on releasing jailed youths.

Sisi's comments came at the end of a two-day "youth conference" on Thursday, an effort to reach out to young Egyptians as the country braces for austerity reforms to salvage its battered economy.

Reading a series of conclusions at the end of the conference, Sisi said the government would look into revising the law passed in 2013, months after the former army chief overthrew his Islamist predecessor Mohamed Morsi.

The law, which bans all but police-sanctioned protests, has been used to jail activists for up to two years.

"The government will undertake, in coordination with the relevant agencies, to study suggestions and proposals to amend the protest law," Sisi said, before he was interrupted by applause from the audience.

Sisi laughed and said "you really love protesting," adding that the revisions would be presented to parliament.

The committee of youths, he said, would be formed "under presidential supervision to exhaustively examine the youths detained."

It will present its recommendations in 15 days, he said to a standing ovation.

The United Nations and rights groups had asked the Egyptian government to reconsider the protest law.

A crackdown on Islamist supporters of Morsi after his ouster saw hundreds of demonstrators killed and thousands jailed, including secular dissidents.

Jihadist attacks have since killed hundreds of soldiers and policemen.
The small British town of Kettering is at the center of an international dispute over Lindsay Lohans apparently forgotten pledge to turn the Christmas lights on this year.

The Mean Girls actress agreed to the task in June, after criticizing the towns vote to leave the E.U. Sorry Kettering but where are you? the anti-Brexit star wrote in a June 23 tweet, since deleted, singling out the Brexit-voting Northamptonshire town 81 miles north of London.

Infuriated at Lohans intervention, Conservative Members of Parliament Philip Hollobone and Chris Grayling debated the matter in Parliament a week later on June 30. Everyone knows where Kettering is, local lawmaker Hollobone said. Its famous as the home of Weetabix breakfast cereal, Cheaneys and Loakes shoes. He then invited the star to atone for her tweet by switching the towns Christmas lights on, which Lohan accepted:

@MPChrisGrayling and #philiphollobone Direct message me about your offer. Would be happy to light the Christmas tree in #Kettering   Lindsay Lohan (@lindsaylohan) June 30, 2016

With the Nov. 24 ceremony fast approaching, the star has since gone silent on her June offer. Despite everyones best efforts its not been possible to track her down to arrange the details of when, where, and how Hollobone told Buzzfeed.

But local lawmakers tell TIME that Kettering residents are indifferent to whether Lohan attends the lighting ceremony. I dont think they give a sht to be honest, says Maggie Don, a local Labour Party councillor. They dont know who she is.

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Philip raised it in parliament for PR coverage, Rhea Keehn, the Labour Partys former parliamentary candidate for Kettering, tells TIME. He doesnt do a lot. The one bit of news he gets is leaving the E.U. or trying to get Lindsay Lohan to turn on the lights.

Keehn, who lost to Hollobone in 2015s general election, plans on contacting Lohans publicist herself because she thinks the pro-Remain Lohan might be avoiding the Conservative, pro-Leave lawmaker. We could do something positive with her she says. We could do a session about women in public life, there would be a demand from people wanting to hear her experiences.

The 31-year-old explains that while it would be phenomenal for a star with such a fantastic career to come to the small town of 90,000, the annual fete in the town center is usually presided by local, C-list celebrities: a local soap opera actor, for example, or reality show star. If Lindsays publicist had any sense, he would tell her to stay away.
Zero Mass install

Our atmosphere contains approximately 3,100 cubic miles of water  enough to cover the entire planet in one inch of water.

That water surrounds us in the form of vapor  waters gaseous, evaporated state. Were usually only reminded of this on especially humid days, but our air can actually be considered a water source.

Zero Mass Water, a sustainable water startup, is trying to create an easy, off-grid way for anyone to harvest that liquid with its first product, Source.

Each Source unit looks like a solar panel resting on top of a metal box. Company CEO Cody Friesen, a material scientist and engineering professor at Arizona State University, says the device essentially uses sunlight to produce electricity and heat, and which allows a set of proprietary materials to passively catch the humidity in the air.

Friesen wont say how those materials are engineered or what they're made of, but explains that theyre designed to have an ideal binding energy for water vapor.

Zero Mass Source at Sunset

He compares the process to the grains of rice youll sometimes find inside salt shakers in humid locations. That rice, he says, is placed there because it binds more strongly to water than the salt does, so the moisture will stick to the rice, and wont make the salt wet and clumpy.

You want to make sure that these materials that are going to passively absorb water from the air hold onto that water strongly enough that theyll do so under dry conditions, but not so strongly that under any condition it takes a lot of energy to get that water back off, he says.

Friesen says that on average, one Source device can harvest 5 liters of water per day. Because of the device depends on solar power, he says, that number doesnt vary too drastically between dry and wet climates  solar radiation is stronger in dry places where there are fewer water molecules in the air to absorb it, and water vapor is more prevalent in wet places where solar radiation is less intense.

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Once the water vapor is harvested and turned into liquid, the device adds minerals to bring the waters pH levels up, which makes it taste more like the water sold in bottles. It then gets stored in a metal compartment underneath the solar panel that can hold 30 liters. The reservoir gets connected to a pipe, and sends the water from the device to a faucet.

"When you're making solar energy, you have to use it or lose it unless you have a battery," Friesen says. "In our case, we're storing solar energy in a glass."

Zero Mass Water boasts that one Source is able to produce enough clean drinking water each day to satisfy a family of four; however if all four members followed the 8-glasses-per-day rule, that family would wind up about 3 liters short. The panels can be connected, however, to combine their outputs. When that happens, Zero Mass Water programs one to act as the hub, and when that hub uses up the water in its reservoir, it can communicate with the other panels, which act as spokes and sent their water over.

The Source isnt available for retail sale yet  Friesen says he expects sales to start in early 2017  so the company hasn't released a cost estimate for individual units. But Zero Mass Water suggests one device will pay itself off in bottled water savings over two to four years. In other words, each one would be equal to what you'd pay for somewhere between 964 and 1,928 gallons of bottled water at a store like Costco or Walmart. (By our math that would price it somewhere between $1,000 and $4,000 dollars.)

Several countries and organizations have already started putting the devices to use. In August 2015, Jordans King Abdullah II installed Zero Mass Water panels in locations throughout the country. Duke Energy has installed panels in schools, homes, and a clinic in Ecuador, and the Zero Mass Water earned a USAID grant to deploy panels to refugee camps in Jordan and Lebanon.

Zero Mass Source Ecuador

Zero Mass Waters products seem especially promising for emergency situations, since they are 100% sustainable and dont require and electrical inputs. Though other companies are also devising ways to extract water vapor from the air  Israeli company Water Gen has a similar technology  many require electricity to run.

Zero Mass Water estimates that because they don't need to be hooked up to a home's electrical system or to a power grid, the panels only take about 20 minutes to install. That allows the product to easily brought to places where populations dont have access to clean drinking water, like rural communities in the developing world or make-shift refugee camps. Source units could also be deployed to help Californians weather the states drought, or to provide residents of places with polluted water, like Flint, Michigan, with an alternative source.

One of the fundamental tenants [of the business] is that drinking water is a human right and everybody should have access to it and control over it and security over it the same way we have those things around air, Friesen says. It shouldnt be something that you have to secure through a government source, through infrastructure, or by purchasing water at the store.

The Source, of course, is not designed to provide enough water for an entire familys total daily usage (the average American uses about 100 gallons per day). Rather, it ensures that a moderate supply drinking water is always clean and available  something that's currently not the case for 10% of the worlds population.

We are taking an inexhaustible source of water  vapor  and were making it free to make it liquid, Friesen says, adding, From a technology perspective, of course, we are moving as fast as we can, because this is no joke.

NOW WATCH: Animated map shows where your bottled water actually comes from





More From Business Insider


Five Filipino fishermen released after being held hostage by Somali pirates for nearly five years broke down as they were reunited with their families Friday, recounting beatings and abuse.

The seafarers, among 26 hostages freed from the crew of Naham 3 seized south of the Seychelles in March 2012, alternated between tears and laughter as they embraced their loved ones on arrival back in Manila.

"I am so happy. This is what I had been praying for every night: to be with my family this Christmas," Arnel Balbero, 33, told AFP surrounded by his four siblings at the airport.

"Just to be with my family, even if we have nothing, even if we have only little to eat, I am already happy."

His sister, Lilia, trembled at the sight of her brother. "It's like a miracle. We never lost hope he would be freed," she said.

The Naham 3's crew, which also included seafarers from China, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia and Taiwan, endured the second longest hostage-taking ever by Somali pirates.

The Filipinos, most of them from poor farming families, arrived back on a flight from Kenya along with four Cambodian seafarers.

The captain of their Omani-flagged vessel died during the hijacking and two other crew members succumbed to illess in captivity.

Balbero's cousin and fellow ex-hostage, Elmer, said the Somali pirates had cared little about the health of their captives.

"We asked the pirates for medicine but they did not give us any. Instead they said, 'Where is your money?'"

The captives also said they suffered beatings at the hands of the pirates.

"In our first week, they called it our introduction. They used bamboo to beat us", said Arnel Balbero.

To survive, the Filipinos did chores for their captors, washing their clothes and even their weapons.

"We took it as a chance to also wash. We couldn't take a bath often because they only gave us a litre of water each day," Elmer Balbero, 37, said.

Hugging his two teenage daughters, Elmer said it was thoughts of seeing his family again that kept him going throughout the ordeal.

"I did not even recognise them," he said of his children. "When I left they were still so small."
(Adds context)

LIMA, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Southern Copper Corp on Thursday reported a 100 percent year-on-year rise in its third quarter net profit to $197.6 million as sales rose and costs fell at its Buenavista mine in Mexico.

The result was under the mean market estimate of $224 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The Arizona-based miner, owned by Grupo Mexico , said its copper output rose 25 percent to about 225,000 tonnes in the third quarter from the same period in 2015 thanks to Buenavista.

Southern has mining operations in Mexico and Peru and said it expects to produce 905,600 tonnes in all of 2016.

(Reporting by Mitra Taj; Editing by Sandra Maler)
By Irene Klotz CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (Reuters) - SpaceX said on Friday a fuelling system problem is the most likely cause of a Sept. 1 launch pad explosion that destroyed a Falcon 9 rocket, a finding that takes the company a step closer to resuming flights that were grounded after the accident. The space launch company led by billionaire Elon Musk said it has not confirmed the cause of a failure in the fuelling system. However, the company said in a statement that testing at a facility in Texas had shown that a helium canister inside the rocket could burst depending on how it was filled. SpaceX halted flights while it investigated the cause of the accident. The company, which has a backlog of more than 70 missions worth over $10 billion, said it was working on developing new techniques to load helium into its rockets and hoped to be back flying before the end of the year. Helium is used to pressurize the liquid oxygen system. Accident investigators suspect that a canister of helium inside the liquid oxygen tank burst. These conditions are mainly affected by the temperature and pressure of the helium being loaded, SpaceX said in a statement. The Falcon 9 rocket was being filled with fuel at its Cape Canaveral Air Force Station launch pad for a routine, preflight engine test when a fireball burst out from around the boosters upper-stage liquid oxygen tank. The blast destroyed a $200 million communications satellite owned by Israels Space Communication Ltd. The investigation is continuing, led by SpaceX with oversight from the Federal Aviation Administrations space transportation office. SpaceX said NASA, the US Air Force and industry experts are also working to "investigate all plausible causes." (Reporting By Irene Klotz; Editing by Chris Reese and Andrew Hay)
Oct 28 (Reuters) - Speculators' net bullish bets on U.S. 10-year Treasury note futures fell in the latest week after the European Central Bank did not discuss changes on its bond purchase program, according to Commodity Futures Trading Commission data released on Friday.

Last week, ECB President Mario Draghi attempted to quell speculation policymakers were considering scaling back a 1 trillion-plus euro stimulus program, which could conclude as early as March 2017.

The amount of speculators' bullish, or long, positions in 10-year Treasury futures exceeded bearish, or short, positions by 74,506 contracts on Oct. 25, according to the CFTC's latest Commitments of Traders data.

A week earlier, speculators held 99,922 net long positions in 10-year T-note futures.

(Reporting by Richard Leong; Editing by Andrew Hay)
A Sri Lankan parliamentary panel Friday called for the criminal prosecution of former central bank chief Arjuna Mahendran who was removed three months ago over long-running allegations of insider trading.

A Singapore national of Sri Lankan origin, Mahendran was accused last year of leaking inside information to his son-in-law's firm, allegedly allowing it to make millions of dollars in profits from central bank bond auctions.

The scandal came on the heels of a mounting debt crisis in Sri Lanka -- the country secured a $1.5 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund in July.

A bipartisan oversight committee on Friday demanded legal action against Mahendran and his son-in-law.

"They should be prosecuted in a court and action taken to recover the losses incurred by the state due to their actions," committee chairman Sunil Handunnetti told parliament.

President Maithripala Sirisena sacked Mahendran in July, bowing to public pressure, and asked the legislature to investigate the allegations against him.

An ad-hoc ruling party committee had cleared Mahendran of direct involvement last year, but civil society activists pressed for a thorough investigation resulting in the parliamentary panel launching an extensive probe.

Mahendran has consistently maintained his innocence.
CITY OF INDUSTRY, CA / ACCESSWIRE / October 28, 2016 / When Sugarmade, Inc. (SGMD) begin its recent promotion to provide free samples of its soon to be introduced Sriracha Seasoning Stix product, management knew it would draw a lot of interest. The amount of interest, however, was so strong the Company's email and servers were overwhelmed causing the Company to modify the program to now provide priority and free shipping on all upcoming orders for those who preregister on the Company's website. The Company plans a November launch, which will include nationwide advertising and online marketing campaigns.

"To say we were overwhelmed is putting it mildly as we have already received tens of thousands of responses with multiple responses still coming in every minute. We are especially encouraged with the comments consumers have provided us about upcoming availability of the product, specifically where it can be purchased. Based on this response, it is clear to us that we will need to increase our planned production for the November introduction for this new way to enjoy Huy Fong Foods, Inc. Sriracha. We are very excited about our upcoming launch of Sriracha Seasoning Stix."

Sriracha Seasoning Stixs are encapsulated Huy Fong Sriracha Sauce and other seasonings in the form of a "stick" which are inserted into meat, fish and poultry prior to cooking. Sriracha Seasoning Stixs are hard solid at room temperature, but as heat is applied the sticks begin to liquefy allowing the meat fibers to act like a sponge absorbing all the delicious Sriracha flavors.

While the free samples are no longer available, Sriracha lovers of all kinds can preregister on the Company's website at www.SrirachaStix.com to receive free and priority shipping upon product availability. This offer will expire on October 31, 2016.

About Sugarmade, Inc. (SGMD)

Sugarmade, Inc. is a product and brand marketing company investing in products and brands with disruptive potential. The Company is an official licensee of Irwindale, California-based Huy Fong Foods, Inc., the maker of Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce. Sugarmade's other brands include CarryOutSupplies.com, Sugarmade Tree Free Paper and the FreeHanda ThumbTraya. For more information on the Company's products, please visit www.Sugarmade.com.

Story continues

For inquiries please contact Jimmy Chan at (888) 982-1628 or MeatMeetHeat@Srirachastix.com

SOURCE: Sugarmade, Inc.
This tech start-up wants to do for legal marijuana what Keurig did for coffee.

Massachusetts-based CannaKorp has developed what it claims to be the world's first single-use pod-based cannabis vaporizer system  the CannaCloud  which some users have dubbed "the Keurig of marijuana."

"Our company's goal is to simplify and improve the cannabis consumer experience," co-founder and CEO James Winokur told CNBC.

To work the device, a user first inserts a CannaCloud Pod (similar to a K-Cup, but filled with marijuana) into the bottom of a hollow canister. Next, the canister is placed into the CannaCloud device to start the vaporization. (The canister fills with vapor in about a minute.) The user then removes the canister, and inhales the vapor through the mouthpiece. As soon as the user stops inhaling, the one-way mouthpiece closes off the remaining vapor.

The firm's patent-pending CannaCloud device is expected to retail for $150, while the CannaCloud Pods (or cPods for short) will be priced by retailers. "It's fair to say we expect them to be $6 to $7 [per pod]," Winokur said.

According to the company's website, customers can choose from various types of marijuana  including sativa, indica, hybrid and CBD-only strains. "The pods are pre-ground cannabis flower that are sealed to lock in flavor, aroma, and freshness."

Market research firm Arcview reports legal cannabis sales are expected to grow to $6.7 billion in 2016, up from $5.4 billion in 2014. The firm also predicts the legal cannabis market will see $21.8 billion in total annual sales by 2020.

Recreational pot is currently in four states  Alaska, Colorado, Oregon and Washington  and D.C., while medical marijuana is legal in 20 other states. Recreational pot measures are on the November ballots in Arizona, California, Maine, Massachusetts and Nevada, while voters in Arkansas, Florida, Montana and North Dakota will consider legalizing medicinal marijuana.

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"We really think of it as wellness," Winokur said. "People are using cannabis in a range of areas to make themselves feel better. Doctors can recommend cannabis now in certain states, and certainly that's a direct avenue for us. But other states allow for people to kind of self-medicate, and get to know how this makes them feel. We really want that controlled experience."

Headquartered in Stoneham, Massachusetts, the company has three former Keurig executives on its staff. To date, it has raised $1.6 million and is ready to start manufacturing.

 Comments, questions, suggestions? We'd love to hear from you. Follow us @CNBCPowerPitch and join the #PowerPitchconversation







More From CNBC


The Baldwin brothers are going to war over Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. Actor Stephen Baldwin joined the FOX Business Networks Maria Bartiromo to discuss why hes at odds with his brothers over the presidential election.

Maria, I was going to ask you to like slap me around on your show today because Im in a little bit of a Twitter war with my brother, but its not serious, we are having fun, we are having our opinionsIm for Trump [and] Alec and Billy [are] for Mrs. Clinton  thats great, he said.

But Stephen says hes seeing sizeable push back.

When my brother Billy jokes around and said my dad, if he were alive hed slap you upside the head for supporting TrumpBoy those Democrats are so violent, joked Baldwin.

He also discussed how his brother took him on while impersonating Donald Trump on Saturday Night Live.

I had a sense that something like that was coming but that all gets back to something I said at the third debate, somebody said to me, you like your brothers Trump impersonation? The truth is, I love the impersonation, its funnyWhat I said in that response to that question was, what I dont think is funny is how they are mocking this whole reality of this election. I dont think this election is very funny. I think the stakes are way too high."

When it comes to whats most important to him during this election, he said, Whats going to drive life and the quality of life in this country to a better place quickly is the economy. So many people are suffering.

And he thinks that Trump is the guy to get the U.S. economy on the right track. However, when it comes to discussing his views with his brothers, Baldwin said, I dont try to beat a dead horse here. If Alec and Billy dont see the corruption or if they are willing to look the other way like so many other people, thats on them.

Related Articles
Martin Short and Steve Martin took time off of their busy schedules to visit The Tonight Show on Thursday.

The award-winning duo danced their way to the stage as they joined Fallon in a sing-along. Afterward, Short started things off with a string of comedic hits as he declared to Fallon, "You have an Eric Trump aura tonight," then followed it with, "You look so young that it seems Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt should be fighting for custody of you!"

He even tried out a reference to Kim Kardashian's recent mishap in Paris, "The three of us haven't been together since we robbed Kim Kardashian."

Read more: Watch Justin Timberlake and Jimmy Fallon Sing at Summer Camp on 'The Tonight Show'

Then it was on to a "game of deception" called "True Confessions," with two envelopes containing a fabrication or a real story about each participant, and the task at hand was to correctly guess the truth.

Steve Martin began his tale by claiming he slept with actress Brigitte Bardot. He detailed the tryst he had with the actress, complete with a walk on the beach. Both Fallon and Short declare that it's a lie to which Martin hesitantly admitted it was, in fact, a lie.

Fallon went next by reading "I once got into an argument with Regis Philbin on my way to see Cats."

Martin immediately begged to be "spared the details." Short intervened with "was Brigitte Bardot on the street when you ran into him?" Both comedians believed Fallon's story but it ended up being .

When it was Short's turn to test the players, his envelope read, "When I was in college, to pick up girls I would sometimes pretend to be an exchange student from London."??

Martin jumped in with, "How does that pick up girls?" "Did they ever sleep with you?" Short replied, No!"

Both Fallon and Martin correctly guessed that Short did indeed resort to using accents to woo girls.

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Fallon also showed a clip of the backstage antics before the show, as he first ran into Short and somehow tripped him which sent the comedian rolling down a slew of stairs, where he bumped into Martin.

The pair rolled down into a waiting elevator and ended up outside where they continued their roll through Rockefeller Center. Along the way, they managed to grab a hotdog and help a lady in trouble before finally heading back into the studios - where Fallon greeted them with "Sounds like a nice trip!"

Watch the video below.??
Kiev (AFP) - Six people died in clashes between government forces and pro-Russian insurgents in Ukraine's separatist east, officials said Friday, the highest death toll since international peace talks held 10 days ago.

The flare-up in the two-year conflict followed German Chancelor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande's efforts to breathe fresh air in a stalled peace process during talks with Russia's Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian leader Petro Poroshenko in Berlin.

"Over the past 24 hours, as a result of fighting, one Ukrainian serviceman was killed," Kiev's military spokesman Andriy Lysenko told reporters, accusing the rebels of "a sharp intensification" of attacks.

The rebels' news agency said two of their fighters were killed and another six wounded on Thursday.

They also reported the death of three civilians in Ukranian shelling near their de facto capital of Donetsk.

The Berlin summit failed to resolve one of Europe's bloodiest conflicts since the Balkans wars of the 1990s, with the leaders only agreeing to come up with a "roadmap" for peace by the end of next month.

The fighting has claimed nearly 10,000 lives and raised alarm across parts of eastern Europe that were once Moscow's control.

Russia, which annexed Crimea from pro-Western Ukraine in 2014, denies either sending troops or weapons across its border to fuel the conflict, despite eyewitness testimony to the contrary.

But it openly back the separatists' cause at international venues such as the UN Security Council.
One out of three people with an earache, a sinus infection, or a sore throat is prescribed the wrong antibiotic, according to a study published in late October 2016 in JAMA Internal Medicine.

The findings reveal that U.S. healthcare providers frequently ignore well-established guidelines for antibiotic prescribing from the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and other major medical organizations.

That means that millions of Americans arent getting the safest, most effective treatment for their illness. And misusing antibiotics poses other risks, too, including the spread of superbugs, which are bacteria resistant to the medication.



Were talking about inappropriate treatment for some of the most common reasons people go to the doctor, says the lead author of the study, Adam Hersh, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Division of Pediatric Infectious Disease at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City.

Collectively, ear infections, sinus infections, and sore throats account for more than 40 million antibiotic prescriptions annually.

The Wrong Drug for the Bug

Hersh and colleagues looked at two years' worth of information from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, an annual government survey of patients treated in doctors offices, hospital outpatient clinics, and emergency rooms.

They found that instead of prescribing antibiotics targeted to the type of bacteria most likely causing the infection, many doctors were too quick to reach for broad spectrum drugs that kill a wider range of bugs.

Thats a problem for several reasons, Hersh says. The wrong antibiotic may not work as well as the recommended treatment, or, in some cases, carries a much higher risk of serious side effects, he says.

For example, fluoroquinolone antibiotics such as ciprofloxacin (Cipro and generic) and levofloxacin (Levaquin and generic)which are frequently prescribed inappropriately for sinus infections in adultscan cause permanent and debilitating damage to muscles, tendons, and nerves.

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He also points out that broad-spectrum antibiotics kill more of the bodys protective bacteria, leaving people vulnerable to opportunistic infections from bugs such as Clostridium difficile, or C. diff, which causes a potentially deadly form of diarrhea.

And they are more likely than narrowly targeted drugs to lead to antibiotic resistance.

Why Do Physicians Prescribe the Wrong Antibiotic?

In some cases, healthcare providers have a good reason to choose a different drug. A patient may be allergic to penicillin, for example, or the first drug they tried might not be helping.

But often, the main reason seems to simply be convenience, Hersh says.

For example, the new JAMA study showed that patients frequently are prescribed azithromycin (Z-Pak and generic) or other macrolide antibiotics instead of the recommended first-line treatments, amoxicillin or penicillin.

Patients tend to favor azithromycin because you typically take it once daily for three to five days, Hersh says. Amoxicillin has to be taken two to three times daily for a week.

But azithromycin's popularity has also been its undoing. In some areas, as many as 25 percent of the bacteria causing ear infections, sinus infections, and strep throat are now resistant to the drug, Hersh says.

Get the Right Treatment

If you or a family member has an earache, a sore throat, or a lingering cold, the first question you to ask is not is this the wrong antibiotic? but do I need an antibiotic at all? says Consumer Reports medical director, Orly Avitzur, M.D.

Most of the time, these infections are caused by a virus, not a bacteria, Avitzur says. And antibiotics dont work against viruses.

An antibiotic can be appropriate in the following situations:

Earache

Severe pain or symptoms lasting longer than two or three days may be caused by a bacterial infection. Consider antibiotics right away in babies six months and younger or children who are six months to two years old who have moderate to severe pain.

Sinus Pain and Congestion

Consider antibiotics if you dont get better in 10 days, get better and then worse again, or have a high fever and thick, colored mucus for more than three days in a row.

Sore Throat

Treat with antibiotics only if a throat swab confirms that the symptoms are caused by strep bacteria.

For ear and sinus infections that are probably caused by bacteria, the recommended antibiotic in most cases is amoxicillin (Amoxil and generic) or amoxicillin with clavulanate (Augmentin and generic). For strep throat, the recommended treatment is either amoxicillin or penicillin.

Read more about when you need antibiotics, when you dont, and how you can feel better without using them.

Editor's Note This article and related materials are made possible by a grant from the state Attorney General Consumer and Prescriber Education Grant Program, which is funded by the multistate settlement of consumer-fraud claims regarding the marketing of the prescription drug Neurontin (gabapentin).





More from Consumer Reports:

Top pick tires for 2016

Best used cars for $25,000 and less

7 best mattresses for couples





Consumer Reports has no relationship with any advertisers on this website. Copyright  2006-2016 Consumers Union of U.S.
Stockholm (AFP) - The Swedish prosecutor's office on Friday said it has rejected WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's request to temporarily suspend an arrest warrant so he could leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London and attend a funeral.

"Julian Assange has requested that the Swedish prosecutor should grant him leave from the detention order and the European arrest warrant in order to go to a funeral," the prosecutor's office said in a statement.

The prosecutor dismissed Assange's request, saying that Swedish law does not allow permission or exemption to a court decision on issuing of a European arrest warrant.

The prosecutor's office did not specify whose funeral Assange wanted to attend or where it would be held.

The 45-year-old Australian has been holed up in Ecuador's embassy in London since June 2012, seeking refuge there after exhausting all his legal options in Britain against extradition to Sweden.

Assange has refused to travel to Sweden for questioning over rape allegations, which he denies, due to concerns that he would then be extradited to the United States over WikiLeaks' release of 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

In September, a Swedish appeals court ruled against his request to lift the arrest warrant, the eighth straight time a Swedish court has ruled against him.

A lawyer for Assange said he would go to Sweden's highest court after the ruling.
Stockholm (AFP) - Pope Francis offers hope for change in the Catholic Church on a range of moral issues -- but there's a long way to go, say the female leaders of Sweden's liberal Lutherans ahead of his landmark visit.

"It is clear that he has said and done things that have ignited much hope among many Catholics and even many people outside the Catholic Church," Sweden's first female Lutheran Archbishop, Antje Jackelen, told AFP.

Stockholm Bishop Eva Brunne hailed the Argentine pontiff as "a breath of fresh air".

But the openly lesbian bishop added: "He has a lot to work on when it comes to gender issues, for example."

Francis kicks off a two-day visit to Sweden on Monday to mark the 500th anniversary of the Reformation -- a highly symbolic trip, given that Martin Luther's dissenting movement launched centuries of bitter and often bloody divisions in Europe.

Sweden's branch of the Lutheran Church is amongst the most liberal in Christendom, and the pope's visit highlights deep splits between the Vatican and this gay-friendly constitutional monarchy, where same-sex marriage is allowed even for priests.

Francis has tried to make the Church less judgemental in its approach to divorced, cohabiting and gay believers since he became pope in 2013, but his critics say he has delivered little concrete change.

In August he launched a commission to study the idea of female deacons -- a rank just below priest -- but made clear he did not see women becoming priests.

"I believe (the Catholic church) must bear women and men at all levels," Brunne said, blasting the lack of progress the Vatican has made on female representation.

"I told the pope last year during a speech that it is time to no longer speak for women about women, but to speak with women," Jackelen said.

"I want to see women priests in the Catholic church and I know that there are many Catholic women who are well-educated and would be excellent priests," she added.

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The Swedish Lutheran Church has been appointing women priests since 1960. Figures released in 2010 showed that 45 percent of its nearly 4,500 professional priests were female, with the proportion even higher among parish priests.

- 'Nothing has changed' -

Francis raised hopes early in his papacy that he might steer the church towards greater acceptance for homosexuality, and in June he said Christians "must apologise" to gays and lesbians for their past treatment.

Yet new Church guidelines on family life released in April failed to recognise homosexual couples.

"When the pope was asked about homosexuality and responded 'who am I to judge?' some hope was ignited," Jackelen said.

"One could say that as far as this special stance is concerned nothing has changed," she added. "There is impatience over change in practice."

Anders Arborelius, bishop of the Roman Catholic Church in Stockholm, said the pope's approach had been one of continuity, despite a "progressive" image compared to his predecessors.

"Pope Francis comes from another continent and has a different way of expressing things, but one cannot say that he has changed anything in the teachings," he said.

Despite tensions between the two churches, the purpose of the pope's visit to the southern Swedish towns of Malmo and Lund is to celebrate dialogue and common ground between Catholics and Lutherans.

"We are getting closer on how to tackle climate change," Brunne said, referring to the pope's calls for action against global warming in an encyclical issued in June 2015.

"We have reached a point now where we have gone from conflict to solidarity, and we are celebrating that now."

The Nordic region was completely conquered in the 16th century by the Lutheran Reformation as Protestantism established itself as the dominant form of Christianity across northern Europe.

Officially, Catholicism is on the rise in Sweden -- the Church has 113,000 members (1.1 percent of the population) compared with only 87,000 in 2000, but it says it believes the actual number of Catholics in the country to be 150,000.

The Swedish Lutheran church says it currently has 6,2 million members, which amount to more than 60 percent of the nation's population.

But the figures have been slightly falling each year because old members die and fewer children are being baptised, according to the church.

Immigration is also on the rise, prompting religious diversity.
With southern hospitality, Alabama has catered to everything from small, independent short films to massive Hollywood productions.

Its easy to see why Alabama is a popular destination for filmmakers. It easily doubles for multiple North American locations. The past still lives in the Southern states cities and towns, while Huntsville is home to rocket technology and an incubator of the space age. Plus, the state offers filmmakers lots of forests, beaches, and rolling hills. Regions include the Tennessee Valley and the Appalachian plateau.

But there are even better reasons for shooting in Alabama. Producers are drawn by the states refundable tax credit of up to 25% of production expenditures  and 35% of payroll to state residents.

Specifically, the incentive offers a 25% refundable tax credit on qualified spend  including non-resident above-the-line and below-the-line payroll.

In addition, the benefit provides for a 35% tax credit on payroll to residents. Here are the details:

Alabama offers a 35% refundable tax credit on payroll to residents.

Theres a per-project cap of $20 million, and a minimum spend of $500,000 is required.

Recent projects shot in Alabama include Vice (2015), Extraction (2015), Heist (2015), Convergence (2015), Rage (2014), Selma (2014), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014), 42 (2013), and Oculus (2013),

Incenitves 25% Refundable credit on qualified spend, including non-resident above- and below-the-line payroll $20m Project cap $500k Minimum spend 35% Refundable credit on resident pay

Information courtesy of EP Financial Solutions, a production incentive consulting and financial services company.

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315 Rose Hill Road Water mill hamptons

The sweet spot of the Hamptons housing market is cooling down.

Sales of homes in Wall Street's playground that cost between $1 million and $5 million fell 24% year-over-year in the third quarter, according to a report by Douglas Elliman Real Estate.

Jonathan Miller, CEO of the real-estate appraisal firm Miller Samuel, said this price range is the "sweet spot" of the market, according to The Real Deal. The cluster did not have the largest share of sales, however, with most buyers still choosing homes that cost $1 million or less.

Miller said this slowdown can probably be linked to the punishing year that hedge funds are having. The Hamptons, near the easternmost end of Long Island, is a popular vacation-home choice for finance professionals who work in New York City.

Hedge fund returns have been weak for some time, criticized for their relatively high fees and lackluster performance. Last quarter, investors pulled out the most cash from hedge funds since the first quarter of 2009, bringing total redemptions in the past year to $87 billion, according to an eVestment report released on Wednesday.

Because Douglas Elliman's report is one quarter's data, it's impossible to draw any definitive conclusions on a trend. But this could be an early effect of Wall Street's falling profits, bonuses, and headcounts this year.

The so-called Hamptons sweet spot was the only segment of the market where prices fell year-over-year in Q3. They jumped 29% on the luxury end  vacation homes costing more than $5 million.

That's in clear contrast to Manhattan, where the luxury end of the market has cooled. Across Manhattan, prospective homebuyers pushed back against expensive prices, prompting sellers to offer more concessions, like one month rent-free.

The median sales price of a luxury house in the Hamptons rose 17% from the same period last year, to $6.2 million, according to Douglas Elliman.

NOW WATCH: What it's like to take the 'Uber of seaplanes' from NYC to the Hamptons





More From Business Insider


Geneva (AFP) - Switzerland's national rail service (SBB) said Friday it was set to launch a new service selling the digital currency Bitcoin at all ticket machines across the country.

The SBB said it had been testing customer demand for Bitcoin across the wealthy Alpine federation and decided to launch a two-year pilot project beginning on November 11.

"Until now, there have only been limited opportunities to purchase Bitcoin in Switzerland," the rail service said in a statement.

It said that it would use its network of 1,000 ticket machines to let customers swap other currencies for Bitcoin, provided they give a mobile phone number for identification.

Swiss financial services company SweePay is providing the electronic conversion services.

Transactions will be capped at 500 Swiss francs ($500, 460 euros) each but SBB stressed customers will not be allowed to buy tickets with the e-money.

Bitcoin "is not accepted as a payment method," the state-owned company said.

With the current value of the currency around 689 Swiss francs, customers "will be able to purchase fractions of Bitcoin," a CFF spokesman told AFP.

Bitcoin has stirred interest as a way to move money around the world with no fees or bank involvement, but secrecy surrounding the currency, including its creator, have led to some questions on its stability and transparency.
Beirut (AFP) - Like many women, Huda dreads her menstrual period every month. But it isn't simply inconvenient or painful: She lives under siege near Syria's Damascus, without sanitary pads or even clean water.

"When feminine products started to become rare in 2012, I had a really hard time," says the 23-year-old from Saqba, a rebel-held town in the battered Eastern Ghouta area, which has been besieged since 2013.

Speaking to AFP using a pseudonym, Huda says the very few female hygiene products available in Saqba are too expensive for her and her husband.

"So I had to make do with old cloth," she says.

"But I started getting a lot of infections, so I decided to buy just a few sanitary pads and use one per day so I didn't go through them quickly."

Reusing pads has led to fungal infections, kidney pains, and vaginal and urinary tract problems, Huda says.

"I'm trying to get treatment, but it's going so slow" because of the cost of proper medication.

More than 860,000 people live under siege across war-ravaged Syria, facing shortages of food, water, diesel, and other vital goods.

But women in besieged areas face the additional challenge of struggling each month with limited access to pads as well as clean water, leading to sometimes serious gynaecological complications caused by poor hygiene.

Openly discussing menstrual cycles is taboo across much of Syria, and many of the women who spoke to AFP asked to be identified by a pseudonym.

- 'Everything is hard' -

Aid groups say they include sanitary pads in health packages delivered to besieged areas, but their access to these areas is sporadic and what they can deliver falls far short of needs, women say.

The UN children's agency says it has delivered 84,000 hygiene packs -- each including 10 pads -- to hard-to-reach and besieged locations across Syria in 2016, up from 17,000 last year.

But if even just a third of the 860,000 Syrians under siege were women of menstruating age, they would need more than 10 million sanitary pads per year.

Story continues

Laila Bakry, who heads the women's centre for Eastern Ghouta, says pads are hard to find or too expensive there.

During their period, many women resort to what Bakry calls "the traditional method" -- reusing old rags.

But they struggle to clean the fabric because "there's often no water and, if there is, it's hard to boil it because there's no electricity or gas".

Rania, an 18-year-old who frequents Bakry's centre, says she first had her period in 2011, when sanitary pads and painkillers, as well as gas and water, were still available.

Since the government siege cut off food, water, and aid access to Douma three years ago, "everything is hard", she says.

"Even when I'm done with the pain of my period, I have to figure out a way to wash... I don't know if we will ever get used to this," Rania says.

- Siege hinders treatment -

Bakry says she has seen a host of complications from the lack of proper hygiene, including fungal infections, dermatological problems, and chronic pain.

Living under siege hinders treatment, with the few gynaecologists with enough experience overwhelmed by cases and medicine hard to obtain.

"Even if a specialised doctor sees her early on, diagnoses the problem and prescribes some medication, the medicine isn't available," Bakry says.

"It will take too long to get it, and some people can't buy it because it's too expensive."

Aid groups involved in deliveries say cultural considerations have prevented them from examining the health complications caused by the absence of feminine hygiene products.

"Because the issue is so sensitive, health assessment teams have not gathered information on potential medical complications," says Ingy Sedky of the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The UN's fund for reproductive health did not respond to requests for comment.

Further north, the opposition-held eastern districts of Aleppo city are facing both a devastating siege and an intensifying government offensive.

Baraa, a nurse who works with a female gynaecologist in the city, says women there also "tear a piece of cloth" to use instead of sanitary pads and often use expired medication out of desperation.

"Without clean water or proper hygiene, we are seeing gynaecological infections," Baraa says.

"The doctor I work with says these cases have increased a lot over the past month."

Since September 22, nearly 500 people have been killed in the eastern districts as government fighters backed by Russian warplanes battle rebel groups there.

The intensity of the fighting has put so much strain on Baraa's patients that they often do not have their period at all or bleed more heavily.

"Instability and anxiety play a huge role," she says.
* With Ratan Tata back, likely boost for Vistara, AirAsia India

* Ousted chmn Mistry alleges Tata foisted two airlines on him

* Tata, a pilot, has long harboured aviation ambitions

By Aditi Shah and Tommy Wilkes

NEW DELHI, Oct 28 (Reuters) - As family patriarch Ratan Tata takes back the controls at his Indian conglomerate after a boardroom coup this week, one sector is cheering his, albeit interim, return: the group's airline ventures, both lagging competitors in India's cutthroat market.

Industry executives and analysts say they expect loss-making Vistara and AirAsia India, both part-owned by Tata, to enjoy fresh cash and expansion plans as low fuel prices and Indian government policy drive a boom in air travel.

"Now he's back, we'll see him taking aggressive steps," said Mark D Martin, chief executive at Martin Consulting, adding this could include growing other ventures such as Taj Air, a charter company also owned by the Tata group.

Vistara and AirAsia India declined to comment.

Tata Sons, the parent controlling Tata's listed businesses, has said Ratan Tata's return from retirement is temporary, and denied the move would mean any extra focus on the airlines - other than for business reasons. "Both businesses are completely focused on enhancing their market positions," a spokesman said.

But analysts say the move will have a longer-term impact, with the family reasserting its influence in day-to-day operations.

Tata agreed to invest an estimated $60 million into the two airlines when they launched, mostly into Vistara.

The two airlines have a combined India market share of around 5 percent - dwarfed by more established carriers like InterGlobe Aviation's budget airline IndiGo.

AT ODDS

The Tata family has a long history with aviation.

Ratan Tata's predecessor was India's first qualified pilot, and Tata's first airline was later nationalised as state carrier Air India. Ratan Tata, insiders said, fulfilled a long-held dream when he pulled the group back into the aviation sector in 2013.

Story continues

Ousted chairman Cyrus Mistry, who replaced Tata in 2012, was less keen, however.

In a leaked letter to the Tata board earlier this week, Mistry said he had opposed Tata's 2013 partnership with Malaysia's AirAsia Bhd to launch AirAsia India.

More than a year later, Tata started a second airline, Vistara, in partnership with Singapore Airlines.

"Tata Sons took a considered view that it makes business sense to take part in India's civil aviation industry," a spokesman for Tata Sons said.

Mistry's blistering letter portrayed Ratan Tata, 78, as a man who cast aside his advice and bulldozed through major decisions. Mistry considered the airlines to be proof that he had his hands tied as chairman, illustrating just how Tata still pulled the strings even after retiring.

"It is on his advice that the Tata Sons board has increased the capital infusion in the (aviation) sector at multiple levels of the initial commitment," Mistry wrote.

Tata has not detailed its most recent capital infusion, but media reports have said it increased its stake in AirAsia India over time to 49 percent from 30 percent for an undisclosed sum.

In Vistara, 51 percent-owned by Tata, media reported last month Tata approved injecting an additional $37 million alongside Singapore Airlines, which would bring the total equity by the joint-owners to around $150 million.

EMOTIONAL TIES

Whoever's in charge, turning a profit in India's competitive environment will be tough. Analysts say two years is too short: budget airlines could take up to five years and full service carriers up to seven years to be profitable.

Vistara has already had to revise its strategy, which initially sought to target business travellers, and AirAsia India has seen several senior management changes since it launched in 2014, and experts have queried its strategy.

Airline analysts and consultants said they expect Tata to strengthen the group's market foothold, for example, by expanding its partnership with Metro Jets, a provider of business aviation services including charters and maintenance.

"For Ratan Tata, it's an emotional issue," said Harsh Vardhan, head of Starair Consulting. "The Tatas think they pioneered aviation in the country, and again have a role to play." (Reporting by Aditi Shah and Tommy Wilkes; Editing by Clara Ferreira-Marques and Ian Geoghegan)
By Aditi Shah and Tommy Wilkes

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - As family patriarch Ratan Tata takes back the controls at his Indian conglomerate after a boardroom coup this week, one sector is cheering his, albeit interim, return: the group's airline ventures, both lagging competitors in India's cutthroat market.

Industry executives and analysts say they expect loss-making Vistara and AirAsia India, both part-owned by Tata, to enjoy fresh cash and expansion plans as low fuel prices and Indian government policy drive a boom in air travel.

"Now he's back, we'll see him taking aggressive steps," said Mark D Martin, chief executive at Martin Consulting, adding this could include growing other ventures such as Taj Air, a charter company also owned by the Tata group.

Vistara and AirAsia India declined to comment.

Tata Sons, the parent controlling Tata's listed businesses, has said Ratan Tata's return from retirement is temporary, and denied the move would mean any extra focus on the airlines - other than for business reasons. "Both businesses are completely focused on enhancing their market positions," a spokesman said.

But analysts say the move will have a longer-term impact, with the family reasserting its influence in day-to-day operations.

Tata agreed to invest an estimated $60 million into the two airlines when they launched, mostly into Vistara.

The two airlines have a combined India market share of around 5 percent - dwarfed by more established carriers like InterGlobe Aviation's (INGL.NS) budget airline IndiGo.

AT ODDS

The Tata family has a long history with aviation.

Ratan Tata's predecessor was India's first qualified pilot, and Tata's first airline was later nationalized as state carrier Air India. Ratan Tata, insiders said, fulfilled a long-held dream when he pulled the group back into the aviation sector in 2013.

Ousted chairman Cyrus Mistry, who replaced Tata in 2012, was less keen, however.

In a leaked letter to the Tata board earlier this week, Mistry said he had opposed Tata's 2013 partnership with Malaysia's AirAsia Bhd (AIRA.KL) to launch AirAsia India.

Story continues

More than a year later, Tata started a second airline, Vistara, in partnership with Singapore Airlines (SIAL.SI).

"Tata Sons took a considered view that it makes business sense to take part in India's civil aviation industry," a spokesman for Tata Sons said.

Mistry's blistering letter portrayed Ratan Tata, 78, as a man who cast aside his advice and bulldozed through major decisions. Mistry considered the airlines to be proof that he had his hands tied as chairman, illustrating just how Tata still pulled the strings even after retiring.

"It is on his advice that the Tata Sons board has increased the capital infusion in the (aviation) sector at multiple levels of the initial commitment," Mistry wrote.

Tata has not detailed its most recent capital infusion, but media reports have said it increased its stake in AirAsia India over time to 49 percent from 30 percent for an undisclosed sum.

In Vistara, 51 percent-owned by Tata, media reported last month Tata approved injecting an additional $37 million alongside Singapore Airlines, which would bring the total equity by the joint-owners to around $150 million.

EMOTIONAL TIES

Whoever's in charge, turning a profit in India's competitive environment will be tough. Analysts say two years is too short: budget airlines could take up to five years and full service carriers up to seven years to be profitable.

Vistara has already had to revise its strategy, which initially sought to target business travelers, and AirAsia India has seen several senior management changes since it launched in 2014, and experts have queried its strategy.

Airline analysts and consultants said they expect Tata to strengthen the group's market foothold, for example, by expanding its partnership with Metro Jets, a provider of business aviation services including charters and maintenance.

"For Ratan Tata, it's an emotional issue," said Harsh Vardhan, head of Starair Consulting. "The Tatas think they pioneered aviation in the country, and again have a role to play."

(Reporting by Aditi Shah and Tommy Wilkes; Editing by Clara Ferreira-Marques and Ian Geoghegan)
In the spirit of Halloween, Yahoo Movies has been spending the past few weeks recommending different horror films. If youre a fan of frightening flicks, youve probably heard about movies like The Haunting or Let the Right One In. But what about ones that have been more or less forgotten? They deserve a little love too. Here are the best horror movies you havent seen.

Trilogy of Terror

Trilogy of Terror aired on ABC in 1975. (MPI Home Video)

Long before American Horror Story was brought to the world, there was 1975s Trilogy of Terror, a television horror movie anthology that aired in three segments. Similar to how Ryan Murphys band of actors will take on different parts, Karen Black played a total of four different roles over all three segments.

Gargoyles

Gargoyles won an Emmy for Outstanding Achievement in Makeup in 1973. (Tomorrow Entertainment)

Are you familiar with Gargoyles? No, were not talking about the animated series from the 90s. Were talking about the 1972 TV movie. Starring the Oscar-nominated Cornel Wilde and American Horror Story producer Jennifer Salt, this Emmy-winning feature was about an archeologist and his daughter stumbling upon a colony of  you guessed it  gargoyles.

The Funhouse

The Funhouse writer Larry Block also wrote the 1990 Captain America film. (Universal Pictures)

Last but not least, lets travel all the way to  1981. Tobe Hooper will be remembered more for The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Poltergeist, but between those two classics, he helmed The Funhouse. It was about four teens who must escape the clutches of a deformed man in a carnival funhouse. The other two movies are a little harder to find, but this one is available through most rental sites.

What to Stream: 3 Intense Horror Movies for Halloween:



Tell us what you think! Hit us up on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram  or leave your comments below.
President Obama and Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi at a G8/G5 summit in Italy, July 2009. (Photo: Michael Gottschalk/Pool/AP)

Ever since the administration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, presidents have been judged on the successes they notch during their first 100 days. Now, as Barack Obama prepares to end his historic turn on the political stage, Yahoo News is running The Last 100 Days, a look at what Obama achieved during his consequential presidency, how he navigates the struggles of his last months in office and what lies ahead for him after eight years filled with firsts. We will also look at how the country bids farewell to its first African-American president.

Its not a literal 100 days  Obama leaves office in late January 2017.

And it wont all be about policy. As Obama himself is fond of noting, he also spent his two terms as father to daughters Malia and Sasha and husband to first lady Michelle Obama. And even without much input from the White House, the cultural landscape shifted dramatically over his two terms on issues such as gay rights.

And then theres the way the president sees the presidency  not just his tumultuous years at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., but also the institution and its relationships (for better or worse) with other branches of government and with the news media.

In this 12th installment, we look at Obamas answer to the classic question modern presidents frequently face: What was your biggest mistake?

_____

Being president of the United States provides immense power and almost limitless opportunities to screw up.

And commanders in chief do screw up in ways large and small, and the results can be devastating or merely annoying, historic or just the focus of an awkward news cycle.

Asking presidents to reflect on their biggest mistake can shed light on how they view the power, and the limits, of their office, or how they might approach a future problem that resembles the one they think they handled inadequately.

The question can also provide someone at the apex of American politics with the opportunity to deliver an insincere, self-serving answer, like the job seeker who makes a show of confessing in an interview that their biggest shortcoming is that, gosh, they are a perfectionist. Its also important not to confuse biggest mistake with biggest regret  a mistake is something that should have been done differently, a regret might be something beyond even a presidents control.

Story continues

George W. Bush infamously bungled John Dickersons question on the matter. Among the Bush press corps, it became known as the Dickerson Question.

At an April 13, 2004 press conference in the East Room of the White House, Dickerson, the Time magazine reporter who now hosts Face The Nation on CBS, stood up and asked then President George W. Bush this:

In the last campaign, you were asked a question about the biggest mistake youd made in your life, and you used to like to joke that it was trading Sammy Sosa. Youve looked back before 9/11 for what mistakes might have been made. After 9/11, what would your biggest mistake be, would you say, and what lessons have you learned from it?

President George W. Bush listens to reporter John Dickersons question during a news conference at the White House, April 13, 2004. (Photo: Larry Downing/Reuters)

A Bush communications aide, asked to remember the experience, told Yahoo News it didnt feel like a tough question in the asking, even though there were obviously lots of bad ways to answer it, especially with Bushs reelection fight that year. We just didnt think hed have, you know, this level of bad, the aide said ruefully of Bushs response.

Bushs answer could be boiled down to this: I know Ive made some mistakes, but cant think of any, and certainly not the Iraq War. But he drew it out in a painful way.

I wish you would have given me this written question ahead of time, so I could plan for it, he said, to laughter from the press corps. He went on, John, Im sure historians will look back and say, Gosh, he could have done it better this way, or that way. You know, I just  Im sure something will pop into my head here in the midst of this press conference, with all the pressure of trying to come up with an answer, but it hasnt yet.

Bush defended his handling of the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, and even seemed to hold out hope that hed be vindicated on the question of whether Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction.

And then Bush wrapped up his answer. I hope I  I dont want to sound like Ive made no mistakes. Im confident I have. I just havent  you just put me under the spot here, and maybe Im not as quick on my feet as I should be in coming up with one, he said.

God, it fed into all of [the medias] portrayals of him as stubborn, out of touch, unable to admit mistakes, the communications aide recalled.

Even though Obama will soon leave the office, studying his self-diagnosed biggest mistake and what lessons, if any, he has learned carries greater weight now, with U.S. forces entangled in the presidents undeclared but escalating war against the so-called Islamic State, also known as ISIS.

When it comes to his biggest mistake, Obamas critics on the left and right will have their own suggestions. But the president himself has weighed in on a couple of occasions since he took office, most recently in an April 2016 Fox News interview.

Biggest mistake? host Chris Wallace asked. Probably failing to plan for the day after what I think was the right thing to do in intervening in Libya, Obama replied in an all-too-brief exchange.

Obamas answer to the Dickerson Question has evolved over time, and while it doesnt have the same cringe-factor as Bushs response, its worth some scrutiny.

Libyans celebrate at Saha Kish Square in Benghazi in October 2011, following the death of longtime leader Moammar Gadhafi. (Photo: Francois Mori.AP)

In July 2012, with his reelection campaign in full swing, Obama was asked in a CBS interview to assess his first-term failures.

The mistake of my first term, couple of years, was thinking that this job was just about getting the policy right, Obama said. He continued, And thats important. But the nature of this office is also to tell a story to the American people that gives them a sense of unity and purpose and optimism, especially during tough times.

Obama reflected that the doubts about him during the 2008 campaign  when everybody said, Well he can give a good speech but can he actually, you know, manage the job?  had by 2012 morphed into: Well, hes been juggling and managing a lot of stuff, but, you know, wheres the story that tells us where hes going? And, the president admitted, I think that was a legitimate criticism.

Obama concluded, Getting out of this town, spending more time with the American people, listening to them, and also then being in a conversation with them about where do we go together as a country, I need to do a better job of that in my second term.

Its hard to imagine an easier crowd pleaser than Obamas Washington-is-bad-the-American-people-are-good offering. But its not that his answer was insincere, necessarily. Obama aides today broadly defend the idea that he got the policy substance right and the sales pitch wrong. (Obama did, however, promote his White House communications director at the start of his second term.) But they acknowledge a certain political convenience, in that the answer amounted to what one top adviser recently described to Yahoo News as a most uninteresting response  one unlikely to dominate a news cycle with talk of presidential weakness or failure.

By December 2013, the disastrous Obamacare rollout trumped the communications lapses. Obama called the busted HealthCare.gov website his biggest mistake and took responsibility.

Since Im in charge, obviously we screwed it up, he said. And its not that I dont engage in a lot of self-reflection here. I promise you, I probably beat myself up even worse than you [ABCs Jonathan Karl] or [Fox News correspondent] Ed Henry does on any given day.

President Obama hugs outgoing Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, shortly after the first sign-ups of insurance coverage under the so-called Obamacare law, April 2014. Vice President Joe Biden and then Budget Director Sylvia Mathews Burwell look on. (Photo: Charles Dharapak/AP)

Over the past two years, Obamas answer has shifted again, from Obamacares rollout to the failure to rebuild Libyan institutions after helping the rebels who toppled and killed dictator Moammar Gadhafi. Upon learning of Gadhafis killing in October 2011, Hillary Clinton responded: We came. We saw. He died.

In an August 2014 interview with the New York Times, Obama defended the decision to be part of the coalition that overthrew Gadhafi as the right thing to do, and argued, Had we not intervened, its likely that Libya would be Syria.

At the same time, he told the Times, I think we [and] our European partners underestimated the need to come in full force to rebuild post-Gadhafi Libyan society. Thats a lesson that I now apply every time I ask the question, Should we intervene, militarily? Do we have an answer [for] the day after? Obama said.

Without using the biggest mistake language, Obama again delivered a public mea culpa of sorts about Libya in his September 2015 speech to the U.N. General Assembly.

As he did on Fox News and in the Times, Obama cast the military intervention as the right thing to do to prevent a slaughter since Gadhafi was vowing to massacre residents of the city of Benghazi.

Obama admitted at the U.N. that even as we helped the Libyan people bring an end to the reign of a tyrant, our coalition could have and should have done more to fill a vacuum left behind. And, he said, America and its partners have to recognize that we must work more effectively in the future, as an international community, to build capacity for states that are in distress, before they collapse.

This would seem to be an especially wrenching admission for a president who regularly excoriated Bush for the wretched handling of post-Saddam Iraq.

But in an April 2016 piece in the Atlantic, based on multiple interviews, Obama basically shifted the blame for his biggest mistake onto allies Britain and France.

When I go back and I ask myself what went wrong, Obama said, theres room for criticism, because I had more faith in the Europeans, given Libyas proximity, being invested in the follow-up, he said. He pointed out that Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, lost his job the following year. And he said that British Prime Minister David Cameron quickly became distracted by a range of other things.

Everyone has a friend whos been in a relationship like this, in which one person ducks blame by saying, My real mistake was thinking too highly of you. But aides deny that Obama was trying to absolve himself for what he privately calls a s*** show, according to the Atlantic.

Audience members listen as President Obama speaks about Libya at the National Defense University in Washington on March 28, 2011. (Photo: Charles Dharapak/AP)

Whether or not Obama was shifting the burden elsewhere, he has had to draw his own lessons from Libya. That country has been locked into what one top White House aide called a one step forward, one or two steps back dynamic that includes the presence of ISIS terrorists (and American airstrikes on those forces).

Libya is hardly the only problematic country from Obamas tenure in office, and White House aides cite a number of other examples on the lessons learned front.

The presidents critics often say one of his greatest mistakes was his 2013 decision not to enforce his red line against Syrias use of chemical weapons. But according to Obamas aides, military strikes on forces loyal to strongman Bashar Assad could have led to worse chaos in Syria, beyond even the bloodshed that has left as many as 470,000 people dead, by some estimates. Toppling Assad without a plan for filling the vacuum he would have left, they say, would have risked putting all of Syria ultimately under ISIS control, dramatically expanding the threat to key U.S. allies like Turkey or Jordan as well as Iraq, and threatening to pull America into a much wider conflict.

Administration officials also point to Obamas ongoing resistance to providing Ukraine with lethal defensive weapons to fend off pro-Moscow forces in the countrys east. In their telling, the risk of escalation if Ukrainian forces killed Russian troops with American weapons is unacceptable.

Finally, they cite the current U.S. deployment in Iraq and, to a lesser extent, Syria. In their version of events, Obama held off on all but the most urgent military action  sending a small force to protect the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, launching airstrikes in Syria and intervening to save civilians of the Yazidi religious minority who were besieged on Mount Sinjar by ISIS forces  until Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki was pushed from office in 2014. Once Haider al-Abadi, seen in Washington as a much more reliable partner, took over, Obama dramatically ramped up U.S. operations. In this argument, Obama again connected a de facto political vacuum to prospects for American-led military success and future stability.

Men carry a Yezidi woman who fainted after crossing from Syria back into Iraq. (Photo: Sebastian Meyer/Corbis via Getty Images)

Whether these were the right or wrong lessons to draw from Libya  or the right decisions at all  is a matter of heated debate that wont be settled here.

Obama himself may at least partly settle the argument before he leaves office, or in a few years, if the experience of his two immediate predecessors is any guide.

At his final press conference, on Jan. 12, 2009, Bush faced a variant of the Dickerson Question, and this time it seemed to catch him in a more thoughtful mood.

I have often said that history will look back and determine that which could have been done better, or, you know, mistakes I made, Bush began.

But he noted that his May 2003 appearance on an aircraft carrier in front of a giant Mission Accomplished banner sent the wrong message. He allowed that some of my rhetoric has been a mistake  a reference to cowboy talk like wanting Osama bin Laden dead or alive. His only reference to Hurricane Katrina was to criticism of his Air Force One flyover on his way back to Washington from vacation in Texas  a decision he defended  not to the botched government response to the devastating storm. He said it was a mistake to push the partial privatization of Social Security after his 2004 reelection  a failed legislative drive that badly damaged his political standing.

President Bush gives a thumbs-up sign after declaring the end of major combat in Iraq, as he speaks aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln off the California coast on May 1, 2003. (Photo: J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

Bush also pointed to the detainee abuse scandal at Abu Ghraib prison and the absence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. I dont know if you want to call those mistakes or not, but they were  things didnt go according to plan, lets put it that way, he said.

There is no such thing as short-term history, he concluded. I dont think you can possibly get the full breadth of an administration until time has passed: Did a presidents decisions have the impact that he thought they would, or he thought they would, over time? Or how did this president compare to future presidents, given a set of circumstances that may be similar or not similar? I mean, its just impossible to do. And Im comfortable with that.

Bill Clinton provided a different model for presidential soul-baring in a June 2004 CNN interview.

What was your biggest mistake in the office, asked host Larry King.

We know what my biggest personal mistake was, Clinton replied, in an obvious reference to his affair with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky.

But as president, he suggested, one of his biggest mistakes was spending his first two years trying to pass a sweeping health care reform bill, having underestimated the resolve of Republicans to block it.

And one of my great regrets in foreign policy is not sending troops to try to stop the Rwandan genocide when I realized how severe it was, Clinton said of the 1994 mass murder of minority Tutsis by majority Hutus. It happened very fast, 90 days, 10 percent of the country, 700,000 people killed with machetes. I feel terrible that we didnt do it.

President Bill Clinton touches a statue commemorating the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, presented to him by Rwandas President Pasteur Bizimungu, on March 25, 1998. (Photo: J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

Clinton explained that, at the time, his administration was still reeling from the 1992-1993 Somalia intervention, immortalized in the movie Black Hawk Down. He was also trying to mobilize support to help Haiti and intervene in Bosnia.

Acting in Rwanda, Clinton said, was never seriously considered.

And when I finally came to grips with the magnitude of it, the former president said, I will always regret it.
Youre probably already familiar with the based on a true story tagline; a sentence thats spliced into even the most outlandish horror movies in an effort to separate us from the contents of our wallets. But despite what movie marketeers claim, most cinematic scare stories are about as accurate a reflection of real life as the Super Mario brothers are of the career trajectories of Italian-American plumbers.

Nevertheless, like lies, the best horror stories have a grain of truth to them and some of the most terrifying have a whole lot more. Let us guide you through the spine-tinglingly true tales to have hit the silver screen.

Psycho (1960)



The reality: Shower-stalking mummys boy Norman Bates character was based on Ed Gein, who was arrested in 1957 for murdering two women - and digging up the corpses of countless others - who reminded him of his dead mum. A man with issues we suspect. The real Gein is below, accompanied by two US Marshals.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)



The reality: The movie played heavily on its based on a true story schtick. But whilst the events themselves were entirely fictitious, the character of chainsaw-wielding cannibal Leatherface was another character based on Gein (see Psycho, above), who also skinned his victims in order to make a bodysuit made of human flesh.



The Exorcist (1973)

The reality: The film took its inspiration from the last known Catholic-sanctioned exorcism in the United States, where priests attended to a 13-year-old boy after his parents complained about his aggressive behaviour. The

facts are a little murky, so whilst there may be some truth to reports that the boy spoke in a demonic accent and moved objects with his mind; he almost definitely didnt spin his head entirely round, levitate or talk gobbledygook.



Even spookier however is the so-called Exorcist curse, which afflicted the films crew. Depending on who you

ask, between four and nine people involved with the movie died either in production or shortly after; whilst filming was repeatedly delayed by a spate of mysterious fires and serious on-set accidents.



The Amityville Horror (1979)

The reality: Haunted house flick Amityville is based on the real-life experiences of the Lutz family, who had only just overcome estate agents, removal men and endless reams of bubble wrap before finding out that the house theyd moved into was haunted.

As in the film a mass murder had once take place in their new pad which perhaps explains how over a period of four weeks they experienced cold spots, inverted crucifixes and walls covered in green slime. Thats if they werent just making the whole thing up, which many suspected they were



A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984)



The reality: Craven based his movies marvellous MacGuffin on a real life condition that became known as Asian Death Syndrome. The affliction was found in Cambodian refugees who suffered recurring nightmares, after which they refused to sleep, fearing death if they did. Some were even proved right as they died shortly after. Spooky eh?

The Conjuring (2013)

The reality: The Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson characters are based on real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren (shes with Farmiga, below) of Amityville fame. The events of the film are based on the 1971 Perron case, which saw the familys home in Harrisville, Rhode Island haunted by a 'witch'. The land that the house was built on was apparently cursed by a 19th century woman called Bathsheba Sherman so that whoever lived there somehow died.

Annabelle (2014)

The reality: This follow-up to The Conjuring focuses on the terrifying evil doll from the first film. Again, were sorry to report that Annabelle is REAL. Shes based on the abomination below - a Raggedy Ann doll bought for a woman named Donna by her mother in 1970. Some of the dolls real-life antics include switching positions and rooms at night and leaving cryptic messages like Help Us written on parchment that wasnt even in the room. Also one day blood mysteriously appeared all over it.

The Warrens (see The Conjuring) suspected the doll was inhabited by the ghost of a seven-year-old girl called Annabelle Higgins whod died in a car accident. You can still go and visit it at their museum if you dare.

Image Credits: Rex Features
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Chris Hemsworth, also known as Thor, has given his support to protesters in North Dakota and apologized to Native Americans for a terrible costume choice.

The Australian actor is just one of the big names who has come out in solidarity with protesters who are fighting against the construction of a crude oil pipeline in North Dakota. Mark Ruffalo, Susan Sarandon, Shailene Woodley and Darryl Hannah have all given their support.

SEE ALSO: Climate activists shut down 5 tar sands oil pipelines

Hemsworth, the actor known for his role in the Marvel movie franchise, posted an Instagram on Thursday which showed him holding up a sign on set that read, "We stand with Standing Rock." It is a reference to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, whose land the pipeline would go through.

In a humble caption, Hemsworth apologized for dressing up as a Native American at a New Year's Eve party last year.

"I now appreciate that there is a great need for a deeper understanding of the complex and extensive issues facing indigenous communities," he wrote. "I hope that in highlighting my own ignorance I can help in some small way."

Hemsworth's photo was posted after 141 protesters were arrested in a chaotic police take-down for refusing to leave a disputed plot of land near Cannon Ball. The arrests occurred after a group of about 200 protesters moved from the main camp on federal land to a swath of land owned by the pipeline developer, Energy Transfer Partners. Anyone who refused to move from the privately owned land was arrested.

Story continues

According to local law enforcement, at least one protester fired a gun at the police line and others threw molotov cocktails and set vehicles and debris on fire as police pressed in on the camp.

Those at the camp said police used mace, tear gas, rubber bullets, water cannons and sound bombs to remove protesters from the camp. No serious injuries were reported, but on social media many images and videos went up showing protesters suffering from burning eyes and facial injuries.

A Dakota Access Pipeline protester is arrested at a new camp on land owned by the pipeline company.

Image: Mike McCleary/The Bismarck Tribune via AP

The DAPL from the #NoDAPL hashtag is the Dakota Access Pipeline, more than 1,000 miles of pipeline that would carry barrels of light crude oil through Standing Rock Sioux Tribe lands from North Dakota to Illinois. A section of the pipeline wold run underneath the Missouri River. The Standing Rock Sioux Reservation is near that river crossing.

Earlier this week actor Mark Ruffalo, who has been vocal in the fight to protect the tribal land, was at the main camp, along with civil rights activist Jesse Jackson. One of Ruffalo's more graphic posts shows some of the police violence at the protest.

Rubber bullets in the face of peaceful and prayerful Water Protectors at #standingrock please @barackobama please help those young people you met on the reservation and brought to the White House. A photo posted by Mark Ruffalo (@markruffalo) on Oct 27, 2016 at 7:04pm PDT

According to independent filmmaker Romin Lee Johnson, there are rumors on the ground that Leonardo DiCaprio might also be joining protesters in the near-future. DiCaprio, an actor and climate change advocate, has been re-posting many of Ruffalo's tweets and photos of the demonstration.

Actor and activist Shailene Woodley piqued more mainstream interest in the land dispute when she livestreamed a peaceful protest earlier this month and ended up filming her own arrest. She continues to send messages of support online and on Friday, thanked Hemsworth for his post.

Other online activists supporting #NoDAPL include actors Susan Sarandon and Daryl Hannah, Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein and Sen. Bernie Sanders.
(Photo: Marvel)

By Graeme McMillan, The Hollywood Reporter

An impromptu Facebook Live broadcast from the set of Thor: Ragnarok didnt answer many questions about the third standalone film for Marvels Asgardian Avenger, but there were a couple of unexpected teases dropped along the way.

Broadcasting from a location near the Gold Coast in Australia, director Taika Waititi and stars Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson took viewers for a tour of the location, which featured a crashed spaceship and robed figures Waititi referred to as scrappers. (That is more likely a description of their jobs than a name, per se; Waititi described the set as being part of a sci-fi space wasteland weve been building that looked like a junkyard filled with intergalactic detritus.)

The broadcast came in the middle of the final day of production on the movie, with the director saying, This is my last day, I think Im getting fired after this. Hemsworth replied with, I think we all are. The finished movie, the pair joked, was headed straight to VHS, but with a twist. Theres only going to be one copy, though, so youll have to share it around, Hemsworth told his audience, suggesting a rental fee of $50 per viewing.

More: Meet the Newcomers to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Thor: Ragnarok

While Hemsworth explained that they cant say anything about where we are, and you cant tell anyone about what youve seen from the set of the movie, Waititi did let something unexpected slip, which introducing an actor whos playing a character called Miek. That name should sound familiar to Marvels comic book faithful  he was an alien who teamed with the Hulk to overthrow a despotic regime that forced slaves to fight gladiatorial battles in order to survive on the planet Sakaar.

Given that its already known that Ragnarok will feature Mark Ruffalos Hulk teaming with Thor while the two deal with the Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum)  a cosmic being who, in his comic book incarnation, likes to pit characters against each other in battles of some sort or another  what are the odds that part of the comic book Planet Hulk storyline that introduced Miek find their way into this new movie?

Thor: Ragnarok will be released Nov. 3, 2017. Watch the Facebook Live broadcast below.
A gathering by tens of thousands of Iranians in Passargadae to commemorate the birthday of Persian King Cyrus the Great, just months ahead of Irans 2017 presidential election, escalated into an anti-government protest on October 28. Protesters could be heard cheering for Free Thought Without Beards and Cyrus the Great is our Father, as well as a slew of anti-Rouhani messages.

The birthday of Cyrus the Great is a major event in Passargadae, where the ancient kings tomb is located, with tens of thousands of people descending on the archaeological site to honor the countrys pre-Islamic history. However, the religious dichotomy between non-Muslim cultural heroes such as Cyrus the Great and the current regime have continued to escalate tensions between heavily watched activist groups and national security services from both the police and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

While the demonstration concluded without violence, activists reported in conversations with Storyful that there had been widespread security crackdowns in Passargadae in the days running up to the celebration. National Council for the Resistance of Iran spokesman Shahin Gobadi said that all commercial tours had been canceled for the week, the internet had been shut down since October 26, and that there had been an increased number of security checkpoints on all roads leading into the town. Credit: National Council of Resistance in Iran
anthony-pettis-fire

Getty Image / FOX 6

A day after the announcement that Anthony Pettis would be fighting Max Holloway for what must be a #1 contender fight at UFC 206 (even though the featherweight division is in limbo), more news surrounds former UFC lightweight champ. Last night, three (3) cars were set on fire outside his Milwaukee home around 1am CST. The fire was quickly put out by firefighters, but charred skeletons of his automobiles and a badly singed garage left a scary reminder that this couldve been much worse.

Currently, the police have no leads but said the suspect used an accelerant to spread the fire from the first two cars to the third. It doesnt seem like this was an accident. I saw a car speeding through the neighborhood, neighbor Carson Blaszak told FOX 6. Right around the same time as that happened, there was kind of a large bang. It was three cars caught on fire. I just, I ran outside, and I was hoping, you know, the house hopefully wasnt gonna catch on fire.

As of last week, Pettis was training in Thailand, and he hasnt addressed the issue on social media. Its unknown if hes still there, or if he was a witness to the fire.

(Via FOX)
Pakistan on Friday accused India of killing three civilians and wounding several others in cross-border fire, as tensions soar in disputed Kashmir.

The incident occurred in Nakyal sector, near the frontier dividing Indian-held Kashmir from Pakistan's Punjab province, Pakistani officials said.

"At least three people including a women and a girl were killed and five others injured when Indian troops opened fire across the border near Nakyal sector on the Line of Control, the de facto border between India and Pakistan," district administration official Adnan Khursheed told AFP.

Zeeshan Nisar, an administration official in Nakyal confirmed the incident, adding that a seven-year-old girl was among the dead.

A doctor at the hospital in Nakiyal sector put the number of injured slightly higher at seven.

"Three of the injured are in critical condition while four injured are stable," Muhammad Nasrullah told AFP.

A local resident of the area said mortar shells had hit a house where a wedding ceremony was taking place.

"A wedding ceremony was going on in a house when mortar shells hit them," Muhammad Naseer told AFP.

Sazia Bibi, one of the injured said she was outside the house to fetch water when pieces of mortor shell hit her.

The latest violence comes after New Delhi announced Thursday it was expelling a Pakistani visa official for suspected spying, with Islamabad responding by saying it would send back an Indian diplomat in an apparent tit-for-tat move.

Relations between the two countries have plummeted in recent months, with India blaming Pakistani militants for a September raid on an army base in its part of disputed Kashmir that killed 19 soldiers.

India said it responded by carrying out strikes across the heavily-militarised border, although Islamabad denies these took place.

Tensions were already high before the attack, with deadly violence over the death on July 8 of a popular militant leader.

Nearly 90 people, most of them young protesters, have been killed in clashes with security forces in Indian-administered Kashmir since then.

Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan since their independence from Britain in 1947. Both claim the territory in full and have fought two wars over the mountainous region.
By Scott Malone

(Reuters) - Officials in Florida and Virginia filed voter fraud charges against three people in apparently unrelated cases on Friday, just 11 days before American voters cast ballots in the hotly contested presidential race.

The charges targeted a Florida woman and a Virginia man accused of filing bogus voter registration forms and a Florida woman alleged to have tampered with absentee ballots she was opening at the Miami-Dade Elections Department.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has charged in recent weeks that the election will be rigged in favor of Democrat Hillary Clinton, though he has shown no proof for these claims and many Republicans have called them unfounded.

Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle in Florida said that 74-year-old Gladys Coego, had been working as an absentee ballot opener when a supervisor allegedly saw her changing ballots that had been left blank to support a mayoral candidate. Prosecutors said that Coego admitted to marking the ballots, and was charged with two felony counts of marking or designating the ballot of another.

"The integrity of the electoral process is intact because our procedures work," said Christina White, the county's election supervisor, in a statement.

Separately, 33-year-old Tomika Curgil was charged with five felony counts of submitting false voter registration information for allegedly handing in forms filled out by fictitious voters while working on a voter-registration drive for a medical marijuana advocacy group.

A Virginia man was also charged with submitting falsified forms while working for a voter-registration campaign, state prosecutors said.

Vafalay Massaquoi, 30, was arraigned on two felony counts of forging a public record and two counts of voter registration fraud.

"There is no allegation that any illegal vote was actually cast in this case," said Virginia Commonwealth's Attorney Bryan Porter. "Furthermore, since the fraudulent applications involved fictitious people, had the fraud not been uncovered, the risk of actual fraudulent votes being cast was low."

Story continues

Neither Coego, Curgil nor Massaquoi could be reached for immediate comment.

A man in Texas, where early voting started on Monday, was arrested on Monday on charges of electioneering and loitering near a polling place, public records show.

The man, Brett Mauthe, had been charged for showing up to vote in a Trump hat and T-shirt with the phrase "basket of deplorables," a reference to a comment Clinton made disparaging her rivals' supporters, election officials told local media.

(This version of the story was refiled to fix a typographical error in last paragraph to make it "hat" instead of "had")

(Additional reporting by Jonathan Herskovitz in Austin, Texas, and Letitia Stein in Tampa, Florida; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
The following timeline charts the origin and spread of the Zika virus from its discovery nearly 70 years ago: 1947: Scientists researching yellow fever in Uganda's Zika Forest identify the virus in a rhesus monkey 1948: Virus recovered from Aedes africanus mosquito in Zika Forest 1952: First human cases detected in Uganda and Tanzania 1960s-80s: Zika detected in mosquitoes and monkeys across equatorial Africa 1960s80s: Zika found in equatorial Asia, including India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Pakistan 2007: Zika spreads from Africa and Asia, first large outbreak on Pacific island of Yap 2012: Researchers identify two distinct lineages of the virus, African and Asian 201314: Zika outbreaks in French Polynesia, Easter Island, the Cook Islands and New Caledonia. Retrospective analysis shows possible link to birth defects and severe neurological complications in babies in French Polynesia March 2, 2015: Brazil reports illness characterized by skin rash in northeastern states July 17: Brazil reports detection of neurological disorders in newborns associated with history of infection Oct. 22: Colombia confirms cases of Zika Oct. 30: Brazil reports increase in microcephaly, abnormally small heads, among newborns Nov. 11: Brazil declares public health emergency November 2015-January 2016: Cases reported in Suriname, Panama, El Salvador, Mexico, Guatemala, Paraguay, Venezuela, French Guiana, Martinique, Puerto Rico, Guyana, Ecuador, Barbados, Bolivia, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Curacao, Jamaica Feb. 1: World Health Organization (WHO) declares public health emergency of international concern Feb. 2: First case of Zika transmission in United States; local health officials say likely contracted through sex, not mosquito bite Feb. 5: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says virus being actively transmitted in 30 countries, mostly in the Americas Feb. 8: U.S. President Barack Obama requests $1.9 billion to fight Zika Feb. 18: CDC adds Aruba and Bonaire to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 32 Feb. 23: CDC adds Trinidad and Tobago and Marshall Islands to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 34 Feb. 25: Brazil says confirmed microcephaly cases number more than 580 and considers most of them to be related to Zika infections in the mothers, with an additional 4,100 suspected cases of microcephaly Feb. 27: France detects first sexually transmitted case of Zika March 8: WHO advises pregnant women to avoid areas with Zika outbreak and said sexual transmission of the virus is "relatively common" March 19: CDC adds Cuba to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 38 March 22: CDC adds Dominica to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 39 March 31: The World Health Organization says there is a strong scientific consensus that Zika can cause the birth defect microcephaly as well as Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare neurological disorder that can result in paralysis, though conclusive proof may take months or years April 1: CDC adds Kosrae, Federated States of Micronesia to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 40 April 4: CDC adds Fiji to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 41 April 13: The CDC concludes that infection with the Zika virus in pregnant women is a cause of the birth defect microcephaly and other severe brain abnormalities in babies. CDC adds St. Lucia to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 42 April 18: CDC adds Belize to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 43 April 25: Canada confirms first sexually transmitted Zika case April 29: Puerto Rico reports first death related to Zika, according to the CDC. The island territory also confirms 683 Zika cases, including 65 pregnant women, and five suspected cases of Guillain-Barre syndrome from Zika May 4: Panama confirms four microcephaly cases tied to Zika May 6: Spain has first case of Zika-related brain defect in a fetus May 9: CDC adds Papua New Guinea, Saint Barthelemy and Peru to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 46 May 12: CDC adds Grenada to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 47 May 13: Puerto Rico reports first case of Zika-related microcephaly May 20: WHO says an outbreak of Zika virus on the African island chain of Cape Verde is of the same strain as the one blamed for birth abnormalities in Brazil May 26: CDC adds Argentina to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 48 June 9: WHO updates guidelines on prevention of sexual transmission of the Zika virus, including advising women living in areas where the virus is being transmitted to delay getting pregnant June 14: El Salvador confirms first case of microcephaly linked to Zika June 30: CDC adds Anguilla to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 49 July 8: CDC confirms a Utah resident's death from the previous month is the first Zika-related death in the continental United States July 14: CDC adds Saint Eustatius to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 50 July 15: New York City's health department reports the first female-to-male transmission of the Zika virus. July 18: CDC reports the caregiver of Utah man who died of Zika tested positive for virus, raising questions about its spread July 19: Florida health officials investigate a case of Zika virus infection that may have been caused by local mosquito bite July 22: New York City health officials reports first baby born with Zika-related birth defect July 25: Spain reports first case in Europe of baby born with Zika-related defect; CDC issues updated recommendations for preventing and testing for Zika infection, warning that the virus can be transmitted through unprotected sex with an infected female partner July 26: Honduras detects 8 cases of babies with Zika-related defect; CDC adds Saba to countries and territories with active outbreaks with total at 51 July 27: Paraguay reports first cases of microcephaly linked to Zika July 29: Florida authorities report what is believed to be the first evidence of local Zika transmission in the continental United States Aug. 2: CDC adds Antigua, Barbuda, and Turks and Caicos to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 54 Aug. 3: U.S. researchers said they launched Zika vaccine clinical trial Aug. 11: CDC adds Cayman Islands to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 55 Aug. 12: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services declares a public health emergency in Puerto Rico over Zika with 10,690 laboratory-confirmed cases Aug. 13: Brazil reports 1,835 confirmed cases of microcephaly Aug. 16: Haiti reports first case of microcephaly linked to Zika Aug. 17: Guatemala confirms first case of newborn with microcephaly linked to Zika Aug. 19: Florida governor says five cases of Zika are believed to have been contracted in Miami Beach, the second area in Miami-Dade county where the virus is spreading. Aug. 25: CDC adds The Bahamas and the United States to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing total to 57 Aug. 26: FDA recommends that all blood donated in the United States and its territories be tested for Zika virus, starting with 11 states in the first phase; Nicaragua confirms first microcephaly birth linked to Zika Aug. 27-29: Singapore confirms first case of locally transmitted Zika virus, which rise to 56 cases two days later Aug. 30: Confirmed cases in Singapore rise to 82, with some of the latest infections detected beyond the area of initial outbreak. Several countries advise pregnant women or those trying to conceive to avoid traveling to the city-state. Australia, Taiwan, South Korea and the United States issue travel warnings Aug. 31: CDC adds Singapore and the British Virgin Islands to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing tally to 58 (The CDC groups together Antigua and Barbuda in its updated official count) Sept. 3: Malaysia detects first case of locally transmitted Zika Sept. 5: Philippines confirms first case of Zika virus likely to have been transmitted locally Sept. 6: Florida confirms 56 locally transmitted cases, 577 travel-related infections, and 80 infections involving pregnant women Sept. 8: Singapore reports 283 cases of locally transmitted Zika virus Sept. 10: Singapore locally transmitted Zika cases rise to 329 Sept. 13: Thailand said it has recorded 200 cases of Zika since Januuary, the first time the health ministry has confirmed the number of cases this year. Sept. 16: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reports 20,800 confirmed cases of Zika virus in U.S. states and Territories. The department says there are 3,176 confirmed cases in U.S. states and District of Columbia. As of Sept. 8, the department said there were more than 1,880 pregnant women with evidence of Zika virus in U.S. states, District of Columbia and U.S. territories Sept. 19: Florida's governor declares Wynwood neighborhood in Miami Zika-free but the CDC leaves travel warning for Miami Beach Sept. 26: CDC adds St. Kitts and Nevis to countries and territories with active outbreaks, bringing tally to 59 Sept. 29: CDC issues travel advisory urging pregnant women to postpone non-essential travel to 11 Southeast Asian countries in connection with the Zika virus and Brazil reports 1,949 confirmed cases of microcephaly believed to be linked to Zika infections in pregnant women Oct. 13: Florida reports new area of transmission in Miami and says it had 164 cases of Zika caused by local mosquitoes Oct. 19: U.S. health officials create color-coded system for Florida's Miami-Dade County to distinguish risks of transmission in certain areas Oct. 27: Myanmar confirms fist case of Zika virus infection Oct. 28: Brazil says there are 2,063 confirmed cases of microcephaly SOURCES: World Health Organization, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Reuters (Reporting by Ben Hirschler; Compiled and edited by the Americas Desk)
Toby Jones has been tapped to play the late Lou Pearlman in the TV series that will chronicle the life of the fraudulent boy band producer, Variety has learned.

The project is currently in development as a limited series. It hasnt landed at a network yet, but insiders say four different buyers are extremely interested and a home for the series is expected to be announced soon. The project is being shopped to both cable networks and streaming platforms. The search for a writer and director are currently underway.

Lou Pearlman launched mega boy bands such as *NSYNC and Backstreet Boys, and infamously ran a $300 million Ponzi scheme, which sent him to prison for a 25-year sentence. Pearlman died in jail this past August. The potential series is based on The New Yorker article titled, We Live in the Pop-Culture World That Lou Pearlman Created, and will tell the story of Pearlmans life with details of his rise from blimp business owner to the music mogul and then his fall to fraud.

Jones is best known for his roles in The Hunger Games, the Captain America franchise and Harry Potter, in which he voiced Dobby the Elf. The well-respected British actor recently starred on Foxs Wayward Pines

The series hails from Magnet Management and Conde Nast, and will be produced by Jonathan Koa, Jon Kanak, Mitch Solomon and Daniel Pancotto.

Related stories

Lou Pearlman Series in Development, Following Former Boy Band Producer's Death

Lou Pearlman, Disgraced Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC Producer, Dies at 62

TV News Roundup: Bill Maher Hosting Specials on Democratic, Republican Conventions; Nick Zano Cast in 'Legends of Tomorrow'
Tommy Hilfiger The designer, who received the Humanitarian Award alongside his wife, Dee, shared: "Chinos and a white shirt. White sneakers." (Photo: Getty Images)

Members of fashions elite and a smattering of celebrities gathered to celebrate the superstars of the industry at Fashion Group Internationals Annual Night of Stars Gala on Thursday evening in New York City. The Superstar Award of the night went to one of the most notable figures in the industry, Riccardo Tisci, the Italian-born creative director of Givenchy. Models and celebrities attended the event to support their good friend, including Nicki Minaj, Joan Smalls, and Carine Roitfeld. Some other figures honored were designers Tory Burch and Erdem for fashion, Yahoo Styles own Joe Zee for media, Bunny Williams for design, and Pamela Baxter for beauty.

Despite the glitz and glam, celebrities can sometimes be just like us, so we asked them: "If you have 10 minutes to get ready, what are you grabbing out of your closet that makes you feel confident and amazing? Check out reactions from some of the industrys top players to see what looks make them feel empowered.

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day.
* Foz do Amazonas offshore drilling first since 2013 auction

* Total Brazil CEO says has full confidence in Libra project (Adds additional Total comment details of Total projects and partners)

By Jeb Blount

RIO DE JANEIRO, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Total SA plans to spend about $300 million exploring Brazil's Foz do Amazonas Basin in 2017, an oil prospect it invested in three years ago when it also purchased a stake in the massive Libra area, the head of the French oil company's Brazilian unit said on Friday.

The planned drilling in Brazil's far north shows a commitment to Brazilian expansion despite low world oil prices, Maxime Rabilloud, chief executive of Total's Brazilian subsidiary, said in a statement.

Total bought 40 percent stakes in five offshore oil exploration and production blocks in the Foz do Amazonas basin in 2013 and is the operator of the blocks. Brazil's state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA, or Petrobras, and Britain's BP Plc each own 30 percent.

The drilling will be the first in the region off the mouth of the Amazon River since the auction. The region is considered one of the most promising frontiers in Brazil.

The move north comes as Total's global Chief Executive Patrick Pouyanne and Rabilloud reaffirmed the company's commitment to develop Libra. The prized "pre-salt" crude reservoir off Brazil's southern coast has an estimated 8 billion to 12 billion barrels of recoverable reserves, one of the largest oil discoveries on the planet in recent decades.

Rabilloud said he had "full confidence" in working with Petrobras and Total's other partners in realizing Libra's potential.

At an industry event in Rio, Pouyanne and Rabilloud outlined plans to start their first output from the area in 2020, with a 180,000 barrel-a-day floating production ship. Total and its partners plan to install one similar-sized production ship a year in Libra for the following three years after that.

Petrobras, which owns 40 percent of Libra, is running the project as operator. Total and Royal Dutch Shell Plc each own 20 percent. China National Offshore Oil Corp and China National Petroleum Corp each own 10 percent.

(Reporting by Jeb Blount; Editing by Bernard Orr and Tom Brown)
TOKYO (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp on Friday said it has invested in U.S. car-sharing company Getaround, a move that comes as global automakers seek to shore up their presence in new technology sectors amid growing competition from transport startups.

The world's biggest-selling automaker confirmed in an email to Reuters that it has invested in the San Francisco-based start-up through its investment fund, Mirai Creation Investment Limited Partnership, but declined to offer further details.

Earlier on Friday, Japan's Nikkei newspaper reported that Getaround was believed to have received around $10 million from the fund.

Established last year, the fund which also includes Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) as an investor, also invests in artificial intelligence and robotics.

Getaround has been operating its on-demand car-sharing service in San Francisco, Chicago, Washington D.C., and other U.S. cities since 2013. It claims to have more than 200,000 members.

Automakers have been scrambling to partner with tech firms to head off competition from self-driving cars and car sharing services that threaten to eventually trim demand for car ownership.

Toyota's investment follows similar moves this year by other automakers who have partnered with car sharing service providers, including General Motors Co and Lyft Inc, and Volkswagen AG VOWG_p.DE and Israel's Gett.

Toyota already has a partnership with Uber Technologies Inc [UBER.UL], through which the automaker leases vehicles to Uber drivers, and plans to work with the ride-hailing service to accelerate mobile technology research.

(Reporting by Naomi Tajitsu; Editing by Sam Holmes)
A plush toy lies on the ground after migrants fled the makeshift camp 'The Jungle' following the outbreak of a fire during dismantling operations a day earlier, in Calais on Oct. 27.

Authorities have begun demolishing The Jungle, the temporary camp for refugees and migrants in Calais. Earlier this week, most of its inhabitants had been moved to processing centers to settle them throughout France. Despite efforts to house the remaining refugees, the BBC reports that nearly 100 unaccompanied minors had nowhere to sleep for the night.

Around 200 unaccompanied children between 8 + 17 are sleeping on the ground of the #Jungle tonight.Tents have been destroyed. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/wX4svYMcUT  Gavin Lee (@GavinLeeBBC) October 26, 2016

Its a sad reminder that the children making the perilous journey from war-torn regions to Europe have lost any hope for a normal childhood. The small artifacts left behind, captured by photographers documenting the camps dismantling, show the small ways these young migrants have grasped whatever happiness they can.

A soccer ball was abandoned after migrants left the makeshift camp in Calais on Oct. 27.

A soccer ball was abandoned after migrants left the makeshift camp in Calais on Oct. 27.

An abandoned teddybear.

An abandoned teddy bear.

Belongings on the ground after migrants left

Belongings on the ground after migrants left.

Personal Effects Lie Discarded After the Demolition of the Calais Migrant Camp

Felt tip pens are left inside a caravan in the now nearly deserted Jungle migrant camp on Oct. 27.

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Toys R Us is creating such an awesome environment for kids with autism, and we are applauding

Going to Toys R Us is a treat for most kids, but it can be anxiety inducing for parents. For families with an autistic child, it can be even more difficult. The noise, the flashing lights, and distractions down every aisle can be triggering for autistic children and their families. Thats exactly why the announcement that Toys R Us is creating a quiet hour for autistic children and their families is very, very good news. Sit tight, though, American families: Right now the toy chain is launching the quiet time (oh, sweet, sweet, quiet play time) for one day only in their U.K. stores, but its a good start.

On Nov. 6, the stores will dim those harsh fluorescent lights just a bit, turn off the in-store music and announcements, place autism friendly signage around the stores, and even designate totally quiet areas for kids to thumb through books and play make-believe with sample toys. Couldnt this just be an everyday thing? Taking kids out to pick a toy is stressful enough. Fluorescent lights and kid friendly (read: soul crushing) music doesnt make choosing the perfect bake-set or remote controlled car any easier. Even the most cynical business person has to admit that the stores will be saving on their electric bills.

Its a win-win all around.

giphy

Toys R Us marketing director Mike Coogan told The Telegraph, Holding such events has given our teams extreme pride in reaching out to autism groups within the community. He added, Making slight adjustments to stores and creating a quiet shopping period allows children and young adults to experience the fun in a toy shop, regardless of their disability.

The minor tweaks make a world of difference for families and caretakers of autistic children. And it gives the autistic child time to really slow down and take in the glory that is every aisle of the big box retailer. To be completely honest, even shopping as grown up with some anxiety issues can be tough  think of how nice it would be if some retailers just turned the volume down on a bit on the loudspeaker and dimmed the lights? (Can you hear me now, H&M?) Im an old, boring woman, but I would definitely spend more money if I could focus on that rack of $12.99 cardigans. Imagine being an autistic child trying to pick a new action figure with all of that nonsense going on.

Story continues

Of course, its more than just anxiety for autistic children. Loud noises and lights can actually hurt autistic children. Daniel Cadey, autism access manager for the National Autistic Society, said in a statement that, Things like artificial lighting and loud Tannoy announcements can increase their anxiety and be completely overwhelming, even causing them physical pain. Toys R Us is making a big statement to families all over the world with its quiet day on Nov. 6, proving that theyre totally dedicated to serving all families (and still understand how much fun it is to run around the aisles of a toy store instead of just asking their parents to click through Amazon for their holiday wiahis). The toy giant has also released a toy guide for autistic and other disabled children and their families.

Hopefully, it will be a huge success and American stores will get on the bandwagon with creating a safe, fun place for autistic children and their families to hang out.

The post Toys R Us is creating such an awesome environment for kids with autism, and we are applauding appeared first on HelloGiggles.
From Good Housekeeping

Toys R Us just made a big change that will help parents of children on the autism spectrum shop with less stress this holiday season. Stores across the United Kington will host a quiet shopping hour free of in-store distractions on November 6, according to the Telegraph.

The plan is to turn off the in-store music and announcements, dim the fluorescent lights, put in autism-friendly signs and mark specific quiet zones throughout the store. These factors were chosen specifically because they can make autistic children and adults feel overwhelmed or even cause them physical pain, Daniel Cadey, autism access manager for the National Autistic Society in the United Kingdom told the Telegraph.

These adjustments are all an effort to make sure children on the autism spectrum and their family members can have a comfortable and enjoyable shopping experience, regardless of their disabilities, Toys R Us representatives told the Telegraph. "For many autistic people and their families a simple trip to the shops, which should be an enjoyable experience, can be fraught with difficulty," Cadey says.

We're hoping Toys R Us locations in the United States will adopt this idea too. Parents have petitioned for sensory-friendly aisles in Target and ShopRite with local success, but children on the autism spectrum and their parents deserve a place to shop comfortably year-round, no matter where they live. After all, Toys R Us is a place where a kid can be a kid, right?

[h/t Scary Mommy]

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[Photo: Getty]

Toys R Us has announced that itll be extending its shopping hours for families affected by autism and special needs.

It will adjust the stores during this time so that they provide an easier shopping experience for children with autism, including making it a dimmer and quieter environment.

Music and tannoy announcements will be switched off, for example, a quiet zone provided, and the lighting dimmed.

This wont be limited to just a few selected stores, either - every Toys R Us shop will run the event on Sunday 6 November 2016, opening one hour prior to the usual official opening times.

Mike Coogan, Toys R Us marketing and eCommerce director, told The Huffington Post: Making slight adjustments to stores and creating a quiet shopping period allows children and young adults to experience the fun in a toy shop regardless of their disability.

[Photo: Getty]



We understand toys are more personal to many additional needs individuals, so being able to relax and choose something special themselves and enjoy the facilities and content of the store, the same as other children can do without concerns, will help in making their Christmas truly magical.

Due to Sunday trading legislation the stores wont be able to process purchases until theyve officially opened at 11am in England and Wales or 1pm in Northern Ireland.

Parents can return later in the day to pay for shopping, while Scottish stores can carry out transactions straight away.

What do you think about Toys R Us special opening times? Tweet us at @YahooStyleUK.

Would you leave your five-year-old home alone?



Why This Older Woman Is Campaigning For New Emojis
The Hollywood studio that made the latest "Transformers" blockbuster must pay a Chinese scenic area more than two million yuan ($300,000) because it failed to include the park's logo, state media reported.

A court in Chongqing ordered Paramount Pictures and its Beijing partner to pay the money to a park in the southwestern municipality, the official Xinhua news agency said late Thursday.

The films are wildly popular in China, with Chinese companies from milk producers to banks flocking to link their products to them, and when "Transformers: Age of Extinction" came out it became the country's highest ever grossing movie.

Some of its scenes were filmed in the gorges and caves of the Wulong Scenic Area, and the tourism group managing the park claimed that it had a product placement agreement for the logo to be shown in the footage.

It filed suit in 2014, saying that its contract had been violated and demanding 20 million yuan in compensation, reports at the time said.

Neither Paramount Pictures nor its Chinese partner 1905 Internet Technology could be reached for comment by AFP on Friday.

"Age of Extinction" was the fourth film in director Michael Bay's robot action franchise, with a fifth instalment due next year.
Offshore drilling powerhouse Transocean Ltd. RIG is set to release its third-quarter 2016 results after the closing bell on Wednesday, Nov 2.

What Investors Need to Know

The companys stock performance has been pretty choppy lately, and it will be up to this coming release to set the trend heading into 2017.

However, the Switzerland-based rig supplier has an excellent industry rank  in the top 16% overall. Transocean also has a B for its VGM Score, so fundamentals are pretty strong for this stock.

Adding to the positives, the company has a very good track record when it comes to earnings and has beaten estimates in each of the last twelve quarters, as you can see in the chart below:

TRANSOCEAN LTD Price and EPS Surprise

TRANSOCEAN LTD Price and EPS Surprise | TRANSOCEAN LTD Quote

But for a stock exhibiting such great vibes, earnings estimates have been rather stagnant, as the consensus estimate has been unmoved over the past few months. This is something that investors definitely dont want to see heading into a report.

Therefore, the signals are mixed and it seems as if it could be a rockier report than one might think.

Lets see how things are shaping up for this announcement.

Factors to Consider This Quarter

As is the case with other offshore drillers, Transoceans revenues/earnings have borne the brunt of the freefall in realized commodity prices over the past 2 years. As oil remains in a bearish territory, the top energy companies have cut spending (particularly on the costly drilling projects) on the back of lower profit margins. This, in turn, has meant less work for the beleaguered drillers as offshore exploration for new oil and gas projects has almost come to a standstill.

However, Transocean has come up with certain strategy initiatives to overcome the industry-wide slump.

Firstly, with an aggressive cost reduction program, Transocean is looking to shore up its operational performance even in this weak oil and gas pricing environment. As part of this strategy, the company has embarked on a policy to optimize overhead and maintenance expenses.

Story continues

Secondly, Transocean has zeroed its focus on reducing out-of-service times by carefully planning the frequency of its in-service maintenance and shipyard repairs.

Finally, Transocean has set itself an ambitious target to achieve a very impressive 95% revenue efficiency for 2016. As it is, the company is coming off three consecutive years with revenue efficiency at or above 95% The continuation of this trend will aid operating margin in the to-be-reported quarter.

Earnings Whispers

Our proven model does not conclusively show that Transocean will beat estimates this quarter. That is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) to be able to beat consensus estimates. Please check our Earnings ESP Filter that enables you to find stocks that are expected to come out with earnings surprises.

That is not the case here as you will see below.

Zacks ESP: Earnings ESP, which represents the difference between the Most Accurate estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate, is -7.69%. This is because the Most Accurate estimate stands at 12 cents, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged higher, at 13 cents.

Zacks Rank: Transocean has a Zacks Rank #3. Though a Zacks Rank #3 increases the predictive power of ESP, a negative ESP makes surprise prediction difficult.

We caution against Sell-rated stocks (Zacks Ranks #4 and 5) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions.

Stocks to Consider

While earnings beat looks uncertain for Transocean, here are some firms from the energy space you may want to consider on the basis of our model, which shows that they have the right combination of elements to post earnings beat this quarter:

W&T Offshore Inc. WTI has an Earnings ESP of +11.63% and a Zacks Rank #1. The company is expected to release earnings results on Nov 2. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Devon Energy Corp. DVN has an Earnings ESP of +20.00% and a Zacks Rank #2. The partnership is anticipated to release earnings on Nov 1.

Comstock Resources Inc. CRK has an Earnings ESP of +3.74% and a Zacks Rank #2. The company is likely to release earnings on Nov 8.

Confidential from Zacks

Beyond this Analyst Blog, would you like to see Zacks' best recommendations that are not available to the public? Our Executive VP, Steve Reitmeister, knows when key trades are about to be triggered and which of our experts has the hottest hand. Click to see them now>>



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TRANSOCEAN LTD (RIG): Free Stock Analysis Report



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To read this article on Zacks.com click here.



Zacks Investment Research
BELGRADE (Reuters) - More than 1,000 migrants, trapped in Serbia after fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and Central Asia, have occupied a derelict warehouse in the capital Belgrade, where they are preparing to tough out a bitter Balkan winter. More than 100,000 migrants have passed through Serbia this year, from countries such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, to seek sanctuary in the wealthy countries of northern Europe. But border closures have left many stranded. "We want to go to Italy, Germany, France, but the border is closed at Hungary and Croatia," said Najib, who said he was from Afghanistan. Around him, men warmed their hands on camp fires, as smoke drifted up into the high rafters, and others perched on car tyres as they washed at a makeshift sink in a vain attempt to keep away the filth of the tumbledown building. Last year, hundreds of thousands of refugees swept through the Balkans, prompting countries to throw up near-impenetrable barriers to block them. More than 6,400 refugees are trapped in Serbia, 1,200 of them in this warehouse, aid workers say. Some who had made it further north said they were beaten by police at the Hungarian border and sent back to Belgrade. Many had Serbian documents telling them they had no grounds to remain - but few have the means to return home. "Here, look at this place, it's very dirty. I become sick," said Imrar Khan, 17, who left Pakistan three months ago. Dozens of migrants bed down in rows between piles of garbage in the warehouse, near the city's central station. Authorities blame people traffickers for much of the influx. Since the beginning of the year, they have prevented 5,000 illegal border crossings and charged 356 people with the smuggling of around 2,000 people. (Reporting by Thomas Escritt; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
When it comes to vacation photography, were a long way from the living-room slideshows of a generation ago, when a host would project not a single view of the Taj Mahal, but a dozenone, inevitably, with a strangers bald pate as an accidental counterpoint to the majestic white dome. Were even beyond where we were a decade ago, when a traveler would return from Paris and deluge her Flickr followers with every imaginable perspective of Notre Dame. Its not that people have stopped sharing. Anyone whos lately been on Facebook or Instagram, in fact, might credibly argue that were at a world-historical peak for seeing photographs of our acquaintances vacations. But in the social media era, the aesthetic bar for our snaps has been raised, rather dramatically. These days, its not just that everyones a photographereveryones a curator, too.

And so youd probably post only your single most sublime photograph from Notre Damein part because inundating others feeds with too much of your vacation is a faux pas, but more crucially because you understand the way that social media has become a remarkable, crowd sourced, virtually professional quality photo album of the world. Not very long ago, publications like this one were the ultimate authority on (and repository of) the worlds finest travel photography. Now, magazines, just like everyone else, are drawing inspiration from Instagram. There are, in any given feed at any given moment, images of majestic wild mountainscapes in Denali, Alaska, or the intergalactic-seeming pools of Iceland, or an utterly empty beach in Spetses, Greece, or the craggy, sunbaked face of an Andean farmer. They pull the viewer instantly into a world where vacation is infinite and omnipresent.

They also offer an additional dream: take enough beautiful photos of your travels, and you might even be able to live full-time inside the fantasy youre projecting. Corey Arnold, a former commercial fisherman, started by documenting his life in Alaska, and now his photos, popularized by his social feeds, show up in Time and National Geographic. Alice Gao, a young New Yorker with 990,000 Instagram followers, got hired by Madewell and Kinfolk magazine after her feedfull of breakfast still lifes and Richard Serra sculptureswent big. Foster Huntington quit his New York design job to drive a van all over the country and take photographs. Home is now an actual tree house amid the Douglas firs of Washington. Brands like Bonobos and U.S. Cellular pay to be mentioned and hashtagged in his captions, hoping to reach the 1 million people who check his Instagram feed to get their fix of seeing someone a lot like them living a life totally unlike their own.

Story continues

Chris Burkard was a surfer kid who began making art about the California waves he loved. Now he has 1.9 million Instagram followers who watch him jet from Arnarstapi, Iceland, to the Hall of the Gods on Maligne Lake in Albertaa lifestyle made possible by commercial work for brands like the North Face and Land Rover. Everything in his photographs seems to sweep upward, gloriously, whether mountains or waves or swirling clouds of stars. His is a life marked (at least on Instagram) by consistently extraordinary moments. Whatever happens in between the photographs is, for us, beside the point. We get to click and scroll, imagining ourselves, someday, in that picture, or the next one.

The photographers behind the best travel accounts on Instagram understand this. Their talent is in bringing you along for the ride. Take Murad Osmann, a Russian photographer whose pictures have a strict, cheesecake-y format: each features his attractive wife, her back to the camera, often dressed in local garb (in India, a sari and henna; in Spain, a red flamenco-ish dress bearing a striking resemblance to the dancing-lady emoji). Shes always facing a landscape so twinkling and postcard-perfect it looks like one of those late-90s screen saversa rainbow over a castle in a verdant valley, a camel in a Technicolor, Lawrence of Arabia version of Jordan. The sky is always blue in @muradosmanns world. But his particular genius lies in his art direction of his wifes hand. Its always stretched behind her, holding his left hand, the one not snapping the picturea visual trick thats meant to pull the viewer, as much as possible, into the frame, into the fantasy. Like it or not, the approach works: Osmanns Instagram account went viral in 2012, and he now has 4.4 million followers. He and his wife also became brand ambassadors for Inc., a Macys clothing brand.

In their own way, Osmann and his cohort are doing something with their pictures that travel photography has always done: stoke desire, elicit wanderlust. It prepackages your vacation emotions for you, makes tantalizing promises about feel and atmosphere and even, perhaps, transformationnot unlike the way your own photos, eventually, will funnel the days and weeks of road ups-and-downs into a highlight reel. See this exquisitely lit mist over the mountain? You wont remember the biting cold, or how you fought with your husband about which exit to take. This trip will be romantically misty! YOU will become romantically misty! We take pictures to stake out our own memoryscape. We look longingly at the photographs of others to borrow a little of theirs.

There are few Joys greater as a photographer than seeing a print of your work on someone's wall or a book in their house. I'm pretty stoked to be able to offer 50% off prints this entire months and 25% off books. www.chrisburkard.com If you are in central California you can always drop by my gallery and see some large pieces in person or give me a high five! A photo posted by ChrisBurkard (@chrisburkard) on Dec 12, 2015 at 5:54pm PST

I've made my way to Seoul and am in love with this moment I caught today of these girls in traditional Korean dress taking photos of one another. And yes, that girl in the back is throwing a peace sign. A photo posted by Pei Ketron (@pketron) on Apr 8, 2015 at 11:52am PDT

@fromwhereidrone x #fromwhereidrone A photo posted by Dirk Dallas (@dirka) on Jun 11, 2016 at 8:59pm PDT

summer shadows while my sheep look on (seriously going to start a handmade sheep collection) A photo posted by Alice Gao (@alice_gao) on Jul 28, 2016 at 8:58am PDT

Embrace You A photo posted by Dirk Bakker (@macenzo) on Oct 12, 2015 at 3:56am PDT

Hello Petra! There are few places in the world as beautiful and historic as this ancient Nabataean city. Here I am with some camels in awe with the Treasury, incredibly carved into the beautiful rock surface. @visitjordan #shareyourjordan A photo posted by Emilie Ristevski (@helloemilie) on Oct 11, 2015 at 4:24am PDT

Good morning from Lake Wanaka where I am traveling for the week with JUCY camper vans! It's unusual for me to do a job with a destination + brand but this one is a beauty because New Zealand particularly suits road trip holidays and Jucy vehicles are literally everywhere on the road! I had to kick start with a shot of THAT Wanaka tree but I promise I'll shoot other things as well. ;) @jucyworld #jucyworld A photo posted by Lauren Bath | Australia (@laurenepbath) on Jul 10, 2016 at 12:18pm PDT

Just posted a photo from HK #ontheroofs #hongkong A photo posted by Vitaliy Raskalov (@raskalov) on May 26, 2016 at 4:33am PDT

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A new Tribe Called Quest album is officially due out Nov. 11 via Epic Records. The iconic New York City hip-hop group's sixth album, its first since 1998's The Love Movement and first new release since founding member Phife Dawg's death March 22, will be followed by a performance on Saturday Night Live on Nov. 12, according to sources.

Q-Tip posted a hand-written announcement with the news to Facebook on Thursday (Oct. 27). In it, he said that this will be the final Tribe Called Quest album and will feature Busta Rhymes and Consequence, as well as recordings of Phife Dawg tracked before his death.

"No, this isn't filled with old Phife Bars.. This is that Pure, unstepped on Pure!!" Tip wrote.

While few details have been revealed, Epic boss L.A. Reid said in an interview in August that a new Tribe record was on the way "soon," adding that it was recorded before Phife passed away and will feature the full Tribe lineup: Phife, Q-Tip, Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Jarobi White. "I'm really happy about it man, it's really something special," Reid said at the time. "It's one of the things I'm most excited about over everything we're working on."

Additionally, Tribe will be the musical guest on Saturday Night Live following the album's release, with rumors of a special guest joining the group for a special performance (a rep for NBCUniversal said the company could not confirm at this time whether Tribe will be a musical guest). The group reunited in 2013 to open dates on Kanye West's Yeezus Tour, their last public performances together before Phife's passing.

On Nov. 19, after the release of the album, the section of Linden Boulevard and 192nd Street in Queens -- where the group filmed the video to their 1991 single "Check the Rhime" -- will be renamed Malik "Phife Dawg" Taylor Way in honor of the late MC.
By Timothy Mclaughlin (Reuters) - A Native American tribe and other activists opposed to a multibillion-dollar oil pipeline project in North Dakota vowed on Friday to continue their fight through direct action, legal challenges and growing celebrity support, a day after police arrested 141 of their members. Thursday's arrests came at the site of the $3.8 billion Dakota Access pipeline when dozens of riot police swept through a protester camp on private land using pepper spray, bean bag rounds and an audio cannon against demonstrators who refused to leave. Some of the protesters set fire to roadblocks and threw rocks, bottles and Molotov cocktails at the law enforcement officers, the local Morton County Sheriff's Department said. Dallas Goldtooth, 33, an activist from the Indigenous Environmental Network, said on Friday the demonstrators were taking the day off to regroup and pray. He added there were still ample opportunities for them to stop the pipeline. "They still have miles of construction to happen and that is miles of construction yet to be stopped," Goldtooth said via telephone from the protest site in North Dakota. "There are still windows of opportunity to disrupt construction." The sheriff's department said in a statement Friday that it was maintaining a presence in the area and that a section of a state highway remained closed. Protesters were nonconfrontational, the department said, but still not cooperating with orders to leave a bridge that was damaged by a fire on Thursday. One additional protester was arrested on Friday morning, the department said. The 1,172-mile (1,885-km) pipeline, being built by a group of companies led by Energy Transfer Partners LP , would offer the fastest and most direct route to bring Bakken shale oil from North Dakota to U.S. Gulf Coast refineries. Vicki Granado, a spokeswoman for Dakota Access, declined to comment on the latest developments with protesters. Supporters say the pipeline would be safer and more cost-effective than transporting the oil by road or rail. 'WE WON'T STEP DOWN' But the project has drawn angry opposition from the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, as well as environmental activists, who say it threatens local water supplies and sacred tribal sites. They have been protesting for several months, and a total of 411 protesters have been arrested since Aug. 10, the sheriff's department said. The tribe wants observers from the U.S. Department of Justice to probe the use of force by police, said Sue Evans, a spokeswoman for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. "We've heard many, many reports on injury and unlawful arrests," Evans said. "We would like those law enforcement abuses investigated." In a statement, Dave Archambault II, the tribe's chairman, said: "We won't step down from this fight ... This is about our water, our rights, and our dignity as human beings." Amid the protests, the U.S. government in September halted construction on part of the pipeline. The affected area includes land under Lake Oahe, a large and culturally important reservoir on the Missouri River where the line was supposed to cross. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is currently deciding whether to grant the pipeline company an easement to build under the lake. The decision will "hopefully be soon" but there is no estimated time of arrival, a spokesman for the Corps, Thomas O'Hara, said on Friday. Meanwhile, opposition to the pipeline continues to gather the backing of celebrities. Among the actors who have already lent their voices to the cause are Shailene Woodley, Susan Sarandon and Riley Keough. On Thursday, Australian actor Chris Hemsworth showed his solidarity with demonstrators in an Instagram post. The support of famous people has frustrated Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier, who said on Thursday he resented being asked by "outsiders and millionaire Hollywood actors" to let "agitators and rioters" break the law. (Reporting by Timothy Mclaughlin in Chicago; Additional reporting by Julia Harte in Washington and Mica Rosenberg in New York; Editing by Matthew Lewis)
So, Trump made an ad in Hindi, and its actually pretty bizarre

As if things couldnt get any weirder this election season (we almost made it, guys), Donald Trump just made his big debut speaking Hindi. Yep. This from the guy who wants to ban literally every Muslim from the country, and who made a pretty big mistake regarding Christianity.

This is one campaign ad youll just have to see for yourself.

The ad references the time Trump spoke at a Republican Hindu Coalition charity concert in New Jersey  another surprising move, TBH. Were trying to figure out why Trump is targeting Hindus, but, like, hes already insulted so many other religious groups that we guess it makes sense.

Business Insider spoke with the chairman of Trumps Indian-American advisory committee (who is, BTW, also the founder and head of the Republican Hindu Coalition). Shalabh Kumar explained that the ad was getting a *lot* of air time, as it was being shown 20 times a day nationally on 20 networks. Whoa.

Kumar elaborated,

Hes the only candidate who has ever spoken Hindi.

Veeeery interesting. What a time to be alive, friends.

So why Hindus?

Kumar said the answer is pretty simple. He told Business Insider,

Our values are conservative values. When it comes time to vote, or support a particular candidate, they identify themselves as minorities. And as minorities, they just vote for Democrats.

But hes trying to change that.

When they come to know all this, they think, We should support Trump, we should support Republicans.'

Welp. The more you know, right?

The post So, Trump made an ad in Hindi, and its actually pretty bizarre appeared first on HelloGiggles.
New York (AFP) - Republican vice presidential candidate Mike Pence's campaign plane slid off a runway after landing at New York's LaGuardia Airport, the campaign said.

No injuries were reported.

"We could feel the plane sliding off the runway and then (it) came to a very sharp halt" after landing, CNN producer Elizabeth Landers, who was on the plane, told the channel.

"The governor and everyone on board is okay," she said of Donald Trump's running mate.

The Boeing 737 slid completely off the runway onto grass next to the tarmac, she added, saying there was mud and grass on the plane's body and "gashes" on the runway.

Video footage broadcast from the runway soon after the incident showed steady rain falling. Pence could be seen shaking hands and posing for photos with first responders.

"So thankful everyone on our plane is safe," he tweeted after the incident. "Grateful for our first responders & the concern & prayers of so many. Back on the trail tomorrow!"

Trump, who was campaigning in Ohio, called Pence after the accident, spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said.

"He reached out to Governor Pence and he is very glad everyone aboard is safe," she said.

Trump's Democratic rival Hillary Clinton also tweeted after the incident: "Glad to hear @mike_pence, his staff, Secret Service, and the crew are all safe."
Controversial Donald Trump supporter Peter Thiel finally put his cash behind his candidate in October with $1.25 million in contributions.

The billionaire venture capitalist gave $250,000 in early October to Trump Victory, the presidential candidate's joint fundraising committee with the Republican Party, according to Federal Election Commission data reported Thursday. He also gave $1 million to pro-Trump super PAC Make America Number 1, but it was received after the FEC filing deadline for the Oct. 1 to Oct. 19 period so it did not immediately show up in reports, a spokesman for Thiel said.

The New York Times first reported that Thiel planned to give $1.25 million backing Trump.

Most of the $250,000 joint fundraising donation will not go to Trump directly but to the GOP and other candidates.

Thiel has fueled controversy in Silicon Valley, where very few influential business people support Trump. Thiel spoke at the Republican National Convention in support of the billionaire developer.

Facebook has stood by Thiel, a board member at the social media company, after he supported Trump, though some in Silicon Valley have called for him to be removed from the board.

Thiel sparked more recent controversy after the surfacing of decades-old book passages in which he appeared to downplay rape accusations. He later apologized.

Thiel also made headlines this year for funding Hulk Hogan's lawsuit against Gawker, which contributed to the media company's eventual sale.





More From CNBC


Donald Trump 's running mate, Republican Indiana Gov. Mike Pence , told CNBC on Friday their administration would repeal Obamacare and usher in a new way for Americans to buy health insurance.

"[We're] committed to allowing ... people to buy health insurance the way we buy life insurance, the way we buy car insurance," Pence said in a "Squawk Box" interview.

"That is across state lines in a competitive marketplace, not with the top-down government takeover of health care which is what Obamacare was from the very beginning," he said.

Trump wants to replace Obamacare with health savings accounts, a way to put tax-free money aside to pay for medical expenses.

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton plans to "defend and expand" Obamacare, adding the so-called public option or government-run health insurance offerings.



Pence also argued that Trump's outrage over his "stolen" tax records is justified, and it's not hypocritical to use the information contained in Clinton's emails.

Not all the Clinton emails were the result of WikiLeaks publishing hacked files, Pence said, adding some were brought to light by Freedom of Information Act requests.

"Many in the national media are buying into the argument from the other side that the issue here is where they came from, not what's in the emails," Pence said.

On the matter of AT&T (NYSE:T)'s proposed $85 billion buyout of Time Warner (TWX), the GOP vice presidential nominee defended Trump's comments about being opposed to the deal.

"One of the things that's appealing about Donald Trump is that he speaks his mind; speaks it plainly," he said. "I think expressing skepticism on that [merger], as policymakers in Washington, D.C., evaluate that merger was more than appropriate."



Responding to critics who say Trump would look to be a big picture president and delegate the day-to-day running of the country to his staff, Pence, who served six terms as a U.S. congressman, told CNBC the real estate billionaire would be the one to make the "play calls," if they were to win the White House.

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While touting his accomplishments leading a state and crafting legislation in Washington, Pence talked about a pillar of Trump's plan to jump-start the economy.



"Trump wants to do, in part what we've done in Indiana but most especially what Ronald Reagan did back in the 1980s ... is cut taxes across the board," Pence said, including lowering the federal corporate tax rate to 15 percent from 35 percent.

In addition to Obamacare, Pence said a Trump administration would repeal every one of President Barack Obama 's executive orders. He said those measures are "stifling American jobs."

"We're [also] going to have the trade deals that put the American people and the American economy first," he said. "We are never going to tackle a $20 trillion national debt unless we get this economy growing again."

Pence also told CNBC he's "very thankful," after his campaign plane slid off the runway at LaGuardia Airport in New York on Thursday night.

"There was about 10 seconds of uncertainty. We landed. You could tell they were getting on the brakes pretty strongly. We slid," Pence said. "When the mud came up on the windows, we knew we were off the runway."

No one was injured.

"It seems like the first responders were there before the plane stopped rolling," said Pence, who was traveling from Iowa to a fundraiser at Trump Tower.

Meanwhile, new fundraising figures show the Trump-Pence ticket is way behind the money haul of Clinton, as next month's election approaches.

The Clinton campaign had about $62 million on hand as of Oct. 20, nearly four times Trump's $16 million, according to new Federal Election Commission data.

Trump is also trailing in nearly all national polls, with the Real Clear Politics average showing Clinton ahead by 4.5 percentage points. Most swing state polls also give the Democrat the advantage.





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We are now ten days into the Iraqiled, U.S.backed fight to retake Mosul, ISISs remaining stronghold in Iraq. Assuming a victory, will it look much different than a defeat?

The most consequential aftermath is the political, diplomatic, and battlefield mess Turkish President Recip Tayyip Erdogan is determined to make of Mosul in the name of self-interest across the region.

Related: Has the US Backed an Incompetent Commander in Iraq?

Reports from the front lines are positive, by and large. Iraqi units are advancing on the nations second-largest city from several directions. Two Iraqi generals estimated Thursday that 800900 Islamic State fighters have already been killed. Based on the Pentagons earlier estimates, thats up to a third of ISIS forces inside the city.

However, the same commanders also warned that winning back Mosul could take weeks or months of heavy fighting.

That is grave news for the Obama administration for one simple reason. Anything other than a short, sharp victory will leave the White House at least partly responsible for the same kind of destruction, violence, and loss of life that the SyrianRussian campaign wreaks daily in East Aleppo.

In such a case, it will be hard to resist comparisons between Aleppo and Mosul despite incessant criticism, including charges of war crimes, against Syrian forces and the Russian bombers supporting it.

Related: Factbox: Once-Tolerant Mosul Site of Iraq Push Against Islamic State

The bitter lesson Obamas policy planners should not have had to learn is this: Whether Americans or Iraqis are leading the fight, any battle for a city of a million or more is fated to be protracted, and whats left afterward will inevitably reflect tragic human and material losses.

So much for the Obama Doctrine. The White House also did not figure on what it means to make local forces lead, which is the core goal of the presidents new strategy. Elliot Ackerman, a former Marine now reporting for Esquire, described the prevalence of sectarian militias when interviewed from the front lines on NPR Wednesday.

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From the back of their Humvees theyre flying these Shia flags as they go toward Mosul, Ackerman said. These are supposedly nonsectarian forces that arent supposed to be participating in sectarian violence.

Grim reality No. 2: Defeating ISIS in Mosuland by extension Iraqisnt going to make much difference if it means replacing Sunni extremists with their Shia adversaries.

The Obama Doctrines most serious indictmentand the grimmest reality now facing the White Housearises from Erdogans arrogant insistence that Turkish units must be part of the Mosul campaign. In a phrase, the Turkish leader now makes his nation the local ally from hell.

Nobody wants the Turkish army to play any such rolenot Baghdad, and certainly not U.S.backed Kurdish forces, whose effectiveness on the battlefield proves decisive in Iraq and Syria alike.

Related: Turkey, Iraq Reach Agreement 'In Principle' on Mosul

The Sunni-nationalist leader signaled his intentions two years ago when Turkey stationed a garrison of troops equipped with tanks and artillery in northern Iraq over Baghdads strenuous objections. As forces gathered for the Mosul campaign earlier this month, the Turkish parliament voted to extend the mandate for a yeara pointed provocation that set the stage for the multi-sided mess now unfolding.

Erdogan has since asserted that Turkey cannot be left off the tableagain over Baghdads protests. He elaborated by stating that only Sunnis should remain in Mosul after it is recaptured.

There we have it: Sectarianism as official policythis from a key American ally in the region.

Erdogans obsession with crushing Kurdish minorities in Turkey, Syria, and Iraq is well-enough knownand problem enough for Washington, given its military reliance on Kurdish forces. Now he is asserting grandiosely that the Ottoman Empires legacy gives Turkey a historic role in the region well beyond its borders.

Related: Iraq's Traumatized Minorities: A Test of Unity After Mosul Offensive

The SykesPicot maps, which divided the Ottoman Empire into modern Syria and Iraq after World War I, may need to be redrawn before this is all over, but Recip Tayyip Erdogans nostalgia for lost greatness cannot be accepted as the guiding principle.

The Obama administrations responses to Erdogans ever more stunning assertions have been inadequate to choose the mildest term for it.

Last week Defense Secretary Ashton Carter announced after meetings with Turkish officials that Baghdad and Ankara had reached an agreement in principle allowing Turkey a role in the Mosul campaign. A Pentagon official subsequently explained that Turkey could make nonmilitary contributions such as humanitarian assistance and medical aid.

Iraqi leaders immediately and unambiguously stated that no such agreement existed, in principle or otherwise. Pretending a chasm this wide and deep isnt there is one definition of inadequate.

Related: Turkey's Erdogan Says Iraq Cannot Handle Mosul Assault Alone

Carter compounded matters when he addressed Erdogans hyper-nationalist ambitions. As The New York Times put it, Mr. Carter has said the United States is trying to balance our respect for the sovereignty of Iraq and our respect also for Turkeys historic role in the region.

What? Iraqs rights under international law do not balance with an unpredictable dictators irredentist dreams of imperial revival.

Mosul has pushed the Obama administration into an all-too-familiar bind, as Secretary Carters misguided remarks make plain: It will do anything at this point to mollify a wildly undisciplined leader who should be treated to just the opposite. Never mind the Middle East as another quagmire for the Russians: The outgoing president has made it ours.

Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
In an ambitious effort to ensure that Turkey plays a leading role in shaping Iraq and Syria after the ouster of the Islamic State, Turkish officials have gone on the offensive in recent months, deploying troops across borders, issuing threats to foreign governments, and publicly yearning to claw back former Ottoman territory carved away nearly a century ago.

But such saber rattling comes just as the Turkish military is being gutted in a months-long purge that has seen thousands of troops cashiered and hundreds of senior officers jailed or fired, while hundreds more have been recalled from overseas postings with NATO and other allies. The far-reaching reprisals follow the failed military coup that sought to unseat President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in July, and vastly overshadow previous Turkish purges after abortive putsches.

The Turkish air force, in particular, is being decimated. At least 300 of its officers have been sacked, leading to the grounding of five squadrons of F-16 fighters and thereby cutting the available jets from 240 to about 140. Even those may be tough to properly maintain, given the purge of mechanics and ground crews in the aftermath of the July 15 coup, in which several F-16s bombed the parliament building in Ankara and Erdogans palace.

On Thursday, Turkish police arrested another 45 air force pilots, just the latest salvo in a purge whose scope is unprecedented in NATO history. As many as 10,000 service members have been fired or arrested over the past three months, arrests which have hit the air force particularly hard given that several top air force generals took part in the coup attempt. Overall, at least 149 generals and admirals have been fired or arrested, half of Turkeys total roster. The ouster has cut so deep that Ankara is scouring for engineering students and even secular officers forcibly retired after a 2010 coup attempt to stanch the brain drain.

The military purge is both pushing Turkey to play a more adventurous role in the region, by giving troops a fight outside Turkey, and making those irredentist visions that much harder to achieve. Whats more, Turkeys military housecleaning threatens to seriously weaken NATOs southern flank just as Russian adventurism in the neighborhood has ratcheted up, with a renewed Russian military operation in support of Bashar al-Assads forces in Syria and a heavy Russian naval deployment to the Mediterranean.

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Erdogans government desperately wants to rebuild the image of the military, after the coup, Gonul Tol, director of the Middle East Institutes center for Turkish studies, told Foreign Policy. One way to do that is to get them into the fight. Turkish forces plowed across the Syrian border in August during Operation Euphrates, a push to kick the Islamic State off the Turkish border and keep Kurdish militiamen from broadening their Syrian holdings.

Since then, Turkey has only dialed up the rhetoric. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has played a key role, threatening a ground invasion of Iraq, more attacks on U.S.-backed Kurdish forces fighting in Syria, and claiming that Turkish F-16s are involved in operations over Mosul. (They arent.)

Erdogan himself has fanned the flames. After the Iraqi government rejected Turkeys offer of its F-16s to take part in the fight for Mosul earlier this month, Erdogan told the Turkish parliament, we will play a role in the Mosul liberation operation and no one can prevent us from participating. Some 600 Turkish troops remain unwelcome interlopers at a base north of Mosul, where they have been training Sunni and friendly Kurdish militias, despite howls of protest from Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi.

Regional experts say that the Turks arent out of bounds in looking to play a serious role in security operations in the region. Turkey shares long and often porous borders with both Iraq and Syria, and Ankara has spent decades fighting Kurdish PKK militants in southeastern Turkey who use both countries as safe havens. Ankaras desire to shape what happens after the ouster of the Islamic State is in many ways an extension of deeply entrenched security habits, especially when it comes to checking the threat of the various Kurdish militias.

But recent comments  from trampling on Iraqs requests to pull troops out, to expansionist dreams of territorial aggrandizement  have hurt Ankaras standing on the global stage.

Theyre expending political capital more than anything else throughout the Middle East and in Europe, said Aaron Stein, resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council.

Relations with the United States arent much better. Erdogans government has blamed the coup attempt on forces linked to Fethullah Gulen, a cleric and onetime Erdogan ally living in exile in Pennsylvania. Gulens movement has spread throughout the armed forces, Erdogan and his supporters say, and Washingtons refusal to extradite him to Turkey has created a major rift between the pair of NATO allies.

On Wednesday, Turkeys Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag met with U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch in Washington to press Turkeys case that Gulen was the coups mastermind, and that he directly influenced key officers. Bozdag presented Lynch with the testimony of Lt. Col. Levent Turkkan, the aide to military Chief of General Staff Hulusi Akar, in which, under questioning, Turkkan admitted to being a Gulenist, and of wiretapping the chief of staff and delivering the tapes to contacts for shipment to Gulen in Pennsylvania. Like many other top officers arrested after the coup, pictures taken of Turkkan in the days after the failed operation show his face bloodied, and his hands and midsection heavily bandaged.

Speaking to reporters at the Turkish Embassy on Thursday, Bozdag warned, it will deal a blow to the relationship between Turkey and the United States if Gulen is not extradited. We want the United States to understand us, because there is a growing anti-Americanism among Turkish people.

Lynch has said that for extradition the United States requires evidence that would stand up in a U.S. court. A statement from the Department of Justice on Wednesday said the two sides will continue their ongoing close and full cooperation in the matter.

Turkeys purge also threatens to undermine NATO, of which it has been a crucial part since 1952; Turkey has the second-largest military in the alliance, after the United States. The culling has hit liaison officers with NATO and other allies particularly hard, which makes it more difficult for countries like the United States to coordinate on military operations. Many of the dismissed officers trained or studied in the United States, and their departure creates a vacuum within the upper ranks of the armed forces, where seasoned officers with relationships built over the course of years with NATO officers and diplomats are critical.

Since July, dozens of officers posted to NATO assignments have received orders to come home, where many have been arrested, and others simply given their walking papers. A total of 149 of Ankaras military representatives at NATO facilities in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom have returned to Turkey. Of the 50 Turkish officers serving at NATO headquarters in Brussels, only nine remain.

Jorge Benitez, a NATO expert at the Atlantic Council, says Turkish officials have told him that about 400 of Turkeys military envoys across the world have also been fired or called back.

The magnitude of Erdogans purges  which also include tens of thousands of judges, police officers, teachers, journalists, and academics  further fuel instability in a major NATO ally that is already under strain from terrorist attacks, a huge population of refugees, and a war next door in Syria that is becoming even more violent, Benitez said.

And that is disturbing news not just for the ongoing fight against the Islamic State, but as part of NATOs effort to hold the line against an increasingly aggressive Russia, which has bolstered its defenses in the Black Sea and whose military expedition in Syria is the countrys largest overseas deployment in years.

Theres no question its going to make it less easy to operate together as an alliance, former U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, Eric Edelman observed to FP.

Foreign Policys Dan De Luce contributed to this report.

Photo by Stringer/Getty Images
(Reuters) - Two California men have been charged in a scheme to smuggle more than $3 million worth of military aircraft parts and other defense items to Iran, U.S. federal prosecutors said on Friday.

Zavik Zargarian, 52, and Vache Nayirian, 57, who live outside Los Angeles, were arrested on Wednesday on suspicion of violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a statement.

"The crimes charged in this indictment are very serious threats to our national security," Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Mary McCord said on Friday. "As a nation, it is vital that we protect our military technology and prevent it from getting into the hands of other countries without proper authorization."

The U.S. embargo on Iran bars the export of goods, technology and services to the country with few exceptions.

If convicted, Zargarian faces a maximum sentence of 115 years in federal prison and a $4,770,000 fine, while Nayirian faces a maximum sentence of 95 years in prison and a $3,770,000 fine, prosecutors said.

The men, who have both pleaded not guilty, are scheduled for trial in federal court beginning on Dec. 20. They are among five defendants named in an indictment unsealed on Wednesday, which included Iranian nationals Hanri Terminassian, 55, and Hormoz Nowrouz, 56, who are believed to be in Iran.

Zargarian's Glendale, California-based company, ZNC Engineering, was also named as a defendant.

During an undercover federal investigation, Terminassian originally contacted Zargarian from Iran and asked for help with obtaining military aircraft parts from U.S. suppliers, prosecutors said.

Zargarian then negotiated with an undercover Department of Homeland Security agent posing as a supplier, the prosecutors said. They said Terminassian eventually traveled to the United States and met with Zargarian to discuss purchasing parts, including items used in F-16 and F-18 fighter jets.

Nayirian is accused of conspiring with Zargarian and Terminassian to export thousands of rubber O-rings, which can be used in aircraft hydraulic systems and landing gear, to the Iranian Air Force, prosecutors said.

(Reporting by Laila Kearney; Editing by Tom Brown)
ATHENS (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will launch a new phase of peace talks between the leaders of ethnically-split Cyprus in Switzerland on Nov. 7, the United Nations said on Friday. It was a "critical juncture" in the talks process, Ban's special adviser, Espen Barth Eide, said in a statement. The leaders of the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities are due to discuss territory trade-offs during the week-long consultations at the resort of Mont Pelerin. "The meeting will concentrate on the chapter of territory, as well as all other outstanding issues interdependently," Eide said. The island was split by a Turkish invasion in 1974 triggered by a brief Greek-inspired coup, forcing mass displacement of its populations with Greek Cypriots now living in its south and Turkish Cypriots in its north. A United Nations peacekeeping force mans a ceasefire line splitting the two sides. "The two leaders have jointly expressed their hope that the meeting in Switzerland will pave the way for the last phase of the talks, in line with their shared commitment to do their utmost in order to reach a settlement within 2016," Eide said. It will be the first time leaders have directly negotiated territorial adjustments which would move the boundary now existing between the two sides and reunite Cyprus under a federal umbrella. Previous reunification proposals have given the numerically larger Greek Cypriots a bigger proportion of territory than they now occupy, but could also signal a displacement of Turkish Cypriots, or arrangements to live under Greek Cypriot control. "It is important to recognize the particular sensitivity of this chapter for both sides, which is a key reason why the leaders have agreed to hold the talks outside of Cyprus, and why they want to conduct them interdependently with other relevant chapters," Eide said. (Reporting By Michele Kambas; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
Amid a rising tide of angry criticism from both the political right and left, The United States Senate has set a date for a hearing on the proposed merger between AT&T and Time Warner. AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes will appear before the Senate Judiciary Committees antitrust subcommittee December 7 to testify about the effects the merger may have, and to address criticisms.

The hearing will examine the impact of the proposed transaction on consumers, including the implications for competition and innovation in the creation and distribution of video content, said an official statement on the hearing.

The merger, announced officially on October 22, would if it is approved by the federal government see AT&T acquire Time Warner for at least $80 billion. Time Warner and AT&T have claimed numerous supposed benefits, promising technological innovation and, somewhat paradoxically, greater competition in the two companies respective marketplaces. The reaction from consumers and politicians has not been positive however; Senator Bernie Sanders among those urging the Obama administration to kibosh the deal, citing fears of increased prices for consumers and a decrease in consumer choice.

While Democratic Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has expressed skepticism about the deal but otherwise has not made it an issue in her campaign, GOP candidate Donald Trump has expressly vowed that if elected, he will move to kill the merger.

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By Lawrence Hurley

WASHINGTON, Oct 28 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday took up a case testing free speech rights in the digital age, agreeing to decide whether a North Carolina law banning convicted sex offenders from Facebook and other social media sites runs afoul of the Constitution.

The justices agreed to hear sex offender Lester Packingham's appeal of his conviction for violating the state law in 2010 when he posted a message on Facebook expressing his surprise at a traffic citation being dismissed.

"Praise be to GOD. WOW! Thanks JESUS," Packingham wrote.

Local police saw the Facebook post, prompting his arrest. Packingham is on North Carolina's sex offender list because of his 2002 conviction at age 21 on two counts of statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl.

The North Carolina law, enacted in 2008, makes it a felony for people on the state's sex offender registry to access websites that can lead to social interactions with minors.

The ban extends to sites like Facebook and Twitter that allow people to create personal profiles. The law does not require any proof that the user intended to use the site for an illegal purpose.

Packingham was sentenced to six to eight months in prison, suspended for a year.

An intermediate appeals court threw out the conviction, saying it violated the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment guarantee of free speech. The state Supreme Court reversed that decision last November, ruling in part that Packingham's free speech rights were not unduly burdened because there are ample other websites he could access.

A group of First Amendment lawyers had urged the U.S. Supreme Court to take up Packingham's appeal. They said social networking sites have become indispensable places for speech about family life, politics and religion, and that the North Carolina law bars access to some of the most important venues for online speech.

The court is set to hear oral arguments and issue a ruling by the end of June.

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The case is not the first the high court has taken up on social media and free speech.

In another case involving Facebook, the justices in 2015 threw out the conviction of a Pennsylvania man for making threatening statements using menacing language toward his estranged wife and others on the social media site.

(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley; Editing by Will Dunham)
By Benjamin Jimbe

Players in the tourism industry represented by members of the presidential round table are set to meet president Yoweri Museveni next week.

This has been revealed by president of the Uganda Tourism Association Bonifence Byamukama.

He says while government has taken some measures to improve the business environment for investors in the tourism sector, a lot more is still needed.

Byamukama says some of the issues to be discussed with the president include request to have Value Added Tax scrapped from upcountry accommodation and hotel equipment.
London (AFP) - Ride-sharing cab service Uber on Friday lost a British tribunal case brought by drivers demanding basic workers' rights, in a decision that could have repercussions across the "gig economy".

The Central London Employment Tribunal ruled in favour of two drivers who argued that they should receive holiday and sick pay and be paid Britain's national minimum wage as they were effectively employees of the California-based tech company.

They were supported by the GMB union, who said the decision could have "major" implications for around 30,000 drivers across England and Wales.

"We are delighted that the employment tribunal has found in favour of our clients," Nigel Mackay from law firm Leigh Day said after the decision.

"This judgment acknowledges the central contribution that Uber's drivers have made to Uber's success by confirming that its drivers are not self-employed but that they work for Uber as part of the company's business."

Self-employed workers in Britain are not entitled to certain rights and privileges, including paid leave and the minimum wage.

Uber, whose European headquarters is in the Netherlands, argued that British drivers should not be allowed to enforce employment rights in British courts but make their claims in Dutch courts instead.

The company's UK regional general manager, Jo Bertram, said Uber would appeal against the ruling.

"Tens of thousands of people in London drive with Uber precisely because they want to be self-employed and their own boss," she said in a statement.

She added: "While the decision of this preliminary hearing only affects two people we will be appealing it."

The cab hire service has been accused of violating employment rights in other countries.

In April 2016, Uber drivers in California and Massachusetts filed a lawsuit against the company claiming they had been misclassified as independent contractors.

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But before the trial could begin in California, the company paid $100 million (91 million euros) to the drivers to settle the lawsuit.

Uber is a cab service company that connects passengers to drivers through an app on its passengers' smartphones. Customers pay Uber directly for the journey and the company, in turn, remunerates drivers.

Employment lawyers warned Friday's ruling could affect other workers who have flexible hours but no labour benefits.

"This landmark decision will not only have huge financial implications for Uber and its drivers... but also the many other companies which operate within the so-called 'gig economy'," said Julie Morris, a senior employment lawyer at Slater and Gordon solicitors firm in London.

"They will now have to review their business model or face a deluge of similar claims from workers."
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's business minister said he had not opened the "cheque book" to secure a major new investment in the country's biggest car plant by Japanese carmaker Nissan , an announcement which was hailed by the government as a post-Brexit endorsement.

Nissan said on Thursday it will build two new models at its Sunderland facility, just weeks after warning it would halt new investment without a guarantee of compensation if tariffs were imposed on car exports as part of Brexit.

"This was not a haggle over money. This was a vote of confidence in the future of the automotive sector," Business Secretary Greg Clark told BBC television.

"There's no cheque book. I don't have a cheque book," he said, when repeatedly pressed whether the government had offered financial support in return for the investment.

A source told Reuters on Thursday that the government sent a letter to Nissan promising extra support in the event that Britain's departure from the European Union hits the competitiveness of the plant in the north east of England.

Businesses have been concerned that Britain is headed towards a "hard Brexit", which would leave it outside the European single market and facing tariffs on exported cars and engines and the imported parts used to build them.

U.S. automaker Ford (F.N), which made almost two thirds of Britain's 2.4 million engines last year at two locations, said that any Brexit deal should apply across the industry.

"Its got to be something that is not custom-made for each manufacturer," Jim Farley, vice president for Europe, Middle East & Africa, told BBC radio. "I can imagine that the UK government is looking at the auto sector as a whole," he said.

(Reporting by Costas Pitas; Editing by William Schomberg and Kate Holton)
(Adds Ford comments)

LONDON, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Britain's business minister said he had not opened the "cheque book" to secure a major new investment in the country's biggest car plant by Japanese carmaker Nissan, an announcement which was hailed by the government as a post-Brexit endorsement.

Nissan said on Thursday it will build two new models at its Sunderland facility, just weeks after warning it would halt new investment without a guarantee of compensation if tariffs were imposed on car exports as part of Brexit.

"This was not a haggle over money. This was a vote of confidence in the future of the automotive sector," Business Secretary Greg Clark told BBC television.

"There's no cheque book. I don't have a cheque book," he said, when repeatedly pressed whether the government had offered financial support in return for the investment.

A source told Reuters on Thursday that the government sent a letter to Nissan promising extra support in the event that Britain's departure from the European Union hits the competitiveness of the plant in the north east of England.

Businesses have been concerned that Britain is headed towards a "hard Brexit", which would leave it outside the European single market and facing tariffs on exported cars and engines and the imported parts used to build them.

U.S. automaker Ford, which made almost two thirds of Britain's 2.4 million engines last year at two locations, said that any Brexit deal should apply across the industry.

"It's got to be something that is not custom-made for each manufacturer," Jim Farley, vice president for Europe, Middle East & Africa, told BBC radio. "I can imagine that the UK government is looking at the auto sector as a whole," he said.

(Reporting by Costas Pitas; Editing by William Schomberg and Kate Holton)
LONDON, Oct 28 (Reuters) - The British government welcomed a ruling by Northern Ireland's High Court on Friday that the law of the province did not restrict the ability of Prime Minister Theresa May to trigger an exit from the European Union.

"We welcome the court's judgement this morning and that it agrees we can proceed to trigger Article 50 as planned," May's spokesman said, referring to the Article 50 legal process of exiting the EU.

In Northern Ireland, there are fears that Brexit could undermine a 1998 peace deal that ended three decades of bloodshed and lead to the reintroduction of unpopular and cumbersome controls on the border with the Republic of Ireland, which is an EU member.

"There is no reason to think that the outcome of the referendum will do anything to undermine the rock-solid commitment that the government has to the settlement that was set out in the (1998) Belfast Agreement and to the people of Northern Ireland," the spokesman said.

(Reporting by William James; editing by Stephen Addison)
By Costas Pitas

LONDON (Reuters) - Taxi app Uber (UBER.UL) should treat its drivers as employees and pay them the minimum wage and holiday pay, a British tribunal ruled on Friday, in a verdict that could hit thousands of firms and deliver a blow to the 'gig economy'.

Two drivers brought their case to an employment tribunal in July, saying the rapidly expanding app, which allows users to book and pay for a taxi by smartphone, was acting unlawfully by treating them as self-employed and not providing certain rights.

Uber said it will appeal against what unions described as a "monumental" verdict.

The decision could also affect those who work for firms such as meal delivery services like Deliveroo, in the "gig economy" where individuals work for multiple employers day-to-day without having a fixed contract.

"This is a monumental victory that will have a hugely positive impact on drivers ... and for thousands more in other industries where bogus self-employment is rife," said Maria Ludkin, legal director at the GMB union which brought the case.

Uber is valued at $62.5 billion (48 billion pounds) and its investors include Goldman Sachs (GS.N) and GV, formerly known as Google Ventures (GOOGL.O).

It has faced protests, bans and legal action around the world including in the United States and much of Europe.

British judges ruled that Uber should pay the drivers the minimum wage, currently 7.20 pounds ($8.80) for over 21-year olds, and that working hours began the moment most drivers logged into the app.

"The Uber driver's working time starts as soon as he is within his territory, has the App switched on and is ready and willing to accept trips and ends as soon as one or more of those conditions ceases to apply," they said in their verdict.

Lawyers representing the drivers said there will now be a further hearing to calculate the holiday and pay that they should receive and the firm may have to pay pension contributions.

Firms in Britain such as sports retailer Sports Direct (SPD.L) have faced a backlash over their use of zero-hour contracts which erode pay and job security.

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THREAT TO BUSINESS MODEL

The ruling could have implications for thousands of businesses across Britain and may influence judges in other countries where Uber faces legal battles, according to the head of legal and advisory at Peninsula, which advises companies on employment law.

"Judges in those other countries hearing test cases like this will be mindful of the fact that their colleagues in Britain have thought this and it may influence their decision," Bertrand Stern-Gillet.

In the United States, Uber faces lawsuits and California state regulators ruled last year that an Uber driver should be treated as an employee rather than a contractor, although that has yet to be extended to all drivers in the state working on the platform.

A French court fined Uber 800,000 euros ($900,000) earlier this year for running an illegal taxi service with non-professional drivers and slapped smaller fines on two of its executives in the first such criminal case in Europe.

In Britain, the San Francisco-based firm had argued that its more than 40,000 drivers enjoy the flexibility of being able to work when they choose and receive on average much more than the minimum wage.

Uber's UK general manager Jo Bertram said it will contest the decision: "While the decision of this preliminary hearing only affects two people, we will be appealing it."

Most employees in Britain are entitled to the minimum wage but the self-employed do not qualify.

One of the two drivers who brought the case, James Farrar, said that in August 2015 he earned less than the 6.70 pounds ($8.80) an hour for those aged 21 and older which was then the minimum wage at the time.

Uber said he had picked a month in which he had logged onto the app for the longest period of time but had canceled or not accepted the most amount of jobs.

While many welcomed the verdict, some drivers worry that Uber may not win its appeal.

"If the whole model changed, where Uber had to employ drivers and then take the risk on whether there was jobs for them, it wouldn't work and therefore I wouldn't have the flexible lifestyle that I have," said 66-year-old Steven Rowe who has been with Uber for nearly four years.

"My biggest concern is that they would pull out of the U.K.," he told Reuters.

(Editing by Stephen Addison/Ruth Pitchford)
United Nations (United States) (AFP) - United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday condemned an attack on a school in government-held west Aleppo that killed a number of Syrian children.

"Such attacks, if deliberate, may amount to war crimes," Ban said in a statement.

Syrian state media reported that rebel rocket fire had hit a school in west Aleppo. The city has been divided since mid-2012, when rebels seized its eastern half.

"Three children were killed and 14 students were injured in a terrorist rocket attack on the national school in the Shahba neighbourhood of Aleppo," state news agency SANA reported from Damascus.

The UN chief renewed his call to the Security Council to ask the International Criminal Court to investigate allegations of war crimes in Syria.

"Those responsible for these acts must be brought to justice," he said.

Regime forces backed by ally Russia have waged an aerial and ground assault since late September to recapture eastern Aleppo, killing hundreds of civilians and destroying infrastructure including hospitals.

On Wednesday, the UN children's agency UNICEF said 22 children had been killed along with six teachers in air strikes on a school in rebel-held Idlib province.

Ban said he was appalled by that attack and demanded an immediate investigation after warning that the assault on the school could amount to a war crime.

The UN chief has repeatedly urged the Security Council to formally request that the ICC begin war crimes investigations in Syria.

Such a request was blocked in 2014 by Russia and China, which have veto powers.

The 15-member council has the authority to refer a country to the Hague-based ICC for war crimes investigations as it has done for Libya and Sudan's troubled Darfur region.

More than 300,000 people have been killed in Syria and over half of the country's population displaced since the conflict began in March 2011 with anti-government protests.
Qayyarah (Iraq) (AFP) - Jihadists have killed scores of people and taken tens of thousands to use as human shields in the Mosul area, the United Nations said Friday, as Iraqi forces temporarily halted their advance on the city.

Thousands of people have fled from areas surrounding Mosul, prompting a warning of "massive displacement" when fighting starts inside the Islamic State jihadist group's last major Iraqi urban stronghold.

IS's "depraved, cowardly strategy is to attempt to use the presence of civilians to render certain points, areas or military forces immune from military operations", Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, the UN's High Commissioner for Human Rights, said in a statement.

The jihadists are "effectively using tens of thousands of women, men and children as human shields", he said.

The UN human rights office said that credible reports indicate IS has forced tens of thousands of people from their homes and forcibly taken civilians into Mosul, killing those who resist or who were previously members of Iraqi security forces.

The population of Hamam al-Alil, an IS-held area south of Mosul that is an upcoming target for Iraqi forces, has reportedly nearly trebled, it said.

IS reportedly shot dead 232 people in a single day on Wednesday and killed 24 the previous day, the rights office said.

The killings, which the UN said have been "corroborated to the extent possible", are just the latest in a long list of atrocities committed by the jihadists since they overran swathes of Iraq in 2014.

- 'Pausing and repositioning' -

The UN report came as Iraqi forces were temporarily halting their advance on Mosul for a period which the US-led anti-IS coalition said was expected to last "a couple of days".

"They are pausing and repositioning, refitting and doing some back clearing," coalition spokesman Colonel John Dorrian told Pentagon reporters via videoconference.

Story continues

"We think it will just be a couple of days and then we are back on the march toward Mosul," he said, adding that Iraqi forces were between 10-20 kilometres (six to 12 miles) from the city.

Since the Mosul offensive began last week, the coalition has employed nearly 2,500 bombs, missiles, shells and guided rockets, he said.

An Iraqi military statement, apparently issued in response to Dorrian's remarks on the halt, said that "military operations are continuing" and proceeding on schedule.

As Iraqi forces have closed in on Mosul from the north, east and south, growing numbers of civilians have fled IS-held areas and the impending fighting in territory the jihadists control.

The International Organization for Migration said that as of Friday, 16,566 people had been displaced since the operation began on October 17, the vast majority in the Mosul region.

"We've seen... quite a dramatic increase in the numbers in the last few days, and they are now going into the newly set up camps," Karl Schembri of the Norwegian Refugee Council told AFP.

"This is already worrying because they haven't yet entered the city... when that happens, it's going to be quite massive displacement," he said.

- Kurdish independence issue -

The potential for a humanitarian crisis as tens of thousands of civilians are forced into camps with winter looming is just one of a raft of issues that have complicated military planning for the recapture of Mosul.

Thousands of Kurdish peshmerga fighters are taking part in the operation alongside Iraqi government troops, and Kurdish leaders have made clear that they will expect payback once it has been successfully completed.

The Kurds, who have expanded the territory under their control far beyond the boundaries of their longstanding autonomous region in the north, say their hopes of a new Iraq have been dashed and that they will now explore a separate future.

"As soon as Mosul is liberated, we will meet with our partners in Baghdad and talk about our independence," the region's prime minister Nechirvan Barzani told Germany's Bild newspaper.

But for now, the battle for Mosul is far from over, and most of the advancing forces are still some distance from the city limits.

The head of US military operations in the Middle East, General Joseph Votel, said the jihadists were suffering heavy losses.

"Just in the operations over the last week and a half associated with Mosul, we estimate they've probably killed about 800 to 900 Islamic State fighters," Votel told AFP in an interview.

Washington estimates there are between 3,500 and 5,000 IS fighters in Mosul and as many as 2,000 more in the wider area.
By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations has negotiated the release of nearly 900 children detained by Nigeria's army and security forces after they have retaken land from Boko Haram militants, a senior official said. The 876 children had been held in the barracks in Maiduguri, UNICEF's Manuel Fontaine said after visiting the northeastern city. It was not immediately clear how long they had been held, but the army routinely detains civilians who have been living in areas that had been ruled by the insurgents on suspicion that they too might be linked to militant activities. However, rights groups say there is no proper legal process for such civilians, including the children, since they do not get formally charged and some end up in so-called rehabilitation centres, which the groups say are like prisons. The United Nations says children should not be detained. "We fear that there are still kids who are being at least temporarily detained because they are being released from Boko Haram areas by the army but then kept for a while," Fontaine, UNICEF'S regional director for Western and Central Africa, told reporters by telephone. He give no details of the ages of the children or how long they had been at the barracks - but after President Muhammadu Buhari came to power in May 2015, security forces began an offensive, backed by neighbouring countries, to retake territory from Boko Haram, meaning at least some of the children could have been held for a year or more. There was no immediate comment from the army. Army officials say they need to question civilians to establish whether they have any ties with the militant group, which has been trying for seven years to set up an Islamic state. The security situation remains volatile in northeastern Borno state and its capital Maiduguri because Boko Haram still stages suicide bombings, often using women or teenagers. Fontaine also said the conflict, which has killed thousands and displaced more than 2 million, had separated around 20,000 children from their parents, of which 5,000 had since been reunited with their families. "Once we get children out, there is a major issue of stigmatisation in the communities," Fontaine said. "There is a sense that children who have been associated with Boko Haram for a while, could be, and in some cases we have some evidence, are rejected by community and people around them." This was also a problem for the girls freed from the town of Chibok, he said. Nigeria this month negotiated, with the help of Switzerland, the release of 21 of more than 200 girls Boko Haram kidnapped in April 2014. (Reporting by Stephanie Ulmer-Nebehay; Writing by Ulf Laessing; Editing by Alison Williams)
Harborside Healthcare Achieves Strongest Week To Date

DENVER, CO / ACCESSWIRE / October 28, 2016 / United Cannabis Corporation (CNAB) (the "Company" or "United Cannabis") today announced that its partner in California, Harborside Healthcare, reported record sales of its Prana products.

Tony Verzura, the Company's Chief Technology Officer, commented on the announcement, "Over a year ago we started with a temporary pop up store inside Harborside Health in Oakland California. By working directly with the staff and patients over a period of months, we were able to establish a track record of results for our Prana Bio Medicinals, and patients started to enroll in our A.C.T. Now Program."

The A.C.T Now program is a free, program offering a customized combination of plant-derived Prana products, nutritional guidelines, nursing support, delivery services and electronic medical chart management. Each patient is assigned to a nurse with an online HIPAA compliant patient portal to schedule consultations, make follow up appointments, review conditions in a 3-D medical library, and access to customized cannabinoid sequencing charts.

Veruza went on to say, "Harborside Health Center is the gold standard for patient care, and this growth in revenue is a direct result of the positive effect that Prana is having on the lives of their patients."

About United Cannabis Corporation

The Company's Prana Bio Medicinal products provide patients a way to mix/match cannabinoids for therapeutic purpose. These products, licensed to regulated marijuana dispensaries, are broken into 5 categories that are available in capsules, sublingual's, and topical delivery methods. The Company uses a patent-pending infusion process utilizing select fatty acids, lipids, and specific combination of cannabis derived terpenes to increase bioavailability.

For further information, please visit www.unitedcannabis.us.

Contact: Staff@UnitedCannabis.us

Phone: 303-386-7321

Certain statements in this news release may contain forward-looking information within the meaning of Rule 175 under the Securities Act of 1933, and are subject to Rule 3b-6 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and are subject to the safe harbors, created by those rules. All statements, other than statements of fact, included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding potential future plans and objectives of the company, are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and other results and further events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Future events and actual results could differ materially from those set forth in, contemplated by, or underlying the forward-looking statements.

SOURCE: United Cannabis Corporation
By Billy Oketch

Thousands of children in Rwenzori and northern Uganda are in dire need of support due to the effects of conflict experienced in those regions.

This is according to Emmanuel Otoo, Global Funds regional programme director for Africa and Middle East, who says the situation has left many children in the Rwenzori Sub-region and northern Uganda traumatized.

He says some of the children there are living with various forms of disability while others living with HIV/Aids.

Meanwhile, John Silco, the executive director of Rwenzori Information Centres Network, says some families uprooted by the ethnic clashes in Rwenzori were still stuck in the camps.

The Global Fund for Children has been working with seven grass-root organisations to support vulnerable children in these two regions.
Washington (AFP) - A US lawyer has accused Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas of making unwanted sexual advances in 1999, a charge he vigorously denied, the National Law Journal reported Thursday.

Moira Smith revealed her allegations on Facebook on October 7, the same day The Washington Post released a 2005 videotape that showed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump boasting in lewd terms about how he could grope women without their consent because he was a celebrity.

Smith, 23 at the time, said in her Facebook post that Thomas grabbed her buttocks and squeezed them several times at a dinner party at the home of her boss in Falls Church, Virginia, near Washington.

"He groped me while I was setting the table, suggesting I should sit 'right next to him,'" Smith wrote on Facebook, according to the journal.

"This claim is preposterous and it never happened," Thomas, 68, said in a statement to the National Law Journal.

The National Law Journal said that Smith's Facebook post, which is no longer visible after she deactivated her page, had not revealed the details of her encounter with Thomas.

The reporter of the article said she had reviewed Smith's post and the replies before Smith made the page inactive.

Smith, now 41 and vice president and general counsel to Enstar Natural Gas Co., in Alaska, said she decided to make public what happened that night after hearing Trump's comments about groping women.

"That willingness by men in power to take advantage of vulnerable women relies on an unspoken pact that the women will not speak up about it," she said in an interview with the journal.

"Why? Because they are vulnerable. Because they are star-struck. Because they don't want to be whiners. Because they worry about their career if they do speak out. But silence no longer feels defensible; it feels complicit."

Thomas, the only African-American on the nine-seat Supreme Court, is a pillar of conservatism who was nominated to the top court in 1991 by President George H.W. Bush.

His confirmation by the Senate the same year drew controversy as his former employee Anita Hill, in testimony at the hearings, accused him of sexual harassment.
Valentinos creative director Pierpaolo Piccioli plans to show the brands pre-fall collection in New York on Jan. 11.

The designer told WWD he plans to hold a runway show in the city, although the location has not been defined yet.

I am thinking of New York for June, too, he said of the pre-spring season. New York seems to me the ideal location for the pre-collections, its international and has such charm. He said he wasnt thinking in terms of grand, spectacular events, but emphasized how pre-collections are becoming super important, where style if fundamental. These collections really represent the company.

Piccioli showed his first solo collection for the Rome-based brand in October in Paris with the spring season.

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CARTAGENA, Colombia (Reuters) - Venezuela's political crisis should be among top discussion items at a regional summit for Latin American leaders taking place this weekend in Cartagena, Colombia, Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski said on Friday. The oil-rich country's socialist government is confronting political protests in the streets and in Venezuela's Congress after opposition leaders accused President Nicolas Maduro of blocking efforts to hold a recall vote aimed at ousting him. "I think it will be an important meeting, first because we will talk about the big topics for Latin America, including, I hope, issues in neighbor Venezuela," Kuczynski, who took office in July, said upon arrival in Cartagena. Conference organizers said it was possible Maduro would attend on Saturday, but the Venezuelan government would not confirm the trip. Despite having the world's largest oil reserves, Venezuela is mired in a prolonged recession, with many skipping meals due to shortages and soaring prices. Opposition supporters collected signatures in a bid to unseat Maduro with a recall election and say the president, 53, has effectively carried out a "coup" by side-lining the legislature, arresting opponents and leaning on compliant institutions to squash the referendum. Maduro blames the situation on a U.S.-led "economic war" against him. Dozens have been injured and arrested during mass protests against the Venezuelan government this week. Heads of state, foreign ministers and other representatives from across Latin America, as well as Portugal and Spain, are attending the two-day Ibero-American Summit through Saturday. (Reporting by Julia Symmes Cobb and Luis Jaime Acosta; Editing by Tom Brown)
By Brian Ellsworth and Anggy Polanco CARACAS/SAN CRISTOBAL (Reuters) - Venezuela's streets were quieter than usual on Friday during an opposition-called strike, but participation was patchy after the socialist government threatened to shut down businesses that closed. "The strike is a good pressure tactic ... but if I don't work, I don't eat," said insurance agent Adolfo Diaz, 38, trying to reach work despite fewer buses in the western city of San Cristobal where sentiment is strong against President Nicolas Maduro. Venezuela's opposition Democratic Unity coalition called for a 12-hour shutdown as part of escalating protests after authorities scuttled its push for a referendum to recall the OPEC nation's unpopular socialist leader. The government vowed to take over any companies heeding the strike, sending inspectors to ensure they were open. It posted intelligence agents outside Venezuela's main private company, beer and food conglomerate Polar, which was working normally. Facing arrest if they encouraged the strike, business leaders said it was up to individual workers to decide. "We are going to look for the big company owners, the leaders of (business group) Fedecamaras if they insist on a coup d'etat like in 2002," said Diosdado Cabello, the ruling Socialist Party's second in command, recalling a short-lived putsch against Maduro's predecessor Hugo Chavez. In the capital Caracas, where hundreds of thousands of demonstrators attended anti-Maduro rallies on Wednesday, traffic was lighter than normal for a weekday and some schools were virtually empty as parents kept children home. But businesses such as bakeries and pharmacies were open, with customary lines of shoppers seeking basics like bread and flour which have gone scarce in Venezuela's economic crisis. "I support the opposition, but I don't agree with this strike," said Eduardo Martinez, 51, unemployed, standing near a bakery line in eastern Caracas. EARN OR PROTEST? Cafe owner Alfonso Brito, 54, said he opposed Maduro but could not afford to close for the day, especially given losses on Wednesday during the rallies. "You're making people decide between earning a living or protesting," he said, adding he had fewer customers than usual. Traffic was light and public transport fell by about half in San Cristobal, where earlier in the week masked protesters clashed with police, witnesses said. Two businesses were fined for closing, a military source said. Parts of Maracaibo, Venezuela's second city, were deserted, witnesses said. "We have to support the Democratic Unity ... in my company we obeyed the strike," said Leydy Nava, who works for a real estate company. Carlos Larrazabal, vice-president of Fedecamaras, Venezuela's largest corporate umbrella group, told Reuters companies were staying open and letting staff decide whether to attend or not, but troops were stationed outside various businesses. "That should not happen in a democratic country," he said. As well as Friday's strike, the opposition is carrying out a political trial of Maduro in the National Assembly and is vowing to march to the Miraflores presidential palace next week. Polls show most Venezuelans want a plebiscite and that Maduro would lose if it went ahead. If he lost a referendum this year, it would trigger a presidential election and a chance for the opposition to end 17 years of socialist rule. Despite having the world's largest oil reserves, Venezuela is suffering a third year of recession, with many skipping meals due to shortages and soaring prices. Maduro blames the situation on a U.S.-led "economic war" against him and the fall in global oil prices. His supporters were holding rallies on Friday to oppose the strike. The opposition says Maduro, 53, has effectively carried out a "coup" by sidelining the legislature, arresting opponents and leaning on compliant institutions to squash the referendum. He says it is his foes who are seeking to topple him illegally. A total of 97 people were arrested during Wednesday's nationwide protests, including seven policemen accused of rights abuses, judicial authorities said. Some 82 people were injured that day, including 26 security personnel. "The only thing the opposition wants is to ruin the country," said Miguel Acevedo, a 48-year-old tax official, en route to work in his regulation red shirt. "Look around: today the country has said no to the opposition." (Addtional reporting by Diego Ore, Corina Pons, Eyanir Chinea in Caracas, Isaac Urruita in Maracaibo; Writing by Andrew Cawthorne; Editing by W Simon and Andrew Hay)
The Italian city of Visso suffered widespread damage after two earthquakes and a series of aftershocks hit the central Italy region on Wednesday, October 26. Visso Mayor Giuliano Pazzaglini said at least two-thirds of the buildings, which were weakened by the deadly August earthquake near Amatrice, were unsafe, according to the BBC. The city was also running short of drinking water and sanitation.

Thousands of people in central Italy have moved to temporary shelters because of the damage to homes and fears of further aftershocks, according to local reports. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has asked the parliament to approve funding for quake relief efforts.

This video shows the scene in Visso on October 27. Credit: YouTube/Daniel mnl.
The Italian city of Visso suffered widespread damage after two earthquakes and a series of aftershocks hit central Italy on Wednesday, October 26. Vissos Mayor Giuliano Pazzaglini said at least two-thirds of the buildings, which were weakened by the deadly August earthquake near Amatrice, were unsafe, according to the BBC. The city was also running short of drinking water and sanitation was an issue.

Thousands of people in central Italy were moved to temporary shelters because of the damage to homes and fears of further aftershocks, according to local reports. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has asked the parliament to approve funding for quake relief efforts.

This video shows the scene in Visso the day after the earthquakes. Credit: YouTube/Barbara Olmai
By Christine Dombyiyo

The opposition Forum for Democratic Change has returned to the Interparty Organization for Dialogue (IPOD) from which it had earlier withdrawn.

In July this year, the FDC announced that it had opted out of IPOD activities demanding reforms in the organisation which brings political parties in Parliament together.

Key among the reforms FDC wanted was the amendment of the organisations Memorandum of Understanding which parties represented in the 9th Parliament endorsed.

However, speaking at a workshop organised by IPOD in Wakiso district, to solicit views on national dialogue, Harold Kaija the FDC Deputy Scretary General said they did not leave the organization but rather suspended its alliance for about 60 days.

Mr. Kaija adds that IPOD has not been visible to the public and their withdrawal was intended to show dissatisfaction with how the way the organization was executing its duties.

IPOD is now comprised of four parties including NRM, FDC, DP and UPC which have representation in parliament.
At the Santa Monica Pier on Thursday, Volkswagen unveiled its largest ever crossover SUV, the Atlas. The seven-passenger sport utility vehicle will be built at VW's Chattanooga, Tennessee, plant and will be larger than any other VW for sale in the United States. The vehicle is expected to launch in the spring of next year.

Just about a month ago, VW settled a lawsuit related to the company's diesel emissions scandal with 625 U.S. dealers for a total payment of $1.21 billion, or an average of about $1.85 million each. This settlement came in addition to the nearly $15 billion settlement with U.S. owners of the diesel-powered cars.

ALSO READ: 40 Countries the U.S. Government Doesn't Want You to Visit

U.S. dealers have been hammering on VW for years to build a vehicle to compete for sales with similar vehicles from Ford, GM, Toyota and nearly everyone else.

The catch will be getting the price right. VW tried to impose a so-called near-premium pricing plan on U.S. dealers earlier this year, but the dealers beat back the effort. Pricing for the new Atlas has not been revealed, but one VW dealer told Automotive News, "[T]he Atlas offers better fit and finish and driving dynamics than  [Toyota's] Highlander and [Ford's] Explorer, but a pricey sticker will make drawing customers to the showroom difficult."

ALSO READ: Poorest Town in Every State

If there's one thing U.S. Volkswagen dealers don't need, it's more barriers to attracting customers. The diesel-powered cars were withdrawn from U.S. showrooms last year, and that slashed an estimated 20% of sales.

The Atlas offers two powertrains: a standard 2.0-liter turbocharged and direct-injection TSI four-cylinder with 238 horsepower, or the available 3.6-liter VR6 engine with 280 horsepower. Both come with an eight-speed transmission, and the vehicle can be configured either as front-wheel-drive or with available 4Motion all-wheel-drive in VR6 trims. EPA fuel economy estimates will be released ahead of the launch in the spring of 2017.

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VW invested $900 million to prepare its Chattanooga plant for building the Atlas.

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By Joe Bavier ABIDJAN (Reuters) - Ivory Coast's President Alassane Ouattara hopes Sunday's referendum on a new constitution will finally turn the page on years of crisis and bloodshed. But as he scrutinized newspaper front pages pinned up at a roadside in the commercial capital Abidjan, Brice Bosse, 44, wasn't buying it. "I don't think this referendum should happen," said the construction worker. "They rushed this through, and no one even knows what's in it." Ivorians, along with the investors who have poured into French-speaking West Africa's largest economy since its civil war ended in 2011, crave stability. But rights groups and diplomats say a process that could have helped heal a deeply divided society has instead rushed out a document that few Ivorians have had time to read, much less debate. "It looks like a fait accompli," said one Abidjan-based diplomat. "You can say what you like about the text, but the process could have been more transparent. It's a missed opportunity." The authorities say they have respected the legal timetable for the referendum process, and that a vote on the constitution must be held before legislative elections in December. Opposition groups are boycotting the vote, accusing Ouattara of tailoring the text to consolidate his power. And with no public debate, many on both sides are falling back on adversarial positions that caused nearly a decade of bloodshed and economic stagnation. "This constitution formalizes the colonization of a big part of our country by people who have come from somewhere else," Innocent Anaki Kobena, a minister under former President Laurent Gbagbo, told a crowd in Abidjan's Port Bouet neighborhood on Wednesday. Most of his audience were Gbagbo supporters whose refusal to accept Ouattara's 2010 election win sparked a war that killed over 3,000. Gbagbo is now in The Hague, on trial for crimes against humanity. "LIKE A VOLCANO" The constitution drafted under military rule after a 1999 coup has been at the heart of Ivory Coast's prolonged crisis. It said presidential candidates must have both parents be Ivorian - a deliberate swipe at northerners, many of whom, like Ouattara, have family ties that straddle the borders with Burkina Faso and Mali. It was used to disqualify him from poll in 2000. The new constitution scraps that rule - only one parent must be Ivorian, it says. It also creates a post of vice president and a senate. Rights groups are worried that it allows future changes to go ahead with a two thirds majority in parliament, a body now heavily dominated by Ouattara's allies. "If a president has a majority in parliament, he can do whatever he likes with the constitution. That, for us, is problematic," said Nathalie Kouakou Yao N'Guessan, the head of Amnesty International in Ivory Coast. Civil society groups lobbied for a delay of the vote on the text, which was drafted behind closed doors. They were rebuffed. So by voting day, Ivorians will have had just two and a half weeks to consider the proposed 184-article charter. Human Rights Watch this week accused the authorities of clamping down on opposition to the constitution by closing newspapers, breaking up demonstrations, detaining political leaders and blocking their access to state media. Government spokesman Bruno Kone denied all the accusations. Brice Bosse fears the referendum will only deepen divisions between Ivorians. He plans to stay at home on Sunday. "Just because no one's shooting doesn't mean the war is over," he said. "It's like the fire from a volcano. The fact it's under the surface doesn't mean it's not there." (Editing by Tim Cocks and Andrew Roche)
Apple TV app 1

Apple used to say its TV ambitions were a "hobby." Earlier this month, Apple CEO Tim Cook has said "television has intense interest with me and many other people" at Apple.

Apple revealed the next stage of its plan to conquer TV on Thursday: a new app for Apple TV, iPhones, and iPads simply called "TV." Apple says it's designed to tie together different video services and put the content you want to see in one place.

At least one Wall Street analyst says cracks are already showing in Apple's plan. Pacific Crest analyst Andy Hargreaves and team say Apple's TV strategy "is flawed," "needs a reboot," and "demonstrates the weaknesses of Apple's hand" in a note distributed to investors on Friday.

"We believe its current efforts in TV are flawed and have little potential to develop into a sizable business. A change of direction is likely necessary for consumers, potential partners, and investors to take the company seriously in the space," Hargreaves writes.

The biggest problem Pacific Crest sees with Apple's TV strategy is that it is "not meaningfully different than competitors products" and there's no incentive for the big players in the space  like Netflix or Amazon  to share data or content with Apple.

Apple's TV app does integrate with HBO, Showtime, CBS, and its iTunes video store, but it does not include Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, or YouTube, which Hargreaves points out are the three most-consumed video services in the United States. "The gap in consumption between these services and the ones included in Apple's app is massive," he writes.



In fact, according to bandwidth data from Sandvine, Hargraves estimates the TV app only has content that makes up less than 10% of total streaming consumption.

An alternative strategy

Hargraves sees two ways Apple's TV ambitions can get back on track. It could:

Try to integrate linear content  TV watched as scheduled  with on-demand content into a better interface for a subscription-type service. Apple unveiled some features to help surface live video in this TV app, especially sports, but it's primarily a Siri voice-activated feature and not a subscription service. Buy (or start) a streaming video service "with global scale." Hargreaves doesn't mention any possible targets, except for the market leader, Netflix, but does say that Apple would have to pour billions of dollars into this project to get it off the ground. (Netflix has a market cap of $54 billion and Apple would likely have to pay a premium on top of that to buy it. There is no obvious "Beats" of streaming video to target.)

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The funny thing is that Apple has tried to build its own linear content-based subscription service from 2011 to 2015, but it was stymied because it could not lock in deals with the content providers, reportedly, because Apple blew the negotiations.

"I find it pretty funny how many people have been calling for a la carte TV, including Tim Cook, and are now wanting all those apps to be put back together into one point of interaction, or 'guide.' The big cable bundle has been successful for a reason," Hargreaves said.

Pacific Crest gives Apple a 12-month price target of $129.

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Since when is October 31st only about sexy cat costumes and fun-size candy? Lets make Halloween scary again.

Even if youre brave enough to seek out some ghostly activity on the one night of the year the dead are down to walk among the living, it can be tough to find your nearest paranormal hotspot. You could wander into your local graveyard and wait patiently, or you could go the expert route and consult this interactive map that shows exactly where to find ghosts, ghouls and all kinds of supernatural stuff.

Digital real estate resource Trulia has created an Unnatural Hazards map of the U.S. that allows you to see where youre likely to find ghosts, zombies, vampires and even for the Stranger Things fan  doors to alternate dimensions.

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The tool, which allows you to zoom in on your neighborhood or look for especially active locations around the country, utilizes data from legitimate organizations and more, ahem, specialty groups. The map that documents the location of potential gates to other dimensions, for example, marks very real scientific research bases, mines, power stations, hydroelectric power stations, asylums, historical sites, as well as any site labeled abandoned,' according to Trulia.

WATCH THIS: Stranger Things star Millie Bobby Brown on being a Halloween costume

The map that shows places with a high-risk level for zombie infestations uses U.S. census data about the location of graveyards, as well as information from the Federal Vampire and Zombie Agency (FVZA), an organization that tracks sightings of the undead. The FVZA also tracks vampire bite incidents, though Trulia also utilized stats on where hospitals and blood banks are most concentrated, aka major cities.

Of course there are some visible flaws, with the zombies in particular. Splotches across Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island are nearly black in color, demarcating that they have been conceded to the undead and contain no living humans.

Story continues

RELATED: Theyre Crafty! Kate Hudson, Olivia Wilde, Bethenny Frankel and More Show Off Their Pumpkins

A post on Trulias blog also provides some useful information, including top cities for each type of unnatural hazard and how many victims people have been affected in those areas. San Diego is number one for vampire bites, while Providence, Rhode Island, is the epicenter of zombie activity, and New Orleans is, unsurprisingly, the top spot for ghost sitings.

See many more spooky details to plan your Halloween outing on Trulia.




Comedian Xavier Rotnofsky sat down for shrimp cocktail with Green Party candidate Jill Stein on October 17. Although Stein refused to partake in the shrimp, the two still had a good chat.

The meeting was held at the Travis County Green Party office in Austin.

Rotnofsky jokes back and forth with Stein, asking questions like: If Trump gets elected, and he builds that big wall, how are we going to get those cool drugs from Mexico? Stein argues for an end to the war on drugs, promoting the legalization of marijuana.

Rotnofskys interview takes a weird turn when he asks Stein if she would smooch Vladimir Putin, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi or Bashar al-Assad. The interview ends when Rotnofsky mentions the North Dakota arrest warrant outstanding against Stein and a mock cop in crop top bursts into the studio. Credit: YouTube/Xavier Rotnofsky
It was a long shot, but Kelsey Gill had a suspicion her cat Ludo could be a world-record holder.

We thought Ludo could be the worlds longest when we started seeing clips in newspapers of these other cats that were a lot older than Ludo, says Gill, of Wakefield, England, in this exclusive video shot by Guinness World Records. And looked a similar size to what he already was.

Out came a measuring tape, which determined that Ludo, at 3 ft., 10.59 in. tall, is the worlds longest domestic cat, according to Guinness, which gave the Maine coon appropriately big placement in its new 2017 records book, available here.

We learn from the video  that came to PEOPLE just in time for #NationalCatDay on Oct. 29  that being long comes with a list of purr-oblems.

Hes quite clumsy, and hes not as agile as other cats, says Gill, adding with a laugh that its impossible for the cat to hide.

So rather than attempt to blend, Ludo lets his length shine  watch as he takes up half of Gills couch.

He loves curling up on sofa, she says, and then when I go to bed with a good book, hell come and sit at side me and act like hes reading it with me.




Now thats what you call a vacation video.

Prince Harry spent the summer working with the 500 Elephants conservation initiative in Malawi  and on Friday, footage of the royals efforts was released.

The two-minute film shows Harry describing his role in the initiative, which aims to move 500 wild elephants from the Liwonde National Park and Majete Wildlife Reserve to Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve  a journey of some 220 miles.

The prince also wrote personal captions for five stunning photos that were also released on Friday.

Elephants. Thats one of the cores of Africa. You cant imagine anywhere like this existing without elephants, Prince Harry says in the film. People can connect with them.

One fears the overcrowding of elephants and wondering where are we going to put all these animals? You know? In some countries the numbers are dropping unbelievably quickly and in other countries youve almost got too many. So theres this weird imbalance.

So organizations like this need to constantly come up with new methods to move these animals, to care for them, to makes sure that these places are looked after. And this is a challenge. Its a huge task.

Prince Harry spent three weeks working on the ground  and air  in Malawi over the summer, where he helped to anaesthetize the elephants, fix radio collars and monitor their breathing to ensure each one was safely relocated. A role that Peter Fearnhead, CEO of African Parks, describes as vital.

There has to be a balance between the numbers of animals, and the available habitat. Just how nature intended it, adds Harry in a statement.

In this case, African Parks, in partnership with the Malawian government, have re-established a safe area for elephants to be moved back to. This simultaneously relieves the pressure in Liwonde, and restocks Nkhotakota so both populations of elephants can continue to grow.

During Harrys time in Malwai  the first phase of the translocation  some 261 elephants were successfully re-homed in Nkhotakota. The remaining 239 elephants will be moved during the second phase of the operation during the summer of 2017.

Story continues

Along with moving elephants, Prince Harry also assisted with relocating a male rhino and game species including antelope, buffalo, and zebra.

Its amazing to see such unbelievable creatures being moved in a way that you could never even dream of, Harry adds.

To be with elephants  such a massive beast  is such a unique experience.

In a weird way they know that we are here to help. Otherwise the wake up box would be a completely different story. And they are so calm. Theyre so relaxed.

They need to be moved to another place. So this is the most efficient and least invasive way of being able to do it.

I can tell you that after three weeks there is zero stress on these animals and they are going from one beautiful place to another beautiful place.




High Court judge Masalu Musene has granted bail to Ivan Kamyuka, a man accused of murdering his fiances ex-lover at a top city club in August 2015.

Justice Masalu has ordered Kamyuka to pay Sh 5million and report to the High Courts Deputy Registrar in-charge of criminal matters twice every month starting from the 11th/November 2016.

Kamyukas 4 surities including his mother and marternal uncles were also ordered to sign a court bond of Sh 20 Million to ensure that he returns back for his murder trial.

Kamyuka has been on remand at Luzira prison since 2nd August 2015 on charges of murdering John Ahimbisibwe commonly known as Jonnie amongst his peers.

Prosecution says it will adduce evidence at the trial to the effect that Kamyuka smashed Ahimbisibwes head with a liquor bottle after the two allegedly had a quarrel over a woman.
For the last few months, Pusha T has been giving presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is full support. Aside from mention her in tweets and agreeing to participate in a meet-and-greet contest, Push has also made his own pro-Hillary shirts and sat down to speak with her running mate Tim Kaine. As this election season rapidly comes to a close, Push is still making his rounds to make sure his voice is heard and people get out to the polls to vote on November 8.

During a recent stop by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, after a brief chat about his career and a strange encounter with Ronald McDonald Push took the time to discuss his current association with Clinton as well as his own beliefs. He has always been very vocal about the problem of the high incarceration rates and the conditions of America's prisions. He said believes Clinton will carry on with the progress Obama has made with this issue.

"That's the most important issue to me, simply because I feel like that's the most important issue tearing apart our community right now," Push explained. He finished by explaining the issue with the lack of opportunities citizens receive after serving time. "You can't vote, you can't get grants. It's like you keep paying forever, we have to change that."

Watch the interview above.

Continue Reading On PigeonsandPlanes

More from PigeonsandPlanes
Portoroz (Slovenia) (AFP) - Thirty years into a moratorium on commercial whaling, hundreds of the marine mammals, some endangered, are killed every year -- some in open defiance of the ban, others in the name of scientific research.

The moratorium, monitored by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) which closed its 66th meeting in Slovenia on Friday is credited with having saved tens, perhaps hundreds, of thousands of whales.

It has allowed the recovery of many species hunted to near-extinction in the 20th century for their meat, and for blubber used in soap and fuel.

How things stand now:

The hunters

Japan:

Japan is the only country to hunt under an exemption to the moratorium which allows IWC member governments to issue special permits to kill whales for research.

It has netted more than 15,000 whales since 1985, which critics say are for sushi rather than science -- about 500 whales per year. In 2014, the country was chastised by the International Court of Justice.

The exemption stipulates the meat must be "processed" -- in Japan's case it lands up in supermarkets and restaurants.

Japan has hunted whales for centuries and whale meat was a key source of protein in the tight years that followed World War II, but consumption has dramatically declined in recent decades, especially among younger generations.

Norway:

Norway is the world's biggest whale hunter today.

It landed nearly 12,000 minkes between 1986 and 2014, according to the latest official IWC data. The biggest recorded annual haul was in 2014 with 736.

The country hunts under a formal objection lodged against the IWC moratorium.

Iceland:

Similar to Norway, Iceland negotiated a "reservation" against the moratorium under which it continues hunting for whale meat, though on a much smaller scale.

Icelandic hunters harpooned 906 fin and minke whales from 1986 to 2014.

Few people eat whale meat in Norway and Iceland today, and observers say most of the haul is destined for Japan.

Story continues

Whale meat is also served to thrill-seeking tourists and some ends up being used as animal feed.

On Thursday, the United States said continued whaling by the two Nordic countries "diminish the effectiveness" of the IWC.

"We strongly urge Iceland and Norway to cease immediately all commercial whaling and international trade in whale products," said US IWC commissioner Russel Smith.

Whaling countries which are not members of the IWC, such as Canada and Indonesia, are not bound by the moratorium.

Aboriginal hunters:

The indigenous peoples of Alaska, Chukotka in the Russian Far East, Greenland and St Vincent and The Grenadines receive catch limits from the IWC.

Jointly, they took 355 whales in 2014 -- a total of 10,139 since the moratorium was introduced.

The hunted

Minke whales, mainly from the Antarctic Ocean but also the northeast Atlantic, are the most targeted species for commercial, scientific and aboriginal hunts by far -- more than 41,000 have been recorded killed in three decades.

Minke whales grow up to about 10 metres (32 feet) in length, and weigh up to 10 tonnes.

They are the most abundant of the baleen whales, which filter plankton and small fish from the ocean for food with special bristle-like structures in their mouths.

The second-most targeted group, exclusively by aboriginal hunters, are grey (3,542) and bowhead (1,481) whales.

Sei whales are the second-most sought-after category under Japan's scientific programme, with 1,249 killed in 30 years. Fast swimmers, they grow to about 16 metres long and weigh some 20 tonnes. Found in the north Atlantic, north Pacific and southern hemisphere, they are listed as endangered.

Bryde's whales, found in the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic oceans, grow to about 14 metres in length. They are taken in about equal measure by commercial hunters and by Japan -- a total of 1,317 over the moratorium period.

Found in oceans worldwide, fin whales are the second-largest species of whale, growing up to 24 metres long. Despite being listed as endangered, 551 have been killed by commercial hunters and 310 by Japan under the moratorium. Aboriginal hunters have landed 356.

Sperm whales, which have a vast geographic spread, are listed under species "vulnerable" to extinction. The largest toothed whale, and one of the deepest diving, they grow to about 18 metres long. Commercial whalers have killed 388 and Japan 56 under the moratorium.

(SOURCES: IWC, International Union for Conservation of Nature, WWF)
Portoroz (Slovenia) (AFP) - The world's whaling watchdog concluded a typically discordant meeting Friday with defeats for both the pro- and anti-whaling camps, and the organisation's very purpose called into question.

After a week marked by a classic standoff between whaling nations Japan, Norway and Iceland on the one hand and mainly Western and South American countries on the other, the International Whaling Commission (IWC) agreed on the need for introspection.

The commission, which turns 70 this year, "has been in a stalemate due to the fundamentally conflicting views on whales and whaling," reads a Japanese request for a working group to find ways of addressing the body's "dysfunction."

Just one example of the sometimes paralysing deadlock was a proposal by whale-watching nations to create a South Atlantic sanctuary, which was voted down on Tuesday by the pro-whaling bloc, as it has been every other time since it was first brought to the commission in 2001.

To pass, the resolution needed a 75 percent majority of member votes at the IWC's 66th meeting in the Adriatic resort town of Portoroz.

Anti-whaling nations, in turn, voted for the creation of a body to better scrutinise Japan's annual hunt, conducted under scientific licence but blasted by critics as a commercial meat haul.

They also defeated Tokyo's umpteenth bid to be allowed small hunts by coastal communities it claims are unjustly barred from a traditional source of food under a 30-year-old commercial whaling moratorium.

- 'Extreme polarisation' -

"Because of this stalemate, we just will not change our position... whatever the proposal is.

"The other side is the same, irrespective of the content or science or law: if that includes some whaling they will just oppose," Japan's IWC commissioner Joji Morishita said.

"Unless... we address this issue in some manner, we will just be repeating the same thing meeting after meeting," he said, wondering if it was worth having such a body if it was unable to tackle "differences in opinion".

Story continues

Japan's backers included Iceland, which said the process was being "held hostage" by "extreme polarisation."

Although commission members did not accept Japan's request for a working group, they did agree to a discussion between now and the next meeting in Brazil in 2018, which Morishita will chair.

Outgoing commission chairman Bruno Mainini of Switzerland agreed that solutions to the most divisive issues "probably can't be found through voting".

"I think the goal of all conventions, all organisations should be to accommodate the interests of all," he told AFP.

"Right now it seems to be impossible to accommodate because... (of) the moratorium" thwarting the desire of some IWC members to conduct whaling.

"Sooner or later, all the interested parties may have to move and tackle these issues," Mainini said.

He highlighted the commission's successes, including many countries giving up commercial whaling and the recovery of many stocks hunted to near-extinction in the 20th century, such as the humpback whale.

In comparison to the "one or two thousand" whales landed by IWC members per year, some 300,000 cetaceans, the family of whales, dolphins and porpoises, are killed through other human activities, mainly as fishing bycatch, he added.

Also, "there are countries (which) are not members of the IWC and they are more or less free to do what they want," he said.

- Institutional divisions -

But Washington's IWC commissioner, Russell Smith, does not believe the commission is dysfunctional.

"Everybody agrees that the conservation of whales is very important, everybody agrees that aboriginal subsistence whaling is important and that the management of that is the responsibility of the commission," he told AFP.

"Those are two of the major things that the commission continues to do and can continue to do even if we don't agree on... the issue of commercial whaling."

The moratorium excludes aboriginal subsistence whaling, for which the IWC issues catch limits, and killing whales for scientific research.

Norway and Iceland have lodged formal objections to the moratorium, and continue commercial hunts.

Conservation group Greenpeace also lamented "institutional divisions" at the IWC.

The proposal for an Atlantic sanctuary "fell along dividing lines all too familiar to long-term IWC members," it said.

"Clashes throughout the week between whaling nations and their supporters and other members demonstrated how difficult it is for the body to reach consensus."
Todd Sinai

Should you keep renting, or buy a home?

It's an age-old dilemma nearly every American adult wrestles with at some point. No one wants to throw their hard-earned cash away on rent payments they'll never see again when they could be investing in a home that will grow in value and potentially provide a nice return one day.

If that line of thinking sounds familiar, Todd Sinai, a real-estate professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, would like to stop you right there.

A number of crucial factors go into the rent-versus-buy equation  myriad calculators exist for just this purpose  but a house's potential return on investment shouldn't be your focus. In fact, you shouldn't think of it as an investment at all, according to Sinai.

"People get caught up in this notion of 'Oh, if I buy a house it's an investment, so I can do it at any time,' but it's not," Sinai told Business Insider.

Housing is a consumption decision, not an investment decision, Sinai said. The amount you pay for housing should comport with your needs, goals, and budget, regardless of housing market trends and potential growth in home value.

If what you're spending each month on housing jumps when you move from renting to owning, that's not necessarily a wise financial move just because you're getting equity. You need to make sure the additional space and amenities you're consuming are worthwhile expenditures on their own merits, not for the theoretical payout they might afford later.

Home for sale sign

"If you spend twice as much on a house, you're not making twice as big an investment, you're spending twice as much on housing," Sinai said. "That's a mistaken way to approach it."

Let's say you time your local market correctly and home prices rise after you buy. If you decide to sell that home, you'll still need a place to live, and you're buying in that same market with expensive home prices unless you go back to renting.

Story continues

Moreover, the process of buying and selling a house is expensive. The taxes, fees, and closing costs you'll pay when you buy and sell that home eat into any profits you reap.

"Buying that house cheap and selling it once it's gotten expensive is an expensive way to make money, because the round trip [cost to you] is about 10%, so you take a huge hit," Sinai said.

If you want to make an investment in housing, Sinai says you're better off doing it in the markets  such as buying shares in a real estate investment trust or an exchange-traded fund.

For buying your own home, just ensure it will match your needs for many years to come, independent of what happens in the markets.

NOW WATCH: Drivers are wasting $2.1 billion on premium gas a year





More From Business Insider


Wiki Watch

The latest email hacks reveal that Clinton campaign chair John Podesta and Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook appeared to be surprised by just how much Hillary Clinton used her private email server and the true depth of the story. The WikiLeaks emails also provide new revelations of pay-to-play.

Tune in to Varney and Co. for the latest updates on the Clinton email scandal, beginning today at 9 a.m. ET.

Month of Deals

October has been the biggest month of deals, and it may not be over yet. Most recently, General Electric (NYSE:GE) confirmed it is in talks with Baker Hughes (NYSE:BHI) about partnerships, stating: We are in discussion with Baker Hughes on potential partnerships. While nothing is concluded, none of these options include an outright purchase.

Watch Making Money with Charles Payne beginning today at 6 p.m. ET for all things Wall Street.

Three-State Blitz

Its the homestretch of the presidential race, and Donald Trump is taking advantage of the few days he has left until November 8th. The Republican presidential nominee will hold rallies today in New Hampshire, Maine and Iowa in a final push for the White House.

Michael Reagan, the son of former U.S. President Ronald Reagan, joins The Intelligence Report with Trish Regan to discuss why he went from "no-Trump" to pro-Trump today, beginning at 2 p.m. ET.

GDP

Third-quarter GDP was released at 8:30 a.m., revealing the U.S. economy grew at a 2.9% clip. FOXBusiness.com will have everything you need to know about the report.

Related Articles
ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (Reuters) - The White House on Friday said it was not given any prior notice on the FBI's announcement that it was investigating additional emails relating to Hillary Clinton's use of a private email system. "We did not have advance warning," White House spokesman Eric Schultz told reporters traveling with President Barack Obama to a campaign event for Clinton in Orlando, Florida. Schultz said news of the Federal Bureau of Investigation probe has not affected Obama's support for Clinton. "I don't think anything has surfaced to changed the president's opinion and views of Secretary Clinton," he said. (Reporting by Timothy Gardner; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
Somali piracy is in the news following the release of 26 hostages after nearly 5 years of captivity. Hearing the plight of those hostages, who came from Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam, were reminded of a telling comment from a Sony Pictures executive.

President of worldwide distribution Rory Bruer wrote in a leaked email that China was unlikely to allow distribution of "Captain Phillips." The movie tells the true story of how the US military sent multiple ships and a special operations team to recover an American held hostage by Somali pirates in 2009.

"The reality of the situation is that China will probably never clear the film for censorship," Bruer wrote. "Reasons being the big Military machine of the U.S. saving one U.S. citizen. China would never do the same and in no way would want to promote this idea. Also just the political tone of the film is something that they would not feel comfortable with."

"Captain Phillips" was never released in China.

captain phillips tom hanks

NOW WATCH: 9 animated maps that will change how you see the world





More From Business Insider


Why everyone should go to more concerts

I am a big fan of going to concerts, but I used to avoid them because of how expensive they are (or can be). I grew up pretty financially confused. My family didnt have any money, and even though I started working at 15-years-old (and have never not worked since then!), I never seemed to have any money either. Though I am now a big fan of treating yourself, as a younger person, I had a hard time spending any of my hard earned dollars in a big lump sum.

I was totally okay with buying Old Navy flip-flops  and later in college  tons of Thai food and ice-cream, but I was always very hesitant to spend a lot of money all at once. I didnt have a car until I was 22, and even that was a short-lived excursion (until more recently).

I didnt buy nice clothes, or expensive shoes. I hardly ever left my little town, and when I did, it was to nearby Portland, or somewhere else drivable. Attempting to spend a lot of money on a plane ticket or something fancy, even a nice dinner, was really hard for me to imagine. So I wouldnt do it.

But then, I fell in love with concerts.

Maroon 5 in Concert - San Francisco

My first concert was Maroon 5, back in the this love has taken its toll / on me days, before Adam Levine had a bunch of muscles and a household name. I was 17 and had recently graduated from high school. Though I had an absolute blast at this show (which, btw, was paid for by a friends parents),

I never thought about the fact that I was almost a true adult who could probably go do things like this more often. I put off going to concerts again out of fear of the ticket price + the struggle of transportation to and from + an insecurity about the lack of interest of my friends. Would anyone even want to go to a concert with me? Did people like the same things I did? (The answer is: yes, definitely. I 100000% listen to mainstream pop/hip-hop.)

The Meadows Music & Arts Festival - Day 2

The next concert I went to was a music festival, mostly because I wanted to see Kanye West, who was a household name, but was not quite on the level of Everyone Has an Opinion About Me that he is today.

Story continues

The festival was awesome, and the ticket price for a full day was expensive  but I didnt regret even one second of the show.

After that, my best friend and I attended two other shows I would never forget  Kanye (again!) and Justin Timberlakes FutureSexLoveShow, a concert that I, up until recently, swore was the best show I ever attended. Though both shows were expensive, they were also big arena shows, which meant I had my fair share of ticket prices, which really means, hell yes, I will pay 40 dollars to sit in the nosebleed but be in the mere presence of Kanye or Justin Timberlake.

A photo posted by Brittney Campbell (@britzcamp) on Aug 9, 2015 at 11:23am PDT

As I started to realize that these shows were sticking with me, changing me a little time after time, I started to care less about the price of the ticket.

I saw Coldplay (Twice now! I dont care, guys! I love them.), Katy Perry (she is amazing and I cried a lot), Kanye two more times, Jay Z (with Kanye and his wife, respectively), Taylor Swift, John Legend, Madonna, Bruno Mars, Ellie Goulding, Rihanna, Queen Beyonce (TWICE!), and a slew of other little shows like Blake Lewis, the Ying Yang Twins, Ja Rule and Ashanti, AND MORE. In the next two months, I have five shows I am attending. FIVE.

Waiting for Bey like A photo posted by Jess Tholmer (@tholmz) on May 18, 2016 at 8:46pm PDT

This is not to brag, you guys. This is to let you know that I, a person who grew up poor and was not used to having nice things; a person who missed out on all of the middle school excitement of attending boy band concerts and Britney Spears events, is now a person who is able to reconcile with the fact that money is not everything.

I am so much more of an experience person than a tangible gift person. Going to a concert and seeing a person you love, who you listen to on a regular basis, who has been with you through hard times and the happiest days of your life, is something that honestly, money can buy.

If you can make it work, if you can let yourself throw caution to the wind and be extra strapped for cash for a couple of weeks, I encourage you to do so. IS that reckless? Maybe! Im not a financial adviser!

But what I do know is that life is way, way, way too short to miss out on something that might change your life.

Also, my real advice to you is to try to have a good chunk of money in your savings specifically for concert announcements  because people like Beyonce will come out of the blue with a world tour and you will for sure want to have the money when tickets inexplicably go on sale the next day.

(Also concert merch is usually kind of overpriced and unnecessary, but to each their own!)

Carry on, concert-goers. You deserve it.

The post Why everyone should go to more concerts appeared first on HelloGiggles.
A 28-year old man in Hoima district is asking government to authorize him to test his locally made weapons.

Anatoli Kiiza, a resident of Kiryangobe village in Kitoba subcounty claims that he has manufactured a missile which he can test if given the green light.

Kiiza previously made attempts to fabricate a machine similar to a

missile in June 2012 and was arrested by police at Kiryatete and later released without charge.

He now says he is in advanced stages of researching how to obtain a launch pad which could push the round-metallic devise which has a cone-shaped head where he had already installed a cylinder.

He claims that Uganda can save money which it spends on buying weapons if innovative people like him are supported to manufacture weapons.

Government spokesperson Ofwono Opondo said all innovations by Ugandans are encouraged, advising such innovators to contact local authorities who can then link them to the ministry in charge of innovation, science and technology for support.
Its been six months since the Rhoden family was massacred in Piketon, Ohio, and authorities are still looking for answers.

As police pursue the hundreds of possible leads theyve received since the April 22 massacre that left eight relatives dead, the surviving family members are speaking out about their anguish and heartbreak.

The case is getting more confusing, more confusing, more confusing, Andrea Carver, mother of victim Hannah Gilley said in a recent interview with the Cincinnati Enquirer. It just gets more confusing as time continues to go by. I dont know what to think.

Carvers frustration comes after authorities launched Ohios largest and most complex homicide investigation, into the deaths of her daughter, her daughters fiancee and his six relatives.

But authorities have yet to make an arrest, and they have declined to publicly discuss a motive.

According to the states attorney generals office, over the last six months more than 100 investigators have scrutinized the crime scene, interviewed family members and reviewed more than 700 tips.

The day after the massacre, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine described the killings as a pre-planned execution and a sophisticated operation.

A spokesperson for DeWine tells PEOPLE that investigators certainly know more about Pike County today than when the investigation began, but would not elaborate any further.

We still work on this case every single day here at the Attorney Generals Office, the spokesperson tells PEOPLE. We expect it to be a long and intensive investigation.

In her interview, Carver told the Enquirer how she woke up the night her daughter died, clutching her chest. She felt something was wrong and couldnt fall back to sleep. A few hours later, she said, she received a call saying Hannah and her fiance, Clarence Frankie Rhoden were in an accident.

When she arrived on the scene at Frankies family home  which included three trailers and a camper  where Hannah, their two young children, and Frankies extended family lived, Carver still didnt know her daughters fate.

Story continues

I just kept asking: What about Hannah Hazel?  Carver told the Enquirer. Finally, I screamed: Is she dead? Is Hannah Hazel dead? Is my little girl dead? 

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

Hannah, Frankie and the other six had been killed early that Saturday morning. They had been shot  all, but one, multiple times  in their sleep. Hannah was shot five times in the head, Carver said.

There were no signs of bruising on the bodies, the Hamilton County Coroner said in a report previously obtained by PEOPLE.

Alongside Hannah and her fiance were six more bodies: Frankies dad, Christopher Rhoden Sr., 40; Frankies mother, Dana Manley Rhoden, 37; his sister, Hanna Mae Rhoden, 19; his brother, Christopher Rhoden Jr., 16; his uncle, Kenneth Rhoden, 44; and a cousin, Gary Rhoden, 38.

The Pikes County Sheriffs Office did not return PEOPLEs request for comment. PEOPLE could not reach Carver or her relatives.

Victims Mom: She Should Be Here

In May, Carver laid her daughter to rest near her childhood home at Hackworth Hill Cemetery in Otway, Ohio.

I cant believe shes dead. I keep saying: They could have put a dummy in that casket that looked like my Hannah, right?  Carver told the Enquirer. I know Im in the biggest stage of denial.

Hannah and Frankie left behind a 6-month-old son, Ruger, who was spared in the attack.

She shouldnt been took so young, Carver said. She should be here, raising her baby. She should be here.

Marijuana growing operations were found at three of the four locations at which the victims were shot, DeWine said at a news conference on April 23.

The family that I knew could not have been involved in that, family friend Heather Romine told CNN. Its just so out of character for them. I dont think its plausible.

A surviving Rhoden relative dismissed speculation about drug connections, telling Fox News such suspicion had poisoned the family in their community.

She said, If they had as much marijuana and they were selling as much marijuana as theyre saying, then I wouldnt be busting my butt to put myself through school  My dad wouldnt have had to work every day, drive back and forth to Columbus to make a living.

The youngest victim of the shooting, teenager Chris, attended the local high school. He lived with his parents and their extended family, who had lived in the area for generations.

Somebody knows something, a police source told PEOPLE soon after the killings. Well investigate until we come up with an answer.

Authorities continue to urge anyone with information to call 855-BCI-OHIO (224-6446) or 740-947-2111.




As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, tomorrow's business professionals will need to develop an adaptive mindset that allows them to successfully navigate a variety of markets, languages and cultures.

We've seen a lot of growth lately in the range of international full-time, part-time and executive MBA courses aimed at U.S. students looking for a global business school experience, and there's no better way to expand your horizons than by studying in another country.

While top U.S. business schools continue to dominate many rankings, programs at global universities hold their own when it comes to prestige and quality. Of the top MBA programs in the world, there are typically high-ranking programs outside of the U.S., including the University of Navarra's IESE Business School in Spain, the Hautes Etudes Commerciales (HEC) Paris and the University of Queensland Business School in Australia.

[Get a global perspective through internationally focused MBA programs.]

But what sets apart an international MBA? Student body diversity is one.

European business schools, for example, boast a roughly 80 percent nonnational ratio, compared to 30 percent at their U.S. counterparts. Whether these programs include class trips to work in emerging economies or offer a cohort with students from numerous different countries, they compete on equal footing with the best North American schools.

Another attractive characteristic for U.S. students is that many of the highly ranked business programs in Europe are just one year. Though the shorter MBA program means a more grueling schedule, many feel it's worth the trade-off because it translates into just one year of foregone salary and the possibility of students getting their educational investment back in less than three years.

[Discover the five must-haves in a globally focused MBA.]

You'll always have the highest exposure to jobs in your geographic area, so keep that top of mind as you think about your career goals and fields of interest. If you already know that you want to work in Asia, Europe, the Middle East or Latin America, you'd be better off choosing a local school where you can network directly with employers.

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Many international MBA programs are offered in English, though fluency in the local language greatly enhances your candidacy when applying. English-language MBA programs at IESE Business School and HEC Paris, for example, offer students a chance to strengthen their Spanish or French while learning how commerce works in the host countries.

In general, though, overseas MBA programs prefer applicants who can point to previous professional or study abroad experience, since this demonstrates that you already know how to work with different cultures and are more likely to enrich the experience of others in the cohort.

INSEAD Business School in France opened a second campus in Singapore in 2000, clearly a shift to specifically target Asia and the Pacific Rim. Asian universities in turn have stepped up their game when it comes to competing for students.

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, one of the region's highly recognized graduate schools of business, has joined forces with China Europe International Business School in Shanghai and Nanyang Technological University in Singapore to raise their visibility in North America and Europe and interest more Western candidates to Asia to earn MBA degrees. Lower program costs and Asia's ever-increasing economic relevance, plus the use of English as the language of instruction, makes this trio particularly appealing to students in the West.

Latin America, meanwhile, is a relatively young MBA market that offers substantial growth opportunities and an affordable management education compared to its North American counterparts. According to the most recent QS Top MBA Report on the global job market, hiring is particularly insular in Latin America, and the percentage of employers who look for talent within their own region is second only to the U.S. and Canada.

[Learn how to be a standout U.S. applicant for European MBA programs.]

The region's rapidly growing economy -- notably in Mexico, Brazil and Peru -- means increased opportunities for business and trade, and MBAs who are comfortable with the local language as well as with the region's social and cultural norms will thrive.

Some of the schools recognized throughout the world are the EGADE Business School and IPADE Business School in Mexico, the CENTRUM Catolica Business School in Peru and FGV's Sao Paulo School of Business Administration in Brazil.

Whether your goal is to establish yourself ahead of U.S. candidates for international jobs or simply to have a degree that carries the cachet of regional knowledge, choosing to pursue an MBA overseas give you the opportunity for a truly transformational experience, leading to a greater understanding of yourself and how business operates around the world.
Willem Dafoe has been tapped to play a musicologist in project "Opus Zero," which will mark the directorial debut of Australian producer Daniel Graham.

In the film, Dafoe is to play a musicologist who is grieving the death of his father and who settles in the town of Real de Catorce, San Luis Potosi in Mexico.

While trying to reconstruct a symphony by a Norwegian composer, he is drawn into investigating the disappearance of a woman from the village, reports Variety.

Shooting on the film begins next week in Mexico.

Dafoe shared the news of his role at the 14th Morelia International Film Festival, where he was a guest of honor.
MORELIA, Mexico  Willem Dafoe will play the lead in Opus Zero, the directorial debut of Oz producer Daniel Graham, which starts shooting next week in Mexico. Dafoe revealed his new role while attending the 14th Morelia Intl Film Fest as a guest of honor and to co-present the world premiere of Padre, the latest pic by his wife, Italian filmmaker Giada Colagrande. Graham was the line producer of Post Tenebras Lux, directed by Carlos Reygadas who boards the project as an associate producer. Opus Zero leads an ambitious slate from Julio Chavezmontes Mexico City-based production-distribution house, Piano. Sutor Kolonko y Maze Pictures co-produce.

Dafoe will play a musicologist grieving over the demise of his father who settles in the town of Real de Catorce, San Luis Potosi. While there, he tries to reconstruct an early 20th century symphony by a Norwegian composer, and gets drawn into investigating the disappearance of a woman from the village. Dafoe leads a cast that includes Mexican thesps Irene Azuela, Cassandra Ciangherotti and Brontis Jodorowsky. Graham wrote Opus Zero. Chavezmontes produces; Ingmar Trost, Jorg Schulze, and Andreas Zielke co-produce.

In a massively attended conversation with Sight & Sounds Nick Roddick, Dafoe said he had been chastised for revealing his role in the pic. The drama is in Spanish and English, and Ill be speaking in English, he said, apologizing for not speaking Spanish. But that it was next on his list, after mastering Italian, he added.

Known for straddling both studio and indie films, Dafoe recently finished work on the Zhang Yimou epic drama, The Great Wall and DC Comics Justice League by Zack Snyder. Cheers broke out when he announced he would next star in Aquaman, to be directed by James Wan. I never decided on being an actor. I just gravitated towards situations and people, and after a certain amount of time, I said to myself, well I guess Im an actor, said Dafoe who recalls getting his first paid role at the age of 13 and credits Kathryn Bigelow for giving him his first film role in her directorial debut, The Loveless. He doesnt count the time he was a glorified extra in Michael Ciminos disastrous Heavens Gate where he was fired for laughing on set.

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I believe in the cinema that comes from one voice so Im very interested in working with strong directors, said Dafoe who has worked in more than a 100 films and with the likes of Abel Ferrara, Paul Schrader, and Martin Scorsese.

To the delight of Morelia Festival director Daniela Michel, who stood in the theatre aisle, he said: Film festivals are very important because they keep the dialogue alive, and they also help some films that if they were just thrown out into the marketplace, would not be introduced in the right way. He added: Alleluia for this film festival and others that dont just function as arms of the local tourism bureau.

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By Rory Carroll

(Reuters) - Wisconsin prosecutors filed a criminal complaint against a University of Wisconsin-Madison student on Thursday, accusing him of sexually assaulting at least six women since early 2015.

Alec Cook, 20, of Edina, Minnesota, faces a total of 11 counts of sexual assault, two counts of strangulation and suffocation, and two counts of false imprisonment.

Since news of his arrest broke, police in an affidavit said dozens of women have come forward with information about Cook, according to local television station ABC 27 WKOW.

Cook's attorney did not respond to requests for comment.

WKOW reported his attorney as saying that Cook, who is in jail, had no criminal record. Cook has been suspended from the university and is prohibited from being on campus.

Campus sexual assault has become a hot topic after former Stanford University swimmer Brock Turner sexually assaulted an unconscious woman and received a six-month jail sentence. Prosecutors had sought six years.

The first complaint against Cook stems from an Oct. 12 meeting with a female student identified as JAS, who said that after they studied in a campus library, she went with Cook to his apartment where he aggressively kissed her before having what JAS described as non-consensual intercourse. She told police Cook choked and slapped her face against her will.

The encounter left the woman with tearing in her vagina, patches of irritated skin on her scalp where her hair was torn out, and scratches on her arms, according to the complaint.

Another woman identified as MBG told police that Cook sexually assaulted her and that she was not physically strong enough to stop him. After that incident, Cook stalked her, she told police.

Another student, identified as NSN, told police that Cook would grab her breasts and buttocks inappropriately whenever they were paired in their ballroom dance class. Another student from the same class reported similar behavior to police.

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According to ABC 27 WKOW, court records show a black leather book seized by police from Cook's apartment last week lists women's names.

"Each entry showed how he met the female, and what he liked about them. Further entries went on to document what he wanted to do with the females," the affidavit stated, according to WKOW.

"Disturbingly enough there were statements of 'kill' and statements of 'sexual' desires," according to the affidavit.

Cook's attorney said the notebook entries can be interpreted in many different ways, according to WKOW.

(Reporting by Rory Carroll in San Francisco; Editing by Bernard Orr)
Diane Hendricks, the richest woman in Wisconsin, has pumped nearly $5.5 million into a conservative super PAC thats spending millions of dollars on attack ads in her home state.

The Reform America Fund has raised almost $5.9 million since it was launched in July 2015, meaning Hendricks accounts for 93 percent of its war chest.

Since mid-September, the super PAC has spent $3.4 million on ads critical of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and another $2.2 million lambasting Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Russ Feingold, whos in the midst of a rematch with incumbent Republican Sen. Ron Johnson.

According to data provided to the Center for Public Integrity by ad tracking firm Kantar Media/CMAG, the Reform America Fund has aired about 2,400 anti-Clinton ads in Wisconsin  accounting for roughly 55 percent of all presidential-focused ads in the state since the primaries ended.

No other group has been as big a player on the TV airwaves in Wisconsin in the presidential race.

This story is part of Source Check. Click here to read more stories in this series.

Don't miss another Politics investigation: Sign up for the Center for Public Integrity's Watchdog email.

The ads messages

On its website, the Reform America Fund says Clinton  a former secretary of state, U.S. senator and first lady  simply cant be trusted.

Its a message the super PAC has hit repeatedly in its TV and digital ads at a time when Clinton has been battling criticisms of potential pay-to-play politicking, foreign influence peddling and mishandling of classified emails.

C is for Clinton, whose campaign is sliding, a narrator states in one of the groups ads. And Cs for the classified emails shes hiding.

The theme of a second ad was C is for cover-up. While a third anti-Clinton spot accused Clinton of selling access to foreign governments as secretary of state.

A second website operated by the Refund American Fund allows people to share various C is for Clinton memes online.

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Whos behind it?

Hendricks, co-founder and chairman of ABC Supply, the largest wholesale distributor of roofing in the United States, is well known in GOP circles.

Before supporting Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump this year, she backed Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walkers failed presidential campaign.

Hendricks donated $5 million to a super PAC that supported Walker  about one-fifth of the groups overall receipts.

In May, Hendricks was named a vice chairwoman of the Trump Victory committee. Since then, shes donated $212,700 to the joint fundraising group that benefits Trumps campaign as well as the Republican National Committee and several state parties.

Among her other notable political contribution this election: Hendricks has donated $4 million to the Freedom Partners Action Fund, the super PAC backed by the conservative billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch of Koch Industries. And she gave $400,000 to the committee that hosted the Republican National Convention in Cleveland in July.

Money in

As a super PAC, the Reform America Fund may collect unlimited amounts of money from individuals, corporations and labor unions  so long as it doesnt coordinate its spending with candidates own campaigns.

In addition to Hendricks, who also serves on Trumps economic policy council, several other Midwestern business executives rank among Reform America Funds top donors.

Among them: FABCO Equipment CEO Jere Fabick, who's given $150,000; TAMKO Building Products CEO David Humphreys, who's given $100,000; and Uline CEO Richard Uihlein, who's given $100,000.

Don't miss another Politics investigation: Sign up for the Center for Public Integrity's Watchdog email.

Money out

In addition to the $5.6 million that the Reform America Fund has already spent directly attacking Clinton and Feingold, the super PAC has also transferred about $740,000 to a related super PAC called the Reform Wisconsin Fund. That money has been spent on additional anti-Feingold ads in Wisconsins Senate race.

Why it matters

Wisconsins Senate seat is hotly contested, with Johnson in danger of losing to Feingold, who has maintained a modest lead in recent polls.

The winner of this seat could help determine whether Democrats or Republicans control the U.S. Senate come January.

Wisconsin is also a state Trump has hoped to wrest away from Clinton, whos currently leading in the polls there.

Moreover, super PACs like the Reform America Fund make it easy for wealthy individuals with political passions to become more involved.

Hendricks, herself, has expressed a desire for Wisconsin to turn into a completely red state.

Such motivated megadonors often make it onto politicians radars.

Earlier this month, at a campaign event in Wisconsin, Trump himself praised Hendricks, who was in attendance, as amazing and called her one of the states great successful people.

This story is part of Source Check. Click here to read more stories in this series.

Related stories

Copyright 2016 The Center for Public Integrity. This story was published by The Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit, nonpartisan investigative news organization in Washington, D.C.
Bodily fluids are eroding the walls of the worlds tallest church tower.

The Ulmer Mnster, a cathedral in southern Germany, is known for having the tallest church tower in the world. Now, from frequent public urination and vomiting on its walls, the churchs stone base is starting to erode.

Church officials have appealed to the public to keep Germanys largest protestant church clean as it recently underwent renovation to its sandstone base, according to Deutsche Welle.

I've been keeping an eye on it for half a year now and, once again, it's coated with urine and vomit, Michael Hilbert, head of the churchs preservation, told Sdwest Presse.

tallest church being eroded by peeing, vomiting vandals

Earlier this year, city officials decided to double the fine for public urination to 100 (US$110), but that has done little to impede those who gotta go.

The church square is frequently used for community events, such as the Christmas market and annual wine festival. Church officials have suggested that event organizers install port-a-potties on site during the festivals so those who hear the call of nature can attend to their business on a surface with less history and cultural importance.

tallest church being eroded by peeing, vomiting vandals

The Ulmer Mnster tower soars to 530 feet. Construction on the church started in 1377 and was completed in 1890. The church managed to stay erect through Allied bombings in World War II when almost 80 percent of the town was destroyed.

If urine and vomit dont get to it first, the Ulm Minster will lose its status as the worlds tallest church tower when construction on Gaudis Sagrada Familia in Barcelona is (planned to be) completed in 2026.

Related Articles
Would you leave your five year old on their own to run an errand? [Photo: Getty]

How young is too young for a child to be left home alone? One mum has kicked off an online debate about that exact topic after asking other parents if its ok to leave a five-year-old at home on their own.

The mum took to a forum on the parenting site Mumsnet to ask whether they thought it was acceptable for her friend to leave her daughter, five, alone in the house while her mother runs an errand.



Leaving a child age 5 alone in house while running an errand taking 15 mins. A friend seems to do this a lot., the mum wrote under the title post Neglect or just cr*p parenting?



The user went on to explain that though she hadnt witnessed it directly shed discovered her friend does this because shed said her little one was upset with her when she woke up from a nap to find her mum was out running an errand.



Was mortified when first heard but thought prob a one off, as parents OH was away, but seems to be a regular thingam increasingly concerned. Should I be.?

How young is too young for a child to be left? [Photo: Getty]

The post seem to spark a debate about the dangers of leaving a child home alone.



Id be concerned. Hell would freeze over before I left my 5yo unattended like that - what if something happened to her while she was out? She could get hit by a bus for all she knew, and her DC would be alone and frightened. It doesnt bear thinking about, one mum wrote.



The thing is the risks may be small but the outcome is so awful that why would you bother risking it? Your child gets distressed, wanders the streets, gets run over, SS get called, all the way to kidnap, fire etc, added another.

But not everyone thought it was wrong to leave a five year old unattended.



I have a friend who will do this, leave her 2, 6, & 4 while she pops to shop over the road. People know their children and we need to remember there are children that young in other countries fending entirely for themselves. Neglect and abuse? No. Potentially negligent?? Yes, ever so slightly, one mum commented.



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Some even offered up their own examples of leaving little ones to pop out.



I used to leave my five year old for about 10 mins to do an errand. Im not a neglectful parent. I would never have left her asleep to wake up on her own. Id tell her where I was going and how long Id be. Shes now still alive at 8 and I am happy to leave her for longer periods. Shes a sensible child, one mum explained.



Being left home for a short while is hardly fending for themselves, and my 5 year old asks to be left home. I wont do it now because we just moved house and dont really know the neighbours yet (and were in the middle of renovating so theres power tools and other dangerous things accessible) but I did a couple of times in our old house where she could let herself out and go to the neighbour if there was a problem, another mum wrote.

The law surrounding leaving a child alone is a grey area [Photo: Getty]

The post also sparked a debate among some of the users about whether leaving a child that age alone would be breaking the law? So what are the legalities surrounding leaving a child on their own? Though the law doesnt specify an age when you can leave a child on their own, it is an offence to leave a child alone if it places them at risk.



A Government website encourages parents to use their judgement before leaving children alone or in a car.

But the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) believes children under 12 are rarely mature enough to be left alone for a long period of time, children under 16 shouldnt be left alone overnight and babies, toddlers and very young children should never be left alone.

Would you leave your 5-year-old home alone? Join the debate @YahooStyleUK

To blur or not to blur? Should we be pixelating our childrens pictures on social media?

Should parents allow their kids to go trick or treating at Halloween?
The National Resistance Movement Administrative Secretarys office in Otuke District has been locked up over rent arrears.

Jasper Okengo the party district chairperson says the office has been locked since January this year over rent arrears amounting to Shs2.4m.

He says the matter was reported to adding the secretariat in Kampala is yet to receive a response.

James Obot, the landlord has now threatened to take legal action against the NRM party if no immediate action is taken by the Secretariat in Kampala.

Meanwhile, Otuke Resident District Commissioner Robert Abakhas promised to follow up the matter with the relevant authorities.
(Reuters) - Xerox Corp's <XRX.N> quarterly revenue fell nearly 3 percent, the seventh straight quarter of decline, as sales of its printers and copiers continued to fall.

However, Xerox reported net income attributable to the company of $181 million, or 17 cents per share, in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, compared with a net loss of $34 million, or 4 cents per share, a year earlier.

Total revenue fell to $4.21 billion from $4.33 billion.

Xerox, which said in February it would separate its legacy printer operations from its business-process outsourcing unit, said the separation was on track to be completed by the end of the year.

(Reporting by Aishwarya Venugopal in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
28 Oct - While they never actually confirmed that they are in a relationship, the closeness between onscreen couple Kim Chiu and Xian Lim cannot be denied. Which is why fans were worried upon finding out that Chiu will be working with her ex-boyfriend Gerald Anderson in her new drama.



However, according to Push, the actor stressed that he is just happy that Chiu is getting a lot of offers right now.



"Like I said in my previous interview, we're not abandoning our tandem. We will give the best quality shows and quality programmes for all the fans," said Lim, who has worked as Chiu's partner for the last six years.



Lim said that while Chiu will be working with Anderson in reviving their Kimerald tandem, he is set to star in a movie alongside Coleen Garcia, to be helmed by "The Third Party" director, Jason Paul Laxamana.



"It's going to be a learning experience for me, since we learn a lot from working with other people. It's also exciting to be working with a different leading lady, since we will be offering something new. The chemistry will be fresh," he said.



(Photo source: instagram.com/xianlimm)
Riyadh (AFP) - Yemeni rebels have launched one of their longest-range strikes against Saudi Arabia, firing a ballistic missile that was shot down near the holy city of Mecca, the Saudi-led coalition said Friday.

The rebels insisted that the missile had targeted Jeddah, the Red Sea city in the sprawling Mecca region, not the holy Muslim city.

The coalition has been carrying out a bombing campaign against the rebels since March last year and there have been rebel strikes towards their air bases.

Saudi Arabia has deployed Patriot missiles to intercept the rebel fire.

Huthi rebels launched the missile "toward the Mecca area" on Thursday from their Saada province stronghold across the border, a coalition statement said.

"The air defence was able to intercept and destroyed it about 65 kilometres (40 miles) from Mecca without any damage."

The rebels' sabanews website said their ballistic missile targeted Jeddah international airport.

Islam's holiest sites are located in Mecca and Medina.

The six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council condemned what it called "clear evidence" that the rebels are unwilling to accept a political solution to Yemen's 19-month-old conflict.

The United Arab Emirates' Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan went further, criticising Iran for the attack.

"The Iranian regime backs a terrorist group that fires its rockets on Mecca... Is this an Islamic regime as it claims to be?" he wrote on Twitter.

Qatar called the attack "a provocation to the feelings of millions of Muslims worldwide".

All GCC states, apart from Oman, are members of the Saudi-led coalition. The UAE itself is a major pillar of the Sunni alliance.

The coalition and the United States accuse Shiite-dominated Iran of arming the rebels, a charge Tehran denies.

- 'Political nonsense' -

The Huthis are a minority group belonging to the Zaidi sect of Shiite Islam. They fought six wars against Yemen's government between 2004 and 2010.

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In a statement on sabanews.net, Huthi spokesman Mohammed Abdulsalam accused Saudi Arabia of "political nonsense".

"The Saudi regime which claims it intercepted the missile 65 kilometres away from Mecca which is holy and precious to the hearts of every Yemeni and Muslim could have avoided such media platitude and political nonsense by directly mentioning the city of Jeddah where a military target for the 'Burkan 1' missile lies on its northern outskirts," said Abdulsalam.

"Hiding behind holy sites is... a repugnant attempt to instigate the feelings of Muslims."

Unless the coalition ends its "aggression, lifts the blockade, and seeks peace", the rebels "have the right to confront the aggressors in all legitimate and rightful means," Abdulsalam added.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghassemi called the claims that a missile was fired at Mecca "ridiculous", the official IRNA news agency said.

"We advise Emirati and Saudi officials not to use the holy places of Islam to justify their pathetic political objectives and try to compensate for their failures by such hypocritic and dangerous propaganda," Ghassemi said.

Mecca lies more than 500 kilometres (more than 300 miles) from the border.

It is the second time this month that the rebels have fired a missile of that range.

On October 9, the coalition said it had intercepted a missile near Taif, the site of a Saudi airbase some 65 kilometres (40 miles) from Mecca.

That launch came a day after a coalition air strike killed more than 140 people attending a wake for the father of a rebel leader in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, prompting threats of revenge.

In a separate incident on Thursday, rebel fire hit a two-storey residential building in the Saudi border district of Jazan without causing casualties, the civil defence agency said.
Riyadh (AFP) - Yemeni rebels have launched one of their longest-range strikes against Saudi Arabia, firing a ballistic missile that was shot down near the holy city of Mecca, the Saudi-led coalition fighting them said Friday.

The coalition has been carrying out a bombing campaign against the rebels since March last year and there have been rebel strikes towards the bases from which the coalition mounts air raids.

Saudi Arabia has deployed Patriot missiles to intercept the rebel fire.

Huthi rebels launched the missile "toward the Mecca area" on Thursday evening from their Saada province stronghold just across the border, a coalition statement said.

"The air defence was able to intercept and destroyed it about 65 kilometres (40 miles) from Mecca without any damage."

The rebels' sabanews website said their ballistic missile targeted the international airport in Jeddah, the Red Sea city in the sprawling Mecca region.

Islam's holiest sites are located in Mecca and nearby Medina cities.

The six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council condemned the attack which it described as "clear evidence" that the rebels are not willing to accept a political solution to Yemens 19-month-old conflict.

The United Arab Emirates' Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan went further, criticising Iran for the attack.

"The Iranian regime backs a terrorist group that fires its rockets on Mecca... Is this an Islamic regime as it claims to be?" he wrote on Twitter.

Qatar called the attack "a provocation to the feelings of millions of Muslims worldwide".

All GCC states, apart from Oman, are members of the Saudi-led coalition. The UAE itself is a major pillar of the Sunni alliance.

The coalition as well as the United States accuse Shiite-dominated Iran of arming the rebels, a charge denied by Tehran.

The Huthi rebels are a minority group that belong to the Zaidi sect of Shiite Islam. They fought six wars against Yemen's government between 2004 and 2010.

Story continues

Mecca lies more than 500 kilometres (more than 300 miles) from the border.

It is the second time this month that the rebels have fired a missile of that range.

On October 9, the coalition said it had intercepted a missile near Taif, the site of a Saudi airbase some 65 kilometres (40 miles) from Mecca.

That launch came a day after a coalition air strike killed more than 140 people attending a wake for the father of a rebel leader in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, prompting threats of revenge.

In a separate incident on Thursday, rebel fire hit a two-storey residential building in the Saudi border district of Jazan without causing casualties, the civil defence agency said.
Alan Sorrentino says he felt stress and danger as hundreds of women walked down his street in yoga pants to peacefully protest his letter to the editor that advises women to stop wearing them in public.

But Sorrentino is not backing down, and has penned another letter that he hopes will be published.

Its not over, the 67-year-old tells the Providence Journal. Its not over for me.

Women around the world called out Sorrentino for his letter to Rhode Islands Barrington Times that said wearing yoga pants in public is the absolute worst thing to ever happen in women fashion. Protestors said they felt the letter was full of body shaming comments and another example of men telling women what to wear. But Sorrentino insists the letter was satire.

There was so much heavy stuff in the newspaper, and I was trying to be funny, and I thought, wouldnt it be great to write a crazy, stupid letter about something ridiculous, he says. It was in the spirit of red carpet commentary like Joan Rivers would do.

But his letter instead created an enormous controversy, inspiring the Yoga Pants Parade that went past his home, where he lives with his partner, Charlie, and a friend with advanced form of multiple sclerosis, on Sunday. Sorrentino says he received death threats, and those and the parade left him terrified.

People going Were coming to get you, we know where you live. They said Die, bastard, Die alone,  he recalls. This house was disrupted, and attacked, by a group of what I consider mentally ill, perverted people that wanted to hurt, who get joy out of hurting and causing pain.

It was violent, it was scary, it looked like the crucifixion. It was an assault on us, and people brought their children, and their pets, they were selling lemonade and popcorn, and they were stopping by the house jeering and yelling.

However, the protest organizer Jamie Patrice said prior to the parade, his is NOT a hateful protest against Alan . This a wonderful group of people celebrating our bodies and our right to cover them however we see fit.

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I want women of all ages, shapes and sizes to know that it is okay to wear whatever makes them feel comfortable, Patrice said.

Sorrentino insists hes just a short little gay Italian and women shouldnt care enough about what he thinks to send death threats and organize protests  peaceful or not.

When asked why he bothered telling women that they shouldnt wear yoga pants, Sorrentino said, Well first of all, everybody does that, and secondly, who the hell am I? So what if I said that?

My family would say you have to have thicker skin and let it roll off your back. Dont let what people say bother you.

According to the Providence Journal, Sorrentinos new letter says, Remember, were all beautiful inside  Its when you start flopping out that things get ugly.




It's goodbye to 'Baloons over Bagan'.

Yoma Strategic has announced a spin-off of its tourism-related business via a Reverse Take-Over (RTO) of SHC Capital Asia Limited, a SGX listed shell company.

RHB believes that the proposed divestment of Yoma's tourism assets into SHC will unlock a gain of $16m, given the book value of $28m for assets under sale and a

deemed market value of $44m.

Under the agreement, the tourism-related businesses that will be spin off comprise of o The hot air balloon business 'Balloons over Bagan' which

operates a total of 14 balloons; Pun Hlaing Lodge in Pun Hlaing Estate; and a parcel of land in Nyaung U in Bagan intended for the construction of a proposed commercial and tourism-related hospitality development.

SHC will simultaneously acquire additional tourism-related businesses in Myanmar comprising of Hpa-An Lodge, a hotel/lodge business and Asia Holidays, a Myanmar-based destination management company.

Following the proposed RTO, SHC will transform into a Myanmar-focused tourism company, which will be uniquely positioned to acquire, develop and operate new tourism-related assets in the country.







More From Singapore Business Review


Depending on who you ask, Apple's special Mac event yesterday was either a rousing success or a hyped up disappointment. On the one hand, we finally got the long overdue MacBook Pro update we've all been waiting for. But on the other, some tech observers have commented that the MacBook Pro's Touch Bar -- undoubtedly the star of the show -- while neat, is hardly a game-changer aside from some very specific use-case scenarios.

In fact, for a Pro device, there are actually a number of valid complaints one can make about Apple's new MacBook Pro lineup, from its exclusive reliance upon Thunderbolt 3/USB-C ports (so long, MagSafe) to the fact that RAM configuration options max out at 16GB. And oh yes, there's also the price.

DON'T MISS: The iPhone 7 has an exciting new feature that Apple is keeping secret

Apple products have always been on the pricier side of the equation because, well, Apple's bread and butter is selling premium products at a premium price. That said, Apple's new MacBook Pros, perhaps justifiably, are a tad more expensive than their predecessors.

Consider this: Apple's top of the line 13-inch MacBook Pro starts at $1,999. It's previous top of the line 13-inch MacBook Pro started at $1799. Similarly, Apple's flagship 15-inch MacBook Pro model saw a jump from $2499 to $2799. And if you really want to max out your machine, you can trick out your 15-inch MacBook Pro to the tune of $4,300.

With Mac sales still trending downwards, the above price increases, however subtle, caught some prospective consumers off-guard. When asked about Apple's new pricing matrix during an interview with CNET, Apple executive Phil Schiller delivered the most quintessential Apple response ever, which is to say that Apple focuses on quality, not pricing.

When asked about more affordable notebook options from rivals like Google and Samsung, Schiller explained:

Affordability is absolutely something we care about, Schiller says. But we dont design for price, we design for the experience and the quality people expect from Mac. Sometimes that means we end up at the higher end of the range, but not on purpose, just because thats what it costs.

Story continues

Over the next few weeks, it will be incredibly interesting to see how customers take to Apple's new MacBook Pro line. At the very least, you have to give Apple credit for making their laptop line intriguing again. Apple's 2015 MacBook was interesting, to be sure, but it's been a long while since an Apple laptop introduction has engendered this much excitement and curiosity.

In that respect, I'd venture to say that yesterday's event was a tremendous success.

Trending right now:

See the original version of this article on BGR.com
By Julia Fioretti BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European privacy watchdogs warned WhatsApp on Friday over sharing user information with parent company Facebook, and cautioned Yahoo over a 2014 data breach and scanning of customer emails for U.S. intelligence purposes. The popular messaging service's recent change in privacy policy to start sharing users' phone numbers with Facebook - the first policy change since WhatsApp was acquired by Facebook in 2014 - has attracted regulatory scrutiny in Europe. The Italian antitrust watchdog on Friday also announced a separate probe into whether WhatsApp obliged users to agree to sharing personal data with Facebook. The European Union's 28 data protection authorities said in a statement they had requested WhatsApp stop sharing users' data with Facebook until the "appropriate legal protections could be assured" to avoid falling foul of EU data protection law. WhatsApp's new privacy policy involves the sharing of information with Facebook for purposes that were not included in the terms of service when users signed up, raising questions about the validity of users' consent, the authorities, known as the Article 29 Working Party (WP29), said. A spokeswoman for WhatsApp said the company was working with data protection authorities to address their questions. "Weve had constructive conversations, including before our update, and we remain committed to respecting applicable law, she said. Facebook has had run-ins with European privacy watchdogs in the past over its processing of users' data. However, the fines that regulators can levy are paltry in comparison to the revenues of the big U.S. tech companies concerned. The EU data protection authorities also wrote to Yahoo over a massive data breach that exposed the email credentials of 500 million users, as well as its scanning of customers' incoming emails for specific information provided by U.S. intelligence officials. They asked Yahoo to communicate all aspects of the data breach to the EU authorities, to notify the affected users of the "adverse effects" and to cooperate with all "upcoming national data protection authorities' enquiries and/or investigations. "The reports (about email scanning) are concerning to WP29 and it will be important to understand the legal basis and justification for any such surveillance activity, including an explanation of how this is compatible with EU law and protection for EU citizens," the watchdogs said in their letter to Yahoo. Yahoo did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The regulators will discuss the Yahoo and WhatsApp cases in November. (Reporting by Julia Fioretti; Editing by Susan Fenton and Mark Potter)
The High Court in Kampala has set free a man whom prosecution had accused of defiling a 19 year old woman.

Joel Gampande had spent 3 years on remand at Luzira Prison on charges of aggravated defilement of this woman, who was under his guardianship being a niece to his wife.

Prosecution had alleged that Gampande from the year 2010 when the victim was 16 years old until 2013 when she reported the abuse, repeatedly defiled her.

However today Justice Wilson Masalu ruled that not only did medical examination evidence reveal that the victims private parts were consistent with habitual sexual intercourse but there was no reason for her to wait for 3 years to report the said abuse to authorities.

Justice Muesne has thus acquitted Gampande on grounds that since the sexual and marriage consensual age is 18 years, it is unfair to keep holding the accused in prison.
In a letter sent to Congress today, FBI Director James Comey seems to suggest that the FBI will be reopening its investigation into Hillary Clinton's private email server. This is due to the FBI "being made aware" of emails that "may be pertinent" to its investigation.

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https://twitter.com/chrisgeidner/status/792050889565626369

In his letter sent to the Congressional oversight committee, Comey said: "In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation. I am writing to inform you that the investigative team briefed me on this yesterday, and I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation."

He continued that "Although the FBI cannot yet assess whether or not this material may be significant, and I cannot predict how long it will take us to complete this additional work, I believe it is important to update your Committees."

The FBI's official investigation into Clinton's email server closed earlier this year with no recommendation to prosecute. However, the FBI did find evidence of misdoings, including the transmission of classified emails on a private email server.

Naturally, Donald Trump has already commented on the incident. As ABC News reports, Trump addressed the matter at a rally in Manchester, New Hampshire:

I need to open with a very critical breaking news announcement, Trump said to cheers that at times drowned out his remarks. The FBI has just sent a letter to Congress informing them that they have discovered new emails pertaining to the former Secretary of State Hillary Clintons investigation. I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and DOJ are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake they made, said Trump, who had recently been sounding the alarm on the campaign trail to investigate the investigation into Clintons server.

Story continues

Trending right now:

See the original version of this article on BGR.com
Your humble refrigerator could be a portal for hackers to take launch online attacks.

Remember those halcyon days when the worst a hacker could do to your connected camera was use it to spy on you while you were getting changed in your home? That all ended last Friday, when unknown attackers marshaled an army of similar cameras and other Internet of Things devices to shut down access to major websites across much of the United States.

Thats a serious issue for anybody reading this. If a bunch of amateurs can use hacked IoT devices to stage a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack that breaks internet routing for hours, imagine the risks when pros wield the same open-source software, called Mirai, that ran the assault.

In the week since the domain-name-service provider Dyn found itself besieged by these DDoS attacks, its only become clearer how much work we have to do to improve IoT security.

Clean up

The first step in this scrub job has to be decontaminating all of the hacked or easily-hacked IoT devices out there. Thats a topic thats liable to make security professionals shrug their shoulders, since so many of the devices involved require their users to do the hard work of securing them.

Even if the vendor releases firmware that can patch some of this, do most end users know how to patch firmware on an IoT device? asked Akamai principal security researcher Ryan Barnett at a security conference in Washington Thursday.

And thats assuming they get as far as downloading the update  which may be tough if they dont know which company made the IoT device in question.

Consider the case of Chinese manufacturer Hangzhou Xiongmai Technology Co., Ltd, which builds internal components for other companys devices. The research firm Flashpoint Security found that more than 500,000 internet-accessible devices made by that company used the same default username and password, which the Mirai software exploited in the Dyn attack, as well as an earlier one against the site of cybersecurity journalist Brian Krebs.

Story continues

Xiongmai told Reuters and other news outlets that it will stage a recall, but how will U.S. customers know? They wont necessarily know if Xiongmais hardware is in their devices, and Xiongmais only direct announcement seems to have taken place on Chinas QQ social network.

An e-mail sent Tuesday to the companys email address went unanswered.

Shape up

The recipe for making a secure IoT device shouldnt be that complex: Ship every product with a unique admin password, with the least exposure to the internet required to do its job and with an automatic-update system.

Then give shoppers a simple way to identify safe IoT devices when they go shopping. The example of Underwriters Laboratories safety labels often comes up, followed by a request that UL do just that for cybersecurity.

The answer is that they are  but the companys efforts wont help you shop until next year.

We havent completed and certified any of those devices as of yet, said principal engineer Ken Modeste. The first quarter of 2017 looks like the earliest possible time for retail availability of gadgets with this new label.

ULs tests will grade gadgets both on their features and their manufacturers systems for verifying their security and shipping patches for them.

It wont, however, require automatically installed updates, without which many security fixes will linger on servers or in the Download folders on users computers. That will have to wait for the second version of this standard  which, Modeste said, were now starting to develop.

Lawyer up?

If you were about to ask isnt it illegal to ship hardware this insecure, the answer is not necessarily. We dont have product-safety regulations for IoT devices like those that protect our food, our air travel and, more recently, our financial instruments.

Security expert Bruce Schneier wrote at Vices Motherboard site three weeks ago  before the Dyn attack  that the Feds had to step in. He wrote: The economics of the IoT mean that it will remain insecure unless government steps in to fix the problem.

The government has, in fact, taken action already. The Federal Trade Commission has been studying this problem (its 2015 report on IoT security and privacy now looks prophetic) and has used its existing authority to pursue some firms for egregious failings.

In 2014 and 2016, the FTC secured settlements from the camera vendor Trendnet and router manufacturer Asustek for misleading customers about their devices security  deceptive conduct being something the FTC can already punish.

The FTCs 2015 report renewed earlier calls for nationwide privacy legislation. Right now, there isnt even a federal standard for when companies must tell you they lost your data in a breach.

In a phone interview Tuesday, FTC commissioner Terrell McSweeny reiterated that goal as well as more recent requests that Congress expand its limited ability to fine offenders. It would be helpful if the FTC had civil penalty authority, she said.

Until that happens, the FTC will continue to urge companies to do better and bring cases against those who dont or wont. And potential IoT shoppers  McSweeny included  will have to continue to be wary.

More from Rob:

Email Rob at rob@robpegoraro.com; follow him on Twitter at @robpegoraro.
When Dallas Dance became superintendent of Baltimore County Public Schools in 2012, he says people were adamant that there was an educational divide between the haves and the have-nots in the district.

As Dance tells me in the video above, his first priority was closing the achievement gap that has plagued the countys 175 schools.

Through an initiative called Students and Teachers Accessing Tomorrow, or STAT, the county uses technology to personalize learning for each student and create equity in the classroom.

Dance and his team are working to get a computer or tablet into the hands of all 111,000 students in the Baltimore County Public School Systemthe 25th largest in the countrywithin 3 years.

With 30 kids in the classroom, you cannot level the playing field and make sure every single kid is getting what he or she needs unless technology is prevalent, he said.

Dance says technology allows teachers to quickly group and regroup students based on their abilities. For example, if some students need more instruction, the teacher can give them personalized attention while the rest of the class moves ahead to the next lesson on their digital devices.

And its not just students and teachers that Dance is working to get digitally connected, its also parents.

The school system uses a mobile app that allows families with a smartphone but no Internet access to easily access real-time information about their childrens grades, attendance, school announcements, bus schedule and even the lunch menu.

Dances efforts have not gone unnoticed. Last year, Microsoft selected the Baltimore County Public Schools as its showcase school system for innovative digital teaching and learning, and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation awarded the school system a $1.5 million grant to advance equity in digital learning.

Students become empowered when technology is in the classroom, Dance says, because then they can become teachers and facilitators for their peers.
Eleven days. That's it, just eleven more days. The most ridiculous, hilarious and depressing run-up to an election that this country has ever endured is nearing its end. In the end, we all lose  the only question is whether we lose or we lose. As can only be expected, the lowbrow nature of this cycle has trickled down from the candidates themselves and permeated the country. The latest personification came in California earlier this week when a man dressed up as a construction worker took a sledgehammer and a pick axe, and went to town on Donald Trump's Hollywood Walk of Fame star.

Now, the Los Angeles Police Department has confirmed that a suspect has been arrested.

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https://twitter.com/Deadline/status/791263503218675712

The suspect, who police have identified as California native James Otis, was not difficult to find. After all, the entire incident was captured in a video. Otis dressed himself as a construction worker and began hacking away at Trump's Walk of Fame star with both a sledgehammer and a pick axe until Trump's name was completely removed. Half the country (give or take) applauded while the other half (give or take) booed, but Otis's stunt was an act of vandalism regardless.

BGR sister site Variety confirmed on Thursday that Otis was in police custody and was being booked in downtown L.A. Mens Central Jail.

In a statement, Hollywood Chamber of Commerce CEO Leron Gubler condemned Otis's actions. "People can make a difference by voting and not destroying public property," he said.

Trending right now:

See the original version of this article on BGR.com
From Good Housekeeping

Would you trade in your MacBook for some extra cash? Microsoft will pay you up to $650 for your MacBook Pro or MacBook Air if you trade it in for a Surface Book or Surface Pro at a Microsoft Store or Microsoft.com, according to the Windows blog.

To be eligible for the trade-in deal, your MacBook and all its accessories have to be fully functioning - so if you've ever had to take it in for repairs or have signs of wear and tear, you're out of luck. The good news is it doesn't matter how old your MacBook is, because they're appraising and accepting basically every old model. If you're interested, get thee to a Microsoft store or check online fast, because they're only running this promotion until November 10, or until supplies last.

Microsoft announced this deal right after Apple's latest keynote address, where they released the next generation of MacBook Pros. The promotion is supposed to help anyone who feels "disappointed by the Mac," Brian Hall, corporate vice president of marketing for Microsoft devices told CNET.

For die-hard Mac fans, trading in your MacBook might seem like giving up your right arm, but in the Good Housekeeping Institute's tablet test, we found that the Microsoft Surface Pro 4 actually performs the most like a laptop computer. It can run the full Microsoft Office suite, and you can buy a snap-on keyboard to make it really look and feel like a laptop. It also has some features that you can't find on a Mac laptop, like a front infared LED camera that uses facial recognition to login and a Surface Pen that you can use to write on the screen.

Your move, Mac!

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This Immigrant Doctor Is Reimagining Health in the American City

An army of knife-wielding robots capable of deep learning via algorithms and artificial intelligence may one day soon be taking over one of the most gruesome industries in America. That may sound like a horrifying, high-tech Halloween fantasy, but its poised to become a reality.

Forget R2-D2, C-3PO, and that loveable pile of gadgets and gears in Short Circuitno ones going to want to get cuddly with the bots currently being deployed by New Zealandbased Scott Technology, which are of a decidedly more dystopian, nightmarish variety.

Armed with vice-grip clamps and blades that mimic everything from a guillotine to Freddy Krueger fingers, the Scott robots are designed to make mincemeatalmost literallyfrom raw animal carcasses, specifically lamb, pig, and beef. As the companys CEO, Chris Hopkins, told Business Insider, Our goal is to have them in all the plants for beef and pork worldwide.

To that end, which Hopkins optimistically sees occurring over the course of the next 20 years, the company got a big boost when JBS, the worlds biggest meat processing company, bought a controlling share of Scott late last year for $41 million. Owing to higher per capita consumption of lamb in its native New Zealand and neighboring Australia, the technology company has focused on creating robots geared toward lamb processing in those two countries. But its now working with JBS to bring the machines to lamb plants in the United States, as well as to develop robots that can process beef and pork.

While automation is nothing new to the meatpacking industry, Scotts robots are truly, er, cutting edge. Unlike most machines, which use a pre-programmed carcass outline, Scotts bots look at the shape of each individual carcass and make specific cuts accordingly, according to Business Insider. The technologys algorithms also use deep learning, which means the bots can become smarter over time as they collect data about the carcasses they encounter.

Story continues

As unsettling as it can be to watch Scotts smart bots tear into a splayed carcass, even the most die-hard opponent of job-killing automation in American industry might be hard-pressed to object to more robots in the countrys meatpacking plants. The meat industry had a field day earlier this year touting the release of a federal report that showed the rates of injury and illness had significantly declined over the past decade among the nations legion of meat-processing workersa decline the industry attributes, in part, to greater automation.

But independent occupational safety experts and workers rights advocates were quick to point out the reports rather glaring shortcomings. Specifically, as government investigators themselves noted, recent inspections by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration suggest that more injuries occur than are reported, although the extent of underreporting is not known, and vulnerable workers such as immigrants and noncitizens may fear for their livelihoods and feel pressured not to report injuries.

Even so, the official rate of injury and illness for Americas meat-processing workers remains higher that for manufacturing overall. Production lines run at seemingly breakneck speeds50 hams per minute, say, or 140 chickens a minutemaking the work both grueling and dangerous. As NPR recently reported, OSHA now requires plants to report serious injuries within 24 hours. During the first year the new regulation was implemented, the countrys four leading meat companies reported serious injuries at a rate of one every two and a half days. Meanwhile, meat-processing workers are also substantially more likely to suffer from less serious chronic but debilitating injuries, such as carpal tunnel syndrome.

Of course, given a choice between rampant worker abuse on the one hand or a legion of smart blade-running robots dicing up pork shanks on the other, some may simply prefer a future thats morevegetarian.

Take the Pledge: Let's Put an End to Food Waste

Related stories on TakePart:





 Its Time to Talk About Poultry Worker Welfare

 Poultry Industry: Safer for Workers, or Better at Hiding Accidents?

 Workers Say Turkey Processing Jobs Are Thankless

Original article from TakePart
Samsungs Galaxy Note7.

Samsung is in trouble. The worlds largest smartphone maker took a $5.3 billion hit and saw its mobile divisions earnings drop by 96% in the last quarter after its Galaxy Note7 recall. But the South Korean tech titan could turn around its fate rather quickly.

To be clear, the Note7 has been an outright disaster. Not only did Samsung have to recall the Note7 because it sometimes caught on fire, but its replacement phones also turned out to have same problem. It also certainly doesnt help that Samsung has to ship fireproof boxes to consumers who want to return their Note7s.

The fact that the handset is banned on everything from buses to planes doesnt make things any easier, nor does Barack Obama making jokes about the Note7 being a fire hazard. And to top it all off, Samsung still doesnt know exactly why the Note7 is catching fire.

So yeah, things look pretty bad for Samsung right now.

But, things arent all doom and gloom. First, its important to point out that the Note7 is only one of Samsungs premium smartphones. And during its recent earnings call, Samsung said that, despite the Note7 debacle, its Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge continue to sell well. As a result, Samsung is increasing production of its Galaxy S series phones. In fact, the S7 is expected to help buoy Samsungs mobile division with the recall of the Note7.

Samsungs loss isnt Apples gain

The going theory was that the Note7s demise would be a boon for Apple, the thought being that customers annoyed by Samsungs handling of the Note7 situation would instead opt for Apples 5.5-inch iPhone 7 Plus. Unfortunately for Apple, the iPhone 7 Plus is in short supply, which means fewer people who want the new phone can actually buy it.

Beyond simple product availability, consumers may also be hesitant to switch from an Android device to an iOS device like the iPhone. Sure, Apple has made the process more convenient by creating an app that lets you transfer your text message history, photos and contacts from your Android device to your new iPhone. But all of the apps you previously bought through the Google Play store and all of the music and movies you bought through Google Play Music and Google Play Movies will go out the window.

Story continues

A new Galaxy is coming

Meanwhile, Samsung, perhaps optimistically, predicts its sales will rebound in Q4 2016 to about the same numbers the company saw in Q4 2015. That might seem unlikely at first, but it could very well be true. Thats because smartphone sales typically peak in Q4 due to the holiday shopping season.

Q4 tends to be an up quarter for most vendors due to seasonality, Nguyen explained. Moreover, if [Samsung] took a hit this quarter in terms of sales volume, next quarter should look relatively better anyway.

Samsung says it will further reinvigorate its mobile division with the release of new flagship smartphones in 2017, which will likely include the companys Galaxy S8 and maybe even a new Note device. However, it would probably be wise for Samsung to bury the Note brand altogether, since the name is little more than a punchline now.

But lets put aside the fact that Samsung is working on new premium phones. In fact, lets forget about high-end smartphones entirely, because, as Nguyen points out, Samsung also has a collection of mid- to low-range smartphones it can lean on.

And while those phones offer lower margins than the companys premium offerings, Samsung recently chose to pare down its mid- and low-range phones in order to streamline its product line and cut costs  which translates to slightly better margins.

Breaking through the roadblocks

Obviously the largest roadblock for a speedy recovery for Samsung has to do with the publics perception of the company. Surprisingly, though, things dont looks quite as grim as one might expect.

In a survey conducted by IDC Research involving consumers who currently, previously, or never owned a Samsung smartphone, the majority of respondents said the Note7 recall would have no impact on their decision to purchase other non-smartphone Samsung products in the future. Whats more, respondents largely had neutral to positive views of Samsungs response to the Note7 matter.

That said, of the 24 Note7 owners IDC interviewed, half said they would buy an iPhone to replace their Note.

As IDCs William Stofega put it, if Samsung can put the Note7 issue out of the publics mind in about 6 months, the company will be able to recover without issue. Any longer, though, and Samsung will suffer lasting damage.

At the end of the day, Stofega said, Samsung isnt a company thats going to give up. Theyll have a new product.  Memories are long and people remember things, but you think of other companies like Toyota and Chevy  these companies bounce back.

So while things may look dire for Samsung at the moment, dont expect it to stay that way.

More from Dan:

Email Daniel at dhowley@yahoo-inc.com; follow him on Twitter at @DanielHowley.
From Redbook

In futuristic news, a robot 'gynecologist' has arrived in a New York hospital, and it's ready to give you the gyno services of your nightmares/dreams, depending on your tastes.

From a technical standpoint, it's pretty cool, and it's not really a robot gyno named Dr. Metalfingers; rather, it's a robot that can assist a human performing gynecological surgery, with help of someone operating it. According to DNAInfo, this robot - called da Vinci (because your body is a work of art) was actually given the OK by the FDA back in 2000, and it's just now getting into action at the Elmhurst Hospital, which has become the first public hospital in New York to use the robot. Da Vinci surgical robots have also been used to perform other types of surgery, including urological and colorectal surgery.

If this freaks you out, it shouldn't: There are actually a lot of perks to performing surgery this way. For one, the robot - which can even be used to remove tumors - uses several small incisions as opposed to one large incision. Additionally, it can make surgery less painful and lowers the risk of possible infections.

"Robotic surgery has several important benefits, including faster recovery times and less blood loss," Barry Brown, the director of OB/GYN services at Elmhurst Hospital, said in a statement. "Women who in the past would have been hospitalized for a week are now able to go home in a day."

We're living in the future, really.

(h/t The Cut)

Follow Redbook on Facebook.

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What better way to launch your new app than at the funeral of your old one?

Two co-founders, Rus Yusupov and Colin Kroll, live-streamed an RIP party for Vine, the six-second looping video-streaming app they launched in the summer of 2012, on their new interactive live-streaming app, Hype.

(The third Vine co-founder Dom Hofmann was not in virtual attendance.)

Twitter bought Vine in the fall of 2012 for a reported $30 million before the video looping app even officially launched, and this week, Twitter said it would be shutting down Vine.

The announcement comes after Twitter said it would lay off nine percent of its workforce and as the social media company has been courted for takeover bids from the likes of Google and Salesforce .



Video killed the radio star. And Snapchat, Instagram video, and video on Twitter killed the Vine star.

Upon hearing the news that his baby was being laid to rest, Yusupov reacted with a bit of exasperation on Twitter: "Don't sell your company!"



But then, presumably having processed his grief in a few six-second loops, Yusupov and Kroll got together to live stream a mashup of memories, favorite vines, and remembrances from a couple of Vine stars on Hype.



The beta version of Hype launched on the new product forum Product Hunt yesterday.

"Hold back the tears," Yusupov smiled, responding to a comment that appeared on his app, as he welcomed guests. "Bittersweet moment, bittersweet moment."

If Yusupov and Kroll were lamenting deep down, they were hiding it well. They seemed moderately bummed, as if their usual lunch spot were out of their favorite sandwich.

"We have gathered here today to talk about Vine," Yusupov said, a casual reference to the greeting often used to start a funeral service in a church.

The founders at least acted surprised. "Did not know that was coming," said Kroll.

"Was kind of a surprise to us," said Yusupov.

The duo went over early memories from when they launched Vine in New York City, sharing pictures of their first office and their first launch party.

Story continues

One of the more famous Vine stars, Nicholas Megalis, who has nearly five million followers on Vine, called in to air his grievances and share how Vine changed his life. Megalis said that Vine gave him a creative outlet, introduced him to his wife, and even saved his life.





"I am expecting a baby and I don't know if I would have ever been able to say that if it weren't for Vine, you know what I mean? I am emotional about it. It was also an outlet for me to be creative, it was a place for me to make whatever the f*** I wanted to make," Megalis lamented.



"I was at a creative standstill. The life had been sucked out of me by living in New York City. I had been living in New York City for five years already and I was over it, I hated it. I was a manny, I was babysitting some six-year-old kid, and I was just miserable and Vine came along and I was like thank God, I can rejuvenate my creative juices," Megalis said. "I don't know what Vine is in 2016, but for me in 2013, it saved my actual life."

While perhaps not many people can say that Vine saved their lives, the looping video app did launch a number of creative careers. For example, social media starlet Jake Paul catapulted to popularity on Vine, as did his brother Logan, who told CNBC he was sad the app was shutting down but that he's already moving on.



"We love Vine, we love Twitter," said Yusupov.



And now Yusupov also loves his new interactive video streaming app, Hype. The death of one app gave him a perfect platform to celebrate his new baby.





More From CNBC


The United States has abstained for the first time on a General Assembly resolution calling for an end to the US economic embargo on Cuba.

The US embargo has been in place for more than 50 years, and for the 24 years that the resolution has come before Member States, the US has voted against it.

Relations between Cuba and the US began to normalize in 2014, but the US Congress has resisted calls from the administration of Barack Obama to lift the embargo.

US Ambassador to the UN, Samantha Power, said that the decision not to vote against the resolution should be viewed as one more step towards restoring full diplomatic relations between the two countries.
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED

This photo of Alice Lillian Lautzenhiser was taken at the home of her grandparents Chris and Karen Lautzenhiser in Auburn. Alice was 6 months old when this photo was taken in July by her grandmother.
ANGOLA  The Angola Marching Hornets, under new director Andrew Keiser, are returning to the Indiana State School Music Association state finals this weekend at the Lucas Oil Stadium.

The band leaves for Indianapolis today and will perform early tomorrow afternoon in ISSMA Class C.

The Marching Hornets consistently made a state berth the past several years under former director Kevin Fogle. Fogle, who moved on to an administrative position at another school, assisted Keiser in creating this years show, Signs of Summer, arranged by Randy Greenwell of Indianapolis.

The combination proved to be a winner, and the band has been working this week on putting advanced, polished touches on the performance for a final push in the big stadium.

It felt fantastic to make it to state, said Lydia Martin, who serves as drum major along with fellow junior Colten Gulick and senior Mayah Yacoob.

There were some doubts even before the season began if we would make it without Mr. Fogle. However, as we got farther into this season, we realized that state was still an option for us if we continued to work hard, said Martin. It obviously paid off!

Signs of Summer uses celestial imagery, including three summer zodiac symbols. The music is taken from compositions that may not be familiar, but that accentuate the feeling of the warm summer months. Stained Glass by David Gillingham represents Gemini, an expressive, versatile character; Sure on this Shining Night by Samuel Barber is used the spontaneous, moody Cancer; and to bring out the power of Leo the Lion, Eric Whitacres Equis offers an aggressive closing tone.

On the field, black walls flanking the band occasionally flash white lights, creating the three constellations. Another artistic effect is created with tarps laid on the field.

The color guard wears suits of crimson, like the heat of the sun, and during each movement flashes flags with the different zodiac symbols emblazoned in metallic colors.

The band has about 80 members, a mix of older, more seasoned players and underclassmen. Keiser said the seniors and juniors took a leadership role early on that led to success as the marching band season progressed.

Our semi-state performance was great and practices this week have been very productive, so my guess is that our state performance will be the best one all year, said Martin. My favorite part of attending state finals is the opportunity to celebrate how hard we have worked and the opportunity to march one last time with this years seniors.
KENDALLVILLE  The Kendallville Area Chamber of Commerce announced former Indianapolis Colts and All-Pro lineman Jeff Saturday will be the featured speaker at the organizations annual banquet April 20, 2017, at the Kendallville Event Center.

We are so excited to bring Jeff Saturday to speak in Kendallville, said Lynnette Leamon, the chambers executive director, in a news release. Hell have many stories to share of his time with Peyton Manning playing for the Colts, and a great message of setting goals, teamwork and communication for us all to apply to our work and personal life.

In addition to teaming with the four-time NFL MVP quarterback in Indianapolis, Saturday played his final season under center with 2011 NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay. He earned his sixth Pro Bowl appearance there and helped the Packers capture the NFC North title.

Following the 2012 season, he signed a one-day contract with Indianapolis to officially retire as a Colt. Saturday was inducted into the Colts Ring of Honor in 2015.

Saturday was a member of the executive committee of the National Football League Players Association as a player. In 2011, he was instrumental in negotiating the long-term collective bargaining agreement between the NFL and NFLPA that ended the NFL lockout.

A native of Atlanta, Saturday attended the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, where he earned a degree in business. The two-year captain and four-year letterman (1994-97) was named to the All-ACC first team at center in 1996 and 1997, as well as the conferences All-Academic team in 1997.

An active member of his community and a contributor to numerous charitable endeavors, Saturday supports Kids Voice of Indiana, Peoples Burn Foundation of Indiana, the Riley Hospital for Children and Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

Saturday and his wife, Karen, have three children: Jeffrey, Savannah and Joshua. He presently works as an NFL analyst for ESPN.

The chambers annual banquet, which begins at 6:30 p.m. April 20, also will feature awards for the 2016 Business of the Year, the 2016 Industry of the Year and the 2017 Citizen of the Year.

The chamber banquet is the largest event for our members each year, Leamon said. This is the best opportunity to meet key decision makers and leaders of our business community.

Tickets are available now for $79, $59 for member businesses and $39 for students. Four sponsor levels are offered that include invitations to a VIP reception to meet Saturday before the dinner banquet.

For more information, contact the chamber at 347-1554.
Regarding the development of the downtown district, what is your vision for the citys core in 10-20 years? Residential, second-story commercial, etc.?

Most important is that our businesses are successful and continue to provide the services and products we need and enjoy. To help do that, we need a warm and inviting downtown that encourages pedestrian traffic, and one that is not only recognized as the civic and commercial heart of La Crescent, but also the art and cultural center of southeast Minnesota.

Residential units above businesses help create foot traffic, and taller buildings create a more distinct downtown district. Additional stores and eateries will open up with more people walking around and living right in the area.

Do you have any goals, or are you looking to accomplish anything specifically, when serving in this position?

Last October, the city joined the Minnesota GreenStep Cities Program. GreenStep is designed to challenge, assist, and recognize cities that focus on saving costs, reducing energy usage, and encouraging civic innovation.

Our Green Team includes clean energy advocates, residents, city staff, myself, and one incredible intern named Allison  incredible because she has laid out an aggressive strategy for the city to obtain Step-5, the programs highest level, by 2018. Through the first six years of the program no Minnesota city has achieved Step-5, so for us to do so by 2020 would be an amazing accomplishment.

What is your position on city growth? Is annexation of La Crescent Township the correct course or do you believe there are other methods to increase population?

Growth in La Crescent is difficult with the river, the wetlands, and the bluffs not only restricting outward expansion, but also creating soil and topography issues. We also do not want to lose parks or recreational space, so were left with only a few alternatives.

Options include downtown redevelopments, the repurposing of shoreland properties and land east of the highways, and of course, annexation of La Crescent Township. All three options should, and in all likelihood will, be examined to find the most effective ways to add growth while keeping our neighborhoods safe and attractive.

What do you feel is the top issue, concern or problem facing the city? What is your stance on this issue?

Development in all forms is an important issue that will be in front of the council for some time. Whether it is the racetrack property, downtown and city hall, Stoney Point preservation, or an unforeseen development, we will be discussing options and their impacts with larger attendances at our meetings.

Conversations about the types of developments we want to see, and how we can encourage specific redevelopments in key areas will always be at the forefront of my mind. When we do start moving forward with projects, I look forward to hearing from community members about their concerns and ideas.
The Handmaiden lies. It lies to our faces, it lies behind our backs, it lies about the lies it just told us.

And you'll love every minute of it.

Twisty and twisted, the masterful new erotic thriller from South Korean director Park Chan-Wook (Oldboy, Stoker) is a symphony of sensuality and depravity. Just when we figure out where its going, it goes somewhere else. Just when we think it wont dare go somewhere, it does.

The film starts off with a setup familiar in Gothic fiction, from Jane Eyre to Crimson Peak. In 1930s Korea, under Japanese occupation, a poor young Korean woman, Sookee (Kim Tae-ri) is sent to work as the handmaiden of Lady Hideko (Kim Min-Hee) in an an opulent, remote estate. The sheltered Lady Hideko is the niece of the houses owner, the sinister Kouzuki (Cho Jin-woong). Kouzuki sits in the center of a vast library of erotica like a spider in a web, his tongue blackened from ink. He has designs on marrying his niece and acquiring her inheritance.

Except, 15 minutes later, we find out much of this isnt true. Sookee is actually a pickpocket who has been hired by a con artist calling himself Count Fujiwara (Ha Jung-woo) to infiltrate the Kouzuki household. Fujiwara wants to marry Lady Hideko himself, seize her fortune and then throw her in an insane asylum. He wants Sookees help to convince Hideko to fall for him. Only Sookee starts to have her own feelings for Hideko, too.

And if you think those are all the secrets that The Handmaiden has in store, buckle up.

The Handmaiden may seem to run long at 141 minutes, but Park packs every minute of it with visual delights  sumptuous clothes, elegant framed shots and sudden shocks and twists. The balance between the aesthetic elegance of the films look and the emotional cruelty and perversion of its characters and story can be breathtaking at times.

While Park has been known to push the envelope of on-screen violence and general weirdness, The Handmaiden stays relatively restrained for most of its running time. (Most.) Much of the tension comes watching the power struggles of these four characters as they reveal their true natures. Like in Rashomon, several scenes are shot from different perspectives, each one revealing new information. Its a cat-and-mouse game thats all cats.

Deep within its layers of darkness and betrayal, it is a love story, too. Sookee and Hideko are each trapped in their own way by the men in their lives, forced to play a certain role. Both Kouzuki and the Count see women as objects, placed in the world for their amusement and use.

Sookee and Hidekos romance is an act of rebellion, an act of emancipation. The Handmaiden, Park's best film since "Oldboy," is a movie that likewise refuses to play by the rules.
The Houston County Historical Society will hold their 56th annual meeting in the new museum by the fairgrounds in Caledonia at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 6. Reports will be given and two directors will be elected.

Richard Cordes of Brownsville will speak on the societys acquisition of two pieces of Southern Minnesota Railroad rails. The title of his PowerPoint presentation is Winter Bridge to Grand Crossing, Minnesota  Southern Minnesota Railroad Crossing the West Channel of the Mississippi.

Also view the new display created by Cordes highlighting the SMR rails.

The special exhibit displaying Minnesota Vikings memorabilia is on display for a limited time.

Refreshments will be served. Everyone is welcome.
A long-time representative and first-time candidate are facing off in a House race that has drawn statewide attention  and cash.

Thomas Trehus, DFL-Spring Grove, is working to unseat Greg Davids, R-Preston, who has served for 12 terms. Davids has held the seat with little competition for decades, outside of losing it in 2006 to Ken Tschumper, and then winning it back two years later.

The race has attracted both money and attention from state political committees, with reports at the end of September showing Trehus has pulled in just over $113,000 in support from the DFL-aligned group Alliance For a Better Minnesota.

Republican fundraisers have responded in kind, with over $50,000 in anti-Trehus ads, including the Pro-Jobs Majority, an affiliate of the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, which has contributed over $36,000, according to the reports.

The candidates, for their part, say theyre continuing to try and convince undecided voters and talk to people about the issues in person.

Trehus said his core campaign issues have remained focused on strengthening rural towns, schools and small farms through investments in education and infrastructure, including both traditional road and bridge funding and newer strategies, like expanded broadband.

There are a lot of issues that need fixing, Trehus said. People know what were doing in St. Paul isnt working.

Trehus said that the campaign has been an uphill battle against an entrenched, long-time incumbent, but since he declared he was running over a year-and-a-half ago, he has created a closer race than Davids has seen in some time, something he said is evidenced by the money and support.

Trehus, 26, has previously worked for the office of U.S. Sen. Al Franken and is a member of the Spring Grove Public School Board.

Davids said he has enough face recognition to weather ads aimed against him.

Davids has held a number of leadership positions in the House over the years, including serving as the Tax Committee chair during the 2015-16 biennium. He said hes continued to work for lower taxes and believes MNsure costs are one of the most immediate problems facing Minnesotans, and they have to admit that it didnt work and move away from it.

He conflated the Minnesotan system with the federal Affordable Care Act it was launched under, and said both are failed ideas.

Before you fix a problem you have to admit there is one, Davids said. Its so unfortunate ... Obamacare is crushing Minnesotans.

Davids is continuing to advocate for an immediate special session to address that and other issues, including the tax and bonding bills, which were stymied at the end of this years legislative session, as well as rural economic development.
Municipal clerks across the county have been doing brisk business as voters take advantage of the opportunity to cast a ballot before Election Day Nov. 8.

La Crosse City Hall has seen a steady stream of visitors for the past two weeks, with 3,587 people turning in in-person absentee ballots as of Friday afternoon. In the first week, 1,874 La Crosse residents voted and that number is rising, according to city clerk Teri Lehrke.

I think well beat the first week in the second week, and I expect next week will be the busiest yet, Lehrke said.

Absentee voting, both in-person and by mail, has been going well and lines have been largely just a few people deep when they exist at all.

Its a pretty smooth process. They check in and then they move to the next station, she said.

Onalaska City Clerk Cari Burmaster was pleased to note her team has helped 2,716 voters in the first two weeks.

We have been busy to say the least, she said. The first day of absentee voting was actually our busiest.

Onalaska had 327 people cast ballots Oct. 17 and has averaged about 225 to 250 per day since. About 23 percent of its registered voters had voted early as of Thursday evening.

People like to take advantage of the ease of doing it too. They find it more convenient, Burmaster said.

Her numbers are higher this year than 2012, but shes not surprised.

Compared to last time, we expanded another week. Weve had more time, Burmaster said.

Despite it being the first presidential election requiring voter ID, the clerks say there havent been many problems.

Some people ask if they need it. If theyre having problems, we do have the handouts that we got from the Wisconsin Elections Commission, Burmaster said. Theyve been willing to take it and contact them to see what they need to do to get it.

Lehrke encouraged people with questions to either stop at city hall or visit bringit.wi.gov for more information.

I dont think there have been any problems that we havent been able to handle, Lehrke said. It seems like most people are coming prepared, and if theyre not prepared, at this point, they still have time to get their ID.

Even with her expectation of more people next week, Lehrke said she doesnt expect any long waits.

Weve had a lot of compliments on how efficient it is and how quick the process is, she said. If people do have difficulty standing for long period of time, they might want to consider this as an option next week.

Even if people dont want to vote early, Burmaster encouraged non-registered citizens to stop before Nov. 8.

If youre not registered, still come in the office and register. Its easier here than at the polls, Burmaster said.

To register, citizens will need proof of residency  such as a pay stub, lease agreement or utility bill  and photo identification.

ID is also necessary to vote, with accepted identification including a drivers license, state-issued ID card, military ID, U.S. passport, a federally recognized Indian tribe ID card or a student photo ID from University of Wisconsin-La Crosse or Western Technical College. Student IDs must be accompanied by a separate document that proves enrollment, and Viterbo University ID cards are not accepted.

For those getting in at the last minute, ID card receipts issued by the DOT will also be accepted. A full list is available at bringi.wi.gov. Sample ballots are a poll site locator are available at myvote.wi.gov.

Weve had a lot of compliments on how efficient it is and how quick the process is. If people do have difficulty standing for a long period of time, they might want to consider this as an option next week. Teri Lehrke, La Crosse city clerk
Halloween is just around the corner and the La Crosse Police Department has some tips for parents and kids looking for a spooktacularly good time in their hunt for candy.

The department listed the tips on its newsroom webpage, and the advice addresses drivers, parents and meet n treaters  the departments term for those going door to door for candy. Parents should keep an eye out for other drivers and pedestrians, stay in locations they know are safe and be on the lookout for anything suspicious.

We want it to be a safe event, community resource officer Brooke Pataska said. Were asking parents to keep an eye out. With all the excitement of the holiday, kids might not be as vigilant.

Officers recommend the hours of 4 pm. to 8 p.m. Monday for trick-or-treating and advise parents to accompany young children. It is up to parents to determine whether their kids are old enough to trick-or-treat without supervision, but Pataska recommended parents know where they will be or have a way to stay in contact, such as a cell phone.

The forecast for Monday calls for good Halloween weather, with a 30 percent chance of showers in the early afternoon and temperatures reaching the mid-60s. The evening will cool down into the 50s with cloudy skies setting the mood for after-dark celebrations.

For those who cant trick-or-treat on Monday, or for parents looking for a more structured outing, the University of Wisconsin-La Crosses Reuter Hall will host a trick-or-treat event Sunday. Downtown businesses will open their doors to trick-or-treaters Saturday morning. A number of local organizations are also collecting items for the Hunger Task Force and other charities on Halloween.

The police departments tips suggest having parents examine all the treats in a kids haul before eating and to throw away anything homemade or not in its original wrapper. La Crosse hasnt had any problems with dangerous treats or even boisterous Halloween behavior, Pataska said, but the department is still urging caution to ensure the festivities are fun for everyone.

Halloween is a time for people to have fun and enjoy themselves, Pataska said. But if anyone sees anything suspicious or illegal, we ask them to call the police.
A man who raped a jogger near Myrick Park in 1990 and later was committed for treatment under the state's civil commitment law when he was declared sexually violent will be released to live in Monroe County on or before Nov. 11.

Randy Poff was 19 when he raped a 32-year-old woman jogging on a trail north of Myrick Park in 1990. The woman said a naked man grabbed her from behind, choked her and covered her mouth before dragging her into a bush.

He was sentenced to 24 years in prison on two counts of second-degree sexual assault as a repeat offender. He returned to La Crosse in October 2007 after he was let out of prison under a former state law that allowed for release after serving two-thirds of a sentence.

While on parole, Poff chased another jogger while sexually gratifying himself and prowled outside of the home of a 16-year-old girl and her mother, according to the state Department of Justice.

He was committed to the state Department of Health Services in 2011 for treatment after prosecutors proved at trial that Poff has at least one mental disorder that predisposes him to engage in acts of sexual violence. A judge on Oct. 12 ordered his release from Sand Ridge Secure Treatment Center.

Poff will live on Grayling Avenue in Monroe County. He will be monitored by GPS and must comply with all requirements of the states sex offender registration program.

The sheriffs department will hold a public meeting at 7 p.m. Nov. 7 at the Tomah Police Department regarding his release.

Questions also can be directed to Scott Timm at the Wisconsin Department of Health Services at 1-800-583-7981.
La Crosses mayor has acknowledged his citys history as a sundown town that all but eliminated its black population and promised to make amends.

Weve got issues and are not shirking away from those issues, Mayor Tim Kabat said. We recognize this is a problem and need to do something about it.

Sociologist James Loewen, author of Lies My Teacher Told Me and most recently Sundown Towns, spoke Thursday evening at a City Hall forum about La Crosses history of freezing out blacks.

A visiting professor of sociology at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., Loewen visited La Crosse to talk about his research into Americas centuries of racism and the cover-up by white historians of that history. Sundown towns are cities and villages with either formal laws or informal codes of conduct that segregated black people out of communities in northern states.

A video presentation by UW-L graduate Jenny DeRocher on senior capstone project about the history La Crosses black residents pointed out that the citys black population went from 1 to 2 percent in the late 1800s to less than a hundredth of a percent black by the mid-1900s. That fits Loewens definition of a sundown town.

In response, La Crosse Mayor Tim Kabat has promised to apologize on behalf of the city for that history as one of the steps moving forward.

Loewen spent his day in La Crosse at the invitation of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosses climate office and Institute for Social Justice, the citys Human Rights Commission and other partners. They brought Loewen here after people who attended a Philadelphia conference on white privilege earlier this year heard him speak about K-12 history education.

At UW-L, Loewen shared in a forum his experiences researching how U.S. history is whitewashed by many textbooks, and he talked about the examples he chronicled in Lies My Teacher Told Me. He also held a workshop on teaching history, focusing on Native American history and the lies that have been taught about that. More than 400 people attended the forum in a packed Valhalla room at Cartwright Center, and another 80 education majors and local teachers participated in the workshop.

Loewen said he first encountered the subject of the whitewashing of history when teaching at Tougaloo College, a historically black college in Mississippi. One of the examples of bogus history students are taught in high school is a version of post-Civil War reconstruction in which Southern blacks took political power and whites had to step in when blacks messed it up.

I watched as a black teacher taught white supremacist B.S. to a black class because that is what was in the book, Loewen said. That led him to review more than a dozen history textbooks over the years and co-author a textbook himself.

During the workshop, Loewen said that seemingly thorough textbooks skip important historical facts, such as the forced relocation of Native American tribes. In one textbook, he counted more than 2,000 essential terms.

I call this twig history, he said. We are not even missing the forest for the trees. Were focusing on all the twigs.

Rather, he said, teachers need to focus on 30 to 50 major topics relevant to their students and approach them from multiple perspectives.

People packed City Halls Common Council Chambers as Loewen spoke about his research, which he started in his home state of Illinois.

He figured he might find 50 sundown towns spread across the country. He has so far uncovered more than 200 in Illinois, showing both how common the phenomenon was and how efforts to enforce segregation in the north were hidden in plain sight.

Some sundown towns were explicit, with signs telling blacks, Jews or other minorities to be out of town by sunset. Others, such as La Crosse, used less formal methods to keep blacks from moving in and pressuring those already living here to move out.

DeRocher found that La Crosse froze out blacks by segregating the downtown, and by using derogatory language to refer to blacks or black neighborhoods to create a hostile environment. A large Ku Klux Klan presence in La Crosse in the 1920s could easily have intimidated the black population.

In 1890, select white residents worked to create a dominantly white population, she said in the video. There are lasting effects that make this narrative a problem for African-Americans.

Several residents shared their own experiences of the lasting effects this heritage has had on the community. Some spoke of the racist attacks they or their children experienced when they first moved to La Crosse, while others spoke about how hard it is to break through structures that produce a predominantly white leadership.

Bill Coleman, a retired La Crosse School District teacher and recipient of the La Crosse MLK Jr. Leadership Award, came to La Crosse in 1971. He was one of the only teachers of color to stay in La Crosse for the long term. White leaders have promised to tackle the issue of race before, only for Coleman to see their words ring hollow as efforts fizzled out.

Dont let it fall, he said. Im kinda sick of seeing good stuff happening and then all of a sudden people disappear.

I keep hearing from these people of power saying they support us and then they turn their backs on us, said Tracy Littlejohn, a member of the Ho-Chunk Nation said of an effort to provide free diversity training. They (expletive) us over again. Im getting tired of it.

Shaundel Spivey, a member of the La Crosse Human Rights Commission, said that along with the mayors apology, the group has decided to document the citys history, from stealing Ho-Chunk land to the present day, in a traveling display that will first be housed at City Hall. The mayor, city council and county board members, and others will sign the apology, Spivey said.

From there the commission will look for ways to move forward and promote positive change in the community, he said, asking for volunteers from among the participants and organizations present Thursday night.

Were at a point where we can admit La Crosse is a sundown town, he said. The question now is where we go from here and what we want to achieve.

At UW-L, Loewen shared his experiences researching how U.S. history is whitewashed, using examples he chronicled in Lies My Teacher Told Me.
TOMAH  The Tomah Police Department and other agencies are awaiting toxicology reports in the investigation of the death of a 54-year-old woman who had been staying in the Veterans Assistance Foundations homeless veterans program at the Tomah VA Medical Center.

Tomah Police Chief Mark Nicholson released that information Friday, along with other sketchy details, after medical center officials cited the death as one of the factors in its decision to terminate the VAFs lease for the second and third floors of Building 407 for its homeless and treatment programs.

The police department received a request on Sept. 26 from the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General to help in a death investigation that had begun the previous day, according to Nicholsons statement.

Upon initial investigation, a cause of death could not be determined, Nicholson said. In an attempt to determine the cause of death, an autopsy was ordered and has been performed by the UW Hospital Pathology Department in Madison.

The autopsy results are pending the return of toxicology reports, according to the statement, which stated that the Monroe County Joint Investigative Task Force and the VAs inspector generals office are assisting in the investigation.

VAF executive director Don Roach did not return a phone call asking for comment Friday.

On Thursday, the medical center issued a statement outlining acting director Victoria Brahms reasons for terminating its facility-sharing agreement with the VAF effective Jan. 13.

The safety and well-being of our veterans is of the utmost concern, Brahm said. Unfortunately, the Veterans Assistance Foundation has failed significantly in their responsibility to take care of the veterans in their care.

Contentious issues included a refusal to provide 24/7 security, the absence of required clinical staff and inappropriate use of the VAF space, said Brahm, who also said the medical center has halted referrals to the VAF until it determines that the program is safe.

The VAFs lack of response to the multiple problems that have occurred in their program and their lack of effort to resolve long-term issues is unacceptable, Brahm said.

The request is not to close the program but to move it off of the hospital campus, she said.

The fact that the VAF program is on federal property imposes restrictions that might not be in force at other sites, such banning alcohol on the premises, said VA spokesman Matthew Gowan.

But some VAF residents had brought alcohol into the quarters, which also is forbidden, he said.

Whats more, VA police responded to more than 30 incidents, ranging from suicide attempts to accidental overdoses to other criminal violations of varying degrees, Gowan said.

VAF President Chris Hanson, a U.S. Navy Reserve lieutenant who is serving in Afghanistan, acknowledged the police calls during a phone interview but said many VAF clients are suffering from mental illness and substance abuse.

Our No. 1 priority is taking care of our homeless veterans, Hanson said.

The termination action will not affect the VAFs project in downtown Tomah, which is to include a resale shop, coffee house and housing for several veterans, he said.

The medical center and the VAF promised efforts to find accommodations for any veterans displaced because of the termination.

The VAF, an independent nonprofit agency, operates with its own fundraising, as well as reimbursement from the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for its transitional housing programs in Tomah and several other sites, as well as a variety of other services, including vocational training, PTSD referrals, case management and counseling for sobriety, life skills and anger management, among others.

The VAF has received millions in state and federal money since it was founded in 1994.

It was ranked as the 26th-worst charity in the nation, based on fundraising cost-expenditure ratio in a 2013 investigation by the national Center for Investigative Reporting and the Tampa Bay Times in Florida.

According to that report, the foundation raises about $2.5 million a year, with about half of that going toward temporary housing and job training programs for struggling veterans.

The VAF gets nearly half its revenue through a federal government grant. It paid for-profit solicitation companies $11 million during the previous decade, according to the investigation.

For at least the past 10 years, the foundation has signed contracts with telemarketers allowing the companies to keep 90 cents of every dollar raised, according to that report.

Upon initial investigation, a cause of death could not be determined. In an attempt to determine the cause of death, an autopsy was ordered and has been performed by the UW Hospital Pathology Department in Madison. Mark Nicholson, Tomah police chief
Suspended UW-Madison student Alec Cook was charged Thursday with 11 counts of sexual assault stemming from the alleged assaults of five women between March 2015 and October of this year.

Cook, 20, was ordered jailed on $200,000 bail after appearing briefly in Dane County Circuit Court, an amount set by agreement between prosecutors and Cooks lawyers and presented before a courtroom full of local, regional and national media that descended on Madison to follow the case.

The case also prompted UW-Madison Dean of Students Lori Berquam to issue a statement last week expressing support for victims of sexual assault and pledging that all reports of sexual assault will be taken seriously and investigated thoroughly.

Despite saying Monday that he would face 30 criminal charges, prosecutors charged Cook with half that number. The charges include seven counts of second-degree sexual assault, three counts of third-degree sexual assault, one count of fourth-degree sexual assault, two counts of strangulation and two counts of false imprisonment.

Cook, a junior business major from Edina, Minnesota, was initially charged on Oct. 19 with second-degree sexual assault, misdemeanor battery, strangulation and false imprisonment related to an incident early on Oct. 13 in which a woman told police that Cook, who was an acquaintance, battered her, sexually assaulted her and kept her from leaving his apartment.

Cooks lawyer, Chris Van Wagner, has said that sex between Cook and the woman was consensual. The woman, according to a criminal complaint, initially struggled to interpret what had happened, but later went to police.

Those charges were folded into the new criminal complaint, which added charges for additional incidents that have since come to light.

Reports about that initial incident appeared to open a floodgate, as police said that dozens of women came forward last week to report either sexual assault or suspicious contact with Cook.

On Monday, Assistant District Attorney Colette Sampson said Cook would be charged for incidents involving four women, and that charges were possible involving two more women.

A search of Cooks apartment by police turned up more than 20 notebooks that Sampson described Monday as containing grooming and stalking techniques, and a search warrant said that notebook entries detailed women by name, what Cook liked about them and what he wanted to do with them. But theres no mention of the notebooks in the complaint that was filed on Thursday, Van Wagner pointed out after Cooks court appearance Thursday.

In particular, Van Wagner took issue with a reference in the notebook, mentioned in court on Monday and in the search warrant, to the word kill, which he said was taken out of context and led to unfair characterizations on the internet.

The 17-page complaint charges Cook with three counts of second-degree sexual assault and one count of third-degree sexual assault, along with strangulation and false imprisonment, for the Oct. 12 and 13 incident involving the woman discussed in the original criminal complaint.

He is charged with second-degree sexual assault and false imprisonment for an incident on March 20, 2015, involving a woman who told police that she had met Cook at a party. She told police she met him later for coffee and then on another occasion, went to his Henry Street apartment, where she said he assaulted her. The complaint states she became distraught as she described to Detective Tracie Jokala what happened, saying she never told anyone about the incident.

The woman also said Cook would appear in unexpected places on campus and Downtown after the incident, and that she was afraid of him.

He faces charges of second-degree sexual assault and two counts of third-degree sexual assault for an incident overnight on Feb. 12-13, 2016, in which a woman told police that a date with Cook, who she met in a class, led to an assault after she believed she had been drugged. She said that after the incident she became depressed and saw a therapist. But she didnt report the incident to police.

I didnt want to ruin his life, the woman told police last week, according to the complaint. I felt ashamed to tell anyone, because I thought it would make him look bad. I saw the news story and was empowered by another girl being able to tell what happened to her, that I thought I could finally tell.

Cook faces two counts of second-degree sexual assault and false imprisonment for an incident in August, reported by another woman who also said she was in a class with him. She said he had originally sent her a Facebook message in March, but she didnt get it until August, and agreed to meet him. She said that as soon as she got to Cooks apartment building, he began kissing her forcefully and treating her roughly, but she said it was consensual at that point.

But in his apartment, she said, he put his hand on her throat, the complaint states, and while sex was at first consensual, she said she later had told him to stop when he became rough with her, but he did not.

Cook was charged with fourth-degree sexual assault after a woman said that he touched her breasts and other parts of her body inappropriately during a ballroom dance class during the spring semester of 2016.

After he was arrested and initially charged on Oct. 19, stories about Cook began to appear on social media, and the case attracted the attention of national media, in part because of other women who had come forward, concerns held by many about the response to sexual assault on college campuses, and allegations of sexual assault that have come up during the current presidential campaign.

Van Wagner, along with co-counsel Jessa Nicholson Goetz, wrote in a statement Wednesday that through the news and social media, Cook has seemingly been charged, tried and convicted. The rapid-fire news cycle, combined with the viral nature of social media, has resulted in a modern-day character assassination that is very real and very wrong.

Speaking to reporters Thursday, the two lawyers maintained that all of the sexual assault allegations were the result of consensual sexual activity, and the complaint contains abundant references to consent between the women and Cook. Nicholson Goetz said she does not believe the improper touching by Cook during the dance class, as alleged in the complaint, ever happened.

Our client has essentially been slaughtered by the social media image of him, Van Wagner said. Now that he and Nicholson Goetz know what is in the complaint, he said, its evident that Cook is not stalking women on campus, did not keep stalking notebooks, and was not a serial rapist.

Theres nothing to support the monster that exists in the minds of all of the people of UW-Madison, Van Wagner told a crowd of reporters in the lobby of the Dane County Public Safety Building. We believe that the contents of this criminal complaint ought to send you back to the people who pay attention to you with the message that their fear was unfounded, that theres no serial stalker, that theres no serial rapist. There are no bodies, there are no corpses, there is nobody who even said that they thought he was going to kill them.

Everything you have seen in the media about those topics is wrong, Van Wagner said.

Cooks lawyers also said that their client will likely remain in jail and not post bail at this point, in part because they fear for his safety if he is released. But they will revisit the issue once they know whether the rest of the dust has settled, because so far all thats settled is dust, Van Wagner said.
Rep. Gene Pelowski, DFL-Winona, is working toward his 16th term, and said the priorities should be clear  finishing what the Legislature started in last session.

First, the tax $260 million tax relief and reform bill, which was not signed by Gov. Mark Dayton following the discovery of a mistake that the Department of Revenue estimates would have reduced the overall revenue by $102.4 million over the next three years, by changes in the tax rate of pull-tab revenues at bingo halls.

Second, a bonding bill which didnt make it out of the Legislature due to disagreement over last-minute changes in the Senate.

The bill containing nearly $1 billion in funding for capital projects and including one-time funding for road and bridge work failed in the last minutes of the session. The final bonding bill had particular local significance, as it included $25 million for phase two of Winona States Education Village and $3.6 million for the Lanesboro dam project, among other projects.

We

know what happened to them, Pelowski said. The corrections are there now.

In addition to finishing that work, Pelowski is continuing to champion legislative reform, which he has worked on for years, particularly as the tone at the Capitol has grown increasingly partisan and divisive.

He has given multiple presentations on the subject and said the response has been fantastic.

There needs to be more deliberation and a focus on whats before us, Pelowski said.

His suggestions include limiting the number of bills introduced and the time that they can be introduced to allow for better understanding and more transparency in the Legislature.

Other issue Pelowski said will be ongoing is transportation infrastructure and fixing MNsure, the state healthcare exchange system that has come under fire recently for cost hikes.

The transportation package was a goal of the Legislature as well in the last session but wasnt taken up. Pelowski said the issue will be making an ongoing funding package to maintain and repair additions.

Likewise, Pelowski said the MNsure question will also require federal fixes to the Affordable Care Act; MNsure was the states choice to build its own exchange to provide plans for the act.

Pelowskis opponent, Adam Pace, is running as a Republican and has been unable to be reached throughout the election cycle despite multiple attempts to contact him in various ways.

Pace first ran against Pelowski in 2012 and lost with 33 percent of the vote to Pelowskis 66 percent.

Pace is originally from San Diego and moved to Winona years ago to be closer to his family, which relocated here years earlier, he said in a 2012 Winona Daily News interview. He ran for office in 2012 because he thought many state and national leaders were restricting personal liberties, he said then.
Landlords, farmers, lenders, and agri-business professionals should make plans to attend one of the informational land rent meetings in the region provided by University of Minnesota Extension.

Crop land rental rates have shifted up and down along with commodity markets in the past five years. These changes have created a challenging environment in which to determine a rate that works for both farmers and landowners. Gary Hachfeld, Extension Educator in Ag Business Management, will provide several ways to set rent by sharing examples, factsheets, and worksheets.

Topics covered at the meetings will include local historic and projected farmland rental rate trends, current farm land values and sales, and worksheets that will help determine a fair and profitable rental agreement. Input costs for 2017 will be presented along with current corn and soybean prices  this data can help farmers understand what they will be able to pay in the upcoming year.

Landlords will be provided with data on land values and get guidance on how to calculate a rent that covers their costs and provides a reasonable rate of return on their land investment.

The meeting lasts two hours and will be held locally at 2 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 6, at the Houston County Criminal Justice Center, 306 S. Marshall St., in Caledonia.

If you have any questions about these programs, contact Extension educators Mike Cruse in Houston and Fillmore counties (507-725-5807/507-765-3896) or Jake Overgaard in Winona County (507-457-6440).
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18 (3) Aug 17 (2) Aug 16 (2) Aug 15 (5) Aug 14 (3) Aug 13 (5) Aug 12 (10) Aug 11 (5) Aug 10 (4) Aug 09 (5) Aug 08 (3) Aug 07 (4) Aug 06 (6) Aug 05 (5) Aug 04 (5) Aug 03 (3) Aug 02 (5) Aug 01 (7) Jul 31 (5) Jul 30 (4) Jul 29 (4) Jul 28 (3) Jul 27 (3) Jul 26 (5) Jul 25 (4) Jul 24 (5) Jul 23 (5) Jul 22 (7) Jul 21 (5) Jul 20 (4) Jul 19 (5) Jul 18 (6) Jul 17 (5) Jul 16 (5) Jul 15 (6) Jul 14 (4) Jul 13 (3) Jul 12 (2) Jul 11 (2) Jul 10 (2) Jul 09 (2) Jul 08 (2) Jul 07 (3) Jul 06 (2) Jul 05 (2) Jul 04 (4) Jul 03 (3) Jul 02 (2) Jul 01 (8) Jun 30 (6) Jun 29 (4) Jun 28 (6) Jun 27 (6) Jun 26 (6) Jun 25 (6) Jun 24 (6) Jun 23 (4) Jun 22 (4) Jun 21 (5) Jun 20 (4) Jun 19 (5) Jun 18 (8) Jun 17 (6) Jun 16 (5) Jun 15 (5) Jun 14 (5) Jun 13 (4) Jun 12 (4) Jun 11 (6) Jun 10 (4) Jun 09 (3) Jun 08 (5) Jun 07 (4) Jun 06 (3) Jun 05 (3) Jun 04 (3) Jun 03 (3) Jun 02 (3) Jun 01 (4) May 31 (2) May 30 (2) May 29 (2) May 28 (2) May 27 (4) May 26 (4) May 25 (3) May 24 (2) May 23 (2) May 22 (3) May 21 (5) May 20 (4) 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Friday, October 28, 2016

ABA Journal (Oct. 20, 2019): Kansas Attorney General Apologizes for Dred Scott Citation in Abortion Brief, by Debra Cassens Weiss:

Derek Schmidt, the Attorney General of Kansas, has apologized for an egregious lack of taste and good judgment in citing the United States Supreme Court's abominable Dred Scott decision in the brief he submitted to the Kansas Supreme Court court defending his state's restrictions on abortion. The case was cited as support for banning all second-trimester abortions, a ban the lower courts reasoning was in violation of the Kansas Constitution's Bill of Rights. Schmidt argued that the use of language from the Declaration of Independence in Kansas's Bill of Rights regarding equality and inalienable rights is, like the Declaration itself, "merely aspirational." Schmidt cited Dred Scott, the case denying African-Americans citizenship, in support of that proposition.

https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/reproductive_rights/2016/10/kansas-attorney-general-apologizes-for-citing-dred-scott-to-defend-restrictions-on-abortion.html
Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier

Those who habitually put items in their recycling bins that don't belong there are the target of the ordinance amendment, not those who make an occasional, accidental mistake, said Public Works Director Jeff Demers.
This is Whats Trending Today.

Did you think you could only see emojis on your mobile phone?

Well, think again.

The Museum of Modern Art in New York City recently received 176 emoji icons created by a Japanese communications company.

They came as a gift from Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation.

The emojis will now be displayed in the same building as works by artists like Andy Warhol, Claude Monet and Pablo Picasso.

The graphics are only 12 pixels by 12 pixels. Some of them are in the shape of the moon, a video game controller, a cat, a car and a high-heeled shoe.

Emojis first appeared around 1999, but took a long time to catch on.

The Unicode Consortium works to make sure computer data and computer code can be understood around the world. It was only in 2010 that the organization translated the emojis into Unicode Standard, a character coding system. That means a person in France can send a message to someone in the U.S. and the emoji will look the same to both people.

Now there are almost 1,800 emojis.

Some people consider emojis a new language since some messages do not use traditional text.

Visitors will be able to see the emojis in the museums lobby through the end of 2016.

In a post on Twitter, one person said she cant wait to see this.

Paola Antonelli is the senior curator of the Department of Architecture and Design at the museum.

She said the idea of emojis goes back hundreds of years and covers all of human history. There is nothing more modern than timeless concepts such as these.

And thats Whats Trending Today.

Im Dan Friedell.

Dan Friedell wrote this story for Learning English based on a story by the Associated Press and VOANews.com. Mario Ritter was the editor.

Will you go see the emojis in the Museum of Modern Art? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.

_______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

emoji  n. a picture used to express an idea through mobile phone messaging

icon  n. a small picture on a computer screen that represents a program or function

pixel  n. any one of the very small dots that together form the picture on a television screen, computer monitor, etc.

translate v. to change words from one language to another

character n. a letter or other symbol

concept  n. an idea of what something is or how it works
Political candidates like to use one or more grammatical structures when they speak. They use grammatical structures because they can have a rhetorical effect.

In other words, the order of words and the way they are used can direct attention to important ideas and help make points clearer. This clarity, the candidates hope, will influence likely voters to choose them.

So, what grammatical structures can you find in political speeches? What can you learn from such speeches?

In our report today, we explore one grammatical structure commonly used in the American election campaign. This structure is called the deliberate fragment.

Complete sentences and sentence fragments

In English, a complete sentence has a subject and a predicate. A predicate is something that expresses what is being said about the subject.

Consider the sentence "I am going to the store."

The subject is "I" and the predicate is "am going to the store."

We say the words am going to the store are an incomplete sentence or fragment.

When English speakers use a deliberate fragment, they often present a noun or verb phrase as a sentence. The result is that the sentence does not have a subject and predicate.

So, a sentence fragment might be: "Going to the store."

In this example, the fragment does not have a subject.

The Everyday Grammar team avoids sentences like that. We know many of our readers are English language teachers. And we want to give learners a good model of English.

However, when used in a careful and intelligent way, sentence fragments can have great effect. Poets, songwriters, politicians and speechwriters have known this for a long time.

What do these sentence fragments look like?

Let's find some in recent speeches.

Presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton used them when they officially accepted their partys nominations three months ago.

In their acceptance speeches, both Trump and Clinton used complete sentences before presenting sentence fragments. They use these fragments to highlight or publicize ideas.

Consider these examples:

"Once again, France is the victim of brutal Islamic terrorism. Men, women and children viciously mowed down. Lives ruined. Families ripped apart. A nation in mourning."

"Our military is a national treasure. We entrust our commander-in-chief to make the hardest decisions our nation faces. Decisions about war and peace. Life and death."

You may note that both Trump and Clinton begin their statements by using complete sentences.

Trump says, "Once again, France is the victim of brutal Islamic terrorism".

Clinton says " We entrust our commander-in-chief to make the hardest decisions our nation faces."

Both of these statements are complete sentences: they have subjects and predicates. They are not missing any important words.

However, after using complete sentences, both candidates presented sentence fragments.

They use these fragments for rhetorical effect.

Trump's use of fragments

Let's listen again to Trump's statement.

"Once again, France is the victim of brutal Islamic terrorism. Men, women and children viciously mowed down. Lives ruined. Families ripped apart. A nation in mourning."

At the end of the comment, Trump uses a clear sentence fragment: "A nation in mourning." This sentence has no verb -- it is only a noun phrase.

This unusual structure directs the listener's attention to it.

The fragment "A nation in mourning" notes the results of the terrorist attack. It describes the effect of the violence, and notes the important point Trump wants to make: in his opinion, the world is not a safe place because there have been recent terrorist attacks.

What about the other sentences?

Men, women and children viciously mowed down. Lives ruined. Families ripped apart.

Trump is using a form of parallelism and the passive voice. Parallelism is when something is very similar to something else. In passive voice sentences, the verb acts on the subject, not the other way around.

The passive voice does not give information about the person responsible for the violence. Instead, it only gives information about the effects of the violence.

You can read about this subject in an earlier Everyday Grammar program.

The effect of this grammatical structure  using short, passive sentences and sentence fragments  is to create a strong mental image of the effects of the attack.

This grammatical choice  to highlight the effects of the violence  makes sense. Trump wants to persuade voters that Hillary Clinton will not be able to stop violence around the world.

Clinton's use of fragments

Now, let's listen again to Clinton's statement.

"Our military is a national treasure. We entrust our commander-in-chief to make the hardest decisions our nation faces. Decisions about war and peace. Life and death."

Clinton also uses sentence fragments after presenting a complete sentence. She follows her first two statements with a fragment, "Decisions about war and peace." This, too, does not have a verb.

Clinton could have said "The commander-in chief makes decisions about war and peace."

Or she could have said "The commander-in-chief decides when we go to war and when we remain peaceful."

Both of these possible sentences, even if they carry the same meaning, are longer and less direct.

By using two fragments  "Decisions about war and peace. Life and Death," Clinton is able to direct our attention to the importance of the decisions that the president makes.

She is telling voters that she understands the importance of these decisions.

She is also able to keep moving through her sentences without losing her listeners. She knows that if she keeps using the same sentence structure in every sentence, the listeners may soon lose interest in her ideas.

Should you use sentence fragments?

Both Trump and Clinton used sentence fragments because they have rhetorical effect. When they presented these fragments, they directed listeners attention to ideas that they wanted to publicize. They kept the listeners attention because they did not keep using the same basic sentence structure again and again!

Politics is not the only place you will hear or see sentence fragments. They also appear in songs, poetry, books, newspapers, and daily conversations.

Native speakers use sentence fragments because they can be a useful tool when you want to add something special to a long series of sentences.

However, in general, fragments are best used only once in a while  and only if you understand what you are doing with them!

Instead, you should be working on developing strong, coherent sentences that have a complete subject and predicate.

Remember: sentence fragments are like spices. You would probably never eat a meal that only has spices like black pepper or paprika. In the same way, you should not write a story in English that only uses sentence fragments. Such an essay would quickly become unreadable, in the same way that a meal made of pepper would probably be hard to eat!

Im Jill Robbins.

And I'm John Russell.

John Russell wrote this story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

rhetorical  adj. of, relating to, or concerned with the art of speaking or writing formally and effectively especially as a way to persuade or influence people

deliberate - adj. done or said on purpose

fragment - n. an incomplete part

grammatical  adj. following the rules of grammar

phrase  n. a group of two or more words that express a single idea but do not usually form a complete sentence

conversation  n. an informal talk involving two people or a small group of people

coherent  adj. logical and well-organized
Police have removed more than 100 protesters from private land in the midwestern state of North Dakota. The protesters were showing their opposition to an oil pipeline in a demonstration that turned violent.

An official with the Morton County Sheriffs Department told the Associated Press 141 people were arrested Thursday.

Police officers used pepper spray to break up a camp of protesters. Among those arrested was one person who had fired three shots at police. No serious injuries were reported. One man was treated for a leg injury, according to the AP.

Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier said protesters were given a final warning Wednesday to leave the private land, but they did not go.

Protests by Native Americans and their supporters have been held in the area since July. The demonstrators oppose the building of the Dakota Access pipeline.

Much of the 1,700-kilometer pipeline is nearly complete. When finished, it would transport about 400,000 barrels of oil a day from North Dakota to Illinois. From Illinois, other pipelines could then transport the supply to shipping ports and refineries across the United States.

The pipelines path comes within one kilometer of land belonging to American Indians from the Standing Rock Sioux tribe.

The tribe has said the pipeline, which would be buried under the nearby Missouri River, could endanger its water supply. It also believes construction could destroy sacred Native American historical sites.

The movement supporting the tribes position has expanded to include environmental groups. Supporters include Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein, civil-rights activist Jesse Jackson, Hollywood celebrities and U.S. Congress members.

Hundreds of protesters had gathered on nearby U.S. government-owned land to hold demonstrations. Others have been arrested since those protests began in July.

But this week, the protesters occupied land owned by Energy Transfer Partners, which leads construction of the pipeline. The company has rejected the protesters arguments and says the project meets all legal requirements.

Supporters of the project say the pipeline is a safer and more cost-effective method than using roads or railways to move the oil.

The tribe brought a legal case in court to dispute the approval of permits by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for construction on federal land. A federal judge denied a request in September to halt the project.

But three federal agencies took action to stop construction on land owned by the Army Corps of Engineers. The Corps is currently deciding whether to reconsider the environmental impact of the pipeline. This would stop construction for a longer period.

A spokesman for the protesters said the latest police action will not silence the movement. He said they plan to build a new camp at another location in the pipeline's path - but this time on federal land.

Im Bryan Lynn.

Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English. Additional material came from VOA News, the Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse. Mario Ritter was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Do you think the government should keep blocking construction of this pipeline? Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

pepper spray  n.  substance made from peppers that causes irritation to the eyes, nose and skin when sprayed

barrel  n.  a standard measure for oil that is equal to about 159 liters

refinery  n. factory where substances such as oil are made pure

sacred  adj. relating to religion or consider holy

permit  n. written document or license granting authority

impact  n. effect of a situation or thing on something else
Fifty-one percent of young Americans are fearful about the future of their country.

Nearly nine in 10 young African-Americans polled by Harvard said people of their racial background are under attack. Nearly seven in 10 young Hispanics feel the same way, as do 45 percent of young whites.

These opinions are from a poll released this week by Harvard Universitys Institute of Politics.

One young voter told Harvard: Everything seems out of control, and our politicians care more about themselves than doing the right thing for all Americans. Were all extremely divided, and very few seem to have any interest in trying to unite us.

Some young adults questioned by Harvard appear to share an important opinion with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump -- that the system is rigged against average Americans.

Most Young Voters Support Clinton

But the Harvard poll found most young Americans, aged 18 to 29, are not supporting Trump for president.

Nearly half of likely young voters, or 49 percent, said they will vote for Hillary Clinton, the Democratic candidate for president. The Harvard poll found 21 percent of likely voters support Trump, the Republican candidate for president.

While over half of young Americans are fearful about Americas future, many are hopeful about their own financial futures.

The young voters were asked by Harvard how they will be doing when they are their parents age. Forty-one percent said they expect to be better off financially. Only 14 percent said they would be worse off.

Opinions of Clinton and Trump

Harvard said 40 percent of young voters have a positive opinion of Clinton and 53 percent a negative opinion. For Trump, 19 percent said they have a positive opinion, while 73 percent have a negative opinion.

What Trump and Clinton Supporters Say

Two young voters -- one supporting Trump and the other Clinton -- spoke to VOA about the election.

Nathaniel White, a recent graduate of the University of North Alabama, is leading Alabama college Republicans for Trump. White said that support for Trump does not mean young Republicans are happy with recorded comments by Trump in 2005 about women.



In the recently released recording, Trump talks in an offensive way about women.

But White said America is electing a president to move America ahead economically and keep it safe, not someone to be a role model.

We are looking at someone to lead us into a better position, White said. We are looking at 2,000 federal appointments, including the Supreme Court, by the next president. That has to be our biggest concern.

Conrad Zbikowski is a senior at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. He is leading college Democratic efforts in Minnesota to elect Hillary Clinton.

Zbikowski said most young people who supported Bernie Sanders for the Democratic presidential nomination are now for Clinton. Many Republicans at his college are undecided or are voting for Clinton, he said.

I think millennials have a lot of stresses -- trying to find a good paying job because we owe so much in student loans, Zbikowski said. We are looking for someone who can make college more affordable and reduce the interest on student loans and move the country forward. That person is clearly Hillary Clinton.

Nearly Half Young People Will Definitely Vote

Harvard Institute of Politics Polling Director John Della Volpe said 49 percent of 18 to 29-year-olds said they will definitely be voting. That is about the same percentage that told Harvard they would definitely vote in 2012, when Barack Obama won a second term.

Young voters are fearful about the future of America, and that is moving them to action, Della Volpe said.

Here is what one young voter told Harvard:

People are not kind anymore and would rather hurt than help. People are selfish and are only looking out for themselves. The leaders running for election are showing the rest of us what the future will look like. I do not want them as role models for the future of America.

I'm Bruce Alpert.

Bruce Alpert reported this story for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section and share your views on our Facebook Page.

____________________________________________________________

Words in this Story

poll - v. to ask people a question or a series of questions in order to get information about what most people think about something

background - n. a persons experiences, knowledge and ethnic background

rig - v. to control or affect something in a dishonest way

role model - n. someone who another person admires and tries to be like

millennial - n. a person, according to Pew Research Center, born after 1980

stress - n. a state of mental tension and worry caused by problems in your life, work

positive - adj. good or useful; thinking about the good qualities of someone or something

negative - adj. harm or harmful; thinking about the bad qualities of someone or something
Teachers have always had to deal with cheating students. But in todays high-tech world, new devices are making it much easier for students to cheat.

Recent studies have shown that most teenagers in the United States now have access to smartphones. Experts say much of the cheating is done with the help of smartphones.

Smart Cheating

Nile Nickel is a technology and social media expert. He says many students put information into their mobile phones to cheat on tests. They can then hide their cheating by using other devices to view the information.

We also have things like Google Glass, as well as smart contact lenses that have the ability to capture video and transmit it to a remote site.

Earlier this year, officials caught several Thai students cheating this way during exams to get into a top medical school.

What they were doing was looking at the test with their glasses on," Nickel said. "It was capturing the exam questions, transmitting them to some associates outside the classroom.

He added that some students even have smartwatches that only show information if they are viewed with special glasses.

Some phones also have a very low ring sound that can only be heard by younger people, according to Nickel.

Who is cheating?

Denise Pope is a learning expert at Stanford University in California. She said some of the students are not the ones you think would cheat.

These are kids who are doing well in school, and they are still cheating because they need to keep up their grades. They feel the pressure to maintain a really high grade point average.

Pope also co-created the organization Challenge Success. It provides schools and families with tools to help children become more involved and have a more balanced educational experience.

She says improving the learning and testing process can help cut down on cheating.

Instead of trying to chase this problem, to get out in front of it. And what I mean by that is to create assignments where its almost impossible to cheat.

Anti-cheating tools

As an example, she said teachers can ask students to turn in progress of their work and projects before it is complete. Teachers can be sure the material is the students work and can provide suggestions.

Pope added that changing the way tests are structured can prevent cheating. She says the best tests require students to write their answers instead of choosing from a list of choices.

Many schools already have barred students from taking smartphones into testing rooms. Others are experimenting with looking for radio signals or other methods to discover hidden devices used to cheat.

But Pope said one of the most important ways to help stop cheating is to get teachers, students and parents to talk openly about it. She says this can help students better understand the reasons for holding themselves to a high standard of honesty.

Im Bryan Lynn.

Faiza Elmasry reported this story for VOA News. Bryan Lynn adapted it for VOA Learning English. was the editor.

We want to hear from you. What do you think teachers can do to stop cheating? Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

get away with  v. to succeed in doing something wrong without being caught or punished

contact lens  n. thin piece of plastic worn on the eye to improve vision

transmit  v. to pass information in the form of electrical signals

glasses  n. pair of lenses set in a frame worn to improve vision

associate  n. a partner in work, school or business

grades  n. number or letter given to students showing how good their work is

assignment  n. piece of work to do given in school or work

standard  n. level of quality considered acceptable
Vietnamese-Americans are the sixth-largest immigrant group in the United States. Many of them take part in political activities and events. In recent years, there has been a split between older and younger Vietnamese-Americans.

Old or young, many Vietnamese-Americans say it is difficult to choose which presidential candidate to support.

VOA recently spoke with some of these voters in Orange County, California. The area is home to one of the largest Vietnamese communities in the country.

Little Saigon is a part of the county where many Vietnamese-Americans live and work. Many people there are talking about the presidential election. Some of them say they will not be voting for the candidate they like. Instead, they say they will be voting for the candidate they dislike the least.

Leslie Le says he is voting for the Republican candidate.

Between the two devil(s) I choose the lesser one. Thats Donald Trump.

Le was a colonel in the army of South Vietnam before fleeing to the United States. Like many of those who came to the U.S. after the end of the Vietnam War, he has voted for Republicans in every election since he gained U.S. citizenship. But this year, it took him a long time to decide.

It is very difficult this time because [there are] two bad candidates.

He says Trump never thinks before speaking about what hes thinking, and he (has) changed policies a lot. He plans to build a wall between (the) United States and Mexico, and he (says he will force) the Mexican government to pay for it. Its not reality, so what he said is just his imagination.

Le does not like Trump, but he says the Democratic Party candidate is more dangerous.

Hillary Clinton, as secretary of state, she must be capable to tell what information is classified, related to national security and which information is OK to transmit over private server email. If shes not capable to do that, she cannot be a president.

Mike Nguyen says he believes in the Republican Partys economic policies. He says he votes Republican because of the partys policies, not because of Donald Trump. He says he wants to give money back to the people who create jobs.

Dzung Do is the managing editor of the Vietnamese-language newspaper Nguoi Viet. He says he understands why older Vietnamese-Americans have supported Republicans.

During the Vietnam War, the Republicans were very aggressive where the Democrats was anti-war. So [with] that kind of thinking they think Democrat(s) was responsible for the loss of Vietnam.

Do says some older Vietnamese do not believe a woman should lead a country.

How about girl leader? No. No way.

But, Do says Republican Vietnamese-Americans are reluctant to say they support Trump.

He says some older Vietnamese-Americans are changing their support to the Democratic Party.

People live here longer, especially old people, he says. They get benefits from social programs. When they first came here, they thought that they might do something to change Vietnam. (But) now they see the relationship between Vietnam and the U.S. (is getting) warmer and warmer.

Younger Vietnamese-Americans hold different views than their parents and grandparents. Many of them support Clinton, including Viet Tran.

Anyone who has served in politics for 20, 30 years will have some skeleton(s) in the closet. I mean, the only things thats been mentioned about her, nothing is really that outrageous, nothing that hasnt been done before by other politicians. I mean, I think people are just more harsh on her because shes female.

Hetty La is also voting for the Democratic Party candidate.

I would say Clinton is the better candidate for president.

Hugh Tra supported Bernie Sanders -- an Independent Senator who competed in the Democratic Partys primary elections -- until Sanders ended his candidacy.

I will be supporting Hillary. She has adopted a lot of Bernie Sanders policies and implemented a lot of progressive platforms into her personal platform.

Leslie Le says If you dont vote for anybody, you indirectly vote for the bad one.

But Dzung Do believes that some Vietnamese-Americans will not mark their presidential ballot this year.

Im Christopher Jones-Cruise.

Correspondent Elizabeth Lee reported this story from Orange County, California. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted it into VOA Special English. Mario Ritter was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, or visit our Facebook page.

______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

reluctant  adj. feeling or showing doubt about something

skeletons in the closet  idiom things in a persons past that they want to be hidden

outrageous  adj. very bad or wrong

harsh  adj. unpleasant, severe

adopt  v. accepted, taken on

progressive  adj. characterized by modern or new ideas

platform  n. a set of policies that a party says it will support




Don't judge a book by its cover, we are always been reminded of that. But consciously or unconsciously, we do it. We judge others by how they look, by the colour of their skin, how they dressed, how we perceived them; often without bothering to know each other's background.Greater harmony can be achieved through greater understanding and compassion in a multi-racial society like ours and there are so many ways to do it.For me, I have the love of running as a sport to be a part of a caring community with charity drives done by running groups not only for local charitable causes but also for overseas, such as the charity drive for Langtang in Nepal to help the area rebuild itself after he devastating earthquake in 2015.Fellow runners from all background came to help without hesitating when there is a need to help regardless of race or religion, during the flood in Kelantan or for Orang Asli causes or for Old Folks' home or orphanages.A similar interest can bring people from all kinds of background together and closer and create an understanding of each other.For the coming Deepavali, the Petronas new webfilm reminded me of how we sometimes judge people and don't really try to understand or be close to others to know their real story just because of how they look or how they behave.Do, do watch this clip. It hits a nerve. I am guilty of judging people by first glance.I believe we Malaysians are a compassionate lot but sometimes our lack of understanding about others who are not similar to us cloud our judgement and makes us suspicious of others and misjudged them.Why not we let the light shines within us and continue respecting each other as both individuals and as Malaysians.In light of the Deepavali celebration, we Malaysians should respect each others differences and embrace similarities.HAPPY DEEPAVALI!
Robert G. Bone (University of Texas School of Law) has posted Tyson Foods and the Future of Statistical Adjudication (North Carolina Law Review, Vol. 95, 2017) on SSRN. Here is the abstract:

Statistical adjudication, the practice of using sampling and other statistical techniques to adjudicate large case aggregations, is highly controversial today. In all its forms, statistical adjudication decides cases on the basis of statistical extrapolation rather than case-specific facts. For example, a court adjudicating a large class action might try a random sample of cases, average the trial verdicts, and give the average to all the other cases in the aggregation. In Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes, the Supreme Court rejected a sampling proposal as inconsistent with the Rules Enabling Act, calling it Trial by Formula. In the wake of this decision, at least one commentator declared the death of statistical adjudication.



In an important decision last term, Tyson Foods, Inc. v. Bouaphakeo, the Court changed course and breathed new life into statistical adjudication. It upheld the use of sampling to establish liability and damages in a Fair Labor Standards Act case and indicated that the procedure might be available in other cases as well. The Courts opinion is far from clear, however, and offers little guidance to lower court judges trying to determine when and how to use the procedure in future cases.



This Article explores the impact of Tyson Foods on the future of statistical adjudication. Part I defines statistical adjudication and distinguishes it from statistical evidence. Part II shows that Tyson Foods is a case of statistical adjudication, not statistical evidence. Part III takes a closer look at the Courts opinion in an effort to tease out factors and principles to guide future use. Part IV explores reasons for the vague discomfort with the procedure, reasons that seem to be tied to nagging doubts about the legitimacy of the procedure. Critics worry that statistical adjudication is too strange a fit with adjudication, too substantive to be legitimately implemented as procedure, and too mechanical to count as a proper form of adjudicative reasoning. Part IV argues that statistical adjudication is not as strange as it might seem, that its outcome effects do not make it too substantive, and that while it substitutes a mechanical decision algorithm for the usual reasoning process, it does so in a way that can be justified as legitimate. It is time that we recognize statistical adjudication for what it is: a useful procedural tool that, when carefully designed and selectively deployed, is capable of adjudicating large case aggregations fairly and efficiently.

Highly recommended. Download it while it's hot!
As a parent, being away from your child just to go to work can be hard. Now, imagine six months.

Friday, Bay News 9 was there for a reunion of a military dad and his 5-year-old daughter.

Sgt. Elisban Cavero returned from assignment on Friday morning

He reunited with 5-year-old daughter Kylie

Elisban Cavero will be home for holidays



Read more Good News stories

Sgt. Elisban Cavero got back from his latest assignment at 1 a.m. Friday. Not wanting to wake his daughter, he waited to surprise her at Hudson Elementary School.

"I didnt know what to expect. Shes my love, my everything, Cavero said.

Anticipation built for Cavero and his wife, Kassie, walking to 5-year-old Kylie's class, where she sat eating breakfast without a clue.

Air Force Sgt. Elisban Cavero surprised his 5-year-old daughter Kylie in class today after being on deployment for six months.  @BN9 pic.twitter.com/cntjiCUyFw  Leah Masuda BN9 (@LeahMasuda) October 28, 2016

Then, her dad walked in. Hi Daddy, she said and turned to give him a hug as she began to cry.

I was holding back tears. I havent seen her in six months and its always amazing having the feeling of family, Cavero said.

After Kylie got her tears out, she was feeling back to her chipper self. She didnt grow up, said Cavero. Yes I did! said Kylie.

Cavero is a staff sergeant in the Air Force. Hes been in the military for nearly 10 years. This is the second time hes been deployed away from his family. The first time was to Afghanistan, when Kylie was a baby.

But these past six months have been hard on her. With her at the age of 5, she doesnt grasp the concept of time," Kassie Cavero said.

"So I can tell her daddy will be home in six months, that doesnt stick. So the next day again, 'Whens daddy coming home, is daddy coming home yet?'" said Kylies mom, Kassie Covero.

But now that her dad is home, they can begin their joking together again.

"With her at the age of 5, she doesnt grasp the concept of time. So I can tell her daddy will be home in six months, that doesnt stick." Kassie Cavero

Did you miss me? Kylie nodded. How much? said Cavero.

Kylie put her fingers together jokingly. Just a little? laughed her dad.

The family already has plans for the first thing theyll do together when Kylie gets out of school.

Probably watch a movie together, Im tired, said Cavero. Ill watch a video! said Kylie.

Theyll have a lot of time together. Cavero is in the reserves, so hell be home to celebrate the holidays. The first of course, is Halloween.

Whats your costume? said Cavero. Bat girl! said Kylie.

Cavero had been in training the past six months in Texas and Virginia.
Halloween is this Monday, but the parties, for all intents and purposes, start this weekend.

And you're not ready, are you?

Pulling together a costume at the last minute can be daunting, especially since stores are starting to run out of Halloween accessories and outfits.

Then there's the whole money thing -- who wants to buy a whole costume to wear for one night?

MegaCon is this weekend in Tampa. The three day event features some of the biggest names in movies, television and comic books -- but also in the world of Cosplay.

We asked two of the cosplayers attending MegaCon for ideas to pull together a cool costume in no time (and with little money) at all.

Step 1: Consider your budget and what you're into.

"I find myself best at last-minute cosplay," said Maria Saber, a Bradenton tattoo artist who is also a cosplayer under the name "Gothic Sushi." Im used to drawing things out of thin air."

Saber suggests thinking about what you really like and making it work with your own style.

So does Scarlett Rose, a South Florida event planner who also does cosplay. Rose started out doing costumes at the Florida Renaissance Festival in Deerfield Beach over a decade ago. Now when she creates a new costume, it usually will have a medieval flare.

"If its an original character I will start watching shows or playing games to get a feel," Rose said.

Step 2: To the Internet!

"Pinterest is amazing," said Maria Saber. "If you cosplay and you go on Pinterest, it is a life saver. The amazing ideas and tutorials, people will break down how to do patterns."

Also consider looking at Amazon, Google and other sites to give you ideas for costumes.

Also, when designing your costume, you don't have to be exact.

"Everyone has a style they like anyway, and you can always create a character to match that style," Scarlett Rose said.

Think of it as similar to the concept of Disney Bounding, where adults (who can't wear costumes at the parks), match of everyday clothing to create an outfit similar to what a Disney character would wear.

Need some more inspiration?

Star Wars.com just posts three easy, last-minute DIY Star Wars costume tutorials on its website.

You can also check out the Google Frightgeist, Google's trending site for Halloween costume searches, to get some ideas.

Step 3: Open your closet.

Everyone has staples: jeans, white tank tops, black skirts and dresses, leggings, that sort of thing. See what you have that can fit into a costume idea.

For instance, Batman villainess Harley Quinn is the number one costume this year, according to the Google Frightgeist.

But with Harley Quinn does not have to look exactly like the "Batman: The Animated Series" version or the "Suicide Squad" version.

"If you have a red and black outfit in your closet, or items, you can throw something together, you can be your own version, and still have fun," Saber said.

Other basic items can get you a creepy character with just a little fake blood and makeup.

"A prime example for something simple and quick, everyone has jeans, you may have a flannel shirt or a T-shirt," Rose said. "You can throw something together from 'The Walking Dead' in about a day."

Step 4: Hit the thrift stores and Halloween shops.

Both Saber and Rose, as longtime cosplayers, keep a wide array of items in their closets.

"I always keep a black skirt around, gloves, I always keep a pair of gloves around, fingerless gloves," Rose said.

Rose also says she keeps an array of jackets in her closet. And as a RenFest costumer, she also has lots of leather armor pieces.

But not everyone is prepared for every costume eventuality. The next place to go for certain pieces, then, is the thrift store.

"I love thrift shopping, its the best thing in the world," Saber said. "I cant tell you how many times Ive gone to the thrift store and bought a crazy blue prom dress or a trench coat for $5 and built my whole cosplay off of that."

Also helpful are the clearance sections of places like Michael's craft store or Walmart.

For instance, Saber says she has six or seven versions of costumes for the Pokemon "Vaporeon." And some of those costumes are created using loose or broken items from clearance sections.

"I will go to Michaels or the thrift store and get a bag of loose material, and I will put that together," Saber said. "Like a blue bathing suit, and scales, or a shawl and totally bedazzle it."

Rose also suggests going to the Halloween stores for major staple items.

Step 5: Can't sew? Hot glue gun it!

"Hot glue gun is definitely your best friend, especially if its last minute or you dont know if it will hold up well," Rose said. "You can alter pretty much anything with a hot glue gun."

Saber agrees the hot glue gun is a cosplayer's best friend. She uses it and knows many cosplayers who bring their guns to events.

"Even my friends who are the best seamstresses will break out the glue gun or nail glue like you use on finger nails or Gorilla Glue. Its really whatever you have on hand and whatever comes to mind," Saber said.

Most stores sell hot glue guns and glue sticks.

Above all, Saber and Rose say cosplaying is about getting out there and having fun as someone or something else.

"Have fun and be unique. Being unique with your costume makes it more entertaining!" Rose said.

If you have time to go to Megacon in Tampa this weekend, there are vendors with unique costume pieces -- from corsets to lightsabers -- that you won't find in regular stores.

MegaCon Tampa Bay runs Friday through Sunday at the Tampa Convention Center. Tickets can no longer be bought online. They cost $30 to $45 at the door, depending on the day, or you can be a three-day weekend pass for $65. children $12 and under are $10. More information is available on the Megacon website.
Ajay Devgn, producer, director and lead actor of Shivaay joined us this week, along with Sayesha Saigal & Erika Kaar , for a quick chat ahead of their Diwali release.

While Sayesha Saigal, making her Bollywood debut with this film, shared her experiences, Erika opened up about working with Ajay Devgn.

From days that went wrong during the shoot to portrayal characters, Ajay gives out details on the making, performances he expected from his actors and more. The star also opens up about controversies he was quoted for, more than often in the past.

Sayesha and Erika put on their candid best as they joke around about cat fights and cliche questions they face at promotions.

Known to be media shy and also the 'perfect' husband, Ajay puts away the cliches surrounded around his image in this chat and quizzes our host in the five second summaries segment.

While the stars also spoke about their home critics, find out their favourites on this week's episode of The Firstpost Show.
Its officially the most depressing time of the year for film buffs in Bombay. The Jio Mami 18th Mumbai Film Festival has come to a close and that means its the end of exposure to dozens of amazing world cinema titles, and the end of the thrill of meeting fellow film geeks fighting to get tickets of their most anticipated films.

This year, the biggest improvement the fest displayed was the management of the crowds and the seating. Despite a couple of expected shenanigans with angry people its pretty clear that Mami is improving in the logistics department in a big way. The only frustrating aspect is the wonky ratio of people visiting the Andheri screens in comparison to those at the vacant Kurla screens. Spreading the screens citywide is going to be the biggest challenge for Mami; if more people register this will happen. So its up to you to make Mami even better than it already is  register and support the festival.

The most fun Ive had during the festival was when I stood four times a day during the national anthem (what could possibly be more entertaining than that), but the films that played were also quite interesting. Listed below are ten of the most memorable ones:

10 - THINGS TO COME

Yet another lovely film from Mia Hansen Love, Things to Come succeeds in showcasing the many knots that arrive in life and how seemingly perfect relationships with the people you love can actually be far more difficult and jagged than you think. Hansen Love doesnt fully give answers to the problems the philosophy professor protagonist played by Isabelle Huppert has, but the optimistic outlook and non sentimental method of dealing with tragedy gives you a reason to not be completely bogged down by the problems.

9 - HOUNDS OF LOVE

An absolutely brutal Australian film from director Ben Young, were taken on a wild ride with a serial killer couple that kidnaps, rapes and tortures unsuspecting young folks. What makes it different from a regular torture porn movie is the dynamics between the woman in the couple who is subservient to the man to horrific levels, and we get to explore why she is like this. Also fascinating is the ultra slow-mo shots of the neighbourhood where the couple stays, whose bright colours and happiness are in contrast to the nightmare inside their house.

8 - SWISS ARMY MAN

By far the most unique and original film of the year, Swiss Army Man plays out a mushroom trip with a lot of emotional resonance. That the directors (both named Daniel) were able to convince a studio to fund a movie about a farting corpse that doubles as a jet ski is amazing in itself, but to turn such a ridiculous concept into a heartwarming, relevant story of urban isolation, loneliness and bromance is boggling.

7 - THE SALESMAN

Asghar Farhadis latest is actually his worst film to date. That means its not an ultimate masterpiece, but merely a really good film and still one of the best of the year. Farhadi continues his exploration of a broken marriage and relationships through the lens of a domestic mystery, which this time revolves around a woman suddenly attacked in the bathroom by an unknown assailant. As is Farhadis modus operandi, he winds through the many facets of contemporary Iran and the hardships the average civilian faces because the government is not really there to help them.

6 - ELLE

Paul Verhoeven, at the ripe age of 78 punches you in the gut with a stunning exploration of feminism seen through a nihilist lens. A rich video game company CEO (played by the terrific Isabelle Huppert) is raped by an unknown assailant and is left to deal with unseen consequences  but instead of a self loathing wallow, the film turns out to be a darkly funny journey of a woman who is too proud to be affected by something like rape. The commentary surrounding a woman dealing with the male gaze is taken to such extreme levels its depressing that we live in a country where the ultimate feminist dramatic high point in cinema is no means no.

5 - UNDER THE SHADOW

Directed by first timer Babak Anvari, this is is yet another installment in the horror space that makes this the golden age of horror filmmaking. Thanks to films like this one were no longer living in an era where horror movies are about cheap thrills, but they make a larger point of humanity or have some relevance in the contemporary world. Under the Shadow is a beautiful parable for the mindless war in the Middle East and its only predictable that it is UKs entry to the Oscars this year.

4 - I DANIEL BLAKE

Its good to see Ken Loach, at the age of 80, still being angry. The film, relevant to pretty much anyone from any part of the world explores an old British man trying to fight the countrys flimsy government health scheme and realises the system is rigged to never really help citizens. When the film is not upsetting its brutally funny, mainly thanks to the comic timing of comedian Dave Johns who plays the old man infuriated at the system.

3 - THE LURE

A trippy, severely entertaining punk rock musical about siren vampire mermaids who are hired as songstresses in a Polish nightclub, the film is consistently weird and flows like a mixtape of Nouvalle Vague songs ranging from heartache pop to feverish disco. As a bonus the narrative is wonderfully interspersed with ridiculously sexy women, gore and a fairy tale like romance. Its in some ways the most completely entertaining movie of the fest, and it would be quite easy to remake this in Hindi considering the Bollywood-esque nature of its central love story.

2 - CLASH

A breathless ride from start to end, Mohamed Diabs Egyptian film takes us through the heart of the war between the Muslim Brotherhood and the Egyptian army during the Arab Spring. Most fascinating is the plot device of the film being set entirely inside a police van which, over the course of the movie is filled with people from opposite sides of the camp and also people unrelated to either parties. The tension escalates to dizzying levels as conflicting ideologies and irony collide, while angry protestors outside the van are a constant threat. Theres also some dark humor in the midst of all this chaos and the final fifteen minutes, swathed with green lazer beams turns the nightmare of furious protestors and certainty of death into a set piece that resembles an EDM concert.

1 - MY LIFE AS A ZUCCHINI

The most memorable experience at the fest this year, Claude Barrass film is an absolutely gorgeous French-Swiss stop motion animation. We follow a child whose mother dies and is sent to an orphanage where he meets other kids who have faced similar setbacks. Its hard to describe what is the best aspect of the film because it just excels at everything  from the eye popping visuals to the heartbreaking screenplay to the thought provoking music and the lovely voice work. Onions are brought to your eyes, and every ray of hope that arrives in the story feels like a much-needed warm moment amidst the heavy snow literally and metaphorically depicted in the film. And despite a relatively short runtime the film manages to offer commentary on a dozen aspects in life. Its not surprising that the film is Switzerlands entry to the Oscars and it would be even less surprising if it wins.

Honorable Mentions:

#MAMI2016 was actually Fantastic Fest in disguise because the most interesting films that played were from the After Dark section  The Wailing, The Similars and The Greasy Strangler were all entertainingly weird and highly memorable.

The Cinema Travelers got a lot of positive response from the audience and it went on to win two awards at the fest.

Also getting some serious buzz was Rohit Mittals mockumentary Autohead which bagged a special mention in the Indian Gold category.
Tamil films audience have a lot to look forward to this Diwali. Apart from Karthi's Kaashmora, Dhanush's political thriller Kodi has also hit the screens this weekend.

Written and directed by RS Durai Senthilkumar, it will have Dhanush playing a double role for the first time.

A politician, played by Dhanush, has to contest against his ambitious lover (Trisha) on the poll ground. Situations arise where his twin also has to get involved in the battle.

The Times of India speaks about Dhanush's performance in the film, "Kodi shows how a good actor can make a film rise above its genre. Dhanushs performance here, subtly delineating the two roles, is a delight to watch. He shines in the mass hero moments as well as the dramatic ones." The critic has given the film four stars out of five.

PressKS.com says about the film, "Kodi is a political mass entertainer with excellent performance by Dhanush and Trisha. Dhanush shines out and out with his dual role play. Commercial dialogues score high." They give the film a rating of 3.5 out of 5.

IBTimes says, "Kodi is purely a mass film in which Dhanush has excelled in dual roles. His performance in two characters undoubetedly remains the major highlight of the film. Trisha will be seen in a bold role and Anupama has done justice to her limited role."

Here is what the audience has to say about the film:

#Kodi Vetrikodi Kattum Will be a return Hit for @dhanushkraja. @durairsk's best so far. Ideal festival mass film with content substance too  Kaushik LM (@LMKMovieManiac) October 28, 2016

#Kodi: Mass in 1st Half.. Class turns Mass in 2nd Half.. Result is Total Marana Mass.. @dhanushkraja is in Top form and has a Clean Winner   Ramesh Bala (@rameshlaus) October 28, 2016
She: So your name is Shivaay, thats Shiva with a y. What do you have that Lord Shiva has? Where is the long hair?

He: (wordlessly reveals a tattoo of the handsome deity on his bulging masculine breast)

She: (her next question a gesture indicating a cobras hooded head)

He: (wordlessly reveals a tattoo of a serpent on his muscular forearm)

She: Trishul?

He: (wordlessly reveals a tattoo of the three-pronged weapon on his back)

She: (suddenly falling coyly silent)

He speaks up helpfully: ********? (the word is muted in the film)

He does not offer her a verbal answer. However, since they indulge in many rounds of coital activity soon afterwards, one assumes he proves to her that he is in possession of his very own ******** and not a mere tattoo of (what many believe to be) the phallic symbol associated famously with the most intriguing member of the Hindu Holy Trinity.

And so it goes

Who would have dreamt that such an overtly sexual conversation derived from the mythology of Lord Shiva would emerge from staid, conservative Ajay Devgn and the rarely adventurous Hindi film industry. Yet, that is what you get in Shivaay, Devgns second directorial venture, which is the story of a modern-day Indian resident of the upper reaches of the Himalayas, mountaineer, guide to foreign tourists and chillum-smoking fount of indomitable strength.

In those early portions, when the full blast of Himalayan beauty hits us through Aseem Bajajs camerawork at some of the worlds most stunning, snow-laden, high-altitude locations, the film holds out great promise. Devgn  who also plays the leading man  is, after all, a dependable actor who does rage, deep affection and pain like few of his colleagues can. And Shiva is, without question, the most fascinating being in the Hindu pantheon of many crore gods.

(Spoiler alert: begins) Our hero Shivaay meets a pretty Bulgarian tourist on a trek through treacherous terrain. They flirt, they copulate, they part. In between they have a child. The film is about his relationship with his daughter and how it tears him away from his beloved mountains to a foreign land where men prove to be far more dangerous than any craggy, slippery cliff will ever be. (Spoiler alert: ends)

The pre-interval portion is filled with rich visuals, nail-biting action and the potential for an interesting contemporary take on the Shiva lore. Post-interval though, the poor writing (credited to Robin Bhatt and Sandeep Shrivastav) and sub-par acting overwhelm everything else as it becomes clear that all Shivaays references to Hindu mythology are painfully literal, and beyond a point, it is not an ode to the deity as much as it is a self-indulgent ode to the leading man.

Devgn, who is also this films producer, has in the past managed to pull off vintage Bollywood over-statement in films like Singham without appearing foolish. In Shivaay he is in almost every frame and the strain shows with scenes in which he over-acts in  I cannot believe I am saying this about him!  Sunny Deol style. There is a passage in the plot when tragedy strikes and we see his face in relief, the muscles in the space between his left eye and left cheek twitching visibly in a reminder of Deol junior and his dad Dharmendras flaring nostrils of yore.

Devgn here is Deol with less screaming. He does not get a hand pump a la Gadar, but he does get a wooden table to uproot and shred to bits.

The screenplay does not build up any of the other characters sufficiently to match him, and the intensity becomes amusing after a while. A raging hero is only as good as his adversary and Shivaays antagonists (played by Markus Ertelt, Miroslav Pashov and Swen Raschka) are so thinly sketched that they are damp squibs. Actually, so are his lover Olga (Erika Kaar), his irritating daughter Gaura Maheshwari (Abigail Eames) and his ally at the Indian Embassy in Bulgaria, Anushka (Sayyeshaa).

Hindi films have often been guilty of hiring terrible actors to play Caucasian characters. Devgn gets around that problem by limiting our opportunities to judge his foreign actors  they have little to do, and even less to say. Gaura is even born mute.

Actually, those seemingly promising early scenes should have served as a warning bell. How much reason and quality writing should you expect from a film in which a man takes time off to make a clever point about the divine hand in our existence even as an avalance is approaching? A film in which most characters wrap themselves up to stay warm in the icy cold of the Himalayas, but the hero warms his blood on his chillum enough to lie shirtless in the snow for a grand introductory shot and the heroine smokes nothing yet does not freeze to death in her short shorts and off-shoulder tops?

(Spoiler alert: begins) The literalness in the film is not confined to the characterisation of Shivaay and the iconography surrounding Shiva. Soon after he exhorts a woman to bear his child, the camera cuts to an aerial shot of two adjoining rocky-lipped crevices resembling the yoni of the mother goddess within which we discover that child.

It must be stressed here that the heroine is a mother, but no goddess in the eyes of Team Shivaay. She is clearly damned in their view since she has the audacity to consider an abortion, which is perhaps their justification for a much later scene in which Shivaay roughs her up. How dare a woman not put her plans on hold for an unplanned pregnancy, no? (Spoiler alert: ends)

The music by Mithoon is nice to begin with but then becomes overbearing, and one of the many reasons why Shivaay is elongated to 172 minutes and 38 seconds.

The truth is that I enjoyed some of the hugely improbable scenarios and stunts in the film, silly though they are, including that long car chase in which Shivaay pursues a speeding vehicle on foot through busy Bulgarian roads and manages to catch up with it  I kid you not!  before being dragged for many kilometres on his knees, clad in jeans that remain unharmed by the friction. The scene is a great advertisement for whatever fabric those trousers are made of, and like I said I enjoyed that bit of nonsense as much as I have often enjoyed the nonsense served up by Hollywood action/superhero flicks.

Those Hollywood films pull off their string of improbabilities with their unrelenting pace. Shivaay, on the other hand, is the kind of film in which a maudlin song plays in the background while the camera gazes at Dad and daughter for what seems like many minutes right in the middle of a high-stakes hand-to-hand battle between the hero and an array of villains.

By then, of course, it is already too late to salvage this film that might have worked at some level if it had brutally shaved about 40 minutes off itself. I present to you Exhibit No. 1: the weirdly Oedipal interactions between embassy girl Anushka and her father (Girish Karnad) filled with stodgy, grammatically suspect, unwittingly suggestive dialogues and an extended bathtub scene, complete with a song sung by Kailash Kher, in which she seems to fantasise about Shivaay and Daddy simultaneously. Whoever created that piece of tosh clearly considers it profound. It is not.

Yes sir, Messrs Editor, Writers and Director, I am willing to sit with you and identify every needless scene and shot you could have done away with, without charging a fee for the expertise of being a viewer  because there is a kernel of an engaging film somewhere in this maze you have created; and because Shiva the Destroyer and Regenerator, dancer of the Tandav, lover of Parvathi, father of Ganesh and Karthikey, unapologetic smoker of you-know-what, Bholenath, unabashed sexual being, composed yet combustible god, source of all life, whether in an ancient or modern avatar, deserves better than this heavy-handed, over-stretched film.
New Delhi: BJP MP Subramanian Swamy has demanded constitution of a multi-agency SIT to probe allegations of "certain fraudulent transactions" in Air Asia levelled by Cyrus Mistry following his removal as chairman of the Tata Group.

Swamy, in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has said the SIT should comprise officials from CBI, Enforcement Directorate and SEBI as the charges involved a gamut of offences.

The Rajya Sabha MP recalled that he had in an earlier letter to Modi questioned Ratan Tata's role as Indian partner in Air Asia and Vistara Airlines "in complete violation" of the laws of the country.

Hot on the heels of Mistry's ouster alleging fraudulent transactions at AirAsia India, the Aviation Ministry had said all issues would be looked into and "law of the land will have to be followed" in case of any violation.
The clause in the articles of association of Tata Sons Limited state that so long as the Tata Trusts hold 40 percent of the equity of Tata Sons Ltd, they would have virtual veto power in the matter of appointment of the chairman of the company cooks the goose of Cyrus Mistry, the ousted Chairman of Tata Sons Ltd, assuming Tata Sons is a private limited company under license to delete the word Private from its name.

This clause in the memorandum is de rigueur in almost all the articles of association of private limited companies which are strictly family affairs or at best a cosy association of friends and relatives.

A limited company, be it listed or unlisted, cannot have a clause akin to the one in Tata Sons. If Tata Sons is not a private company, then Mistry has a fighting chance of winning his battle against Tatas by mainly attacking this invidious clause in the Articles of Association.

Odds are heavily stacked against Mistry who is emerging as David in his battle against Ratan Tata the Goliath.

Even if his petition (assuming he files one) complaining of oppression and mismanagement succeeds, the relief if any can at best be given to the minority shareholders---Shapoorji Palonji Mistry family which owns 18 percent of Tata Sons equity. However, the oppression petition if being contemplated would be misplaced. To challenge the removal from the post of chairman would not yield any positive results assuming the Tata Sons articles vesting veto power in Tata Trusts are not ultra vires which would be the case if it is indeed a private company. In the event, Cyrus Mistry has to grin and bear.

Ratan Tata too must grin and bear. He must take the tirade against him by Mistry in his stride. He cannot file a defamation case---if he contemplating filing one--against Mistry who turned out to his consternation an upstart out to undo his projects and dreams. For, there is a grain of truth in what the freshly humiliated Mistry says. Indeed the catalogue of accusations can never be one-sided.

Mistrys problems were inherited. He had to reap the bitter harvest of what Tata in his uninhibited enthusiasm had done by acquiring a pig in the poke---the Anglo-Dutch steel major Corus. And in addition macro economic conditions were not kind to the new kid in the chair. That Rs 1, 18,000 crore worth of assets have become impaired by way of investments in Corus, Nano and Tata Finance is at best his (Mistrys) opinion that no doubt has spooked the market.

Narayanamurthy of Infoys fame was right when he said profit is opinion, cash is fact. Hence the announcement by Mistry of purported loss of Rs 1.18 billion cannot be treated as a holy writ. Indeed Accounting Standard 28 of the ICAI dealing with impairment of assets is nebulous and gives a lot of leeway to managements to brush things under the carpet.

Tatas might well say Nano is not a gone case as indeed Corus. Both call for deft handling over as long enough period of time, the point made by Ratan Tata when he said business is a long haul. Therefore Tatas may be successful in warding off pressure from the regulators and auditors to write the conglomerate assets.

Ratan Tata was naive in appointing Cyrus Mistry as the Chairman perhaps believing that he would do his bidding. But Mistry proved to be a man made of sterner stuff. And Mistry is naive too in believing that the chairmans post was his for all times to come. He should have realized that like civil servants whose continuity is subject to the Presidents pleasure, his continuance too was subject to Tata pleasure which he forfeited when he rubbed it in through concrete actions that Ratan Tata rushed where angels fear to tread.

To be sure, they cannot smoke the peace pipe and reunite. But grin and bear both can.
The rumblings caused by the Tata Group, Indias largest business conglomerate, just keeps getting louder with attacks and counter attacks from Tata Sons and ousted chairman Cyrus Mistry.

The ugly war which is a first from the sedate, old world and traditional business group continues to shock India Inc.

When an over 140 year-old business group that has emphasised and embodied trust and transparency is split open with ugly warts showing up, what does this incident bode for Corporate India. What lessons can India Inc learn from this incident?

Firstpost spoke with management school experts. And they spelt out the lessons that can be gleaned for entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship from the Bombay Houses unusual war of words and summary dismissal of its chairman.

Always mind minority shareholders' interest

Mistrys letter is the key as of now to the goings-on in the corporate boardroom of Tata Sons. Going by Mistrys letter, which is in public domain now through the media, it seems that Mistry wasnt given a chance to defend himself. This incident does not speak well about the corporate governance measures that the Group follows, is the immediate lesson that one can pick up, says Debashis Sanyal, dean, School of Business Management and Vice Provost - Management Education, Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS), Mumbai.

He asks when when Tata Sons used its majority stake of 66 percent to vote against Cyrus Mistry, did it take into account the minority interest of its shareholders. Should they have not called for an emergency body meeting of shareholders, too?, asks Sanyal.

Have your values, rules codified

Mistry has stated in his letter to the Tata Sons board, After my appointment, the Articles of Association were modified, changing the rules of engagement between the Trusts, the board of Tata Sons, the chairman, and the operating companies.

Sanjay Bakshi, Professor at Management Development Institute, Gurgaon says that the Tatas should have a codified governance system. He says that the Tatas have a tradition, a culture and values that they have often spoken of and held up over the years. So, it is possible that some of these values and ethics are not written down and are communicated through interaction. There are very few companies that are venerated like the Tatas. Since Cyrus Mistry hasnt worked his way up through the ranks at Tatas, perhaps this transmission of values hasnt taken place, says Bakshi In such cases, says Sanyal, it is best to have everything written down so that there is no room for doubt or assumption. In my opinion, every chairman or top management should insist on the written word before taking up the job.

Give freedom to new incumbent

It seems the Tata Sons has a group of traditional advisors whom Mistry could not communicate with. Perhaps that is why he set up the Group Executive Council (GEC) in April 2013, with Mistry being the head. The objective of the GEC was to provide strategic and operational support to Mistry. It was a four-member team that included N S Rajan from Ernst & Young, Tata brand custodian Mukund Rajan, ex-BSE chief Madhu Kannan, strategist Nirmalya Kumar and Tata veteran Harish Bhat.

With Mistrys ouster, the GEC was immediately disbanded. What is the reluctance with the Tatas about handing over power? It happened when JRD Tata was handing over the baton to Ratan Tata and there were many eminent people in the fray. There were major tussles with Russi Modi, points out Sanyal.

Mistry was chosen by Tata and the board of Tata Sons as then chairman had laid down a rule of 75 years as the age of retirement. Once the process is set in place, the Tata Group should let the new appointee do his job. You cannot appoint someone young believing it will enable the former chairman to do backseat driving. The younger generation will not accept it. If this is the requirement from the new incumbent that Tata Sons wants to appoint, the Tata board should realise this strategy will not be acceptable to any of the younger generation, says Sanyal.

Size isnt everything

What Cyrus Mistry is saying in his letter about the state of affairs of the various companies in the Tata Group is not anything new. It was known to all observers of the Tata Group, says Bakshi.

There has been an enormous misallocation of funds when the Tata Group decided to go in for mergers and acquisitions. As an academic, I would term the Tata-Corus deal, Indian Hotels, Tata Global Beverages and JLR as not very good processes. The group was buying foreign assets with foreign currency and that too at an auction. This is poor capital discipline. The group was going after size and not focusing on underlying profitability. The business of any business group is to earn interest on capital. Mistry was not just the chairman but also part-owner and investor. There is a big difference in him asking questions about investments. TCS is the cash cow of the group but a lot of its cash was drained on unprofitable ventures like Corus and the Nano project. When he poses questions about destroying enormous amount of capital without earning interest on it, I think, he did not succeed, says Bakshi.

Altruism can be taken care of after the business thrives and cannot be at the cost of the business, emphasizes Bakshi.

Groom the leaders professionally

Tata Sons went through an elaborate search process of around 14 months to select the next candidate who would occupy Ratan Tatas post. Sanyal wonders why a national and global company like Tatas went through an inordinate period of 14 months to find the next head. "Are we to believe that Tatas, a group and brand with international stature could not find one person to fit the bill? Or is it that the group wants only a Parsi and someone they are familiar with to don the mantle? This should be a lesson for all corporate giants in India Inc that they should exercise professionalism when choosing a key appointee and not give in to any personal reasons or preferences," he said.

The companies should have in place a system to groom the next generation of leaders.

However, Sanyal wonders what happened to the Tata Administrative Service which is akin to Indian Administrative Services.

"They could not get someone from TAS to head the Group?" he asks.
After the ATM security breach comes the fake currency threat.

Worried over circulation of fake currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 denomination, the RBI on Wednesday advised the public to make it a habit to examine the notes before accepting them in the usual course of transactions.

"It has come to our notice that unscrupulous elements are putting into circulation Fake Indian Currency Notes of higher denominations in the course of normal transactions, taking advantage of the gullible and unsuspecting nature of some members of the public," the RBI said.

The central bank has cautioned the public to subject notes that are accepted to "careful scrutiny".

"Members of public are requested to make it a habit of looking at the notes before accepting them in the usual course of daily transactions and help arrest the counterfeiting of Indian banknotes," the RBI said.

Counterfeiting of notes, or possession, exchange, acceptance, putting into circulation of counterfeit notes or in any way abetting such actions are offences under the Indian Penal Code and such actions are liable to be punished stringently.

Large-scale circulation of fake currencies can impact the economy negatively.

Stepping up its efforts to stem the spread of counterfeit notes, the central bank has also asked banks to put entire banking areas under CCTV surveillance and keep all the recordings that can help identify "unscrupulous elements".

The central bank further said that failure of banks in detection and impounding of counterfeit notes and in preventing such currencies from being recirculated will be violative of the directions and "will, therefore, attract penal action".

The RBI has said genuine Indian currency notes of higher denominations have strong counterfeit resistant security features. The fake notes can be identified on closer inspection.

The RBI site has the detailed information on the security features on the banknotes.

For readers' convenience, we have compiled the details below:

See through Register: The floral design printed both on the front and reverse in the middle of the vertical brand next to the watermark window has the denominational numeral 100, 500, 1000.

Half the numeral is printed on the front and half on the reverse. Both the printed portions have an accurate back to back registration so that the numeral appears as one when viewed against light.

The floral design printed both on the front (hollow) and reverse (filled up) in the middle of the vertical band next to the watermark window has the denominational number `100. Half the numeral is printed on the front of the note and half from the reverse. Both the printed portions have an accurate back to back registration so that the numeral appears as one when viewed against light.

Identification Mark: Diamond with intaglio print, which can be felt by touch, helps the visually impaired to identify the denomination

Watermark: The portrait of Mahatama Gandhi, the multi-directional lines and an electrotype mark showing the denominational numeral 100, 1000 appear in this section and these can be viewed better when the banknote is held against the light.

Optically variable ink: The colour of the numeral 1000 appears green when the banknote is held flat but would change to blue when the banknote is held at an angle. The font size is reduced.

Intaglio printing: The portrait of Mahatma Gandhi, the Reserve Bank seal, guarantee and promise clause, Ashoka Pillar emblem on the left, RBI Governors signatures on the bank notes and identification mark for the visually impaired in the Intaglio, which can be felt by touch.

Latent image: The vertical band contains latent image showing the numeral 1000, when the banknote is held horizontally at eye-level.

Microlettering: The letters 'RBI' and the numeral '1000', 100 can be viewed with the help of a magnifying glass in the zone between the Mahatma Gandhi portrait and the vertical band.

Security Thread: 3 mm wide security thread with inscriptions Bharat writted in devanagri, '1000' and 'RBI' and colour shift from green to blue when viewed from different angles. It will fluoresce in yellow on the reverse and the text and fluoresce on the obverse under ultraviolet light. The thread is visible as a continuous line from behind when held up against light.

Look for the following on the reverse side of the note: The year of printing appears on the reverse of the banknote. The new series of Rs 1000 banknote has paper with increased grammage and caliper thickness.

Colour: The overall colour scheme on the reverse is altered and will appear red in overall appearance with the language panel, numeral 1000 and Bharatiya Reserve Bank in brown colour.

With PTI
By Abu Arqam Naqash and Fayaz Bukhari

| MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan

MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan India and Pakistan traded accusations that each had killed civilians in cross-border shelling on Friday, as tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours continued to fester. Three civilians, including a young girl, were killed as Indian troops shelled villages along the Line of Control in Pakistan-administered Kashmir on Friday, a Pakistani official said. Indian officials, meanwhile, said two civilians died when Pakistani shells hit India's side of the contested border.In addition, a statement released by the Indian army on Friday evening said that militants at the Line of Control mutilated the body of an Indian soldier they'd killed before crossing back into Pakistan.They did so "supported by covering fire from Pakistan Army posts," the statement said. "This act will invite an appropriate response."

The reports of bloodshed came just a day after New Delhi and Islamabad announced on Thursday that each is expelling a diplomat from the other country. India accused the Pakistani diplomat of running a spy ring and Pakistan cited "deep concern" about the activities of the Indian diplomat.Shelling by both sides in the divided and disputed Himalayan regions has been going on since gunmen killed 19 Indian soldiers in September at an army camp in Kashmir, an attack India blamed on Pakistan-based militants.India-administered Kashmir has also been rocked by street protests which began after the July killing of a militant leader there. Indian officials have blamed Pakistan for fanning that unrest.

The facts on the ground are often difficult to ascertain, with accusations and statements from India or Pakistan quickly rebutted by the other.For instance, Additional Director General Arun Kumar of India's Border Security Force (BSF) said on Friday that the barrages unleashed by his troops in the past week in response to Pakistan aggression had been effective.

"Fifteen Pakistani soldiers have been killed in retaliatory firing and shelling by BSF. We have destroyed their OP (outposts) and damaged a few," Kumar said. A statement released by the Pakistani military's press wing denied that was the case: "Indian claim of killing any Pakistani soldier at working boundary is absolutely baseless and untrue. Indian claim is part of their propaganda campaign aimed to hide their losses at working boundary and also divert world attention from Kashmir issue." (Writing by Kay Johnson and Tom Lasseter; Editing by Richard Balmforth, Larry King)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Srinagar: Authorities on Friday imposed curfew in some parts of Srinagar city to prevent post-prayer protests.

The police said curfew has been imposed in old city Nowhatta area while restrictions would remain in force in other parts to maintain law and order.

Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, chairman of moderate Hurriyat group has announced that he would defy restrictions to offer Friday prayers at the Jamia Masjid in Nowhatta.

Mirwaiz has been placed under house arrest in his uptown Nigeen residence on the outskirts of Srinagar.

For the 112th consecutive day, life across the valley remained paralysed due to the separatist called protest shutdown which is now extended till 3 November.

All educational institutions including schools, colleges and universities have remained closed.

After the authorities announced holding of exams on schedule, over a dozen schools across the were gutted.

Main markets, public transport and other businesses have also remained close during this period.

Ninety-one people have been killed and over 12,000 injured since the present unrest began here on 9 July, a day after Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani was killed.
The cacophony of India's rambunctious democracy and a terrible Pakistan fixation have largely drowned the fact that New Delhi, of late, has been engaged in a quieter, yet more intriguing and potentially deadlier game of one-upmanship with China. The latest being India's decision to allow Dalai Lama to visit Arunachal Pradesh.

China has reacted strongly to its decision to allow the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader to Arunachal Pradesh in March, warning India that New Delhi's decision will "impact damage peace and stability of the border areas as well as the bilateral relationship between China and India". China deems Arunachal Pradesh as a disputed territory and claims almost in entirety by calling it "South Tibet".

But to say that India has an advantage over China is slightly misleading.

In terms of power matrix, the elephant is nowhere close to the dragon. China's GDP is roughly six times ($12.4 trillion) than that of India ($2.5 trillion), it has the world's second-largest defence budget at $141 billion  almost three-times that of India  and enjoys a massive trade surplus of $52.68 billion over us. In fact, in several indices China has left even the US behind, becoming the world's largest trading nation in goods clocking a figure of $2276.5 billion in 2015 and holding the world's largest foreign exchange reserves ($3.3 trillion). We are, despite our higher rate growth, at least 13 years behind the curve.

To compound India's problems, Beijing has been rapidly translating its economic growth into considerable military and strategic strength. Its aggressive assertion of geopolitical clout has alarmed all neighbours and especially India, which has been drawn into a testy relationship with Beijing despite its reputation as a pacifist force in the south Asian region.

There are many dimensions to the Sino-Indian relationship. While both remain WTO signatories and enjoy increasing trade ties and robust people-to-people exchanges, diplomatically and strategically China sees India  with whom it has already fought a war and has several "live" border disputes  as a long-term rival. And in keeping with Chinese philosophy, it has employed several tools to contain India's surge. While its usage of Pakistan as an effective lever has been well-documented, it has of late taken several other steps to increase its military-strategic depth around India, such as investing in infrastructure and doling out dollars to India's close tactical partners.

In contrast, though faced with an adversary much larger in size and aggressive in intent, India has very few levers against its enemies. Unlike Pakistan, which habitually aligns with a larger force to counter India's influence (recall its historic ties with the Washington and currently, Beijing) New Delhi still suffers from a Cold War-era hangover to trust the US, and address the power imbalance.

And as strategic affairs expert C Raja Mohan has pointed out, in areas where India could have used its own position as a hedge to bargain with China (Beijing's entry into WTO in the 1990s, for instance), it was let down by a foreign policy that laid far greater stress on ideology than strategic needs.

In this context, therefore, Narendra Modi government's move to permit the Dalai Lama to visit Arunachal Pradesh early next year is the equivalent of India lighting a torch inside a gas station. Close on the heels of US Ambassador Richard Verma's visit to the annual Tawang Festival in the north-eastern state, this move amounts to needling China with a sharp instrument.

Among the very few levers that India still enjoys over China, the Dalai Lama is the most potent one. His visit to Arunachal Pradesh is sure to raise the hackles in Beijing. At the same time, India's manouvre exposes China's double standards on issues of national security and sovereignty.

While Beijing refuses to consider Kashmir as an integral part of India, wants the world at large to be sympathetic to Pakistan's position and is even building a "China Pakistan Economic Corridor" cutting through Gilgit-Baltistan (part of Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir which technically belongs to India), China bristles in rage when it comes to even a feeble threat to its sovereignty.

It disregards the legality of India's claim over Kashmir, and tacitly encourages Pakistan to use terrorism as an instrument of foreign policy. China also refuses to let India blacklist terrorist masterminds such as Masood Azhar at the United Nations, and openly talks about supporting a terror-sponsoring nation at each global forum, yet the very mention of Dalai Lama sends Chinese leaders and policymakers into a fit of violent rage.

It sees the Tibetan spiritual leader as a threat to its One-China policy, and uses heavy handed ways  from trying to install a puppet Panchen Lama in Tibet to throwing around its economic heft to bend the world opinion in its favour  to suppress the independence movement in Tibet, which it claims to have "peacefully liberated" in 1950 by using coercive state power.

As Foreign Policy reported on Thursday, China prevented the Czech Republic, a vocal backer of the Tibetan independence movement, from honoring a holocaust survivor because the survivor's uncle, a minister in the Czech government Cabinet, went ahead and met the Dalai Lama.

Beijing has also issued an open threat against another European nation when its President met the 80-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner. According to Reuters, China's foreign ministry said it would retaliate after Slovakia president Andrej Kiska met visiting exiled Tibetan spiritual leader this month.

Going by the prevalent mood, however, India appears disinterested in pandering to Chinese sentiments and is showing no nervousness about it.

On the Dalai Lama's upcoming visit, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup said the Buddhist leader was a "guest of India" and was free to travel across the country. "The Dalai Lama is a revered spiritual figure... He has a sizeable following among Buddhists in Arunachal Pradesh, who would like to seek his blessings. He has visited the state in the past as well and we see nothing unusual if he visits again," Swarup said.

The desire to play hardball is sign of a new, retaliatory foreign policy that is fast becoming the hallmark of Modi regime.

India obviously hasn't taken kindly to Chinese snubs over Masood Azhar or a seat in Nuclear Suppliers' Group. By pulling the strings of existing (anti-China) levers, it wants to send a message to China that the dragon cannot continue to take the elephant for granted. There is nothing wrong with the strategy but India must not blink when faced with reciprocal reactions from China.
Declaring each others representatives persona non grata is a bit of posturing intrinsic to the art of diplomacy. India and Pakistan do it frequently and feel good about themselves and it is a gentler option in exercising hostility than firing bullets at each other.

On your bike mate, off you go, give you 48 hours to pack.

The choice of the selected individual is rather like the random double security check at an American airport for foreigners from specific countries. By doing so everyone feels the system is working and the nations security apparatus is in good nick.

In actual fact it is more window dressing and when India dropped Mehmood Akhtar and gave him a one way ticket, then its official at the Indian High Commission in Islamabad Surjeet Singh was dispatched by Islamabad to make it one all.

After a fashion it is a bit of a lark and follows a procedure steeped in self-importance. The Pakistani High Commissioner in New Delhi is summoned to the External Affairs Ministry and he remonstrates predictably and gets all hot under the collar. In a few hours, the same scenario will be played out across the border and a diplomatic family uprooted. One wouldnt be surprised if they have a bit of a raffle and take out a name arbitrarily.

The Indian accusation that Mehmood Akhtar works for the ISI is a bit disingenuous. One would have concluded that most of the Pakistani civil servants do exactly that and you dont have to be John le Carre to know 'cultural attaches' and 'commercial attaches' are just covers for espionage. Isnt that what diplomats doall those cocktail parties and honey traps and taped conversations and packets of moolah in wrapped up newspapers and cold drops and stuffseen that movie.

You just have to look up on the roof of some embassies bristling with antennae and satellite dishes and a noodle soup of communications cabling to know that they are not watching reruns of Friends.

Snooping is something which comes with the job.

Thing is that after WWII, the freedom given to diplomats have begun to border on the absurd. Diplomatic immunity has become a nuisance and misused from wrongful parking of cars to acts of violence and even murder.

Here are some doozy examples, courtesy the Virtual Bureau of International law.

Alhaji Umaru Dikko, a member of the ex-Nigerian government, was kidnapped from his London house and was drugged and hidden in a diplomatic crate bound to Nigeria in 1984.

In 1987, Karamba, a commercial attach of the Zimbabwean mission to UN, was accused of severely abusing his children. The US did not charge him with any crime due to his diplomatic immunity.

In 2004, Christopher van Gothem, an American marine working with the embassy, collided with a taxi and killed a musician in Bucharest, Romania. His blood alcohol content was higher than the permitted limits when tested from a breath analyzer. He refused to provide a blood sample for further testing and rushed back to the US before charges could be framed against him.

Surely, in all these cases immunity should have been lifted.

Diplomatic pouches carry contraband from drugs to guns and are a smugglers aspiration. One wonders sometime why these mutual privileges should not be revisited. There have been cases of bringing in weapons, shoplifting, blocking traffic, avoiding arrest for criminal acts and finding sanctuary in the confines of their embassy grounds.

A critical reworking of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, 1961 and the Convention on Consular Relations in 1963 are well overdue. Murderers have got away and the returns from such missions in a hi-tech age have become an expensive self-indulgence. Even when there are blatant breaches of local law nothing can be done because every nation has its citizens in that country and they are then at risk if action is taken against an individual and relations turn inimical. Also, diplomatic activities in protecting these citizens and offering them consular services makes it necessary to have these mutual territorial rights.

Why these cannot be continued after serious reconsideration of the privileges to the individual not connected to his or her job which now border on a free pass to do whatever you want with impunity courtesy the immunity is a matter that needs to be addressed.

India might be sending a message to Pakistan by its tough stance but this letter has been delivered so often that the traffic of dismissed diplomats cuts no ice.

The postman doesnt only knock twiceit is an endless rat-a-tat. And no one really cares.
Srinagar: Six suspected militants, including a policeman were arrested during two separate operations by security forces in the city and Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday. Acting on an intelligence input about the presence of the Lashkar-e-Taiba militants, the security forces launched a search operation in Batamaloo police station area of the city, official sources said.

Five suspected militants of LeT were arrested during the operation, they said, adding weapons and explosives were recovered from their possession. One of the arrested persons is a policeman hailing from Karnah area of Kupwara district.

In another operation, police arrested a militant of Hizbul Mujahideen from Wampora area of Kulgam district, the sources said. Police officials, however, refused to confirm the arrests.
Pattan: When flames engulfed the Government Boys Middle School, Tapper in north Kashmirs Pattan area, men in the neighbourhood attempted firefighting with bucketfuls of water. But the fire spiralled out of control, reducing the building to ashes within minutes.

"The fire came to our notice in the night. After a massive uproar, villagers tried to douse the blaze, but the flames engulfed the entire premises within minutes. We helplessly watched it burn to the ground," Fayaz Ahmad Chopan, a resident of Tapper village, 35 kilometres north of Srinagar, told Firstpost on Thursday morning.

More than five hundred students of Tapper and adjoining areas are enrolled in this school.

It's early in the morning, and students, mostly children, have gathered in the premises of the school, looking sadly at the destruction. Smoke still emanates from the burnt cupboards, half burnt chairs and tables. The chairs in the Principal's office have turned into a frame of charcoal.

Nida Hamid, a Class 6 student of the school, can identify her classroom, even her desk which has been charred beyond repair. Along with her friends, she had recently visited the school which has remained closed since July 9. This used to be my classroom. There is my desk but it is gone now," the 13-year-old told Firstpost.

In the last six days, six schools have been reduced to ashes in the Kashmir Valley. According to officials, 21 schools have been burnt to ashes or damaged mysteriously during the on-going unrest.

Schools and other educational institutions in Kashmir have been shut since the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Muzaffar Wani in July.

Students have not attended schools for nearly four months now. The unrest has killed 94 civilians and two security forces personnel while more than 14,000 have been injured. The police have arrested 7,000 protesters so far.

Director General of Police, K Rajendra Kumar told Firstpost that the Kashmir Police is pursuing these cases and trying to identify the miscreants behind the incidents. "First it is a matter of concern for all of us because it will affect the education of our children. We are in the process of putting in place security patrols around school buildings to ensure such incidents are not repeated," Kumar said.

However, the DGP says that there are thousands of schools in the Valley, and it is nearly impossible to guard all of them, "so the locals have to take the responsibility of protecting schools in their neighbourhood".

No one seems to have any idea who is burning these schools, and why. In the last three months of unrest in Jammu and Kashmir, three higher secondary schools, eight high schools, eight middle and primary schools and one Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya school have been damaged. State education officials say more than 6,000 students are enrolled in these schools.

Director of School Education, Kashmir, Ajaz Ahmad, told Firstpost that on an average, a school is being burnt by miscreants every week and his department has increased the number of night watchmen in schools to prevent such incidents.

"These attacks started some six weeks back and police is trying to find the culprits behind them. For the moment we have no idea who is doing it," he said.

Such incidents are now being reported with increasing frequency after the state government decided to go ahead with the exams in November, ignoring the students' pleas that they haven't been able to cover even half of their syllabus. The students and the Hurriyat as well as school heads are opposing the move.

Naeem Akhtar, Minister of Education, J&K, said recently that the damage to schools is "not just burning of an institution but it is a colossal loss for the entire society". "The biggest causality has been the loss of human lives which is irreparable. We cannot bring them back but we can save our future generation," said Akhtar.

Now, Syed Ali Geelani, chairman of his faction of Hurriyat Conference, has asked people to remain vigilant about such mysterious incidents. Recently in different areas, schools and private vehicles have been burnt and we have reports that culprits do so in the vicinity of police, and under their watchful eyes," Geelani-led Hurriyat Conference said in a statement on 26 October.

The Hurriyat Conference said that the "unknown" label is a "misnomer and these anti-people and anti-social actions are carried out in broad daylight with a well-planned strategy to malign the on-going movement and paint it with violence and anarchy.

But the bigger question remains. Who will benefit out of razing the educational institutions to the ground? "We will never forget the people who died. For the good of all we have to proceed constructively and dialogue is the only way forward," Akhtar, the education minister, said.
Thiruvananthapuram: The opposition parties have slammed the Pinarayi Vijayan government for, what they called, its "inaction against the stray dog menace" in the state, which has claimed at least 10 lives so far.

Besides the deaths, over a lakh people have been reportedly bitten by the strays in the past one year across Kerala.

Moving leave for an adjournment motion, Indian Union Muslim League legislator PK Basheer from the opposition ranks in a beautifully presented speech, laced with his characteristic humour, slammed the government and Local Self Government Minister KT Jaleel for inaction on the menace of stray dogs.

"Animal birth control measures are not the proper action... The only action required is killing of stray dogs. Today it's like police arrive on the scene in a flash when people kill a dog, while if a murder takes place, they take their own sweet time," Basheer said.

"What is this? People are losing patience as the government is not acting. A probe should also be conducted into the activities of the 'dog lovers', who have taken this issue in a big way. Where do they get the money to employ highly-paid lawyers?" said Basheer.

Leader of Opposition and Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala said the vaccine mafia is also very strongly behind this "dog lovers" campaign, as Kerala is a Rs 200-crore annual market for them and hence multiple interests are involved.

"The act is very clear that ferocious dogs that pose a threat to human beings can be eliminated and the need of the hour is action," underlined Chennithala.

Most of the legislators speaking on the issue slammed Union Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi for her statement that all those who kill dogs and those who instigate others to do this should be charged under Kerala Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act (KAPA).

The Bharatiya Janata Party's sole legislator O Rajagopal pointed out that it is no use blaming Maneka Gandhi for her personal opinions, and the government has to act.

Speaker P Sreeramakrishnan also expressed his displeasure with Jaleel for not coming out with a solution.

"You (Minister) please say what are you going to do on this, as this has become a serious issue. Please come to the point and say what your plans are," said Sreeramakrishnan.

Jaleel said there are four petitions pending before the Supreme Court on the issue of killing the stray dogs.

"There are only 56 dog catchers, as there is a huge shortage of dog catchers. All the local bodies have now been asked to allocate adequate funds for animal birth control measures. It will take time for complete sterilisation of dogs to take place, but the government will do everything to see that the problem ends," said Jaleel.
The Pakistani espionage racket has now grown into an even bigger issue after police on Friday arrested a Jodhpur-based passport and visa agent allegedly involved in the espionage ring.

This entire racket was exposed on Thursday when Delhi police nabbed Pakistan High Commission (PHC) official Mehmood Akhtar along with two Indians identified as Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir at Delhi Zoo while the visa agent Shoaib, who was caught on Friday, had managed to escape.

It was found that Shoaib was responsible for recruiting Subhash and Maulana in the module.

Shoaib had come in contact with Maulana around one-and-a-half years back and lured him into activities of collecting vital information about the installations of army and paramilitary forces in Gujarat and Rajasthan, the officer said. Shoaib's questioning is likely to reveal information about other spies in the racket.

But the kingpin of the spy ring is Akhtar, the 35-year-old man, who worked in the visa section of the High Commission and had diplomatic immunity. He was procuring critical details, including those about deployment of BSF personnel along the India-Pakistan border, police said.

Akhtar belongs to the Baloch regiment of Pakistani Army and was on deputation to spy agency ISI since 2013, investigators said, adding they are also probing possible involvement of more people from the Pakistani mission.

The PHC official had also claimed to be a resident of Chandani Chowk and produced a forged Aadhaar card bearing the house address 2350, Gali Near Madari, Rodgran Mohalla. However, the man, whose address was mentioned in the forged Aadhaar card was "shocked", saying he got to know about the case only after his house had a beeline of journalists.

According to a report in The Economic Times, sensitive defence documents on the deployment and strength of the BSF and Indian Army along the border, especially in Gujarat and Sir Creek area, were allegedly recovered from the three spies.

The report further said that the Delhi police has also said that the documents recovered could have had serious implications on national security.

What is more disturbing, however, is that investigators have not ruled out the involvement of BSF personnel in this racket.

"The documents that were recovered from them couldn't have been procured without the help of someone privy to such sensitive information. We are suspecting that they were aided by some BSF personnel who leaked the information and documents to them."

"We are investigating that aspect. We have identified some of the officers involved and we will be conducting a raid soon," sources had told PTI.

It is also suspected that Akhtar had lured many people into the spying ring by offering them good money and that there was a honey trap at play to lure people, another officer in the probe team had said.

"Since Akhtar was working in the visa department, it gave easy access to him to identify people who could work for him as spies. People who were financially weak would be lured by promise of getting big money," he had said.

The officer had said the honey trap angle was also being explored. "From initial investigation, it has been revealed that some girls were exploited after being promised good money and were used to lure men into the module. We are investigating this aspect," he had added.

Police has also recovered the mobile phones of Maulana and Jangir, who were sharing information and documents with Akhtar.

"It has been found that they used to mostly communicate through WhatsApp calls as they are not recorded. We cannot procure the call detail records of calls made through WhatsApp."

"On normal phone calls, their conversations would mostly happen through codewords and we were studying the pattern in the last six months," a senior police officer had said.

Akhtar would meet Maulana and Jangir once every month in Delhi where they would give him documents and he would pay them a high amount in return.

During interrogation, they didn't reveal the amount for leaking information but it is suspected to be in the range of Rs 30,000-Rs 50,000, he had said.

With inputs from PTI
Police has arrested a Jodhpur-based passport and visa agent, Shoaib, allegedly involved in the espionage ring run by a Pakistani High Commission official. Shoaib was detained near Jodhpur on Thursday evening and after being brought to New Delhi, he was arrested, a senior police officer said on Friday.

After getting a tip-off, police had on Wednesday nabbed Pakistan High Commission official Mehmood Akhtar along with two Indians identified as Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir at Delhi Zoo while the visa agent Shoaib had managed to escape.

Mehmood Akhtar, who worked in the visa section of the High Commission and had diplomatic immunity, was procuring critical details including those about deployment of BSF personnel along the Indo-Pak border from accomplices in India, three of whom have been arrested so far.

Described as the kingpin of the spy ring, 35-year-old Akhtar belongs to the Baloch regiment of Pakistani Army and was on deputation to spy agency ISI since 2013, investigators said, adding they also probing possible involvement of more people from the Pakistani mission.

Akhtar and two Indians, Subhash Jangir and Maulana Ramzan were picked up from Delhi Zoo on Thursday at around 10 am, while Shoaib was nabbed from Jodhpur, Rajasthan later in the evening.

Akhtar was released after around three hours of interrogation as he enjoys diplomatic immunity. India asked Akhtar to leave the country within 48 hours.

Subhash Jangir and Maulana Ramzan have been sent to a 12-day police custody and the Police hassaid they are seeking Shoib's custody as well.

It was found that Shoaib was responsible for recruiting Subhash and Maulana in the module. Shoaib had come in contact with Maulana around one-and-a-half years back and lured him into activities of collecting vital information about the installations of army and paramilitary forces in Gujarat and Rajasthan, the officer said. The police will seek his custody, the Joint CP of Delhi Police Ravinder Yadav said.

"We had sent a request to Jodhpur Police about detaining Shoaib and yesterday (Wednesday) evening he was detained," said the officer. In a press conference in Friday, the Delhi Police revealed that Shoaib had links in the Pakistani High Commission and he had visited Pakistan at least six times. The police said that Shoaib's maternal grandparents and his mother's family lives in Pakistan, so he had been visiting Pakistan often and has multiple contact points there.

The police also said that Shoaib was found in possession of some sensitive documents and a phablet, which he later tried to destroy. He has been operating smoothly in India since last 3-4 years, before he was nabbed on Thursday. The police believe that Shoaib's questioning is likely to reveal information about other spies in the racket and uncover some more Pakistani links.

With inputs from PTI
Jammu: Pakistani troops continued the ceasefire violations on Friday with firing and mortar shelling on Indian posts and civilian areas along the LoC and international border in Jammu, Kathua and Rajouri districts, injuring three civilians.

The victims  two girls and a man  were injured due to mortar shell splinters in Lallai Chak village.

#WATCH Locals in Nowshera (J&K) talk about living in constant fear as heavy shelling & ceasefire violations continue from Pakistan pic.twitter.com/lAkKc63CaK  ANI (@ANI_news) October 28, 2016

Border Security Forces (BSF) and Army have responded "appropriately and befittingly", a defence spokesman said. "There was unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan Army in Sunderbani, Pallanwala and Nowshera sectors of Rajouri and Jammu districts on Friday," the spokesman said.

They used small arms, automatics, 82 mm mortars and 120 mm mortars in the firing and shelling, he said adding that no casualties to army troops have been reported.

Firing and shelling continued overnight along the international border. "At 1720 hour on Thursday, Pakistan Rangers started unprovoked heavy firing and shelling in Katgus Sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba," a senior BSF officer said.

Heavy mortar shelling by Pakistan Rangers continued till 6 am, in Lallai Chak, Pansar, Pahadpur and Londi villages where shells damaged over two dozen houses.

Over a dozen cattle have also perished in these villages.

Reports said that over 400 families have migrated from these areas to safer locations.

The entire population of Abdullian village in RS Pura sector has also migrated after Pakistan Rangers targeted civilian and BSF facilities in the area during the last five days.

"Some Pakistani posts and villages have suffered heavy damage," the BSF officer said.

On Thursday, a Pakistani Ranger was killed and another injured in the retaliatory firing by BSF, as Pakistani troops heavily shelled five sectors along LoC and IB in J&K in which one BSF jawan died and 13 other civilians were injured.

While Pakistani troops pounded BoPs and hamlets along IB in Kathua, Hiranagar sectors (Kathua), R S Pura and Arnia sectors (Jammu) and Samba sector, they also targeted forward Indian posts and villages along LOC in Krishnagati, Balakote and Mankote sectors (Poonch) and Sunderbani sector (Rajouri) on Thursday.

Since surgical strikes by army on terror launch pads in PoK on 28-29 September, five Indians, including four security personnel, have been killed and 34 injured in ceasefire

violations.

On 21 October, BSF killed seven Pak rangers and a terrorist opposite to Hiranagar sector along In in Kathua, in which one BSF jawan was injured.

On 25 October, at least two-three Pakistani army men are believed to have been killed in retaliatory firing by Indian troops in the Noushera sector of Rajouri district.

With inputs from agencies
New Delhi: Imagine human excreta falling on you from airplanes flying above! A former senior army man has moved the National Green Tribunal alleging dumping of human waste by aircraft over residential areas near the IGI airport here, which led the green panel to order an inspection of his South Delhi house.

Lt Gen (Retd) Satwant Singh Dahiya has sought criminal proceedings against commercial airlines and levy of hefty fines on them for endangering the health of residents, terming the act as violation of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. Noting the submissions of the petitioner, the green panel directed Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to depute a senior environmental engineer to inspect his house and check the existence of human excreta on the walls. It also asked CPCB that if excreta was found, samples should be collected for analysis and the report placed before the tribunal.

A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar also issued notices to the Ministries of Environment and Forests and Civil Aviation and CPCB, seeking their replies within two weeks. Plane toilets store human waste in special tanks. These are normally disposed of by ground crew once the plane lands, but aviation officials acknowledge that lavatory leaks can occur in the air at times. There have been instances, including in India, when people have been injured.

In his petition, Vasant Enclave resident Dahiya has sought creation of a 24-hour helpline for immediate reporting of the incident and a monitoring mechanism to check that no aircraft drops "human soil or excreta" while landing. "For past more than the week in the early morning, we found that walls and floors of the terrace of our house splattered with large patches of excreta dumped by aircraft flying in front of Palam airport at night.

This is the second time this has happened. Last time it had occurred in early October when we had spent Rs 50,000 to get the entire exterior resurfaced with fresh paint. "Diwali is only a few days away and being the festive season having recently finished fresh coating of the house exterior at considerable experience to clean up the premises. We are again faced with having our walls completed spattered with waste. We are retired people and cannot afford to have this defacement every day," the plea said.
Panaji: Goa's second Chief Minister and the only woman to hold that post so far, Shashikala Kakodkar, died on Friday in Panaji, after a prolonged illness.

Kakodkar, 81, was appointed the Chief Minister of Goa, then a Union Territory, in 1973 after the death of her father Dayanand Bandodkar, who was the CM then.

In 1977, she led her Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party to victory but was ousted from chief ministership in 1979, following a coup from within the party.

Commenting on her demise, Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar said that Kakodkar, who was popularly referred to as Tai, was a visionary and known for her frank opinion. She continued to be passionate about politics and social issues despite her advancing age, he said.

"She was always available for guidance. I have gone to her on numerous occasions to seek her suggestions on various issues. She will be known as a visionary and for her frankness," Parsekar said.
The Supreme Court on Friday criticised the Narendra Modi-led NDA government for its lackadaisical attitude to the appointment of judges, and accused the government of "trying to starve out the cause of justice by not appointing judges", reports said on Friday.

"You cannot bring the entire institution (of judiciary) to a grinding halt," the Supreme Court told the government while expressing anguish over the delay in appointment of judges in high courts, despite recommendations made by the collegium in this regard.

"Courts rooms are locked down. Do you want to lock down the judiciary?" a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur said.

According to an ANI report in The Indian Express, "The apex court is particularly peeved at the pendency of 35 appointments it had cleared for the Allahabad High Court  the first batch of eight on 28 January and the second for appointment of 27 judges in August  both are yet to be notified. The Allahabad High Court is functioning with less than 50 percent of its strength with just 77 judges against the approved strength of 160."

The court pointed a similar situation in Karnataka High Court, where several court rooms were locked because there were no judges, PTI said.

The apex court was hearing two public interest litigation cases that sought filling up of judicial vacancies in various courts across India. According to CNN-News18, the collegium has named four Supreme Court and 52 high court judges since January, but the central government has been sitting on the proposal.

Earlier, the Centre had on 14 September told the apex court that there was "no blame game" or "logjam" in appointments and transfer of judges for higher judiciary but blamed the high courts for "pretty much delaying" in starting the process. The apex court had said that it would not tolerate "logjam in judges' appointment" and would intervene to "fasten accountability as the justice delivery system is collapsing".

The bench had said that if the government had reservation about any name, it could always come back to the collegium. However, the Centre has been sitting on the names proposed by the collegium since January, and that has irked the SC.

The government, however, rejected the SC criticism, and sighted the delay due to forming a new process for the appointment of judges. The governments top law officer Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the Centre, told the SC that appointments are stalled as the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) for appointing judges is yet to be finalised, a report on LiveMint.com said. He however, assured the bench that more progress will be seen in the near future on the appointment of judges.

Maintaining that the appointment process "cannot be stalled" due to non-finalisation of the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP), the apex court criticised the tardy progress in processing files pertaining to judges' appointment and even warned that it may summon the Secretaries of the PMO and the Ministry of Law and Justice to ascertain the factual position.

"There should not be any deadlock. You have committed to process the files for appointment of judges without finalisation of the MoP. Finalisation of MoP has nothing to do with the appointment process in the judiciary," the bench, which also included Justices DY Chandrachud and L Nageswara Rao, said.

The court fixed the matter for further hearing on 11 November.

Meanwhile, Congress' National Spokesperson, Abhishek Manu Singhvi joined in the barrage against the Modi government for delaying the appointment of judges, accusing the Modi government of blackmailing the apex court. "To say that the (Centre) government won't clear the appointments until the Supreme Court agrees to the MoP is extremely sad and amounts to blackmailing. It's a corrupt practice," Singhvi said during a press conference on Friday.

He also referred to the delays in appointment of judges as a thought-out plan from the BJP-led government to damage the pillars of Indian democracy.

With agency inputs
Jammu: Three civilians were injured on Friday morning when Pakistan resorted to heavy shelling on the International Border in Hiranagar sector in Jammu and Kashmir, police said.

The victims  two girls and a man  were injured due to mortar shell splinters in Lallai Chak village.

Heavy mortar shelling by Pakistan Rangers continued till 6 am, in Lallai Chak, Pansar, Pahadpur and Londi villages where shells damaged over two dozen houses.

Over a dozen cattle have also perished in these villages.

Reports said that over 400 families have migrated from these areas to safer locations.

The entire population of Abdullian village in R S Pura sector has also migrated after Pakistan Rangers targeted civilian and Border Security Forces facilities in the area during the last five days.
Beginning this week, Firstpost has a new show called "First Lady".

On "First Lady", host Meghna Pant meets with women achievers from all walks of life, and her roster of illustrious guests begins with Paralympian heroine Deepa Malik.

In a conversation with Meghna (you can follow the full chat in the video above), Deepa talks about how she came to terms with her physical disability, and transformed it into an ability.

Deepa talks to Meghna about how she overcame obstacles to get to where she is today  beginning with the sacrifices she had to make to get onto the long road to recovery, how she perfected her medal-winning turn at the Rio 2016 Paralympics and more.

Meghna also asked Deepa on what her 'happiness mantra' is  what kept her sanguine through the tough time when she sustained her life-altering injury, even as her husband was fighting in the Kargil War at the time, her younger daughter was just three, and the older one had herself been in an accident.

"The only thing I've done differently, after being 'differently abled' is that I do not allow myself to be low for a longer time," said Deepa, on how she manages to keep up her cheerful demeanour.

Deepa also addressed Meghna's question about the prejudices she had to fight not just as a para athlete, but also a woman, with a lot of candour. And admitted that being an adrenaline junkie was one way to escape the monotony of life  although each of her endeavours have a purpose of raising awareness.

She also had a very interesting anecdote to narrate about meeting with Amitabh Bachchan.

Watch "First Lady" (video above) to hear Deepa Malik talk about motherhood, pushing her limits and more.
After a heightened family drama over the weekend, Samajwadi Party supremo Mulyama Singh Yadav made a startling statement in a party meeting on 24 October. A statement which was contrary to his basic premise.

The SP chief, known for his family-run politics, told his son and UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav: Amar Singh ne mujhe sazaa se bachaya. Amar ne bahuton ko bachaya... Ehsaan faramosh mat bano... Amar Singh mera bhai hai (Amar Singh saved me from being jailed. Amar saved many (he meant Akhilesh)... Dont be ungrateful... Amar Singh is my brother.

The scathing remark was made in the presence of several SP leaders and party workers because Akhilesh had called Amar Singh a "dalal" (tout).

And while it was widely seen as just a remark to silence the revolting Akhilesh, it raises a few questions. First, what made Amar Singh so important for Mulayam Singh that the latter didn't hesitate from publicly rebuking his son and political heir Akhilesh? Second, what was Amar Singh's contribution in saving Mulayam from going behind bars? Just what was the case that Mulayam was referring to? And who was the man who wanted to send Mulayam Singh and his family to prison?

The case

It dates back to a winter in December 2005, when Vishwanath Chaturvedi, an advocate, filed a public interest litigation (PIL) alleging accumulation of disproportionate assets by Mulayam Singh Yadav and his family members  Akhilesh Yadav, his wife Dimple Yadav and Mulayams second son Prateek Yadav. The charge was that Mulayam and his family had illegally accumulated assets worth Rs 100 crore between 1999 and 2005, which was disproportionate to their known source of income. A part of this disproportionate income, was allegedly accumulated during Mulayams tenure as UP chief minister (2003-07).

Vishwanath Chaturvedi: Man who wants to send Mualaym to jail

Originally from Shivgarh kasba in Raebareli, Uttar Pradesh, Vishwanath Chaturvedi had contested in a bye-election from Haidergarh against present Home Minister Rajnath Singh in 2002. He was not new when it came to targeting Mulayam, though. Prior to the disproportionate assets case, Chaturvedi, a former state secretary of Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC), had filed cases against the then UP government on food grain scam and land scam in 2005.

According to Chaturvedi, it was Amar Singh who brokered a deal to get Mulayam out of the mess. "And that's why Mulayam openly rebuked his son, and said that Amar Singh saved him, or else he would have been in jail.The most surprising aspect in Mulayam Singhs disproportionate asset case is that in the last nine years, the CBI has not been able to officially conclude whether a corruption case against Mulayam and his sons Akhilesh and Prateek has to be investigated further or closed for want of evidence," Chaturvedi told Firstpost.

Political ups and downs

The disproportionate assets (DA) case has seen several twists and turns, along with political maneuvering. "This case also resulted in the decline of the Left Front, which was giving external support to the Manmohan Singh-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the Centre," said Chaturvedi.

In 2008, the crisis within the UPA-I deepened over the Indo-US Nuclear Deal and the four-party Left Front, with its 59 MPs threatened to withdraw its support. "Here Amar Singh appeared as a crisis manager, who brokered an understanding between the UPA and Mulayam Singh, and the latter supported the UPA government with his 39 MPs. Several compromises were made and some got benefitted out of it. Manmohan Singh could get rid of the Left Front. In the disproportionate case, Mulayams daughter-in-law, Dimple Yadav, wrote to then PM Manmohan Singh denying the allegations against her. Subsequently, Dimple got a relief as the then Solicitor General GE Vahanvati gave opinion that her assets couldnt be clubbed with Mulayams because she held no public office," said Chaturvedi, who reportedly was quite close to the Congress top leadership at one point of time.

I too had faced lots of pressure and life-threats. I've been out of UP for over a decade. Even Amar Singh in the presence of a senior Congress leader and former union minister offered me a huge sum to put an end to this episode, but I didnt budge," he claimed.

Status of the case

Lot of water has flown since 2009, when the Yadavs had told the court as to whether a CBI probe could be ordered without the consent of the state government which was done in this case.

In December 2012, the SC delivered judgement on my petition and the review petition of Yadavs, ordering that the CBI inquiry should continue," said Chaturvedi. However, in September 2013, the CBI stated that it was closing the case against the Yadavs due to insufficient evidence of disproportionate assets. As a result the BJP took on the Congress, blaming the party for allegedly "misusing CBI for political purposes".

"The fact is that the UPA government had to pass its ambitious Food Security Bill in the Parliament in 2013, and Mulayam created pressure on the government. The then CBI director Ranjit Sinha had mentioned about the closure of Mulayam's case, and the media interpreted that the case had been closed," he mentioned.

"CBI cant announce closure of a case and only the court can do it. The CBI has to approach the court for closure of a case. In Mulayams case, I complained against it to the Prime Minister's Office, Central Vigilance Commission and other agencies concerned. The truth is that the closure hasn't taken place yet. I'm moving court on this issue of closure," said Chaturvedi, adding he is not ready to give up.
Mumbai: The opposition Congress and Nationalist Congress Party on Thursday demanded clarification from the Maharashtra government on the proposed $5 billion investment by Taiwan-based Foxconn Technology Group.

State Congress President Ashok Chavan said the deal, signed on August 8, 2015, was billed as the single largest investment attracted by Maharashtra with a potential to create 50,000 jobs but came under the cloud from the very start.

"During Foxconn's founder-chief Terry Gou's visit to India at that time, he announced that the company will make $2 billion investment across the country. However, just two days later, the Maharashtra government signed a $5 billion investment agreement with the company," Chavan said.

The former Chief Minister pointed out that he had, at that time, expressed apprehensions that the MoU with the Taiwanese global electronics giant could turn out to be controversial and he was proved right after a year.

"Despite tall claims and the Chief Minister's (Devendra Fadnavis) foreign tours, no real investments have come to Maharashtra. During the Congress rule, we secured more foreign investments without resorting to jumlas of this kind," Chavan said.

NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik said he was reiterating that most MoUs signed during the 'Make in Maharashtra' initiative of the Bharatiya Janata Party-Shiv Sena government's rule are 'fake' since the state did not announce with whom these were inked.

"Though Fadnavis is painting a glossy picture of the 'Make in Maharashtra' initiative, his and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's dream project of Foxconn itself has not taken off," Malik said.

Though officials remain tightlipped, Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd., Taipei, or Foxconn, the world's biggest contract manufacturer of electronics, is believed to be having second thoughts on the mega project for which around 1,500 acres of land has already been cleared.

Firstpost was the first to report on Thursday that "absence" of customers has forced Foxconn to rethink its investment in the state.

However, state officials are optimistic that the company may only postpone the launch of its operations in Maharashtra.

Officials in the Chief Minister's Office declined to comment on the developments that come as the alliance government prepares to celebrate on Monday (October 31) its two years in office in Maharashtra.

After the 'Make in India' Week in Mumbai in February, the state announced signing of deals involving investment of Rs 800,000 crore, or nearly half of the total commitments made during that event. Later, Fadnavis set up a committee headed by Industry Minister Subhash Desai to ensure fructification of the MoUs signed.


:    9         

         2013 .         9          .    .
Patna: Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar on Friday said he had not received any invitation to take part in the November 5 programme of the Samajwadi Party (SP) in Uttar Pradesh.

Replying to a question on the political development in Uttar Pradesh in the wake of the feud within the ruling SP, Kumar dwelt on the unsuccessful efforts for the unification of the old Janata Parivar.

"A step was taken to form a strong party after the merger of the six erstwhile splinter parties of the old Janata Parivar. To a great extent, progress was also achieved," he said.

"Talks were progressing under the chairmanship of SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, but they did not succeed," he added.

"But, it will be wrong to assume that such efforts will not be made again or will not succeed in the future," Kumar, who had played an important role in the unification of the Janata Parivar before the Bihar Assembly polls last year, said.

The SP has decided to invite the prominent leaders of the old Janata Parivar at its foundation day programme on 5 November.

Efforts to bring together the socialist leaders of the Janata Parivar are being seen as an attempt to achieve a Bihar-like potent alliance of the secular parties to defeat the BJP in the crucial Uttar Pradesh Assembly election early next year.

Kumar, whose election as JD(U) national president was ratified by the party's national council at Rajgir earlier this month, has made at least eight trips to Uttar Pradesh in the recent past and has shared the dais with Ajit Singh of the RLD and rebel BSP leader RK Choudhary. He has also held talks with Mohammad Ayub of the Peace Party.

Replying to another question, Kumar said the legislature, judiciary and executive had important roles in a democratic set-up and all the wings should cooperate with each other.
By Steve Holland

| MANCHESTER, N.H.

MANCHESTER, N.H. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's campaign was hit on Friday by the FBI's reopening of its investigation into her use of a private email server while secretary of state, eroding a political boost from a strong U.S. economic report.With just 11 days to go before the Nov. 8 election, FBI Director James Comey said in a letter to several congressional Republicans that the agency had learned of the existence of emails that appeared to be pertinent to its investigation.However, he said the FBI did not know if the emails were significant and did not provide a time frame for the probe.Republican Donald Trump's campaign reacted with glee. His campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, said on Twitter that "a great day in our campaign just got even better."The resurrection of the email issue, which has dogged Clinton's campaign from the start, dimmed a day that had featured good news for her effort to win the White House. The Commerce Department reported that the economy grew at a 2.9 percent annual rate in the third quarter, its fastest pace in two years and higher than the expected 2.6 percent, thanks to a surge in exports and a rebound in investment.The report had bolstered Clinton, who has positioned herself as the best candidate to continue years of economic expansion under Democratic President Barack Obama.

More Americans say jobs and the economy are their No. 1 priority when they decide who to vote for than any other issue.Trump argues that as a successful businessman and political outsider, he is the best person to take a new approach to rebuilding an economy that has sent too many jobs overseas and left many Americans struggling to find decent jobs.His campaign said the figures are still not good enough."America can do better than the modest growth of 2.9 percent recorded for the 3rd quarter and the dismal growth of 1.5 percent for the past year," Dan Kowalski, Trump's deputy policy director, said in a statement.

While many voters do not follow economic indicators closely, outside experts said the release was still a good one for Clinton. She is seeking to solidify her lead in opinion polls as the Democratic Party works to win as many seats as possible in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, where Republicans now control majorities.Clinton has also been looking to broaden the electoral map. Her campaign said on Friday that she would campaign in Arizona next week."Today's release will likely improve the perception of economic conditions in the U.S. and slightly increase the odds of a Democratic president remaining in the White House," said Brian Schaitkin, senior economist at the Conference Board.

Clinton's camp said Friday's report showed "real progress" since Obama took office in 2009, when the country was struggling to emerge from economic recession."With more than 15 million jobs created since early 2010 and real median incomes growing more than 5 percent last year, it's clear we've made real progress coming back from the crisis," Clinton senior policy advisor Jacob Leibenluft said in a statement.But he added that there is still more that can be done.Clinton was campaigning on Friday in Iowa, where polls show she and Trump running neck-and-neck, and in Michigan, a traditionally Democratic state hit hard by the movement offshore of many formerly well-paying American manufacturing jobs.Trump was holding rallies in Iowa as well as in another closely contested swing state, New Hampshire, and in Maine, where his campaign sees a chance to grab one of four electoral votes. (Additional reporting by Doina Chiacu and Patricia Zengerle in Washington; Writing by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Alistair Bell)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
As Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump batted away a legion of polls pointing to impending electoral doom, insisting he will win the White House in 12 days' time, his fellow party men did not seem to resound his sentiments. While the real estate mogul tried to breathe in confidence into his supporters claiming that he will make it to the White House, his enthusiasm didn't seem to reflect among his fellow Republicans, if this poll conducted by Reuters/Ipsos is to be believed.

The poll released on Wednesday, and conducted between 20 and 24 October shows that 40 percent Republicans believed Trump could cinch the 8 November polls while 41 percent thought that opposition Clinton campaign has scored well over their controversial candidate. This was in sharp decline from a similar Reuters poll carried out last month, when 58 percent Republicans had faith that their nominee would win the elections while only 23% percent expected Clinton to prevail.

For months, most polls have shown Clinton leading Trump in the popular vote  the live poll by The New York Times shows Clinton leading over Trump with almost 6 percentage points on Friday. However, despite the growing pessimism, Trump is trying to appear unfazed. Amid his unsavoury allegations that the polls are rigged and the media is conspiring against him, Trump said, "We are going to have, I think, a tremendous victory," in an interview.

Meanwhile, another poll taken by Bloomberg, also showed signs of fatigue presiding over Trump supporters. The poll showed that in case Trump did lose the US presidential elections, his supporters are unlikely to stay loyal for his future political endeavours. The party, despite visible splinters is throwing its weight behind Trump for the run-up to the elections, but it appeared less sure whether it would like Trump to lead the GOP if he fails to win the election. The poll, surprisingly, showed that Trump's running mate Mike Pence was in fact the preferred choice if Republicans lose the presidential elections. Twenty seven percent, picked vice-presidential nominee Mike Pence. Trump got 24 percent, ahead of Texas Senator Ted Cruz at 19 percent, House Speaker Paul Ryan got 15 percent, and Ohio Governor John Kasich managed a feeble 10 percent.

According to a report in The Daily Mail, a Republican political consultant Karl Rove admitted that Trump's prospect pales in comparison to Clinton. "Well, if he plays an inside straight, he could get it, but I doubt that he's going to be able to play it," he said adding, "I don't see it happening..."

Not only this, his own campaign has admitted that things are far from okay as far as the Trump's prospect to beat Clinton are concerned. According to a report in The Washington Post, Donald Trump's campaign manager Kellyanne Conway said, "We are behind... Clinton has some advantages, like $66 million in ad buys just in the month of September, thereby doubling her ad buys from August. Now, most of those ads are negative against Donald Trump  classic politics of personal destruction, cesspool kind of ads. And she has tremendous advantages: She has a former president, who happens to be her husband, campaigning for her. The current President and First Lady, vice president, all much more popular than she can hope to be," she said.

Meanwhile, there is a very visible rift within the Republicans, which can be hardly perceived as healthy for Trump's Presidential ambitions. According to the Bloomberg report, Republicans are at the cusp of a "cataclysmic rupture" as pro-Trump and anti-Trump factions continue to rage a war against each other. I think theres a Trump party and theres a Republican Party. I have a lot of problems squaring the two, the article quoted Republican strategist Stuart Stevens as saying.

Trump's sliding popularity among his party men can arguably be attributed to the latest chain of events that proved damaging to the Trump campaign, at least going by the poll surveys. Earlier in October an audio tape went viral which featured Trump openly boasting about groping women and trying to seduce a married woman, an allegation Trump tried to loosely defend by terming it a 'joke' and 'locker room talk.' This not only drew flak from all circles within the media and his opponents, but also upset many of his supporters and fellow Republicans. The tape really dealt a blow to the Trump campaign as his poll results started plummeting soon after and many Republicans, including his running mate Mike Pence regretted and sought an apology. Apart from Pence, Condoleezza Rice, Jeb Bush, and Colin Powell were few other names who distanced themselves from his remark.

Another report in The Washington Post stated that Republican women were increasingly fearful that Trump's style of campaigning, his scathing and unsavoury remarks against women who accused him of sexual assault and the overall controversy on his comments about women could distance women voters from the party. Added to that is the unwillingness of Republican patriarchs to rebuke Trump or even distance the party from his remarks. Senator Kelly Ayotte had said she cannot and will not support a candidate for president who brags about degrading and assaulting women, according to the report.

Another prominent female Republican said, "Trump does not represent me or my party," launching a scathing attack at the Republican nominee.



Trump and Clinton are now in the final stretch of an arduous two-year election campaign. The pair  with voices hoarse from repeating the same stump speeches over and over  crisscrossed swing states on Thursday soliciting votes. Both are now focused on getting supporters out to the polls.

"Early voting is underway so make sure, get out and vote, we don't want to give this away," Trump said, trashing Clinton as "a big liar." He is seeking to take advantage of possible complacency among Clinton's supporters and public weariness after a long and harrowing campaign. Clearly there are those who support Clinton and there are those will vote for Trump. But there is also a large section of undecided voters who are closely watching who both candidates are working hard to woo. But hardly anything can spell out the whose appeals will sway the undecided voters apart from the outcome 8 November polls.
By Wa Lone and Simon Lewis

| U SHEY KYA/YANGON

U SHEY KYA/YANGON Rohingya Muslims say Myanmar soldiers raped or sexually assaulted dozens of women in a remote village in the northwest of the country during the biggest upsurge in violence against the persecuted minority in four years.Eight Rohingya women, all from U Shey Kya village in Rakhine State, described in detail how soldiers last week raided their homes, looted property and raped them at gun point.Reuters interviewed three of the women in person and five by telephone, and spoke to human rights groups and community leaders. Not all the claims could be independently verified, including the total number of women assaulted.Soldiers have poured into the Maungdaw area since Oct. 9, after an insurgent group of Rohingyas that the government believes has links to Islamists overseas launched coordinated attacks on several border guard posts. Citing evidence garnered by interrogating suspected militants, the government blamed the attacks on an armed group it says is made up of some 400 Rohingya fighters. The militants, who have identified themselves as the previously unknown Al-Yakin Mujahidin in videos posted online, are accused of killing nine police officers and five soldiers, and of stealing a cache of weapons.The crisis in northern Rakhine marks the biggest challenge Myanmar's six-month-old civilian government has faced and raises questions over de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi's ability to maintain control of the country's military, observers and diplomats say.Suu Kyi's relationship with the army remains strained because of the constitution, drafted by the military in 2008, which bars her from the presidency. It also guarantees the army key ministerial posts, including defence, border affairs and home affairs.Diplomats and United Nations officials say privately that the Oct. 9 attacks and subsequent crackdown have shattered years of work rebuilding trust between the Muslim and Buddhist communities in Rakhine after ethnic and religious violence broke out there in 2012."THEY TORE MY CLOTHES"

A forty-year-old woman from U Shey Kya told Reuters that four soldiers raped her and assaulted her 15-year-old daughter, while stealing jewelry and cash from the family."They took me inside the house. They tore my clothes and they took my head scarf off," the mother of seven told Reuters in an interview outside her home, a cramped bamboo hut."Two men held me, one holding each arm, and another one held me by my hair from the back and they raped me."

Zaw Htay, the spokesman for Myanmar President Htin Kyaw, denied the allegations. "There's no logical way of committing rape in the middle of a big village of 800 homes, where insurgents are hiding," Zaw Htay said.Zaw Htay telephoned a military commander in Maungdaw, whose name he did not disclose, during an interview with Reuters this week. The commander said troops conducted a sweep of U Shey Kya village on Oct. 19, but left without committing abuses. The military did not respond to an emailed request for comment about the accusations.SECURITY CRACKDOWN

The escalation of violence threatens to derail Suu Kyis goal of ending years of ethnic war in Myanmar, undermining the nation's surprisingly smooth democratic transition that started a year ago with her historic election win, observers and diplomats say.

Though feted as a champion of democracy, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate has faced international criticism for not doing enough to ease the plight of around 1.1 million Rohingya living in Rakhine, most of whom are denied Myanmar citizenship. After the first attacks, Suu Kyi urged the army to act in accordance with the law.The military - which oversaw decades of authoritarian rule and now presents itself as a responsible partner in Myanmar's transition - has declared an "operation zone" in northern Rakhine. Residents and activists say civilians are being caught up in the security crackdown, and say scores more have been killed than the 33 alleged attackers that official reports have acknowledged."MUSLIM PROPAGANDA"

U Shey Kya village's official administrator, Armah Harkim, said he was working to verify the latest accounts, adding most residents believed them to be true.

Zaw Htay, the president's spokesman, accused residents of fabricating the allegations as part of a disinformation campaign led by the insurgents, which he compared to the tactics of Islamist groups Islamic State and al-Qaeda.Colonel Sein Lwin, the police chief for Rakhine State, dismissed the claims as "propaganda for Muslim groups."Reuters reporters traveled to U Shey Kya village on Thursday - passing nearby villages where dozens of houses were recently burned down - and interviewed three women who said they were raped by soldiers.Five other women from U Shey Kya have also detailed in a series of telephone interviews how Myanmar soldiers raped them. The accounts are backed up by at least three male residents of the village and a Rohingya community leader in Maungdaw who has gathered reports about the incident.The residents said some 150 soldiers arrived near U Shey Kya on Oct. 19.Most male residents left the village as they believed they would be suspected as insurgents. The women said they stayed behind in the belief the military would burn down empty homes.Soldiers dismantled the fences around homes, residents said, removing possible hiding places as part of what authorities called a "clearance operation."A 30-year-old woman described being knocked off her feet by soldiers and repeatedly raped."They told me, 'We will kill you. We will not allow you to live in this country,'" she said.The women said soldiers took gold, money and other property, and spoiled rice stores with sand."We can't move to another village to find medical care," said a 32-year-old survivor. "I don't have clothes now or food to eat. It was all destroyed. I'm feeling ashamed and scared." (Additional reporting by Yangon newsroom; Editing by Lincoln Feast)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Washington: Hillary Clinton's policies on Syria and Russia could lead to World War III, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has said as he criticised his Democratic rival for being too tough on Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"Now Hillary wants to start a shooting war in Syria, conflict with a nuclear power  Russia  which could very well lead to World War III," Trump told his cheering supporters in Springfield, Ohio. "The way she talks about (Russian President, Vladimir) Putin. She's always said she has no idea, but she's always saying  WikiLeak, it's Russia, and Donald Trump  I have nothing to do with Russia. She said may be Donald Trump is involved in projects with the Russians. The answer's no," he said.

"Look, look, she speaks so badly of Putin, nuclear country, she speaks so badly, and she uses it to keep trying to get votes. I said to myself you know, how do you speak so badly of somebody, I mean how are they going to ever get along? Wouldn't it be great if we actually got along with Russia and other countries?" he told his supporters amidst applause.

"We together went after IS and knocked the hell out of them? Wouldn't that be a good thing?" he said indicating that he would collaborate with Russia to defeat IS.

A Trump Administration, he said will change America's foreign policy. "Hillary Clinton's policies in Iraq, Syria, Libya threw the Middle East into total turmoil. We're spending USD6 trillion on wars in the Middle East while our own country falls into total disrepair," he said. Trump said as part of his plan to bring back American jobs he will lower taxes on businesses from 35 per cent down to 15 per cent.
Geneva: Islamic State group fighters slaughtered at least 232 people in and around Mosul this week as Iraqi troops advanced on the city, the UN rights office said on Friday.

"Last Wednesday 232 civilians were reportedly shot to death. Of these there were 190 former Iraqi Security Forces officers," rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva.

"These reports have been corroborated to the extent possible," she added, stressing that the number of people killed in recent days could be higher.

Shamdasani said the execution-style killings came as IS was pushing forward with its strategy of forcing people living near the northern Iraqi city into Mosul, the group's last bastion in Iraq.

The rights office has said the jihadists aim to use these people as "human shields" in the ensuing battle for Mosul against US-backed elite Iraqi troops.

"IS has been forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes in some districts around Mosul," Shamdasani said. Those being executed have included civilians who have refused to comply with the relocation orders and those who previously worked for the government security services.
Peshawar: Famed green-eyed 'Afghan Girl' Sharbat Gula, arrested for staying in Pakistan with fake identity, on Friday denied that she fraudulently obtained Pakistani nationality.

Sharbat, who was immortalised in 1985 when the National Geographic magazine published her haunting picture on its cover, was produced before a court headed by Judicial Magistrate Muhammad Jamil.

She refused retracted the confession she had made after her arrest to the FIA investigators. The Judge asked her "Do you confess to making faking ID card?" "No," Sharbat, now in her 40s, said .

"No," Sharbat, now in her 40s, said . The court sent her on judicial remand to central Jail Peshawar.

She was detained in Peshawar on charges of holding a fake Pakistani identity card.

Dubbed as 'Mona Lisa of Afghan war', Sharbat catapulted into global prominence after National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry captured her iconic photograph when she was a 12-year-old girl at the Nisar Bagh refugee camp on the edge of Peshawar in 1984.

She had migrated to Pakistan after the situation in Afghanistan became worse and married to a Pakistani man.
United Nations: Russia dismissed as "unconvincing" the findings of a UN-led investigation showing that Syrian forces had carried out three chemical attacks, and said no sanctions should be imposed.

"We believe that the proof is not there for any punitive action to be taken. It's simply not there," Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told reporters following a closed-door Security Council meeting on Friday.

A joint United Nations-Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) panel concluded that government forces carried out three chlorine gas attacks on villages in 2014 and 2015. It was the first time an international probe blamed President Bashar al-Assad's forces after years of denial from Damascus.

But Churkin told the council that the findings were not strong enough to trigger sanctions. The conclusions "in most cases... are not substantiated by sufficient testimonial basis, first of all material proof, they are full of contradictions and therefore unconvincing," he said, according of a text of his remarks.

The findings are "not definitive, have no legally binding force and cannot serve as accusatory conclusions for taking legal decisions," he added. Britain and France pressed demands for sanctions, arguing that UN resolutions provided for such action in response to the use of chemical weapons.

"Those responsible for using chemical weapons must be sanctioned. There is no other way," French Ambassador Francois Delattre told reporters. "There should be accountability for every single person involved in any use of chemical weapons in Syria or indeed anywhere else," British Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said. Government helicopters flying from two regime-controlled air bases dropped chlorine barrel-bombs on the villages of Qmenas, Talmenes and Sarmin, in rebel-held Idlib province, the panel's latest report said.

Chlorine use as a weapon is banned under the Chemical Weapons Convention, which Syria joined in 2013 under pressure from Russia, Assad's ally. Although previous OPCW reports concluded that toxic gases were used as weapons in Syria's five-year war, they stopped short of identifying the perpetrators. The panel identified the 253 and 255 squadrons of the 63rd helicopter brigade, which flew from the Hama and Humaymim air bases, and the 628 squadron based in Humaymim as the perpetrators.

The UN-OPCW panel also found that the Islamic State group used mustard gas as a weapon in August 2015. "We stand firmly behind the report and its conclusions," Virginia Gamba, who led the investigative panel, told

reporters. Russia also rejected a US proposal to extend the panel's mandate - which ends on Monday - for a year, arguing that more time is needed to discuss the experts' future work.
WASHINGTON A Russian fighter jet flew so close in front of an aircraft of the U.S.-led coalition over Syria this month that the plane felt the jet's wake, a U.S. coalition spokesman said on Friday. On Oct. 17 the Russian jet passed within about half a mile (0.8 km) of the larger coalition plane, Colonel John Dorrian, a spokesman for the coalition, told reporters during a video news conference.The Russian actions did not appear to have been "done with nefarious intent" and the two aircraft communicated, Dorrian said. He added that U.S. and Russian officials followed up the next day through a previously set up communication mechanism. The incident highlights the risks over the complicated and crowded airspace over war-torn Syria as both the coalition and Russia carry out air campaigns.

"I think it is a significant enough incident that it required follow up," Dorrian said. "We don't like to fly our aircraft within a half a mile of each other, I can assure you of that." Dorrian did not identify which country the coalition plane belonged to or what types of planes were involved.

The American and Russian militaries have a communication channel in place aimed at reducing the risk of collisions and other incidents, and top U.S. civilian and military officials speak by video conference with their Russian counterparts to discuss operation safety.The incident follows similar close encounters between Russian and American planes. In September, a Russian fighter jet came within 10 feet (3 meters) of an American spy plane over the Black Sea.

(Reporting by Idrees Ali and Yeganeh Torbati; Editing by Alistair Bell and James Dalgleish)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Grim Hollande says he won't seek second term as French president | Reuters By Ingrid Melander | PARIS PARIS President Francois Hollande shocked France on Thursday by announcing he would not seek a second term next year, acknowledging his deep unpopularity and making way for another leftist candidate to take on conservative Francois Fillon and far-right leader Marine Le Pen.The surprise announcement - effectively an admission that by running again he would hurt his party's chances - marks the first time since France's fifth Republic was created in 1958 that an incumbent president has not sought a second mandate."I am aware today of the risk that going down a route that would not gather sufficient support would entail, so I have decided not to be a candidate in the presidential election," a sombre-looking Hollande said in a televised address.Dogged by high unemployment, Hollande is the least popular president in French polling history, yet his closest aides had consistently said he would run.After Britain's shock vote to quit the EU and the U.S. choice of Donald Trump as president, the election next April and May is on course to turn into another test of voters' anger with traditional elites, with Le Pen tapping into frustration with immigrants, austerity and the European Union.The past two weeks have turned French politics on its head
By Michelle Nichols

| UNITED NATIONS

UNITED NATIONS United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed regret on Friday that South Africa, Burundi and Gambia want to leave the International Criminal Court and said it could "send a wrong message on these countries' commitment to justice."The International Criminal Court, which opened in July 2002 and has 124 member states, is the first legal body with permanent international jurisdiction to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.South Africa and Burundi have officially notified the United Nations of their intent to withdraw from the Rome Statute, the 1998 treaty establishing The Hague-based court, which will take effect in October 2017.

Gambia said this week that it also plans to withdraw from the court, but it has not yet notified the United Nations. Ban acknowledged the concerns of some countries which have accused the court of being too focused on Africa.

"These challenges are best addressed not by diminishing support for the Court, but by strengthening it from within," Ban told a U.N. Security Council meeting on cooperation between the world body and regional groups. "Deterring future atrocities, delivering justice for victims, and defending the rules of war across the globe are far too important priorities to risk a retreat from the age of accountability that we have worked so hard to build and solidify," said Ban, who steps down at the end of this year.

The withdrawal of South Africa and Burundi from the court are likely to embolden other African countries to leave. [nL8N1CY1WT] (Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
The United States has said that it still has concerns over Indias revised measures for importing American poultry products even as a possible annual retaliation fee of $450 mn slapped by the US hovers over India.

At a Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) meeting on 26 October, the US complained that India continues to modify its measures related to dispute over American poultry imports even though India was supposed to comply with a DSB ruling by June 2016.

New Delhi made additional revisions to its rules for import of certain agricultural products on 19 September and informed the WTO on 22 September after the US expressed its concerns that India had not fully complied with WTO'S ruling on the matter.

However, American trade diplomats are not satisfied even with the additional revisions.

Under the September 2016 version of Indias measure, however, the United States continues to have concerns that Indias measures may be substantially more trade restrictive than a measure based on OIE [World Organisation for Animal Health] recommendations, the US said at the meeting.

As a way of example, the US said that New Delhis animal husbandry department has removed from its website the veterinary certificates that would be required to import poultry products into the country. The certificates are an essential element to understanding the revised measure, the US argued.

Also, the Washington complained that it had no advance notice about the most recent revision to Indian measures.

Until our concerns are resolved, the US will continue to preserve and enforce US rights under the DSU [Dispute Settlement Understanding], the US warned.

A case against India was initiated by Washington at the international trade court in March 2012 after India restricted various American agricultural products, including poultry meat, eggs, and live pigs, to prevent entry of avian influenza into India, for a period of about seven years.

The US said that the concerned Indian policy was discriminatory and violated trade rules under WTOs Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) agreement.

India lost the case at the DSB in October 2014 and appealed against the ruling, losing again, at the Appellate Board (AB).

India, as per the multilateral bodys rules, was supposed to bring in revised measures in compliance with the DSB ruling by July 2016.

India says that it has already complied with the trade ruling but the US disagrees.

Subsequently, the US slammed a retaliation of a whopping $450 million annually (subject to revision) on India for harming American trade interests by itss failure to comply with the trade judges' decision by July 2016.

India stated that it "strongly considers" that it has brought the disputed parts of the Livestock Act, 1898 in conformity with the relevant international standards of OIE Terrestrial Animal Health Code ("Terrestrial Code") and rejected Washingtons claims that some disputed measures were still in force.

India added that it was "disappointed" that the US raised the issue at the DSB again "despite the fact that India is engaging in good faith."

Its revised package of measures recognises disease-free areas and it has issued fresh guidelines for recognising a part of a country, zone or compartment for the purpose of trade in poultry and poultry products, India said at the meeting. This was done via a government notification on 8 July 2016.

India made additional revisions to its measures after a bilateral meeting with the US in September after the latter raised questions on the matter.

The July and September notifications of the guidelines, and the questionnaire, together form the "revised Avian Influenza measures", New Delhi said.

The measure that was found to be inconsistent by the DSB is no longer in force and so India urged Washington to terminate the arbitration for the retaliation request of $450mn.

In the same meeting, India again asked Washington to comply with a DSB ruling against steep American countervailing duties (CVD) imposed on imports of Indian hot-rolled carbon steel products. The last date for the US complying with the ruling lapsed on 19 March.

Major Indian companies that include Tata Steel, Jindal, Essar and SAIL could gain substantially if the US withdraws or re-calibrates its penalty structure as per the WTOs ruling.

The US has said that its Department of Commerce has self-initiated an investigation of the matter and that it has the discretion to the timing of this investigation. So no further action is required. New Delhi sees this as a delaying tactic and an attempt to re-adjudicate the issue where it cannot be adjudicated.

Merely stating that they would act in a WTO-consistent manner without either modifying or repealing the measure cannot, ipso facto, result in compliance with WTO obligations, India stated.

The US cannot absolve itself from this responsibility by stating that an illusory discretion would be exercised in a manner consistent with its international obligations, India argued.

It urged the US to fully comply with the rulings and recommendations of the DSB in this dispute and until then file a status report as it does in other similar disputes.
On 26 October, the Clinton campaign posted a childhood photo of the Democratic presidential nominee with the caption, Happy birthday to this future president. When Hillary Clinton appeals to younger women voters, she goes for raw sentiment. The film reel introducing Clinton at the Democratic National Convention, narrated by Morgan Freeman, is a collage of photos and interviews about a young, industrious woman whose most striking quality is her heart. The music swells.

This video is a masterstroke; it is an appeal to younger women who are aspirational and ambitious. In these moments, Clinton is working very hard to challenge the perception of her candidacy as the lesser of two evils. She is posturing as a history-maker. When Hillary speaks to women, she borrows a page out of the sitting presidents book. She sells hope.

When Clinton speaks about Donald Trumps offenses, she speaks on behalf of specific women. In the first debate, she targeted Trumps objectification of a former beauty pageant winner. After Trump called her a nasty woman on the debate stage, her campaign spun like a top, galvanising women and encouraging them to reclaim this language and the narrative about powerful women. On the debate stage, Clinton used Trumps temperament against him, expertly baiting him. He came off as bombastic, certainly not the person to be leveling charges against her. She is too expert a politician, however, to let herself be dragged down into the muck with him.

Mostly, Clinton has avoided lobbing attacks at Trump about his record of sexual assault. It is too dangerous, considering that the same charges have been leveled against her husband. Three women have accused Bill Clinton of assault to date. Every accusation has been denied, but there has been some corroboration of the womens statements. And according to Politifact, a fact-checking site, there is some evidence to indicate that Clinton played a role in discrediting the women who spoke out against her husband.

When allegations of sexual assault are leveled against highly powerful men, female accusers become pawns in a larger political game. They are smeared, violated all over again, and discarded. This is why women dont want to speak. One would expect that a woman president would be sensitive to women who have had these sorts of experiences (Every woman has a story, a grope, a casual innuendo in the office, to speak of.). But when an election hangs in the balance, and the candidate is too compromised to speak, she is letting these women down.

Clinton was spooked when Trump attempted to put Bills accusers in the family box. Because Clinton is so vulnerable to attack, she by and large leaves the full-throated attacks to her various political proxies.

Megyn Kellys repeated skewering of Trumps comments and actions are a gift with a pretty bow on top to the Clinton camp. Here is a pundit, usually on the other side of the aisle, with nothing to gain politically, attacking her partys nominee. Most recently, Megyn Kelly pushed back against Newt Gingrichs assertion that she is fascinated by sex because she speaks candidly about the allegations against Trump.

Clinton also allows prominent Democrats to speak for her in this arena.

While stumping for Clinton in New Hampshire, First Lady Michelle Obama went into full attack mode. Her voice quavered at just the right points. She spoke of the children who would be harmed by Trumps language, and the children who already knew right from wrong. Her delivery was perfect. Her analysis of sexual assault as an act of coercion and power was perfect. Michelle Obama is the perfect proxy to talk to the women about Trumps comments and alleged actions. She is beloved and relatable. She manages to strike the perfect balance as a First Lady, sensitive and strong, relatable enough to soften her intimidating intelligence. She projects the clean and honest image that Clinton so desperately needs, and she parlays this to speak on Clintons behalf.

President Barack Obama serves as the access point to a larger and wider audience than the First Lady. In recent speeches, Obama has called Trumps comments disturbing, but has pivoted to remind his audience of the insults Trump has hurled at people of color, people with disabilities, and other groups. He serves as the perfect male ally in this election cycle.

Other prominent Democratic Senators like Elizabeth Warren and Claire McCaskill lob attacks at Trump as well. McCaskill has gone for the jugular, pointing out the hypocrisy in Trumps criticism of Clintons marriage. Hillary Clinton wont dignify Trumps comments about her marriage with a response to maintain her high ground and pivot the conversation back to the issues. This is a smart political move considering her bombastic opponent.

This candidate and this campaign have been a wedge for women voters. Against Trump, the choice becomes clear, but many women are still uncertain about Clinton. Is she the spirited young Wellesley graduate or a dishonest politician? Clinton might have secured the womens vote, but many hearts are still mistrustful.
Washington: Vice President Joe Biden tops a short list for secretary of state that is being compiled by the transition team of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, two media outlets reported.

Politico on Thursday night cited an unidentified source as saying Clinton and her aides were discussing how to approach Biden about the post, should she win the 8 November presidential election.

Most national opinion polls show Clinton, who served as President Barack Obama's first secretary of state, leading Republican Donald Trump in the race for the White House.

Biden became a respected voice on foreign policy during his 36 years in the US Senate, where he was chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee and at one point served alongside Clinton, when she was a senator from New York.

"He'd be great, and they are spending a lot of time figuring out the best way to try to persuade him to do it if she wins," the source familiar with Clinton's transition planning told Politico.

NBC News later confirmed that Biden was under consideration for the job of top US diplomat.

Biden, of Delaware, had considered running for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016. He has campaigned vigorously for Clinton in her race against Trump, a New York real estate tycoon and former reality television personality who has never run for office.

The vice president said at a campaign event for Clinton in Pennsylvania this week that he is frequently asked whether he wished he had been debating Trump, who has insulted women, Muslims and immigrants and thumbed his nose at political norms.

"No, I wish we were in high school. I could take him behind the gym. That's what I wish," Biden said, prompting a similarly pugilistic retort from Trump a couple of days later.

In excepts from an interview released from CBS' Sunday program Face the Nation, Biden made it clear he wanted to continue his public service.

"I'm not going away. I'm, you know, everything from this issue of violence against women, to income inequality, to the cancer moonshot, I'm gonna devote the rest of my life to this."
Sochi: President Vladimir Putin slammed as "hysteria" Thursday claims that Russia has tried to interfere in the upcoming US presidential elections by hacking US political institutions including the Democrats behind frontrunner Hillary Clinton.

Russia has been accused of favouring Republican candidate Donald Trump  who has praised Putin and called for better relations with Moscow  over the more hawkish Clinton.

"The number of mythical, dreamt-up problems includes the hysteria  I can't think of another word  that has broken out in the United States about the influence of Russia on the current elections for the US president," Putin said at a meeting of political scientists in Sochi.

"Does anyone seriously think Russia can somehow influence the choice of the US people? Is the US some kind of banana republic? The United States is a great power. Please correct me if I'm wrong," Putin said to laughter in the audience.

Washington last week formally accused the Russian government of trying to "interfere" in the 2016 White House race by hacking US political institutions, charges the Kremlin has repeatedly dismissed.

Putin has vehemently rejected the accusations, saying they are meant to divert American voters from domestic problems.

"It's a lot easier to distract people's attention towards Russia's so-called hackers, spies, agents of influence and so on," Putin said Thursday.

The Kremlin strongman however adopted a hard line against cyber attacks, saying these are "unacceptable".

Russian authorities have slammed Washington for "unprecedented" threats after US Vice President Joe Biden told NBC this month that Putin would receive a "message" in response to the alleged hacking.

NBC later reported that the CIA was preparing a retaliatory cyber attack "designed to harass and embarrass the Kremlin leadership."

Russia's foreign ministry at the weekend said that an old version of its website had apparently been attacked after a US hacker claimed he broke in and posted a mocking message.

'Absolute nonsense'

The Kremlin was propelled to the heart of US politics in July after Clinton's campaign blamed Moscow for a damaging leak of emails from the Democratic National Committee.

Putin has offered what appears to be veiled support for Trump, but he said Thursday that claims the Kremlin would like to see the Republican candidate win were "absolute nonsense."

"This is just a method of political struggle, a way to manipulate public opinion on the eve of the US elections," he said.

Putin nonetheless praised Trump for appealing to disenchanted American electors.

"He represents the views of a significant part of society in the United States that is tired of those elites who have been in power for decades," he said.

"He just represents the interests of such ordinary people, and he presents himself as an ordinary guy who criticises those who have already been in power for decades."

Russia not attacking anyone

He accused the West of building up a "mythical and made-up" threat of Russian aggression to justify increasing military spending and bolstering NATO forces in countries neighbouring Russia.

"It's very pleasant and profitable to make yourself out to be defendants of civilisation from some new barbarians, but the thing is Russia doesn't plan to attack anyone," he said.

"It's unthinkable  simply stupid and unrealistic," he added. "It's just funny to talk about it."

Putin also took a jab at the West for its "mistakes" in its military interventions in Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan and now, Syria.

"The fight against terrorism has not yielded a global result while the threats are only growing," he warned, complaining that Russia's calls to unite forces against terrorism have been ignored.

He pointed the finger of blame at the United States for the ongoing violence in Syria, saying that "stopping bloodshed and launching a political process (in Syria) has not been possible."

"Our personal agreements with the US President did not work," Putin added, accusing forces in Washington of "doing everything for these not to be implemented."

Putin said Russia had been comporting itself in a "composed" manner.

"But our patience has its limits," he said, without elaborating.
Dubai, United Arab Emirates  The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company has signed a management agreement with RAK National Hotels ("RAKNH"), an owner of hotels and resorts in Ras Al Khaimah, a subsidiary of RAK Hospitality Holding ("RAKHH"), and Al Hamra Real Estate Development ("AHRED"), marking its entry into the emirate of Ras Al Khaimah. The brand will manage The Ritz-Carlton Ras Al Khaimah, Al Hamra Beach and The Ritz-Carlton Ras Al Khaimah, Al Wadi Desert, growing the brand's footprint in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to five by 2017.

His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Chairman of the RAK Hospitality Holding and RAK National Hotels and Alex Kyriakidis, President and Managing Director, Middle East & Africa, Marriott International signed the agreement, closing the ceremony Mr.Kyriakidis said, "We are proud to partner with RAK Hospitality Holding and RAK National Hotels and look forward to introducing The Ritz-Carlton to Ras Al Khaimah.

Herve Humler, President and C.O.O., The Ritz-Carlton conveyed his thanks to the ruler of the Emirate and said, " We have seen an increasing appetite amongst travelers for immersive escapes in emerging destinations and our Ras Al Khaimah properties will offer travelers  both regional and international  the chance to enjoy the unique landscape, indigenous customs in tranquil environments. The locale, which represents the culture and traditions of the indigenous community will transport visitors to an off-the-beaten track journey for that truly authentic experience."

The management agreement, which goes into effect on December 15th, will see the beach property close for comprehensive renovations, whilst the desert property will remain open and operate as a partner hotel  Al Wadi Desert, Ras Al Khaimah, a Ritz-Carlton Partner Hotel. Both properties following the renovations are scheduled to be re-launched in 2017 under The Ritz-Carlton stewardship.

The renovations include total refurbishment of the Al Hamra beach property a 32 all-villa luxury resort, and upgrading the Al Wadi property, a 101 all-villa desert escape. The two new additions to The Ritz-Carlton portfolio are enclaves of bespoke Arabian-style villas that stretch along a private shore of white sand and the vast undulating expanse of the desert respectively.

Ras Al Khaimah, with its verdant landscape surrounded by the Al Hajar Mountains on one side and the Arabian Gulf on the other, is known for its natural beauty and relaxed pace of life. In contrast to Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah, the emirate is seen as an escape for local, regional and international visitors, seeking un-spoilt nature and unique experiences. Blessed with miles of pristine shoreline and a rugged backdrop, the emirate offers visitors a sense of solitude, respite and tranquility.

Sarah Walker-Kerr

+971 562 160 815

Marriott
GET OUR APP Our Spectrum News app is the most convenient way to get the stories that matter to you. Download it here.
The spokesman for the Libyan navy said yesterday that more than 90 migrants are believed dead after their rickety boat was damaged shortly after leaving the Libyan coast.

Ayoub Gassim said the coast guard has rescued 29 survivors, who said the plastic boat ripped and began filling with water about 26 miles off the Libyan coast, in international waters. He said that a total of 126 migrants were in the boat, mostly African nationals.

The death toll for migrants in the Mediterranean has reached at least 3,800 this year so far, making 2016 the deadliest year ever for migrants in the Mediterranean.
The Chief Executive, Chui Sai On, will lead an official delegation to Beijing on November 2 for discussions on the planning and management of Macaus waters.

While in Beijing, Chui will meet with officials of the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Water Resources, the General Administration of Customs and the State Oceanic Administration.

According to a statement by the Government Information Bureau, other topics that are set to be discussed will be on ways of advancing Macaus contributions to the Belt and Road initiative, a regional development and trade strategy.

Macanese officials accompanying the Chief Executive to Beijing include: the director-general of the Macau Customs Service, Alex Vong, the director of the Marine and Water Bureau, Susana Wong Soi Man; and the director of the Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau, Li Canfeng.

The Chief Executive will return to Macau on November 4. While Chui is away, the Secretary for Security, Wong Sio Chak, and the Secretary for Administration and Justice, Sonia Chan, will consecutively take on the role of acting Chief Executive.
ZTO Express Inc., the Chinese delivery service that gets about three-quarters of its business from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., is following its top customer to the U.S. stock market with this years biggest initial public offering.

The companys USD1.4 billion share sale is the most a Chinese company raised in New York since Alibabas record $25 billion offering in 2014. The deal may mark an inflection point after a string of mainland companies have sought to abandon their U.S. listings and move trading back home, where stocks are commanding higher multiples. It will also test U.S. investor demand at a time when others are going public through reverse mergers, or backdoor listings, on the Shenzhen exchange.

Such deals  when a private firm purchases a public shell to take over its listing  have proliferated in China as the regulator made it difficult for companies to gain approval for IPOs in Shanghai. The waiting list for new mainland equity offering approvals exceeds 800, more than Chinas total listings over the last five years, according to the China Securities Regulatory Commission website and data compiled by Bloomberg.

Theres an epic traffic jam of companies seeking to IPO on Chinese stock exchanges, said Peter Halesworth, founder of Heng Ren Investments, a Boston-based firm that invests in Chinese companies listed overseas. If they cant cut the line to sell stock to raise funds in China, they may increasingly hop a plane to the U.S. to tap the markets.

ZTO sold 72.1 million American depositary shares at $19.50 apiece, after offering them for $16.50 to $18.50 each, according to a Wednesday statement distributed by PRNewswire. The ADRs will start trading Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol ZTO. Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. led the offering.

The rewards for a mainland listing have proven worth the wait for some. While the average size of Chinese IPOs so far in 2016 is only about 654 million yuan ($96.5 million), all the companies that went public in China this year have posted gains, rising nearly four-fold on average. Bloomberg
The first Chinese leader to visit Britain, Chairman Hua Kuo-Feng, has arrived in London at the start of a six-day visit.

He was welcomed at Heathrow airport by Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who paid tribute to China as a great and historical nation which has a crucial role to play in world affairs.

She said the two countries enjoyed a close understanding in many fields and she hoped their talks would further improve relations.

In his reply, Chairman Hua stressed the important role Western Europe has to play in defending world peace.

He said this was why China had given high priority to the development of good relations with the West European countries.

Chairman Hua was given the kind of treatment usually reserved only for royalty and presidents.

The Coldstream Guards formed a guard of honour before he was taken to the luxury Claridges hotel, where he and his party will be staying.

Chairman Hua has an invitation to lunch at Buckingham Palace where the Queen will personally take him on a tour of the state rooms.

This is the Chinese leaders first visit to the non-Communist world, apart from a short stay in Iran before Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlevi was forced into exile.

During his visit, he is expected to discuss trade, various bilateral issues, including the future of Hong Kong, and world peace.

It is hoped he and Mrs Thatcher will sign a number of deals, including an air services agreement giving Chinese airlines the rights to fly to Britain.

Trade issues are expected to focus on the process of modernisation in China  in particular improvements to its armed forces, transport infrastructure and industry.

The Chinese delegation will pay a visit to Rolls Royce in Derby, BP and British Rails technical centre.

Chairman Hua, who spent 20 years of his life in the Chinese agricultural sector, will also be shown a farm in Wallingford, Oxfordshire, and fit in a quick visit to Oxford University, before flying on to Rome on Saturday.

He has already spent a week each in France and West Germany.

Courtesy BBC News

In context

In an interview before his visit to Western Europe, Chairman Hua was quoted as saying he wanted to see for himself the reality of advanced economic, scientific and technological experience to see how they could benefit Chinas modernisation programme.

The trip paved the way to improved relations between Britain and China.

Official negotiations on the future of Hong Kong began in 1982 and were completed with the handover on 1 July 1997.

The Queen became the first British monarch to visit China in 1986.

However, the brutal suppression of the pro-democracy protests in Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989 led to a breakdown in Chinas relations with the West.

China has since become of the worlds leading growth economies, prompting greater trading links with the West. But in 2005 the EU and US were still enforcing an embargo on arms sales to China imposed after Tiananmen Square.
Two years after the leaders of his village razed his home to make way for new development, farmer Jia Jinglong took his revenge with a nail gun.

In a country that bans personal ownership of firearms, Jia modified a nail gun and used it to shoot and kill the local chief, who he believed ordered the demolition without adequately compensating him. He was tried and sentenced to death.

But days after Chinas highest court gave the go-ahead for his execution, Jias case has sparked an outcry from those who say it exemplifies the stark powerlessness of ordinary Chinese when faced against government officials. Even two state-run newspapers have rallied to Jias defense, publishing articles calling for Jia to be spared.

Jias village on the outskirts of the northern city of Shijiazhuang is overwhelmed by a cacophony of drilling, pounding and jack-hammering coming from construction sites. More than a dozen cranes could be seen in the distance, adjacent to high-rise apartment towers still being built, as families walked on the street and vendors pushed carts bearing fruit and bottles of water.

Jias family was offered a unit in one of these high-rises when officials wanted to take their home and demolish it, along with what Jias sister said was a small amount of monetary compensation. The family was one of the few to refuse. They ended up losing their home and getting a small unit  but no extra money.

Sitting in a tea shop in Shijiazhuang, Jia Jingyuan said the outpouring of support for her brother showed that his plight resonated. Because my brother is part of this societys underclass, he represents the lives of many ordinary people, Jia Jingyuan told The Associated Press.

What he has experienced is what many are going through or will be going through, she said. There is a lot of injustice in society and peoples basic rights havent been upheld.

To some observers, the case illustrates the growing chasm between the Communist Partys claims that it guarantees the protection of basic rights under the rule of law and the everyday reality in which land seizures are common and corruption remains endemic.

The China Daily addressed the issue in unusually frank terms this week.

As in many similar cases, Jia used to be an ordinary citizen concerned primarily about living a normal life, the newspaper said. Like others who ended up desperate, vengeful and hurting themselves and others to have their injustices noticed, Jia would probably not have acted as he did if his loss had been properly taken care of.

The Global Times, a nationalist state-run newspaper, also published an article quoting Chinese legal experts demanding a halt to the execution. And commenters on Chinese social media called for further review of his case.

The Supreme Peoples Court, which automatically reviews all death sentences handed down by Chinese courts, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

China is believed to execute more people than any other country, though the total number and most details about executions are considered a state secret. That system now faces a rare, public test, said Maya Wang, a researcher on China for Human Rights Watch.

On the one hand, if it doesnt approve the death penalty, it would seem to be soft on a case in which an ordinary citizen has killed an official, Wang said. On the other hand, if it approves the death penalty, it will heighten the sense of injustice that the public already feels against the criminal justice system.

Disputes over land seizures are one of the greatest sources of unrest in China, where breakneck development and weak legal support has led to officials evicting residents with little or no compensation and suppressing protests, often violently.

Local governments are heavily reliant on land sales for revenue, resulting in the common use of strong-arm tactics in housing demolitions. Officials sometimes collude with real estate developers to pocket generous kickbacks for themselves, giving them more incentive to force out residents from their homes. The central government has made efforts to try to raise the incomes of rural workers and give farmers more compensation for land seized from them, but progress is slow.

According to Jias lawyers, village officials in northern Chinas Hebei province decided to seize and demolish his home on May 7, 2013  18 days before he was set to be married. The day of the razing, Jia was dragged out of the home and beaten in front of other villagers. Jia refused to accept the apartment that the government allotted them and chose to rent his own place separately.

Without a home, the family of his fiancee called off the wedding  a move that highlights the increasingly common expectation in China that prospective husbands should be homeowners.

An ordinary farmer suddenly became a person without property and with no hope after the demolition, said one of his lawyers, Zhao Xiaoliang.

Like most villagers in his scenario, Jia had little recourse under the law.

Like scores of other ordinary Chinese people seeking help for their grievances, Jia submitted appeal after appeal to various levels of government offices that receive such petitions, but was unsuccessful. Such appeals often fail even though the practice dates to Chinas centuries-old ruling dynasties, and some provinces  to avoid any recrimination from the central government  are known to hire agents who find and detain petitioners and send them back home.

Jias sister and his lawyers dont dispute that he purchased and modified a nail gun that he used to shoot He Jianhua, the party secretary. Jia turned himself in shortly afterward.

Zhao, who represented him at trial, said he tried to show the court a video of the demolition of the home, but was refused.

The case eventually made it to the Supreme Peoples Court. According to Wei Rujiu, Jias appellate lawyer, the high court gave him just five days to assemble and present evidence in Jias defense, and took 14 days total before it affirmed the death sentence last week.

Wei spoke to Jia on Sunday and said he wasnt sure when the execution would be carried out. Jias sister presented a new request to the court on Monday asking for the sentence to be commuted.

I believe that it is possible to see a suspension because many warm-hearted people are making efforts toward that end, she told The Associated Press. Nomaan Merchant, Aritz Parra, Shijiazhuang, AP
The Parade Through Macau, Latin City will be held on December 4, in celebration of the 17th anniversary of the territorys handover to China; this year with fewer participants.

The upcoming parade, organized by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) takes the classic Chinese text Classic of Mountains and Seas (Shan Hai Jing) as its background.

VIVAs Adventures through Shan Hai comprises of 40 local and around 10 foreign participating groups. Participants will total nearly 1,200, which is 300 fewer compared to last year.

However, director of IC, Ung Vai Meng said in a press conference yesterday that streamlining the number of performances was to enhance the quality of the Parade and also to allow for more convenient control of the flow of people. According to him, the decrease in the number of artists performing will not have much impact on the quality of the parade.

Local groups responded to the call for participation in the parade, with performances featuring Cantonese opera, theatre, music, martial arts, folk and traditional and oriental dance.

The Parade will also feature a number of participating foreign groups, from Latin-speaking countries and other foreign regions, including French group Plasticiens Volants that again will bring huge balloons to strengthen the events visual impact.

Rome Majorettes from Italy, specialized in the classic discipline of majorettes and cheerleading and Ballet Afro Tuga from Portugal, which will present a show based on African traditional percussion and rhythms, will also be performing at the Latin parade.

On the day of the Parade, VIVA will cross the time gate at 4 p.m. at Largo da Companhia de Jesus, taking off from the Ruins of St. Pauls, together with performing groups.

The parade will travel via streets such as Rua de S. Paulo, St. Anthonys Square, Rua de D. Belchior Carneiro, Rua dos Artilheiros, and Rua de Sanches de Miranda. The participants will then arrive at their final destination at Tap Seac Square.

In a press conference yesterday, it was announced that this years parade offers an alternative route as well.

Some performing groups will depart from Senado Square and march through Largo de S. Domingos, Rua de S. Domingos, Rua da Palha and Rua de S. Paulo, joining the remainder of the parade at the Ruins of St. Pauls.

This year, the route of the parade includes installations based on the mythological characters of the Classic of Mountains and Seas, enhancing the festive atmosphere.

Meanwhile the Cultural Affairs Bureau announced that the Parade has a MOP15 million budget, a decrease of MOP1 million compared to last years show.

The parade is one of the major events in celebration of the regions handover to China and has already become one of the citys most festive events since its first edition in 2011.

When the festivities kick off on December 4, crowd control measures will be implemented and some streets will be temporarily closed to traffic.
The importance of the written diaries of the women of the anglophone community, who visited Macau of the nineteenth-century, was one of the topics of the International Conference on Memorialist Discourses and the Building of History being held from October 25 until today at the University of Macau (UM).

On the topic Rogerio Puga, a scholar from the New University of Lisbon with an extensive history of work on the anglophone presence in the region, addressed the importance of such written documents in obtaining a more clear picture of what Macau was like during that era.

In a presentation focused mostly on the journal of Caroline H. Butler Laing (1837), Puga highlighted the importance of Laings journal and other records from the English speaking community. He said that those records were mostly written by women that had travelled to accompany their husbands (businessmen) or for health reasons. Since it was not possible for women to enter China in those days, they established their homes in Macau, often bringing along children.

Puga said that females have a different look over things than males and they were spending much time in the city mostly alone and without means of communicating to others, which often led them to pay attention to many things that others would not notice and write about these everyday occurrences in their journals that they would then send back home to the family members.

On another important point, Puga mentioned, these women were mostly American, New Yorkers or Boston residents and Protestants what led often to the descriptions of any events in the city as exotic; either these were Portuguese-catholic processions or Chinese cultural events.

According to the scholars research these travelling women also had the clear notion that they were pioneers of world travel. That fact also contributed to their motivation to keep writing their journals and sending them back to be read by their families but also by other people who had access to these reports of what China and especially Macau would look like.

These women, contrary to what was originally thought, were not housewives. They were very active and while the husbands were away in mainland for some periods of time, they were the companies only representatives and would handle all the business, Puga mentioned.

In the particular case of Caroline Laing, her journal becomes a particularly special document due to its last section and the way that she acknowledges that she doesnt know China because her contacts were limited to only a few people and especially because she decided to write complete descriptions of what it was like to live in Macau during a typical day of her life. She added a large number of details that led the researchers to find fact that would not have been possible to discover in any other way, for example, many aspects related to the cultural life and the fact that operas, concerts and theatre performances were held, as well as the establishment of a library and a museum in the third decade of the 1800s.

[These are] things that were never present in any Portuguese written documents, he concluded.

New generation of bilingual researchers should unveil local history

In response to an open question from a member of the audience during the discussion session under the topic of the Memories of old Macau, the panel of scholars and conference speakers avidly supported locals taking a stronger interest in Macanese history.

Mario Lugarinho, Marta Pinto and Rogerio Puga agreed that the new generation of university students and researchers, and especially the ones who can read and speak in Chinese and Portuguese languages have the important task to discover more about the history of the territory in its different perspectives.

The question from the audience was focused on the fact that generally in research and tertiary studies, historical facts are always addressed in a colonialist perspective or from a perspective of a passers-by, and are often missing a local perspective about how the locals would have seen the same events.

The debate occurred during the discussion panel of Session 5 of the International Conference on Memorialist Discourses and the Building of History held yesterday afternoon at the University of Macau.

During the session, Lugarinho addressed the history topics: the 1848 murder of Ferreira do Amaral, Portuguese governor of the territory , based on new perspectives and namely the point of view of the killer in Assassin (2015) by Joe Tang and a biographical work by Lia Ferreira do Amaral, her ancestor, published in 1942.

Previously on the session, Pinto had spoken about the work of Wenceslau de Moraes and the Memories of the place, which uses the place commonly known as Camoes Cave to express feelings and thoughts on the territory and on his perspective of China in a broader sense.

Rogerio Puga presented a paper on the importance of Diary Writing as a Performative Process for the Construction of Personal and Collective Memories based on the journal of Caroline H Butler Laing (1837) that details her life in Macau during the years of 1836 and 1837.
Ho Chi Kuen, the Chairman of Hong Kong Law Society of Domestic Violence, suggested that certain types of domestic violence should be considered first as civil matters before being handled as crimes.

This opinion was expressed yesterday on the sidelines of the Ninth International Conference on The Legal Reforms of Macau in the Global Context-Law, Sexuality and Family.

In Hong Kong, domestic violence is not necessarily a crime. Only when the violence is serious the police interfere to prosecute the abuser, Ho explained.

When handling domestic violence cases, we also need to think for the abusers, he said. If, starting from the beginning, the abuser is prosecuted, it could undermine the family environment,

Ho added. The victims do not necessarily want to see their spouses being prosecuted.

The lawyer explained that the victims, considering that the abuser might be sentenced to jail, or have crime records, or lose their jobs, or the abusers family might blame it to the victim, might make different decisions about how to deal with their situations. The victims frequently do not report to the police about their domestic violence situation [because of the aforementioned considerations], Ho noted.

Ho claims that in many cases he handled, abusers normally stopped perpetrating the violence after the court issued an injunction, which means that it is not always necessary to criminally prosecute the abusers.

According to Ho, in Hong Kong, when handling domestic violence cases, normally an injunction is first issued to the abusers. The lawyer did, however, voice his concern when asked what Macau could learn from Hong Kong in terms of domestic violence laws.

The lawyer stressed that Hong Kong needs to improve its own domestic violence laws.

Hong Kong is doing well in terms of domestic violence, but it can be better, he said. For example, he thinks that Hong Kong still lacks a sound educational effort to make the public aware of what the citys domestic violence system can offer to victims.

Ho, who is also the chairman of the Hong Kong Family Law Committee, considered that Hong Kong probably needs to learn from the UK, which ruled back to 2014 that verbal violence is crime. Verbal violence can lead to the victim [suffering] serious mental trauma, said Ho.

Earlier, a 39-year-old local man surnamed Wong was arrested by the Judiciary Police for alleged domestic violence. The incident marks the first domestic violence case arrest since domestic violence has become a public crime in Macau. Julie Zhu
A few weeks ago, I was contacted by a freshly arrived European journalist in Hong Kong who had been told that I was closely following current affairs in Macao and, more importantly, that I was willing to discuss certain topics considered by sometoo many actuallyas taboo. When I asked about the topic she wanted to cover, I was pretty astonished to discover that the issue at hand was the one of money laundering: the workings, the amount, the relationship to the casino industry, the regulations and law enforcement policies put in place by the government to combat the situation, and of course the outcome, whether money laundering was still galloping or if it had been reined in.

My initial reaction was one of dismay: how come a newcomer could choose that as a first topic? How can one imagine shedding a corner of novel and bright lightthe ethical intention of the investigative newsperson being beyond doubton such a sensitive topic without having built a web of connexions over the years that would allow for some form of insider take? And then, with such high stakes, people who are actually in the know will usually keep their lips sealed, and thus the only ones talking are the ignorants or the bragging fools. I was thus pretty dismissive. And then

If everybody knows money laundering happens on a vast scale in the gambling Mecca of the East, one would be hard pressed to come up with reliable and up-to-date amounts. Numbers in that respect go beyond the imagination of a normally equipped human brain: when a single junket employee can disappear with US$1.3 billion of creditors money, as it happened with Huang Shan back in April 2014, it is not impossible to conceive that the money involved in dubious dealings must be somehow proportionate to this incredible extension of credit by junket operators that goes completely unmonitored by the gaming regulator. And this is onea big one, and clearly the biggest one that ever came to the attention of the publicof many.

In English, an inquisitive mind often stumbles on the US$200 billion roundish amount of yearly money laundering in Macao. This impressive figure derives from the 2013 annual report of the US Congressional Executive Commission on China, in which one can read that [t]he gambling industry in Macao is reportedly tied to widespread corruption and the laundering of large amounts of money out of mainland China. [] One Macao academic estimates that US$202 billion in ill-gotten funds are channeled through Macao each year.

If one looks at the source, the Macao academic is none other than Camoes Tam Chi Keung, from MUST, a well-known liberal personality in Macao specialising in journalism and communication, who had confided to a journalist from the Hong Kong-based Oriental Daily that money laundering could be estimated between 1.57 billion yuan a year, on the conservative side (the figure quoted in the US report) and as much as 10 trillion yuan per yeara staggering and far less conservative US$1,250 billion! As far as methodology is concerned, no question was asked.

Now, if one checks on Wisers how many stories have appeared in the Chinese press regarding black money laundering  in Macao in the past six months, a meagre 144 articles are returned, and even the tightening of monitoring measures by the DICJ in May-June 2016we finally got rid of aliases for junket stakeholders!gets only a passing mention. An equivalent search for Hong Kong comes up with 957 stories: should we conclude that logistics, finance and tourism are far more prone to money laundering than gaming?

For Prosecutor General Ip Son Sang, who publicly reported recently that out of 364 cases of money laundering opened in Macao over the past two years only 2 were successfully prosecuted, the problem lies in the lack of proper legal tools. I would add: lack of proper reporting takes a toll too!
Experimenters, moon-shooters and diverse are the words 17-year-old Shanghai high schooler Owen Xu uses to define his generation.

The senior at the Stanford Online High School in Chinas financial capital has co-founded a startup focused on treating and reusing wastewater that aims to one day solve problems affecting billions of people.

Meet Chinas millennials  a generation thats more risk-taking and idiosyncratic than its predecessor. And theyre dreaming big.

Having grown up in a booming economy that grew nine-fold since the turn of the century, Chinas 7.5 million school leavers this year are intent on forging paths very different from their parents, who defaulted to the factory floor, construction site or staid state-sector job.

About 48 percent of those born after 1995 dont want to enter the traditional job market upon graduation, according to recent research by QQ Browser, part of tech giant Tencent Holdings Ltd., which polled 13,000 college students and mined data from its 84-million daily internet search traffic.

More than 15 percent of respondents said they want to start their own businesses, while 8 percent aspire to take on new professions spawned by rising consumerism and the ever-increasing role the internet is playing in peoples lives. The most sought after jobs: online live-streamer or blogger, voice actor, make-up artist and game tester.



This is a good sign for the economy as it shows that they are finding new growth engines and the economy is getting more market-oriented, said Iris Pang, senior economist for Greater China at Natixis SA in Hong Kong. But in the longer term, startup failure rates are very high, and those who take the risk should bear the risk.

But its the fear of a dull office job, not failure, that worries high schooler Xu. His idol is Elon Musk, the billionaire founder of Tesla Motors Inc. and Space Exploration Technologies Corp.

The survey also found early 20-somethings in mega cities such as Beijing and Shenzhen are keen to set up internet-related businesses, while those in the heartland and the West have turned their eyes on education and farming for opportunities.

Since graduating from a Beijing vocational college last year, 25-year-old Hua Gengwu has worked at an internet startup, moonlighted on two other projects, and gone on a more than 4,500 kilometer motorcycle expedition from his hometown in central China to the base camp of Mount Everest.

We want to keep our assorted interests and hobbies, which we cant do in a dull and tedious workplace, said Hua, who also idolizes Musk. He plans a life of entrepreneurship as a route to financial and personal freedom. Bloomberg


Casino expansion throughout the northeastern U.S. has been blamed for much of Atlantic Citys struggles, and New Jerseys first attempt to cash in on those same expansion benefits seems destined to fail.

But that failure could mean a win, at least temporarily, for Atlantic City. Many casino and southern New Jersey business leaders fear the resort town could lose up to three of its surviving casinos if in-state competition is authorized in a statewide referendum next month.

Atlantic City casino and business leaders held a rally yesterday against the expansion proposal, which is trailing badly in polls.

If they allow this to happen, we will be done down here, said Shari Schugar, a cocktail server at the Tropicana casino. We get so much of our business from north Jersey.

It would devastate us, added her co-worker, Joann Lardizzone, who has served drinks at the Tropicana for 33 years. So many people came here to find a good job to raise a family. New Jersey should help us, not hurt us.

The Nov. 8 referendum comes as Atlantic Citys casino industry continues to shrink. In 2006, when the first casino opened in neighboring Pennsylvania, Atlantic Citys casinos took in USD5.2 billion. By last year, that had fallen to $2.56 billion, and five of the citys 12 casinos have gone out of business since 2014, most recently the Trump Taj Mahal, which closed on Oct. 10.

Supporters of the proposal say northern New Jersey casinos are needed to recapture gambling dollars being lost to neighboring states. New gambling houses have been added in New York, Pennsylvania and Maryland recently, and Connecticut and New York are considering further expansion. In particular, the northern New Jersey casinos are aimed at heading off a threat from a possible casino in Manhattan. Massachusetts and Rhode Island are considering casino expansion, as well.

The referendum does not state where the casinos would go, but proposals have been publicly floated for casinos at the Meadowlands Racetrack in East Rutherford, where the NFLs New York Jets and Giants play; Jersey City, and Newark.

Some of the tax money raised from the new casinos would go to help compensate Atlantic City for the expected loss of business to in-state competitors. But, the tax rate the new casinos would pay and how the money would be allocated have not yet been decided by state legislators.

The proposal is losing by a 3-to-1 margin in many statewide polls; in southern New Jersey the margin is more than 9-to-1. AP
Abu Sayyaf pocketed at least 353 million pesos (USD7.3 million) from ransom kidnappings in the first six months of the year and have turned to abductions of foreign tugboat crewmen as military offensives restricted the militants mobility, a confidential Philippine government report said.

The joint military and police threat assessment report seen by The Associated Press yesterday said the offensives have reduced the number of Abu Sayyaf fighters slightly, although the group remains capable of launching terrorist attacks.

Government offensives have reduced the number of militants to 481 in the first half of the year from 506 in the same period last year but they managed to carry out 32 bombings in that time  a 68 percent increase  in attempts to distract the military assaults, the report said.

They wield at least 438 firearms and managed to conduct a number of terrorist trainings despite constant military assaults.

President Rodrigo Duterte, who took office in June, has ordered troops to destroy Abu Sayyaf, known for its brutality and ties to some foreign militants, and he has ruled out the possibility of any peace talks with them. He has pursued talks with two other larger Muslim insurgent groups.

Dutertes peace negotiations with communist rebels have led to cease-fire declarations that have halted years of fighting with Maoist guerrillas, which freed up the thousands of troops now redeployed to wage one of the largest offensives ever fought against the Abu Sayyaf in southern Sulu and Basilan provinces.

The ASG shifted in targeting vulnerable foreign-flagged tugboats and their crew due to the focused military operations against the group, the report said, adding the group was expected to intensify its kidnap-for-ransom assaults in the busy waterways around the southern Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia.

Abu Sayyafs attacks on tugboats this year and the kidnappings of their Malaysian and Indonesian crewmen have raised security alarms from those countries, whose officials have tried to map out a strategy to protect commercial and passenger ships.

Lucrative payoffs from KFR (kidnappings for ransom), the report said, enabled the ASG to procure firearms as well as ammunitions.

Of the estimated 353 million pesos in ransom received by the Abu Sayyaf for six kidnappings of 21 people from January to June, the bulk was paid in exchange for the releases of 14 Indonesian and 4 Malaysian crewmen who had been held at Abu Sayyaf jungle bases in Sulu province, the report said.

The militants got 20 million pesos ($413,000) in ransom for freeing Marites Flor, a Filipino woman who was kidnapped last year with two Canadians and a Norwegian from a yacht-berthing resort on southern Samal island.

Philippine officials have said they were unaware of any ransom paid for Flor or other hostages and added they continue to adopt a no-ransom policy.

The militants beheaded the two Canadians after ransom deadlines lapsed. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau urged governments not to pay ransom to discourage similar abductions.

The Norwegian hostage, Kjartan Sekkingstad, was freed last month after a year of horrific jungle captivity when he was constantly threatened with beheading.

Prior to Sekkingstads release, Duterte suggested at a news conference that 50 million pesos ($1 million) had been paid to the militants.

The Philippine military has said the constant military assaults have forced the militants to release their hostages. Jim Gomez, Manila, AP

Dutertes meeting with Japan emperor canceled

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte left Japan yesterday without meeting Emperor Akihito as their scheduled meeting had to be canceled because of the death of the emperors uncle.

Before ending his three-day visit, Duterte proposed joint military exercises with Japan, while reiterating that he will not conduct them with Americans in his presidency. Duterte made the proposal during his visit to a coast guard unit to observe an exercise from one of the patrol vessels Japan pledged to provide the Philippines to upgrade Manilas maritime security capabilities amid South China Sea disputes with Beijing.

Because of Dutertes informal style, Japanese officials had been worried if he may chew gum in front of the emperor. But during his visit in Japan, he was not seen doing that during his talks with Abe and other officials.

Prince Mikasa, the younger brother of former Emperor Hirohito, died at the age of 100.

Id like to express my deepest condolence, Duterte said. He told reporters that his protocol officer advised him not to proceed with the call on the emperor because they are in mourning and I respect that because I would ask for the same, maybe request, if I were in his shoes.


The millions of votes that have been cast already in the U.S. presidential election point to an advantage for Hillary Clinton in critical battleground states, as well as signs of strength in traditionally Republican territory.

The strong early-voting turnout by those likely to support Clinton  registered Democrats, minorities, and young people among others  could leave Donald Trump with virtually no path to the 270 electoral votes needed for victory.

Clinton is showing strength in Florida and North Carolina, both must-win states for Trump, as well as the battleground states of Nevada, Colorado and Arizona. There are even favorable signs for Clinton in Republican-leaning Utah and Texas.

Its going to be a very tall order for Trump to win, said Michael McDonald, a University of Florida professor who specializes in election turnout. Other analysts also point to a strong finish for Clinton based on the early vote.

Early voting, via mail or in-person, is underway in 37 states. More than 13.4 million votes have been cast, far higher than the rate in 2012, according to Associated Press data. In all, more than 46 million people or as much as 40 percent of the electorate  are expected to vote before Election Day, Nov. 8.

The Clinton campaign describes both North Carolina and Florida as checkmate states. Trump probably cant win if he loses either.

After trailing in mail ballots, Democrats surged ahead of Republicans in North Carolina ballots cast after the start of in-person early voting last week. Democrats currently lead in ballots submitted, 46 percent to 29 percent.

In-person voting is off to a slower start for both Democrats and Republicans compared to 2012, when Republican Mitt Romney narrowly won the state. But many Democratic-leaning counties reduced the number of polling stations in the first week, a likely factor in the decline. Several of those counties are opening more stations this week.

In Florida, more than 2 million voters have already returned ballots. In-person voting began Monday, and Democrats have pulled virtually even with Republicans, at 41 percent each. Thats a much faster rate of catch-up than in 2012 and 2008, when Barack Obama won the state.

This years numbers are troubling for Republicans.

If current early vote trends hold, its a real possibility that Clinton can sweep a majority of swing states including Florida, said Scott Tranter, co-founder of the Republican data analytics firm Optimus.

Once Republican states, Nevada, Arizona and Colorado are in play for Democrats. All are crucial for Trump.

Overall ballots in Nevada are down but the Democratic lead widened after the start of in-person voting last week. Democrats lead in returned ballots, 46 percent to 35 percent. Ballots from older white voters declined significantly while those from Hispanics and Asian-Americans rose.

Nearly 70 percent of all Nevada ballots were cast early in 2012; Obama won the state by 6 percentage points.

Early voting is surging in Arizona, normally a Republican state but one that Clinton has targeted. More than 616,000 ballots have been cast and Democrats are about even with Republicans, 37 percent to 38 percent. Another 25 percent were independent or unknown. At this point in 2012, Republicans led by more than 7 percentage points. Ballots rose in Arizona especially among younger adults and Latinos.

In Colorado, where early voting has been by mail, Democrats led 40 percent to 34 percent among the 416,000 ballots returned. In 2012, Democrats trailed Republicans at this point by 10 percentage points. Since then, registered Democrats have surpassed Republicans in the state.

The trends out West may bode well for Democrats in two Republican strongholds.

In Utah, overall ballots are up from 2012, driven by faster gains among voters ages 22 to 49, according to Catalist , a Democratic analytical firm. Republicans barely led in total ballots cast compared to independents, 38.6 percent to 38.5 percent. That could mean that Evan McMullin, a third-party candidate, is drawing support from Republicans unhappy with Trump. Democrats still trail at 19.4 percent, but theyre in an improved position from 2012, when Republicans held a 58 percent to 13 percent lead.

Texas began in-person voting Monday. More than 969,000 ballots were cast as of late Tuesday, based on reports from the top 15 counties, a 46 percent increase. The state did not provide breakdowns by party. The Clinton campaign believes higher turnout, especially among Latinos, could give it an edge.

Boosted by white voters, Trump may still hold an edge in Ohio, Iowa and Georgia  states that still wont be enough for him to garner the presidency without multiple come-from-behind wins in Democratic-leaning states.

In Ohio, the heavily Democratic counties of Cuyahoga and Franklin continue to show double-digit declines in ballot requests compared to 2012. The state does not break down ballots by party affiliation. By race, voter modeling by Catalist found the white share of Ohio ballot requests was up to 91 percent from 87 percent. The black share declined to 7 percent from 10 percent.

Democrats lead early ballot requests in Iowa, 43 percent to 35 percent. But that lead is narrower than 2012, when Democrats held an advantage of 14 percentage points. Obama ultimately won the state by 5 percentage points.

And in Georgia, which does not report party affiliation, ballots submitted are up from 2012, but mostly among whites.

The white share of ballots rose a percentage point to 66 percent. The black share fell to 31 percent from 34 percent, according to Catalist. Hope Yen, Washington, AP


JAPAN The younger brother of former Japanese Emperor Hirohito dies at age 100. The death of prince Mikasa (pictured) led to the cancelation of the scheduled meeting between the Philippine President Duterte and Emperor Akihito.

CHINA Four senior officials from the Communist Party were expelled yesterday by the sixth plenary session of the 18th Central Committee, official Xinhua news agency reported. Former Party chief of Liaoning province and senior national legislator Wang Min and former Beijing deputy Party chief Lyu Xiwen were on the expulsion list. The communique also confirmed the expulsion of former senior military officials Fan Changmi and Niu Zhizhong. All had been charged with corruption offenses. More on p11



PAKISTANs Foreign Ministry said India was expelling a Pakistani diplomat in New Delhi after briefly detaining him on what it called false and unsubstantiated charges, a sign of increasing tension between the two South Asian nuclear-armed archrivals. India informed Pakistans high commissioner, the top Pakistani diplomat in the country, that embassy staff member Mehmood Akhtar had until tomorrow to leave the country.

PAKISTANs government bans all political meetings, rallies and protests in the capital ahead of a planned opposition march against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Nov. 2. The ban is to remain in force for two months.

MYANMAR A Yangon historic-preservation group says the countrys largest city and commercial capital is facing its last best chance to save many crumbling architectural treasures dating back to the days when Myanmar was the British colony of Burma.

CAMBODIA-THAILAND A Cambodian official says authorities are working on a request from Thailands government to extradite three Thais accused of insulting the monarchy.



HAWAII The American Coast Guard suspends its search for a Chinese man attempting to set a sailing record after a crew did not find him aboard his boat off the Hawaii islands. Guo Chuan, 50 (pictured), was attempting to set a sailing record from San Francisco to Shanghai.

VIETNAM Authorities seized 1 ton of ivory smuggled from Kenya, the fifth such seizure in the past month. The ivory was hidden in timber in two containers on the way to Cambodia via Vietnam. Customs official Le Dinh Loi says the shipment was seized at Cat Lai port in the southern commercial hub of Ho Chi Minh City.



INDONESIA A court gave a 20-year jail sentence to an Indonesian woman accused of killing a former classmate at an Australian school with cyanide-laced coffee, in a trial that was broadcast live and became a national spectacle. The Central Jakarta District Court found Jessica Kumala Wongso, 28, guilty of murdering Wayan Mirna Salihin at an upmarket Jakarta cafe in January.



TRUMP Los Angeles police arrested a man suspected of using a sledgehammer to destroy Republican presidential candidate Donald Trumps star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, officials said Thursday. Jamie Otis was taken into custody early Thursday on suspicion of felony vandalism.
TWIN FALLS  Brookelyn Herman is still just a senior at Kimberly High School. But she already knows what its like to have a career at Clif Bar.

She was among 500 Magic Valley students to attended Junior Achievement of Idahos Inspire to Hire career exploration day Thursday at the College of Southern Idaho.

The nonprofit organization hopes the career fair will give students a better idea of which career path theyre interested in and how to prepare.

We put this career fair together to let students know what careers are available and what education is needed, said Alice Pyle, director of community engagement for Junior Achievement of Idaho.

In addition to booths from nearly 20 companies, business professionals volunteered to meet with students one-on-one to critique their resumes and conduct mock interviews.

It helps prepare students for job searching in the future and provides a chance to learn interview etiquette, Pyle said. When they go to a real interview, theyre prepared and know what to expect.

Brookelyn also learned that some businesses, like Albertsons, have a higher starting wage than she expected.

Kimberly High School senior Hunter Klemann, 17, wants to attend Boise State University. She did a mock interview and visited lots of employer booths.

It was really great to interact with someone from a business, she said.

Junior Achievement of Idaho partnered with Wells Fargo and the Navel Nuclear Laboratory to organize a statewide tour of career fairs, with stops in Pocatello, Boise and Twin Falls.

Junior Achievement  which serves children in kindergarten through 12th grades  focuses on financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship.

It expanded into the Magic Valley a few years ago, and volunteers go into classrooms to teach finance lessons. It was the second year for the career fair in the Magic Valley.

Employers included banks, contractors, Idaho National Laboratory, C3, Kimberly Nurseries Landscape & Irrigation and city of Twin Falls public safety.

At the INL booth, students did hands-on activities like using a straw to blow a cheese puff up into the air and seeing how long they could suspend it in mid-air.

Students sampled mini energy bars at Clif Bars booth. Dan Clark, a training and development manager, talked with groups of students.

Clark told the Times-News the first question he asks students is what they want to do for a career.

Most of them have no idea, he said. He encourages students to come up with a plan and pick a career theyll enjoy.

Four-year college degrees always help, Clark said. But, he noted, Clif Bar employs people with or without a college degree with varying levels of experience.

Jobs in the company cover a range of areas, including information technology, human resources and food sciences.

And caring for employees is important at Clif Bar, Clark said. The facility is all geared around the healthiness and happiness of employees.
BURLEY  That trash you tossed without a second thought could soon be powering your home.

A plan is in the works to turn methane gas produced at the Milner Butte landfill into electricity.

The Southern Idaho Solid Waste Board of Directors voted Wednesday to move forward with a plan to build a generator at the landfill, said Josh Bartlome, SISW executive director.

Twin Falls County Commissioner George Urie, who is on the Board of Directors, said the project would both lower emissions and make money for the Solid Waste District. Bartlome had been traveling to the seven Magic Valley counties that are part of the district soliciting their support, and Twin Falls county commissioners agreed last week to back the project.

Its just the right thing to do environmentally, and doing this, hopefully itll keep our costs down with the revenue, Urie said.

Bartlome said Tuesday he proposed in 2014 that the district find some beneficial use for the gas.

Right now, were collecting it under a giant vacuum system, Bartlome said. Were basically collecting it, compressing it and igniting it to burn off any of the non-organic methane compound.

Since then, he said, the district has been doing feasibility studies and working with Idaho Power and the Department of Environmental Quality on how to move forward.

Having a generator provides a revenue generator for the district thats long-term that helps keep our costs lower for longer, Bartlome said.

The generator, he said, is expected to cost between $6.5 million and $7.1 million to build and would produce up to five megawatts of electricity per hour. Bartlome said the facility would be expensive to operate but would, according to a very conservative estimate, produce $5 million to $9 million in profit for the district over the course of 20 years.

The next steps include finalizing a long-term lease agreement to finance the project  a finance company is going to pay for the project, and the Solid Waste District would lease the generator and then take ownership after it is paid off.

Also, Bartlome said, they need to decide on a generator  they are looking at two different options  get a DEQ permit to build, finalize the generator interconnector agreement with Idaho Power and see if any changes need to be made to the feasibility study.

Bartlome expects all that to be finalized by March 2017, at which time construction could start.
We sure wish Scott McClure was running in a different race. Instead, hes decided to challenge Sen. Jim Patrick of Twin Falls.

Patrick earns our endorsement because hes the best candidate to address the issues facing Idaho right now. As a farmer, Patrick is focused heavily on agriculture issues, especially water.

He takes a more progressive position on education than some of his GOP counterparts. We appreciate teachers, he told our editorial board, but we havent shown it.

To solve the problem, Patrick wants the Legislature to continue funding a career ladder that raises pay for experienced teachers. He also wants the Legislature to find ways to bring more aides into classrooms to take the burden off over-worked teachers. And he wants districts to have more discretionary spending, a notion we heavily support.

Rather than calling for blanket funding boosts to education, Patrick has narrowly tailored solutions designed to fix problems within the broader education system.

Patrick would also like Idaho to consider a statewide insurance pool for teachers, a move that could bring better care and lower costs.

On public lands, Patrick says hed never vote for a bill that would allow states to sell lands should they be taken over from the federal government. That said, he wants the state and feds to work closer on better managing federal lands in Idaho.

We were also impressed by McClure, the owner of a prominent engineering firm who has previously run for office but never been elected. His experience running has given him time to find balance in his positions  even though hes running as a Democrat, hes the most centrist liberal local candidate in this campaign season.

Hes thinking about the long game, especially how education contributes to the economy. Against a weaker candidate, McClure would have earned our endorsement.

But in this case, Patrick is simply too practical to pass up.
Please consider joining me in voting for Catherine Talkington, candidate for District 24 representative. Ive had the fortune and pleasure of knowing Catherine in our educational work and studies for nearly a decade. Catherine exemplifies Margaret Meads quote, Never underestimate the power of a small group of committed people to change the world. In fact, it is the only thing that ever has.

Through thoughtful and open-minded inquiry, and genuine listening and research, Catherine problem-solves to affect dramatic, positive change in Twin Falls. She puts herself in the trenches to better understand how to impact our community for the better. Catherines work and insight into effective educational practices yielded data and research that led to $363,000 in grants for our school. We later received an additional $275,000 for merited renewal, totaling $638,000 in federal grant funding for local education.

Catherine is a highly engaged, enthusiastic, and authentic advocate. In this election cycle, she is a beacon of hope for us on the local level; we have a candidate of character who genuinely cares about the future of Idaho and will work tirelessly and optimistically for her residents. For those who dont have the pleasure to know her, please accept my voice as one who can vouch for her personally and professionally. Our district and community could not be better served than by Catherine Talkington.

Kimberly Allen

Twin Falls
Given how much Donald Trump talks about jobs leaving America, you might think that his supporters lost out more than others. In fact, the opposite appears to be true, according to a recent analysis from Gallup.
President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority (PA) met with Khaled Meshaal, Chief of Hamas political bureau, and Ismail Haniyeh who serves as the movements leader in Gaza on Thursday in Doha at a business luncheon hosted by Qatars Foreign Minister Khalid bin Mohammad al-Attiyah.

The very rare gathering of the three Palestinian officials was also reportedly attended by Secretary General of the Palestine Liberation Organization Saeb Erekat and Palestinian Ambassador to Qatar Munir Ghanam.

A statement released after the luncheon highlighted that Fatah and Hamas have agreed to protect the Palestinian national project that Israel wants to destroy by rendering the two-state solution impossible. They also stressed that there is no Palestinian state in Gaza, and no Palestinian state without Gaza, according to Wafa news agency controlled by the PA.

Reconciliation plans were also discussed with calls for the implementation of the past agreements made in this respect between Hamas and Fatah with the hope of establishing a consensus government before heading to the polls for elections. A unity government formed by the two groups in April 2014 failed in June 2015 and one of the key issues for their discord was who should be paid government wages as civil servants. Hamas in a statement earlier this week said it was willing to hold discussions with any Palestinian faction if the conditions are suitable for the success of reconciliation and ending the division.

Effort to confront Israels occupation and aggression in unison under a single Palestinian umbrella was also discussed. Hamas Spokesman Hazem Kassem had twitted that achieving Palestinian reconciliation and ending division is a strategic goal of Hamas.

Several efforts led by Egypt, Qatar and Turkey to reconcile Hamas and Fatah have failed but there are hopes that the rare business luncheon held in Qatar presents a new opportunity even though President Abbas was lately criticized by Hamas for showing contempt for the blood of martyrs and the suffering of the Palestinian people when he sent a condolences letter to Peress family and attended his funeral ceremony.
On Friday morning, Saudi Arabia announced that it intercepted and destroyed a missile 65 kilometers away from Mecca. The Houthi Movement claimed responsibility for the attack and stated, through its control media, that it was targeting King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, located 60 km away from Islams holiest city; Mecca.

Saudi Arabia said the missile was fired from the Yemeni border town of Saada. In retaliation, airstrikes were launched on the area shortly after the missile was intercepted.

No damage was reported by Saudi authorities but the Houhti controlled SABA news agency claimed that the missile directly hit its target causing massive destruction.

The latest missile attack is one of the deepest made by the Houthi rebels believed to be in possession of a stockpile of Soviet-era Scud missiles and domestically made ones. However, the increasing targeting of key infrastructures inside Saudi Arabia could signal the rebel movements effort to export the war beyond Yemens border.

At the beginning of the month, a ballistic missile was also fired at the King Fahd Air Base in Taif.

Reports that the rebels targeted an area close to Mecca where the Kaaba is located has provoked condemnation from Saudis. The site is the focal point for Muslims during their prayers.

Iran and Hezbollah are reportedly supporting the rebels with weapons in their fight against the pro-Hadi forces and the Saudi-led coalition that launched its military operations in March 2015.
Two Egyptians and an Algerian have been arrested on Thursday in Italy on suspicion of conspiracy to commit international terrorist acts with links to the Islamic State jihadist group.

The three men were arrested near Milan and in Turin at the request of anti-terrorism prosecutors in Genoa, police said.

The suspected group was allegedly engaged in propaganda operations, using pseudonyms and fictitious accounts.

A statement by Italian Interior Minister Angelo Alfano indicated that the group posts web broadcasts on jihadist propaganda websites and handles North African fighters in Syria and Libya on behalf of Daesh (IS.)

Alfano welcomed the arrests and praised the lengthily anti-terrorism probe that preceded Thursdays operation.

The prevention of terrorism is working and is continuing to get major results, he said.

A total of 55 suspected Islamic extremists have been arrested and deported this year, Alfano said.

A fourth person is being sought by the police in coordination with the terrorism prosecutor of Genoa.

Italy has been active in Iraq as part of the US-led coalition against the IS group, gradually boosting its troop presence in the country.

According to Sputnik news agency, about 500 Italian soldiers are protecting a strategically important dam north of the city of Mosul.
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.
Kenyas Deputy President William Ruto on Thursday said Democratic Republic of Congos conflict is a threat to the Great Lakes region, calling the international community to help deal with the negative forces behind the conflict in the central African nation.

In the age of ever-rising terrorism, the region should guard against such global terror networks seeking to perpetuate their hate agenda, Ruto told delegates at the United Nations Great Lakes Peace Security and Cooperation Summit in the Angolan capital, Luanda.

There is need to deal with negative forces in the DRC if sustainable peace in the Great Lakes is to be achieved. We can draw lessons and best practices from each other as we strive to strengthen our democratic institutions and governance systems, he said.

The Luanda summit discussed ways of bringing lasting peace to the Great Lakes region, an area in sub-Saharan Africa that mainly covers about 12 countries in east, central and southern Africa, most affected by conflict.

The summit was initiated by the United Nations to discuss peace programs in the DRC, Burundi, South Sudan and the Central African Republic.

U.N. forces have deployed in the past years ground troops, attack helicopters and drones to support a campaign by Democratic Republic of Congos army against rebels in the northeast of the country.

The copper-rich Congo is plagued by dozens of armed groups that prey on locals and exploit mineral reserves. Millions died there between 1996 and 2003 as a regional conflict caused hunger and disease.
Amnesty international and Freedom House on Thursday said Gambias decision to leave the International Criminal Court (ICC) is a grave cause for worry.

The Gambia has announced on Wednesday its withdrawal from the Hague-based international criminal court, accusing the tribunal of the persecution and humiliation of people of color, especially Africans.

According to Amnesty International and Freedom House, Gambias move is disturbing because the court was important in asserting rights of disadvantaged Africans.

The announcement is a blow to millions of victims around the world, particularly coming as it does on the heels of recent moves by South Africa and Burundi to also withdraw from the ICC, Netsanet Belay, Amnesty Internationals Research and Advocacy Director for Africa said.

He said rather than joining this drastic march away from justice, other African states should follow the lead of Botswana to constructively support the work of the Court to resolve any legitimate issues.

For many Africans the ICC presents the only avenue for justice for the crimes they have suffered, Netsanet Belay noted.

A statement by the Washington-based Freedom House quoted Vukasin Petrovic, director of Central, West and East Africa programs as saying: Gambias withdrawal from the ICC threatens human rights protection in the country, especially given the governments failure to protect the fundamental freedoms of its citizens.

The Gambian government has repeatedly deprived citizens of basic civil liberties by cracking down on public protests and jailing opposition and civil society figures, and withdrawal from the ICC removes a mechanism of protection, he added.

Gambia has been trying without success to use the court to punish the EU for deaths of thousands of African migrants trying to reach its shores.
Despite its limited resources, Morocco has become a real game-changer in Africa under the stewardship of King Mohammed VI who has earned worldwide recognition and praise for his efforts deployed for the sake of the African peoples prosperity, peace and security.

Since his enthronement in July 1999, King Mohammed VI showed growing interest in Africa, providing assistance to disaster-stricken African countries, sharing his countrys know-how and championing African causes in international fora.

During the past few years, the reformist Sovereign made several trips to Western and Central Africa wherein the Monarch launched sustainable and community-driven development projects.

In every stop, the Moroccan King received a warm welcome by African leaders and people. And in every African country, the Moroccan Head of State gave African brethren a hand up not a handout, pushing up for joint cooperation projects targeting local communities needs and priorities.

These priorities include agriculture, fisheries, vocational training, health, water, solar energy, electricity Working hand in hand with local communities and African leaders are the secret ingredients of the Moroccan success story in Africa.

Many African citizens and ministers say the inclusive development and clean-energy projects launched by the Moroccan Sovereign in their countries have started to yield positive results, while others recognize they have changed utterly their lives for the better.

After the successes scored in West and Central Africa, the Moroccan Sovereign reached out to Eastern Africa by his recent official visits to Rwanda, Tanzania, meant to open a new era of cooperation with these English Speaking countries.

King Mohammed VI started his historic tour in the region on October 18 and visited Kigali and Dar Essalam.

The Sovereign was also expected to visit Ethiopia but this visit was postponed to a later date.

In Rwanda and Tanzania, Morocco signed over forty cooperation agreements covering almost all sectors from finance, investment, banking and tourism to religious Affairs, agriculture, fisheries, mining

These agreements, sealed within the frame of South-South cooperation, set out a win-win partnership based on solidarity and shared geostrategic interests between Morocco and these African countries.

Many analysts say the North African Kingdom, which has become a magnet for foreign investors thanks to its political stability, tolerance and open economy, is turning into a dynamic power of change in the African continent, investing time, energy and expertise to contribute to Africas take-off. And eventually restoring Africas past glory!
Credit: University of Aberdeen

The number of trained nurses available to treat patients immediately after a stroke is the most reliable health services predictor of survival according to research from the University of Aberdeen and University of East Anglia.

Having the optimal number of trained nurses available to look after patients in an acute stroke unit was consistently found to be the best predictor of survival from stroke - after personal health factors were accounted for, such as age, stroke severity and blood pressure.

The study found that just one additional trained nurse per ten beds could reduce the chance of death after thirty days by up to twenty-eight per cent, and after one year by up to twelve per cent.

The number of consultants, type of hospital and level of support offered at discharge were some of the factors compared in the analysis to find which aspect of health service is the most valuable. Patient survival at seven days, thirty days and one year after stroke was recorded.

In the study, funded by the National Institute for Health Research's (NIHR) Research for Patient Benefit (RfPB) Programme, the results showed that at each time point, the ratio of trained nurses to patients predicted whether or not the patient would survive. Also, nurse to patient ratio was the only factor that could reliably predict whether the patient would have survived or not at one year post-stroke.

The full paper is published today (October 28) on the eve of World Stroke Day, in Age and Ageing, the Journal of the British Geriatrics Society.

Professor Phyo Myint, Professor of Old Age Medicine at the University of Aberdeen, led the study with colleagues from the University of East Anglia, Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, Anglia Stroke & Heart Clinical Network, and Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge. The data were gathered from an audit of eight hospitals in the East of England and supplemented to investigate predictors of survival from stroke.

Professor Myint said: "This is surprising - we didn't expect to find this.

"We might expect more obvious aspects of health care to have a greater impact on survival, such as, having a team to support early hospital discharge, or the proportion of acute and rehab beds on the unit.

"Instead, we found that, when controlling for all other variables, an increasing nurse to patient ratio has a substantial effect on reducing likelihood of death after stroke. This proved to be a very clear and consistent predictor of stroke survival.

"Our figures show that there aren't too many extra stroke nurses required to significantly improve survival - in fact, only one extra trained nurse per 10 beds would see a reduction in mortality at 30 days by up to twenty-eight percent and up to twelve percent at one year. "

Amanda Cheesley, Professional Lead for Long Term Conditions and End of Life Care at the RCN said: "The importance of having the right number of nurses in place can't be overstated. This research echoes findings in other areas of health care where there is a clear link between the number of registered nurses and patient safety.

"It also once more highlights the vital difference that specialist nurses can make. Too often senior and specialist nursing posts have been cut to save money, but their expertise and experience has a measurable positive impact on patients."
Charitable organizations perform more than 80 percent of cleft lip and cleft palate surgeries in Vietnamreflecting the complex and persistent barriers to surgical care in low- to middle-income countries (LMICs), according to a study in the November issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

Facing structural, financial, and cultural barriers to cleft lip and palate surgery, "Patients rely on charitable care outside the centralized healthcare system," according to the report by Dr. William Magee III of University of Southern California and colleagues. "As a result, surgical treatment of cleft lip and palate is delayed beyond the standard optimal window compared to more developed countries."

Study in Vietnam Gives New Insights into Barriers to Cleft Lip and Palate Surgery in LMICs

Dr. Caroline Yao and her research team surveyed approximately 450 Vietnamese families seeking cleft lip and/or palate repair surgery for their affected child. The families were seen at four medical missions sponsored by Operation Smile, Inc. Parents were asked in-depth questions about their perceptions of the barriers to surgical and medical care for their child's condition.

At the time of initial cleft surgery, the children's average age was 3.25 years. By comparison, in developed countries, the recommended age for cleft lip and palate repair surgery is between three and 18 months.

Nearly three-fourths of the families had health insurance coverage. Yet 83 percent had their surgery performed by a charitable organization, outside of the national healthcare system.

While most parents had a local hospital that was more accessible than the Operation Smile mission, many said they could not obtain cleft treatment there, mainly due to cost. About 40 percent said that without the charitable mission, they would not have had access to any surgical or medical treatment for their child's condition.

The survey revealed a wide range of structural, financial and cultural barriers to cleft care. Structural barriers included lack of trained medical personnel, equipment, and medicine. Financial barriers were identified as not only the cost of the surgery, but the cost of travel to obtain care. Cultural barriers included family members' opinions/permission and lack of trust in the medical system/personnel.

Cleft lip and palate are the most common craniofacial birth defects, occurring in between 1 in 500 to 1 in 2,500 infants worldwide. "The defect not only results in physical obstacles to feeding and language development, but patients are often subjected to significant social stigma," Dr. Magee and colleagues write.

People living in LMICs continue to face substantial barriers to accessing healthcareespecially for specialized care such as surgery. Improving access to surgical care has become a major global health priority. However, the current knowledge gap on providing surgery in LMICs, including the need for specialized facilities, physicians, and follow-up care, has only begun to be studied.

The study suggests that charitable missions remain a critical source of access to surgical care in LMICs, even in countries with near-universal health insurance. Based on their findings, Dr. Magee and colleagues propose a new "Surgical LMIC" model to give a more complete picture of the unique barriers to accessing surgery in resource-poor countriesespecially for conditions that require multiple operations, as is often required in reconstructive surgery.

"[Our study] also highlights the challenges and successes for mission-based care and the need to better understand surgical barriers in order to design more effective programs for both missions-based and locally sustainable surgical care," Dr. Magee and coauthors write. "Plastic surgeons are uniquely positioned to lead the surgical community in addressing the need for improvements in global surgical access and care, given our history of mission-based work, access to multicultural patients and dedication to education systems within global surgery."

More information: Caroline A. Yao et al. Barriers to Reconstructive Surgery in Low- and Middle-Income Countries, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (2016). Journal information: Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Caroline A. Yao et al. Barriers to Reconstructive Surgery in Low- and Middle-Income Countries,(2016). DOI: 10.1097/PRS.0000000000002656
A new probe into why colorectal surgery patients end up back in the hospital after surgery suggests that it has less to do with the hospital or treatment received but rather more determined by patient factors such as race, income, and insurance status.

The study underscores the vast challenge in leveling health disparities especially as some hospitals that serve these populations face disproportionately harsh penalties for outcomes directly impacted by such factors.

The Hospital Readmission Reduction Program (HRRP), put in place in 2012 by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), penalizes hospitals for higher-than-expected readmission rates for six conditions: heart attacks, heart failure, pneumonia, COPD, and hip and knee replacement. To date, it has penalized more than half of the nation's hospitals for failing to meet expectations, imposing more than $500 million in fines.

Under debate is whether hospitals treating a large number of socially disadvantaged patientsindividuals who may not be able to afford their medications or lack a supportive social environmentshould receive extra consideration. CMS posits that all hospitals should be held to the same standard, says the study's senior investigator, Waddah B. Al-Refaie, MD, FACS, surgeon-in-chief at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center and chief of surgical oncology at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital (GUH).

According to Al-Refaie, numerous studies, however, have shown that patient factors do make a difference in the risk of readmission.

"Minority-serving status of a hospital is important," he says. "These hospitals typically serve as a safety net in low-income communities; their patients tend to have more co-morbidities and less resources to support their health."

Writing in the journal Surgery published online Oct. 28, the investigators say the federal government should take these patient factors into account in their push to reduce hospital readmission rates.

"If these factors are not balanced out, we fear minority-serving hospitals will face substantial, crippling financial penalties, and may end up being selective about the patients they admit," says Al-Refaie.

Al-Refaie, along with a team of researchers at MedStar GUH and MedStar Health Research Institute, set out to look at outcomes in colorectal surgery, a common procedure in the U.S. each year as treatment for colorectal cancer, inflammatory bowel disease and diverticulitis. This procedure has a high risk for postoperative complications and hospital readmissions within 30 days of discharge.

The researchers examined outcomes and patient factors in more than 168,000 colorectal surgery patients treated in 374 California hospitals from 2004-2011. Forty-seven (47) of these hospitals were considered minority-serving hospitals for having a high percentage of minority patients. Hispanic and black patients comprise 63 percent of the patient population in minority-serving hospitals, compared with 17 percent in other hospitals.

After discounting patient's age, sex, comorbidities, and year and type of procedure, the researchers found that, overall, 30-day, 90-day, and repeated remission rates were 11.6 percent, 17.4 percent, and 3.0 percent, respectively. The rate in minority-serving hospitals, in comparison, was 13.6 percent, 20.1 percent, and 4.0 percent, respectively. Inpatient mortality was also significantly higher at minority-serving hospitals (4.9 percent) compared to non-minority-serving hospitals (3.8 percent).

Mining the data further, the investigators found that patient factors (race, low income and insurance status) accounted for up to 65 percent of the observed increase in odds for readmission at minority-serving hospitals, while hospital-level factors (such as procedure volume and procedure type) accounted for up to 40 percent.

"These findings suggest that CMS should account for patient socio-economic factors when they compare readmission rates," says Al-Refaie.

"We know that safety-net hospitalsthose providing healthcare to a large proportion of uninsured and patients with Medicaidare more commonly penalized under the HRRP program, and we worry that imposing unfair fines for surgery readmission on hospitals that are already financially vulnerable will have unintended consequences on patients," he says. "These hospitals may become less inclined to take in sicker patients and reduce spending necessary for patient safety, and that puts more patients' health at risk."
Shares in the world's largest maker of diabetes treatments, Novo Nordisk, fell by more than 19 percent on Friday after it cut its profit forecast, reflecting tough competition in the US market.

Investors sold the shares even as net profit in the third quarter rose by 17 percent to 9.8 billion kroner (1.3 billion euros, $1.4 billion) and net sales jumped by 3 percent to 27.5 billion kroner.

"During 2016, the market environment in the US has become significantly more challenging, negatively impacting future pricing for Novo Nordisk's products," the company said in a statement.

Annual sales growth this year would be between five and six percent, instead of between five and seven percent, while operating profit would rise between five to seven percent instead of five to eight percent, it said.

For the second time this year, the company halved a long-term profit target that had been in place for 20 years.

"In terms of long-term financial targets, Novo Nordisk no longer deems it achievable to reach the operating profit growth target of 10 percent set in February 2016," the insulin maker said.

"As a result, the target has been revised and Novo Nordisk is now aiming for an average operating profit growth of 5 percent," the company added.

Sydbank analyst Soren Lontoft Hansen told news agency Ritzau that the company "is facing a completely different reality than it has previously been in".

The number of adults estimated to be living with diabetes nearly quadrupled between 1980 and 2014 to 422 million, according to the World Health Organization.

Novo Nordisk said in September that it would cut 1,000 jobs worldwide, representing about 2.4 percent of its staff.

In the same month, chief executive Lars Rebien Sorensen said he would be stepping down by the end of 2016.

Shares in the company were down by 14.4 percent in late morning trading on the Copenhagen boursewhere the main index was 2.6 percent lowermeaning the stock was down by over 40 percent in the year to date.

 2016 AFP
A child suffering from malaria is cared for at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital in Blantyre, Malawi. Credit: Michigan State University

A Michigan State University researcher is challenging a widely held African belief that a spinal tap, a procedure safely used to treat other diseases, could suck the brain from the base of the skull and cause death in malaria patients.

Douglas Postels, a pediatric neurologist and a lead author of a new study, has shown that the common medical procedure used to diagnose brain infections and also treat nervous system illnesses that lead to increased pressure around the brain, is safe in patients with cerebral malaria.

Increased pressure in the brain can lead to death in many children who fall into coma from cerebral malaria, which is the most severe form of the disease.

"The thought has been not to use the procedure, especially if any increased pressure in the brain or swelling seen in the eye is present in comatose malaria patients," Postels said. "But based on our evidence, even children with severe brain swelling had no change in the likelihood of dying, whether or not they had a spinal tap."

The study is now published in the online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Postels, an associate professor in the College of Osteopathic Medicine who travels to southeastern Africa to treat patients and to further his research, realized that performing a spinal tap in children with the disease was not a universal practice across the continent. Many local doctors were concerned that the procedure could force the brain out of the hole at the base of the skull because of the potential pressure difference it could cause.

Questioning the validity of this way of thinking, Postels, along with co-author Christopher Moxon from the University of Liverpool, United Kingdom, set out to show that a spinal tap was not dangerous.

The researchers analyzed the outcomes of 1,827 cerebral malaria patients admitted to the hospital in Malawi between 1997 and 2013. They found that children who were sicker upon arrival at the hospital were more likely to die from their illness, not from the spinal tap, which did not change their risk of death.

Based on these findings, Postels said educating the African population and other areas that have similar beliefs is crucial in treating the disease since it's estimated that malaria kills a child on the continent every 30 seconds.

"This actually is an important procedure that may help patients survive," he said.

He hopes to further test these findings in a future randomized, controlled clinical trial to see if a spinal tap can actually be used as a therapy to lower brain pressure in children with cerebral malaria.

"The important thing to remember is it's not the spinal tap that causes death, it's the underlying illness. Rather than being harmful, we believe the procedure could be beneficial for these critically ill children. Anything we can do to help decrease death and disability rates for children with severe malaria is a positive for everyone."
(HealthDay)Subconjunctival gentamicin can cause macular necrosis in the eye, according to a letter to the editor published online Oct. 20 in Clinical & Experimental Ophthalmology.

Rachael C. Heath Jeffery, from the Australian National University in Canberra, and colleagues describe a 65-year-old male with no previous ocular history who was referred for management of a left macula-on rhegmatogenous retinal detachment. The patient underwent uncomplicated left 25-guage vitrectomy with retinotomy. The patient had an allergy to penicillin; ropivacaine was given at the start of the procedure, and dexamethasone and gentamicin sulfate were given at the end of the procedure.

The researchers note that at postoperative day one, there was 80 to 90 percent gas fill and an attached retina. On postoperative day 14, the gas bubble had reduced to 30 percent but visual acuity was counting fingers only in the left eye. Dilated fundal examination showed retinal pallor throughout the macula, a posterior pole retinal detachment, and three large irregularly shaped full thickness holes within the macula. The patient required repeat vitrectomy surgery; no peripheral retinal breaks were identified at revision surgery. The macular tissue was too necrotic for inner limiting membrane peel; following drainage of sub-retinal fluid, an oil tamponade was used. The holes failed to close.

"The most likely mechanism for the macular necrosis in this eye is toxicity from subconjunctival gentamicin, which entered the gas-filled vitreous cavity through an unsutured 25-gauge sclerotomy," the authors write.

Copyright  2016 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
THE TRUE COST OF ALL THAT 'CHEAP' LAOR THAT DESTROYED AMERICA THE BIG SECRET DEMOCRATS DO NOT WANT YOU TO KNOW: Heather Mac Donald of the Manhattan Institute has testified before a Congressional committee that in 2004, 95% of all outstanding warrants for murder in Los Angeles were for illegal aliens; in 2000, 23% of all Los Angeles County jail inmates were illegal aliens and that in 1995, 60% of Los Angeless largest street gang, the 18th Street gang, were illegal aliens.
@PatriciaMazzei

This time, Hillary Clinton's concert appearance won't be a surprise.

Clinton plans to spend Saturday night at downtown Miami's Bayfront Park, where she will attend the Jennifer Lopez concert her campaign organized to get out the South Florida vote. Earlier this week, Clinton made an unscheduled stop at Adele's concert at American Airlines Arena.

Democrats expect big turnout at early polls on the first weekend of early voting.

The J. Lo concert is the first of several the Clinton camp has organized across the country. Marc Anthony will be a special guest, Clinton said earlier this week.

To obtain tickets, fans must first visit one of Clinton's website.

This post has been updated to reflect that the tickets are available online, not in Clinton's Miami field offices.
@JeremySWallace

TALLAHASSEE  Across the nation, governors who aren't even on the ballot are using their political muscle to drag fellow Republicans to victory in a year in which Donald Trump has created uncertainty at the top of the ticket.

In Maryland, first-term Gov. Larry Hogan is hitting the trail for key congressional races. In Wisconsin and Ohio, Scott Walker and John Kasich have done bus tours and are frequently with Republican senators battling for re-election.

But in Florida, where U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and other Republicans are fighting for their political lives, Gov. Rick Scott is missing from the campaign trail.

When asked by the Times/Herald if he had any campaign stops planned, Scott replied: "There's none on the calendar."

Two years ago, Rubio and other congressional candidates joined Scott on a campaign bus tour when he battled Democrat Charlie Crist for re-election.

This year, however, not even Trump has been able to lure Scott onto the trail. Trump has made 19 campaign stops in Florida since the end of July. Scott didn't attend any of them.

Full Story Here
Meet Jonathan Taylor. Hes one of those wealthy internet start-up whizzes who wrote software in high school, moved to Silicon Valley, made it rich during the dot-com surge and created and sold two businesses. Hes moved back to his roots in Florida and, at 45, is a self-described mentor/investor based in the Orlando suburb of Maitland.

Until two weeks ago, the only political thing Taylor had ever done, he says, was vote. But when he got irritated about the confusion over Amendment 1, he decided to personally finance his own internet marketing campaign to get the reality about the amendment out and urge people to reject the utility industry-backed amendment that creates a new barrier to competition.

The language reads pro-consumer when in reality its pro-confusion, said Taylor, a former Republican who says he is now sort of without a party.

I have many intelligent friends who are pro-solar, who just didnt understand the realities of Amendment 1. Its pretty amazing, actually.

Taylor has given himself a budget of $100,000 and, using his years of online marketing expertise, developed social media ads on Twitter and Facebook, created a web site landing page called FloridianSolar.org, paid for boosted posts, and called out the utility-financed political committee for breaking Googles online advertising rules.

In two weeks, his tracking software indicated that his efforts had reached five million voting-age Floridians. His personal posts, on his companys Entrenext web site, reached three million Facebook users, has had more than 55,000 shares and 32,000 likes. Story here.


@MichaelAuslen

Confusion continues to surround Florida's death penalty after the state Supreme Court ruled two weeks ago that death sentences must be made on a unanimous jury vote.

That decision upended a new law passed this spring that required a 10-2 vote by the jury to sentence someone to death after they have already been found guilty. It led to questions about whether the Legislature must act before death sentences can commence.

Not so, says Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi. Death penalty trials should continue.

Still, Bondi's office has asked the Supreme Court to clarify its rulings in Hurst vs. Florida and Perry vs. Florida, the two death penalty cases the justices decided on Oct. 14 that ruled a split jury could not sentence someone to death.

"We're just seeking clarification toclarify for the trial courts and just state the obvious," Bondi said.

In fact, she said, a circuit court judge in Ocala "erred" last week when it put sentencing on hold in a double-murder case.

The death penalty is still constitutional, Judge Robert Hodges said, according to reports in the Ocala Star-Banner. But the process to get there is gone.

That's the argument that some death penalty defense lawyers have made in the weeks following the court's Hurst and Perry rulings.

Other questions remain unanswered about the death penalty in Florida, as well. Namely, what happens now to the 386 death-row inmates convicted and sentenced under thrown-out laws?

The question has caused stress among prosecutors who worry a mandate from the Supreme Court to retry cases or resentence convicted murderers would cause a catastrophic backlog.

But Bondi's not worried. Reporters asked Tuesday whether she thought there would be "hundreds of retrials and hundreds of resentencings"?

"I don't, I don't," she said.
Our ears are burning.

Twice in two debates, Democratic Senate candidate Patrick Murphy invoked our name as a shield in the face of criticism from Republican incumbent Sen. Marco Rubio about his background.

"You continue to throw out these lies. They have all been debunked by PolitiFact," Murphy said.

Murphys response was memorable  especially to us. His retort is a wishful reading of our reports. Heres the truth: Murphy has exaggerated his credentials, and his opponents have also exaggerated their attacks on Murphy.

In the Oct. 26 debate in Davie, Rubio dubbed Murphy a "serial embellisher," saying the South Florida congressman never had a contract to clean up Gulf oil, and he could not have worked as a CPA in Florida because he did not have a Florida CPA license.

ABCs Jonathan Karl, the moderator of the first debate, also asked Murphy about his background.

"Youve described yourself as a small business owner, but your company is a subsidiary of a billion-dollar construction firm founded by your father. You call yourself a Certified Public Accountant, but you have not been a CPA in the state of Florida. And for more than a year, your website said that you had two degrees from the University of Miami, when in fact you only had one."

"Absolutely not," Murphy responded, "and I am glad you asked this question, and its important that you all hear it from me. You see, PolitiFact, an independent fact-checking agency has already debunked these accusations."

No, we have not.

Words matter, and heres why.

Keep reading Katie Sanders' story from PolitiFact Florida.

Miami Herald photo by Pedro Portal
@ByKristenMClark

Flush with fresh cash from national Democrats and other donors, a super PAC supporting Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Patrick Murphy is re-airing an attack ad in Miami that criticizes Republican incumbent Marco Rubio's Senate record.

The ad that the pro-Murphy "Floridians for a Strong Middle Class" announced Friday actually first debuted a month ago, when it was launched by the Senate Majority PAC, a national Democratic super PAC. "Floridians for a Strong Middle Class" says it's spending at least $100,000 to air the ad in Miami through Election Day.

On Thursday, the Senate Majority PAC announced it was giving at least $1 million to "Floridians for a Strong Middle Class" to prop up Murphy's campaign in the final days of the race. "Floridians for a Strong Middle Class" spokeswoman Ashley Walker said the latest ad buy is being funded in part from that money, as well as money from other supporters.

"Its bad enough that Rubio rarely shows up to work, but its worse when he actually does and votes against our states best interests," Walker said in a statement.

Rubio spokeswoman Olivia Perez Cubas said in response: "Patrick Murphy has been in Congress for four years and has nothing to show for it, so he and his allies are attacking Marco. Florida already has a senator with a strong record of fighting for them, and that's why they're going to re-elect Marco."

Recent polls show Rubio is maintaining an edge in the race, but Murphy has been able to narrow the gap in the past couple weeks.

Image credit: Floridians for a Strong Middle Class / YouTube


@PatriciaMazzei

The owner of the Miami Marlins has made his pick  for the election, that is, not the World Series.

Jeffry Loria  and his checkbook  are backing Donald Trump.

Loria donated $125,000 to Trumps campaign late last month, according to a campaign-finance report Trump Victory filed late Thursday.

The contribution, first spotted by the Miami New Times, is dated Sept. 29. Thats two days after Trump mentioned Loria, a multi-millionaire art dealer, as the candidate campaigned in Little Havana, near Marlins Park.

Speaking to Cuban Americans at Miami Dade Colleges Koubek Memorial Center on Sept. 27, Trump mourned the death two days earlier of Marlins star pitcher Jose Fernandez, who was killed in a boat crash.

More here.

Photo credit: Patrick Farrell, Miami Herald staff
The GSMA today announced that it has elected Sunil Bharti Mittal, Founder and Chairman, Bharti Enterprises, as Chairman for the two-year period from January 2017 through December 2018. As GSMA Chairman, Mr. Mittal will oversee the strategic direction of the organisation, which represents nearly 800 of the worlds mobile operators, as well as more than 300 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem. Bharti Airtel was the host of the inaugural GSMA Mobile 360  India event in New Delhi this week, as well as a meeting of the GSMA Board.





A highlight of the week, GSMA Chair-elect Mr. Mittal led the GSMA Board delegation at a meeting with the Indian Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi on Wednesday afternoon. In a broad-ranging discussion, the meeting highlighted the pivotal role of mobile in delivering the government's Digital India vision of broadband as a utility for every citizen, bringing digital and financial inclusion to every corner of the country.

The GSMA delegation led by the newly elected Chairman Mr Sunil Bharti Mittal with the Hon'ble PM of India, Shri Narendra Modi.





The GSMA also elected the new members of the 26-member Board and re-elected Mari-Noelle Jego-Laveissiere, Executive Vice President, Innovation, Orange Group as Deputy Chair for the two-year period.





Mr. Sunil Bharti Mittal said, I am delighted to be elected as Chairman of the GSMA, and look forward to working closely with the rest of the Board, the GSMA leadership team and our entire membership to address the critical issues facing our industry and our customers. In a relatively brief period of time, mobile has had a transformational impact on individuals, businesses, industries and societies, contributing significantly to local economies and improving the lives of billions around the world. I am excited about what the next chapter holds for us, as we work to connect everyone and everything to a better future.





In my new global role, I am excited to support the ongoing mobile broadband revolution in India to boost the Governments Digital India Program and its vision of broadband access for all, added Mr. Mittal.





The first Indian to be elected as Chairman of the prestigious global telecom industry board, Sunil Bharti Mittal took over as Chairman of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) early this year. He already serves on the Boards and Councils of several reputed international bodies and think-tanks like the World Economic Forum (WEF), Telecom Board of International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the Broadband Commission, Harvard Universitys Global Advisory Council - Board of Deans Advisors at HBS, International Advisory Panel of the Monetary Authority of Singapore and Prime Minister of Singapores Research, Innovation and Enterprise Council. He is also a Trustee of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and on the Board of Qatar Foundation Endowment.





The GSMA Board has 26 members, including 25 operator representatives from the worlds largest operator groups as well as smaller, independent operators with global representation. The GSMAs Director General Mats Granryd also serves on the GSMA Board. The GSMA Board for the 2017-2018 term comprises:





Juan Carlos Archila, Executive Vice President, International Relationships, America Movil

Bill Hague, Executive Vice President-Global Connection Management, AT&T Mobility

Sunil Bharti Mittal, Founder and Chairman, Bharti Enterprises

Sha Yuejia, Executive Director and Vice President, China Mobile

Sun Kangmin, Executive Director and Executive Vice President, China Telecom

Lu Yimin, President and Vice Chairman, China Unicom

Wolfgang Kopf, Senior Vice President, Public and Regulatory Affairs, Deutsche Telekom

Hatem Dowidar, CEO International, Etisalat

Mats Granryd, Director General, GSMA

Christian Salbaing, Deputy Chairman, Europe, Hutchison

Takashi Tanaka, President, KDDI

Eelco Blok, CEO, KPN

Chang-Gyu Hwang, Chairman and CEO, KT Corporation

Mauricio Ramos, CEO, Millicom

Phuthuma Nhleko, Chairman and Acting CEO, MTN Group

Andrei Dubovskov, President, MTS

Kazuhiro Yoshizawa, President and CEO, NTT DOCOMO

Mari-Noelle Jego-Laveissiere, Executive Vice President, Innovation, Orange Group

Dong-Hyun Jang, President and CEO, SK Telecom

Julio Linares Lopez, Vice President of the Board, Telefonica

Sigve Brekke, President and CEO, Telenor Group

Johan Dennelind, President and CEO, Telia Company

Kaan Terzioglu, CEO, Turkcell

Roy Chestnutt, Chief Strategy Officer, Verizon

Serpil Timuray, Group Chief Commercial Operations and Strategy Officer, Vodafone

Scott Gegenheimer, CEO, Zain Group





GSMA Chairman Mr. Jon Fredrik Baksaas will step down from the Board at the end of 2016, after holding this position for the past three years. Mr. Baksaas was elected as a member of the GSMA Board in 2008.




A University of Montana student was arrested early Thursday morning after climbing Main Hall to put a pumpkin on the spire at the top of the clock tower.

Peter Breigenzer, 22, was booked into the Missoula County jail on misdemeanor charges of obstructing a peace officer and criminal trespass.

UM spokeswoman Paula Short said a campus police officer saw Breigenzer climbing the building around 3:30 a.m. He told Breigenzer to come down, but instead the student continued to climb and spiked the pumpkin on top of the tower, Short said.

She said he then climbed down and was arrested.

Placing the pumpkin on the top of Main Hall in the week before Halloween has been a tradition at UM for around 20 years, Short said, adding that President Royce Engstrom appreciates the practice but is concerned with student safety.

Youre putting your safety at risk in scaling a building thats 100 years old, she said.

Short said she believes this is only the second time a person who has climbed the tower to place the pumpkin has been found and charged.

Breigenzer was released from custody shortly after 6 a.m. after posting a $500 bail. He was scheduled to appear in Missoula Municipal Court Thursday.

A clerk said the court could not release information about Breigenzers charges, whether he appeared in court, or the results of an appearance  if it happened  without a records request, which currently has a backlog of roughly 15 days. Such records have routinely been available.
The former chief financial officer of Vanns Inc. has been sentenced to 14 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for conspiring to defraud the company.

Paul Lyn Nisbet was sentenced Thursday in federal court in Missoula by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Dana Christensen.

This is not a situation where Mr. Nisbet simply failed to yell fire as the house burned, Christensen said.

Nisbet, 47, and former CEO George Leslie Manlove were charged last December with more than 200 federal counts alleging that they conspired to defraud Vanns, an appliance and electronics retailer that closed three years ago after declaring bankruptcy.

Prosecutors accuse the men of making shell companies and having Vanns lease property from them, without permission from the rest of the board of directors. Court documents also say Manlove used company money on personal expenses like tuition for himself, vacations and jewelry for family members, and membership fees at private clubs, with Nisbets knowledge and approval.

In June, as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors, Nisbet pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiracy to have his other charges dropped.

Nisbets attorney Colin Stephens said Thursday his client was caught between a rock and a hard place, referring to the board of directors and the somewhat megalomaniac Manlove. He added that public stigma of the charges and being "castigated in the media" has already had an effect.

Mr. Nisbet has lost the lions share of his good name, Stephens said.

Nisbet himself said over the 12 years he worked for Vanns, he had always tried to help it to be successful.

There is nothing I wouldnt do for that company, he said. Im incredibly sorry and remorseful.

Federal sentencing guidelines set a recommendation of 30 to 37 months in prison for Nisbet, and his attorney asked the judge to only impose community supervision or probation. Christensen said he felt the former too severe and the latter not enough of a punishment.

Christensen said he reached his sentencing decision after reading presentence reports, as well as 14 character letters on behalf of Nisbet that urged the judge to be lenient, and victim impact statements from former Vanns employees.

I know that the victims, the employees of Vanns, desire punishment, he said. Whatever sentence I impose in this case will send a message to the community in general.

In addition to his prison and supervision, Nisbet agreed to pay $122,250 in property forfeiture from the proceeds he gained by the conspiracy.

Restitution from the conspiracy totals $906,300. A hearing to determine the amount of restitution Nisbet owes is set for Nov. 16. A civil lawsuit against the two former executives filed on behalf of the former employees was settled for $7.3 million in 2014.

Nisbet was released Thursday to make arrangements before reporting to his prison placement. Christensen said he would recommend Nisbet be sent to a minimum-security facility in Sheridan, Oregon.
Missoula's rural firefighters brought warm coats and smiles to kids at Head Start.

On Thursday afternoon, six members of the Missoula Rural Fire District lugged box after box of winter coats into Head Start's main building, the former Whittier School.

They were armed with 250 coats, ready to warm up youngsters in the program. It's part of Operation Warm, a national nonprofit, launched in 1998 with a simple mission: provide new winter coats for kids in need.

The International Association of Firefighters jumped on board in 2012 with Firefighters for Operation Warm, and Montana's state IAFF chapter reached out to local departments.

The IAFF Local 2457 has been doing this all four years, now helping more than 1,000 children, said Missoula Rural Fire engineer  and soon-to-be lieutenant  Eric Huleatt.

"It's going to be organized chaos," he said before the kids and their families started streaming in.

***

The hardest decision kids had to make was which color they wanted.

That wasn't a tough choice for Jamie Fellon, who chose a bright pink coat to match the cast on her left arm. The event was a double bonus for her, since she just turned 5 on Tuesday.

"I love how they help out the lower-income parents," said Fellon's mother, Dorothy Murray.

Missoula's Head Start  here, Child Start Inc.  has 318 children across a few counties, with the majority in Missoula. The families are at or below 100 percent of the federal income poverty level. The program is for 3- and 4-year-olds.

"The last couple of weeks we've had kiddos coming without coats and we've had to scrounge around to find coats for them," said Head Start family advocate Nicole Burlingame-Stead. "This is the perfect answer to a basic problem."

In fiscal year 2014, the most recent data available through the Office of Public Instruction, 44 percent of Montana students qualified for free or reduced-price lunch.

In Missoula County Public Schools, Lowell and Franklin elementary schools consistently have the highest percentage of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch: 76 and 73 percent, respectively.

"This is one less thing on their shoulders," Burlingame-Stead said.

Burlingame-Stead reminded the public that Head Start enrolls year-round, so families don't have to wait for a new school year to sign up. Call 406-728-5460 for more information.

***

It typically takes Missoula's rural firefighters an hour to hand out the coats  when they have 50 to 100. They came with 250 on Thursday, more due to the need at Head Start.

All of the coats are paid for through donations from the community. This year, they raised about $12,000, Huleatt said, from checks dropped off at their main station and online at operationwarm.org/missoula. The coats cost $34 each.

The department gives out about 350 coats a year. Since they got involved in 2012, they've raised $40,000.

"We try to rotate through the schools and organizations that need it most," he said.

They've gone to Woodman, Lolo, Target Range, Lowell, Franklin, DeSmet, Bonner, C.S. Porter and Hawthorne schools, Huleatt said.

"We found there's really a need everywhere," he said. "Helping kids stay warm and letting families spend money on other things ... they have to worry about one less thing this winter."

One little girl has stuck with Huleatt. She came to get her coat at Woodman School last year and was "ecstatic."

"You would think we had loaded her up with sugar," he said. "She was bouncing off the walls."
The city of Missoula asked District Court on Thursday to order Mountain Water turn over customer and employee data before they pay for the utility, in order to facilitate a smooth transition.

In an order affirmed by the Montana Supreme Court in August, the city of Missoula won the right to use its eminent domain power to buy the water utility. Water commissioners set the price at $88.6 million.

Thursday in District Court, Judge Karen Townsend wanted to know when exactly the city planned to pay the $88.6 million for the water company.

Attorney Natasha Jones, representing the city, said the city likely won't pay for Mountain Water until after Judge Leslie Halligan rules on a separate case.

In that related court proceeding, a group of developers is arguing Mountain Water owes them some $21 million. The developers want the court to decide if the payment will come out of the $88.6 million.

Joe Conner, representing Mountain Water, urged Townsend to move past the citys requests and simply oversee the transfer of money to buy the utility.

What theyre asking you to do in this motion is something thats never been done in this state, he said. Possession is all were talking about here.

Conner said the court didnt have the jurisdiction to order the transfer of data from the company that holds customer data and from Liberty Utilities, the company that bought Mountain Water earlier this year, as theyre both third parties and not involved in the current case.

Conner also accused the city of not actually having the underwriting to buy the utility, asking for more than just city Chief Administrative Officer Dale Bickells word for the fact that their bank would give a loan.

The Missoulian reported in August this year on the citys detailed financial documents that would qualify them for up to a $145.3 million loan.

How many times did we hear, We have a plan? he asked. Now we hear, Oh, we cant do this. Give me a break.

All right, all right Mr. Conner, Townsend interrupted. Thats getting a little over the top.

He finished his statements, emphasizing again that he thought Halligans case had no bearing on the current transfer of possession.

This court has already ruled, he said. Were not going to transfer anything until something is paid into court.

Townsend has yet to rule on how much the city will owe Carlyle and Mountain Water for legal fees.

After hearing arguments Townsend simply said shed take this matter under advisement. No further hearing has been set.
I was fortunate to have the citizens of Mineral and Missoula counties entrust me with their confidence for over 26 years in allowing me to sit on the district court bench. In that period of time I have met and observed many judges, but have never met one of higher quality or intellect than that possessed by the Honorable Dirk Sandefur out of Great Falls.

Dirk Sandefur put himself through college, became a law enforcement officer and then went to law school. He worked in private practice, as a public defender, a deputy county attorney and was elected to serve on the district court bench in in 2003. Dirk Sandefur stands out as an intellectual leader, a very firm yet compassionate individual who many on the bench look to for guidance and leadership.

In this day and age we see way too much in the way of negative advertising about candidates, but when you look at the day to day workload and decision making of tenuous cases, the choice becomes rather simple as to whom I would want on the Supreme Court and that is Dirk Sandefur. I just simply tell my fellow citizens that they cannot go wrong with Dirk Sandefur for an honest talking, straight shooting and consistent Montana Supreme Court justice.

Please vote for Dirk Sandefur for Montana Supreme Court.

Ed McLean,

reitred district judge,

Mineral and Missoula counties,

Missoula
I keep hearing about the jails/prisons full to capacity. I think part of the problem began when they were privatized, leaving no option but to keep them full, which was part of the agreement.

I also know of one prison/jail in eastern Montana that was built and never used. Why?

Finally, I think we need to change the laws regarding marijuana use. Why, oh why, is it even a problem when alcohol is legal and an even bigger problem causing addiction, with no way to get treatment since the funding for the alcohol treatment facilities no longer exist?

After working in the field of alcohol and drugs, meth, to me, is the biggest enemy because it can be made and sold by anyone.

Don't "meth" around.

Jackie Trotchie,

Missoula
As a personal friend of Susan and Greg Gianforte, it is extremely distressing to hear the lies about them that Steve Bullock's people are sending out.

The Gianfortes are very kind, down-to-earth people. They could be dining on the Riviera but they love Montana and know that Montanans are suffering and want to help.

The city of Bozeman is doing great but you can go to any small town in Montana, which Greg and Susan Gianforte have done, and you can see they are hurting.

We are 49th in wages and Bullock wants to bring in refugees. Refugees who will never assimilate, have no job skills, will be on taxpayer money forever  just look at the chaos they are causing in Europe. Don't think Montanans want this to happen here.

We need Greg Gianforte for Montana!

Karen Marshall,

Bozeman
Montana has been called the Saudi Arabia of wind and we have lots of sunshine as well. NorthWestern Energy (NWE), though, has proposed spending $1.3 billion to build 13 gas-fired generators over the next decade instead of adding more wind farms and solar panels. They point out that wind and solar are intermittent and so may not meet peak demand, which, incidentally, could be easily and cheaply reduced using smart meters and more efficiency.

Natural gas produces 50 percent less carbon dioxide than coal when burned, but unfortunately, natural gas is mainly methane, a much more potent greenhouse gas than CO2. Just in the last year studies show that considerable methane unavoidably leaks during production and distribution of natural gas, so NWEs plan is dangerous, expensive and takes us in the wrong direction.

The solution to intermittent production, whether energy or food, is storage, as even squirrels know. Thats why we use grain elevators, freezers and canning to store summers bounty. For energy, batteries are becoming much cheaper, and will soon be widely available in electric cars. But pumped hydro storage is an already proven, simple and widely used way to store electricity.

At Gordon Butte in central Montana there are plans well underway to build an industrial-sized facility using this technology. When wind and sun produce more electricity than needed, that extra electricity will be used to pump water uphill to a reservoir. When more electricity is needed, the water will be allowed to run downhill to another reservoir and turn a generator. This is not rocket science.

Lets not let NWE bamboozle us into continuing to rely on fossil fuels. Instead, lets move towards the clean, renewable energy future that we need and that polls show most Montanans want.

Jerome Walker,

Missoula
Im grateful to my parents for regularly taking their kids to the public library, giving me habits of learning and exploration. What else did I get? Useful skills for asking good questions and habits of reading and answer-finding. And fun, too.

Now a young retiree, Im convinced my life was enriched by these skills and habits no school could fully grant me. And my employers benefited, too.

Where else, but at libraries, could I freely explore ideas, histories, arts, finances and how-tos by pulling books or magazines or maps off shelves while browsing? I still do, now also from library-owned digital tools and databases, with periodic help from reference librarians. And at the planned new library: far more.

Missoulas public library has been struggling to live inside its outgrown and maintenance-expensive shell for some time now. Let me therefore ask you to support the bond issue on our current election ballots to fund a new library building.

As a property owner in Missoula County, I understand the frustration many feel at all the bond funding requests in recent years. Please, however, dont take this out on this core Missoula resource, with its long-delayed need for a new home.

A few facts: the buildings worn out; its pipes regularly leak and replacement parts for old systems like heating must be custom-built, at extreme cost. Ours is the most-visited library in Montana (an average of over 1,500 people per day), while theres room only for 38 chairs on the main floor. Its one-third the recommended size for a community our size (let alone Missoulas higher level of use). And it was built back in 1974. The bond should cost the owner of a $200,000 house about $2.30 per month.

Theres more info: see YesforMissoulaLibrary.org.

Please, please check yes for our library bond.

Eric Mendelson,

Missoula
Marijuana is dangerous! Vote no on Initiative 182.

It cannot be denied that marijuana has medical properties. But proponents of I-182 want you to recognize the medical benefits and deny the significant negative health, social and economic consequences that it has on our communities. Marijuana is neither safe nor harmless. While well-tested pharmaceutical marijuana products may be a valid form of medication, I-182 does not responsibly grant access of medical marijuana with the oversight of medical professionals to patients who may truly benefit from it while knowing the possible risks of taking it. In the meantime:

 Because marijuana contains psychoactive cannabinoids, substance use disorders resulting from its use are serious and a widespread health problem.

 Marijuana use has adverse health consequences, including damage to specific organs and tissues and impairments in behavioral and neurological functioning.

 Marijuana is the most common drug involved in drugged driving and is a significant cause of highway crashes, injury and death.

 Marijuana legalization leads the public to view marijuana as less harmful which increases the rate of marijuana use in youth. While cigarette use has decreased in high school students, marijuana use has increased.

 Marijuana is the drug used by an estimated 61 percent of all Americans suffering from a substance use disorder related to drugs other than alcohol.

It is not in the best interest of Montanans to once again make marijuana more widely available and more acceptable. It didnt work the first time and it wont work again. I-182 is just another attempt by the pro-marijuana advocates to normalize its use in this state.

Susan Sullivan,

Billings
I recently came across a letter to the editor claiming that Ryan Zinke is not suitable to serve in Congress. As a 25-year Montanan who has personally seen Zinke at work, I would like to argue just the opposite and heres why:

Ryan Zinke stays true to his word and does not waiver on the issues he is fighting for - even when that means straying from his own party. A U.S. Navy SEAL himself, Zinke understands Americas duty to assist our allies when necessary if it means keeping the homeland safe and secure. He voted to stop the transfer and release of terrorists from Guantanamo Bay after the Obama administration put our country at risk by fighting to close it down. As a mother and grandmother, there is no issue of greater importance than the safety and security of my family.

He is also speaking out against the monster known as the Affordable Care Act. I personally have been hurt by this disastrous piece of legislation and appreciate Zinkes efforts to repeal the ACA.

I moved to Montana to raise my family here in hopes of providing them with a better quality of life. Zinke has my vote because I believe he has fought - and will continue to fight - for a better quality of life for my four children and my eight grandchildren. He puts his faith, his family and his country before anything else.

Congressman Ryan Zinkes record in the House of Representatives proves he has been a faithful and loyal leader to our Treasure State and I look forward to seeing him continue to serve in Congress when he is re-elected on Nov. 8.

Linda Chamberlin,

Bozeman
BIGFORK  The name of a man who died in a one-vehicle rollover on Montana Highway 83 Tuesday has been released.

Christopher Davis Shipman, 36, of Bigfork, was killed after being ejected from his vehicle at approximately 3:37 p.m., according to Lake County Sheriff Don Bell.

Bell said Shipman was not wearing a seat belt, and landed on the highway.

Emergency crews attempted CPR with no results, and Shipman was pronounced dead at the scene.

The rollover happened near mile marker 50. Bell said Shipman's body has been sent to the Montana Crime Lab in Missoula for further testing.
THOMPSON FALLS  Theres been a problem with the general election ballots in Sanders County, and Clerk and Recorder Nichol Scribner wants the public to know what it is, and how its being handled.

Theres been so much media on a rigged election, and why some people say we shouldnt trust election results, Scribner said. I feel its so important to get this out to the public. If we intended to intentionally do harm, wed keep it secret. I want people to know our goal is 100 percent accuracy.

The problem was discovered last week, as Scribners office prepared for its first public testing of ballot-counting machines.

When a test deck of ballots that had already been hand-counted was run through tabulators, the results did not match the hand count, and some of the ballots were rejected.

Scribner called Election Systems and Software, the Omaha, Nebraska, company that provides the county with everything from tabulators, and maintenance for them, to the stock that ballots are printed on.

The trouble didnt stay a mystery for long.

At least, thats what they thought.

The ES&S programmer that Sanders County works with noticed that, from photographs of the ballots provided by Scribner, the paper ballots appeared to have not been cut properly.

There are cut lines that should be the width of a fingernail, Scribner said. But instead, they were entire block squares.

***

They thought they had gotten to the bottom of the problem, although that certainly didnt solve it. Sanders County had already provided more than 3,600 of the improperly cut ballots to absentee voter and people who have registered to vote since Oct. 11.

Heres how Sanders County election officials will deal with that, Scribner said: Every absentee and late-registration ballot will be counted by hand after polls open on Nov. 8. Machines will not count any of them.

The county also ordered 7,899 new ballots to be distributed to Sanders County precincts on election day. They were due back Friday, Scribner said, and will be tested several times before, and on, Nov. 8.

If the tests are not 100 percent accurate, Scribner said, well hand-count all the ballots on Nov. 8.

But by late Wednesday, there was a new rub.

ES&S rushed a test deck for the new, properly cut, replacement ballots to the county. The clerk and recorders office put them through the tabulator.

And once again, the results didnt match the hand count.

***

ES&S had insisted it wasnt a problem with the software, Scribner said. I called them back and said, Please check the software. 

The company then downloaded new software for the Sanders County tabulators, Scribner said. When the test-deck was re-run, the numbers matched the hand count.

That will hardly be the end of it.

Election officials will not only run more tests with test ballots provided by ES&S, Scribner said. They also ordered another 225 unnumbered ballots that county employees will mark, hand-count, and run through the tabulators.

The person that runs them through doesnt get the information on what the ballot totals should look like, Scribner said. Theyll just print off the reports. Well test every candidate in every race.

Not only is the public welcome to observe the tests, the clerk and recorder said the county will try to have a member of the public there to watch, even if we have to grab somebody whos standing in line at the Treasurers Office.

Its so important, Scribner said. Thats why we test and re-test. If any of the tests are not 100 percent, well hand-count. Well be testing, testing, testing 'til the day of the election.

***

Election Systems and Software provides services, tabulators and ballots to at least 44 of Montanas 56 counties, according to the Montana Secretary of State's Office. Sanders County is the only one that received improperly cut ballots, or has had issues with ES&S software, said Emily Dean, director of communications for the Montana Secretary of States Office.

ES&S is the vendor for a lot of states, Dean said. This is the only case they can find where ballots were not cut correctly so that tabulating machines could read them. No other Montana counties have had problems with the software, she added.

A dozen Montana counties do not use ES&S tabulators, and therefore may not use ES&S, Dean said.

The unexpected problem in Sanders County is why we require all counties to do exceptions testing, pre-election public testing, Election Day testing and post-election audits, Dean said.

In post-election audits, random precincts from random counties are hand-counted and the numbers compared to vote totals to see if they match.

Weve never had an incident where it didnt, Dean said.

ES&S also prints ballots for some of the counties, but normally only provides the stock to Sanders County, which then hires a local business to print the ballots.

However, ES&S is providing the stock, and doing the printing as well, for the replacement ballots, at no charge to the county. Taxpayers will be on the hook for paying extra people to hand count all the absentee and late-registrant ballots, Scribner said.

The clerk and recorder has lined up 21 people  seven three-person teams  to deal with the hand count. Most are courthouse employees who would normally have the day off  its a holiday for state and county employees  and who will be paid time-and-a-half.

I dont have enough election judges to pull in to do a hand count, Scribner said. It will probably be a minimum of 12 hours to hand-count just the absentee and late-registrant ballots.

If ballots cast on Nov. 8 also need to be counted by hand, It will take us into the next day, she added.

I believe we have to be open and transparent about all this, Scribner said. I dont want anyone to have the perception that theres been anything about it thats secretive. Its so important.

Scribner said anyone with questions, or who would like to observe any of the testing that will be done in the coming days, can contact her at 827-6922, or by email at nscribner@co.sanders.mt.us.

And anyone is welcome to walk in, and watch our daily activities at any time, she said.
BILLINGS (AP)  The state of Montana and U.S. Department of Interior have notified a Wyoming company that they'll seek compensation for damages caused by more than 30,000 gallons of oil that spilled into the Yellowstone River from a broken pipeline.

More than 90 percent of the crude was never recovered following the Bridger Pipeline Company accident in January 2015 near Glendive. The river was frozen when the break occurred and the spill temporarily contaminated water supplies for 6,000 people living downstream of the break.

Montana Attorney General Tim Fox said it's too early to say how much money will be sought from Bridger. However, he said the company has so far been cooperative as state and federal officials embark on a lengthy assessment of the damages.

Exxon Mobil recently agreed to pay $12 million in environmental damages for a 2011 spill into the Yellowstone near Laurel.

In both cases, the broken lines had been installed just a few feet beneath the riverbed. The companies subsequently spent millions of dollars re-installing the lines more deeply beneath the Yellowstone and other river crossings in the state.

"You can't quantify the damage to our wildlife in a situation like this. That resource is precious and, I would argue, irreplaceable," Fox said. "We need to do better and I think we're headed in that direction and learning."

Federal regulators have rejected proposals to impose an industry-wide mandate for companies to bury pipelines more deeply. However, many pipeline operators in the region have taken such actions voluntarily in the years since the Exxon spill.

Earlier this month, the state land board approved a proposal by the Yellowstone Pipeline Company to re-bury two sections of 10-inch oil pipeline that cross beneath the Clark Fork River at locations in Granite and Missoula counties.

The crossings were originally installed in 1954 and 2005 and had become potential safety risks.
BISMARCK, N.D.  President Barack Obama has called for "peace" and "restraint" on the disputed Dakota Access oil pipeline, and says the U.S. A
Police reports

NO HUNTING ALLOWED

Police responded to a report of a couple arguing at Cobban and Oregon at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. The woman said she and her husband had been hunting and got in an argument after returning home and that she was afraid her husband might hurt himself. Police ran the man's name and discovered he was on parole, meaning he was not allowed to be rifle hunting. Police arrested Randy Weist, 35, for unlawful possession of a firearm, a felony, and felony parole violation.

PARENTS ARRESTED

A mother and father were arrested at the 2-Bar Lazy-H RV Park, west of Butte near Rocker, at 6:30 p.m. Thursday after police responded to a call about a suspicious vehicle. Police found two adults in the vehicle, Dawn Segna, 34, and Clyde Harrington, 32, both of Butte, along with the couple's infant child. Both were arrested on warrants, Harrington for two failures to appear in Butte City Court, theft, and a felony warrant out of Colorado and Segna for failure to appear in city court. Police said they allowed a relative to pick up the child before the arrest and that Segna posted bail almost immediately. Harrington remains in jail on a $6,000 bond.

DRIVER HITS GYM

Dillon police said an elderly driver drove his 2013 Ford F-150 into the side of the Beaverhead High School gymnasium Friday morning. The four occupants of the vehicle were briefly hospitalized and released, and no one else was injured. The accident is under investigation, and police said they suspect a medical incident caused the crash.
Note: This story was updated at 11:10 a.m. Friday, Oct. 28, to reflect a change in wording in the 10th paragraph -- the word replaceable changed to irreplaceable.

----

Candidate for Butte-Silver Bow County sheriff Sgt. Russ Robertson and incumbent Sheriff Ed Lester disagreed Monday night about what high meth arrest numbers mean for Butte during a forum at Montana Tech, moderated by Montana Standard editor David McCumber.

Robertson, a 27-year veteran of the department, said fighting drug crime would be his number-one priority as sheriff and that a rise in drug crime is the main reason he is running for the office. Referencing state crime statistics, Robertson said drug crime rose 47 percent in Silver Bow County since Lester was elected sheriff in 2012  a statement he has printed in campaign advertisements.

Lester shot back saying Robertson's statistical analysis was inherently flawed and that the numbers actually represented the opposite of Robertson's suggestion that his department was failing to apprehend drug criminals.

According to Lester, that 47-percent rise means that his department arrested more criminals for drugs than under previous administrations, by his count over 100 more a year. If you arrest more folks for drugs, the statistics on drug crime invariably go up, Lester said.

Robertson challenged that the majority of those new arrests  and of all drug arrests  stemmed from "non-essential" crimes, meaning a suspect arrested for another crime just happened to also have drugs on them. Robertson proposed a more aggressive policy of going after drug crime rather than simply relying on after-the-fact charges as evidence of progress.

The sheriff said he wouldn't call those crimes non-essential, as they are often DUIs, thefts, assaults, or other crimes harmful to the community. Lester also disagreed with Robertson's methodology for going after drugs more aggressively, saying the small incidental busts are key to gathering the intelligence investigators need to build cases resulting in the larger busts Robertson wants.

DRUG TASK FORCE

The candidates also disagreed over the departments personnel relationship with the Southwest Montana Drug Task Force. Robertson said the task force has a free slot open for a detective that Lester has refused to fill and that if elected, he would do so immediately.

"We're behind the eight-ball wasting a position," Robertson said.

Lester retorted that the task force is run by a board of directors and that no sheriff within its seven-county jurisdiction has the unilateral authority to fill an empty seat. He said the detective the task force wants is a skilled drug crime investigator but too valuable in homicide and other investigations to give away, citing violent crimes as the priority.

Robertson said drugs should be the priority and the task force should be given its man. He said no officer is irreplaceable from the top of the organization to the bottom and that the departments five other detectives could train whatever new investigator is hired to take his place.

Lester said the detective still works plenty with the task force, unattached as he is, as well as Montana Highway Patrol, DEA, FBI, and Missouri River Drug Task Force, owing to the fact that the same groups operate within many separate jurisdictions.

Instead of making one detective wear so many hats, Robertson wants more progress on drug crime by having the investigator specialize. Robertson said despite the hard work put in to combat drug trafficking, so far it had been fruitless.

Both candidates acknowledged the difficulty of addressing rural crime in Silver Bow County, with dirt bikers past Eight Mile Road specifically addressed.

Robertson said as sheriff he would hold regular public meetings for citizens to directly address law enforcement about their concerns in the community but that officers can't be everywhere at once and have to prioritize.

Sheriff Lester agreed and said with 88 percent of the county living within the urban area, the 4,000 others living outside city limits simply can't be logically prioritized. He said he's assigned a rural patrol to help give outlying communities a more personalized police presence but that the vastness makes it hard to cover.

Both candidates said jail employees are doing a fine job despite the facilities' chronic overcrowding, which the candidates agreed was directly related to drug crime. Robertson said the facility is fairly new and never should have been built so small knowing the rising rates of incarceration. Lester called overcrowding in jails and prisons a nationwide problem, particularly for meth and increasingly heroin.

BODY CAMERAS

The candidates also agreed that the department's recent adoption of body cameras had made interactions between officers and the public better for all, with all parties accountable to the documentary record. Lester called it one of many successful modernizations of the department under his tenure, but Robertson said the cameras' adoption came from the ground up from patrolmen who bought their own before they were issued. Both stressed the importance of balancing citizens' constitutional right to privacy with their right to public information in regard to body cameras, particularly in the case of those worn by school resource officers.

Both candidates stood by their advocacy for the open-container ban from 2 a.m. to 8 a.m., enacted by ordinance in 2013, and said it resulted in noticeably fewer fights and broken windows outside Park and Main. Lester said expanding the ban to 24 hours like almost all other municipalities in the country was up to the voters while Robertson was more willing to directly advocate for it.

In his closing statement, Lester said he has served the department well for 27 years in many capacities from SWAT officer to investigator and that he knows voters value that experience. He said the many modernizations adopted since 2012, including new trainings, the body cameras, active shooter bags, a K9 unit, and the drug task force show he is committed to adapting the department to the community's needs.

Robertson said he appreciated what Lester had done in the last four years, particularly in combating domestic violence, but that most of those modernizations would have happened under any sheriff and came from the ground up from patrol cops. He reiterated his claim drug crime has worsened in Butte and that all that new equipment did not prevent that. Robertson ended his closing remark by saying that if elected he would not run for re-election if drug crime did not fall during his time in office.

The election is Nov. 8.
BILLINGS  Like many others who have come to the Paradise Valley since the homesteading era, Michael Werner is hoping to make money and provide for his family.

Its the way Werner has proposed making money that has drawn fire from some locals, lawmakers, conservation groups, and a few nonresidents  by opening a gold mine just north of Yellowstone National Park.

Everyone has an angle, he said of his detractors. Everyone is after something.

Under its plan of operations submitted to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality last October, Werners Crevice Mining Group has proposed a low-impact program that would conduct 36,000 feet of continuous exploratory drilling for 18 months. The end goal would be to open an operational gold mine.

Last week, Werner spoke to the Gazette from his Spokane, Washington, office to respond to some of the charges critics have leveled at his mining proposal.

Time out

Werners proposal is on hold after the DEQ this summer issued a deficiency letter seeking more information on his application to drill just outside of Gardiner.

Im going to let it sit for a little bit, he said, although he questioned what has changed with the proposal to make DEQ so nervous.

He also noted that the best evidence that the project can be done in an environmentally conscious manner is that although theres been mining all over the Crevice Mountain area over the past 150 years, there have been no environmental impacts such as acid mine water leakage.

There has, however, been reclamation work in the area that continues today. Kinross Gold Corp. is reclaiming the Mineral Hill Mine, on the east side of Crevice Mountain. Kinross inherited the cleanup when it bought out TVX Gold Inc. in 2003.

Chasing gold

Exploration geologist Steven Koehler, who works in the mining industry and opposes the Crevice Mine, said the fact that Kinross chose not to develop the Mineral Hill Mine should tell us something.

The easy gold has been found, he said. Its getting tougher and tougher to find prosperity.

He noted that mining companies struggle mightily to make money when gold is valued at $1,100 an ounce. Right now the price is just above $1,200 an ounce. Koehler also said that theres not enough credible data to know if the Crevice Mine could be profitable.

Thats why they have to drill, he said.

Werner, who worked for TVX when it was mining in Jardine, said the project would be a hard sell for a publicly traded company like Kinross because of the controversy it might stir up, a problem Crevice Mining Group doesnt have.

Theres a massive amount of gold up there, Werner said, with some concentrations as high as 8 to 15 ounces per ton. If this was Nevada wed have an open pit.

Water worries

One of the concerns critics have voiced about mining on Crevice Mountain is that proposed mine shafts could hit water, saying little is known about the 8,800-foot high mountains aquifer. If that were to happen, Werner said mining would have to stop since the company doesnt have a state water discharge permit.

The permits for exploratory drilling that Crevice Mining is seeking would help Werner decide the best places to look for gold in the mountainside, which in the region is often associated with veins of quartz. He called his proposal a surgical extraction.

I need to know where Im doing my surgery, he said. We know theres enough to go today.

Although Crevice Mining has a small miners exemption that would allow it to do a limited amount of work without a DEQ permit, Werners plans are much grander  the extraction of about 50 million tons of rock.

To do that would require operating at full production around the clock. At that scale Werner said the mine would inject $7.5 million in wages a year into Park County. Wages for workers would run from $102,000 to $150,000 a year, with salaried workers earning up to $1.5 million a year. That compares to a $42,500 median household income in Park County in 2014, according to the U.S. census.

If I can mine in an environmentally sensitive way, what is the downside of this? he said.

Singled out

Neighbors to the mine have said the downside is traffic, noise and the possibility of water pollution. Werner has proposed hauling all of the rock off the mountain to be milled somewhere else. There are currently three mill sites in Montana: Golden Sunlight near Whitehall, which has plans to close next year; the Contact Mill near Philipsburg; and the Moen Mill near Virginia City. Although off-site milling removes the threat of a heap leaching extraction process that involves cyanide or acid near Yellowstone, it still means heavy truck traffic up and down a narrow mountain road.

Werner said he can empathize with his neighbors who will be affected by the mine, but he also said hes been unfairly singled out because some of the mine opponents are business people  like him  who are simply protecting their own interests.

So if I own a business in Montana and mining isnt going to do anything for me, am I going to be for it or not? he questioned. Probably not.

He also noted there are other businesses already operating in the Paradise Valley that he claims are just as disruptive and destructive as the Crevice Mountain gold mine would be. As an example he pointed to a large gravel pit located on the banks of the Yellowstone River about 6 miles north of Gardiner.

Werner said that some people are already profiting from his proposal. Almost half of the 500 acres Crevice Mining has leased on the mountain is owned by a Butte company, Crevasse Mountain Mining Co.

The corporations annual report, on file at the Secretary of States office, lists Rick Lyons, a Butte CPA, as the companys president and director. Lyons did not return a phone call by press time. His mother, Sandra Lyons, is treasurer and secretary. Frank Mischkot, a retiree who used to work at a Butte industrial supply and machine shop, is another director along with Ron Kautzman. All are residents of Butte.

So when somebody says they dont want mining, they are pitting Montanan against Montanan, he said.

Buyout

Werner dismissed the rumor that he proposed the mine in hopes that the federal government or some conservation group might buy out the leases providing him with a profit without ever mining an ounce of gold. In 1996, the Clinton Administration oversaw the purchase of the New World Mining District near Cooke City to avoid mining near Yellowstone National Park.

Since he doesnt own the mining patents  which gives the owners title to the minerals and land  Werner said he wouldnt benefit from a buyout. Besides, Werner said he never would have borrowed money for the project with such an ill-defined and uncertain outcome.

This is all about money and providing for my family, he said. In my opinion, you have a few people telling me what I can and cannot do for my livelihood in the Paradise Valley.
Butte lover, Demo voting for Trump

Hello, I'm Frank and I was raised in Butte, Montana. On June 30, 1957, my house burned to the ground. The next day the ACM laid me off from the Emma Mine. I left Butte looking for work. After 22 years, I live in Butte again because I want to. I could live in any city in the world -- L.A. New York, Rio, Paris, Chicago (they would have to pay me to live in Chicago or Missoula) -- but I live here. God made Eden and we changed the name to Butte.

We live in perilous times. We have a national election coming up. We Montanans are lucky. We have two gentlemen running for governor. We also have a lady and a gentleman running for Congress.

Unfortunately we are not that lucky on the national level. We should remember that all the negative ads are made by short, fat, bearded, bald men wearing sleeveless undershirts in smoke-filled backrooms using (I think) ill-gotten dirty money. Ignore these ads. That will help us make up our minds who to vote for.

Listen to the candidate and hear what they have to say and vote for the one that best follows your thoughts.

I'm proud to be a Southwest Montanan and American and my name is Frank W. Williams, legally registered Democrat in Butte since 1979 and voting for Trump.

-- Frank Williams, Butte

Current vctim rights statue insufficient

The current victim rights statute is not sufficient. This year, my child was victimized in an unprovoked assault by multiple assailants. Our family missed several hearings due to the lack of enforcement of the statute. The first missed hearing was featured in a news article and upon reading it, I felt ill. Were we in danger? Montana Code 46-24-106, subsection 2, specifically states, a victim of a criminal offense has the right to be present during any trial or hearing conducted by a court. Present? We did not even know about it! NINE sections (20-28 of Article II) of the Constitution protect offenders. Thus, offenders are ALWAYS notified.

Opponents claim that victims are not notified because they fail to maintain accurate contact information. Conversely, I contacted the county attorneys office, confirmed our information, and stated that I my employer arranged for my presence at the courthouse with just 30 minutes notice. We missed subsequent hearings. I repeated the process, then spent days contacting local and national representatives. I collaborated with media and spoke at the crime victims forum.

I realize the inconsistencies are not intentional. I support our justice system, grateful for those who answer the call to serve. Raised in a law enforcement family, I learned that citizens have two choices: idly contribute to problems by doing nothing, or act. I refuse to be a part of this problem. Our Constitution is a living document for a reason: to better serve citizens. The current state of the Constitution leaves victimized citizens unprotected, summoning the need for change.

I plead with my fellow Montanans to investigate CI-116, and cast a YES vote. I look forward to the day when my family can rest assured that we will receive notification, on every hearing.

-- Kristen Dawes, Laurel

This page rigged from Day One

Lets face the facts! Both major U.S. political parties are dysfunctional. But this year the Republican Party takes the booby prize for dysfunction.

Sorry must not say the "B" word around Donald Trump. It has been estimated that 130 million Americans don't like Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump. But they do have a choice! Move to Canada, and they don't want us, cry and swear a lot, don't vote, or vote for the lesser of the two evils, whatever that means.

The Republicans have a man running for President they didn't want, then they made him sign a pledge to run as a Republican and now they are sorry for what they can't remember!

Hillary Clinton can't deal with her past. Donald Trump can't deal with his future. The American voters can't deal with the present.

You do realize the election will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 8. But you do also realize after the voting the election will never be over. Never!

Sorry for all the dysfunctional writing. I was groping for new words but it taxed my brain. I tried to build a wall around my brain but my thoughts got lost in my emails. I'm sure an illegal alien took my words. Maybe that nasty you know, took my words.

Whatever the case might be, I know this whole page has been rigged from Day One!

-- LaVon Brillhart, Dillon

Gianforte can't be trusted as governor

Im a lifelong Montanan, an angler, a wife, and a mom, but one thing Im certainly not is political. However, when I heard that Gubernatorial Candidate Greg Gianforte tried to stop families like ours from accessing public lands near his home by putting up gates and intimidating signs, I couldnt sit on the sidelines. Thats why my husband and I decided to partner with the Montana Conservation Voters Action Fund to film their television ad.

I was hesitant to jump into the political fray, but having Greg Gianforte in the governors office puts our values at risk. If we elect someone who has actively worked to block access to the public lands we all share we are sure to see more gates, more signs, and less places for Montanans to explore. We depend on being able to hike in the Rattlesnake Wilderness Area, fish the Blackfoot River, or hunt together on public land. Like so many Montanans, our public lands are our escape and our opportunity to connect as a family.

For me, public lands are what makes Montana so special. They are wild areas where we can fish, hike, and enjoy our state like so many generations have before us.

This is about Montana and coming together to make sure this stays the last best place. Heres the bottom line: Greg Gianforte isnt for Montana, hes not from Montana and we just cant trust him to be our governor.

-- Caitlin Thompson, Bonner

Gianfort needed to get state on track

As a sitting city councilman, I am voting for Greg Gianforte for three reasons: Job, jobs, and more jobs!

Every election cycle the economy is one of the top issues for voters because we are all affected. Everyday people are buying and selling goods or working for a living. Under Steve Bullock things have become harder for Montanans. The size of government has increased dramatically. Our rainy day fund is being extinguished. We are 49th in wages and 50th for millennials. We have seen large job losses in Columbia Falls in the timber industry and in Colstrip with the coal industry.

Montana has also now seen two consecutive quarters of negative economic growth. Bullocks leadership on the economy has failed.

Greg Gianforte is running to stem the tide of the last four dreadful years. He wants it to be easier and cheaper for people to buy and sell goods and to work for a living. He wants to stop the growth of government and increase wages by creating high-wage jobs by investing in education and the infrastructure. He will also hold state government accountable.

We need Greg Gianforte to get Montana on track for a positive future.

-- Harlan Wells, Missoula City Council Ward 2

Gov. Bullock the right choice for governor

I am a scientist at a high-tech photonics company in Bozeman and a former city councilor in Livingston. I will be voting for Governor Bullock because he represents strong moral values and is good for Montana businesses.

Governor Bullock significantly reduced dark money in our local elections. This was particularly important in Livingston when outside dark money invaded our municipal elections and displayed a complete lack of ethics. They were ultimately defeated because our community came together and rejected their extremist behavior and vulgar lies, and because of Governor Bullocks actions dark money is no longer a factor in Montanas elections.

Governor Bullock is also good for Montana businesses. His economic development office helped our company develop a worldwide distribution network that imports over $1 million of revenue annually from overseas directly into Montana.

I support Mr. Bullock because he is good for our economy, our businesses, and our communities. Please join me in re-electing Governor Bullock on November 8.

-- Adam Stern, Livingston

Gianforte misleads on state bid to Wisconsin

It appears that Mr. Gianforte doesnt understand the business of government, Montana State government in particular. If he did, he wouldnt be accusing Governor Bullock of corruption in the state awarding a bid to a Wisconsin firm.

Under our state Constitution, Montana has one of the most transparent and open procurement processes in the nation. For example, review and scoring of responses to Requests for Proposals (RFP)/bids are conducted in public meetings announced by State Procurement.

I experienced this firsthand as an IT vendor selling to the state before my retirement. I observed many of these public meetings so that I knew before any announcements how my responses and those of my competitors were scored.

The business of government is different than business in the private sector. This is a good thing when it comes to providing a fair and open playing field to compete for the states business.

Its time to stop this misleading ad and understand that state-elected officials and dedicated state employees are required to follow stringent rules that preclude the type of decision-making in Gianfortes misleading ad. As a native Montanan and resident, I am proud of this open and transparent procurement process.

-- Tom Stockburger, Missoula

Jimm Kilmer represents leadership, integrity

Leadership and integrity are exactly what most of us voters ask for in a candidate, and it is certainly what we deserve from our elected officials. As a former police officer, and now the director of a 600-plus police officer association, Ive witnessed leadership and integrity. The vast majority of police officers have integrity. Those that do not, we would like to see on the unemployment line.

Ive known Jimm Kilmer for over 30 years. Ive worked with him as a dispatcher and then as an officer for over 23 years. Today I continue to work with him with our statewide police association. Jimm has been the treasurer for over 11 years. As the treasurer, he is responsible for handling a budget of over $280,000. There is no one I would rather have in that position, making sure the police officer members' money is spent and invested exactly where they want and expect. As the treasurer, his work is constantly scrutinized by the Executive Board and annually by the membership.

Jimm has been elected to the position by his peers for 11 years running, and over that period of time he has done exactly what the membership has trusted and required him to do. Jimm Kilmer is a person with the leadership skills and integrity to be your next Justice of the Peace. Please consider giving Jimm your vote this Nov. 8th, you will not be sorry, and Butte-Silver Bow will have another justice with the leadership and integrity necessary to perform the duties of the office. Thank you.

-- Jerry Williams, executive director, Montana Police Protective Association, Butte

Laslovich as auditor will protect public land

Montana hunters and anglers need to pay attention to the race for state Auditor. And this year, the choice couldn't be clearer.

As a member of the State Land Board, the State Auditor oversees 5.1 million acres of state trust public lands. These lands are absolutely crucial for hunting, fishing, and other recreation.

Matt Rosendale sees state trust lands only as a source of profit. As an East Coast real estate developer, he doesn't understand how valuable these lands are for habitat, hunting, and fishing. He actually voted against bipartisan bill to increase public access to trust lands.

Rosendale also supports the state takeover of our national forests and other federal lands. His agenda is clear: take over national public lands, and manage everything for profit.

Jesse Laslovich understands the true value of Montana's public lands. He will protect public access and the public interest. As a lifelong Montanan, he knows that our hunting and fishing heritage is more important than a quick profit.

Montana voters have a lot of important choices to make on November 8. Don't forget to vote for Jesse Laslovich for State Auditor to protect public access and our outdoor heritage.

-- Chris Marchion, Anaconda
HELENA  On Thursday the states top campaign cop dismissed a complaint filed by a state employee who was called on her work phone by the campaign for Republican candidate for governor Greg Gianforte.

On Monday a Missoula resident, Suzin Kratina, filed a complaint against the Gianforte campaign, saying it violated campaign laws by calling her at work. Kratina is a state employee and her number has a 444 prefix, commonly understood to indicate a phone number associated with the state.

Kratina said she received four calls from the campaign. After the second she asked the campaign to stop and told the caller it was inappropriate. On Monday, she had another message on her phone from the campaign and filed the complaint with Commissioner of Political Practices Jonathan Motl.

This is annoying, disturbing and inappropriate, she wrote in her complaint.

Motl said in dismissing the complaint that there was no use of public resources inherent in the Gianforte campaign phone calls to the state phone number.

Earlier this election cycle, Motl dismissed a complaint by Gerald Thomas, the county coroner in Anaconda, that said Gianforte violated campaign practice laws by sending a campaign email to Thomas's government email account.

In his dismissal, Motl ordered Gianforte's campaign to purge all public employee addresses, email or physical, from campaign mailing lists. He also ordered Gianforte and all other candidates to refrain from using the work addresses of public employees.

The Gianforte campaign said the 444 number was placed in its campaign voter file during the 2014 election cycle by a different state employee. Kratina was assigned the number in 2015.

The first two calls were made under the assumption the person with the number had consented to political calls and the latter were accidental, Motl wrote.

The prior workplace phone number consent does not excuse the entirety of phone call actions by the Gianforte campaign, Motl wrote, but it does explain how the campaign could keep calling the number after Kratina asked to not be called back because the later calls came from professional campaign callers who went back to voter file lists that were omitted from the main campaign call list.

In his decision, Motl took note that Montana is routinely setting new fundraising records each election cycle and the increased money in state politics means residents encounter campaign activity in many forms, including the tens of thousands of phone calls placed by both Gianforte and Bullocks campaign.

That increased campaign contact with voters is good when it supplies information to voters, Motl said. That increased contact is not good when it is made to prohibited venues such as the workplace mailboxes and phones of Montanas public employees.

The Gianforte campaign and all other candidates or ballot issue campaigns should note that campaign activity extending to workplace contact of public employees will be subjected to such examination, Motl wrote.
The Muscatine County Board of Supervisors met in regular session at 9:00 A.M. with Howard, Kelly, Sorensen and Bonebrake present. Sauer was absent. Chairperson Sorensen presiding.

On a motion by Kelly, second by Bonebrake, the agenda was approved as presented. Ayes: All.

County Sheriff C.J. Ryan reported that a recent jail inspection completed October 7, 2016 resulted in a very clean report. Ryan and the Board thanked Correction Officers for their hard work.

Discussion was held with Brian Hazlett, Kellor & Kellor Landscaping, Inc., regarding a Community Services/DHS Building Landscaping proposal. The Board agreed they would like to add 3-4 more trees along the side. On a motion by Howard, second by Kelly, the Board accepted a landscaping proposal for the Community Services Building from Kellor & Kellor Landscaping, Inc. in the amount of $26,662.50 plus the addition of up to 4 trees at a unit cost of $179.00 per tree. Ayes: All.

Discussion was held with Josh Spies, Lower Cedar Project Director, regarding the formation of a Watershed Management Authority for the Lower Cedar River. Spies stated Iowa Code Chapter 466B allows for the formation of Watershed Management Authorities to assess and reduce flood risk and improve water quality. Spies invited Muscatine County to participate in the process of forming a Watershed Management Authority for the Lower Cedar River. Spies invited the Board to send a representative to a kickoff meeting to be held Wednesday, November 9, 2016 at 1:00 P.M. at the West Branch City Hall. Spies stated that all funding is through grants so there will be no funding through taxation. Board consensus was interest in forming a Watershed Management Authority.

On a motion by Kelly, second by Howard, the Board approved 2016 business property tax credit applications, with the exception of two parcels, as recommended by the Auditor's Office. Ayes: All.

Discussion was held with County Auditor Leslie Soule regarding a Sales Order Agreement between Muscatine County and Election Systems and Software, Inc. (ES&S) for the purchase of new voting equipment approved by the Board of Supervisors on July 11, 2016. Soule stated the actual cost of the voting equipment ($249,125.00) came in slightly lower than the original quote ($264,825.00). Soule stated the rental of a DS850 Central Count device for the General Election has already been paid by the County and credited against the purchase of a DS450 Central Count device through the sales agreement which is why the total on the sales agreement is $218,318.00. Soule stated the new equipment should arrive in December or January. Soule stated Appendix A of the agreement covers ongoing maintenance and software support through the silver plan at an annual cost of $16,857.50 which will cover one preventive maintenance visit in even numbered years, plus all repairs. Soule stated the maintenance and software support do not begin until after the 1-year warranty has expired which will be in FY18. By consensus the Board authorized the County Auditor to execute a Sales Order Agreement between Muscatine County and Election Systems and Software (ES&S) in the amount of $218,318.00 plus the silver maintenance plan.

County Auditor Leslie Soule stated satellite voting is being held today, October 17th, from 9:00 A.M. - 3:00 A.M. at MCC McAvoy Center in Muscatine and tomorrow, October 18th, from 9:00 A.M. - 3:00 A.M. at St. Joseph's Catholic Church Parish life Center in West Liberty.

On a motion by Bonebrake, second by Howard, minutes of the October 10, 2016 regular meeting were approved as amended. Ayes: All.

No correspondence was noted.

Committee Reports:

Bonebrake attended a MAGIC meeting October 10th.

Kelly attended a Seventh Judicial District meeting October 14th.

On a motion by Kelly, second by Howard, the Board set a public hearing on proposed amendments to the FY 16/17 Muscatine County budget for Monday, November 21, 2016 at 9:00 A.M. Ayes: All.

The Board reviewed the health/dental fund balance as of September 30, 2016.

Supervisor Howard stated the County is still looking for applicants for the Zoning Commission.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:50 A.M.

ATTEST:

Leslie A. Soule, County Auditor Jeff Sorensen, Chairperson

Board of Supervisors
MUSCATINE, Iowa  The City of Muscatine will host a public engagement meeting for the Riverfront Master Plan at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 16, in the Riverview Center, 110 Harbor Drive, Muscatine,. The meeting will serve to kick off the planning process for the future of Riverside Park.

Ed Freer of Elliott Hendrickson Inc. will be in Muscatine to help guide the community through the process of strategic planning for the Riverfront Master Plan. The timing for this meeting is ideal as it will dovetail the Mississippi Drive Corridor Project plans.

Citizens are invited to attend the meeting to express their ideas and opinions about the future of one of the citys key attractions: the Muscatine Riverfront.
MUSCATINE, Iowa  The Muscatine County Conservation Board is sponsoring a Reptiles & Amphibians program. Naturalist Michelle Berns will talk about the reptiles and amphibians of Iowa, and youll get to meet some live snakes, turtles, and amphibians.
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 []
BATON ROUGE, La.  Relatives of a 6-year-old autistic boy who was shot and killed during a traffic stop filed a federal lawsuit Thursday against the central Louisiana town where two deputy city marshals opened fire on his father's car.

The 96-page suit claims Marksville city officials failed to properly train the deputies on the use of deadly force before the shooting that killed Jeremy Mardis and critically wounded his father, Christopher Few, last year.

The suit also says the officers involved in the shooting did nothing to stop the boy's bleeding or alleviate his suffering, even after one of them found a pulse on the child.

"Sadly, Jeremy was left to suffer - and die - while the officers casually searched for gloves," the suit adds.

The deputies, Derrick Stafford and Norris Greenhouse Jr., await separate trials on charges of second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder.

The Nov. 3, 2015, shooting was captured on video by a police officer's body camera. Defense attorneys claim Stafford and Greenhouse acted in self-defense, but prosecutors say the video shows the deputies firing on Few's car from a safe distance while his hands were raised inside the vehicle.

Stafford, a Marksville police lieutenant, and Greenhouse, a former Marksville police officer, were moonlighting as deputy marshals on the night of the shooting.

The deputies' lawyers claim Few drove recklessly while leading officers on a 2-mile chase and then rammed into Greenhouse's vehicle as he was getting out of it, before he and Stafford opened fire.

However, state District Court Judge William Bennett said the video from Marksville Police Sgt. Kenneth Parnell's body camera doesn't show Few's car posing a threat to the officers as they fired.

The family's lawsuit calls the shooting a "barbaric and excessive use of deadly force" that fit a pattern of behavior unpunished by town officials who supervised the two deputies.

"Proper use of deadly force training would have enabled Stafford and Greenhouse to recognize that neither Christopher nor Jeremy presented an imminent risk of death or great bodily harm to anyone at or near the scene," the suit says.

During a news conference last year, Louisiana State Police Col. Mike Edmonson said the video was the most disturbing thing he has ever seen. It shows the bloody but eerily calm aftermath of the shooting, with Few collapsed and bleeding on the pavement while his son's lifeless body is strapped into the front seat.

Marksville's deputy city marshals  part-timers who normally serve court papers  had been stopping cars and writing traffic tickets for months before the shooting. City Marshal Floyd Voinche Sr. began dispatching his deputies on patrols after the City Council slashed the city court's budget at the recommendation of Mayor John Lemoine.

The court, which presides over traffic citations, sued the city over the deep cuts in July 2015, saying Marksville had stopped paying the salaries of Voinche, Judge Angelo Piazza III and the court's clerks.

The mayor asked the attorney general to review the authority of the marshal's office to issue tickets. During an interview last year, Judge Piazza said his court only keeps a modest cut of ticket revenues and called it a "misguided notion" that his court had a financial incentive for deputy marshals to begin writing tickets.

Voinche, Marksville's city court, Avoyelles Parish and the officers involved in the shooting also are named as defendants in the suit, which seeks unspecified damages.

Before the shooting, Stafford and Greenhouse both had been sued over claims that they had used excessive force or neglected their duties as police officers. In addition, Stafford was suspended from the Marksville Police Department after he was indicted on rape charges in 2011, but reinstated after prosecutors dismissed the charges in May 2012.

Stafford's murder trial is scheduled to start Nov. 28; Greenhouse has a March 13, 2017, trial date.

Prosecutors showed the video of the shooting during a hearing last month to support their claim that it was part of Stafford's pattern of hurting people he's arresting. Audio is lacking for the first 27 seconds of the video, then begins after deputies start shooting. Stafford's attorneys argue that the segment without audio makes it impossible to determine if he started shooting before or after Few raised his hands.

Defense attorneys also have suggested that investigators rushed to judgment. George Higgins, one of Greenhouse's attorneys, said investigators have no evidence that any of the bullets fired by Greenhouse struck Few or his son.

Investigators traced 14 shell casings to Stafford's semi-automatic handgun and determined four other shell casings recovered at the scene came from Greenhouse's gun. Of the four bullet fragments recovered from the boy's body, three matched Stafford's weapon and another couldn't be matched to either deputy.
Whether you like em glazed, frosted or filled, the donuts have arrived in American Canyon. They arent just any donuts either  theyre Dunkin Donuts and the Napa County location at 410 Napa Junction Road is the first restaurant theyve opened in the North Bay.

Although the chain is relatively new to California, its been slinging donuts and coffee in the United States since 1950, even using the tagline: America Runs on Dunkin. Dunkin Donuts serves more than 3 million customers daily in 41 states and 36 countries, according to the company.

Eager customers started lining up at the new American Canyon location as early as 12:30 a.m. on Wednesday to be first to not only get a donut and some coffee at the 5 a.m. opening, but also to have a chance at a $100 Dunkin Donuts gift card.

There was some confusion about how many people would get gift cards, but restaurant employees cleared it up. In the end, the first person in line in both the drive-thru and at the front door were given the gift cards while the next four in each line were given $50 gift cards. The first 100 people in line received other goodies, including a Dunkin Donuts refillable cup.

Dunkin Donut diehards and newbies kept the line out the door, guarded by an orange and pink balloon arch, decorated with inflatable donuts.

The line didnt scare people away. In fact, they knew that it would be a madhouse.

We cant miss it, Helen Paet told her friend, Maya Adel, Wednesday morning. Whether theres a long line or not we have to be here.

Both women grew up with Dunkin Donuts in their lives  Paet had one across from her university in the Philippines and Adel worked at her uncles shop in New Jersey.

We would drive to Sacramento just to have a taste of Dunkin Donuts, Adel said. If the duo was in the Sacramento area for another reason, they would be sure to pick up some donuts before heading back to American Canyon, she added.

I grew up with Dunkin Donuts, Adel said. Not only does she love the donuts, but it reminds her of her childhood, her family and her home back in New Jersey.

Dunkin Donuts even became a part of her marriage, she said. The couple met in Vallejo after Adel moved to California. He was from the Philippines and also grew up on Dunkin Donuts. Together they lamented the fact there werent any nearby.

To impress him, she said, I called my cousin and had him ship a box of donuts to him  overnight, of course. More than 16 years later, theyre still together and have two children who are also donut lovers.

Every person has their own box, Adel said. Each child has a pack of munchkins  donut holes. Her husband has a box of donuts to himself, and she ordered a box of sugar and glaze donuts for herself. She even bought another box with a variety of flavors to share.

When she told her family back on the East Coast of the Dunkin Donuts opening, her brothers teased her, she said, asking if that meant she wouldnt be coming home to visit anymore. Although thats not the case, she is happy that the restaurant opened so close to where she lives. Adel said shell be there almost every day.

Visiting Dunkin Donuts every day wasnt a foreign concept to Jeannie Reagan of American Canyon. As she stood in line with four of her gal pals, she said that she would get coffee and a donut every day when she lived in Pennsylvania.

When she moved to California, she said that it was sad that no Dunkin Donuts restaurants were around.

I was surprised when it came here, she said of the restaurant opening. Its awesome.

The location is convenient and everything is good, Reagan said. To anyone who hasnt tried it yet, They dont know what theyre missing out on, she said.

When asked if he had ever been to a Dunkin Donuts, Earl Richardson of Vallejo said Oh, you better believe that.

Richardson has been patronizing Dunkin Donuts for more than 30 years. Being from Wisconsin, he was used to having it around. Now that he lives in California, hes made sure to find the beloved donut shop whenever he is on vacation.

Dunkin Donuts is my favorite place, Richardson said. I gotta have some coffee with my donuts.

Richardson said he has tried supporting the shops as they open in California, noting that he visited the one in Walnut Creek. Whenever they open up a new one, I like to go to em, he said.

This is a good place, he said of the American Canyon restaurant. If you ask me, I give it an A.

A lot of transplants hailing from the East Coast and the Midwest have been missing Dunkin Donuts, said Nick Bhatt, who moved from Chicago two months ago to open the American Canyon location with his sister and brother-in-law.

I started working at Dunkin Donuts when I was in high school, Bhatt said. From there, he has worked his way up in the chain. This is my passion, he said.

Bhatt appreciated having the support of the community and is happy to be in California, he said.

We had a lot of fun out here. Customers were understanding and patient, he said.

The next Dunkin Donuts location the family plans to open will be in Petaluma. A third restaurant is also planned, although its location hasnt been determined yet, Bhatt said.
Vice Mayor Mary Luros leads the Napa City Council field in fundraising with Election Day less than two weeks away.

Seeking her first full term on the council, Luros raised $15,820 between Sept. 25 and Oct. 22 for a total of $50,003, according to Form 460 campaign statements that were due Thursday. The Napa-based attorney has received more contributions, and spent more money, than fellow Councilman Scott Sedgley or their challenger Doris Gentry.

Sedgley, who was first elected in 2012, garnered $5,249 in the September-October period and has raised $24,847 overall while spending $27,221.

Gentry, who also ran for council four years ago and is aiming to unseat either Sedgley or Luros for one of the two available seats on the Nov. 8 ballot, raised $3,434 in the same four-week span, bringing her total contributions to $40,883, versus expenses of $43,225. Donations earlier in the year had boosted her into the fundraising lead through the end of September.

Two labor groups topped the list of donors to Luros campaign, as the Sacramento-based Local 1021 of the Service Employees International Union gave $1,021 and the San Ramon-based Sheet Metal Workers International Association provided $1,000.

Those contributing $500 to Luros included D.J. Smith of the transportation and energy consultancy Smith, Watts & Hartmann; Channel Lumber of Richmond; Jeffrey Dodd, lawyer for Dickenson, Peatman & Fogarty; PG&E Corp.; and John Evans, general manager of the Silverado Resort and Spa.

In-kind contributions to Luros totaled $4,350 and included services worth $2,300 from Mark Dommen, chef of One Market, for a campaign event, as well as the $550 value of a venue provided by Eikos restaurant of downtown Napa.

Donating $1,000 each to Sedgleys campaign in the past month were the political action group of the California Association of Realtors, Sheet Metal Workers International Association Local 104 and the Napa Police Officers Association. Sedgley also received $500 from PG&E, the same amount the utility gave his fellow incumbent Luros.

Nearly all of Gentrys contributions for the four-week period came from four donors. A Sacramento PAC, the Lincoln Club of Northern California, gave the challenger $1,000, as did Becky Berger, owner of YoBelle Frozen Yogurt. Donations of $500 each came from the Wiseman Company of Fairfield, builder of a new office-retail building at Main and Clinton streets, and Charles T. Munger of Palo Alto, a vice chairman for Berkshire Hathaway.

Mayor Jill Techel, who has no opponents on the ballot, nonetheless picked up donations of $500 from California Real Estate Political Action and $300 from the Northern California Carpenters Regional Council, bringing her total contributions to $33,750 against $7,895 in expenditures.
Betty Skaggs visited Vallergas this past Friday for groceries but left with something equally important  suggestions from a doctor about how she could make healthier food choices to combat her pre-diabetes.

The advice came courtesy of Abhijit Adhye, M.D., of St. Joseph Health Medical Group.

In a new effort to combat obesity rates and focus on preventive health, Dr. Adhye and other medical professionals visited Vallergas Market on Friday.

Hosted by doctors and educators from St. Joseph Health, Queen of the Valley Medical Center and St. Joseph Health Medical Group, the event offered Napans a chance to Shop with Your Doc in the place where important everyday health decisions are often made: the neighborhood supermarket.

The grocery store is where most people decide what they and their families eat every week. A few small changes can make a big difference in our health and energy levels, said Dr. Adhye.

Nutrition labels can be confusing, and knowing how to navigate the details is the first step towards improving eating habits and promoting overall health.

Skaggs said that since she learned shes pre-diabetic, shes eating more salads. However, she wasnt sure which dressings were the best choices.

She and the doctor made their way to the condiments aisle where the physician showed her food labels and discussed the ingredients.

We all feel healthy eating a salad, Adhye told Skaggs, but if you use too much dressing, it can ruin the health benefits of the salad.

The physician suggested she should review the amount of sugar, fat and sodium in various salad dressings.

Having a doctor to stand with her and actually help her pick out food in the grocery store is a wonderful idea, said Skaggs.

It certainly educates people, she said. I want to do everything I can to prevent her pre-diabetes from getting worse.

Shopper Laurie Gholson visited with Dr. Susana Gonzalez during the Shop with Your Doc event. Gholson didnt need help with shopping, but she did need some suggestions of which Napa primary care doctors are accepting new patients.

Its been frustrating trying to find a new doctor, Gholson said. She gave me a couple names, she said. That was helpful.

Doug Long of Lake Berryessa also applauded Shop with Your Doc.

I think its a great thing, he said. I get behind a lot of people at the grocery store and I see what they have in their cart and I just shake my head.

Catherine Schoen of Napa specifically visited Vallergas to ask one of the doctors about how Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) affects nutrition and eating habits.

Im very grateful to have this available, she said. Its a great idea.

A doctor can give all kinds of suggestions during an office appointment, but visiting with people outside of the office gives us a chance to see the food choices our patients are making, said Gonzalez.

In addition, Its great to let our patients identify with us as real people.

Instead of just seeing a doctor when youre sick, We want to create other opportunities where the public can connect with physicians as partners in health, said St. Joseph Health representative Vanessa deGier.

According to the most recent Napa County Community Health Needs Assessment, 40 percent of fifth-, seventh- and ninth-grade students and 60 percent of adults in Napa County are overweight or obese, which puts them at an increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and other health problems.

At a time when more and more food products promise health benefits and sport flashy labels, Shop with Your Doc helps residents navigate the grocery store and make the best choices for their families, said a news release from St. Joseph Health.

Shoppers have so many choices inside the market, and we want them to be able to make the most nutritious decisions they can, said Chris Vallerga Burns of Vallergas Market.

The events are part of St. Joseph Healths focus on population health  a concept aimed at improving the health of entire communities, not just hospitalized patients.

By focusing on prevention and urging patients to make better decisions about their everyday health through the adoption of responsible eating habits, health care providers can help combat obesity and other health challenges, said the release.

On Monday, Christina Harris, Queen of the Valleys communications and marketing coordinator, said that more than 50 people stopped at the Shop with Your Doc informational table during the three-hour event.

We are very pleased with the success of Napas first-ever Shop With Your Doc event, Harris said.

By bringing care providers out of the hospital and clinic and into the neighborhood supermarket, Napa residents had the opportunity to learn the basics of smart shopping, such as reading nutrition labels and navigating the store.

St. Joseph Health said it will be sponsoring additional Shop with Your Doc events elsewhere in California this fall.
Proposition 57 would release violent criminals and is detrimental to public safety





The original ballot title and summary of Proposition 57 is the Public Safety and Rehabilitation Act of 2016, which couldnt be further from the truth from what this poorly written and ill-advised initiative would accomplish.

While proponents of Proposition 57, led by Gov. Jerry Brown, who spent millions of dollars of his campaign fund to qualify the initiative, would have you believe that this alleged parole reform only applies to non-violent offenses, such is not the case by a long shot.

Consider the following non-violent, yet extremely serious, criminal offenders who will be eligible for early release many years sooner than required under current state law:

Rape of an unconscious person; rape by intoxication (where victim is too intoxicated to consent); human trafficking of a minor; assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer; exploding a destructive device with intent to injure; hate grimes; assault with a deadly weapon or by force likely to cause great bodily injury; battery with serious injury; inflicting corporal injury on a child; domestic violence; active participation in a criminal street gang; arson of forest land causing physical injury; residential burglary.

Unfortunately, despite testimony from victims, successful prosecutions by guilty plea or jury conviction and sentencing by judges, Proposition 57 would allow eligible state prison inmate to be paroled, potentially years or even decades early, if they take certain classes and behave in prison.

The premise is that an inmate not excluded by Proposition 57 will be eligible for parole after serving their basic sentence, regardless of sentencing enhancements including use of dangerous weapons, multiple victims, prior strikes and prior prison sentences. For example, a person who is convicted of 10 counts of sex trafficking for 10 different victims would be eligible for release after serving the initial term for one victim.

The underlying philosophy of Proposition 57, as put forth by Gov. Brown, is that people deserve a second chance. In an interview with the East Bay Times on Oct. 9, Brown stated that its very hard to motivate someone with a fixed sentence to turn their life around...Prop. 57 says if you shape up, youll be released. It becomes in your best interest to take charge of your life and obey the rules.

In the same article, the governor states that If we shift power back to our parole boards, well have a professional group of people privately evaluating when to release our prisoners. The problem is that obeying rules in prison is very different from obeying the rules of free society. Some of the best-behaved prison inmates are spousal abusers and murderers who do not face the same issues while serving time that they did when they believed they were wronged by their significant others.

I believe Brown to be a very moral and ethical man who has accomplished some great things in his tenure as governor. However, following the incredible sea change in criminal justice over the last many years that saw the implementation of Realignment followed by Proposition 47, which resulted in the reduction of our state prison population from over 170,000 to the current population of about 115,000, the people remaining in prison at this time are the absolute most serious and violent offenders in our state. Since Realignment and Proposition 47, scores of crimes have been classified as non-violent and non-serious and persons such as drug dealers, property thieves, identity thieves and many others are no longer eligible for state prison and are now sentenced to county jails that have become mini-prisons, are extremely over-crowded and result in minimal jail time actually being served.

At the same time, crime is on the rise throughout California for the first time in decades. FBI statistics show violent crime up more than 10 percent with property crime rates up even higher.

There are really good reasons why 50 elected district attorneys, 25 elected sheriffs, the California Police Chiefs Association, California Peace Officers Association, Napa County Deputy Sheriffs Association and countless victim rights groups are opposed to Proposition 57.

Having a group of parole officials, appointed by the governor, make early release decisions using guidelines adopted by the governor, without any input from victims, prosecutors or judges, behind closed doors should make many people very uncomfortable.

I, for one, as a career prosecutor of over 31 years and your elected DA for the past 18 years, cannot quietly sit by and see what I believe will result in an extreme miscarriage of justice and threat to our public safety occur without advising your readers of my grave concerns.

While I do not disagree that we must continue to examine our prison and parole system and reform what is not just or right. Proposition 57 is not the answer. I strongly urge your no vote.
I am writing this letter to support the candidacy of Jennifer Baker for the Napa Valley College Board of Trustees. As a library director and incoming president of our states library professional organization, I have had the opportunity to get to know Jennifer in both capacities.

Jennifer was previously a library director overseeing a Library Journal 5-star ranked Library, St. Helena Public Library. Under her leadership, the library was also a runner up for the Best Small Library in America, another honor from Library Journal. These recognitions are truly telling signs in the library community of a well-respected and well run institution.

Jennifer has long been involved in our state professional organization, serving on committees and assisting with annual conference planning.

Most recently, Jennifer was elected to our board as the secretary, serving on the executive committee of our organization. Like many professional organizations, we are in a time of transition, and Jennifer asks important questions and shares meaningful and intelligent thoughts that help to drive our organization forward.

Just this month, Jennifer participated in a statewide leadership development symposium where she played an integral role in creating a longterm vision and action plan for leadership in our professional community. This plan incorporates elements of diversity, sustainability, transparency, and collaboration into an innovative program that will be emulated by other organizations and institutions across the country ensuring that our institutions will always have a qualified workforce of individuals with the skills they need to be effective in a constantly changing environment.

This work illustrates Jennifers personal and professional commitment to paying it forward. As an educator and public servant, Jennifers dedication to process and zeal for creating a supportive, nimble service model for future generations is evident in everything she does. Jennifer is admired and respected among her peers  she is focused and driven, fervent and enthusiastic, smart and strategic  and she will bring all of those skills to her service on the Napa Valley College Board of Trustees. I am proud to support her candidacy.

Helen McAlary

Ontario, Calif.
Armando Torres-Garcia returned to St. Helena for Homecoming last week and found time to talk to seniors at the St. Helena High School. Torres-Garcia, who graduated from SHHS in 2008, had an interesting story to share with the seniors.

Brought to the U.S. from Mexico at the age of 9 months, he grew up in St. Helena fully aware of his lack of citizenship and legal documentation. Today hes an ABC News reporter and associate producer.

My grades werent the best in high school, he told the assembled class. But in my senior year I decided on a senior project that got me interested in journalism. I decided to make a short documentary on farmworkers in the Napa Valley. It was enough to fuel an unlikely dream for an undocumented immigrant: to become an international broadcast journalist.

It was while making that small high school documentary that something clicked for Torres-Garcia. I discovered that I enjoyed listening to the stories of other people. And I remembered that even as a kid growing up behind Sunshine Market I was very aware of my undocumented status. Wed play ''La Migra and Coyotes' (emigrant and human smuggler).

After SHHS he enrolled at Santa Rosa Junior College, in Social and Behavioral Studies, and wrote opinion columns for The Oak Leaf News, the SRJCs award-winning newspaper. Then in 2011 he transferred with his associate degree to California Polytechnic State University, studying Journalism. He graduated in 2013. There began his journey in the real world of news reporting, working as an intern for KSBY the NBC affiliate, helping producers and reporters in various aspects of the newsroom.

After graduation I began dropping off my resume at every TV station and newspaper along the way, even if they said they werent hiring, he continued. At a lot of places they wouldnt even let me past the receptionist.

But his perseverance paid off when he was picked up by Univision as a news reporter, anchor and producer for Univision Costa Central in 2013.

It may sound glamorous, he told the seniors. But most of the time I was driving up and down the coast, following leads, living out of the car. But then, he said, he was assigned to cover a murder of a gang member in the Central Valley. He said it changed him.

Most of the time these stories just become another news statistic, he said. But I was standing just a few feet from where they had roped off the victims body, and it made me want to interview the family of the victim, to listen to their stories. I was determined to do a story that was more than about a statistic of another gangland murder.

Torres-Garcia started thinking about what lay ahead in his career. He said hed heard about the Columbia School of Journalism and  despite having no real plan  decided to apply. I was amazed, he told the seniors. I was accepted into their program. The only problem was finding the funds to attend.

Fortunately, Im from a very amazing community here in the Napa Valley, he said. When people in St. Helena heard that I had been accepted at Columbia a number of people helped to raise the money for my tuition. A lot of money was raised, he said, though still not enough  especially when considering the cost of living in New York City.

Despite all the obstacles, despite all the challenges, despite the constant struggle to earn enough to simply make ends meet, he was surprised when he received a letter from Columbia offering him a scholarship that would pay for half the cost of tuition.

Torres-Garcia started in Columbias Masters in Journalism course in 2015. Throughout his coursework he picked up every odd job he could find. He graduated this last spring.

During that time he wrote and produced an investigative story on the use of K2 synthetic marijuana among high school students in the Bronx; produced an investigative story about the disintegration of the healthcare system in Syria; and filmed a short documentary about two young Syrian women from Aleppo and their resettlement in Rome and New Jersey.

Today Torres-Garcia is working as an associate producer and reporter for ABC News, reporting and producing across various departments at ABC News including the TV news program 2020. His most recent project was conceiving, producing and writing a project called This IS Home about child refugees in the Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan who were provided with cameras to record their daily lives. This project was released as an ABC News Digital piece.

Torres-Garcia played two videos from his Columbia masters project about Aleppo refugees and the Zaatari refugee camps. The seniors watched intently as the two contrasting views of the lives of refugees streamed across the screen. Afterwards, the applause and the questions asked by the students transformed the story of Torres-Garcias homecoming into a forum about every seniors future dreams, about career, about purpose, and about the meaning of home.

Torres-Garcia had come a long way from the time of playing emigras and coyotaje behind Sunshine Market. Now he was telling the stories of others who faced similar  though very different  challenges as displaced emigrants.

Asked about his future goals, Torres-Garcia said, I still really want to be an international journalist. But thats nearly impossible at the moment because I am undocumented.  Asked if he ever planned to become a U.S. citizen, Torres-Garcias said Absolutely! But right now there is no path for someone like me. Some people say Get in line to become a citizen. But for children who are brought into this country as babies, there is no line. There is no pathway.
Wine tasting in Santa Lucia Highlands of Monterey County: Long-time vintner Steve McIntyre met us, a traveling group of wine writers, in his vineyard. He pulled up in his pick-up truck, jumped out, opened the tail gate and rummaged around for glasses to give us tastes of his McIntyre rose of pinot noir, chardonnay, and pinot noir.

There are only a few spots in the world that can consistently grow world-class pinot noir grapes, McIntyre said. One of them is the Santa Lucia Highlands, this slender 12-mile stretch of land perched on the eastern slopes of the Santa Lucia mountain range. The unique conditions of the Highlands, its morning fog and afternoon winds, its cool climate, low rainfall and long growing season, all contribute to create an area distinct enough to merit its own appellation within the greater Monterey AVA.

Any minute, he told us, the winds would be arriving; they can tell the time by the winds that sweep in every afternoon at 1 p.m. from the Monterey Bay and down the Salinas Valley.

McIntyre would be one to know. Since the 1970s, McIntyre, a winemaker and a grapegrower, with degrees in both oenology and viticulture, has been working in the area. In 1987, following many years as winemaker at the Smith & Hook winery in the Santa Lucia Highlands, he purchased this 80-acre vineyard with some of the districts oldest pinot and chardonnay vines, planted in 1973 and launched his own label. His vineyards, which include another 80-acre parcel, have become his living laboratory, where he has experimented with new clones, different trellising systems, and farming methods.

And he is also the owner of Monterey Pacific vineyard management company that farms 12,000 acres in Monterey County.

McIntyre has also been a pioneer in sustainability. A founding member of the Central Coast Vineyard Team, he was one of the originators of SIPSustainability In Practicecertification program. The McIntyre Estate Vineyard was among the first properties in the Santa Lucia Highlands to be SIP-certified. Sustainable wine grapegrowing, he said, is part of a big picture philosophy that takes into account fiscal, social and environmental issues. To earn a SIP certification, growers are evaluated on everything from human resource management to habitat conservation.

Green is more than a catch phrase here, McIntyre said, adding that conscientious viticultural standards, whether organic, biodynamic, or sustainable, have long been the norm.

Was it just my imagination or could we taste the sea wind, the morning fogs and mountain air in the wines? Probably imagination. But either way, the wines were fresh, balanced, elegant and delicious.

The best way to taste themaside, of course, from standing in his vineyards and chatting about them with himis to visit the McIntyre Vineyards tasting room in Carmel-by-the-Sea. Its open Tuesday to Saturday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sunday 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Monday by appointment, at 169 Crossroads Blvd., Carmel. For details, call (831) 626-6268 or visit www.mcintyrevineyards.com/

Im heading back soon to taste the McIntyre sparkling wine.

The Highlands

Just beyond the vineyards of the Santa Lucia Highlandsand sometimes side by sideare the truck farms with their rows of lettuce, broccoli and peppers. Gradually, many of the old-time farmers have been switching to grapes, said Dave Muret, the executive director of the Santa Lucia Highlands Wine Artisans.

Its all about families here, said Muret, who met us for breakfast at the at Montereys Intercontinental Hotel the Clement on Cannery Row, after depositing his own son at school. And its all about long-term farming.

In the 1790s, the missionaries and Spanish conquistadors planted the first grapes, in what would, centuries later, become the Santa Lucia Highlands appellation. The modern era began in the early 1970s, with Rich and Claudia Smith of Paraiso winery, the McFarland family at Sleepy Hollow, Phil Johnson at La Estancia, and Nicky Hahn at Smith & Hook. The pace accelerated in the 80s and 90s, and swiftly, the region won acclaim for its premium pinot noir and chardonnay wines.

Still, it remains a challenge to visit wineries in the Highlands, Muret admitted.

For example, the excellent August West wines, which we tasted at the home of the wineries co-owner John Peterson, are made in San Francisco by Ed Kurtzman.

The focus is really on the exceptional grapes that the Highlands can produce with reliable consistency. Its an area where farmers have been living and working for generations, Muret said. These are long-time farmers with a body of knowledge thats generations old.

Today, about 6,100 acres of the 22,000 acres comprising the Highlands, have been planted to grapes, primarily chardonnay (2,060 acres) and pinot noir (3,095 acres), but with other varieties being added to the mix. Of these riesling, syrah, pinot gris, and viognier are the next most planted varieties and according to Murets records, 40 and fewer acres are planted to sauvignon blanc, malbec, gewurtztraminer, grenache noir, muscat canelli, roussance and grenache blanc.

This terroir, Muret said, influences everything we do.

With the scarcity of tasting rooms in the Highlandsalthough many vintners have tasting rooms in Monterey or Carmel  Muret said one of the best ways to experience the Santa Lucia Highlands wines is to attend the annual gala hosted by the Santa Lucia Highlands Wine Artisans.

Theyre all there; its always a huge hit, he said. It sells out.

Definitely worth seeking out, this taste of the Santa Lucia Highlands.

The next one is scheduled for May 20, 2017 at Mer Soleil Winery.
YEREVAN.  Zhoghovurd newspaper has learned that those within the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) are scratching their heads as to which of the party posts they should give to Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan, reported the newspaper.

The post shall reflect his high position in the Republican Party; the factor of his being the [RPA] second man, after [President and party chairman] Serzh Sargsyan.

To this end, an option is also discussed, according to which, PM Karen Karapetyan could be given the post of Chairman of the RPA Board[, which Sargsyan also holds at present]; that is, Serzh Sargsyan will be chairman of the party, whereas Karen Karapetyanchairman of the [party] board.

A similar mechanism was used at the time for Serzh Sargsyan, when he became a member of the RPA in July, 2006, wrote Zhoghovurd.
Flight restrictions extended at 11 airports in south and center of Russia until November 9

Storm Nalgae in the Philippines leaves 110 people killed

Gold price remains stable

Death toll in Seoul stampede rises to 156

Armenian PM and Iranian President hold talks in Tehran

Kopirkin: Karabakh status issue should be left to next generations

14 people injured in Chicago Halloween night shooting

Armenias Pashinyan arrives in Iran

Armenia economy minister: Government predicts 7% economic growth in 2023

Turkish and Ukraine defense ministers discuss situation with grain deal

Copper prices are rising

Russia envoy to Armenia: Many common paradigms being broken in South Caucasus

Israel holds fifth parliamentary elections since 2019

Lavrov: Over past decades we managed to lay solid foundations for strategic partnership, alliance with Armenia

Oil goes up in price

Primakov Readings international forum kicks off in Yerevan

One person killed in Toronto shooting

Armenias Pashinyan heads for Iran

Newspaper: Armenia premier sends intelligence to Artsakh on day of rally

Putin on choosing Turkey as Russia natural gas supply junction: Erdogan is man of his word

Russia, Turkey FMs discuss South Caucasus

Kremlin: Armenia, Azerbaijan confirmed their interest in Russia mediation

Armenia PM concludes visit to Russias Sochi

Putin: Europe will not be able to exclude Russia from Yerevan-Baku relations normalization process

Putin on extending mandate of Russian peacekeepers in Karabakh: It will depend on other matters

Putin: No Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty yet

IMF forecasts $1 trillion unforeseen profit for oil exporter

Lavrov and Cavusoglu discuss recent developments in Caucasus

Seoul and Warsaw sign key agreements on nuclear energy development in Poland

Statement by leaders of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan on results of meeting in Sochi

Saudi Arabia and UAE defend OPEC decision

Putin: Russia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan agree on joint statement

U.S. wants EU to impose export restrictions against China

Thunberg calls UN conference place for lies and fraud

Putin, Pashinyan and Aliyev hold trilateral talks

Russian businessman Artem Aslanyan commits suicide in Moscow

Head of the Ministry of Finance: Sweden's economic outlook is gloomy and we're heading for a tough winter

Norway to raise level of army combat readiness in response to Ukraine war

Putin and Aliyev talks in Sochi are over

Moldova expels Russian embassy employee after incident with falling rocket parts

Estonia to expand by 30 times protected zone on border with Russia

Serzh Sargsyan receives Garo Paylan

Inflation hits new record in 19 eurozone countries

Shoigu and Akar discuss Russia's decision to suspend participation in grain deal

Head of Armenian Armed Forces General Staff: Azerbaijan refuses to allow evacuation of Armenian soldiers' bodies

Inflation in Poland breaks the record of 25 years ago

Head of General Staff of Armenian Armed Forces explains why Azerbaijanis 'trapped' were not captured

Chief of General Staff of Armenian Armed Forces confirms loss of positions as result of Azerbaijani aggression

Central Bank: Inflation in Armenia reaches 9.9%

Edvard Asryan: The operational situation in the eastern and southeastern directions is relatively stable

Iran arrests 6 suspects in attack on Shiraz mausoleum

Aliyev: Baku put forward five main principles to normalize relations with Yerevan

Putin: The goal of the trilateral talks is the implementation of all agreements of 2020 and 2021

Talks between presidents of Russia and Azerbaijan start in Sochi

Six people detained in Belarus for hanging Ukrainian flag

NBC News: Biden lost his temper on the phone with Zelenskyy

European Parliament lawmakers arriving in Armenia on fact-finding mission

Cavusoglu: Europe weakening runs counter to Ankara's economic interests

Non-resident organizations providing online services in Armenia declare 1bn drams of VAT in 3 quarters

October oil production in Russia falls

Storm warning issued in Sochi due to tornadoes

Putin and Pashinyan hold 1-hour talks in Sochi

Pashinyan to visit Tehran on November 1

Over AMD 76 billion will be assigned to Armenian police in 2023

Provincial governor of Armenias Tavush, France envoy discuss future cooperation (PHOTOS)

South Korea and the U.S. begin large-scale air force exercise

Dollar, euro continue falling in Armenia

Pashinyan says issue of Armenian captives is unresolved, despite discussions with Putin

Iranian parliament chair to visit Azerbaijan

Pashinyan: Communications passing through Armenia should be under Yerevan's full control

Pashinyan: Russia's clear position on moving Azerbaijani soldiers to their initial positions is important

World wheat prices up

Putin urges to ensure peace in Karabakh and unblock transport infrastructure

Pashinyan calls Russia's approaches to establishing Armenia-Azerbaijan relations acceptable

State budget spending on Armenia emergency ministry needs to increase considerably in 2023

Pashinyan says he wants to discuss regional security issues with Putin

Putin hopes for progress in Karabakh settlement during summit

Putin: We have to end the Karabakh conflict

80% of Kyiv remains without water supply after morning strikes, mayor claims

China accuses US of violating trade rules

Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan meets Russian President Vladimir Putin

Peskov: We will inform if documents are agreed as result of Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan leaders meeting

Kremlin says Russia continues contacts with Turkey and UN on 'grain deal'

Masis Abrahamyan, head of ANC - Netherlands office, files lawsuit against Armenian National Security Service

Bloomberg names world's richest families

Central Bank: About 86% of banks' profits in Armenia come from currency sale/purchase, exchange fees

Head of Central Bank of Armenia: Economic growth in 2023 will be lower than 7% forecasted by government

Armenia civil servants salaries to increase but bonuses to reduce

Armenia finance minister: Salaries to increase almost twice as much more than bonuses have become salaries

Finance ministry: Armenia inflation would have been higher if national currency had not increased in value

Alen Simonyan to Erin Elizabeth McKee: Armenia is interested in deeper engagement by US

Central Bank of Armenia: U.S. financial authorities complicate U.S. dollar turnover worldwide

Kyiv: 12 vessels with grain leave Ukrainian ports

France is working on a land route for grain export from Ukraine

Amount of Armenia financial assistance to Karabakh to not change in 2023

International Rescue Committee: Blockade of Ukrainian grain may lead to disaster

Erdogan: Turkey will continue to solve the food issue despite Russia's hesitation

Armenia's budget deficit in 2023 will be 3.1% of GDP

PACE MPs initiate resolution on political prisoners cases increase in Azerbaijan

EU studying issue of recognizing Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as terrorist organization
STEPANAKERT.  The adversary violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between the Karabakh and Azerbaijani opposing forces around 60 times, from late Thursday night to early Friday morning.

During this time the Azerbaijani armed forces fired more than 700 shots toward the Armenian position-holders, and by way of various caliber weapons, the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR/Artsakh) Defense Army informed Armenian News-NEWS.am.

In addition, the adversary fired 141 shots from large-caliber machine guns, in southerly and northerly directions of the line of contact.

But the NKR Defense Army vanguard units continued confidently carrying out the military task set before them, and they took actions in response when absolutely necessary.
Armenia has made significant progress, and doing business has become easier in the country, World Bank representative Valentina Saltane told the Voice of America Armenian service.

She noted this commenting on the Doing Business 2017 report, where Armenia has improved its respective position by five points, as compared to the year past.

In Saltanes words, the most significant doing business progress of Armenia has been recorded in further facilitating the procedures for the registration of new enterprises and the providing of loans.

As per the WB expert, however, there is still a need for major improvements in the procedures for obtaining building permits, installing electricity, carrying out contract requirements, and regulating insolvency.

But Valentina Saltane added that the Armenian authorities need to make use of this current progress and continue the reforms.
YEREVAN.  The Electoral Code of Armenia does not give Armenians living abroad the right to vote.

Zaruhi Postanjyan, who heads the opposition Heritage [Party] National Assembly (NA) Faction, stated the aforesaid at Fridays NA briefings.

In her words, the election system in Armenia has remained clan-based and divided between thirteen territorial administrative regions, in each of which local oligarchs will help the authorities stay in power.

So that the elections [in Armenia] be nationwide, in the true sense of this word, Armenians who are living outside the borders of Armenia, in large colonies, also must vote [in these elections], added Postanjyan.
The narrow-format meeting of the Council of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Heads of Governments got underway Friday in Minsk, the capital city of Belarus.

In his opening remarks at the event, Belarusian Prime Minister Andrei Kobyakov noted that the discussants will confer on the first documents which were prepared with the results of the CIS leaders recent meeting in Bishkek, the capital city of Kyrgyzstan.

The PMs of Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan as well as Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan and Moldova, and CIS Executive Committee Chairman Sergei Lebedev are attending this narrow-format session.

Ukraine, however, is not represented in this meeting.
YEREVAN.  Enhancing economic connectivity perspectives and the development of Euro-Asian inland transport links were the focus of a two-day expert meeting held on Wednesday and Thursday in Yerevan, the capital city of Armenia, by the OSCE Office in Yerevan within the UNECE's Euro-Asian Transport Links (EATL) project.

The event brought together representatives from state institutions, private sector, specialized transport organizations and experts from Armenia, Greece, Iran, Poland, Russia, Singapore, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

They discussed recent developments in infrastructure projects and transit initiatives along Euro-Asian routes, in particular the Silk Road Programme, and the North-South Road Corridor Investment Program. Participants discussed the draft of the UNECE EATL Phase 3 Report which shall serve as a basis for policy co-ordination and action to make the overland Euro-Asian trade transport links operational and commercially attractive. The participants agreed that public-private partnerships and political support are required to boost regional economic growth, stability and security through improving existing legal agreements, simplifying procedures and eliminating redundant and restrictive rules.

The OSCE recognizes the significance of the Euro-Asian Transport Links project for the economic connectivity and social stability of the region, noted David Gullette, Acting Economic and Environmental Officer at the OSCE Office in Yerevan.

Miroslav Jovanovic from the UNECEs Sustainable Transport Division said that The UNECE intends to contribute to the economic development in Europe and Asia by easing transport and trade links and making them more commercially viable."

Zukhra Bektepova, Economic Affairs Officer at the Office of the Coordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) stressed that enhancing harmonization and predictability of transport and customs procedures and regulations requires not only technical know-how but also political will and co-operation.

Artak Zakaryan, Chair of the Standing Committee on Foreign Relations of the National Assembly of Armenia emphasized the significance of regional economic integration where improvement and development of effective Euro-Asian transport and efficient logistics chains are vitally important.

The expert meeting was supported by the OCEEA and the UNECE.

The OSCE has been providing political and practical help to the UNECEs Euro-Asian Transport Links since 2006.
Within the framework of his visit to Belarus, the Prime Minister of Armenia, Karen Karapetyan, participated in the meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council as well as in the narrow- and extended-format meetings of the Council of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Heads of Governments.

Several programs were discussed and, subsequently, approved along the lines of these talks that were conducted in the Belarusian capital city of Minsk.

Following these sessions, PM Karapetyan held a short briefing with members of the media.

He noted that the negotiations and discussions were quite interesting, and that such platforms are suitable for conferring on matters that have accumulated in post-Soviet countries.

Discussions at the meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council were lively and substantive because they were about the Customs Code, added the Armenian PM. Since there were unresolved matters, we agreed to meet again on November 15, in Moscow.
Armenian Ombudsman Arman Tatoyan delivered a speech at the General Assembly of the European Network of National Human Rights Institutions in Zagreb.

In his speech, he underscored the importance of attracting Nagorno-Karabakh law enforcement authorities in international-level meetings.

Tatoyan recalled that regardless of the political status of the territory, Artsakh should take part in all discussions related to issues of human rights defense.

During the plenary session, Tatoyan came up with proposals on this issue, which will be discussed in the framework of the organizations strategic program for 2017-19.

After Tatoyans speech, an Azerbaijani representative came up with political accusations in violation of the regulation, receiving remarks from the host.
French scientist and engineer Louis Pouzin has become the laureate of the Armenian Presidents 2016 IT award.

Chairman of the Awards Executive Council, Hovik Musayelyan, who is also the Director of Synopsys Armenia, told the aforementioned to journalists at a press-conference Friday.

Pouzin will arrive in Armenia on November 5. In the framework of his visit, he will visit a number of educational institutions, where he will meet with future technology and communication professionals. A solemn reception will be held in his honor on behalf of the President.

Louis Pouzin is the inventor of the datagram and one of the earliest packet communications networks, CYCLADES. The technologies of package data transmissions have become one of the predecessors of the Internet.
The European Union and the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) started a project of technical assistance to small and medium businesses and business associations in Armenia, Ms Eva Maria Naher, head of the new SMEDA project, told reporters at the opening ceremony Friday.

The chief goal of the project is to empower SME associations to provide a wider array of quality services to their stakeholders. These may include both paid and free consulting and trainings, she said.

Another objective is to facilitate technology transfer to small and medium businesses.

To make this possible, we are ready to work with different sectors and clusters. We want to highlight some of them, such as precision engineering, with some prospective companies in Armenia. But we are also exploring the field of clean tech: renewable energy, energy efficiency, waste management. We have not yet decided on exact sectors, but will make decisions over the next years.

Generally, we want to be as inclusive as possible. We dont want to say sorry, theres no more room if we see another partner that will benefit from our assistance, she stressed.

The project, funded by the EU and implemented by the GIZ, will run from 2016 to 2019.
YEREVAN. - Ameriabank CJSC and Export Insurance Agency of Armenia ICJSC on Friday signed a cooperation agreement in the banks headquarters.

The aim of the agreement is to ensure the companies exporting from Armenia from purchasers non-payment due to trade and political risks. Consequently, when getting factoring, the exporters not only get a prepayment opportunity for exported goods, thus increasing the circulating means, but are also insured from purchasers further possible non-payment. Getting factoring by the export contract currency gives an opportunity to neutralize possible negative result of foreign currency fluctuation.

President of Ameriabanks Management Board, General Director Artak Hanesyan noted: Ameriabank is actively working in the area of factoring, the overall volume of factoring transactions during nine months of the current year amounting to 50 mln USD, 80 percent out of which is covered by factoring. The signing of this agreement will give us an opportunity to carry out factoring through a more facilitated process and restrained risks, which will contribute to the growth of Armenias export volumes and thus to that of funding flows entering the republic.
Supporters of Sansa Tsrer armed group on Friday submitted a letter to the Armenian Human Rights Defenders Office.

The march participants headed from Yerevans Liberty Square to the Office of the Human Rights Defender, Armenian News  NEWS.am correspondent reports.

Here they were received by Zohrab Yeganyan, the Spokesperson for Armenian Human Rights Defender.

The supporters and relatives of Sasna Tsrer members require from Tatoyan to support them in organizing meetings with the group members, as well as releasing them.

Heritage Party MP Zaruhi Postanjyan also took part in the march. She told journalists that the struggle for releasing the Sasna Tsrer group members and political prisoners is continuing. It is necessary to gather every day and carry out the struggle. Through every day protests we must achieve their release, Postanjyan stated.

The group supporters also launched a signature campaign demanding to allow Sasna Tsrer group members to meet with their relatives.
Pennsylvania State Court has sentenced a hacker to 18 months in prison for breaking accounts of celebrities and stealing their naked photos and videos. 36-year-old Ryan Collins was found guilty in May, reports the Russian service of BBC.

The investigation found no evidence that Collins is behind the release of the stolen photos. Therefore, the court convicted her of stealing personal data of 600 users only. To seize celebrities passwords, Collins sent them, including Jennifer Lawrence, Kate Upton, Scarlett Johansson, and Kirsten Dunst, e-mails on behalf of Google or Apple support services. The photos of naked celebrities popped up in the Internet.

Collins stole pictures in the period of 2012-2014. She was charged in Los Angeles, but the sentence was handed down in Pennsylvania, where she lives.
21:01





"The first thing is Rahul Gandhi is wrong on facts. But a larger issue is to make him aware that armed forces is an important institution of the country. They are doing sensitive work to make India secure. I would urge Rahul Gandhi not to subject army to petty politics," Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad told news agency PTI.





Prasad, who holds the Law, Justice and Information Technology portfolios, emphasised that it was the Narendra Modi government which has taken the decision to implement the 'One Rank, One Pension' policy which comes at an annual load of Rs 10,000 crore on the exchequer.





Responding to Gandhi's charges, Prasad said that as far as equivalence part is concerned, the same has been in force since 1998-99. "There is no new policy initiative undertaken taken by the Narendra Modi government in this regard," the minister said.





He said that as far as pension payment on slab system is concerned, it is a recommendation of the Pay Review Committee which the government has not accepted.

Urging Rahul Gandhi not to subject army to "petty politics" for partisan gains, the government today said the Congress vice president was not right on facts when he questioned the implementation of the 'One Rank, One Pension' scheme.
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Grant funds training for small produce growers, food processors

by Andrea Hahn

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- The guidebook to new regulations under the Food Safety Modernization Act is a weighty tome -- at least 500 pages. Ruplal Choudhary, associate professor of plant, soil and agricultural systems at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, is mastering the material to help small-scale produce growers and food processors in Southern Illinois more easily comply.

Choudhary earned a pilot project grant from the U.S. Department of Agricultures National Institute of Food and Agriculture for $146,893 to help develop and implement training programs that will help small-scale producers and processors comply when the new rules apply to them in 2017 and 2018.

Choudhary has a three-fold goal: to identify current food safety training programs in the area and the program gaps; to modify the curricula to teach the new regulations, emphasizing what is most relevant in the southern-most 24 counties of Illinois; and to teach the courses to small growers and processors. Hell accomplish this with help from a small team including representatives from Rend Lake College, Shawnee Community College and the University of Illinois Extension.

Its a lot of work to apply for a grant and I began the application process shortly before the deadline so it was stressful, he said. But I felt like this was an important grant for this area; its something we need here.

Small businesses, for the purposes of the Food Safety Modernization Act, are those employing fewer than 500 people and generating between $250,000 and $500,000 in produce sales annually. That includes many Southern Illinois produce-growers and food processors, including some who promote specialty products.

There arent necessarily a lot of resources readily available in this area, Choudhary said. Food safety is vital. An advantage small producers and processors have is that, because they are smaller, they often have more control over their process and more direct contact with employees. So that will be our first focus -- changing peoples habits.

Choudhary noted that training is easy, but habit-changing is difficult. For example, employees know by now they should wash their hands before handling food. What they may not realize is that how they wash their hands or what they wash them with might make a significant difference in their level of safe food handling. For example, washing up with a soy-based soap might not keep an employee in compliance with new rules.

The reason for this, Choudhary said, is that many of the new food safety rules apply to the handling of potential allergens. The FDA regulates eight food allergies: milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat and soybeans. New standards are stricter in keeping foods on that list from contacting other foods.

Ideally, products made with allergens should be in separate facilities, he said. But thats not always practical. The next best would be to have a wall separating the allergen foods from other foods or, next after that, to use completely different equipment. The least ideal is to sterilize the equipment between food processes -- but that can be hard to do.

Thats also why it makes a difference what soap employees use or the level of water treatment used on fruits or vegetables.

Its a serious matter, food allergies can cause people to die, Choudhary said. And people should be able to trust thats what is on the food label is what is in the food they buy.

Choudhary is completing his own training in the new regulations. He is certified now as a lead instructor. He plans to offer four face-to-face, low-cost training courses in the spring and summer, probably at SIU, Rend Lake College and Shawnee Community College for food processors, and at least three sessions for Good Agricultural Practices (GAP)-certification for producers.
Why Zika has infected so many people in Puerto Rico

University of Florida Ph.D. candidate Diana Rojas explains why its difficult to contain a mosquito-borne infection such as Zika when conditions are ideal for it to spread.

The United States declared Zika a public health emergency in Puerto Rico in August 2016.

Over 28,000 cases of Zika were reported in Puerto Rico as of Oct. 26. In contrast, just over 4,000 cases of Zika were reported in the continental U.S. and Hawaii by the same date. Most of these cases are travel-related, meaning that people are infected while abroad. But in Puerto Rico, 98 percent of Zika cases are locally acquired. It is estimated that up 80 percent of people who are infected with Zika are asymptomatic, which means that reported cases may be just a fraction of those who may be infected.

The U.S. Surgeon General said that one in four Puerto Ricans could be infected by the end of the year. A recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that 5,900 to 10,300 pregnant women might get infected during the initial Zika outbreak in Puerto Rico. In the absence of effective interventions like birth control or mosquito control, about 100 to 270 infants may be born with Zika-related microcephaly from mid-2016 to mid-2017.

So why is Zika so much worse in Puerto Rico than in the continental U.S.?

Mosquito-borne diseases are complex. Environmental, social, political and cultural factors can influence their transmission. And Puerto Rico, like other parts of the Caribbean and Latin America, has the perfect mix of conditions for a mosquito borne virus to spread widely.

Alvin Baez/Files/Reuters

Environmental factors

Since the Zika virus was identified in Brazil, it has spread through most of the countries in the Western Hemisphere, Latin America and the Caribbean, including the continental United States. All these areas have something in common: the Aedes aegypti mosquito.

Ae. aegypti mosquitoes can also transmit Chikungunya and dengue viruses. This species is prevalent in Puerto Rico, where temperature, humidity and rainfall make it a perfect place for mosquitoes to breed all year long.

By contrast, in most of the states in the continental U.S., these environmental conditions are met just at the end of spring and during summer (though this is slowly shifting over time, thanks to climate change).

The only state with confirmed local transmission of Zika virus is Florida, and transmission there is occurring in only two areas in Miami-Dade County. Up to Oct. 26, 2016, 180 local related Zika infections have been confirmed.

But it is expected that with the lower temperatures during winter the risk of Zika will also decrease, because mosquitoes need optimal temperatures to reproduce.

Ae. aegypti breeds close to where people live

Ae. aegypti mosquitoes like to feed on people, and often breed in stagnant water in households or in areas near where people live.

In areas without infrastructure to supply water to the entire population or with inappropriate waste management, people may store water in or near their homes or leave waste containers and tires uncovered. This can create more breeding sites for the mosquito. More mosquitoes means more mosquito bites.

In Puerto Rico, Aedes mosquito-breeding sites are mainly used and discarded car tires, which the government is trying to collect to reduce mosquito densities and contain the spread of the virus. Pails, pets water bowls and water fountains, for example, also contribute to the problem.

Population growth and internal migration, particularly to unplanned urban areas with poor sanitary conditions, can move more people into areas where Ae. aegypti mosquitoes densities are higher. This is characteristic of Latin America and the Caribbean overall.

In Puerto Rico, as in other tropical areas, window and door screens and air conditioning arent as common as they are in the continental U.S. These are considered luxuries for most of the medium and low socioeconomic classes. Simple things like window screens, use of repellent or air conditioning make a difference.

As part of Zika prevention efforts, the government of Puerto Rico is installing or repairing window and door screens in low-income households with pregnant women and women of childbearing age within the public housing system.

Alvin Baez/Reuters

Political and cultural factors

The most effective way to prevent mosquito-borne diseases is to control mosquito densities. But mosquito control strategies, such as insecticides and elimination of potential breeding sites, are unsustainable and ineffective in complex transmission settings like Puerto Rico and other tropical areas.

For instance, health officials have known these breeding sites are a major factor in the spread of mosquito-borne illnesses in Puerto Rico for a long time. But efforts to eliminate these sites and control the spread of diseases have not been successful due to multiple environmental and social conditions that make the ideal setting for the mosquito to breed and difficult to control.

In contrast, in the U.S. the mosquito densities are low and the population takes action in doing its own pest and mosquito control, reducing the mosquito populations that can lead to an outbreak.

The fact that mosquito-borne infections are so common in Puerto Rico means that perceived risk from Zika is low. Dengue, for instance, is endemic in Puerto Rico. If Zika is not perceived as a high risk, that means many people do not use repellent or wear long sleeves and long pants as additional protection against mosquito bites.

Puerto Ricos ongoing economic crisis has weakened the islands health sector, which can lead late detection of outbreaks, delaying control strategies.

However, the Zika funding bill Congress passed on Sept. 28 allocated money to fight the virus, as well as to support Medicaid and local health centers in Puerto Rico. This funding may help control transmission of the virus (mosquito control) and fund preventative efforts, like vaccine development.

Its possible to reduce mosquito-borne diseases, even in places where the conditions are ideal for mosquitoes like Ae. aegypti to flourish. Getting rid of standing water  even small amount in flower pots or bird paths  eliminates places where female mosquitoes lay their eggs. Installing window screens and mosquito repellent can keep mosquitoes at bay.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
India and Nepal on Thursday agreed to expedite implementation of the seven projects on infrastructure, cross-border connectivity and utilisation of Indian funds for Nepal's reconstruction following the April 2015 earthquake. An agreement in this regard was reached during the fourth meeting of the India-Nepal Joint Commission meeting held at the Foreign Minister-level in New Delhi. According to the Indian External Affairs Ministry, a comprehensive review of all aspects of India-Nepal relations under five broad clusters was undertaken at the meeting. These clusters are political, security and boundary, economic cooperation and infrastructure, trade and transit, power and water resources and culture and education. The Joint Commission decided to convene within a month the first meeting of the 'joint oversight mechanism' comprising officials of both the countries to expedite the implementation of all ongoing bilateral cooperation projects, an official statement said. Both countries had agreed to set up such a mechanism to clear the bottlenecks in India-funded projects in the Himalayan country. The Foreign Secretary of Nepal and the Indian Ambassador to Nepal will lead their respective sides to help clear glitches in the projects funded by India. The statement said the two sides agreed to clear detailed project reports on roads, Mahakali Bridge and irrigation projects to be implemented through concessional loans provided by the Government of India in 2014. During Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Nepal in August 2014, India announced an assistance of $1 billion to execute various projects in Nepal. Both sides also agreed for the expeditious completion of the first phase of the Terai roads in the southern plains. Discussions were also held on a new concessional loan for development of Terai roads in the second phase as well as some other projects. The statement said both sides agreed for the early completion of two cross-border rail link projects -- the Biratnagar-Jogbani and Bardibas-Bijalpura-Jaynagar projects -- and initiation of works for three other cross-border rail projects, namely the Nepalgunj-Nepalgunj Road, Kakarbhitta-New Jalpaiguri, and Bhairahawa-Nautanawa rail links. A consensus was arrived at on the early completion of works of integrated checkpost at Birgunj on the Nepali side and commencement of construction of ICP at Biratnagar in Nepal. India is constructing four ICPs at key trading points on both sides of the border. The meeting agreed for early implementation of the Hetauda Polytechnic project undertaken through Indian assistance and finalisation of the projects to utilise grant and loan components offered by India for reconstruction. On bilateral trade, the Nepali side requested India to take concrete measures to increase Nepal's exports to India by, inter alia, addressing the concerns related to additional duties and charges, quantitative restrictions and rules of origin. Both sides agreed to expedite the finalisation of a memorandum of understanding between the Nepal Bureau of Standards and Metrology and the Bureau of Indian Standards. On Nepal's request for additional air routes, the Joint Commission directed the civil aviation authorities concerned to deal with the matter at the next meeting by the end of 2016. Nepal requested India to take supportive measures to promote tourism industry by including Nepal in its concessional leave scheme and by granting multiple entry visas to India-bound third-country tourists to enable them to visit Nepal, said the statement. The Fifth meeting of the Joint Commission will take place in Nepal at a mutually convenient date. Formed in 1987, the Joint Commission is a bilateral mechanism at the Foreign Ministers level with a mandate to review the entire spectrum of bilateral relations. The last meeting of the commission was held in Kathmandu in 2014. --IANS giri/tsb/dg ( 603 Words) 2016-10-27-20:34:02 (IANS)
Some magic was created when 'Baahubali' helmer SS Rajamouli recently dropped in the set of 'Sarkar 3,' where Amitabh Bachchan is busy shooting now-a-days. The 74-year-old actor tweeted a moment of the meet and wrote alongside, "The genius director Rajamouli of that colossal film 'Bahubali' on set of SARKAR 3 .. a simple humble man !!" The third installment of the Ram Gopal Varma's 'Sarkar' franchise is loosely based on Hollywood's Godfather and has vamped up the entire cast, which includes Manoj Bajpayee, Ronit Roy, Amit Sadh, Jackie Shroff, Bharat Dhabolkar and Rohini Hattangadi. Big-B, who features as Subhash 'Sarkar' Nagare in the movie, expressed his happiness of being a part of the movie over a tweet. "This SARKAR 3 is getting more out of everyone, than any before .. privileged and so humbled that 3 series contain me .." he wrote. He even took to his blog to post on the film's preliminary reception and wrote, "I saw the first scene of Sarkar 3 edited by RGV of Ram Gopal Varma and shared it with some. A stunned silence preceded the gushing praise that followed. From common house wives to seasoned head of work departments, 'If this is the first scene,' they said, 'wonder what will happen after this' and how will the strength of the first scene remain in such prominence compared to what shall follow later." Meanwhile, Rajamouli will release the second and final part of his epic drama 'Baahubali' on April 28, next year. Last week, on Prabhas' birthday, the makers revealed the film's first look and Rajamouli wrote alongside, "MAHENDRA BAAHUBALI is ARRIVING .... #Baahubali2FirstLook. #WKKB. ." Although no such reason for Big-B and Rajamouli's meet has been known yet, but we can always expect something good out of it. (ANI)
Amidst escalating tension with Pakistan in the wake of the Uri terror attack and surgical strikes, India today welcomed the reported decision of Islamabad to participate in the Heart of Asia Conference to be held in Amritsar on December 4. The Heart of Asia is a multilateral conference to help Afghanistan, so India welcomed participation of all countries, and of Pakistan to the event, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said while replying to a question at the weekly media briefing here. However, he said an official confirmation from Islamabad was still awaited and he had come to know of Pakistan's proposed participation through media reports only. He said he was also unaware of the level of participation from Pakistan Pakistani media had last week quoted Mr Sartaj Aziz, Adviser to the Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, as saying that his country would be represented at the Heart of Asia conference, which would be presided over by Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. There were doubts over Pakistan's participation in the conference as India had boycotted the SAARC Summit that was scheduled to be held in the neighbouring country in November.UNI NAZ CJ SHS 2048 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0091-998041.Xml
The Madhya Pradesh Government came under fire from the SC/ST students after a government college in Mandsaur district distributed college bags with 'SC/ ST scheme' written on it. The SC/ST students of the Rajiv Gandhi Government PG College said though it was a good initiative but there was no need to write the name of the scheme over them as this leads to profiling and humiliation. "The students not belonging to the SC/ST community look down on us and we face discrimination," one of the students told ANI. "We demand those in power not to do such acts if they really want to bring us to the mainstream," he said, adding that many students either apply stickers or ink on the written words or do not carry the bags to college to escape the humiliation. When asked about the same, BJP leader and Madhya Pradesh Higher Education Minister Jaibhan Singh Pawaiya said, "There is no such scheme of the higher education department in which bags printed with SC/ST scheme are to be distributed in universities." "As soon as the matter came to my knowledge, I ordered the Principal Secretary to investigate as to under which scheme these bags have been distributed and why unnecessarily the name of the scheme has been printed on these bags," he added. Assuring stringent action against those responsible, he said, "Even if it is someone's mistake, we will make sure such things don't happen again." Congress leader Pankaj Chaturvedi took on the BJP-led government in the state, saying the motive behind this initiative is to humiliate the SC/ST students. "We condemn such an act and our leaders have taken notice of this. We will take this matter to Delhi and ensure justice is meted out to the students," he added. The initiative also drew the ire of the Congress students wing NSUI as its members were seen raising slogans against the state government while accusing Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan of being anti-Dalit. (ANI)
Expressing serious concern over the arrest of a Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar for espionage charges, the Janata Dal (United) on Friday said the fault in India's internal security must be fixed with immediate effect, adding "such people should be thrown out of the country". "It's a serious matter and there must be a proper probe. Four people have already been arrested..what about those who have not yet been arrested? The fault in our internal security needs to be fixed. The NIA and RAW should throw such people out of the nation," JD (U) spokesperson Ajay Alok told ANI. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) yesterday said Akhtar had been asked to leave India within 48 hours. "Akhtar has been declared Persona Non-Grata and he, along with his family, has to leave India by Saturday. He stated that he had joined the Baloch regiment of the Pakistani Army in 1997. He came on deputation to the ISI in 2013. In fact, it was Mehmood Akhtar, who resorted to subterfuge by concealing his real identity. Akhtar was posted in September 2013 at the Pakistan High Commission, where he is currently working," MEA official spokesperson Vikas Swarup told the media in New Delhi. Responding to the allegation by Pakistan Foreign office about manhandling of Akhtar, Swarup said the staffer was treated with diplomatic courtesy. Swarup said that Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar asked Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit to restrain the staffers of the Commission from indulging in anti-India activities. Basit, who was summoned by the Foreign Secretary, said India had intercepted Akhtar in the pursuit of espionage. Following intelligence inputs relating to espionage on vital installations of the army and paramilitary forces, Akhtar was caught by the Delhi Police yesterday while receiving sensitive documents pertaining to India's national security from two persons hailing from Rajasthan. Initially, Akhtar masqueraded as an Indian national and even produced a fake Aadhar card, but when confronted by the police, he admitted that he works in the Pakistan High Commission. At his request, the High Commission was informed and he was handed over to the Commission's officials. Akhtar also admitted that he is from the Baloch Regiment of the Pakistan Army and came on deputation to the Inter Service Intelligence in 2013 and was posted in the Pakistan High Commission in September 2013. (ANI)
Rakesh Ranjan Yadav, alias, Rocky, son of suspended Janata Dal (United) MLC Manorama Devi, was granted bail by the Patna High Court earlier on October 19.

The police arrested Rocky from his father Bindi Yadav's mixer plant in Gaya on May 10.

Rocky's parents, accused of sheltering him while he was on the run after the murder, were recently granted bail.

The police filed a chargesheet in a Gaya court against Rocky and another accused in connection with this case.

They also filed chargesheets against Rocky's cousin Teni Yadav, his father Bindi Yadav and his MLC mother's bodyguard Rajesh Kumar in this connection.

The state government had put the case on speedy trial. The investigation was completed within three weeks and the chargesheet was filed within a month of the incident. (ANI)
At an impressive passing out parade in the Sardar Vallabhai Patel National Police Academy in Sivarampally near here,109 young IPS probationers including 26 women passed out of the Academy, today. The successful probationers belonging to the 68th batch of regular recruits of IPS will soon be taking up top level positions in the police force in different parts of the country. Those who passed out included 15 foreign officers--six from Royal Bhutan Police, five from Nepal Police and four from Maldives. Interestingly,a majority of probationers (66) are engineers from different disciplines, while nine each of them are doctors and masters of business administration. A lone probationer holds the M.Phil degree. Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley who was the chief guest at the impressive parade took the salute and reviewed the colourful parade.He also presented medals and awards to the meritorious probationers. Ms.Chaitra Teresa, an alumni of the University of Hyderabad who bagged two trophies (Best all round lady probationer and best lady outdoor probationer ) received loud applause as she received her trophies from the Minister.UNI SMS KNR CS 1037 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0275-998309.Xml
Curfew has been imposed in Shehar-e-Khas (SeK) and Down Town besides Batmaloo in summer capital, Srinagar to foil " Jamia masjid Challo", called by separatists today. All the roads leading to historic Jamia masjid, where no Friday prayers could be offered for the past 15 weeks due to restrictions, have been closed since yesterday to prevent people from assembling there. However, formal announcement of imposition of curfew in the areas under the jurisdiction of five police stations in the SeK and Down Town besides at Batmaloo was made only this morning. Both the factions of the Hurriyat Conference (HC) and Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), spearheading the agitation since July 9, a day after Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) commander Burhan Wani and two other militants were killed, have already extended the general strike till November 3. The separatists have asked people to march towards Jamia masjid today to break the "siege" to offer prayers in the masjid where no Friday prayers could be offered for the past 15 weeks due to restrictions. The main gates of the masjid, stronghold of moderate HC Mirwaiz Moulvi Omar Farooq, remained locked and large number of police and security forces, wearing bullet proof jackets and holding automatic weapons and lathis in their hands remained deployed in and around the Jamia market. A UNI correspondent who visited the area saw security forces had closed all roads leading to the masjid with barbed wire at Rangar Stop, Nowhatta, Rajouri Kadal, Hawal, Malkha besides all bylanes. People were being directed to remain indoor as curfew has been imposed since 0500 hrs this morning.MORE UNI BAS ADG1111 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0153-998313.Xml
Official sources said that the Army, paramilitary forces and state police, on a tip-off, arrested two local militants of JeM along with hand grenades and automatic weapons.

Details are awaited, they said.

During the cordon and search operations last week, the Army, CRPF and police arrested about 50 people and recovered incriminating documents besides Chinese and Pakistan flags in old town Baramulla.UNI BAS SB ADG 1150

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This will be the third Annual Summit meeting between Prime Minister Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe.

Prime Minister Modi will also be meeting Emperor Akihito during his visit.

The Annual Summit meeting will be an occasion for both Prime Ministers to have in-depth exchanges on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest to further deepen the broad-based and action-oriented partnership between India and Japan.

Prime Minister Modi met his Japanese counterpart in Laos earlier in September this year and discussed ways to strengthen strategic bilateral ties.

Earlier in December 2015, Prime Minister Abe paid a three-day official visit to India during which both leaders discussed various issues of strategic importance besides outlining a vision of working together for peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific Region and the world.

The Japanese Prime Minister also rendered his country's support to India in its bid to join the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).

Earlier in 2014, Prime Minister Modi visited Japan on a five-day visit beginning on August 30 for the Annual Summit meeting with his Japanese counterpart.

During the visit, the two sides decided to upgrade the relationship to a 'Special Strategic and Global Partnership' and launched an India-Japan Investment Promotion Partnership under which Tokyo announced its intention to invest in New Delhi approximately USD 35 billion over the next five years.

Sticking to his 'Make in India' initiative, Prime Minister Modi gave an open invitation to the Japanese companies to consider New Delhi as a 'competitive low-cost manufacturing hub'. (ANI)
"If any person tries to malign society, tries to divide it, create tension between the people and hamper peace in the country then the government and people always will take strict and sever action against them," Naqvi told ANI.

Naqvi said it has become important to restrict such kind of organisations or people and not provide them much freedom.

The government is in the process of declaring the IRF unlawful under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 2011.

Naik came under the scanner after the Bangladeshi newspaper 'Daily Star' revealed that one of the perpetrators of the July 1 terror attack in Dhaka, Rohan Imtiaz, ran propaganda on Facebook that said he was inspired by Naik to carry out the crime.

Naik is banned in both the U.K. and Canada for his alleged hate speeches aimed against other religions.

He is among the 16 banned Islamic scholars in Malaysia. He is also accused of radicalizing and attracting youth for terror acts and has come under the scanner of the security agencies. (ANI)
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitely on Friday advised police officers to be impartial, humane and efficient. He said at the passing out parade of the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy (SVPNPA) here that to uphold ethics and morality and follow the straight path when they find themselves at crossroads of life. Jaitely was speaking after taking salute at 68th Dikshant Parade at SVP National Police Academy. A total of 109 Indian Police Service (IPS) probationers, including 26 women, beside 15 foreign officers passed out of the academy after completing the basic training of 45 weeks. Among the 15 foreign officers, six are from Royal Bhutan Police, five from Nepal Police and four from Maldives. "Remember a police officer owes his commitment to law and law alone. He will be judged by his impartiality, he will be judged by his humanitarian behavior and he will be judged by his efficiency," he said. Jaitely said those who go astray can suffer from arrogance of office and can even become indifferent to requirements of the society but hoped that these cases will be rare and almost negligible "Those who get committed to their service become more and more humble as each day passes by. Humility, compassion, concern and commitment all become important aspects of their personality." Pointing out that nature of crime is changing as it is no longer merely conventional crime, the minister said terrorism is a great curse on society "You have to deploy all modern tools in order to learn how to fight terror. Cyber crimes, crimes involving detailed forensic analysis, narcotics and newer areas of emerging crime. These are all areas you have to educate yourself while being on the job each and I am sure each one of you continue train yourself every day,a he said. Jaitely told the trainees that there will be many opportunities and occasions in their service where they will find themselves standing at crossroads of life. "Remember basic principle of life when you are in doubt go straight you are least likely to err in such situations. if you cut corners and choose an easier course it may bring you some momentary advantage but certainly not the long term one." He also advised the probationers that whenever they find themselves involved in internal struggle, always decide in a manner where ethics and morality are on their side. The annual passing out parade is held every year on October 31, the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India's first Home Minister. However, the event was advanced in view of Diwali. Jaitely paid rich tributes to Patel and described him as one of the greatest citizens the country has produced. "Unquestionably Sardar Patel had one of the greatest role in formation of this country. But for Sardar India's geography would not have been what it is today," he said. The Finance Minister said Patel lived only two-and-half years after Independence but within short span, he united many different provinces and kingdoms to create one of the greatest nations in mankind. "He used the force of patriotism and most people decided to join out of that spirit. Those who didn't agree he used every tactic in governance available to him," Jaitely added. SVPNPA Director Aruna Bahuguna told the trainee officers that they are venturing into professional life when mankind is facing may crises, foremost among these global terror. "Terror across boundaries has drastically proliferated from organised non-state actors to individual radicalisation," she said. Aruna said the offers were equipped not just to win battle on the ground against terror but also the battle of the mind Stating that the year witnessed several new movements posing great challenges to law and order machinery, she advised to go beyond just mechanical regulation understand ideas, stimuli and machinations that propelled these movements. --IANS ms/ksk/vm ( 647 Words) 2016-10-28-13:28:39 (IANS)
Alleging widespread violation of Model Code of Conduct (MCC) by the Congress Party in the November 19 Assembly by-election to be held for Nellithoppe constituency, AIADMK legislature party leader A Anbazhagan said the party would prefer to lodge a complaint with the Election Commission of India. Talking to newpersons here today, Mr.Anbazhagan alleged that since Chief Minister V Narayanasamy himself is the candidate for the election, cash distribution is going on freely with the help of officials and police. A sum of Rs 2,000 is being provided for a ration card and Rs.1000 for a vote. He said, though,the Chief Minister had announced the constitution of different inquiry commissions in the territorial assembly, nothing had materialized so far. Further the Public Accounts and Estimate committees were yet to be constituted, he added. On the smuggling of Panchaloha idols here, Mr Anbazhgan alleged that a former IAS officer who was in service had taken away idols from the museum here to Rajastan to beautify it. However, the idols have not been brought to Puducherry, he added.UNI PAB CS 1316 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0275-998486.Xml
Chairmen of both the factions of the Hurriyat Conference Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Moulvi Omar Farooq remained under house arrest while Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chief Mohammad Yaseen Malik has been shifted back to Central Jail from hospital. Meanwhile, HC chairmen took the issue of thousands of detenues and demanded their release besides withdrawal of cases against them with a five-member delegation from New Delhi led by senior BJP leader and former union minister Yashwant Sinha recently. Mr Malik, who was admitted to S K Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) after he developed infection in right arm during detention was shifted back to Central Jail, Srinagar this morning, a spokesman for the front told UNI.The JKLF chief was arrested on July 9, following massive protests across the Valley after the death of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani and two other militants in an encounter in Anantnag a day earlier. He was admitted to SKIMS from Khyber hospital on the evening of October 22 after doctors advised further specialised treatment there. The spokesman said Malik was again shifted to Central Jail this morning.Meanwhile, additional security forces had been deployed outside the Nigeen house of Mirwiaz, where he has been put under house arrest. Mirwaiz has announced to defy the restrictions and offer Friday prayers at Jamia Masjid, where no prayers could be offered due to restrictions for the past 15 weeks.The spokesman said Mirwaiz was not being allowed to move out of his house. Mirwaiz was released from Sub Jail Cheshmashahi after 60 days detention a day before five member delegation from New Delhi, led by former union minister and senior BJP leader Yashwant Sinha arrived here to meet separatist leaders.Similarly, about a dozen other leaders of the HC have also been put under house arrest or detained in police stations for the past about three months.Mr Geelani also remained under house arrest since his return from New Delhi in May this year. However, he was arrested several times after he defied the restrictions to tried to lead marches but was released in the evening each time.Dozens of hardline HC leaders have also been arrested and detained in different police stations. However, some of them have been shifted to outside the valley jails after Public Safety Act (PSA) was slapped on them.Meanwhile, about 10,000 stone pelters and Separatist organisation activists have also been arrested in the Valley, where 86 persons, mostly youths, were killed and thousands injured in security force and police action following massive protests after the death of Burhan.UNI BAS AE ADG 1307 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0153-998390.Xml
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today paid glowing tributes to Irish woman Margaret Elizabeth Noble, famously known as"Sister Nivedita" and disciple of Swami Vivekananda, on her 150 birth anniversary.Besides Ms Banerjee's floral tribute to reformer and social worker Sister Nivedita, who chose to serve the Indian people defying the British government, the state government has made elaborate arrangements to mark the day in a grand manner.A state government sponsored function will be held at Sisir Mancha later today where Education Minister Partha Chatterjee and president of Bagbazar Math Swami Nityamuktananda will remember the contribution of the Irish woman for the cause of Indian people.The government also set up a committee, comprising dignitaries of Ramakrishna Math and Mission including general secretary Swami Suhitananda, assistant secretary Swami Suvirananda and Swami Suvakarananda.It was Ms Banerjee who took special interest in acquiring and renovating the house of Sister Nivedita at 16 Bosepara Lane and hand it to Ramakrishna Sarada Math. The Chief Minister also acquired Roy Villa in Darjeeling, where Sister Nivedita died on October 13, 1911, and handed it over to Ramakrishna Mission.A programme will be held at Bosepara Lane, where renovation of the building is being carried out in full swing. Noted personalities of the 19th century from Tagore to Jagadish Chandra Bose, Aurobindo Ghosh to Gopal Krishna Gokhale used to visit the house.Bhagini Nivedita was a Scots-Irish social worker, author, teacher and a disciple of Swami Vivekananda. Sister Nivedita, born on this day in 1867 at County Tyrone and spent her last 13 years in Bengal, has been immortalised by her founding of Ramkrishna Sarada Mission and Sister Nivedita Girls' School in Bagbazar.UNI PC SJC AE ADG 1411 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0212-998451.Xml
Sheohar Sub-Divisional Police Officer Preetish Kumar said here that the police personnel, drawn from Sheohar and East Champaran districts, raided the hideout of abductors and secured the safe release of the jeweller Deepak Kumar. He said three abductors were arrested from the spot.

The abductors had demanded ransom money of Rs 1 crore from family members of the jeweller for his release.

Mr Kumar was kidnapped near Madhuaha bridge under Rajepur police station area in East Champaran district on October 22. He was returning to his native Jhitkahia village along with his father on a motorcycle after closing his shop at Rajepur Bazar when the criminals abducted him at gun point. UNI XC-DH KK SB ADG 1409

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Communist Party of India (CPI) expressed its serious concern at the serial killings of Maoists in Andhra Orissa Border (AOB) since the last three days. According to Police, 34 Maoists are killed in the encounters in three days. Civil liberties organizations and relative of victims are accusing that the Maoists are either poisoned or killed after taken into custody, CPI General Secretary Suravaram Sudhakar Reddy told newsmen here today. He said that 'the circumstances of the incident and the death of 34 Maoists and one constable, do not suit the argument of encounter. It looks that there was a possibility of arresting them and police might have killed them'. CPI severely condemns these ''high handed'' killings in the name of encounters, Mr Reddy said and demanded a judicial inquiry into the whole incident. Mr Reddy said the Party also condemned the threat to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and his family through a letter by Maoists or their supporters. Many believe that the letter is fake. However targeting political leaders or individuals is condemnable, the CPI senior leader added. He said CPI condemned the attack on Com. Manish Kunjam CPI Leader and President of All India Adivasi Mahasabha at Jagadalpur (Chhattisgarh) in the name of police sponsored organization Agni. Police and government are denying civil liberties to Adivasis in Bastar area and unleashing terror against the common people. CPI is the main target of Bastar IGP Kalluri. CPI demands an enquiry into the attack on Com. Manish Kunjam and action should be taken against the IGP who is allegedly sponsoring the terror. CPI rejected the RSS charge against Communists during their meet at Hyderabad. First they attack minorities, Dalits and now they are targeting Communists as anti Hindu, he said. " Left is not supporting or opposing any religion. Left is for secularism in the country", Mr Reddy said.UNI VV CS 1531 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0275-998720.Xml
Two bootleggers were seriously injured, when their car carrying huge consignment of liquor, collided with a stationary truck on road-side under Mabbi Police Station in the district, in the wee hours today. Darbhanga Additional Police Superintendent Dilnawaz Ahmed said here that two liquor peddlers Vinay Yadav and Munna Khan sustained serious injuries, when their car collided with a stationary truck on road side near Mabbi Chowk. The injured have been admitted to the Darbhanga Medical College and Hospital in police custody. Munna was rushed to Patna Medical College and Hospital. Mr Ahmed said 143 bottles of foreign liquor were seized from the car. The liquor peddlers were carrying the consignment from Bengal to Muzaffarpur, when the accident took place. UNI XC-DH KK RJ SNU 1525 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0212-998617.Xml
He said that the manufacturing sector is expected to be hugebeneficiary of GST as the economic system will become morecompetitive and the supply chain will become faster and moreefficient due to uninterrupted movement of goods across the country.This will make the country a national market and contributingsignificantly to the growth of the economy and provides a hugemarket for the country in International market.

Mr Rajkumar was speaking at a one-day awareness programme on GSTand NSIC Finance Facilitation Centre jointly organised by NationalSmall Industries Corporation (NSIC), District Industries Centre andCommercial Tax Department, Karnataka Small Scale IndustriesAssociation in association with Mysore Industries Association here.

In his inaugural address, Karnataka Small Scale IndustriesAssociation (KASSIA), President A Padmanabha said that GST is one ofthe biggest tax reforms undertaken after independence. Creatingawareness about GST is the need of the hour, the awareness andtraining for stakeholders is equally important.UNI BSP MSP CS 1457

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President Pranab Mukherjee will pay a state visit to Nepal from November 2 to 4, the first visit of a President of India to the Himalayan country in the past 18 years, officials of the Ministry for External Affairs said today. During his visit to Nepal, the President will hold talks with the Nepalese leadership on issues of mutual interest. In Kathmandu, the President will hold talks with his Nepalese counterpart Bidya Devi, and have meetings with Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' and other leaders in Nepal on a wide array of issues of mutual interests. The President will be accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre, Rajya Sabha MP L Ganeshan and Lok Sabha MP Jagdamboka Pal. The President will arrive in Kathmandu on November 2 afternoon. The same day, he will hold meetings with the Nepalese President, its vice president and the Prime Minister on areas of mutual interest. The Nepalese President will hold a banquet on November 2 in the honour of President Mukherjee. The President will also attend a civic reception organised by the Indian community. On November 3, the President will be honoured with a doctorate by the Kathmandu University. On November 4, the President will return to New Delhi. Addressing reporters here, MEA officials said the President accords a high importance to the visit to Nepal.''It is the first visit by an Indian Head of state to Nepal in the last 18 years,'' they said. Speaking on the occasion, Press Secretary to the President Venu Rajamony said the President has had a close association with Nepal, having visited the country in his capacity as Finance Minister and External Affairs Minister in the UPA Government at the Centre. MEA officials said apart from official engagements in Kathmandu, the President will also visit Janakpur and Pokhara. They said the state visit reflects the priority that the Government of India attaches to further strengthening its age-old, unique partnership with Nepal, and ''our shared historical and cultural linkages and wide-ranging people to people contacts''.UNI AR AE SNU 1702 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0092-998783.Xml
Shiv Sena and other Hindu organisations today opposed the screening of Karan Johar's Pakistani-starred movie 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' in the state capital and other places in the state. About two dozen Shiv Sena activists raised slogans for about half-an-hour in front of a Cineplex in TT Nagar area here this morning, police said. The activists were not allowed to enter the premises of the Talkies due to heavy security arrangements. Later, police dispersed the agitating Shiv Sena activists. In Hoshangabad, about 40 Shiv Sena activists set ablaze a poster of the film in a Talkies and took out a vehicle rally opposing the Pakistan stars while in Jabalpur also Shiv Sena and other Hindu organisations raised slogans before a multiplex. A report from Gwalior said that several activists of Hindu organisations tried to raise slogans before a cinema hall in the city but the police removed them. However, the screening of the film was not hampered due to the agitations, the sources added. In the Johar's film besides Ranbir Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Anushka Sharma, Paksitani actor Fawad Khan are cast. Pakistani actors are being opposed in the country owing to the present situation at Indo-Pak border.UNI Team BDG RSA SNU 1628 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0044-998860.Xml
Six suspected militants, including a policeman, were arrested in separate incidents by security forces in the Kashmir Valley, where life remained affected for 112th day today due to the ongoing unrest. Official sources here today said following specific information about presence of militants in Bemina in Srinagar, a search operation was launched. They said five suspected militants, including a policeman, were arrested during the operation, adding huge cache of arms and ammunition were recovered from their possession. "The militants belong to Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT)," they said. They said a Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) militant was arrested by security forces following intelligence inputs at Wampora in south Kashmir district of Kulgam. However, police has refused to confirm the arrests.UNI ABS RSA SNU 1559 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0433-998775.Xml
Amidst the Centre issuing a health advisory to states, asking them to minimise the bird-human interface to prevent the outbreak of bird flu, the Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK) today said it is safe to eat properly cooked poultry meat. With apprehensions among people of getting bird flu through the consumption of poultry, DAK president Dr Nisar-ul-Hassan in a statement said that there was no risk to catch the disease from eating chicken or other poultry products. ''There is no threat of bird flu transmission to humans by way of eating poultry. Till date, there is no evidence that people have become infected after eating contaminated poultry meat that has been properly cooked,'' he said. However, Dr Hassan said one needs to make sure that the meat is not raw, uncooked or partially cooked. ''Cooking of poultry at or above 70 degree Centigrade kills the virus. But slaughtering, defeathering and eviscerating of diseased birds pose a risk to humans,'' he added. The DAK president said birds in Delhi, Gwalior and Kerala have tested positive for H5N8 that has been detected in India for the first time, adding that World Health Organisation (WHO) considers the virus less likely to transmit to humans, but there are chances. ''It is suspected that migratory birds that are natural reservoirs of the virus might have brought the virus. Kashmir being the favourite destination of migratory birds during winters, the virus can be introduced in the Valley through them,'' he added. Dr Hassan said poultry farmers need to be made aware about the sickness to ensure that no diseased bird enters the food chain. ''The veterinarians must get activated for active surveillance; stockpile logistics like PPE and Tamiflu and prepare for the worst, just in case,'' he added.UNI ABS RJSNU 1705 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0433-998899.Xml
Chicago soybean prices rose for a third consecutive session on Friday, with the market on track for its biggest weekly gain since early July with support from strong demand for U.S. supplies. Wheat and corn edged lower as traders took a breather after strong gains earlier in the week. The Chicago Board of Trade's most-active soybean contract was up 0.1 percent at $10.26 a bushel by 1045 GMT for a 4.4 percent rise this week, the biggest weekly gain since July 1. "The very strong demand for U.S. soybeans at present is driving the prices up," Commerzbank said in a note. "That said, robust U.S. exports are not unusual at this time of year because harvesting is currently underway in the U.S., whereas planting has not even begun yet in South America." Phin Ziebell, agribusiness economist at National Australia Bank, also said it looked like a demand-driven rally because South American soybean planting and the weather look alright. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Thursday that exporters had sold 396,000 tonnes of U.S. soybeans to China and 129,000 tonnes to unknown destinations. The announcement followed earlier weekly U.S. soybean export data showing 2.045 million tonnes of soybeans sold last week. Corn was down 0.2 percent at $356-3/4 a bushel on Friday but up 1.1 percent for the week. Wheat dropped 0.2 percent on Friday and by the same extent overall this week but it was still 3.8 percent up on a more than 10-day low hit on Tuesday. The International Grains Council raised its forecast for the 2016/17 world corn crop on Thursday to a record high 1.035 billion tonnes, boosted by upward adjustments for the United States, Argentina and India. Commodity funds were net buyers of CBOT corn, soybean, soymeal and wheat futures contracts on Thursday and net sellers in soyoil. REUTERS SW BD1713 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0101-999015.Xml
The concerted efforts of both the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for over a month to woo a 'political deadwood' Navjot Singh Sidhu only reflected their desperation in the face of impending humiliating defeat in the ensuing assembly polls slated next year and these parties hope that Sidhu would bail them out from troubled waters, said political advisor to Punjab Chief Minister Mahesh Inder Singh Grewal today. Mr Grewal wondered why Sidhu and his 'Awaz-e-Punjab' have become so crucial saviours for the two political parties -- one over 130 years old and the other new but aspiring to become a pan-India party in the shortest time. He said Sidhu had been talking of lofty ideals and relentlessly espousing the cause of his constituency Amritsar and had launched broadside against Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Sukhbir Badal for three four years. But now Sidhu has suddenly changed track. Ironically, his only concern during the ongoing negotiations with AAP and Congress has been what would be his role and whether his wife would get position of deputy chief minister of Punjab in the post poll scenario. "Has Sidhu talked of any programme or vision for Punjab or its people? If Sidhu discussed what the new government would do to farmers or traders? If any ideological differences on national or state issues were coming in the way of alliance or understanding with the Congress and AAP", asked Grewal. "First decide whether he or his wife would be offered deputy chief ministerial post or not. Rest everything can wait and be decided later", said Grewal, adding that for Sidhu -- I, me and mine -- is everything and he has proved himself embodiment of a self-seeker limited to self-aggrandisement.More UNI DB RSA SNU 1728 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0292-998861.Xml
Eight militants, including a policeman, were arrested in three separate incidents by the security forces in the Kashmir Valley, where life remained crippled for 112th day today due to ongoing unrest. Official sources here this evening said following specific information about presence of militants in Bemina in Srinagar, a search operation was launched in the area. They said five militants, including a policeman, were arrested during the operation, adding a huge cache of arms and ammunition were recovered from them. "The militants belong to Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT)," they said. In another incident, a Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) militant was arrested by security forces following intelligence inputs at Wampora in south Kashmir district of Kulgam. They said that Army, paramilitary forces and state police on a tip-off arrested two local militants of Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) along with hand grenades and automatic weapon in north Kashmir district of Baramulla. Meanwhile, during the cordon and search operations last week Army, CRPF and police arrested about 50 persons, mostly having links with militants in Baramulla. Forces also recovered incriminating documents, besides Chinese and Pakistan flags in old town Baramulla," they added.UNI ABS SW SNU 1714 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0433-998959.Xml
''A woman suffered a head injury when splinters hit her during cross border firing in Mendhar area of Balakote sector in Poonch,'' an official spokesman said here.

He said that a woman identified as Isma Begum, 50, wife of Abdul Rehman, resident of Gohlad Malikpur this afternoon was hit by a splinter.She was rushed to the hospital but died on the way.

A teenager boy died in Khour sub-sector of Akhnoor, said the spokesman.' ''A boy identified as Ajay Kumar, 16, son of Rattan Lal of village Gigriyal, Khour was critically injured when hit by a splinter as Pakistan shelled the forward villages and posts of BSF,'' the spokesman said.

Additional Director General, BSF, Western Command, Arun Kumar, who was here attend wreath laying ceremony of the jawan martyred in firing said that 15 Pakistani Rangers have been killed in retaliation for firing across international border.

''BSF has killed 15 Pakistani rangers in retaliation for the martyrdom of our jawan Gurnam Singh martydom on IB when he suffered a bullet injury due to sniping,'' Mr Kumar told reporters this afternoon.

The BSF officer said befitting reply is being given to the enemy. ''We will retaliate appropriately.''More UNI VBH RP2038

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Official sources said some masked youth set on fire vehicle of PDP leader Jeelani Kumar in Chinkraj Mohalla at Habba Kadal area of old city in Srinagar this evening. The vehicle suffered damage, they said adding youths later managed to escape before police could reach there. Both the factions of the Hurriyat Conference (HC) and Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), spearheading the agitation since July 9, a day after Hizbul Mujahadeen commander Burhan Wani and two other militants were killed in an encounter in south Kashmir district of Anantnag have extended the strike till November 3.

However, there was no relaxation in the strike today. There will be relaxation in the strike tomorrow from 1700 hrs till 0700 hrs.

About 20 vehicles, including passenger cabs and three wheelers, besides cars and two wheelers were set ablaze for defying strike in the valley.

However, police arrested more than a dozen persons, allegedly involved in setting on fire these vehicles while some others are absconding.

Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti sanctioned cash compensation in favour of three auto rickshaw owners after their vehicles were set on fire by miscreants for plying during strike in Srinagar early this month.UNI BAS SHS 2115

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Nagaland Parliamentary Secretary for Municipal Affairs, Economics & Statistics, R Tohanba formally inaugurated the Tening Town Council from Ad Hoc Town Committee under Peren district today. Addressing the gathering Tohanba highlighted the various Central schemes for Town Council like affordable housing, beneficiaries and loans system. He called upon the people to live smartly and be civilized while maintaining hygienic living. He also hoped that a lot of developments would come in the years ahead. MLA Namri Nchang thanked the government for upgrading Tening to Town Council. He said, "we should know the responsibilities instead of depending on the government for everything and suggested the Town Council elections to elect right leader through peaceful means." He informed that Tening Town was established during the time of British administration in the 19th century. Advisor of the Nagaland Bamboo Development Agency and MLA Naiba Konyak said the Chief Minister being from their area was a great blessing for the people and urged the people to be broad minded and do proper planning for Tening Town development. Parliamentary Secretary for Home Guards & Civil Defence and Sericulture, E E Pangteang gave a briefing on the meaning for Town Council and called upon the people to work hard with proper planning. Deputy Commissioner of Peren Zarenthung Ezung in his address said the launching of the Town Council was for progress and modernity with modern governance system with linkages to grassroots levels. DC said the vibrancy of Town Council would give self- sufficiency and would generate its own resources to uplift the standard of living. He appealed for full cooperation to the government for fair and justice during the conduct of elections. UNI AS RN SHS 2049 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0311-999559.Xml
Jammu Crime Branch has unearthed the gang of interstate cyber criminals and arrested accused persons by succeeded in recovering an amount of Rs 11,02,880 from them, which was looted from the complainant fraudulently. Acting on a complaint lodged by one Arun Bandral of Ward No 4, New Bus Stand, Samba wherein he had alleged that he submitted his resume in Naukri.com upon which he received a call from Expert Noukri Services (Sonstant Company) named Ashish who offered him a job in a multinational company in India or Abroad. The accused also gave his account number and asked him to deposit Rs 2500 and then send the deposit slip on company Email id service@expertnaukri.com. He again called up the complainant and asked to deposit Rs 6,500 as verification fee, Rs 16,800 as job security fee etc. and after few days the complainant received a call from one Aryan who told him that he has been selected in TATA Project Company but has to deposit Rs 25,400 in the company account for interview. By this process, the victim in total deposited Rs 15, 92,380 in the account numbers provided by the accused persons from time to time but neither job was provided to him nor his money returned. However, enquiry was conducted and it was revealed that the accused had used various mobile numbers and account numbers and used fake names to allure and cheated the complainant on the pretext of providing him a job. A case was registered at Police Station Crime Branch, Jammu and accused identified as Prateek Sharma of Ghaziabad, Gourav Tyagi of Noida, Mani Masih Gill of Ghaziabad and Sandeep Bhati of Ghaziabad were identified and arrested from UP. On the revelations, an amount of Rs 11,02,880 was recovered from three of them. Investigation is still under progress for the purpose of recovery of the pending amount and to ascertain the involvement of some more persons in the instant case.UNI VBH JW SHS 2230 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0364-999645.Xml
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today greeted people on the occasion of Dhanteras. Mr Kumar in his message prayed for blessing of Goddess Mahalaxmi on all people of the state. He also exhorted people to enjoy 'Dhanteras' by maintaining mutual love for each other, brotherhood, communal harmony and peace in the society so that the state could reach the pinnacle of growth. Meanwhile, markets in the state capital and other places of the state were thronged by lakhs of people who purchased various items including jewellery, electronic items and utensils to mark the occasion.UNI DH RN SHS 2214 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0311-999620.Xml
Police said a clerk at local District Transport (DTO) office Satyendra Singh was seriously injured when assailants opened fire on him near DIG office. Mr Singh was returning to his residence from the office when the incident took place Outlaws made good their escape after committing the crime.

The injured government employee had been admitted to a local private hospital in serious condition. A massive manhunt is on to nab culprits. UNI XC DH RN SHS 2227

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Nagaland Governor P B Acharya, who was on a visit to Mon, today inaugurated the Residence of Longwa Angh (King of Longwa) and the Guest House (renovated) at Longwa Village, bordering Myanmar. Speaking at the programme, Mr Acharya stated that India is a democratic country, therefore development should take place, by and large equally at every nook and corner of the country. Even if the rest of the country advanced in development, but if one state or a district is lacking behind, injustice is done and India cannot be called developed nation he said. Therefore he assured that the Central Government is focused on developing North East, without which the country cannot develop. He also pointed out that 98 per cent of the Border in the North East is International border and only 2 per cent of the land connects with the main land. He also stated that in order to have peace within oneself, peace should prevail in neighbours and surroundings. Similarly, for India to have peace there should be peace with our neighbouring countries. He also suggested wherever the Nagas may be spread, we should collectively work for the growth and development of the Nagas as a whole, for Unity is strength, he added. Insisting that mother tongue is the basic identity of an individual, Acharya urged upon the gathering not to neglect/ forget their mother tongue, as well as our cultural and traditional practices. He also lamented that despite the efforts of the Central Government, the Centrally Sponsored Schemes are not reaching the beneficiaries; he called upon the people to rededicate themselves and become true Christians, Indian and Hindus to fight against corruption. The Governor was also disappointed with the condition and functioning of the International trade Centre (ITC) and its office and directed the Local MLA and the Administration to submit the actual report on the status of ITC. Mr Neiphiu Rio, MP, attended the function as the Guest of Honour, while informing on the adoption of Longwa Village under SAGY and construction of Angh's (King's) House said that, with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of developing India had entrusted all Member of Parliament to utilize the MPLAD funds to adopt villages and make MP model villages. Rio stated that though the Anghs house is just a house, it has a meaningful significance. According to him, since Nagas are spread all over the states of Assam, Manipur, Arunachal and Myanmar, apart from Nagaland, he had selected the residence of Longwa Village Angh; a village which is divided into Myanmar and India, as a symbol of peace and unity within Nagas. Stating that the Anghs house was constructed by local Naga construction team and architecture, he said the Nagas have the capability and the ability. Therefore, urged upon the people gathered to work and according to him, when all the Nagas' work, regardless of their gender, peace will prevail. It may be mentioned here that the Longwa Angh's house is on the Indo-Myanmar border, whose half portion in India and another half in Myanmar and his people are in both the country, which attract tourists, even foreigners. UNI AS RN SHS 2221 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0311-999642.Xml
The Supreme Court on Friday said that armed forces were answerable to the government as it dismissed a PIL calling for a curb on the recent surgical strikes by the army being exploited for political gains. Rejecting the contention that armed forces were answerable to the President - who is constitutionally the supreme commander - and not the government, a bench of Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose and Justice Uday Umesh Lalit said that the armed forces are answerable to the government, otherwise there will be a martial law in the country. Observing that the armed forces are answerable to the government, the court dismissed the PIL by advocate M.L.Sharma holding that it lacked merit. "This plea is not maintainable and is hence dismissed," the bench said. Seeking action against Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, Sharma had said that the credit for successful execution of surgical operations always belonged to the armed forces, "but the failed politicians shamelessly continue to draw mileage out of their sacrifices, politicizing military for their political greed". He had sought direction prohibiting the government ministers from interfering in the defence matters in any manner "as it is exclusive belong to the President of India and neither (government nor its ministers) have any constitutional power/right to access any action of the Defence Forces". --IANS pk/vd ( 229 Words) 2016-10-28-23:20:03 (IANS)
Col Rajeev Kalia told UNI that an encounter took place on the Line of Control (LoC) this evening in Machil sector in north Kashmir.

A soldier was killed, he said, adding a militant also has been gunned down.

He said the militants later mutilated the body of the soldier before fleeing back into Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK) supported by covering fire from Pak Army. Col Kalia said the incident reflected the barbarism pervading in official and unofficial organisations across the border.

This act will invite an appropriate response, he said. They said a soldier was injured who reportedly succumbed later.

A soldier was killed and another was injured in Tangdhar sector yesterday. Militants later managed to escape.UNI BAS SHS 2301

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"The video of an alleged airstrike that appeared in a various foreign media was made of ten clips put together, and shot with a different resolution at different time," the ministry's spokesman Igor Konashenkov said in a statement on Thursday.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said on Wednesday that an air raid, allegedly carried out by Russian warplanes, targeted civilian areas in Idlib, including a school compound, killing at least 26 civilians, Xinhua news agency reported.

"This is a tragedy. It is an outrage. And if deliberate, it is a war crime," executive director of the United Nations Children's Fund Anthony Lake said, calling the strike "the deadliest attack on a school" in the five-and-a-half-year-long crisis in the war-raged Middle East country.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for "an immediate and impartial investigation" into the attacks.

"If such horrific acts persist despite global outrage, it is largely because their authors, whether in corridors of power or in insurgent redoubts, do not fear justice," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a press briefing.

--IANS vgu/

( 211 Words)

2016-10-28-04:02:11 (IANS)
Malaysia will sign a contract to purchase Littoral Mission Ships from China when Prime Minister Najib Razak visits Beijing next week, according to a Facebook posting by the country's Ministry of Defence.The text of a speech to be delivered by Malaysian defence minister Hishammuddin Hussein was posted on Facebook on Tuesday, but was later removed after Reuters asked a defence ministry spokesman for comment.The purchase of the patrol vessels, if it proceeds, would be Malaysia's first significant defence deal with China and comes amid rising tensions in the South China Sea and as the United States and China compete for influence in the region.Malaysia's ties with the United States became strained after the Department of Justice filed lawsuits linked to a money-laundering investigation at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), which Najib founded and had overseen as chairman of its advisory council.Najib is travelling to China on Sunday for a week-long visit."On November 5, 2016, the Defence Ministry will sign a contract for the procurement of Littoral Mission Ships (LMS) with SASTIND (the State Administration for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense), which is an important part of the schedule during the Prime Minister's official visit to China," the Facebook post quotes Hishammuddin saying.However, a video recording of the speech at the Malaysian defence ministry by Hishammuddin does not mention this contract.A defence ministry spokesman declined to comment and the prime minister's office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.Littoral Mission Ships are fast patrol vessels that can be equipped with a helicopter flight deck and carry missiles. They are primarily used for coastal security, maritime patrol and surveillance, but can also be deployed for disaster relief and search and rescue operations.China claims most of the South China Sea as its territory. But Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have rival claims to parts of the waterway, which commands strategic sea lanes which carry some 5 trillion dollar worth of trade a year.PEAK IN TIESTies between Malaysia and China reached a new peak in December when China came to Najib's rescue with a 2.3 billion dollars deal to buy assets of scandal-hit state fund 1MDB, helping ease Najib's concern over the firm's mounting debt.Najib is travelling with dozens of government leaders and business people to China. In a statement on Wednesday, he said Malaysia was committed to strengthening friendship with China and pushing ties to "new highs".The push to strengthen China ties come after July lawsuits filed by the US Justice Department implicating Najib in a money-laundering scandal.The lawsuits allege over 3.5 billion dollars was misappropriated from 1MDB, some of which ended up with a 'Malaysian Official 1,' identified later by US and Malaysian authorities as Najib.Najib has denied any wrongdoing and said Malaysia will cooperate in the international investigations.Malaysia could buy up to 10 of the littoral mission ships at a cost of approximately 300 million ringgit (71.43 million dollars) each, said Lam Choong Wah, senior fellow at REFSA, a Malaysia research institute. He is also the author of a book on Malaysian military capability."The truth is we could have bought these from a number of countries. But China is the only country that has provided political support for Malaysia during the 1MDB scandal. This is payback for that political support."Najib's visit follows that of the Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte, who announced the country's "separation" from the United States and signed a raft of memoranda of understanding for Chinese investment in the country.Last week, Malaysia announced a 2 billion ringgit (476.19 million dollars) cut to its 2017 defence budget from last year's levels.A project to develop an amphibious corps was among those jettisoned, said Euan Graham, director of the international security program at the Lowy Institute, a Sydney-based think-tank."It was the US marines who were liaising with the Malaysians on that," Graham said."So a US-backed initiative has effectively died now," Graham said. "At the same time, a new bridge has been opened to China. If you put those together, whether it's been by Malaysia's design or not, it does send a combined signal of pulling back from the US and outreach to China.REUTERS SW AS1437 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0101-998596.Xml
Geert Wilders, the Dutch anti-Islam opposition leader, said on Friday that he refuses to attend his trial next week and that he sees it as politically motivated.Wilders is accused of discrimination and inciting racism in remarks made on live television in 2014 when he led a roomful of people chanting that they wanted fewer Moroccans in the Netherlands.Dutch politicians are limbering up to campaign for elections on March 15, with opinion polls indicating that Wilders' Freedom Party is now neck-and-neck with the VVD Party of conservative Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte."Next Monday, the trial against freedom of speech begins. Against a politician who says what the politically correct elite does not want to hear," Wilders wrote in a statement. "This trial is a political trial, in which I refuse to cooperate."Wilders faces a fine of up to 7,400 euros (8,100 dollars) and a year in jail for the remarks, made during campaigning in local elections, which also included calling Moroccans "scum"."It is a travesty that I have to stand trial because I spoke about fewer Moroccans. It is my right and my duty as a politician to speak about the problems in our country," he wrote.In 2011, Wilders was acquitted of inciting racial hatred for calling for the Koran to be banned and for the deportation of "criminal" Moroccans.Judges said at the time that his remarks, while offensive to some, were within the bounds of legitimate political discourse.Legal experts believe prosecutors have a stronger case this time because he targeted a specific social group, rather than a religion.REUTERS SW AS1438 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0101-998600.Xml
Syrian rebels began a counter-attack in Aleppo with heavy shelling of government-held areas after a weeks-long Russian-backed offensive against besieged districts held by insurgents, rebels said today.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based group that reports on the war, also said that insurgents had set off several suicide car bombs on the western edge of Aleppo.A Syrian military source said an insurgent attack in that area had been thwarted. A state TV station said the army had destroyed four car bombs.The rebels aim to break a siege that government and allied militias imposed this summer with air support from the Russian air force. The rebel-held eastern districts of Aleppo have been subjected to a fierce bombardment since the army declared an offensive to capture the area last month."There is a general call-up for anyone who can bear arms," a senior official in the Levant Front rebel group, which fights under the Free Syrian Army (FSA) banner, told Reuters. "The preparatory shelling started this morning," he added.The attack appeared to have been mostly launched by rebel fighters from outside the city against government forces that hold its western districts.A spokesman for Ahrar al-Sham, a large Islamist rebel group, also said in a social networking message that an offensive on Aleppo had begun on Friday. Factions involved in the attack include Free Syrian Army groups and Jaish al-Fatah, an alliance of Islamist factions, the Levant Front official said.Grad rockets were launched at Aleppo's Nairab air base, said Zakaria Malahiji, head of the political office of the Aleppo-based Fastaqim rebel group, adding that it was going to be "a big battle" with all the insurgent groups there participating.Heavy rebel bombardment, with more than 150 rockets and shells, struck districts on the southwest of the city, the Observatory reported. It said more than 15 civilians had been killed and 100 wounded by rebel shelling of government-held western Aleppo. State media reported that five civilians were killed.The Observatory also said that Grad surface-to-surface rockets had struck Nairab air base and also locations around the Hmeimim air base, near Latakia.Syria's civil war, now in its sixth year, pits President Bashar al-Assad, backed by Russia, Iran and Shi'ite militias from neighbouring states, against mostly Sunni rebels including groups supported by Turkey, Gulf monarchies and the United States.Aleppo, Syria's most populous city before the war, has for years been split between a government-held western sector and the rebel-held east, which the army and its allies managed to put under siege this summer.REUTERS SW VP1530 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0101-998723.Xml
A Belarussian blogger known for his criticism of Russian foreign policy will be released next month after spending 10 months in prison on charges of inciting ethnic hatred and disseminating pornography, a rights group said.Edward Palchis was arrested in January in Russia and extradited to Belarus. His trial began on October 14.Human rights campaigners said Palchis, who is known under the pseudonym "John Silver", was targeted for criticising Russian foreign policy, its annexation of Ukraine's Crimea peninsula and role in the east Ukrainian separatist conflict.The Minsk City Court sentenced him to one year and nine months of a "restriction of freedom" today but taking into account the time he had already served in jail, said he would be released next month, the rights group Spring 96 told Reuters."He will serve the remaining month of his sentence under house arrest," Spring 96's representative Valentin Stefanovic told Reuters."We welcome the fact that the authorities have shown restraint."Seeking to improve ties with the West, authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko last year pardoned several political prisoners, prompting the European Union to lift five years of sanctions against the country once called 'Europe's last dictatorship' by the United States.Belarus, which is seeking up to $3.4 billion in loans from the International Monetary Fund and EU investment, has also tried to stick to neutral ground over the Ukraine crisis. It has not recognised the annexation of Crimea and regularly hosts peace talks.The charges against Palchis relate to an online article he wrote in April 2015 in which he reposted xenophobic, lewd and violent memes about Belarus from a Russian social media website to illustrate his argument against Russian internet policy.REUTERS SW AS1625 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0101-998875.Xml
A former Miss Finland has accused US presidential candidate Donald Trump of groping her in 2006 when she was representing the country in the Miss Universe beauty contest.Ninni Laaksonen told the Ilta-Sanomat newspaper that the Republican presidential nominee had grabbed her behind before she appeared on a television show in New York with other contestants."He really grabbed my butt. I don't think anybody saw it but I flinched and thought: 'What is happening?'," Laaksonen was quoted as saying in the newspaper.The accusation follows a stream of allegations of inappropriate conduct by Trump from other women in the United States which have put pressure on his campaign as he trails in opinion polls ahead of the November 8 election. Trump has denied the accusations.Laaksonen could not be reached for comment today. REUTERS SW AS1641 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0101-998922.Xml
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will launch a new phase of peace talks between the leaders of ethnically-split Cyprus in Switzerland on November 7, the United Nations said today.It was a "critical juncture" in the talks process, Ban's special adviser, Espen Barth Eide, said in a statement.The leaders of the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities are due to discuss territory trade-offs during the week-long consultations at the resort of Mont Pelerin."The meeting will concentrate on the chapter of territory, as well as all other outstanding issues interdependently," Eide said.The island was split by a Turkish invasion in 1974 triggered by a brief Greek-inspired coup, forcing mass displacement of its populations with Greek Cypriots now living in its south and Turkish Cypriots in its north. A United Nations peacekeeping force mans a ceasefire line splitting the two sides."The two leaders have jointly expressed their hope that the meeting in Switzerland will pave the way for the last phase of the talks, in line with their shared commitment to do their utmost in order to reach a settlement within 2016," Eide said.It will be the first time leaders have directly negotiated territorial adjustments which would move the boundary now existing between the two sides and reunite Cyprus under a federal umbrella.Previous reunification proposals have given the numerically larger Greek Cypriots a bigger proportion of territory than they now occupy, but could also signal a displacement of Turkish Cypriots, or arrangements to live under Greek Cypriot control."It is important to recognize the particular sensitivity of this chapter for both sides, which is a key reason why the leaders have agreed to hold the talks outside of Cyprus, and why they want to conduct them interdependently with other relevant chapters," Eide said. REUTERS SW AS1657 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0101-998962.Xml
Northern Ireland's High Court today rejected an attempt to block Britain's exit from the European Union, saying that neither the province's parliament nor laws could override a decision by the British government. But it said it would defer to English courts on the wider issue of whether the British government has the right to invoke Article 50 of the EU Lisbon Treaty to leave the bloc, without the explicit backing of the British parliament. Prime Minister Theresa May welcomed the ruling, with a spokesman saying it would allow the British government "to proceed to trigger Article 50 as planned". One of the plaintiffs, human rights activists Raymond McCord, said he would appeal against the ruling in the Supreme Court, Britain's highest judicial body. The case is the first judgment in legal disputes around Brexit that are being closely watched by politicians and markets. A case in London will rule on whether May can use the government's "royal prerogative" power to trigger Article 50 without consulting parliament. "The fact that the government has won in the Northern Ireland case could be seen to indicate that its prerogative power is holding up pretty well," said Stephen Tierney, director of the Edinburgh Centre for Constitutional Law. "I would personally be surprised if the High Court in England reached a different conclusion," he said. STERLING DIPS Sterling hit an eight-day low against the euro after the ruling. Overall, 52 per cent of the United Kingdom voted in favour of leaving the EU in June's referendum, but 56 per cent of those voting in Northern Ireland backed remaining in the bloc. There are fears that Brexit could undermine a 1998 peace deal, the Good Friday Agreement, which ended three decades of bloodshed in the province, and could lead to the reintroduction of unpopular controls on the border with the Republic of Ireland, an EU member. But justice Paul Maguire said it was "not viable" that Northern Ireland should overrule the 52 per cent of the United Kingdom as a whole that voted in favour of leaving. The regional parliament would have a say on legislation passed to enact Britain's exit, but the triggering of Article 50 itself was not a "devolved matter". "The UK Parliament has retained to itself the ability to legislate for NI without the need to resort to any special procedure," Maguire said. The arguments about May's rights to trigger Article 50 "have been held over pending the outcome of the English litigation", he added. IMPLICATIONS FOR SCOTLAND Rights activist Raymond McCord told journalists at the court that the ruling was just a setback and he would continue to fight Brexit. "I believe what we are doing is correct. Fifty-six per cent of the people of this country (Northern Ireland) voted to remain." A group of politicians and rights groups who launched a parallel case that was merged with McCord's said they were "deeply disappointed" by the rejection of their case, but had not yet decided whether to appeal. Northern Ireland's largest Irish nationalist party Sinn Fein said it would study the judgment carefully and explore every legal and political option to ensure the remain vote was respected. The ruling may have implications for Scotland, whose government argues it should have a say on Brexit because it too voted to remain in the EU. Nicola Sturgeon, who heads the devolved Scottish government, has said it would be an act of "constitutional vandalism" to try to ignore Scotland's voice. Her party has drawn up draft legislation on a second referendum on independence from the UK, which it says is an option to protect Scotland's position within the EU. REUTERS SW BD1735 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0101-999078.Xml
Prime Minister Mark Rutte today said that his government may submit a bill revoking Dutch support for the European Union-Ukraine treaty on Monday.Rutte says rejection would be a mistake and would erode European unity but that if a last ditch effort to form political support at the weekend failed, he would have no choice but to submit the bill.Dutch voters rejected the treaty in April in a referendum.REUTERS SW NS1815 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0101-999203.Xml
"The FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation. Case reopened," US House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz tweeted on Friday.

According to a copy of a letter by FBI Director James Comey to Chaffetz, new emails had emerged recently that appeared to be linked to the Clinton email probe completed in July, Xinhua news agency reported.

"I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation," said Comey in the letter.

After a year-long investigation the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in July recommended no criminal charges against Clinton in its email probe and the Justice Department then closed the investigation.

At a press conference in March 2015, Clinton acknowledged that she had exchanged about 60,000 emails from her private email account during her stint in the Obama administration, among which about half were personal and thus deleted.

All emails were sent and received via a private email server based at Clinton's home.

In response to requests from the State Department, the Clinton camp turned over the other half, roughly 30,000 emails to the State Department in December 2014.

The controversy surrounding Clinton's email practices again burst into public view in August 2015 after the inspector general for the intelligence community revealed that two of the thousands of emails held by Clinton contained top-secret information.

The revelation then trigged a federal investigation into whether Clinton had mishandled sensitive information.

--IANS vgu/

( 287 Words)

2016-10-29-01:02:14 (IANS)
TIRANA, Oct. 25 (Xinhua) -- The agricultural sector has turned into the engine of Albania's economic growth, Albanian minister of agriculture, rural development and waters administration, Edmond Panariti, told Xinhua on Tuesday.

According to Panariti, Albanian agriculture is now market-oriented. He stressed that during 2016, this sector had witnessed an enormous growth in exports.

The overall contribution of the agriculture sector to country's economy growth has jumped from 18 percent in 2013 to 20 percent, the minister said, referring to the recent reports of the Albanian Institute of Statistics.

Panariti also praised the fact that the surface area of greenhouses in Albania had almost tripled during the last three years that he had been in the top position at the agriculture ministry. This would enable Albania to produce more, having two or three production cycles, he said.

He also said the Albanian ministry of agriculture was also planning to open the commodity market, which would aim to meet the demands of the developing agricultural sector and would regulate retail and wholesale prices and exports.

In Panariti's view, Albania has made great progress in the field of agriculture. However, he said that compared to other countries in the region, Albania continues to provide low financial support for this important sector.

The funds given by the Albanian government as subsidies for farmers -- state funds for agriculture, are 50 million euros (54 million U.S dollars), a figure that lags behind compare with its neighbors -- are insufficient to meet farmers needs.

To reslove this, the Albanian agriculture ministry will tap new possibilities and help Albanian farmers with the guarantee funds which aim to boost second-tier banks crediting of farmers.

Since banks in Albania see the agriculture sector as one with high risks, in order to encourage the banking system to give loans to farmers, the agriculture ministry has decided to apply a new mechanism based on guarantee funds amounting to 65 million euros, the minister explained. The guarantee fund will serve as a guarantee for the loans taken by farmers.

As well, the ministry aims to assist Albanian small and medium-sized enterprises in preparing better business plans in order to get more funds.

The minister also talked about the funds that Albanian farmers can get from the European Union under the IPARD-Like funding schemes, highlighting that he had requested the EU delegation to Tirana to be more flexible and ease the criteria for benefit funds, thus giving more chances to Albanian farmers. (1 euro = 1.09 U.S. dollars)
ZHENGZHOU, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- The National Museum of Chinese Writing on Thursday launched an award program to encourage people from around the world to help decipher oracle bone inscriptions.

According to the museum based in Anyang City in central China's Henan Province, where oracle bones and script were discovered from the Ruins of Yin over 110 years ago, the program will offer 100,000 yuan (14,700 U.S. dollars) for each unknown character to be deciphered.

Inscriptions on tortoise shells and animal bones represent the original characters of the Chinese written language. They date back to the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC).

Chinese characters constitute the oldest continuously used writing system in the world. The logograms convey both meaning and pronunciation.

To date, archaeologists around the world have discovered some 4,000 bone inscription characters by studying 160,000 relics, but only 1,600 of the characters have been deciphered.

Oracle bone inscriptions were first discovered in 1899 by Beijing academic and antiquarian Wang Yirong, although farmers had been unearthing the artifacts in Anyang, Henan Province for many years. Wang noticed symbols that looked like writing on the animal bones and tortoise shells.

According to the museum's announcement, the process of deciphering the oracle bone inscriptions has entered a "bottleneck" period and needs enthusiasm and innovation to help tackle the mysterious characters.

The museum's incentive program requires each report submitted by award applicants to have recommendations from two academic experts before they hand in their entries to the museum's expert panel.

It encourages oracle bone enthusiasts to use cloud computing and Big Data to analyze and support their interpretation of a particular character.

If plagiarism or falsification are found, applicants will be considered disqualified to receive the award, the museum warned.
LOS ANGELES, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Coast Guard said that they have suspended the active search on Wednesday evening for missing Chinese mariner Guo Chuan, who lost contact while sailing his 97-foot super trimaran on a solo trans-Pacific voyage.

The 51-year-old Chinese sailor "was a professional mariner with a deep passion for sailing," Capt. Robert Hendrickson, chief of response for the U.S. Coast Guard 14th District said in a statement. "Our deepest condolences go out not only to his family and friends but also to his racing team and the sailing community."

According to the U.S. Coast Guard, an HC-130 Hercules airplane crew, sent from Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point, conducted six search patterns in the vicinity of the trimaran. The USS Makin Island deployed a Navy MH-60 Seahawk helicopter on Wednesday once they were in range to attempt contact with Guo. Their hails over the radio went unanswered and weather conditions prevented safe deployment of a rescue swimmer to the vessel.

They followed up by deploying a rigid-hulled inflatable boat and crew to conduct a boarding of the trimaran Wednesday afternoon. The boatcrew confirmed Guo was not on the vessel although his life jacket remains aboard.

The 'Qingdao China' remains adrift, the mainsail has been doused and the vessel has been marked. A broadcast notice to mariners alerting vessel crews in the area to the potential hazard to navigation has been issued. Chuan's racing team is making arrangements to recover the vessel.

Weather conditions on the scene reportedly included 23 mph winds, waters cresting at 5-feet with good visibility and scattered clouds. On-scene assets searched a total area of more than 4,600 square miles over a two-day period, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

Videos from the scene showed an HC-130 Hercules airplane overflying the super trimaran while searching for Guo Chuan on Tuesday.

A spokesman for China's consulate-general in Los Angeles told Xinhua, "since being informed in Tuesday evening, we have been in close contact with U.S. authorities and rescue teams both in U.S. and China, urging for greater efforts in the search and rescue."

Tuesday morning, watch standers at the U.S. Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Center Honolulu, Hawaii, received notification from Maritime Rescue Coordination Center China personnel that the vessel, 'Qingdao China,' with one person aboard, had not been heard from for over 24 hours.

According to the U.S. Coast Guard, the 97-foot super trimaran 'Qingdao China' is actively transmitting on an automatic identification system which showed the vessel's position at the time 620 miles northwest of the Hawaiian island of Oahu.

Guo set sail on his trimaran near the U.S. city of San Francisco, embarking on a solo voyage to the Chinese city of Shanghai. He was last heard just after 15:00 Tuesday Beijing time when his trimaran sailed 500 nautical miles off the west of Hawaii, his support team said.

The Chinese sailor aiming to set a new solo non-stop trans-Pacific world record, piloted the 'Qingdao China' west across the starting line under San Francisco's iconic Golden Gate Bridge.

He had been in constant contact with MRCC China and his family while on the voyage and was not likely to miss scheduled calls, the Coast Guard said.

Guo is regarded as a very experienced sailor and was reportedly in good health. He had a world record to his name for a 138-day solo non-stop circumnavigation. His journey covers about 13,000 km in length and under normal conditions would be completed within 20 days.

He told a Xinhua reporter in an earlier interview that the greatest fear for a sailor was to fall in the water.

The current trans-Pacific speed record is 21 days, set by crews on board the Italian Maserati.
Britain's Royal Air Force aerobatic team Red Arrows perform in Zhuhai, south China's Guangdong Province, Oct. 27, 2016. The Red Arrows arrived in China for their first ever visit on Oct. 22 and they are scheduled to perform at the 11th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition, in Zhuhai, in the first week of November. (Xinhua/Liang Xu)

by Liu Xin, Hu Tao

BEIJING, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Complete synchronicity - down to every breath.

That's the key to the stunning aerial displays put on by the Britain's legendary Red Arrows - officially known as the Royal Air Force (RAF) Aerobatic Team.

The Red Arrows arrived in China for their first ever visit on Oct. 22 and they are scheduled to perform at the 11th annual Airshow China, in Zhuhai, south China's Guangdong Province, in the first week of November.

Hammerhead breaks, slalom and rollback maneuvers - the nine-strong squad of Hawk T1 jets are promising a dazzling display for the milestone event, Squadron Leader David Montenegro said at the Smart Talk which was organized by British Council in Beijing on Tuesday.

Montenegro, the leader of one of the world's most recognizable display teams, said the 25-minute show would see the jets fly as close as six-feet apart at more than 400 miles an hour.

The pilots must concentrate on timing. "Only when you put yourself in the right position, can you be in complete synchronicity with the other pilots," he said. "I will tell you every single turn, roll and loop."

Precision is essential and extensive practice is necessary to be in the right position: "We even breathe carefully to calculate times."

Established in 1964, the Red Arrows have since completed more than 4,700 displays in 56 countries. They often perform at major, national occasions, such as the opening of the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

The team includes 109 ground crew and support staff: specialists in avionics and dyes, weapons technicians, photographers, logistics and transport experts, mechanical engineers, and survival equipment fitters.

Montenegro is primarily responsible for all aspects of the displays, from running the training program and creating the routines to leading the team on the ground and in the air.

But even he admits to making mistakes. "Everyone has an element of the human error, but my mistakes are evident to the team," he said. "I have to give the team confidence to follow me. I have to build up trust up with my team."

Two or three new pilots join the Red Arrows each year, succeeding those who finish their tours. Typically, they spend three years with the team before returning to other duties.

Each candidate must have years of dedication, training and exceptional service as an RAF jet pilot and a front-line, operational tour of duty under their belt.

The Hawk T1 - at 11.9 meters long with a 9.4-meter wingspan - entered service with the Red Arrows in 1980.

It has a maximum altitude of 48,000 feet, with a thrust of 5,200 pounds powered by twin shaft turbofan Rolls-Royce engines.

Montenegro said Red Arrows don't seek to compete with other aerobatic teams as there are so few teams around.

"Science, technology and aviation is a global language," he said. "I think we speak the same language with other pilots."
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton (L) speaks during the second presidential debate with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at Washington University in St. Louis, the United States, on Oct. 9, 2016. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

BUENOS AIRES, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- No matter who wins the presidential election slated for Nov. 8, the next U.S government will not improve relations with Latin America, an Argentine scholar on international relations has warned.

In an interview with Xinhua, Leandro Morgenfeld, professor of the University of Buenos Aires, said that neither Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton would change the strategy of attacking a country that does not obey the orders of Washington. Both will try to encourage regional fragmentation and prevent the emergence of a more multipolar world.

"Trump has provoked a large wave of rejection during his xenophobic and anti-Latino rhetoric. Clinton would bring more continuity with Obama despite a more aggressive approach toward governments that do not submit to the orders of Washington."

According to Morgenfeld, Clinton said during her campaign that she opposed the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), but she actually pushed for the negotiations when she was the secretary of state.

"She will seek the ratification of TPP by Congress, if Obama does not do so before leaving, which will cause resistance from the region," he said.

The scholar labelled the U.S. attitude toward Latin America as "a paternalistic vision."

Morgenfeld said he expects countries such as Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador and Nicaragua to maintain their distant relationships with Washington.

"Trump and Clinton would have a more aggressive approach to Bolivarian countries than Obama. They will try to use the economic crisis in the region to flip the government of President Nicolas Maduro and isolate anyone seeking not to be subordinate to the U.S.," he warned.

Regional fragmentation "weakens the position of each country and deepens dependency. I have no hope that Clinton or Trump government will improve relations with Latin America," he said.
JOHANNESBURG, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Chinese telecom giant Huawei on Thursday signed cooperation contracts with global and local music vendors in South Africa to accelerate digitalization of African music.

At the Huawei Southern Africa Partner Summit held in Johannesburg, Huawei inked contracts with Spice Music, Mtech, CCA and other local music vendors.

Africa has shown a great demand for digital services, like music, game and video. According to Huawei's analysis, in five years, digital services' year-on-year growth here will be about 40 percent. However, there remains a big gap between the growing demands and the digital productions.

The summit, aimed at creating a sharing platform to promote digital collaboration in Africa, has attracted over 40 industry partners.

Wilson Feng, President of Huawei's Carrier Business in Southern Africa Region, said at the summit that Huawei is willing to work hand-in-hand with Africa partners to create a better industry ecosystem.

"We will leverage our innovative technologies of digital services, and our global resources to improve African consumers' digital experience, and accelerate African's digital economy development," Feng said.

Through the cooperation, Huawei's digital business cloud will also help their partners in monetization, which means it's a win-win solution for all parties in the ecosystem, he said.

The cooperation with content providers means Huawei will have the copyrights of millions of latest music from the international and local vendors. This is Huawei's first breakthrough into the global music space.

Huawei will then be able to provide the music to telecom operators in South Africa, like Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, etc, which offer music to their end users through their music apps.

The summit also witnessed Huawei's efforts in leveraging its Digital inCloud, a software platform, to integrate content across music, video, gaming and other digital service genres.

Siphumelele Zondi, senior producer and anchor of South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), said there would be a great need for local South African artists to venture into the digital space.

Often local content is on demand but not available on digital platforms, which then promotes piracy, he said.

"Africa is a mobile device intensive environment, and platforms such as Huawei's Digital inCloud can aid the availability of local content to Africa," said Zondi.
NAIROBI, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's HIV prevalence rate has declined by 7 percent from 2010 to 2015, said a report launched in Nairobi on Thursday.

According to the report that was released by the National AIDS Control Council (NACC), new infection cases among adults dropped from 83,097 in 2010 to 77,648 in 2015.

"The successful implementation of the HIV prevention and treatment program has shown positive results," the Ministry of Health Principal Secretary Nicholas Muraguri said during the launch of the report.

Muraguri said that although prevalence still remains high at 5.9 percent, a combination of increased awareness, scale-up of prevention and treatment programs will lead to a sustained decline of HIV prevalence in the country.

Muraguri also announced plans to include AIDS treatment in social insurance coverage to enable infected persons to get quick medical attention from institutions of their choice.

The report said the number of new infections among the youths aged 15-24 also declined from 37,566 in 2010 to 35,776 in 2015, marking a decrease of 5 percent.

Among the children, new infections declined by 46 percent over the period from 12,358 in 2010 to 6,613 in 2015.

The report also reveals that the number of AIDS-related orphans declined from 959,334 in 2010 to 661,119 in 2015.

Executive Director of NACC Nduku Kilonzo observed that the antiretroviral therapy has saved over 423,000 lives in Kenya since 2004.

"Approximately 35,822 people died of AIDS-related causes in 2015 compared to 51,314 in 2010, a 30-percent decline nationally," she added.

She attributed the decline to the rollout of antiretroviral in 2003 and the ability of the national AIDS and sexually transmitted infections control program to cover AIDS treatment and provision of care services.
TOKYO, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte wrapped up his visit to Japan on Thursday, seeking economic support from Tokyo but still vexing its long-time ally of U.S. with his blistering remarks.

During Duterte's three-day visit, Japan and the Philippines have agreed to enhance cooperation, with Tokyo in an apparent effort to woo Manila back to "the U.S.-Japan camp."

The two sides signed a series of cooperation documents, including Japan offering yen loans to improve the Philippines's maritime safety capabilities and help it revitalize agriculture business.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who expressed his intention to deepen cooperation with Manila in fighting terrorism, said Japan would provide high-speed boats and other equipment to enhance the Philippines' anti-terrorism capabilities.

For his part, the Philippine leader pledged a peaceful solution to the South China Sea issue, upholding in general his stance expressed earlier during his visit to China.

Duterte has reached consensus with the Chinese leaders during his tour to Beijing, which is focused on cooperation and bringing the South China Sea issue back to the correct track of bilateral negotiation and consultation.

He said at the Philippine Economic Forum in Tokyo Wednesday that the Philippines would pursue an independent foreign policy.

"I want friendship of everybody," he said, adding that he looked to "be friends with China."

He also told a press conference after his meeting with Abe that he would seek peaceful settlement of maritime disputes including the South China Sea issue.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said at a press briefing in Beijing Thursday that Duterte's recent remarks during his visit to Japan accord with the consensus he reached with Chinese leaders during his China visit last week.

Besides the South China Sea issue, the outspoken Philippine leader also baffled Japan with his comments on the United States.

According to local reports, Japan had hoped to bring the Philippines back to "the U.S.-Japan camp" through direct communication with the president during his stay in Japan.

However, Duterte continued to voice his dissatisfaction with Washington. "I want to prove to everybody, the Philippines has a dignity," he said, reiterating that the United States treated his country like "a dog on a leash."

He also wanted all foreign military troops out of the Philippines "probably in the next two years."

Mentioning the U.S. colonial control of the Philippines over half a century, Duterte said he would pursue an independent foreign policy and the Philippines will "survive" without U.S. assistance.

Former Philippine president Benigno Aquino III signed an Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement with the U.S. in 2014, which allowed the return of U.S. troops to the Philippines after the country expelled U.S. soldiers in the 1990s.

Duterte, who took office in June, has reportedly talked about abrogating defense agreements with the U.S. over the past two months.

"For Japan, it would be wiser not to bring up too much the U.S.-Philippine relationship," said Lully Miura, a scholar on international relations at the University of Tokyo.

"Instead, it would be better to focus more on the Japan-Philippine relationship, as the relationships between the three countries are very complicated right now," she said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at a plenary session of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Vladivostok, Russia, on Sept. 3, 2016. (Xinhua file photo/Wu Gang)

SOCHI, Russia, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday criticized the United States for failing to fulfill its commitment to the Syrian settlement, saying that Moscow is ready to work with the new U.S. president to improve bilateral ties.

"It is very difficult for us to communicate with the current U.S. administration, because it implements no agreements, including on Syria," Putin said here at a session of the Valdai Discussion Club. "But we are ready to talk with a new president in search of solutions to any complicated issues."

Russia has repeatedly aired dissatisfaction for what it said the failure of the U.S. to separate the so-called "moderate" oppositions from terrorist groups in Syria, which Moscow believes should be blamed for the collapse of the Russia-U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement with situation in the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo increasingly deteriorating.

In response to the alleged role in the U.S. presidential campaign, Putin said Moscow is "somewhat indifferent" to who will win the election, but it welcomes any intentions to normalize bilateral ties.

He also dismissed reports that U.S. Republican White House contender Donald Trump is Kremlin's favorite candidate for the presidency.

"This is complete nonsense," he said. "His behavior is extravagant...but he represents the interests of a large part of average Americans, who are tired of elites."

Relations between the two countries have run cold since the Ukraine crisis in early 2014, when Washington slapped a bunch of sanctions against Moscow for its role in the conflicts in eastern Ukraine and its takeover of the Crimea peninsula.

Moscow said recently it was preparing both "symmetrical and asymmetrical" measures against possible renewed U.S. sanctions.

Joint efforts from the two sides to promote a political settlement of the protracted crisis in Syria went down the drain with each side accusing the other of violating the hard-earned truce deal in September.
EDINBURGH, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Chairwoman of China Disabled Persons' Federation Zhang Haidi was on Thursday officially inaugurated as the leader of the Rehabilitation International (RI).

She was sworn in at the closing ceremony of the three-day world congress of the RI, the world's leading network for the rights and inclusion of people with disabilities.

Addressing the ceremony, Zhang, 61, who lives with paraplegia and has been praised for her effective disability activism and thus dubbed "China's Helen Keller", pledged that she will help improve the livelihood of the world's 1 billion disabled people and provide them with the opportunity of recovery, education and employment as well as decent lives.

Elected as the new RI president in 2014 after gaining an overwhelming majority of votes, Zhang has been lauded for her work of enhancing the well-being of disabled people in China.

She told the congress that a large number of disabled people, especially those in the developing countries, are still living in plight.

"The international community should make more efforts to eliminate discrimination and prejudice against the disabled,"she said, adding that special attention should be given to the survival and development of the disabled women and children.

Zhang, who is also a translator and writer, vowed that the RI will support and encourage the world's leading academic institutes to carry out researches on recovery science and technologies.

She also promised to set aside a special fund for Africa and create permanent RI awards for those who contribute to the recovery of the disabled.

Jan Monsbakken, who stepped down as the RI president on Thursday, told Xinhua that Zhang's election was an important moment for the RI and also for the whole rehabilitation and disability community.

"It's very important that China is entering the formal structures of the international society (of the disability rehabilitation )," he said, adding that he hopes the new president could better mobilize resources and power to make the RI an even more successful organization.

Founded in 1922, the RI is a worldwide network of grassroots organizations, service providers, researchers, academics, professionals and government agencies with members in over 100 countries and regions. It is the only international disability NGO that is both cross-disability and cross-disciplinary.

The RI congress, held every four years, brings together government, business, academics and charity groups. Over 1,000 delegates from 60 countries and regions attended the major international event on disability.
By Hummam Sheikh Ali

DAMASCUS, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- The recent remarks by U.S. officials about an imminent offensive to defeat the Islamic State (IS) in their capital of al-Raqqa in Syria is easier said than done, and is much harder than stripping the terror group of their stronghold of Mosul in Iraq, analysts here said.

Just 10 days into the offensive of taking Iraq's city of Mosul, one of the largest IS strongholds in Iraq, the U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced that a battle to dislodge IS from their capital of caliphate in the Syrian city of Raqqa will begin within weeks.

Carter said the idea of simultaneous operations against the terror group in Mosul and al-Raqqa "has been part of our planning for quite a while" and that they were confident they were capable of resourcing both.

However, analysts in Syria believed talks about simultaneous attacks and the possibility of defeating IS in al-Raqqa are easier said than done for many reasons.

DIFFERENT SITUATION IN SYRIA

In the Iraqi case, the attack on IS in Mosul has been under preparation for over a year, not as quickly as the "weeks" declared by the U.S. official.

In Mosul, the official Iraqi government is involved in the coordination, as well as in the actual battle against IS with the help of the U.S.-led coalition, but in Syria it's not the case.

The United States has largely marginalized the Syrian government in terms of coordinating attacks against the ultra-radical groups in Syria.

Syria repeatedly said that any successful anti-terror effort must be coordinated with the official Syrian government, which has the necessary resources and military forces to advance against the IS group.

Also, In Iraq the IS is the main threat. However in Syria, tens of rebel groups with shifting allegiances are involved, adding more complication to the political landscape and the military confrontation map.

TURKISH, KURDISH CONFLICT IN SYRIA

Unlike Iraq, where all major powers are united against IS, the Syrian scene in terms of the regional involvement is far more complicated.

The United States, while rejecting to cooperate with the Syrian government, relied alternatively on rebel groups to do its bidding, as Washington repeatedly made it clear that there will be no U.S. boots on ground in Syria.

Washington has primarily supported the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the fight against IS in northern Syria. The SDF proved to be a relatively reliable group, but later on Turkey intervened in with another rebel group called the Free Syrian Army (FSA) with the same ostensible goal of fighting IS.

Under the hood, the aim behind supporting the FSA in a battle dubbed the "Euphrates Shield," was not only to fight IS, but to put an end to the growing influence of the Kurdish-led SDF, as an increasing Kurdish sway near the Turkish border is a declared red line by Ankara, whose officials have made it clear they will never allow the Kurds in Syria to rule an autonomous region.

Ankara fears such a separatist sentiment could inspire Turkey's over 20 million Kurds to follow their siblings lead, either in Syria or in Iraq, where the Kurds are ruling their region in northern Iraq, following the downfall of late President Saddam Hussain.

The Turkey-backed FSA and the Kurdish-led SDF have made notable gains against IS in the northern countryside of Syria's Aleppo province, reaching to the point of direct confrontation with one another.

Ironically, both groups are enjoying the support and blessing of the United States.

Osama Danura, a Syrian politician analyst with PhD in political science, said if the United States wants to move on IS in al-Raqqa, it will either rely on the SDF or the FSA, but it cannot rely on both of them at the same time, and each of them separately cannot take down IS.

The reason behind that is that Turkey made it clear it will not fight IS alongside the SDF, or other Kurdish groups in Syria, as it's fighting those very groups through the FSA.

"The United States is unable at this time to galvanize the needed fighters to liberate al-Raqqa. The SDF cannot take down IS because it lacks the tactical and military power to do so, and because Turkey will not allow it," he said.

Still, Danura speculated that Washington could rely on the Turkish army to take al-Raqqa, and such an option is not off the table, as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Thursday that the military operation supporting Syrian opposition fighters in northern Syria will target al-Raqqa.

Erdogan said the rebels were advancing on the Syrian city of al-Bab to liberate it from IS. After taking al-Bab, they will target Manbij, captured by SDF in August, and "then we will go towards al-Raqqa."

Carter also said in Brussels that "we are largely working with the Turkish army in Syria... that has given important results... we are searching for new cooperation opportunities in Syria, and al-Raqqa is one of them."

Danura said the FSA will need a Turkish military support inside Syria to be able to enter al-Raqqa.

"A Turkish military intervention into that depth, to reach al-Raqqa, is not going to be easy," Danura said.

He added that the possible entry of Turkish forces to al-Raqqa means "a fully fledged war with the Kurdish groups and that will extend to a Kurdish-Turkish fight in Iraq, especially when the Turks said they wanted to enter Mosul to take part in liberating it from IS."

Also, there will be a confrontation with the Syrian government and its allies, as the Syrian army recently said that it will deal with the Turkish intervention as an "occupation power" that will be fought with all possible means.

"Russia will not stand idle toward this strategic disorder. Turkey itself will be depleted as it will move from being a supporter to the groups that are working to drain Syria and Russia to a party that is drained itself," Danura noted.

"So things are much more complicated than what the U.S. may think," he concluded.
A Syrian tank fires at rebel positions in the Jobar area, east of Damascus, capital of Syria, on Oct. 21, 2016. The Syrian army foiled an attack by the armed rebels on the eastern rim of the capital Damascus on Friday, killing 14 of them, a military source told Xinhua. (Xinhua/Ammar)

UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Russia on Thursday described the latest report by the OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM) in Syria as "unconvincing," saying that the report is "not substantiated by sufficient testimonial basis "

Vitaly Churkin, the Russian permanent representative to the United Nations, made the statement at a closed meeting of the UN Security Council to consider the fourth report of the JIM.

"We can say already now that in most cases they are not substantiated by sufficient testimonial basis, first of all material proof, they are full of contradictions and therefore, unconvincing," Churkin said.

The OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM) in Syria was established after the United Nations Security Council in August 2015, unanimously adopted resolution 2235, aimed at identifying those behind chemical weapons attacks in Syria.

OPCW stands for the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), an international organization based in The Hague.

"Our attitude to the conclusions of the third report including the fantastic case when the barrel landed vertically straight into a narrow hole is well-known," he said. "The JIM has added nothing new to this story, but for some reasons decided to readjust the initial conclusions on the incidents in Marea, Sarmin and Talmenes."

"As we understand the conclusions of the JIM are not definitive, have no legally binding force and cannot serve as accusatory conclusions for taking legal decisions," he said. "This has been unambiguously affirmed in paragraph 6 of the report."

"It is unclear why the JIM leadership clearly overstepped their mandate and tried in paragraph 52 to form an opinion in favor of holding accountable some individuals," he said.

"Damascus should carry out a comprehensive national investigation on chemical incidents confirmed by the JIM as provided for in Article VII of CWC," he said, referring to the Chemical Weapons Convention, an arms control treaty which outlaws the production, stockpiling, and use of chemical weapons and their precursors.

"We do not see any grounds for using the principle of exterritorial jurisdiction, against the provisions of the convention, to avoid the creation of a precedent, which is absolutely unacceptable to the prevailing majority of the OPCW member states," Churkin said.

The key factor that affected the quality of work of the JIM was "the lack of access to the sites of chemical incidents in the territory controlled by the opposition, which they have been denied" despite the requirements of relevant Security Council resolution, he said. "It was impossible to take sample and to store and process them in accordance with relevant standards."

Earlier this year, the Security Council voiced its concern about the use of chemical weapons by warring parties in Syria, including terrorists.

The JIM, established for a period of one year with a possibility of future extension, is tasked with identifying "individuals, entities, groups, or governments involved in the use of chemicals as weapons, including chlorine or any other toxic chemical" in Syria, according to the Security Council, which reiterated that those responsible must be held accountable.
Lai Meisong (2nd R), founder and chairman of China's ZTO Express, poses after ringing opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, the United States, Oct. 27, 2016. China's ZTO Express started trading under the ticker symbol "ZTO" at the New York Stock Exchange Thursday, after raising over 1.4 billion U.S. dollars in its initial public offering - the largest one in the U.S. so far this year. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)

NEW YORK, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- China's ZTO Express (ZTO) started trading under the ticker symbol "ZTO" at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) Thursday, after raising over 1.4 billion U.S. dollars in its initial public offering (IPO) - the largest one in the U.S. so far this year.

ZTO announced Wednesday that it had priced its initial public offering of 72,100,000 American depositary shares (ADSs) at 19.50 dollars apiece for a total offering size of approximately 1.4 billion dollars, assuming the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option to purchase additional ADSs.

Each ADS represents one Class A ordinary share of ZTO. The Company has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to 10,815,000 additional ADSs.

Morgan Stanley & Co. International plc, Goldman Sachs (Asia) L.L.C., China Renaissance Securities (Hong Kong) Limited, Citigroup Global Markets Inc., Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC acted as joint bookrunners for the offering.

Shares of ZTO tumbled 15.03 percent to 16.57 dollars apiece at the closing Thursday.

"The short-term volatility of ZTO's stocks won't affect my confidence in our company's long-term run. We believe that our business will keep growing at a fast pace relying on China's huge and rapidly expanding express service market as well as e-commerce market," said Meisong Lai, the founder and chairman of ZTO.

ZTO, a Shanghai-based express delivery company, provides express delivery service as well as other value-added logistics services through its extensive and reliable nationwide network in China, which covers over 96 percent of China's cities and counties as of June 30, 2016.

According to the iResearch, ZTO is one of the largest express delivery companies globally, in terms of total parcel volume in 2015.

ZTO is both a key enabler and a direct beneficiary of China' s fast-growing e-commerce market, and has established itself as one of the largest express delivery service providers for millions of online merchants and consumers transacting on leading Chinese e-commerce platforms, such as Alibaba and JD.com.

"ZTO' s business model grants us a unique advantage in market competition, which allows ZTO to achieve strong operating leverage by minimizing fixed costs and capital requirements," Meisong Lai told Xinhua.

ZTO operates a highly scalable network partner model, which the firm believes is best suited to support the significant growth of e-commerce in China. ZTO leverages its network partners to provide pickup and last-mile delivery services, while controlling the mission-critical line-haul transportation and sorting network within the express delivery service value chain, said the ZTO profile.

ZTO's IPO surpasses the 1.1 billion dollars IPO of Japanese messaging company Line and makes it the biggest Chinese company IPO in the U.S. since Alibaba, which made history with its 25 billion dollars blockbuster IPO in 2014, according to the Forbes.

Traders work to matchmake the first transaction of the shares of China's ZTO Express at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, the United States, Oct. 27, 2016. China's ZTO Express started trading under the ticker symbol "ZTO" at the New York Stock Exchange Thursday, after raising over 1.4 billion U.S. dollars in its initial public offering - the largest one in the U.S. so far this year. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)
Liuli (Chinese glass art) artists Loretta H. Yang and Chang Yi from China's Taiwan introduce the liuli work Imminent Spring Dance at a liuli exhibition in Brussels, Belgium, Oct. 27, 2016. (Xinhua/Ye Pingfan)

BRUSSELS, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- An exhibition of contemporary Chinese glass art under the name of "A Chinese Liuli Flower" was held in Brussels on Thursday.

On display were 12 glass works made through the technique "Pate de verre", a kiln casting method to make glass. These "dream-liked" glass reflects inconstant character of life which is common in Chinese philosophy, according to an introduction to the works.

"Liuli flower could perfectly express the Chinese concept of 'flower and Buddhism'," Loretta H. Yang, creator of these glass art said.

The exhibition also showed a glass work of flower-de-luce.

A 83-year-old visitor named Susan said it was her first time to see the Chinese glass art, which is "fabulous and enlightening."

Loretta H. Yang was a household name in Taiwan in the 1970s as a result of her renowned acting career and won the Golden Horse Awards for best actress.

She, together with partner Chang Yi, devoted nearly three decades to the Chinese contemporary glass art. Their works have been collected in many renowned museums including the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and the Palace Museum in Beijing.
ISLAMABAD, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Pakistani military said late Thursday that a woman was killed and seven civilians were injured by Indian firing as the two countries' forces exchanged intense and heavy fire continued from 8 p.m. local time on Thursday in Shakarghar along their working boundary.

"Pakistani Rangers befittingly responded to Indian unprovoked firing and targeted Indian posts inflicting heavy casualties," the Pakistani army said in a statement.

On Pakistani side, a female civilian was killed and seven others were injured due to Indian unprovoked firing, added the statement.

There has been escalation along the Line of Control (LoC) in the disputed Kashmir region and the working boundary since suspected militants attacked an army base in the Indian-controlled Kashmir. The Sept.18 attack had killed 19 Indian soldiers.

Pakistan and India had declared ceasefire in 2003 that had silenced the guns.

However, firing exchanges do take place time to time and the cross-LoC firing and shelling has increased in recent days. Both nuclear armed countries accuse each other of the ceasefire violations.
RIO DE JANEIRO, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Former Brazil international striker Luis Fabiano has left China's Tianjin Quanjian by mutual consent, according to media reports in Brazil.

The 35-year-old played a vital role in helping Tianjin Quanjian earn promotion to the Chinese Super League in 2017, scoring 23 goals as the club clinched the first division title last week.

Fabiano joined the Chinese outfit from Sao Paulo in January on a one year deal with the option of a second year.

The former Sevilla star is expected to announce his plans for 2017 in the coming days, the report said.

Fabiano was capped 45 times for Brazil from 2003 to 2013 and scored 28 international goals.
MELBOURNE, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Victorians have been warned that the state's mosquito population has soared following an unseasonably wet Spring.

Authorities from the Department of Health said that the weather had provided "perfect" breeding conditions for the pests and as a result it has been forced to start population control programs a month earlier than usual.

The department confirmed that a full-time mosquito monitor had been employed to spray areas with stagnant water, where the insects breed, in several areas across Melbourne.

Charles Guest, Victoria's chief health officer, said mosquitoes in Victoria could transmit the Ross River and Barmah Forest viruses and, on rare occasions, the potentially lethal Murray Valley Encephalitis virus (MVE) that can cause the brain to swell.

Guest said there were 301 reported cases of Ross River virus and 11 cases of Barmah Forest, which can both cause joint inflammation, pain and rashes, in the 2015/2016 summer but those figures could soar this year.

"It's important to look after small children and babies using mosquito repellents, mosquito nets, ensuring that those who can't protect themselves are, as far as possible, protected against mosquito bites," Guest told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on Friday.

"Mosquitoes are thriving in the damp conditions and as it gets warmer there will be more of them."

Susan Lawler, an insect expert from La Trobe University, said one of the most efficient ways to keep your home free of mosquitoes was to leave any spiders, particularly of the opiliones species, alone.

"I'm nurturing some spiders in a corner of my bathroom because they're cleaning things up for me," Lawler told the ABC.

"I know not everyone can do that, but a (spider) here and there is not a bad idea. They kill quite a lot (of mosquitoes).

"So spiders will be our friends for the next few weeks."
by Matt Goss

MELBOURNE, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- A consortium consisting of Australia's richest woman and a Chinese investment firm has upped its bid for the world's largest cattle station, making them the likely winners of the bidding war.

Australian Outback Beef (AOB), a venture 67 percent owned by Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting and 33 per cent by China's Shanghai CRED, increased its bid for the S Kidman and Co cattle empire, the world's largest, to 293 million U.S. dollars.

The bid exceeds that of a rival syndicate of Australia's four largest cattle farming families, BBHO, and has forced BBHO to withdraw its bid for the series of cattle stations spanning across New South Wales (NSW), Queensland (QLD), South Australia (SA), Western Australia (WA) and the Northern Territory (NT).

The board of Kidman has unanimously recommended that its shareholders accept AOB's bid should the proposal be approved by Australia's Foreign Investments Review Board (FIRB) and the Chinese government.

Rinehart said the prospect of acquiring the Kidman empire meant a lot to her personally.

"I am from a station background, having grown up on Mulga Downs and Hamersley stations, both in the outback," Rinehart said in a statement published by News Limited on Friday.

"AOB has the capacity and ability to access additional markets vital to any credible plan to grow Kidman in a sustainable way and without breaking the core business."

"We have the money to invest to properly maintain the stations and their hard-working staff."

"This will result in valuable jobs being retained in Adelaide and also importantly create more jobs in rural communities where they are so desperately needed."

The bid by AOB excludes the single largest cattle station in the world, Anna Creek, due to the farm being deemed 'defense sensitive' due to its proximity to the Woomera weapons testing range, and thus being 'off limits' to foreign investors.

The BBHO consortium, which had intended to split the cattle stations up amongst themselves but continue to market the exported beef under the Kidman brand, said it did not want to enter a bidding war with Rinehart.

"After what has been a lengthy and complex sales process, we congratulate the Hancock Shanghai CRED consortium for similarly recognizing the potential of the iconic Kidman brand," the consortium said in a statement issued on Friday.

Tim Treadgold, a respected Australian business commentator, said the sale was a "classic case" of "the biggest chequebook winning the day."

"It only has to be one dollar more and the board of Kidman has no choice but to accept the highest bid," Treadgold told the ABC.

"To not accept the highest bid would cause them great problems."

The Kidman empire covers 101,000 square kilometers of pastoral land, representing 2.6 per cent of Australia's total agricultural land.
VIENNA, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Austrian presidential candidate Alexander Van der Bellen has called on his opponent Norbert Hofer to "clearly distance" himself from the verbal provocations of his right-wing party leader.

In an interview with the local Kurier newspaper published on Thursday, the former Greens leader said he will not stay silent about Hofer's Freedom Party (FPOe)'s recent provocative rhetoric on the refugee issue and the country's future.

He called on Hofer to distance himself from the comment of FPOe's leader Heinz-Christian Strache, who claimed on Monday that in light of the refugee crisis, a civil war in the country is "not unlikely."

Van der Bellen said such statements may cause damage to Austria, and have a negative impact on how the country is seen abroad.

In addition, he criticized a Facebook post by Strache where the FPOe leader posted the song of "Be Blessed Without End," which was used as the Austrian national anthem during the one-party fascist Federal State of Austria period between 1934 and 1938.

Van der Bellen said while the creator of the song Ottokar Kernstock passed away in 1928 before the Nazi era, he was still known as both a German nationalist and an ultra nationalist.

The song has the nickname of "Hakenkreuzlied," or "the Swastika Song," he said.

The Austrian National Council announced last week to reschedule the run-off round for the presidential election for Dec. 4.
SANAA, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's dominant Shiite Houthi rebels fired a ballistic missile toward a Saudi target, the group said in a statement issued Thursday midnight.

The Houthis said the missile was aimed at King Abdel Aziz International Airport in the Saudi port city of Jeddah on the coast of the Red Sea, according to the brief statement posted on Houthi-controlled Yemen News Agency at Thursday midnight.

However, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported an hour earlier that a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis from within Yemeni northern province of Saada was intercepted 65 km from Saudi religious holy city of Mecca, about 30 km southeast of Jeddah.

No damage or casualties were reported in the incident, SPA said, adding that the Saudi warplanes hit the missile launch site in Saada and completely destroyed it.

The Saudi-led Arab military coalition has been fighting Shiite Houthi rebels in Yemen since March 2015, trying to restore the internationally recognized government of exiled President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and dislodge Houthis from the capital Sanaa and northern provinces.

International efforts and talks between the war parties have been so far fruitless.X The attack on Thursday night was the latest in a series of ballistic rocketry strikes by the Houthis from Yemen, most of which were intercepted by Saudi military forces.
TORONTO, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Canadian's main stock market bounced back from three consecutive days of losses on Thursday as energy stocks performed well.

The Toronto Stock Exchange's benchmark Standard & Poor's/TSX Composite Index gained 26.19 points, or 0.18 percent, to end the session at 14,833.75 points. Half of the 10 sub-sectors in the index moved into positive territory on the day. ' The TSX Energy group continued its strong month, rising 1.77 percent during the session. Over the last 30 days, the sector has been up 13.41 percent.

Suncor Energy, Canada's largest producer of oil and gas, contributed in a big way as stocks soared 5.66 percent to 31.09 U.S. dollars after better than expected third quarter financials.

The Calgary-based firm had net earnings of about 293 million U.S. dollars, compared to a 281-million-U.S.-dollar loss in the same quarter of 2015. The company also commented that operations in the oil sands had returned to normal following the Fort McMurray wildfire in May.

Also contributing to the strong performance of the energy sector was Brent crude oil rising 0.50 U.S. dollar to 50.37 U.S. dollars for a barrel in London in December. As a result, energy producers Cenovus Energy Inc. and Imperial Oil Ltd. shares grew 2.78 percent and 2.72 percent, respectively.

The TSX Financials group climbed 0.22 percent as National Bank of Canada stocks rose 1.75 percent to 35.65 U.S. dollars after the country's sixth largest bank announced its intention to cut 600 jobs and eliminate 300 others, saving 90 million U.S. dollars annually. At the same time, the financial institution will also hire 500 new employees to focus on the digital side of the banking industry.

Industrials and Information Technology sub-sectors also advanced on the day, gaining 0.21 percent and 0.16 percent, respectively.

The health care sector was hit the hardest on the day, dipping 1.62 percent as shares of retirement home operators Chartwell Retirement Residences and Extendicare Inc. declined 1.39 percent and 1.79 percent, respectively.

The materials sub-sector, which features miners of gold and other metals, fell for a second straight session, retreating 0.89 percent.

Barrick Gold, the world's largest gold miner stocks, rose 1.39 percent to 16.85 U.S. dollars after posting strong quarterly earnings. Teck Resources could not keep up, as earnings fell below expectations causing Class B shares to fall 0.71 percent to 20.87 U.S. dollars.

Utilities and Consumer Discretionary sub-sectors also faded on the day, dropping 0.52 percent and 0.33 percent, respectively.

On the economic front, the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is one step closer to being finalized after the Belgian region of Wallonia ended a holdout to keep the deal alive. CETA is a proposed free-trade agreement between the European Union and Canada that would eliminate the majority of tariffs, improve intellectual property rights, and allow the movement of employees between regions.

The Canadian dollar ended the day down 0.0004 to finish at 0.7471 U.S. dollar.
WELLINGTON, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand Trade Minister Todd McClay will travel to Beijing and Hong Kong next week for talks on trade issues with Chinese counterparts.

McClay said in a statement Friday he would have "a brief trade-related program" in Beijing.

New Zealand is seeking to upgrade the bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) with China, which was signed in 2008.

McClay has said more than once that New Zealand is asking China to lift dairy tariffs, which are not due to come off for another six years under the original agreement.

In the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, McClay would meet with the Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah and Secretary of Commerce and Economic Development Gregory So Kam-leung.

"I welcome the opportunity to meet with my counterparts in Hong Kong, and exchange views on regional developments and our many shared interests," said McClay.

Hong Kong was New Zealand's 15th largest trading partner with two-way trade worth 1.6 billion NZ dollars (1.14 billion U.S. dollars) and a growing source of investment into New Zealand.

The New Zealand-Hong Kong, China Closer Economic Partnership agreement, an FTA between New Zealand and Hong Kong, came into effect in 2011.
MOSCOW, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Russian army will receive the latest modification of the Mi-28UB helicopters in 2017, the head of combat training of the Russia's Aerospace Forces, Major Gen. Oleg Chesnokov said Friday.

"Currently, the Mi-28UB helicopters have passed state tests and their delivery to the Russian aviation units will begin in 2017," the Russian news agency RIA Novosti quoted Chesnokov as saying.

He explained that firstly, the Mi-28UB will be delivered to the 344th Center for operational use and pilots' retraining for army aviation in the Russian city of Torzhok, and then the newest helicopters will be delivered to the units of Russia's Aerospace Forces.

"The experience with using the Mi-28N helicopters showed the need for the release of the same type of helicopters with dual controls -- the Mi-28UB helicopter," said Chesnokov, adding that the pilots and instructors of The Torzhok center have already passed the retraining program for this new type.

The Mi-28N is an attack helicopter designed for the search and destruction of tanks, of armored and soft-skinned vehicles, and of the low-speed air targets.
WELLINGTON, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The fourth contingent of 106 New Zealand soldiers left for Australia Friday to prepare for their deployment to Iraq, the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) has announced.

The New Zealand troops would undergo integration training with the Australian Defence Force in the lead-up to their joint mission to train Iraqi troops in the fight against Islamic State insurgents (Daesh).

Following the two-week integration training, the New Zealand troops and about 300 Australian personnel would go to Camp Taji, north of Baghdad, as the fourth rotation of the combined New Zealand-Australia training group.

The new group of New Zealand trainers would build on the success of the three previous NZDF contingents, which had established an easy rapport with the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) they were training, said the incoming NZDF Senior National Officer and Deputy Commander of Task Group Taji, who was not named, in a statement.

"Previous contingents have established a positive relationship with the ISF under their instruction. This dimension of our influence cannot be underestimated as we strive to build the ISF's capacity," he said.

Major General Tim Gall, Commander Joint Forces New Zealand, said that through the Building Partner Capacity training mission, New Zealand was helping the Iraqi military develop capable forces to sustain its counter-offensive against Daesh.

"Iraq needs a capable ground force to recover areas seized by Daesh and preserve the gains made against the violent extremists. Although the Iraqi military's offensive has begun to turn the tide against Daesh, they need continued support through training," Gall said in the statement.

Task Group Taji had trained more than 12,000 Iraqi soldiers since the mission began in May 2015.

The New Zealand government announced in June that it had extended the NZDF contribution to the training mission until November 2018.

The government had also agreed in principle to allow New Zealand soldiers to provide training to stabilization forces such as the Iraqi Border Guards, in addition to the Iraqi Army.

The training offered includes weapons handling, combat first aid, live firing, building clearance, counter-IED (improvised explosive device), leadership, and tactics and techniques for squad through to company-level operations.
by Xinhua writer Zhu Dongyang

BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Berlin's latest stalling of a Chinese firm's attempt to buy a German lamp producer is yet another sign that China-phobia is still around.

Local business news magazine WirtschaftsWoche reported Thursday that the German Economy Ministry has suspended a bid of Chinese companies to take over Osram's general lighting lamps business. Berlin has initially rejected and later decided to review the acquisition, which would take months.

The alarming move came only days after Berlin, without explanation, re-opened review of the sale of the German semiconductor maker Aixtron to a Chinese company for "security concerns," in a sudden annulment of the clearance certificate it issued last month that confirmed the buyer's credibility.

Germany's repeated scrutiny of deals with Chinese investors does not bode well for potential purchasers from other parts of the world.

If such relentless government interference continues, German tax payers will bear the brunt of their government's unpredictability and untrustworthiness in global trade policies. The country's protectionist moves could also rid its troubled firms of the chances for revival thanks to overseas capital.

For years, Germany has enjoyed the reputation of being one of the world's leading exporters and main beneficiaries of free trade. It is more than disheartening to see the country becoming increasingly inclined to set barriers for Chinese enterprises, leaving investors worldwide to question Berlin's sincerity in securing an open and transparent investment climate.

Recent years have also seen a deteriorating investment climate in Germany.

Data released recently by the German Central Bank showed that for the past seven years, German non-financial businesses would rather sit and see their savings accumulate to the mammoth amount of 50.04 billion U.S. dollars than doing investment in the country.

Many in Germany worry that Chinese companies are just interested in "stealing" technologies and jobs through their takeovers. In fact, there are multiple successful examples that have proved these concerns are as wrong as they are unnecessary.

Instead of seeking short-term gains, Chinese firms now prefer localizing their strategies and promoting acquired brands in China for win-win results.

After intervening in a string of Chinese bids in less than a week, it is time for Berlin to let go of its delusional "China threat" paranoia, and help pull the world out of a lackluster recovery.
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Malaysia should further deepen its economic ties with China for the benefit of its economic transformation and capacity building, a former Malaysian envoy said Friday.

In an article published on the local Star newspaper, former Malaysian ambassador to China Abdul Majid Ahmad Khan pointed out the increasing Chinese investment to Malaysia on top of the already flourishing bilateral trade in recent years.

The policy of Chinese government to encourage Chinese companies to invest abroad had benefited Malaysia, which has enthusiastically welcomed Chinese investment in several sectors, said Majid.

The total estimated value of Chinese investment committed since 2012 in the non-manufacturing sector is as high as 123 billion ringgit (29.3 billion U.S. dollars), while direct investment flows in the manufacturing sector jumped to 13.6 billion ringgit (3.2 billion U.S. dollars) in 2015 from a mere 164 million ringgit (39 million U.S. dollars) in 2009.

The former diplomat called for a "win-win" for Chinese investment in Malaysia, urging his country to attract investment in sectors such as high-tech, ICT, capital market and relevant services, which could contribute much to the upgrading of Malaysia's value chain.

"There is much that China can contribute to Malaysia's economic transformation and capacity building," he said.

On Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak's official visit to China next week, Majid said regular visits to China had been the practice of all successive Malaysian prime ministers since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1974.

"These visits signify the importance Malaysia attaches to its relations with China, particularly in enriching the economic component of bilateral relations," he said.

"We are confident that the prime minister's visit to China will be another significant as well as a successful journey to further cement the existing close ties, particularly in the economic partnership for mutual benefit and prosperity of the two countries," he concluded.
A ceremony is held to mark the 600th anniversary of the founding of the Drepung Monastery in Lhasa, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, Oct. 12, 2016. (Xinhua/Purbu Tashi)

Huge crowds of believers and visitors gathered at the Drepung Monastery, a leading monastery of Tibetan Buddhism in Lhasa, earlier in October to celebrate the 600th anniversary of its founding.

During the first several hours of the two-day event, believers fell over each other, by car or on foot, to gain advantageous positions to observe the ceremony.

(Xinhua/Purbu Tashi)

Drepung, Sera and Ganden are the great three Gelug Sect monasteries in Tibet, with Drepung being the largest and most influential monastery of the sect, a branch of the Tibetan Buddhism.

The ceremony started at 8 o'clock, hosted by Drepung's abbot and living Buddhas. Eminent monks from other prominent monasteries also traveled here to express their congratulations.

(Xinhua/Purbu Tashi)

On the first day, Drepung monks marked the anniversary by participating in the sorcerer's dance, a key religious ritual in Tibetan Buddhism performed by masked monks in beautiful costumes.

They wore masks with the faces of Buddha, Arhat and Dharmapala.

(Xinhua/Purbu Tashi)

A huge Thangka painting depicting Buddha was taken out of the monastery and put on a platform for display, attracting over 10, 000 visitors and believers.

Thangka painting. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)

Situated a few miles west of Lhasa, the 600-year-old monastery covers an area of 250,000 square meters. It housed 7,700 monks and had 141 manors and 540 pastures in its heyday.

The monastery stands at the foot of the Gambo Utse mountain. Its name Drepung means a pile of rice, as row upon row of white buildings look just like rice pile from afar.

Against an impressive mountainous background, Drepung offers a majestic sight with its hundreds of large buildings nestled in a grandiose site.

(Xinhua/Purbu Tashi)

Every year, many traditional Tibetan festivities are celebrated at the monastery, such as the Horse-racing Festival, the Grand Prayer Festival and the Shoton Festival.

The Drepung Monastery also houses many cultural relics like rare Thangka scrolls and Buddhist scriptures.
COLOMBO, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- A four-member delegation from the European Parliament will visit Sri Lanka on Oct. 31 to discuss the groundwork laid for a successful Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) plus application, the European Union (EU) said in a statement on Friday.

Progress on national reconciliation and ways to empower Sri Lankan women politically and economically will also be discussed, the EU said.

The delegation will visit Colombo and Trincomalee and Batticaloa, in the east, to meet government, local government, parliamentary and civil society representatives.

During his recent visit to Brussels, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe met the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee to discuss issues including Sri Lanka's application for GSP Plus, the role of SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation), accountability and justice, minority rights and poverty alleviation.

The European Union has nearly doubled its development assistance to Sri Lanka for the years up to 2020 to 229 million U.S. dollars. The EU will also provide support under the government's Peacebuilding Priority Plan, the EU said.
SEOUL, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- South Korean main opposition Minjoo Party on Friday expressed its strong objection to the resumption of talks with Japan to share military intelligence on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

Woo Sang-ho, floor leader of the party, said at a supreme council meeting that it can never be accepted to militarily join hands with Japan which has yet to sincerely repent over its past atrocities during the World War Two and its colonization of the Korean peninsula from 1910 to 1945.

He said the adoption of the military intelligence-sharing accord between Seoul and Tokyo will prop up Japan's militaristic ambition, urging the South Korean government to stop the talks which will make people enrage again.

Seoul will reportedly resume talks soon with Japan to ink the deal, called General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA), to share intelligence on the DPRK's nuclear and missile programs.

Former President Lee Myung-back pushed to seal a hush-hush military deal with Japan in 2012, but it was scrapped at the last minutes on public outcry over the closed-door attempt to endorse the intelligence-sharing agreement.

Under the deal, South Korea and Japan would directly exchange military intelligence on the DPRK's nuclear and missile programs. Under the trilateral military pact signed in late 2014 with the United States, Seoul and Tokyo have shared intelligence in an indirect way.

Park Jie-won, floor leader of the minor opposition People's Party, told a party meeting that the Seoul-Tokyo intelligence sharing pact will only boost Japan's ambition toward militarism, saying the countries have shared intelligence through the U.S. with the trilateral military deal.

Wondering why the government is pushing for the deal that will enrage people, Park said it will only speed up a new Cold War in the region that will further separate South Korea from China and Russia.

Public oppositions here to the military accord with Japan are expected as Japanese politicians have yet to show their sincerity and repentance over past atrocities in the early 1900s.

Victims of Korean women who were forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military during the WWII, euphemistically called "comfort women," still call on the Japanese government to make a sincere apology and compensate for brutalities they suffered under Japan's 1910-1945 colonial rule.
BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Public-private partnerships (PPPs) funded local projects worth a total of 12.46 trillion yuan (about 1.83 trillion U.S. dollars) as of September, official data showed.

Demand for PPPs has been increasing across the country and a total of 10,471 projects were introduced by the end of September, said the Ministry of Finance on Friday.

PPPs are collaborative projects between governments and private companies.

The ministry said that southwestern Guizhou Province topped the country's provincial regions for the number of PPPs and more than half of the projects involved public works, transportation and urban development.

Chinese authorities have explored funding infrastructure through PPP models since late 2013 amid growing concerns over rising local government debt incurred through local financing vehicles.

In September 2015, the Ministry of Finance started a fund with 180 billion yuan to support PPP projects.

The country's top economic planner has also accelerated the approval of new fixed-asset investment for major infrastructure projects to sustain economic growth.

The efforts have already taken effect, with the country's fixed-asset investment rising 9 percent year on year in September, accelerating from 8.2 percent in August and 3.9 percent in July, official data showed.
BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- China's largest carrier rocket, the Long March-5, will make its first trip into space in early November this year.

The rocket, which arrived at the Wenchang launch center in south China's Hainan Province in September, was transported to the launch area on Friday morning, after finishing final assembly and tests, said the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence (SASTIND).

With the strongest carrying capacity in China, the rocket will receive functional examinations and further tests before launch.

According to the SASTIND, the Long March-5 integrates top space technologies, including non-toxic environmentally-friendly fuel and a highly stable controlling system, representing a landmark in the country's carrier rockets.
BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Overseas observers have praised the resolve of the Communist Party of China (CPC) to strictly govern the party, saying it will enhance the party's governance capacity and help it lead China to an all-around moderately prosperous society.

The sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, which was held from Monday to Thursday, has pushed for the comprehensive and strict governance of the party.

For Khalid Mahood, president of Islamabad Council of World Affairs, the CPC's focus on strict party governance is "a historic step," which will not only improve the governance efficiency in China, but also enhance Chinese people's trust in the party and will improve the image of China and the CPC in the world.

"The reforms in the ruling party will also help China foster its comprehensive reform, maintain its economic growth and bring benefits to the world," Mahood said.

At the meeting, the CPC has called on all its members to "closely unite around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core," and resolutely safeguard the authority of the CPC Central Committee and its central, unified leadership.

This announcement will help China to establish a clean and righteous political environment and will unite the party under one strong leader, Mahood said.

The meeting also approved two documents on the discipline of the party, including the norms of political life within the party under the new situation and a regulation on intra-party supervision.

"The document on the norms of political life not only signals his (Xi's) determination to push for greater transparency in the decision-making process in local governance, but also shows the leadership's effort to bring them under a system (of) supervision," Mahood said.

Bambang Suryono, editor-in-chief of the Inhua Daily in Indonesia, said the documents signify the institutionalization of strict party governance, which will help curb corruption and disciplinary offence and ensure the progressiveness and purity of the CPC.

China's anti-corruption campaign has entered a "deep-water area" and establishing Xi as the core of the CPC Central Committee will help the party continue its drive to fight corruption, the political analyst said.

Gerhard Stahl, a professor at the College of Europe and former secretary-general of the committee of regions of the European Union, said the CPC is trying to adapt itself to a changing environment in an effort to grow into a modern political party.

Stahl said fighting corruption is the basis for economic development and strict party governance needs bottom-up supervision, calling on anti-corruption officials to be responsible while enhancing intra-party discipline.

The communique released after the CPC meeting stressed supervision as the fundamental guarantee for exercising power properly, as well as a crucial measure for regulating political life within the party, meaning that unrestricted power or unsupervised party members are not allowed to exist within the CPC, said Ge Lin, secretary-general of EU-China Friendship Group of the European Parliament.

He believes that regulating intra-party political life will be conducive to building a clean and righteous political environment and make party members more aware of the need to uphold political integrity, keep in mind the bigger picture, follow the CPC as the core of the Chinese leadership and act consistently with CPC Central Committee policy.

Nadia Hilmi, a professor of political science at Cairo University and an expert on China, said the meeting, which carefully studies disciplines and rules for intra-party political life and other issues, marks a qualitative leap in the governance of the CPC and the Chinese government and has shown the foresight and political wisdom of Chinese leaders.

Hilmi also praised China's anti-corruption efforts, which emphasize constructing an anti-corruption system and a moral defense line against corruption, saying that parties in other countries should learn from China.

The meeting is of great significance because it has injected fresh impetus into the 95-year-old party and ensures that the Party Constitution is the fundamental norm for intra-party political life, helping the CPC advance with time and improve its abilities of handling problems in new situations, the expert said.

Since the 18th CPC National Congress held in November 2012, the party has made remarkable achievements in its anti-corruption campaign, which has won recognition both at home and abroad, said Macharia Munene, professor of international relations at the U.S. International University in Nairobi.

The sixth plenary session considered being strict in discipline as an important part of intra-party political life and the correct direction of its comprehensive and strict governance, Munene said, adding that the party has a clear mind and accurate judgement in anti-corruption and strict party governance.

Related:

Commentary: CPC unity with Xi as "core" vitally important

BEIJING, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- The core leadership is of vital importance to a country and a political party.

A key meeting of the Communist Party of China (CPC) has called on all its members to "closely unite around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core." Full story

Unrestricted power, unsupervised Party member not allowed in CPC

BEIJING, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Unrestricted power or any unsupervised Party members are not allowed to exist within the Communist Party of China (CPC), said a statement released after a key CPC meeting on Thursday.
by Yang Dingdu, Liu Wanli, Wang Chu

MOSUL/BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The government forces' winning major battles in Iraq and Syria may mark the downturn of the Islamic State (IS) and the rebels, but it will not automatically translate into peace in the war-torn region where powers continue to intervene and compete for influence, experts have said.

WINNING BATTLES

The armored Hummer stirred up dust that blocked the rear view, driving through the sandy roads of Iraq's Quwayr area, 15 km to the southeast of Mosul and the closest front line to the city.

Rockets fell randomly around, causing devastating blasts. These rockets, along with landmines and snipers, are among the tactics of IS militants desperate to hold onto the largest city in their control.

The Iraqi government forces are advancing faster than expected since they launched a major offensive on Oct. 17 to retake the country's second largest city, some 400 km north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad. Being close to oil fields, Mosul is the economic hub of IS.

Government forces have advanced 30 km from the south pushing the front line to areas close to Mosul such as Quwayr. More tanks are crossing the Tigris River from further south to reinforce troops stationed in the newly-established headquarters in Qayyarah Town.

The resistance of a few thousand IS militants seems only to delay the inevitable in face of more than 30,000 government troops. Yin Gang, an analyst with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, expects the Iraqi government to regain control of Mosul by the end of the year.

In Syria, government forces are also having rebels encircled in Aleppo, cutting off their supply line. The siege of Aleppo was first imposed in July. It was broken by U.S.-backed rebels in August but was restored in early September.

POWER STRUGGLE

If government forces take back Aleppo, it would be an important strategic gain for Russia and a major failure of U.S. Syrian policies, Yin said.

The United States has been openly arming rebels in Aleppo since 2013. Russia has troops on the ground in Syria and assists government offensives with airstrikes.

Despite the gains made by the Syrian government and Russian troops, the rebels' strength has not been weakened much with the support and arms supply from the United States, Gong Zhenxi, an expert with Xinhua's Center for World Affairs Studies, said.

Moscow is aware of cases when Syrian militants, fighting near Aleppo, have obtained man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS) manufactured in the United States, Russian Foreign Ministry's spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday.

"There are cases of U.S.-manufactured antitank weapon systems and MANPADS being handed over to the militants (in Aleppo)," Zakharova told a briefing.

Although the government forces, with the help of Russia, are gaining the upper hand, the battle of Aleppo is much more complicated and it won't come to an end in the foreseeable future, Yin said.

Regional powers are also involved. Iran, an Islamic Republic that sees itself as the guardian of Shiite Islam, supports the Iraqi and Syrian governments. Iranian Shiite militia are seen in both battlegrounds.

Turkey is trying to leverage rebels and militants in Syria and Iraq against Kurdish forces. Kurdish fighters play a key role in both battles but are considered a separatist threat by Turkey, Wu Bingbing, a professor with Peking University, said.

The battles also come at a sensitive time as the U.S. presidential election nears. Republican candidate Donald Trump has openly criticized the battle of Mosul as having been launched to boost his opponent Hillary Clinton's prospects.

The rampage of the IS was originally the result of outgoing U.S. President Barack Obama's ill-considered withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. To liberate Mosul from the IS is a face-saving campaign for Obama, Yin said. "It can also help Hillary, heir of Obama's legacies."

While in Aleppo, where the U.S. stands to lose, the Obama administration will try to avoid a great failure and keep the status quo, at least until the election, he added. (Xinhua reporter Wu Zhongmin also contributed to the story.)
(Sputnik File Photo)

MOSCOW, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Russia has successfully tested its advanced hypersonic glider warhead, also known as object 4202, Russian newspaper Izvestiya reported Friday.

"It's the first totally completed test of the warhead capable of reaching the speed of 7 km/second on the maximum altitude," it said.

The warhead was fired on Tuesday from the Dombarovsky area in Russia's western Orenburg region to the Far Eastern Kamchatka's firing field of Kura.

According to the newspaper, the hypersonic warhead is designed to be installed to replace conventional warheads on promising intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Before entering the dense layers of the atmosphere, the warhead completes a composite maneuver so that missile defense facilities won't be able to intercept it, the newspaper said.
TAINAN, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- About 2,000 residents in southern Taiwan took to the streets on Thursday, protesting against the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)'s poor governance and damaging influence on cross-Strait relations.

The crowd was dotted with banners that read: "poor governance, sluggish economy," and marched around the city hall building in the southern city of Tainan.

Protesters were also frustrated by the DPP-ruled Tainan government's decision to raise land and property taxation, increasing the financial burden of local residents.

Liu Kuan-hsiung, chief of Taiwan Community Development Association, said that based on the 1992 Consensus, cross-Strait relations have robustly developed over the past eight years.

However, the DPP has shown poor governance since it came to power in May with many sectors of the economy suffering setbacks, and cross-Strait relations substantially cooling.

People's lives have suffered as as result, Liu said.

He called on people across the Taiwan Strait to stand united, protect the valuable blood relationship and keep a clear mind of the DPP's manipulation of power, inability to govern and wangling of votes.
HANOI, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- More than 8 million international tourists are forecast to arrive in Vietnam in the first ten months of 2016, up 25.4 percent year on year, said the General Statistics Office (GSO) Friday.

Growth was seen in most markets, including China (up 55.2 percent year-on-year), the Republic of Korea (up 40.1 percent), New Zealand (up 35 percent), Thailand (up 30.8 percent), and the United States (up 14.2 percent) among others.

In October alone, Vietnam is likely to see some 812,000 foreign vacationers, up 23.3 percent against the same period last year.

The tourism sector grossed 331.5 trillion Vietnamese dong (14.4 billion U.S. dollars) in the 10-month period, a yearly increase of 19.1 percent, said GSO.

Vietnam aims to welcome 8.5 million foreign visitors and 60 million domestic travelers in 2016, pocketing a total of 370 trillion Vietnamese dong (16.8 billion U.S. dollars) in revenue.
A Chinese expert explains to farmers in the eastern Ugandan district of Budaka how to grow Chinese hybrid rice, Oct. 25, 2016. (Xinhua/Ronald Ssekandi)

BUDAKA, Uganda, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- In the swampy district of Budaka in eastern Uganda, Chinese hybrid rice is a crop that farmers count on to boost incomes.

Farmers living in this region hail the high yielding crop as key to improving their livelihoods and enabling them to pay the tuition fees for their children.

Like many of her village mates, Joyce Nabejja, who has been farming rice from her childhood to now into her marriage, is shifting to the Chinese hybrid rice from the local rice.

The new breed was brought here three years ago when Chinese experts descended on this district, deeming the environs the most appropriate part in Uganda for rice farming.

The experts are working under a tripartite agreement between China, Uganda and the UN's Food and Agricultural Organization to promote better farming practices.

The agreement is under the auspices of the South to South Cooperation program established in 2009 to help developing countries share knowledge and expertise so that all can benefit from innovations and good practices that have been tried and tested in countries facing similar conditions and challenges.

At a field training session by the Chinese early this week, Nabejja was among the over 100 farmers who gathered to learn how to farm the hybrid rice.

Luo Zhongping, a Chinese cereal expert, took the farmers through practical lessons of planting the rice, right from the nursery bed to harvesting time.

He told the farmers that over the last three years when the rice was on trial, results show that its yield is three to four fold better than the local breed.

"Three years demo in Budaka shows that it can reach high yields. The yield can reach three tonnes per acre which is three to four times more compared with local rice," he said.

He noted that in a small acreage, especially in a place like Budaka where land is limited, a crop with higher yields would surely make a difference.

Ofwono Willy Osinde, the Budaka District Production Officer, told Xinhua in an interview that previously people were hesitant when it comes to planting the hybrid rice.

He said people were accustomed to the old rice farming practice where there was not such trouble of planting the rice first in a nursery bed and transplanting it later. They also saw the planting of seedlings in a straight line as tedious.

After getting testimonies from those who planted the hybrid rice, however, farmers are convinced of higher production and higher income, and switching to the new breed is now a movement sweeping through the villages, Osinde said.

James Tumwine, who heads the Uganda side of the tripartite understanding, told the farmers that after the successful pilot of planting Chinese hybrid rice in Budaka, other parts of the country will be encouraged to plant the rice.

SEEDS FOR BETTER LIFE

A Chinese agricultural industrial park was established in Uganda earlier this year in a bid to boost agricultural production. Private Chinese companies in the park have promised seed and some are already doing so.

Farmers can, according Tumwine, access the seed on credit and pay later when they sell the rice.

Companies in the park have also pledged to provide farmers with tractors on hire purchase.

Experts believe that there is a huge market for rice in Uganda, noting that at times the country has to import to complement the local supply.

Figures from the country's Ministry of Agriculture show that Uganda currently produces under 100,000 metric tonnes of rice, not enough to meet the demand of 250,000 metric tonnes.

According to the National Rice Development Strategy, the Ugandan government hopes to boost production to over 400,000 metric tonnes by 2018.

For Nabejja, she has already made up her mind to plant the hybrid rice in the next planting season.

"For the Chinese rice, it is easy to plant as I have seen in the training. It takes a short period of time to grow, and in harvesting you gain a lot," she said.

"I will be able to get more money and my children can study in good schools," she added.
A Syrian tank fires at rebel positions in the Jobar area, east of Damascus, capital of Syria, on Oct. 21, 2016. (Xinhua/Ammar)



DAMASCUS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The rebels in Syria's northern province of Aleppo started on Friday a wide-scale offensive against the Syrian government forces' positions, coupled with Grad missile shelling and car bombs, local media said.

The Turkey-backed Ahrar al-Sham, the Jaish al-Fateh, or Army of Conquest, and the Mujahideen Army, unleashed a major offensive dubbed "Greater Aleppo's Epic," with the aim of breaking the government forces' siege on rebel-held areas in the eastern part of Aleppo city, activists said.

The attack targeted government forces' positions in western Aleppo, and the rebels remotely detonated at least two car bombs near military positions at the western gate of Aleppo city.

The Mujahideen Army said in a statement that its rebels succeeded to break the government forces' first defense lines in the Assad Suburb in western Aleppo.

The rebels' attack was also coupled with shelling on government-controlled areas in western Aleppo and elsewhere in the countryside of that key battleground province.

Pan-Arab al-Mayadeen TV said the rebels fired 20 Grad missiles on the International Airport of Aleppo on Friday morning, leaving only property losses.

The airport has been inoperative for a long time, and became almost a military base.

Meanwhile, a Syrian military source told Xinhua that the Syrian forces and allies fighters are confronting the rebel attack on several fronts in Aleppo.

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the rebels were trying to advance into Assad Suburb, by detonating two car bombs "but they couldn't reach their targets."

The Syrian army has laid a siege on rebel-held areas in Aleppo in recent months, urging the rebels to surrender themselves or leave eastern Aleppo to other rebel-held areas in the northwestern province of Idlib.

The rebels didn't comply with the military repeated requests. Last week, a three-day truce, aiming to ease the evacuation of civilians and rebels who want to surrender in exchange for pardon, expired with a few civilians and rebels evacuating.

The Syrian government accused the rebels of preventing the civilians, around 250,000, from leaving.

Observers believe that Aleppo is going to be the decisive battle ground among the fighting groups, and the winner will be the one dictating its conditions to resolve the crisis, as the province contain all the groups that are supported by regional and international powers, with the civilians paying the price for this proxy war.

Related:

Syrian army makes gains in Aleppo amid fierce fightback

DAMASCUS, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- Battles continued to rage on Sunday in Syria's Aleppo between the government forces and rebels, as well as infighting among other rebel groups in that key area, a monitor group and pan-Arab al-Mayadeen TV reported. Full Story

Uncertainties throw UN operations in eastern Aleppo in limbo

GENEVA, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said Friday that the UN had not yet received the necessary safety guarantees allowing humanitarian operations to be carried out in east Aleppo after a Russia-backed unilateral ceasefire started on Thursday. Full Story

Sources say extremist rebels prevent people from leaving eastern Syria's Aleppo
Turkish soldiers fire an upgraded M60 tank during fighting alongside members of the Free Syrian Army against Islamic State (IS) group jihadists near the northern Syrian village of Beraan, north of the embattled city of Aleppo, on October 24, 2016. (Xinhua/AFP Photo)

DAMASCUS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The rebels in Syria's northern province of Aleppo started on Friday a wide-scale offensive against the Syrian government forces' positions, coupled with Grad missile shelling and car bombs, local media said.

The Turkey-backed Ahrar al-Sham, the Jaish al-Fateh, or Army of Conquest, and the Mujahideen Army, unleashed a major offensive dubbed "Greater Aleppo's Epic," with the aim of breaking the government forces' siege on rebel-held areas in the eastern part of Aleppo city, activists said.

The attack targeted government forces' positions in western Aleppo, and the rebels remotely detonated at least two car bombs near military positions at the western gate of Aleppo city.

The Mujahideen Army said in a statement that its rebels succeeded to break the government forces' first defense lines in the Assad Suburb in western Aleppo.

The rebels' attack was also coupled with shelling on government-controlled areas in western Aleppo and elsewhere in the countryside of that key battleground province.

Pan-Arab al-Mayadeen TV said the rebels fired 20 Grad missiles on the International Airport of Aleppo on Friday morning, leaving only property losses.

The airport has been inoperative for a long time, and became almost a military base.

Meanwhile, a Syrian military source told Xinhua that the Syrian forces and allies fighters are confronting the rebel attack on several fronts in Aleppo.

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the rebels were trying to advance into Assad Suburb, by detonating two car bombs "but they couldn't reach their targets."

The Syrian army has laid a siege on rebel-held areas in Aleppo in recent months, urging the rebels to surrender themselves or leave eastern Aleppo to other rebel-held areas in the northwestern province of Idlib.

The rebels didn't comply with the military repeated requests. Last week, a three-day truce, aiming to ease the evacuation of civilians and rebels who want to surrender in exchange for pardon, expired with a few civilians and rebels evacuating.

The Syrian government accused the rebels of preventing the civilians, around 250,000, from leaving.

Observers believe that Aleppo is going to be the decisive battle ground among the fighting groups, and the winner will be the one dictating its conditions to resolve the crisis, as the province contain all the groups that are supported by regional and international powers, with the civilians paying the price for this proxy war.
MOSCOW, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Damascus is ready to resume a ceasefire and participate in intra-Syria talks for a political settlement of the protracted crisis, but it needs parties involved to guarantee the safe evacuation of civilians from the besieged city of Aleppo, visiting Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem said here on Friday.
MOSCOW, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian government is ready to resume truce on the condition of guarantees for the evacuation of civilians from the besieged city of Aleppo, said Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem in Moscow on Friday.

"We are ready to resume this cease-fire, but only under the condition that we get guarantees that civilians would be able to use that cease-fire," Muallem said at a meeting with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov.

He added that Damascus is willing to immediately return to intra-Syria talks "without external interference," obviously in reference to the United States.

Together with visiting Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, the three ministers are expected to hold a trilateral meeting in Moscow later in the day.
BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- China's domestic-built J-20 stealth fighter will make its public debut at an air show in Zhuhai City next week, with air-force pilots flying the new-generation warcraft, a military spokesperson said Friday.

The development of the J-20 is progressing as scheduled, and it is expected to further boost the fighting capacity of the Chinese air force, said Shen Jinke, spokesperson of the People's Liberation Army Air Force, at a press conference.

The J-20 made its maiden flight in 2011.

Shen said the fighter jet will help the air force better fulfill the mission of "safeguarding national sovereignty, security and territorial integrity."

According to Shen, though it will not fly, the domestic-built Y-20 heavy transport aircraft will also be displayed at the 11th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition, which runs from November 1 to 6, in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province.

The Y-20, a versatile plane with a maximum takeoff weight of about 200 tonnes, is designed for carrying cargo and personnel over long distances in "complicated meteorological conditions." It officially entered military service in July this year.

Other aircraft such as the H-6K bomber, the J-10B fighter jet and the KJ-500 that is China's early warning and control aircraft will be showcased at the exhibition.
BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping called on the country's top medical sciences academy to boost innovation.

Xi made the remarks in a congratulatory letter to mark the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.

Extending greetings to all those that work in the science and technology (S&T) sector for the health field, Xi hailed the academy's achievements in the prevention and treatment of major diseases, health-related S&T development and innovation, and its support and training of high-caliber medical talent and research.

Xi expressed his hope that the academy would strive for excellence and establish itself as a leading base for China's S&T innovation in the health field.

In a written instruction for the occasion, Premier Li Keqiang praised the academy's contribution to the nation's health and development, urging it to incorporate a global perspective to develop and assist outstanding talent in health education, research and practice.

Xi's letter and Li's instruction were delivered by Vice Premier Liu Yandong on Friday at a meeting to commemorate the anniversary.

Founded in 1956, the academy is a state-level comprehensive research institute and academic center for medical sciences. It has offered significant S&T support for various missions such as the prevention and control of H7N9, H10N8 as well as Ebola in Africa.
BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday sent a congratulatory message to newly sworn-in President of the Seychelles Danny Faure.

In the message, Xi said that the two countries enjoy longtime friendship and that his country attaches great importance to its relations with Seychelles.

He pledged to work with the Seychellois side to push bilateral relations to new levels for the benefit of the two peoples.
TEHRAN, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Friday called for reaching a political solution to the Syrian crisis besides fighting the extremists in the country, official IRNA news agency reported.

"Unfortunately, some countries have sought military solutions to Syria crisis, while the way to settle this problem is political approaches as well as fighting the Takfiri groups," Zarif said upon arrival at Moscow airport for trilateral talks.

"We have always insisted on comprehensive ceasefire, availability of humanitarian aid (to the besieged people) and finding political solutions to the Syrian issue," he was quoted as saying.

Moscow talks will address cooperation for peaceful means as well as confrontation with the Takfiri groups, he added.

Iran associates Takfiri extremism in the Syrian conflicts with the followers of some Sunni Muslim ideology in Saudi Arabia and urges fight against them.

Zarif is scheduled to attend a trilateral meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov and Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem on regional developments, including the conflict in Syria.

Zarif will also hold a separate meeting with Lavrov to discuss Tehran-Moscow relations.

Iran has urged Russia to strengthen strategic cooperation on regional and international issues, especially the ongoing crisis in Syria.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (R) welcomes his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif during a meeting in Moscow on October 28, 2016. (Xinhua/AFP Photo)

TEHRAN, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Friday called for reaching a political solution to the Syrian crisis besides fighting the extremists in the country, official IRNA news agency reported.

"Unfortunately, some countries have sought military solutions to Syria crisis, while the way to settle this problem is political approaches as well as fighting the Takfiri groups," Zarif said upon arrival at Moscow airport for trilateral talks.

"We have always insisted on comprehensive ceasefire, availability of humanitarian aid (to the besieged people) and finding political solutions to the Syrian issue," he was quoted as saying.

Moscow talks will address cooperation for peaceful means as well as confrontation with the Takfiri groups, he added.

Iran associates Takfiri extremism in the Syrian conflicts with the followers of some Sunni Muslim ideology in Saudi Arabia and urges fight against them.

Zarif is scheduled to attend a trilateral meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov and Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem on regional developments, including the conflict in Syria.

Zarif will also hold a separate meeting with Lavrov to discuss Tehran-Moscow relations.

Iran has urged Russia to strengthen strategic cooperation on regional and international issues, especially the ongoing crisis in Syria.
BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee had solicited opinions from non-Party persons on the drafts of two documents on Party governance, which were approved Thursday at a key meeting, according to a statement released Friday.

During a meeting held on Aug. 16, but only made public Friday, heads of non-Communist parties and the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce as well as representatives of non-party personage spoke on the two proposed documents: the norms of political life within the Party under the new situation and amendments to regulation on intra-Party supervision.

At the meeting, President Xi Jinping, who is also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, promised to carefully study the valuable suggestions of the attendees.

Xi called on all non-Communist parties to stay true to the mission of multi-party cooperation and to continue to work with the CPC to realize the Chinese dream of national rejuvenation.

All non-Communist parties,the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, as well as personages without party affiliation should play their role as supervisors and offer straight-forward advices, said Xi.

The two documents were approved at the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, which called on CPC members to resolutely safeguard the authority of the CPC Central Committee and its central, unified leadership while pushing forward the comprehensive and strict governance of the Party.

Members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee Yu Zhengsheng, Liu Yunshan, Wang Qishan also attended the meeting.
SRINAGAR, Indian-controlled Kashmir, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Former chief minister of Indian-controlled Kashmir Farooq Abdullah Friday called on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi to discuss the prevailing situation in the restive region.

The Jammu and Kashmir National Conference, the party of which Abdullah is the president, revealed in a statement.

Reports said Abdullah urged Modi to initiate a dialogue with all the stakeholders in the region to end the ongoing the stalemate.

"I am sure that the Prime Minister will urgently address all the issues that have been flagged by me and others from the state," India's semi-official news agency Press Trust of India (PTI) quoted Abdullah as having said.

Currently Indian-controlled Kashmir is grappling with the violent unrest. The region has been witnessing the largest anti-India protests in recent years since July 8, following the killing of a popular militant commander in a gunfight with Indian troops.

Authorities imposed curfew and restrictions to contain street protests, besides resorting to arrests. The region is observing a complete strike demanding end to New Delhi's rule and Friday marked 112th day of shutdown.

Kashmir, the Himalayan region divided between India and Pakistan, is claimed by both in full. Since their Independence from Britain, the two countries have fought three wars, two exclusively over Kashmir.
A model dressed with chocolate poses in the Chocolate Fashion Show during the opening of the 22nd edition of Salon du Chocolat in Paris, France, Oct. 28, 2016. The 22nd edition of Salon du Chocolat in Paris kicked off on Friday, gathering some 500 participants to showcase new chocolate products and fine desserts. (Xinhua/Han Qian)



PARIS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The 22nd edition of Salon du Chocolat in Paris kicked off on Friday, gathering some 500 participants to showcase new chocolate products and fine desserts.

Chocolate producers have introduced innovations this year which made chocolate more "light", according to the organizer of the event. The "healthy" trend has prevailed for the last few years in the industry.

Karin Mercier, senior brand manager of the Belgian chocolate maker Guylian told Xinhua that chocolate producers now focus on adding the percentage of cacao, controlling sugar content and reducing the size of chocolate products.

"All these measures are to control the calories, making chocolate more light and healthy," Mercier said

Cacao production and consumption is also an important part of this year's exhibition, the organizer said. The show has a cocoa area which highlights fair trade initiatives in the world of chocolate and a large number of cacao producing countries.

In the 20,000 square meter-exhibition hall, a chocolate Eiffel Tower built on a 1/100 scale in line with the original design has attracted many visitors.

In addition, daily Chocolate Fashion Show during the five-day event has brought a series of activities to a climax, which included tastings, dessert competition, gourmet workshops and chocolate awards.
JAKARTA, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Indonesian counter-terrorism agency (BNPT) will pay close attention to over 50 militants who have returned home from joining the activities of global terrorist group, IS, in Mosul of Iraq, top official of the agency disclosed here on Friday.

Head of the Counter-Terrorism Agency Suhardi Alius said that the return of the militants had triggered wariness over possible further spread of radicalism to communities and recruitment.

The chairman said that the agency would intensively monitor the movement of the IS' militants in the country, which has been frequently targeted by the global terrorists strikes.

"The thing they bring here is radicalism, it is on their brain," Suhardi said at the State Palace.

"There are still over 400 Indonesian citizens joining IS group's activities there (in Mosul of Iraq)," he added.

An offensive move launched by the Iraqi government against IS militants in Mosul city has led dozens of IS militants from Indonesia return to their country.

Recently, a series of strikes led by IS militants have been targeted to Western-link facilities and foreigners, police and churches in the country, leaving dozens of casualties and damages.

Indonesia has been included into the IS' global target as the top leader of group has ordered its militants to launch attack in their own countries, according to former security chief minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan.
BUDAPEST, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said a proposed amendment to the Hungarian constitution aimed at halting a European Union move to distribute asylum seekers among the EU countries was a "national" issue and had nothing to do with political parties or economics, when speaking on public radio Kossuth on Friday.

Orban pointed to a referendum in which 98 percent of voters had rejected the mandatory resettlement of refugees in Hungary but which was rendered invalid because of a low turnout.

Hungary requires a two-thirds parliamentary majority to enact a constitutional amendment but Orban's administration is several votes short of the two-thirds.

The far right opposition Jobbik party has said it would support the amendment, if the government terminated a scheme allowing anyone who invested 300,000 euros in Hungarian residency bonds to receive permanent residence.

Orban rejected the Jobbik proposal out of hand but acknowledged that Hungary's financial situation was so much improved that it could consider repealing the 2012 legislation.

His government would move ahead with its proposal for a constitutional amendment, he said, but passing it would depend on the opposition. The left has rejected the proposed amendment.

Orban pointed to the inconclusive outcome to a European Union summit last week regarding the mandatory quotas, said the issue would have to be revisited in December, but threatened to sue the European Commission, the executive body of the EU, unless it dropped the quota issue.

"That's why we need the constitutional amendment," he said.

Asked about Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi's threat to veto the EU budget, which would cut off funds for Hungary unless the Central European countries helped in relocating the migrants, Orban said that if Italy had adhered to the Schengen agreement on outer EU borders, the problem would have been nonexistent.

However, he also noted that Europe had not been giving Italy the help it needed.

Orban objected to Hungary being labeled "uncooperative," calling it unfair since Hungarian fences to keep out the migrants were protecting the rest of the EU.
A working staff of Inspection and Quarantine Administration looks at the screen of a body temperature monitoring equipment at Yangon International Airport in Yangon, Myanmar, Oct. 28, 2016. A Zika case has been detected in Myanmar's Yangon, the state radio confirmed on Thursday. A 32-year-old pregnant foreign woman was detected on Thursday for positive for the Zika virus in Yangon. (Xinhua/U Aung)



NAY PYI TAW, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar's health authorities Friday warned pregnant women against Zika virus infection, calling on them to prevent themselves from being bitten by insects.

In wake of the occurrence of the first Zika case in Yangon, Dr.Soe Lwin Nyein, Director-General of the Directorate of Health, told a press conference that the authorities are taking measures to wipe out mosquitoes and larvae in prevention against Zika, calling for cooperation with each and every household in the move.

He advised couples to avoid pregnancy within four months if the male returns from abroad.

A 32-year-old pregnant foreign woman was detected on Thursday for positive for the Zika virus in Yangon.

It was found that the infected woman has lived in Yangon for two years but was infected with the virus during her foreign trip over the last two weeks.

The authorities set her to stay at home taking medicines without announcing her citizenship for social safety.

The Zika virus is spread mostly by Ades mosquito and those infected suffer flu-like symptoms. Moreover, it can be spread through sexual contact without protection.

It can be passed from a pregnant woman to her fetus, and infection during pregnancy can result in birth defects, including microcephaly.

It is difficult to control Zika virus as its symptoms can be visible on one infected person out of five.
MADRID, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The regional government of the autonomous community of Valencia has asked the Spanish government to open the debate as to whether the country should remain in the Central European time-zone (CET) or adopt Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).

The Valencia regional government has issued an institutional declaration highlighting that if Spain switched to GMT, people would enjoy "more light when they finish their daily work."

It also said that not putting the clocks back an hour at the end of October would "promote more activities in the fresh air," adding that having more people in the streets could also lead to a higher volume of sales in small shops while people would "spend less money on energy use."

"It is impossible to deny that maintaining the time zone for summer would have economic and social benefits: our geographic situation demands that we take more advantage of the hours of sunlight during winter," it said.

This request came just three days after all parties in the regional government of the Balearic Islands voted for summer time in the archipelago which is situated in the Mediterranean Sea off the east coast of Spain.

The regional government of the Balearic Islands highlighted the energy saving, benefits to small business and the tourist industry, as well as potential health benefits of an extra hour of daylight.

It has also been pointed out that Spain's westerly longitude makes GMT the more logical time zone.
BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The volume of approved foreign institutional capital investing in China's capital market picked up in October thanks to more opening-up policies.

The accumulated volume of the approved Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors (QFII) program grew by 2.7 billion U.S. dollars in October to reach about 84.4 billion dollars as of Oct. 27. The increase was 258 million dollars from August to September, according to data released by the country's foreign exchange watchdog on Friday.

Meanwhile, the RMB-denominated Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors (RQFII) program saw its accumulated volume increase by 3.65 billion yuan (about 538 million U.S. dollars) this month, compared with an increase of 998 million yuan from August to September.

The acceleration of the volume of QFII and RQFII programs has been attributed to recent decisions by the central government to further open up its capital market.

China's securities regulator decided in late September to remove asset allocation restrictions on qualified foreign investors to allow them greater freedom to invest.

Previously, China required overseas investors to invest at least 50 percent of their assets into stocks, and their cash ratio should not exceed 20 percent.

To gradually open the capital account, the government introduced the QFII and RQFII programs in 2002 and 2011. They give foreign investors the right to move money into the account to encourage controllable flows.
SYDNEY, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Western Australia's (WA) state government has legalized the consumption of medicinal cannabis, also known as medical marijuana as a controlled prescription drug come November 1.

WA state health, culture and the arts minister John Day in a statement on Friday said a new commonwealth legislation on medicinal cannabis will soon allow it to be used as a treatment within the state with strict rules governing its prescription.

The changes he said will not legalize the recreational use of cannabis, which will still remain prohibited in the state.

"Like all controlled drugs, medicinal cannabis will be prescription only, with strict rules around prescribing," Day said in a statement on Friday.

"Only a pharmacist will be able to dispense medicinal cannabis, with supply from any other means remaining illegal in Western Australia," he said.

Day said the state government processes will ensure that medicinal cannabis remains as a treatment option only and not something that can be turned into something sinister.

"The focus for the Western Australian Government will be on the safety, efficacy and quality," he said.

"It is important consumers remain protected from illegal, poorly made or harmful products."

"Raw cannabis and the smoking of cannabis will not qualify as medicinal cannabis," Day explained further.

Day said any WA doctors wishing to prescribe medicinal cannabis would need approval from the "Therapeutic Goods Administration", a Canberra-based authority responsible for regulating medicines, medical devices, blood and tissues and as well as an expert advisory committee set up by the state's health department.

He also said although growers and manufacturers can apply for a permit to grow the plant from November 1 onwards, medicinal cannabis products will only be available for patient use in WA until early 2017.
ADDIS ABABA, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The African Union (AU) on Friday strongly condemned the recent Al-Shabaab attack in Kenya.

Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Chairperson of the AU Commission, "condemns in the strongest terms the terrorist attack that killed at least 12 people in the northeastern border town of Mandera on 25 Oct.," said a statement from the pan-African bloc on Friday.

The attack, which was claimed by the Al Qaeda-linked terrorist group Al-Shabaab, was the second in Mandera in less than three weeks, said the statement.

The Chairperson has expressed AU's heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and wished speedy recovery to the injured.

She assures the government and people of Kenya of AU's full solidarity and support in the difficult circumstances, noted the statement.

She has reiterated AU's readiness to support Kenya and the countries of the region through the existing regional and continental mechanisms including, the Djibouti process on the Enhancement of Security Cooperation in the East Africa region and the AU Convention on Cross Border Cooperation, known as the Niamey convention, which contains provisions related to border security.

The Chairperson of the AU Commission has appealed to the international community to renew its commitment to defeat terrorists groups, whose only agenda is to cause havoc, destruction and death, by providing the necessary support to the AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) engaged in efforts to defeat the terrorist group in Somalia, according to the statement.
SHIJIAZHUANG, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The moat of a 2,000-year-old city has been excavated in north China's Hebei Province.

The 70-meter-wide and 4-meter-deep moat surrounds Wuyuan City, dating back to the Eastern Zhou Dynasty and has helped determine the limits of the city walls.

Located in Suning county of Cangzhou City, Wuyuan was listed as a protected historical and cultural site in 2003 and its excavation approved and funded by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage in 2015.

The dig, which started in September, has shown that Wuyuan was comprised of a square outer town protected by 1,800 meters of defenses around a smaller, inner town surrounded by 500 meters of walls.

The excavation is expected to last for another three or four years.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) holds talks with Sudan's Foreign Minister Ibrahim Ghandour in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 28, 2016. (Xinhua/Zhang Ling)

BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Friday held talks with his Sudanese counterpart Ibrahim Ahmed Abd al-Aziz Ghandour, pledging to further promote the strategic partnership.

Stressing that China highly values friendship with Sudan, Wang said political mutual trust has improved and progress has been made in various fields since the two presidents announced the strategic partnership last year.

China is willing to maintain strategic mutual trust with Sudan and expand cooperation in the areas of energy, production capacity, agriculture, renewable energy and people-to-people exchange, Wang said.

Wang said China appreciates Sudan's long-term support of China's core interests and major concerns and supports Sudan's efforts to safeguard national sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity.

Ghandour thanked China for its valuable support on international occasions and assistance in social and economic development.

He said Sudan adheres to the one-China policy and China's stance on the South China Sea.

The two sides also exchanged views on international hotspot issues.

Also on Friday, Chinese Vice President Li Yuanchao met with Ghandour.
ISLAMABAD, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan army on Friday rejected Indian military's claim that they have killed several Pakistani soldiers in the cross-border shelling.

The Pakistan military spokesman said that the Indian claim of killing any Pakistani soldier at working boundary is absolutely baseless and untrue.

The Indian Border Security Force has claimed that 15 Pakistani soldiers were killed on Friday along the international border in Jammu and Kashmir since Thursday.

"The Indian baseless claim is part of their propaganda campaign aimed to hide their losses at working boundary and also divert world attention from the Kashmir issue," an Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) news release said.

The claim and counter claims come amid escalations along the Line of Control (LoC) in the disputed Kashmir region and other borders after a militant's attack on an army camp in the Indian-controlled Kashmir. The unclaimed attack had killed last month 19 Indian soldiers.

Pakistan military said late Thursday that a woman was killed and seven civilians injured by Indian firing.

An army statement said that intense and heavy exchange of fire continued from 8 p.m. in Shakarghar on Thursday along working boundary between Indian and Pakistani forces.

Pakistan and India had declared ceasefire in 2003 that had silenced the guns.

However, firing exchanges do take place time to time and the cross-LoC firing and shelling has increased in recent days. Both nuclear armed countries accuse each other of the ceasefire violations.
BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- China is firmly opposed to any visit by the Dalai Lama to the disputed border region between China and India, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Friday.

According to Indian media reports, the Dalai Lama is scheduled to visit a disputed zone in the eastern part of the China-India border area in March next year at the invitation of the so-called "Arunachal Pradesh" government.

"China is very concerned about these recent reports," said spokesperson Lu Kang at a routine press briefing.

Lu said the Dalai Lama has long engaged in anti-China separatist activities with the aim to split Tibet from China and has behaved disgracefully on the China-India border issue.

India understands the seriousness of the Dalai Lama issue and the sensitivity of the border disputes, he said, noting that India's invitation to the Dalai Lama for activities in the disputed border areas will gravely damage peace and stability of the border areas, as well as bilateral relations.

Lu said China demands the Indian side meet its political commitments on the Tibet-related issues and abide by the consensus reached by the two sides on border issues.

He urged India to refrain from taking actions that could further complicate the China-India border issue and to not provide platform for separatist activities of the Dalai Lama clique, so as to safeguard the healthy and stable development of bilateral ties.
BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee convened a key meeting from Monday to Thursday, approving new efforts to strengthen governance of the Party.

The sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee is of crucial importance for the Party, which has over 88 million members, as stricter governance will standardize the Party's political life and strengthen intra-Party supervision, according to experts.

STANDARDIZING POLITICAL LIFE

The session approved a document on norms of political life within the Party under current conditions.

According to the communique issued after the session, self-discipline and strict governance of the Party "must begin with intra-Party political life."

Xin Ming, a professor with the Party School of the CPC Central Committee, said standardized intra-Party political life is fundamental to comprehensive and strict Party governance.

In 1980, the CPC introduced a document outlining the norms of intra-Party political life, targeting serious events in the Party's history, such as the poor implementation of collective leadership, democratic centralism and intra-Party criticism.

However, Xin said that the world, the country and the Party have all sustained tremendous changes during the past three decades, indicating the need for new criteria.

The changes highlight principles such as maintaining close ties with the people, criticism and self criticism, democratic centralism, and intra-Party democracy.

These norms set criteria to address problems plaguing intra-Party political life, such as not taking political life seriously and attempting to form cliques, Xin said.

GUARANTEEING POLITICAL LIFE

The session also touched upon several issues crucial to standardizing political life, stating that intra-Party democracy is fundamental to positive and healthy political life.

Professor Xin said that intra-Party democracy is not well observed in some areas, for example, when certain individuals superimpose their will in the recruitment of key officials, investment decisions and the use of funds.

In order to maintain long-term rule, the CPC must ensure the democratic rights of all members and make sure their voices are heard, Xin added.

The meeting agreed that democratic centralism is the fundamental organizing principle of the Party, an important institutional guarantee in inter-party governance.

Wang Yukai, professor with the Chinese Academy of Governance, said that many officials had fallen from grace due to an inadequate focus on democratic centralism, as exemplified by their status as singular decision-makers, which had led to power abuse and corruption.

The CPC promised to address election malpractice, putting an end to the buying and selling of official posts and vote rigging, while stressing integrity in promotions.

"The crux of the quest for a clean and healthy intra-Party political environment is selecting officials," Wang said

On the one hand, misbehavior must be curbed and seriously dealt with; on the other hand, officials who dare to take on challenges and responsibilities that others evade should be encouraged, Wang said.

A system should be created that tolerate mistakes made by officials who pursue reform and innovation, Wang added.

STRENGTHENED SUPERVISION

At the session, attendees approved a regulation on intra-Party supervision. The communique released after the session stressed supervision as the fundamental guarantee for exercising power, as well as being a crucial measure for strengthening and regulating political life.

It called for integrating intra-Party supervision with the public, in a bid to strengthen the Party's ability to regulate itself, improve itself and innovate itself for the purpose of long-term rule.

Supervision was one of the keywords at the session, and it appeared in the communique over 40 times.

Li Yongzhong, former deputy head of the Chinese Discipline Inspection Institute, said the new regulation would serve as a tool for intra-Party supervision, and bolster the inspection of Party committees, as well as encourage the public to take part in the anti-graft drive.

Wang said that as Party members account for the majority of China's civil servants, intra-Party supervision is vital in building a clean government.

With the new regulation, as well as other new regulations approved in recent days, intra-Party supervision will be further improved, Wang added.

The communique also noted that supervision is fundamental in the correct operation of political power, and important in strengthening and regulating political life. It said that power without restrictions should never exist in the Party.

Li added that excessive centralized power and power abuse would lead to privilege and corruption. Therefore, keeping power controlled and improving the supervision of power is a must for the Party.

CORE OF LEADERSHIP

The communique called on all CPC members to "closely unite around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core."

"The call is conducive to establishing the authority of the CPC Central Committee, increasing solidarity within the Party, and enhancing cohesion and fighting capacity," Xin said.

A leading core is vital to a country and a political party, and the CPC Central Committee must have a core in order to guarantee that the CPC becomes a Marxist ruling party and a steady leading power of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

The CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core reflects the common aspiration of people from all ethnic groups in China, Xin said.

It is in the fundamental interests of the Party and state, and a fundamental guarantee for strengthening the CPC leadership.

Since Xi took helm of the CPC in late 2012, the Party has achieved profound achievements in reform, development, stability, internal and foreign affairs, national defense, Party governance and state administration.

The reason the CPC has always been endorsed by the public and won victory in revolutionary struggles lies in its core of strong leadership, which leads the Party and people to progress constantly, Xin said.
AMMAN, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of Jordanians took to streets on Friday to call for abolishing the peace deal with Israel.

During a protest in downtown Amman after the Friday prayers, demonstrators chanted slogans against the peace deal.

"We do not want a Zionist entity in Jordan," chanted the demonstrators.

Jordan signed a peace treaty with Israel on Oct. 26, 1994, which is widely rejected by the public.

Wednesday marked the 22nd anniversary of the signing of the deal.

The participants, including trade unionists and members of several political parties, urged the government to cut ties with Israel.

They also called for terminating an agreement the kingdom signed to import gas from Israel.

Demonstrators said the gas deal does not serve the interests of Jordanians.

On Sept. 26, Jordan signed an agreement with an American company to import natural gas worth 10 billion U.S. dollars from Israel for a period of 15 years.

Figures show Jordan imports about 97 percent of its energy needs and generates 85 percent of its electricity from imported gas.
BMLGThomas Rhett breathes new life into his sophomore release Friday, as Tangled Up Deluxe comes out in stores and online. The new edition of his second album adds five new tracks, including a remix of his smash hit, Die a Happy Man, that features pop phenomenon Tori Kelly.

TR says the expanded version is a great vehicle to pave the way for album number-three.

I've never done a Deluxe before, which is nice. It's kind of like a great bridge. I go through a phase in between records where I'm like, 'Gosh, I'm bored! Can we please put more songs out?' So that's what this Deluxe did for us.

One of the new tunes has already cracked the top 20.

'Star of the Show' is one of those songs that I wrote right after I got married in 2012, Thomas recalls, so for that song to kinda resurface and raise its hand as a single was pretty cool. So to hear it on the radio now after writing it so long ago is amazing.

Thomas Rhett kicks off his very first headlining trek, the 2017 Home Team Tour, with Kelsea Ballerini, in Saginaw, Michigan in February.
ISLAMABAD, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Pakistani Foreign Ministry said Friday that six civilians, including two women, were killed by Indian "unprovoked" firing since Thursday at the Working Boundary in Shakargarh sector and on the Line of Control (LoC) in Nikial sector.

The ministry said in a statement that injured civilians reached 22 in the firing. The Pakistani side summoned the Indian Deputy High Commissioner on Friday and strongly condemned the unprovoked ceasefire violations.

Pakistan urged the Indian side to respect the 2003 Ceasefire Understanding, investigate the continued incidents of ceasefire violations, instruct the Indian forces to respect the ceasefire, in letter and spirit, stop targeting the villages and civilians and maintain peace on the Working Boundary and the LoC, according to the statement.
Zhang Dejiang (R), chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), holds talks with New Zealand Parliament Speaker David Carter in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 28, 2016. (Xinhua/Pang Xinglei)

BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Top legislators of China and New Zealand agreed here on Friday to enhance friendly exchanges between the two top legislatures.

Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), told visiting New Zealand Parliament Speaker David Carter that the two top legislatures can strengthen ties in several areas.

Firstly, both sides should further enhance mutual trust through respect to each other's major interests and concerns to safeguard the general stability of bilateral relations, according to Zhang.

Secondly, the two legislatures can boost exchanges of experience in building a country under the rule of law, in promoting balanced economic and social development as well as other fields, said Zhang.

China is ready to strengthen cooperation with New Zealand in building rules and regulations to promote countercorruption and crime-combating, he stressed.

Thirdly, Zhang called on the two top legislatures to provide steadily and reliable legal guarantee for trade and investment between the two countries.

Fourthly, both sides can together play an active role in promoting China-New Zealand cultural exchanges and communications between political parties, youths, localities and media.

Recalling President Xi Jinping's visit to New Zealand in 2014, Zhang said the Chinese side is willing to work with New Zealand to fully implement the consensus reached by leaders of the two countries and strengthen cooperation in various fields, so as to promote greater development of China-New Zealand relations and bring more benefits to the two peoples.

Zhang also briefed the guests on the sixth plenary session of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), which was held from Monday to Thursday.

Speaking highly of the achievements China has made under the CPC leadership, Carter stressed that the New Zealand Parliament is committed to promoting mutual beneficial cooperation with China.

The New Zealand Parliament supports the one-China position, said Carter.
A Jordanian protester shouts slogans during an Islamist-led opposition protest against a deal with Israel to import natural gas on October 14, 2016 in the capital Amman. (Xinhua/AFP Photo)

AMMAN, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of Jordanians took to streets on Friday to call for abolishing the peace deal with Israel.

During a protest in downtown Amman after the Friday prayers, demonstrators chanted slogans against the peace deal.

"We do not want a Zionist entity in Jordan," chanted the demonstrators.

Jordan signed a peace treaty with Israel on Oct. 26, 1994, which is widely rejected by the public.

Wednesday marked the 22nd anniversary of the signing of the deal.

The participants, including trade unionists and members of several political parties, urged the government to cut ties with Israel.

They also called for terminating an agreement the kingdom signed to import gas from Israel.

Demonstrators said the gas deal does not serve the interests of Jordanians.

On Sept. 26, Jordan signed an agreement with an American company to import natural gas worth 10 billion U.S. dollars from Israel for a period of 15 years.

Figures show Jordan imports about 97 percent of its energy needs and generates 85 percent of its electricity from imported gas.
BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- China and Mexico on Friday vowed to strengthen military cooperation and elevate mutual ties to a new high.

The pledge was made during a meeting between Vice Chairman of China's Central Military Commission Fan Changlong, and visiting Minister of National Defense Salvador Cienfuegos and Minister of the Navy Vidal Francisco Soberon from Mexico.

Hailing China and Mexico's close communication and coordination in international and regional affairs, Fan expressed China's willingness to develop military cooperation and relations to a higher level, to enrich their comprehensive strategic partnership.

Cienfuegos and Soberon acknowledged China's impressive development achievements, and voiced hope that the two sides will jointly advance the new type of military relationship via closer communication and stronger cooperation.

Later Friday, Defense Minister Chang Wanquan held talks with the two Mexican senior military officials.

"China and Mexico have maintained good communication between their defense ministries and the two militaries," said Chang, stressing that China is willing to work with Mexico for a military relationship compatible with the two countries comprehensive strategic partnership.

Chang also briefed the Mexican visitors on the sixth plenary session of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, which was held from Monday to Thursday.

Cienfuegos and Soberon said Mexico was willing to learn from China's experience in governing the country and the military, and boost mutual cooperation in military operation, logistics, personnel training and peace-keeping.
BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- China on Friday responded to a decision by the German government to review a planned Chinese acquisition of lighting manufacturer Osram's Ledvance unit.

"The Chinese government, as always, encourages Chinese companies to invest overseas in accordance with market rules, international regulations and local law. We hope we are treated fairly," said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang at a regular press briefing.

According to a report by WirtschaftsWoche earlier this year, Osram had agreed to sell its general lighting business, Ledvance, to a consortium of Chinese buyers, including lighting company MLS, for more than 400 million euros.

Berlin initially refused to allow the deal to go through and will now review the matter. It could be months before there is clarity over whether the deal will go ahead, WirtschaftsWoche said.

Also this week, Berlin withdrew permission for a Chinese company to purchase semiconductor company Aixtron, after the United States raised security concerns, according to a German media report.

Lu said that if evaluations of normal investments are disrupted by third parties pursuing their own interests, it will run counter to China-Germany trade and investment cooperation.

"The German government intervention will have a negative effect on the country's economic image and investment environment," Lu said.
WINDHOEK, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The bilateral relations between Namibia and India are expected to strengthen as the two countries anticipate the official launch of the India Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (INCCI) early January 2017.

Pooven Moodley, Executive Director for the INCCI, confirmed to Xinhua on Friday of the intended launch, and said that the Chamber will allow for the synchronization of the two countries' operations and logistics system.

A Trade Delegation from India will visit Namibia during November and Moodley said that this idea was aggressively motivated and promoted by the Indian High Commissioner to Namibia, Kumar Tuhin.

Moodley said the INCCI will temporarily be stationed at the Indian High Commission in Namibia and will then continue to promote branch offices in the regions.

According to Moodley, the INCCI concept embodies harmonization of trade, the facilitation of business and tourism and was created to foster links between India and Namibia.

"We would like to twin the city of Walvis Bay and Mumbai, allowing the two Ports to become sister ports for the future and we will request the Walvis Bay Corridor Group (WBCG) to assist these two ports to reach their full potential." he added.

Furthermore, he said that there are unique opportunities within the Trans-shipment Industry, including Dry Ports since Walvis Bay is the ideal hub for this activity to and from South America, India and West Africa.

According to Moodley, the Chamber will also seek to promote an alliance between Air Namibia and Air India with preferential rates for cargo and passenger traffic.
ANKARA, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The flow of Iranian natural gas to Turkey was halted after an blast hit pipelines in eastern Turkey on Thursday night, local Dogan news agency reported Friday.

According to the report, the blast occurred near Dogubayazit town of Agri province and the fire continued on Friday.

The flame was rising up to 50 meters after the explosion which could be seen from Igdir and Agri cities. The reason is still unknown.

The gas flow to Turkey was temporarily stopped after the blast, Iranian Interior Ministry official Majid Aghai told Tasnim, Iran's semi-official news agency on Friday.

The local gendarmerie took extensive security measures at the scene, and the investigation about the reason of the explosion is underway.
File photo taken on Nov. 15, 2014 shows a bullet train running on the Lanzhou-Xinjiang high-speed railway, northwest China. (Xinhua)

LA PAZ, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- The Union of South American Nations (Unasur) has received the go-ahead from Bolivian President Evo Morales to discuss with China the financing of a railroad which will connect the Atlantic to the Pacific.

"We have received authorization from President Morales to take the first financing steps with the Chinese government," Ernesto Samper, Unasur's secretary-general, told a press conference on Thursday.

He added that Unasur fully supported the trans-continental railway as it is good for Bolivia's growth, and also a tool for regional integration.

"It is worth clarifying that this is not a project for a Bolivian train but a multi-national project involving ... Brazil, Argentina and Peru, as well as certainly being relevant for Paraguay," said Samper.

According to Unasur, by 2021, the completed railway should transport 7 million passengers and 10 million tons of cargo.

The railway, which links the Atlantic and the Pacific, will begin at Puerto Santos in Brazil, cross Bolivia at Puerto Suarez, pass the municipalities of Santa Cruz, Montero and Bulo Bulo before entering Peru and ending at Puerto de Ilo.

The coast-to-coast railway was one of the main cooperation projects between China and Latin America promoted by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang during his four-nation tour of South America in May 2015, which included Peru and Brazil.

Bolivia is currently carrying out pre-investment studies to outline the commercial and logistical prospects, the strategic nature of the transport corridor along which the train would run, an environmental impact assessment, a preliminary design and the construction cost calculation.
NEW DELHI, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- India Friday slammed Pakistan for expelling an officer posted in its High Commission in Islamabad, a day after New Delhi asked a Pakistani High Commission official to leave the country on charges of espionage.

"Government notes with regret the government of Pakistan's decision to declare Surjeet Singh, Assistant Personnel and Welfare Officer in the High Commission of India in Islamabad, persona non grata and expel him and his family members," the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

"No justification has been provided by the government of Pakistan except for the completely baseless and unsubstantiated allegation that his activities were not in keeping with diplomatic norms. The government condemns Pakistan's step," it added.

Islamabad's action in the wake of India Thursday expelling 35-year-old Mehmood Akhtar, who worked in the visa section of the Pakistani High Commission in Delhi, after claiming to have caught him and two Indian nationals with some "sensitive defense documents and maps."

Pakistani High Commissioner in New Delhi, Abdul Basit, has refuted India's charges and claimed that Akhtar was "detained and manhandled in violation of the Vienna Convention."

Akhtar and the two Indian nationals were nabbed by the Delhi Police for alleged spying. Cops had claimed trio were caught red-handed near Delhi Zoo while the two Indians were handing over sensitive defense documents to Akhtar, following a tip-off by Indian security agencies.

While the Pakistani official was let off after questioning due to his diplomatic immunity, the two Indian nationals -- Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir -- were arrested, a police official said.

The tit-for-tat expulsion of Indian and Pakistan officials came amid increasing tensions between the two countries in the aftermath of the terror attack on an Army base in Indian-controlled Kashmir last month, in which 19 soldiers died and more than 30 others sustained injuries.

India has blamed Pakistan for the attack, a claim denied by the latter. Both India and Pakistan stake claim to Kashmir and have fought at least three major wars over the disputed territory in the past 65 years.
TEHRAN, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Iran and Russia are broadly cooperating on regional issues and fighting terrorism and extremism, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Friday.

Iran and Russia have common stances on regional issues, and both countries have made substantive progress in mutual ties and international cooperation, official IRNA news agency quoted Zarif as saying before a meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Moscow.

For his part, Lavrov said that indiscriminate fight against terrorists in Syria is on the agenda of Friday talks between Iran and Russia, according to the report.

Zarif arrived in Moscow on Friday to attend a trilateral meeting with his Russian counterpart and Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem on the latest regional developments, including the conflict in Syria.

Upon arrival at Moscow airport, Zarif called for reaching a political solution to the Syrian crisis besides fighting the extremists in the country.

"Unfortunately, some countries have sought military solutions to Syria crisis, while the way to settle this problem is political approaches," Zarif said.

"We have always insisted on comprehensive ceasefire, availability of humanitarian aid (to the besieged people) and finding political solutions to the Syrian issue," he was quoted as saying.

Iran has urged Russia to strengthen strategic cooperation on regional and international issues, especially the ongoing crisis in Syria.
MOSCOW, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Top diplomats of Russia, Syria and Iran on Friday vowed to defend the revival of intra-Syria talks in order to facilitate a political solution to the protracted crisis in the war-torn Middle East country.

"We agreed to return to the cessation of hostilities regime and defend the urgent start of intra-Syria talks, while solving issues of improving the humanitarian situation there," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a joint briefing after a trilateral meeting with his Syrian and Iranian counterparts in Moscow.

All the three parties reaffirmed that there is no alternative to the settlement of the Syria crisis by political and diplomatic means.

"We believe that the Syria settlement is only possible with the help of a dialogue between different Syrian groups," said Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. "There is no military solution to it."

Russia and Iran confirmed their support for sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Syria, as well as their readiness to jointly fight terrorists and restore peace in the country, Lavrov told reporters.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem said earlier on Friday that the Syrian government is ready to resume truce and immediately return to intra-Syria talks "without external interference," obviously in reference to the United States.

In a sign of support for the statement, Lavrov said Russia and Iran agreed to stand behind the intention of the Syrian authorities by sending as soon as possible a government delegation to Geneva, Switzerland, for negotiations with representatives of all opposition groups under the aegis of the United Nations.

The situation in the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo has increasingly deteriorated following the collapse of the ceasefire agreement Russia and the United States brokered, with each side accusing the other of violating the hard-earned truce deal in September.

Earlier this month, the United States unilaterally suspended talks with Russia over truce-mending efforts, which provoked a renewed round of diplomatic spat between the two powers.

Moscow has blamed Washington for breaking its promise of separating the so-called "moderate" opposition from terrorist groups in Syria, which it believes led to the failure of their deal.

On Oct. 18, Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, together with the foreign ministers of some regional powers, met in the Swiss city of Lausanne for discussions of restarting the political process in Syria.

The talks ended with no major breakthrough in settling the five-year-long crisis, but only participants' promises to continue contacts.
ANKARA, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Turkish authorities discharged 460 personnel from the army, navy, gendarmerie and coast guard on Friday, a day before the national day of the country.

Interior Ministry announced that 153 personnel were sacked from the Gendarmerie and 112 from the Coast Guard Command, while the Defense Ministry said Turkey's land and naval forces dismissed 195 personnel.

The suspensions came as part of an investigation into the movement of the U.S.-based Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, who Ankara accuses of being behind the failed July 15 military coup.

Both ministries said the probe found links between these personnel and the Gulen movement.

Meanwhile, arrest warrants were issued for 73 military pilots in 17 Turkish provinces at the request of the Konya Prosecutor's Office on Thursday, Turkish Yenisafak News reported.

Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said on Wednesday that he had "a productive conversation" with his U.S. counterpart Loretta Lynch in Washington over the extradition of Gulen from the United States.

Bozdag, accompanied by lawmakers from opposition parties, headed to the U.S. on Tuesday to hold talks with Lynch.

More than 40,000 people have been detained over suspected links to the Gulen movement since the failed coup.
NEW DELHI, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- An Indian farmers' association has protested against the tobacco control measures of the World Health Organization (WHO), which would harm the interests of tobacco farmers.

A rally was held on Thursday to demand the boycott of a WHO anti-tobacco conference, to be held in India from Nov. 7 to Nov. 12, according to the Federation of All India Farmer Associations (FAIFA).

The non-profit organization on its official website criticized the exclusiveness of the Seventh Conference of Parties of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).

"The FAIFA appeals to the Indian government to ensure that the voice of Indian farmers is heard and farmers are not excluded from meetings where their future is being decided on," the federation said in an online statement.

Although countries are recommended to find alternative crops to tobacco in order to protect the farmers' interests, the FAIFA argued that currently there are no viable substitutes for earnings of the tobacco farmers.

"Any move towards alternative agricultural crop in place of tobacco should involve long-term research and experimentation before viable options can be found and must be done with the involvement of tobacco farmers," the FAIFA said.

The federation also refused to accept several articles of the FCTC, such as banning all ingredients and additives in tobacco cultivation and processing, as well as the possible introduction of global tax benchmarks suggested by the WHO.

"Ad hoc decisions on tobacco control at this conference, as in previous such meetings, will affect the livelihood of millions of tobacco farmers and farm laborers involved in tobacco cultivation in the country," the FAIFA noted.

In an online statement written ahead of the conference on the FCTC, head of the Convention Secretariat Vera Silva said this time's convention would be "as open as possible" considering possible intervention of tobacco industry.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (M), Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (L) and Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem at a press briefing after talks in Moscow, Oct. 28, 2016. (RIA Novosti Photo)

MOSCOW, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Top diplomats of Russia, Syria and Iran on Friday vowed to defend the revival of intra-Syria talks in order to facilitate a political solution to the protracted crisis in the war-torn Middle East country.

"We agreed to return to the cessation of hostilities regime and defend the urgent start of intra-Syria talks, while solving issues of improving the humanitarian situation there," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a joint briefing after a trilateral meeting with his Syrian and Iranian counterparts in Moscow.

All the three parties reaffirmed that there is no alternative to the settlement of the Syria crisis by political and diplomatic means.

"We believe that the Syria settlement is only possible with the help of a dialogue between different Syrian groups," said Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. "There is no military solution to it."

Russia and Iran confirmed their support for sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Syria, as well as their readiness to jointly fight terrorists and restore peace in the country, Lavrov told reporters.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem said earlier on Friday that the Syrian government is ready to resume truce and immediately return to intra-Syria talks "without external interference," obviously in reference to the United States.

In a sign of support for the statement, Lavrov said Russia and Iran agreed to stand behind the intention of the Syrian authorities by sending as soon as possible a government delegation to Geneva, Switzerland, for negotiations with representatives of all opposition groups under the aegis of the United Nations.

The situation in the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo has increasingly deteriorated following the collapse of the Russia-U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement, with each side accusing the other of violating the hard-earned truce deal in September

Earlier this month, the United States unilaterally suspended talks with Russia over truce-mending efforts, which provoked a renewed round of diplomatic spat between the two powers.

Moscow has blamed Washington for breaking its promise of separating the so-called "moderate" opposition from terrorist groups in Syria, which it believes led to the failure of their deal.

On Oct. 18, Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, together with the foreign ministers of some regional powers, met in the Swiss city of Lausanne for discussions of restarting the political process in Syria.




Photo shows the headquarter of CHKD in Berlin. (Photo courtesy of CHKD)

BERLIN, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- China's Fujian Grand Chip Investment Fund LP's takeover bid for German semiconductor equipment company Aixtron is a regular business action and should not be interfered with politically again, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce in Germany (CHKD) said in a statement on Thursday.

"The companies located in Germany are concerned about the fact that relevant governmental authorities in Germany are once again politically interfering in investment from China and have no understanding of the short-term contradictory decision of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy of Germany (BMWi)," according to the Berlin-based institution.

The statement also noted that political unpredictability and uncertainty would not only worsen the investment climate in Germany and lead to losses for investors, but would also have a negative impact on the credibility of the German federal government.

BMWi withdrew the clearance certificate for Grand Chip a few days ago. The ministry has reopened the review of the 670-million-euro (732.06 million U.S. dollar) deal after it was initially approved on September 8.

It follows the interference of the German federal government in Chinese home appliances giant Midea Group's takeover of German robot maker Kuka in June. In August, the German government announced it would not hinder the deal, as it would not endanger Germany's security.

"The relevant government authorities in Germany should not, on the one hand, demand the opening of the Chinese market, but at the same time repeatedly create barriers to market activity. Such protectionist tendencies will soon be detrimental to the development of the German and European economy," emphasized CHKD, which represents Chinese business in Germany.
Activists attend an anti Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) rally in front of EU headquarters in Brussles, Belgium, Feb. 4, 2015. (Xinhua/Ye Pingfan)

BRUSSELS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- European leaders worry about the Trump phenomenon and what it could mean for the predictability of American partnership, even if he loses, a senior expert at the Brussels-based German Marshall Found of the United States has said.

Dr. Ian O. Lesser, the senior director for Foreign Policy at GMF, made the remarks in an interview with Xinhua.

"There is also some concern that Trump's candidacy could further embolden right wing populist movements in Europe, again, even if he loses," he said, noting that the angry anti-globalization and identity-driven attitudes seen in the Trump campaign will certainly remind many Europeans of the Brexit debate and the surprising result.

Britain has voted to leave the European Union after a campaign led by the U.K. Independence Party (UKIP) a few months ago.

Like UKIP, far right-wing groups such as the French Front National and Germany's Alternative fur Deutschland are enjoying record popularity, while the right-wing parties have taken the reins of government in several European countries.

"As in many other societies, assertive, sometimes angry populism has become a force on the political scene," said Lesser.

"There is a general revolt against elites and their projects across key parts of the political spectrum, including the conservative right, and the left, as the surprising support for Bernie Sanders underscored," he explained.

The rise of Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders as formidable candidates in 2016 U.S. election is considered by many people a resurgence of populism in today's American politics, which also reveal some notable facts about U.S. political system.

"Some of the key problems are not new, including the enormous financial cost of a presidential bid, and the role of money in American politics," Lesser said.

"Trump's campaign demonstrates the power of celebrity and the openness of the U.S. system -- politics as 'brand', and vice versa," he added.

Speaking of the impact on global economy after the election, Lesser also pointed out that the attitudes of the two candidates toward new trade agreements have eroded sharply in the election season, which "complicating the outlook for TPP, TTIP and other initiatives."

In recent months, demonstrations against the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) broke out across Germany, Belgium, France and several other European countries. After 14 painful rounds of negotiations, the TTIP is still far from being sealed at present.

"In terms of negative attitudes toward both leading candidates, this has been a very unusual election year," he said.
Wu Yuliang (2nd L), deputy chief of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, Qi Yu (1st R), deputy head of the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee, and Huang Kunming (2nd R), executive vice head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, attend a press conference on the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 28, 2016. (Xinhua/Chen Yehua)

BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Two documents approved at a meeting of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee provide institutional guarantees for Party governance, according to senior CPC officials.

The two documents, including the norms of political life within the Party under the new situation and a regulation on intra-Party supervision, were endorsed at the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, running from Monday to Thursday.

Explaining the "norms", Qi Yu, deputy head of the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee, said at a Friday news conference that the document addresses the need to deal with problems within the Party.

Rules must be made and improved to prevent problems from coming into being or spreading, said Qi.

According to Qi, the document explains problems and challenges within the Party, as well as the importance and the aims of strengthening and regulating political life within the Party.

With regard to the "regulation", Wu Yuliang, deputy chief of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, said it was drafted in accordance with the Party Constitution and based on past experience.

The regulation stresses Party's leadership and targets real problems, said Wu, adding it underlines that no prohibited zone or exception will be allowed in intra-Party supervision.

The document calls for better supervision between higher- and lower-level organizations and among organizations of the same level.

It also regulates relations between intra-Party supervision and other approaches of supervision, Wu added.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang presides over a meeting of the leading Party group of the State Council on following calls made at the sixth plenary session of the 18th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 28, 2016. (Xinhua/Zhang Duo)

BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Premier Li Keqiang has called upon the leading Party group of the State Council, China's cabinet, and various departments to keep their thoughts, politics and acts in line with the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core.

Li made the remarks on Friday at a meeting of the leading Party group of the State Council on following calls made at the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, which was held from Monday to Thursday.

Two documents, namely the norms of political life within the Party under the new situation and a regulation on intra-Party supervision, were approved at the session, which focused on the strict governance of the Party.

Li urged various State Council departments to strictly follow the Party's political discipline and regulations, improve supervision, resist corruption and withstand risks, and foster a team of civil servants that have firm beliefs, obey rules and are diligent and honest.

The State Council's leading Party group and various units under the cabinet were also told to become more aware of the need to uphold political integrity, keep in mind the bigger picture, follow the CPC as the core of the Chinese leadership and act consistently with CPC Central Committee policy.

They were also told to voluntarily conform to the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core in thoughts, politics and acts, and more resolutely safeguard the authority of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core," Li said.

Li's remarks echoed a call included in a communique released on Thursday after the four-day plenary session that all its members should "closely unite around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core" and resolutely safeguard the authority of the CPC Central Committee and its central, unified leadership.

Li noted that identifying Xi as the core of the CPC Central Committee is of great significance to safeguarding the authority of the CPC Central Committee, the Party's unity and leadership as well as the Party and country's prosperity and long-term stability.
SHANGHAI, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Chinese research vessel and icebreaker, Xuelong (Snow Dragon), is scheduled to depart from Shanghai Wednesday on the country's 33rd scientific expedition to Antarctica.

Sun Bo, deputy director of the Polar Research Institute of China, made the announcement Friday at a press conference.

A team of 256 will set out on Nov. 2 for a 161-day trip of 31,000 nautical miles, according to Sun, who will lead the team.

They will visit the Zhongshan, Kunlun, Taishan and Changcheng stations and perform various research tasks. The team is scheduled to return to Shanghai on April 11 next year.

The expedition has a list of 72 tasks to perform including preliminary site selection for China's new base on the Ross Sea and work on fixed-wing aircraft.

Sun defined the trip as an "expedition of the brave" which will show the country's strength and enthusiasm for discovery.

The team will carry out observations in the Princess Elizabeth Area to explore subglacial lakes and rifts. They will drill ice cores hoping to examine the changes of the world's environment over the past 50,000 years.

They will also conduct astronomical observations at the Kunlun station, Sun said.

Xuelong will arrive at the Zhongshan station in eastern Antarctica in early December. After unloading at Zhongshan, Kunlun, and Taishan stations, the ship will go on to resupply in Chile.

In late January it will survey the Ross Sea and return to the Zhongshan station in late February, departing in early March to return home.

China made its first expedition to the Antarctic in 1984 and has four stations in Antarctica.
BRUSSELS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Vice President of European Commission Kristalina Georgieva is going to take up a new post as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of World Bank in January 2017, the Commission said on Friday.
Award winners pose for a photo during the awarding ceremony of "Green Talents" in Berlin, Germany, Oct. 27, 2016. The German Ministry of Education and Research on Thursday awarded 25 international young scientists, two of them from China, "Green Talents" prizes for their innovative ideas to promote sustainable development. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi)

BERLIN, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) awarded 25 international young scientists, two of whom from China, "Green Talents" prizes on Thursday for their innovative ideas to promote sustainable development.

"Green Talents" award was initiated by BMBF in 2009, aiming at collecting worldwide solutions for sustainable development in environment and society. This year's theme is "Ocean and Sea".

Minister of BMBF Johanna Wanka told Xinhua, as a very important global subject, sustainable development can be promoted with talents from different science disciplines and cultural backgrounds.

Wanka stressed that "Green Talents" award is important to intensify scientific cooperation with China.

Liu Zhu, a Chinese award winner who now undertakes the post-doctoral research in California Institute of Technology in the United States, focuses on climate change and carbon emission study.

He said his research field concerns the challenges facing the whole world and needs global wisdom.

"China is making outstanding contributions to the reduction of carbon emission with its technological developments," Liu said.

Each year the "Green Talents" winners would be invited by BMBF to visit German scientific institutes and enterprises.

Prize winners would also be invited next year by BMBF for a 3-month academic stay as visiting scholars in Germany to further their scientific cooperation with German scientific organizations.

BMBF invited this year specifically all "Green Talents" winners since 2009 to gather again in Berlin on Thursday for an academic conference on sustainable development with representatives from academies, politics and businesses.

Xue Bing, a Chinese scientist who got the award in 2011 for his research on circular economy, chose to cooperate with two German academic institutes in 2012.

"With the connections made then, members from my research team can nowadays make academic communication in Germany," he said.

A total of 25 prize winners in 2016 were selected from about 750 competitors. A number of 182 young scientists from 51 countries and regions have been awarded "Green Talens" awards so far, with 22 of them being from China.
Guo Chuan preparing for his trans-Pacific sailing on Oct. 19, 2016. (Xinhua/Xu Yong)

BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The team of a Chinese sailor Guo Chuan who went missing during the trans-Pacific sailing said on Friday they were saddened by the U.S. Coast Guard's decision to suspend the search for him.

The team said Guo, suspected to have fallen overboard his trimaran between 15:15 and 15:30 on Oct. 25 Beijing time, might wear life jacket and still stands a chance of surviving since he has been in the water for only three days.

"The waters off Hawaii was not so cold and he has a chance to survive," said the team, who had written a letter to the Coast Guard, asking resumption of search.

"We are deeply saddened by the decision to suspend the search and beg you to continue searching until there is confirmation that he has lost his last chance for survival," the group wrote in the letter.

"Guo Chuan's crew will assist regardless of cost, if you could just tell us what to do."

The team said a travel company in Hawaii has offered to provide five to 10 helicopters to search the missing sailor, but they need larger ships with helipads.

"These helicopters can fly 500 kilometers without stopping but the site of the accident is 900 kilometers off Hawaii. We need large ships which have helicopter platforms and equipment to refuel the choppers.

The 51-year-old Chinese sailor was attempting to sail from San Fransico to Shanghai in 20 days or less for a new solo trans-Pacific world record.

The U.S. Coast Guard have suspended the active search for the missing mariner following the boarding of the trimaran. The boatcrew confirmed Guo was not on the vessel although his life jacket remains aboard.

Marine and navigation experts on Guo's team blamed Guo's disappearance on the jib, a triangular staysail that sets ahead of the foremast of a sailing vessel, which was seen broken from the ship and floating on the water.

Following a research of videos, photos and phone transcripts from rescuers, the experts agreed on two scenarios that led to Guo's disappearance.

When Guo tried to lower the jib against high winds, a difficult task for a solo sailor, the jib suddenly fell. Guo tried to prevent the sail from dropping into the water while standing at the narrow head of the ship. The ship rocked and Guo fell.

The second scenario could happen when Guo dealt with an accidental fall of the jib. Guo unknotted the harness for wider movement on the ship to drag the jib onboard, which got heavier after getting wet. A heavy wave could have thrown the sailor overboard.
HANOI, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Nguyen Thanh Phong, Editor-in-chief of Lao Dong & Xa Hoi (Labor & Society) Newspaper under the Vietnamese Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, has been detained for gambling, Hanoi police said on Friday.

According to local investigation agencies, the editor-in-chief's gambling is a serious case, showing the degrade of thought, virtue and lifestyle.

On Friday, the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs decided to suspend the post of editor-in-chief of Thanh.

Gambling, except in government licensed casinos, is illegal in Vietnam. Anyone found to be in violation of this law is subject to steep fines and/or a severe prison sentence. Access to licensed casinos is restricted to holders of foreign passports.
BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Imoulan, postdoctoral student from Morocco, is examining a new species of fungus in his lab.

"It's so exciting to discover a new fungus in such a short time," said Imoulan.

Extracted from earth in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the new species may be useful in agriculture, in control of pests and disease, reducing chemical pollution.

Imoulan came to China in 2014, and is now doing his research at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) institute of microbiology.

"I owe my professor a big thank you. And thanks to CAS, I have a scholarship as well as such good equipment," he said. "It would have taken much longer to finish my experiments back home."

With the support of the CAS President's International Fellowship Initiative (PIFI), CAS-TWAS Center of Excellence for Biotechnology provides opportunities for students from developing countries seeking solutions to the problems of resources, energy, population, health and environment in those countries.

"CAS, as one of China's leading research institutions, plays its part in science and technology research in the Belt and Road Initiative," said Wang Ruiyan, program manager at the center.

According to Wang, CAS has offered scholarships to over 50 students and visiting scholars from developing countries in the past three years.

"This kind of exchange program strengthens scientific cooperation between China and other countries, improving international cooperation on biotechnology research," said Wang.

Prof. Yao Yijian, researcher at the institute and Imoulan's supervisor said, "We provide students with the latest approaches and the best equipment. In turn, they bring us fresh ideas. This pushes forward research on both sides."

Fitsum, an Ethiopian PhD student encountered a problem in his work, but with his supervisor's guidance, managed to continue his research and is about to publish his first paper.

"I am very grateful to the professors who have helped me all the way. You know, few people do such research in Ethiopia. If I hadn't come to China, it would have taken me 10 years to finish my first paper," he said.

"When I go back to Ethiopia, I want to teach in universities and take what I have learnt here to students there," he added.

A CAS report on biotechnology published earlier this week said the number of biotechnology patents from Belt and Road countries has been growing steadily.

According to Wang, PIFI scholarships are important to scientific research and cooperation in Belt and Road countries.

"Some of the students have graduated and gone back home, contributing to science and growth in their countries," said Wang.

"We are just doing basic research, and we still have a long way to go," he said. "We hope our center has done something to initiate deeper cooperation and nurture more scientists."
LUSAKA, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Chinese nationals have had a positive bearing on Zambian communities where they live, results of a survey seen on Friday have shown.

The survey, conducted by a local think-tank, the Policy Monitoring and Research Center, was conducted to produce evidence-based data highlighting the various ways in which Chinese nationals in Zambia were integrated into the local society and how they were contributing to the socio-economic development in the country.

According to the findings, 63 percent of Zambians interviewed said they have benefited from Chinese nationals through job creation and incomes while 26 percent reported improvements in infrastructure such as roads and housing as a benefit received from the presence of Chinese living in the community.

The findings further show that 77 percent of Zambians reported that the Chinese work ethic had influenced their communities the most because of the professionalism, commitment, speed and the manner in which work or tasks are executed.

Other respondents also reported benefiting from the skills transfer and technology transfer from their Chinese counterparts as the Chinese nationals living within their communities were highly skilled and used advanced technological methods that have been passed on to Zambians.

But 57 percent of respondents cited limited interaction with the Chinese nationals as a challenge and this was mainly caused by communication challenges.

However despite the limited interaction, the Zambians reported that there was cultural exchange, with Zambians learning from their Chinese nationals.

Bernadette Deka, PMRC executive director said the survey will provide critical information to further enhance the rich economic and social relationship that exists between the two countries and provide an opportunity for the two governments to integrate their cultures.

"The Chinese culture of hard work has further been shared and adopted by Zambians as evidenced through the continuous growth of indigenous Zambian companies and businesses at both national and international levels," she said.

Chen Shijie, Counselor at the Chinese Embassy expressed gratitude that Chinese nationals have been commended by the Zambian people for their unselfish dedication and positive contribution to the socio-economic development of the country.

The survey has also recommended that the Chinese Embassy in Zambia put in place an orientation program for Chinese entrants which should include helping them understand the Zambian culture as well as enhance social interactions.

The survey captured 1,000 Chinese nationals living in Zambia and 100 Zambians sharing communities with Chinese nationals.

It was conducted with the support from the "China-Africa People-to-People Friendship Action" project which was initiated at the Fifth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in 2012, aimed at promoting exchanges and cooperation between China-Africa youths, women, and civil groupings.
NAIROBI, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Amina Mohamed, the Kenyan cabinet secretary for foreign affairs and international trade, has commenced shuttle diplomacy to persuade African countries and other multilateral partners to back her bid to become the next chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC).

Speaking at a women business leaders' forum on Thursday evening in Nairobi, Mohamed spelled out her vision of transforming the continental bloc in line with the evolving socio-economic and political dynamics.

"My vision for the AU commission is founded on our continent's blue print for socio-economic transformation, Agenda 2063," said Mohamed, adding that her quest for AUC chairmanship has been supported by many African governments.

The career diplomat has made frequent visits to African countries and foreign capitals in recent times to present her credentials as lobbying for the top AU job intensifies.

South Africa, Rwanda and other East African countries have so far backed Mohamed's candidature for AUC chairmanship.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta in September announced the candidature of his foreign minister for the chairmanship of the AU commission.

The Kenyan government has been lobbying African leaders to support Mohamed's quest to be at the helm of the African Union's top decision making organ.

During her conversation with Kenyan women business leaders, Mohamed pledged to use her expertise in global diplomacy to promote investments, trade, integration and conflicts resolution in Africa.

"If granted the opportunity to serve at the helm of the AU Commission, I will endeavor to promote intra-African trade, infrastructure modernization and political stability in the continent," said Mohamed.

She added that fighting against violent extremism, cross-border crimes and environmental degradation will be her top priority.

During her three-year tenure as Kenya' foreign minister, Mohamed is credited for elevating the country's economic diplomacy to new heights.

She was instrumental in lobbying for Kenya to host international trade meetings attended by world leaders.

Likewise, Mohamed facilitated regional summits to discuss conflict resolutions in perennial hot spots like Somalia and South Sudan.

Mohamed reaffirmed her commitment to promote inclusive development, gender parity and industrialization in Africa.

"I envision a prosperous and stable Africa that is able to harness natural resources and youth bulge to transform economies through agro-processing, trade and tourism," said Mohamed.

She promised to work closely with African diaspora to hasten the implementation of Agenda 2063.

The AU member states will elect the next Chairperson of the AU commission in January 2017 during the annual summit to be held in Addis Ababa.

Kenya has put a strong case to have its foreign minister succeed the retiring AU Commission Chairperson Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma.

Mohamed will contest the AUC Chairmanship job with three other candidates who include the former Ugandan Vice President, Specioza Kazibwe, Equatorial Guinea Foreign Minister, Agapito Mba Mokuy and his Botswana counterpart, Pelonomi Venson Moitoi.

Kenya is banking on election of Amina Mohamed as the next AUC chief to re-affirm its status as a regional diplomatic powerhouse.
LUSAKA, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Zambia's ruling party on Friday denied reports that it was pushing for the extension of the terms of the tenure of office of elected leaders.

On Thursday, Paul Moonga, a member of the Central Committee of the Patriotic Front (PF) proposed that the tenure of political office be increased from the current five years to seven.

He said the extension of the terms of office for the president, the vice, lawmakers and councilors will enable them to work effectively as five years was too short to accomplish anything.

However, this has received sharp criticism from the opposition who feel it was a ploy by the ruling party to extend the term of office of President Edgar Lungu who was elected for a five year term during the August 11 polls.

But Inonge Wina, who is both the country's and party's vice-president, said the statement does not represent the views of the party or the government.

She said in parliament that the views expressed by the party member were his own and did not represent the views of the party as the Central Committee has never sat to consider such an issue.

"It has nothing to do with the central committee nor is it government's position," she said.
LISBON, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- A Portuguese taxi driver detained during a protest here against the ride app service Uber earlier this month was imposed on Friday a fine of 1,950 euros (2,132 U.S. dollars).

Bruno Hernando was condemned for having ruined the rear-view mirror of a police car while taking part in a protest on Oct. 10.

Lisbon's Petty Criminal Court also said he would have to pay 181.15 euros to repair the rear-view mirror he broke.

Two other taxi drivers who were detained in the protest are also being tried.

Thousands of taxi drivers blocked an access to Lisbon's international airport during the protest on Oct. 10 to protest ride-hailing apps, which they said were unfair competition due to not being subjected to the same tax, training and safety regulations.

They have vowed to hold more protests after they failed to reach an agreement with the government on the issue.
Zhang Dejiang (C), chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), presides over a meeting of the leading Party group of Standing Committee of the NPC on following calls made at the sixth plenary session of the 18th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 28, 2016. (Xinhua/Liu Weibing)

BEIJING, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Communist Party of China (CPC) organizations and CPC members at Chinese legislatures at all levels have been called on to "closely unite around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core."

A meeting was held on Friday by the leading Party group of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) on following calls made at the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee.

Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, presided over the meeting and gave a speech.

Participants at Friday's meeting agreed that to study and implement the decisions at the CPC Central Committee session is an important political mission for the entire Party and state.

Party organizations and Party members at the NPC Standing Committee and legislative agencies at all levels should conform to the major arrangements of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core in thoughts and acts, according to the participants.

They also called for efforts to resolutely safeguard the authority of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core.
MOSCOW, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- All the eight humanitarian corridors remain open and are running around the clock for the evacuation of civilians from Syria's Aleppo and delivery of water and food to the besieged city, a senior Russian military officer said Friday.

"All possible measures to stabilize the situation are being undertaken. We are ready to consider any proposals to improve the situation in Aleppo, including introducing humanitarian pauses," Sergey Rudskoy, chief of the Russian General Staff Main Operational Directorate told reporters.

He also warned that the corridors should not be used by rebels in eastern Aleppo to achieve their goals.

Russia and Syrian government troops have ceased airstrikes on Aleppo to guarantee the safe exit of civilians and militants, as well as the rescue of the injured and sick from the contested city.

The humanitarian pause have barely held as militants reportedly launched attacks during the truce and took advantage of the cease-fire to regroup or rearm.

Rudskoy blamed Washington for the failure, saying the U.S. and other countries concerned had not exerted appropriate influence on the so-called moderate opposition in eastern Aleppo.

Rudskoy added that the Russian military has appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin to resume airstrikes on illegal armed groups in eastern Aleppo as "civilians continue to die, militants have renewed active hostilities."

However, the presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Putin has turned it down as the Russian leader believes it is "inappropriate at the current time to resume airstrikes on Aleppo."

"We reserves the right to use all means at our disposal to provide proper level of support to Syrian forces," Peskov added.

Earlier on Friday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry held a phone conversation over efforts to normalize the situation around Aleppo, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry.

The two sides agreed to consider approaches in line with their previous agreements, while Moscow reiterated its position that Washington should finally separate moderate opposition from terrorist groups in Syria, the ministry said in a statement.
BUCHAREST, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Romania's bison population will double to over 100 until 2020 in the Southern Carpathians in Romania, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Romania and Rewilding Europe told a press conference on Friday.

WWF Romania and Rewilding Europe are working together in the Southern Carpathians to rewild the area with the aim of bringing the European bison back into this part of the Carpathian Mountain range.

The first transport took place in May 2014. Since then, every year in spring or summer, new bisons have been brought from reproduction centers and natural reservations in Belgium, Germany, Italy or Sweden.

The major objective of the actions is to create a viable population, from a demographic and genetic point of view, in the Southern Carpathians.

Currently, there are over 50 free-roaming bison in two centers of reintroduction in Romania, local news agency Agerpres reported, citing official data.

Bison reintroductions will take place for at least five more years as part of the LIFE project "Urgent actions for the recovery of European bison populations in Romania" financed by the European Commission through the LIFE program.

Bison disappeared from the Romanian wild 200 years ago, and now the Carpathian Mountains have been identified as a priority region for improving the long-term survival of the bison, since there is suitable habitat.
ACCRA, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Leadership action is what Africa needs to reverse the scourge of child malnutrition, stakeholders speaking here late Thursday said.

Presenting a paper to the government of Ghana and presidential candidates in the upcoming December 7 polls, Siapha Kamara, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of sub-regional charity SEND West Africa, said it would take increasing investment by political leaders in the food production value chain to stem the tide of malnutrition in Africa.

A recent African Union Cost of Hunger in Africa study showed that Ghana, for instance, lost more than two billion U.S. dollars annually to the impact of child malnutrition.

The presentation was done in conjunction with the One Africa Project, a charity that partners the continental union to help eradicate poverty in Africa.

Kamara said at a press briefing on the expectations for African leaders that in Ghana, for instance, stunting was still high and impacted negatively on national development.

"Although Ghana has done well by reducing stunting from an all high of 35 percent in 2003 to 19 percent in 2014, there is still much to be done," he noted, explaining that stunting was a direct effect of malnutrition.

In spite of some policy initiatives and achievements, Ghana still has regional disparities in stunting rates as high as 32 percent in the Northern Region (province) and 23 percent in the Upper West Region, while seven out of 10 Ghanaian children suffer from Vitamin A deficiency, with seven out of 10 children and two out of five women being anemic.

According to the SEND official, there is still a lack of coherence in laws concerning food and nutrition in the country.

He stressed that the slow pace of national development had everything to do with malnutrition Ghanaians suffer from birth.

Kamara therefore urged the president and parliamentarians who will get elected during the December polls to commit to accelerating the implementation of aggressive plans to combat malnutrition as outlined in the AU's Malabo Nutrition Commitment.

At their meeting in Malabo, capital of Equatorial Guinea, in June 2014, African leaders agreed among other things to uphold at least 10 percent public spending to double food production and reduce stunting to 10 percent by 2025.

Dorine Nininahazwe, The One Africa Project's Representative to the African Union, lamented the alarming rate of malnutrition in Africa.

"Close to three million children die in Africa annually due to malnutrition," she said, and wondered why this was so in a continent whose majority are engaged in farming.

Nininahazwe urged African governments to increase their nutrition specific spending according to their pledge in Malabo.
WARSAW, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Polish Finance Ministry announced on Friday that Poland received 308.03 million euros in EU funds in September, with current transfers amounting to 302.13 million euros and capital transfers to 5.9 million euros, according to Polish Press Agency.

Poland received 42 million euros in Cohesion Policy transfers over the month.

Poland is a beneficiary of EU assistance. The EU has decided to allocate 82.5 billion euros to Poland over the 2014- 2020 period.

The largest amounts of the funds would be invested in transport infrastructure (road and railway), environmental protection and energy production, as well projects in the area of culture, employment, education or prevention of social exclusion.

Meanwhile, in September Poland paid 372.51 million euros to the EU budget. (1 euro = 1.09 U.S. dollars)
NEW YORK, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Oil prices ended lower on Friday amid rising concerns over whether an output-cut deal can be reached among OPEC (the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) members.

OPEC experts and counterparts from non-member producers including Russia started a two-day meeting on Friday on limiting production to curb a global glut that has weighed on markets for years.

Officials at the meeting have not agreed on details of a plan to cut oil output and Iran is opposing such a move, according to media reports on Friday. Crude prices were under pressure after the news.

Iraqi Oil Minister Jabar Ali al-Luaibi said on Sunday that the country, the second largest producer in OPEC, wanted to be exempt from output curbs as it needed more money to fight Islamic State militants.

OPEC agreed last month to cut oil production to 32.5 million barrels a day from current level of 33.24 million barrels a day to boost the market. The group will agree concrete levels of output by each country at its next formal meeting in November.

The West Texas Intermediate for December delivery lost 1.02 U.S. dollars to settle at 48.70 U.S. dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for December delivery decreased 0.76 dollar to close at 49.71 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang speaks during the general debate of the UN General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York, Sept. 21, 2016. Premier Li called for joint efforts to address sustainable development and global challenges. (Xinhua/Zhang Duo)

UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The UN General Assembly on Friday elected China and other 13 countries to the UN Human Rights Council for a three-year term of office starting from Jan. 1, 2017.

China, a current member of the council whose term ends at the end of 2016, was re-elected to the council by winning 180 votes for another three-year term.

The other elected members are Tunisia, South Africa, Rwanda, Japan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Hungary, Croatia, Cuba, Brazil, the United States and the United Kingdom.

The Human Rights Council is the main United Nations intergovernmental body responsible for promoting and protecting all human rights and fundamental freedom. It was established by the General Assembly in 2006 to replace the 60-year-old UN Commission on Human Rights.

The UN council addresses human rights violations and makes corresponding recommendations. It responds to human rights emergencies, works to prevent abuses.

The council's 47 members are elected directly and individually by secret ballot by the majority of the 193 members of the General Assembly. They serve for a three-year renewable term and cannot seek immediate re-election after two consecutive terms.

Apart from the current term from 2014 to 2016, China also served as a council member from 2006 to 2012.

The council membership is based on equitable geographical distribution. Thirteen seats each are devoted to the Group of African States and the Group of Asia-Pacific States, eight to the Group of Latin American and Caribbean States, seven to the Group of Western European and other States and six to the Group of Eastern European States.
CHICAGO, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- An American Airlines plane blew a tire and then caught fire Friday afternoon on a runway at O'Hare Airport in Chicago, the United States, local officials said.
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (C, front) addresses the UN Security Council open debate on cooperation between the United Nations and regional and subregional organizations in maintaining international peace and security at the UN headquarters in New York, Oct. 28, 2016. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)

UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday strongly condemned the reported attack on a school in the western part of Syria's Aleppo city that killed a number of children.

"Such attacks, if deliberate, may amount to war crimes," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said while reading a statement to reporters here.

"Those responsible for these acts must be brought to justice," Dujarric said. "The secretary-general reiterates his call on the Security Council to refer the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court."

The attack, which reportedly left several children dead, came a day after the spokesman issued a statement saying the UN chief was "appalled" by reports of attacks that killed students and teachers in a school complex in Haas village, Idlib governorate, Syria on Oct. 26.

In the previous statement, the secretary-general called for "an immediate and impartial investigation" of that and other similar attacks against civilians in Syria.
Saudi state news agency SPA reported Thursday that a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis from Yemeni northern province of Saada was intercepted 65 km from Mecca. (AFP photo)

SANAA, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Yemeni Houthi army's spokesman on Friday denied Saudi allegation of targeting the holy city of Mecca with a ballistic missile, noting that it targeted a Saudi airport in the Red Sea city of Jeddah, in a statement carried by Houthi-controlled state Saba News Agency.

Brigadier General Sharaf Luqman said that Thursday's ballistic missile attack "has hit the target" with 100 percent accuracy, stressing that the target was inside the King Abdel Aziz Airport in Jeddah, west of Mecca.

He slammed the allegation as "a media war and misleading of public opinion," affirming that his army fighters are "very careful to spare civilian areas, particularly the Islamic holy sites, from any attack."

Saudi state news agency SPA reported Thursday that a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis from Yemeni northern province of Saada was intercepted 65 km from Mecca.

No damage or casualties were reported in the incident, SPA said, adding that the Saudi warplanes hit the missile launch pad in Saada and completely destroyed it.

The Saudi-led Arab military coalition has been fighting Shiite Houthi rebels in Yemen since March 2015, in an effort to restore the internationally recognized government of exiled President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and dislodge Houthis from the capital Sanaa and northern provinces.

International efforts and talks between the war parties have been so far fruitless.

The attack on Thursday was the latest of a series of ballistic rocketry strikes by the Houthis, most of them intercepted by Saudi military forces.
UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will travel to Switzerland to open intensive discussions between the Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot leaders on Nov. 7, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric announced here Friday.

"The talks will take place in Mont Pelerin and will focus on territory, the first time the leaders will negotiate on the issue directly," Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here.

"The secretary-general has been closely following the Cyprus negotiations throughout his tenure, and he looks forward to lending his personal support to the work of the two leaders as they enter this crucial phase of negotiations," the spokesman added.

In September, Ban was reported to have kept up his pressure on leaders of the Cypriot communities to make good on their promises to try to end the 42-year long division of Cyprus, reports said.

Ban was reported to have telephoned Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci in late September, days after he met them in person in New York.

Cyprus was divided in 1974 when Turkey occupied its northern part, in reaction to a coup by the military rulers of Greece, and moved Turkish Cypriots from all over the island into the enclave controlled by Turkish troops.

The leaders of both the Greek and Turkish communities of Cyprus have said that after four decades of negotiations they are close to a solution by the end of this year, provided they can overcome difficulties in agreeing on security arrangements and the withdrawal of Turkish troops from Cyprus.
UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The UN Children's Agency (UNICEF) on Friday warned that the situation in northeast Nigeria is an emergency that is attracting very little attention, despite the scale of the needs, a UN spokesman told reporters here.

The UN spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, said at a daily news briefing here that 1.8 million people are internally displaced in the region, 4.4 million people are living in emergency situations and more than 400,000 children suffer from severe and acute malnutrition.

"UN humanitarian agencies continue to face challenges to operate in the region as they don't have full access to large areas of northeast Nigeria and it is hard for humanitarian workers on the ground to access people in need," the spokesman said.

They also face funding problems as UNICEF has only received 25 percent of the funds required for its operations in the country in 2016, while the World Food Programme (WFP) needs 30 million U.S. dollars to continue its activities in the next six months, he added.

An estimated 400,000 children under five will suffer from severe acute malnutrition in three states across northeastern Nigeria this year. More than four million people are facing severe food shortages and 65,000 people are living in famine-like conditions, mostly in the Nigerian state of Borno, the worst affected state.

Since the beginning of 2016, 2.6 million conflict-affected people have been given access to UNICEF-supported preventative healthcare services and nearly 75,000 children have been treated for severe acute malnutrition in northeast Nigeria.

The construction and rehabilitation of boreholes has provided nearly half a million people with improved access to safe water. Safe learning spaces, teacher training and educational supplies have helped over 72,000 children to restart their education and some 133,000 children have been provided with psychosocial support.

The Borno State has been a stronghold of the extremist group Boko Haram and has been frequently raided in the past six years. In past months, The Nigerian government has launched several military operations to eliminate the terrorist threat.

Boko Haram, which seeks to impose strict Islamic law in northern Nigeria, has been blamed for some 20,000 deaths and displacing of more than 2.6 million people since 2009.
A US Airways jet passes an American Airlines jet with the company's new tail logo at O'Hare Airport on December 9, 2013 in Chicago, Illinois. (Scott Olson/Getty Images/AFP)

CHICAGO, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- An American Airlines plane caught fire Friday afternoon on a runway at O'Hare Airport in Chicago, the United States, local officials said.

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) spokesman Tony Molinaro said American Airlines Flight 383 departed Chicago for Miami on Friday afternoon when it blew a tire and damaged an engine, adding Molinaro said the pilot aborted takeoff and everyone evacuated.

Several people were injured, the severity of those injuries is not clear at this time, according to local news channel ABC7.
DAR ES SALAAM, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Bank of Tanzania (BoT) said on Friday it has taken over the operations of the state-run Twiga Bancorp Limited with immediate effect and sacked the entire board of directors and management of the loss-making bank.

The move came four months after the east African nation's President John Magufuli ordered the central bank to take action against failing banks that are owned by the government.

Benno Ndulu, BoT Governor told a news conference in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam that Twiga Bancorp has been placed under statutory management of the central bank because its capital had fallen to alarming levels.

The central bank has suspended commercial operations of Twiga Bancorp for one week to reorganize the institution. This means that customers of the bank would not be allowed to withdraw or deposit money for 7 days starting from now.

The bank has fallen well short of its stated vision of being "the most efficient and profitable bank in Tanzania."

Formerly known as the National Bureau De Change, Twiga Bancorp Ltd was established in 1992 as a fully-owned subsidiary of the then state-owned National Bank of Commerce.

Twiga Bancorp was transformed into a non-bank financial institution in 1998 and was empowered to handle all bank transactions with the exception of taking deposits on current accounts.

The troubled bank currently has five branches -- Dar branch, Arusha, Mlimani City (Dar es Salaam), Dodoma and Mwanza.

The bank's now-suspended chief executive officer, Cosmas Kimario, told the watchdog parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) last month that the financial institution is expected to make a turn around this year and make a profit.

The chairman of the bank's board of directors, Dr Hamisi Kibola, who has now been dismissed along with other members of the board said last month the bank had adopted a new five-year strategic plan from January 2016 that aims to revive its fortunes.

The bank previously planned to issue an initial public offering (IPO) at the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE) to raise its capital.

BoT last year reviewed the capital adequacy requirements for commercial banks by raising the minimum core capital levels.

The main objective of the Banking & Financial Institutions (Capital Adequacy) Regulations of 2014 is to ensure that banks and financial institutions maintain a level of capital which can protect them from the losses that arise out of their business activities.

The BoT has given a 3-year moratorium to banks and financial institutions to comply with the new requirements under the capital adequacy regulations.

The BoT's thinking is that the higher a bank's capital level is, the better chances it has to withstand financial shocks, hence enhancing the resilience of the country's banking sector.

The financial services sector is one of the fastest-growing sectors of the economy with more than 50 banks operating in the country.

The central bank placed the Federal Bank of the Middle East under its supervision in July 2014 after the bank came under investigation in the United States for money laundering allegations.
NICOSIA, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The European Union (EU)'s Foreign Affairs chief Federica Mogherini had talks with Cypriot community leaders on Friday, signaling EU's more active involvement in the search for an agreement ending the partition of its most southeastern state.

Mogherini's visit came just days ahead of crucial negotiations Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci will have in early November.

She said that her visit was a must "at this moment that we understand perfectly well is a crucial moment in the negotiations."

"This will be not only a turning point, a historic page for the island; this will be an extremely important step for the entire region," she added.

She met Anastasiades and Akinci separately to hear their views on the upcoming round of talks between Nov. 7 and 11 in the Swiss city of Mont Pelerin, overlooking the lake of Geneva.

No statements were made by the participants after the two meetings, but Cypriot Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides said that Anastasiades set out his views and "there was an exchange of views on how to better calibrate the role of the European Union on certain outstanding issues."

The EU has kept a low profile in the Cyprus negotiations, leaving most of the work to be done by the United Nations. However, Anastasiades said EU did a good job regarding the Cyprus negotiations.

Regarding the 1960 system of guarantees and security under which Turkey, Greece and Britain were given guarantee and unilateral intervention rights to restore the status quo on the island, Mogherini said, "the best guarantee for security of any country in the world is a well-functioning state and particularly for any member of the European Union is being a member of the EU itself."

The remark touched on the core of what is expected to be the toughest part of the negotiations as Turkish officials have insisted in public statements on preserving a security role for Turkey while the Greek Cypriot side demand for the abrogation of the 1960 system.

Anastasiades has repeatedly stated that he would not put to a plebiscite an agreement under which Turkey would have security and guarantee rights, but he would accept security arrangements which would be implemented either by the UN Security Council or the European Union.

In an unrelated development, the UN Secretary-General's special adviser on Cyprus, Espen Barth Eide, confirmed in a statement on Friday that Ban Ki-moon will open the intensive stage of negotiations in Mont Pelerin.

"The Secretary-General looks forward to lending his personal support to the work of the two leaders as they are entering this crucial phase of their negotiations," the statement said.
FREETOWN, Oct. 29 (Xinhua) -- A report launched Friday by the government of Sierra Leone, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has shown a fragile state of food security in the West African country.

It shows more than half of the population -- over 3.5 million people, are food insecure, without access to a sufficient amount of safe and nutritious food.

Of these, about 600,000 are severely food insecure, eating significantly less food and less varied and nutritious food, and unable to cope with new shocks such as drought, floods and fluctuating food prices. The number of severely food insecure people has increased by 60 percent since 2010, the report revealed.

The report is the culmination of a Comprehensive Food Security and Vulnerability Analysis (CFSVA) of over 34,000 households across Sierra Leone's 149 chiefdoms and 18 urban wards, making it the largest food security assessment of its kind in the country.

In his keynote speech at the launch ceremony, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security Monty Jones said the government was committed to doing what it takes to transform the agriculture sector into an engine for socio-economic growth.

"The findings of the CFSVA will assist my ministry to design, target and implement programmes that will improve agriculture production and productivity, enhance commercial agriculture, create employment and enhance skills of farmers in a number of areas," he said.

"We will encourage private sector investment and involvement to improve access to inputs and markets for our farmers. The government and development partners have a key role in designing sound agricultural policies and programmes to effectively meet the priorities of the Government's National Ebola Recovery Strategy," he said.

The report also said that out of 149 chiefdoms and 18 urban wards surveyed, 110 chiefdoms had food insecurity levels above the national average of 50 percent.

While the Ebola outbreak accounted for the decline in food security in some districts, in the majority of districts, food insecurity is a chronic problem, caused by structural factors that affect the food production system and limit the ability of households to produce or buy enough food, according to the report.

"The results confirm that drivers of food insecurity are low agricultural productivity, poverty and a lack of resilience, poor road and market accessibility, gender inequality and a lack of income generation diversification," said Nyabenyi Tipo, FAO Representative in Sierra Leone.

"Sierra Leone now has unprecedented insight into its food security situation, with data available at the chiefdom level for the first time. This allows the humanitarian and development community to zero in on the most vulnerable, allowing us to use our resources more efficiently to improve food security, strengthen livelihoods and build resilience to recurrent shocks", said Peter Scott-Bowden, WFP Country Director in Sierra Leone.

WFP and FAO are supporting the Government of Sierra Leone to bridge the gap between local food production and national demand. The recommendations of the CFSVA underscore the urgent need for an increased investment in sustainable agriculture and rural livelihoods.
BAGHDAD, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi Joint Operations Command on Friday denied reports about the security forces pausing their advance toward the city of Mosul to drive out the Islamic State (IS) group from its last major stronghold in Iraq.

"There is no suspension for the military operations to liberate Mosul, but there is re-organization and re-deployment for the military units after freeing dozens of villages and towns," Brigadier General Yahya Rasoul said in a statement.

The counter-terrorism forces have fulfilled their part of the stage of advancing toward the eastern edges of Mosul, and are waiting for other troops in north and south of the city still fighting to advance to their positions, Rasoul said referring to that the stop of progress in eastern Mosul doesn't mean pause for the battles.

Earlier in the day, media reports said that Col. John Dorrian, a spokesman for the U.S. military in Iraq, told reporters at Pentagon the Iraqi forces have paused their advance toward Mosul to clear IS supporters and booby traps.

"We expected that there would be instances where they needed to pause and reposition forces," the reports quoted Dorrian as saying.

"The Iraqis have made the determination that now is the time to do that, and we've continued to conduct strikes in support of them, to go against tunnels, the command and control network for Daesh," Dorrian said.

On Oct. 17, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is also the commander-in-chief of the Iraqi forces, announced the start of a major offensive to retake Mosul, the country's second largest city.

So far, the Iraqi security forces have inched to the eastern fringes of Mosul, and made progress on other routes around the city preparing for the major battle to storm the city and drive out the IS militants.

Mosul, some 400 km north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, has been under IS control since June 2014, when Iraqi government forces abandoned their weapons and fled.
Greek students march in central Athens, Greece, Oct. 28, 2016, to celebrate "Ohi Day" (No Day). Greeks celebrated on Friday the "Ohi Day" (No Day), which commemorates the day the country entered the WWII, with military and pupils' parades and messages of unity to tackle current challenges. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos)

by Konstantinos Tzikas, Maria Spiliopoulou

ATHENS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Greeks celebrated on Friday the "Ohi Day" (No Day), which commemorates the day the country entered the WWII, with military and pupils' parades and messages of unity to tackle current challenges.

The national "Ohi" holiday commemorates Oct. 28, 1940, when the then Greek government rejected Italy's ultimatum to allow Italian forces to invade Greece.

Thousands of Greek people took to the streets to celebrate the day in the northern city port of Thessaloniki where a customary military parade was held.

The parade was attended by a number of officials, including Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos, Defense Minister Panos Kammenos, and Leader of the Opposition Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

In his statement, Pavlopoulos expressed hope that the country would soon exit its prolonged period of crisis and flourish as a leading global force.

"We have to defend our people and our country. We have to exit this great crisis, this great decline. By the power of our heritage we must defend our national sovereignty. By the power of our heritage we must assume a leading role in the global scene and in the European Union," Pavlopoulos said.

Enthusiastic crowds cheered as the military paraded in a number of vehicles, including armored vehicles, tanks and propelled artillery.

As customary, a F-16 military aircraft took off from the city of Larissa and performed a number of spectacular maneuvers, drawing cheers from the onlookers.

Across Greece students paraded sending a similar message of determination to fight modern challenges.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras attended the student parade on the tiny island of Agios Efstratios in the southern Aegean Sea.

"The best way to honor the 28th October is by saying our own Ohi everyday against fascism and social injustice, by responding to hatred with solidarity, to nazism with democracy," he said.

The Greek premier urged Greeks to put aside differences to resolve the debt crisis and called on other European Union countries to offer more aid to deal with the refugee crisis.
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton participates in the third and final presidential debate at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) in Las Vegas, Nevada, the United States, Oct.19, 2016.(Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

WASHINGTON, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The campaign by U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton was hardly hurt by the WikiLeaks release of troves of emails, but the impact of the latest reopened investigation by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) remains to be seen.

With the Election Day just 11 days away, FBI director James Comey dropped a political bombshell Friday by informing the House Oversight Committee that it reopened the probe into Clinton's emails case after discovering some emails that appeared to be linked to its previous investigation into Clinton's use of private email account while she was secretary of state.

The newly discovered emails, which are not Clinton's, were reportedly discovered by the FBI from at least one electronic device shared by disgraced former Congressman Anthony Weiner and his estranged wife, Huma Abedin, a close Clinton aide, the New York Times reported.

The FBI declined to indict Clinton after its previous probe ended in July, though Comey slammed Clinton for being "extremely careless" in dealing with classified information.

Recent weeks have seen the release via the website WikiLeaks of troves of emails that critics say bolster an ongoing narrative that Clinton and her campaign are engaged in corruption.

The latest of those include an alleged overlap between the Clinton Foundation, a charity organization run by the Clinton family, and Bill Clinton' s personal finances - which critics and U.S. media bill as highly questionable. Others include an admission by Hillary Clinton that she knew a major U.S. ally in the Middle East was helping to finance the terror group Islamic State.

But despite critics' allegations of corruption, polls show Clinton leading against rival Donald Trump - the bombastic billionaire that has grabbed recent media headlines for sexist remarks that were caught on tape several years ago and released in recent weeks.

Analysts say there are several reasons that the WikiLeaks have not hurt Clinton. Those include the contention that scandals involving sex are much more exciting and interesting for the average American than difficult-to-understand allegations of legal wrongdoing.

"There is negative information in the WikiLeaks email disclosures about the Clinton campaign, but none of them seem to hurt (Clinton) very much," Brookings Institution Senior Fellow Darrell West told Xinhua.

The WikiLeaks' leaked emails show a staff operation that is very political, but that isn' t surprising to many people, West said, adding that Trump' s sexist comments caught on tape have hurt the controversial businessman much more than the WikiLeaks hurt Clinton.

Dan Mahaffee, an analyst with the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress, told Xinhua that if Clinton were facing a more traditional Republican candidate, the narrative of these emails could drag her down.

However, for a public that doesn' t spend a lot of time focused on politics, this is not a new story, he said, noting the controversy over Clinton's use of a personal email account to conduct business when she was secretary of state.

Before the latest FBI investigation, te email controversy, which has dogged Clinton's campaign for several months, was already considered old hat by voters and much U.S. media.

While the leaked emails can appear damning, there is nothing in them that is as damning as comments coming directly out of Trump' s mouth, Mahaffee said, referring to the recent sexist comments Trump has made, as well as a number of other controversial comments.

In this age of TV and multimedia, audio and video recordings can be far more impactful than textual analysis, especially when the majority of the scandalous emails released by the WikiLeaks are not those directly from Clinton, but rather advisors that likely have almost zero name recognition among the general public, Mahaffee pointed out.

The perception of Clinton of being dishonest is not a new one-and is reflected in her unfavorable numbers-yet Trump' s temperament, style, and behavior have been far more off putting to key demographics, such as women, minorities and younger voters, compared to what was said in these emails, Mahaffee said.

But the latest FBI probe thrusted the Clinton emails controversy back into the political spotlight and could have an impact on undecided voters so close to the election.

Clinton is now leading Trump by 5.2 percentage points in average polls nationwide conducted from Oct. 20 to Oct. 27, according to the RealClear Politics' polling data.

At a rally in New Hampshire on Friday, Trump seized on the FBI disclosure by attacking Clinton's corruption that he said "is on a scale we've never seen before."

"They are reopening the case into her criminal and illegal conduct that threatens the security of the United States of America", Trump told his supporters in the rally.

Kellyanne Conway, Trump's campaign manager, also hailed in a tweet that this was a "great day in our campaign just got even better."
HAVANA, Oct. 28 (Xinhua)-- The Colombian government and the insurgent Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) will return to the negotiation table in Havana from Nov. 3, to seek a new peace agreement.

Both parties held a press conference on Friday at Havana' s Convention Center, the venue of the last negotiations for four years, and agreed to try and quickly reach a definitive peace deal.

Ivan Marquez, chief of the FARC delegation to the talks, said that the parties will continue listening to a diverse number of organizations and personalities of Colombian society, including those who opposed the peace accord in the plebiscite on Oct. 2.

Marquez added that he trusted the administration of President Juan Manuel Santos as having the power to push through the constitutional peace process.

Humberto de la Calle, chief negotiator for the government, stressed that the final agreement signed on September 26, contains the necessary measures and reforms to lay the foundations of peace and end the war.

"According to the joint statement issued on Oct. 7, we have analyzed several proposals for adjustments and clarifications to the final agreement from different sectors of Colombian society," he said.

De la Calle said many of the proposals would be incorporated into the new text.

Last week, the guerrilla and the Government analyzed 445 proposals for adjustments and clarifications to the final agreement.

The FARC and the Colombian government concluded four years of negotiations last August with a peace agreement to end the 52-year conflict. However, this was narrowly defeated in an Oct. 2 vote, forcing them to reshape the final peace deal.

The conflict in Colombia has killed more than 220,000 people and displaced millions since 1964.
DAMASCUS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- One of the main reasons behind the rebels' violent offensive in the northern province of Aleppo on Friday was the suspension of the Russian airstrikes there, analysts here say.

A major offensive was unleashed at early hours Friday by at least 12 rebel groups, including ultra-radical ones, against government forces' positions in western Aleppo and its countryside, coupled with intense shelling and booby-trapped vehicles.

The aim of the rebel attack was to break the government forces' siege on the rebel-held eastern part of Aleppo city.

Military sources said the attack was foiled, in terms of achieving a breakthrough, but intense battles are still raging.

This comes ten days after Russian warplanes halted their airstrikes on Aleppo.

Sergei Shoigu, the Russian defense minister, said on Oct. 18 that the halted airstrikes came as part of preparation for a temporary truce, which later failed to achieve its intended goals of helping the evacuation of civilians and rebels from eastern Aleppo.

The evacuation of terrorist groups, such as the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, was also proposed by the UN special envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura.

However, Russia didn't resume the airstrikes after the faltering truce, as Russian officials said that depends on whether the rebels can be persuaded to cut ties with terrorist militants, as agreed upon with Washington in order to bring peace to Aleppo.

Moscow has repeatedly urged Washington to push Syria's Western-backed rebels to sever ties with al-Qaida militants and to separate the terrorist groups from "moderate rebels."

Earlier in the day, Russia's President Vladimir Putin turned down a request from his defense ministry on resuming the airstrikes in Aleppo following the rebels' attack, saying he believed the resumption of airstrikes is "unnecessary for now," according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Putin rejected resuming the strikes in order to give the United States time to separate terrorist groups from the moderate opposition and to allow militants and civilians to leave Aleppo, Peskov noted.

He added, however, that Moscow reserves the right to use all of its means and force to support Syrian army.

Analysts agreed that Moscow didn't resume the airstrikes to give Washington the time to work on separating the rebels, however, big doubts on the possibility of achieving such a separation.

Another reason, analysts believe, is the crescendo of international condemnation of Russia for carrying out relentless airstrikes on rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo.

Sharif Shehadeh, a former Syrian parliamentarian, said that Russia shouldn't fall in the trap of the United States.

"There are no moderate rebels in Aleppo, all of them are related to al-Qaida, and have a terrorist agenda...I think if Russia waits for the United States to separate the rebels from the terrorists, it will have to wait for a hundred years before Washington could do that."

He charged that "the United States is in a state of constant lying."

"Why does the United States deem the militants in Iraq's Mosul as terrorists, while regarding the terrorists in Syria as revolutionaries?" Shehadeh wondered.

"We need to say the truth that everything that happens in Syria happens in Iraq...We need to settle the situation in Aleppo once and for all," he said.

He said that time is not on Aleppo's side, adding that "if the terrorists in Aleppo were not defeated, there will be more bloodshed."

"Time is not on our side, if the terrorists in Aleppo were given more time, they will collect more weapons, receive more finances and pull themselves together, and that will cause more martyrs among the Syrian government forces," Shehadeh warned.

He urged Russia to move quickly in Aleppo against the "terrorist groups."

Meanwhile, Maher Ihsan, a Syrian journalist and political analyst, said that the high pressure on Russia by the Western powers has also contributed to the suspension of the airstrikes.

"They orchestrated a major campaign against Russia, accusing it of committing war crimes in Syria, as well as threatening Russia with sanctions, and that's in part a reason behind the suspension of airstrikes," he said.

As a result of the Western accusations and stalling in Syria, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that his country might "lose patience" in Syria, adding that Russia had been showing "restraint" in the Syrian conflict to date.

"We don't respond to our partners in such a rude way. But everything has its limits. We may respond," he said on Thursday.

Ibrahim Bdur, a lawyer in Aleppo, said that "the safe areas in Aleppo are no longer safe as a result of the intense rebel shelling by rockets and long-range missiles."

"Time is not on Aleppo side," he said.

Syria's national TV said at least 15 people were killed in the renewed shelling on government-controlled areas in western Aleppo.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based watchdog group, said the rebels managed to capture parts of the Assad Suburb in Aleppo after battles with the army forces.

Local media reports said intense battles are raging inside that area, denying any rebel progress there.

Observers believe that Aleppo is going to be the decisive battle ground among the fighting groups, and the winner will be the one dictating its conditions to resolve the crisis, as the province contain all the groups that are supported by regional and international powers, with the civilians paying the price for this proxy war.
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton participates in the third and final presidential debate at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) in Las Vegas, Nevada, the United States, Oct.19, 2016.(Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

WASHINGTON, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The campaign by U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton was hardly hurt by the WikiLeaks release of troves of emails, but the impact of the latest reopened investigation by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) remains to be seen.

With the Election Day just 11 days away, FBI director James Comey dropped a political bombshell Friday by informing the House Oversight Committee that it reopened the probe into Clinton's emails case after discovering some emails that appeared to be linked to its previous investigation into Clinton's use of private email account while she was secretary of state.

The newly discovered emails, which are not Clinton's, were reportedly discovered by the FBI from at least one electronic device shared by disgraced former Congressman Anthony Weiner and his estranged wife, Huma Abedin, a close Clinton aide, the New York Times reported.

The FBI declined to indict Clinton after its previous probe ended in July, though Comey slammed Clinton for being "extremely careless" in dealing with classified information.

Recent weeks have seen the release via the website WikiLeaks of troves of emails that critics say bolster an ongoing narrative that Clinton and her campaign are engaged in corruption.

The latest of those include an alleged overlap between the Clinton Foundation, a charity organization run by the Clinton family, and Bill Clinton' s personal finances - which critics and U.S. media bill as highly questionable. Others include an admission by Hillary Clinton that she knew a major U.S. ally in the Middle East was helping to finance the terror group Islamic State.

But despite critics' allegations of corruption, polls show Clinton leading against rival Donald Trump - the bombastic billionaire that has grabbed recent media headlines for sexist remarks that were caught on tape several years ago and released in recent weeks.

Analysts say there are several reasons that the WikiLeaks have not hurt Clinton. Those include the contention that scandals involving sex are much more exciting and interesting for the average American than difficult-to-understand allegations of legal wrongdoing.

"There is negative information in the WikiLeaks email disclosures about the Clinton campaign, but none of them seem to hurt (Clinton) very much," Brookings Institution Senior Fellow Darrell West told Xinhua.

The WikiLeaks' leaked emails show a staff operation that is very political, but that isn't surprising to many people, West said, adding that Trump's sexist comments caught on tape have hurt the controversial businessman much more than the WikiLeaks hurt Clinton.

Dan Mahaffee, an analyst with the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress, told Xinhua that if Clinton were facing a more traditional Republican candidate, the narrative of these emails could drag her down.

However, for a public that doesn't spend a lot of time focused on politics, this is not a new story, he said, noting the controversy over Clinton's use of a personal email account to conduct business when she was secretary of state.

Before the latest FBI investigation, te email controversy, which has dogged Clinton's campaign for several months, was already considered old hat by voters and much U.S. media.

While the leaked emails can appear damning, there is nothing in them that is as damning as comments coming directly out of Trump's mouth, Mahaffee said, referring to the recent sexist comments Trump has made, as well as a number of other controversial comments.

In this age of TV and multimedia, audio and video recordings can be far more impactful than textual analysis, especially when the majority of the scandalous emails released by the WikiLeaks are not those directly from Clinton, but rather advisors that likely have almost zero name recognition among the general public, Mahaffee pointed out.

The perception of Clinton of being dishonest is not a new one-and is reflected in her unfavorable numbers-yet Trump's temperament, style, and behavior have been far more off putting to key demographics, such as women, minorities and younger voters, compared to what was said in these emails, Mahaffee said.

But the latest FBI probe thrusted the Clinton emails controversy back into the political spotlight and could have an impact on undecided voters so close to the election.

Clinton is now leading Trump by 5.2 percentage points in average polls nationwide conducted from Oct. 20 to Oct. 27, according to the RealClear Politics' polling data.

At a rally in New Hampshire on Friday, Trump seized on the FBI disclosure by attacking Clinton's corruption that he said "is on a scale we've never seen before."

"They are reopening the case into her criminal and illegal conduct that threatens the security of the United States of America," Trump told his supporters in the rally.

Kellyanne Conway, Trump's campaign manager, also hailed in a tweet that this was a "great day in our campaign just got even better."
Liu Jieyi (C, front), Chinese Permanent Representative to the United Nations, addresses the UN Security Council open debate on cooperation between the United Nations and regional and subregional organizations in maintaining international peace and security at the UN headquarters in New York, the United States, Oct. 28, 2016. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)

UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Friday called for a stronger partnership between the United Nations and regional as well as sub-regional organizations in areas of peace and security.

Liu Jieyi, China's permanent representative to the UN, made the appeal at a Security Council debate on cooperation between the UN and regional and sub-regional organizations in maintaining international peace and security.

Liu said it is necessary to adopt collective and collaborative concept of security and take measures to promote common security through cooperation.

He also said it is necessary to encourage and support regional and sub-regional organizations in resolving the regional hotspot issues, take into full use their advantages of history and culture, and establish global partnerships based on dialogues.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the Security Council that the global peace and security landscape has become much more complex in the last decade with brutal wars raging across the Middle East and sectarian tensions resurging amid conflicts.

"These challenges transcend national borders and demand a collective response by the international community," he noted.

The meeting highlighted cooperation between the UN and Collective Security Treaty Organization, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Liu said the three organizations have achieve positive results in terms of fighting terrorism, drug trafficking, transnational organized crimes and promoting economic, trade cooperation and people-to-people exchanges.

"As an important member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, China consistently supports the organization in maintaining regional peace and security and promoting common development," Liu noted.

China is willing to work with other countries to establish a new type of international relations built on win-win cooperation and to achieve lasting peace and common prosperity, he added.
Jail for cutlass attack

He chopped her resulting in injuries to three fingers.

Hosein appeared before Senior Magistrate Nanette Ford-John who remanded him into custody until next Tuesday when she will determine his sentence. Kissoon recalled how Hosein, 45, came into their home in Mungal Trace, Woodland on September 28 in a drunken state and began to quarrel with her. Hosein was arrested on Tuesday and charged with maliciously wounding Kissoon.

He also planassed (beat with flat side of a cutlass) her. Yesterday, Hosein pleaded guilty.

Hosein and Kissoon have six children between the ages of six and 15. Kissoon sat on a bench next to female police officers, with three of her fingers in bandage at the court yesterday. She held a paper file in her hand which contained a medical report of the injuries. Court prosecutor Phillip Ramnath told the magistrate that it was at about 11 pm on September 28 when Hosein entered his home. There was an argument and he took up a cutlass and chopped Kissoon. He also proceeded to planass.

The woman sought treatment at San Fernando General Hospital.

on Tuesday, PC Mohess of San Fernando CID, collected a medical report from the hospital and arrested Hosein. Asked to explain his actions, Hosein told the court, Im sorry, I have six children and I doh know what get in me. I came home drunk that night. I really sorry. Magistrate Forde-John told Hosein that he had two previous convictions for marijuana and she seek a Probation Officers report, before she determines the sentence. She remanded Hosein into custody to reappear next week Tuesday.

Speaking to Newsday after she stepped out of the courthouse, Kissoon said, Whatever is just and right, the magistrate would decide next week Tuesday.
Guard in court for wounding woman

Mark Samerson of Hirondelle Street, Morvant, appeared before Magistrate Aden Stroude in the Port-of-Spain Fifth Court, charged with wounding the mother of his two-year-old child, Ria Kalicharan, by allegedly stabbing her twice in the back and once on her hand on Monday last at the NP Quik Shoppe at Morvant Junction. Kalicharan is still hospitalised, Stroude was informed when Samerson appeared in court yesterday.

Samersons attorney Alexia Romero applied for bail, indicating that her client had no criminal record and was a family man who contributed to his community. She also expressed concern that since being charged, Samerson has been receiving death threats.

Police prosecutor Sgt Andrews did not object to bail and Samerson is expected to return to court on October 24.
Tobago man jailed in dangerous driving death

Harmony Hall resident, Jairon Phillips represented by attorney Rehka Ramjit stood quietly as Justice David Harris handed down judgment at the Tobago High Court on Thursday.

In his submission, Harris said he took a number of factors into consideration in passing judgment.

No amount of monies, compensation or even months or years even imposed on him, can reconcile the fact that Oseye Jabari is no longer with us. This sentence is not intended to restore human life. I do not believe that a disqualification from him holding a drivers permit commencing seven years after the incident would be particularly useful. The accident occurred on October 6, 2009. Official police reports indicated Phillips was driving his green Nissan B13 along the Claude Noel Highway in the vicinity of the Dwight Yorke Stadium.

Whilst attempting to overtake a line of vehicles, the Nissan B13 came into contact with a silver Nissan Wingroad, driven by Hugh Hamilton, of Louis DOr.

The four people in the Wingroad, Sita Victor, Heather Gray, Lenon George and Hamilton along with both occupants of the Nissan B13 Phillips and Jabari Leslie were rushed to the Scarborough General Hospital. Both Leslie and Gray had to be airlifted to seek further medical attention in Trinidad, however, Leslie succumbed to injuries while undergoing emergency medical surgery
Law student in court for fraud

They are to return today before a Couva magistrate. The three were arrested at their home in Couva by Fraud Squad detectives led by Assistant Supt Totaram Dhookie.

Abigail Parris, 21, sister Cecilia, 27, and Richard Mitchell, 31, appeared before Senior Magistrate Nanette Forde-John who read three charges to them that on February 21, they conspired to defraud the First Citizens Bank in Couva. The sum represents the proceeds of a loan in which they alleged to have falsely represented that Abigail was employed with the San Fernando City Corporation. The magistrate read two charges to Abigail that she uttered a forged valuable security, namely a payslip and a job letter. A charge was read to Cecelia, that in February, she stole a stamp valued $250 from the San Fernando City Corporation.

Police Constable Khalil Hosein laid the charge. The three pleaded not guilty. Attorney Chantal Paul appeared for the three and pleaded for bail to be granted to them. She said her clients had no previous or pending charges. Court prosecutor PC Phillip Ramnath, had no objections to bail being granted.

Magistrate Forde-John, however, transfered the cases to the Couva Magistrates court and remanded the three into custory to return to court today. The magistrate granted Cecelia bail in the sum of $5,000 in respect of the larceny of the stamp. That case was adjourned to December 5.
Taxi driver shot in La Romaine

Police believe the shooting may have stemmed from an incident two months ago involving a woman who had been heckled by a group of male taxi drivers.

Since the incident, colleagues said McEachrane had been receiving death threats but never took them seriously as he claimed he did not laugh at her. According to reports, at about 12.30 am, McEachrane of La Romaine was seated in his Nissan Almera car at Gulf View Link Road, La Romaine awaiting a passenger when he was approached by a man dressed in dark clothing.

Following an argument, the assailant pulled out a gun and shot McEachrane in his stomach before escaping. The wounded man managed to drive himself to the hospital where he was treated and warded.

Investigations are continuing
Haiti disaster relief by November

The convoy of containers were taken to the Port of Point Lisas and was scheduled to leave Trinidad on Saturday for the eight day voyage to Haiti. The estimated cost of the cargo is $2 Million.

Speaking to reporters prior to the convoys departure top Point Lisas, San Fernando Mayor Kazim Hosein exclaimed: We are ready to leave San Fernando for Point Lisas and then the shores of Haiti to assist in this humanitarian act today.

We are the first persons to be shipping out these containers which was collected in just 11 days time. He added, everything is volunteerism, we have Eagles (transport), we have Ma Pau, we have Laings, we have the Sangre Grade Corporation, we have Penal, the list is long and everything has been done through volunteerism. Meanwhile, Help 4 Haiti committee chairman, Sadiq Baksh is being transshipped through Jamaica while a Haitian Non-Governmental Organization will receive, clear, weigh and distribute all the stocks that we have sent. He described the generosity demonstrated by individuals and organizations as a phenomenal, awesome response from the citizens, who have again demonstrated that people who give get more pleasures from those whop receive. We have people who volunteered, from a homeless person who took whatever money he had and bought half a bag of stuff to granny Kathleen from La Brea who is visually impaired but who insisted that we came and collected what she had, Baksh said.

Asked whether the aid would be distributed to those persons most in need, Baksh said, its difficult to say, 100 percent, we have looked at the best practices and now we will try our best that it will reach the poorest of the poor and those in need. Asked about the recent tragedy at Sangre Grande where unusually large waves wreaked havoc with fishing boats, he said a separate relief effort had been collected and had already been dispatched to the region.
Sanfest showcases talent

Not only did he demonstrated his vocal abilities, Lucas also moved in sync with the beat and rhythm of the music as he sang I hope you dance, a country-pop song by Lee Ann Womack. But in the end, Lucas, a former contestant in this years Digicel Rising Stars competition, judges disqualified him on the basis that he breached a rule.

Speaking to Newsday following his performance, the student admitted that had he qualified for the next round, he may have won the category.

I think I gave a good performance.

I was not expecting to perform so good and maybe I could have been the winner.

I was not aware that I cannot use vocals in the background.

Last year when I entered Sanfest, I got a Grade One for a calypso, Lucas said. Lucas of Basse Terre Village, Moruga, added he had been singing since the tender age of three and vow to continue singing.

This years festival, a collaboration between the San Fernando Arts Council (SFAC)and NGC , was launched last month under the theme A Divine Alternative. SFAC has dedicated this years NGC Sanfest to founder and first chairman, James Lee Wah.
Young: Jobs for security officers

He added that the Police Service and the Defence Force are now providing security arrangements for these facilities. Young also said inquiries are being made into a report alleging that inducements were being made to officers of the Strategice Services Agency (SSA) for information.
MP queries truck jobs

He also complained of a lack of details of the scheme, such as their intended terms and conditions of work. What kind of licence will be required to drive trailer-trucks on the North American continent? I expect there will be some special form of licence, such as including a drug test. Indarsingh also asked if the scheme would allow such workers to also take their families with them to Canada? Can they also migrate, and what of the whole question of settlement and housing? Saying the Minister had publicly dangled the carrot of dual citizenship, he asked if she has any authority to do so, quipping that she seemed to be wanting to do the job of the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Have we got any green light from Canada, he asked.

Has the Canadian Government sanctioned any dual citizenship? Saying that any migration of workers without their families could have dire social problems for relatives remaining in TT, he asked about other plans for diversification of the TT economy, other than creating a Remittance Economy? Saying that Baptiste-Primus had promised to create a jobs registry after the closure of Arcelor Mittal, Indarsingh asked how many of those retrenched workers have in fact found new jobs through such a registry?
Russia denies involvement in Syria school attack

Russian Federation,Diplomacy, Thu, 27 Oct 2016 IANS

Moscow, Oct 28 (IANS) Russian Defense Ministry denied the involvement of the alleged airstrikes on a school in Idlib in Syria, saying the evidence spreading among media was "fabricated."

"The video of an alleged airstrike that appeared in a various foreign media was made of ten clips put together, and shot with a different resolution at different time," the ministry's spokesman Igor Konashenkov said in a statement on Thursday.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said on Wednesday that an air raid, allegedly carried out by Russian warplanes, targeted civilian areas in Idlib, including a school compound, killing at least 26 civilians, Xinhua news agency reported.

"This is a tragedy. It is an outrage. And if deliberate, it is a war crime," executive director of the United Nations Children's Fund Anthony Lake said, calling the strike "the deadliest attack on a school" in the five-and-a-half-year-long crisis in the war-raged Middle East country.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for "an immediate and impartial investigation" into the attacks.

"If such horrific acts persist despite global outrage, it is largely because their authors, whether in corridors of power or in insurgent redoubts, do not fear justice," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a press briefing.--IANS

vgu/
New report on use of chemical weapons in Syria unconvincing: Russia

United States,Defence/Security,Terrorism,Diplomacy, Thu, 27 Oct 2016 IANS

United Nations, Oct 28 (IANS) Russia described the latest report by the OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM) in Syria as "unconvincing," saying that the report is "not substantiated by sufficient testimonial basis".

"We can say now that in most cases they are not substantiated by sufficient testimonial basis, first of all material proof, they are full of contradictions and therefore, unconvincing," Russia's permanent representative to the UN Vitaly Churkin said in a statement on Thursday.

"The JIM has added nothing new to the story, but for some reasons decided to re-adjust the initial conclusions on the incidents in Marea, Sarmin and Talmenes," Churkin said.

"As we understand the conclusions of the JIM are not definitive, have no legally binding force and cannot serve as accusatory conclusions for taking legal decisions," he said.

Earlier in 2016, the Security Council voiced its concern about the use of chemical weapons by warring parties in Syria, including terrorists.

The Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM) is tasked with identifying "individuals, entities, groups, or governments involved in the use of chemicals as weapons" in Syria, according to the Security Council.

Based in The Hague, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) with JIM in Syria was established after the UN Security Council unanimously adopted resolution 2235 which aimed at identifying those behind chemical weapons attacks in Syria.

--IANS

vgu/
Communications Minister to meet telcos over call drop on Nov 1

Delhi,National,Technology,Business/Economy, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Oct 28 (IANS) Union Communications Minister Manoj Sinha will meet the CEOs of telecom companies on November 1 to take stock of the call drop issue.

"The minister will meet telecom company Chief Executive Officers on November 1 to take stock of the call drop situation. It's a stock-taking meeting and also roadmap for the future," Telecom Secretary J.S. Deepak told reporters here on Friday on the sidelines of an event.

Deepak said the sectoral regulator - Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) - has informed that there has been substantial improvement in call drop situation.

"We had a meeting in June, they (telecom service providers) gave us a 100-day plan. There has been, we believe, from TRAI figures lot of improvement in call drops. There were 54 networks which were not performing upto the standard in December 2015, and now it is down to only 19," Deepak added.

The telecom companies had given a 100-day roadmap to the government in June to improve call drop situation.

"They assured that the target for the 100-day programme, as committed to the (telecom) secretary, will be met. They indicated that from the beginning of June 10 (when the 100-day programme started), there will be addition of around 60,000 BTS (base transceiver station) in 100 days across the country, out of which 48,000 have been installed in the first 45 days," Manoj Sinha said on July 25.

The service providers have committed Rs 12,000 crore to install 60,000 BTS to address the situation by arresting call drops.

--IANS

ag/rn
Modi government weakening democratic institutions: Congress

Delhi,National,Immigration/Law/Rights,Politics, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Oct 28 (IANS) The Congress on Friday accused the Narendra Modi government of "systematically and deliberately" weakening democratic instituions in the country, including the judiciary.

"During the last two and a half years of its tenure, this government has been systematically and deliberately weakening the democratic institutions of this country, including the judiciary," said Congress spokesman and senior lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi.

The Congress' attack came in the wake of Supreme Court slamming the government on Friday for holding back judicial appointments by sitting over the recommendations of the top court collegium for the appointment of judges to various High Courts.

A bench of Chief Justice T.S. Thakur, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justice L. Nageswara Rao said observed that the government's inaction amounted to paralysing and locking out the judiciary.

Singhvi called the situation unprecedented and unheard of.

--IANS

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AMU to confer degree on Japanese physicist

Uttar Pradesh,National,Education, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

Aligarh, Oct 28 (IANS) Aligarh Muslim University will confer the Doctorate in Science, honoris causa, on noted physicist and Nobel laureate Takaaki Kajita of Japan at its 64th annual convocation scheduled on November 1.

Engineer Sobhi Batterjee, distinguished entrepreneur and Chairman, Middle East Healthcare Company and Saudi German Hospitals, Saudi Arabia, will deliver the convocation address.

Chief Guest Batterjee has been engaged in developing a chain of Not-for-Profit hospitals for the poor, in association with Mohammad Yunus, Nobel Peace Prize winner and noted economist of Bangladesh, Gramin Bank, Islamic Development Bank (IDB), GE and CCC.

Takaaki Kajita is currently Director of the Centre for Cosmic Neutrinos at the Institute for Cosmic Ray Research (ICRR), Japan.

He is also the principal investigator of ICRR project located at the Kamioka Observatory, the KAGRA gravity wave detector.

Some 5,000 graduate, post-graduate and PhD degrees will be awarded at the convocation. Besides, more than 200 medals would also be distributed on the occasion.

The first Annual Convocation was held on December 28, 1922 and degrees were conferred on 75 graduates.

The first convocation was presided over by its founder Chancellor Begum Sultan Jahan, ruler of Bhopal.

This annual convocation has gained importance on another count as well.

Prof. Takaaki Kajita is visiting AMU along with a high-level delegation of physicists and scholars from Japan to facilitate a Memorandum of Understanding with the Aligarh Muslim University for developing cooperation and exchange in Physics.

Prof. Sajjad Athar, Department of Physics, Aligarh Muslim University told the media persons that Prof. Kajita's visit to AMU will also help increase the prospects for better Indo-Japan relations and cooperation in the field of scientific explorations.

He said that following the convocation proceedings, an "Indo-Japan Collaboration Meeting" will be held on "Opportunities for Neutrino Research in Japan" which will be presided over by the AMU Vice Chancellor, Lt. Gen. Zameer Uddin Shah (retd).

--IANS

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SC slams Centre for sitting over judicial appointments, scuttling them

Delhi,National,Immigration/Law/Rights,Politics, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Oct 28 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Friday slammed the Centre for sitting over the top court collegium's recommendations on the appointment of high court judges, saying the action amounted to paralysing and locking out the judiciary.

Telling the government that no attempt to paralyse the judicial institution will be tolerated, a bench of Chief Justice T.S. Thakur, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justice L. Nageswara Rao said all courtrooms on the ground floor of the Karnataka High Court building were locked for want of judges.

The Chief Justice pointed out that the recommendations for appointment of judges to the Allahabad High Court were pending with the government for the past nine months. The Chief Justice said the collegium recommended 18 names, but the central government pruned the list to eight and now the court is being told that two names have been cleared.

He said if the government had any problems with any name, it could send the same back, but it cannot sit over it, pointing out that the high courts were functioning at 50 per cent of their sanctioned strength.

"We had a situation when there were judges but no courtrooms; today, we have courtrooms but no judges. Half of the courtrooms in the Karnataka High Court are locked. You can as well have the whole courts locked and close down justice," the Chief Justice said.

"It is not anybody's ego. It is the institution that suffers," the Chief Justice told Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, reminding him that he was the leader of the Bar and will have to play a constructive role.

"You want to lock out justice," the Chief Justice asked Rohatgi, who said that non-finalisation of the Memorandum of Procedure was coming in the way of the government in clearing the recommendations.

At this, Chief Justice Thakur asked how then had the government cleared other names, pointing out that in the absence of a new Memorandum of Procedure the appointments could be made on the basis of the old MoP.

As Rohatgi said that the old MoP was contrary to the Supreme Court judgement that struck down the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) and that the object of the new MoP was to bring the appointment procedure under light, the Chief Justice said: "If you (government) insist that the MoP must be finalised before the appointment (of judges) then we will sit in a Constitution Bench and say the government will not be allowed to scuttle judicial appointments till it frames a new MoP."

Reminding the Attorney General of the Union Law Minister's statement that non-finalisation of the MoP would not come in the way of appointment of judges, Chief Justice Thakur said: "The MoP is your red herring. The Law Minister and the government has repeatedly told us that the process of finalisation of the MoP will not stall judicial appointments process. Now, are you saying there is a deadlock on the MoP and you want it cleared first before appointing judges?

"We don't want to clash with you. But if you go on like this, we will form a five-judge Bench and say you are scuttling appointments," Chief Justice Thsakur told the Attorney General as the later said that the "idea is not to scuttle the appointments".

"If everything can be done without an MoP, why do you need the MoP in the first place?"

The Chief Justice said: "They (appointments) are languishing. When the collegium has cleared, why are you sitting on them?"

The court directed further hearing in the matter on November 11.

--IANS

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Foundation laid for Upadhyaya Institute of Archaeology

Uttar Pradesh,National,Politics,Art/Culture/Books,Education, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

Noida, Oct 28 (IANS) Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh laid the foundation stone for the Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Institute of Archaeology here on Friday.

The institute is to be built in the Institutional Area, Knowledge Park-II, in Greater Noida.

"The new building of the Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Institute of Archaeology is being constructed at a cost of Rs 300 crore," Singh said.

"Indian culture is one of the oldest in the world and the institute will help in finding out the roots of our ancient rich cultural heritage," he added.

Union Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma said the government is celebrating the birth centenary of Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya this year and has decided to dedicate the new building to the late ideologue of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the forerunner of the BJP.

"It will also have an archaeological museum spread over an area of 14,000 square metres, residential buildings, hostel facilities for both boys and girls and a cafeteria," he added.

--IANS

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Odisha to implement 7th Pay Commission recommendations

Orissa,National,Politics, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

Bhubaneswar, Oct 28 (IANS) The Odisha government on Friday announced that it will implement the 7th central pay commission recommendations in the state.

The state government would set up a fitment committee, which would work out the modalities for implementation of the recommendations.

"I am happy to announce that the state government will implement the 7th Pay Commission recommendations. A fitment committee is formed for working out the modalities. This will benefit the state government employees and pensioners," Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik told media persons here.

It will benefit around four lakh government employees and three lakh pensioners.

The 7th Pay Commission has recommended a 23.55 per cent overall hike in pay, allowances and pensions for the central government employees with effect from January 1 this year.

--IANS

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SC slams Centre on judges' appointment; opposition targets BJP (Roundup)

Delhi,National,Immigration/Law/Rights,Politics, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Oct 28 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Friday rapped the Centre for sitting over the top court collegium's recommendations on appointment of judges to various High Courts, prompting the opposition to attack the Narendra Modi government for what it said was deliberate weakening of the country's democratic institutions.

A bench of Chief Justice T.S. Thakur, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justice L. Nageswara Rao observed that the government's inaction amounted to paralysing and locking out the judiciary.

"We had a situation when there were judges but no courtrooms; today, we have courtrooms but no judges... it is not anybody's ego but the institution that suffers," the Chief Justice of India (CJI) said as he asked Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi to play a constructive role in the capacity of the leader of the Bar.

The CJI's observations were echoed by former Attorney General Soli Sorabjee and a former apex court judge.

"If we don't appoint judges in time, justice will inevitably be delayed. It will be denied actually. There is no justification on the government's part for this delay," Sorabjee said.

"I think the Chief Justice is absolutely justified in expressing his indignation at the delay in the appointment of the judges by the government after the collegium has cleared the names," he added.

Former Supreme Court Judge Ashok Ganguly said if the courts cannot redress people's grievances due to lack of judges, then "it creates a crisis".

"On an average, most high courts are working with 30 to 40 per cent vacancies. It is a great impediment in the administration of justice. Even if all the vacancies are filled, that will not be adequate. It is an institutional deadlock," Ganguly said.

On the political front, the Congress mounted a bitter attack on the Narendra Modi government, accusing it of systematically and deliberately weakening the country's democratic institutions, including the judiciary.

"During the last two-and-a-half-years of its rule, this government has been systematically and deliberately weakening the democratic institutions, including the judiciary," said Congress spokesman and senior lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi.

"We condemn this government's attempt to erode and undermine another pillar of our democracy. Now, we are seeing its attempt to demean, control or embarrass the judiciary. It is sad that the issue of Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) is being used by the government as an instrument of blackmail," he said.

Janata Dal-United spokesman K.C. Tyagi said the delay in the appointment of judges was an attack on the institution of judiciary.

"They are attacking the judiciary. This is not for the firt time that the Chief Justice has expressed his displeasure over the delay in judicial appointments. A few months back, he even cried while raising this issue, but the government is not ready to listen," Tyagi said.

When contacted, BJP spokespersons refused to comment on the issue.

--IANS

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Bajrang Dal protests screening of 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' in Bengal

West Bengal,National,Politics,Cinema/Showbiz, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

Kolkata, Oct 28 (IANS) Activists of Bajrang Dal staged a demonstration outside a cinema hall in West Bengal's Purulia district on Friday, protesting against the screening of Karan Johar-directed Hindi film "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" that also features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan.

The Bajrang Dal is the youth wing of Vishwa Hindu Parishad.

The members of Bajrang Dal's Purulia district wing gathered in large numbers outside a Purulia-based multiplex right in the morning to protest against the screening of the film.

The protestors carried banners and flags of the Bajrang Dal as well as the national flag and shouted slogans condemning the casting of Fawad in an Indian film at a time of high tension between the neighbouring nations.

"The cinema management responded positively to our protest and decided to stop the first show of the movie," Banjrag Dal-Kolkata said in a social media website, claiming their demonstration "a huge success".

"About a hundred Bajrang Dal supporters gathered in front of the multiplex at around 9 a.m. today and held a protest for an hour. However, police were alert to avert any untoward incident," a senior officer of Purulia Police Control Room said.

Police said the issue was resolved without much hassle and the film could be screened thereafter.

"No one was detained during the incident," police said.

--IANS

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Congress demands DTC's contract employees be regularised

Delhi,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Oct 28 (IANS) Congress on Friday apprised Delhi Lt. Governor Najeeb Jung of the condition of the contractual employees of the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and demanded the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government to immediately regularise their services.

"Kejriwal had promised to regularise the contractual employees working with the Delhi government and also with the DTC during the Aam Aadmi Party's election campaign, but has not fulfilled his promise though being in power for the past 18 months," Delhi Congress unit chief Ajay Maken told reporters after meeting Jung.

"The DTC, being an autonomous body, can on its own also regularise the contract employees," he added.

Maken claimed that the DTC "is in a bad plight now, as the AAP government has neither been doing anything for the welfare of the DTC employees, nor addressing the pressing problems of the workers".

Attacking Kejriwal, he said his government and the BJP-led Union government "have been busy clashing with each other, leaving no time for them to tackle important issues".

He also accused Kejriwal and his ministers for touring to fulfill their political agenda.

The Congress leader also said that the DTC has not yet implemented the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission for serving and retired employees of the DTC, though the DTC has always implemented the Central pay scale.

Also highlighting the problems of the DTC buses conductors, he said: "The DTC conductors are facing a serious problem due to the faulty ticket-vending machines given to them.

"These machines print blank tickets, and the conductors have to reimburse for the blank tickets from their own pockets," he alleged.

Taking a dig at the Delhi government for the shoratage of buses, he said: "It may be recalled that when the Aam Aadmi Party came to power in Delhi, the DTC had a fleet of around 5,000 buses which has now come down to 4,000 buses."

"Instead of increasing the number of buses, the DTC now faces shortage of 1,000 buses," he alleged.

Maken urged the Delhi government to replenish the depleted bus fleets without further delay as the shortage of buses have affected public transport in the city.

--IANS

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JNU students protest outside Delhi Police headquarters

Delhi,National,Politics,Crime/Disaster/Accident,Education, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Oct 28 (IANS) Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students on Friday rallied outside the Delhi Police headquarters at ITO here to protest alleged inaction in case of the disappearance of JNU student Najeeb Ahmed.

The students demanded that the status of the probe by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) be made public and asked why the police had not yet examined records and closed-circuit television footage of vehicles entering the JNU campus on the day Ahmed went missing.

They also wondered why the police have not yet questioned the "goons" who beat up Ahmed.

Around 200 to 250 JNU students took part in the protest which started at 4.30 p.m. The police declared the protest illegal and warned the students to disperse.

The police barricaded the road outside the headquarters, causing a massive traffic jam.

Students made attempts to remove the barricades, but relented after JNUSU President Mohit Pandey pleaded with them not to resort to such actions and protest peacefully.

Another student body, Students Islamic Organisation (SIO), was part of the protest along with members of other student bodies.

Ahmed went missing on October 14 night after he was beaten up by some alleged activists of the Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

A police complaint was filed and a Proctorial inquiry was initiated by the university. The police later formed an SIT to trace Ahmed.

The protesters also denounced the findings of the JNU administration's inquiry, saying it failed to take cognisance of the facts as mentioned by the Warden of Mahi-Mandvi Hostel, where the assault took place.

The Warden, present when the attack occurred, had said it was a "brutal assault" on Ahmed in his October 16 report submitted to the varsity Proctor.

A student delegation, led by JNU Students Union (JNUSU) President Mohit Pandey, later went into the headquarters to hold talks on their demands with police officials.

The delegation included JNUSU office-bearers, namely Vice-President Amal, General Secretary Satarupa, and Joint Secretary Tabrez.

The delegation submitted a memorandum to R.P. Upadhyay, Joint Commissioner, South Range, demanding a through search of the forested area in the JNU, and examination of video recordings of nearby metro stations.

--IANS

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Delhi BJP chief celebrates Diwali with BSF troopers at Attari

Punjab,National,Politics,Defence/Security, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

Attari (Punjab), Oct 28 (IANS) Delhi BJP chief Satish Upadhyay on Friday celebrated Diwali with BSF troopers at the Attari international border (IB) in Punjab.

The BJP leader's action came in the wake of an emotional appeal made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a video message to the nation to remember the soldiers, many of whom are guarding the frontiers away from their families on Diwali.

Interacting with the Border Security Force (BSF) troopers, Upadhyay said: "India as a nation stands with the soldiers who are protecting us from the enemies at the cost of their own family festivity."

He also lit 'Diyas' and distributed sweets among the troopers.

The BJP leader was accompanied by Mayor of Amritsar Bakshi Ram.

--IANS

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Hindu groups protest against 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' in Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh,National,Politics,Cinema/Showbiz, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

Bhopal, Oct 28 (IANS) Hindu groups held demonstrations against "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" in many cities of Madhya Pradesh on Friday. However, theatres continued to show the movie which released on the occasion of 'Dhanteras'.

Hindu groups are opposing the film as it features a Pakistani actor Fawad Khan in one important role.

Hindu right-wing groups led by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) had given a call for banning Pakistani artistes working in Bollywood following a terrorist attack on an army camp in Uri sector of Jammu and Kahsmir in September.

Since the Karan Johar directorial features Fawad Khan, calls were made to ban "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" also. However, the movie was okayed for release by MNS after Karan Johar made an appeal to the people to not stall the release of the film and also agreed to donate Rs 5 crore to an army welfare fund.

The Shiv Sena workers held a demonstration outside a cineplex at Tatya Tope Nagar here. But their attempt to storm the theatre was foiled by police.

A Hindu group stopped the screening of the film in a multiplex for some time at Samdareeya Mall in Jabalpur.

Hindu groups held similar demonstrations in Gwalior also.

--IANS

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Tata Steel to continue European consolidation strategy

Maharashtra,Business/Economy, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

Mumbai, Oct 28 (IANS) Tata Steel on Friday said that it would continue to pursue its European consolidation strategy and talks are "ongoing and progressing" for a potential joint venture of its European steel business.

"...Tata Steel would also like to clarify that it continues to pursue its European consolidation strategy and the talks with ThyssenKrupp AG for a potential joint venture of its European steel business are currently ongoing and progressing. However, there can be no guarantee that these talks will result in a definitive agreement between the parties," the company said in regulatory filing to BSE on Friday.

The company also reaffirmed that it is currently "pursuing a separate process" for the potential "sale of the South Yorkshire-based speciality steel business in the UK".

The steel producer also said that Tata Steel UK was deeply engaged with all the relevant stakeholders in the UK to find a structural solution and a way forward with regard to the affordability of the legacy pension scheme liabilities.

In a letter to the Tata Sons' board, the ousted Chairman Cyrus P. Mistry on Wednesday had alleged some business decisions taken by the board -- where he also claimed being relegated to a lame duck chairman -- covering hotels, automobiles, power, telecom and steel -- could potentially result in a write down over time of about Rs 118,000 crore ($18 billion).

However, Tata Sons' termed such allegations as "unsubstantiated claims and malicious allegations".

The steel manufacturer has clarified to bourses that the financial statements of the company present "a true and fair view" of the state of affairs of the firm.

--IANS

bdc/ksk/rn
EU delegation to visit Sri Lanka to discuss GSP Plus

Sri Lanka,Indo-Pak/Pakistan,Diplomacy,Business/Economy, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

Colombo, Oct 28 (IANS) A four-member delegation from the European Parliament will visit Sri Lanka on October 31 to discuss the groundwork laid for a successful Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) Plus application, authorities said on Friday.the European Union (EU) said in a statement on Friday.

According to the European Union (EU) statement, progress on national reconciliation and ways to empower Sri Lankan women politically and economically will also be discussed, Xinhua news agency reported.

The delegation will visit Colombo and Trincomalee, and Batticaloa in the east, to meet government, local government, parliamentary and civil society representatives.

During his recent visit to Brussels, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe met the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee to discuss issues including Sri Lanka's application for GSP Plus, the role of Saarc (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation), accountability and justice, minority rights and poverty alleviation.

The EU has nearly doubled its development assistance to Sri Lanka for the years up to 2020 to $229 million. The EU will also provide support under the government's Peacebuilding Priority Plan, the statement added.

--IANS

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Economic, defence cooperation to figure in Modi's Japan visit

Delhi,National,Defence/Security,Diplomacy, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Oct 28 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will pay a two-day official visit to Japan from November 11 for his third annual summit meeting with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe, with economic and defence cooperation likely to figure high on the agenda.

The annual summit will be an occasion for the two leaders to have in-depth exchanges on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest to further deepen the broad-based and action-oriented partnership between India and Japan, said an official statement.

Modi will also have an audience with Japanese Emperor Akihito.

The two sides are likely to sign a civil nuclear cooperation pact, including a provision to assure Japan that India, which has not joined the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, will not use Japanese nuclear power plant technology for military purposes, Kyodo news agency quoted diplomatic sources as saying.

Both leaders are also likely to discuss defence cooperation, including joint maritime exercises between Japan, India and the US. The South China Sea is also likely to figure in the talks.

"We expect (Modi's) visit to advance the special strategic global partnership befitting a new era for Japan-India (relations) and further deepen the bonds and cooperative relationship between our countries," Kyodo quoted Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Koichi Hagiuda as saying in Tokyo.

During Modi's visit to Japan in 2014, which was his first bilateral visit outside India's immediate neighbourhood, the India-Japan relationship was upgraded to 'Special Strategic and Global Partnership'.

In the New Delhi summit of 2015, India and Japan outlined a Vision of Working Together for Peace and Prosperity in the Indo-Pacific Region and the World.

This will be Modi's second visit to Japan for the annual summit since he became Prime Minister in 2014.

--IANS

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On Tuesday, the Landmarks Preservation Commission heard two different applications to convert structures in the West Village from three units to single-family use. The first was approved. The second, far more visible and controversial, was not approved.

The first was at 8 Perry Street. The three-story structure is located between Seventh Avenue South and Greenwich Avenue. It was constructed in 1849 and fell under the LPCs jurisdiction when the Greenwich Village Historic District was designated in 1969.

The proposal was presented by preservation consultant Mary Dierickx and by Gary Waisman of the Schrimmer Design Group. It calls for installing a new stoop front entryway with a wood door, transom, and sidelines. A 10-foot-deep, three-story-tall rear yard addition, done in brick and meant to match conditions at neighbor 10 Perry Street, will be constructed, replacing an existing partial rear yard extension. Additionally, a rooftop bulkhead will be constructed and a metal railing will be installed. That will allow roof use without climbing out a window and will be visible from Seventh Avenue South.

Floorplans show five bedroomsone in the basement, three on the second floor, and the master bedroom suite on the third floor. The plan includes five full bathrooms, a powder room, a cellar-level gym and sauna, and a second floor office/den.

The commissioners had very little to say about this application. LPC Chair Meenakshi Srinivasan said she found the proposed bulkhead small.

Srinivasan noted that Manhattan Community Board 2 supported the application. One of the citys most prominent preservation organizations had some criticism of the plan. HDC found the proposed bulk in the rear appropriate, but believes the applicant could achieve the same amount of light by recreating the large windows on the original facade, testified Kelly Carroll of the Historic Districts Council. And this tripartite configuration would be more a harmonious composition, she said.

Nicholas Crasno, who has owned 10 Perry Street for three decades, was against the proposal. He criticized the unhistoric design of the rear extension, which he said would block light to both no. 10 and to no. 6 Perry Street. He said his extension blocks no light. He also criticized the size of the rooftop bulkhead.

In the end, the commissioners voted, unanimously, to approve the application. However, Dierickx said the design team will work with LPC staff to make sure all of the windows are appropriate.

(Scroll down for 8 Perry Street presentation slides.)

The other application was for a Federal style rowhouse at 327 West 4th Street, constructed between 1827 and 1828. It was originally only two stories tall, but now is three stories in height. It sits between West 12th Street and Jane Street, also within the Greenwich Village Historic District.

The plan was presented by Martin Cox of the Downtown Brooklyn-based architecture firm Bade Stageberg Cox. It calls for repainting several facade elements in black, including the windows and cornice. The front door, installed in the mid-twentieth century, would also be replaced and lintels restored. Cox said the door of no. 329 West 4th Street was the basis for the new door, but there are notable differences, including the mechanism and side windows.

On the roof, a fourth floor would be added, taking up more then one-third of the floor area. An existing rear extension would be extended above that and include a stair bulkhead. The bulkhead would be brick, to match its neighbor. The new floor would be treated in zinc, and feature a sloped front with black-painted steel sash windows. It would be highly visible from the public way.

Finally, the rear yard would be excavated to allow for a lower outdoor area and the rear wall would be reconstructed in gray stucco, with a new fenestration pattern.

Chair Srinivasan asked Cox why the bulkhead was necessary. Cox said that was because the new floor would take up over one-third of the of the building floor area, which required the stair to continue to the new roof. She said she had no problem with the rooftop addition, but said the bulkhead was too prominent. [The application is] hard for me to support, she said. Though she had no problem with the addition, she then noted that the addition is causing the problem.

Commissioner Adi-Shamir Baron said she agreed with the highly critical testimony of Christabel Gough of the Society for the Architecture of the City. She said one of the keys to the Federal style is that it is small in size. Adding a fourth floor, she said, would betray that. She called the application entirely inappropriate.

Commissioner Frederick Bland said the applicant was stuck with Buildings Department regulations governing sairs. He said he could buy into the idea of a west-facing sloped glass window, but it should be pushed back. He said the bigger problem was the proposed, and visible, rear. Very odd condition there, he said. He added that the front door is terrible. You owe it to the building and to the neighborhood and to preservation [to get it right], he said. Use the twin. The twins telling you a lot.

Commissioner Michael Devonshire thinks the addition should be smaller. He also said it will probably end up filled with umbrellas and other scattered items, and that would be a big problem, given the visibility. The LPC cannot regulate what happens inside most buildings, but it can anticipate.

Chair Srinivasan noted the project had the support of Manhattan Community Board 2, but preservationists were not so generous.

It is unfortunate that this drawing set commenced with lauding the late Federal style and highlighted original elements on a neighboring building only to ignore this documentation and move as far away from preservation as possible. As the LPC is aware, this building typology is the rarest and oldest surviving in New York City, testified HDCs Carroll. These buildings characterize what was the first wave of residential development, and their modest scale is built into this significance. It is an almost existential question: when a Federal house is proposed to rise five stories to become as tall as its tenement neighbor, is it considered a Federal anymore? This bulk, coupled with excavation, is excessive and perhaps the applicant should have bought a tenement building on West 4th Street and spared this house.

For the amount of work proposed to dig out and build on top of this house, HDC was disappointed with the insulting treatment of the door surround. The applicant used 41 Bank Streets door surround as an example of an intact late Federal entry, yet has chosen to install a hotel room type door and not reconstruct the signature Ionic colonettes, or the glass, Carroll continued. While renovating nearly a two-century-old building requires compromise in how modern residences function, this simply renders the artifact severely compromised.

The Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservations Sarah Bean Apmann called the rooftop addition oversized, and said it would lead to more like it. Variation of building height is part of the character of the Village, she said.

Gough said there needs to be some understanding of where rooftop additions are acceptable and where they are not. She called the proposal a travesty and a potential monument to not caring about history. She was also quite critical of the materials and the planned new door. She bemoaned the amazing frugality of the cheap hardware.

In the end, the commissioners took no action on this application. They didnt give the applicant much direction, but a re-working of the proposal will be required if the conversion is to go forward.

View the full presentation slides for 8 Perry Street:



View the full presentation slides for 327 West 4th Street:

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Out in the borderlands between Bedford-Stuyvesant, Crown Heights, Brownsville, and East New York, theres a working class, largely black neighborhood called Ocean Hill. A small new development is headed to the area at 2353 Dean Street, between Rockaway Avenue and Eastern Parkway.

New building applications filed today call for a five-story, mixed-use development. Itll replace a little two-family, wood frame house built sometime around the turn of the century. Seven apartments and 6,900 square feet of residential space will be stacked on top of a 1,000-square-foot community facility. Typical apartments will be a surprisingly spacious 985 square feet, meaning three-bedrooms are likely.

The developer is Chinweike Ukaegbu, the long-term owner of the property. He purchased the 2,700-square-foot site for an undisclosed amount in 1989. Ibrahim Greenidge, of Bolt Design Group, applied for the permits.

Its worth noting that the city just rezoned part of Ocean Hill, starting on the next block between Eastern Parkway and Sackman Street. That may explain the uptick in filings weve seen here recently. The area immediately east of herewhich is close to the A/C, J/Z, and L trains at Broadway Junctionwas exclusively zoned for manufacturing and heavy commercial uses, like auto shops and garages. When the City Council approved the new zoning for East New York in April, it also switched the zoning for the industrial area near the Junction and the cemeteries. For the first time in half a century, new apartments and mixed-use development can grow where only little houses and factories could before.

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Changes in the hierarchy of large global tech companies have to be made carefully and with enough transition time to let everyone involved adjust. For Nokia, a company that celebrated its 150th year in 2015, the change can have noticeable impact for the thousands of businesses it serves and the more than 56,000 employees that are part of the organization. The resignation of Chief Financial Officer Timo Ihamuotila was addressed quickly by the company, hiring Kristian Pullola, who currently is Nokia (News - Alert)'s Senior Vice President, to take his place.





The swift replacement of Ihamuotila indicates this decision was probably made months ago, even though it seems sudden when it was made public. According to the company, Ihamuotila will stay as Nokia CFO and as a member of the company's Group Leadership Team until December 31, 2016, as well as an advisor to the company until February 28, 2017. This will ensure the smooth transition as Pulllola gets comfortable with his new position.

Nokia's President and CEO Rajeev Suri (News - Alert), said, He [Ihamuotila] was instrumental in the purchase of the Siemens share of Nokia Siemens Networks; the sale of Nokia's Devices & Services business to Microsoft; the divestment of HERE, our former mapping business; the recent acquisition of Alcatel-Lucent (News - Alert), and more. He has also played an important role in driving the strong performance of Nokia in recent years.

Nokia provides mobile networks with end-to-end mobile broadband products and services, and field networks with fixed access technologies providing fiber and copper ultra-broadband solutions to telecommunication operators, cable operators, municipal governments and enterprises. The company powers some of the fastest and most advanced fixed broadband networks in the world, delivering speeds that are essential to address cloud technology, real-time services, 5G deployments and the Internet of Things (IoT).

The company's Nokia Bell Labs (News - Alert) and Nokia Technologies are its advanced technology development and licensing arm, which have been responsible for some innovative developments. Nokia Networks has a patent portfolio of 3,700 patent families, comprising of approximately 10,000 individual patents and patent applications in wireless, broadband and transport technologies.

One of its latest developments in 2016 was transporting 400Gbps over existing fiber network over 400km (248.5mi) between Madrid and Zaragoza, Spain. The trial was conducted along with Alcatel Lucent (News - Alert), now part of Nokia, and Vodafone Spain.

As the transition continues in the leadership positions at Nokia, the company will continue as it has for the past 150 years, by finding the best talent to carry out its mission of innovation in the ICT industry.

Edited by Alicia Young
The UK-based news outlet, Middle East Eye, claimed that Saudi Arabia and Qatar sent envoys to Algiers to convince the North African country to take part in peacekeeping operations in Yemen.

Middle East Eye, quoting a diplomatic source that requested anonymity, said the two Gulf States have approached Algeria requesting its participation in operations in Yemen after Algiers refused previously their request.

The news comes after visits in October by defense ministers of Saudi Arabia and Qatar to Algiers during which they met Algerian deputy defense minister and chief of staff, Ahmed Gaid Salah.

Since March 2015, Saudi Arabia has led a coalition of nine Arab countries, which tries to end the Houthi rebellion and restore the legitimate government of President Hadi.

Saudi Arabia wants to bring an end to the war and implement a peacekeeping force from various countries who are trusted by Riyadh and Doha, the diplomatic source told the Middle East Eye, adding that Algiers responded that it would consider the proposal, but for the time being, the general feeling is one of refusal.

As the budget crisis tightens in Algeria, it is unlikely that the North African country would send troops to Yemen. Algerias military doctrine is based on the principle of non-involvement in external conflicts and has never taken part in peacekeeping operations.
U.N. human rights officials condemned the systematic oppression endured by anti-slavery activists in Mauritania who have been handed a 15-year jail sentence.

The (Mauritanian) government is hostile to civil society groups that criticize its policies, especially to groups like IRA, whose members are drawn from the Haratin minority and advocate for an end to slavery, seven U.N. special rapporteurs said in a statement.

They said they were concerned Mauritanias anti-slavery movement (known by its French acronym IRA) had been singled out by the government because its members met Philip Alston, U.N. special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, during his visit to the country in May.

The activists who stood trial for rebellion and use of violence were arrested in July after riots in a Nouakchott slum community that was being forcibly relocated as the African country prepared for an Arab League summit.

The riots started when security forces stormed the slump dwellings occupied for decades by the Haratin ethnic group, many of them former slaves.

The authorities accused the members of the Initiative for the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement (IRA) of instigating the riots ending with the arrest of senior leaders of the anti-slavery movement. The whereabouts of the arrested remain unknown.

These massive arrests came at a context when Mauritanian slavery abolitionists are staging an international awareness raising campaigning to shed light on the ordeal of the enslaved Haratin.

IRA is the largest anti-slavery organization in Mauritania, with members throughout the country who regularly mobilize to protest slavery and state-endorsed discrimination based on race, caste and gender.

Mauritania was the last country in the world to abolish slavery in 1981 and it was not until 2007 when it passed a law that criminalized the act of owning another person. Yet, enslavement continues to be practiced with estimates of enslaved people ranging from 10% to 20% of Mauritanias 3.4 million strong population.
Tunisia has denied reports that it is one of the countries allowing the US army to secretly use one of its military bases to carry out intelligence missions and launch drone attacks in neighboring Libya.

Defense Minister Farhat Horchani refuted the reports stating that we dont and wont have a foreign military base in Tunisia. He stressed that allowing other countries to launch attacks on Libya from Tunisian territory would be contradictory to their policy. We were one of the few first countries to oppose a foreign military intervention in Libya, he said.

Spokesman Belhassen Oueslati of the Tunisian Defense Ministry acknowledged the presence of drones but clarified that they are for the training of the Tunisian military personnel in order to boost their border control capabilities at the southeastern border with Libya and detect any suspicious movement. He stressed that the drones are used by Tunisians and no one else after vowing that the Tunisian soil has never been and never will be used to strike targets in Libya.

According to the Washington Post, citing a Pentagon official as a source, the US secretly expanded its global network of drone bases to North Africa, deploying unmanned aircraft and US military personnel to a facility in Tunisia to conduct spy missions in neighboring Libya.

The drones began flying out of the Tunisian base in late June and played a key role in an extended US air offensive against a Daesh stronghold in Sirte, Libya, the US largely circulated daily said.

The spokesman of the Tunisian Embassy to the US said the presence of the US troops is just a kind of cooperation, a training operation between two countries while denying the existence of any American military base in Tunisia.

US Africa Command (AFRICOM) spokesman, Colonel Mark R. Cheadle, also reiterated that there are no US bases in Tunisia but acknowledged the presence of US service members who are cooperating with their Tunisian counterparts to counter terrorism and share intelligence from various sources which include unarmed aerial platforms.
Mugshots of the suspects from the top left, Ammon Bundy, Ryan Bundy, Ryan Waylen Payne, Brian Cavalier, from the bottom left, Peter Santilli, Joseph Donald OShaughnessy, and Shawna Cox. Photo: Handout/Getty Images

In a verdict that shocked even defense attorneys, on Thursday seven leaders of the armed 41-day occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon earlier this year were acquitted on all charges. A jury found brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy, and their five co-defendants not guilty of various felony weapons and conspiracy charges, and was hung on one charge of theft of government cameras against Ryan Bundy.

A circus-like demonstration outside the federal courthouse in Portland turned into a celebration on Thursday afternoon, complete with a charcoal grill and a horse wearing a red, white, and blue saddle, the Washington Post reports. Supporters of the militants hailed the decision as a triumph over government tyranny. People had traveled from across the country to join the occupation, which was a protest of the federal governments control of public land, and thousands more watched it unfold on social media.

We have to be vigilant people, defendant Shawna Cox said on the steps of the courthouse. Wake up, America, and help us restore the Constitution. Dont sleep with your head in the sand.

The situation was charged within the courtroom as well. Ammon Bundys lawyer, Marcus Mumford argued with the judge that his client should be released, though the Bundys are still facing charges in Nevada stemming from a 2014 standoff with federal agents. U.S. marshals tackled Mumford, tased him, and took him into custody.

The verdict sparked outrage across the country from those who saw it as an example of white privilege in action. All of the defendants and jurors were white, and since the beginning of the standoff people have complained that Black Lives Matter protesters are treated much more harshly than the Oregon militants.

Black ppl, the acquittal of the #oregonstandoff gunmen should remove any doubt that we live in a complete system of white supremacy  Tariq Nasheed  (@tariqnasheed) October 28, 2016

Occupier David Frys attorney, Per Olson, offered a different explanation. I think the jury saw through this and saw these were well-meaning, well-intentioned individuals, he said following the verdict. They all came out here for a good purpose: because they cared.

Oregon Governor Kate Brown said she was disappointed with the decision. The occupation of the Malheur Refuge by outsiders did not reflect the Oregon way of respectfully working together to resolve differences, she said.

Some warned that the outcome puts public-land employees in greater danger. I just didnt think it was possible that 12 jurors could look at pictures of armed men taking over a federal facility and say thats not illegal, said Kieran Suckling, executive director of the Center for Biological Diversity. This jury has just declared open season on federal facilities. People are going to get killed because of this verdict, because this jury has just given militias the green light to go after federal facilities with rifles.
James Comey. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Todays startling announcement by FBI director James Comey that the agency is looking into new evidence about Hillary Clintons personal email server looks at first glance like the ultimate in October surprises: a reopening of the possibility, however slight, of a criminal indictment of the person well on her way to becoming the next president of the United States, coming out 11 days before the election.

It is important to note some technical distinctions about what Comeys letter to the relevant congressional committee chairs does and does not say. It does say new evidence has come to light that the FBI feels obligated to review. It does not say the evidence has been deemed credible, much less that it would change Comeys recommendations on the overall issue. And the FBI, of course, is not the entity that would decide to prosecute even in the extremely unlikely case some smoking gun was found.

The obvious problem here is one of timing. The odds of any FBI investigation, much less one of this potential gravity, being completed by November 8 are limited. Assuming the FBI prevents leaks of the content of the new evidence or its nature, and Comey refuses public comment, that means the import of this development is one of those things that will almost entirely depend on partisan optics. Democrats tend to think the whole email saga is a huge nothing-burger, no matter what Clinton might have done to evade responsibility for it, and theyre not going to change their minds about that just because more emails have been thrown into the hopper. On the other hand, a previously sinking Trump campaign that has already loudly and repeatedly and redundantly asserted that Clinton is a criminal if not a traitor will obviously fan every suspicion available to keep open the door we thought the FBI had definitively closed.

There is no obvious precedent for anything quite like this on the eve of a presidential election. The midterm election of 1998 was held in the shadow of likely impeachment proceedings against Hillary Clintons husband; despite an apparent rebuke from voters, congressional Republicans barreled ahead with those proceedings as soon as they could. If nothing else, and assuming Republicans hang on to control of the House, the odds of a second Clinton impeachment just went up.

Donald Trumps immediate reaction was not a very good sign this development will be received calmly. Addressing supporters in New Hampshire Friday, he hailed the FBIs announcement  saying he had great respect for the agencys decision to right the horrible mistake that they made.

Perhaps, finally, justice will be done, he said, as the crowd pumped fists and cheered. Lock her up! Lock her up!

That the emails the FBI is looking at reportedly arose from a separate investigation into Anthony Weiner for allegedly sexting with an underage girl, and were found on an electronic device that Weiner shared with Huma Abedin, his estranged wife, makes the whole situation all the weirder.

Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta has put out an angry statement demanding that Comey disclose what this is all about as soon as possible. But the one thing we know for sure is that this incident has blown up the old political maxim that inconvenient news can be buried by sneaking it out the door on a Friday afternoon.
Pences plane sits on the runway at La Guardia. Photo: DON EMMERT/AFP/Getty Images

A plane carrying Republican vice-presidential nominee Mike Pence skidded off the runway at La Guardia Airport on Thursday night during a rainstorm. In addition to the Indiana governor, there were 36 people and eight crew members onboard when the plane touched down at 7:25 p.m. No injures have been reported.

Before taking off in Iowa, Pence said the flight was delayed owing to conditions in New York.

A ground hold at Laguardia led to some football on the tarmac in Iowa. #GameOn pic.twitter.com/Xo89ozpQyB  Mike Pence (@mike_pence) October 27, 2016

Passengers told the New York Post that the Boeing 737 Eastern Airlines charter made a rough impact upon landing, and skidded off the runway as the pilot slammed on the brakes. They reported smelling burning rubber before the plane came to a stop near a fence.

Drivers on Grand Central Parkway said they felt the plane was coming in too fast, and were worried that it would hit the highway. It was too fast, I thought it might break this thing [the fence] and it would come right on the parkway, said driver Muhammad Jilani. But thank God it stopped right there. Oh my god, it was scary. Very scary.

Journalists on the plane said Pence was calm, and came back to make sure everyone was okay. We can see mud on the front windows, he told reporters. The governors wife, daughter, and several campaign aides were on the flight.

Video after Pence campaign plane skids off runway at LaGuardia--> pic.twitter.com/BIKLTWSDGQ  Vaughn Hillyard (@VaughnHillyard) October 28, 2016

Video of us leaving the Pence campaign plane several minutes after we slid off the runway at LGA. Pool photog @VaughnHillyard ahead of me. pic.twitter.com/0jUlwTNAoe  Dan Gallo (@dangallo) October 28, 2016

Several reporters on the plane pointed out that the plane damaged the runway after impact. Thats actually a safety feature, as the Federal Aviation Administration explained in a statement: A crushable concrete runway safety technology called an Engineered Material Arresting System stopped the plane.

The Port Authority said the runways at La Guardia were shut down after a plane overshot the runway, but the airport was running again by 9:30 p.m.

Port Authority executive director Patrick Foye said the National Transportation Safety Board will take control of the investigation. The aircraft will remain where it is until the NTSB releases it. Foye said he would not speculate on what caused the accident.

Pence was spotted talking with emergency responders after getting off the plane. He skipped a fundraiser at Trump Tower that he was scheduled to attend, but he called in from his hotel.

So thankful everyone on our plane is safe. Grateful for our first responders & the concern & prayers of so many. Back on the trail tomorrow!  Mike Pence (@mike_pence) October 28, 2016

Pence spoke to his running mate shortly after the landing. Donald Trump reported that everyone was okay while speaking at a fundraiser in Geneva, Ohio. The plane skidded off the runway and was pretty close to grave, grave danger, Trump said. He got out. Everybodys fine, Trump added. But what a great decision it was to get Mike Pence. What a great guy he is.

Hillary Clinton tweeted that she was happy to hear no one was injured:
Tires burn as armed soldiers and law enforcement officers stand in formation on Thursday, October 27, 2016, to force Dakota Access pipeline protesters off private land where they had camped to block construction. Photo: Mike McCleary/AP

Police and protesters clashed Thursday into Friday as the standoff over the North Dakota Access Pipeline intensified. At least 141 demonstrators were arrested, and police pushed out hundreds more from a camp where Native Americans and environmental activists have been staging their fight against the $3.7 billion oil-pipeline project that protesters say is being built on the sacred tribal lands of the Standing Rock Sioux and threatens the water supply.

Protesters against the construction of the Dakota Access oil pipeline block a highway in near Cannon Ball, North Dakota, on Wednesday, October 26, 2016. Photo: James MacPherson/AP

Morton County law enforcement wore riot gear and reportedly fired pepper spray, bean bags, and rubber bullets on protesters. Police also deployed high-pitched sirens. They staged the operation from the ground, pulling activists off the camp in armored vehicles and surveilling in planes and helicopters from above, reports NBC News. Police cleared roadways and managed to evict about 250 activists from their camp site, which authorities say was set up on private property belonging to the pipelines company  which is forging ahead with construction despite the intense opposition. The protesters have now reportedly been booted back to an encampment, set up in April by the Standing Rock Sioux, the first to begin challenging the 1,172 mile infrastructure project that will deliver fracked oil from North Dakota to a refinery in Illinois.

Law enforcement pushing a handful of Dakota Access Pipeline protestors back south on HWY 1806 earlier this evening pic.twitter.com/QyH5Cc3tMx  Brad Parks (@BradParksCNN) October 28, 2016

Protesters reportedly refused to stand down, however. Officials say activists, some reportedly mounted on horseback, flung debris and Molotov cocktails at officers. They set fire to pipeline equipment and on the sides of roadways. Many were apprehended and charged with conspiracy to endanger by fire or explosion, or rioting, reports Reuters.

Today's confrontation between #DAPL protesters and law enforcement during the forced removal of Front Line Camp on DAPL land. #NODAPL pic.twitter.com/zLqardwIYU  Mike McCleary (@mdmccleary) October 28, 2016

One woman also allegedly fired three shots at police officers with a revolver. No one was injured. Another man was reportedly shot in the hand during an incident that allegedly involved a security agent with Dakota Access LLC  the company thats constructing the pipeline. According to Mother Jones, an armed man entered the protesters camp and was chased away in his car by some of the activists:

Tribal members and their supporters jumped into two cars and chased the Chevy Silverado in the direction of a small reservoir and crossing called Backwater Bridge. The two cars forced the Silverado off the road, according to Dallas Goldtooth, an organizer for the Indigenous Environmental Network. The driver then got out of his car, brandishing an AR-15-style rifle and a 9mm pistol, says another witness, Jennifer Owyhee. He allegedly pointed the rifle at the head of one of his pursuers, according to witnesses.

The man allegedly refused to drop his weapon, and at some point shots were fired. It appears that the security agent himself was injured, likely in a scuffle with protesters. Security guards for the Dakota Access project previously used dogs to attack protesters; an investigation by the Morton County sheriff revealed that the companys alleged dog handlers werent licensed in the state.

A @Miguelnbc report from the #NoDAPL protests, where police got violent with Native Americans protecting their land. https://t.co/4lDC6Jlm39  Jamil Smith (@JamilSmith) October 27, 2016

North Dakota governor Jack Dalrymple had also mobilized the National Guard to try to end the protests, reports CBS News. We all need to be very grateful that to the best of my knowledge we had no serious injuries, Dalrymple said. Hopefully, we have persuaded these protesters that our state highways and county highways and private property is not the place to carry out a peaceful protest.

Officers today clearing a blockade on 1806 (first blockade/line of offense) pic.twitter.com/oHKmIFiJzc  Blair Emerson (@BlairvEmerson) October 28, 2016

The Standing Rock Sioux tribe is now calling for the Department of Justice to investigate, specifically on how local law enforcement is handling the protesters. Dave Archambault II, chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, also urged members and activists to protest peacefully. Any act of violence hurts our cause and is not welcome here, he said.

Dakota Access Pipeline protesters sit in a prayer circle at the Front Line Camp as a line of law enforcement officers make their way across the camp to remove the protesters and relocate to the overflow camp a few miles to the south on Highway 1806 in Morton County, North Dakota, Thursday, October 27, 2016. Photo: MIKE McCLEARY/AP

According to the Guardian, police have made over 250 arrests since the protests began gaining in strength late this summer, including the high-profile arrests of journalist Amy Goodman and actress Shailene Woodley.

Still, the state appears ready to move ahead with the project, as does its operator, Energy Transfer Partners, which maintains the pipeline is safe. (GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump is reportedly an investor, and will own a stake of the pipeline once completed.) The Department of Justice, the Department of Interior, and the U.S. Army asked the company to voluntarily halt work in September, even as a federal judge rejected the Standing Rock Siouxs tribe attempts to get an injunction on construction.
Time for some image problems. Photo: Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images

This morning, the jurors who will decide the fate of two former New Jersey public officials charged with deliberately jamming the streets approaching the George Washington Bridge filed quietly into Judge Susan Wigentons courtroom. The gallery was packed and buzzing in anticipation of closing arguments. For the last six weeks, the jury had listened impassively  and sometimes a bit drowsily  as an array of current and former aides to Governor Chris Christie have described a hard-to-fathom political conspiracy. Prosecutors laid out how the shadowy operative David Wildstein  their star witness  had closed toll lanes to the bridge in order to exact revenge on a recalcitrant Democratic mayor. A pair of defense attorneys made a compelling case that their clients were merely pawns of a bullying king, demonstrating the staggering arrogance and pettiness of a politician who once had credible designs on the White House.

It was an entertaining show, but after all the theatrics, the two sides were preparing to argue a narrower legal question: Did Bill Baroni, formerly New Jerseys top staff member at the Port Authority, and Bridget Kelly, Christies former deputy chief of staff, misuse government resources by participating in Wildsteins scheme?

Then Wigenton entered the courtroom, briskly announced that an unspecified legal issue had arisen, and sent the jury and everyone else home for the day.

Outside the courtroom, the attorneys involved in the case were closemouthed about the mysterious delay; even Michael Critchley, Kellys usually voluble lawyer, offered little beyond the assurance that it was not a big issue. Offered an unexpected break, the reporters covering the case lingered in the hallway, taking stock at the end of a trial that featured  unusually  several days of testimony by both of the accused.

Bridget Kelly. Photo: Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images

The consensus among courtroom observers seems to be that Kelly, the petite mother of four who allegedly ordered the closures, came off sympathetically, while Baroni, the square-jawed politico who was reputedly nicknamed Phony Baroni by colleagues when he served in the State Senate, didnt appear as credible. No one needed to argue, though, about who came off looking the worst. Mr. Christie remained the offstage villain, the Mephistopheles of Trenton, the Times wrote in a sulfurous editorial this morning, but it was impossible for even casual trial observers not to discern, from witness after witness, the evident viciousness and grubbiness of the governor and his administration.

Three years ago, when the bridge-closing conspiracy first came to light, investigators asked the time-honored question: What did Governor Christie know, and when did he know it? More than a month of testimony in the case has offered ample evidence that the most plausible answers to those questions are: everything and early. Under oath, some of Christies closest advisers were forced to admit that the governor lied about what he knew  baldly, and repeatedly. But it was Kelly, the defendant, who offered perhaps the most damning account. Over several days of sometimes teary testimony, she claimed that the governor  a boss she said petrified her and even once hurled a water bottle at her in fury  was fully aware of Wildsteins activities, until he had what Kelly delicately called a memory issue. While Christie has denied the allegations, and Kelly is trying to save herself from prison, her story had a convincing ring.

If Kelly is telling the truth about Christies actions  and prosecutors didnt challenge that part of her account during cross-examination  a new timeline of the bridge scandal emerges, one that places Chris Christie at the center of the conspiracy from the outset. Her account begins on August 12, 2013, when she received an email from Wildstein. It read: I have an issue to discuss with you, extraordinarily weird even by my standards.

Wildstein, formerly a muckraking political blogger who went by the pseudonym Wally Edge, played a sort of G. Gordon Liddy role within the Christie administration, and had a long-standing relationship to the governor  his former high-school classmate  and his inner-circle political advisers. According to Baroni, Christie personally installed Wildstein to do his dirty work at the Port Authority. Other witnesses said that it was Baroni, a close friend of Wildsteins, who brought him in  but at any rate, they were all tight. The trial has revealed that Christie affectionately called Wildstein by his old screen name, Wally, and likened him to the cleaner played by Harvey Keitel in Pulp Fiction. So, when Wildstein told Kelly he had an idea for the governor, she said she knew to listen.

Kelly claims Wildstein explained on the phone that he was planning to do a traffic study involving the closure of lanes that allowed local motorists traveling through the town of Fort Lee to directly access the George Washington Bridge. Closing the lanes, she says Wildstein explained, would ease congestion for motorists coming over the regular highway approach, while creating traffic problems in Fort Lee. She claims he told her he had already received approval for the idea from Bill Stepien, the Christie campaign manager, and he asked her to run it by Christie himself for final approval.

Kelly testified that she immediately took the proposal to Christie, telling him that Wildstein had proposed the idea of holding an elaborate campaign event where the governor would be hailed as a champion of New Jersey commuters. Thats typical Wally, she said the governor said, approvingly. She claimed he then asked her whether the administration had a good relationship with Fort Lees Democratic mayor, Mark Sokolich. Emails show that Kelly discussed the issue with her subordinates, and determined that Sokolich would not be endorsing Christie. Kelly claimed that she also briefed Christies chief of staff, Kevin ODowd. Early the following morning, August 13, she dashed off an email to Wildstein: Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee.

Baroni during the trial. Photo: Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images

Wildstein testified that he spent the next few weeks meticulously putting the plan in motion, scheduling the lane shutdown for September 9, the first day of school, to maximize chaos. Two days later, he and Baroni saw Christie at a September 11 memorial service, where Wildstein says they joked with the governor about the pain they were causing Sokolich. (Baroni denied this on the stand.) Kelly, however, testified that after Christie returned to Trenton from the memorial service, he stopped by her office to discuss the traffic jam, telling her it was Wildsteins job to handle it.

Kelly claimed that she and the governor discussed the traffic jam a third time on September 12, while they were traveling to the Jersey shore to oversee the response to a fire. By this time, Sokolich was loudly complaining about the jam, and receiving no response from Baroni  whom Wildstein instructed to maintain radio silence. Kelly said she informed the governor that Sokolich was talking about government retribution. She claimed that Christie again instructed her to leave the matter to Wildstein. The closures continued into the following day, when the Port Authoritys executive director, a New York appointee, furiously put an end to them after learning about them from press inquiries.

Now, there are some less-than-believable elements to this account, chief among them Kellys contention that she didnt know the true motives behind the traffic study. (Baroni claimed similar ignorance on the stand, perhaps even less plausibly, but there are no incriminating emails to contradict his story.) The trial has amply demonstrated that Wildstein was known to be a voracious political animal, and Kelly has testified to witnessing many examples of Christies bullying behavior. The fact that she had a romantic relationship with Stepien  who, strangely, has not been called to testify by either side at the trial  would suggest that, at the least, she had a back channel to communicate with the campaign manager, who allegedly was aware of the revenge scheme from the beginning.

What does seem quite convincing, however, is Kellys claim that she was in no position to order around Wildstein, who had the esteem of the governor. She testified that she merely kept Christie and other members of his inner circle closely informed. Her account of the scandals progression was powerful, in part because it appeared to lay out a rational chain of events. In it, every conversation you imagine must have happened did, in fact, happen.

Over the course of the fall of 2013, more and more advisers to Christie became aware of Wildsteins scheme and its potential implications, and press coverage mounted, driven in part by political infighting between the New York and New Jersey factions of the Port Authority staff. As late as December, though, Christie still thought he could control the scandal by denying everything and working out a deal with New York governor Andrew Cuomo. Kelly described a December 11 conference call in which Christie said he had told Cuomo to instruct his appointees at the Port Authority to back the fuck off. (Both governors would later deny the deal, but several witnesses have now testified that it did occur.) Then, in December, subpoenas started to arrive, and the memory issues began.

The key day in the timeline of the cover-up, according to the case laid out by the defense, was December 13, 2013. That morning, Christie held a meeting where he demanded to know whether any of his senior staff had been involved in the scheme, declaring  in what one witness described as a thunderous voice  that confessionals are open. Kelly testified that she was amazed, since Christie was aware of Wildsteins plan from the beginning. It seemed there was an alternate universe going on, she said. Christies top political adviser, Mike DuHaime, testified that even as Christie played the inquisitor for his staff, he was frantically calling Wildstein and Stepien, trying to determine who knew what. In one of these conversations, DuHaime said, Wildstein disclosed that he had texts and email messages that showed Kelly had given a go-ahead. DuHaime said he called Christie directly and spoke to him, just before he took the podium at a press conference, informing him that Kelly and Stepien were involved.

Christie then went to the podium and said: Ive made it very clear to everybody on my senior staff that if anyone had any knowledge about this that they needed to come forward to me and tell me about it, and theyve all assured me that they dont. The governor said Stepien specifically had assured me the same thing.

He just flat out lied, an aide to Kelly texted another administration official as they watched the press conference. (The message was produced at trial.)

Wildstein was irate, DuHaime testified, when they talked the following day. He was angry that other people were shirking their responsibility and he was being left to take responsibility for this on his own, the political consultant said. The die was cast. Within a week, the mastermind would turn over everything he had in his email account to a legislative committee that was investigating the lane closures. Kelly, meanwhile, was frantically deleting her own emails and text messages  too late  while desperately trying to talk to Christie and ODowd, the chief of staff, to remind them of their previous conversations, to no avail. The following month, when the messages came out, Kelly was abruptly fired, and Christie gave another press conference, saying: I am stunned by the abject stupidity that was shown here. He hired Randy Mastro, an attorney who formerly served mayor Rudolph Giuliani, to conduct a $10 million internal investigation that exonerated Christie, placing most of the blame on Wildstein and Kelly.

Do you know what the word scapegoat is? Michael Critchley asked his client on Monday, near the conclusion of Kellys direct examination.

In his opening argument, Critchley, a pugnacious combatant, displayed a large chart entitled the inner circle, with Chris Christie at the center, and promised to show how the bridge scandal was the work of a coterie of cowards  cowards who are addicted to power. He has succeeded in that objective, and it seems likely that Christies political career and public reputation will never recover. Whether the defense has done enough to win an acquittal for Baroni and Kelly, though, remains a question for another day.
Clinton and Tanden Photo: Paul Morigi/WireImage

One of the qualms many nervous Clinton voters like me have is the fact that Clinton (and her husband) have a habit of surrounding themselves with incompetent or ethically challenged individuals. On the other hand, Clinton also gets some advice from Neera Tanden. Tanden is the president of a liberal think tank that tries to influence Democratic policies, a former member of Hillary Clintons 2008 campaign, and an unofficial adviser to its current one. In those capacities, she adopts the earnest voice of a Washington official who understands any of her unintentionally interesting statements could trigger a scandal that attaches to Clinton. If you ever have a chance to listen to her speak candidly  which (bias confession!) I have on occasion, since my wife once worked for her organization and Tanden lives in my neighborhood and sends her kids to the same schools  you come away impressed and even awed by her ability to summarize any topic with pithy brutality.

Thanks to WikiLeaks, which stole emails from the Clinton campaign and some of its officials, Americans who dont benefit from accidental geographic proximity to Tanden can benefit from her candid analysis of various people in and around the Democratic Party, including Hillary Clinton. Here are her best burns:

1. Hillary Clinton was fucking insane to use a private email system.

2. Her advisers didnt release the emails sooner because they wanted to get away with it.

3. David Brock, the former right-wing hitman turned fanatically pro-Clinton media critic, is kind of a nut bar.

4. Donald Trump is an unhinged narcissist, and David Brock, back for more abuse, is also a conspiracy theorist.

The context of this exchange is Tanden joking that Trump is a Manchurian candidate out to secretly undermine the Republican Party from within, but then clarifying that she does not actually mean it because, unlike Brock, she is not crazy. Tanden also implies that Hillary Clinton is herself susceptible to conspiracy theories, which explains her apparent fondness for the nut bar.

5. Hillary Clintons instincts are suboptimal.

The context is a discussion about whether the campaign should have responded quickly to a controversy, but here Tanden attributes Clintons caution to a larger failure of political instincts that causes her to respond badly, and often belatedly, to critical stories. Although, she also considers the possibility that Bill Clinton was behind it and cites as an example her suspicion that Bill apparently approved a sleazy attack on Barack Obama in the 2008 campaign. (Mark Penn, Clintons incompetent campaign manager in that election, repeated the word cocaine on television in a clumsily obvious effort to inject the accusation into the campaign without owning it directly.)

6. People giving Hillary Clinton a hard time on her word choice in endorsing Black Lives Matter are assholes.

The apparent context is that, in the summer of 2015, some activists were assailing Clinton for using the phrase all lives matter. Clinton had also said black lives matter, and the point of the phrase is precisely that one can recognize the special threat to black lives by law enforcement without denying the value of other lives.

7. Hillary Clinton should have just returned the damn money she got to speak to the banks:

8. Bill de Blasio is a bit insufferable.

The context is de Blasios 2015 publicity tour, in which he attempted to position himself as a national leader of the progressive cause, dismissed Obama and Clinton as insufficiently committed to the progressive agenda, and said, A lot of people outside New York City understand what happened in the first year of New York City better than people in New York City.

9. The Center for American Progress spawned some serious anti-Clinton freaks:

The broader context here is that CAP nurtured a left-wing clique that frequently quarreled with Tanden over such questions as whether Tanden violated their safe space by allowing Benjamin Netanyahu to deliver a speech at CAP or sanctioning one of them for using anti-Semitic terms. Several of those CAP alumni have since become harshly critical of the Democratic Party and liberals in general.

Tanden believes passionately in the liberal cause and has special reverence for Hillary Clinton. But she is able to reconcile those beliefs with the perfectly clear understanding that her candidate of choice has horrendous political instincts. The most reassuring thing to hear about a Clinton presidency would be that Tanden is in the room, saving her from the freaks, hacks, and herself.
Photo: Wikipedia

Toward the beginning the AIDS epidemic in the U.S., the New York Post published a headline that, looking back, did not exactly help advance the publics understanding of the crisis. THE MAN WHO GAVE US AIDS, the paper shouted, with a photo of the man in question: Gaetan Dugas.

Dugas was a flight attendant who, so the story went, was Patient Zero in the epidemic, catching the virus during his international travels and then spreading it to the men he had sex with, thus sparking the health scare. Its the story of HIV transmission that has been told for decades, and yet there is just one small problem with it  it isnt true. This week, a new paper in Nature points out that the story makes little biological, or geographical, sense.

As the New York Times reports:

The strain of H.I.V. responsible for almost all AIDS cases in the United States, which was carried from Zaire to Haiti around 1967, spread from there to New York City around 1971, researchers concluded in the journal Nature. From New York, it spread to San Francisco around 1976.



The new analysis shows that Mr. Dugass blood, sampled in 1983, contained a viral strain already infecting men in New York before he began visiting gay bars in the city after being hired by Air Canada in 1974.



There are many reasons this origin story took hold, among them that Dugas was, essentially, used as a scapegoat. It was too scary to think HIV was a general risk due to the vagaries of biology rather than a callous bad guy, Dr. Richard Elion, an HIV/AIDS researcher at George Washington University, told Vox earlier this year.

But among those many reasons is a particularly bizarre one. In initial reports, scientists dubbed Dugas Patient O, as in the letter O, meaning that he was from outside California. The ambiguous circular symbol on a chart was later read as a zero, notes the Times, stoking the notion that blame for the epidemic could be placed on one man. Patient O became Patient Zero, and Patient Zero became Gaetan Dugas. The strange, sad mistake took decades to correct.
Photo: H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock/Getty Images

From 2007 to 2011, a fascinating experiment played out in five typically low-performing school districts across the country: Students at these schools were, essentially, bribed into getting good grades. All told, the project, organized by the Harvard economist Roland Fryer, paid out a total of $9.4 million to 36,000 children  and it was the children, mind you, who got the money, not their parents.

Which leads us to the real question here: Did it work?

The answer to that is complicated; money-as-motivator is never as straightforward as it seems like it should be. First, its important to point out that each city  New York, Dallas, Chicago, Washington D.C. and Houston  had slightly different incentives. In the New York project, fourth graders (9- to 10-year-olds) could earn $25 for doing well on tests, while seventh graders (12- to 13-year-olds) could earn $50 for each A grade they achieved. This allowed them to earn a maximum of $500 during the school year, half of which was put into an account, untouchable until they left high school, but the other half of which they could spend immediately. The Chicago scheme was similar. But in Washington D.C., the students received money not for high grades but for good behaviour, regular attendance and timely homework completion.

Conventional wisdom would suggest that whatever the ethics, such large incentives would yield results. And there was some success, though not uniformly in all five cities. In fact, the outcomes were decidedly patchy.

In New York and Chicago, the payments had little impact on grades overall, although in Chicago school attendance improved. In Washington D.C., results on reading tests rose for some students, but scores for other subjects didnt. In Houston, math scores improved in the particular areas they had been paid to study, but it only made a small difference to their math grades overall.

In Dallas, however, things really did change, due to a crucial difference in the way the trial was run. Here, children were offered money not for obtaining good grades, but for completing particular tasks  in this case, reading books. They were much younger, at only 7 and 8 years old, and they were given $2 for each book they read. They could choose the books from a selection and could read them at their own pace. They took a comprehension test to prove they had read it, and while there was no direct reward gained for higher reading comprehension scores, thats exactly what the children achieved  which is not surprising when you think about it. After all, its by reading that you get better at reading.

Now, there are a couple of things to note here. First, bribing children to read books might rob them of whats known as intrinsic motivation. It could take away their love of reading, so that once the payments have stopped, they never pick up a book again. The researchers did look to see what happened next: In the year after the payments stopped, students were still doing well on reading tests, but there was only half the improvement. Gradually, the effect of the payments fades away.

Photo: Oxana Bogatova/Getty Images/\

However, its the second aspect of the Dallas experiment that is most important to our understanding of how financial incentives of this sort work. In Dallas, the children were paid to complete a task which they could all do as long as they put in the effort. In the other cities, by contrast, payment was not for effort but attainment  not for reading textbooks, but for getting high grades. Of course, by concentrating hard in lessons, doing homework and revision, some children could increase their chances of doing well in the tests. But for others, however much effort they put in, they just wouldnt get the A grades that would earn them the payments. After each of the tests in the New York project, students were asked what they could do in order to get better grades next time, and couldnt really answer the question. The students in the other cities were certainly keen to earn the cash, but by contrast in Dallas the task was specific, clear and within the control of the students, and that distinction appears to matter.

Despite achieving some success, the Harvard experiment has not been widely applied in the U.S.  or, indeed, in other advanced schooling systems. It seems there is still a certain moral queasiness about introducing monetary incentives into schools  a reaction which, as it happens, dates back almost 200 years. As early as the 1820s, the Society for Progressive Education tried paying New York school children for high academic results, only for the scheme to be abandoned after a decade amid fears that this was the wrong sort of encouragement for a child and that they might end up developing a mercenary spirit.

One of the issues, perhaps, is that in richer countries, the incentives offered are just not life-changing enough to make a difference. Perhaps in poorer countries they would have more impact; in fact, such schemes have been tried widely in lower income countries including Colombia, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Kenya, Mexico and Pakistan. In Mexico, the Progresa scheme paid families a large sum, as much as half their salary, to ensure their older children went to school every day. In terms of attendance, the scheme worked, particularly among the problem 14- to 17-year-old age group, where attendance rose from 64 percent to 76 percent. There was even an add-on effect on younger siblings, despite the payments not applying to them. Yet higher attendance at school only resulted in a 410 percent increase in attainment. An improvement worth having, but, just as we saw in Chicago in the Harvard experiment, getting children to go to school doesnt necessarily get them to learn.

But a scheme introduced in the Colombian capital, Bogota, in 2005, was a spectacular success. This time, students who graduated from high school received a $300 bonus, enough to pay for college fees. Before the bonus was brought in, only 22 percent of young people graduated from high school. With the bonus that rose to an impressive 72 percent.

How can this be explained? It could be that lots of talented students were failing to graduate from school because of financial pressures, but once the $300 graduation bonus was introduced the calculation changed. It was economically sensible for them to stay on at school and utilize the ability they already had to pass their final exams.

A key element, though, was the size of the incentive relative to earnings in the country: $300 in Bogota in 2005 was a lot of money. Getting the bonus could make a real difference to your life, enabling you to study in a way that you couldnt before.

After comparing schemes from around the world, Professor Robert Slavin from York University concludes that financial incentives are only successful in richer countries if they target the very poorest people. Meanwhile, in low-income countries, the schemes work best when conditions are well-defined and concurrent efforts are made to improve teaching in the schools. What is also clear is that incentives are better than penalties, and payments are more successful in concrete subjects like maths than in other subjects. Even then, they are an expensive way of enhancing results, so it is arguably better to invest the money in improving the education system overall. (My apologies to the straight-A students out there hoping to make some extra cash.)

Excerpted from MIND OVER MONEY by arrangement with Harper Perennial, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. Copyright  2016, Claudia Hammond.
Photo: Brian Ach/Getty Images for MTV

Amanda Nguyen is the first person to label herself a nerd. During her internships at NASA Headquarters, when she was 18, the California native worked on the Grand Challenge Asteroid Redirect Mission to calculate the orbital dynamics of near-Earth objects. For fun, she collects meteorites and travels to Florida to witness rocket launches. (Shes seen six.) While studying government at Harvard, she played classical piano and researched exoplanets with the Smithsonian.

It was also during her time at college that Nguyen was raped. Traumatic as that was, because of some arcane laws on the books in Massachusetts, three years on she must travel to Boston from her home in Washington, D.C., every six months to fill out paperwork that prevents her rape kit from being destroyed. In Massachusetts, evidence is kept for only six months, and authorities are not required to contact the victim before they toss kits out  even though the statute of limitations is 15 years, she explains. I am being re-victimized by a truly broken system. Had her rape happened in Michigan, for example, her evidence might have been among the 10,000 tested kits that, as of March, resulted in the identification of 729 serial rapists and 36 arrests. Justice is dependent on geography, she says.

So Nguyen is redrawing the map. Hours after she submitted to the humiliating medical examination and was met with enigmatic legal hurdles, she took to her computer and fired off an email to any public servant with a published address. She asked them to help her canvas the 50 states for laws that best supported sexual-assault survivors and reframe those edicts as civil rights. That one email led to the formation of Rise, a loose collective of lawyers, students, activists, financial advisers, and even politicians with the goal of passing a comprehensive Sexual Assault Survivors Bill of Rights. Among the logical liberties the bill calls for: providing rape kits at no cost to victims; keeping the evidence until its no longer admissible in court; informing survivors of any DNA matches and toxicology reports; alerting them before a kit is destroyed.

The legislation written by Nguyen, now a deputy White House liaison to the State Department, found strong support from New Hampshire senator Jeanne Shaheen, a long-time champion of womens rights. Senator Shaheen shaped the bill for federal adoption, and it passed the Senate unanimously on May 23. Amanda is very courageous, Shaheen says. She is taking the position that something so awful should never happen to anyone again.

The Twitterati agrees. A former colleague of Nguyens, now at Funny or Die, put together a satirical skit of supervillains pillorying the existing laws, which Judd Apatow tweeted the day after the legislation was introduced. Two weeks later, Patricia Arquette posted Nguyens Rise petition on change.org to her Twitter account. This happened faster than we imagined, says Nguyen from her Chinatown apartment, which is decorated with hand-drawn, glitter-embellished cartoons of her personal hero, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg (the Notorious R.B.G), and a scale model of a Saturn V rocket ship that the aspiring astronaut is building. Nguyen was not going to quit until the patchwork of unequal state laws were tossed out and replaced with improved, codified federal rights.

Her persistence paid off. The House voted in September, and on October 7, President Obama signed the Sexual Assault Survivors Bill of Rights, S.2163, into law. Its time people realize that survivors have rights, and Rise is offering a way forward, Nguyen says.

Now Nguyen can turn some of her free time to her other priority. I am determined to find my own planet, she says. If the youngest White House liaison on staff can get a rape law passed, surely an exoplanet is within reach.
Young Bill Clinton. Photo: Cynthia Johnson/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images

So far, Donald Trumps key strategy to counter accusations of sexism, misogyny, and  more recently  sexual assault has been Bill Clinton. Early in the race, the Trump campaign released a horror-movie-style ad depicting Clinton as a rapist. And since Trumps 2005 comments on Access Hollywood were made public, Trumps allies have been even more aggressive in defending him by thrusting Clintons accusers into the spotlight.

So far Trump has confined his commentary on Bill Clinton to rallies and tweets, and Hillary Clinton hasnt been asked to answer directly for her husbands sketchy history with women. But emails between Clinton staffers published by WikiLeaks show Clintons campaign has struggled with how best to address her husbands alleged misdeeds.

In January, Clinton adviser Ron Klain, a former aide to Joe Biden, sent around an email with four questions he thought ought to be addressed. We need to set aside some time  it can be tomorrow, it can be Thursday  to do Q-and-A on the political questions, which now seem to be really owning the coverage, he wrote. The fourth question was titled WJC [William Jefferson Clinton] issues.

WikiLeaks

Another aide replied, I think we should go through 1-3 tomorrow. John, how to handle 4? Based on the documents from WikiLeaks, John never responded.
Photo: Rio Grande do Norte State Security

On Friday, two rape survivors ended Minnesota cult leader Victor Barnards reign. The 55-year-old was sentenced to 30 years in prison for sexually assaulting two women for years.

Barnard was the leader of the River Road Fellowship, an offshoot Christian sect he founded and transformed into a cult. The two women who ultimately filed 59 counts of sexual assault against Barnard were the youngest of ten first-born daughters, ages 12 to 24, whom Barnard selected to be the groups Ten Maidens, in 2000. As chaste, exemplar virgins, the girls lived apart from their families at Barnards private camp, where he secretly raped them for a decade.

Barnard pleaded guilty earlier this month on two counts of felony sexual assault and agreed to 30 years in a plea deal. The final sentencing hearing on Friday ended four months of U.S. court proceedings, following Barnards capture in Brazil, and allowed the two survivors to read statements describing the impact Barnards crimes had on their lives.

The two women stood before the packed courtroom together and read their statements aloud, speaking directly to Barnard while describing how they worked to overcome the abuse. I ask Victor to look around, one woman said. I have the whole United States system of law enforcement and justice behind me. What does he have? A cult of perverts and cowards. She continued:

I know he thought I would change my mind here, that he still had power over me. No chance. He cannot break me. He does not own me. He no longer scares me. He is the one that is weak.  I can now say good-bye to Victor  forever.

The second woman began by noting that yesterday, October 27, marked 16 years since Barnard first abused her. He stole my innocence. My childhood. My virginity, she said. In not going to trial, he is only sparing himself the pain and humiliation of the details of his abuse of us becoming public.

In his statement, Barnard explained that what he did was not consistent with faith. God is good, his word faithful and true, he said, according to Minnesota station Fox 9 KMSP. I have not always walked in goodness. I am deeply sorrowful  and I hope God will heal their broken hearts.

Defense attorney Marsh Halberg, who represented Barnard with Dave Risk, said that if Barnard complies with conditions, which include sex counseling, he could serve only two-thirds of the sentence  about 17 to 18 years. He really did want to spare everybody  the victims, the church, the community, Halberg said, acknowledging that other people considered Barnards decision to not enter a trial as martyrdom. I appreciate that they dont see it that way. He didnt want to put people through it.

Pine County attorney Reese Frederickson said he shortened his own argument to let the womens powerful statements speak for themselves. The sentencing brings closure for the victims and the community, he said. Justice was served.

This post has been updated throughout.
he seems insufferably douchey, and I don't know why he just won't come out already.

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Because we don't want him either, just like the straight women.

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lmao 

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Lmao

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lmao this is too good

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lmao

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hahaha, not a word of lie

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He stole a picture from one of my friends who's a food blogger, cropped out her stamped logo, and then blocked her and deleted all her friends comments on his IG one-by-one. He was like "nobody even knows you, get over it". It was a brunch pic and he even made up a backstory about where he was!

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"- To get the perfect picture or Snapchat, sometimes he'll make waiters come back and bring his food "with more enthusiasm"



I didn't think it was possible for him to sound even more insufferable

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imagine him saying it in his droopy dog voice, with those dead eyes staring into you

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lmao

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I'd want to barf right on his gross face. It would probably look better, too.

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Don't come at basset hounds like this sis

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omg

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Omg no

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Wonder how many times his food has been spat in.

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I set it down and tell him to keep my tip.

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I've always wanted to know how Kim Kardashian's bff spends the day,said no one ever.

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"There's a network of top doctors that normal people dont know about. That's just the perks of being famous, because you get first access to special places like this."



Lol so this douche thinks he's ~famous~





Edited at 2016-10-28 01:08 am (UTC)

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That was my thought. I've never ever heard of him, but I've also never watched KUWTK and don't really give a shit about them.

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He isn't remotely famous

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If this is his "after" face, I am terrified to see the "before."

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Well... he looked human before. Now he is some feline-human hybrid.

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JESUS FUCKING CHRIST

He looks like an afghan hound

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He looks much better here.

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he looks like Roberto Luongo from the florida panthers

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I mean, tbh, the nose job helped, but idk what else he's done to make his face look so wide.



Edited at 2016-10-28 02:05 am (UTC)

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he's a fucking nut

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I feel bad for whatever writer was assigned to this story.





I feel like the 'Jonathan Cheban is Kim Kardashian's BFF' title is so dated. That was my thing years ago. But thats not really what I'm known for anymore.



lol



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I actually cackled

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Lololololol best part of this interview. The delusion!

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You'd have to be questioning your life choices if you were the writer of this story, right?

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"I'm known more now for my nickname bestowed on me by close inner circle confidante Kanye West. A nickname that literally no-one else uses and that Kanye himself probably flippantly word-vomited out only a handful of times"

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To get the perfect picture or Snapchat, sometimes he'll make waiters come back and bring his food "with more enthusiasm



he better leave a good tip.. what the fuck

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I hate him so much, His face is giving me I'm-watching-a-video-on-a-cracked-androi d-phone teas.

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So hes an entitled asshole.

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omg I saw a gifset of this moment on tumblr that said "the camera director deserves a fucking emmy" and it got me to watch RPDR for the first time

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More like just "What do you do?"



Success and Kim's permanent ass kisser should never be in the same sentence,

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lol

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lol

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I wonder what his parents are like. I would be so ashamed if my child turned out like this.

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for all the money he has, his face looks like its melting

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I hate butch boys but I want him to murder my vagina.

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this is exactly how I feel about him

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I..see this as genuine?

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I didn't know that word was offensive until a few years ago tbh, and even really ~woke people I know have used it without realizing it's a slur. So yeah ia, sometimes people genuinely don't know certain things and once they learn they're like oh oops.



it's the people who don't care and don't listen that irritate me the most

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Exactly. Idk how many people I've met who are extremely kind hearted people and I had to educate them on that word bc honestly I didn't even know till last year. ONTD is very unforgiving but some people don't sit on celebrity gossip sites that educate us. The news does a shit job of educating people.

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I find ONTD to be very unforgiving. I'm fine with calling someone out when they're problematic but also be forgiving when someone shows they were ignorant or at least trying to better themselves.



It's bizarre to me when ONTD drags someone's comments from ten years ago when they haven't shown any similar behaviours.

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mte. There's so much shit I've done over the years that I never realized was offensive.



I used to live in a bubble and got mad about people saying "white privilege", etc until I educated myself about it. Unfortunately it's stuff you normally have to learn on your own.



It's another thing if you're informed about it and then still continue to be offensive.

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I didn't know the g word was offensive until someone explained it here.

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same



it's not a "i'm sorry you you were offended" apology

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Yeah, I agree. He didn't have to bring up his costume in his post at all but he chose to and I think that says a lot.

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I think is. Most people probably forgot about it at this point, so it feels sincere that he'd apologize now when there's no pressure to.

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I think it is

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Yeah it is.

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It seems to be. He brought up something that happened last year. Majority of the people forgot about it. And nowhere in the apology it said "sorry you were offended I was just having fun".

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IA. An apology on it's own would be "ehh.." but the fact that he's also using the platform to support and spread awareness makes it more meaningful.



Edited at 2016-10-28 12:36 pm (UTC)

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It's a white guy saying it, and one in MCU too, so of course you do. People here never even had a problem with what he did, yet they drag women for doing less everyday.

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yeah seems like he means it

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Yeah. It's rare that we see it with celeb apologies but he seems legitimately sorry for what he did & called out his own ignorance from last year. He didn't even have to bring it up but he did. I appreciate genuine apologies & this seems to be one.

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wow that's actually a real apology

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the superior chris stays superior, actually giving a good response and shit!!! how is he from australia

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isn't the director of the new thor Maori? probs educated chris about this stuff

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hey some of us are decent. i like to think we're learning.

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what has Chris Evans done? I see him as Superior.

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wow a genuine celebrity apology

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i'm not usually attracted to the chris hemsworth type but like.............chris dick me down



taika too tbh



Edited at 2016-10-28 03:25 am (UTC)

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this is genuine.. I'm glad, he seems like a nice dude

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Good apology.



I love Sophia <3

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Very genuine apology.



He's so fun to stare at dear god

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Tried reading but kept scrolling back up to peak at those muscles. and i don't even normally like overly buff guys but...unf



glad he apologized tho

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also i hope tessa and he have a sex scene in this next film

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yeah, i'm not into super buff guys either but he is definitely an exception.

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O_____O



ok but ur still a shit huntsman

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his apology seems like he actually took the time to learn why what he did was wrong, and is sincerely sorry about it. Unlike most celebs.

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Nonetheless, Australians remain trash with little regard for Indigenous peoples



For anyone interested, indigenous australians remain the most disadvantaged 'fourth world' population in the world:



Edited at 2016-10-28 03:37 am (UTC) damn that is a good apologyNonetheless, Australians remain trash with little regard for Indigenous peoplesFor anyone interested, indigenous australians remain the most disadvantaged 'fourth world' population in the world: https://health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/EF81F462A8E8482BCA257BF0001ED788/$File/PHC%20Chapters%203-4.pdf

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I'm writing a paper about the indigenous suicide crisis in Canada and a lot of the journal articles also talk about the crisis in Australia and New Zealand too, and yeah it's ridiculous how indigenous people in Australia are treated and viewed by society. At least in Canada it's somewhat recognized that we treat indigenous people like shit, but I feel like in Australia it's not even talked about, they're just brushed aside

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yeah for sure. Just the tip of the iceberg, butgod forbid an Aboriginal person complains about blackface. They are met with a stampede of white people on mainstream media telling them that blackface isnt racist.



Australia fucking sucks and sometimes I hate living here

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I don't know, in Canada it's still horrendous. Honestly, the only people I hear talking about it are our indigenous populations, white people barely give a shit.

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not really, trudeau doesn't give a shit about the missing indigenous women, for instance.

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ITA re: Canada. It's getting better here in the terms of recognition, but holy crap, it's been bad.

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tbh I think NZ is pretty good with Maori stuff most of the time, especially compared to how Canada and Australia treat their indigenous people

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I think it's getting better very very slowly. Or maybe I just hang around young people who are pretty switched on about this stuff. It's still appalling though, I just mean that I have seen a bit of a shift towards being less fucking racist.

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and yet so many people are like "they have it easy! they get everything given to them by the government!" the ignorance is just disgusting. between this and asylum seekers, i really feel sometimes like we're moving fucking backwards.

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This is what confuses me when he says he didn't know it was offensive considering how the indigenous population in Australia have been treated. I imagine there's similar appropriation issues down there. Am I wrong?

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I sincerely hope that these celebrities' support for the DAPL protestors gets more people informed and maybe it can be something that politicians actually acknowledge. I can't believe that this hasn't come up in any of the presidential debates.



But lol it's probably in both candidates best interests to keep quiet about it so....

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Can you imagine if Donald Trump came out against it? It would be nice if Hillary did, but her supporters would primarily go "it's about time" whereas I think Donald's supporters heads might explode. Especially in NoDak/SoDak.

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all of the coverage of this today in contrast with the oregon standoff trial verdict has been so heartbreaking and unsettling, i had to take a long break. i don't even know what is going on in our country anymore

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it's the most RAGE inducing

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I'm seriously trying to not think about the Oregon verdict because I need to go to sleep and not be all wound up but WHAT THE FUCK. THEY'RE GUILTY. THEY RECORDED AND LIVESTREAMED THEMSELVES DOING EVERYTHING THEY'RE CHARGED WITH. HOW.

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she is GORGEOUS!!!!!!!!!

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I have too much fat on me and also too big shoulders



gtfo. broad-shouldered girls are hot a as fuck.





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bless you for this comment 

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as a big-shoulder girl, bless this comment <3

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I want to send you that emoji that kisses a little heart but I don't know how because I'm old.

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(gacked from a z@mzvng emoji at emojipedia I think) (gacked from a z@mzvng emoji at emojipedia I think)

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er, you do a right-click on it to save it to your computer, then upload it to your LJ scrapbook, then click on it and it will give you the code to post with.



any questions, you ask me!

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Bless

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ILY

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Thank you! :)

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As a broad shouldered girl, that makes me feel better

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right?! wtf is wrong with these people?

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Her body is absolutely amazing, and judging by her instagram she seems to workout a lot too/prioritize fitness. So gross what they did to her, but I'm glad she stood up for herself and tried to send a positive message to her followers.

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That's probably the problem - they don't want women with any muscle tone. Too threatening. Women are supposed to be weak and helpless so the big strong men can take care of them.

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Too much fat where, her earlobes? Kill All Pageants 2016

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I agree.

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Ridiculous. I'm so tired of women having to look half-starved as the ideal of beauty. I hate that this started and it needs to end now.

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It's fucking sick

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What the fuck is wrong with the world?

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She's stunning. And they're idiots.

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It's sad how many women still strive to be part of pageants in this day in age, and it's even sadder that they'd sooner risk their well-being (mentally/physically) than choose another direction. There are a lot of jobs in the fashion and beauty field -- especially the beauty branch. Why not go for that? Or TV/Movies?



Most pageants are just toxic, and the judges really take advantage with their power.





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I think I remember reading a long time ago that they still accounted for the largest percentage of scholarships for women. I don't know if that's true for international pageants or even just true today

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The runner up in some national pageant got a scholarship and went to my college! There was an "interesting people in the class of ___" email sent about it lol.

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Watch the John Oliver expose on this...



Like for example Miss America says they award the most scholarships but their definition of "award" is basically OFFERING a scholarship to one of like three universities and they count those as three distinct scholarships even though one person cannot attend three universities simultaneously and the person may not wish to attend any of those universities at all, but they still consider that as awarded scholarships even if they're never used.

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That took more strength than staying would have & hopefully will make more of a difference.

Also how tf would losing weight make her shoulders less broad? Pageants need to die.

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She's banging, wtf are they on

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it's so fucked up. it is just so fucked up. I can't deal. How are these women made to feel bad about the way they look when they look amazing? And wtf are the rest of us plebeians supposed to feel like? Some days I love my body and some days I do not. It is a constant struggle. How are we supposed to feel when we see things like this? fuck this shit.

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It's shitty they said this to her, but I think her reaction is amazing and I'm glad she's standing up for herself.

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absolutely bizarre and disgusting

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i mean, she does have some huge arms

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umm

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She has muscular arms, which is amazing. I bet she's a great hugger and I'd feel safe in her arms at night.

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Aw this is so sweet <3

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I wouldn't even say that, they're just a bit toned. I wish my arms looked like that!

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I went to see her instagram pics and she's not either fat or have big shoulder.



Be gone, troll.

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where

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nope



and she used to be a competitive pole vaulter so her arms are just muscular and lean.

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i mean, you obvs want attention so here goes!



Fuck off.

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lol can i assume you were being sarcastic and everyone else is overreacting or

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all the better to crush you with

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Tbh, I gave up on The Fall after series 1 because I was just not into spending so much time in the serial killer's headspace.



But since this post is about a British crime drama... does anyone else watch Vera? I've recently started watching it and I'm really enjoying it.

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Haven't seen Vera but on the same topic - what about Marcella?

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Marcella started off good but by the end of it they had introduced literally like 50 characters and 500 subplots that had nothing to do with the main story or anything and it was just confusing and not enjoyable

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I really liked Marcella and I'm glad it's coming back. They left some lose ends I'd like tidied up.

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Haven't seen the new series yet. Is it good/worth watching?

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Only eps 5 and 6 are worth watching imo

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idk kinda lol only if you love stella tbh

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It's suuuuuuuper slow until the absolute end.

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It took him one full ep to get out of bed, it was sf frustrating!

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i just finished it and it is slow until the very end



but it's not a lot of eps, so just power through

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please no spoilers cause i haven't watched it yet but wasn't the finale 2 hours? the stream i found is only 58 minutes long hmm

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It was aired on two nights, episodes 5 and 6.

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thanks! i went straight to ep 6 and stated loading it O_O good thing i read this before i watched it hehe

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No, 3.5 aired yesterday maybe that's why you think it's two hour finale

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Just finished the finale and eehhhhh. I was enjoying this season but not fond of how they ended it.

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Same, I'm a bit mad lol

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can u spoil it for me bb

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[ Spoiler (click to open) ] During an interview, Paul goes from 0 to 100 and beats Stella (she lives). Paul then organized a riot at the facility he was in, killed another patient, and then killed himself via auto-erotic asphyxiation.

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lol I feel the reverse, I was not enjoying this season and then the last two eps I feel like "Thank God, things finally happened."



The end was pretty predictable given that a certain actor said this would be their last season.

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Jamie Dornan terrified me. You could so clearly see when he snapped and yet I didn't expect the curb stomping. It put me on edge until the very last second.



Also, as a person who generally finds most of the things Stella says pretty trite, I teared up at "tough times need tough dreams".



Parts were truly beyoned the scope of suspended belief but it was still thoroughly gripping. Dunno if that absolves how completely dull the other episodes were. I hope Stella is back and they seemed to hint that her story will continue.

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[ Spoiler (click to open) ] he was totally faking the amnesia, right?



It boggled my mind why they would be letting him roam freely at this facility, or not be shackled during the interrogation, or hell, even let him wear a belt? Dude is an accused serial killer! Jamie and Gillian really played that moment SO well. But just to be clear,It boggled my mind why they would be letting him roam freely at this facility, or not be shackled during the interrogation, or hell, even let him wear a belt? Dude is an accused serial killer!

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[ Spoiler (click to open) ] oh, definitely. Stella got him so good that he cracked. Also I think the prospect of getting treatment but not being cured wasn't something he could live with. A weird way to show guilt but after everything, I guess we just have to take it.



That was really lazy of the writer and he had a lifetime to write that whole scenario better but police buffoonery was basically the whole premise of the show. That was really lazy of the writer and he had a lifetime to write that whole scenario better but police buffoonery was basically the whole premise of the show.

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[ spoiler ]

They didn't let him wear a belt, he stole it from Dr Larson when he beat him.

But ia that he was given way too much freedom to be roaming around, especially after he'd attacked Stella. And how the fuck was he ever allowed to be within sight of Rose Stagg in the hospital?

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he was so really scary i was shocked

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he looks so fucking good with that beard

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Yeah, I'm not at all attracted to him when he's fully shaved but as soon as he's got some serious scruff or a beard I'm suddenly into him.

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mfte

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so good

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someone spoil me on what happened tbh

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[ Spoiler (click to open) ] Paul organized a riot at the facility he was in, killed another patient, and then killed himself via auto-erotic asphyxiation.

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This episode was fantastic but this season was really underwhelming. I was so excited for the show to start again and I couldn't believe how dull it all was. If only every episode had been like this.



When Paul snapped with Stella that was fucking brutal.

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His little smile before he went off was chilling.

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yeah you could tell she really, really got to him in that scene

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why is he good in this and so insipid in 50 shades? i hope he improves. he was so bland in the first one

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I haven't seen 50 Shades, but I'm gonna have to guess it's the writing because after all, you can't polish a turd.

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He is SO bad in 50shades. It is physically painful to watch. I do not understand AT ALL why he accepted the role if he meant to play it like that, I mean, Dakota had it all figured it out 'I'm playing a moron, I might as well do my job' but idk what Jamie was trying to do

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He needs his beard.

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I thought he didn't change a thing since Paul Spector when he played Grey. And I thought that was very fitting and laughed and cried throughout the whole movie. I guess direction in some way and script in a bigger way made it look awkward

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yeah I mean if both Dakota and Jamie are bad, we can blame its stupid story and bad writing etc but Dakota is actually good.

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i just don't think he tried at all

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[ Spoiler (click to open) ] The fact all the episodes were so ~quiet made the impact of Paul kicking off that much more spectacular and frightening. This season was SO slow, but I can also see the reasoning for it after watching the finale?

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I just need to know if we see her and Merlin dude hook up. Never thought I'd be attracted to him, but lo and behold

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I saw a tweet the other day that said something to the effect of Colin Morgan specifically in The Fall and nothing else  and I couldn't agree more. Him speaking in his real accent helps, I think

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You don't find him hot in The Living and the Dead? He's ridiculously sexy to me in that and Humans.

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Second season of Humans starts this Sunday on channel 4

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didn't that happen in the first episode they met in



i don't think it happened again though



and same tbh he doesn't look like a skeleton here so nice

seeing the gif below, i take that back



Edited at 2016-10-28 11:29 pm (UTC)

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Sorry if the photo is huge... Sis...Sorry if the photo is huge...

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stella my queen don't leave me

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Whew the season is over, now I can binge watch it. Seasons 1 and 2 were amazing.

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Why is Jamie more tolerable in this than as Christian Grey? The mystery of our times.

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Because in this it's okay to acknowledge his super creepy ass ways? lol idk.

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Brazil - a non-OPEC producer with a fast-growing oil output - will be joining other non-OPEC members, including Russia, at Saturdays discussion with the cartel producers about possible cooperation on production freeze or cut, Bloomberg reports, quoting a text message by Brazils energy minister Fernando Bezerra Coelho Filho.

Brazilian Oil and Gas Secretary Marcio Felix will be attending the Saturday meeting in Vienna, during which OPEC will seek support from producers outside the cartel on ways to lift chronically low crude oil prices.

Commenting on the chances of OPEC reaching a real deal on production freeze/cuts, Helima Croft, chief commodities strategist at RBC Capital Markets, said for Bloomberg in an e-mail:

I remain very optimistic because of the increasing signs of economic strains in Saudi and other key producers.

On Friday, an OPEC-only meeting started the talks in Vienna to try to hammer out the details of whos cutting (or not) how much in order to ratchet down total OPEC output into the proposed production range of 32.5 million bpd-33 million bpd.

The meeting of OPECs High-level Committee of the Algiers Accord will not decide outright a course of action, rather, it would make recommendations for the other OPEC meeting, again in Vienna, on November 30.

Our deliberations today  and tomorrow with some non-OPEC producers  could very well have fundamental ramifications for the market, as well as for the medium- to long-term of the industry, OPECs Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo said in the opening remarks.

According to Reuters, the producers outside the cartel that will be sending representatives to take part in Saturdays talks are Russia, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Oman, Azerbaijan, Brazil, and Bolivia.

On the eve of this weekends meeting, Saudi Arabia and its Gulf OPEC partners had signaled they would be ready to cut 4 percent of their near record oil output. Before todays meeting, an OPEC delegate told Reuters:



It is getting complicatedEvery day there is a new issue coming up.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
"In the absence of democracy and efficient bureaucracies, wasta is the way the Arab world worksit means connections, influence, a web of old favors, and tribal history. With wasta, doorseven to palacesopen. Without it, they remain forever closed."

In an election season that has been full of surprises, lets hope the electorate understands that there is at least one thing of which it can be certain: A Hillary Clinton presidency will be built, from the ground up, on self-dealing, crony favors, and an utter disregard for the law.



This isnt a guess. It is spelled out, in black and white, in the latest bombshell revelation from WikiLeaks. It comes in the form of a memo written in 2011 by longtime Clinton errand boy Doug Band, who for years worked simultaneously at the Clinton Foundation and at the head of his lucrative consulting business, Teneo.

This excerpt [Band's description of the inner workings of The Clinton Foundation]and all the potential conflicts it describes, plus Chelseas warning about business hustling at foundation events, would seem more than ample cause to trigger an IRS audit of the foundation. For that matter, why arent the IRS and prosecutors already on the case? Any normal foundation has to keep records to show it is separating its nonprofit activity from any for-profit business.

Its also worth noting that in the vast digital trove of Mr. Podestas stolen emails we havent noticed emails from Mrs. Clinton. Perhaps they dont exist. But American voters shouldnt worry merely about the emails released before the election. What emails or memos exist that these hackers, Russian or not, could be withholding for leverage after the election with another President Clinton?



The Clinton campaign has suggested that Donald Trump has praised Vladimir Putin because the Russian has something on the Republican. The question is what do any number of possible bad actors know about Bill and Hillary Clintons mixing of business, charity and politics?

Its also worth noting that in the vast digital trove of Mr. Podestas stolen emails we havent noticed emails from Mrs. Clinton. Perhaps they dont exist. But American voters shouldnt worry merely about the emails released before the election. What emails or memos exist that these hackers, Russian or not, could be withholding for leverage after the election with another President Clinton?



The Clinton campaign has suggested that Donald Trump has praised Vladimir Putin because the Russian has something on the Republican. The question is what do any number of possible bad actors know about Bill and Hillary Clintons mixing of business, charity and politics?

... a paradox exists that cannot be ignored. Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and the mainstream media are all telling us that Putin and Assange are the bad guys. Bad guys they might be, but in effect they are providing information to the American people that Clinton and Obama do not want them to have, because if the American people have this information, they would not approve of what Clinton and President Obama have done.



Color me reactionary, but I dont think Putin and Assange are the folks we should be most concerned about right now. They are only influencing the election based upon larger disclosure of the facts. Clinton, Obama, and the media are influencing the election based on attempts to suppress and distort the facts.

In his thinking person's spy thriller,author Terry Hayes discusses the wreckage (economic, intellectual, and cultural) that is the Muslim Arab Middle East when he writes about Saudi Arabia. As an example, he usesan Arabic word that means corruption within and around the government, its bureaucracies, and its people. It implies bribery but also connotes more widespread influence peddling. Hayes writes:When I read those sentences, I couldn't help but think about the direction our country is moving with the likely election of Hillary Clintoncall it American Kim Strassel reports on the latest Wikileaks bombshell revelations (read the whole thing) with a summary statement:Strassel goes on to describe the unethical and near-criminal self-dealing that enriched the Clintons from the very big money interests that Hillary sanctimoniously condemns on the stump. Early in this campaign I asked how the Clintonsa couple with no private sector jobs and no company ownership went from broke to a $100+ million net worth in 15 years. Now we know, and it isn't pretty. In fact, it stinks to high heaven! The Wall Street Journal writes:But, of course, the IRS has been compromised by the Obama administration and is now weaponized to attack only the opponents of Obama, Clinton and the progressives. And if you think its bad and corrupt now, just wait.With Clinton's likely victory, the elites will have triumphedtheir connections and influence remaining safely intact; their horrendously bad decisions and policy unassailable. The web of old favors will remain as solid as ever. The "friends of the Clintons" will have access while others will have little or none. Briberyin the guise of donations to a sham charity along with excessive speaking fees for the Charity's directorswill flourish, and the "tribe" made up of the Democrats and their media sycophants will vanquish all others.Americaget ready for it. It's coming on January 20th. The Wall Street Journal writes in the same editorial noted above:Looks like the WSK editors have finally caught up with those of us who have been concerned that Hillary's 33,000 missing emails (you know, the ones about "grandchildren and yoga") have been hacked (a 100% certainly, given the Wikileaks evidence) and will become fodder for blackmail from very bad actors. They write:Hillary has already demonstrated she will do anything to stay in power. If blackmailed (a very real possibility) with hacked email written in her own words and indicating criminal wrong-doing or explosive dishonesty (say, about Benghazi), I have no doubt she would sell-out her country to stay in power.After discussing the main stream media's continuing attempts to protect Hillary Clinton from the awful implications of the Wikileak's document by suggesting the Julian Assange and the Russians are the bad guys in all of this, Timm Amundson writes:Clinton and her trained hamsters in the media are desperately trying to run out the election clock. But the wrong doing described in the Wikileaks documents will dog Clinton well into her presidency.
For the 10th straight year, October is Dining Month on OnMilwaukee, presented by the restaurants of Potawatomi Hotel & Casino. All month, we're stuffed with restaurant reviews, dining guides, delectable features, chef profiles and unique articles on everything food, as well as voting for your "Best of Dining 2016."

Today is the last day of business for a classic Milwaukee pub.

According to a sign posted on the restaurant's door, John Hawks Pub, 100 E. Wisconsin Ave., will not renew its lease for its Riverwalk location.

John Hawks has a long history in Milwaukee.

Founder Robert Bell opened the pub in 1971 in the lower level at 607 N. Broadway, where it was expanded in 1986. It moved to its current location in 1990. In 2011, the restaurant was sold to Brian Ward, owner of Point Burger Bar and Ward's House of Prime. In January 2015, the concept was sold again. This time, it was turned over to Sonni Islami  owner of Blue Bay Family Restaurant in Mukwonago and Porticello restaurant in Oconomowoc  who has been the managing partner ever since.

Islami was not available for comment this morning.

Watch OnMilwaukee for details about new plans for the space as they develop.
Five years ago, we first told you about Izzy Jaecks, the now full-time shoeshiner at Stag Barbershop, 3064 S. Delaware Ave. In 2011, it was a once-a-week gig for the former International Ms Bootblack (yes, thats a thing), but now Jaecks is as part of the shop as its barbers.

"I opened Stag Barbershop with the idea to offer traditional barber services tailored to suit the unique character of every man," says Stag owner Jess Stern. "Haircuts and shaves were essential but something was missing. When Izzy approached me with the idea to bring the shoe shine back to the barbershop, it was a no-brainer."

Says Stern, "She is a master of her craft."

As Stag readies for its "Shave The Date" event on Nov. 1 to raise money for the Movember Foundation, we caught up with Jaecks to see how this job has grown and evolved, and if being a professional bootblack is a life-long journey.

OnMilwaukee: Bringing in a bootblack was an experiment for Stag. How did it grow into a full-time job?

Izzy Jaecks: I was here one day a week for a little over three years. Everything was going well enough that I was able to give it a shot going full-time. I've been full-time since Oct. 1, two years ago.

There aren't a lot of upscale men's barber shops that have a full time shoe-shiner right?

The only other barber shop that I know of at all with a shoe shiner is in Indianapolis. There might be others, but I don't know.

Why do you guys make it work?

I mean, to a great extent, Stag is crafted to be an experience. There's so much emphasis on customer appreciation and customer satisfaction.

You're doing other leather stuff, as well?

Lots of different leather care. In general, to make leather last longer requires care, whether it's basic cleaning and conditioning, or with dress shoes, cleaning, occasional conditioning, and then polishing. But that's all a part of making the leather last longer and work harder. I've done jackets, hats, pants, vests, shoes.

Is that different than the guy at the airport who shines shoes?

Absolutely, yeah. Also, a guy at the airport, you're probably only going to see that one guy once or twice a year. Because I see the same people over and over again, I know what I did the last time with their shoes. If maybe something different needs to be done again. I've actually crafted a game plan based on the type of leather.

So its a relationship?

Yeah, absolutely.

Are you still doing leather events outside Milwaukee?

This past weekend I was in Indianapolis for Great Lakes Leather Alliance, where I was judging the bootblack competition.

Are you happy with your job? Are you happy with the way your career has evolved?

I live in Bay View. I work in Bay View. We are a part of the Bay View community very specifically, so that's important to me.This is close to home. I'm part of a larger community experience.

Are you still learning, or are you at the top of your game?

Well, I've been doing this off and on for 25 years. I've been in some sort of professional capacity for at least half of that, with time off of not necessarily doing it. Nobody can learn everything there is to learn regarding whatever it is they do. A carpenter always has more to learn. A barber has more to learn. A journalist has more to learn. There's never really an end to what one person can learn.
Mequon's new Academy of Irish Dance, Rince Nia, is pronounced "rinka knee-ah" and is Irish Gaelic for "dance champion." It's a fitting name, given that its two co-founders are world medalists in Irish dance and former "Riverdance" performers.

Having traveled the world competing and performing as Irish dancers, Sean Beglan and Jillian Winke Beglan are now settling in Milwaukee to pass on the tradition to the next generation. Rince Nia opens for classes on Sept. 14 in the Logemann Community Center, 6100 W. Mequon Rd.

Born and raised in Cavan, Ireland, Beglan began dancing at age four and by age 10 was competing at an international level. It wasn't until he was a teenager, however, that he left Ireland for the first time, traveling to perform with a small group at -- of all places -- Irish Fest in Milwaukee.

"It's the best in the world," says Beglan of our lakefront festival. "We've been to Australia and other parts of Europe and nothing compares to Milwaukee's Irish Fest. There's such a great Irish connection here."

It was here in Milwaukee that Beglan was asked to perform lead in "Riverdance" -- and also where he met his wife, Wauwatosa native Winke Beglan. Together the couple toured for three more years with "Riverdance," performing in front of an estimated five million people.

"Milwaukee just kept pulling me back," says Beglan. Now, after returning from New York City where Beglan performed with the Broadway musical "Pirate Queen," the couple plans to stay and focus on their school.

"It's a hard life to be on tour with theater all the time and it just seemed natural to do something like this and pass it on to other people," says Winke Beglan. "We love teaching and we love kids."

Engaging kids and families in an active, positive environment is a large part of why the Beglans are doing this.

"The Celtic boom of 'Riverdance' and 'Lord of the Dance' in the mid-'90s really put Irish dance on the map," says Beglan. "Irish music in general is really lively. It's a great family thing. In the future we might look at teaching adult classes; there have been a lot of inquiries."

For now, classes start at age four with boys attending for free for the first month. Beglan hopes that having both a male and female teacher will allow boys to feel more comfortable and confident in a school that is typically female dominated.

"With the performance aspect that we've experienced -- both competition and performance, we want to instill confidence into our dancers, that is, not just hitting the step perfectly, but also stage presence."

Winke Beglan agrees. "Irish dance is exciting -- there is always room for expanding on the art. There are always new dance moves. Some kids do it just for fun, other kids like it for the competition. It's whatever they want to take from it."

You can catch Beglan performing this Friday night with another former Riverdancer and his band Eidir at Irish Fest.


Mike Ramos and Kevin Cooper: Who tells the truth?

(Image by public domain) Details DMCA



San Bernardino County District Attorney Mike Ramos obtained the controversial capital conviction of Kevin Cooper, whose "clemency" petition to Governor Jerry Brown gravely puts at issue the integrity of Ramos' office. Already campaigning to be the state's Attorney General in 2018, Ramos speaks out for Proposition 66, which promises to accelerate the death penalty. Ramos attacks opponents of the death penalty as deceptive. However, recognizing that the main problem is the California Supreme Court's automatic appeal bottleneck, Ramos at best carelessly misrepresents that Proposition 66 redirects first appeals to the courts of appeal.

******************

This article presents excerpts concerning Kevin Cooper's case from the first part of an in-progress two-part paper, California's Death Penalty:People v. Masters v. The California Supreme Court's Carefulness Con. Earlier excerpts are presented in my OEN article, California's Death Penalty: The California Supreme Court's Carefulness Con. A further article will provide an in-depth presentation of People v. Masters , 62 Cal.4th 1019 (2016).

******************

If California's death penalty is not repealed in November by Proposition 62, next up on California's ready-to-kill list (now comprising about 12 inmates) is Kevin Cooper . In 2009, by a vote of 16-11, an en banc Ninth Circuit panel let stand Cooper's death sentence. However, in a voluminous opinion, [1] beginning with the statement that "[t]he State of California may be about to execute an innocent man," five of the dissenters passionately protested that the district court had not complied with the circuit's prior injunction to have a conclusive blood test performed.

To prove family-murdered-by-hatchet charges, the state introduced a T-shirt stained with Cooper's blood (plus other suspect evidence, such as mysteriously materialized cigarette butts). Cooper protested that the blood stain must have been added by the prosecution, using a sample kept in a test tube. When checked, the test tube was full, but had apparently been tampered with. Cooper claimed that the tube must have been topped up with someone else's blood. Sure enough, the blood of two people was found in the tube. In due course, the Ninth Circuit enjoined the federal district court to have the T-shirt stain tested for preservative, so as to conclusively determine whether it had come from the sample. The laboratory duly reported that the stain contained preservative. However, the district court then allowed the laboratory to reattribute its finding to likely laboratory contamination, without requiring a retest. [2]

Besides such apparent fabrications, there were plain suppressions. Investigators paid no heed to witnesses who had seen three white people, at least one blood-stained, fleeing the scene in the primary victim's car. One of them had lost a T-shirt and a hatchet--his blood-stained pants were incinerated by the police. See From FBI Boss to Death Penalty Foe, Tom Parker's Quest to Free a Convicted Murderer, Santa Barbara Independent, Jul. 6, 2016:

[H]aving put the Mafia behind bars, investigated dozens of homicides and sent two murderers to their deaths . . . during 45 years in law enforcement, Parker said he's seen too many corrupt homicide investigations to believe in the death penalty anymore. The worst of them, he said, is the Chino Hills murder case of 1983. . . "Kevin was a car thief and a burglar, but he doesn't deserve to be where he is," Parker said. "I'm convinced he was framed." . . . The courts have called the evidence against Cooper "overwhelming" -- spots of Cooper's blood in the Ryens' hallway and on a tan T-shirt by the road; bloody prints of prison-issue Keds inside and outside the Ryens' house; Cooper's cigarette butts in the Ryens' station wagon; and a hatchet sheath and prison uniform button at Cooper's hideout next door. But Cooper claims this was false evidence, planted and manipulated by the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department to convict him. He alleges that sheriff's deputies destroyed evidence and ignored leads pointing to three white men as the murderers -- including the initial statements of the Ryens' eight-year-old son, Josh, the sole survivor.

Victim relatives and friends, police, and prosecutors naturally insist that there is not even any lingering doubt as to guilt, [3] and they protest inordinate appellate delay. But to objective observers, Cooper's case raises deep concerns as to prosecutorial prejudice and California Supreme Court carelessness. The case is politically and racially highly charged, not only owing to the heinous nature of the purportedly black-on-white mass-murder, but also owing to the blind eye that police and prosecutor turned to the plain evidence of white culprits.

The incriminating evidence in Cooper is almost wholly physical, depending entirely on local police testimony for its foundation. Cooper would seem a sympathetic defendant, being a mere car-thief minimum security prison walk-out, lonely and homeward bound for the holidays. Cooper raises grave questions as to the police fabricating DNA and other physical evidence, while destroying, ignoring, or corrupting unfavorable DNA, other physical evidence, and witnesses. Cooper has raised the very highest level of international concern (continuing the above quote):

Last fall, the influential Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, an autonomous organ of the Organization of American States, recommended that Cooper be granted a reprieve, pending a new investigation. Citing in part Parker's allegations of "endemic tunnel vision," the commission concluded that the U.S. had violated Cooper's rights to a fair trial, due process and equality before the law. The U.S. is a signatory to the American Declaration, a treaty that guarantees those rights.

Cooper's last hope lies in an unorthodox "clemency" petition to Governor Brown, seeking not a pardon but an independent non-judicial investigation of the evidence, and a stay of execution pending its outcome. Commuting Cooper's sentence to life without parole does not seem a viable alternative, given that he has been tried twice, and Cal. Constitution, Art. 5, sec. 8 provides that "[t]he Governor may not grant a pardon or commutation to a person twice convicted of a felony except on recommendation of the Supreme Court, 4 judges concurring." Moreover, Cooper's incarceration for life would almost as loudly cry out for a conclusive finding as to whether the T-shirt blood stain was fabricated; and because Cooper's actual innocence is the underlying issue, a repeal of the state death penalty in November's election would not moot his petition, which the ABA extraordinarily supports:

In a letter sent to Gov. Brown on March 14, the American Bar Association alleged Cooper's "arrest, prosecution and conviction are marred by evidence of racial bias, police misconduct, evidence tampering, suppression of exculpatory information, lack of quality defense counsel and a hamstrung court system." [4]

It seems a toss-up whether Brown will grant the petition, given that he previously gave absurd reasons for vetoing a simple bipartisan measure to mitigate a surfeit of prosecutorial misconduct. [5] To grant it would surely require that the T-shirt blood stain be retested for preservatives, and this would seem to risk scientifically confirming premeditated, deadly, and racial misconduct, implicating police and perhaps the crime laboratory and prosecutor's office.

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We're finally approaching the end of this long, drawn-out, and very boring process of electing this country's next president. Millions upon millions of Americans are backing either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump in the hope that she or he will bring long-awaited, substantive change to this government and this country.

They have been waiting, fervently hoping to finally see some individual who possesses great courage, strong leadership skills, and a deep sense of ethics and morals, become president; and to use the power of the presidency to take this country in an entirely new direction, with a government that adheres to the will of the people.

Unfortunately, it doesn't look like either of the two current candidates possesses those qualities and characteristics in abundance sometime in the future we may see such an individual emerge.

What kind of real substantive change am I talking about? Well in the latter half of the 20th Century we saw major accomplishments made during the tenures of various presidents, such as sending a man to the moon, together with important advancements in medicine, science and technology, as well as the creation and development of the internet.

Those were very significant achievements but not the kind of substantive changes that greatly impacted the direction of this country. The kind of change of which I speak would be more like the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 or the creation of the Medicare and Medicaid health care systems in 1965; and in years past, the Social Security system.

Here's the type of change this country and society needs as we navigate the 21st century. First and foremost we need to see very ambitious government/business efforts and programs to create millions jobs for Americans. That would help greatly to reinvigorate the middle class and jumpstart our sluggish economy; it would also result in significant reductions in the number of Americans who are dependent on food stamps and other forms of government welfare.

Such a program should include the repair and modernization of our deteriorating national infrastructure, the development of solar and wind power, and the creation of a universal health care system that would finally cover all Americans at much lower costs.

We need substantive changes in the way we deal with rampant violence in this country; this problem has been escalating and its way past time that something were done to curtail the proliferation and illegal use of guns that are slaughtering far too many of our innocent fellow Americans.

But so far the government and, in particular, this Congress, has refused to address this situation because of the power wielded by the gun industry and the NRA. That continued governmental vacillation combined with NRA obstructive tactics must not be allowed to continue.

A large majority of Americans would like to see real, substantive changes such as those identified above put into effect; and all of them are clearly doable. However, that's just not happening because there is a massive, seemingly immovable object standing in the way. That object of obstruction is, of course, the Establishment, which is diametrically opposed to any such progress because its own objectives clash with those of the people.

It is very difficult and virtually impossible for any president to overcome the power of this Establishment because of what I refer to as the Circle of Power and Control that exists in Washington; here's how this ultra-powerful, self-perpetuating circle operates;

At the seat of this power is Corporate America which uses monumental amounts of $$$ to influence and control our elections so that a large majority of elected senators and representatives return to the Congress time and again; not to advance the needs of the people but, rather, the interests and objectives of Corporate America. We might refer to these politicians as indentured servants.

The Corporatists want to slash corporate taxes to further increase profits, to significantly water down the regulations and restrictions on the banking industry., They support the lobbyists and special interest groups that have infiltrated this Congress and are, not only greatly influencing the enactment of legislation, but are often actually writing it.

Congress has, as a very top priority, the ongoing funding of the massive Military-Industrial Complex, i.e., the Pentagon, the CIA, the State and "Defense" Departments, and the defense industry corporations which produce the machinery of war.

Too many taxpayer dollars that should be used to strengthen this country's deteriorating foundations are, instead, directed to the military establishment to maintain its huge empire of bases and installations all over the world, to conduct invasions and occupations of other nations, and to remove elected leaders and/or dictators in various countries.

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Russian S-500 Anti-ballistic missile system

Question #1. Is "Full Spectrum Dominance", the Pentagon's ambitious plan to have military control over the land, sea, air and outer space, a mirage?

Question #2. Has the plan been effectively neutralized by Russia's advanced technology in missile defense systems and superior early warning detection capability?

Reading Pepe Escobar's latest, "Russia Calls the War Party's Bluff" [1] , he doesn't refer directly to the Pentagon's plan to exercise "Full Spectrum Dominance" yet he does mention the S-500 anti-missile system effectively seals Russia's air space . Escobar quoting a US intel source, "The United States has lost the arms race, indulging in trillions of dollars of worthless wars...no longer a global power as it cannot defend itself with its obsolete missiles, THAAD, Patriot, and Aegis Land Based Ballistic Defense System, against Russian ICBM's, even as the Russian's have sealed their air space. The Russian's may be as much as four generations ahead of the US". Hmm..."Full Spectrum Dominance"? Back to that in a bit.

Escobar's primary focus is on Syria and the Russian S-300, 400 missile systems brought to Syria now operational on land and sea which he says, "Russia has basically made their own no-fly zone over Syria; and a US no-fly zone is now impossible to achieve". That effectively neutralizes any future plans the Obama administration has in mind as well as a new Hillary Clinton regime in waiting contemplating such an idea; something she's been pushing during the presidential campaign against Trump.

This much seems clear. Russian President Vladimir Putin has chosen to make a stand militarily and diplomatically -the latter shouldn't be forgotten-to support Syrian President Bashar Assad's government against the assorted Pentagon, CIA, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, GCC backed proxy mercenary jihadist terrorists trained and supported by them then brought to Syria to bring about regime change.

With Russia entrenched in Syria regime change isn't going to happen. The current siege against the terrorists by Assad's Syrian Arab Army supported by Russian air power in eastern Aleppo continues. Meanwhile over the border in Mosul, Iraq a battle is raging to extricate IS terrorists that have controlled the city since 2014 when it routed the Iraqi army. Now an unlikely conglomeration of Shiite militia's, Sunni tribesmen, Peshmerga Kurds, Turkish army, Iraqi army, US special forces supported by US planes are besieging the city.

In all likelihood when IS loses control of Mosul its remaining forces will retreat into eastern Syria becoming a new force presumably used by the US as the newest proxy force to take on Assad.

This hasn't occurred yet so the focus by Assad's SAA forces is retaking and freeing the Syrian people in besieged Eastern Aleppo.

Back to the original premise of this piece, the Pentagon's Full Spectrum Dominance, FSD.

Nothing is really secret anymore.

Russia and China had to know the Pentagon's FSD plan from its inception. They had to know it was mandatory to develop and upgrade their ballistic missile technology to effectively neutralize any US plan to initiate a nuclear first strike-something that's still on the table while Russia and China have rejected the idea.

Regrettably, we're in a new cold war with Russia and China.

And despite some fiery rhetoric from Hillary Clinton, "Putin's the new Hitler, wanting a no-fly zone over Syria" and her generalized disposition to show how tough she is, there should be enough reality based resistance coming from the military, intel agencies that should short circuit any aggressive moves she has in mind that would bring any direct confrontation with Russia and China, whether in Syria, Ukraine, the South China Sea or anywhere else that could escalate into a nuclear confrontation.

In conclusion the madness of initiating a nuclear first strike against Russia and China is being effectively neutralized by Russian ABM, ICBM superiority now evidenced in Syria making the Pentagon's Full Spectrum Dominance a mirage, including for Hillary "mad dog" Clinton.

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From National Memo

There is an epic clash of two cultures -- one with a guiding ethic of harmony between people and nature, the other driven by an ethos that encourages the exploitation of both. Yet, for months, our clueless media gave this match-up little coverage.

For the face-off is between Energy Transfer Partners, one of the world's largest pipeline corporations, and the Standing Rock Lakota Sioux Tribe. It's not merely big news, but the panoramic story of America itself. It's a real reality show -- a cultural, political and moral drama featuring raw greed, grassroots courage, class war, ancient rites, human rights, defenders of the common good, the most nefarious Texas oilman since J. R. Ewing, a historic gathering of Native tribes and a Bull-Connor-style sheriff -- all on location near a North Dakota town named Cannon Ball!

The Dakota Access Pipeline is a massive 1,172-mile-long pipeline being constructed by EPT. It will cut through North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa and Illinois. This pipeline, owned by oilman Kelcy Warren, crosses 200 rivers and countless farms, and it cuts through the ancestral lands and burial grounds of the Tribe.

DAPL risks economic and environmental disaster. The corporation plans to bury its oil pipeline under the Missouri, beneath the Lakota people's main source of water for drinking, bathing, irrigation, fishing, and recreation. As a Lakota phrase says -- water is life -- and one rupture could be ruinous.

In April, the Standing Rock Sioux made their stand. Some 35 tribal leaders established Sacred Stone Camp, just off their reservation and near where ETP's engineers intend to tunnel under the river. After the tribe's social media network spread word of the rebellion, a spontaneous migration of Native people -- not coordinated by anyone -- began arriving at the camp to stand in solidarity against ETP.

They came in cars, campers, and caravans -- some even paddled down the Missouri in traditional canoes. By August, representatives of 280 Native American tribes had joined, making this the largest, most diverse, cross-tribal action in U.S. history. Sacred Stone Camp pulsated with a sense of rediscovered power, ancestral duty, and indigenous culture. Not only were spirits high, but the extraordinary unity of so many diverse Native cultures -- boldly gathering in a show of strength and shouting "NO" to yet another arrogant act of gross injustice -- seemed to herald a reawakening.

As the protest gained strength -- and was joined by thousands of progressives and covered by independent media -- ETP and its political minions responded predictably: with panic, whining, lies, and brute force.

North Dakota's governor, Jack Dalrymple falsely wailed that "unlawful acts associated with the protest near Cannon Ball have led to serious public safety concerns and property damage." He declared a state of emergency, set up road blocks to seal off the reservation, brought in riot-clad troopers, removed state water and health services from the protest area, and used his state PR machine to demonize the activists as a violent threat to surrounding towns of white people.

ETP's legal beagles have attempted to silence protesters by filing hokey lawsuits against several tribal leaders and activists that may be aimed at bankrupting defendants with legal fees; seeking a federal injunction against anyone interfering with pipeline construction; and threatening to prosecute Native Americans for -- Oh, the irony! -- trespassing on land that was theirs before it was stolen from them.

On Labor Day weekend, a DAPL crew suddenly started construction on the under-river tunnel, reportedly damaging tribal burial sites. When unarmed protesters put their bodies in front of the machinery, a line of private "pipeline guards" showed up and blasted at least 30 protesters with pepper spray and sicced a pack of attack dogs on them. At least six people were bitten, including a child and a pregnant woman.

At least four reporters have been charged with everything from criminal trespass to conspiracy for trying to cover what the mainstream media won't touch. Charges are still pending for some of these journalists.

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I woke up yesterday (Thursday) to a small but somewhat encouraging snippet on page 19 of my local (German) paper headlined "Trump: Clinton Risking World War," referring to Trump's remarks on Tuesday in a Reuters interview that was headlined "Trump says Clinton policy on Syria would lead to World War Three."

The five-sentence German article ended with this: "Critics noted that such [no-fly zones as proposed by Clinton] might have to be enforced militarily." This was apparently (back-translating from the German) a translation of "Some analysts fear that protecting those zones could bring the United States into direct conflict with Russian fighter jets" (Reuters).

The Reuters article goes on to say: "Clinton's campaign dismissed the criticism, noting that both Republican and Democratic national security experts have denounced Trump as unfit to be commander-in-chief."



"'Once again, he is parroting Putin's talking points and playing to Americans' fears, all while refusing to lay out any plans of his own for defeating ISIS or alleviating humanitarian suffering in Syria,' Clinton spokesman Jesse Lehrich said in a statement."

The New York Times and other mainstream outlets reported similarly. I suppose this is considered "balanced" coverage -- as if what Lehrich or "Clinton's campaign" said was a substantive response to what Trump has finally said clearly and should be obvious. To their credit, the BBC did add (at the end of a 21-sentence article) that Trump "echoes concerns raised last month at a congressional hearing by the highest-ranking military officer in the US armed forces."

"Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford told lawmakers a 'no-fly zone' in Syria could spell war with Russia. 'Right now, senator, for us to control all of the airspace in Syria it would require us to go to war, against Syria and Russia,' Gen. Dunford told the Senate Arms Services Committee."

At this point, just days before the election, it is probably too late, but it would be Trump's last opportunity to appear statesmanlike, and also save the planet from the catastrophic military adventurism that Clinton seems bound to embark on if she becomes commander-in-chief. At the least it would be a chance to ratchet up popular protest against the warmongering that has driven virtually all U.S. foreign policy since WWII, and is now taking us (and by "us" I mean the world) directly toward the precipice of WWIII.

"Stop demonizing Russia; work with them, not against them." This is the message that needs to be shouted from the rooftops, and surely Trump has access to experts like Stephen Cohen, Ray McGovern, Robert Parry and others who can help him do so. He should be able to easily "trump" the empty arguments of the bellicose Russia-bashers, even if the latter are aligned across party lines against him -- and against us, since the war they are pushing for will be global. How stupid does one have to be to propose "no-fly zones" when the highest military officer in the country says it would result in war with Russia? How stupid does one have to be to believe that Putin is "Hitler," that Russia shot down MH17 and is guilty of "aggression" on the eastern European borders, in Ukraine, and in Syria, without ever questioning the "evidence" for any of these assertions, much less the equally problematic role the U.S. has played in every case? Yet this is the mainstream narrative, repeated uniformly and relentlessly at every turn.

Trump is obviously not the best candidate in this race (Jill Stein is), but he is right on this most important issue of relations with Russia, which should have been the No. 1 issue from the beginning. So there is still a slight chance that Trump (and Stein also!) can at least go down with a (non-nuclear!) bang, not a whimper -- by giving peace, and reason, a chance. We should all hope that happens.
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...
If You Enjoy My Articles, Please Consider Supporting My Writing By Giving A Donation Of Any Amount. Thank you!
Phish.net is but one project of the entirely volunteer nonprofit Mockingbird Foundation. We frequently credit the volunteers involved, and accept critiques of our own roles among them. But were also proud that Mockingbird  which today turns 20 years old  has grown beyond the individuals behind it, and is now a structured, vibrant, productive entity that will outlive the participation of any us.

As we continue to envision the Foundations future, we take a moment today to look back  on the history of the band, its fans, and our attempts to contribute. We knew at the start that our vision was plausible and our intentions honorable. But the path following them to today was winding and confusing, testing both conventions and friendships. And it all started, of course, with that new sound coming out of Burlington.

THE BAND

Phish is a curious specimen. Because they share certain traits with apparent ancestors, the band and its concerts are often described with blunt classifications. Yet their musical diversity, performance ingenuity, and fan connections helped spawn a new lineage, of which Phish, even on their least ambitious nights, remain the exemplar  jambandus maximus.

They are a mutation of every convention: never-duplicated setlists, from a gargantuan repertoire, including live performances of seven albums originally recorded by other bands; legendary stage antics and ground-breaking audience interactions that advance the fun as much as the music; mold-breaking event management, including multi-day, single-band festivals; envied success and longevity, despite having avoided traditional models; and esoteric methods for practicing interactive improvisation.

They are often at odds with even their own history, whether by changing song titles or lyrics, shifting studio directions or stage arrangements, twisting audience expectations, taking breaks or calling breaks different things  including a needed break, an indefinite hiatus, and a permanent breakup.

This complex variability is both magical and commercially successful. But it makes systematic observation and description of the bands history an ongoing challenge. Many take understandable shortcuts, such as by chronicling the band in terms of its fans migratory patterns, retro plumage, and ritualistic consumptions. Our focus, instead and always, has been on the band itself, and particularly its rich musical history.

THE INTERNET

Borne of 1970s inspiration, intermittent training, four-track recorders, and Vermont ingenuity, Phish emerged from a dorm room and spread slowly, in time and space. The bands migration  from its native habitat of northeast college-town bars, to national arenas and beyond  mirrored the Internets escape from its own academic roots.

Early adopters spread excitement from 1986 to 1990, as commercial service networks such as Compuserve and Prodigy blossomed while Phish travelled from Vermont to play in 11 other states. Horizons expanded in 1990, with the invention of HTTP, HTML, and URLs, and the band playing 12 new states. University students swarmed online from 1989 to 1993, as Phish followed the line of college towns going south.

Both audiences reached critical mass by 1994, the year each world shifted: The Internet opened to commercial usage, the first Netscape browser was released, and the W3C was founded to standardize the web, just as Phish produced the uber-polished Hoist, performed their first musical costume, and even made a music video.

For several years beyond that  through the births of Amazon and Google, and the bands first live album and first multi-day festival  everything was looking up. But excesses around the turn of the millennium, including Big Cypress and Napster, were followed by concerns and then stumbles  online and for Phish. A progressive-rock band and a foundation-rocking technology  each with hints of a hippie aesthetic and a large serving of exploratory ambition  emerged, matured, and experienced growing pains together.

THE FANS

The timelines were not entirely coincidental. The bands incremental successes and geographic expansion during the 1990s owe much to then-emerging online communities. Interactions within them allowed fans to learn new songs and antics before seeing shows, facilitated the exchange of recordings and insider knowledge, allowed the band to take otherwise premature tours west and south, and forged bonds (among fans and to the band) that persist decades later.

Further, as a path to both interaction and education, those communities also brought many fans to the Internet  earlier and more actively than most, with many of them sharpening new technical skills via band-related fandom. As a result, Phish didnt just benefit from the Internet; it helped build it.

The band even advanced the process directly: A blurb in an early newsletter invited readers to join a fan-created email list, and the number of subscribers soon jumped from 100 to 300. Over successive years, fans used a wide range of bounded discussion formats, from the relatively obscure channels of IRC to the oh-so-popular rooms of AOL. In 1992, they created both the Usenet newsgroup rec.music.phish and the first phish.net website, each an open, public space and each a critical juncture towards this Foundation: Born in that newsgroup, and maturing through that website, has been a valiant effort to protect and preserve community resources, inspired by the bands own lyrics.

THE BIRTH

The first fan-generated documentation about the band was started in 1991, undertaken on a volunteer basis, for the free use of fans, and out of love for the band. These included a lyrics file, guitar tabs file, and Frequently Asked Questions file (esp. What are they saying in You Enjoy Myself?, aka WATSIYEM). But first and foremost was the setlists file, inspired by Phish lyrics about the Helping Friendly Book, said to contain all of the knowledge in the universe, everything the peaceful and innocent Lizards of Gamehendge ever wanted or needed to know. The HFB helped the Lizards learn and live in harmony, until it was stolen by an evil king and later misappropriated by a turncoat.

Life imitates art: By 1995, those community resources (particularly the setlists) were being distributed by others  printed and sold in lots, and purloined for others products  putting their spirit and consistency in jeopardy. In October 1996, a fateful email discussion turned old friends into volunteers, determined to protect those resources, in a printed book and otherwise. As their first collective act, they sent a letter to John Paluska and Shelly Culbertson (ccing Tom Marshall), on October 28th, 1996  twenty years ago today.

The group took a second cue from Phish lyrics, in which the Famous Mockingbird reclaims the book for the Lizards. By March of 1997, The Mockingbird Foundation was formally incorporated as an all-volunteer 501c3 nonprofit. Its mission is to coordinate, curate, and distribute intellectual property related to Phish for the purpose of funding music education.

THE FLIGHT

Dozens of projects, large and small, have taken place under the auspices of Mockingbird, each of them all-volunteer and with charitable purposes. Proceeds from books, albums, posters, artwork, special events, partnerships, and other projects have funded more than 300 grants, in nearly every state, totaling over one million dollars so far  with the 21st round of grants to be announced in less than two months.

Mockingbird is now not only the leading provider of historical information about the band, but one of a small number of successful grantmakers in this important funding area  and perhaps the only one supporting both established organizations and newer niche programs nationwide. The Foundation is also of interest organizationally, for a variety of reasons: It has no paid staff, no salaries, and no physical offices, operating almost entirely online  partly because of the geographic dispersion of volunteers, and also in the spirit of the online community from which it emerged.

We hope that Mockingbird will be around for at least another 20 years, and were taking big steps to ensure its longevity and future success. We invite you to join in that process, appreciate your support of it, and look forward to seeing you soon  at a Phish show, at a Mockingbird event, or here on the site.

But, for today, join with us in celebrating that an unconventional quartet from Vermont could spark a dozen strangers nationwide, working through a new medium of interaction, to build something that would even last 20 years. ... To Phish!
Grizzly bears in the Rocky Mountains are probably a bit lonely. They live mostly in two protected areas of federal, state and tribal lands: The Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem in northwestern Montana and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem in southwestern Montana and parts of Wyoming and Idaho.

The bear population of each area is too small to prevent inbreeding and loss of genetic diversity in this endangered species. Inbreeding can pass on too many deleterious recessive traits, and lack of genetic diversity makes a population vulnerable to catastrophic events such as the introduction of a disease.

Local land trusts have set out to help by acquiring land to create corridors through which animals might gradually migrate between the two preserves. At the same time, they have been designing corridors for also endangered wolverines and lynx.

Now, researchers at Cornell, Georgia Tech and the U.S. Forest Service have found that when a corridor includes areas that are hospitable to two species, the cost is far less than it would be to create separate corridors for each one. This also means more animals can be helped within the same limited budget.

"This work opens up new directions in terms of understanding tradeoffs for different species," said Carla Gomes, professor of computing and information science and director of the Cornell Institute for Computational Sustainability. "The land trusts have very limited resources. Now that we can get synthesis rather than just optimize for one species, it's economically more efficient."

Gomes and colleagues began by creating optimization programs to design corridors just for grizzly bears, later applying the same techniques for other animals. Now they have updated their systems to work with multiple species, most recently trying it out with bears and wolverines.

Given the suitability of every available parcel of land, along with the purchase price, a computer can evaluate, in a "smart way," many possible combinations of connected parcels to find a route that best satisfies all the animals' needs at the lowest total cost.

Gomes is co-author of a paper, "Trade-offs and efficiencies in optimal budget-constrained multispecies corridor networks." published in the Sept. 27 online edition of the journal Conservation Biology. Cornell-related co-authors include Bistra Dilkina Ph.D. '12, now assistant professor at the School of Computational Science and Engineering at Georgia Tech, and Richard Bernstein, a staff programmer in the Institute for Computational Sustainability. Also participating are authors at the College of Forestry at Oregon State University.

"We were very fortunate to come across Carla and Bistra." said Michael Schwartz, director of the National Genomics center for Wildlife and Fish Conservation, an agency of the U.S. Forest Service, who is also a co-author of the paper. "I've talked to many land trusts and they are very enthusiastic to use this. This puts it in an economic framework that people can use in Western Montana or upstate New York."

Schwartz and colleagues in the Forest Service oversee 210 million acres of western land. They have collected genetic samples from more than 200 wolverines in the wild. "What got me interested is that I've seen our data being used to justify purchases," he said.

In the computer analysis, each parcel of land is assigned a "resistance score" that represents the difficulty a particular animal might have dwelling in that environment  and conversely, how much it might be attracted there. Bears, for example, like canopied forest. Wolverines prefer land that has snow on the ground into early spring. Both of them want to avoid predators, and none want to run into humans. The latter takes care of itself in the optimization process, Gomes notes, because land near towns is more expensive.

The computer's job is to evaluate many possible combinations until it finds a group of connected parcels that offer the lowest total of resistance scores and purchase prices. The computer scientist's job is to design an algorithm that will accomplish this in a reasonable amount of processing time  which gets harder as the number of species whose scores must be evaluated increases.

In tryouts, the researchers found there are many "tradeoffs," like accepting parcels that have higher resistance scores but are less expensive, or deciding to weight one species over another for ecological reasons or just to satisfy human preferences. (Bears seem to be more charismatic.)

The problem is common in computer science, Gomes said, using, for example, the same algorithms that might be used to route data packets around the Internet. The research paper describes new methods to deal with optimization problems that might otherwise require too much computer time to solve. One answer, Gomes explained, is for the computer to take a "reasoned approach," skipping combinations that start off looking worse than what was already available.

Sustainability work often pays back with new insights for common problems in computer science, Gomes pointed out.
Marlin are one of the prized fish in Australias oceans. Credit: www.shutterstock.com

Ocean health relies on a strong backbone of protection and management. Marine reserves can be part of the solution, but only if they're constructed in the right way. Recent recommendations on Australia's marine reserves would leave more ocean unprotected.

Marine reserves are a mix of multiple-use zones that allow activities such as mining and fishing, and highly-protected zones called marine national parks that are free of extractive activities. These marine national parks are the gold standard for protecting our oceans. Globally, less than 1% of the world's oceans are fully protected in no-take marine national parks or their equivalents.

Australia is currently deciding how much of its ocean territory it will place in marine national parks and where. To this end, the government recently released its commissioned review of Australia's Commonwealth Marine Reserve Network.

Such a review is welcome as Australia has yet to provide comprehensive, adequate and representative protection for its oceans. This is despite the general recognition within the Australian community that economic growth depends on a healthy and properly functioning environment.

Marine national parks play a fundamental role in contributing to ocean ecosystem function and provide a means to assess the health of areas outside of these zones that are open to greater use by humans.

This understanding of the interdependence of how we protect and sustainably use our oceans is, unfortunately, largely missing from the review's recommendations.

The gold standard

In early 2016 the Ocean Science Council of Australia (OSCA) prepared a scientific analysis aimed at helping define what Australia's marine reserves should deliver.

Based on hundreds of peer-reviewed publications and myriad international consensus statements from researchers on the need for strong ocean protection, the Council concluded that science-based decisions and actions should:

(1) Prevent fishing, mining and other extractive activities on at least 30% of each marine habitat, according to the international standard for ocean protection to deliver protection of both biodiversity and ecosystem services

(2) Improve representation of marine national parks in bioregions (regions of the ocean defined by particular species and climate) and key ecological features (such as the continental shelf and offshore reefs) that were already under-represented in the 2012 marine reserve plans

(3) Build and maintain large, contiguous, highly-protected marine national parks in regions such as the Coral Sea

(4) Quantify the benefits of Australia's marine reserves so as to make their value to Australia clearer.

We need to monitor and study our ocean ecosystems to understand how they work. Credit: David Booth, Author provided

What the review says

The government review reflects science and community concerns in some respects, recommending for instance that more bioregions have at least one marine national park. This review also recommends more protection for some important coral reefs and there is an expansion of protection from mining in some areas.

Most importantly, the review recognises the fundamental role of highly-protected marine national park zones in the conservation of species and ecosystems. As a corollary of this, the review also recognises that "partial protection" zones within reserves are primarily used to address narrow sector-based concerns such as fishing, and result in reduced conservation outcomes (as reviewed here and here).

It requires explanation therefore that the review mostly fails to recommend zoning changes consistent with its own findings on the science. In comparison with the 2013 recommended zoning, the review's recommended zoning would:

Remove a total of 127,000 square kilometres of marine national park from the overall network, an area 1.9 times the size of Tasmania, with a net loss of 76,000 sq km Reduce by 25% the contiguous Coral Sea marine national park Demote 18 areas from marine national park zones to varying forms of partial protection Shift the location of some marine national parks from the continental shelf to offshore areas as a way of maintaining cover but further eroding representation and indeed reducing protection on the shelf where it is most needed.

Overall, the review's recommendations would see only approximately 13% of Australia's Exclusive Economic Zone protected in marine national parks. This falls well below the recommended international standard of at least 30% of habitats being under high protection, or indeed higher levels as recently determined.

Changes to Coral Sea marine national park proposed by review. Credit: Map generated from shape files provided by the Department of the Environment.

Smoke and mirrors

The recommendations in the review are tainted by a feeling of smoke and mirrors. While some of the review's authors suggest that their recommendations would increase protection, there would indeed be a net loss of highly-protected zones should these recommendations be adopted by the government.

Under the review's recommendations, Australia would do a great job of protecting the deep water abyss, but achieve little to protect ocean wildlife on the continental shelf where human pressures are highest. This out-of-sight-out-of-mind approach does not address the principles of marine conservation and also departs from recommendations from the research community.

Australian marine national parks are too-often relegated to residual areas of relatively little conservation value simply because these areas are of little value to commercial interests.

The significant erosion of protection in the Coral Sea is further evidence of this failure. Much of the erosion of this important reserve reflects a shift from full protection to partial protection in order to open up more ocean to tuna fishing.

The 25% reduction in large marine national park would increase tuna catch and value by 8-10% across the fishery, worth a mere A$26,376 to individual tuna fishers. This recommendation fails both the science and the economic test.

Where to from here?

The changes recommended by the review in many cases appear to prioritise economic benefits, no matter how trivial, over conservation. This is despite conservation being the core reason behind the marine reserves.

This stands in stark contrast to international moves towards protection of large areas of the ocean as a response to ongoing declines in ocean health.

Key examples of such large-scale protection are US President Barack Obama's recent expansion of the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument over the North West Hawaiian Islands and New Zealand Prime Minister John Key's declaration of the Kermadec Marine Sanctuary in New Zealand's waters.

Australia still has a major opportunity to protect and secure its marine ecosystems and make a significant contribution to global ocean conservation. At the same time we can develop important economic activities such as fishing and mining. Large and well-managed areas are going to become more important, not less, as climate change intensifies.

This will require the federal government to acknowledge and build on the global body of science and create a backbone of representative marine national parks. This will include retention of the Coral Sea's high level protection and resisting the temptation to shift of marine national parks offshore. At a time of great environmental change, these moves are not just important, but urgent.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
European seismic zones. Credit: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2016), processed by DLR/ESA/Terradue

The Copernicus Sentinel-1 twin radar satellites combined with cloud computing are monitoring Europe's earthquake zones by searching for ground shifts as small as a millimetre.

Radar was developed in the last century to pick up aircraft moving at hundreds of kilometres per hour. Today's satellite radar can reveal otherwise invisible shifts in the ground taking place as slowly as the growth of your fingernails.

The new, automatic radar service covers Europe's seismic regions, monitoring an area of three million square kilometres in 200 m blocks.

Once any motion of interest has been identified, more detailed checks can be made through ESA's Geohazards Exploitation Platform.

"The quick-browse service has been under way across European tectonic regions since January, harnessing automated processing developed by the DLR German Aerospace Center," explains Fabrizio Pacini of Terradue, overseeing the Platform.

"Our plan next year is to gradually scale up to cover the entire world's tectonic regions, which adds up to a quarter of Earth's land surface.

"Such wide-area coverage is really unprecedented. It is a crucial step towards empowering society at large to reduce the risk from earthquakes and volcanoes."

The Geohazards TEP enables the use of satellite Earth observation data to support the user community. Credit: ESA

The satellites take successive radar images of the same location which are then combined to reveal the slightest shift.

Today, it is a well-established technique used to give authoritative snapshots of ground movements following events such as the recent earthquakes in central Italy.

Earth scientists were surprised in the 1980s when centimetre-accuracy GPS networks revealed previously unsuspected motion along tectonic plates, occurring between larger-scale seismic events.

Combined radar scans are sensitive down to a level of millimetres and over wide areas, compared to point-by-point GPS measurements, but the process demands heavy computing power.

"The real step change here is that they are being produced across extended areas on an entirely automated basis," adds Fabrizio.

This interferogram shows how the ground moved as a result of the earthquakes that struck Amatrice in Italy on 24 August 2016. Credit: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2016), processed by DLR/ESA/Terradue

The service is processing an average 50 image pairs per day across Europe from the Sentinel-1A and Sentinel-1B satellites, with six days between coverage.

Next year, this will increase to 130 pairs per day, with a maximum of 24 days and potentially 12 days between acquisitions outside Europe, involving the daily processing of 1 terabyte of data, with additional higher resolution produced on request.

Processing on such a grand scale is enabled by the online, cloud-based Geohazards Exploitation Platform, specifically tailored for working with vast amounts of satellite data.
Ruichen Wang with the prototype. Credit: University of Huddersfield

Boosting the fuel efficiency of motor vehicles by "harvesting" the energy generated by their shock absorbers and feeding it back into batteries or electrical systems such as air conditioning has become a major goal in automotive engineering. Now, a University of Huddersfield researcher has made a breakthrough by designing a new system and constructing a prototype that is ready for real-world testing.

Ruichen Wang carried out the project to obtain his doctorate at the University and has published his findings. The article, in the journal Energies, is titled Modelling, Testing and Analysis of a Regenerative Hydraulic Shock System. It provides a summary of current progress in the field of vehicle energy harvesting and a detailed account of the theory and the practical development of his device, designed for installation in a heavy good vehicle.

Dr Wang, who is from Qingdao in eastern China, moved to PhD research after completing his mechanical engineering degree at the University of Huddersfield. His doctoral supervisors, Professor Andrew Ball and Dr Fengshou Gu, suggested that he should work on an energy recovery device, addressing the issue that most of the energy contained in a vehicle's fuel is wasted.

Considerable work has already been done harvesting energy from brake systems, so Dr Wang decided to focus on the suspension.

After working on the mathematics, computational analysis and design of his device, Dr Wang personally constructed his full-size, ready-to-test prototype (pictured right)  a demonstration of practical engineering skills that impressed his supervisor Professor Ball.

"It has resulted in is a truly realisable application for energy recovery from a typical road vehicle. Ruichen developed a theoretical predictive model and carried out the empirical testing, and the two of them correlate beautifully," he added.

Harvested energy can be used for any auxiliary purpose in a vehicle, said Professor Ball, and in hybrids it could recharge the electric motor.

The next stage is to work with an industrial partner to install and test Dr Wang's system in a road-going vehicle. But the technology has a wide application and there is every possibility that it could be adapted for rail vehicles  especially as Dr Wang has taken up a full-time research post at the University of Huddersfield's Institute of Railway Research (IRR).

Dr Paul Allen, who leads the IRR's Centre for Innovation in Rail, explains: "We are now exploring how Dr Wang's energy harvesting and modelling techniques can be applied to developing low-cost self-health monitoring dampers for railway vehicles, a project which already has two industrial partners."

More information: Ruichen Wang et al. Modelling, Testing and Analysis of a Regenerative Hydraulic Shock Absorber System, Energies (2016). DOI: 10.3390/en9050386
During the expedition M92 samples and data from the seafloor and from the water column of the oxygen minimum zone off Peru were obtained using various devices. Credit: Michael Schneider, FS METEOR

Iron is an essential nutrient for biological productivity in the oceans. However, dissolved iron quickly combines with oxygen and is then no longer usable by or-ganisms. For a long time it has been a conundrum why even in low oxygen zones of the Tropics the dissolved iron concentrations are relatively low. An international research team led by GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel has now discovered that in anoxic seawater iron is removed through reaction with nitrate instead of oxygen. This process also has an impact on the nitrogen and carbon cycle and ultimately on the climate, as the team points out in the international scientific journal Earth and Planetary Science Letters.

In principle, there is no lack of iron on Earth as the metal is one of the most abundant elements in the Earth's crust. However in the ocean, dissolved iron is very rare, since it reacts rapidly with oxygen forming iron minerals which are poorly soluble and therefore unavailable for organisms. Nevertheless, dissolved iron is an essential nutrient for life. Without iron there would be no plankton growth, no food chain, no photosynthesis and no carbon fixation in the oceans. The sources of this micronutrients is therefore a central question for marine research. In theory, plenty of dissolved iron should be present in low-oxygen areas because there the reaction partner oxygen is missing. However, measurements show that this is not the case even in the large and essentially anoxic oxygen minimum zones of the tropical oceans.

An international research team lead by scientists from GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Re-search Kiel carried out a complex interdisciplinary study in the context of the Collaborative Re-search Project (SFB) 754 "Climate-Biogeochemistry Interactions in the Tropical Ocean" and dis-covered a process which explains the iron removal under anoxic conditions. "The results can also help to understand fundamental processes in the nitrogen and the carbon cycle", explains Dr. Flo-rian Scholz from GEOMAR. He is the first author of the study, which has recently been published in the international journal Earth and Planetary Science Letters.

The conundrum about the relative "iron deficiency" in the tropical oxygen minimum zones was even greater since previous studies had shown that in these regions huge amounts of iron are released in the ocean from anoxic sea floor sediments. "However, only a small part of this iron reaches the surface layers and the open ocean where biological productivity is limited by iron", Florian Scholz explains. Thus, the question was: Which process is removing the iron from the seawater?

Vertical and horizontal distribution of oxygen, nitrogen compounds and iron in seawater in the oxygen minimum zone off Peru. Decreasing concentrations of dissolved iron do not coincide with the occurrence of oxygen but with the increase of dissolved nitrogen compounds. Credit: GEOMAR.

In order to solve this question, the team took samples from the seabed, from the boundary layer between the seabed and seawater, as well as from different water layers in the tropical oxygen minimum zone during the Expedition M92 with the German research vessel METEOR in January 2013. These samples were then extensively investigated for chemical, physical and biological parameters.

"Among other tasks microbiologists carried out genetic analyses of the microorganisms living in the water in order to evaluate which metabolic processes are predominant", Scholz explains. In addition, the team studied particle samples from the water column at the synchrotron radiation source at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT). With this analysis they were able to determine which iron minerals occur in the different water layers.

These analyses revealed that the iron reacts with nitrate instead of oxygen. This is due to certain microorganisms, which are also responsible for the decomposition of bioavailable nitrogen. "So far, these processes have not been detected in oxygen minimum zones", Florian Scholz explains, "but they are important to understand the overall system. Only when we know when and where certain nutrients are available for plankton growth we can also estimate how much carbon the plankton can bind by photosynthesis and thus remove from the atmosphere".

As head of a new Emmy Noether junior research group funded by the German Science Foundation, Dr. Florian Scholz will continue to study the fluxes of iron and other micronutrients across the seafloor in the coming years. "At present, we are further developing existing, autonomous deep-sea laboratories such that they can also detect very small concentrations of certain trace elements, such as iron. Yet, we do not fully understand the circumstances under which seafloor sediments represent a source or a sink for these essential elements", emphasizes the biogeochemist.

More information: Florian Scholz et al, Nitrate-dependent iron oxidation limits iron transport in anoxic ocean regions, Earth and Planetary Science Letters (2016). DOI: 10.1016/j.epsl.2016.09.025 Journal information: Earth and Planetary Science Letters
Scientist Oliver Hampe examines fossil remains of Prototherium in paving stones in Girona, Spain. Image by Manja Voss and Oliver Hampe. Credit: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology

Have you ever spotted something unexpected while walking down the street? Last December, paleontologists literally stumbled upon a new discovery of a fossil sea cow in a very unexpected place - in a limestone paving stone in Spain! Research presented this week at the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah, describes this remarkable find and how it is changing our understanding of sea cow evolution.

The unusual pavement was spotted in the picturesque town of Girona, northern Spain. A local geologist first noticed the fossil and submitted it to the website 'http://www.paleourbana.com', an online database of urban fossils worldwide. As word of the fossil spread, paleontologists Dr. Manja Voss and Dr. Oliver Hampe, from the Museum fur Naturkunde, Berlin, visited Girona to take a look.

Closer inspection of the paving stones by Dr. Voss and Dr. Hampe revealed that the complex array of shapes was slices of the backbone and skull of an ancient marine mammal. Based on the skull and teeth, they concluded that it was a sirenian, or sea cow, a member of a group of large, plant-eating marine mammals represented today by the living manatee and dugong.

Once the significance of the fossil was understood, Dr. Voss and Dr. Hampe worked with the mayoralty of Girona and local geologists to have the 50x30cm large paving stones removed for study. Since the rock was cut into slices to form the paving stones, the paleontologists had a cross-sectional view of the sea cow's skull, revealing many details of its anatomy. However, they also wanted to see inside the stones, so they took them to a medical hospital, the Clinica Girona, where they were CT-scanned.

The skull of Prototherium exposed on the paving slab, in cross-section, showing parts of snout and tooth sockets. Image by Manja Voss and Oliver Hampe Credit: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology

The scientists discovered that the 'Girona Sea Cow' is most likely a representative of Prototherium, a genus of extinct sea cows from Spain and Italy. However, this find is particularly important because the rocks from which the paving slabs were quarried are 40 million years old, explains Voss. "Hence the find represents one of the oldest sea cows in Europe, making it a unique opportunity to enhance our knowledge on the evolution and diversity of this marine mammal group that arose about 50 million years ago."

Next the scientists will use the CT scans to try to digitally piece together the separate skull slices of Prototherium. This can help them answer more questions, such as the animals' age when it died and its potential relationship to other fossil sea cows.

The Girona Sea Cow, which is providing clues into the evolution of sea cows in the ancient oceans of Europe, shows that fossils can be found in surprising locations. Voss says "While the limestone used to build the city of Girona are enriched by fossilsit is quite common to identify invertebrates for examplefinding a marine mammal on which thousands of people walked over for the last two decades is indeed very peculiar."

Paving slabs were scanned in a medical CT scanner to reveal more about the fossils anatomy. Image by Manja Voss and Oliver Credit: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
Updated: 2016-10-28 08:29

By Mike Peters (China Daily)

[Photo provided to China Daily]

If you enjoy dining at fine Italian restaurants, chances are you will soon have a white-coated chef at your elbow, joyously shaving paper-thin slices of fresh white truffle on top of your favorite pasta.

"In Italy, truffles are known as the gift of gods'," says chef Robert Barazzutti of Hong Kong's two Aqua restaurants. "To appreciate the amazing flavor, we present the truffle with a simple homemade egg-yolk pasta and a little cheese or seasoning.

"No more than five ingredients per dish," he adds. That's a standard we've heard from other chefs this month as boxes of the fungal favorite began to arrive on the docks of Shanghai and Hong Kong.

"Tuber magnatum pico (white truffle) needs traditional tagliolini's simplicity," the menu announcement at Opera Bombana says of the pasta dish on its seasonal menu.

"Nature will be the protagonist of avant-garde cuisine," says Aniello Turco, the chef at Mio in Beijing's Four Seasons Hotel, who unveiled his own uber-aromatic white-truffle dishes at a tasting dinner last week.

How special are these fragrant fungi?

The record price for a single white truffle was set in 2007, when Macao casino owner Stanley Ho paid $330,000 for a specimen weighing 1.5 kilograms, discovered by Luciano Savini and his dog Rocco. One of the largest truffles found in decades, it was unearthed near Pisa, Italy, and sold at an auction held simultaneously in Macao, Hong Kong and Florence. In 2010, Ho again paid $330,000 at a truffle auction, this time for a pair of white truffles, including one weighing nearly a kilogram.

Here's a sampling from the truffle menus now on offer around China:

Filetto alla rossini

Blackmore Wagyu tenderloin and foie gras de canard (duck liver) with Madeira sauce is "luxury meets luxury", says the team at Opera Bombana in Beijing. It's part of an a la carte menu available at lunch and dinner; other dishes include Japanese egg confit with Parmigiano Reggiano cream, two delicate handmade pastas, and a chestnut ice cream with caramel sponge. Umberto Bombana, China's original high priest of white truffle, will leave his Hong Kong flagship for ceremonial dinners in satellite restaurants in the weeks aheadwith varying white-truffle menus at each location.

Opera Bombana in Beijing and Otto e Mezzo locations in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Macao.
Douglas V. Gibbs is a proud member of the American Authors Association

Douglas V. Gibbs is a proud member of the Military Writers Society of America.
U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-Willsboro, on Thursday announced a re-election endorsement from Rep. Richard Hanna, R-Utica, who represents the neighboring congressional district to the west of Stefanik's 21st District.

"Congresswoman Elise Stefanik and I have worked closely on so many important issues facing Upstate New York, including protecting Fort Drum. ... She is a pragmatic, hardworking member of Congress and an outstanding advocate for our region and state," Hanna said in a press release.

Stefanik has co-sponsored three bills Hanna introduced this session, but the two Republicans differ on presidential politics.

Hanna, who is retiring at the end of the year, has said he will not vote for Donald Trump for president.

Stefanik has said she supports Trump, although she disagrees with many of his statements and actions.

Stefanik is running against Democrat Mike Derrick, a retired Army colonel from Peru, in Clinton County, and Green Party candidate Matt Funiciello, a bread company owner and political activist from Hudson Falls.
I have seen a lot of unusual and interesting things over the two-plus decades of covering the local court system.

What I saw in court on Wednesday, when Warren County Judge John Hall decided to "seal" all of the evidence the county district attorney's office filed at the arraignment of the Lake George man accused of manslaughter in the summer boat crash that killed Charlotte McCue, was a first, though.

Over the last couple of months, Hall has "sealed" -- which means they are off limits to public inspection -- a videotaped statement of defendants in three murder cases, which we had not seen locally.

On Wednesday, he took it a step further and shut down the whole court file in a case that has drawn scrutiny and interest from around the country. Wednesday's arraignment drew nearly a dozen media outlets, including the New York Times and all of the regional entities.

Warren County District Attorney Kate Hogan filed a packet of material Wednesday during the arraignment as part of her argument for bail to be increased.

The judge said the move to seal the evidence was made "to preserve a fair trial."

No one on either side of the case requested the sealing order, however.

There have been a notably higher number of overturned felony cases in Warren County than neighboring counties, but none of those reversals had anything to do with the media or public viewing case files.

I checked with the state Committee on Open Government, but that organization does not offer opinions on court cases.

By law, criminal court records are open to the public, with only certain portions of them -- rap sheets, probation reports, documents that identity sex crime victims -- off limits.

So the media's only option is to hire counsel of our own to potentially litigate the matter. We have been in talks with our newspartner, NewsChannel 13, about the issue, so we will see if that is an option.

-- Don Lehman
What started as a cute early season snowstorm Thursday left thousands of local residents in the dark after the weight of heavy, wet snow snapped thousands of tree limbs, shattered trees and brought down utility lines.

National Grid spokesman Nate Stone said Friday morning that all of his companys outages were expected to be repaired by early Saturday. He said the company had pulled in 25 crews from central New York to help in the region, and numerous broken utility poles had to be replaced as well as lines repaired.

At the height of the storm, we had about 20,000 customers out, most of them in Warren, Washington and Essex counties, Stone said.

Queensbury, Chester, Greenwich, Whitehall and Argyle were hardest hit, though hundreds of outages lingered in rural communities like Thurman and Bolton as of late Friday afternoon.

NYSEG reported no local outages as of Friday, though the company had over 4,000 customers in Saratoga County out on Thursday night.

Snow weighted down by rain snapped trees and branches around the region Thursday night and Friday morning, making some neighborhoods in Queensbury sound like shooting ranges. The fact that many trees still had leaves to hold snow played a part in the weight collecting and overburdening branches.

Stone said the snow caught a lot of weather people by surprise, as only a dusting of snow was expected before a changeover to rain Thursday afternoon.

It was a perfect storm of wet snow on trees that still had leaves on them, Stone said.

In some areas, trees were literally split into halves or quarters by the weight of the snow on branches. One tree on Surrey Field Drive in Queensbury split four ways, with one large section landing on a house.

Part of a tree also damaged a home on Moorwood Drive in Queensbury, and Horicon Avenue in Glens Falls and Glen Lake Road in Queensbury had dozens of damaged trees.

John Quinlan, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Albany, said the cold weather stayed in valleys longer than expected, resulting in more snow in those areas. And the fact temperatures were borderline for frozen precipitation made it a wet snow.

It was a very gloppy, heavy snow, with a high liquid content, he said.

Had it been rain, nearly an inch would have fallen in the Glens Falls area, Quinlan said.

The National Weather Service reported 4 inches of snow in Warrensburg, 3.5 inches in Greenfield and North River, 3.2 inches in Glens Falls, 3 in Queensbury, 2.3 in Saratoga Springs and 1.5 inches in Fort Edward and Hebron.

The Warren County Sheriffs Office website shows the county dispatch center fielded at least 62 calls about traffic and road problems stemming from downed lines and trees and 20 fire/emergency calls between 8 p.m. Thursday and 7 a.m. Friday.

No significant road closures were reported, though traffic was reduced to one lane on many roads.

Rain showers are expected Saturday and Sunday as well, but temperatures near 50 will keep it in the form of liquid.
Nearly 4,000 local customers of National Grid remained without power as of early Friday thanks to Thursday's snowstorm.

Nearly 2,500 Warren County residents were in the dark as of 5:30 a.m., most of them in Queensbury and Chester. Washington County has more than 1,200 outages, most of them in Argyle and Greenwich.

National Grid's website predicted all would have their power back by 5 p.m., but company spokesman Nate Stone said Friday morning that some may have to wait until early Saturday. He said the company had pulled in 25 crews from central New York to help in the region, and numerous broken utility poles had to be replaced.

NYSEG reported no local outages.

Snow weighted down by rain snapped trees and branches around the region Thursday night and Friday morning. The fact that many trees still had leaves that hold snow played a part in the weight collecting and overburdening branches.

Stone said the snow "caught a lot of weather people by surprise," as only a dusting of snow before a changeover to rain was expected Thursday afternoon.

"It was a perfect storm of wet snow on trees that still had leaves on them," Stone said. "At the height of the storm, we had about 20,000 customers out, most of them in Warren, Washington and Essex counties."

In some areas, trees were literally split into halves or quarters by the weight of the snow on branches. One tree on Surrey Field Drive in Queensbury split four ways, with one large section landing on a house. Part of a tree also damaged a home on Moorwood Drive in Queensbury.

John Quinlan, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Albany, said the cold weather stayed in valleys longer than expected, resulting in more snow in those areas. And the fact temperatures were borderline for frozen precipitation made it a wet snow.

"It was a very gloppy, heavy snow, with a high liquid content," he said.

Had it been rain, nearly an inch would have fallen in the Glens Falls area, Quinlan said.

The Warren County Sheriff's Office website shows the county dispatch center fielded at least 62 calls about traffic and road problems stemming from downed lines and trees and 20 "fire/emergency" calls between 8 p.m. and 7 a.m.

No significant road closures were reported, though traffic was reduced to one lane on many roads.

Rain showers will linger into early Friday, with rain showers expected Saturday and Sunday as well.

The National Weather Service reported 4 inches of snow in Warrensburg, 3.5 inches in Greenfield and North River, 3.2 inches in Glens Falls, 3 in Queensbury, 2.3 in Saratoga Springs and 1.5 inches in Fort Edward and Hebron.
GLENS FALLS  It was quite by chance that the filming of Radium Girls came to Warren County. But after Emmy-award winning filmmaker Lydia Dean Pilcher was invited to a Meryl Streep screenwriting retreat at Wiawaka Center for Women in Lake George, she knew this was the place.

We had been developing the script, Dean Pilcher said Wednesday afternoon while taking a break from filming. And when I saw all the period houses on the lake at Wiawaka I knew.

Co-producer Emily McEvoy chimed in, all the period architecture, the period furniture. It is like a ready-made set.

The feature-length film, shot at several Warren County locations, wrapped up principal photography the end of this week and now the filmmakers are headed back to New York City for post-production work, Dean Pilcher said.

On Wednesday and Thursday, cast and crew were shooting street scenes on Glen Street, Elm Street, inside the non-renovated rear segment of the Union Square Building off the loading dock and outside the armory on Warren Street.

Over the month, the film, set in 1925 New Jersey, shot scenes at Wiawaka, the Lake George Courthouse, in a jail cell at the courthouse, Haviland Cove and two locations at Miller Mechanical.

The main characters home was constructed at the Cozy Nook cottages in Lake George.

We really enjoyed all the spaces, McEvoy said. We are really grateful for all the properties. Everyone has been really gracious with their time.

And Dean Pilcher added that everyone in the area has been amazing.

The Adirondack As brought us lots of vintage cars, she said. The other day they had six cars here and we put the car owners in hats and coats and they drove them in the scenes.

Based on a true story, the film explores the lives of two fictional teen sisters Bessie (played by Joey King, co-star of Ramona and Beezus) and Jo (Abby Quinn, co-starring with John Turturro in the upcoming Landline) who, like the real-life radium girls, paint glow-in-the-dark watch dials for the American Radium Company.

When Jo develops a mysterious and life-threatening illness, the girls world begins to unravel. Her disease is eventually linked to the radium the young women were painting onto the watch dials, and they stand up to American Radium in court.

Our story is based on six women in Orange, New Jersey, who took on the company and their case spanned several years, McEvoy said. Their story was documented and we are able to tell their story.

Because beautiful historic archival footage of the time exists, the producers wanted to bring those images into the film. And McEvoy said that Dean Pilcher came up with the idea of blending the live scenes shot in Warren County into this old footage. The innovative visual style will push the boundaries of conventional storytelling and create a new language, McEvoy said.

The blended scenes will appear in black and white while the narrative scenes will be in color. We will do that in the edit, Dean Pilcher said.

Exploring the archival footage, Dean Pilcher said, she was struck by seeing police brutality against protesting communists. In the film, Bessie falls in love with a young communist with radical ideas.

It was incredible to realize the police were beating and dragging these otherwise peaceful protesters, she said. And now 100 years later we see similar things.

The producers anticipate completing post-production work in the spring and plan on doing the premiere at a film festival.

What about the Adirondack Film Festival scheduled for October 2017?

That would be great, we would love that, Dean Pilcher said, smiling.
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The nurses and midwives who form the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association of Ghana say efforts to get the government to pay them all their outstanding salaries and benefits have not yielded any results.

Addressing a press conference on Thursday, October 27, 2016, the president of the GRNMA, Kwaku Asante-Krobea said although our checks with the IPPD Unit of the Ministry of Health indicates that over eight thousand of the claim forms have been validated, our nurses and midwives are yet to be paid their salary arrears. There are hundreds of the nurses and midwives who have worked for various periods up to sixteen months who have not been paid a pesewa for the services they are rendering to mother Ghana.

Mr Asante-Krobea also called for the abolishment of governments policy which requires the accountant generals department to pay them only three months of arrears irrespective of the number of months one is owed.

He said the Ministry of Health and its Agencies, as well as the Ministry of Finance, must revert to the old policy where all salary arrears are paid at a go.

The association also raised concerns over non-posted graduate nurses and midwives, charging of promotion interview fees and the second tier pension scheme.

It also demanded that allowances of student nurses and midwives of not less than GHC500 be paid by the end of November.

Mr Asante-Krobea said due to the above concerns, the association has set up a roadmap of action.

He said the association has set November 1 to 6 as days for wearing red armbands to register their displeasure, adding that on November 7 to 13, we will withdraw all OPD services, only Emergency and maternity cases will receive attention.
The announcement came after a two day meeting which took place in Abidjan, Cote DIvoire last Tuesday.

The establishment of the network, follows recommendations made at an earlier meeting involving the members which took place in Ouagadougou, December 2015.

While serving as health communication persons in their respective countries, members of the network will support the ECOWAS health organization to expand the visibility of its regular public health interventions.

Dr Xavier Crespin, director General of WAHO expressed optimism about the network adding that he has been impressed about activities this far following the first meeting.

Mr. Traore Moctar, head of communication at the WAHO thanked all for the commitment to realize the formation of the network and charged all the members deliver as pledged. He asked for a selfless commitment to uplift the image of the organization and to promote the health of the people in the region

Members of the network currently includes representatives from Ghana, Togo, Benin, Mali,The Gambia,Liberia, Guinea Bissau, Cote Divoire, Cape Verde, Sierra Leone with its elected president from Senegal.
In a statement from the Commission, his appointment is expected to take effect from November 1, 2016. The statement was signed by the NMC Chairman Kwesi Gyan-Apenteng.

Dr Anoff-Ntow has close to two decades of professional experience in broadcasting as both a practitioner and scholar.

He is a trained television producer/director and has produced, directed and has executive produced many television programmes across several genres.

The statement added that Dr Anoff-Ntow, therefore comes to the role of Director-General with intimate knowledge of the editorial and operational workings of global public broadcasting.

As a member of the International Public Television (INPUT) forum, Dr Anoff-Ntow has undertaken many international projects around best practice in public broadcasting and media. He was one of 16 programme experts from around the world who planned and led sessions at INPUT international conferences in Germany, USA, Switzerland and South Africa.

As a communication scholar, Dr Anoff-Ntows research interests include newsroom journalistic practices, the political economy of public broadcasting in Africa, communication policy and the politics of visual representations.

He holds a Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Communications Studies from the University of Calgary in Canada where his doctoral thesis topic focused on Public Broadcasting and the politics of media in Ghana: a cast study of the GBC.

He is a member of the Ghana Journalists Association, the Canadian Communications Association and sits on the Board of the African Centre for Parliamentary Affairs (ACEPA).

His appointment comes shortly after the staff of GBC demanded the dissolution of the Board of the Corporation. The National Labour Commission (NLC) looked into the case and ruled that the staff desist from all acts of protest against the board.
Speaking to media after the order, Nduom said Its not a great moment for me, but its a great moment for democracy and for our human rights.

Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom sued the Chairman of the Electoral Commission, Mrs. Charlotte Osei and the Electoral Commission as the first and second respondents respectively after he was disqualified from contesting the December 7 presidential election.

Read more:Court orders EC to reinstate Nduom

The Court presided over by His Lordship George Kyei Baffour also in his ruling quashed the disqualification of the presidential candidate.

Dr Nduom was part of 13 aspirants disqualified from contesting in the December elections over alleged illegalities on their nomination forms.

Dr Nduom, according to the EC, was disqualified because the number of subscribers to his forms did not meet the requirements of Regulation 7 (2) (b) of CI 94.

One subscriber Richard Aseda (Asida on the Voters Register), with Voter ID no 7812003957) endorsed the forms in two different districts (pages 21 and 39).

The subscriber was found to be on the Voters Register in one district thereby disqualifying his second subscription and reducing the total number of subscribers to below the minimum required by the Law.

The same subscriber (Richard Aseda (Asida) endorsed the form with different signatures in both portions of the nomination form. This raises questions as to the legitimacy of one or both signatures.

Nii Ayikoi Otoo, counsel for Dr Nduom, has challenged the Electoral Commission's disqualification of his client arguing it has no basis in the EC's own law.
According to him, the situation has compelled many, especially the young people, to travel elsewhere to seek for greener pastures.

Our people seem to prefer xenophobic isolation in foreign lands. Thats why theyre willing to risk their lives crossing deserts and crossing seas in pursuit of greener pastures," he said.

He said: The reality is that our people are not happy...it behooves on us as leaders to focus on wealth creation. We have to create wealth and the process brings our people out of poverty so they have their basic needs and they can be happy and we can have peace and stability.

Addressing the chiefs, the NPP flagbearer said he is hopeful that his partys electoral fortunes in the region will improve in the forthcoming elections.
Speaking on her behalf a spokesperson for the Asantehemaa, (Asantehemaa Kyeame,) Nana Akua Agyeman Kromo, said they have offered prayers for Nana Addo and the NPP to win the 2016 general elections.

She said this when the wife of Nana Addo Mrs Rebecca Akufo-Addo paid a courtesy call on the queen mother. Mrs Akufo-Addo is in the Ashanti Region for a three-day tour, shortly after her husband left the region.

She is expected to meet with queen mothers and electorates to share the NPPs vision and plans for Ghana.

Meanwhile, the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II has asked chiefs declaring their support for some presidential candidates to abdicate their seats before they do so.

READ ALSO: 57 Volta chiefs declare support for Nana Addo

The Asantehene was addressing the last session of the Ashanti Regional House of Chiefs.
According to him, the balloting for positions for parliamentary candidates which was done without the presidential balloting will create confusion for some voters at the polls, since hitherto, we had the balloting for the presidential elections, where you place, that same place is done for the parliamentary.

The EC had scheduled to do the balloting for the Presidential candidates  President John Mahama of the National Democratic Congress, Nana Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party, Ivor Greenstreet of the Convention Peoples Party (CPP) and an independent candidate, Jacob Osei Yeboah  who met all the criteria set by the EC.

But it has been forced to suspend the process because of the legal suits brought against the Commission by the disqualified aspirants.

The move, Ben Ephson insists, will worsen the case of rejected ballots during the polls.

This year, they have done parliamentary first; they would have to do balloting again for the presidential. NDC is third, NPP is fifth. If those two big parties, their status change depending on the number of candidates for the presidential, it is even going to be worse because the parties will now have only two to three weeks to be accustomed to educating their supporters to vote on logos or their emblems. And that is going to be a problem, the Managing Editor of the Daily Dispatch explained on Radio Ghana.

Ghanas 2012 General Elections produced at 251,720 (2.3%) rejected ballots. Although the number of rejected ballots as a percentage of the total votes cast reduced by 0.13% from the 2008 rate of 2.4% to 2.3% in 2012, the 2012 rate was still higher than the 2004 rate of 2.2%.

Many have said that if rejected ballots were a political party they could boast of a steady increase in popularity ahead of the smaller parties in Ghana.
Nigeria wants to sell a $1 billion in eurobonds by the end of the year although, as of Thursday, no bank had been appointed to arrange the issue.

"At the moment am focused on the $1 billion," she said in a video recording to an investor conference in Lagos.

Nigeria, Africa's largest economy, slipped into recession for the first time in 25 years in the second quarter, largely due to low global oil prices. Crude oil sales account for about two-thirds of government revenues.

The government has laid out plans to spend a record 6.866 trillion naira ($22.5 billion) to help pull Nigeria out of recession in a draft 2017 budget sent to parliament for approval.

Spending this year was 6.06 trillion naira, but the government has struggled to fund this, and analysts were sceptical that it would manage to meet the targets for overseas borrowing that it has set for the next few years.

Adeosun said the country was "further along" with the African Development Bank for a $1 billion budget support loan than the World Bank due to scheduling issues.

"We have pushed World Bank funding into next year's budget," she said.

President Muhammadu Buhari has asked parliament to approve $30 billion of foreign borrowing to fund planned infrastructure projects until 2018, according to a letter read out to lawmakers on Tuesday.

The proposed borrowing includes the sale of eurobonds worth $4.5 billion and budget support of $3.5 billion, according to the letter.

The finance ministry said on Thursday the $30 billion borrowing was going to be phased over a three-year period to cover proposed projects between 2016-2018.

Adeosun said Nigeria was interested in tapping funds at concessionary rates to develop infrastructure and that most of the funding it was seeking would carry concessionary terms.

The funding is being sought from multilateral agencies including the World Bank, Africa Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank, Japan International Co-operation Agency and China Eximbank, the ministry said in a statement.

Adeosun said expected taxes collection as a percentage of GDP which is currently at 5 percent to hit 7 percent within three-years and to reach 10 percent within 5 years.
According to a source who spoke to Us Magazine, investigators have widened their inquiry to the history and pattern of behavior of the actor.

They are looking at a history and pattern of behavior,

They are looking at not only the original incident but other possible incidents surrounding it and more history.

This is part of a protective order against Pitt, who has had a rocky relationship with his wife, Angelina Jolie.
Kardashian was pictured grabbing an ice-cream with her BFF, Jonathan Cheban, who trailed behind her during an outing.

The pair were spotted on Monday, October 24, 2016 in Los Angeles.

ALSO READ: KUWTK star drops lawsuit against news website

She looked amazing as usual wearing a long white hoodie and a matching sandal, but reports says she has not gotten over the Paris robbery incident.

Speaking concerning the incident, a source close to the TV star told Us Magazine that Kardashian is yet to adjust to reality.

Shes not doing well,

[Shes been having] difficulty sleeping and has anxiety when she leaves the house. Shes never experienced anything like this before. This shattered her world.
She is to represent the brand with one of its edible products, 'Slimming Coffee'.

Aigbe made the announcement via her Instagram page on Wednesday, October 26, 2016.

She wrote, "Signed Deal......Meet the Brand Ambassador of Shape you Slimming Coffee @shapeyouafrica . To God be the Glory!"

This is following a recent deal with Edalaf Brothers Limited, an IT solutions company based in Lagos.

Dr Falade Abiodun, the CEO of the company shared the organization's happiness concerning its new ambassador.

He said, Mercy Aigbe-Gentry is an award-winning professional actress and fashion icon in Nigeria today. She is at the peak of her career and doing very well despite being a mother and a happily married woman.

"Mercy has proven to be morally upright, she is scandal free and she can move the youth of this nation. With Mercy Aigbe-Gentry as our face, we believe we will have the undivided attention of the Nigerian Youth and we can actually make the difference by guiding them in the right path to discovering their individual talents and following their passion."
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!
Kaduna News Online reports that the State High Court handed down the sentence on Baba, without an option of a fine, over a phony gas supply contract.

The judge, Justice Tukur Mu'azu, heard that Baba had defrauded one Alhaji Auwal Ibrahim, the CEO of Rahusa Investment Limited, Sabon Hunkuyi, of the sum of N1 million sometime in 2011, over the non-existent gas supply contract.

It was gathered that Baba had duped the victim of the sum for the supply of five trucks of gas at the rate of N200,000 per truck, knowing that such contract was neither approved of or existed.
According to Elombah News, the sentence was handed down on Charles by a Federal High Court sitting in Enugu State, for allegedly using an unregistered NGO to dupe unsuspecting members of the public over university admissions.

The conviction was secured by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which charged the case to the court on Thursday, October 27, 2016.

Charles was convicted by Justice D.V Agishir who sentenced the accused to three years imprisonment on each of the 30-count charge brought against her.

According to the EFCC, Charles was found guilty of swindling three young Nigerians to the tune of N5.6 million under the guise of helping them secure admission into the Enugu State University of Science and Technology, using her unregistered NGO called 'Bold and Dynamic Gender Initiative.'
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that Umar was sentenced by the trial judge, Justice Abbas Bawale, after he was found guilty of unlawfully having carnal knowledge of the girl, Salima Nuhu.

The lead prosecution counsel, Aminu Garba, had led four witnesses and three exhibits, including the medical report on the victim which attested to the fact that she had been defiled by the convict.

While delivering judgment, Justice Bawale said the prosecution had successfully established the charge beyond reasonable doubt as required by law and said he refused to take into consideration the ill health of the convict who is said to be a cancer patient.

The judge said the punishment for the offense under section 283 of the penal code law attracted a maximum sentence of life imprisonment but opted to send Umar to prison for 10 years imprisonment without an option of fine to serve as a deterrent to others.
Welcome to the Pulse Community! We will now be sending you a daily newsletter on news, entertainment and more. Also join us across all of our other channels - we love to be connected!
Kyari needs little introduction.

Grapevine sources have brought his name up when discussing the cabal operating within the Buhari Presidency.

Kyari runs this cabal alongside a certain Mamman Daura and Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Babachir Lawal, various reports have suggested.

According to these reports, Kyari and Lawal receive kickbacks and bribes from members of the public in exchange for appointments and meetings with President Muhammadu Buhari.

has not been able to independently verify these claims.

Only recently, Kyari was accused of receiving N500M in bribe from mobile telephony firm, MTN.

That MTN bribery allegation was the last straw for Buhari, said one Presidency source.

According to news reports, the President immediately ordered a probe of Kyari on the back of the MTN bribery allegation.

A Vanguard story published on October 21, 2016, gave fillip to the MTN bribery story:

There are indications that the Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Alhaji Abba Kyari is under investigation by the Special Investigation Panel of the Nigerian Police Force over bribery allegations, the Vanguard story read.

According to the story, top officials of MTN who were quizzed concerning the bribery allegation, denied offering Kyari bribe.

Officials of MTN, who were invited and interviewed over the allegation, have vehemently denied that any such money emanated from the telecommunication company and that since the beginning of the $5billion fine saga, nobody had been approached for bribe.

Another thing is that if such volume of money was paid through the banks, discreet investigation of financial dealings on the part of MTN and on the part of the COS has so far not revealed any transactions of such.

But Kyari has been carefully watched for a while now, Presidency sources have told Pulse.

When wife of the President, Aisha Buhari, recently lamented that her husbands Presidency had been hijacked by persons who didnt even know what the APC manifesto looks like; or who possess no voters cards, plenty of fingers pointed the way of Kyari and Daura.

As rumours swirled on Thursday night that Kyari had been suspended, most of the President's supporters expressed how happy they were on social media.

They were practically willing the story to be true.

But their joy was short-lived as night gave way to midnight and the midnight, a new day.

No official statement from the Presidency announcing Kyaris suspension had been issued at the time of filing this story.

A hoax?

Presidency spokespersons, Garba Shehu and Laolu Akande, hadnt answered calls for a confirmation or rebuttal of Kyaris imminent suspension, at the time of filing this story.

On Friday, a defiant Kyari emerged from the Presidents office, looking unruffled and unfazed.

"Are you going to tweet that I am back?, he jibed at State House correspondents, a tongue visible in his cheek.

Kyari said he had only gone on leave and hadnt been suspended.

ALSO READ:

Presidency sources spoken to for this story, however insist that Kyari is living on borrowed time at the moment.
The Senior Advocate has reportedly denied receiving any invitation from the EFCC, claiming he had just met with the Attorney General of the Federation in Abuja.

In a report by SaharaReporters, Chief Akintola was said to be in Abuja to defend a judge before the National Judicial Council (NJC) following a petition by a litigant.

It is unclear if Chief Akintola's meeting with the Attorney General has anything to do with any judge in trouble.

Akintola is said to be one of the 30 lawyers that are currently being investigated by the men of the EFCC for corrupt practices following a petition of top lawyers bribing judges.

ALSO READ: EFCC grills top SANs for allegedly bribing judges
She said her priority is to ensure the President's administration succeeds, which, according to her, will require a collective effort.

She stated this in Benisheik, one of the liberated towns of Borno State, as she flagged off the distribution of relief items to displaced rural women.

This is Mrs Buhari's first public statement since her controversial BBC interview where she said she will not support the President's re-election in 2019 if he does not rid his government of the 'cabal' in control of it.

She said she is happy that the APC-led government has started fulfilling campaign promises to Nigerians.

She said: "On our campaign promises to Nigerians, especially to the people of Borno State, we thank Almighty Allah for giving us the opportunity of beginning to fulfill these promises.

"That is the essence of being a good leader; when you promise, you try to fulfill your promises.

"That is what we are all after. And what I am after in particular is the success of my husband's administration. And we cant do it alone, except with the help of the governors, their wives and members of our progressive party and all Nigerians."
Canada, a popular destination for Chinese people accused of corruption, repatriates dozens of Chinese nationals every year, according to the National Post.

So far this year, the country has returned 24 Chinese nationals, while the previous Conservative government sent back more than 330, the newspaper reported on Sunday, citing data from the Canada Border Services Agency.

Last year, the number reached a 10-year high of 43, while 2010 saw 18, the lowest number, the newspaper said. It added that the statistics do not detail the crimes the people are accused of committing.

More than one-quarter of China's 100 most-wanted graft suspects are believed to be in Canada, but the two countries do not have a formal extradition treaty.

"The return of inadmissible persons is a normal part of the bilateral relationship with any country. Nothing has changed with this policy since the change in government in 2015," Nicholas Dorion, of the CBSA, told the newspaper. Since 1999, a working group, composed of officials from both countries, has met regularly to discuss law enforcement issues, including the return of fugitives to China.

China has vowed to search beyond its borders for corrupt officials and business executives, and assets they are believed to have stolen.

The United States, Australia and Singapore are also among the most popular destinations for Chinese fugitives, as a result of a lack of bilateral extradition treaties and differences in national legal systems, according to China's Ministry of Public Security.

Chinese and US judicial authorities have quickened negotiations on the repatriation of the five most-wanted Chinese officials on the run in the US, a senior official from the Communist Party of China Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said this week. The official, who declined to be identified, said "achievements have been made" on a number of major cases through judicial and diplomatic channels.

During a visit to Canada in September, Premier Li Keqiang and Canadian officials signed a bilateral treaty to ensure the return of stolen assets.
Buhari nominated Akinwande to serve as the Chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) but he failed to show up for his screening at the Senate.

He explained his absence via a letter sent to the Senate adding that he has a great deal of respect for Buhari.

His statement reads:

News reports in Nigeria that I have rejected President Buhari's nomination to be Chairman of Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission have been brought to my attention. I have the greatest respect for President Buhari.

I am fully behind the change he has brought and is bringing to the way Government business is conducted in Nigeria. I am deeply honored that Mr. President and his team thought me worthy for this important national assignment and sought me out for it.

I am a tenured professor of electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. As such I am contractually constrained to seek formally the consent of the university for a leave of absence before presenting myself to the Senate for screening and if confirmed take on the assignment.

ALSO READ:Buhari nominates 46 ambassadors
This was disclosed by Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu on Thursday, October 27, in Abuja.

On Tuesday, the President will be meeting with the Niger Delta stakeholders of the oil-producing areas. It is important that we continue to sustain the institutional engagement and negotiations that are key to do this work, Kachikwu said.

Our target is to have an incident reduction by 90 per cent by 2018 and to target zero militancy and shut down by middle of 2017. Whatever shutdown experienced by the middle of next year, we expect it to be production slippages and not militancy issues. We must resolve current militancy problems and bring back production to 2.2 million barrels per day. We are currently at 1.8 million.

We will like to begin the year once Exxon Mobil brings back its production this week with 2.2 million barrels per day. But the reality is that 2.2 million barrels does not represent the capacity of this nation.

We have the capacity to increase to three million barrels per day, the problem has been funding. We are working with the oil sector players to find solutions to our cash call problems, he added.
According to a report by SaharaReporters, the lawyers were alleged to have transferred huge sums of money to the bank accounts of some judges.

Though some of the invited lawyers for interrogation didn't show up, some of those who reportedly showed up include Paul Usoro, Chief Gabi Adetola-Kaseem and Chief Felix Fagbohungbe.

The report further said the lawyers, who honoured the EFCC's invitation were Senior Advocates of Nigeria.

It was further reported that the advocates were still at the Ikoyi office of the EFCC, where they had been all Thursday.

ALSO READ: Judges, judicial workers barred from accepting gifts

An EFCC source reportedly disclosed that the commission had also invited another senior lawyer, Adeniyi Akintola, but he did not show up.
In a report by SaharaReporters, Magu is said to have been stunned at the names of prominent lawyers, who have been fingered in the corruption within the judiciary.

The report claimed that a source revealed that the leadership of EFCC may have opted to invite the senior lawyers following suggestions that the commission was planning to cover-up their illegal activities to preserve their working relationship.

While up to 30 senior lawyers are said to be under probe for bribing judges, the revelation still remains shocking to Magu, who has promised to see the judiciary probe to a logical end.

According to the report, the EFCC source said: We have discovered that corruption in the judiciary is widespread. Some Senior Advocates of Nigeria who have assisted the commission in handling some of our cases in the past are involved. Some of these lawyers had assisted us with useful legal opinions on several matters. So, we are in a dilemma."

This is coming following the invitation extended to several senior advocates and many lawyers in the country.
The Coordinator, Joint Media Campaign Centre, Operation Delta Safe, Lieutenant Colonel Olaolu Dauda, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday, October 27.

It said the skulls, skeletons and other human parts in various stages of decomposition were discovered in the camps belonging to suspected members of the Bakassi Strike Force in Bakassi and Akpabuyo local government areas.

The camps located at Ikot Ene Idem, Abakpa and Ikang Inam communities were destroyed on Wednesday, the statement said.

Similarly, it also said 44 suspected members of the Indigenous People of Biafra were arrested during the inauguration of the Bayelsa State chapter of the group.

ALSO READ: Bakassi Strike Force clash with Niger Delta Avengers
The state Chairman of the association, Alhaji Muhammad Dan-Ali, made the appeal in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Birnin Kebbi on Friday.

The additional earth dams and expansion of grazing reserve areas will curtail the clashes between farmers and cattle herdsmen in the state, Dan-Ali said.

He said the demarcation of grazing reserves to Fulani herdsmen was vital towards addressing the clashes between them and farmers.

According to him, the issue of security is a national phenomenon that requires all and sundry to contribute in order to tackle it.

He also decried the kidnapping of their members by the cattle rustlers in some parts of the state.

Some parts of the state, especially Shanga, Ngaski, and Yauri local government areas, have been experiencing kidnapping; our members have been kidnapped and would not be released until the ransom is paid.

We have forwarded our grievances to the state government, we are waiting for appropriate measures to be taken to ensure the safety of our members, he said.

Dan-Ali also commended the Commission for Nomadic Education for constructing 10 primary schools in the state.
But this incident in August was different. The young men were not just angry with the U.S. company. They were also claiming that rival factions in their community were being given an unfair share of development funds from the oil industry.

The incident shows what the government must address when it meets community leaders and militants in Abuja next week in an attempt to end armed attacks on oil facilities in the Niger Delta, which reduced oil output by a third earlier this year.

Officials hope the meeting - which will be attended by President Muhammadu Buhari - will lead to an agreement for militants to lay down their arms in exchange for funds for the region that produces most of Nigeria's oil.

But divisions between the militant groups and the communities where they live, as well as disputes among different groups of residents, will make it hard to reach a deal.

Community leaders warn that if they do not receive development funds, it will be hard to keep their jobless young men away from the militant groups.

An amnesty in 2009 between the previous government and the militants provided about $300 million a year in cash payments and job training to stop the fighters blowing up pipelines.

But much of the money ended up in the pockets of the militants' leaders, known as "generals". This made them rich and favoured their ethnic groups and villages, while angering those left out of the spending spree.

DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

The issued bubbled to the surface during the two-week protest at Chevron in August, as the unemployed demonstrators demanded access to a development programme funded by the U.S. firm that has benefited other areas.

"The oil producing communities were having rivalry among themselves," said Thank-God Seibi, special assistant to the Delta state government. "They had a power tussle on who controls ... Chevron's community development strategy embracing all the oil producing communities."

Chevron, like other oil companies in Nigeria such as Royal Dutch Shell, ExxonMobil and ENI, aims to help local communities benefit from the oil wealth. Winning the loyalty of local people is vital, as those who feel left out often allow militants to hide in the network of creeks around their Delta villages.

But the oil companies are wary of money disappearing into the pockets of generals or local leaders. Chevron puts cash into accounts from which only a company executive and an official appointed by local communities can withdraw funds after agreeing on where, for example, a road will be built.

At the Chevron protest, one group of local people wanted to nominate a point person who could have a say in where the development funds went, forcing the Delta state government to mediate between rival factions.

Community leaders said oil companies made payments or gave contracts to some local groups but not others.

"When such a development becomes known to the others it becomes a source of conflict resulting in agitations," said youth leader Oweikeye Endoro.

Chevron said it had spent more than one billion naira ($3 million) on a housing project for the Ugborodo community, to which the protesters belong, and awarded contracts worth more than $1 billion to community members for a gas project alone.

The oil firm said its Ugborobo development scheme was compromised by a "perennial internal leadership crisis, with different factions jostling for power".

OIL SLUMP

Elizabeth Donnelly, deputy head of the Chatham House Africa Programme, said it would be more difficult for the government to pay off militants as it did in 2009, as the slump in oil revenues meant the government did not have money to spare.

"Expectations of what can be achieved in negotiations at this stage should not be high," she said.

Even if the government were flush with cash, there are 40 ethnic groups seeking development funds, and traditional leaders are struggling to control jobless young men who could end up joining the militants, residents say.

"The Delta and the spread of its people is so wide and huge, the biggest disparity is going to be, who are the people the government will continuously engage with to get a comprehensive resolution," said Kola Karim, chief executive of Shoreline, a local oil firm whose pipelines have been attacked.

"There are a lot of different groups springing up."

Militant attacks began in January after officials tried arresting a "general" on corruption charges. The violence reduced production to around 1 million barrels per day, the lowest in 30 years.

The government persuaded the most active group, the Niger Delta Avengers, to agree a ceasefire in August, allowing output to rise to 1.9 million barrels per day this week.

The Avengers operate out of the heartland of the biggest ethnic group, the Ijaw, which has benefited more than others from the 2009 amnesty, and resumed attacks this week.

But even during the "ceasefire", another group called Greenland Justice Mandate emerged, saying it acted on behalf of smaller groups left out of the previous amnesty.

The group claimed several attacks and warned Shell against reopening a pipeline blown up by the Avengers in February. "Please go ahead (and) restart the facility and see what will happen. Enough said," it said in a statement.

Chatham House's Donnelly said there was a risk of "ugly violent conflict" between competing militant groups.

Oil firms are well aware that their pipelines and storage tanks are vulnerable in the creeks, where attackers can easily disappear despite a stronger military presence.

"The reality across the board for all major oil companies is continued vigilance, Karim said.
The Assembly had on Thursday, October 27, passed the Code of Conduct (amendment) Bill 2016.

This would mean, if President Muhammadu Buhari assents it, the powers to make rules and regulations for the bodies will automatically be transferred from the Presidency to the National Assembly.

With this, the Assembly has taken over the powers that were until now vested in the President by the extant laws of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act.

Many Nigerians, including senior lawyers and leaders have condemned the amendment, accusing the legislators of carrying out the exercise in bad faith.

The bill was passed as the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja on Thursday denied the bid by the Senate President Bukola Saraki to quash the 16-count charge pending against him before the CCT.

The Senate carried out an amendment of section 18(1) and (2) of the Act.

Section 18 (1) and (2) of the CCB/CCT Act under power of exemption state thus: "The President may by order exempt any cadre of public officers from the provisions of this Act if it appears to him that their position in public service is below the rank which he considers appropriate for the application of those provisions.

"The President may by order confer on the Bureau such additional powers as may appear to be necessary to enable it discharge more effectively the functions conferred upon it under this Act."

The Senate in its amendment of the Act, earlier passed by the House of Representatives substituted "President" with the "National Assembly" in section 18(2), reading "to enable the National Assembly do the conferment of additional powers (if need be) on the Bureau instead of the President" and "him" with "it" in section 18(1).

The Presidents power on appointment of chairman and members of the tribunal as contained in Section 20 (4) of the Act, was also whittled down by the lawmakers by subjecting such appointments to the confirmation by the Senate.
In a voice vote, the Senate amended the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) Act last Thursday.

The Act, contained in Section 18 (2) and 20 (4) of the Constitution, situates the power to hire and fire staff of the CCT, within the Presidency.

If the legislature succeeds with its latest mischief, the power of the President to control the CCB and CCT would have been transferred to the National Assembly.

The bill was first initiated and passed by the House of Representatives.

The Green Chamber transmitted the bill to the Senate for harmonisation in May of 2016.

With the Senate agreeing with the House, the bill would be transmitted to President Muhammadu Buhari for assent.

He shouldnt.

There are several areas to whittle down the powers of the President. Why the CCB and CCT?

Your guess is as good as mine.

This is a devious piece of legislation from lawmakers who are as self-serving as they comelawmakers who only look after themselves; whose bellies are their gods.

There were few voices of dissent on the floor of the Senate, but those were immediately shouted down and out-numbered.

Senator Ahmed Lawan who represents Yobe North, asked for the Senate to take a second look at the bill.

Said Lawan: The Senate is a moderator on legislation. This bill emanated from the House of Representatives and our colleagues there passed it. I agree totally with the submissions of some of our colleagues here that we dont have to hurry to pass it.

We will be doing ourselves and this National Assembly a better service if we step down this thing, move on with some other things that will make this a better bill only when we convince ourselves that what we are trying to do is not for our sake.

If we are affected today because perhaps either one of us or some of us are before the Tribunal or something. This is not a permanent situation and when we legislate we legislate for maybe centuries and we legislate dispassionately, not for ourselves. Mr. chairman, I feel very passionate about this, that whatever we feel about any situation that we are in, lets make sure that that thing doesnt get into us when we legislate for the sake of our people.

Lawan was a lone voice in the wilderness.

The Yobe born Senator was right about the bill being hastily passed only because Senate President Bukola Saraki is on trial at the CCT for false declaration of assets.

Saraki has had serial face-offs with CCT Chairman, Danladi Umar.

Umar has been unyielding as he tries a powerful Senate President who storms the court premises with an army of Senators blaring their support.

Saraki wants Umar to step down from hearing his case, but Umar wouldnt accede to the Senate President's request.

If Umar was hired by the National Assembly, he wouldnt be so stubborn, surely. And if he proves to be hard of hearing and unyielding to the whims and caprices of the National Assembly or Saraki, he would be looking for another job now.

This therefore is a bill that has vendetta written all over it. This is a legislature that wants to put the CCT and its Chairman in their places for daring to embarrass its Senate President.

Thats what this is all about.

There are feelers from the Presidency that Buhari wont assent to this bill.

"Not on his life", one of the President's aides told Pulse. The bill will therefore die a natural death, as it should.

But some day in the future, well remember the National Assembly, not for how it improved the lives of Nigerians with commonsense legislation, but for how selfish and self-serving an arm of government it was.

There have been several days in our democratic journey where we wished we never had a legislature. Well be adding October 27, 2016 to that unimpressive list.
"Sun City, South Africa. Yes ke, that's where I spent my birthday (19th October).In this vlog I'm on a tour of Johannesburg and I can't wait to show you the sights. Sun city is stunning! BTW, I've been given a South African name; it's Lerato! More photos will be on my blog. Thank you for all your well wishes," she says.
From Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards to Africa Movie Academy Awards, from ZAFFA to City People Awards, there are numerous award platform in Nigeria.

From nominating an established actor as 'revelation of the year" to nominating a 2013 movie in 2016, Pulse Movies have put together 10 annoying things about most Nigerian movie awards.

ALSO READ: undefined

1. Nominating an actor that has been in the industry for over five years in the 'revelation of the year' category.'

In 2016, Deyemi Okanlawon, who made his acting debut in 2010, featured in movies like "If Tomorrow Never Comes," starred in the hit web series "Gidi Up," was nominated in a 'revelation of the year category.'

Okanlawon is just one of the numerous actors who are past 'promising' and being revealed, whose talent are known and has been discovered by people that should, but have found their names in such categories.

ALSO READ:undefined

2. Nominating an actor in the 'best actor/actress' category without stating the movie that earned them the nomination.

It is the height of absurdity to nominate an actor without announcing the movie which earned him or her a spot on the list.

Most Nigerian awards come off as a compilation of friends, family, veterans and the sensation of the moment.

3. Nominating a 2013/2014 production in 2016.

2016 has been a great movie year for Nollywood. Have you seen Richard Mofe Damijo's performance in "Oloibiri," Somkele Idhalama's outstanding performance in "93 Days," among other skilful interpretations of roles?

You probably have, but organizers of an award of over three years think nominating Yemi Blaq in 2016 for his performance in a 2014 movieis a better option.

4. Existence of ridiculous categories

From best use of indigenous Nigerian language in movie (what happened to best indigenous movie) to best use of Nigerian food, some categories should just not exist.

ALSO READ: undefined

5. Failure to inform an actor about his/her nomination

Recently a Nollywood actor, Ibrahim Chatta, who was nominated for the City People Entertainment Awardsin the best actor category, appealed to his fans not to vote for him.

While explaining himself, the actor listed several reasons for his controversial post. He said, "Early this year, I was nominated for an award and I wasnt invited, how will you nominate somebody for an award and not invite him and even inform him in good time about his nomination."

How does that even happen?

6. Nominating a big screen production in a 'small screen category' and vice versa

Nominating Iyabo Ojo for her role in the 2016 movie "Black Val," Ruth Kadiri for the 2014 movie "Matters Arising" and Toyin Aimakhu for the 2015 movie "Iya Ibadan" alongside Okawa Shanazy for her role in the TV series "Delilah," Meg Otanwa for "Hush" and Juliana Olayode for "Jenifa's Diary," is ridiculous.

Why and how does a movie actress get a nomination in a category announced as 'best actress TV series'?

ALSO READ: undefined

7. Having 13 nominees in one category

It's is simply hectic and beyond the limits of fairness. How do 13 actors contest for one award? Everyone does not have to make the list.

ALSO READ: undefined

8. A prestigious awards platform without a website or an updated one

How do actors trust or associate themselves with awards platform without a website?

It's simple public relations; an act that would only build their public image. There are no websites or even social media accounts available for viewers to religiously follow the events of some 'prestigious' awards.

ALSO READ: undefined

9. Nominating a 'best sound track' without stating the artist

A best soundtrack nomination is not about the director or film, it is about the composer or songwriter. Best soundtrack is not the same with best sound editor.

ALSO READ: undefined

10. Awarding an actress who hasn't featured in any movie for a year

Nollywood actress, Tonto Dikeh-Churchill, who hasn't featured in a Nollywood movie for over a year, was awarded Actress of the Year by the Peace Awards.

She took to Instagram to share the good news. "A big Thank You to the Team @peaceambassadorawards and to My beautiful FANS.Much APPRECIATED. Bless u #Love #Award #Reward #POKOB #MRSX," she captioned it.
Mrs Buhari also said that President Muhammadu Buhari needs the help of governors and their wives to succeed.

The First Lady made the comments on Thursday, October 27, during a visit to Benisheik, Borno State, one of the towns recaptured from Boko Haram.

What I am after in particular is the success of my husbands administration and he cant do it alone except with the help of the governors, their wives and all members of our progressive party, she said.

We thank almighty Allah that we have started fulfilling some of the campaign promises that we made. This is the essence of leadership; you make a promise and then fulfilled it. We thank my dear husband who makes sure peace is returning to the northeast states, she added.

Mrs Buharis comments come after she attracted controversy by saying, during a BBC interview, that her husbands government had been hijacked by a cabal.

She also said that she would not support him for re-election in 2019 if the situation wasnt addressed before then.

ALSO READ:5 shocking things Aisha Buhari said in BBC interview
In October, 2016, Jimoh Ibrahim made it into the Independent National Electoral Commissions (INEC) final list as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate for the November 26 election in Ondo State.

Against all the odds, youve got to say.

Its quite the turnaround for a man who has carved a reputation for himself as a buyer and destroyer of once thriving businesses.

Back in July, Ibrahims businesses were shuttered by AMCON after it was discovered that he owes Union Bank the sum of N50B. He emerged from that crisis unscathed.

Weeks later, Ibrahim announced he'll be vying for the governorship position in his home State of Ondo.

He was laughed off as a joker by power brokers in the PDP.

But here we are, staring at the possibility of Ibrahim becoming the next Governor of Ondo State, baggage and all.

To get here, it wasnt all smooth sailing for the businessman, make no mistakes.

The PDP is evenly split between Ahmed Makarfi and Ali Modu-Sheriff. Each faction stakes a claim to leading the party.

While the Makarfi faction put forward Eyitayo Jegedes name, Modu-Sheriffs arm of the PDP announced Ibrahim as its candidate.

The PDP had to settle for one of Eyitayo or Ibrahim and the courts were brought in to mediate.

On October 14, 2016, a Federal High Court in Abuja presided by Justice Okon Abang, gave Ibrahim the nod over Jegede.

Abang subsequently threw away a plea by Jegede who sought to be allowed to appeal the October 14 ruling.

With the deadline for the submission of names by all political parties for the Ondo governorship contest looming, INEC had no choice but to obey Abangs ruling.

We received a court order from the High Court in Akure and that was yesterday (Wednesday), but there was a subsisting one by Justice Abang today (Thursday), that is what happened,Ondo State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Olusegun Agbaje, told Premium Times while explaining the decision of the commission.

Agbaje also hinted that the legal battle within the PDP, was far from over.

That is why we put in front of the name (of Ibrahim) court order, to show that the name was picked as a result of an order of the court, he added.

The situation will continue that way until the matter is decided by the Supreme Court if the parties choose to proceed to the apex court.

There are indications that the courts will be very busy in the days ahead.

The Makarfi faction has been fuming since Ibrahims name emerged as the PDP standard bearer.

Ondo State Governor, Olusegun Mimiko--who belongs to the Makarfi faction--has also been throwing his toys out of the pram.

Protesters in Ondo have taken to the streets, erecting bonfires, cordoning off streets and hurling stones at passersby. Ibrahim isnt their man, theyve said.

This wasnt the plan for many members of the PDP. With Ibrahim on the ballot, many PDP supporters have said, the APC's Rotimi Akerodolu, may well be sworn in today.

How Sheriff outsmarted the Makarfi faction yet again is subject matter for another day.

"That is INECs candidate and not PDPs candidate and it is unfortunate that INEC that is supposed to be an unbiased electoral umpire has allowed itself to be used by those whose intention is to truncate the nascent democracy we have in this country," fumed Banji Okunomo, who is the Publicity Secretary of the Makarfi faction in Ondo.

Sheriff has described the latest turn of events as victory for the rule of law.

The former Governor of Borno State has also advised Jegede and his supporters to work with Ibrahim to win the election for the PDP.

Take our word for it: the last hasnt been heard of this matter.

There are indications that the legal battle between the Makarfi and Sheriff faction on one hand; and Ibrahim and Jegede on the other, has only just commenced.

Once again, PDP heads into a major electoral contest, a divided house.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday, October 27 named Ibrahim the party's flag-bearer for the election in its final list of approved candidates.

The Commission said it recognised Ibrahim over Eyitayo Jegede who was presented by the Makarfi faction based on a Federal High Court ruling of October 14 presided over by Justice Okon Abang.

But the faction condemned INEC's move, describing it as biased.

The Publicity Secretary of the faction, Mr. Banji Okunomo, said the commission declared Ibrahim as the party's candidate despite a court order restraining it.

A High Court sitting in Akure, Ondo State had on Wednesday, October 26, issued a restraining order against INEC from recognising Ibrahim as the PDP candidate.

"That is INECs candidate and not PDPs candidate and it is unfortunate that the INEC that is supposed to be an unbiased electoral umpire has allowed itself to be used by those whose intention is to truncate the nascent democracy we have in this country," he said.

Reacting to INEC's declaration, Sheriff said it is victory for the rule of law.
According to a report by SaharaReporters, thousands of aggrieved youths staged a protest against the candidature of Ibrahim ahead of the November 26, 2016 governorship election.

It was further reported that the protesters in Akure blocked the major roads and entrance of the popular Oba Adesida, Isolo, Arakale, and Oyemekun road in the capital city.

The protesters, who destroyed campaign posters and billboards of Ibrahim, were also reported to have barricaded all the adjourning routes to the streets of the state capital brandishing dangerous weapons such as stones, sticks, and machetes.
The development follows weeks of animosity and tension over the legitimate candidate between the two names submitted to INEC by the PDP factional leaders - Ali Modu Sheriff and Ahmed Makarfi.

The Makarfi-led PDP Caretaker Committee had presented Eyitayo Jegede (SAN) as the party's legitimate candidate while the party's embattled Chairman, Sheriff submitted Jimoh Ibrahim's name.

INEC had also expressed worry as to whose candidate to declare as qualified to be the party's flag-bearer for the election - having received separate court orders in favour of each of the contending candidates.

An order from the Federal High Court in Abuja, presided over by Justice Okon Abang, had on October 14 directed INEC to disqualify Jegede and recognise Ibrahim as the true candidate of the party.

In a counter move, Jegede too on Wednesday, October 26, obtained a restraining order against INEC from an Ondo State High Court, asking the electoral body not to recognise Ibrahim as the party's candidate pending the determination of the substantive suit before the court.

On Thursday, Justice Abang also rejected Jegege's plea seeking to be allowed to appeal the October 14 court judgement.

ALSO READ: INEC releases list of approved candidates for polls

According to Premium Times, the Ondo State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Olusegun Agbaje, said Ibrahim was approved as the candidate based on Justice Abang's order.

"We received a court order from the High Court in Akure and that was yesterday (Wednesday), but there was a subsisting one by Justice Abang today (Thursday), that is what happened," Agbaje told the newspaper.

He, however, noted that INEC would drop Ibrahim if another superior order comes in Jegede's favour.

He said: "That is why we put in front of the name court order, to show that the name was picked as a result of an order of the court.

"The situation will continue that way until the matter is decided by the Supreme Court if the parties choose to proceed to the apex court."
Ibrahim was chosen as the official PDP candidate by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday, October 27.

Mimiko made his comments on Friday, October 28, after a private meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja.

I am shocked. In logic, in law, in politics, there is no basis for this decision whatsoever, he said.

This action potentially can cause a breach of peace. We see this action as potentially dangerous. It can cause conflagration in the state and that is why as the chief security officer of the state, I have come to alert Mr. President of the potential danger of this injustice so that we can nip it in the bud.

In the last seven and half years, we have done everything possible to put good governance on the table and promote peace. Only around 7 or 8 pm on Thursday did we get to know that INEC for no justifiable reason had substituted the name of Jegede and replaced it with that of Ibrahim.

The question to ask is on whose order has INEC done that? Apart from the fact that we have two restraining orders on INEC, the commission knows fully well that Jimoh Ibrahims primary was in Ibadan.

There was no report by security agencies that the security situation in Ondo state warranted the movement of the primary to Ibadan or anywhere outside the state for that matter. Under INEC guidelines, the time for substitution of candidates has even elapsed," he added.
Speaking to a general audience on October 26, 2016, he made reference to Matthew 25:35-36, which says, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me.

Using this Bible verse, the Pope urged Christians to recognise Jesus Christ' face in the many faces of people, that need help.

"The history of mankind is the history of migrations in all latitudes, there is no people that has not known the phenomenon of migration.

Today, the context of economic crisis unfortunately favors the emergence of attitudes of closure and not welcome. In some parts of the world walls and barriers arise.

Closure is not a solution, in fact, it ultimately benefits criminal trafficking. The only solution is that of solidarity.

It is a commitment that involves everyone, without exception. Dioceses, parishes, institutes of consecrated life, associations and movements, as individual Christians, we are called to welcome the brothers and sisters fleeing war, famine, violence and inhumane living conditions.

These works, in fact, make evident that Christians are not tired and lazy in waiting for the final encounter with the Lord, but every day go out, recognizing his face in the many people asking for help", he added.

Pope Francis also made reference to the many examples of refugees and migrants in the Bible, including Abraham, the people of Israel, and the Holy Family.

Moving on, he encouraged Christians to always perform the corporal works of mercy, which are feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, clothing the naked, burying the dead, sheltering the traveler, comforting the sick, and freeing the imprisoned.

"Dear brothers and sisters, do not fall into the trap of closing in on ourselves, indifferent to the needs of brothers and worried only about our own interests.

All together, we can be a great strength of support for those who have lost home, family, work and dignity.

And to clothe the naked, what is it but to restore dignity to those who have lost it? It is precisely to the extent that we open ourselves to others that life becomes fruitful, society regains peace and people recover their full dignity", he stated.
But Samsung is now offering an update program for South Korean Galaxy Note 7 users in which users can replace their Note 7's with a Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge.

Next year, those users will also have the opportunity to upgrade to a Galaxy S8 or the Galaxy Note 8. The upgrade will not be completely free - users will have to pay half the price of the S7 or S7 Edge.

That is how Samsung has lowkey confirmed that it will not be discontinuing the Note name which shows that the company is doing all within its power to repair the damage that the exploding Note 7 has caused.
The wedding will take place at the President's home in Maiaduwa GRA, Katsina state, and starts at 2pm after Jumaat prayers.

Fatima is the President's second daughter from his late former wife, and the groom, who turns 57 later this year, was once the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria.

ALSO READ: Watch as Orobosa Igbinedion and Umar Mantu marry in South Africa

Of course, there will be lots and lots if dignitaries and VIP's to grace the occasion.

Reports say Vice President Osinbajo is leading a host of Governors, government Aides as well as other prominent political figures to celebrate with the President's family.

There's also the expectation that many other top business men and respected figures from all walks of life will be at Katsina state to join iin celebrations.

From reports, the streets over in Katsina are already buzzing with activities and expectation.
But as he scrutinised newspaper front pages pinned up at a roadside in the commercial capital Abidjan, Brice Bosse, 44, wasn't buying it.

"I don't think this referendum should happen," said the construction worker. "They rushed this through, and no one even knows what's in it."

Ivorians, along with the investors who have poured into French-speaking West Africa's largest economy since its civil war ended in 2011, crave stability.

But rights groups and diplomats say a process that could have helped heal a deeply divided society has instead rushed out a document that few Ivorians have had time to read, much less debate.

"It looks like a fait accompli," said one Abidjan-based diplomat. "You can say what you like about the text, but the process could have been more transparent. It's a missed opportunity."

The authorities say they have respected the legal timetable for the referendum process, and that a vote on the constitution must be held before legislative elections in December.

And with no public debate, many on both sides are falling back on adversarial positions that caused nearly a decade of bloodshed and economic stagnation.

"This constitution formalises the colonisation of a big part of our country by people who have come from somewhere else," Innocent Anaki Kobena, a minister under former President Laurent Gbagbo, told a crowd in Abidjan's Port Bouet neighbourhood on Wednesday.

Most of his audience were Gbagbo supporters whose refusal to accept Ouattara's 2010 election win sparked a war that killed over 3,000. Gbagbo is now in The Hague, on trial for crimes against humanity.

"LIKE A VOLCANO"

The constitution drafted under military rule after a 1999 coup has been at the heart of Ivory Coast's prolonged crisis.

It said presidential candidates must have both parents be Ivorian - a deliberate swipe at northerners, many of whom, like Ouattara, have family ties that straddle the borders with Burkina Faso and Mali. It was used to disqualify him from poll in 2000.

The new constitution scraps that rule - only one parent must be Ivorian, it says. It also creates a post of vice president and a senate.

Rights groups are worried that it allows future changes to go ahead with a two thirds majority in parliament, a body now heavily dominated by Ouattara's allies.

"If a president has a majority in parliament, he can do whatever he likes with the constitution. That, for us, is problematic," said Nathalie Kouakou Yao N'Guessan, the head of Amnesty International in Ivory Coast.

Civil society groups lobbied for a delay of the vote on the text, which was drafted behind closed doors. They were rebuffed.

So by voting day, Ivorians will have had just two and a half weeks to consider the proposed 184-article charter.

Human Rights Watch this week accused the authorities of clamping down on opposition to the constitution by closing newspapers, breaking up demonstrations, detaining political leaders and blocking their access to state media.

Government spokesman Bruno Kone denied all the accusations.

Brice Bosse fears the referendum will only deepen divisions between Ivorians. He plans to stay at home on Sunday.
The crisis-hit country of 3.5 million, wedged between Ukraine and Romania, will for the first time since 1997 elect a president by national vote instead of having parliament select the head of state.

The popular ballot now forces Moldovans to make a tough choice for their country, which has been rocked by protests and political turmoil since the mysterious disappearance of $1 billion (915 million euros) -- some 10 percent of the country's GDP -- from three banks last year.

Presidential candidates are pressing diametrically-opposed visions for the country's future: deeper ties with the European Union and closer relations with Moscow.

The country signed an historic EU association agreement in 2014 despite bitter opposition from Russia, and the result of Sunday's elections could fuel strife between pro-European and pro-Russian forces.

Europe's dwindling appeal

EU officials have admitted that Europe's appeal has dwindled in the ex-Soviet republic in spite of the 2014 association agreement.

Pirkka Tapiola, who heads the EU mission to Moldova, told AFP that 70 percent of Moldovans had supported a European course for the country's development but that this figure had dropped following a string of failed pro-Western government reforms.

"The fact that we have had successive governments that have called themselves pro-European (...) has taken a toll on the popularity of the European vector," Tapiola told AFP.

Presidential candidate Igor Dodon, who heads the Socialist Party, has vehemently advocated against turning toward Europe.

"What have we received from Europe? Nothing," said Dodon, who currently leads in voting intention polls, during a recent rally.

Dodon, who served as economy minister from 2006 to 2009 under a Communist government, has pledged to "restore a strategic partnership with Russia" and to void the economic portion of the association agreement with the EU.

"I am not against the EU," Dodon told AFP, stressing that the implementation of reforms demanded by Brussels, including in the justice system, are in Moldova's interest.

Candidate Maia Sandu of the centre-right opposition, currently second in voting intention polls, has promised to make Moldova European.

"We advocate European integration because we see true democracy and prosperity for workers in the EU," Sandu told AFP.

Sandu, a former education minister who worked for the World Bank, conceded that authorities in Chisinau will have to convince "Moldovans and European partners of their sincerity" before even setting a timeline for the country's possible accession to the EU.

A divided population

Moldovan voters seem as divided as their political leaders, with half the population in favour of bolstering ties with the EU while the other looks east to Russia and hopes the country will enter a Russian-led customs union that also includes Belarus and Kazakhstan.

"Moldova needs to be part of the EU," said 66-year-old former construction worker Mihai Scutelnic. "But before that we need to put our country in order."

But for others like 67-year-old Ion Badii, the country's Communist past and strong ties with Moscow are more appealing.

"It's better to have close ties with Russia because Europe does not need our commodities," he said.

Factory worker Vladimir, 37, said the country was "psychologically closer to Russia" because of its Soviet past.

But Tapiola of the EU warned against attempts to label the country's different political factions as pro-Russian and pro-European, saying it made for "artificial polarisation."

"I think that some may have preferred to direct the discourse into pro-EU or pro-Russia because it is an easy discourse compared to the main discourse," he said.
"Julian Assange has requested that the Swedish prosecutor should grant him leave from the detention order and the European arrest warrant in order to go to a funeral," the prosecutor's office said in a statement.

The prosecutor dismissed Assange's request, saying that Swedish law does not allow permission or exemption to a court decision on issuing of a European arrest warrant.

The prosecutor's office did not specify whose funeral Assange wanted to attend or where it would be held.

The 45-year-old Australian has been holed up in Ecuador's embassy in London since June 2012, seeking refuge there after exhausting all his legal options in Britain against extradition to Sweden.

Assange has refused to travel to Sweden for questioning over rape allegations, which he denies, due to concerns that he would then be extradited to the United States over WikiLeaks' release of 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

In September, a Swedish appeals court ruled against his request to lift the arrest warrant, the eighth straight time a Swedish court has ruled against him.
"We believe that the proof is not there for any punitive action to be taken. It's simply not there," Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told reporters following a closed-door Security Council meeting.

A joint United Nations-Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) panel concluded that government forces carried out three chlorine gas attacks on villages in 2014 and 2015.

It was the first time an international probe blamed President Bashar al-Assad's forces after years of denial from Damascus.

But Churkin told the council that the findings were not strong enough to trigger sanctions.

The conclusions "in most cases... are not substantiated by sufficient testimonial basis, first of all material proof, they are full of contradictions and therefore unconvincing," he said, according of a text of his remarks.

The findings are "not definitive, have no legally binding force and cannot serve as accusatory conclusions for taking legal decisions," he added.

Britain and France pressed demands for sanctions, arguing that UN resolutions provided for such action in response to the use of chemical weapons.

"Those responsible for using chemical weapons must be sanctioned. There is no other way," French Ambassador Francois Delattre told reporters.

"There should be accountability for every single person involved in any use of chemical weapons in Syria or indeed anywhere else," British Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said.

Chlorine barrel-bombs

Government helicopters flying from two regime-controlled air bases dropped chlorine barrel-bombs on the villages of Qmenas, Talmenes and Sarmin, in rebel-held Idlib province, the panel's latest report said.

Chlorine use as a weapon is banned under the Chemical Weapons Convention, which Syria joined in 2013 under pressure from Russia, Assad's ally.

Although previous OPCW reports concluded that toxic gases were used as weapons in Syria's five-year war, they stopped short of identifying the perpetrators.

The panel identified the 253 and 255 squadrons of the 63rd helicopter brigade, which flew from the Hama and Humaymim air bases, and the 628 squadron based in Humaymim as the perpetrators.

The UN-OPCW panel also found that the Islamic State group used mustard gas as a weapon in August 2015.

"We stand firmly behind the report and its conclusions," Virginia Gamba, who led the investigative panel, told reporters.

Russia also rejected a US proposal to extend the panel's mandate -- which ends on Monday -- for a year, arguing that more time is needed to discuss the experts' future work.

The probe should be broadened to look at chemical weapons use by extremist groups and in neighboring Iraq, Churkin said.
LIGHT WEEKEND OF ACTION FOR WWE BEFORE THEY HEAD ACROSS THE POND

Due to the upcoming European tour, the Raw brand is off until Sundays Hell In A Cell PPV in Boston, MA. Mondays Raw emanates from Hartford, CT. After TV, they head to Germany for Wednesdays show in Frankfurt.

The Smackdown brands tour starts Sunday night in Allentown, PA. On Monday they are in Trenton, NJ before putting on Smackdown Live on Tuesday in Newark, NJ. They then head to Saudi Arabia for Thursdays show.

NXTs local group has a show tonight in Jacksonville, FL while the touring group has an even in San Jose, CA. The locals finish up their tour tomorrow in Crystal River, FL while the nationals have a show in Bakersfield, CA. They finish up on Sunday in Los Angeles, CA.

If you are going to any of the shows and can send a report, please drop me a line.

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NOW is the time to take charge of your INVESTMENTS! Were helping hundreds of individuals and families in the greater Muscatine area with their investments. We can help you, too, with portfolio transfers, pension distributions, 401(k) rollovers, proceeds from inheritance and estates, life insurance, and more! Call (563) 262-3144 from 8-5 Monday thru Friday or get started even faster ... send an e-mail to Matthew.Strajack@LPL.com or Jordan.Miller@LPL.com. CBI Investment Services, Located at CBI Bank & Trust  2nd Floor, 301 Iowa Avenue, Muscatine, IA 52761 Matt Strajack and Jordan Miller, Financial Consultants  Pesey Davis, Administrative Assistant  Securities offered through LPL Financial, Member FINRA/SIPC. Insurance products offered through LPL Financial or its licensed affiliates. CBI Bank & Trust and CBI Investment Services are not registered broker/dealers or affiliates of LPL Financial. Not FDIC Insured  No Bank Guarantee  May Lose Value  Not a Deposit  Not Insured by any Federal Government Agency
CHAMBER CORNER While the Presidential election dominates the press, our local and state elections are equally important. As the President and CEO of your Chamber of Commerce, I encourage you to support candidates who have Muscatines and Iowas economic vitality as a centerpiece of their plan and accomplishments. Several of the GMCCI Team voted yesterday, and we want to ensure you know how simple the process is. After filling out a short form which is needed because this is considered an absentee ballot, our data was entered, we were provided the ballot, and off to the poll we went. The entire process for three of us took about 10 minutes, 15 if you count the walk over to the Muscatine Countys office. To learn more you can go to Muscatine County Auditors website http://www.co.muscatine.ia.us/146/Elections or the Iowa Secretary of States website https://sos.iowa.gov Its true that where you live can make for better living. Since being announced as a Blue Zones Project demonstration community weve been improving our community and our quality of life together. And the results are impressive. As one of just a few dozen certified Blue Zones Communities in the nation, Muscatine is deeply committed to improving the overall well-being of our neighbors. That dedication has already led to an 8 point jump in our exercise levels. Weve come so far but theres still more to do to keep living longer, better. The journey continues at Explore.BlueZonesProject.com where you can find secrets and tips to what makes us a certified Blue Zones Community. Keep following the Blue Zones Community story online by exploring an interactive map of the journey to well-being. Its a living record of how making healthy choices easy makes Muscatine one of the best places to live, work, and play! As a partner in our Blue Zones Project, dedicated to making Muscatine a better place to call home, please consider including the link and text below on your professional or personal website to spread the word and encourage visitors to learn more about our journey to well-being. Also consider including a link on your organizations Facebook page and other social channel profiles. 3RD AnnuAl TAg SAle on PlAnTS & TReeS geT Them while They lAST! OctOber 31-end Of the Year 25% Off 1301 WASHINGTON ST.  563-263-4442 Since 1987 www.kellorandkellorlandscape.com Monday-Friday 8:00-5:00 Saturday 8:00-3:00 Sunday 8:00-2:00 The quietly different dealer. 501 W. Bypass HWy 61 MUsCaTINE, Ia 563-263-5432 800-358-4406 3205 HWy 61 NorTH MUsCaTINE, Ia 563-263-5324 800-817-3954 kriegers.com We are proud to support Blue Zones Project and to be part of a Blue Zones Community. Its all part of making Iowa a happier, healthier place, so everyone can live longer, better. Follow our Blue Zones Community story at Explore.BlueZonesProject.com Remember to shop local first. Join us for the annual Downtown Muscatine Holiday Open House on Sunday, November 13 from 12:00 noon to 4:00 p.m. More information can be found on our FaceBook page: Downtown Muscatine. Interested in becoming a Interested inChamber becomingMember? a Chamber Member? Call (563) 263-8895 or log onto Call www.muscatine.com (563) 263-8895 or log onto www.muscatine.com
In its latest play to become a better bicycle-friendly community, the city of Bettendorf announced a new plan this week to help private businesses buy bike racks for public use.

Donnie Miller, Bettendorfs bicycle and pedestrian coordinator, said the city has 31 custom-built and designed racks for sale.

We would love to see everybody ride their bicycle to work and play, but you cant do that if theres no place to lock your bike, Miller said.

Bettendorf businesses can apply to purchase the racks, and the city will provide a one-time match of up to $500 per entity.

Rock Island-based Crawford Company built the inverted-u racks, which can cost up to $165. The price per rack, Miller said, will depend on various factors, including market costs for manufacturing and order quantity.

The Bettendorf Park Board will dedicate $5,000 to the yearly cost sharing program, and money awarded solely will assist with payment for racks. If approved, business owners will be responsible for installation costs.

Miller, who encourages any Bettendorf business with space for an exterior facility to apply, said four organizations already expressed an interest in the racks.

He noted their u-shaped design allows cyclists to secure both wheels and frame with multiple locks. Miller also suggested locking the front wheel with a cable and padlock, and the rear wheel and frame with a u-lock.

Bettendorf currently has eight of these fixtures at Middle Park and two at Hollowview Park, located right off Duck Creek Parkway just east of 23rd Street.

Last November, Bettendorf became one of only seven cities in Iowa to reach bronze-level status as a Bicycle Friendly Community, a designation granted by the League of American Bicyclists.

This initiative, Miller predicts, will help the most-bikeable community in the Quad-Cities boost its status.

Its the easy low-hanging fruit thats missing, he said.

For more information on Bettendorf's bicycle rack cost sharing program, contact Miller at 309-737-8270 or dmiller@bettendorf.org.
ANKENY, Iowa  After nearly 16 hours of testimony over a two-week period, a state panel once again deadlocked Thursday on the proposal of a Tennessee-based company to build a 72-bed psychiatric hospital in Bettendorf.

Iowas State Health Facilities Council voted 2-2 on the application by Strategic Behavioral Health LLC, of Memphis, to build the hospital at Golden Valley Drive and Tanglefoot Lane.

The decision was the second time that the panel came to a tie vote. It did the same in February. A majority vote is required to advance the project.

Strategic and the Quad-Cities two major hospitals, Genesis Health System and UnityPoint Trinity, have clashed for more than a year now over the proposal. And Thursdays decision came after about 5 hours of testimony that, at turns, delved into the technical but also turned visceral, as Genesis pointed to Strategics safety record, claiming that violations at some of its facilities portrayed a company with broad problems.

Strategic pushed back when it came time to respond, saying there had been incidents at Genesis as well and that health care facilities often deal with difficult populations.

Once again, there were only four voting members on the council at Thursdays session. A fifth member could not be at the first part of the hearing, held Oct. 11, because of the death of a family member, and so did not take part in Thursdays proceedings.

The Oct. 11 hearing, which went late into the night, was adjourned until Thursday.

It's not clear yet how Strategic will respond to this latest deadlock. Michael Garone, the director of development for the firm, said after the hearing that it was a good possibility the company would try again but it would need to regroup and consider its options before making a decision.

The next time the case could be heard again is most likely in February.

A Genesis vice president, Ken Croken, said the company was gratified by the result.

Council members Roberta Chambers of Corydon and Roger Thomas of Elkader voted in favor of Strategic. Bob Lundin of LeClaire, chairman of the panel, and Brenda Perrin of Cherokee voted against it.

Perrin paused for a lengthy period before casting her vote and later declined comment on her rationale. She was appointed to the panel this summer, succeeding a previous member who also had voted against Strategic.

Lundin said afterward that as time has passed, Genesis has expanded its behavioral health program, negating the need for more beds.

Is there truly a need any more? I dont think there is a need, he said after the hearing.

Chambers, however, said during deliberations that as an attorney, she constantly hears of the scarcity of beds across the state.

I think it would make a world of difference, she said of Strategic.

Much of the hearing centered not only on whether the current need for in-patient beds is being met, but how to assess that. Strategic has based part of its case on a study by the Treatment Advocacy Center, a Virginia-based nonprofit whose data showed significant shortages in Iowa and the Quad-Cities.

Genesis said the centers figures pertained only to state-run or residential facilities, not the kind of operation that Strategic is proposing. But the Tennessee company responded that a 2014 report in the Quad-Cities assessing the need for psychiatric services, in which Genesis and UnityPoint participated, used the centers data, too.

Genesis and Trinity have argued that allowing Strategic into the market would undermine their own operations, which they say are, between them, meeting the need for behavioral services.

Genesis, in particular, argued that, since expanding its behavioral health operation with a child and adolescent unit last December and new adult beds this summer, it was meeting the need.

It said that, since July, nobody had been turned away from its in-patient unit.

Its a different world since July 1, Genesis CEO Doug Cropper said.

They also argued that Strategic would not serve Medicaid patients because the state had not yet adopted a federal rule that changed long-standing restrictions on freestanding psychiatric clinics from receiving Medicaid patients.

Strategic sought to counter both arguments. Garone said the state has not yet made changes in the Medicaid rule because there was no need. And they vigorously disputed the idea that nobody had been rejected at Genesis' behavioral health unit.

Garone said Genesis had turned patients away in September, October and even as late as Thursday.

The dispute over the various safety records of Strategic and Genesis lent a harshness to Thursdays proceedings. Both sides said they did not like bringing up the flaws of the other but did so anyway.

Genesis officials said that problems at three Strategic facilities included inadequate staffing, improper use of restraints and people walking away from a facility and that they signified broad problems in the company.

These reports reflect systemic failures, said Jackie Anhalt, Genesis vice president of patient services.

Strategic defended its record and pointed the finger at Genesis, citing reports that the hospital had four flawed procedures within a period of just 40 days last year.

Garone said he didn't like the mudslinging" and called it a distraction from the core issues.
DES MOINES  Sen. Charles Grassley told an economic group Thursday the next president has to focus on policies that will encourage business investment to promote job creation and income growth.

Grassley, 83, a New Hartford Republican seeking re-election to his seventh Senate term against Albia Democrat Patty Judge, said he has been disappointed with American economic performance under President Barack Obama with none of his eight years in office exceeding a 2 percent increase. Judge, 72, is a former Iowa lieutenant governor, secretary of agriculture and state senator.

Grassley told about 30 members of Greater Des Moines Partnership, a regional economic development agency, the U.S. economy has been flat for the past eight years with 2015 marking the only year middle-income Americans experienced income growth since the country was hit by the second worst economic calamity in the nation's history.

"This is the only president that hasn't had at least one year out of eight that you've had 3 percent growth or more," Grassley told the forum. "We're told now that 2 percent or less growth is the new normal. We do not have to settle for the new normal."

Grassley blamed the sluggish economic activity on an uncertain business climate thwarted by a "D.C." attitude of more taxes, more spending and more regulation that impedes forward-looking investment. "I don't know what Washington is going to do to me so I don't know if I should invest," Grassley said of business planners, "and when you don't invest, you don't create jobs."

The Iowa Republican said the next president, whether it's Republican Donald Trump or Democrat Hillary Clinton, will have to fill the leadership "vacuum" in Washington by working with House and Senate members from both parties to implement changes that will help U.S. businesses compete internationally. He said cheap energy, on-time inventory and quality already has helped bolster U.S. manufacturing but other changes like a lower corporate tax rate and regulatory certainty also are needed.

One thing he did not support was using a federal government shutdown to try to force policy changes.

"I was an advocate for it in 1995 and I found out it doesn't work," Grassley said, noting it costs money to close government and it costs money to reopen government after a shutdown. "Consequently, it shouldn't have been done."

He said another government shutdown took place in October 2013 because 80 percent of the members of Congress were new and had not gone through the process to understand it was not an effective strategy for change.

However, officials with the Judge campaign noted that Grassley has a history of being part of delay, filibuster and shutdown tactics to impede Senate action on budget and other issues during his decades in Washington.

"Chuck Grassley has been in Washington for 42 years and is part of a broken system that puts his special interest friends and the wealthiest Americans first," said Sam Roecker, spokesman for the Judge campaign. "He is leading the unprecedented obstruction and gridlock that has stalled progress on common sense ideas that benefit working families in Iowa. Iowans need a U.S. senator who will work for them, not for wealthy Americans like Donald Trump."
FORT DODGE, Iowa  Republican vice presidential candidate Mike Pence brought an upbeat message to Iowa supporters Thursday, urging them to be part of a movement to take back their country with President Donald Trump at the helm of a stronger America.

"Iowa, we've got work to do," Pence told about 300 people at a rally at Iowa Central Community College. He said it's time for Republicans "to come home," time for Iowans to vote early with a friend, and time for them to tell their neighbors or strangers to help the Trump-Pence team make America great again with an election victory Nov. 8. "Let's get on with it."

Pence said the GOP ticket is "gaining momentum every single day" despite the "unfair fight" created by liberal and media elites who play up Trump negatives while ignoring "an avalanche of scandals" in an effort to sway voters into thinking the election is tilting in Democrat Hillary Clinton's favor. Trump will be in Cedar Rapids on Friday  the same day Clinton is slated to campaign in Cedar Rapids and Des Moines in what Pence called a "wheel to wheel" race to the finish line. "Let's go get it done and bring it home."

Pence said this year's elections offers a choice between two futures, with Trump offering the best hope of restoring America security at home and abroad, jump-starting a sputtering economy and filling U.S. Supreme Court vacancies with justices who will interpret the law rather than legislate from the bench.

"It's change versus the status quo," he said. "It's up or down, America."

Pence said Clinton would continue Obama's downhill spiral of making America weaker with a "hollowed out" military and a pro-government approach toward more taxation and regulation. By contrast, he said Trump would plant his feet, renegotiate or scrap bad trade deals, repeal Obamacare and presidential executive orders, "drain the swamp" with ethics reform, cut tax burdens, place a moratorium on new government regulations, and restore law and order at home and abroad by "marching up the hill to a stronger America."

Before the Pence rally, Democrats held an event in Des Moines where Michele Meadors, a quadriplegic Des Moines woman who grew up in Indiana  where Pence is governor  said she comes from multiple generations of Republicans but she no longer identifies with GOP because of Trump.

"I will tell you I'm really saddened," Meadors said. "Mike Pence, coming from Indiana, is someone that was greatly respected in the Hoosier community where I'm from. And I had great respect for him: family man and what he has done. But how disgusting is it that a man of his background can actually support the words that are coming out of that man's (Donald Trump's) mouth? Any god-forsaken individual cannot find that acceptable or even right, because it's just not right."

At the afternoon rally in Fort Dodge, Pence called Trump "a man who never quits, never backs down," a man who "embodies the American spirit" and a man who has "given voice" to the frustrations and aspirations of Americans who feel left behind or ignored by the Washington elite and powerful.

"We've got a basket of the American people who are saying enough is enough," he said.
SPRINGFIELD  With a little more than a week to go until Election Day, more than 6 percent of Illinois record 8 million active registered voters have already cast their ballots, according to the Illinois State Board of Elections.

As of Thursday morning, 485,410 Illinoisans had voted in the Nov. 8 election either by mail, in person or using grace period registration, which allows people to register and cast their ballots at the same time.

In the 2014 general election, about 6.6 percent of registered voters cast their ballots early, accounting for 13 percent of the overall turnout of nearly 3.7 million. In 2012, the last presidential election year, nearly 16 percent of active registered voters voted before Election Day, representing 22 percent of the nearly 5.3 million ballots cast.

Jim Tenuto, a spokesman for the elections board, said early voting has become increasingly popular as the state has expanded opportunities for people to cast ballots ahead of time.

Voters could begin casting ballots Sept. 29 by mail and at the offices of local election authorities. More early voting locations opened across the state Monday and will remain open daily through Nov. 7.

Given the contentious presidential race and the fact that this is the first general election in which residents of Illinois more populated counties will be able to register at their polling places on Election Day, its hard to predict what the overall turnout will be, Tenuto said.

It just seems like with all the registrations going up hopefully that translates to a big turnout, he said.

The previous state record for active registered voters was a little less than 7.8 million in 2008, the year then-U.S. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois won the presidency. Overall turnout that year was nearly 72 percent.

So far this year, Rock Island County is among the top five jurisdictions for early voting, with 10.6 percent of the countys 98,732 active registered voters having already cast ballots.

The northwestern Illinois county is also one of the areas from which the Illinois attorney generals office has heard complaints about voters not receiving mail-in ballots after sending in applications they received from third parties, spokeswoman Eileen Boyce said.

Advocacy groups, political parties and others often distribute applications for mail-in ballots, which is legal, but voters who send in the applications should make sure theyve been received by their local election authority, the attorney generals office said Thursday in an alert.

Those wishing to vote by mail must fill out an application, which their local election authority must receive by Nov. 3, the attorney generals office said. Once voters receive their ballots, they must fill out, sign and postmark them by Nov. 8. They also can be hand-delivered to the local election authority by 7 p.m. on Election Day.

The attorney generals office and the state elections board encourage those who have requested or submitted a mail-in ballot to follow up with their local election authority to make sure they have been received. Contact information can be found at elections.il.gov.

Those who have applied and have not received a ballot or received one but havent sent it in are allowed to vote in person, either early or on Election Day.

Aside from Rock Island County, early voting rates are higher than the statewide average in several downstate jurisdictions.

In the city of Bloomington, 9.8 percent of registered voters have already cast ballots, though the rate is 5.8 percent in the rest of McLean County.

The early voting rate so far is 8.1 percent in Coles County, 7.5 percent in Jackson County and 7.3 percent in Macon County.
WEST DES MOINES  Chuck Grassley thinks the FBIs decision to examine newly discovered emails that may pertain to its previously closed investigation into then-U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clintons use of a private email server while will be a real problem for the Clintons.

Grassley, speaking to reporters during a campaign event Friday with the Iowa Farm Bureau, said he did not want to offer much beyond that until he learns more about the news, which broke just minutes before his campaign event.

The FBI opted against filing criminal charges against Clinton, the Democratic candidate for president, for her use of a private email server while she was Secretary of State. FBI director James Comey said the practice was careless, but not criminal.

On Friday morning, Comey sent some Congressional committee leaders  including Grassley, who chairs the Senates Judiciary Committee  a letter saying a separate investigation revealed emails that may be pertinent to the FBIs investigation into Clintons emails. Comey said the FBI plans to review the newly discovered emails to determine their importance to the FBI investigation and whether they contained classified information.

Grassley said Friday he did not request the letter that was sent by the FBI to him and other Congressional leaders.

I think its going to be a real problem for the Clintons, and it says something about what the FBI had done in the past (by not charging Clinton), Grassley said. But beyond that, I cant say much ... I need to wait for more information.

Grassley is running for a seventh term representing Iowa in the U.S. Senate. Most polls on the race have showed a double-digit lead for the Republican over his Democratic challenger, former Iowa ag secretary and lieutenant governor Patty Judge.

Grassley said, if re-elected, the Senate Judiciary Committee he chairs would not have an active role in any further investigation of Clintons emails, other than to provide oversight.

All I can say is that in our oversight capacity the answer is yes (the committee will be involved), but I would not expect us to be involved in anything specifically with what happened (Friday), just that its part of the ongoing oversight that weve done, Grassley said.

Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta released a statement criticizing Republicans for taking the FBIs letter out of context, and called on Comey to clarify what the FBI has discovered.

A federal official confirmed Friday afternoon that the new emails were discovered during the investigation into former U.S. Rep. Anthony Wiener, of New York, who is being investigated for sending sexually charged text messages to a minor and recently was separated from top Clinton aide Huma Abedin.

Director Comeys letter refers to emails that have come to light in an unrelated case, but we have no idea what those emails are and the director himself notes they may not even be significant, Podesta said. The director owes it to the American people to immediately provide the full details of what he is now examining. We are confident this will not produce any conclusions different from the one the FBI reached in July.

Clinton and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump are deadlocked in Iowa, according to a poll published this week by Quinnipiac University.

Nationally, Clinton leads in polling in many swing states, suggesting she is at the moment the favorite to win the Nov. 8 election.

Grassley, who was joined on this campaign trip by fellow Republican U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts, of Kansas, briefly discussed agricultural issues with members of the Iowa Farm Bureau before heading into a closed-press meeting with the members.

Grassley talked about the importance of the next federal farm bill, which Congress intends to begin work on in 2017, and said in the Senate he advocates for Iowa farmers against what he called over-reaching federal regulations and on federal trade policy.

A spokesman for Judges campaign made the case that the former Iowa ag secretary would better serve Iowa agriculture in Congress.

Patty Judge has spent decades as a farmer, a leader for Iowas renewable fuel industry, and as a tireless advocate for rural Iowa, Judge campaign spokesman Sam Roecker said in an emailed statement. From serving as a mediator helping family farmers stay on their land during the farm crisis to her time as an Iowa state senator, secretary of agriculture, and lieutenant governor, Patty Judge has always understood the challenges facing farm families in our state and will be a tireless advocate for them as their next U.S. Senator.
As the days, weeks, months and even years have passed, the frustration has grown for Chuck Ripley. His shoulders slouch a little more. There's a kind of sadness in his voice when he gets up for public comment. Four years have started to take their toll.

It was four years ago that Ripley was told that a large portion of his backyard had started to fall into the stream bank behind his home on Heather Glen Avenue in Bettendorf.

This neighbor called me and said, 'You really need to get home. You just lost half of your yard,'" Ripley said.

Since then, Ripley has repeatedly asked Bettendorf to work on the stream bank, but nothing has materialized. His worst fear is the recent Stafford Creek decision will only delay the matter further.

Almost two weeks ago, the Iowa Court of Appeals upheld the Scott County District Court's decision, which said Bettendorf did not have the right under its existing easements to work along a portion of Stafford Creek.

I keep getting Oh, youre next, youre next, but the budget always comes into play, Ripley said. When I caught wind of (the Stafford Creek decision), I said, 'whats the deal?" and they said, We dont know. It might be three years.

Although Ripley has installed a pre-engineered rock wall, which cost him in excess of $5,000 to slow down the deterioration. He said the stream bank now is an absolute mess.

The stream bank acts as a detention basin, but that's where Ripley said the problem is that his property is close to the Davenport border, where a number of commercials projects near 53rd Street have been undertaken.

That kind of massive commercial construction is killing this residential area, Ripley said. Look at the size of this tree and you dont think that it just meandered down this stream. Wait until it rains and you wouldnt believe what happens down here.

As Ripley walks along the edge, he points out all the fallen or vulnerable trees, many of which seem to be literally and figuratively holding on for dear life.

Low and behold, he spots a large black pipe lying in the stream bank.

You walk this creek up and down and youll see all this debris, Ripley said. Theres a black pipe and thats from the construction up there. What Bettendorf needs to do is hold Davenport accountable.

Among the debris tangled in the roots are insulation, 2x4s and Tyvek paper from construction.

Davenport Alderman Jeff Justin, 6th Ward, said Davenport and Bettendorf had conversations about storm water retention regarding the senior housing co-op, but was unaware of Ripley's concerns.

"I haven't heard anything from that area, but if things are getting through the storm water system, maybe we need to take a look at our grating," Justin said.

Given the gravity of the storm water issues, Justin has offered to trace the roots of the problem.

Questions remain after work session

To make matters worse, comments made during Bettendorf's stream bank stabilization work session this week only incensed Ripley more.

During the work session, Mayor Bob Gallagher questioned the spending of public money on drainage easements found on private property.

"Here, if I own the land, I'm telling you it's my responsibility," Gallagher said during the work session. "Why would we tell somebody else we'd pay half?"

Ripley was especially perturbed by Gallagher's comment, likening it to the city repairing someone's roof, especially when a problem like his was not foreseeable.

"Where's the infrastructure and updates?" Ripley said. "Let's get with the 21st century. It's not 1994.

"Bettendorf needs to catch up to the infrastructure they are creating or allowing to be created by Davenport."

Alderwoman Debe LaMar, 3rd Ward, said a more regionalized approach needed to be examined.

"We need to get with our neighbors and have them come and help us with this issue because it's all coming our way," LaMar said. "We're getting dumped on by everyone."

Bettendorf Public Works director Brian Schmidt said municipalities could also look at a more stringent storm water detention policy to combat the effects of development.

But as Bettendorf continues to work on crafting a stream bank stabilization policy, Ripley isn't holding his breath.

At the end of the day, the city is not doing anything, Ripley said. All theyre doing is talking.
The Canadian Pacific Holiday Train will visit Davenport on Saturday, Dec. 3, with food pantries served by Churches United of the Quad-City Area as beneficiaries of the visit.

Events will begin at 12:30 p.m. with a visit from Santa and Mrs. Claus. Santa will hand out candy canes and goodie bags to children. Hot chocolate and cookies will be available.

The train will arrive at 1:45 p.m. at the corner of Western Avenue and West River Drive. A concert featuring Canadian music artists Kelly Prescott and Colin James will be 2-2:30 p.m.

We are really excited to have the hunger train back because it aligns so well with our hunger ministry at Churches United, said Anne Wachal, executive director of Churches United. Being a recipient is such an honor.

Cost is a suggested donation of non-expired, non-perishable food items. All donations will go to the 25 Churches United food pantries throughout the Quad-City area.

The non-perishable food donations from the community are such a big help this time of year, said Wachal.

She encourages visitors to arrive early, because the event is well-attended. Treats and goodie bags will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Limited parking, which includes handicapped accessibility, will be available at Modern Woodmen Park. Other parking will be available in nearby lots.

Churches United of the Quad-City Area is a cooperative association of more than 136 churches representing more than 20 Christian faith traditions in the greater Quad-City area. For more information, visit www.cuqca.org.

-- Linda Cook
Good afternoon, Quad-Cities. Here is your National Weather Service forecast.

This afternoon will be partly sunny with a high near 74 degrees. South winds will be 10-15 mph with gusts as high as 25 mph.

Tonight will be partly cloudy with a low around 61 degrees. Southwest winds will be around 15 mph with gusts as high as 20 mph.

Saturday will be partly sunny with a high near 75 degrees. West winds will be 5-10 mph with gusts as high as 20 mph.

Saturday night there is a 40 percent chance of scattered showers. Skies will be cloudy and the low will be around 51 degrees. North winds will be 5-10 mph with gusts as high as 20 mph.

National Weather Service warns of elevated risk of field fires

The National Weather Service says there is an elevated risk for field fires this afternoon for areas south of Interstate 80 because of unseasonably warm temperatures and breezy conditions.

The afternoon high is forecasted to be in the mid-70s with south winds gusting as high as 25 mph.

1 dead in semi crash on I-80

One person is dead after a semi left the roadway on Interstate 80 in Scott County early Friday.

The crash occurred on westbound I-80 around 4 a.m. at milemarker 303 near the Wells Ferry Road underpass.

According to a crash report filed by the Iowa State Patrol, the semi was traveling west on I-80 when the driver lost control. The semi then struck a bridge and continued west and struck a tree before coming to rest.

The driver of the semi was transported to University of Iowa Hospitals in Iowa City and later died.

The name of the driver is not being released at this time pending notification of the family.

Parade Saturday, trick-or-treating Monday in Davenport

The annual Davenport Halloween parade will step off at 1 p.m., Saturday from the intersection of Brady and 3rd streets, head west on 3rd Street to Ripley Street where it turns south to 2nd Street and goes east to Iowa Street. (See map)

On Monday, trick-or-treat hours in Davenport are from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Woman rams squad car while taking topless selfie

Here's one that just causes one and shake their head. Police say a 19-year-old Texas A&M University student who rear-ended a squad car told an officer she was taking a topless selfie.

Miranda Kay Rader posted $200 bond after she was charged with drunken driving and possessing alcohol as a minor.

A police report says an officer was checking a reported disturbance when he heard brakes squeal and an SUV slam into the patrol car behind him. Rader told the officer she was taking a topless selfie of herself to Snapchat to her boyfriend.

Police say an open bottle of wine was in her console cup holder.

Sunday Times sneek peak: Most of us probably didn't even know it's up there. Forty-five steps above the deck of the Government Bridge is a tower. It rests in the center of the swing span  like the nest of a giant eagle. To a first-time visitor, the bridge's 22-foot by 22-foot control tower verges on surreal. Through its oversized windows on all four walls, the room appears to be floating on the Mississippi River  hovering between and above Davenport and Rock Island. Barb Ickes tells the story. Check back at qctimes.com Saturday afternoon or on Sunday morning in Quad-City Times print editions.
Sue Webb's husband, Dale, doesn't cry.

He doesn't cry on bad days, during sad movies or at fellow veterans' funerals where he folds the American flags.

So, while waiting for him, along with around 90 other veterans  mostly from the Vietnam era  to return to Moline from Thursday's Honor Flight of the Quad-Cities journey, Webb didn't expect to see this.

"I'm sure they're just going to be tired since they've been up since 3 a.m.," she said. "We want them to know we're here and get their picture."

Webb and friend Sally Box, both 78 and of Burlington, arrived three hours before the flight's scheduled arrival at the Quad-City International Airport to welcome their husbands, who served in the Korean War, back from a day-long trip  the flight took off around 7 a.m.  touring war memorials in Washington D.C.

"We've been here awhile; that's why we have such good seats," Box said. "We've had a front-row view of all the people pouring in ... it's unbelievable."

And pour in they did.

Hundreds of friends, family members and strangers, holding handmade signs and balloons, waving flags, and often chanting, "Welcome home!" packed the airport for the 38th Honor Flight held since 2008.

While they waited, a small line formed to autograph a sign for Dianna Smith's husband, Don, who served in the Vietnam War.

"They didn't get the welcome back they deserved when they came home, so this time is different," Smith said. "I look at all of the people here supporting those veterans, and I don't think he even knows how emotional it's going to be."

Jackie Cecil gripped a poster showing a photo of her late brother, Donald Parton, who, at 18, was drafted into the Vietnam War. Parton was supposed to have a seat on Thursday's flight, but he died of colon cancer in February. An American flag, in his honor, was aboard the plane.

"He had wanted to go for a long time, even before he got sick," said Cecil, 62, of Knoxville, Illinois. "I just can't get over all the people here and how they make it a big deal ... as it should be."

Shave for the Brave, a startup nonprofit in Galesburg, Illinois, sponsored this Honor Flight, which was the final one of 2016. Four more are scheduled in 2017.

Since starting in 2014, Shave for the Brave has raised more than $90,000 through shaving events where participants raise at least $1,000 to shave their head or cut their hair.

That exceeded the original $50,000 goal, the amount required to sponsor an Honor Flight, according to Crystal Wilson, co-founder of Shave for the Brave.

"I'm speechless; I didn't know how many people would come," Wilson said. "More and more people are showing up for these veterans. It reminds me why we do what we do and makes me proud to be an American."

She accompanied her dad Rodney, a Vietnam veteran, on Thursday's flight.

"He teared up," she said. "I've only seen him cry like three times in my life."

The trip was "extremely moving" for volunteer guardians such as Judith Pilkington, who paid to escort the veterans.

"They had so many things to see and memories to share," she said. "They looked at each other and you could see in their eyes that they were remembering stories that they didn't want to share before, or couldn't."

That was the case for Sam Rice, who served from 1969-70. He was thankful to say "hello" to 17 of his buddies whose names appear on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall.

"I pointed at each of their names ... that was tough but good," Rice said. "Back then, there was nothing at all and now we feel welcomed and loved."

Looking through the stream of veterans, dressed in bright yellow memorial jackets, Sue Webb spotted her husband.

"This says something about our country in general," she said. "Patriotism isn't dead here."

And, on Thursday night, after the trip to D.C. and walking through a line of hand-shakes, high-fives and hugs, like so many men alongside him, Dale Webb cried.

"Dale has tears... I never would've thought," Sue Webb said, after being reunited with her husband of 60 years. "He has a softer heart than I ever knew. Who'd think that a one-day trip would do that? It has to mean so much to them."

All Dale Webb could say? "I can't tell you what part I liked most. I'd go again and again."
U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth is serious. She's earnest. She's determined.

Duckworth will make a welcome replacement for the U.S. Senate's class clown, Republican Mark Kirk.

The no-nonsense Democrat knows her way around the military. The Iraq War cost Duckworth both legs. She sits on the House Armed Services Committee, where she's made hay challenging her party's dogma and the White House.

Duckworth has rightly criticized the insane cost overruns for the development of the F-35 jet and championed procurement reform for the Department of Defense. The White House has, for years, hoped to pump military hardware into the hands of Syrian rebels. Duckworth sided with Republicans, correctly arguing that even the finest intelligence can't confidently determine friend from foe in such a confused ethnic clash.

Perhaps above all else, Duckworth's skepticism of incessant U.S. military involvement around the world comes from a place of personal experience. She's "no dove," Duckworth says, adding that she would seek an appointment to Senate Armed Services, if elected. But she's "no hawk," either. Too many in Washington are willing to send young Americans off to war with little if any personal investment. Not so for Duckworth.

No hawk can dismiss Duckworth's position as the rantings of some hippy. And she's seen first hand the failings of decades of interventionist U.S. foreign policy. In that regard, Duckworth represents a rare authoritative voice on issues of military force and spending, particularly among often dove-like Democrats.

Toss in fleshed-out proposals regarding soybean and biofuels production and Duckworth is a ready-made senator from the Land of Lincoln.

She faces one-term incumbent Mark Kirk, a man exceedingly easy to cheer for among those searching high and low for reasonable, moderate Republicans. Kirk made fans in 2014 when he was the only GOP member of the Senate to join pro-gay marriage protesters on the steps of the Supreme Court. Kirk supports rational gun control at a time when much of his party seems to want infants packing heat. Kirk was the first high-ranking elected Republican to disavow Trump, an honorable position his counterparts in Iowa should have mirrored.

In some ways, Kirk is precisely what the obstructionist GOP needs right now. Otherwise, the party faces extinction. Even the most liberal must acknowledge the dangers of a single dominant political party. A legitimate, serious Republican Party  or something similar  is a necessity.

But the easily savored romantic notion of Kirk is one thing. The reality is another.

Fact is, Kirk has shown himself as a glib showman. He's a perpetual gaffe-machine whose mouth outruns his mind. "Bro with no ho." "Drug dealer in chief." He said white people speed through black neighborhoods. He oversold his military record.

Kirk called for the privatization of the locks and dams along the Mississippi River, during an interview with the Quad-City Times editorial board. It's utter nonsensical madness.

It's not Kirk's political independence that's eroded his power. It's his penchant for flippancy.

He's an unserious man in an exceedingly serious line of work. And, in this case, it's to the detriment of millions in Illinois.

On the contrary, Tammy Duckworth is both sober and knowledgeable. The joke's on Illinois unless voters support Duckworth on Nov. 8.
This election cycle has generated some of the most cringeworthy political moments in American history. There have been so many low points that you may have missed the abusive political attacks on Hillary Clinton and vice presidential nominee, Tim Kaine for criminal defense work they did decades ago while they were private attorneys, before they ran for office. Regardless of your political regard for these two candidates, I hope we can all agree that these attacks are out of bounds.

Criminal defense lawyers are essential to our system of justice and to the protection of our constitutional rights. Their work should be celebrated, not castigated.

As a people, we lionize the brave and principled legal advocacy of legendary American revolutionaries like John Adams, who represented the British soldiers accused of carrying out the Boston Massacre. We idealize iconic literary characters like Atticus Finch, lawyer-protagonist of Harper Lees seminal American novel, To Kill A Mockingbird.

The nations criminal defense lawyers are the Adamses and the real-life Finches of this day and age. Without them the Sixth Amendment to our federal constitution, which establishes the right to a lawyer for all those who stand accused of a criminal offense (no matter how heinous), would not be worth the paper it was written on. All Iowans, regardless of our political persuasions, should lift them up and be thankful that they are on the case.

Brad Lint

Des Moines

Editor's note: Brad Lint is the executive director of the Iowa Association for Justice.
A Hill City man arrested after the September death of his girlfriend was formally charged in court Thursday with a range of crimes that would allow a jury to decide both the level of his responsibility and the severity of his sentence.

Courtney E. Millhouse, 42, pleaded not guilty at the Pennington County Courthouse to charges of first-degree manslaughter, second-degree manslaughter and aggravated assault related to the death of Stacy Childers. Millhouse can be convicted on only one of the charges.

Childers, 42, died Sept. 7 due to blunt-force trauma and may have been a victim of domestic assault, according to an earlier news release from the Pennington County Sheriffs Office. She died at Rapid City Regional Hospital, taken there by ambulance from Hill City.

Millhouse and Childers had been dating for about two years, Childers sister Tabatha Bartels told the Journal.

Millhouse was arrested Sept. 8. He has since been detained at the Pennington County Jail on a $1 million bond.

His most serious charge, first-degree manslaughter, alleges that he killed Childers between Aug. 7 and 9 without any design to effect the death of Stacy Childers, while in the heat of passion, but in a cruel and unusual manner. If convicted, Millhouse could be sentenced to a maximum of life in prison.

Second-degree manslaughter, punishable by up to 10 years in prison, charges Millhouse with recklessly causing Childers death under circumstances not constituting murder, first-degree manslaughter or justifiable homicide.

The aggravated assault charge alleges he assaulted Childers between Aug. 7 and 9 with the intent to commit bodily injury that resulted in bodily injury. Aggravated assault carries up to 15 years in prison for a conviction.

During proceedings at the courthouse Thursday, the prosecution said Millhouse is a habitual offender. He was convicted of aggravated assault in Franklin County, Pa., in August 2006, a prosecutor told the judge.

If Millhouse is found guilty on the new charges, and his prior felony conviction is proved, his punishment could be enhanced. Millhouse denied the 2006 conviction.

Millhouse and Childers met in Hill City, moved to West Virginia in 2015 and returned to Hill City this year, Bartels said in a phone interview a couple of weeks after Childers died.

Bartels said Millhouse had previously been violent with Childers, but she couldnt say how many times that had occurred.

I dont stand for domestic abuse, which shed tell me a little bit of it, and Im just like, You need to get away from him, she said. Maybe I should have said something. Maybe I should have called the cops.

Bartels declined to discuss the events surrounding Childers death for fear of jeopardizing the case against Millhouse. But she said the way her sister died was a very, very sad story.

Childers, she said, had four children and a grandchild. Millhouse is scheduled to return to court Nov. 17.
The leader of a troubled wild-horse sanctuary in north-central South Dakota is fighting to get her horses back.

Karen Sussman, the 69-year-old president of the International Society for the Protection of Mustangs and Burros, was able to get a bad-check charge dropped and has reportedly submitted a management plan to authorities that seeks the return of 400 of the sanctuarys 810 horses.

Sussman was charged in July with grand theft for bouncing a $9,394 check to a hay supplier. This week, Perkins County States Attorney Shane Penfield told the Journal that he is dropping the charge because Sussman made restitution to the victim.

Meanwhile, Sussman met the first of two deadlines set as conditions for her to get some or all of her organization's horses back from a recent court-ordered impounding. The impounding was triggered in part by allegations of horses starving to death on the organization's ranch.

The first deadline was Oct. 21, when Sussman was supposed to submit a comprehensive management plan for the ranch.

Neither of the states attorneys of Ziebach or Dewey counties, who are handling the legal aspects of the impounding, returned phone calls or emails from the Journal in recent days. But Dewey County Sheriff Les Mayer said Sussman submitted the management plan, and in it she seeks the return of 400 horses.

The two states attorneys and the state Animal Industry Board are considering the adequacy of the management plan. Sussman faces a second deadline of Nov. 11 to produce proof of 18 months of adequate feed or funding to care for the horses.

Only if the management plan is deemed adequate, and the proof of funding or feed is produced, will the states attorneys and the Animal Industry Board consider returning any horses to the ISPMB ranch. Any horses that are not returned after Nov. 11 will be put up for adoption by the counties through Dec. 1, and after that, any remaining horses will put up for public auction and potentially sold to buyers for foreign slaughterhouses.

In the meantime, Sussman is free to adopt out or sell horses, and Mayer said she is doing that. He did not know how many horses have been adopted or sold so far.

The impounding of the horses is being managed by the sheriffs of Dewey and Ziebach counties at the expense of the counties. Mayer said the counties have so far spent $70,000 to buy 900 bales of hay, which they hope will last until December.

The counties are accepting donations to offset their costs, but so far those donations have totaled only $8,040.
PIERRE | The state confirmed this week that it will close a pair of interstate rest areas on Monday, including the Interstate 90 rest stop at Tilford between Rapid City and Sturgis.

The other is at Hidewood, on Interstate 29 between Brookings and Watertown.

State Transportation Secretary Darin Bergquist told the South Dakota Transportation Commission about the decision Thursday morning.

Bergquist said the changes are part of a statewide revitalization plan for interstate rest areas.

He said a team of people from the state Transportation and Tourism departments and the governors office conducted the reviews.

The next steps call for expanding the Wilmot rest stop on I-29 into a visitor center during 2017 and then building two new visitor centers in 2018.

The new centers would be on I-29 at the Homestead exit near Vermillion and on I-90 at Valley Springs near the Minnesota border.

The commission approved adding the Wilmot project to the 2017 construction plan Thursday.

The Homestead and Valley Springs projects are already in the plan for 2018.

Bergquist said his department received more comments about closing Hidewood than about closing Tilford. He said the maintenance savings and avoiding the costs to upgrade those two sites could be applied to the new facilities at Valley Springs and Homestead.

Commissioner Ron Rosenboom of Sturgis asked whether the trucking industry had commented about the changes. Bergquist said there werent any comments from the industry as a whole but one or two from individuals.

He said notices had already been posted at Tilford and Hidewood regarding the potential closures. The parking lots will remain open for travelers who want to get off the road.

Commissioner Don Roby of Watertown said he could see DOT getting out of the rest area business. But Bergquist said that wouldnt happen in the near term.

Bergquist said there are more people than he expected who prefer to use a rest area. The trucking industry is part of the reason for that, he said.
Flight Lt. John Wilkinson will be honored at the premiere of "The Gentlemen Next Door" at the South Dakota Air & Space Museum at 6 p.m. today with a free public screening of the film.

The documentary short profiles Wilkinson's service in the 41st Squadron, Royal Air Force from 1944 to 1945. Wilkinson, who was born in Britain but lives in Spearfish, will attend the premiere and will be available afterward for questions.

Wilkinson was a pilot who flew the famous Spitfire fighter against German forces and is officially credited with 4.5 total aerial victories. He flew during the crucial months of the last phase of World War II and took part in dozens of combat missions. He was also an eyewitness to the liberation of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.

The film was produced from narratives and exclusive combat footage obtained during an interview between Wilkinson and aviation artist John Mollison and is the ninth in the "Old Guys and Their Airplanes" series of award-winning documentaries featuring Mollison's work.

"He's someone who's seen so much, seen an attempt to invade his country, seen the concentration camp and seen post-war prosperity," said Mollison. "My goal is to inspire people to value age and get to respect the stories and lives of the people around us."

Mollison added that the gun-camera footage of Wilkinson's work is "utterly remarkable" and that post-war research suggests that he may have taken down more than 4.5 planes (the half being shared credit for one downed plane).

"It's pretty clear that he's an expert marksman and an expert pilot," Mollison said. "You don't always look at gun-camera footage and think, 'Oh, that guy's a good shot,' but you do here."

South Dakota Air & Space Museum is outside the main gate at Ellsworth Air Force Base, 2890 Davis Drive in Box Elder.
One theme that has remained consistent for many months in this unusual Election 2016 is that the real majority of voters today consists of those who are not satisfied with either of the two major party candidates.

That is hardly shocking. My former party, the Republicans, have put forth an authoritarian nativist who spends his days attacking Mexicans, women, Muslims and anyone else he can find to blame for Americas problems  or his own.

The Democrats? Well, their candidate cant seem to find a problem that cant be solved by spending more money on it, while laughably claiming her plans wont increase the debt by a penny.

Americans deserve another choice, and that's why I'm running for President.

I was governor of New Mexico from 1995 to 2003. I ran as a Republican in a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans  and I won re-election by a comfortable margin. Ditto for my running mate Gov. Bill Weld of Massachusetts.

We did this by governing as fiscally conservative and socially inclusive. We view governments job to be protecting and promoting the freedom of individuals to live their lives without interference and manipulation by Washington, D.C. That's what most Americans want their government to be: Leadership that is neither bullying nor self-indulgent.

I was an entrepreneur. I started a construction firm in New Mexico and grew it to employ more than 1,000 workers. I have lived the American dream. I ran for Governor because I saw that state government had grown too large and too intrusive  and was endangering the opportunity for others to succeed as I had.

And thats why Im running for President. Government should protect freedom, not be a threat to it.

Bill Weld and I both succeeded in reducing the size of government in our states. We can do it in Washington, D.C. The one thing the other two candidates have in common is that their plans for America would mean more government, less freedom, and a lot more debt.

Ms. Clinton thinks too many Americans have guns and wants to make it harder for us to own them. When the Supreme Court confirmed the 2nd Amendment right of individuals to keep and bear arms, she disagreed. I believe the 2nd Amendment means what it says.

As Secretary of State, she was responsible for promoting counter-productive policies in Iraq, Libya, Egypt and Syria. These should not be America's wars.

Instead, our nation needs the confidence that it has a commander-in-chief who will act predictably and responsibly to defend America  and not to aggressive elsewhere in our name.

Hillary Clintons only differences with President Obama boil down to a belief that he hasnt gone far enough in his growth of government.

Under Donald Trump, the Republican Party is now carrying a banner of protectionism, thinly-veiled bigotry, and nativism. I feel the pain of Republicans who are shaking their heads in disbelief at their partys leader.

In a couple of weeks, I invite you to join me in sending a message of real independence to the nation. Join me in saying, These arent your only choices for President. There is a third way, an independent way. There is a dignified, honest and rational alternative to Trump and Clinton.

Im Gary Johnson, and Im asking for your vote.
Pharma distributor appeals recovery of $5 mln in favor of Johnson & Johnson

MOSCOW, October 28 (RAPSI)  Pharma distributor Grama has appealed a Russian courts ruling over recovery of about 321 million rubles ($5 million) in favor of Russian unit of the US cosmetic giant Johnson & Johnson, the Moscow District Commercial Court documents read on Friday.

On August 9, the Ninth Commercial Court of Appeals upheld a ruling of the Moscow Commercial Court issued on 21 April.

Johnson & Johnson (supplier) has turned goods over to Grama (customer) under the purchase contract signed on March 23, 2015. The customer received goods without objection to their quality, amount, assortment and value. However, arrear with payments for the goods reached 305.7 million rubles ($4.7 million). The court recognized J&J claims as justified taking into account expiry of the contractual deadline for payment.

The court also collected from the defendant 15.1 million rubles ($232,000) of interest for use of another's monetary assets.

Established in 1886, J&J comprises 250 companies operating in over 57 countries. Its Russian subsidiary has been operating since 1992 and is engaged in medical equipment and diagnostic instrument production, pharmaceutical development and production, and consumer and hygienic goods and contact lens manufacturing.
Russian businessmans $642 mln claim against Lithuania dropped

MOSCOW, October 28 (RAPSI)  The Moscow Commercial Court has dropped a lawsuit filed by Russian businessman and former co-owner of the Lithuanian nationalized bank Snoras, Vladimir Antonov, demanding collection of more than 40 billion rubles ($642 million) from Lithuania, the plaintiffs lawyer told RAPSI on Friday.

Earlier, Lithuanias authorities petitioned for dismissal of Antonovs application without prejudice or termination of the case. The defendant insisted that Lithuania had legal immunity, in accordance with a bilateral treaty signed with Russia.

Antonov sought to collect more than 20.2 billion rubles ($324.5 million) in compensation from Lithuania for property damage and over 19.9 billion rubles ($320 million) in business reputation damage. Moreover, the plaintiff demanded to declare illegal information distributed by the countrys president Dalia Grybauskaite, who had criticized performance of Snoras managers before nationalization of the bank, and published in online media in 2011, accordinf to court papers.

Snoras was part of Antonov's Convers Group. The Convers Group held 68.10 percent of the bank and another 25.3 percent was held by Baranauskas.

In addition, the government of Latvia also announced that the Krajbanka bank, currently on the verge of bankruptcy and 60% owned by Antonov, would be nationalized.

Antonov has been charged by Lithuanian authorities with embezzlement of EUR 565 million, forging documents and fraudulent accounting and put on the European wanted list. Antonov and his partner Raimondas Baranauskas, were arrested on November 24, 2011 in the United Kingdom and put in detention but later they were released on bail. Antonov left the United Kingdom trembling for his life. He could face up to 10 years in Lithuania's prison if convicted.
BROOKINGS, S.D.  High yields and an excellent disease resistance packagethese are qualities producers can expect from the new Oahe winter wheat cultivar released by the South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station, according to South Dakota State University assistant professor Sunish Sehgal.South Dakota State University assistant professor Sunish Sehgal checks on a field of Oahe winter wheat in Walworth County. The new variety was recently released by the South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station. Sehgal is the winter wheat breeder.Bill Gibbons, SDAES interim associate director, said, The new Oahe variety represents the latest in a long line of wheat releases that our researchers have developed to support the wheat industry in South Dakota and the region.From 2013 to 2015, Oahe ranked No. 1 in mean grain yield among hard red winter wheat trials in the North Regional Performance Nurseries, which has test plots from northern Kansas through Montana and into Canada.Sehgal, who is the SDAES winter wheat breeder, estimated that Oahe yields are 1 to 2 bushels more per acre than the average performance of other SDSU varieties. The new variety also has good resistance to stripe rust, leaf rust and wheat streak mosaic virus, along with resistance to fusarium head blight that is comparable to other popular varieties. The new variety is now available to certified seed growers.This year South Dakota farmers harvested an estimated 57.8 million bushels of winter wheat, up 35 percent from last year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service.The SDSU winter wheat breeding program is supported by the South Dakota Wheat Commission through checkoff funding, the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture and the U.S. Wheat Barley Scab Initiative.Because new cultivars take10 to 12 years to develop, these funding sources are crucial to maintaining the continuity necessary to develop new varieties, according to Sehgal.Research in the development of new wheat varieties is a key priority of the South Dakota Wheat Commission. The release of Oahe represents a tremendous return on investment for our wheat producers, noted Reid Christopherson, executive director of the S.D. Wheat Commission.The release of Oahe is an important contribution of the South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station to wheat profitability, according to Daniel Scholl, interim dean of the SDSU College of Agriculture and Biological Sciences and SDAES director.Winter wheat is the only food crop planted in the fall and has advantages in addition to higher yields, Sehgal explained. It uses fall moisture and reduces runoff and soil erosion and can provide vital spring habitat for wildlife.Oahe also has excellent winter hardiness, Sehgal pointed out. The longer length of the coleopitile  the sheath that protects the seed  results in less winter kill along with better drought tolerance.During four years of testing in crop performance trials at 14 South Dakota locations, Oahe showed above average test weights, at 58 pounds per bushel East River and 58.6 pounds per bushel West River. The grain protein concentration was average, ranging from 13.4 to 12.9, and similar to other popular varieties, Sehgal explained. The new variety also has excellent milling quality with fair baking quality.Foundation seed for the new variety is available through the SDSU Foundation Seed stock division. The South Dakota Crop Improvement Association markets SDSU varieties and also oversees the production of certified seed, according to Neal Foster, manager of the Seed Certification Division.It has to meet minimum requirements before we put our label on it, Foster explained. By 2017, producers should be able to purchase it through the dealers listed in the South Dakota Certified Seed Grower Directory.We are working for the benefit of producers, Sehgal said. Our purpose is to solve the challenges of South Dakota Wheat growers and help them get an extra buck out of the hard work they do to feed the rest of the world.
Hamilton High School became the first Class A school to be certified by the AdvancED program in Montana.

AdvancED recommended that Hamilton School District be certified for five years after completing the two-year process of internal and external reviews, classroom observations and stakeholder interviews.

The AdvancED review team: Paula Onstad (Stevensville), Laurie Barron (Evergreen), Robert Watson (Bozeman), Charlotte Draper (Alabama) and lead evaluator Barbara Remondidi (Arizona) made the announcement Wednesday to Hamilton School board members, administrative staff, parents and community members.

AdvancED is a community of education professionals that performs on-site external reviews of Pre-K-12 schools to ensure students learn at their full potential.

Hamilton Schools is the fifth school certified by AdvancED in Montana. Other schools include Darby, Chinook, Troy and Colstrip. Corvallis School District is working through the process.

Daniel Sybrant is the state director of AdvancED for Montana, South Dakota and Iowa.

Theyve been working on this for two years and Ive met with them several times to provide training, Sybrant said. They worked very hard at this comprehensive process. It looks at self-assessment, research-based standards, student performance longitudinally and then an analysis of what stakeholders say.

Sybrant said AdvancED certification is beyond state accreditation standards.

It shows the community that they are going above what they have to do to, he said.

Remondidi said AdvancED certification is a continuous improvement process.

Hamilton High School has been accredited 95 years but this accreditation is for all the schools in the district, she said. Hamilton has outstanding student achievement and the powerful practices of family engagement and communication with family members.

The review team found two main assessments called Improvement Priorities that must be addressed by the school.

You must create or acquire a comprehensive student assessment system, Remondidi said. You dont have one and you know you dont have one. You have pockets of assessment data you can use and there are pockets of excellence but it is not comprehensive. It does not include all students from K through 12.

Remondidi said the reason to have a comprehensive student assessment system is to ensure fidelity of curriculum, inform instructional practice and monitor student progress.

The other issue the school must address is creating a mentoring program for new teaching staff and having stronger detailed long-range planning.

Remondidi praised the leadership capacity of the schools.

We recommend the Hamilton School District receive AdvancED accreditation for five years, she said.

David Bedey, school board chair, said the review was important.

It is always good to have another set of eyes, he said. Im glad that data collection and analysis have been identified as the area we need the most improvement because [superintendent] Mr. Korst is all about data, hes Mr. Data. He has started moving things in this direction; it is just a matter of taking it to the goal line. If this is what we have to do, it will be done.

Bedey also commended the leader team that worked to achieve the accreditation.

The recommendation by the review team will be forwarded for state and national approval by AdvancED.
When my wife and I started visiting the Bitterroot Valley and the late 1980s, there were local jobs in agriculture and the timber industry, as well as in the service industries. And when we went out to dinner, there were high percentages of young people and their families. Now, we see mostly senior citizens and tourists, and the timber jobs have long gone.

The Fraser Institute of Canada ranks the states and provinces of the U.S., Mexico, and Canada, according to their restrictive government regulations, labor laws, and tax structures. Their report, called Economic Freedom of North America, 2015, ranks Montana in the 2nd percentile, behind all three Canadian provinces on its northern border, as well as the adjoining states of Idaho and South Dakota.

Wouldnt it be great to live in a state that promoted a friendly business climate and helped entrepreneurs and businesses to be successful? Wouldnt it be super if Montana could be in the 1st percentile of the Fraser Report? Wouldnt it be great if the vast majority of graduates of our high schools, tech schools, and colleges could find jobs in our state?

To accomplish this objective, we need a governor who has demonstrated a successful tract record of creating jobs, and one who is sensitive to the type of business climate that it takes to be successful. That person is the technology entrepreneur and innovator, Greg Gianforte.

Ron Pifer

Stevensville
Both major party presidential candidates have serious electability issues. Both have large egos.

First- Trump has been accused of having temperamental issues, as well as negative female sexuality issues. Those issues have been flaunted by the main stream media. However, Trumps electability issues pale in comparison to Hillarys demonstrated lying / trustworthiness / pay for play electability issues as reviewed below.

Hillary has been called a congenital liar. Worse yet, she lied to Congress about whether there was classified information transmitted via e-mail over her personal phone. Some of that classified information was so Top Secret that only a limited number of people with a Top Secret clearance for that specific Special Access Program could see that classified information. Note that Hillary opted to use a personal phone for her convenience, rather than the required and encrypted State Department phone.

Early into FBI Director James Comeys 5 July 2016 history making speech detailing the results of the FBIs investigation of Hillary Clintons e-mail scandal, Comey appeared to verbally indict Hillary for her demonstrated lies and extreme security carelessness. Then, Comey reversed course and did not indict her because of lack of intent. If that makes sense to any reader, I would be shocked, because the careers of other people accused of far, far less significant security violations have been ruined.

Comey then testified before the Chaffetzs House Committee and confirmed that Hillary had lied about whether classified information was e-mailed. When asked about whether he reviewed Hillarys testimony under oath before a Congressional Committee Comey said no because he was not requested to do so. What a cop-out. Chaffetz said he would submit that request post haste, but to no avail to date.

Note that Hillary or her staff started illegally deleting e-mail from her phone- by a procedure known as bleach bit, days after a subpoena was served to obtain those records.

It should be noted that former President Bill Clinton met briefly with Attorney General Lynch before Comeys above history making speech. Doesnt that smell of collusion?

Another serious Clinton electability issue is the Clinton Foundation wherein pay for play activity was involved. It is no secret that private access to the Clintons was obtained by foreign nationals as a result of donations being made to the Clinton Foundation.

Why does the main stream media focus on Trumps electability issues while not Hillarys very serious electability issues? Only a conservative would answer that question.

In summary, Trump has demonstrated his ability to manage a very successful multi-billion dollar business. He is a proven leader with this demonstrated, very positive electability issue. In contrast, Hillary is a proven liar, plus she demonstrated her ability to mismanage the Department of State- both very, very serious negative electability issues.

Jerry Haslip

Victor
America must return to conservative principles of less government,reduced taxes, less spending and a balanced budget! Cut,cap and balance!
Models present creations by designer Tokuko Maeda during Tokyo Fashion Week in Tokyo last week. [Photo/IC]

Tokyo may be the style capital of Asia, but with South Korea and China snapping at its heels and Japan's most iconic brands rooted in Europe, the city is being urged to haul its fashion week into the big leagues.

Tokyo Fashion Week kicked off its spring/summer 2017 season showcase earlier this month with six days of events intended to promote 50 brands, a mixture of the established and the new.

Yet Japanese labels that are household names in the West-led by Kenzo, YohjiYamamoto, Issey Miyake and Comme des Garconseschew home shores for the bright lights, prestige and visibility of Paris.

Tokyo Fashion Week attracts only 50,000 visitors just a quarter of the number that attend the New York event, and also lagging behind London, Paris and Milan.
MELAMCHI: A model earthquake-resistant settlement constructed by the Dhurmus Suntali Foundation at Giranchaur of Melamchi Municipality-8 in Sindhupalchok district was handed over to the earthquake survivors today.

President Bidya Devi Bhandari handed over the integrated settlement with 65 houses, five children parks and a community building to the survivors of the 2015 earthquake.

Speaking on the occasion, President Bhandari said that the attachment of traditional culture, practices and values developed in a particular place created complexity to shift any settlement to a new place.

Meanwhile, she urged the locals to be self-dependent rather developing dependency on others.

Artist Sitaram Kattel (Dhurmus) informed that the integrated settlement was developed in 35 ropanis of land at the cost of around Rs 51.45 million.

The disabled-friendly, child-friendly and environment-friendly earthquake-resistant houses were developed adopting the concept of clean and green city.

The settlement locates at the distance of 6 kilometres from Sindhukhola along the Helambu Highway.

The settlement was constructed by the Foundation established by comedian duo Sitaram Kattel (Dhurmus) and Kunjana Ghimire (Suntali).RSS
Kag (crow)

Kathmandu, Nepal: Yampanchak , popularly known as Tihar, begins bringing happiness and joys among the Nepalese from today.

The first day of second largest festival of Nepalese Hindus is being celebrated as the Kag (crow) Tihar, throughout the country on Friday.

The five-day festival is not only the festival of humans but also the animals and birds as well. The first day of Tihar used to observe by worshipping the Kag by feeding delicious food.

The second day of the five-day long festival observe as the Kukur (Dog) Tihar by worshipping and providing delicious food to the dog, the symbol of devotion.

Third day observe by worshiping the cow, the symbol of wealth, fourth day by worshiping Goru (Ox), recognizing its contribution in the cultivation, and last or fifth day as Bhai tika, by offering tika to the brothers by sisters.
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The Times of India - October 19, 2016

by T V Venkateswaran

In August 1996, P Ramar Pillai, a high school dropout, astounded the world when he demonstrated under the gaze of TV cameras, journalists and curious public the production of mooligai (herbal) petrol by just boiling certain "secret" herbs in plain water. The fuel, being lighter than water, was floating at the top, and when separated by filtering yielded a combustible liquid that smelt and burned like kerosene. The media went into an immediate tizzy. "Imagine growing your own fuel in your backyard", screamed a news headline.Hailed as `peasant-genius, politicians cheered that now India can thumb its nose at the Saudis. Amidst all-round applause, the state government made a request to the Centre asking for the grant of a patent to Ramar Pillai, and allotted him 10 acres of land in his native village, Idaiyankulam, near Rajapalayam, for setting up a pilot plant with a capacity to produce 50 litres of herbal petrol a day .

When Ramar Pillai claimed he was abducted by a gang and tortured and burned with cigarette butts, all with an aim to wrest his secret recipe, the media alleged a conspiracy by oil companies and foreign governments to stifle a revolutionary discovery that could save the earth.

Talk was that powerful ministers and industrialists had sought partnership in his business. Not to be left out, even some `scientists joined the cheering crowd and offered an explanation to the mystery of how 10 gm of plant matter can produce five gm of fuel; perhaps the herb can suck carbon dioxide from the air and convert it into hydrocarbons! Many other scientists chose to keep mum, afraid of public backlash.

Petroleum ministry officials emphatically denounced the magic herb. They said the whole aim of the scam was to legitimise the sale of stolen petrol and diesel from tankers of oil companies in Rajapalayam. But this was tucked away in one corner of newspapers.

An observant scientist from the Indian Institute of Technology Madras pointed out that the real secret of mooligai petrol was a cheap trick. The stirrer used in the demonstration was filled with fuel, and when the mixture was heated up, a wax plug at the end of the stick melted, liberating the fuel to the boiling water. Some suspected foul play and alleged that he was being victimised by the English-speaking elite, and scientists were trying to tarnish an innocent genius out of professional pique.

The publics sympathetic reaction towards Ramar Pillai and against scientific institutions is, on the one hand, a telling commentary on the remarkable conservatism and establishmentarianism of organised science and, on the other, the vulnerability of the secularism project in India. The Ramar Pillai episode shows that time and again we allow our faith-based beliefs in the validity of traditions such as herbal cures to overshadow rational scientific approach.

Indian scientific institutes are not seen to be upholding the spirit of scientific temper nor investigating independently, without political interference, issues of environment, public health and public safety. When the scientific community remains a mute spectator at a senior physics professor at a university who makes a ludicrous claim, that applying a coat of cow dung will prevent nuclear radiation, how do we expect people not to mistrust the Indian scientific establishment?

The traditional Chinese practice of acupuncture gained acceptance in modern medicine when it was convincingly shown that inserting needles at specific points in the body elicited the release of endorphins and opioid-type peptides that modulated the activity of the central nervous system. These findings have engendered further studies in the area of molecular and cellular medicine. Many similar instances of gainful obtaining of valid knowledge from traditional ancient claims are numerous and well known. So are many that are patently false; like the flat earth conception of Hindu myths.

When traditional Ayurveda is not seen as an outcome of village healers trying to identify herbs that could cure illness or relieve ailments but as obtained by rishis through intense tapasya and `revelation then it becomes an article of faith.

Faith then prevails over rational examination and re-examination through experimentation and investigation. Such vainglorious views of tradition substitute belief in place of evidence and reason.

(The author is a scientist at Vigyan Prasar, New Delhi)
Peopleas SAARC Statement on the Cancellation of the 19th SAARC Summit

27 October 2016

Peopleas SAARC, a regional network of progressive South Asian peoples movements and mass organisations, is deeply dismayed at the cancellation of the 19th South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit which was scheduled to be held in Pakistan in November 2016. India initiated the process of cancellation by conveying its decision to not attend the Summit. This automatically triggered the postponement or cancellation of the Summit as per the SAARC Charter which stipulates that all heads of states of member states have to attend the Summit. Indiaas pull-out was supported by governments of Afghanistan and Bangladesh, both of whom have their own complaints with the Pakistan government. Bhutan too withdrew from the Summit citing unconducive environment in the neighbourhood.

As a network that seeks to work collectively to unite and democratise South Asian society, we see the cancellation of the 19th SAARC Summit as an unfortunate instance of the use of SAARC Summits for coercive neighbourhood foreign policy rather than a tool of peace building for regional development and prosperity. Bilateral disputes should not be used to derail multilateral processes.

We welcome the statements of all SAARC governments iterating their support for the SAARC process and the ongoing meetings of SAARC on energy, security and other regional issues. However, the cancellation of the SAARC Summit is an opportunity missed to project the South Asian region in the global fora as a collective, cohesive, growing region with a large youthful population, and to send out a message that the region stands united in spite of the many contentious issues bedevilling the region.

The world over, regionalism has emerged as a response and basis of engagement with processes of globalisation. However, the unevenness of democratisation and of development in South Asia is linked to the unevenness of internal conflicts. Regional forums should help cool bilateral tensions, rather than succumb to them. The recent rise in militaristic discourse in countries of South Asia is a source of great worry, and runs completely contrary to the goals of SAARC. Instead, once again the predominant framework for addressing conflicts has been the military framework instead of democratic peaceful engagement. The SAARC and especially SAARC Summits are important institutional spaces for addressing the aspirations of the people of the region and allowing for tackling of contentious issues in a multilateral framework.

SAARC Summits as a tool of foreign policy

This is not the first time that participation in SAARC Summits has been used as a coercive tool of foreign policy. In 1987 Sri Lanka refused to attend the SAARC Foreign Ministeras Conference in New Delhi and it refused to host the SAARC Summit in 1989 due to tensions with India. From 1999 to 2002 no SAARC annual summits were held because of Indias refusal to attend the summit meetings. It was the period after the Kargil war (1999) and terrorist attack on the Indian Parliament (2001). However, convinced by the arguments that New Delhis stance was causing damage to the regional grouping, India decided to attend the delayed Islamabad summit in 2004.

South Asian neighbours have been critical and resentful of Indiaas coercive neighbourhood diplomacy. And yet SAARC Summits have also provided a space for informal conversations, meetings and negotiations that have resulted in formal agreements on several knotty issues.

SAARC Summits as confidence building mechanisms for regional peace

The SAARC Summit held in Kathmandu in 1987 has been described as a triumph of accommodative diplomacy. It resulted in many unexpected agreements between India and Pakistan. Informal talks between Indian and Sri Lankan heads of states led to the signing of Indo-Sri Lankan Peace Accord and informal meetings between heads of states of Nepal and India led to an agreement to start discussions to augment water flows of the Ganges River.

At the 1988 SAARC Summit in Islamabad three important issues in Indo-Pakistan relations, were deliberated privately and resulted in significant agreements. Taking this practice further, India and Pakistan had informal discussions on the side-lines of the SAARC Summit meeting at Male in 1997, and agreed for the first time to work toward mutually acceptable solutions in the spirit of the Simla Agreement principles nearly two decades after signing the Agreement.

The following year, the Colombo summit in 1998 provided an important opportunity for first contact between the prime ministers of India and Pakistan after the nuclear tests by the two countries earlier in the same year. The informal meeting at Colombo seemed to have broken the ice between the two leaders and started a process that culminated in the Lahore bus journey in 1999 to renew the peace efforts between India and Pakistan.

These instances underline the utility of SAARC as a confidence-building mechanism and the importance of multilateral fora in providing space for initiating resolution of contentious bilateral issues.

People centric foreign policy for peace in the region

The people of every country in South Asia have been victims of terrorism. Both terrorism and the typically repressive response of the state have always led to a vicious cycle, undermining of democracy. Historical experience has shown that the cycle of terrorism and state terrorism never eliminates terrorism. Support and legitimacy for all acts and organisations of terror, as well as state actions that violate democracy, natural justice and the rule of law are deeply detrimental to building up peace and regionalism in South Asia which are important goals for all nations in the region. On the contrary, these activate the emergence of resistance which may disintegrate into sectarianism and sectarian ideology undermining notions of peoplehood and nationhood. In fact, it is the peopleas movement that can cut this nexus through a struggle for democratisation, equality and equity for all. The doctrine of preventive intervention as a military strategy has failed to eliminate terrorism. The struggle can best be met through democratic political contention, the most fertile ground for contending against terrorism.

It is ironical that South Asia, which is home to the largest number of impoverished people and malnourished children, is also the most militarised region in the world today, and one of rising conflicts creating instability, fear and fractures in the polity. Competitive militarism in the neighbourhood is a detriment to building a robust and vibrant regionalism, as well as of enabling meaningful and substantive change in the lives of South Asian people.

It is the understanding of peoples movements that if peace and democracy in South Asia are not strengthened and sustained to build South Asia as a zone of peace, no South Asian government will be able to deliver on its promises of development, governance and inclusive growth. Thus, continuing dialogue between the SAARC countries is the best way to collectively address the regionas common challenges as well as fostering cooperation and collaboration among member states.

Peopleas SAARC calls on the SAARC countries, especially India and Pakistan, to restore dialogue on the SAARC platform and ensure that SAARC as an instrument for peace, stability, security and development, is not undermined or weakened.

Peoples SAARC Secretariat

P.O.Box: 8130, 288 Gairidhara Marg, Gairidhara, Kathmandu, Nepal.

Telephone: +977-1-4004976, Fax: +977-1-4004508, Email: psaarc2016@gmail.com, Website: www.peoplesaarc.org
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Seattle Public Schools (SPS) will be hosting two budget work sessions this fall for parents and community members to learn budget background information and to gather feedback on the question, What Do You Value? as it relates to potential funding changes for the 2017-18 school year.



Both meetings will provide an overview of the districts budget and planning process as well as an opportunity for our families to make recommendations to the Districts Leadership Team and School Board regarding what their ideas would be if the district receives additional funds or has funding reductions that affect the 2017-18 school year.



By collaborating with parents and other community partners, Seattle Public Schools can provide a voice for our students and their families. Through this process we hope to better align and leverage feedback from our families to meet school and District goals and to improve student outcomes.

Although the 2013-15 and 2015-17 biennium Washington State budgets reversed the trend of diminishing State funding for K-12, it did not replace the accumulated reductions of the prior years. The severity of the accumulated shortfall continues to damage programs, infrastructure and student achievement, and extraordinary measures are required to achieve a balanced and sustainable district budget.

We will work thoughtfully, diligently and transparently to achieve the best outcomes possible for SPS students, while acknowledging that any budget cuts are not in the best interest of our students. Closing the opportunity gap is at the core of our work  a sustainable level of funding for our schools is essential to success and to allow flexibility and innovation.

$ 92.6

One statement that Superintendent Nyland likes to say isThis week Seattle Schools hosted two community meetings (which, for some reason, they called "work sessions." Confusing.) At the meeting I attended on Tuesday, the 25th, there were four community members including me. Here's what staff said in their announcement for the meetings(partial):That is fairly benign language for what could be very serious. The number thrown out at Tuesday's Budget meeting wasI do not have a link to the document handed out at the community meetings but here is what the Board was given at Wednesday's Work Session on the budget. The language there is far more dire.I find that last sentence seems to not mesh with the situation. When you have fewer dollars, it's pretty hard to be flexible and innovative.I believe the district when they say that the "new" money from McCleary has not backfilled cuts that were made. The Legislature continues to call this "new" money and rather acknowledges the actual realities.I also attended last night's meeting about reopening Lincoln High School (thread to come) and I think it should be clear that this district has a lengthy list of needs and wants.Staff made a good point at the community meeting that there is no clarity on when any new McCleary dollars could come from the next legislative session. That's makes it very hard to plan a budget but that doesn't seem to concern some legislators who I believe want to draw out the process as long as possible.The key page from both the community work session and the Board work session is the(page 7 of the linked Board work session document.)What it appears to imply is that we may hit a "levy cliff." No one used this phrase but I think that's one big issue. But staff said the main cost is salaries. They have to pay teachers a negotiated COLA plus the new city law on minimum wages will also kick in. Naturally there is also the issue of staffing to support both the K-3 class size reductions and supporting the 24-credit graduation.(At last night's meeting on the reopening of Lincoln High, Hale principal Jill Hudson was there and reassured nervous parents on the 24-credit requirement for graduation, saying Hale was already doing it. I thought to myself, "That right so how ARE they doing it and is the district going to use them as a model?"For this school year, here's a big picture view of the money sources:Local - $197.8State - $446.3Federal - $ 53.0Other -$789.7However, the district got about $25M from other local revenue via gifts, donations, rentals/leases, school food services, tuition/fees and "other."That brings us to about $814.7M. The majority of the budget - about 60% - goes to teacher salaries.I will pause here to note that although there is this "local revenue" in the presentation, their total budget does not reflect this money. Meaning, throughout the presentation they continue to say there is a budget of $789.7. I didn't notice this at the meeting; I'll have to ask.They have one page where they compare their budgeting to other districts. Some interesting findings:- SPS spends the highest amount per pupil ($12,899) followed by Tacoma ($12,555) and Bellevue ($12,109.) The low is Kent at $11,039.- Seattle again spends the highest amount per Sped student ($14,709) with Bellevue right behind at $14,500. The low is Spokane at $8,634.- SPS spends the most on ELL at $3,147 with Spokane at $2, 472. The low is Kent at $819.When I asked about how we compare to out-of-state districts of comparable size, no one knew.Chief of Curriculum, Assessment and Instruction,, gave a short overview of that work. Also available was head of Teaching and Learning, Michael Tolley.But when I asked how much MTSS is costing especially given it isn't even fully implemented, no one knew.(They said the work is "ongoing." Okay but how much does it currently cost?)But staff went out of their way to say how much Advanced Learning costs - twice. They say the state gives them $500K and they spend $1.5M. All AL does is handle applications and testing. They have maybe 3-4 staff. How does that eat up $1.5M? I'll have to ask to see their budget.When I asked Mr. Kinoshita about the last Work Session on Advanced Learning (just weeks ago), I mentioned that at least three directors supported the idea that AL become a SMART goal for the strategic plan. I asked him if he supported that idea. He demurred saying that was for the Board to decide but I told him, "But I'm asking your opinion." I was told this wasn't the time to talk about that.There is a key page in the Board Work Session document which is page 18, SPS Programs Enhanced with Levy (they mean the Operations Levy.) Here's the list:The difference between the page at the community work session and the Board Work Session is this line in the Board's:Well, that list certainly WOULD generate conversation. You can see it's only programs, not departments like Technology. On another page, they do talk aboutOther input:
Others talk about the diversity problem, we are attacking it, one filmmaker at a time

SANTA MONICA, CA, October 28, 2016 -- The Superlounge Diversity Award will send one deserving filmmaker from an underrepresented population to Commercial Directing Bootcamp, December 3rd, 2016 in Los Angeles. In response to the lack of female, minority and LGBT directors at the helm of filmed advertising, the scholarship has been launched by LA-based production company Superlounge to help expose these filmmakers to the insights offered by the successful seminar. Filmmakers need only send a link to their work, along with a statement about their interest in commercial directing, to jordan@commercialdirectingbootcamp.com. Submissions are open until November 10th. The award will be announced November 17th.

While others talk about the diversity problem, we are attacking it, one filmmaker at a time, said Superlounge director Jordan Brady Brady launched the Commercial Directing Bootcamp this year, holding sold-out seminars in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Austin and Dallas. With nearly 1,000 national TV commercials to his credit, and counting, the director feels an obligation to share what hes learned. Yes, we live in a world of tighter budgets where everyone is a filmmaker, he said. But the path to a healthy industry is openness, mentoring and an embrace of community. There are no secrets in a shared economy.

Ive been a longtime listener of Jordans podcast, and was instantly on board the moment I saw he was doing a workshop, said Filmmaker Jeff Hoferer, who attended Bradys first LA bootcamp. He did not disappoint. Ive never met a director of Jordans caliber whos so willing to share insight into the industry he works in. Its truly refreshing. Another alum, Brian Petcher, became a 2016 Cannes Young Director Award Nominee after attending the NYC bootcamp and applying techniques and advice learned.

Inspired in part by Werner Herzogs Rogue Film School, which is about a way of life as opposed to technique, Bradys bootcamp is not a film school, although we cover film craft, he said. This is about how the business works, how to approach filmmaking for commercials and how to make a living as a filmmaker in advertising. While the advertising landscape has experienced tremendous upheaval amidst a recession and the digital revolution, Brady points out that the needs of brands - and their expectations of filmmakers - remain the same. Especially in todays world, becoming a successful commercial director begins with learning how to become a good one, he observed, and to whatever extent I can nurture that, Im happy to do so. If Brady holds any concerns at all about sharing too much of that secret sauce, hes not letting on. Look, no two directors are alike, he affirmed. I know, because Ive bid against both of them.

About Superlounge

Superlounge is a boutique LA production company with a roster comprised of award-winning commercial directors Jordan Brady, Daniel Sheppard, Brett Wagner, Barton Landsman, Jeff Aron Lable and Jeannette Godoy. The company is presided over by Executive Producer/Partner Dave Farrell and Executive Producer, National Sales + Marketing Vicki Ordeshook.

About Jordan Brady

Jordan Brady's true passion is commercials, yet he's directed five features films, including the 2010 cult hit feature documentary I AM COMIC (Netflix, Showtime), a Whos Who of standup comedy launching a filmmaking journey through the current boom that has made him the definitive biographer of the medium's modern era. Even more of todays top stand ups appeared in Bradys 2014s I AM ROAD COMIC (Hulu), and he recently returned from Afghanistan, Kuwait, Bahrain and Iraq, filming I AM BATTLE COMIC, which followed Brady and a squadron of stand-ups overseas to perform for troops serving in the US Armed Forces. Brady also hosts the popular podcast RESPECT THE PROCESS, described by Special Teams film editor-turned-director Mark Nickelsburg as The Rosetta Stone of filmmaking. His guests over 100+ episodes have included McCann Worldwide Global ECD Bill Wright, Leo Burnett Detroit CCO Steve Chavez, Doner Detroit ECD Chuck Meehan, Adam McKay, Morgan Spurlock, Mike Bigelow, Bobcat Goldthwait and Marcus Nispel.

###
Ammon Bundy and six of his followers have been acquitted of conspiracy charges by a federal court jury. Reuters reports that Bundy and the others, who are all members of a group that seized federal property in a 41-day occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, successfully argued that theirs was an act of civil disobedience. Bundy's brother, Ryan Bundy, was also a co-defendant in the trial. Prosecutors, meanwhile, maintained that it was a lawless seizure and an anti-government attack.

The group was charged with conspiring to impede federal employees through intimidation, threat, or force. Per the Oregonian, the jury, whose members had deliberated anew today after one juror was replaced, told the judge that they had "exhausted all discussion" and that although they could not reach a consensus on one charge, "further deliberation would not help." Eventually the jurors found the defendants not guilty on all charges.

"We are just so excited, Angie Bundy, Ryan Bundy's wife, told the Guardian following the verdict. Weve been praying hard, and we knew they hadnt done anything wrong.

Although the lack of consequences for the armed militiamen will come as a surprise and even an affront to many, it should be recalled that the standoff was not without casualties. Robert "LaVoy" Finicum, a rancher who acted as the spokesperson for the militia, was killed during a confrontation with government officials in late January. As Vice News and Reuters wrote at the time, the FBI released unedited footage of Finicum's fatal shooting.

Previously: Armed 'Militiamen' Take Over Oregon Wildlife Refuge
On Tuesday afternoon law enforcement officers shot a man they had pursued from San Mateo to the Ocean View neighborhood of San Francisco. That man has been identified by police as Ansar el Mohammed, according to the Examiner, and his condition, which had been critical, has been upgraded to "serious."

Regarding the chase, which ended at Montana and Capitol streets: A multi-agency team was pursuing what they believed to be a stolen Honda. Officers in a single vehicle pursuing el Mohammed were reportedly from three agencies affiliated with the San Mateo County Vehicle Theft Task Force.Correction: SFPD has emailed SFist to clarify that there was no "pursuit," and "SFPD was clear that the suspect vehicle was followed into SF."

The CHP officer and the San Mateo Police officer each fired their weapons according to KPIX5  that's being further investigated, writes KGO, who adds that no gun was found on the suspect. Police say the vehicle was being used as a weapon, however.

KGO also spoke with a neighbor in the area of the shooting. Monique Malcolm revealed that her son calls el Mohammed "Notorious Dickerson," and added that he was a "sweet and nice guy."

"And something needs to happen with these police shooting and killing innocent individuals." Malcolm emphasized, "just taking people's lives from them."

A woman who identified herself as el Mohammed's friend and gave the Chronicle just her first name, Elisha, told that paper that he had grown up with her in the Ocean View area and claims that her friend had just come back from getting a paint job on his new car. The pursuit, she says, didn't occur at high speeds or anything like that. We also learn that the CHP officer who was reported injured in the incident suffered abrasions and a minor head injury and is in fair condition.

Previously: [Update] CHP Officer Shoots Vehicle Theft Suspect Following Pursuit In SF
A shooting that killed an SF man and sent another to San Francisco County Jail was self defense, his lawyer says, perhaps one of the reasons the city's District Attorney has declined to charge him in the case.

You likely know the details by now: Police were called to the Glen Park home of noted San Francsico documentarian Kevin Epps at 1:24 p.m. Monday, where they discovered the body of 45-year-old Marcus Polk Sr.

Polk had been shot to death  and according to Polk's son, who is also Epps' stepson, the 48-year-old filmmaker was the shooter.

Polk's son said Monday that his dad "showed up out of the blue today and from what Ive been told, he made a comment that she doesnt really like you.' I think thats what did it. And [Epps] shot a man in the back.

Epps was arrested by the San Francisco Police Department at the scene, and was booked into SF County Jail for both the shooting and for being a felon in possession of a firearm. (According to the Chron, "It wasnt immediately clear why Epps was barred from possessing a gun, but Santa Cruz County Superior Court records show he was charged with two felony counts of penetration with a foreign object in 2002.")

Epps was released from lockup just before 1 a.m. Wednesday, after the District Attorney said they had insufficient evidence with which to charge him at the time. In a release sent Wednesday afternoon, the SFPD said that situations like this aren't ususual, and It is not uncommon for the DAs Office to request additional information on a case."

"SFPD investigators work closely with the DAs Office," the SFPD said in their statement, "and the SFPD Homicide Detail will be continuing the investigation into this matter.

As he was leaving jail Wednesday, Epps told reporters that the shooting was self-defense, but on his attorney's advice didn't provide additional details on the confrontation.

My attorney has advised me as it relates to the matters of this case I really cant speak on that period, CBS 5 quotes Epps as saying.

In an Instagram video depicting his release (that's it above), Epps says "This is good to be out, youngblood. This is a blessing, man."

Epps' attorney, Mark Webb says that The circumstances were such that the victim entered the home unwantingly, and made threats," CBS 5 reports.

There was a shooting, and there was a death and it was in self-defense, Webb says, according to the Chron. The person who was killed was an unwanted intruder making serious threats of death."

The Chron reports that Polk was a registered sex offender, and according to ABC 7 had convictions for "domestic violence, robbery and drugs" and was recently "jailed again for parole violation and he was released last week."

In an interview with KQED, Webb says that "he spoke with the prosecutor, who seemed inclined to see the incident Monday as a case of self-defense."

Meanwhile, both San Francsico Board of Supervisors President London Breed and Public Defender Jeff Adachi had harsh words for how the case had been handled by SFPD.

Its unfortunate that if theres insufficient evidence, I dont understand why he was taken into custody in the first place. He has a reputation, and I hope this doesnt create any challenges for him. I found it shocking, Breed told the Ex.

I just wish it was handled differently.

"Who put the mug shot out there? Why was the case handled in the way that it was? Adachi asked the Ex. With the internet now, when something it put out there, whether its a mugshot or a story, thats going to persist forever. If you Google his name, thats the thing that will come up.

(Epps' mugshot was sent to the media as a press release by the SFPD on October 25. This is typically done by SFPD's media relations team following media requests for a booking photo, the exception being when suspect identification issues remain outstanding.)

A friend of Epps, Shawn Richards of Brothers without Guns, also questioned SFPD's presentation of the case to media. Speaking with the Ex, he asked Did the police tell you he didnt run, that he sat there and waited?"

"He didnt take off. He didnt leave the scene. The police didnt say that. The gun was sitting on the coffee table.

For his part, Epps seems to be focusing on the positive for now.

I feel blessed," he told CBS 5.

Im just really blessed that in SF, the justice system can work and justice can work for a black man in America."

Previously: 'Insufficient Evidence' Spurs Release Of SF Filmmaker Arrested In Fatal Shooting
[Update: This post has been updated with comment from Safeway communications and government relations.]

Your booze runs may experience double toil and trouble at certain San Francisco Safeway stores this Halloween weekend, as many Safeway locations have recently adopted the draconian measure of locking all liquor behind glass cabinets, with one store even keeping the whole wine stock under lock and key, too.

All across town, Safeway liquor and wine enthusiasts must now ring a bell for service, wait for a sales associate to show up with the key, have that associate tell you which checkout line to stand in rather than choosing the shortest line for yourself, and then have your checkout wait time punctuated with the constant ding-dong of more alcohol aisle service requests. Why have many Safeway stores started locking up more of their wine and spirits? And which Safeway locations still shelve booze unlocked, the good old way that is so much less of a pain in the ass?





"Safeway employs a number of security measures at our stores to deter shoplifting," Safeway senior communications and government relations manager Wendy Gutshall told SFist. "Like many other retailers, locked cabinets is one method we use. For proprietary reasons, we cannot provide step-by-step detail of how these decisions are made. We can say locked cabinets are used throughout our stores in Northern California."

It was easy enough to plot out which Safeways lock up the liquor, which also lock up the wine, and which currently lock neither. It also didnt take long to find indications that Safeway has indeed suffered a shoplifting spike, and that alcohol theft is becoming more common  and more organized.

The map above depicts San Francisco Safeways with traditional liquor without locks shelving as green dots.The yellow dots note Safeways where the liquor is locked behind glass doors, and the red dots show Safeways that lock liquor and wine both. The Safeways I visited in San Mateo County only lock up expensive stuff like Moet Chandon that goes for $80 and up, but Id be thrilled to hear in the comments what East Bay and North Bay people are encountering.



The Liquor is locked but the wine sits out fine at the Church & Market Safeway (Image: Joe Kukura)

Is Safeway Really Encountering More Shoplifting?

They are, if you believe Safeways own self-reported numbers. California retailers across the board say shoplifting is on the rise, and many blame the surge on the passage of Prop. 47  a 2014 measure that changed theft of under $950 worth of merchandise from a felony charge to a misdemeanor.

Large retailers including Safeway, Target, Rite Aid and CVS pharmacies say shoplifting increased at least 15 percent, and in some cases, doubled since voters approved Proposition 47 and ended the possibility of charging shoplifting as a felony with the potential for a prison sentence, the Associated Press reported in May of this year.



Only top-shelf liquor is locked at the Taraval Safeway. Image: Joe Kukura

Are People Really Stealing More Booze These Days?

Heres where it gets interesting. The January 2016 Sonoma News article Grand Theft Wine Strikes Sonoma Safeway makes for a very entertaining read, the tale of a fellow who cleverly pilfered dozens of high-end wine bottles from a Sonoma Safeway. But it also suggests something larger may be afoot.

The local incident was part of a growing trend of wine theft - from restaurants, winemakers, collectors as well as supermarkets - that suggests an underground wine economy, based on stolen wines that might get top dollar being sold to presumably unsuspecting consumers, perhaps through mom-and-pop stores or perhaps online, the News noted.

They connect this with the infamous 2014 French Laundry wine heist and a counterfeit wine scam that bilked thousands of dollars from victims like William Koch of Koch Brothers fame.



Image: Joe Kukura

Safeway is Locking More Than Booze

Parents reading this article are probably shaking their fists that I am just now getting around to mentioning that Safeway also locks up baby formula, razors, over-the-counter medications and other things more essential than alcohol. In fact, its easier to get alcohol than baby formula at Safeway, because the baby formula aisle does not have a service bell.

Other items are also kept locked at San Francisco Safeway stores.



Image: Joe Kukura

It could be that the increased locking of alcohol is a pilot program, and we may see more of our alcohol locked up in the near future. Safeway will have to determine the ratio of customers lost to merchandise lost when they make the alcohol more difficult to physically acquire off the shelf.

And I should also note that you cant buy booze right up til 2 a.m. at all Safeway locations anymore. Some Safeway stores now close at 12 a.m., so their last call for alcohol is midnight. These stores are:



5290 Diamond Heights Boulevard



1335 Webster Street



290 King Street



145 Jackson Street



350 Bay Street

Related: Thieves Who Stole $300K In Wine From The French Laundry Still At Large

SF's Sketchiest Safeways, Ranked


Its exceedingly difficult to remember a time before craft coffee shops seemed to decorate every last corner of Milwaukee. Pulitzer Prize winning food critic Jonathan Gold refers to the current popularity of craft coffee culture as the third wave of coffee. In Golds view, the first wave of coffee was the widespread popularity of instant and drip coffees produced by large manufacturers like Folgers and Maxwell House in the nineteenth century. The second wave took place between 1966 and 2000, as popular corporate coffee chains like Starbucks Coffee and Peets Coffee & Tea started cropping up everywhere like dandelions in spring.

Flash forward to present day and the third wave of coffee, which emphasizes artisan aesthetics and coffee as a complex product. The movement is spearheaded by high-quality and progressive roasters like Intelligentsia Coffee of Chicago and Stumptown Coffee Roasters of Portland (although both of which were purchased by Peets Coffee and Tea in 2015,) The third wave of coffee focuses on education, craftsmanship and sustainability.

TJ Sizemore, founder of the Milwaukee Coffee Festival, first developed an interest in specialty coffee almost a decade ago while working as a full-time barista at Starbucks in Atlanta, but was introduced to the artisan side of the industry when he took a vacation to Europe. My wife and I took a two month trip to Italy. I went to a cafe, ordered a cappuccino and saw the barista pull shots of espresso and dump them because they werent good enough- whereas at Starbucks, Id push a button to produce the shot and serve it no matter what. I could tell there was more to the craft that I wasnt aware of and I wanted to learn more about it.

So when Sizemore returned home to Atlanta after the trip, he made a point to seek out the citys burgeoning specialty coffee subculture. He discovered an event put on by a local roaster which showcased the city's local coffee talent. I discovered the underground coffee movement in Atlanta through a company called Octane Coffee. I attended one of their barista throw-downs, where baristas from throughout the community gather and compete at latte art. It was an eye-opening environment for discovering the specialty coffee industry.

Years later, when a new job brought he and his family to Milwaukee, Sizemore brought his passion for specialty coffee with him. He was excited to find that Milwaukees coffee culture was similar to Atlanta in its popularity and quality. When I moved to Milwaukee, I wanted to continue embracing specialty coffee culture. I found companies like Stone Creek, Alterra (now Colectivo), and Anodyne, and was surprised that most people I talked to werent familiar with them. I knew Milwaukee was a city of festivals, but there was no coffee festival- so I decided I wanted to work to put something together to connect these brands with the people of Milwaukee. Sizemore felt inspired, and began to compose the initial plans for what came to be The Milwaukee Coffee Festival.

The roasters with the most longevity in Milwaukees specialty coffee scene at that time were Anodyne Coffee, Stone Creek Coffee and Colectivo Coffee Roasters (formerly Alterra). The thriving coffee market has since seen the advent of numerous smaller roasters, including Valentine Coffee, Alderaan Coffee and Hawthorne Coffee, as well as an increased presence from Viroqua Wisconsins acclaimed Kickapoo Coffee roaster. The common thread uniting these companies is an appreciation for collaboration, education and community building.

Sizemore familiarized himself with the market, but knew it was important to establish credibility before approaching the industry-leaders with his idea for a festival. Finding an inexpensive venue was his first order of business. I knew I had to find a space before approaching roasters. When I sent out my event pitch to a large list of venues, one of the most positive responses I received was from Jamie Ferschinger from Urban Ecology Centers Riverside Park Location. When I presented my initial plan for a two-day festival, Jamie thought it would be better to start with monthly tastings in the space. Those tastings were important because it was through them that I built a relationship with the roasters, who were happy to provide coffee for the tastings.

When the tastings went well, Jamie said Okay, now lets talk about the festival.

Steve Kessler, Operations Manager of Anodyne was one of Sizemores initial partners during those monthly tastings. Kessler sees value in the opportunity for roasters to present their product directly to their patrons and tell their story in a casual and friendly setting. When youre looking at a city like Milwaukee, theres been a great renaissance of coffee and more and more people are starting to appreciate the intricacies of it as a complex product. I always say that roasters are like chefs- we all receive our raw product and its up to us to take it, learn the backstory on it, and consider many variables before roasting to produce a product that we think people will really enjoy.

When the tastings evolved into the larger festival, Sizemore didnt want to let the key element of interaction between vendors and their customers go by the wayside. Weve found that attendees are really interested in connecting with the vendors directly. People want to hear why the coffee is special and what characteristics differentiate each company. At the same time, we want to give the vendors an opportunity to connect with their customers.

That approach has been an important facet to the overall success of the event, and public interest has grown significantly with each passing year. The first years attendance was over 500 and the second years was closer to 700. Last year, Sizemore anticipated a crowd of 1,000 but saw the actual number exceed 3,000. Last year the crowd was so large that it was difficult for vendors and attendees to communicate. This year, in order to control the attendance, we are selling tickets as opposed to the last three years when its been free. Sizemore also plans to take the festival to a larger space in its fifth year to facilitate higher attendance without diminishing the ability for vendors and attendees to communicate.

Sizemore also has one more big change brewing for 2017. This years event is still called Milwaukee Coffee Festival, but next year were changing the name of the event to Pendulum Coffee Festival so that we can take it to different cities. Madison is the next logical city for us to do a festival; they have a number of coffee roasters who have been operating there for a long time. We still want to keep that very hyper-local focus, so if we travel to Madison, were not tasting coffees from Minnesota or Seattle, were still focusing on the coffee roasters that are relevant within that market.

Milwaukee Coffee Festival takes place on Saturday, November 5th at The Urban Ecology Centers Riverside Park location. Tickets are $10 in advance via the companys website and $15 at the door.
Another restaurant opening in Bay View might seem like overkill, but Bumstead Provisions offerings are going past peoples needs and giving them something different. Sourcing the best, unique ingredients from the Midwest to not only serve in the restaurant, but also in their market next door. While a market/restaurant combination isnt completely unheard of, its not exactly common in Milwaukee.

After living in and visiting Minneapolis and Chicago, Bumstead Provisions owners, Mike Bodow and Devin Eichler, noticed that both cities were embracing their citys best, from beer to quality ingredients. They wanted to bring that Milwaukee, and just one look at their tap line shows they have some great Wisconsin beers. Though Mike admits as a hometown supporter (his hometown being San Diego), he tries to keep the California beer flowing as well. Both encourage customers to grab a pint before they go shop in their market.

How did the dynamic duo that owns Twelve12 Hospitality Group come to be? Mike and Devins friendship blossomed while the pair was working together at a hip restaurant in Minneapolis. Six months into their friendship they ended up living together, and thats when their cats first met. Now, this may not seem like a detail one needs to share when talking about their new business, but its an important detail to them. Hint: Mikes cats name is Sherman; you might recognize it on their menu. Over the years, whether they lived or worked together, they kept in contact. Devin opened the Crafty Cow in December 2014 and Mike came back to Wisconsin to join the team in January 2015. The rest is history.

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I asked both guys what menu item they are most proud of, and both hating my question answered reluctantly. Mike said, The whole menu really, but if I had to say something it would be the lobster cheesesteak. What is that exactly? Well, its a Philly cheese steak with lobster and house made cheese wiz on it. Devin loves the pork belly cinnamon buns, which are rolled pieces pork belly, pan seared and then coated in cinnamon sugar.

Friday, Oct. 28 is their Grand Opening Party with samples on the market side of fresh meat and cheeses, and the restaurant side will feature rare beer samples from Hinterland and Brenner Brewing. Dont forget the free donuts, bacon and Iron Grate smoked pig head being served when the party kicks off at 4:30pm that day! They also have several specials like $2 pilsner pints from Good City Brewing, $3 Revel whiskey shots and $5 Moscow Mules & Old Fashioneds. And since its Halloween weekend, come dressed as Chris Farley or Dagwood and/or Blondie from the Blondie comic strip and get a free sandwich, beer and a shot.

This dynamic duo, who are on restaurant number two, have a greater goal. Trying to include all that Greater Milwaukee has to offer from local creameries, breweries, farmers and so much more to create products that can be served anywhere from Bavette to Pizza Man to Bumstead Provisions. Kind of like beer collaborations but with food. Devin says light heartedly about Milwaukee and the Greater Milwaukee Project, If we all support each other and make each other better, the more people will come here. And that means we can all hang out and party. Its all about hanging out and partying.

They have a strong vision and I cant wait to see what they have in store for our bellies! Until then, get yourself to Bumstead Provisions to taste the goodness coming from their kitchen and of course, from behind their bar.
Philip Roths sweeping 1997 novel American Pastoral is about many things: the breaking apart of a family, the political schisms of the 60s and 70s, the meaning and mutability of Jewish identity. But at its heart, the book is about how we routinely fail to understand one another on a fundamental human level.

The fact remains that getting people right is not what living is all about anyway, Roth writes in one of the books most famous passages. Its getting them wrong that is living, getting them wrong and wrong and wrong and then, on careful reconsideration, getting them wrong again.

Now an adaptation of Roths novel is in theaters, with Scottish actor Ewan McGregor starring and making his directorial debut. And if that seems surprising  if a foray into Rothian literary territory doesnt totally square with our image of an actor who dived into a toilet as a heroin-addicted slacker in 1996s Trainspotting, sang and danced in the lavish 2001 musical Moulin Rouge and wielded a lightsaber in the Star Wars prequels  it may be because weve gotten McGregor wrong all this time.

In American Pastoral, McGregor plays Seymour Swede Levov, a successful businessman and former star high school athlete whose world is upended when his teenage daughter, Merry (Dakota Fanning), becomes politically radicalized amid the turmoil of the 1960s.

After Merry sets off a bomb to protest the Vietnam War and goes into hiding, Levov and his wife, Dawn (Jennifer Connelly), find their once-happy, upper-middle-class lives tragically unraveling.

On paper, McGregor, 45, seems a rather unlikely candidate to take on Roths story. He had never directed a feature before (two previous projects he had hoped to helm over the years both fell through), let alone an adaptation of a celebrated Pulitzer Prize-winning novel with an epic historical sweep. Nor, though he has lived in Los Angeles for roughly a decade with his wife and four daughters, is he American  and American Pastoral, as the title suggests, is very much about America.

But over breakfast on a recent morning in Beverly Hills, McGregor  radiating the infectious positivity and restless curiosity that helped win him the job of directing the film  shrugged off the idea that the project was outside of his wheelhouse.

Im asked about it all the time, but I really dont think so, he said. Ive spent my working life imagining characters who, like, 80 percent of them are not Scottish. Its sort of my job as a creative person to learn.

"Ultimately I was telling the story of a dad and a husband and a wife and a daughter, and I know an awful lot about that. I think those topics are quite universal.

McGregor was initially attached simply to star in American Pastoral. But when director Phillip Noyce (Clear and Present Danger) departed the project months before shooting was set to begin, McGregors wife, production designer Eve Mavrakis, encouraged him to throw his hat in the ring to direct it himself.

I had wanted to direct for 20 years, said McGregor, whose only previous directing credit is a short film that was included in a 1999 collection of stories about London Underground passengers called Tube Tales.

Ive always been a very busy actor, and I like it that way, but I always felt like a filmmaker. I recently saw a clip of me on (a British talk show) just after Trainspotting and he asked me, Where will you be in 20 years time? I said, Ill be directing and acting. I was right!

If McGregor felt daunted by taking on such a monumental novel, he didnt show it on the set. I dont think Ewan was approaching it from a place of fear and trepidation, Connelly said. He was just coming at it with great enthusiasm and admiration for the novel and excitement about telling that story.

Throughout the process, McGregor never met or spoke with Roth, whose books have long been considered difficult to translate to the screen. (An adaptation of his 2008 novel Indignation released this year, directed by James Schamus, earned strong reviews.)

But after seeing a screening of American Pastoral, the author relayed positive feedback through his representative. I felt hugely relieved, said McGregor. If that hadnt been the case, I would have felt like Id failed in some way.

Its been 20 years since McGregor first burst to international fame, showcasing his irrepressible charisma and leading-man looks in the cult hits Shallow Grave and Trainspotting, both directed by Danny Boyle.

In 1997, Empire magazine placed him at No.36 on its list of the top 100 movie stars of all time, even though at that point he had made only a handful of movies.

But movie stardom for its own sake was never a part of McGregors calculus. I didnt want to come to Hollywood for ages, he said.

I felt like I was involved in something British that changed things to an extent with Shallow Grave and then Trainspotting, and I felt like it defined me a bit as an actor. Even when (Boyle, screenwriter John Hodge and I) came as a filmmaking team and we did A Life Less Ordinary, which was an American romantic comedy, I felt like it was us almost trying to beat the Americans at their own game.

In 1997, McGregor signed on to play a younger version of Alec Guinness Jedi master Obi-Wan Kenobi in George Lucas highly anticipated Star Wars prequels, 1999s The Phantom Menace, 2002s Attack of the Clones and 2005s Revenge of the Sith  an opportunity that most actors would have leapt at but one he settled on only after much deliberation.

It didnt really feel right to me in a way, he said. I was terribly arrogant about my work and felt absolutely assured of what I was about. At the time I just felt, Thats not me. I thought about it long and hard and spoke to lots of people.

The closer I got to the part, the more I wanted to do it  and Ill always be glad I did. But I didnt indulge in the afterglow of it  . Its funny  I just think of them as being three films I did among all the others. It didnt become anything else to me.

Indeed, whereas some actors might have used such a massive franchise as a jumping-off point for more glittery blockbusters, McGregor continued to chart an unpredictable course, zigzagging between lead roles and supporting parts, theater work and film, bigger movies like Moulin Rouge and the sci-fi film The Island and smaller ones like the romantic dramedy Beginners and the wrenching tsunami drama The Impossible.

At perhaps his moment of peak fame, as the Star Wars prequels were coming to a conclusion, McGregor literally dropped off the Hollywood radar, embarking on a 19,000-mile, 115-day global motorcycle trek with his friend Charley Boorman, the son of Deliverance director John Boorman, a journey chronicled in the British documentary series Long Way Round.

Ewan is a great actor who is not content with just being a movie star, said Tom Rosenberg, who produced American Pastoral with Gary Lucchesi. He wants to be challenged, he has a great appetite for difficult roles, and hes not precious about what he does.

The fact is, McGregor says he wouldnt even know how to chart a career in a more conventional fashion if he wanted to. Im not very clever with it, he said with a laugh. I dont really think that way. I made this brilliant film last year called Last Days in the Desert, where I play Jesus and the Devil. None of my agents were that enthusiastic about me doing it because its the kind of film that I guess no one is really going to go see. But it was an amazing experience, and I just wanted to do it so badly. Im not thinking beyond, Ive got to play this part.

That said, high-profile movies still regularly come McGregors way. He recently wrapped work on a live-action reworking of Disneys animated Beauty and the Beast, playing Lumiere, and also will reprise his role as Mark Renton in an upcoming sequel to Trainspotting. And while he has avoided the Star Wars convention circuit over the years, he says hed be up for another crack at playing Kenobi in the franchise should the chance ever arise.

Ive always thought there would be a good film between the last one that I made and Alec Guinness, he said. Theres got to be some story about Obi-Wan in the desert when hes lost his way. He laughed wryly. Theres probably even a trilogy  who knows? It could be cool. But theres nothing on the table at the moment.

Having been deeply immersed in American Pastoral for the past few years, while also acting in numerous other projects, the ever-busy McGregor is now preparing to start work on another deep dive into American life, albeit a more darkly comic one, in the third season of FXs acclaimed crime series Fargo.

I play two parts  theyre brothers, but theyre not twins, he said. I was given the directive Ive been waiting for for 24 years, which was to get fat, so Ive been eating like a pig. And I have to learn the (Minnesota) accent, which is difficult.

Ill get there, but at the moment its a bit scary, he added after a pause, sounding less scared than excited at the prospect. He smiled. Oooh, yaah.
When J.K. Rowling finished her last Harry Potter book, the saga was hardly done.

In addition to a Pottermore website, she has released several e-books, approved several theme park attractions and authorized a stage play that continues the story.

A new Potter-related film franchise, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, opens in theaters Nov. 18.

Even though the last book was released in 2007, the thirst for more details is as great as ever. Indeed, Americans are flocking to Great Britain to see Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a two-part play that picks up the story 19 years after Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. A book version has been a best seller; a Broadway edition is likely.

To walk in Harrys shoes, Warner Bros. has opened a tour of the films sets, props and costumes near London. It, too, is a best seller, prompting tourists to reserve space months in advance. Closer to home, replicas of those sets can be found at Universal Studios Hollywood and Orlando, where fans can walk the streets of Hogsmeade.

A likely next step? Depending on the success of Fantastic Beasts, the Potter possibilities could be greater than those of Star Wars." Because Rowling is hands on with all of the spin-offs, prequels and re-imaginings, its likely the new material will stay true to her creation.

Whats up? A look at some of the ways to immerse yourself in Potter-mania.

WARNER BROS. STUDIO TOUR, LONDON -- In case you didnt realize it, its the 15th anniversary of the first film. To get a sense of the world Daniel Radcliffe and company enjoyed, the sets are preserved on two stages. Visitors see some of the intricate detail on props and get to watch how the magic happened. Because its the real stuff, this has plenty of Potter-bilities. Space is limited, however, so it takes planning.

WARNER BROS. STUDIO TOUR, HOLLYWOOD -- If traveling all the way to London isnt on your agenda, you can see select Harry Potter items on the Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood. A sorting hat lets you discover what house you belong in (watch out, you could get one of the lesser ones); a second floor exhibit in the archives area will be closed until Nov. 1. But select items are on display at Stage 48: Script to Screen. There, you can also buy a video of yourself flying on a broom. A gift shop has all of the souvenirs you could possibly want.

THE WIZARDING WORLD OF HARRY POTTER, UNIVERSAL STUDIOS ORLANDO, UNIVERSAL STUDIOS HOLLYWOOD -- Both parks have Harry Potter areas, but the one in Orlando is bigger and features more attractions. Still, if you want to hit both the Warner Bros. tour and the Wizarding World, the Hollywood theme park is your ticket. See related story for details.

"HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD," LONDON -- The production, set 19 years after the last book, opened this summer at the Palace Theatre. Tickets are almost as difficult to get as those for Hamilton, largely because fans want to know what happened to Harry and his clan. While casting surprised some, the play is decidedly a hit  one that opens the door to another generation of the Potter family. If, again, a trip to London isnt in the cards, consider reading the screenplay (based on Rowlings story). Its available in book form and, according to fans, a quick read.

"FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM" (Opening in theaters Nov. 18) -- Considered a prequel to the Harry Potter series, its a look at Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) and the magical creatures unleashed in New York in 1926. Like four of the Harry Potter films, its directed by David Yates and offers a new world of characters and merchandise possibilities. Expected to be part of a five-film franchise, Fantastic Beasts was initially written by Rowling as a companion book. It was supposed to be Harrys copy of the textbook Scamander wrote and it includes handwritten notes from the three main characters. The film  which Rowling also wrote  is more straightforward.
Screenings

Free blood pressure screenings, 9:30 to 11 a.m. Wednesdays at Countryside Senior Living, front lobby. No appointment necessary.

Programs/Self-Help Groups

Al-Anon Information Center, call 712-255-6724.

Al-Anon and Alateen, meetings locally. For times, dates and locations of area meetings, call 712-255-6724.

Alcoholics Anonymous, beginners information, call 712-252-1333.

Arc of Woodbury County, serving the mentally challenged, 5:15 p.m. meeting, second Monday of the month at Mid-Step Services, 4303 Stone Ave. For families and interested persons.

Child Care Resource and Referral, provides resources, education and advocacy for children, parents, and child care providers. Assists in child care needs. For more information, call 712-277-1180.

Co-Dependence Anonymous, 7 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays at First Lutheran Church, Fireside Room.

Co-Dependents Anonymous (CODA), 10 a.m. Saturdays at Hawkeye Club, 420 Jones St.

Compassionate Friends, 7 p.m. fourth Wednesday of each month (third Thursday in November and second Sunday December) in Mercy Medical Center's Leiter Room. For families who have lost children. Contact Nancy Webb 712-212-4032 or Don Mulder 712-541-5512.

Children of Divorce, to help children cope with the challenges of parental separation or divorce. Call 712-279-2373 for more information.

Eating disorder coalition awareness event, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 29 at Boy's and Girl's home and family services, 2101 Court St. Contact Lisa 712-251-0570 or Michele 712-898-2351.

Clinics

Siouxland District Health immunization clinics, call for appointment, 712-279-6119 or 1-800-587-3005.

Information

Family and Addictive Illness series, for more information, call 234-2300.

Iowa Fathers, 6 to 8 p.m. fourth Tuesday of each month at Hope Lutheran Church, Education Building, 218 W. 18th St., South Sioux City, Neb. Support group to help single, divorcing and divorced parents residing in the state of Iowa.

Mercy Pathways Outpatient Program, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, on the third floor, Mercy's Central Medical Building, 801 Fifth St., Suite 360. Provides hope, help, opportunity to connect through group therapy for individuals experiencing personal, relationship, psychiatric issues. For more information, call 712-279-5991.

Narcotics Anonymous, meetings daily, various times, dates and locations. For more information, call 712-279-0733.

Overeaters Anonymous, 1 p.m. Tuesdays at Wesley United Methodist Church, 3700 Indian Hills Drive; 6 p.m. Tuesdays at St. John's Lutheran Church, 402 Lane Ave., Storm Lake; 7 p.m. Tuesdays at Church of the Nazarene, 226 N. Main St., Viborg, S.D.; 5:30 p.m. Thursdays and 9 a.m. Saturdays at Newman Center, 320 E. Cherry St., Vermillion, S.D.; 10:30 a.m. Saturdays at Hawkeye Club, 420 Jones St. A 12-step recovery program for people who have problems with food and weight. No fees.

St. Lukes Outpatient Behavioral Health Program, 9 a.m. to noon Monday, Tuesday and Thursday on fifth floor of St. Luke's, located at 2720 Stone Park Blvd. Offers several levels of outpatient care including partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient, and group therapy. This program provides support and integrated treatment to individuals experiencing personal or relationship issues as a result of their mental illness. For more information and admission criteria, call 712-279-3906.

Sobriety By Faith, 8:30 a.m. Saturdays at Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, 1421 Geneva St. For more information, call James Mothershead at 712-577-9715.

The Link-Recovery and Freedom, 1603 Glen Ellen Road; 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Saturday workshop, and Christian 12-step meeting 7 to 8 p.m. Tuesday. For all ages. Call Dee at 389-7432.

Women in Recovery, meets monthly at Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, 1421 Geneva St. For details, call 712-255-4623.

Tarahouse Meditation Center, 8 a.m. Mondays through Thursdays; 6:30 p.m. Fridays; 10 a.m. Saturdays and Sundays, all at 3112 Rebecca St. Three easy 10-minute sessions in small group; beginners welcome. For more information, call 490-6410.

Blood pressure and blood sugar screening, 9 to 11 a.m. Wednesdays in the lobby at Westwood Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Free to public.

Support Groups

Food Addicts in Recovery Anonymous, 7-8:30 p.m. Wednesdays at Hawkeye Club basement, 420 Jones St. For more information, call 277-5935.

Celebrate Recovery, Bible-based 12-step recovery group. Thursdays at 6:30 at Sunnybrook Community Church, 5601 Sunnybrook Drive. Daycare provided. 712-490-3343.

PFLAG of Siouxland, (Parents & Friends of Lesbians and Gays), 7 p.m., fourth Monday of January, March, May, July, September and November. St. Mark ELCA Church, 5200 Glenn Ave., in the upstairs meeting area. 712-258-3116.

Singles widowed and divorced, all ages, 4 p.m., Sundays. McDonald's at Sixth Street and Lewis Boulevard. 712-252-2675.

GriefShare, 6:30 -8:30 p.m. every Tuesday until Dec. 6 at Sunnybrook Community Church, 5601 Sunnybrook Drive, Sioux City. 712-276-5814.

HIV/AIDS Support Group, meets weekly. For more information, call Darla or Teri at Siouxland Community Health Center, 712-252-2477 or 888-371-1965.

Hospice of Siouxland, seeking volunteers. For more information, call 712-233-4144 and ask for a volunteer coordinator.

La Leche League of Siouxland, breastfeeding support group meets every third Thursday at 11 a.m. at Morningside Lutheran Church. Children are welcome. For more information, call Mary at 712-546-7280 or Jacquie at 712-255-2998.

Living Each Day Cancer Support Group, 7-8 p.m. second Thursday of the month, Floyd Valley Hospital, Conference Center Room 2, Le Mars, Iowa. Open to all cancer patients, cancer survivors and family members. No charge. Pre-register by calling 712-546-3441 or 800-642-6074, ext. 441.

Mom and Baby Support Group, 10-11 a.m. last Monday of the month at the Orange City (Iowa) Hospital, lower level. For new moms and babies. 712-737-5260.

Tri-State Sober Project, 12-step meeting, 7:30-8:30 p.m., Tuesdays, Friendship Community Church, 305 Sergeant Square Drive, Sergeant Bluff. 6-7 p.m., Thursdays, Transitional Services of Iowa, 1221 Pierce St., Sioux City.

Doug's Donors Support Group, information for organ donors and recipients, 12:30-1:30 p.m. Fridays, 5:15-6:30 p.m. second Thursdays of the month at Mercy Cafeteria Woodbury Room. 712-277-1050.

Divorce Care, 6:30 -8:30 p.m. every Tuesday until Dec. 6 at Sunnybrook Community Church, 5601 Sunnybrook Drive, Sioux City. 712-276-5814.

NAMI Siouxland, (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Support Group meets 6:30 p.m., second Tuesday of the month at Friendship House, 1101 Court St. For individuals and family members dealing with mental illness. 712-255-4209.

New Life Life Support Group, 3:30 p.m. every Saturday at 2929 W. Fourth St. Spiritual 12-step program. For more information, call Donald at 712-574-1744 or James at 712-255-7624.

Post Polio Support Group, 11 a.m. first Thursday of the month at Perkins Restaurant by Menards. 712-490-8213.

Relationship Support Group, 7 p.m. Fridays at Marketplace Mall. For more information, call 239-3129.

Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence, Individual and Support Groups. For more information, call CSADV in Sioux City at 712-258-7233; Plymouth County at 712-546-6764; Monona County at 712-423-3443. Advocacy and support available 24 hours a day at 1-800-982-7233. All services free of charge and confidential.

Sickle Cell Disease Support Group, 11 a.m. third Saturday of each month at St. Luke's Hospital, meeting room 1. For patients, their family and any concerned member. Call La'Keshia Rainey at 712-203-2019 for more information.

Single and Parenting, 6:30 -8:30 p.m. every Tuesday until Dec. 6 at Sunnybrook Community Church, 5601 Sunnybrook Drive, Sioux City. 712-276-5814.

Sioux City Association of the Deaf, 7 p.m. third Saturday of the month at Morningside Church of Christ, 5015 Garretson Ave. Regular meeting, September-May; no meeting, June, July, August and December.

Siouxland Autism Support Group, second Thursday of the month at Northwest Area Education Agency, 1520 Morningside Ave. For more information, call Julie Case at 712-490-8939.

Siouxland Epilepsy Support Group, 5 p.m. third Tuesday of the month at Prestwick Apartment Clubhouse, 4230 Hickory Lane. For anyone diagnosed with seizures or epilepsy and family or friends. For more information, call Steve at 274-6927.

Siouxland IC support group, meets quarterly in Sioux City. For patients struggling with interstital cystitis. For more information, call Jacque Dundas 316-641-9766.

Siouxland Informational Group for the Blind, 2-5 p.m. second Tuesday of the month at Northern Hills Retirement Community, 4002 Teton Trace. For more information, call 712-266-8926 or 258-8151.

Grief support group, 5:30-7:30 p.m., beginning Oct. 5 for 13 weeks (may join at any time), Crescent Park United Methodist Church, 2826 Myrtle St., Sioux City. Scott, 712-899-6315.

Siouxland Ostomy Association, 2 p.m. first Sunday of each month (except September, which will be second Sunday; and no meetings June, July, August), in Room 300 at Mercy Medical Center, 801 Fifth St. For more information, call Dick Lindblom at 251-2453.

Siouxland Parkinson Disease Support Group, 1 p.m. fourth Monday of the month at Siouxland Center for Active Generations, 313 Cook St. For more information, call Sally Reinert at 402-987-3516.

Sojourners, support group for families of persons with life-threatening illness, 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays at St. Luke's Regional Medical Center, Room 416. For more information, call Marjorie Jarvill at 402-241-8637.

South Sioux City Weight Support Group, 8:30 a.m. Wednesdays at St. Paul United Methodist Church, South Sioux City. For more information, call 494-1401 or 494-2133.

Disabilities Resource Center of Siouxland, 520 Nebraska St., Suite 101: Women's Support Group, 1:30 p.m. first Wednesday of the month; LGBT Support Group, 1:30 p.m. first Friday of the month; Adult ADHD, 6 p.m. second Tuesday of the month; Advocacy Group, 1:30 p.m. third Tuesday of the month. For more information, call 712-255-1065.

Take Off Pounds Sensibly, group meetings various times, days and locations in Siouxland. For information on the chapter in your area, call 1-800-932-TOPS.

Voice Disorder Support Group, meets as needed at Mercy Medical Center, Buena Vista Room. 712-279-2686.

Women's Peer Support Group, in Wayne and South Sioux City, Neb., for those who have experienced domestic abuse. For more information, call the Wayne office at 402-375-4633 or 1-800-440-4633; in South Sioux City, call 402-494-7592. Help and support available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Services free and confidential.

Woodbury County D.M.D.A., noon-2 p.m. first Saturday of the month at Country Friendship Acres, 4501 West St.; 7-8 p.m. first Tuesday of the month at 515 Court St. in the Community Room; 7-8 p.m. second Tuesday of the month at 441 W. Third St. in the Community Room; 7-8 p.m. third Tuesday of the month at 409 W. Third St. in the Community Room. Support group for people with disabilities and mental disorders.

Natural Mamas in Siouxland, 1 p.m., third Tuesday of each month in the Garretson room of the Morningside Public Library. All ages of children are welcome to come with moms. For sharing natural living tips, recipes, natural remedies and health, homemaking, mothering, etc. For more information, call 402-913-0038 or visit their Facebook page.

A Step Beyond support group, 3:30 p.m. second Tuesday of the month, except for August, November and December when it meets at 5:30 p.m. (no meeting in January) at the Christy-Smith Resource Center, 1819 Morningside Ave. For more information, call 712-276-7319.

Divorce care, 5 p.m., Sundays. Fireside room, Morningside Lutheran Church, 700 South Martha St.

Gamblers Anonymous meetings, 4 p.m. Thursdays at Immanuel Lutheran Church, 315 Hamilton Blvd.; 7 p.m. Wednesdays, Morningside Presbyterian Church, 4327 Morningside Ave.; 7 p.m. Tuesdays, St. John Lutheran Church. 712-277-2901.

Art therapy support group, 5:30 p.m. second Thursday of the month at the June E. Nylen Cancer Center. Registration required, call 252-9387.

After Breast Cancer Support Group, 5:30 p.m. third Tuesday of the month at the June E. Nylen Cancer Center. For more information, call Brenda, 252-9370.

After Prostate Cancer Support Group, 5:15 p.m. first Tuesday of the month at the June E. Nylen Cancer Center. For more information, call 252-9426.

Alzheimer's Association, Big Sioux Chapter Support Group, 2 p.m. second Tuesday of the month; 4 p.m. third Tuesday of the month (under age 65) at 201 Pierce St., Suite 110 (Famous Dave's building); and 6 p.m. first Tuesday of the month at the Barnes and Noble Cafe. For more information, call Emily Lord at 712-279-5802.

Christy-Smith Funeral Homes of Sioux City, extensive grief library at the Morningside location. Open to the public during weekday hours. For more information, call 276-7319.

Chronic Pain/Chronic Illness Support Group, 7:30 p.m. fourth Wednesday of the month in the lower level of the Orange City Hospital. For more information, call 712-737-5260.

Connections Area Agency on Aging, and Mercy Medical Centers Older Adult Services Welcome to Medicare, 1:30-4 p.m., the first Friday of every month at Connections Area Agency on Aging, 2301 Pierce St. To pre-register, or for more information, contact Connections Area Agency on Aging at 712-279-6900.
LOS ANGELES  Esperanza Calderon stared at Sister Maria Socorro with half-closed eyes. The nun hunched over her as she reclined in a living room chair, wrapped in a blanket and slowly but inexorably dying.

As the 70-year-old womans sister clasped her hand, Socorro held a book open across her palms. Together the three women prayed.

Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof, the woman followed along in Spanish, her voice fragile. But one word from you would be enough to heal me.

A sister with the Servants of Mary, Socorro has spent many of her nights and dark, early mornings in the homes of the dying. Each night, a volunteer picks her up around 7 p.m. and drives her to her destination: a tiny stucco house just a few miles from the South Los Angeles convent.

The congregation was founded in Spain in 1851. As nurses, they worked during cholera epidemics and wars, and later in Mexico during revolutions. Now, more than 2,000 sisters work in 128 convents throughout Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas.

The sisters prefer to minister in patients homes but also work in hospices, orphanages and hospitals. And when needed, they take care of their own.

Many of their patients are immigrants, others born and bred in Los Angeles. Some pray to another God or to none at all. To the sisters, it doesnt matter.

A tumor embedded itself in Calderons brain. Three years ago, doctors told her she had six months to live. She had a stroke about two years later. She cant walk. Calderons sister does almost everything for her, until late in the evening when the nun arrives.

The womans first name, Esperanza, means hope in Spanish. Socorro means help.

The bed is the cross, said the 46-year-old nun, who is also a trained nursing assistant. Christ is the patient.

Before getting Calderon to bed, Socorro gives her Communion. She reaches into a bag and pulls out a white handkerchief embroidered with the image of a red cross, a chalice, wheat and grapes  signs of the Eucharist. She unwraps the cloth and opens the small golden box it encases, reaching for the host.

Esperansita, she calls Calderon, who lifts her mouth toward the wafer in the sisters hand, and intones: The body of Christ.

Almost 30 years ago, a teenage Maria Roman went to a retreat hoping to persuade her little sister Sofia not to become a nun.

Sofia wanted to explore her options for a religious vocation and Maria, then 18, wouldnt have it.

You know, you can never go out if you become a nun, Maria warned her.

Sofia begged her older sister to go with her to the womens retreat in their native city of Puebla, Mexico. It was the only way their father would let Sofia go. Socorro said she couldnt bear watching her sister cry, so she said yes.

More than 100 girls attended the retreat, but there wasnt enough food for all of them. They slept crammed together as if in barracks. The morning showers were frigid.

On the last day of the trip, as they sat in a pew for Mass, the priest began telling the Biblical story of the boy Samuel, who heard someone calling his name one night. He got out of bed and ran to the priest, Eli, but Eli told Samuel that it was not he who had called the boy.

This happened several times, the girls at the retreat were told, until Eli told Samuel that it was God speaking to him. Finally, when he realized he was being called, the boy spoke with God.

Socorro said the story she and her sister heard that day affected her deeply.

That passage was for me, she said. God was calling me.

Within a year, Maria would become Sister Maria Socorro, joining the Servants of Mary.

On a Friday night, Socorro asks Esperanza Calderon whether shes cold. She smooths two diaper pads covering the sheets and tucks the frail woman in.

Afterward, she reaches into the leather overnight bag she brings to each home she visits. She pulls out a blood pressure monitor and wraps a cuff around Calderons skinny arm.

Minutes later, the nun and Calderons sister stand over her bed, heads bowed as they pray three Hail Marys. Yolanda Calderon kisses her sister on the forehead.

Socorro said the quiet before dawn breaks gives her time to pray and fortifies her to face death every night. Like other sisters in her order, she stays with each patient for only a month at a time. To stay longer could allow the women to become attached to their patients  and vice versa.

You get to know them, she says. I cry when they pass, or when I am comforting the family. Its normal. Its human.
Religious freedom expert to speak in Holstein

HOLSTEIN, Iowa | Col. John Eidsmoe, Esq., an internationally renowned expert on religious liberties, will speak at 6:30 p.m. Sunday at Faith Lutheran Church AALC, 113 N. Main St. The event is free and open to the public.

Eidsmoe will discuss "The Myth of Separation of Church and State" and answer questions following his talk.

Author to speak at Word of Life Church

SIOUX CITY | Bruce Van Natta will speak about his experience with angels at 7 p.m. Friday at Word of Life Church, 1478 Buchanan Ave.

For additional information, call 712-258-0405.

All Saints' Day celebration in Spirit Lake

SPIRIT LAKE, Iowa | There will be a special holy Eucharist in celebration of All Saints' Day at 9 a.m. Tuesday at St. Alban's Episcopal Church, 2011 Third Ave.

This will be a joint ecumenical service with Grace Lutheran Church of Spirit Lake. All Christians are invited to attend.

Annual hunters' Mass at St. Alban's

SPIRIT LAKE, Iowa | The 11th annual hunters' Mass will be celebrated at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at St. Alban's Episcopal Church, 2011 Third Ave.

All hunters are welcome. A potluck will follow.

Syrian-Lebanese food at St. Thomas

SIOUX CITY | St. Thomas Orthodox Church's Mediterranean Market Day will run from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday at 1100 Jones St.

There will be a wide variety of Syrian-Lebanese food as well as a bake sale.

Pre-order advanced sales can be made by calling 712-252-0124.

Inter-generational service at First Unitarian

SIOUX CITY | An inter-generational service titled "Where Did We Come From?" will begin at 11 a.m. Sunday at First Unitarian Church, 2508 Jackson St.

Hymnfest 2016 at Faith Lutheran

SIOUX CITY | Join the congregation of Faith Lutheran Church and explore the life of Martin Luther through his hymns at 4 p.m. Sunday at at 3101 Hamilton Blvd.

A luncheon with follow. A freewill offering will be accepted.

Churches plan Halloween, trunk-or-treat events

Immanuel Lutheran Church, 315 Hamilton Blvd., Sioux City, will host a trunk-or-treat event for area children from 3-4:30 p.m. Sunday. Costumes are encouraged.

Westminster Presbyterian Church, 2915 Glenn Ave., Sioux City, will hold its annual trunk-or-treat event from 4-5 p.m. Sunday. All are invited to join in this safe, trick-or-treating alternative.

Fall games and activities will take place from 5-6 p.m. Monday at Faith Lutheran Church, 3101 Hamilton Blvd., Sioux City. There will be a light supper and snacks throughout the event.

Community members are encouraged to dress in costume and bring their children from 6-8 p.m. Monday to First Lutheran Church, 3601 Dakota Ave., South Sioux City. Coffee and hot chocolate will be served.
ROCK RAPIDS, Iowa | A 2-year, 4-month, 10-day process ended Wednesday when an excavator razed Eric and Amy Borman's home on Fourth Street in Rock Rapids.

Amy Borman recorded it and cried.

"When he got to the part of the house that had my daughter's room, it was tough," Amy said. She watched as the machine slammed and tore through the yellow and polka-dotted walls of daughter Makayla De Jong's room, slicing through Makayla's signature on the wall, something she added once the decision was made the raze the structure, a home that owed its humble start to a pair of box cars.

The decision was reached like it was for 55 other Rock Rapids properties, all included in a federal buyout program that had the City of Rock Rapids paying 10 percent of the cost to buy and demolish flood-damaged properties. Those sites will soon become green spaces throughout the Lyon County seat, decisions to be reached by a new Greenspace Committee.

The Bormans' old lot may one day become a campsite, a logical re-purpose of land just south of where Moon Creek dumps into the Rock River, bodies that swelled beyond their banks in mid June 2014, the result of an 8-inch downpour upstream.

Eric Borman, who began serving on the Rock Rapids City Council in January 2014, sandbagged parts of Rock Rapids that June, fighting to protect neighborhoods, including one containing his home, and those of his mother, Vicki Borman, and brother, Kip Borman. All three parties have since relocated. The home of his brother will be the last of the 56 properties to be demolished in the buyout.

Eric Borman, who owns a construction firm, worked with his family to give rise to Sunrise View Ponds, an 11-lot residential development three-quarters of a mile north of their old home. Eric, Amy and Makayla moved into their new home five months ago, two weeks prior to Makayla's graduation from Central Lyon High School.

"We are north of Moon Creek and west of the Rock River, which is still in our back yard," Eric Borman said. "The development is on three retired sandpits, so there is all kinds of wildlife out here."

The area, which features three homes currently, was annexed by the city last spring.

The Bormans were able to purchase from the demolition crew a shed that Eric's father, Tom Borman, constructed prior to his death in 2009. They moved the shed to their new residence, helping bridge past to present.

"We have a little of our old home out here in Dad's old shed," Eric said.

The Bormans can now look back on a turbulent 21-month span when they lived in their camper for 10 weeks and then in the basement of the home of Amy's parents, Greg and Sherri De Jong.

"We are so thankful they had room," Amy said, noting how the family of three made a basement bedroom for Makayla and then threw their own queen-size bed down in the basement living room, between the TV and couch. They made due as progress in the buyout effort crept along.

"I love the new view at the new house," Amy continued. "I love the water, ironically."

After recording the home demo, she drove to her new residence and met Eric on the driveway. She enjoyed a good cry on the driveway as he hugged her and patted her on the back. Then, on Wednesday night, they relaxed, reflecting as one chapter in their lives finally came to a close.

"We had a hot tub at our old house and, thankfully, it was empty during the flood," Amy said. "It floated away, but we got it back and resurrected it. We sat in it for the first time last night."

As far as home wakes go, that's a new one. But pretty appropriate.
This week on the podcast, reporters discuss flipping the Iowa Statehouse, whether Iowa's role in the general election has been diminished, and five unusual things (only five?) about this campaign season.

On Iowa Politics is a weekly news and analysis podcast which re-creates the conversations that happen when Iowa's political reporters get together after deadlines have been met. This week's show features James Q. Lynch, Bret Hayworth, Christinia Crippes, Erin Murphy and Ed Tibbetts.

This week's show was produced by Richard Pratt and the music heard in the podcast is courtesy of Austin Taft. Chat with us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter @OnIowaPolitics, and subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher. Know an Iowa musician who should be on our show? Send their band sound files to oniowapolitics@gmail.com
SIOUX CITY | A 38-year old convicted felon has been charged with pimping out of a Sioux City motel Wednesday.

According to court documents, undercover officers made contact with a prostitute on a well-known sex-trafficking site, www.backpage.com, and met with her at 10 p.m. at the Palmer House Motel, 3440 Gordon Drive, room 27. Upon investigation, officers determined the room was rented by Jamaal Hawkins, of Lakewood, Wash., and was explicitly used for pimping two different women.

Officers searched Hawkins' phone and found he was having a conversation with the prostitute about the duration of the session involving the undercover officer.

After receiving a search warrant, a sawed-off Remington 870 shotgun and ammunition for the weapon was found in the duffel bag, and shotgun shells, one gram of methamphetamine and a small amount of marijuana was found inside his car.

The documents said Hawkins became a felon after a 1997 felony assault conviction in Washington, and he has at least eight other felony convictions. Hawkins is currently unemployed and had over $700 cash on him, the documents said.

He is booked into the Woodbury County Jail for pimping, a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of an illegal weapon and illegal drugs. His bond has been set for $15,000.
SIOUX CITY | A study on whether to build a new Interstate 29 interchange between Port Neal and Sergeant Bluff is moving to a new phase, as environmental assessments of land are about to begin.

Woodbury County Engineer Mark Nahra on Thursday mailed out a letter to 13 landowners in an 860-acre tract near the Port Neal Industrial Area, advising that crews will soon arrive. They will perform tasks such as archaeological studies to see if there are any artifacts or other items that need to be taken into account in the quest of determining the best place for a new exit.

Many area entities want the exit to boost economic prospects south of Sioux City. They have combined to pay for a $600,000 Interstate Justification Report, which will be completed by December 2017 and given to the Iowa Department of Transportation. The final decision on whether to create a new exit will come from the Federal Highway Commission.

The proposed interchange, which could cost up to $20 million to build, would be between mile markers 138 and 140. That's between the existing Port Neal and Sioux Gateway Airport/Sergeant Bluff interchanges.

A new interchange would give direct access to Sioux City's Southbridge Industrial Park.

"All of the entities are working together...There isn't controversy on this project," Nahra said.

Nahra said a public meeting for people to learn about possible exit options will be held in Sergeant Bluff in December.

The city of Sioux City is providing $171,387, or about 28 percent, of the estimated $600,000 justification report. IDOT will pitch in $198,000, the same as Woodbury County. Sergeant Bluff will pay $8,759, and Salix will pay $754. The Siouxland Initiative will pick up the remaining $40,200.

Nahra and Woodbury County supervisors chairman Jeremy Taylor said the next study step involves an environmental assessment, which is less intensive than completing an environmental impact study.

Nahra said that assessment is happening rather than an impact study, since there is broad buy-in for the project and because officials expect there is nothing like an endangered species present in the potential exit area. He said the Environmental Protection Agency isn't requiring an impact study.

No money to build an exit will be set aside until a final governmental decision on whether to create one comes down. Woodbury County Supervisor Jackie Smith said she sees state officials buying into Siouxland needs as varying infrastructure pieces are pitched.

In other nearby roads work, a modernization of County Road D53 near Salix leading to I-29 opened on Wednesday, after weeks of reconstruction. That road is also known as Poplar Street over the portion that runs within Salix.
PAULLINA, Iowa | A Paullina man died Thursday after the bicycle he was riding was struck by a sport utility vehicle.

Steven Louscher, 77, was riding his bicycle on Iowa Highway 10 when he was struck by an eastbound Chevrolet Equinox driven by Alyssa Kenney, 19, of Primghar, Iowa, near Mill Creek State Park at about 9:45 a.m.

Louscher died while being transported to a Sioux City hospital.

According to an Iowa State Patrol accident report, Louscher's failure to yield the right of way contributed to the accident.
SIOUX CITY | Amid a charged election cycle, Woodbury County Auditor Pat Gill has checked to make sure police can quickly arrive at polling places to handle any people who might disrupt the voting process.

Gill, the county's top election official for 20 years, said he's never before seen the need to have law enforcement on call, but the 2016 election has been different.

"You hear a constant pounding of rigged elections and you get nervous," Gill said at a news conference Friday at the county courthouse.

There have been reports of possible voting malfeasance in the Nov. 8 election. Additionally, some people have concerns there could be disruptions, given the highly-charged comments made by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump as he seeks to defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton.

Trump in recent days has shared fears that the election could be rigged so that Clinton defeats him. At a Thursday campaign rally and on Twitter, Trump said he was concerned by reports of voting irregularities, or "vote-flipping" from Republican to Democratic counters, in Texas. A poll by Politico showed that 41 percent of people believe that voter fraud could turn the election away from Trump.

Gill noted the Texas incidents involved touch-screen voting, while Iowa ballots are all paper.

Gill has spoken with both the Woodbury County Sheriff's Office and Sioux City Police Department, so officers know what activities can be taken by people at polling spots and what isn't allowed. Gill said officers will be able to speedily reach the 44 polling places in the county, if election workers "feel nervous" and make a call.

In spite of taking those proactive steps, Gill said he anticipates no disruptions will occur.

"We don't anticipate any problems of that nature," he said.

Gill also used the press conference to lengthily air voting safeguards that are in place in Iowa. He said there are a series of steps that hired county workers must use to process absentee and in-person ballots, and added that they do well in carrying that out.

Therefore, Gill said people should not worry about voter fraud.

"I want to ensure people of the integrity of elections in Woodbury County and in Iowa," he said.

Gill was first elected as county auditor in 1996. He is seeking a sixth term, and is opposed on the ballot by Republican Joanne Craig.

In an Oct. 17 candidate forum, Craig and Gill spoke extensively on whether voter fraud in the 2016 election was a top concern. Craig said she has some trepidation on how the election may play out.

"I am somewhat concerned ... The governor (Terry Branstad) has stated there is potential fraud in Iowa," Craig said at the forum.

VOTING STATISTICS

Gill also gave an update on early voting, which has been underway in Iowa since Sept. 29. County voters have requested nearly 15,000 early ballots, about 1,000 less than the pace to the same point of the 2012 presidential election.

He said early voting has been more embraced in Sioux City and less so in rural areas of the county. Gill said people in small towns prefer to keep their tradition of voting in person.

"Election day to them is really kind of a social event," Gill said.

Gill said he expects a typical voter turnout for a presidential election year, at about 45,000 voters.
So what was it they were trying to kill?

After all, the sign standing near the Tallahatchie River is cratered by dozens of bullet holes. More than idle target practice, it suggests a frenzy of gunfire, an attempt to kill something. And the something is not really that hard to name.

Memory. They sought to assassinate memory.

The damaged sign, discovered last week and posted to Facebook by student filmmaker Kevin Wilson Jr., marks the spot where the body of Emmett Till, barbed wire around his neck tying him to a 75-pound fan from a cotton gin, surfaced 61 years ago.

He had traveled to the nothing town of Money, Miss., to visit family for the summer. Emmett, a 14-year-old black boy from Chicago unschooled in the ways of the Jim Crow South, accepted a schoolboy dare: Bet you won't whistle at that white woman in the store. He carried out the challenge, wolf-whistling at 21-year-old Carolyn Bryant.

Four days later, her husband, Roy Bryant, and his half-brother, J.W. Milam, came for him in the dark of night.

The body that was pulled from the Tallahatchie River three days afterward barely resembled a human being, much less a prankish boy. It was bloated to the point of shapelessness and had been savagely beaten. An eye had been gouged out. There was a bullet hole in the skull.

The brothers freely admitted the kidnapping. A witness placed Milam at a barn inside of which he said he heard a child being tortured. Yet jurors acquitted them in under an hour. One said it took that long only because they stopped to "drink pop."

Emmett's mother, Mamie Till Mobley, insisted on an open casket funeral. She said she wanted the world to see what had happened to her child in America. The world saw and was horrified. African Americans saw and seethed with a familiar outrage that was old even then.

Four months later, an Alabama seamstress named Rosa Parks refused a bus driver's demand for her seat. There are those who say the two events were not unrelated.

And here, perhaps the reader looks to the writer for assurance that while you can vandalize a sign you cannot, in fact, murder memory. The writer has no such assurance to give.

Whoever destroyed that sign represents, albeit crudely, an emerging American consensus. It says that things which give us pain are better off forgotten, some memories better off dead.

So you get Cal Thomas and Snoop Dogg complaining that "Roots" has been remade. And textbooks teaching slavery as "immigration." And Margaret Biser, a docent on a Southern plantation, writing of being scolded once that talking about slave life "is bringing down America."

Forget about it, they say. Forget Rubin Stacy and Mary Turner. Forget Trayvon Martin. Forget Emmett Till.

We'd never say, Forget Anne Frank. That would be like killing her all over again. But then, America bears no conscience scars there. America did not kill her. In its intransigence and hatred it did, however, kill Emmett.

Nor is this the first time the marker of that tragedy has been damaged. In Mississippi such markers are often vandalized.

With spray paint and guns or just refusal and denial, some of us seek to murder memory. But others of us stand stubbornly in memory's defense. One is glad to hear money is being raised to replace the sign.

Besides, even if you kill memory, you do not escape the past. America is shaped by Emmett Till's death and always will be, even if we no longer know his name.

We make history. But history makes us, too.
Local voters this year will make three choices for Iowa House. In District 13, incumbent Democrat Chris Hall seeks re-election. In Districts 6 and 14, voters will choose replacements for Republican Ron Jorgensen and Democrat David Dawson, respectively, who did not seek re-election this year.

Today, The Journal editorial board endorses Hall over Republican Shaun Broyhill, Republican Robert Henderson over Democrat Tim Kacena and Republican Jim Carlin over Democrat Perla Alarcon-Flory.

Chris Hall

In Chris Hall, District 13 constituents are well-served by the conscientious approach of a public servant who works hard, studies issues and applies careful consideration to votes he casts.

We appreciate the fact Hall isn't a bomb thrower inclined to throw fuel on the fire of divisive issues through incendiary rhetoric, but is a lawmaker who embraces a quiet, but effective approach to his work. We believe this strategy has earned him respect from and allows him to work well with legislators from both sides of the political aisle.

The fact Hall received an endorsement this year from the Iowa Association of Business and Industry's political action committee as a Friend of Iowa Business speaks to Hall's support for economic development. As a growing leader within the House (he is ranking minority member of the Appropriations Committee), he is well-positioned to advocate for the wants and needs of his district and our community. From trails to taxes, Hall is, in fact, a champion for Sioux City in Des Moines. (As one of four legislators on the Enhance Iowa board, Hall's position as an advocate for local quality-of-life projects will be strengthened still more.)

Finally, we appreciate Hall's reasoned, valuable contributions to our state's important, continuing discussion of bullying.

We don't agree with Hall's position on all state issues, certainly, but we respect the way he goes about the people's business, and we believe he has earned a fourth two-year term.

---

Jim Carlin

We were impressed with both candidates in this race, but we give a slight edge to Jim Carlin in District 6 because we believe he will be a stronger advocate than challenger Perla Alarcon-Flory for general principles we as an editorial board support within state government, such as fiscal discipline, a reduced tax burden and a stronger overall climate for economic development through which our state will grow and prosper.

In our meeting with Carlin, he talked about the negative impact on our state's overall business climate (in its 2016 Business Tax Climate Index, the Tax Foundation ranked Iowa 40th in the nation) of having some of the country's highest corporate income taxes, including the highest rate of 12 percent, and the need to offer more than incentive packages in order to produce deep, sustainable economic growth. As owner of Carlin Law Firm for more than 20 years, Carlin understands firsthand the burden of high business taxation.

Carlin also talked with us about the the need to reduce Iowa's personal income taxes.

We understand tax reform won't be easy, but in our view Carlin will be a lawmaker who will advocate for the discussion.

Finally, we admire the compassionate side of Carlin - in particular, his compassion for seniors. For example, he suggests discussion of a freeze on property taxes for seniors who live on small, fixed incomes, something he said other states have done.

---

Robert Henderson

We acknowledge Robert Henderson, a college mathematics instructor and former high school math teacher, faces an uphill challenge in District 14, where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans 5,972 to 4,340 (with 4,765 independents), but we believe his strong communication skills, diverse spectrum of life experiences and analytical approaches to state issues make him the stronger choice in this race.

In our meeting with Henderson, he impressed us as a deep thinker who studies old challenges, such as education and care of the elderly and less fortunate, through new lenses and offers food for thought different from the standard partisan fare. For example, he views education as more than a debate about state aid and standardized test scores. He talks about making changes in the way Iowa trains its teachers so the state produces "good citizens" for our nation's future and advocates for unleashing the creativity of teachers so they become free to do "what they are gifted to do."

In our view, District 14, our community and our state would benefit from the introduction of Henderson's intellect and unique voice to Statehouse dialogue.
Kinda late in writing this Letter, but did want to tell your readers about our trip through your city this past July. On our way to a wedding in Minnesota, we had some extra time. We found the Sioux City Chamber of Commerce, told them we had about three hours to spare and asked, "What should we see in your city?" They recommended the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center. What an awesome place. As a kid you learn about the Lewis and Clark trail but don't really connect with the true hardships until you see it up close. Your city can be very proud to house such a historic museum. Also visited the Sgt. Floyd boat. Enjoyed it very much also.
SOUTH SIOUX CITY | South Sioux Cityans who have been displaced from their residences for most of the week due to offensive odors emanating from a local renewable energy plant shared a similar sentiment Thursday: They're ready to go home.

"You can talk to any of the people, they are so frustrated with this," said Robert Baker, who's currently displaced from his house in the 3800 block of G street. "We want to go home."

Baker said he's counted around 15 families currently staying at the Marina Inn in South Sioux City, which the city is providing at no cost as the city and Big Ox Energy, the source of foul sulfide gas that has spread through sewer lines beneath area homes, work to combat the smell.

He said his elderly father was transported to the Marina Inn from his home by firefighters on Thursday.

Big Ox injected chemicals at the plant Wednesday afternoon to reduce the gas's effects. On Thursday, multiple residents attested that the "rotten eggs" smell hadn't improved.

"It's just as bad," said John Goodier, who lives on Redbird Lane and has been staying at the Marina since Monday. "When I went in the house this morning, I had to go outside -- I was throwing up."

Mike Klassen, who also lives on Redbird Lane and is staying at the Marina, said he thinks the smell is getting worse.

"They sent all of us an email around 2 oclock (Wednesday) and that by early evening or later in the evening ... there should be a noticeable difference," he said. "By 8:30 p.m, our neighbors said it had been stronger than it had ever been."

Klassen, who said he sent his first email to the city about the smell three weeks ago Thursday, said he and others have taken issue with how the situation has been handled. He wants to see steps taken to halt operations at Big Ox to allow the situation to improve.

"The reality is the plant is still running. The only solution is to shut the plant down," he said.

City Administrator Lance Hedquist said Thursday evening that odors have noticeably improved at the plant, and the effects are currently working their way through the line.

"It does take time to get through the line," he said. "I'm confident the improved odor will be coming their way."

Hedquist said the injections of chemicals are a process, and will continue.

Mayor Rod Koch told the Journal Thursday even though it's not gone, he believes the city is making some headway in "stopping the bleeding."

"We don't think at this point in time there's any new smell. We think we've got the smell under control," he said.

Koch said the city has made machines available for people to use to suck out the gas from their homes. The city has also extended the amount of time people can remain at the Marina by another week, giving affected residents a place to stay through the first week in November. Even then, the city will take accommodations on a case-by-case basis, he said.

"Some houses are way worse," Koch said. "We're just kind of taking it one step at a time."

Koch said the city is going to gather for a "post-crisis meeting" after the incident is resolved, holding both the city and Big Ox accountable during the process.

"We're going to look at what happened, and who did what," he said. "We're going to look at what we're going to do to make sure this never happens again."

Koch said the city will start by putting safeguards at key points in its sewer system so it will be able to block off any backed up odors in the future.

Fifteen to 20 homes in the vicinity of Red Bird Lane to Lemasa Drive to 39th and 32nd streets, which share a sewer line with the Big Ox complex in the Roth Industrial Park, reported the odors earlier this month. Several voiced their concerns during Monday's City Council meeting.

Goodier, who said measurements taken Wednesday in his home indicated dangerous levels of the gas inside, said when he returns home, the damage to his belongings could be costly.

"I have not had anyone come in and do a final assessment on it, but if they treat it like a fire, we're looking at over 20 grand," he said. "That's not counting furniture."

Koch also said the city is in contact with its insurance carrier and Big Ox's insurance carrier to see what will be covered.

"Right now it's up in the air," Koch said. "We're going to get together and talk about it and see what were going to do."

An OSHA investigation has been going on since Oct. 19 at the facility, after an employee of a contracting company was hospitalized due to hydrogen sulfide exposure.

As of Thursday, Big Ox has not offered a statement on the situation.
The gravity of the existential threat we face from Islamic Jihad is truly of epic proportions. It is essentially a battle pitting free-civilized man against a totalitarian barbarian. What is at stake is the struggle for our very soul - namely who we are and what we represent. The lives that were sacrificed for individual rights and freedoms that we've come to cherish are being chiseled away from right under our noses by the stealth jihadists. And many of us are in denial and totally clueless.



The left's appeasement and pandering to evil is nothing new. What makes their utopian delusions so infuriating and unpardonable is that it is not only they who will have to pay the consequences, and deservedly, so, they are thwarting and undermining our best efforts at resistance and are thus dragging us down in the process as well.







By Peter Lancz,, the head of the Raoul Wallenberg World Campaign Against Racism.
President Xi Jinping holds a welcoming ceremony to greet Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte in Beijing on Thursday. Xie Huanchi / Xinhua

During his four-day state visit to China last week, and his first to a country outside the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte proved to be more than a man of his words.

His acerbic remarks on the Manila-Washington alliance apart, Duterte made genuine efforts during his visit to China to put Beijing-Manila ties back on track after his predecessor Benigno Aquino III soured the relationship between China and the Philippines by blatantly siding with the United States to initiate arbitral proceedings against Beijing over their maritime dispute in the South China Sea.

Interactions between Chinese and Philippine leaderships, for starters, are likely to resume after Duterte's visit to China, when he and his host President Xi Jinping witnessed the signing of many a cooperation deal. Duterte's visit should help the two sides restore the damaged mutual trust and revitalize their cooperation in infrastructure building, and combating drug trafficking and terrorism.

In particular, the two countries pledged to resolve their dispute in the South China Sea through consultations and negotiations by the directly concerned sovereign states, according to a joint statement issued on Friday. In this context, Duterte, unlike his predecessor, is expected to adopt a more independent, flexible and comprehensive foreign policy to strike a balance between major regional powers.

However, it is impossible for Duterte to seek full "separation" from the US, even though he is unhappy with the Philippines' long-time ally. Take the Philippines' military dependence on the US for example. Most of the weapons used by the Philippine military are supplied by the US and many military personnel have been trained in the US. That Duterte hinted at forging a new "alliance" with China and Russia and buying weapons from the two countries was more like emotional talk rather than a warning to the overreaching US.

Given the close economic ties between Washington and Manila, a breakup between the allies seem unlikely. As of 2015, the US had more direct investment in the Philippines than any other country; and at least 30 percent of the 10 million Philippine expatriates work in the US.

The joint statement by Beijing and Manila does avoid any mention of the South China Sea arbitration case initiated by the former Philippine government against China, but that does not mean their territorial dispute is settled. The Philippines is unwilling to make compromises and needs the US to endorse its claims. And although Washington has basically stayed calm in the face of "dramatically" improving Beijing-Manila relations, which can reduce the possibility of the US rooting for its Asian ally in the South China Sea issue, it is unlikely to sit idle while the ties between Beijing and Manila improve.

The USS Decatur's intrusion into China's territorial waters near Xisha Islands on the last day of Duterte's China visit sent a signal to the international community that Washington will continue to intervene in the South China Sea issue on the pretext of protecting "navigational freedom" despite the improvement in the Beijing-Manila ties.

Besides, the US welcomes Japan and the Philippines, its two close allies, to strengthen their maritime cooperation, in an attempt to consolidate its regional leadership without directly confronting China. But its intervention in the South China Sea issue would only backfire should all parties directly involved manage to reach a consensus on shelving their disputes to deal with more urgent issues.

The author is a researcher at the National Institute of International Strategy at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
LEONARDTOWN, Md.

Disclaimer: In the U.S.A., all persons accused of a crime by the State are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. See: so.md/presumed-innocence. Additionally, all of the information provided above is solely from the perspective of the respective law enforcement agency and does not provide any direct input from the accused or persons otherwise mentioned. You can find additional information about the case by searching the Maryland Judiciary Case Search Database using the accused's name and date of birth. The database is online at so.md/mdcasesearch . Persons named who have been found innocent or not guilty of all charges in the respective case, and/or have had the case ordered expunged by the court can have their name, age, and city redacted by following the process defined at so.md/expungeme.

(Oct. 28, 2016)The St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office today released the following incident and arrest reports.10/14/2016 MALICIOUS DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY: Deputy H. Smith responded to the intersection of Budds Creek Road and Woodyard Court in Mechanicsville for the report of a person vandalizing the St. Mary's County Welcome sign. Arriving deputies observed the suspect,, was hitting the sign with a nearby light fixture. Eberle also defaced the sign with a black marker. Eberle was transported to the St. Mary's County Detention Center and charged with Malicious Destruction of Property 1000+. CASE# 53381-1610/15/2016 ASSAULT: Deputy A. Schultz responded to the 44000 block of Hunting Meadows Court in Callaway for the report of an assault. The victim alleged the suspect,, strangled the victim during an argument and then fled the residence in a motor vehicle. The victim reported losing consciousness and fleeing to other rooms to hide from Moore who forced entry into one of the rooms where the victim was hiding. The suspect was located driving, and a vehicle stop was initiated. Moore was placed under arrest and transported to the St. Mary's County Detention Center where a search of the suspect revealed suspected oxycodone. Moore was charged with First Degree Assault, Second Degree Assault, Malicious Destruction of Property/Value $1000, CDS Possession: Not Marijuana, and Possession of Contraband in Place of Confinement. CASE# 53555-1610/15/2016 POSSESSION: Deputy A. Beishline and Sgt. Clay Safford were in the area of Lex's Apartments when they saw the suspect,, attempting to hide in a motor vehicle. Bonacci, previously issued a notice not to trespass for the apartment complex, was to exit the vehicle. In plain view was a spoon with residue, a cotton ball, hypodermic syringe and suspected heroin. Bonacci was placed under arrest and transported to the St. Mary's County Detention Center. She was charged with Possession of CDS: Not MarijuanaHeroin, Four Counts of PossessionParaphernalia, and TrespassPrivate Property. CASE#53632-1610/18/2016 POSSESSION: Deputy K. Flerlage conducted a motor vehicle stop in the area of South Sandgates Road for a motor vehicle operating without rear tag lights. Further investigation revealed the suspect,, had an active bench warrant through Worcester County. Wathen was placed under arrest and transported to the St. Mary's County Detention Center where a search revealed several tablets of Xanax that were not prescribed to Wathen. CASE#53982-1610/18/2016 ASSAULT: Deputy C. Beyer responded to the 28000 block of Hancock Drive for a fight in progress. The victim alleged the suspect,, assaulted the victim during an argument. The victim displayed injuries consistent with the allegations. Cherrico was placed under arrest, transported to the St. Mary's County Detention Center and charged with Second Degree Assault. CASE# 54139-1610/18/2016 ASSAULT: Deputy B. Fennessey responded to the St. Mary's County Detention Center for a reported assault. The suspects,and, were involved in a physical fight while incarcerated at the St. Mary's County Detention Center. Inmates Gray and Woods were both charged with Second Degree Assault on a DOC inmate. CASE# 54075-1610/22/2016 POSSESSION: Deputy L. Johnson responded to the 45000 block of Buck Redman Road in Callaway for a reported assault. The victim alleged the suspect,, assaulted the victim by scratching and pointing a taser at the victim. Bernich assaulted another victim who tried to intervene during the fight, and both victims displayed visible injuries. Bernich was arrested and transported to the St. Mary's County Detention Center. During a search of Bernich, deputies recovered suspected Oxycodone in her possession. Bernich was charged with Two Counts of Second Degree Assault and CDS Possession: Not Marijuana. CASE#54785-1610/21/2016 BURGLARY: Deputy B. Gaskill responded to the 45000 block of Clarks Mills Road in Hollywood for a reported burglary. The suspect,, stole multiple items from a victim's garage over a period of time. The victim also alleged the suspect cut multiple copper pipes from the victim's basement and cut all the electrical wires in the garage causing thousands of dollars worth of damage to the residence. Herold was identified through surveillance footage at a local used auto parts store where he was removing items from his car and exchanging them for cash, in addition to selling multiple items at a pawn store. Herold was arrested and transported to the St. Mary's County Detention Center. Herold was charged with First Degree Burglary, Third Degree Burglary, Fourth Degree Burglary, Theft $10,000 to under $100,000 and Malicious Destruction of Property $1000+. CASE# 54638-1610/23/2016 DISORDERLY CONDUCT: Corporal B. Foor responded to the 22000 block of Willow Spring Lane in Lexington Park for a reported disturbance. Upon arrival, Corporal Foor witnessed the suspect,, yelling, cursing, and using profanities in a public parking lot causing a disturbance. Corporal Foor advised Cody that if he did not stop, he would be arrested for disorderly conduct. Cody lowered his voice and arrangements were made for him to receive a ride home. Later that same day, the Emergency Communications Center received a disturbance call in the same area. After multiple requests for Cody to stop yelling, he refused and was placed under arrest and transported to the St. Mary's County Detention Center. He was charged with Disorderly Conduct and Failure to Obey a Lawful Order. CASE# 54930-1610/24/2016 THEFT: Deputy R. Steinbach responded to the Bath and Body Works Store in California for the report of a theft in progress. The suspect,, stole multiple items and then fled from the store. The suspect returned the store and was placed under arrest, transported to the St. Mary's County Detention Center, and charged with Theft Less Than $1000. CASE# 55161-16
ANNAPOLIS

(Oct. 28, 2016)A Lusby man who operated a wildlife rehabilitation facility was found guilty Thursday in Calvert County District Court on two counts of illegal drug possession and one count of practicing veterinary medicine without a license.Ronald Gene Wexler, 68, entered an Alford pleawhere the defendant pleads guilty without acknowledging faultto one count of possession of controlled dangerous substance-not marijuana, and a guilty plea to one count of drug possession-not marijuana-and one count of practicing veterinary medicine without a license.Judge Michelle Saunders gave Wexler a six-month sentence for the possession of a controlled substance and then suspended the sentence. The judge ordered Wexler to pay a $500 fine for practicing without a license and imposed three years of unsupervised probation. The remaining 13 counts were placed on the Stetor inactivedocket, meaning that if Wexler successfully fulfills his sentence, the state may drop the charges.Wexler was arrested by Maryland Natural Resources Police in June after a year-long investigation of his facility, Orphaned Wildlife Rescue Center, Inc.Acting on a tip, officers, state wildlife veterinarians and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service searched his center in August 2015 and found animals that the government alleges should have been euthanized due to the extent of their injuries, animals on which Wexler had performed surgery and an osprey held in a cage much too small, which led to muscle atrophy.The government claims their search also found a host of drugs, including Oxycodone, Demerol, Pentobarbital and Fentanyl. Wexler did not have any licenses or prescriptions for the drugs, which are defined by the federal government as drugs with a high potential for abuse. Wexler goes by the nickname "Doc," and refers to himself as a veterinarian on his web site however he does not have a veterinary license.This year, prosecutors said, he performed surgery on ospreys and a black rat snake and acknowledged operating on other animals as well. Wexler told officers that it was not cost effective to send every animal he admitted to his center to an independent veterinarian.According to the Orphaned Wildlife Rescue Center Web site in June of this year, the organization has rescued over 20,000 animals since being founded in 1990. However, there is no independent method to verify the number.somd.com has made an inquiry with the Natural Resources Police regarding the financial cost to taxpayers for their year-long investigation of this case. According to spokesperson Candy Thomson, the State does not have a figure."No investigators was assigned full-time to the case," said Thomson in an emailed reply. "The lead investigator worked with the state wildlife veterinarian and the state lab to process the drugs and categorize them. He met with prosecutors, as needed, and consulted with other experts. Getting the case together for prosecution took one year.""As is true with any police department, all of our investigators handle multiple cases every year. The lead investigator in the Wexler case had many other cases, including several fatal boating accidents and a shooting death last year."President of Local Animal Rescue Charged with Animal Cruelty, Illegal Drugs by DNR Police, June 09, 2016
Maryland Trump Supporter: They Switched My Vote to Hillary - https://t.co/FkNiEUOZHH pic.twitter.com/dalY9KBWtj  Paul Joseph Watson (@PrisonPlanet) October 28, 2016

Donald Trump and his supporters in Congress have made some dubious claims this election season. But perhaps the most desperate and dangerous of all is their repeated assertion that somehow this election might be 'rigged.' They are sending a clear message to their supporters: that if Donald Trump loses in November, the result will be illegitimate. This goes beyond the dog-whistle campaigning we've seen so far and ventures into open allegations that are as ridiculous as they are perilous to our democracy, and in last night's debate Donald Trump doubled down by refusing to say that he would accept the outcome of this election.

(Oct. 28, 2016)A woman in Hollywood is the latest in a number of early voters to claim that her ballot was switched to Hillary Clinton after she had tried to vote for Donald Trump today.Noting that she had seen reports on the news of votes being flipped, the woman said, "I went in and voted a straight Republican ticket and thank God I went back and checked and they had switched my vote from Trump to (Hillary)."She said that she had to get the vote changed back by alerting election officials, who simply told her to vote for a second time."I went back the second time and made sure they didn't change it," she concluded.As we reported earlier this week, voters in numerous areas of Texas have made a series of complaints that votes are being switched from Trump to Clinton.One election official responded by claiming the problems were caused by voters not understanding how to use the machines properly."Typically, we've found it's voter error with the equipment," Frank Phillips, Tarrant County's election administrator, told WFAA. "Sometimes they vote straight party and then click on other candidates  or do something with the wheel  There is not an issue with the equipment."However, Trump supporters continue to point to the reports as evidence that vote fraud may be taking place.In Maryland, it is impossible to legally document voting irregularities experienced by the respective citizen; the Maryland State Board of Elections has issued an administrative regulation prohibiting use of cameras, cell phones, and "computer equipment" in the polling place.The voting machines being used for the general election were just rolled out this year and were first used in the primary this spring. The machines are manufactured by Election Systems and Software and are proprietary; the system software is not open to public inspection. This has been a cause of concern for years by many advocates of a fully open and transparent election process.Maryland just switched to the new system after concerns about the previous electronic voting system leaving no paper trail that would facilitate an audit. The new system is still electronic, however it generates a paper ballot, based on the voter's input to a computer terminal (voting machine), which is then scanned by an optical character reader.Ironically, the voter receives no paper receipt of how he voted, making voting in Maryland probably the only important transaction in the nation where the customer does not receive a receipt. ATM's, gasoline pumps, automated parking attendants, and self-checkout machines all provide paper receipts; voting machines do not.In the primary election, "machine malfunctions caused an hour delay in opening polls at the Beth Am Synagogue in Baltimore," according to a Washington Post report on April 27, 2016 . That same report notes that Governor Hogan "raised concerns about election officials' rushing the new machines into service."Coincidentally, southern Maryland's elected public servant in the House of Representatives, Democrat Steny Hoyer just penned an op-ed that ran in The Hill titled, "Trump 'Rigged' Election Claims: Further Proof He is Unfit to be President." In the hit piece, Hoyer attacks Trump's concern about a rigged electiona concern Democrats had no problem expressing in the not-too-distant Bush v. Gore election.Hoyer opened his op-ed with this:Hoyer also distributed a copy of the cleary partisan op-ed via his official government email address, Democratic.Whip.Press@mail.house.gov Apparently Hoyer did not expect that the very thing Donald Trump warned against would rear its head right in Hoyer's own backyward, come to the immediate attention of the alternative media and appear at the top of The Drudge Report since Friday.For more information about how and when to vote in this general election, please refer to this page
29-year-old Westagne Pierre of the 9100 block of Spring Hill Lane in Greenbelt.

UPPER MARLBORO, Md.

(Oct. 28, 2016)Detectives arrested a suspect in connection with a kidnapping and assault in College Park. The suspect is 29-year-old Westagne Pierre of the 9100 block of Spring Hill Lane in Greenbelt. The suspect was working as an Uber driver. The victim was his customer.The preliminary investigation reveals Pierre picked up the victim in Washington, DC, the night of October 18th. Pierre drove the victim to her home in Virginia, but instead of dropping her off, he drove her to a hotel in College Park. Once there, the suspect removed the victim from the car and carried her into a hotel room. The investigation reveals he also used the victim's credit card a short time later.Detectives arrested the suspect on Thursday. He's been charged with kidnapping, assault and for fraudulently using the victim's credit card. Additional charges are pending after consultation with the State's Attorney's Office. Pierre is in the custody of the Department of Corrections.Anyone with information on this case or suspect is asked to please call (301) 772-4908. Callers can remain anonymous by calling CRIME SOLVERS at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477). You may also text "PGPD plus your tips" to CRIMES (274537) on your cell phone or go to www.pgcrimesolvers.com and submit a tip online.More national stories regarding Uber drivers being arrested
A Broward County judge has ruled in favor of Supervisor of Elections Dr. Brenda Snipes in a case involving mail-in ballots that omitted Amendment 2.

Snipes office was accused of leaving Amendment 2 off some of the absentee ballots. Four Broward County residents testified in court on Thursday that their ballots did not include Amendment 2.

Amendment 2 asks Florida residents to approve marijuana for medical purposes. It needs 60 percent approval in order to become law.

The plaintiff, the Florida chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), asked the court that Snipes office inform voters via signs or notices at polling places that Amendment 2 is indeed on the ballot. Broward Circuit Judge Carol-Lisa Phillips denied the plaintiffs motion in a decision just after noon on Friday.

Phillips said NORML of Florida failed to demonstrate irreparable harm or a violation of a clear civil right. Phillips also noted Snipes had offered replacement ballots for people who requested them and directed election officials to look at ballots and determine if Amendment 2 was included.

Norm Kent, Vice President of NORML Florida, said the courts decision does not solve the ballot mystery.

The courts decision regrettably focuses only on those defective ballots we know about, that the defendant had to the opportunity to cure, Kent said. It fails to pro-actively address the unknowing number of potentially defective ballots, which the supervisor of elections admitted could still be out there and for which there may be no remedy.

Snipes testified in court that her office is taking the issue very seriously. This is not the first time this year, the Broward Elections Supervisor has been under scrutiny. In August it was revealed, Snipes office had released results of the primary election before polls had closed, prompting an investigation by the State Attorneys Office.

With the possibility of ballots in circulation that omit Amendment 2, NORML of Florida asked the court for more judicial oversight of the election process. Judge Phillips, however, denied that request.

Instead of providing a curative instruction for the future, it leaves open the possibility that we may have to renew legal options if the breadth of the problem continues to become greater and more expansive that the Supervisor of Elections admits, Kent said. We are grateful for the courts generous demeanor and swift ruling, giving us an emergency, timely, and fair hearing, allowing NORML the opportunity to present our case to the public.

In the 2014 election, a similar marijuana amendment received 58 percent approval by Florida voters. Re-written to address exact ailments permissible for treatment by marijuana, the amendment has polled as high as 73 percent approval.
UPDATED 11/04: This update includes an interview with a second student, information regarding another gay teacher that resigned in 2006, and information about an email exchange between the school's lawyer and the Human Resources department regarding Scott Melton's employment.

I have to tell you this is the most racist and homophobic place Ive ever worked, declared Scott Melton in April at a faculty meeting in front of dozens of teachers, administrators and the board of trustees of Saint Andrews private school in Boca Raton.

One teacher who attended vividly recalled the meeting.

When Scott stood up his voice was trembling, you could see he was upset, the teacher said. He was forceful in saying this school is not welcoming to gay people and people of color and it has to stop.

The day after the meeting, he complained to the head of his department that certain administrators were attempting to cover up a possible sex abuse scandal, alleging that outside authorities were not being notified, as required by Florida law.

The next day Melton, 52, was put on a paid leave of absence  never to return.

Melton, who is an openly gay, black, Jewish man, doesnt know if he was pushed out because of his sexuality, or because he was a whistleblower  or a combination of both.

Regardless, hes devastated and angry.

Melton loved his job as an English, History and German teacher. He loved it so much that when he started 6 years ago he gave up his social life and backed away from his involvement with the gay community in Fort Lauderdale.

Even being openly out and gay at Saint Andrews was not necessarily a safe thing, he said.

Even though Saint Andrews is a Christian school, they have a non-discrimination clause that covers sexual orientation and gender identity or expression. Additionally, they have a policy protecting whistleblowers.

Melton resigned from his position at the school on June 27, while still on his leave of absence.

Since being put on administrative leave with pay, I have been contacted only once. Saint Andrews School has been negligent and derelict in duty to communicate my status for not only this year but also for the 2016-2017 school year, his letter of resignation reads. Therefore, due to the hostile work environment and lack of information I have experienced  I am forced to give my resignation  and seek employment elsewhere.

Melton filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against the school asking for back pay, lost fringe benefits, compensatory damages and reinstatement. The lawsuit alleges that the school violated state law by retaliating against Melton for being a whistleblower. In an earlier letter to the school from his lawyer he separately alleged discrimination based on his race and sexual orientation.



After this story was originally published online SFGN obtained a copy of an email exchange between the schools Human Resources department and a lawyer for the school. According to the exchange it appears the school debated whether to fire Melton or send him a letter of reprimand admonishing him for his cover up allegations and for accusing an administrator of being homophobic and racist.

The schools lawyer gives her thoughts on the schools chances of winning a lawsuit if they chose to fire Melton.

This means it is highly unlikely that the school would get summary judgment on a claim that Scott might assert for either discrimination, retaliation, or whistleblower activities. The case would either have to settle or go trial, the email reads.

Melton contends that instead of making a decision, the school took no action at all, leaving him hanging.

SFGN interviewed five current teachers at the school, all of whom requested anonymity because they feared retaliation from the administration. It also states in the employee handbook that teachers are not allowed to speak to the press.

If anyone speaks to the press theyll be immediately fired, one source said. No one would dare speak out against the administration  its a retaliatory environment without so much as a second thought.

All five had nothing but glowing things to say about Melton and his teaching. All of them were heartbroken at his treatment and sad that hes no longer at the school. And all of them want justice.

Scott did the right thing, and they ruined him for it, one source said. Another: Scott got the rawest deal Ive ever seen anywhere. And yet another said Melton wasnt the only one concerned about the sex abuse allegations. A lot of people were asking about it. But he was targeted. I believe its because hes gay.

Michael Feehan, an English teacher who retired this year, spoke to SFGN on the record.

I feel extremely sorry for Scott and do not believe he was treated justly. I respect and admire him. He related very well with students, especially gay students, he said. And he was very active in providing safe spaces for LGBT students. He was a colleague whom I was proud of.

Melton started at Saint Andrews in 2010 and for the first four years everything was relatively smooth. But last year an administrator told him in private to tone down the gay content in his classroom. Sources confirmed to SFGN that Melton mentioned those incidents to them around the time they occurred.

In the fall of 2015 he was pulled into a meeting with Sara Rubinstein, Head of the Upper School, where he said she denied that she ever said there was too much gay content in his class, but then reprimanded him for showing a video that was pro-gay. Melton also claims she accused him of being anti-Christian.

The content in question was a Betty Bowers video, which apparently caused such a stir that a student complained. Bowers is a character played by Deven Green, a Canadian comedian, performer and musician. Shes known for video comedy parodies, including her performance as the satirical character Mrs. Betty Bowers, "America's Best Christian.

The class was controversial, Melton said of his Theory of Knowledge class. It was about how do you know what you know. Thats the whole purpose of the class, to question belief structures and faith and knowledge.

SFGN also interviewed one of Meltons former students, who requested anonymity out of fear of retaliation.

His class was amazing. It was my favorite. He always listened. If we had a problem, we could always come to him. We could always trust him, she said. For the school to treat him with so much disrespect its really frustrating. He was trying to teach us. To challenge us.

As for the content of the class?

There were controversial themes but it made you think about both sides, to help you understand, she said. At school if we were so sensitive to everything wed be so sheltered and wouldnt be prepared for the real world.

After this story was initially published online another student came forward to tell SFGN his experience in Meltons class.

My entire life I was just a homophobic person. I was never informed about it. I was never around gay people. I wanted to avoid it as much as possible whenever the gay subject came up. I was scared I was going to be uncomfortable in his class, the student recalled.

He credits Melton for his change of heart.

He helped me break through that phase I guess, he said. It really upset me when I read that people said there was too much gay content in his class and that he was teaching too gay. Its just not true. He was openly gay. He was honest about it. And I respected that a lot. If I ever needed advice I could go to him.

Out And Proud At St. Andrews

I felt for Scott, said former teacher Annie Wilkin.

Wilkin, who identifies as a queer woman, only lasted a year at Saint Andrews. She left in June.

It was her first time working at a Christian school. SFGN asked if she was being naive about what she would experience there.

I dont think so, the 29-year-old said. I got married in the Episcopal Church two months before I arrived. I was so pumped to be there. I went into the year feeling very strongly about being out.

Wilkin said the Episcopal Church was more welcoming than other Christian denominations so she didnt think there would be a problem. She started a QSA (queer straight alliance) with a handful of students at the school.

She was impressed the students wanted to call it a QSA instead of a gay straight alliance in order to be more inclusive.

To be queer on campus, you have to be a certain type queer. You had to do a particular performance. You could be gay, but not that gay, she explained. A few of the administrators felt the QSA was a feather in the schools cap. Having a club is one thing. But doing support consistently throughout the year is another. This is a culture that denies diversity of any kind, so its very difficult to address. These kids are so homogenous.

She explained further that the school really reinforced traditional gender roles so an effeminate gay man would not be as welcome there. And when two of the anonymous sources were asked about gay content they thought it was referencing Melton being too flamboyant.

His expressions, movement of his hands, the way he presented himself. He taught too gay, one source said. Here is a guy who is gay, but not involved with any students, blows a whistle on something that shouldnt be happening. And hes put on administrative leave.

Besides the QSA, Wilkin also launched the Positive Space Campaign. That idea, she said, proved to be too radical for the school and it received a chilly reception. Some students complained the project would attempt to shut down their religious beliefs.

The project was started at the University of British Columbia and aims to foster a welcoming atmosphere and inclusive, respectful dialogue on campus for people of all sexual orientations and gender identities by identifying spaces where sexual and gender diversity is supported and valued.

Its a movement of inclusivity, Wilkin said. Its about creating a space where queer people are welcome.

Wilkin cant remember the exact words from one administrator but the message that I got is that the school would never champion queer rights and never market itself as a school that would support LGBTQ kids.

Wilkin declined to identify the administrator in question.

She understood the concerns of the students who complained, but also noted that the project would make it impossible for them to discriminate against gay people. They want to have a worldwide view that excludes gay people. One student [against the project] in particular felt very strongly that it was shutting down the conversation.

Wilkin said the campaign was really meant to create a safe space for anyone who felt different in some way.

One of the biggest issues [at the school] was the sort of denial of diversity issues in general, she noted. For the most part it a feeling that she got on campus. She said its hard to articulate.

This isnt the first time Saint Andrews has been accused of being hostile toward a gay teacher either. In 2006 Dominick Giombetti, a newly hired English and drama teacher, resigned after only six weeks when the school learned he would play gay roles in local theaters.

Heres an exert from the now defunct Independent Gay News:

During the day he started to hear comments such as faggot behind his back. Speaking with The Independent he said that I threw up several times in the bathroom that day. He continued teaching until lunchtime. The day was a blur. I felt that I had been hit by a baseball bat.

Giombetti told the school he would not give up acting. He claimed he was told "the best case scenario is that the board will let you finish your year and then we'll part ways.

Instead he decided to resign. The school addressed the controversy with this statement:

"It is important to note that any concern that members of the administration expressed to Dominick had nothing to do with sexual orientation. The concern was the idea of a Middle School drama teacher involving himself in theater productions with adult themes. Saint Andrew's School would have the same concern regardless of the teacher's sexual orientation or membership in any other protected category.

While Palm Beach County is generally seen as a progressive place in terms of LGBT rights, with more than 90 pro-LGBT laws on the books throughout the county and its municipalities, the same cant be said for Boca Raton. It was only four years ago when the Palm Beach County Human Rights Council launched the Boca Bigots Run City Hall campaign and a city official compared the struggle for LGBT equality to pet lovers rights.

Whats to keep other groups from wanting to be protected? the city official told SFGN at the time. How about me? Im a pet lover. I think I should be included in your anti-discrimination law. Someone who has dogs should not be discriminated against either.

Private School Engulfed in Controversy

This year Saint Andrews, which is a private day and boarding school on Jog Road near Glades, has been embroiled in one controversy after another with multiple top officials resigning including some board members.

One of those controversies involved a House Parent accused of being overly friendly with some of the male students who lived on campus. He was caught in a long embrace with one student; a sick student spent 4 nights in a row at his house; and he was caught going to the beach with a student after midnight.

These incidents were not reported to independent or external law enforcement agencies, as Florida law suggests they should have been. Instead, they were closed after an internal investigation concluded that while the teachers actions may have been deemed inappropriate, there was no showing of sexual abuse.

The Department of Children and Family services and Boca Raton police department were not notified until April, six months after the school had parted ways with the teacher in question.

An investigation by David Wolowitz, an attorney with McLane Middleton, a New England professional association hired to look into the school's problems, seemed to indicate that without Scott Meltons attempts to bring attention to the matter it would have remained under wraps.

Without the cover up allegations in 2016  this matter would not have been raised to the full Board of Trustee level or reported to the DCF and the child protection issues raised now would not have been put forth to be addressed to protect students at Saint Andrews in the future, the investigation reads.

Florida law requires school officials and employees to report suspicion of child abuse to law enforcement authorities or to a child abuse hotline. Failure to do so could result in a third-degree felony charge.

While the investigation did not find any instances of sexual abuse it did outline numerous failings among administrators on how they handled the situation. It also noted administrators were concerned about potential sex abuse.

According to a news report published in the Sun Sentinel, the teacher in question was let go from the school, terminated with a two-month severance package requiring each side to agree to a neutral reference.

The day before Melton was put on his leave of absence he confronted an administrator over the investigation saying the school was not following Florida law by not reporting the incidents to an outside agency.

While we appreciate your questions regarding specific individuals, please understand that matters related to personnel are confidential, said St. Andrews spokesperson Carlos Barroso said in reference to Meltons employment at the school.

SFGN also reached out to Rubinstein directly, but she was not able to publicly comment.

The Wolowitz report backs up Meltons claims. In fact, it says this: I am deeply concerned that some administrators have asserted  that no students were harmed by the House Parent in question, because there was no sexual misconduct. There is likely no way to determine conclusively what occurred behind closed doors. However, even assuming there was no sexual misconduct there was clearly misconduct. Despite their duty to protect the health, safety, and welfare of students, there is no indication in the Jones Report that either [administrator] took any steps at this point to address the concerns raised about the House Parents behavior with these  students.

In a similar incident to Meltons, another former teacher and counselor at the school, Theo Stephenson, is also claiming that she forced out for being a whistleblower. She also happens to be a black woman.

In a letter sent to the schools board of trustees last week she said [An administrator] has displayed prejudice against people of color, declaring that I am not a good fit for St. Andrews despite my exemplary track record and credentials.

In the letter Stephenson goes into great detail how she repeatedly alerted the school of another incident where one male student groped a female student and it was never reported to any agency outside of the school.

Stephensons accusatory email goes on to read that [The administrator] has shown a pattern of behavior that is detrimental to the health and well-being of the students at St. Andrews School. She ignores legitimate concerns from trained mental health professionals, sweeps instances of sexual abuse under the rug, and is far more concerned with promoting her own career rather than watching out for the students under her care.

If you have any information regarding this story Jason Parsley can be reached at 561-706-6646 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
U.S. Senator Al Franken may appear at Community In Unity this Sunday. The rally and concert, set from 2 to 6 p.m. at Wilton Manors City Hall, is designed to encourage the LGBT community and supporters to vote. Florida LGBT Votes Matter reads the flyer for the free event. Your rights are at stake.

It certainly aligns with the citys intent to encourage voter participation, which is why we use city hall as an early voting site, said City Manager Leigh Ann Henderson. According to Henderson, as of Thursday, 3,400 voters had cast a ballot at City Hall on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Its been really busy here, which is great.

At Tuesdays city commission meeting, Mayor Gary Resnick said someone affiliated with SNL would be the keynote speaker but he was not allowed to say who. It could be Eddie Murphy, he said. Trump? joked Commissioner Tom Green. Franken is a former SNL writer, producer and cast member who was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2008 and re-elected in 2014.

According to the group LGBT For Hillary Broward, Franken will attend the event. But SFGN was unable to independently confirm if Franken would attend. Calls to Frankens office and HotSpots Media Group, which is organizing the event, were not returned in time for publicatio
Expedition 50 official crew portrait with (from left) Andrei Borisenko, Shane Kimbrough, Sergei Ryzhikov, Thomas Pesquet, Peggy Whitson and Oleg Novitsky. Credit: NASA/Bill Stafford. NASA

NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and her crewmates, Anatoly Ivanishin of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and Takuya Onishi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency are scheduled to return to Earth on Saturday, Oct. 29 at 11:59 p.m. EDT (9:59 a.m. Oct. 30, Kazakhstan time).

NASA Television will air coverage of the departure and landing activities, beginning with a change of command ceremony at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 28. Expedition 49 Commander Ivanishin will hand over station command to NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough.

On-Orbit Status Report

Cygnus Cargo Operations: The crew was originally scheduled to ingress the Cygnus vehicle this morning, however the crew got ahead of the timeline and ingressed on Sunday, October 23rd. Today the crew performed Cygnus cargo transfer operations off the tasklist during the time that was allocated for ingress.

Airway Monitory Reconfiguration: Following Tuesdays successful Airway Monitoring session in the Joint Airlock, FE-5 and FE-6 stowed the experiment hardware and reconfigured the Airlock back to its nominal configuration. Airway Monitoring is the first experiment to use the US Airlock as a hypobaric facility for performing science. Utilizing the US Airlock will allow unique opportunities for the study of gravity, ambient pressure interactions, and their effect on the Human Body. This investigation studies the occurrence and indicators of airway inflammation in crewmembers, using ultra-sensitive gas analyzers to analyze exhaled air. This helps to highlight any health impacts and to maintain crewmember well-being on future human spaceflight missions, especially longer-duration missions to the Moon and Mars for example, where crewmembers will have to be more self-sufficient in highlighting and avoiding such conditions.

Simple Solar Neutron Detector Deploy: FE-3 retrieved the Simple Solar Neutron Detector from the Cygnus vehicle and deployed it on the Node 2 Lightbridge. The crew took photos and downlinked them for ground teams to review. Neutrons are difficult to detect because they are electrically neutral particles and pass through most detector systems without detection. The slow neutron Spectrometer University of Lincoln-Nebraska Detector for the Analysis of Solar Neutrons (DANSON) uses a new instrument design that can significantly improve the reliability of identifying neutrons in the mixed radiation field found in deep space. This instrument design uses a moderation and capture technique that slows down the neutrons and then captures them in an isotope of boron. The DANSON detector uses special crystals and thin film devices loaded with the boron 10 isotope to absorb the slowed neutrons, leaving a signature in the crystal or the device of the neutron capture process. DANSON uses custom materials with distinct signatures that are easily recognized as a distinct neutron capture signal, which is then processed and analyzed to determine the radiation levels. The objective is to measure the neutron flux and neutron energy on the ISS with DANSON. The ISS provides a valuable testbed for evaluating the instrument performance in a mixed radiation environment that includes sources from galactic cosmic rays, solar energetic particles, trapped radiation belts and albedo neutrons from Earths atmosphere. The structure and contents of the ISS serve as a realistic spacecraft for exploration.

Todays Planned Activities

All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.

???-?-24 Low Noise Headset Audit

EKON-M. Observations and photography

COSMOCARD. Closeout Ops Tagup with specialists

Soyuz 731 GoPro HERO3 Camcorder Battery Pair 1 Recharging, Start

In Flight Maintenance (IFM) Waste and Hygiene Compartment (WHC) Full Fill

Packing Equipment for Return via Soyuz 731

Photo TV High Definition (HD) Cygnus Video Setup

PILOT-T. Preparation for the experiment.

Handover of Increment 49/50 Crew

Water Recovery Management (WRM) Condensate Pumping Initiation

PILOT-T. Experiment Ops.

In Flight Maintenance (IFM) Waste and Hygiene Compartment (WHC) Full Fill

??? maintenance

Water Recovery Managment (WRM) Condensate Pumping Termination

Combustion Integrated Rack Alignment Guide Removal

Crew Departure Preparations for Return to Earth

Node 1 Nadir Common Berthing Mechanism (CBM) Controller Panel Assembly (CPA) Removal [Completed Sunday 23-October]

LBNP Exercise (CLOSEOUT). Tagup with specialists

Transfer Operations  Prepack of US items to be loaded into Soyuz

Node 1 Nadir to Cygnus Vestibule Outfitting Part 2 [Completed Sunday 23-October]

Cygnus Ingress [Completed Sunday 23-October]

Terminating charge of Soyuz 731 GoPro HERO3 Camcorder battery pair 1 and initiating recharge of pair 2

AIRMON Stow

MICROVIR. Photography of Cassetta-M No. 1-3, No.1-4 bottom cells. Closeout Ops

Cygnus Cargo Photo

ISS Medical Accessories Kit (IMAK) Unpack from OA-5

CALCIUM. Experiment Session 11.

Restow Vestibule Outfitting Kit (VOK) [Completed Sunday 23-October]

Sanitary-Hygiene Status Monitoring

Private Medical Conference (PMC)

Sanitary-Hygiene Status Monitoring

BIOPLENKA. Removal of Samples from the Thermostat, fixation of Constanta cassette No.4-5 biofilm.

Photo/TV Airway Monitor Vido Tear down in A/L

Temperature and Humidity Control (THC) Portable Fan Assembly (PFA) Teardown

CALCIUM. Transfer of Calcium-? Kits No.3 and No.4 to Soyuz 731

Teardown the PS-120 Junction Box and stow, and reconfigure A/L UOP.

Flushing Progress 433 (DC1) Rodnik H2O Tank 1 and Tank 2 H2O connectors ?1, B2

Replacement of E-K Pre-treat Container and Hose in ??? System. [???] Activation after Replacement

AQM Sieve Cartridge Remove and Replace

Microbial Sample Collection

Simple Solar Neutron Detector Hardware Setup

Crew Departure Preparations for Return to Earth

Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Airlock Restow

Cleaning Micropurification Unit (???) Fan Screen

Terminating Soyuz 731 GoPro HERO3 Camcorder battery pair 2 Recharge

Public Affairs Office (PAO) High Definition (HD) Config LAB Setup

MOTOCARD. Memory card kits prepack for return

PILOT-T. Experiment Session.

Collecting SM and FGB Air Samples Using ??-1? Sampler

Soyuz 731 Return Stowage

??? Air Sample Collection for Ammonia in SM

PILOT-T. Photography of the Experiment Ops

PAO Preparation

Public Affairs Office (PAO) Event in High Definition (HD)  Lab

PILOT-T. Closeout Ops Tagup with specialists as necessary

ISS Crew Orientation

CONTENT. Experiment Ops

Onboard Training (OBT) Cygnus Debrief Conference

Flight Director/ISS CREW CONFERENCE

OA-5 Cygnus Delta Emergency Response Review Update

On board Training Cygnus Emergency Procedure Review

BIOPLENKA. Removal of Samples from the Thermostat, fixation of Constanta cassette No.4-6 biofilm.

Completed Task List Items

None

Ground Activities

All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.

RapidScat Survey

Three-Day Look Ahead:

Friday, 10/28: Cygnus Cargo Transfer, 47S Prepack, Change of Command

Saturday, 10/29: 47S Undock and Landing

Sunday, 10/30: Crew Off Duty

QUICK ISS Status  Environmental Control Group:

Component  Status

Elektron  On

Vozdukh  Manual

[???] 1  SM Air Conditioner System (SKV1)  Off

[???] 2  SM Air Conditioner System (SKV2)  On

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Lab  Standby

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3  Operate

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab  Operate

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3  Idle

Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA)  Standby

Urine Processing Assembly (UPA)  Shutdown

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab  Off

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3  Full Up
Hes the kind of man I moved to New York to find. This cultured man. This foreign man. This man who had been all around the world, and he really has! Surfing in Indonesia, family trips to Greecewhich is so smart because their economy just sucks there and everything is super cheap right now. Anyway, hes done all these things and somehow at the end of the day, he wants to see me. He wants to stand in line waiting an hour for ramen with me and I dont know how it happened!

Susan was not being modest as she Skyped with her younger sister Mary, who seemed like she might be forever stuck in Conyers, GA. Not only had Susan made it out, but she had become a successful New York career woman who was now dating a dashing Australian photographer. Sure, her job as an insurance underwriter wasnt glamorous, but the work day flew by as she daydreamed about what New York adventure she and Colin would have that evening.

Everything about Colin seemed to have been plucked from Susans dreams of a perfect man. First, he was a solid six inches taller than her: no small feat considering she herself was tall at 510. His height made it so that her head fit perfectly under his chin on their many Uber rides home, from authentic ethnic dinners in Jackson Heights or immersive underground theatrical experiences in Bushwick.

Then there was his pure, uncompromising Australianness. His passionate pride for his hometown of Canberra. The way he said Cheers! to the waitstaff after ordering. And his accent. What an accent! Shed shed her own light Southern twang just before moving to New York. His Australian accent was surely much more dignified than hers had been. It communicated that he had experience, knowledge, ruggedness, and endless charm. In just four months, he had shown her more of the world through his endless curiosity for different New York City cultures than she ever could have imagined as she worked through Conyers outdated high school textbooks.

On an unseasonably warm October morning, Susan left her Murray Hill apartment (the affordable part of Manhattan!) ready for it to be 5:00pm already. Colin had been on assignment the previous night, but tonight hed make up for lost time by taking her to a speakeasy on the Lower East Side where the password for entry was the answer to an old Irish riddle. How did he find such places? She texted Cant wait for tonight! to him and strolled into her neighborhood coffee shop beaming with joy that this was her life. Now, every day was a balance of satisfying routine and unexpected wonder. She approached the cashier.

Could I have a flat white, please? she asked.

Im sorry, what is that? the cashier replied.

Susan wondered for a few seconds if she had seen the cashier before. The flat white was an off-menu order, for sure, but in the dozens of times she had been to the shop since Colin had taught her about the incredible coffee beverage from his native land*, no one had ever asked her what a flat white was. She looked over to the espresso machine and recognized the barista. She had efficiently and warmly prepared Susans flat whites most mornings and Susan even felt compelled to throw something in the tip jar for her (on occasion).

She knows what a flat white is, Susan calmly stated as she pointed at the barista.

Hey, Emily, the cashier called. Do you know how to make a flat white?

I have no clue what that is, Emily said without looking up from her work.

Susan was starting to get annoyed. She had left herself plenty of time for her morning coffee before work but it was essential to her productivity that she be able to sip her preferred drink on the train ride to SoHo. She composed herself and moved toward the baristas end of the counter.

Youve made it for me before. Its kind of like a smaller latte, Susan said with a forced smile.

Id be happy to make you a cappuccino, Emily replied. Its basically what youre asking for and we make really good cappuccinos.

Susan bit her lip and then looked behind her at the long line of people who were clearly getting irritated with this exchange. No thanks, she said to the barista and quickly walked out of the shop.

She was a bit ruffled by the bizarre encounter but she needed her coffee and knew that there were plenty of good coffee shops on the way to the train. She stopped in a shop that had an A-frame sign advertising that they had just been named one of the top ten shops in New Yorkby Thrillist, or maybe it was Eater? Surely such a well-regarded establishment would be able to make her a delicious flat white. Perhaps theyd even become a part of her morning routine after Emilys betrayal. She reached the cashier after waiting a little too long in line.

Flat white, please, she said without her customary politeness.

I dont know what that is, the cashier responded. Would you like to see a menu?

Susan felt the room start to spin. Long black? she blurted.

Excuse me?

Do you make a Magic??

We make-a ayou mean coffee?

SMASHED AVOCADO TOAST?!?

Zagat says our bacon, egg, and cheese is terrif

Susan rushed out of the shop and struggled to breathe. She grabbed her iPhone out of her purse and went straight to Google, where she typed best flat white in New York City. In less than a second, Google responded:

No results found for best flat white in new york city.

Susan started to wander aimlessly as she lost all sense of time and space. Thrown off of her reliable morning routine and sent into a tailspin of uncertainty, she stared at the ground as she slowly walked down the sidewalk muttering, No more flat white? No more flat white?

Looking for flat white? a deep voice whispered behind her. Susan quickly turned around to see a glamorous woman in a black jumpsuit lurking in a dark alley.

Do you know where I can get one?!? Susan asked, her eyes welling with tears.

Follow me, the mysterious woman replied.

Normally Susan would never follow a stranger down a dark alley but a life without flat whites seemed hardly worth living. She kept close behind the woman who confidently strode to a metal door and knocked rapidly. The door opened into a pitch black room. The woman charged in and Susan followed without hesitation. The door slammed and Susan felt many hands grabbing her and forcing her into a chair. She screamed as her arms were tied down. Finally, after she was securely bound to the chair, a dim light came on. The mysterious woman stood in front of her alongside a black-clad old man who looked angry and puzzled.

Asking for flat whites, were you? he barked.

This wasnt supposed to happen, the woman interjected. You were all supposed to forget.

Please, please! What is going on? Susan cried.

We are a very powerful faction of concerned citizens known as CDAC, he stated angrily. It stands for Committee for the De-Australianization of American Coffee. Overnight, we have wiped the concept of Australian coffee from the collective consciousness of all New Yorkers. Somehow, you were unaffected.

But but espresso beverages dont even originate in America!! Susan replied, bewildered.

Beside the point! he yelled with one finger in the air. Australians with their culture of perfectly good coffee should have kept to themselves. You cant expect New York baristas to keep track of all these silly drinks! New Yorkers must be allowed to discover coffee on their own terms, through americanos and macchiatos prepared by their own disaffected youth!

All color drained from Susans face. This was a capable group indeed and their grand scheme had not worked on her. She was a danger to all they had worked to accomplish.

Are you going to kill me? she whimpered.

Of course not, the mysterious woman said as she rolled her eyes. Well let you go.

Susan had been holding her breath and she finally allowed herself to exhale as a few tears ran down her cheeks.

After youve had a cappuccino, the old man added.

Two more women in black jumpsuits rolled out a cart with a single-group espresso machine, grinder, and pitcher of milk. One glared at Susan as she ground coffee into a portafilter, tamped it, and locked it into the machine. As espresso steadily pooled in the cup below, she purged her steam wand with her nose upturned, sank the wands tip just below the surface of the milk, and introduced air with a pillowy chhhhhhhhh sound.

No! Susan yelled. Thats too much air! I can hear that that is too much air! Please stop!

The woman snarled as she turned off the steam wand, picked up the pitcher, and poured velvety steamed milk into the cup. She presented her work to Susan. An eight-tiered tulip stared back at her.

That milk texture is too dense! You should hardly be able to pour any latte art in there! Susan screamed.

Drink it, the woman commanded.

Susan considered her options and quickly reasoned that this powerful group could easily ruin other parts of her life if so compelled. She could find one day that all kale had been replaced with iceberg lettuce. She could walk into the Strand Bookstore only to discover there were no traces of any work by Jonathan Safran Foer. She knew what she had to do. She parted her lips and let the woman pour the cappuccino into her mouth. She obediently swallowed large gulps of espresso and steamed milk in an effort to get past this unbearable trauma.

And then, in a flash, she was free and began a slow, bewildered stumble back to her apartment. She couldnt go into work today knowing that she would have to resign herself to a life of morning cappuccinos instead of the sweet ephemera of a thinly textured flat white. She looked at her phone. Her text message to Colin remained undelivered. She needed to call him. It wasnt possible that CDAC had wiped the memory of flat whites from the minds of actual Australians, was it? She tapped his name in her recent calls. The phone rang and rang and rang.

Eric J. Grimm is a Sprudge contributor based in New York City, writing on pop culture and film. Read more Eric J. Grimm on Sprudge.

* Editors note: Actually the flat white was invented in New Zealand.
Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), October 27, 2016 (SPS) - The African Union Peace and Security Council (PSC) affirmed that the expulsion of members of the United Nations Mission for the self-determination referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) "is an approach that threatens regional peace, hinders regional and international efforts, and freezes the peace process."

At an annual meeting, held Tuesday by the AU Peace and Security Council in Addis Ababa, on the assessment of the African peace missions actions, Ambassador Yilma Tadesse, AU representative with the MINURSO, presented the latest developments of the Sahrawi cause and the AU efforts as part Western Sahara conflict settlement process.

Particular emphasis was placed on the evaluation of MINURSO operation, frozen since last March following the expulsion by Morocco of its civilian component.March following the expulsion by Morocco of its civilian component. (SPS)

062/090/700




The cold and rainy afternoon of October 27 in the Catskill Mountains certainly wasnt a day that amateur drivers could embrace still three races dedicated to the amateurs went to post on the betting card at Monticello Raceway; one in the CKG Billings Series and two in the North American Amateur Drivers series, with many participants competing in both.

Hurricane Hannah Miller added another victory --her 30th this year--to her seasonal totals when she won the Billings trot with Jacks To Open. In NAADA action both Tony Ciuffetelli and Alan Schwartz copped their respective divisions; Ciuffetelli with Tagmaster and Schwartz behind Ladys Big Stormont.

Upon her return to the paddock a cold and shivering Hannah Miller managed a smile while hanging up the lines on Jacks To Open who was an easy 2:00.4 victor in the Billings Trot.

Im freezing, she said, But Im happy that my horse was real strong today. He went a tough mile and still drew off to an easy victory.

When the gate sprung four horses went for the lead which was commandeered by Bob the Headhunter Hechkoff with Justtherighttouch. When Miller ranged alongside Hechkoff with Jacks To Open the two horses raced head to head to the half and up the backside at which point Millers trotter took command with only the second and third place finishers in doubt.

As Jacks To Open rounded the final turn he had five lengths on the field which was opened to eight at the wire. A shuffled-back Macks Gold Band, with Buffalo Bob Davis at the controls, found daylight late and rallied to finish second, a length ahead of Smokin Joe Faraldos Permanent Joy.

Nick Surick trains Jacks To Open ($6.80) who is owned by the Nick Surick Stable and Hannah Miller.

Alan Schwartz got the amateur soiree started with a gate-to-wire triumph with Ladys Big Stormont in the first of two NAADA trots.

Schwartz sent the five-year-old Earl Of Stormont gelding to the lead, one that they never relinquished although Hannah Miller and Rocket Master supplied stiff pressure as the field headed for the three quarters.

Schwartzs charge rebuffed Millers trotter and went on to score a length victory in 2:01.1 over the soggy race track.

My horse is was testy behind the (starting) gate but once the race was underway he was perfect, Schwartz said referring to Ladys Big Stormonts winning trip.

With a two-hole journey throughout Bob Hechkoffs, The Franchise, garnered second money and after his early rally Rocket Master just hung and finished third.

Owned by his driver and trained by Raheim Strong Ladys Big Stormont returned a $7.30 win mutuel to his backers.

The second NAADA Trot saw hot-handed Tony Ciuffetelli sit back off the early speed with his own Tagmaster and then charge home an easy winner in a time of 2:04.

After some fast early fractions over the soaked racetrack the leaders seemed to come back to me, Ciuffetelli said about the tiring horses on the front end. I was back, off the early pace and when I moved him (Tagmaster) up the backside he took off like gangbusters and was the strong horse in the stretch. I guess the soft track was good on his (my horses) feet."

Trotalot finished second for Bob Hechkoff while 50-1 shot Saraboo garnered the show dough for Pete Seibert.

Ciuffetelli also owns and trains Tagmaster who paid $41.20 for win. Ciuffetelli is currently the hottest driver in amateur racing. With his victory today the retired correction officer now has four consecutive driving victories and five wins in his last six starts.

(CKG Billings/NAADA)
The favourites failed to find their way to victory lane in the fourth leg of the Robert Murphy Breeders Stake during Thursdays card of racing at Fraser Downs, but that wasnt the case for the fillies in their divisions of the Betty Millbank Memorial Breeders Stake.

Credit Risk was a wire-to-wire winner in his $15,000 division of the Robert Murphy Breeders Stake for three-year-old pacing colts and geldings for trainer/driver Jim Marino, who enjoyed a three-win performance on the 10-race card.

The son of Up The Credit-KG Tigress zipped through fractions of :28.2, :59.2 and 1:28.1 before storming home in :28 to win by 3-1/2 lengths over the dead-heating tandem of the odds-on favourite, Bobby Dazzler, and Imrunninonsunshine. The time for the mile was 1:56.1.

Marino co-owns the gelding with Brian Moyes, Ian Moyes and Steve Shand. The partners have watched the pacer assemble a 5-2-2 record from 11 trips to the track this season. Hes stashed away more than $70,000 to date.

The other $15,000 division went to One Big Cat in 1:55.4 for driver Paul Davies and trainer Debra Mc Carthy.

Davies treated the colt to a ground-saving trip through the opening half of the contest, but he was out and gunning as the field made its way to the three-quarter pole. Fire Of The Dragon threw down panels of :28, :58.3 and 1:27.3, but he couldnt fend off late pressure. One Big Cat, who charged first-over, used a :28.1 kicker to win by 1-1/2 lengths over even-money favourite Tito Santanna. Fire Of The Dragon faded to finish third.

The son of American Ideal-Cats Meow won for the second time this season and for the seventh time in his career. Owned by J J J Stables of Prince George, BC, the sophomore is quickly closing in on $100,000 in lifetime earnings.

Yoga Pants gave trainer/driver Marino the stakes double on the card thanks to her blowout score in the first division of the Betty Millbank Memorial Breeders Stake for two-year-old pacing fillies.

The daughter of Sportswriter-Lucks Pleasure sat a four-hole trip through first-half fractions of :27.1 and :58.2, but Marino moved her in the backstretch and with an explosive kick she sprinted to the lead while racing parked past the three-quarter pole in 1:28.1. She used a :29.4 closing panel to win by 4-3/4 lengths over Keys Please in 1:58. Soft And Dry settled for third prize in the $15,000 affair.

Sent off as the 6-5 choice, Yoga Pants won for the third time in four tries for Marino, who shares ownership on the career winner of $26,250 with J J J Stables of Prince George, AB.

Lil Beach extended her winning streak to three-in-a-row in the other division for trainer/driver Rod Therres. He put the filly on the engine early, and after leading through intervals of :29, :58.3 and 1:27.3 she used a :30-second kicker to win by pair of lengths over Badlands Palace in 1:57.3. Third prize went to Sustainedintensity.

Breeder Robert Collier of Victoria shares ownership on the talented lass with Jane Kelly of Langley, BC. The daughter of Lil Dude Starrbuck-Greek Beach has banked $26,250 to date.

To view results for Thursday's card of harness racing, click the following link: Thursday Results  Fraser Downs.
Fred Hertrichs All American Harnessbreds has purchased an interest in harness racings fastest horse, Always B Miki.

Always B Miki set the sports all-time speed record of 1:46 on October 9 at the Red Mile. He is the only horse to ever pace four miles in 1:47 or faster  no other horse has more than one.

This is the biggest investment in a stallion that weve made in a long time. Thats how much we think of this horse, and we plan on supporting him aggressively, said All American Harnessbreds General Manager Rob Tribbett. Were really excited to have the opportunity to be involved with Always B Miki.

Always B Miki, who is competing in the Breeders Crown Open Pace on Friday night at the Meadowlands, will be retired to stud duty at Diamond Creek Farm in Pennsylvania following the November 12 TVG Free-For-All Pace. Diamond Creek has also purchased a significant interest in Always B Miki.

Were thrilled that All American is on board with us, said Diamond Creeks Adam Bowden. Obviously, we want Always B Miki to have a great opportunity as a sire and their support is a big asset.

In addition to Diamond Creek and All American, Always B Mikis ownership at stud will include present owners Roll The Dice Stable, Bluewood Stable and Christina Takter.

Both Diamond Creek and the ownership group which has campaigned Always B Miki are excited to have All American join the Miki team, and we anticipate bringing aboard other breeders, said Bluewood principal Robert Boni.

(Always B Miki ownership group)
Four lucrative Matron Stakes for two-year-olds will highlight the start of the 2016-17 season at Dover Downs. The Delaware capital city five-eighths mile track will begin its 48th meet on Monday, October 31.

On Monday morning, from 10 a.m. until 12 noon, the entry box will open for the four Matron two-year-old trots and paces. Next week, the Matron three-year-olds will race.

The richest of the Matron freshman stakes is the $161,700 (estimated) colt and gelding pace. The filly pace will have a $145,000 (est.) purse, while both trots will be raced for roughly $140,000 apiece.

Mondays opening 15-race card features a $30,000 Preferred-Open Handicap pace. The tilt is headlined by Dancing Yankee, Mel Mara and Mustang Art. The program also includes an $18,000 Open pace and two $15,000 paces.

On Tuesday, Australian-invader Nike Franco N and Scandalicious headline the $20,000 female pacing feature, while Theresademoninme, Somebody AS, Il Mago and Maestro Blue Chip will tangle in the $20,000 Open Handicap trot.

Also getting underway during opening week is the first of two preliminary legs of the Delaware Standardbred Breeders Fund series for two-year-old trotters and pacers.

Later in November, the track will feature the $330,000 (est.) Hap Hansen Progress Pace, the tracks signature event that sees some of the top three-year-old male pacers go head to head.

Please note that Dover Downs remaining first-week draw schedule is Monday, October 31 for Thursday, November 3, including all four Matron two-year-old paces and trots. The entry box will close at 12 noon.

The regular draw-schedule then becomes:

 Monday for Sunday

 Tuesday for Monday

 Wednesday for Tuesday

 Thursday for Wednesday

 Sunday for Thursday

(With files from Dover Downs)
Jimmy Takter needs few words to sum up tonights Breeders Crown Open Pace at the Meadowlands, which features a continuation of the rivalry between Takters Always B Miki and George Teague Jr.s Wiggle It Jiggleit.

This, Takter says, is what its all about.

Wiggle It Jiggleit is the No. 1-ranked horse in harness racings current Top 10 poll. Always B Miki is No. 2.

Wiggle It Jiggleit has earned more money than any pacer in history prior to the age of five. Always B Miki is the fastest horse in harness racing history.

Wiggle It Jiggleit is the defending Horse of the Year. Always B Miki is the defending Breeders Crown champion.

Yeah, this is what its all about.

Wiggle It Jiggleit and Always B Miki have met seven times this year. Each has won three of the encounters. The only other horse to win a race involving both Wiggle It Jiggleit and Always B Miki is Shamballa, who also is in the Open Pace.

Its exciting, Takter said. Win, lose or draw its going to be a great race. Its great horses meeting up. And great horses can get beat. Thats the way it is.

When it comes to defining Always B Mikis place in harness racing history, Takter knows exactly where he would put the five-year-old stallion.

I think hes the greatest pacer to ever walk on this earth, Takter said. I really do. If everything would have been his way, could you imagine how much even better he could have been? Hes a great, great horse.

On Oct. 9 at Lexingtons Red Mile, Always B Miki paced the fastest mile in harness racing history, winning the Allerage Farms Open Pace in 1:46. The time eclipsed Cambests mark of 1:46.1, which was set in a time trial at Springfield, Ill., in 1993. No horse had ever paced faster than 1:46.4 in a race.

Always B Miki, who was twice sidelined by injuries that forced him to miss nearly a year of action, is the 6-5 morning line favourite in the Open Pace and will start from post four with driver David Miller. The event is one of four Breeders Crown races at the Meadowlands on Friday, with an additional eight Breeders Crown races Saturday at The Big M.

Since returning to action last fall, Always B Miki has won 14 of 20 races and finished second five times. He will try to become the first horse to win the Open Pace in consecutive years since Bettor Sweet in 2011-12. Always B Mikis wins this year include the Ben Franklin Pace, William Haughton Memorial, Jim Ewart Memorial, and Hoosier Pacing Derby.

In addition to becoming the fastest horse in history, Always B Miki shares the record of 1:47 for the fastest mile by a horse on a five-eighths-mile track. Always B Miki has paced 1:47 on a five-eighths oval on three occasions.

Wiggle It Jiggleit, a four-year-old gelding, has won 38 of 50 career races and earned $3.95 million. Starting from post seven with driver Montrell Teague, he is 8-5. His wins this year include the Canadian Pacing Derby, Dan Patch Invitational, Joe Gerrity Jr. Memorial, Dorothy Mullin Invitational, and Battle of Lake Erie.

Im very happy for George, said Takter, who shares the same birthday, Sept. 29, as Teague. Hes done a wonderful job with that horse and theyve done great for the sport promoting it. Theyre great people and do a lot for the sport.

Takter leads all trainers in Breeders Crown trophies, with 27. He has 17 horses entered in this years Breeders Crown finals, tied with Ron Burke for the most among all trainers.

Among Takters 17 Breeders Crown finalists are three returning champions from last year: Always B Miki, three-year-old female trotter All The Time, and three-year-old female pacer Pure Country.

Last year, Takter set a Breeders Crown record with six wins.

It was a magic night, Takter said. Things have got to go your way so good. It worked once in my life like that and Im very grateful to have been involved in it. I dont ask for it again.

In addition to Always B Miki, Takter has morning line favourites on Saturday with All The Time, Pure Country, Ariana G (two-year-old filly trot), Idyllic Beach (two-year-old filly pace), and Western Fame (three-year-old male pace). Bar Hopping is the second choice behind Trotting Triple Crown winner Marion Marauder in the three-year-old male trot.

Ariana G is one of three Takter horses in the two-year-old filly trot. She is joined by elimination winner Thats All Moni and Princess Aurora. Chezatter was the other elimination winner.

Ariana G was a little too grabby in her elimination, Takter said. Shes definitely the best two-year-old filly out there, but shes got to overcome that. She cant be too grabby like that. I trained her this week and she felt very good. We did a couple of (equipment) changes and opened her up and added some things to try to help her relax. I think its her race to lose. But its a very good group of trotting fillies.

I like all three of mine. Thats All Moni was fantastic first-up last week. She could sneak around and maybe surprise. Shes got a good quick brush. Princess Aurora got post 10, which was unfortunate because she raced awesome in her elimination. She probably trotted in :55 the last half. Shes a very good filly, a little sleeper there.

All The Time, who was sidelined for nearly two months because of colic surgery following her victory in the Hambletonian Oaks, won her Breeders Crown elimination. The other elim was won by last years Dan Patch Award winner Broadway Donna.

It almost brought tears to my eyes to see her do what she did, Takter said about All The Times win. When I started her back after I got clearance from the veterinarian she didnt look good physically because she lost a lot of muscle tone. Its just amazing how fast she came back. She looked great and she finished strong. I think she is going to be very close.

I thought Broadway Donna raced really good from the 10 hole (in her elimination). All The Time, shes just a champion. If she wins this one its going to be a heck of a story. Shes just a fantastic horse.

Bar Hopping is one of three Takter trainees in the three-year-old male trot, along with Love Matters and Lagerfeld. Bar Hopping and Sutton won last weeks eliminations. It was Bar Hoppings fourth win in his last five starts. His only setback was a third-place finish behind Marion Marauder and Southwind Frank in the Kentucky Futurity.

I thought Bar Hopping was maybe Saturdays best performance, the way he looked down the stretch, he just opened up like a great horse, Takter said. When he goes by horses, he goes by them big. But sometimes he kind of hesitates and just hangs there.

He didnt have a good race in the Futurity. I thought Tim (driver Tetrick) gave him a perfect trip and he should have won that race. I was very disappointed with that race, but I was very proud of him in the Breeders Crown elimination. Weve got to do it in the big time, but I consider him a good shot. Hes going to be a player.

On Friday night, Takter will send two-time Breeders Crown champion Shake It Cerry into the Breeders Crown Mare Trot. It is expected to be the final start of her career. She has won 29 of 60 lifetime races and earned $2.75 million. She was Trotter of the Year in 2014.

This most likely will be her last race, Takter said. Shes starting to get a little tired. She had a wonderful career. What a wonderful horse shes been for us.

Takters remaining Breeders Crown starters are Sir John F (two-year-old male trot), Ocean Colony and Blood Line (two-year-old male pace), Katie Said (Mare Pace) and Lyons Snyder (three-year-old male pace).

For the complete cards with Breeders Crown fields, click one of the following links: Friday - Meadowlands -- Saturday - Meadowlands.

This story courtesy of Harness Racing Communications, a division of the U.S. Trotting Association. For more information, visit www.ustrotting.com.
Family Research Council Action Unveils iVoter Guide Tool to Inform Values Voters

Contact: J.P. Duffy or Alice Chao, Family Research Council Action, 866-FRC-NEWS or 866-372-6397



WASHINGTON, Oct. 28, 2016 /Standard Newswire/ -- Today, Family Research Council Action (FRC Action), announced a new voter tool, iVoter Guide, providing values voters with comprehensive information on all federal elections in all 50 states, and all statewide races in 9 states. The nine states included in this effort are: Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington state, and Wisconsin. FRC Action plans to finish distributing over 4 million election guides prior to Election Day.

The voter guide rates the candidates in each race tracked by FRC Action on a scale of "very conservative," "conservative," "somewhat conservative," "moderate," "somewhat liberal," "liberal," and "very liberal."

The voter guide was compiled using legislative vote ratings, campaign finance data, virtual vote ratings, endorsements from around 300 liberal and conservative organizations, and candidate issue surveys to determine how each candidate would potentially govern given publically available data. The voter tool also includes a tool in which users can search their state and district candidates, find their polling location and share their research with others.

FRC Action president Tony Perkins commented:

"Conservatives can't afford to sit back and watch their country go over the edge with four more years of ultraliberal policies under a Hillary Clinton presidency, a Democratic controlled House and Senate and Democratic controlled state level governments. For America, this cannot be an election about two people running for president. It's about two fundamentally different visions for our country at the national and state levels. If polling has shown us anything, it's how razor-thin the margin of victory may be. In a nation this divided, even one vote can make a difference.

"The outcomes of this year's elections will have a major impact on the future of religious liberty, family values, sanctity of life, and the Supreme Court. In 2012, there were 39 million voting-eligible Christians who did not vote. As we travel the nation, we are telling values voters this is not a time to stand on the sidelines. If we, as values voters, do not stand up and exercise our freedoms now, we may lose them tomorrow," concluded Perkins.

Please see ivoterguide.com for more information: votevalues.com
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In 1819, Jacob Bromwell, a soldier of the War of 1812, started manufacturing kitchenware and household goods to pioneering families. As Americas oldest housewares company, they produced the classic tin cup during the Civil War and they were used by both Union and Confederate soldiers.

For the past 200 years, Jacob Bromwells company has maintained the tradition, authenticity and quality since day one. All goods are still made in the USA  at their factories in Indiana and Vermont.

Weve been using Jacob Bromwell products for the past 7 years in our kitchen, starting with The Original Popcorn Popper (which are still made with the original equipment and dies from the late 1800s) and the Heritage Cookie Sheets.

Jacob Bromwells Heritage Cookie Sheets

The last cookie sheet you will ever buy!

The Heritage Cookie Sheets are made of 100% heavy, 20 gauge natural aluminum, which will never rust. Like all Jacob Bromwell products, it is guaranteed for life  this will be the very last cookie sheet you will ever buy!

Jacob Bromwells Homestead Rolling Pin

The Homestead Rolling Pin is made of genuine American maple with a sturdy steel axle  the very same rolling pin that our pioneer ancestors used. There are no stains, paints or veneers, just a simply elegant and timeless design and finished with food-safe, all-natural oil.

The Homestead Rolling Pin is extra long for all your pie-making needs and also includes the Jacob Bromwell signature logo branded on the barrel.

If youre looking for a thoughtful, one-of-a-kind gift that supports American workers, consider the Heritage Cookie Sheet and Homestead Rolling Pin from Jacob Bromwell. The two products together are $125.00. Its a gift that will absolutely last a lifetime, they guarantee it.

We highly recommend any of their products  handmade copper flasks, small-batch spirits, frontier cast-iron frying pans, flour sifter (they were the first to manufacture flour sifters and still use the same design!)

My favorite product is still the cookie sheet and rolling pin 

Jacob Bromwell Cookie Sheet and Rolling Pin Giveaway

Our friends at Jacob Bromwell is providing the giveaway product!
In Roman Polanskis 2002 film, The Pianist, Wadysaw Szpilman, played by Adrien Brody, sits at a grand piano in a dimly lit room, clothes tattered  and begins to play Frederic Chopins Ballade No. 1. A soldier stands over him, watching Szpilmans fingers fly over the keys, eyes closed, his breath rapid and short.

The scene is both emotive and technically impressive. Ballade No. 1 is notably one of Chopins most difficult  and its also one of 17-year-old Abriana Churchs favorite pieces to play.

Its a great romantic piece, because it has so much color and change, Church said during a phone call from her grandmothers house in Idaho Tuesday. It has moments that are different, so it has a part in the middle (where) its really fast and lively and happy, and then theres other places that are really sad or places that are angry. It has so many emotions.

Church will be performing in Longview on Sunday at St. Stephens Episcopal Church at 3 p.m., and though she will not be playing Chopin, the young pianist will be performing some equally challenging pieces, including Beethovens Les Adieux Sonata, Liszts La Campanella, Rachmaninoffs Prelude in G-Major and Ravels La Valse.

Local piano instructor Martin Kauble is hosting the young performer. He discovered her at an event at Classic Pianos in Portland this summer.

While in the showroom before the performance, held in the stores recital hall, Kauble was testing out several pianos. On one, he began to play a passage from Ballade No. 1.

From the room on the other side of the wall someone was on the other side and played the same passage back to me like an echo, Kauble said. And I went Oh, who is that? And I went around the corner, and there was a room back there. And there was Abriana with her father next to her.

After speaking for a short time, Kauble invited Church to perform in Longview. Hes invited other young talented pianists to showcase in the past.

Its nice, (the performers) have this repertoire that they practice and learn for these competitions, Kauble said. Its a chance to perform without being in a contest.

Church said that she doesnt really know when she fell in love with the piano, but an experience when she was just 10 made her realize she never wanted to give it up.

There was the point where we werent going to be able to take lessons because it was too expensive, Church said. First we did baked goods like banana bread and zucchini bread, cookie mix and homemade cards because I also like drawing.

Church and her siblings continued to raise money this way for four years, until her family began a successful dog breeding business. The canines now finance music and ballet lessons for her and her six siblings.

It hasnt been easy for Church to balance piano with all of her other interests and passions. Though she also played violin for six years  she even played with the Boise Philharmonic Youth Orchestra  she eventually put it aside to focus on the piano. Leading up to competitions and recitals, Church will often practice up to nine hours a day.

And its paid off: Most recently, Church placed first in the Northwest division of the Music Teachers National Association Senior Piano Competition in January and placed third at the MTNA Nationals competition in April.

Its my mom thats really supportive, Church said. Twice a month she brings me to piano lessons in Salt Lake City and thats like a six-and-a-half-hour drive from our house.

Though she has been playing since she was six years old, Church said she doesnt consider herself a prodigy or a genius.

Ive never given up and I think thats why Ive done so well, Church said. Ive kept trying and never gave up and its really brought me a long way.
Indian market with the budding number of mobile subscribers is booming, and according to a fresh report published by GSMA, India is predicted to cross the milestone of 1 billion mobile users by the end of 2020. As per the reports of GSMA, in the first half of 2016, India, with the user-base of 275 million devices has already overtaken the US, and by 202, it is expected to hit the landmark of 1 billion subscribers for mobile.

Apart from this, the report also highlights that India is also kept on witnessing the rapid shifting in the ongoing technology from mobile broadband services and if the pace continues, the number of 3G/4G mobile broadband connections will hit the pointer of more than 670 million by the end of 2020, which is 48% of the global broadband connection base. According to the reports published in The Mobile Economy: India 2016, from Groupe Speciale Mobile Association, at the end of June 2016, India is recorded to have 616 million unique mobile subscribers and the rate if booming up with a faster pace.

In the reports, GSMA also forecasts India to witness a significant growth in the number of 4G connections. While in 2015, the number of 4G mobile connectivity is declared to be three million, by the end of 2020, it is expected to reach 280 million. In addition to this, the report claimed the Indian smartphone industry to see a decent growth in the economy. As per the statistics, in 2015, the economic value generated by the mobile industry of the country is corresponding to 6.5% of the nations entire GDP, which has made the country gain more than $140 billion (Rs. 9 lakh crores) profit by the end of last financial year.

While publicising the report, Mats Granryd, Director General of GSMA addressed to the media with the statement which reads, the current margin of mobile subscribers a signpost for the tremendous growth which India is going to witness in coming years. This unexpected intensification in the number of mobile users in the country will powerfully shore up and facilitate the Indian governments noble project Digital India which is intended to enlarge the availability of broadband connectivity all over the country.
tech2 News Staff

Apple's MacBook Pro event was jaw-dropping and awe-inspiring for some while other found it boring, bland and pointless. Still then it was easy to notice how Apple who is currently struggling with sales, put up a brave face and ignored the best-seller the MacBook Air. In fact, it was easy to conclude that Apple may soon be phasing out the old model with the recently launched 2016 MacBook now being its standard MacBook offering. Whether you are angered with Apple that a MacBook now costs an arm and a leg, or you are just glad to see a new layer of touch-based interaction on macOS here's how the event panned out.
tech2 News Staff

We have seen it in the rumours and were more than surprised to see it launch at Xiaomi's Mi Note 2 event. We are talking about the Mi Mix, Xiaomi's concept phone with a bezel-less design which was announced only for the China market. Turns out an online store that has listed the smartphone with the best screen to body ratio. And yes they do deliver to India.

Yes, Gearbest has listed Xiaomi's concept smartphone on its website in both the 4GB RAM 128GB storage model and the 6GB RAM 256GB storage model. The website has only listed the smartphones for now, with no date of arrival, but the site will notify you when it arrives in stock.

What do you get to know in advance is the price tags for these bezel-less beasts. The Xiaomi Mi Mix with 4GB RAM and 128GB internal storage is listed at 766 USD (roughly Rs 51,192) while the 6GB RAM and 256GB storage variant is listed at 889 USD (roughly Rs 59,412). Indeed, these are price tags listed before considering the shipping charges.

First reported by GizChina, the website also notes that the handsets on sale at Gearbest will work on FDD LTE bands B1 / B2 / B3 / B4 / B5 / B7 / B8. So do have a look at the bands your operator supports before taking the leap. Another point to note is the warranty of the device, considering that Xiaomi has no plans to bring it to India.

The Mi Mix features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 chipset (Daydream compatible) with 4GB/6GB RAM and is available in both 128GB and 256GB options. There is a 16MP PDAF rear camera and 5MP front facing camera. Apart from the usual Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, there is also full NFC functionality with a high-precision GPS module.
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The former Rutgers University student whose high-profile cyber bullying conviction was overturned last month pleaded guilty on Thursday to attempted invasion of privacy, prosecutors said.

Dharun Ravi, 24, the New Jersey man accused of recording his roommate Tyler Clementi kissing another man, was convicted in 2012 on 15 charges, including several bias intimidation counts and invasion of privacy.

Clementi, 18, committed suicide three days after learning Ravi broadcasted images of him and the man online to a group of other students. Clementi's death sparked a national debate over cyber bullying and discrimination against gays and lesbians.

Ravi, who faced up to 10 years in prison, will be sentenced to the time he has already served on the charges, which was 30 days, allowing him to avoid further prison time for the third-degree offence. Neither Ravi's attorney nor a representative for the Clementi family could immediately be reached for comment.

"Reaching the plea agreement was a reasonable way to resolve the case in view of the appellate court decision, which dismissed a series of criminal bias charges that had been levelled against the defendant by a grand jury in Middlesex County," prosecutor Andrew Carey said in a statement on Thursday.

Last year, the state's Supreme Court struck down part of the law under which Ravi was charged as unconstitutionally vague. That led a New Jersey appeals court in September to throw out Ravi's conviction.

Prosecutors had conceded that Ravi's guilty verdict on those counts should be vacated but argued that his conviction for other crimes, including invasion of privacy and witness tampering, should stand.

But the Appellate Division of the state Superior Court concluded that none of the convictions could remain in place because the bias allegations loomed over the entire case. "Our sympathies remain with the victims family, which continues to work to protect our at-risk youth," Carey said.

Ravi's original sentence also included three years of probation, 300 hours of community service, cyber-bullying counselling and a $10,000 contribution to an organisation dedicated to helping victims of bias crimes, all of which he has served.

Reuters
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Next month's Senate election in Wisconsin could gain Silicon Valley a key ally in Washington in the high-tech industry's battle against the U.S. government's growing appetite for more access to private data. Democrat Russ Feingold, 63, the only lawmaker to vote against the USA Patriot Act in 2001, leads incumbent Republican Senator Ron Johnson in the state in opinion polls ahead of the Nov. 8 election.

Johnson, 61, rode a wave of support from conservative Tea Party activists to victory six years ago, sweeping Feingold out of office. But polls this year have consistently shown Feingold ahead, although recent surveys show a tighter race.

Privacy advocates and former Feingold staffers said they expected Feingold, if returned to office, to be sympathetic to the privacy concerns of technology companies and civil liberties groups on issues such as encryption and domestic spying, at a time when many lawmakers are being pressured to confront security threats from Islamic State and other militant groups.

The Feingold campaign did not respond to requests for comment. Apple Inc, Microsoft Corp and other tech giants have tussled in recent years with government agencies over how much user data the companies should be forced to retain and share with investigators hunting for criminal suspects or national security threats.

Those tensions grew after former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden leaked secrets about U.S. surveillance practices in 2013. They reached a crescendo earlier this year when the FBI tried to force Apple to unlock an iPhone tied to one of the shooters in a San Bernardino, California, attack that killed 14 people.

Chief among the goals of many companies and privacy advocates is reforming a foreign intelligence authority used to justify once-secret broad internet surveillance programs exposed by Snowden that will expire in December 2017 unless Congress reauthorizes them.

Should Feingold return to Capitol Hill, former staffers said he would probably seek a seat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, where he would have privileged access to classified information about government spying.

Feingold's campaign has received far more contributions than Johnson's from donors employed by tech companies including Alphabet Inc's Google and Intel Corp, a review of U.S. Federal Election Commission records showed.

Voted against Patriot Act

Digital privacy activists have long regarded Feingold as an ally and aggressive overseer of the intelligence community, a reputation he burnished as the sole vote against the USA Patriot Act, which was passed after the Sept. 11 attacks, expanding the government's surveillance capabilities. In a speech from the Senate floor at the time, Feingold raised concerns that one provision would allow the government to "go on a fishing expedition and collect information on virtually anyone."

Leaks from Snowden in 2013 showed the provision Feingold questioned was later secretly interpreted to conduct bulk surveillance on U.S. phone metadata. That program was curtailed by Congress in 2015.

Feingold "was a true leader in fighting indiscriminate mass surveillance of innocent Americans," U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat who also is among congressional skeptics of government spying, said in a statement. Wisconsin typically leans Democratic during high-turnout presidential election years, a problem for Johnson, who won by nearly 5 points in 2010 running as a small-government outsider.

"It was pretty clear that 2010 was a wave election and there was nothing that (Feingold) could have done to fend off the challenge from Ron Johnson," said Kenneth Mayer, a political science professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Johnson has attempted to use Feingold's 18-year Senate record to portray him as soft on national security. William Allison, a Johnson campaign spokesman, added that Feingold had been "willing to completely mislead Wisconsinites about his weak record on national security."

Reuters
Aditya Madanapalle

On August 2, at an Unpacked event the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 was launched. It was a device in a product category of its own, one that Samsung believed in and stuck to, despite initial questions on the need for an S-Pen or such a large screen smartphone. It was a design seemingly behind the times to use a stylus, but Samsung stuck to its vision and the series was a success. The Samsung Galaxy Note 7 had a number of firsts, including Gorilla Glass 5 on the front and back, a water resistant s-pen and HDR video.

Excitement for the device was high as US pre-orders started the very next day. The device launched in India on August 11, for Rs 59,990. We spent a short time with it and were impressed by the device. Back then, it looked like the device would do well.

By August late august, things started going downhill. On August 24, a Samsung Galaxy Note 7 explosion was reported from China. The device had been charging when the explosion occurred. Over 30 Note 7 explosions came to light by the end of August. In early September, Samsung acknowledged the problem and announced that it would recall the smartphones. Sales were halted in China. The worldwide recall was the largest in consumer electronics history.

In early September, Samsung started investigating the issue seriously. It urged users to power down their devices. To date (as of September 1) there have been 35 cases that have been reported globally and we are currently conducting a thorough inspection with our suppliers to identify possible affected batteries in the market. However, because our customers safety is an absolute priority at Samsung, we have stopped sales of the Galaxy Note7. The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) banned the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 from all its flights.

Samsung urged its users to return the device as soon as possible, and announced an over the air update that would limit the charging to sixty percent of the capacity, to reduce incidents of the smartphone catching fire. Samsung shares started to plummet. The US officially recalled the Samsung Galaxy Note 7. The replacement devices were to have a green battery icon to indicate that they were replaced and safe to use. In the United States, it was the largest fire and burn hazard related recall ever.

The replacement devices were to be available by mid September. In South Korea, the replacement devices were postponed to October, to speed up the recall process. Only half of affected users had returned the device. There were reports that a replaced Samsung Galaxy Note 7 exploded in China, one of the models designated as safe. Samsung scrambled to investigate the issue. Samsung announced that the recalls and replacements were successful, and that more than one million people were using safe Samsung Galaxy Note 7 devices.

By the end of September, there were hints of the next Note, and some of the features it could include based on patent filings by Samsung. The previous incident from China of a replaced device exploding was still being investigated, when disaster struck. A replaced Samsung Galaxy Note 7 was turned off, and put in a pocket at the request of flight staff in a US flight. Even as the passenger was pocketing the phone that had been turned off, the Note 7 started emitting smoke, forcing the flight attendants to evacuate the plane.

Samsung staff endured sleepless nights, cancelled vacations, heated meetings and constant social media monitoring to control the damage done by the exploding phones. A customer received a shocking message where Samsung executives were trying to stall a reaction to an exploding replaced phone, which was at odds with Samsung statements prioritising consumer safety. Just now got this. I can try and slow him down if we think it will matter, or we just let him do what he keeps threatening to do and see if he does it, the message read. Samsung was in a tough spot. They could attempt to recall the phones and replace them a second time, or sunset the model permanently.

Samsung moved to halt the production of any more Galaxy Note 7 devices over further reports of replacement devices exploding. Five more devices exploded, and a Burger King employee in Korea was caught on film gingerly carrying away a Galaxy Note 7 with greenish smoke pouring out.

After halting production, Samsung stopped the sales of any further devices. It advised all owners to shut down their devices permanently. There were a number of theories and rumours on what really caused the faulty devices to smoke and explode. In any case, Samsung decided to kill the device. Users were shipped fireproof boxes, with instructions on how to package the device and return it to the company. The innermost casing had a ceramic fibre lining.

In India, Samsung did not give its customers a smooth and clear response. Users who had pre-ordered the device just received a note of the paper variety that said the orders would be delayed. Samsung offered a free VR headset as some kind of compensation. Long term Note users however remained loyal to the brand and the series, saw it as a one-off incident that was not a big deal. Samsung investors demanded an explanation over what went wrong with the device, as well as a new device to replace the recalled one.

The Note 7 fiasco actually exposed the dangers and limitations of all lithium-ion batteries in unibody smartphones.

Despite the disaster, Samsung did not cut any jobs. Samsung launched into a thorough investigation, the phones were exploding despite the replacement devices using batteries from a different supplier. Internally, Samsung Electronics Mobile Chief, Koh Dong-jin retained the support of the employees despite the incident. A lack of transparency within the company, and restricted communications between departments, limited the process of investigation into what the actual problem was.

The episode made Samsung miss out in US $ 3 Billion worth of profits over two quarters. The cost estimate does not include the marketing costs to improve the perception of the company after such a crisis. Although the Note 7 was a high end device, the impact of the disaster would be felt across the entire range of devices, according to analysts. Samsung started offering Galasy S7 Edge and Galaxy S7 smartphones to customers who had pre-booked a device, as a peace offering.

In mid October, the US banned Samsung Galaxy Note 7 devices from air transport, even when turned off. Canada, Israel and Japan followed suit, also banning the model from air travel. Airlines banned the device on their own flights as well, without a government order. Singapore Airlines, Air Berlin, Lufthansa, Cathay Pacific, Dragon Air, Quantas and Malaysia Airlines all took steps to ban the device on their flights. Vistara in India banned the device. As a response to these air travel bans, Samsung set up a counter in Seoul airport to replace Samsung Galaxy Note 7 devices on the spot.

Samsung started manufacturing 10-nanometre semiconductors, the first company in the world to do so. The SoCs manufactured with this process would apparently be used in the Samsung Galaxy Note 8. Suppliers faced cancelled orders because of the abrupt discontinuation of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7. Samsung offered to compensate these component suppliers with orders for other phones to cushion the blow. Samsung is apparently in talks with LG Chem to source batteries for their new models.

The Galaxy Note 7 recall was ill timed particularly because of the iPhone 7 launch. An estimated five to seven million people are expected to opt for one of the new iPhone models as the Note 7 is not available. Samsung faces a potential class action lawsuit by US consumers. 527 users from South Korea went ahead and sued Samsung, seeking compensation for the cost of exchanging the device, the psychological harm of using a dangerous phone, and the time wasted in transferring data to and from the phone.

Samsung responded by offering upgrades to the Note 8 and the Galaxy S8 for Note 7 customers in South Korea. The Samsung Galaxy S8 may be available as soon as February 2017, as specifications of the device leaked online.

To get to the root of the problem, Samsung started investigating all aspects of the phone, not just the batteries. The hardware, the software, and the manufacturing process are all being closely investigated. A Samsung Galaxy S7 edge exploded while charging in the US, but so far this has been an isolated incident for the S7 model.

Samsung just reported its third quarter financial results. The chip and display business of the company remained healthy despite the crisis of the smartphone department. The net profit has dropped by 16.8 percent because of the Note 7 crisis. Operating profit dropped 29.7 percent from last year. Samsung slashed its revenue forecast for the next quarters as well.

On 19 December, Samsung completed its own investigation into the explosion, and sent its report to regulators. The results of the report are expected to be released to the general public soon. The devices sold fairly successfully, and Samsung still has more Galaxy Note 7 units in use than LG V20 and OnePlus 3T combined. Samsung announced that it will be pushing out an update that will make the Note 7 impossible to use. The phone feature will be disabled, and the battery will no longer charge. Verizon has decided to defer the update till the fifth of January, so as not to affect the consumers during the holiday season.

The company is making moves to regain the confidence of its customers. The company believes the release of the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 will be an important part of the recovery process.
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A bipartisan group of lawmakers in the U.S. Congress on Thursday asked the Justice Department to clarify how a looming rule change to the government's hacking powers could impact privacy rights of innocent Americans.

The change, due to take place on December 1, would let judges issue search warrants for remote access to computers located in any jurisdiction, potentially including foreign countries. Magistrate judges can normally only order searches within the jurisdiction of their court, which is typically limited to a few counties.

We are concerned about the full scope of the new authority that would be provided to the Department of Justice, 23 senators and representatives wrote to Attorney General Loretta Lynch.

The Supreme Court in April approved amendments to Rule 41 of the federal rules of criminal procedure that would allow judges to issue warrants in cases when a suspect uses anonymizing technology to conceal the location of his or her computer or for an investigation into a network of hacked or infected computers, such as a botnet.

Those amendments will take effect on December 1 of this year unless Congress passes legislation that would reject, amend or postpone the changes. Some lawmakers, led by Democratic Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, have introduced legislation that would halt the changes, but it has yet to gain much traction.

In their letter, the lawmakers asked how the government would prevent under the expanded rule so-called "forum shopping," where prosecutors seek warrants in districts considered more favorable to law enforcement.

They also asked how the Justice Department intends to notify users when electronic devices have been searched and whether law enforcement has the authority to disable malicious software on a protected device, including those belonging to innocent Americans, among other questions.

The Justice Department has worked on Rule 41 changes for years, arguing they are procedural in nature and necessary to keep pace with criminal threats posed by evolving technology.

Civil liberties groups and some technology companies, including Alphabet Inc's Google, have said the changes could allow for searches that run afoul of privacy rights. The Justice Department is reviewing the lawmakers' letter, which asked for a response within two weeks, spokesman Peter Carr said.

Reuters
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This year's presidential election might be the perfect microcosm of Twitter's woes. While some of the most memorable moments of the campaign for the White House have played out on the platform, Twitter has been unable to turn the attention and activity into ad dollars or user growth.

Well suited to quick updates on a noisy and unpredictable campaign, Twitter has been the dominant social media platform in 2016 for candidates, pundits and journalists. Republican nominee Donald Trump's frequent tweeting of tirades against Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, fellow Republicans and the media have been a mainstay of the campaign, setting off furious online debate.

But Twitter Chief Financial Officer Anthony Noto acknowledged when the company reported its quarterly earnings Thursday that the election has had "no noticeable impact" on Twitter's user growth, which analysts say is essential for boosting revenue. Campaigns and political organizations told Reuters that Twitter is simply not a great medium for political advertising.

It is not as effective as rival Facebook at targeting crucial independent voters, and high-profile Twitter users like Trump and Clinton can use it as a megaphone without buying any advertising. "We haven't really used Twitter, largely because our core mission is to reach those undecided voters," said Alixandria Lapp, executive director of the House Majority PAC, which supports Democratic U.S. House of Representatives candidates.

A flood of hate speech and misinformation, which Twitter has done little to tamp down, can also be a barrier to ad buys, campaign digital strategists said. Facebook has emerged as the social media ad platform of choice. It reaches about 94 percent of voters who are registered as independent or are not affiliated with a political party; Twitter only reaches 45 percent of these voters, according to data of mobile users by tracking service Comscore Inc.

Vincent Harris, an Austin-based digital strategist who has worked for U.S. Senator Rand Paul and does some work for Trump, estimated that about 30 percent of his clients' budgets are spent on Facebook, while only 5 percent are spent on Twitter. A recent survey conducted by his company Harris Media found that 81.6 percent of voters said they spent time on Facebook in the last month, while only 28.7 percent spent time on Twitter.

"Minute-to-minute"

As Clinton digital strategist Teddy Goff put it, Twitter is the place to be for obsessively tracking the minute-to-minute of this election but Facebook is a much purer platform for message dissemination and talking about the issues voters care about. Doug Watts, the national executive director of the pro-Trump Committee for American Sovereignty Super PAC, said: "We use Facebook the most, partially because of the scale, but also when you are talking conservative politics, they have an older audience that fits our target." Twitter, he said, is "not really for advertising per se."

The Trump campaign has promoted tweets and placed ad content, said Jessica Ditto, a campaign spokeswoman. But she said it is difficult to use Twitter to collect donations and email addresses because promoted content does not typically get a lot of clicks. The perception is a costly one for Twitter. Elections often provide a big financial boost for advertising platforms such as television and radio stations.

In the 2016 contest, CNN has taken in $100 million more than expected due to intense interest in the election, according to David Folkenflik, National Public Radios media reporter. But on Twitter's earnings call on Thursday, CFO Noto said: "We really need to have a (presidential) debate on Twitter every day for it to meaningfully improve the quarterly metrics."

Some advertisers have tried to take advantage of Twitter's central role in the election. Earlier this month, Harris used Twitter to promote a digital campaign that was launched by the conservative anti-immigration group Secure America Now. More common, though, is the way Clinton operatives use Twitter to engage with what Goff described as a politically attuned audience.

The Clinton campaign collects automated donations via its Troll Trump tool, which asks supporters to pledge a small amount to the campaign every time Trump sends a tweet. The feature is now bringing in $1,588 per tweet, at an average of $11,823 per day, the campaign said.

After Trump called Clinton a nasty woman during a presidential debate, her female supporters co-opted the term on Twitter, using #NastyWoman to show their support. Representative Nancy Pelosi, the highest-ranking Democrat in the U.S. House of Representatives, tweeted: From one #NastyWoman to another, you were an inspiration last night. Women's health provider Planned Parenthood tweeted this week that Early voting shows a surge of #NastyWomen at the polls  and were just getting started.

Reuters
Apple today introduced the thinnest and lightest MacBook Pro ever, along with a breakthrough interface that replaces the traditional row of function keys with a brilliant, Retina-quality Multi-Touch display called the Touch Bar. The new MacBook Pro features Apples brightest and most colorful Retina display yet, the security and convenience of Touch ID, a more responsive keyboard, a larger Force Touch trackpad and an audio system with double the dynamic range. Its also the most powerful MacBook Pro ever, featuring sixth-generation quad-core and dual-core processors, up to 2.3 times the graphics performance over the previous generation, super-fast SSDs and up to four Thunderbolt 3 ports.

The Touch Bar places controls right at the users fingertips and adapts when using the system or apps like Mail, Finder, Calendar, Numbers, GarageBand, Final Cut Pro X and many more, including third-party apps. For example, the Touch Bar can show Tabs and Favorites in Safari, enable easy access to emoji in Messages, provide a simple way to edit images or scrub through videos in Photos and so much more.

Philip Schiller, Apples senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing, said, This week marks the 25th anniversary of Apples first notebook; through the years each generation has introduced new innovations and capabilities, and its fitting that this all-new generation of MacBook Pro is the biggest leap forward yet. With the groundbreaking new Touch Bar, the convenience of Touch ID, the best Mac display ever, powerful performance, improved audio, blazing fast storage and Thunderbolt 3 connectivity in our thinnest and lightest pro notebook yet, the new MacBook Pro is the most advanced notebook ever made.

Thinnest and Lightest MacBook Pro Ever

Building on innovations pioneered in MacBook, the new MacBook Pro features an entirely new enclosure design and all-metal unibody construction that creates an incredibly rigid and dense notebook that is amazingly thin and light. At just 14.9 mm thin, the 13-inch MacBook Pro is 17 percent thinner and 23 percent less volume than the previous generation, and nearly half a pound lighter at just three pounds. The new 15-inch MacBook Pro, at just 15.5 mm thin, is 14 percent thinner and 20 percent less volume than before, and weighing just four pounds, is nearly half a pound lighter.

Touch ID Comes to the Mac

Integrated into the power button is the convenience and security of Touch ID, one of the great features customers have come to know and love from their iPhone and iPad. Once you enroll your fingerprint in Touch ID on your MacBook Pro, you can quickly unlock your Mac, switch user accounts and make secure purchases with Apple Pay on the web with a single touch. Touch ID enables a quick, accurate reading of your fingerprint and uses sophisticated algorithms to recognize and match it with the Secure Enclave in the new Apple T1 chip.

Apples Brightest, Most Colorful Notebook Display

The best Mac display ever delivers images that are more vivid, reveal even greater detail and appear more lifelike than ever. As thin as a MacBook display at .88 mm, the Retina display on the new MacBook Pro at 500 nits of brightness, is an amazing 67 percent brighter than the previous generation, features 67 percent more contrast and is the first Mac notebook display to support a wider color gamut. And with power-saving technologies like a larger pixel aperture, a variable refresh rate and more power-efficient LEDs, the display consumes 30 percent less energy than before.

The Most Powerful MacBook Pro Yet

Powerful processors, cutting-edge graphics, blazing-fast SSDs, high-speed memory and an advanced thermal architecture deliver amazing pro-level performance in a dramatically thinner enclosure. Sixth-generation dual-core Core i5 with eDRAM, dual-core Core i7 with eDRAM and quad-core Core i7 Intel processors deliver pro-level processing performance while conserving energy. The new 15-inch MacBook Pro features powerful Radeon Pro discrete graphics delivering up to 2.3 times more performance than the previous generation; while the 13-inch MacBook Pro comes with Intel Iris Graphics that are up to two times faster than before. All models feature SSDs with sequential read speeds over 3GBps and Thunderbolt 3 which consolidates data transfer, charging and twice the video bandwidth in a single port  allowing users to drive a 5K display and power their MacBook Pro with a single cable.

The New MacBook Pro Also Offers:

Much larger Force Touch trackpads  46 percent larger on the 13-inch MacBook Pro and twice as large on the 15-inch MacBook Pro;

More responsive and comfortable typing on the keyboard with a second-generation butterfly mechanism;

Louder, more true-to-life sound through speakers with double the dynamic range and improved bass;

macOS Sierra, the worlds most advanced desktop operating system, with new features like Siri integration, Universal Clipboard, Apple Pay on the web and Photos, which helps you rediscover your meaningful memories, organize your library and perfect shots like a pro.

Pricing & Availability

The 13-inch MacBook Pro starts at $1,499 (US), features a 2.0 GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.1 GHz, 8GB of memory and 256GB of flash storage, and ships today.

The 13-inch MacBook Pro with the revolutionary Touch Bar and Touch ID starts at $1,799 (US), and features a 2.9 GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.3 GHz, 8GB of memory and 256GB of flash storage, and ships in two to three weeks.

The 15-inch MacBook Pro starts at $2,399 (US), features the revolutionary Touch Bar and Touch ID, a 2.6 GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.5 GHz, 16GB of memory and 256GB of flash storage, and ships in two to three weeks.

@Technuter.com News Service
A prominent Quran reciter in Shiite Iran, who has been affiliated with the Islamic Republics Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, has been accused of raping multiple children, according to some news outlets.



It remains unclear how many victims in total have accused 46-year-old Saeed Toosi, also spelled Said Tossi, of rape.



Toosi has been identified in some news articles as Ayatollah Khameneis favorite Quran reciter.

One of Iran's prominent Muslim clerics has been accused of raping numerous children This is really no shock, and just proves what a double-standard Islamofascists have on homosexuality. Such intercourse between adults is seemingly forbidden, yet violating children with same-sex assaults is apparently allowed. It wouldn't be shocking if the Iranian courts have every intention of letting the animal off the hook either, proving where they really stand.

Labels: iran, islam, misogyny, political corruption
An important panel at the United Nations Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (UNESCO) on Wednesday morning approved a controversial resolution that ignores Jewish and Christian ties to the Temple Mount. The decision came a week after a similar resolution was approved by the body and elicited angry responses from Israel, several world leaders and even the bodys own director-general.



[...] This years member countries of the committee made things particularly difficult for Israeli diplomats battling the resolution. Germany, Colombia and Japan, all sympathetic nations to Israel, are no longer involved, and in their place are Tunisia, Kuwait, Lebanon and Indonesia, bringing to nine the total number of Muslim countries. Those nine and Vietnam were all assumed to have voted for the resolution. Poland, Finland, Croatia, Portugal, the four European countries, had indicated they would abstain.



[...] The resolution, which accuses Israel of various violations, echoed last weeks decision in referring to the Temple Mount compound solely by its Muslim names, Al-Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram Al-Sharif, and defined it only as a Muslim holy site of worship. As the site of the two Biblical temples, the mount is the holiest place in Judaism. But unlike last weeks resolution, the draft did not mention the importance of Jerusalems Old City for the three monotheistic religions.



This is yet another absurd resolution against the State of Israel, the Jewish people and historical truth, Israels ambassador to UNESCO, Carmel Shama-Hacohen, said after the vote.



The fate of the resolution would be no different from United Nations General Assembly Resolution 3379, which equated Zionism with racism, he predicted, noting that that resolution was overturned 16 years after its adoption in 1975. Recalling that Israels ambassador to the UN at the time, Chaim Herzog, tore apart a copy of that resolution, he said that UNESCOs resolution on Jerusalem belonged in the garbage bin of history.

Proving they're still obsessed, the UNESCO panel passed another invalidation of Israel , even if the vote this time was narrow:Honestly, the UN's no different today than yesterday. They're not worth being a member of for anybody sane.

Labels: anti-semitism, Christianity, dhimmitude, islam, Israel, Jerusalem, Judaism, political corruption, UN corruption
More Republicans expect Hillary, rather than Trump, to win US election

Hillary, Donald seen at a presidential election debate.

Reuters, New York :

More Republicans now think Democrat Hillary Clinton, rather than Donald Trump, will win the presidency, as their party's candidate struggles with difficulties including allegations of sexual misconduct and his suggestion he may not honor the outcome of the election. A Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Wednesday and conducted from Oct. 20 to Oct. 24 found that 41 percent of Republicans expected Clinton to win the Nov. 8 election, versus 40 percent who picked Trump.

That reflected a sharp decline in confidence from last month, when 58 percent of Republicans said they thought their party's nominee would win, versus 23 percent who expected Clinton to prevail.

Among Trump's supporters, 49 percent in the latest poll said they believed Trump would win, down from 67 percent who felt that way at the beginning of the month. "There's still hope, I guess. I just don't have a great deal of faith in a good portion of the American public," said Bert Horsley, 38, of Belgrade, Montana, who said he planned to vote for Trump even though he believed Clinton would win.

Horsley said he felt the country was leaning increasingly socialist and that voters were more inclined to focus on Trump's problems than on issues facing Clinton, including allegations she mishandled classified emails while secretary of state. "The nation's willing to overlook certain things in some people and not in others," he said.

Despite the growing pessimism, Trump, who trails Clinton in national opinion polls, still enjoys overwhelming support from members of his party. Some 79 percent of likely Republican voters said they would vote for him. Many said their support was rooted in an expectation he would promote a conservative agenda in Congress and appoint conservative justices to the Supreme Court.

Democrats appear to be strongly anticipating a Clinton presidency. Some 83 percent of Democrats said in the poll they thought she would win, while only 8 percent predicted Trump would become president. Among Clinton's supporters, 92 percent expected her to win, up from 83 percent a month earlier. Clinton held a commanding lead in the race to win the Electoral College and claim the presidency, according to results from the Reuters/Ipsos States of the Nation project released on Saturday.

Trump, a businessman and former reality television star, has alarmed mainstream Republicans throughout his campaign by routinely bashing the political establishment and making a series of provocative statements.

He aroused criticism for belittling the parents of a U.S. soldier killed in the Iraq war, calling for a ban on admitting Muslims to the country and accusing a judge of bias because of his Hispanic heritage. He has also asserted, without showing evidence, that the U.S. electoral system is rigged.

But Republicans remained mostly confident in their candidate's chances until this month, when a videotape from 2005 was released in which Trump could be heard bragging in vulgar terms about kissing and groping women.

At least 10 women have since accused Trump of making unwanted sexual advances, including groping or kissing, from the early 1980s to 2007, according to reports in various news outlets. Trump has denied the women's allegations, calling them "totally and absolutely false" and has promised to sue the women after the election.

Trump has also deepened divisions within his party by refusing to promise to accept the outcome of the election. "I will keep you in suspense," he said when asked about the issue during an Oct. 19 debate with Clinton.

The Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted online in English with American adults in all 50 states. The latest poll included 648 people who identified as Republicans and 771 people who identified as Democrats. It had a credibility interval, a measure of accuracy, of 4 percentage points.




IS trickling out of Mosul as losses mount: US general

Iraqi forces gather near the village of Sin al-Dhuban, south of Mosul on Thursday, during an operation to retake the main hub city from Islamic State group jihadists

AFP, Baghdad :

Islamic State group fighters are trickling out of Iraq's Mosul as the jihadists suffer heavy casualties, the general overseeing American military operations in the region told AFP on Thursday.

Army General Joseph Votel, head of the US military's Central Command, said groups of half a dozen or fewer IS fighters have been seen slipping out of the city as US-backed Iraqi and Kurdish peshmerga forces close in.

Some of them dump weapons and try to look like civilians, making it hard for coalition drones and planes to track them, Votel said, but some presumably are headed toward Raqa, the IS group's Syria stronghold.

"They don't have uniforms, so it is a little bit of a challenge. These aren't big groups, they aren't moving in military formations," the four-star general said, speaking from an undisclosed military base in Southwest Asia.

"There are some that will get away, and I think that happens in a lot of cases. Nothing is 100 percent, but in this case we are doing a pretty good job."

Between 800 and 900 jihadists have been killed in and around Mosul since the Iraqi-led operation to recapture the city began 10 days ago, he added.

Earlier US estimates had put the total population of IS fighters in Mosul itself at between 3,500 and 5,000.

Up to another 2,000 were thought to be in the broader region.

Votel cautioned it was hard to provide precise numbers as IS fighters move around the city and blend in with the local population.

The jihadists have quit Mosul from the west side, which has not been sealed by Iraqi forces.

Some strategists question the Iraqis' decision to leave part of the city open, but Votel said there were advantages to doing so.

"It certainly provides a way for the refugees of the population to get out of there," the general said, and "it does provide an opportunity to limit destruction in the city itself".

Aid groups are bracing for an exodus of Mosul residents as the battle enters the city proper.

The United Nations says more than 10,000 people have already been displaced.

Votel said he had spoken with Iraqi military leaders late Tuesday who told him that, as of that time, 57 Iraqi security forces had been killed and about 255 wounded.

For the Kurdish peshmerga, numbers were lower, with about 30 killed and between 70 and 100 wounded.




China, Saudi Arabia hold joint `anti-terror` drills

BBC Online :

The two-week training in China was part of he country's effort to boost its ties with the Middle East.

Special forces from China and Saudi Arabia have held their first joint anti-terrorism drills, state media reported, in China's latest effort to expand security ties in the Middle East.

The two-week training, that took place in China's southwestern city of Chongqing from October 10, was attended by 25 people from each side, the People's Liberation Army Daily said.

"This joint anti-terrorism training is directed at raising the two militaries' ability to combat terrorism and non-traditional security threats," the paper said on Thursday.

China's President Xi Jinping visited Saudi Arabia early this year, vowing to expand security cooperation and oppose terrorism.

Chinese officials have long been concerned that instability in Afghanistan will spill over into China's western region of Xinjiang, home to the Muslim Uighur people, where hundreds have died in unrest the government blames on separatists.

Authorities in bordering Kyrgyzstan said a suicide bomb attack this August on the Chinese embassy in the Kyrgyz capital was ordered by Uighur fighters active in Syria.

In the face of such threats, China set up an anti-terrorism alliance with neighbours Pakistan, Afghanistan and Tajikistan, which all border Xinjiang, in August.

From October 20 to October 24, more than 400 troops from China and Tajikistan held joint anti-terrorism drills along the remote mountainous Tajik border with Afghanistan, Chinese media reported on Tuesday.

Human rights groups say violence in Xinjiang is more a reaction to repressive government policies and limits on Uighurs' religious freedoms, accusations the government denies.

Hundreds, possibly thousands, of Uighurs have fled the unrest and travelled clandestinely via Southeast Asia to Turkey.




GOPALGANJ: Farid Ahmed Daria, President Gopalganj Press Club speaking at a view exchange meeting on artificial insemination at Muktijuddha Complex Conference Room in Gopalganj on Wednesday.
Brexit: Carmaker Nissan to build new Qashqai model in UK

AFP, London :

Japanese car giant Nissan announced Thursday it will build its new Qashqai sport utility vehicle at its plant in Sunderland, northeast England, easing concerns about Brexit's impact on the industry.

"Nissan's decision follows the UK government's commitment to ensure that the Sunderland plant remains competitive," said a Nissan statement.

"As a result, Nissan will increase its investment in Sunderland, securing and sustaining the jobs of more than 7,000 workers."

It will also add production of the next four-wheel drive X-Trail model at the plant.

British Prime Minister Theresa May called the announcement "fantastic news for the UK", saying the carmaker was "at the heart of this country's strong automotive industry".

"It is a recognition that the government is committed to creating and supporting the right conditions for the automotive industry so it continues to grow-now and in the future," she added.

"This vote of confidence shows Britain is open for business and that we remain an outward-looking, world-leading nation."

Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn warned in September that the company needed guarantees from London over Britain's vote to exit the European Union before it could commit to further investment at the factory in Sunderland.

Britain faces years of tough negotiations with EU members over its future trading terms with the bloc.

Ghosn met May for talks at her Downing Street office on October 14.
Eve-teaser beaten, arrested

Chittagong bureau :

The locals and passerby beat up an eve teaser at Chittagong WASA point in the port city Chittagong on Thursday morning.

Later, they handed over the criminal to the police and police arrested him from the spot at around 9 am. The arrested person is identified as Noyon (30).

Locals and guardians of Bangladesh Women's Association (BWA) School and College told the journalists that Noyon was trying to violate a student of BWA School and College when she was going to class in morning shift.

The victim shouted and locals gathered at the spot nearby BWA School and College.

Locals and guardians beat up him and called police. Police arrested Noyon from the spot. The guardians of the BWA School and College demanded exemplary punishment to eve teaser Noyon.

Later, a mobile court sentenced him for one year in this connection.
Int'l Conference on "Innovations in Science, Engineering Technology' Development of Science, Technology must for implementing Vision 21, 41

Former adviser to the caretaker government and Vice Chancellor of Asia Pacific University, Dr. Jamilur Reza Chowdhury, addressing as chief guest at a two-day-long international conference, titled \'\'Innovations in Science, Engineering and Technology\' at

CU Correspondent :

The development of Science and Technology is prerequisite for achieving the goal of being middle income country by 2021 and of being the developed one by 2041, said former adviser to the caretaker government and Vice Chancellor of Asia Pacific University, Dr. Jamilur Reza Chowdhury.

He was addressing as the chief guest at a two-day-long international conference, titled "Innovations in Science, Engineering and Technology' at International Islamic University's (IIUC) permanent campus auditorium, Kumira, Chittagong yesterday.

With IIUC, VC Prof Dr AKM Azharul Islam in chair, the inaugural sessions were addressed by Dean of University Sains, Malaysia Engineering and Built Environment faculty Dr. Kamaruzzaman Shimon, Bangladesh University of Engineering &Technology (BUET) Prof Dr M. Kaikobad, President of IEEE Bangladesh Section prof Dr Sheikh anwarul Fattah, acting Pro VC of IIUC and convener of conference prof. Dr. Delwar Hossain, Dean of Science and Engineering Department Dr. Monirul Islam and Member Secretary Tanvir Ahsan.

Dr Jamiur Reza Chowdhury also said, without the development of science and technology no other development is possible and the tendency among the students to enroll in commerce and humanities groups apprehend us. He emphasized on the industrial revolution to implement the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) and also called for boosting the knowledge based economy.

He also said, once just after the liberation war, the students from Malaysia came to our educational institutes to earn knowledge but unfortunately now thousands of students from home now going to Malaysia for better education.

Meanwhile, BUET Prof DrKaikubad as the special gust said, the first international conference was held in 1998 and through this conferences, the aggregation of science and technology based knowledge was upheld.

IIUC vice-chancellor Prof Dr AKM Azharul Islam said, for the pivotal role of science and technology, there is a need for scholarly work on its social dimensions and such international conference would provide an excellent platform for the academicians, researchers and students to deliver the latest innovative research.

About 72 Universities and researchers from 18 countries contributed to the Conference while the researchers tabled their new findings. The concluding ceremony would be held today at city's Hotel Lords' In.

It is mentionable that the 1st International Conference of IIUC was held on 'Micro enterprise Development financing Using Islamic Financing Instrument 1 village Project" in 1998 in Chittagong.
Penalty imposed upon dead employee is not legal

(From previous issue) :

He submits further that the predecessor on the petitioners got order of acquittal from the charge brought against him. Against which the government preferred an appeal in which he had been abated after his death. He submits further that the departmental proceeding was also withdrawn by the concerned authority and subsequently? the concerned authority obtained the opinion as desired from the learned government pleader in respect of the service benefit of the petitioners wherein the learned pleader opined that the petitioners are entitled to get all benefits of the predecessor as per as usual course. He further submits that as per provision of Rule 247, 1st Part, Bangladesh Service Rules, if Departmental Proceeding is withdrawn after death of the person concerned, no penalty can be imposed upon a dead man who served as an employee in the republic. He finally submits that the heirs of the late employee have been passing the days with financial hardship on being deprived by, the impugned orders preventing, them from getting full payment of benefits and other allowances of the predecessor and the petitioners, finding no other alternative and efficacious remedy, moved this' court and obtained present the rule 'which, should be made absulate.

6. On the other hand, Mr Bishwajit Roy the learned Deputy Attorney-General appearing on , behalf, of the Responde its submits that the petitioners are not government employees and they are not on any way aggrieved persons, for which they' can file a writ' petition before this Court invoking Article 102 of the Constitution. He further submits that the petitioners as heirs of the late employee filed application before the appellate authority which was, turned down narrating all the reasons therein. He lastly submits that the petitioners could file an application before the Administrative Tribunal if they were somehow aggrieved, by the impugned letters. In fact, they did not have any right t6 file a writ petition before this Court. Accordingly, this rule should be discharged.

7. Heard the learned Advocates from both the parties and perused the petition along with annexures there of, wherefrom it transpires that the predecessor of the petitioners during his service in the republic at Khalifarhat, Noakhali upon an allegation of shortage of, fund in the sub post office, a departmental proceeding was initiated against him and on the same self allegation a criminal case was also started against him. During pendency of the criminal proceeding, the departmental proceeding was suspended, but in trial of the criminal case he got an order of acquit that from charge brought against him when he was found not guilty of the offence by the competent court of law. Subsequently a government appeal was preferred by the authority concerned. During pendency of the Govt. appeal the predecessor of the, petitioners died of cancer and therefore, the departmental proceeding was also withdrawn by the concerned authority. But the' authority treating the predecessor of the petitioners, unusual servant of the republic, curtailed some service benefits which the petitioners are entitled to get asusual course of his service. It 'appears from the 'submission of the learned' Deputy Attorney-General that' the petitioners have not been aggrieved the impugned letters as they are not servants in the service of the republic. Therefore, they don't have locus standi to file this writ petition before the court under Article 102 of the constitution. In view 'of the facts as above: let' us see sections 4 and section 7,A of the Administrative Tribunal Act, 980 which provides as under:

4. (1) An Administrative Tribunal shall have exclusive jurisdiction to hear and determine applications made by any person in the service of the Republic - [or of any statutory public authority] in respect of the terms and conditions of his service including pension rights, or in respect of any" action taken in relation to him as a person in the service of the Republic 2[or of any statutory public authority].

(2) A person in the service of the Republic 3[or of any' statutory public authority] may make an application to an Administrative Tribunal under sub-section (l), if he is aggrieved by any order or decision in respect of the terms and conditions of his service including pension rights or by any action taken in relation to him as a, person in the service of the Republic 4[or of any statutory public authority]:

Provided that no application in respect of an order, decision or action which can be set aside, varied or modified by a higher administrative authority under any law for the time being in force relating to the terms and conditions of the service of the Republic [for of any statutory public authority] or the discipline of that service can be made to the Administrative Tribunal 'until such higher authority has taken decision on the matter:

2 [Provided further that,. where no decision on an appeal or application for review in respect of an order, decision or action referred to in the preceding proviso has been taken by the higher administrative authority within a period of two months from the date on which the appeal or application was preferred or made," it shall on the expiry of such period, be deemed, for the purpose of making an application to. the Administrative Tribunals under this section, that such higher authority has disallowed the appeal of the application:]

Provided further that no such application shall be entertained by the Administrative Tribunal unless it is made within six months from the date of making or taking of the order, decision or action concerned "or making of the decision on the matter by the higher administrative authority, as the case may be.

(3) In this section "person in the service of the Republic 3[or of any statutory public authority]" includes a person who is or has retired or is dismissed, removed or discharged from such service, but does not include a person in the defence services of Bangladesh 4[or of the Bangladesh Rifles] .

8. It appears from the provision of section 4 of the Administrative Tribunal Act that a servant if being aggrieved by any order of the concerned authority, shall have to go to the Administrative 'Tribunal "for his remedy first, but the present petitioners have no that scope to file any application before the Administrative Tribunal as they were not in the' service of the republic. Section 7 A says:

2[7 A.(I) Where a person is dismissed or "removed from service and an" application is made under section 4 against such removal or dismissal and that person dies 'during the pendency of the case, the right to sue of that applicant shall survive if his service had been pensionable under any law for the time being in force.

(2) Where the" right to 'sue' survives under sub-section (1), such legal representative of the deceased applicant who' would have been entitled to the pensionery benefit at the event of the death or' retirement of the deceased applicant may be substituted, upon an application, made tathe Tribunal 'or, as the case may be, to the Appellate, Division, within sixty days from the date of the death of the applicant

(3) The legal representative of the deceased, as referred to in sub-section (2), shall be entitled to the pensionery benefit which would have been payable to that deceased if he had been removed or dismissed:

Provided that, such pensionery benefit shall not be payable unless the Tribunal or, as the case may be, the Appellate Division, declares the order of the dismissal or removal, as the case may be, as illegal or void:

Provided further that, for the purpose of this section, the applicant shall be deemed to have died or retired, as the case may be, on the day on which he was removed or dismissed.

9. It his been provided in Section 7 A that when an application against the dismissal or removal from service is pending before the Administrative Tribunal, if the employee or servant of the republic dies, than his/her heirs can be substituted in the pending proceeding as heirs of the deceased and right to so survive. But here there was no case pending against any dismissal or removal before the administrative tribunal when the employee died of cancer. Therefore, no question of substitution can be raised for the heirs of the deceased.

10. On plain reading of these sections it appears that only the servant of the republic may apply before the Administrative Tribunal or his heirs may be substituted in the case if he dies during pendency of the case filed by him against his removal or dismissal from service. But there is no such case pending in the Administrative Tribunal at the time of his death. In such view of the fact, the petitioners do not have locus standi to file an application before the administrative tribunal as they are not servants in the republic.

11. In such a situation, the petitioners as heirs of the predecessor, have no other forum to seek relief rather to move this court with a writ petition invoking Article 102 of the constitution. It is pertinent here to refer the case of Kazi Shamsunnahar vs Commandant RRF Khulna reported in 2 BLC 569 where their Lordships observed that

"Admittedly, the deceased government servant was not removed from service prior to his death but he was removed from service just after his death resulting thereby the government servant died while he was still in the service of the Republic for which the petitioners as heirs of the government servant are entitled to recover the service benefits as permissible under the law and the writ petition is maintainable."

12. In the instant case there is no dispute that Abdur Rouf Chowdhury was neither convicted nor removed, nor dismissed from service before his death. So the penalty imposed by the authority concerned upon the dead man is not legal in the eye of law. It is apparent that the petitioners are admittedly heirs of the deceased-employee, having no other forum except to invoke writ jurisdiction under Article 102 of the Constitution and since the predecessor of the petitioners was acquitted from the charge brought against him by the competent court of law, there is no bar to the petitioners as heirs of the ex-employee in obtaining full service benefits as per service rules. Furthermore, as the departmental proceeding was withdrawn by the concerned authority the service of the predecessor of the petitioners was seemed to be treated as regular pone and all service benefits of the predecessor to be recovered by the petitioners as his heirs.

13. In view of the discussion as above, we are inclined to hold that the impugned orders (Annexures-H, E, F and FI to this writ petition) are ex-facie illegal and the same have been passed without any lawful authority and are of no legal effect, therefore, the petitioners as heirs of late Abdur Rob Chowdhury are entitled to get all service benefits including pension and arrear, if any, as permissible in law.

In the result the rule is made absolute without order as to costs. The impugned orders (Annexures-H, E, F and FI to this writ petition) have been passed without lawful authority and are of no legal effect. The respondents are directed to pay full service benefits of late Abdur' Rob Chowdhury to the petitioners as permissible undet the law. (Concluded)
Missing schoolboy`s body found, 1 held

Staff Reporter :

A day after the missing, police recovered the body of a schoolboy from a marsh in Kaliakoir upazila of Gazipur on Thursday night.

The deceased was identified as Pantha Saha, a student of Class VIII of Chapair Bibi High School and son of Uttam Saha.

Local people found the body of Pantha in Sonadia Beel on Thursday night and informed police. The body bore several injury marks.

The dead body has been sent to Shaheed Tajuddin Medical College Hospital morgue for autopsy

Sub-Inspector of Kaliakoir Police Station M Ashrafuzzaman said, Pantha's cousin Shubho Saha, 21, and one Dipto Saha, 18, were detained in this connection.

Family members said that Shubho called Pantha out of his house over cell phone on Wednesday afternoon. He was missing since then.


WB running interest business

Staff Reporter :

Transparency International Bangladesh [TIB] has cautioned Bangladesh government not to take $2 billion from the World Bank to raise climate change fund, even if it is given in low interest.

Instead, the TIB urged the government to demand compensation from the WB to tackle adverse impact of climate change in this part of the globe.

'The WB has taken the policy to run 'interest business' through issuing loans to Bangladesh, instead of paying compensation for climate change. The WB President in his recent visit had committed to give Bangladesh $2 billion fund. But the WB fund won't come without interest. It will increase the amount of debt, even if it is given in low interest," Executive Director of TIB Dr Iftekharuzzaman, said on Friday.

He was speaking at a press conference, titled: 'climate equity week 2016' -- jointly organized by TIB, Committee of Concerned Citizens [CCC] and Coastal Livelihood and Environmental Action Network [CLEAN] at Dhaka Reporters' Unity [DRU] in the city.

Detailing the negative side of WB policy, Dr Iftekharuzzaman said. "The government should not receive loan from WB in the climate change fund. The WB must pay the compensation. The country [Bangladesh] has incurred a loss of Tk18000 crore in last four years due to climate change impact. To fight the challenge, Bangladesh also gave $400 million from its own sources. But the countries who were mainly responsible for the devastation gave Bangladesh only $130 million."

He said: "We, the affected people, have already faced huge losses and still at risk due to climate change. The affected people will have to bear the brunt of debt, if WB fund is received. We can't accept that WB to run interest business. We urge all concerned to stay away from such conspiracy of WB."

"So far as we know, Bangladesh will get compensation, not loan, for facing the negative and risky situation. The government must try to get the compensation. If the WB is interested to help us to tackle climate change impact, it must give compensation. They shouldn't run the interest business," Dr Iftekharuzzaman noted.

Referring some obstacles to reach green climate fund, he said: "The WB can give us technical support to ensure our entry to other funds those created for climate change.We will welcome it. But we will not allow any interest business here."

"We've two major obstacles to get entrance in green climate fund. It has become very tough for Bangladesh to meet the tough standards that fixed for the green climate fund. It is also taking long time..We demand to make the entry process easy."

Praising Bangladesh government for its courageous role in fighting climate change impact, Dr Iftekharuzzaman further said: "Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has also been rewarded for her role in fighting climate change. We've [Bangladesh] made remarkable progress in this sector in the last five years. But the fund, which is raised here, is very small."

According to National Geographic, Bangladesh ranks first as the nation most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change in the coming decades.

Not only that, the German Watch's Global Climate Risk Index [CRI] of 2011 said Bangladesh is the nation most vulnerable to global climate change in the world while the reasons are complex and extremely intertwined.

Bangladesh is watered by a total of 57 trans-boundary rivers coming down to it: 54 from neighbouring India and 3 from Myanmar. The country, which has no control of the water flow and volume, drains to the Bay of Bengal over 90% of the total run-off generated annually, experts said.


Trump`s `100 days` after the election

Abu Hena :

The nauseated psychological drama "Shame" has begun to tap into the dark realities connected with sex addiction in the U.S. when many find their life thrown into turmoil. Many feel helpless in their unending pursuit to find women. And as one admitted frankly, "I was meeting girls on the basket ball court, in the club, pulling my car over to meet them on the street". "Like looking for a prey, kind of. You're totally jacked up, adrenalized." Donald Trump who knows many things better than others, is a master in this field. To him kissing forcefully at first sight, groping, and moving heavily on married women is the sacred creed of 'Trump culture'. He claims everything by his own right as a reality TV star, grabs women waiting for taxi- cab and gropes any woman he finds attractive. He is a 'stinking rich', 'smart tax avoider' and a 'violent rapist' who has no remorse or backward sense of guilt. He is beyond self-correction.

Every sane and civilized society advocates sexual sobriety. Research shows that substance abusers and sex addicts alike form a dependency on the brain's pleasure- center neurotransmitter, dopamine. "It is all about chasing that emotional high: losing yourself in image after image , prostitute after prostitute, affair after affair", says Sexual Recovery Institute's Weiss. "They end up losing relationships, getting diseases, and losing jobs".(Newsweek, Dec 5,2011) Dominique Strauss Kahn, former head of the IMF looked fit and ready to become the next President of France. New York's Sofitel Hotel maid's allegations of a violent attack as a "crazy man" brought his ambition to an end. So far 11 women have brought allegations of sexual assault against Trump and yet he is defiant as ever because he is 'a star'.

Trump's self-glorified pattern of sex behavior may be called the fleeting ego gratification, which grows from innumerable conquests. He has admitted that he 'moved heavily on a married woman' with the intent to violate her. An attempt to rape is the same offence as rape and is punishable in the same manner. So the first thing Donald Trump is going to do after November 8 election, is to surrender before the court of law and get the punishment for all the sex offences he has committed.

Trump has committed an act of treason by inviting Russia to hack the U.S. cyberspace allowing Russia's Putin to use his influence operation and psychological warfare to discredit the entire idea of a free and fair election. Trump has ties to Russia's Putin.

Trump's former campaign manager worked for Putin's proxy in Ukraine until the pro-Western uprising there, and Trump, his family and foreign policy adviser have done tens of millions of dollars of business in Russia. The exact amount is unclear as Trump has declined to disclose details of his Russian business partners and also defied public demands to disclose his tax returns. Trump has praised Putin during the campaign and although the U.S. intelligence community has "high confidence" that Russian intelligence services were responsible for hacking of DNC e-mails, Trump said it was not clear the Russians were behind it.

" In Trump, Putin has found an almost perfect, if unwitting, ally for his influence operation," Time said. Donald Trump's words about U.S. allies like NATO implied that national security was a financial transaction. That means if the allies did not pay their dues, he would abandon them. This is exactly what Putin wants from his surrogate Donald Trump.

The United States and its allies are fighting an undeclared war in Syria where Russian airstrikes, carried out from Iranian base, have killed thousands of civilians in Aleppo. Trump has come out with an appeasement policy towards Putin as Chamberlain did to Hitler when he had invaded his neighboring states during the World War II. In his latest statement, Trump said," What we should do is focus on ISIS. We should not be focusing on Syria. You're going to end up in World War Three over Syria if we listen to Hillary Clinton.

" This is exactly what Putin and his henchman Bashar al- Assad want the United States to do. By now, everything is crystal clear-Trump is a Russian plant. It's time all his Russian connections are thoroughly investigated with utmost urgency and speed before it becomes too late to act. The investigating agencies must compel him to disclose details about his Russian connections and his financial transactions including his tax returns. That will bring out the truth about meddling of foreign powers in the November 8 election.

During the first presidential debate Hillary Clinton said, "Donald was one of the people who rooted for the housing crisis. He said back in 2006, "Gee, I hope, the market does collapse, because then I can go in and buy some and make some money."

Trump immediately reacted saying, "That's called business, by the way." To Trump everything means business. He has business deal with Putin to weaken NATO and to keep the United States out of Syria. He must defeat Hillary Clinton whom Putin considers an enemy. He suggests that finding a way to avoid paying federal taxes was "smart".

He said that rooting for the housing crash was merely a matter of business, rather than utter amorality. Such evil men can sell the greatest country on earth, ever created, and say, "That's called business, by the way". Trump has already exposed himself fully and clearly to the American people showing the depth he could stoop to and that what is horrifying. Now is the time of reckoning. And as Roosevelt said, "There is a mysterious cycle in human events. To some generations much is given. Of other generations much is expected. This generation has a rendezvous with destiny." This is very true of the present American generation of whom much is expected.



[Writer was elected MP in the 7th and 8th parliaments of Bangladesh. He is an author, columnist and political analyst]


BD nat`l shot dead by BSF in Kurigram

UNB, Kurigram :

A Bangladeshi farmer was shot and wounded by the members of Indian Border Security Force (BSF) along Antapur border in Fulbari upazila in the district on Friday morning.

The victim was identified as Aminul Islam, 35, son of

Ashraf Ali of North Antapur village.

BSF troops opened fire on a group of 5 to 7 people when they went to the bordering area for bringing sacks of meat from Indian village Khitaberkuthi, said Abdul Latif, habildar of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) Antapur BOP.

Aminul Islam who was shot in his forehead was taken to an unknown place by his companions, he said.

Lt. Col Md. Jakir Hossain, commander of Kurigram BGB, said a letter has been sent to the BSF authorities protesting the incident.
CETA failure reveals Lisbon Treaty`s structural flaws

Iana Dreyer :

Trade policy is at the heart of the EU, because it is inherent to the bloc's customs union and to the EU's single market. The return of unanimity in decision-making in trade policy, highlighted by the decision to adopt CETA as a 'mixed' agreement in July this year, could be the death knell of the EU's most powerful international policy: trade.

The mixed agreement procedure requires unanimous backing by all member states instead of the 'qualified voting majority' foreseen for decisions falling under the so-called Common Commercial Policy.

European Council President Donald Tusk put it starkly to journalists last week. If there was no consensus on CETA in the coming days, "CETA could be the EU's last free trade agreement", the Polish EU leader said.

It's too easy to blame Wallonia. Start perhaps by blaming Belgium. Largely unreformed economically, Wallonia is a poor part of otherwise prosperous Belgium, and has been run by a Socialist party for decades (what is cause and effect of these two phenomena is worth a discussion of its own). Belgium's population is that of greater Paris: but it has seven legislatures, all with powers to decide on international policy. Yet the point is not so much about Belgium.

CETA, in many ways, only exposes the structural contradictions of the very treaties that underpin the functioning of the EU and the crisis of national states.

The 2009 Lisbon Treaty did not create "more Europe" , as both proponents and detractors of the notion often say. It institutionalised the conflict between federalism and nationalism (others say 'national sovereignty') inherent in the European project since its very inception.

The Lisbon Treaty significantly increased the EU's powers to make international agreements, including in areas where it does not have full legal competence. That is why ample room was made for 'mixed' agreements. This is when the EU concludes an agreement where the member states have a full competence, or share powers with the EU, and the international deals need to be ratified unanimously by all 28 member states.

The treaties are clear. The Common Commercial Policy falls under the remit of the EU's exclusive competence. But what exactly falls under the CCP remains contested. Most member states never accepted that foreign direct investment, or intellectual property falls under the CCP. Yet the Lisbon Treaty's Article 207 included these items, which were previously in the hands of member states.

The Commission has always considered that FDI policy and, in particular, international investment protection policy is now an EU-only competency. Germany, the Netherlands and many other member states in particular never wanted to relinquish their control over their many bilateral investment treaties containing investor-state dispute settlement provisions. The dispute is ongoing, as the EU is currently cracking down on intra-EU BITs.

This old conflict over investment protection remains at the heart of the controversy over CETA. Member states decided this area should not be applied provisionally, as other areas of CETA, which fall squarely under the EU's exclusive remit (such as tariffs, and most other areas of the agreement).

The Lisbon Treaty is the result of a botched 'constitutional convention' convened in 2004. An ambitious constitutional treaty was rejected by the French and the Dutch in national referendums in 2005. They were thereafter revised and repackaged. The resulting Lisbon Treaty has tried to accommodate everyone: Europhiles, democrats and nationalists alike. With CETA, the inherent tension in the EU between the different forces pulling in different directions in the EU has now come to a head.

European Parliament amplifies power of national parties

The Lisbon Treaty gave the EU more powers to conclude international treaties and it gave co-decision-powers to the European Parliament. Giving these powers to the Parliament was not only a "more Europe" move, it was a "let's democratise Europe" move. This perhaps gave more anti-EU axes to grind to nationalists and Eurosceptics. They lost their monopoly claim over democratic legitimacy. National parliaments and governments have not much to fear from the European Parliament. In practice, the European Parliament amplifies the power of national parties in power in the capitals. The close collaboration of the German ministry of economy led by Germany's Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel and the chief of the trade (INTA) committee in the parliament, Bernd Lange, a German social democrat, is illustrative of this.

It was their collaboration that led to a renegotiation of CETA in 2015 to introduce changes to the investment chapter and introduce a half-hearted court system to replace private arbitration.

Their joint influence in bringing about the 'interpretative declaration' initiative to appease the European left on CETA - the declaration the Wallonian leader Paul Magnette is haggling about with the Commission - is a clear example of the magnified influence of national parties in Brussels post Lisbon Treaty.

A previous piece of commentary blamed the Juncker Commission for causing the CETA crisis. Juncker should never have given in on declaring CETA 'mixed': he shouldn't have given away his intentions in the media before informing the governments either.

But clearly many member states are to blame. Not all of them. Italy, a staunch supporter of CETA, saw the writing on the wall and wanted the Canadian deal to be adopted as an EU-only deal in July 2016.

It is Berlin and Paris who are prominently at fault here. Both wanted to keep a tight leash on the Commission and give the last word to their countries. They did this to appease the left flanks of the parties in power (SPD in control of the economics ministry, socialists in control of power in Paris), as part of a general nationalist and protectionist tide in their politics.

However, both Paris and Berlin also clearly want CETA. The French government went as far as cheating with its legislature this month to get CETA through back home. Ahead of a committee vote early October on CETA, five anti-CETA Socialist Party MPs mysteriously resigned from the European Affairs commission to be replaced by five pro-CETA Socialist Party MPs. This helped secure a majority to reject an anti-CETA motion ahead of a trip by Prime Minister Manuel Valls to Quebec last week. Just after the vote, the old MPs were reinstated in the Commission. No wonder, French (formerly or still partly) state owned companies in the environment, transport and energy sectors are the big winners of CETA.

Wallonia's Paul Magnette started complaining about "pressure" and "veiled threats" after he was summoned to Paris on Friday (14 October 2016) to meet fellow francophone socialist Francois Hollande.

Whether CETA makes it or not, discussions will have to begin on ways to make the adoption of trade treaties more effective. Though the Commission is partly to blame for the CETA train wreck, myopic member states and party politics are even more so.

(Iana Dreyer is founder and editor of Borderlex, which covers European trade policy).
4 `HuJI men` held with bombs in Gazipur

Four suspected members of the banned HuJI outfit from Gazipur by the police with some Jehadi books and bombs on Friday.

Staff Reporter :

Police have arrested four suspected members of the banned extremist group Harkatul Jihad Bangladesh (HuJI) from Gazipur.

They were caught with 14 petrol bombs and four crude bombs from Nandoain area of Gazipur

Harunur Rashid, Superintendent of Police (SP), said in a press briefing on Friday afternoon.

The arrested men were identified as Khairul Islam from Joydebpur, Golam Kibria from Mymensingh district, Aminul Haq and Shahidullah from Tangail district.

Tipped off, a team of DB police conducted a drive in an abandoned building in the area and arrested the four along with 14 petrol bombs, four crude bombs, some sharp weapons and 'jihadi books', said Harunur Rashid.

Of them, two are engineers and two others were the students of International University of Technology, he said. They gathered there for the purpose of carring out sabotage activities, claimed the Police Super.
Myanmar soldiers raped them amid crackdown

Reuters | U Shey Kya/Yangon :

Rohingya Muslims say Myanmar soldiers raped or sexually assaulted dozens of women in a remote village in the northwest of the country during the biggest upsurge in violence against the persecuted minority in four years.

Eight Rohingya women, all from U Shey Kya village in Rakhine State, described in detail how soldiers last week raided their homes, looted property and raped them at gun point. Reuters interviewed three of the women in person and five by telephone, and spoke to human rights groups and community leaders. Not all the claims could be independently verified, including the total number of women assaulted.

Soldiers have poured into the Maungdaw area since Oct. 9, after an insurgent group of Rohingyas that the government believes has links to Islamists overseas launched coordinated attacks on several border guard posts.

Citing evidence garnered by interrogating suspected militants, the government blamed the attacks on an armed group it says is made up of some 400 Rohingya fighters. The militants, who have identified themselves as the previously unknown Al-Yakin Mujahidin in videos posted online, are accused of killing nine police officers and five soldiers, and of stealing a cache of weapons. The crisis in northern Rakhine marks

the biggest challenge Myanmar's six-month-old civilian government has faced and raises questions over de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi's ability to maintain control of the country's military, observers and diplomats say.

Suu Kyi's relationship with the army remains strained because of the constitution, drafted by the military in 2008, which bars her from the presidency. It also guarantees the army key ministerial posts, including defense, border affairs and home affairs. Diplomats and United Nations officials say privately that the Oct. 9 attacks and subsequent crackdown have shattered years of work rebuilding trust between the Muslim and Buddhist communities in Rakhine after ethnic and religious violence broke out there in 2012.

A forty-year-old woman from U Shey Kya told Reuters that four soldiers raped her and assaulted her 15-year-old daughter, while stealing jewelry and cash from the family. Men indicate the place where they say a victim from recent violence was buried, at a village outside Maugndaw in Rakhine state, Myanmar October 27, 2016.

"They took me inside the house. They tore my clothes and they took my head scarf off," the mother of seven told Reuters in an interview outside her home, a cramped bamboo hut. "Two men held me, one holding each arm, and another one held me by my hair from the back and they raped me." Zaw Htay, the spokesman for Myanmar President Htin Kyaw, denied the allegations. "There's no logical way of committing rape in the middle of a big village of 800 homes, where insurgents are hiding," Zaw Htay said.

Zaw Htay telephoned a military commander in Maungdaw, whose name he did not disclose, during an interview with Reuters this week. The commander said troops conducted a sweep of U Shey Kya village on Oct. 19, but left without committing abuses.

The military did not respond to an emailed request for comment about the accusations. The escalation of violence threatens to derail Suu Kyi's goal of ending years of ethnic war in Myanmar, undermining the nation's surprisingly smooth democratic transition that started a year ago with her historic election win, observers and diplomats say.


PWD Chief Engr`s FF`s certificate to be scrapped

Staff Reporter :

The Ministry of Liberation War Affairs has decided to scrap the freedom fighter's certificate of Public Works Department Chief Engineer (PWD) Hafizur Rahman Munshi Tipu as he indulged forgery in obtaining the certificate.

The Ministry came up with the move at the meeting of Jatiya Muktijoddha Council (Jamuka) held at its Kakrail office in the city on Thursday, presided over by Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammel Haque.

Admitting the matter, AKM Mozzamel Hoque told The New Nation on Friday night that the documents which Hafizur Rahman Munshi submitted to the ministry to show him a freedom fighter appeared to be fake proving that he is not a real freedom fighter.

He said the PDW Chief Engineer was quizzed earlier after a parliamentary watchdog accused him of obtaining a fake FF certificate.

"We launched a probe regarding the matter following the complaint," he said adding that the Ministry later summoned Munshi for quizzing. During the interrogation he was asked to submit relevant documents to prove that he actually had joined the War of Liberation in 1971 and where he received training in India before joining the war.

"I personally scrutinized the documents and give my opinion to the Jamuka that he is a fake freedom fighter," added the minister.


The Undead Archives

I have finally salvaged my pre-Blogger TDR archives and added them into Blogger. They are almost totally in the form of one giant post for each month. And the formatting strayed from the originals. Sorry. But historians everywhere can rejoice that this treasure trove of my thoughts is restored to the world.
Ive blogged a lot about digital identities, but failed to cover an in-depth review of the largest identity program in the world: Aadhaar. Its been very remiss of me, but Ive been waiting for the right moment and now seems to be that moment.

Aadhaar is well known for those in the identity field, but gets too little coverage overseas and, for those who are not aware, it is the Indian governments identity scheme that started in 2009. That was when the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) was set up with the mandate to create a 12-digit Unique Identification (UID) Number (termed as Aadhaar) for all the residents of India. By April 2016, over a billion UIDs had been issued, and it was at this point that the governments National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) unveiled the Unified Payment Interface (UPI). UPI is designed to make person-to-person and e-commerce transactions swifter and easier.

Whats the low-down?

Since the UIDAI and UID project was established in January 2009, the objective has been to provide a unique identification for all citizens of India. The card is based upon biometrics  fingerprint and iris recognition  to identify the person and is used for delivery of government welfare services in an efficient and transparent manner. The enrolment process is fairly simple 

 and once enrolled, the UID can be authenticated and verified quickly and easily online by government and other officials, such as using it to open a bank account. Before being enrolled in the program, Indians were excluded from many banking services, government aid and related services that demanded identification.

The first Aadhaar was issued in 2010 and it has grown rapidly to reach coverage of 93% of adults, 67% of children aged 5-18 and 20% of those aged 0 to 5. In 13 Indian states  there are 29 in total  Aadhaar coverage is over 90% whilst, in the next 13 states, saturation is between 75-90%. In other words, in six years, the Indian government is nearing achieving its target of every citizen in the country having a biometric ID card. The Prime Minister's Office of India has a target of all adults to use Aadhaar by September 2016 and, by March 2017, all 1.28 billion Indian citizens - adults and children - to have one.

Thats according to the governments figures. According to Ujjivan Financial Services, one of the most prominent names in the microfinance markets, just 77% of its customers have Aadhaar as on 15 July 2016. Even a member of the Parliament, Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, has said that 85% of the population have Aadhaar. In other words, the figures of coverage are not robust, but it can be assured that most (4 out of 5) Indian citizens have the ID card.

The issue is that in order to make all citizens use the card would mean the card would be compulsory  something it isnt today  and compulsion is still being debated (there are 15 petitions to block such a move in the courts ). No service will be denied for lack of Aadhaar, according to one senior government official, but the fact is that living in India is becoming harder and harder if you dont have an Aadhaar number. For example, there are numerous areas where it is compulsory, such as for the receipt of benefits from the government for the poorest people, and more and more banks and corporations are demanding the Aadhaar number before they will deal with you. For example, the major mobile network operators - Airtel, Reliance Jio, Vodafone  are now using Aadhaar as a replacement for paper proof of identification in a process they call eKYC.

This makes sense as the use of digital identity scheme is saving companies a lot of cost overheads, from KYC to benefits distribution, as well as improving confidence and trust in identification and authentication accuracy. The Indian Government estimates to have saved over Rs 27,000 crore (just over $400 million) by using Aadhaar to manage payments to beneficiaries under various welfare schemes in the last two years, whilst getting rid of 16 million fake IDs have been deleted resulting in a further Rs 10,000 crore ($150 million) savings.

It also makes sense as the move towards offering mobile financial inclusion and mobile banking relies on an effective eKYC process.

Using Aadhaar for Financial Services

The Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016 (the Act) was passed as a money bill on March 16, 2016, although the implementation date for the bill to come into force is not clear. The Act makes it mandatory for a person to authenticate her/his identity using the Aadhaar number before receiving any government subsidies, benefits or services. It also introduced the UPI, Unified Payments Interface. The penetration of bank accounts, and by extension, debit cards and credit cards remain low in India, but the launch of the UPI is designed to bring banking and financial services to everyone.

Unveiled earlier this year by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the primary body that governs all retail payments in the country, UPI aims to propel the economy towards more cashless transactions by making person-to-person e-commerce transactions as fast and easy as sending a text message. This would, among other things, help the government curb unreported money exchanges that aren't subjected to tax (the number of non-cash transactions per person in India is only six per year).

The government is focused upon using citizens smartphones as the computing platform for UPI. India is the world's fastest growing smartphone market with over 350 million smartphone users, and projected to grow past 700 million by 2020.

The other integral focus of UPI is interoperability  allowing transactions across banks  by using the UID as a single-identifier to make transactions. It is built on top of IMPS protocol, a 24x7 and real-time transaction service but, unlike IMPS which requires the counterparties to have bank details including account number and IFSC codes, UPI-enabled apps only the 12-digit Aadhaar UID.

Most Indian banks are releasing UPI-enabled apps, such as ICICI Banks Pockets app, that allows peer-to-peer payments by users including those who don't have an ICICI Bank account.

According to Mashable , UPI offers payments from Rs 50 (75 cents) to Rs 100,000 ($1,500) in a single transaction, and is designed as a replacement for all the apps you need to make payments for online shopping, electricity bills, barcode-based payments and college tuition.

Russia, Morocco and countries from Africa have shown interest in replicating Indias Aadhaar project although, as the Financial Express highlights, much will now depend on how quickly these cards are linked with bank accounts. That is why Indian banks are urging users to link their Aadhaar number to their bank accounts through ATMs, internet banking portals and mobile banking applications, in line with an aggressive government drive.

In addition, there are other challenges with Aadhaar. For example, a key feature of the Aadhaar project is the Central Identities Data Repository (CIDR)  a centralised database that stores every individuals personal information. But centralisation creates a honeypot of sensitive data vulnerable to exploitation, according to the Electronic Frontiers Foundation. Hence, if there were a new program rollout today, it may be more appropriate to use a distributed ledger for the core identity authentication. Equally, there are other notable identity schemes out there such as those in Argentina, Estonia and Pakistan, that are worthy of consideration.

Argentina

Documento Nacional de Identidad or DNI (which means National Identity Document) is the main identity document for Argentine citizens, as well as temporary or permanent resident aliens. It is issued at a person's birth, and updated at 8 and 14 years of age simultaneously in one format: a card (DNI tarjeta); it's valid if identification is required, and is required for voting. The front side of the card states the name, sex, nationality, specimen issue, date of birth, date of issue, date of expiry, and transaction number along with the DNI number and portrait and signature of the card's bearer. The back side of the card shows the address of the card's bearer along with their right thumb fingerprint. The front side of the DNI also shows a barcode while the back shows machine-readable information. The DNI is a valid travel document for entering Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. (System still operational in the country)

Estonia



The Estonian i-card is a smart card issued to Estonian citizens by the Police and Border Guard Board. All Estonian citizens and permanent residents are legally obliged to possess this card from the age of 15. The card stores data such as the user's full name, gender, national identification number, and cryptographic keys and public key certificates. The cryptographic signature in the card is legally equivalent to a manual signature, since 15 December 2000. The following are a few examples of what the card is used for:

As a national ID card for legal travel within the EU for Estonian citizens

As the national health insurance card

As proof of identification when logging into bank accounts from a home computer

For digital signatures

For i-voting

For accessing government databases to check ones medical records, file taxes, etc.

For picking up e-Prescriptions

(This system is also operational in the country and has not been removed)

Pakistan

The Second Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan in 2000 established the National Database and Regulation Authority in the country, which regulates government databases and statistically manages the sensitive registration database of the citizens of Pakistan. It is also responsible for issuing national identity cards to the citizens of Pakistan. Although the card is not legally compulsory for a Pakistani citizen, it is mandatory for:

Voting

Obtaining a passport

Purchasing vehicles and land

Obtaining a driver licence

Purchasing a plane or train ticket

Obtaining a mobile phone SIM card

Obtaining electricity, gas, and water

Securing admission to college and other post-graduate institutes

Conducting major financial transactions

Therefore, it is pretty much necessary for basic civic life in the country. In 2012, NADRA introduced the Smart National Identity Card, an electronic identity card, which implements 36 security features. The following information can be found on the card and subsequently the central database: legal name, gender (male, female, or transgender), father's name (husband's name for married females), identification mark, date of birth, national identity card number, family tree id number, current address, permanent address, date of issue, date of expiry, signature, photo, and fingerprint (thumbprint).
The 11th Annual Blackpot Festival and Cookoff will take place at Vermillionville on Friday, Oct. 28 and Saturday, Oct. 29. The festival is a celebration of food, music, dance, and camping  all things that take place around the cast iron cookware that is a symbol of Louisiana's people.

The festival includes not only the music of Southwest Louisiana but also from the Southern United States with the cook-off itself taking place on Saturday afternoon with the winners being announced Saturday evening. Categories include cracklin, gumbo, jambalaya and desserts. All entries must be cooked in cast iron pots.

There are two stages at the festival: the Dancehall stage, which is located in Vermilionville's Performance Center with a large cypress floor for dancing crowds, and the Chapel stage, which is located in the Chapelle des Attakapas, offering an intimate sit-down listening experience.

The music begins at 6:30 p.m. on Friday and ends at midnight. Music on Saturday begins at 11 a.m. with an old-time Square Dance. This year's Blackpot line-up includes familiar acts such as Preston Frank and Ed Poullard, The Pine Leaf Boys, and festival organizers The Revelers.

Other performers include local favorite Lil' Buck Sinegal; King James and The Special Men from New Orleans; Los Texmaniacs, the Grammy-winning Tejano band from San Antonio; Nashvilles JP Harris playing young country in the style of Johnny Paycheck; Acadianas own Courtney Granger playing songs from his new record Beneath Still Waters; and festival-favorite Ginny Hawker and Tracy Schawrz who are legends in the folk world for their soul stirring harmonies of the old songs.

Admission on Saturday also includes the chance to learn about Louisiana's Canneci N'de Band of Lipan Apache, who will be on site at the Native American Common Ground for the museum's Native American Common Ground Residency, held the last Saturday of each month from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. For more information, visit Vermilionville.org or BlackpotFestival.com.
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.
GUANGZHOU - A Chinese sailor held captive by Somali pirates for years and was rescued recently arrived at Guangzhou on Thursday, said the Guangdong provincial foreign affairs office.

He was among 26 sailors who were rescued on Oct 22 after four and a half years in captivity. Eight sailors from the Chinese mainland and one from Taiwan arrived at Guangzhou on Tuesday, while he remained in a Nairobi hospital for treatment.

In March 2012, a fishing boat with 29 crew members was hijacked by Somali pirates. Sailors of the Omani-flagged fishing vessel were taken captive, including ten from the Chinese mainland, two from Taiwan, and 17 others from the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam and Cambodia.

Three of the 29 hostages died after the hijacking, including one from the Chinese mainland and one from Taiwan.
President Joe Biden has decided to ban Russian oil imports, toughening the toll on Russia's economy in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine. The United States generally imports about 100,000 barrels a day from Russia, only about 5% of Russia's crude oil exports, according to Rystad Energy. Last year, roughly 8% of U.S. imports of oil and petroleum products came from Russia. Gas prices have been rising for weeks due to the conflict and in anticipation of potential sanctions on the Russian energy sector. The U.S. national average for a gallon of gasoline soared 45 cents a gallon in the past week and topped $4.06 on Monday, according to auto club AAA. Should the US ban Russian oil imports over Ukraine war?

You voted:
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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.
HERRIN  Drive down Park Avenue in Herrin and you might feel like you have traveled back in time, and that is intentional. The downtown revitalization committee is trying to recreate an atmosphere that encouraged people to walk downtown among the shops and cafes.

Kathy Lively, chairman of the downtown revitalization committee, said the efforts are not true historic preservation, but revitalization of existing structures.

We have a lot going on with downtown revitalization, Lively said. That is to maintain the existing buildings.

Downtown business owners are utilizing the a facade improvement program that covers part of the cost of their improvements.

Historic preservation returns buildings to their former glory. Renovation and revitalization save the structures, but often for another use.

I got involved with revitalization truly as an economic development tool. I am very excited to be a small part of people feeling a great sense of pride in their hometown, Lively said.

Herrin Mayor Steve Frattini said Herrin has quite a variety and very unique architecture.

I am supportive of preserving what we are reasonably able to do. We are trying to do what we can keep the buildings we have, Frattini said.

Many of the historic buildings, including homes, are in private hands.

Avripas and the late Sam Myers moved into a brick home on the west side of Park Avenue in 1980. The home was built by Dr. Frank Clay Murrah, a former owner of Herrin Hospital.

It was a Sears and Roebuck House, brought on the railroad down the center Park Avenue. It was unloaded, board by board and assembled.

Every board has Dr. Murrahs name and where it went in the house printed on it, Avripas said. Its a great house. Its built like a fort.

When they first moved into the home, Avripas and Myers lived in an upstairs apartment and ran their businesses out of the first floor, including Charisma salon and Studio One, a floral and framing business.

Eight years ago, they renovated the entire house and more than doubled their living space. The home is decorated with art from the couples travels and by local artists, as well as Myers artwork and family pieces. Avripas, a designer and owner of Myers and Avripas Design, pointed out some of his favorites.

On a trip to Greece, Myers picked an olive branch. When they returned home, Myers crafted the branch into a wreath. It is framed and hangs in a guest bedroom. A picture of Jesus, displayed in the upstairs hallway, was an award given to Avripas grandfather for perfect attendance in Sunday school.

He also pointed out a couple of favorites in the kitchen. Two dolls, that stand in a kitchen window, are made from lamp stands, old tins and part of dolls. One of his favorites is a portrait sculpture of Avripas, Myers and their cat by Karen Linduska.

Avripas also renovated two houses on the east side of Park Avenue and the Professional Building downtown. One of the houses was a brick house built by Albert Storme, owner of Storme Funeral Home.

It is an awesome, awesome house, Avripas said.

He added that the house is huge and has five bedrooms and four bathrooms on three levels. The support beams came from a bridge and the house is built like a fort. Avripas niece and nephew and their children live in the house.

He also renovated the house to the south of the Storme home.

Avripas owns the professional building across from Herrin City Library, which has 10 office suites. He said the building is very Floridian. He saw the color on a building in Florida.

Then, I was on a trip to Russia and a museum was that color, Avripas said.

Gordon Pruett of Herrin Area Historical Society would like to see efforts like those of Avripas and Myers from other owners of historic buildings.

We hope that the owners of the buildings that are historic take pride in their ownership and take care of those buildings, Pruett said.

He said some non-traditional, even guerilla, tactics may be necessary to save some of those buildings from the wrecking ball. For example, the Trovillion house, Thatchcot, needs something like a go-fund me account.

For Lively, two of the goals are to give visitors to Herrin the impression that people in Herrin really take care of and care for their hometown and to get people walking and shopping downtown again.
HERRIN  In spring 2015, Southern Illinois Healthcare announced a $23.7 million expansion and modernization project planned for Herrin Hospital. The project is currently underway, and completion is expected in fall 2017.

The project was prompted by an increased demand for surgeries at Herrin Hospital, according to hospital officials.

Construction on the Southern Illinois Healthcare facility to modernize four operating rooms and add three new ones began in 2015.

The demand is a byproduct of efforts by administrators at the hospital and SIH to recruit new specialists and eliminate the need for patients to travel outside the region, Vice President and Administrator Terrence Farrell said.

More space and room was needed.

Weve been successful in bringing those physicians here, so much so I dont necessarily have all the space they need, he said.

Surgical cases at the hospital, particularly in the area of minimally invasive procedures, have increased 21 percent since 2010. Meanwhile, surgical hours increased 67 percent between 2010 and 2013.

Farrell said growth is expected to continue. Physician recruitment has been ongoing for a number of years bringing with them opportunities to expand orthopedic and joint procedures and the development of a weight loss surgical program, for instance.

It is projected building, including replacement of a preparatory and recovery area and an endoscopy room, will take three years, though the operating rooms are expected to be complete and in use in 18 months. Existing operating rooms will remain in use during construction.

The project is in addition to the ongoing $54 million expansion at Memorial Hospital of Carbondale which is nearly complete and completion of the $24.5 million cancer center which opened in March 2015. Both are SIH facilities. The Memorial project also calls for more operating rooms as well as increased beds in intensive care and replacement of prep and recovery rooms.

SIH President and CEO Rex Budde said the expansion reflects the complexity and level of care that has emerged in the region.

It really is because of increased capabilities. I think people have confidence in what we do here, and they dont have to make that long drive for services, he said.
VERGENNES  Sometimes its the little things that make life sweeter.

Other times, its the big things  like a donated emergency response truck to a little village living on a tight budget.

The Byron Fire Protection District board gifted that truck on Friday to the Vergennes Fire Department in an exchange that took place at the Walmart parking lot in Carbondale.

It was a five-hour haul for Byron Fire Protection District board member Jeff Bain to Carbondale. But Bain said he didnt mind the trip south. He used it as an excuse to work in a visit with his daughter who lives in Pinckneyville. Bain said hes familiar with the region because after his daughter attended SIU, she married a man from Southern Illinois and stayed.

Bain, a retired Illinois state trooper who serves on the board in Byron, which neighbors Rockford, said it feels good to help out a fire district in need. That northern community used the 1995 truck for its dive response team that is called to water-related emergencies. The fire district recently purchased an upgraded truck. Then, the board engaged in discussions about whether it should sell the truck or donate it, he said.

We were more prone to give it away to help out another fire department that isnt as fortunate as us," he said.

Bain said the Byron Fire Protection District has a budget in the millions, thanks in large part to the Exelon-owned nuclear power plant that is located just outside the city limits in unincorporated Ogle County, but within the taxing district of the fire board.

In making its decision, Bain said that board members recognized that there are many departments with needs throughout the state, but they really wanted it to go to a small department that is truly financially struggling. The type of truck donated costs about a quarter-million dollars purchased new, he said.

The budget for the all-volunteer fire department in Vergennes is only about $8,000, said Trish Sherman, who is a volunteer firefighter and emergency medical responder, as well as the office manager for the Village of Vergennes. She said this will be the newest truck the village owns. Other vehicles they own date back to the 1970s and 1980s, she said. Without the generation donation of Byron's fire district, Vergennes would not have been able to afford this truck, she said.

Vergennes is a Jackson County community of about 300 people, about 20 miles north of Carbondale. The fire department serves the village and the surrounding areas, covering fire and emergency response calls for about a 300-square-mile radius, she said. Volunteer emergency responders are often the first on the scene for medical calls and are trained to begin the care process  for someone experiencing a heart attack, for instance  while awaiting the arrival of Jackson County Ambulance paramedics, which may have farther to travel.

Vergennes Fire Department will use its newly acquired truck as a medical response vehicle, she said. It will also be equipped with vehicle extrication equipment for responding to car crashes where someone is trapped, she said. Presently, when Vergennes responds to a car accident, it requires taking both a medical truck and a fire truck with excavation equipment to the scene of an accident. But that presents a challenge if only one volunteer is available to respond immediately, as that person obviously cant drive both vehicles.

This gives the department greater flexibility, she said. Because the medical truck is air conditioned, it also can be used at the scenes of fires and other incidents as a place where first responders can cool off as needed.

Its a brotherhood, Sherman said of firefighters everywhere. Its one brotherhood helping out another.

The two fire departments were connected through Amboy-based Dinges Fire Company owner Nick Dinges, said Sherman and Bain. Amboy sells equipment to fire departments, but often helps broker exchanges between departments that have and those that need.

Sherman said that it wasnt long after she mentioned that the village could use a new medical response truck that he called with news one would soon be on its way.

Sherman said this type of exchange happens probably a lot more often than the general public is aware.

A lot of people who are civilians dont realize how good fire departments are to each other and how big the brotherhood is, she said. Its that way all over the world. Its a brotherhood. We understand each other. Weve seen bad and good.

There are 10 volunteer firefighters serving Vergennes, and the village is always looking for more, said Matt Hardwig, assistant fire chief for the village. Hardwig, who has served with the department for 21 years, said hes grateful for the donation and said the truck with undoubtedly be put to good use.

As the exchange took place, a curious person driving through the Walmart parking lot stopped to ask what was going on. After Sherman explained it to him, the man said he thought the truck was a wonderful gift.

I just really wanted to say God bless each and every one of you, he added. I pray Gods safety and protection for you and your family. Have a great holiday season.

The man drove away. Shortly after that, so did the big red truck on its way to Vergennes.
BELLEVILLE  The candidates verbally sparred amid a raucous crowd Thursday night on the stage at Lindenwood University-Belleville during the 12th Congressional District Debate, but mostly it was calm among Republican incumbent Mike Bost, Democratic challenger C.J. Baricevic and Green Party challenger Paula Bradshaw.

Despite repeated attempts by debate moderator Jak Tichenor to keep the crowd from applauding and cheering  for the sake of time  a rowdy atmosphere persisted throughout the debate as crowd members cheered, hissed, and even shushed audience members who were the most vocal. At one point, an audience member shouted, referring to the people cheering, "kick them out."

Baricevic, of Belleville, kicked things off by saying he would be a voice for those in the district.

We have a real opportunity here in the district, Baricevic said. This is our opportunity to have a voice."

He said the district had that voice when former Congressman Jerry Costello represented the district from 1993 to 2013. He said he has been involved in fixing infrastructure, he believes in affordable education and that women should be paid the same as men.

The biggest reaction from the crowd came when Bost said to Baricevic, "I know Jerry Costello, and you're no Jerry Costello."

Baricevic, struggling to be heard over the roaring crowd, lambasted Bost for repurposing a line made famous by Sen. Lloyd Benson to Sen. Dan Quayle during a vice presidential debate in 1988.

Bradshaw followed by reminding the audience about the influence of large amounts of money on campaigns in Congress, particularly in the Democratic and Republican parties.

Bost relied on his experience in opening statements, saying he has lived in the district his entire life. He mentioned how he has worked side-by-side with the everyday worker in the region, as he was a union firefighter in Murphysboro.

Every vote has been for Southern Illinois he said. Nobody believes in Southern Illinois and will work harder for them than I do, and will continue to do.

The first question was about the future economy. Candidates were asked how to provide long-term, good-paying jobs to the people of the district.

Baricevic was first to answer by saying coal is still very relevant in Southern Illinois.

We cant move forward about jobs without talking about coal, he said.

He said it is a tragedy that the economy is leaving Southern Illinois workers behind, and the government needs to work on a transition plan for workers to ensure they can move forward.

Bradshaw said the coal mining jobs in Southern Illinois are no longer union jobs. She said the benefits are gone.

We need to switch to solar energy and wind power which already employs more people with better-paying jobs, she said.

She said coal mining jobs have been continuously decreasing since the 60s, and the trend is not going to reverse any time soon.

Bost said he has supported every coal bill that he has seen. He said that he also supports green energy, but only 6 percent of the states energy is generated by wind and solar.

The wind has to be blowing and the sun has to be shining, he said.

He said the district must continue to fight to keep burning local coal, because it doesnt make any sense to ship coal overseas when the district burns it cleaner.

The next question was about the presidential race, and how each candidate would fix their partys selection process for president.

Bradshaw started by saying for other parties outside of the Green Party, campaigns are auctions, not selections. She said the Green Party just selects the best candidate, which it has done in Jill Stein, Green Party presidential candidate.

Bost said even if the heads of the party dont agree on who is listed on the ballot, it is up to the voters to decide.

Regardless of how you feel, they got the voters and won, he said.

Baricevic said he understands why people are upset, saying one candidate has been in office for 30 years and the other is motivated by hate.

Next, the candidates were questioned about losing its best and brightest out of the community while their districts suffer with tax base and infrastructure problems.

Bradshaw talked about a disparity of the wealth. She said the top percentage of people have the most money. She said people cant expect Southern Illinois to be prosperous when many of the people within it are fighting just to pay their bills.

You have to have enough money flowing into the region, she said.

Bost said he has worked on setting a different standard for families who wish to remain on the farm when it comes to obtaining low-interest loans.

Thats not the only thing he said should be done. He said the district must stop overburdening the people with bureaucracy, and provide jobs. He said President Barack Obamas administration has levied 600 rules on or against coal.

Those rules cost each citizen $2,200 each year, he said.

Baricevic said the government should stop doing unfair trade deals, because the district is losing a lot of industry jobs because of it.

We need to go out to businesses and say this is a great place to do business, he said. We need to bring jobs back to Belleville, and back to Franklin and Jackson County.

Next, a question about firearm deaths and how the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released numbers that showed more than 33,000 deaths from guns occurred this past year.

Baricevic said he considers himself a Second Amendment advocate, but if a person is too dangerous to fly, then they are probably too dangerous to own a gun.

He said having meaningful conversations in a bipartisan way for reform is how things can be fixed.

Bost said the no-fly list is flawed, and said there isnt a way a person can remove themselves from it.

We must enforce our existing gun laws sensibly and to the letter, he said.

Bradshaw said the no-fly list is another thing the government has imposed on the people, similar to the Patriot Act.

We have no way of know how you get on that list, she said. You dont know that you are on that list until you try to get on a plane.

The debate eventually turned to public housing. The candidates were asked what they would do to ensure better oversight of government funds for subsidized housing. The Alexander Housing Authority was used as an example.

Bost said he was proud of his staff for the work in Alexander County when the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development seized control of the ACHA, but the issue is much bigger than Cairo.

He said the government needs to vet the people who oversee the budgets for those agencies.

Baricevic actually thanked Bost for his work in Cairo, but said the government must be better at appropriately allocating federal dollars to agencies.

Bradshaw simply said the government needs to follow the rules when it comes to providing public housing.

We need to have public housing, she said. There are people that are too poor to buy houses because housing is expensive.

Another hot topic in the federal elections is immigration. The candidates were asked what solutions they would propose for immigration policy flaws.

Bradshaw said the country already has border control and labor laws, but they arent being enforced. She said if employers are allowed to hire undocumented workers, and avoid labor laws, it will continue to happen.

Baricevic called for comprehensive immigration reform, saying both sides of Congress need to work for it.

We need to make sure people come legally to the U.S. to move forward the economy, he said. It can be done with bipartisan support.

Bost said the county has to control its borders first. He doesnt agree with Donald Trumps idea of building a wall, but he said people coming in have to vetted thoroughly.

He said hes worried about the children who are caught in terrible situation in Syria, but he is worried about the safety of the children in America first.

In closing statements, Baricevic said every vote a Congressman makes affects the lives of people. He said the district needs to put workers first for the sake of the economy.

I can be that voice, he said. I have worked tirelessly since law school to work on behalf of the working people.

Bradshaw said this is the third time shes ran for Congress and each time she has had a good social democracy platform.

She said the top 10 percent own 77 percent of the wealth in the county and it isnt trickling down.

We need to tax the rich and corporations, she said. They need to pay their fair share.

Bost said he understands what happens in the 12th District.

I will continue to fight for you, he said. It has been an honor and privilege to serve you in Washington, D.C.
To the Editor:

Politics, even election of judges to our courts, is a messy business at times. However, it remains our responsibility to protect our system of self-government by promoting diversity and balance in our systems of government.

The Appellate Court of the Fifth Judicial District of Illinois located in Mount Vernon, covers 37 counties of Southern Illinois and is an important court. There is reason to ask voters to balance the political leanings of the judges on this court.

It was only about 14 years ago that Southern Illinois was in the midst of a health care crisis, with reduced access to doctors for many people. Doctors were leaving Southern Illinois in significant numbers because of rapidly increasing insurance costs, which occurred with rapidly escalating and unpredictable malpractice awards. Some of us have not forgotten. Keeping a balance of judicial temperament and philosophical leaning in our courts is part of a strategy to keep the courts working to the advantage of our entire community. We need plaintiffs lawyers, but we also need doctors and businesses to stay in or locate to Southern Illinois. Whatever your place in society, or your political affiliation, we need our courts to represent all of our communities and society, all of the time.

This year there are two vacancies on the seven-member Appellate Court of the Fifth District. The court currently has five Democrats, two of which are former high-profile members of personal injury or class actions focused law firms. There are only two Republicans on this court now, one of whom (Justice Moore) is up for election after being appointed last year. If neither Justice Moore nor Justice Barberis, the Republican candidate for the other vacancy, are elected to this court, the numbers will change to six Democrats and one Republican.

The candidates for these positions from both political parties appear to be good, honest and competent people. An issue was raised by the Illinois State Bar Association Judicial Evaluations Committee in not recommending one of the candidates for election. There is some evidence that partisan politics crept into this evaluation process by the type of question posed to the candidate. I think most of us understand, though, that judicial balance is based on more than good, honest and competent lawyers pledging to do their best. The individual judges philosophical view of the law and society at times matters.

I would suggest that it is important to balance this court to best represent all of Southern Illinois. Whether you are a Democrat or Republican, vote for both Republicans in this specific election. Do it to strengthen diversity and balance of opinion in our court system. Do this for all of Southern Illinois.

Phil Johnson, M.D.

Litchfield
To the Editor:

Im voting for Trump! Hes not a politician. Hes an outsider! Im ready for real change.

Democrats using character assassination with a flawed candidate like Hillary is a must. She will do, say, and support anything to protect her image. Liar, greedy, corrupt, self-serving  take your pick!

Trump has a sordid past but that doesnt disqualify him for president. Former Presidents, Senators and Congressmen have all been criticized for bad behavior. There are no perfect men or women. Some women can be as bad as men. No one condones such behavior but it exists.

Trump has acknowledged past behavior could be targeted but believes he can help make the country great again. During the primary he resonated with the public by raising issues others were reluctant to address.

As an outsider he doesnt owe anyone favors and selected an excellent leader Gov. Mike Pence as VP. He also created a list of highly respected conservative nominees for the Supreme Court.

This election is not about sexual behavior its about who you trust will best lead the country out of this quagmire.

Clinton will be a carbon copy of the Obama years. Many (70 percent) believe our country is heading in the wrong direction. With her at the helm there is little hope for improvement. Election of our next President should not be based on character assassination but who will be best for the future of our country.

Wake up America, Trump will be a better President than Hillary Clinton.

Robert Vanni

Macomb
An Orangeburg man will be 60 before he gets out of prison.

On Thursday afternoon, a jury convicted 30-year-old Johnathan Robert Green on two counts of attempted murder and one count of discharging a firearm into a dwelling.

He was originally charged with 10 counts of attempted murder, but prosecutors only tried him on two of those counts.

Circuit Judge Ed Dickson sentenced Green to 30 years on each count of attempted murder and 10 years for discharging a firearm into a dwelling. The terms run concurrently.

Prosecutors said that the Beason Road man fired at least nine rounds into a dwelling on Omega Court around 9 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 13, 2015.

Several adults and three children were in the home when Green opened fire.

Mr. Green showed total disregard for human life and the situation couldve been much worse, 1st Judicial Circuit Deputy Solicitor Tommy Scott said.

Scott told the court that Green fired shots into the dwelling, not the underpinning or into the air.

A 24-year-old Orangeburg man told investigators the incident began when he and a female acquaintance were riding in a vehicle. They spotted a vehicle being driven by Green, the father of the females child.

When the couple attempted to outrun the vehicle, it chased them from Five Chop Road to the Omega Court home. The couple ran inside.

The man told investigators that once inside, he watched as bullets came through the wall during a barrage of gunfire.

None of occupants of the residence were injured.

It took a few days before law enforcement caught up with Green.

At 12:10 p.m. Dec. 17, U.S. Marshals Fugitive Taskforce members arrested Green near Savannah, Georgia.

Attorney Byron Gipson, who represented Green, told the jury that his client may not have known law enforcement was looking for him.

Gipson also tried to convince the jury that Green didnt have a motive for opening fire into the Omega Court residence and that there werent any witnesses to the vehicle chase.

He told the jury during his closing arguments, Yes, we know this house was shot into, but the evidence didnt point to Green.

Scott reminded the jury Greens cellphone records indicate he was in the area.

Gipson told the jury that no one could trace a phone to Johnathan Green because witnesses from Verizon and T-mobile, who analyzed cellphone records, didnt know who bought the phone or who paid for it.

Gipson also stated that investigators could have done a better job collecting evidence for the case.

For instance, he said investigators should have searched the vehicle that Green was supposedly driving when the shots were fired.

The things they didnt show you are the missing pieces to the puzzle, Gipson said of the prosecutions case.

Greens trial began on Tuesday.

The jury began deliberations about 1 p.m. Thursday and reached a verdict at 3:15 p.m.

Just before sentencing, Gipson told the court that Green has three children. His youngest child was born after Greens Dec. 17 arrest.

Green has never held the child due to being incarcerated, Gipson said.
Are liberals and the mainstream media just trying to kid us? Not to mention a handful of Republicans. I speak of the feigned outrage over the comments from Donald Trump concerning accepting the results of the coming election. To harken back to the days of another Clinton, I guess it depends on what the definition of accepting is.

This column is not an attempt to convince a single person on the matter of who deserves their vote for president in 2016. Instead, it is another item to add to the bill of indictment for hypocrisy among said liberals and their colleagues in the mainstream media. Leave aside for the minute the whole reality of this year being one where the thumb of the MSM on the scale is astounding and beyond anything ever previously observed. Let us simply turn our attention to the specific matter of accepting the results.

One can say a great many things about the election of 2000. What cannot be said, or at least cannot be said with a straight face, is that Al Gore and the Democrats accepted the results of Election Day in any ordinary sense of the term. They surely contested those results for weeks and weeks. It was not until mid-December when the Supreme Court of the United States rendered its judgment that Al Gore accepted the outcome.

Between Election Day and mid-December, Gore and the Democrats fought tooth and nail to overturn the outcome. Among other things, this entailed contesting the decision of the secretary of state of Florida to certify the results in that key and determinative state.

When Floridas secretary of state said George Bush had won, Gore and Democrats did more than just pursue legal avenues to reverse that situation. They attacked and did everything possible to demonize Katherine Harris as an evil partisan who would refuse to allow an honest count. Memory does not serve to recall any editorials in the New York Times or Washington Post criticizing Gore or his supporters for undermining faith and confidence in our democratic institutions and its elected leaders. Quite the contrary.

As recently as October of this very year, Gore and Hillary Clinton nodded their heads in agreement at a rally in Florida to the chants of you won. As an aside, am I the only person who listened to Mrs. Clinton on this subject of accepting the results at the final debate and could only think of the famous scene in Animal House where Otter concludes with: We are not going to sit here and listen to you bad mouth the United States of America as they walk out and make a mockery of the topic at hand?

Of course this view that Gore actually won totally ignores that when the New York Times and Washington Post went back and counted the ballots in question precisely as Gore desired, the result was, exactly what? Yep. George Bush still was the winner. You can probably count on your fingers the number of Americans who remember this one-day story vs. the countless left-leaning partisans who maintain to this very day that Gore was cheated.

By what logic is it fine and dandy for Democrats to contest the outcome of a presidential election to the point of it requiring a decision of the Supreme Court to get resolution but to demand that a Republican candidate promise that what happens on Election Day requires the Republican candidate to go along with the results that very night? Even for liberals, this is a new level of hypocrisy and double standards.

I feel very confident in being willing to wager with anyone willing to do so that Donald Trump, and any other Republican official of consequence, will extend the discussion of what happens on Election Day in 2016 no further than Gore did in 2000. The bet is also open to a promise that if the situation goes to the point of a decision by the Supreme Court of the United States, that decision will be accepted.

There is another wager I am willing to make. That would be the conviction the mainstream media shall continue to portray what Trump is saying on accepting the results as being something totally beyond what has ever been said or done at any other point in history. Of course, anyone with a memory or regard for an honest conversation knows quite differently.
WASHINGTON -- The system is rigged and the polls are phony.

As E-Day draws nigh, Donald Trump and his spokesvolken have contrived every possible excuse for the Republican candidate's likely defeat. Unless, of course, lying has caught on "big league" and voters have followed their leaders' cue and given pollsters incorrect answers.

Multiple poll results released in the final days, most of which indicate a consistent trend of Hillary Clinton winning, are suddenly suspect, in Trump's mind. Obviously, everyone has a favorite polling group, usually corresponding to one's preference at the top. But enough reputable polls show similar results to lend heft to mere probability.

Even so, it ain't over till it is, one is wise to say.

Trump may be spinning polls for other reasons, too. Knowing how malleable people can be, he may hope to shift perceptions lest potential supporters be swayed by polls tilting Clinton-ward. If Trump hates losers, his comrades in arms (and that's no joke) probably do, too.

Perhaps the strongest indicator that Trump will lose is his own premature distribution of blame. As far as he is concerned, defeat couldn't be his fault.

The obvious truth is that Trump never should have been the Republican nominee, as even Trump probably would admit. When he descended the escalator to announce his candidacy, he was at just 1 percent -- a barely perceptible speck on the continuum of Republican candidates.

He was ignored -- or at least not taken seriously -- by nearly everyone for good reason. And when he started spouting hot rhetoric, few in the GOP leadership worried much since he'd surely be moving along any day. This was not to be, in part because, as Trump commented laughing to a friend, who told me: "I had no idea it would be so easy."

Translation: Once he realized he was dealing with a bunch of suckers, he continued to play them. What fun -- and, voila.

The suckers of whom he was speaking are the party leadership, specifically: Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus and RNC communications director Sean Spicer. If these names don't ring a bell, congratulations, you don't watch TV. Because Priebus, when not jetting around with Trump on his gold-plated private plane, and Spicer are on one talk show or another nearly every time you look at a cable news screen. They've worn more makeup the past year than most women do in a lifetime.

"They're having the time of their lives," as one tenured-Washington Republican put it.

They're the elephants in the Green Room, in other words. Everyone sees them clearly but manages to avoid speaking openly of the obvious -- that Priebus has presided over the ruin of the Republican Party. Why isn't he being held accountable? Why isn't he being called to the mat for allowing Trump's rise, which might not have been possible had the party chair done his job?

Why was everyone willing to stand by and watch this reality-TV character take charge?

"Because (Priebus) is their boy," a disgruntled top Republican told me. "He's given them what they wanted. He's kept the money flowing."

Where the money flows, the love goes. In politics, it seems, principle really means principal.

The RNC gang sold out. When Trump launched his campaign by ranting about undocumented Mexicans as murderers and rapists, the party leadership should have shouted him down. Priebus should have summoned Trump to Washington and explained how things were going to go. He might have handed Trump the GOP's autopsy report from the 2012 election and referred him to the "Hispanics" section of the chapter on cultivating "Demographic Partners," saying: This is what you're going to do from now on.

Would Trump have agreed? Probably not. But then Priebus should have said: Well, then, I'll have to break you down during the primaries. At every opportunity, Priebus should have made the case that Trump, who eventually alienated not just Hispanics but also African-Americans and women, doesn't represent the Republican Party. Instead, Priebus and others feared a base that hadn't formed around Trump yet and, by their inaction, contributed to Trump's success.

By letting Trump rise to the top, as oil slicks tend to, Priebus has left the party in such a gelatinous mess, Republicans will need a hazmat team to clean it up. And for this, he'd like to serve a third term?

Once you've seen the lights, smelled the greasepaint and been the celebrity's apprentice, it must be hard to go back to Jersey.
The logo for CARIFESTA 1V HOSTED BY Barbados in 1981. Weve come a long way since. (CARICOM Secretariat)

Barbados will host CARIFESTA X111, from August 17  27, 2017.





It will be the second time that that country will host the Caribbean Festival of Arts, their first being CARIFESTA 1V, July 19  August 3, 1981.





In fact, after CARIFESTA 1V, there was a lapse of some eleven years before the Festival returned, to be hosted by Trinidad and Tobago. Since then, the Festival has seen irregular inclusion in the Caribbeans calendar of events.





And while Barbados will, as they have demonstrated they can do, ensure that all is ready for the hosting of the multi-cultural event that gathers artists, musicians, authors, and exhibits the folkloric and artistic expressions of the Caribbean, Barbadians, especially business people, are being urged to use the opportunity of CARIFESTA X111, to showcase their goods and services to the world.





Barbados Culture Minister Stephen Lashley made the appeal, saying, "I hope youve thought a lot about the creative sector. There are many opportunities, within the CARIFESTA experienceI want you to factor in how business and entrepreneurs will respond to the opportunity of CARIFESTA, Lashley said as he addressed the media launch of the Global Entrepreneurship Week, held at the Cave Hill School of Business.

Lashley urged entrepreneurs to consider the benefits of developing a strategy to promote their products and services during the 10-day festival.





He also advised entrepreneurs that such creative ventures should be leveraged for international visibility, as their success will soon become a more mainstream source of economic development.





"This event is not just another CARIFESTA, it focuses on the empowerment of men and women through the creation of business ideas that can be transformed into products and services the rest of the world wants, the Culture Minister noted.





One way persons may market their goods and services during the regional arts festival, is by taking part in the CARIFESTA XIII Grand Market and Buyers Shopping Mall.

CARIFESTA X11 was held in Haiti from August 2130, 2015. (Source: CMC)
Left:Kingsley Dyer (right) receiving certification from Captain Sydney Innis (VP Security and Safety - Port Authority Jamaica). Right:Ian Beache, ECGC Head of Security and Port Facility Security Officer, displaying certification.

ECGCs Kingsley Dyer- Head Miller and Deputy Port Facility Security Officer , and Ian Beache- Head of Security and Port Facility Security Officer, are now certified Port Security Officers .





The two received their certification after participating in a Caribbean Regional Drug Law Enforcement Training Center (REDTRAC) Port Facility Security Officer Course, held in Kingston, Jamaica, from September 19  30.

The Course drew participation from Anguilla, Antigua, Trinidad and Tobago, Cayman Islands, host country Jamaica and SVG, and included sessions on topics such as Maritime Threats, Port Security Regulations, and Discipline and Responsibilities of the Post. A plan of action was also designed as part of the course requirements.





As far as Beache was concerned, the training was necessary, given ECGCs involvement in export, which requires the use of port facilities in SVG.





Being up-to-date with security measures was extremely necessary since the international security changes of 9/11, Beache added.





Dyer assessed the experience and knowledge gained as placing him in a better position to keep safety and security at the forefront for the company.

Raw materials used by ECGC are shipped from the USA, and he wants to ensure ECGC never falls short in adhering to proper policies and guidelines.





The Course was the first of its kind done by REDTRAC, and while the content modelled that of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), it was made applicable to the Caribbeans needs.

In May 1995, the Government of Jamaica and the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) signed an agreement for the establishment of a Regional Drug Training Centre (REDTRAC), to serve the needs of the eighteen English-speaking countries of the Caribbean.





The Centre was officially opened on the 27th September, 1996.

REDTRAC is a Post-Secondary, special-focus training institution and a regional training hub, aimed at enhancing the capacity of each participating country to reach its respective national drug control objectives, in the area of drug law enforcement operations.
The Oppositon New Democratic Party is expected to be out in full force for todays Sitting of the House.

It is anticipated that the controversy surrounding Sir Louis Strakers status as a citizen of the United States will be put to rest during todays sitting of Parliament.





A question in relation to the issue is included on todays Order Paper. It is listed to be put forward by the Opposition New Democratic Party (NDP) Senator, Dr. Jules Ferdinand.





According to the Order Paper, Senator Ferdinand is down to ask the Prime Minister and Political Leader of the Unity Labour Party (ULP), Dr Ralph Gonsalves, to state whether or not Sir Louis did give up his US citizenship prior to him being a candidate for the ULP.





In furtherance, Dr. Ferdiand is down to ask the Prime Minister, if he (Straker) had done so, to give a date and if not, then why was he allowed to contest the election and breach the laws of the country.

The Order paper points to a busy session for parliamentarians.





Marcia Barnwell, the other appointed opposition senator, has three questions which she is putting to the ministers of Education, National Mobilisation and Economic Planning.





Opposition Leader Arnhim Eustace, MPs St Clair Leacock and Roland Matthews are the others seeking oral answers in todays Sitting of the House.





Together, they are expected to seek responses from government on questions relating to the fiscal situation of the country, the international airport project at Argyle, and the assets of the state owned company National Properties.

Nineteen Bills are down for consideration, including the Occupational Safety and Health Bill which is at the Select Committee stage. (DD)
Leader of the Opposition Arnhim Esutace has put the blame for the escalation of crime here on the ULP administration.

Leader of the Opposition - Arnhim Eustace has blamed the Dr Ralph Gonsalves Unity Labour Party (ULP) led administration for the current crime situation.





While speaking on Mondays New Times radio programme, Eustace said that, while crime is a multi-dimensional, complex issue, and there is no single cause of crime, it is accepted that the lack of economic opportunity  jobs  is a contributing factor to crime.

"And Gonsalves has contributed to that, he said.





According to Eustace, Gonsalves promised the nation as one of his election promises, that he intended to get tough on crime and the causes of crime; however, the facts have shown that the ULP administration has failed to do anything of the sort.





There were 12 homicides recorded in 2001 when Gonsalves first took office, Eustace explained, but in 2015 this country recorded 37 homicides.





And so far, the country has recorded close to 30, Eustace continued..

"(Recently) We had two shootings on the same day. All this translates to an existing murder rate of 34 homicides per 100,000 population, which places St Vincent and the Grenadines among the top 20 countries in the world as far as homicides are concerned, Eustace said.





"The blame for creating the conditions for feeding the cancer of crime is on the government, he continued.

Eustace then fingered the ULP administration for doing things and/or allowed things to happen that have sent a signal to criminal elements that under certain circumstances, crime will pay.





He mentioned the reinstatement of the three officers in 2010 who were found guilty of severely beating 15-year-old Jemark Jackson in 2008, to the point where the teenager went into a coma.





The decision (reinstatement) taken at that time by the then Commissioner of Police, Keith Miller was illegal, according to Eustace, but Gonsalves as the Prime Minister and Minister of National Security stood by the decision.





And it was Gonsalves who, according to the Opposition Leader, spoke disparagingly about the court system, only to come back and say that one can go to all the courts, but one must come back to papa  leaving one to conclude that the courts are a waste of time.





Eustace also raised the issue of crimes against women saying that in 2001, the issue of rape was not as prevalent as it is now, but all that changed in 2008 following the allegations of rape that were made against Gonsalves, first by a member of the local constabulary, and then by a human rights lawyer.





"Both cases are a matter of public record, and they were quickly dismissed before being heard in the court, Eustace said.





"So what sort of message is being sent to the public about the application of justice? Eustace questioned, prompting him to declare that a newer approach was needed. (DD)
Left: A mural at Her Majestys prison in Kingstown aims to motivate inmates to be positive about turning their lives around. Inset:Superintendent of Prisons Brenton Charles highlighted the problems ex-convicts face on their return to their communities.

Superintendent of Prisons Brenton Charles is appealing to persons to help when their relatives are released after serving time in prison.





Charles made the appeal while speaking at the launch of a Positive Reinforcement Programme for the Re-Habitable (PRPR), last Monday.





The Superintendent expressed delight with the initiative, and described it as one aimed at stemming the flow of persons returning to the penitentiary.





Ex-inmates face the problem of housing when they are freed because they are "shut out, by relatives on notice of their release. Former inmates also faced great difficulty with finding jobs, Charles said.

Even when they do find jobs, the situation is compounded by distrust of ex-convicts, and Charles referred to the case where a former inmate was dismissed from a job, after he was identified by someone.

Charles made the comparison with





"We have to embrace our former inmates, Charles pointed out, alluding to the situation of former South African President Nelson Mandela who spent 27 years in jail.





He indicated initiatives that the Prison authorities have taken to prepare the inmates for release, including some aspects of academic training. He admitted that competing with the School system was difficult for the prison, hence an emphasis on teaching "workable skills.





In this regard, Charles highlighted an Auto mechanic programme done in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, as well as a plumbing venture undertaken with help from a local individual.

"Our best bet is to provide programmes that will assist persons on their release, Charles contended.

But he also took time to chastise persons who, he said, try to disrupt the Prisons attempt to rehabilitate inmates by smuggling marijuana and cell phones into the facility.





In Charles view, such persons were trying to keep prisoners in crime.

He pledged his institutions commitment to the Positive reinforcement programmes for the re-habitable.

Merrica Burke, Social Development Director, presented the feature address in the absence of Minister Frederick Stephenson. She was impressed by Charles presentation, and described her duties as redundant, in light of the Superintendent of Prisons presentation.





She, however, echoed the importance of former inmates receiving adequate housing, social protection and being reintegrated into their families, communities and the society as a whole.

"We fail if inmates are not reintegrated, Burke said, as she stressed the importance of encouraging ex-inmates to use their second chance.





She noted that education of the population was a "critical element. We have to educate the public about the importance of accepting former inmates.





Assistant coordinator in the Gender Affairs Division Anton Caesar outlined aspects of the programme. When inmates have one year of their sentences remaining, they are enlisted in the programme.

Some 460 persons are incarcerated here, including eight women who are housed at the Kingstown facility. A number of male inmates are at Belle Isle Correctional Facility, opened in 2009. (WKA)




Left:Right: Wendell Robinson was appointed Commissioner of Police in Antigua and Barbuda in January, 2016. Middle:Leon Chaku Symister, lawyer for the family of the alleged victim, is bent on seeing the back of Robinson. Right:Steadroy Cutie Benjamin, Minister of National Security, does not think the matter warrants Robinsons suspension far less dismissal.

Wendell Robinson, the Vincentian-born Commissioner of Police in Antigua and Barbuda, continues to be in the spotlight, with the lawyer for the family of a thirteen-year-old, who alleges molestation by one of his officers, calling for his (Robinsons) resignation.





Attorney Leon Chaku Symister, who is also the Opposition United Progressive Party (UPP) spokesman on national security, said in a radio broadcast last week, according to the Antigua Observer, that since his party has got no way with its advances to the Minister of Public Safety Steadroy Cutie Benjamin, it will, in the form of a letter, "direct its demands for the resignation of Commissioner of Police Wendell Robinson, to Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC) Kelvin John.





The UPP had called for Robinson to be suspended or that he "demits office voluntarily, pending a full investigation and impartial investigation into an allegation of complicity by the Royal Antigua and Barbuda Police Force.





It is implied that police officers may have assisted one of their own, a Vincentian national, to flee Antigua for his homeland, after he was accused of sexual assault of a 13-year-old minor.





But Minister Benjamin ruled that for him to suspend Robinson at that juncture would have been "premature and unwarranted.





But on Friday last week, Attorney Symister declared, as quoted by the Observer, "If Commissioner Wendell Robinson refuses to voluntarily step aside, then the Police Service Commission has an obligation to act.

"A letter will be sent to the Police Service Commission, and were calling on the chairmanwho is known in his profession to be a forthright, honest, and firm individual who is fair; who is moral [and] who has a sense of what is right and what is wrong.





According to Symister, Robinson must step down before a "proper investigation can commence because "as the head of the police force, if there is an investigation taking place it would be awkwardwhile he is in command[for] junior officers to be investigating him.





In a further development, the UPP has questioned why a medical examination was only done on the minor on October 3, after the alleged sexual assault was reported on September 28.





Speculation is rife in Antigua and Barbuda that the accused police officer left that country by air.

And as of press time Tuesday night, officers of the Royal SVG Police Force were still in search of the accused officer who, it was confirmed, arrived in St. Vincent and gave Byrea as his expected place of abode.

Commissioner (Ag) Renold Hadaway had told THE VINCENTIAN last week, that he had set a task force in motion, headed by a gazetted officer, to locate the Antiguan police officer.

Efforts to locate him in Byrea had proved futile, but information was received that the officer might have journeyed to the Questelles/Campden Park area.





A number of Vincentians, since the 1970s, have served in the Royal Antigua and Barbuda Police Force with distinction, even in the face of challenges within and without the Force.

Robinson is the first Vincentian to be elevated with some permanence to the top post in the Police Force there.




Ctrack partners with Cameroon taxi union in vehicle tracking initiative

Vehicle tracking and fleet management company Ctrack, a subsidiary of Novatel Wireless has partnered with Cameroon National Taxi Union to provide vehicle tracking and driver behavior monitoring to the taxi industry in the Republic of Cameroon.

The agreement is the countrys first step towards implementing legislation that will mandate all Cameroon taxi operators to have vehicle tracking units installed in their vehicles.

The multi-year agreement will enable the Government of Cameroon to provide GPS vehicle tracking, safety and compliance products to its more than 100,000 taxis currently operating on the countrys roads. Taxis are the primary mode of transportation across the African continent. In Cameroon alone, taxis transport over 8 million commuters daily.

Ctrack shares our commitment of creating safer roads for all and it shows through the quality of their technology and analytics, said Augustin Ngangoua, National President of the Cameroon National Taxi Union. This initiative will not only improve the safety of drivers and passengers, but also other road users and the public in general. Through Ctracks commitment, we will engage in talks with the Transport Ministry to enforce the installation of GPS tracking units into all taxis.

Ctrack is proud to have won this very competitive bid, which helps solidify our position as a premier global telematics provider, said Cobus Grove, General Manager, Ctrack Global. With our advanced telematics offering and technical capability, we managed to meet the clients business expectations and overall business objectives with driver and passenger safety at the heart of the solution.

The multi-year agreement will enable the government of Cameroon to provide GPS vehicle tracking, safety and compliance solutions to its more than 100,000 taxis currently operating on the countrys roads.

Taxis are the primary mode of transportation across the African continent. In Cameroon alone, taxis transport over 8 million commuters daily. The agreement is the countrys first step towards implementing legislation that will mandate all Cameroon taxi operators to have vehicle tracking units installed in their vehicles.

www.ctrack.com
JCI St. Vincent delegation at the Colouratic Fun Walk/Run in support of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of Barbados.

The 56th Annual JCI West Indies National Convention was held in Barbados, October 11 to 15, under the theme Passionate Leaders ACT for Positive IMPACT.





The Convention is held annually in October to discuss the business of the organisation, elect an executive for the upcoming year and plot its future course.





It also provides an opportunity for members to network and socialise with people of like mind, who share a common interest in youth leadership development issues and serving their community.

This years Convention attracted participation of JCI Chapters from across the region, including Antigua, Barbados, Guyana, St. Vincent, Trinidad and Tobago.





Members from chapters in the French West Indies - Martinique and Guadeloupe  were also in attendance.

The JCI St. Vincent Chapter was represented by a five (5) member delegation of executive and ordinary members, led by President Shevern Lewis-John.





The delegation participated in motivational sessions; training sessions with focus on leadership; marketing, networking and financial management sessions; along with the Public Speaking and Debating competitions.

The St. Vincent delegation returned home with awards in the category of Best Inter organisation Collaboration Project and Most Punctual President.





One of the evening events dubbed Island Night and Cultural Evening gave persons the opportunity to socialise and enjoy cuisine and cultural presentations from the various countries.





Chapters also contributed to a Community Project at the Government Hill Nursery School, the First Nursery School in Barbados which was founded by the Barbados Jaycees.





In addition, all organisations participated in the JCI Barbados Colouratic Fun Walk/Run where all proceeds support the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of Barbados.





The Junior Chamber International (JCI), formerly known as Jaycees, is a non-governmental, voluntary organization with the main objective of developing and empowering young people, and contributing to community growth through active involvement.





Last year, the organisation celebrated 100 years of impact with over 200,000 members in more than 5,000 local organisations across the globe.




Standing: Senator Carlos James (2nd from left) and Minister of Health, Luke Browne (3rd from left) at the presentation ceremony. Also pictured are Senior Nursing Officer Cecile James-Samuel (left), Family Nurse Practitioner Judy Haywood (second from right), District Medical Officer Dr. Francis Murray (right).

Staff and patients at the Chateaubelair Hospital will be more comfortable, thanks to a donation of medical supplies to that institution.





The donation was made by government Senator and Deputy Speaker of the House of Assembly Hon. Carlos James, at a consultation with health officials and residents last Friday, October 21st, 2016 at the Chateaubelair Learning Resource Centre.





According to Senator James the donation was timely, as the health ministry makes final preparations to relocate the hospital to a nearby Resource Centre, so as to facilitate the retrofitting of the hospital into a new Smart Healthcare Facility.





The donation, including four high velocity electric fans, boxes of adult pampers, an electric oxygen tank, diabetic machines and strips, bedpans and urinals, among other medical supplies, was made possible through Senator James philanthropic efforts and donor partners including CARIMEDIX in Kingstown.





"In a few months, the Chateaubelair hospital will be temporarily relocated, and I thought the donation was necessary to make both the staff and the patients more comfortable during the transition, Senator James said.





The Chateaubelair Smart Hospital project, which is funded by UKAID and implemented by PAHO, will be retrofitted with solar panels for renewable energy, rain harvesting tanks, improved functional sections for staff and patients, new maternity and pediatric wards, a pharmacy, dental and doctors stations and restrooms for the public.

Senator James noted that this project is a welcomed initiative, and thanked the personnel at the ministry of health for its quick implementation.





The new Smart Hospital, to be constructed at a cost of some $1.6 million dollars, is part of the governments plan to improve the delivery of healthcare nationally, and North Leeward is not being left out of the mix, Senator James assured.




Saboto Caesar, Minister of Agriculture, gave insight into anticipated assistance from the government of Mexico.

The Government of Mexico is extending support for an effort to improve and modernize Sanitary and Phyto Sanitary (SPS) measures here.





The programme of assistance, to be conducted through the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), was highlighted during a press briefing hosted by the Minister of Agriculture, Saboto Caesar, Monday 24h October.





In expressing thanks to the Government of Mexico and IICA, Minister Caesar said that the programmme will provide Phyto Sanitary equipment and training of Technicians, towards increasing vigilance in detecting pest and diseases at all points of entry in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.





He also highlighted that Agricultural Extension Officers will travel to Mexico for training in geo-spatial mapping (drone technology) to advance techniques in data collection.





Technicians from Mexico are also expected to conduct training in data statistics, in SVG.

Four persons from the Ministry are also earmarked to travel to Mexico for training in coffee production, as part of that countrys commitment to assist the Coffee, Cocoa, Condiments and Spices Unit in 2017.





Michael Dalton, IICAs Senior Technical Specialist, told the gathering that the Ministry of Agriculture is viewed as IICAs primary client and as such therefore, his organisation is committed to work with the Ministry, in pursuit of fulfilling the IICA mission of working to develop agriculture and rural communities here and in the region. (DD)
The Leeward Islands Airline Pilots Association (LIALPA) has noted the public comments of Chairman of the Shareholder Governments, Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves in the October 19th 2016 Edition of the Barbados Today Newspaper.





Dr Gonsalves is quoted as saying: "We have too many cancellations caused by illness of flight crew.we have too many bouts of illness which results in cancellations. We have also noted that those statements come a mere two (2) weeks after Antiguas Observer Newspaper issued a Retraction of Statements purportedly made by LIATs Acting CEO Julie Reifer-Jones in its October 8th 2016 Edition, where Mrs. Reifer-Jones allegedly said: "On record we have enough cabin crew to fly LIATs schedule. We have a high level of reported sickness from crew.





LIALPA strongly refutes the statements made by PM Gonsalves and by Acting CEO Reifer-Jones as erroneous and totally false.





First of all, the action of the Acting CEO to have the Newspaper retract the Article is because she knows without a doubt that her statements were dishonest. Here are the facts: LIAT is woefully short of adequate crew to properly execute LIATs current flight schedule. Over the last two (2) years, LIAT has not employed a single pilot, even though thirty-one (31) pilots have left the company either because of retirement or resignation. Nineteen (19) of those who have left were trained to fly the newly acquired ATR type aircraft. Management sat on their hands while this mass attrition of ATR pilots occurred, and did nothing to rectify the situation, and this resulted in the company losing all of the monies it invested in the training of these pilots. To be specific, the cost of training an ATR Pilot is approximately EC$100,000 per pilot, therefore this amounts to a total of EC$1.9 million dollars of training investment that has been lost. Is this as a result of poor management? Now, after suffering such losses, and as the winter schedule is prepared, Management in a last minute panic is employing additional crew, but this is already too late, as it takes at least 3-4 months for a new pilot to train before they can actually fly with passengers.





The incompetence of LIATs Management is exposed even further, as they continue to schedule flights even though they are aware that there is no crew available for the scheduled flight, and it would inevitably be cancelled. This then leads to Management asking the skeletal remaining Crew to double their workload, and to work at maximum time with minimum rest. This is not a feasible model and it is just a matter of time before this operation model breaks down and flight cancellations increase even further. Flight cancellations are also occurring because LIAT has no Reserve Coverage on a daily basis and so a single pilot in a single island has to cover the operational model throughout the network. This is ludicrous and represents poor planning and incompetent management.

LIALPA wants to categorically state that there is no abnormal sickness occurring among crew members. Presently, if a single pilot gets the flu and cannot fly, the sickness of that one (1) pilot can cause several flights to be cancelled. What effectively run Airline pleads on a regular basis with Pilots, to work on their off days and personal vacation days?





After several months of being silent, and trying our utmost to go above and beyond the call of duty, we are now bringing to the attention of the traveling public that some Pilots have fallen ill due to extremely high and unbearable cockpit temperatures, and also in part, due to the usage of chemicals/ pesticides to address an existing roach infestation in cockpits and passenger cabins.





LIAT recorded a profit in the first half of this year, and Management has yet to recognize that this would not have been achieved if the Pilots did not make the sacrifice of working 10-11 hours per day, and without the company scheduling meal breaks.





The Barbados Today article also mentioned that LIAT is expected in the final four months of the year to project a loss of EC$9.2 million. This was totally avoidable and we lay the blame for this squarely at the feet of Management. LIAT lost millions of dollars when it sold its Dash 8 airplanes. When there was a hangar fire in Antigua, records of the airplanes were destroyed and were not backed up. Therefore, the airplanes were depreciated and sold under value because even though LIAT spent millions of dollars putting in new (replacement) parts in the airplanes, they could not prove that the parts were new, nor could they prove how much flying time (usage) the airplanes did, all due to reckless negligence in basic record keeping. No one has been held accountable to date.





On the matter of the projected millions of dollars in losses for LIAT, the travelling public needs to ask LIATs management two (2) simple questions: 1) Has the removal of flights from certain profitable routes led to these projected losses? 2) Are the projected losses due to political interference in the Airlines Destination and Flight Schedule Planning?





LIALPA, as always, continues to reassure the travelling public, that we are committed and dedicated to serving you at the highest professional levels. We want to avoid flight delays and especially cancellations, but we simply cannot do so, due to a shortage of crew, poor working conditions and an incompetent management team.

St Johns, Antigua

October 23, 2016.




Through a combined effort of the SVG High Commission in London and the New London Association of Vincentians, the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital (MCMH) was recently the recipient of a gift of sheets and pillows.





Last week Thursday, October 20, Sir Louis Straker, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, handed over 200 sheets and 100 pillows to the MCMH Administrator Sister Grace Walters.





The gift was the result of Sir Louis ongoing work with SVG High Commissioner in London, H.E. Cenio Lewis, in soliciting help for the hospital.





This time around, Ambassador Lewis reached out to Denzil Winsboro, President of the New London Association of Vincentians, who was instrumental in putting together the gift.





"We are extremely grateful to His Excellency Cenio Lewis and to the President of the New London Association of Vincentians, for making the sacrifice and being so considerate in knowing that these things are always needed at the hospital, and going out of their way to work so hard in order to have them for the comfort of the patients at the hospital, Sir Louis said at the handing over ceremony.





In her remarks, Hospital Administrator Sister Grace Walters expressed gratitude to Sir Louis Straker for facilitating the donation.





"When we see linens at the hospital, those of us who are in administration, it is like a child opening presents on Christmas morning, because we can never have too much linens, Sister Walters said.

She noted that in a hospital, one patient may use up to 5 linens in a period of 4hours, making the need for same a very fundamental one.





Sir Louis was pleased to report that Ambassador Lewis had assured him that another donation is forthcoming, with the Redding Association of Vincentians already pledging to donate 200 sheets and 100 pillow cases to the hospital, before year end.




L-R: Trustee of the Mustique Charitable Trust, Marie-France Demolis , Janielle Thompson, Dawn Samuel, Shari Roberts , Administrator of the Mustique Charitable Trust, Lavinia Gunn and Head of the UWI Open Campus, Deborah Dalrymple.

Three females are this years recipients of the Mustique Charitable Trust (MCT) annual bursaries to students pursuing studies at the Kingstown Open campus of the University of the West Indies.





The three are: Shari Roberts pursuing BSc Social Work; Dawn Samuel, BSc in Management Studies; and Janielle Thompson - BEd (Literacy).





Each recipient received assistance to the tune of 60% of her tuition course up to the completion of their studies and a brand new laptop (computer).





During a presentation ceremony on Thursday 20th October at the University of the West Indies Open Campus in Richmond Hill, Head of the Open Campus  Deborah Dalrymple expressed pleasure on being on the receiving end of the Trusts contribution.





"We are so happy to be on the reaching end .. so that the students can benefit from that, said Dalrymple, adding that the bursary is a special one, since it is not the normal one off support, but one that continues throughout the recipients course of study.





According to Dalrymple, the benefactors of the MCT are closely involved in the recipients development.

There are currently 15 students  inclusive of the three recent bursary recipients  pursuing programmes of study at the Open campus.





Administrator of the MCT Lavinia Gunn described the relationship between both organizations as a very family-oriented one, and she congratulated the recipients, noting that they had to overcome many hurdles to get thus far.

According to Gunn, the recipients had to go through a stringent interview process.

She said the MCT has a selection committee in place comprising of trustees, who are guided by the Open Campus when selecting the recipients.





Recognising that the students face many personal challenges while pursuing their academic development, the MCT has put in place a mentoring programme to assist the students, along with a system to link the current recipients with "study buddies.





Sharlene Wyliie, a previous recipient of MCT bursary, expressed gratitude to the Trust. She said that while young persons try to develop themselves, it is not always easy due to financial difficulties, "and I think we must commend the (Mustique) Charitable Trust for the work they are doing because in these economic times, it is not always so easy to give to students continuously.





Shari Roberts expressed thanks on behalf of the new recipients, declaring that the support would go a long way in their schooling, and she promised that they will be taking advantage of the opportunity, making it money well spent. (KH)




Hundreds of Vincentians on Sunday, Oct. 23, crammed the pews of The Church of St. Mark, Episcopal (Anglican) in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn, New York, for an Ecumenical Service of Thanksgiving, as St. Vincent and the Grenadines celebrates its 37th Anniversary of Independence.





The near three-hour-long service - organized by the Brooklyn-based Vincentian umbrella group in the United States, Council of St. Vincent and the Grenadines Organizations, U.S.A., Inc. (COSAGO), in collaboration with the New York Consulate General  drew nationals from throughout the New York metropolitan area.





The service marked the beginning of a week of Independence activities in the Big Apple, organized by COSAGO, culminating next Sunday, Oct. 30, with a gala Luncheon and Awards Ceremony at Grand Prospect Hall in Brooklyn.





A number of Vincentian clergy officiated and participated in the Service of Thanksgiving, reading the Scriptures and offering myriad prayers, among other things.





The Rev. Claudius Davis prayed for the adopted country, the United States; Fr. Carver Israel prayed for the government and people of St. Vincent and the Grenadines; Rev. Myron Ashton prayed for the youth; Bishop Robert Yearwood prayed for peace; Deacon Wilmoth Seaton prayed for the clergy; and the Rev. Simeon King prayed for thanksgiving. Rev. Dorage Stephens introduced the participating clergy.





The Scriptures were read by the Revs. Pester OGarro, Dr. Roxie Irish and Derwin Grant. Bishop Kenroy Cuffy served as liturgist for most of the service, succeeded by Crispin Friday, chairman of the Independence Church Service Committee and elder brother of the Right Revd C. Leopold Friday, Bishop of the Windward Islands.

The Service was graced by the presence of United States Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke, the daughter of Jamaican immigrants, who represents the 9th Congressional District in Brooklyn.





Brief Independence remarks were delivered by United Nations Ambassador I. Rhonda King; New York Counsel General Howie Prince, and COSAGO president Laverne McDowald-Thompson. OBrien Simmons, COSAGOs treasurer, appealed to congregants to assist the organizations disaster relief fund.





In his maiden Independence Church Service address in New York, Prince said, while he was yet to receive Prime Minister Dr. Ralph E. Gonsalves Independence Message, the Vincentian leader had asked him to convey that St. Vincent and the Grenadines is still beautiful.

In addition, Prince said the prime minister asked that nationals humble themselves and pray for the multi-island state.





Prince asked the congregants to stand and sing The Right Hand of God, a popular hymn composed by the late Patrick Prescod.

Stating that St. Vincent and the Grenadines "holds a special place in our hearts, McDowald-Thompson, a former teacher at the Chateaubelair Methodist School, urged nationals to "pause and work to make our homeland prosperous.





"Brothers and sisters, you know unity is strength, she said. "Dont make our differences separate us.

In his sermon, the Rev. Hoskins Prescott, the retired pastor at St. Leonards Church in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, and member of the Independence Church Service Committee, appealed to nationals to "reach out to somebody, to help somebody, so your living will not be in vain.





Preaching on the topic, "Call for Another Day of Service, Rev. Prescott, a Sion Hill native, said: "As a people called to a life of service, let us build bridges. No one [by him or herself] can build a city.

He implored: "As we celebrate the 37th year of independence, there is still some work to be done, (The Book of) Galatians tell us [that] we need to bear each others burdens. Jesus, in his teachings and preaching left us a legacy of love.. And so, as we celebrate this day, I implore you to follow the path of Jesus Christ. Let love and togetherness be your motto.





Besides the gala Luncheon, COSAGO will host a free "Cultural Evening Friday night, Oct. 28, at the Friends of Crown Heights Educational Center, 671 Prospect Pl., between Franklin and Bedford Avenues in Brooklyn.
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By Azernews





By Laman Ismayilova

The Azerbaijan-Monaco Business Forum will be held in Baku on November 7.

The forum will be attended by entrepreneurs from a wide range of fields, including food industry, tourism, logistics, transportation, as well as banking and insurance sectors, AZPROMO reported

Diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and Monaco were established in 2007.

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Monaco reached $41,970 in January-September 2016, which entirely accounted for the import of goods from Monaco.

AZPROMO is a joint public-private-initiative, established by the Ministry of Economy and Industry of Azerbaijan in 2003 with the aim to contribute to the economic development through attracting foreign investments.
By Azernews





By Rashid Shirinov

Azerbaijans telecommunications satellite Azerspace-1 has begun commercial broadcasting of two Georgian TV channels  Trialeti TV and Palitra TV, Azercosmos Company reported on October 27.

In early 2016, Azercosmos started broadcasting another Georgian TV channel 2TV via Azerspace-1. The Georgian TV channels are available on 11095/H/27500 frequencies.

Azercosmos also signed a contract with the Turkish radio Damar FM, which will be broadcast on the frequency 11027/D/7500.

Currently, the total number of TV and radio channels broadcast via Azerbaijani satellite reaches 80. The satellite is placed on the orbital position of 46 degrees East longitude.

Azerspace-1, first telecommunications satellite of Azerbaijan, was launched on February 8, 2013. It provides a variety of services, such as digital television, data transmission, VSAT multi-service networks, and governmental communications. The total cost of the Azerspace-1 project was $230 million.

Recently, it was announced that the satellite will be used during emergency situations.

Currently, service area of ??Azerspace-1 includes Europe, Africa, Central Asia and the Middle East. Such countries as Malaysia, Russia, Germany, Ukraine, Egypt, Georgia, UAE, Lebanon, Cameroon, the United Kingdom, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Estonia and Belarus use services of this satellite.

This year, work on designing Azerspace-2 telecommunication satellite has been launched. The satellite will be put into orbit in 2017, and cover a service area of Europe, South-East Asia, the Middle East and Africa.
By Azernews





By Gunay Hasanova

The Turkish Embassy in Azerbaijan hosted a grand reception to mark the Republic Day on October 27.

The event was attended by state and government officials of Azerbaijan, ambassadors of foreign countries, representatives of the public and other guests.

Turkish Ambassador to Azerbaijan Erkan Ozoral first read out the congratulatory letter from the President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"Turkey has made great strides in the political, military, economic, democratic and human rights spheres and strengthened its position in the region and the world," said the ambassador.

He stressed that mutual visits, numerous documents signed between the two countries provide an opportunity to continue the friendly relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey.

In addition, the envoy noted that that the Republic Day in Turkey will be mournful this year because the Turkish nation experienced a strong shock earlier.

We overcame a big threat thanks to the people, its support for the head of state, the political will of Turkeys president, said the diplomat. We faced the greatest betrayal throughout the countrys history.

He also expressed gratitude to Azerbaijans government, Azerbaijans people led by President Ilham Aliyev and every citizen of Azerbaijan for their support to Turkey.

Ozoral noted that the Azerbaijan-Turkey economic ties are relations built not only in the transportation and energy projects but at the same time, in mutual investments.

Now, Turkey intends to increase the volume of trade turnover with Azerbaijan up to $15 billion by 2023, by increasing investments in the country's economy, he said.

Ozoral added that the volume of Azerbaijani investments in Turkish economy has already exceeded $4 billion.



He also noted that currently, about 2,600 Turkish companies operate in Azerbaijan, and nearly 25,000 people are currently employed by these companies.

On the other hand, Azerbaijan is also taking serious steps, becoming the biggest foreign investor in Turkey, added the envoy.

It is expected that investments of Azerbaijans state oil company SOCAR in Turkeys energy and infrastructure sphere will reach $17-20 billion in the near future, he said, noting that $5.5 billion will be invested in the Star refinery, which is being built in Izmir.

Addressing the ceremony Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan Ali Ahmadov also said that Turkey has passed a long and glorious way through its huge development.

"Relations between our countries have a common history and past. Our relations are an example of a great friendship and fraternity," said Ali Ahmadov.

Ahmadov expressed confidence that the unbreakable friendship and fraternal relations which are of strategic nature will continue to be strengthened.

Ahmadov said that Turkey has always faced with huge difficulties and always cope with them with dignity.

The decisive suppression of a military coup by the people of Turkey was a turning point in the life of the country, he added.

He underlined that Turkey became even stronger and more determined after the coup attempt.
By Azernews





By Amina Nazarli

The Azerbaijani Parliament opened its next meeting of the autumn session on October 28.

The Parliament focuses on 25 issues including agreements of Azerbaijan with different countries, amendments to the Code of Administrative Offences, Criminal Code, and Customs Code, Mass Media and Telecommunication and more.

The session started with the approval of the Baku declaration of presidents of Azerbaijan, Iran and Russia.

The declaration, signed as a final document of the August 8 summit in Baku with participation of Presidents of Ilham Aliyev, Vladimir Putin and Hassan Rouhani , has received a positive assessment of MPs.

They said that along with the development of relations between the three countries, this declaration will contribute to the preservation of stability in the region.

In this declaration, the parties said that they will continue the comprehensive development of equal and mutually beneficial trilateral format of cooperation in different sphere including culture, tourism and business, as well as will take effective measures to develop the transportation and communication infrastructure.

The MPs also discussed amendments to the Criminal Code, particularly a proposal to fine persons forcing third parties to adhere to any religion (religious movement) on the grounds of religious hatred, radicalism and fanaticism, including forcing them to perform religious rites and ceremonies, to participate in religious rites and ceremonies, and religious education.



Those people will be fined in amount of 7,000-9,000 manats ($4,200-$5,400) or imprisonment from two to five years.

According to another proposed change to the Code, for acts committed on the grounds of religious hatred, religious radicalism and religious fanaticism, offenders will be punished by imprisonment of 14-20 years or even life imprisonment.

In addition, for the creation and participation in armed units or groups motivated by religious hatred, religious radicalism and religious fanaticism, offenders will be punished from six to 10 years of imprisonment.

The amendments were voted on and adopted by the Parliament.

The parliamentarians further discussed amendments to the "State Duty" law. Following the discussions, the MPs approved introduction of new taxes for freight vehicles varying from $300 to $500.

Another issue discussed at the plenary session was amendment to the Tax Code providing an exemption from taxation winnings in sport games of chance. Currently, the tax rate for such games is 10 percent.

The issue was presented to voting and approved.
By Azernews





By Nigar Abbasova

Ankara and Ashgabat seek to bring the bilateral cooperation to a qualitatively new level, while Turkish companies and businessmen intend to strengthen their positions in the promising Turkmen market.

The issues of the bilateral economic and political cooperation were high on the agenda during meeting of Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov and Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey Togrul Turkes.

Turkes voiced the interest of business circles of his country in the strengthening of cooperation. Energy, transport and communication, industry and construction sectors were named among the priorities for strengthening the ties.

Moreover, the sides hailed the activity of the Turkmen-Turkish Commission and Joint Business Council.

The Turkmen President earlier held a telephone conversation with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan., with whom he exchanged views on a number of topical issues of regional and global agenda.

The cooperation between the two countries encompasses very diverse fields, while one of the priority directions of the Turkmen-Turkish cooperation is the fuel and energy sector.

Moreover, Turkish companies are making significant contributions to the infrastructural development of Turkmenistan.

Turkey mostly exports electronic equipment, machinery, processed metals and furniture to the Central Asian nation, making up some 26 percent of imports of Turkmenistan.

Turkish companies implement about 1580 projects in such sphere as transport, communication, agriculture, construction, trade, management of water resources. Some 562 enterprises with Turkish capital are currently registered in Turkmenistan. The volume of trade turnover between the countries amounted to $5.5 billion in 2015.

Turkey was the first country to recognize the independence of Turkmenistan on 27 October 1991.
Gulf Navigation Holding, a group which owns and operates chemical tankers, is expanding the companys fleet through a strategic long-term partnership with Wuchang Group, Chinas heavy industry giant.

The decision, made at Gulf Navigation Holdings latest board meeting, aims to meet the increasing demand for transferring chemicals from the UAE and other GCC countries to global markets, said a statement.

We started with Wuchang Group by signing an agreement to immediately begin building six chemicals tankers, said Khamis Juma Buamim, board member, managing director and group CEO.

At the same time, we discussed with them cooperation opportunities in various areas. One of the most important pillars of this agreement is to pave the way for Chinese investors and attract them to work in the local market, which will reflect positively on the region as a whole, added Buamim.

He emphasised that the partnership with Wuchang Heavy Industry Group, which is one of the largest companies worldwide in its field, is a significant step that will enable the company to strengthen itscapabilities by expanding fleet with modern and advanced tankers.

This will enhance our competitiveness in the transfer of chemicals, a market that is steadily expanding and is witnessing increasing demand, he said.

Zhigang Yang, chairman of Wuchang Ship Heavy Industry Group, said: We are fully confident of achieving exceptional results through this exclusive partnership with Gulf Navigation Holding.

The agreement involves several points including working to develop the transfer of chemicals from the GCC to the world, encouraging investment in the field of chemical industry and distribution in the Gulf region, and developing investment in the heavy marine industry infrastructure to achieve integrated support for this critical sector and the businesses associated with it. This in turn, helps to meet market needs in the two countries, Yang said.

The signing ceremony occurred during the Maritime Standard Tanker Conference in Dubai and was attended by Shaikh Daij bin Salman bin Daij Al-Khalifa, chairman of Arab Shipbuilding and Repair Yard; Hani Al Hamli, secretary general, Dubai Economic Council; Eng. Rashed AlHebsi, CEO of Tasneef; Ali Shehab Ahmed, deputy chief executive of KOTC; and Aydin AlAftan, president of Turkish Shipbuilders Association GISBIR, in addition to key decision makers from both parties.

This partnership is considered as another milestone in Gulf Navigation Holdings strategy to acquire tankers and provide various services in maritime transport, management and operation of ships in line with the companys strategy to cope with the new technology for eco-friendly chemical tankers while providing high quality services with a competitive pricing structure and efficient operations.

The new partnership opens new horizons to improve the companys services to existing customers and attract potential customers, the company said.  TradeArabia News Service


More than 100 brands from 28 countries, carefully curated for their quality, originality and relevance to the regional buyer, are participating at the ongoing Downtown Design expo, in Dubai, UAE.



The event which kicked off on October 25 will conclude later today (October 28), at Dubai Design District (d3).



Downtown Design, the only trade show in the Middle East for professionals to discover original, high quality design from across the world, is being held under the patronage of Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, vice chairman, Dubai Culture and Arts Authority.



Exhibitors span 15 categories ranging from sustainable furniture to statement lighting, to the latest in workplace innovation and kitchen and bathroom technology, said a statement.



On inaugurating Downtown Design, patron of the event, Sheikha Latifa said: The event reflects strong regional demand for high quality design, and offers an important platform to bring together design professionals from across the region and further afield, to share ideas and cross-cultural exchanges in creative dialogues in line with Dubais vision to develop into an international hub for innovation and the creative economy.



The expos success exemplifies the commercial viability of the design industry and the rapidly increasing regional market for diverse sectors of the field, including interior design and furnishings, smart technology, architecture and fashion, she said.



Positioned as a fair of discovery, the expo brings the established iconic and new-to-the-market design brands from around the world together under one roof. This year, the fair has 43 new exhibitors including international brands Bernhardt, Kettal, Sancal and Swarovski; with Arclinea, Gaggenau, Georg Jensen, and Moroso returning after a successful fair last year, it said.



A total of 13 regional brands will exhibit including CCC by Cecilia Setterdahl; NM Collections and Pallavi Dean from the UAE; Samovar Carpets from Kuwait and Etqaan from Egypt; launching graphic textiles, inlaid marquetry, living green walls, glass chandeliers and jewelled consoles  all designed or made in the region, it added.



For the second year, the Italian Trade Agencys Italian Luxury Interiors Pavilion is showcasing an array of luxury artisanal brands which epitomise the sought-after Made in Italy marque; and, in a unique partnership with international design weeks from Addis Ababa, Barcelona, Beirut, Reykjavik and Taipei, fledgling design brands debut unique, innovative products for the first time at an international level in Dubai.



Fair director of Downtown Design Rue Kothari, said: Exposing the breadth and diversity of brands in the Middle East, the event recognises the importance of locality in regional interior design.



With the development of new hotels, commercial and public buildings, there comes a need for interior design to reflect the regions graphic language, design narrative and love of colour. Our exhibitors present a truly broad range of unique solutions to creating a distinctly local, contemporary space, Kothari added.



Downtown Design provides a gateway to the region for international brands and, along with its expanding buyers programme, provides fertile ground for business exchange and networking, said a statement.



Many of the brands will be accompanied by the designers they work with offering visitors the chance to really get behind the brands. This year, internationally-acclaimed international designers Edward Van Vliet and Doshi Levien join Moroso; Laura Kirar will be present at Kohlers booth; with Nadja Swarvoski, member of the Swarovski executive board, present for the Middle Eastern debut of Atelier Swarovski Home, it added.



Mohammad Saeed Al Shehhi, chief operating officer of d3, said: Dubai Design District is delighted to again be the home for the expo which now is in its fourth season.



As a leading design fair that attracts many international brands through its doors, hosting such events is important for us as a district as they support our greater vision to make Dubai a recognised global design destination, as well as allowing our own residents and business partners to see at first hand some of the latest design trends taking place within the industry, he added.  TradeArabia News Service


Meet award-winning artisans and buy their products at Kerala Arts and Crafts Village
RIVERTON  The first thing you notice about Riverton Regional Airport is the free parking. Inside the terminal, taxidermy animals line the walls  a stuffed mountain goat is perched near the ceiling. Jackrabbits hop along the edge of the runway. A friendly police officer greets passengers.

For a long time, all this small town airport lacked was flights.

Mike Bailey used to show up at Riverton Regional Airport unsure whether his plane would be there. Bailey, who travels for his work as a petroleum marketer, gave up on using his local airport several years ago and began driving to Casper for connecting flights to Denver.

Theres nothing wrong with Casper airport except that its two hours away, Bailey said.

Bailey was one of many victims of canceled flights by Great Lakes Airlines, the Cheyenne-based air carrier plagued by staffing issues since the Federal Aviation Association raised the requirements for commercial pilots in 2013.

Riverton mayor John Lars Baker said there were periods where the airline was canceling half its flights.

Theyd have four flights scheduled, and some days one of them would make it, Baker said.

The unreliable nature of Great Lakes service led many Fremont County residents turn to Casper, or even make the long drive to Denver or Salt Lake City, to leave town.

But things have been looking up since Denver Air Connection joined Great Lakes in July. Public Works director Kyle Butterfield said the new carrier has not canceled a single flight and is restoring confidence in local air service.

Denver Air also offers flights to Denver from Sheridan and a handful of other cities in Colorado.

Gone are the days of exponential declines in passengers flying out of Riverton.

The trouble began with the new Federal Aviation Administration regulations in the summer of 2013. In response to a commuter airline crash in New York, the agency raised the number of training hours pilots for small commercial flights needed from 500 to 1500  the same as major airlines.

That made it difficult for regional airlines like Great Lakes to find pilots who would accept the lower pay and often grueling schedules that come with serving small markets.

Butterfield said that prior to 2013 Riverton airport was averaging 13,000 boardings each year with highs of 18,000 passengers flying out of Fremont County. But after Great Lakes began canceling flights that number plummeted.

We were losing our flying markets in halves almost each year, Butterfield said.

Over 1,500 passengers were flying out of Riverton in July three years ago. But last July only 207 passengers boarded flights. When the airport dropped below 10,000 annual boardings it lost $850,000 in federal funding.

Local citizens organized a committee to solve the problem and ultimately made an agreement with Denver Air Connection to guarantee $200,000 in minimum annual revenue. That means if the company makes less than that amount the city is on the hook to cover the difference.

Great Lakes does not receive a revenue guarantee.

The public works director said he expects the city to pay a substantial subsidy for at least the next few years but Butterfield said Riverton is receiving assistance from the state, county and federal government along with the nearby town of Lander.

We have a challenge regaining our market and getting people to believe in Riverton Regional again, he said. We understand it will be a commitment of several years before the Denver Air Connection route is self-sustaining.

Asked how Denver Air is able to provide consistent service while Great Lakes struggled, Baker, the mayor, offered a knowing look. He said that through all of Great Lakes scheduling problems Riverton still had two reliable air ambulance services that reported no problem finding pilots.

Whats the difference? Baker asked rhetorically. Great Lakes pays their guys about $20,000 a year.

Great Lakes and Denver Air Connection did not respond to requests for comment by press time.

As the city fights to gain back local passengers it has launched a Fly Riverton campaign that includes a marketing push and even a fighter jet adorned with the campaigns logo near the entrance of the airport.

Butterfield said that the arrival of Denver Air has led to increase in passengers flying out of Riverton each month so far. In September, 507 people flew out or Riverton airport, up from 295 in July. He added that data on future bookings also show an upward trajectory.

The increased bookings have even helped Great Lakes, which increased its service to three daily flights in July after initially announcing plans to cut back to a single afternoon flight. While airport data shows that Denver Air is attracting more business on a monthly basis, Great Lakes had also raised its passenger total over the course of the summer.

The rising tide is raising all ships, Butterfield said. Anytime we can provide more options to our community, to the flying market, thats a good thing.
In a sign of improving coal conditions, Gillette-based coal company Cloud Peak Energy will soon resume exports to Asia despite suffering losses in the third quarter.

The company is also projected to replace all of its self-bonds by January of 2017.

After a year of bankruptcies, falling production and the lowest prices in three decades, the coal market has experienced signs of revival.

A warm summer helped draw down the overstock of coal, increasing shipments and lowering costs, the company said in a statement. Meanwhile, an uptick in international demand and higher prices offer better margins than before.

The last few months has been very positive for Cloud Peak Energy and certainly a big improvement from the first half of the year, said President Colin Marshall in a call with analysts. At the same time, the recent dramatic improvement in international thermal coal prices has allowed us to contract to export approximately one million tons between November and February next year.

Cloud Peak operates the Cordero Rojo and Antelope mines south of Gillette and the Spring Creek mine in Montana. It posted a $1.6 million loss in the third quarter, compared with an almost $9 million gain in the third quarter of 2015.

The total volume of third-quarter mining was down 21 percent compared with last year, said Chief Financial Officer Heath Hill in the earnings call.

However, the company ended the third quarter with $90.3 million in cash, a $26 million increase from the end of the second quarter.

Income before taxes and depreciation was $40.6 million.

The company has also made gains in regard to self-bonding, the highly criticized practice of guaranteeing cleanup costs on the strength of a companys balance sheet.

Companies like Alpha Natural Resources and Arch Coal were pressured away from the practice during bankruptcy proceedings. Cloud Peak voluntarily announced that it would end the practice, replacing its self-bonds with more traditional insurance.

After amending some of its reclamation obligations, the company will only have $10 million left in self-bonds and expects to replace all self-bonds by early next year.

The gains are reflective of a strengthening market, and hopes are high for continued growth and a cold enough winter to burn more coal.

Internationally the outlook is positive, Marshall told analysts Thursday.

Demand growth in South Korea, Vietnam, and Taiwan continues its forecast, giving an overall positive outlook, he said. At the same time supply from Indonesia and Australia appears to be constrained due to low capital spending in recent years.

In addition to the news of resumed exports and an uptick in Asian demand, the company has $45 million tons in fixed price contracts next year, at an average price of $12.34 per ton.

Health and safety reports were also noted in the earnings call Thursday.

Out of 1,200 workers, there were no reportable injuries at Cloud Peak mines in the third quarter, Marshall said.

There were four federal inspections on site during the quarter, with no significant citations, he added.

There were no environmental citations at any of our sites during the quarter, he said. It is now over two years since our last environmental citation.

Cloud Peak has weathered the last year better than some of its competitors.

Coal giants Peabody Energy, Arch Coal and Alpha Natural Resources filed for Chapter 11 during coals staggering losses in the last year.

What saved Cloud Peak from the same fate was its lack of investment in what had been a booming metallurgical coal market. Cloud Peak is purely a Powder River Basin player, focused on thermal coal. When the metallurgical market tanked, it left Peabody, Arch and Alpha saddled with billions of dollars in debt.

However, Cloud Peak was not invincible in the face of the storm. The thermal market slumped under the pressure of cheap natural gas competition and decreased investment in coal due to anticipated federal environmental regulations.

The second quarter of 2016 would have been a loss for Cloud Peak, but the company posted modest gains thanks to customer buyouts of contracts amounting to $18.8 million, or 97 percent of its adjusted earnings. It was a dire reflection of the market conditions  that in a take-or-pay contract, it was cheaper for utilities to pay Cloud Peak not to give them coal.
CHEYENNE  Wyoming law enforcement officials are planning to search a northern Colorado landfill for the body of a 13-month-old Cheyenne boy whos been missing since Saturday, authorities say.

Capt. Linda Gesell of the Laramie County Sheriffs Office said Thursday investigators interviewed someone at the boys home in the early morning hours Thursday who confirmed the boy was dead. Gesell said the person told investigators they had dumped the boys body into a trash container at a local community college.

Gesell said investigators regard the case as a homicide and have been interviewing people throughout the day. She said no criminal charges have been filed yet.

Investigators worked with a sanitation company to determine that trash from the container is taken to a landfill in Ault, Colorado, Gesell said.

The latest is were still trying to work out logistics of us being able to get into the landfill to conduct searches, Gesell said. She said her agency has reached out to other agencies to muster a large number of people for the search.

Weve determined where the three trucks from Cheyenne have dumped, and it happened to be somewhat of a new area in the landfill, Gesell said. So weve narrowed down a fairly smaller area where were hoping and thinking that this child might be located.

Authorities arent releasing the boys name. The Wyoming Tribune-Eagle reported that the boys grandfather called police on Wednesday after the boys mother said she hadnt seen the boy since Saturday.
Saturday support meetings

Alcoholics Anonymous: 9:30 a.m., womens meeting, 500 S. Wolcott; 10 a.m., 328 E. A; noon, 500 S. Wolcott; 7 p.m., 500 S. Wolcott; 8 p.m, 328 E. A; 8 p.m., 917 N. Beech; 10 p.m., 917 N. Beech. Douglas: 7:30 p.m., 628 E. Richards (upstairs in back). Unless otherwise noted, all meetings are open. Casper info: 266-9578; Douglas info: (307) 351-1688.

Al-Anon: 10 a.m., 4600 S. Poplar, Shepherd of the Hills Church.

Narcotics Anonymous: Noon, 500 S. Wolcott, 12-24 Club; 6 p.m., 500 S. Wolcott, 12-24 Club, closed meeting; 7 p.m., 15th and Melrose, at the church. Web site: http://www.urmrna.org.

NAMI: 4 p.m., 133 W. Sixth St. NAMI C.A.R.E. (Consumers Advocating Recovery through Empowerment) Support Group for individuals with mental illness. Info: 234-0440.

Adult Children of Alcoholics: 1:30-3 p.m., 12-24 Club, 500 S. Wolcott St., Suite 200. Open meeting.

Beginning Experience in November

Please note date change! Beginning Experience of Wyoming is a weekend program that offers healing and renewal to divorced, widowed and separated men and women. It is a nonprofit, faith-based comprehensive program offered to all persons, regardless of religious preference. A Beginning Experience weekend offers support and direction to help resolve grief or anger that can follow the end of a marriage by divorce, separation or death. The weekend can be a time for a real awakening, a re-evaluation, and a new beginning. Beginning Experience is a positive experience of hope. You can anticipate an intense reflective, possibly painful, but spiritually honest self-encounter. You will also find support, warm fellowship and community.

The next Beginning Experience weekend will be in Casper and starts at 7 p.m. Nov. 4 and runs through around 4 p.m. Nov. 6. The donation we ask for the weekend is $150, which includes sleeping arrangements, meals, and materials. Scholarships are available. No one is turned away due to finances. Registration deadline is Nov. 1. Contact these Casper team members for more information: Curtis at 307.240.1232 or email westcurtis2014@gmail.com; Diane at 262.4142; or Paulette at 267.6375.

Centennial honors veterans Nov. 11

Centennial Junior High is proud to announce our fourteenth annual Veterans Day Assembly honoring our nations veterans on Nov. 11. The assembly will take place in the Centennial Gymnasium at 8:15 a.m. We would like to extend a special invitation to veterans and their spouses to join us for coffee and rolls from 7:30 to 8 a.m. in the Centennial library. We will then escort our guests to the gymnasium.

Our guest speaker will be Lt. Col. Fred Catchpole, United States Marine Corps Reserve. Throughout his 22 years in the military, he served in a number of both active duty and reserve billets. He has commanded at the platoon, detachment, and company level; deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Freedom; made deployments to Europe, Africa, and the Middle East; and is a graduate of the Air War College and the Naval Command and Staff College. Catchpole is a University of Wyoming College of Business graduate. His current civilian job is the support services director at the Casper Police Department and he is a Gov. Matt Mead appointee to the Wyoming Veterans Commission.

If you would be interested in attending the Veterans Day Assembly, please RSVP to Ernie Smith at ernie_smith@natronaschools.org or call the school at 253-2900.

Fremont Fun Day Nov. 12

Come to Fort Caspar Museum on Nov. 12 for Fremont Family Funday from 1 to 3 p.m. This months hands-on workshop is Make a Pleather Pouch. Kids can make their own small drawstring bag.

No reservations are required, and all supplies will be provided. This program is open to all ages and is free with museum admission. Children must be accompanied by an adult at all times.

Fort Caspar Museums hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Admission prices are $1.50 for adults, $1 for youth (ages 13-18 years), and free for children (12 years and younger) and for museum members.

Youth group

open to all

Calling all young people in grades 6-12, with or without a church home: You are invited to our Youth Groups Fall Kick-off event, on Sunday, Nov. 13, 1:30 to 2:30 p.m., at Christ Episcopal Church, 415 West Cedar in Glenrock. Join us for a View of Haiti, live Christian music, snacks and fun. There is no charge to participate in our meetings. For info, call 258-2524. The Episcopal Church joyfully welcomes you.

Managing medication

On Nov. 1, from 9-10 a.m., at the Casper Senior Center, Geneva Woods Pharmacys Scott Soulek, RPh, Certified Geriatric Pharmacist, will offer a presentation on Medication Management and Safety for Caregivers. The presentation is open to the public.

For information about Wyoming Dementia Care or the National Alzheimers Awareness Month activities and events, contact Dani Guerttman, 265-4678.

Art through the eyes of dementia

On Nov. 17, from 6-8:30 p.m., at Meadow Wind Assisted Living Center, 3955 E. 12th, Casper, WDC, the Nicolaysen Art Museum and Meadow Wind will bring the community Here and Now, Art through the Eyes of Dementia. WDCs Here and Now art classes are offered at the NIC on the third Tuesday of each month for caregivers and their loved ones with dementia. The evening event highlighting the art theyve created is free and open to the public. Wine and cheese refreshments will be provided.

For information about Wyoming Dementia Care or the National Alzheimers Awareness Month activities and events, contact Dani Guerttman, 265-4678.

RMEF banquet Nov. 19

The Casper Chapter of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation is holding its annual Big Game Banquet on Nov. 19 at the Parkway Plaza Hotel & Convention Center.

Doors open at 5 p.m. with cocktails, raffles, silent auction, and games for your enjoyment. Dinner and live auction will follow around 6:15 p.m. Come enjoy an evening raising money for elk and their habitat.

Tickets: singles, $75 (includes meal and membership to RMEF); couple, $115 (includes meals and membership to RMEF). Additional ticket options are available for tables of 8.

Please visit https://events.rmef.org/shop.aspx?eid=0058160 for additional information and additional raffle ticket purchases.

Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving

Join the Windy City Striders for a Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot 5K Run/Walk at the Tate Pumphouse to benefit Seton House and the Casper Humane Society. The entry fee is a can of nonperishable food  canned fruits, canned vegetables,soups  and/or a can/bag of dog or cat food. Other requested items include spatulas, manual can openers, wash cloths, snow shovels, size 4 or 5 diapers, and kitchen trash cans. Registration begins at 8 a.m., with the race starting at 9 a.m. For additional information, email windycitystriders@gmail.com

Local hoop shoot Dec. 10

Casper Local Hoop Shoot, Dec. 10, 2016 at Casper College T-Bird Gym. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. and competition begins at 10 a.m. It is free to boys and girls who will be between the ages of 8-13 on April 1, 2017. Winners advance through district, state, and regional Hoop Shoot contests. Regional winners qualify to compete at the National Hoop Shoot Finals held in Chicago. If you know of any children or have children that would like to compete, please bring them to the Casper College T-Bird Gym. This event is free and open to the public.
Celebrate this Saturday with a treat bucket full of family activities. Here is a summary, as provided to the Star-Tribune.

Meals on Wheels, 1760 E. 12th St., is selling Wyoming-grown pumpkins from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The Pumpkin Patch at First Christian Church, 520 CY Ave., is open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. FCC has chosen Central Wyoming Hospice to receive 60 percent of its net proceeds from the patch this year. Baked goods provided by the ladies of the church will be for sale. From 2 to 4 p.m., Trunk or Treat will be held in the West parking lot behind Bustards for children in costume.

Trick or treat

Downtown Casper merchants are offering trick or treating from 10 a.m. to noon.

Trick or Treat at Poverty Resistance Food Pantry, 450 S. Wolcott, from 10 to 5 p.m. and on Monday from 3:30 to 5 p.m. In addition to the regular food pantry and hot meal at noon, there will be candy  and a few frights! For more information, call Mary Ann at 253-8955.

The fourth annual Trunk or Treat, sponsored by Natrona County School District bus drivers, starts at 11 a.m. in the parking lot at 922 N. Foster Rd., and lasts as long as the candy does. This is for students 12 and under.

Science Zone Trick or Treat Trail, Caspers largest trick or treating event, is open 3 to 7 p.m. at 111 W. Midwest, under Slumberland Furniture. From 2 to 2:45 p.m., guests with special needs are welcome and the elevator is available.

For tots and tinies (newborn to 6) and their grandparents and parents, St. Anthony School, 1145 W. 20th St., welcomes all from 3 to 4:30 p.m., for an afternoon of seasonal fun in celebration of fall. Come costumed and ready to trick or treat, play games and craft in the safety of the school. The event is free and open to the public.

Mazes

Green Acres Corn Maze is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission is $12 for ages 12 and over; $10 for ages 4 to 11; and ages 3 and under are free. Follow these three steps to find the maze: Go west on Highway 20-26, three miles west of Natrona County International Airport; turn right on 33 Mile Road, go three miles north to County Road 121; turn right, go 2.5 miles.

The non-haunted Field of Dreams Corn Maze is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission for Field of Dreams is $10, ages 5 and under are admitted for free. One hundred percent of all proceeds from the maze support the Casper FFA Alumni and The Arc of Natrona County, a United Way Agency. The Field of Dreams/Field of Screams can be found by driving west on Highway 20-26, three miles past the Natrona County International Airport. Turn right on 33 Mile Road and go straight four miles.

The Field of Screams will be open for the last time from dark to midnight. Field of Screams admission is $20 per person and includes the haunted corn maze, haunted wagon ride, haunted house, and all other attractions at the maze, like the corn cannons, duck races, and giant slide. The Field of Dreams/Field of Screams can be found by driving west on Highway 20-26, three miles past the Natrona County International Airport. Turn right on 33 Mile Road and go straight four miles.

Other fun

Spooky Storytime is at 10:30 a.m., at the Natrona County Library. Kids of all ages are invited to don their Halloween costumes and join us for Halloween-themed stories, read aloud.

A Halloween Cards Workshop is at 1 p.m. at the Natrona County Library. Treat yourself to an afternoon of crafting and make boo-tiful cards to help you get into the Halloween spirit. Taught by Kay Capps. All supplies provided.

Pet-o-ween, with six costume categories, will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. at Sunrise Shopping Center for pre-registered pets. The public is invited to see the festive pets.

Casper Ice Arenas Spooky Skate is 5 to 7 p.m. Admission is $4 and skate rental is free. Participants wearing costumes will receive $1 off of regularly priced admission and automatically be entered into our costume contest. The costume contest winners will be chosen from three categories: spookiest, cutest, and most creative.

The fourth annual Halloween light show at 3148 Whispering Springs is alight from 6 to 11 p.m., and 6 to 10 p.m. on Monday. There will be candy for children on Halloween night.

Elks Family Halloween Party is 6 to 10 p.m. Take a side dish to share, meat is provided by the lodge. Costume contests and dancing after dinner. Member, significant other and guest accompanied by a member.

The Casper Senior Center, 1831 E. Fourth St., is hosting a Family Halloween Dance and Costume Contest from 7 to 10 p.m. All ages are welcome. Couples $5; family $10. There will be door prizes, giveaways and party music provided by Machelle Holloway as a fundraiser for the Senior Center. Bring snacks to share with others. For more information, call 259-2501.
Every ethnic group except whites bloc-votes for the Democrats. Coincidentally, the Democrats have brought in another 30 to 40 million nonwhite immigrants in the last few decades.

It doesnt help that white voters cant agree on what constitutes an acceptable candidate. In 2012, working-class whites sat out the election, rather than vote for the out-of-touch rich guy they saw in Mitt Romney. This year, the out-of-touch rich guys say theyll vote for Clinton because Trump is tacky and gross.

The sad irony is that the only people who will be better off in our new country are mostly white plutocrats  the top .01 percent. The rest of us will be their servants.

The people who will be worse off are everybody else  the working class, the middle class (who will soon be working class) and, most of all, women, minorities, children, the elderly, the weakest and most vulnerable members of society.

Look to Mexico for your future  or any Third World country. Or to Univisions Jorge Ramos. The ruling class in Mexico is composed of European-looking, white descendants of Spanish conquistadors who raped the native population, giving them only their Spanish names in return. (British settlers in America brought women with them.)

Explaining Latino cultures acceptance of incest and child rape, criminal justice researcher Shana Maier writes in a book about rape that the male is the head of the household, and women are subordinate to men. ... Hispanics and Latinos are more likely than other racial/ethnic groups to blame the victim. The victim, not the perpetrator, is blamed for bringing dishonor to the family.

Immigrant women arrive in America, thrilled to have escaped cultures where rape, incest and spousal murder are acceptable, only to discover that those crimes are perfectly acceptable in this country, too  provided the perpetrator is from the very culture they fled.

In 1989, Brooklyn judge Edward Pincus sentenced a Chinese immigrant to probation for a premeditated murder of his wife, on the grounds that the murder flowed from traditional Chinese values about adultery and loss of manhood. The female head of the Asian-American Legal Defense and Education Fund, Margaret Fung, applauded the ruling.

Manifestly, the purpose of our immigration policies is not to help Americans  or the immigrants who wanted to live in a place like America. They are designed to funnel welfare-dependent voters to the Democrats and cheap labor to the rich. (The Chinese immigrant who got probation for murdering his wife, for example, came to America based on his specialized skill of being a dishwasher.)

Our country will be Zimbabwe, but  if all goes according to the Democrats plan  theyll get to be Mugabe!

Thats Hillary Clintons dream. If she wins, Joe Sobrans parody of the typical New York Times headline (about anything) will come true: Women and Minorities Hit Hardest.
A convicted serial killer charged last month in the 1977 killing of a woman in Sweetwater County will not travel from Californias death row to face his first-degree murder charge in Wyoming, Sweetwater County Attorney Daniel Erramouspe announced late Thursday.

Rodney Alcala is too medically frail to travel to Wyoming to face trial for the 1977 death of Christine Thornton, whose body was found on the remote plains northeast of Granger, Erramouspe said in a statement.

The fact that this case will not be proven in court does nothing to dissuade me from knowing that Alcala murdered Ms. Thornton, Erramouspe said.

Alcala, now 73, has been found guilty of killing seven people in two states, though authorities estimate he may have killed up to 130 victims across the U.S. He is known as the Dating Game killer for appearing on the popular television program in the late 1970s.

Alcala can no longer walk or leave the hospital wing of the Corcoran Penitentiary in California, where hes held, without medical services, prison staff told Erramouspe.

Alcala was previously extradited to New York from a California prison in 2013 to face murder charges in the killings of two young women in the 1970s.

Erramouspe charged Alcala with first-degree murder on Sept. 20 after decades of investigation by law enforcement and Thorntons family.

A rancher discovered human remains near a two-track dirt road on public land outside of Granger in 1982, but it wasnt until 2015 and a twist of fortune that the remains were identified as those of Thornton, court documents show.

The solving of this cold case, with the random facts, indicates solid investigation and integrity by the Sweetwater County Sheriffs Office..., Erramouspe said Thursday. It also shows the power of perseverance on behalf of Ms. Thorntons family in never giving up the search for their sister.

For decades, Thorntons family searched for the missing woman without much luck. But in 2013, one of her sisters began looking through photos taken by Alcala that had been released by California investigators in hopes of finding more of his victims.

There, among the dozens of photos of women, the sister happened upon one of Thornton. In the photo, a smiling Thornton is astride a blue and white Kawasaki motorcycle in a yellow top, blue jeans and red flip-flops. She was also wearing a gold ring and a watch with a thin brown band.

After finding the photo, two of Thorntons sisters submitted DNA samples to a database maintained by the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. In July 2015, their DNA matched with a sample taken from the remains found in Sweetwater County.

Deputies from the county sheriffs office began to investigate. The clothes in the photo of Thornton atop a motorcycle were similar to those found near her remains, including the gold ring and the watch. Investigators had found a blue and white Kawasaki motorcycle in Alcalas Seattle storage locker. A deputy went to the spot where her remains had been found and compared it to the plains featured in the photo. The location was virtually the same, the deputy found.

Thorntons family told investigators they had last seen her in August 1977 and that she had been pregnant at the time.

Alcala was on probation for an assault against an 8-year-old girl during the summer of 1977 when he was given permission by his parole officer to travel from Los Angeles to New York; Washington, D.C.; Illinois and Mexico. Investigators believe he killed Thornton during these travels.

Sweetwater County deputies and Erramouspe traveled to California last month to meet with Alcala at the Corcoran State Penitentiary, where he lives on death row.

When presented with the photo, Alcala said that he had taken the photo but that Thornton was alive before I left her, according to court documents.

Alcala has been convicted of killing four women in California, for which he received the death penalty, and two women in New York, for which he was sentenced to a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

Alcala was known to approach his victims pretending to be a photographer and ask them to pose for him, court documents show. He then killed them by strangulation or physical assault. All of his known victims were women.
A Wyoming man fatally shot in a motel lobby by a Billings, Montana, police officer on Thursday has been identified as Kyle W. Killough, 32, of Gillette.

Yellowstone County Deputy Coroner Cliff Mahoney on Friday released Killoughs identity after notification of relatives. An autopsy was performed late Thursday afternoon. Mahoney confirmed that Killough had three gunshot wounds to the chest.

Billings police Chief Rich St. John said at a news conference on Thursday that a police officer shot Killough in the lobby of the Days Inn after he refused repeated orders to drop a semi-automatic handgun. Police officers responded to a call at about 4 a.m. from a desk clerk saying a man had come into the lobby with a gun.

The officer who shot Killough, David Raschkow, will be on paid administrative leave while the shooting is investigated. Killoughs mother says she does not hold the police responsible for his death. Jan Urioste said Friday that her son suffered from mental illness and may have been on illegal drugs when he was shot.

Urioste says Killough recently stopped taking medications needed to treat his mental illness.

She says another of her sons was a police officer and shes grateful no one else was hurt.

The Yellowstone County Sheriffs Office is assisting with the investigation.

A Days Inn clerk on Friday said the motel had no comment on the shooting. The motel remains open for business.
ROCK SPRINGS  Alzheimers patients who have to live behind locked doors in a nursing home tend to sit and stare at them, Tim Savage said.

They are also prone to try to escape.

Savage, whose mom was a patient at Sage View Care Center for many years, had a dream of disguising those doors with a beautiful view of nature.

After seven years, his dream became a reality.

Instead of seeing stark brown doors that prevent them from leaving, Sage View Alzheimers patients now see the scenic area known as Wild Iris near Lander.

It makes such a difference in the atmosphere, Pamela Sipe said.

Enjoying the process

Sipe, an art teacher at Rock Springs schools, was recruited to paint the mural on the doors. She enlisted the help of fellow art teacher Chrissy Wilmetti Pruett.

We had so much fun, Sipe said about the three months it took them to complete the task.

Part of the fun had nothing to do with painting.

It was such a blessing for us, she said.

The two art teachers enjoyed visiting and having tea with those in the unit.

The residents would come and hug on us, Sipe said.

The two teachers also had a blast painting.

They used nontoxic acrylic paint and large mural paintbrushes.

After a bit of experimenting, the two also ended up using their fingers and fists as paintbrushes.

It gave it a cool textural effect, Sipe said.

The mural was originally going to be only on the doors, but Sipe thought it best to extend the artwork onto the adjacent walls.

Sharing the dream

Savages dream started to become a reality many months ago when he mentioned his vision to Bernadine Craft.

As director of the Sweetwater Board of Cooperative Educational Services, Craft was able to present the idea to the board of directors. They decided it would be a good community project and provided the necessary funding. The Rock Springs Episcopal Church of the Holy Communion also provided money.

Craft asked Sipe to paint the doors. Right away Sipe thought of transferring the outdoor beauty to the doors. She already had several photographs of the area.

The new doors were recently unveiled at a ceremony.

Savages mom died before the endeavor began, but many current and future patients at Sage View will benefit from the new view.

Plans are underway for the next door project. In January, the two art teachers will begin painting another mural on the other set of doors at the Alzheimers unit.
The continued operation of two judicial systems on the Wind River Reservation appears to be in jeopardy, according to court documents filed Wednesday by the Northern Arapaho Tribe.

Lawyers for the Arapaho claim that the Bureau of Indian Affairs is refusing to cooperate with the Shoshone and Arapaho Tribal Court, including refusing to provide police reports to the tribal prosecutor, refusing to bring detainees before the tribal court and refusing to carry out arrest warrants issued by the court.

The BIA provides police services on the reservation.

The (Northern Arapaho Tribe) has the right to operate a judicial system for its members, attorney Andrew Baldwin wrote in a motion requesting a temporary restraining order against the BIA filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court.

Shoshone and Arapaho Chief Judge John St. Clair announced at a hearing last week that the Bureau of Indian Affairs had established a Court of Indian Offenses, also known as a CFR court, to handle new cases against members of the Eastern Shoshone Tribe.

The tribal court would continue to handle existing cases against both Arapaho and Shoshone members but its future jurisdiction would be limited to Arapaho members, St. Clair said.

The dispute stems from the expiration of federal funding for the tribal court on Sept. 30. The Arapaho began funding the court out of their tribal budget and the Shoshone Business Council announced it no longer recognized the courts authority.

The Shoshone council asked the BIA to establish a CFR court. The arrangement announced by St. Clair last Thursday appeared to be a compromise and BIA Wind River Agency Norma Gourneau wrote a letter to the St. Clair last week recognizing the right of the Northern Arapaho Tribe to operate a Tribal Court at the Tribes own expense.

The letter announced creation of the CFR court. Gourneau also informed the Northern Arapaho Business Council that the tribal court would need to leave its current location in a BIA-owned building on the reservation.

Wednesdays motion claims the BIA is refusing to recognize the jurisdiction of the tribal court over Arapaho members.

The Arapaho also assert the BIA is insisting that the tribal court transfer existing cases against Shoshone members to the CFR court.

St. Clair is expected to issue sentences for contempt of court against leaders of the Shoshone Business Council sometime next month. He maintained at an Oct. 19 hearing that the tribal court retained jurisdiction over the case despite the establishment of the CFR court.

The BIA has not responded to multiple requests for comment.
More Wyoming residents support legalizing marijuana now than two years ago, according to a survey released earlier this week.

Further, most survey respondents also favor nixing jail time for possession of small amounts of marijuana.

Support for medical marijuana (with a doctors prescription) increased from 74 percent in 2014 to 81 percent in 2016.

Marijuana for personal use also saw increased support, from 37 percent in 2014 to 41 percent in 2016, though the majority of respondents are still against doing so.

Additionally, 72 percent of Wyoming residents say possession of small amounts of marijuana should not result in jail time, compared with 66 percent in 2014.

The phone survey of 722 Wyoming residents has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.6 percent and was conducted by the Wyoming Survey and Analysis Center at the University of Wyoming earlier this month.

It was sponsored by the Survey and Analysis Center and the UW political science department.

A similar survey was conducted in 2014.

Dr. Jim King, a political science professor at the University of Wyoming, said the results, especially for medical marijuana, jibe with national trends.

I think we have generally seen more support for medical marijuana legalization, he said. Thats a number thats been going up nationally in the polls.

Generally, he said, younger people support marijuana legalization and older people oppose it.

Thus, as more young people become of voting age, support is changing.

Generally, attitudes on marijuana use have relaxed over the years, King said.

The survey results support that notion.

Younger age groups were more supportive of more lenient marijuana laws, with the majority of 18- to 24-year-olds and 25- to 29-year-olds in favor of allowing personal use.

In addition, 91 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds favor allowing medical marijuana, declining linearly to 63 percent of those 75 and older.

The only age group in which a majority thought that small marijuana possession should result in jail was those 75 and older.

Men were more in favor of personal legalization than women, but the genders were about equal in support of medical legalization.

Men were also more likely to be against jail time for possession of small amounts of marijuana.

The same set of questions was asked for the 2014 survey, which had 768 respondents, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percent.

Brian Harnisch, a research scientist at the Wyoming Survey and Analysis Center, said the questions are expected to be asked again in 2018.

This years survey also included asking voter opinions on U.S. House and presidential candidates, he said. Those results were released earlier this week.

The 2016 survey comes at a time when the Wyoming Legislature is considering regulations for marijuana-infused products and changing penalties for marijuana possession.

Colorado, Washington, Oregon and Alaska have legalized marijuana for both recreational and medical use.

Twenty other states, including Montana, have legalized marijuana for medical use.

Next month, voters in California, Arizona, Nevada, Massachusetts and Maine will decide whether to legalize recreational marijuana use.

Voters in Arkansas, Florida and North Dakota have medical marijuana measures on the ballot.

Montana also has a medical measure on the ballot that would repeal many of the restrictions the state legislature placed on the industry.
This is the fourth visit to the U.S. of my friend and cousin Edith Possel. Last time she was here, when I lived in South Dakota, we went through the Black Hills to Devils Tower on the way to my sons family near Wyomings Vedauwoo Wilderness. Then we toured the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone National Park.

Remember Jenny Lake? We hiked to Inspiration Point, I said as we discussed our travel plans.

Of course, she said. The young man with the flute.

The flutist at the waterfall.

He played Native American music.

Yes. I had given Edith a CD, How the West was Lost, that features hanging melodies, some played on Native American flute.

This time, my cousin had a special request. Rolf came home with these wonderful pictures of the Grand Canyon. He hiked down into the canyon and then up again. I want to see the Grand Canyon in the worst way.

Early on, when my family lived in California and our children spent time with each others families, her son, after staying with us, had struck out across the U.S. via bus, rail and youth hostels.

I dont think you and I are up to that kind of a hike, I said. But there are mule trains into the canyon, back up the next day. The downside is, wed have to stay in the lodge overnight.

I dont know about riding a mule.

We could just visit the North Rim. Theres a lovely hike to Bright Angel Point. A bit steep on the uptake but rated easy in the Hikers Guide. A friend in Prescott took me once.

You know, a German friend told me if Im in the area I absolutely must make time for Bryce Canyon. He claimed its even more impressive than Grand Canyon.

Id have to agree. Darold and I went through Zion and Bryce many years ago.

After a bit of fast thinking I suggested a loop that over a period of 10 days or so would include several of Utahs famous parks. Edith readily agreed.

Next, I explained U.S. travel clubs, explaining that I dont sleep well in motels. A a light sleeper, I tend to be easily disturbed by outside noise.

I love to stay with travel club members, I said. Their homes are off the beaten path. They tend to be outdoor enthusiasts who like to hike, bike, snowshoe or ski. Often they love to hunt and fish.

Once Edith agreed to the arrangement, I telephoned to stay with ATC (Affordable Travel Club) members in Park City and St. George. The latter couple would host us for four nights. On the fifth day, on leaving St. George, we would visit Arches, which is adjacent to the Colorado River. Our return to Wyoming would lead us to Breckenridge, Colorado, to an ATC couple whose cabin (at 10,000 feet) is not far from Aspen and other famous ski resorts.

I had stayed with the Park City couple, John and Jean Ann, before; indeed, their guest book showed a photo of myself and Qi Deng, the Chinese friend with whom I visited back in 2010. Then as now I admired our hosts devotion to music.

At 80, John is ever rigorous on the sax while leading his band. Hes a mean vocalist as well. The Mixed Nuts play daily, except Sundays, at upscale retirement centers in Salt Lake City.

We decided to begin our travels on a Sunday, so that we might visit with John as well as his spouse, Jean Ann.

We have a surprise for you, I said after we settled into chit-chat and snacks on the evening of our arrival.

The surprise was a German song we practiced en route west on Wyomings I-80. As we concluded the song, which we presented in harmony, John jumped up and reproduced the melody on his piano.

I, too, have a surprise for you, he said afterward, stepping to his computer desk. There he extracted a folder. For your travels, he said, handing over a thick packet.

During my talk with Jean Ann to arrange our stay, I mentioned our St. George plans. She passed the information to her spouse, who went online to extract information on what he considered must-see Utah national and state parks. The former included Zion, Bryce, Grand Staircase National Monument, Capitol Reef, and Arches.

The next morning was rainy and cold. While our hosts were delighted with the rain  it hasnt rained all summer and our trees need the moisture  we decided not to linger at the Great Salt Lake. Instead, we headed south. When the weather cleared, we stopped at Fremont Indian State Park and Museum, with its displays of living quarters unearthed by Explorer Fremont, whose inhabitants arrived in 800 CE but disappeared 300 years later for unknown reasons.

After that it was on to St. George and the day trips that would take us to the geologic wonders of Arizona, Utah, and Colorado.
Its a paradox of most every presidential campaign (and certainly this one): As the nations future direction is determined politically, the big problems and necessary solutions that will most affect our lives post-election are hardly discussed at all.

For example: A recent nationwide study by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease found that 33 percent of Wyomingites say their health insurance coverage is getting worse and 47 percent have seen their costs increase. Overall, Wyomingites say their top health care priorities for politicians and government officials should be managing premium increases, lowering co-pays and deductibles and holding insurance companies accountable.

While this data might sound depressingly familiar, a closer look reveals something even more troubling, and its about more than just money. Emerging before our eyes is a practice causing real harm to patients  the denial of critical drugs by health insurers. Wyomingites are paying their premiums, but when a medical necessity arises, their insurers are saying no.

Despite doctors prescribing medications they believe will attain the best outcome for their patients, health insurers have exercised their authority over these assessments and are rejecting much-needed medications.

The poll backs this up. Twenty percent of Wyomingites said the treatment their doctor recommended was not covered by insurance and 22 percent said the treatment of someone they know was not covered.

Think about that for a moment. One in five might not be a big number in a head-to-head political election  but as a population of patients denied the treatments their doctor prescribes? Its nothing short of astronomical. It ought to be one in 100  if that.

Is it any wonder that an overwhelming majority of Wyomingites (88 percent) say its somewhat or very important for health plans to disclose how often and why they decide to deny coverage of doctor-prescribed treatments?

The real tragedy here is that this twisted system has effectively turned patients into expenditures on a spreadsheet and shrouded by the fact that many patients forgo the fight for the medications prescribed by their doctor and submit to insurer decision in favor of a less-expensive, often less-effective medication.

If a patient is in the position to fight, argue, and remain adamant in the face of insurer denials, they may eventually obtain access to these doctor-recommended drugs. Unfortunately, many patients accept these decisions; they dont need one more war to fight.

Advocates and patients must stand up for their rights and lawmakers and regulators must listen and develop realistic solutions. Providers should not capitulate to insurer pressure by prescribing cheaper medications, and should instead facilitate the therapies they believe are best for their patients.

Insurers cannot operate under the belief that a patient must fail first on lower cost medications before agreeing to provide drugs doctors have prescribed. Insurers should be held accountable for these decisions and they must act with transparency.

Throughout Wyoming, people are facing higher health insurance costs while their insurers continue to deny medically necessary drugs. When this results in detrimental health effects, who is to blame? We require doctors to take an oath to do no harm; should insurers do the same?

While much of the country debates drug prices, we are unwise to ignore the real harm that patients in Wyoming say they are experiencing in the form of barriers to medical access and just chalk it up to one more intractable health care policy fight.

These problems of systemic insurance design arent going away, and will be waiting for the next president in 2017  whoever he or she is. Its a shame that the necessary reform conversation wont begin until after the election. Wyomingites need help now.
Editor:

If an investment adviser told me that they were investing the same way they had over 120 years ago, I would be nervous that they were behind the times. I would grow particularly concerned if the returns on those investments were getting worse by the day.

That is the situation today with Wyoming's general funds. We are using and 1890s investment strategy to make decision about our 2016 portfolio.

The recipe for a sound financial future for our state requires us to take advantage of prudent opportunities to diversify our basket of investments.

We cannot invest the same way we have since 1890 and expect to get a good return on our tax dollar. As the return on bonds heads toward zero, we need to think ahead and bring Wyoming's investments into the 21st century.

That is why I'm voting for Constitutional Amendment A. Passing Amendment A will allow the state to responsibly diversify a portion of Wyoming's General Agency Pool and Tobacco Settlement fund away from bonds and into equities.

This small change can diversify the state's investments in a way similar to Wyoming's permanent funds -- which are performing three times better that our general funds.
Active-duty military, veterans, reservists, guard, their spouses and dependents can learn about employment opportunities in Southern Arizona at a free job fair from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 2, outside Pima Countys Kino Veterans Workforce Center, 2801 E. Ajo Way.

More than 50 employers will gather at the event, organizers said in a news release.

They represent industries including aviation technology, aerospace and defense, manufacturing, transportation, logistics, supply chain management, information technology, energy, mining, construction, biotechnology, health sciences and medical.
Now its mean and ugly.

The Tucson Unified School District board race could aptly have been called hotly contested before, but its gone far beyond that.

Two independent-expenditure groups have entered the race in force, with increasingly vitriolic attacks on the candidates they oppose.

In public view, much of the rhetoric has centered on the idea of closing schools in TUSD.

Supporters of incumbents Cam Juarez and Kristel Foster have been arguing for weeks that the forces behind the TUSD Kids First group that is trying to unseat them are actually committed to a more sinister plan. They want to close schools and sell them off to developers, the argument goes.

Now Juarez and Foster have the backing of Protect Our Schools, an independent-expenditure group supported by U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva. That group is focusing its attacks on incumbent Mark Stegeman, accusing him of leading a special interest takeover of TUSD.

Grijalva, whose daughter Adelita is board president but not up for re-election, told me Thursday that he helped found the Protect Our Schools group to counteract the one trying to unseat Juarez and Foster.

The other IE was out there with a lot more money and a lot more connections, he said.

So he authorized a $5,500 donation from his Livable Communities PAC. Two other entities, Great Schools Now and Arizona List, also are supporting Protect Our Schools. Beyond putting up signs, theyve sent out mailers that imitate the style and message of the TUSD Kids First campaign.

Change the board, the mailer says, using the same slogan TUSD Kids First uses. Stop Stegeman Now.

Naturally, Stegeman has gotten agitated over this. In an email, he said:

I have said repeatedly, for several years, that closures are not on my agenda, with the possible exception of one high school, since we never reached the question of closing any of our 10 major high schools. It is also not on TUSDs current agenda; it is a completely made-up issue.

But since people are talking about closings, TUSD Kids First decided to get in on the act. After the first round of signs encouraging people to Change the board and support candidates Stegeman, Brett Rustand and Betts Putnam-Hidalgo, the group put up signs in the form of an addition problem that say Foster + Juarez = Closed Schools.

This one I couldnt figure out at first, because nobody is accusing them of wanting to close schools. TUSD Kids First co-chair Jimmy Lovelace explained to me this isnt a forward-looking critique  that those two plan to close more schools  but backward-looking: They did close schools.

What makes this a low blow is that Foster and Juarez joined the board in 2013, after the previous board had voted to close schools. Their board simply implemented the changes the previous one had decided on.

But there have been lower blows. Rustand told me 400 of his 600 signs have been stolen. Stegeman wrote me Thursday afternoon to say, Volunteers are putting out new signs today and they are swept up in broad daylight within hours. (Not all the signs of course.)

Someone else anonymously had hundreds of signs printed that say Boot the Board and target Foster and Juarez. Board critic DA Morales told me he got dozens of them from fellow board critic Lori Hunnicutt. Foster pointed out theyre posted at every exit to her neighborhood. They dont say whos responsible for them.

And Kathy Campbell, another co-chair of the TUSD Kids First group, contacted me Thursday upset over how shes being dragged through the mud.

Somewhere along the line, the personal attacks have got to stop, she said.

Its true  they should, and people should be held responsible for the sign stealing and campaigns of half-truths. However, its not surprising that our first school-board campaign involving big-money independent-expenditure groups devolved this way.

Solar irony alert

For two years, the pro-rooftop-solar forces have been slamming Arizona Public Service Co. for its apparent contributions of dark money to political campaigns in the 2014 election.

How things change.

The Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission filed a complaint against Save Our AZ Solar for not reporting its spending on political campaigning in a timely fashion. State law requires independent committees to report their spending to both the commission and the Arizona secretary of state, but the commission requires faster reporting.

The group chose to report in a more leisurely fashion with the Secretary of States Office.

When the commission challenged it, Save Our AZ Solars answer instantly was entered in the Hypocrisy Hall of Fame: Your reporting requirements are unconstitutional!

Now thats rich, coming from them.

The commission found Tuesday that Save Our AZ Solar, which is financed by the rooftop-solar leasing company Solar City, failed to timely report.

Tom Collins, a former Star reporter who became a lawyer and is director of the commission, told me: Our reports are time-sensitive. The public would have known the pace of spending had they filed timely. They did not because they only filed the secretary of states report.

APSs allies were quick to pounce on the hypocrisy. Matt Benson, who is working as spokesman for the new Arizona Coalition for Reliable Electricity, called it a through the looking glass experience.

The coalition, by the way, is basically a vehicle for one entity, Pinnacle West, the parent company of APS. It has put about $1.6 million into the race for Corporation Commission this week, hoping to elect the three Republicans.

That comes after tremendous spending by Save Our AZ Solar, as Rachel Leingang of the Arizona Capitol Times reported. So far, just in the general election, the solar group has spent $2.5 million, she reported.

Said Benson: The fact of the matter is Pinnacle West intended not to engage in the 2016 races. But in the face of a multimillion-dollar spending blitz, it became clear we couldnt sit on the sidelines any longer.

Adelson against 205

You can add to the roster of gazillionaires against marijuana legalization the name of Sheldon Adelson. The casino magnate from Las Vegas put $500,000 into the anti-Prop. 205 campaign this week.

That came on the heels of a $1 million contribution by Discount Tire owner Bruce Halle of Paradise Valley. Ernie Garcia of Drivetime Automotive has donated a comparatively tiny $250,000.

Adelson, the gambling magnate, apparently prefers that people engage in the vice of his choice.

Miller on tape

I mentioned in Wednesdays column that Pima County Supervisor Ally Miller prevented me from attending the Republican Club meeting at which she spoke on Tuesday.

Well, I was able to get a recording of her presentation, and youll be surprised by what the outcome was. I actually found her somewhat persuasive. She argued forcefully that she is doing the hard work of protecting the taxpayer against entrenched political interests.

Despite my many criticisms over the years, if I lived in her district, I might even vote for her, to ensure there is someone playing the role of skeptic on the board. However, I still wouldnt want her running a board majority  not because Im wedded to the idea of Chuck Huckelberry remaining county administrator but because of the threat I think she would pose to the functioning of county government.
If it were up to Arizona kids, our country would be preparing to welcome its first female president, results from Channel One News mock election show.

The mock election, dubbed OneVote 2016, included nearly 300,000 fourth- through 12th-graders from across the United States who made their presidential picks last week.

Hillary Clinton not only won over 53 percent of the Arizona school children who participated, she won 47 percent of the national student vote.

While these votes wont be considered when ballots are counted on Nov. 8, Channel Ones mock election has accurately predicted the next president of the United States since the program began in 1992, said Angela Hunter, senior vice president and executive producer at Channel One News

In a few weeks, we will see if that record holds, she said.

The Republican nominee, Donald Trump, didnt fare quite as well with Arizona children, winning 29 percent of the vote. Nationally, he received 41 percent of the student vote.

Eighteen percent of participating Arizona students showed their independent colors, casting votes for other candidates, which included Libertarian Gary Johnson and Green Party candidate Jill Stein.

In addition to selecting the next president of the United States, students were asked to identify the political issues that were most important to them. In Arizona, the top issues included:

Terrorism: 19 percent

Education: 15 percent

Immigration: 12 percent

Nationally, both terrorism and education got high marks as the issues most important to children, followed by gun control.
PHOENIX  Undeterred by her GOP primary loss two months ago to John McCain, former state Sen. Kelli Ward is planning another run for U.S. Senate, this time aiming to unseat fellow Republican Jeff Flake.

I filed my paperwork, Ward said Wednesday on her weekly radio talk show on Scottsdale radio station KFNN. Im taking on Flake for the sake of our nation.

The 2018 campaign is shaping up in some ways to be similar to this years Republican primary, where Ward argued that McCain, elected to the U.S. House in 1982 and the Senate four years later, is not representing the interests of GOP voters.

She said the same is true of Flake, even though he has not been in Washington nearly as long as the states senior senator.

We deserve to have at least one Republican senator, she said. Im looking forward to being that true Republican, not a Republican in name only.

And Ward insisted that it might be easier to defeat Flake in a GOP primary than her ill-fated effort against McCain.

Sen. Flake might be semi-well-liked, she said.

But he doesnt have the longevity of John McCain, he doesnt have the reach of John McCain, he doesnt have the war hero status of John McCain, Ward said. And so I think that its an excellent opportunity for us.

Flake appeared to be taking the challenge in stride, suggesting he never thought he was going to get a free ride for his bid for a second term, even from his own party.

Shots at a seat in the Senate dont come along very often, he said in a statement Thursday to Capitol Media Services.

We fully expect to have capable challengers next cycle, both in the primary and the general (election), Flake said. Well be prepared.

He already is part-way there.

The most recent reports filed with the Federal Election commission show that with the election two years away, Flake already has close to $600,000 in the bank. Ward, by contrast, ended up in debt after her primary loss to McCain, spending more than $1.5 million, including $115,000 of her own money.

But her taste for the fight apparently has not been dulled.

Im going to take on the establishment once again, she said.

One thing thats different is timing: Ward waited until July 2015 before jumping into the 2016 GOP primary.

Were starting early, even before the (November) presidential, Ward said Wednesday. And Ward, an unabashed supporter of Donald Trump, said her campaign is not dependent on who is in the White House.

Regardless of the outcome of the presidential election, we are going to need people in Washington, D.C., who are willing to fight the establishment, who are willing to stand up for the people they represent, she said.

While Flake went to the U.S. House in 2001 as a conservative, his public positions since then have become decidedly more mixed.

Of particular note is his vociferous support of free trade as well as his vocal backing of the push by the Obama administration to normalize relations with Cuba. Both are at odds with the position being taken by GOP presidential nominee Trump.

Then theres Trump himself.

Flake distanced himself from the billionaire former reality show host month ago after Trump said he did not consider McCain a war hero because he was captured during the Vietnam War.

I like people who werent captured, Trump said, leading Flake to levy his first blast at his partys nominee at a time when McCain himself was still on the Trump train.

Then, during a July closed-door meeting between Trump and senators, Flake told Trump personally he was not sure he could support his campaign. That led to Trump responding that Flake would lose his reelection bid, apparently unaware that Flake was not on the ballot this year.

It only got worse.

Flake snubbed Trump by refusing to attend the partys national convention, saying, Ive got to mow my lawn.

On a national talk show in September, Flake took a specific swat at Trumps speech the prior week in Phoenix, where the candidate said if he is elected there would be no path to legal status for any of the 11 million people in this country illegally. And he described Trumps plan to build a border all and have Mexico pay for it as unrealistic.

More recently, Flake angered some fellow Republicans by saying that if Hillary Clinton wins the election he would push to have the lame-duck Senate act on Obamas nomination of Merrick Garland to the U.S. Supreme Court, a move that Republicans have so far blocked.

That put him at odds with even McCain, who said if Clinton wins he would work with other Republicans to block any of her nominations. An aide later walked back those comments, saying while Clinton has a clear record of supporting liberal judicial nominee that McCain would consider any nomination she sent to the Senate for confirmation.

On Twitter: @azcapmedia
More Hispanic Arizonans are voting and owning businesses, a report from the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce says.

Hispanic Arizonans cast 400,000 ballots in the 2012 presidential election, up from 291,000 in 2008.

Since February, the number of Hispanic registered voters in Arizona grew from 625,000 to more than 700,000, the chamber said as it announced the release of DATOS: The State of Arizonas Hispanic Market.

Additionally, more than 300,000 Arizona Hispanics are eligible to vote, but havent registered.

Latino voters are playing a pivotal role in elections across the country and in Arizona, now a battleground state, which means its more important now than ever that elected officials understand the impact our community is having on the economy and every other major aspect of our community, chamber President and CEO Gonzalo A. de la Melena Jr. said in the news release.

In the Tucson area, one-fourth of registered voters are Hispanic. About one-third of Hispanic voters in Tucson are Democrats, 12 percent are Republicans, and 36 percent are independents or members of another party.

The report also highlighted the rising Hispanic population, and resulting economic clout.

More than 380,000 Tucsonans are Hispanic, accounting for 37 percent of the citys total population. The report said about 250,000 Tucsonans were Hispanic in 2000.

Statewide, 2.14 million Arizonans are Hispanic, accounting for 31 percent of the population. In 2000, there were 1.3 million Hispanics in Arizona.

Arizona Hispanics saw their purchasing power rise from $14.7 billion in 2000 to $32.4 billion in 2010. The chamber said Arizona Hispanics are expected to have $42.5 billion in purchasing power in 2016.

About 123,000 Arizona businesses are owned by Hispanics, with more than half owned by Hispanic women. In 2007, Arizona Hispanics owned 53,000 businesses.

The report also highlighted the lower uninsured rate among Arizona Hispanics. Since 2013, the uninsured rate fell from 39 percent to 28 percent.

To read the report, go to the chambers website or copy and paste this link: http://tucne.ws/ejf
The Pima County Superior Court has cut ties with a Tucson supervised-visitation agency that hired, without proper vetting or disclosure, a man previously convicted of attempted murder.

Little Tree Family Services employed 63-year-old Lamont Griswold, who was convicted in 1989 of stabbing his ex-wife 11 times, severing her larynx and leaving her unable to speak above a whisper. He served 25 years in an upstate New York prison. From behind bars, he repeatedly filed lawsuits against his victim, seeking visitation rights to their children, contesting their divorce and costing her thousands in legal fees, the Associated Press reported in 1994. Griswold was repeatedly denied early release and once told a prison guard that he would go get his ex-wife  using an expletive to describe her  once he was free, according to a report from an NPR member station in Rochester.

Griswolds role at Little Tree was to provide supervised parenting time  overseeing and taking notes on visits between parents and their children  for families involved in a custody dispute. But Marilyn Daniel, who owns Little Tree, didnt disclose to the court that Griswold was supervising visits, nor did she provide the necessary fingerprint clearance for him from the Arizona Department of Public Safety, said Krisanne LoGalbo, spokeswoman for the Pima County Superior Court.

Committing a violent crime is among the offenses that would preclude someone from receiving a fingerprint clearance, said a DPS spokeswoman.

The court doesnt hold formal contracts with the agencies providing supervised visit services, but since 2012 it had included Little Tree on a referral list of its recommended agencies, which is distributed to families, LaGalbo said in an email.

Little Tree has been removed from that list, and family law judges have been advised to remove the agency from any active cases, she said.

When questioned by the court, Daniel, who is 70, initially denied she had anybody else working with her, LoGalbo said. Police records describe Griswold as Daniels boyfriend.

Before employing Griswold, Little Tree should have put him through a vetting process, which would include ensuring he has no conflict of interest with those visits he oversees, has no arrests related to crimes involving children and has fingerprint clearance from DPS, LoGalbo said.

By failing to do so, Little Tree violated the stipulations in the agreement that agencies must sign and submit to the court in order to be recommended to families who need supervisory services, she said.

Supervisors  paid or unpaid  must also meet qualifications that include experience in behavioral health, family violence, parental conflict and preparing observation notes and reports.

The courts decision to stop recommending Little Tree to families was prompted by a Star inquiry about Griswold.
Pima County schools chief candidate Margaret Burkholder has had her teaching certificate renewed, putting her back in good standing in the election.

Burkholders new certificate was issued Thursday, making her eligible again to become Pima County School Superintendent should voters so choose on Nov. 8.

Burkholders license expired last week, something she was not aware of until contacted by the Arizona Daily Star on Monday.

The renewal process normally takes four weeks, according to the Arizona Department of Education. But Burkholder submitted her documentation through the Vail School District, where she serves as a governing board member but not as a teacher.

Asked why school district resources were used to help renew the certification of a non-employee, Vails Chief Administrative Officer Lisa Cervantez said the district routinely sends documentation to the department of education for staff members, applicants and for Vail community members.

Burkholder lives in the community and reached out to Vail for information on the process. Cervantez offered to include Burkholders documentation in a batch of mail that was going out on Tuesday.

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The normal turnaround for certifications sent to the department of education by the Vail School District is within five business days, Cervantez said.

There wasnt any special treatment or extra resources expended, it was part of a courtesy, Cervantez said. Were not going to use taxpayer money to offer personal favors to individuals.

Six years ago  long before she was running for Pima County School Superintendent, Burkholder said she took advantage of that service as well.

Cervantez said the district also recently assisted a Benson teacher who lives in the Vail School District with the process.

Had Burkholder been elected to office before her certification was renewed, a voter could have contested the election.

Burkholder is running against Democrat Dustin Williams.
Help India!

By An Indian Muslim for Twocircles.net

Advocate Aman Wadud highlighted the plight of Assamese Muslims in a series of Tweets, that went viral on Wednesday.

Support TwoCircles



Apart from riots and ethnic cleansing, Muslims in Assam are also battling extreme prejudices and systematic persecution.

Wadud and the organization Myfacts fought for Moinal Mollah, a Assamese Muslim, whose name was put in D-category .

Moinal Mollah documents

In the series of tweets, the lawyer writes how being a Muslim in Assam is a constant struggle to survive violence, persecution, discrimination and harassment.

The burden of proving that you are an Indian citizen, rests on the victim.

There are lakhs of Muslims facing this challenge. It took a year before Mollah could get legal reprieve and was accepted as an Indian citizen. But there are tens of thousands who dont have the money to fight cases.

Moinal Mollah documents

Do read:

1. Being a Muslim in Assam is a constant struggle to survive violence, persecution, discrimination and multi-facet harassment.

2. Cyclic targeted killings are only one aspect of constant persecution. Administration has many other ways to harass and persecute Muslims.

3. Several lakhs Muslims in Assam are facing brutal persecution in the name of D or Doubtful voters and Reference cases.

4. Citizenship of Muslims is doubted by the state and they are forced to go through rigorous trial without any prior investigation.

5. In 1997, Election Commission of India marked more the 3,70,000 people as Dvoters, mostly Muslims but also included Bengali Hindus, Koch Rajbangshi, Nepali and others.

6. The Process of identification is dubious and it is alleged that lower officials of ECI were asked to mark at least 20 voters as Din each village.

7. Ideally Election officers should mark D in voters list before name of a person who fails to provide citizenship documents during survey.

8. But Election officers rarely follow due process and marks a person as Doubtful voters arbitrarily without seeking and checking documents

9. When a person is marked as D voter, he/she cannot vote, his name is deducted from PDS benefit list. And most of the D voters are poor.

10. Women consist of more than 60% of total D voters. PDS benefits are life line for many. Once you are D voter, that life line is also gone

Indigenous Assamese Muslims facing existential crisis

11. D can be deleted from voters list by Foreigners Tribunal if held as Indian. D voters are sent to FT to determine whether they are Indian or not.

12. Another tool used mainly against Muslims is Reference Case(similar to charge-sheet) A Reference case is sent against a suspected citizen.

13. There is Border Police Department of Assam Police, Border Police has its presence in all Police Station across Assam.

14. Border Police is supposed to survey villages and if a person cannot produce documents on demand of police, he should be given time to submit documents.

15. If the person cannot submit citizenship documents he is marked as suspected citizen by Border Police.

British law meant for enemies, used against own citizens

16. A suspected citizen is charge-sheeted or a Reference Case is send 2 Foreigners Tribunal. FT send notice tosuspected citizen to appear before it.

17. The modus operandi of Police is to mark a person as suspected citizen, and Reference Case with out asking 4 any documents or any investigation whatsoever.

18. Foreigners Tribunal is governed by Foreigners Act 1946, where the burden of proof lies on the opposite party or the suspected citizen.

19. Foreigners Act finds its roots in Foreigners Ordinance 1939 which was enacted to deal with war emergency situation during world war II.

The snapshot of Moinal Mollahs fathers Legacy Data

20. Foreigners Act 1946, was passed by British Parliament for expulsion of foreigners mainly from Axis countries.

21. The colonial Act which was enacted for expulsion of enemies is now imposed on poor and illiterate citizen to prove their citizenship.

Tribunal,he/she can be held a foreigner ex-parte. Which happens in 95% cases

23. In 2012 the Assam govt published white paper on foreigners issue. It says 88192 cases were disposed between 1998 and 2012 by Tribunals.

24. Out of 88,192 cases only 6,590 were declared as foreigners i.e. 93% of D voters & suspected citizens have proved their Indian nationality.

25.When 93% poor and illiterate people marked as Suspected Citizen can prove citizenship, it says all about investigation which marked them suspected citizen.

95% declared foreigners by ex-parte judgments; 55,000 till last two months

26. In 2015 Assam Police put a list of 7K un-traced foreigners on public domain.The list has un-traced foreigners from 13 districts of Assam.

27. Out of 13 districts, 3 districts provided the information regarding manner of judgment i.e. ex- parte or contested.

28. Mangaldoi district data reveals that out of 208 declared foreigners only 1 person contested, remaining ninety nine. As many as fifty two percent people declared foreigner ex-parte.

29. More than 95% people declared as Foreigners are declared by ex-parte judgment. Till two months ago 55,000 people have been declared foreigner.

30. Once declared a foreigner,one might have to spend rest of life in detention,without a Parole, if the FT order is not set aside by HC and SC

Victims dont have money to fight court cases

31. Forget about the Supreme Court, majority people declared as foreigner are too poor to even approach High court.

32. There are many Indian citizens damned as foreigners are languishing in detention camps. They might breathe their last in detention.

33. Just because a person is held a foreigner by exp-parte judgment doesnt mean he is foreigner. The Moinal Mollah case is classic example.

34. Mollah and parents wr marked D voters in 1997.His parents were sent notice by erstwhile IMDT. They appeared & wr held Indian citizens.

35. Moinal Mollah ws sent notice much later by Foreigners Tribunal.He appeared thrice, but because of ill advice of his lawyer he stopped appearing

Victims petition was dismissed thrice, long legal battle brought him justice

36. Moinal Mollah was held a foreigner by ex-parte judgement. He came to know two years later that he has been held a foreigner.

37. Moinal Mollah approached Gauhati High Court, his petition was dismissed thrice. He was arrested on 05-09-2013 and sent to detention camp

38. Mollah had only one option- Supreme Court. He was too poor to approach Honble SC. Our org MYFACTS helped him to approach Supreme Court.

39. By order dated 12.07.16 Honble SC gave Mollah an opportunity to file written statement before Foreigners Tribunal , Barpeta, Assam.

40. On 3rd August,2016, Moinal Mollah was released from Goalpara detention camp after being detained for almost three years.

41. On the blessed day of 14th October 2016, Foreigners Tribunal Barpeta held Moinal Mollah an Indian citizen by birth. He is no more a foreigner now.

42. Copy of the judgment that held Moinal Mollah an Indian citizen. We took up this case pro-bono. It took more than a year of hard work.

43. Moinal Mollahs case is a classic example which proves that just because a person is held foreigner by Tribunal, does not mean he is one.

44. There are thousands of Moinal Mollahs. Many languishing in detention camp without a parole. Some will breathe their last in detention

How Indian born termed foreigner: How can State treat our own citizens so mercilessly?

45. Mollah was detention for 3 years leaving behind wife and three daughters. Two of his younger brothers didnt marry because he was in detention.

46. In the HC we are fighting case of a couple Hunti Ali and Rabia. They held as foreigners on frivolous ground. In detention for 8 months now.

47. Hunti Ali and Rabia Begum has three sons, all stays with relatives now after parents arrest. Elder one only 13 dropped out of school.

48. Every Indian Citizen held as foreigner has similar heart wrenching stories to tell. IF this dont outrage us, wonder what exactly will.

49. After dealing with scores of cases I can say with all conviction that majority people held as foreigner are genuine Indian citizens.

The article was first published here. The tweets were made through the handle MuslimVoicesIndia . Advocate Aman Wadud tweets here

The book Assams Doubtful Citizens can be obtained from Pharos Media


Help India!

By TCN News,

Aligarh: The Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) held a condolence meeting on Wednesday at the Faculty of Arts to mourn the sad demise of Professor D Murthy, Department of Modern Indian Languages. Prof Murthy passed away due to a renal failure at the Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, AMU.

Support TwoCircles



Remembering Prof Murthy for his dedication and hard work, the AMU Vice Chancellor, Lt General Zameer Uddin Shah (Veteran) said that he met Prof Murthy on several occasions and the meetings always left him highly impressed.

Prof Murthy always wanted to serve the mankind and that the fact his body will be given to a medical college for research shows the spirit of service to humanity, which was there in Prof Murthy, said the Vice Chancellor.

He pointed out that however, a committee has been set up to investigate the facts in which Prof Murthy passed away and necessary actions will be taken accordingly.

In the conclusion of the condolence message, General Shah said, May good Lord, keep his soul in peace.

AMU Pro Vice Chancellor, Brigadier S Ahmad Ali (Veteran) said that he found the body of the deceased warm on touching the forehead, 25 minutes after he was declared dead. I immediately inquired, but the doctor said that his body was warm because of a high temperature, he was suffering in his last hours, said the Pro Vice Chancellor adding that Prof Murthy passed away due to a renal failure.

Brigadier Ali further said that he came across students from financially week-backgrounds, who told him that Prof Murthy used to pay their fees and guide them for academic excellence. He also announced that since Prof Murthy wanted to a get a tube-well fixed in the lawns of the Department of Modern Indian Languages, as a tribute to him, the tube-well work will be done as soon as possible.

Professor Javaid Akhter, Registrar, AMU said that Prof Murthy always use to speak his mind and he will always be remembered for his smiling face. He added that Prof Murthy was humble and a very down to earth person, who was passionate about helping the people in need.

Professor Shaikh Mastan, Dean, Faculty of Arts said it is impossible to fill the void left by Prof Murthys demise. It is a sad day for the University, we have not only lost a teacher but a wonderful human being, who met everyone with love and respect, said Prof Mastan.

Prof Mohd Zahid, Department of Urdu said that he had known Prof Murthy for many years and that he will always cherish the memories of all the meetings and discussions with him.

Reading the Condolence Message, Prof Imitiyaz Hasnain said that AMU has lost one of the most admired and devoted teachers and scholars. He added that Prof Murthy has lived an exemplary life dedicated to the teaching of Tamil to non-Tamil learners and had tirelessly worked for the advancement of Tamil in the non-Tamil heartland.
Malawi Bureau of Standards bans Mozambique soft drinks for failure to conform to standards

Malawi Bureau of Standards (MBS) has banned importation and selling of Mozambican produced Frozy drinks for failing to meet required Malawi Standards.

According to the bureau, the drink has failed to conform to standards as stipulated by the institution under the import quality monitoring scheme. MBS warned the public from consuming the banned product.

The MBS would like to inform the general public that through its conformance assessments conducted under the Import Quality Monitoring Scheme (IQMS) on imported products, it has objectively established that Frozy soft drinks are failing to conform with requirements of relevant Malawi Standards, MS 18-Carbonated soft drinks specification and MS 19-Labeling standard for prepackaged foods, said the statement signed by Chief Executive Officer Davlin Chokazinga.

The statement further said conformance assessment results on Frozy soft drinks have given high levels of citric acid, in the range of 2240 to 5376 mg/kg against 3000mg/kg maximum specification and sodium benzoates, in the range of 3248 to 4256 mg/kg against 1000mg/kg maximum specification.

Apart from failing conformance tests the ban has been effected because the products have some information provided in Portuguese language contrary to MS 19 labeling requirements.

Following failure of Frozy soft drinks to conform with the applicable specifications and in accordance with the Imports Regulations of the MBS Act (Cap 51:02), the MBS is hereby advising importers, distributors, sellers and the general public that this product is substandard and that its importation distribution, sell and use is prohibited until further notice.

In accordance with section 39 of the MBS Act (Cap 51:02), has cautioned importers, distributors or sellers of the product, are requested to openly declare to the MBS quantities of Frozy drinks currently in their custody and agree on appropriate handling and disposal procedures with immediate effect.

Anyone found stocking, distributing or selling the product after this notice shall be penalized and prosecuted in accordance with section 44 of the MBS Act (Cap 51:02). The general public is therefore advised to desist from buying and consuming this product forthwith until the MBS verifies through further conformance assessments the redressal of the shortfalls highlighted above, Chokazinga said.

The ban comes amid Malawis biggest producer of fizzy drinks Southern Bottlers raising accusations over the proliferation of the drink being smuggled into the country.

Meanwhile the Consumers Association of Malawi (CAMA) has welcomed the move, saying the ban will ensure consumers are protected from such uncertified products.

www.mbsmw.org
This morning Theresa May faces the same fate as many embattled politicians before her: a leaked secret recording.

During a secret meeting with Goldman Sachs on May 26th, the then-Home Secretary privately warned companies would leave the UK in the aftermath of a vote forBrexit. She also warned that the UK would be worse off in terms of security, citing the European arrest warrant and information sharing between agencies as key reasons to stay in the EU. Her opinions on the tape contrast sharply with her statements in recent weeks where she has promised a hard Brexit and no second referendum.

What she said: the economy and security

During an hour-long session before London's banking elite, May argued for remaining in the EU: I think the economic arguments are clear. I think being part of a 500-million trading bloc is significant for us." She echoed the fears of many in big business and banking about companies deserting the UK after the Brexit vote, stating, "One of the issues is that a lot of people will invest here in the UK because it is the UK in Europe. If we were not in Europe, I think there would be firms and companies who would be looking to say, do they need to develop a mainland Europe presence rather than a UK presence?"Conversely, in recent weeks, the Prime Minister has spoken about prioritising immigration control over retaining access to Europe's single market.

May also claimed, "There are definitely things we can do as members of the European Union that I think keep us more safe," such as using European arrest warrants and sharing information between police and intelligence agencies around Europe.These candid private views could prove embarrassing for the former Home Secretary, who was often criticised for lying low during the debate on the Brexit referendum.

Growing criticism

This week, the PM has faced criticism from all angles over ambiguity in negotiating a so-called'hard-Brexit.'After Monday's meeting between the PM and Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, Sturgeon spoke of her "frustration" at thelack of a Brexit negotiation strategy. The leaked tape may explain some of that frustration; it's difficult to pin down a national strategy for Brexit whenthe message being delivered publicly is so different from the messages floating around the corridors of power in London.

On the political right, her calculated shift towards 'hard-Brexit' language seemed toappeasemany who believed May, a 'Remainer' was not up for the job of negotiating the UK's withdrawal from the EU. This tape will hardly soothe tensions in that shaky union between the Conservatives and Brexit nationalists who want to see Article 50 triggered immediately.

May has also been criticised for her statement that the government would not 'give a running commentary' on Brexit negotiations. The recording is sure to raise questions as to why American bankers in the City arein the know about politicians' views, while the remainder of UK voters have been left to guess.
On Thursday October 20, 18-year-old Chanel Santini, a professional transgender model from Las Vegas was in Houstoncatching a ride from Bush Intercontinental Airport to her hotel when she was kicked out by her Uber driver for her sexual and gender preferences.

Sexually harassed

Early Thursday morningthe Uber driver picked Santini up from the airport and immediately began questioning her; starting with offending her by asking if she was a stripper. From that point on, the drivers demeanor changed and he began disrespecting Santini with verbally abusive comments, telling her that she sounded like a man and that she had a body of a man.

Unfortunately, her ride didn't end at her proposed destination, but instead with the Uber driverkicking her outat a random gas stationand then chuckingher purse and luggage at herthrough the window. All due to her being transgender, she was nowstanding alonein the early morningstranded ina citycompletely unknown to her.

Ubers anti-discrimination policy

KPRC Channel 2 News investigators contacted Uber on Sunday, October 23 reporting the case that left Chanel Santini distraught. Kayla Whaling, a representative of Uber, responded with, We have a strict policy prohibiting discrimination of any kind on the Uber platform and will not tolerate the behavior that has been described here."

While being interviewed with Channel 2 News, Santinistated that she believes the Uber driver shouldntbe allowed employmentanywhere if he is going to be discriminatory towards people.

Bill Spencer, the live news reporter on this case, tracked down that specific Uber driver on Sunday night. The driver chose not to be interviewed and did not believe that he did or said anything wrong.

Transgender discrimination

Santini, along with many others, has worked extremely hard at becoming comfortable with who she is.

This is not the first case where transgenderwomen and men have been victims of discrimination. Every week the LGBTQ community faces discrimination for their sexual and gender identity preferences. These issues confronting Americaare continuing to divide its people.
Stricter Party governance expected to raise confidence Updated: 2016-10-28 02:12 (XINHUA)

Measures adopted at the sixth plenary session will give the CPC fresh impetus, experts say Xi Jinping, CPC general secretary, and othermembers of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the 18th Communist Party of China Central Committeemeet the press on Nov 15, 2012. The new leadership promised to take decisive steps to end corruption, improve living standards, forge closer links with the people and continue with reforms. XU JINGXING / CHINA DAILY

Comprehensive, strict governance of the Communist Party of China is expected to inject fresh impetus into the 95-year-old Party and ensure faster economic growth that will contribute more to the global economy. By Xi Jinping, from plenary session communique

With strengthened discipline and rules for intra-Party supervision as its focus, the Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, held from Monday to Thursday, has attracted attention around the world.

The Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee was held from Monday to Thursday in Beijing. ZHANG DUO / XINHUA

The determination indicated by the Party's latest move to improve its health and leadership in State governance has been hailed by experts from a number of

countries.

Dmitry Novikov, vice-chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, praised China's anti-corruption efforts.

The moves are expected to help China remain on the path it has chosen to succeed, and has led to new achievements in its drive to develop socialism with Chinese characteristics, said Novikov, who is also a member of the Russian State Duma, the lower house of parliament.

Ahmed Wali, a former Egyptian foreign minister assistant and an economics expert, said the CPC's bid to strengthen Party governance will push forward China's

anti-corruption drive and create an environment conducive to the country's development.

"China's Belt and Road Initiative has brought new developmental opportunities for countries along the route, including Egypt. We hope the Communist Party of China will continue its anti-corruption work, ensure the continued rapid development of the Chinese economy and propel global economic growth," he said.

The CPC's intra-Party democracy and ability to advance with time have long helped make it a success and a mainstay in China, rallying widespread support from the Chinese people, Wali said.

Li Zhuohui, a political analyst from Indonesia, noted the link between the CPC's self-improvement and China's economic achievements under its leadership and said the ruling party has a long tradition of maintaining strict Party governance. He added that a ruling party has to advance with time, as all political parties face new challenges in the course of development.

Zheng Yongnian, director of the East Asian Institute at the National University of Singapore, said the conference enabled the CPC to raise rule of law in Party governance to new heights.

He said he believes strict, comprehensive Party governance is the CPC's priority in building a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

Phosy Chanhming, director of the China Studies Center at the National University of Laos, hailed the CPC's efforts to impose tougher self-discipline. "Strict supervision is important for keeping a party and its members clean and trusted by the public," Phosy said.

Professor Macharia Munene, a diplomacy scholar in Nairobi, Kenya, said the CPC has scored a unique achievement in growing from fewer than 100 members to more than 88 million.

As a result of its strict governance, the CPC has managed to maintain positive and rapid development since its birth, he said, noting that fresh discipline and rules adopted in light of the new situation will make the Party stronger.

The CPC's efforts to combat corruption and uphold Party values are key to winning the hearts and minds of the Chinese people, he said.
400,000 migrant workers flock to Xinjiang to harvest cotton

Updated: 2016-10-28 06:13

(chinadaily.com.cn)

A man in his 60s picks cotton in Aksu in Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region on October 14, 2016. Most of the people engaged in the laborious work were born in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, and the younger generation born in the 1990s seldom do it because of the intensity of the work. [Photo/IC]

Every year during the 80 days between mid-September and the start of November, about 400,000 migrant workers leave their hometowns in the rural areas of the provinces of Henan, Sichuan, Gansu and Heilong for the northwestern Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region to help the locals harvest cotton.

Each cotton flower is estimated to weigh five grams on average and each cotton harvester needs to bend 10,000 to 20,000 times if they want to harvest 100 kilograms to 200 kilograms daily with both hands working at the same time.

Xinjiang is a major cotton production base in China. With an output of over 3.5 million tons, Xinjiang contributed 62.5 percent of the nation's total output of cotton of over 5.6 million tons in 2015, much higher than the national provincial contribution rate of 24.6 percent, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

With mechanization underway, special machines are expected to replace people to harvest cotton in Xinjiang in five to 15 years. However, there are both pros and cons to mechanization.

Hiring people to pick cotton often means a greater cost but cleaner and better cotton. It is not easy for cotton farmers to find the right people to help with the laborious work. But using harvest machines requires different cotton seeds and different ways to grow and process the cotton.
China touts peace over S. China Sea Updated: 2016-10-28 07:04 By AN BAIJIE and WANG QINGYUN(China Daily)

Foreign ministry says the Philippines agreed to put aside disputes tomaintain regional stability

Some countries should "discard their unrealistic stance" over the South China Sea issue, as China and the Philippines are making joint efforts to promote the positive development of the situation, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Thursday.

Spokesman Lu Kang made the remarks at a regular news conference, while commenting on a report from Japanese media that quoted a Japanese government official as saying that during Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's state visit, Tokyo and Manila have reached consensus on Wednesday over "respecting the arbitral ruling" of the South China Sea.

The arbitration case, unilaterally launched by former Philippine president Benigno Aquino III in 2013, had deteriorated the China-Philippine relationship until last week when Duterte began a state visit to China to restore bilateral ties and enhance cooperation.

Lu said that during Duterte's visit, China and the Philippines agreed to set aside disputes and enhance bilateral negotiations over the South China Sea.

"We have noticed that President Duterte's recent remarks are in accordance with the spirit of the consensuses (made during Duterte's visit to Beijing)," he said.

"If you want to understand the stance of the Philippine government, it would be worth listening to what the Philippine leader said," Lu added.

On Thursday, the final day of his three-day visit to Japan, Duterte said his country could conduct joint naval exercises with Japan, but repeated there would be no more war games with longtime ally the United States, and again vented his anger toward Washington.

Duterte said on Wednesday that disputes over the South China Sea should be resolved peacefully.

Chen Qinghong, a researcher of Southeast Asian and Philippine studies at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, said Japan, a country which does not have territorial clams in the South China Sea, has been trying to stir up trouble in the region, at a time when parties involved in the issue have been working to maintain regional stability.

"Through intensifying disputes in the region, Japan is attempting to sow discord between China and Southeast Asian countries, in an attempt to expand its influence in Southeast Asia and try to contain China," Chen said.
22-year-old People's Congress deputy becomes Internet star Updated: 2016-10-28 10:54 (People's Daily Online)

22-year-old Cheng Mengting is a People's Congress deputy of the city of Xinyu in Jiangxi province.[Photo/CNS]

The 9th People's Congress of the city of Xinyu in Jiangxi province opened its first session on Oct 25. Chen Mengting, a 22-year-old deputy, was elected as a bureau member of the city-level People's Congress. Now, the young deputy has become an Internet sensation, receiving attention from the citizens of Xinyu.

"This is the first time I have been elected as a deputy of the city-level People's Congress. I am both excited and nervous," said Chen, who is currently the vice director of the civilian service center of Xinxi Village in Xinyu.

Chen said that as a grassroots representative, she will try her best to reflect the voices of ordinary people. To this end, she went around Xinxi Village to investigate, eventually bringing four proposals to the congress that represent the most pressing problems of villagers.

Chen's proposals include providing funds to repair the country road, merging elementary school and purchasing school buses, and opening village bus lines.
MoMA acquires original emojis Updated: 2016-10-28 10:11 (Agencies)

A set of 176 original emoji characters has been donated to the Museum of Modern Art in New York. [Photo/Agencies]

Back in the day, before cars could drive themselves and phones could send stickers and animations, a Japanese phone company released a set of 176 emojis.

The year was 1999 and the tiny 12-by-12 pixel designssmiley faces, hearts of the intact and broken variety, cats, and so onwere mainly popular in Japan. In 2010, Unicode Consortium, which now controls emoji standards, translated the emoji into the Unicode standard, which means that a person in France, for example, can send an emoji to a person in the United States and it will look the same, no matter what brand of phone or operating system they use.

New York's Museum of Modern Art said on Wednesday that it has acquired the original set of 176 emojis. They were a gift to the museum from the phone company, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone.

"From the start (in 1929!), part of MoMA's mission has been to display and collect the art (and design) of our time," Paola Antonelli, senior curator of the Department of Architecture and Design at the museum, says. "Our time is lived today in both the digital and the physical space."

The museum's other digital acquisitions have included the "@" symbol and video games.

As to how a museum acquires something as ubiquitous as a keyboard symbol or an emoji, Antonelli noted design works differently than art, which in many cases is uniquethink of a painting or a statue. Some design elements, such as the "@" symbol, are in the public domain, which means anyone can use them and the museum can simply display them.

The museum will show the emojis in its lobby through the year, using 2-D graphics and animations, and connecting the old emojis with the current generation.

Today, the Unicode Consortium recognizes nearly 1,800 emojis. There's wine, a baby bottle, a dancing woman in a red dress, and, of course, poop. There have been emoji-controversies, such as Apple's decision to replace the gun symbol with a bright green toy pistol.

The human faces in emoji have grown more racially diverse in recent years, and over the summer 11 new emojis were added representing female professionals, rounding out their male counterparts, thanks to a proposal from Google.

New emojis are added regularly, and continue to evolve and reflect our changing times.

"(Emojis) as a concept go back in the centuries, to ideograms, hieroglyphics and other graphic characters, enabling us to draw this beautiful arch that covers all of human history," Antonelli says. "There is nothing more modern than timeless concepts such as these."
Now that's Funny! Chinese emoji circles globe Updated: 2016-10-27 17:53 By Zhang Xingjian(chinadaily.com.cn)

Reputed as one of the most popular emojis on Tieba, the "funny" emoji has received much attention since its release in 2013. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

"Funny", a made-in-China emoji, inclusively used on Tieba, the largest Chinese communication platform provided by the search engine giant Baidu, seems to have recently moved beyond just China.

Now, it is more than an emoji, but a cultural derivation.

Reaching global markets

A series of "funny" emoji-based bolsters have attracted the attention of Japanese customers through Amazon Japan, an online shopping center.

Even if one bolster costs about 1,750 yen ($16.73), more than three times the price in China, it doesn't dampen their desires to buy it.

One Japanese customer Miki said: "They are just so cute and I bought three bolsters at one time for my family. And every time I see them, my mood just brightens suddenly."

"I think the emoji implies very complicated meanings. Different people can read different things from it. For example, my dad will send it on the occasion when he did not agree with someone but he has to say something and behave politely. But one of my friends think it is nothing but an expression of fun," said one Japanese netizen Kiro Kara.
New jobs are reforms' dividend Updated: 2016-10-28 07:55 (China Daily)

College students attend an intern opportunity fair held in June at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics in Nanjing, Jiangsu province. [Photo/China News Service]

One of the brightest points of China's recently released economic data for the first three quarters is that its employment situation is better than expected.

Such a heartening performance is inseparable from the importance the central government has attached to the employment issue, as indicated in Premier Li Keqiang's government work reports of the past three years and numerous meetings of the State Council, China's Cabinet.

That China has managed to create so many new jobs, despite the profound global economic adjustments and numerous difficult and uncertain factors facing the economy, testifies that there is enough elasticity in its economy despite its slower GDP growth. The better-than-expected employment situation is also proof that China's economic development is on a right road and on a sound footing.

In the past, every 1 percent of GDP growth could help create 1 million new jobs in China. However, with the optimization of the country's economic structure and the rise of the tertiary sector's share, that same GDP growth now means employment for 1.9 million people. This demonstrates that there is no contradiction between China's efforts to increase its employment rate and its efforts to promote a services-oriented structural adjustment.

That it is a dividend of the reforms promoted by the government in various fields also explains why the country has witnessed expanded employment at a time when its economy has slowed.

The series of sweeping reforms the top leaders have promoted, from the simplification of administrative procedures and delegating of central government powers to lower-level governments, to practical measures to encourage mass entrepreneurship and innovation, have injected a new vitality into business startups and job creation.

The expanded employment in the first three quarters proves that China's economic development is more effectively guaranteeing people's access to the fruits of its fast-growing economy.

--IFeng.com
Top restaurants flaunt their truffles Updated: 2016-10-28 08:29 By Mike Peters(China Daily)

[Photo provided to China Daily]

If you enjoy dining at fine Italian restaurants, chances are you will soon have a white-coated chef at your elbow, joyously shaving paper-thin slices of fresh white truffle on top of your favorite pasta.

"In Italy, truffles are known as the gift of gods'," says chef Robert Barazzutti of Hong Kong's two Aqua restaurants. "To appreciate the amazing flavor, we present the truffle with a simple homemade egg-yolk pasta and a little cheese or seasoning.

"No more than five ingredients per dish," he adds. That's a standard we've heard from other chefs this month as boxes of the fungal favorite began to arrive on the docks of Shanghai and Hong Kong.

"Tuber magnatum pico (white truffle) needs traditional tagliolini's simplicity," the menu announcement at Opera Bombana says of the pasta dish on its seasonal menu.

"Nature will be the protagonist of avant-garde cuisine," says Aniello Turco, the chef at Mio in Beijing's Four Seasons Hotel, who unveiled his own uber-aromatic white-truffle dishes at a tasting dinner last week.

How special are these fragrant fungi?

The record price for a single white truffle was set in 2007, when Macao casino owner Stanley Ho paid $330,000 for a specimen weighing 1.5 kilograms, discovered by Luciano Savini and his dog Rocco. One of the largest truffles found in decades, it was unearthed near Pisa, Italy, and sold at an auction held simultaneously in Macao, Hong Kong and Florence. In 2010, Ho again paid $330,000 at a truffle auction, this time for a pair of white truffles, including one weighing nearly a kilogram.

Here's a sampling from the truffle menus now on offer around China:

Filetto alla rossini

Blackmore Wagyu tenderloin and foie gras de canard (duck liver) with Madeira sauce is "luxury meets luxury", says the team at Opera Bombana in Beijing. It's part of an a la carte menu available at lunch and dinner; other dishes include Japanese egg confit with Parmigiano Reggiano cream, two delicate handmade pastas, and a chestnut ice cream with caramel sponge. Umberto Bombana, China's original high priest of white truffle, will leave his Hong Kong flagship for ceremonial dinners in satellite restaurants in the weeks aheadwith varying white-truffle menus at each location.

Opera Bombana in Beijing and Otto e Mezzo locations in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Macao.
Abacus: Small Enough to Jail fi lmmakers and those whose story was featured in the movie attend the 52nd Chicago International Film Festival. From left: producer Mark Mitten; Sung family members Vera, Thomas and Hwei Lin; and director Steve James. Jian Ping / For China Daily

A sold-out audience packed the screening of Abacus: Small Enough to Jail, a documentary by Steve James shown at the 52nd Chicago International Film Festival on Oct 18.

When the lights came up at the end of the film, the entire audience gave a standing ovation.

Abacus documents the story of the Sung family, owners of Abacus Federal Savings Bank in New York's Chinatown, and their battle against the New York County District Attorney's prosecution on fraud charges.

The DA indicted the bank in May 2012 with a list of nearly 200 counts of charges, including grand larceny and mortgage fraud. After a four-month trial in 2015, the bank was exonerated. However, the Sung family paid $10 million in legal fees and had immeasurable business losses.

The family-owned bank was the only one prosecuted after the 2008 financial meltdown despite its very low default rate. Meanwhile, as the film showed, big banks issued $4.8 trillion in fraudulent loans and paid $110 billion in fines, but no one was prosecuted.

"We were not given an option," Thomas Sung, 80, founder and patriarch of the bank, told China Daily. "It was to plead felony and pay fines, while the big banks were offered fines and settlements and moved on."

Sung, who was born in Shanghai and came to the US as a teenager, served as an immigrtion lawyer in New York before he set up the bank, with the mission to help immigrants realize their American dream.

"I'm very proud that we have helped the Chinese community grow and many immigrants buy their homes," Sung said.

One of the accusations was granting loans to borrowers who didn't demonstrate sufficient income and selling some of these loans to Fannie Mae, "passing the risk to the federal bank," although the bank had "one of the lowest default rates in the entire country."

Thomas Sung, founder of Abacus Federal Savings Bank, stands in an aisle of the bank's safety deposit boxes with his two daughters, Vera Sung (left) and Jill Sung, who are executives at the bank. Provided To China Daily

"It's hypocritical that all these large too-big-to-fail banks that hadn't had any kind of prosecution other than paying fines, and yet, they were trying to prosecute this bank," said Mark Mitten, producer of the film.

"That was a tremendous injustice," Mitten said, adding that it was the reason he decided to do the film.

"This film clearly has a point of view that is in sympathy with the Sung family," said director James, an Emmy Award-winning Chicago filmmaker.

James said by spending time with the Sung family, he felt compelled to tell the story by the characters and by the fact that they had discovered an employee was falsifying loan documents themselves.

"They had self-reported, they had even gone a step further and hired an outside investigator to come in and see if there was any other fraud," said James. "They cooperated with the DA's office until the point that they themselves became the target."

"All the evidence was convincing that they were innocent," said James.

Although the filmmakers championed the Sung family, they also included the point of view of the prosecutors, including interviews with Cyrus Vance, the New York County District Attorney, and Polly Greenberg, chief of the DA's major economic crimes bureau at the time.

In one scene in the film, 19 indicted employees of Abacus were brought into the courtroom with their hands chained together to a long rope, even though some of them had already been arraigned and released on bail.

"They were paraded in like criminals in handcuffs," said Vera Sung, Thomas' daughter and an executive at the bank. "That was a deliberate act to humiliate them, to generate the impression that they were guilty. They shouldn't have been treated like that."

"I sat through numerous days of the trial," Mitten said. "I couldn't rationally understand how you could find this bank guilty. Certainly there were some wrongdoing by individuals, but the bank as a whole was doing a wonderful service to the community."

"This is a very strong movie," said Glenn Preibis, 64, from Chicago. "It's one of the best films I've seen over the years. It's so honest and true."

Preibis said he felt embarrassed by the DA's actions.

"The film did a great job demonstrating that even today Asian people can still be the victims of unfair prosecution and bias," said Hauwei Lien, 35, a Chinese American born in the US. "I'm glad the film was made. The story needs to be told," he said. "I hope the film will be shown in more places."

"There is a lot at stake here, more at stake than just their future and reputation." said James, the director.
ZTO's shares lag after NYSE IPO Updated: 2016-10-28 09:46 By HONG XIAO in New York(chinadaily.com.cn)

Shares of ZTO Express Inc (NYSE: ZTO), a Chinese express delivery services provider, debuted on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday but fell from their initial public offering price.

The stock opened at $18.40, $1.10 below its IPO price of $19.50, and closed almost $3 lower at $16.57.

"Up and down is normal; we're better to not focus too much on a single moment," Lai Meisong, chairman of ZTO, said about the stock's first-day performance.

"I believe in the quality of ZTO; it would definitely pay back to the shareholders sooner or later," Lai said firmly.

Founded in 2002, the Shanghai-based company is now a leading express delivery company in China and one of the largest of its kind globally in total parcel volume in 2015, according to the iResearch Report.

ZTO has demonstrated the fastest growth rate among the top five Chinese express delivery companies as of Dec 31, with its annual parcel volume growing at a compounded annual growth rate of 80.3 percent between 2011 and 2015, during which it recorded consecutive annual increases in market share.

The company mainly delivers parcels for businesses, including e-commerce giants Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and JD.com Inc. Alibaba accounted for 75 percent of ZTO's business during the first half of the year.

ZTO raised $1.4 billion by selling 72.1 million American depositary shares at $19.50 apiece, after offering them for $16.50 to $18.50 each.

In its IPO filing, the company said it generated revenue of $638.8 million last year and had a net profit of $115 million, with a profit margin of 18 percent.

With more than 23,000 branches and 74 operations centers nationwide, ZTO Express has assets worth $1.77 billion with liabilities of $412 million.

It had a market share of 14.3 percent in China last year.

ZTO domestic rivals STO Express and YTO Express have unveiled plans to go public through reverse mergers, while the country's biggest player, SF Express, received conditional approval to list in a similar way in Shenzhen.

Lai said listing on the NYSE instead of a domestic stock exchange will create more brand awareness for ZTO overseas, a plus for the development of cross-border and international business, and help ZTO build a sophisticated investor base.

"We also want to take advantage of this opportunity to showcase the advanced development model of Chinese express delivery and its market," Lai added.

ZTO will use the IPO proceeds to buy more trucks, expand capacity through the purchase of land, facilities and equipment, and for general corporate purposes.

"We would increase the productivity construction. The outlook of China's express industry is pretty good, which will have a middle-high speed growth period in the future," Li predicted.

Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs Group Inc led the offering. China Renaissance, Citigroup, Credit Suisse and JP Morgan Chase & Co also worked on the offering.
Clinton, Michelle Obama make first joint campaign appearance in bid for women's support Updated: 2016-10-28 10:45 (Agencies)

First lady Michelle Obama embraces U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton as they arrive at a campaign rally in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S. October 27, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

WINSTON SALEM, N.C.- US Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton made her first joint campaign appearance on Thursday with one of her most powerful supporters, first lady Michelle Obama, at a North Carolina rally to urge young people and women to vote.

Clinton, a former first lady who lost the 2008 Democratic nomination to then-U.S. Senator Barack Obama before becoming his secretary of state, praised Michelle Obama for standing up for the rights of girls and women worldwide, drawing a sharp contrast with Republican nominee Donald Trump.

"I wish I didn't have to say this. ... But indeed, dignity and respect for women and girls is also on the ballot in this election," Clinton told a crowd of about 11,000. "And I want to thank our first lady for her eloquent, powerful defense of that basic value."

Michelle Obama's stinging denunciation of Trump after a leaked 2005 video showed him making lewd remarks and bragging about groping women was seen by many as one of the campaign's most striking condemnations of the New York businessman.

Without naming Trump, Obama took him to task again in North Carolina, asking the crowd which candidate they wanted to represent their daughters from the White House.

"We want a president who takes this job seriously, and has the temperament and maturity to do it well. Someone who is steady. Someone who we can trust with the nuclear codes," Obama said.

"I would not be here lying to you: I believe with all of my heart that Hillary Clinton will be that president," she said.

Trump has fallen behind Clinton in opinion polls ahead of the Nov. 8 election amid a series of accusations from women that Trump groped them or kissed them without their consent. Trump has called the allegations "absolutely false."

The latest RealClearPolitics poll average shows Clinton with a nearly 6-point national lead over Trump, fueled by declining support for the former reality TV star among women.
Portugal's president visits Fidel Castro, slams US-led trade embargo Updated: 2016-10-28 16:21 (Xinhua)

File photo shows Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa is welcomed by spectators during a State visit at the Federal Square in Bern, Switzerland October 17, 2016.[Photo/Xinhua]

HAVANA - Visiting Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa met with Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, and expressed his condemnation for the ongoing US-led trade embargo against Cuba, local media reported on Thursday.

De Sousa met with Castro on Wednesday, just hours after the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly voted for the 25th year in a row to condemn the embargo.

Portugal's head of state hailed the results of the vote, "highlighting that his country condemns the globally rejected extraterritorial policy," state daily Granma reported.

The United States, which consistently voted against the UN resolution calling for Washington to put an end to the half-century embargo, for the first time abstained, with the final vote being 191 countries in favor, none against and two abstentions (including Israel).

A photo of their encounter showed a smiling and still bearded Castro, dressed in a blue track suit, engaged in conversation with De Sousa.Castro thanked De Sousa for his country's support of Cuba.

Castro, who retired in 2006 following a serious intestinal ailment, governed Cuba for 48 years, spearheading the development of cutting edge medicine and biotechnology, despite crippling sanctions imposed by the embargo.

De Sousa arrived in Cuba on Tuesday for an official three-day visit, accompanied by a business delegation, to boost economic and trade ties with Cuba.

It is the first time a Portuguese president visits Cuba.

He next travels to Colombia to participate in the 25th Ibero-American Summit in Cartagena de Indias, and later to Brazil, to attend the 11th Summit of the community of Portuguese-speaking countries.
Summit encourages African women to become entrepreneurs Updated: 2016-10-28 16:35 By Ren Jie(chinadaily.com.cn)

Business representatives and scholars encouraged African women to start their own business and create more jobs for the continent.

Job creation and industries are the most important things to today's Africa, said Liu Qinghai, head of Center for African Economics Studies, Institute of African Studies of Zhejiang Normal University, during the Women in Tech Africa Summit in Yiwu, Zhejiang province, on Oct 27.

In addition to attracting foreign direct investment from other countries and regions, especially China, starting African people starting their own businesses is one of the most important ways for creating jobs in the continent, Liu said, adding that African women should contribute their own share.

Liu, also the managing editor of Annual Report on the Development of Africa, encouraged African women to improve their dynamic capabilities to fit a changing economic environment. "The world is changing rapidly, especially emerging economies such as African countries, so we must have the ability to respond to these changes very quickly," she added at the summit.

With their wisdom and hard work, African women have become more powerful in recent years. More are playing big roles in economy, technology and cultural development in Africa, and occupying senior positions in companies. African countries such as Botswana and Nigeria have seen more women taking up important roles in business, even though the number is relatively low compared with the Western countries, according to the 2016 Women in Business Survey by business advisers Grant Thornton.

Clas Neumann, head of Global SAP labs Network and Fast Growth Market Strategy Group, said at the summit that he believes African women will become the backbone in the prosperity and development of Africa, and African entrepreneurs will have huge business opportunities in the next 10 years, adding that SAP is willing to help with its R&D networks in the world.

The German management software provider is also paying more attention to women in its leadership. It plans to increase the number of female in its management to 25 percent by 2017.

The summit was co-organized by Women in Tech Africa, SAP and Center for African Economics Studies of Institute of African Studies of Zhejiang Normal University.

renjie@chinadaily.com.cn
Experts laud 6th plenum document Updated: 2016-10-28 11:44 By Chen Weihua in Washington(China Daily USA)

China-watchers in the United States applauded the communique released on Thursday after the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, which was held in Beijing from Monday through Thursday.

Cheng Li, director of the John L. Thornton China Center at the Brookings Institution, described the communique as a "very good document. I believe the sixth plenary session will have its status in CPC history," he said on Thursday.

According to Li, the document well emphasizes the relationship between collective leadership and the top leader's responsibility, especially in emphasizing the strict management of the Party.

While some Western media outlets have focused on the core status of Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, Li noted that this is not a new concept, but a title that has been used often throughout the previous leadership.

Rather than seeing the document as a subversion from previous Party documents as suggested by some Western media, Li said there is a continuity from contributions made by previous leaders such as the concept of "Three Representatives" by Jiang Zemin and "Scientific Outlook on Development" by Hu Jintao, both former CPC party chiefs.

Li, author of the latest book Chinese Politics in the Xi Jinping Era, said it is wrong to think that there is no supervision nor checks and balance in the Party.

"There is not only checks and balances, the document also emphasizes that there is no taboo and exception even for top leaders. This is a very strong language," he said.

He believes the elaboration on the relationship of collective leadership and individual responsibility is especially important, adding that no country has handled the issue well.

In his view, it will be problematic to give a president too much power, but it also won't work if the president does not have the necessary power. "This is a common challenge in social governance," Li said.

He noted that without enough power granted to Xi, it is hard to imagine how he can take on the tough job of fighting corruption and implementing reform measures.

Jon Taylor, professor of political science at the University of St Thomas in Houston, said strong, effective and unified party leadership, as well as cadre discipline, is of monumental importance for China under the CPC's leadership as it continues to deal with a host of economic, social and political issues.

He said the designation of "core" leader is a significant one. "It suggests that the Party wants both effective governance and the enforcement of 6th Plenum objectives and that can only be achieved with Xi as the 'core' leader," said Taylor, an expert on Chinese politics.

"The Party adopted new rules to regulate officials' behavior, tighten party discipline  particularly regarding the CPC's fundamental organization principle of democratic centralism. I expect that these rules will be expanded upon during both the 2017 Lianghui (NPC/CPPCC sessions) and the 19th National Party Congress," he said.

chenweihua@chinadailyusa.com
Jaxport CEO Eric Green said the $23.5 million grant marks a milestone in our initiatives to build the port of the future and move cargo in the most efficient and eco-friendly way possible.
Gabina VOA is designed to be an infotainment youth radio show broadcasting to Ethiopia and Eritrea in the Amharic language. The show brings varied perspectives on issues concerning young people in the Horn of Africa region. Gabina in the Amharic language is a front row taxi ridesymbolic of the shows content as a fun ride that takes audiences from point A to point B. Gabina VOAs main goal is Enlightening young people, introducing them to cutting-edge technological innovations, exposing them to new processes and ideas so they can be productive, informed and self-governing citizens.
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Is David Muir Gay or Does He Have A Wife, What Is His Salary? David Muir is an Emmy Award-winning journalist who works for the ABC broadcast-television network and anchors the ABC World News Tonight with David Muir program while also co-anchoring the magazine program 20/20. The Ithaca College graduate, whose show has become the most-watched newscast in America, has covered stories from all across America and the world; reporting ...

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Who Is Todd Chrisley? What To Know About His Children, Gay Rumors & Net Worth Premiered on the USA network in 2014, Chrisley Knows Best is one of the most watched family reality TV shows in the U.S. The series which is currently in its sixth season is centered around U.S real estate mogul Todd Chrisley and his family. The show reveals Todd the patriarch of the Chrisley family as a strict dad who rules ...

Who Is Shannon Bream Of Fox News? Her Husband, Children & Net Worth Shannon Bream who hosts the iconic primetime program started her journalism career in the late 1990s debuting as the evening and late-night news reporter for the CBS affiliate, WBTV. The beauty from America currently works for the Fox News Channel and she is best known for anchoring the primetime program. She also hosts Americas News ...

Is Troye Sivan Gay, Who Is His Boyfriend and What Is His Net Worth? Troye Sivan is an Australian singer and songwriter best known for songs like Happy Little Pill, Youth, Heaven (with Betty Who) and The Boyfriend Tag (with Tyler Oakley) which have all garnered him different awards and ranked on the Billboard Charts. Sivan, who was born in South Africa but now resides in the United States, is ...

Did iDubbbz Have Cancer, Is He Gay and Who Is His Girlfriend Now? iDubbbz is one YouTuber who has made a career out of courting controversy. Renowned for his absurdist channels and comedy video series, the Los Angeles based personality is the owner of two channels, iDubbzTV, and iDubbzTV2, as well as the brains behind comedy video series such as Content Cop, Kickstarter Crap, Gaming News Crap, and ...

Inside Greg Gutfelds Love Story With Wife Elena Moussa and Why Fans Thought He Was Gay Greg Gutfeld is a seasoned American television producer whose career in the media industry has spanned over a decade. He is a man of many talents who makes extra income through comedy, journalism, and editorial works. Gutfeld regularly appears on Fox News Channel as a panellist and co-host of the political talk show The Five ...

Works That Made Bo Burnham A Household Name and How Much He Is Worth Now One of YouTubes first viral stars and the worlds most exciting young comedian, Bo Burnham, has always amazed critics and comedy aficionados alike. Often regarded as the Justin Bieber of comedy, thanks to his fresh looks, floppy blond hair and hoodies, he has a multi-faceted career bigger than many comedians twice his age. It wouldnt ...

Is Louie Anderson Gay And What Is His Net Worth? Louie Anderson has one of the most abstract faces in the industry and equally knows how to use it to his advantage. He is not only a stand-up comedian but also an actor and television host who is known for his distinctive comic wits. Some of his notable projects include Family Feud, where he was ...

Is Don Lemon of CNN Gay, Who is His Partner and What Is His Salary? Don Lemon has risen to become one of the most recognizable faces on CNN over the past few years. The fiery journalist, who anchors CNN Tonight with Don Lemon, is liked and somewhat disliked for his strong and candid opinions on a variety of matters that do not just include politics but also race, significantly, matters that ...

Is Rachel Maddow Gay, Who is the Wife and How Much Does She Earn in Salary? Rachel Maddow is an award-winning American journalist, political commentator, and television news anchor. She is best known for hosting the popular nightly TV show The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC. Prior to this, she hosted a talk radio program on Air America Radio from 2005 to 2010. As of now, the TV sensation co-anchors MSNBCs ...

Demystifying Pokimane  Her Real Name, Ethnicity & Boyfriend Like most social media celebrities in this digital era, Pokimane Thicc is one of those stars who took advantage of the internet to make a name for herself. Given the unlimited potentials which the social media space offers, many people have been instantly propelled to fame just by posting creative online contents. Not only has ...

A Breakdown of Kris Jenners Net Worth, Sources Of Income and Relationships Over The Years Standing outside and looking in, Kris Jenner looks like the oil that greases the wheels of the entire Kardashian/Jenner machine. She has been dubbed a momager and rightfully so because she seems to have had a part to play in the trajectory of each and every one of her daughters individually and the Kardashian brand ...

Pursuits That Brought Liza Koshys Fame To its Zenith and Her Love Life Since David Dobrik Liza Koshy is an American actress who has leveraged YouTube as a platform to promote her comedy while also serving as a television host on occasions. She is talented and funny and has gathered a lot of fans from around the world. Koshy started on Vine in high school and was able to get millions of ...

Alex Aiono Biography  Inside The Life Of The American Singer Not everyone who started from the streets has attained the heights where Alex Aiono is currently. His story could be referred to as the perfect definition of rising from Grass to Grace. He came into the limelight after he started out as a YouTuber, singer, and producer. One fascinating thing about the young YouTuber is ...

Virginia Vallejo Biography And Her Love Story With Pablo Escobar Virginia Vallejo can be referred to as one of the oldest whistleblowers in history after her involvement with Pablo Escobar which made her famous. Over the years, many questions have been raised about her relationship with the drug lord and why she endangered her life to be with him despite his notorious acts. The death ...

Princess Love Bio  Ethnicity, Real Name & Parents For many people, Princess Love is simply Ray Js wife but there is so much more to this feisty lady than meets the eye. She is a star in her own right and has many feathers on her cap. Princess Love is a reality TV star, a model, video vixen, and fashion designer. She and her ...

Who is Papa Franku Also Known As Filthy Frank or Joji, Where is He Now? The social media as we all know today has given people the opportunity to be creative and innovative and at the same time, make something of themselves. YouTube is one of the known social platforms we have today that makes it possible for people to express their God-given talents and post videos they created to ...

Who Is Molly Qerim, How Did She Become a Famous Sports Anchor and Who Is Her Husband? Molly Qerim is an American sports anchor popularly known for moderating First Take, a highly rated sports talk show, on ESPN. Prior to joining ESPN, Qerim hosted Fantasy Live and NFL AM on NFL Network. It is quite obvious that the widely acclaimed television personality is in a class of her own when it comes ...

Safiya Nygaard  Height, Parents & Net Worth Safiya Nygaard is an American YouTuber, writer, content producer, and director who is popular for posting makeup, beauty and fashion videos on YouTube. Her videos regularly top at least one million views, thanks to her lively character as well as her willingness to experiment with outrageous outfits and different beauty products. Here are the things to ...

The Rigors of Sunlen Serfatys Career Journey Until CNN and Fun Facts About Her Personal Life CNN correspondent, Sunlen Serfaty is an Emmy Award-winning journalist known for covering a broad range of breaking news stories, national news, and Washington politics. She has been able to garner widespread recognition for herself which even goes beyond the sphere of her work. Her profile also increased with the extensive work she did in covering ...

Demystifying Jazz Jennings Real Name, Boyfriend & Family Of One The Youngest Transgenders Jazz Jennings is an unusual personality who became famous as a transgender activist and was recorded as the youngest documented public figure to be seen as transgender. She is also a YouTube personality and spokesmodel for brands, her fans, and other transgenders. She fought for acceptance in her high school with her super supportive family for over ...

Inside Fred Armisens Life  Ethnicity, Romantic Relationships and Gay Rumors Fred Armisen is an award-winning American comedian, he is also a writer, an actor as well as a musician. He was a cast member of the legendary comedy show, Saturday Night Live for 13 years and also one of the brains behind the successful satirical show Portlandia. Find out more about this incredibly talented guy ...

Ed and Lorraine Warren Biography: Cases, Kids, and Family Life Have you ever woken up with fear you could not explain, or felt a strange presence that made the hair at your nape rise or even experienced strange occurrences around you? Well, these were some of the promptings that made the well-known paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren delve into trying to explain the ideas ...

Truth About Tony Romos Wife, Kids and Life Since His NFL Retirement Tony Romo grew from the field as a quarterback to the screens as an American Football Analyst. He was a quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys in the richest football league in the world (NFL) before retiring. As a junior, he was honored as an All-Ohio Conference Member, an Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year and ...

Who is Brittany Venti, The Controversial Game Streamer and YouTuber? In recent times, many people live stream themselves playing video games. This has become a popular pastime on the internet and many highly skilled gamers have become internet celebrities through this means. However, some of them rather than becoming renowned for their gaming skills and great commentary, have become controversial and infamous. A good example ...

Rob Dyrdeks Family: His Kids And Relationship With Wife Bryiana Noelle Flores A multi-talented star and an elite pro skateboarder, Rob Dyrdeks success story began at a remarkably young age. Yet another proof that schooling doesnt always correlate with success, Rob has established himself not just as a phenomenal sportsman but also as a successful entrepreneur. Besides perfecting his skill as a natural talent on the board, ...

xChocobars  Biography and Everything You Should Know About Her Having distinguished herself and recorded massive successes in an industry notably dominated by men, it is very safe to say that Xchocobars deserves all the attention and cash she makes from her career. A household name on Twitch (a smart live streaming video platform), the online-gamer is popularly known for streaming classic games such as Stardew ...

Everything To Know About Mary Padian, Her Boyfriend and Net Worth Mary Padian is a famous American television reality personality best known for her involvements on the Reality show Storage Wars. She also has her own shop called Mary finds where she displays her antique collections. Since her childhood, Padian has been a creative learner. At the time, she used to create new items out of reusable ones and ...

Betsy Woodruffs Family Life: Is She Married or Related To Bob Woodruff? An old name in the world of journalism, Betsy Woodruff has warmed her way into the hearts of many with her impressive talents. Through hard work, Woodruff has carved a niche for herself in a very competitive field. Betsy has strong family and work values and is also an advocate for equal opportunities for everyone ...

Matpat (Matthew Patrick)  Wife, Height & Net Worth As far as internet business is concerned, Matpat remains one of the most dynamic and seasoned figures. He boasts a wealth of experience that has helped him in growing his business from one level of greatness to another. Like most successful people, MatPat started out small but today, he makes millions of dollars from his ...

Facts About Ricegum  His Girlfriend, Real Name & Net Worth Ricegum is an online gamer and YouTube sensation who ditched college; took advantage of the digital era, and made a name for himself on the internet. Though he began as a gaming YouTuber, Ricegum soon gained recognition as a controversial internet star following his many diss tracks. Here is everything you need to know about the youngster ...

Joy Taylor Once Married MLBs Richard Giannotti  Inside Look At Her Love Life and Family The erosion of the sexist idea that women have no business in sports broadcasting created a host of women celebrities who attained fame outside of modeling and acting. One of them, Joy Taylor, a radio personality and TV host for Fox Sports 1, has been in the industry since 2009, becoming one of the most ...

What To Know About Conan OBriens Wife, Kids & Family Today The name Conan OBrien is one that jumps right at you almost immediately you start talking about the most popular television hosts in the USA and this is no surprise because the man behind that name has risen to become one of the most admired men in the business. Known for hosting the late-night talk ...

David Letterman  Net Worth, Wife & Son In all of American, one man whose face has been seen frequently by late night TV talk show lovers is none but David Letterman. The comedian and TV show veteran has been hosting late night talk shows for more than three decades. His Late Night with David Letterman show began on February 1st, 1982 aired ...

Demystifying Sssniperwolfs Family Background And The Boyfriends Shes Had Since she launched her eponymously named channel in 2013, Sssniperwolf has been on the rise when it comes to video game influencers. She is one of the biggest names in the online gaming subgenre of YouTube videos. Real name Lia Shelesh, she started with Call of Duty: Black Ops II but has diversified with other ...

Lester Holt  Wife, Family & Net Worth Lester Holt is a multiple award-winning journalist, newscaster, reporter, and actor who has worked for notable media houses like WCBS TV, CBS, MSNBC and among others. His remarkable feat in journalism has endeared him to the hearts of many and earned him some awards and recognitions. Read on to get acquainted with his biography, ethnicity, ...

What Is Louis C.K. Doing Now, Where Are His Family And How Much Is His Net Worth? It is not easy to make it in comedy. It takes more than a funny bone and the ability to elicit a few giggles from a listening audience. For all the complexities that go into making a successful career in comedy, Louis C.K, the Washington D.C-born comedian, did it. For years, he was at the ...

The Progression of Hoda Kotbs Career, Her Ancestry and Family Life Hoda Kotb gained fame as a television host and news anchor for NBC. She anchors the shows signature show Today, and it has been an excellent vehicle for her skills in front of a camera. Kotb has won several awards, including Daytime Emmys and Peabody Awards. Simply put, she is one of the most successful ...

Jerry Seinfelds Family: All About The Amazing Comedians Wife and Kids Apparently one of the highly important entertainers in America, Jerry Seinfeld is a man of many talents. A very funny man, he is considered to be one of the most successful comedians in the USA who has been in the business as a professional rib-cracker for more than 40 years. As an actor, he has ...

The Rigors Of Sarah Silvermans Rise To Prominence And Rundown Of The Men She Has Dated A comedian, writer, and actress, Sarah Silvermans art and craft is as unique as you would ever find. Her poignant use of comedy to discuss social issues such as race, sexism, politics, and religion has gained her an impressive following. As unorthodox as her style is, so is her life experiences. She previously suffered from epiglottitis ...

Who Is Hannibal Buress, Does He Have A Wife or Girlfriend & Why Was He Arrested? Making people laugh when they are tense or not in the mood is a tough order and to ply the trade, it must indeed take some guts and expertise, this is what the humor maker, Hannibal Buress has been able to achieve and sustain after his inital teething process. The African-American is a screen writer, stand-up ...

The Success of John Mulaneys Career Efforts Since His Work On Saturday Night Live and Facts About His Wife John Mulaney had been working as a professional comedian for years before Saturday Night Live changed his status for life and like many who are now his fans, you probably did not know of him then. However, that changed when he joined the sketch comedy show in 2008. Since then, he has been one of ...

Jeff Dunham  Wife, Children and Net Worth Ventriloquism is a very subtle method of making an inanimate object (like a puppet, doll or dummy) appear to be saying words which are actually coming from the person (holding the inanimate object). In effect, the individual throws his/her voice to the puppet and can even appear to be having a conversation with it. Not ...

Ellen DeGeneres  Net Worth, Wife  Portia de Rossi & Parents Ellen DeGeneres is an American female standup comedian who has proven that whatever a man can do, a woman can also do. Since her journey as a standup comedian started in 1981, she has held swirl as one of the finest comedians America and the world at large has seen. She is often referred to ...

Revisiting Joan Rivers Death  The Daughter, Husband & Net Worth She Left Behind Joan Rivers was a renowned American comedian, TV host, writer, and actress. Her brand of comedy consisted of scathing one-liners and no individual or topic is spared. She hosted her own talk shows in the 80s and 90s and was a pioneer for women in stand up comedy. She was the first woman to host a late night ...

The Struggles of Margaret Chos Childhood, How It Influenced Her Career Growth and Love Life Margaret Cho is best described as a comic star who knows how to maneuver everything related to life into a rib-cracking joke. She is also known to criticize every social and political problem, especially those involving race and sexuality. Apart from her talents as a comic actress, she does amazingly well as a singer and ...

Where Is Eric Bolling Today? Who Is His Son & What Is His Net Worth? Eric Bolling who was once a notable figure on Fox News, is an American TV personality, an author, and versatile Journalist. As a political and financial analyst/commentator, he anchored discussions bothering on finance for Fox Business Channel. Here is everything there is to know about his career, family, and allegations that led to his exit ...

Who Is Chelsea Handler and Does She Have A Husband or Boyfriend? Chelsea Handler is one of Americas top female comedians. She is also an actress, writer, television host, producer, and activist. She is known to be very outspoken even with things that are very personal. In separate interviews with The New York Times, Handler revealed that she had an abortion twice when she was 16. She has authored five books ...

How Did Laura Lee Achieve Fame, How Much is She Worth and Who is Her Husband? Laura Lee is a popular American YouTuber, make-up artist and beauty blogger. From posting videos of her makeup routines on Instagram, Lee has transformed into a beauty influencer and a YouTube sensation. Today, her YouTube Channel has over 630 million views and 4.5 million subscribers. Asides having millions of followers across all social media platforms, ...

Madison Gesiotto Bio  Ethnicity, Parents & Measurements Madison Gesiotto is no ordinary woman; although she excelled in quite a number of pageants and competitions while she was in school, it is her views on politics and issues in America that has made her name known to most people. She possesses beauty and intelligence in a seemingly equal measure and has been able ...

Who Is Lil Tay? Parents, Brother, Sister, Age, Net Worth, Ethnicity Child stardom is nothing new in the entertainment world. With the advent of social media, we have seen more stars made from the internet than ever before, and Lil Tay is one of them. Her uploaded rap videos trademark is cursing, swearing, cash-throwing, and use of obscene languages. Her fame went wild after she dropped ...

What To Know About Tig Notaros Wife, Kids and Family Today Tig Notaro is an American stand-up comic star, writer, actress, and radio analyst. Since she started her career in 2001, she has become one of Americas best comedians, particularly when it comes to observational comedy. One prominent aspect of her routine involves her family, which includes a wife and two children. Interestingly, Tig Notaro is part ...

Who Is Chantel Jeffries? What To Know About Her Age, Ethnicity & Net Worth Chantel Jeffries is a lady of many talents. Beyond being celebrated as a DJ, she has fared well as a model, an actress, musician, and as an artist. She first rose to fame on Instagram where she has a large following. However, in recent times, she has hit the spotlight for her rumored relationships with some ...

Is Ellen DeGeneres Married, Who Is The Brother  Vance DeGeneres and Family Members? Ellen DeGeneres is one of a kind celebrity in todays world as she has used her wealth for the greater good for many people. She has served a host of famous awards shows like the Grammy, Primetime Emmy and Academy Awards. Moreso, she is probably one of the most decorated entertainment personalities around the world and ...

Carli Bybel Bio  Height, Boyfriend & Net Worth Video blogging is now on the rise and YouTube is the place where most of it happens. If you are a lady who cares about her looks or a guy who likes to help his woman out with her looks, then one person whose name rings a bell when it comes to giving beauty tips ...

Who Is Lexy Panterra? What To Know About Her Ethnicity, Boyfriend & Net Worth Lexy Panterra is one of the YouTube personalities whose breakout came through the Twerk dance videos she posted on her social media handles and YouTube which has so far generated over 13 million views for her. From there on, she created her LexTwerkOut workout program in 2014. She is sure very talented as she as moved ...

Who Is AnneMunition? What Is Her Ethnicity & Does She Have A Girlfriend or Boyfriend? AnneMunition is a professional gamer and content creator of American origin. She is one of the most sought-after streamers on Twitch  a popular online platform for watching and streaming videos, especially video games. AnneMunition has almost half a million followers on Twitch and her channel has accumulated at least 13 million views. Her favorite games ...

Norm MacDonald  Former Wife, Son & Net Worth Recently, 59-year-old former Saturday Night Live stand-up comic Norm MacDonald caused a not-so-funny stir when he expressed his personal opinion about the #MeToo movement speaking in defense of Louis CK and Roseanne Barr. Following the backlash of his actions, he is diligently doing damage control for his questionable opinion by posting a public apology on ...

Inside Iliza Shlesingers Life With Husband and How Much She is Worth Now Witty, spontaneous, and truly humorous, Iliza Shlesinger is an American comedian who is clearly proving that the stereotypical claim that women are not really funny is not only incredibly wrong but completely outrageous. Having been in the game for more than 10 years, Shlesinger has grown bigger with each step, stunning fans with her incredible ...

Who Is Nessa Diab? Details of her Parents, Ethnicity & Relationship With Colin Kaepernick Nessa Diab has gained more fame as the girlfriend of different footballers than in her career. She is currently with the popular National Football League (NFL) player, Colin Kaepernick, and has stood by his side during his most trying times. Also known for her mononym, Nessa, she recently engaged in a tweet battle with the ...

Samantha Bee  Inside the Life of Full Frontal Comedian and Presenter We have over the decades seen various brands of humor and personalities who have walked the ropes. One of the formidable forces in the world of comedy is no other than the iconic Samantha Bee of the Daily Show who now runs her own television show on TBS channel. She is a Canadian-American political commentator, ...

What Happened To Jessica Williamss Boyfriend And Which Are Her Best Works? Jessica Williams is a woman who has a lot of feathers in her cap  and keeps acquiring more. The former senior political correspondent of the comic Daily Show, who is also a comedian and actress whose recent movie appearance include starring as a playwright just recovering from a recent split with her boyfriend, Damon, and ...

Who is Nicole Byer? Here are 5 Facts You Need To Know About The Comedian Nicole Byer, an American comedian, actress, and writer, made a name for herself after she played supporting roles on MTVs prank show Ladylike and the reality show Girl Code. The latter was a series that featured comedians who analyzed in minute details, all the issues that young women deal with daily, from period to dating, to weird friendship dynamics and questions about sex. Currently, ...

A Closer Look At Bart Kwans Ethnicity, Height & Personal Life Bart Kwan is one of few Asians who is known for being successful in the comic industry at an international level. His fame broke out after the YouTube channel which he created with his close pal Joe Jo garnered up massive followings. The talented duo has been running the channel since 2007 and their success ...

Heres How VanossGaming Achieved Fame Online, His Worth and Other Facts About The Gamer For many years, the decision to drop out of college to pursue an online career was considered to be foolish and self-destructive by conventional wisdom. It was no different when Evan Fong, popularly known as VanossGaming, dropped out of college to pursue a YouTube career. However, that radical move paid off, and he stands shoulder to ...

Desi Perkins  Ethnicity, Net Worth & Husband YouTube is littered with videos of makeup tutorials by different people but if you are interested in learning how to do your makeup like a pro, there is just one person on that platform who you must follow. She is none other than Desi Perkins! She is a popular make-up artist, Instagram star, and vlogger. Desi, ...

The Phases of Casey Neistats Pursuits and His Love Story With Candice Pool YouTuber, vlogger, filmmaker, and creator extraordinaire; these are just a few hats that Casey Neistat wears and the story of how he got here is incredible. A native of Connecticut, Neistat started out by making refreshingly-authentic short films and videos that featured content that was based on everyday life and called attention to serious issues. He ...

Connor Franta  Inside The Life of American YouTuber YouTube has produced a lot of young celebrities in modern times and Connor Franta happens to be one of them. Apart from being a YouTuber, the young American is also an entrepreneur, entertainer, and writer. His journey to fame began almost a decade ago when he started a self-named YouTube channel where he uploads content ranging ...

Rhett and Link  Bio, Who are Their Wives, Net Worth and Family Facts Rhett and Link refer to an American comedy duo who are very popular on YouTube. They are known for their comic songs, viral commercials, skits and the daily show, Good Mythical Morning. Good Mythical Morning is the most watched daily show online, averaging 100 million views in a month. The show has featured guests such ...

A Walk Through The Maze of Ryan Higas Career Pursuits And Relationship With Arden Cho Ryan Higa is not only celebrated as a YouTube star, but he is also famed for appearing on television screens as an actor and comedian. Nigahiga, his Youtube channel, has gathered over 20 million subscribers and billions of views with his different comic acts, short films, and music videos uploads. With the rise in his career, ...

What to Know About The Shows That Made Craig Ferguson a Star and His Family Ties Rising to the top of your profession can sometimes be a hard and difficult process. It requires days and nights of working consistently hard to be better than what you were yesterday. It requires not giving up when all of your experiences seem to be pushing you to quit. It is because of these challenges ...

David Dobrik Married Liza Koshy for One Month  Inside His Family and Relationships David Dobrik is a YouTube sensation who has garnered fame not just for his vlogs but his love life too. Given his career as a YouTuber, his channel is one place where he shares his romantic escapades. With a cute boyish look like his, this Slovakian young man is definitely a good catch, and not ...

Merrell Twins Bio  Ethnicity, Parents & Boyfriend One of the beautiful things about modern life is social media. As rudimentary as it might seem, it could turn out to be the greatest thing that would be invented in the next 50 years because of its impact on human life. Very few tools have revolutionized human behavior and culture as much as social ...

Who Is Bunny Meyer, Is She Married & What Is Her Net Worth? Bunny Meyer is a YouTube celebrity who has amassed over 8.8 million subscribers with 1.5 million viewers on her channel. She is popularly known as Grav3yardgirl and is one of the highest-paid YouTubers in the world. She initially started out as a fashion designer and later chose the path of a YouTuber. Grav3yardgirl has used her knowledge on fashion, makeup, ...

Ninja  Inside The Life of The American YouTuber and Internet Personality Ninja is a talented video game player known for his mastery of Fortnite and other seemingly difficult games he plays with ease. The video gamer made a career out of what is ordinarily the hobby of many people and has since then amassed a huge online following. Find out about him here, including the controversies that ...

What Is Eva Gutowskis True Sexuality and How Did She Rise So Fast As an Influencer? Ever since Eva Gutowski joined YouTube in 2011, it has been an interesting journey for her, moving from one milestone to the other. Backed by an army of young women and teenage girl fans known as Evanators, she has risen to become one of the most-talked-about personalities in the digital stratosphere. She has also leveraged ...

Emma Chamberlain Biography  Age, Height & Net Worth Before now, people in the entertainment industry could only achieve popularity after many years of dedication and hard work but since social media came into the scene, massive success and overnight popularity became possible. That is the story of Emma Chamberlain who encountered fame as a fifteen-year-old. Emma is one of the many young people who became ...

Anna Akana  Ethnicity, Boyfriend & Net Worth There is a new crop of YouTubers known by their different contents with a very strong uniqueness that stands every one of them out, some upload video games, some fashion while some others have comedy video contents to showcase on their channels. Anna Akana has used her platform to showcase her comedy contents to the ...

Revealing Truths About Lilly Singhs Ethnic Background, Family and Her Relationship With Yousef Erakat Lilly Singh is an Indian-Canadian YouTube personality, actress, and comedian also known as Superwoman. She kicked off her YouTube career in 2010 with the launch of her channel IISuperwomanII and followed it up with a vlog channel in 2011. This paved the way for her fame and success which led to a world tour. The ...

Who Is Andrea Constand, Is She Married and What Is Her Connection With Bill Cosby? Many people got sexually molested but could not voice out due to the stigma victims suffer and what will become of them thereafter. Very few of the victims danm every consequence to seek justice and bring the perpetrator to the book, like Andrea Constand. She never got any media buzz, not until her friend cum molester; ...

Who Is Lazarbeam (Lannan Eacott)? Here Are Facts You Need To Know Lannan Eacott became a person of interest after his YouTube channel, LazarBeam pulled him to the limelight. Initially, he started with uploads of Madden Challenge videos before deciding to build his own channel in January 2015. Within the space of three years, his YouTube channel had gathered over 7 million loyal subscribers. Today, he has not ...

Puzzling Facts About Wengies YouTube Success and More About Her Fiance Among the many YouTubers who have succeeded in winning the hearts of millions of people is Wengie. She is a Chinese-Australian YouTube personality, vlogger, singer, and voice actress. Wengie is famous for a lot of things, from her simple life hacks, DIYs, craft ideas to fun experiments, tricks and pranks. Her content portfolio also includes hair tutorials, diet & fitness tips, lookbooks, ...

Is Jeffree Star A Billionaire and How Much Does He Make On YouTube? If looks can be deceptive then theres no other person who proves this maxim better than Jeffree Star. A quick look at Stars pictures would likely leave you wondering whether or not to tag him a male or female. But who says being controversial has to be a curse? For Star, his looks have caught ...

The Place of Rosanna Pansinos Career Hats In Her Rise To Fame and Facts About Her Personal Life There are a few phrases that could summarize Rosanna Pansinos rise to fame. None of them can do it better than the famous axiom, no knowledge is lost. Her popularity YouTube comes out of her foray into other professions, specifically acting. Although acting now occupies one of the major professional hats in Rosannas resume, it was ...

Muselk (Elliott Watkins) Biography  Age, Girlfriend and Net Worth The new and best in-thing in terms of career is video gaming and we have over time seen young men and women make massive income from an activity that was purportedly designed to serve as a hobby or a relaxation activity. One of such individuals is the Australian-born YouTube Celebrity and Twitch streamer, Muselk, whose ...

PopularMMOs Biography: 5 Interesting Facts You Need To Know We have over the years seen social media millionaires, especially on the YouTube social platform. These celebrities cum millionaires have made names for themselves after carving out niches on the internet, and a typical example of one of such exciting media personality on the YouTube is American Minecraft gamer and YouTube star, PopularMMOs whose channel ...

Jason Nash Once Married Marney Hochman  What To Know About His Ex-Wife and Kids The now-defunct video-sharing app Vine was the path that led Jason Nash to fame. With it, he built an audience of over two million followers, which he parlayed into a significant YouTube career. That move has seen him become one of the most popular personalities on the internet, with the cash income to go with ...

Where Does Dantdm Live? What Do We Know About His Net Worth, Wife and Brother? Most parents buy video games for their kids to occupy their time leisure, while other parents frown at their kids when they play video games. Despite the disparity, every parent would be proud of their child if he/she eventually turns a celebrity or millionaire through playing video games like Dantdm. Biography of Dantdm Dantdm was born Daniel ...

LaurDIY  Biography: 5 Facts You Need To Know About The YouTuber LaurDIY is the YouTube channel of Lauren Riihimaki which she created on December 1, 2011, when she was still a college undergrad with the sole aim of giving Do It Yourself (DIY) as well as practical fashion and beauty tips to her followers. She has used the channel to establish herself as a YouTube personality ...

Lachlan Ross Power  Bio And Family Life Of Australian The YouTube Star It is amazing the varied sources of income that the internet has made possible in this day and age. Internet fame can get its holder a whole lot of monetary and social benefits, but it must be noted that it does not come easy or cheap. For those who desire fame, content is the sacrifice ...

Alfie Deyes  Bio and Net Worth: Everything You Need To Know Alfie Deyes is one internet personality you definitely would like to know about. He boasts of over 10 million subscribers on three of his YouTube channels and has three bestseller books to his name. He is probably the most renowned young personality on YouTube today and his vlogging empire continues to grow by the day. ...

Colleen Ballingers Love Story With Husband Erik Stocklin and How Much She Is Worth Now Colleen Ballinger is an American comedian and YouTuber who is a very funny, adventurous, and highly talented woman. She is also an actress, singer, and writer. Collen is widely known for her work on YouTube where she posts content on her channel, Miranda Sings. The comedian has gained many subscribers over the years and has ...

Who Are The Dude Perfect Members and How Much Are They Worth? Entertainment in the 21st century can be digested in many forms and with platforms like YouTube, the creators and purveyors of entertainment have been democratized. Today, one of the most popular platforms to exhibit ones creative talents is YouTube, even though there are other platforms like Twitter, Facebook, who suffer in comparison to YouTube because ...

Who Is Rudy Mancuso, What Is His Earning Power and What Do We Know About His Girlfriend? Rudy Mancuso started his internet journey on Vine. He would later transition to YouTube where he solidified his place among the internets most beloved comedic creators. He is now regarded as one of the renowned internet personalities in the world, with a presence in mainstream TV and film projects like Comedy Centrals Drunk History and ...

Vsauce (Michael Stevens) Biography and Net Worth: All You Need To Know The advent of YouTube and the internet as a whole revolutionized how human beings consume information. With each passing year, the percentage of learning that is done in a traditional classroom decrease as a seismic shift to internet-based learning happens in our education industry. From open courses online to YouTube classes and videos, there are ...

How did Jake Paul Make His YouTube Big Break and Who is His Wife? One of the most interesting Social Media personalities of the 21st century is the young and popular Jake Paul whose elder brother is the famed Vine star, Logan Paul. Jake has utilized the power of the internet to bring himself to the limelight with a channel named JakePaulProductions that has amassed up to six billion ...

5 Facts You Need To Know About Reaction Time (Tal Fishman)  The American YouTuber Before 2015, the leading meaning of reaction time was the amount of time it takes to respond to a stimulus, until Tal Fishman started his channel, Reaction Time on YouTube and the dominant meaning changed. Today, a google search of Reaction Time would deliver Tal Fishmans videos and YouTube channel link with a few physics ...

Grace Helbig  Net Worth, Boyfriend and Family Life of The YouTuber Grace Helbig is an American internet personality, comedian, actress, and writer. She became popular due to her daily vlog series, DailyGrace, which ran on My Damn Channel from 2008 to 2013. Helbig is also popular for her own indie series on YouTube, ItsGrace, which she launched in 2014. Her vlogs which feature random stuff such as ...

Mark Wiens Bio  Ethnicity, Wife and Parents Food is a great way to connect with people. We all love to eat, if not for the pleasure of food, the satisfaction of quenching hunger, and the very process of providing and sharing that food is part of the strongest bonds that bind humanity together. Maybe it is our historical connection to food, where ...

Is Filthy Frank Dead, What Happened To Him and How Much Is He Worth? As George Kusunoki Miller, he was a nobody. However, as Filthy Frank, George was one of the most famous internet personalities on the planet. The Filthy Frank Show, a sketch series on his YouTube channel, TVFilthyFrank, was one of the platforms most influential creations. He is the reason a crazy dance song, Harlem Shake, made it ...

CaptainSparklez Bio  Net Worth, House and Cars of The Famous YouTuber Sometimes, what society wants from its citizens is quite different from what the citizens want for themselves. This is evident in the life and career of video blogger and American YouTube personality, Jordan Maron famous for his YouTube channel CaptainSparklez. He dropped out of school after discovering his talent in playing an online game called Minecraft. ...

Who is Simply Nailogical (Cristine Rotenberg)? Here are Facts You Must Know Canadian Youtube personality, Simply Nailogical (Cristine Rotenberg) originally started out polishing and designing nails even before it became a trendy culture in the social media. Simply Nailogica started out her showbiz career in her early days as a child actress, acting in commercials for game and toy companies. Aside from acting, she is blogger, vlogger, specializing ...

5 Interesting Facts You Need To Know About Huda Beauty In the world of entrepreneurship, it is interesting when an individual has a mentor who he/she looks up to, this yield more productivity on the part of the individual. The iconic and rich American beautician and makeup artist Huda Kattan nicknamed Heida is the founder of the Huda Beauty blog which is number one Instagram beauty blog ...

Is Dino MasterChef Gay? Details About His Ethnicity, Girlfriend, Where He Is Now Food, for the better part of the early years of human life, was nothing more than what we needed for survival. There was no artistry or curation to the method of cooking. The scarcity of food left no room for artistic expression until we figured out agriculture and we could make as much as we ...

Who Is Gabbie Hanna And How Did She Become Famous? As the world shifts to digital media and depends more and more on streaming services for its news and entertainment content, YouTubers have become one of the leading creators in the new media world. Their understanding of the online audience: how to create, maintain, and increase followers, are all handy skills that have primed them ...

Jacksepticeye  Height, Girlfriend & Net Worth Jacksepticeye is a YouTuber and actor who gained popularity with a series of gaming videos he uploads on his channel to the delight of millions of his subscribers. He is Known primarily for his comic video game series titled Lets Play and his vlogs. His channel was formerly ranked 46th in the list of most subscribed ...

Chris Heria Personal Details: About His Wife, Height & Ethnicity Background In this generation, keeping fit has become one of the major criteria for being hale and hearty. In fact, most occupations these days are majorly concerned with ones body mass, weight and looks. Unlike the past where most people have to register in a gym to keep fit, social media has made it quite easy ...

Everything You Need To Know About Game Grumps Gaming is becoming incredibly popular on YouTube these days with game vloggers make millions of dollars out of them yearly. One of the most popular up-coming gaming YouTube channels is Game Grumps. The Lets Play series was created in 2012 and celebrated its fifth anniversary on July 18th, 2017. In six years of its existence, the ...

Daithi De Nogla Biography, Girlfriend and Net Worth YouTube has created an avenue for many to make wealth and become famous from the comfort of their homes while having fun. Many have built a career out of the platform, uploading numerous videos that have earned them the admiration of viewers across the globe. For Daithi De Nogla, he is loved for his humorous commentary on ...

Does Phoebe Robinson Have A Boyfriend or Husband and What Do We Know About Her Family? Phoebe Robinson is a New York-based comedian, writer, and actress. She is best known as the co-creator and co-host of the WNYC Studios podcast 2 Dope Queens. Just like some other female comedians, she never had any original plans of becoming a stand-up comedian even though, according to her, she took a class on a whim at Carolines on Broadway. After ...

Who Are Lex and Alana from Listed Sisters? What Is Their Ethnicity & Is the Show Cancelled? America is a country built on diversity. Everywhere you look all over the country, a countless number of immigrants or children of immigrants have become an integral part of the fabric of the country. From entertainment to business, immigrants are creating a niche for themselves and climbing to the summit of their respective professions. One ...

Riveting Facts About Danielle Lombard And What She Is Best Known For The American entertainment industry is one that provides many avenues for aspiring hopefuls to express their talents and become famous. From films to television shows and game shows, there is no shortage of ways for men and women who desire fame to pursue and earn it in the United States of America. Another tested medium ...

Unearthing New Details About The YouTube Success And Personal Life of Alex Burriss of Wassabi Productions Wildly hilarious and truly audacious, Alex Wassabi is an American YouTuber who has become a very popular face on the video-sharing platform after having garnered millions of subscribers over the years by keeping people glued to his channel with his witty parody video releases. If you have always loved parody videos, there is every chance ...

Everything You Need To Know About H2O Delirious H2O Delirious whose full birth name is reported to be Jonathan Gormon Dennis has successfully kept himself mystified by hiding his face behind the masks leaving his loyal fans speculating who he really is for many years. The American YouTube star is easily identified by the Jason Mask Style with make-up which he wears on his ...

Who Is HolaSoyGerman and What Happened To Him? German Garmendia has certainly seen it all when it comes to internet success. His channels, HolaSoyGerman and JuegaGerman are in the top twenty most subscribed channel on YouTube. The Chilean YouTuber found a way to tap into one of the worlds greatest inventions and make a living from it. He has been able to build ...

Who Are Glenn Becks Family, What Is His Net Worth And What Happened To Him? The American political commentary space is filled with different personalities. A few of them, through their rhetoric, charisma, and resources have been able to build a large following of men and women who listen to them for insight and direction for various political and social issues in the United States. For Conservatives, the story is ...

Following Charissa Thompsons Rise Through The Ranks Of Sports Casting and All About Her Boyfriend Superstar TV host and sportscaster, Charissa Thompson, has been hailed as one of the highest-profile women journalists in America, and the reason is there for all to see. She has worked for popular establishments such as Versus, Yahoo! Sports, ESPN, GSN, and Big Ten Network. She currently hosts the popular pre-game show, Fox NFL Kickoff, ...

Is Chris Kattan Gay or Does He Have A Wife? What Is His Net Worth? Chris Kattan is a popular American comedian and actor. He has appeared in several comic movies and TV series such as The Middle, A Night at the Roxbury and Bunnicula. Kattan is, however, most popular for his six-year stint as a cast member of Saturday Night Live. During his time on the legendary show, he ...

Everything You Should Know About the Rise of Insta Star Claire Abbott and Why She Gave It All Up A lot of young Americans have shot into the limelight for uploading different kinds of videos on YouTube. Some of these young stars include Connor Franta, Desi Perkins, Emma Chamberlain, the Dolan Twins (Ethan and Grayson), and Claire Abbott. The latter became a social media celebrity for uploading sexy bikini pictures of herself on social media. Apart from ...

5 Facts You Need To Know About The YouTube Channel  h3h3Productions H3h3Productions is a YouTube channel that specializes on Comic responses or reactions of other contents or trendy stories. The celebrity couple that created the channel has over time racked up sizable views for their commentaries and contents. Even though they had their own fair share of copyright cases, thankfully they scored an unprecedented victory in all ...

Lilypichu Bio  Height, Brother and Love Story With Albert SleightlyMusical Chang Like most popular internet celebrities, Lilypichu is one of those Twitch streamers who spend their lives on camera. From daydreaming about the possibility of becoming a full-time professional streamer, she grew to live out her dreams on the popular live streaming platform where people play games, make crafts, and showcase their day-to-day activities. Given the rise of ...

KSI  What To Know About His Girlfriend, Brother  Deji Olatunji & Net Worth Assuredly, when Internet inventors Vint Cerf and Bob Khan created the technological masterpiece, they probably did not know how massive the creation will be harnessed by many for different purposes including as a platform for earning money through content creation. One of such person who smiles to the bank regularly today for spending time creating ...

The Interesting Progression and Highlights of Carrie Keagans Career as a Host and Actress Carrie Keagan has garnered huge fame through her various stints on television. She is not just your regular TV host but one with a difference. Keagan has hosted several high profile events and TV shows, including VH1s Big Morning Buzz Live and Fox News Channels Red Eye with Greg Gutfeld. However, not many know she ...

The Gist On Elise Jordans Marriages And Her Rise To Prominence Political commentaries tend to be boring when it is handled by someone who does not have a knack for it. However, when you see the likes of Elise Jordan run the same commentary, you will have a lot of reasons to look forward to watching her again as the journalist is well-versed in the field ...

What Is Timmy Thick Best Known For and How Successful Is The Star? Thanks to the internet, many people whose talents would have ordinarily gone unnoticed have become famous. A very good example of this modern-day internet celebrity is Timmy Thick, an American social media star. He became popular on Instagram due to his penchant for posting raunchy pictures of himself. He also often posted videos of himself ...

What Does Heather Storm Do For a Living and Who Is She Dating? Reality Television is a great way to make a name for oneself as well as amass a fortune. Heather Storm can attest to this as she is one of those who have made a name and earned a lot from reality TV. She made her name appearing on shows like Car Fanatics, Awesome Autos, and, ...

Matt Carriker Biography  Net Worth, Wife & Height Unlike your regular veterinary doctor next door, Matt Carriker chose to spice up his noble profession with the unusual. Though he is known to many as a medical practitioner, Carriker is better renowned as a YouTube star and an animal lover. Having recorded huge successes on his various YouTube channels, the vet doctors name and ...

Jillian Mele of Fox News Career Achievements, Husband & Measurements There are quite a good number of presenters on radio and television who listeners and viewers may never wish to miss any of their shows because of their sensational golden voice, beauty or the special way or artistry they anchor their shows. Jillian Mele is one of such. She has been at the top of ...

Who is Gillian Turner of Fox News? Her Fiance or Husband and Net Worth Gillian Turner is well-known as a news correspondent for Fox News Channel but before she became a TV personality, she built an intimidating resume working for different institutions, including the American government. She served in different capacities at the White House National Security Council during the administration of former US Presidents  George W. Bush and Barack Obama. ...

Gloria Govan Bio  Age, Ethnicity & Height Even as Gloria Govan is famous as an American actress, author, a TV host, and reality television star, shes more popular as the wife of the former NBA player, Matt Barnes. She became known after appearing on the Florida version of the reality television series, Basketball Wives and later, Basketball Wives: LA  after Matt was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers. Sadly, ...

Michael Fishmans Interesting Start as an Actor and Why He Divorced His Wife of Many Years When one door closes, another one opens. As silly as that axiom may seem, it is the story of the resurgence of Michael Fishman, who plays D.J Conner on the popular show, Roseanne. Having played the character for several years as a child actor into his teenage years; when the show originally ended, Michael did ...

Who Is October Gonzalez  Tony Gonzalezs Wife? All You Need To Know October Gonzalez is a popular American TV host and media personality. Additionally, she is also a model. Gonzalez has hosted several TV shows such as Beat Shazam, Entertainment Tonight, and Rachel Ray. She has also featured in several reality TV shows. Gonzalezs fame is not just due to her profession but also because of her ...

Who Is Tony Berlin  Harris Faulkners Husband: His Children and Family Facts Tony Berlin is a popular American media guru. He has variously worked as a reporter, anchor, and producer for some of the biggest TV networks in America. They include CNN, CBS, NBC, and ABC (where he hosted the popular Good Morning America). Berlin has now diversified into public relations and owns his own PR firm. ...

The Progression of Gianna Tobonis Journalism Career and Details About Her Marriage to Kyle Buckley Gianna Toboni may not be your ideal newscaster but her unusual reporting is what made her a household name. The American journalist is renowned for her hard-hitting and authentic reportage. A motivator and activist for total press freedom, Gianna loves to explore pervasive cultural issues. Not only does this unique and ambitious journalist call for all ...

Dog The Bounty Hunters Family Including Details of His Late Wife and Kids Popularly known as Dog, a name which he got from the television series, Dog The Bounty Hunter, Duane Chapman, an American bounty hunter, and one-time bail bondsman, went from being convicted for a felony to being a reality TV star. He was brought to the limelight following the capture of the convicted criminal, Andrew Luster in 2003 and this eventually made ...

Vicky Karayiannis, Chris Cornells Wifes Bio, Children and Family The world of showbiz is made up of different people who serve different roles, and function in a variety of capacities, and one of the most important people are those in the background. Publicists are undoubtedly one of these background people yet they are vital to the life and fame of most of our favorite ...

Joe Rogan Has A Step-Daughter and 2 Other Kids With Wife Jessica Ditzel  Meet His Family Joe Rogan is a popular American stand-up comedian and TV host. His journey to stardom began in the late 80s and has seen him host several shows, the most popular is the game show titled Fear Factor. The exciting show dares contestants to face some of their greatest fears and embark on challenging stunts. The ...

Josh Gates and Wife Hallie Gnatovich Have 2 Kids But Who Has the Higher Net Worth? Best known for his explorations and adventures, Josh Gates, is a television presenter with a voracious appetite for seeing the world and the beauties in it. Some of that beauty, however, is in his home, in the form of two children he shares with his wife, Hallie Gnatovich. Not excluded is their marriage which has lasted ...

Holly Sonders Wiki, Plastic Surgery & Why She Divorced Her Husband  Erik Kuselias After trying everything within her capacity to have a low key wedding, Holly Sonders was drawn to the public because of her husbands controversy at his workplace. Well, the two are rumored to be divorced but the article below will give more light on how true these rumors are. Meanwhile, Holly Sonders is yet to ...

Nadeska Alexis Bio  Age, Boyfriend & Net Worth Journalism is one diverse profession that allows the practitioners to choose their area of specialty, build a career on it by reporting the truth and facts which in the long run will distinguish them as deserving commendation and recognition among their peers. Some choose to specialize in political journalism, while to others it is sports ...

Media Platforms Charlamagne Tha God Has Explored and All The Controversies He Has Courted Charlamagne Tha God is an American on-air personality, radio presenter, and more recently, author. He is popularly known as a co-host on New York radios nationally syndicated show, The Breakfast Club, a program he has been hosting alongside DJ Envy and Angela Yee since 2010. However, his early years had no connection to his current career ...

A Look At Jimmy Fallons Net Worth and Family Including His Wife & Kids Sometimes, a childs passion for something is a pointer to what he/she would become in the future. As a child, Jimmy Fallon was literally obsessed with watching the late-night comedy program, Saturday Night Live (SNL). Then, his parents would tape the clean parts for him to watch and later, he and his sister would re-enact sketches from the ...

Kay Adams Biography  Does The Sportscaster Have A Husband or Boyfriend? When you hear the phrase sports enthusiast, women are hardly the first group that comes to mind. Well, thats changing pretty fast. Especially with the rise of female sports analysts and broadcasters like Kay Adams who is famed for knowing more about sports than most men do. And why not, shes paid handsomely for it ...

Ben Shapiros Family  Meet His Wife, Kids and Sister Who is Popular for the Wrong Reasons A multi-talented man, Ben Shapiro is a man of controversial nature, an attribute that has made him an unusual public figure. An intellectual whose career path was clearly defined even before he became a man, the Jewish conservative commentator has always had his way with words. He became popular by sharing his critical and often ...

QVC Shawn Killinger Bio  Husband, Net Worth & Facts To Know Shawn Killinger is a prominent TV personality who has worked her way to the top. Though not initially a journalist by training, she defied the odds and today has established herself as a household name, as well as, worked alongside some industry legends. More than just being a reporter, newscaster, and anchor, heres all you ...

Liv Lo  Dissecting the Ethnicity, Parents and Personal Life of Henry Goldings Wife While many are aware that Liv Lo is the better half to Crazy Rich Asians star Henry Golding, only a few understand why his beautiful wife appears increasingly endearing to fans. A former model turned TV personality, and fitness star, Liv has an impressive resume which when combined with that of her statuesque spouse is considered a perfect ...

Stpeach Age, Husband and Other Facts About The Twitch Streamer Lisa Vannatta, famously known by her online alias, STPeach is a Canadian video game streamer cum vlogger who has garnered fame through her appearances on different video-sharing/social networking platforms such as Youtube, Instagram, Twitch, Reddit, and Twitter. The beautiful lady got her career to a start in August 2015 when she joined the live streaming video platform, Twitch. She rose to ...

Insights into Seth Meyers Wife, Family and What His Net Worth Is Celebrities are mostly remembered and known for the work they do. For Seth Meyers, his career as a comedian, writer, actor, TV host, and producer is his biggest identifier. He was on Saturday Night Live SNL show as a head writer and cast member for more than ten years during which he built a reputation ...

Who Is Jessica Gadsden  Age, Net Worth & All About Charlamagne tha Gods Wife Jessica Gadsden is an American fitness coach as well as a personal trainer. She is better known as the spouse of popular American media personality, Charlamagne Tha God. Charlamange Tha God is a well-known TV and radio personality in the U.S. He has featured in several shows (both on the radio and TV) and is ...

Who Is Collins Tuohy  Michael Ohers sister ? Her Wedding, Husband & Net Worth Collins Tuohy is an American entrepreneur, philanthropist, blogger, and social media personality. She is also better known as the adoptive sister of NFL player, Michael Oher, whose life story inspired the Hollywood blockbuster The Blind Side. The Blind Side tells the true life story of Oher who grew up in an impoverished background consisting of a ...

Eye-Popping Facts About The Personal Life And Career Success Of Sportscaster Heidi Watney Heidi Watney is a media personality who has created a niche for herself as a sportscaster. Starting out as a radio presenter, the brilliant young lady has gone on to work for several prominent sports networks, and currently, she is with the MLB. The sportscaster is also known to have been an avid sports lady right ...

Marty Lagina Bio  Siblings (Martina and Rick Lagina), Net Worth and Wife Marty Lagina is an American engineer and businessman who has risen to fame as a reality TV star. This is thanks to his involvement in the adventure TV series, The Curse of Oak Island. The Curse of Oak Island is a long-running TV series which airs on the history channel. The show aims to solve ...

Is Jordan Schlansky Just A Character or a Real Life Person and What Does He Do? The world of late-night television is an interesting one. Shows during that time are geared towards giving viewers comedic relief from a long day at work through interviews and comedy sketches. The often charismatic host of this show requires the balancing talent of a producer whose primary job is to deliver great episodes. It is ...

Heres How Wealthy Jimmy Kimmel Is From All The Phases of His Career, Marriages and Sons Health Jimmy Kimmel is a renowned late-night talk show host known for his charm, wit, and the A-list guests he features on his show. As the host of Jimmy Kimmel Live! On ABC, Jimmy has been serving comedy to television viewers for years which played a pivotal role in launching him into mainstream fame and enabled ...

Natasha Bertrand Biography  Is She Married? Who Is the Husband & What Is Her Age? Natasha Bertrand is not just a young prominent journalist but a first-rate investigative reporter. With her natural beauty and smile, Natashas sharp, insightful political commentary also makes her a thorough reporter. Her sound political perspective and coverage in the country have made her a force to be reckoned with in the profession. Renowned for her ...

What Happened to Shane Kilcher? His Injury Update, Net Worth and More Shane Kilcher is well-known thanks to the Discovery Channel series Alaska: The Last Frontier. It is a show that documents the daily lives of the extended Kilcher family, people who live without plumbing or modern heating. The episodes follow their routines as they rely on hunting and farming for their nutritional needs as well as ...

Is Stephanie Gosk Gay or Lesbian, Who is the Wife or Partner  Jenna Wolfe? In August 2013, NBCs Today viewers were greeted with two shocking news. Today weekend anchor, Jenna Wolfe, announced that she was as a lesbian, introducing her partner as NBC News correspondent Stephanie Gosk, and said the two are expecting their first child. A long time has passed since then and certainly, a lot of things ...

Nikki Mudarris  Bio and Net Worth: 5 Interesting Facts You Need to Know Nikki Mudarris, also known as Miss Nikki Baby, is a reality television star, model and fashionista. Shes best known for VH1s reality TV series Love & Hip-Hop: Hollywood. Her entrepreneurial skills enable her to create and run a successful lingerie line Nude by Nikki. Not only that, but Nikki has also successfully run the Las ...

5 Interesting Things You Need To Know About Kelly Nash Ever heard of the lady who gained national prominence for taking a selfie with a dangerous ball just a few inches away from hitting her? Its no other person than Kelly Nash, an American sports broadcaster currently working as host of The Rundown show which airs on MLB Network every weekday at 2 pm ET. ...

Understanding The Height of Fame John Oliver Achieved With The Daily Show and How He Met His Wife Without knowledge of who he is and his exemplary career, John Oliver cuts an unassuming figure of a regular man but he is one of the most influential personalities in America, especially on television. Since he began his career in 1998, he has been a loud and unapologetic agent of change, using his wit and ...

Why Did Big Chief Leave Street Outlaws, Where Is He Now And Why Did He Divorce His Wife? Justin Shearer, otherwise known by his professional name Big Chief is a famous street racer and television personality. He is famously known for being one of the main characters on the racing reality television series, Street Outlaws. Justin, who had been a significant part of the show since its premiere in 2013, appeared in a ...

Who is Josina Anderson of ESPN? Her Husband and Family Facts There has been a gradual paradigm shift in the world of sports which has today produced the likes of Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka, and other female athletes that are pulling great feats in different sporting fields. Their achievements have also been followed by the emergence of female sports journalists such as Jillian Mele, Eboni Williams, ...

Is Brittany Wagner Married, Who Is The Husband, How Old Is She? Brittany Wagner has been an inspiration to a lot of sports youngster. She has won the hearts of many athletic students with her role as a life coach and an academic counselor. She is well groomed in her career and has worked over a decade for The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and The National ...

Tati Westbrook Bio  Age, Husband & Net Worth With five videos dished out every week, alongside running her own brand, beauty guru, and YouTube superstar Tati Westbrook has proved to the world that theres utterly no impossibility or limit to whatever one is passionate about. Tati is best known for being the owner and manager of the worlds most-viewed beauty and lifestyle YouTube channel, ...

Cathy Areus Long Road to Becoming a Freelance Journalist and What to Know About Her Kids An American freelance journalist, news analyst, and author, Cathy Areu has built a lasting reputation for herself on cable television. Popular for her skillful and sassy presentation of professional views on varying topics including cultural and feminist issues, Cathy is an inspiration to many women across the globe. In addition to being a journalist, she ...

Tucker Carlsons Love Story With Wife Susan Andrews, their Children and Net Worth Today On the TV screens, Tucker Carlson is that fiery fellow who passionately dishes out his conservative and often controversial views on issues of national importance. Such brazenness has fetched him many enemies, especially on the left-wing, but it has also helped him cement a reputation as one of the foremost broadcast journalists in America. His ...

Paige Wyatts Net Worth, Boyfriend and Where She Is Now Paige Wyatt became popular after the Wyatt family began running the reality television show, American Guns. The Wyatt family comprises Rich Wyatt (father), Renee Wyatt (mother), Paige and Kurt Wyatt (children). Rich Wyatt originally ran a gun shop, the Gunsmoke Guns in Wheat Ridge, Colorado which is outside of Denver. The business which he ran together ...

The Progression of Howard Sterns Career As A Media Personality And Why He Divorced His First Wife Howard Stern is a legendary American radio host, who has also done some notable work as an actor, producer, author, as well as photographer. The radio personality achieved worldwide fame as a result of his self-titled radio program, The Howard Stern Show. As a professional radio personality, he has worked in different radio stations. Since 2006, ...

Lisa Joyners Biography  Ethnicity, Net Worth and Other Key Facts Lisa Joyner is an American Journalist, TV talk show host, and actress. Some of her well-known works are her correspondences for the Los Angeles based TV KCBS, inFANity show, Find My Family Show including her film and television appearances in Brimstone, American Sweetheart, The Bold and The Beautiful among others. Lisas passion for reconnecting people with their biological families ...

Amanda Balionis Rise Through the Ranks of Sportscasting and the Identity of Her Boyfriend Amanda Balionis is an American sportscaster currently working as a golf broadcaster for CBS Sports. Among so many of her works in the field of sports reporting, Amandas PGA Tour coverage seems to be the most popular so far. She covered the Super Bowl working with CBS Sports social media team in Atlanta, where she ...

Dissecting Charles Paynes Sexual Allegations, Its After Effects and More About His Wife Charles Payne had a respectable career as an analyst on Wall Street before he made the transition to television and became a contributor and later a host on Fox. In that time, his expertise has come under scrutiny, and he has been at the center of at least one major controversy. The major controversy in question ...

Erik Asla And Tryra Banks Split: Everything You Need To Know Tyra Banks and Erik Asla have called it quits! The couple, who began dating in 2013 and have a son named York Banks Asla, has decided to end what everybody taught was the perfect relationship. Neither person has come out to give a reason for the breakup, but what is obvious right now is that ...

What to Note About Dr Terry Dubrows Qualifications, TV Works and Marriage to Heather Kent In the realm of people that we expect to see regularly on our screens, medical doctors are closer to the bottom of the list. Aside from the fact that their work has little correlation with TV, they are presumably too busy to pursue life as TV personalities. Yet, a few of them have usurped this ...

Jessica Goch  Bio: 5 Things You Didnt Know About Ninjas Wife Jessica Goch is the Schofield-born American Social Media Influencer who has worked as a model but is now better known as a host and interviewer of prominent Electronic sports celebrities at popular gaming events/tournaments. The screen queen also serves as the manager of her famous husband Ninja aka Tyler Blevins whose exploits on Twitch and Fortnite has ...

CNNs Chris Cuomo Biography  Wife, Family & Net worth Chris Cuomo needs no elaborate introduction as he has starred graced many prominent Television cable networks and his voice has been heard through acknowledged radio shows. He is a television journalist and Lawyer who has previously worked for ABC News as Chief law and justice correspondent as well as a co-anchor on 20/20. If you still ...

Neil deGrasse Tyson  Family, Religion & Net Worth Neil deGrasse Tyson is a distinguished American astrophysicist and author who has been able to achieve so much after falling in love with astronomy at the age of 9. He has since attended and become an alumnus of prestigious universities such as Harvard, Princeton, and Columbia, and also recorded numerous achievements in his field of ...

Is Simon Cowell Gay? Does He Have A Wife or Girlfriend and Why is He Famous? Simon Cowell is a well-known talent show judge, TV producer, entrepreneur and one of the most popular TV personalities that Britain has ever produced. In conjunction with his company, Syco, Cowell is the brain behind hugely successful talent hunt shows such as The X-Factor UK, The X-Factor US, Britains Got Talent, Americas Got Talent and ...

Everything To Know About Joanna Gaines Life With Chip Gaines, Their Business Pursuits and Kids Joanna Gaines and her husband Chip Gaines became celebrities after their television show Fixer Upper began airing back in 2013. The show which was about home renovation and decoration ran for about 6 seasons with a total of 79 episodes before the couple bade farewell to it in April 2018. Apart from their appearances on ...

Who Is Larry The Cable Guy? What To Know About His Wife And Net Worth Larry the Cable Guy is a self-professed country kid renowned for his trademark Southern accent and sensational catchphrase Git-R-Done! The famous comedian who talks about anything under the sun has gone on to become one of the most memorable characters in comedy history. Join us in unearthing lesser-known facts about the former on-air-personality, standup comedy superstar, movie ...

Who Is Patrick Starr, What Is His Net Worth and Gender? The make-up industry over the years has grown to become a billion dollar industry not just because there are probably more women wearing make-up but because a whole lot of men, especially the young ones, have become bold enough to wear it unlike before. A few of these men, like Patrick Starr, have even gone ...

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YEREVAN, OCTOBER 27, ARMENPRESS. Footwear manufacturing will drastically rise in the upcoming three years, businessman Khachatur Sukiasyan told the reporters at the opening ceremony of Yerevan trade center.

According to him modern equipment is necessary to develop footwear manufacturing. Saying shoes we do not mean only shoes. Other ingredients required for footwear manufacturing must be produced in Armenia as well, Armenpress reports Sukiasyan saying.

The businessman noted that initially the production will be realized in Armenia, and later will be exported. We need modern equipment to manufacture competitive goods, he added.

Armenian made shoes will be sold on the third floor of Yerevan trade center.

President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan attended the opening ceremony of the trade center on October 27. Nearly 1000 jobs will be created.
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YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan held a private meeting with his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev within the framework of his working visit to Belarusian capital Minsk, press service of the Armenian Government told Armenpress.

The PMs stated that first of all the allied-strategic relations are connecting the two countries and attached importance to the ongoing steps aimed at deepening the bilateral trade-economic relations.

The sides also emphasized that Armenias and Russias involvement in the Eurasian Economic Union outlines new opportunities and prospects.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. The Defense Ministry of Nagorno Karabakh told ARMENPRESS Azerbaijani forces made 60 ceasefire violations in the Nagorno Karabakh-Azerbaijan line of contact.

The ministrys statement reads: Overnight October 27-28 Azerbaijan violated the ceasefire regime in the Nagorno Karabakh-Azerbaijan line of contact around 60 times. Azerbaijani forces fired more than 700 shots at Armenian positions from various caliber small arms. In the southern and northern directions of the line of contact Azerbaijan also fired NSV and DShk heavy machine guns (141 shots).

The Defense Army continued confidently carrying out military duty, taking countermeasures only in case of strict necessity.
The public is being asked to become more aware about guarding their personal data to avoid potential loopholes in local bank security systems.  VNA/VNS Photo

HA NOI  The public is being asked to become more aware about guarding their personal data to avoid potential loopholes in local bank security systems.

This follows a recent report about a victim at a State-run bank who lost US$22,400, which was debited from her account without her knowledge.

Potential risks

Recently, the phenomenon of money in bank accounts suddenly developing no wings that fly are sounding the alarm about security in the local banking system. While investigations are ongoing, officials warned the public and banks that they should be more careful with online transactions.

Over the months, several commercial banks and credit institutions have received complaints by clients relating to unusual online transactions. Bank card owners said that they had not conducted any transactions but money still disappeared from their bank accounts.

Tran Quang Hung of the Information Security Department of the Ministry of Information and Communication said that technology is constantly evolving, and the internet has especially made commercial activities more convenient. Cyber attacks by hackers have often taken place, using tricks to log in to clients accounts to transfer money to other accounts.

Hung said that over the past years, cyber attacks on online transaction had become a significant threat to the healthy development and stabilisation of online transactions in Viet Nam.

Meanwhile, Colonel Tran Van Doanh of the High-tech Crime Investigation Division said the Ministry of Public Security has seen that risks to online payments and bank cards occurred everywhere in the world, including in developed countries. He added that security for Vietnamese bank cards and online transactions were relatively secure, compared to other countries, and fraud usually occurred when clients fail to protect their personal details.

He warned that customers should remain cautious when conducting card and online transactions. He also attributed the online fraud to loose management at banks.

Lawyer Truong Thanh uc said several recent incidents have proven that there are faults in the inspections of banking systems. To protect themselves, customers should not ask banks to offer easy and convenient procedures when making transactions. Rather, they should be strictly controlled.

Tran Quang Hung attributed phishing scams to poor awareness by bank account owners. Therefore, commercial banks or credit institutions were responsible for protecting their clients against threats of losing money in their bank accounts.

Hung said banks and credit institutions needed to actively warn customers about the threat of losing personal data, in case attacks might have been facilitated using malware installed in a software application.

Tran Cong Quynh Lan, general deputy director of Vietinbank, said the volume of online transaction via Internet banking and mobile banking has been increased rapidly. Commercial banks can compensate clients in case of incidents but they cannot maintain the confidence of customers in them.

A series of incidents involving online transaction have made clients skeptical. Once, an incident involving Internet banking or mobile banking would shock society. Therefore, the whole banking system needed to take essential actions to regain confidence from customers, Lan said.

Minimize risks

Le Manh Hung of the Information Technology Department of the central bank said the State Bank of Viet Nam has issued the Circular 29/2011/TT-NHNN to stipulate safety regulations for credit institutions via internet banking.

Some regulations conducted by the State Bank of Vietnam have gained positive results by creating a sufficient legal corridor to instruct credit institutions to implement safety requirements for online payments.

To minimize risks and ensure security in bank card and online payments, the central bank has also worked with relevant agencies to enhance inspections and supervisions.

The central bank has asked the Information Technology Department to study and apply international standards for banking security.

The SBV has also required credit institutions to launch inspections and review professional processes, IT infrastructures, and human resources.

Inspections should be conducted regularly to detect and prevent any technology devices illegally installed on ATM machines, in a bid to protect clients personal data from being stolen.

The Prime Minister has required the Ministry of Public Security and the SBV to fight against and strictly handle any violations of payments that harm the security and safety of the countrys payment system. -- VNS
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. A UN General Assembly committee on Thursday voted to launch negotiations on a new treaty banning nuclear weapons despite fierce opposition from the world's nuclear powers, France24 reports.

A resolution presented by Austria, Ireland, Mexico, Nigeria, South Africa and Brazil was adopted by a vote of 123 to 38, with 16 abstentions, following weeks of lobbying by the nuclear powers for 'no' votes.

The non-binding resolution provides for negotiations to begin in March next year on the new treaty, citing deep concern over the "catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons."

Four of the five UN Security Council nuclear powers -- Britain, France, Russia and the United States -- voted against the resolution while China abstained, as did India and Pakistan.

Japan, which has long campaigned against the use of nuclear weapons, voted against it, as did South Korea, which is facing a nuclear threat from North Korea.

Opponents argued that nuclear disarmament should be addressed within negotiations on the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

Beatrice Fihn, executive director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, described the vote as a "historic moment" in the decades-long drive for a nuclear-free world.

"This treaty won't eliminate nuclear weapons overnight. But it will establish a powerful, new international legal standard, stigmatizing nuclear weapons and compelling nations to take urgent action on disarmament."

The measure is expected to go to the full General Assembly for a vote in late November or early December.
HCM CITY  The Cuu Long (Mekong) River Delta needs to be more innovative in production and development to grow sustainably in the context of climate change and environmental and integration challenges, a conference heard.

Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Tran Van Tung told the Mekong Connect-CEO Forum in Can Tho on Wednesday that the region needs to urgently address that global warming and environmental and integration issues.

It should work to change the perceptions and actions of farmers and enterprises and enhance the use of technology in production to come up with safe products meeting the demands of both local and foreign customers, he said.

Economist Pham Chi Lan said consumers globally want farm produce that meet hygiene and food safety standards.

If we dont shift to compete through quality, we cannot compete in the markets despite having various kinds of farm produce.

Viet Nams agriculture faces challenges, including a scarcity of land and water, natural disasters, failure to use technology, poor infrastructure, low labour productivity, and a lack of links between stakeholders and with parts supply industries, she said.

Besides, investment in the sector, including public investment, remains low, though some businesses have entered it recently, she said.

Some economic policies have created unfavourable conditions for the agricultural sector to develop, she said.

To overcome the problems, Viet Nam, especially the delta, should focus on institutional reforms, enabling farmers to pool land to create medium- to large-scale farms, strengthening mechanisation in agriculture and creating agricultural value chains, she said.

Dr Le Anh Tuan, deputy head of Can Tho Universitys Research Institute for Climate Change, said climate change has helped raise awareness among all stakeholders about the need to reduce the causes leading to it, such as selecting more environmentfriendly technologies and energy.

Many reports show that in future dry seasons would be longer and hotter, and this could help the tourism industry as well as enable greater production of solar energy, he pointed out.

New enterprises associated with modern agriculture would appear in the delta in the near future, he predicted.

Phan Van Mai, deputy secretary of the southern Ben Tre Provinces Party Committee, said as one of the provinces in the delta threatened by severe saltwater intrusion, Ben Tre has made certain adjustments to its agricultural production to increase resilience to climate change and they have been well-received by the public.

Regional connection

Delegates also called for establishing close links between localities in the region as well as between them and HCM City.

Such links are key to mitigating the regions environmental problems, finding outlets for their agricultural produce and attracting human resources from outside, he said.

But they remain below expectations, and localities should be more pro-active in improving the situation, he said.

The deltas provinces should define what their common products are to join hands to invest and develop, he added.

Nguyen Quan, a former science and technology minister, said recently the Government has identified four key products of the region  rice, vegetables, tra fish and shrimp.

Based on this, the region should discuss how to co-operate and each locality should have investment policies for these products, he said.

An Giang, Ben Tre, Can Tho and ong Thap have co-operated under a programme called ABCD Mekong to jointly invest in and develop certain products, and it is a good lesson for others, he added.

The delta with 13 cities and provinces plays an important role in the countrys economy, accounting for 80 per cent of rice exports and nearly 60 per cent seafood exports.  VNS
The North-South high-speed railway project is expected to be built in the 2020-30 period and will become operational by 2050.  Photo vietstock.vn

HA NOI  The Government has asked the National Assembly to consider a number of projects with a total investment capital of more than US$66 billion.

The projects include the North-South Highway, the Long Thanh International Airport and an electricity infrastructure project.

The four-lane North-South Highway, running from Ha Noi to HCM City, is designed to be 1,373km long and is being divided into 20 smaller projects.

The Government will focus on a pre-feasibility study report in the 2016-20 period. Its expected to be built in the 2020-30 period and will become operational by 2050.

According to Vietnamnet, the project is expected to cost VN222.8 trillion ($9.97 billion), of which, VN136.28 trillion is to be mobilised from the private sector, while the remainder, used for site clearance and consulting will come from the State budget.

In the 2016-20 period, the project expects to use VN70 trillion of Government bonds as the States capital contribution.

The Long Thanh International Airport in southern Viet Nam is planned to receive 100 million passengers per year with an estimated capital investment of $16.3 billion.

Of the sum, some $5.9 billion will be invested in the first phase, which includes a runway, a terminal with a yearly capacity of 25 million passengers, and 1.2 million tonnes of goods.

The Government has also asked the National Assembly to approve a VN858.66 trillion ($38.4 billion) electricity infrastructure project, with 75 per cent for developing power resources and 25 per cent for the power network. The Government hopes to receive some VN100 trillion from foreign investment capital, VN200 trillion from Official Development Assistance capital, VN4 trillion from the State budget and VN554.6 trillion from the projects investors and commercial loans.  VNS
HA NOI  The Government must create a law on bad debts settlement to tackle difficulties during the process, experts said at a recent conference held by the State Bank of Viet Nam.

Nguyen Quoc Hung, chairman of the Viet Nam Asset Management Company (VAMC), said on Wednesday the company had bought non-performing loans worth a total of VN262 trillion (US$11.7 million) from 42 credit institutions since 2013.

However, it recovered nearly VN38 trillion, equivalent to 15 per cent of the bad debts.

Hung attributed the modest result to limited human resources and the huge amount of bad debts which are guaranteed by various types of assets, saying that dealing with collaterals was not as effective as expected.

He said legal regulations of the debt trading market were not sufficient enough.

For example, VAMC buys bad debts from credit institutions but is not able to sell them to a third party except the Debt and Asset Trading Corporation, and the rights and liabilities of debt buyers and debt sellers as well as those handling collaterals are not clearly regulated.

Due to limited financial capacity, VAMC also wanted to be allowed to issue corporate bonds to raise capital, Hung added.

Le Xuan Nghia, former deputy chairman of the National Financial Supervisory Commission, said If we cannot give more money to VAMC to deal with bad debts, we must give it more power to do so by issuing a specific mechanism.

Chairman of the National Assemblys Economic Committee Nguyen uc Kien said to formulate the law, it was necessary to have reports on provisions and articles related to collaterals in existing laws, such as the Civil Code, the Penal Code and the Law on Housing, which are creating obstacles.

Can Van Luc, senior advisor to the chairman of the Bank for Investment and Development of Viet Nam, urged that a mechanism to trade bad debts at market prices needed to be worked out.

Experiences from other countries show that bad debts will only be successfully addressed if a debt trading market is properly formed, Luc said.

He added debt value must be assessed by an independent agency to ensure transparency and foreign investors should also be encouraged to participate in the market.

Luc said South Korea allowed foreign investors to trade debts by mandating a local company and Viet Nam could do the same.

VAMC chairman Hung admitted that many international institutions and foreign investors came to VAMC to inquire about purchasing its bad debts, but they did not end up offering a deal after realising that VAMC lacked the rights to determine debt trade and collateral sale.

Since its establishment, VAMC has met with 35 international and 17 domestic investors, Hung said.  VNS
HA NOI  Representatives from public private partnerships (PPP) in apparel and footwear yesterday signed a co-operation agreement for the two sectors sustainable development in Viet Nam.

The co-operation, which is the first of its kind in Viet Nam, marks a new step in promoting the sustainable development of the apparel and footwear sectors in terms of economy, society and environment.

Participants in the PPP co-operation were the Department of Light Industry under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Viet Nam Environment Administration under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the International Co-operation Department under the Ministry of Labour, Invalid and Social Affairs, the Viet Nam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS), the Viet Nam Leather, Footwear and Handbag Association (LEFASO), the Viet Nam Cotton and Spinning Association (Vcosa), multinational companies such as Marks & Spencer, and IDH Sustainable Trade Initiative.

The agreement was under the Race to the Top (RttT) programme with supports from all members.

RttT has been an initiative of the Global Green Growth Forum (3GF), the Dutch and Danish governments, multinational companies including GAP, Nike, Marks & Spencer, Levi Strauss & Co, Sustainable Apparel Coalition, IDH, Better Work and producers.

The programme aimed to provide support to apparel and footwear products and the application of global sustainable production in Viet Nam.

The agreement would see the co-operation of all members to enhance environmentally-friendly production, improve productivity, reduce negative effects on the environment and promote dialogue among labourers.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Flavio Corsin, IDH Viet Nam country director said the programme expected to improve the economic and social benefits and reputation for the Government, the industries, workers and communities.

RttT would create a supportive policy and regulatory environment for sustainable apparel production while encouraging manufacturers and mills to invest in environmentally-friendly technology, he said.

Under the agreement, participants would quarterly meet up to review outcomes.-- VNS
HA NOI  A large number of fish have been found dead in Linh am Lake in Ha Nois Hoang Mai District, with locals claiming polluted water was the main reason.

The fish began dying at about 8pm last night. Thousands of fish, including tench, carp and plaice, weighing 5-6kg each, were found dead, stretching along a km-long lake dyke area. Many of the fish had been decomposed badly, exuding a bad odour.

The number of dead fish continued to increase over the next few hours.

Tran ang Giang, a resident in Hoang Mai Districts Hoang Liet Ward, said this was the first time he had seen such a large number of dead fish in the lake during his two years living in the area.

The smell was so horrible that he and his wife had to halt their walking routine around the lake every night.

A group of seven people used nets and baskets to collect the dead fish. They said they were hired to collect the fish to make fertiliser.

Local police have inspected the site and reported the incident to the citys Peoples Committee for a solution.

This is the second time fish have died en mass in Linh am Lake. Previously, in March 2009, nearly five tonnes of dead fish were found in the north of the lake.  VNS
On the occasion of the 2016 National Day of the Republic of Turkey on Friday (October 28), Viet Nam News presents an article written by Ambassador of Turkey to Viet Nam, Akif Ayhan.

Founded 93 years ago by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who led the nations war of liberation and whose vision enlightened not only the Turkish nation but also the world, Turkey today stands proud to be a secular democracy, an active member of the Euro-Atlantic community, the 18th largest economy in the world, supported by a dynamic private sector and a young population, which grants Turkey a place among G-20 countries. We are proud of sharing this glorious time in 2016 with the people and authorities of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam.

As we approach the centennial of our Republic, Turkey gets more closely connected to different parts of the world. This is perhaps best illustrated by our growing diplomatic presence in Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America. We are confident that by 2023, our Republics centenary, Turkey will have made further strides at home and substantially increased her contributions to international peace, development and prosperity.

The country has set itself a number of objectives in the perspective of 2023. Among them are becoming one of the worlds top 10 economies, achieving a GDP of US$ 2 trillion, reaching an annual trade volume of US$1 trillion, and receiving 50 million tourists a year.

The Turkish economy has reached US$720 billion of GDP, with a growth rate of 4 per cent in 2015, becoming the 7th largest economy in Europe and the 18th in the world. It is expected to grow 3.8 per cent in 2016 and 3.4 per cent in 2017.

Currently, Turkey is one of the prominent actors in its region. In 2015, exports reached US$143.8 billion and Turkish imports were recorded at US$207.2 billion. Turkish exports are expected to exceed US$155 billion by the end of 2016.

Viet Nam also has similar targets for the foreseeable future, the most important of which is to become a fully industrialized nation by the year 2020. With a view to accomplishing its national aims, Vietnam is working hard to improve its infrastructure, energy, education, health, tourism and other areas. All these sectors are also those in which Turkey has accumulated knowledge, experience, know-how and expertise. The two countries can work together to learn and benefit from the best practices of each other in a number of fields.

In fact, the two countries and their peoples converge on a number of aspects. At international fora, the two extend support and provide incentives to each other.

Turkey and Viet Nam also attach importance to people-to-people contacts. The launching of passenger flights from/to Ha Noi by Turkish Airlines in July this year that proved to be a major factor for a leap forward in our multifaceted interaction. We believe that this new flight route will not only accelerate cooperative activities in tourism, culture, education and social fields, but also help increase our bilateral trade volume from US$1.9 billion in 2015.

The year 2016 is special for both our nations. Since early this year, Viet Nam has made remarkable changes through the election of new Party leaders and appointment of members of the cabinet, which are promising a refreshing wind for the countrys politics, economy and society. Meanwhile, Turkey experienced unexpected developments that put our country under an emergency situation. The terrorist coup attempt in July, despite its consequences of death and injury, was foiled. Such a large scale conspiracy will not keep us from advancing along the path to progress; rather it was an opportunity for our country to clean up the State apparatus, restore Constitutional order and thus recover stability.

Prospects for our brighter future cooperation are clear. The Embassy of Turkey in Ha Noi is planning to expand its endeavours to diverse parts of Viet Nam in order to create favourable conditions for mutual business transactions. In addition, it has been made possible for Vietnamese people fulfilling certain criteria to get fast e-visas for Turkey, in addition to a favourable approach toward individual and group visa applications through the Consular Section of the Embassy of Turkey to Viet Nam. We believe that a Visa Facilitation Agreement would also further promote contacts and businesses.

In 2018 we will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the founding of our diplomatic ties with Viet Nam. There is no doubt that both Turkey and Viet Nam are headed toward a propitious future and will pursue their journey with resolve. We are also confident that the bonds of amity and cooperation between our two countries will grow even stronger in time, allowing us to celebrate many more achievements.  VNS
A NANG  Actress Lydia Park of South Korea will visit a Nang to participate in a film programme aimed at young people next month.

The 48-year-old will offer training in acting for participants during the Autumn Meeting, a film programme launched in 2013.

She has performed in several quality films, such as Love Me Not in 2006, Mission Possible: Kidnapping Granny K and The Show Must Go On in 2007, which have been popular among Vietnamese fans.

Young people aged 16 to 26 are encouraged to join the event. Before the free training, they will be cast in roles by Vietnamese-American director Charlie Nguyen and actress Kathy Uyen.

Autumn Meeting will also feature Moon Sori, winner of the Best Newcomer at the 59th Venice Film Festival in 2002. She will talk about her experience in filming.

Moon, 42, has received several top prizes at film festivals at home and abroad.

She played leading roles in Oasis in 2002, A Good Lawyers Wife in 2003 and Forever the Moment in 2008.

Autumn Meeting is being held by independent director Phan ang Di and his colleagues, film producers Tran Bich Ngoc and Nguyen My Dung. This year, the annual event will be held from November 8-16.  VNS
HA NOI  Linguists and the public will have a chance to meet and share their common interest in languages during European Language Day this Saturday.

The sixth annual European Language Day will be held at the Goethe Institute Ha Noi. It will provide local people with an opportunity to learn more about Europes linguistic and cultural diversity.

This years festival is themed "Multilingualism in Vietnamese Schools". It has been organised by European Union National Institutes for Culture members, including the British Council, the Goethe-Institute, the Cervantes Institute, the French Cultural Centre, embassies of Poland and Italy, and Wallonia-Brussels Delegation in Ha Noi.

Saturday morning will be a fantastic opportunity for about 120 experts on teaching foreign languages, lecturers and teachers to listen to key notes delivered by Dr Nguyen Thi Mai Huu from Viet Nams Ministry of Education and Training, Prof Dr Hans-Jurgen Krumm of Vienna University, a senior expert on multilingualism, Danny Whitehead from the British Council, Pierre-Yves Turellier from the French Embassy, and Celine Mariage from the Wallonia-Brussels Delegation.

The afternoon session of the day is open to the public - including students, parents and their children - who are interested in languages and culture. Taster classes will be offered to enable participants to learn some words and communicate in English, French, German, Italian, Polish and Spanish. Brief and fun sessions lasting 30 minutes each are scheduled for the whole afternoon.

The diversity of European culture will be featured in selected short fiction and documentary films to be screened during the event. The featured prizes of the lottery are scholarships for intensive courses.

The sixth European Language Day offers a unique opportunity for teachers, lecturers and general audiences to experience a multilingual environment and enjoy a colourful day full of input and exchange.

All activities are free of charge and will take place at the Goethe Institute, 56-58 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street.  VNS
Bui Sy Loi, deputy chairman of the National Assemblys Social Affairs Committee, talks with the Kinh Te &o Thi (Economy and Urban) newspaper about salary increases for public servants.

At a recent meeting, the National Assembly Standing Committee suggested the Government increase the basic salary to VN1.3 million (US$58) from VN1.210 million ($54). What is your comment and does the Government have the financial resources?

I highly appreciate the suggestion. It shows awareness of the difficulties faced by State and Government employees. The salary increase will help improve living standards of pay-roll employees, retired people and others who are dependent on social subsidies.

However, in my opinion, the basic increase is a band-aid solution. In the longer term, the Government should conduct a comprehensive salary reform, because even an increase to VN1.3 million is only a 7-8 per cent hike and salaries will still be far from meeting employees needs.

What should the Government do to improve the pay for employees and retired persons in the long term?

The Government should reform the Government and State administrative apparatus and salary system for nearly 2.8 million public servants.

Among 2.8 million public servants, 2.3 million persons working in the public service sector will be paid according to the operation of their sections.

In fact, the Government does not have enough money to pay all 2.8 million public servants anymore. The State budget cannot afford to increase salary for all workers.

The Government should implement reforms in salary scales and subsidy policies.

The basic salary will be meaningful if it can meet the basic demand of employees.

For many years, basic salary hikes for public employees have been very modest due to the constraints of the State budget. Meanwhile, the Government has asked businesses to pay their employees higher salaries. How can one ensure equality among employees in the public and private sectors.

I would like to reaffirm that the increase of the basic salary this time is not a reform. It is only a measure to temporarily solve the difficulties of public employees.

At present, the salary of State and non-State sectors is uneven because of legal regulations. In fact, each sector has its own calculation of basic salary for employees.

What is your comment about the fact that 700,000 public servants were recently evaluated as ineffective?

I think in fact the number may be higher. Obviously, lazy public servants have been hindering the economys development and wasting thousands of billions of ong every year.

But the number was released by experts. So far, the Government has not yet answered the National Assembly on this issue. -- VNS
by Thu Van

It is tough to believe, and tougher to stomach, but school violence has become an everyday occurrence in our society.

Scarier still, the violence is intensifying.

I could not bear to watch fully a couple of videos that went viral in the country recently. Just a few seconds of seeing kids brutally beat up one of their fellow students made me sick.

Then it got worse, of course. Grief numbed the soul as I learn that some of the bullied kids died or committed suicide.

How can this happen? How can kids be so cruel and heartless that they can hit someone so hard that they die? Whats wrong with them? Whats going on in their minds? What kind of monsters are these?

As these questions raged in my mind, I had to force myself to calm down and think beyond the horror.

Our Buddhist philosophy stresses compassion towards both the victims and the oppressors, and difficult as it was for me, I reasoned that anger-based judgments and punishments are insufficient in such cases because they involve the future of this country and the world.

We need to get to the root of this problem and avoid superficial remedies. This entails seeing the monsters themselves as victims.

There are a few studies which indicate that some (not all) bullies have naturally aggressive and/or hyperactive personalities from the start. However, there is general expert agreement that bullies are not born into this world.

Ludwig Feuerbach, a German philosopher and anthropologist, has said that a human is the ensemble of all social relations. True.

A person reflects the society he or she lives in. In this case, the bullies are a reflection of their families, schools and societies.

Bullied bullies

Research has shown that bullies are more likely than their peers to suffer from low self-esteem, depression and behavioural problems from early childhood through primary school.

Last month, at the Tran Phu High School in Hue City, three female students kicked and hit another girl mercilessly, with no one intervening. One girl who was watching could do nothing but cry. After someone posted the clip online, netizens raged against the bullies for their cruelty.

But Ngoc, (not her real name), one of the three students, has led a difficult life. Her father is seriously ill and her mother has had to work as a domestic help since Ngoc was very small. Ngoc was raised with the meagre pension her grandmother gets. The grandmother said Ngoc lacked the care and involvement of her parents as she grew up.

We do not need experts to tell us that parental neglect can have really bad impacts on children.

Theres no official study on the links between school bullies and later crimes in Viet Nam, but as violence in schools rises, the number of juvenile delinquencies has reached an alarming level, both in number and severity of offences, according to the Ministry of Public Security.

More than 17,000 crimes were committed by over 25,000 children and juveniles in the country in 2014 and the first ten months of last year.

A recent study of 2,500 juveniles found 76 per cent having troubled relationships with their families, experiencing either neglect or bullying by the parents. More than 50 per cent of the juveniles came from decent financial backgrounds. Family relationships have a greater impact on childrens personalities than their financial background.

It is often said that a child is like a piece of blank paper on which adults, parents, write future behavioral traits with their own words and actions. Parents know, or should know, and be aware that our words, actions and attitudes leave a deep impression on their children.

However, there are still parents who believe they can educate their kids by hitting them. There are still parents so caught up in increasing their earnings that they do not have enough time to spend with their kids. Sadly, this attitude is shared by many teachers and educational administrators.

When children feel abused, neglected or pressurized by demands and expectations, it follows that they either go into their shells or aggressively take out their frustrations on others. Such children tend to lack the social problem-solving skills they need.

A valid argument can be made, therefore, that bullying and violence in schools is a reflection of our failure as parents, educators, mentors and as a society.

Japans education ministry last year decided to make moral education a special subject in schools by 2018. Education Minister Hakubun Shimomura said the decision aims to encourage students to think impartially, and discourage bullying and other juvenile crimes.

Viet Nam needs to do something similar. Schools have to take moral education seriously because it not only makes students better persons capable of realizing a better future for themselves, but also stresses the role of love, sharing and caring in ensuring sustainable development.

This means that we have to deal with larger systemic inequalities and other injustices. The problem of violent children cannot be divorced from the larger socio-economic mileu in which neglect and violence is engendered.

Do we have the will to realise and act on this?

All you need is love, the Beatles sang.

Sounds dreamily simplistic and idealistic, but we need to practice and teach love, peace, justice and equality if our children are not to grow up in an environment where hatred and violence becomes the norm rather than the exception.  VNS
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. By the initiative of IDeA Foundation The Future for Global Armenians is now open letter has been published in Haiastani Hanrapetuthiun and The New York Times newspapers on October 28.

The letter has been signed by a group of high profile Armenians around the world.

The letter was issued on the occasion of the 110th anniversary celebrations of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) in New York. The signatories include Ruben Vardanyan, Noubar Afeyan, Vartan Gregorian, Charles Aznavour, Lord Ara Darzi, Ambassador Edward Djerejian, the Honorable Dickran Tevrizian, and Samvel Karapetyan, as well as a number of other supporters.

Armenpress presents the full text of the letter.

THE FUTURE FOR GLOBAL ARMENIANS IS NOW

Historic Opportunity for Armenians to Unite and Together Enable Armenias Future

This weekend, the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU), one of the oldest non-profit organizations in the U.S. and the worlds largest Armenian organization, celebrates its 110th anniversary in New York City. Underscoring this milestone is the extraordinary opportunity to reshape the future of Armenia, and to reflect on how every one of us can contribute toward a stronger Armenia tomorrow.

Over the years, AGBU, an organization established to address the challenges facing Armenians both in the homeland and the Diaspora, has fostered socioeconomic initiatives and addressed educational, cultural and humanitarian needs worldwide. We congratulate AGBU on its unparalleled role in preserving the Armenian identity throughout a vast network of Diasporan communities.

Forcibly displaced from their ancestral homeland and dispersed, Armenians living across the world have made major contributions toward advancing their adoptive countries. Long ago, we learned to adapt to our host countries, to be loyal citizens, even as we maintain our common historic identity, language and, through the leadership of the Armenian Church, our Christian faith.

We salute the longstanding contributions of all those individuals and organizations, such as the Armenian Missionary Association, the Armenian Relief Society, the Gulbenkian Foundation and the many others, who have contributed to sustaining the Diaspora through charitable projects.

We also recognize the enormous contributions made toward Armenias development since its independence by philanthropists Kirk Kerkorian and AGBUs Louise Manoogian Simone, among others. Their pioneering work since the early 1990s has helped to build vital institutions and infrastructure.

A quarter century after gaining its independence from the former Soviet Union, the state of the young Republic of Armenia remains vulnerable, as does the state of the Armenian identity globally. Today, we stand at a historic crossroads. While we are certainly aware of our many challenges, we equally recognize the unprecedented opportunity ahead.

An opportunity for the Armenian world to pivot toward a future of prosperity, to transform the post-Soviet Armenian Republic into a vibrant, modern, secure, peaceful and progressive homeland for a global nation.

An opportunity for Armenians not only to have survived Genocide, but to reconstitute and thrive.

An opportunity for Armenia to secure long-lasting social and economic improvement, for our citizens today as well as for our children and the future of our global nation.

Moving forward, we must have a much higher level of sustained commitment from the Armenian community worldwide, whether through social impact or commercial investment, innovation, expertise or active involvement. In the long run, we must aspire to bring Armenia to no less than the same global standards as those of the countries in which many of us in the Diaspora live.

Beyond individual efforts, we want to instigate an unprecedented spirit of partnership and coordination among all Armenian organizations and individuals. We call on all Armenians to engage in pioneering and long-term investment to restore the social, economic, cultural and technological strengths of the nation, with Armenia at its core. At the same time, we urge the government of Armenia to respond to this clarion call by adopting new development strategies based on inclusiveness and collective action.

Individuals, as well as public and private organizations dedicated to the advancement of Armenia, must come together, pool their resources and collaborate to deliver a better tomorrow for the Armenian people. We believe that in order to succeed, we cannot operate in isolation as Armenian citizens or as Diaspora Armenians, but rather together as a united force.

We, the undersigned, are launching this effort with a long-term commitment toward collectively advancing the nation. We welcome all those who can join.

United, we represent Global Armenians. And for Global Armenians, the time for bold initiative is now.

Noubar Afeyan (U.S.)

Ruben Vardanyan (Russia)

Gagik Adibekyan (Luxemburg)

Andre Adonian (Japan)

Abel Aganbegyan (Russia)

Father Mesrop Aramyan (Armenia)

Garo Armen (U.S.)

Charles Aznavour (Switzerland)

Lord Ara Darzi (U.K.)

Edward P. Djerejian (U.S.)

Charles Ghailian (U.S.)

Salpi Ghazarian (U.S.)

Vartan Gregorian (U.S.)

Pierre Gurdjian (Belgium)

Artur Janibekyan (Russia)

Samvel Karapetyan (Russia)

Andrew Mkrtchyan (Armenia)

Mikhail Pogosyan (Russia)

Greg Sarkissian (Canada)

Sam Simonian (U.S.)

Serge Tchuruk (France)

Honorable Dickran Tevrizian (U.S.)

Ralf Yirikian (Armenia)
Last week, Viet Nam News asked its readers about their opinion the Ha Nois authority recent order that dogs must be muzzled while in public places with their owners especially on pedestrian streets around Hoan Kiem Lake

Here are some of your comments.

Phuong Linh, Hanoian

Despite calling myself one of the extreme dog lovers who would do anything to offer my pets a comfortable life, I completely support the regulation that stipulates the use of muzzles for dogs in public places - but just for certain dog races. Why? The most essential and important thing is that dog owners should understand their pets thoroughly before letting them go out. Pet dogs are among the most intelligent, beautiful and beloved species known to mankind. To make them feel joy going out - while ensuring safety for people around - is the owners responsibility.

Dogs that are commonly raised and beloved as pets - such as Poodles, Chihuahuas, Duchsunds, Pugs and Pekingesese - it is not really needed to apply a muzzle, because they would never be aggressive or readily bite passersby who do not provoke them.

However, it is very necessary to have those muzzle dogs such as Pit bulls, Bergers or Tibetan Mastiffs, because some of them have origins with high tempers or have very aggressive fighting natural instincts that sometimes are made worse with bad training from their owners.

I once witnessed a Pit bull dog bite a small poodle and cause seriously injures to the small dog. The Pit bull was not wearing a muzzle and his owner was unable to control him. The killer dog was caught biting a person before, but his owner also did nothing to calm him down. In this case, many condemned the owner and called him a very bad trainer to death. I myself thought he was the killer himself.

Actually, through many video clips depicting dog attacks that are shared widely on social networks, I feel it is unacceptable to let such dogs go out without muzzles. I appeal for owners to have their dogs wear muzzles while going out if they find that the dogs are prone to attacks humans and others dogs.

I also call for authorities tostrictly punish those owners whose dogs bite humans or even others dogs while going out.

Nguyen Thu Hang, Hanoian

My family often visits walking streets around Hoan Kiem Lake during weekends.

The street is always crowded, as it attracts many local residents and tourists. Its truly a public space for young children to play, walk, take pictures and enjoy fresh air.

In my opinion, the regulation that dogs must be muzzled on the street is a necessary one.

I love pets. However, the fact that many people take big dogs with them while strolling on the street makes me feel uneasy.

Dogs, especially very big ones, can be cruel and dangerous. I remember one video clip posted on Facebook in which a man in Ha Noi was bitten by four dogs while he was taking them for a walk. Luckily he survived with the help of a neighbour.

I dont think its a problem to wear muzzles for dogs while going out because they are available in many places. You can choose one that suitable to your pet. Youll find how important it is once a dog does harm to someone.

Le ang Nam, reader

I agree with city authoritys decision that dogs must wear muzzles on Ha Nois pedestrian streets.

To ensure security for everyone as well as to create image of a clean and elegant city for visitors, it is better to ban dogs entering the streets like the one imposed on Nguyen Hue walking street of HCM City.

Due to a lack of awareness, dog owners do not control defecation and their dogs dirty the streets.

Last week, while walking around Hoan Kiem lake with my nephew, I saw a lot of dogs which dont have muzzles there.

Because my nephew was afraid of big dogs, I sometimes had to carry him on my back.

The appearance of big dogs has kept us from enjoying our leisure time, as we were frightened by them.

Anonymous South African reader

No. The regulation being proposed is too drastic. The level of regulation should suit the problem that you are trying to solve. It would be better if authorities made it clear that when being walked in public places all dogs should be on leashes, and then enforce that regulation.

Leashes, not muzzles!!  VNS
HA NOI  The Vietnam News Agency (VNA) and Prensa Latina (PL), the official state news agency of Cuba, should intensify their relationship in accordance with the time-honoured solidarity and friendship between the two countries, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said yesterday.

He made the remarks while meeting with PL President Luis Enrique Gonzalez Acosta at Government headquarters in Ha Noi yesterday.

He reiterated that the Party and State of Viet Nam continue to treasure its co-operation and special amity with Cuba and are glad about its new socio-economic achievements. Viet Nam hopes that Cuba would harvest even greater accomplishments in the future.

The PM noted that VNA and PL have had effective professional co-operation, contributing to their struggles for independence in the past and the current national development in their respective nations.

He asked both sides to continue co-operation and discuss ways to meet the growing demand for news reporting, especially news on their countries situation.

The Vietnamese Government and people always want the two countries relations to be expanded in all aspects, including the co-operation between the news agencies, PM Phuc said.

Viet Nam vows to assist the Caribbean nation in all spheres and will do its utmost to be a companion of Cuba during the latters development, he added.

For his part, the PL President affirmed that Cuba attaches importance to fostering the PL  VNA ties to match with the two countries special relationships and friendship.

He thanked the Vietnamese Government and VNAs assistance to his agencys activities. The Cuban people consider every attainment of Viet Nam as their own, Acosta said, voicing his belief that the Southeast Asian nation will continue to reap more achievements and promote its standing in the world.

Also yesterday, the PL delegation had talks with its VNA counterpart, led by VNA General Director Nguyen uc Loi, who welcomed the third working visit to Viet Nam by Acosta and noted that their news agencies have long been colleagues and friends.

The two sides expressed pleasure at their co-operation and information exchange over the past years which have helped them precisely and objectively update news about their respective countries situation for media outlets.

They agreed that VNA would boost providing multimedia news, particularly video clips, for PL in the time ahead.

They also pledged to give the best possible assistance to their representative offices and correspondents in each others countries.  VNS
Minister of Defence, General Ngo Xuan Lich (R) meets Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak in Kuala Lumpur.  VNA/VNS Photo Hoang Nhuong

KUALA LUMPUR  Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has confirmed that the Government and he personally support the enhancement of the defence partnership with Viet Nam to propel the bilateral friendship and multi-faceted co-operation forward.

He made the remark yesterday at a reception for the Minister of Defence, General Ngo Xuan Lich, in Kuala Lumpur.

Stronger defence collaboration at sea between the two countries would help maintain solidarity and the central and leading role of ASEAN for regional peace, stability and development, he said.

Minister Lich said Viet Nam always gives priority to reinforcing and furthering the friendly co-operative ties and trust between Viet Nam and Malaysia.

He added that Viet Nams Ministry of National Defence would continue working closely and effectively with the Malaysian counterpart to enhance the two countries relations.

Earlier on Wednesday, he had talks with Malaysian Minister of Defence Hishammuddin Hussein, during which the two sides agreed that there is a plenty of room for the bilateral defence co-operation.

They were unanimous in several measures to increase high-level delegation exchanges, information and experience sharing in the fields of their strengths, step up co-operation in training, military medicine and the defence industry, and promote connectivity between research institutes on strategic issues.

The two ministers agreed to boost consultation at multilateral forums with the purpose of cementing trust and affiliation among nations in and outside the region as well as support each other at multilateral defence events in ASEAN.

To promptly exchange strategic issues and accelerate the implementation of the defence co-operation plan in the coming time, the two sides concurred to soon establishing consultation and dialogue mechanisms.

The ministers also discussed issues of mutual concern and agreed that the region is facing a number of complicated security challenges that need to be addressed by countries joint efforts based on international law and standards.

During his official visit to Malaysia from October 25-27 to promote the friendship, mutual understanding and trust between the two countries armies and people, Minister Lich also visited the Vietnamese Embassy and the overseas Vietnamese community in the host country.  VNS
Truong Thi Mai (L) Politburo member and head of the CPV Central Committees Commission for Mass Mobilisation meets LPRP General Secretary and President of Laos Bounnhang Vorachith yesterday.  VNA/VNS Photo Pham Kien

VIENTIANE  The Communist Party of Viet Nam (CPV) will continue working closely with the Lao Peoples Revolutionary Party (LPRP) to increase exchanges of theoretical information and Party building experience and support each other to realise the resolutions of their Parties national congresses.

The affirmation was made by Truong Thi Mai, Politburo member and head of the CPV Central Committees Commission for Mass Mobilisation, during her meeting with LPRP General Secretary and President of Laos Bounnhang Vorachith yesterday.

Mai, who is in Vientiane to attend the fourth theoretical workshop between the parties, congratulated Laos on its enormous achievements over the three decades of reforms and expressed her delight at the two neighbours increasing amity and co-operation.

The fourth workshop, she said, will help clarify theoretical and practical issues relating to international integration of the two countries.

Party General Secretary and President Bounnhang Vorachith hailed the growing bilateral ties, voicing his belief that under the CPVs leadership, Viet Nam will harvest greater attainments and successfully implement the Resolution of the 12th National Party Congress.

He said the theoretical work was critical to both parties and this workshop allows them to share experience in international integration. They should continue exchanging information and discussing specialised topics so as to shed light on pressing problems facing their countries, he urged.

In her introductory speech, Mai said the CPV defined international integration as a major strategic orientation in national development and protection.

Meanwhile, Kikeo Khaykhamthiphun, head of the LPRP Central Committees Commission for Communication and Education, said his party was persistent in enhancing its leadership amidst international integration, adding that Laos would actively integrate into the world so as to successfully realise the Resolution of the LPRPs 10th National Congress.  VNS
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) receives Italian Minister of Justice Andrea Orlando yesterday in Ha Noi.  Photo VGP

HA NOI  Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has urged the justice ministries of Viet Nam and Italy to further fostering their affiliation, especially in personnel training.

He pledged that the Vietnamese Government would always back the two ministries co-operation as he believed it would contribute to enhancing the strategic partnership between the two countries.

Viet Nam considered the building of institutions as a breakthrough in the countrys development strategy, the PM told visiting Italian Minister of Justice Andrea Orlando during their meeting yesterday in Ha Noi.

With special attention paid to completing institutions, the Government of Viet Nam has directed the enforcement of law, while creating favourable conditions for socio-economic development and serving people and enterprises, according to the PM.

He proposed that Italy advises the EU to soon sign and approve the Viet Nam-EU Free Trade Agreement.

He said Viet Nam always supported Italian investors to do long-term business in the country and implement effective projects, especially in areas of Italys strengths and Viet Nams demand.

On his part, Orlando said that during his working visit, a memorandum of understanding on bilateral co-operation will be signed, laying a foundation for the effective partnership in justice, and contributing to expanding the relationship between the two sides.

Lauding Viet Nams reform efforts over the past years, especially in justice, he said that Italy is always interested in bills being discussed by the National Assembly of Viet Nam, including the Law on Belief and Religion and the Law on Associations.  VNS
President of the National Assembly of Cambodia Samdech Heng Samrin.  VNA/VNS Photo

PHNOM PENH  President of the National Assembly of Cambodia Samdech Heng Samrin shared his pleasure with the progressing friendship and co-operation between Viet Nam and Cambodia, pointing to the tangible benefits seen in both countries.

He made the statement at a reception in Phnom Penh yesterday for o Trung Tin, Vice President of the Viet Nam Fatherland Front (VFF)s HCM City chapter.

Tin is visitng Cambodia from October 26-29.

Heng Samrin, who is also Chairman of the United Front for National Salvation, thanked the Vietnamese Party, State, Government and people for their support of the Cambodian people over the years.

He said he believed that younger generations will continue fostering the tradition of solidarity and mutual support for the sake of independence, freedom and peace in each country.

The Vietnamese delegation later held a working session with Phnom Penh Governor Paso Cheatvong.

Both sides discussed a draft memorandum of understanding on co-operation between the VFFs HCM City chapter and the United Front for National Salvation of Cambodia.

The delegation later held a working visit to the General Association of Vietnamese Cambodians to present financial aid to Vietnamese language teachers for 2016-2017.  VNS
Phan Phung  Huu Anh

QUANG BINH  The brutal floods in this central Vietnamse province earlier this month left many farmers struggling. Now more than ever they need urgent support in seedlings and breeding stock to resume production and stabilise their livelihoods.

Lost it all

In Quang Binh Province, the farmers main job is cultivating rice; but, on average, most households own just about four acres of paddy field each. Therefore, in recent years, farmers have also gone into raising livestock to provide them with valuable additional income. But in many areas of the province, which borders the sea to its east, virtually all the pigs, chickens and fish they were raising were washed away by swollen floodwaters.

Thuan uc Commune was spared major deluges in previous years, but this year was innundated with severe flash floods that followed torrential downpours on October 14 and 15.

Incomplete figures by Quang Binh authorities show that the floods inundated about 1,500 hectares of crops, swept away 1,000 hectares of aquaculture farms, and killed 150 cattle plus thousands of fowls.

A cage farmer in Quang Loc commune, Quang Binh Province lost tens of tonnes of fish to the floods.  Photo danviet.vn

The floods laid waste to 242 farms  238 of which were integrated farms and aqualculture farms  with total losses estimated at nearly VN100 billion (US$4.5 million).

In Ha Tinh Province, 30,000 households were impacted by the floods, totaling VN1 trillion of damage.

In many areas of Ha Tinh Province, especially in worst-hit areas like Huong Khe and Vu Quang districts, one week after the downpour and floods, fields were still covered in water and crops submerged.

Preparing for the winter crop season, district-wide people had planted some 2,000 hectares of maize and 830 hectares of other types of crops. However, in the historic floods, 18 communes were inundated, nine of which were critically hit, and these plants stood no chance to survive, said Le Quang Vinh of the Huong Khe District Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Regarding the loss of animals, 108,000 fowls and 500 cattle and pigs were either swept away or drowned, Vinh added.

Tran Minh Lien from Huong Giang District was disheartened to find that the floodwater had ruined his entire orchard. Just last week, the orange and grapefruit trees were all laden with near ripe fruits, I decided to wait a bit more before picking. Now, oversaturated soil leads to root rot and hundreds of trees are dying, he said.

A chicken coop placed on a homemade floating raft in Huong Khe District.- VNA/VNS Photo Tuan Anh

Fish and rods

Food and clothing donations, as well as financial aid, were valuable short-term support, but residents of the flood-hit areas need much more to secure their livelihoods in the longer term.

Le Cong Toan, Chairman of the Quang Binh Provinces Farmers Association, said that after the calamitous floods, with tremendous nationwide support, difficulties were partly alleviated and farmers gradually overcame the disaster.

But now authorities and the people are struggling to obtain seedlings and breeding stock so that production can be resumed and livelihoods stabilised.

For the coming winter-spring crop season, thousands of tonnes of rice seedlings are needed and thousands of tonnes of other crop seedlings.

In Le Thuy District (Quang Binh) alone, to cultivate 10,000 hectares of rice each year, farmers need upwards of 1,200 tonnes of rice seedlings.

In previous years, they could secure about half this amount and the rest was obtained via State grants. However, the damning floods this year swept away or damaged all the seeds they had stored.

Farmers not only need assistance for this winters crop season, but also for the following spring, said Nguyen Thanh Son of the Vu Quang District Department of Agriculture and Rural Development in Ha Tinh Province.

In addition to rice, people in flood-hit areas also need maize and peanut seedlings, fertilisers. Help in supplying fowls and sows would be greatly appreciated, he added.

ang Quoc Khanh, Chairman of the Ha Tinh Province Peoples Committees, recently asked the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Government to urgently assist in seedling supplies - specifically, 2,000 tonnes of rice seeds, 30 tonnes of maize seeds and 10 tonnes of vegetables seeds for the spring crop.  VNS
HA NOI  As Southeast Asian countries improve their connectivity and promote tourism, representatives from four countries in the region on Thursday discussed steps to prevent the sexual exploitation of children.

Officials from the justice ministries of Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam discussed the issue at the Second Regional Legal Research Group meeting on sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism, held in Ha Noi. The meeting was organised by the United Nations on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), in collaboration with Viet Nams Ministry of Justice.

Experts shared legal research findings and made recommendations to strengthen laws, law enforcement and international co-operation to protect children from transnational sex offenders.

In 2012, Viet Nam led the initiative to establish the Regional Legal Research Group during a UNODC Project Childhood meeting on law enforcement co-operation to combat sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism. Since then, members of the group have rotated hosting annual meetings, and share the latest trends and developments in legislation and implementation to address the issue.

The group promotes the adoption of legal frameworks, the harmonisation of child protection laws and the sharing of knowledge on the effectiveness of specific legislative and policy approaches.

Legal and judicial reforms are at the centre of anti-child sex tourism efforts by the governments of Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam. Revisions in the Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code as well as in other relevant legislations in Viet Nam have been aimed at strengthening the legal basis for fighting against the sexual exploitation of children, Christopher Batt, UNODC Vietnam officer-in-charge, said.

The heads of delegations of all four nations discussed the cross-border complexity of this transnational crime and the urgency in strengthening cooperation in the ASEAN region. Representatives also presented an overview of child sex offences and preliminary legal research findings, discussed recommendations and agreed on areas of mutual interest for future collaboration.

Nguyen Thi Kim Thoa, director of Department of Criminal and Administrative Law under Viet Nams justice ministry, said, If there is no cooperation, we cannot combat this serious crime effectively. The meeting provided a good opportunity for the four countries and various organisations to discuss the legal framework related to the crime, to identify the gaps as well as to agree on the collaboration opportunities in legal research, she said.

Preventing the sexual exploitation of children requires more than comprehensive laws. The UNODC report, Protecting the Future: Improving the Response to Child Sex Offending in Southeast Asia, recommends that developing a legal framework must go hand in hand with improving the capacity to enforce the laws and changing the attitude of the criminal justice officers.

Noriko Shibata, UNODC crime prevention and criminal justice officer, commended the Regional Legal Research Group for their co-operation and commitment to protecting children from abuse.  VNS
HA NOI  Viet Nams legal framework is compatible with most of the commitments on investment it has undertaken under the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement (TPP) but not compatible with commitments on transfer and investor-State dispute resettlement, Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) announced yesterday.

Among the new-generation free trade agreements (FTA) of Viet Nam, the TPP and the Viet Nam-EU FTA (EVFTA) are considered the two with the most significant impact for trade and investment policies.

The VCCI, with support from the British Embassy in Viet Nam, completed a draft review of the EVFTA and TPP commitments on investment.

When the pacts take effect, investment commitments are expected to change Viet Nams investment environment given that investors from 38 partner states account for a huge proportion of Viet Nams Foreign Development Investment (FDI).

Nguyen Thi Thu Trang, Director of VCCIs World Trade Organisation Centre and a member of the review group, said the team reviewed TPPs Investment Chapter and Viet Nams Investment Law, its guiding documents, relevant laws such as the Civil Law, laws on enterprise, State compensation liability and specialised laws related to market access of foreign investment.

They found that Viet Nam legal framework is compatible with most of TPP commitments on investment, especially basic principles on market access and removing investment barriers.

For example, Viet Nams laws on investment and enterprises make no distinction between domestic and foreign investors, a fact compatible with the Nation Treatment principle.

Viet Nams legal provisions also do not distinguish among investors from different countries, which is compatible with Most-favoured Nation Treatment principle.

However, she said, Viet Nams legal framework does not address the overseas transfer of goods and money. Viet Nam regulates cases allowed for transfer while TPP regulates cases which could be limited for transfer.

When it comes to foreign investor-State dispute settlement, Viet Nams legal framework does not provide for consultation and mediation, unlike the TPP. Moreover, its legal framework is completely different than the TPP with regard to arbitration procedures, Trang said.

The incompatibility could result in situations in which some actions following domestic laws but violating TPP commitments, she said, noting that foreign investors could sue Viet Nams Government.

Viet Nam has made efforts to fine-tune its legal framework since joining ... in the global integration ... but it should pay more attention to law enforcement to ensure the benefits for the parties involved, she said.

Trang also suggested that local businesses learn about Viet Nams commitments to foreign investors.

Learning the TPP commitments would also be useful to Vietnamese businesses that want to invest in TPP member countries, she said.

Pham Manh Dung of the LCT Lawyer Company and former director of the Legal Department under the Ministry of Planning and Investment, said that commitments on investment are not only included in TPPs Investment Chapter but also other chapters on finance, logistic or communication services, chapter on State-owned enterprises, small and medium enterprises, labour and labour dispute settlement.

The VCCIs review could have been comprehensive if its scale was larger and if it could review legal documents issued by local governments and provincial/municipal Peoples Committees, he said.

He added that a similar review of Viet Nams TPP commitments on intellectual property was needed because investors from developed countries care much about intellectual property protection.

Twelve Pacific Rim countries, including Viet Nam and the US, signed the TPP in New Zealand in February, 2016. The TPP is now undergoing a two-year ratification period in which at least six countries  which account for 85 percent of the 12 nations combined gross domestic production - must approve the final text for the deal to be implemented.  VNS
YEN BAI  A new general hospital with 500 beds was inaugurated in Hamlet 1, Phuc Loc Commune in the north-west province of Yen Bai yesterday.

Yen Bai General Hospital is built on an area of 12.67ha at the cost of US$52 million, of which $45 million is funded by ODA loans from the Republic of Korea and $7 million is reciprocal capital of the Vietnamese government. It is a key project in the health network plans of Yen Bai Province and the northwest region.

The general hospital aims to meet the increasing training demand for health workers, and the need for high-quality treatment of people in Yen Bai and other provinces of the region.  VNS
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake issued a statement on the recent attacks on schools in Syria, the UN Armenia office told ARMENPRESS.

The statement reads: Yesterday, when a school compound in Syria was repeatedly attacked, killing dozens of children and teachers, we thought we had seen the depths of depravity.

Todays reports of attacks on schools in Douma and western Aleppo should deepen our disgust and outrage.

This brings the toll to five schools hit since October 11. Attacking schools  killing children  is simply inhuman.

If the perpetrators cannot find their own sense of humanity, they should heed the condemnation of the world.
HA NOI  A Ministry of Healths plan to increase hospital fees in December may be delayed in several provinces and cities across the country.

Pham Luong Son, deputy director of Viet Nam Social Insurance Agency, said at a press conference held on Wednesday that the fee hike may be delayed as it could have a negative effect on the countrys Consumer Price Index (CPI).

The health ministry had drawn up a roadmap till the end of 2017 to adjust hospital fees, which also covers the salaries of doctors and other health workers.

Fee adjustment began in August and is being implemented in five rounds, to mitigate its social impact and its effect on the nations CPI.

The first two rounds of the fee hike were applied to 32 provinces and cities, where 85 per cent of the residents have health insurance cards. Fees rose by 18 per cent and 50 per cent in August and October, respectively.

The third round of rate hike, scheduled for November, will be reviewed, while the fourth round, which was planned for December, will be suspended, Son said.

The expectation was that hiking hospital fees in areas where a high percentage of residents have signed up for health insurance would provide those regions with sufficient funds, he said. However, the Health Insurance Fund had to allocate over VN10 trillion (US$445 million) in addition to the collected capital to offset the rise in cost of health check-ups. The fee adjustment is aimed at ending subsidies to hospital and improving the quality of health services, he said.

Earlier, in March, the health ministry decided to raise the cost of around 1,900 services and products at public hospitals by 30 per cent.  VNS
HA NOI  Some 100 pigs in Ha Tinh Province have been stricken with blue-ear disease just a month after it was believed to have been brought under control.

On October 24, pigs began dying in Cam Binh Communes Tien Hung Village in Ha Tinh Provinces Cam Xuyen District. A sample sent for laboratory tests confirmed porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome, or blue-ear disease.

The provinces Veterinary branch cooperated with local authorities in killing nearly 100 sick animals.

Preventive measures have been carried to decontaminate areas where the pigs were affected and to halt the transportation of sick pigs to other areas

The epidemic has spread to other villages of the commune.

Local authorities blamed heavy rainfall and recent floods in the area for creating favourable conditions for the virus to spread.

Earlier, dozens of pigs in Thach Ha Districts Thach Long Commune were suffering from high temperature and loss of appetite in the middle of September.

Tran Hung, acting head of the Ha Tinh Veterinary Branch, said after receiving information from local authorities on the situation, the branch has taken samples for testing.

As soon as blue-ear disease was confirmed, 200 sick animals were culled and other drastic measures were taken to control the disease, he said, adding that more than 1,010 pigs of other households in the commune were not affected.  VNS
A group of Vietnamese artists attended the 2016 Malaysia Art Expo last week, seeking to promote their countrys lacquer paintings.

They took large lacquer works by contemporary artists Tran Phi Truong, Ngo Hai Yen, Hien Nguyen, Nguyen uc Viet and Vu Tuan Dung on themes like daily life in modern Viet Nam.

According to Vu Tuan Anh, director of Viet Art Space and a Vietnamese representative to the event, it is the first time that Viet Nam has participated in the art expo in Malaysia.

Viet Nams lacquer works have been researched and collected, but not many people know about the genre, he said.

The Malaysia Art Expo is a major annual art fair. This years event at the Matrae Exhibition & Convention Centre from October 20 to 22 featured 60 booths from 30 countries.  VNS
by John Nery*

Cabinet secretaries and campaign volunteers alike have told me that Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is open to new ideas and serene about ceding full control to his appointees within their scope of work.

In my own, limited interaction with him during the presidential campaign, he struck me as someone entirely at ease in his own skin.

All of which makes one ask: Why is his foreign policy driven by long-standing resentment, and why does his signature governance initiative depend on an old, unsound idea?

Since his election, and especially since his so-called war on drugs provoked US President Barack Obama to raise human rights concerns, he has attacked the United States for its great-power hypocrisy and Obama for, well, being an American.

He denounced the presence of American forces in the Philippines, ordered an end to decades of annual military exercises between the Philippine military and the American armed services, refused Philippine participation in joint naval patrols in disputed parts of the South China Sea, and, while on a state visit to China, dramatically declared a separation from the United States.

I think it is fair to say that the vigorous criticism of American presence and policy preceded any articulation on his part of the Philippine constitutions directive for the country to develop an independent foreign policy.

The gut reaction to what Dutertes leftist supporters call continued American domination of the Philippines came first; in a remarkable disclosure, President Duterte even told a forum in China that he felt slighted many years ago when his application for a US visa was rejected.

His own humiliation thus magnifies the worst excesses of American colonial rule in the Philippines; it helps explain why, in his first appearance on the world stage, in Laos, he was driven to lecture the summit of leaders on atrocities Americans committed against my ancestor. (He did not however include American complicity in the crimes of the Marcos dictatorship, because Marcos descendants support him.)

The war on drugs he launched in the Philippines less than four months ago  his signature initiative  has already claimed thousands of lives, including the obviously innocent. (Children caught in the crossfire, overseas Filipinos back home for a quick visit.)

And yet the experience of other countries, including Thailand, has already discredited this take-no-prisoners approach. It simply does not work.

But heres the supreme irony. President Dutertes war on drugs is an American invention.

It is an American travesty of justice, which Duterte seems intent on imposing on his own country. Not least, it is an American failure, with which Duterte is unaccountably fixated.

It was US President Richard Nixon who, in 1971, designated drug abuse as public enemy No. 1. and officially declared a war on drugs.

War is the right word, because what Nixon started eventually mobilized government agencies, military assets and police resources in many countries in a massive attempt to stop the illegal drugs trade.

It has failed, it is failing, because the undertaking, understood precisely as a war, sees users as enemies, rather than victims who both need help and are a potent source of the help needed.

The excellent Vox special report on the war on drugs notes: Over the past four decades, the US has committed more than $1 trillion to the war on drugs. But the crackdown has in some ways failed to produce the desired results: Drug use remains a very serious problem in the US, even though the drug war has made these substances less accessible. The drug war also led to several  some unintended  negative consequences, including a big strain on Americas criminal justice system and the proliferation of drug-related violence around the world.

Why is President Duterte fixated on this American idea?

For the same reason, I believe, that he thinks China is good to the Philippines, Marcos was the Philippines best president, and Beijing and Moscow continue to be politically aligned and would welcome newly non-aligned countries like his: His formative ideas were formed in the 1960s and 1970s, and now, at long last, he is in a position to make them real.  Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN

*The writer is editor in chief of Inquirer.net and represents the Philippine Daily Inquirer in the Asia News Network.
01:54 RBA lifts cash rate by 25 basis points to 2.85 per cent Sky News Business Editor Ross Greenwood says the Reserve Bank of Australia has lifted the cash rate by 25 basis points to 2.85 per cent.

03:30 Democrats distance from stammering and stuttering Joe Biden ahead of midterms Democrat candidates are running further away from US President Joe Biden and are turning to his former boss Barack Obama to get them across the...

03:00 Furious driver drags leftie protesters off busy road Sky News host Caleb Bond says one man in the UK tried to reason with some "lefties" before having to resort to dragging them off a busy road...

01:32 Where is Generation Zs resilience? Sky News host Caleb Bond says one "poor leftie" student in America has posted a video online complaining about having to work an entire day....

08:51 No perfect solution to fix gas prices Assistant Minister for Treasury Andrew Leigh says there is no perfect solution to fix rising gas prices.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. Ambassador of Finland to Armenia Arya Makkonen (residence in Helsinki) on October 28 presented her credentials to President Serzh Sargsyan, press service of the Presidential administration told Armenpress.

The Armenian President congratulated the Ambassador on her appointment, wished her success and said with satisfaction that the relations of Armenia and Finland are dynamically developing, the political dialogue continues, the two countries are successfully cooperating within the framework of international organizations and share similar approaches on a number of international issues.

Serzh Sargsyan said all these serve as good base for further strengthening and deepening the Armenian-Finnish relations. The President attached importance to the development of the legal framework, intensification of the inter-parliamentary mutual cooperation and the complete utilization of that potential in inter-state relations.

Ambassador Arya Makkonen shared the same views on bilateral inter-state relations as mentioned by the President, and emphasized the need to deepen the cooperation in mutually beneficial sectors aimed at boosting the trade-economic ties.

The sides also discussed regional issues and challenges, as well as the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement process.




Learning series

to discuss music

WAVERLY  Dmitri Vorobiev, assistant professor of piano at the University of Northern Iowa, will present a series of lectures about bad music during Wartburgs Keep on Learning community education series, beginning Thursday.

Over the course of the month, Vorobiev will discuss why Life is Too Short to Listen to Bad Music.

Classes continue Nov. 10 and 17 and Dec. 1 in the Heritage Room of Saemann Student Center. Coffee will be served at 9 a.m., followed by the class from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.

Pre-registration is not required. The first class of each session is free; a $35 fee due at the second class covers the rest of the sessions.

The Keep on Learning series is sponsored by Waverly Health Center. For more information, call 352-8491 or go to www.wartburg.edu/kol.

Luther hosts Christmas event

DECORAH  Luther College will present the 2016 production of Christmas at Luther Dec. 1-4 in the Center for Faith and Life on the Luther campus.

The college is celebrating 35 years of this annual event.

Christmas at Luther will have five performances: 5:45 p.m. Dec. 1, 6:30 p.m. and 9:15 p.m. Dec. 2, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 3 and 2:30 p.m. Dec. 4.

Tickets are $25-$35 and may be purchased online at tickets.luther.edu. Patrons also may purchase tickets through the Luther Ticket Office, (563) 387-1357 or boxoffice@luther.edu. The general public will be able to purchase remaining tickets Tuesday.

The concert showcases the talents of more than 500 musicians.

Fall gift, craft

sale scheduled

WATERLOO  The Covenant Medical Center employees activities committee will have the annual fall gift and craft sale Nov. 4 at the Kimball Ridge building main lobby.

Hours will be from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Items will include greeting cards, Pampered Chef, LuLaRoe, KEEP Collective, jewelry, soaps, lotions, hats, scarves, mittens, quilted items, Christmas items, Monster Cookies, Cake Balls, 31, Tastefully Simple, Perfectly Posh, Discovery Toys, Tupperware, Pink Zebra and much more.

The public is welcome to attend. No credit cards can be accepted.

Exchange Clubs to host banquet

WATERLOO  Five area Exchange Clubs will host the 36th annual One Nation Under God banquet with a social at 5:30 p.m. and dinner at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 10 at the Waterloo Elks Club.

Area clubs involved are Cedar Falls, Charles City, Sunrise, Waterloo and Waverly of the Lakes and Prairie District.

The keynote speaker will be Kelly Sullivan Loughren, granddaughter of Albert Leo Sullivan, who was killed along with his four brothers in action Nov. 13, 1942, while serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II.

The event is open to the public with dinner tickets available through Nov. 7 at $27 per person. For more information contact Sharon Droste, skd913@msn.com.

Church holds annual craft sale

WATERLOO  The fourth annual Fall Craft and Vendor Fair is set for 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 5 at Harvest Vineyard Church, 715 E. Fourth St.

More than 22 vendors will be present with a variety of original arts and crafts, cooking ware, home decor, accessories and more. One full room will be designated for rummage sale items, and a $4 potato bar lunch will be served to dine in or carry out.

For more information, call the church at (319) 287-5711.
Close to hold book signing

CEDAR FALLS  Local author, artist and retired art teacher William Close will be signing his book BIG  The Story Behind 23 Years of Peet Junior High Megasculptures at Barn Happy on Saturday.

Hours will be from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Scarf and glove giveaway slated

WATERLOO  The D.I.V.A.S. group will hold a scarf and glove giveaway from 7 to 8 p.m. Monday at New Hope Missionary Baptist Church, 710 Broadway St.

The give-away is in place of the bi-annual conference. For more information, call LaTonya Graves at 830-8357 or Alicia Jones, 504-4242.

Hearst to feature Marx brothers

CEDAR FALLS  The Hearst Center will open a Marx brothers film series with Animal Crackers on Tuesday.

The 1930 film is unrated. It will be start at 7 p.m. in Mae Latta Hall. Admission is free and no tickets are required.

The Hearsts film series is sponsored by Far Reach.

Kiwanis meeting set for Tuesday

WATERLOO  The Waterloo Noon Kiwanis Club will meet at noon Tuesday at the Waterloo Elks Club.

Lunch starts at 12:10 p.m. The featured speaker will enlighten members on happenings at the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony.

Guests are welcome. For additional information call Reed Craft, 234-6537.

VFW will hold annual dinner

WAVERLY  VFW Post 2208 will host the annual membership dinner Thursday.

The pork loin meal will be served from 5 to 7 p.m. in the upper level of the new WAVP building, 1300 Fourth St. N.W. in Waverly. The meal is free to members of VFW Post 2208 and its Auxiliary who have a paid 2017 membership and also to WAVP Patriot Supporters who have a 2017 card.

Cost for a spouse or guest is $7.
WATERLOO - State correctional officials are looking for a man who failed to return to a work release facility.

Iowa Department of Corrections officials said Armando Adame III, 25, was placed on escape status after failing to return to the facility from employment. He was serving a 25-year sentence for first-degree burglary and possession of a firearm. He was transferred to work release June 21.

He is described as a Caucasian man, 6 feet tall, 177 pounds with black hair and brown eyes. He has several tattoos on his legs, chest and left hand and wrist and scars on his back, left forearm, right hand, neck and shoulders.

Information on his whereabouts should be reported to Waterloo Police or Black Hawk County sheriff's deputies.
WATERLOO  Police have arrested a Waterloo man who was working as a security guard.

According to authorities, Jamodd Amaul Sallis, 36, is prohibited from handling firearms because of convictions for weapons and credit card fraud.

But he entered into a contract to provide armed guard services for a Hudson farm and told police he was head of security at a La Porte Road tavern after parole workers told him he couldnt work in the security field.

On Wednesday, Sallis was arrested for felon in possession of a firearm, carrying weapons and impersonating a peace officer. He was later released from jail.

He allegedly told a person at the farm in October that he was a police officer and indicated he had authority to kill people who came onto the property. He showed a badge, court records state.

Sallis also showed a woman at the farm how to use his .40-caliber handgun and told her he would transfer his police powers to her when he left the property, according to court records.

On Tuesday, authorities searched his home at 2085 Howard Ave. and found a gold and silver badges labeled concealed weapons permit, a silver security guard badge and a silver security officer badge, records state.

At the time of his security jobs, Sallis was on parole after being released from prison in December 2014, according to the Iowa Department of Corrections.

In April 2016 parole officers turned down his request to work security at a Waterloo bar and grill because it wasnt considered acceptable employment, according to court records.

Farm owners told parole officials they werent aware Sallis was under supervision. He was paid $20 an hour.
WATERLOO  A Waterloo woman was shot Thursday night in a domestic dispute, police said.

Police were called to a west side residence Wednesday night before midnight by the victim, Vickie Fristo who told dispatchers she had been shot in the leg. She was taken to Covenant Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries.

According to preliminary investigations, it appears Fristo was shot in a struggle over a handgun with her husband, Michael Fristo. The weapon went off and a bullet struck Vickie Fristo in the leg.

Michael Fristo was taken into custody at his home and charged with domestic assault with intent to injure, an aggravated misdemeanor that carries up to two years in prison upon conviction.
CEDAR RAPIDS  Eighteen months after her first visit of the 2016 campaign to eastern Iowa, Hillary Clinton closed the loop Friday as she invited Iowans to join her in voting for a stronger, fairer America.

Whatever the results of the election, change is coming, the Democratic presidential nominees said. The choice is yours as to what kind of country we will have.

Despite what the polls say, despite all the work to register voters, weve got work to do, Clinton said at an outdoor rally at Cedar Rapids NewBo City Market.

Its still possible Trump, who she called the poster boy of bad business behavior, could win the election.

I tell you, once again, Iowa can make the difference, she said. If all of you vote  we will make history on Nov. 8.

Making history by electing the first woman president as well as other female candidates who shared the stage with Clinton was the theme of the Women Win rally the campaign said drew about 2,000 people.

Clinton put in a plug for her female ballot colleagues, Monica Vernon and Patty Judge.

I need some reinforcements, she said. Vernon, who is challenging GOP 1st District Rep. Rod Blum, and Judge, challenging U.S. Sen Charles Grassley, would be just that  in making the case why this part of our country is so essential to the agriculture industry, to food production industry.

Iowa has been essential to her campaign, Clinton said, thanking Iowa Democrats for their support  even though she won the Iowa caucuses by just 49.9 percent to 49.6 percent.

Clinton joked about her lengthy list of policy plans, which she started forming visiting Iowa a year and a half ago.

Boy did I hear a lot about college cost, the epidemic of opioid abuse, mental health issues, the challenges of balancing family and work, Clinton said. All of those conversations in coffee shops and college campuses really put me on the path to understanding what your next president should do.

Clinton told her audience to vote for an agenda that will become a list to improve your lives and make country stronger and better.
Eighth in a series of stories profiling area legislative races.

CEDAR FALLS  Both Iowa Senate District 30 candidates want to see less partisan division in politics.

Iowa is my political party, says incumbent Iowa Sen. Jeff Danielson, D-Waterloo.

Challenger Republican Bonnie Sadler says, I think most of us all want the same thing.

Danielson, 46, said the state needs more bridge leaders in public life. Nobodys priorities cannot be achieved without finding a way to work with people.

Sadler, 50, of Cedar Falls, said shes learned in years of service on various boards people need to listen to each other and earn each others respect to move things forward.

But Sadler and Danielson rarely see eye to eye on the biggest issues facing the state. The district includes Hudson, Cedar Falls and Waterloo

The economy

Sadler said the key to attracting people and jobs to the state is tax reform. But she also sees a need for job training and diversifying the states economy, particularly given the slowdown in the agriculture industry.

She said she favors an across-the-board approach to tax reform.

Im real involved with the chamber, so they talk about recruiting businesses to come here, and our tax code is complicated, and our corporate tax code, so to get businesses here, just to simplify it, number one. Hopefully, we could do a decrease, but simplify it so they know where theyre at, Sadler said.

Danielson notes he supported tax incentives and tax cuts throughout his tenure in office, including two of the states largest reductions. He was first elected in 2004.

He favors tax reforms to simplify the process and eliminates loopholes. The focus should be the states return on investment, whether creating jobs or the conditions for growth.

Its one thing just to holler out the phrase tax cuts; its another to do it in a way that grows jobs, and we need to be much better at it because what has happened is were completely out of balance right now, Danielson said.

He said under Republican Gov. Terry Branstad there have been large tax breaks but less investment in education. He said the state should invest in a skilled workforce to grow jobs.

Despite reforms, Sadler said, Iowa doesnt rank well among other states when it comes to personal income tax, sales tax, property tax or corporate income tax. She said the state needs to better compete at least among other Midwestern states.

Health care

Both candidates agree the state should have rolled out Medicaid privatization better than it did. The plan proposed by Branstad was adopted with minimal legislative input.

Both want more oversight of the program and managed care organizations.

But they disagree on the state of the program. Sadler, who sits on the Black Hawk County Board of Health and Iowa Alliance in Home Care, said shes heard much less about problems for patients but but a lot about providers getting paid in a timely manner.

Danielson said he works regularly with families and providers to address issues with the program.

I would say to my Republican friends, if the moral reasons dont move you for taking care of the least of these, please sharpen your pencils on the finances of this, because it was not well thought out, and it was even more poorly implemented, Danielson said. He notes most of the programs dollars support severely mentally or physically disabled people or elderly people.

He wants lawmakers to take a fresh look at the issue after the election.

Sadler, who has worked 18 years at NuCara Pharmacy, said her health care background is be an asset on such issues.

Both candidates see the need to improve mental health services. Both agree theres a need to increase beds.

We should be able to determine how many beds do we need and then go from there, probably more than 64 that we have but maybe not necessarily. Weve just got to find out what is the appropriate number, Sadler said, adding the state could better utilize in-home health care.

Both also see a need to address the affordability of health insurance.

Education issues

Danielson and Sadler both want the University of Northern Iowa get fair funding. Both want the state to quickly set state funding for K-12 schools.

Sadler wants a bipartisan formula to set state aid so it isnt an issue year after year.

Danielson said, however, he wants the Legislature to act like Iowa again and without question fund our local schools.

He said since Branstad returned to office in 2011 the state hasnt kept up with cost-of-living increases for schools.

Sadler said the state should spend wisely rather than spend more. She wants children to read at grade-level by the end of third grade.

Water quality

Neither candidate supported Branstads proposal this year to fund the water quality improvement with school infrastructure funds. But both said water quality will be an important issue in the 2017 session.

Sadler does not in favor the 3/8-cent sales tax voters approved due to concerns about increasing taxes. Danielson said it may be the closest the state gets to a dedicated funding source to address water quality.
WAVERLY  Education took center stage at a forum Thursday night, although the candidates answered questions on nearly every issue facing the state.

There wasnt too much disagreement among the candidates, as only Democrats seeking to represent Bremer County attended the forum hosted by the League of Women Voters of Black Hawk-Bremer Counties.

Incumbent Iowa District 32 Sen. Brian Schoenjahn, D-Arlington, and Waverly Democrat Teresa Meyer, seeking to represent Iowa House District 63, were at the forum. Republican Craig Johnson and incumbent Iowa Rep. Sandy Salmon, R-Janesville, their respective opponents, had other commitments Thursday night.

The lopsided answers led a couple of Republicans in the audience to express their discomfort with the answers, though others noted it would have been less lopsided if the Republican candidates had shown up.

Self-described Democrats and Republicans said they were disappointed not to hear from both sides at the forum.

But throughout the 90 minute event, the two dozen people in the audience made clear that education is a priority issue for voters. Nearly half of the questions posed touched on education issues.

The bottom line, folks, is we are short-changing education from a fourth-grader to post-graduate, Schoenjahn said toward the end of the meeting as education issues came up again. We have that little schoolhouse on our quarter for a reason. Iowas foundation is in education. I think we need to get back to that.

Schoenjahn, who chairs the education budget subcommittee, also bemoaned the cutbacks education has had to endure at all levels.

Asked if she had a response, Meyer simply said, I concur.

Meyer agreed with the need to return a state focus to education, but she also made clear her support for public education and contrasted that with her Republican opponent, Salmon, who has been supportive of homeschooling.

One question came up on homeschooling, but after offering an initial assessment that was questioned by an audience member, the candidates said they did not know enough about homeschooling to answer a question about its impact on the state budget.

The candidates also said they support the education standards, sometimes called Iowa core or common core, and defended them as guidelines that help ensure students will be learning at the same pace.

They also questioned why lawmakers would need to spend time arguing against the federal mandate to offer bathrooms at schools for transgender students. That mandate is currently making its way through the court system.

But overall the candidates and the questions focused on education funding. And the Democratic candidates said there needs to be more.

It is very, very important to fund the school system from pre-K through all levels, said Meyer, who is on the board of trustees at Hawkeye Community College. I know how important it is to build a skilled workforce, and it doesnt start at the community college level. It starts at preschool.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko received the heads of delegations of the CIS participating states who participated in the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council and the CIS Prime Ministers Council sessions, press service of the Government told Armenpress.

President Lukashenko said the CIS and the Eurasian Economic Union are good platforms for establishment of dialogue between the member states, as well as in terms of moving forward the integration processes.

Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan participated in narrow and extended format sessions of the CIS Prime Ministers within the framework of his visit to Belarus.

A number of issues of the CIS and the EAEU agendas were discussed at the meeting.

A number of programs were discussed and approved during the CIS PMs session. In particular, the Council approved the programs on the CIS bodies common budget 2017 and the 2015 joint budget performance, a number of documents were signed as well.

After the sessions Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan held a briefing with media representatives. The PM stated that the talks and discussions were quite interesting, and these platforms are suitable for discussing the issues both in terms of the market, as well as the interests in the post-Soviet countries.

Heated and substantive discussions were held during the Eurasian Inter-governmental Council session since they were associated with the Customs Code. Since there were unresolved issues, we have agreed to meet again in Moscow on November 15, Karen Karapetyan said.
Main St. trick or treating set

CEDAR FALLS -- The businesses of downtown Cedar Falls will celebrate Halloween with their annual Trick or Treat Downtown from 3:30 to 5 p.m. Monday.

Preschool to sixth-grade children are invited to trick or treat at participating businesses in downtown Cedar Falls.

C.F. intersection to close for work

CEDAR FALLS -- The construction of 917 W. 23rd St. has begun on the Urban Flats development. As a part of this construction, the contractor will begin the new water service connection.

Starting Monday, West 23rd Street will be closed to through traffic between College Street and Merner Avenue while the contractor makes necessary water service connections in the road. The road closure will be in effect for approximately a week, depending on the weather.

West 23rd Street will remain open for access to adjacent businesses during the road closure.

Kittrell opens credit union

WATERLOO -- Kittrell Elementary students cut the ribbon Wednesday on Waterloos first in-school, student-run credit union. Students, teachers and administrators of the Waterloo Community School District joined Veridian Credit Union staff to celebrate Superhero Savers Student Credit Union.

Fifth-grade students completed an application and interview process to fill open teller positions, and the students work alongside volunteers from Veridian to accept their peers deposits. Superhero Savers is open each Wednesday morning for students to deposit as little as a penny or as much as $20 each week.

Students earn rewards for reaching savings benchmarks. At the end of their fifth-grade year, they have the option of accepting a check for the amount they saved or rolling it into an individual savings account.
WATERLOO  Carah Mabry tested Waterloo Police Sgt. Shawn Monroes patience during a mock traffic stop Thursday.

Pretending to be the driver of a rowdy group of teens at East Fourth and Sumner streets, Mabry refused to cooperate when asked for identification, filmed the entire stop with a cell phone and, eventually, wound up under arrest.

The role-playing activity was part of new series of meetings designed to bring area law enforcement officers and community members together for education about laws, rights and police procedures while hopefully fostering better relationships.

Reaching for Respect: Our Police, Our Partners saw representatives of the Waterloo and Cedar Falls police departments, Black Hawk County Sheriffs Office and Iowa State Patrol act out traffic stop scenarios at First United Methodist Church.

Community members were encouraged to get into the act or offer suggestions on changing the dynamics of each traffic stop.

Mabry said she learned a lot at the event  namely that drivers cant refuse to produce identification when asked  and was grateful for a chance to act out her scenario with Monroe.

I did a scenario that is real; it happens every single day, she said. Its great to be here to act it out and have real-life scenarios.

We need more interaction with the community and law enforcement, especially minorities and the youth, Mabry added. This is my community, my home, and I know if I want to see something changed I have to get involved.

Resident Shelley Offord was among many at the meeting who said African-American residents in Waterloo havent always had the best interactions with law enforcement.

That earned her a chance to play a trooper who pulled over Iowa State Patrol Lt. Randy Olmstead for speeding. Olmstead and passenger Lori Dale made things tough on Offord, refusing to roll down the window.

I really enjoyed this, Offord said. But we really need to get the children, our young people, here for this.

The event was moderated by Sharon Silva and also sponsored by the Waterloo Community on Human Rights. Organizers are planning another meeting Nov. 10 at George Washington Carver Academy.

Mayor Quentin Hart applauded the effort of everyone involved in the Reaching for Respect initiative, which is just one of many steps the community and law enforcement are taking to help build trust.

Hart noted both residents and law enforcement officers likely heard a few things they didnt want to hear through the course of the evening.

If were going to move forward its going to take some serious conversations, he said.
WATERLOO  The Catholic Parishes in Waterloo will celebrate the conclusion of the Year of Mercy at 2 p.m. Sunday at Sacred Heart Parish.

The closing ceremony will feature music, readings, reflections and prayers chosen and presented by Agnus Dei Music Ministry.

The 90-minute program Journey of Mercy, will include various opportunities for communal prayer and a musical presentation of the Divine Mercy Chaplet.

The celebration is open to the public.

WATERLOO  The local Church Women United unit will celebrate World Community Day at 1 p.m. Nov. 4 at St. Pauls United Methodist Church, 207 W. Louise St.

Theme for the day is Sharing Gifts at the Table. The women of St. Pauls and Payne A.M.E. are in charge of the program, and refreshments will be served.

This is an ecumenical group, and everyone is welcome.
Though Republican prospects are not quite dead, the autopsy has already begun. Which is probably not a good idea, even in metaphor.

But the best of the anticipatory autopsies so far comes from Matthew Continettis writing in National Review. In Crisis of the Conservative Intellectual, Continetti traces a several-decade struggle between intellectual conservatives (think William F. Buckley and George F. Will) and the new right (think Sarah Palin and Pat Buchanan) over the meaning of the movement.

In Continettis telling, National Review conservatives  elitist, pessimistic, grimly witty and academic  had depth but lacked power. The New Right  largely Southern, often blue collar, opposed to compromise, gradualism and acquiescence in the corrupt system  had populist and nationalist appeal, but could be led astray by disturbing figures such as George Wallace. The groups were united in their disdain for the Eastern, liberal GOP establishment and eventually were hitched to the same political goal by Ronald Reagan.

The alliance, however, was never easy. And it has broken down completely in the 2016 presidential election. Donald Trump, Continetti argues, is so noxious, so unhinged, so extremist in his rejection of democratic norms and political convention and basic manners that he has untethered the new right politics he embodies from the descendants of William F. Buckley Jr.

It is hard to argue with that. But the article does something typical of many conservative writers, dismissing the only two-term Republican president since Reagan in two sentences of a long article. President George W. Bush, Continetti says, is the exemplary religious-right leader who earned vituperative criticism from the new right. And thats it.

Can Bush be explained merely as a religious-right figure? Did Americans vote for him in 2000 and 2004 on the recommendation of James Dobson or Pat Robertson? The idea is absurd. Continettis binary construct needs a little more room.

Bush represented a fundamentally different option (still embraced, in more modern form, by many Republican governors). His appeal included the aggressive promotion of economic growth, expressed in support for broad tax cuts. A commitment to compassionate and creative social policy, demonstrated by No Child Left Behind and his support for faith-based social services. A belief in ethnic and religious inclusion, shown by his proposal for comprehensive immigration reform and by his defense of American Muslims after the 9-11 attacks. An internationalist foreign policy, which included not only the war against terrorism but the Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. And a tolerant version of traditionalism based on moral aspiration rather than judgment. (It is an approach I helped frame for candidate and then President Bush.)

It is understandable figures on the left would argue this approach was discredited during the worst days of the Iraq War and the Great Recession. They would prefer not to face the type of appeal that beat them twice.

And movement conservatives were always inclined to regard Bushs compassionate conservatism as a failed experiment even before it was actually tried. When Bush was down politically, the new right rushed to disown him.

But here is the reality: There is no reconstitution of conservative influence or the appeal of the Republican Party without incorporating some updated version of compassionate conservatism. And conservatives need to get over their aversion to the only approach that has brought them presidential victory since 1988.

I really dont give a damn what adjective is applied to distinguish this type of reform-oriented conservatism. But it must include a response to stagnant growth, the reform of failing institutions to help prepare more workers for a skills-based economy, a sincere appeal to rising ethnic minorities, a properly chastened but vigorous war against terrorism, the encouragement of global development and health as alternatives to hatred, and an inclusive concern for families and the character essential to self-government.

Even more than all this, conservatives require a set of democratic values informed by faith  a commitment to civility and human dignity. The new right has gotten what it always wanted  an arsonist as its presidential nominee. No limits. No mercy. Burn it down. Lock her up. Lock her up.

The outcome, in all likelihood, will be to give her the keys to the White House. And to cause lasting damage to the very idea of a responsible, governing conservatism.

Will future Republican primary voters  marinated in the anger and conspiracy theories of conservative media  prove capable of choosing a reform-conservative candidate? On this question hangs the future of a party that has earned a nations contempt.
Lately weve heard a lot about clawbacks  reclaiming money already disbursed  involving Wells Fargo executives and enlistment bonuses for National Guard members who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Neither is exactly what it seems, but both have had appalling aspects.

John Stumpf, the recently retired Wells Fargo chief executive officer, presided over a scandal involving the illegal transfer of money from customers legitimate accounts into unauthorized ones  among two million fraudulently created  a scheme involving 5,300 subsequently fired employees, supposedly done without corporate direction.

After Stumpf managed to make matters worse during congressional hearings, the Wells Fargo board announced a $41 million clawback of his stock awards, which had yet to vest, from his holdings valued at $247 million.

It was a clawback without sharp claws.

Likewise, retired community banking chief Carrie Tolstedt, the program supervisor, had a clawback of $19 million in stock awards that hadnt vested from her holdings valued at $125 million.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the National Guard clawback  primarily in California, although it could extend beyond  involved 9,700 members told to pay back enlistment bonuses of $15,000 or more because they were never entitled to them or improper paperwork was at fault.

Former Army Master Sgt. Susan Haley, who spent 25 years in the service including a tour in Afghanistan, is among those forced to repay her bonus  $20,500. She told the Times she had been sending the Pentagon $650 monthly. I feel totally betrayed, she said.

About 1,200 service members appealed their debts. Nearly half received debt reductions.

Rampant fraud in the enlistment program prompted the clawbacks.

A 2010 RAND National Defense Research Institute paper found Defense Department spending from 2000-08 increased from $266 million to $625 million for enlistment bonuses and from $891 million to $1.4 billion for selective re-enlistment.

The bonuses were instituted as the Army and Marine Corps struggled to maintain manpower in Iraq and Afghanistan and were earmarked for those taking assignments difficult to fill. Student loan repayments also were offered.

The Sacramento Bee reported in 2010 the California National Guard misspent $100 million of the bonus money. Master Sgt. Toni Jaffe, who headed the program, pleaded guilty to making $15 million in false claims and was sentenced to 30 months in prison.

According to the Bee, Jaffe single-handedly processed 8,600 payments during a 16-month period in 2007-08 with very little oversight. Most student loan repayments were drawn from money designated for combat vets, but a large portion went to Guard members who hadnt served a day at war, including captains and majors.

Among the most notable largesse:

Capt. Bruce Corum, a chiropractor, received $83,000, including $63,000 (over the $10,000 limit for the program) for student loans taken out long before being eligible for repayment. Jaffe added a $20,000 bonus, but Corum was unqualified because of his lack of required job skills.

Capt. Teressa Vaughn, a licensed cosmetologist, recruiter and chaplain candidate, received student loan repayments of $51,800 despite similar problems, according to the Bee. She got a $30,000 bonus despite being ineligible because of a lack of proper job experience.

Capt. Robert Couture, a fellow recruiter, received $51,000 in student loan repayments. The contract to certify eligibility wasnt on file, he received more than the maximum benefit and he didnt qualify due to his rank.

The scandal initially was considered war profiteering by high-ranking officers who never left California, but many of those having their checks garnished were lower-ranking members who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Wed be more than happy to absolve these people of their debts, Maj. Gen. Matthew Beevers, deputy commander of the California National Guard, told the Times. We just cant do it. Wed be breaking the law.

The claws were retracted Wednesday.

Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter ordered the Pentagon to stop seeking repayment of the bonuses from those California National Guard members who served overseas and to develop a streamlined process by New Years Day to help the troops get relief from repayment obligations.

Carter said the aim was to put as little burden as possible on any soldier who received an improper payment through no fault of his or her own while respecting our important obligation to the taxpayer.

Indeed, it would be deplorable to victimize Guard members because of the actions of deceitful or bumbling recruiters. Instead, we owe them a debt of gratitude for stepping up when the nation desperately needed brave men and women to serve in some of the most dangerous places on the planet.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. Inventor and Executive-Director of Open-Root Louis Pouzin received Presidential Award of Armenia 2016 for contribution to global IT sector. We pay a special attention to high technological and innovative solutions, and development of knowledge-based economy and in this context we attach great importance to the projects implemented by public-private sector cooperation. I am convinced that the award for the contribution to global IT sector will raise Armenias reputation as a country that has announced IT sector a priority branch of economic development, reads the congratulatory statement of Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan.

President of the Award Committee Armen Gevorgyan told the reporters that the award ceremony has become a good and important tradition and all the awardees are good friends of Armenia. Years will pass and legends of world prominence will come to Armenia to receive the award, who will raise the reputation of Armenia as a country relying on science, he said.

Global Award of the President of the Republic of Armenia for Outstanding Contribution to Humanity through IT (Global IT Award) was established by the July 6, 2009 Presidential decree. The Award consists of a medal, a certificate and a trophy

 Preliminary selection of the candidates nominated for the Global IT Award is conducted by the Award Committee,

 Winners are selected by the Selection Panel,

 The Award is financed based on the cooperation agreement between Hayastan All-Armenian Fund, Synopsys Armenia CJSC and a sponsor.

Louis Pouzin has acquired an international reputation as an expert in computer communications and networks. Most of his career has been devoted to the design and implementation of computer systems, such as CTSS, the first large time sharing system at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, or the CYCLADES computer network and its datagram packet switching network, from which TCP/IP was derived.

Besides his experience leading teams of top professionals, he is known internationally for his participation in early network standardization activities within IFIP, ISO and CCITT, and his numerous publications, many of which have become educational material in network courses. As a lecturer, he is especially appreciated for presenting complex subjects in clear and understandable terms.

He graduated from Ecole Polytechnique in Paris. He is past chairman of IFIP-TC-6 (data communications). He has published more than 80 articles and a book on computer networks. Among awards he has received: IFIP Silver Core, ACM SIGCOMM, IEEE Internet, and French Legion d'Honneur.

Presently he is Project Director with EUROLINC, an association promoting the use of native languages on the Internet.
ORAN  Five people were injured in a crash near Oran on Wednesday.

The Fayette County Sheriffs Office took a 911 report of the two-vehicle accident at the intersection of Iowa Highway 3 and County Road V-68.

Deputies said a white 2010 Ford Fusion driven by Nathan I. Gebel, 39, of Lansing, had failed to yield to a 2001 Chevy pickup truck driven by Steven D. Chase, 58, of Waterloo.

Gebel and his passenger, Leonard W. Graves Jr., 66, of Decorah, were transported by ambulance to Sumner Memorial Hospital for their nonlife-threatening injuries. Chases two passengers, Jerry Lee Derifield, 40, of Waterloo, and David S. Chase, 56, of Waterloo, were taken to Mercy Hospital in Oelwein. Steven Chase was taken to UnityPoint Health-Allen Hospital in Waterloo with nonlife-threatening injuries.

Gebel will be cited for failure to yield to a vehicle on the right, deputies said.

Shooting victim

is identified

WATERLOO  Police continue to investigate a Wednesday morning shooting that injured a Waterloo man.

William Frazier Barnes Jr., 35, was driving in the area of Willow and Beech streets shortly before 9 a.m. when someone in another vehicle opened fire, according to the police report.

Barnes was shot in the leg. He continued driving and reached the area of Nicholas Street where a friend called police. Paramedics took him to UnityPoint Health-Allen Hospital with injuries that arent considered life threatening.

His vehicle was found on South View Drive with at least five bullet holes in the drivers side, a flat rear drivers side tire and a broken drivers window.

No arrests have been made in the shooting.

Arrest made in burglary string

CEDAR FALLS  A man has been arrested in connection with a string of burglaries on College Hill.

Brendon Earl Shaw, 19, of 2204 Franklin St., was arrested on complaints of three counts of third degree burglary, one count of first-degree criminal mischief, two counts of criminal mischief in the second degree and one count of criminal mischief in the third degree.

On Oct. 7 police responded to three burglaries in the College Hill area  Social House, 2208 College St.; Little Bigs, 2210 College St. and Suds Bar, 2223 1/2 College St.

Several thousand dollars damage was done to Social House; with similar damage at Suds. Damage also was done to Little Bigs, under construction, with several tubs of concrete filler taken and used to damage sidewalks outside.

Shaw was arrested after police viewed surveillance video.

Felon arrested

on gun charge

WATERLOO  Police have arrested a Waterloo man who was working as a security guard.

According to authorities, Jamodd Amaul Sallis, 36, is prohibited from handling firearms because of convictions for weapons and credit card fraud.

But he entered into a contract to provide armed guard services for a Hudson farm and told police he was head of security at a La Porte Road tavern after parole workers told him he couldnt work in the security field.

On Wednesday, Sallis was arrested for felon in possession of a firearm, carrying weapons and impersonating a peace officer. He was later released from jail.

He allegedly told a person at the farm in October he was a police officer and indicated he had authority to kill people who came onto the property. He showed a badge, court records state.

Sallis also showed a woman at the farm how to use his .40-caliber handgun and told her he would transfer his police powers to her when he left the property, according to court records.

On Tuesday, authorities searched his home at 2085 Howard Ave. and found a gold and silver badge labeled concealed weapons permit, a silver security guard badge and a silver security officer badge, records state.

At the time of his security jobs, Sallis was on parole after being released from prison in December 2014, according to the Iowa Department of Corrections.

In April 2016 parole officers turned down his request to work security at a Waterloo bar and grill because it wasnt considered acceptable employment, according to court records.

Farm owners told parole officials they werent aware Sallis was under supervision. He was paid $20 an hour.

Man accused of stealing badge

CHARLES CITY  A man accused of stealing a police badge from a plaque in the lobby of the Charles City Police Department has been arrested.

Isaia Weber, 33, of Charles City, was arrested Wednesday for misdemeanor theft and criminal mischief.

Charles City Police Chief High Anderson said Weber is suspected of taking the badge from the Shelly Trefz Award plaque sometime last week.

He said the award is given out periodically to those who have exemplified behavior that would greatly be advantageous to law enforcement.

Officers recovered the badge Wednesday afternoon while searching a home in the 200 block of First Avenue. Weber was arrested at a different residence earlier that afternoon on 10th Avenue.

Police served a total of four search warrants at the two residences as a result of the case. In addition to the badge, police say they also recovered guns, drugs and drug-related items.

Anderson wouldnt say why Weber was at the police department, but said it wasnt for a police-related matter.

Woman arrested

for forgery

MAYNARD  A Maynard woman is facing charges following an investigation into stolen checks.

On Wednesday, the Fayette County Sheriffs Office arrested Jordan N. Nehl, 28, for stealing checks from numerous victims and forging those checks in various locations for cash and numerous other items.

The amount of loss to all the victims totaled more than $3,000, and the criminal conduct was over a month in time. Nehl was charged with ongoing criminal conduct, a class B felony.

This is an ongoing investigation and more victims and amount of money lost could increase, deputies said.
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Site licence submitted for Hungary's Paks II project

28 October 2016

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The Hungarian Atomic Energy Authority announced today that MVM Paks II has submitted a site licence application for two new units it plans to build at the Paks site.

Paks currently comprises four Russian-supplied VVER-440 pressurized water reactors, which started up between 1982 and 1987. An inter-governmental agreement signed in early 2014 would see Russian enterprises and their international sub-contractors supply two VVER-1200 reactors at Paks, as well as a Russian state loan of up to 10.0 billion ($11.2 billion) to finance 80% of the project.

The project reached another important milestone in late September, with the receipt of an environmental licence. Attila Aszodi, the government commissioner responsible for Paks II, told World Nuclear News then that attainment of the licence confirms the project meets the environmental requirements of both Hungary and those of the European Union. Once the site and environmental licences have been issued, the construction licence application can be prepared, he added.

The European Commission has been examining until recently two matters related to Paks II - procurement and whether funding of the project amounts to state aid.

Construction work would start in 2018, but when exactly depends, Aszodi said, on the conditions the European Commission attaches to its approval of the project. Hungary has had the Commission's approval to spend the last two years working on licensing, he added.

Researched and written

by World Nuclear News

Related topics
CEBRA has unveiled images for a new cultural attraction focusing on Greenland and the Arctic to revive the context with amorphous form, inspired from Arctic's landscape. An ambitious cultural project was revealed at a conference recently held in Halsns Municipality in Northern Zealand in Denmark.

A sketch project created by CEBRA architecture proposed a 3,000 square metre cultural attraction, Arctic, located on an island in Hundested harbour. Knud Rasmussen, Denmarks most famous polar researcher, has made a significant contribution to knowledge and understanding of Greenland and the Arctic.

In spite of the historic connection and his efforts to bring Greenland into the Danish consciousness, there is no museum or centre that communicates these relations in a historic, contemporary and future perspective. That is what makes Arctic so relevant.



''The idea is to create a place that currently does not exist in Denmark. A place where Greenland, the Arctic and Denmark are physically linked together, and which can provide visitors with experiences that promote a better understanding of the connections between Denmark, Greenland and the Arctic. A place where we can explore Greenland and the Arctic and where Knud Rasmussens travel descriptions and stories can be expanded to include the history of the whole of the Arctic region  today and in the future,'' explains Sren La Cour Jensen, Senior Curator and daily manager of Knud Rasmussens house in Hundested. Just consider themes such as international politics, climate change, new shipping routes and raw materials,'' he continues.

Arctic will be the very first centre for the Danish Arctic debate that works with all Arctic themes in the cross-field between the past, present and future. The ambition of Arctic is to be a nationally and internationally renowned attraction that brings together activities, experiences, communication, learning and research  with Greenland, the Arctic and the relationship to Denmark as the central point, and using Knud Rasmussens life and work as an inspiration.



''The architecture is inspired by the Arctic forces of nature and the buildings with their rounded forms are designed to withstand this type of harsh climate,'' explains architect and CEBRA partner Carsten Primdahl.'' A building with sculptural, round forms and curved lines will stand as an iconic and culture-bearing attraction for the town. A cultural attraction that will show the beauty and significance of the Arctic landscape.''



The main architectonic form consists of three interlinked domes, as well as the outdoor areas. The building is located on the existing pier which is opened up as an island. The form of the island is an integrated part of Arctics program and activities. Its use results in an architectonic expression designed to make Greenland and the Arctic visible. At the same time, the white domes, soft forms of the landscape and the curved lines around the building will establish clear associations to a landscape of Arctic snow and ice.



The next step in the process is to further qualify the design and content with a broad group of stakeholders. In the spirit of Knud Rasmussen, the Arctic and Greenland will now be brought to life and their stories told in a contemporary context  ''Adventure waits for he who understands how to seize it,'' quote Knud Rasmussen.

Project Facts

Client: Halsns Municipality

Location: Hundested harbour, Halsns, Denmark

Size: 3,000 m2

Year: 2016 -

All images  CEBRA

> via CEBRA
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian leadership tries to add or at least preserve the existing level of exports, as well as ensure higher level of domestic consumption, Chairman of the Standing Committee on Financial-Credit and Budgetary Affairs of the parliament of Armenia Gagik Minasyan told the reporters on October 28. He noted that exports from Armenia have significantly risen while imports have declined. If in the past the ratio of import and export was 3:1, now it is less than 2:1. If we manage to add or at least preserve the current dynamics of exports by economic growth measures, as well as ensure a higher level of domestic consumption, we will record positive developments, Armenpress reports Minasyan saying.

Referring to the Cabinets Action Plan, he mentioned that the existing realities demand deep-rooted reforms. The Chairman of the Standing Committee noted that the Cabinets plan provides for easing the tax burden on self-employed people, without ruling out the possibility of making them tax exempt.

Gagik Minasyan did not speak about the state budget 2017, saying that discussions will kick off from Monday and the answers to all questions will be given. He only stated that sees no danger for default.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. The delegation led by the Vice President of the National Assembly of Armenia Eduard Sharmazanov which is in the Republic of Artsakh (NKR) on a working visit met with the President of the National Assembly of Artsakh Ashot Ghulyan on October 28. The parties highlighted the active interactions between the parliaments of the two Armenian republics at the meeting.

As Armenpress was informed from the press service of the National Assembly of Armenia, Eduard Sharmazanov stated that the issue of a peaceful settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict is the goal of all the Armenian parliamentarians. We have to present the nature of Nagorno Karabakh issue, the inevitability of the realization of the right to self-determination of the people of Artsakh, as well as severely condemn the un-constructive and criminal policies of Azerbaijan maximally vigorously at all the international platforms. I want to assure you that the parliamentary delegations of Armenia will spare no efforts to defend the rightful struggle of the people of Artsakh in all platforms. International recognition of Artsakh is our priority issue, the Vice President of the Armenian parliament said.
Oct 28, 2016 | By Benedict

Florida-based metal 3D printing company Atlantic Precision Inc. has been bought by Precision Castparts Corp., an Oregon-based diversified manufacturer of complex metal components and products. Previous owner Generation Growth Capital Inc. bought Atlantic Precision just two years ago.

Atlantic Precision, based in Port St. Lucie, Florida, is a metal 3D printing specialist with a foothold in the aerospace industry. The company offers a range of services, including direct metal laser sintering, for rapid prototyping or production. In October 2014, Generation Growth Capital invested in Atlantic Precision to bulk up the Florida companys development division. Two years on, and Generation Growth has decided to pass on the 3D printing specialist to a new buyer.

According to Generation Growth, Atlantic Precision experienced rapid growth in its core markets during the two-year spell. "When GGC was first introduced to the team at API, we recognized their initial efforts in additive manufacturing could be a real game changer for prototyping and manufacturing in the aerospace markets, said Generation Growth managing director John Reinke.

3D printing facilities at Atlantic Precision Inc.

"API represented a model investment for GGC, added Cory Nettles, founder and managing director of Generation Growth. We were able to provide capital and a business support system that helped the company execute on an aggressive investment and growth strategy.

Precision Castparts Corp., buyer of Atlantic Precision, is a world leader in structural investment castings, forged components, and airfoil castings for aircraft engines and industrial gas turbines. The company is based in Portland, Oregon, and lists Airbus, Boeing, GE, and Rolls-Royce amongst its many high-profile clients.

In addition to its legacy operations, Precision Castparts has grown its business on the back of several acquisitions of smaller businesses which complement its own vision. With a focus on aerospace and power markets, acquisition candidates are selected in accordance with our core capabilities: production of complex components for critical applications; a direct relationship with the original equipment manufacturer; process control; similarity in metals or technologies; and improvement of underperforming assets, the company explains.

Atlantic Precision Inc. location

Since Precision Castparts currently specializes in casting and forging, the acquisition of an additive manufacturing venture like Atlantic Precision could mark the beginning of a new focus area for the company. Atlantic Precisions experience in the aerospace sector will no doubt help aid its interactions with the new parent company.

Atlantic Precision currently offers DMLS 3D printing services in Inconel 625, Inconel 718, Cobalt Chrome, Aluminum, and Titanium, though other materials are available on request. The company uses an EOS Metal Laser-sintering system EOSINT M280 with 400W Laser (x3) and an EOS Metal Laser-sintering system EOSINT M400 with 1000W Laser, and also offers other services such as inspection, welding, and CNC machining.

Posted in 3D Printer Company

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Oct 28, 2016 | By Alec

Over the past few decades, the attitudes towards fellow animals have changed dramatically, something which can be seen in the life of Tacomas Ivan the shopping mall gorilla. He spent decades as an attraction in the B&I Store in Tacoma, where he touched the hearts and minds of generations of visitors. But as our collective attitude towards animals changed (something Ivan certainly contributed to), the western lowland gorilla moved to Zoo Atlanta in 1994. When dying at the ripe old age of 50 a few years ago, Ivan received such an outpouring of love, that Form 3D Foundry and various charities have now immortalized the gorilla in a bronze statue made with 3D printing.

In many ways, Ivans story reflects how we as a society have all become aware of animal welfare, but it is also a heartwarming one. After all, its doesnt happen every day that a gorilla receives a 600-pound bronze tribute, but then Ivan nestled himself into the hearts and minds of countless people from the Tacoma region. Posthumously, Ivan will now be served as a focus point in one of the largest urban parks in the United States, the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium in Tacoma, and will forever remind visitors of how important it is to help our fellow primates. And in a way, he will actually be there personally, as some of his ashes (and thus his DNA) are mixed into the bronze.

Ivan himself was brutally caught by wildlife traders in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo, eventually being sold to the owners of the circus-themed B&I Circus Store shopping center (now the &I Public Marketplace). He spent a total of three decades living a solitary life there, but still managed to captivate a huge audience and became a hero of the community. It would seem that everyone living in western Washington from the 1960s through the early 1990s knew Ivan, even those who had never encountered the silverback in person at a shabby shopping center on South Tacoma Way, reporter Matthew Hickman from MNN recalled.

Living in 40 by 40 foot cement and steel enclosure with painted jungle murals, his life reflected cultural attitudes of the 1960s  a caged gorilla in a shopping mall was exciting, not depressing. It also gave Tacoma an identity, something the city was famous for, and huge crowds visited Ivan and the rest of the malls strange menagerie (also including a pair of chimpanzees and a baby elephant).

Wrong on so many levels, Ivan was part of owners .L. Bradshaw and E.L. "Earl" Irwin concept of amusement park meets store. Doing little more than finger painting, watching television and interacting with his trainers, Ivans life was quite lonely. He was like a kid, always watching people. He loved scaring them, Earl Irwin's son, Ron, recalled. But there was something more. When you looked in his eyes, he was looking back at you. He understood what was going on.

As the years passed, the novelty of the gorilla began to wear off as people became more concerned about the fate of endangered species. Even various activist groups began to campaigning for Ivan to be transferred to a zoo, while B&I began struggling financially. A National Geographic documentary also focused on Ivans plight, and eventually the 30-something gorilla was transferred to Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle in 1994, moving to Zoo Atlanta a year later. While he would continue to enjoy the company of humans, the western lowland gorilla quickly felt at home in the spacious living conditions of his new habitat. In August 2012, the famous gorilla died during surgery at the respectable age of 50.

While Ivan thus ended his life in dignity on the other side of the country, the gorilla is now coming back to Tacoma as a statue  though not at the mall where he once lived. Even the descendants of Earl Irwin did not feel it right to place the statue at the mall, which is now animal free. Its not only a statue, its a cause, grandson Earl Borgert said. I believe all our lives have a purpose, and Ivans life may have been to speak about his species.

The 6-foot-tall statue, which has just been unveiled, has been placed at the entrance to Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium. The statue will further be surrounded with informative panels, detailing Ivans unique story and the challenges faced by his species. As of right now, around 125,000 western lowland gorillas still live in Western equatorial Africa  faced by constant poaching and habitat loss. While the Tacoma Zoo doesnt actually have gorillas in its care, president Eric Hanberg believes that the statue can play an important role nonetheless. Its location outside one of the Northwests premier zoos, a place dedicated to the care and conservation of endangered species, reminds us all of the need to cherish the animals that inhabit the earth with us, he said.

The decision to actually build this statue was made by local artist Douglas Granum, who used an iconic News Tribune photo of Ivan holding a flower for his model  though hundreds of other photos were also used to capture every detail. The Portland-based Form 3D Foundry was found more than willing to build the statue, as Ivan also played a significant role in the childhood of CEO Rob Arps  a Tacoma native. There are a myriad of renderings of great apes from King Kong to beloved Ivan, and I wanted something that was kind and beautiful and really showed his spirit, he said of the project.

To actually cover the expenses, the Beloved Ivan Project nonprofit organization was established, also with the goal of increasing awareness and inspire action to preserve the habitat for Western lowland gorillas in the Congo, Africa. More than$247,000 was gathered, mostly from foundations. The foundation also sought to raise an additional $20,000 through Indiegogo crowdfunding.

Whats more, the modeling process could not have been such a success without 3D printing. All in all, 110 3D printed segments were made to build a mold for Ivan  of which the head made a huge impression on onlookers. A 20,000-cubic-inch tub of pulverized acrylic powder was used to 3D print all the parts. The process has been ongoing for nearly three years, with much time going to capturing the subtleties of Ivans facial features and hands in 3D. After 3D printing, the parts were assembled and cast in bronze by Two Ravens Studio.

As Arps revealed, 3D printing and digital sculpting have already made it much easier and more efficient to design this statue. Im able to do things I never could have done before. Were all in a choreographic mode to make this thing occur. When sculpting with clay, the artist is limited in what kind of changes can be made. With digital sculpting, changes can be made without affecting the overall project, Arps said. We can solve a series of problems very quickly, where before it would have taken months.

To make the statue even more iconic, Granum revealed that they actually mixed in portions of the gorillas ashes into the 35 bronze crucibles that were poured. [its] living being who shared attributes with us all, the artist explained. A wide range of people touched by Ivan were present at the unveiling ceremony, including Irwin family members and primate specialists from Zoo Atlanta who cared for the silverback at the Zoo. Ivan was a unique and special gorilla with a strong and distinctive personality, assistant curator of primates at Zoo Atlanta Jodi Carrigan recalled. His legacy is tremendous, and its a legacy that will always live to benefit his species.

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Scott Korb in the LA Review of Books:

In her nonfiction, Robinson often confronts the gap between herself and her fellow Christians. Her 2006 essay Onward, Christian Liberals draws those lines in language that is, from the start, as confrontational as it is introspective. She begins: I realize that in attempting to write on the subject of personal holiness, I encounter interference in my mind between my own sense of the life of the soul and understandings that are now pervasive and very little questioned. My own students have taken a great deal of time figuring out what she means in this opening line; at a secular university, theyre often less comfortable than Robinson discussing personal holiness and the life of the soul. Robinsons initial obliqueness with regard to her opponents is also cause for some confusion. Nevertheless, she eventually sums up those pervasive and little-questioned understandings quite clearly and with distinctive good humor  she appreciates a joke as much as anybody  by contrasting them with the teachings of Christ:

[T]he supposed Christian revival of today has given something very like unlimited moral authority to money, though Jesus did say (and I think a literal interpretation is appropriate here if anywhere), Woe to you who are rich! (Luke 6:24) If this seems radical, dangerous, unfair, un-American, then those who make such criticisms should at least have the candor to acknowledge that their quarrel is with Jesus.

Robinson approaches a related gap between herself and other Christians in a later essay, Wondrous Love, from 2010  although by this time her tone has grown somewhat doleful: [T]he fact is that we differ on this crucial point, on how we are to see the figure of Christ.

Taking up, for instance, the awareness that Christs preaching (which was itself a new understanding of traditional faith) would divide families, she rereads whats been called the sword of the Lord passage from Matthews gospel  Do not think I have come to bring peace on earth: I have come not to bring peace, but a sword  as an inevitable and regrettable notion, for him, in his time. In the narrative as I understand it, Robinson concludes, his words would have been heavy with sorrow  a bit like hers here, a bit like Obamas. Those who would want to use this passage from Matthew  both historically, and even still today  as evidence that Christ promoteddivision, denunciation, or murder, for the sake of Christianity, see him differently than Robinson does.

More here.
Charlotte Higgins in The Guardian:

Paul Beatty may be the first American to win the Man Booker prize, after a rule change three years ago that made authors of any nationality eligible for the 50,000 award, so long as they were writing in English and published in the UK. But he very nearly wasnt published in Britain at all. Beatty calls his fourth novel a hard sell for UK publishers. His rumbustious, lyrically poetic novel was turned down, his agent confirms, by no fewer than 18 publishers. And then, finally, a small independent called Oneworld  founded by a husband-and-wife team in 1986  took it up. The company is celebrating the unusual achievement of a second consecutive Man Booker win, because it also published Marlon Jamess A History of Seven Killings.

Its weird for me, says Beatty, who is 54. The morning after the night before, the New York-based, Los Angeles-born writer is slightly dazed, somewhat short of sleep and good-naturedly overcoming his reluctance to talk about his work. I think its a good book. I was like, Why? Whats all that about? I would be uncomfortable guessing [why I couldnt get a publishing deal]. I would hurt myself. It would be like, Really? Still? I guess they thought the book wouldnt sell. He wont be drawn, but the implication is that he suspects publishers may have found the material too harsh, too unconventional, too unfamiliar  and, conceivably, beneath all that, in some undefinable way too black. It is certainly a book in which one gasps frequently  amid deeply uncomfortable laughter and, at times, tears. Nothing is sacred in The Sellout, in which the books narrator (surname Me) decides to reinstate segregated schools and reluctantly takes on a slave in his home district of Dickens, Los Angeles. All things, no matter how piously regarded, up to and including the US civil rights movement, are there to be punctured by Beattys fierce and fizzing wit.

More here.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. A meeting between the Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Armenia Timur Urazayev and heads and editors-in-chief of leading Armenian news agencies took place at the Embassy of Kazakhstan in Armenia on October 28. The participants discussed the existing level of cooperation between Armenia and Kazakhstan in the sphere of information, as well as exchanged ideas over the current international informational trends.

The Ambassador congratulated the mass media representatives on the 25th anniversary of Armenias independence. The Ambassador spotlighted the rapidly rising role of mass media in the contemporary world and introduced the international projects implemented by the initiative of Kazakhstan.

Armenpress reports mass media representatives touched upon the features of informational policies and the priorities of their activities. It was suggested to expand cooperation with the Embassy of Kazakhstan by covering events important for the social-political and expert circles of both countries, create a reciprocal and reliable information source and continue the organization of Kazakhstan press tour on different themes.

The heads and editors-in-chief of Armenian TV and radio companies, as well as agencies called for activation of informational cooperation. Particularly, the director of Armenpress news agency, the editors-in-chief of 168 hours, Komsomolskaya Pravda Armenia, and the editor of Arka agency offered to carry out exchange of information and foster opening of TVs for presenting necessary information to the citizens of both countries.

The Ambassador of Kazakhstan urged the participants of the meeting to actively make use of the platform of Eurasian media forum for conducting exchange of information and establishing relations with foreign partners.

The participants of the meeting expressed readiness to make efforts for objective coverage of events in Armenia and Kazakhstan, which will foster the preservation of trust between the two states and a closer cooperation.
When Bryce McGovern proposed to Jennifer Roemer, he opted for the darkly dramatic. The couple was carving Halloween pumpkins in 2009 when he pulled a faux bloody finger stump sporting a diamond engagement ring out of a jack-o'-lantern.

At first, all Jennifer saw was the plastic digit. I said: 'that is so stupid. It doesn't look real,'" she said. And then I saw that he was shaking and he got down on one knee." When she took another look, she got his meaning, and didn't think it was stupid at all.





The pair met in Florida while he was in art school. After he landed a job at DreamWorks, she would meet up with him every year at Christmas when she came to the Bay Area to visit her family. They were the best of friendsuntil 2008, when they became something more. I was moving back to the Bay Area, the timing was right, and we were ready for a change," she says.

When it came time for the wedding, the pair opted for a setting that blended their personal aesthetics. He likes things that are simple and authentic," Jennifer says. I like things that are a bit more elegant and decorated." The Tiburon venues of Old St. Hilary's Church and the Corinthian Yacht Club provided the perfect feminine-meets-rustic backdrop for the event. We loved the wooden interior of the church," says Jennifer. It reminded us a bit of the Kill Bill churchand that appealed to Bryce's dark, edgy side."

The July 30th ceremony took place in the little church perched on a hill over Tiburon. In the vows that they wrote, she promised to love him forever and he swore to give her all he could give from that day forward and declared to her and all gathered: You're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."

After they were pronounced man and wife, everyone went down the slope to the Corinthian Yacht Club, another venue with wood paneling, but also with fantastic views of the water. But perhaps the most striking sight was the desert table, crafted by their friends Greg and Christina Mandell. The spread for the food-loving pair included artisan chocolates, cupcakes, truffles, jellies and chocolate marshmallows.

But desert had to wait until a dinner that included sea bass, chicken roulade, and peas and carrotsas in Forrest Gump's famous quote: We go together like peas and carrots"was finished.





And, despite what the proposal might lead you to believe, the best part of the wedding wasn't scary at all: We loved seeing our friends and family from across the country all in one place," says Jennifer.

Ceremony site: Old St. Hilary's

Reception site: Corinthian Yacht Club

DJ: Quantum Music Event Planners

Pastry Chef: Greg Mandell, with Christina Mandell: gregthebaker@gmail.com

Photography: Nightingale Photography

Makeup: Lisa Ribar: lisaribar@gmail.com










Winchester Mystery House in San Jose is everyone's favorite haunted house, where candlelit tours and all the lore suggest that you might run into ghosts.

But here's the rub: According to a book by a local historian, the mysteries" that attract thousands of people each year were manufactured by a family of 1920s-era carnies who first leased and then later purchased the property. In her tellall book, Captive of the Labyrinth, Mary Jo Ignoffo lays out her research and findings, and today she shares the biggest deceptions surrounding one of California's top tourist attractions.

1. The house was under construction for 38 years.

Here's the history in a nutshell: Sarah Winchester, the wife of William Wirt Winchester and heiress to the Winchester Rifle fortune, moved to San Jose in 1886 and began building a housea very large house whose rooms numbered 160 at the time of her death (although before the 1906 earthquake, it was much larger). Five months after she died the Brown family, long-time carnival workers who rented the house, held a public tour and kept on going, eventually buying the property and making it one of the state's top tourist attractions. They did not start the rumorsmany began while Sarah was alivebut according to Ignoffo, they embellished the stories wildly and made up new ones in order to sell tickets. The legend as reported on the Winchester Mystery House website: A medium told Sarah that she was being haunted by spirits of people killed by the famous gun, and she would die unless she started building a house and never ceased. According to the website, construction lasted day and night for 38 years. "Not true," says Ignoffo. "Winchester's own letters explain that she sent workers away for months at a time." Requests for an interview with officials at the Winchester Mystery House have not been answered at this time.





2. Sarah Winchester was ashamed of the Winchester Rifle legacy.

This photo shows a small Winchester gun museum contained within the house. Tour guides say that Sarah felt consuming guilt over deaths caused by the firearms. Ignoffo suggests we are viewing those stories with 21st century eyes, and that, at that time in history, shame would have been far from Sarah's mind. "People associated with the company and those who wrote about it most often looked at it as an American success story," she says. "A sense of pride was more likely than one of guilt. It is highly unlikely that Sarah Winchester felt responsible or guilty for the manufacture of firearmsand she did not hesitate to invest and spend the money she earned from them."





3. Sarah Winchester constructed weird features in order to confuse spirits.

The website makes much of the architectural "oddities" of the house, such as doors and flights of stairs leading into walls, and how they were supposedly built to confuse vengeful ghosts. Ignoffo says there is a more natural explanationthe 1906 earthquake. She says that her research uncovered the fact that there was massive damage to the house in the trembler and that Sarah never fully repaired it. The stairs and doors that lead to "nowhere" are merely where damage has been sealed off or where landings have fallen away. "After the earthquake she moved to another house," Ignoffo explains. "She did not want to make the necessary repairsit had nothing to do with spirits."





4. Sarah Winchester had seances in a secret room.

A highlight of a tour at the Winchester Mystery House is the seance room, where a guide will tell visitors that Sarah had regular sessions with the spirits. Ignoffo again says this is a case of modern eyes and tastes viewing yesterday's practices. At the time Sarah lived, the Spiritualism movement was a popular one, but Ignoffo says there is no evidence that Sarah particpated or held seances in her home. Even if she did, the historian says the idea of a special seance room for nightly sessions is farfetched. "A seance was a social affair back then. To suggest, as tour guides do, that Sarah held solo seances in an interior closet of the house misrepresents the social nature of the ritual," she says. "If she wanted to hold a seance, she would have held it in the front parlor, as Spiritulists did." She adds that there are no mentions of a seance room in the house before a 1928 propaganda article, published well after Sarah died.





5. Sarah Winchester was obsessed with the number 13.

The website details the occurrences of 13 in the house: 13 robe hooks in the seance room, 13 panes of glass in several windows, a stairway with 13 steps, just to name a few. Ignoffo says these facts are used as evidence to prove the woman was ruled by superstition. "Refrences to the number 13 were added after Sarah's death, according to workers at the time," she says. "The 13 hooks were added about five years ago."





6. Sarah Winchester spied on her employees.

Under a section of the website titled "Mrs. Winchester the Spy" it is said that some employees believed Sarah could walk through walls and closed doors. The text claims Sarah had elaborate spying features built into the house. Ignoffo says: "There is no evidence she spied on her workers. Would a suspicious employer retain the same workers for decades? Would she name them in her will? Would she buy them homes? Would they name children after her? All these things happened."





7. The house looks today as it did then.

"The house that Sarah Winchester built stood seven stories at its highest," says Ignoffo. "The upper floors toppled in the earthquake of 1906. She did not replace the upper stories. Today's house looks much smaller than the original."





8. Sarah Winchester snubbed the President of the United States.

The story goes that Theodore Roosevelt attempted to visit Sarah at home in 1903, but was turned away. This is used as an example of her alleged weirdness. Ignoffo says that rumors likely started about Sarah because in life she was extremely private, refused to address gossip and did not engage much in the community. Ignoffo says this infamous presidential visit never occurred. "Eyewitness accounts state that the President's carriage never stopped at the Winchester place," she says. "Furthermore, Winchester had rented a house near San Francisco that year to prepare for the wedding of her niece. She was not at home."





9. The house is publicly owned.

"The Winchester Mystery House is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places, although the documentation is terribly flawed," says Ignoffo. "You are led to believe it is a National Landmark, and many people believe that that means it is publicly owned or a non-profit. The house is privately owned and is a for-profit enterprise." In fact, the historian says that the house is still owned by the decendants of the Brown family, and they reside in the Bay Area. On a recent tour, when asked who owns the house, a tour guide answered by saying, "I don't know. And when we are hired, we sign a document that makes us swear we will not discuss it or look it up."





10. After her death, no one stepped forward to tell the truth.

"Former neighbors and workers, along with two young men who were raised on the Winchester ranch, attempted to tell the press and the public about the interesting and good woman that Mrs. Winchester was," says Ignoffo. "Their stories fell on deaf ears, and successful Mystery House marketing over the years has made it extremely difficult to find a trace of truth about the real person."

---

This post was originaly published in 2013.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. Anahit Adamyan and Mary Vardanyan will represent Armenia at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with their song Tarber (Different), Armenpress was informed from the Public TV Company of Armenia. The song and the artists were selected through an internal selection by the creative team of the Public TV Company of Armenia.

Tarber is about love and music - powers that unite us all despite our differences. Just like that, Mary and Anahit, 2 exceptional young ladies with different styles and personalities are united through their passion for music.

Tarber was composed by Nick Egibyan, lyrics were written by Avet Barseghyan.

I was very inspired by Mary and Anahit. The song was already creating itself in my mind, when I met them for the first time - says composer Nick Egibyan, - As soon as we started rehearsing, I realized that the song fits them perfectly. Its very interesting, how music can unite 2 completely different artists, with different vocals and styles. I think we have created something very special!

Lyricist Avet Barseghyan says he had several ideas about the theme of the song, but he knew from the beginning that he should highlight the differences of both artists. After several discussions with our team, we decided that it would be interesting to present the girls just the way they are. Each of them have their unique style, their personality, and that is what they sing about. Mary is elegant and stylish, while Anahit loves to experiment with new looks and trends. But in the end it is their passion for music that unites them - says Avet.

Both Anahit and Mary were very excited during the shooting of Tarber music video.

I am really enjoying this process! We have created 2 different looks that highlight our differences, our personalities. It was a lot of fun to style fight with Anahit on the set! - says Mary.

Im sure people will love Tarber! The music video is very positive and colorful! I cant wait to perform with Mary in Malta. Im sure we are going to have a lot of fun and make new friends from all over the world! - says Anahit.
Indago Energy Ltd (ASX:INK) (OTCMKTS:POGLY) is an Australian listed company engaged in oil and gas exploration, development and production. Indago's project portfolio includes liquid rich producing assets together with substantial oil development and exploration acreage in the United States.

The Company's Exploration and Production focus is on high growth oil and gas projects offering scalability of production, cash flows and reserves. Indago currently has several producing projects together with a significant acreage position. The Company's immediate focus is the development of its Capitola Oil Project located in an active region of the Cline Shale resource play along the Eastern Shelf of the Permian Basin, Texas. The project's core development and exploitation opportunities are shallower multiple "stacked" sandstones and limestones to depths of 7,000 feet which are effectively produced from vertically drilled wells. Indago's value driven model is executed through exploiting shallower, well defined intervals with advanced completion and stimulation technology within known produced oil fields together with exposure to the emerging Cline Shale resource play.

Indago's shares are publicly traded on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX ticker: INK) and also as American Depositary Receipts on the OTCQX (ADR ticker: POGLY).
October 31, 2022 14:54

Armenias 2023 state budget envisages 35% increase in defense spending

According to the 2023 state budget of Armenia, the defense spending will comprise 506 billion drams which is 35% more than that of 2022, Minister of Finance Tigran Khachatryan said during the session of the parliamentary standing committees dedicated to the debate of the 2023 state budget draft.


Annual Report to Shareholders

Perth, Oct 28, 2016 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Alto Metals Ltd ( ASX:AME ) is pleased to provide its Annual Report 2016 to shareholders.



Introduction



Alto Metals Limited ( ASX:AME ) is an Australian public company which listed on the Australian Securities Exchange on the 20 December 2012 as Enterprise Uranium Limited ( ASX:ENU ). Between 2013 and 2014, uranium was the primary exploration target and a portfolio of projects prospective for sand hosted uranium deposits was assembled and explored.



During 2015, the Company commenced an active search for an advanced gold and/or base metals project. On 23 March 2016, an agreement was signed to purchase Sandstone Exploration Pty Ltd, the owner of the Sandstone Gold Project, located 600km northeast of Perth in Western Australia. Shareholders subsequently approved a company name change from Enterprise Uranium Limited to Alto Metals Limited, and in June 2016 Alto completed the purchase of Sandstone Exploration Pty Ltd.



Alto presently has 144,475,415 shares on issue, 100% ownership of the Sandstone Gold Project and a small portfolio of uranium projects. The Company's immediate objective at Sandstone is to discover mineral resources containing at least one million ounces of gold, and to establish a profitable mining operation.



Alto has an experienced Board of Directors with extensive skills in exploration, mining, accounting, corporate governance and provision of corporate advice. The Company currently has 724 km2 under granted title at Sandstone for gold, and a further 945km2 under title for uranium at four prospects.



Corporate Objective & Strategy



The Company's primary objective is the "discovery and/or acquisition of projects with potential for plus million ounce gold deposits that can form the basis of a highly profitable mining company providing superior returns to Shareholders."



The key elements of the Company's strategy to achieve this objective are:



- the generation and/or identification of a number of highly prospective projects and prospects with potential for plus million ounce gold resources, and



- the application of best practice mineral exploration technology (with strong drilling and geophysics components) and the support of an experienced team of people with strong technical, management and leadership skills and a proven track record of discovery.



The Company's Sandstone Gold is located within the Archaean Yilgarn Craton, where infrastructure is reasonably good relative to other more remote parts of Australia.



Alto believes there is still potential to find major new plus million ounce gold deposits in areas of shallow cover in Western Australia. The Company makes extensive use of airborne geophysics to "see through" shallow cover and identify conceptual geological targets.



Directors' Review of Operations



During 2015, the Company commenced an active search for an advanced gold and/or base metals project in Australia. Following numerous project reviews and due diligence, an agreement was signed on 23 March 2016 to purchase Sandstone Exploration Pty Ltd, the owner of the Sandstone Gold Project, located 600km northeast of Perth in Western Australia.



Shareholders subsequently approved a company name change from Enterprise Uranium Limited to Alto Metals Limited, and in June 2016 Alto completed the purchase of Sandstone Exploration Pty Ltd. The Company's immediate objective at Sandstone is to discover mineral resources containing at least one million ounces of gold, and to establish a profitable mining operation.



Since the discovery of gold at the end of the 19th Century, the Sandstone Greenstone Belt has produced over 1.3 million ounces of gold from numerous underground and open pit mining operations. Of this, some 612,000 ounces was produced between 1994 and 2010 from the open-pit mining of shallow oxide ore by ASX listed companies Herald Resources Ltd and Troy Resources Ltd.



The numerous former open pits, prospects and gold occurrences acquired by Alto include Lord Nelson, Lord Henry, Havilah, Bull Oaks Reef, Vanguard, Ladybird, Maninga Marley, Sandstone North, Oroya, Tiger Moth, Musketeer, Piper and Bulchina.



Between 1994 and 2010, the focus was largely on exploring for and mining shallow oxide ore to feed the Herald/Troy Nunngarra Mill, at a time when the Australian dollar gold price was substantially lower than it is today. Alto considers that the robust Australian gold price and competitive cost environment will enable it to consider, following further exploration, several areas for early recommencement of mining.



Alto plans to mount a substantial exploration program at Sandstone, following the grant of the tenements in late September 2016. The immediate program will include Induced Polarisation (IP) surveys to detect sulphide mineralisation at depth (likely to be associated with gold mineralisation), detailed airborne magnetic surveys to map lithology, structure and alteration zones, and reverse circulation (RC) drilling. More extensive geophysical and drilling programs will be implemented in 2017, following the completion of the compilation and review of Alto's Sandstone database.



REVIEW OF OPERATIONS



At the start of the year, the Company held granted tenements and tenement applications over six project areas prospective for sand hosted "in situ recovery" style (ISR) and calcrete hosted uranium deposits in Western Australia. With the continuing low uranium price, the Company commenced the search for an advanced gold project in Western Australia, and reviewed a number of opportunities.



In late 2015, the Sandstone Gold Project was identified as an excellent exploration opportunity for the Company, and following a period of due diligence, a purchase agreement was signed with the vendors on 23 March 2016. The Group's corporate objective for this acquisition is the discovery of a mineral resource of at least one million ounces of gold, which would lead to the development of a mining operation.



The future of the Group's uranium landholdings is currently under review in light of the acquisition of the Sandstone Gold Project. The Company's core uranium projects have been retained under title pending the outcome of this review.



To view the annual report, please visit:

http://abnnewswire.net/lnk/DLOGUHZ7





About Alto Metals Ltd





Alto Metals Limited (ASX:AME) is a Western Australian based company and is focused on gold and uranium exploration in Australia. The Company's primary objective is to create shareholder wealth through discovery and development of a plus 1 million ounce gold deposit and ISR style uranium deposits.


Quarterly Activities Report

Brisbane, Oct 28, 2016 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Orocobre Limited ( ASX:ORE ) ( TSE:ORL ) ( OROCF:OTCMKTS ) is pleased to provide the company's latest Quarterly Activities Report.



HIGHLIGHTS



OLAROZ LITHIUM FACILITY (ORE 66.5%)



- Sales revenue of US$33.5 million; representing the first full quarter of commercial production and up 45% quarter on quarter



- Average FOB price received for the September quarter was up 24% from May/June 2016 to US$9,334/tonne. Cash operating costs were US$3,579/tonne resulting in strong operating margins



- September quarter production was 3,013 tonnes* with record monthly tonnage of 1,125 tonnes achieved in September



- Sales de Jujuy S.A. self funded a US$12.8 million principal and interest payment for the Mizuho project loan during the quarter



- The scoping study for the Olaroz Stage 2 expansion of 17,500 to 25,000 tonnes per annum lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) is complete, results are being compiled and will be released shortly



BORAX ARGENTINA



- Sales volume in the quarter was 11,940 tonnes, representing a 29% increase quarter on quarter and a 47% increase on the corresponding quarter last year, excluding sales of low value tincal ore



- Unaudited Earnings before Interest Tax Depreciation Amortisation and Forex ( ''EBITDAX'') breakeven, negatively affected by the commissioning of the modifications at the boric acid plant in Campo Quijano



- Tincalayu borax plant expansion and modifications completed in the previous quarter were fully commissioned and ramping up in production rate during the quarter. The changes at the Campo Quijano boric acid plant were completed in July and undergoing commissioning during the quarter. These modifications are expected to result in improved unit costs at both facilities



- Expansion studies to achieve increased production at Tincalayu commenced in the June quarter with a scope of 100-120,000 tonnes per annum borax decahydrate equivalent production and development of a circa 25,000 tonne integrated boric acid plant



CORPORATE



- As the Company now generates signficiant revenue and cash flow from production activities, the ASX has re-classified it a production company and as such it will no longer lodge an Appendix 5B. The company will disclose key financial performance indicators in this Quarterly Operations Report



- Orocobre has a strong cash position of US$32.2 million from a corporate perspective excluding restricted cash on hand (i.e. cash committed to Standby Letters of Credit (SBLC) at the end of the quarter)



- The Orocobre share price has been negatively impacted by a significant increase in short selling activity since late August, which now exceeds historical levels at more than 7% of issued capital. A significant portion of this has been bought by the Company's Top 20 shareholders



OLAROZ LITHIUM FACILITY



The Olaroz Lithium Facility is Orocobre's flagship project located in the Jujuy province of Argentina. Together with partners, Toyota Tsusho Corporation (TTC) and Jujuy Energia y Mineria Sociedad del Estado (JEMSE), Orocobre is now operating the first large scale lithium brine plant to be commissioned in approximately 20 years.



The Olaroz Lithium Facility joint venture is operated through Argentine subsidiary Sales de Jujuy SA (SDJ SA). The effective equity interests are: Orocobre 66.5%, TTC 25.0% and JEMSE 8.5%.



PRODUCTION, SALES AND GUIDANCE



Sales revenue for the September quarter was US$33.5 million representing the first full quarter of commercial production and sales from the Olaroz Lithium Facility. Pro-rata sales tonnes (based off May/June) were up 17% while the average price received was up 24%. Cash operating costs were US$3,579/tonne resulting in strong operating margins.



Strongly positive operating cash flow continued in the September quarter which allowed Sales de Jujuy S.A. to self fund a US$12.8 million principal and interest payment for the Mizuho project loan. Positive operating cashflow is now expected to be an on-going feature of the business.



Production in the month of September was a record 1,125 tonnes. September quarter production and operating costs were impacted by a 10 day mechanical outage in the drying circuit during August but still remained higher than the June quarter. Production in the December quarter is forecast between 3,500 and 4,000 tonnes.



The focus continued to be on improvements in operating practice, plant optimisation and process control. With the operation consistently achieving good performance in the primary circuit, the focus has been the purification circuit. Following various minor modifications, the circuit is now operating with improved control, increased residence times in reactors and good temperature profiles through all parts of the circuit. In addition, changes to carbon dioxide injection points and diffusor design modification have resulted in the elimination of "in process" material and the achievement of more stable operating conditions throughout the circuit.



Production in the purification circuit is currently limited due to restricted thickener residence time post the purified product crystallisers. Throughput will be increased in the December quarter by adding a cyclone bank to augment the thickener capacity. The thickener is the final step in the purification circuit prior to product entering the drying circuit.



BRINE INVENTORY



At the end of the quarter, brine inventory was approximately 39,900 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent.



SALES ORDERS



Commercial shipments of lithium carbonate continue to be dispatched from the Olaroz Lithium Facility to Europe, Asia and the USA. Normal production is sold as either battery, technical or industrial grade products and sold into the chemical manufacturing, industrial and battery application sectors. Commercial dispatches of high purity product to battery market customers continued during the quarter and additional customers will be supplied in the December quarter.



The September quarter sales price was up 24% against the June quarter to US$9,334/tonne. The customer orders fulfilled during the quarter included a significant number of back orders that were priced at levels much lower than current contract levels and the weighted average price achieved is of course dependent upon the mix of customer orders fulfilled during the quarter which is influenced by a number of factors including shipping schedules. The Company maintains price guidance on an FOB1 basis for the December quarter at approximately US$10,000/tonne. Strong market demand and supply side constraints are expected to maintain robust market prices for lithium carbonate.



SHORT-TERM LITHIUM MARKET OUTLOOK



Contract prices increased from the June quarter to the September quarter. Following strong demand thoughout the year China's spot prices softened slightly during the quarter but contract prices continued to strengthen including those achieved by Orocobre.



The Chinese EV market has softened on the back of a review of the government subsidy policy which is due to be completed in the next month. It is expected that there will be some consolidation of EV manufacturers with a resultant decrease in the total number of EV manufacturers in China. There is some inventory build occurring at cathode manufacturers in China in anticipation of an upturn in battery demand in Q4 2016 and into Q1 2017.



All available forward indicators of market demand remain positive including:



- Announcement of subsidy policy changes in China for electric vehicle production expected shortly



- China EV targets remain at five million vehicles by 2020 including 200,000 buses and three million EVs per annum by 2025



- On-going replacement of lead acid batteries by Li-ion batteries, even in traditional uses such as automotive SLI (starter, lights, ignition) batteries



- Continued construction of EV gigafactories with seven plants currently being built and 12 expected by 2020



- There are more than 100 Li-ion battery manufacturers in China



- Growing demand for energy storage as evidenced with Southern California Edison committing to an 80MWh Li-ion storage system for management of peak electricity loads



- Glocal consumer interest in EV's continues to grow - over the next two years, 25 new makes and models of electric cars have been announced for release



- Continuing strong demand from other (non-EV) battery applications including mobile phones, laptops and tablets



- Healthy demand from traditional end-use markets



The Company's short term outlook is for increasingly tight market dynamics in lithium markets with new supply being further delayed.



EXPANSION STUDY FOR OLAROZ



A scoping study to evaluate a potential Stage 2 expansion of 17,500 to 25,000 tonnes per annum has been submitted to the joint venture partners for review and will be released shortly. The study assessed construction of a similar plant to the existing Olaroz Lithium Facility. Lithium hydroxide production is also considered.



PLANS FOR CAUCHARI



Further drilling of Cauchari is planned in FY17 to define a larger resource and conduct pumping tests. The Environmental Impact Study is being considered by Unidad De Gestion Ambiental Minera Provincial (UGAMP) in November. Cauchari is immediately south of the Olaroz plant, with an inferred resource of 470,000 tonnes lithium carbonate equivalent, 1.6 million tonnes potassium chloride and 122,000 tonnes boron. Cauchari has potential for incremental production to feed into the expanded facilities at Olaroz.



MOU FOR DEVELOPMENT OF LITHIUM HYDROXIDE PLANT



Orocobre continues negotiations in relation to the next stage under the MOU. For further details, please refer to the Company's announcement "MOU for Development of Lithium Hydroxide Plant", 13 November, 2015.



BORAX ARGENTINA



Unaudited EBITDAX was breakeven and negatively affected by the commissioning of modifications at the boric acid plant. Borax Argentina is expected to move into positive EBITDAX in the December quarter as operations achieve greater stability.



The focus this financial year (FY17) is to improve production rates and unit costs following the optimisation projects at Tincalayu and Campo Quijano and improve efficiencies, build suitable inventory levels, improve response times, delivery performance and reinforce Borax's value proposition as the producer integral to a customer's security of supply strategy.



OPERATIONS



A total volume of 11,940 tonnes of combined product was sold during the quarter. This is an increase of 2,666 tonnes on the previous quarter and 3,816 tonnes on the corresponding quarter last year, on a comparable basis excluding sales of low value tincal ore. There were no tonnes of tincal ore sold this quarter.



PRODUCTION IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS COMPLETED



The Tincalayu borax plant expansion and modifications completed in the previous quarter were fully commissioned and ramping up in production rate during the quarter. On-going benefits of the recent works include lower unit production costs for both decahydrate and pentahydrate and additional options to export finished product directly from Tincalayu to international markets via Chilean ports.



Modifications of the boric acid plant at campo Quijano were completed in July and undergoing commissioning during the quarter. Recent production rates above 30tpd have been achieved, in line with expectations.



The modifications at both Tincalayu and Camp Quijano are expected to result in improved unit costs at both facilities.



TINCALAYU EXPANSION STUDY



A study commenced in Q2 CY2016 to evaluate a potential expansion of the Tincalayu refined borates operation from its current production capacity of 30,000 to 100-120,000 tonnes per annum and an integrated 25,000 tonne boric acid plant.



It is anticipated that the potential expansion will further enhance efficiencies in the production of refined borates at Tincalayu and contribute to improved manufacturing unit costs. This study will consolidate the work already undertaken on a new gas pipeline, for which permitting is underway.



It is anticipated the study will be completed early in CY2017.



MARKET CONDITIONS



Tonnes sold in the quarter are up 47% on the corresponding period last year (11,940 tonnes vs 8,124 tonnes).



Borax Argentina has also been pursuing an ongoing geographic and product diversification strategy in order to better insulate the business from localised economic and market cycles. In addition to its traditional markets in South America, the Company now has a geographically and market diverse range of customers.



To view the report, please visit:

http://abnnewswire.net/lnk/210Q1Z9C





About Orocobre Limited





Orocobre Limited is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange and Toronto Stock Exchange ( ASX:ORE) ( TSE:ORL) (OTCMKTS:OROCF), and is building a substantial Argentine based industrial chemicals company through its portfolio of lithium, potash and boron assets. In partnership with Toyota Tsusho Corporation (TTC) and JEMSE, Orocobre has built and is now operating the world's first commercial, brine-based lithium operation constructed in approximately 20 years.

In 2018 Orocobre announced the Stage 2 Expansion of its flagship Olaroz Lithium Facility in Argentina. The Stage 2 Expansion will add 25,000 tpa of lithium carbonate production capacity, taking full production and capacity to 42,500 tpa of lithium carbonate for sale to industrial, technical and battery markets, positioning Orocobre as one of the world's largest and lowest cost lithium chemicals producers.

Additionally, Orocobre and Toyota Tsusho Corporation have commenced construction of the 10,000 tpa lithium hydroxide plant in Naraha, Japan. The construction of the Naraha Lithium Hydroxide Plant will further cement Orocobre's position as a global lithium chemicals producer operating at the bottom quartile of the lithium cost curve. This new hydroxide plant will be the first of its kind in Japan and will provide Orocobre product diversification suitable for different battery technologies and the potential for significant margin growth on our primary lithium carbonate being converted to battery grade lithium hydroxide.
IMGCAP(1)]

Ohio Wesleyan University announced this week that theirWoltemade Center for Economics, Business and Entrepreneurshipis launching a new Accounting Fellows program, which will provide students with the chance to "link academic theory with real-world practice," per a statement.

Selected Fellows will participate in study trips funded by the Woltemade Center to both domestic and international locations that are significant in studying accounting. Fellows will also complete at least one accounting internship and research project, which consists either independent study or directed reading from an OWU professor and an outside accountant or finance professional approved by the Woltemade Center. Fellows will be asked to document their experiences to con theories covered in class.

This program will provide opportunities for students to further develop their accounting, leadership, critical-thinking, and communication skills beyond the classroom, stated Justin Breidenbach, assistant professor of accounting at OWU. The accounting environment is constantly evolving and higher-order thinking skills are being demanded more than ever from graduates and accounting professionals.

Fellows will also be required to complete an external development activity, such as an accounting competition, leadership program or conference. They'll also be required to sign up for student membership in both the Ohio Society of CPAs and the AICPA.

I am excited to help guide the Accounting Fellows and join them in their experiences as they put theory into practice, added Breidenbach. I am excited to see students passion for accounting come alive as they interact with faculty mentors, network with professionals, engage in professional development and research activities, and travel as a group to better understand how accounting is utilized domestically and globally.

The Fellows program will be open to sophomores who have declared a major or minor in accounting, successfully completed both ECON 110 Principles of Economics and ACCT 217 Principles of Financial Accounting, and achieved a minimum GPA of 3.0.

Breidenbach continued that the program will accept applications from both sophomores and juniors this year only. In 2018, the Woltemade Center will reevaluate the program to see it should be a permanent part of the University.

For more on OWU's Woltemade Center, head to the University's site here.
A group of Senators, including Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., are asking KPMG about the quality of its audits in the wake of the recent scandal involving Wells Fargos opening of millions of unauthorized customer accounts.

Warren, Sanders, and two other senators, Mazie K. Hirono, D-Hawaii, and Edward J. Markey, D-Mass., queried the firm about its audits of the bank's financial statements from 2011 to 2015.

KPMG conducted audits assessing Wells Fargo's internal control over its financial statements, they wrote in a letter Thursday. But none of KPMG's audits identified any concerns with illegal behavior that resulted in the creation of over two million unauthorized accounts by thousands of employees .... In fact, in each of your audits, your firm concluded that Wells Fargo maintained ... effective internal control over financial reporting.'

The senators also questioned the effectiveness of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board in enforcing independent audits of public companies' SEC filings.

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 was passed into law in part to address the problem of companies like Enron whose internal auditors' lack of independence enabled them to produce unreliable public financial reports and obscure problems with their companies, the senators wrote. But your firm's failure to identify the illegal behavior at Wells Fargo raises questions about the quality of your audits and the effectiveness of the implementation of these Sarbanes-Oxley requirements by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB).

The senators asked KPMG to answer a series of questions about their concerns, including, Was KPMG aware of any of the illegal sales practices committed by Wells Fargo employees from 2011-2015 and addressed in the CFPB [Consumer Financial Protection Bureau] settlement? Wells Fargo agreed to a $185 million settlement with the CFPB and other federal regulators over accusations that it created over 1 million unauthorized accounts and more than 560,000 fraudulent credit card applications.

"We have received the letter and are currently reviewing it," said a statement emailed by KPMG spokesman James McGann. "We are confident in our work and look forward to responding."
IMGCAP(1)]Earlier this week, I moderated an Accounting Today web seminar on Understanding Affordable Care Act Reporting: Year 2.

Janice Krueger, subject matter expert at Greatland Corporation, spoke on ACA mandates, filing requirement deadlines, and whats new for this year and whats changed from last year. As the number of questions from the audience demonstrated, the majority of us are still confused by the complexity of the reporting requirements.

For those who werent able to tune in, the following are some of the more instructive questions and answers that followed the presentation.

1. When determining if an employer is an ALE (Applicable Large Employer) for 2016 reporting, does the employer use the employee count from 2015 or 2016?

The employer uses the count from 2015. Whether an employer is an ALE is determined each calendar year and generally depends on the average size of an employers workforce during the prior year. If an employer has fewer than 50 full-time employees, including full-time equivalent employees, on average during the prior year, the employer is not an ALE for the current calendar year. Therefore, the employer is not subject to the employer shared responsibility provisions or the employer information reporting provisions for the current year.

2. If a self-insured employer with less than 50 full-time employees has an employee who waives coverage, is the employer required to file Form 1095-B for the employee?

No, Form 1095-B is not required to be filed for any employee who waives coverage because Form 1095-B is used to show enrolled coverage.

3. How should a self-insured ALE report coverage offered to a non-employee such as a retiree?

Assuming that the person was a non-employee for the entire year, the ALE has two options in how to report this coverage:

 The ALE can file Form 1095-C for the non-employee and enter code 1G on Line 14 and leave Lines 15 and 16 blank, or

 The ALE can file Form 1095-B for the non-employee rather than Form 1095-C.

4. How is an offer of COBRA coverage to a former employee who was terminated reported differently than an employee who was offered COBRA due to a reduction in hours?

An offer of COBRA coverage that is made to a former employee upon termination should not be reported as an offer of coverage on Line 14, Form 1095-C. Code 1H should be reported on Line 14. An offer of COBRA coverage that is made to an employee who remains employed by the employer should be reported as an offer of coverage on Line 14, Form 1095-C, but only for any individual who receives an offer of COBRA coverage. Generally, an offer of COBRA coverage is required to be made only to individuals who were enrolled in coverage and would lose eligibility for coverage due to the COBRA qualifying event, but an employer may choose to extend a similar offer of coverage to a spouse or dependent even if the offer is not required by COBRA.

5. Is an ALE required to enter a code on Line 16 of Form 1095-C?

No. However, an ALE can use Line 16 to indicate whether the ALE qualifies for an exception to a penalty. An ALE should enter the appropriate code on Line 16 if any applies. If no code is applicable for a given month, Line 16 should be left blank.
Your eight-year-old daughter with ADHD comes home from school and is very upset. It turns out that she shouted out in class  again  and her teacher covered her mouth with tape and had her sit on the hallway floor until dismissal time. You are furious.

Or perhaps your son tells you about his friend Sam, who pushed over his desk and punched a classmate. The teacher grabbed him, held him down, and then locked him in the closet. You know that Sam has behavior problems, but the closet in that classroom is tiny and has little ventilation.

Punishing Kids in the Classroom

How prevalent are such actions in schools? Many students who are subjected to this kind of physical punishment, referred to as restraint and seclusion, have some kind of disability, including ADHD. When the U.S. Department of Education looked at students with IEPs (who make up about 12 percent of all students), they found that students with IEPs comprised 58 percent of those placed in seclusion or involuntary confinement, 75 percent of those physically restrained at school, and 25 percent of those who faced police intervention or arrest.

[Free Download: The Laws That Protect Students with ADHD]

What should parents do when they hear about children being subject to restraint or seclusion? What are schools allowed to do, and how can parents make sure that their children  and all children  are safe from inappropriate and sometimes dangerous methods of discipline? And, finally, what should schools do to deal with students who are a danger to themselves or others?

The Legal Landscape

There is no federal law dealing with restraining, secluding, or punishing a child in school. There are many state laws limiting what schools can do to discipline students, with and without disabilities, which are summarized on the Department of Education website www.ed.gov; search restraint and seclusion), but this list changes all the time. And even when states have laws designed to limit restraint and seclusion, enforcement of these laws varies.

Schools have a legitimate need to maintain a safe environment and to protect students and staff from dangerous behaviors students direct against themselves or others. But there are ways to do this that do not involve potentially dangerous restraints or placing children in confined places that may be unsafe, unsupervised, and without access to bathroom facilities.

IDEA specifically requires that if a students behavior interferes with his education, the school must conduct a behavioral assessment and consider using positive behavioral supports to address these issues. In addition, if the students conduct results in a suspension for more than 10 days, an IEP meeting must be held to review the role of the students disability in the behavior, and to determine whether a change in the IEP is warranted. It is important to keep in mind that secluding a student, by removing him to a time out room or some other place, is considered a change in placement under IDEA, which requires an immediate IEP meeting to consider behavior challenges and solutions.

[Quiz: How Well Do You Know Special Ed Law?]

For students with significant behavior problems, schools sometimes want an IEP to include provisions for restraint or seclusion. Parents should insist that schools consider these only in situations that pose serious danger, and, instead, focus on positive supports and behavior plans. Furthermore, IDEA requires that IEP interventions be based on peer-reviewed research, and there is a lack of sound research supporting the benefits of restraint or seclusion.

Students who have a 504 Plan may have grounds for legal action against their school district if they can show that seclusion or restraint was a form of discrimination against them because of a disability.

Game Plan for Parents

What can parents do to prevent students from being secluded or restrained?

1. Become familiar with the laws in your state and your districts policies. If they are not sufficient, or are not being followed, push to expand or apply them.

[10 Myths About School Laws for ADHD Services]

2. Urge your childs school to train their staff in dealing with difficult behaviors that dont involve restraining or secluding children.

3. If your child has behavior problems, address these proactively with school personnel or the IEP team. If a behavioral assessment determines that some form of restraint or seclusion may be absolutely necessary for your childs safety, be sure you know how and where this will be done, who will be implementing these practices, and that provisions are made to inform you each and every time these are used.
Gas flow from Iran to Turkey has been halted after a huge explosion rocked a pipeline in eastern Turkey, Russia today says, citing an Iranian officials comments to Tasnim news agency as cited by Reuters.

October 28, 2016, 13:26 Iran gas flow to Turkey halted after pipeline blast  official

STEPANAKERT, OCTOBER 28, ARTSAKHPRESS: Irans gas flow to Turkey has temporarily stopped because of a blast by some opposition groups inside Turkey around 1830 GMT on Thursday night, Majid Aghai, an official from the Iranian Interior Ministry, said.

Earlier reports in the Turkish media emerged, saying that a huge blast hit a pipeline in the town of Dogubayazit in Agr Province in eastern Turkey, bordering Iran. Following the explosion, a fire broke out on the pipeline, TGRT Haber newspaper said, adding that the flames reached up to 50 meters.

No property has been damaged, Turkish media reports, adding that there have not been reports of any deaths or injuries so far.

The authorities have reportedly launched an investigation into the incident. According to the Turkish Cumhuriyet newspaper, possible causes of the blast include sabotage. Some Turkish media said, citing sources, that militants from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) were behind the incident.
HONG KONG, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Finnish publishing company Dramaforum Oy today signed an agreement with 24Reader, a magazine subscription company to bring digital children's magazine "Petra's Planet Magazine" to customers in China.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433547 )



Ms. Eevamaria Halttunen, founder of Dramaforum, said 24Reader's well-established reach would be a great asset to the launch of "Petra's Planet Magazine".

"24Reader has more than one million magazine subscribers and we are thrilled to be working in partnership to bring Petra's Planet Magazine to children across Hong Kong, China," said Ms. Halttunen.

"Thanks to its digital format, Petra's Planet Magazine is highly interactive and mobile. We're looking forward to bringing it to the Chinese Market," said Kaya Lam, Senior Editor and Project Manager at 24Reader Ltd.

Petra's Planet Magazine is an innovative, digital magazine that is delivered directly to devices each month. In every issue, kids travel to an exciting new country and learn about countries, cultures, wildlife, the environment and friendship. The magazine comes with interactive puzzles, quizzes, and downloadable activities.



Dramaforum Oy Ltd is an independent Finnish transmedia company specializing in children's products. Established in 2003 by Ms. Halttunen, Dramaforum has offices in Finland, UK and Canada, employing a team of experienced learning and digital media experts.

"Our goal is to inspire children to stay curious and discover the wonders of the world. Through Petra's Planet, children learn about the richness and diversity of our planet and are empowered to become global citizens," said Ms. Halttunen.

Find out more at http://www.24Reader.com and http://www.petrasplanetmagazine.com
CHICAGO, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Illinois Council on Responsible Fatherhood (ICRF) is holding its annual symposium on October 29 from 1-4:30 p.m. at the Naperville (95th Street) Library, 3015 Cedar Glade Drive.

This free symposium will focus on critical issues facing single and divorced fathers. The council's mission is to increase the number of children in Illinois who grow up with a responsible father in their lives.

Governor-appointed Chairman Jeffery M. Leving will host the symposium, which will include a series of presentations by professionals covering a wide range of fatherhood-related topics. Featured speakers include, but are not limited to, the following:

Detective Wayne Halick will present "Keeping Your Children Safe on Social Media." In an era of Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter, Kik, Whisper, etc., our children are feeling more and more anonymous and becoming more secretive than ever about communicating with the outside world. Halick will share his expertise and many years working on cases involving children to equip the audience with the knowledge and tools to protect children and teens from cyber bullying, predators and suicide.

ICRF councilmember Lois Rakov will recognize fatherhood initiatives at Edwards Hospital. Hospital representatives with expertise in parent-baby bonding and preparing men for fatherhood will also be honored for their work.

Attorney Maureen Gorman will lecture on the new Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act.

The goal of the symposiumopen to anyoneis to empower fathers and provide survival strategies for participants to take home.

The council is made up of experts from all facets of the professional world, each immensely dedicated to supporting single and divorced dads in Illinois.

Chairman Leving, attorney and author of How to Be a Good Divorced Dad, has spent his life making significant strides supporting paternal involvement. Leving is a pioneer in fathers' rights and social change, a renowned divorce attorney and co-author of the Illinois Joint Custody Law.

"The ICRF provides solutions to father absence by promoting positive paternal involvement and contributing resources to support all fathers in all communities," Leving said. "Present and involved fathers improve academic test scores, reduces teenage pregnancy, and encourages confidence in children."

Space is limited, so please RSVP at info@responsiblefatherhood.com. Visit responsiblefatherhood.com for more information.

CONTACT: Jennifer Whiteside

312.296.3666

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/illinois-council-on-responsible-fatherhood-to-host-annual-symposium-300353569.html

SOURCE Illinois Council on Responsible Fatherhood
TRUSSVILLE, Ala., Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-iReach/ -- Serra Mazda has recently released service coupons to help drivers save on a variety of services. The dealership offers special savings specific to each week day that drivers are encouraged to take advantage of.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433490

On Mondays, Serra Mazda offers drivers 10% off any additional service, while Tuesdays offer Ladies Day specials. Women are given free manicures while they wait for their vehicle to be serviced, and they will also receive $20 off an oil change.

The dealership offers drivers 20% off brakes on Wednesdays and 25% off tire rotation and balancing on Thursdays. Wiper blades for $5 off the sale price is Friday's special coupon.

The dealership also aims to help local drivers by posting in-depth Mazda model research pages and comparison pages between Mazda models and their direct competitors. These pages give drivers an inside look at the features and specs Mazda vehicles have to offer as well as the features and specs that set them apart from the rest of their class.

For the month of October, the dealership highlighted comparisons between the newly-released 2017 Mazda6 and the 2017 Ford Fusion and another between the 2017 Mazda CX-3 and the 2017 Ford Escape.

Drivers interested in taking advantage of any of the dealership's weekly coupons simply need to head over to Serra Mazda's website and print off the appropriate coupon. Services can be scheduled online or can be scheduled by phone at 205-655-7301. Serra Mazda is located at 1503 Gadsden Highway in Trussville.

Media Contact: Charlie Jones, Serra Mazda, 866-639-2333, charliej@serrmazda.com

News distributed by PR Newswire iReach: https://ireach.prnewswire.com

SOURCE Serra Mazda
At least 15 Pakistani soldiers could have died in retaliatory firing along the Jammu border, the Border Security Force (BSF) said on Friday, as repeated ceasefire violations sparked panic among residents of frontier villages.

We will never take the initiative to fire upon the civilian population. But, if they will continue to fire, as they have been doing, then they will be getting befitting reply from the BSF and the Indian side, said Director General Arun Kumar.

The Rangers were killed in retaliatory firing after RS Pura, Akhnoor, Poonch, Sunderbani and Noushera sectors came under heavy firing from Pakistan side on Thursday night, BSF sources said.

Two civilians were killed  one in Khor belt of Jammu district and the other in Poonchs Mendar sector  in Pakistani firing, officials said. A girl was wounded with Pakistans firing and mortar shelling targeting Indian posts and civilian areas along the Line of Control, the de facto border, and the international border in Jammu, Kathua and Rajouri districts.

Exactly a week ago, seven Pakistani soldiers were killed along the International Border by the BSF.

Firing has been on for the last 24 hours in Rajouri, Samba, Abdullia, RS Pura and Suchetgarh, officials said.

Heavy shelling from Pakistan began around 5 am along the Line of Control in Nowshera, Sundarbani and Pallanwala districts. BSF soldier Jitender Singh, 46, died when Pakistani Rangers fired a mortar shell in RS Pura sector.

This has never happened before, such heavy firing from PakistanEveryone is so scared, a resident of Rajouri said.

Rajouri station house officer Mohd Younis Choudhary said: We are ready(we) dont want any casualties. This is heavy shelling. (We) have asked locals to stay indoors.

Relations between India and Pakistan have hit a new low after four militants attacked an Indian Army base in northern Kashmirs Uri in September, killing 19 soldiers . India blamed Pakistan-based militants for the assault, a charge Islamabad promptly denied.
Islamic State group fighters slaughtered at least 232 people in and around Mosul this week as Iraqi troops advanced on the city, the U.N. rights office said Friday.

Last Wednesday, 232 civilians were reportedly shot to death. Of these there were 190 former Iraqi Security Forces officers, rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva.

These reports have been corroborated to the extent possible, she added, stressing that the number of people killed in recent days could be higher.

Ms. Shamdasani said the execution-style killings came as IS was pushing forward with its strategy of forcing people living near the northern Iraqi city into Mosul, the groups last bastion in Iraq.

The rights office has said the jihadists aim to use these people as human shields in the ensuing battle for Mosul against US-backed elite Iraqi troops.

ISIL has been forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes in some districts around Mosul, Ms. Shamdasani said .

Those who have been executed included civilians who have refused to comply with the relocation orders and those who previously worked for the government security services.
Former Pakistan president General Pervez Musharraf has described Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar as a terrorist, saying he has been involved in bomb blasts even in his country.

He, however, he did not give a clear reply as to why Pakistan has not been asking China to get Azhar declared as an international terrorist by the United Nations.

Why should China be involved when it has nothing to do with him (Azhar), Mr. Musharraf told a Pakistani TV channel.

A proposal is pending before the UN Security Council for declaring Azhar as an international terrorist but China has been blocking it, claiming that there is not enough evidence to prove that he is a terrorist.

When asked about the espionage case busted today in Delhi involving an employee of the Pakistan High Commission, the former Pakistan Army Chief initially parried the issue saying, I am not aware of it. But then he added that if at all it has happened, (it) shouldnt be encouraged, the release said.

It also quoted Mr. Musharraf as saying that the Nawaz Sharif government lacks aggression.

The channel said Musharraf accepted Pakistan governments diplomatic failure on international front. He, however, said it does not mean that Pakistan should be taken for granted.

To a question on whether a political leadership or Army is better suited for Pakistans development, Mr. Musharraf said the country had witnessed growth when Army was in power.

When asked about terror camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), he feigned ignorance saying I dont know. However, with a smile, he said, I will let you know only once I get the count of these camps which you are talking about.

On Pakistans diminishing relations with United States, he said there are certain contentious issues which are being addressed by Pakistan Army.

When referred to the surgical strike and military might of India, he said, Pakistan is a nuclear power with a strong army which cant be bullied.

On Prime Minister Narendra Modis sudden visit to Pakistan and his meeting with Sharif, he said shaking hands is just an artificial move, but for a formal solution, something concrete needs to be done.
Today, the newly appointed Ambassador of the Republic of Finland to the Republic of Armenia Arya Makkonen (residence in Helsinki) presented her credentials to Serzh Sargsyan, press service of the Presidential administration stated.

STEPANAKERT, OCTOBER 28, ARTSAKHPRESS: The President of Armenia congratulated the Ambassador on her appointment, wished success and noted with satisfaction that the relations between Armenia and Finland are developing steadily, the political dialogue bears a continuous nature, the two countries are cooperating successfully in the framework of international organizations and with regard to many international issues maintain same approaches. According to the President, all this creates a good base for the strengthening and deepening of the Armenian-Finnish relations. Serzh Sargsyan stressed the importance of expanding the legal field, invigoration of the interparliamentary cooperation and the utilization of that potential in the interstate relations.

Ambassador Arya Makkonen concurred with the President on his assessment regarding the interstate relations and stressed the importance of deepening cooperation in the mutually beneficial areas for the enhancement of trade and economic ties.

At the meeting, the parties spoke also about the regional issues and challenges, and the NK peace process.
The place where explosives have been found is located closer to Tarapur Atomic Power station located in Palghar district.

The recovery of 40 kg of explosives from Manor in Palghar district has raised questions about the security of places adjoining Mumbai. Since Mumbai is known as the financial capital of India it has always remained a soft target for terrorists to carry out terror attacks. Earlier, around 3000 kg of RDX which were used for carrying out the 1993 Bombay serial blasts were recovered from Shekadi in Raigad district. Moreover, huge cache of 35 detonators, gelatin sticks and large quantity of ammonium nitrate explosives had been seized on 20 May 2011 from Umarkui and Sayli village in Silvassa. The explosives have been recovered from Palghar at a time when India and Pakistan relation has hit a new low in the aftermath of Uri incident as threat perception is high. Sanjay Saxena, joint commissioner, Mumbai crime branch, said no one has been arrested yet.

The workers had recovered a package containing explosives while carrying out road repairs work at Sativli village near Mumbai-Ahmedabad expressway. They informed the police who sought the assistance of ATS and crime branch. The place where explosives have been found is located closer to Tarapur Atomic Power station located in Palghar district. Several illegal godowns exist on the Mumbai Ahmedabad highway as illegitimate activities occur there. Thus Palghar has become a new hideout for terrorists.

Sources in the ATS said that the material seized at Palghar included RDX, gelatine, detonators, white and black powder (which could be ammonium nitrate). These are used for mining activities. Gelatin sticks are not readily available in the market and one requires a licence to use them.

The raid was conducted by Maharashtra ATS and crime branch officials of Mumbai with the assistance of dog squads. However they have remained tight-lipped about the operation carried out by them. Combing operation is going in surrounding areas according to police sources.

Fire crackers, nails, gelatin sticks, detonators, tobacco tins, thin gauge pipes, gunpowder and other materials, form the major ingredients for creating bombs, said a police source.

Over 100 km from Mumbai, Manor in Palghar is close to the Arabian Sea, which was used by the terrorists in 2008 to enter Mumbai and carry out terror attacks, which killed 166 people and injured many more.
Lucknow is famous for its traffic jams and we all got a proof of the same when Paytms CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma visited Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav in a rickshaw. Rickshaw puller has been rewarded with Rs. 6,000, a new cycle rickshaw and the promise of a new home. The Internet got to know about the same when Yadav tweeted a picture of Sharma and himself with the rickshaw in the same frame.

Vijay Shekhar went to Lucknow to receive Yash Bharti Award but in the morning he preferred to take a cycle rickshaw ride because he was getting late and his car was stuck in traffic.

Mani Ram happened to be close to the Chief Ministers 5 Kalidas Marg home when he was stopped by the man in the kurta he didnt know was the CEO of Paytm, one of Indias top mobile wallet startups with over 122 million users.

Security officers at Yadavs residence allowed Sharma and Maniram to enter only after proper verification, sources in the police department said.
[dropcap]N[/dropcap]owadays, #JusticeForJashodaben is trending almost every day on social media site Twitter after Prime Minister Narendra Modi raised his voice against Triple Talaq. To counter this, BJP supporters are targeting Former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhis married life on social media battle field. Though, they had very happy married life with their respective spouse. Pandit Nehru always stayed with Kamala Nehru except when he was in prison or on political tour. Nehru was considered as good husband and a father. Though she died, but Nehru always cared for her and stands for her dignity. He had his share of affairs but that was in public domain and he never hides that. When Pandit Nehru became Prime Minister, he lived in Teen Murti Bhawan in New Delhi and at that time Feroze Gandhi, the husband of Indira Gandhi, was an Editor of National Herald which was published from Lucknow. Indira lived with Pandit Nehru but during weekends Feroze used to visit her from Nawabo ka Shaher to national capital. Mr. Gandhi was MP from Rae Bareilly and whenever parliament session was on, he stayed with Indira, until his death. He was always with Indira and they both had two handsome sons. Their married life was very normal and with utmost poise.

There are many political leaders who dont stay with their spouses for some or the other reasons. However, none of them had ever claimed that they are single. They never denied the passport or any sort of comforts to their partners. Earlier on a talk show with Rajat Sharmas Aap Ki Adalat, Modi had accepted that he is eligible bachelor, when asked, if he ever regrets for not getting married? Actually, Rajats question should have been did Modi ever regret deserting his wife? Then the right reply from Modi would have been expected. The most funny aspect from Modi was that he blatantly refused to accept that he was ever married. He failed to remain honest till then.

If a Pradhan Sevak of this country denies basic rights to a woman whom he declared as a wife (even today), its his moral duty to give her basics rights. Its his moral obligation to declare to the world that he disowned her in due circumstances and now divorced her legally. You accept or you dont accept, you give any logic or reason, since in 2014 Election affidavit he declared Jashodaben as his wife. So, she is still his wife and eligible for every basic right as a wife. Moreover, when Modi himself is fighting for the rights of Muslim women, vocal about education and dignity to woman, I am inspired by his speeches and chose a teacher who is educated, dignified but denied by her hubby and left to live with humiliation.

There were many publications who reported that Modi is indeed married, but has not spoken to his wife in more than 45 years and that he essentially abandoned her decades ago. However, Jashodaben Modi, who wedded to Narendra Modi when both were teenagers in an arranged marriage, said she remains devoted to him. The 63-year-old retired school teacher attends her husbands rallies and prays for his electoral triumphs. She goes to Modis speeches to see him, but she never tells anyone and doesnt disclose her identity. They have not spoken since he left. According to Jashodabens relatives, Modi left her when they were both 18 years old in the late 1960s so that he could pursue his political career. Reportedly, Modi refused to accomplish his marriage and furiously left his native village of Vadnagar after an argument with his in-laws. He soon joined Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

Modis peculiar marital (or bachelor) status has not gone unnoticed by his supporters and haters. Jashodaben lives in a rented accommodation. Why does not he get a bungalow for her and provide her facilities, when he has become such a big leader? How can somebody, who cannot respect and take care of his wife look after the nation? Mr. Modi who hardly takes any questions on his private life, had always refused to comment on the matter. When Modi successfully contested four successive elections to become the chief minister of Gujarat, he had always left blank the column on documents that asked about his marital status. The declaration of his marital status turned out to be a huge embracement for him. However, his family and supporters gave a defence argument saying Buddha also left his wife, son and also kingship for a noble cause of showing light to mankind. What an example by blind supporters of PM? Buddha left his wife searching for a solution to end the miseries of the world. Modi left his wife to fulfill his own ambitions. Buddha tried to solve problems of his people. Modi tries to inflate balancesheet of a few. He has always left the column for information on marital status in his affidavits blank, marking the space with a short dash. This is the first time that he has publicly acknowledged the existence of his wife. Whereas, Buddha was honest in his Grihasta Aashram (family life) loved his wife, returned to her when he attained what he wanted and then sacrificed his life for the mankind. Let us not stretch this meaningless comparison anymore. Now, Narendra Modis wife wants to know what privileges she is entitled to as the spouse of Indias prime minister. She is still waiting for his call; she is looking for her husband to talk to her. She wants justice to be done to her.

Anyway, being woman I can feel her pain, and wish somewhere her struggle will end and she will get justice from the man who wants to deliver justice to Muslim women.

(Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@afternoonvoice.com)
We as dancers always believe that music makes us move and words make us express. But I would like to talk about dancing in silence today. Yes you read it right dancing in silence. Recently I was called on a special mission to Nepal. It was a ten day assignment where I was asked to teach Latin American dancing to deaf and mute boys and girls. I did not have any idea that being there and training people will change the way I feel and look at Dance completely, I was more than amazed by the results.

Before going to teach the deaf and the mute, I decided to do a short course in sign language myself so that my communication with the deaf dancers in Nepal gets better. Learning the sign language in India was fun and it gave me a wonderful way to act out and express my feeling while I never spoke a word.

Anxious and nervous like a school boy going to his new school for the first time I boarded my flight to Kathmandu. For me this assignment has been the most memorable one more than even teaching dance to Hollywood and Bollywood stars. Mrs. Sarah Giri, wife of the former Prime Minister of Nepal who is a good friend of my star student Bollywood beauty Manisha Koirala, runs an institution for these special children. She was the one who invited me to teach deaf and mute dancers Latin and ballroom dances for their annual programme to be held in December this year. Of course, I did not know what to expect, as I had never taught dance to a group of deaf and mute, but at the end of my 10 days stint I term my experience as Simply Unbelievable.

The children were between the ages of 15 and 25 years and strangely none of them have ever danced in their lives. And for the first time, I danced to silence, there was no music, not even for Mrs. Giri and me. The students only danced to counts, the counts that they would see when I raised my hands. It was just amazing to watch them dance and turn performers so soon.

Another interesting aspect about the deaf and mute that I learnt was that they have no sense of balance. So for some steps that required a lot of twists and turns, it was a bit difficult. But by the end of their training, they effortlessly mastered every move taught to them. I remember when I told them to dance at a particular tempo which can be slow medium or fast, they could not understand the meaning of tempo or speed in dance. Then Mrs Giri showed me astonishing trick to teach the deaf and mute children the speed of music. We played the music, raised the volume very high and stood so close to the speaker that our heart beats increased due to the super high volume of the music. Later what happened was astounding, each dancer came and put his and her hand on my heart, felt my heart pacing to the music and turned around and danced to the beat of the music. I was shocked as to how could they hear and later I understood it was the heartbeats that they felt when they touched me and my pace of heartbeat due to music volume made them realise the beat of the music being played.

Just as in any other rehearsal, these students too practised for eight hours at a stretch, but the difference was that there was no talking or gossiping or breaks or idle chat. I realised that dancing to silence really helps you appreciate the dance form better. I think we waste a lot of time chatting endlessly about things that really dont matter but here I realized that once the rehearsals began, they concentrated on their dance and nothing could distract them. Strange, how we never thought of it that way.

In Mumbai when we do our rehearsals we are so concerned about what music we dance to and how we express that emotion to the music. But for these children music is in the heart and the emotions are expressed through the experience of life. As a choreographer I often ask dancers to feel the music to express. However, now I have stopped using this sentence as I realised that feeling the music is not important but sensing the movement is what the beauty of expression is.

To help understand these students better, I had taken a few lessons in sign language, but in Nepal I realized that there was a very difference in the language I learnt and the language they communicated in. It is strange that for the blind the Braille language is same all over the world, but there is no standard sign language for the deaf and the mute. Still, I tried and somehow I managed to explain to them what I needed. The children could not lip read, so there was no point in me talking either. After rehearsals when I would return to my hotel, I too would not communicate with anyone around, the silence was so beautiful I did not want to come out of it.

The most important aspect of this assignment was making a difference to their lives. They may not have their so called all the senses but I think by the end of my stay they achieved much more than they or I could have imagined. And in that sense, I think I achieved what we set out to achieve. The programme is scheduled for December end and I will be visiting Nepal prior to that for monitoring their progress. Mrs. Giri wants to show the people of Nepal that despite their so-called drawback and disability, these students are still capable of doing so much more. And I am sure it is going to be one fabulous world of dance, so all I can say for now is that ladies and gentlemen get ready and Welcome to the World of Silence

(Sandip Soparrkar is a well known Ballroom dancer and a Bollywood choreographer who has been honoured with National Achievement and National Excellence Award by the Govt of India. He can be contacted on sandipsoparrkar06@gmail.com.)

Sandip Soparrkar

Artscape
By Lloyd Ritter, Co-Director, Agriculture Energy Coalition

In its recent report, Farms and Free Enterprise: A Blueprint for Agricultural Policy, The Heritage Foundation calls for the elimination of constructive energy programs in the next Farm Bill. Thats a nonsensical proposition. The Farm Bills Energy Title reduces our dependence on oil, reduces carbon emissions, and helps meet growing consumer demand for sustainable energy and bioproducts. Further, the programs have unlocked billions of dollars of private lending for rural communities, which otherwise lack access to capital. The programs are supporting a resurgence of manufacturing in the United States, which drives job creation and economic growth for rural communities across the United States.

The bi-partisan renewable energy and energy efficiency programs in the 2014 Farm Bill, like previous farm bills, have undoubtedly made a difference in growing our nations agricultural and clean energy economy. Examples abound.

The USDA REAP program has funded renewable energy and energy efficiency projects in all 50 states. Between fiscal years 2009 and 2016 (to date), REAP has supported approximately 6449 projects! These include solar, geothermal, biomass, small hydro, wind, and energy efficiency measures, including approximately 5,363,140 mWh of electricity produced cumulatively during this time period.

Very recently the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) released a new report highlighting the economic impact of the U.S. biobased industry over the past decade. The report shows that in 2014, the biobased products industry contributed $393 billion and 4.2 million jobs to America's recovering economy. It also indicates that the sector grew from 2013 to 2014, creating or supporting an additional 220,000 jobs and $24 billion over that period. This success can be tied back to the investments made through the Farm Bill energy programs.

The Biomass Research and Development Initiative (BRDI) is a joint program through USDAs National Institute of Food and Agriculture and the U.S. Energy Department (DOE) that develops economically and environmentally sustainable sources of renewable biomass and increases the availability of renewable fuels and biobased products. It addresses the development of cost-effective technologies for using biomass in the production of biofuels and/or biobased products, which can lead to cheaper and cleaner alternatives to petroleum based products. The program has invested more than $332 million to accelerate research into new markets for farm and ranch based biomass.

The Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP) provides financial assistance to producers and businesses to grow, harvest and deliver cutting-edge biomass feedstocks to commercial renewable energy facilities. The program also supports hazardous fuels reductions, helping the most heavily forested states protect forests, and develop energy. Producers have cultivated roughly 49,000 acres of purpose-grown energy crops for the production of next-generation biofuels and bioenergy with assurance that this federal program will help them understand and manage the risks of producing new crops.

The Farm Bills 9003 program provides access to capital for manufacturers developing, constructing or retrofitting biorefineries for advanced biofuels or renewable chemicals. Under the 9003 Program, USDA works with rural lenders to expand access to funding for manufacturers in rural communities that might never be able to pool sufficient capital for large manufacturing projects. To date, the program has provided $844 million in loan guarantees, helping advanced biofuels start-ups leverage more than a billion dollars in new capital.

The Heritage Foundations report misrepresents the clear successes and innovation of the Farm Bills bi-partisan Energy title and ignores the real world benefits it brings to the rural economy. Those benefits include displacement of about 6.8 million barrels of foreign oil each year, improving our energy security, and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 10 million metric tons per year, which improves our environment.

The latest Farm Bill has spurred the growth of the clean energy and bioeconomy and expanded markets for thousands of producers and sustainable enterprises, benefiting rural America and the rest of the nation. Thats why more than 100 organizations across the country, from the agriculture, energy, environmental and rural development sectors have all voiced support many times for these sensible, forward thinking public investments. These efforts deserve meaningful and consistent Federal support going forward to fully achieve their potential.

About Lloyd Ritter

Lloyd Ritter is the founder and managing partner of Green Capitol, LLC. Since 2006, Green Capitol has specialized in agriculture, clean energy and environment advocacy, strategic planning, and public policy development. Lloyd is a seasoned veteran in agriculture, energy, environment, public health, sustainable development policy and advocacy with more than twenty years experience in all levels of government - domestic and international. He has written and/or helped pass landmark legislation such as the clean energy title of the Farm Bill, the first Renewable Fuels Standard, and important renewable electricity and tax provisions. Lastly, Lloyd is a coalition developer and manager, including running the Agriculture Energy Coalition.

#30

For more news, go to: www.Agri-Pulse.com
STEPANAKERT, OCTOBER 28, ARTSAKHPRESS: President Lukashenko said the CIS and the Eurasian Economic Union are good platforms for establishment of dialogue between the member states, as well as in terms of moving forward the integration processes.

Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan participated in narrow and extended format sessions of the CIS Prime Ministers within the framework of his visit to Belarus.

A number of issues of the CIS and the EAEU agendas were discussed at the meeting.

A number of programs were discussed and approved during the CIS PMs session. In particular, the Council approved the programs on the CIS bodies common budget 2017 and the 2015 joint budget performance, a number of documents were signed as well.

After the sessions Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan held a briefing with media representatives. The PM stated that the talks and discussions were quite interesting, and these platforms are suitable for discussing the issues both in terms of the market, as well as the interests in the post-Soviet countries.

Heated and substantive discussions were held during the Eurasian Inter-governmental Council session since they were associated with the Customs Code. Since there were unresolved issues, we have agreed to meet again in Moscow on November 15, Karen Karapetyan said.
The battle for Mosul is on.

In recent days Kurdish Peshmerga forces and the Iraqi army have made advances on different fronts in a push towards the city of Mosul in northern Iraq. The battle for the ISIS stronghold could be a turning in the American-led fight against the Islamic 
Can Iraq's Assyrians Finally Go Home?

Noura Diyha wrestled a phone from her pocket to show me a photo of herself at age 3. She's wearing a bonnet and riding a tricycle on a grass lawn. Some 14 years later, Noura is one of nearly 1 million internally displaced people in Iraqi Kurdistan. Her family fled from the mostly Christian village of Batnaya in August 2014, when Islamic State militants captured territory throughout northern Iraq. She now lives in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan. As coalition forces--Iraqi government forces, allied militias and Kurdish soldiers, backed by U.S. air and on-the-ground support--advance toward Mosul and retake villages like Batnaya, Noura's family hopes to return home soon. Yet even success on the battlefield won't guarantee a safe return for exiled Christians and other religious minorities. ISIS fighters dug in at Noura's town and came under heavy fire on Oct. 20. They used rocket launchers and suicide bombers against coalition ground troops, but the village was retaken earlier this week. Coalition forces, aided by U.S. airstrikes and mortar rounds, covered significant ground and retook dozens of other villages controlled by ISIS. Nearing Mosul's city limits, the armies face intense resistance. For Noura and thousands of others, these are days of waiting, only now with the possibility of returning home. "A military defeat of Daesh [ISIS] is only the first step," says Father Emanuel Youkhana, an Assyrian priest who heads an Iraqi relief organization. "We must deal with root causes that allowed Daesh to arise and take this territory, in order to permit all Iraqi people to return home." Turkey, a NATO member, now stands in the way of the Christians' return. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan inserted thousands of Turkish forces into Nineveh months ago, and he insists they participate in the fight against ISIS. Mr. Erdogan told an Arab news channel this month, "only Sunni Arabs, Turkomens, and Sunni Kurds" should remain in the Mosul region once it is liberated. Under martial law in his own country, Mr. Erdogan has closed churches and detained Christian clergy. Father Youkhana and others fear Turkey seeks to re-establish its own empire out of the crumbling ISIS caliphate, one similar to the Ottoman empire--the same government that killed an estimated 1.5 million Armenian and Assyrian Christians in genocides a century ago. Iraq opposes Mr. Erdogan's overtures. "The Turkish insistence on its presence inside Iraqi territories has no justification," said Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi at a recent press conference in Baghdad. Iraq's Parliament called the Turkish troops "hostile occupying forces." Yet the Obama administration is pressuring Baghdad to accept a role for Turkey. Given the strength of Turkish influence, and Christians' lack of political clout, this is likely to finish the Christians' right to return. This despite the fact that Christians have lived in this part of the world since the first century. I've walked through church ruins in Nineveh that archaeologists estimate were constructed in the second or third century. "I believe we stand at a crossroads for the future of Christianity--and pluralism--in the Middle East," said Carl Anderson of the Knights of Columbus at an event this month in New York City. "Either Christianity will survive and offer a witness of forgiveness, charity and mercy, or it will disappear, impoverishing the region religiously, ethnically and culturally." Mr. Anderson's organization compiled a 300-page report at the request of the State Department documenting ISIS genocide of Christians in Iraq. Besides the toxic level of displacement, the report contains graphic detail confirming that at least 1,100 Christians have been murdered by Islamic militants in Iraq since 2003, though the number is almost certainly higher now. Yet U.S. officials seem to be ignoring these findings, even though the report pushed Washington to legally declare ISIS's actions a "genocide." Exile is at the heart of the Christian message. The Old Testament Jews wandered in the wilderness and the savior Jesus Christ "had no place to lay his head." His apostle Paul wrote four of his New Testament epistles from prison. The Christians in Iraq know this is their story, too. Yet being vanquished forever from this heartland is a terrible fate to contemplate. Noura's family is hopeful, but they've already lost everything--material possessions and friends and family--to ISIS. The tricycle photo is all that remains of Noura's other life, and she had to download it from Facebook. She told me that "the hardest thing to lose is my memories." But her future may be threatened too.
Cargolux has added a weekly Boeing 747-8 freighter service from Oslo to Luxembourg on its flight C85022 from New York.

The first flight will carry a load of salmon that is distributed to various destinations from the airlines hub in Luxembourg.

The Oslo service caters to the airfreight needs of Norwegian shippers requiring cool chain transport.

We are very happy to introduce Oslo to our network, says Niek van der Weide, Cargolux EVP sales and marketing. The response from our customers has been phenomenal and we appreciate the way they welcome us in Norway. The firm support of our clients shows that our personal attention and dedication to the needs of our partners in the market is noted and appreciated.

Avinor Oslo Airport manager for cargo development, Martin Langaas, said: The seafood industry requires more direct capacity to the most important markets in Asia and the US. We are continuously working to facilitate more direct capacity from Oslo Airport and through Cargolux, the seafood industry will have access to yet another desirable network to the most important overseas markets."

In addition to seafood, Cargolux also expects to carry shipments for the oil and gas industry on the USNorway-Luxembourg service.

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October 27, 2016

ALEPPO, Syria  Residents of the opposition-controlled eastern neighborhoods of Aleppo are bracing themselves for the harsh winter conditions amid the regime's blockade that has been ongoing since Sept. 4. The besieged neighborhoods are facing a lack of heat sources for the winter. They have critically limited access to fuel and electricity, and there are prohibitively high, blockade-driven prices for wood, their basic heat source during the past four years.

As winter draws near, the price of a 200-liter barrel of diesel fuel hit 250,000 Syrian pounds ($500) in the eastern neighborhoods of the city of Aleppo because of the blockade. Before the blockade, the same quantity sold for 55,000 pounds ($90). Meanwhile, the price of a ton of firewood for heating reached 200,000 pounds ($400), compared to $120 before the blockade. Families cannot afford such prices in Aleppo amid difficult economic conditions plaguing the eastern neighborhoods of the city, as the average income of family providers does not exceed $100  if they are lucky enough to have a job.

Electricity, which was the main heating source before the outbreak of hostilities in the city of Aleppo in the summer of 2012, is completely cut off in the eastern neighborhoods of the city because of the military activities near battle lines in the western part of Aleppo. On Feb. 16, regime forces took control of the thermal power station, which was under the control of the Islamic State (IS), near as-Safira city in the eastern countryside of Aleppo, cutting off the electrical supply to the eastern neighborhoods of the city. Power was secured to these neighborhoods through the only such station in the province. When the station was under IS control, areas under both Syrian regime and opposition control got equal power supplies under an agreement between the three parties. However, the regime took control of it in February.

Al-Hajj Abu Mohammad, a resident of al-Qaterji in eastern Aleppo, told Al-Monitor, We are now unable to buy food, let alone other things such as fuel or wood for heating. Prices here in Aleppo are rising dramatically due to the blockade. In previous years, we would rely on wood for heating, as fuel has always been expensive. Now, however, fuel is unavailable and wood is no longer cheap. Now everything is expensive. Our work stopped because of the blockade, and people are living an inescapable hell. It gets a little cold in the night, but it is still tolerable. But two weeks from now, the weather will be completely different, and we might have to burn our furniture and unneeded tools to heat the house. Life is no longer bearable over here.

The Syrian interim government's local council for the city of Aleppo is incapable of finding solutions to the heating problem, and it seems that this coming winter will hit the opposition-controlled areas of Aleppo hardest. The council members feel that there are more important things, such as bread, that need to be focused on, especially since no one can predict how long the blockade will last.

The deputy head of the Aleppo city council, Zakaria Aminu, told Al-Monitor, At this stage, we will not be able to secure any materials to keep warm  be it diesel or wood  due to the regime blockade, and we do not have any alternatives in the event that the blockade continues. Our current priority in the council is to secure bread for civilians and ensure bread continues to be available under the siege. The local Aleppo council does not have enough diesel reserves. The existing quantity can hardly satisfy the minimum requirements of bakeries, and these are the most important."

He added, The fuel and wood prices are rising because they are out of stock. It is a matter of supply and demand. Low supply always leads to higher prices.

Relief organizations operating in opposition-controlled areas in the city of Aleppo also do not seem to prioritize securing or subsidizing heating sources for civilians. They are currently focused on the distribution of food to the people of the city, although in previous years, they did strive to provide heating sources in the winter to families in need.

Wael al-Halabi, a public relations officer in the nongovernmental organization Abrar Halab Association for Relief and Development, told Al-Monitor, We know very well that this winter will be difficult for civilians, especially considering that we have been besieged for two months now. We cannot purchase fuel and distribute it to the people most in need as we did in previous years. Our focus now is feeding the people and distributing food to them. We have no idea how residents will cope with winter, especially considering that the cold is fiercer by the year, but we hope that the siege will come to an end and spare us an anticipated tragedy.

Aleppo's civilians are aware of how harsh the winter will be for them if the blockade imposed by regime forces on the eastern neighborhoods lingers. In previous years, when there was no blockade, winter was harsh enough for civilians who struggled to secure costly heating sources.

However, Aleppans are still pinning their hopes on the Syrian opposition forces to end the siege. There are reports that the Syrian armed opposition is preparing for an upcoming battle against the regime with the aim of ending another siege imposed on the eastern neighborhoods of the city of Aleppo. Should a road be opened between the eastern neighborhoods and the northern and western Aleppo countryside, winter might be survivable.
October 28, 2016

Mahienour el-Massry is an Egyptian political activist and lawyer who is well-known for employee rights advocacy and for taking part in the January 25 Revolution and June 30, 2013, demonstrations. She is one of the first activists who helped uncover the facts surrounding the killing of Khaled Saeed  the young Egyptian whose death in police custody is widely cited as helping spark the 2011 revolution.

On May 20, 2014, the court upheld a decision to sentence Massry to prison under the protest law for demonstrating without permit and assaulting security forces, for protesting during the trial of those accused of killing Saeed on Dec. 2, 2013.

On June 26, 2014, while Massry was in prison, the committee of the Ludovic-Trarieux International Human Rights Prize announced its decision that Massry be awarded the 2014 prize. Massry was released from prison in August of this year. In an interview with Al-Monitor, Massry spoke about her experience in prison.

The text of the interview follows:

Al-Monitor: How much time did you spend in prison?

Massry: I was arrested for the first time during a demonstration related to Khaled Saeed on Dec. 2, 2013. A six-month jail sentence was confirmed on May 20, 2014, for protesting, assaulting security forces and causing damages. I was arrested for the second time in 2015, during a protest in front of the Ittihadiya Palace, and I was sentenced to 15 months in prison, which I spent in Damanhour prison and Qanater prison, under the law on public assembly.

When I was arrested for the first time, Louay Kahwaji and Omr Hazek were also arrested for taking part in the demonstration. Islam Hasanein, a student who happened to be in the vicinity of the demonstration, was also arrested.

My parents asked me to flee the country and travel, but I had an ethical quandary about not letting Hasanein pay the price alone. Back then, he was a kid who provides for his family and would not be found innocent, even though he did not participate in the demonstration.

After serving my sentence, my protest and revolutionary activity were focused in Cairo, in order for me to be away a little bit from the Alexandria officers who know me. Yet after participating in the demonstration in front of the Ittihadiya Palace, in protest against confirming the decision to imprison the founders of the April 6 Movement, Ahmed Douma and Mohammed Adel, I was arrested once I set foot in Alexandria.

I was the only political prisoner in Damanhour prison in Alexandria, which prompted the head of the investigations unit to talk about equality between political and criminal prisoners. Then he ordered to move me to a cell for public funds offenders, which I thought was a cell for corrupt businessmen. Yet I found out that it is a cell for female inmates who have no provider.

Al-Monitor: How were you treated in prison?

Massry: The way I was treated depended on the mood of the head of the investigations unit. The number of prisoners was lower the first time, while it was higher the second time. The prison cell was small, ranging between 4 to 6 meters [13-20 feet], accommodating 18 female prisoners. Our number reached 30 prisoners sometimes. We had one bathroom, and our stuffs were hung to a nail inside the room. There were no beds in Damanhour prison, unlike the Qanater prison. The design of the political prisoners cell, which I entered along with others the second time, was very similar to al-Aqrab prisons cells. They have no ventilation and water cuts were ongoing.

Al-Monitor: Did you do anything in response to these inhumane prison conditions?

Massry: Yes. I filed many complaints against water cuts, but the police commissioner took the issue personally. Yet the reasons behind the ongoing water cuts differed. At times, it was to punish the inmates, and sometimes it was due to financial problems between the Interior Ministry and the water authority. Someone had once explained that the prison administration resorts to this practice because the Damanhour prison is underground and when the water level rises many cells are flooded, which is logical for me. At the end of the day, the complaints were useless.

The medical negligence in Damanhour prison reached critical levels. We were subjected to verbal insults and bad words when asking for a physician by pounding on doors. One day, an inmate gave birth in the prison cell.

Also, let me tell you more about the real tragedies, which are mainly related to health issues in prison. Most of the inmates are vulnerable to many diseases, including bone diseases, given the lack of beds, and to infectious and intestinal diseases, given the unhealthy and rotten food most of the times.

Things are stricter at Qanater prison, where I was placed in the political prisoners cell, which was known as the Brotherhoods cell. The prisons administration does not respond to the inmates demands. We went on a hunger strike to claim our rights, but they were not met. One day, a fire broke out in the cell and the administration did not assist us, because it was a holiday. We put it out by ourselves and two inmates were burned.

Al-Monitor: What about the law stipulating your rights, including the right to health?

Massry: Things in prison don't go according to the law. Rather, they go according to the practice of the prison commissioner.

Al-Monitor: Did the regime try to suppress you in prison?

Massry: Things were kind of going fine with me in the Damanhour prison. The entry of books, the gazette and private newspapers such as Al-Masry Al-Youm and Al-Shorouk was permissible.

Once, during a cell inspection, which is one of the worse experiments, the officers came in to conduct a surprise inspection of the beds and all personal stuffs to forcibly take what they already allowed to enter the cell. This time, they discovered my personal notebook that includes my daily observations and is similar to my diary in prison. Fast forward, they called on me and demanded that I refrain from taking notes of facts that include accusations of the prison officers.

Al-Monitor: How was your relationship with the other female inmates?

Massry: The relationship evolved over time. They called me the Brotherhood inmate in the beginning, as a general classification of any political prisoner. When the presidential elections were held and Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was elected, the prisoners had great hopes in the regime and the president. Their favorite song back then was Tislam al-Ayadi ya Jeish Bladi [Blessed are your hands, my countrys army], which became famous after July 3, 2013.

Sisis mottos, which have not been implemented, had started to be put to the test and the arbitrary arrests were ongoing under the pretext of preserving [the countrys] security. Yet the security situation was not under control outside [prison].

Al-Monitor: Did you meet in prison any of those who had been subject to forced disappearance?

Massry: I met a number of forced disappeared persons in Qanater prison, including Hiba Rifaat, who is accused in the attorney generals incident [assassination of Attorney General Hisham Barakat] and who remained disappeared until the state security services investigated with her and she was moved to Qanater prison, without her parents knowledge. I also met Sarah, who is accused in the bombing of the Embassy of Niger. They were tortured and threatened of being raped and of arresting their first-degree relatives, until they made false confessions.

Al-Monitor: How do you perceive the situation in the countrys politics now?

Massry: It is not excellent at present. The military regime has wreaked havoc across the country. Therefore, change has become difficult. There was no such oppression under the Brotherhood rule that I opposed, however.

Al-Monitor: In case the presidential elections are held in two years, will the revolutionary youth have their own candidate?

Massry: I cant anticipate it. A period of two years is too long to predict the stance of the revolutions youths or satisfaction of the current state with Sisi.
October 27, 2016

The Government Media Office in the Gaza Strip announced Oct. 17 that the Supreme Administrative Committee, which is in charge of the conduct of Gazas ministries, had taken a decision to carry out a Cabinet reshuffle in active ministries and change the positions of 16 deputy ministers and directors general in government institutions.

The most important reshuffles carried out by Hamas, which oversees the committee, included transferring Ibrahim Radwan from the Land Authority to the Ministry of Public Works; Ibrahim Jaber from the Ministry of Planning to the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities; Kamel Madi from the Ministry of Interior to the Land Authority; Anwar al-Buraawi from the Ministry of Education to the Ministry of Culture; Ihab al-Ghusain from the State Media to the Ministry of Transport; Samir Mtayyar from the Ministry of Culture to the Energy Authority; Emad al-Baz from the Ministry of Economy to the Court of Fatwa; and Bashir Abu al-Naja from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Ministry of Youth.

Oussama Saad, the deputy secretary-general of the Cabinet in Gaza, told Al-Monitor, The administrative reshuffling of the high-ranking staff in Gazas ministries aims at improving the quality of work, transferring expertise from one place to another and developing new visions for advanced government positions. This is a positive reshuffle that will involve deputy ministers and directors general in the majority of active ministries in Gaza. It is a legal action because it is executed by a committee set up by the PLC [Palestinian Legislative Council] to manage Gazas ministries until the consensus government takes over.

The Supreme Administrative Committee was in charge of the Cabinet reshuffle after the committee was approved by the PLC in the Gaza Strip and the majority of Hamas PLC members in June to organize the affairs of ministries and government institutions.

On Oct. 18, Hamas PLC members stressed the importance of this committee to develop the structure of ministries in Gaza and organize, supervise and follow up on their work. This committee is also authorized to change the positions of high-ranking employees without informing the minister in charge of their duties and who is affiliated with the Ramallah government. This could pave the way for the return of Ismail Haniyehs government in Gaza, which had resigned in June 2014 following the signing of the reconciliation agreement between Fatah and Hamas in April of that year.

However, some legal experts believe the Supreme Administrative Committee is not legitimate because it conflicted with the 2003 Palestinian Basic Law. For their part, some Palestinian human rights bodies, such as the Coalition for Accountability and Integrity - Aman, said Oct. 18 that the formation of this committee was a declaration of a new government in the Gaza Strip.

On the same day, Prime Minister of the consensus government Rami Hamdallah said that Hamas Cabinet reshuffle is proof that it is a de facto government that is impeding the legitimate government from performing its functions by refusing to hand over government ministries and allow employees to return to their workplace.

Hamas was not the first to make ministerial changes; in July 2015, the consensus government carried out a Cabinet reshuffle in the West Bank without consulting with Hamas. This step may be used by the movement as an argument to initiate ministerial changes without reference to the Ramallah government, even though such actions from both sides deepen the division between Gaza and Ramallah ongoing since 2007.

Salem Salama, a Hamas member of the PLCs political committee, told Al-Monitor, The Cabinet reshuffle is a legal and legitimate action because it aims to serve the people of the Gaza Strip and pump new blood into its ministries as the Ramallah government is ignoring Gaza and its needs. Such a policy reflects President Mahmoud Abbas neglect of Gazans, as he does not consider them as part of the Palestinian people.

For his part, Youssef Mahmoud, the spokesman for the consensus government, said Oct. 20 that every action made in Gaza without the consensus governments approval is illegitimate and not recognized by the Ramallah government, which allocates half its budget to Gaza, valued at 440 million shekels (about $114 million) a month.

Mazen Noureddine, the dean of the Faculty of Law at Ummah University in Gaza, told Al-Monitor, Administrative reshuffling of high-ranking government employees requires a decision issued by President Abbas as stipulated in the Basic Law. However, the authorities in control of the Gaza Strip have perhaps exploited legal loopholes to pass such reshuffles without the president's approval, in an attempt to fill the legal vacuum in Gaza.

Hamas reshuffle coincided with the movements announcement Oct. 19 of the legal expiration of the consensus government that was formed following the Beach Refugee Camp Agreement in April 2014, but failed to complete its tasks. In addition, Hamas accused the consensus government of depending on factional Fatah decisions instead of national consensual ones, thus becoming a government with double standards that discriminates between Gaza and the West Bank.

In this context, Fatah spokesman Fayez Abu Eita told Al-Monitor, Hamas has to give the consensus government the opportunity to work in the Gaza Strip without any obstacles.

Hamas Cabinet reshuffle did not include the Ministry of Finance, which may indicate the movements desire not to disrupt the work of the ministry that provides the movement the necessary financial resources to manage Gazas affairs. It also kept the position of the undersecretary of the Ministry of Interior and Security vacant, although it might be a risky move since this ministry is in charge of security in Gaza and preserving the internal Palestinian front in the event of any possible Israeli attack. Perhaps it did not want to rush into appointing any candidate, given the ministrys importance in maintaining Gaza's security.

In the context of Cabinet reshuffles, Hamas also dissolved the Ministry of Planning and transferred its employees to other ministries. These employees found out about the decision only one day before it was officially announced, and thus held a protest at the PLCs courtyard in Gaza Oct. 16.

A former employee at the Ministry of Planning who has been transferred to the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, Those responsible for dissolving this vital ministry neither informed us in advance nor did they consult us about moving us to other ministries. Perhaps they do not appreciate the importance of the ministry, although it represents the backbone of the government.

For his part, Abdel Sattar Qassem, a political science professor at An-Najah University in Nablus, told Al-Monitor, The Cabinet reshuffle in Gaza has an administrative objective in regard to those who remained in their positions for long years after Hamas took over Gaza in 2007. A proper management requires a reshuffle in order to pump new blood into the ministries. However, such decisions have political connotations that will deepen the gap between Fatah and Hamas, and show that the latter is the decision-maker in Gaza in the absence of a consensus government that does not offer much for Gaza.

It may seem a bit early to predict the political and administrative consequences of Hamas Cabinet reshuffle, but it is clear that it may decrease the chances of reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah and give Hamas more space to manage Gaza, despite the administrative burdens it might have to endure in light of the financial crisis plaguing the movement.

Although this Cabinet reshuffle carried out by Hamas might not have a direct impact on the Palestinians' living and economic conditions in the Gaza Strip, Hamas seeks to pump new blood into the ministries, which could convince the Palestinians that the movement is indeed in control of Gaza both politically and administratively and there is no real influence on the ground to the consensus government in Gaza.
AUBURN  The three candidates vying for the 54th Senate District exchanged barbs over campaign tactics during a forum Thursday at Cayuga Community College.

Pam Helming, who is running on the Republican, Conservative and Independence lines, defended support she's received from Albany Republicans, most notably the state Senate GOP's campaign committee.

Reform Party candidate Floyd Rayburn, who lost to Helming in the GOP primary by 210 votes, questioned the events that resulted in Helming securing the party's designation in May and attacks he says he was subjected to leading up to the Sept. 13 primary election.

"It was a filthy process," he said.

Rayburn claimed that if the primary was based on a weighted vote, Helming would've finished third in the five-person race. He won three counties  Ontario, Monroe and Tompkins.

Helming's response: "If we were the Buffalo Bills, I might advocate for weighted votes. Maybe the Bills would have a better record. But it's not. A win is a win, whether it's by one point or whether it's by 20 points."

Democratic candidate Kenan Baldridge also tangled with Helming over what he considers interference by Republicans in the Democratic primary.

Charlie Evangelista, an Ontario County supervisor, submitted petitions to challenge Baldridge for the Democratic nomination. But he was removed from the ballot after two Republicans linked to Helming successfully objected to signatures he collected.

Baldridge lost his spot on the Working Families Party line due to objections raised by GOP supporters.

"I think that is reprehensible," he said.

Helming accused Baldridge of "spouting untruths," then claimed he had an arrangement with Evangelista that they wouldn't challenge each other.

"You should follow the rules," said Helming.

The candidates did address other issues during the hour-long forum, including whether Seneca Meadows should be gradually shut down or kept open. All agreed that the landfill should be closed.

On the blue-green algae affecting Owasco Lake, Helming said there should be a permanent line item in the state budget to fund research efforts for all Finger Lakes. The candidates agreed that watershed associations are important, too.

But they don't believe there should be tougher regulations on farms near the lake.

"I will tell you there are less farms in this area than there were 30 years," Rayburn said.

Baldridge said blue-green algae isn't a new issue for Owasco Lake.

"I'm not sure the regulations are going to solve our problem," he said. "When it comes to agriculture, there are farming techniques that can be used to improve the situation."

Helming said more stringent regulations "should be a last resort."

The candidates found agreement on another question: Whether the state should hire more corrections officers. Baldridge and Helming said they would listen to the union, the New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benelovent Association, to determine if more officers are needed.

One issue Baldridge, Helming and Rayburn didn't have opinions on was how the Interstate 81 project might affect communities west of Syracuse. While I-81 doesn't run through the 54th District, there is concern that trucks will seek alternative routes if the state chooses the boulevard option to replace the existing viaduct.

The three candidates are running to represent the 54th Senate District, which covers all of Seneca and Wayne counties, plus portions of Cayuga, Monroe, Ontario and Tompkins counties.

The winner will succeed retiring state Sen. Michael Nozzolio, who announced earlier this year he wouldn't seek another term in office. He had heart surgery in April to repair faulty heart valves.
October 27, 2016

TEHRAN, Iran  Conditions seem to be moving toward the smooth re-election of Irans President Hassan Rouhani after one of his main rivals, former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, announced that he will not be running in the May 2017 vote. But will the Reformists, who were Rouhanis key supporters and the reason for his victory in the 2013 election, continue backing him? It appears as if the situation has not turned out the way the Reformists envisaged and that there is some dissatisfaction with Rouhanis performance within their camp.

Reformist politician and member of parliament Mohammad Reza Aref, who quit the 2013 presidential race at the last minute to allow for a Reformist consensus around Rouhani, is one of the people who does not have a favorable view of the president. Aref, the head of the Reformist-moderate List of Hope for the Feb. 26 parliamentary elections, has continuously refrained from voicing his outright support for Rouhani in the upcoming presidential vote.

In an Aug. 13 interview with the Young Journalists Club, Aref  who served as first vice president during former Reformist President Mohammad Khatamis second term (2001-2005)  was asked to comment on whether Rouhani is the Reformists only potential candidate in the May 2017 vote. He responded, Whatever comment I make in this regard will be viewed as personal since the final decision on the Reformists presence at the polls has not been made yet. The cohesion of the Reformist camp is paramount to us. Therefore, we will discuss this after the [Reformists] type of presence [in the next presidential election] has been decided on.

Arefs comments may stem from his personal discontent with Rouhani for not appointing him as his first vice president after being elected president, and later for not supporting his bid to become parliament speaker. Although Rouhani never made a direct or official statement about Arefs decision to run for speaker, the presidents advisers and deputies supported Arefs main rival, incumbent Principlist Ali Larijani.

One informed source close to former President Khatami who asked to remain anonymous shared with Al-Monitor an interesting anecdote about the governments role in the vote for the speakership. He told Al-Monitor, Before the inauguration of the new parliament, [Oil Minister] Bijan Zangeneh and [Minister of Roads and Urban Development] Abbas Akhoundi visited Khatami to discuss Arefs candidacy and request that he convince Aref to not compete in the race so that Larijani could remain in the post of speaker. This request by Zanganeh and Akhoundi  who had both served as ministers in Khatamis administration  greatly angered Khatami who responded, 'If in 2013 we convinced Aref to quit the race, it was because Hassan Rouhani was on the other side and we could form a coalition around him. But what reason would we have for requesting this of Aref today? To withdraw in favor of Ali Larijani, who has no ties to the Reformists? What will the people who counted on us and voted for our List of Hope say?'

The source added that Zangeneh and Akhoundi then tried to convince Khatami that Aref would not get enough votes and that it would be best if he ran for deputy speaker instead. Khatami, however, opposed their request and apparently said, We do not expect the government to support Aref, but expect it to at least refrain from entering the scene and allow us to do our own work. The meeting is said to have ended with Zangeneh and Akhoundi promising to convince Rouhani to do so.

This did not happen given that Rouhanis first Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri two days later, on May 7, expressed his full support for Larijani at a gathering that was held to acquaint new parliamentarians with Irans parliament and the legislative process. At the meeting, Jahangiri praised Larijani and said, The parliament speaker very bravely and thoughtfully stood up and even made a sacrifice to show his support for the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Jahangiri made no mention of Aref at the session.

Larijanis decisive victory in the battle for the speakership is said to have once again disheartened Aref  so much so that until today he has abstained from voicing support for Rouhanis re-election. One lawmaker from Tehran who was among the nominees on the Reformists List of Hope told Al-Monitor, Mr. Aref feels that he has been deprived of his rights in an ungentlemanly manner and is very depressed and does not have much desire to voice his opinion or have an active role.

It could be that the Reformists have realized that they have no other candidate than Rouhani and their lack of support could thus be aimed at pressuring the president into giving them a larger role in the next government.

In an interview with the Iranian Labor News Agency July 22, Mohammad Reza Khatami, the deputy speaker of Irans sixth parliament (2000-2004), introduced Rouhani as the Reformists first and last option for the May 2017 presidential vote. Meanwhile, prominent Reformist theoretician Saeed Hajjarian, a Reformist theoretician, told Basij News Aug. 28, The Reformists have no choice but to support Rouhani. Even the Principlists will slowly come toward Rouhani and have no choice but to support him, because they, too, have no one to present for next years election.

Saeed Laylaz, the deputy head of council of the Executives of Construction Party, shares Hajjarian and Khatamis views. In an interview with Al-Monitor, Laylaz said, If Ahmadinejad had come [forward as a candidate], there would be more unity and consensus among the Reformists. However, when next years election comes, you will still witness the Reformists forming a consensus around Rouhani without any difficulty.

He added, I dont understand the great concern regarding Mr. Arefs potential actions. He has always respected the Reformists collective and strategic decisions and never taken a step autonomously or against the public good of the Reformists. Therefore, I am certain that he, too, as one of the greats in the Reformist movement, will act wisely as he has done before and support Rouhani.

As such, given the current situation, Hajjarians analysis seems to be the most logical: The Reformists have no other option than Rouhani and they have no other choice either.
October 28, 2016

The rift between the Jewish and Arab communities in Israel has deepened recently, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warning his constituents on the last day of the elections in March 2015 that Arabs were "voting in droves," thus making more than a million Arabs feel like second-class citizens. But despite this deepening rift, three films have taken the Israeli film world by storm, providing a fascinating glimpse into Arab society in the Jewish state.

The first film to win big was Sand Storm by Elite Zexer that won six Ophir Awards (Israels equivalent to the Oscars), including one for best film. Then came Personal Affairs by director Maha Haj that took the top prize at the 2016 Haifa Film Festival, followed by "In Between" from director Maysaloun Hamoud, which has also received various prizes, including best debut feature film at the Haifa Film Festival. These three films deal with the cultural, social, religious and traditional world of the Arab community in Israel, as well as with the identity crisis and intergenerational changes it is undergoing. This wave of Arab cinema is particularly fascinating given the fact that its creators are women  directors and actresses  and their scripts deal with the lives of Arab women in Israels Arab and Jewish communities. In many respects, the wave of films by Arab creators shatters stereotypes not only through the narratives it tells but also through its Arab directors and actresses who hail from traditional homes and a traditional society, displaying courage in making liberated, free-spirited, promiscuous films.

One of Israels top film critics, Gidi Orsher, told Al-Monitor that these films are a reaction to changes sweeping Arab society, whose residents are experiencing an identity crisis due to being a minority among a Jewish majority. Yet, he said that these films are also a reaction to Palestinian male cinema that has dealt in the past mostly with the Israeli occupation.

The statement of the Arab female filmmakers now is to say, 'Yes, we have a position of our own on politico-diplomatic issues, but lets see whats happening to us as human beings too,' Orsher said. He predicts that these films will have an impact on Israeli cinema in the future. It cant stop now, it will keep going. Its reminiscent of the development of the Israeli film scene in its early days, he added. Until the 1960s, Israeli films were national, Zionist, but in the 1970s people started talking about the individual in society.

Hamouds film In Between tells the story of three Arab women living in Tel Aviv. On the one hand, traditional Arab society supervises their comings and goings, and on the other, the liberated and permissive society of Tel Aviv regards them as second-class citizens. The main characters are played by three Palestinian actresses  Mouna Hawa, Sana Jammelieh and Shaden Kanboura. In explaining their decision to award the film a prize at the Haifa Film Festival, the jury described it as a powerful creation about women fighting to shape their fate by coping with challenges, through friendship, courage, victory, and by breaking free of shackles, and the price they pay.

This generation are my age, people who grew up during the October 2000 events [Arab riots in Israel] and then through the Arab Spring, Hamoud told Al-Monitor. Theres no doubt that the influence of these events shaped a different awareness than the one that shaped previous generations. From the grandfather who lowered his eyes and stared at the ground, to the half-frightened, half-curious gaze of our parents, compared to my generation that looks reality in the eye. This is a new generation that is also very active. The elements that shaped that awareness are now coming to the fore.

Hamouds story is indeed the tale of the third generation of Arab Israelis, born in Israel and living between Jewish society and a changing Arab one, with its unique cultural-moral-religious character. She was born in Hungary to a family from the Galilee Arab village of Deir Hanna. Her father studied medicine there. She grew up in the southern city of Beersheba, where her father specialized in surgery at the Soroka Medical Center. Hamoud then went on to study political science and Middle Eastern Studies at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and worked as a teacher until she experienced a traumatic event.

I went to the hospital with an intestinal inflammation and underwent surgery that ran into complications, she said. I was clinically dead and woke up two days later. The surgeon who stood in front of me when I woke up said something I will never forget: 'Remember, one doesnt simply come back from the dead to this world. Theres someone who loves you, but do something with this, because things like this dont just happen.'"

When she got out of the hospital she applied to study at the Sam Spiegel Film and Television School in Jerusalem, and this week was awarded the prize for best debut feature for her first film.

Cinema reflects reality more than anything else, and in the best way, Orsher said. One can examine trends and fashions according to films made during various periods. When one sees Arab films bursting onto the screen one can learn a lot about the process that Arab society in Israel is undergoing. This is courageous cinema that also reflects the courage of the actresses playing these roles.

Hamoud agrees with Orsher and said that it is very hard for Palestinian society to differentiate between a role and an actor. She described the casting for her film as an arduous journey  a film within a film. She said that finding actresses to play lesbians or for the role of Muna  who does whatever she feels like and doesnt give a damn  was not easy at all.

One has to wonder, of course, whether these films will succeed in bringing Jews and Arabs closer. Hamoud believes that one film or even several will not create a sea change on their own, but this perhaps moves Israeli cinema a few steps forward toward getting to know the Arab society in Israel, which it usually sees according to stereotypes that fit the Jewish narrative.
October 28, 2016

RAMALLAH, West Bank  At an Oct. 16 seminar held in Ramallah to discuss the role of foreign support in promoting the private sector, a group of economists concluded that the importance of the private sector in Palestines economic growth did not translate into the necessary level of attention or size of funding allocated to that end.

Foreign support consists of the donations and aid offered by foreign countries to the Palestinian Authority (PA) as per the Oslo Accord signed in October 1993 and which were set at $2.4 billion. This amount, which would be paid in installments over the years, aims at funding the building of the PAs institutions and development works.

The seminar, organized by the Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute - MAS, came in the context of a study, which is currently being revised before publication, conducted by MAS on foreign support to the Gaza Strip. The seminar, which was attended by economic experts and representatives of the private sector, aims to measure the effect of foreign support on the private sector, which is one of the pillars and engines of the Palestinian economy.

In this regard, director of the study Samir Abdallah told Al-Monitor, The private sector was allocated a slight share of foreign support; in other words, less than 5.2% of the total amount estimated at $230 million throughout the period between 2002 and 2014.

According to Abdallah, this was a marginal rate given that the private sector generates 63% of the gross domestic product and employs 62% of the workforce in the Palestinian local market.

Aliqtisadi website editor Mohammad Fareed attributes the low figure of 5.2% to the limited number of organizations offering support to the private sector, compared to those supporting civil society and nongovernmental organizations (more than 60%, according to experts). The donations allocated to the private sector are deducted from the total amount in donations the PA receives. The private sector uses these donations to procure the machines and equipment necessary for boosting production and expanding the market share, instead of achieving quality to the benefit of the citizens. This contradicts the purpose of foreign support, which is originally deducted from the taxes paid by the citizens of donor countries, Fareed told Al-Monitor.

Although the studys analysis was based on the fact that the private sector's share of 5.2% is real, Abdallah noted that this figure may not be accurate. While conducting the study, we had to deal with imprecise data and the firms lack of transparency in that respect. Also, firms benefit indirectly from an additional rate of foreign support offered to the government and civil society organizations, since these firms are the ones that implement the projects [of NGOs and civil society institutions] funded through said support, he said.

In turn, Fareed explained the inaccuracy of these figures saying that financial support is usually transferred directly by the donors to the private sector, which means that it does not figure in the state budget, but rather that of the recipient firm or the donor country. Furthermore, private firms prefer not to disclose this support in order to obtain additional donations from various stakeholders.

The limited support was not the only problem addressed by the study that also tackled distribution to the different components of the private sector, which mainly targeted those who do not need it.

In this respect, Abdallah said that the components of the private sector include large enterprises (0.1%), smaller enterprises (0.9%), medium-sized enterprises (9%) and microenterprises with five employees or less (90%).

According to Abdallah, the majority of support goes to small- and medium-sized enterprises. As a result, the study recommended the redistribution of this support in a way that focuses on microenterprises.

Economic expert Misyaf Misyaf stressed the study recommendations, telling Al-Monitor, In fact, large firms dont need support. It is microenterprises that really need it, since they are marginalized by both the government and the private sector.

Misyaf further criticized the form of the support, despite its scarcity, saying, This support is not without conditions and does not take into consideration the Palestinian economys needs. It chiefly targets large enterprises that dont need support to begin with.

For this support to be more effective, Misyaf called for the establishment of a joint central administration composed of representatives of the private sector, the government and civil society. Such administration would be tasked with elaborating a national strategy for the private sectors needs. As part of this strategy, support would be allocated based on priorities. Misyaf further stressed the importance of regional redistribution and focusing on marginalized areas located far from the centers of major cities.

Despite the need for increasing this support, as recommended by the study, it should be noted that the Palestinian private sector remains a fledgling sector, founded with the advent of the PA in 1995. It is still unable to compete with its Israeli counterpart, which will benefit the most from foreign support should it increase, as all crude materials needed for foreign-funded projects in Palestine are imported from the Israeli private sector.
October 27, 2016

RAMALLAH, West Bank  In Jericho, one of the oldest cities in the world, the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities has unveiled the largest floor mosaic in the Middle East for public display. The Oct. 20 ceremonial opening in Hisham Palace was attended by numerous official figures and public personalities, including Tourism Minister Rula Maaya, Secretary of the Palestine Liberation Organizations Executive Committee Saeb Erekat, Japanese Ambassador to the Palestinian Authority Takechi Okubo and chief representative from the Japan International Cooperation Agency Yuko Mitsui.

The mosaic, dating back to the Umayyad era, covers the floor of the reception hall between the office of the caliph, which was used to host high-level visitors, and the large bathroom in the Umayyad Hisham Palace, built in 724.

The mosaic is made up of 38 connected panels, each with a unique design that includes decorations and geometric forms. Altogether, these panels form a large mosaic floor spanning a total area of 827 square meters. The most famous image, the Tree of Life, shows a lion preying on a deer on one side of the tree, with two other deer foraging peacefully on the other. The room containing this section was blocked off, with the mosaic viewable through doors and windows that are blocked with iron bars.

The director of the Palestinian Tourism and Antiquities Ministry, Iyad Hamdan, told Al-Monitor, This archaeological piece is an expression of life in times of war and peace.

Hamdan said that the mosaic floor, which had been buried under sand to protect it from erosion, was unveiled in the presence of officials as part of a project to protect the mosaic before displaying it to the public. This project was funded by Japan through the Japan International Cooperation Agency at a cost of about $12 million and is due to start in three months. This process of constructing protective and exhibition facilities is expected to take up to a year and a half before the mosaic is displayed to the public in early 2018.

Hamdan explained that a protective barrier made of insulating and environmentally friendly materials capable of withstanding temperature fluctuations will be constructed without changing the site, to prevent visitors from stepping on the mosaic floor and to provide a view from above.

On the sidelines of the unveiling ceremony, Maaya, the tourism minister, said that this mosaic floor is the largest in the Middle East and perhaps in the world. This mosaic portrays the history of the Palestinian people and has great historical value, she said.

Mitsui said, A Japanese engineering team, in collaboration with the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism, the technical team and the consulting committee, are discussing the best design for the mosaic floors protective cover, which must be suitable to the nature and environment of the [palace] and must preserve its historical value.

Saleh Tawafsha, the general director of the Ministry of Tourism's Department of Antiquities Protection, told Al-Monitor, The Japanese team, in cooperation with the Palestinian team, will execute the project to construct protective and exhibition facilities consisting of high bridges between columns that the visitors will cross to view the mosaic floor without stepping on it. He added that a specialized Palestinian team will conduct the necessary restoration works.

He noted, The mosaic floor will not be displayed for public viewing until the completion of the project, because some of it needs restoration and maintenance and uncovering those parts to visitors will expose them to significant harm.

The massive mosaic was discovered in 1935 by Palestinian archaeologist Dimitri Baramki, who headed a British excavation team in his capacity as director of the Palestinian Department of Antiquities under the British mandate. The team explored Hisham Palace, which covers an area of about 40 dunums and was destroyed by an earthquake in the year 749, according to Jihad Yassin, the general director of museums and excavations in the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.

Yassin told Al-Monitor, The excavation works led to the uncovering of large parts of Hisham Palace and the mosaic floor, but in 1948, excavation works were halted due to the Israeli occupation. In the period between 1960 and 1967, the Jordanian Department of Antiquities resumed these excavation works and was planning at the time to cover and protect the mosaic floor. But the outbreak of the 1967 war and the occupation of the West Bank prevented it from completing its project.

Yassin recalled that in 2006, the Ministry of Tourism carried out some excavation works to examine the civilizational history of the palace. Between 2010 and 2015, the ministry and the University of Chicago conducted a joint excavation project that led to the discovery of the palaces northern gate and allowed them to learn more about the nature of the northern area.

Tawafsha said that the PA's Ministry of Tourism had on several occasions carried out restoration work on the mosaic, covered and buried it in sand for protection. However, the PA has been unable to build protective facilities to display the mosaic to the public, as such a project would be very costly. The PA proposed a project that failed to gain approval because the designs suggested were not compatible with the mosaic floor's cultural landscape.

Yassin explained, Mosaics in Palestine date back to the Roman period. This art has evolved over the centuries, especially in the Byzantine era and the Islamic era. Aesthetics have changed and work on mosaics has become more professional. It is widely used in public buildings, churches and monasteries. The mosaic flooring in Hisham Palace is a unique piece of art and the largest mosaic floor in the Middle East, with harmonious colors and meticulous assemblage.

The Ministry of Tourism hopes the unveiling of the mosaic floor will increase tourism to the city of Jericho. Hamdan said, Most visitors who come to Jericho asking about the mosaic floor do not believe that this treasure, featured in tourism publications, is buried under sand, which forces some tour guides to uncover some part of this mosaic for them to believe.

He added, After the completion of the protection project, we expect the number of visitors to Jericho and specifically to Hisham Palace to double compared with about 1.248 million visitors last year.

The protection, maintenance and eventual unveiling of the mosaic floor will add to the aesthetic value of the Umayyad Hisham Palace and solidify its status as the most important archaeological site in the city of Jericho.
October 27, 2016

WASHINGTON  US military officials say an operation to isolate the Islamic State-held city of Raqqa should get underway within weeks, warning that intelligence shows planning is taking place there for external terror attacks. The officials said the only capable local force to work with in such an operation in the near term is the Kurdish-majority Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). But the officials acknowledged that intense consultations with Turkey in recent days, including a phone call between US President Barack Obama and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Oct. 26, had not resolved the matter of Turkeys intense opposition to using Kurds in any operation to take the IS stronghold in Syria.

We think there's an imperative to get isolation in place around Raqqa because our intelligence feeds tell us that there is significant external operations attacks planning going on, emanating  centralized in Raqqa, the top US commander in Iraq and Syria, Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, told journalists in a satellite press briefing from Iraq on Oct. 26.

But Ankara was at odds with the plan, Townsend acknowledged.

So, how are we going to thread that needle with Raqqa, with the SDF and our NATO allies, Turkey? Townsend asked.

Turkey doesn't want to see us operating with the SDF anywhere, particularly in Raqqa, Townsend said. So, the facts are these. The only force that is capable on any  near-term timeline  are the Syrian Democratic Forces, of which the YPG [People's Protection Units] are a significant portion. So, we're negotiating, we're planning, we're having talks with Turkey and we're gonna take this in steps.

US officials suggested that they would need to rely on Kurdish forces and the SDF for the next phase of isolating Raqqa, but are stepping up recruitment of Arab forces for the subsequent phase of taking the city from IS.

So, on Raqqa, I believe that there are sufficient local forces already available for that operation, Townsend said. However, we have a plan to  recruit and equip and train more local forces for that operation. So that's part of our campaign plan to generate additional combat power for that future operation.

US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter, speaking to reporters in Brussels after meeting with his French and Turkish counterparts on the sidelines of a NATO meeting on Oct. 26, effusively praised Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Isik, but acknowledged that no new arrangement had been finalized yet.

We didn't conclude any new arrangements, but we continued these  very important discussions with a very good partner, Carter said. So we all want to keep [IS] under sustained pressure  that's the key  and defeat it in both Iraq and Syria, and everybody shares that objective.

As to when the operation against Raqqa would get underway, Carter would only say weeks. I can't be more specific than that.

We know what were doing, Carter continued. Were going to execute to that plan. And that plan has us generating those forces in a matter of weeks.  Generating them, and positioning them for the isolation of Raqqa.

Bassam Barabandi, a former Syrian diplomat now with the Syrian opposition High Negotiating Committee, said it has told the US administration it is important for the long-term success of any operation to take Raqqa that it be conducted by Syrian Arab forces, not Kurds.

We dont want Raqqa to be like Anbar, [where] every two years [IS] comes back, Barabandi told Al-Monitor. The best thing for us, the United States and regional countries is to have pure Arab forces that belong to that geographical part of world, trained by the United States  and they will do the job. And this will be the operational role between the United States and Turkey.

He said, The SDF will not be involved in any of the daily fight, rather they could be advisory, provide support, far away from the city. The administration said they like the idea, but their argument is, it is very difficult to create a new body now, and we will go with what they have.

He added, We told them, Raqqa is a small city, it will be the first [major] American operation in Syria on the ground, and we need it to be a success story. That would be good for Syria, the revolution, everybody. The way the Americans are thinking so far will make it a very tragic story.

The Americans told the Turks that no Islamist group will be allowed to participate in the Raqqa operation, because Ahrar al-Sham and Jabhat al-Nusra had previously held Raqqa and gave it up to IS, Barabandi said. Turkey said the SDF and Kurds are a red line, and from their perspective, the only way to go forward is to have a major Arab force to do the job.

Erdogan repeated that view Oct. 27, saying he had told Obama as much in their phone call Oct. 26.

"We do not need terrorist organizations like the PYD/YPG, Erdogan said he had told Obama in their phone call. I said, 'Come, let's remove [IS] from Raqqa together. We will sort this out together with you.' We have the strength.

The SDF is also wary of providing up to two-thirds of its 25,000-strong forces for the operation to isolate Raqqa, leaving smaller numbers to defend against potential Turkish attacks on cities it is holding in other parts of Syria, said Aaron Stein, a Turkey expert with the Atlantic Council.

The SDF doesnt want to leave front-line positions vulnerable to Turkish attack, particularly around Tell Abyad and Manbij, Stein told Al-Monitor.

The US wants Raqqa because  that is where it [IS] plans external operations, Stein said. If the mission is to degrade and destroy IS, they need to push it out of there, so it is more difficult to plan external attacks.

My guess, they [US-led coalition] will do what they did in Manbij, set up a military council ostensibly run by Arabs, Stein said. But its a fig leaf. The US did not keep their promise to the Turks. Manbij still has the YPG in it. Switching their patches, thrusting a few Arabs in, does not cut it.

The SDF does not actually exist, Stein said. It is a made-up name given to the YPG. The SDF doesnt function without the YPG. It is the complete backbone.

But the difference is, compared to the rest of Syria, the YPG is completely homogenous, with one command structure, Stein said. It is ideal for the way the US fights wars, it is not hostile to the US, [they] dont have to worry about the YPG kidnapping US troops, as it does with some elements in Arab rebel groups.

Barabandi, commenting on the US administrations critique of the call to recruit a new Syrian Arab force to take Raqqa, said the US administration said the problem is that it would take too long, and who would make up the Arab force.

I told them, Syria is Arab, Barabandi said. So it is difficult you dont see Arabs.
October 27, 2016

The Tunisian town of Jendouba, near the Algerian border and nestled under the Chaambi Mountains, doesnt see a lot of Western tourists this time of year. So when two white American men stepped off a collective taxi coming from the capital, Tunis, the afternoon of Oct. 23, people were naturally curious  though no one immediately thought they might be terrorists.

The men, identified by police as Nathan Wells Lawwill, 32, and Patrick Alan Lawwill, 31, from Lansing, Michigan, arrived in Tunis from the United States over a year ago. The brothers told residents and police that they were in Jendouba to enroll in graduate-level computer science courses. According to Abdelatif Ayadi, the police chief of nearby Ezzahwa, local police first kept an eye on the men as a precautionary measure for the visitors safety.

With the help of a young local woman, the brothers rented a small apartment above a cafe in Ezzahwa, not far from Jendoubas main university, paying 150 dinars ($66) in cash for one months rent. Lotfi Ouergli, the landlord and owner of the Jawhra Cafe, told Al-Monitor that he was immediately struck by the appearance of the men, which seemed out of the ordinary to him for Americans: Both were very pale and unshaven, sporting big boots and clothes several sizes too large.

The older brother, Ouergli noted, seemed to be the domineering one in the relationship, while the younger brother appeared paranoid. Ouergli became nervous when he heard them listening to television in Arabic and when the older brother began talking in earnest about praying and going to the mosque, though he insisted the men were polite and respectful. On Oct. 24, almost one full day after they arrived in Jendouba, the brothers were called into the neighborhood police station, in part after it was discovered they were not enrolled at any university in town and had never previously studied computer science, according to Ouergli.

In the past few years, Jendouba has been on high alert for terrorist activity. Because of its geographical proximity to Algeria and the Chaambi Mountains, terrorist groups including the Islamic State (IS), Ansar al-Sharia and al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb all have a presence. In February 2014, three insurgents set up a decoy roadblock and killed four people. In February of this year, 16 terrorists were arrested following search operations and violent clashes, while two explosive devices near the citys Bilal mosque were discovered and defused in June. According to police sources who spoke with Al-Monitor, since the revolution over 200 suspected terrorists and Islamists have been arrested.

Local police were concerned the brothers could be involved in terrorist activity, and they issued a search warrant the evening of Oct. 24. Police entered the apartment and seized religious books, including a Quran, and searched the mens phones and computers. On one brothers device they found pictures of Osama bin Laden, both alive and deceased, and several images of women in niqabs. That brother's Facebook page, which was under a pseudonym, had an image of the IS flag. Police also found a text message in French on Facebook Messenger to a fighter in Syria. According to the police officer who searched the devices, the message stated that the American wanted to be on the front line of jihad in order to protect his brother.

On the morning of Oct. 25, the brothers were sent to El Gorjani detention center in Tunis, the countrys main counterterrorism center, notorious for its use of torture. The brothers, however, were quickly released and driven away in a US Embassy car, according to Jendouba officials. The US Embassy in Tunis declined to comment on their release or their health, referring questions to the State Department in Washington. Spokesman John Kirby noted in an email that the government is aware of reports that US citizens in Tunisia were arrested on suspicion of terrorist activities, but  citing privacy concerns  declined any additional comment.

The way this incident has been handled so far is a sign of how strong the US-Tunisia security relationship is, Sarah Yerkes, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institutions Center for Middle East Policy, told Al-Monitor via email, noting that judicial procedures were properly implemented.

The United States and Tunisia have strong diplomatic ties that date back to Tunisias independence from France. Though Tunisia is not as strategically important for the United States as other Arab countries, Washington has supported Tunisias democratic transition and strongly condemned terror attacks in the North African country. The Obama administration has stated that it is keen to position Tunisia as a key counterterrorism partner in the region. In recent years, the United States has conducted manned surveillance flights and provided Tunisian security forces with information about security threats. Domestic terrorism concerns, however, have mostly been limited to Tunisian and Libyan militants  not potential American extremists.

Befuddled officials back in Jendouba are still searching for answers. The men constantly changed their story, a police source said, and were unable to provide a succinct reason for their visit to Jendouba.

There are better universities in the country, an official said, for both tech and religious studies. It is unclear if the men were trying to pass through town, meet up with terror cells in the mountains or establish contacts in Jendouba. Perhaps it had to do with a bad marriage  the eldest brother had recently divorced his Syrian-Tunisian wife  or maybe it was all one strange coincidence.

Released due to a lack of evidence connecting either sibling to terrorist activity, the brothers are believed to be in Tunis and are barred from leaving the country pending further investigations. Will they come back to Jendouba? They are free, a police source said. If they come back to Jendouba, we will observe them.

Editor's note: This article has been updated since its initial publication.
October 28, 2016

No issue in the Middle East can be discussed without Turkey. So spoke Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in March 2013 as he boasted how the Justice and Development Party (AKP) had transformed Turkey from a country that sought help from others 10 years ago to a country that leads an active foreign policy and sees the whole world as the domain of its diplomacy.

More recently, on Oct. 22, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan grumbled about how the 1923 Lausanne Treaty, which led to the creation of modern Turkey on the ashes of the Ottoman Empire, shrank our lands to 780,000 square kilometers [480,000 square miles] from 2.5 million square kilometers [1.5 million square miles] in 1914. Things had to change, according to Erdogan. Those who have kept Turkey confined to this vicious circle since 1923 have sought to make us forget the millennium-old memory of our lands. he said. We cant go on with the psychology of 1923 in 2016. We cant take pride in having preserved our 1923 posture while everything in the world has been changing since we established the republic. We have to abandon the notion of defense lines in protecting the republic.  We have to resolve the Mosul issue at Mosul.

Such AKP outbursts have often been criticized as neo-Ottomanism, expansionism and sectarianism. Such criticism has recently escalated, with added reproofs of irredentism fueled largely by Erdogans emphasis on a new security policy, which could be summarized as intervention in developments that threaten the countrys interests and security, regardless of where they happen.

Examples of this new approach include Turkish operations against the Islamic State (IS) and the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) on Syrian soil; Turkeys military presence in Iraq; eagerness to take part in the liberation of Mosul; vocal objections to Shiite dominance in the area; and efforts to cast itself as Mosuls protector. What does all this mean in political terms? To what extent is the AKPs ideology swaying Turkeys foreign policy?

Under the AKP, Turkeys Middle East policies have been driven by two main factors: fear and ambition. The Kurdish question and the refugee problem lie at the core of its fears. In Ankaras eyes, the Kurdish hegemony in northern Syria, the PYDs expanding sphere of influence and the corridor it seeks to create along the Turkish border represent an existential threat to Turkeys territorial integrity. The refugee waves, triggered by almost every major confrontation in Syria and Iraq, remain a serious concern, with Turkey already hosting some 3 million Syrians and wary of IS militants sneaking in in their midst.

Any development on these two issues is met with Turkish demands for response and prevention and, increasingly, with security-centered policies. No doubt, this is the government's design. Yet, sensitivities on these issues are not unique to the AKP. The fears over the Kurdish and refugee problems are shared by military and Foreign Ministry quarters, opposition forces like the Republican Peoples Party and the Nationalist Action Party, and an overwhelming majority of the public. In other words, they seem to resonate with Turkeys traditional attitudes.

But when it comes to Turkeys ambitions, the pro-Sunni AKPs ideological baggage and policies are indisputably the determining factor in Turkey's quest for patronage in the Sunni sphere and the region, a goal that has become increasingly pronounced since 2011.

These ambitions have always been intertwined with Erdogans New Turkey narrative, suggesting a vision that extends well beyond the confines of foreign policy. Still, foreign policy continues to play a major role in the AKPs drive to reverse the Kemalist Republican tradition, which has been strictly Western-oriented and unwelcoming to the East and its values.

The AKPs active, interventionist and patronage-seeking approach in the Middle East and the Sunni world has shaken the established ideological foundations of the Turkish state, but it has proven appealing to the conservative masses, imbuing them with heightened self-confidence, pride and a sense of being on par with the powerful.

Finally, it has pointed to a new perspective in fundamental strategic choices. Turkish conservatives have long nurtured a dream of challenging Western civilization  peacefully, but as a competitor. This ambition could also be described as a desire to build a different model or a political civilization that embraces the countrys religious values, cultural roots and historical institutions and concepts. This, in a sense, is what the AKP has pursued.

In foreign policy, this orientation has been demonstrated in the importance the AKP places on the Middle East and the Muslim and Arab worlds and the leading role it has sought to play there. This close contact, involving assertive and hard-line regional engagements, especially in the Arab world from Iraq and Syria to Egypt and Palestine, has inevitably pushed Turkey into the heart of the regions hallmark conflicts  Sunni versus Shiite, Salafists versus constitutionalists and East versus West.

What really opened the way for AKP ambitions, however, was the Arab Spring. Essentially a Sunni-world story, the Arab Spring unleashed Islamic energy into the political realm, leading to new contacts and bonds between Islamic movements and politics. Both Salafist movements and those in the sphere of representative democracy like the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas became the various and somewhat rival channels of this contact. For the Turkish conservative elite, it was an irresistible opportunity to build a realm, a civilization or a sphere of influence.

As the Arab Spring unfolded, Turkey stood up against authoritarian structures and at the same time, by supporting movements like Egypts Muslim Brotherhood via the idea of representative democracy, promoted another, unnamed idea: Sunni pluralism. Most importantly, it pursued a balancing role against Irans Shiite-corridor policy.

The failure of the Arab Spring did not end the AKP governments ambitions. Rather, its shifting interests dragged it into an anti-Western stance, resulting in tensions with the United States. The AKPs ambitions have persisted in Syria and are today hovering around Mosul in Iraq, compounded with a notion of natural patronage derived from Ottoman history. In sum, this spiral of fears and ambitions is greatly informing Turkeys foreign policy today.
October 27, 2016

Turkeys Kurds protested the detentions of the co-mayors of Diyarbakir, the countrys largest Kurdish-majority city, for a second day, even as a government-imposed internet outage across the mainly Kurdish southeast provinces disrupted efforts to organize.

In Diyarbakir, Selahatttin Demirtas, the co-chair of the largest pro-Kurdish bloc, the Peoples' Democratic party (HDP) vowed to keep up the protests until Gultan Kisanak and Firat Anli, both arrested Oct. 25 on terrorism charges, are set free. Addressing several hundred people gathered outside the Diyarbakir city hall on Oct. 27, Demirtas accused the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) of waging a dirty war against the Kurds. Demirtas said the government does not respect justice, the constitution, nor political ethics. The only means to defend against such oppression is to resist, to escalate the struggle, asserted Demirtas.

A local prosecutor in Diyarbakir filed charges against Demirtas soon after his speech claiming, among other things, that he had incited the pubic to disobey the law and insulted Turkey's president. Demirtas is already facing scores of similar criminal charges, and there is widespread speculation that he too could eventually end up behind bars.

But the public response to the HDPs daily calls has been lukewarm, as gloatingly noted by pro-government outlets. The people told the HDP enough already, blared the pro-AKP daily Star newspaper on its front page. Like many other publications, the paper claimed that the Kurds were spurning the partys calls to action. Even [Diyarbakir] municipal workers did not heed them, Star said.

A prominent businessman in Diyarbakir agreed that locals were not mobilizing in large numbers, telling Al-Monitor, People are simply fed up and want to get on with their normal lives.

The businessman, who declined to be identified by name, attributed the apathy to the violence that raged in Diyarbakir earlier this year after armed youths linked to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) dug trenches and declared autonomy in Sur, the historical and commercial heart of the city. The entire neighborhood, home to ancient churches and mosques, was virtually destroyed after months of protracted street battles between the youths and Turkish security forces. Some 80,000 residents were forced to flee.

The PKKs decision to move its battle to urban centers and embed its youth cadres in residential areas throughout the southeast was clearly a strategic blunder. When the army moved in with its tanks, tens of thousands of the PKKs core constituents were displaced. Hundreds of civilians were killed, with no tangible gain for their sacrifice.

The so-called trench war followed 2 years of relative calm, in keeping with a mutually observed cease-fire between the army and the PKK. This truce broke down in July 2015 amid mutual recriminations, though both sides were clearly itching for a fight.

Still, the businessman said that the level of state repression is such that the notion that Kurdish voters will now defect to the government in droves is idiotic.

Yet, even hardcore PKK loyalists question the wisdom of its strategy, which has seen the rebels targeting security forces and civilians alike. And the HDP is picking up the tab. Recent opinion polls suggest that if elections were held today, the HDP would fail to muster enough support to meet the minimum 10% of the national vote required to secure seats in the Turkish parliament. Not only that, PKK commanders based in Iraqi Kurdistan blame the HDP for this state of affairs, saying the party is too passive. And the AKP has been doing its best to ensure that things stay that way.

Armed with the emergency laws, the government has muzzled virtually all opposition newspapers, radio and TV channels that gave the Kurds a voice. It even persuaded the global satellite operator Eutelstat to knock the pro-PKK channel Med-Nuce off the air. Journalists rarely venture to the southeast these days and those who do often face police harassment or outright ejection from the region.

The climate of fear prevailing in the aftermath of the July 15 coup attempt is such that even the Kurds most stalwart backers have gone largely silent for fear of being jailed on terror charges themselves.

A veteran journalist from Diyarbakir told Al-Monitor on strict condition of anonymity, In the old days if a mayor were arrested, hundreds of thousands of people would have poured into the streets here. Now, its a few thousand at best.
After the news broke that Wells Fargo illegally opened a couple million bank accounts without their customers' knowledge or consent, other banks are trying to learn from it.

That includes Birmingham-headquartered Regions Financial Corp. (NYSE:RF).

CEO Grayson Hall told investors in a recent earnings call that while he's proud of the customer-focused culture at Regions, re-examining sales practices in light of the scandal is wise.

"We've got a lot of confidence in the processes we built," Hall said in a transcript published by Seeking Alpha. "We think we're doing the right things, but more importantly we think we're doing them the right way. But we got to make sure that that's occurring in all aspects. And so given the backdrop we are re-reviewing everything we are doing."

Wells Fargo got in trouble in September when the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau fined the company $100 million after it was discovered that bankers had opened up to 1.5 million deposit accounts and 565,000 credit card accounts without customer knowledge.

Wells Fargo fired 5,300 employees for opening unauthorized accounts. But a complaint from the Los Angeles City Attorney last year points at managers and "unreachable quotas" on opening new accounts as the problem for the bank: "Managers constantly hound, berate, demean and threaten employees to meet these unreachable quotas. Managers often tell employees to do whatever it takes to reach their quotas. Employees who do not reach their quotas are often required to work hours beyond their typical work schedule without being compensated for that extra work time, and/or are threatened with termination," the complaint said.

In the fallout from the scandal, Wells Fargo eliminated sales goals entirely. As the company dealt with the fallout, CEO John Stumpf resigned.

"Given the backdrop that the industry is facing right now, I think the prudent thing to do, and I assume all of our competitors are doing that, is taking very deep dive on all of our sales practices using both our internal leadership, internal experts as well as external advisors to re-challenge ourselves on all of our sales practices," Hall said on the call.
Ryan's Tuscaloosa.JPG

Ryan's in Tuscaloosa

(Ben Baxter)

If there are any nearby chain restaurants you currently enjoy, then you better visit them soon before they vanish.

For those unaware, several cities in Alabama have recently been on the receiving end of sudden restaurant chain closings. Some restaurants such as the Piccadilly in Tuscaloosa have at least given a few weeks' notice to employees and customers. Unfortunately, other restaurants around the state like Ryan's Buffet and Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen have shut their doors under cover of darkness. For those two restaurants, even their employees were out of the loop until they arrived to work to a boarded-up building.

Business Insider proposes that a couple of the reasons for the struggling restaurants are lower grocery store prices and an over abundance of restaurant options. Essentially, consumers are electing to eat at home more often or choosing to be more judicious with their restaurant dollars.

Moreover, according to Bank of America, large restaurant chains are also experiencing lagging sales because consumers are spending more of their restaurant dollars with local restaurants and small chains. This is confirmed by credit and debit usage that has a shown a steady, eight-year tread in favor of small and local alternatives.

Understanding the above characteristics of the chain restaurant market, who will be the next large chains in Alabama to abruptly close their doors? Predictions are listed below:

Pizza Hut

With increased competition from more agile large chains like Domino's and from a large stable of local pizzerias, Pizza Hut stands to be one of the next chains to get the axe. According to QSR Magazine, Pizza Hut has already seen 109 stores close between 2014 and 2015. Don't expect that trend to improve anytime soon.

KFC

Much like Pizza Hut, KFC has already seen a decline in store number in recent years. With competition from rising stars like Bojangles' as well as from healthier chicken alternatives like Zoe's Kitchen, KFC has to begin thinking outside the box if it wants to avoid the same fate as Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen.

Logan's Roadhouse

As reported in August, Logan's Roadhouse has already filed for bankruptcy. With an estimated 34 nationwide locations to be closed by the end of this year, expect that number to rise as we enter 2017. In addition, increased competition from Texas Roadhouse will not make things any easier for Logan's.

Ben Baxter is a Tuscaloosa dweller, a Dothan native, an experienced engineer, and a regular contributor for personal finance and career development topics.
Central New York's economic panel will make its case next week for why it should be awarded millions in state funding for various projects in the region.

The Central New York Regional Economic Development Council will present its 2016 plan at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday in Albany. The presentation will be streamed online at regionalcouncils.ny.gov.

In the sixth round of the state's regional economic development council program, there will be more than $750 million in funding and tax credits available for projects. The state has set aside $245 million  $175 million in grants and $70 million in tax credits  for projects regions have identified as priorities.

An additional $510 million will be available from several state agencies to fund economic development projects.

The regional councils will present plans to the state's Strategic Implementation Assessment Team led by Secretary of State Rossana Rosado. Each council's representatives will have up to 30 minutes for the presentations. An additional 30 minutes will be reserved for questions from the assessment team.

Cayuga County gets new representation on CNY economic council Two of the Central New York Regional Economic Development Council's newest members will brin

"These comprehensive presentations provide us with valuable recommendations to maximize investment in vital economic development projects, leveraging state, local and private resources to create jobs and encourage economic growth throughout New York state," Rosado said in a statement.

Central New York's council endorsed 37 priority projects in its 2016 progress report, including five in Cayuga County. The projects would utilize more than $24 million in state funding and leverage $191.5 million from private and other sources.

The projects would create more than 400 new jobs and 1,638 indirect jobs, according to the council.

Since 2011, the central New York regional council has received $466.9 million for 404 projects. The amount in state funding is the most any of the 10 regional councils have received over the past five years.

This year's regional council awards will be announced in December.
The Days of the Dead are approaching. But do you really know what they are?

Everyone knows the secular holiday of Halloween, which happens this year on Monday night, Oct. 31. Americans dress up in costumes, decorate their homes and welcome trick-or-treaters to their doors by handing out candy.

Not everybody knows Halloween derives from a holy day, All Saints' Day on Nov. 1, which is followed by All Souls' day on Nov. 2.

Halloween: Eve of All Hallows

The root word of Halloween is ''hallow,'' which means ''holy.''

The suffix "een" is an abbreviation of "evening." Halloween refers to the Eve of All Hallows, the night before All Saints' Day, the Christian holy day that honors saintly people of the past.

All Souls' Day is a day to pray for all souls. Among Catholics, prayers are offered for those in purgatory, waiting to get into heaven. On All Souls' Day, Catholic churches have a Book of the Dead, in which parishioners have an opportunity to write the names of relatives to be remembered.

Most Episcopal churches will observe All Saints' Day on Sunday. Churches often read the names of those who have died in the last year.

More than a thousand years ago in Ireland and Britain, a common custom of Christians was to come together on the eve of the feast of All Hallows Day to ask for God's blessing and protection from evil in the world. Often, they would dress in costumes of saints or evil spirits and act out the battle between good and evil around bonfires. That's the source of the modern observance of Halloween.

Building on rituals

All Saints' Day emanates from early Christian celebrations of martyrs in the Eastern Church, dating to the fourth century. The church observance was in turn built upon pagan customs of honoring the dead.

The Christian concept of the importance of the individual soul underlies All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day, which are observed worldwide primarily in the Catholic and Anglican traditions.

For more than a decade, Bare Hands Gallery has organized an annual celebration of Dia de los Muertos, with altars to remember dead loved ones.

In Europe, Samhain was a Gaelic festival of the dead marking the end of the harvest and the beginning of the darkest time of year, a time when the spirit was more closely aligned to the physical world.

In the Americas, church ritual mixed with native celebration of ancestors. Mayans, Incans and other Native Americans had great reverence for the dead and ancestor worship was culturally important. That tradition blended into the Catholic holy days of the dead.

The ''Dia de los Muertos,'' or ''day of the dead,'' in Latin countries keeps alive some of the tradition of honoring souls of the dead.

Dia de los Muertos

In many countries, Nov. 2 is a national holiday - the Day of the Dead, or Dia de los Muertos, the climax of the Days of the Dead. It's the climax of three days of celebration: All Hallow's Eve, All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day. People often dress as skeletons as a way of remembering the dead and celebrating their ancestors.

A holy feast day

In the Catholic Church, Nov. 1 is normally a holy day of obligation, when all Catholics are expected to attend Mass.

In Catholic churches this coming Wednesday, Nov. 2, for All Souls' Day, one of the readings during the Mass is from the Book of Wisdom, which is biblical for Catholics and Eastern Orthodox, but not for Protestants, who don't include it in their Bible:

"The souls of the just are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them," the Book of Wisdom says. "They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead; and their passing away was thought an affliction and their going forth from us, utter destruction.

But they are in peace."

Birmingham celebrates Dia de los Muertos

Bare Hands Gallery in Birmingham will have its 14th annual Dia de los Muertos festival, a remembrance of lost loved ones, on Wednesday, Nov. 2, 4 to 10 p.m., at Cahaba Brewing Company, 4500 Fifth Ave. South. Admission is $10. No pets are allowed. People are encouraged to dress as skeletons and bring a small altar or memento of remembrance of a loved one who has died.
Alabama voters will decide 14 proposals to change the state constitution when they go to the polls on Nov. 8.

Voters in some counties will decide on other amendments affecting only their county.

The efforts to change the constitution are not unusual.

Alabama voters have approved almost 900 amendments since the constitution was ratified in 1901.

Here's a look at the 14 statewide amendments on this year's ballot.

Amendment 1 would add two at-large members to the Auburn University Board of Trustees.

That would expand the board from 14 to 16 members, including five at-large members. The stated purpose of the expansion is to "enhance diversity on the board."

The amendment would also stagger the terms of trustees so that no more than three trustees have terms that expire the same year.

Amendment 2 would prohibit the Legislature from diverting money designated for state parks to other programs, which it has done in recent years, leaving the parks system short of funds.

The amendment would also allow the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources to hire private companies to operate and maintain park facilities. DCNR uses private vendors at some facilities now, but can't do so at others.

That's because of Amendment 617, approved by voters in 1998. It authorized a bond issue for parks. And it required DCNR to be the sole operator of any park facility where bond money was spent.

Amendment 2 would repeal that prohibition.

Amendment 3 would change how constitutional amendments affecting only one county are decided.

Constitutional amendments, even those affecting only one county, are voted on statewide unless two conditions are met.

First, they must pass the Legislature with no dissenting votes.

Second, a panel called the Local Constitutional Amendment Commission must determine that they affect only one county.

Amendment 3 would abolish the Local Constitutional Amendment Commission.

It would set up a two-step process in the Legislature.

Lawmakers would first vote on whether to approve a proposed constitutional amendment.

If approved, they would take a second vote on whether it should go on the ballot statewide or only in one county.

It would still take just one lawmaker's dissent to force a statewide vote.

The amendment does one more thing.

Currently, a local amendment that receives a majority of votes statewide becomes law, even if the amendment fails in the affected county.

Amendment 3 would require approval in the affected county for an amendment to pass.

Amendment 4 would give counties authority to adopt certain programs and policies without approval by the Legislature.

County commissions could adopt policies on county personnel, litter control, public transportation, traffic safety and emergency assistance.

Amendment 4 would not authorize counties to increase any taxes or fees and would not authorize any policies that "infringe on a citizen's rights with respect to the use of his or her private property."

Amendment 5 would repeal and restate the parts of the constitution on the separation of powers of the legislative, executive and judicial branches.

According to an analysis by the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama, the separation of powers language is now found in two parts of the constitution, Article III and Amendment 582.

According to PARCA, Amendment 5 would combine those sections and remove antiquated language, but make no substantive changes to the law.

Amendment 6 would repeal and replace Article VII of the constitution, which concerns impeachments of the governor and other elected officials.

The amendment would set a requirement of a two-thirds vote in the Senate to remove an official from office.

The current version of Article VII does specify a vote requirement.

Amendment 6 would not change the reasons for which an official can be impeached. Impeachment resolutions would still start in the House, which decides whether to refer them to the Senate for trial.

The amendment would add the members of the state Board of Education to the list of officials who can be impeached. It would remove the state superintendent of education from that list.

The state superintendent is not elected by the voters, but rather appointed by the BOE.

The BOE members are elected by voters.

The origin of Amendment 6 was not related to the resolution to impeach Gov. Robert Bentley, which is being investigated by the House Judiciary Committee.

The bill proposing the amendment was approved in 2015, before the allegations that led to the resolution against the governor.

Until this year, the House had not considered an impeachment case since 1915.

Amendment 7 applies only to Etowah County.

It would put most employees of the Etowah County sheriff under the control of a sheriff's department personnel board.

The sponsor of the bill, Rep. Mack Butler, R-Rainbow City, told The Anniston Star the sheriff's department asked for the bill to address a difficulty retaining employees.

Under current law, sheriff's department employees cannot receive a pay raise unless all Etowah County employees receive a raise.

Amendment 8 would put Alabama's right-to-work law in the constitution.

It says that a person can't be denied employment because they are a member of a labor union or because they are not a member of a labor union.

It says a person can't be required to pay dues to a labor union as a condition of employment.

Alabama's right-to-work law has been on the books since 1953.

Putting it in the constitution means that it could not be changed solely by the Legislature, but only by another constitutional amendment.

Amendment 9 would apply only to Pickens County.

It would create an exception to the prohibition on the election or appointment of a judge after age 70.

It would allow election or appointment of a probate judge in Pickens County up to age 75.

According to the Tuscaloosa News, the bill was proposed to allow Probate Judge John Paluzzi to run for re-election in 2018, when he will be 71.

Amendment 10 applies to Calhoun County.

The amendment says that no territory in Calhoun County would be subject to the police jurisdiction or planning jurisdiction of any city not located at least partly in the county.

Cities can have police jurisdictions that extend three miles outside their limits and planning jurisdictions that extend five miles.

Those jurisdictions can cross county lines.

An example is the city of Lincoln, in Talladega County. According to the PARCA analysis of Amendment 10, Lincoln's police jurisdiction extends into Calhoun County.

Amendment 10 would prohibit that.

Amendment 11 would allow cities and counties more discretion under a law passed in 2013 called the Major 21st Century Manufacturing Zone Act, according to the PARCA analysis.

That law allows cities and counties to acquire and redevelop land designated as suitable for manufacturing facilities under certain circumstances.

The local governments can then sell those properties to private entities.

The constitution requires that the properties be sold for fair market value.

Amendment 11 would provide an exception to that and allow cities and counties to determine the price and sell properties for less than fair market value.

Amendment 12 would authorize the Legislature to pass laws to allow cities in Baldwin County to build and operate toll roads and bridges.

The toll road authorities could sell bonds to finance the projects.

Amendment 12 does not create any toll road or toll bridge authorities, but gives the Legislature the authority to do so for cities in Baldwin County.

Amendment 13 would repeal any age limits for elections or appointments of public officials, with the exception of the age 70 limit for judges.

Amendment 14 is intended to validate hundreds of local laws that are already in place.

It is the Legislature's answer to a court ruling last year that potentially put many local laws at risk of court challenges.

In 1984, voters approved Amendment 448, which says passing the state budgets is the paramount duty of the Legislature and requires lawmakers to pass the budgets before other bills.

Amendment 448 allowed for exceptions.

The Legislature can suspend the requirement by a vote of "not less than three fifths of a quorum present." And lawmakers do that on a regular basis.

On every bill that comes up before the budgets, they vote on a budget isolation resolution, called the BIR.

The problem concerns a rule adopted by the House and how it has affected local bills.

The House rule says that a BIR is approved if three-fifths of those voting approve it.

That's a lower standard than "three fifths of a quorum" required in Amendment 448, which works out to 32 votes in the 105-seat House.

Lawmakers usually don't vote on local bills that don't affect their district.

So under the House rule, many local bills have passed with the BIR approved by fewer than 32 votes.

In December, a court ruled that a law concerning a Jefferson County sales tax was invalid because the BIR did not get the required 32 votes in the House.

The bill had passed the House after a BIR vote of 13-3.

Since 1984, hundreds of other local laws have passed the House with fewer than 32 votes for the BIR.

Proponents of Amendment 14, including the Association of County Commissions of Alabama, say many of those laws could be ripe for lawsuits if the amendment fails.

Among them are taxes and fees that support schools, law enforcement, fire departments, hospitals and other entities. Other examples are laws allowing Sunday alcohol sales, annexations, and pretrial diversion programs.

Summaries of the amendments can also be found on the Secretary of State's website.
A Missouri jury Thursday night awarded a California woman a $70 million verdict after finding that Johnson & Johnson was liable for the injuries she suffered as a result of using the company's talcum powder products, according to the Alabama law firm who represents her.

A Johnson & Johnson spokesperson said it will appeal the verdict.

This is the third large verdict against Johnson & Johnson regarding its talc-containing products, which include Johnson's Baby Powder and Shower to Shower body powder for feminine hygiene. The first award earlier this year - $72 million - was on behalf of Jacqueline Fox, a Tarrant woman who died of ovarian cancer that she said was linked to use of the company's talcum powder products. Another woman, Gloria Ristesund, was awarded $55 million in a separate verdict several months ago.

In this week's verdict the City of St. Louis Circuit Court jury awarded Deborah Giannecchini $70.075 million after agreeing the products contributed to the development of her ovarian cancer. The verdict includes $575,000 in medical damages, $2 million in compensatory damages, and $65 million in punitive damages against Johnson & Johnson and $2.5 million in punitive damages against Imerys.

It was the first time a jury had held Imerys, a Johnson & Johnson talc supplier, liable for damages.

According to a press release from the Montgomery-based Beasley Allen law firm, which represented all three women in the trials, Giannecchini was 59 when she was diagnosed with Stage IV ovarian cancer four years ago. "Since then, she has gone through multiple surgeries and chemotherapy regimens. Ms. Giannecchini used Johnson & Johnson's Baby Powder for feminine hygiene for more than 40 years," according to the statement.

"Yet another jury has heard the evidence outlining a link between Johnson & Johnson's talcum powder products and ovarian cancer, and has decided that there is a clear connection," said Beasley Allen lawyer Ted Meadows, who had been helping to lead the litigation. "When is enough going to be enough? Despite repeated verdicts that hold the company accountable, Johnson & Johnson has refused to remove its talcum powder products from shelves, has refused to warn consumers about the risk, and continues to deny its responsibility. It's time for this company to come clean and put consumer health ahead of profits."

Johnson and Johnson revealed at the trial that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration took interest in the litigation immediately following the $72 million Fox verdict awarded earlier this year, the press release states.

Johnson & Johnson announced it will begin the appeals process after Thursday's verdict.

Carol Goodrich, spokesperson for Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc. issued this statement:

"We deeply sympathize with the women and families impacted by ovarian cancer. We will appeal today's verdict because we are guided by the science, which supports the safety of Johnson's Baby Powder. In fact, two cases pending in New Jersey were dismissed in September 2016 by a state court judge who ruled that plaintiffs' scientific experts could not adequately support their theories that talcum powder causes ovarian cancer, a decision that highlights the lack of credible scientific evidence behind plaintiffs' allegations."

While there have been numerous studies suggesting a link between talcum products and ovarian cancer, none have made a definitive finding. Research and reaction to it by government agencies have been mixed.

The plaintiffs were represented by Jere L. Beasley, Ted G. Meadows, David P. Dearing, Danielle Ward Mason, Ryan Beattie and Lauren Razick from Beasley Allen, along with the law firms of Onder, Shelton, O'Leary and Peterson, LLC, Allen Smith, and Porter Malouf.

This story was updated at 11:30 a.m. Oct. 28 with comment from Johnson & Johnson
State Sen. John DeFrancisco, the second-most powerful member of the state Senate, is backing Republican candidate Pam Helming in the 54th Senate District race.

DeFrancisco, R-Syracuse, issued a statement Friday to announce his endorsement of Helming, a Canandaigua Republican who's running to succeed retiring state Sen. Michael Nozzolio.

In explaining his decision, DeFrancisco said electing Helming is necessary to "ensure regional balance in New York state government, and checks and balances over the downstate liberal Democrat control of the Assembly and our New York City governor."

While Helming is the favorite to win her race, Republicans are fighting for control of the state Senate. There are several competitive races throughout the state and the GOP could lose control of the chamber, which the party has held since 2011.

"In 2009 and 2010, when New York City controlled all branches of government, taxes were increased by over $10 billion and spending increased by over $10 billion," DeFrancisco said. "Upstate road and bridge funding paled in comparison to what was provided for New York City and surrounding areas. We just cannot let that happen again.

"This region needs Pam Helming to be elected senator for the 54th Senate District."

DeFrancisco's endorsement came one day after Helming was asked at an Auburn forum whether she would support the Syracuse Republican  or any upstate GOP senator  for majority leader.

Helming didn't commit to supporting either DeFrancisco or state Sen. John Flanagan, a Long Island Republican who's the current majority leader.

"For me, it's all about which person will best represent the needs of our district, which person best understands the needs of upstate New York and which person is gonna be a fighter and stand behind me and assist me in getting legislation and the funding that we need to address the important issues," she said.

She added that her main focus at the moment is winning the 54th Senate District race against Democratic nominee Kenan Baldridge and Reform Party candidate Floyd Rayburn.

"Once I'm elected and once the senators announce who is competing for the position of leader, then I will be better able to do research on their backgrounds, look at their voting records and their history and make an informed decision," Helming said.

Rayburn, who lost to Helming in the GOP primary, said he will caucus with the Republicans if he wins the general election. And he's already pledged to support DeFrancisco for majority leader.

DeFrancisco hasn't indicated whether he would seek the post again. He narrowly lost the race for majority leader to Flanagan in 2015. Flanagan received support from a group of upstate senators, including Nozzolio, R-Fayette, and state Sen. Jim Seward, another member of the Cayuga County delegation.
When tests in September showed low, but detectable levels of blue-green algae toxins in Auburn's and Owasco's public water supplies, the problem received attention from Cayuga County officials, the area's state legislative delegation and members of Congress.

It also became, for better or worse, a political issue.

The timing of the tests came less than two months before the election. And with Cayuga County in a traditionally competitive House district, each of the candidates  U.S. Rep. John Katko, a Republican, and Democratic challenger Colleen Deacon  have sought to tout their efforts to protect Owasco Lake.

In doing so, Katko, R-Camillus, accused Deacon, D-Syracuse, of not working on lake issues during her tenure as U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand's central New York regional director. In response, Deacon has said Katko failed to address Owasco Lake's problems during his first two years in Congress.

Who's right? And more importantly, are the claims true? Let's take a look.

COLLEEN DEACON

Before running for Congress, Deacon served for six years as Gillibrand's top aide in central New York. She covered a large territory on behalf of the senator  an area that included Cayuga County.

But on Owasco Lake issues, Katko thinks Deacon was "nowhere to be found." Those were the words he used at the Time Warner Cable News debate Tuesday in Syracuse.

"All of a sudden she shows up at the last second and has a press conference a couple of weeks ago saying that I haven't even been involved," Katko said at the debate. "That shows she didn't even know I was involved for two years working with farmers throughout the area to work on the manure issue in the watershed."

The press conference Katko referred to was Deacon's event with U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko, an Albany-area Democrat, in early October at Emerson Park. At the event, Tonko said Deacon, if elected, will be a champion for the environment and advocate for Owasco Lake in Congress.

Deacon's contributions on Owasco Lake matters haven't involved votes or press events. As a senator's aide, her role was limited to attending meetings and collecting feedback from stakeholders. Still, she was engaged.

Cayuga County Legislator Aileen McNabb-Coleman, who represents Owasco, said she saw Deacon at a manure management public hearing held last year at Cayuga-Onondaga BOCES in Aurelius.

Deacon attended the meeting on behalf of Gillibrand.

"I saw with my own eyes nearly 18 months ago Colleen Deacon as she communicated with all stakeholders about the health of the lake," McNabb-Coleman said. "Any statement that Colleen Deacon has not done anything for Owasco Lake over the past two years is inaccurate."

Deacon's Owasco Lake record also includes an Emerson Park press conference she had a hand in organizing in 2013. Gillibrand joined then-U.S. Rep. Dan Maffei for an event focused on invasive species.

Aside from the press conference, Deacon said she's attended Cornell Cooperative Extension and Owasco Watershed Lake Association meetings. (As a candidate, she was in attendance for a recent OWLA meeting.) She also helped organize a meeting between OWLA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

"This is something I have been working on my entire time I was in Senator Gillibrand's office," she said.

U.S. REP. JOHN KATKO

When he was a congressional candidate in 2014, Katko made a pledge while participating in a televised debate.

"Whatever that role is, I'm going to be up front of it," he said of focusing on Owasco Lake watershed issues. "I want to be there helping them. I've already met with the water authority out there and they've explained the situation to me."

In February 2015, Katko held an agriculture listening session in Auburn. That event quickly turned into a discussion about the lake's health and actions needed to protect the city's source of drinking water. At the time, Katko proposed the creation of a task force to examine manure runoff issues that could, among other things, lead to the development of blue-green algae.

A representative from Katko's office served on the panel  the Cayuga County Manure Management Working Group  that developed an action agenda.

That wasn't enough to avoid criticism from Deacon, who accused Katko of not paying attention to Owasco Lake. Her response came after Katko's aforementioned comment that she was "nowhere to be found" on addressing lake issues.

On Wednesday, Katko held a private meeting with state and local officials to discuss efforts to address blue-green algae in Owasco Lake. Following that meeting, he responded to Deacon's claims in an interview with The Citizen.

"It's almost stunning to me that she didn't know we were doing all of this for two years," Katko said. "It's indicative to me of her lack of engagement on the issue."

Katko wants his office to help bridge the gap between federal agencies and local and state officials. He's hoping to connect local and state representatives with officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Agency.

CONCLUSION

Deacon and Katko have attacked each other for not spending a lot of time  or any time  on matters related to Owasco Lake. But it's not accurate to say either of the candidates haven't been engaged on these issues.

From Deacon's perspective, she wasn't an elected official. But she was a top staffer and represented Gillibrand at meetings. She also played a behind-the-scenes role in setting up meetings between OWLA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. She may not have been spending all of her time on this issue, but it's something she did address as Gillibrand's regional director.

Since being elected to Congress, Owasco Lake has been on Katko's radar. A lot of what he cites relates to the manure runoff issues that have been a major issue for the watershed. If he couldn't attend a meeting, which is often the case for a sitting member of Congress, an aide served as his representative. Regardless, he, too, has worked on Owasco Lake issues.

The question here isn't who's focused on Owasco Lake and who isn't. The question is who is better equipped to address these issues, which are now affecting drinking water for 45,000 Cayuga County residents.

So far, the candidates haven't fully answered that question. Local officials and more important, Auburn-area residents, are concerned about what could happen next year if blue-green algae emerges and the toxins are detected in public water supplies. Will the toxins reach a level that raises public health concerns? That's what locals want to avoid.

What will their congressional representative do to help them? That's the question that should be answered.
AUBURN  Joe Morabito was sworn into service Thursday night as the newest chief of the Auburn Fire Department.

A 26-year veteran of the fire department, the 58-year-old started in his new position Monday. He replaces Jeff Dygert, who was appointed as city manager earlier this month.

Dygert promoted Morabito from the position of assistant chief. His swearing-in ceremony was held Thursday at the head of the weekly Auburn City Council meeting.

He was joined for the ceremony by his mother, Rita; wife, Terri; daughter, Kara; brother, Chris, who is the chief of the Owasco Fire Department; and grandson, Quintin.

Quintin held the Bible for Morabito as the chief recited his oath of office before Mayor Michael Quill.

City council chambers were standing-room only for the occasion as firefighters, city staff, family and friends filled the benches.

In other news

 Auburn officials are hoping to make rapid improvements to the city's water filtration plant ahead of next summer.

Councilors voted unanimously Thursday to authorize $75,000 for an engineering study of the plant. The design study will recommend upgrades to effectively filter Owasco Lake water of blue-green algae toxins.

Over the last two months, samples of the drinking water supplies for Auburn and Owasco tested positive sporadically for microcystin, a toxin produced by dying blue-green algae blooms. Tests taken over the last two weeks, however, have come back negative for toxins, with cold weather lessening the algae blooms, according to the Cayuga County Health Department.

Local leaders feeling hopeful after Owasco Lake meeting with state officials AUBURN  Local leaders left a meeting with state officials about blue-green algae toxins in 

Regardless, city officials are keen on getting ahead of the curve for next year. The money for the study will come from leftover capital grant funding from the city's water fund.

With Thursday's resolution, Auburn councilors will also request state legislation to expedite the construction process.

Whereas similar projects are generally spaced out over lengthier periods due to a competitive bidding process for design and construction firms, Dygert said city officials are hoping to condense that time frame with a design-build procurement model  otherwise identifying a firm that can handle the all of the components of a project  that needs special legislation enacted by the city's state representatives.

The goal is to complete installation by July 2017.

In the meantime, Dygert said officials have had preliminary discussions with engineering firms and biologists, while they will meet next week with representatives from the Onondaga County Water Authority for further guidance.

Further, Auburn officials will also request funding reimbursement from state and/or federal sources not only for the costs of the design study, but for the associated construction. In a separate effort to stem algae growth, Auburn officials passed a resolution last week to call for Gov. Andrew Cuomo to enact regulations to dictate levels of certain pollutants allowed in the lake.

"This has the potential to effect a lot of water supplies across New York state. We just happen to be one of the first to identify it," Dygert said. "In a sense, we're a test case. If we can get a hand getting a handle on the situation, it will provide a template for everybody else in the state."
Mother and son win appeal against deportation order after taking sanctuary in a Texas church for eight months.

Austin, Texas  Reverend Babs Miller addressed churchgoers on a Sunday morning as a group of children sat cross-legged in the corner and played with puppets at the St Andrews Presbyterian Church.

Miller appealed to the congregation to pray for people who have lost loved ones before delivering a more political message.

We also lift up all those who have been displaced from their homes, she said. May they find adequate shelter and food, as well as the things that can feed their very souls.

In the back of the sanctuary sat Hilda Ramirez, a 28-year-old Guatemalan who fled her native country in 2014 with the hope of finding security for her son, Ivan.





At a time when immigration and mass deportations of undocumented people has become a central issue in the US presidential elections, Hilda and her son are a rare example of a successful appeal against a deportation order.

After taking sanctuary in the church for more than half a year, she was informed by US authorities that her deportation order would be frozen for one year.

But if she is not able to secure asylum or legal residency status before October 2017, she and her son will be back in the same position.

Hilda, who comes from an indigenous community in Guatemala, never imagined she would end up effectively jailed with her son, who is now 10, in a for-profit detention centre for immigrants and asylum seekers.

Sitting between the pews, Hilda recalled the 11 months  just under a tenth of Ivans life  they spent in such a detention centre.

My son would cry

She described punitive isolation, widespread illnesses and denial of medication, among other difficult conditions.

My son would cry and tell me Lets go home, mother, she told Al Jazeera. He used to ask when were leaving from there.

After getting out of the Karnes family detention centre in Texas, it was not long before Hilda and Ivan looked on in horror as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) carried out widespread raids targeting undocumented immigrants around them.

I became panicked. I couldnt sleep. I was very scared  Every time someone arrived [at my house], I thought it was immigration [authorities], Hilda recalled.

I didnt know what to do and where to go  I would go to the bus station thinking that I need to escape, but I didnt know where to go.

With an outstanding deportation order, Hilda scrambled earlier this year to find an alternative, wasting no time before seeking sanctuary in the St Andrews Presbyterian Church on the northern outskirts of Austin, the capital of Texas.

Election season

There are at least four people who have been granted sanctuary in four churches in the US, according to the Austin-based Grassroots Leadership immigrant rights advocacy group.

In 2015, Guatemalan refugee Sulma Carina Franco-Chamale set a precedent for local organisers when she took refuge in the First Unitarian Universalist Church in Austin before being granted year-long residency by immigration authorities.

In an email to Al Jazeera, Nina Pruneda, a spokesperson for ICE, explained that immigration authorities do not enter sensitive locations, including places of worship, educational institutions, medical facilities and protests.

READ MORE: Guatemala drought leaves hundreds of thousands hungry

Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump has delivered a number of fiery speeches about immigration throughout the election season, taking a hard-line stance at times and presenting his views as more moderate at others.

During a speech in Phoenix in August, Trump suggested increased deportations among the nearly 11 million undocumented people in the US.

Trump said at the time he intends to deport undocumented immigrants who have committed crimes and others who have overstayed their visas  a group that all together makes up about half of the undocumented immigrants in the country, according to government statistics.

But Robert Painter of American Gateways, an Austin-based organisation that provides legal services to undocumented immigrants and asylum seekers, argued that Trumps policy proposals would be difficult to put into action.

It is not as simple as saying because everybody entered without documentation we can remove them, Painter told Al Jazeera. These are individuals and their claims have to be processed individually.

Yet, while much attention has been paid to Trumps comments on immigration, deportations reached record levels under President Barack Obama, whose administration deported more than 2.5 million people between 2009 and 2015.

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has proposed comprehensive immigration reform that ends family detention and close[s] private immigrant detention centres, according to her official platform.

A lot of fear

Hilda recalled her long journey and how she ended up sharing a small room with her son in the back of the church. Behind her a massive wooden crucifix is mounted on the wall beyond the pulpit.

[There is] a lot of fear. It was a very difficult experience, she said of the dangerous trek from Guatemala to the US, adding she felt at peace in sanctuary despite being effectively imprisoned on the church grounds.

For eight months, she did not set foot outside the churchs walls. Had she left during that period, Hilda would have risked being detained by ICE, who tracked her movement with an ankle monitor.

READ MORE: Torn families of Cambodian refugees deported from US

Like many women in Guatemala, Hilda described herself as trapped between domestic and criminal violence as the country grew increasingly dangerous for women.

Along with neighbouring countries Honduras and El Salvador, Guatemala is part of the Northern Triangle region of Central America, which has seen a dramatic escalation in violence by organised criminal groups in recent years, according to a recent United Nations fact-sheet.

The UN says homicide rates are among the highest ever recorded in the region and are as deadly as many contemporary armed conflicts.

Already marginalised groups  indigenous people, women, children and LGBT communities  are at particular risk, and the number of female and child asylum seekers from these countries nearly doubled in 2015, according to UN statistics. An estimated 190,000 people are internally displaced in these countries.

For her part, Hilda said she fears violence and potential death  either at the hands of family or criminal organisations  if sent back to Guatemala.

Though legal concerns prevent her from describing her life in Guatemala in more detail, she said: People are just coming [to the US] to protect their families.

Just the beginning

Pastor Jim Rigby said the church has set an example for other communities of faith in the US, explaining that the move to protect Hilda and Ivan prompted messages of solidarity from dozens of Christian groups and churches.

I think this is just the beginning  We are just taking responsibility for what our country has done in our name, Rigby told Al Jazeera, citing the lengthy and often bloody history of US imperialism in Latin America, including a CIA-backed coup in Guatemala in 1954.

Rigby argued the coup and subsequent political events set the stage for the present-day destabilisation of the country and the risks that people such as Hilda faced every day.

The freezing of the deportation order is an unmitigated success for our community, Rigby said, describing Hilda and Ivan as the real heroes of the story.

We didnt cross the desert. We didnt risk everything. We just simply opened our doors  and its been wonderful, he said.

Look at these beautiful people [Hilda and Ivan] Donald Trump has you afraid of. Its abject, craven fear  and its pathetic.
After serving four years for foeticide, Maria Teresa Rivera was freed. But a new appeal wants to send her back to jail.

San Salvador, El Salvador  Maria Teresa Rivera wept with joy when she was released from prison last May, after serving four-and-a-half years for a crime she says she didnt commit: the murder of her newborn baby.

But months after she was exonerated and reunited with her 11-year-old son, Rivera fears that she could be sent back to prison after prosecutors appealed for the original verdict of aggravated homicide to be reinstated.

I feel threatened by the state. At any moment, they could put me back in prison and separate me from my son again, 33-year-old Rivera told Al Jazeera.

Rivera is among dozens of women to be prosecuted in El Salvador since abortion was completely banned in all cases in 1998. The tiny Central American country is one of five countries where there are no exceptions to abortion  even in instances of rape, when the mothers life is at risk, or if the foetus suffers a deformity.

A presumption of guilt

According to reports by the Salvadoran Citizens Group for the Decriminalisation of Abortion (CFDA), at least 250 women were reported to the police between 2000 and 2014, of whom 147 were prosecuted and 49 convicted  26 for murder and 23 for abortion.

READ MORE: Dying woman denied abortion in El Salvador

The vast majority were like Rivera: young, poor and single, and lost their baby after suffering an obstetric complication during pregnancy.

At least 25 women who are currently detained  either serving long sentences for murder  or awaiting trial, but the actual number could be much higher as there is no official register, according to Sara Garcia from the CFDA.

Its impossible not to think from [Riveras] case and others that theres a presumption of guilt rather than innocence based on the misogynist prejudices held by judges and the rest of the criminal justice system, Garcia told Al Jazeera.

Even when they are freed, the legal harassment doesnt stop. The state uses every resource to appeal and appeal and keep persecuting these women.

Rivera said she feels mistreated by the system. Ive already missed so much of my life, my sons life. I didnt do anything wrong but they want to send me back to jail.





A tragic incident

Rivera was born into a poor family in a rural village in La Libertad. In 1988, during the civil war when Rivera was five years old and her brother just two, her mother vanished.

Life was very hard without our mother. I left kindergarten to sell fruits and vegetables with my aunties so we could eat, but at mealtimes my brother and I were given only tortillas with lemon. I remember the suffering like it was yesterday.

At the age of eight, Rivera was raped by a stranger who attacked her while she was walking home alone one evening.

Soon after, she and her brother went to live in an orphanage near the capital. She finished high school and dreamed of studying business administration, but with no money to continue her education, she started work.

Rivera is hard-working  a grafter with an entrepreneurial instinct, and she carved out a living working multiple jobs in factories, retail and even started a small fireworks business.

Her son was born in May 2005 with serious respiratory problems after an atypical labour with no contractions or pain. Domestic violence ended the relationship with her sons father, but his mother  whom she still calls suegra or mother-in-law  remained supportive, and together the two women raised the boy and made ends meet.

In January 2011, Rivera confided in her boss at the clothes factory, where she worked for $5 a day, that she could be pregnant as her period hadnt come. At the time, Rivera was involved in a brief relationship.

But her menstrual cycle had always been irregular, and she got her period in February and every month thereafter; there were no typical signs of pregnancy.

Then late at night, on November 23, 11 months after her initial suspicion of pregnancy, Rivera felt unwell.

I thought it was something Id eaten and rushed to the toilet, I felt something drop and realised I was bleeding. I shouted to my suegra to call the police. Thats the last thing I remember.

In El Salvador, people always call the police in an emergency.

READ MORE: Hundreds jailed for abortion in El Salvador

Rivera woke up in hospital surrounded by doctors and nurses, asking her where the baby was.

I kept saying, What baby? Im not pregnant. They didnt believe me. A nurse or doctor called the police, saying they had a case of suspected abortion.

Unknown to Rivera, she had given birth in the toilet, where the newborn was found dead by investigators.

She was detained for aggravated homicide  not abortion; her son was six years old at the time.

A guilty verdict

The judge presiding over Rivers case highlighted two pieces of evidence before giving his guilty verdict.

First, the testimony from the factory boss in whom Rivera had confided in January 2011, supposedly proving that she knew she was pregnant, according to the judge, despite the fact that this happened a full 11 months before the incident.

The autopsy report said the baby was full-term and gave perinatal asphyxiation as the cause of death, from which the judge inferred Rivera had smothered the newborn intentionally.

Rivera was sentenced to 40 years in prison.

I felt Id lost everything  my dreams, my son, my life, said Rivera, still emotional when recalling the verdict. If Id known I was pregnant, I would have done everything possible to protect my baby, but no one believed me. At that point, all I could do was pray for a miracle.

Life inside prison was tough. She was taunted as a baby killer and slept on the concrete floor for the first 16 months because of extreme overcrowding. Rivera cleaned toilets, washed clothes, and collected rubbish in order to make a few dollars to pay for soap, shampoo and water as prisoners receive only two litres each day for washing and drinking.

She saw her son only twice during her four-and-a-half-year stay in prison.

The CFDA took up Riveras case a few months after she was sentenced and mounted a legal defence, but every appeal was rejected.

Then, a campaign was launched in 2014 by a coalition of groups including the CFDA, unions, and feminist organisations seeking parliamentary pardons for 17 women, including Rivera, who had exhausted all legal options. Two of the Las 17 were pardoned, but Riveras case was again rejected.

READ MORE: In El Salvador, a pregnancy complication followed by a prison sentence

Rivera almost lost hope, but in a shock move, the Supreme Courts criminal chamber agreed to review her case after lawyers applied for a habeas corpus.

Rivera was freed on May 20, after the judge ruled that the prosecution had failed to prove her guilt at the initial trial, and so there was no legal foundation for her sentence.

Maria Teresas case is emblematic  not just because she received the longest ever sentence, but also, shes the first woman the state has been ordered to compensate for the damage caused by the wrongful conviction, said Dennis Munoz, a lawyer who has helped free 11 women wrongly imprisoned for murdering their newborns.

Prosecutors present incredibly weak cases which rely on outdated scientific methods and fail to prove intent and whether the abortion was induced, yet judges dont demand anything better, Munoz added.

The unending fight

The attorney generals office in charge of Riveras case, however, told Al Jazeera that the judge had wrongly overturned the sentence. Thats why the state immediately launched an appeal in the hope that Rivera would be returned to jail to complete her 40-year sentence, or a new trial ordered by the court.

No new evidence was presented, just new opinions about what might have happened  opinions paid for and prepared by the defence. The original verdict and sentence were correct, and thats what weve asked the superior court to reinstate, a spokeswoman for the general attorney generals office said.

Earlier this week, however, the appeal to reimprison Rivera was rejected, but the nightmare may not be over as prosecutors told Al Jazeera that they would consider appealing to higher courts.

There is a glimmer of hope, however, that the abortion law be relaxed.

In an unexpected move, the ruling party recently proposed reforming the criminal code to permit abortions in limited circumstances, such as rape, victims of human trafficking, foetal abnormalities, or if the pregnancy endangers the mothers life.

Its the first time the nominally left-wing Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN)  which has been in power since 2009  has sought to advance reproductive rights.

But, its an uphill battle as at least 12 opposition politicians in the Legislative Assembly must also vote in favour of the reform as the FMLN does not hold a majority. Furthermore, earlier this year, politicians from the main opposition party even proposed increasing the maximum sentence for abortion to 50 years.

For Rivera and other women like her, the fight goes on.

I always wanted to be someone in life, to study and leave behind the poverty I was born into, Rivera says. Now, I think about leaving El Salvador for a place where people dont know my story  so I can be invisible, and make a better life for my son.

Thats what I dream about now.
Delhi, India  Chai, or tea, the national obsession of both India and Pakistan, was trending last week, thanks to a blue-eyed chai wala, or tea seller. After photographs of Arshad Khan from Islamabad in Pakistan went viral, tea sellers became as hot as the brew they sell.

It now looks as though Khan, who has since landed modelling contracts, will be bidding goodbye to his profession. But many tea sellers are not as fortunate.

In India, where chai is sold on the street for as little as five to 10 Indian rupees ($0.075 to $0.150), tea sellers usually start their day at 5am, catering to the daily wage labourers and rickshaw pullers making their way to work.

Most of those in the Indian capital, Delhi, have migrated there from smaller cities and villages with dreams of making a decent living. They spend their days, whether in the heat of summer or the cold of winter, at their stalls.

But while they may sell hundreds of cups in a day, the ingredients  black tea, milk, ginger and cardamom  are expensive and most tea sellers live in poverty.

Some of them shared their stories with Al Jazeeras Showkat Shafi.
Cannon Ball, United States  Thousands of Native Americans have been camping out in North Dakota since April to protest against a pipeline that is meant to cross sacred burial grounds and the Missouri river  the main water source for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.

Last week, some protesters moved their camp directly in the path of the proposed pipeline as construction nears the river, but on Thursday morning, police descended on the camp with a show of force not yet seen in the months of peaceful protests.

Clad in riot gear and backed by armoured vehicles, the police cleared the protest camp, using sound cannons, pepper spray, taser guns, and shotguns said to contain beanbags against the protesters.





More than 100 people were arrested, including elders praying peacefully in the roadway, according to the Morton County Sheriff Department.

The department said a protester fired three shots at police, but Al Jazeera could not independently verify this allegation.

Some protesters shouted at police, built and lit fire to barricades, and a few threw water bottles and logs at the officers as tensions rose, but most remained nonviolent as protest leaders urged colleagues to fall back from the superior government force.

Police continued to march south into the night, blocked only by a burning barricade set up by protesters as dusk fell.
Jericho, occupied West Bank  The sprawling mosaics at Hishams Palace in the occupied West Bank city of Jericho were on rare display for a single day in October, celebrating the start of a long-awaited renovation project.

Hishams Palace is home to one of the worlds largest mosaic carpets, usually covered with a thick layer of sand for conservation purposes. This year, with help from the Japanese International Development Agency, archaeologists and the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities developed a plan to restore and maintain the mosaics, which date back to the first half of the 8th century.

Hishams Palace is one of the most famous sites in Jericho, one of the most important places in Palestine, Iyad Hamdan, head of Jerichos Ministry of Tourism, said of the 150-acre archaeological site, which is composed of a palace, audience hall, thermal bath and fountain pavilion built during the Umayyad period. Last year, 120,000 people visited Hishams Palace. After we uncover the mosaic, we expect the number of visitors to double or triple.

Made up of 38 individual designs that cover 827 square metres of the audience hall, the mosaic carpet is an incredibly preserved example of early Islamic art. On October 20, visitors had a chance to explore its many floral and geometric designs before it was covered again. The restoration project, expected to finish in 2018, will see the mosaic uncovered permanently, topped with an elevated viewing walkway and shelter.

This site is not just for us as Palestinians, Hamdan said. It is for the world.
Antonia Zerbisias is an award-winning Canadian journalist. She has been a reporter and TV host for the Toronto Star, the CBC, as well as the Montreal correspondent for Variety trade paper.

The worlds most dangerous zone lies not in the Middle East, nor in Crimea, nor in the South China Sea.

The real hot spot is the Arctic.

Thats where global warming may lead to global warring, between Russia, the United States and Canada. The fight would be a contest for control of shipping lanes emerging out of the melting ice, lanes that could cut the distance between the Atlantic and the Pacific by days. It would also be a battle for the exploitation of the 13 per cent of the worlds oil reserves and 30 per cent of its natural gas believed to be beneath the seabed.





This new Cold War is what Canadas most pessimistic pundits predict while touting Canadas Arctic sovereignty and detailing Russias investments of billions of dollars in northern military and missile bases, nuclear ice-breakers and fighter jets.

As if Canada could even begin to compete with all that, not to mention with the USs might and materiel. It can barely afford to meet its NATO commitments, let alone buy cutting-edge, ice-ready military equipment.

The cold shoulder

And yet Stephen Harpers Conservative government, toppled last October by Justin Trudeaus Liberals, continuously gave Russia the cold shoulder  and not just over events in Ukraine. Harper wanted to plant the maple leaf firmly in the North  which represents 40 per cent of Canadas land mass and two-thirds of its coastline  to stake the claim on its riches, most especially its oil reserves.

OPINION: Trudeaus global brand is a hot commodity

As prime minister, he trekked north every summer, a Captain Canada for the three quarters of citizens who believe the Arctic  and whatever lies beneath it  is historically theirs.

Now that the coveted waters may become navigable, at least for some of the year, Canada has to chart a new future in the Arctic. by

After all, if it werent for early European explorers often-fatal quest for the fabled Northwest Passage to the East and its spices, Canada may never have happened, or become the country it is. But, now that the coveted waters may become navigable, at least for some of the year, Canada has to chart a new future in the Arctic.

The thing about climate change and the True North, Strong and Free, as the Canadian national anthem goes, is that its about much more than starving polar bears. The region is complex, with diverse indigenous peoples, many of whom suffer from extreme poverty and alarming murder and suicide rates.

Colonised, isolated and marginalised for centuries, Canadas northern nations are just starting to become realised  and making demands to protect their culture, traditional hunting grounds and fishing waters.

But what the scaremongering pundits neglect to mention is the social, environmental and economic threats to Canadas north. Larger still are the threats to the planet, from melting ice caps and rising sea levels. These, not Russian submarines, are the real threat to Canada.

The prospects are chilling  and they put the Trudeau government at polar opposites with those who want to draw battle lines in the snow.

Profound disapproval

Yes, in Ottawa there may be profound disapproval of events in Syria and Eastern Europe. Yes, Canada is deploying 450 troops to Latvia. Yes, Canada maintains a military training mission in Ukraine. Yes, Trudeau has called Russian president Vladimir Putin a bully who is unduly provocative in the Arctic.

And yet the Trudeau government is looking to thaw its relations with Russia, despite objections at home and from Ukraine.

The fact is that Canada and Russia are neighbours, laying claim to 75 percent of the Arctic. (The rest is divvied up by other members of the 21-year-old Arctic Council: the US, Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland.)

OPINION: Is having anti-Canadian values a Canadian value?

As neighbours, they have common interests. Both have indigenous populations in the north. Both are prone to environmental devastation, from pipeline ruptures to pandemics in vast and remote areas. Both run the risk of losing control of their internal waters, as ships from all over the world bypass Panama and the Suez Canal for the shorter, lock- and inspection point-free Northwest Passage.

Its already happening. This summer, the 700-passenger, 13-storey luxury liner Crystal Serenity cruised Canadas north, raising fears that more giant holiday ships would come through, polluting the water, blackening pristine shorelines and harming wildlife.

There is little that Canada can do to stop that  unless parameters are set with its partners at the Pole.

The process has begun. Last month, despite differences over Syria and Crimea, Pam Goldsmith-Jones, parliamentary secretary to Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion, told academics at an Ottawa conference that Russia and Canada would hold joint talks on the Arctic at the end of November.

More than ever, the world will count on Canada as a responsible steward of this great barometer of our planet, she said, standing in for Dion who was at the funeral of Israels former president, Shimon Peres.

Northern resources, explored responsibly, offer huge potential for increased economic development. But if these resources are exploited irresponsibly, it will be a disaster not only for us but for all of humanity. To sever the links with Russia, our neighbour, serves the interests of no one. Neither Canadians nor Russians nor Ukrainians. No one.

Which is why armchair Cold Warriors must put their old-fashioned notions of military-enforced security and territorial sovereignty in the deep freeze.

Canada should be building a strategic alliance with Russia to protect the North Pole  and the planet. On this point at least, the Trudeau government is sailing in the right direction.

Antonia Zerbisias is an award-winning Canadian journalist. She has been a reporter and TV host for the Toronto Star and the CBC, as well as the Montreal correspondent for Variety trade paper.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy.
China on Friday rebuked India for inviting exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama to visit a contested stretch of land on the India-China border, warning that it would harm relations between the neighbours.

China claims more than 90,000 square kilometres of territory disputed by India in the eastern sector of the Himalayas. Much of that forms the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, which China calls South Tibet.

A senior aide to the Dalai Lama told Reuters news agency the 81-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner had accepted an invitation from the states chief minister and its people to visit Arunchal Pradesh.

His Holiness looks forward to visiting in the second week of March, said Tenzin Taklha.





A spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry said China was firmly opposed to the Dalai Lama visiting the China-India border, however, adding that it expected India to respect a bilateral consensus on the region.

We hope India will not further complicate matters on the China-India border and will not give the Dalai Lama clique a platform for its anti-China separatist activities, Lu Kang told a regular press briefing.

Only in this way will the China-India relationship be able to develop in a healthy, stable way.

China regards the Dalai Lama as a separatist, though he says he merely seeks genuine autonomy for his Himalayan homeland, which Communist Chinese troops peacefully liberated in 1950.

The Dalai Lama is a revered spiritual figure and an honoured guest of India. He is absolutely free to travel to any part of the country, a spokesman for Indias foreign ministry told reporters at a weekly briefing on Thursday, answering a query on the governments view of the opposition by China.

He has a sizeable following among the Buddhists in Arunachal Pradesh who would like to seek his blessings. He has visited the state in the past as well, and we see nothing unusual if he visits it again.

READ MORE: Dalai Lama urges Suu Kyi to ease Rohingya tension

US Ambassador to India Richard Verma visited Arunachal Pradesh this month, with China retorting it was firmly opposed to the US diplomats action.

Disagreement between nuclear-armed China and India over parts of their 3,500km border led to a brief war in 1962. They have moved to control the dispute, but repeated rounds of talks have made little progress.

India says China occupies 38,000 sq km of its territory on the Aksai Chin plateau in the west, and is also suspicious of Chinas support for arch-rival Pakistan.

Tensions occasionally flare over the disputed border. In August, China was angered by Indias plans to place advanced cruise missiles there.
Pine Ridge Reservation, United States  Indigenous rights activist and community organiser Deborah White Plume has spent more than seven weeks at the protest camp in Cannonball, North Dakota, where for the last two months thousands have gathered to fight the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL).

Energy Transfer Partners, a Texas-based corporation, is behind the pipeline, which will stretch more than 1,900km and carry oil from North Dakota to Illinois.





It will pass through an area bordering reservation land belonging to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, whose members say it will threaten cultural heritage sites on their ancestral lands, as well as their water supply.

Speaking to The Associated Press news agency, North Dakota state officials claimed there were no culturally sensitive sites on the pipelines route.

On Thursday, North Dakota police arrested at least 141 protesters as officers evicted the activists and indigenous people from a campsite on land owned by Energy Transfer Partners. They fired pepper spray and bean-bag rounds as protesters attempted to evade eviction. Protesters have vowed to relocate and set up another camp on government-owned land.

White Plume, the director of the Owe Aku (Bring Back the Way) nonprofit group, says the DAPL is an attack on indigenous nations in the United States. She spoke to Al Jazeera on Wednesday.

Al Jazeera: What statement are you making by protesting?

Deborah White Plume: The camp is set up right north of the little village of Cannonball, North Dakota, on the Standing Rock Reservation. When I left [last week] there were easily 5,000 people there. Just being in camp is a direct action; just being in that camp is making a statement. The statement is we need to protect sacred water, not only from DAPL but from the whole fossil fuel industry, from uranium mining and from the many threats that the American people and Mother Earth are faced with on the daily.

Al Jazeera: How has North Dakotas law enforcement responded to the protest camp?

White Plume: The response of law enforcement in North Dakota is to protect the corporations right to mine  The corporation has hired private security firms, but those are only a handful of men. Apparently the corporation doesnt want to hire hundreds and hundreds of security guards at their own expense. So they called on the law enforcement of North Dakota to go out at the taxpayers expense to face off with the water protectors who are on the land to say a prayer.

Theyre bringing great big military vehicles Theyre armed with bean-bag guns and pellet guns. The rest are carrying live [ammunition] and they have their finger on the trigger.

Al Jazeera: Videos of security guards releasing dogs on protesters have gone viral. Whats the story behind those scenes?

We are seeing to what extent the government will go to in order to protect a corporation. by Deborah White Plume, indigenous rights activist

White Plume: On the day of the desecration, the DAPLs strategy was to plough up the very earth that [a day earlier] their attorneys [had been informed] was a place of ancient historical and cultural properties. They got the information on Friday and on Saturday morning and came with maybe 10 earth-movers and they were ploughing at the land.

We ran out there crying and hollering at them to stop. Just stop  youre digging up graves. Their security firm had kennels in the backs of their trucks. They ran over there to unlock their kennels and got their dogs out. Some of the dogs attacked us. Some of the dogs attacked their own handlers, biting up the security guards who were trying to release them on us. It was pretty scary. There were maybe 200 women and several men who joined us. But the frontline going in was women, and we were facing these big earth-movers and these security men and dogs. The police stood on the highway, maybe half-a-mile away, watching us being attacked by the security guards and the dogs.

Its a really frightening situation up there in North Dakota right now. We are seeing to what extent the government will go to in order to protect a corporation.

Al Jazeera: Are the potential risks of the DAPL bigger than just Standing Rock?

White Plume: Where we sit here on the Pine Ridge Reservation in southwest South Dakota, our drinking water comes out of a pipeline that gets its water from the Missouri River. And were a six-hour drive away from Cannonball, North Dakota, where the camp is set up. This is not a Standing Rock issue. The camp itself is near Standing Rock, but the drinking water is a source for 17 million Americans. It also irrigates the bread basket of  this part of the country. So, its an issue that is much, much bigger than the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe  and many of us feel that its a global issue.

The Missouri River has a number of pipelines under it already; but now in this age of social media  we know about whats happening. Its our privilege to go up there and stand on the land and protect the water for our children and our childrens children. All Americans, I think, should be concerned by this.

Al Jazeera: What does this pipeline mean specifically for indigenous people in the US?

White Plume: You go to any native nation in America and were always having to defend our land and our water from the fat-taker corporations who want gold or silver, oil, gas, uranium, water  whatever it is they want  on [Native American] lands. They are accustomed to rolling over whoever is in front of them and taking whatever they want.

WATCH: Pipeline standoff at Standing Rock

We here on the Pine Ridge [Reservation] have fought off uranium corporations, oil corporations, gas corporations and water-bottling corporations. And its the same in many places across America. Standing Rock is just one case of exploitation among many that are happening right now all across America where Native nations are having to defend their ancestral territory and their birthright to continue living there unharmed and unpolluted.

Al Jazeera: What do you say to those who argue that the DAPL will bring economic benefits to the region?

White Plume: What we have are competing worldviews. The fat-taker corporations dont care what they pollute as long as they make a profit. Our worldview is that the water and everything on earth are our relatives. Its our duty and our privilege to defend our relatives. Those are two very opposing worldviews, and its not going to be settled overnight. We want to stop this DAPL because its such a major threat. It can mean genocide for the people who depend on that water, primarily native nations.

READ MORE: The grandma feeding the North Dakota pipeline protest

There are at least 30,000 Oglala Lakotas [tribespeople] on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Where are we going to find enough water for 30,000 Oglalas? Thats just a glimpse into what could happen if that pipeline breaks, ruptures or explodes. Where are we going to find an alternative source for the 17 million Americans who drink water from that river?

There is no alternative source. We are at a tipping point. The average American needs to get off the couch, get out of the mall, get off Facebook, and come to the river to protect the drinking water before you dont have any left to protect.

Its a cozy relationship between governments and corporations. To me, theyre the apparatus of oppression together. They are strong allies, and theyre going to protect each other. But theyre not the only game in town. We are using peaceful resistance to protect our water.

Follow Patrick Strickland on Twitter: @P_Strickland_
AUBURN  As the principal at Auburn High School, Brian Morgan has seen far too many students hurt by heroin in Cayuga County.

"These young adults, most of whom have lost their lives, were Auburn students," he said in a phone interview with The Citizen Thursday.

That's why he and Auburn Junior High Principal David Oliver have decided to host another forum on the epidemic, this time focused on educating parents in the community.

On Tuesday, Nov. 1, a panel of local parents will speak at the high school about the dangers of drug addiction, something all of them have witnessed firsthand.

"These families are very willing to share their personal stories in how heroin addiction started for their kids so that other parents can look for warning signs with their own," Morgan said. "And for me, what makes it such a really moving presentation is that the folks on the stage are not from other places. ... These are our neighbors and people that live in our community."

Guest speakers that night will include John and Tina Socci, Kevin Jones, Michele Gentile and Joel Campagnola, all people who have lost a child to heroin overdose in Cayuga County. In addition, Lynette Wilson will speak about her daughter who is currently recovering from addiction.

"As a society, we react to so many things," Morgan said. "This is proactive. This is a chance for parents to get the knowledge ... to prevent a problem before it's too late."
Clinton calls on FBI to release all information immediately as Trump tries to capitalise with election day imminent.

The FBI says it will investigate whether there is classified information in newly discovered emails related to Hillary Clintons private servers, reinjecting one of the most toxic political issues into the presidential campaign less than two weeks before election day.

The FBI had announced in July that its investigation into the Democratic presidential candidates email practices had concluded with a recommendation of no criminal charges in the matter.

But in a letter sent to members of Congress on Friday, James Comey, the FBIs director, said new emails had been discovered in an unrelated case.

It was not clear from Comeys letter where the new emails came from or who sent or received them. He said he did not know how long it would take to review the emails, or whether the new information was significant.

Officials speaking to US media said the new trove of emails that will be examined by the FBI emerged from a sexting investigation of Anthony Weiner, a former congressman who is the estranged husband of Clinton aide Huma Abedin.

Officials told NBC News the emails were found on a laptop that Weiner allegedly used to send inappropriate text messages and pictures to an underage girl.

Investigators also discovered that Abedin had used the same laptop to send emails to Clinton and now they are checking those messages to see if there was any classified information on them, the sources said.

Not as rigged as I thought

Within minutes of the news, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump used Comeys letter to attack Clinton on the campaign trail.

He said the political system might not be as rigged as I thought now that the FBI has decided to investigate new emails found.

At a rally in Manchester, New Hampshire, Trump praised the FBI, saying: I think they are going to right the ship, folks.

That is a new tune for Trump, who has repeatedly complained that the Washington establishment has rigged the political system against him.

OPINION: Can Hillary Clinton placate the divided left?

Al Jazeeras Gabriel Elizondo, reporting from the Trump rally, said there was an absolute roar of approval from his supporters as Trump told them about the FBI announcement.

It really touches on a central theme of Trumps campaign, our correspondent said. I spoke to several people here who said they hope this eventually leads to Clinton ending up in jail.

In response to the news, Clinton called on the FBI to release all new information in its probe and said she did not think the agency would change its conclusion in July not to prosecute her.

The American people deserve to get the full and complete facts immediately. The director himself has said he doesnt know whether the emails referenced in his letter are significant or not. Im confident whatever they are will not change the conclusion reached in July, she told reporters.

A year-long investigation by the FBI focused on whether Clinton sent or received classified information using the private server located in the basement of her New York home, which was not authorised to handle such messages.

This is a damaging bombshell from the FBI that she will have to cope with until election day and, potentially, into the White House, Al Jazeeras John Hendren reported from a Clinton rally on Friday in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where she made no reference to the emails.

Shes already getting negative ratings in polls on the issue of being trusted.

A new poll, conducted before Fridays news, gave Clinton a lead of 6 percentage points over Trump.

The Reuters/Ipsos tracking poll suggested Trump is losing support among women.

The October 21-27 opinion poll found 42 percent of people who either voted already or expect to vote in the November 8 election supporting Clinton, versus 36 percent backing Trump. Clintons lead a week ago was 4 points.
Mayor of Saudi Ampatuan was on a list of people identified by President Duterte as being involved in the drug trade.

Philippine anti-narcotics officers gunned down a town mayor and nine of his men in a clash in one of the bloodiest operations since President Rodrigo Duterte launched a crackdown on illegal drugs.

Samsudin Dimaukom, mayor of the southern town of Saudi Ampatuan, was one of more than 150 local government officials, judges and police identified by Duterte earlier this year as being involved in the illegal drug trade.

He ordered them to surrender immediately or be hunted down.

The mayor had turned himself in to police but denied he was involved in the illegal drug trade. He had told the media that he was fighting illegal drugs himself and supported Dutertes crackdown.





Ahead of the shootout on Friday, police received information that Dimaukoms group was planning to transport a huge amount of methamphetamine from Davao city, Dutertes hometown, to Maguindanao province, where Saudi Ampatuan is located.

Police spokesman Superintendent Romeo Galgo said Dimaukom and his security personnel opened fire after anti-narcotics police stopped their vehicles at a checkpoint on suspicion they were transporting illegal drugs.

Officers returned fire, killing the men in the town of Makilala, about 950 kilometres south of the capital Manila.

Suspects [were] heavily armed and fired upon the law enforcers, which prompted them to fire back, Galgo said.

Al Jazeeras Rob McBride, reporting from Manila, said no drugs were found when Dimaukoms compound was searched at an earlier date.

INTERACTIVE: Philippines  Death toll in Dutertes war on drugs

After he and his wife turned themselves to the police, their compound was searched and no drugs were found, he said.

But significantly at that time, because he was suspected and on the list, his official police and military security detail were taken away.

Dutertes deadly crime war has claimed more than 3,800 lives and drawn criticism from the US, the UN and international rights groups who have accused police of summarily executing suspects.

Duterte, who swept to power in May elections on a pledge to eradicate drugs, has described his critics as fools and said he is not breaking any domestic laws by threatening to kill criminals.

After returning from a trip to Japan late Thursday, he threatened to step up police killings of drug suspects.

In September, the EU called on the Philippine government to put an end to the killings of drug suspects.

Duterte replied by unleashing a series of expletives against the bloc.

I have read the condemnation of the European Union. Im telling them, F**k you,' Duterte said in a mix of Tagalog and English, before describing the EU as hypocrites trying to atone for guilt over its members occupying other countries in the past.
International Criminal Court defiant after African states take aim at the worlds only permanent war crimes tribunal.

South Africa and Burundis decision to quit the International Criminal Court (ICC) and an attack by Gambia against the courts supposed Caucasian justice are likely to embolden other African states to leave the worlds only permanent war crimes tribunal.

Although criticising the Hague-based institution for perceived anti-African bias has long been a favourite pastime for many African leaders, in most cases it amounted to pandering to a domestic audience without much real intent.

That has now changed with the precedent established of local politics justifying actual withdrawal.

South Africa  a continental heavyweight and key backer of the ICC in the late 1990s  has made clear it could no longer tolerate the courts denial of immunity to sitting leaders.

WATCH: Does the ICC target African states?

All eyes are now on Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, who made history in 2013 by becoming the first sitting head of state to appear before the court on charges of crimes against humanity.

The case relating to Kenyattas alleged role in post-election violence in 2008  in which at least 1,200 people died  collapsed in 2014 because of lack of evidence.

But in January this year, with charges still hanging over his deputy, William Ruto, Kenyatta took to the floor at the African Union (AU) to call for a roadmap for withdrawal for Africas 34 ICC members.

Supporting South Africas subsequent stance, Kenyatta took aim in particular at Article 27 of the ICCs 1998 Rome Statute, which affirms the irrelevance of official capacity  in other words, nobody, no matter how powerful, is above the law.

Kenyatta, who faces another election next year, then played the global security card, saying this compromised Kenyas ability to fight armed groups, a genuine concern in the wake of a major attack in 2013 on Nairobis Westgate mall.

Weve had to contend with the ICC pursuing weak, politicised cases. This has become a huge distraction from our duty to serve our people and this continent fully. That is not what Kenya signed up for when we joined the ICC, Kenyatta said.





Kenyas parliament has passed two resolutions since 2010 calling for withdrawal, but government spokesman Manoah Esipisu said the cabinet was still deciding  in the wake of South Africas move  whether to go ahead.

It is accurate to say that a decision of the executive is pending, he said.

Neighbouring Uganda, whose President Yoweri Museveni labelled the ICC a bunch of useless people at his inauguration in July, is already shaping up for a fresh push at the next AU summit in January for an African exodus.

The ICC deserves whats happening to it now, said Okello Oryem, Ugandas junior foreign affairs minister.

Our argument has always been that theres a need for the whole of Africa to withdraw from the ICC. We hope that matter will come up at the next AU summit and then well be able to pronounce ourselves.

ICC defiant

Most worrying for the ICC, which has been fighting to counter the allegations of anti-African bias and neo-colonialism, is that local or regional politics stood behind the three recent decisions to pull out.

Although Gambia, which derided the ICC as the Infamous Caucasian Court, does not yet appear to have sent its formal divorce papers, President Yahya Jammeh  who has been accused of serial rights abuses since seizing power in a 1994 coup  is unlikely to back off ahead of an election in December.

The ICC admits it is rattled but determined to keep going, and in particular to counter the allegations of anti-African bias.

We must remain strong, Fatou Bensouda, a Gambian chief prosecutor of ICC, told reporters in The Hague this week. This is a challenge we see now. We will see it more. It is not going to go away.

To date, all but one of the courts 10 investigations have been in Africa and its five convicted suspects are from Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic and Mali.

However, it argues that many of these cases were brought by African governments themselves, not outsiders, and that it has 10 preliminary investigations into alleged atrocities elsewhere in the world, including in Afghanistan, Colombia, Iraq, Palestine, and Ukraine.

Even if half the African countries leave, it would be very unfortunate and damaging to the concept of international justice, but it wont shut the court down, one ICC official, who did not want to be named, told Reuters news agency.

This was bound to happen when dictators  for the most part thats what they are  decide to run for cover.
New York show was first time all models on runway wore the headscarf, but fails to shrug off conservative critics.

An Indonesian designer has drawn global attention with a collection featuring Muslim headscarves combined with glittering gowns and flowing tunics, defying conservative critics in her homeland who say the outfits are not modest enough.

When Anniesa Hasibuan showcased her collection at last months New York Fashion Week, it was the first time the prestigious annual event saw all the models on the catwalk sporting headscarves, also known as hijabs.

The 30-year-old, who was the first Indonesian to have her own show at the event, won praise from fashion critics around the world, which she said was totally unexpected.

Everyone appreciated my designs, praise be to God, she said on Friday at Jakarta Fashion Week, as she brought her collection back to the city where she lives.

Hasibuans works have previously featured at shows in London, Istanbul, and Cannes but New York Fashion Week cemented her status as a rising star.

Her current collection features colourful tunics, a modern take on the Japanese kimono and sparkly evening gowns with lacey trains, all combined with the hijab  the traditional covering for the head and neck worn by many Muslim women.

The elaborate outfits are decorated with sequins and embroidery, and combine warm, earthy colours with more vibrant ones such as pink, gold, peach and green.

Called DJakarta, the collection  which was also showcased on Friday  is inspired by Hasibuans love for the Indonesian capital Jakarta where she lives, a metropolis of 10 million people that is a melting pot of different cultures and traditions.

But for Hasibuan, the reception of her work abroad has sometimes been better than in Indonesia, which has the worlds biggest Muslim population, and where some critics say her clothing is not modest enough.

Just a designer

The designer said when she was in New York, people focused more on the artistic side of her designs rather than the religious aspects.

I felt very comfortable because they didnt care whether I was a Muslim designer or not  I was just a designer to them, she told AFP news agency.

She is not the first designer from the country to experiment with mixing the hijab with glamourous gowns. Islamic fashion in Indonesia, where most practise a moderate form of Islam, is often more daring and experimental than in other Muslim countries.

Hijabs can be elaborate and expensive in Indonesia, and wealthy women can be seen wandering Jakartas fancy malls wearing hand-stitched headscarves decorated with precious gems.

Nevertheless, rising conservatism across society has targeted designers who try to push the boundaries.

While she has received a great deal of praise at home, photos of Hasibuans designs on her social media accounts have received criticism.

The hijab is not worn correctly because it still shows the neck and chest, Facebook user Ummie Salamah wrote on Hasibuans account. Covering your chest is a must  it is Gods order, please do not negotiate.

Some Muslims argue the true aim of wearing the hijab is for women to remain modest and not draw any attention to themselves, and the head coverings should not be elaborately decorated or colourful.

Nevertheless, Hasibuan is determined to stick to designing Islamic clothing with a modern, glamorous twist.

Controversy is everywhere  I faced it here [in Indonesia] and all over the world, she said. But I try to stay positive.
Celebrations break out in town as Iraqi government forces continue to advance toward Mosul, meeting fierce resistance.

Kurdish Peshmerga and Iraqi government forces have pushed ISIL out of the northern town of Fadiliya, which lies just 4km away from Mosul, the groups last major bastion in the country.

Several residents and a Peshmerga commander said it took only 20 fighters to control a town whose population once numbered 5,000 before many fled, so pervasive was fear of the group.

Al Jazeeras Jamal Elshayyal, reporting from Fadiliya, said that though the town was now under Peshmerga control, sporadic fighting was ongoing.

The Peshmerga has managed to capture 95 towns and villages in and around that area, Elshayyal said. Any building that is on the path towards Fadiliya, or towards several other towns to get to where this fight against ISIL is taking place, has been levelled to the ground  eradicating any position ISIL could take.

Residents hung white flags of surrender from their homes, hoping to avoid being targeted by air raids.

A short distance away in Mosul, ISILs leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi walked into a mosque two years ago to declare a caliphate. The battle for the city, Iraqs second biggest, is expected to see the fiercest fighting the country has experienced since the US-led invasion in 2003.

Children joyfully ran through the streets of Fadiliya singing songs and chanting: Peshmerga, Peshmerga, Peshmerga.

As Iraqi forces moved through the town and greeted villagers, there was no longer any sign of the ISIL fighters, alive or dead, Elshayyal reported.

LIFE UNDER ISIL

If you are caught smoking you get whipped with a water hose 50 times in public, said Othman Mahmoud, as his friend handed around a pack of cigarettes with a smile, told the Reuters news agency, recalling life under the group.

A teenager joined the gathering, describing a code imposed with ferocity on every aspect of personal life, right down to facial hair.

If you are caught growing sideburns you get whipped 25 times, he said. There were so many things we could not do.

Eleven days into the biggest ground operation in Iraq since the 2003 US-led invasion, army and federal police units were fighting off sniper fire and suicide car bombs south of the town of Hammam al-Alil, where some reports suggested ISIL had been executing prisoners.

READ MORE: Why Iraq needs more than a military victory in Mosul

The United Nations on Friday said the group had snatched tens of thousands of men, women and children from areas around Mosul and was using them as human shields in the city as government forces advanced.

ISIL killed at least 232 people on Wednesday, including 190 former Iraqi security forces (ISF) and 42 civilians who refused to obey their orders, UN human rights spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said in comments that could not be independently verified.

Credible reports suggest that ISIL has been forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes in sub-districts around Mosul and has forcibly relocated numbers of civilians inside the city itself since the operation began on October 17 to restore Iraqi government control over Mosul, Shamdasani told a briefing.

Nearly 8,000 families, of roughly six people each, were abducted in sub-districts including Shura, she said.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem said on Monday that a US-led coalition involved in the effort to retake Mosul was encouraging ISIL fighters to move from Iraq to Syria.

Speaking after talks with his Russian and Iranian counterparts in Moscow, Muallem said the coalition wanted the fighters to move from Iraqs Mosul to Syrias Raqqa, the groups de facto capital.
Marine reserve, covering an area of 1.55 square kilometres, will be the biggest in the world.

The worlds biggest marine park is to be be created in the Antarctic Ocean, covering a massive 1.55 million sq km, after a momentous agreement was finally reached by 24 countries and the EU.

The deal, sealed on Friday in Hobart, Australia, after years of negotiations and with Russia dropping its long-held opposition, will see a massive US and New Zealand-backed marine protected area established in the Ross Sea.

The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources said the Ross Sea marine park would be protected from commercial fishing for 35 years.





The marine park will cover an area roughly the size of Britain, Germany and France combined  of which 1.12 million sq km will be a no-fishing zone.

The sanctuary will cover more than 12 percent of the Southern Ocean, which is home to more than 10,000 species including most of the worlds penguins, whales, seabirds, colossal squid and Antarctic tooth fish.

Scientists and activists described the agreement as a historic milestone in global efforts to protect marine diversity.

The Ross Sea Region MPA will safeguard one of the last unspoiled ocean wilderness areas on the planet  home to unparalleled marine biodiversity and thriving communities of penguins, seals, whales, seabirds, and fish, US Secretary of State John Kerry said in a statement, referring to the marine park authority.

Moscow was the last government opposing the move, largely due to concerns over fishing rights, after China offered its support last year.

Antarctica is the part of the world least touched by people. Its isolation also makes it an excellent place for research.

It is one of the last places on earth that has an entire eco-system intact, including its top predators, Andrea Kavanagh of the PEW Charitable Trust told Al Jazeera.

Therefore, scientists are able to use that as a baseline to look at how healthy ecosystems are affected by climate change.

Scientists said the marine park would also allow a greater understanding of the effect of climate change.

Russia agreed to the proposal, after blocking conservation proposals on five previous occasions.

The 25-member commission, which includes Russia, China, the US and the EU, requires unanimous support for decisions.

They all have diverse economic, political interests and to get them all to align  especially in the context of divergent economic interests  is quite a challenge, Evan Bloom, director at the US Department of State and leader of the US delegation, told the Reuters news agency.

While the Ross Sea plan got the go-ahead, time ran out at the meeting to reach agreement on a second proposed protected area  the Australia and France-led East Antarctica sanctuary covering another 1 million sq km zone.

A third German-proposed plan is also in the works to protect the Weddell Sea, which extends from the southeast of South America over an area of some 2.8 million sq km.
Leaders of a 41-day siege of a US wildlife reserve over land ownership cleared of conspiracy and gun charges.

A federal court jury has acquitted a group of armed protesters who led a takeover of a US wildlife refuge in Oregon earlier this year.

The seven anti-government protesters, including brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy, were charged with conspiring to impede federal employees at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge through intimidation or force.

The six men and one woman each faced up to six years in prison on the conspiracy charge. Several also faced gun charges in the high-profile trial that lasted five weeks.

The 41-day siege, which began on January 2 at the remote reserve, put the spotlight on a long-running dispute over millions of acres of public land in the American West.

It was led by the Bundy brothers, whose father, Cliven Bundy, had been involved in a similar confrontation in 2014 with federal officials over cattle grazing on public land in Nevada.

The takeover in Oregon ended with the dramatic surrender of four holdouts, including one who threatened to commit suicide in a phone call with mediators that was streamed live.

The groups spokesman, LaVoy Finicum, had earlier been shot and killed by police during a traffic stop as he, the Bundys and several others were headed to a community meeting to plead their cause.

OPINION: Oregon standoff and a clear case of white privilege

In a climax to the trial in the US District Court in Portland on Thursday, Ammon Bundys lawyer, Marcus Mumford, was tackled to the floor by US marshals as he became involved in a heated verbal exchange with the judge over the terms of his clients release.

The verdict came hours after a newly reconstituted jury, with an alternate seated to replace one panellist dismissed over questions of bias on Tuesday, renewed deliberations in the case. Jurors previously had deliberated over three days.

For decades, land rights has been a thorny issue in western US states, where the federal government owns most of the land.

Many conservative politicians and ranchers such as the Bundys argue that the land has been mismanaged and should be handed over to states or turned into private property.
Philippines president, known for excessive use of profanity in public, says God ordered him to stop spewing expletives.

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, whose use of profanity has become his trademark, says he will stop cursing altogether after receiving a direct order from God.

Duterte, who has at separate times called Pope Francis and US President Barack Obama sons of bitches, has vowed he will not spew expletives again.

The president made the pledge upon arrival in his southern hometown of Davao city late on Thursday from a trip to Japan.

He claimed on the flight while he was looking at the sky and everyone was sound asleep, he heard a voice that said  If you dont stop epithets, I will bring this plane down now.

READ MORE: Duterte tells Obama to go to hell

And I said, Who is this? So, of course, Its God, said Duterte.

So, I promise God to  not express slang, cuss words and everything. So you guys hear me right always because [a] promise to God is a promise to the Filipino people.

Dutertes vow was met with applause, but he cautioned: Dont clap too much or else this may get derailed.

He has repeatedly levelled profane tirades against Obama, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, a few outspoken opposition politicians and human rights advocates, while heaping praise on Chinese and Russian leaders.

Duterte has also repeatedly used profanities while threatening to kill drug dealers as part of his war on illegal drugs that has left thousands dead since he took office at the end of June.



Rodrigo Duterte interview: Death, drugs and diplomacy

There were no expletives in his Thursday speech, but Duterte still sounded mean towards critics.

When asked for his message to a Filipino beauty queen who won the recent Miss International pageant, Duterte said he was proud. Many Filipinas are beautiful, but all of you there in the human rights commission are ugly.

However, asked if the days of his cursing the United States and the European Union are over, Duterte did not give a clear answer.

I do not want anybody reading my mind because I couldnt make a smart move any more. But its all calibrated  its all about timing, Duterte said.

He shocked the dominant Roman Catholics in the country last year when he fired an expletive while expressing his disgust over a major traffic jam that trapped him while Pope Francis was visiting Manila.

I wanted to call  Pope, you son of a bitch, go home. Dont visit here any more,' he told a group of supporters.

READ MORE: Duterte unleashes more profanity at the EU

He later apologised after Filipino bishops expressed shock and outrage.

It is not certain if the 71-year-old president, who has been compared to US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump because of his brash language, can keep his promise.

Duterte made a similar pledge in June when it became evident that he had won the May 9 presidential election overwhelmingly on a pledge to end crime, especially illegal drugs, and corruption.

He said then he was enjoying his last moments as a rude person because when I become president, when I take my oath of office  that will be a different story. There will be a metamorphosis.

But it didnt take long for Duterte to break that promise.
Syrian rebels staged a counterattack in Aleppo with heavy shelling of government-held areas after a weeks-long Russian-backed offensive against besieged districts held by rebels.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a British-based monitoring group, said rebel shelling had killed more than 15 civilians and wounded 100 others in government-held western Aleppo on Friday.

The SOHR added that hundreds of shells and rockets had fallen on various western neighbourhoods of the city as the rebels aimed to break a siege that government and allied militias imposed in the summer with aerial support from Russia.

Aleppo, Syrias most populous city before the war, has for years been split between a government-held western sector and the rebel-held east, which the army and its allies managed to put under siege this summer.





There is a general call-up for anyone who can bear arms, a senior official in the Levant Front rebel group, which fights under the Free Syrian Army (FSA) banner, told Reuters news agency.

The preparatory shelling started this morning.

Syrian rebels also launched Grad rockets at Aleppos Nairab airbase as part of the new offensive aimed at breaking the government siege of insurgent-held areas of the city, a rebel official and SOHR said on Friday.

The BM-21 Grad is a Soviet truck-mounted multiple rocket launcher which was developed in the 1950s.

Zakaria Malahifji, an official with the Fastaqim rebel group present in Aleppo, said bombardment of the airbase was part of the new offensive and a number of rebel groups would participate in it.

Today is supposed to be the launch of the battle, Malahifji said. All the rebel groups will participate.

SOHR has also confirmed that Grad rockets had struck Nairab airbase and also locations around the Hmeimim airbase, near Latakia.

OPINION: Syrias Civil War  Yet another iconic image?

Al Jazeeras Mohammed Adow, reporting from the Turkish city of Gaziantep, near the Syrian border, said opposition fighters in Aleppo have been talking about this offensive for weeks and now they are saying that they began firing rockets at the airbase.

They have also targeted the west of Aleppo with more rockets and we are also hearing about a car bomb, he said. Opposition fighters are calling this the mother of all battles.

Rebel attack on school

Seperately, shelling by Syrian rebels killed several children at a school in government-held western Aleppo on Thursday, the monitoring group and Syrian state TV said.

The shells hit two neighbourhoods, Syrian state news agency SANA reported. Shahaba, where three children were killed and dozens wounded, and Hamdaniya, where three people were killed.

SOHR said six children under the age of 16 had been killed in the two attacks.

Marwan Bishara, Al Jazeeras senior political analyst, said that the battle for Aleppo was expected to mutate in all sorts of directions because as we all know at the end of the day there is no military solution to the demands of people for freedom from authoritarianism and dictatorship.

The way it has been going in Syria is that you might win a certain battle but you will lose the next one and at the end of the day even if the Russians and the Assad regime eventually take over Alepppo that doesnt mean that they have won the war in Syria, he said.

OPINION: Syrias Civil War  One conflict, multiple battles

The attacks came a day after air raids on a school in a rebel-held village killed more than 30 people in Idlib, 50km away.

Wednesdays air strikes hit a school in the Haas village in rebel-held Idlib, killing at least 36 people  including 22 children and six teachers  an attack that Western countries have blamed on the Syrian military and Russian air force. Moscow has denied involvement.
Pakistan accuses Indian troops of killing three civilians, including a seven-year-old girl, in latest bout of violence.

Pakistan on Friday accused India of killing three civilians  including a seven-year-old girl  and wounding several others in cross-border fire as tensions soar in disputed Kashmir.

The incident occurred in Nakyal sector, near the frontier dividing Indian-administered Kashmir from Pakistans Punjab province, Pakistani officials said.





At least three people, including a woman and a girl, were killed and five others injured when Indian troops opened fire across the border, said district official Adnan Khursheed.

Zeeshan Nisar, an official in Nakyal, confirmed the incident, adding a seven-year-old girl was among the dead.

A doctor at the hospital in Nakyal sector put the number of wounded at seven.

Three of the injured are in critical condition while four injured are stable, Muhammad Nasrullah told AFP news agency.

There was no immediate response from Indian officials.

Attack on wedding ceremony

Muhammad Naseer, a local resident, said mortar shells hit a house where a wedding ceremony was taking place.

Sazia Bibi, one of the wounded, said she was outside the house fetching water when pieces of the shell struck her.

The latest violence comes after New Delhi announced on Thursday it was expelling a Pakistani visa official for suspected spying, with Islamabad responding by saying it would send back an Indian diplomat in an apparent tit-for-tat move.

Relations between the two countries have plummeted in recent months, with India blaming Pakistani fighters for a September raid on an army base in its part of disputed Kashmir that killed 19 soldiers.

READ MORE: The doctors treating Kashmiris blinded by pellets

India said it responded by carrying out strikes across the heavily militarised border, although Islamabad denies these took place.

Tensions were already high before the attack, with deadly violence over the death on July 8 of a popular Kashmir rebel leader, 22-year-old Burhan Wani.

Nearly 90 people, most of them young protesters and some children, have been killed in clashes with security forces in Indian-administered Kashmir since then. Some 12,000 people have been wounded.

Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan since independence from Britain in 1947. Both claim the Himalayan territory in full and have fought two wars over the mountainous region.
For the first time in eight years, a Cayuga County farm has been awarded funds through the New York State Farmland Protection Implementation Grant program. Perry Farm in Aurelius will receive $484,050 to protect a 190-acre swath of land.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the award recipients Tuesday, which in total were given $4.9 million to help farmers protect 2,843 acres of land. That funding was divvied up among six farms, three of which are in central New York.

Kari Terwilliger, planner with the Cayuga County Department of Planning and Economic Development, said she had worked with the owners of Perry Farms on the application, which was then sent to the New York Agricultural Land Trust for submission. She said the owners are elderly, last generation farmers. While no family members were interested in taking up the farming business, Terwilliger said the owners wanted to keep their property farmland and reduce its resale value so a first-time farmer can take it on.

"That was the compelling story for us, and why our board made them our number one pick," Terwilliger said. "We're really excited. We haven't had a project anywhere in the county awarded this since 2008."

Terwilliger said she is already looking to next year's applications, and hopes the county will be successful in securing more funding.

Besides Perry Farm, two other farms in the region received grant funds. Stack Family Farm, located in the town of Onondaga and the town of Marcellus, was awarded $762,038 to protect 263 acres of its 250-cow dairy farm. The project will facilitate the transition of the farm from a father to his son, while also financing a robotic milking system, according to a release.

And in Onondaga and Cortland counties, Birdsall Farm was awarded $1,190,261 through the grant program. Located both in the town of Scott and the town of Spafford, the project will protect the 620-acre beef operation as well as provide a buffer to the adjoining Ripley Hill Nature Preserve, protected by the Finger Lakes Land Trust.

This is the farmland protection program's 20th anniversary, and is part of the state's Environmental Protection Fund. Grants are distributed by the state's Department of Agriculture and Markets.

"The Governor's continued support of farmland preservation is having a significant impact in protecting and retaining the state's farmland today for our future New York farmers," said state Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball in a press release. "The projects awarded today will ensure the diversity of New York agriculture and, in many cases, will help farmers upgrade their operations."
Ankara makes a fresh push for the extradition of US-based businessman it holds responsible for July coup attempt.

Turkeys justice minister has pressed the United States to extradite a cleric it accuses of orchestrating a failed coup attempt last July or risk seriously harming relations between the two countries.

Bekir Bozdag, who spoke to reporters a day after meeting US Attorney General Loretta Lynch, accused the Pennsylvania-based Fethullah Gulen of being a terrorist.

Whatever Osama bin Laden means for the United States and for the American people, Fethullah Gulen means the same for Turkey and Turkish people, Bozdag said.

OPINION: Could Turkey turn its back to the West?

Just imagine that there was an assassination attempt on President Obama and his family, or the White House and civilians were bombed, tanks were marching in the streets, people were shot, and US civilians were killed and thousands were injured, he said.

Just imagine that scenario. And after all this, just imagine that the manager and the perpetrator of all these activities was residing in Turkey. What would the American people think about that?





The US has been reluctant to extradite Gulen, stressing that Turkey must first present sufficient evidence of his involvement in the coup attempt, during which more than 270 people were killed.

Gulen has denied any involvement.

The US justice ministry said in a statement on Wednesday that in both countries extraditions are subject to the judicial process, and accordingly must meet the evidentiary standards of the requested country.

Bozdag said Turkey presented new evidence against Gulen, including confessions of alleged coup plotters in Turkey who say they acted on his orders.

Bozdag also said that Gulen had received secret recordings of the conversations of a top Turkish official from one of his followers.

But of course if the process is prolonged or if a flaw happens in this process, this would mean a huge blow to the relationship, Bozdag said. We want the United States to understand us, because there is a growing anti-Americanism among Turkish people.

READ MORE: Turkish Airlines pilots willing to take up army jobs

Separately, Turkey detained 45 airforce pilots on Thursday on charges connected to the coup attempt, while a further 28 pilots are being sought, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

The warrants for the detentions were issued by a prosecutor in the central Konya province. The group is made up of 71 lieutenants and two colonels.

In the wake of the coup bid, Turkey fired a total of 265 army pilots for alleged involvement in the events of July 15, or for having links to Gulen.

According to Metin Gurcan, a Turkish security analyst, after that first wave of sackings, the number of active pilots dropped from about 600 to just over 300, figures which suggest the country now has more fighter jets than pilots to fly them.

ANALYSIS: How will the military shake-up affect Turkeys future?

In August, Turkish Airlines boss, Ilker Ayci, said his pilots may take on duties in the air force to help address the personnel deficit created by the coup attempt.

Turkey is currently carrying out air raids in both Syria and Iraq, against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) and Kurdish targets.

The Turkish government has formally arrested more than 30,000 people and dismissed tens of thousands of public sector employees since July. Thousands of army officers have been fired, including high-ranking generals.
Yemens Houthis rebels deny targeting the holy city after the kingdom said it destroyed the ballistic missile.

Saudi Arabia is claiming to have shot down a ballistic missile near the holy city of Mecca, that was reportedly fired by Yemens Houthi rebels more than 500km across the border.

The Saudi-led military coalition  which is backing Yemens pro-government forces in the conflict with the rebels  said it intercepted and destroyed the missile on Friday before it could do any damage  about 65km from Mecca, one of Islams most sacred sites.





It would be the deepest strike yet to hit Saudi Arabia, which has been engaged in a series of deadly border clashes with the Houthis since they overthrew the Yemeni government in 2014 and seized large parts of the country, including the capital, Sanaa.

Mohammed al-Bekheity, a Houthi leader, vehemently denied that the missile targeted Mecca.

We do not target civilians and, in turn, we would not target holy areas, he said.

Al-Bekheity said the aim behind the coalitions allegation was to garner sympathy from Muslims and the international community.

After Saudi Arabias crimes against Yemenis were exposed, drawing international sympathy towards Yemen, here it is using such allegations to attract attention towards it, he said.

The Houthi-affiliated SABA news agency reported that the missile hit the international airport in the Saudi city of Jeddah.

However, Abdulmalak Alsham, an airport official, told Al Jazeera that there was no missile strike on the airport.

READ MORE: What does Saudi Arabia want for Yemen and Syria?

The missile was launched from Saada province, a Houthi stronghold just across the border from Saudi Arabia.

In response to the missile attack, the Saudi military launched air strikes against the rebels, targeting the area where the missile was fired from.

It is the second time this month the rebels have fired a missile of that range.

On October 9, the coalition said it intercepted a missile near Taif, the site of a Saudi airbase. Taif is about 70km from Mecca.

READ MORE: Over 3,000 Saudi strikes on Yemen hit civilian areas

It is suspected that the Houthis and their allies  including forces loyal to former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh, possess a stockpile of Soviet-era Scud missiles, as well as locally designed weapons.

The Saudi military has a supply of US-made, surface-to-air Patriot missile batteries it previously has fired at Houthi-launched missiles.

United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan criticised Iran after the alleged Houthi missile attack.

Tehran has repeatedly denied arming the rebels.

The Iranian regime backs a terrorist group that fires its rockets on Mecca  Is this an Islamic regime as it claims to be? Nahyan wrote on Twitter.

Irans Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi dismissed claims that the Houthis targeted Mecca as ridiculous.

We advise officials of the [United Arab] Emirates and Saudi Arabia not to use Islamic holy sites for their mean political intentions and not to resort to this sort of hypocritical, rift-making and dangerous hyperbole, Ghasemi was quoted as saying by Irans ISNA news agency.
We ask if the US inequality gap is fuelling anti-establishment sentiment, and talk to Zimbabwes former VP Joice Mujuru.

In this weeks UpFront, Mehdi Hasan talks to former Zimbabwe Vice President Joice Mujuru about serving in President Robert Mugabes government, which has been accused of mass killings and other human rights violations.

In the Reality Check, we look into the US Department of Defences controversial School of the Americas, where graduates include Manuel Noriega, the members of the Zetas cartel, and Efrain Rios Montt.

And in the Arena, we debate whether financial inequality drives political power into the hands of the wealthy and whether it can ever be considered a good thing.

Headliner  Is Joice Mujuru the right replacement for Mugabe?

Zimbabwes president, Robert Mugabe, has ruled for more than 36 years.

During his long reign, Mugabes government has been accused of numerous human rights violations, including the killing of thousands during the so-called Gukurahundi massacres in 1983.

Former Vice President Joice Mujuru, who served in Mugabes government, speaks with UpFronts Mehdi Hasan about her legacy and why she believes she is the right person to replace Mugabe.

Mujuru denied having any knowledge of the atrocities being committed by what she called Mugabes secret army, but told Hasan she was sorry for the killings.

Im being availed to some of the things that are even shocking, Mujuru told Hasan. I am even asking myself, did these things happen during my days in government?

Surely, for a person who has a human heart, you have to feel bad and sorry, and say sorry to those that have been affected, she added.

Mujuru, in opposition to Mugabe, has been supporting peaceful demonstrations against the longtime president.

Reality Check  The US terror training camp youve never heard of

Panamas Manuel Noriega. Chiles Manuel Contreras. Members of Mexicos Zetas cartel. What do they all have in common?

They all graduated from the US Defence Departments School of the Americas, an anti-communist counterinsurgency programme to train Latin American military personnel.

After the school was kicked out of Panama, it relocated to the United States. It even, eventually, changed its name  but kept everything else.

Is it time to close down this so-called terrorist training camp?

Mehdi Hasan digs into the past of the US-run school that has led to the destabilisation of many Latin American countries.

Arena  Does income inequality help or hurt the US?

Major financial institutions are ringing the alarm bells about the danger of growing inequality.

But is the growing inequality necessarily a bad thing?

I think accumulations that are due to technical success are a good thing, says Professor James Galbraith. When theyre due to monopolies, when theyre due to land rants, when theyre due to financial privation, speculation, and so forth, thats another matter.

However, Edward Conard, the former managing director of investment firm Bain Capital, doesnt see it as a problem.

When you look at the evidence as to whether or not the US is having an increasing share of crony capitalism, the evidence all works to the contrary, says Conard.

In this Arena, we debate the issue. Joining Mehdi Hasan are Edward Conard, author of The Upside of Inequality: How Good Intentions Undermine the Middle Class, and James Galbraith, author of Inequality: What Everyone Needs to Know.

Follow UpFront on Twitter @AJUpFront and Facebook.
UF researchers find method for future meth-addiction therapy

New discoveries made by UF health researchers in neuroscience may help reduce the effects of methamphetamine in the brain.

In a study finished earlier this month, researchers looked at the effects of meth on the firing activity of neurons, said Danielle Sambo, a UF neuroscience graduate student and one of the lead researchers of the study that started about a year ago. The study found a targeted method to use in the future for addiction therapy, she said.

Overall, the goal of the study was to identify specific parts of the brain that can be targeted to decrease the effects of meth.

Theres been a lot of research done on cocaine and how cocaine affects the dopamine system, but a lot less is understood about meth, Sambo said. Thats why, as a lab, weve taken more interest in understanding how meth works because theres still a lot thats unknown about it.

The study looked at two primary methods to see how meth causes the brain to release dopamine, a chemical released during pleasurable behaviors, Sambo said. Neurons normally release dopamine through the first method, which is called increased vesicular release, in which pockets of dopamine get released.

Through the second method, reverse transport, meth also releases dopamine through a protein, Sambo said.

After giving test mice dopamine neurons and studying their brain recordings, researchers were able to find that the second method might be more important when understanding how meth increases dopamine release, Sambo said.

- Gabby Rodriguez

UF researchers earn nearly $2 million grant to study patients with tremors

Two UF researchers received a grant of nearly $2 million to study a degenerative brain disorder.

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UF neurosurgery professor Dr. Kelly Foote and professor Aysegul Gunduz received the $1.986 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to conduct a five-year study to look at essential tremor, an incurable degenerative brain disorder that results in increasingly debilitating tremors.

Foote and Gunduz, along with UF neurology professor Dr. Michael Okun, started collaborating in 2012. Foote, Gunduz and Okun are working with Medtronic, a company that makes medical devices, to develop deep brain stimulators that record brain activity in patients with tremors.

Their goal is to be able to understand the brain signals enough to pinpoint movement intentions that would then allow people who cant move their bodies due to injury or disease to be able to control a computer with their thoughts, Gunduz said.

By comparing their brain signals when theyre not tremoring versus when they are tremoring, we can basically pinpoint what the pathological activity is, she said.

The closed-loop system in the brain is similar to an automatic air-conditioning system, she said. The same way air-conditioning systems turn air on or off depending on the temperature, the stimulator will turn on and off to bring the brain to a healthy state.

The three researchers plan to recruit patients who experience tremors when they start moving, specifically when theyre trying to reach for something.

Gunduz said she, along with Foote and Okun, hope to apply what they learn from the study to other movement disorders, neuropsychiatric disorders and possible neuroprosthetic applications.

- Christy Pina

Irrigation app helps Florida avocado growers save water

Farmers can now use an app to make sure their avocados get just enough water.

UFs Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences developed the app, called SmartIrrigation Avocado, which could save farmers between 20 percent and 50 percent on water to irrigate their crops, according to a recent UF/IFAS study.

The app helps farmers know when they need to water their avocados through a 15-day schedule that shows weather averages from the previous five days, said Kati Migliaccio, a UF professor of agriculture and biological engineering and the lead author of the study.

Migliaccio said the researchers dont have concrete numbers about how much money and water the app saves because farmers used different amounts before the app.

The app, funded by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, focuses on farmers in the Miami-Dade area, where most of Floridas avocados are grown. Avocados account for much of the states agricultural economy, Migliaccio said, with a crop production of $23.5 million in 2013.

The goal was to link people who make irrigation decisions with data and some simple calculations to make them in a better way, she said.

- Olivia Ooten

Researchers find wrong information on Spanish health websites

A recent study has found that Spanish websites lack accurate information about losing weight.

The study was conducted from February 2016 to July 2016 by researchers in the UF College of Medicines Department of Health Outcomes and Policy.

In the study, researchers compared information on websites with more reliable sources such as hospital and university websites. Websites were scored from excellent to nothing in terms of accuracy, said Michelle Cardel, a professor in the department.

Researchers wanted to evaluate the quality of information, using search engines to find and assess Spanish websites about weight loss.

Cardel said few reputable websites were in the first five entries of the Spanish-language searches.

Francois Modave, a UF professor of health outcomes and policy, said he and colleagues at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso conducted the same study in 2014 regarding English websites and found more accurate results on the sites.

The key message for the study is for Spanish speakers to get information from reputable sources, he said.

Cardel and Modave are planning on creating an informatics tool to identify the quality of information on sites about weight loss.

- Rosanne Ramraj
UF has backed out of plans to take over a medical research facility in Orlando.

In May, officials at the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute were collaborating with UF officials for the university to take control of the institutes Orlando location, pending stakeholders approval. On Thursday, UF spokeswoman Janine Sikes confirmed UF is pulling out of the deal.

It is unclear how UF can help in a timely manner, given the likely need for legislative approval, Sikes wrote in an email. As such, UF is unable to proceed at this time.

Stakeholders who needed to agree to the deal included Orange County, the city of Orlando and the state of Florida, according to the Orlando Sentinel. In May, Florida Gov. Rick Scotts office sent a letter to UF asking for the plans details including how it would assist UF in becoming a top-10 university.

The California-based institute received more than $360 million in incentives to open in 2006 and promised to create 303 jobs in 10 years, according to the Sentinel.

Recent reports show the institute was 66 jobs short, according to the Sentinel. Sanford Burnham struggled to get research money from the federal government before planning to have UF take control.

Sanford Burnham Vice President of Public Affairs Deborah Robison wrote in an email that UF was its first choice to take over the institute.

We recently learned that UF has no plans to proceed with the asset transfer at this time. Thus, SBP is now faced with the need to find another viable alternative, she said.
Savannah Lee, 19, camped out in front of Emerson Alumni Hall at about 3 a.m. in hopes of receiving a Beat Georgia tank top Thursday morning.

The UF psychology and zoology sophomore said she saw six tents of people waiting before her. But by morning, about 60 people were in line in front of her. By the time she got to the front of the line, after waiting for six hours, she received a hand towel instead of a shirt.

We realized we had just camped out for hours for no reason, she said.

On Thursday, the student members of the UF Alumni Association hosted their fourth Beat T-shirt giveaway of the Fall. More than 800 students stood in line in hopes of receiving one of 500

limited-edition teal tank tops that read Beat Georgia on the front. But the tank tops ran out just 38 minutes after the event began, leaving more than 150 students, who had been waiting since the early morning, to receive a white hand towel that read Go Gators! instead.

Students who are lifetime members of the UAA were able to pick up shirts at 9 a.m., while annual members had to wait until 9:30 a.m. Typically, the organization gives out 1,500 T-shirts for every home game but decided to only give out 500 because Saturdays game will be played in Jacksonville.

Catherine Palmer, who is in charge of the shirt giveaways as a student member of UAA, said the first tent was set up at 5:57 p.m., more than 14 hours before the event.

It was one of the saddest crowds Ive ever seen, especially when those tanks ran out, she said.

The shirts were funded by Geico, who is sponsoring the shirts for the year, she said. Palmer said they expected 1,000 people to attend the giveaway.

I truly do feel bad for all those who camped out so early and were not able to get a tank, but we tried to do everything in our power, she said.

UF nursing seniors Sara Shourds and Zahra Frye walked from their nursing classes across campus to try to pick up a tank top at about 10 a.m.

We left class because they hadnt updated their Facebook page, Shourds, 21, said. We figured there would still be some left.

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Two weeks ago, Frye, 22, said she arrived at about noon and was able to get a Beat Missouri T-shirt.

I get that they want it to be limited, but 500 is not enough for everyone who signs up for these T-shirts, Frye said. Make them limited, make them tanks, but Im sure you have enough money to get enough for more than 500.

Palmer said she understood why students were upset.

As you can kind of expect, there were a lot of negative comments, but I think it was over the fact that they camped out and didnt get a tank, she said. So I understand any complaints that did come my way.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) ratified a resolution Oct. 18 denying the Jewish peoples deep historical ties to Jerusalem. While the resolution acknowledges the importance of the Old City of Jerusalem and its walls for the three monotheistic religions, the sacred hill is only referred to by its Islamic name, al-Aqsa Mosque/al-Haram al-Sharif. Not only does the resolution make no reference to its Jewish name, Temple Mount, which happens to be considered the holiest site in Judaism, but it distinctly puts quotation marks around Western Wall Plaza, a subtle attack on the legitimacy of its Jewish connection.

While the resolution is shameful, it should come as no surprise. What began as an international institution meant to promote peace and cooperation has instead become a vehicle for anti-American and anti-Zionist propaganda for many decades now. Rather than focus on legitimate human-rights violations around the globe, the U.N. has instead focused obsessively on Israel, the only Jewish state. Just to give an idea, the U.N. General Assemblys 2015 session adopted 20 resolutions against Israel. Meanwhile Iran, North Korea and Syria received only one resolution apiece. The Syrian government alone is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Syrian citizens.

Not only has the U.N. turned a blind eye to violations of human rights, it has actually rewarded such behavior. Countries such as China, Cuba and Venezuela currently sit on the U.N. Human Rights Council, and until last month, it was chaired by none other than Saudi Arabia, a country that beheads its citizens in public for crimes like apostasy and adultery and is responsible for thousands of civilian deaths in Yemen.

While it may seem ironic that the very institution that voted for the conception of Israel now attempts to bully it into submission, the origins of such blatant corruption and bias begin with the Cold War. In 1955, the non-aligned movement was conceived to ensure the national independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and security of non-aligned countries in their struggle against imperialism, colonialism, neo-colonialism, racism, and all forms of foreign aggression, occupation, domination, interference or hegemony as well as against great power and bloc politics. Since then, the U.N. has served as a mechanism for both anti-Americanism and anti-Zionism, which were viewed during the Cold War as two sides of the same Western, colonialist coin.

However, it seems the U.N. has not changed much since then. From the infamous Resolution 3379 of 1975 that determined that Zionism is a form of racism and racial discrimination to the most recent resolution erasing 2,000 years of Jewish history, the U.N. has wandered far from its mission, which was to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, according to its U.N. charter.

Unfortunately, it appears the once-honorable institution has strayed very far from those principles. The U.N.s unhealthy obsession with Israel reveals its deeper moral corruption and deterioration. Rather than engaging in conflict resolution and condemnation of human-rights violations, it has instead opted for scapegoating, propaganda and conflict perpetuation.

Julian Fleischman is a UF political science and telecommunication senior. His column appears on Fridays.
You cant believe youre getting your first tattoo. Its the one youve always thought about getting. The infinity sign with Chinese characters in one loop and barbed wire in the other. All right, that about does it, the artist says as he reaches to get a mirror. He holds up the mirror behind you, and you cant believe what youre going to have to live with for the rest of your life. Its not the infinity sign with Chinese characters and barbed wire in it. Its just two words and an ampersand in between. Every time you take your shirt off and someones behind you, theyll politely pretend to ignore the tattoo big with bold lettering that reads

Darts & Laurels

Its been an exciting week, dear readers. Early voting has officially started, and many students have already submitted their ballots for counting. We give a laurel to all of you out there who have already cast your ballots. Seriously, we cant wait for this train wreck of an election cycle to be over, and early voting helps us get it out of the way sooner. Maybe. Not really.

Even closer than Election Day is another favorite holiday: Halloween. Here at UF, we have a hotline for those who are distressed by costumes they deem inappropriate, marginalizing or offensive.

While were all against overreacting here at the Alligator, it seems the hype against overreacting is a massive overreaction in itself. Irony at its finest: The people who make fun of hypersensitivity are themselves the most hypersensitive. We lob a dart at you ironic crybabies for being the real thin-skinned annoyances.

Seriously, though, that hotline is available not only for students triggered by costumes, but its also for students who feel distressed for literally any other reason. Prank-calling takes time away from respondents who answer the calls of students with very real and very serious problems. We lob another dart at the folks with too much time on their hands, prank-calling what is actually an amazing service.

Speaking of Halloween, the clown sightings seem to have slowed down. We here at the Alligator are grateful these people figured out there are better things to do with their evenings than dress up and spook people. We drape a laurel on the makeup-free heads of the former evening-shift clowns. Really, leave the clowning around to the professionals.

Honestly, were all surrounded by clowns in one way or another. One California jokester dressed up like a construction worker and carried a sledgehammer around Hollywood, using it to smash Donald Trumps star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Originally, he was going to steal the star, sell it and donate that money to women who have come forward about Trumps alleged sexual misconduct. We give you the lauriest of laurels, funny fake construction man, for making political protest entertaining and meaningful.

You know whats not funny, though, dear readers? The fact that 58 percent of the worlds wildlife has disappeared since 1970, according to a recent report from the Zoological Society of London and the World Wide Fund for Nature. Cmon, fellow humans, we can do better than this. We only have one earth (that we know of), and were really blowing it. We need this planet to be healthy and diverse: Its good for us. We present a dart to you, human race, for slowly destroying the one good planet we have.

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As Samsung pitches its mobile wallet to banks in the U.S., the Korean company believes it has the opportunity to build something better with banks.

It also believes it has a few advantages in winning them over. It doesn't charge transaction fees, the other mobile wallet providers have done the hard work of convincing bankers of the benefits of mobile payments and it has two former U.S. bankers leading the charge.

Meet Thomas Ko, the former global head of mobile banking at Citigroup who serves as global general manager of Samsung Pay, and Haley Kim, a former senior vice president in Wells Fargo's innovations and payments division. She is Samsung Pay's vice president and oversees launches and operations for the Americas.

Ko says he moved to the electronics manufacturer after having difficulty trying to push change from within the bank.

"I feel proud, as a banker, coming to an electronics company and being able to support and lead the future of banking, which is digital," said Ko, who is the global general manager of Samsung Pay. "Being able to do the things I wasn't able to do in the bank  but am able to do here, things that are near impossible to do because of the risks banks aren't normally able to take  is very exciting."

Observers say their banking background is a major asset to Samsung because they can understand both the banking and tech sides. Leaders with great understanding of the banking industry and the experience to push a product forward also know the relevant players.

"Selling [is best] done inside the banks, to the banks, to the network with payments executives around who ensure the idea of the technology is well understood," said Ramesh Siromani, a partner in the financial institutions practice of A.T. Kearney, a global strategy and management consulting firm.

That connectivity will be important, too, as Samsung plots its future in banking beyond the mobile wallet.

Mobile devices are now the most important channel for banks, Ko said, and now that electronics companies and mobile phone manufacturers are developing security, identification, verification and cloud infrastructure, there is an entire suite of products they can offer financial institutions, including fraud reduction and risk mitigation solutions.

Samsung is trying to build a core ecosystem with banks, which Ko said are growing more interested in the prospect of such offerings too, as they struggle to innovate internally and within the confines of their regulatory borders.

"Many banks are looking at us as a trusted partner who brings what they don't have  technology and enablement of core services on the most important device of future: the mobile phone," Ko said. "Banks have risk-taking compliance structures we don't have, and don't want to have."

Essentially, Samsung is eyeing a long game with banks.

"Bank customers are also Samsung device customers and we see the commonality of serving the same customers," he said. "It is a very mutually exclusive arrangement from the business perspective and allows us to transparently ask banks to invest and work together with us."

But the company still needs mobile payments to gain traction.

Currently, Samsung Pay is forming a new bank partnership every week or two, according to Ko.

In some ways it is benefitting from the competition. Apple did much of the heavy lifting in introducing banks to mobile wallets when it introduced Apple Pay a couple of years ago. Apple also charges banks transactions fees. Samsung doesn't making any fee revenue from card issuers. It believes its product is the phone, so its revenue comes from those sales, and Samsung Pay functions as a differentiator to fuel phone sales.

Samsung was also spared from having to teach its partners about the software  with the exception of Samsung's Magnetic Secure Transmission technology, which is a unique feature that lets Samsung Pay make wireless payments on ordinary magstripe terminals. As the tech giant honed and tweaked its product, its partners were cooperative, Kim said.

Samsung Pay's biggest obstacle is consumer behavior, rather than direct competition, Kim said. Samsung is the dominant player in its home country of Korea. Some 90% of retailers in Seoul accept Samsung Pay, understand it and are familiar with customers using it as a payment method. But consumers in other countries have a mental barrier to mobile payments that have made them slower to adapt.

It'll be a long time before anyone can determine a winner in the space.

"It would be great if it is Samsung Pay, but it doesn't have to be," Kim said. "At this point, everyone needs to be successful  that's how mobile payments will get adopted  and then move to the mainstream through early adopters."

Between Citi and Samsung, Ko launched his own venture, Namu, a mobile banking platform that relies on emotions and social relationships. It won Best of Show at Finovate in 2015.

Kim, meanwhile, joined Samsung Electronics in May 2014 to work on the launch of Samsung Pay as a business initiative for the company.

Kim was placed at the head of the U.S. business just months ahead of Samsung Pay's product launch. The experience of coming into this world from a major U.S. bank was a major culture shock, she said.

In January, Kim "was given a heads up for the [originally planned] July U.S. launch," she said. "There was not even a single signed contract with a bank then. I said, 'Hey, I just want to give you accurate expectations. Getting even one contract signed could take six months at a bank.'"

Bank partners were skeptical, too.

"They didn't believe the timeline," said Kim. "When we said we would launch in July, they didn't believe us, they said, 'You can't really do this.'"

The bankers turned out to be right, but not by much. Samsung Pay launched in September, two months behind schedule. Still, Kim said it was a faster process than anything she ever experienced in banking.

"One day at Samsung is like three days at a bank," she said. "So much gets done."
Head of Transaction Banking Americas, MUFG Union Bank

Ranjana Clark took a risk when she left banking five years ago for a job in fintech. But the decision put her on a fast track to the executive suite.

Now Clark not only leads transaction banking in the Americas for San Francisco's MUFG Union Bank, but serves as its Bay Area president and is one of three women on the executive committee for its parent company, MUFG Americas Holdings Corp. She is also an executive officer of the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, which is the largest bank in Japan. (All three are part of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group.)

The reason she took a chief marketing officer job at PayPal in 2011 was to gain experience in consumer payments and digital marketing. Moving into fintech was a culture shock at first, as PayPal had a more casual workplace and a lot of skepticism toward bankers. But she gained valuable insight into how startups innovate quickly.

She went back to banking in 2013, in her current role. Clark said she has a broad array of duties that allows her to draw on her disparate work experiences and even maintain her fintech ties. One aspect of her work is overseeing an innovation unit in Silicon Valley.

"I've moved industries, and I've moved geographies," Clark said. But "at some stage of your career, you have to knit those experiences into a cohesive whole."

The innovation unit is meant to be a "source of creative thinking" for the global company, to encourage a fast-moving, high-tech mindset, she said. The deals it has struck over the past year include participating in a $10.5 million investment in Coinbase, a digital currency exchange and wallet service. The bank also formed a partnership with Plug and Play, a tech accelerator with ties to companies such as Dropbox and PayPal.

Clark has a daughter who recently graduated from Stanford University and accepted a job at Morgan Stanley in New York. Asked what advice she would give her daughter about succeeding in the industry, Clark said, with a laugh, that children rarely take advice from parents. But she added that she hopes her daughter takes career risks.

"Stay intellectually curious and agile," Clark said. "The roles that will exist 20 years from now may not even be here now."
Assyrian Church Leaders Offer Ecumenical Prayer for the Liberation of Mosul

( saintadday.com) 2017 as "Year of Peace", celebrated by the Churches and the Christian communities in Iraq to promote national reconciliation and to save the country from the centrifugal forces that may continue to threaten national unity, even after the release of Mosul and Nineveh Plain by the jihadist domain. This is the "operational" proposal made by Chaldean Patriarch Louis Raphael I Sako during the meeting of ecumenical prayer for the liberation of Mosul, celebrated yesterday in Ankawa, a suburb of Erbil inhabited mostly by Christians. The crowded ecumenical prayer, housed at the church dedicated to Mary, Mother of Perpetual Help, was attended by, among others, Mar Gewargis III Sliwa, Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East. Priests, men and women religious and many lay people, and Nicodemus Daoud Matti Sharaf, Syrian Orthodox Metropolitan of Mosul, along with priests and Christian politicians. After the recitation of the psalms and the reading of a passage from the Gospel of John, Chaldean Patriarch Raphael Louis, in his speech, expressed the shared hope - entrusted to prayer - that the process of liberation happens any time soon, and causes the least possible number of human losses. The Primate of the Chaldean Church expressed gratitude to all the forces involved in the military operation, making explicit reference both to the regular army of Iraq and the Kurdish Peshmerga militia, and citing "Christian and Muslim, Arab, Kurd and Turkmen" soldiers. The Patriarch also expressed the intention to proclaim 2017 as the "Year of Peace in Iraq", creating moments of ecumenical prayer and shared ecclesial initiatives to nurture the "culture of peace and coexistence" in the Country torn by sectarian strife. The announced release of Mosul, which united different forces, according to Patriarch Raphael Louis can become the beginning of a process of national reconciliation based on shared perspectives and points, to regain stability and lost unity. The Primate of the Chaldean Church has foreshadowed the creation of a committee that brings together political, social, religious and cultural representatives, called to redraw together the future of the region freed from Daesh, in dialogue both with the central government and with that of the Autonomous Region of Iraqi Kurdistan. In his speech, the Patriarch also recalled the urgent need to safeguard, with concrete initiatives - and not with speeches -- the requests of Christians who fled from Mosul and the cities of the Nineveh Plain in front of the advancing of jihad militias. For the Primate of the Chaldean Church, the Iraqi nation, in its different ethnic and religious components, must "learn the lesson" and take advantage of the opportunity offered by the historic liberation of Mosul to start building an authentic rule of law, founded on the principle of citizenship and able to guarantee the equality of all citizens before the law, without discrimination based on ethnic and religious affiliations.
Across Cayuga County's 864 square miles, water and sewer lines snake underground servicing approximately 79,000 people. Some lines are meticulously maintained and documented, but some lines are undocumented, old and deteriorating.

Just this month the Cayuga County Water and Sewer Authority told county legislators about a concerning water situation in Moravia. Lines connecting the village to about 47 accounts in the town are undocumented, giving village workers a headache to find and fix any leaks in the shoddily installed pipes from decades ago. To help remedy problems like that one, the authority is hoping to get funds from the state and county to create a master plan, documenting all the water and sewer systems in the county.

"This would be to look at all the municipal systems and determine their condition, what they need, and what opportunities there are for them, and even for the authority to participate to help them modernize systems where they need modernization," said Doug Selby, interim director of the authority.

The plan has been listed as a strategic project through the Central New York Regional Economic Development Council, and Selby said the total project is not to exceed $200,000. Should the council win a regional award, state funding will likely cover 50 percent of the authority's estimated costs. The Cayuga County Legislature has agreed to cover the other 50 percent of the costs should that state funding be awarded. If the council does not win the regional award however, other priority projects may have precedence over the authority's. In that case, Selby said, the scope of the project may be much smaller and the county's contribution may be much less.

Besides mapping and evaluating the county's systems, the authority hopes to identify a second water supply for the city of Auburn and the town of Owasco's water treatment plants. Currently neither plant has a specific second water source to tap should there be an emergency with the supply from Owasco Lake. With blue-green algae toxins showing up in the treated drinking water for approximately three weeks between September and October, the city and town do have plans in case toxins reach health advisory levels as suggested by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. But, Selby said, it would be beneficial to have another specific alternative supply "for occasions much worse than perhaps this year."

Selby said some of those alternative sources the authority has considered are redeveloping the existing intake on Cayuga Lake that serves Wells College and the village of Aurora. Other opportunities may include buying water from Onondaga County, or tapping water from a new well field somewhere if the groundwater is suitable.

It will still be a few months before Selby and others will know whether their projects will be partially funded by the state. If this one is not, Selby said he still thinks it's something important for the county to tackle.

"Ultimately, everybody working together creates probably the more affordable project," he said. "If we find there are several communities that can work together with the authority, we can come up with something more economical than if everybody makes their own wastewater plant or drinking system."
After his first year as chief executive, Greg Carmichael has begun to lay out a clear plan for Fifth Third Bancorp to grow in the coming years.

A key part of his vision lies 500 miles southeast of the company's Cincinnati headquarters, on the eastern side of the Appalachians.

During a recent interview, Carmichael said Fifth Third is rapidly expanding in its middle-market lending and wealth management activities in the Charlotte, N.C., metro area. The bank's business in this regional market, which also includes parts of South Carolina and Virginia, has grown about twice as fast as its operations across Rust Belt, he said.

Carmichael  who once led the bank's operations in Charlotte  said Fifth Third is doubling down in the Southeast, recruiting staff and clients from its competitors. The timing may be right for the company to capture market share, given the disruption caused by recent M&A, as well as the fallout from the Wells Fargo scandal, analysts said.

"We know who our competitors are," Carmichael said, referring to the megabanks in the region. "We're a different bank in the space that we focus on  the middle market, in particular."

Charlotte, of course, is the headquarters site of a number of big names in banking. It is home to Bank of America. Wells Fargo, which is based San Francisco, has 12,000 employees in the city.

Other competitors have been expanding in North Carolina. The $20 billion-asset F.N.B. Corp. of Pittsburg entered the state in July, agreeing to buy the $7 billion-asset Yadkin Financial in Raleigh, N.C.

Additionally, JPMorgan Chase has recently expanded its middle-market operations across the Southeast, including in the Carolinas.

Fifth Third is "certainly big enough and they are capable" to take market share in the Southeast, said Chris Marinac, an analyst with FIG Partners in Atlanta. Fifth Third entered the market in 2008, through its acquisition of the $5 billion-asset First Charter Bank.

But Marinac said it remains to be seen whether Fifth Third can demonstrate the necessary focus. Succeeding in a highly competitive market such as Charlotte requires developing long-term relationships and cross-selling clients other corporate products, such as interest rate swaps.

"It's what we do as an industry," Marinac said, noting that cross-selling has gotten a bad rap since the Wells Fargo fiasco.

Fifth Third does not break out the performance of its various markets. Still, the company said it has expanded lending to midsize companies - those with between $500 million and $10 million in annual revenue  by 25% between 2011 and 2015. That's roughly in line with overall commercial loan growth over the same period.

Carmichael said, anecdotally, that Fifth Third has been successful in wooing new clients. On a business trip to Charlotte earlier this week, he had dinner with 12 C-suite executives, all of whom are Fifth Third clients who until recently banked with competitors.

"You have new companies moving into [Charlotte], but we're also taking a lot of relationships," he said.

Carmichael would not say whether Fifth Third is actively courting customers who are leaving Wells Fargo in disgust. But he said that it would be a "logical" outcome if his bank gained business as a result of the scandal.

"Given the unfortunate situation that's occurred there, [customers] are assessing their banking relationships," Carmichael said.

Expectations for growth across the Southeast offer a bright spot after what has otherwise been a mixed year for Carmichael.

Carmichael took over as CEO last November, succeeding Kevin Kabat. Before taking the helm, he served for three years as president, and had also held the title of chief operating officer since 2006.

His path to the C-Suite has been nontraditional. Before joining Fifth Third in 2003, he spent nearly two decades working in technology, and held senior-level roles at General Electric.

"He brings interesting background," said Chris Wolfe, an analyst from Fitch Ratings, noting that Carmichael's familiarity with large-scale technology projects may give him an edge over some of his competitors. "When we think about where banking is headed, [technology] becomes increasingly a part of it"

In his first 12 months as CEO, Fifth Third has faced pressure from analysts to scale back on expenses, as the company  like many regional lenders  faces pressure from low rates. The $143 billion-asset company has ramped up spending on technology, investing in new systems to make faster lending decisions.

During the third quarter, expenses rose 3%, to $973 million, mostly from a jump in tech spending.

Carmichael has steadily scaled back his expense forecasts throughout the year, due to what he described as "creative" contract negotiations. But he has refused to scale back tech spending, arguing that making big investments now will ultimately help the company take out costs down the road.

"We have to make investments to support the change in the way our customers want to bank," Carmichael said, adding that he feels "very comfortable" boosting expenses, despite the pressure on revenue.

There have been other challenges, as well. This summer Fifth Third received a downgrade in its Community Reinvestment Act rating to "needs to improve." The downgrade restricts its ability to buy banks.

Carmichael said Fifth Third isn't currently in the market for a bank deal anyway. Instead, he wants the company to focus on increasing shareholder returns and boosting its stock price.

"We want to get our currency trading at a higher premium before we make those types of acquisitions," he said. "But we fully expect they'll be in our future at some point." Also, Fifth Third is not restricted from buying portfolios or nonbanks.

Fifth Third also attracted a slew of media attention this summer, after the company fired Heather Russell, its chief legal officer. A report in The Wall Street Journal later revealed that Russell was terminated for having a personal relationship with Timothy Mayopoulos, chief executive of Fannie Mae. She was recently hired as an attorney at the law firm BuckleySandler.

"Any time you have a situation like that, in a very visible position of that nature, it creates speculation," Carmichael said. He said he has "absolutely" no regrets about how it was handled, and wasn't surprised by the media attention.

"It's interesting news for people  not for me, but for other people," he said.

Looking back on his first year, Carmichael said he is proud of the team he has put in place.

Fifth Third last year hired Lars Anderson, a former Comerica executive, as its chief operating officer. Tim Spence also joined as chief strategy officer from Oliver Wyman.

Carmichael also said he is proud of the profitability plan that he recently unveiled, branded as "Project North Star."

The multiyear initiative outlines a plan to boost profitability through a mix of lower costs and higher consumer lending.

Carmichael said that announcing financial targets through a splashy, branded plan isn't typically his style. But as a new CEO in the industry, it gave him a way to communicate his plans for the company to analysts, investors and employees.

"You have a new CEO stepping into the chair and the whole organization and the external constituents want to understand what I'm about and where we're going," he said. "'Where are you taking the bank? Where are you taking the bank?'"

A number of Carmichaels peers, such as U.S. Bancorp CEO Richard Davis, have eschewed grand plans for trimming expenses. Carmichael said that down the line, when he is better known in the industry, he may follow their lead.

"You know, if I had been the CEO for 10 years, and was just taking on an expense program, I wouldn't be out there talking to the investment community about a Project North Star," he said. "I would just be doing it."
A number of articles have pointed out the blatant double standard applied by the FBI and the Justice Department in the cases of retired Marine Corps general James Cartwright and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton. Cartwright, dogged by the FBI for years for leaking classified material, pleaded guilty last week to felony charges of lying to federal investigators and faces jail time and a huge fine when sentenced in January. Needless to say, he also lost his security clearance at the start of the investigation when still in uniform, and regardless of the sentencing, he has been publicly ruined. Clinton, who deliberately circumvented U.S. law and regulations for handling classified material, destroyed official government records, exposed thousands of sensitive documents to foreign hackers, obstructed justice, and lied to the American people and Congress, is probably just days away from being elected president.

The apparent double standard is so obvious that commentary about it has not been limited to the right. Even the determinedly pro-Clinton Washington Post noted that two sets of rules were applied by the government, and that Cartwright's fall is at least in part a way for the FBI and Justice to maintain the fiction that they don't play favorites because someone is well connected.

But generally speaking, the treatment of Cartwright and Clinton is so obviously disparate that the left has stayed away from it, concentrating instead on Donald Trump's foibles and describing a virtually inevitable Hillary Clinton victory.

Inevitably, though, somebody had to try, and it came from the War on the Rocks website, a venue that previously tried to excuse FBI director James Comey's refusal to refer the Clinton matter for prosecution. In "Clinton Cartwright Comparisons Don't Hold Up," the authors argue that Cartwright's prosecution doesn't reveal favoritism compared to Clinton. Rather, they contend that Cartwright lied to the FBI while Clinton did not, infuriating the feds and spurring his prosecution. Setting aside for now whether Clinton did lie to the FBI (and also the authors' failure to note her open and obvious lying to Congress and the public), the article unintentionally puts in high relief the real disparity in treatment between Cartwright and Clinton. In fact, the FBI made no effort to catch Clinton in a lie and went out of their way to ensure that such a thing would not happen.

That Clinton is a compulsive liar is no secret, no matter what side of the aisle you're on. For the Obama administration, which desperately wanted to put the Clinton email scandal to bed, both to ensure Hillary's election and to protect the president from his own malfeasance in the affair, avoiding obvious inopportune lies at her July interview was critical. It is a commonplace supposition that had Clinton been caught blatantly lying to the FBI during her July interview, her goose would have been cooked.

Making sure that this did not happen almost certainly was the purpose of Loretta Lynch's furtive meeting with Bill Clinton on an Arizona tarmac. How that was done between Bill Clinton and Lynch, whether through various assurances or pre-screening of questions, remains a mystery. That it was done  despite the participants' own lies about discussing Clinton's grandkids  can hardly be in doubt by any reasonably sentient being.

Hillary was further insulated by her gaggle of attorneys, which preposterously included Cheryl Mills and Beth Samuelson, close aides who were also under FBI investigation. Having been interviewed themselves, and represented through the process by a common attorney (without any objection from the FBI or the Justice Department), they already had a good idea of the nature, extent, and temper of the questions.

All this was still not sufficient to shield Hillary from her own natural mendaciousness. The last safety were the FBI questioners themselves, who were careful not to ask Hillary any particularly difficult questions, and who accepted without follow-up her numerous evasions, mostly attributed by Hillary to memory loss, carelessness, or ignorance.

The reason Hillary, unlike General Cartwright, was not prosecuted is not because she was honest with government investigators. It is because the FBI and the Justice Department bent over backward to make certain that Hillary was not caught in a lie. Thus, what happened with Clinton is not comparable to Cartwright's situation at all. Not because he was dishonest while she is not. Rather, it is because the FBI, the Justice Department, and the Obama administration actively conspired to protect her and find reasons not to prosecute her.

And yet despite all that, Hillary still lied at the interview. As Andrew McCarthy points out, when confronted with a "c" on one the classified documents that went out over her home-brewed server, a document that she insisted to the public could not exist (since she falsely claimed that no documents "marked classified" ever went out), she dissembled, improbably claiming that she did not know what the "c" stood for. This despite the fact that she must have seen thousands of documents so marked during her time as both a U.S. senator and as secretary of state, and that she certified upon taking office at State that she had been briefed on and understood security classifications and their import.

Of course, having made this plainly dishonest statement during the interview, the FBI agents questioning her did not follow up, express any degree of incredulity, or present her with documentation that would have impeached her claim, much less referred the case to Justice for prosecution. It was a minor slip in what was otherwise carefully constructed kabuki. And in typical Clinton form, even that slip might be knotty to a prosecutor, since proving that a person knew something at a specific time that she insists she did not know is inherently subjective. It is different from proving a lie with simple objective contradictory evidence. Still, many prosecutions have succeeded with less. It would have been up to a jury to decide whether to believe Hillary had she been properly prosecuted  or perhaps, like Cartwright, pressured to take a plea.

So is there a double standard between the Cartwright and Clinton prosecutions? No, it is much worse than that. Clinton's case was not one of prosecutorial discretion misused. Rather, it was one of conspiratorial prosecutorial misconduct that ran from the FBI through the Justice Department and up to the White House itself. In Cartwright's case, aggressive and tricky investigators and prosecutors turned a problematic incidence of a security indiscretion  which by Cartwright's unimpeached account was to protect further disclosure of already leaked material  into a solid case of making a false statement to investigators as Cartwright ineffectively sought to protect himself. In Clinton's case, the government deliberately acted to protect the malefactor, and indeed produced a fake investigation to do so. It's not just that Cartwright's probably going to jail and Clinton's not. It's that a rigged system, operated criminally, will likely put her in the White House.
The metalcore band Goodbye to Gravity was performing at a nightclub in Bucharest, Romania in October 2015 when a fire broke out ignited by pyrotechnics that left dozens dead and many more injured. In 2003, pyrotechnics ignited a fire that killed 100 people and injured 230 at a nightclub in West Warwick, Rhode Island where the hard rock band Great White had been playing. Similar incidents have occurred in Latin America and Russia; more are only waiting to happen.

Whats going on here? No one would even think of setting off pyrotechnics at jazz, folk, blues, or classical concerts (Tchaikovskys 1812 Overture excepted), so why is it done at hard rock and metalcore concerts? The answer has important consequences.

Ill start off with a personal experience and go from there.

Having noticed that the light at the intersection ahead had just turned red, I slowed down and pulled up to the crosswalk line. Id been at that intersection many times before and knew I had about a two-minute wait. Luckily, Mozart was on the radio. Theres a good reason Einstein loved Mozart; many classical musicians would name him their favorite composer. The music is charming, perfectly balanced, and full of light. Check out the Divertimento K. 138, written when Mozart was 16.

Mellifluous sounds were drowned out shortly as a Jeep pulled up next to me driven by a fellow in his twenties. Blasting out of his radio was some sort of heavy-metal noise, screeching electric guitars accompanied by a steady, booming beat. Vvoom-vvoom-vvoom reverberated throughout my car, making my temples throb. My heart began to race and it felt like I was being punched in the stomach. I rolled up my window and turned the A/C fan way up. After what seemed an eternity the light changed. I let the Jeep speed past me to get away from this torture and also to make sure I wasnt anywhere near in case the drivers inattention caused an accident. In Denver, he would have been high.

Music to me is an aesthetic experience. I have had musical training, played an instrument at one time, and can hear musical structure along with shifts in tonality. Metal, rap, punk, hard rock, hip hop, etc., are all obnoxious, mindless, pointless, vulgar noise to me. How listening to this so-called music is in any way an aesthetic experience escapes me; ditto how listeners can be engaged at an intellectually or emotionally satisfying level. This stuff is too loud, too simple-minded, and too repetitive to do that. I dont see how such a violent assault on the senses can even count as music.

Well, maybe its just me. Cultural relativists never tire of reminding us that matters of taste are subjective; its all in the eye of the beholder; different strokes for different folks; there arent any absolutes (here or anywhere else); it all depends on context; and so on. Truth be told, major philosophers such as Hume and Kant more or less said the same thing about art in general. Would they have shrugged their shoulders at heavy metal and stuck to their relativistic guns? How would they have drawn a line between good and bad music and between music and just plain noise? Hard to say.

So, whats the argument that the fellow in the Jeep wasnt having an aesthetic experience? After all, he was enjoying heavy metal precisely because it was loud and repetitive, which seem to be aesthetic properties -- such properties neednt be positive or admirable to count as aesthetic. He rocked to the beat and rhythmically slapped the steering wheel, evidently oblivious to his surroundings. That should count as an aesthetic experience as much as sitting quietly and listening to Mozart, right?

It all depends on what we mean by aesthetic experience. Ill cut to the chase and say that an aesthetic experience of X involves paying attention to the aesthetic properties of X for their own sake -- where X can be anything whatsoever: works of art (the Mona Lisa); ordinary objects (a Chippendale chair); events (Fourth of July fireworks); or natural phenomena (the Northern Lights).

So, whats the difference between focusing on aesthetic properties for their own sake (having an aesthetic experience) and doing it for some other reason or focusing on properties that are not aesthetic (not having an aesthetic experience)? Lets look at some examples, one from music and one from art, both based on personal experience.

I once played the opening of Poulencs Gloria to a friend who is Catholic (as was Poulenc). I identified the music before playing it but did not offer any hints as to what he should listen for. My friend listened and shrugged his shoulders as if to say, So? He couldnt tell me what was going on so I played it again; still no reaction.

I pointed out that the music had structure and said what it was: He had heard the same motif, with slight variation, three times. When I played it again, he was able to recognize that the same motif, with slight variations, had in fact occurred three times. I had to play it several more times before he could notice the subtle differences among the three variations; but eventually he did.

The structure of a piece of music along with harmonic and melodic details are aesthetic properties. When you focus on such properties for their own sake, you are having an aesthetic experience. On the other hand, if you are focusing on such properties because, for example, you need practice recognizing musical form for a test or trying to win a bet or some such, you are not having an aesthetic experience.

You are also not having an aesthetic experience of music if you wonder about such things as: When the music was written and by whom; what instruments are playing; who the performers and the conductor are; when the recording was made and where; which label issued the recording; is it available at Amazon; and so on.

In the Gloria Poulenc used music to express his Christian faith  as did Bach. Thus, you are seeking a religious rather than an aesthetic experience if you focus on the motif that Poulenc repeated three times with slight variation as a musical representation of the Trinity concept. This is a non-aesthetic property of the music because you need to know facts external to the music itself to get it. When such knowledge is a requirement, you are no longer listening to Poulenc or Bach as pure music.

Heres an example from my own work. When I show my business card, the usual reaction is nice sculptures, Arnold, plural . Then people ask me such questions as: what kind is the stone; how tall is the piece; how heavy is it; how is the stone mounted on the base; what is the base made of; how long it took to make; and who took the photos. Because they get hung up on non-aesthetic facts, few people notice a key aesthetic property: the four photos are of the same sculpture. Another key aesthetic property they miss is that the sculpture is not the same all the way around. The two middle views are front and back but are not what we would expect to see in a female sculpture. Radically different aesthetic relationships are exemplified.

Back to the fellow in the Jeep: Can we describe him as having an aesthetic experience? Well, it is true that he was focusing on the beat and volume of the music, which are aesthetic properties  albeit minimal ones compared to structure, harmony, and melodic detail. He was not having an aesthetic experience, however, because he was not focusing on aesthetic properties for their own sake. Rather, the volume was turned way up because he wanted to experience sensations such as: his car shaking; his temples throbbing; his heart racing; his eardrums being pummeled; and his senses being drowned out. In short: He wanted a high, which in Denver he could have gotten legally by smoking pot.

Add pyrotechnics to the racket blasting out of the Jeep and you get the Bucharest and West Warwick concerts. The bands assaulted the spectators ears, while the mini-bombs did the same to their eyes. Aesthetic experience is pretty much inconceivable under such circumstances. If a fire had not broken out everyone would have gone home in a state of exhaustion, having achieved the high they went to the concert for. Its quite possible that so many folks were hurt in the fire because reaction times were slowed by the deluge of light and sound that overwhelmed them.

Now, whats so important about focusing on aesthetic properties for their own sake, apart from what doing so might be good for? You dont need to be a cognitive psychologist to realize that such focusing involves abstraction, i.e., attention to a property itself and its properties. This is what goes on in mathematics and science all the time. Those are worlds of abstraction, impossible to grasp unless one has the ability to focus on the matter at hand as such, aside from applications or (ugh) relevance.

You also dont need to be a cognitive psychologist to realize that there is a natural bridge between music, mathematics and science. The music, however, should be Mozart, as Einstein would have been quick to point out. Metal, rap, punk, hard rock, hip hop and the like are destructive, addictive influences. Theyll mess up your head as surely as drugs.

Hat tip: Patricia McCarthy

A working sculptor, Arnold Cusmariu explains the philosophical foundations of his artwork in The Structure of an Aesthetic Revolution, Journal of Visual Arts Practice (2009), Baudelaires Critique of Sculpture, Journal of Aesthetic Education (2015), and Toward an Epistemology of Art, (2016). He applies philosophical analysis to film in The Perils of Aphrodite, Film International (2015). Dr. Cusmariu can be reached at aclogic1@yahoo.com.
To believe recent mainstream media polling releases, one would have to suspend reality enough to believe that John Podesta's email leaks, the ongoing Project Veritas video series, a world on fire, and new revelations about Obamacare are driving the public to embrace Hillary Clinton as never before. Things are apparently so good for the former first lady that ABC has her with a 12-point lead, a margin not seen in a presidential election since 1984. CNN is less confident but still has her sporting a comfortable 5-point lead. Fox News has wavered between "too close to call" and the current 3-point edge that is contingent on her achieving President Obama's D+7 support level from 2008, which borders on complete insanity.

The purpose of this article is to prove that the media is either lying to massively impact motivation or turnout for Trump or has absolutely no idea what the actual score is. The media don't care if I know what they are doing with their nonstop analysis of new "chaos" within the Trump campaign. They are playing this sad song for the record number of independent voters who appear to be requesting ballots or voting early in battlegrounds across America.

The first clue is that in the same week, ABC and CNN have polls showing a massive lead and a comfortable lead, respectively. These two polls are seven points apart. Obama's landslide win from 2008 was by a margin of 7.6%, and he still lost 22 states. Still, the enthusiasm and novelty of his campaign, combined with the natural pendulum swing that takes place after eight years of either party in the White House, left little doubt that he would win easily. Currently, ABC and CNN have the distance of Obama's landslide margin between their polls.

For those keeping score at home, here is how these polls play out on a map:

5 points

Obama won re-election in 2012 by 3.9%. The tightest red state was North Carolina, which Mitt Romney carried by 2.0%. In the event of a five-point Clinton win, I suspect that North Carolina would be the only possible state to flip, but it wouldn't surprise me for the map to stay identical to 2012. In this scenario, as in 2012, Hillary is not competitive in Arizona, Georgia, or Texas, as the media indicates today.

12 points

This map should show you that the media aren't even trying to be objective anymore. The blue nightmare above sees the GOP holding a likely minimum of six states, and no more than 11. At a twelve-point margin, there are no swing states. None. Not even second-tier swing states like Missouri, Arizona, or Georgia. For the first time since 1996, the Democrats would have made inroads into the Deep South and would threaten some of the reddest states.

Why is this important? The media are deliberately misleading the electorate and can't even keep their own lies between the networks laced with a scent of historical accuracy. Recent state polls from battlegrounds like Ohio, Florida, North Carolina, Nevada, and others, combined with what we already know about levels of minority support, absentee balloting, early voting turnout, and enthusiasm, indicate that Trump is ahead or neck and neck in the Electoral College. Regardless of the final outcome, competition in these states cannot possibly correlate with a 12-point loss. Companies that release polling like this deserve all the ridicule they will receive for compromising their integrity.

What Is the Score?

I have no idea what the popular vote margin looks like right now. Had he managed to flip a few hundred thousand total votes in five states, Romney could have won the Electoral College and lost the popular vote by over 3.0%. Obama ran up his popular vote margin in California and New York. Polling is accurate only if it can accurately forecast turnout. If the electorate turns out to be D+8 or D+11, as many of the recent media polls have predicted in their efforts to mislead the electorate, then yes, Trump is finished. However, record primary turnout, DemExit (the refusal of Sanders supporters to support Clinton), minority and independent support levels, and finally the constant torrent of scandals do not support electorate predictions more favorable to Democrats than Obama received. With all of that said, I feel that this map is not a reach in the least:

This election will either be tight in favor of either candidate or will be a blowout in favor of Trump. For the reasons stated above and backed up with maps, I do not anticipate Trump being steamrolled.

Ohio is the key. Even the mainstream media seems to credit Trump with being up by at least four points there, while still expecting us to believe in a national race with the candidates separated by a dozen points. It is possible that Trump's economic populism could realign the Rust Belt for the GOP and weaken red bastions, but I'd prefer to go with history. Since 1964, Ohio has voted with the winner. Going back to 1896, you'll find an impressive bellwether record in the Buckeye State.

But wait, there's more. Since 1992, the year of the last map realignment, Pennsylvania has always been to the left of Ohio, and by an average of 4.9 points. In one of the rare GOP wins of the past 24 years, it was as close as 2.5 points. If Trump can win Ohio big enough, he will pull Pennsylvania, and potentially Michigan as well, especially if he benefits from higher black support and help from the legendary Reagan Democrats. Florida has voted right of Ohio in five of the last six elections, and North Carolina votes right of Florida.

Do not allow the media to steal this election without a fight.

Seth Keshel, former Army captain and Afghanistan veteran, is a district captain for the Convention of States Project  Texas.
In an attempt to win votes, Abuela Hillary shamelessly panders to Latinos. Since deciding to run for president, Hillary has played dominoes in Spanish Harlem, danced the merengue in Washington Heights, and told the Congressional Hispanic Caucus that "a taco truck on every corner" would be a great idea.

More recently, during an appearance on the Univision television show El Gordo y La Flaca, in addition to awkwardly dancing the salsa with a little person, Hillary was asked by the host, Raul De Molina, aka El Gordo, and Lili Estefan, aka La Flaca, to name her favorite food.

The same abuela who told the "Breakfast Club" hip-hop radio show that she wouldn't be caught lying unconscious on a New York City sidewalk without hot sauce in her pocketbook eagerly replied, "I think it would be Mexican food!"

This whole pandering thing makes one wonder whether Hillary thinks that in the home stretch, refried beans will deliver her the decisive edge over Donald Trump she thinks she may need.

Speaking of Donald Trump, if this is really just about "taco bowl outreach," maybe Hillary can gather a few votes for herself by giving a shout-out to the Trump Grill, home to the best taco bowls in New York City.

Thus far, Hillary, who does have a "Victory Mac Daddy" ice cream sandwich named after her at "Mikey Likes It" ice cream parlor, has not had a dish bearing her name added to a menu by the cocineros.

Why? Because the truth is that Hillary's public foray into Mexican cuisine has been only an occasional spin in the Scooby-Doo to the Chipotle Grill for Burrito Bowls. And if Mexican food is what she really craves, why weren't tamales on her Thrillist media group list of preferred foods?

In the Thrillist article, the El Presidente-hopeful never even mentioned "Cafe El Presidente." Instead, Abuela rattled off Italian at "Rao's"; gelato at "Northern Lights Creamery"; sandwiches at "Lange's Little Store"; and, among others, wine-flavored ice cream from "Mercer's Dairy," which she uses to wash down large chunks of meat that she purchases from "Charlie the Butcher."

And as always, "home girl" Hillary serves all those goodies up with copious amounts of hot sauce!

While pandering to Latinos for votes on "El Gordo y La Flaca," which translates, "The Fat Man and the Thin Lady," Hillary, who doesn't exactly fit into the "flaca" category, confessed that when banging back shots of tequila and gorging on quesadillas, she "watches portions" because, similar to Bill's struggles, "the problem never goes away."

During the Univision interview, Raul and Lili also learned that Charlotte, Hillary's baby granddaughter, is in the process of becoming bilingual, and her language of choice is  you guessed it  espanol!

That's right: besides helping Mommy oversee an in-house mini-hospital, according to Grandma, little Charlotte Mezvinsky, who is barely two, is also learning espanol just in time to get out the Hispanic vote on November 8.

Perhaps, in the run-up to the election, the bilingual wunderkind could reason with #SomosVisible, the illegal immigrant rights protest group that recently blocked the George Washington Bridge. Speaking to them in Spanish, Charlotte can take to the upper level and remind the protesters that her "Mi Sueno, Tu Voto" abuela is counting on their vote!

One can't help but wonder how the granddaughter of a former of Bosnian sniper fire victim started speaking Spanish at such a young age.

Perhaps the tot is becoming linguistically diverse after being exposed 24-7 to a Spanish-speaking nanny?

Or maybe, while Mommy is in Arizona stumping for Abuela, Charlotte spends afternoons lounging around a $10-million Madison Avenue apartment with Abuelo Cuenta watching "Handy Manny" Garcia, which feature Grandpa's favorite cartoon character, Felipe the Phillips screwdriver.

Either way, if it earns her a vote, the chalupa-loving abuela from Chappaqua has already proven she is shameless enough to exploit even her own grandchildren. This means that if Donald Trump continues to impress black voters, Hillary may be forced to swallow the Cholula hot sauce and ask Bill's purported black son, Danney-Williams Clinton, to join her for a rally in Detroit.

Jeannie hosts a blog at www.jeannie-ology.com.
War has a way of clarifying where people stand. When the Hitler War came to Europe, the French government fled from Paris to Vichy and offered to Hitler all the innocent French Jews he could murder. Vichy France surrendered with hardly a shot fired.

The worst war in European history did nothing good, but it clarified Good and Evil. Almost every occupied country in Europe turned out to have its native Nazis. Denmark was a noble exception, but Sweden sold arms to both Hitler and the Allies. Norway had its Quisling. War clarifies, and generally the things it shows are shocking and discouraging.

Perhaps the most shocking fact today is the open betrayal of the Conn-es  the self-proclaimed conservative establishment has openly abandoned the nominee of the Republican Party. Don't misunderstand this: the very conservatives who have been flying the flag of true most vigorously have betrayed the cause. This is the flight to Vichy, American style. It is the most abject and dishonorable surrender to the worst ideological enemy conservatives have ever faced: both Obama and Hillary, the two most dangerous candidates for the Oval Office in two centuries of American history.

Trump is as conservative as any Republican candidate for president in the last half-century  who were always supported (sometimes with reservations) by the Conn-es, the Conservative Establishiment. Bill Buckley and National Review supported Nixon and Ford with deep reservation as the best of the available options. Neither Nixon nor Ford was a 100-percent pure conservative. But they were far, far better than the alternatives, and Buckley's National Review chose the most practical realistic option.

Not so Buckley's and Irving Kristol's successors. Given a true conservative battler, who takes the fight to the enemy, Donald Trump, they have fled to the foxholes. I know I will never trust them again; I certainly will not buy their magazines or pay for their advertisers. No. I'm waiting for a New Conservative Media to emerge (as it is already doing), and I will boycott the Old Conn-es who failed to fight when their support was crucial.

I don't doubt that they will be blamed either way  if Trump wins or Hillary does. Since Hillary is an unconvicted felon in the eyes of conservatives all over the country, and has highly suspicious money flows from the jihad forces in the world (which we now know were accepted for her by Huma Abedin), this is a historic moment for choosing. No Hillary voter can be a patriot when the fate of the country is at stake. I don't care what flavor of conservative Trump turns out to be; he is an unapologetic patriot, and that is what matters in this fight. Other conservatives I trust, notably Giuliani and Gingrich, have taken sides. This is no time for those who shy away from battle.

In the words of Thomas Paine in 1776:

These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.

Well, Jonah and Bill and George, you are the summer soldiers and the sunshine patriots today. You shrink from the service of your country. So be it. You can be sure that your purified conservatism that shrank from the battle when it came will never again enjoy the credibility it once deserved. To patriotic conservatives, you have failed, and failed forever.

Goodbye in your future endeavors, but this black mark of cowardice at a crucial moment in American history will forever stand against you. And that goes for Paul Ryan and all the other sellouts as well. This is the most dangerous moment in American history since the Stalin-era Communists sold the Manhattan Project plans to Stalin. It is even worse, because the West is constantly infiltrated by jihad forces on top of the usual leftist treason.

Well, you have chosen your path.

Millions of U.S. conservatives fervently hope that you lose, along with the Obamas and Hillary.
In an attempt to prevent the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) from falling apart, U.S. President Barack Obama continues to pursue the failed policy of appeasement and giving concessions to the Iranian regime. The latest round includes the easing of financial restrictions against sanctioned entities such as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and paying a hefty ransom to free Americans held hostage by Iran.

There are two fundamental mistakes in the current administration's approach toward Iran. First, it is assumed that that the nuclear deal will solve all the problems the international community is faced with in respect with Iran. Second, it is believed that doling out concessions to the government of Hassan Rouhani will strengthen the so-called "moderates" against the ambitions of the "hard-liners."

Both beliefs have proven to be wrong since the nuclear deal was hammered and came into effect. As opposed to what the proponents of the appeasement policy hoped, the Iranian regime has become more aggressive in its illicit activities, including the funding and export of terrorism and the violation of human rights.

In the past month alone, U.S. ships off the coast of Yemen were attacked on several occasions by Houthis, a rebel group backed, funded, and trained by the Iranian regime. Now, thanks to the easing of sanctions, Tehran will be even better positioned to further funnel cash and weapons to the Houthis and its other terrorist proxies in Iraq and Lebanon  many of which have a known history of attacking and murdering U.S. troops  and to further aid the regime of Bashar al-Assad in slaughtering the people of Syria.

But aside from fueling its indirect enmities, the Iranian regime is also becoming bolder in its direct moves against the U.S. interests. Having tasted the hostage ransom business, Tehran has become more aggressive in its arrest and detention of foreign nationals. Last week, the Iranian regime sentenced two U.S. citizens to 10 years in prison under espionage charges, and earlier, a British woman was given a five-year prison sentence for unknown charges. The U.S. nationals were arrested by the IRGC, the same entity that recently dispatched boats to intercept and harass U.S. vessels in the strait of Hormuz and the same entity that will be the main beneficiary of the easing of economic sanctions against Iran.

There are two main lessons to be drawn from the continued failed policy of the Obama administration toward Iran.

First, moderation under the clerical regime in Iran is a total myth. In fact, the same figures who are now in key positions under Rouhani's "moderate" cabinet have been endemically involved in the Iranian regime's crimes in the past three centuries.

Two stark examples are Justice Minister Mostafa Pourmohamadi, who played a pivotal role in the 1988 massacre of thirty thousand political prisoners by the regime, and Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan, who was one of the founding members of Hezb'allah's military wing and one of the masterminds behind the 1983 bombing of U.S. Marines barracks in Lebanon.

Second, the siloed approach toward Iran's nefarious activities must be abandoned for a holistic one. Ignoring Iran's terrorism and human rights violations for the sake of keeping the lid on its nuclear ambitions will only make things worse and result in further plunging the region into mayhem and chaos. Ironically, this is against the initial goal of the nuclear negotiations, which was to establish global security and stability.

This is a mistake that the current administration has failed to recognize and amend. Hopefully, the next president will adopt a more rational and effective policy toward Iran by first predicating any economic and political ties with Tehran to its halting of human rights violation and its support for terrorism and extremism. This is a first step that can bring the U.S. on the side of the oppressed people of Iran, the winning side.

Amir Basiri is an Iranian human rights activist. He tweets at @amir_bas.
In Politico's insider poll of several dozen political professionals on both sides, 7 in 10 of the Republican pros believe that the polls are significantly undercounting support for Donald Trump. There are several reasons for this, most notably what pollsters call "social desirability bias," which manifests itself as respondents telling pollsters they will vote one way while actually voting another way on election day.

How prevelant is this bias? Internal polling by campaigns can usually screen out most biases by asking the same questions several different ways. In media surveys, they aren't quite as thorough, leaving open the possibility that there is a small but significant bias that goes undetected.

I'm not sure how big a factor it is, but there is definitely a Bradley effect going on out there, said a Virginia Republican, referring to the African-American mayor of Los Angeles who led in polls but lost unexpectedly in the 1982 California gubernatorial race. I personally know many Republicans that won't admit that they are voting for Trump. I don't like admitting it myself. It won't matter if Hillary is up more than 5 points, but we might be in for a surprise if Hillary's lead is less than 5 points on Election Day. A Michigan Republican  who, like all insiders, completed the survey anonymously added that Trump voters are reticent to admit it publicly: Anecdotally, that's clearly the case in barber-shop conversations. A number of Republicans said that while they believe the polls are underestimating Trump, his deficit is too large for it to matter. He'll outperform the polls but still won't win, a Pennsylvania Republican said. This form of survey bias is a common but marginal factor in many polls, an Ohio Republican added. For other Republicans, the shy Trump effect that might be deflating Trumps support is less an issue than other sources of bias in the polls. I also believe that by polling likely voters rather than registered voters, polls are missing a lot of where Trump's support lies, an Iowa Republican said. The phenomenon known as social desirability bias may be part of it, a Nevada Republican said. I also think that the pollsters have not accounted for the uniqueness of this election and are not necessarily asking the right questions of the correct samples. Finally, many of the polls are deliberately slanted to suit the media's political agenda. Taken all together, its almost impossible to know who is leading at this point. Some cited the energy of Trump supporters to suggest his backers are unforthcoming with pollsters. I see a lot of Trump signs on people's lawns, plus a lot of anti-Clinton signs, said a New Hampshire Republican. But for a minority of Republicans, 29 percent, those hoping for a secret Trump vote to emerge on Election Day will be disappointed.

Trump would have to outperform polls by a historical margin to have any chance of winning at this point. That doesn't mean it can't happen, but the likelihood of Trump overcoming Clinton leads in swing states like Virginia, Michigan, and Wisconsin is slim.

Where this bias may make a positive difference is in red states like Arizona, Texas, and North Carolina, where the race is very tight, and battleground states like Nevada and possibly Pennsylvania, where a difference of two or three percentage points might put Trump over the top.

What isn't taken into account in these calculations is the massive GOTV effort by the Clinton campaign. Clinton's ground game dwarfs that of Trump in all battleground states and even states like Arizona and North Carolina. Trump may have a lot of secret supporters, but will they go to the polls and vote?

On that question hinges the election.
In the Middle East, terrorist groups have sectarian militias. In America, they have political action committees . The Muslim-controlled Emerge PAC is running ads where Donald Trump allegedly says, "I think Islam hates us."

But whom does Emerge PAC hate ?

Earlier this month, Emerge held its annual fundraising dinner in Miami, at the DoubleTree Hotel and Airport Convention Center. Featured at the event was Sayed Ammar Nakshawani, an Islamic lecturer from England who is a devotee of Irans deceased terrorist leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and who has called for the destruction of Israel. One of the two co-chairmen of Emerge is South Florida attorney Khurrum Basir Wahid. According to his bio, Wahid specializes in defending individuals charged with allegedly committing or conspiring to commit acts of terrorism. Wahids clients include: Rafiq Abdus Sabir, who received a 25 year prison sentence for conspiring to provide material support to al-Qaeda; al-Qaeda member Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, who was given a life sentence for plotting to assassinate President George W. Bush; Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader Sami al-Arian, who is presently under house arrest in Virginia; and Hafiz Muhammed Sher Ali Khan, a Miami, Florida imam who was convicted of funneling tens of thousands of dollars to the Taliban for the express purpose of murdering American troops. In 2011, Wahid himself was placed on a U.S. government terrorist watch list . The other co-chairman of Emerge is Afaq J. Durrani. Durrani is the General Secretary of the Islamic Society of Greater Houston (ISGH), a sizable community organization consisting of 19 area mosques. ISGH is a subsidiary of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), which like CAIR, was named by the U.S. government a co-conspirator in the financing of Hamas.... in 2012, he served as a National Delegate to the 2012 Democratic National Convention. In contrast [to Trump], Emerge PAC portrays Clinton as a unifying figure, a woman who has spent decades fighting for inclusion. The video features clips of the Democratic candidate praising the Quran, and her relationship with Huma Abedin, a Muslim woman who is her campaigns vice chair and was a top aide while Clinton served as secretary of state.

The Politico article reporting on this ad campaign did not dig into Emerge's past any more than the laudatory press release the Washington Post wrote about Islamic Relief USA explored that group's own terrorist connections . If they did, they might have noticed the irony in a hate group accusing Donald Trump of hate.

Exit question: Do the media not know about the backgrounds of the organizations they write these glowing press releases about, or do they simply not care?
This is for you NeverTrump people who persist in raking me over the coals for supporting Trump. Your attacks go as follows: "How could you, Mr. Marcus? I am so disappointed in you! You've always stood for Christian values, conservatism, and character. And yet you wrote a song, 'Trump Train,' that encourages people to vote for horrible Donald Trump."

Dear NeverTrumps: Please stop wasting your breath on me. Frankly, with all due respect, I think you guys are the ones who are misguided. You say Trump is rude, crude, and unacceptable. Therefore, you will not vote at all, or you will throw away your vote by writing in a candidate. In essence, you are helping to elect the devil incarnate, Hillary Clinton. You guys know that Hillary's lies have caused people to die. You know she will continue to arrogantly and blatantly lie, cause more deaths, and get away with it because the Democrats own the mainstream media. Oh, but that Trump is so uncouth. Give me a break.

Everyone with half a brain knows that electing Hillary equals unleashing an anti-American, anti-Christian beast upon America, wreaking havoc and laying waste of our culture as founded.

Talk about groaning and gnashing of teeth across our great land  Hillary boldly proclaims that she will double down on Obama's nightmare policies and socialist vision for America.

Hillary's presidency would be, in essence, Obama 2.0.

Obamacare costs will increase as much as 80% and higher after the first of the year in 2017. Rush Limbaugh said Obamacare is an extremely cruel Democratic Party dirty trick played on the middle class. They will be unable to afford much of anything after paying their monthly Obamacare bill. And you NeverTrump guys want to beat up on me on moral grounds? Would it be moral for me to allow Hillary's furtherance of Obama's misery care to reign supreme? God forbid.

Hillary will accelerate the number of babies dying due to taxpayer-funded abortions. Her Royal Hillary-ness will demand that we promote abortion. Under Hillary's regime, more Christians will be jailed for refusing to betray their faith. And yet you guys say your Christian faith prevents you from voting for Trump.

Hillary stands shoulder to shoulder with Al Sharpton in strong support of Black Lives Matter. This alliance of evil will cause more cops and innocent whites to be assassinated.

Hillary boldly stated that she will bring in a tsunami of illegal aliens, in essence transforming America into a Democratic Party-ruled welfare socialist Mecca. Send us all your lazy freeloaders who refuse to assimilate while white and black Americans abort themselves, take over our government, and kill Americans for religious reasons.

Finally, sensing the horror of Hillary in the W.H., Christian media seem in panic mode, pressing believers to vote for Trump. Meanwhile, you guys are willing to let her win because Trump is not conservative enough? I am scratching my head. Your reasoning escapes me.

So let's make a deal. I have not gotten and will not get into your face trying to convince you to vote for the candidate who vows to "Make America Great Again!" I respectfully ask that you extend me the same courtesy, not getting into my face, scolding me for not surrendering my country to fanatical leftist zealots lead by Hillary Clinton.
Debra Lipstadts scholarly analysis of the Holocaust and its ugly denial industry in her prize-winning 1993 Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory spurred a libel suit by one of the chief soi-dixit historians of anti-Semitic and Nazi-affiliate lineage, the rancid David Irving.

The Irving v. Penguin Press Ltd trial not only caused a sensation in its natal Great Britain, but occasioned intense interest and shudders too in the United States, where Lipstadt lives and writes.

Historians, ethicists, and scholars alike feared the verdict, which could have cast a cruel shadow over future such cases and the reliability of history itself, were it to go in a direction that did not accord acknowledgment of the horrors to future investigators, remaining survivors, and their offspring.

Though there is only fact and history behind all Holocaust witness, there is now, as Lipstadt chronicles, a growing shelf of denial that threatens to increase as Endlosung witnesses die out. The thesis of the books author is that such denial is simply pure anti-Semitic diatribe scarcely varnished by the not-even-gossamer of truth, veracity, or historicity.

Irving sought to diminish and denigrate the claim of six million dead, the genocidal intent on the part of the Nazis, and indeed the very existence of gas chambers in the infamous death camps kitted out by the Germans and their brethren haters.

It is painful to experience the trial at the start, where the barristers determine that testimony at trial from survivors and even Lipstadt herself would be deleterious to winning, rather than a help to the defense. This runs contrary to what most people instinctively want, so the film generates a tension of continuous Unfair! that adds to the fine legal arguments on both sides that stretch the tension taut for the defendant. Richard Evanss brief played a major role in convicting Irving.

The sole criticism is that for some reason, Rachel Weisz, a practiced and attractive actor in so many films, effects an unpleasant and assertive flat New York accent that sounds unnatural and works against the viewers suspension of disbelief (although the film is completely based on real events). Tom Wilkinson as peruked chief defense barrister Richard Rampton was a complete delight to watch and listen to as he made telling point after telling point. As the scurrilous, self-proud Irving, Timothy Spall evokes the correct mix of appalled fear for truth and broad-based silent hisses for a contemporary villain in bespoke suiting. The script is superior, matching the gravity of the subject matter.

For those unacquainted, somehow, with the bizarre dreck-specked cubbyhole of pseudo-historic absurdity that is Holocaust denial, the film works well to air their self-pitying hatreds, unquestioned antipathies, and rarely flinching rationalizations.

At our showing  admittedly late on a weekday night  there were only eight others in the audience. Denial warrants wide attention and viewing, by adults, of course, but also by interested or open-minded teenagers fuzzy on some aspects of recent history.

Not incidentally, the neo-scam of attacking authors for true but uncomfortable coverage of sensitive topics is materially discouraged by such a lawsuit, largely propagated in England because of favorable legislation that permits nuisance suits of decent authors not even within the perimeters of the country.

On the obverse end, where the author of a book that cites facts uncomfortable to those cited in a work of nonfiction chooses to bankrupt the writer, our colleague Dr. Rachel Ehrenfeld, in 2008, won such a landmark case. The field has become known in the literature as libel tourism, owing to Great Britains lenient court attitudes toward such groundless lawsuits, although Dr. Ehrenfeld never set foot in England, and very few copies of her excellent book, Funding Evil, were nominally sold in the country. The law going forward that bars such pernicious libel charges is now known as Rachels Law.

One reason for publishing such obviously trumped up faux history is to make such odious fictionalizers appear to gullible observers as more scientific than they are. Lipstadt is not alone in thinking that current value relativism nourishes Holocaust denial, as a recent unpleasant several days in a respected NYC college demonstrated, sadly, in matters closely aligned with these issues.

Among those also described as Holocaust fabricators in Lipstadts finely researched Denying the Holocaust are Paul Rassinier, Austin App, Arthur Butz, David Hoggan, Richard Verrall, Erst Zundel, Fred Leuchter, Bradley Smith, and Robert Faurisson. For all these vitriol-spewers, Caveat lector.
For openers, what does the U.S. want?

The Guardian (2013):

Western training of Syrian rebels is under way in Jordan in an effort to strengthen secular elements in the opposition as a bulwark against Islamic extremism, and to begin building security forces to maintain order in the event of Bashar al-Assad's fall Earlier this week, the US secretary of state, John Kerry, said Washington was now confident that arms supplies to the rebels would not be diverted to extremists. "There is a very clear ability now in the Syrian opposition to make certain that what goes to the moderate, legitimate opposition is, in fact, getting to them, and the indication is that they are increasing their pressure as a result of that," he said.

The deep thinking here looks like the same old: rebels  good, dictator  bad. The rise of ISIS and their sadistic exploits rudely complicated the story of rebels fighting an evil repressive dictator to earn freedom and democracy for themselves. Now the U.S. fights half-heartedly for some unidentified slice of the opposition who want a tolerant, pluralistic democracy to force a peaceful transition away from Assad. It is hard to pick which is more fanciful.

What about Turkey?

Again from the Guardian:

"The Americans now trust us more than the Turks, because with the Turks everything is about gaining leverage for action against the Kurds," said a Jordanian source familiar with official thinking in Amman.

The Russians? The L.A. Times:

The Assad regime has been Moscow's most dependable ally in the Middle East for more than 40 years. Assad's father, President Hafez Assad, asked the Soviet Union for military aid and gave the Soviet Navy a base in Tartus, on the Mediterranean coast, in 1971, when Bashar Assad was 6 years old There shouldn't be so much mystification about what the Russians are doing," Fiona Hill, a leading Putinologist at the Brookings Institution, told me. "They've been very consistent and very direct. They've been asking: If not Assad, who? They want to see a strongman in place who can keep order."

And China and Iran? Ostensibly, the Alawites (Assad) are a branch of Shia Islam. But behind that, it is hard not to conclude that telling the U.S. to butt out is satisfaction in itself. They all want to stick the finger in Uncle Sams eye just for the humiliation. They sense that the U.S. role as the worlds power broker is over, and China and Russia especially are preening for the role in their part of the world.

U.S. policy in the Mideast and North Africa has been a disaster.

Out with the Shah, in with Khomeini; out with Hussein, in with ISIS, chaos, and terrible persecution of Christians and Yazidis and other religious minorities. Out with Gaddafi, in with brutal tribal/religious conflict that makes life under Gaddafi look like a predictable, if harsh, sanity.

This follows a pattern of failure by replacing the bad with the worse. Out with Batista, in with Castro. Out with Diem, in with Ho Chi Minh and the communist takeover of Vietnam...

Looks as though Putin has it right:

In his speech at the United Nations, Putin charged that "some" people, meaning the United States, had tried to foment "democratic" revolutions around the world, including Syria. "Instead of bringing about reforms, aggressive intervention rashly destroyed government institutions and the local way of life."

Is it time to get out of the Mideast and let Russia, the Turks, and Iran and China stabilize the area?
The younger readers may not remember Monica and the blue dress that she saved in the closet. God only knows what Monica was thinking, but it did prove that then-president Clinton was lying through his teeth about their "encounter" in the Oval Office. Then-president Clinton survived conviction in the U.S. Senate, in large part because unemployment was low and Americans were enjoying the returns on their mutual funds.

Frankly, the Clinton team thought they had gotten away with it until the blue dress returned to the story.

Well, something similar has happened to the Clintons in 2016. They tried to get away with it, but this time a "leak" showed them up to be a couple of serial liars.

This week, we learned more about this criminal enterprise headed by a former president and secretary of state. As a Mexican friend told me yesterday, these Clintons are making Mexico's politics look clean and honest.

We learned from WikiLeaks that there were serious concerns in house about that private server:

Attorneys wondered out loud in questions passed along in a 2015 bombshell email to Hillary Clintons presidential campaign why Clinton inexplicably sent secure documents on a private email server and then further deleted documents without consulting anyone, as such a move smacks of acting above the law. The email, leaked by WikiLeaks as part of its release of Clinton campaign chairman John Podestas correspondence, dates back to June 21, 2015, and discusses in unusually frank detail the scandalous nature of Clintons use of a private email server. The email contains several questions from other lawyers passed along from Erika Rottenberg, a lawyer with extensive experience in the policy and tech world with ties to the Clinton campaign.

Then there is President Clinton and all of that money, as the New York Times reported:

In another email, Mr. Band wrote that Mr. Clinton had even received gifts from some donors. The tensions came to a head when Chelsea Clinton helped enlist an outside law firm to audit the Clinton Foundations practices. Some interviewees told the audit team that the donors may have an expectation of quid pro quo benefits in return for gift. The audit suggested the foundation ensure that all donors are properly vetted and that no inappropriate quid pro quos are offered to donors in return for contributions. The advice proved prescient as Mrs. Clinton faced intense scrutiny about whether donors to the Clinton Foundation had received special access to her State Department or other rewards. In August, the foundation said it would no longer accept foreign donations should Mrs. Clinton win the White House.

Now we hear that President Obama was, incredibly, communicating with his secretary of state using a private server and email. Does anyone believe in national security among these people? After all, there is a very good reason that the president and others use a government email account. It's called protecting our national security and the many people around the world who provide us information about this or that.

This is sick. You cannot have a current secretary of state married to a former president who is traveling the world asking for money. It may be legal. It may buy some eyeglasses for kids in Haiti. But it is simply unacceptable, especially as it was done in secret because they thought they'd get away with it.

On Monday, I went over to the library and voted for Mr. Trump. Honestly, it was more a vote against Mrs. Clinton. Yes, every day I feel more and more convinced that a Clinton Episode 2 is something that must be avoided at all costs.

P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.
Angela Merkel, the Chancellor of Germany, the most influential and affluent country in the European Union is putting pressure on Facebook and Google. Believe it or not, her latest public appeal has nothing to do with user data protection, the most common clashing point of Internet giants and government regulators. While speaking at the Medientage conference held in Munich earlier this week, Merkel asserted that Google and Facebook are so influential that they have started threatening public discourse. She explained that the algorithms used by these and other similar companies lead to automated censorship and consequently create personal bubbles for every individual who uses their services. To be more specific, the German Chancellor is referring to search and advertising algorithms which suggest and promote content they believe is of interest to users.

Customized content and highly targeted advertising isnt anything new in the industry and has actually been a large focus of Internet companies in recent years. However, Merkel believes this extensive curating is hurting the diversity of opinions and news sources one can find online. However, her proposed solution isnt to stop Facebook, Google, and other industry giants from employing these practices but to make them disclose how exactly are they using them. In other words, she wants Google and Facebook to reveal their secret search and advertising algorithms which curate content based on user preferences.

While Merkels train of thought can be understood easily enough, theres realistically little chance of either Facebook or Google doing anything of the sort. After all, advertising is a huge revenue stream for both companies so disclosing their algorithms would basically mean they are revealing their trade secrets. Then again, Merkel is an experienced politician, so its likely she knows theres no way of convincing Facebook and Google to disclose the specifics behind their platforms and is instead only trying to draw attention to the topic.

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Interestingly enough, while speaking on the subject in Munich, the German Chancellor explicitly stated that the practices mentioned above are distorting our perception which is rather similar to the wording used by Bernie Sanders in his open letter against AT&Ts acquisition of Time Warner. While the two cases obviously arent directly related, they do indicate a global trend of politicians taking increasingly more notice of tech giants practices which are influencing our exposure to information.
Hot on the heels of this weeks Xiaomi event, which revealed two brand new smartphones that include the Xiaomi Note 2 and the concept Xiaomi Mi MIX which has almost no bezels around the entire display, alleged specs and renders of the upcoming Xiaomi Redmi 4 have leaked today showing off yet another handset coming from one of Chinas top brands. If the renders are to be believed, which look more like press renders as opposed to mocked up renders that were made, then the device will have a very similar style to many of Xiaomis other smartphones as most of the way around it doesnt seem to deviate too much from their designs.

The first thing to make note of is that the Redmi 4 utilizes what looks like a metal body all the way around. Although this isnt necessarily uncommon these days for smartphones, Xiaomis most recent devices have utilized a combination of metal and glass not unlike the Mi 5. The images of the device reveal that the Redmi 4 will feature a fingerprint sensor on the back, in the middle of the phone and under the rear-facing camera sensor, which, is accompanied by an LED flash module to the left of it.

On the front, the device has a set of capacitive buttons at the bottom, the front-facing camera and the earpiece at the top, and on the sides youll find the volume rocker and power button, as well as the sim card slot. As for the specifications, the details list that the Redmi 4 comes with a 5-inch display size with a Full HD resolution, as well as 32GB of internal storage space on the phone and 3GB of RAM. The cameras will be a 13MP sensor on the back with at least an LED flash, but no details are mentioned in regards to whether or not the phone will come with anything like OIS or phase detection autofocus. The front-facing camera will be a 5MP sensor for video chat and selfies, and inside it has a 4,000mAh battery to keep things powered on. There are no specifics on the processor other than the fact that its said to be an octa-core Snapdragon chipset from Qualcom. That said, unless this phone is powered by a new chip that Qualcomm has yet to release, its possible that Xiaomi could be using the Snapdragon 652 here. Rumored colors according to the leak will be silver, gray, and gold, and a rumored price lists the phone for 1299 Yuan.
Many would wonder why the New York Museum of Modern Art would bother with an Emoji exhibit. After all, what is so artistic about a few odd symbols and rudimentary drawings of everyday products or items? These little symbols are the original 176 tiny designs are a gift to the museum from the Japanese phone company, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone that released these first 12-by-12 pixel emoji back in 1999. Paola Antonelli, the senior curator of the museums department of architecture and design, said in an email that art and design are quite different, yet still play a role in our digital and the physical space. He continued, [Emoji] as a concept go back in the centuries to ideograms, hieroglyphics, and other graphic characters, enabling us to draw this beautiful arch that covers all of human history. There is nothing more modern than timeless concepts such as these.

These little symbols  most known for their smiley faces  are so much more than fun little images. When first developed they were used by Japanese mobile operators and the developer, Shigetaka Kurita, said he took inspiration for their design from symbols used to forecast the weather. Within a mere 11 years later emoji were translated into the Unicode standard. This standardization meant that a user in Europe could send an emoji on their iPhone and another user could receive it in the US on their Android device. The Unicode standard is recognized all over the world, so there is no misunderstanding what the emoji meant. The Unicode Consortium recognizes almost 1,800 emoji  from a baby bottle to a wine bottle and even a pile of poop in the center  and gets requests for new emoji symbols all of the time.

Emoji, like history and our culture, are in an ever-changing flux. We started out with 176 symbols and are already close to 1,800 emoji. With the advent of smartphones, emojis have become a new way to express ourselves  many people complain that when you text somebody they cannot tell what you are thinking or your frame of mind  an emoji or two can do that for you. In a busy world, an emoji is a quick and easy way to send back a response without getting too involved in a conversation. Unicode 7.0 added about 250 emoji for weddings and Wingdings fonts. Unicode 8.0 added another 41 emoji with articles of sporting equipment, food items such as the taco, signs of the Zodiac, and symbols for places of worship. Even Google is suggesting more Gender equality in future emoji. The cute, little, emoji have become a big part of our lives and how we communicate with one another. It also doesnt hurt that they can help to put a smile on our faces.
Lenovos Moto team has been on a smartphone launching spree of late. The company has already launched a bunch of smartphones this year, but it looks like there could still be a couple more devices in the offing from the Lenovo-owned brand before were done with 2016. The Moto M and the Moto M Plus have been rumored heavily over the past few weeks, and weve already seen some leaked renders of the upcoming device. Just yesterday, we got a glimpse of whats said to be a live image of the Moto Ms retail box, as well as a look at what seems to be the home screen of the stock launcher on the upcoming smartphone. Some of the key hardware specs of the device have also been leaked online in the recent past.

Now, however, in what may be a slight twist in the tale, a new report seems to suggest that the specs that were rumored earlier is for the Moto M model thats meant for the Chinese market. According to the report, the Moto M meant for the U.S. market will be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 (MSM8953) instead of the MediaTek MT6755 that is expected to be present inside the Chinese-spec device. The Snapdragon 625 is a mid-range SoC from Qualcomm that comes with an integrated 64-bit octa-core Cortex-A53 CPU clocked at a maximum of 2GHz, and an Adreno 506 GPU clocked at 550MHz. The U.S.-bound model is also expected to come with 3 or 4GB of RAM, alongside 32GB of built-in storage. Thankfully, though, users will have the option to add a micro SD card of up to 128GB in capacity to store all those space-consuming media files.

Another interesting revelation is about the battery capacity. The U.S. version will apparently come with a 5,100mAh battery thats said to offer a talk-time of over 78 hours. The latest leak also reveals a few extra bits of details about the upcoming device, as can be seen from the image below. The Moto M will come with Android 6.0 Marshmallow pre-installed, while a 1.5 watt speaker will take care of the audio. The device will also apparently have a whole bunch of sensors, including vibration, gravity, proximity, ambient light, gyroscope, accelerometer and magnetometer. The device is expected to launch in the U.S. this December, but theres no word on the possible price-tag at this point in time.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 7 debacle will come back to haunt Samsung many times in the present and many times in the future. Samsung must now rely on six-month-old devices  the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge  to carry them throughout the busy holiday season. Six months is like an eternity in the electronics world, but Samsung is lucky that the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge were so well received that renewed advertising is boosting their popularity. That and the recall of the Galaxy Note 7 are causing many to opt for one of those devices as a replacement.

There were rumors that Samsung would discontinue the Note name or even discontinue the Galaxy Note series altogether. Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed, and there will be a Galaxy Note 8 in 2017. The Note series is unlike any other smartphone, and it has dug itself a niche that no other manufacturer has yet to duplicate. Samsungs collaboration with Wacom has created an S-Pen that can do so many things  much like using a regular stylus and drawing on paper. With all of this going for it, one has to wonder if customers will come back to the Galaxy Note series or are they forever turned off from the melting Galaxy Note 7s?

Samsung is working hard to find out what happened to the Galaxy Note 7. At first, they thought it was the battery made at their Samsung SDI plant, but that did not happen to be the case when new Galaxy Note 7s were shipped out only to have the same thing happen. This was when Samsung made the order to stop all production and distribution of the Galaxy Note 7 and recalled all devices so Samsung could properly dispose of them. Even to this day, many owners are refusing to return their Galaxy Note 7s to Samsung but instead are choosing to take a chance.

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The only way that consumers will gain back confidence in Samsung is for them to come clean  they need to determine what caused the fires and have full disclosure to the public. That seems to be the position they are taking as Mr. J. K. Shin, Samsungs co-chief executive says they will share their findings in an open manner. Right now the company is working to determine the cause of the failure from every aspect of the device, such as its hardware, software and manufacturing processes. If they can find the problem now, they can address any future problems before they occur. However, if Samsung cannot or will not disclose the problem, it leads to speculation that this could happen again.
At IFA in early September, Samsung announced two new smartwatches. There was the Gear S3 Classic and then the Gear S3 Frontier. The main difference between the two is the fact that the Gear S3 Classic looks more like a traditional watch, while the Gear S3 Frontier is made for those that are a big more rugged. Its great for going on hikes, and spending loads of time outdoors. Due to that, Samsung has opted to make the Gear S3 Frontier available with 4G LTE. While the Gear S3 Classic will not have 4G LTE and will need a WiFi connection. This means that you could go out for a run with the Gear S3 Frontier on your wrist and leave your phone at home, but you cant with the Gear S3 Classic.

The Gear S3 Frontier also comes with a darker colored casing, compared to the Gear S3 Classic. Surprisingly, they are priced the same, at least in the UK. Samsung has put the two smartwatches up for pre-order today in the UK, and were looking at 349 for each model. That translates to about $425 USD. Samsung also has a promotional offer for those that pre-order the Gear S3 Classic or Gear S3 Frontier. The first 1,000 people will be able to pick up a pair of the Level Active headphones for free. These headphones are typically $100, so thats a pretty great gift to have included with the pre-order of one of the new smartwatches from Samsung. Theres no word just yet on other retailers in the UK having it up for pre-order, or it being available in other regions just yet. But that will likely change in the very near future.

Following the Gear S2, Samsung kept some aspects of that smartwatch on the Gear S3 family, but changed a few things. For instance, the Gear S2 was smaller, but the Gear S3 Classic and Gear S3 Frontier are both larger. This is mostly due to the larger battery inside. Theres a 380mAh battery inside, which Samsung quotes as lasting about 3 to 4 days on a single charge. This is powering the 1.3-inch 360360 display which has Cornings Gorilla Glass SR+ to protect it. Keep in mind that the Gear S3 Classic and Gear S3 Frontier do run Tizen and not Android Wear.
Samsung has reportedly just recently filed for a patent that revolves around fingerprint swipe gestures, which they could then use to incorporate the technology into future smartphones. If the use of fingerprint gestures sounds familiar, its likely because the function was highlighted by Google as being part of their new Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones. With these two devices users can swipe down on the fingerprint sensor from the home screen to bring down the notification shade. Another swipe extends it, and a swipe up will set this all in reverse and the notification shade goes back up, so although its not available now, Samsungs future flagships could have these sorts of gestures included.

Although the patent does indicate gestures for the fingerprint sensor, it doesnt necessarily give much detail in the way of what these gestures would enable for users. It does however suggest that it would be compatible with multiple different aspects of the device, and if thats the case then users may be able to expect the fingerprint swipe gestures on Samsung phones to include more than just one single action, so perhaps they would be able to open up apps, send quick replies from message templates and so on.

Judging by the image above that comes from the patent filing, Samsung is looking to incorporate the gestures in more than just one direction. So a swipe downward on the fingerprint sensor would initiate one gesture action, while there would also be gesture actions for a swipe left, a swipe right, and a swipe up. Although it is important to point out here that Samsungs patent does not actually appear to depict a swipe down, just swipes up, left, and right. The image also shows a different result for each action. For example, a swipe left based on the patent image shows the dialer open, while a swipe right shows a conversation in messages, and a swipe up shows what looks like an open app or browser. If Samsungs plan is to integrate these fingerprint sensor gestures into future devices, what isnt known is whether or not theyll make them compatible with just few different apps, or if theyll make it customizable to where users could determine which gestures initiate which action.
If you happen to be the owner of the NVIDIA SHIELD Android TV, then you will already know how powerful and feature-rich this particular device is. NVIDIA has made it a point of theirs to provide a very good level of support to the SHIELD Android TV and as such, this little Android TV box does constantly receive updates and not just minor ones either. The last major update came in the form of Software Upgrade 3.2 and bought with it a whole host of added features. Including HDR support, a new VUDU app and of course, the ability for the SHIELD Android TV to be used as a standalone Plex Media Server.

Well, it now seems as though the next major update is ready to be consumed by SHIELD owners and is confirmed as en route to SHIELD Android TV devices. This update follows on from the last one and is Software Upgrade 3.3 and once again, brings with it a number of improvements. While those improvements are not quite to the level that was on offer with the last upgrade, the features listed in the changelog include pass-through DTS:X Audio support for a number of media apps including Plex, Kodi v17 and MX Player. Likewise, Plex is also gaining Dolby Atmos audio pass-through support as well. The Vulkan graphics API has been updated, as has a number of vulnerabilities thanks to the latest Android security patches also being included with this update.

As is usually the case with any Android update, this one will arrive as an OTA in due course. However, although the update has now been announced, it does not mean that it will hit all SHIELD Android TV devices at the same time. So you may find you have to wait for a few days (or longer) before it does reach your particular device. Either way, and again like any Android device, you can always check if the update is ready to download and install by heading into the SHIELDs settings menu, then through to About and finally System Update. At which point you should be able to manually check for the update.
Twitter hasnt been doing too great in recent years which is why many were surprised when the social media company posted its Q3 2016 financials yesterday and managed to beat the average estimate in just about every aspect. The firm increased its revenue, raised the number of monthly active users, and even brought home significantly more cents per share in comparison to the second quarter of the year. You would think that things were looking up.

Well, no, not if youre a Twitter employee because theres a chance youre losing your job in the coming months through no direct fault of your own. As the company revealed in the aforementioned earnings report, its planning to cut approximately 9 percent of its workforce in the coming months. Thats roughly 350 people or 50 people more than what insiders reported on Tuesday. Twitters release also notes that the company is expecting to incur between $15 million and $30 million in compensation and severance expenditures and explained this move as a necessary step towards restructuring its business model so that it can continue to post increasingly positive financial results. In other words, the company believes this move will allow it to immediately increase its profits in the following quarters.

Now, if youre wondering how incurring a significant percentage of total revenue in severance costs can make you money in the short-term, the answer is rather simple  stock options. Tech companies have never shied away from partially compensating their employees with shares, and that goes double for severance packages. In addition to that, Twitter is a publicly traded company which means that issuing additional shares is rarely a problem. When you take that information into account, that aforementioned $30 million figure can be broken down into cash and non-cash expenditures of which the latter will amount to up to $10 million, Twitters release states. Most of the layoffsor as the company refers to them, workforce restructuringswill be conducted by the end of the year.

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Its possible that this unfortunate turn of events could have been avoided if Twitter managed to sell itself in recent months, but there are no guarantees. The social media company has simply been struggling for too long to continue with its current strategy, so its not that surprising it decided to reduce its global workforce and streamline its services. Another result of that new approach is the recently announced discontinuation of Vine which has yet to happen.
Yahoo is a company whose name is virtually synonymous with the early Internet era but in a fast-moving industry such as this one, that doesnt mean a lot. Eight years ago, the company turned down Microsofts $45 billion bid, and today, Verizon is haggling for its core Internet business which the firm values at $4.8 billion. For comparison, thats over a billion less than what the Candy Crush developer King went for earlier this year.

Yahoos biggest problem lies in the fact that its users are leaving it for other services. When your entire core business is based on the concept of being attractive to a lot of users, its value naturally plummets if you dont deliver products which many people want to use. When faced with that scenario, the company has two choices. One, it can purchase smaller businesses and try to use their own innovations to turn things around. That may have been Yahoos line of thinking when it was buying up services like Tumblr in 2013, BrightRoll in 2014, and Flickr last year, but things may not have necessarily turned out the way they wanted. The second option for Yahoo is to innovate on its own and deliver new products that will help fuel user growth or at least counterbalance user decline. Cue solutions like Yahoo View, an app which the Sunnyvale, California-based firm debuted over the summer. The idea was simple, combine Hulus video library and a Tumblr-powered community into an enormous social hub for people who like watching movies and TV and talking about them but arent that keen on paying for that privilege.

After a couple of months spent exclusively in browsers, Yahoo View arrived in the Google Play Store and was met with harsh criticism from the Android community. Thats mostly because it came to light that this app isnt exactly the real deal that was originally promised. Instead of letting you watch full episodes, most featured series are only present in the form of short video clips which dont amount to much on their own and are locked behind 30-second ads. The app does have some full-length episodes of certain animes but other than that, it doesnt seem like a complete product. The current state of this product seems rather strange considering how the desktop version of Yahoo View actually delivers on what the company promised back in August, so hopefully, some more positive changes are coming shortly.
For some, a midlife crisis can be solved atop a spanking-new, cherry-red Ducati motorcycle. For a few, its trading in a well-worn spouse for a younger model. For others, especially in Silicon Valley, founding a startup does the trick.

For Damon McMillan, the appropriate response was a project in his Sunnyvale garage, to do something never accomplished before  no road rocket, broken family or venture capitalists required. And now, after two years of toil, and the addition of three people to the project, the result of McMillans labors is somewhere out in the middle of the Pacific, maybe lost forever, maybe not  but that no longer matters much to McMillan.

Seacharger, his autonomous, solar-powered boat, did what it was supposed to do, against McMillans own expectations: making the first-ever trip by a sun-powered robot watercraft from the U.S. mainland to Hawaii. The craft came ashore on the Big Island in July, just short of six weeks after leaving Half Moon Bay, a city 20 miles south of San Francisco.

When McMillan was deciding on a project, he stuck to his general areas of expertise. With a history of working on sophisticated unmanned aerial vehicles, he considered a record-setting drone flight but was deterred by the lack of a flight-testing site.

However, McMillan works for Liquid Robotics, a company that makes wave- and solar-powered watercraft for military and industrial use. And, he said, A boat is a good compromise between being not too hard and not too easy.

A competition involving robotic sailboats crossing the Atlantic caught his attention. I thought, Hey, I could do that, McMillan said. He recruited his friend J.T. Zemp, a software developer, to help him build an autonomous sailboat. But then a company called Saildrone launched a wind-powered autonomous vessel, aiming for Hawaii, and McMillan and Zemp got to talking. Why dont we go solar? they asked. And they did. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Q: Did you watch Seacharger reach harbor in Hawaii?

A: I was on the dock. It came into the harbor, and my wife jumped in and guided it to the ladder where my brother and I hefted it out of the water. It wasnt quite as triumphant as I thought it would be  it was more just weird, surreal, bizarre, because 41 days prior to that I had launched it from the beach and watched it go away. It was just very bizarre to watch that little boat that I had last seen 41 days before in California in a cold, relatively gray atmosphere arrive in a beautiful Hawaii sunset in all that warm water.

Q: Is there a higher purpose behind this project, beyond doing something that hadnt been done before?

A: No. Plain and simple. You could call it a midlife crisis. Ive been an engineer working on other peoples projects in my career, which is fine, but there comes a time when you want to strike out on your own and do something completely independently and still find success in it.

Q: What kinds of applications are there for technology such as Seachargers?

A: When it comes to commercial applications, the skys the limit. Theres a lot of oil and gas work done in the ocean, exploring for oil and gas. Theres environmental monitoring. There are military applications, you know, detecting submarines. Theres detecting people who are fishing where they shouldnt be. One of the things that I learned is that theres a lot more going on in the ocean than most people know about.

Q: Did the vessel have any problems with ocean conditions, weather or sea creatures during the crossing to Hawaii?

A: It probably had 100 barnacles on it  about three or four that were of significant size. After more time it wouldve gotten more barnacles. I looked for shark teeth marks, but there werent any, unfortunately  it wouldve been cool. It did definitely see some higher wind conditions. The waves slow it down, theres no question about that. Its probably seen at least 40 mph winds. It would probably do well in most tropical storms  it wouldnt necessarily track in a straight line, but it would probably survive. You put it in a hurricane, thats a different story.

Q: How much did the Seacharger project cost?

A: I dont know. I started keeping receipts and then never dared to add them up. I would guess its more than $5,000 and less than $8,000. If I had to do it again it would be a lot cheaper, because that figure includes a lot of expenses for making mistakes.

Q: What comes next for Seacharger?

A: Its going south, sort of toward New Zealand. The last waypoint its programmed with is sort of off the coast of New Zealand. If it makes it that far I will decide exactly where to land it. I was surprised that it made it to Hawaii, as were many people. To Hawaii was 2,400 miles; from Hawaii to New Zealand is 4,400. Things happen. I probably worry about it more than I should.

Q: Are you done with boats?

A: Ive accomplished what I set out to accomplish, and I have a great job, so Im happy to leave it at that. Seacharger has been awesome. Ever since May, when I took it to Maker Faire and people started seeing it and commenting on it, its been a huge uplift. Its also fun to put yourself out there and try something in a somewhat public way, because its exciting to tell people youre going to send this thing across the ocean before youve done it. Its my version of skydiving or rock climbing. Its a thrill.
Anti-Semitism Watch: LibDem Jenny Tonge makes her move to join Labour?

Baroness Jenny Tonge has been suspended by the Liberal Democrats. Yes, we know, some news there that Tonge and the LibDems still exist. And when you hear the story you might suppose that Tonge has been auditioning for membership to the un-anti-Semetic Labour Party.

Today, a LibDem spokesperson tells media: The party has suspended the membership of Jenny Tonge. We take her comments very seriously and have acted accordingly.

Suspended. Not kicked out. Put on hold. Thats how big a deal anti-Semitism is nowadays among the elite. It is not their problem. Of course, nothing is fact. As the Guardian states: Jenny Tonge quits Lib Dems after suspension for alleged antisemitic comments.

Tonge noted on Facebook:

In the course of the evening one member of the audience made a rant against Israel quoting some very confused history which I confess I did not hear or understand! I then called the next member of the audience and moved on. The contribution was ignored by the audience after a few claps of relief! Apparently this is my sin! I am at last free of being told what I must and must not say on the issue of Palestine, lest it offends the Israel lobby here, who like to control us, as they do in the USA. They are trying to destroy the Labour Party with spurious accusations of antisemitism and now they have set their sights on the Lib Dems. I have never been antisemitic, and never will be. I am anti-injustice and that is why I criticise the Israeli governments flagrant disregard for international law and human rights in the Occupied territories of Palestine and Gaza.

The story goes that earlier this week Baroness Tonge hosted an event in the House of Lords run by the Palestine Return Council. The events was part of a campaign for Britain to apologise for the 1917 Balfour Declaration that led to the creation of a Jewish home in Palestine.

The Jewish Chronicle notes: Attendees applauded when another member of the audience claimed that if anybody is antisemitic, its the Israelis themselves.

The paper adds:

Last week Baroness Tonge published a letter online which she said she had sent to The Guardian. In the letter, she discussed the Home Affairs Committees report on antisemitism, saying: It is difficult to believe that a 75% increase in antisemitism it reports, have [sic] been committed by people who simply hate Jewish people for no reason.

The Times reported on the event:

An audience member was applauded after suggesting that Hitler only decided to kill all the Jews after he was provoked by anti-German protests led by a rabbi in Manhattan. The speaker said that in the 1930s Rabbi Stephen Wise, whom he described as a heretic, made the boycott on Germany, the economic boycott which antagonised Hitler, over the edge, to then want to systematically kill Jews wherever he could find them.

The speaker went on:

As opposed to . . . make Germany free of Jews, a Jew-free land. He became a madman after this boycott. Judea declares war on Germany. In Manhattan they had 100,000 people marching in the economic boycott in 1935, it was the same heretic rabbi who caused that. The speaker also said that Rabbi Wise told the New York Times in 1905 that there were six million bleeding and suffering reasons to justify Zionism. He urged the audience to note the number. This famous quotation is regularly used by Holocaust deniers to suggest that the figure of six million Jews later killed by the Nazis was a myth.

Another audience member opined:

Chaim Weizmann [a founder of Israel] did a confidence trick back in 1917/1918. He made the British establishment think that world Jewry had power that it just didnt have. The trouble is, 100 years on, I am not talking about world Jewry, I am talking about that segment which we called the Zionist movement, has that power and it has that over our own parliament.

David Collier notes on his blog: This is the transference of classic antisemitic tropes, from the hand of the Jew to the hands of the Zionist.

The Times adds: Lady Tonge made no attempt to challenge the provocative comments.

David Aaronovitch observes:

Ten years ago the baroness did the old one about Jewish financial power in the form of the pro-Israeli lobby has got its grips on the western world, its financial grips. She got a reprimand from her party leader for it. Six years ago it was the ancient blood libel (Jews kill gentiles for their blood or body parts, see also under Shylock), when she demanded an inquiry into absurd allegations that an Israeli aid mission to Haiti was harvesting organs from Haitians. She lost a front bench job for that.

And no, she was not booted out of the LibDems. He conbtinues:

Before she resigned, Baroness Tonge was suspended, not expelled, from her utterly complacent party. Because actually many people dont care that much about antisemitism any more. They say they do, but they dont. They cluck but secretly they think antisemitism isnt really a problem, that Jews are generally rich and can look after themselves and that  one way or another  they probably have it coming.

In the Guardian we read:

Lady Tonge, the Liberal Democrat peer, is calling for Israel to set up an inquiry to disprove allegations that its medical teams in Haiti harvested organs of earthquake victims for use in transplants Attacking Israels policies is one thing; insinuating that the army of the Jewish state is stealing organs or  as the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet published last year, that the IDF was killing Arabs for their organs  is to repeat what antisemites were saying about the Jews in the darkest periods of history. A blood libel, in short. One hundred and seventy years ago, the Damascus blood libel shocked the world. On 5 February 1840, Father Thomas, the superior of the Capuchin house in Damascus, and his Muslim servant disappeared. The local Jews were immediately accused of murdering the two for the intention of using their blood for making Passover Matzot. Several Jews were arrested and tortured, and some of them died, not before producing confessions.

The Guardian says:

The peer has a long track record of making trenchant criticisms of Israel. In 2004, when she was an MP, she was sacked from the frontbench by then party leader Charles Kennedy after she suggested that she would become a suicide bomber if she was Palestinian. At the time, Israel had endured repeated suicide bombings carried out by Palestinians during the second intifada. She was made a peer the following year.

In September, the Sunday Times noted:

A PROMINENT peer is considering defection to Jeremy Corbyns Labour party after a lifetime in the Liberal Democrats. Baroness Tonge said she was thinking about joining Labour and a lot of people in her party were pondering the move as they found Corbyn a breath of fresh air.

Smell that?

Anorak

Posted: 28th, October 2016 | In: Politicians, Reviews Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
(ANSA) - Rome, October 28 - Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni on Friday said conquering Mosul will be positive even if the road to retake the key Iraqi city from the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) terror group is "long and difficult", speaking at a joint press conference in Rome with Brett McGurth, the US State Department special envoy to the anti-ISIS coalition.

"We should never raise expectations for quick solutions", Gentiloni said of the Iraqi-led operation to retake ISIS's last major stronghold in Iraq and the country's second-largest city.

"There is no doubt that the coalition has started operations towards Mosul having already reached some agreements between different components" also thanks to McGurth's role, the foreign minister said.

"The objective is to have an inclusive governance that does not authorize sectarian or vindictive policies but respects the pluralistic context of these areas".

McGurk said the US-assisted campaign to retake Mosul will be "long" as expected but that so far all the objectives have been obtained.

A coalition of some 100,000 forces started the operation 10 days ago, gaining ground towards the city and retaking villages from ISIS along the way.


(ANSA) - Reggio Calabria, October 27 - Some 385 kilograms of pure cocaine has been seized by Italy's financial police off the country's southern coastline after being carried onboard a ship that had left from Brazil.

Nine crew members of the container vessel that had been heading for the Gioia Tauro port in the Calabria region have been detained. Investigations have made it possible to ascertain that the transport had occurred in agreement with the crew members that unloaded the cocaine. The drugs were kept in 17 large, waterproof bags tied together with buoys in an area of the sea some 16 miles from the port, with the aim of going back to get them later and avoiding port inspections. The cocaine seized would have brought in an estimated 77 million euros.


(ANSA) - Marseilles, October 28 - Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said Friday that it would be unacceptable if the European Union were excessively strict when it comes to budget rules, while being soft on countries like Hungary that are not respecting obligations to tackle the asylum-seeker crisis.

"Italy cannot accept the idea of a Europe that is strict on (deficit) decimal points and totally tolerant with those who erect walls and don't join in with the decision on migrants," he said. "Italy, in the exceptional circumstances in which it finds itself, has every right to decide its budget, naturally in a dialogue with the European Commission. But without diktats from anyone".


(ANSA) - Vatican City, September 28 - Pope Francis has said he is visiting mostly Protestant and deeply secular Sweden next week to take a step forward in Christian unity. "My hope and expectation is that of coming closer to my brothers and sisters," the pope told Civilta Cattolica ahead of his two-day visit starting Monday as part of the events for the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. "Closeness does all of us good. Distance, on the other hand, makes us bitter. "When we are distant, we close within ourselves and we become individual entities, incapable of encountering each other.

"We are held back by fears. We need to learn to transcend ourselves to encounter others. "If we do not do this, we Christians, too, become sick because of our divisions. My expectation is that of being able to take a step of closeness".

When asked by the Italian Jesuit journal for final reflections on the trip he replied: "what comes spontaneously for me to add now is simply: go, walk together. "Don't remain closed in rigid perspectives, because in these there is no possibility of reform".


(ANSAmed) - ROME - Premier Matteo Renzi on Friday sparred with his Hungarian counterpart Viktor Orban over compulsory migrant quotas with the Italian leader reiterating he is ready to wield an EU budget veto unless countries like Hungary take in their fair share of asylum seekers.



Orban responded that he would in turn veto migrant quotas if his country was forced to "bite the bullet" on receiving migrants and refugees.



Renzi had hit back after Orban said he was "irritable" because of Italy's migrant and budget problems. "Orban has an imprecise vision of Italy," Renzi told Radio Radicale, reiterating that Italy was ready to veto the new EU budget if Budapest and others keep refusing to do their bit to help with the asylum-seeker crisis. "In other words, it's not true that the deficit is increasing, it is not true that Italy is in difficulty and it's not true we are irritable. "Either Europe acknowledges the documents that Europe itself signed and takes charge of the migrants or there will be a wonderful new development - Italy will veto any budget that does not contemplate equal obligations and equal rights".



Renzi said Italy was no longer willing to be the European Union's moneybox as he reiterated his veto threat. "Each year Italy gives 20 billion euros to Europe and it gets back 12," Renzi told Radio Radicale. "Today there's a wonderful new development. Being as we are starting to discuss the budget, the Italian premier will veto any budget that does not contemplate equal obligations and equal rights. The time when Italy was the piggy bank is over".



He also said that Orban calling him "irritable" showed that his budget veto threat had "made a mark".



Orban, in response, said he was ready to veto the EU's compulsory migrant distribution quotas and said he would if necessary "file a suit" against the European Commission at the European Court of Justice. He called the quotas "a toad" that "the bigger EU members are trying to make us swallow", using an expression that means "to bite the bullet".



Orban vowed a "big battle" against the quotas and called on the Slovakian EU duty presidency to take them off the agenda of a December summit. (ANSAmed).


TUNIS - The 27th edition of Carthage Film Festival opens on Friday with the screening of 'Fleur d'Alep' by Tunisian director Ridha Behi.



There are 68 films in competition in various sections until November 5, with screenings and other events in various locations across the country. The programme has been put together by film director Mohamed Challouf, who has been tasked with restoring the festival to its original splendour in honour of its 50th anniversary this year.

Novelties include numerous parallel sections, homages to directors of the past, an overview of prizewinning films from previous editions and a special focus on Russian and Asian cinema. A special prize will be awarded to Tunisian director Ferid Boughdir for his passion for cinema and committment to the Carthage Film Festival.
(by Cristiana Missori)

ROME - The Medfilm Festival opening on November 4 in Rome will focus on the call for freedom of youths in the Mediterranean, as well as the fears and joys of different societies in the region.



The 22nd edition of festival runs through November 22 with the screening of 90 feature films, short movies and documentaries. It is directed by Ginella Vocca and will be held at the Savoy Cinema, at the Macro museum of contemporary art, as well as the libraries and cultural centers in the capital's suburbs.



Vocca said Egyptian filmmaker Yousry Nasrallah will open the festival with the Italian premier of Brooks, Meadows and Lovely Faces (Al Ma' wal Khodra wal Wajh El Hassan).



Movies will embrace a range of themes including migration, memory, women and freedom.



Guests of honor at the event are Iran and Tunisia, which are among the 32 countries represented at the event, with Italy (whose section Le Perle will focus on independent movies and young authors) and France - traditionally a country of migration with many co-productions between the two shores of the Mediterranean - as the two most represented.



Algeria, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar are also among those represented.



The sections have remained the same with the prize ''Premio Amore e Psiche'', the international documentary competition ''Premio Open Eyes'', the international competition for short films ''Premio Methexis'' and the ''Premio Cervantes'', while the cooperation continued between the information office in Italy of the European Parliament and the MedFilm festival with the fifth edition of Lux Film Days in Rome, an important event on contemporary Europe.



New initiatives, explained Vocca, include 'Letture del Mediterraneo', literary meetings with six authors, including Gianni Amelio (a director and writer who was given the 2016 career achievement award) with Politeama and Patrizio Nissirio, the author of the book Una ballata del Mar Egeo.



The Premio Koine will be awarded to SaMiFo, the healthcare center created in cooperation with the Centro Astalli and the Asl of Roma A - which welcomes migrants in the capital and protects their right to health as well as torture victims.



This year also includes the project Methexis that will bring to Rome graduated from the national film schools of Morocco, Lebanon, France, Greece, Turkey, Tunisia, Egypt, Croatia and Italy.



''At a time in which no political and institutional dialogue exists anymore between the two shores of the Mediterranean'', said Morocco's ambassador Hassan Abouyoub, cultural dialogue ''is the only thing left''.



Europe, he said, ''now only deals with the themes that divide us'' with ''only immigration on the agenda''. Culture, he concluded, is the ''only gate left from which to enter to be able to talk about common policies and solidarity''.



The drawing chosen for the festival's poster was made in 2011 by French-Algerian young artist Bilal Berreni, who died in 2013, and describes the call for 'horreya' (freedom) of the young.
Susan Joy Jacobson wept Friday morning as a Coconino County Superior Court judge sentenced her to natural life in prison without the possibility of parole for the murder of her common-law husband  a conviction she is determined to appeal.

Last month, a jury found Jacobson guilty of first-degree murder and three counts of tampering with physical evidence after she fatally shot Marvin Neal James, 54, in the pre-dawn hours of Feb. 26, 2015, inside their Doney Park home. Jacobson, who had a 3-year-old son in common with James, gave birth to the couple's second child just days after her arrest.

"When one person takes the life of another human being, that loss is irreplaceable," said Judge Cathleen Brown Nichols. "It is clear that these boys have lost their father and now their mother. (Marvin James' father) and Marvin's mother have lost their son forever. There's a lot of damage that's been done by your conduct."

During the trial, the jury heard testimony about how Jacobson retrieved James .22 caliber revolver in the middle of the night and shot him once in the head while he was in their bed. At the sentencing, a representative from Victim Witness Services for Coconino County read a statement by James mother. In it, she said life in prison without the possibility of parole was the right sentence for Jacobson.

She took the life of our son, she said. Who is to say she would not to the same to another human being? We can never see or hold Marvin again, so I feel she should not have the chance of life outside of prison.

James father also spoke.

Ive had numerous calls from Marvins friends and my friends to congratulate me on the outcome of the trial, he said. Unfortunately, there are no winners here.

James father said the man only stayed with Jacobson because he loved their 3-year-old son. He then accused Jacobson of abusive and neglectful behavior, which he said caused health problems for the boy. He also said the child has made comments indicating he saw James dead body.

Probably the saddest one of all is, Daddy didnt tell me goodbye, James father said, in tears.

When it was her turn to speak Friday, Jacobson vehemently denied ever abusing her son or letting him see his fathers dead body.

(He) was asleep, Jacobson said, crying. He never saw anything. No lights were ever on in the house. I always did my very, very best and he always came first among everything in my life. I protected him as much as I could.

Both children were placed out of state with Jacobsons sister, who listened to the sentencing over the phone.

At trial, Jacobsons attorney claimed she shot James in self-defense after he kicked the pillow she was using to protect her pregnant stomach and threatened her life. She said she believed she was racing James to retrieve the gun, got to it first, turned back to the bed and fired.

Instead of calling 911, she wrapped up the dying man's body. She moved it onto a makeshift ramp she had created and, according to prosecutors, tried to push it out the window. She cleaned the crime scene, then threw away the bedding and buried the gun.

Jacobson was stoic when the jury delivered the verdict in September. At her sentencing Friday, she wept.

So much information has not come forward in this case and at the appropriate time it will, she said.

During and after the trial, Jacobsons supporters questioned why the judge would not allow the defense to bring in psychologists who were expected to testify that Jacobson had post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of chronic domestic violence. The judge also would not allow a pregnancy expert to testify on behalf of the defense.

On Friday, Jacobsons family posted signs outside the Coconino County Courthouse protesting her conviction. They said things like PTSD is real and Domestic violence must stop. Jacobsons mother, Joyce Canepa, said her daughter did not get a fair trial.

Susan was a battered woman but that was not able to be told to the jurors, Canepa said. They didnt have the awareness  and I think theres a lot of people here in town that dont have the awareness  about what a battered woman is. The whole truth did not get out.

Jacobsons attorney, Bruce Griffen, told the judge he will appeal the conviction and said people from all over the country have contacted him in support of his client. He maintained Friday that Jacobson was a good person who was justified in shooting James in self-defense.

It has been privilege to try to help Susan, Griffen said, his voice catching in his throat.

He also talked about compassion for Jacobson's family and children, as well as James loved ones, a sentiment Jacobson echoed.

I will never be able to describe the pain and the concern that I have for everyone, the many prayers that I will continue to pray for healing for everyone, she said. I just pray with all my heart that my boys can be surrounded in a positive environment. Thats all everyone has wanted for them, to be filled with love in a positive environment. This hate has to go.

For most criminal convictions, the law gives the trial judge the discretion to choose a sentence within a defined sentencing range based on the aggravating and mitigating factors of the case. With a first-degree murder conviction, however, Arizona law requires the judge to sentence the defendant to natural life in prison without the possibility of parole unless the prosecutor has indicated ahead of trial that they intend to seek the death penalty, which did not happen in Jacobson's case.

That means Jacobson must remain behind bars until she dies unless her appeal is successful.

What Miss Jacobson did on that night did not just affect Marvin. It created a ripple of pain throughout the lives of his family, his children, his friends and this community, said prosecutor Ammon Barker. Because of that, she has to be punished. Thats the law.

The judge also sentenced Jacobson to one year in prison for each evidence tampering conviction. However, those sentences are irrelevant because of the murder sentence.
(by Paolo Levi)

PARIS - NGOs have reported an increase in the numbers of migrants seeking shelter in makeshift tent camps in the French capital following the clearance of the 'Jungle' in the northern port city of Calais. The number of people sheltering in camps in avenue de Flandre, Jaures and Stalingrad has risen from "2,000 to 3,000 in two days", Heloise Mary, who heads up the office for the reception and support of migrants, said.

According to Secours Catholique, Auberge des Migrants and Medecins du Monde, many of these left the Calais camp accommodating thousands of migrants before the authorities began the clearance at dawn on Monday. NGOs say between 2,000 and 3,000 former Jungle 'residents' who refused relocation to official reception centres across the country are thought to be scattered between Paris and Calais. Auberge des Migrants vice president Francois Guennoc said many of these would "end up going back" to Calais in the hope of eventually managing to secure a passage across the Channel to Britain.

"Calais is moving here. We are exhausted, the situation is getting very complicated," said Clemence Moinard, a volunteer at a tent camp in Paris. "Some are arriving from the Jungle  but also from Italy," she added. "Today five arrived from Ventimiglia." Some of the tents used in Calais have been dismantled, disinfected, cleaned and taken to Paris by English volunteers, Moinard said. Doctors and nurses who previously worked in the Jungle are also expected to arrive in the French capital shortly, she added.

Meanwhile, prefect Fabienne Bucci has said over 6,000 people formerly living in the Jungle have been relocated to migrant reception centres since Monday, of whom 1,348 on the last day of the evacuation on Wednesday. On Thursday bulldozers and diggers began dismantling what was left of the camp after departing migrants set their tents on fire on Wednesday night. Buccio said dismantling would be finished on Monday evening. However, NGOs claim between 200 and 400 migrants - including many unaccompanied minors - have been sleeping inside or in the vicinity of the evacuated camp.


Abu Mazen, Meshaal call for national unity, media Israel concerned by stability Abu Mazen's rule, Haaretz

(ANSAmed) - TEL AVIV, OCTOBER 28 - The need to form a national unity government and organize new elections was stressed yesterday at the end of a meeting in Qatar between Palestinian President Abu Mazen (al-Fatah) and the political leader of Hamas Khaled Meshaal according to Palestinian media reports on Friday.



The former Palestinian premier Ismail Hanyyeh (Hamas) also took part in the talks.



Both al-Fatah and Hamas reportedly confirmed the importance of ''reconciliation'' between the various Palestinian factions, also with Egypt's aid, in order to counter ''Israeli projects aimed at hampering the two-State solution'', newspaper al-Ayyam reports.



Meanwhile Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that the Israeli army is concerned by the progressive weakening in the West Bank of Abu Mazen's regime as he now has to deal with internal infighting in al-Fatah, according to the daily. (ANSAmed)
ANSAmed - Today's events in the Mediterranean

(ANSAmed) - ROME, OCTOBER 28 - These are the main events scheduled for today in the Euro-mediterranean area.



MOSCOW - Tripartite meeting between the foreign ministers of Russia, Iran and Syria.



PALERMO - Italian President Sergio Mattarella is to attend the installation of the plaques commemorating the inscription of "Arab-Norman Palermo and the Cathedral Churches of Cefalu and Monreale" in the UNESCO World Heritage List.



ROME - Seminar by the NATO PA Mediterranean and Middle East Special Group (GSM) ends.



PAESTUM - The 19th edition of the Mediterranean Bourse of Archaeological Tourism continues (until October 30).



CASABLANCA - Medinit Expo, an Italian design fair continues (until October 29).



CARTHAGE (TUNISIA) - Carthage Film Festival begins (until November 5).



HAMMAMET - Conference on telecommunications (until November 3).



(ANSAmed).




MARSEILLE (FRANCE) - French Foreign Minister Jean-March Ayrault on Friday said ''it is important for northern and southern Mediterranean countries to talk to each other about all common issues, of the fight against terrorism, radicalization, migrations, development, solidarity and the environment''. He was speaking at the Villa Mediterranee in Marseille, at the 5+5 meeting.



''It is very interesting - said Ayrault, who co-chairs the meeting with Moroccan minister Salaheddine Mezouar - to have chosen Marseille. It is a message to Marseille residents and to this region, it is a Mediterranean city with great potential and ability and today here are gathered the north and south of the Mediterranean''.



''We will talk about the Libyan crisis and more'', said Ayrault, ''it will be one of the themes, together with everything that can give back hope to our countries, our youth.



And new hope can be found by fighting against radicalization, and for education, training and work''.

The 13th 5+5 Dialogue Conference in Marseilles on Friday along gathers ministers from France, Spain, Portugal, Malta, Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania and Libya.

The summit focuses on the crises in Libya, Syria and Iraq and the fight against terrorism and radicalisation.
Isis: 'Dialogue important, for Libya and more', Ayrault 5+5 French minister, central issue is give youth hope

(ANSAmed) - MARSEILLE (FRANCE), OCTOBER 28 - French Foreign Minister Jean-March Ayrault on Friday said ''it is important for northern and southern Mediterranean countries to talk to each other about all common issues, of the fight against terrorism, radicalization, migrations, development, solidarity and the environment'', arriving at the Villa Mediterranee in Marseille at the opening of the 5+5 meeting.



''It is very interesting - said Ayrault, who co-chairs the meeting with Moroccan minister Salaheddine Mezouar - to have chosen Marseille. It is a message to Marseille residents and to this region, it is a Mediterranean city with great potential and ability and today here are gathered the north and south of the Mediterranean''.



''We will talk about the Libyan crisis and more'', said Ayrault, ''it will be one of the themes, together with everything that can give back hope to our countries, our youth.



And new hope can be found by fighting against radicalization, and for education, training and work''. (ANSAmed).




(by Massimo Lomonaco and Sami al Ajrami)

RAMALLAH - Italian-Palestinian ties are historic and strong, the office of Palestinian president Abu Mazen said on the eve of a visit of Italian President Sergio Mattarella to the region on October 29-November 2.



''Italian-Palestinian relations are historic. We have a strong, tight bond with Italy. We undertake any effort to further strengthen them to the benefit of two friendly populations'', it said replying to ANSA's questions.



''Cooperation is expressed on various levels and we work to deepen it in various directions. We register a high and constant level of reciprocal visits over the last decade. We have worked on a ministerial commission to support cooperation in all sectors. We also keep good relations between the two countries' municipalities''.



Abu Mazen, according to his spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina, will confirm to President Mattarella the Palestinian engagement ''along a path of peace'' which is a ''strategic choice'' to implement Palestinian rights ''based on international legitimacy and the Arab peace initiative, with the primary objective of founding a Palestinian State along the lines of 1967 with East Jerusalem as capital''. ''All must understand - stressed the president's office in Ramallah - that without a solution to the Palestinian issue there will be neither stability nor security in the region. At the moment, at France's initiative, an international conference to be held by the end of the year is under preparation. It is an occasion that should be supported by the whole world, in particular by European countries. We welcome all international efforts aimed at reaching a just and general peace in the region''.



However, according to the Palestinians, ''it is up to Israel to stop the colonization and constant homicidal actions, as well as to recognize the State of Palestine. A unilateral recognition is not reasonable. It is necessary for peace to aim for a Palestinian State that coexists near Israel in good neighbourhood, security and peace''. Based on this, the Palestinian presidency will ask Mattarella that, ''Italy undertakes a positive role to help the success of the French Conference that represents a real occasion to save the peace process from the grave situation in which it is''.



Moreover, Ramallah hopes ''Italy will undertake efforts to persuade the Israeli government to freeze settlements based on international legitimacy and Security Council resolutions, to create a positive atmosphere in favour of security and stability''.



Regarding the recognition of the Palestinian State - which has not passed in Italy yet - the president's office in Ramallah noted that it has in Rome ''an embassy as well as close relations. We call on Italy to recognize the State of Palestine, something that would contribute to strengthen the security and stability of the region. The elimination of terrorism in the region requires that justice is made, the end of Israeli occupation and for the Palestinian people to benefit from freedom and independence''.



Answering to a question on Unesco's resolution - which was forwarded before Italian Premier Matteo Renzi described Italy's abstention vote as ''unbelievable'' - Rudeina confirmed an earlier reply: ''Italy is an independent country. The decisions it takes are a domestic matter''- ''The Resolution - Rudeina added - specifies and guarantees the status quo in the al-Aqsa mosque as a holy site and to affirm the freedom of worship for all Muslims. Jerusalem needs to be a city that is open to all three religions so they can exercise their religious practices in total freedom. We are not against Judaism, we respect it''.
Renzi and Orban spar over migrants, Italy ready for veto 'No to any budget without equal obligations and equal righs'

(ANSAmed) - ROME - Premier Matteo Renzi on Friday sparred with his Hungarian counterpart Viktor Orban over compulsory migrant quotas with the Italian leader reiterating he is ready to wield an EU budget veto unless countries like Hungary take in their fair share of asylum seekers.



Orban responded that he would in turn veto migrant quotas if his country was forced to "bite the bullet" on receiving migrants and refugees.



Renzi had hit back after Orban said he was "irritable" because of Italy's migrant and budget problems. "Orban has an imprecise vision of Italy," Renzi told Radio Radicale, reiterating that Italy was ready to veto the new EU budget if Budapest and others keep refusing to do their bit to help with the asylum-seeker crisis. "In other words, it's not true that the deficit is increasing, it is not true that Italy is in difficulty and it's not true we are irritable. "Either Europe acknowledges the documents that Europe itself signed and takes charge of the migrants or there will be a wonderful new development - Italy will veto any budget that does not contemplate equal obligations and equal rights".



Renzi said Italy was no longer willing to be the European Union's moneybox as he reiterated his veto threat. "Each year Italy gives 20 billion euros to Europe and it gets back 12," Renzi told Radio Radicale. "Today there's a wonderful new development. Being as we are starting to discuss the budget, the Italian premier will veto any budget that does not contemplate equal obligations and equal rights. The time when Italy was the piggy bank is over".



He also said that Orban calling him "irritable" showed that his budget veto threat had "made a mark".



Orban, in response, said he was ready to veto the EU's compulsory migrant distribution quotas and said he would if necessary "file a suit" against the European Commission at the European Court of Justice. He called the quotas "a toad" that "the bigger EU members are trying to make us swallow", using an expression that means "to bite the bullet".



Orban vowed a "big battle" against the quotas and called on the Slovakian EU duty presidency to take them off the agenda of a December summit. (ANSAmed).




Local legend has it that several ghosts have taken up residence at Theatrikos Theatres Doris Harper-White Community Playhouse, and a family-friendly, interactive play will give the public the chance to hear their stories.

Be Our Ghost will be performed beginning at 2 p.m. with new tours starting every 10 minutes on Sunday, Oct. 30, at 11 W. Cherry Ave. The last performance begins at 5:30 p.m.

Audience members can choose which path to follow as they wander the halls of Theatrikos to discover clues along with the characters as they attempt to learn about the ghosts that haunt the playhouse. The historic building formerly housed the Flagstaff library.

Laugh along as a group of young friends must use their individual talents and personalities to find their way out of this not-so-scary haunted theater.

Admission is $5 at the door; get $1 off admission if you come in costume. Concessions also will be available for purchase. Proceeds will go toward TheatriKids youth programming.

Jeffrey Swann to perform Faust 1 on Halloween

Northern Arizona Universitys Horizons Concert Series has a treat for story and music lovers this Halloween. Pianist Jeffrey Swann explores Faustian influences on piano compositions in the Halloween night recital, titled, Faust 1.

The legend of the dissatisfied scholar Dr. Faustus who trades his soul with the devil in exchange for worldly pleasures has been retold by authors ranging from Christopher Marlowe to Johann Wolfgang von Goethe to Thomas Mann to David Mamet, said Director of the School of Music Todd Sullivan. Those literary tales have themselves inspired countless operatic, symphonic, and solo instrumental and vocal interpretations.

The Faust 1 program features Franz Schuberts Sonata in G Major, D. 894, and Franz Liszts transcription of the Gretchen movement from his A Faust Symphony and the Mephisto Waltz No. 1.

Swann, recently named Adel Artist-in-Residence in the School of Music, enjoys an international performing career that has taken him throughout the United States, Europe, Latin America and Asia.

Faust 1 is at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 31, in Ashurst Hall on the NAU campus. Tickets are $20 adults, $12.50 seniors and NAU employees, free for children and NAU students with ID. Contact the NAU Central Ticket Office for tickets or call 523-5661.

Free parking is available for Horizons concerts in Ashurst Hall in lots P3 (behind Gammage), P8 (north of the College of Education on Knoles Dr.) and P4 (ADA stalls near Ashurst - must have hangtag).
If youre considering a subscription to the Disney Plus streaming service, you may be wondering how much it costs. The service is available on both
In-person early voting will be available in Flagstaff and Tuba City this Saturday.

Early voting locations in both cities will open for extended hours this weekend. Anyone registered to vote in Coconino County can cast their ballot at the Coconino County Elections Office, located at 110 E. Cherry Ave. in Flagstaff, between 8 a.m. and noon Saturday, Oct. 29 or anytime between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. from Monday, Oct. 31 until Thursday, Nov. 3. Early voters from all precincts can vote at the Flagstaff location.

The Tuba City Elections Office, which is located in the basement of the Tuba City Library at 78 Main St., will be open to early voters Saturday, Oct. 29 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mountain Daylight Time, which is 8 a.m. to noon Arizona Time. Early voters can also cast ballots at the Tuba City location Monday, Oct. 31 through Friday, Nov. 4 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mountain Daylight Time. Only voters registered in the following precincts can vote early at the Tuba City Elections Office: Bodaway 42, Cameron 43, Coppermine 47, Coalmine 48, Inscription House 61, Kaibeto 65, Lechee 67, Leupp 69, Moenkopi 70, Navajo Mountain 71, Tolani Lake 88, Tonalea 90, Tuba City Northeast 93, Tuba City Northwest 94 and Tuba City South 95.

Early voting locations in Williams, Sedona, Page, Fredonia, Grand Canyon and Leupp will also be open next week. A full list of in-person early voting sites and their hours is available on the Coconino County Elections website at www.coconino.az.gov/elections.

The deadline to vote early in person is Friday, Nov. 4 at 5 pm. Some of the early voting sites are not open on Fridays.

Voters who want to receive an early ballot in the mail must request one by 5 p.m. today.

For more information, call the Coconino County Elections Office at (928) 679-7860 or toll-free at 800-793-6181.
The future Lone Tree Road traffic interchange with Interstate 40 has been debated in Flagstaff for nearly 30 years, and Tuesday night the city council demonstrated that discussion is far from over.

Since the interchange was originally included in plans in 1987, the projected cost of the project has soared from $26,000 to more than $119 million, according to documents presented by city staff Tuesday.

Members of the council debated whether the city should use some of the money that has been put away for the interchange for other, more pressing projects instead of keeping it for the future interchange.

City traffic engineer Jeff Bauman said that from a traffic improvement standpoint, the Lone Tree interchange and Lone Tree Road realignment that would come with it are Flagstaffs second highest priority, following only a Milton Road widening project.

Bauman said traffic studies conducted regarding the interchange showed that by the year 2090, if the interchange were to be added, traffic delay hours would be reduced by about 7,600 hours daily. Currently, the amount of daily delay in the city is about 5,200 hours, meaning the time saved in the future with adding the interchange is greater than the total delay experienced in Flagstaff today.

Bauman said funding possibilities include adding it to the citywide transportation tax that is up for renewal in 2018, as well as a possible easement donation from NAU and assistance from the Arizona Department of Transportation. There is no timeline available about when construction might start or when the project would be fully funded.

According to Mark Landseidel, the citys community development director, the city has about $2 million in current commitments from developers in the area who have paid into the traffic interchange, as well as $8 million in potential commitments from developers.

Because there is no timeline of the development and no identified funding source, Mayor Jerry Nabours and Councilmember Jeff Oravits expressed their desires to make use of the citys money for other improvements, rather than wait around for the interchange to become more financially feasible.

Nabours said there are other projects that fall within the umbrella of transportation and road improvements that could be completed with money the city already has, or will have, before the interchange is ready.

We get millions of dollars, we put them on the shelf and then Lone Tree Road never gets improved, Nabours said. He said there could be better uses of immediate funding without taking the interchange off the table in the future.

We arent taking the interchange out of the plan, but we are taking it out of the funding for now, Nabours said as he speculated about various options. If we had unlimited funds suddenly, magically, we would want to build it.

Oravits said he agreed that the city will need the interchange eventually, but said he didnt want to see millions tied up for something 20 to 30 years out.

Oravits said the $6 million the city has dedicated so far for the interchange will not make a big difference in creating the project in the future, but could fully fund other traffic improvement projects the city needs.

Oravits said using the money for other projects does not take away from funding for transportation improvements, because the city would need to spend the money anyway, just on a different timeline.

Councilmember Coral Evans said she worried that repurposing the money set aside for the interchange would set the timeline back when the city could scrape together the money necessary.

Where then would you get that $6 million from? she asked. If we repurpose the bulk of that money we could end up with $20 million to $25 million that youve repurposed.

Evans said the city has other funds dedicated for future projects that are currently sitting in the bank, but said there is a reason the city chooses to save for bigger projects.

Councilmember Eva Putzova echoed concerns about repurposing the money, and said she wanted to make sure the interchange remained the citys first priority, and said she wanted to keep all funding sources, including developers contributions, as options for the interchange.

Jeff Meilbeck, the CEO of the Northern Arizona Intergovernmental Transportation Authority and former interim Flagstaff City Manager, encouraged the council to continue to look at the big picture when assessing the interchange. Meilbeck said the city needs to put together a plan for the interchange and then see how all the smaller pieces fit together.

Once we commit to these projects, then we find the resources to get it done, Meilbeck said.

The council did not decide to give city staff much direction on the issue of the interchange, and city staff will bring back some options for the council concerning funding the interchange and what to do with existing funds at an upcoming meeting.
PHOENIX -- Navajo County has given up on its bid to seize the vehicle of an elderly Washington couple.

But it won't end the legal bid to void the state forfeiture laws that allow prosecutors to seize cash and property without having to prove a crime was committed.

In a filing in Navajo County Superior Court, Deputy County Attorney Jason Moore insisted his office had the legal right to take the 2012 VW Jetta belonging to Terry and Maria Platt. They had loaned the vehicle to their son, Shea, who was arrested on Interstate 40 near Holbrook earlier this year after the Department of Public Safety said it found a quantity of marijuana and more than $31,000 in cash.

Moore said in the legal papers, though, his office decided to return the vehicle "as a matter of ensuring a basic, just result.''

Attorney Paul Avelar of the Institute for Justice said that ends one lawsuit, the one the couple filed to recover the vehicle. But he said the Platts are going to pursue their separate claim that the county violated their civil rights in taking their car without any evidence linking them to any crime.

More significant, that lawsuit asks a judge to declare the state's civil forfeiture statutes unconstitutional, a move that, if upheld by appellate courts, could put a permanent end to the process statewide.

No one at the Navajo County Attorney's Office would comment.

On a surface level, Avelar said prosecutors illegally ignored the couple's legal objections to taking the vehicle and their claims they had no knowledge or culpability for anything their son did. The decision by Moore to drop the county's claim solves that part of the problem.

Avelar said, though, that one legal issue remains.

"That says you have violated, are violating and threaten to continue to violate our rights,'' he said. Avelar said he wants a judge to declare that the couple's civil rights were violated and order a nominal award of $1"for the harms we have already suffered.''

But the real key is Avelar's bid to have the whole civil forfeiture law declared unconstitutional.

It permits a prosecutor, working with police, to take property linked to a crime. But there is no requirement that the person from whom the property was taken actually be charged with breaking the law, much less that there be a conviction.

The law does allow individuals to contest the seizure. But the burden is on them to file the lawsuit, pay the filing fees and, if they can't figure out the legal system on their own, hire an attorney.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. US first lady Michelle Obama has appeared for the first time during this presidential election race with Hillary Clinton, whom she called "my girl", reports BBC.

At a rally in the swing state of North Carolina, the former rivals heaped praise on each other's commitment to public service, women and children.

Mrs Obama said Mrs Clinton was the most prepared candidate for the presidency ever, including both their husbands.

The display of unity follows past friction between the two of them.

But on Thursday the two sought to convince the crowd their relationship was more than a political alliance born out of shared interests.

Mrs Clinton, meanwhile, is hoping that some of the first lady's popularity rubs off on her.

The event at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem drew some 11,000 people, one of largest crowds of Mrs Clinton's campaign.

The former secretary of state spoke first to promise that as president she would continue with the "legacy that President Obama has built".

She praised the first lady, saying: "Seriously, is there anyone more inspiring than Michelle Obama?"

Then Mrs Obama took to the stage, saying of the former first lady: "Yes, she is absolutely ready to be commander-in-chief on day one.

"And yes, she happens to be a woman!"

She said Mr Trump's strategy was to "make this election so dirty and ugly that we want no part of it".

"They are trying to take away your hope," she told the crowd.

Mrs Obama also called Mrs Clinton "my friend" and described their shared experience of raising children in the White House.

The two were promoting Mrs Clinton's plan to deliver $500m (411m) in funding to states that develop anti-bullying initiatives.

But the Clinton campaign hopes Mrs Obama's imprimatur will help galvanise female voters, especially black women.

Like many of her predecessors, Mrs Obama has hewed closely to non-partisan issues, focusing on healthy eating and support for military families.

While she was first lady, Mrs Clinton had an office in the West Wing and made a doomed attempt to overhaul US healthcare.

While Mrs Clinton harboured political ambitions beyond her husband's presidency, Mrs Obama does not seem interested in pursuing her own political career further.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. Delegates from 24 countries and the European Union have agreed that the Ross Sea in Antarctica will become the world's largest marine protected area (MPA), BBC reported.

Some 1.57m sq km (600,000 sq miles) of the Southern Ocean will gain protection from commercial fishing for 35 years.

Environmentalists have welcomed the move to protect what's said to be the Earth's most pristine marine ecosystem.

They hope it will be the first of many such zones in international waters.

At this meeting in Hobart, Australia, the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) agreed unanimously to designate the Ross Sea as an MPA, after years of protracted negotiations, New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully announced.

The Ross Sea, its shelf and slope only comprise 2% of the Southern Ocean but they are home to 38% of the world's Adelie penguins, 30% of the world's Antarctic petrels and around 6% of the world's population of Antarctic minke whales.

The region is important to the rest of the planet as the upwelling of nutrients from the deep waters are carried on currents around the world.

The Ross Sea is also home to huge numbers of krill, a staple food for species including whales and seals. Their oil is critical for salmon farming. However there are concerns that overfishing and climate change are having significant impacts on their numbers.

The proposal, introduced by New Zealand and the US, and accepted by all the other nations, will see a general protection "no-take" zone where nothing can be removed including marine life and minerals.

As part of the compromise that emerged in negotiations, there will be special zones where fishing from krill and toothfish will be allowed for research purposes.

"I'm absolutely overjoyed," said Lewis Pugh, the UN Patron for the Oceans, and someone who has campaigned for years in support of this new MPA.

"This is the biggest protected area on the land or the sea, this is the first large scale MPA on the high seas, they are largely unprotected."

The ocean advocate and swimmer drew attention to the Ross Sea with a series of swims in the icy waters - and for two years he has engaged in a series of meetings, dubbed "speedo diplomacy" with Russian officials to convince them of the value of the MPA.

One of the key questions in the negotiations was how long the MPA should last. China is on the record as stating it believes that 20 years is long enough for a designation.

Many conservationists say this is far too short, given the lifespan of creatures that life in the Ross Sea, such as whales.

Ultimately, the parties agreed on 35 years.

The designation was welcomed not just by campaigners but also by those with close links to the Ross Sea.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad conveyed his gratitude to Russian President Vladimir Putin for his assistance in fighting terrorism, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem, who is on a visit to Moscow, stated during the talks with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, TASS reports.

"President Assad has instructed me to convey gratitude on behalf of the Syrian people and government to you and President Putin for your effective assistance in the fight against terrorism," Muallem said.

"We seek to free our land from terrorists so we highly appreciate Russian and Iranian efforts aimed at achieving this goal," Syrian top diplomat said. "Our countries have common goals that is why we continue to coordinate our actions almost on a daily basis."

Muallem also thanked Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu for providing the opportunity to develop bilateral relations "in the context of the campaign to pursue terrorists that we have been carrying out."

Damascus is ready to resume the ceasefire but only if there are guarantees that civilians will be able to leave the city, Walid Muallem has noted.

"Recently, we have made a decision to suspend hostilities in Aleppo. The ceasefire lasted for three days," Muallem said. "We have banned Syrian warplanes flights over Aleppo and the ban is still in force."

In the meantime, Muallem said "terrorists from Jabhat al-Nusra (outlawed in Russia) and Ahrar ash-Sham threatened civilians who were going to leave Aleppo."

"In other words, we introduced a ceasefire for humanitarian reasons, but the civilians were unable to use it," he said, adding Damascus was "ready to resume the ceasefire, but only with guarantees provided by terrorists patrons that the ceasefire will allow civilians leave the city.

Damascus is set to immediately resume the intra-Syrian talks in Geneva, Muallem stated.

"We in Syria are ready to work to find a political solution to the Syria crisis and are also set to immediately resume the intra-Syrian talks, without any external interference. Moreover, an invitation to the Geneva negotiations was dated May, 2016," Muallem said. "However, the United States and their allies do not allow the talks to take place."

The intra-Syrian talks were suspended in late April as they failed to reach any visible results. Deadlines for the resumption of the negotiations have been extended repeatedly.








YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. The election of the Patriarch of Istanbul is not a historical, as it has been described by some experts, but rather it is a normal process which must have been done earlier, Expert on Turkish Studies Ruben Melkonyan told a press conference in Armenpress.

The Supreme Church Council has made a decision to request the Turkish authorities to hold Patriarch elections, whereas, it could be done earlier. The undue delay of the election process cannot have any grounds. Patriarch Mesrop Mutafyans health deterioration is not new. His incurable disease has a several years of history, and during those years starting from 2008 the community was led by Patriarchal Vicar Aram Ateshyan. Unfortunately, he didn't solve a number of community issues during those years of leadership, moreover, new problems emerged, Ruben Melkonyan said.

Melkonyan said the Armenians of Turkey do not have another organizational, governing body. The only structure that can present Armenians interests in the Turkish government bodies is the Armenian Patriarchate of Istanbul. He said the Patriarch is considered as leader.

During those years there was a gap between the community and the Patriarchate. The community distanced from its main governing body. Aram Ateshyans activities caused a certain negative attitude among wide circles of Armenians, he said.

To the question why at this stage it was decided to elect the Patriarch, Ruben Melkonyan brought two reasons. First reason is associated with the calls of the Holy See on holding elections. Second reason was related to Ateshyans reaction over the Bundestag decision on the Armenian Genocide, which aroused the anger of Armenians.

The pressure that occurred in Armenia, Diaspora, I think, that became the reason for starting the Patriarchs election process. This is an attempt of easing the tension to some extent, Ruben Melkonyan said recalling that Arem Ateshyan has repeatedly announced that he is going to request the Turkish authorities over holding elections, but he hasnt done it yet.

A decision has been made during the October 26 church meeting in the Armenian Patriarchate of Istanbul to request the Turkish authorities to grant a privilege of electing a new patriarch.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. The Seismological Network of the Seismic Protection Service of the Emergency Situations Ministry documented a 2.7 magnitude earthquake on October 28, 12:05 local time. The depth of the quake was 10km.

The Emergency Situations ministry told ARMENRESS the epicenter of the quake was 3-4 magnitude.

The earthquake was felt in Kapan and Meghri, with 3 and 3-4 magnitudes respectively.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. Russian military have asked President Vladimir Putin, who is the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, to permit resumption of airstrikes at militants in eastern Aleppo, Armenpress reports, citing TASS, Gen Sergey Rudskoi, the chief of the main department for operations at the General Staff of the Armed Forces said on October 28.

"Since civilians continue dying and the militants have resumed active combat actions against government forces, we've asked the Supreme Commander to authorize resumption of airstrikes at illegal paramilitary formations in eastern Aleppo," he said.

Rudskoi stressed the Russian combat planes in Syria have steered clear of the 10-kilometer zone around Aleppo for a tenth day running.

"All flights by Russian and Syrian warplanes inside the ten-kilometer zone around the city have remained paused for a tenth day running, although the situation around Aleppo remains complicated," he said.

According to Rudskoi, groups of militants have tried to break through into the eastern part of Aleppo in Syria.

"Militants from the eastern parts of Aleppo and their protectors organized an attack on the humanitarian corridor near the Al-Khai Souq market," the senior military official said. "It resulted in numerous victims among the civilians and governmental troops."

"All attacks of militants have been repelled, a total of eight tanks and five infantry fighting vehicles," Rudskoi added.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 28, ARMENPRESS. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry continued discussing ways of settling the Syrian conflict, including the normalization of the situation around Aleppo, by telephone on October 28.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said that the conversation had taken place at the request of the US side.

"The foreign policy chiefs continued discussing ways of settling the Syrian conflict, including the normalization of the situation around Aleppo, with account taken of fundamental approaches contained in the previously reached Russian-US agreements. For that, the United States should ultimately differentiate moderate opposition (in Syria) from terror groups," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

"Lavrov and Kerry also discussed assistance to the solution of crises in Yemen and Libya as well as separate issues of bilateral agenda," the Russian Foreign Ministry stressed.
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Less than 4 percent of New Mexico is in drought according to the most recent data, but officials expect that number to jump next month.

The Albuquerque Journal reports at Thursdays meeting of the New Mexico Drought Monitoring Workgroup officials said that percentage will increase after the latest data has been analyzed thanks to a particularly dry October. National Weather Service Senior Hydrologist Royce Fontenot says current drought numbers are low after an average September, but in October topsoil moisture has been dropping dramatically.

Current data shows 4 percent of the state is in moderate drought, about half is abnormally dry and about 46 percent is free of drought or abnormally dry conditions. State climatologist Dave DuBois says expansion of abnormally dry or drought conditions is likely, especially in the east-central part of the state.
The conductor leads two orchestras on different sides of the world, and the disconnects arent just geographic. The New York and Hong Kong orchestras are not just distant geographically  they are also at very different phases of their development, requiring different types of effort from their shared music director.
PHOENIX -- Undeterred by her 11-point GOP primary loss just two months ago to John McCain, former state Sen. Kelli Ward is planning another run for U.S. Senate, this time aiming to unseat fellow Republican Jeff Flake.

"I filed my paperwork," Ward said Wednesday on her weekly radio talk show on KFNN. "I'm taking on Flake for the sake of our nation."

The 2018 campaign is shaping up in some ways to be similar to this year's Republican primary where Ward argued that McCain, elected to the U.S. House in 1982 and the Senate four years later, is not representing the interests of GOP voters. She said the same is true of Flake even though he has not been in Washington nearly as long as the state's senior senator.

"We deserve to have at least one Republican senator," she said. "I'm looking forward to being that true Republican, not a Republican in name only."

And Ward insisted that it might be easier to defeat Flake in a GOP primary than her ill-fated effort against McCain.

"Sen. Flake might be semi well liked," she said.

"But he doesn't have the longevity of John McCain, he doesn't have the reach of John McCain, he doesn't have the war hero status of John McCain," Ward said. "And so I think that it's an excellent opportunity for us."

Flake appeared to be taking the challenge in stride, suggesting he never thought he was going to get a free ride for his bid for a second term, even from his own party.

"Shots at a seat in the Senate don't come along very often," he said in a statement Thursday to Capitol Media Services.

"We fully expect to have capable challengers next cycle, both in the primary and the general (election)," Flake said. "We'll be prepared."

He already is part-way there.

The most recent reports filed with the Federal Election commission show that with the election two years away Flake already has close to $600,000 in the bank. Ward, by contrast, ended up in debt after her primary loss to McCain, spending more than $1.5 million including $115,000 of her own cash on the political outing.

But her taste for the fight apparently has not been dulled.

"I'm going to take on the establishment once again," she said.

One thing that's different is timing: Ward waited until July 2015 before jumping into the 2016 GOP primary.

"We're starting early, even before the (November) presidential," Ward said Wednesday. And Ward, an unabashed Trump supporter, said her campaign is not dependent on who is in the White House.

"Regardless of the outcome of the presidential election we are going to need people in Washington, D.C. who are willing to fight the establishment, who are willing to stand up for the people they represent," she said.

While Flake went to the U.S. House in 2001 as a conservative, his public positions since then have become decidedly more mixed.

Of particular note is his vociferous support of free trade as well as his vocal backing of the push by the Obama administration to normalize relations with Cuba. Both are at diametric odds with the position being taken by GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.
by Sumon Corraya

Dhaka (AsiaNews) - For the first time ever in Bangladesh a Catholic was elected to fill one of the highest offices of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), the largest opposition party. Albert P Costa is a member of the Bhadun Gazipur parish, near the capital. He was elected yesterday as president of Jubo Dal, the youth wing of the party that plays a decisive role in political activism. His appointment represents quite an exceptional circumstance in Bangladesh, where Catholics represent just 0.4% of the population out of a total of about 160 million inhabitants.



Immediately after his election, Albert P Costa told AsiaNews: "I got this job at a time of extreme difficulty for the BNP. Thousands of our activists are subjected to legal proceedings by the Bangladeshi ruling party Awami League. I will take this responsibility seriously. I will reorganize the party from the groud up".



The Catholic has replaced Moazzem Hossain Alal, who was elected Deputy Secretary-General for political education. Albert has been the president of the Metropolitan Christian Co-operative Housing Society Ltd for some time. It is the leading organization for cooperation in Bangladesh, managed by Christians.Bangladesh
by Mathias Hariyadi

Jakarta (AsiaNews) - Bernadette Saragih FSE is a Franciscan nun who for years has dedicated herself to saving young women from human trafficking. Her journey began in 1991, when she was sent to Batam Island, the most direct access to Singapore (just 30 minutes by boat). There, she met a lot of girls from the province of West Kalimantan who work as 'domestic maids' in Singapore.



Sr. Bernadette tells AsiaNews: "In Batam, many young mothers and girls are involved in illegal soliciting without the ability to react. Most of them are offered a job as a 'maid' but then are manipulated and forced by the local underworld to work in local nightclubs and prostitution racket. They would like to end it, but do not know how to because doing so would mean no more money to send to their families. "



Batam today is a safe haven for the exploiters of prostitution, which is an illegal activity in Singapore. This is where Sr. Bernadette, along with local NGO began to assist these desperate girls. "Often they come to the convent -s he says - the I take care of them and help them to go back home. I once helped a young girl who had just finished high school, I sent her to Medan and now she has graduated. "



In February, the nun contacted AsiaNews - she was going to someone to Kupang in East Nusa Tenggara - asking for help to bring a young woman, a former maid' in Malaysia, home to her native village. Unfortunately, because of tight schedules, it was not possible.



Four years ago, the sisters superior formally assigned Sr. Bernadette the task of dealing with issues of human trafficking. "I'm doing my mission together with the 'Association of Indonesian religious, the Socio-economic Commission of the Archdiocese of Medan and the Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC).

In Medan, many of the victims are from the Indonesian province of East Nusa Tenggara and West Nusa Tenggara. These girls are 'blocked' due to a lack of education. Sometimes, because of the abuses and violence, they decide to escape and taxi drivers or local police bring them to us. Seeing them in desperate situations touches me deeply inside, there are cases of tuberculosis, malnutrition, broken legs because of the violence. Sometimes we do not have time to save them and they die in our arms ... This is our vocation in today's world - concludes the nun  to help those who are desperate in any way we can".
by Sun Da Chuan

Sun Da Chuan, 62, is a Taiwanese aboriginal politician. The islands tribal cultures have been targeted by colonisers since the 16th century, most recently by the Japanese and the Chinese. The attempted revival involves educating young people and strengthening their faith.

Taipei (AsiaNews)  Sun Da Chuan (  ), 62, is a Taiwanese aboriginal political leader. He belongs to the Puyuma tribe. He was minister of the Indigenous Peoples Council from 2009 to 2013, and is still a government adviser. He holds a degree in Chinese literature from the National Taiwan University and one in philosophy from Fu Jen Catholic University. He has a doctorate in Sinology from the Catholic University of Louvain. In this piece, he tells AsiaNews about his experience as a citizen and a Catholic.

Often marginalised, aboriginal tribes have been caught up in Taiwans industrial development, with the consequent urbanisation and cultural impoverishment of migrants in the cities. Sun Da Chaun fears that aboriginal people will disappear, assimilated by the dominant culture. In Taiwan Aborigines make up 2 per cent of the population.

As a child I followed the traditions of my tribe, the age-old customs that have marked the lives of many an ancestor and that unite us as Aboriginal people to our origins. In recent years the government has recognised us many rights that we were denied before. If we think about it, it is something paradoxical because we are the ones who have inhabited these lands for centuries.

Our elders say that nothing and no one can destroy our deep indigenous education. All the children grow up touched by it. When we grow up we wonder what we can do, how we can contribute to society. In any case, we cannot rest on our laurels because, in my view, we are now in a phase of decline as an ethnicity, although there is still a lot of hope and many talents among the new generations.

When we were little we were afraid that our language and our culture would be lost, that all our festivities and our tribal initiation and cultural traditions would be extinguished. It would be like losing our identity as Aborigines.

This threat to the old traditions began about 400 years ago with the arrival of foreign conquerors from the mainland and Europe. Then 50 years of Japanese rule segregated us in the mountains without protection from the government, unlike today.

When I was little I really had this sense of insecurity, fear of loss of our traditions. Perhaps it was a personal feeling. I asked my peers, and they too had the same feeling in our community.

Our generation grew up learning Japanese: it was our first language. I grew up speaking Japanese with the adults of our tribes along with our aboriginal language. Then I started learning Chinese from scratch. This experience was not easy, having to learn from scratch a language to communicate with those who do not belong to the tribe.

The feeling that our culture was on the decline is unfortunately an important point. I am not exaggerating about what I am presenting here. It is a fact that we feel deeply. The dominant culture is something that threatens to engulf everything. This is also because young people can say, "let us become like the others and forget our roots."

There are people who, joking perhaps or maybe not, accuse me of being the Taiwanese Nietzsche, of being too pessimistic about the future of aboriginal culture. My friends tell me: "Nietzsche said that God was dead, and you say that our culture is now dead."

But I believe that I am presenting truthful points. However, history goes on, and in many cases we cannot help it but take note of the situation and adapt. But we cannot simply acquiesce to the simple will of the government of the day. We cannot erase a culture, first of all because it is a human right and secondly because it is a treasure for the whole society.

With respect to my affiliation with the Christian community, I would like to emphasise two important points.

On the one hand, we who are at the helm of civil society groups or in the Church hierarchy must consider the rights of each individual, because if we respect the rights of people, the quality of life of each improves and together we can overcome many challenges.

On the other hand, we have to meet the needs of others in an evangelical spirit, especially if, for now, society is unable to take charge of that. I speak especially of those who may feel marginalised because they belong to minorities or because they are in difficult situations.

This is why in 1993 we launched a new cultural magazine (Mountain and Sea, ) to show aboriginal traditions in a spirit of openness and understanding. We needed to breathe new life, and learn about our culture. The new generations have to respect and remember our culture; otherwise, many elements will be lost.

The government allowed us to open a TV channel; Aboriginal television is also very important. Without a TV channel and a printed magazine to disseminate our traditions, nobody would have listened to our voice. We have produced a number of programmes and made agreements with aboriginal broadcasters in other countries. This has strengthened us a lot and brought to us other important experiences.

One of the people who has helped us a lot is our own aboriginal bishop, Mgr Tseng (     ), who is retiring this year. He is a great friend of our family. He is very simple and accessible, and deeply embodies our culture.

The missionaries educated all of our generations, broadening our horizons. Thanks to the efforts of Mgr Tseng and many missionaries, a third of Taiwanese Aborigines are Catholics.

They were able to penetrate our tribal language with the stories of the Bible. We prayed a lot to have one of our own as bishop, and with Mgr Tseng this wish has come true.

This has brought our concerns and our expectations to the top echelons of the Bishops Conference, and especially highlighted the richness of our contribution to the Christian community and society as a whole. Moreover, thanks to the dictionary that he compiled and his translation of the New Testament we have been able to feel more as ours the message of Jesus and the Church.

Together we launched many activities for the Catholic aboriginal community, especially the biennial meeting for all pastoral workers, beginning in 1999. Undoubtedly, this has kept alive the sense of unity of believers and found great support from the Bishops Conference.

As for the civil society, relations with the government have improved tremendously. I, as vice president of Taiwans Supervisory Institute ( ), and many other Aboriginal people of my generation, we have reached important positions in the central government. This would have been unthinkable 60 years ago.

As for the Church, we are very active, but perhaps not as active as in the past. We want to work to regain energy as in the good old days. All the conditions are there: in my diocese of Taidung-Hualien alone, there are 40 aboriginal diocesan priests, who speak our language, and can communicate very well with our young people, and understand the needs of our families and our seniors. Our mountain communities especially need to feel that our energy is also present in the cities and main centres of the Christian community.

As a representative of the government and the aboriginal community, I try to offer the best example to pass on the baton to our young people. I am convinced that they too will give the best of themselves in the Church and civil society, especially in defence of the voiceless, following the example of what is written in the Gospel.

(Xin Yage contributed to this article)
by Maria Yuan

He had been ill for several years. He spent 15 years in prison for his faith. In 2011 he retired and was succeeded by Mgr John Baptist Yang Xiaoting. Since 1992, the diocese of Yulin also includes Yanan, one of the glorious places of the Long March.

Xian (AsiaNews)  Retired Bishop Francis Tong Hui of Yulin, northern Shaanxi, died of illness overnight on Oct. 27 at the age of 84.

Bishop Tong, who had been sick for years, was supposed to celebrate the 60th anniversary of his priestly ordination this coming Christmas, as he was ordained a priest on Dec. 23, 1956. He was a native of Lintong, Shaanxi.

After becoming a priest in those difficult years for the Church in China, he was jailed for 15 years in March 1965. He was freed in January 1980 and served as a parish pastor in several parishes in Xian diocese (Shaanxi).

In 1993, he became a vicar general of Yulin diocese, then headed by Bishop Wang Zhenye (1991-1999). On March 19, 1994, he was ordained the coadjutor bishop of Yulin. On April 25, 1999, he became the ordinary of Yulin diocese.

In 2010, John Baptist Yang Xiaoting was ordained coadjutor bishop of Yulin. At Yangs ordination, Bishop Tong, who was ill, only made a brief appearance during the liturgy. On March 25, 2011, Bishop Tong officially retired.

Yulin diocese was a place of missionary activity of the Congregation of Sacred Heart of Mary and the Franciscan Order. It was named apostolic vicariate of Yanan in 1924. In 1992, that changed to Yulin diocese, covering Yulin city and Yanan city. Yanan was once an important revolutionary base of Chinas Communists.

According to an online news report dated Sept 1, 2016 by the Shijiazhuang-based Faith Press in China, Yulin diocese has 46 churches, and 73 prayer houses and activities sites. The diocese is served by 34 priests and 36 sisters. It has about 70,000 Catholics.

The diocese is building a 50-metre-tall church, with a width of 28 metres and 60 metres in length, reportedly to be the largest church in northwestern China, the report said.
Six teachers and 22 students died in the air raid. Moscow - and the UN secretary general - call for immediate and thorough investigation. Three children killed, 14 people injured in Aleppo hit by rockets fired by insurgents. Europe imposes new sanctions on 10 leading figures linked to the Damascus government.

Damascus (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Moscow denies any involvement in the airstrike in Idlib province, which caused at least 28 deaths including 22 children and six teachers.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has called for the immediate opening of a thorough investigation to shed light on the dynamics and identify responsibilities. The area is controlled by the rebels; the United Nations Secretary General says the raid "could constitute a war crime."



"The Russian Federation has nothing to do with this terrible tragedy, with this attack," said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova yesterday, adding that Moscow calls for an "immediate investigation" on the matter. The senior Russian official also called the claims of Russian or Syrian involvement in the operation a "lie".

The charges of Russian or Syrian responsibility in the attack on the village of Haas School was made by the London based NGO Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which has an extensive network of sources on the ground. The organization, according to the critics too close to the West (and the rebels), says at least "six Russian or Syrian air raids took place, no one knows for sure."



The Moscow government vehemently denies any involvement in the affair.



Meanwhile, three children have died and 14 others were wounded in the area west of Aleppo yesterday, controlled by the government in Damascus. Local sources said that rockets were fired from the eastern sector of the northern metropolis, in the hands of the rebels and militiamen jihadists, that hit a school in the west.



The news was reported by the official Syrian news agency Sana, describing a of "terrorist" attack against a state school in Shahba district, on the western outskirts of a town divided since 2012 into two sectors. The rebels regularly fire rockets, more or less homemade, into west Aleppo, where the majority of the population (1.2 million people, compared with 250 thousand in the sector east), frequently killing civilians.

Civilian casualties were also recorded in the vicinity of Damascus, with the death of at least eight people in a rocket attack operated by government forces in Douma, in the eastern region of Ghouta. It is an area under Syrian regular army siege since 2013.



The war in Syria first flared up in March 2011 as street protests against President Bashar al-Assa. In five years it has resulted in more than at least 300 thousand deaths (430 thousand according to other sources) and millions of refugees. Western nations have repeatedly issued sanctions against the government leaders and prominent Syrian figures.

Yesterday the European Union added another 10 senior Syrian officials to the blacklist for participating in various ways in the "violent repression" of the civilian population. These would include "prominent military and the regime linked leaders."



Last week, the heads of State and Government of the EU agreed on the increase of sanctions against President Assad's regime; citing the war for control of Aleppo, the former economic and commercial capital of the country.



Last week the European Union was ready to threaten Syrias chief ally Russia with sanctions. However, the intervention of the Italian government curbed - for the moment - the possibility of sanctions wanted by France and Germany. A further sign of tension on going between Moscow and the Western bloc, which seems grow harsher as time goes on and the conflict worsens.



The idea of an offensive against Raqqa, a stronghold of the Islamic State in Syria, is also being touted following the model of what is happening in Mosul in Iraq. However, this could complicate the situation on the ground even more given the direct involvement of foreign powers (see Turkey) to defend their interests. "Now we are moving towards al-Bab" said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The next goals are Manbij - in the hands of the Syrian Kurdish militias - and Raqqa.
"The cornerstone of the Church is our Lord in front of the Father who intercedes on our behalf, who is praying for us. We pray to Him but the key thing is that He is praying for us". "We are all like a building, but the foundation is Jesus, Jesus praying for us. Jesus praying for me. "

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - " The cornerstone of the Church is our Lord in front of the Father who intercedes on our behalf, who is praying for us. We pray to Him but the key thing is that He is praying for us said Pope Francis at Mass this morning in Santa Marta.

Taking his cue from the Gospel reading from Luke (6,12-16) recounting how Jesus spent the night in prayer before choosing his disciples, the Popes homily reflected on the fundamental importance of prayer for Christians. He said whilst Jesus is the cornerstone of the Church and there is no Church without Him, the key to this cornerstone is Jesus who is praying for us.

Jesus went up to the mountain to pray and he spent the night in prayer to God. And then the rest followed, the crowds, the choosing of his disciples, the healings, the casting out of demons Yes, the cornerstone is Jesus but Jesus who prays. Jesus is praying. He prayed and he continues to pray for the Church. The cornerstone of the Church is our Lord in front of the Father who intercedes on our behalf, who is praying for us. We pray to Him but the key thing is that He is praying for us.

Pope Francis went on to describe how Jesus always prayed for his followers, be it at the Last Supper or before performing a miracle such as when he prayed to the Father before raising Lazarus from the dead.

Jesus prayed on the Mount of Olives, on the Cross, he ended praying: his life ended in prayer. And this is our security, this is our foundation, this is our cornerstone: Jesus who is praying for us! Jesus who is praying for me! And each of us can say this: I am certain that Jesus is praying for me; that he is in front of the Father and naming me. This is the cornerstone of the Church: Jesus in prayer.

Another example of Jesus praying for his followers, said the Pope, came before his Passion when Jesus told Peter he had been praying for him to withstand Satans temptation and for his faith to hold firm.

And what Jesus tells Peter, he tells you and you and me, everybody: I have prayed for you, I am praying for you, I am now praying for you and when He comes onto the altar, He comes to intercede, to pray for us. As he did on the Cross. And this gives us a great sense of security. I belong to this community thats solid because Jesus is its cornerstone, Jesus who is praying for me, who is praying for us. Today wed do well to reflect on the Church, reflect on this mystery of the Church. We are all like a building but its foundation is Jesus, Jesus who is praying for us, Jesus who is praying for me.
How To Appreciate Wine

How To Truly Appreciate Wine (Without Becoming A Snob)

Disclosure: the following article was written based on a press trip.

Drinking beer? Its in our nature as men. Drinking liquor? Were quick to learn. But when it comes to wine, we sometimes bypass it because of the learning curve. With the first two, you cant really go all too wrong from a menu or in a store, but with wine, it can feel like you need to have a basic education to know what youre doing.



Ive always appreciated wine but I would never be mistaken for a connoisseur. In hopes of understanding why people are so passionate about it, I took on an invitation to visit the Spanish wine regions of Ribera Del Duero and Rueda. The goal wasnt to become a sommelier; I just wanted to learn what Im doing in general without becoming that stereotypical wine snob. As it turns out, wine is a quick study. Heres how to appreciate wine without becoming a snob about it.

Geek Out A Little Bit

The first key is to reframe the whole process: forget about it being intimidating, its just a passion. For a gender that has no problem geeking out on comic books, cars and fantasy sports, delving into something like wine shouldnt be daunting. Its just another interest that some of us obsess about while others are content with a surface knowledge.

In many ways, wines are kind of like cars and if most men looked at it the same way, it would be so much easier to understand. We know that Porsche and Ferrari are high-end cars, American manufacturers make good trucks and Japanese cars are reliable. Some people can tell you every BMW make and model, and how they differ, whereas others just know where the brand stands in the general power rankings.



The same goes for wine. Is it overwhelming if you walk into the liquor store and dont know much about the regions or varietals or vintages? It can be. But read a little bit, download an app and talk to the people who have learned a little bit already and youll start to get an idea.

Learn From Those Who Know

No, you dont need a sweater tied around your shoulders and a country club membership to get started. The way to be introduced is by leaning on those who know a little bit more than you.

Have some friends over, do a dinner and ask everyone to bring bottles that they like or that were recommended to them, says Alex LaPratt, master sommelier and owner of Atrium DUMBO and Beasts & Bottles restaurants in Brooklyn. That way everyone could taste more types in a fun group setting!



That works. You can also learn straight from YouTube, or chat with sommeliers (they love to share their knowledge) and wine shop workers. But the key is to lean on someone who knows. Just like grilling steaks or investing, or any of our other popular passions, someone typically gives you a boost to get started. The same goes for wine.

Get To Know What You Like

Nobody is saying that you should become a sommelier. However, its good to get an idea of what you like in a wine. Do you like white or red (or both)? Do you like bold and full-bodied, or do you prefer lighter, elegant wines? As you taste different wines, take mental notes.



I would say the best way is to start with an example of something you know you like and look for a region with a similar winemaking style, says Brahm Callahan, MS, Beverage Director, Himmel Hospitality Group and Ribera y Rueda ambassador. For example if you like Bordeaux you might want to try reds from Ribera del Duero in Spain. The wines are similar in style with ripe red and black fruits, subtle undertones of earth and notes of vanilla and cinnamon from restrained use of French Oak.



All you have to do is taste some wines and learn to describe them a little bit. Once you know what you like, youll start to get an understanding of the regions, and the types of grapes and how they taste. That makes it so much easier to pick a winner next time youre in the store or at a restaurant.

Go On A Wine Trip

Back to the car analogy: imagine you and a friend visit the BMW factory in Germany and burn rubber on the German autobahn. Think thats a little different than simply going to your local dealership?



Embarking on a wine trip  as I did  is a completely different way to discover the passion. And it helps that the best wine regions are often in the most attractive countries to visit. Youll meet plenty of winemakers and quickly discover that theyre among the most interesting people. Theyre passionate about their craft and theyre happy to share their art. It makes it really easy to fall in love.



One of my first memories is me aged 7 or 8, inside a barrel with a candle and a brush, says Jose Moro, the son of Don Emilio Moro and current president of the Bodega Emilio Moro. I used to clean the inside because the space was only big enough for a child. I treasure those memories as much as the values my father taught me: hard work, sacrifice and humbleness.



These types of stories create a connection to the region and to the wine. And if you can go tour the vineyards, to touch the grapes and to hear the stories, wine will win you over.



Pair It With Friends And Food

Lunch in the Spanish countryside. #SiWhatsNext @riberaruedawine @bodegasemiliomoro A photo posted by Dave Golokhov (@davegolokhov) on Sep 6, 2016 at 4:39am PDT



Why people fall in love with wine is the overall experience. It pairs well with food and it attracts good conversation. Whether with family or friends, whether its the stories of the wines themselves or the personal stories that emerge after a glass or two, wine is a facilitator of the overall experience.



Wine is an excellent facilitator of human relations, says legendary winemaker Alejandro Fernandez of Grupo Pesquera.



Thats the easiest way to get an appreciation for it. And rumor has it, its healthy, too.
Yes, we did it. I did it. My family. I found a note in the basement: We killed Himsigned Morty.

Why did you kill Christ, Jew? We killed him because he didnt want to become a doctor, thats why.

Not only did we kill him, but were gonna kill him again when he comes back.

I was a Jew talking about Goyim. If I had just stuck to Moses, everything would have been cool. But, copping to being part of the whole Christ murder conspiracy got everyone goose-stepping again.

Linguist Noam Chomsky of MIT, another of those excommunicated, recalled that he shared the honor with the 17th century Dutch philosopher Benedict de Spinoza.

For decades Ive joked about an institution I founded called the Spinoza Society. Its a group of distinguished Jews who, over the ages, have been ostracized or excommunicated from their respective Jewish communities for holding views outside the mainstream. They were dissenters who chose a different path. One that took them outside the mainstream, but resulted in ultimate vindication. Of course the first, and charter member was Baruch Spinoza . He was excommunicated from the Amsterdam Jewish Community in the 17th century for speaking heresies in which he denied the Afterlife and that God acted outside the natural order. His co-religionists deemed such views as dangerous and sent him packing.If we look for the first Jews expelled from the community, we need look no farther than the Bible, where women who were menstruating and all who had skin diseases like leprosy were expelled from the camp  (i.e. the community). They were seen as defiling the sacred Tabernacle and therefore must be set apart from it till their ailments were healed. Some may argue that women today continued to be viewed as tainted and certainly less valued than men, especially in the Orthodox community. But this ostracism derived from a physical condition rather than a personal belief or expression.Einstein was a heretic of sorts as well, because he rejected Jabotinskys Zionist Revisionism. He denounced Etsel and the Irgun going back to the late 1940s and called them misled and criminal people. He also refused to accept the honor of being Israels second president when it was offered to him. Einstein rejected nationalism, which was the epitome of Zionism. He too is an honored member of the Spinoza Society.One of the most transgressive members of the club was Lenny Bruce, who was not afraid of telling all of our darkest secrets to the goyim. His provocative comedy created a love-hate relationship both with his audience and among American Jews. Here is one of his classic jokes about killing Christ:Heres another that drove him from the Israelite camp:Speaking of great Jewish comedians commenting on being kicked out of the tribe, Groucho of course told the famous joke: PLEASE ACCEPT MY RESIGNATION. I DONT WANT TO BELONG TO ANY CLUB THAT WILL ACCEPT PEOPLE LIKE ME AS A MEMBER.I was one of the early members of New Jewish Agenda , a progressive national grassroots Jewish organization founded in the early 1980s. The group advocated gay rights, the two-state solution, and social justice in America. That platform was considered extremely controversial both in the United States and Israel. I remember a group of Orthodox rabbis meeting in Massachusetts and convening a pulsa di nura , which was a strange Jewish ritual by which Jews would be excommunicated from the faith for heretical beliefs. The Washington Post asked Noam Chomskys response (he was another one of those excommunicated):At the time, I was proud to be one of the newly-inducted members of the Spinoza Society.Today, Israel is vastly increasing Spinoza membership with its excommunication of hundreds of Jews thousands of Jews who show insufficient fealty to Zionist dogma. Any Jew who supports BDS is immediately beyond the Pale, if not a self-hating terrorist. Such individuals are so dangerous that Israeli secret agents are right now burrowing into their homes and lives searching for ways to destroy them and their reputations: that means you, Ronnie Barkan!Currently, in the UK, the Israel Lobby is mounting a scorched-earth campaign against British Jews and Palestinian activists who betray (in the case of Jews) the tribe. One of the latest members inducted into the club was Jackie Walke r, who had the temerity to question whether Holocaust Memorial Day was a day that should not also embrace other ethnic groups who were victims of the Nazis. She also correctly claimed that some Portuguese and Brazilian Jews played an important role in financing the Brazilian leg of the Atlantic slave trade. For her trouble, she was suspended from the Labour party. Jackie, join us, youre welcome to the Club.Today brings news that a new member of the club is being inducted: Baroness Tonge , a member of the House of Lords. She chaired a parliamentary meeting about the Palestinian the Right of Return. At the meeting, an audience member compared Israel, with its religious fundamentalist faith to Isis, and its Islamist fundamentalism. The comparison, if made in a careful and nuanced way, is a valid one.But not for the Israel Lobby, which screamed bloody murder in the pages of the Jewish Chronicle, the Lobbys in-house propaganda organ. As a result, Baroness Tonge has been suspended from the Liberal Democratic Party. She has happily renounced her affiliation and become an independent member of the Lords. Her ostracism is the Spinoza clubs gain. Yes, the Baroness is not a certified member of the tribe. But in this instance, I think we can make an exception. Or perhaps declare her an honorary member of the Society.
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The Australian Bar Association (ABA) welcomes the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) inquiry into indigenous incarceration in the country, an issue which is a national priority, according to Patrick OSullivan QC.Commonwealth Attorney-General Senator the Hon George Brandis QC announced Thursday to the ABA and Victorian Bar 2016 National Legal Conference in Melbourne that ALRC will probe indigenous incarceration and consider law reforms to attack the problem.I have decided to make a new reference to the Australian Law Reform Commission, to ask them to examine the incarceration of Indigenous Australians, and to consider what law reform measures can be put in place to help ameliorate this national tragedy, Brandis said.The Commonwealth will collaborate with state and territory governments, as theirs are the jurisdictions of course with primary responsibility for our criminal justice frameworks, including policing, he added.The ABA said that incarceration rates of Indigenous Australians are 16 times higher non-Indigenous Australians, indigenous children and teenagers are 24 times more likely to be incarcerated than non-Indigenous children and that indigenous women are almost 30 times more likely to be incarcerated than non-indigenous women.The over-representation of Indigenous people incarcerated is a national disgrace and this announcement of an is a significant opportunity to make informed and practical changes that address this problem and delivers better justice outcomes for Indigenous Australians and the country as a whole, said OSullivan, the ABAs president.The ABA has consistently called for national co-operation to address the shocking and disproportionate rates of Indigenous incarceration. In particular, we have proposed a range of measures including the removal of certain mandatory sentencing laws that have the biggest impact with minimum effect on Indigenous people, as well as a review of bail laws, fine default imprisonment and investing in justice reinvestment programs, he added.According to the Association, it will consult with the government and work with the indigenous community to develop the terms of reference to the ALRC examination.Australias Indigenous incarceration rate is one of the most challenging human rights issues facing our country today and one that has been of deep concern to the Australian Bar Association. Todays announcement is a positive and necessary step towards addressing one of Australias most alarming issues, said OSullivan.
Hi everyone,



Just letting you know my fiances Prospective Marriage visa was granted much to our excitement, without an interview or phone call on Thursday last week.



We submitted our application back on 14th May 2016 along with the police check. We flew to Trinidad & Tobago, then returned to Cuba together for the medical which was then submitted on 4th August 2016.



Our wedding was booked for 21st October 2016 and I was worried about not hitting this date so I phoned the processing centre late August, explained our situation and got a hot tip that there was a current push to clear out the backlog. The lady advised me to make sure the application was 'complete', all mandatory items included, and that on that day, they were assessing applications that had been in queue for 5.5-6 months. At that stage we were at 4.5 months.



After this advice, I then uploaded more evidence (the gap from when we applied May - Aug) and on Wednesday last week got a random email (the first communication since submission) asking for an update on our wedding.



We had changed our wedding date to February but I was holding off submitting anything just in case the approval came through prior, but I had everything prepared to upload immediately (which I did) if requested.



Literally the next day after I uploaded again the approval letter came through. We could not believe it. No interview, nothing!



I hope these tips help for everyone else and I wish you luck. Now to figure out how to get him here as his Canadian transit visa has been denied can you believe!!!! We've gone through the hardest part, so this is just another small bump in the end to end process, and Im hoping to have him here in one more week.
Hi everyone, 2 weeks ago I applied for subclass e600 to go to Australia to visit my friend for 3 weeks. Unfortunately, this morning I have received the email from DIBP stating that they have refused my application.



The reason is as below:



The applicant has lodged an application for a Visitor visa (Subclass 600) to visit Australia for tourist purposes from 01/02/16 to 26/02/17.

The client has declared that she has been the co-owner of the restaurant Secret Garden inFrance since 23/06/2016. The applicants brother has provided a letter stating that his sister has joint him and his wife as the third owner of their restaurant. However, no official documentary evidence of the applicants relationship to this business has been provided.The applicant has declared that she receives a monthly salary of EUR 1,200 approx.However, no documentary evidence (such as pay slips) has been provided. Also, the bank statement provided does not show a regular salary.

I find that the evidence of employment the applicant has provided in support of this application is insufficient without the support of any official evidence of an active business.While I have taken into account that close relatives remain behind and that she owns a car inFrance; I find that, on balance, this is not sufficient in overcoming my concerns. Having taken all of the information submitted in support of the application, on balance, Iam not satisfied that the applicant genuinely intends to stay temporarily in Australia for the purpose for which the visa is granted. At this time, subclause 600.211 has not been met by the applicant.



Basically, I am refused on not having enough employment evidence. I would love to reapply but I know I should only do so if I can address the refusal reason.



The documents I provided:

- My passport, which shows previous French student visa, UK internship visa, UK visitor visas. All of which I complied with the immigration rules. I have travelled a lot but it's mainly in the Schengen area so I have no stamps to prove my extensive travel history.

- My birth certificate

- Bank statements in 2 months which shows 5400 euros of savings (1700 euros of the sum was deposited just a day prior to the submission).

- A copy of my French business visa.

- A letter from my brother confirming that I am the third owner of our restaurant in France, my basic pay is 1200 euro but with bonuses dependent on the monthly revenue. He also confirms that he has no objection w me going to Aus for the above-mentioned 3 weeks and I am expected to return to France to resume work on 27th Feb.

- A copy of my brother's French ID (He's a French citizen)

- As I own a car in France, I also included a copy of my car registration.

- A hand-written letter from my friend (Australian citizen), stating that we met 7 years ago and have kept in touch ever since, and I will be staying with him at his address.

- A copy of my friend's tenency contract as proof of residence and his passport as proof of identity.





As I am currently working in a family business, I don't have the payslips to provide. I only have the documents which I used to get my French business visa. It's a business plan that explaining how much my share in this business is and how much I will be earning each month fro the business. I am not sure if it'll be sufficient.



I'll really appreciate it so much if someone could please give me some advices on this...
Mahindra Two-Wheelers plans to move away from smaller bikes and convert Mojo into their unified brand for premium motorcycles.

Mahindra has been at the two-wheeler game for the past few years, but its fair to say that their products such as the Centuro and the Gusto haven't enjoyed too much success in the Indian market. The 300cc Mojo that the company launched last year, though not a runaway success in terms of sales, has certainly established itself as well-known brand. At the recent announcement regarding this purchase of the rights to the BSA and Jawa brands, the company also outlined their two-wheeler plans for the future.

The biggest news was that Mahindra Two-Wheelers will be shifting its focus away from smaller offerings ie the Centuro and Gusto. This is not to say that the company will be axing the brands. Both the commuter bike and scooter will remain in production and will even receive full support in terms of spares and service. What changes however is the fact that Mahindra will significantly cut down the advertising spends on these two products and put a cap on future development for them.

What the company will focus on instead is the Mojo, which is set to become an umbrella brand encompassing its premium offerings going forward. Much like Bajaj has done with the Pulsar, offering multiple bikes with varying engine capacities and styles under the same brand, the Mojo brand will spawn more bikes with different form and function. And this will be kept separate from the newly-formed Classic Legends brand which will focus on making classic-looking motorcycles sporting the BSA (for Europe and the US) and Jawa (for India) monikers. There are other Indian companies who have taken similar approaches as well, like Royal Enfield with the Bullet and TVS with the Apache, but Bajaj has been the biggest success story here, and there's certainly room for Mahindra Mojo to play in this space. All you need to do is check out the custom concepts of the Mojo that were on display at Auto Expo 2016 to understand just what's possible with this platform.

Its still not clear how Peugeot Scooters, which Mahindra acquired last year, will play into this equation, as the company is still working out the logistics of bringing this new brand to India. What was made clear however is that the initial push on the Peugeot front will be to strengthen its existing product lineup in Europe before anything else. From what we understand, Mojo will be a focused motorcycle brand with premium offerings. Whether Mahindra is able to make strong inroads into this segment with this new approach remains to be seen. But its certainly good news for buyers who will have a lot more variety of bikes to choose from when stepping into this 250cc-plus premium motorcycle category.
Adaptive Cruise Control

4Motion

AWD

First of all, the dimensions. At 198.3 inches (5.03 meters) long, 77.9 inches (1.97 meters) wide, and 69.6 inches (1.76 meters) tall, the 2018 Volkswagen Atlas is that bit larger than the Touareg (188.8 inches / 4.79 meters, 76.4 inches / 1.94 meters, 68.2 inches / 1.73 meters). Underpinned by the MQB platform , the all-new-for-2018 Atlas boasts seating for seven adults.From a design standpoint, beauty is truly in the eyes of the beholder. I dig the tough look of the front fascia and the unapologetic fender flares, though the rear end gives the impression of blandness. The interior, on the other hand, is heavily inspired by that of the seven-seater 2017 Skoda Kodiaq The most intriguing thing about the Atlas cabin, however, is that it can be had with something called the Volkswagen Digital Cockpit. Also known as Audi virtual cockpit , thats the fancy way of telling that the Atlas has a 12.3-inch display instead of analog gauges and a tiny screen for the trip computer.The third Volkswagen named after Greek mythology (after the Eos and Phaeton) prides itself on all the major smartphone integration platforms ( Apple CarPlay, Android Auto ), Car-Net, 12-speaker Fender Premium Audio System, as well as driver assistance features that include, Forward Collision Alert, and Autonomous Emergency Braking.As far as the oily bits are concerned, an 8-speed automatic transmission is matched to either a 2.0-liter TSI or a 3.6-liter VR6. Im not joking about the latter mill, even though the current generation of the Volkswagen VR6 engine is 11 years old already. The 2.0 TSI churns out 238 hp and its available in either front- orall-wheel-drive format, while the 280 hp 3.6-liter VR6 can be had only in conjunction with the manufacturers 4Motionsystem.This is the biggest and boldest Volkswagen we have ever built in the United States, delivering the distinctive design and craftsmanship were known for, now with room for seven,  explained Hinrich J. Woebcken, Volkswagens head honcho for North America. The Atlas marks a brand new journey for Volkswagen to enter into the heart of the American market," he added.Slated to enter production alongside the Passat at Chattanooga, the North American market launch of the 2018 Atlas is slated for the spring of 2017.
Lancashire baker Hollands has joined forces with Guinness again to produce a Steak and Guinness Golden Ale Pie.

Hollands and Guinness have previously collaborated to produce frozen and chilled products including puddings, pies and slices.

The individual Steak & Guinness Golden Ale Pie includes slowly cooked prime steak, sourced from British and Irish farmers, in a rich ale gravy. It is described as featuring the light, hoppy notes of Guinness Golden Ale and is baked in Hollands shortcrust pastry and topped with cracked black pepper.

With an RRP of 1.75, the Steak & Guinness Golden Ale Pie is available in selected Co-op stores now and is due to launch in Tesco later this winter.

Suitable for the oven or microwave, the product can be prepared in under four minutes.

Bill Smith-Coats, sales and marketing director at Hollands Pies, said: Were really excited about this new addition to our Guinness collection.

Our frozen Guinness range has driven incremental spend within the pie category and we see huge potential given the size of the pie market in chilled.

Earlier this month Hollands developed its product range with a new variety of frozen pies: Chicken Balti, Chicken & Vegetable and Steak.
HP

We've already talked about the Ibiza ST being discontinued, and about the Alhambra awaiting its executioner in 2018 . Heck, that one is only hanging around because it's Spain's most popular taxi.But it hasn't been reported yet that the Ibiza SC also kicked the bucket, has it?! In the old days, the 3-door version was the one to get. People kept comparing it to Lamborghinis and showering it with compliments.But not surprisingly, very few people actually bought an Ibiza with two fewer doors... or an Ibiza in general.We've reached out to SEAT's Spanish dealer network and learned the SC was sent off with something called "Ultimate Edition." Of course, we weren't provided with photos, but it's an FR model limited to one engine: 1.0 TSI 110with Drive Select. Standard equipment includes Bi-xenon headlights, Alcantara upholstery, a 6.5-inch Full Link system and 17-inch Dynamic Titanium wheels.Of course, SEAT only made a 3-door Cupra model, so that's gone too. This has to be one of the worst planned decisions ever, since it had just received a 1.8-liter turbo engine and manual gearbox. All that testing and development for nothing!I'm not saying that the Ibiza SC is the best car in the world and that it didn't deserve to be discontinued. But what does the SEAT brand stand for? Unlike most brands that were established by ambitious individuals, the Spanish government made this company to give its people affordable transportation. Volkswagen took over and made it the sportiest of all the brands, but that doesn't apply to it anymore. Most Leons don't have independent suspension and crossovers seem to be SEAT's main preoccupation these days. For example, the Alhambra's place will be taken over by a 7-seater, like the Skoda Kodiaq.I'll just leave this here
Novatel Wireless, Inc., a global provider of solutions for the Internet of Things (IoT), including software-as-a-service (SaaS), has announced that it has signed a partnership with the Cameroon National Taxi Union. Novatel is to provide Ctrack vehicle tracking and driver behavior monitoring to the taxi industry in the Republic of Cameroon.

Taxis are one of the primary modes of transportation across the African continent. In Cameroon alone, taxis transport over 8 million commuters daily. The agreement is one of the countrys first steps towards implementing tracking legislation. Future legislation will mandate all Cameroon taxi operators have vehicle tracking units installed, according to the company.

Ctrack shares our commitment of creating safer roads for all and it shows through the quality of their technology and analytics, said Augustin Ngangoua, national president of the Cameroon National Taxi Union. This initiative will not only improve the safety of drivers and passengers, but also other road users and the public in general. Through Ctracks commitment, we will engage in talks with the Transport Ministry to enforce the installation of GPS tracking units into all taxis.

The multi-year agreement will enable the government of Cameroon to provide GPS vehicle tracking, safety, and compliance solutions to its more than 100,000 taxis currently operating on the countrys roads, according to the company.
Mercedes-Benz 2017 production volume would only include six cars. As was recently announced by the company, instead of eight, they would cut back two models as compliance to a reduction imposition. Which cars will make it in the market?

Audi and BMW have also been compelled to cut back on the production of vehicles for the upcoming year as was manifested by negotiations set forth by DTM manufacturers. Recently, Mercedes-Benz 2017 production values have also been deemed to reduce by 2017 as well.

Why The Reduction?

It was initially announced by 2017 DTM manufacturers that for next year, six cars would be sufficient for the company as they had been investigated and served with implementation scenarios, according to Motor Sport.

Although the Mercedes-Benz 2017 production reduction decision was contested by the company last year since they were only made to create four cars by primary team HWA, two by Mucke, and two by Art Grand Prix, this year would only be handled by HWA. As was manifested by Ulrich Fritz, the company is not happy about having to let go off ART Grand Prix and Mucke Motorsport, it felt that DTM could suffice for next year's batch.

What Would Remain To Be Produced?

In other news, the company has also been reported to have shifted its future home for electric vehicles for next year. Which means the company would continue to create its Mercedes-Benz electric vehicles to be based in Bremen.

The said models would be those installed with the EQ concept including the electric SUV. They were said to create 10 electric vehicles by 2025 and would be made available for purchase all over the world, according to Auto Blog.

Furthermore, Mercedes-Benz 2017 production would also include the two Concept X-Class models which were previewed in Stockholm, Sweden last Tuesday. The said vehicles would be flat-bed 4X4 models which will be based on the Nissan Navara platform and part of the Mercedes-Benz and Renault-Nissan tie-up, according to the Daily Mail.

It has been decided that Mercedes-Benz 2017 production would include electric vehicles and those that would cater to the two Concept X-Class.
Boeing is apparently working on a large passenger aircraft with vertical takeoff and landing features. The company received a patent for a tilt-rotor design that has room for at least 100 passengers, according to a Business Insider report Thursday. The VTOL plane has potential for both civilian and military use, according to the report. It seems to be inspired in part by the famous two-engine V-22 Osprey, which Boeing and Bell Helicopters developed for the U.S. military in the 1980s, the first of its kind designed for use by the Marines and Air Force. The patent for the unnamed aircraft includes potential uses for commercial flights, military missions or personal transport, according to the report. Its design includes four engines mounted on two fixed wings along with two large rotors attached on the tips for vertical takeoffs and landings.

The company hasnt revealed details of its intentions for the VTOL design, but a civilian passenger plane with such capabilities will likely raise speculation about the potential for off-airport commercial transportation. Boeing files tons of patents so this might not even come to fruition, a Boeing spokesman told Business Insider. Im not saying it wont. The patented design also calls for lower wings on the airframe compared to the V-22 to allow for passenger exits as well as simpler maintenance, a Seattle Times report notes.
It would appear that almost everything worked as intended at LaGuardia on Thursday night when Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pences Boeing 737 had a hairy landing in bad weather. Whatever happened with the landing, the aircraft apparently ended up on the overrun and it stopped the plane the way it was supposed to. There were 37 people, most of them reporters, on the aircraft when it landed in heavy rain at LGA. Nobody was injured. A tweet from the New York Port Authority said the aircraft overshot the runway but it apparently overran the runway and thats where more confusion was added by media reports that said the tarmac was torn up by the Boeing.

What likely really happened was that the plane entered a field fabricated geotextile sheet measuring 8.4 hectares used to provide base reinforcement for the placement of approximately 400,000 m3 of fill over a 23 m thick layer of normally consolidated clay, according to sciencedirect.com. In practical terms, the landing gear sunk into the engineered material at the end of the runway and the airplane stopped instead of going through the fence. Pence made his New York appointment and the reporters had a story to tell.
AVwebs search of news in aviation found announcements from AOPA, Garmin, Simhawk and Jeppesen. AOPAannounced the recipients of the AOPA Flight Training Excellence Awards at Redbird Migration Flight Training Conference in San Marcos, Texas. The awards are based on the results of the 2016 Flight Training Poll and recognize and celebrate those who provide a customer experience that supports student pilots and facilitates their entry into all aspects of the aviation community.Garmin International Inc. announced it will expand its portfolio of integrated flight deck upgrades to now include a G5000 modernization program for the popular Citation Excel and Citation XLS. The Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) is targeted for approval in late 2018 and will be available from select Garmin dealers, as well as Textron Aviation Service Centers.

Simhawk Inc. announced the launch of its online marketplace for buyers and sellers of flight simulator time and training services. The marketplace, which brings the benefits of the on-demand economy to the world of simulator training, can be accessed online at simhawk.com and is focused on providing customers with a more efficient way to buy and sell simulator time and training.Jeppesen has teamed with TUI Group, the European charter and scheduled airline service operator, to enhance dispatch operations and training through an integrated in-house program available for airlines and other operators. Together, Jeppesens eAcademy program streamlines recurrent dispatch training for operators, while on the job training programs from TUI GOC establishes a complete theory and practical learning environment that is ICAO and EASA-compliant.
Manufacturer Nairns has partnered with Scottish broadcaster and nutritionist Amanda Hamilton for its new Naturally Energising Challenge campaign.

The six-week programme has been created to promote health and nutrition to families with young children around the UK.

Were delighted to be working with Amanda on this campaign, which is dedicated to supporting families  a significant consumer group for us, said Nairns marketing head Emma Heath.

Our Naturally Energising Challenge breaks nutrition down into a simple language, and takes healthy eating and active living right back to basics.

Consumers who take advantage of the free subscription to the campaign will be delivered nutritional advice and tips from Hamilton through a series of six weekly emails, which will have a different focus each week.

Hamilton commented: The tips I have learned as a mum and nutritionist  some of which I share in the Naturally Energising Challenge Series  aim to lend a helping hand to all the busy parents out there.

This is my second year of working with Nairns  a brand I love and whose products have always been staples in my shopping basket. We share many philosophies where nutrition is concerned - and together we can show that small changes really can make a big difference.

Nairns was recently featured as a case study in the UK Food and Drink: International Action Plan for its success in the export market.
Armenian Prime Minister Karen Karapetian met with his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev in Minsk on the sidelines of a Eurasian Intergovernmental Council session held in the Belarus capital on Thursday.

According to the press service of the Armenian government, the two premiers held private talks during which they stressed the strategic allied relations that connect Armenia and Russia.

Prime ministers Karen Karapetian and Dmitry Medvedev stressed the need to take steps to further expand bilateral trade and economic relations, considering that the involvement of Armenia and Russia in the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) opens up new opportunities and prospects for cooperation, the report said.

Earlier, addressing the Eurasian Intergovernmental Councils enlarged meeting, Karapetian reportedly stressed that the EEUs international activity and its economic relations with third countries and key integration associations above all are intended to promote the modernization of the national economies of the Member States and enhance their competitiveness.

In this context, I would highlight the need for consistent efforts with the specialized agencies of the UN system, as well as toward outlining the scope of interaction with the European Union, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and other organizations, he said, as quoted by the government press service.

We believe that the ongoing talks with China, Israel and Serbia, in particular, need to be broadened through the launch of substantive consideration of the expediency of negotiations with other countries.

Taking into account the work on the conclusion of a possible free trade zone agreement with the Republic of India, it seems reasonable that the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council should also consider the question of starting talks over the EEU-India track in December 2016 without linking it to the issue of cooperation in the multilateral EEU-SCO format, Karapetian continued.

I believe it to be in our common interest to conclude a relevant agreement with Iran. We believe that there is an opportunity to simultaneously work on the scheme ensuring the implementation of an interim agreement in parallel with the EEU-Iran negotiations on conclusion of a free (preferential) trade agreement.

According to Karapetian, Armenia believes that the expansion of international and multi-format cooperation must be based on real premises and structured so as to take into account the actual willingness of third countries to establish cooperation with both individual EEU-member States and the Eurasian Economic Union, as a whole.

Considering the differences in the regulatory frameworks of the EEU Member States, the head of the Armenian government said that Armenia fully shares the approach that focuses on ensuring the legitimacy of the turnover of goods across the EEU customs territory through the introduction of a traceability mechanism.

Given the importance of the issue and its complexity, it is important to build further work proceeding from the belief that it should not lead to additional tax and customs encumbrances, higher prices for goods and services and, at the same time, would not adversely affect the Member States investment attractiveness and macroeconomic indicators, Karapetian said.

This mechanism needs to be introduced in such a way that its activation would not lead in any way to the opposition of one of the pillars of our Union  the free movement of goods. Therefore, we are ready to actively cooperate with the countries in a bid to work out the problems existing in this regard. I believe that the joint efforts to implement the agreements reached today will allow significant progress on the integration path. The Armenian side is ready for close cooperation with all partners, the Armenian prime minister concluded.

The enlarged meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council discussed and approved a number of documents. In particular, the Council approved the unified budget for 2017 and the 2015 budget performance of EEU bodies.

The meeting reportedly highlighted the need for closer cooperation with third countries, as well as deepening of economic and trade relations between the Member States. In particular, the speakers emphasized that a number of countries have shown interest in cooperation with the EEU in various formats, and appropriate steps are being taken to that effect.

On Friday, Prime Minister Karapetian participated in the meeting of the heads of the EEU member countries' governments.

Armenia formally joined the EEU in January 2015. The Unions current members are also Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
28 October 2016 11:31 (UTC+04:00)

Over the past 24 hours, Armenias armed forces have 16 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops.

Azerbaijans Defense Ministry reported on October 28 that the Azerbaijani army positions located in the Kohnegishlag village of Azerbaijans Aghstafa district took fire from the Armenian army positions located in the Paravakar village of Armenias Ijevan district.

The Azerbaijani army positions also were shelled from the Armenian positions located near occupied Chilaburt, Goyarkh villages of Azerbaijans Tartar district, Shirvanli village of the Aghdam district, Horadiz, Ashagi Seyidahmadli villages of the Fuzuli district, as well as from the positions located on nameless heights of the Goranboy and Jabrayil districts.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
28 October 2016 16:10 (UTC+04:00)

By Rashid Shirinov

Armenia has become 102nd in the ranking of gender equality among 144 countries of the world. The country received 0.669 points in the Global Gender Gap Index 2016 and located at the bottom of the list between Hungary and Brunei.

The ranking has been published on October 26 in an annual report of the World Economic Forum (WEF). It presents the status, rights and role of women and men in four key areas, which are education, health, economy and politics.

The position of Armenia is not even surprising  it was always obvious that Armenian women stay in the shadow of men and do not receive any support from authorities to rectify the situation.

In detail, the wages of women in Armenia are significantly lower than mens salaries, the research states. The country took 50th place by this indicator in the ranking.

Moreover, women and mens rights utterly differ in the economic life (69th place), and on possession of political power (125th place). No wonder, only 11 percent of Armenian Parliament and Ministries positions are represented with women.

By the opportunities in the health sector Armenia also lacks behind  the country holds the second-to-last, 143rd place, because of a huge difference in sex rate at birth in favor of males due to abortion.

Thus, for the last decade, Armenia stepped back by almost 20 positions in the ranking of WEF  from 84th in 2006 to the current 102nd.

Furthermore, Armenian women suffer from domestic violence, which is constantly being stated by the Armenian Coalition to Stop Violence against Women. A total of 30 women were killed by their partners over the past five years, which resulted in 45 children left without mothers.

In addition, 31 cases of domestic violence were detected in the country over the first half of 2016. This figure has increased by 2.4 times compared to the same period of 2015.

Apparently, the Armenian government turns a blind eye to all these problems instead of improving its society and provide women and men with equal rights. However, their attitude is quite justified  after all, the authorities of the country almost completely consists of men.

---

Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
28 October 2016 15:01 (UTC+04:00)

By Nigar Abbasova

Azerbaijan and Georgia, the two neighboring countries with long-standing and successful relations, eye ways to further expand the interaction in the economic field.

To this end, a delegation led by Azerbaijani Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev is in Georgia to meet with the countrys authorizes.

Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili, who received the Azerbaijani minister on October 28, said that Azerbaijan and Georgia are strategic partners, voicing hope that the visit will serve to further development of relations in all areas and strengthening of the strategic partnership.

Margvelashvili said that his country attaches great importance to cooperation with Azerbaijan.

The sides exchanged views on the fields of policy, economy, defense and other areas between Azerbaijan and Georgia.

Mustafayev, earlier met with his Georgian counterpart Dimitri Kumsishvili, who said that the partnership between the two countries bears strategic character, mentioning that friendly relations between nations, state and government leaders create opportunities for the comprehensive development of the bilateral relations.

Kumsishvili also spoke about a number of projects, which are expected to be implemented jointly, emphasizing that the projects may contribute to further strengthening of the strategic partnership.

Mustafayev, in turn, said that large-scale regional projects realized with the participation of Azerbaijan contribute to the regional development, peace and security, stressing the importance of joint support of each other in international events.

Azerbaijan has invested almost $1.7 billion in Georgias economy since 2006, including $283 million since early 2016. The highest indicator of Azerbaijani investments in Georgia, which stands at $550 million, was reached in 2015.

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Georgia amounted to $244.58 million in January-September 2016, according to Azerbaijans State Customs Committee.

Georgia with $221.83 million (3.39 percent of the total volume of Azerbaijani export) ranks the ninth in the list of main importers from Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan mainly exports petroleum, petroleum oils and gases, gypsum, anhydrite, plaster and other products to Georgia, while motor cars, live bovine animals, bars and rods of iron, as well as cement, make up the majority of imported goods from Georgia to Azerbaijan. Moreover, Azerbaijans state oil company SOCAR is deeply involved in the energy market in the neighboring South Caucasus republic.

Georgia and Azerbaijan established diplomatic relations in 1992. The countries are actively cooperating in trade, transport and energy spheres.

--

Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
28 October 2016 16:42 (UTC+04:00)

By Nigar Abbasova

Azerbaijan, which eyes an economy driven by the non-oil sector, places a serious emphasis on the development of agriculture and expansion of international cooperation in the sphere.

The country is seeking to study the experience of the Netherlands in the spheres of production, processing and packaging of agricultural products, as well as the development of poultry farming, vegetable growing and seed-growing.

The issues of interaction in the agriculture sector were discussed during the meeting between Azerbaijans Agriculture Minister Heydar Asadov and his Dutch counterpart Martijn van Dam. The meeting was held as part of the visit of the Azerbaijani minister to the Netherlands.

The sides discussed prospects for the export of Azerbaijani agricultural products to the European markets, use of innovative technologies in various sectors of agriculture, attraction of investors, as well as cooperation in science and education.

Asadov emphasized that agriculture is the priority sphere in the economy of Azerbaijan, mentioning the institutional reforms conducted in Azerbaijan to boost the sphere.

The Dutch minister, in turn, expressed the readiness of his country to strengthen bilateral cooperation with Azerbaijan in various spheres of agriculture, adding that European countries, especially the Netherlands, prioritize agriculture, science and education, and innovative technologies.

Trade with the Netherlands and the presence of Dutch companies in Azerbaijan has so far been limited, and mainly associated with the oil and gas industry and port development and water management. But, in recent years, a number of projects have been set up with Dutch business in the agricultural sector.

Agricultural sector of Netherlands is a global leader in terms of innovation and volume. The country generates some 7.5% of global exports in agricultural and food products, surpassed only by the U.S., while the figure is considered to be the sign of overwhelming performance for such a small country.

The trade turnover between the Netherlands and Azerbaijan amounted to $44.71 million in the first quarter of 2016, $21.65 million of which fell on exports to this country, according to the Azerbaijani State Customs Committee.

--

Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
28 October 2016 16:24 (UTC+04:00)

By Nigar Abbasova

Azerbaijan Deposit Fund (ADIF) has so far paid compensations worth over 629.19 million manats ($386.22) to depositors of the recently closed Dekabank, Kredobank, Zaminbank, Parabank, Caucasus Development Bank, AtraBank, Bank of Azerbaijan, Ganjabank, Texnikabank and Standard Bank.

Banks Volume of paid compensations (million manats/ million USD) Volume of the insured deposits (million manats/ million USD) Bank Standard 353.55 ($ 217.03 ) 460($282.36 ) Zaminbank 51.03($ 31.47 ) 60($ 36.8) Dekabank 2.89($1.77 ) 5.59($3.43 ) Kredobank 26.14($ 16.04 ) 30.21($ 18.54) Caucasus Development Bank 1.88($ 1.16) 2($1.22 ) Atrabank 14.14($ 8.67) 14.55($ 8.93 ) Bank of Azerbaijan 24.12($ 14.80) 24.2($14.85) Gandjabank 0.97($ 0.59) 1($0.61) Texnikabank 119.98($ 73.64 ) 122.6($ 75.25 ) Parabank 34.59($ 21.23 ) 43.79($26.87)

Acceptance of applications from insured depositors of DekaBank, KredoBank, Zaminbank and Parabank began on August 1, 2016 and the payment of compensations has been carried out since that day.

Compensations to the depositors of Caucasus Development Bank and AtraBank are being paid starting from August 23.Payments are being carried out at the branches the banks.

Depositors of Caucasus Development Bank receive compensations at the banks main office.Payment of compensations to insured depositors of Bank of Azerbaijan has been carried out since January 29, 2016 at branches of Muganbank and Rabitabank, and since September 8 at ADIFs office.

Clients of Ganjabank receive compensations since February 4 at the branches of Rabitabank, Unibank and Kapital Bank.

ADIF launchedpayment of compensations to depositors of Texnikabank on February 12.

Payment of compensations to the insured depositors of Bank Standard started October 11, 2016 at the banks main office and its branches in the regions of Azerbaijan and will continue for one year.

The licenses of all the banks were revoked in 2016, as their assets were not classified in line with the law, and they didnt create adequate reserves and their aggregate capital did not meet the minimum requirements.

Some 32 banks are currently implementing their activities in the country.

--

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
28 October 2016 17:18 (UTC+04:00)

Azercell Telecom, officially presenting iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus mobile devices in Azerbaijan, also offers new beneficial proposal for its subscribers.

In fact, the subscribers wishing to get iPhone 7 under extremely beneficial conditions will be able to realize it by paying only AZN89 a month and benefit from this modern smartphone and 30 GB Hedsiz Internet pack.

Customers who pre-order iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus beginning from October, 28 get 50% discount for the 1st month payment. Subscribers are advised to pre-order the device from October 28 to November 4 via Azercell website (www.azercell.com) and visit Azercells Customer Service Centers located in Tagiyev, 18, Besti Bagirova 2 and 28 May, 33A between November, 4-6.

The number of devices is limited. It is to note that, the devises are the most advanced iPhone ever, featuring new advanced camera systems, the best battery life ever on an iPhone and water and dust resistance.

Azercell will continue to please its subscribers with new attractive services and campaigns further on.

For more information, please contact [email protected]

The leader of the mobile communication industry of Azerbaijan and the biggest investor in the non-oil sector Azercell Telecom LLC was founded in 1996. With 48% share of Azerbaijans mobile market Azercells network covers 80% of the territory and 99,8% of population of the country. Currently, 4,5 million subscribers choose Azercell services. Azercell has pioneered an important number of innovations in Azerbaijan, including GSM technology, advance payment system, 24/7 Customer Care, online customer services, GPRS/EDGE, M2M, MobilBank, one-stop- shop service offices Azercell Express, mobile e-service ASAN signature, etc. Azercell deployed first 4G  LTE services in Azerbaijan in 2012. According to the results of mobile network quality surveys of Global Wireless Solutions company and international systems specialized in wireless coverage mapping such as Opensignal and Testmy.net, Azercells network demonstrated the best results among the mobile operators of Azerbaijan.

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28 October 2016 17:39 (UTC+04:00)

By Nigar Abbasova

Energy-rich Azerbaijan, which seeks to stimulate business development and boost local production, continues to take systematic measures by introducing new privileges for entrepreneurs.

Economy Ministry of the country is expected to organize some 10 export missions in a year for local entrepreneurs.

Head of the Azerbaijan Export & Investment Promotion Foundation (AZPROMO) Rufat Mammadov said that the participation of entrepreneurs in such missions will be financially covered by the state. The maximum number of participants in each mission is 20 people. Moreover, the promotion plan also includes setting up of stands in some five international exhibitions, while financial means for the rent of space, placing of stand and delivery of goods will also be provided by the government.

Mammadov said that the ministry has already made up a list of exhibitions, the participants of which will be able to benefit from the privileges, adding that the list may be expanded in the future.

He also said that the government is ready to cover some 50 percent of expenditures, should the volume does not exceed the limit of 5,000 manats ($3,069).

Moreover, the country will introduce the program of research and development, which envisages state financing worth 100,000 manats (61,383) for the implementation of 10 projects. The program will focus on the promotion of export-oriented production, improvement of manufacturing, as well as cost saving.

The board of the ministry has already approved certain criteria, which will be applied to shops for the placement of goods branded Made in Azerbaijan.

Such indicators as economic and trade relations between Azerbaijan and the country where the shop is located, as well as the export potential of goods in a country and membership of the shop in large trade networks will also be taken into account.

The government has recently determined main aspects of rendering the state support to exporters, and work in this direction is now underway. The country earlier developed a special mechanism to support the export of local output, while the promotion system will be applied only in reference to goods produced in Azerbaijan.

--

Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova

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28 October 2016 14:30 (UTC+04:00)

By Laman Ismayilova

The Italian Embassy in Baku will organize the Italian Festival of Fashion and Design as part of celebrations in connection with the Week of Italian Language in the World.

The exciting festival will be held in Baku on November 3-4, the embassy reported.

The event will take place in Rotunda Room at the Landmark Business Center.

A fashion and jewellery show, press-conference, a display of Italian brands and concert will be organized on the first day of the festival.

On the second day, Azerbaijani companies will showcase Italian brands.

The Week for Italian Language in the World was organized for the first time in 2001. This event, which takes place in the third week of October each year, is central to the promotion of the Italian language abroad.

Every year the initiative, normally held in October, chooses a specific theme, a particular sector of linguistic usage.

The event has had a rising success year after year, with a growing number of participants and events suited to all members of the public, demonstrating the vitality of the interest in the Italian language and culture throughout the whole world.

---

Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova

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28 October 2016 17:25 (UTC+04:00)

Recexpo, a unique sectoral exhibition in International Real Estate and Investment sector, will be held on November 22-24 2016 at Baku Expo Center, Azerbaijan.

The exhibition is co-organized through successful cooperation of the Azerbaijani State Committee on Property Issues and Elan Expo, whose portfolio counts for more than 30 exhibitions annually and covers most dynamic sectors in the region.

Recexpo is considered a meeting point for those seeking to make property investments from various regions of Azerbaijan and other countries of the region, a great place to see and compare real estate projects from all over the world.

Exclusive International Real Estate Projects from 10 Different Countries

Recexpo, International Real Estate And Investment Exhibition, will host the most

privileged real estate projects from 10 different country such as ,Azerbaijan, Turkey, U.A.E, Russia, Spain, Portugal, Georgia, Croatia, Hungary, Cyprus. As the leading real estate organization for the real estate and investment industry in Azerbaijan, Recexpo has always been an ideal platform for the exhibitors to present their latest projects.

The Most Comprehensive and Important Real Estate Event of Azerbaijan

Recexpo, is the most important international real estate event of the 2016 for Azerbaijan. Baku White City, Xyal Adas, Dreamland, AAF Park, AF Holding, Srur Insaat, Kristal Abseron, Azinko and Yeni Hyat are just some of the most important real estate companies from Azerbaijan which are going to take place at Recexpo, International Real Estate Investment.

Special Campaigns and Discounts for Real Estate are Waiting for You!

Recexpo, helps you to compare the international real estate projects. Visitors will have a chance to have B2B meetings with sector leaders. There also will be special campaigns, surprise gifts, and discounts.

If you want to be a part of this lucrative project please visit Recexpo between 10.00 and18.00 on November 22-24 in Baku Expo Center.

http://www.rec-expo.net/

[email protected]rec-expo.net

[email protected]

+90 212 273 18 88

Media partners of the event are Trend.az, Day.az, Milli.az and Azernews.az

---

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28 October 2016 10:35 (UTC+04:00)

By Amina Nazarli

Azerbaijan is in the process of introducing mandatory health insurance, while a number of changes are expected in the health system of the country with the application of the insurance.

The department head at the Health Ministry, Elkhan Azizov, informed that however no changes will be in the activity of the state medical institutions, and they will not provide paid medical services until full implementation of the mandatory health insurance.

Aziziov, commenting on the decision of the Cabinet of Ministers on amendments to the "Model statutes of medical institutions, government agencies and legal entities subordinated to, the shares of which belong to the state", clarified that the application of paid medical services is not planned in the near future.

"Until full transition to the compulsory medical insurance, public health facilities will not provide paid medical service," he said.

He clarified that the Cabinet decision does not mean that the current system has changed, and that citizens will be provided only by paid medical services. The decision is mostly related to bringing the normative-legal acts in compliance with the current legislation, he said.



The Parliament has recently approved the Law on "Public legal entities", in accordance to which, state institutions in various fields, including medical health care institutions, received the status of a public legal entity.

"To ensure self-financing, a public entity should be able to provide paid services. However, these medical facilities will continue to be considered a state, and will continue to provide free medical services until the complete transition to the compulsory medical insurance system. Following the introduction, these facilities will not receive funding from the state budget," he said.



Azizov went on further saying that municipalities, having necessary capabilities and potential, can create medical facilities.

The municipalities themselves, according to their capabilities, should determine what services will be provided free of charge.



"Medical institutions created by municipalities can provide both paid and free services. If municipal fees will be quite large, the municipal medical institutions will provide free services for the low-income segments of the population, residing in this territory," he said.

Currently, two types of health facilities including public and private are functioning in the country.

The compulsory insurance is an integral part of health care reform, which will increase the financial capacity of the countrys health system. The State Agency for Compulsory Health Care Insurance, established in February 2016, aims to ensure access to health services for all citizens.

The Agency has already defined the main characteristics of a future model of compulsory health insurance. The package of the compulsory medical insurance will cover 1,800 medical services, including inspection, treatment, diagnostic procedures, surgical procedures, and other services.

Certain diseases, treatments of which are realized at the expense of government programs, have not been included in the basic package. In the future it is planned to include them, as well.

Its planned to use the benefits for the poor, elderly and retired people. However, the form of benefit application will become clear after the full introduction of the compulsory health insurance model.

International practice shows the preparation for the introduction of compulsory health insurance and its full implementation in the country could take three to five years.

--

Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli



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28 October 2016 11:20 (UTC+04:00)

By Rashid Shirinov

The Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers may meet with the participation of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs in the framework of the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting in Hamburg.

U.S. co-chair of the Minsk Group James Warlick announced about this while talking to APA on October 27.

In Hamburg, we look forward to the ministers meeting with each other and continuing an important discussion on key issues, said Warlick.

The co-chair added that the Minsk Group is in contact with the ministers and presidents and is available to hold a meeting at any time.

The Hamburg meeting of the OSCE Ministerial Council will take place on December 8-9.

Following their recent visit to the region, the co-chairs noted the possibility of a meeting with the Azerbaijani and Armenian ministers in Hamburg, as well as stressed the necessity of the presidents' meeting.

Despite a ceasefire agreement achieved between the sides, Armenia regularly shells the Azerbaijani positions in an effort to tense the situation. Ignoring the calls of Azerbaijani side, as well as the international community to follow the armistice, Armenia continues its destructive actions, thus showing its disrespect to the peace process.

Since the beginning of the conflict in late 1980s, Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and over 1 million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities.

The OSCE Minsk Group was created in 1992 to find a peaceful solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Currently, it is co-chaired by the Russian Federation, the U.S. and France.

The Groups full list of members include Azerbaijan, Armenia, Russia, the United States, France, Italy, Germany, Turkey, Sweden, Finland and Belarus.

---

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28 October 2016 10:32 (UTC+04:00)

The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry continues works on improving and bringing up to high technical standards of command systems of the Air Force. The works are realized as part of the modernization of the Armed Forces under the instructions of President of Azerbaijan, Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Ilham Aliyev.

To check the works done, Defense Minister, Colonel General Zakir Hasanov visited the military unit of the Air Force.

The Ministry`s leadership viewed soldiers barracks, boiler room and laundry facility, ration supply, medical point, parade ground and other facilities in the renovated military town, and then inspected social and service conditions.

He attended the opening of the Combined Command Post of Fighter Aviation Base and Radar military unit created on the basis of the latest high technology and equipped with modern automatic control systems.

Hasanov was told that command post provides maintenance combat duty of the Air Force at the high level, bringing the troops on alert as soon as possible, as well as the tracking of enemy air targets in all weather conditions and during the day, gathering, analysis of intelligence information, timely decision making and the most efficient performance of aviation forces tasks.

The Azerbaijani Army, which today is considered the most modern army in the Caucasus, consists of Air Force and Air Defense Forces, the Navy, and the Land Forces.

Today, Azerbaijani Army is one of the most powerful, highly disciplined armies in the world and the leading in the region, which is equipped with modern military machinery.

The skills and combat readiness of the Azerbaijani army are growing year by year. The army building process in Azerbaijan is progressing as well.

---

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28 October 2016 12:02 (UTC+04:00)

By Amina Nazarli

EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus, Herbert Salber, as part of his visit to the country, met with Azerbaijani IDPs living in Barda region on October 27.

He inspected the conditions created at the settlement for 558 IDP families there.

Azerbaijani Deputy PM, chair of the State Committee for Refugees and IDPs Ali Hasanov accompanied him during his visit.

The EU special representative viewed conditions created at a school, orphanage and kindergarten in the settlement. The complex has 558 apartments, a 640-seat school and a 140-seat kindergarten.

Salber said this was the first time he met with IDPs outside Baku. "It's my first meeting with IDPs outside Baku. It's very important for me to get acquainted with the living conditions of IDPs and study their problems," he said.

Speaking to journalists, Herbert Salber hailed the conditions created for IDPs. " I saw the conditions created here for IDPs. All the necessary conditions have been created here. I understand the conditions of refugees. Their main desire is to return to their homeland," he said.

The occupational and ethnic cleansing policy of Armenia forced over 1 million Azerbaijanis to leave their homes in Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. Nowadays, with a population of over 9.6 million, Azerbaijan is among the countries carrying the highest IDP caseload in the world in per capita terms.

The EU special representative further said that the conflict should be resolved in peace. "We do not want any military confrontation in the region, because innocent people and civilians suffer from this. The European Union is ready to support a peaceful resolution of the conflict," Salber emphasized.



As part of the three-day visit Salber met with Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev, Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, Minister of Defense, Colonel-General Zakir Hasanov and Chair of the State Committee for Refugees and IDPs Ali Hasanov.

Armenia captured Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions from Azerbaijan in a war that followed the Soviet breakup in 1991. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and nearly 1 million were displaced as a result of the war.

IDPs praised the measures taken by the Azerbaijani government to improve their living conditions and address problems.

--

Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli



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By Trend

Azerbaijans State Security Service carried out an anti-terrorist operation on October 27, during which two terrorists were killed and one was arrested.

The State Security Service reported that it received information about creation of an armed group in Azerbaijans territory.

The information said the group pledged allegiance to the terrorist groups involved in the armed conflicts in other countries and it was preparing terrorist attacks and raids in Azerbaijan.

The State Security Service investigated the received information and its credibility was confirmed. Therefore, the need emerged to take immediate countermeasures, said the Security Service.

An investigation revealed that Azerbaijani citizens F. Rustamov, A Guliyev and A. Gulmammadov and other persons colluded with members of radical religious terrorist groups active outside the country.

Under the tasks received via the internet from radical religious terrorist groups, they were preparing to create an armed wing of a terrorist organization, choose a leader for the group, and lure other people to it, said the State Security Service.

They also illegally acquired firearms and explosives, and were preparing to stage terror attacks and raids in Azerbaijan.

---

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28 October 2016 12:09 (UTC+04:00)

The 25th anniversary of the restoration of Azerbaijans independence was celebrated on October 26 in San Diego, California.

Held by Azerbaijans Consulate General in Los Angeles, the 5th anniversary of the sister neighborhood partnership, which was established between San Diegos Switzer Highland Neighborhood and the Nasimi district of Azerbaijans capital city of Baku, was also marked at the event.

Addressing the audience, Azerbaijans Consul General in Los Angeles Nasimi Aghayev highlighted the tumultuous history of Azerbaijan in the 20th century, especially the fact that within one century the people of Azerbaijan achieved its freedom and independence twice  first in 1918, establishing the first secular democracy in the Muslim world, and then in 1991, gaining freedom from the Soviet Union.

Speaking of the huge political and economic hardships faced by the young Republic in the early 1990s, the Consul General mentioned that Azerbaijan was on the brink of fragmentation. Only the election of Azerbaijans National Leader Heydar Aliyev to the presidency saved Azerbaijan from potential collapse, the diplomat said. Thanks to the titanic efforts by Heydar Aliyev, the stability was restored, crucial oil contracts signed, important economic reforms launched and smart foreign policy pursued, which all paved the way for the tremendous transformation of the country into a political and economic powerhouse it is today, Aghayev continued.

Highlighting the achievements of Azerbaijan during the 25 years of its independence, the Consul General mentioned that under the visionary leadership of President Ilham Aliyev, Azerbaijan has become today the regions largest economy, a rapidly modernizing country and an island of stability in an otherwise unstable region.

Noting Azerbaijans long-standing traditions of interfaith harmony and tolerance, Aghayev said Azerbaijan has been able to establish an exemplary environment where Muslims, Christians, Jews and representatives of other faiths continue to live together in peace, dignity and mutual respect.

Speaking of the last 5 years of the Baku-San Diego partnership, the Consul General mentioned many efforts undertaken by the Consulate General to develop this relationship and make it even stronger.

In this regard, Aghayev highlighted the major cultural programs held in San Diego, especially the successful performance of Azerbaijans Seven Beauties ballet in 2014 to a crowd of 3,000 San Diegans, as well as many concerts and events that allowed the city residents to have a better understanding of Azerbaijans culture, music, traditions and values. The Consul General expressed his hope that over the next five years these relations would become even more robust through mutual efforts.

Speaking afterwards, Head of the Executive Authority of the Nasimi District, Asif Asgarov stressed the importance of the Baku-San Diego partnership for the strengthening of the friendship between the peoples of Azerbaijan and the United States.

Noting the mutual willingness to boost this partnership with new initiatives and projects, he invited the friends of Azerbaijan in San Diego to get closely involved in these endeavors.

Azerbaijans MP Asim Mollazade and the President of Azerbaijans Mountainous Jewish Community, Milikh Yevdayev stressed the significance of the strong friendship and partnership between the two cities and countries. Speaking of Azerbaijans long-standing and well-entrenched traditions of interfaith tolerance and harmony, they noted the importance of this Azerbaijani model as a great example for many other countries.

In his remarks, the member of the California State Assembly,Rocky Chavez emphasized the strategic role Azerbaijan has been playing in its region and the achievements it has made as a free and independent nation over the last 25 years. Presenting a member resolution of the California State Assembly on Azerbaijans Independence Day, the Assembly member called Azerbaijan a strong friend and ally of the United States and stressed the importance of further expanding this partnership and friendship.

The Chairman of San Diego Port Commission, Marshall Merrifield expressed his satisfaction with meeting earlier in the day with the Azerbaijani visiting delegation and emphasized the need for further solidifying this partnership through bilateral exchanges and visits.

At the event, Nasimi Aghayev announced the establishment of the San Diego-Baku Friendship Association and gave the floor to the chairman of the Association, Martin Kruming, who, he noted, has played a tremendous role from the very beginning in establishing this partnership between the two cities and constantly pushing it forward.

Informing the audience about the history of San Diego-Baku relationship, Kruming expressed his hope that through the joint projects this relationship will get stronger and stronger over the next 5 years.

Proclamations and certificates of recognition were received by the Consulate General from U.S. Congresswoman Susan Davis, San Diego County Board of Supervisors and California State Senators Marty Block and Joel Anderson. The documents stress the strategic importance of Azerbaijan and U.S.-Azerbaijan friendship.

--

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28 October 2016 15:06 (UTC+04:00)

By Gunay Hasanova

The Turkish Embassy in Azerbaijan hosted a grand reception to mark the Republic Day on October 27.

The event was attended by state and government officials of Azerbaijan, ambassadors of foreign countries, representatives of the public and other guests.

Turkish Ambassador to Azerbaijan Erkan Ozoral first read out the congratulatory letter from the President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"Turkey has made great strides in the political, military, economic, democratic and human rights spheres and strengthened its position in the region and the world," said the ambassador.

He stressed that mutual visits, numerous documents signed between the two countries provide an opportunity to continue the friendly relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey.

In addition, the envoy noted that that the Republic Day in Turkey will be mournful this year because the Turkish nation experienced a strong shock earlier.

We overcame a big threat thanks to the people, its support for the head of state, the political will of Turkeys president, said the diplomat. We faced the greatest betrayal throughout the countrys history.

He also expressed gratitude to Azerbaijans government, Azerbaijans people led by President Ilham Aliyev and every citizen of Azerbaijan for their support to Turkey.

Ozoral noted that the Azerbaijan-Turkey economic ties are relations built not only in the transportation and energy projects but at the same time, in mutual investments.

Now, Turkey intends to increase the volume of trade turnover with Azerbaijan up to $15 billion by 2023, by increasing investments in the country's economy, he said.

Ozoral added that the volume of Azerbaijani investments in Turkish economy has already exceeded $4 billion.



He also noted that currently, about 2,600 Turkish companies operate in Azerbaijan, and nearly 25,000 people are currently employed by these companies.

On the other hand, Azerbaijan is also taking serious steps, becoming the biggest foreign investor in Turkey, added the envoy.

It is expected that investments of Azerbaijans state oil company SOCAR in Turkeys energy and infrastructure sphere will reach $17-20 billion in the near future, he said, noting that $5.5 billion will be invested in the Star refinery, which is being built in Izmir.

Addressing the ceremony Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan Ali Ahmadov also said that Turkey has passed a long and glorious way through its huge development.

"Relations between our countries have a common history and past. Our relations are an example of a great friendship and fraternity," said Ali Ahmadov.

Ahmadov expressed confidence that the unbreakable friendship and fraternal relations which are of strategic nature will continue to be strengthened.

Ahmadov said that Turkey has always faced with huge difficulties and always cope with them with dignity.

The decisive suppression of a military coup by the people of Turkey was a turning point in the life of the country, he added.

He underlined that Turkey became even stronger and more determined after the coup attempt.

---

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28 October 2016 16:28 (UTC+04:00)

By Amina Nazarli

The Azerbaijani Parliament opened its next meeting of the autumn session on October 28.

The Parliament focuses on 25 issues including agreements of Azerbaijan with different countries, amendments to the Code of Administrative Offences, Criminal Code, and Customs Code, Mass Media and Telecommunication and more.

The session started with the approval of the Baku declaration of presidents of Azerbaijan, Iran and Russia.

The declaration, signed as a final document of the August 8 summit in Baku with participation of Presidents of Ilham Aliyev, Vladimir Putin and Hassan Rouhani , has received a positive assessment of MPs.

They said that along with the development of relations between the three countries, this declaration will contribute to the preservation of stability in the region.

In this declaration, the parties said that they will continue the comprehensive development of equal and mutually beneficial trilateral format of cooperation in different sphere including culture, tourism and business, as well as will take effective measures to develop the transportation and communication infrastructure.

The MPs also discussed amendments to the Criminal Code, particularly a proposal to fine persons forcing third parties to adhere to any religion (religious movement) on the grounds of religious hatred, radicalism and fanaticism, including forcing them to perform religious rites and ceremonies, to participate in religious rites and ceremonies, and religious education.



Those people will be fined in amount of 7,000-9,000 manats ($4,200-$5,400) or imprisonment from two to five years.

According to another proposed change to the Code, for acts committed on the grounds of religious hatred, religious radicalism and religious fanaticism, offenders will be punished by imprisonment of 14-20 years or even life imprisonment.

In addition, for the creation and participation in armed units or groups motivated by religious hatred, religious radicalism and religious fanaticism, offenders will be punished from six to 10 years of imprisonment.

The amendments were voted on and adopted by the Parliament.

The parliamentarians further discussed amendments to the "State Duty" law. Following the discussions, the MPs approved introduction of new taxes for freight vehicles varying from $300 to $500.

Another issue discussed at the plenary session was amendment to the Tax Code providing an exemption from taxation winnings in sport games of chance. Currently, the tax rate for such games is 10 percent.

The issue was presented to voting and approved.

The plenary session also approved a bill on "Fight against the use of doping agents or methods in sport".



The bill reflected the rules for doping control and providing medical services to athletes. Under the bill, the Anti-Doping Agency will be established in Azerbaijan.



The Parliament also approved the law "On private credit bureau". Private Credit Bureau helps financial institutions make faster and more correct credit decisions, thus increasing accessibility of financial services for private customers and small and medium-sized enterprises in the region.

--

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28 October 2016 14:46 (UTC+04:00)

By Laman Ismayilova

Continuous heavy showers in the regions in last couple of weeks have led to a significant increase in water levels of local rivers.

Elbrus Alizadeh, the deputy director of the Geography Institute under the Azerbaijani National Academy of Sciences, said that the increased water level was mainly observed in the rivers of Greater Caucasus and middle and high mountainous parts of Small Caucasus, as well as in the Talysh Mountains.

In some rivers, the water has reached the highest level and creates risk of flooding. At present, dangerous situation is observed in the Goychay rivers, Girdimanchay, Demiraparanchay, Kishchay, as well as in rivers running along the slopes of the Greater Caucasus, he said.

The National Department for Hydrometeorology of the Ecology and Natural Resources Ministry reported that currently, water richness holds 170-210% of decade norm in Guba-Khachmaz region rivers of Major Caucasus, 170-230% in Small Caucasus rivers, 250-450% in Lankaran-Astara region rivers.

Moreover, on October 28 8cm fall in water level was issued in Giragkesemen settlement of Kura river. Currently water consumption holds 205m3/sec in the settlement, i.e 124% of decade norm (in 2015, 182m3/sec, i.e 110% of decade norm. some 8cm rise in water level has been observed in Ayrichay settlement of Qanikh River. At present, water consumption holds 156m3/sec, i.e 170% of decade norm. (in 2015, 124m3/sec, i.e 135% of decade norm).

The rise of water level has been observed in the downstream of Kura River. In this regard, 4 cm in Surra, Banka and Novruzlu settlement of Aras while 3 cm rise in Salyan. At present, water level holds 560cm (on October 28, 2015, 361cm) in Surra settlement, 410cm (on October 28, 2015, 200cm) in Salyan, 283cm (on October 28, 2015, 187cm) in Banka, while 270cm (on October 28, 2015, 78cm) in Novruzlu settlement of Aras river.

Meteorologists warn that in the regions of Azerbaijan the weather will be rainy on October 29.

The temperature will be +2-7C at night, +9-14C in the daytime, -2+3C in mountainous areas, +6-11C in the afternoon, 2-7 degrees of frost in highlands, 0-5 C in the afternoon.

---

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28 October 2016 17:30 (UTC+04:00)

By Gunay Hasanova

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko had a meeting with Azerbaijans First Deputy Prime Minister Yagub Eyyubov in Minsk on October 28 which mainly focused on discussion of the role of Belarus in peaceful negotiations, as well as, bilateral ties between the two countries.

At the beginning of the meeting, Lukashenko emphasized that the sides have something to talk about on this Belarusian-Azerbaijani platform.

Minsk fulfills its obligations of the peaceful platform for negotiations, BelTA news agency quoted Lukashenko as saying.

Firstly, I want to congratulate you with the exam, which your state power successfully passed in Azerbaijan  the referendum. Its results are the best proof of the Azerbaijani peoples attitude towards the authorities in this difficult time, said the Belarusian president.

This is a big victory, and I know how it is seen in the world, he noted adding that Azerbaijans image has considerably improved.

He said that the Azerbaijani and Belarusian presidents agreed to meet on November 28-29.

Lukashenko believes that the meeting with Yagub Eyyubov will be the appropriate step to prepare for the upcoming negotiations at the highest level.

There are a number of problems that we will seriously discuss, he said.

He also drew attention to the fact that the Belarusian capital has become a broad platform of international meetings. In particular, Minsk hosted a meeting of the Eurasian Economic Community (EAEC) on October 27.

Moreover, heads of governments of the CIS (the Commonwealth of Independent States) countries met in the Belarusian capital on October 28.

Minsk is hosting a large-scale international conference of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). The working group on Ukraine is also in session in the Belarusian capital on these days.

Yagub Eyyubov, for his part, said that Belarus and Alexander Lukashenko are the closest and dearest for Azerbaijan and the Azerbaijani people.

Azerbaijan and Belarus enjoy friendly relations based on mutual understanding and respect

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Belarus amounted to 28.81 million manats ($18.41 million) in January-May 2016 and 20.83 million manats ($13.31 million) fell on imports of Belarusian goods, according to the State Customs Committee.

Belarus mainly exports to Azerbaijan instruments, apparatus and models, designed for demonstration purposes, sawn timber, spare parts for cars and tractors, tractors, plywood, lumber and engines.

Azerbaijan exports to Belarus oil products, acyclic hydrocarbons, clay, fruit and vegetable juices, and polymers of ethylene.

One of the bright examples of fruitful cooperation is the joint project on the production of Belarusian tractors MTZ and machinery of the Minsk automobile plant MZKT at the Ganja Automobile Plant of Azerbaijan, which produced 6,000 "Belarus" tractors and about 3,000 cars and trailers from 2007 to 2015.

This May Ganja Automobile Plant and Minsk Tractor Works signed a memorandum on the delivery and assembly of 2,000 Belarusian tractors in Azerbaijan in 2016. The sides reached an agreement on the joint output of finished products on the markets of third countries, as well as localization of production in Azerbaijan.

Investments in Belarus economy by Azerbaijan have amounted to $100 million since 2011.

---

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28 October 2016 17:12 (UTC+04:00)

By Gunay Hasanova

Moscow keeps optimism regarding the next meeting of Caspian littoral states to discuss the legal status of the sea in Kazakhstans capital Astana.

Russia expects a convention on the legal status of the Caspian Sea to be signed at the fifth Caspian Summit in Astana in summer of 2017, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.

He made the remarks on October 28 during a meeting with Foreign Minister of Iran Mohammad Javad Zarif in Moscow, RIA Novosti reported.

Earlier, Moscow said a convention on the Caspian legal status can be inked in early 2017.

The Caspian Sea is the biggest enclosed body of water on Earth, with enormous deposits of oil and gas as well as rich fisheries. It plays an important role in the transport corridors, along with being an important part of the international and regional projects.

The legal status has been remained unsolved during the past two decades, preventing development and exploitation of its disputable oil and gas fields and creating obstacles to the realization of major energy projects.

Negotiations related to the demarcation of the Caspian Sea have been going on for nearly a decade now among the littoral states bordering the Caspian. The major issues cover the access to the mineral resources (oil and gas), access for fishing, and access to international waters.

Azerbaijan proposes that the Caspian Sea must be divided into national sectors based on the median line principles since it is an international boundary lake.

In turn, Iran and Turkmenistan oppose Azerbaijans position considering that the Caspian Sea must be divided into equal parts between the pre-Caspian countries so that each country must have 20 percent of the sea.

The five Caspian states signed a Framework Convention for Protection of Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea in November 2003.

Russia and Kazakhstan signed an agreement on the delimitation of the northern part of the Caspian seabed in order to exercise sovereign rights for subsoil use in July 1998. The two countries signed a protocol to the agreement in May 2002.

Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan signed an agreement on the delimitation of the Caspian seabed and a protocol to it on November 29, 2001, and February 27, 2003, respectively.

Additionally, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Russia signed an agreement on the delimitation of adjacent sections of the Caspian Sea on May 14, 2003.

Once all Caspian states ratify the Agreement on Security Cooperation in the Caspian Sea, signed in Baku in 2010, a new impetus will be given for close cooperation between the sides.

Up to now, the summits of the Caspian countries heads have been held in Ashgabat in 2002, Tehran in 2007, Baku in 2010 and Astrakhan in 2014.

Significant progress has been achieved in drafting a convention on the legal status of the Caspian Sea in September 2014.

---

Gunay Hasanova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @gunhasanova

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
28 October 2016 11:47 (UTC+04:00)

By Gunay Hasanova

Turkey and Ukraine seek to advance in talks on free trade agreement, the signing of which can give an impulse for deepening trade ties between the two countries.

The issue was discussed as President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko had a telephone conversation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on October 27, according to the Ukrainian presidents press service.



The presidents agreed to step up negotiations on a free trade area and discussed the procedure for further contacts at the highest level.

President Poroshenko also informed the Turkish leader on the increase of the period of a visa-free stay for Turkish citizens in Ukraine from 60 to 90 days during the 180-day period. A similar decision with regard to Ukrainian citizens was taken by the Turkish Government earlier.

Poroshenko called this an important step in the development of interpersonal relations and economic ties between the two countries.

The two countries signed an Agreement on the Mutual Abolition of Visas intending to further improve interpersonal relations, business ties and strengthen tourism sectors, which came into force from August 2012.

Turkey is one of the most important trade partners of Ukraine, while the country ranked the 5th among Ukraines trade partners in the first half of 2016.

Over the past years, Turkish investment in Ukraine increased especially in the telecommunications sector, while the country is also an important market for Turkish construction companies. The total value of construction investments completed by Turkey in Ukraine exceeds $5 billion.

The trade turnover between Ukraine and Turkey exceeded $2 billion since early 2016, including $1.4 billion worth of exports and $667 million worth of imports, according to the official statistics.

The major items of export from Turkey to Ukraine are citric fruits, petrochemical products, motor vehicles, plastics and plastic items, electrical technical equipment and electric appliances. The major items of imports are iron, products of plain steel, hot-rolled iron and steel products, aluminum and wheat.

Previously, during a meeting in Ankara, President Erdogan and President Poroshenko announced an ambitious plan to increase the trade turnover between the two countries to $ 20 billion by 2020.

Diplomatic relations between Turkey and Ukraine were established following the signing of a protocol on 3 February 1992, shortly after Ukraines declaration of independence.

---

Gunay Hasanova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @gunhasanova

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
28 October 2016 13:45 (UTC+04:00)

By Nigar Abbasova

Ankara and Ashgabat seek to bring the bilateral cooperation to a qualitatively new level, while Turkish companies and businessmen intend to strengthen their positions in the promising Turkmen market.

The issues of the bilateral economic and political cooperation were high on the agenda during meeting of Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov and Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey Togrul Turkes.

Turkes voiced the interest of business circles of his country in the strengthening of cooperation. Energy, transport and communication, industry and construction sectors were named among the priorities for strengthening the ties.

Moreover, the sides hailed the activity of the Turkmen-Turkish Commission and Joint Business Council.

The Turkmen President earlier held a telephone conversation with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan., with whom he exchanged views on a number of topical issues of regional and global agenda.

The cooperation between the two countries encompasses very diverse fields, while one of the priority directions of the Turkmen-Turkish cooperation is the fuel and energy sector.

Moreover, Turkish companies are making significant contributions to the infrastructural development of Turkmenistan.

Turkey mostly exports electronic equipment, machinery, processed metals and furniture to the Central Asian nation, making up some 26 percent of imports of Turkmenistan.

Turkish companies implement about 1580 projects in such sphere as transport, communication, agriculture, construction, trade, management of water resources. Some 562 enterprises with Turkish capital are currently registered in Turkmenistan. The volume of trade turnover between the countries amounted to $5.5 billion in 2015.

Turkey was the first country to recognize the independence of Turkmenistan on 27 October 1991.

--

Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
28 October 2016 12:57 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Turkmenistans President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov will visit Russia on November 1, the Turkmen Foreign Ministry reported on October 28.

More than 100 agreements covering all spheres of cooperation have been signed between the two countries. The base document is the agreement on friendship and cooperation, dated April 23, 2002.

Russian business operates successfully on the Turkmen market, in such spheres as supply of machines and equipment, telecommunications, oil and gas.

Some 190 companies with Russian capital operate in Turkmenistan. On the basis of the production sharing agreement, ARETI (formerly ITERA) International Group of Companies has been operating in the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea since 2009.

Meanwhile, Russias Gazprom, the traditional trading partner, stopped buying Turkmen gas in 2016.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
28 October 2016 13:18 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Some 153 gendarmerie officers and 112 coast guards were dismissed in Turkey as part of fight against the Fethullah Gulen movement, accused of involvement with a failed coup attempt, Turkish newspaper Haber 7 reported on October 28.

Around 13,000 Turkeys Interior Ministry officers were fired in operations against Gulen movement in Turkey, according to the latest statistics.

On July 15 evening, Turkish authorities said a military coup attempt took place in the country. Meanwhile, a group of servicemen announced about transition of power to them. However, the rebelling servicemen started to surrender July 16 and Turkish authorities said the coup attempt failed.

Previously Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had said the death toll as a result of the military coup attempt stood at 246 people, excluding the coup plotters, and over 2,000 people were wounded.

He also declared a three-month state of emergency in Turkey on July 20. It was decided to prolong the state of emergency for 90 more days on October 3.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
28 October 2016 14:47 (UTC+04:00)

By Gunay Hasanova

The meeting of the CIS Heads of Government Council kicked off in a narrow format in Minsk, BelTA reported.

The session will consider more than 20 draft documents related to further development of cooperation in the CIS priority areas. The participants will mull the implementation of the free trade agreement, the energy production and consumption plan for the period through 2030, priority events in the humanitarian cooperation for the mid-term perspective.

The CIS heads of government will also consider documents that regulate cooperation in the development of the information society, hydro-meteorological activity, the development of the intellectual property market. The participants of the session are expected to introduce amendments to a number of earlier-adopted documents and consider financial and economic issues.

They also plan to consider a number of important documents in the humanitarian sphere during the meeting. The participants of the session are expected to introduce amendments to a number of earlier-adopted documents and consider financial and economic issues.

Chairman of the Executive Committee - CIS Executive Secretary Sergei Lebedev said that the chairmanship at the CIS will be transferred from Kyrgyzstan to Russia from January 1, 2017.

The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) was created in December 1991. The CIS united Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine.

However, in 2008 Georgia withdrew its membership.

The Council of the Heads of States is one of the charter bodies formed in 1993 to coordinate the activities of customs authorities.

---

Gunay Hasanova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @gunhasanova

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
28 October 2016 16:46 (UTC+04:00)

By Nigar Abbasova

The ongoing developments in Syria were top on agenda at a trilateral meeting of foreign ministers of Russia, Iran and Syria in Moscow.

Sergey Lavrov and his counterparts Javad Zarif and Walid al-Moallem discussed the current situation in Syria, including military, political and humanitarian state, as well as joint efforts on fight against terrorism.

Ahead of the meeting, Lavrov said the three nations are acting as a united front against terrorism, saying their talks are mainly focused on ways of tackling terrorism. Fight against terrorism should be continued and the warring sides should return to peaceful reconciliation, he added.

The meeting is expected to provide important background for further talks over finding a solution to the Syrian crisis.

U.S.Secretary of State John Kerry earlier said that the settlement of the Syrian crisis is impossible without Iran and Russia, adding that exclusion of the countries from the process of negotiation may lead to the appearance of new problems.

Lavrov, Zarif and Muallem already met in such a format in January 2014 in Moscow before the Geneva II Conference on Syria.

Lavrov also held bilateral talks with his counterparts prior to the meeting in trilateral format. Zarif, during the separate meeting with Lavrov said that the countries have tangible progress in all spheres of bilateral relations and in international affairs. Moreover, he added that Russia and Iran have a common approach to the fight against international terrorism and extremism.

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" (IS, aka ISIS, ISIL or Daesh) and Jabhat al-Nusra are the most active terrorist groups in Syria.

--

Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Bakersfield, CA (93308)

Today

Sunny along with a few clouds. High 72F. Winds NNW at 10 to 20 mph..

Tonight

Cloudy. Periods of rain early. Low around 50F. Winds NNW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 70%.
http://www.thecannabist.co/2016/09/28/hillary-clinton-marijuana-george-soros/64146/



This pro-legalization business magnate is Hillary Clintons biggest billionaire backer

Business magnate George Soros, one of the largest contributors of funding for marijuana legalization efforts around the globe, is the biggest billionaire backer for Hillary Clintons presidential campaign, Bloomberg reported this week.

Soros, the hedge fund manager, investor and activist, was the largest contributor among Bloomberg Billionaires Index members to the Democratic nominees campaign, according to the Bloomberg article.

Soros and his foundations have shelled out nearly $11.9 million for Clintons campaign, Bloomberg reported, adding that the former U.S. Secretary of State had garnered $21.1 million for her campaign and related political action committees by 17 U.S. billionaires on the index:

While the role the wealthiest play in American politics has come under increased scrutiny with growing attention to income inequality fueling the rise of populist candidates, contributions from U.S. billionaires on the Bloomberg index amount to 3 percent of the $708 million raised by the two candidates, as of the latest Federal Election Commission filings. Hedge fund billionaire George Soros is the biggest spender among donors on the index, giving almost $11.9 million to Clintons cause. A Hungarian immigrant to the U.S., Soros is the 17th-richest person in the country with $24.7 billion, according to the index. The co-founder of hedge fund Renaissance Technologies  and former NSA codebreaker  James Simons, is the second-biggest spender, giving $7 million to Clinton.

Clinton has said she supports states serving as the laboratories of democracy for potential legalization and has promised, if elected, to reschedule marijuana to a Schedule II substance from a Schedule I substance.

Alternatively, Clintons counterpart Donald Trump has raised just over $1 million from 12 members of the billionaires index, Bloomberg reported. Trump has said he supports states rights on marijuana issues and that he would not use federal authority to shut down existing markets.

Soros has been an advocate for marijuana legalization, funding organizations such as the Drug Policy Alliance and supporting past measures, including Californias last recreational ballot effort.

In 2014, Forbes reported that Soros drug reform financial contributions totaled about $200 million:

Hes played a historic role in the evolution of drug policy reform from a movement that was at the fringe of U.S. politics to one that is in the mainstream, said Ethan Nadelmann, who runs the nonprofit Drug Policy Alliance. The largest recipient of that $200 million is the Drug Policy Alliance. Nadelmann said his organization has worked with Soros for decades, and that the foundation now gives roughly $5 million a year to his nonprofit or one of its affiliates. Nadelmann recalled his organizations first success with Soross help: when they won key states for medical marijuana in the late 1990s.

Read Bloombergs full article: Hillary Clinton is outraising Trump 20-1 among billionaires
Top 13 dealer tricks

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In the summer of 2014, the church bells of Mosul, the second largest city of Iraq, fell silent for the first time in nearly two millennia. Long a heartland of Christianity in the region, Mosul had been conquered by ISIS in a brutal assault. The Christians of the city were given a choice: leave, convert, or die by the sword. Most fled with nothing but the clothes on their backs.

The assault marked a major moment in ISIS horrific campaign of regional conquest. After capturing Mosul with the Iraqi army all but disintegrating, the so-called caliphate continued to metastasize across large swaths of Syria and Iraq. Marching under its black banner of death, ISIS subsequently spread into North Africa and established a wider network, beginning a global campaign of terror that has contributed to one of the greatest migrant crises in modern times. ISIS and its sympathizers have hit America and claimed lives here at home.

Fortunately, this dark tide has begun to turn. Last week, Iraqi forces, aided significantly by our weapons, air cover, and 5,000 Americans in support, initiated the largest combat operation in Iraq since 2003. Nearly 100,000 troops launched a multipronged offensive against ISIS positions around the city. Swift gains are being secured right now by the Iraqi army, Kurdish Peshmerga troops, and integrated security forces also containing the regions beleaguered minority communities. But ISIS resistance, especially to the north and east of Mosul, seems to be fiercer and more chaotic. This region is known as the Nineveh Plainonce a thriving, pluralistic area of Iraq with a rich tapestry of religious and ethnic diversity. Battles rage around a number of towns near Mosul, including some of the oldest Christian towns in the Middle East.

The stakes of the present conflict could not be higher, especially for the minority communities to which ISIS has posed an existential threat. In March, the House of Representatives unanimously passed a bipartisan resolution I introduced that named ISIS atrocities against Christians, Yezidis, and others as genocide, and the legal term was recognized by the full weight and moral authority of the United States Government. This legislative maneuver was critical to further policy considerations to ensure that the horror of ISIS ends, to provide justice for the minorities, and to restore pluralism to a fragile Middle East. As a next step, in September I introduced another resolution in Congress that follows on the Government of Iraqs own initiative to create a province in the Nineveh Plain region, with the goal of restoring the ancestral homeland of so many suffering peoples. A sustainable security settlement must be reached, including a genuine ability of indigenous peoples, supported by Iraqi and international efforts, to assure their ongoing safety.

Shortly after ISIS first invaded Iraq, in one of the rawest moments of my service in public office, a group of young menYezidis from Lincoln who had earned United States citizenship by serving alongside our soldiersbegged me to act. One quivered with anxiety, radiated anger, and was on the verge of tears. There is no more time!ISIS is comingMy mother, my sister, are trapped! The United States did act, beginning the air campaign against ISIS and saving tens of thousands of Yezidis who were then trapped atop Mount Sinjar in Iraq.

Defeating ISIS is not just an attempt to preserve the hard fought gains of so much American sacrifice. This is more than defeating 8th century barbarians wielding 21st century weaponryit is about humanitarian justice, stability for the Middle East, and the future of civilization itself.
Businesses may be booming along St. Petersburg's Central Avenue but one building has tenants packing up.

Business owners along Central Avenue say landlord pushing them out

Landlord Abraham Reid says tenants violated their leases

More business stories

And those tenants are blaming it all on the landlord.

Mark Freels, the owner of Reclaimed Restorations and Upholstry, said he had no issues for about two years while being based at 2315 Central Ave.

Then he began complaining about a leaky roof he said the landlord Abraham Reid wouldn't fix.

"It was fine in the beginning," Freels said. "And then it just went down hill."

Freels said his constant requests to properly repair the roof turned Reid against him.

"The ceiling leaked constantly and he would patch it," Freels said. "Just patch after patch after patch, you know, but it still kept leaking."

Freels said after that, he received an eviction notice.

Susan Bridges, who owns the Sawgrass Tiki Bar and Teahouse next door, had a similar experience.

"If you stand up to him at all, he wants you out of here," Bridges said.

Reid, however, said his tenants broke their leases.

"(It's) not my problem," Reid said when asked about the tenants being evicted. "(They) violated the lease, you break the rules, you got to go."

When pressed about how the tenants violated their leases, Reid didn't give a clear answer, saying: "The lease expired and right now, they don't have a lease. They voided the lease, OK."

But Freels and Bridges said not only were they evicted, they were also harassed.

"After the incident with me telling him to get out of our shop after hours, he had proceeded a couple days after that, to slash my tires," Freels said.

Freels filed a police report and offered surveillance video but police said it wasn't enough to prove anything against Reid.

St. Petersburg's small business liasion Jessica Eileerman knows about the riff between Reid and his tenants but said there is little she can do other than help them relocate.

"What we can do is help those tenants to say, OK, we're still actively growing businesses," Eileerman said. "We want to keep you in St. Pete. 'What can we do to help in this transition period?'"

Meanwhile, city code enforcement is investigating if there are any issues with the building being up to code.

Freels has relocated his upholstery shop.

Bridges, however, has decided to stay and fight eviction.

"If I leave this, I have nothing," Bridges said. "This was all I had. He wants to rip that from under me."
Vice President Joe Biden will return to Florida next week to campaign for Hillary Clinton.

Public "Get Out The Early Vote" events are scheduled for Wednesday in Tampa and West Palm Beach.

Join us for exclusive coverage of the general election through the Nov. 8 election. Special editions of Political Connections

Florida Decides 2016 election preview: 7 a.m. Monday, Nov. 7

Election day coverage on-air, online, on mobile starting at 7 a.m.

Times for the event have not been released, though a news release described both events for Wednesday afternoon.

The news release said Biden will "lay out his support for Clinton and her vision of an America that is stronger together, with an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top."

Members of the public interested in attending the Tampa area event can RSVP here.



Members of the public interested in attending the West Palm Beach area event can RSVP here.
The Veterans Memorial Park in Beatrice is spick and span after looking bare this summer for good reasons.

Water damage to the brick walls called for the replacement of several bricks. Project leaders figured while the plaques are down, may as well polish them.

Now, the walls are fixed and plaques of area war veterans' names are in place, shinier and more weather resistant.

Funds and labor donated by local groups and businesses made the park's repairs and refreshment possible.

"We were hoping the entire project would be paid for by grants," said Verdella Vetrovsky, co-chair of the project and a member of the Beatrice Rotary club, which founded the park. "We received a $10,000 grant from Beatrice Plus and that paid for part of the walls. The walls were more costly than we anticipated because we had to replace more bricks."

Earlier this year, 30 bricks were estimated to be in need of replacement because they were cracking and crumbling because "somehow, someway, moisture is getting in the walls," Vetrovsky said in July.

That number grew to 3,000 bricks. Endicott Clay Products Company stood by its original pledge to provide all of the bricks free of charge.

"They put in some new webbing for more ventilation in the walls so hopefully the bricks won't retain moisture causing the bricks to decay," Vetrovsky said.

Project leaders had to find money to pay for the additional labor of the job done by Masonry Construction Inc.

"The rest of the money used to pay for the repairs came from the Beatrice Rotary Foundation and the Beatrice Rotary Club," Vetrovsky said.

Beatrice Rotary Foundation is a 501-c3 nonprofit that was created when the park was in order to collect tax deductible donations. Vetrovsky said the park was created when all rotary clubs were challenged to come up with a project to commemorate the club's centennial in 2005.

Employees from Exmark Manufacturing Company, known for its donated funds and labor to the community, put the plaques on the wall.

The employees also drove the plaques to and from Illinois manufacturing company Trigard Memorials, where they were polished and given a Marine coating that should make them more weather resistant. Plaques on benches, light poles and donning quotes on the walls were also given the treatment.

"That was a huge, huge cost savings for the Veterans Memorial Park and such a wonderful tribute for Exmark to give back to the community," Vetrovsky said. "They did a super job."

Overall, Vetrovsky said the project during the past months went well.

"We had wonderful support from community members," Vetrovsky said. "We were hoping it wouldn't be as many bricks as it was, but we bit the bullet and said, 'Let's move forward.'"

The park has 13 walls, 12 of which are full with plaques of inscribed names. Now, the foundation is collecting names for the first plaque to be installed on the 13th wall. The plaque isn't made until the full 21 names are submitted. So far, Vetrovsky said she has 10 names submitted for the plaque.

The foundation always accepts donations. They're particularly looking for donations now for continued maintenance of the park and for additional sculptures to be added to the site.

"We want to do three more sculptures," Vetrovsky said. "We're trying to raise money for one at a time. We're sending letters to the community asking for support."

Donations can be sent to the Beatrice Rotary Foundation, P.O. Box 162 in Beatrice. More information about the park, including forms for inscriptions, can be found on the website, BeatriceVMP.com.
In light of continued developments, primarily since 2008, there exists in these United States a Legal System which operates on a proved Two Tiered approach to justice rendered, which primarily benefits Democratic Elites and Woke Ideological Virtue Signalers, representing their co-dependent wards, to the expressed exclusion of normal hardworking American citizens: What is your suggestion in remedying this widespread injustice and, if not corrected, its existential outcome for our Constitutional Republic?

Complete overhaul of the Department of Justice and their enforcers - the FBI - to reflect a far more honest justice system to keep patriots remaining calm.

Disband the FBI, and request that congress investigate all unethical and non patriotic practices to partially right the wrongs of a distrusted and politically weaponized "Department of Justice."
More Than One Wildlife Lecture Series Begins on N. Oregon Coast

Published 10/28/2016 at 4:41 AM PDT

By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff

(Cannon Beach, Oregon)  Don't worry about fall winter on the north Oregon coast getting very dull. Besides the storm watching fun, a whole series of fascinating wildlife lectures begins in early November in both Cannon Beach and nearby Manzanita. (Above: a peregrine falcon at Newport's Yaquina Head, the subject of a lecture in Cannon Beach on Nov. 9).

November 10 features a special lecture in Manzanita on albatrosses of the Oregon coast. The Lower Nehalem Watershed Council brings to town Ted Chu, wildlife biologist and Council Board Member, as the featured presenter for its Speaker Series event. It happens at the Pine Grove Community House at approximately 7:20 p.m., after some brief business by the council.

Albatrosses have been described as the most legendary of all birds, holding a special place in maritime lore and superstition such as in Samuel Taylor Coleridges The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. The true story of the albatross is even more enthralling.

Chu had the brief opportunity to volunteer on the Midway Atoll albatross nesting grounds where Black-footed and Laysan albatrosses that forage off the Oregon coast return each year to large breeding colonies. The slide presentation will highlight these iconic birds. As a special door prize, Chu will be giving away a signed copy of Carl Safinas book Eye of the Albatross.

The Pine Grove Community House is at 225 Laneda Ave, in Manzanita, Oregon. Doors open at 6:30 pm for refreshments. This event is free and open to the public. Find more information on our speaker series on the Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/lnwc1). Manzanita Hotels in Manzanita for these events - Where to eat - Map and Virtual Tour



In Cannon Beach, the Friends of Haystack Lecture series gets started in November with its 2016-17 season. These are held each second Wednesday of every month from November through April, all happening at the Cannon Beach Library at 7:30 p.m. (131 N. Hemlock St, Cannon Beach, Oregon).

It's one of the big science fun highlights of the north Oregon coast during winter.

The first lecture up is on November 9, featuring Wayne Hoffman, Policy Director for the Mid Coast Watershed Council on the central Oregon coast. He'll be talking about the Peregrine Falcons of Yaquina Head in Newport.

On December 14 you'll find biologist and wildlife photographer Neal Maine discussing the landmark Oregon Beach Bill and its 50th anniversary.

On January 11, it's Roy Lowe of the Oregon Coast National Wildlife Refuge Complex. The agency oversees national wildlife refuges along most of the coastline, especially rocky island-like structures that are designated wildlife protection areas. These include spots like Haystack Rock in Cannon Beach, Siletz Bay in Lincoln City or Three Arch Rocks at Oceanside.

For this lecture, however, Lowe takes the audience on a trip to China with a presentation on "The Precipitous Loss of China's Coastal Wetlands and Impacts to Migratory Birds in the East Asian-Australasian Flyway." Cannon Beach Hotels / Lodging in Cannon Beach for these events - Where to eat - Map and Virtual Tour

More on Cannon Beach and Manzanita below:



















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If Texans are pleased with the state's nearly 17 percent growth in private-sector jobs in the past eight years, they're not giving credit to the policies of Democratic President Barack Obama.

The Lone Star State is likely to back Republican Donald Trump on Election Day, Nov. 8, political analysts say.
F: FACE - Ask the person to smile. Does one side of the face droop?

A: ARMS - Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward?

S: SPEECH - Ask the person to repeat a simple phrase. Is their speech slurred or strange?

T: TIME - If you observe any of these signs, call 9-1-1 immediately.

Contact: Beth Anne Atkins

Beth Anne Atkins beth.atkins@vidanthealth.com

GREENVILLE, NC Oct. 29 is World Stroke Day. The stroke team at Vidant Medical Center strives to provide quality and efficient stroke care throughout eastern North Carolina. In the 29 counties that Vidant Health serves, stroke is the third leading cause of death and a leading cause of serious, long-term disability.North Carolina has one of the highest stroke death rates in the nation, which is two times the national average. Every 20 minutes, someone from North Carolina is hospitalized with a stroke and every two hours someone dies from a stroke.The VMC stroke center works with stroke patients and their families on a daily basis providing support and education and implementing processes that will reduce the occurrence and impact of stroke in the region. The team also serves as a resource to community hospitals in eastern North Carolina to enhance their care delivery model for stroke patients.said Dr. Donald Price, medical director, Vidant Medical Center stroke team, and clinical associate professor of neurology at the East Carolina University Brody School of Medicine.Stroke care for eastern North Carolinians recently received a boost with the addition of Dr. Richard Dalyai, a cerebrovascular neurosurgeon, at Vidant Neurosurgery in Greenville. His expertise is allowing VMC to provide around-the-clock, endovascular care for acute stroke patients. Dalyai has been visiting emergency departments in the region discussing the latest protocols for acute stroke care.Dalyai has a medical degree from Tufts University School of Medicine. He completed a neurosurgery residency and clinical fellowship in endovascular and cerebrovascular neurosurgery at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. He treats all vascular neurosurgical disorders and specializes in the treatment of cerebral aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations and dural arteriovenous fistulas.said Ashley Elks, stroke center manager at VMC.FAST is an easy way to remember and identify the most common symptoms of a stroke. Recognition of a stroke and calling 9-1-1 will determine how quickly someone will receive help and treatment.The stroke support group at VMC provides support and education for stroke survivors and their families. This group meets the second Thursday of each month at 6:30 p.m. in the Rehabilitation Center classroom. Call 252-847-2152 for more information about this group.
A controversial school fight video is making headlines after five students brawled in a La Porte High School hallway while class was in session.

The video, taken Oct. 25, shows graphic language and imagery and may be disturbing to some viewers.

In the video, you can see three students arguing, which escalates into a violent brawl involving five students. The physical altercation goes on for about 45 seconds before an adult interferes and breaks up the fight.

The La Porte Police Department was called to the scene and is handling the investigation. Sgt. John Krueger of LPPD says the fight wasn't over a belt as other reports claim, but instead was an escalation of negative history.

RELATED: Social media pumps life into school fight videos

JoeAnne Renteria is a parent of a 15-year-old student at La Porte High School and posted the video to Facebook as protest against the violence in the school, which she's claiming has been going on for years.

"These kinds of things have been progressing for years now, but this hallway is common for fights and general hanging around during class," Renteria told Chron.com. "They're just hanging out in a random hallway away from security." She says the school has four security guards patrolling the campus, but she claims that's not enough to keep the students safe.

Renteria also says she believes the high school and district is "really good at pushing things under the rug."

READ MORE: The Houston-area school districts with the most reported fights

Christina Turribiates is the mother of the 15-year-old freshman attacked by upper classmen, Renteria said.

"The emotions are just everywhere," Turribiates told KHOU. "You don't know whether to be upset, to be mad, to be hurt, you don't know what to even feel." Chron.com is waiting to hear back from Turribiates for further comment.

Sgt. Krueger said the first two students, who started the fight by jumping the victim, were charged with Class A assault. A good Samaritan who attempted to break up the fight was not charged. The fifth student to get involved was later charged with Class C assault.

RELATED: Student charged with assault in Katy Taylor High School fight

Terri Cook, spokesperson for La Porte ISD, says that the school is "cooperating fully with the police as they conduct their investigation" and the school has increased the presence of administrators and school resource officers the campus.

"Right now we're just trying to look at what we do and what we can do to prevent events like this in the future," Cook said when asked about an open meeting between administrators and parents. "I would recommend any parent that has concerns of bullying to express them to the administrators. They could even email me and I'll pass it along."
HOUSTON - Fort Bend County authorities say eight gang members have been arrested and charged with engaging in organized criminal activity, money laundering and the delivery of marijuana.

The county sheriff's office said in a news release that the arrests stem from a joint investigation with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service targeting members of the Kream Clicc Gang for drug trafficking and money laundering.
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Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump took aim at Texas Thursday, suggesting in a tweet that voter fraud is running rampant in the Lone Star State.

Trump, who has made several claims that the Nov. 8 election would be rigged, tweeted, "A lot of call-ins about vote flipping at the voting booths in Texas. People are not happy. BIG lines. What is going on?"

Since early voting began, numerous reports have surfaced on social media alleging various malfunctions with the voting machines. Officials have denied all those reports, except one case in Chambers County, where a software glitch on Monday left one statewide court of appeals race blank when voters cast straight-ticket ballots for either party.

The county switched to paper ballots until the error was resolved, and the machines were brought back online Wednesday morning, according to a news release from the Chambers County Clerk's Office.

A Kountze woman claimed on Facebook this week that when she went to vote she was told someone had already cast a ballot in her name.

Hardin County Clerk Glenda Alston said the issue involved two people with the same first and last names, but different middle names. The issue was resolved and both were able to vote, she said. The county offers both paper and electronic ballots and has not had any problems reported with machines, she said.

When early voting began Monday, Facebook posts from North Texas garnered thousands of shares, then generated a flurry of headlines on news blogs reporting that Texas machines were changing votes. By Tuesday night, the posts were cited as evidence for concern on Fox News by commentator Sean Hannity.

One of the posts Hannity cited came from Amarillo, where a writer said she had pressed the button to vote straight ticket Republican, but the machine "flipped" her vote to Democrat Hillary Clinton in the race for president.

That prompted Potter County Judge Nancy Tanner to issue a statement saying, "There is nothing wrong with any of the machines we use for voting.  They do not flip parties. Humans do that."

The other post came from Tarrant County, where a woman gave a similar story from "a family member." In response, local election administrator Frank Phillips told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, "There is not an issue with the equipment."

Vincent Raynauld, who researches social media and political communication at Emerson College in Boston, said he did not expect reassurance from officials would dampen the flurry of concern on social media, which he said operates with weaker rules of credibility than the non-digital world.

When folks have been primed to expect a rigged election, they will jump at a chance to share a post that "reinforces their own political disposition," he said, noting that the phenomenon has been widespread during this election and has not been limited to Trump supporters.

The system

In Chambers County, where the machines did have a hiccup, officials notified software provider Election Systems and Software, which sent representatives to install updates on Tuesday. In a statement, Election Systems acknowledged "a ballot coding error had occurred."

"Unfortunately, this error was not caught during standard pre-election testing," the statement said.

Dan Wallach, a Rice University computer scientist who has testified to Congress about voting machines, said he would not "blame users for what are (most likely) design flaws in the machines."

"They're finicky and poorly engineered, and those engineering flaws manifest themselves in ways that are confusing to voters," he said.

However, he said, if someone had engineered malware to manipulate the election, they would go out of their way to have the machines appear to behave normally, not to show the voter that something was awry.

Jefferson County Clerk Carolyn Guidry said in a prepared statement on Tuesday that the county's voting system "has been certified at both the federal and state level, and is in no way linked to any internet service." She said that members of both major local political parties checked the system at a public test event and serve as election judges. All poll workers are trained and monitored, according to Guidry.

"Election integrity in Jefferson County is secure, and voters should have confidence in the system," Guidry said. There have been no complaints about ballot machines in the county, she said on Thursday, though she did receive one complaint about a poll worker in Port Arthur allegedly trying to sway a voter.

"I do get the reports, and we investigate to find out exactly what happened," she said.

Her office received a mail-in ballot application last week from a deceased woman wishing to vote for Republican candidates, Guidry said. The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office is still investigating the incident, she said on Thursday.

Early voting lines

Trump was correct in his tweet that there are long lines at many Texas early voting spots.

Officials have attributed those lines to the surging voter turnout, which analysts have also identified as a big factor in Texas' swing state status. Texas, typically among the staunchest red states in the nation, was dubbed a toss-up this week by polling aggregation RealClearPolitics, though experts contend that a blue Texas in the near future remains extremely unlikely.

Hardin County has had record turnout with more than 2,800 votes cast the first three days of early voting, Alston said. About 950 people voted in the county each of the first three days of early voting, and she expected Thursday's totals to continue to climb.

Orange County had received more than 9,000 early votes and mail-in ballots as of Wednesday, said elections administrator Tina Barrow. More than 3,000 people voted in the county on both Monday and Tuesday, and another 2,300 were at the polls on Wednesday.

"We've had very long lines," said Barrow. The polls close at 5 p.m. most days, but people who are in line by that time are able to vote, no matter how long it takes to get through the line, she said.

Because Orange County uses paper ballots, there have been no issues with machines or alleged vote-flipping, she said.

"We haven't had enormous wait times" in Jefferson County, Guidry said, though some polling sites are busier than others.

More than 25,506 voters had cast early ballots in Jefferson County as of 4 p.m. Thursday. Monday had the highest turnout, with more than 7,600 voters.

"None of the wait times are extensive," said Guidry, or anywhere near the hour-long waits she's heard about in other larger counties. Rogers Park has had the most voters so far in the county, while the Port Arthur Sub-Courthouse has had the fewest, she said.

Guidry said her office is preparing for numbers to increase next week after "pews to the polls" campaigns are launched on Sunday. The campaigns urge people to vote after church.

Early voting turnout so far exceeds presidential elections in 2008 and 2012, though if that will hold through Nov. 8 is "yet to be seen," said Guidry.

Early voting continues through Nov. 4. Election Day is Nov. 8.

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Bats and spiders always get the spotlight for being the staple Halloween critters, but it seems other creatures can join in too: The Texas State Aquarium in Corpus Christi recently released Halloween-themed photos of its animals.

The photoshoot, which took place on Wednesday, is in preparation of the aquarium's annual holiday event, "Green Halloween," were visitors can except a costume contest, face painting and spooky educational activities.
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In what amounted to a harsh civics lesson, a would-be early voter spent some time Monday at the Comal County Jail in New Braunfels after wearing partisan political garb into a polling place.

Charged with electioneering, a misdemeanor, Brett Mauthe, 55, of Bulverde was released on $500 bond. In an account he gave to KSAT 12 the next day, Mauthe admitted going into a polling place in Bulverde wearing a hat supporting Donald Trump and a T-shirt bearing the words Basket of Deplorables.

RELATED: Trump blasts S.A. mayor over SAPD "Make America Great Again" hat reprimands

Mauthe said that he got rid of the hat as requested but would not budge on removing the shirt, leading to his arrest. Contacted Thursday afternoon, he was less forthcoming.

The reason Im not going to talk any more to the media is that the story gets twisted around, and I dont want to give you any comment, he said.

Bulverde police did not return calls Thursday seeking information about the case.

RELATED: Report: Trump's "Project Alamo" in S.A. is working to "suppress" voters

Cynthia Jaqua, the Comal County elections coordinator, said while people occasionally have to be admonished, it is almost unheard of for anyone to be arrested on an electioneering charge.

The law, she added, is not always well understood.

Its in the election code. Electioneering is prohibited within a 100-foot marker. You cannot express views for or against a candidate or political party by wearing buttons, T-shirts, hats, whatever else or carrying signs, she said.

Most people who make the mistake manage to avoid going to jail, she added.

RELATED: Texas election officials: Voting booth selfies are illegal

Every election we have to advise people. Even if its a school bond issue. They wear candidates shirts and we just have to remind them. Please go into the restroom and turn it inside out. This is the first time I recall someone getting arrested, she said, during two decades working at the county election office.

A gentleman did walk in a little while ago with a slogan for Trump, and when I asked him to please take it off, he was real nice, and took it off, she added, while working a polling site Thursday afternoon in New Braunfels.

And while Bexar County elections officials said Thursday they were not aware of any similar incidents thus far during extremely heavy early voting, Bexar GOP Chairman Robert Stovall reported otherwise.

He said his partys unofficial poll watchers had observed a disturbing partisan T-shirt incident on the South Side of San Antonio.

They (poll officials) made one of our voters, who had a Trump T-shirt, take the T-shirt off. The two ladies behind him with Hillary shirts didnt have to take their Hillary shirts off, Stovall said.

You cant do it, Stovall said of electioneering. You can be belligerent if you want, but you wont end up in a good place, he said.
Many healthcare entities, from payers to pharmaceutical companies to hospitals, are blaming each other for drugs' escalating prices, according to Bloomberg.

Here are five things to know:

1. Earlier this week, lobby group Biotechnology Innovation launched an ad saying drugs' high list prices do not indicate the money pharmaceutical companies actually receive. Rather, ad claims the "middlemen" accrue a large portion of the profits.

2. As drug prices continue to rise, a coalition including the AARP and Blue Cross Blue Shield Association proposed having pharmaceutical companies submit a request for any price increases exceeding 10 percent for government review. This legislation would make it easier for companies to bring generics to the market.

3. Hospitals are also coming under crossfire, with a recent report finding annual inpatient drug spending at community hospitals increased 23 percent from 2013 to 2015.

4. Pharmaceutical companies have released ads showing how their drugs have saved the lives of many. Pfizer was one such company that released an ad in hopes that "if more people understand what it takes to bring a new medicine to patients, that together we can create a better environment for discovering treatment," a Pfizer spokesperson said.

5. Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the Washington lobby group for the pharmaceutical industry, brought the hospital industry into the spotlight saying the United States is projected to spend $3.5 trillion over the next 10 years on the hospital industry, which is three times what the drug industry spends on medicine.

More healthcare news:

Optim Orthopedics opens musculoskeletal-focused ASC  4 highlights

Georgia Ophthalmologists opens 8k-sq-ft ASC: 4 notes

Athens Surgery Center moves forward: 5 things to know
A bipartisan group of senators on Thursday proposed legislation called the Chronic Care Act that would expand or create a range of Medicare programs to improve coordination and cost for treatment of various chronic conditions, according to The Hill.

The proposal is the culmination of several months of work by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and the panel's top Democrat, Sen. Ron Wyden fromOregon, in addition to Sens. Mark Warner, D-Va., and Johnny Isakson, R-Ga.

"Addressing chronic care in the Medicare program with reforms that improve outcomes for patients and save taxpayer dollars is a bipartisan goal, and I am proud that after a year and a half's worth of work, the Finance Committee Chronic Care Working Group was able to unite around a set of reforms and recommendations to advance the conversation," Sen. Hatch said in a statement.

The draft bill includes expanding a Medicare pilot program that sends physicians and nurses to patients' homes for care; increasing flexibility for physician groups that are part of ACOs; and increasing the use of telehealth, according to the report. The reform would also expand programs aimed at combating high drug prices.

The Congressional Budget Office has not yet provided a cost estimate on the proposal, but the draft calls for savings from the initiatives outlined to offset any spending.
Considering that Hillary Clinton, from the recently concluded email investigation, is charged with gross negligence, dereliction of duty, was recommended that she lose her security clearance, while pathologically lying to congress, the press and the American People; and even though she was not referred for indictment because she is a Clinton: Will you? 11.84% Vote for Hillary 78.78% Vote for The Donald 9.39% Vote for none of the above 245 total vote(s) Voting has Ended!

And now for your additional voting pleasure:

What should be the priority of the Federal Government after the "Pulse" massacre: Should we turn our attention toward destroying, earadicating ISIS as Candidate Trump suggests, or, as Democrats' President Obama suggests, broaden our efforts to effect stricter Gun Control laws to limit "Gun Violence?" 88.24% After many years of trying to degrade and contain the murderous ISIS, we should make it the nation's policy to destroy ISIS immediately. 3.68% Gun Violence in America can be eliminated by limiting access to guns for all American citizens. 8.09% I don't care either way; I just live here. 136 total vote(s) Voting has Ended!

Should Americans be thankful for North Carolinians setting precedent in taking a stand for their state's right to manage the safety of their public facilities, where separation of the sexes remains, or should they follow Bruce Springsteen's lead and boycott the state as bigots since they will not allow grown Transgender men to use the same bathrooms /locker rooms as pre-pubescent girls? North Carolina is right to control the separation of the sexes as a matter of decorum and safety. North Carolina is a bigoted state to not require that children of opposite sexes share the same public facilities with adults of the opposite sex, although misidentified - the Transgender. I generally prefer the natural environs of the vacant, although rather public, large tree. 236 total vote(s) What's your Opinion?



Donald Trump should appeal to all those who identify as independent and who wish to break from the strict, disinterested, controlling 2-party system. All those who are fed up being controlled and railroaded by the self-interested 2-Party system should exercise their First Amendment right of protest by voting for Donald Trump!On June 5, 1788, Patrick Henry warned his fellow Virginia delegates (assembled in convention to consider the ratification of the US Constitution) that the constitution would eventually lead to an unfortunate transition from a confederacy (group of strong, sovereign states, which is what the States had wanted and intended) to a consolidated central government - one surely capable of tyranny and oppression. He said:."Patrick Henry was perhaps our most liberty-minded Founding Father. He was the conscience of our founding generation, ever reminding them of their right to be free and to be free from an overly ambitious government. On the evening of March 23, 1775 in what is now called St. John's Church in Richmond, he addressed members of a convention called to address the actions of the British against the colonies (particularly, against Massachusetts with the Intolerable Acts). He warned that the British were coming to confiscate their guns and ammunition and then would unleash the military on them. He spoke these inspiring words: "The system of government and the corrupted 2-Party system that hold us hostage in this country and subjugate our interests to the interests of government are the very definition of TYRANNY and OPPRESSION. If we don't use this opportunity to elect an outsider - a man not bought for and controlled by special interests - Donald Trump, we may find ourselves in a position, as Patrick Henry warned, without a position to regain our liberties and our beloved country.We have been deceived far too long. VOTE FOR DONALD TRUMP and EXERCISE YOUR RIGHT TO PROTEST.
The following insurers made headlines this week. They are listed below, beginning with the most recent.

1. Aetna Q3 revenue up, profit increases 8%

Profit in the third quarter of fiscal year 2016 for Aetna increased 8 percent from the same period last year to a total of $603.9 million.

2. Neighborhood Health Plan freezes Medicaid enrollment to renegotiate rates

Neighborhood Health Plan, a subsidiary of Boston-based Partners HealthCare, closed enrollment to new Medicaid members after it reported $241 million in losses since 2014.

3. 5 things to know about Anthem's confirmed Atlanta tech hub

Payer Anthem will establish a health IT hub in Atlanta over the next six years and create more than 1,800 IT-related jobs.

4. Horizon calls its 6% premium increase 'proof' tiers work

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey declared its Omnia ACA plans  which inspired a string of lawsuits in 2015  boast some of the lowest premium rate increases nationally next year.

6. Texas startup HMO targets small businesses, entrepreneurs

Austin, Texas-based health maintenance organization Vista360health is tailoring its plans to individuals, entrepreneurs and small businesses for 2017 coverage.

7. Prime Healthcare, BCBS of Alabama reach network agreement at hospital

Prime Healthcare Services and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama reached a network agreement regarding Gadsden, Ala.-based Riverview Regional Medical Center.

8. Aetna CEO: Young adults rather pay for 'beer on Fridays and Saturdays' than health insurance

People who are healthier and younger are more likely to forego buying ACA health plans as they weigh rising premiums against other lifestyle expenses.

9. Mississippi insurance commissioner addresses NMHS, UnitedHealthcare strife

The Mississippi Insurance Department requested reports from North Mississippi Health Services and payer UnitedHealthcare showing efforts to resolve a payment dispute.

10. Cigna drops pre-authorizations for anti-opioid addiction medications

Bloomfield, Conn.-based insurer Cigna will no longer require pre-authorization for anti-addiction prescription drugs like buprenorphine, most commonly known by the brand name Suboxone, which can successfully curb opioid cravings. The new policy comes under terms of a national settlement negotiated by the New York State Office of the Attorney General.

11. Memorial Community Hospital & Health System back in network with BCBS plan

Blair, Neb.-based Memorial Community Hospital & Health System primary care providers and a regional Blue Cross Blue Shield plan will network for coverage effective Nov. 1.

12. Phoenix Health drops Medicare Advantage plans

Payer Phoenix Health Plan, contracted with Arizona's Medicaid agency, will cease its Medicare replacement plans in Arizona's Yavapai County.

13. Long Beach Memorial Hospital, CareMore Health team up

Long Beach (Calif.) Memorial Medical Center and Cerritos, Calif.-based CareMore Health Plan are teaming up to allow CareMore members access to the medical center's inpatient and outpatient services at in-network rates.

14. BCBS of Montana relocates headquarters

Helena-based Blue Cross Blue Shield of Montana will move its headquarters to the east side of Helena.

More articles about payer issues:

Federal exchange premium increases surpass Covered California hikes

Republicans call for updated tally of government subsidy expenditure

Cigna launches nationwide mobile clinic tour
The External Affairs Ministry on Friday said that President Pranab Mukherjee is scheduled to pay a three-day state visit to Nepal next week, beginning on November 2. Notably, this would mark the first visit by an Indian head of state in 18 years to the neighbouring country. During the visit, Pranab Mukherjee will hold talks with Nepalese President and PM on mutual interest issues.
Ivan McElroy, owner of McElroys Fruit & Veg in Ballyhackamore, east Belfast, with some of the hundreds of pumpkins on sale at his shop

Northern Ireland's retailers are getting into the Halloween spirit as they prepare to cash in from sales of popular 'fright night' items.

It is hoped this year's event will get people in the spending mood, with the American tradition of carving a pumpkin taking over from the Northern Ireland custom of carving a turnip.

Glyn Roberts, chief executive of the Northern Ireland Independent Retail Trade Association (NIIRTA), said the festival had growing economic potential.

"I think more people are holding parties and getting more into the spirit of things," he said.

"This week our members will see a small but very significant boost. I think Halloween gets people in the mood for shopping - particularly this year falling on the weekend. We think it'll be a boost and will lead into one of the best Christmases so far."

Newry fancy dress shop Costume Corner was established just 11 years ago, but has already become one of the island's largest costume retailers. Around one-third of the shop's sales are made in the two weeks leading up to Halloween.

Owner Glenda Douglas said she had noticed a return to more gruesome costumes with scary clowns and werewolves proving popular this year.

"When we first started, Halloween wasn't what it is now, it was all about witches and vampires, and then it started to move on to what I call everyday fancy dress - costumes people could wear again, superheroes and cartoon characters - things they'll wear again on a stag do or a hen do," she said.

"Every year we laugh - the girls' costumes are shorter and the boys' are more muscled. Women will try on more than men, but men tend to worry less about how much they spend."

The shop's position close to the border means this year has been a bumper one - with customers travelling from as far away as Cork to get their hands on the perfect outfit.

Costumes sell for as little as 7 for a child's costume to 150 for more bespoke creations.

But things haven't been so good for one of Northern Ireland's best-known pumpkin growers.

This year, former grower Alan Lockhart, who runs Alderside Farms in Newry, will be among those buying instead of growing his own.

Alan grew pumpkins for five years and was one of the larger producers in the region, supplying almost 6,000 pumpkins each year. But he decided to call quits when last year's bad weather affected crops across the region.

"After last year's bad weather I didn't want to take that risk again," he said. "And this summer wasn't great, so I'm glad we weren't in it again this year.

"We plant everything by hand, so my wife and I would spend weeks on our knees preparing everything -it's hard work."

But things have been better for those who sell them. Ivan McElroy has already sold more than 150 pumpkins at his grocer's shop on the Upper Newtownards Road in Belfast this week.

Ivan orders most of his pumpkins from a Northern Ireland producer - but has had to turn to English growers to meet demand.

"We've always a big rush as it gets closer to Halloween and there's always a lot of people out on the day looking for them - but there have been a few years when I've run out early," he said.

Moneyreagh father Barry Close called at the shop to pick up a pumpkin for his daughter to carve and said that he tries to support local retailers where possible.

"There's a bit of personality and they're always willing to help you," he said.

"I like artisan foods and locally produced foods and they are good for finding things like that.".
Tense: Jamie Dornan as the serial killer Paul Spector, and Gillian Anderson as DSI Stella Gibson in scenes from BBC thriller The Fall

Tense: Jamie Dornan as the serial killer Paul Spector, and Gillian Anderson as DSI Stella Gibson in scenes from BBC thriller The Fall

The serial killer Paul Spector (Jamie Dornan) and his wife Sally Ann (Bronagh Waugh) - (C) Artists Studio - Photographer: Steffan Hill

Double trouble: John Lynch has loved working with Gillian Anderson in The Fall

Arresting performance: John Lynch's character in The Fall, Assistant Chief Constable Jim Burns, has unfinished business with DSI Stella Gibson, played by Gillian Anderson

Double trouble: John Lynch has loved working with Gillian Anderson in The Fall

Role play: Jamie Dornan has admitted he stalked a woman on the underground for his part in The Fall, alongside Gillian Anderson

HUNTING SEASON: Gillian Anderson as DSI Stella Gibson and Jamie Dornan as Paul Spector in The Fall

The Fall - Jamie Dornan and Gillian Anderson's game of cat and mouse [Photos] Close

The Fall series three may have been branded a slow burner- but the finale certainly woke up viewers as it reached its explosive climax.

The hit BBC crime drama's final episode was tasked with tying up a lot of loose ends and fans were braced to finally find out the fate of serial killer Paul Spector.

The show stars Holywood's Jamie Dornan as serial killer Spector and X-Files FBI agent Gillian Anderson as tough-talking detective Gibson.

Gibson, seconded to Belfast from the Metropolitan Police, is tasked to sniff out serial killer Spector who stalks the city streets for his female prey.

Speaking previously about the long-awaited series three, Dornan said: "You can expect the unexpected. There's quite remarkable turns in the third season that I really genuinely think people won't see coming that are hugely exciting."

And that certainly came into fruition on Friday night as the final episode aired.

In a double bill special over Thursday and Friday night the programme came to a dramatic and violent end.

With Spector very much alive on Thursday night - viewers were given a miserable insight into what perhaps turned him into the killer that has graced our screens for three series.

The penultimate episode gave a harrowing look at the life of a young Spector, which detailed the suicide of his mother when he was 8-years-old and the subsequent abuse he suffered in a care home.

"I was moved by the fact that Jamie was hugely moved by it" Jamie receiving a gift on his last day of filming #TheFall Very sad #JamieDornan pic.twitter.com/6kdrngml1x  Jamie Dornan Online (@JamieDornan_org) October 27, 2016

It was difficult viewing as the audience listened in on Spector's conversation with the psychologist.

We learned how Spector grew up being jealous of the happy lives of others and in an unexpected twist Spector was implicated in to the killing of a woman in London in 2002, a time before his supposed amnesia.

The serial killer claims he can't remember any of the heinous crimes he has committed and thinks he is in 2006 - but a quizzing from Stella on Thursday night appeared to jog his memory.

Gibson says: "Drop the charade Peter, you remember everything".

In the final episode there was no waiting around as Spector and Gibson came face to face for the last time.

Their cat and mouse game came to a violent and unexpected head with Dornan's character attacking the detective leaving her with a bloodied face.

Spector is then returned to hospital where he puts his final plan into action.

He convinces a fellow patient to create a distraction so he can slip away from the watch of the nurses.

And in a dramatic and unsettling climax to the series which has gripped the nation - the final life the serial killer takes is his own.

The finale brings Dornan's involvement on the show to an end.

The Holywood man owes a lot to the character and previously said he would play the sinister role until his "dying days" if he could.

He said: "You know, that job changed my life.

"They're like family to me and I'm forever grateful for it to be a part of my life and, you know, I would play that character to my dying days if I had the opportunity."
Tense: Jamie Dornan as the serial killer Paul Spector, and Gillian Anderson as DSI Stella Gibson in scenes from BBC thriller The Fall

Tense: Jamie Dornan as the serial killer Paul Spector, and Gillian Anderson as DSI Stella Gibson in scenes from BBC thriller The Fall

Arresting performance: John Lynch's character in The Fall, Assistant Chief Constable Jim Burns, has unfinished business with DSI Stella Gibson, played by Gillian Anderson

Role play: Jamie Dornan has admitted he stalked a woman on the underground for his part in The Fall, alongside Gillian Anderson

HUNTING SEASON: Gillian Anderson as DSI Stella Gibson and Jamie Dornan as Paul Spector in The Fall

In the dark netherworld of The Fall, Gillian Anderson shines steadily. As the inscrutable Stella Gibson, Anderson has been the engine of the crime drama's success.

Quite simply, she acts everyone else off the screen. Now the finale is imminent, and tonight we will learn whether DSI Gibson will finally get her man - behind bars, that is.

The intensity of Gibson's determination to nail Paul Spector (Ulsterman Jamie Dornan) was fully expressed in the closing scene of last night's episode.

But she didn't need words. Her steady, inexorable gaze as she sat opposite Spector, while he was confronted with crucial new evidence against him, was enough.

And it seemed as though that gaze had penetrated Spector's formidable defences, because he winced and looked away.

"The police have been clever," the supposedly amnesiac murderer admitted afterwards to his solicitor. "They have something on me that I can actually remember."

The presence that Anderson gives to the role of Gibson ensured that The Fall became compulsive viewing for crime drama fans.

It also brought her undeniable star quality to Belfast, and a little of that has rubbed off on the city.

Of course, Belfast was always going to be more than just the backdrop to the action. As John Lynch, who plays ACC Jim Burns, has observed in the past, the city has many "trapdoors to darkness", a powerful sense of recent history that remains close to the surface.

"Out of that shadow of death, this very unusual killer emerges. Belfast carries that resonance, and I think it's totally believable that the city would spawn somebody as cocky and as lethal as Paul Spector," he said.

Expand Expand Previous Next Close Paul Spector (Jamie Dornan) in The Fall BBC/The Fall 3 Ltd/Helen Sloan Hohn Lynchs character Jim Burns BBC/The Fall 3 Ltd/Helen Sloan / Facebook

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Whatsapp Paul Spector (Jamie Dornan) in The Fall

Without Anderson, however, I'm not convinced that the series would have taken off in the way it did. It was Anderson, as Stella, in Belfast, in thrall to Dornan's serial killer, that provided the magic ingredients that made it all work. Everything else was secondary.

If Belfast has reason to be grateful to Anderson, it's not just for the profile. The Fall has benefited the city financially too, underscoring its growing reputation as a prime destination for films and film-making.

Allan Cubitt, the creator of The Fall, was so convinced of Anderson's fit for the role that he wrote the part of Gibson with her in mind. And Anderson has often spoken about how much of a connection she feels with the character.

"I like Stella a lot," she said. "I really like her. I felt I understood her without being told anything."

She was quick to defend Cubitt from the repeated claims that The Fall, with its high female body count, is inherently misogynistic.

"Allan's intention has never been in any way to exploit, or be explicit in how women are represented," said Anderson.

"He's not condoning it, it's grounded in reality. Allan has done so much research on serial killers and their psychology.

"We are paying attention to the deep, deep tragedy of violence against women  he gets the audience to question their own ethics."

In return, Cubitt praised Anderson - who became an executive producer of the show - as "particular and meticulous  an intuitive and emotionally powerful actor. No-one could render the character better."

She has played Lily Bart in The House of Mirth and Miss Havisham in the BBC's adaptation of Great Expectations, as well as blowing the socks off critics with her London stage role as Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire.

But it's as Dana Scully in the X Files - a job she landed when she was just 25 - that Anderson made her first and most lasting impression on me.

Despite her young age, Anderson turned Scully into a rounded, dynamic and formidable character who was fully capable of putting Mulder (played by David Duchovny) in his place when necessary, sometimes with nothing more than a wry and well-timed raised eyebrow.

She was the scientific rationalist to Mulder's credulous dreamer, and I see some of Scully's authority in Anderson's interpretation of Gibson. Roles where women get to be smarter than the men are still woefully rare, so you appreciate them when they do come along.

I hope that DSI Stella Gibson will prevail tonight, and bring the Belfast Strangler to justice. But whatever happens, Anderson is always worth watching.

It's been good to have her here in Belfast, casting a little light into the darkness.
Lady Gaga returns with Joanne, indie kids Courteeners release Mapping The Rendezvous and Marching Church are Telling It Like It Is with their latest record. We round up this weeks best releases.

LADY GAGA  JOANNE

Lady Gaga might be going for a more stripped back sound on Joanne, but shes still got flair. Chameleon-like, she plunders Americas traditions of country twang, rockabilly and Detroits finest, although theres a significant lack of bona fide pop hits. On Grigio Girls she could have swapped places with an early Taylor Swift. Not to say thats a bad thing, its just were missing the Technicolor bite of Bad Romance. Just Another Day has musical theatre writ all over it, while Come To Mama blurs the line between rollicking rock n roll and Motown and wouldnt make a bad festive tune (no, really, its got horns that Eighties Christmas classics would be proud of). On Hey Girl, Gaga teams up with Florence Welch of Florence And The Machine; its not stunning, in fact its rather repetitive, but it has a gliding quality that means you find yourself listening to the end without meaning to, waiting for a finale that doesnt come. On Angel Down, Gaga has a raspy edginess to her voice that could have been borrowed directly from The Killers Brandon Flowers, while the title track has a surprising gentleness to it. The flair is all in the detail, not knockout choruses were used to. Not so much fun as youd hope as a record from the woman who brought us Poker Face, but considered, precise and touching nonetheless.

7/10

Ella Walker

MARCHING CHURCH  TELLING IT LIKE IT IS

Elias Bender Ronnenfelt first captured the attention as frontman of Icelandic punks Iceage, whose nihilistic New Brigade LP surfaced before his 19th birthday, five years ago. Blessed/burdened with River Phoenix good looks, Ronnenfelt has been portrayed as complicated, with New Yorks Fader magazine titling one 2014 interview A cheerless weekend with rocks most difficult frontman. Lou Reed and David Bowie were trying characters at times, but they had irrefutable magnetism and Ronnenfelt might be cribbing from their playbooks on this second record from the Marching Church side project, a bleak but utterly gripping baroque and roll work. Opener Let It Come Down is a fatalistic hymn to a doomed present, Up For Days a jumpy journey into a troubled state of mind. Heart Of Life is different, starting with a hip-shaking swagger and lurching into darker realms while retaining its sense of knotted urgency. Elsewhere Ronnenfelt attacks US police shootings, slays societies that enforce refugee camps and, on the closing Calenture, offers an apocalyptic vision. A terrific, timely record.

8/10

John Skilbeck

COURTEENERS  MAPPING THE RENDEZVOUS

Frontman Liam Fray claimed the Courteeners fifth studio album would unleash your inner Danny Zuko and hes not wrong. Mapping The Rendezvous has all the swagger you would expect from the Manchester four-piece, and is a return to form. Fray feels the band have made a party album and with tunes such as Tip Toes, The Dilettante and Modern Love, he is again true to his word. Lucifers Dreams is a thumping opener, The 17th is a slow-burner, while the band throw everything bar the sink at the riff-heavy Kitchen. There are still mellow moments, such as the string-laden De La Salle and Finest Hour, but there is a good balance on another strong release that is also available with a DVD of the bands headline gig at Heaton Park.

8/10

Andrew Carless

DTCV  CONFUSION MODERNE

DTCVs fifth album marries breezy vocals with scuzzy guitars. Confusion Moderne was released back in April, however, the duo is embarking on a UK tour at the end of October and is seeing a re-release. Histoire Seule channels Scottish band The Jesus And Mary Chain with its mellifluous vocals. Capital Ennui has something of Light My Fire to it. All the songs, save one, are in French, the mother tongue of vocalist and songwriter Lola. The keystone is in Conformiste, with its repeated refrain of Je Ne Sais Pas, a phrase anyone who scraped through French in school should understand. There is definite substance beneath the sunshine pop veneer. We Arent The Champions has guitarist and literary polymath James Greer snarling through a megaphone, fairly cutting through the sweetness. Try to seek out DTCV if they are in your area. The tunes in Confusion Moderne are well-crafted and worth a listen.

8/10

Angus Rae

MOBY & THE VOID PACIFIC CHOIR  THESE SYSTEMS ARE FAILING

Richard Melville Hall  the artist better known as Moby  is enlisting help on his latest offering. Any visions of the bald one frantically conducting a massive gospel choir are soon dispelled. This album is relentless. There are no moments of quiet reflection, barely any ambient tracks. It is filled with sequencers firing staccato beats at the listener, which is a bit of a shame, as there is no equivalent to Porcelain on this album. Moby still has an ear for a tune, but here theyre drowned beneath repetition. The closest to the bluesy samples of 1999s Play is the introduction to Dont Leave Me, but this is soon engulfed by more gnashing techno. The Light Is Clear In My Eyes quotes Mobys earlier track Extreme Ways and there are other nods to Kraftwerk and chiptune music along the way. The lyrics are earnest, even though the titular Failing Systems are never specified. Far from mellowing out, at 51, Moby is railing against anything he can find.

7/10

Angus Rae
A shock double departure hit The Apprentice in week four after candidate Aleksandra King quit the show before the task had even begun.

The 38-year-old left the hit programme alongside Mukai Noiri who was fired by Lord Sugar after struggling during a fashion task in which the two teams took over luxury London department store Liberty.

Whilst Team Titan appointed their project manager, Team Nebula were left stunned as King declared that she was "sorry" but she was "not enjoying" the competition before leaving the room.

The mother-of-three told the Press Association she quit the BBC programme because of the lack of contact allowed with her family.

"The work-life balance was off. Since when is that an admirable business skill? It is not on any level.

"The contact that I was allowed with my family was really very limited to the point where it was just not acceptable for me."

Meanwhile Noiri, also part of Team Nebula, was taken into the board room by project manager Grainne McCoy, alongside Karthik Nagesan after they only managed to sell 4,371 worth of luxury goods to Team Titan's 5,259.

The marketing manager paid the price for encouraging McCoy to opt for selling handbags over scarves, with Lord Sugar telling him that decision proved he "didn't have the potential of being my business partner."

King, who was born in Poland and grew up in South Africa, said her decision came as a "massive shock" to everyone.

And she hit back at Lord Sugar blaming her decision on being "homesick", saying: "I wouldn't say it's homesick. I would just say it is a basic sort of wanting to know your family is OK."

However King said she respected the business mogul who she compared to her father.

"I don't want to really do things his way. I want to do them my way, I want to be the boss of my boardroom.

"Lord Sugar is very similar to my father. I'm used to dealing with his type.

"I think his feelings were a little bit hurt initially because I'm saying no to him," she said, before joking that it was because he "realised he was losing one of his best candidates".

She added the show's "blame culture" also convinced her to leave, arguing that it "is not necessary to run a business like that".

"I think it's a bit of a traditional approach and it's not really the way I want to work."

But King said her departure from the show would not mean she was withdrawing from the world of business, adding: "You're going to see a lot more of me around. Watch this space.

"I'm on a mission now - watch out for Aleksandra King."

King is not the first person to quit. Last year Scott Saunders left the show despite his team winning the task and in 2006, Katie Hopkins, now a controversial commentator, walked off the show. While Raleigh Addington left in 2010 after his brother was wounded in an explosion in Afghanistan.
Lily Allen said she was turned away from a black cab

Lily Allen said she has had a "glimpse of what it feels like to be discriminated against" after being shunned by a taxi driver.

The London-born pop star said she was turned away from a black cab after being told to "find an immigrant" to give her and her daughters a ride.

The alleged interaction between Allen and the unknown taxi driver comes after she apologised "on behalf of my country" after seeing the squalid conditions refugees had lived in at the Calais camp known as the Jungle.

Allen, 31, wrote on Twitter: "Just tried to get in a black cab with my kids. The driver looked at me and said , 'find an immigrant to drive you you stupid tart'."

She added: "Having lived a life of privilege, that interaction has given me a tiny glimpse of what it feels like to be discriminated against.

"There is so much work to be done. But we can do it. Let's stamp out this stupid horrible ignorance together. #takeourcountryback."

She was then asked by another Twitter user to reveal the car's registration and plate number in order to prove it had happened.

The mother of two fired back: "I had both my hands full with children, couldn't get to my phone fast enough."

She responded to another person who said that it "definitely didn't happen", writing that they were "victim shaming" her.

Allen declined to comment when approached by the Press Association.

She was criticised following her visit to the Jungle, during which she volunteered in a warehouse where donations came in before being distributed to the thousands of migrants and refugees living there.

In scenes that aired on the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme, she broke down in tears while meeting a 13-year-old boy from Afghanistan who said his father lives in Birmingham but who himself had camped at the Jungle for two months.

During their meeting, Allen told him: "It just seems that at three different intervals in this young boy's life, the English in particular have put you in danger.

"We've bombed your country, put you in the hands of the Taliban and now put you in danger of risking your life to get into our country.

"I apologise on behalf of my country. I'm sorry for what we have put you through."

Allen's experience came a week after Ugandan-born British journalist Yasmin Alibhai-Brown said she was refused a ride in a taxi.

She wrote on Twitter: "Last night, West Hampstead station, on my way to the Grunwick Strike event. Black cab driver doesn't let me in: 'Not taking foreigners today'."




"Strano e difficile a crederci, ma e proprio cosi!  Strange and hard to believe, but that's right!

This is how Italian journalist and blogger Veronica Triolo begins her post on an American writer who con sorriso, grinta ed entusiasmo, si e appassionata al nostro paese (with a smile, determination and enthusiasm, became passionate about our country). This passion, she notes,non e superficiale e non e basata sui soliti banali stereotipi (isnt superficial nor based on the usual banal stereotypes) but reflects years of study and research on every aspect of Italian culture: from history to art, music, fashion, cinema, food, wine and lifestyle.

When we met after a presentation of LA PASSIONE at the British Institute in Florence, Veronica wondered how her "pazzo e disordinato paese" (crazy and messy country) was able to fascinate and inspire me. You can read her complete interview in Italian at fragolosablog.com. Here is an English translation:

Your passion for my country is really flattering. Dont you have the impression we take all we have -- history/art/cultural heritage/lifestyle/food/fashion -- for granted?

Italians grow up surrounded by cultural richesin their churches, monuments, countryside, wherever they turn. Rather than taking it for granted, I think that they accept and appreciate the beauty around them as a given, part of their heritage and birthright. They may not realize how extraordinary their patrimony is until they get to know other countries and culturesor until foreigners like myself, looking at Italy through what one reader called virgin eyes, point out Italys unique contributions to Western civilization.

What are the main differences of attitudes towards life of an American, compared to an Italian?

Americans come from so many different cultures and countries that we have a broad range of attitudes so its hard to generalize. However, many Americans focus on pursuing goals, whether educational or economic, so at times we strive so hard to achieve them that we lose touch with the everyday joys of living.

Many Americans are always on the go, rushing to appointments, wolfing down fast food, working all hours of the day and night. Italians also work hard, but they take the time to savor a good meal, to chat with friends, to hold their families close, to stop and appreciate beauty wherever they may find it. This is one of the important life lessons Ive learned from Italians.

What is the most efficient way or method to promote Italy abroad? (Your book being a perfect example.)

I wrote all three of my Italy-based booksLA BELLA LINGUA, MONA LISA and LA PASSIONEto share the richness of your culture with other foreigners. The more that non-Italians learn and understand about Italys language, history, art, crafts, food, fashion and other cultural endeavors, the more they can appreciate them.

Italy has done a remarkable job in promoting its culture through the Made in Italy promotions. As I note inLA PASSIONE, people in every part of the world sip espresso, drive Fiats, buy Italian purses and clothes and relish Italian cooking. In my view, the world seems more Italian than when I first discovered Italy thirty years ago. Im happy to play some small part in continuing to spread a passion for Italy and its wonderful, warm-hearted people.
It is years since Tarzan (Alexander Skarsgard) left the jungles of Africa to settle into life as John Clayton III, Lord Greystoke, with his beloved wife Jane (Margot Robbie).

Then British Prime Minister (Jim Broadbent) hands him an invitation from King Leopold II of Belgium to visit the Congo as a trade emissary of Parliament.

Gun-slinging American envoy George Washington Williams (Samuel L Jackson) persuades Tarzan to go to investigate rumours that Leopold has enslaved local tribes to build his railroad.

The Legend Of Tarzan is an entertaining, rumbustious romp that captures Edgar Rice Burroughs' source text with gusto.

Skarsgard and Robbie are an attractive pairing, the latter imbuing her heroine with steeliness and resolve. Director David Yates orchestrates vine-swinging action with aplomb, with a menagerie of CGI animals. Digital might beats its chest in every lush frame, including a bone-crunching fight between Tarzan and one of his ape brethren.

Three stars
The chief executive of Belfast Telegraph publisher Independent News and Media will take part in a major conference in Belfast next month on Northern Ireland, post-Brexit.

He will be joined on the panel by representatives of the banking, technology, legal and aviation sectors.

Danske Bank is the sponsor of the event on November 9, which is jointly hosted by The Bar of Northern Ireland and the Belfast Solicitors Association.

Robert Pitt, who joined INM as chief executive in 2014, will share the panel with speakers including CBI Northern Ireland regional director Angela McGowan and Graham Keddie, the managing director of Belfast International Airport.

And Olivia O'Kane, chairman of the Belfast Solicitors Association, along with Liam McCollum QC, head of the Bar of Northern Ireland, will introduce the panel ahead of the discussion.

Mr Pitt of INM is expected to address the post-Brexit challenges and opportunities facing businesses such as INM, which operate on both sides of the border.

He is a graduate of University College Dublin and has a BA in economics. Before joining INM, he held senior management roles in retail including chief operations officer of Tesco in the Czech Republic.

Mr Pitt also held senior roles at Lidl in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Ireland from 1999 to 2007.

In the 1990s, he worked with accountancy firm PwC in the Czech Republic, before becoming general manager at Shibo in Beijing.

Meanwhile, solicitor Ciaran O'Hare of McIvor Farrell Solicitors will discuss the legal challenge to the Brexit vote brought by victims campaigner Raymond McCord.

Mr O'Hare acts for Mr McCord in his legal challenge, in which he is seeking a judicial review of the moves being taken by the UK Government towards Brexit.

The lawyer specialises in human rights and judicial review.

Mr Keddie of Belfast International Airport will consider the future for air travel in Northern Ireland following Brexit, and the impact on airlines such as easyJet and Ryanair of the fall in value of sterling.

Monye Anyadike-Danes QC, who has more than three decades of experience in commercial law, human rights and public inquiries, will also take part in the panel.

Ms Anyadike-Danes is the first woman to chair the British Irish Commercial Bar Association and will lend her expertise on the likely impact of Brexit on commercial relationships between Ireland and Britain.

Dr Joanne Stuart, the director of development at Cataylst Inc, formerly the Northern Ireland Science Park, will address the impact of Brexit on the tech sector in Northern Ireland.

She will consider the extent to which Brexit will help or hinder her aim of developing strategic relationships to support the growth of the knowledge economy.

The conference is sponsored by Danske Bank and will conclude with a discussion of the impact of Brexit on private banking by Chris Marshall from the bank.

The event is being held at the Reform Club and will be one of the first to fully assess Northern Ireland's economic and legal positions after the vote.

Panellists will also consider to the impact of the economic data released in the months since the referendum, including news of a 0.5% increase in GDP from July to September.
Amnesty International has called for a change to Northern Ireland's abortion law following the news that a woman is being prosecuted for taking 'abortion pills'.

She was reported to the PSNI and charged in connection with using the pills after she sought medical help, according to the BBC.

Amnesty's Northern Ireland chief Patrick Corrigan said yesterday that the fact a woman had been charged and was to be brought before the courts in connection with using abortion pills was "horrifying".

"A woman who needs an abortion is not a criminal," Mr Corrigan said.

"The law should not treat her as such.

"This latest prosecution reveals that making abortion illegal does not stop women in Northern Ireland needing or seeking terminations.

"Those who can afford it, travel to England for the treatment they need - 833 women that we know of made that journey from Northern Ireland last year.

"Those that can't afford it may take medication in an attempt to terminate their pregnancy - without medical supervision or support, and under threat of criminal prosecution."

And the human rights expert added: "Instead of overseeing the prosecution of women and girls for seeking healthcare, Northern Ireland Executive Ministers should bring our abortion laws into line with international human rights standards."

Abortion pills Mifepristone and Misoprostol are on the list of essential medicines of the WHO, Amnesty said.

Amnesty claimed the criminalisation of abortion in Northern Ireland means women and girls take these pills without effective medical supervision, which may result in serious health complications.

In Northern Ireland the maximum penalty for administering a drug to induce miscarriage under the Offences Against The Person Act 1861 is life imprisonment.

In April a woman was handed a suspended sentence by a judge in Belfast after she bought abortion drugs on the internet because she could not afford to fly to England for a lawful termination.
Catholics in Northern Ireland are increasingly using sacred spots in churches to store cremated remains, while many congregations have plans in place to meet rising demand

Catholics in Northern Ireland are increasingly using sacred spots in churches to store cremated remains, while many congregations have plans in place to meet rising demand.

The news comes after the Vatican said ashes should not be scattered but instead be stored in a sacred, church-approved place.

Earlier this week, it said ashes are not to be kept at home, distributed at a special spot, turned into jewellery or put in a locket.

Instead, 'columbariums' are to be used, with the ashes of those who choose to be cremated kept on the church's property.

The name refers to the site and public storage of urns containing a deceased Catholic's cremated remains.

The cost of each urn niche is 900.

The term comes from the Latin columba, or dove, originally referring to a shelter for doves or pigeons.

They have become increasingly popular across Northern Ireland because of the difficulty in finding space in cemeteries and new land for graveyards.

It is understood there are currently four columbariums, including St Joseph's Church in Hannahstown and St Patrick's Church on Donegall Street in Belfast.

In a new document released before All Souls' Day on November 2 - when the faithful are supposed to pray for and remember the dead - the Vatican also said that Catholics who insist on the scattering of their ashes should be denied a Christian funeral.

Parishioners who have a strong connection to their church can chose to be cremated and their remains kept within the church grounds.

The columbarium in St Patrick's was opened in December 2012 and dedicated to St Joseph.

Located at the front left-hand side of the church, it provides a sacred space where family members can visit and pray.

On the church's website it states that the deceaseds' remains are "in a place intimately linked to Christ and the celebration of the Sacraments".

It is comprised of a series of vaults, each dedicated to a well-loved saint or object of popular devotion. The first phase consists of three vaults including St Joseph, St Brigid and St Therese.

These vaults hold 160, 168 and 168 urns respectively.

The second phase consists of two vaults, dedicated to the Sacred Heart and St Anthony. These were installed in early 2016 and have already attracted high demand.

Consideration is being given to the installation of a third vault in the near future. Columbariums are usually found in the grounds of the church cemeteries.

Requiem Mass can also be celebrated with the ashes present.

The Church encourages placement of ashes in a final resting place and permits cremation as long as the ashes are not divided or scattered and the ashes are not kept in someone's living room or any home.

Fr Edward McGee, spokesman for the Diocese of Down and Connor, said a number of parishes are considering creating the sacred spaces.

He said that the Bishop's Conference taking place next month will discuss the establishment of more columbariums in the grounds of cemeteries owned by Catholic parishes.
The health minister has been criticised for not asking for any money to tackle Northern Ireland's growing waiting lists when funds became available earlier this month.

Michelle O'Neill's department received some extra funding in this week's October monitoring round announcement - but none of it was to deal with waiting lists.

Quarterly monitoring rounds allow the Executive to reinvest unspent funds - and departments must bid for extra funding.

The revelation prompted questions over the Executive's commitment to deal with the problem.

Alliance health spokesperson Paula Bradshaw said: "It is important patients get the correct treatment in a timely manner.

"If the minister is not bidding for extra money to tackle waiting lists and then informing the health committee as to her actions, it is clear that will not be the case."

Ulster Unionist finance spokesman Philip Smith told the BBC: "This was meant to be the number one priority of the Northern Ireland Executive and they really should have been seeing where they could scrape together the money to target this."

Last year, 40m was found to tackle extended waiting lists.

In September 2016 there were 65,000 attendances at Northern Ireland emergency departments, an increase of 3,000 since September 2015.

The number of patients waiting longer than 12 hours more than doubled from last year, from 64 to 154.

The Royal Victoria Hospital recorded the longest average time spent by patients in the emergency department, at six hours and four minutes.

Ms O'Neill downplayed the significance of the lack of extra funding, saying the October monitoring round was less important than the 200m she had already secured from the Executive coffers this year in addition to her baseline budget.

The Sinn Fein minister told her Stormont scrutiny committee the traditional process of departments making specific bids for extra monitoring round funds was no longer in operation.

She said it was therefore wrong to say she had a bid for funding rejected.

"I wasn't turned down - there is no longer a formal bidding process," she said.

"October monitoring has absolutely changed. What there is now is an ongoing dialogue with the Finance Minister (Mairtin O Muilleoir) and Executive colleagues and I have had that discussion with him on many occasions."

She added: "I am not disappointed by October monitoring - October monitoring is what it is.

"I think that's not the way to address the longer term issues in the health service."
A pedestrian died yesterday evening after being hit by a car in a road traffic accident near Limavady

A pedestrian died yesterday evening after being hit by a car in a road traffic accident near Limavady.

The fatal crash happened at approximately 6.20pm on the Glenhead Road, which links between Ballynarrig Road and Baranailt Road outside the north Londonderry town.

An ambulance service crew raced to the scene, but the pedestrian - a man in his 50s - could not be saved.

A man has been arrested following the incident.

It's understood the victim was a local Limavady man, but his name has not yet been released.

Local DUP Councillor Alan Robinson's family comes from the area where the fatal crash took place.

He said the Glenhead Road was a quiet, traditional rural road, with no history of being an accident blackspot.

Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph last night, Alderman Taylor described the incident as "horrendous news".

"I feel for the poor family of the man who was killed, and I want to send my sympathy and condolences to them," he said.

"There will be a very sad local family in Limavady this night.

"But one thing Limavady does it does very well: the community comes together to comfort those in need."

SDLP councillor John Deighan said the accident was "a tragedy for everyone involved."

The Glenhead road was closed last night, with diversions put in place.

Last night's fatality came just two days after a man in his 20s died in a crash on the Ballyutoag Roads near Crumlin.

His name has not yet been made public.

Yesterday's Limavady crash brings to 55 the number of people killed on Northern Ireland's roads so far this year.
Emma Henry survived the disease which claimed the life of Aaron Devlin

A woman who almost died after contracting meningitis is raising funds in memory of a GAA player who was not as fortunate as herself.

Emma Henry plans to shave her hair off to help Meningitis Now, a charity that researches the deadly condition and raises awareness about it.

The Magherafelt woman said she had been inspired to take action by the death from the disease of Ballinderry Shamrocks player Aaron Devlin.

A former Derry senior, under-21 and minor player, Aaron played 40 minutes of a game for Ballinderry before coming off, citing tiredness.

Days later he was rushed to Antrim Area Hospital and placed on life support, but never recovered.

Hundreds of people, including Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness, attended his funeral.

Writing on her Justgiving fundraising page, Emma told how she contracted meningitis in November 1985.

"I had been unwell the previous day and a visit to the doctor revealed nothing more than a common cold," she said.

"It was terrifying for my mum and dad when my condition deteriorated the following day and my symptoms worsened to include neck stiffness and my eyes turned back into my head."

Emma was taken to the hospital and a lumbar puncture - when fluid is taken from the lower spine using a hollow needle - confirmed she had meningitis.

"I was transferred to a specialised children's unit because initially I did not respond to treatment and my parents were told to expect the worst," she said.

Emma said she and her little friend Birt - a soft toy mouse - spent a week in hospital "and I am blessed to share with you all that I fully recovered with no disabling after effects".

The therapist, who is from the same area as Aaron, said his tragic death "struck a chord" within her.

"I decided I wanted to raise funds to celebrate Aaron's life and for the Meningitis Now charity," she said.

Emma decided to shave her long locks on November 3 to help raise funds to increase awareness of the disease and to support research.

"By contributing you will help save lives," she added.

With her at the head-shave will be her childhood toy Birt, her comfort in hospital more than 31 years ago.

Colly Devlin, Aaron's brother, last night said he felt Emma's campaign to raise money for meningitis research was "a positive thing".

"It's a nice touch for her to remember Aaron, and to try to do some good in his memory," he added.

Her fundraising campaign has an initial target of 5,000, with more than 1,500 already pledged.
A man who burned one shoe of every pair owned by his former partner after they broke up in what the judge described as 'a nasty and despicable' incident has received a suspended sentence at Londonderry Magistrate's Court

A man who burned one shoe of every pair owned by his former partner after they broke up in what the judge described as 'a nasty and despicable' incident has received a suspended sentence at Londonderry Magistrate's Court.

Anthony McCoy (34), with an address in Surrey in England, appeared at the court on foot of an arrest warrant issued last year when he failed to turn up for his trial.

He was convicted of two counts of criminal damage to furniture, clothes and other items belonging to the woman and one charge of theft regarding a laptop.

The offences occurred on dates between June 17 and June 21, 2014.

The court heard that, following the break- up of the relationship with a woman from Derry, the woman moved out of the flat they shared to allow McCoy time to get his affairs in order and go back to England.

District Judge Barney McElholm said that McCoy "took advantage of this" and spray-painted furniture, curtains, lamps and mirrors.

He then took one shoe from each of the woman's 35 pairs and set fire to it.

He also left the water running, heat turned up full and turned off the freezer so that food was destroyed.

Judge McElholm said McCoy had caused damage estimated at 6,000 and "he then ran away", fleeing back to England before being brought back yesterday by PSNI officers.

Defence solicitor Michael Magee said that they were 'an unpleasant series of offences' and added that McCoy was 'remorseful' for what had happened.

He said he had "lashed out" at his former partner.

McCoy was sentenced to eight months in prison suspended for three years and ordered to pay 6,000 in compensation at the rate of 500 a month.
A councillor who fought to legalise homosexuality has branded Stormont a "disgrace" over its failure to introduce a law that pardons gay and bisexual men convicted of now-abolished sexual offences in Northern Ireland.

Veteran gay rights activist Jeffrey Dudgeon has called on the Department of Justice (DoJ) to act now and pardon men convicted of consensual same-sex relations before homosexuality was decriminalised here in 1982.

Last week, the UK government said thousands of men would receive posthumous pardons and those who are still alive can apply to have their names cleared. However, the Department of Justice confirmed to the Belfast Telegraph that the law does not apply to Northern Ireland as it is a devolved matter.

Justice Minister Claire Sugden said that her department would consider the issue when forming "policy priorities" for the Executive's legislative programme.

Mr Dudgeon, who was arrested and questioned by police officers in 1976 on suspicion of being gay, said these convictions still have a severe impact on men across Northern Ireland.

While the number of men convicted remains unknown, a case in December 1958 involved 19 men from Lurgan who were charged for gross indecency and other charges involving indecency.

Six of those men were jailed for a year and one man faced a three-year sentence.

Mr Dudgeon, a Ulster Unionist councillor in Belfast City Council, said Stormont needs to act quickly.

"It's very important for those who were convicted and for the relatives of the dead because what was a crime then is no longer regarded as one now," he said.

"I have been at this far too long, I have been campaigning at every law change. I have to go through the same process of pleading and demanding and pressing Stormont.

"Despite us now being equal citizens, as gay people we are not treated equally, we are not thought of until the last minute."

He said one of the biggest issues for men with that conviction was seeking employment and having to declare the offences on applications forms.

"Apart from the shame of the court cases, convictions and publicity and the effect on their families, the big one is the employment," he said.

"They have to declare those convictions every time they want to apply for a job and quite often that means their chances are zero, particularly employment in young people or public sector and caring professions.

"It's a disgrace if Stormont doesn't act quickly to bring about a law change, it's unfortunately rather typical that we are left out."

A Department of Justice spokesman said: "The amendment to the Policing and Crime Bill builds on existing legislation already in place in England and Wales for disregarding convictions for old homosexual offences which are no longer unlawful.

"These provisions, which are in the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, do not extend to Northern Ireland, therefore the new amendment in the current Bill could not be brought across by legislative consent and implemented here without major amendment.

"The minister will therefore consider this issue when forming policy priorities for the Executive's legislative programme in the current mandate."
When you walk into Fortin Gym next Friday night, you might be surprised to find 1,000 origami cranes and a forest of silhouetted trees turning the gym into a ballroom.

How does an enchanted forest fit into Rocky Mountain Colleges annual scholarship fundraiser Black Tie Blue Jeans?

Just ask artist Chance Robinson, who seems to have the golden touch when it comes to vision. His artwork was a big draw at the 2015 Black Tie Blue Jeans event, which raises money for scholarships for Rocky students. His two donated paintings in 2015 brought in $22,000 at the auction, helping the college raise $420,000, which was $100,000 more than the previous year. This year, the goal is to raise $500,000 for scholarships at Black Tie Blue Jeans.

Robinson, 21, is back this year designing the space to host a party for 600 guests and offering a big auction item  Chance Robinson Fine Art Studio Experience.

I want this space to be different, Robinson said. Its terrifying, scary to try something new. But its how we grow.

Japanese heritage

Robinson broke out as a professional artist while still a student at Central Catholic High School. He took classes at Stanford University and began developing a bold, expressive style that paid homage to his Japanese heritage. On a visit to Japan earlier this year, Robinson went through an ancient cedar forest where he photographed beautiful red-crested cranes.

Just a few months later as planning began for the Nov. 4 Black Tie Blue Jeans event, Kelly Edwards, vice president for institutional advancement, invited Robinson to design Fortin using an enchanted forest theme.

I wanted to bring an Eastern aesthetic to a Western event, using elements of east meets west, Robinson said.

Student volunteers are helping Robinson make 1,000 origami cranes, which symbolize hope and peace and for this event, students coming into the future, Robinson said. The cranes will be incorporated into chandeliers to provide lighting for the party.

More than 100 Rocky students will also help out at the party by serving dinner and parking cars.

Robinson got his start in art taking classes at the Summer Academy, organized by Sally McIntosh.

I had this incredible moment last year when I was walking around the campus. I remember being 7 or 8 years old and coming out of Fortin and thinking, Wouldnt it be cool to be a professional artist?

That dream came true for Robinson and now he said he wants to pay it forward by helping other students achieve their dreams.

I love Rocky. I love the people associated with Rocky, he said.
Tense: Jamie Dornan as the serial killer Paul Spector, and Gillian Anderson as DSI Stella Gibson in scenes from BBC thriller The Fall

Tense: Jamie Dornan as the serial killer Paul Spector, and Gillian Anderson as DSI Stella Gibson in scenes from BBC thriller The Fall

The serial killer Paul Spector (Jamie Dornan) and his wife Sally Ann (Bronagh Waugh) - (C) Artists Studio - Photographer: Steffan Hill

Double trouble: John Lynch has loved working with Gillian Anderson in The Fall

Arresting performance: John Lynch's character in The Fall, Assistant Chief Constable Jim Burns, has unfinished business with DSI Stella Gibson, played by Gillian Anderson

Double trouble: John Lynch has loved working with Gillian Anderson in The Fall

Role play: Jamie Dornan has admitted he stalked a woman on the underground for his part in The Fall, alongside Gillian Anderson

HUNTING SEASON: Gillian Anderson as DSI Stella Gibson and Jamie Dornan as Paul Spector in The Fall

The Fall - Jamie Dornan and Gillian Anderson's game of cat and mouse [Photos] Close

It's been called a slow burner so far - but The Fall finale tonight is set to wake you up as it reaches its explosive climax.

The hit BBC crime drama has just one episode left to tie up a lot of loose ends and fans are braced to finally find out the fate of serial killer Paul Spector.

The show stars Holywood's Jamie Dornan as serial killer Spector and X-Files FBI agent Gillian Anderson as tough-talking detective Gibson.

Gibson, seconded to Belfast from the Metropolitan Police, is tasked to sniff out serial killer Spector who stalks the city streets for his female prey.

It had been touch and go at the end of series two in an excruciating cliff-hanger as Spector lay shot in the arms of detective Stella Gibson.

But now, with Spector very much alive, viewers on Thursday night were given a miserable insight into what perhaps turned him into the killer that has graced our screens for three series.

The penultimate episode gave a harrowing look at the life of a young Spector, which detailed the suicide of his mother when he was 8-years-old and the subsequent abuse he suffered in a care home.

It was difficult viewing as the audience listened in on Spector's conversation with the psychologist.

We learned how Spector grew up being jealous of the happy lives of others and in an unexpected twist Spector was implicated in to the killing of a woman in London in 2002, a time before his supposed amnesia.

Speaking previously about series three, Dornan said: "You can expect the unexpected. There's quite remarkable turns in the third season that I really genuinely think people won't see coming that are hugely exciting."

"I was moved by the fact that Jamie was hugely moved by it" Jamie receiving a gift on his last day of filming #TheFall Very sad #JamieDornan pic.twitter.com/6kdrngml1x  Jamie Dornan Online (@JamieDornan_org) October 27, 2016

And you can be guaranteed these are set to come to fruition tonight as the final episode airs at 9pm.

This series got off to a rocky start with many likening it to a medical drama after a lengthy opening episode focusing on the hospital treatment for Spector.

The serial killer claims he can't remember any of the heinous crimes he has committed and thinks he is in 2006 - but a quizzing from Stella on Thursday night appeared to jog his memory.

Gibson says: "Drop the charade Peter, you remember everything".

Read more:

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Who do you think will win the final fight between Spector and Stella?

The final episode airs tonight Friday October 28 at 9pm on BBC2.
A Belfast City councillor has become the second Ulster Unionist representative to defect to the DUP within 48 hours.

On the eve of the DUP's annual conference, Councillor Graham Craig announced that he was joining Arlene Foster's party - and launched a scathing attack on his own former party leader, Mike Nesbitt, whom he branded "a hapless amateur".

The DUP will present the defections of Mr Craig, and of young Limavady councillor Aaran Callan, as a major coup when it gathers for its conference in Belfast tomorrow.

Mrs Foster last night hailed their departure as "another hammer blow" to the UUP.

In disparaging comments directed at his former party, Mr Craig branded Mr Nesbitt "out of touch" and described veteran UUP officials and strategists as the "good old boys" destined to keep making catastrophic mistakes that would guarantee electoral oblivion.

He praised Mrs Foster as a hard-working leader who could articulate the unionist cause "in the corridors of power in Washington and London" as well as deliver electoral success at home. Comparing Mr Nesbitt to Mrs Foster, Mr Craig said: "In contrast her opponent often appears to be a hapless amateur who is not quite sure how he ended up in the job or what to do next. 'That Song!' 'That Safari Suit!' 'That Envelope!'

"The proposition that, 'vote Mike, get Colum' is any more appealing to unionist voters than 'vote Mike, get Mike' has proven to be incredulous. How about 'vote Mike, get Colum and Jeremy too' as a sales pitch in rural Ulster?"

Mr Craig, who has represented the Botanic ward in South Belfast since 2014, was previously a Spad (special adviser) at Stormont for three years to former DUP Finance Minister Sammy Wilson, although he never joined the party. He now works as an economist.

An Orangeman, from Castlederg in Co Tyrone, he is right-wing on economic issues - although he supported the Remain campaign during the referendum. He is known on Belfast City Council for his hardline stance against Sinn Fein. He is also a trenchant critic of loyalist paramilitaries and, during the summer, denounced the UVF for erecting paramilitary flags in east Belfast.

Welcoming Mr Craig, Mrs Foster revealed he had joined the Young Unionists at Queen's University Belfast on the same day as herself, and had been involved in politics for almost 27 years.

"Graham knows that the best way for unionism to unite is to do so around the DUP as we now represent a wide spectrum of unionism," she said. "Today's decision by Graham to leave the UUP, coming after Councillor Aaron Callan's decision, is another hammer blow to that party and is further public evidence of the momentum we have gained.

"More and more, I am encountering Ulster Unionists who are bewildered with where that party is going.

"I look forward to working alongside all of those who have joined the party in recent days as we move Northern Ireland forward."

Mr Craig's defection leaves the UUP with only six councillors in Belfast, making it now the smallest of the five main parties.

The leader of the DUP council group, Lee Reynolds, said: "I am pleased to welcome Graham Craig to the DUP team in City Hall and South Belfast. Consolidation and growth of the DUP within City Hall will be positive for unionism and the council."
A victims' campaigner whose son was murdered by loyalist paramilitaries is to take his Brexit legal challenge to the UK's highest court after a judge ruled against him in Northern Ireland.

Raymond McCord Jnr, 22, was a former RAF radar operator who was beaten to death by members of the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) in north Belfast in 1997. He body was dumped in a quarry.

His father opposed Prime Minister Theresa May's plan to call Brexit negotiations with Europe at Belfast's High Court over concerns that European peace money which goes towards victims of the Troubles may be discontinued following an exit.

Mr McCord's lawyers argued unsuccessfully that the people of Northern Ireland could exercise a veto over withdrawal talks using rights enshrined in law at the end of the Troubles.

He said: "Hope is not going away by any means.

"I have seen for nearly 20 years from my son's murder we have gotten knocked down but we have always gotten up again.

"Today is a setback but we will see the judges in London."

He plans to take the matter to the Supreme Court.

"The judge left the door open. In some of the decisions there he actually stated that he believed that it should be going to a higher court in his judgment and it will be going to a higher court - that is London."

He said the only people favouring Brexit were the Tories and the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP).

"I believe what we are doing is correct. We live in a democratic system, 56% of the people of this country voted to remain.

"Again I say, we are right in what we are doing for the people of this country.

"We have seen all the way through the Troubles here and since the Good Friday Agreement, the British Government, whether it is the Labour Party or the Conservative Party, have no interest in victims.

"I believe, like a lot of other victims that if they come out of Europe the Tories will do away with the European Court of Human Rights.

"We will have very little chance then of holding the Government accountable."

The campaigner describes himself as British and European but received an Irish passport on Thursday, one of thousands who have applied for the travel document after the June Brexit vote.

"The Irish passport hopefully will help me if Brexit occurs to take the British Government to court."
Christopher ONeill is accused of the murder of his baby daughter

A west Belfast man is to stand trial next year accused of murdering his three-month-old baby daughter.

Christopher O'Neill, of Whiterock Road, sat in the public gallery during today's brief hearing at Belfast Crown Court.

The 26-year-old was formally arraigned earlier this year and pleaded not guilty to murdering Caragh Walsh on February 7, 2014.

He was initially charged with causing her grievous bodily harm but within hours of Mr O'Neill first appearing in court, his daughter died.

The defendant was subsequently charged with manslaughter but in July 2015 he was charged with her murder after the prosecution ordered a new post mortem report into the infant's death.

Defence barrister Barry Gibson had previously told the court that the case "turned on the evidence of medical experts as to the cause of death''.

He said today that the defence was in receipt of expert medical reports from one witness in the United States of America and another based in Australia.

The defence barrister added that they were now engaging the services of a consultant paediatrician in Wales and a consultant radiologist in Scotland.

Prosecution lawyer Robin Steer said the Crown had retained the services of Manchester-based Professor Tony Freemont, an expert in bone and joint disease.

Mr Justice Treacy set the date for the three week trial in Co Armagh for January 16, 2017.
Private Lenny Reid from Ayrshire, who died on Saturday in Palace Barracks, Holywood

The sudden death of a teenage soldier in Co Down's Palace Barracks has stunned his army colleagues.

Private Lenny Reid (19), from Stevenston in Ayrshire, was serving with the Royal Scots Borderers (1 Scots) in the Holywood base.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has confirmed that a soldier died in Northern Ireland.

Posting on Facebook, his brother Senna Reid said: "Lenny you were the best brother anyone could ask for and a fine soldier, sorry your life on this earth was so short but I love you and will never stop loving you."

Jackson Currie, a fellow soldier who knew Lenny well, posted a picture of a candle lit in tribute from his friends outside his baracks dormitory.

Flowers, regimental hats and messages were placed in front of a smiling photo of the late soldier.

Palace Barracks, one of Northern Ireland's largest army bases, has been home to the Royal Scots Borderers since 2014.

Around 600 soldiers and their families moved into the Holywood base from their previous station at Edinburgh's Dreghorn Barracks.

Adding his condolences, friend Lewis John McGhie posted on Facebook: "Horrible news, good guy taken too soon. Rest in peace brother, until next time."?

A spokesman from the MoD said: "The cause of the death is still subject to a police investigation and so we cannot comment further."
The idea of appointing a 'Brexit Minister' has been firmly ruled out by Taoiseach Enda Kenny, who said he wants to oversee the Republic's strategy himself.

Irish business leaders and Opposition parties have called on the government to create a new ministry to deal specifically with the threat posed by Brexit, but Mr Kenny said: "We cannot give this any higher political status than the office of the Taoiseach.

"Every single minister is a Brexit minister, as is every minister of state."

Mr Kenny argued that if he appointed a junior minister to the role he would be accused of "downgrading" its significance, and if he appointed a Cabinet minister people would say: "You need to take a greater interest in this yourself".

"I accept that I'm very busy and Brexit is going to take up a lot of time for everybody over the next period, but I've no qualms at all about saying this should be vested in the office of the Taoiseach and that's why I intend to lead it," he said.

The Irish government has set up a Cabinet sub-committee dedicated to the Brexit response.

"It's very important that you understand that the coordination impact of the office of the Taoiseach is far stronger, with respect to every department," Mr Kenny said.

"I chair these meetings and will continue to chair them, and call ministers as needs be.

"All of them are under a mandate to talk to their counterparts in Europe to explain the different circumstances here."

Mr Kenny noted that the Council of European Leaders will be making the key decision in relation to Brexit negotiations with the EU.

He also revealed that a meeting of the 27 member states who will remain inside the EU is to be held in December, with British Prime Minister Theresa May excluded.

"So this is far too serious a matter to have it hived off, either to a section of a department, or to a minister who has responsibilities in other places.

"I want to make that clear that this is a whole-of-government response.

"Everybody who has connections, either with Northern Ireland, the United Kingdom or Europe, can play their part in that. These preparations are going to intensify over the next few weeks," Mr Kenny told a briefing of reporters.

Mr Kenny said next week's Civic Forum on Brexit will be attended by over 300 people, including political and business leaders.

It will be the first in a series of meetings that will include sectoral gathering around the country and in Northern Ireland.

Mr Kenny is also to travel to the east and west coasts of the United States next month on a trade mission.

He will meet with financial houses and business leaders to ensure there is an awareness that Ireland will continue to be a member of the EU after the UK leaves .

"I expect that we will continue to be a very attractive location for investment," Mr Kenny said.
A cross-party group of politicians had claimed the Stormont Assembly should have a say on whether to begin talks

Northern Ireland's High Court has dismissed the UK's first legal challenge to Brexit.

Mr Justice Paul Maguire ruled that there was nothing in the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement to prevent the Government from triggering exit negotiations with the EU.

He said the implications for Northern Ireland were still uncertain.

A cross-party group of politicians had claimed the Stormont Assembly should have a say on whether to begin talks.

Raymond McCord, whose son was murdered by loyalist paramilitaries, had a separate Brexit challenge surrounding its impact on the peace process heard alongside that of the politicians at the Belfast court.

Mr Justice Maguire said: "While the wind of change may be about to blow, the precise direction in which it will blow cannot yet be determined so there is a level of uncertainty, as evidenced by the discussion about how the Northern Ireland land border with Ireland was affected by withdrawal from the EU."

The court did not consider the role of Parliament in the calling of talks - separate legal proceedings are taking place in England.

The Belfast case was heard earlier this month and concentrated on the impact on the Northern Ireland constitution of Prime Minister Theresa May's proposed action.

Mr Justice Maguire said he was not aware of any specific provision in the Good Friday Agreement or the 1998 Northern Ireland Act which established that UK withdrawal from the EU required the consent of the people of Northern Ireland.

He said if such a limitation existed it would be reasonable to have expected it to have been highlighted before the June referendum.

The judge said it was difficult to see how the court could overlook the fact that the UK Parliament had retained the ability to legislate for Northern Ireland without any special procedure.

He said the royal prerogative power of the Prime Minister's to launch negotiations was not one in which the court could intervene, adding: "Any suggestion that a legitimate expectation can overwhelm the structure of the legislative scheme is not viable."

The judge said: "It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that a decision ... following a national referendum is anything other than high policy.

"Accordingly, it seems to fit well into the area of prerogative powers which are unsuitable for judicial review."

Some 56% of Northern Irish voters backed Remain but some unionist-dominated areas supported Leave.

The largest party in Northern Ireland, the Democratic Unionists, campaigned for an exit.

A Downing Street spokesman said: "Obviously we welcome the court's judgment this morning.

"It agrees that we can proceed to trigger Article 50 as planned.

"But I think what's important to stress, one of the concerns that was raised during this court case is that there is no reason to think that the outcome of the referendum will do anything to undermine the rock-solid commitment that the Government has to the settlement that was set out in the Belfast Agreement and to the people of Northern Ireland."

Mr McCord said he was disappointed but vowed to take his case to the Supreme Court - the UK's highest court.

The politicians said they had a mandate from the majority in Northern Ireland who opposed Brexit to continue to oppose it.
Judge said substantial costs have been incurred in funding and defending a "hopeless" appeal

Legal aid authorities must be alerted to a "hopeless" challenge to the winding up of a family supermarket company with bank debts of nearly 5 million, a High Court judge in Belfast has ordered.

Rejecting the appeal by Michael Quinn and his wife as directors of Cloughvalley Stores NI Ltd, Mr Justice Horner ruled it was based on a worthless promise to repay the money when they themselves are in "desperate financial straits".

The judge described the couple, who ran Quinn's Superstore across the border in Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan, as grasping at straws with a case devoid of merit.

"Like a drowning man, Mr Quinn (and his wife) were prepared to grab anything in the hope that it would keep him (and his wife) afloat," he said.

A winding up order was made against Cloughvalley Stores NI at the Northern Ireland High Court in March 2015.

Another company registered in the Irish Republic which owns 98% of its shares had been placed in receivership four years earlier.

Mr and Mrs Quinn, who each own one share in Cloughvalley Stores NI, initially challenged a finding that its centre of main interest was north of the border.

Ultimately, however, their appeal centred on a note given to the Northern Bank promising to pay the firm's full debt of 4.7m.

During proceedings Mr Quinn dismissed his entire legal team after counsel indicated he was not prepared to advance arguments based on the contents of his affidavit.

Dismissing the couple's grounds of challenge, Mr Justice Horner said: "They had no problem in making a case which was hopelessly flawed and which was doomed to fail."

He continued: "When the legal aid budget is under such pressure, it is scarcely credible that the appellants should receive legal aid both for the hearing before the Master and for this appeal."

Questioning how much the legal aid authorities knew about separate litigation in the Republic or the basis of the appeal, the judge endorsed claims by the bank that it was an abuse of process.

"This criticism is compounded by the decision of the appellants to proceed with an appeal which was ultimately founded on the worthless promise that they would pay the amount of nearly some 5m outstanding to the bank when they had no money or assets to do so," he said.

"A worthless promise to pay a debt can never extinguish it."

Pointing to the 18-month period since the winding up order was made, he added that substantial costs have been incurred in funding and defending a "hopeless" appeal.

Mr Justice Horner added: "I direct that this judgment be brought to the attention of the Legal Services Commission as I find it difficult to accept that it has been aware of all material facts."
A High Court judge in Belfast has dismissed landmark legal bids to halt the United Kingdom's planned departure from the European Union.

The father of a loyalist paramilitary murder victim and a cross-party group of MLAs mounted separate cases aimed at having the Brexit process declared unlawful.

But Mr Justice Maguire rejected claims by lawyers for Raymond McCord and the Stormont politicians that the British Government cannot use royal prerogative powers to begin EU withdrawal without an Act of Parliament.

Throwing out all grounds of challenge, he said: "The court is not persuaded, for the purpose with which this judicial review is concerned, prerogative power has been chased from the field."

Outside court Mr McCord vowed to take his challenge to the Supreme Court.

With his lawyers due to seek formal permission to appeal at a further hearing next month, he said: "This is not the end of the matter.

"The judge left the door open when he said it could go to a higher court, and more than likely that is going to be the Supreme Court in London."

The campaigner claimed the democratic will of 56% of the Northern Ireland public who voted to remain is being ignored.

"This judgment doesn't mean it's over by any means," he added.

"We are entitled to take this to London and we intend to."

With similar litigation taking place in London, Mr Justice Maguire was only ruling on issues specific to Northern Ireland at this stage.

Prime Minister Theresa May is set to trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, the formal process for confirming the UK is to leave, by the end of March 2017.

During a three day hearing at the High Court in Belfast it was contended that the move is illegal without first securing Parliamentary authorisation.

Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Sinn Fein MLA John O'Dowd arrives at Belfast High Court this morning. Photo Colm Lenaghan/Pacemaker Press Raymond McCord arrives at Belfast High Court this morning. Photo Colm Lenaghan/Pacemaker Press The Green Party's Stephen Agnew arrives at Belfast High Court this morning. Photo Colm Lenaghan/Pacemaker Press Former Alliance Party's David Ford arrives at Belfast High Court this morning. Photo Colm Lenaghan/Pacemaker Press SDLP leader Colm Eastwood arrives at Belfast High Court this morning. Photo Colm Lenaghan/Pacemaker Press / Facebook

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Whatsapp Sinn Fein MLA John O'Dowd arrives at Belfast High Court this morning. Photo Colm Lenaghan/Pacemaker Press

In a 45-page judgment, however, Mr Justice Maguire identified no limits to the use of prerogative power for announcing intentions to quit the EU.

He held that notification in itself does not alter the law of the UK, but only the beginning of a process which will ultimately probably lead to changes.

"On the day after the notice has been given, the law will in fact be the same as it was on the day before it was given," the judge said.

"The rights of individual citizens will not have been changed - though it is, of course, true that in due course the body of EU law as it applies in the UK will, very likely, become the subject of change.

"But at the point when this occurs the process necessarily will be one controlled by parliamentary legislation, as this is the mechanism for changing law in the UK."

Even though the June 23 referendum backed Brexit, a 56% majority of voters in Northern Ireland wanted to remain.

Mr McCord, a victims campaigner whose son Raymond Jr was beaten to death by the UVF in 1997, claimed they have a legal right to resist being forced out.

His lawyers argued that the 1998 Good Friday Agreement has given the Northern Irish public sole sovereignty to decide on their future.

They also predicted Brexit would have a "catastrophic effect" on the peace process, causing constitutional upheaval amid renewed calls for a united Ireland.

Expand Expand Previous Next Close Raymond McCourt holds up his newly acquired Irish passport. Picture by Jonathan Porter/Press Eye Raymond McCourt revealed he applied for an Irish passport following the Brexit result. Picture by Jonathan Porter/Press Eye / Facebook

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Whatsapp Raymond McCourt holds up his newly acquired Irish passport. Picture by Jonathan Porter/Press Eye

Politicians including Alliance MLA David Ford, SDLP leader Colum Eastwood, Sinn Fein Assemblyman John O'Dowd and Steven Agnew of the Green Party also sought to judicially review the British Government's move towards quitting the EU.

The MLAs, whose case is backed by representatives of the voluntary and community sector in Northern Ireland, insisted an Act of Parliament is required before Brexit can take place.

They further contended that the Stormont Assembly should be consulted and asked for its consent.

Counsel for the Assembly members claimed there had been a complete failure on the part of the Northern Ireland Office to undertake any analysis of the impact on devolution.

But a barrister representing the Secretary of State responded by insisting the Government is legally entitled to use the royal prerogative to carry out the people's will to get out of the EU.

He described the power as "common currency" in making and withdrawing from international treaties - pointing out that it was also the method used to join the EU.

Rejecting claims that Parliament is being sidestepped in the process, the barrister said the legislative body will be involved in any law changes resulting from Brexit.

According to his case the 1998 Northern Ireland Act created no substantive legitimate expectation that its people will be consulted on before quitting the EU.

He attempted to rubbish arguments that a withdrawal would damage the Good Friday Agreement by stressing the Government remains committed to the peace process.

Stormont's chief law officer, Attorney General John Larkin QC, also took an opposing stance to the MLAs involved in the litigation.

Looking to a post-Brexit future, he argued that "not one word or phrase in the Belfast Agreement" would be affected.

In his verdict Mr Justice Maguire concluded that it remains to be seen what actual effect the process of change subsequent to notification will produce.

He added: "While the wind of change may be about to blow, the precise direction in which it will blow cannot yet be determined so there is a level of uncertainty, as is evident from discussions about, for example, how Northern Ireland's land boundary with Ireland will be affected by actual withdrawal by the UK from the EU."

Welcoming the decision by the High Court this morning, a UK Government spokesperson said: We welcome the Courts judgment which agrees with us that the Government can proceed to trigger Article 50 as planned.

"As we have always made clear, we stand by our commitments under the Belfast Agreement and the outcome of the EU referendum doesnt change this.

"We will now await the outcome of the parallel cases under consideration by the England and Wales High Court, before setting out our next steps."
The clown craze has spread across Europe and the US

Childline have received hundreds of calls about young people's fears over creepy clowns - and have provided 84 related counselling sessions in one day alone.

With Halloween celebrations across the country set to take place this weekend there are fears the creepy clown craze will reach its peak.

The 'killer clown' craze has been sweeping the globe with people dressing up to scare members of the public.

In response to the craze a series of schools in Northern Ireland closed following a series of threats.

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Holy Trinity College in Cookstown was among those that closed after reports that a "killer clown" was going to the school.

Before that armed police guarded over two Ballymoney schools after knife-wielding clowns threatened to pay a visit.

It came just days after a knife was brandished by a group of teenagers dressed as clowns in the town's Riverside Park.

Ahead of that a school in Coleraine shut its doors after reports that 'killer clowns' were about to strike.

The PSNI has issued warnings on Facebook that while 'killer clown' costumes are not illegal, crimes could still be committed, such as common assault - any act which intentionally or recklessly causes another to fear immediate, unlawful violence.

However concerns have been raised that individuals will dress up in clown costumes to intentionally threaten or harm passers-by, including children over the Halloween weekend.

The NSPCC on Friday issued a stark warning to any individuals planning to spoil the festivities by deliberately intimidating children, reminding them that their behaviour could get result in police action.

In the last three weeks Childline has been contacted 462 times by children afraid of creepy clowns  providing 84 clown-related counselling sessions on one day alone.

Nearly a third of counselling sessions on the subject of clowns were with children under the age of 11 - reaching 139 in total - and three quarters of those who got in touch over clown fears were girls.

The deluge of calls Childline reflects a flurry of reported creepy clown incidents across the UK.

The contacts to Childline reveal a mixture of children afraid of clowns after seeing scary videos online and on social media as well as those threatened or frightened by creepy clowns in their neighbourhood.

One boy, aged 11, said: I'm really scared to go outside in case I see one of these clowns. There is stuff all over social media about it showing them hurting people. My mum has tried to reassure me but I'm absolutely petrified.

Meanwhile an 11-year-old girl said: I have seen some clowns in my area and Im absolutely terrified about leaving the house now. There are all these things going round about them on social media too and they have been making threats at people. What can I do?

If you are concerned about the creepy clowns:

Talk to a parent or a teacher or trusted adult

Call Childline if they want to discuss their worries or get advice and support

Block and report abusive messages from people posing as creepy clowns on social media

Contact the police if they are threatened by a creepy clown in the street

An NSPCC spokesperson said: Wearing spooky fancy dress for Halloween is a time-honoured tradition, but we fear the recent creepy clown craze could see Halloween used as an opportunity to molest, intimate or harm children. Creepy clowns are all trick and no treat; those dressing up with the intention of threatening children need to be aware that they could be breaking the law  particularly if they are carrying weapons.

Young people who have seen scary clown videos on social media should report any inappropriate clips, and if they are contacted by someone posing as a creepy clown online  block them.

Children who feel threatened by creepy clowns in the street or near their school should tell their parents or the nearest responsible adult and report it to the police where necessary.

If a child is worried they should call Childline on 0800 1111 or get in touch via chidline.org.uk

Breakdown relating to counselling sessions on issue of clowns:

Where age is known:

11 and under - 139

12-15 - 134

16-18 - 25

Unknown - 164

Where gender known

Girls - 299

Boys - 104

Unknown - 59
A Billings couple admitted federal drug charges in Idaho this week after a traffic stop in June by an Idaho State Police officer turned up almost 2 pounds of methamphetamine in their vehicle.

The defendants, David Vance Taylor, 62, and Bambi Sue Tomlin, 54, admitted they had picked up the meth in Las Vegas and were transporting it through Idaho along Interstate 15 to be delivered to a person in Billings, said Barbara Layman, a public information officer with the U.S. Attorneys Office in Idaho.

Taylor and Tomlin pleaded guilty on Tuesday to possession with intent to distribute meth during a hearing in U.S. District Court in Pocatello. They were indicted on July 26.

Prosecutors said the couple was arrested in Bingham County by the Idaho State Police after a traffic stop on June 7. During the stop, the officer smelled marijuana coming from the vehicle and conducted a search. The officer found more than 800 grams, or 1.75 pounds, of meth and two grams of marijuana.

Taylor and Tomlin face a minimum mandatory 10 years to life in prison and a $10 million fine. Sentencing is set for Jan. 5 before Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill.
Nissan must have been told Britain is remaining in the European Union customs union or offered mitigation for the imposition of post-Brexit tariffs before it announced a boost to UK car manufacturing, former business ministers have said.

Downing Street has insisted there was "no compensation package" and "nothing about tariffs" in the assurances the Government gave to the car manufacturer.

But former business minster Anna Soubry, who held initial post-Brexit discussions with Nissan while in government, said she would be "very surprised" if there was no guarantee to mitigate tariffs.

She said David Cameron's government was "very seriously" looking at compensation for any duties imposed on the automotive industry once Britain left the EU.

The Remain-backing Tory MP said she met Nissan on June 30, a week after the Brexit vote, and that the company expressed "profound concerns" about tariffs.

She told BBC Radio 4's World At One: "They didn't give the detail of what they wanted, they made it very clear that without a guarantee that they would not be subject to tariffs or if they were subject to tariffs the Government would do something to mitigate the damage of tariffs... that without that, they told me, my understanding actually was that they would go to Renault because they clearly had the capacity there."

On the assurances that helped Nissan decide to build its next-generation Qashqai, and add production of the new X-Trail model, at its Sunderland plant , Ms Soubry said: " I don't know what it is but I would be very surprised if there hasn't been some sort of guarantee to mitigate any tariffs should they be imposed."

She went on: "I can assure you we (Mr Cameron's government) were looking at underwriting any tariffs should that be imposed upon us as we leave the EU.

"So that's what we were looking at and we were prepared to do. So I don't know what's changed in the change of government."

Former business secretary Sir Vince Cable said, if there was no compensation or mitigation offered, it must mean the UK is remaining in the EU customs union as Nissan would not go ahead without "copper-bottomed promises".

If that were the case it would make the role of International Trade Secretary Liam Fox redundant, as the UK would not be able to negotiate its own bilateral trade deals outside the EU.

Sir Vince told The Guardian: "The only way these big supply chain companies are going to commit themselves to Britain - and Nissan is the biggest - is that if they give them guarantees they are not going to be caught up in rules of origin problems, which is what happens if you leave the customs union.

"And if you stay in the customs union, which I think is what we're talking about, what is the role of Dr Fox? Because it means you no longer have an independent trade policy."

He added: "I was involved in discussions with Nissan in their last big round of investment decisions. Even under the coalition they were toying with doing it in France. I find it impossible to believe they would go ahead without some pretty copper-bottomed promises. These guys do not go making decisions on the basis of vague assurances. That is not the way they operate."

As controversy over allegations of a secret deal continued to swirl, Labour chairman of the Commons Business Committee Iain Wright insisted Business Secretary Greg Clark should appear before the watchdog to give evidence on the matter.

Mr Clark has insisted the deal rests on "a very strong mutual confidence" and stressed "there's no chequebook", while Nissan has also denied there was a special agreement.

But Labour has urged the Government to set out exactly what it told Nissan.

Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer said: "It's welcome that the Government have done a deal with Nissan that protects jobs and supports the local community and economy.

"But that deal needs to be accompanied by transparency and accountability.

"We can't have the Government doing deals that affect jobs and the future of our economy without telling the public or Parliament what the basic terms are.

"They now need to spell that out and strike a wider deal that gives certainty to businesses, workers and communities across the country."
Prince Harry worked in Malawi with African Parks as part of an initiative involvoing moving 500 elephants (Kensington Palace/PA)

Prince Harry has described the experience of moving herds of African elephants hundreds of miles to a safer home as "amazing".

During the summer Harry joined conservationists working in Malawai on the ambitious 500 Elephants project to transport the creatures from an overstocked area to another with less human-wildlife conflict and more food and resources.

Photographs and a video have been released showing the Prince working over three weeks helping to catch anaesthetised elephants and load them on to trucks or into trailers.

In one comic image Harry is pictured with eight others hanging on to a rope tied around the leg of a darted bull male trying to escape.

The project is being organised by African Parks, a conservation NGO that manages protected areas and national parks on behalf of governments, which released the video.

In the footage, Harry says: "They need to be moved to another place and this is the most efficient and least invasive way of being able to do it. I can tell you after three weeks there is zero stress on these animals and they're going from one beautiful place to another beautiful place.''

The animals are being moved 200 miles (322km) across Malawi from Liwonde National Park and Majete Wildlife Reserve to Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve, where the elephants will be able to thrive.

The Prince helped with the first phase of the translocation when 261 elephants were successfully re-homed. The remaining 239 elephants will be moved during the second phase next summer.

In another photograph he is seen marking a captured young male, with removable spray paint, so that he can be identifiable when the family group is released back into the bush.

As scenes of elephants wandering free are shown in the video, Harry says: ''Elephants - that's one of the cores of Africa, you can't imagine anywhere like this existing without elephants.

''People can connect with them but one of the fears (is the) overcrowding of elephants and wondering where we are going to put all of these animals.

''In some countries the numbers are dropping unbelievably quickly, in other countries you've got almost too many - there's this weird imbalance.''

Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve supported more than 1,500 elephants 20 years ago but, due to rampant poaching, numbers have dwindled to 100 before the start of the translocation.

When images are screened of animals being driven away on the backs of flatbed lorries, Harry adds: ''It's amazing to see such unbelievable creatures being moved in a way you could never even dream of.''

In another sequence, the Prince, wearing a cap, khaki shirt with the sleeves rolled up and jeans, puts a strap around an elephant's leg and later he is seen helping to guide an anaesthetised animal to the ground with others and then stroking a sedated elephant on a lorry.

He adds: ''To be with elephants - such a massive beast - is a unique experience.''

The conservation organisation WWF says on its website that despite a ban on the international trade in ivory, African elephants are still being poached in large numbers.

There are around 415,000 elephants on the continent, down from a population of between three million and five million in the early 20th century.
The Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov on its way to reinforce the attack on the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo

Fierce fighting has broken out around the northern Syrian city of Aleppo after rebels launched a large-scale offensive to break the government's nearly two-month siege of opposition-held areas.

A reporter inside the city with Lebanon-based Al-Mayadeen TV reported attacks on "all sides" of the city, "from the furthest points north to furthest south".

Heavy gunfire, mortar fire and explosions were heard in the background of his broadcast, and dark smoke was seen rising above the city. Presumed government or Russian jets were also heard flying overhead.

The Syrian army said in a statement that troops had repelled rebel attacks on all fronts and inflicted human losses among the attackers.

The latest attack began with rebels detonating three vehicle-borne explosives at government positions to the city's south west and attacking with hundreds of rockets, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

It said at least one of the vehicles was driven by a suicide bomber from the al Qaida-linked Fatah al-Sham Front, which had announced the offensive.

The Observatory said at least 15 civilians were killed in the rebel bombardment, and more than 100 wounded .

Syrian state media said pro-government forces had repelled the rebel attack as well as a militant attack by the Islamic State group near the city.

The Sana news agency reported that the military and allied militias thwarted assaults on several fronts around government-controlled western districts of the city, while also repelling an IS assault on an air force academy to the east.

"The Syrian army and its allies are in control on the ground and armed groups were not able to change the map," the army statement said. "Fighting is still ongoing but the intensity dropped."

This is the second attempt by rebels to break the government's siege. They opened a corridor to the east in August after pro-government forces applied a blockade in July, but government forces reinstated the siege in early September.

Fatah-al-Sham claimed credit for two car bombs, saying in a statement that a "martyrdom-seeking fighter" from France drove a tank laden with explosives and parked it near government positions then detonated it from a distance.

A spokesman said the Frenchman then drove another tank into the same place and detonated himself .

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed that a Frenchman carried out a suicide attack.

Fatah-al-Sham said a suicide car bomb attack was also carried out west of Aleppo.

The Islamic Front rebel coalition announced on Twitter that the ultra-conservative Ahrar al-Sham group had targeted a military airport to the east of the city with Grad rockets and destroyed a government position to the west of the city.

Ammar Sakkar, military spokesman for the powerful Fastaqim faction inside the city, said "all the revolutionary factions, without exception, are participating in the battle".

He said hundreds of advance fighters were involved, adding that the total number of participants was "much higher".

Sana said seven civilians had been killed by rebel shelling on government-controlled areas, and 70 others injured.

The battle came as the Russian, Syrian and Iranian foreign ministers met in Moscow.

Iran and Russia are president Bashar Assad's main backers and have committed air power, ground forces and military advisers to the war.

The government has maintained a siege on the rebel-held eastern quarters of Aleppo since September, and the UN estimates 275,000 people are trapped inside with dwindling supplies of food and medicine.

Russia's Sergey Lavrov said the three countries had agreed to intensify the fight against terrorism in Syria after his meeting with Syrian counterpart Walid al-Moallem and Iran's Javad Zarif.

Mr Lavrov said at a news conference that the fight would come in parallel with efforts to improve humanitarian aid.

He also reiterated Russian denials that its planes were responsible for an attack on a school in Idlib province that the UN children's agency said killed 22 children and six teachers.

Mr al-Moallem said government forces could agree to another cessation of fighting around Aleppo, but only if it receives guarantees from rebel forces that civilians would be allowed to leave the city.

Meanwhile a spokesman for Vladimir Putin said the Russian president had rejected a military request for the resumption of air strikes on rebel positions in Aleppo.

Dmitry Peskov said Mr Putin considers it "inadvisable to resume air strikes" and wants to have humanitarian corridors out of Aleppo's rebel-held districts stay open both for rebels and civilians to leave the city.

Mr Peskov noted that the "humanitarian pause" will give Washington time to honour its pledge to separate moderate rebels from al Qaida-linked militants in eastern Aleppo.

AP
A woman with a flyer stuck on her forehead reading "Stop Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), stop EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), stop European agreements with the United States and Canada" takes part in a protest against the CETA at European Union Commission headquarters in Brussels on October 27, 2016. Belgium announced on October 27, 2016 a breakthrough in talks to secure a landmark EU-Canada trade deal by winning over the leaders of a recalcitrant Belgian region, potentially snapping a deadlock which threatened European credibility anew. However, the announcement came too late for EU leaders and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to go ahead with a signing ceremony in Brussels on October 27, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / JOHN THYSJOHN THYS/AFP/Getty Images

People dressed like clowns sit on the ground and hold ribbons reading "Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) free-zone" during a protest against the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) at European Union Commission headquarters in Brussels on October 27, 2016. Belgium announced on October 27, 2016 a breakthrough in talks to secure a landmark EU-Canada trade deal by winning over the leaders of a recalcitrant Belgian region, potentially snapping a deadlock which threatened European credibility anew. However, the announcement came too late for EU leaders and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to go ahead with a signing ceremony in Brussels on October 27, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / JOHN THYSJOHN THYS/AFP/Getty Images

A man dressed like a clown with a sticker and a t-shirt reading "Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) game over" gestures as behind him demonstrators face Belgian police officers during a protest against the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) at European Union Commission headquarters in Brussels on October 27, 2016. AFP/Getty Images

People hold a banner reading "Stop Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), stop EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), stop European agreements with the United States and Canada" during a protest against the CETA at European Union Commission headquarters in Brussels on October 27, 2016. AFP/Getty Images

The Belgian government has reached an agreement to back the free trade deal between the European Union and Canada.

The move comes on the day the agreement was supposed to be officially signed with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel was able to announce the agreement following days of negotiations with the region of Wallonia.

The region has veto power in Belgium and the broader EU needs unanimity among its 28 member states.

The deal will go through regional legislatures by Friday night.

Mr Trudeau has been due to travel to Brussels on Thursday to sign the deal, but those plans were effectively scrapped as the negotiations with Wallonia dragged on.

Still, getting the agreement was a huge relief to EU leaders, who had started negotiating the pact with Canada seven years ago.

Expand Close People with their mouth muzzled hold banners and placards as they take part in a protest against the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) at European Union Commission headquarters in Brussels on October 27, 2016. AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images / Facebook

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Whatsapp People with their mouth muzzled hold banners and placards as they take part in a protest against the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) at European Union Commission headquarters in Brussels on October 27, 2016. AFP/Getty Images

"This is good news," said Mr Michel, adding that the new text of the deal provides guarantees for farmers and on a corporate dispute settlement system that "will allow us to sign the deal".

EU President Donald Tusk said he would contact Mr Trudeau "only once all procedures are finalised for EU signing CETA", as the trade deal is called.

Alex Lawrence, the spokesman for Canada's trade minister, said hours before that the country was prepared to sign the deal whenever Europe is ready.

Expand Close Minister-President of Wallonia, Paul Magnette, speaks with the media (AP) / Facebook

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Mr Trudeau earlier told Parliament he is prepared to wait longer.

"We are confident that in the coming days we will see a positive outcome for this historic deal," Mr Trudeau told Parliament.

Beyond the Belgian regional parliaments backing the agreement, the adjustments would have to be vetted by the 27 other nations. That makes a signing ceremony on Thursday impossible.

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Whatsapp People hold a banner reading "Stop EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP)'s trojan horse". AFP/Getty Images

Politicians in Wallonia, which has a population of 3.6 million compared with over 500 million for the whole EU, argue that the proposed accord would undermine labour, environment and consumer standards.

Proponents say it would yield billions in added trade through customs and tariff cuts and other measures to lower barriers to commerce.

At the same time, the EU says it will keep in place the region's strong safeguards on social, environmental and labour issues.

He said Wallonia's insistence on a better deal would bolster EU standards and set a strong precedent for other trade talks between Europe and trading partners like the United States or Japan.

AP
The song appeared on the 2013 re-release of Eric Clapton's Unplugged album

The estate of a Mississippi blues musician has filed a lawsuit against Eric Clapton, accusing the noted British guitarist of giving a songwriting credit to the wrong artist.

A lawsuit filed in Nashville federal court reportedly says Clapton attributed the song Alberta to Huddie Ledbetter - better known as Lead Belly - on the 2013 re-release of Clapton's Unplugged album, when the credit should have gone to Bo Carter.

Miles Floyd, Carter's step-grandson, says Clapton's song was a cover of Carter's Corrine, Corrina, which was first licensed in 1929 and over time became interchangeable with Alberta.

The lawsuit seeks 5 million dollars (4.1 million) and includes Clapton and Warner Music Group as defendants. The defendants have not responded to the lawsuit.

Carter died in Memphis in 1964.
Islamic State appears to be using tens of thousands of people as human shields in and around Mosul, where Iraqi forces are waging a large-scale offensive aimed at retaking the country's second largest city, the UN human rights office has said.

The High Commissioner for Human Rights has also received reports of more than 200 people being killed for refusing to comply with IS orders or previously belonging to Iraqi security forces.

It said "credible reports" suggest IS has been forcing tens of thousands into Mosul from their homes in districts around the city.

Spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said in Geneva: "Isil's depraved, cowardly strategy is to attempt to use the presence of civilian hostages to render certain points, areas or military forces immune from military operations, effectively using tens of thousands of women, men and children as human shields."

IS militants were reportedly going door to door in villages south of Mosul earlier this week, ordering hundreds of civilians at gunpoint on a forced march north into the city, "to be able to keep them close to military installations, close to their offices" she added.

Ms Shamdasani said: "Many of those who refused to comply were shot on the spot, and even among those who did comply, many of them - including 190 former ISF (Iraqi security forces) officers and 42 other civilians - were shot dead."

The officers, who had been brought from a district south of the city, were killed at a military base in Mosul while the civilians were shot in the Hamam al-Alil district for refusing to join IS.

Those killings reportedly happened on Wednesday, and another 24 former officers with the ISF were reportedly killed on Tuesday.

Ms Shamdasani said the reports "have been corroborated to the extent possible".

Iraq launched a massive operation on October 17 aimed at retaking Mosul, which fell to IS in a matter of days in summer 2014. Iraqi forces are advancing from several directions, but are still well outside the city itself.

The UN and rights groups have expressed fears that more than 200,000 civilians could be displaced in the opening weeks of the offensive. Mosul is still home to more than a million people.

IS has built up elaborate defences on the outskirts of the city, including an extensive tunnel network, and has planted large numbers of explosive booby traps to slow the troops' progress.

The US military said coalition air strikes had targeted a group of around 50 vehicles IS fighters were gathering to transport Iraqi civilians into Mosul from the city's outskirts.

Colonel John Dorrian, a Baghdad-based military spokesman, said it was believed the militants intended to use the civilians as human shields.

He said 40 to 45 of the vehicles were hit in the US attack before any civilians were put in them.

The US military also said Iraqi forces have retaken 40 villages from IS near Mosul since the operation began, but most of the fighting has taken place in a belt of sparsely populated farming communities ringing the city.

US Air Force Brigadier General Matthew C Isler said Iraqi troops were consolidating gains made east and south of the city earlier this week, but insisted "momentum" was still on their side.

He said the US-led coalition has stepped up air strikes against the militants, carrying out three times as many as it did during previous campaigns to drive IS from other Iraqi cities.

AP
Scary story: Halloween costumes, like this Donald Trump one on sale in America, have always been irreverent, even if some are in dubious taste

Calm down, it's only Halloween. The way some people are reacting, you would think a zombie apocalypse was imminent.

Killer clowns supposedly on the rampage, tales of vicious trick-or-treaters, gruesome costumes at the supermarket check-out scaring the daylights out of youngsters, claims of pets terrorised to death by fireworks: they all fuel the growing sense of seasonal fear and outrage.

Of course, we have already witnessed the now-traditional spectacle of a retailer offering a tasteless Halloween costume for sale and then being forced to withdraw it following widespread condemnation. This year, it was the topical 'bound and gagged Kim Kardashian' look, following the Paris jewellery heist, which came complete with bathrobe, ropes and fake diamond sparkler. Damn, that's my Halloween outfit wrecked. I'll have to fall back on the sexy Osama Bin Laden get-up.

In the past, we have had the zombie Jimmy Savile costume - lurid blue shell-suit, pink glasses, chunky medallion, outsize fake cigar and a bottle of blood - which was offered for sale by Amazon then withdrawn after numerous complaints. Tesco and Asda were also forced to grovel after presenting their own dodgy costumes: a Guantanamo-style jumpsuit emblazoned with the words 'Psycho Ward' - accessorised with matching jaw restraint - in the case of Tesco, while Asda offered a blood-splattered straitjacket and a plastic machete. It all ended - inevitably enough - with the two supermarkets erasing the offending items from their websites, providing a round of fulsome apologies, and making out a couple of fat cheques to the mental health charity Mind, by way of atonement.

This year, in a new move, the University of Florida is offering counselling to students who have suffered Halloween-related trauma. Since the USA is the prime global exporter of cultural hysteria, this is not surprising. But it's not horror or the occult to which the university objects. That's old-school stuff, the kind we're very familiar with here in Northern Ireland: it used to be that barely a Halloween would go by without some sort of Satanic panic, and pastors or priests decrying Harry Potter as a gateway to evil.

Instead, modern moral outrage is inspired by outfits which do not conform to approved standards of political correctness. This is the new perceived danger. "Some Halloween costumes reinforce stereotypes of particular races, genders, cultures, or religions," announced the university. "Regardless of intent, these costumes can perpetuate negative stereotypes, causing harm and offense to groups of people". Cultural appropriation - not whooping it up with the ouija board - is the soul-corrupting threat of our times.

Which is why Asda has landed itself in a fresh controversy on social media over its latest Halloween gear. Trigger warning: serious psychological disturbance alert. You won't believe this, I know, but Asda is actually offering a Mexican 'Day of the Dead' outfit - as a Halloween costume. Horrifying, right? The costume is "appropriative and disrespectful," complained one online critic. "It makes me mad that Asda thinks Halloween and Dia de los Muertos is the same holiday," raged another.

I'll admit that I'm not the biggest fan of the contemporary Halloween experience. I miss the days of my childhood: the smoky turnip lantern, the home-made tarts with rings or coins, ducking for apples by firelight, and of course the indoor fireworks set, which was all we had for pyrotechnical thrills since real fireworks were banned during the Troubles. My heart sinks a little in late September, when I see cafes and shops start plastering on the yellow and black crime-scene tape and putting up the plastic ghouls.

But let's not get too hung-up over Halloween. Just as there's no need to panic that Harry Potter will lead our little darlings into a vortex of sin, we don't need to agonise over 'harmfully offensive' costumes either.

So what if they are tasteless and tacky? Anyone who is distraught because they encounter someone dressed up as a zombie Saddam Hussein doesn't require counselling for trauma. All that's required is a swift reality check. And as for the 'killer clown' phenomenon, that's 99 parts urban legend to one part fact. The numbers of actual attacks by people dressed as clowns is tiny, but the hysteria generated by the rumours is gigantic.

The truth is that Halloween has long been a night of mischief and transgression, when traditional roles and codes of behaviour are cast aside, and a mild form of anarchy rules. It's a way of engaging with the darker side of human nature, exploring forbidden fascinations. But it's essentially harmless.

The only really scary thing about this time of year is the number of people willing to take offence.
The Vatican has certainly posed a dilemma for many Catholics through its decree on how to treat the ashes of someone who has been cremated.

While cremation is still very much the minority option for Catholics - or indeed all mainstream churches in the province - it has become more popular in recent years due to the dwindling space in graveyards and the relative expense of buying a burial plot.

The Catholic Church allows cremation, although its preferred option is that the deceased should be buried in the traditional manner. However, its new ruling, authorised by Pope Francis, says that anyone who wishes to dispose of a loved one's ashes by scattering them at a place of significance or keeping them in an urn at home or, more exotically, having them turned into jewellery, should be denied a Christian funeral.

No doubt there are sound theological reasons for insisting that Catholics who have been cremated should be buried in consecrated ground. That is also the logical reasoning since very few people would even consider burying a loved one who had not been cremated anywhere but in a cemetery.

However, the cold reasoning of the Church could come into conflict with the feelings that some people may have in wishing to retain some link with a departed loved one. They may well take comfort from keeping the ashes of a dead spouse or child, for example, in their home and feel that is as respectful as a traditional burial.

What is certain is that this decree is likely to become quite a debating point among the faithful as cremations become more common in years to come. Currently, Northern Ireland has only one crematorium, at Roselawn on the outskirts of Belfast, but another is planned for the northern outskirts.

As our report today reveals, there can be a wide divergence of views - from those who think the Church should steer away from the issue to those who think that it is right to highlight the sanctity of funerals.

Critics of the decree may point out that it is not so many years ago that unbaptised babies were not allowed to be buried in consecrated ground, although that rule has been rescinded in more recent times. That shows that the church is a living body which evolves, albeit it slowly, over time to keep pace with the wishes of its adherents. It has rules, but not all are set in stone.
It is frustrating to see the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, object to the third runway at Heathrow, which recently got the Government's go-ahead.

Surely, the mayor of the capital city is supposed to welcome any new boosts to the economy? Surely, he is to welcome the extra gateways this will provide to cities in and around the UK? Surely, he is to welcome the boost to numbers entering London?

In a normal world, you would expect a mayor to welcome these things. But, instead, we have Mr Khan, being a rigid Labour man, refusing to support anything the Conservative Government puts through - even when it does benefit the people of the UK.

H ALEXANDER

Aughnacloy, Co Tyrone
When Arlene Foster defected to the DUP in January 2004, a very senior and long-serving stalwart of the UUP noted: "Well, Alex, she can kiss her political career goodbye. The DUP only want her as part of a package deal with Jeffrey Donaldson and she'll be left to sit on the back benches, or make tea for Big Ian." Hmm.

Tomorrow, she will make her first conference speech as party leader. Last May, she led the DUP to a stunning victory in the Assembly election, increasing their lead over Sinn Fein from 20,000 votes in 2011 to almost 36,000. Crucially - and very happily from a psychological point of view - she also increased the lead over her old party, from 110,905 to 115,265. And, in the process, brought Mike Nesbitt's hopes of electoral progress to a shuddering halt.

The biggest asset she has in her favour is that she is broadly liked and respected across unionism.

There were some internal concerns when she joined the DUP, but she has won over many of the original doubters and delivered an election victory on a scale that seemed very unlikely just a year ago.

Indeed, a key adviser told me at the start of the campaign that "we would be happy with 35 seats". Instead, they held the 38 they had and came very close in a couple of others.

The party faithful will hail her as a heroine tomorrow. She has the advantage of at least a couple of years until the next electoral test (unless Theresa May opts for an early general election). There is no disgruntled internal cabal briefing against her (although some "old hands" do harbour suspicions about defectors from the UUP holding so much sway in the party). That said, she has big challenges along the way: some of which she should address tomorrow.

Brexit - which the DUP backed, but didn't expect to be on the winning side - has the potential to become a political nightmare for her, particularly in terms of the impact on Northern Ireland's employment and economic prospects.

To a much greater extent than she would be prepared to admit, the Executive's hands will be fairly tightly bound by decisions made elsewhere; and if there is the sort of downturn which some economists predict, then the impact here could be especially severe.

Having supported Brexit, she can hardly turn round and try to blame others if things go badly wrong. More worryingly, it will also put a huge strain on the relationship with Sinn Fein.

So far that relationship has been better than it has ever been. Indeed, Opposition has been the making of their relationship. Having realised that there is now no one else to blame if things go wrong, Foster and Martin McGuinness have reached what has been described as a "non-aggression pact".

They have avoided situations and studios in which their differences could be exposed. They have provided cover for each other. They appointed David Gordon (the former Belfast Telegraph journalist and editor of the Nolan Show) to act as their communications "minder". They jointly put the boot into Mike Nesbitt, Colum Eastwood and Naomi Long.

But the cosiness - albeit orchestrated - of the relationship won't last forever. There are some issues which can't just be fobbed off with a smile and a "we're working together and doing our best" response.

Legacy issues. Cultural issues. Language issues. The blueprint for winding down paramilitarism (which has just had funding halted by the Conservative Government). The transfer process from primary to post-primary. Shared housing. And so on and so on. At some point, the DUP and Sinn Fein will have to make a call on all of those issues.

She will also want to respond to what Colum Eastwood ("the Executive is all guff and no government") and Mike Nesbitt ("she scare-mongered on the doorstep over the danger of Sinn Fein, only to return to Stormont to vote for a Sinn Fein Principal Deputy Speaker, collaborate with Sinn Fein over the appointment of a Justice Minister and collude with Martin McGuinness to use the Royal Prerogative to appoint a spin doctor") said last Saturday.

And she'll want to respond, because she knows that there are many in the DUP who are uncomfortable with the underlying nature of the relationship with Sinn Fein. So, she'll want to portray the Opposition as weak, clueless and divided.

She also needs to address the changing nature of Northern Ireland itself, particularly on social and moral issues. The DUP has changed since 1970. It has changed since 1998. It has changed since 2007. It has changed since she became leader.

It's voting base has deepened and its membership has broadened. It's actually a much more cosmopolitan party than most people imagine. But to remain top dog, the DUP will have to begin to reflect that new, changing Northern Ireland.

Has she, for instance, the courage to permit DUP MLAs a free vote on same-sex marriage, as well as ruling out the use of a petition of concern next time it comes to a vote?

Has she the courage to acknowledge that British citizens in this part of the United Kingdom deserve the same moral and social rights as citizens in every other part of the UK? Has she the courage to admit that a DUP which can reach a political deal with Sinn Fein for the collective good of Northern Ireland is also a DUP which can prove itself tolerant of the views, beliefs and lifestyles of every other citizen in Northern Ireland?

Unlike any other unionist leader in my lifetime - and I'm including David Trimble - she has an opportunity to change Northern Ireland. She has an opportunity to prove that unionism is not a repressive, intolerant philosophy.

She has an opportunity to prove that the lead party of unionism is open to anyone and everyone; where the only criteria for membership, or support, is a belief in the sort of pan-UK unionism which argues that what is legal and permitted in one part of the United Kingdom should be legal and permitted in every part of the United Kingdom.

Arlene Foster is 46. Barring some sort of calamity of politics, or nature, she can probably expect to be leader for a decade.

All leaders have a vision and ambition. Now that she has banked a substantial mandate, tomorrow represents an important moment for her to give both the party and a wider audience a glimpse of that vision and ambition.

She defied expectations by leaving the UUP. She defied expectations by becoming leader of the DUP. I wouldn't be surprised if she continues to defy expectations.

But it will require courage - lots of it.
A Billings man will spend three years in federal prison for his role in a conspiracy to smuggle drugs into Montana State Prison.

Chief U.S. District Judge Dana Christensen on Thursday sentenced Cordero Robert Metzker, 28, to the term for his conviction on conspiracy to distribute drugs, the U.S. Attorneys Office said.

Metzker was charged in a scheme in which prison employee Erin Bernhardt smuggled drugs to inmates at the prison in exchange for bribes, prosecutors said.

Metzker acted as an intermediary, sending money that was used to buy drugs, which were then sent to Bernhardt. Prosecutors said the drugs involved methamphetamine and Suboxone, an opioid.

Metzker is among five defendants charged and convicted in the investigation.

This type of abuse within a public prison system cannot be tolerated, and the effective prosecution of these defendants demonstrates that it will not be, said Montana U.S. Attorney Mike Cotter in a news release.
Handout photo dated 25/10/16 issued by the European Space Agency (ESA) which shows a 2.4 metre-wide crater and a long dark streak thought to be linked to the impact and possible explosion of the Schiaparelli probe. PA

Remains of the European spacecraft that crashed on Mars can be seen in a new high resolution image from a Nasa orbiter.

The photo, taken on October 25, shows a 2.4 metre-wide crater and a long dark streak thought to be linked to the impact and possible explosion.

On October 19 the Schiaparelli probe fell from a height of more than a mile after it ejected its parachute and switched off its retro-rockets too early, scientists believe.

It smashed into the landing site near the Martian equator at around 300 km/hr (186mph).

The new image was captured by a high-resolution camera on Nasa's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

A white spot 1.4mk south of the crater has now been confirmed as the lander's 12m diameter parachute. It is still attached to the craft's discarded rear heatshield, which can clearly be seen.

The front heatshield, seen in an earlier photo, is believed to be about 1.4km east of the crash site.

A number of white dots around the scene of the crash which are too small to be properly resolved may or may not be related to the impact, say scientists.

Schiaparelli was carried to Mars by the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter spacecraft which is functioning normally.

From next year it will start sniffing the Martian atmosphere for traces of methane, which may have a biological origin.

Expand Close Undated handout artist's impression issued by the European Space Agency of the separation of the ExoMars 2016 entry, descent and landing demonstrator module, named Schiaparelli, from the Trace Gas Orbiter. PA PA / Facebook

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Whatsapp Undated handout artist's impression issued by the European Space Agency of the separation of the ExoMars 2016 entry, descent and landing demonstrator module, named Schiaparelli, from the Trace Gas Orbiter. PA

The two-stage ExoMars mission is a bold attempt to search for signs of past or present life on Mars.

Schiaparelli was testing the landing system for a British-built rover to be launched on the second phase of the mission in 2020. ExoMars Rover will drill into the Martian surface and analyse samples for tell-tale evidence of life.
Americans are losing their common sense. We are becoming offended by almost anything. Here is the latest thing that simply defies reality.

Students at University of California Fullerton were asked to provide a list of inappropriate words because they are too gendered. Too gendered? I dont even understand the assignment. What does it mean to be too gendered?

For example, the word secretary is on the list. Help me see the gender in that word! A secretary can be male or female. The word is not biased, but since the Cal students think it is, put it on the list. Its all about what we feel to be true!

Miss or Mrs are problematic too. Apparently distinguishing your marital status is inappropriate. It is too exclusive. Look, if someone doesnt want their marital status identified, they can go with Ms. But dont tell my kids they cant call the neighbor, Mrs. Smith. Actually, Mrs. Smith was offended by Ms. Smith!!!

The use of guys made the list. I grew up in the north where everyone refers to guys as gender neutral. So who decided it only meant guys? People (the more correct term) who use guys did not have a gender in minduntil now. You people decided this, not the north!

And seriously, man the desk should be replaced with staff the desk! Imagine this conversation

Hey, I am leaving to use the restroom, would you please staff the desk. How do I do that? You know, staff it. You mean hire someone? No, man it, but not necessarily with a man. Maybe a man, but it could be a woman. So dont say man. And dont say he or she eithermake sure you say they. So I need more than one person? No just get one person!

New level of absurdity for sure. Do not write me and tell me how insensitive I am because I am not. And I do recognize the power of language in shaping opinion, but it feels like (so it must be true) we are looking to find offense.

So Cal Fullerton students, I recommend you spend less time on deciding what words you feel are offensive to anyone and everyone, and actually try to learn something while in college. Perhaps a focus on resiliency is needed in order to prepare you for the real world. In the real world, people dont spend their time and energy trying to craft a perfect sentence. In the real world, someone will slip and say, guys! Then what?
A man killed during an armed confrontation with police at a Billings hotel had stopped taking medications needed for his mental illness and may have been on illegal drugs, said the man's mother, who also said she does not hold police responsible for his death.

Yellowstone County Deputy Coroner Cliff Mahoney on Friday identified Kyle Killough, 32, of Gillette, Wyo., as the man shot three times in the chest by a Billings police officer following a 25-minute standoff at the Days Inn on Thursday morning.

Killough's mother, Jan Urioste, said she blamed his death on mental illness and possible drug use.

"We in no way hold the police responsible," Urioste said in a phone interview from her home in New Mexico. "I very much regret that my sick son put the officers in that position. This is not a statistic of another police officer shooting. Kyle is a statistic of mental illness. ... Thank God no one else was hurt."

Urioste had talked to her son by phone in the days leading up to Thursday's confrontation and discovered that he quit taking his medicines. He had a history of using illegal drugs and alcohol to cope with his illness, which Urioste declined to specify.

Another of Urioste's sons is a former police officer. She said the family appreciated the efforts made by authorities to resolve the confrontation without violence.

Killough was described by his mother as highly intelligent and an excellent worker as long as he had his mental illness under control. He was passionate about American history and had missed his calling to be a teacher, she said.

Instead, he left high school early and worked for a railroad services company in New Mexico. He transferred to Wyoming three years ago but ended up taking a job with another company, she said.

It was unclear why or how long he had been staying at the Days Inn in Billings at the time of his death.

Killough entered the clerk's office at the hotel before dawn Thursday with a semiautomatic handgun, according to Billings police. Both the clerk and officers said he was acting strangely and saying things that didn't make sense, the police said.

When officers arrived, they said Killough refused repeated orders to drop the weapon. He was shot three times by Billings Police Officer David Raschkow after turning toward officers with the gun.

He died of multiple gunshot wounds to the chest, Mahoney said.

Raschkow is on paid leave pending an investigation to be led by the Yellowstone County Sheriff's Office. Raschkow has been a BPD officer for seven years.

A Days Inn clerk on Friday said the hotel had no comment on the shooting. The hotel remains open for business.

Killough was the seventh person fatally shot by law enforcement officers since 2012 in Billings, home to about 110,000 people.

All the prior shootings were ruled justified by official reviews. In five of the cases, autopsies found methamphetamine in the victims' bodies. The sixth person had escaped from Montana State Prison days before he was shot.
Bangladeshi women protest to demand the arrest of the killers of college student Sohagi Jahan Tonu in Dhaka, April 2, 2016.

Following the vicious attack of a woman and rape of a 5-year-old girl, Bangladeshs largest womens rights group is launching a resistance movement to stop violence against women and children.

Ayesha Khanam, president of the 150,000-member Bangladesh Mahila Parishad (Bangladesh Womens Council), told BenarNews it decided that such a movement was necessary to shine a light on a series of recent brutal attacks.

You see a bad boy in Sylhet who mercilessly hacked Khadiza Begum Nargis for turning down his proposal, she told BenarNews, referring to a spurned suitor who allegedly attacked Nargis, a student at Sylhet Government Womens College, with a machete on Oct. 3.

Local goons in Mirpur this month attacked two sisters in two spells, beat them mercilessly and broke the leg of one of them. Also this month, a 5-year-old girl was kidnapped, beaten and raped in Dinajpur. This means women and children have been the targets across the country, Khanam said.

Badrul Alam, a leader of the ruling partys student wing and an economics student at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology in Sylhet, in northeastern Bangladesh, allegedly hacked Nargis after she had turned down his love proposal.

A bystander filmed the attack and posted it on Facebook. The video went viral, prompting people across the country to rally to demand punishment.

On Oct. 4, Rezaus Sattar, a neurosurgeon at the Square hospital in Dhaka, told reporters that Nargis survival chance ranged between 5 percent and 10 percent because she had sustained several deep head wounds and serious cuts to her hands as she tried to fend off the machete blows.

Doctors now say that her condition is stable, her father told BenarNews.

Wednesday night, she has been shifted to the general ward from the dependency ward. My daughter called me father. She is taking liquid foods. But we are worried whether she will get her full memory back, Mashuk Miah said.

What was her fault that she should be hacked in this way, the father asked.

Alam is in jail, but has not been charged.

He will face punishment no matter which party he belongs to. He may be our activist, but he must get punishment. We do not believe in sheltering any criminals, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal told BenarNews.

Law Minister Anisul Huq told BenarNews that the government planned to fast-track the case against Alam.

He will be tried in the speedy tribunal for his heinous crimes, Huq said. All sensational cases of attacks on women and children will be referred to the speedy tribunal.

Crisis centers available

The ministry of women and children, meanwhile, has been operating one-stop crisis centers offering treatment, protection and training for victims at government hospitals in Dhaka, Chittagong, Rajshahi, Khulna, Sylhet and Barisal, Rangpur and Faridpur districts. The victims of torture, rape and other serious human rights abuses are sheltered at the centers.

According to figures from the centers, 22,386 victims have been treated between 2001 and 2015. The centers, with the support of NGOs dedicated to womens rights, filed more than 5,000 cases against the perpetrators, and 101 criminals have been punished.

Shahidul Islam, an independent researcher in social policy, told BenarNews that attacks and rapes of women and girls occur frequently.

Why? This is happening due to unrest brewing in society. The sense of impunity has taken root inside our society. When someone is not punished for committing serious crimes, the instances encourage others to violate laws, Islam said.

We saw in the past that ruling party men were not punished for violent activities. So this is natural for Alam to think that nothing would happen.

Social media is helping change peoples responses to such attacks, Islam said.

People in thousands take to the street, demanding punishment of the perpetrators. If the video of the hacking was not on Facebook, I would say nothing would have happened to Alam, he said.

Khanam said customs in Bangladesh had changed for the worse.

A culture of impunity, absence of good governance and rule of law, and societys negative attitudes are the leading causes of such brutal attacks on women. A decade ago, boys used to go to girls with flowers; now they go with pistols and machetes. This is so sad, she said.
An image from a security surveillance camera shows two men, identified by police as suspects, riding close to a car that was targeted in a fatal drive-by shooting in Mayo district, in Thailands Pattani province, Oct. 28, 2016.

Killings have persisted in the troubled Thai Deep South even after government negotiators told a rebel delegation during talks this week to refrain from violence for a year while Thailand mourns its king.

Two civilians were shot dead in the region since the Thai side called Wednesday for a 12-month pause in bloodshed following the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej on Oct. 13, who is officially being mourned over the next year.

The two sides met from Tuesday through Thursday in Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur, according to a spokesman for the MARA Patani panel representing southern insurgent groups. Both negotiating teams gave different accounts of progress in hammering out so-called safety zones  or a limited ceasefire  that would be a milestone in the peace process.

The 88-year-old Bhumibol (Rama IX), who ruled Thailand for 70 years, was patron of all religions evenly and wished all people to love each other, Gen. Aksara Kerdpol, the head of the Thai delegation, said Friday as he confirmed that talks had taken place in the Malaysian capital this week.

[I] told them to not make a move and hope this year to not have more violence. The dissident groups also mourned the king and felt grateful to him, he told reporters in Bangkok, referring to the rebel groups from Thailands predominantly Muslim and Malay-speaking southern border area.

He said the negotiators also discussed safety zones.

We have done talking on the safe zones and, from now on, we will define certain areas, be it at the level of village, Tambon [village cluster] or district. The aim is to stop violence through the peace-talk process, Aksara added.

On the rebel side, MARA Patani spokesman Abu Hafiz al-Hakim told BenarNews that the latest round of Malaysia-facilitated talks and the first to take place since the king died ended on Thursday.

We have not agreed on anything, it will be continued, Hafiz said Friday. We don't know when is the next date for a meeting. Thailand is still in a grieving period. We have to wait [until] they are available.

Since last year Thailands military government has been trying to revive formal peace talks aimed at resolving the long-running separatist conflict in the countrys southern border region, and which were last held under a civilian-led government in 2013. But despite a series exploratory talks with MARA Patani, the region has remained violent.

On Friday, a female school teacher was killed and a woman who was with her was injured in a drive-by shooting in Pattani, one of the provinces in the Deep South. The incident, in which the victims were shot in their car by suspects on a motorbike, was caught on camera. A video clip of the incident reportedly went viral after being posted on social media.

A day earlier, a contractor working on an irrigation project was shot dead in neighboring Narathiwat province.

Police said they suspected that insurgents carried out Fridays attack, but they said that Thursdays shooting may have not been linked to the insurgency.

More than 6,700 people have been killed since January 2004 in violence related to the conflict, Deep South Watch, a think-tank based in Pattani, said Thursday in releasing updated statistics.
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A Democratic super PAC is spending $500,000 on Montana TV ads hoping to tip the scales in favor of Denise Juneau in Montanas U.S. House race.

The House Majority PAC is buying ads in four Montana markets to run during the final two weeks of voting. Its the first time the super PAC has purchased advertising in Montana.

The ad buy is part of a 13-state launch to narrow the gap with the Republican majority, said Jeb Fain, of House Majority PAC. Democrats need to pick up 30 House seats to claim the majority.

Its certainly not out of the realm of possibility, said Fain, of Democrats flipping enough seats to control the House. But as far as Montana goes, were helping to expand the map for Democrats, and Montanas at-large district looks increasingly competitive by the day.

It's been 20 years since Montana elected a Democrat to the U.S. House, but softening support for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has Democrats hopeful conservatives will skip the election.

Zinke led Juneau by 14 points in a Lee Newspapers poll conducted Oct. 10-12, but in campaign donation emails, Juneau is telling potential donors the congressman's lead has vanished. This is Zinke's first re-election bid.

The House Majority PAC ad portrays incumbent Republican Rep. Ryan Zinke as a self-absorbed politician and too busy advancing his career to serve Montana.

Zinke is launching his own round of last-minute campaign ads. One highlighting the criminal history of 64 Montana school bus drivers blames Juneau for their employment, the ad appears only on digital media. A second ad promotes Zinkes endorsement by The Billings Gazette and credits him for standing up to the war on coal.
BILD-Journalist Paul Ronzheimer during the interview with Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Nechirvan Barzani

Von: By PAUL RONZHEIMER*

Nechirvan Barzani (50) is the Kurdish Prime Minister in Northern Iraq. He plans to free Mosul with his troops from the grip of ISIS. BILD met Barzani for an interview at his official residence in Erbil.

BILD: Mr. Prime Minister, the operation to reclaim Mosul has been underway for almost two weeks. When will the city be freed from ISIS?

Nechirvan Barzani: We conquered the suburbs fast. However, it is unknown how stiff of a defense ISIS fighters will put up to defend the city. We are aware that they have hundreds of suicide bombers at their disposal. ISIS must have entire factories where its booby traps are produced.

Thats the biggest threat we face while advancing towards Mosul. If we continue to make progress, then I expect that the city could be freed within three months.

Barzani in his ostentatious bureau

Peshmerga soldiers are prohibited to advance on Mosul. But what happens if they are being asked to help?

Barzani: We will fully adhere to the agreement that was made between Baghdad and the international coalition. It is more appropriate, if the Iraqi army advances on the city in order to prevent conflict between the Kurdish and Arab population. But, of course, we will help, if we are going to be asked and if a new agreement should be concluded.

Auch interessant

What are you hearing about the situation in Mosul?

Barzani: We are hearing dramatic stories about executions and about people who are being used as protective shields. ISIS will be fighting hard for the city, because Mosul is stratigically very important to them. In addition, they declared the establishment of a so-called caliphate in Mosul.

How could civilian casualties be prevented in this war?

Barzani: So far, all forces have operated in a very careful manner. No one here is aiming at civilians. President Obama is especially keen on preventing civilian casualties. However, we are in the midst of a war, and terrible things are obviously happening. ISIS knows exactly how to use civilians for their own purposes.

Do you believe that ISIS will deploy chemical weapons?

Barzani: ISIS has used chlorine gas against us before. But, I dont think that they are truly capable of deploying dangerous chemical weapons. However, we are prepared for anything.

Lesen Sie auch

You have said that suicide bombers present the greatest danger. How will you protect yourself?

Barzani: There are only two possibilities: airstrikes or firing off Milan missiles. We are very grateful to the German government which has equipped us with Milan missiles, and thus a great many lives were saved. Yet, we need additional weapon supplies in the fight for Mosul. It has been the most difficult fight yet.

In more concrete terms, you need more Milan missiles from Germany?

Barzani: Yes, we do. It must be said loud and clear: If we dont get additional anti-ballistic missiles, the number of victims on our side will increase. This is not just about the Mosul campaign. Currently, we need to defend ourselves from ISIS attacks everywhere.

To date, 1,600 people have died and 9,000 have been injured in a war that has lasted for two years. ISIS has brainwashed so many people that they have an infinite supply of suicide bombers. We have to defend ourselves and, therefore, need more Milan missiles and ammunition.

Barzani while talking with Paul Ronzheimer

How do you deal with the threat that ISIS terrorists are mingling with the refugee population from Mosul to carry out attacks?

Barzani: To us, security is top priority. Our secret service does excellent work and conducts thorough background checks on all refugees. But, of course, we continue to face a threat. As long as ISIS cannot be defeated, the terror group will remain a looming threat.

Those who believe that a military campaign in Mosul is sufficient, are mistaken. Political errors, which were perpetrated in Baghdad for many years, caused the rise of ISIS. Things here will have to change dramatically.

There are millions of refugees in Kurdistan. Will they soon track along towards Europe?

Barzani: I think, it is in the interest of everyone to provide ongoing care to refugees in situ. But, obviously, some refugees will move on, if there is not sufficient support and food. Up to one million refugees from Mosul could be joining the 1,8 million refugees who already live here. Hence, we need more support and more financial help. Im talking about infrastructure, water supply and security.

Barzani demands from germany to increase the arms shipment

The discussion about Kurdish independence has been ongoing for many years. When do you want to break from Baghdad?

Barzani: The time has long been ripe to break free. But, we are focusing on the fight against ISIS for now. Once Mosul has been freed, we will sit together with our partners in Baghdad and talk about our independence. Weve been waiting for too long. After 2003, we thought that there will be a real new beginning for a democratic Iraq.

We are not Arabs here, but our own Kurdish nation. The international community, too, has to see it more realistically. We neither have an Iraqi army nor an Iraqi police force. A referenderum on the independence of Kurdistan will be held at some point, and then its up to the people to decide their fate. *translated into English by Claudia Haj Ali

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It can be tough to be a vegetarian. You have to work harder than everyone else to make sure youre getting all the nutrients your body needs. So, when its time to take a
During a time of low returns and high market volatility, investors are particularly vulnerable to the high management fees that many local fund managers have become accustomed to charging. In order to shine a light on what financial services provider 10X Investments calls "daylight robbery", the company partnered with advertising agency M&C Saatchi Abel to create a hard-hitting and highly visual campaign.

We needed to demonstrate the harsh reality, and confront customer apathy and/or unawareness in a simple yet powerful way. The #StopDaylightRobbery campaign seeks to do precisely that, in a dramatic and memorable manner, that we hope encourages people to start talking about something they never realised before, says Mike Abel, Chief Executive Partner and co-founder of M&C Saatchi Abel.



The campaign has already inspired chatter (both offline and online) by causing quite a stir at Nelson Mandela Square in Sandton. Shoppers and lunchtime restaurant goers were recently greeted by the sight of a life-sized household scene, complete with furniture, appliances and even a car. Then, without so much as a warning, masked individuals, armed with chainsaws, descended on the scene and carved off 40% of everything on display.



Abel explains that the intention behind the chainsaw chop was to visually illustrate how retirement investors around the country risk losing 40% of their final retirement amount, as a result of the daylight robbery perpetuated by the retirement fund industry in South Africa.



As stated in the Cambridge dictionary, daylight robbery refers to the "blatant and unfair overcharging for services and goods".



We believe that this is exactly what many of the retirement fund managers in South Africa are doing. By expecting investors to pay higher fees, especially for underperforming funds, South Africans saving for retirement are ultimately (and unfairly) losing out on their retirement returns, says Steven Nathan, CEO of 10X Investments. We love the creative solution that was developed to show people exactly what this looks like



He says that the investment industry has a moral responsibility to bring to light the unfair practices of fund managers that are preventing ordinary people from being able to retire adequately.



Our hope with this campaign is that consumers will become more aware of how they are investing their retirement savings and how much they are needlessly spending on fees. I also hope that in doing so, they will consider more suitable products that truly meet their financial needs, Nathan concludes.








NEW YORK: Microsoft launched a new consumer offensive on Wednesday, unveiling a high-end computer that challenges the Apple iMac along with an updated Windows operating system that showcases three-dimensional content and "mixed reality".

Targeted at creatives

The US tech giant announced its first desktop computer, called Surface Studio, a $3,000 high-end "all-in-one" device that aims at creative professionals, a segment dominated by Apple.

"We're creating a new category that transforms your desk into a creative studio," Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella said at the unveiling in New York.

With a large, 28-inch (71-centimeter) hinged touchscreen display touted as "the thinnest desktop monitor ever created," Surface Studio adds to the Microsoft lineup of tablet and laptop devices for the premium segment.

"It is a new class of device that transforms from a desktop PC into a powerful digital canvas, unlocking a more natural and immersive way to create on the thinnest display ever built," said Microsoft vice president Terry Myerson.

The new PC has an ultra-HD 4.5K display, offering more pixels than most new high-definition televisions. It will be available in "limited quantities" for the upcoming holiday season, with more units available in 2017.

The new device drew a mixed response from analysts. "Yes, this is very cool. But what's the market for a $3,000 computer you can draw on? How many people have that job?" asked Benedict Evans of the venture firm Andreessen Horowitz in a tweet.

But Avi Greengart at the research firm Current Analysis said the new Microsoft products "are aimed at setting the high mark for the Windows ecosystem."

Surface Book and Creators update

Microsoft also announced an updated Surface Book  its high-end convertible tablet-computer  which will sell for $2,400, adding improved graphics and computing power and with an estimated 16 hours of battery life. "It's for the people really pushing performance," Microsoft vice president Panos Panay said.

The Surface devices allow users to create content onscreen with a special pen-stylus, and Microsoft introduced a new disk device called Dial which attaches to the screen and offers additional controls such as viewing the timeline of a creation.

Microsoft meanwhile announced its Windows 10 Creators operating system would be offered as a free update in early 2017, enabling users to create 3D content and delve into virtual and augmented reality. The update offers "new ways to create and play," said Myerson.

The update will allow for a 3D capture application for mobile devices and a new version of the popular program Paint for 3D objects. The system will allow users to add three-dimensional emojis and to create and manipulate content they create or scan.

Microsoft general manager Megan Saunders demonstrated how the capture application can scan a sand castle in three dimensions, and then mix that with other content.

With the new Windows system, users will be able to experience virtual reality with Microsoft's HoloLens headgear and its Edge browser. Edge "will act as the portal to display 3D content on HoloLens," said Saunders.

Microsoft said its hardware partners would be selling Windows-compatible virtual reality gear starting at about $300. Microsoft is aiming to keep users on Windows as many switch to new mobile devices powered by Apple or Google software.

Were partnering with top PC makers to build a range of innovative VR headsets starting at $299. Coming in 2017. #MicrosoftEvent pic.twitter.com/pMnFbJFZe6  Windows (@Windows) October 26, 2016

Bringing 3D to the masses

Analyst Patrick Moorhead at Moor Insights & Strategy said the move appears positive for Microsoft.

"I like where Microsoft is going with Creators Update as it reflects PC differentiation and includes elements of what I believe consumers are interested in, albeit hard to execute upon," Moorhead said. The analyst added that "3D creation is difficult today and Microsoft is taking initial steps to bring it to the masses."

With PC sales sputtering, Microsoft has been emphasising its cloud computing and business services but is also working to stay relevant to consumers with Windows and its various computing and gaming devices.

The new version of Windows will help users sift through email and other messages by creating "people" icons that show messages from important connections.

Source: AFP
Clicks Group will invest R577m in capital expenditure in 2017, as it looks to raise the capacity of its health and beauty divisions.

The owner of Claires and The Body Shop, plans to open 25 new stores and refurbish 65 outlets in 2017, while increasing space in 18 of those stores and expanding two of its distribution centres. But one fund manager believes that the expansion of Clicks' presence in healthcare and beauty segments should also see it offload noncore brands such:D: as Musica.

Suvasha Kander, a fund manager at Ashburton Investments, said although Clicks' results exceeded overall consensus, the sale of noncore assets such as Musica, should be on the cards for the company.

"Musica has become a small component of their overall business and the landscape has changed for that kind of business, in the sense that now a lot of people would download music and the likes and not walk into a Musica," Kander said.

"I'm not sure if it would be up for sale, but it would also be difficult to get a suitable price for the business, given where the industry has moved and evolved to."

But Kander said whether or not Clicks sold Musica was not "too much of a worry".

In the group's full-year results to end-August, Clicks reported group turnover growth of 9.5% to R24.2bn with diluted headline earnings per share gaining 14.2% to 438.5c. The total dividend increased 15.7% to 272.0c per share and together with the growth in the Clicks Group share price over the past year represents a total shareholder return of 35.3%.

Clicks CEO David Kneale said that it had always been part of the group's plan to have pharmacies in all its stores.

"The goal has always been that over time, every Clicks store will have a pharmacy - 80% of them do now... so we'll close that gap over time," he said.

"Health and beauty are resilient categories in a tough economic climate. You may not choose to buy the new dress but you still buy the lipstick."

But he shot down suggestions of a possible Musica disposal, saying "the business is profitable and is cash-generative".

Retail health and beauty sales for the period including Clicks and the franchise brands of The Body Shop, GNC and Claire's, increased by 13.5%, while UPD grew turnover by 6.1% in a pharmaceutical market which has shown minimal volume growth.

Kneale said: "We were very clear that this was going to be a challenging year for UPD with little volume growth in their pharmaceutical market.

"Despite those pressures UPD has maintained its operating margins.

"We believe that we've got an organic growth story in terms of opening more Clicks stores " our strategy is to grow organically," he said.

In the past year, Clicks shares have risen more than 20% making it the best performing stock on the FTSE-JSE Africa Food & Drug Retailers index, according to Bloomberg data.

Clicks' shares were trading more than 2% higher at 2.55pm.
It's often said that a defining quality of successful tech startups is that they're not afraid of failure. Because the more you try, the more opportunity you have to succeed. A pair of entrepreneurs from Port Elizabeth appear to have just this winning mindset.

Sabelo Sibanda and Thulilsile Volwana

Sabelo Sibanda and Thulilsile Volwana are the founders of not one but two companies, the first being Millbug, a startup incubated at Shanduka Black Umbrellas. It began its life in the e-commerce space selling millennial womens clothing. In its first year of business the company was nominated for a South African e-commerce award.

On to the next one

But the pair didnt rest on their laurels. They soon realised that their target market accessed the internet primarily via mobile and were more inclined to purchase digital products as opposed to tactile products on the small screen. This led to the idea of selling a tablet PC; but while developing it they discovered more important solutions the product could address.

And thus, in 2013 the low-cost solar-powered Vuya Tablet PC was born. Aimed at rural markets in Africa, the device can be charged by the sun in places where a reliable supply of electricity is difficult to come by. Millbug received R35,000 from the Small Enterprise Development Agency (Seda) to assist them with the project and business support from the Shanduka Black Umbrellas incubation programme. The invention drew acclaim from local and international media for its ability to improve connectivity and narrow the digital divide.

But the young innovators didn't stop there either. Last year Sibanda and Volwana launched Tuse, a company incubated at Propella - a Telkom Future Makers Hub. The Tuse app allows a user's mobile device to become a node in a wireless mesh network on which users may send messages, make calls and transfer files to peers for free. It doesnt require traditional wireless infrastructure, making it an ideal solution in areas with little or no network coverage. The idea led to the company being selected as part of the Aspiring Innovators progamme at this years Gartner Symposium in Cape Town.

Sibanda and Volwana were invited to Silicon Valley at the start of this year to join renowned tech accelerator Founders Space. Sibanda, co-founder and managing director, tells us about the pilgrimage and Millbugs future plans.

Tell us about the Millbug Vuya Tablet PC and Tuse app, and the inspiration behind each of them.

The Millbug Vuya Tablet PC is Africa's first solar-powered tablet PC. Tuse is a solution that allows people to communicate in places with no signal. Both were developed to address the massive shortcomings we have in the developing world with regards to communication and communications infrastructure.

What has the response been like from the market?

The response has been phenomenal. It's incredibly gratifying to see ideas, not only be well received, but genuinely help people.

Is there a gap in the SA market for sustainable tech products, like the solar-powered Vuya tablet?

I believe there is an incredibly large gap for sustainable tech products like the Vuya tablet. This gap not only exists in the higher LSMs but also in the lower. One of my favourite books, The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid by C.K. Prahalad expands on this idea.

Tell us about your visit to Silicon Valley earlier this year.

We were the first African startup to be invited to join the Founders Space accelerator (the number one tech accelerator for foreign-based startups in Silicon Valley, according to Forbes Magazine). We participated in their programme for a month in preparation for demo day.

At demo day we managed to get pre-seed investment from Draper Dark Flow - Tim Draper's fund for high potential African startups and were the first South African startup to get it. A month later, we were back in San Francisco for the Global Technology Symposium where we were identified as one of the 10 most disruptive startups in the world.

What are your teams future plans?

We are busy setting up an electronics manufacturing facility in Port Elizabeth and are making full use of the momentum we've received from being part of the Aspiring Innovators initiative at the Gartner Symposium as well as being finalists in the SAB Social Innovation Awards. We have our sights set on rapid African expansion and are working with a number of corporates that share this vision - of course, more are welcome!

The Millbug Vuya Tablet PC was previously designed in South Africa and built overseas. It is now in the process of being produced locally and will be available shortly at the companys facility in Port Elizabeth. The Tuse app is available for download in the Google Play store.
Montana businesses are too often villainized in political discussions, said GOP gubernatorial candidate Greg Gianforte who, speaking to the Montana Chamber of Commerce, called for a more friendly business climate.

We cant continue to allow our private sector to be villainized, Gianforte said, because ultimately, were biting the hand that feeds us.

The Montana Chamber endorsed the tech entrepreneur over incumbent Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock after the June primary. Thursday, it welcomed Gianforte as one of its own. In the early 1990s, Gianforte started Bozeman-based RightNow Technologies, a customer service software business that grew to employ 500 Montanans before being sold to Oracle six years ago.

Theres been a lot of talk about the states tax revenue surplus this election cycle. Montana has collected roughly $200 million more in taxes than the state budget requires. That extra money is there because of private business, Gianforte said. That contribution needs to be recognized in political conversations, in which businesses are often talked about as under-regulated or insufficiently taxed, he said.

If it werent for the private sector, there would be no surplus to fund all the other things we want, whether its health care, or education, or infrastructure, or the arts, Gianforte said.

Lack of recognition was a recurring theme of the day for the Montana Chamber as it appointed a new president and charted its agenda for the upcoming 2017 Legislature and rolled out a 10-point plan for economic development.

The new chairman of the states most powerful business lobby is Todd OHair, senior government affairs manager for Cloud Peak Energy.

People wring their hands about the loss of working-class jobs. How are we going to raise families on minimum-wage jobs? Well, guess what? We still have those jobs right here in Montana. Right here at my company, Cloud Peak Energy, OHair said.

The Montana Chamber will commit itself to attracting large businesses to Montana and getting those businesses to remain here, while also promoting development of small Montana businesses, OHair said.

Lobbying for more favorable regulations and taxes for promoting businesses will be goals in the 2017 Legislature, he said. The focus will also be on getting state government to deliver on the new roads and infrastructure that communities have demanded but not received in several legislative sessions.

The inability of the governor and Legislature to pass comprehensive infrastructure funding bills over several years has been a campaign issue this election. OHair said its time to end the partisan bickering and deliver an infrastructure funding bill for Montana.

Weve heard the back and forth among the political parties for the last four years about whose fault it is. Well, frankly we dont care whose fault it is anymore, OHair said. Its time we do something constructive. Too many towns and too many cities have waited too long for something to happen. So were going to take this into our hands, and were going to charge into the 2017 legislative session with a demand that they do something for infrastructure.

OHair said the Chamber chose to endorse Gianforte after interviewing the candidates after the June primary. He said the Democrats and Republicans on the endorsement board usually know the candidates personally and that it isnt an easy choice.

We have to set aside all those biases and look strictly through a business lens, OHair said.

Looking through the lens of business, Greg came in and presented to us a business vision, OHair said. He came in and talked to us about how when he is elected governor he would try to steer the state economic condition in a more business-friendly, more business positive direction and he had some success to point to.
Our local financial services industries are standing on the precipice of radical disruption. Everywhere you turn, new fintech and other digital services are appearing, each one with the potential to transform the way people manage their money and related assets.

Consider the staggering array of new innovations that have entered the scene in just the past few years. From mobile wallets, to new payment services (such as Apple Pay, Snapscan or Zapper), to cryptocurrencies, robo-advisors, personal financial management tools, crowdfunding services, social lending, and more.

Companies that arent banks are now aggressively becoming diversified financial services providers (think of the likes of Discovery, Virgin, and even Facebook with its European e-Money license). And companies that are banks are increasingly growing new green shoots in other industries: FNB is becoming a telco; and Absa is becoming a platform-based micro-services aggregator with the publishing of APIs for fintech firms to hook into.

All this culminates in a very uncertain environment for retail banks, insurers, investment houses, wealth management companies and others in financial services.

Customer experience principles endure

So just how can consultants, advisors and technology providers help their financial services clients to navigate through this ever-changing landscape?

As a departure point, its worth acknowledging that technologies come and go. Some catch on, others never really fulfil their promise, and others are leapfrogged by even newer innovations. But the fundamental principles that go into ensuring customer loyalty and share-of-wallet will continue, irrespective of the next big innovation.

Those that will remain on top will be the financial services companies that are tuned in to their customers desires and challenges, who deeply understand their various markets, and are able to respond rapidly.

By taking a customer-centric, design-led approach to the solutions that are built, it becomes possible to do this, and to integrate new technologies with relative ease, without IT budgets billowing out of control.

With a next-generation digital platform financial services firms can essentially build one set of services, and seamlessly deliver it to customers to the channel of their choice, on the customers terms.

This extends the concept of omni-channel to its broadest possible definition: to include web interfaces, native smartphone and tablet apps, embedded services in messaging tools, SMS, USSD, physical channels, and even the likes of wearables and virtual reality. The principle is that customers should be empowered to consume any service, perform any transaction, on the device or through the channel they prefer.

Party at the front, business at the back

Achieving this customer experience nirvana requires a digital platform that not only produces elegant customer interfaces, but also integrates intelligently with the legacy infrastructure at the core of the enterprise. Many of South Africas major banks and insurers, for example, rely on complex arrangements of legacy infrastructure that is often decades old.

Simply ripping this out is often not viable, so the smarter play is to embrace digital platforms that transform those applications, and ready them for the accelerating pace of the customers digital demands.

Digital platforms, encompassing DevOps, low code or rapid application delivery (RAD) platforms rescue organisations from the constraints of their legacy infrastructure, creating a harmony between ones customer experience vision at the front-end, and transformation goals at the back-end.

These platforms enable the entire technology stack (the data, processes, business rules, and functions) to be digitised and often automated, abstracting the technology complexity and helping the organisation to focus on its most important task: enhancing the customers experience.

Undoubtedly, financial services are ripe for disruption. The winners will be those that take advantage of new digital platforms  to change the value proposition, elevate themselves from competitors (both old and new), and serve customers on their terms, in the way that they would like. Extending digital delivery to any channel and particularly mobile, means we are literally in the customers pocket. What better opportunity to expand share of wallet?
South African commercial farmers intend to increase the area planted to maize by 26.5% to 2.46-million hectares, in the 2017 production season, due to favourable weather forecasts.

GregMontani via pixabay

The improved weather outlook will enable farmers to replenish maize stocks, which dropped significantly during the 2016 drought, resulting in higher food prices.

The area planted to white maize is expected to rise 43.4% to 1.45-million hectares while that of the yellow variety will likely rise 8% to 1-million hectares. The increase in the area planted would likely put further downward pressure on grain prices, which have already dropped significantly from the record peaks they hit earlier this year.

The South African Weather Service said earlier this week the country could expect wetter conditions during the early and mid-summer periods. The expected warmer conditions from the previous forecast had also subsided somewhat, which may be further evidence of wetter conditions in these periods, forecaster Cobus Olivier said.

In the case of sunflowers, the expected area planted is estimated at 670,000 hectares, which is 6.8% less than the 718,500 hectares planted last season.

The intended planting of soybeans has increased 2.6% to 516,000 hectares.

Source: BDpro
Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Senzeni Zokwana has welcomed an initiative by a group of Western Cape women who have set up a network of entrepreneurs to help women and youth to get into farming.

In an interview with SAnews, the Minister said the initiative makes it easier for government to work with communities in order to help members of the community, especially women and youth, to organise themselves and become small-scale and subsistence farmers. He said this when he visited the Business Women Network, including a site visit of three poultry and piggery projects in Malmesbury.

We appreciate the initiative by the Business Women Network because it links easier with government. If I were to come here and look for women who are interested in agriculture, I would not know where to start.

Identifying opportunities in the agricultural space

They formed a network, which in itself organises, identifies opportunities and comes up with what is possible and it shows people who have already succeeded, he said.

The Business Women Network, which was founded by six women earlier this year, now comprises 50 women, who have shown an interest in expanding their network with the aim of contributing positively to the agricultural sector. The network, which is in a process of being registered as a formal business, gets business women to identify opportunities in the agricultural space in the Western Cape, including training and mentorship opportunities, for those who have never been exposed to farming.

Challenges female smallholder farmers face

The visit by Minister Zokwana gave the womens network an opportunity to brief him about the challenges they encounter as they seek a breakthrough as smallholder farmers.

This includes, among others, smallholder farmers affiliated to the network occupying a piece of land that previously belonged to the Housing Development Agency, which was earmarked for human settlements. The business network is seeking assistance to get the land to be rezoned for farming purposes so that it can be developed further.

They also asked the Minister to assist them with access to farming in order for them to increase their farming operations; technical training for farmers for both animal and crop production and farmer-to-farmer mentoring.

The Business Women Networks Nokuthula Mgwebile welcomed the Ministers visit and said she was optimistic that he would assist them with their challenges. Right now, there are trucks going all over. The commercial farmers are actively doing their thing right in front of our eyes and we are just tired of this island of poverty sitting here and there are opportunities for us to tap into.

The Minister said a team of officials from national, provincial and local government departments would have to be deployed to the area to assist the women with these and other challenges.

Creating links between farmers

One of the reasons [I came here is] we always appreciate that food security is one of the fundamental programmes of the department. As our Freedom Charter says, everybody has the right to food.

That right can be achieved when we partner with those who are trying their best to be subsistence, small-scale or commercial farmers.

Our aim is to create a link between the commercial, subsistence and small-scale farmers so people can be able to do things on their own with government assistance.

I think my coming here has shown that these things we always think of are possible. People on their own are doing things. What they need is support and guidance, said the Minister.
Insurer Hollard plans to contest the Competition Commission's decision to make a recommendation against its R2.3bn acquisition bid for the Regent group from logistics company Imperial on the grounds that it will be adverse for competition and lead to "substantial" job losses.

The recommendation of the Competition Commission did not constitute a final binding decision, Hollard spokesman Warwick Bloom said on Thursday, 27 October 2016. The tribunal would decide that after a hearing.

All the parties to the merger including Hollard, and the advisers to the deal maintain that a prohibition is not warranted. They will contest the commission's recommendation.

Imperial did not respond to requests for comment, but issued a stock exchange announcement reflecting a similar view as Bloom's comments on Monday.

The logistics group said it would update the market once the tribunal had made a ruling.

Short-term and life-insurance provider Hollard wants to buy Regent Insurance, which offers a wide range of products and life insurer Regent Life Assurance from Imperial's subsidiary Regent.

It also proposed buying motor warranty provider SA Warranties, body-repair insurer Paintech Maintenance, and Motor Compliance Solutions from Regent, which the Competition Commission believes clashed with Hollard's role in MotoVantage, a motor warranty joint venture with FirstRand.

Another company, Anvil Premium Finance, was to be bought from Imperial, but the commission flagged concern with the "market concentration" the transactions could cause.

It also said there could be a transfer of commercially sensitive non-public information.

Deputy competition commissioner Hardin Ratshisusu said the commission was concerned that the transactions would "substantially lessen competition" in short-term insurance for credit life and shortfall cover, leading to higher prices.

"The commission is also concerned that the complex structure of the transaction may lead to the exchange of competitively sensitive information between firms controlled by the merging parties and their competitors."

The commission said this would enable firms controlled by Hollard and FirstRand, such as Wesbank, to have access to each other's competitively sensitive information including information about external companies that compete with Wesbank for vehicle finance and noninsurance value-added products.

The merger would also lead to job losses, Ratshisusu said.

The merging parties had presented remedies for the public harm the merger would cause, which it found unworkable, the commission said.

Bloom said Hollard could not comment on which of the proposed remedies were rejected.

Source: BDpro
Promising to be bigger and bolder, the Cape Town Art Fair (CTAF) is returning in February 2017 with its 5th edition, where an extraordinary blend of top quality contemporary artworks from galleries in Africa and around the world will be exhibited.

In keeping with its growth and positioning, the organisers have appointed globally recognised, South African-born curator Tumelo Mosaka as the chief art curator.

Stimulating and challenging worldviews through contemporary art

Mosaka is returning to the country after more than a decade to spearhead Cape Town Art Fairs rise to prominence on the international art fair scene. Currently working as an independent curator in New York, he has had an illustrious career in the United States, with positions as Associate Curator of Exhibitions at the Brooklyn Museum and Contemporary Art Curator at the Krannert Art Museum in Champaign, Illinois.

Mosakas curatorial projects have explored global and transnational artistic production especially from Africa, the Caribbean, and North America, examining themes such as racial injustice, migration, and identity - some of the most urgent social concerns of our time. His past exhibitions include Andrew Lyght: Full Circle at the Dorsky Art Museum (2016), described by the New York Times as stunning and long overdue; Poetics of Relation (2015) at the Perez Art Museum in Florida, and the 1st International Biennale of Contemporary Art (BIAC) (2014) in Martinique.

He is deeply committed to advancing the ways in which contemporary art stimulates and challenges our worldviews, making him highly capable of curating a programme that will engage Cape Town Art Fairs local and international visitors.

Solo presentations by emerging artists

As Art Fair Curator, Mosaka will oversee the fair in its entirety, but his critical knowledge of art and the art world will be especially apparent in Tomorrows/Today. This section of the fair is dedicated to solo presentations by emerging artists from Africa and its diaspora, all chosen by Mosaka. He will also be using his global network to further develop the already international scope of the Cultural Platforms section and Talks programme.

Mosaka commented, It is an honour to be charged with steering the course of Cape Town Art Fair. With each year the fair has gained considerable momentum that has generated respect and prestige for the city of Cape Town as a major contemporary art destination. This is an exciting moment for art, not just in South Africa but globally, as we seek to expand the impact and importance of Cape Town Art Fair.

Duo to take Cape Town Art Fair to the next level

The Art Fair has also appointed its Chief Operating Officer, Laura Vincenti, former project manager of Artissima and one of the key individuals behind the success of CTAF2016. Vincenti and Mosaka will work together to leverage their expertise and international network in taking the fair to the next level. The CTAF2017 edition is expected to reach a new high in contemporary fine art standards and performance.

www.capetownartfair.co.za
With at least 14 luxury cruise lines and 20 vessels of all sizes set to ferry domestic and international tourists across the country's port cities, South Africa's ports are getting ready for another busy cruise season kicking off on 1 November.

MSC SINFONIA  the largest and most popular cruise ship in the local cruise calendar - will be a highlight when she arrives in her home port of Durban in the early hours of Tuesday, 1 November on a journey from Venice, Italy, carrying 2,600 European and South African passengers.

MSC Sinfonia

The ship has been accommodated at the Port of Durbans longer M-berth since last year after being lengthened by 24 metres and undergoing a multi-million Euro revamp.

Also returning this season are Oceania Cruises with its vessels INSIGNIA and NAUTICA, Regent Seven Sea Cruises with VOYAGER, Silversea Cruises with SILVER CLOUD, MS AMADEA, owned by Amadea Shipping Company, and Hapag-Lloyd Cruises EUROPA.

Cunard Lines will again bring two prestigious vessels to the country this year, QUEEN MARY 2 and QUEEN ELIZABETH, both of which will call at Cape Town and Port Elizabeth.

Queen Elizabeth

Australian ship, OCEAN DREAM, chartered by Peace Boat, and Semester at Seas charter ship, WORLD ODYSSEY, once again make once-off calls this season to Cape Town, bringing international students to the country as part of their respective global study programmes.

Peace Boat in Cape Town 2015-16

Newcomers

New vessels this season includes LE LYRIAL, which was built only last year for Compagnie du Ponant. The vessel will call at Durban and Cape Town.

Another newcomer is AZAMARA run by Azamara Club Cruises, which will call at Cape Town. Germany-based travel agency Phoenix Reisen which sailed South Africa last season with the MS ALBATROS will bring its MV ARTANIA to Cape Town this season.

Upgraded N-Shed

In Durban, cruise vessels other than MSC SINFONIA continue to use the ports N-Shed, which was upgraded ahead of the 2015/16 cruise season in a joint exercise between TNPA and MSC Cruises. N-Shed now boasts a number of new features for an improved passenger experience such as new signage, immigration and check-in desks, a new fast track lounge, new baggage scanners and conveyor belt, an air-conditioning system, extra seating, balustrades, turnstiles and sail shades, new ramps and a backup generator and UPS in the event of load shedding. TNPA has also made a number of changes to its operational processes to ensure visitors to the passenger terminal enjoy a smoother boarding and disembarkation.

The Port of Durban is set to award its tender for the development a new passenger terminal by February 2017.

Enhancing the cruise passenger experience

Meanwhile, in Cape Town, the V&A Waterfront (Pty) Ltd has taken over operation of the passenger terminal as part of its contract for operation, maintenance and transfer of ownership of the Cape Town passenger terminal back to TNPA after a period of 20 years. The Cape Town facility will remain at E-berth, Duncan Dock, in the Port of Cape Town. V&A Waterfronts focus is primarily on enhancing the cruise passenger experience. The operator completed the first phase of improvements at the terminal ahead of the last cruise season as part of a three-phase growth plan.

Both passenger terminal projects fall under the Section 56 allowance of the National Ports Act 12 of 2005 which mandates TNPA to enter into agreements with private companies to design, develop, construct, maintain and operate facilities to ensure the provision of port services.
In the greatest culinary battle in the world with 59 nations and more than 2,000 chefs, the IKA Culinary Olympics, the South African National Culinary Team walked away with a diploma for their Culinary Art display in the Cold Table category and a bronze medal in the Hot Kitchen.

The last four days have seen the team of seven chefs presenting an impressive display of culinary art and a three-course menu to 110 people. Each day over the four days of the competition, eight countries put their best culinary foot forward, with a total of 32 national culinary teams competing in each of the two categories.

South Africas spirited young team worked through the night to painstakingly craft 92 individual items, each a work of art. Precision and accuracy are crucial as each item is coated in aspic, a gelatine-like substance, to preserve and finish off each dish. Teams are judged on presentation and innovation, composition, correct professional preparation and serving arrangement, each of which carries a potential 25 points, to reach a total out of 100.

The Restaurant of Nations requires the presentation of a three-course menu to 110 members of the public, from which plates are randomly served to judges. The Teams participation this year was fraught with logistical challenges, including having to source lobster 24 hours before the competition was due to begin, as a result of the imported crayfish not being cleared on arrival in Frankfurt. Despite this and many other unforeseen challenges, the Team presented their Olympic menu with pride, doing South Africa proud.

Our team put out the best food weve served to date in a menu that reflects the diversity of our country. It has been an honour for this team to represent South Africa and to be among the worlds top culinary nations. Weve learned an enormous amount and weve come away enriched by the experience, and committed to passing on our knowledge and learnings, says Heinz Brunner, manager of Culinary Team South Africa.

"The South African Chefs Association is extremely proud of the achievements of the South African Culinary National Teams that have recently represented not only the industry, but the entire country, at the IKA Culinary Olympics. I would like to take this opportunity on behalf of the board of Directors and our 8,000 members to sincerely thank each valued member of both the Senior and Junior Teams, whose dedication and commitment to their craft and their successes clearly pave the way for the next generation of young home-grown South African chefs to challenge and compete with the World's best. We are now looking forward to IKA Culinary Olympics 2020 with increased effort, energy, and enthusiasm." says Stephen Billingham, president of the South African Chefs Association.

The chefs representing South Africa on the National Culinary Team are: Henrico Grobbelaar (Southern Sun The Cullinan)  Team Captain, Dion Vengatass (Belmond Mount Nelson), Trevor Boyd (The Michelangelo), Blake Anderson (Montecasino), Minette Smith (HTA School of Culinary Art), Kirstin Hellemann (Belmond Mount Nelson) and Arno Ralph (Lindt & Sprungli).
Trash Cabaret: Live in Langa will be taking place at the Guga S'thebe Theatre on Saturday, 26 November from 7pm-11pm.

Trash Cabaret is a multi-cultural circus cabaret extravaganza featuring artists and performers from around the world. Concert-goers can look forward to a gypsy contingent of 70+ performing artists, including burlesque dancers, acrobats, fire performers, mixed martial artists, dancers and musicians, led by Ringmaster Riaan Smit of Crimson House against the auditory backdrop of a full brass band. Confirmed performers include the Unknown Dance Crew, Psychedelic Theatre, Sky Dance Studio, ActionArte and Black Orchid Burlesque in collaboration with the Rouge Revue, and so much more.

Tickets for Trash Cabaret: Live in Langa are available from Quicket. The price is determined according to a staggered phasing system, which means an additional R20 is added to the price each week leading up to the event.

Growing the arts

In order to support the growth of the arts in South Africas informal settlements, 25% of the proceeds will be donated to ActionArte, a social enterprise and NGO that is situated in Hanover Park and runs upliftment projects among the local youth in the form of school programmes, community workshops and a multi-spectrum approach that creates awareness and interest in emerging artists.

To ensure safe parking in the vicinity, a visible squadron of car guards, private security wardens and police support will be in attendance. Concert-goers can also make use of a shuttle service that will depart from a central pickup point behind the Spar in Observatory at 6pm. Transport tickets can be bought on Quicket or the bus driver can be paid the fee of R20 directly.

For more info, go to www.facebook.com/TrashCabaret/ or email moc.liamg@terabachsart.
There are awards and there are awards. In the automotive industry, you get honours decided on by journalists, the industry and the public, awards which might be given based on experience or by popular vote.

Robert Wright  regional after sales manager for the Volkswagen brand; Carla Wentzel  general manager: sales and marketing for the Volkswagen brand; Loshini Pillay  manager: national key accounts for the Volkswagen brand and Stanley Netshituka  manager: national special markets for the Volkswagen brand with SAVRALA awards.

Then you get an award which is based on experience with not a few cars, but tens of thousands. We have said it before, but the SA Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (SAVRALA) Manufacturer of the Year award, is one worth paying attention to.

The car rental industry has existed for over 100 years and while there might be thousands of rental companies around the world, just three manage 90% of the business, those being Avis/ Budget, Enterprise and Hertz.

Interestingly, Enterprise, the biggest of the lot, is not currently in SA, but Marc Corcoram, outgoing president of Savrala and one of the directors at Avis/Budget SA expects Enterprise to be coming soon to SA.

While vehicles are currently rented out to humans, Corcoram is also expecting major changes to come in the industry.

"In the future the lines will blur between car manufacturers, rental companies and IT companies," he says. That hints of course at the world of car sharing, one where we will allow others to rent our private car, or where we will use an app to arrange a car but we will rent through a third-party application and perhaps have no idea which of the rental fleets the car might belong to.

That is getting into the future, so back to the awards. Interestingly, the rental company is not immune to the issues that many private buyers also deal with. Twice a year 16 rental companies in SA are asked a series of questions by Lightstone and it seems that customer service and parts are big concerns.

Overall satisfaction dropped from a high of 63.5 in 2015 to 58.4 in 2016, comparable with levels in 2013. There has been a clear decline in the level of support in a number of categories and crucially for the industry there has also been a decline in parts availability. Pricing has also gone up and it seems that resale values are a major concern.

These are all issues that the auto industry will need to address but it would appear that while there is some dissatisfaction, in many cases it is because while one manufacturer has not provided the best service, another has increased the level of service expectation. The playing field is perhaps therefore not so level and those falling behind must raise their game to compete. This brings us to who is the best in the eyes of the industry.

The answer, for the seventh year, is Volkswagen. Not only did VW take the overall gold award, but it also took the best value award too. VW is proving to be very tough to beat. However, it might have to watch out because as well as winning the most improved award, Hyundai also jumped into second spot taking the silver honour, ousting Audi. Third place, the bronze award, went to Toyota.

Source: Business Day
The Right to Know organisation (R2K) has expressed its concern over the announcement by Independent Media that it will no longer be subject to the authority of the Press Council but will instead rely on its own internal complaints mechanism.

123RF

This is a serious blow to media accountability and undermines a system of independent co-regulation in the form of the Press Council that is fair and effective. Independent Media's move plays into the hands of those who want to see less media freedom, those who fear a critical press and would prefer to read papers that are tamer and more tightly controlled. This is ammunition to advocates of the Media Appeals Tribunal, which ironically Independent Media has said it is firmly against.

The Press Council is an advantageously flexible system and is preferable to the alternatives that have been put forward. It is a work in progress that has undergone successive reviews, and over the years it has built up a high degree of credibility and professionalism, which research testifies to. More and more members of the public use the system, which suggests it is recognised as legitimate and effective. Indeed, it is structured in such a way as to give the public a strong voice and prevent it leaning towards the media.

The Press Council operates without fear or favour, and one need only look at its rulings as proof of this. A report by the Media Policy and Democracy Project shows that there is no bias in favour of the press, with 57% of rulings in favour of complainants over the period 2009-2013. Penalties are appropriate and proportionate to the offence, and rulings are complied with.

It is fine for a media organisation to have its own internal complaints mechanism and Ombud, to give complainants more options of pursuing a complaint. The problem is that Independent Media has opted for an internal system instead of, rather than in addition to, the mechanism that covers the industry.

In going it alone, Independent Media has appointed Jovial Rantao as in-house Ombud. While his ethical integrity may very well not be in doubt, for a publication to appoint as its own Ombud, someone who has been in its employ for many years, who would then be expected to deal impartially with complaints against that same publication, is intrinsically problematic.

In order to be truly independent and manage conflicts of interest, an effective regulatory mechanism must be a few steps removed from individual publications subject to its rulings. A single media company's internal regulatory process are bound to lack the credibility of the Press Council, which has developed a system enabling it to fairly adjudicate large volumes of complaints in a timely manner, and which, importantly, has buy-in from almost all other major newspapers.

The Independent Media would do well to reconsider joining the government mouthpiece the New Age as an outlier in the media landscape. Independent Media has taken media accountability a step backwards.
HELENA  On Thursday the states top campaign cop dismissed a complaint filed by a state employee who was called on her work phone by the campaign for Republican candidate for governor Greg Gianforte.

On Monday a Missoula resident, Suzin Kratina, filed a complaint against the Gianforte campaign, saying it violated campaign laws by calling her at work. Kratina is a state employee, and her number has a 444 prefix, commonly understood to be a phone number associated with state government.

Kratina said she received four calls from the campaign. After the second and third she asked the campaign to stop and told the caller it was inappropriate. On Monday, she had another message on her phone from the campaign and filed the complaint with Commissioner of Political Practices Jonathan Motl.

This is annoying, disturbing and inappropriate, she wrote in her complaint.

Motl said in dismissing the complaint that there was no use of public resources inherent in the Gianforte campaign phone calls to the state phone number.

Earlier this election cycle, Motl dismissed a complaint by Gerald Thomas, the county coroner in Anaconda, that said Gianforte violated campaign practice laws by sending a campaign email to Thomas' government email account.

In his dismissal, Motl ordered Gianforte's campaign to purge all public employee addresses, email or physical, from campaign mailing lists. He also ordered Gianforte and all other candidates to refrain from using the work addresses of public employees.

The Gianforte campaign said the 444 number was placed in its campaign voter file during the 2014 election cycle by a different state employee. Kratina was assigned the number in 2015.

The first two calls were made under the assumption the person with the number had consented to political calls and the following calls were accidental, Motl wrote.

The prior workplace phone number consent does not excuse the entirety of phone call actions by the Gianforte campaign, Motl wrote, but it does explain how the campaign could keep calling the number after Kratina asked not to be called back. The later calls came from professional campaign callers who went back to voter file lists that were omitted from the main campaign call list, Motl wrote.

In his decision, Motl noted that Montana is routinely setting new fundraising records each election cycle and the increased money in state politics means residents encounter campaign activity in many forms, including the tens of thousands of phone calls placed by both Gianforte and Bullocks campaign.

That increased campaign contact with voters is good, when it supplies information to voters, Motl said. That increased contact is not good when it is made to prohibited venues such as the workplace mailboxes and phones of Montanas public employees.

The Gianforte campaign, and all other candidates or ballot issue campaigns, should note that campaign activity extending to workplace contact of public employees will be subjected to such examination, Motl wrote.
To meet the current economic climate, Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) built flexibility into the tender specifications for Operation Phakisa's new build projects at its ports. According to Ricky Bhikraj, executive manager for capacity and enablement at TNPA and programme director of the Authority's Operation Phakisa programme, new facilities being built by TNPA under the government's Operation Phakisa initiative has been affected by the global economic slowdown and lower oil prices.

Ricky Bhikraj addressing delegates at the African Ports Evolution conference.

"We remain committed to advancing these projects but will continue to realign our expectations with the expectations of investors in order to come up with collaborative solutions that are matched with market risk. We have built in the potential to scale projects up as required, said Bhikraj, speaking at the African Ports Evolution 2016 Conference in Durban.

TNPA is playing a key role in the South African governments Operation Phakisa: Oceans Economy initiative that aims to grow the economy through marine transport and manufacturing.

Capacity creation projects

Greenfield projects earmarked include new capacity creation projects at the Ports of Saldanha, Richards Bay, and East London. These are planned as public participation partnerships (PSPs).

At the Port of Saldanha, three key facilities are envisaged to service the offshore oil and gas industry supported by developments in the Saldanha Bay Industrial Development Zone (IDZ). A bidder is expected to be appointed by the end of December 2016 to develop South Africas first offshore supply base, which could operate as an Oil and Gas multipurpose terminal if the market dictates this in the initial phase. The expression of interest closed on 2 August for the lengthening of the Ports Mossgas finger jetty to accommodate rigs repairs and TNPA was now considering responses. The expression of interest for the construction and operation of a new dedicated deepwater rig repair berth as berth 205 also closed in August.

At the Port of Richards Bay, TNPA is looking into procuring a flexible ship repair facility through the private sector. This would allow the industry to identify opportunities in oil and gas support, ship repair and associated marine manufacturing activities supported by the Richards Bay IDZ at the port. Potential sites for these projects are identified as the undeveloped Causarina area of the port and the repair quay.

In East London, TNPA is looking at creating a new boat building industry with a focus on potential niche markets of tug boats and navy vessels which include the currently underutilised Dry Dock complex. This would require the upgrade and refurbishment of the existing dry dock infrastructure and the old slipway. The expression of interest for the project closed in August 2016.

All the new build projects under Operation Phakisa are expected to be fully operational by December 2019.

At an advanced stage of port refurbishments

Bhikraj said TNPA was at an advanced stage of refurbishing existing ship repair facilities at the ports of Durban, East London, Port Elizabeth, Mossel Bay and Cape Town.

In the Port of Port Elizabeth the boat repair facility has been refurbished and extended and a new 90-ton boat hoist and 40-ton slipway have been introduced. This has increased the ports servicing capacity from three to 10 fishing trawlers.

In Durban, the dry docks outer caisson was refurbished at a cost of R35 million while the rehabilitation options for the dry docks inner caisson have been finalised for tender. A concrete refurbishment programme is scheduled to be completed by the end of October. New cranes are being procured towards the modernisation of the precincts Workshop 24 and pump house. The existing floating dock was also being assessed by specialists to determine the possibility and extent of repairs required ahead of a decision to build a new large floating dock locally.

The Port of Cape Towns Synchrolift Traverser repairs were completed in February 2016. Specialist studies are underway for the refurbishments and upgrades at the Sturrock Dry Dock and Robinson Dry Dock. New circulating pumps have been installed at the Sturrock Dry Dock.

Transnet National Ports Authority will be replacing ten cranes at the Durban Dry Dock complex and ten cranes at the Cape Town Dry Dock complex. Transnet SOC Ltd is developing a procurement strategy and finalising the governance process to partner with original equipment manufacturers to supply 20 cranes as part of Operation Phakisa. The envisaged partnerships will serve to localise manufacturing capability in the production and supply of cranes.
Impala Platinum's (Implats's) board wants the CEO replacing Terence Goodlace to bring special focus to the group's mines around Rustenburg that have not performed to their potential.

The new appointment could be in place by the end of November when the CEO leaves, chairman Mandla Gantsho said.

Speaking after the Implats annual general meeting, Gantsho said signs were good that new two-year wage agreements would be signed soon with the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu).

Talks with the union had been constructive and markedly different from those in 2013 that resulted in a five-month strike in 2014, he said.

"We have an agreement in principle with Amcu's negotiating team. They've gone to consult and will come back to us.

"Even if they have a mandate from their members, that has to be ratified at a mass meeting. But we think it's a saleable proposal," Gantsho said.

Amcu president Joseph Mathunjwa said that unlike the 2013 talks, which were "like Afghanistan", a sense of a "ceasefire" characterised current negotiations. He was confident of a deal being struck before the end of October.

The real focus for the board and its new CEO had to be making the Rustenburg mines perform optimally, Gantsho said.

Implats wants its flagship Rustenburg operation to deliver 715,000oz of platinum in 2017 compared with 2015's 630,000oz. With the ability to engage fruitfully with the government, unions and communities, as well as develop similar relations with stakeholders in Zimbabwe, it was one of the key tasks facing Goodlace's replacement. "The board believes the Rustenburg lease area is an asset that could perform better," Gantsho said. "It's an area that needs special attention."

The board considered three internal applicants and four from outside the company.

The person selected for the position had yet to agree a remuneration package with Implats, but Gantsho said he was confident the appointment would be finalised by the time Goodlace stepped down.

"The overriding requirement for the board is to find someone to take Implats to a higher level, to help us turn the company around and deal with the many and multifaceted challenges we face. Terence laid a good foundation in all these areas, but there's always room for improvement and to build on the work he has done."

With the change in ownership coming to mines around Rustenburg, talks that were held between all the mining companies operating there on finding synergies could be boosted, Gantsho said.

In this respect, Implats was waiting for Sibanye Gold to take over the Rustenburg mines it was buying from Anglo American Platinum for at least R4,5bn on November 1 so it could start serious talks about a stretch of reef that extends south of its 1 Shaft into the operations SA's largest domestic gold producer would manage, said Gantsho.

Implats has mined right up to the boundary of its tenement and would like to access virgin ground that Sibanye will own and will be unable to mine for a number of years from its own mines. There could be a pool-and-share or royalty deal with Sibanye that would unlock these resources, he said.

Implats has also given mining contractor JIC Mining a six-month grace period to establish a bank account.

JIC - which is owned by Oakbay Investments, a company of the Gupta family, which is closely linked to President Jacob Zuma - had not had a bank account for Implats to pay money into, said Implats's executive head of corporate relations, Johan Theron.

South African banks withdrew their services to Gupta-owned companies in the first half of this year.

The six-month window would expire at the end of the year and Implats would issue a fresh tender for contract work at its 1 Shaft early in 2017, a process in which JIC, a company that had provided Implats services for 20 years, was welcome to participate if it had its banking facilities in place, Theron said.
Organic is mainstream and this is no more obvious than on the retail shelves, with consumers happy to pay a premium for sustainably produced products. Now in their eighth year, the Green Wine Awards honours wine producers who continue to play an integral role in the provision of eco-friendly wines which embody 'farming for the future' practices. The awards also celebrate wine producers who are passionate about conserving the land while making greener, finer wines with a low carbon footprint.

"We are delighted to partner with our long-standing partner; WWF SA who has been instrumental in the formulation of the Biodiversity & Wine initiative as well as Getaway Magazine to bring the Green Wine Awards. This is in keeping with our sustainability accolades and commitment to communities in which we operate. Through these awards, we are able to create a platform where wine producers are acknowledged for their overall contribution beyond the wine industry which includes the agricultural and tourism sectors. Our involvement forms part of the Green Trust through the Nedbank Affinities, over the past two decades  through which the bank continues to make significant contributions to the preservation and protection of the environment," said Becky Penumlungu, sponsorship manager: lifestyle properties at Nedbank.

Judging

Over 120 wines were judged across two categories (Best wines made from Organically Grown Grapes and Best Wines from Integrated Production of Wine category), by the panel led by internationally renowned wine judge Fiona McDonald.

Judges in the Best Farming Practices category looked at not only what goes into the bottle but considered the wellbeing of farm employees and surrounding communities and the wider impact of farming on the surrounding environments. The judging panel included Duimpie Bayly, honorary life president of the SA Society of Enology and Wine Viticulture, Daniel Scheitakat of the Integrated Production of Wine, and Anel Blignaut, an environmental consultant. The judges, along with members of the WWF and fellow producers voted on La Motte as the 2016 Best Farming Practice Overall Winner.

Fifteen top achievers were announced at this years awards function held on the 20 October in Cape Town.

The 2016 winners are:

Integrated Production of Wine Winners 2016

Judges Overall Winner - Paul Cluver Noble Late Harvest 2014

Judges Best Red - Gabrielskloof The Blend 2014

Judges Best White - Journey's End Destination Chardonnay 2014

Bloggers Overall Winner - Vondeling Babiana 2015

Best Value Winner - Jordan Chameleon Sauvignon Blanc Chardonnay 2015

Oraganic Winners 2016

Judges Overall Winner - Earthbound Cabernet Sauvignon Organic 2015

Judges Best Red - Earthbound Cabernet Sauvignon Organic 2015

Judges Best White - Longridge Chardonnay 2015

Bloggers Overall Winner - Org De Rac Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2013

Best Value Winner - Org De Rac Cabernet Sauvignon 2015

Best Farming Practise 2016

Leader in Energy conservation - Lourensford

Leader in Water conservation - Paul Cluver

Leader in Eco-tourism - Bartinney

Leader in Community development - La Motte

The 2016 Best Farming Practise Award - La Motte

Wine enthusiasts will be able to sample the winning wines from the 2016 Nedbank Green Wine Awards in Cape Town and Johannesburg in November. More information on these tasting events can be found here.
The digital age has fundamentally altered how we communicate - particularly via text. Be it a Tweet, online comment or Facebook post, we're constrained not only by the limits of language's written form, but often by a character limit. Seeking to put across as much information in as few words as possible, we've changed how language works.

We can all attest: communicating without non-verbal cues such as expression, tone of voice, eye contact and body language can be tricky. A nod, a shrug, a smile, a sigh  take these away and it becomes far harder to put a short message across clearly. Were this not the case, thered be no need for emojis  the tiny happy/sad/laughing faces we use to make sure our messages meaning hits home.

These virtual expressions usually confirm sentiment, but can also alter it. The addition of an angry face, for example, quickly takes the feeling behind So happy that my flight was delayed! from possible relief to genuine annoyance. A smiling face transmutes the tone of I cant believe you did that! from likely irritation to effusive appreciation.

An all-seeing algorithm?

As in other areas of our lives, we have tried to digitise and automate: if conversations are happening via machines, why not get machines to analyse whats going on in those interactions, too? This has been the logic behind the algorithms developed to try to analyse the meaning and sentiment that drives online chatter. The only problem is: machines often get it wrong.

As advanced as computing power has become, it remains overly optimistic to ask a machine to comprehend all the nuances of human communication. Language is, after all, far more than mere syntax  it is a culturally-embedded mode of expression that relies on shared (human) experiences.

Consider the following examples:

 Thanks so much!  Great! I cant believe this is happening!

 Yet another great piece of news about the government!  I absolutely hate that!'

Although simple-seeming at first, all of the above have possible dual meanings. The first sense is at face value: genuine appreciation, pleasant surprise, delight and disdain, respectively.

Alternative meanings, however, stem from sarcastic readings  an acerbic thanks, two expressions of irritation, and a joking remark about dislike. Consider the Tweet (left).

While it may be obvious to us that the speaker above is being sarcastic about Donald Trump, a machine simply wouldnt get the joke. Going on textual content alone, it would probably rate the sentiment behind the message as positive. Understanding the real meaning relies on insight into how we humans communicate  which is, often, anything but direct.

Man versus machine

Due to the complexity of the human language, the solution to understanding it is quite simple  get humans, not machines, to do the analysis. The only approach that seems to get it right include people, or in our instance a global crowd. Only three companies in the world currently use this unique data processing on scale approach, namely: Crowd Flower, Amazon Mechanical Turk and BrandsEye.

One of the traditionally limiting factors that has impeded the uptake of crowd driven data processing has been the generalised approach to the workflows within certain crowd sourcing platforms.

The solution, however, is simple, an end-to-end solution where human verified data is integrated into your analytics journey from start to finish.

Helping machines learn

Through this unique approach, the crowd is able to both confirm (or contradict) machine understanding, and allow human insight to help teach machines about the nuances and cultural shifts of language.

After all, sarcasm isnt the only area where machines struggle  local references, slang, ever-changing cultural memes and words with in-built double meanings also pose a challenge.

Consider companies taste for simple, memorable names. Anything from Apple to Amazon, Blackberry, Windows, Checkers, Oracle and others  machines are asked differentiate brands from their namesakes. This is not always easy, and often requires manual coding by those behind the scenes.

Next consider slang. Terms such as hyped (excited), knock (insult/deride), on point (perform well/meet standards), slay (achieve something amazing) and shout out (acknowledge/greet) are all widely used, particularly among the youth, though they came into the vocabulary only recently. However, to the uninitiated, their meanings are far from obvious. Consider how an algorithm might struggle to classify the Tweet (right), which uses both slang and sarcasm.

Acronyms are also problematic for machines. Having expanded from the simple LOL (laugh out loud), they now encompass everything from IMO (in my opinion), JSYK (just so you know), ICYMI (in case you missed it) and IRL (in real life), to NSFW (not safe for work) and the much-derided YOLO (you only live once). Of course, this is just a taste of whats out there, and only whats within the English-speaking realm.

Expecting a machine to correctly decode the sentiment behind a post filled with pop-culture slang and self-referential hashtags isnt just unrealistic, it also approaches the nature of language and communication incorrectly.

People arent machines  swapping straightforward statements and observations  but are instead complex, culturally embedded entities who change the ways in which they share information with one another, and adopt new lenses through which to see the world. They use current events as rallying points, invent new words and subvert the traditional meanings of older ones.

The best thing to do? Ask real people  not machines  to make sense of what theyre saying. Using an integrated crowd approach ensures you have truly accurate social data that provides you with actionable insights that you can use to make informed business decisions.
Moore Stephens Africa Advisory (MSAA), together with technical partners, is assisting rural communities and private developers to own and operate their own renewable energy farms. Developing renewable energy and bringing power to small and medium-size businesses in rural areas holds many opportunities for investors.

Satakorn Sukontakajonkul via 123RF

Gareth Pollit, Africa technical advisor at MSSA, said there was great potential to implement a variety of renewable technologies across Africa, from solar to biomass together with associated industries such as wood briquetting and pelleting.

He said Moore Stephens was working on two market and technical surveys for $30 million wood pelleting and solar projects in Southern Africa which would generate export opportunities as well as create jobs and local industrialisation capabilities. The approach has been developed to meet local and national development guidelines in South Africa and other African countries, said Pollit.

MSSA has assessed the potential for developing market opportunities in rural areas and is seeking and developing financial partners to help develop Rural Community Energy farms across Africa. MSAA is able to tap into its global network, as it forms part of Moore Stephens International.

Agricultural and energy security

Jeff Blackbeard, Africa Strategy Advisor for MSAA said there was a great need to develop renewable energy, particularly for small and medium-size enterprises in the agricultural and agro-processing industries.

Blackbeard has travelled to Cameroon, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya and Tanzania to identify opportunities across the spectrum from solar, wind and biomass to mini-hydro schemes. These opportunities could dovetail with the projects their clients are involved in  from real estate, agri-processing, retail and distribution to financial services and telecoms projects throughout Sub-Saharan and West Africa.

Blackbeard said agricultural and energy security were key sectors of interest to MSSA. In respect of energy security we are not targeting supplementing the main grid, but rather working with anchor tenants in rural areas, whether it be a sawmill, a dairy or a tomato plantation where renewable energy provides just part of a holistic solution

Benefitting rural communities

Blackbeard says he envisages the surrounding community would also be able to benefit from the development. MSAA has undertaken a uniquely proactive approach in identifying project opportunities, technical partners, and funders from its Africa and global network of clients, said Blackbeard.

Though working with its global partner firms, Moore Stephens has identified opportunities for collaboration on funding models as well as new technologies. We want to find cost-effective renewable energy solutions that meet the demands of our client, said Blackbeard.

Weve also met with developers and local partners in countries such as Kenya, Nigeria, and Tanzania, who are involved in housing developments, factories, retail operations and small mines. There is potential for them to develop renewable energy projects around their existing businesses. MSAA can provide those linkages and solutions that assist in providing energy security.

According to the World Bank, ten million small and medium-size enterprises in Africa have no access to electricity. Those that do pay three times as much as in the United States and Europe and routinely endure power outages that cost their countries between one and four percent in lost GDP every year.
Airbnb had 68 rejections. A lot of people laughed at them. Their success, while seemingly so obvious today, was not obvious in the beginning.

Kevin Lourens, NATIVE VMLs chief growth officer, recently went to Silicon Valley, visiting companies such as Google, Facebook and Intuit as well as incubator, Plug n Play. He came back with a few valley insights around making innovation happen.

Before the trip he says he was interested in the exit of start-ups, but he found the more interesting story is at the idea and start-up phase. There is nothing gentle about the start-up process. It is like a jet engine starting up I do not want to go there, but I am inspired to think about doing things differently that are appropriate to our environment.

While this is not a gentle and nourishing environment, it expects and tolerates failure. You learn from failure and not success, if you fail with integrity and honesty.

Failure, he says, is a mathematical certainty because of the volume of start-ups. Think that 6000 start-ups a year are reviewed, 400 invested in of which 10% have a US$1000m exit and only one percent a billion dollar exit.

He found that it is not enough for a start-up to do something that is an increment, it has to be something huge that reinvents the category. Everything in the valley is technology related and it is all software. Ideas is one aspect of this. Whether it will succeed or not is not sure but its a big idea.

Investors do not know if the idea will gain traction, he says but they still place their bets. They invest smaller portions over many start-ups, which not only spreads their risk, but it also reinforces that attitude of not knowing if something will succeed.

This does not mean investors invest without thinking. One aspect they are very interested in is the track record of the company/start-up and its leader/CEO. This is not the notion of one job or career. The track record of the CEO of the company is a large factor in the evaluation of the company and the decision to fund it. Who are the leaders or founders? They look for a group of people with boundless ambition. Qualifications also count.

This said, there is also an element of luck in the traction section. An innovation can be the correct innovation but the time is not right. Google was not the first. Even if all the right resources are in place this does not mean it will be successful. For example, Google Glass was the first and it failed.

It is a mistake to think that we can do this in South Africa, given the numbers, but he believes there are things we can learn from, for example, the important role of the team founder and leader and allowing people to fail. It is that role that makes it all work. Apart from being passionate, that person has to be resilient and able to tolerate failure. While not many environments tolerate this, it is also not that easy to achieve this in the context of a comfortable day job. South Africa is also not a place where failure is tolerated.

While we do not have the research facilities that they have, to be able to focus on scientific advancements, what we do have is empathy as a way to help us to identify problems, often complex ones, worth solving he says. Exponential technologies such as the Internet of Things, Big Data, Fintech, health sciences and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are all technologies that can be applied to empathetic problems.
The National Small Business Chamber (NSBC) has announced South Africa's Top 20 Small Business & Entrepreneurship Award winners and the finalists of the 2016 South African Small Business Awards. The Awards acknowledge South Africa's most outstanding businesses and the exceptional people behind them.

With a record number of entries, Mike Anderson, founder and CEO of the NSBC, says that the awards continue to grow in strength year on year. It is gratifying to see so many small businesses striving not only to build a successful business, but to also contribute to the South African economy in such a meaningful way.

The 2016 awards are sponsored by Adams & Adams, FNB and DHL and World Famous Events, all of which have a vested interest in the growth and development of small business in South Africa. Anderson says that the 2016 entries were very diverse. Over 14 vertical sectors were represented in the top 20 submissions; ranging from beauty, education and music to retail, engineering and transportation.

Within the top 20, technology-related businesses dominated, proving that this industry continues to grow exponentially. Technology is pervasive and is becoming a dominant sector globally, as well as locally. Within the entries the NSBC noted exciting developments and the growth of business solutions that focus on assisting other small businesses to grow and develop.

The top 20 winners not only are acknowledged for this accomplishment, but are also in line to win one of the following three categories:

- 2016 National Small Business Champion - 2016 National Entrepreneur Champion - 2016 National Woman in Business Champion

All the categories will have two runners-up and one national winner.

The 2016 submissions were of an incredible standard, making the voting process extremely hard. We are humbled by the hard work, dedication and innovation adopted by all the entries submitted, concludes Anderson.

Winners

In no particular order, the top 20 winners and the 2016 South African Small Business Awards finalists are as follows:

 SassyChic (Roxanne Page)  Eco Furniture Design (Tameron Haralambous)

 ShiftOne Digital (Dylan Kohlstadt)

 Yoco (Katlego Maphai)

 Xabisa Human Capital Solutions (Sivis Pillay)

 Myteksonic (Pty) Ltd (Jonathan Kgatshe)

 Calvin And Family Group (Calvin Mathibeli)

 Gabsten Technologies (Iniel Dreyer)

 Setsmol Enterprise (Solly MolefeSchoaro)

 Old School Cool (Tiffini Wissing Hein)

 TFS Holdings (Dwayne Malcom)

 LA Consulting Engineers (Vino Govender)

 Karl De Leau Natural Skincare (Karel Vermeulen)

 Little Green Number (Juanita Van Der Merwe)

 Nkazimulo Applied Sciences (Bathabile Mpofu)

 Arrero Premium Car Perfume (Lizelle Beukes)

 Lets Collaborate (Veronique Palmer)

 Mcd Squared (Lizelle Mcdermott)

 The Supremacy Group (Carien van Dijk)  The Pianoman (Pty) Ltd (Raymond Cugnolio)

For more information, go to www.smallbusinessawards.co.za.
Sean McDaniel said he experienced some tough moments over the nine years during which he repeatedly received rejection letters for his novel "Criminal Zoo," set for release on Nov. 15.

At 6 p.m. on Friday though, the Billings author and business owner will have cause for celebration, as he participates in a launch party and book signing at This House of Books downtown.

McDaniel said "Criminal Zoo" is not his first novel, but it's the first he's had picked up by a publisher in the 15 years he's been writing.

"Here's what I've learned about getting published," McDaniel said. "It's not impossible, but it lives next door to impossible. It's hard."

The book follows Samuel Bradburys journey from an abused and troubled child to a serial killer and ultimately a prisoner in the Criminal Zoo, the fictional government-operated torture facility from which the novel takes its name.

McDaniel said he watched lots of true crime documentaries and spoke with experts to research some of the books scenes which he said are modeled in part on certain patterns the lives of serial killers tend to follow.

He also named Stephen King and Dean Koontz as influences on his writing.

McDaniel said he hopes that his writing will infect readers and evoke strong reactions regardless of whether they are favorable.

My job is to reach you at a deep level, to reach you at a passionate level, McDaniel said.

The concept of the Criminal Zoo came up in a 2005 conversation with an acquaintance following a high-profile murder case. McDaniel said that he felt there needed to be a way in which violent criminals could be punished in a way commensurate to their crimes.

McDaniel likened the horrors inhabitants of the Criminal Zoo suffer to the customized tortures inflicted upon the souls trapped in the hell of Dantes "Inferno."

McDaniel is a personal trainer at the Plaza Fitness gym he started 25 years ago.

He said the novel benefited from the help of many others and that he was only the captain of the cruise ship, that took a whole crew to operate.

Ill take the blame for the novel, he said. But Im not gonna take the credit.
Some of the highest rates of impunity in the murders of journalists can be attributed to killings by Islamist militant groups, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) found in its latest Global Impunity Index, which spotlights countries where journalists are murdered and their killers go free. The worst country for the second year in a row is Somalia.

CPJ Global Impunity Index

In Somalia, the militant group al-Shabaab is suspected in the majority of media murders. Somalia is followed by Iraq and Syria, where members of the militant group Islamic State murdered at least six journalists in the past year.

Extremist groups have also repeatedly targeted journalists with impunity in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nigeria, and Pakistan, which all appear on the index for at least the second consecutive year. In Africa, in addition to Somalia, countries that appear on the list include South Sudan (5th on the list) and Nigeria (12th).

At the same time, violence perpetrated against journalists by criminal groups and local officials allowed impunity to tighten its grip in Latin America, with Brazil and Mexico each moving two spots higher on the index this year.

Sri Lanka, where violence against journalists has receded since the end of a decades-long civil war, dropped off the list for the first time since CPJ began calculating the index in 2008.

The Impunity Index, published annually to mark the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists on November 2, calculates the number of unsolved murders over a 10-year period as a percentage of each country's population.

For this edition, CPJ analysed journalist murders in every nation that took place between September 1, 2006 and August 31, 2016. Only those nations with five or more unsolved cases for this period are included on the index-a threshold that 13 countries met this year, compared with 14 last year. Cases are considered unsolved when no convictions have been obtained; cases in which some but not all perpetrators are held to justice are classified as partial impunity and are not included in the tally. Cases in which the murder suspects are killed during apprehension are also classified as partial impunity.

Getting away with murder

While militant extremists are responsible for the greatest numbers of attacks against journalists in recent years, they are not the only ones getting away with murder, nor are conflict zones the only place where impunity thrives.

The Philippines is No. 4 on the index, its place cemented by a failure to prosecute any perpetrators behind the 2009 massacre in Maguindanao, in which 32 journalists and media workers were slain. Aside from the Philippines, Mexico, and Brazil, criminal groups and government officials are also leading suspects in murders of journalists in Russia and India. Each of those countries except Brazil has appeared on the index since its inception.

CPJ recorded only four unsolved murders in Sri Lanka for the latest 10-year period, leading to its elimination from the index. Amid the country's becalmed political climate, no journalist there has been murdered in direct connection to journalism since editor Lasantha Wickramatunga was killed in 2009. Justice has not been achieved in any murder-despite a pledge from President Maithripala Sirisena to re-investigate old killings - but Wickramatunga's case inched forward this year with one arrest and the exhumation of the editor's body for a new post-mortem examination.

Impunity is widely recognised as one of the greatest threats to press freedom, and international pressure to address it has mounted in recent years, with states, including some of the repeat offenders on this list, beginning to respond. Six countries on the index - Bangladesh, Brazil, Pakistan, the Philippines, Russia, and Somalia - convicted perpetrators of journalist killings in the past year, up from three countries in the previous year's report.

Taking accountability

In another positive development, more countries on this year's index participated in UNESCO's impunity accountability mechanism, which requests information on the status of investigations into killed journalists for the UN agency's biennial report on journalist safety. In previous years, half of the countries on the index ignored this process. This year, only three states among the 13 index countries - India, South Sudan, and Syria - failed to respond.

Among the other findings from CPJ's data on murdered journalists:

The combined data from the 13 countries on the index account for 80% of the unsolved murders that took place worldwide during the 10-year period ending August 31, 2016.

Eight of the 13 countries on the Impunity Index have been listed each year since CPJ began the annual analysis in 2008, an indication of how entrenched impunity is in some nations.

Despite their poor records in achieving justice, four countries on the Impunity Index - India, Mexico, Nigeria, and the Philippines - are on the governing council of the Community of Democracies, a coalition dedicated to upholding and strengthening democratic norms.

In the past decade political groups, including Islamic State and other extremist organisations, are the suspected perpetrators in more than 40% of murder cases. Government and military officials are considered the leading suspects in nearly a quarter of the cases in the same period.

Around 95% of victims were local reporters. More of them covered politics and corruption in their home countries than any other beat.

In at least 40% of cases, the victims reported receiving threats before they were killed. Threats are rarely investigated by authorities and in only a handful of cases is adequate protection provided.

In the past 10 years, around 30% of murdered journalists were first taken captive, the majority of whom were tortured, amplifying the killers' message of intimidation to the media community.

In only 3% of total murder cases over the decade has full justice, including the prosecution of the masterminds, been achieved.

For a detailed explanation of CPJ's methodology, click here.
It's only a few years since major cloud providers were wary about investing in Africa due to concerns around connectivity and electrical supply. The fact that companies such as SAP, IBM, Oracle, Huawei and Amazon are now all enthusiastically investing in the continent is a testament to Africa's significant economic and digital progress over the last decade.

Brett Parker

Many business and political leaders see cloud technology as having the potential to transform the African technology industry. But can it live up to the hype?

In March 2016, IBM opened its first Cloud Data Centre in South Africa, providing cloud services to enterprise clients. Just a month later, SAP announced that it was partnering with South Africa's Dimension Data to launch SAP HANA Enterprise Cloud, a cloud platform offering a range of business intelligence solutions for its growing African market.

The cloud on the go

According to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the penetration rate for mobile broadband in Africa is 17.4%, up from just 2% in 2010. If you include all mobile phones, then 38% of all Sub-Saharan Africans are connected. In comparison, only 0.5% have a fixed broadband connection.

For this reason, many of the first wave of African cloud services are designed specifically for mobile phones and many of the expectations vested in cloud technologies are for the mobile cloud. Considered together, these are early signs that mobile cloud technology is starting to deliver. But it's on the ground where the impact of the cloud is being felt most profoundly.

In South Africa, for instance, community health workers are using a mobile app to register patients and upload their data to the cloud, cutting admin overheads and helping them treat more people in less time. In Nigeria, pharmacists and patients are using a cloud-based service to verify the authenticity of prescription medicines. And in Kenya, local innovators created a cloud-based market-tracking app for farmers trying to get the best prices for their goods.

The beauty of these apps is that they provide services tailored to available mobile bandwidth on relatively low-powered devices which people already own. The processing overhead is moved into the cloud, so users pay only for what they need.

This, in itself, has the potential to transform how Africa engages with information technology. But now the explosive growth of the mobile cloud is giving African technologists the impetus and demand to pull ahead of the industry and become global leaders. For that to happen, however, the market needs to support African entrepreneurs both with funding and with a skilled digital labour force.

The cloud moves inland

While mobile cloud might be the African cloud story most people are talking about, it's not the only story. In the last five years, several new undersea cables have brought fast data connections to cities in Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, Kenya and Cameroon.

At the same time, African governments - often with Chinese support and investment - are extending their national data backbones beyond the capitals and coastal cities. In 2015, 19 African countries announced projects that will see 22,000 kilometres of new fibre cable laid in non-metropolitan areas.

The advent of fast broadband in cities such as Lagos, Nairobi, Accra, and Cape Town has already created a demand for fixed-line cloud services that is changing the way those parts of Africa work. And the immediate impact has been much the same as elsewhere in the world. Public and private sector organisations in well-connected areas have used the cloud to rationalise and save costs. The Nigerian government, for instance, saved US$70 million by moving its payroll functions to the cloud.

The cloud changing lives

For many Africans, being able to access services quickly and conveniently through the cloud is demonstrably changing their lives. In Ethiopia, for example, much of the storage and processing of government data has been moved into the cloud. As well as increased efficiency, this has allowed citizens to complete legal and tax applications online, giving them faster access to government services.

But the story in Africa is in fact much bigger than that.

The first wave of cloud providers on the continent were predominantly global players such as IBM, Cisco, Oracle, Huawei and SAP - working in partnership with local providers who knew the market. "Dimension Data is proud to be the first certified SAP partner in Africa able to provide a complete managed cloud environment to SAP customers", explained Paulo Masselli, CEO of Britehouse, a division of Dimension Data specialising in SAP solutions.

But often, for African cloud companies, this initial partnership is only the start of their story. Many are now moving beyond simply providing execution and are bringing their own products to the market. In 2015, the African sub-sea cable company SEACOM started Pamoja, a company dedicated to bringing cloud services to African businesses. In Kenya, analytics start-up SuperFluid Labs is taking its cloud-service global. And in Cameroon, Koomzo offers cloud-based management systems to the country's schools.

There was a time when so-called experts would say that Africa did not have the infrastructure or market conditions to support cloud technology and the many benefits it could bring to citizens on the continent. But these misconceptions are now being dispelled and it is clear that the opposite is in fact true. We are seeing an explosion of cloud-powered developments in Africa similar to the rapid expansion of high-tech manufacturing in China 20 years ago. African companies that partner with international players in cloud computing are fast gaining access to expertise, finance and global networks that have the potential to give them the push they need to develop technology products to meet the demands of the African market, and beyond.
The future for a sustainable growth and development of Africa depends on increasing the levels of intra-Africa trade and investment within the African continent.

This was said by the acting chief executive officer of Trade Invest Africa (TIA), Lerato Mataboge during a seminar hosted by TIA, an entity of the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti), South Africa, and the Gauteng Growth Development Agency (GGDA) in Johannesburg.

According to Mataboge, TIA is South African governments response to address the increase in levels of intra-Africa trade and investment within the African continent. She added that there was much progress made in the Southern African Development Community region in terms of intra-trade and investments. However, she said, more still needed to be done on trade initiatives driven towards the East, Central and Northern African countries to address trade imbalance.

We need to increase trade efforts with the rest of Africa beyond SADC. This should entail increased South African investments to the rest of Africa as part of the efforts. Part of the take- away from this session is the importance of establishing good working relationships in fellow African countries and understanding the local business etiquette, added Mataboge.

She also encouraged businesses to embrace the Guidelines for Good Business Practice in doing business in Africa. Mataboge said TIA was working with various institutions to facilitate access to financial and non-financial support for businesses.

Intra-Africa trade stood at 14% of Africas total trade at present

The MEC for Economic, Environment, Agriculture and Rural Development in Gauteng, Lebogang Maile said that intra-Africa trade stood at 14% of Africas total trade at present. That meant that around 86% of Africas trade consisted of trade with the rest the world. Maile said this was a call for action for businesses to collaborate and work together to increase intra-Africa trade and investment.

He further said that trade as a driver of Africas growth would come mainly from regional trade consequent on increased regional integration and the development of free trade zones, that will enhance consumer demand for large scale infrastructure projects.

Maile said the province was encouraged by initiatives such as the TIA that work to promote mutually beneficial trade and investment relations with the rest of the continent.

The seminar was part of TIAs roadshow aimed at informing the Gauteng business community about the support services offered by TIA in facilitating trade and investment with the rest of Africa. The workshop also motivated the Gauteng business community around the huge economic frontier which is the African continent.
Its not like homelessness in Billings has come to an end.

But the Mayors Committee on Homelessness has, sunsetting this month after 10 years of trying a number of initiatives to reduce human suffering among those with no other place to go.

Many of those initiatives  Spare Change for Real Change, the Billings Home Center, and the Community Innovations program  are still in place, and have no foreseeable end.

It is bittersweet knowing we are sunsetting this program, said Sue Runkle, homeless education liaison for School District 2 and the current  and final  committee chair. But there are still opportunities to volunteer for agencies and social service organizations that can use your help.

Ten years ago, Billings was selected by the Montana Council on Homelessness as a pilot site. The selection began a 10-year process with the goal of creating a replicable plan to impact homelessness in Billings. Welcome Home Billings, the city's 10-year plan, gained approval by the Billings City Council in October 2009.

Thursday was a celebration held at the Billings Public Library to mark the decade of homeless initiatives. Among them is the 170 Billings Metro VISTAs who worked at more than 40 host sites over the past decade. Recent college graduates all, VISTAs have helped raise more than $3.5 million to fight poverty.

Among their initiatives, they created a resource map and notepads to connect homeless residents with the services available, printing and distributing 31,500 of the former and 1,240 of the latter.

They also recorded interviews with people experiencing homelessness and helped enlist the faith community to fight homelessness with a united front.

About 40 percent of VISTAs have remained in Billings following their one-year commitment, said City Administrator Tina Volek.

Much credit should go to the volunteers, the organizations that supported them and to the citys Community Development Division, which helped coordinate activities, Volek said. The results have been astounding, crossing every facet from fundraising to food security to education, housing and veterans affairs.

I am proud of you, and the people you have helped are proud of you, Mayor Tom Hanel told a crowd of about 50 people, many of whom have served on the committee over the past decade. The city of Billings is a better place because of your help.

Downtown Billings Alliance Executive Director Lisa Harmon, the committees first chair, said she remembered 10 years ago hearing her name offered in nomination for chairperson.

"There was a second, and they gave me the gavel, she said. It has been a beautiful collaboration that has changed the way we think about the things we are up against.

We have engaged the business community to help end homelessness and ease human suffering, Harmon said. That is a ripple effect that I hope will last forever in the city.

Brenda Beckett, who manages the citys Community Development Division, said the committees initiatives have created new housing opportunities to end homelessness for more than 100 people.

Looking toward the future, she said, I am confident that our amazing community will continue to rise to the challenge of serving those in need.
WASHINGTON  When America fights its wars in the Middle East, it has a nasty habit of recruiting local forces as proxies and then jettisoning them when the going gets tough or regional politics intervene.

This pattern of "seduction and abandonment" is one of our least endearing characteristics. It's one reason the U.S. is mistrusted in the Middle East. We don't stick by the people who take risks on our behalf in Iraq, Egypt, Lebanon and elsewhere. And now, I fear, this syndrome is happening again in Syria, as a Kurdish militia group known as the YPG, which has been America's best ally against the Islamic State, gets pounded by the Turkish military.

The YPG is a special case for me because I had a chance to meet some of their fighters in May at a secret U.S. special operations forces training camp in northern Syria. They described battling to the last man (and sometimes, woman) as they drove the Islamic State from its strongholds. Special ops officers embedded with the YPG recounted their battlefield exploits with deep respect, expressing what one called "the brotherhood of the close fight."

Unfortunately, last Thursday, Turkey said its warplanes shot 18 targets in YPG-controlled areas of northern Syria. The Turks want to prevent the YPG from playing a leading role in the liberation of Raqqa, the Islamic State's capital, as the U.S. had planned.

"If it doesn't stop, it could pre-empt all plans for Raqqa," warns a Pentagon official about the Turkish onslaught. Kurdish sources tell me that because the U.S. isn't responding, the YPG is appealing to Russia.

The U.S. alliance with the YPG was forged during the liberation of Kobane from the Islamic State in late 2014. The Kurds were down to a few hundred fighters when U.S. special ops forces intervened. The assistance was brokered by Lahur Talabani, the intelligence chief of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, or PUK. He sent several of his operatives into Kobane with GPS devices to call in U.S. close air support, via an operations center in the PUK's headquarters in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq.

"It was the right thing to do," Talabani told me Tuesday in an interview in Washington. He explained that the YPG's success against the Islamic State has saved Kurdish lives in Syria and taken pressure off Kurdish forces in Iraq, who are now fighting to liberate Mosul from the extremists.

The Obama administration embraced the YPG because the Kobane victory was the first major battlefield success against the Islamic State. At last, the U.S. had a partner that could fight. But this alliance was built atop an ethnic fault line. That ruptured this past August, when a YPG-dominated force captured Manbij, just south of the Turkish border. A few weeks later, the Turks invaded Syria and began their barrage against YPG targets.

The U.S. has tried, unsuccessfully, to finesse the Turkish-Kurdish animosity.

Turkey's regional ambitions have swollen as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan consolidated power after the coup attempt. Even as Turkish forces harass the YPG and consolidate a border strip in Syria, they're also advancing in Iraq, seeking a role in the liberation of Mosul despite warnings from Iraq and the U.S. to stay out. Erdogan speaks of Aleppo and Mosul as former Ottoman regional capitals.

"One wild card is how to manage the role of Turkey in both theaters," warns a senior U.S. official.

Maybe the Kurds should have known better than to ally with the United States, or to trust Turkey to stay out. Kurdish history is a story of betrayal. Fortunately for the U.S., some goodwill remains from "Operation Provide Comfort," the no-fly zone over northern Iraq that the U.S. imposed after the 1991 Gulf War, which helped create a thriving Kurdish regional government in Iraq.

One Iraqi Christian leader recently rejected the suggestion of new American help, post-Islamic State. "You'll walk away," said the priest. "That's what you do."
By the time ballots are counted for the Nov. 8 election, more than $1.6 million will have been spent on the hotly contested raced between Kristen Juras and Dirk Sandefur. Nearly that much spending was reported as of Oct. 24, and more spending is certain.

Sandefur, a District Court judge in Great Falls, and Juras, a law school professor who lives in Great Falls, have each raised money. Additional campaign money has been raised by political groups working independently. The Montana Democratic Party sent out flyers touting Sandefurs hardworking values. Montana Prosperity PAC mailers proclaimed Juras will bring real world experience to the court.

Nationally, outside groups had spent more than $14 million on TV ads in current state Supreme Court election cycle, according to an analysis reported this week by the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law.

The Republican State Leadership Committee, a corporate-funded group working to elect Republicans, has spent more money than any other group on state Supreme Court races this year, according to the Brennan Center. The RSLC spent at least $4.1 million between six state Supreme Court races, including the Juras-Sandefur election. In Montana, the RSLC contributed $225,000 to Stop Set Em Free Sandefur, which claims that the veteran judge is soft on criminals.

Also this week, law professors at Emory University in Atlanta released "Skewed Justice," a study of state supreme court judges' votes, documenting the influence of TV ads and outside spending. The Emory study found:

The more TV ads aired during supreme court elections in a state, the less likely justices are, on average, to vote in favor of criminal defendants.

Justices in states that had banned corporate and union spending on elections until Citizens United struck down their bans were less likely, on average, to vote in favor of criminal defendants than they were before that 2010 U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

To reach those conclusions, teams of law school researchers coded data from nearly 3,100 randomly selected appeals in cases involving violent crimes, the types of cases most likely to be used in negative TV ads. The decisions analyzed were handed down in 32 states in 2008-2013. The research was supported by the American Constitution Society.

Alicia Bannon, of the Brennan Center, summed up the threat of undue political pressure: The rising tide of unaccountable, secret money in judicial elections raises serious concerns about the integrity of our courts.

The findings not only confirm the influence of spending on judicial decision making, they also show that this influence extends to a wide range of cases beyond the primary policy interests of the contributors themselves, wrote Joanna Shepherd and Michael S. Kang, authors of the Emory study. Even more troubling, the findings reveal that the influence of money has spread from civil cases to criminal cases in which the fundamental rights of all Americans can be at stake.

A poll commissioned by The Billings Gazette and conducted Oct. 10-12 by Mason-Dixon found that nearly 40 percent of voters were undecided about the Montana Supreme Court race. As those voters make their decisions, they need to be cautious about the election advertising, especially ads funded outside the Juras and Sandefur campaigns.

Evidence that appellate judges are being swayed by how their decisions will play in the next election should concern all of us. Justices must be courageous and ethical to make just and lawful decisions  not necessarily the decision that will deny their opponents fodder for negative TV ads.

Ironically, some of the TV ads designed to evoke emotional, negative responses from viewers include graphics designed to look like newspaper clippings. These snippets dont tell the full story. Rather, political ad designers pick details, or concoct details to make their candidate look good and the opponent to look bad.

We encourage Gazette readers to get the full story. Go to the candidates own website, check what the candidates have actually said and written by reading The Billings Gazette and searching for the candidates names at billingsgazette.com. Find out who has endorsed each candidate and why by reading Gazette opinion pages.

Be an informed voter, especially on the Montana Supreme Court.
On Oct. 31, 1517, Martin Luther pinned his 95 theses to a church door in Wittenberg, Germany, protesting among other things, the Catholic practice of selling indulgences.

What he intended and what occurred are two different things, said the Rev. Jessica Crist, bishop of the Montana Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

Luther wasnt trying to start a new church, Crist said in a telephone interview Friday from her Great Falls office. He was trying to make reforms in the church as it was.

Instead, Luthers action sparked the Protestant Reformation, splitting the Christian world. Next year marks the 500th anniversary of that momentous occasion.

On Monday, the Lutheran World Federation and the Roman Catholic Church will jointly hold an ecumenical commemoration of the Reformation in Lund, Sweden. Pope Francis plans to attend the service.

The event is meant to highlight how far Catholics and Protestants have come over the years in finding common ground. In the same way that many events led up to the Reformation, Crist said, many have occurred to bring the two faiths closer together.

In one sense the Reformation was building up, she said. Rarely is there a historic event that changes everything, whether its the Boston Tea Party or Rosa Parks.

Luther, an Augustine monk, had concerns that the church was corrupt, that it was more concerned about money than salvation. Indulgences could be purchased to shorten the time a person who had died would spend in purgatory.

Other issues included an uneducated clergy, services performed in a language nobody knew, and Christian salvation that depended more on works than grace. Over time, events such as the Council of Trent and the Second Vatican Council brought about changes in the Catholic Church, Crist said, that opened the way for dialogue.

More recently, in 1999, Lutherans and Catholics adopted a document called the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification. That has to do with salvation by Gods grace through faith in Christ, a crux of disagreement that led to the schism in 1517.

That declaration was huge, Crist said. That was really groundbreaking.

Catholic and Lutheran scholars also met in 2015 and agreed to Statements of Agreement, where both sides settled on 32 points where there are no church-dividing differences. The ELCA approved The Declaration on the Way in August, which included the 32 statements.

The 32 statements also were affirmed by the Bishops Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Not everyone embraces this move toward ecumenism, Crist said.

I understand from some of my bishop colleagues around the country that not all Catholic and Lutheran bishops are on board with this," she said. But in Montana we are on board, and that is very good.

In the state, Catholics probably outnumber Lutherans two-to-one, Crist said. But Lutherans comprise the largest mainline Protestant denomination in the state.

On Oct. 31, 2017, Crist will preside over a worship service at St. Helena Cathedral in Helena with Montanas two Catholic leaders, the Most Rev. Michael Warfel, bishop of the Diocese of Great Falls-Billings and the Most Rev. George Thomas, bishop of the Diocese of Helena.

In preparation for that, the three bishops sent out a joint letter in August to pastors of both faiths encouraging them to bring Catholics and Lutherans together.

We invite and urge those communities in which there are ELCA and Catholic churches to form combined study groups as a key way to prepare for the event, they wrote. It is a wonderful ecumenical opportunity.

Crist views the coming year as an opportunity to encourage relationships that already exist and initiate dialogue where they don't. She also sees this coming together as a witness to the unchurched.

Some say, Those Christians are so hypocritical, they cant even get along,  Crist said. By golly, we can. Im seeing some of that and I think its that simple.
Kristina: Do digital assistants like Siri, Echo, and Home make connected content more important for brands?

Ryan Sullivan, SVP Performance Services, Performics: Yes, in particular, brands should expect much more robust attribution. When a customer clicks a search ad and then asks Amazon Echo to order that product, Google has no understanding of the return on that ad, nor does the advertiser (at least not directly and on a timeline useful to marketers wanting to make real-time decisions), as Google search and Amazon hardware are disconnected. But with the new Google Home hardware, Google has a very clear field of view. Making the clearer connection between click, voice query and purchase helps advertisers make better allocation decisions around investment and effort.

Kristina: What are your top 3 tips for brands to ensure the content is discoverable in this environment?

Ryan: 1. Ensure information and content is modular enough to syndicate into emerging platforms (personal assistants, connected car dashboard, visual search)

2. Recognize that shallow content can only go so far. Shallow content is going to only further limit your sites growth, unless youre the clear lead voice for that topic. To illustrate, Google is much less likely to be able to describe the New York Times critique of the political positions of a candidate on a specific topic, but it can easily tell you the candidates party and other moderately complex facts about the candidate.

3. Understand searcher needs/context to deliver relevant messages. Plan to get more personal. Expect premium advertising opportunities to get your products and services in front of highly motivated consumers as Google, Amazon and Apple continue to round out the intent picture behind a query and provide more confidence that your ad will improve revenue.
CASPER, Wyo.  State budget analysts say Wyoming K-12 schools will be short $103 million for the current two-year funding cycle because of the economic downturn.

The drop was reported in the Consensus Revenue Estimating Group budget analysis released Monday. The decrease amounts to about 8 percent of the $1.34 billion education budget.

The Legislature's Joint Appropriations Committee was told the income decline is the result of larger-than-projected decreases in mineral royalties, property taxes, investment income and other revenue sources, primarily due to the bust in the energy industry.

The Legislature convenes next January and lawmakers will have to make decisions on how to handle the revenue decline.
SEATTLE  A federal judge in Seattle has found that BNSF Railway could be held liable in a lawsuit claiming that coal spilled from trains pollutes waterways if environmental groups can show at trial that such discharges actually occurred.

Ruling in the case brought by seven environmental groups against the railroad, U.S. District Court Judge John Coughenour said Tuesday that coal particles and dust that fall directly into waterways from passing trains are "point sources" of pollution under the federal Clean Water Act.

However, Coughenour declined to immediately find BNSF liable for any violations, saying significant facts remain in dispute. He denied requests from both sides for summary judgment and set the case for a Nov. 7 trial.

Seven environmental groups sued the railroad in 2013, arguing that it violated federal environmental law by allowing its trains to discharge coal and other pollutants into Washington state rivers and waterways without a permit.

BNSF spokeswoman Courtney Wallace said Wednesday the company is confident in its legal arguments and that its coal-loading rule eliminates most coal dust issues at the mines and throughout the region.

Hundreds of uncovered trains carrying coal from Powder River Basin in Montana and Wyoming traverse Washington state each year. The trains carry coal to export terminals in British Columbia, Canada, Centralia and other locations. More trains are expected if a proposed coal-export terminal is built in Longview.

The Sierra Club, Spokane Riverkeeper, Friends of the Columbia Gorge and others allege that coal chunks and coal dust fall off BNSF trains through holes in the rail cars, when coal trains encounter rough tracks, or get blown from open-top rail cars during high winds or fast speeds.

The coal breaks apart easily and contains mercury, arsenic, uranium and other toxins harmful to fish and human health, the lawsuit alleged. The discharges occur despite the use of topping agents or other suppressants, it adds,

The groups say they look forward to proving their case about the environmental harm from coal dust.

"This opens the door for the court to see the evidence collected across the Northwest of the impacts of these trains on our lakes and rivers," said Jerry White Jr. of Spokane Riverkeeper.

The railroad issued rules in 2011 that require coal to be loaded in a bread-loaf shape to reduce issues with wind and then sprayed with one of several approved topper agents or an alternative to control dust.

A rail facility that opened last year in Pasco also added another layer of dust control by spraying trains carrying coal and petroleum coke with a topping agent at the facility, Wallace said.

Coughenour agreed with BNSF that coal released to land and from land to water aren't considered a pollution point source. But coal that goes directly into water and coal dust that comes from passing trains directly above or adjacent to waters are pollution sources, the judge said.

BNSF also argued that federal interstate commerce laws pre-empt the relief that the environmental groups are seeking. The judge postponed that decision until after a possible finding of liability at trial.

Court documents show that in 2014 BNSF generated nearly $5 billion in revenue from the transportation of coal, which represented about 22 percent of its total freight revenue. Ninety percent of that coal originated in Power River Basin.
Saw Waw, the chairman of Nu Po Refugee Camp said to KIC News: These people have returned voluntarily. As the camps officials, we are just providing assistance to them.

Officials from the Burmese government, the Thai government, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) played a major role in making arrangements for the refugees return, as did the Karen State Border Affairs and Security Minister Colonel Aung Lwin, who provided personal assistance to the refugees.

The refugees will stay at the welcome camp for three days before being taken to to Lay Kay Kaw Myothit in Myawaddy Township, Rangoon or Bago Region depending on their preferences.

A six-member family from Tham Hin Refugee Camp in Ratchaburi Province also arrived in Tanintharyi Region (Tenasserim Division) on 25 October. According to the UNHCR Thailand Facebook page the World Food Programme has also given them a three-month supply of food.

According to UNHCR figures there are 103,300 Karen, Karenni, Mon, and Burmese refugees living in nine refugee camps on the Thai side of the Thai-Burma border.

Translated by Thida Linn

Edited in English by Mark Inkey for BNI
AGIPP held its annual meeting and a workshop on cooperation for women, peace, and security in Burma at the Ramanya Hotel in Mawlamyine, Mon State, from 21 to 22 October.

Mi Kun Chan Non the AGIPP chairperson said: We have demanded 30 per cent womens participation in the joint ceasefire monitoring committees on state and regional levels, which are processes that are related to peace. But, we still havent achieved 30 per cent yet. We will continue to make our demands.

The Joint Ceasefire Monitoring Committee (JCMC) for Mon State, which was established on 30 June 2016, has 14 members but only two, or 14.3 per cent of its members, are women. They are Mon national Dr Mi Yin Chan and Karen national Naw Sar Htoo.

Though there has been no fighting in Mon State there are frequent cases of human rights violations and rapes in the state, which are rising due to the large numbers of more vulnerable migrant workers living there.

In a 22 October statement AGGIP highlighted 12 issues faced by women. These were: the military offensives in ethnic areas, conflict in ethnic areas, violence against women, rule of law, laws protecting women, assistance for war refugees and migrant workers, human trafficking, drug distribution, poverty, healthcare, loss of land and natural resources, and exclusion of women in the peace process, discussions on reviewing the framework for political dialogue, and resettlement.

There were 94 women at the AGGIP annual meeting, including AGGIP members from Kachin, Shan, Karen, Mon, and Arakan states, the Rangoon Region and representatives from 41 allied associations.

Reporting by Wun Tha Mon for M.N.A

Translated by Thida Linn

Edited in English by Mark Inkey for BNI
The artillery round landed and exploded next to me. The sound was thunderous. I didn't know what had happened to me for about 20 seconds. When I...
Nang Kongkham, one of the SNLD leaders in Mong Hsu, said that the incident happened at a Burmese army checkpoint between Mong Hsu and Tangyan Township on Wednesday at about 10:30am. The victim, Sai Su, 40, was driving his motorbike back home when he was shot after allegedly failing to stop when ordered.

He [Sai Su] was driving back home when he arrived at the checkpoint near Nang Gaohant pagoda, she told Shan Herald. He was then ordered to stop but was unable to control the brake. A Burmese soldier shot him.

Nang Kongkham said that the Burmese military has responded, saying that the shooting was a mistake. It said the soldiers at the checkpoint fired over the mans head as a warning, but a bullet inadvertently hit him.

She added that government authorities would not allow her or other interested parties to inspect the body or take photos.

They only permitted his family to see the body, she said. And they ordered them to bury the body right away. Sai Su was buried at 3:30pm.

Sai Su used to be a village leader in the nearby village of Khojom, but had retired due to a mental illness. He is survived by his wife and two children, aged 20 and 18, respectively.

Mong Hsu is like Hell, said local resident Nang Shwe Aing. It is not a good place to live anymore. Its horrible. No one dares to go out at night.

Shan Herald reported earlier this month that two villagers, Loong Sarnglu and his niece Nang Jing, had been seriously injured when they stepped on a landmine in the Mong Hsu area.
A convicted serial killer charged last month in the 1977 killing of a woman in Sweetwater County will not travel from California's death row to face his first-degree murder charge in Wyoming, Sweetwater County Attorney Daniel Erramouspe announced late Thursday.

Rodney Alcala is too medically frail to travel to Wyoming to face trial for the 1977 death of Christine Thornton, whose body was found on the remote plains northeast of Granger, Erramouspe said in a statement.

"The fact that this case will not be proven in court does nothing to dissuade me from knowing that Alcala murdered Ms. Thornton," Erramouspe said.

Alcala, now 73, has been found guilty of killing seven people in two states, though authorities estimate he may have killed up to 130 victims across the U.S. He is known as the Dating Game killer for appearing on the popular television program in the late 1970s.

Alcala can no longer walk or leave the hospital wing of the Corcoran Penitentiary in California, where he's held, without medical services, prison staff told Erramouspe.

Alcala was previously extradited to New York from a California prison in 2013 to face murder charges in the killings of two young women in the 1970s.

Erramouspe charged Alcala with first-degree murder on Sept. 20 after decades of investigation by law enforcement and Thornton's family.

A rancher discovered human remains near a two-track dirt road on public land outside of Granger in 1982, but it wasn't until 2015 and a twist of fortune that the remains were identified as those of Thornton, court documents show.

"The solving of this cold case, with the random facts, indicates solid investigation and integrity by the Sweetwater County Sheriff's Office...," Erramouspe said Thursday. "It also shows the power of perseverance on behalf of Ms. Thornton's family in never giving up the search for their sister."

For decades, Thornton's family searched for the missing woman without much luck. But in 2013, one of her sisters began looking through photos taken by Alcala that had been released by California investigators in hopes of finding more of his victims.

There, among the dozens of photos of women, the sister happened upon one of Thornton. In the photo, a smiling Thornton is astride a blue and white Kawasaki motorcycle in a yellow top, blue jeans and red flip-flops. She was also wearing a gold ring and a watch with a thin brown band.

After finding the photo, two of Thornton's sisters submitted DNA samples to a database maintained by the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. In July 2015, their DNA matched with a sample taken from the remains found in Sweetwater County.

Deputies from the county sheriff's office began to investigate. The clothes in the photo of Thorntop atop a motorcycle were similar to those found near her remains, including the gold ring and the watch. Investigators had found a blue and white Kawasaki motorcycle in Alcala's Seattle storage locker. A deputy went to the spot where her remains had been found and compared it to the plains featured in the photo. The location was virtually the same, the deputy found.

Thornton's family told investigators they had last seen her in August 1977 and that she had been pregnant at the time.

Alcala was on probation for an assault against an 8-year-old girl during the summer of 1977 when he was given permission by his parole officer to travel from Los Angeles to New York; Washington, D.C.; Illinois and Mexico. Investigators believe he killed Thornton during these travels.

Sweetwater County deputies and Erramouspe traveled to California last month to meet with Alcala at the Corcoran State Penitentiary, where he lives on death row.

When presented with the photo, Alcala said that he had taken the photo but that Thornton "was alive before I left her," according to court documents.

Alcala has been convicted of killing four women in California, for which he received the death penalty, and two women in New York, for which he was sentenced to a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

Alcala was known to approach his victims pretending to be a photographer and ask them to pose for him, court documents show. He then killed them by strangulation or physical assault. All of his known victims were women.
The popular movie Cool Hand Luke featured a classic scene where a chain gang foreman struck a horrific blow with a billy club to the head of Paul Newmans strong-willed character. He then went on to deliver this short lecture to the other prisoners: What weve got here is failure to communicate.

The word communicate can be mulled over in countless ways. My Swedish side of the family was fortunate to connect and reunite with relatives who remained and thrived in Sweden. Weve had little trouble communicating with those cousins our age or younger because they have been taught the English language in their schools. Talking with the older generation, however, is problematic since conversations need translating.

On one occasion, our group of American relatives traveled to Sweden to become better acquainted and were invited to a picnic at the home of an older uncle. Conversing in the larger group with young translators at hand was no problem, but then the elder Olaf motioned for me to follow him. He led me up to a staircase landing where a display of awards and medals hung on the wall. He spoke to me as if I understood and explained what they meant to him. Clues I gathered led me to believe they were awards for rifle marksmanship earned from his days of military service required of all Swedish citizens. Unfortunately, I only nodded dumbly at what he said, and my lack of ability to comprehend and participate in the conversation is something I regret to this day.

From the archives of North Dakota, a story told by an early resident, Rex Lindemann, illustrates a different kind of failure to communicate. Lindemann was a longtime Enderlin businessman, but before Enderlin existed, there was my hometown of Sheldon, where he and his family conducted some business. He remembered the time when two drugstores stood on Main Street, but only one doctor served the community. The doctor favored one of the pharmacies, a choice that caused financial difficulties for the other drugstore owned by a Mr. Hoff. To try to improve his situation, the underdog started searching for another doctor to woo into coming and setting up practice in town. Dr. Ahlins answered the call from Canada.

Unfortunately for him and Mr. Hoff, the worn shoe fit comfortably and people continued taking their medical woes to the old doctor. With the survival of his business at stake, Hoff wanted to encourage the community to accept Dr. Ahlins. He with the doctor dreamt up a bit of intrigue based on the doctors regular Sunday church attendance. During the service, Hoff rushed into the church and whispered in the ear of the doctor, who quickly rose and hurried out the door with Hoff as if to answer a medical emergency. They left town in a buggy and spent some time riding around the countryside, doing nothing except staying out of sight. The deception failed; ailments continued being referred to the old doctor.

Not until a real emergency developed did the community start turning to Ahlins. One woman outside of town developed an ailment and called on the old doctor, who failed to treat her successfully. Another doctor from the town of Buffalo was consulted, but he did not properly diagnose and treat the woman either. Finally, Ahlins' turn arrived, and despite doubt, the woman improved after his visit. That turned the tide and people started accepting him as being a worthy physician. After a few years the old doctor left town. It took an actual occurrence for people to turn Dr. Ahlins, not the deception of his being needed. As for Hoffs success, its unknown.

The evolution of human communication probably began with grunts and gestures progressing to those cave paintings found in Spanish and French caves, the oldest thought to be 40,000 years old. Anthropologists still ponder over their meaning, which leaves their message still cloudy for us. Messages have moved through a whole bundle of conveyances: Pony Express, telegraph, portable printing presses, telephones, radios, televisions, computers and cellphones. Step back earlier and find smoke signals, mirror, and relay runners filling the demand. We cant forget Longfellows poem of Paul Revere riding to inform the colonists of the British armys coming and the lantern signal in the old North Church: One if by land, and two if by sea.

On many occasions, failure to communicate comes when words arent heard or are misheard. On the light side, heres a man telling his neighbor, I just bought a new hearing aid. It cost me four thousand dollars, but it's state of the art, perfect. The neighbor asked, What kind is it? Twelve thirty. By the way, the phrase from Cool Hand Luke mentioned in the opening ranks at No. 11 on the American Film Institutes list of the 100 best remembered movie quotes.
Mandan Parks and Recreation along with Paddle on North Dakota have created stand-up paddleboard classes at the Mandan Aquatic Center. Classes will be held at 6 p.m. every Thursday in a designated pool at the facility.

Kara Haff, the aquatic manager at the Mandan Park District, said the idea was conceived when Jen and Jeff Defoe contacted her about having paddleboard fitness classes during the off-season at the aquatic center since the weather no longer agreed with holding the classes outdoors on Harmon Lake.

The paddleboard classes will be held at the Mandan Aquatic Center until the weather is warm enough to hold them on Harmon Lake in the spring, said Haff.

All fitness levels are welcomed and participants should be at least 12 years of age.

Stand-up paddleboard fitness instructor and personal trainer Miranda Klatt teaches Thursday classes that offer a strength, toning and cardio workout. Klatt said she started teaching paddleboard classes this summer on Harmon Lake and was an instant fan of the activity. Tons of fun, said Klatt, Most people are surprised about how well they pick it up.

At 4 p.m. Monday an open house event will be held and participants can experience the class free of charge. Haff added that yoga paddleboard classes will be offered in the near future on Tuesdays.

Its an amazing opportunity, dont limit yourself, try it out, said Haff.

Cost of participation is $25 per class, per participant, and punch card options are available. For more information on paddleboard classes call 701-751-2223 or visit www.mandanparks.com.
Ground was broken for a 70-animal facility that will house cats and office space at the Central Dakota Humane Society complex north of Mandan.

It will replace a 40-year-old building on the east grounds of the non-kill animal shelter even as the group continues to raise money to build a larger facility in southeast Bismarck.

Staff describe the existing cat building as being in poor repair, raising concerns about its stability during heavy rains and snowstorms.

"It costs more for maintenance of the old building than to build a new one," said Jerry Kemmet, a board member for the nonprofit. "Our board of directors felt that we could no longer allow our staff and pets to work and reside in our oldest building on our property."

The new building in Mandan will house 70 cats and have office space for administrative staff.

Kemmet said the expected completion date for the Mandan project is Feb. 1. The steel structure will allow the organization to house cats and quarantine sick animals from the general animal population. The existing shelter has a capacity of 75 cats and 50 dogs, but the demand for shelter space is increasing with the growing metro area.

Though the $280,000 project is being built in Mandan, the group's board of directors indicated they plan to build a larger structure on eight acres set on the Missouri Valley Complex by 2019. The group purchased the property in March 2013 for $133,000 from Burleigh County.

"We still plan to maintain a presence in Mandan," Kemmet said.

In six months, a fundraiser is planned for the larger shelter in Bismarck, Kemmet said.

"Our new facility will increase our capacity and efficiency," Kemmet said. "The site we have cannot handle all of our needs."

To date, about $1 million of the $5 million needed has been raised to build the larger shelter in southeast Bismarck, said Sue Buchholz, CDHS shelter director.

"We have to care for the animals here in the interim .... For now, we intend to keep the property we have in Mandan," she said.

"The roof is leaking, and it's very drafty in here," Buchholz said of the building being replaced. "It's not healthy for people or our animals. We've spent decades patching it up."




NEW DELHI (PTI): The three-day naval commanders conference, during which key issues such as operational readiness, capability enhancement, infrastructure development and human resource management was discussed, came to an end on Thursday.



Coming in the close aftermath of "recent events", the conference provided an invaluable opportunity for the top-level leadership of the Indian Navy to review the operational environment and readiness of the maritime forces to deal with the entire range of prevailing as well as emerging threats, a statement by the Navy said.



The Conference, held over three days deliberated the ever increasing dynamism in the maritime sphere, especially in India's neighbourhood, and the enhanced range of taskings and expectations of the Indian Navy as a result of it.



The deliberations included a comprehensive review of operational preparedness, training and resource-availability.



Commanders also took stock of the progress achieved in integrating newly inducted naval platforms into the overall operational design and their deployment as force multipliers in any future scenario.



Navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba also reviewed the progress of various infrastructure projects that are in the pipeline and shall contribute towards capacity building.



Coastal security construct was deliberated and reviewed during the conference, the statement said adding that Lanba asserted the need to remain ever vigilant and focused towards our coastal security responsibilities through proactive coordination with other maritime agencies and coastal states in light of the increasing variety of asymmetric threats.



He also asked his personnel to prepare themselves and the Navy to meet all future maritime security challenges before the country.



"Combat readiness should remain our collective focus at any given time and operational effectiveness should be the touchstone of all our efforts, he said. The Navy's role is not only vital for national security, but also for national prosperity and development," he said.


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This article was published 28/10/2016 (2195 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Brandon Sun won an EPPY Award for its feature Knights of D-Day.

The video feature focused on five Westman veterans who received Frances highest distinction for their involvement in the countrys liberation during the Second World War. The men join more than 1,000 other Canadian veterans who have become Knights of the French Legion of Honour.

The project, which was led by former Sun reported Eva Wasney, won in the best news or event feature video with less than one million unique monthly visitors. It was also nominated in the best news or event feature.

File Kentons Jack Houston was featured in The Brandon Suns video feature called Knights of D-Day. The project, which focused on five Westman veterans role in the Second World War, won an EPPY Award on Wednesday.

Wasney was joined by videographer Colin Corneau, graphic designer Tyler Stephens and web developer Andrew Nguyen.

The award our team won for Knights of D-Day was a surprise because a bit of time has gone by from when we talked to these men, Corneau said Thursday. So when the news came out Wednesday it brought me right back to the interviews Eva and I did, and what it felt like to sit before these gentlemen and listen to them relate, matter of factly, the things that happened to them as young men.

Corneau said the project is an important part of Westmans shared fabric.

To me, awards like this are just confirmation that meaningful stories are everywhere, not just in larger cities or with larger events someplace else, he said. And it is proof that journalists, with time and simple resources, working together can produce stories that everyone in a community can relate to.

The video story chronicles Brandon veterans Elmer Cole and Geoffrey Casson, John Carl Roseveare and Jack Houston from Kenton, and Virdens Les Downing. It can be seen by clicking on the link on the right side of the brandonsun.com website.

Its really gratifying to have the stories of five rural Westman veterans recognized on an international stage because it shows how important and universal these kinds of first-hand war experiences are, Wasney said. It can be hard to tackle a subject that has been covered many times over, but I think this award speaks to the value of multimedia storytelling.

File Sun photographer Colin Corneau was part of a team which won an EPPY Award for "Knights of D-Day."

The EPPY Awards, now in its 21st year, honour the best digital-media websites and content. Other award winners included The Wall Street Journal, The Globe and Mail and CNN.

 The Brandon Sun
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/10/2016 (2195 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

An increase in police presence downtown has been successful in tackling crime and social disorder, according to the Brandon Police Service, but its just one out of many steps that are needed to rejuvenate the area.

BPS ran a Downtown Strategy from May 1 until Sept. 30, increasing patrol activity in the area between First and 18th Street from Victoria to Pacific Avenue, according to a BPS release.

Over the course of five months, officers completed 1,083 downtown patrols, averaging slightly more than seven extra downtown patrols a day.

File Brandon City Coun. Kris Desjarlais (Rosser) said there are a number of solutions being worked on in conjunction with Brandon Police Service to deal with some of the safety concerns downtown.

Weve always had initiatives to have downtown patrol in the summer, whether it be our bike patrol or on foot patrol, Sgt. Bill Brown said. This one was a little bit bigger in that every section of the police service that was operational  from patrol to traffic community services  was a part of it.

Statistics compiled in September showed that proactive policing increased by 51 per cent overall this year.

Compared to 2015, pedestrian checks increased by 82 per cent, warrant service increased by 78 per cent, and intoxicated persons checks increased by 115 per cent. Police were also able to identify areas of concern and target their patrols accordingly, as well as, direct individuals they were in frequent contact with to the Community Mobilization Program, a program that identifies individuals and families at high risk and provides intervention strategies through support and services.

(The downtown strategy) was successful in that it accomplished the goals that were set out as far as being more visible downtown  engage the community and see a reduction in criminal activity and social disorder, Brown said. We had many positive comments from the public, it was good to see them out in the community.

The downtown area is the most crime intensive, and densely populated, area in Brandon. Since April 30, there have been approximately 89 assaults, 76 thefts under $5,000, 60 offences under the Liquor Control Act including public intoxication, and 29 break-ins in the downtown area, according to BPS statistics.

Weve seen a spike in some certain crimes, city councillor Kris Desjarlais (Rosser) said. Theres more visible pan handling and public intoxication, and there are assault charges that have happened and some gun violence, which I think was localized and (the Brandon police) have a handle on.

Recently, a man survived being shot in the torso in downtown Brandon, while arrests in additional shootings came in the area.

Last month, Brandon police also issued a warning to the public as they believed four sexual assaults against women in downtown Brandon may be linked. The women were targeted while vulnerable  walking alone in isolated or dimly lit areas  and police advised citizens to take precautions when walking at night.

I would say that over the last four or five months Ive fielded quite a few emails and phone calls from concerned residents and business owners, Desjarlais said. I think we all recognize this isnt just a matter of more policing, its a system wide effort that needs to happen here  Theres a lot of different solutions that we can come up with  improved community integration, improved system coordination and service delivery for folks that are marginalized  I think in doing that on a number of different fronts will certainly improve things downtown.

File Volunteers gathered in June to clean up spray paint in the downtown area. The Downtown Brandon Development Forum, which was hosted earlier this year, noted that the areas appearance affects safety and the publics perception of downtown.

Last week, staff from several city departments took part in a walk of downtown Brandon to discuss crime prevention through environmental design, Desjarlais said, where they pinpointed numerous spots where safety could be at risk.

Weve talked about the potential to engage some of the property managers in improving their lighting and reducing some of the overgrowth that could cause some safety concerns, Desjarlais said.

The group will reconvene in a couple of months and redo the walk at night to see the streets in a different light, Desjarlais said.

I think its just recognizing that in order for us to improve the situation downtown, its not only about improving safety, Desjarlais said. Its about getting more people living downtown, its about economic development opportunities downtown, certainly its about improved safety, but there are so many things that are a part of this solution.

 edebooy@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: erindebooy
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/10/2016 (2195 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Judiel Ennis thought this unusual email, declaring her the right match, was about a date the recently married woman had no interest in.

Instead, it proved to be a match  unlike most first dates  that will stand the test of time as Ennis gave the gift of life to twin girls from Hamiota.

All it takes is a swab to save a life, and with my chances I got to save two people, Ennis marvelled on the phone from Orange County, Calif.

Submitted Judiel Ennis hugs Zayne Espayos, 3, as her twin sister Zoey looks on, at a party earlier this month in Los Angeles to celebrate the first meeting between the Espayos sisters and Ennis, the stranger who gave them a chance at life by donating bone marrow.

Two years ago, it was an email that told the 32-year-old woman her bone marrow was the right match with a young girl from Canada, but she didnt read it. The emails bold subject line, Youre a match, made her believe it was spam from a dating website.

The donor agency tried Ennis phone number, but she ignored the call since the number was out-of-state.

Days later, she couldnt ignore a voicemail left at her work number.

When Ennis finally heard in late 2014 her bone marrow was required by not one girl but two, she didnt hesitate to push forward her procedure because of the urgency.

It was just one of those things  theyre children, she said. They deserve a chance to live a fulfilling life.

She flew to Pittsburgh, where bone marrow was removed from her hip bones, for the day-long surgery.

It was successful. Twin girls share her genetics.

When you think about it, its just so crazy to know that youre blood is circulating in another body, she said.

The girls are now like any other three year olds, happily laughing and playing. No more medicine, their mother proudly said.

This month, the families met for the first time in Los Angeles, under the spotlight of TV cameras, Ennis co-workers and the donor agency.

For a good couple of seconds I just zoned everybody out, Ennis said. I cant even put into words the feeling of being able to hug them; there was a lot of crying, definitely a lot of crying involved.

The intertwining tale between these families doesnt end with their California adventure, however, as they write to each other constantly on Facebook, and Ennis said a trip to Hamiota for the twins fifth birthday is on the way.

Our story didnt end after we met, its just beginning, Ennis said.

The ordeal these twins went through is well-documented.

Submitted The Espayos family enjoyed a trip to Disneyland during their visit to California earlier this month, where they met Judiel Ennis, far right, who donated bone marrow so their twin daughters would survive. Clockwise from left, MJ, Reina, Zachi, Zoey and Zayne.

First, months into Reinas pregnancy, the twins were tested in the womb and came back positive for a disorder which can cause anemia, or a decrease in the amount of red blood cells. It often causes death.

Blood transfusions were conducted inside the womb, and after their birth, the girls received frequent transfusions but their parents were told a bone marrow transplant would be needed.

Then, there was the heartbreaking discovery their older sister Zachis bone marrow, also a match, was rejected.

It was followed by the euphoric news Zoey accepted Ennis bone marrow in late 2014. Then, her sister Zaynes transplant, the next spring, was also successful, setting up the fairy tale-like meeting, according to the twins mother, Reina Espayos.

Shes so close to my family now, weve really become a family, Espayos said. Shes a beautiful person, inside and out.

Espayos actually began communicating with Ennis this spring, after the period of required anonymity lapsed. With both parties willing to share contact details, the families became acquainted online.

Ennis encouraged the family to fly to California immediately, but finances got in the way. Ennis employer, Loan Depot, and donor agency DKMS facilitated the meeting on their dime, providing the Espayos clan with a week-long vacation  and more time with their newest family member.

Shes like a second mom already, Espayos said.

 ifroese@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @ianfroese
Shots are reported to have been fired Thursday on multiple occasions near Dakota Access Pipeline protest sites.

One instance came at Backwater Bridge in Morton County, where one person was injured after being shot in the hand, according to the sheriff's department. The victim was carrying a firearm at the time they were shot.

According to Cecily Fong of the North Dakota Department of Emergency Services, the shooting involved a person who allegedly had been run off the road by protesters north of the main protest camp south of County Road 134 on N.D. Highway 1806.

Dallas Goldtooth, a protester with Indigenous Environmental Network who said he arrived immediately after the incident, said a man in a truck holding an automatic rifle drove through the barricade. He said protesters allegedly used their vehicle to ram the truck and pushed the man's vehicle off the road.

Goldtooth said the man climbed out of the vehicle and stood out in the creek with the rifle. He said several protesters attempted to de-escalate the situation until U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs officers arrived. He said none of the protesters mentioned anything about shots fired.

No law enforcement were involved in the shooting.

Later in the evening, police reported protesters started two fires on the Backwater Bridge and are throwing Molotov cocktails at law enforcement.

In a separate incident, a woman has been arrested for firing a weapon at police near Highway 1806.

Fong said the woman was being placed under arrest, pulled a .38 caliber revolver and allegedly fired three shots at law enforcement, narrowly missing a sheriffs deputy. She was taken into custody with no shots fired by law enforcement.

Both incidents are under investigation.

This story is developing. Check back later for updates.
Opinion

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This article was published 28/10/2016 (2195 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

@Saturday Tab Brown=[C]

Its Halloween on Monday and that means trick-or-treating fun. For the grown-ups who dont (or shouldnt) trick-or-treat, Ive come up with a selection of ales that will be a hit for any Halloween party!

Wychwood Hobgoblin Extra Special Bitter

Submitted Wychwood Hobgoblin Extra Special Bitter is the Halloween beer, says First Draught columnist Cody Lobreau.

Hobgoblin holds a place in my heart as the Halloween beer.

For many years there used to be an annual Hobgoblin gift pack that included a 500 ml bottle of Hobgoblin and a 500ml glass, but it doesnt appear that it will be coming to Manitoba this year. Hobgoblin pours a dark-brown ale with a bit of a reddish-caramel hue to it, a good amount of foam residue around the side of glass and a light amount of beige head on top.

The aroma is typical for an ESB  its heavy, caramel and toffee malt forward with a bit of a nuttiness to it. A hint of various fruits including apples seem to make an appearance as well.

The taste gives off an earthy-hop bitterness right from the start, which I find disappointing because I was hoping for the caramel and toffee early on. There are some notes of caramel but its masked by the earthiness, as well as masked by a bit of a roasted malt that gives off a hint of coffee. Not overwhelming compared to most ESBs on the market, solid autumn beer in time for Halloween. 5.2 per cent ABV.

3 out of 5 pints

Unibroue Maudite

The folklore behind Maudite (the Damned) is that once upon a time eight woodsmen, deep in the forest in rural Quebec, were wishing to be back home for Christmas. They summoned the devil and pledged their souls in return for flying them in their canoe back home. As they were sailing across the sky, one of the woodsmen pledged in the name of God, causing the flying canoe to crash down to earth.

Maudite, the beer, pours a murky, caramel-brown ale with a thick beige head on top. It leaves behind a very liberal amount of foam residue on the glass.

Submitted Unibroque Maudite has been one of First Draught columnist Cody Lobreau's Unibroque favourites over the years as its nicely spiced and pairs well with autumn weather.

The aroma gives off notes of dark fruits including raisin and plums, a bit of a doughy aroma, burnt caramel and toasty malt, with a very light earthy hop presence.

The taste is very much in line with what we saw with the aroma, it starts out a liberal presence of dark fruits, a bit of breadiness, notes of burnt caramel, earthy hops, pepper, a liberal amount of booziness which warms up the tongue and a pinch of clove and coriander. This has been one of my favourite Unibroue beers over the years as its nicely spiced and pairs well with autumn weather. 8 per cent ABV.

4.5 out of 5 pints

Muskoka Mad Tom IPA

The legend of Mad Tom isnt one legend itself, but a few legends. The first legend is that Mad Tom is named after painter Tom Thomson who was found dead in the lake under very suspicious circumstances and for some reason he was buried before the coroner could arrive. They say that his ghost still paddles Lake Muskoka to this very day.

Another legend states that its named after a beast of a fish with barbed teeth and poisonous spines, and the last legend is that back in the 1600s beggars lined Londons streets pretending to hail from Bedlam Royal Hospital (asylum).

The darkness of Bedlam, and the lost souls it housed, led the public to call the pretenders the Mad Toms of Bedlam. The beer itself is a hoppy India pale ale that tops out at 6.4 per cent ABV and 64 IBUs.

Mad Tom pours a cloudy golden-orange ale with a very thick amount of yellowish-beige foam on top, which seems to take up about one-third of my entire glass. Eventually the foam dies down leaving by a good amount of residue  like a good IPA should.

Submitted Muskoka Mad Tom IPA is a solid Ontario IPA thats floral, fruity and underrated, says First Draught columnist Cody Lobreau.

The aroma is a pine-focused bitter IPA with a good amount of fruitiness such as grapefruit and possibly orange.

The taste is fairly mellow for an IPA, especially with a bitterness of 64 IBU. It has a mild pine flavour but the tropical fruits such as grapefruit seem to be just slightly more dominant in this beer. Other flavour notes Im getting include a bit of caramel from the malted barley, honey and a bit of a bitter aftertaste from the hops. A solid Ontario IPA thats floral, fruity and, in my opinion, is underrated.

4 out of 5 pints

Category 12 Zombie Repellant Ale (ZRA)

While Zombies arent as popular as they were back in autumn 2014, and Zombie Repellant Ale is the first zombie-themed beer Ive tried.

The ale is a Belgian-style red ale that features Zythos hops, carared malt, Azacca hops as well as notes of licorice and sweet orange which will snap any mindless, pumpkin spice zombie out of their trance and back to reality.

The beer pours a thick, red-caramel ale with a good amount of beige head and a thick amount of glass residue. The residue art reminds me of ghosts and zombies for some strange reason.

The aroma is a caramel and malt smell with a bit of a nuttiness to it, earthy hops to give it a bit of a dead-leaf smell, lightly herbal and spiced but not giving me the memories Belgian red ales  more like an American red ale.

Submitted Category 12 Zombie Repellant Ale (ZRA) is the first zombie-themed beer First Draught columnist Cody Lobreau has tried.

The taste gives off more of the hops than I was expecting  more of a mildly bitter hop presence with notes of pine, notes of caramel, lightly herbal and a hint of spice to it.

Would I consider this a Belgian red?

No. It was a somewhat hoppy red ale that is alright as a typical American red-amber ale but to call it Belgian style. I think the person writing the description was describing a completely different beer (or he is a zombie). 6.9 per cent ABV.

If you are a fan of something like Sleeman Honey Brown but wanting something a bit darker, youll really like this, but for me  no thanks.

2.5 out of 5 pints
Opinion

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This article was published 28/10/2016 (2195 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

For reasons I cant explain, Ive always wanted to see Alcatraz.

Perhaps its just the mystique of the island prison. Maybe its all the stories about notorious prisoners who were incarcerated there  Robert (The Birdman) Stroud and Al Capone spring to mind  and the exciting and frightening tales of escape attempts.

I dont know. But what I do know is once it was confirmed I was going to Sonoma County to taste wine for two weeks and that wed be flying in and out of San Francisco, a visit to Alcatraz was a must.

Submitted An across-the-bay view of San Francisco from Alcatraz Island.

The trip was in June and the weather was hot, but not so much on Alcatraz Island. The wind gusts were unbelievable and the temperature was very chilly on that desolate rock in the center of San Francisco Bay. Now a national park, Alcatraz is a sobering reminder of a bygone era, and certainly made me think long and hard about our treatment of even the worst people in society. My husband and I opted to take the audio tour, which was included in the cost of the ferry ride and admission fee  and which I would wholeheartedly recommend. Each person is provided with a good set of headphones and the narrator directs you to particular places and informs you why these locations  cells, kitchens, gathering areas  are significant. There are also background sounds  sirens, yelling, the clanging of cell doors  that create a dramatic aural rendering of what took place there. In the English version  the audio tour is available in several languages  its extra cool because along with the dramatic recreations or actual recordings of events, the voices you hear throughout your walk around the prison are those of the actual convicts. Talk about taking a vivid trip back in time.

I think the most poignant bit for me  and there were many  was the comment made by one prisoner about the proximity of San Francisco. This big, bustling, beautiful city is just over a mile away from the island, but the inmates could never see it. But on New Years Eve, thered be elegant parties on the boats in the marina, and the convicts could hear the clinking of glasses, the laughter of women, and the soft strains of music. So close, but yet so very far.

Anyway, touring Alcatraz certainly made a lasting impression, and I can cross that item off my bucket list.

Before the trip to Alcatraz Island, we had lunch at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., which is a chain restaurant based on the movie Forest Gump. Since that flick is one of my favourites of all time, this seemed like a reasonable decision. The food was OK  Ive had better elsewhere  but the atmosphere was fun, the memorabilia was cool and the view of the marina was great. My husband, Ken, and I both had clam chowder and I had scampi linguini, while he had hush puppies.

After spending the afternoon on Alcatraz, we went to Pier 39. Its the focal point of Fishermans Wharf, and I certainly wasnt expecting that degree of kitsch and commercialism. I guess Id envisioned more of a sea-faring port, or a wharf with working ships and open-air cafes serving up fresh fish and the like. What I got was essentially an outdoor shopping mall and with a frenzied sort of theme-park atmosphere.

We found refuge from the insanity at The Crab House, an elegant spot where we had a table with a fabulous three-sided view of San Francisco Bay. We shared a platter of Dungeness crab and a bottle of 2014 Ferrari-Carano Chardonnay. With aromas of apple, citrus and pear combined with flavours of peach and hazelnut, all wrapped up in a creamy, toasted oak finish, this was a lovely wine, and I was determined to seek out the Ferrari-Carano Vineyards and Winery.

Which is exactly what I did the very next day. But first, we stopped at Clos du Bois Wines in Geyserville, where I was shepherded through the Big and Bold tasting of five reds by Visitor Center Lead Chris Wickenkamp. I sampled the 2013 Old Vine Carignane (plenty of anise, which I like), the 2014 Pinot Noir, the 2013 Old Vine Zinfandel (medium-bodied, not sweet, with the typical black cherry and gentle black pepper flavours), the 2012 Marlstone Cabernet blend, and finally my favourite, the 2012 Briarcrest, which was 100 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon. It was big and bold  a true California Cab  and sold for $60 a bottle with only 500 cases produced.

Then we proceeded to Ferrari-Carano in Healdsburg where we were graciously ushered into the opulent downstairs tasting bar, Enoteca.

Here, the very attentive, knowledgeable and wise tasting guide and wine educator, Adam Wild, poured me four wines, all of which I adored. The 2014 Emelias Cuvee Chardonnay was a bit lighter than the buttery 2013 Chardonnay Reserve (the latter one was, naturally, my pick of the two), but both were 100 per cent Chardonnay grapes and were $38. The 2013 Lazy Creek Vineyards Estate Pinot Noir ($58) was 100 per cent Pinot Noir grapes and was lovely. But once again, the knockout for me was a Cabernet Sauvignon  the 2012 Cabernet Reserve ($65) with all the grapes harvested from the Alexander Valley.

One of the most memorable quotes of the trip came from Wild, who, when responding to another tasters question of, What am I tasting? replied, How do I know what youre tasting? Im not your palate!

Pure genius, I thought. Everybodys palate is different, sometimes vastly so, which is why there are millions of different wines in the world. But theres no doubt in my mind some of the best of them are in Sonoma.
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/10/2016 (2195 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

WINNIPEG  Side hustle, gig economy, job hopping.

Ive been hearing those buzzwords a lot lately, in almost always positive contexts. They have such a fun energy, dont they? So cool. So glamorous. So millennial. Were all such creative free-spirits, flitting from job to job like the unique butterflies we are, all out there hustling to achieve our goals. I know many people of my generation  people born from 1981 to 2000  who prefer to do their own thing as opposed to work for the Man, or whatever millennials call the Man. Or they legitimately prefer to work contract to contract. Or they move around a lot.

But I cant help but wonder if, for the most part, buzzwords such as side hustle and gig economy and job hopping are just a clever bit of marketing, one that sexes up a pretty grim reality. Theyre like Instagram filters. Side hustle sounds better than working three jobs to make rent. Gig economy sounds better than the places I work for will never hire me full time. Job hopping makes a choice out of what is often a circumstance. So, too, do terms such as encore career, which refers to a post-retirement gig that is supposed to fill your life with continued purpose and meaning, because everyone knows paid work is the only path to a full life. Also, encore career sounds better than you will work until the grave.

Those terms are aspirational, of course. They conjure images of an ambitious, free-wheeling person who doesnt want to be tied to a desk or shackled by a mortgage. And you can never be rendered useless or irrelevant if you have an encore career. Everyone applauds an encore.

Somehow it became accepted that all of this is OK, because millennials dont want outmoded things such as job security, advancement, steady paycheques and retirement funds anyway.

Except, of course, that many of us do. Because many of us have things such as mortgages and kids and bills and debt. Look no further than the delegates who turned their backs on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at a youth labour forum Tuesday. Some heckled and booed, expressing frustration with a host of issues, including pipelines, electoral reform and precarious work, responding to Finance Minister Bill Morneau saying Canadians should get used to job churn.

We do not want to get used to job churn. For those trying to make a living in it, the gig economy isnt what its cracked up to be, and whats sold as freedom and flexibility can often be anything but. Temporary or contract employees often arent included in a companys benefit plan. Ask an underemployed 20-something the last time they saw a dentist. Going from contract to contract requires strict budgeting  and, in many cases, a credit card to fill in the gaps. And those credit cards often carry balances, not because millennials are particularly obsessed with luxury goods but because they have bills to pay. Freelancers know all too well that sometimes the cheque is not, in fact, in the mail, and may not be in the mail for months. And Im not just talking about permalancers in creative jobs such as graphic design or writing. Job churn is happening in the trades, too.

So why is a tough-to-sustain, not-for-everyone lifestyle being spun as the bright future of work?

My generation is burned out and anxiety-ridden, and its little wonder. Its stressful to not know where your next paycheque is coming from. Were trying to find ways to do more with less, and to multi-task  which, as any psychologist can tell you, is not actually a thing human brains can do very well. And you cant ever unplug. If you do, you might miss out  on the next contract, on the next hustle.

My generation is also seeing first-hand just how possible it is to be underemployed and overworked. Some might claim their side hustles are about finding the creative fulfilment their soul-sucking cubicle farm job doesnt provide, but, guess what? Theyre still work in addition to a day job. Millennials are often admired for their plucky entrepreneurial spirit. But that spirit doesnt always translate into a new business. Its pretty hard to take a big financial risk if youre still paying off the student debt from the degree you were told you needed for a job that no longer exists.

This conversation usually becomes an unproductive Which Generation Really Had It Worse? contest. Its not a contest. This is a reality young people deal with.

They are boxed out of the housing market in many areas. Its getting more expensive to live, not less. So its galling that were assigning cutesy names to a system that exploits young, hungry workers by sending them the message they should be grateful for the scraps of employment theyve been given.

So, millennials: get a side hustle, if you want to. Job hop, if you want to. Die at your desk, if you want to.

But it should be because you want to, not because you have to.

 Jen Zoratti writes a column for the Winnipeg Free Press.
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/10/2016 (2195 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

For the news lover, Twitter really is the greatest social media construct going.

Twitter allows the user to not just follow journalists and celebrities, but also connect in real-time with some of the most influential people in the world.

Its not, however, without its flaws.

Anonymity has created a sub-culture that allows users to hurl abuse at these same people, who are often singled out because of their race or gender.

In Westman, weve seen accounts created for the soul purpose of demeaning other users.

On a larger scale, recently, Leslie Jones, one of the stars of the remade Ghostbusters movie (which itself has been the object of vitriol, mostly from men, for daring to cast four female leads), was subjected to dogpiling on Twitter. Her mentions were filled with racist, misogynistic messages, as well as images photoshopped to look like offensive tweets sent by Jones herself.

Her response was to close her account.

I leave Twitter tonight with tears and a very sad heart. All this cause I did a movie wrong.

Even in context of what many women experience online, it was noteworthy. Worse, it was instigated by another Twitter user with a huge following, Milo Yiannopoulos, known for stoking outrage as part of his stock in trade. His followers leaped at the chance to attack Jones.

If Twitter had proper filters to discourage abuse or, at the very least, shield people from harassment (mute and block functions arent much good when serial harassers can create multiple sock-puppet accounts to attack their target), this might not have happened. It wasnt until other celebrities tweeted support for Jones that the social-media giant took action: it banned Yiannopoulos.

Sorry, but thats hardly enough. Women, people of colour, and other marginalized groups know Twitter is slow to act when it comes to abuse.

Non-tweeters might think, Why not just stop using Twitter? That solution favours abusers  they arent likely to go anywhere, theyre having too much fun. And ignoring bad behaviour doesnt curtail it.

Sadly, neither does fighting back. Jones gave as good as she got, even retweeting some of the remarks and images her attackers were throwing at her, to make evident how relentless it was.

Yiannopouloss tactics are common and hed employed them for years. And what are victims of online abuse supposed to do, when reporting the behaviour to the company results in no change? Move to the next social-media platform? Theres no guarantee it will be any better moderated.

In Canada, cyberbullying has been on the radar of the RCMP as it pertains to children and youths, but less so when adults are the targets.

And while Internet service providers are regulated in Canada and the United States, the content of social networks that rely on that digital infrastructure isnt necessarily regulated in the same way  though existing laws can be applied to it.

For example, the family of a victim of the Paris terrorist attacks in November 2015 is suing Twitter, Google and Facebook, alleging the platforms knowingly make it possible for the Islamic State to spread its propaganda.

But better practices against harassment dont have to wait for lawsuits.

Companies such as Twitter build their brand on large numbers of users and social reach. Theyve been content to largely ignore abuse as long as that reach keeps growing, but there comes a point when they must consider who their brand is built on: actual people, not just potential advertising targets. It shouldnt take an actress being publicly harassed off the Internet for them to take action.

Who are the other victims of such harassment gonna call? Twitter support, if enough famous people are watching as it happens?

Thats not good enough. Twitter cant just click follow on shutting down abuse. It has to step up and lead.

 The Brandon Sun and Winnipeg Free Press
On the campus of the United Tribes Technical College rests the former hospital of Fort Lincoln  a building more than a century old that will host scares this weekend.

Horror on Harmon, in its 16th year running, has moved its location to the UTTC, says Tom Braun, the creator of the haunted house.

"I watch a lot of horror movies and attend other haunted houses," said Braun, adding that his next step is to "just let my creative juices flow."

A fear of clowns has been exacerbated this year by the frequent clown-sightings in many cities across the nation, including Bismarck. Likely, one of the most chilling displays at the haunting promises to be the clowns with chainsaws, according to Braun.

"Clowns have been a part of the Horror on Harmon since 2005," Braun said. "If anything, the clowns may be scarier than ever."

When Braun ran the show at his home, he averaged nearly a thousand guests a night, and he predicts that number to increase for the two-night run. More guests mean more scares, and Braun said he enjoys this part the most.

"Running a haunted house is very satisfying, as we see people scream, laugh and sometimes cry  but mostly having a good time," Braun said. "This is my Christmas, the anticipation and watching people get scared .... Of course, I scare: I am one of the lead actors."

Hosting his haunted house has not dimmed his passion for attending others.

"I remember the Bismarck Jaycees running haunted houses every October," Braun said. "I still like to attend haunted houses."

As the attraction grew in size, Braun knew he needed to find a larger location: 2015 would have been the final year had he not found a location on the UTTC campus to host World of Darkness.

"A very scary site was determined, and we made it scarier," said Sheridan McNeil, the career and technical education director at UTTC.

In previous years, Braun paid the expenses for Horror on Harmon, relying on volunteers and donating profits to local charities. Past recipients have included Big Brothers, Big Sisters and Girl Scouts of Dakota Horizon.

"I have always been a charity," Braun said. "That is how it all started .... I have never received a profit. I enjoy doing this for pure passion for Halloween. We boast that Horror on Harmon offers more scares per square foot then any haunted attraction in North Dakota."

This year, proceeds benefit student scholarships at UTTC, McNeil said.

McNeil said the history of the UTTC campus lends itself to imagining what dark things could lurk in the building, and she has enjoyed the chance to work even long hours  on the project.

"I think haunted houses are fun for people of all ages," McNeil said. "That feeling of the unknown as youre walking through a haunted house  cold, dark, musty-smelling, not knowing when someone will jump out at you thats whats exciting and fun. And being on the other side scaring people is also a lot of fun. Its funny to see how people react and its a great feeling."
Alphabet, the parent company of technology giant Google, has reported a 20% jump in revenue in its latest financial results.

Meanwhile Amazon also reported positive numbers in its own results - with sales for the e-commerce giant up 29% on the same period last year to $32.7bn.

Amazon chief Jeff Bezos suggested the launch of smart home assistant Amazon Echo in the US and UK, which is powered by artificial intelligence called Alexa, was a key part of the growth.

"Alexa may be Amazon's most loved invention yet - literally - with over 250,000 marriage proposals from customers and counting," he said.

"And she's just getting better. Because Alexa's brain is in the cloud, we can easily and continuously add to her capabilities and make her more useful - wait until you see some of the surprises the team is working on now."

Alphabet's strong results were driven by revenue of $22.5bn for the last quarter, up from $18.7bn in the same period last year. As expected, the vast majority of this money came from the Google business, with only around $200m coming from the so-called "Other Bets" area of Alphabet as a whole, which includes the self-driving car business and technology it continues to test in California.

Alphabet's chief financial officer Ruth Porat said: "We had a great third quarter, with 20% revenue growth year on year, and 23% on a constant currency basis. Mobile search and video are powering our core advertising business and we're excited about the progress of newer businesses in Google and Other Bets."

The Other Bets segment of the company, which contains the so-called "moonshot idea" projects including driverless cars and WiFi signal-carrying weather balloons continues to operate at a loss, however this dropped from $980m in the last quarter to $865m in the latest results.

The reports were in stark contrast to those of Twitter, which opted to release its latest financial report before markets opened in the US on Thursday morning.

The firm made a net loss of $102m in the three months to the end of September, also announcing that it will be cutting more than 300 jobs globally as part of a shake-up of the business. Later the social media giant also revealed it was to discontinue video sharing service Vine "in the coming months".
A judge is to rule on the UK's first court challenge to Brexit later.

A case at Belfast High Court opposing British Prime Minister Theresa May's ability to trigger Brexit negotiations by next March was taken by a cross-community group of politicians and human rights campaigners.

They want to establish that devolved decision-makers at the Stormont Assembly can veto Brexit, assert rights to consultation over whether to launch talks with Europe and protect peace process guarantees enshrined in the 1998 Good Friday Agreement which largely ended republican and loyalist violence.

Raymond McCord, whose son Raymond McCord Jr was murdered by the loyalist Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) in north Belfast in 1997, is a party to the case who has concerns that European peace money which goes towards victims of the Troubles may be discontinued following an exit.

During several days of hearings recently a lawyer for Mr McCord argued that Northern Ireland could block withdrawal from the EU.

The barrister said the country enjoyed control over its own constitutional change including all-island relations following the 1998 Agreement.

Northern Ireland shares the UK's only land border with an EU state and the Irish and British governments have said they are keen to ensure there is no return to the hard borders of the past.

If the UK leaves the EU, the EU could demand a secure frontier in Ireland to prevent goods flowing in and out of the EU from Northern Ireland without paying required tariffs or facing checks on rules of origin.

Stormont's senior legal adviser attorney general John Larkin told the court nothing in the Belfast Agreement which largely ended violence in 1998 had been affected by Brexit.

He said there were no substantive obligations in the Agreement which required continued membership of the EU.

A barrister for the UK Government said no court could block the will of the people as expressed in the June referendum.

Some 56% of Northern Irish voters backed Remain but some unionist-dominated areas supported Leave. The largest party in Northern Ireland, the Democratic Unionists, campaigned for an exit.

Former Stormont justice minister David Ford, senior Sinn Fein Assembly member John O'Dowd and SDLP leader Colum Eastwood are among those supporting the challenge.

In London, an investment manager and hairdresser are taking legal action opposing the right of the British Government to start the process of withdrawing the UK from the EU without a vote in Parliament.
Update 10.48pm: A man aged 66 was sitting in the car in Rathbeale Crescent in Swords when the gunman opened fire, shortly after 7pm tonight.

The intended target - who is known to gardai - is understood to have escaped injury.
The head of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre has said sexual violence is getting more common, and that pornography is contributing to the problem.

Noeline Blackwell's comments follow the latest Tusla figures claiming half of all Irish women have experienced sexual harassment.
A South African model, who starred in the Irish version of First Dates, will stand trial in January for the alleged harassment of celebrity chef Dylan McGrath.

Daphney Sanasie, currently of Jamestown Road in Dublin 8, is accused of harassing him on various dates in September and November last year.
MORTON COUNTY  A no-surrender line became a line of retreat as a militarized police force overwhelmed hundreds of Dakota Access Pipeline protesters and pushed them from a front line of resistance back to the main camp.

Over the course of five hours, starting around noon, police pressed the protesters half a mile south on N.D. Highway 1806, away from a new camp they built Sunday directly atop the pipeline easement.

The unrest continued into the evening hours with police reporting two fires on the nearby Backwater Bridge and people throwing Molotov cocktails at police. Authorities also reported two incidents of shots fired. One woman allegedly fired a handgun towards police while being arrested. An armed man, who was allegedly run off the road by protesters and possibly not connected to the protest, is being treated for a gunshot in his hand.

And in the late afternoon, flames and thick black smoke billowed from the cab of one of three Dakota Access Pipeline earth movers just over the hill on Highway 1806 as protesters walked back to the main camp on U.S. Army Corps of Engineers land.

Police arrested 141 people on Thursday, according to the sheriff's department. Charges include engaging in a riot, maintaining a public nuisance and conspiracy to endanger by fire and explosion.

The end-of-day drama followed hours of confusion and escalating tensions that police attempted to contain.

Confrontation begins

Repeatedly calling over the loud speaker for protesters to return to the main camp, promising no arrests if they went peacefully, the two to three hundred officers eventually surrounded the several hundred protesters who formed human lines of resistance.

Emotion and conflict emerged in the group, with some urging peace and prayer and others throwing logs, water bottles and rocks at officers. They eventually fell back under a force of pepper spray, rubber and bean bag bullets, tasers, smoke grenades and relentless, inch-by-inch, pressure from police, witnessed by Tribune reporters.

Law enforcement claims they only used pepper spray and high-pitch warning tones. However, Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chairman Dave Archambault II criticized the way other crowd dispersing methods  rubber bullets and concussion cannons  were also used.

There were visible injuries among the group, including dozens with burning eyes; one person with rib cage bruises, apparently from bean bag bullets; and one other with a sore arm from allegedly being grabbed by police. Law enforcement reported no injuries by evening, though at least two officers were hit with wood objects thrown by protesters.

Protesters set up a series of three barricades in their attempts to stop police. A contingent started a fire at the first, set up temporary straw bales at the second and two men locked to the undercarriage of a pickup at the third.

Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier claimed a victory in the late afternoon, saying, "We are not leaving the area. We are holding it."

And Gov. Jack Dalrymple complimented law enforcement's efforts to remove the protesters from Dakota Access property.

"This situation has been well handled from start to finish," Dalrymple said. "Going forward, hopefully we have persuaded protesters that public roadways and private property is not the place to hold a protest."

Down but not out

Organizer Dallas Goldtooth said the day was also a victory for protesters.

"This is not a loss, we always knew this camp was at risk," he said. "We want the world to see how far North Dakota and their police will go to protect an oil company."

Many protesters were troubled by the day  some by law enforcement's response and others by the shouting and shoving among their own over how to protect the camp. Some people prayed, others took more direct action.

"We need our numbers to get back at the prayer," one called out, asking the group to retreat.

Another fired back, "You're doing the police's work for them!"

Loren Bagola walked down the highway along with the retreating protesters and called it a sad day.

"They used extreme force and tear gas against people who were praying," he said. "I'm heartbroken."

Police broke up a circle of 50 people in prayer, as they moved through the front line camp, searching tents and teepees and marking them with orange X's when they'd been cleared.

Olive Bias, of Colorado quietly sang as she backed up under police pressure.

"We said that this was no surrender here, so different people had different ideas about no surrender," she said. "We've been so successful with what we've been doing for so long. Now look. It's nothing but chaos."

Joe Pulliam, of Pine Ridge, S.D., said the disagreements among protesters was "going to happen."

"There's young militants that want to take action and elders that know better," he said. "How can you blame us after hundreds of years of deception and genocidal tactics?"

As police formed a cordon around protesters on the highway, yellow construction equipment started work on the pipeline within view, in an area the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe said contains sacred sites.

"They're taunting us. They're making it worse the way they know how," Pulliam said.

About 50 protesters marched into the construction zone, where they encountered police, and several were arrested. Soon after the protesters were cleared from the site, roughly 30 private Dakota Access security guards walked over the hill from behind the construction to observe the protesters getting pushed down the highway.

Conflict continues

Thursday's confrontation followed failed negotiations between top law enforcement officials and camp leaders. Law enforcement insisted that protesters clear out of a camp on private property and stop blocking the road for public safety reasons. Protesters said the land is theirs by an 1851 treaty and refused to move.

Protests have been going on in southern Morton County since Aug. 10. The actions support the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe's effort to protect their water and sacred sites from the $3.8 billion Bakken crude oil pipeline.

Construction is nearly complete in North Dakota, but the company lacks a critical easement from the corps to cross the Missouri River/Lake Oahe.

Dalrymple said he tried to convince Archambault to tell the protesters to leave the Dakota Access property for the main camp.

"To the best of my knowledge, he did not do that. But I think that we need to keep asking the Standing Rock Tribal Council to encourage peaceful protest, Dalrymple said.

In a statement Thursday evening, Archambault said, "We won't step down from this fight. This is about our water, our rights, and our dignity as human beings."

As a long line of horses, people, cars and trucks retreated to the main camp, some said the fight is far from over. They are expecting more people to come and support their stand against the pipeline.

And in an uplifting moment, hoots and hollers were heard from the retreating crowd as two men on horseback herded buffalo through the Cannonball Ranch. Within minutes, the same horse riders were fleeing police in side-by-side ATV's and disappeared over the hill.

Red Warrior Camp spokesman Cody Hall said he isn't sure the front-line camp will be occupied again. There is a possibility of using corps land near the Missouri River as a next front, he said.

"Tomorrow is another day," said Bagola, of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. "We'll be back."
Fierce fighting has broken out around the Syrian city of Aleppo after rebels launched a large-scale offensive to break the government's siege of opposition-held areas.

A reporter inside the city on the pro-government Mayadeen TV channel reported attacks on "all sides" of the city, "from the furthest points north to furthest south".

Sounds of heavy gunfire, mortar fire and explosions were heard in the background of his broadcast. Dark smoke was seen rising above the city on the overcast morning.

Presumed government or Russian jets were also heard flying overhead. The reporter said they were targeting rebel positions.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said rebels detonated two car bombs at government positions to the city's south west and attacked with hundreds of rockets.

It said at least one of the vehicles was driven by a suicide bomber for the al Qaida-linked Fatah al-Sham Front.

Aleppo is the focal point of the six-year war, with president Bashar Assad determined to retake the country's largest city and former commercial capital.

The government has maintained a siege on rebel-held eastern quarters since September. The UN estimates 275,000 people are trapped inside with dwindling supplies of food and medicine.

The Islamic Front rebel coalition announced on Twitter that the ultra-conservative Ahrar al-Sham group targeted a military airport to the east of the city with Grad rockets and destroyed a government position to the west of the city.

Ammar Sakkar, military spokesman for the Fastaqim faction inside the city, said: "All the revolutionary factions, without exception, are participating in the battle."

This is the second attempt by rebels to break the government's siege. They opened a corridor to the east for the month of August after pro-government forces first applied a blockade in July.

Rebels launched the offensive as the Russian, Syrian, and Iranian foreign ministers met in Moscow. Iran and Russia are Assad's main backers and have committed air power, ground forces and military advisers to the war.
The Philippine president, who once called the pope a "son of a bitch" and told Barack Obama to "go to hell", says he has promised to God he will not use expletives again.

President Rodrigo Duterte's profanities have become his trademark, especially when threatening to kill drug dealers as part of his war on illegal drugs that has left thousands dead since he took office at the end of June.

Mr Duterte made the pledge on arrival in his southern home town of Davao city from a trip to Japan.

While flying home, he said he was looking at the sky while everyone was asleep, some snoring, and he heard a voice that said "'if you don't stop epithets, I will bring this plane down now".

"And I said, 'Who is this?' So, of course, 'it's God'," he said.

"So, I promise God to ... not express slang, swear words and everything. So you guys hear me right always because (a) promise to God is a promise to the Filipino people."

Mr Duterte's vow was met with applause, but he cautioned: "Don't clap too much or else this may get derailed."

He shocked Roman Catholics last year when he fired off an expletive while expressing his disgust over a monstrous traffic jam that trapped him while Pope Francis was visiting Manila.

"I wanted to call. 'Pope, you son of a bitch, go home.' Don't visit here anymore," he told a mob of supporters, some of whom laughed.

He later apologised after Filipino bishops expressed shock and outrage.

It is not certain if the 71-year-old president, who has been compared to US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump because of his brash language, can keep his promise.

Mr Duterte made a similar pledge in June when it became evident that he had won the May 9 presidential elections overwhelmingly on a pledge to end crimes, especially illegal drugs, and corruption.

He said then that he was enjoying his last moments as a "rude person" because "when I become president, when I take my oath of office ... that will be a different story. There will be a metamorphosis".

It did not take long for Mr Duterte to break the promise.

He has repeatedly levelled tirades against Mr Obama, UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon, a few outspoken opposition politicians and human rights advocates, while heaping praise on Chinese and Russian leaders.

There were no expletives in his speech late on Thursday, but Mr Duterte still sounded mean towards critics.

When asked for his message for a Filipino beauty queen who won the recent Miss International pageant, Mr Duterte said he was proud.

"Many Filipinas are beautiful, but all of you there in the human rights commission are ugly," he added.

Asked if the days of his swearing at the US and the EU are over, Mr Duterte did not answer clearly.

"I do not want anybody reading my mind because I couldn't make a smart move anymore. But it's all calibrated, it's all about timing," Mr Duterte said.
A town mayor and nine other men have been killed in a clash with police in the deadliest operation of an anti-drug crackdown launched by Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte.

Police say more than 3,600 suspected drug dealers and users have been killed since Mr Duterte took office on June 30.

In August, Mr Duterte publicly read out the names of mayor Samsudin Dimaukom and more than 150 other officials he accused of involvement in drug trafficking in Datu Saudi Ampatuan township in southern Maguindanao province.

After his name was read out, Dimaukom turned himself in to police and denied involvement. He told the media he was fighting illegal drugs himself and supported Mr Duterte's crackdown.

Dimaukom and the nine others were killed at dawn on Friday after they opened fire on officers manning a checkpoint in Makilala town, North Cotabato province, police Superintendent Bernard Tayong said.

"Our men were forced to retaliate when the heavily armed suspects who were on board two vehicles began firing at them," said Senior Superintendent Albert Ignatius Ferro, who heads a police anti-drugs force.

Police found an M16 rifle, four pistols, a 12-gauge shotgun, ammunition and at least 13 small plastic packs of suspected methamphetamine, known locally as shabu, from the bullet-peppered vehicles of the suspects, Senior Superintendent Leonardo Suan said.

Police said they had received information that Dimaukom's group was planning to transport a "huge" amount of methamphetamine from Davao city, Mr Duterte's home town, to Datu Saudi Ampatuan.

The president's crackdown has drawn international concern over extra-judicial killings, but he has repeatedly dismissed criticism and vowed to keep his election promise to rid the country of illegal drugs. He originally said he would do so in six months, but extended that deadline by half a year, saying he was overwhelmed by the magnitude of the drug menace.

The extent of the crackdown is unprecedented in the country. Since he took office, police have arrested more than 31,600 suspects, and more than 750,000 people, mostly drug users, have surrendered to authorities, largely due to fears they could end up dead. Police have visited more than 2.6 million homes to urge suspected drug users and dealers to stop.

On Wednesday, police launched a new phase of the crackdown called Double Barrel, which they say will focus on "high-value targets" such as drug lords and those involved in large-scale production and trafficking.

Mr Duterte said he still has a long list of suspects including politicians, village officials, judges and policemen, showing a thick pile of documents. "This is the drug industry in the Philippines," he said. "I can't deal with this alone."

He appeared to issue another warning, saying that thousands more drug suspects may end up dead. He expressed disgust over criticism levelled against him while he battles a menace that he said has left many police dead.

"And to say that I should behave and keep on harping on that ... I'll tell you I will triple it," he said. "If my wishes aren't followed ... you can expect about 20,000 or 30,000 more."

"There is a war going on, I am losing two, three policemen a day. It's a war, how could it be ... genocide, killing a helpless person there, kneeling," he said. "There's none of that, we do not gather children and young men and shoot them."
President Vladimir Putin has said the claims of Russia's interference in the US presidential election are designed to distract public attention from real issues.

The United States has accused Russia of coordinating the hacks of Hillary Clinton's campaign emails to influence the outcome of the election.

Speaking to international foreign policy experts in Sochi, President Putin dismissed "the hysteria about Russia's influence on the US presidential election".

He argued that US elites have used the "mythical and fictitious" issue to distract attention from real problems such as government debt and police violence.

President Putin disputed that the US is "some kind of 'banana republic'" that could be susceptible to Russia's influence, calling America "a great power".

He also said it's equally "ridiculous" to allege that Russia has aggressive military intentions.

He called the claim that Russia favours Donald Trump in the race as "sheer nonsense" that has served as a campaign tool.

President Putin added that it is not clear what stance the next US president will take toward Russia, but added that Moscow welcomes campaign statements about normalising ties.

"We will work with any president who will be elected by the American people," he said.

'Plain ridiculous'

President Putin also asserted that the rise of popularity of nationalist parties in Europe was rooted in a widening gap between elites and the regular citizens, not the influence of Russian propaganda as many in the West have suggested.

"I would like to have such propaganda machine in Russia, but, regrettably, there is no such thing," President Putin said with a note of sarcasm. "We don't have such global media as CNN, BBC and others."

He also shrugged off allegations that Russia harbours aggressive military intentions in Europe.

"Of course, it's quite pleasant and sometimes advantageous to cast oneself as a defender of civilization from some kind of new barbarians, but Russia has no intention to attack anyone," he said.

"It's plain ridiculous."

Russia-West relations have plummeted to their lowest point since the Cold War era amid the Ukrainian crisis and differences over the war in Syria.

The US and the European Union have imposed economic sanctions on Russia in response to its annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula and support for a pro-Russia insurgency in eastern Ukraine.

The US and its Nato allies have deployed their forces in the Baltics and Poland in response to Russia's moves.

Moscow has described the deployments as a threat to its security and pledged to respond in kind.

Speaking at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics, US Secretary of State John Kerry insisted Washington has no doubts of direct Russian involvement in the hacking.

"The president would not have authorised a release of the assessment to the intelligence community if we didn't feel that it was serious and also if we didn't feel that it was certain," he said.

He also said separately in a CNN podcast that "the goal is to be disruptive, to interfere with our system, and be as annoying as people feel it is".

Mr Kerry said he has confronted Russian counterparts such as foreign minister Sergey Lavrov on the matter.

"Their response is to demand the evidence and to ask for it," he said. "And my response to that is, 'Let's not be foolish here. You know what we're talking about.'"
Children's charity Unicef has said the bombing of a school in Syria amounts to a war crime.

At least 20 pupils were killed in the attack on a school in Syria's rebel-held Idlib province earlier this week that has been blamed on Russia. Unicef said 22 children and six teachers were killed.
LONDON: OPEC is likely to maintain its view world oil demand will rise for another decade, longer than many other...
A former government official of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation accused of accepting bribes and kickbacks from a construction contractor has pleaded guilty to federal charges in North Dakota. Randall Phelan was an elected representative of the governing body of the Three Affiliated Tribes from the end of 2012 to the middle of 2020. Investigators say Phelan used his official position to help the contractors business by awarding contracts, fabricating bids and managing fraudulent invoices. His trial had been scheduled to begin Tuesday. Phelan and two others were originally charged with receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars from the bribery scheme on the oil-rich Fort Berthold Indian Reservation. The contractor has pleaded guilty to bribery.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Russia have reportedly failed to reach any agreement for import of wheat from the latter on...
Investors and owner occupiers are continuing to vie for assets in Sydney's inner city market. A subdued supply pipeline and the continuation of older stock for residential conversion is increasing competition in the sector, while its range of transport, retail and leisure options continues to attract prospective occupiers and residents to the area.



Much of the stock for office or light industrial use on the market is older, and this means that price should not be taken on face value, as not all assets are equal. While older stock in this precinct can often command a lower end price and rate per square metre, they sometimes require a higher level of capital expenditure to bring it up to the Building Code of Australia occupancy standard. This means a buyer's investment strategy needs to be carefully considered, particularly for those who are newer to the process surrounding older stock or have perhaps favoured newer stock in the past.



A sale that demonstrates the prices and rates per square metre that an older property in this region can attract was 64 Parramatta Road, Forest Lodge, purchased by an owner occupier and sold by myself and colleague Gary Mason, along with Joe Ayoub of Commercial Central.

Sold for $6.5 million with a rate per square metre of $3500, this was significantly more competitive than similar buildings in the area that can command rates per square metre of $4500 to $5500. However, this was somewhat balanced by the capital expenditure required on the property due to it last having a DA occupancy approval from council in 1989.



It's important to note that the level of work required depends on when the property was built or when DA consent for occupancy was last lodged with council.

Investors are competing with owner occupiers for property. Credit:Isabella Lettini

The regulation required under the Building Code of Australia has seen tighter standards on certain aspects over time. Key areas that need addressing because of these changes, and should therefore be considered by buyers, include building access such as maximum stair heights, along with fire safety relating to fire-rated doors, fire-escape access, portable fire extinguisher requirements and more. Ceiling height is another consideration, as is whether the building has accessible facilities.

While the buyer of this particular property was aware of the additional expense required, some in the market may not be. For those in that situation, it's of increased importance to be aware of required out-of-pocket funds, especially in a market such as the inner city, where competition for assets could see some make investment decisions quicker than usual.
Addison took no more than three minutes to get control of this cloned film star astromech that had carried out many successful missions for the Resistance on the big screen. But now, under the full control of a four-year-old Melburnian, BB-8 moved swiftly between the dining room chairs and table and straight for Bunk, the 30-kilogram Labrador whose eyes narrowed as the little hero closed in. Defence Minister Marise Payne is one of three ministers grasping for the remote control. Credit:Andrew Meares It's amazing to see this new generation pick-up digital devices of all kinds so quickly. And in the realm of war game toys, the key technique is the use of a remote control rather than the old back-and-forth-on-the-floor wind-up motion, with that verbalised "vroom vroom" accompaniment. But I can also tell you it's not that much different in the world of military hardware. Illustration: Cathy Wilcox

Remote control In terms of mission control, there's not all that much difference between an attack on Bunk and a drone assault in the bad lands of Afghanistan. It's all about remote control. Watching Addison I was reminded of a dinner I hosted as chairman of the National Gallery. Some of our military top brass were there, as was the then Defence Minister Senator Robert Hill. War is stupid  why kill the economy? I quizzed him about a recent big delivery of giant, second-hand tanks from the US that were designed for desert warfare but were so heavy we couldn't get them to the desert where the war was. The minister simply shrugged and said: "Boys and their toys", nodding discreetly towards the defence chiefs present.

But not all the defence battles are overseas. Witness the action in Canberra this past week as three of our ministers of the crown tried to identify who was really in charge of the modern-day wars. We had the current Minister for Defence Marise Payne  a highly regarded good solid country girl  and the ever-effervescent Minister for Defence Industry Christopher Pyne getting excited in furious and unconvincing unison with earnest Minister for Defence Personnel Dan Tehan about where one set of responsibilities started and another ended. But our defence chiefs seem to know what they are doing. Enormous spending So where is all of this heading? It's one thing for a four-year-old to get a $99.99 robot for his birthday; it's another entirely to try to drive the economy with an eye-watering $200 billion spend on military gear of all kinds. "That's enormous!" says Charlie.

I still remember the Google conference I went to in the US half a dozen years ago where the great American media owner and CNN founder Ted Turner said: "War is stupid. Why should you go out and kill all your customers?" "Fair enough," says Charlie. Now, I'm not a dreamer. Humans have been waging wars for 2000 years and will probably do so for another 2000 years. But there needs to be some balance between government expenditure priorities designed to protect the country and those to protect the economy. In fact I'd say "war is stupid  why kill the economy?" But given the realities, there also needs to be a clear understanding of the basics of co-ordination.
A young entrepreneur has bounced into Brisbane business history books by taking out the top prize at the Lord Mayor's Business Awards on Friday night.

Vuly Trampolines chief executive Joe Andon was named Brisbane's Business Person of the Year at a City Hall awards ceremony on Friday night.

Vuly Trampolines founder Joe Andon has been named Brisbane's business person of the year at the 2016 Lord Mayor's Business Awards.

Mr Andon founded Vuly Trampolines, one of Australia's leading trampoline manufacturers, when he was just 19 years old.

Lord Mayor Graham Quirk said Mr Andon won the award based largely on his efforts in transforming Brisbane's business industry.
Michael worked long and hard, trying to meet his daily targets as a third-party fundraiser for certain charities and sporting foundations. Each day he would receive multiple text messages asking for updates on his sales figures. If he didn't meet his targets he was urged to "push on" until late. "He worked in the rain and the blazing sun, even suffering heat stroke, which caused him to miss a day of work (he was asked to produce a medical certificate)  with no pay and no reduced/pro-rata target for the week, so absolutely no hope of achieving the set target," Tracey says. "Once, during a particularly wet spell, he received a text message from his team leader advising him to keep his merchandise (vouchers) dry or he would have to pay for any wet vouchers out of his meagre earnings." On December 17, after a long, hard day at work, Michael came home, then went back to Surry Hills for a work function. His parents never saw him again. We buried our son two days before Christmas 2015. He was just 22 years old. His employer did not even bother to attend. Michael Bowker's mother, Tracey

He wandered on to train tracks and was struck and killed by a train travelling at 80km/h. "We buried our son two days before Christmas 2015. He was just 22 years old," Tracey says. "His employer did not even bother to attend. In fact, they went ahead and had their staff Christmas party on the same day  they celebrated while we wept." In a statement, Appco Australia chief executive Martin Gaffney described Michael's death as a terrible tragedy. He said Michael was an independent contractor and the evening gathering was "one of a series of occasional non-compulsory social gatherings for colleagues". According to Gaffney, when Torque's managing director heard the news he was "distraught and offered to help in any way possible". Gaffney said the office was closed the following day as a mark of respect. "Michael's fellow contractors gathered to comfort each other. The company sent flowers to Michael's home." Gaffney said that, in several phone calls over the next few days, Michael's mother made it clear she preferred that the marketing company did not attend the funeral. "She did not ask for any further help. She asked for Michael's files, which were supplied. Several weeks later the family lodged an insurance claim, which was handled by the insurer."

Tracey remembers it very differently. "They sent a bunch of flowers a couple of days after he died and then washed their hands of the whole 'unpleasant incident' as if it had never happened," she says. In the following weeks the family did not hear from anybody at Torque Global. She said she called Torque Global about personal effects or monies outstanding, but the boss would not take her calls. "I had to follow up multiple times before receiving a response," she says. Tracey and Michael's father then lodged a workers compensation case against Torque Global. The claim was rejected on the grounds that Michael was a contractor and not an employee. It is the same argument used by Appco, which states that collectors are hired on "a self-employed basis to a marketing company (not to Appco) and earnings are based on performance". Tracey and others who have signed up for the class action disagree. They believe the relationship is that of an employer-employee.
The owner of a marketing firm at the centre of an alleged bullying scandal has stood down from his job, as fundraising giant Appco launches an urgent investigation into the treatment of donation-collectors.

Appco has ordered all of its 64 other marketing agencies to turn over any details of "suspected or known" bullying and harassment, and provide written assurances that they are not tolerating such behaviour.

Appco chief executive Martin Gaffney said agencies that could not give this assurance would risk losing their business with Appco.

"We will not tolerate, condone or turn a blind eye to the type of behaviour alleged," he said.
While DuWayne Hendrickson acknowledges his write-in U.S. House campaign may be a long shot, he said he would be the hardest fighter that North Dakota voters could ever choose.

Hendrickson, 59, unsuccessfully vied for the Republican Party nomination in 2012, 2014 and earlier this year. He also ran as an Independent in 2008 for governor and ran a write-in campaign in 2010 for the U.S. House.

He said he wants to serve in order to reduce the nations budget deficit and leave the country in a better place for future generations.

Running for my 10 grandkids. We (must) leave a better nation for the next generation, or were screwed, Hendrickson said.

Hendrickson, a Minot native who is self-employed, served in the U.S. Army from 1974-76.

He said hed want to also work for veterans, adding that his brother was killed in action in the Middle East in the 2000s. Hendrickson wants to do his part to ensure that other families dont have to go through what his has with their loss.

Hendrickson said he looks at the Dakota Access Pipeline protests and doesnt see the situation ending well. He said the Dakota Access Pipeline protest movement and law enforcement response could lead to injuries or a potential deadly incident at some point.

I actually foresee it happening, Hendrickson said.

Two-term GOP Rep. Kevin Cramer is running against Democratic-NPL candidate Chase Iron Eyes and Libertarian Party candidate Jack Seaman.
"On October 26, we learnt that a file, containing donor information,which was located on a development website, was left unsecured by a contracted third party who develops and maintains our website," Ms Park said. "The issue occurred due to human error. Consequently, this file was accessed by a person outside of our organisation." Ms Park said the organisation had engaged cyber security experts to investigate how it was "caught out" and was in the process of notifying donors affected. Donors affected have been warned there is an increased risk to their online security and that they should be on the look out for phone and email scams. "We are extremely sorry. We are deeply disappointed to have put our donors in this position," Ms Park said.

Online security blogger Troy Hunt, who runs a data breach notification service, reported the person who gained access to the information had contacted him, revealing Mr Hunt's own personal details and a 1.74GB data file containing the records. His name, email, gender, date of birth, phone number and date of last donation were disclosed in the file. This was also the case with his wife, whose file also contained her blood type and their home address. "The database backup was published to a publicly facing website. This is really the heart of the problem because no way, no how should that ever happen," he wrote in a blog post. Mr Hunt said he had deleted his copy of the information and the person who gave it to him had agreed to do the same. The Red Cross said, to their knowledge, "all known copies of the data have been deleted".

Some exposed data could contain the highly sensitive eligibility questions, including: "In the last 12 months, have you engaged in any at-risk sexual behaviour?" Donors are also asked if they have ever injected recreational drugs, are on antibiotics, if they are under or overweight and if they have undergone any surgical procedures. Australian Privacy Commissioner Timothy Pilgrim announced a probe into the breach on Friday afternoon. "I will be opening an investigation into this matter and will work with the Red Cross to assist them in addressing the issues arising from this incident. "The results of that investigation will be made public at its conclusion," he said in a statement.

"My office encourages voluntary notification of data breaches, particularly where there is a risk to an individual as a result of a breach." Human Rights lawyer George Newhouse said the privacy commissioner had the power to order damages and apologies. Adjunct Professor Newhouse also said his office was considering mounting legal action for those affected. "We're looking into a class action on behalf of those who have had their data unlawfully accessed," he said. "On the basis that they've had their privacy breached."

Even basic personal information could lead to identity fraud but it was worse for anyone who's sexual or medical history had been compromised, he said. "This is highly sensitive personal information that could cause enormous embarrassment to people in their personal and work lives. This incident highlights how vulnerable organisations and individuals are to unauthorised access." A Health Department spokeswoman said she was confident the blood service would recover. "The ARCBS is a long-standing institution who are charged with ensuring a viable donor base, safe collection, processing and distribution of blood and blood products," she said. "We are confident that the ARCBS will be able to recover from this incident, build the confidence of the donor base and ensure that the safety and security of their systems are robust and compliant with privacy and confidentiality requirements."
The highly anticipated Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, which is known to fly its annual catwalk to the stylish capitals of the world, has revealed Paris is the next stop.

And there's no doubt the Bright Night Fantasy bra, which was unveiled on Wednesday, will shine bright in the city of lights. Baring the price tag of US$3 million ($3.9 million), the coveted piece - made of 9000 precious stones and totalling more than 450 carats of 18K gold - was dreamed up by jewellery designer Eddie Borgo and took more than 700 hours to assemble by hand with rocks from AWMouzannar.

ctoria's Secret Angel Jasmine Tookes reveals the $3 Million 2016 Bright Night Fantasy Bra at Victoria's Secret, 5th Avenue. Credit:Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty

Wearing the fantasy bra is considered an honour and this year 25-year-old model Jasmine Tookes will be strutting the emerald and diamond encrusted piece down the catwalk.

Tookes, who made her Victoria's Secret catwalk debut last year, told Elle US that she had to wait five months before she could tell anyone, revealing the lengthy creation process included the model sitting in plaster for three hours.
The buyers of about 140 properties may be unknowingly affected by road corridors after the state government admitted a major administrative bungle late on Friday.

The error relates to the proposed F6 motorway through southern Sydney and the Werrington Arterial road near Penrith.

A statement from the Finance, Services and Property Minister, Dominic Perrottet, said Land and Property Information services had issued incorrect certificates to property buyers along these corridors.

"I have been advised that an estimated 309 inquirers may have received an incorrect response," Mr Perrottet's statement said. This affected "at least 140 recently transacted properties in which Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) may have an interest".
The getaway car used in the fatal shooting of Hamad Assaad in Sydney's south-west has been found burnt out in a suburban street.

Mr Assaad was getting into his car outside his house in Sturt Avenue, Georges Hall, on Tuesday morning when two gunmen opened fire.

The 29-year-old was shot several times and bled to death on the driveway.

He had been on the police radar as a suspect in the public execution of Walid "Wally" Ahmad, a well-known standover man, at Bankstown Central shopping centre in April.
The state government's plan to address the chronic shortage of affordable housing across Sydney has received broad support from its political opponents and the community housing sector, but has triggered alarm from the property development industry.

Capping off a week in which Sydney's housing affordability received heightened attention, Fairfax Media revealed on Friday the NSW government plans to unveil a new "inclusionary zoning" policy mandating affordable housing targets across the Sydney area.

The policy, which will be implemented by the Greater Sydney Commission through "district plans", will require new housing developments on rezoned land to dedicate 5-10 per cent of the extra floor space to low-income homes, which will be managed by community housing providers.

The community housing sector, which has long advocated for inclusionary zoning schemes, applauded the NSW government's move, which it said would bring Sydney closer into line with international cities such as New York and London.
The Gold Coast's first international surfing and beach conservation conference will be held in Currumbin next year.

The International Surfing Symposium, to be held at the Currumbin RSL in March 2017, will address surfing behaviour, shark protection and ocean and beach conservation.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, with Wayne Bartholomew, congratulates Andy McKinnoin as the Gold Coastt is announced as the eight World Surfing Reserve in 2015. Credit:Luke Sorensen

Surfing contributes about $1.4 billion to the local economy and supports more than 20,000 jobs, Environment Minister Steven Miles told guests at the conference announcement on Friday morning..

The International Surfing Symposium is backed by the Queensland Government, Gold Coast City Council and the community group that last year successfully lobbied to have the Coast's southern beaches recognised world-wide, the Gold Coast World Surfing Reserve Incorporated.
Police are concerned for the welfare of a three-month-old baby girl, who has been missing for two days.

Mia Garang was last seen with her mother, 27-year-old Abuk Garang, at a Sunshine West property on Wednesday.

Police are concerned for the welfare of missing three-month-old Mia.

"Police are concerned for Mia's welfare and have released an image of her, along with Abuk," a police spokesman said.

He said it was believed the baby could be travelling with her mother, who is known to frequent the Sunshine and Sunshine West areas.
A Salvation Army worker will likely die in jail after being sentenced to 18 years in prison for sexually abusing children in his care over almost 30 years.

Robert Burnett, 77, maintained his innocence throughout 14 different trials on the abuse, which took place when he invited children to sleep over at his home or took them on camping holidays between 1973 and 1999.

Many of Robert Burnett's victims were vulnerable boys he met through his work as a carer at Salvation Army homes. Credit:Jim Rice

County Court Judge Bill Stuart, who presided over 12 of the trials, said Burnett had shown no remorse or accepted any responsibility in that time for his crimes against seven vulnerable victims, aged seven to 13 years.

Most of them had been placed in state care when they were very young.
A union plan to ease the impact of the expected closure of the Hazelwood power station would see workers re-deployed elsewhere in the Latrobe Valley or put to work demolishing the power station and rehabilitating the mine.

"We want the government to establish a regional transition scheme for the Latrobe Valley," said Geoff Dyke, Victorian branch secretary of the mining and energy division of the CFMEU.

Hazelwood coal mine and power station. Credit:Jason South

"What we want is an industry-wide scheme where the older workers at the newer power stations are given an incentive to retire early, and that the younger workers at the Hazelwood power station can take up their positions," he said.

"So it's basically a re-deployment scheme across the region. Now the advantage of that is that the older workers would probably retire in the valley and contribute to the community with their superannuation.
The dishonest actions of a former West Australian real estate agent and his son over six rural land deals resulted in a $6 million profit for their family, the State Administrative Tribunal has found.

Former licensees The King and I, formerly trading as Colin King Real Estate, its director Colin Maxwell King and his sales representative son Paul Anthony King breached the Code of Conduct for Agents and Sales Representatives between 2008 and 2010.

Real estate agent Colin Maxwell King and his son misled farmers in $6m land sales. Credit:Graham Tidy

The pair were selling agents for three lots and introduced the buyers in each sale, Consumer Protection said.

All six lots were first sold to an intermediary company controlled by another son Michael King, who was not a licensed real estate agent or sales representative, then on-sold to Malaysian-based investors at higher prices.
A drug rehabilitation centre in Perth's western suburbs, that's been helping addicts recover since 2009, has been given 90 days to close its doors after the local council voted to deny its re-zoning application.

That re-zoning would have allowed the Fresh Start clinic on Wembley's Harborne Street to stay open, but Cambridge Council voted seven to two against the move, despite impassioned arguments against the move by some councillors.

Fresh Start also runs a clinic in Subiaco. Credit:Fresh Start

Fresh Start's founder Dr George O'Neil told Radio 6PR his work to rehabilitate drug addicts on a small property in a residential area was always a difficult balance.

"On a public basis all I can do is say that all the neighbours have been very good to us over the years, and from time to time you have people going into the backyard swearing and no matter how much you get your staff to follow them out they can't quite stop them swearing at the right time, so it is frustrating to stop," he said.
Alina Fisk, 4, poses with a Donald Trump cut-out while Halloween costume shopping with her mother in Florida. Credit:AP At Trump Tower, though, the firm's work is embraced as a vital part of its plan, and there are ties between Trump's world and the company. Stephen Bannon, the Trump campaign's chief executive, sits on the Cambridge Analytica board, according to a Bloomberg News report. Hedge-fund billionaire Robert Mercer, the top donor to a pro-Trump political action committee, reportedly is the majority owner. Brad Parscale, the Trump campaign's digital director, said that he has never met Mercer and that he first encountered Cambridge Analytica when the company cold-called him to offer its services. Hillary Clinton with first lady Michelle Obama at a rally in North Carolina. Credit:AP Parscale said that he offered a $US100,000 initial payment to run tests and that he was impressed with the results in finding donors. The company "provides great modelling data for fundraising and persuadable voters," he said.

The campaign receives Cambridge's data on a computerised dashboard that offers recommendations, such as where to hold rallies, where volunteers should knock on doors, where potential donors live and where television ads should be placed, according to company and campaign officials. Donald Trump in Toledo, Ohio. Credit:AP Parscale declined to discuss the company's work on psychological profiling because he has not "opened the hood" on its technology, he said. He stressed that the campaign also gets data from the Republican National Committee, and he said much of the recent payment to Cambridge was redirected to pay for television ads in places the firm recommended. Cambridge Analytica - a US-incorporated affiliate of SCL Group, a British firm that has worked on campaigns in 22 countries - says it is working on 50 campaigns in the United States, all of them Republican. A key to its strategy is the fact that US laws regarding the release of personal information are more lax than in some other countries, enabling it to mine far more data here. For example, European Union countries require much personal data to be kept private unless a person "opts in" to its release. The United States, by contrast, allows much data to be released unless a person "opts out". Thus, companies such as Cambridge Analytica can collect thousands of pieces of information about voters.

The explosion in the use of personal data and psychological profiling in campaigns accelerated in the wake of Republican Mitt Romney's 2012 loss to President Obama. Romney had said he had a state-of-the-art analytic operation, only to find that his campaign's get-out-the-vote technology crashed on Election Day and that the Obama team had far more-advanced information about voters. The Republican Party vowed to improve its methodology, and that provided an opening for Cambridge Analytica, Nix said. "To be blunt, that was the landscape that we entered back in 2013," Nix said in an interview. "Had the Republicans been able to deliver as sophisticated an operation as the Democrats had, there wouldn't have been so much opportunity for Cambridge Analytica to provide the services that we do provide." Initially, it was Senator Ted Cruz, who seized upon the company's methods, paying it at least $US5.8 million to help identify voters in the Iowa caucuses, which Cruz won, and other contests. That led to publicity for the firm's methods, although Cruz went on to lose the Republican presidential nomination to Trump. Nix, in a September speech, seemed to give his company much of the credit for Cruz becoming Trump's top challenger. "It is easy to forget that only 18 months ago that Senator Cruz was one of the less popular candidates and certainly one of the more vilified," Nix said in his speech, standing in front of a giant quote from Senator Lindsey Graham who said, "If you killed Ted Cruz on the floor of the Senate and the trial was in the Senate, nobody could convict you."

Partly because of "the power of big data and psychographics," Cruz rose from 5 per cent to 35 per cent in the polls, Nix said in his speech, which he delivered at the Concordia summit, a New York City gathering of government, business and nonprofit leaders. Whether such analytics had much to do with Cruz's showing is the subject of debate, and some Cruz aides privately said Cambridge Analytica goes too far in taking credit. Cruz did not respond to a request for comment. Among the skeptics about analytics was Trump. In May, citing the way thousands of people turned out for his rallies, Trump told the Associated Press that he "always felt" that relying on voter data was "overrated". A change occurred after Cruz initially declined to endorse Trump. Among Cruz's biggest supporters was Mercer, who gave $US14 million to a pro-Cruz political action committee, Keep the Promise I. Such committees are allowed to accept unlimited donations. The committee was overseen by Kellyanne Conway, who is now Trump's campaign manager. Mercer, a famously reclusive computer programmer, made a fortune as co-chief executive of a New York-based hedge fund, Renaissance Technologies, which relies heavily on analytics for its investment decisions. He believed that analytics could transform campaigns and became the major investor in Cambridge Analytica, according to a report that initially ran in Politico. Nix declined to confirm or deny Mercer's role. Another PAC, Keep the Promise II, paid Cambridge Analytica $US570,000 in the early days of the presidential contest, when it was boosting Cruz's candidacy.

After Cruz dropped out of the race, Mercer switched his loyalties to Trump, and the committee to which he had donated changed its name to Defeat Crooked Hillary PAC, which runs ads savaging the Democratic nominee. Mercer did not respond to a request for comment. It is not clear whether Cambridge Analytica, along with Trump's in-house data team and Republican Party efforts, can catch up to the Clinton campaign. Clinton is the beneficiary of years of data collected by the party as well as valuable information gathered during the primaries. Moreover, she has 487 field offices, compared with 207 for Trump, according to the website FiveThirtyEight. Pro-Clinton ads outnumber pro-Trump ads by a 3-to-1 margin, according to a study by the Wesleyan Media Project. These shortfalls have made the role of analytics particularly important for Trump. One day earlier this week, Nix sat in a conference room overlooking Fifth Avenue, in offices once occupied by editors of Scribner's, where work was done on novels such as F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby and Ernest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises. The publisher has long since moved to other quarters, and the iconic bookstore that once took up the first three stories has been replaced by a Sephora cosmetics store. Upstairs, where novelists and their editors once sought to illuminate a character's motivation, Nix and his team try to understand that of voters. Cambridge Analytica relies on a system it developed called OCEAN, an acronym for the five main voter traits it can identify: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness and neuroticism. The company collects information through a 120-question survey taken by hundreds of thousands of people. The psychological tests are combined with the collection of data, such as a person's taste in movies, music, books and restaurants and the "likes" or "hearts" on social media sites. All of that information is added to a spreadsheet that contains the name of every voter. Thus, the company's files reveal a person's gender, race, location, car type, club memberships, and reading and viewing habits, along with potentially thousands of other pieces of information.
London: Nadia Murad Basee Taha and Lamiya Aji Bashar, two young Iraqis who escaped sexual slavery at the hands of the Islamic State and became advocates for women's rights, have been honoured with the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, the European Union's top human rights award.

Murad and Aji Bashar are among thousands of women and girls from the Yazidi community whom the terrorist group kidnapped, sexually assaulted, enslaved and in many cases killed.

Nadia Murad, centre, is welcomed by Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos, right, before their meeting in Athens last year. Credit:AP

In the northern summer of 2014, they were enslaved when the Islamic State overran their home village, Kocho, near the northern Iraqi city of Sinjar, a longtime hub of Yazidi life.

Separated from her mother and siblings, who were also captured, Murad, now 23, fled in November 2014 and made her way to a refugee camp in northern Iraq and then to Germany.
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Its the Afropunk Army.

Broke music lovers who want to attend the annual festival of black alternative bands and artists next year can get free tickets from Borough Presidents  if they volunteer some of their time.

The tickets, which cost $45$75 dollars at this years festival in Commodore Barry Park, will be given to those donating eight hours of their time doing things such as distributing flyers for Borough President Adamss upcoming town hall meeting with the chair of the New York City Housing Authority Chair Shola Olatoye and Councilman Ritchie Torres (DBronx) and promoting awareness about programs that already exist but people might not otherwise know about.

We think even more so there will be folks that are already keen on going to the festival that are looking at this as a possible opportunity for public service, said Stefan Ringel, a Borough Hall spokesman.

Afropunk  which has expanded from Brooklyn to three other locations around the world  offered free tickets in years past, but added a price tag for the first time in 2015, creating the free-tickets-for-volunteer program to keep the show available to all Brooklynites.

And Ringel said adding to those volunteer opportunities was a no-brainer for the Beeps office.

Afropunk has an incredible culture surrounding it, of social activism merging with popular culture or in some ways counter-culture to raise consciousness on a variety of issues already, he said. Its about activating the festival with a year round movements thats really plugged into public service.

Details of next years festival arent available yet, but the two-day fest typically takes place in late August at Commodore Barry Park in Fort Greene. Part performers have included Bad Brains, Cee Lo Green, Janelle Monae, Suicidal Tendencies, Lauryn Hill, Ice Cube, and Kelis.

To get involved, visit www.afrop unkfe stiva l.com .
Parties interested in the Dakota Access Pipeline wanted their voices heard after police moved protesters off private land and arrested more than 100 people.

Statements from groups interested in the Thursday events came from all over the country.

U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders on Friday announced he had sent a letter to President Barack Obama requesting that he intervene in the situation. Sanders asked the president to send Justice Department observers to the protest site, call North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple to remove the National Guard, and direct the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to issue an order to stop work on the pipeline to reduce tensions.

"I urge you to take all appropriate measures to protect the safety of the Native American protesters and their supporters who have gathered peacefully to oppose the construction of the pipeline," Sanders wrote in the letter.

Greenpeace Executive Director Annie Leonard said her organization supports the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and its allies, calling the pipeline a direct threat to the life, rights and water of the Standing Rock Sioux.

We call on President Obama to use his executive power to revoke the permits for construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline immediately. And we reject the actions of North Dakota law enforcement in favoring the interests of Energy Transfer Partners and the fossil fuel industry over the rights of this lands inhabitants, Leonard said in a statement.

A coalition of building and construction trade unions from Minnesota and North Dakota, whose members are working on the pipeline, asked for continued law enforcement presence on the pipeline. Tim Mackey, business manager for Laborers Union Local 563, said members are increasingly afraid for their safety.

As members of organized labor, we fully support every Americans constitutional right to peacefully protest. However, when the safety of working men and women is disrupted by violence and intimidation, measures that protect public safety must be taken, said Glen Johnson, business manager of Operating Engineers Local 49.

Amnesty International USA announced Friday it has sent a delegation of human rights observers to monitor law enforcement response to the protests. The organization also sent observers to the protests in August.

Eric Ferrero, Amnesty's director of communications, said the organization is concerned about the degree of force used in arrests, as reported to the organization, and believes the response was disproportionate.

Our observers are here to ensure that everyones human rights are protected, he said.
WILLISTON  A former Williston man whod admitted to shooting a co-worker and disposing of his body in a field in 2014 has been sentenced to 19 years in prison.

Tovias Carrillo pleaded guilty to murder, aggravated assault and two charges of terrorizing in August for killing Juan Palacios and threatening two other men after Palacios disappeared.

As part of a plea agreement, Northwest District Judge David Nelson on Thursday sentenced Carrillo to 30 years for murder, with 11 of those years suspended. He also handed down four-year sentences for the remaining charges, which will run concurrently with the 19-year term.

Prosecutors credited Carrillo for the nearly three years hes served in prison since his arrest.

Carrillo, 51, appeared in court in an orange jumpsuit and shackles, and remained silent during the hearing.

His attorney, Steve Mottinger, told Nelson that he is satisfied with the outcome of the case.

We believe its appropriate under the circumstances, he said of the agreement.

After his release, he will likely be deported to Mexico, according to attorneys.

Carrillo is already serving a four-year sentence at the state penitentiary for trying to conceal evidence after he attacked an inmate in 2015 in the Williams County Correctional Center.

Authorities say Carrillo and Palacios, 51, worked together at a landscaping business in Williston. The two got into a longstanding argument that escalated until Carrillo met Palacios at his trailer on University Avenue and shot him in the head in January 2014.

He drove the body to a field east of Williston, and led investigators to the site after confessing to the killing.

Carrillo also threatened to kill two other men who he knew through his job around the same time, police say.

After his arrest, Carrillo earned more charges by attacking an inmate at the Williams County jail with a coffee cup and hiding bloody evidence in his cell.

Last year, authorities say he attacked another inmate at the state penitentiary in Bismarck with a sharp metal object. Carrillo was charged with attempted murder and possession of a weapon in a correctional facility, and is scheduled for trial next May.
In the sixth episode of season 3 of How to Get Away with Murder, Is Someone Really Dead?, Annalise and the Keating 5 are shocked by a revelation in the Mahoney murder investigation. Meanwhile, the team takes on the case of a veteran accused of assault, and we get closer to learning who is under the sheet.

Kicking Ass and Taking Names: 8 Strong and Inspirational Women on TV Right Now>>>

The Cops Are After Wes

The episode begins with Annalise confronting Bonnie about lying to her. Bonnie tells Annalise that she went to see Frank for a reason. She then plays a recording she made of Frank confessing to shooting Wallace Mahoney. Annalise says they cant use said confession because if they go to the police about Frank, Frank will turn around and tells the cops everything theyve done since Sams murder. Laurel thinks Annalise brought this on herself because she tried to kill Frank. Annalise lies and says she didnt hire a hitman. They continue arguing until Laurel and Wes are both contacted by Meggy.

It turns out that the cops are at his apartment. Laurel talks to Meggy on the phone while everyone listens in and Meggy says there are two New York cops waiting to talk to Wes about a shooting he witnessed. Laurel lies and tells Meggy that Wes went to the library and thats what she should tell the police.

Wes wants to just go talk to the cops, but Annalise tells him not to leave the house. She thinks Frank gave them Wes name in order to make Wes a suspect. This is his way of hitting back because he thinks they are going to turn his confession over to the cops. Annalise locks the recording away and tells Laurel to dump Wes phone at the library. When Wes tries to leave again, Annalise threatens to chain him up in the basement like Rebecca.

The next day, Wes calls Meggy and lies to her yet again. He tells her the same story that he told the cops  that he was just asking a stranger for directions when he was shot in front of him. Wes then asks Annalise if they should see if Nate can learn anything more about the case, but Annalise says they arent involving Nate in their messes anymore. She tells him shell take care of it and then leaves Wes and Bonnie to babysit each other.



How to Get Away With Murder Recap: The Person Behind the Flyers is Revealed>>>

Annalise Goes Back to Work

Annalise learns that her reinstatement comes with several conditions. She has to abstain from drinking, go to weekly AA meetings, and submit to random alcohol testing. The board also expects to see a change in her conduct, both in and out of court. The board will not tolerate any of Annalises unusual practices and she is warned that this is a two-strike system. I guess that means if Annalise screws up more than twice, shell have her license taken away again.

Wes doesnt show up for class the next day, on Annalises orders, but Annalise comes back to teaching. She presents their new case of an army veteran who is facing aggravated assault charges. She attacked a drunken jerk who was bothering her and her girlfriend in a bar. All the students present their ideas of how to defend this woman, but Annalise likes Drake-the-douches approach the best. He says they should go with the PTSD angle because their client, Danni, was attacked while she was stationed overseas.

The university president comes to see Annalise because the NYPD detectives contacted her looking for Wes. Annalise claims she doesnt know where he is. Annalise then comes clean to the rest of the Keating 5 about Wes involvement in Mahoneys shooting. Michaela thinks they should let Wes talk to the cops, but Annalise says they cant do that until they know why the police want to question him. Annalise reminds the Keating 5 that she always protects him and shell do so again.

Things are still very tense between Annalise and Bonnie. Bonnie isnt convinced that Frank is the one who gave the cops Wes name. She thinks Frank just wants to come home. Annalise says if Frank does come back, Bonnie can let him know that Annalise will kill him for real. Bonnie says she came back home because she loves Annalise. Annalise sends her home because shes not ready to forgive her yet.

Laurel is waiting outside and she asks Bonnie what happened with Frank. Bonnie lies and says nothing happened. Laurel then calls Frank and leaves him a message saying that if he turned Wes in, shell never forgive him. (How will Laurel react if she learns that Frank and Bonnie slept together?)

Annalise Asks Bonnie for Help

When Annalise arrives in court, ADA Atwood is there to greet her. Atwood asked to be co-counsel when she learned this was Annalises case. Annalise then tells Drake the douche that shes doing the cross even though hes first chair. Yet Annalise seems to be a bit rusty and things do not go well when she questions the victim.

Michaela comes to Annalise and tells her that she learned something from their clients ex-girlfriend. It turns out that their client was never attacked overseas. The client, Danni, admits that she wasnt attacked but that the attack really did happen but not to her. She read about it in a report and made it into her own story. Annalise tells her client she cannot put her on the stand if shes going to lie and the client says she needs help, not jail time. She asks Annalise what she should do.

Annalise comes up with an idea, but she needs Bonnies help to pull it off. The next day in court, Annalise puts her client on the stand and Danni tells her story about being attacked overseas. She says she was triggered that night in the bar and she attacked the victim due to PTSD. Bonnie arrives in court while their client is testifying. Annalise then asks the judge to see her in chambers.

Annalise reports that her client was on desk duty the day she was supposedly attacked overseas and she lied on the stand. Atwood tries to argue that Annalise is going for a mistrial, but Annalise says she had an obligation to report that her client perjured herself. Atwood then apparently offers her a deal. If Danni pleads guilty to a misdemeanor and agrees to go to veterans treatment court for a substance abuse problem, she wont go to jail. Annalise tells her client to take the deal because its the only way shes going to get help and still stay out of jail.

The Blame Game

While Wes is stuck at Annalises, Connor drops by to see him. Connor wants to make sure Wes isnt going to do something stupid like turn himself in. Wes knows that Connor blames him and Connor says that everything that has gone wrong for them started when Wes killed Sam. Connor tells Wes that if Wes even mentions his name to the cops, Connor will kill him.

Later, Connor walks in as the others are advising Oliver where to take his internet date. Oliver leaves before things get too awkward, but Connor confronts him later that night. He wants to know why Oliver is going on dates if Olivers reason for breaking up with him is that he needed to be alone. Connor is worried that maybe Oliver just doesnt want to date him. Oliver doesnt answer, but says that since they are broken up, he is allowed to see other people.

When Annalise comes home, Wes tells her that he thinks they should use Franks recorded confession to negotiate an immunity deal. Annalise says it wont work because no one in the DAs office is going to negotiate with her. Wes accuses Annalise of protecting Frank and Annalise tells him that Frank was responsible for her babys death. She goes on to say that Mahoney was behind the car crash but Frank was involved. Wes then says everything thats happening is because she is trying to protect him. Annalise says that was her choice and she probably shouldve just left him alone but she wanted to be a better person. (Honestly, theres more than enough blame to go around. These people should stop worrying about whose to blame and start working together to move forward.)

QUIZ: Which How To Get Away With Murder Character Are You? >>>

Lots of Sex and a Homecoming

We see that Olivers date with Thomas the acupuncturist is going very well and Oliver is about to invite Thomas inside, but Thomas cuts Oliver off and says he doesnt sleep with guys he likes on the first date. They agree to go out again. Poor Connor is right when he tells Michaela that he doesnt want to know how Olivers date went.

Earlier in the episode, Asher and Michaela break up after Michaela once again implies that their relationship is nothing but sex. A few days later, Asher stops by Michaelas place with a story about sleeping with another girl to make her jealous. Michaela doesnt buy it and Asher admits he was lying. Asher says the sex-only thing isnt working for him. He goes on to say that Michaela is like his family now and he wants to be there for her. Michaela still has a lot of trust issues when it comes to men but she eventually admits that she likes Asher, for more than just the sex. This leads to kissing and make-up sex, thus making that the shortest breakup ever.

Annalise and Bonnie return to the house to find that Wes is gone and he took the recording with him. Wes goes to Laurels place and destroys Franks confession right in front of her. Wes destroys the confession to protect Annalise. Hes afraid if the cops learn Frank was behind Mahoneys shooting, they will blame her. Wes says hes just going to stick to his original story. Laurel and Wes then begin to discuss Frank, and Laurel says shes not in love with Frank anymore. When Laurel learns that Wes broke up with Meggy, things heat up between them. Even though sex will surely complicate matters, Wes and Laurel sleep together.

Connor bursts in while Michaela and Asher are having sex to let them know about a news report on the Mahoney case. The cops are said to have Mahoneys son in custody on charges of murder. Everyone is freaking out thinking the cops have arrested Wes, but Wes is still hanging out at Laurels. It turns out that cops arrested Mahoneys other son, aka Annalises former client, Charles Mahoney. The cops found the murder weapon in his car and we see that Frank is the one who put it there. Bonnie and Annalise figure this out and Bonnie once again says that Frank just wants to come home. Unbeknownst to Annalise, Frank is already on his way back to Philadelphia.

Another Keating 5 Survivor is Revealed

In this weeks flash forward, we see Michaela freaking out after learning that someone is dead. When she fails to get in touch with Asher, she leaves her mother alone in her apartment and goes out to find her friends.

She heads to Ashers dorm where a party is going on. She finds Asher alive and well in the midst of it. Michaela is relieved that her boyfriend is alive, but shes still worried about Connor. She asks Asher if he was with Connor that night and he says he was with both Connor and Laurel when Annalise called them. Apparently, while Michaela was with her mother, Annalise asked the others to come over. Does this mean Annalise knows what happened at her house?

What did you think of this episode of How to Get Away with Murder season 3? Are you happy to know that Asher is still alive? What do you think of his relationship with Michaela now that we know they really care for one another? What did you think of the Laurel-Wes hook up? Are you surprised Nate told Annalise about his relationship with ADA Atwood? Did Frank always intend to pin Mahoneys murder on his son or is that something he came up with to get back in Annalises good graces? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section.

How to Get Away with Murder season 3 airs Thursday nights at 10/9c on ABC. Want more news? Follow our HTGAWM Facebook page.

(Image courtesy of ABC)
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Tata Sons accused its former chairman, Cyrus Mistry, of making "unsubstantiated claims and malicious allegations" against the Indian conglomerate as the gloves came off in a bitter and highly public row over his sacking earlier this week.


The demerged undertaking, together with the existing EPC team of RIL, will create a focused EPC undertaking to cater to the needs of the group
MORTON COUNTY  A day of calm followed in the aftermath of a Thursday altercation, in which militarized police forced hundreds of protesters to retreat from their barricades and a camp they had set up on Highway 1806 on the easement of a Dakota Access Pipeline construction site.

Protesters were sent back to the main camp, which was relatively quiet on Friday afternoon. However, demonstrators and police faced off against each other on the Backwater Bridge  a site where tense interactions had occurred overnight between them.

Multiple fires had been set to debris on the bridge, and people were throwing Molotov cocktails at police. Two officers received minor injuries after being hit by logs and other debris, according to the Morton County Sheriff's Department.

The bridge standoff remained Friday, but protesters had thinned out in the early afternoon.

Lelani Running Bear, of Standing Rock, sat on a hill next to the bridge, watching the protesters and police. She eyed a group of demonstrators who were revving their trucks and blasting loud music.

Theres no need for that," said Running Bear, who has been at the main camp since August. But I dont blame them. They dont know how to handle their anger and frustration."

People at the main camp reported injuries among protesters who were at the scene of the clash on Thursday. Police used pepper spray, bean bag and sponge rounds, as well as a Taser. One person was left with rib cage bruises from bean bag bullets, and another young woman apparently had a bone in her arm rebroken.

A horse was reportedly shot and killed by police, according to several protesters. However, no remains were recovered.

At Backwater Bridge, people set numerous fires to vehicles and other debris, including nine vehicles and construction equipment. The burnt-out vehicles remained there Friday. Morton County Sheriff's Office indicated 69 vehicles were towed from the scene.

Joye Braun, a protest organizer, said Friday leaders at the camp  including elders  are talking with those who had started the fires.

Were working with our elders, and were working with the young people who are hugely traumatized," Braun said.

During altercations on Thursday, some protesters urged people to remain peaceful and prayerful, while others threw logs, water bottles and rocks at officers.

That triggered a lot of trauma," Braun said of police actions against protesters. Because weve been attacked by dogs. Weve been attacked with pepper spray.

Braun said many elders at the camp are calling for the youth to stand down.

Johanna Holy Elk Face, who lives in Denver but is originally from Standing Rock, was among the protesters arrested Thursday. She was taken to Morton County jail, but released after a couple of hours.

Holy Elk Face said police wrote numbers on both of her arms after she was arrested. One number was used to identify her belongings, she said.

Authorities also reported two incidents of shots fired Thursday afternoon, but one may have been a flare gun used to set a vehicle on fire, according to Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier.

One woman allegedly fired a handgun three times toward police and was arrested.

An armed man, who was allegedly run off the road by protesters, was not shot in the hand as initially indicated by the Morton County Sheriff's Department. Protesters have alleged that the man was a Dakota Access Pipeline security contractor and pointed to insurance documents they say were found in the truck he was driving.

A majority of the 142 people arrested were charged with conspiracy to endanger by fire/explosion, engaging in a riot and maintaining a public nuisance. Many, who were housed Thursday night in various county jails, including Burleigh, Morton, Cass, McLean and Mercer, were processed at the Morton County Courthouse throughout Friday.

While every protester taking part in the raucous demonstration of the Dakota Access Pipeline on Thursday could have been arrested, Capt. Bryan Niewind, of the North Dakota Highway Patrol, said that only 142 were taken into custody.

"We could have arrested everyone yesterday," Niewind said during a late afternoon press conference held Friday.

"Not everybody is violent in this. There are people who are very prayerful and peaceful," Niewind said of some protesters who were helpful in pushing demonstrators away from a camp set up on the easement of the pipeline.

As of 4:40 p.m. Friday, about 108 people had been charged. Of those, 11 are residents of North Dakota and the remainder are from out of state. More serious charges were issued against Sydney Nicole Johnson, of Chillicothe, Ohio, who was charged with reckless endangerment. Alexander Briggs, of Troy, N.Y., was charged with criminal trespass.

Us elderly women were trying to talk to the younger generation to let them know that they dont need to be here for that. Its not a violent one, you dont need to be angry and mad, you need to go back to the camp," Holy Elk Face said.

Holy Elk Face said some protesters started fighting with each other, and she got pushed.

I went out there for my support of our water, for my children and grandchildren and future families, she said. Instead of that, the younger generation just really let it get to them where they were angry and mad because the military people were intimidating.

Holy Elk Face was arrested Thursday afternoon.

Criminal trespassing and engaging in a riot? she said at the main camp on Friday while sitting on a cooler reading papers that showed her charges. Me and two other elderly women were just sitting in a ditch on logs, praying.

Those at the encampment indicated that Thursday's altercation with police would not force them to waver.

The pipeline will not cross this river, Braun said. Thats all I can say about that.
on Friday said it will challenge the dismissal of its plea on Taj Mahal Hotel at the Supreme Court. The Delhi High Court on Thursday dismissed the companys plea that challenged the courts single judge verdict allowing New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) to auction the hotel. In effect, the court cleared the hurdles to auction the iconic Taj Mahal Hotel in the capital.
C Sivasankaran, a businessman, has served a legal notice to Japanese telecom major NTT DoCoMo, in connection with the mismanagement of Tata Teleservices Ltd, its joint venture with the Tata group.
The fire cracker industry is witnessing a drop in business this year, despite the restrictions on Chinese firecrackers in the country, owing to the anti-cracker campaigns run by schools, resident welfare associations (RWAs) and others, according to an ASSOCHAM analysis.
Maulana Ramzan (R) and Subhash Jangir (L), who have been arrested by the Delhi Police in connection with alleged espionage case in New Delhi. (Photo: PTI)
In a tit-for-tat action, Pakistan on Thursday declared an Indian High Commission official as persona non-grata and asked him to leave the country within 48 hours.

The Pakistani Foreign Office said in a statement that the decision was conveyed to Indian High Commissioner Gautam Bambawale, who was summoned to the foreign ministry.

"The Foreign Secretary (Aizaz Chaudhry) summoned the Indian High Commissioner today and conveyed the decision of the Government of Pakistan to declare Surjeet Singh, an official of the Indian High Commission, as persona non-grata," the statement said.

The Foreign Secretary expressed deep concern over the activities of the Indian official that were in violation of the Vienna Convention and the established diplomatic norms, it said.

The Indian High Commission has been asked to make urgent necessary arrangements for Singh and his family to leave Pakistan by October 29.

Earlier on Thursday, a Pakistan High Commission staffer in New Delhi was declared as persona non-grata for espionage activities after he was caught by Delhi Police with sensitive defence documents, including deployment details of Border Security Force along the India-Pakistan border.
For the third time this week, Pakistan on Friday summoned the Indian Deputy High Commissioner and lodged a strong protest over alleged "unprovoked firing" by Indian forces along the Working Boundary and LoC.

"Pakistan strongly condemned the unprovoked ceasefire violations on October 27 by the Indian Forces at the Working Boundary in Shakargarh sector and on the LoC in Nikial sector" resulting in the death of six civilians, including two women, and injuries to 22 civilians, Pakistan Foreign Office said.

Director General (South Asia and SAARC) Dr Mohammad Faisal summoned India's Deputy High Commissioner J P Singh, the Foreign Office said.

The Director General urged the Indian side to respect the 2003 ceasefire understanding between the two countries.

Pakistan also asked to investigate the continued incidents of "ceasefire violations", instruct the Indian forces to respect the ceasefire, in letter and spirit, stop "targeting" the villages and civilians and maintain peace on the Working Boundary and the LoC, it said.

This was the third time this week that India's Deputy High Commissioner was summoned to the Foreign Office for "ceasefire violations".
The Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay the Allahabad High Court order making the Delhi-Noida Direct Flyway (DND) toll-free, but it would pass a detailed order later. The court is going on a week-long Diwali holiday and the order is not likely to be delivered during that period.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Member of Parliament Subramanian Swamy has demanded the constitution of a multi-agency special investigation team (SIT) to probe the allegations of "certain fraudulent transactions" in AirAsia, as levelled by Cyrus Mistry after his removal as chairman of the group.

Swamy has, in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said the SIT should comprise officials from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Enforcement Directorate and Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) as the charges involved a gamut of offences.

The Rajya Sabha MP recalled that he had in an earlier letter to Modi questioned Ratan Tata's role as the Indian partner in AirAsia and Vistara Airlines "in complete violation" of the laws of the country.

Close on the heels of Mistry's ouster, alleging fraudulent transactions at AirAsia India, the Aviation Ministry had said all issues would be looked into and "law of the land will have to be followed" in case of any violation.
The Supreme Court on Friday declined to stay the Allahabad High Court's order making the Delhi-Noida (DND) flyway toll-free, but it will pass a detailed order later.



The court is breaking for a week-long holiday owing to the Diwali festival and a court order is not likely to be delivered during that period.
FARGO -- It didnt take much time for the criticism to begin.

The states Libertarian and Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate were seated alongside incumbent Republican John Hoeven for a debate taping Oct. 13 in Fargo. Hoeven spoke first, offering a brief opening statement -- one that touched on his hopes for tax reform and deregulation.

And then his rivals jumped in.

There are too many things (U.S. Senate members) havent worked on  that they have not gotten taken care of, Eliot Glassheim, the Democratic candidate, said. Issues have been festering for years without any resolution.

Libertarian Robert Marquette was more direct.

Our failing economy, endless wars and loss of personal liberties are the legacy of establishment politicians like Sen. Hoeven, and I believe hes betrayed the trust and confidence of the people of North Dakota, Marquette said.

The exchange kicked off a half-hour debate that touched on the Dakota Access Pipeline, the Islamic State group, the states economy and Social Security stability, giving each of the three men time to sketch out his vision for the state as well as time for Hoeven to clap back, at one point lambasting Marquette as out of step with the average voter in the state.

Ive been all over this state talking to North Dakotans, Hoeven said. I think I know what they want.

Anyone who wants to catch the debate can find it under Prairie Public Broadcastings account on YouTube -- or they can tune in to Prairie Public at 8 p.m. today, when the debate will appear for the first time on television. It will appear later at 2 a.m. Sunday and 3 p.m. Nov. 6.

The debate previously was broadcast on Prairie Public radio Oct. 13.

On the issues

The first topic of the night was the Dakota Access Pipeline. Eliot Glassheim, a state representative from Grand Forks, said he would try to broker a meeting between Native Americans and pipeline officials to negotiate the issue.

But the pipeline has to be built, it needs to be done safely, and it needs to be done, perhaps in a different place crossing the Missouri (River) -- perhaps not there, he said. That needs to be negotiated out and discussed further.

Marquette, a Fargo resident who has worked throughout the country for both ST Microelectronics and General Electric, said the pipeline should just go through, arguing all the necessary minutiae of permitting already have been handled.

We just need to make sure we have a thriving and vibrant Bakken in order to ensure that we can supply the oil, he said, pointing out hed support free market forces to make that happen.

Hoeven insisted the pipeline is safe -- buried 92 feet beneath the nearby river and equipped with sensors to deter spills -- and criticized protests that are not within the law.

That puts a huge burden on our law enforcement, he said. Again, the Obama administration needs to step up, help get this done and help with the law enforcement efforts. And Im working very hard to get them to do that and get reimbursement for the state and local costs of all this law enforcement.

The state's economy

On the state's economy, Hoeven said hes all for backing entrepreneurs, rolling back regulations and curbing government spending.

Those are the steps that enable job creation and investment, and for me, jobs has always been job one. But we have to understand that that comes from private-sector investment, he said.

Glassheim advocated for more investment in research initiatives.

We have a very healthy medical operation at the university, research is needed in coal -- clean coal -- and oil, and these government programs help to stimulate jobs, Glassheim said. I would remind the senator that most government spending goes to the private sector.

Marquette argued many economic woes in the state can be traced back to Congress.

The first thing we have to do is recognize that the problems faced by the energy sector and the agriculture sector in North Dakota are the direct result of national debt and the failed monetary policy, he argued, suggesting recent measures taken to stimulate the economy have driven up agricultural and oil supplies, bringing prices down in the process.

Road to voting booth

Candidates also sparred over issues such as domestic terrorism and Social Security. Presidential candidates were mentioned directly only once, when Glassheim said Republican nominee Donald Trumps policies would alienate the Muslim support important in fighting IS. Glassheim was also the only one who mentioned the unmanned aircraft industry as he complimented Hoevens work supporting the sector.

Polling is tough to find on the race, but a predictive model from FiveThirtyEight suggests Hoeven is favored to win the seat. State records shed a little historical context on the race; Hoeven won the seat in 2010 with 76 percent of the vote. His Democratic opponent won 22 percent of the vote, and the Libertarian won less than 2 percent.
This week, the army has alleged discrimination by the defence ministry in the devaluation of military officers status vis-a-vis civil servants. But, on Friday, the delivered the army a stinging rebuke for discrimination in the armys own ranks.
The body of an Indian soldier, killed in a gunfight with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir on Friday evening, was mutilated by terrorists, who fled back to Pakistani-administered Kashmir under supporting fire cover by Pakistani troops, the army said.

In a brief statement, the army also said that an "appropriate response" will be given.

The army said a gunfight took place close to the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir's Machhal sector on Friday evening, in which one soldier and a terrorist were killed.

"In a despicable act, the terrorists mutilated the body of the soldier before fleeing into PoK, supported by covering fire from Pakistani Army posts.

"This barbarism is a true reflection which pervades official and non-official organisations across the border. This act will invite an appropriate response," it said.
In a bid to present its humane face, Uttar Pradesh Police will be celebrating Diwali by distributing sweets and crackers at orphanages and old age homes across the state.

"Crackers, decorative items, candles and sweets should be made available at orphanages and old age homes," Director General of Police (DGP) Javeed Ahmad said in a directive to all the district police chiefs.

"While we celebrate Diwali on October 30 with much fan fare, we must also remember those living in orphanage and old aged homes who could not celebrate the festival for lack of resources. Besides controlling law and order, its moral duty of police to win trust of every section," the DGP's letter said.

"Spending some time with them will be an important step in winning trust of people," he added.

The police officials are expected to celebrate Diwali between 6 pm to 7 pm at orphanage and old aged homes and senior officers are also asked to join them wherever possible.

Additional Superintendent of Police, DGP office, Rahul Srivastva said the move is aimed at generating confidence of people in the force and would help in its image building.
The US. Justice Department charged 61 people and entities on Thursday with taking part in a scam involving India-based call centers where agents impersonated Internal Revenue Service, immigration and other federal officials and demanded payments for nonexistent debts.
Prime Minister today expressed concern over the large number of grievances of labourers and EPF beneficiaries and said a system should be in place under which the process of finalisation of retirement benefits for all employees can begin a year in advance.

"Discussed methods of redressal of grievances pertaining to the Labour & Employment Ministry and how technology can play a big role in this," Modi tweeted after his monthly meeting of PRAGATI (Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation), an ICT-based platform where he interacts directly with top officials of the Centre and states to discuss implementation of programmes and schemes.

During the meeting, he expressed "concern at the large number of grievances of labourers and EPF beneficiaries" and said the government must be sensitive to labourers' needs.

"Governments have to be sensitive to the needs & grievances of the workers, who toil day & night and have a major role in India's progress," he added.

He said that in a democracy, the labourers should not have to struggle to receive their legitimate dues and requested introduction of a system so that the process of finalisation of retirement benefits for all employees can begin a year in advance, a PMO statement said.

In case of an untimely death, he said the papers should be completed within a specified time, and officers should be made accountable for the same, the statement added.

During the meeting, Labour Secretary outlined the improvements brought in the grievance redressal system, such as introduction of online transfer of claims, electronic challans, mobile applications and SMS alerts, linking UAN to Aadhaar numbers, introduction of tele-medicine and empanelling of more super-speciality hospitals.

The Prime Minister also reviewed the progress of e-NAM (Electronic National Agriculture Mandi) initiative which began in April this year with 21 mandis spread over 8 states. Officials said it has now expanded to 250 mandis spread over 10 states, the PMO statement said.

13 states have completed the process of amending the APMC Act, the meeting was told, after which the Prime Minister urged the remaining states to quickly make the required changes in the APMC Act, so that e-NAM could be enabled across the country.

He said the farmer can benefit only if 'Assaying' and 'Grading' facilities are made available, so that the farmer can market his produce in mandis across the country.

He also invited Chief Secretaries of states to give their suggestions on e-NAM.

The Prime Minister also reviewed the progress of vital

infrastructure projects in the railway, road, power and natural gas sectors, spread over several states including Telangana, Odisha, Maharashtra, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Bihar.

He underlined the importance of completing projects in time, so that cost overruns could be avoided, and the benefits of projects could reach the people, as originally envisaged.

Among the projects reviewed were Phase-II of the Multi- Modal Transport System for Hyderabad and Secundarabad; the Angamaly-Sabarimala Railway Line; the Delhi-Meerut Expressway; the Renok-Pakyong Road project in Sikkim; and Phase-5 of the project to strengthen power infrastructure in Eastern India.

Progress of the Phulpur-Haldia gas pipeline project in Uttar Pradesh was also reviewed.

He also reviewed the progress of the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and requested all Chief Secretaries to ensure that safe drinking water is made available to the residents of all 500 towns under it.

He said the word "NAGAR" in Hindi can be taken to mean provision of "Nal" (Drinking Water), "Gutter" (Sanitation) and "Rasta" (Roads). He said AMRUT should focus on citizen-centric reforms.

On the upcoming occasion of Sardar Patel Jayanti on October 31, the Prime Minister urged all Secretaries and Chief Secretaries to work towards ensuring that at least one website out of the departments and organisations under them, is available in all officially recognised Indian languages.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has allowed Bombay Commodity Exchange (BCEL) to exit the commodity futures business with immediate effect. In a directive on Friday, also asked the exchange to drop Exchange, from its name and avoid its use in any variant.
At a time when the banking sector is grappling with a possible systemic risk brought upon by the data breach of 3.2 million cards, banking technology experts at the Business Standard Banking Technology Round Table said should collaborate to tighten the security framework.
ICICI Bank has decided to cut its MCLR by 10 basis points (bps) for loans with tenor of one year to 8.95 per cent. The new rate will be effective from November 1.
Signaling a steep deterioration of its financial performance, (SBH) has reported a net loss of Rs 776.64 for the quarter ended September 2016 as compared to a net profit of Rs 375.31 crore it had reported in the corresponding quarter previous year.
Cabinet Secretary and the Chairman of the National Committee on Trade Facilitation (NCTF) stresses the need to continuously move towards higher standards of excellence so that the trade eco system becomes more growth oriented; Steering Committee, working under NCTF, to be co-chaired by the Revenue Secretary and the Commerce Secretary.

The Cabinet Secretary and the Chairman of the National Committee on Trade Facilitation (NCTF), Mr. P. K. Sinha stressed the need to continuously move towards higher standards of excellence so that the trade eco system becomes more growth oriented. Shri Sinha was delivering the Keynote Address in the First Meeting of NCTF here today. The Meeting was held pursuant to the establishment of the National Committee on Trade Facilitation (NCTF) vide order dated 11thAugust, 2016. NCTF is a mandatory requirement under Article 23.2 of the WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation. Its Secretariat is housed in Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) in the Ministry of Finance in the national capital.

Speaking further on the occasion, the Cabinet Secretary Shri Sinha emphasized that since the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) may become a binding Agreement shortly, India had to be in a state of readiness, especially for the Category A commitments. He summed-up the significant areas of TFA as simplification of procedures, reduction in time and cost, augmentation of infrastructure and greater use of technology. He also directed that the Steering Committee, working under NCTF, will be co-chaired by the Revenue Secretary and the Commerce Secretary. He decided that in the initial phase, the NCTF and the Steering Committee may meet more frequently to firm- up the contours of TFA implementation plan. It was decided that the next meeting of the NCTF will take place in December and the Steering Committee will meet twice before that to come-up with specific goals for TFA implementation.

The Meeting was chaired by the Cabinet Secretary Mr.

P. K. Sinha and attended by all the 24 members of the NCTF, which included Secretaries of various Ministries/Departments like Revenue, Commerce, Home, Shipping, Civil Aviation, Textiles, as well as Industry Associations like FICCI, CII, FIEO, etc. Welcoming the Chairman and Members of NCTF, Shri Najib Shah, Chairman, CBEC said that TFA on Customs side is as important as GST in Indirect tax reform.

The Revenue Secretary, Dr. Hasmukh Adhia spoke about the need to do away with the multiplicity of Committees looking at trade facilitation at various levels. He suggested that the NCTF which was now the high level national body for same could subsume other such committees and become a uniform voice on these issues.

The Commerce Secretary, Ms. RitaTeaotia in her address threw light on how India has engaged itself with the global developments on the WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation (TFA) and ratified it earlier this year. She elaborated upon the key objective of TFA as being that of reducing the cost of doing business. While many initiatives have been spearheaded in this area by various Departments, the NCTF will now become an overarching monitoring body for same. She informed that the Department of Commerce has already got a baseline study done by the Centre for WTO Studies about the Gap Analysis status in India viz a viz the TFA. She emphasized about the need for inter ministerial co-ordination which was seen as being crucial for the successful working of the NCTF.

The Industry Representatives complimented the Government on the initiative to establish the NCTF with both public-private partnership.. They voiced their support to Government initiatives in implementing the TFA . They also expressed the need for Governments policy initiatives in facilitating trade to percolate down at the ground level for any meaningful change to occur.
Department of Food organises Nukkad Natak to spread message of of cleanliness

During Swachhta Pakhwada being organized from Oct 16 to Oct 31, 2016. Department of Food and Public Distribution has organized many activities to promote and enhance better environment and working atmosphere and sensitize the Government Servant and others about the benefits of cleanliness and health. Some of the main activities are following:-

Nukkad Natak on 17/10/2016 and 27/10/2016 in Krishi Bhavan

Drawing-cum-Painting Competition for the wards of employees of the DFPD on 23/10/2016.

Essay Competition on Cleanliness on 25/10/2016

Blood Donation Camp on 27/10/2016 in Krishi Bhavan

Blood Donation Camp organized yesterday was inaugurated on by Secretary (Food & Public Distribution) at Krishi Bhavan, New Delhi.

The Government officials of the Department of Food & Public Distribution and other Ministries / Departments of Krishi Bhavan and Shastri Bhawan voluntarily participated in the Blood Donation Camp to donate their Blood and inspired others regarding blood donation. Total 56 Persons including employees of the Department of Food & Public Distribution, CWC, CRWC etc. donated Blood. Nutritious refreshments were provided to all the Donors and others who participated.
Shri Rajnath Singh laid foundation stone of building of Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Institute of Archaeology at Greater Noida

Shri Rajnath Singh, Union Home Minister laid the foundation stone of the building for Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Institute of Archaeology of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) under Ministry of Culture today at Plot No. 2, Institutional Area, Knowledge Park-II, Greater Noida, Delhi NCR. Dr. Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Culture and Tourism was the Guest of Honour of the occasion.

Addressing on the occasion, Shri Rajnath Singh said that Ministry of Culture is doing a commendable job of preserving our rich cultural heritage and traditions. The new building of Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Institute of Archaeology is being constructed at the cost of Rs. 300 crores and credit goes to the local Member of Parliament and Central Minister Dr. Mahesh Sharma. He opined that the Indian Culture is the oldest culture in the world and Archaeological Survey of India helps in finding out the roots of our ancient rich cultural heritage. He said that the principle of Ekatma Manav Dharma of Pt Deen Dayal Upadhyaya ji has been recognized world over.

Dr. Mahesh Sharma in his address said that the Government of India is celebrating Birth Centenary of Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya ji this year and it has decided to dedicate the new building to him so as to commemorate the birth centenary of this great Indian leader. About 38,000 m2 area has been chosen for the proposed Institute out of the existing 25 acres of land. The new building has been proposed to house a state of the art design concept having conference hall with a capacity of 1000 people, an archaeological museum with an area of 14,000 m2, residential buildings, hostel facilities for both boys and girls and a cafeteria. This building shall be sustainable, environment friendly accessible to the differently abled persons and will be equipped with disaster resistant measures.

In his welcome address, Shri N. K. Sinha, Secretary, M/o Culture said that since the space of the present Institute building in the Red Fort premises is not sufficient enough for its functioning it was therefore decided to come up with a new building at Plot No. 2, Institutional Area, Knowledge Park-II, Greater Noida, Delhi NCR with state of the art facilities.

The Institute of Archaeology (IA) is an academic wing of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) under the Ministry of Culture. This Institute provides an outstanding environment for the academic research through its Post Graduate Diploma in Archaeology, continuing its long established reputation for distinction in this field. Here students are provided with a supportive, enthusiastic and challenging academic atmosphere which enables them to achieve their full potential. The Institute along with two years Post Graduate Diploma in Archaeology also conducts professional workshops on different fields of archaeology. The foremost aim of this institute is providing an opportunity for students to achieve excellence in their passionate fields of archaeology.

Sir Mortimer Wheeler was the first to conceive the idea of a training school in archaeology in India. In 1944, under his guidance ASI organized a training school at Taxila. The main purpose was to offer basic technical skill to the Indian students. He also conducted training courses at the sites he excavated like Arikamedu, Brahmagiri and Harappa.

There was a demand among the scholars, that the Survey to have a permanent separate training school.

Due to the efforts of Amlananda Ghosh, the then Director General of ASI, in 1959 the School of Archaeology started under the Directorship of B. B. Lal. The School of Archaeology transformed to IA in 1983 as per R. N. Mirdha Committee Report. This committee recommended for establishing an Institute where research work could be undertaken, and teaching as well as training is imparted to students keen on a career in Archaeology.

The IA functions under the guidance of Director General, ASI. It is headed by a Director, who is supported by a academic and administrative staff. The mode of admission to the Post Graduate Diploma in Archaeology is on the basis of merit. Through the written and oral examination, 15 candidates are selected every year. The final admission of these 15 candidates takes place in the month of October. A stipend of Rs.8000/- is given to the students admitted to the course. Even students sponsored by the neighbouring countries are also admitted. There is a hostel facility within the campus for outstation candidates. The Board of Studies looks after the reviewing of the syllabus of the Institute.

The IA curriculum is a well blended combination of theoretical and practical studies. Along with the classroom education, the institute also gives the equal weight age to practical fieldworks. Institute of Archaeology offers interaction in Archaeology and applied sciences through collaboration with other branches of ASI like Chemistry Branch, Epigraphy Branch and so on. For the purpose of scientific analysis of the excavated samples for carrying out basis researches in the field of Archaeology, the IA collaborates with various Institutes like Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, Lucknow; National Remote Sensing Agency, Hyderabad; Indian Institute of Remote Sensing, Dehradun, Deccan College, Pune, Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmadabad, National Institute of Oceanography, Goa.

Well known archaeologists and scholars of national and international repute teach the students of IA. The Institute also organizes special lectures on different occasions to benefit the students and staff of ASI.

The Institute has outstanding facilities for research and training of students, including well equipped library, computer lab, photography section, drawing section etc. The library of the Institute caters to all the academic needs of the students and the staff members by offering more than 10,000 books, leading periodicals and journals for reference.

With 57 years of its existence, the IA has produced many eminent archaeologists and scholars. The Institute has already won recognition outside India. Students from Burma, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Thailand have been enrolled at this Institute. Its students even served as Director General of ASI and even foreign students of this Institute enjoy good positions in the Archaeological Departments of their nation. Through their contribution and excellence in the field of archaeology some alumni of this institute are bestowed with highest Civilian Awards of our country. Since the last 57 years of its journey the Institute has grown phenomenally and has served the discipline of Archaeology in the most earnest manner.
Union Home Minister addresses the ITBP 55th Raising Day Parade

The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh has commended the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Force for securing the borders with China most effectively. Addressing the 55th Raising Day Parade of ITBP at Greater Noida today, Shri Rajnath Singh said instances of transgressions on the Sino-Indian border have declined significantly.

Referring to the ITBP guards successfully foiling the terrorist attacks to storm the Indian Consulates in Afghanistan at Mazar-e-Sharif and Jalalabad, the Union Home Minister said the ITBP shoulders a big responsibility not only on the Himalayan border but also in the hinterland such as the LWE affected regions, insurgency in the North-East and key assets and missions at home and in the most challenging environments abroad. Shri Rajnath Singh said terrorism is a proxy-war being waged against India and only cowards resort to proxy war, not the brave.

The Union Home Minister called upon the Directors General of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) to ensure the highest level of morale of the jawans and officers. On its part the Ministry of Home Affairs has ensured the welfare of the CAPF personnel and their families, he added. The compensation payable to families of CAPF personnel as victims of accidents on duty or martyred in extremist violence has been hiked from Rs. 10 lakhs to Rs. 25 lakhs w.e.f.

January 1, 2016. Similarly, personnel who lose life due to natural calamity while deployed on borders will get Rs.35 lakhs instead of Rs.15 lakhs earlier. Shri Rajnath Singh said the entire cost of education of martyrs children will be borne by the government. The Union Home Minister also declared that a medal is being introduced for deployment on 9,000 feet altitude and above.

On the occasion, the Union Home Minister reviewed and took the salute of an impressive parade. Shri Rajnath Singh also gave away medals and trophies to the ITBP personnel and Battalions.
Indian-Americans are believed to have raised at least $10 million towards the election campaign to elect Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton as the next president of the United States.

Two Indian-Americans- philanthropist Frank Islam from Maryland and Shefali Razdan Duggal from California- alone have helped in raising a million dollar each for the presidential campaign of the former First Lady and secretary of state, campaign insiders told PTI.

Notably, Hillary's campaign does not give details of its major fundraisers and the amount of money raised by them.

It does have a group called 'Hillblazers', which has a list of contributors who have raised at least $100,000 for Hillary for America, the Hillary Victory Fund, and the Hillary Action Fund since the launch of this historic campaign on April 12, 2015.

Among those listed in the latest list of Hillblazers released by the Clinton Campaign are more than 30 Indian Americans, each of them raising a minimum of $100,000.

However, these Indian-Americans are reported to have raised much more than that, campaign insiders said.

For instance, Ajay and Vinita Bhutoria from San Francisco are said to have contributed more than $500,000 for the Hillary Campaign. Contributions from the community have poured in from across the country, including Chicago, Washington, New York and Virginia.

While there is no compilation of fund raising figures based on ethnicity, multiple sources said that they estimate the conservative amount of money raised by Indian-Americans for Clinton is at least $10 million. In fact, funds amassed by the community could touch up to USD 15 million, sources said.

It is also believed that Indian-Americans are only second to Israeli Americans, who are the highest fundraisers.

In addition to these recognised Hiillblazers, several thousand Indian-Americans have contributed to the Clinton Campaign through smaller fundraising events and online contributions.

On the contrary, the Trump Campaign lags way behind in terms of garnering support from the Indian-American community, according to informed sources. However, the Republican candidate has not completely run out of favour with several individuals and groups chipping in for his campaign.

A Chicago-based Shalabh Kumar claims to have raised more than $1 million to the Trump campaign, a claim that is refuted by OpenSecrets, a nonprofit body which compiles all the fund-raising figures.

In its latest report, OpenSecrets said Kumar in all has made $220,100 for the Republican National Committee in July. He also made a personal donation of $5,400 to Donald Trump Campaign the same day on July 1, 2016.

Except for Kumar, not many Indian-Americans have opened up their wallet for the Trump, who has made an unprecedented effort to reach out to the Indian-American community.

The Trump Campaign has refused to release the list of its bundlers.
Republican US presidential nominee has criticised rival Hillary Clinton for being too tough on Russian President Vladimir Putin, once again raising eyebrows about the Republican candidate's relationship with Putin.

Speaking at a rally in Springfield, Ohio, as he kicked off a day-long swing through the battleground state, Trump, on Thursday, took issue with Clinton's criticism of the Russian leader, who has been denounced in the West for his military assertiveness and anti-democratic tendencies.

"She speaks very badly of Putin, and I don't think that's smart," Trump told a crowd of thousands, noting that Russia has nuclear weapons.

"How do you speak so badly of someone?" he asked.

Trump has been criticised throughout his campaign for failing to denounce Putin and repeatedly denying connections US intelligence officials say they've found between Russia and recent hacking efforts that appear aimed at influencing the outcome of November's election.

Trump has long argued that the US would be better off if it had a more productive working relationship with Russia and has called for the two countries to work together to take on Islamic State militants, despite their differences over Syrian President Bashar Assad's government.

Trump's running mate, Mike Pence, has taken a harder line on Putin, describing him during the vice presidential debate as a "small and bullying leader".

Trump has said that Putin is a stronger leader than President Barack Obama and praised him for exerting "strong control over his country".

The US has accused Russia of coordinating hacks on Clinton's campaign emails. But Putin on Thursday dismissed those claims, saying the allegations were designed to distract the public from real issues.

He said suggestions that Russia was trying to bolster Trump were "sheer nonsense".

"It's just an instrument of political struggle, a way of manipulating public opinion," he said in Sochi.

Still, the Russian leader added that while Trump may sound "extravagant", he was trying to reach out to people who are tired of elites. He said, "Time will tell how effective it is for him."
A 24-year-old Indian origin ex-student of Rutgers University on Friday pleaded guilty for an attempted invasion of his roommate's privacy using a web cam, bringing an end to a case that drew global attention to cyber bullying.

Dharun Ravi admitted to attempting to capture Tyler Clementi's sexual encounter with another man in a web camera with the intent of leaking it for public viewing, but withdrawing from publishing it over the internet later.

By pleading guilty to the third-degree felony, Ravi accepted a deal with state prosecutors to drop other charges after an appellate court threw out his conviction, New York Times reported.

Last month the Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey in Newark overturned a lower court's conviction of Ravi on several counts of bias and intimidation because of a change in state law. The court called for a new trial on ten other counts that included invasion of privacy and tampering with evidence.

Prosecutors said they disagreed with the appellate court's reversal of the bias charges, but would lose if they tried to appeal the ruling.

Ravi was convicted in 2012 after the case prompted a furor over the bullying of gay teenagers like Clementi, an accomplished violinist who committed suicide by leaping from the George Washington Bridge in 2010.

Prosecutors did not charge Ravi in the death of Clementi, who left no explanation for his suicide. But shortly before his death, Clementi learned that Ravi had spied on him with a webcam.

Ravi will be sentenced to serv time for the third-degree charge and will spend no additional time in jail.

Ravi, who now works in IT in New York City, said he "feels good" and "relieved" that the case is finished. He declined to comment further.

"He just wants to disappear," Ravi's attorney, Steven Altman, said outside the courtroom.

Clementi's parents, Joe and Jane, said in a statement that witnesses of cyber bullying "need to become upstanders for those in our society like Tyler, who cannot stand up for themselves".

Calling on the youth and their parents to refrain from being "bystanders to bullying, harassment or humiliation", the statement of the bereaving parents further said,

"Interrupt it, report it and reach out to victims to offer support. If this had happened in Tyler's case, our lives might be very different today."
Former president took in more than $50 million from "for profit" activities over the years as he led the Clinton family foundation, a close aide said in a hacked memo released by WikiLeaks.

The aide, Douglas Band, detailed his own moneymaking efforts both on behalf of personally and on that of the foundation, in a 2011 memo sent in response to complaints by the Clintons' daughter Chelsea.

The latest disclosures have added to a drip-drip of WikiLeaks revelations plaguing Hillary Clinton in the final stretch of her run for the White House as the Democratic nominee.

They come from a trove of emails stolen from the account of John Podesta, who played a leading role in the foundation before becoming Clinton's campaign chairman.

Podesta has refused to authenticate the emails, which US intelligence believes were stolen by Russian hackers to disrupt the US elections. But neither he nor the Clinton campaign has challenged their authenticity.

They show the foundation had become a source of tension between aides to and his daughter Chelsea, who accused them of taking "significant sums of money from my parents personally" and hustling clients for their own business at foundation events.

In the memo, Band defends his use of his private consultancy Teneo to raise funds for the foundation, saying it brought in large corporate donations from Coca-Cola, Dow Chemical, and Swiss bank UBS among others.

"Independent of our fundraising and decision-making activities on behalf of the foundation, we have dedicated ourselves to helping the president secure and engage in for-profit activities -- including speeches, books, and advisory service engagements," the memo said.

"In support of the president's for-profit activity, we also have solicited and obtained, as appropriate, in-kind services for the president and his family -- for personal travel, hospitality, vacation and the like," it added.

He said he had received no fees or percentages of "the more than $50 million in for-profit activity we have personally helped to secure for president Clinton to date or the $66 million in future contracts, should he choose to continue with those engagements".
Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro has sought to outflank his opponents in their bid to drive him from power, vowing to crush a threatened general strike.

The socialist leader is resisting growing pressure from the opposition, which blames him for the South American oil-rich country's plunge into economic chaos.

He said authorities would seize control of companies that join in a general strike called for by the opposition Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD).

"If a company stops, it will be taken over," he said yesterday in a televised speech.

At the same time, he moved to placate hard-up citizens by promising to raise the minimum wage by 40 per cent.

Maduro was on the counterattack a day after the opposition staged anti-government protests that drew hundreds of thousands of people across .

The president and the opposition have accused each other of mounting a "coup."

Opposition leaders sharpened their tone after authorities infuriated them last week by halting procedures to hold a referendum on removing Maduro.

The MUD coalition called a 12-hour general strike for today and vowed to march in protest to the presidential palace on November 3.

Maduro called on his own supporters to mobilise to "defeat the parliamentary coup."

A crowd of his followers rallied yesterday outside the National Assembly legislature, where the MUD has held a majority since January.

Opposition lawmakers were inside hearing declarations from civil groups about the crisis.

Maduro's supporters yelled angrily and scuffled with riot police guarding the assembly.

Clashes broke out at some of Wednesday's protests.

The government said a police officer was killed in the northern state of Miranda.

Maduro blamed that on his rivals. He called opposition leader Henrique Capriles a "murderer" and accused him of plotting an "attack" on the presidential palace.

The opposition's vow to march on the palace next week raised the tone in the power struggle.

The palace was the scene of a short-lived opposition coup attempt in 2002 against Maduro's late mentor, Hugo Chavez.

The current head of the military and defense minister, Vladimir Padrino, has declared loyalty to Maduro.
Palestinian president and Fatah leader Mahmud Abbas has met the head of Hamas and his deputy in Qatar, a Palestinian official said on Friday, in a sign of easing tensions.

Yesterday's meeting in the Qatari capital was the first between Abbas and Doha-based Khaled Meshaal in two years, and the second between him and the Hamas chief in the Gaza Strip, Ismail Haniya, since 2012.

Abbas's secular party Fatah and the Islamist Hamas have been at loggerheads since the latter seized Gaza in a near civil war in 2007.

The Doha meeting provided the opportunity to "insist on the need to resume dialogue between Fatah and Hamas", Palestinian presidency spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina said.

Abbas stressed the need for "Palestinian national reconciliation", as well as "forming a national unity government and holding elections".

The Palestinian government postponed the first municipal polls in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip in 10 years earlier this month after the high court ruled they should be held only in the Fatah-run West Bank.

The Palestinians have not held an election in which both Hamas and Fatah have taken part since 2006. They have also not held a simultaneous vote in both the West Bank and Gaza since then.
Turkey's Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag insisted that he had provided US authorities with enough evidence for them to arrest alleged coup mastermind Fethullah Gulen.

Bozdag met US Attorney General Loretta Lynch on Thursday to press the case, but left without being given any guarantees on Turkey's demand that the US-based cleric be detained and extradited.

US authorities are still examining the request but after the meeting Lynch's office noted that the case for extradition "must meet the evidentiary standards of the requested country."

Today, Bozdag told reporters he had sent Lynch three folders containing additional information requested by US officials to allow them to study the Turkish case against Gulen.

This new documentation concerns a previous extradition request related to Gulen's alleged role coordinating "terrorist" activity in from the US state of Pennsylvania before the bloody July 15 coup attempt.

But, Bozdag said, had also on September 10 submitted a separate request that Gulen be detained in the US pending extradition for his alleged role as leader of the coup attempt itself.

"In our provisional arrest request we put more-than-sufficient evidence and information about the fact that the coup attempt was carried out under the instructions and coordination of the terrorist leader Fethullah Gulen," he told reporters.

Once the US Justice Department has judged whether there is sufficient evidence to begin extradition proceedings, Turkey's request will be passed to a judge to be examined under a lengthy court process.

But President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government, while insisting it respects US procedure, is increasingly frustrated and its supporters are stoking popular anti-Americanism, accusing Washington of harbouring a terrorist mastermind.

" cannot accept and we cannot understand the fact that the murderer of 241 people, who wounded around 2,194 people, is acting freely and managing a terrorist organisation freely from a friendly and allied country," Bozdag said.

Gulen, a former Erdogan ally who has lived in the United States since 1999, denies the claims and his supporters ridicule the description of his group as the Fethullah Terror Organisation (FETO), saying he runs a peaceful religious and educational network.
has moved higher to its 52-week high of Rs 132, up 7% on BSE, after the company announced signing of a tripartite pact with Government of Madhya Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh State Mining Corporation Ltd (MPSMCL) for geological and geophysical exploration for various minerals in the state.
American heavy metal band 'Avenged Sevenfold' recently dropped its seventh studio album titled 'The Stage' which is Artificial-Intelligence themed.

Following a live-streamed virtual reality performance last night, the Orange County metal band officially unveiled 'The Stage', the follow-up to 2013's chart-topping 'Hail to the King', reports Rolling Stone.

The release of the album's eight-and-a-half-minute title track as a single also comes as the Californian band's most ambitious album to date.

Including a lengthy guitar solo, frontman M. Shadows sings, "Who is the crowd that peers through the cage as we perform here upon the stage?"

In the clip, a marionette theater labeled 'Professor Batz Fantastical History of the World' displays Egyptians torturing slaves, puritans burning witches, French revolutionaries beheading a king, Civil War soldiers slaughtering Native Americans and scenes of all-out war and more as an audience looks on.

Co-produced with American record engineer and producer Joe Barresi, 'The Stage' is a concept album about artificial intelligence, featuring the quartet's aggressive bonkers music.

The band's next track is rumored to be titled 'Voltaic Oceans' though the group has hinted at more details on October 27.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Bangladesh Government has requested South Africa to expedite the process of extradition of Maulana Tajuddin, a key accused in August 21 grenade attack case of 2004.

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam made the request at a meeting held yesterday in Bali with South African Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Nomaindiya Mfeketo on the sidelines of the 16th Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) meeting, reports the Dhaka Tribune.

In reply to the request, the South African Deputy Minister reiterated her government's willingness to cooperate in this regard.

Alam also requested his counterpart to actively consider opening a South African resident diplomatic mission in Dhaka at the earliest to facilitate people-to-people exchange.

Both the leaders agreed on further strengthening and consolidating the ties between the two countries in diverse fields.

Tajuddin is a fugitive and is reportedly hiding in South Africa.

The August 21 attack targeted an Awami League rally, where leader of opposition at the time Sheikh Hasina was the chief speaker.

Reports said that 13 to 14 grenades were detonated on the day and over 500 people were injured.

Among those killed in the blasts was Bangladesh Mohila Awami League president Ivy Rahman, wife of senior Awami League leader Zillur Rahman.

The attack left Sheikh Hasina with hearing problems.

On the sidelines of the IORA meeting, Alam also met with Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and called on her government to remove air-cargo restrictions in full.

He also notified Julie that the Bangladesh government as doing everything to secure the country, its economy and its guests from act of terrors.

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Anguished family members of abducted student leader Shabir Baloch have asked the authorities to delevre him to them in good health.

Raising slogans against the Pakistani government and called on United Nations to take "action for save recovery of student's leaders".

The Balochistan Student Organisation (BSO-Azad) had earlier staged a protest in Karachi against Shabir Baloch's unlawful abduction by Pakistani forces in Balochistan.

Shabir (24) is the BSO's information secretary. He was allegedly abducted by the Pakistani Army on October 4 from Gowarkop.

Shabir was attending a gathering the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) when army conducted a raid at the place where gathering was being held.

Apart from Shabir, 29 others were also picked up.

Pro-freedom Baloch political parties and student organization say that most of these affected regions fall under the CPEC.

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With plans to tap the increasing demand for its services and expand its effective reach, Load24x7, India's first mobile-driven freight aggregation platform is now on a recruitment spree.

The pioneer in its realm has announced plans to hire 100 new employees in 100 smart cities by next six to 12 months which will not only help to generate employment also to increase its product portfolio and effectively expand its network across India. Load24x7 will be hiring experienced employees across key divisions such as technology and management.

Incepted in July 2015, the online platform is now home to an enormous fleet of over 50,000 into transporters directory, more than 4,500 packers and movers, and has over 20,000 registered users on board. The freight aggregation platform offers expansive services to its customers through its all-capacity transportation vehicles including mini trucks, refrigerator vans, tankers and containers.

The 'Packers and Movers' option offers its customers the option to book complete relocation services through the platform. Moreover, with its 'Sale and Purchase' feature, that helps streamline user experience by connecting those in need of logistical support with transporters and if want to sale or purchase second-hand vehicle it is one of the easiest and handy application which will help you.

"Load24x7 was launched with the sole objective of providing evolved technology-backed services to consumers as well as transporters across the nation. Given the transparency and feasibility of the platform, we are at present catering to an exponential demand for our entire gamut of services throughout the nation. To match pace with consumer expectations, we are galvanizing our hiring process which will enable us to tap the ripe market for our services effectively and will add substantial thrust to the effective reach of the platform," said Co-founder Load 24x7, Lokesh Gupta.

The platform has recently launched its mobile-based application which is widely being hailed by its consumer base and is actively being used to book logistic requests and discovering demand across the nation. The platform also offers 24x7 customer care service to its customers.

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Taking strong note of inordinate delay in appointment of judges to various high courts across the country, the Supreme Court on Friday said it cannot sit over a situation where the executive inaction is decimating the judiciary.

Expressing its anguish over the tardy process, the bench headed by Chief Justice of India T.S. Thakur said it has been very patient and tolerant so far, but the government inaction is scuttling the process of judicial appointments. "We are not trying to be adversarial, but want cordiality to continue, they said.

Noting that courtrooms across the country are being locked because of lack of judges, the bench said the Collegium has made various recommendations for the appointment of judges, but the government is sitting on them.

The Collegium proposes names after due deliberations and vetting, but in some cases recommended names have seen no movement from the government for over nine months, the court said.

Stating that the government is free to express its reservations, the bench said the government must return the names to Collegium instead of sitting on them.

Meanwhile, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi told the court that there is a need to finalise Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) before passing the names.

The apex court has fixed the matter for further hearing on November 11.

The apex court is particularly peeved at the pendency of 35 appointments it had cleared for the Allahabad High Court, the first batch of eight on January 28 and the second for appointment of 27 judges in August, both are yet to be notified.

The Allahabad High Court is functioning with less than 50 percent of its strength with just 77 judges against an approved strength of 160.

These appointments assume significance considering that the country's largest high court accounts for about 25 percent of nearly 40 lakh cases pending in all 24 high courts and would have helped bring down vacancies from a high of 83 to 48, improving the bench strength to 112.

Annoyed by the inordinate delay in notifying appointments, the CJI had in the last hearing warned the government of passing an order and "fastening accountability" if the logjam continued which, he said, stifled judicial work.

In the last week of September, the government notified appointment of at least 25 judges. The SC Collegium is believed to have cleared more than 100 names for appointment to several high courts after scrapping the Judicial Appointments Commission in October 2015.

In the first batch of recommendations sent to the government in January for the Allahabad High Court, the apex court collegium is believed to have recommended eight out of 19 advocates approved by the Allahabad High Court collegium and rejected 11.

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The Supreme Court will on Friday hear a plea filed by the Noida Toll Bridge Company seeking to set aside the Allahabad High Court's order to make the Delhi-Noida-Direct (DND) Flyway toll-free with an immediate effect.

The Allahabad High Court had earlier on Wednesday declared the Noida DND route as toll free.

The flyover connects Delhi on the west bank of the Yamuna with Noida and East Delhi.

A division bench comprising Justices Arun Tandon and Sunita Agarwal passed the order while allowing a Public Interest Litigation filed by the Federation of Noida Residents' Welfare Association.

The PIL, which was filed in 2012, had challenged the "levy and collection of toll in the name of user fee by the Noida Toll Bridge Company".

Commuters travelling from Delhi to Noida or East Delhi have heaved a sigh of relief over not being told to pay Rs. 56 to and fro (Rs.28 each way) every day to facilitate a smooth entry and exit in the Delhi-NCR region.

Earlier in August, a group of protesters had demanded that the Rs. 28 toll be scrapped, alleging that the Noida Toll Bridge Company had already made profits, but were still charging toll.

The expressway, which opened in 2001, considerably reduces the travel time between Delhi and Noida. Commuters, however, often face huge traffic jams.

Nearly 1.5 lakh vehicles take the route daily.

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With effect from 26 October 2016

Barak Valley Cements announced that Divyang Jain has resigned from the post of Company Secretary with effect from closure of working hours of 26 October 2016.

Consequent to his resignation as Company Secretary, Divyang Jain also ceases to be Compliance Officer of the Company. His successor will be appointed within due time and the same shall be intimated to the Stock Exchange(s).

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The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) has received a commitment for transport of 5.92 million tons (MTs) of cargo volume per annum through the Multimodal Terminal at Haldia by the year 2018. This follows a series of consultations IWAI held at Haldia with various industries, firms, shipping lines, cargo operators, shippers and manufacturers. The main items for which commitments have been received are fly-ash, edible oil, vegetable oil, gypsum, etc. Fly-ash is expected to be the major cargo with a commitment of 3.8 MT followed by vegetable oil (0.63 MT), cement (0.36 MT), among others.

IWAI is to construct a Multimodal Terminal at Haldia under Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP) which is being implemented with the technical and financial support of the World Bank at a cost of Rs. 4200 crore for augmenting navigation on Haldia-Varanasi segment of the National Waterway-1.

To construct the terminal, land measuring 61 acres has been taken on lease at Haldia Dock Complex from Kolkata Port Trust. The terminal is located in the Coastal Regulatory Zone and requires CRZ clearance from the West Bengal Coastal Zone Management Authority. Construction work of the terminal would commence soon after CRZ clearance is received.

Addition to Haldia, two Multimodal Terminals are being constructed under JMVP. Construction has commenced at the Varanasi terminal and Sahibganj terminal has been awarded on 14th Oct, 2016. The completion of JMVP would ensure commercial navigation of vessels with capacity of 1500-2,000 DWT Tonnage on National Waterway-1.

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Key benchmark indices were trading with small gains after hovering near the flat line in mid-afternoon trade. At 14:18 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 55.51 points or 0.2% at 27,971.41. The Nifty 50 index was currently up 22.80 points or 0.35% at 8,645.50. The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was strong. On BSE, 1,587 shares rose and 951 shares fell. A total of 271 shares were unchanged. The BSE Mid-Cap index was currently up 0.94%. The BSE Small-Cap index was currently up 1.03%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

FMCG stocks gained. Tata Global Beverages (up 1.23%), Nestle India (up 0.59%), Marico (up 1.98%), Britannia Industries (up 2.86%), Procter & Gamble Hygiene and Health Care (up 0.97%), Hindustan Unilever (HUL) (up 0.11 %), Dabur India (up 0.81 %), Colgate Palmolive India (up 0.45%), GlaxoSmithkline Consumer Healthcare (up 0.6 %), Godrej Consumer Products (up 1.26%), and Bajaj Corp (up 0.12%) gained. Jyothy Laboratories fell 1.28%.

Bajaj Auto rose 1.48% after consolidated net profit rose 7.2% to Rs 1200.72 crore on 1.49% rise in total income to Rs 6775.03 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. The result was announced during market hours today, 28 October 2016.

Capital goods stocks gained. Bharat Heavy Electricals (Bhel) (up 0.22%), Havells India (up 0.1%), ABB India (up 0.69%), Bharat Electronics (up 3.49%), L&T (up 0.14%), Thermax (up 0.19%), and Crompton Greaves (up 1.35%) gained.

Grasim Industries gained 1.33% after consolidated net profit rose 50.39% to Rs 845.96 crore on 3.81% rise in total income to Rs 9668.55 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. The result was announced during market hours today, 28 October 2016.

JK Paper rose 6.61% after net profit surged 144.9% to Rs 43.96 crore on 14.35% rise in net sales to Rs 673.23 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. The Q2 result was announced after trading hours yesterday, 27 October 2016.

MOIL rose 2.23% after the company announced that it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) jointly with Government of Madhya Pradesh, Mineral Resources Department and Madhya Pradesh State Mining Corporation (MPSMCL), a PSU under Government of Madhya Pradesh, to conduct exploration and prospecting works in Madhya Pradesh. The MoU also envisages formation of a Joint Venture Company (JVC) between MOIL (51%) and MPSMCL (49%), in case of availability of ore is proved, in any area, MOIL said. The MoU is aimed at increasing the mineral resources in Madhya Pradesh, the company said. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016.

Castrol India fell 0.51% after net profit fell 2.37% to Rs 139.80 crore on 2.75% fall in total income to Rs 777.20 crore in Q3 September 2016 over Q3 September 2015. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016. Commenting on the results, Omer Dormen, Managing Director, Castrol India said that the company continued to grow volume year on year in Q2 September 2016 across key segments. The volume growth was led by personal mobility and power brands in line with strategy and also strong growth in industrial segment, Omer Dormen said. The company witnessed softer volume in heavy duty segment due to heavy monsoon in some parts of the country. Marine segment volume dipped during the quarter due to continued pressure on marine business globally. The company continues its focus on volume growth and investment behind power brands, he said. The commercial vehicle segment has seen a healthy double digit growth in the key brands which the company continues to invest in, he added.

In overseas stock markets, European stocks edged lower as earnings season continues amid heightened expectations that the US Federal Reserve will raise rates in the near-term. Asian stocks witnessed a mixed trend. US stocks settled with modest losses yesterday, 27 October 2016 as a selloff in government bonds hit yield-sensitive sectors such as real estate and utilities.

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The Goods and Services Network (GSTN) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) for sharing of foreign exchange realisation and Import Export code data, a move that is expected to strengthen processing of export transactions of taxpayers under GST, increase transparency and reduce human interface.

The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Shri Ajay K Bhalla, Director General of Foreign Trade and Shri Prakash Kumar, CEO, GSTN on 27 October 16. An electronic bank realisation certificate (eBRC) captures transaction level details of foreign exchange realised in India. The eBRC project implemented by DGFT created an integrated platform for receipt, processing and subsequent use of all Bank Realization related information by exporters, banks, central and state government departments. The e-BRC project enabled banks to upload foreign exchange realisation information related to exports on to the DGFT server under a secured protocol.

So far 100 banks operating in India, including foreign banks and cooperative banks have uploaded more than 1.9 Crore e-BRCs on to the DGFT server.

Sharing of data

1. eBRC data has proved to be a significant step in reducing the transaction cost of exporters. A Bank Realisation Certificate (BRC) is required for discharge of export obligation and claiming of incentives under Foreign Trade Policy.

Its is also used by state government departments for refund of VAT. In addition, it is an important economic indicator as it quantifies transaction level export earnings.

2. DGFT has signed MOUs with 14 state governments and 2 central government agencies for sharing of the data.

3. At the state level, Commercial Tax Departments of 14 states have signed MoU with DGFT for receiving e-BRC data for VAT refund purposes. These are: (i) Maharashtra, (ii) Delhi, (iii) Andhra Pradesh,(iv) Odisha, (v) Chhattisgarh, (vi) Haryana, (vii) Tamil Nadu, (viii) Karnataka, (ix) Gujarat, (x) Uttar Pradesh, (xi) Madhya Pradesh, (xii) Kerala, (xiii) Goa, (xiv) Bihar.

In addition, Ministry of Finance, Enforcement Directorate and Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority have signed MoU with DGFT for receiving e-BRC data.

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The State of Himachal Pradesh was today declared Open Defecation Free (ODF), making it the second State in the country (after Sikkim) to achieve the feat.

With this, Himachal Pradesh has successfully achieved a total rural sanitation coverage of 100% in the State, with all 12 out of 12 districts in the State being both, declared as well as verified, as ODF.

Speaking at the occasion Chief Minister, Shri Virbhadra Singh, said that he was very happy and proud that his State was the first large State in the country to have achieved this milestone. He said that the State of Himachal Pradesh would be very happy to share lessons that they have learnt in this journey with other States to help realize the vision of a Swachh Bharat.

Addressing the gathering, the Union Minister for Drinking Water and Sanitation, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar, said that Himachal Pradesh would not have been able to lay claim to this landmark achievement if making sanitation a priority had not become a jan aandolan, a people's movement, in the State.

He said that he was very confident that it was thanks to the people of Himachal Pradesh that not only had the State achieved the ODF Status, but would be able to sustain it in the future as well.

The Union Ministry for Health and Family Welfare, Shri JP Nadda, in his address, said that as Himachal Pradesh was also his home State, this was an occasion that brought double joy to him.

He also spoke about the close relationship between access to sanitation and good health for rural India. He said that the two Union Ministries will work closely together to achieve convergence in the pursuit of a Swachh and healthy India.

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Key benchmark indices hovered near the flat line in afternoon trade. At 13:15 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 10.56 points or 0.04% at 27,926.46. The Nifty 50 index was currently up 16.60 points or 0.19% at 8,631.85. The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was strong. On BSE, 1,523 shares rose and 888 shares fell. A total of 259 shares were unchanged. The BSE Mid-Cap index was currently up 0.72%. The BSE Small-Cap index was currently up 0.83%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

IT stocks were mixed. Infosys (down 0.69%) and TCS (down 0.67%) edged lower. Oracle Financial Services Software (up 0.5%) and HCL Technologies (up 0.52%) edged higher.

Wipro was down 0.22%. The company announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016 that it has won a five-year engagement with Speciality Restaurants for offering energy management services to the latter, which would help pare energy and operational costs.

Tech Mahindra was up 5.94%. The company's consolidated net profit declined 19.22% to Rs 643.40 crore on 3.56% growth in income from operations to Rs 7167.41 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016.

In dollar terms, the company's consolidated net profit declined 13.4% to $96.5 million on 6.1% growth in revenue to $1.072 billion in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016. Revenue in constant currency terms rose 5% in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016.

Vineet Nayyar, Vice Chairman, Tech Mahindra said that the company's performance during the quarter indicates that its early investments in new technologies and capabilities are starting to show result.

C P Gurnani, Managing Director & CEO, Tech Mahindra said that overall, it was a very good quarter with the growth well-supported by its key communications and enterprises businesses. The company had some marquee wins which align very well with its strategy of catering to the connected world, he said.

Pharma stocks edged higher. Alkem Laboratories (up 2.64%), Dr Reddy's Laboratories (up 1.81%), Aurobindo Pharma (up 1.41%), Strides Shasun (up 1.22%), GlaxoSmithkline Pharmaceuticals (up 0.84%), Lupin (up 0.5%), Cadila Healthcare (up 1.29%), Wockhardt (up 0.29%), Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (up 0.2%) and Divi's Laboratories (up 0.21%) rose. Cipla (down 1.27%) and Ipca Laboratories (down 1.41%) declined.

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals rose 3.5% after net profit rose 3.46% to Rs 223.59 crore on 15.67% rise in net sales to Rs 2173.18 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose 11.15% to Rs Rs 448.76 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016.

GMR Infrastructure (GMR Infra) rose 2.42% after the company said its arm won an arbitration against Government of Maldives. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016. GMR Male International Airport (GMIAL), a subsidiary of GMR Infra, announced that it has been awarded compensation of approximately $270 million by the 3 member international arbitral tribunal. The compensation covers the debt, equity invested in the project along with a return of 17% and also termination payments and legal costs. The compensation is net of taxes that GMIAL may be required to pay in the Maldives.

GMIAL had entered into a concession agreement with Government of Maldives (GoM) and Maldives Airport Company (MACL) for modernization and operation of Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA) in 2010. The Concession Agreement was wrongfully repudiated by the Government of Maldives and Maldives Airport Company Limited on 29th November 2012 alleging that the same was void abinitio. After detailed further proceedings, the tribunal has issued its final order whereby it has awarded compensation to GMIAL.

Earlier in June 2014, the arbitration tribunal had held that GoM and MACL had wrongfully repudiated the concession agreement of GMIAL and that they were jointly and severally liable in damages to GMIAL for loss caused.

In overseas stock markets, European stocks edged lower as earnings season continues amid heightened expectations that the US Federal Reserve will raise rates in the near-term. Asian stocks witnessed a mixed trend. US stocks settled with modest losses yesterday, 27 October 2016 as a selloff in government bonds hit yield-sensitive sectors such as real estate and utilities.

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Trading of Nifty 50 index futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty could fall 49.50 points at the opening bell tracking drop in most Asian stocks.

In overseas stock markets, most Asian stocks dropped tracking overnight losses in US stocks. US stocks fell yesterday, 27 October 2016 as a selloff in government bonds hit yield-sensitive sectors such as real estate and utilities.

Closer home, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 469.93 crore yesterday, 27 October 2016, as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased shares worth a net Rs 856.50 crore yesterday, 27 October 2016, as per provisional data.

Among corporate news, Bajaj Auto, Colgate-Palmolive (India), Eicher Motors, Grasim Industries, IDFC, Nestle India, NTPC and Vedanta will declare July-September 2016 quarter results today, 28 October 2016.

Tech Mahindra's consolidated net profit declined 19.22% to Rs 643.40 crore on 3.56% growth in income from operations to Rs 7167.41 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016. In dollar terms, the company's consolidated net profit declined 13.4% to $96.5 million on 6.1% growth in revenue to $1.072 billion in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016. Revenue in constant currency terms rose 5% in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016.

Vineet Nayyar, Vice Chairman, Tech Mahindra said that the company's performance during the quarter indicates that its early investments in new technologies and capabilities are starting to show result.

C P Gurnani, Managing Director & CEO, Tech Mahindra said that overall, it was a very good quarter with the growth well-supported by its key communications and enterprises businesses. The company had some marquee wins which align very well with its strategy of catering to the connected world, he said.

Wipro announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016 that it has won a five-year engagement with Speciality Restaurants for offering energy management services to the latter, which would help pare energy and operational costs.

NMDC said after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016 that it has signed a tripartite memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Government of Madhya Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh State Mining Corporation (MPSMCL) for geological & geophysical exploration of various minerals in Madhya Pradesh. NMDC had made intentions to invest during the global investors summit held in October 2016 for exploration for different minerals in various districts of Madhya Pradesh over an area of approximately 7,200 square kilometers. As per the MOU, on successful establishment of mineral blocks through this proposed exploration, NMDC would be forming a joint venture with MPSMCL with equity 51:49 (NMDC-MPSMCL) for mining of such blocks.

Tata Steel announced equity partnership for its Canadian Iron Ore mines, significant milestone in Kalinganagar India and continued pursuit of its European strategy. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016. Tata Steel Mineral Canada together with its parent companies signed definitive agreements for concluding investments of C$125 million as equity and C$50 million as debt with Government of Quebec's investment entities. Resources Quebec (RQ) and Investment Quebec (IQ) respectively totalling C$175 million. The investment will result in 18% equity stake for Resources Quebec in Tata Steel Minerals Canada in line with the carrying value of the investment in Canadian iron ore assets for Tata Steel. Consequently, the shareholdings of Tata Steel and New Millennium iron will be adjusted to 77.68% and 4.32% respectively.

Meanwhile, key benchmark indices witnessed muted to small gains in a volatile session yesterday, 27 October 2016 as traders rolled over positions in the futures & options (F&O) segment from the near month October 2016 series to November 2016 series. The Sensex rose 79.39 points or 0.29% to settle at 27,915.90, its highest closing level since 25 October 2016.

The Union Cabinet under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave its approval to release an instalment of Dearness Allowance (DA) to Central Government employees and Dearness Relief (DR) to Pensioners from 1 July 2016 representing an increase of 2% of the revised Basic Pay/Pension, to compensate for price rise. The increase is in accordance with the accepted formula, which is based on the recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission. The combined impact on the exchequer on account of both Dearness Allowance and Dearness Relief would be Rs 5622.10 crore per annum and in the Financial Year 2016-17 for the period of 8 months (i.e. from July 2016 to February 2017), it would be Rs 3748.06 crore. About 50.68 lakh Government employees and 54.24 lakh pensioners will be benefitted.

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Key benchmark indices were trading lower in early trade as weakness in most Asian stocks dampened sentiment. At 9:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 69.16 points or 0.25% at 27,846.74. The Nifty 50 index was currently down 17.95 points or 0.21% at 8,597.30. Bank and power stocks led losses on the bourses.

In overseas stock markets, most Asian stocks dropped tracking overnight losses in US stocks. US stocks fell yesterday, 27 October 2016 as a selloff in government bonds hit yield-sensitive sectors such as real estate and utilities.

Closer home, the market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was strong. On BSE, 942 shares rose and 438 shares fell. A total of 73 shares were unchanged. The BSE Mid-Cap index was currently up 0.49%. The BSE Small-Cap index was currently up 0.35%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

Bajaj Auto rose 0.71% ahead of its Q2 today, 28 October 2016. Grasim Industries fell 0.1% ahead of its Q2 today, 28 October 2016. NTPC declined 0.33% ahead of its Q2 today, 28 October 2016.

Tech Mahindra rose 4.86% after the company announced Q2 results. The company's consolidated net profit declined 19.22% to Rs 643.40 crore on 3.56% growth in income from operations to Rs 7167.41 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016. In dollar terms, the company's consolidated net profit declined 13.4% to $96.5 million on 6.1% growth in revenue to $1.072 billion in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016. Revenue in constant currency terms rose 5% in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016.

Vineet Nayyar, Vice Chairman, Tech Mahindra said that the company's performance during the quarter indicates that its early investments in new technologies and capabilities are starting to show result. C P Gurnani, Managing Director & CEO, Tech Mahindra said that overall, it was a very good quarter with the growth well-supported by its key communications and enterprises businesses. The company had some marquee wins which align very well with its strategy of catering to the connected world, he said.

Wipro declined 0.29%. The company announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016 that it has won a five-year engagement with Speciality Restaurants for offering energy management services to the latter, which would help pare energy and operational costs.

NMDC gained 1.7% after the company said after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016 that it has signed a tripartite memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Government of Madhya Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh State Mining Corporation (MPSMCL) for geological & geophysical exploration of various minerals in Madhya Pradesh. NMDC had made intentions to invest during the global investors summit held in October 2016 for exploration for different minerals in various districts of Madhya Pradesh over an area of approximately 7,200 square kilometers. As per the MOU, on successful establishment of mineral blocks through this proposed exploration, NMDC would be forming a joint venture with MPSMCL with equity 51:49 (NMDC-MPSMCL) for mining of such blocks.

Tata Steel rose 0.33% after the company announced equity partnership for its Canadian Iron Ore mines, significant milestone in Kalinganagar India and continued pursuit of its European strategy. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016. Tata Steel Mineral Canada together with its parent companies signed definitive agreements for concluding investments of C$125 million as equity and C$50 million as debt with Government of Quebec's investment entities. Resources Quebec (RQ) and Investment Quebec (IQ) respectively, totalling C$175 million. The investment will result in 18% equity stake for Resources Quebec in Tata Steel Minerals Canada in line with the carrying value of the investment in Canadian iron ore assets for Tata Steel. Consequently, the shareholdings of Tata Steel and New Millennium iron will be adjusted to 77.68% and 4.32% respectively.

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MOIL rose 2.25% to Rs 325.50 at 13:15 IST on BSE after the company signed a Memorandum of Understanding to conduct exploration and prospecting works in Madhya Pradesh.

The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016.

Meanwhile, the BSE Sensex was up 16.58 points, or 0.06%, to 27,932.48

On BSE, so far 42,000 shares were traded in the counter, compared with average daily volume of 36,475 shares in the past one quarter. The stock hit a high of Rs 328.80 and a low of Rs 322.35 so far during the day. The stock hit a 52-week high of Rs 330 yesterday, 27 October 2016. The stock hit a record low of Rs 180.10 on 12 February 2016. The stock had outperformed the market over the past 30 days till 27 October 2016, rising 24.6% compared with 1.33% decline in the Sensex. The scrip also outperformed the market in past one quarter, gaining 30.42% as against Sensex's 0.48% decline.

The mid-cap company has equity capital of Rs 133.19 crore. Face value per share is Rs 10.

MOIL has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) jointly with Government of Madhya Pradesh, Mineral Resources Department and Madhya Pradesh State Mining Corporation (MPSMCL), a PSU under Government of Madhya Pradesh, to conduct exploration and prospecting works in Madhya Pradesh. The MoU also envisages formation of a Joint Venture Company (JVC) between MOIL (51%) and MPSMCL (49%), in case of availability of ore is proved, in any area, MOIL said. The MoU is aimed at increasing the mineral resources in Madhya Pradesh, the company said.

MOIL's net profit declined 47.54% to Rs 47.15 crore on 0.42% rise in net sales to Rs 183.53 crore in Q1 June 2016 over Q1 June 2015.

MOIL produces and sells different grades of manganese ore. Government of India currently holds 75.58% stake in MOIL (as per the shareholding pattern as on 11 October 2016).

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NMDC rose 2.39% to Rs 126.25 at 9:50 IST on BSE after the company said it signed tripartite agreement with Government of Madhya Pradesh for geological and geophysical exploration for various minerals.

The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016.

Meanwhile, the BSE Sensex was down 49.71 points, or 0.18%, to 27,866.19.

On BSE, so far 82,000 shares were traded in the counter, compared with average daily volume of 3.47 lakh shares in the past one quarter. The stock hit a high of Rs 126.45 so far during the day, which is also a 52-week high for the counter. The stock hit a low of Rs 123.70 so far during the day. The stock hit a 52-week low of Rs 75.20 on 12 February 2016. The stock had outperformed the market over the past 30 days till 27 October 2016, rising 12.24% compared with 1.33% decline in the Sensex. The scrip had also outperformed the market in past one quarter, rising 23.05% as against Sensex's 0.48% decline.

The large-cap company has equity capital of Rs 316.39 crore. Face value per share is Re 1.

NMDC said that it has signed a tripartite memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Government of Madhya Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh State Mining Corporation (MPSMCL) for geological & geophysical exploration of various minerals in Madhya Pradesh. NMDC had made intentions to invest during the global investors summit held in October 2016 for exploration for different minerals in various districts of Madhya Pradesh over an area of approximately 7,200 square kilometers. As per the MOU, on successful establishment of mineral blocks through this proposed exploration, NMDC would be forming a joint venture with MPSMCL with equity 51:49 (NMDC-MPSMCL) for mining of such blocks.

Net profit of NMDC declined 29.9% to Rs 711.34 crore on 4.7% decline in net sales to Rs 1720.65 crore in Q1 June 2016 over Q1 June 2015.

NMDC is India's largest public sector iron ore producer. As per the shareholding pattern, Government of India (GoI) holds 74.943% stake in NMDC as on 14 October 2016.

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Key benchmark indices settled with small gains after what was a lackluster and rangebound trading session. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex rose 25.61 points or 0.09% to settle at 27,941.51. The gains for the Nifty 50 index were higher than the Sensex's gains in percentage terms. The Nifty gained 22.75 points or 0.26% to settle at 8,638. The Sensex gained for the second day in a row today, 28 October 2016.The Sensex settled below the psychological 28,000 mark after regaining that mark in intraday trade.

The Sensex rose 25.61 points or 0.09% to settle at 27,941.51, its highest closing level since 25 October 2016. The index rose 84.24 points or 0.3% at the day's high of 28,000.14. The lost 126.06 points or 0.45% at the day's low of 27,789.84.

The Nifty gained 22.75 points or 0.26% to settle at 8,638, its highest closing level since 25 October 2016. The index gained 38.50 points or 0.44% at the day's high of 8,653.75. The index lost 33.50 points or 0.38% at the day's low of 8,615.25.

The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was strong. On BSE, 1,557 shares rose and 1,088 shares fell. A total of 283 shares were unchanged. The BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.95%. The BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.96%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 3317.77 crore, higher than turnover of Rs 3264.55 crore registered during the previous trading session.

Bank stocks gained. Among public sector banks, UCO Bank (up 1.61%), Syndicate Bank (up 0.2%), Punjab National Bank (up 1.37%), Corporation Bank (up 0.24%), Allahabad Bank (up 0.53%), Bank of Baroda (up 1.83%), State Bank of India (SBI) (up 1.1%), Union Bank of India (up 2.5%), and Bank of India (up 0.48%) edged higher. Canara Bank (down 0.27%) and United Bank of India (down 0.47%) declined.

Among private sector banks, Axis Bank (up 0.28%), HDFC Bank (up 0.9%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 1.19%), Federal Bank (up 0.61%), Yes Bank (up 1.26%), and IndusInd Bank (up 1.56%) edged higher. ICICI Bank declined 2.41%.

Tech Mahindra rose 4.75%. The company's consolidated net profit declined 19.22% to Rs 643.40 crore on 3.56% growth in income from operations to Rs 7167.41 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016.

In dollar terms, the company's consolidated net profit declined 13.4% to $96.5 million on 6.1% growth in revenue to $1.072 billion in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016. Revenue in constant currency terms rose 5% in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016.

Vineet Nayyar, Vice Chairman, Tech Mahindra said that the company's performance during the quarter indicates that its early investments in new technologies and capabilities are starting to show result.

C P Gurnani, Managing Director & CEO, Tech Mahindra said that overall, it was a very good quarter with the growth well-supported by its key communications and enterprises businesses. The company had some marquee wins which align very well with its strategy of catering to the connected world, he said.

NTPC rose 0.33%. The company's net profit fell 17.87% to Rs 2495.97 crore on 7.52% rise in total income to Rs 19588.56 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. The result was announced during market hours today, 28 October 2016.

Grasim Industries gained 0.91% after consolidated net profit rose 50.39% to Rs 845.96 crore on 3.81% rise in total income to Rs 9668.55 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. The result was announced during market hours today, 28 October 2016. The company's consolidated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose 29.03% to Rs 2098 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015, driven by the good performance from all the businesses. The growth in net profit was supported by higher operating leverage and lower interest cost.

Eicher Motors fell 2.21%. The company's consolidated net profit rose 45.19% to Rs 413.16 crore on 35.59% increase in total income to Rs 2047.47 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. The result was announced during trading hours today, 28 October 2016.

Bajaj Auto rose 3.35% after consolidated net profit rose 7.2% to Rs 1200.72 crore on 1.49% increase in total income to Rs 6775.03 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. The Q2 result was announced during trading hours today, 28 October 2016. Bajaj Auto's operating earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) margin improved to 22.3% in Q2 September 2016 from 21.2% in Q1 June 2016. This was achieved due to richer product mix, especially for domestic market, Bajaj Auto said.

Bajaj Auto's total sales fell 2% to 10.31 lakh units in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. The company's surplus cash and cash equivalents stood at Rs 11398 crore as on 30 September 2016, as against Rs 10701 crore as on 30 June 2016. Bajaj Auto said in a statement that the company continues to witness headwinds in international markets.

Metal & mining stocks gained. JSW Steel (up 1.35%), Hindustan Copper (up 1.02%), Hindalco Industries (up 0.84%), Hindustan Zinc (up 0.9%), Steel Authority of India (Sail) (up 4.41%), and National Aluminum Company (up 7.13%) gained. Bhushan Steel fell 3.48%. Jindal Steel & Power shed 1.18%.

High Grade Copper for December 2016 delivery was currently up 0.51% at $2.1745 per pound on the COMEX.

NMDC gained 6.41% after the company said after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016 that it has signed a tripartite memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Government of Madhya Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh State Mining Corporation (MPSMCL) for geological & geophysical exploration of various minerals in Madhya Pradesh. NMDC had made intentions to invest during the global investors summit held in October 2016 for exploration for different minerals in various districts of Madhya Pradesh over an area of approximately 7,200 square kilometers. As per the MOU, on successful establishment of mineral blocks through this proposed exploration, NMDC would be forming a joint venture with MPSMCL with equity 51:49 (NMDC-MPSMCL) for mining of such blocks.

Tata Steel rose 1.85% after the company announced equity partnership for its Canadian Iron Ore mines, significant milestone in Kalinganagar India and continued pursuit of its European strategy. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016. Tata Steel Mineral Canada together with its parent companies signed definitive agreements for concluding investments of C$125 million as equity and C$50 million as debt with Government of Quebec's investment entities. Resources Quebec (RQ) and Investment Quebec (IQ) respectively, totalling C$175 million. The investment will result in 18% equity stake for Resources Quebec in Tata Steel Minerals Canada in line with the carrying value of the investment in Canadian iron ore assets for Tata Steel. Consequently, the shareholdings of Tata Steel and New Millennium iron will be adjusted to 77.68% and 4.32% respectively.

Vedanta rose 1.48% after consolidated net profit rose 17% to Rs 1252 crore on 4% decline in net sales to Rs 15666 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. Vedanta's consolidated attributable profit after tax before exceptional items rose 12% to Rs 1252 crore on 4% decline in net sales to Rs 15666 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015.

Revenues declined in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015, on account of lower oil and copper prices, lower volumes at Zinc and Cairn India, partially offset by ramp-ups in volume from the Power business. Consolidated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose 8% to Rs 4640 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. EBITDA rose on account of higher metal prices, improved cost efficiencies at aluminium business, lower discount to Brent, ramp up of volumes in the power business, partially offset by lower volumes from Zinc India as per the mine plans and lower oil prices. EBITDA margin was reported at 39% in Q2 September 2016, higher than 34% in Q2 September 2015.

Bharat Electronics rose 3.9% after net profit rose 68.21% to Rs 346.25 crore on 15.14% rise in net sales to Rs 1755.89 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016. Bharat Electronics said its order book stood at Rs 34675 crore as on 1 October 2016. The company said it received orders worth Rs 4127 crore in Q2 September 2016. Export order book stood at $102 million as on 1 October 2016.

In overseas stock markets, European stocks edged lower as earnings season continues amid heightened expectations that the US Federal Reserve will raise rates in the near-term. Euro zone economic sentiment was much better than expected in October driven by higher optimism in industry and services, a monthly European Commission survey showed. The Commission said the economic sentiment indicator rose to 106.3 in October from 104.9 in September, well above market expectations. Asian stocks witnessed a mixed trend. US stocks settled with modest losses yesterday, 27 October 2016 as a selloff in government bonds hit yield-sensitive sectors such as real estate and utilities.

The Sensex has gained 105 points or 0.37% in two sessions from a close of 27,836.51 on 26 October 2016. The Sensex has risen 75.55 points or 0.27% in this month so far (till 28 October 2016). The Sensex has risen 1,823.97 points or 6.98% in calendar year 2016 so far (till 28 October 2016). From a 52-week low of 22,494.61 hit on 29 February 2016, the barometer index has risen 5,446.90 points or 24.21%. From a 52-week high of 29,077.28 hit on 8 September 2016, the barometer index has fallen 1,135.77 points or 3.9%. The Sensex is off 2,083.23 points or 6.93% from a record high of 30,024.74 hit on 4 March 2015.

Meanwhile, the stock market will remain open for a special trading session (Muhurat trading) on Sunday, 30 October 2016, on account of Diwali. The market remains open from 18:30 to 19:30 IST on that day.

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Tata Steel rose 1.15% to Rs 401.65 at 11:50 IST on BSE after the company announced equity partnership for its Canadian iron ore mines, significant milestone in Kalinganagar India and continued pursuit of its European strategy.

The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016.

Meanwhile, the BSE Sensex was up 30.63 points, or 0.11%, to 27,946.53.

On BSE, so far 4.07 lakh shares were traded in the counter, compared with average daily volume of 9.55 lakh shares in the past one quarter. The stock hit a high of Rs 404.30 and a low of Rs 397.60 so far during the day. The stock hit a 52-week high of Rs 431.65 on 20 October 2016. The stock hit a 52-week low of Rs 211.30 on 12 February 2016. The stock had outperformed the market over the past 30 days till 27 October 2016, rising 4.56% compared with 1.33% decline in the Sensex. The scrip had also outperformed the market in past one quarter, rising 11.94% as against Sensex's 0.48% decline.

The large-cap company has equity capital of Rs 971.22 crore. Face value per share is Rs 10.

Tata Steel Minerals Canada together with its parent companies signed definitive agreements for concluding investments of $125 million Canadian dollars as equity and $50 million Canadian dollars as debt with Government of Quebec's investment entities, Resources Quebec (RQ) and Investment Quebec (IQ) respectively, totaling $175 million Canadian dollars.

Tata Steel has invested in Eastern Canada to set up mining operations across several deposits straddled across the Quebec-Newfoundland and Labrador- peninsula and multiple processing facilities including a beneficiation plant. The project has consequently enabled the development of infrastructure facilities including rail, roads, telecommunications and Port that has had significant positive impact in the socio economic landscape in Quebec and NeMoundland and Labrador.

The investment will result in an 18% equity stake for Resources Quebec in Tata Steel Minerals Canada in line with the carrying value of the investment in Canadian iron ore assets for Tata Steel. Consequently, the shareholdings of Tata Steel and New Millennium Iron will be adjusted to 77.68% and 4.32% respectively.

Meanwhile, the company said that over the last few days, it has received several queries with respect to news reports regarding potential asset impairment, its European Strategy and its India operations. Tata Steel has clarified to the stock exchanges that its financial statements are prepared every quarter on a going concern basis and present a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the company. These financial statements are duly reviewed by the audit committee and approved by the board of directors of the company.

As part of the preparation of financial statements, the value-in-use of the assets of the company are tested for impairment as per the applicable Accounting Standards. Based on the above assessments and triggered by severe challenges in the underlying macro-economic and business conditions especially in Europe for several years post the global financial crisis the company has taken several impairment provisions in the recent years which have been duly recognized in the financial statements.

In accordance with IND-AS 101, on transition, the company elected fair value as deemed cost of certain assets including property, plant and equipment and investments in subsidiaries as at April 1, 2015. The net changes in the above have been reflected in the opening reserves on transition. As per the company's policy, in future, if there are further impairment indicators, the company in accordance with the Indian Accounting Standards would undertake the comparative assessment of the fair value and the value in use of the assets and recognize the difference as per the applicable Accounting Standards and disclose appropriately.

Tata Steel's India operations have recently achieved a major milestone of production of 1 million tons of Hot Metal in the new greenfield steel plant in Kalinganagar, Odisha in less than six months of formal commissioning of the facilities. Similar ramp up in production has been achieved in the steel making facilities in Kalinganagar and in the last month, the combined monthly sales of Tata Steel Jamshedpur and Kalinganagar crossed 1 million tons for the first time.

In response to the recent media reports, Tata Steel would also like to clarify that it continues to pursue its European consolidation strategy and the talks with thyssenkrupp AG for a potential joint venture of its European steel business are currently ongoing and progressing. However, there can be no guarantee that these talks will result in a definitive agreement between the parties.

Tata Steel UK is also deeply engaged with all relevant stakeholders in the UK to find a structural solution and a way forward with regard to the affordability of the legacy pension scheme liabilities. A successful outcome of the above engagement would significantly help in developing the foundation for a sustainable future for the UK business. Tata Steel would also like to reaffirm that it is currently pursuing a separate process for the potential sale of the South Yorkshire-based Specialty Steels business in the UK. Any further announcement on the matter will be made at an appropriate time. In the meanwhile, the management team and the employees of the company continue to work on improving the underlying performance of the European business amidst challenging business conditions.

On a consolidated basis, Tata Steel reported net loss of Rs 3183.07 crore in Q1 June 2016 as against net loss of Rs 316.91 crore in Q1 June 2015. Net sales declined 5.7% to Rs 25155.98 crore in Q1 June 2016 over Q1 June 2015.

Tata Steel is Europe's second largest steel producer, with steelmaking in the UK and Netherlands, and manufacturing plants across Europe. The combined Tata Steel group is one of the world's largest steel producers.

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Tech Mahindra's consolidated net profit declined 19.22% to Rs 643.40 crore on 3.56% growth in income from operations to Rs 7167.41 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016.

In dollar terms, the company's consolidated net profit declined 13.4% to $96.5 million on 6.1% growth in revenue to $1.072 billion in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016. Revenue in constant currency terms rose 5% in Q2 September 2016 over Q1 June 2016.

Vineet Nayyar, Vice Chairman, Tech Mahindra said that the company's performance during the quarter indicates that its early investments in new technologies and capabilities are starting to show result.

C P Gurnani, Managing Director & CEO, Tech Mahindra said that overall, it was a very good quarter with the growth well-supported by its key communications and enterprises businesses. The company had some marquee wins which align very well with its strategy of catering to the connected world, he said.

Bajaj Auto, Colgate-Palmolive (India), Eicher Motors, Grasim Industries, IDFC, Nestle India, NTPC and Vedanta will declare July-September 2016 quarter results today, 28 October 2016.

Wipro announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016 that it has won a five-year engagement with Speciality Restaurants for offering energy management services to the latter, which would help pare energy and operational costs.

NMDC said after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016 that it has signed a tripartite memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Government of Madhya Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh State Mining Corporation (MPSMCL) for geological & geophysical exploration of various minerals in Madhya Pradesh. NMDC had made intentions to invest during the global investors summit held in October 2016 for exploration for different minerals in various districts of Madhya Pradesh over an area of approximately 7,200 square kilometers. As per the MOU, on successful establishment of mineral blocks through this proposed exploration, NMDC would be forming a joint venture with MPSMCL with equity 51:49 (NMDC-MPSMCL) for mining of such blocks.

On a consolidated basis, net profit of JSW Steel rose 1191.25% to Rs 726.46 crore on 22.03% rise in net sales to Rs 12986.63 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016.

Net profit of Castrol India declined 2.37% to Rs 139.80 crore on 2.84% decline in net sales to Rs 758.90 crore in Q3 September 2016 over Q3 September 2015. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 27 October 2016.

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Vedanta rose 1.48% to Rs 202.30 at 14:28 IST on BSE after consolidated net profit rose 17% to Rs 1252 crore on 4% decline in net sales to Rs 15666 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015.

Meanwhile, the BSE Sensex was up 68.33 points, or 0.24%, to 27,984.23.

On BSE, so far 8.01 lakh shares were traded in the counter, compared with average daily volume of 10.65 lakh shares in the past one quarter. The stock hit a high of Rs 204.10 and a low of Rs 198.55 so far during the day. The stock hit a 52-week high of Rs 208 on 21 October 2016. The stock hit a 52-week low of Rs 58.10 on 12 February 2016. The stock had outperformed the market over the past 30 days till 27 October 2016, rising 14.14% compared with 1.33% decline in the Sensex. The scrip had also outperformed the market in past one quarter, rising 21.11% as against Sensex's 0.48% decline.

The large-cap company has equity capital of Rs 296.47 crore. Face value per share is Re 1.

Vedanta's consolidated attributable profit after tax before exceptional items rose 12% to Rs 1252 crore on 4% decline in net sales to Rs 15666 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015.

Revenues declined in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015, on account of lower oil and copper prices, lower volumes at Zinc and Cairn India, partially offset by ramp-ups in volume from the Power business.

Consolidated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose 8% to Rs 4640 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015. EBITDA rose on account of higher metal prices, improved cost efficiencies at aluminium business, lower discount to Brent, ramp up of volumes in the power business, partially offset by lower volumes from Zinc India as per the mine plans and lower oil prices.

EBITDA margin was reported at 39% in Q2 September 2016, higher than 34% in Q2 September 2015.

Vedanta is a diversified natural resources company, whose business primarily involves producing oil & gas, zinc - lead - silver, copper, iron ore, aluminium and commercial power. The company has a presence across India, South Africa, Namibia, Australia and Ireland.

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A Sri Lankan parliamentary committee on Friday recommended legal action against former Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran and officials involved in controversial bond deals.

Sunil Handunetti, Chairman of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) said evidence brought before it had raised reasonable doubt that Mahendran should be held directly responsible over the bond transaction amounting to millions of dollars, Xinhua news agency reported.

Presenting the COPE report to Parliament, Handunetti said legal action should be taken against Mahendran and other responsible individuals.

He said Perpetual Treasuries, a firm connected to Mahendran's son-in-law, made enormous profits from the deals.

The committee recommended that action should be taken to examine and recover any losses to the state and central bank.

The Central Bank should also conduct its own probe and come up with procedures to make auctions transparent, the Committee said.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the government will respect the report and proposed that it be sent to the Attorney General for further action.

The joint opposition, stanch supporters of former President Mahinda Rajapakse, has called for a debate in Parliament on the contents of the report.

Mahendran was appointed as Sri Lanka's Central Bank Governor by President Maithripala Sirisena in January 2015.

The Central Bank announced he would not seek an extension of his term which ended on June 30.

--IANS

mr/

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Acclaimed actor Irrfan Khan, whose Hollywood film "Inferno" has been lauded, says the audience's appreciation is something that matters to actors.

"No matter how many films you do, appreciation, especially from the audience is something any actor is ecstatic about," Irrfan said in a statement.

The actor's film, which released in India and the US, has been praised by the audience and Irrfan says it is rewarding for him.

"The film is doing really well. I have been hearing and witnessing on social media which is rewarding for me as an actor," he added.

Directed by Ron Howard, "Inferno" also features Hollywood star Tom Hanks.

-*-

I'm always up for experimentation: Richa Chadha

Actress Richa Chadha, who has been praised for her portrayal of characters like Bholi Punjaban and Nagma Khatoon, is set to surprise her fans in the upcoming short film "Raakh". She says she is always game to experiment when it comes to roles.

The film, which is produced by Milap Zaveri, will feature Richa as a homemaker.

"I am always up for experimentation, and when Milap Zaveri told me I was his first choice for this girl-next-door character, I realised I have actually never done a simple character like this before. Naturally, I jumped at the opportunity. I am certain the audience is in for a sweet surprise," Richa said in a statement.

The short film will be out on November 7.

The film's cast also includes Vir Das and Shaad Randhawa.

--IANS

dc/nn/bg

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Activists of Bajrang Dal staged a demonstration outside a cinema hall in West Bengal's Purulia district on Friday, protesting against the screening of Karan Johar-directed Hindi film "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" that also features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan.

The Bajrang Dal is the youth wing of Vishwa Hindu Parishad.

The members of Bajrang Dal's Purulia district wing gathered in large numbers outside a Purulia-based multiplex right in the morning to protest against the screening of the film.

The protestors carried banners and flags of the Bajrang Dal as well as the national flag and shouted slogans condemning the casting of Fawad in an Indian film at a time of high tension between the neighbouring nations.

"The cinema management responded positively to our protest and decided to stop the first show of the movie," Banjrag Dal-Kolkata said in a social media website, claiming their demonstration "a huge success".

"About a hundred Bajrang Dal supporters gathered in front of the multiplex at around 9 a.m. today and held a protest for an hour. However, police were alert to avert any untoward incident," a senior officer of Purulia Police Control Room said.

Police said the issue was resolved without much hassle and the film could be screened thereafter.

"No one was detained during the incident," police said.

--IANS

mgr/ssp/nir/dg

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Union Communications Minister Manoj Sinha will meet the CEOs of telecom companies on November 1 to take stock of the call drop issue.

"The minister will meet telecom company Chief Executive Officers on November 1 to take stock of the call drop situation. It's a stock-taking meeting and also roadmap for the future," Telecom Secretary J.S. Deepak told reporters here on Friday on the sidelines of an event.

Deepak said the sectoral regulator - Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) - has informed that there has been substantial improvement in call drop situation.

"We had a meeting in June, they (telecom service providers) gave us a 100-day plan. There has been, we believe, from TRAI figures lot of improvement in call drops. There were 54 networks which were not performing upto the standard in December 2015, and now it is down to only 19," Deepak added.

The telecom companies had given a 100-day roadmap to the government in June to improve call drop situation.

"They assured that the target for the 100-day programme, as committed to the (telecom) secretary, will be met. They indicated that from the beginning of June 10 (when the 100-day programme started), there will be addition of around 60,000 BTS (base transceiver station) in 100 days across the country, out of which 48,000 have been installed in the first 45 days," Manoj Sinha said on July 25.

The service providers have committed Rs 12,000 crore to install 60,000 BTS to address the situation by arresting call drops.

--IANS

ag/rn

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Philippines' President Rodrigo Duterte has promised to stop using abusive words in his speeches after a perceived "warning from God", local media reporters on Friday.

"I was looking at the skies...A voice said that you know 'If you don't stop, I will bring this plane down now'," Duterte told reporters after returning from a three-day official visit to Japan.

"And I said, who is this? Of course, it's God. Oh, OK. So, I promised God not to use slang, cuss words," he said.

"A promise to God is a promise to the Filipino people," Duterte added according to reports.

Duterte, who took office on June 30 after his overwhelming victory in the presidential elections, is known for constantly swearing during his speeches and press conferences, Efe news reported.

He is especially partial to "putang ina", which translates as "son of a bitch" and which he used against US President Barack Obama, US Ambassador in Manila Philip Goldberg and Pope Francis.

Moreover, Duterte has also often asked the US to "go to hell" among other things, for criticising his violent anti-drug campaign in the Philippines, which killed more than 4,700 in four months.

He also bad-mouthed the European Union, as well as the UN just before a meeting with its Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon in September in Laos.

Despite criticism from the international community for his attitude, Duterte is hugely popular in the Philippines.

According to latest surveys, 76 per cent of Filipinos approves of the president's controversial management of affairs, while only 11 per cent expressed dissatisfaction and 13 per cent were indecisive.

--IANS

ksk/hs

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A former Indian student of a US public research university, whose gay roommate killed himself in 2010 after being captured in a sexual act on webcam, has pleaded guilty to attempted invasion of privacy.

The 24-year-old Dharun Ravi's plea on Thursday, came after an appeals court in September threw out a 15-count conviction against him in the 2010 death of 18-year-old Tyler Clementi, USA Today reported.

New Jersey's Superior Court Judge Glenn Berman sentenced Ravi to 30 days in jail - the time he has already spent in prison - after he was convicted of briefly spying on Clementi and a man known only as M.B., for a few seconds on September 19, 2010, at the Rutgers University.

By pleading guilty to the third-degree felony, Ravi accepted a deal with state prosecutors to drop all other charges after an appellate court threw out his conviction.

Ravi is a citizen of India living legally in the US. The plea that includes no additional penalties, officially ended the case involving Ravi.

Clementi, an accomplished violinist, leapt from the George Washington Bridge on September 22, 2010, days after Ravi, his freshman roommate, live-streamed him in the sexual act with the other man.

Clementi's death had raised the issue of how young gay men are treated by the society. His parents, Joe and Jane Clementi, later founded the Tyler Clementi Foundation to combat online and offline bullying, harassment and humiliation.

In a statement issued after the hearing, Jane and Joe Clementi said they have learned a lot through the process of pleas, convictions, time served and appeals.

Prosecutors did not charge Ravi in the death of Clementi, who left no explanation for his suicide. But shortly before his death, Clementi learned that Ravi had spied on him with a webcam and used social media to encourage others to view his having sex with another man in the dorm room they shared.

In a Twitter message, Ravi said: "Roommate asked for the room till midnight. I went into molly's room and turned on my webcam. I saw him making out with a dude. Yay."

On Thursday in the court, Ravi kept his eyes on his cellphone. When asked by the judge if he had any statement to make before he was sentenced, Ravi responded, "I have nothing to say," NYT reported.

--IANS

in/rn

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Former judges on Friday backed the Supreme Court on the issue of appointment of judges and said delaying the appointments for nine months was an "unusually long time".

They also said that if judges are not appointed in time, then justice will be delayed and eventually denied.

"If we don't appoint judges in time, justice will inevitably be delayed. It will be denied actually. There is no justification on the part of the government for this delay," said former Attorney-General Soli Sorabjee.

"I think the Chief Justice was absolutely justified in expressing his indignation at the delay in appointment of the judges by the government after the collegium is cleared," he added.

Sorabjee also said that it was for the collegium to decide. "It is not the government who has the final say. Government has a voice but not a veto," said Sorabjee.

Former Supreme Court Judge Ashok Ganguly said the administration of justice is the central theme in constitutional governance.

"If the people cannot get justice and the court cannot redress people's grievances due to lack of judges, then it creates a crisis," said Ganguly.

"On an average, most of the high courts are working with 30 to 40 per cent vacancies. It is a great impediment in the administration of justice. Even if all the vacancies are filled, that will not be adequate. It is an institutional deadlock," he added.

Ganguly further said: "The CJI has made that point clear on a number of occasions. The names are pending with the government for nine months. It is unusually a long time to settle on the names."

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Researchers have uncovered a stone slab in Jerusalems Church of the Holy Sepulchre venerated as the resting place of Jesus Christ, a media report said.

The slab, which has been covered by marble cladding since at least 1555 A.D., has been exposed as part of a major restoration project at the church, according to the National Geographic magazine.

"The marble covering of the tomb has been pulled back, and we were surprised by the amount of fill material beneath it," Fredrik Hiebert, archaeologist-in-residence at the National Geographic Society and a partner in the restoration project, told the magazine.

"It will be a long scientific analysis, but we will finally be able to see the original rock surface on which, according to tradition, the body of Christ was laid."

The rock surface, or "burial bed" was hewn from the side of a limestone cave following Christ's crucifixion, according to Christian tradition.

Christ's resurrection from the dead is a core tenet of Christian belief - the gospels say that the tomb was found to be empty by those who visited it a few days after the crucifixion, Fox News reported.

The "burial bed" is now part of a small structure called the Edicule in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the National Geographic said.

The Edicule, rebuilt between 1808 and 1810 following its destruction by fire, is being restored by scientists from the National Technical University of Athens. The restoration, which includes the Edicule's interior tomb, is being overseen by the National Technical University's Chief Scientific Supervisor Antonia Moropoulu.

"We are at the critical moment for rehabilitating the Edicule," Moropoulou told National Geographic, adding "The techniques we're using to document this unique monument will enable the world to study our findings as if they themselves were in the tomb of Christ."

National Geographic added that after the marble slab was removed, a grey-beige stone surface was exposed. Scientists will use monitoring tools to study the surface.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The manager of a paying guest accommodation here was arrested for renting out a part of the premises to a Japanese woman without informing the authorities, police said on Friday.

Viplav Roy, 37, was taken into custody under the Foreigners Act 1946.

The illegal occupation came to light after the police raided guest houses, paying guest houses and hotels ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Gurgaon on November 1.

Police officer Sanjeev Kumar told IANS: "Roy accommodated Sachi Kuwahara, a Japanese, in his PG on October 15 but did not follow the mandatory rules of filling up Form C and informing police about her stay.

"Kuwahara was carrying all necessary legal documents, so no action was taken against her. She had a valid visa to stay in India till October 4, 2017," the officer said.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Congress on Friday accused the Narendra Modi government of "systematically and deliberately" weakening democratic instituions in the country, including the judiciary and also condemned "its attempt" to delay the appointment of judges.

"During the last two and a half years of its tenure, this government has been systematically and deliberately weakening the democratic institutions of this country, including the judiciary," said Congress spokesman and senior lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi.

The Congress' attack came in the wake of Supreme Court slamming the government on Friday for holding back judicial appointments by sitting over the recommendations of the top court collegium for the appointment of judges to various High Courts.

A bench of Chief Justice T.S. Thakur, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justice L. Nageswara Rao said observed that the government's inaction amounted to paralysing and locking out the judiciary.

Singhvi called the situation unprecedented and unheard of.

"We condemn this attempt by the government to erode and undermine another pillar of our democracy. Now, we are seeing its attempt to demean, control or embarrass the judiciary. It is sad that Memorandum of Procedure is being used by government as an instrument of blackmail," he said.

"Suggesting appointments will not be cleared on time, unless Judiciary agrees to government's MoP. You can't have a SC judgement undermined and obstructed by bargaining in this manner on the MoP.

"The state of affairs is shocking. Majority of our High Courts have just 50 per cent of sanctioned strength. If you have arrears of three crore cases, what is the use of talking about good governance," he asked

--IANS

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(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.)
President Barack Obama will campaign for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton almost everyday in the final week leading to the November 8 election, a White House aide said.

Obama will also ramp up his efforts to boost Democrats in down-ballot races through additional travel, robocalls, radio spots and endorsements, the aide said on Thursday.

He will court the millennial vote through late-night shows and online outlets. He's scheduled to appear on "Full Frontal With Samantha Bee" on October 31, ABC News reported

The aide said the president plans to focus on positive messaging, making his case for Clinton and looking forward to uniting the country after the divisive election.

But he will also continue to speak out against Republican nominee Donald Trump's claims that the election is rigged.

Obama will returns to Florida on Friday where he has not only tried to bolster Clinton, but also seemed all too eager to take aim at Republican Senator Marco Rubio, who is being challenged by Democratic Representative Patrick Murphy, the aide added.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Pakistani Army on Friday resorted to heavy shelling and firing at Indian positions in Naushera sector of the Line of Control (LoC) in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir.

"Pakistani Army resorted to unprovoked ceasefire violation using 82 mm and 120 mm mortars, automatics and small arms to target our positions on the LoC in Naushera today (Friday)," defence Spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Manish Mehta told IANS.

"Our troops are appropriately and effectively responding," Mehta said.

"The firing and shelling were still going on in the area. Till last reports came in, there was no casualty or damage on our side," the spokesman said.

Both the Pakistan Army and the paramilitary Rangers have been violating the ceasefire on the last five days with impunity, both on the LoC and the International Border (IB) in Jammu and Kashmir.

In another incident of heavy shelling, three civilians were injured on Friday in Hiranagar sector on the IB here, police said.

Heightened tensions between the two countries have forced many residents of border villages to migrate to safer locations.

--IANS

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Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte's war on drugs has claimed its first high-profile victim - the mayor of a town who was among 10 persons killed in a gunfight with an anti-narcotics squad, a media report said.

Police said Mayor Samsudin Dimaukom, of southern Datu Saudi Ampatuan town, was killed along with nine others before dawn on Friday, the Independent reported.

The authorities said they were killed in a gunfight when they fired from three cars on officers at a checkpoint in Makilala town in North Cotabato province.

The mayor had been named by Duterte as among many politicians suspected to be involved in illegal drugs, a police official added.

The police had reportedly received a tip that Dimaukom's group was scheduled to deliver a significant amount of methamphetamine to the province.

Police estimate more than 3,600 suspected drug dealers and addicts have been killed since Duterte took office on June 30.

So far police have launched more than 23,500 raids and arrested 22,500 suspected drug dealers and addicts.

Over 1.6 million houses of drug suspects have been visited by police to invite them to surrender and stop using drugs, or disengage from the drug trade, the Independent reported.

Around 7,32,000 addicts and dealers have surrendered, apparently for fear of being killed. The sheer number has surprised Duterte and the national police, prompting them to scramble for land and money to build rehabilitation centres.

The President said his crackdown on drug dealers and criminals will continue because he "cannot kill them all".

Duterte was elected in May on the promise of preventing the Philippines from becoming a "narco-state" and vowed to kill those involved in importing or selling illegal drugs.

He also likened his national crackdown to the Holocaust and said he would be "happy" to slaughter as many addicts as Adolf Hitler massacred Jews. The US, the EU, the UN and human rights watchdogs have been alarmed by the brutality of the crackdown, the Independent reported.

The President has said he intended to extend his crackdown by "maybe another six months".

--IANS

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Republican vice-presidential candidate Mike Pence had a narrow escape as his plane skidded off the runway while landing at LaGuardia airport in New York in heavy rain, media reports said.

Emergency crews were on site but all passengers on the plane including Pence, were said to be fine.

The plane, which was coming from Fort Dodge, Iowa -- about a three-hour flight from New York -- made a rough impact when it landed. The pilot slammed on the brakes and travellers could smell burning rubber, NBC news reported.

A spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration said it will be investigating the incident.

Stephanie Grisham, a spokeswoman for Donald Trump's campaign, said the businessman called Pence shortly after the incident, adding that Trump "is very glad everyone onboard the plane is safe", CNN reported.

The Indiana governor has cancelled a fundraising event that he was due to hold in New York, and headed to his hotel.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Sahab Ram Saharan lives in the small hamlet of Maderan in Rajasthan's Sri Ganganagar district, some 15 km from the India-Pakistan border. Cultivating traditional crops was unprofitable and, encouraged by the government, he became a progressive farmer by growing olives -- and hopes to make a profit Rs 10 lakh to Rs 12 lakh ($15,000-$18,000) this year.

"A few years ago, I came to know that the government is promoting olive cultivation in the state. We procured saplings from the government and planted 6,700 olive plants over 10 hectares of land in 2013. Fruiting takes place from the 4th year onwards," Sahab Ram told IANS.

"We have entered the fourth year and are now expecting good yield," he added.

His nephew Deepak Saharan, who studied in Australia where he came to know about progressive farming, said that growth of the olive plants is good at his farm and he is expecting a good crop.

"We are hoping for 30 kg of fruit per plant. We have been told that the government will buy back olives from us. They will pay us according to the oil content in the fruits (13 to 17 per cent per fruit). Overall we are expecting around 10 to 12 lakh rupees profit," Deepak told IANS.

Sahab Ram is not alone. Several farmers in Sri Ganganagar, Bikaner, Jaipur and Nagaur have diversified by moving from the conventional to cash crops like olives for good profit.

Farmers like Sahab Ram are now eyeing a huge domestic that is currently dependent on imports from countries like Israel, Turkey, Italy, Portugal and Jordan, among many others.

Rajasthan Agriculture Minister Prabhu Lal Saini said that farmers were increasingly diversifying and opting for olive cultivation.

"Through olive cultivation, farmers are diversifying to get high value for their crops. Rajasthan is pioneering in progressive farming. We are also making successful efforts with cultivating pomegranates and date palms," Saini told IANS.

According to the officials of the state's Horticulture Department, the Rajasthan government initiated the olive cultivation project with technical support from Israel in 2008. Seeing the ample possibilities, the state government formed the Rajasthan Olive Cultivation Ltd (ROCL) in the public-private-partnership (PPP) mode.

ROCL Chief Operations Officer Yogesh Verma said that olive cultivation is at present spread over 800 hectares, of which 182 hectares is government land.

Initially, seven varieties of olive -- Arbequina, Barnea, Coratina, Picholine, Picual, Koroneiki and Frantoio -- were imported from Israel and planted at eight farms in Jaipur, Jhunjhunu, Bikaner, Sri Ganganagar, Nagaur, Jalore and Alwar.

To provide high-quality plants to the farmers, the state government, with Israel's help, has set up a centre of excellence at Jaipur's Bassi area.

"Plants developed through tissue culture are first kept in a rooting chamber. Rooting takes 20-25 days and the plants are then transferred to the hardening unit where they are acclimatised with the field conditions. After the plants reach 30 to 50 cm, they are planted in the fields," Verma told IANS.

He added that olive cultivation needs adequate cold and dry atmosphere during winter and summer, respectively. On an average, an olive plant needs 10-15 litres of water per day.

"Rajasthan's climatic conditions are congenial to olive cultivation. Here, the winter temperature goes down to 4-5 degrees Celsius while in summers it reaches up to 40-45 degrees Celsius.

"During fruiting, olive trees need high temperatures for a prolonged spell. They need extra care during the rainy season. To get good production, constant pruning of the plant is necessary. The maximum height of an olive tree should be kept at 4.5 metres," Verma said.

The Rajasthan government also provides subsidies on plant saplings, fertiliser and drip-irrigation systems.

"We are providing 75 per cent subsidy per plant sapling. For instance, in one hectare, 476 saplings which cost around Rs 60,145 can be planted but the farmers have to only pay Rs 15,520. Through the micro-irrigation scheme, subsidy is also being given to the farmers for drip irrigation systems," Saini said.

Saini, who is himself a farmer, says horticulture in the state has grown 14 to 18 per cent. Agriculture contributes 31 per cent to Rajasthan's GDP, against the services sector's 46 per cent.

"Our agriculture contribution to the state GDP is higher than the national figure of around 20 per cent," the minister said.

He said that Rajasthan has 67 per cent of arid or semi-arid area and with progressive farming, agriculturists were being taught to cultivate with less water.

"There is a saying, 'Agriculture in Rajasthan is a gamble with rain'. We want to change this," Saini added.

(Ashish Mishra was part of a delegation on a field visit to Rajasthan with FICCI to study olive and date palm farming. He can be contacted at ashish.m@ians.in)

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Russia and Iran support a peaceful settlement to the conflict in Syria but the fight against terrorism should continue, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday.

Addressing the media after a trilateral meeting with his Iranian and Syrian counterparts Javad Zarif and Walid Al-Muallem here, Lavrov said that Moscow and Tehran support Syria's sovereignty, the fight against terrorism and the restoration of the country's economy.

Moscow, Tehran and Damascus also agree that there is no alternative to a peaceful settlement in Syria, he added, reports Sputnik new agency.

Noting neither Russian, nor Syrian warplanes have been conducting operations in Syria's Aleppo for ten days, Lavrov also criticised the US for not persuading the "moderate" Syrian opposition distance itself from Islamist terrorists during the pause in the fighting.

"We hoped that humanitarian pauses and the stop of airstrikes will be used by our American partners to convince the so-called moderate opposition to separate from al-Nusra Front and Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, which are in fact those who lead all groups of armed opposition in eastern Aleppo. Moreover terrorists have closed the exit from the city via humanitarian corridors for civilians," he said.

He also denied Russian involvement in an attack on a school in Syria's Idlib, claiming over 20 lives, terming as "fabricated", the Western data, accusing Moscow and Damascus of striking the school.

"The Russian Defence Ministry published facts, which refute these accusations and show that the information is fabricated," Lavrov said.

On the ongoing operation to retake Iraq's Mosul from the IS, he said both Russia and Iraq are interested taking measures to stop militants from fleeing to Syria from the northern Iraqi city. He added that Moscow sees no difference between the situation in Aleppo and that in Mosul.

Muallem said that Damascus will continue the fight against terrorism and vowed that Aleppo will be liberated.

Meanwhile, Zarif, on arriving in Moscow for the meeting, told media at the airport that "unfortunately, some countries have sought military solutions to Syria crisis, while the way to settle this problem is political approaches as well as fighting the Takfiri groups (Islamist extremists)", reported Xinhua news agency.

"We have always insisted on comprehensive ceasefire, availability of humanitarian aid (to the besieged people) and finding political solutions to the Syrian issue," he added.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
BJP MP Subramanian Swamy on Friday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking a multi-agency probe against Tata Sons Interim Chairman Ratan Tata for alleged money laundering and cheating.

Swamy said a Special Investigation Team (SIT) consisting of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) should be set up for the probe.

Citing ousted Tata Sons' Chairman Cyrus Mistry's recent letter to the company directors, Swamy alleged that four grievous criminal offences were committed by Ratan Tata in various deals.

"The commission of offences are under Sections 120-B (conspiracy), 403 (dishonest misappropriation of public funds), 405 (criminal breach of trust) and 415 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code, prima facie documented in Mistry's letter," wrote the Rajya Sabha member.

"Hence, I urge you to direct the setting up of an SIT consisting of the CBI (for criminal offences), ED (for money laundering) and SEBI (for violation of fiduciary and company laws) and prosecute Ratan Tata with full vigour and without interference from anyone in the government to protect Tata," said Swamy.

He also cited his June 2014 letter to Modi, wherein he alleged "fraud by Tata as Indian partner in AirAsia and Vistara Airlines".

--IANS

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Heres some good news! Emerging markets (EM) have seen a cyclical recovery over the last few months. And no, its not just India thats doing all the heavy lifting. China, for one, seems to have responded to monetary and fiscal stimulus. A bunch of indicators of real activity show improvement. Chinas central bank has incidentally cut its policy rate six times since 2014 and flooded the market with liquidity. The government has backed its commitment to arresting a recession through fiscal measures by ramping up infrastructure investments. For those who trust the official figures, Chinas gross domestic product (GDP) growth should have bottomed out in the 6.5-7 per cent range this year. These are possibly the rates that are expected to clock in the medium term as well. Those who tend to discount these growth numbers by a (ahem!) fudge factor would predict lower levels of growth but the fact is that these are stabilising in their projections as well.
In the exciting heyday of India-Singapore relations, I asked why Singapore Airlines had chosen Tata, with no recent aviation experience, to partner it in launching a domestic airline in this country. The sturdy answer was that Tata was the only clean company in India, and Ratan Tata a gentleman.
I am rather pleased at having beaten the clock as I reach the lobby of The Imperial, New Delhi, and decide to text my guest. Ashok Chawla makes his appearance just two minutes after 1.15 pm and apologises.
Shivshankar Menon, former Foreign Secretary and National Security Advisor to then Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh has come out with a book, Choices - The Making of Indias Foreign Policy. In a chapter, Restraint or Riposte, Menon, who was the Foreign Secretary in November 2008, explains the rationale behind not attacking either LeT headquarters or terrorist training camps in PoK or ISI itself, after Mumbai was attacked by Pakistani terrorists on 26 November, 2008.

The attack claimed 166 lives and injured 308.
Congress chief Sonia Gandhi will kick off the birth centenary celebrations of former prime minister on November 19, as the party is trying to capitalise on the legacy of the leader, ahead of the Uttar Pradesh (UP) Assembly polls early next year. Centenary is the 100th anniversary of an event.
Rallies, seminars, yoga camps and exhibitions marked the celebration of the first National Ayurveda Day here today.

The day was also celebrated as Dhanvantari Jayanti with large number of people rushing to purchase gold and silver ornaments as part of the Dhanteras festival.

While doctors' forum, an organisation of doctors and ayush doctors' association in Ganjam district conducted a bike-rally for promotion of Ayurveda, the students and teachers of the government-run Kaviraj Ananta Tripathy Sharma (KATS) Ayurved Mahavidyalaya, Ankushapur near here also conducted a rally to create awareness among the people on Ayurveda.

The college also organised a seminar on the control of diabetic through Ayurveda, while the Central government launched 'Mission Madhumeha though Ayurveda' on the occasion.

The students of the Ayurvedic college displayed different medicinal plants, which could control diabetes. At least 18 students displayed the diabetic control related plants in the exhibition, which was inaugurated by Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Saroj Mishra.

"We are organising different activities related to the diabetic as per the direction from the Ministry of Ayush," said college principal A N Padhi.

He said free medicines were distributed among patients in the health check-up camp, where a number of patients from the nearby area turned up.

Though National Ayurveda Day was celebrated for the first time in the college, Dhanvantari Jayanti was celebrated like previous years with gaiety.

Jewellery shops witnessed huge a turn out as people believe Mahalaxmi, the goddess of wealth, would be evoked if one purchased gold on the day.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Three alleged criminals were arrested today for "manufacturing arms illegally" in Rajasthan's Alwar district.

Following a tip off, the police party raided Manpur Karmala, a hilly area, where the accused were allegedly engaged in the manufacturing of arms illegally. As the police approached, they opened fire and the same was also retaliated by our personnel, SP, Alwar, Rahul Prakash said, adding they were later nabbed.

They were identified as Hanpa, Sahun and Shakir, he said, adding three pistols 32 bore, five small guns, 13 country-made pistols 315 and 12 bore and 38 live-cartridges were seized from the spot, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Three



activists of the People's Liberation Front of India (PLFI) carrying varying rewards on their heads today surrendered in Simdega, while two Maoists were arrested in Dumka district of the state.

In Simdega, self-styled sub-zonal commander Mahesh Singh, self-styled area commander Seon Topno and firing squad member Purna Manjhi surrendered with weapons before Deputy Inspector General of Police R K Dhan.

While Singh carried a reward of Rs five lakh on his head, Topno and Manjhi carried Rs two lakh and Rs one lakh respectively, the DIG said.

A Dumka report quoting Superintendent of Police Prabhat Kumar said the Dumka police arrested two Maoists at Amjhari More under Kathikund police station on Dumka-Sahibganj path yesterday, following a tip-off.

The two rebels were identified as Dinesh Kumar Mandal (20), who hailed from Giridih district's Parvatraidih under Deori police station, and Ravindra Kumar Mandal alias Disco (31), who hailed from Dumka district's Dahujore under Ramgarh police station, the SP said today.

The police recovered Rs four lakh, Maoist literature, one motor-cycle and three mobile phones from their possession, the SP said.

Dinesh is the cousin of hardcore Maoist Jagdish'da, active in Dumka-Godda areas and hails from Giridih district's Margodih area.

The SP said the money was extorted from contractors engaged in development works in areas of Dumka and Godda districts and was to be sent to Jagdish'da.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Four suspected Lashkar-e-Jhangvi militants linked to a deadly attack on a police academy in Pakistan that left over 60 people dead have been killed by security forces during a raid at a compound in the country's troubled southwest.

The militants were killed in a exchange of fire with police in the Hazarganj area of Quetta yesterday.

Senior police officials said that the four are believed to be from the LEJ which is suspected of carrying out the terrorist attack on the police training centre in Quetta on Monday night in which 61 people, including police cadets, and two armymen, were killed.

Deputy Inspector General of police of Balochistan Razzaq Cheema said that the anti-terrorism department's officers raided a compound on the outskirts of Quetta on an intelligence tip-off.

"There was a heavy exchange of fire in which four militants were killed and three policeofficialsinjured," Cheema said.

He, however, declined to comment on whether the killed terrorists belonged to the LEJ and said investigations were going on toverifytheir identities.

Confusion still surrounds as to who is actually responsible for carrying out the terrorist strike on the police training centre.

Security officials believe it is the LEJ Al-Alami group which sent the terrorists from Afghanistan to carry out the strike.

The Islamic State and a splinter group of the Tehreek-e- Taliban have also claimed responsibility for the attack.

Security officials while ruling out the involvement of TTP are looking into the IS claim and believe it could have been a joint operation by theLEJAl-Alami and the ISIS.

Pakistan has been battling a homegrown Islamist insurgency since shortly after the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001.

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American filmmaker Christine Vachon, known for producing movies like "Carol" and "Still Alice", says actresses are brave when it comes to picking strong roles and they jump into something interesting whenever they get a chance.

Vachon said though there is a dearth of good roles for actresses in Hollywood, they are always up for making the most of the opportunities that come their way.

"I think female actors in Hollywood don't get as many opportunities. When we have a movie with a really good role for a woman, I know we will have no trouble casting it.

"I know Julianne (Moore), Cate (Blanchett), Kate Winslet, Amy Adams, all those actresses of certain age, when they see something that strong they jump on it.

"Men can be a little bit picky and choosy because there's a lot of stuff for them. But women, most of the time, are ready to take on," Vachon told PTI.

She said to improve women's representation in films, audience's encouragement is the most vital thing.

"Someone asked me how can I help in terms of women's representations in f ilms, I thought its simple - go to movies. Put down your money when there is a movie about women. Pay to see it and stop pirating."



Vachon has produced several acclaimed independent films, including Academy Award winner "Boys Don't Cry", "Far From Heaven" and "One Hour Photo" among others.

She believes another reason that there aren't many movies with substantial women parts is that nowadays better roles for females are written on television than in films.

"What is happening in America is that a lot of female- driven stories are going to the small screen and there is a real crisis around 'Oscars so white, so male, so straight.' Where is the diversity?



"Today the audience doesn't want something unauthentic. On one hand they are saying they're hungry for something besides the tentpole movies. But they are not always exercising that by going to the theatres."



Talking about the 2014 indie drama "Still Alice", which won Moore an Oscar for her performance of a linguistics professor diagnosed with familial Alzheimer's disease, she said the film was a gamble for the team as it had a female protagonist.

"When we made 'Still Alice' the crazy thing about that movie was the gamble. It was, this movie will only be successful if Julianne Moore gives the performance of her life and wins an Oscar. That was the gamble. Looking back, it sounds ridiculous. We were like, 'Oh yeah that's going to happen' and it did!".

Vachon was one of jury members in the 'International Competition' section at the 18th Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star, which concluded last night.

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Air India expects to add six new international destinations next year, its Chairman and Managing Director Ashwani Kumar Lohani said here today.

"We have added four international destinations this year, one of the biggest expansion by a globally leading airline," he told travel agents and business partners at a Diwali celebration dinner.

Its latest expansion will be Air India Express service between Singapore, Kolkata and Dhaka, starting from November 19. Air India's new service from Delhi to Madrid commences from December 1. It will also connect Singapore, he said.

Air India expects to add six new international destinations next year, Lohani said, without giving details as to which destinations will be added.

Lohani, first time in Singapore, also attended the board meeting as chairman of AISATS, a ground handling joint venture between Air India and Singapore Airport Terminal Services.

AISTATS handles Air India and customer airlines ground handling services in Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Trivandrum and Mangalore.

Air India is also looking at expanding connectivities between Indian tier 2 and tier 3 cities, he said, asking the travel agents to expand the scope of air travellers out of Singapore.

Currently, Air India has three fligts a day connecting to Singapore.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In a first, Delhi government today announced a three-tier air treatment system which includes setting up of wind purification units, mist fountains and virtual chimney at five major traffic intersections on trial basis to deal with rising air pollution in city.

The air treatment system has potential to reduce carbon monoxide and particulate emission by 40%-60% emission in 20-30 m radius during peak hours of traffic, Government sources claimed.

Delhi Minister Satyendar Jain, who is also the head of Delhi Task Force formed to formulate policy to curb air pollution, said the government in collaboration with National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) and IIT (Bombay) set up the entire system within 45 days.

He said that air purifiers will be installed at five major traffic intersections - Anand Vihar, ITO, Sarai Kalen Khan, Kashmere Gate and IIT (Delhi) or AIIMS.

Besides, government will also install a mist fountain at one traffic intersection which is yet to identified as a pilot project to curb air pollution.

This is for the first time that the city administration has taken such steps to bring down rising air pollution in the city.

The announcement comes after Jain held a meeting with NEERI Director Rakesh Kumar. IIT (Bombay) has also been engaged by NEERI for design and solutions.

Pollutant-loaded air continued to hang heavy in the national capital ahead of Diwali, when pollution is likely to peak, prompting authorities to urge residents to refrain from bursting firecrackers which they said emit cancer-causing smoke.

"We also plan to install a mist fountain at one intersection. We can bring down PM 2.5 and PM 10 in the air by using mist fountain. ," Jain told reporters here.

He said that in Pune, air purifiers have been installed where there have been good results and they can be set up at the central verge of the roads.

"Air treatment system will in place one-and-a-half months. The system will help bring down air pollution in Delhi in winter months as pollution is at its peak in December and January," said a senior government official.

The minister has appealed the residents of Delhi not to burst firecrackers in Delhi to make the city's air clean.

Nearly all the monitoring stations active in the city, cutting across agencies, had PM 2.5 and PM 10 (ultrafine pollutants) several times above the safe limit of 60 and 100 micrograms per cubic metre, keeping the air in the very poor category.

For the second consecutive day, pollutants (PM 10) in Anand Vihar shot up nine times above the safe limit when checked in real-time around 12 PM as per the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC).

Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB) Punjabi Bagh, RK Puram stations had AQI in the severe category which affects healthy people and seriously impacts those with existing diseases.

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Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh today said Defence minister Manohar Parrikar should be removed immediately for "not withdrawing" his ministry's circular which purportedly downgraded the status of armed forces vis-a-vis their civilian counterparts.

"Equating a civilian principal director with a major general (in place of the earlier brigadier rank officer), a director-ranked officer to a brigadier and a joint director to a colonel was tantamount to putting the army officers below par with the civilian officials," he said in a statement.

If the government wanted to give sops to the bureaucrats it could have found some other way of doing it instead of "demeaning and demoralising the armed forces," Amarinder said.

Notably, the Defence ministry, yesterday, said that there had been no down-gradation or any change in the existing equivalence of the Service ranks vis-a-vis their civilian counterparts.

He dismissed as "senseless" the MoD's attempt to defend the move as "only for matters of assigning duties and functional responsibilities."



"Functional responsibility is part of the ranking system in any organization or department, including the armed forces, and by trying to draw a distinction between the two, Parrikar has once again proved himself to be devoid of any understanding of the way the armed forces function," Amarinder alleged.

"Parrikar does not deserve to hold the sensitive portfolio of India's defence ministry and should be unceremoniously removed with immediate effect," he said.

The Lok Sabha MP said, "The ministry's decision to stick to its orders has come as a shock to the armed forces, which had been hoping for withdrawal of the notification after Parrikar on Tuesday promised to correct any discrepancy."



Lashing out at Parrikar, Amarinder said, "He has been playing games with the armed forces and has done everything in his power to chip at their morale, without realising the implications it can have on the nation's security and integrity."



"...He (Parrikar) cannot be allowed to remain the Defence Minister," Amarinder said, demanding immediate intervention by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to prevent the issue from snowballing out of control.

"Remember that it's national security that's at stake," he said, adding the way the armed forces were being treated by Parrikar's ministry was "shameful to the extreme".

While on the one hand, the government was all praise for the surgical strikes across the LoC, on the other the MoD was "systematically and deliberately destroying armed forces's morale," he alleged.

If the prime minister fails to take prompt action against Parrikar, he will have to "pay the price" for it, the PPCC chief said, adding if the current resentment in the forces over the new ranking goes out of control, even Modi will not be able to "reverse the tide".

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BJP president Amit Shah today held separate meetings with Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and other party leaders here today.

Shah, who arrived here last night, is expected to hold meetings with various party leaders to take stock of the BJP's preparedness for the Assembly elections, due next year.

According to BJP sources, Rupani and MoS, Home, Pradeepsinh Jadeja met Shah at his residence in the morning.

Later in day, Shah chaired a BJP meeting at party headquarters 'Kamalam' in Gandhinagar, which was attended by several party leaders and ministers.

It was decided in the meeting that each and every BJP worker will light up one lamp at his/her home during Diwali as a mark of tribute to soldiers.

"This initiative by the BJP is a humble gesture to tell all our soldiers that entire country is with them. Each of our worker will light up one lamp on Diwali to remember the sacrifice of our soldiers," said Gujarat BJP spokesperson Bharat Pandya.

(REOPENS DEL76)



Later, BJP General Secretary and in-charge of its



Maharashtra unit, Saroj Pandey congratulated the people of the state, all party workers and office bearers for the massive victory in the first phase of municipal council polls.

Pandey attributed the victory to the successful implementation of various policies and programmes formulated under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Government at the Centre, state Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis as well as BJP President Amit Shah.

"The people of Maharashtra were feeling neglected and cheated due to the anti-poor and anti-development policies of the Congress-NCP combine in the state. This victory has shown these two parties their real image," she said in a statement.
Four armed miscreants looted Rs 20 lakh from a vehicle carrying the cash from one branch to another of a nationalised bank in Assam's Darrang district today, the police said.

The heist occurred at Sikaribunglow village around 10 km from Tangla when the vehicle was heading towards the bank's Dimakuchi branch from its Tangla branch, the police said.

Two employees of the Dimakuchi branch along with a driver were carrying the cash in a car without security, the police said.

Police officers have rushed to the spot and have begun investigating the incident and an FIR lodged in Dimakuchi police station.

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The Military College of Electronics and Mechanical Engineering (MCEME) here has received approval as a 'type training organisation' for a select type of helicopters.

The college was accorded the approval by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for the Lama (Cheetah), Alouette (Chetak) and Dhruv helicopters.

Lt Gen Gurmukh Singh, Commandant, MCEME and Colonel Commandant, Corps of EME, received the accreditation certificate from Surender Toppo, Deputy Director (Air Worthiness), DGCA Hyderabad, in a ceremony held at the college, an official release said here today.

Over the years, MCEME has grown into a premier training institution of the Indian Army.

It is a five-time recipient of Golden Peacock Award for Training, ISO-9001 Certification and four Prime Minister's Awards for Best Technical Projects, the release said.

MCEME is affiliated to Hyderabad-JNTU and New Delhi's JNU for its M Tech, B Tech and Engineering Diploma programmes.

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A bill providing for asylum in the country may be taken up for consideration in the upcoming Winter Session of Parliament.

The consideration of this bill assumes significance in the backdrop Baloch leader Brahamdagh Bugti's recent application seeking political asylum in India.

The Asylum Bill, 2015 a private members' bill, introduced by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, can be taken up for consideration in the Winter Session of Parliament which starts from November 16, sources said.

It aims for an effective system to protect refugees and asylum seekers by means of an appropriate legal framework. Despite having a huge refugee population, India does not have an uniform law that addresses the issue of asylum.

The bill also suggests for establishing a commission which will take calls on applications of asylum seekers. The proposed panel will consist of a Chief Commissioner, and not less than six other commissioners to be appointed by the Centre.

As per the United Nation's refugee body UNHCR, in India there were 2,01,281 refugees and 6,480 asylum seekers at the end of 2015.

India, which has one of the largest refugee populations in South Asia, has offered shelter to Tibetans, the Chakmas of Bangladesh, Afghans and ethnic Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka.

The country has an informal refugee regime broadly in line with international instruments. But it has no formal asylum policy. The government decides on granting asylum on case-to-case basis.

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Bajrang Dal activists today demonstrated outside a movie hall in Purulia town in Purulia district protesting against the release of Karan Johar's latest movie "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil", which features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan.

Purulia SP Rupesh Kumar told PTI that the agitation went on for roughly 20 minutes.

"Around 9.30 AM, 80-100 activists of the Bajrang Dal demonstrated outside the City Life mall where the film was scheduled to be released raising 'patriotic' slogans," the SP said.

However, the film was released as scheduled, Kumar said.

In the aftermath of the deadly Uri terror attack last month, film distributors decided not to release the film "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" also starring Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.

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The new law to prohibit benami transactions, which also provides for up to 7 years imprisonment and fine for those indulging in such activities, will come into effect from November 1.

With a view to curb the menace of black money, Parliament in August had passed the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, after assurance from Finance Minister Arun Jaitley that genuine religious trusts will be kept out of the purview of the legislation.

"The rules and all the provisions of the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act shall come into force on November 1, 2016. After coming into effect, the existing Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988, shall be renamed as the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988," a CBDT statement said.

While the existing law provides for up to three years of imprisonment or fine or both for carrying out benami transactions, the amended legislation would provide for seven years imprisonment and fine.

The Act defines benami transactions, prohibits them and further provides that any violation is punishable with imprisonment and fine. The PBPT Act prohibits recovery of the property held benami from benamidar by the real owner.

"Properties held benami are liable for confiscation by the government without payment of compensation," it said.

An appellate mechanism has been provided under the Act in the form of Adjudicating Authority and Appellate Tribunal.

A Joint or Additional Commissioner of I-T, an Assistant or Deputy Commissioner and a Tax Recovery Officer in each Principal CCIT Region have been notified to perform the functions and exercise the powers of the Approving Authority, Initiating Officer and Administrator, respectively under the Act, the statement said.

While the 1988 Act has nine sections, the amended law would have 71 sections.

"There is Section 58 under the law which clearly states that in case of charitable or religious organisation properties, the government has power to exempt those," Jaitley had said responding to concerns of some Parliament members about the applicability of the amended law on properties in the name of holy books and deities.

"If there is a genuine property which belongs to a church or a mosque or a gurdwara or a temple, section 58 says that the government has the power to exempt it," he had said.

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A lot has happened since my last blog post more than seven months ago. In the fall I made several trips - in October to Wyoming for the annual meeting of ...

3 years ago
While the country is observing Ayurveda day today, prominent Ayurvedic college of Bihar here is battling infrastructure shortcomings and staff shortage is hampering delivery of services to the people.

The Government Ayurvedic College Patna has submitted its requirements of fund and filling of vacancies of staff to the Health department and waiting anxiously for action.

"The Ayurvedic college has been witnessing a footfall of about 500 patients daily, but because of infrastructure constraints we are facing problem in delivering desired services to people," Superintend



Despite the need for Rs 20 lakh annually for making available food to patients admitted at the hospital, only Rs 6.60 lakh have been provided to it which might force the college to stop free meal to patients, he said.

Though the college has sanctioned capacity of 200 beds, but only 100 are operational at present in the absence of construction of an additional third floor which has been approved long ago.

The college has submitted a list of 22 vacancies, including that of a senior resident doctor, emergency medical officer, yoga trainer and X-ray technician, as minimum requirements mandated by CCIM (Central Council of Indian Medicine) under Union Ayush ministry.

A sum of Rs one crore has been given by the state government for 2016-17 financial year for providing free medicines to patients which is proving inadequate and the college might not be able to give medicines to patients, he said.

The college has been drawing tremendous response from people and if these bottlenecks are removed it would provide better medicare to people, he said.

The Union Ayush ministry has decided to observe National Ayurveda day on October 28 and has also launched "Mission Madhumeha (diabetes) through Ayurveda".

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BJP workers today protested against the release of Karan Johar's blockbuster "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" (ADHM) in front of a cinema hall here.

The protesters, who were carrying the tri-colour, burnt the effigy of Karan Johar, the producer and director of the film and blackened his poster in front of the theatre near Gandhi Maidan.

They raised slogans against Johar for casting Pakistani actor Fawad Khan in the film released today across the country.

"We are protesting against the film because it features



a Pakistani actor. We cannot allow Pakistani artistes to work in India when our people especially soldiers are being targeted by Pakistani army and terrorists harboured by them," said Rakesh Gupta Patna University BJP Mandal (block) leader.

The protest was peaceful, police said.

The film ran into trouble after Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) had earlier threatened that it won't allow release of any movie that featured Pakistani artistes before a settlement was reached.

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The Border Security Force (BSF) today paid tributes to head constable Jitendra Singh who was killed in Pakistani firing.

Singh was killed in heavy firing from across the border on October 27.

He was the third BSF jawan to be killed in firing and shelling by Pakistani Rangers in the past few days. Head constable Sushil Kumar was killed on October 24. Constable Gurnam Singh, who foiled an infiltration bid by heavily armed militants in Bobiya area of Kathua district, was injured on Friday in a sniper attack and died on Saturday night.

A wreath-laying ceremony was organised for Jitendra Singh at the Jammu frontier camp of BSF at Paloura.

BSF ADG (Western Command) Arun Kumar, BSF IG (Jammu) D K Upadhayay and CRPF IG Pankaj Kumar were among those who paid floral tribute to the martyr on this occasion.

Arun Kumar said that BSF has the history of bravery and always committed to ensure sanctity of international border and safety security of the border population.

"This brave act has once again proved that border men sacrifice their lives when it comes to security of the nation," he said.

The cremation of the martyr will take place at his native Motihari in Bihar tomorrow.

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Former Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy today said that he would challenge the verdict of a Bengaluru court, directing him and five others to pay around Rs 1.6 crore with 12 per cent interest, to a businessman for a solar project that did not materialise.

"I am confident that I will be able to prove my innocence in the case," he told reporters here.

"The court verdict came due to my own carelessness. I did not take the case seriously asI was sure that I was not involved in it," he said.

The Congress leader said the petitioner in the case, businessman M K Kuruvilla, had met him when he was the chief minister and complained that he had been duped by his (Chandy) relative Andrews and Personal Assistant Daljit.

"I had told him that I did not have a relative by the name of Andrews or a Personal Assistant named Daljit. Still the complaint was handed over to the DGP for a probe," Chandy said.

A local court in Bengaluru had on October 24 directed six persons, including Chandy and a firm to together pay Rs 1,60,85,700 to Bengaluru-based businessman M K Kuruvilla, with 12 per cent interest.

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China's J-20 stealth fighter will make its public debut at a Chinese air show next week where war planes from Pakistan Air Force along with Russian and British counterparts will perform.

Three JF-17s of the Pakistan Air Force will take part in the 11th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition, also known as Air-show China, Chinese Defence Ministry spokesman, Col Wu Qian said.

Shen Jinke, spokesperson of the People's Liberation Army said China's J-20 stealth fighter, the new-generation warcraft, will make its public debut at the show to be held in Zhuhai City of Guangdong province from November 1 to 6.

The J-20 made its maiden flight in 2011.

Shen said the fighter jet will help the air force better fulfill the mission of "safeguarding national sovereignty, security and territorial integrity."



Shen said, though it will not fly, the domestic-built Y-20 heavy transport aircraft will also be displayed at the 11th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition, state- run Xinhua agency reported.

The Y-20, a versatile plane with a maximum takeoff weight of about 200 tonnes, is designed for carrying cargo and personnel over long distances in "complicated meteorological conditions."



It officially entered military service in July this year.

Other aircraft such as the H-6K bomber, the J-10B fighter jet and the KJ-500 that is China's early warning and control aircraft will be showcased at the exhibition.

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China's nearly 4-year-old campaign against corruption is not politically biased and only seeks to defend the interests of the country's 1.3 billion people, a leading Communist Party anti-graft official said today.

Wu Yuliang told reporters that those speculating that the campaign was being used to target political foes were acting out of ulterior motives.

"In the past some people accused us of inaction in the face of corruption, and now that we have intensified efforts to fight corruption, we have been accused of being selective," Wu said. "I'm afraid those (critics) may have other purposes or motives."



Wu's comments came the day after a major meeting of the ruling Communist Party that renewed President Xi Jinping's drive to end corruption and tighten discipline within the 88 million-member organization that has run China since seizing power in a 1949 revolution.

The party meeting also elevated Xi to the position of "core" leader, underscoring his clout and strengthening his dominance ahead of a reshuffle in the top ranks next year.

More than 1 million party members have been punished in the anti-corruption campaign, which has also brought down two former top generals and a past member of the Politburo Standing Committee, the apex of political power.

"When uprooting rotten trees one has to start with the most rotten ones. If that is called selective I have to say this is just the way we do our work," said Wu, who is vice secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.

The ruling party "pursues wholeheartedly benefits for the people, and we are making anti-corruption efforts wholly for the purpose of the interests of the people and the country," he said.

While mainly symbolic, the move to bestow Xi with "core" status reflects his rise as the country's most powerful leader in decades, along with his determination to run the ruling party as a clean institution enjoying unfettered authority.

While this week's meeting kicked off the process of selecting new leaders, Wu and other officials at a briefing Friday said they had no information about future appointments.

Five of the current seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee all but Xi and Premier Li Keqiang are due to step down next year according to custom.

While Xi has accumulated a growing number of titles and powers, observers say his need to constantly enforce discipline within the party points to a continuing push-back from rivals and disgruntled members of the rank and file.

And while his assertive foreign policy has won plaudits from the public, he faces intense pressure to solve domestic challenges including slowing economic growth and massive layoffs resulting from the closure of steel mills and coal mines.

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Hillary Clinton is "absolutely ready" to be the US' commander-in-chief on day one as the Democratic presidential nominee and former secretary of state has more experience and exposure than any candidate "in our lifetime", First Lady has said.

During a rare joint appearance with Clinton at a North Carolina election rally yesterday, Michelle contrasted Clinton's vision of a "powerful, vibrant and strong" nation with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's vision of "hopelessness and despair".

"I am out here first and foremost because we have never had a more qualified and prepared candidate for president than our friend Hillary Clinton. Never before in our lifetime. I say this everywhere I go," she said.

"I admire and respect Hillary. She has been a lawyer, a law professor, First Lady of Arkansas, First Lady of the US, a US Senator, secretary of state. She has more experience and exposure to the presidency than any candidate in our lifetime. Yes, more than Barack (Obama). More than Bill (Clinton). So she is absolutely ready to be commander-in-chief on day one. And yes, she happens to be a woman," Michelle said yesterday.

In the past few weeks, Michelle, 52, has emerged as a strong advocate of Clinton, 69, and has made several impressive speeches in some of the key battle ground states.

"It takes a level of generosity of spirit to do what Hillary has done in her career, in her life, for our family, for this nation. If people wonder, yes, Hillary Clinton is my friend. She has been a friend to mine and Barack, Malia, Sasha and Bill and Chelsea have been embracing and supportive from the very day my husband took the oath of office," she said.

The First Lady called this election unprecedented.

"I do not think we have ever had two candidates with such dramatically different visions of who we are and how we move forward as a nation.

"One candidate has a vision that is grounded in hopelessness and despair, a vision of a country that is weak and divided, where our communities are in chaos, our fellow citizens a threat. This candidate calls on us to turn against each other, to build walls, to be afraid," Michelle said without mentioning Trump, 70.

"And then there is Hillary's vision for this country that you just heard, a vision of a nation that is powerful and vibrant and strong, big enough to have a place for all of us, a nation where we each have something very special to contribute and where we are always stronger together.

"That is the choice we face between those who divide this country into us versus them and those who tell us to embrace our better angels and choose hope over fear," she said.

Michelle said this year's election is not about Republicans versus Democrats, but about something much bigger.

"We know the influence our president has on our children, how they turn on the TV and they see the most powerful role model in the world, someone who shows them how to treat others, how to deal with disappointment, whether to tell the truth," Michelle added.
Hillary Clinton's policies on Syria and Russia could lead to World War III, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has said as he criticised his Democratic rival for being too tough on Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"Now Hillary wants to start a shooting war in Syria, conflict with a nuclear power - Russia - which could very well lead to World War III," Trump told his cheering supporters in Springfield, Ohio.

"The way she talks about (Russian President, Vladimir) Putin. She's always said she has no idea, but she's always saying -- WikiLeak, it's Russia, and Donald Trump -- I have nothing to do with Russia. She said may be Donald Trump is involved in projects with the Russians. The answer's no," he said.

"Look, look, she speaks so badly of Putin, nuclear country, she speaks so badly, and she uses it to keep trying to get votes. I said to myself you know, how do you speak so badly of somebody, I mean how are they going to ever get along? Wouldn't it be great if we actually got along with Russia and other countries?" he told his supporters amidst applause.

"We together went after ISIS and knocked the hell out of them? Wouldn't that be a good thing?" he said indicating that he would collaborate with Russia to defeat ISIS.

A Trump Administration, he said will change America's foreign policy.

"Hillary Clinton's policies in Iraq, Syria, Libya threw the Middle East into total turmoil. We're spending USD6 trillion on wars in the Middle East while our own country falls into total disrepair," he said.

Trump said as part of his plan to bring back American jobs he will lower taxes on businesses from 35 per cent down to 15 per cent.

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Hitting out at Centre over Law Commission's move relating to triple talaq and Uniform Civil Code, a body representing Sunni Muslims today accused the government of making the move in view of UP elections and warned that the community will give befitting reply if it was implemented.

The All India Tanzeem Ulema-a-Islam (AITUI) also staged protest over the issue here, demanding the government to withdraw the "communal" move.

"The Commission is interfering in the personal laws of the Muslims. This is being done to polarise voters in view of the UP polls at the behest of the RSS. Any move to further the step will be given befitting reply by people during the 2017 polls.

"We want the Commission to withdraw the step," AITUI president Mufti Mohammed Ashfaq Hussain Qadri, said according to a statement.

The demonstrators also urged members of other minority communities such as Jain, Sikhs, Parsis and Christians to join the protest, saying "their rights too may be trampled upon".

"The UCC will affect personal laws of not only of Mulsims, but these communities too. So, they should also join us," Maulana Shahabuddin Rizvi, general secretary of All India Jamat Raza-e Mustafa of Bareilly said.

Making perhaps the first such move, the Law Commission had on October 7 sought feedback from public on whether the practice of triple talaq be abolished and whether a uniform civil code should be optional.

In its affidavit submitted to Supreme Court on the same day, the Centre had also opposed before the apex court the practice of triple talaq, 'nikah halala' and polygamy among Muslims.

The government had said that triple talaq cannot be regarded as an essential part of the religion and favoured a relook on grounds like gender equality and secularism.

The Ministry of Law and Justice, in the affidavit, referred to constitutional principles like gender equality, secularism, international covenants, religious practices and marital law prevalent in various Islamic countries to drive home the point that the practice of triple talaq and polygamy needed to be adjudicated upon afresh by the apex court.

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Congress today expressed concern over the 111 day curfew in the Kashmir valley and burning of 25 schools and asked the government whether it has any roadmap to bring normalcy.

"Does the Government have a Policy, does the Government have a way out, does the Government have a solution, and does the Government have a Roadmap or a Plan. Nation has waited for over 3-4 months, how much longer will the Nation wait?", party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi told reporters.

On the question of ceasefire violations by Pakistan, Singhvi said the party sees it with great alarm and regret and seriousness, as Pakistan is not going to change.

Singhvi also took a dig at the government over the World Bank Report which showed that the ranking of India in the Ease of Doing Business has not changed despite its claims of vast improvement.

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My mom is an immigrant and my dad and his family have served this nation in uniform since the Revolution #ILSEN pic.twitter.com/ehEBHswFMs  Tammy Duckworth (@TammyforIL) October 28, 2016

Rep. Tammy Duckworth is a congresswoman, war veteran, and candidate for the U.S. Senate in Illinois. She is a dedicated public servant and trailblazer by all accounts. So, of course, as an Asian American woman, she would be attacked by an entitled white politician trying to cast doubt on her military and ethnic heritage.Duckworth is seeking to unseat Republican Senator Mark Kirk. On Thursday night during the Illinois senate debate, Duckworth mentioned her family's history of military service."My family has served this nation in uniform, going back to the Revolution," Duckworth said. "I'm a Daughter of the American Revolution. I've bled for this nation. But I still want to be there in the Senate when the drums of war sound. Because people are quick to sound the drums of war, and I want to be there to say this is what it costs, this is what you're asking us to do... Families like mine are the ones that bleed first."Kirk responded with a snarky dig at Duckworth's heritage:The implication: how could a woman who looks like you have any sort of connection to something so purely American as the Revolutionary War?Well, allow Tammy to explain.Duckworth's mother, Lamai, is from Thailand (of Chinese descent), but her late father, Franklin, was a Marine veteran whose family history traces back to ancestors who fought in the American Revolution. Tammy Duckworth was severely wounded in the Iraq War, losing her legs while serving as a helicopter pilot.In response to Kirk's remark, Duckworth took a moment to thoroughly annihilate the senator's racist snarkitude, detailing her family's military heritage -- including theerected in her honor."There's been members of my family serving in uniform, on my father's side, going back to the Revolution," Duckworth said. "I belong to the William J. Penny Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution right here, and if you go to Mount Vernon, Illinois, you'll see a statue of me put up by the Daughters of the American Revolution next to one of our great patriots, Molly Pitcher, one of the first women to pick up and take her husband's position during the Revolution. I'm proud of both my father's side and my mother, who's an immigrant. She became an American citizen in her fifties. I'm just as proud of that."After the debate, Duckworth tweeted a photo of herself -- in uniform -- with her parents:To further drive home the point, Duckworth tweeted a photo of her and that statue she was talking about.Consider yourself moded, Senator.Lara Sisselman, a spokesperson for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee called Kirk's remark "offensive, wrong, and racist," and pointed out Kirk's own weak-ass history about lying about his military record."Senator Kirk has been caught lying about his military record over ten times, but he was quick to launch false attacks questioning Congresswoman Duckworth's family's long history of serving our country," said Sisselman. "A struggling political campaign is no excuse for baseless and despicable attacks, and Senator Kirk owes Congresswoman Duckworth and her family an apology."Kirk's campaign deflected the hell out of the moment, issuing a statement that did not include an apology or any reference to the senator's remarks. "Senator Kirk has consistently called Rep. Duckworth a war hero and honors her family's service to this country," campaign spokeswoman Eleni Demertzis. "But that's not what this debate was about. Rep. Duckworth lied about her legal troubles, was unable to defend her failures at the VA and then falsely attacked Senator Kirk over his record on supporting gay rights."Recent polls have shown Duckworth with a significant lead in Illinois. Say goodbye, Senator Kirk.
Delhi Congress leaders today met Lt Governor Najeeb Jung and sought his intervention in regularising contract employees of DTC.

Delhi Congress president Ajay Maken, who led the delegation, said, "Kejriwal government should immediately regularise contract employees with DTC and till completion of the regularisation process, they should be paid salaries on par with the regular employees."



The delegation also included Congress leaders of Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC).

Maken also demanded that DTC should immediately terminate the annual maintenance contract given to a private company as it is threatening to render thousands of employees jobless.

DTC should replenish its depleted bus fleet without further delay as the shortage of buses have affected public transport in Delhi causing "terrible" inconvenience to commuters, he claimed.

"It may be recalled that when the Aam Aadmi Party came to power in Delhi, the DTC had a fleet of around 5,000 buses which has now come down to 4,000. Instead of increasing the number of buses, the DTC now faces shortage of 1,000 buses," he claimed.

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Karan Johar's film "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil", which had got embroiled in a controversy after MNS' threat to stall its screenings for featuring a Pakistani actor, hit the screens today as per schedule without any hiccups, barring a protest outside a theatre in Kalyan in neighbouring Thane district.

Although the Cinema Owners Exhibitors Association Of India (COEAI) had earlier decided not to release the film in single screens, "ADHM" was played in the single-screen theatres as well, besides the multiplexes.

The movie had generated a lot of heat in run-up to its release after the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) had threatened to block its release for featuring Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. The MNS threat had come in the wake of the Uri attack.

However, decks had been cleared for the film after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis mediated a dialogue between the filmmakers and Raj Thackeray last week.

Before the truce was clinched, the producers had to give some assurances such as that they would not work with Pakistani artistes and technicians in their future projects, given the people's sentiments in the wake of terror strikes.

Johar, accompanied by Producers' Guild President Mukesh Bhatt had met Fadnavis alongwith MNS chief Raj Thackeray seeking to cool tempers and sort out the matter.

The romantic drama, which stars Ranbir Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Anushka Sharma, today got a smooth opening at all theatres in and around the metropolis.

The film is being played in both single screen screens theatres and multiplexes, screening as many as 17 shows a day.

Police were deployed outside Metro Cinema in south Mumbai, which had last week witnessed protests by MNS workers over the screening of the film.

A hardline Maratha organisation, Sambhaji Brigade, however staged a protest outisde a multiplex in Kalyan for screening the film. But no untoward incident was reported.

According to trade pundits, the film is set to get an opening of approximately Rs 12-13 crore, higher than the other Diwali release, Ajay Devgn-starrer "Shivaay".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In a case of honour killing, a couple was shot dead on the orders of a tribal court in this Pakistani city for eloping to marry.

Azmat, 30, and Irfana, 18 were killed in the Shah Latif township on the outskirts of Karachi on Wednesday, a police officer said.

They had eloped and got married a year back.

"The couple was living in Banaras colony in Orangi town after getting married. Apparently few days back their families located them and convinced them everything will be forgiven and they just have to appear before a Jirga to settle the matter," the Station House Officer (SHO) of the area said.

He said when the couple appeared before the Jirga it passed an order that since they had brought dishonor their families they deserved to be given the death penalty.

The SHO said according to an informer who was present at the Jirga the couple were lined up and shot dead by three persons identified as Arshad, Nizam and Saeed.

"Their families than took their dead bodies and buried them in the local graveyard but we have now got orders from the court to get their bodies exhumed for post mortem," he said.

Police have arrested seven persons involved in the case.

Honour killing is a menace still prevalent in many parts of Pakistan.

In July British Pakistani woman, was allegedly killed by her parents for marrying a man of her choice in Jehlum district of Punjab.

In April, police arrested a young man in Karachi's Orangi Town for slitting his teenage sister's throat and watching her bleed to death.

In March this year, a man shot dead both his sisters in Sahiwal district in Punjab after suspecting them of having affairs.

The government recently passed a bill in the parliament invoking stronger punishments for those involved in honour killing after model and social media celebrity Qandeel Baluch was strangled to death by her brother and two other relatives in Multan.

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A Delhi court today declined to entertain an NGO's plea seeking registration of FIR against app-based cab service providers, including Ola and Uber, for allegedly not adhering to rules to raise fares on the basis of meters fitted in the vehicles.

The complainant did not press for the application and preferred to withdraw it after which Metropolitan Magistrate Abhilash Malhotra treated it "dismissed as withdrawn" and held that the offences alleged in the plea under the Motor Vehicles (MV) Act were "non-cognizable".

The court, however, allowed complainant NGO Nyayabhoomi, which claimed that Ola, Uber and 'Taxi for Sure' were also allegedly violating permit conditions by running vehicles on diesel and providing point-to-point service in Delhi, to lead evidence in support of the complaint under Section 200, CrPC.

"The present complaint under Section 156(3) CrPC is filed against the accused alleging the offence under section 93 of MV Act and Sections 66/192A of MV Act which are non-cognizable offence in nature. Accordingly, complainants are not pressing their application under Section 156(3) CrPC and prayed that the complaint be treated as complaint under Section 200 CrPC. It seeks time to lead evidence under Section 200 CrPC.

"In view of the statement of counsel for complainant, application under Section 156(3) CrPC stands dismissed as withdrawn. Put up for arguments on point of maintainability of the complaint on November 10," the magistrate said.

The NGO, in its plea, has sought recovery of a whopping Rs 91,000 crore from the three app-based cab service providers for allegedly not adhering to rules relating to fares.

It had sought lodging of FIR alleging that by providing taxi and autorickshaw services, they were violating the permit conditions which amounted to commission of offences under sections 66 and 192A of the MV Act.

The complaint by the NGO, through its secretary Rakesh Agarwal, was filed against ANI Technologies Pvt Ltd which runs Ola, Uber India Systems Pvt Ltd and Serendipity Infolabs Pvt Ltd which runs Taxi For Sure.

Advocate Sumit Kumar Modi, appearing for the complainant, alleged that instead of CNG, these app-based service providers were running diesel vehicles and providing point to point services, violating Supreme Court orders.

The NGO also sought recovery of an additional penalty of Rs 26,000 crore from the firms and they be awarded jail term as per law.

It had in September also filed a case in the National Consumer Commission against Ola and Uber seeking refund of Rs 9,239 crore to consumers which was collected through "illegal" surge pricing by these companies.

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With rising pollution level and smog over Delhi and adjoining areas, the National Green Tribunal today pointed to large scale burning of crop stubble in northern states as shown in satellite pictures, asking the states to comply with its earlier order in the matter.

The NGT directed these states including Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh to file affidavits detailing steps taken by them to implement its order asking state governments to take coercive and punitive action against persistent defaulters of agricultural waste burning.

A bench headed by NGT chairperson Swatanter Kumar said joint affidavits should be filed by secretaries of agriculture and environment of the states on personal verification, which should also mention the steps taken and future action plans, besides incentives given to farmers in return of crop residue taken from them for alternate purposes.

The details should also include number of equipments purchased by states to dispose agriculture residue from the fields, number of challans issued to defaulter farmers, the amount recovered from them, steps taken on media advertisements to educate farmers on the issue, the tribunal order and other relevant factors, the green panel said.

"In the event of non-filing of affidavit, the concerned secretary be present before the tribunal on December 2, the next date of hearing," it said.

The tribunal noted the submission of the counsel for the complainant that as per NASA images, there is large scale crop residue burning in several states, particularly in Punjab.

During the hearing, advocate Naginder Benipal, appearing for Punjab, told the bench that the secretary of Ministry of Environment and Forest has convened a meeting of UP, Punjab, Rajasthan and Haryana on November 3 to decide on the issue.

When the bench said none of the states have filed their affidavits, Punjab's counsel said he has filed it giving details of steps taken by them, future course of action and also seeking the Centre's aid which has not been given yet.

"We have issued challans to the defaulters and also educated the farmers through print and electronic media and gram panchayats," Benipal said.

Punjab claimed in its affidavit that the state was making continued efforts to curb the practice of straw burning there.

"Change of practices by farmers is a slow process and needs a continuous and long drawn plan particularly keeping their educational and financial conditions in mind. Technology for the management of paddy straw has been developed but it needs continuous refinement," it said.

"Farmers have started adopting the technologies but their



large scale adoption will take more time. Also, the equipment cost is high and it is difficult for the small and marginal farmers, that counts to more than 65 per cent of total land holders, to purchase straw management equipment on their own. Management of crop residue from whole of the area under paddy, 30 lakh hectares, with available management options would require funds of Rs 11,497 crore," Punjab's affidavit said.

It said the state government alone cannot make this huge investment on providing straw management machines to the farmers and it was dependent on funds provided by the Centre under various centrally-sponsored schemes like Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana and Sub Mission of Agricultural Mechanisation.

"Given the scale of problem and the capital investment needed to address the issue, the Central Government may be directed to launch a project to tackle the problem under mission mode approach or to provide necessary funds to the tune of Rs 11,497 crore approximately to the State," it said.

During the hearing, the bench while warning the states, remarked "your problem is that you sit at home and relax. You file false affidavit. You better be careful before filing false affidavit."



"There was a time when Punjab had the highest per capita income in the country and see today, you (Punjab) don't have a penny," it observed.

The tribunal, which has fixed fines on farmers for burning crop stubble to prevent smog over Delhi and its neighbourhood, had earlier directed Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh to inform it about the generation of agriculture waste and steps taken to dispose them off.

Last year, the NGT had fixed the environment compensation amounts per incident of crop burning to be paid by small land owners having less than two acres of land at Rs 2500, medium land owners holding over two acres and less than five acres at Rs 5,000 and those owning over five acres at Rs 15,000.

It had also directed state governments to take coercive and punitive action against persistent defaulters of crop residue burning and asked them to withdraw the assistance provided to such farmers.

The green panel had said the five states - Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi - which have issued notification prohibiting agriculture crop residue burning should ensure that these notifications are enforced rigorously and proper action is taken against the defaulters.

The NGT's order came on a plea by environmentalist Vikrant Tongad who had sought a ban on burning of agricultural waste and remnants in open fields.
Cuba, China, Egypt and Saudi Arabia were among 14 members elected today by the UN General Assembly to the world body's human rights council, but Russia failed to garner enough votes to win the re-election amid rights groups campaign against its role in the war in Syria.

The 193-member General Assembly voted here to elect Brazil, China, Croatia, Cuba, Egypt, Hungary, Iraq, Japan, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Tunisia, UK and the US to the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council.

The elected members will serve in the 47-member Council for a three year term beginning January 1, 2017. India is a member of the human rights body and its term will expire in 2017.

China, Cuba, South Africa, Saudi Arabia and the UK were seeking re-election to the Council as their terms were set to expire in December.

Russia too was seeking re-election but did not garner enough votes to win.

The Council members are elected directly and individually by secret ballot by the majority of the members of the UNGA. The Council membership is based on equitable geographical distribution, and seats are distributed among regional groups of Africa, Asia-Pacific, Eastern Europe, Latin American and Caribbean, Group of Western Europe and other states.

The members of the Council serve a period of three years and are not be eligible for immediate re-election after two consecutive terms.

Rights body Human Rights Watch had strongly opposed candidacies of Saudi Arabia and Russia for the Human Rights Council, criticising the two nations for "their widespread unlawful attacks" on civilians in Yemen and Syria.

Human Rights Watch had said accepting Saudi Arabia and Russia's bids for membership would be contrary to the basic standards for which the Human Rights Council was created 10 years ago, and risk undermining the credibility of the UN's top human rights body and its ability to hold abusers accountable. Human Rights Watch had also expressed serious concerns about the "poor human rights records" of China and Egypt running for three-year council terms.

"The UN Human Rights Council's ability to successfully expose and hold violators to account is under threat because a number of countries use it to thwart attempts to expose their own crimes and abuses," UN director at Human Rights Watch Louis Charbonneau had said.

"Electing council members that are truly committed to improving human rights is the responsibility of each and every UN member country, and Saudi Arabia and Russia don't honour the ideals that underpin the UN Human Rights Council.

(REOPENS FGN 37)



In the African group, Egypt, Rwanda, South Africa, and Tunisia were running for seats on the Council. In the Asia-Pacific group, China, Iraq, Japan, and Saudi Arabia sought the four available seats, while in the Western group UK and the US ran virtually unopposed.

In eastern Europe, Croatia, Hungary, and Russia were each seeking one of two available seats. In the Latin American and Caribbean group, Brazil, Cuba, and Guatemala were in the running for two seats.

HRW also called for UN member countries to put an end to closed slates and vote-trading, saying countries elected should expect their own human rights records to be subject to increased scrutiny during their council terms.

In June 2016, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, joined by a broad coalition of nongovernmental organizations, had called for suspending Saudi Arabia from the Human Rights Council due to the Saudi-led coalition's numerous illegal attacks on civilians in Yemen.

Earlier this year, Saudi Arabia had threatened to withdraw funds from critical UN programs to compel UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to remove the coalition from his "List of Shame" for killing and maiming children and attacking schools and hospitals in Yemen, HRW had said.
China on Friday warned India that bilateral ties as well as peace and stability of the border areas would suffer "damage" if it allows Tibetan spiritual leader to visit Arunachal Pradesh, which Beijing claims is part of southern Tibet.

"We are seriously concerned about the relevant information," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang told a media briefing here replying to a question about reports that India has granted permission to to visit Arunachal Pradesh at the invitation of the chief minister.

"China's position on the eastern section of China India border is consistent and clear. The Dalai clique is engaged in anti-China separatist activity and has very disgraceful behaviour on issues relating to China-India boundary question," Lu said.

The Indian side is well aware of the severity of the issue as well as the sensitivity of the China-India boundary question, he said.

"Under such circumstances India's invitation to the Dalai Lama for activity in the disputed areas between China and India will only damage peace, stability of the border areas as well as the bilateral relationship between China and India," Lu said.

"We require the Indian side to honour the political commitment to Tibet-related issues and abide by the bilateral consensus on boundary question," he said.

India also should "refrain from taking any action that may complicate the issue, do not provide any platform for anti-China separatist activities by the 14th Dalai Lama," he said.

"Only by doing so can we maintain sound and steady growth of the bilateral relations," he added.

Asked about assertions by External Affairs Spokesperson Vikas Swarup that Dalai Lama has visited the state in the past, Lu said, "making one mistake does not mean that you can make another mistake".

"As I just said, India's invitation to the Dalai Lama for activity in the disputed area between China and India is like providing a platform for anti-China separatist activities. It does no good to peace and tranquility in the border areas as well as the development of China-India relations," he said.

China considers Arunachal Pradesh as part of southern Tibet and routinely objects to visits by the Dalai Lama, Indian leaders as well as foreign dignitaries.

The border dispute covers the 3,488-km long Line of Actual Control (LAC).

India asserts that the dispute covered Aksai Chin area which was occupied by China during 1962 war.

On October 24, China took exception to the visit by Richard Verma, the US envoy in India, to Arunachal Pradesh which it claims as southern Tibet, saying any interference by Washington in the Sino-India boundary dispute will make it "more complicated" and "disturb" hard-won peace at the border.
A trust fund of Rs 2 lakh out of the Indian National Army's funds was created for the benefit of Anita Bose, daughter of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, according to declassified files on the freedom fighter released today.

According to the extracts from Indian Information Service dated May 24, 1954, this information was given by Jawaharlal Nehru on May 23 to Congress Working Committee which concluded its 2-day deliberations here.

The files also showed that some money may also have been paid to Bose's wife Frau Schenkl in Switzerland.

Besides, the files also had a declassified letter of Ministry of External Affairs Ministry to Ambassador of India in Switzerland stating that "there is no objection to Anita Schenkl-Bose being registered as an Indian citizen under Article 8 of the Indian Constitution".

Culture Secretary N K Sinha today released online the 9th and final batch of three declassified files which pertained to Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) from 1953 to 1990.

The first lot of 100 files related to Netaji were put in the public domain by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 23 on the occasion of the freedom fighters 119th birth anniversary.

The second lot of 50 files was released in March and 25 files each were put in public domain in the subsequent months.

In all, 300 files have been put in public domain till now.

The disappearance of Netaji 70 years ago still remains a mystery with two Commissions of Inquiry concluding that he had died in a plane crash in Taipei on August 18, 1945, while a third probe panel, headed by Justice M K Mukherjee, had contested it and suggested that Bose had survived the crash.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Union Minister Arun Jaitley today advised a fresh bunch of IPS officers at the National Police Academy here to stay abreast on various subjects to tackle new-age crimes.

"The nature of crime today is changing. It is no longer a conventional crime. Terrorism is a great curse of the society. You have to deploy all models of tools in order to learn how to fight terror.

Cyber crime, crimes involving detailed forensic analysis, narcotics, and newer areas of emerging crime, these are all the areas you have to educate yourselves while being on the job. I am sure each one of you (IPS trainees) will continue to train yourselves everyday on service," Jaitley said.

He was delivering a lecture here at the passing out parade of a fresh batch of IPS officers who underwent 44-week training in Saradar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy.

The minister also lauded Sardar Patel's role as the country's first Home Minister and remembered his crucial contribution in unifying and changing the geography of India.

Terming the IPS probationaries as "pillars of the society" after becoming full pledged officers , Jaitley told them to take charge of the administration.

"As a civil servant, you are protectors of the law," he said.

Earlier, Aruna M Bahuguna, Director of NPA said the officers who were trained in the Academy have been equipped not just to win the battle on the ground, but also the battle of the mind.

She said the 2015-batch which passed out today had 124 probationaries including 15 foreign cadets from Nepal, Bhutan and Maldives.

Also, the passed out officers included 20 per cent women.

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The European Commission today opened an in-depth investigation into state-owned ChemChina's 40-billion-euro takeover of Swiss seeds giant Syngenta to see if it would hurt competition.

"We need to carefully assess whether the proposed merger would lead to higher prices or a reduced choice for farmers," EU Competition Commissioner Magrethe Vestager said in a statement.

The deal -- the biggest in a series of Chinese overseas acquisitions -- would combine Syngenta, a global leader in seeds and crop protection with ChemChina which controls Adama, the largest supplier of generic crop protection products in Europe.

"The transaction would take place in an industry that is already relatively concentrated," the Commission noted.

In a joint statement, ChemChina and Syngenta said they would "continue constructive discussions with the EU authorities in order to conclude the review as early as possible."



The Commission probe will run to March 15.

Syngenta said this week it was confident the deal would go through, having already been cleared in the United States and Japan.

The Commission said initial investigations showed the new company would have "relatively high combined market shares" in several categories, while ChemChina's Adama would be removed as a competitor with Syngenta.

Given the global scope of Syngenta and ChemChina, the Commission said it would cooperate closely with other competition authorities, notably in the United States, Brazil and Canada.

The deal is just one of several huge takeovers in the agro-chemical sector, with German giant Bayer offering $66 billion for US firm Monsanto, which in 2015 had tried to acquire Syngenta for USD 46 billion.

The Commission recalled that it also has an in-depth probe underway into a proposed tie-up between US chemical giants Dow and DuPont, valued at USD 130 billion, with a decision due February 6.

If the Commission, which oversees competition policy in the 28-nation EU, finds fault with a proposed merger, it can reject the deal but more usually it asks the companies to sell parts of the business, or to allow in newcomers so as to minimise the impact on customer choice and price.

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Experts today questioned Delhi government's plan to install air purifiers in major intersections and termed it as a 'red herring', saying the focus should be on controlling polluting sources.

IIT Delhi Professor Mukesh Khare said no manufacturer of such purifiers have been able to answer the potential capacity, or 'zone of influence' of such devices, especially when installed outdoors.

Anumita Roychowdhury of Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) wondered what difference would such purifiers make in a massively polluted city like Delhi, considering its radius will be around 20-30 metres only.

"What the zone of influence (capacity) of such an air purifier would be is an important question that has not been answered by any manufacturer till date. How is it going to be measured?" Khare asked.

He explained that the capacity of a purifier depends on its pumping velocity and density of pollutants in its immediate surroundings.

"If level of pollutants are very high around prufiers, its filter will get choked very quickly and the pressure will drop and its capacity will decrease," Khare said.

Anumita said New Delhi Municipal Corporation had installed one such device in Connaught Place in 2010 but never released the complete data gathered by it.

"They used to release only the outlet level air quality but not its impact on the surroundings. No one knows how it cleaned the surrounding air," she said.

She said resources should be invested on controlling pollution at the source, like farm fires, vehicle pollution, construction dust considering these devices are also expensive.

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After he seemed to have thrown his weight behind Navi Mumbai civic chief Tukaram Mundhe, against whom a no confidence motion was passed by corporators, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis today refused to meet an all-party delegation seeking removal of the IAS officer from his post.

Earlier in the day, Mayor of Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation Sudhakar Sonawane led a team comprising members of Shiv Sena, Congress and NCP to meet Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray at the latter's residence here.

"After meeting Thackeray, the delegation went to meet Fadnavis at his residence Varsha here, but he refused to meet them and asked them to get an appointment first," a BJP source said.

In the no trust motion passed in the NCP-ruled civic body earlier this week, six members of BJP voted against the resolution which was supported by the NCP, Congress and Sena.

Sonawane, who has demanded immediate removal of Mundhe, requested Thackeray to speak to Fadnavis in this regard.

Thackeray reportedly assured the delegation that he would put a word with Fadnavis.

The Sena chief told reporters that Fadnavis sould respect the decision taken by the NMMC corporators against Mundhe.

"If the CM does not want to respect majority and the decision taken through a democratic way, then he should change rules and withdraw the right of passing of a no-confidence motion from corporators and act according to his own will," Thackeray said.

He said the CM should think about the reasons behind the corporators closing the ranks to bring the no-trust motion against Mundhe.

"People of Navi Mumbai were harassed by the Commissioner and hence he was sacked. It was not because they (corporators) have majority in their hand and that they used it for their personal interests," Thackeray said.

Mundhe, popular for his drive against illegal constructions in Navi Mumbai, was accused of "autocratic style of functioning and disrespecting corporators" by the Mayor.

"The CM has to follow the rules. He will implement the resolution. Otherwise, I will have no option than to resign from my post," Sonawane said.

The fate of the motion rests with Fadnavis who heads the Urban Development Department.

The chief minister had yesterday termed Mundhe as "very efficient" officer and said the state government cannot allow such resolutions to be implemented.

"Targeting an officer for doing his duty, exposing irregularities and preventing wrong happenings is absolutely wrong," Fadnavis had told PTI.

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Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee chief Ashok Chavan has asked Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to come clear on the proposed investment by electronics contract manufacturer in the state.

The much touted deal is yet to materialise as the Taiwanese giant is yet to find customers to start its production unit.

Chavan said the development exposed Fadnaviss tall claims about investment and employment generation in Maharashtra.

Many MoUs signed as part of the Make in Maharashtra initiative have met similar fate, he claimed.

Fadnavis should clarify on the factual position in this issue, he said.

The chief minister had announced on August 8 last year that the $5 billion investment in the state will provide employment to 50,000 youths, Chavan said adding that he was the first to state that correct facts should come and that the announcement should not become election jumlas.

He said he had his qualms as Foxconn chief Terry Gau had announced that his company would invest $2 billion in the country.

However, the state government announced $5 billion investment in Maharashtra alone, Chavan said.

After a year, my doubts have come true, he said, adding that the Make in Maharashtra initiative and Fadnaviss foreign tours have not helped to boost industries. In the Congress governments, industrial investment came without indulging in any jumlebazi (rhetoric), he added.

Foxconn is primarily a contract manufacturer and its clients include major American, Finnish, Japanese and Canadian electronics and IT companies.
Jammu and Kashmir's former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah today called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking his intervention to make the state's PDP-led government "deliver on ground" to provide succour to people reeling under continued unrest in the Valley.

He also pitched for starting a dialogue with "all stakeholders who are willing to talk" in order to defuse the volatile situation in the state.

It was the first meeting between Abdullah and Modi after the latter assumed office.

The National Conference chief extended complete support to "all effective steps" that the Centre may take to bring relief to the people in the state.

"Education and tourism sectors are the biggest sufferers today. The state government is taking no steps to bring any relief to the common man. Now its up to the Centre to step in and ask its alliance partner (PDP) to deliver on ground," Abdullah told PTI after the meeting.

Abdullah also raised the problems faced by the people living along the Line of Control and International Border and said they should be relocated immediately as tension continued to mount.

The former Chief Minister, who has been touring the state of late, said the Prime Minister gave him a patient hearing and was receptive to the suggestions he made.

"I am sure that the Prime Minister will urgently address all the issues that have been flagged by me and others from the state," he said.

The former Chief Minister said the National Conference had played the role of a constructive opposition party and would continue to do so.

"We are willing to do anything for the people of the state who have been victims of unrest for over three months now.

"The education sector has suffered. Tourism industry, which is the mainstay of the economy, has been hit badly...I have requested to take into consideration all these factors and make attempts to bring some relief to the people in the state," he said.

"The meeting took place in the most cordial atmosphere and the Prime Minister was equally concerned about the situation in the state," the NC leader said.

As many as 85 people, including two policemen, have been killed and thousands others injured in the unrest in the Valley triggered by the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani on July 8. Around 5,000 security forces personnel have also been injured in clashes.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah today met Prime Minister Narendra Modi here and pressed for starting a dialogue with "all stakeholders who are willing to talk" to defuse the volatile situation in Kashmir.

It was the first meeting between Abdullah, a former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, and Modi after the latter assumed office.

There should be a dialogue with "all stakeholders who are willing to talk" to defuse the volatile situation in Kashmir, he told the Prime Minister.

Abdullah also raised the problems faced by the people living along the Line of Control and International Border because of cross-border shelling and firing and said they should be relocated immediately as tension continued to mount.

He said the Prime Minister gave him a patient hearing and was receptive to the suggestions he made.

"I am sure that the Prime Minister will urgently address all the issues that have been flagged by me and others from the state," he said after the meeting.

The National Conference chief extended complete support to "all effective steps" that the Centre may take to bring relief to the people in the state.

"Education and tourism sectors are the biggest sufferers today. The state government is taking no steps to bring any relief to the common man. Now its up to the Centre to step in and ask its alliance partner (PDP) to deliver on ground," Abdullah told PTI after the meeting.

The former Chief Minister said the National Conference had played the role of a constructive opposition party and would continue to do so.

"We are willing to do anything for the people of the state who have been victims of unrest for over three months now.

"The education sector has suffered. Tourism industry, which is the mainstay of the economy, has been hit badly...I have requested to take into consideration all these factors and make attempts to bring some relief to the people in the state," he said.

"The meeting took place in the most cordial atmosphere and the Prime Minister was equally concerned about the situation in the state," the NC leader said.

As many as 85 people, including two policemen, have been killed and thousands others injured in the unrest in the Valley triggered by the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani on July 8. Around 5,000 security forces personnel have also been injured in clashes.

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Gautam Gambhir kept himself in the hunt for a place in the Indian team's first XI against England in the first Test starting November 9 by hitting patient 147 helping Delhi take a substancial first innings lead in the Ranji Trophy group B encounter here today.

After bowling out Odisha for 237 in the first innings, Delhi rode on skipper Gambhir's 39th first-class ton to reach 351 for seven at stumps on the second day thereby taking a 114-run lead.

Gambhir faced 232 balls hitting 18 fours in the process. He showed a lot of patience, waiting for the loose deliveries. He played some attractive shots square of the wicket as well as in-front.

He used his feet to good effect against spin duo of left-arm slow bowler Dhiraj Singh and off-spinner Gobind Poddar.

The other significant contributor was Rishabh Pant, who smashed his way to a quickfire 60 off 56 balls comprising six boundaries and two sixes.

Starting the day at 43 for no loss, Unmukt Chand's wretched run continued as he was caught by Subhranshu Senapati off pacer Suryakant Pradhan's bowling.

Young Dhruv Shorey (29) showed patience as he put up a 71-run stand with skipper Gambhir.

Shorey did all the hardwork to be trapped leg before by Poddar's off-break.

Nitish Rana (5) was dismissed cheaply after which young Pant walked in.

Courtesy Pant-Gambhir duo, Delhi stacked up 114 runs in 19.3 overs. Pant was severe on all the bowlers as the title contenders pushed up the rate.

Once Pant was dismissed by Dhiraj caught by Senapati and Gambhir was caught by Anurag sarangi off Poddar, three short of his 150, Delhi were in a spot at 274 for 5 with only 37 run lead.

But Milind Kumar (39 batting) and Sumit Narwal (35) added 56 runs to help Delhi stretch their lead by 100 runs.

Narwal's addition to the team has had its desired effect as his quickfire knock had five boundaries and a six.

Brief Scores: Odisha 1st Innings 237.

Delhi 1st Innings 351/7 (Gautam Gambhir 147, Rishabh Pant 60, Dhiraj Singh 3/61, Dhiraj Singh 2/65).

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Egypt's 2011 revolution that toppled long-time dictator Hosni Mubarak from power was Gandhian in "spirit and practice", an Indian expert said at a roundtable here to discuss the relevance of his ideas in modern day Egypt.

The roundtable entitled "Gandhi @ Tahrir" is part of three-day celebration organised by the Indian Embassy at the Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture (MACIC) to commemorate the birth anniversary of Gandhi (1869-1948).

The speakers of the roundtable were Prof. Zikrur Rehman, director of India-Islamic Cultural Center in New Delhi, Prof. Hassan Nefaa from the Faculty of Economics and Political Science, Cairo University, and diplomatic editor Gamal Nkrumah.

Zikrur Rehman spoke about the Gandhian ideology and philosophy at the event moderated by Shubham Singh, the third secretary in the Indian Embassy.

The professor related "Selmia" (peaceful), the slogan which was chanted by the 2011 revolution protesters in Tahrir square, to Gandhi.

"The 'Selmia' protest was Gandhian in spirit and practice," said Rehman.

Hassan Nefaa spoke about the significance of Gandhi for Egypt and the historical incidents that took place during the time of Gandhi.

"Gandhi is of a universal value and had a tremendous effect on society," said Nefaa.

Journalist Gamal Nkrumah spoke about the relevance of Gandhian philosophy in modern time.

India's Ambassador to Egypt Sanjay Bhattacharyya thanked the speakers and said that the presentations were very thought provoking.

The celebration featured events, which were organised in cooperation with Port Said Governorate, Suez Canal authority and gathered eminent intellectuals and friends of India from 25 to 27 October in Cairo and Port Said.

The Embassy of India's MACIC film club also screened the movie "The Making of Mahatma" by renowned India director Shyam Benegal on October 25.

The movie shows the life of young Gandhi in South Africa and how he helped the natives to fight for their rights.

On October 26, a photography exhibition and a seminar titled of "Reliving the history: when Gandhi and Egypt met on a boat" was held in el-Nadi el-Bahari port.

The seminar, which was moderated by Ambassador Bhattacharyya, focused on Gandhi's visit to Egypt, his interactions with Egyptian intellectuals, the developments that have taken since then and influence of Gandhian philosophy has on Indian and Egypt.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Gati Kausar, the temperature controlled supply chain solutions vertical of Gati Ltd, has opened its first temperature controlled warehousing facility in India near the capital.

The new facility, spread over 4 acres, currently has a capacity of more than 5,000 pallets. It has multiple chambers that cater to temperature requirements ranging from -25 to +25 degrees C. This facility will serve the needs of varied industry sectors including dairy, pharmaceutical, frozen foods and quick service restaurants among others.

"With this state of the art refrigerated warehouse Gati is well placed to provide services to a wide range of industry sectors. Our robust network, warehousing capabilities and our new cold chain solutions will play a pivotal role in helping business expand beyond their borders and augment the growth on Indian logistics industry," Gati Ltd MD & CEO Mahendra Agarwal said in a statement.

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Rajesh Wadhawan Group enters film production * Rajesh Wadhawan Group, which has interest in finance, real estate, hospitality and sports, today said it is foraying into film production business.

The new venture will be led by former T-series producer and director Ajay Kapoor.

"His wealth of experience and the body of work till date makes him a major force to reckon with in the industry. We welcome Ajay to our family and hope his vision and leadership skills will create a strong foundation for our production house," Rajesh Wadhawan Group Vice Chairman Dheeraj Wadhawan said in a statement.

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Andhra Bank inks pact with MMTC to sell Indian Gold Coins * Andhra Bank today said it has entered into an MoU with MMTC Limited for sale of Indian Gold Coins.

The Indian Gold coin is brought to the public (rpt) public in line with the Central Government's vision of "Make In India" and under the Gold Monetisation Scheme, the bank said in a release.

"The coins are of 24 karat purity and 999 fineness assuring consumers of absolute purity. The Indian Gold Coin is currently one of the purest forms of gold available in the country and is 'Minted in India'," it said.

These coins are minted by the Government Mint -- Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Limited (SPMCIL) and hallmarked at the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), it added.

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Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot was today appointed as the head of the Congress screening committee for Punjab Assembly polls.

Besides Gehlot, the committee comprises AICC secretary in charge of the state Asha Kumari, Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh, CLP leader Charanjit Singh Channi, former Indian Youth Congress chief Rajiv Satav and former MP Meenakshi Natarajan.

The announcement was made by chief Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala, who said party president Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi have approved the setting up of the committee.

This six-member screening committee will scrutinise the party candidates for the upcoming Assembly polls in the state and the AICC Election Committee will finalise the candidates thereafter in consultation with the party leadership.

Congress has been in political wilderness for 10 long years in the state and is striving to get power back from the ruling Akali-BJP combine.

The party, which is going to polls with former Chief Minister Amarinder Singh as its face, is facing stiff competition from the new entrant Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

The high-stakes Punjab Assembly election is slated for early next year and campaigning is on in full swing in the state.

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Infrastructure major GMR Group along with Greece-based GEK Terna has bid for around 850 million Euro airport project in Greece.

GMR Airports and GEK Terna have bid for the development, operations and management of the new international airport of Heraklion at Crete Island.

In a release, GMR Infrastructure said, "It is understood that this is the sole bid for this concession". Upon award, GMR Airports would be the airport operator for this project, it added.

"The project is a concession agreement that concerns the study, construction and management of the new international airport of Crete (biggest island in Greece) and of all the necessary road connections. The construction cost is estimated by the Greek ministry of Infrastructure at around 850 million euro," a spokesperson of GEK Terna told PTI.

Heraklion airport, located in Crete and the second largest in Greece, is facing capacity constraint.

According to the release, Heraklion aerodrome would be closed once the new airport is operational.

"The scope of the project involves design, construction, financing, operation and maintenance of the airport for a concession period of 35 years," it added.

A GMR Airports spokesperson said the bid submission is in line with the group's asset light growth strategy "with value build up from this project coming to GMR more from leveraging the airport platform, leading to enhanced revenue based services, than just equity".

Currently, GMR operates airports in the national capital and Hyderabad apart from bagging the right to develop and operate Mopa aerodrome in Goa.

Besides, GMR Infrastructure in partnership with Megawide Construction Corp is developing Mactan Cebu international airport in the Philippines.

GEK Terna Group was formed through the merger of GEK and Terna, two of the largest construction companies in Greece. It is now one of the leading Groups in Greece combining expertise in the areas of construction, energy production, concessions, mining and real estate.

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Goa and Daman Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrao today greeted the Hindu community ahead of the Diwali festival on Sunday.

"On behalf of the Catholic community and on my own behalf I extend most cordial greetings to our Hindu sisters and brothers on the occasion of Diwali, the Festival of Lights," the Archbishop said in a release here.

"We feel particularly encouraged by their enthusiasm to consign to ashes the Demon of Darkness in order to usher in the glorious reign of Light and see in this the victory of good over evil," he said.

The Catholic Church worldwide is engaged in a deep reflection on the institution of the family and related problems, he said.

"We would like to join hands with other communities to work for the strengthening of our family life, which is being challenged today as never before," Ferrao said.

He said the symbolic act of burning the Narakasur (demon king) is a sign of the human commitment for the health of the world, which depends a great deal on the wholesome -- physical, moral, spiritual -- health of the family.

"May all these human efforts bear fruit, with the blessings of the Almighty," he added.

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In a tragic incident on the eve of Diwali, at least eight persons were today killed in a fire that broke out at a cracker shop in Rustampura village of Vaghodia tehsil of Vadodara district, police said.

The fire started at a cracker shop in the evening and spread to the adjoining cracker shops and residential structures, Vadodara (rural) SP Saurabh Tolumbia told PTI.

"Police and fire brigade rushed to the spot and brought the fire under control. We have pulled out eight bodies from the site," he said.

Relief was being provided to those injured, he said adding that the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.

Police and fire officials were deployed in large number at the spot, Tolumbia said.

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Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar today said he had not received any invitation to take part in the November 5 programme of the Samajwadi Party (SP) in Uttar Pradesh.

Replying to a question on the political development in Uttar Pradesh in the wake of the feud within the ruling SP, Kumar dwelt on the unsuccessful efforts for the unification of the old Janata Parivar.

"A step was taken to form a strong party after the merger of the six erstwhile splinter parties of the old Janata Parivar. To a great extent, progress was also achieved," he said.

"Talks were progressing under the chairmanship of SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, but they did not succeed," he added.

"But, it will be wrong to assume that such efforts will not be made again or will not succeed in the future," Kumar, who had played an important role in the unification of the Janata Parivar before the Bihar Assembly polls last year, said.

The SP has decided to invite the prominent leaders of the old Janata Parivar at its foundation day programme on November 5.

Efforts to bring together the socialist leaders of the Janata Parivar are being seen as an attempt to achieve a Bihar-like potent alliance of the secular parties to defeat the BJP in the crucial Uttar Pradesh Assembly election early next year.

Kumar, whose election as JD(U) national president was ratified by the party's national council at Rajgir earlier this month, has made at least eight trips to Uttar Pradesh in the recent past and has shared the dais with Ajit Singh of the RLD and rebel BSP leader RK Choudhary.

He has also held talks with Mohammad Ayub of the Peace Party.

Replying to another question, Kumar said the legislature, judiciary and executive had important roles in a democratic set-up and all the wings should cooperate with each other.

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The on Friday directed government transport corporations in Tamil Nadu to settle the benefits of all the retired employees in 12 monthly instalments from November this year.

The arrears shall carry 6 % interest per annum. Incase of delay, 10% interest should be paid, the high court bench here said disposing petitions filed by a batch of retired employees.

The direction would not preclude the workman to question the computation of any terminal benefits if it was paid lesser than the amount to which he is entitled to receive, the judge said.

"It is very unfair on the part of the corporations to routinely leave their retiring employees in lurch and to disburse their terminal benefits only after the employees get court order," the court said.

"Since it has now been brought to the notice of the court that a large number of retired persons are yet to receive their retirement benefits, managing directors of all the corporations are directed to look into the matter and bestow due care to all the retired persons and ensure that they get their retirement benefits in 12 instalments without driving them to approach the court again and again," it said.

The court directed the registry to communicate the order to the Additional Chief Secretary (transport) for due compliance and follow-up action.
Actress Helen Mirren is urging Americans to vote in the upcoming presidential election to avoid getting stuck with a candidate they do not want in office.

The "Queen" actress is using Great Britain's botched vote to leave the European Union in June as an example of what could happen if people stay away from the polls next month.

Many Brits opted not to vote in protest and most were shocked with the results of the referendum, which prompted Prime Minister David Cameron to step down.

"I've done a few things that I've regretted in my life, and you probably have too," she says in the new No Regrets video for social media campaign Humanity for Hillary, "but I think those things would pale in comparison to the regret you'll feel after November the 8th if you don't vote.

"You know, no one really thought that Great Britain would leave the European Union, but it did. And this was not only a hit to our economy but to our humanity. Because this was a vote cast in fear rather than hope. Don't make the same mistake we did."



The 71-year-old actress doesn't mention former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton or her presidential opponent Donald Trump directly in the video.

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Himachal Pradesh today became an Open Defecation Free (ODF), the second state in the country to achieve the feat after Sikkim.

Himachal Pradesh has successfully achieved a total rural sanitation coverage of 100 per cent in the state, with all 12 districts in the state being both, declared as well as verified as ODF, according to a official statement.

Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh made the declaration today at a public event here, where Union Health Minister J P Nadda, and Rural Development Minister Narendra Singh Tomar were also present.

"The hill state of Himachal has become the first large state to become completely ODF", the CM said.

He congratulated the people of the state for supplementing the efforts of the government to achieve 'Swachh Bharat Mission' and said that "such feat was not possible without the support of the people".

Tomar said, the state achieved ODF status, thanks to people of Himachal Pradesh who made it a public movement and "I am confident would be able to sustain it in the future as well."



Union Health Minister Nadda congratulated the state for achieving the rare feat six months ahead of the target.

Appreciating the massive drive and campaign launched by the state government, he said that the Centre would be sharing the experiences of the Himachal government and the sustainable mechanism adopted by them.

He also wished to launch a joint programme with the state to mitigate water borne diseases in near future.

The CM added that the state would be very happy to share lessons that they have learnt in this journey with other states to help realise the vision of a Swachh Bharat.

(REOPENS DEL-76)



Addressing the gathering, the chief minister said though Sikkim was the first state to achieve the distinction of becoming ODF, but it was in the small states category.

"We are lucky enough to become second state leaving Kerela behind which was also in the race and I suppose that Kerla would also be declared ODF after four days on 'Kerala Day' on November 1", he added.

"I insisted the Union Rural Development Minister to be with us despite his busy schedule, as I always wanted that our state should be the first amongst the Big states to beODF", Chief Minister said, adding it was also a matter of pride that "we accomplished the feat six months before the targeted date of March 31, 2017."



Virbhadra Singh said that it was Mahatma Gandhi who strongly emphasised on cleanlinessalways and said 'Cleanliness was next to Godliness and Independence' and for him the parameter for cleanliness was the condition of toilets.

The Chief Minister also said Himachal was fully co-operating with the Centre in implementing the centrally aided development programmes and policies.

Union Rural Development Minister Narendra Singh Tomar also lauded the efforts of the state government.

"I hope that Himachal will take lead in disposal of Solid and Liquid waste management soon", he said and congratulated the Chief Minister for making Himachal the most progressive state and for community led total sanitation drive adopting bio-digester techniques.

Secretary, Rural Development, Himachal Pradesh Onkar Sharma in his address revealed that all 12 districts, 78 development blocks, 3226 Panchayats and 18,465 villages have been declared ODF.

He said that more focus was given to Information, Education and Communication programmes by the department from September 28 to October 20 to achieve the target of total sanitation and astonishing results were witnessed.

Divisional Commissioners, all the deputy Commissioner and Block Development Officers, field revenue officers and officials were honoured with a citation and a memento for their intensive initiatives for undertaking sanitation drives in their work areas.

Panchayati Raj Training Institute, Thunag in Seraj assembly constituency was also inaugurated at the event through online applications.
Aiming to spread awareness and take designs to the masses, India's first 'Design Yatra', launchedby the Institute of Indian Interior Designer (IIID),will be in the city for three days from today.

Launched on February 20 this year, the yatra will travel to 29 cities across the country by February 2017, covering 15,000 kms in three cars.

Competitions, heritage walk, talks and interaction with students have been organised between October 29 and 31.

Members will visit different places to give design inputs to make specific locations and public places in the city more user-friendly.

"We have decided to take design to the cities. Design can change the way we look at cities and its problems. The purpose of the yatra is to engage with local communities", IIID National Secretary and architect Jabeen L Zacharias said in a release today.

Babu Cherian, IIID Chairman, Kerala chapter, who is also an architect, said the rally was aimed at inspiring people to design houses, schools, hospitals and public places in such a way that they present local culture, consider convenience of people and save the environment.

"The IIID has played a crucial role in shaping the nation's design policies and trends in the right direction," he said.

The design yatra will leave for Karnataka onNovember 11, after visiting Thrissur, Ernakulam, Kottayam and Thiruvananthapuram, the release said.

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Implementation of will help trade and industry and there is no need to have any room of concern about its implementation, a top official said here on Friday.

" is indeed a good tax," Pullela Nageswara Rao, Chief Commissioner of Central Excise, Customs and Service Tax, Kerala, said.

He said state will collect a part of it and the Centre will collect one part.

"Nothing that would harm or hurt you will happen.

This will definitely help the growth of trade and industry," Rao said.

He made this observation during his inaugural address at the one day awareness workshop on ' and its Implications' organised by Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) along with KPMG in Kochi. "With the implementation of GST, Central Excise and all such organisations will change our role from enforcement agency to facilitation agency. Let's slowly break the old laws and go for the new ones," a FICCI release quoting Rao said here.

The GST, which has already been approved by the President of India, is scheduled to be implemented across the country from April 1, 2017.

It replaces all indirect taxes levied on goods and services by the Centre and States, making for a single, easier taxation system.

There are 60,000 Central Excise and Customs and state government officers who will be trained for the switch to GST, a tax system practised in 160 countries.

S Sivankutty, Deputy Commissioner (Intelligence), Commercial Taxes, Central Zone, Ernakulam in his introductory address commented that in the globalised situation we have to capture the market.

Described as a system that will create transparency and credibility, the GST is expected to bring in numerous changes.

The GST single taxation system will increase ease of doing business, pointed out Deepak L Aswani, Co-Chair, FICCI Kerala State Council.

"This will be a significant step with the benefits passed on to the consumer," he said.

Sachin Menon, FICCI Co-Chair- GST, Partner and Head, Indirect Tax, KPMG in India, said, Kerala being one of the highest consuming states, it will be one of the largest beneficiaries of introduction of GST.

"This will improve the finances of the state Significantly. Kerala is seen as one of the most vocal states in the GST council today and by taking the lead in spreading awareness of GST, it reiterates its commitment to implement GST," he said.
India ranks third among world nations most inflicted with terrorism and insurgency related deaths, after the areas ridden with violence by ISIS and Nigeria's Boko Haram, the Supreme Court was told today.

Making this submission, the Chhattisgarh government also claimed in the apex court that more people were being killed in this Naxal-affected state than terror-hit Jammu and Kashmir and the involvement of extreme left-wing activists in the area was adding fuel to the fire.

"Today more security personnel are deployed in Chhattisgarh than in Jammu and Kashmir. Several policemen are being killed in Naxal violence in these areas. We are taking steps to contain the Naxal problems. We are carrying out lot of infrastructural work over there. We are passing through a phase," Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told a bench of Justices M B Lokur and Adarsh Kumar Goel.

"India ranks third in the world among the countries which are impacted by terrorism and inflicted with terror related deaths after the violence affected areas under ISIS and Boko Haram," Mehta said.

He also urged the court to pass some directions for keeping social activists like Nandini Sundar out of the area alleging that "they just want the flame to keep burning".

To this, the court said, "this can't be a solution. They (activist) would want you (state) to be kept out of the area".

Mehta, who appeared along with Chhattisgarh government standing counsel Atul Jha, said "we can't go out of the area. It is a state and government will have to look after the people. We have responsibilities towards the people".

"Keeping the flame burning is not a solution. There is a CD which shows them shouting 'Lal Salaam' slogans and sloganeering against the state. This will make the problem to continue. Everyone wants peace," the ASG said.

When the bench asked the Chhattisgarh government about the security of political activist Manish Kunjam, Mehta said he was already under security cover.

Maintaining that he had initially said he does not need guards carrying rifles but those with smaller weapons, he said "now he again wanted rifle guards. We can provide that. If he wants central forces security cover that can also be provided. We are ready to provide central security cover to even petitioner Nandini Sundar."



The suggestion of security cover to Sundar was rejected by senior advocate Ashok Desai and the counsel appearing for Sunder and others, alleging "they wanted to keep an eye on her in the garb of security cover. This is the behaviour of the government".

Mehta said if this was the view, then he would withdraw



his suggestion of providing security cover to the petitioner.

Countering Mehta, Desai alleged that recently effigies of petitioner and other activists were burnt by police personnel who were in uniform.

The ASG said investigation has been ordered into the effigy burning and assured the court that those found guilty will not be spared.

The bench asked the Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar and ASG to come up with innovative solutions to tackle the problem on the next date of hearing on November 11.

The apex court had on October 21 told the Centre to consider talking to the Naxals as Noble peace prize winner Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos did with FARC rebels to end the five-decade-old civil war in that country.

It had asked the government to authorise someone to hold peace talks with Naxals and referred to the amicable settlement reached by two groups in Nagaland at the intervention of a church.

The apex court had proposed peace talks, after CBI apprised it about the results of its investigation into the alleged violence of security forces in March 2011 in Morpalli, Tadmetla and Timpuram villages in Chhattisgarh.

On July 5, 2011, the Court had ordered a CBI enquiry into these incidents of violence which later charge sheeted several Special Police Officers for it.
Indias rose by $1 billion to $367.14 billion for the week ended October 21, on the back of increase in the core currency assets, the Reserve Bank said on Friday.

Total reserves had dipped by $1.506 billion to $366.139 billion in the previous reporting week, after touching a life-time high of $371.99 billion in the week to September 30.

In the reporting week, foreign currency assets, a major component of the overall reserves, increased by $1.015 billion to $341.923 billion. FCAs, expressed in US dollar terms, include the effect of appreciation/depreciation of non-US currencies such as the euro, pound and the yen held in the reserves.Gold reserves remained steady at $21.406 billion, the apex bank said.

The special drawing rights with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) declined by $5.4 million to $1.463 billion, while Indias reserve position with the IMF dipped by $8.8 million to $2.347 billion, the apex bank said.
An Indian-origin businessman has been found guilty of sexually assaulting a teenage girl during a flight to the UK and jailed for 20 weeks by a UK court.

Suman Das, fromQatar,had been arrested at Manchester Airport after the 18-year old victim claimed he touched her between her legs during a flight from Doha to Manchester as she was dozing in her seat in July.

The 46-year-old had denied the charges but was found guilty at Manchester Magistrates' Court last week and was sentenced yesterday.

District Judge Sam Goozee said, "This is a sexual assault in circumstances that you took advantage of her. It was a brief but traumatic assault touching her incredibly intimately".

A pre-sentence report stated community service was not an option for Das, who grew up in India and is now based in Qatar, as he is not a UK resident.

He will also have a post sentence supervision order for one year after his release, which means he must stay in the UK until that expires.

Das was also ordered to pay a 115-pound victim surcharge.

The victim had told the hearing, "He knew exactly what he was doing and he wasn't sleeping. He was looking at me, I saw he was looking at me. He must have been looking at me to see if I was awake."



"He did move very quickly once he saw that I was awake," the victim said.

The court heard how Das' wife, Sonia, was sitting next to him on theQatarAirways when the incident took place, five hours into the flight.

During the hearing Sonia, his wife of 23 years, said, "I have had no concern. Until today I have faith in my husband and still today I have total faith in my husband."



The accused initially claimed he must have touched her by accident while fidgeting in his seat and offered to apologise -- but he later said he could not have carried out an assault as he was asleep.

Das and his wife were visiting the UK for what was described as a "holiday of a lifetime" whilst the unnamed girl was returning to Britain after spending two months travelling in Thailand.

The girl alerted a member of cabin crew and went crying to the back of the plane.

In a statement, Das said later, "I may have touched accidentally -- but I didn't touch her intentionally.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
An Indian national has been arrested here on charges of acquiring Nepali citizenship through illegal means.

As per a preliminary investigation, Shyam Lal Sarawagi had acquired Nepali citizenship on the basis of descent from Kathmandu District Administration Office by producing fake documents, according to the Kathmandu Metropolitan Police Office.

According to the police, he was a resident of Gujarat, but has been residing at Indrachowk in the heart of the Kathmandu city for some time.

A special police team dispatched from the Metropolitan Crime Division arrested Sarawagi from Kuleshwor in the outskirts of Kathmandu on Tuesday, police said.

The 61-year-old man also holds an Indian voter identity card, according to the police.

Meanwhile, police has handed over Sarawagi to the Metropolitan Police Range, Kathmandu, for further investigation under the Citizenship Act, 2006.

Photocopies of his Nepali citizenship certificate, Indian voter identity card and Nepali voter identity card have also been handed over.

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In a "barbaric" incident, terrorists, aided by the cover fire by Pakistani Army, tonight crossed the Line of Control and killed an Indian army jawan and mutilated his body in Macchil sector of Kupwara district of Kashmir.

One attacker was killed in the incident which the Indian army said will be "responded to appropriately".

"In an encounter close to the Line of Control this evening, one solider was martyred and one terrorist was killed. The terrorists mutilated the body of the jawan before fleeing back into Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir under the cover of firing by Pakistan Army," an army spokesman said.

He said the incident reflected the barbarism pervading in official and unofficial organisations in Pakistan.

"The incident will be responded to appropriately," he added.

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An Indiana teenager originally sentenced to 25 years in prison for helping kill a friend's stepfather when he was 12 could now be released in about three months.

Paul Gingerich, now 18, is believed to be the youngest person in Indiana to be sentenced as an adult. He was resentenced today under a state law named for him called "Paul's Law," which allows alternative sentences for juveniles who commit serious crimes.

The new sentence Whitley County Judge James Heuer announced calls for Gingerich to be incarcerated for 300 days in a medium-security adult prison. With his participation in a community transition program that removes 120 days from his sentence and good behavior that can cut defendants' sentences in half, he could be released after 90 days, said his attorney, Monica Foster.

"Assuming that Paul behaves as he has behaved in the past he will be released from that program after 90 days," she said following the hearing in a Warsaw, Indiana, courtroom.

Gingerich, who is currently in a juvenile facility, would then spend one year in home detention followed by 10 years of probation.

Jody Hill, the assistant to Kosciusko County's prosecutor, said Gingerich's 90-day sentence won't just "magically happen. There are things that need to done and fall into place before 90 days is actually the true number."



The Indiana Department of Correction has determined that Gingerich has a low risk of re-offending.

"I know I committed a truly horrible crime and I am sorry for that," Gingerich told the judge Friday. "I will never stop being sorry and I know sorry will never be enough."



Gingerich and then-15-year-old Colt Lundy shot and killed Lundy's stepfather, Phillip Danner, in 2010 at his home near Lake Wawasee, about halfway between Fort Wayne and South Bend.

Each boy fired two shots, hitting the 49-year-old man four times.

The slaying was part of a plot by the boys and another friend to run away to California or Arizona.

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French businessman Gilles Bragard, the man responsible for bringing the personal chefs of world leaders together in an exclusive club, says 'Le Club des Chefs des Chefs' (CCC) members are impressed with their trip to India as people here are warm and welcoming.

The club is on its first visit to India since its inception in 1977 in Paris by Bragard.

Touted to be the world's most exclusive gastronomic society, the club aims to use food as a bridge between cultures and societies. The club visits one member country every year to exchange ideas and explore new cuisines.

Bragard says Montu Saini, Executive Chef to President Pranab Mukherjee, was very keen to bring the club to India and he is happy that the club is finally in the country.

"Indian people are very open and they like to show the best of their culture and gastronomy. They like to welcome with their heart, there is nothing artificial," he told PTI in an interview.

Bragard says there is more curiosity about Indian cuisine in the international arena than before and it will only grow in future.

"We have visited India at the right time. The Indian cuisine is very well promoted outside. Earlier, there were no such organisations. Gastronomy in India is becoming important. Everybody thinks it is the best time for India."



The Paris-based club announced a three-month long scholarship for the top student of the Institute of Hotel Management, Pusa in New Delhi to train in the palaces of Europe, including in Monaco, during their first press conference, hosted by The Imperial here.

Bragard believes the club, which has grown into a prestigious institution, has been a success because the members are treated equally.

"They are international friends, there is no bitterness as they are on the same level. Monaco was the smallest country but Christian Garcia, who is chef to Prince Albert II of Monaco, is the president of the club. Our club should work as an example to the Heads of States."



He says the membership of the club is easy as the only condition for a chef to join the exclusive gathering is that he should be cooking for the head of his or her country.

The visiting members include Cristeta Comerford, Chef to the President of the United States of America, Indo-Canadian Neil Dhawan, who is Chef to the Prime Minister of Canada and Mark Flanagan, Chef to the Queen of the United Kingdom among others.

The club members were received by President Mukherjee for high tea and also had a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, before embarking on a tour of Taj Mahal in Agra and Jaipur.

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A huge investment of $25 billion in the oil and gas sector is on the anvil, Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister said on Saturday.

Expressing great optimism about the investment prospects in the sector, Pradhan told reporters here that there will soon be "investment worth $25 billion in the petroleum sector in which oil and gas exploration companies like Cairn India will play a big role".

Replying to a question on volatile oil prices globally he said that companies reposition themselves in accordance with fluctuating crude oil prices in the international market. "I don't think fluctuating crude oil prices should lead to a sense of despair among oil companies as they know how to reposition and re-adjust themselves to these fluctuations in the international market."



Claiming that the Centre's oil policy has strengthened the economy, he said oil prices may have been hiked more often in recent past but then at the same time the government has also pumped in 50% of the profits earned from the oil sector into unique schemes like the Prime Minister's Ujjwala Yojana for the welfare and empowerment of women.

Since the launch of the scheme in May this year more than 90 lakh LPG connections have been distributed among beneficiaries of the scheme all over the country and to over 50,000 women in Uttarakhand alone which is quite an achievement, he said.

"Our target is to ensure that in the coming two years not a single family remains without an LPG connection," he said.

Pradhan, who is also the BJP's election in-charge for Uttarakhand along with J P Nadda, said an atmosphere for a big political change was building up in the state where BJP will form the next government.

He evaded a direct reply when asked whether the party will not project a chief ministerial candidate this time. "This is a prerogative of the party's parliamentary board which will take a call on the issue at the right time." Pradhan also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for deciding to celebrate the this year's Dipawali at Mana village on India-China border in Chamoli district saying this will boost the morale of the forces.

"PM's proposed visit to Mana is in keeping with his appeal to the entire country to dedicate this year's Dipawali to the armed forces. He is a different prime minister. He had gone to Jammu and Kashmir last year to celebrate Dipavali. I am sure a gesture like this from the Prime Minister himself will boost the morale of our forces.
The United States has put the onus on India and Pakistan to work out their differences through talks after the two neighbours expelled a diplomat each from the other country amid escalating tensions.

"We've seen the reports of these decisions. These are sovereign decisions that nation-states make, and these are issues that we're going to leave to India and Pakistan to work out," State Department Spokesman John Kirby told reporters at his daily news conference yesterday.

Amid growing strain in relations, India and Pakistan declared a staffer each at their High Commissions in New Delhi and Islamabad 'persona non-grata' and sought their recall in tit-for-tat action after Indian police busted an ISI-run spy ring involving an employee of the Pakistani mission.

"These are issues that we believe India and Pakistan need to discuss, need to talk about, need to work out between themselves," Kirby said.
Ruia Group chairman Pawan Ruia, who was supposed to appear before CID today for questioning as part of the investigation into the fire that broke out in the Jessop factory in Dum Dum last week, gave the sleuths a miss, for the second time.

Ruia has sought two weeks' time as he is currently "out of the state on a business tour", a senior CID officer said and indicated that the businessman is likely to be granted two-week's breather.

"But even after that, if he (Ruia) fails to appear, we will send him a third notice. On failing to respond even then, CID will move court and seek arrest warrant against Ruia," the officer said.

However, two of Jessop's former officers - Ashok Agarwal and Mahesh Gupta - today visited the CID office where they were interrogated, the officer said.

The Calcutta High Court had refused to stay proceedings against Ruia in connection with a case filed by the CID following a fire at Jessop's factory and directed him to cooperate in the investigation.

Ruia had moved the High Court seeking quashing of the case filed against him by the CID, claiming he is not the chairman of Jessop and he is neither the director nor a shareholder, or an occupier of Jessop and Co Ltd or any of its premises.

A Special Investigating Team was formed by the CID to probe the theft at the factory premises. On October 17, a fire had broken out in the painting department of the vacant factory premises, the third such incident in two weeks.

Former workers of the factory alleged that the fire was part of a "conspiracy by a third party", following which the West Bengal government ordered a CID probe into the incident.

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Rocker Joe Perry will be honoured with the Les Paul Award at the NAMM TEC Awards next year.

The Aerosmith star will be feted at the prizegiving event in Anaheim, California for "(setting) the highest standards of excellence in the creative application of recording technology," according to Billboard.

"Anytime my name is mentioned in the same sentence as Les Paul, it's a huge honor. Getting an award bearing his name is the icing on the cake," a statement from Perry read.

"Joe Perry was a friend of Les Paul's and is undoubtedly one of the most innovative and talented musicians of our time," Michael K Braunstein, executive director of the Les Paul Foundation, said.

"His ability to push boundaries of the electric guitar with his signature sound and deft playing ability embodies the true spirit of what Les Paul and the award given in his name stands for."



Past recipients of the accolade include Slash, Pete Townshend, Brian Wilson, Peter Gabriel, and Stevie Wonder.

In addition to Perry, Aerosmith producer and engineer Jack Douglas will also be inducted into NAMM's Hall of Fame at the ceremony.

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A St Louis jury has awarded a California woman more than USD 70 million in her lawsuit alleging that years of using Johnson & Johnson's baby powder caused her cancer, the latest case raising concerns about the health ramifications of extended talcum powder use.

The jury gave its ruling in the case that was brought by Deborah Giannecchini of California last month on September 26. Giannecchini was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2012.

The suit had accused Johnson & Johnson of "negligent conduct" in making and marketing its baby powder.

"We are pleased the jury did the right thing," said Jim Onder, an attorney for the plaintiff. He added that the ruling "once again reaffirmed the need for Johnson & Johnson to warn the public of the ovarian cancer risk associated with its product."

Carol Goodrich, a spokeswoman with the Johnson & Johnson, could not immediately be reached for comment.

In a statement provided to the St Louis Post-Dispatch, she said, "We deeply sympathize with the women and families impacted by ovarian cancer. We will appeal today's verdict because we are guided by the science, which supports the safety of Johnson's Baby Powder."

Earlier this year, two other lawsuits in St Louis ended in jury verdicts worth a combined USD 127 million. But two others in New Jersey were thrown out by a judge who said there wasn't reliable evidence that the talcum powder leads to ovarian cancer, an often fatal but relatively rare form of cancer.

Ovarian cancer accounts for about 22,000 of the 1.7 million new cases of cancer expected to be diagnosed in the US this year.

About 2,000 women have filed similar suits, and lawyers are reviewing thousands of other potential cases, following the two big verdicts of St Louis that awarded USD 72 million in February to relatives of an Alabama woman who died of ovarian cancer, and another USD 55 million in May to a South Dakota survivor of the disease.

While some researchers have found a link, all be it a weak one, between ovarian cancer and the use fo baby powder, most major health groups have declared it to be harmless. Johnson & Johnson, whose baby powder dominates the market, maintains that it's product is perfectly safe.

But Onder of the Onder Law Firm in suburban St Louis, which represented plaintiffs in all three St Louis cases, cited other research that began connecting talcum powder to ovarian cancer in the 1970s.

He said case studies have indicated that women who regularly use talc on their genital area face up to a 40 per cent higher risk of developing ovarian cancer.
Actress Kangana Ranuat will take up a course in horse riding in Germany for her next film on warrior queen Rani Laxmi Bai.

Kangana, who is currently shooting for Hansal Mehta's "Simran" in the US, is gearing up for the period drama, Rani Lakshmi Bai, to be helmed by Ketan Mehta.

"Kangana is right now shooting for 'Simran' post which she will be promoting the film. Then she has promotions of 'Rangoon' which releases in February. She will be doing a crash course in Germany where she will spend time in a horse stable," a spokesperson of the "Queen" star said in a statement.

"She will be learning the nitty gritties in horse siding. This is expected to last for 15-20 days. The course will also give her insights about the different kind of horse breeds, first aids given to them during times of injuries, cleaning techniques and many more," the spokesperson said.

The 29-year-old actress will begin shooting the film by March end.

Laxmi Bai, the Rani of Jhansi was the queen of the Maratha-ruled Jhansi state, situated in the north-central part of India. She was one of the leading figures of the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

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A parliamentary panel in Sri Lanka today recommended action against the former Governor of the country's Central Bank for an alleged bond scam at the bank.

Committee on Public Enterprise (COPE) presented its report in parliament this morning and called for measures to recover the loss from those involved.

The report was an embarrassment for Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe who had had-hand picked Mahendran as Governor.

The governor is accused of letting his son-in-law linked primary dealer firm Perpetual Treasuries make massive profits from bonds issued in February 2015 and March 2016.

The COPE chair Sunil Handunneththi said Mahendran had a direct involvement in the scam.

Wickremesinghe' UNP, the dominant party in power, is accused of trying to absolve Mahendran, who was not allowed to continue in the job by President Maithripala Sirisena when his term lapsed in June this year.

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A letter written to the Queen Elizabeth II by the Beatles star John Lennon, explaining why he returned his Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) to Buckingham Palace, has been valued at Euro 60,000, says auctioneers.

The note remains in royal archives but a version of the letter was brought forward at a special Beatles memorabilia day held at The Beatles Story exhibition in Liverpool, reported The Telegraph.

According to a person from The Beatles Story, the owner of the letter, who wished to remain anonymous, said it was a copy, which they found in a collection of 45rpm records at a car boot sale 20 years ago.

The letter, which was recently unearthed in the owner's attic, has been described as an "incredible find" by Darren Julien of Los Angeles-based Julien's Auctions, who believes it may be the original letter.

"If you're writing to the Queen, you want the letter to look pretty perfect, you don't want the ink to be smudged. This suggests that he wrote a second version of the letter, which was the one that was actually sent to the Queen.

"We'll be doing some further research but this could be the Beatles find of the year. There is no doubt that the handwriting is definitely that of John Lennon," Julien said.

In his letter, Lennon wrote, "Your Majesty I am returning this MBE in protest against Britain's involvement in the Nigeria-Biafra thing, against our support of America in Vietnam and against Cold Turkey slipping down the chart."

"With love ."
An experimental birth control vaccine for men can effectively prevent pregnancy in their female partners by lowering sperm count, scientists including those from India have found.

Researchers are working to perfect the combination of hormonal contraceptives to reduce the risk of mild to moderate side effects, including depression and other mood disorders.

"The study found it is possible to have a hormonal contraceptive for men that reduces the risk of unplanned pregnancies in the partners of men who use it," said Mario Philip Reyes Festin, from the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Switzerland.

"Our findings confirmed the efficacy of this contraceptive method previously seen in small studies," said Festin.

Researchers, including Man Mohan Misro of the National Institute of Health and Family Welfare in New Delhi, tested the safety and effectiveness of injectable contraceptives in 320 healthy men ages 18 to 45.

The participants had all been in monogamous relationships with female partners between the ages of 18 and 38 for at least a year. The men underwent testing to ensure they had a normal sperm count at the start of the study.

The men received injections of 200 milligrams of a long-acting progestogen called norethisterone enanthate (NET-EN) and 1,000 milligrams of a long-acting androgen called testosterone undecanoate (TU) for up to 26 weeks to suppress their sperm counts.

Healthcare professionals gave the men two injections every eight weeks.

Participants initially provided semen samples after eight and 12 weeks in the suppression phase and then every 2 weeks until they met the criteria for the next phase.

During this time, the couples were instructed to use other non-hormonal birth control methods.

Once a participant's sperm count was lowered to less than one million/ml in two consecutive tests, the couple was asked to rely on the injections for birth control.

During this period known as the efficacy phase of the study, the men continued to receive injections every eight weeks for up to 56 weeks.

Participants provided semen samples every eight weeks to ensure their sperm counts stayed low. Once the participants stopped receiving the injections, they were monitored to see how quickly their sperm counts recovered.

The hormones were effective in reducing the sperm count to one million/ml or less within 24 weeks in 274 of the participants. The contraceptive method was effective in nearly 96 per cent of continuing users.

Only four pregnancies occurred among the men's partners during the efficacy phase of the study.

Researchers stopped enrolling new participants in the study in 2011 due to the rate of adverse events, particularly depression and other mood disorders, reported by the participants. The men reported side effects including injection site pain, muscle pain, increased libido and acne.

The study was published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

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A man, who identified himself as a senior Jharkhand police officer and caught a Trinamool leader who was escaping after hitting a pedestrian in February, has been arrested for allegedly posing as an IPS officer and extorting money from several persons, police said today.

Somen Kumar Suryabangshi (29) was arrested from a flat in Chinar Park in Baguihati late last night after Trinamool youth leader Kanishka Majumdar lodged a complaint against him, a senior officer of Kolkata Police said.

Suryabangshi had caught hold of Majumdar when the latter's vehicle tried to flee after hitting a person on Bijon Setu in February and handed him over to police.

"He (Suryabangshi) had identified himself as an Additional SP of Bokaro Police and had given statements during Majumdar's arrest," the officer said.

The TMC leader lodged a complaint earlier this month questioning Suryabangshi's identity as an IPS officer, he said.

"When contacted, Bokaro Police denied having anybody as an Additional SP. During our investigation we found that the accused has been cheating people posing as an IPS officer and till date he has collected lakhs of rupees in that manner," the officer said.

Several fake identity cards depicting Suryabangshi as an "IPS officer", a vehicle with number plate "identifying" him an a senior police officer of Jharkhand were seized, he said.

The accused has been booked under IPC Sections 170 (personating a public servant), 171 (Wearing garb used by public servant with fraudulent intent) and 419 (punishment for cheating by personation), he said.

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A 23-year-old American has been convicted by a jury for brutally assaulting an elderly Sikh man and instigating his friend to join him in the hate crime, saying "ISIS, let's get him".

Daniel Coronel Wilson targeted Amrik Singh Bal last December in Fresno area of Califormia because he believed the bearded victim, who wore a turban and robe when he was attacked, was a terrorist, prosecutor Timothy Donovan said.

Donovan told the jury that quite contrary to the perception, "68-year-old Bal was a hardworking, peaceful man whose sole goal was to provide for his family."



The jury of eight men and four women deliberated two hours before finding Wilson guilty of felony assault causing great bodily injury to Bal, who was punched in the face several times and then run over by a car driven by Alexis Mendoza. The jury also ruled the assault was a hate crime, The Fresno Bee reported.

After the verdict on Wednesday, Fresno defence attorney David Munoz asked Judge Jonathan Conklin to allow Wilson to remain free on USD 35,000 bail. Munoz said Wilson was not a flight risk because he attends Fresno City College, has a job, cares for his parents, and has attended every court hearing.

But Conklin denied the request, ordering Wilson to be taken to jail and held without bail until he is sentenced December 2. Wilson faces up to eight years in prison.

Wilson stood trial alone because Mendoza, 17, committed suicide in April.

In closing arguments, Donovan told jurors, "It's a hate crime because the victim was judged by the clothing he wore and by his faith."



Donovan said Wilson instigated the assault by telling Mendoza, "ISIS. Terrorist. Let's get him."



Wilson did not testify in the trial. His trial lawyer, Marina Pincus, told jurors there was not enough evidence to convict Wilson since video of the incident does not clearly show who punched the victim nor shows who was in the car that ran the victim over.

In addition, Pincus said two witnesses, ages 12 and 17, told police that they saw a man and woman attacking Bal -- not two men.

In his closing summation, Donovan said Sikhs and Muslims have been mistaken targets of hate crimes and harassment since the 9/11 terrorist attacks by people who erroneously identify them as terrorists.

The assault took place last December when Bal was on his way to work when he was attacked. Bal told police that a skinny kid and a heavy-set subject got out of the car and beat him with their fists.

After the beating, the two assailants got back in their car. Bal tried to run away, but the car ran him over, slamming his head into the pavement.

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Suspense over the whereabouts of Maoist leader Ramakrishna alias RK deepened with the CPI(Maoist) today claiming he is missing since the October 24 encounter at Malkangiri, where 28 ultras were gunned down.

"Top Maoist cadre Ramakrishna is missing and he could be in police custody," CPI(Maoist) East Division Committee secretary Kailash said in an audio tape released to the media in Odisha.

In the audio tape the chief ministers of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh were blamed for the killing of the 28 Maoists. Kailas said the Maoists haven't weakened and will continue to fight.

He also alleged that operation Green Hunt is being conducted for the benefit of industrialists and mining mafias.

RK, a central committee member of the outlawed outfit, was last sighted at Jantri in the cut-off area of Malkangiri district on October 1. He had addressed a public meeting, and asked people to boycott the ensuing three-tier panchayat elections in Odisha.

Based on an intelligence report about the presence of RK and other top Maoist leaders in Panasput gram panchayat of Malkangiri, a joint operation was launched by Andhra Pradesh's Greyhound force and Odisha Police.

However, security personnel failed to get RK even as his 25-year-old son Munna alias Sivaji was killed in the encounter. RK's wife has received the body of Munna from Malkangiri SP's office.

This apart, one Budri, a cadre of RK's protection group, was also killed in the incident indicating the presence of the Maoist leader at Malkangiri on the day of the joint operation.

Meanwhile, police have sealed all routes and kept vigil in the forests of the cut-off area, besides continuing combing operation since October 24.

Odisha Police has denied having any information on the reported killing of two more ultras in a fresh encounter with the rebels in the Panasput forest.

"We have no such information on the killing of two more Maoists in the cut-off area," said Malkangiri SP Mitrabhanu Mohapatra.

On the claim that six villagers have gone missing since the day of the encounter, Mohapatra said an inquiry is being conducted to verify it.

Villagers had yesterday claimed that six people did not return to their homes after they were forcibly taken by the Maoists to their camp.

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Students of JNU today staged a protest outside Police Headquarters alleging inaction to trace a student of the university who has been missing from the campus for two weeks, leading to a massive traffic jam at the ITO crossing.

Najeeb Ahmed (27), a student of School of Biotechnology and a native of Badaun in Uttar Pradesh, went missing on October 15 following an on-campus brawl allegedly with the members of ABVP, BJP's students' wing, the night before.

The agitated members of the Jawaharlal Nehru Students' Union (JNUSU), accompanied by fellow students, staged a demonstration outside PHQ and later, a delegation met Joint Commissioner, South-East Range, RP Upadhyay and submitted a memorandum of demands to him.

"They wanted to know about the status of the investigation and what were we doing for the immediate recovery of Najeeb. We told them it was a high-priority case for us and almost 100 personnel, split into various teams, were working on it.

"The students offered to help us in conducting a search of the jungle which we told them we had already done with the JNU administration officials," Upadhyay said.

The traffic situation in central Delhi was further affected when the protesting students staged a sit-in outside ITO metro station and blocked traffic.

"The protest severely affected the traffic coming from the New Delhi area towards east Delhi. We had to divert it towards Delhi Gate and with Bhairon Road being choked, the commuters had to face a troubled time," said a senior police officer.

JNUSU has been agitating against Najeeb's disappearance from campus, alleging inaction on part of the administration. The protesting students had even confined the Vice-Chancellor (VC) and other senior officials in the administrative building for over 20 hours last week.

Following directives from the Union Home Ministry, Delhi Police have formed a special investigation team (SIT) to trace the missing student.

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Mizoram Home Minister R Lalzirliana today reiterated that the state government will not concede the demands of the Mizoram Bru Displaced People's Forum (MBDPF) as a pre-condition for their repatriation.

Addressing the ruling Congress party workers here, Lalzirliana said it would be impossible for the state government to allot at least five hectares of land to each repatriated Bru family.

He said the power to allot land was not vested in the state government, but to the village councils and the repatriated Bru families also would have to wait for allocation of land for construction of houses and for jhumming in accordance with the guidelines of their respective village councils.

"The Brus left Mizoram and migrated to Tripura on their will after committing grievous crimes including murders against the Mizo community," he said adding, the Mizo people continued to welcome them with open arms even after such incidents.

The MBDPF, during the meetings of the Joint Monitoring Group held in Agartala and Delhi recently, made 14 demands including allotment of at least five hectares of land to each Bru family.

Meanwhile, the MBDPF leaders led by its Vice President R Laldawngliana today visited Mizoram-Assam border Kolasib district for an on the spot visit of the villages where the repatriated Brus were proposed to be repatriated.

Of the 3,445 Bru families proposed to the repatriated, 628 families would be resettled in eight villages of Kolasib district - Bairabi, North Thinglian, Dilzau, Zodin, Meidum, Bukvannei, Pangbalkawn and South Chhimluang.

According to the Road Map-V for Bru Repatriation prepared by the state government, the identification of bona fide residents of Mizoram in the six Bru relief camps in Tripura would commence from November 2, while the physical repatriation was scheduled to begin from November 30.

The state government, however, might not be ready to begin the physical repatriation as per schedule as the Ministry of Home Affairs was yet to officially announce the rate of enhancement of the financial package to be given to the Bru families.

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Rakesh Ranjan alias Rocky Yadav, who allegedly shot dead a Class XII student for overtaking his SUV in Bihar, will have to go back to jail with the Supreme Court today staying a Patna High Court order granting him bail.

A bench headed by Justice S A Bobde sought response from Rocky, son of a suspended JD(U) MLC, on a plea of Bihar government challenging the bail granted to him on October 19.

Senior advocate Rajiv Dutta, appearing for Bihar government, said this was an open-and-shut case and the youth was highly intoxicated. Hence, his bail should be immediately cancelled or the order of the Patna High Court stayed.

The bench said that "charge sheet has already been filed in the case and this may go against you".

The court said it was issuing notice to the respondent (Rocky) and posted the hearing after Diwali.

Rocky, son of suspended JD(U) MLC Manorama Devi and alleged history sheeter Bindi Yadav, is accused of shooting and killing Aditya Sachdeva, a Class XII student who was driving his Maruti car, for overtaking his SUV on May 7 this year near Gaya.

Police had filed a charge sheet in a Gaya court against Rocky and another accused in connection with the murder. They had also filed charge sheet against Rocky's cousin Teni Yadav, his father Bindi Yadav and his MLC mother's bodyguard, Rajesh Kumar, in the murder case.

The state government had put the case on speedy trial and investigation was completed in three weeks and charge sheet filed within a month of the incident.

Rocky is facing two cases - one of murder of Aditya and another under Excise Act for recovery of liquor bottles from the house of his mother. He was arrested from his father's mixer plant in Gaya on May 10.

His name was included along with his father Bindi Yadav in the case of recovery of liquor bottles which were found when police raided his mother's house looking for Rocky.

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Myanmar's government said today that a pregnant foreign woman has been diagnosed with the country's first case of Zika, a mosquito-borne virus linked to birth defects.

The World Health Organization warned earlier this month that Zika was likely to spread throughout Asia after being detected in 70 countries, including at least 19 in the Asia Pacific region.

While the virus has been present in Southeast Asia for years, there has been an uptick in the number of recorded cases in recent months.

"Authorities confirmed the infection in the 32-year-old foreign woman yesterday following a laboratory test," the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar reported Friday.

Soe Lwin Nyein, the director of Myanmar's public health department, told reporters she was the country's "first Zika victim".

He did not disclose the woman's nationality but said she had been living in Myanmar for several years and was currently in Yangon, the country's largest city.

Zika causes only mild symptoms in most people, including fever, sore eyes and a rash.

But pregnant women with the virus risk giving birth to babies with microcephaly -- a deformation that leads to abnormally small brains and heads.

A WHO report released this month warned that Asian countries should expect to see "new cases and possibly new outbreaks of Zika".

It said the virus is "highly likely to further spread in the region" which includes China, Japan, Australia, most Southeast Asian nations and the Pacific islands.

At least 400 Zika cases have been detected in Singapore this year, while Thailand last month reported its first cases of Zika-linked microcephaly in two babies.

There is no cure or vaccine for the virus.

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There is no fixed date for the NATO migrant mission in the Aegean Sea to end, an Alliance official said today, after Turkey called for the mission's completion "by the end of the year" because it had "reached its goal".

"There is no end date for NATO's activity in the Aegean sea... (but) NATO will continue to keep this mission under regular review," the official, who did not wish to be named, told AFP in Brussels.

The mission referred to was launched in February to tackle the huge flow of refugees and migrants to Greece on board rickety boats from Turkey.

Several warships were involved in the mission launched after Turkey, Greece and Germany requested it.

Turkish Defence Minister Fikri Isik called yesterday for the mission's end because "there is no need for NATO forces in the Aegean".

He was speaking to reporters after a meeting in Brussels with defence ministers from NATO member states.

"This was a temporary mission, and the goal has been reached... There is no reason to extend it," Isik was quoted as saying by the official agency Anadolu.

Isik said Turkey would remain committed to tackling the flow of migrants and asked that the NATO mission be brought to an end "by the end of this year".

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg praised the mission, saying it had "decreased substantially" the flow of migrants and was "making a difference".

Asked whether the mission would continue in 2017, German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen said: "We'll see then."



Nearly a million people fleeing war, poverty and persecution arrived on the Greek islands last year in Europe's worst migrant crisis since World War II.

The number of arrivals in Greece has dropped dramatically this year, thanks to an EU-Turkey deal that went into force since March.

However, thousands of migrants have continued taking the more dangerous central Mediterranean route from Libya to Italy, over 5,000 of whom have died at sea.

The NATO official added that Germany was currently leading the "Standing NATO Maritime Group 2", referring to the naval group in operation between Turkey and Greece.

"No decision has been taken on which nation will take up command of the group next," the official added.

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With the Delhi High Court clearing decks for auctioning of the iconic Taj Mansingh Hotel here, the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) is mulling over the future course of action for auction of the property.

The High Court had yesterday dismissed Indian Hotels Company Ltd's (IHCL) plea challenging the move by NDMC saying the firm has "no right" for renewal of the licence period.

"The court has ruled in our favour. Though there is no clarity yet whether the Tata's will challenge the HC decision but we are deliberating over the future course of action. Anyway there has been no stay on the auction process," NDMC Chairman Naresh Kumar said.

"We had already appointed SBI Cap as our financial advisor for the auction process and they had started working on it much before the court petition was filed. We will now be mulling the plan and take a decision in this regard on November 3, when the next council meeting is scheduled," he added.

IHCL had moved the division bench against the September 5 judgement of a single judge who had not acceded to the firm's request for renewal of licence for a further period, saying it was not entitled for the extension.

The property, owned by NDMC, was given to IHCL on a lease of 33 years. The lease had ended in 2011 and the company was given nine temporary extensions since then on various grounds, with three of them granted last year itself.

NDMC had in January this year said it was in the process of assessing the assets of the hotel in preparation for the much-delayed auction.

NDMC, which works under the administrative control of the Union Home Ministry, had got the nod to auction the hotel in March 2015.

The civic body had also selected SBI Cap, which was the Centre's advisor for coal blocks auctions, to be its transaction advisor for the auction of Taj Mansingh.

The advisers are expected to guide the entire auctioning process, from conceptualising the plan to handing it over and signing of the final documents.

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Alleged gangster Neeraj Bawana and three others were today directed to be put on trial by a city court for allegedly running an organised crime syndicate in the Delhi-NCR region.

Additional Sessions Judge Rakesh Pandit ordered framing of charge under section 3 (punishment for organised crime) of the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against accused -- Bawana, his elder brother Pankaj Sehrawat, Rahul Dabas and Naveen Dabas.

The court fixed November 18 for formally framing charges against the accused persons, with the judge saying that prima facie there was enough evidence to put them on trial.

The order was passed in a case in which a charge sheet was filed by Special Cell of Delhi Police against ten persons, including Bawana, his brother and former MLA Rambeer Shokeen, in September last year.

The court discharged five other accused -- Sunil Rathi, Amit Malik alias Bhura, Naveen Hooda, Deepak Dabas and Gurpreet Singh -- due to lack of evidence against them.

In the charge sheet, the agency has described Bawana as "a symbol of lawlessness" and "kingpin" of the racket, adding that Shokeen, who is absconding, was the "political face" of the syndicate as he was found using the clout of these criminals to contest MLA election to "further his political ambitions and gaining pecuniary benefits".

Police had said that Neeraj Sehrawat alias Neeraj Bawana belonged to a lower middle class family but enjoyed a lavish lifestyle from the money generated through the syndicate.

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Nine traders hailing from Mancachar area of Assam were abducted by armed militants in South Garo Hills district of Meghalaya early today, police said.

The traders who were going to a weekly market were taken at gun point from a forested area near Bilkona today, the police said.

Superintendent of police Anand Mishra said the abductors were suspected to be from the Achik Songa An'pachakgipa Kotok (ASAK) group.

A search operation has been launched to rescue the victims, he said.

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Facing attack, the government tonight said it is making all out efforts to see that vacant posts of judges are filled up even as it insisted that there has been no abnormal increase in the vacancies in the High Courts under NDA rule as compared to the previous UPA regime.

The average annual rate of appointment of judges in the High Courts has not declined during the last 2 years, though no new appointments were made during April-December, 2015 due to hearing of the NJAC matter, sources said.

"Government of India has utmost respect for the judiciary and its independence," a source said, against the backdrop of strong statement by Chief Justice of India T S Thakur over the vacancies not being filled up.

The sources said the government is concerned about the increasing pendency in the judicial courts and "Hence, Government has been making all out efforts to see that the vacant posts are filled up."



The sources said that it is being presented in the media that the number of vacancies of judges in the High Court has increased abnormally in recent times. "However, an analysis of data for the last 10 years indicates that there is no such abnormal increase," the source said.

Giving details, the sources said that during the last 10 years, the number of vacancies has varied from 265 to 280. Similarly, working strength of judges in the High Courts has remained almost the same, around 600.

The current working strength in High Courts is 620, they said against the backdrop of attack by the Chief Justice and opposition parties, including Congress.

"Further, 173 new posts of judges were created in last 2 years. This has added to the vacancies in the High Courts," the source said.

During the period 2009-2014, only 20 new posts of High Courts judges had been created whereas during 2015 and 2016, 173 new posts were created.

"If we exclude that period, the average annual rate of appointment of High Courts Judges has increased by 63 per cent (from 74 to 121 per year)," the source added.

With regard to the Collegium system, the government



sources said the current process has "certain shortcomings".

"We have come across some instances where the High Court Collegium has recommended certain number of candidates for appointment as High Court Judges, the Supreme Court Collegium has undertaken consultations, exercised due diligence and has excluded certain recommendees. By the time the final proposal is made, the number is reduced drastically," the source said.

Giving an example, the sources cited the case of Allahabad High Court wherein the High Court Collegium had recommended 19 names but finally the Supreme Court Collegium recommended only 8 names.

"In another instance of Karnataka High Court, the High Court Collegium had recommended 10 names against 10 vacancies, but only two names were recommended by the Supreme Court Collegium," the sources said.

In another proposal relating to Rajasthan High Court, High Court Collegium has recommended 10 names, but the Supreme Court Collegium finally recommended only 4 names, they said.

In order to assist the SC Collegium and HC Collegium, a Committee has been proposed. This Committee is intended to assess and evaluate candidates for the consideration of the Collegium.

The Collegium will, however, not be bound by the Committee recommendations, the sources said.

"There have been similar arrangements in selections to many senior positions in government," they said, citing the example of the Selection Committee for selection of Chief Information Commissioner and other Information Commissioners headed by the Prime Minister.

However, a Search Committee headed-by Cabinet Secretary will evaluate and suggest a panel of names to the Selection Committee, which can consider other names as well.

The Search Committee's remit is only to facilitate the Selection Committee.
Taking a cue from Mumbai police, the city police today banned use and sale of flying lanterns during and post Diwali in a bid to avert possible fire and threat to human life and public property.

The ban, which came into effect today, will remain in force till November 26, police said.

Any person, who violates the order, shall be punishable under section 188 of Indian Penal Code, 1980, Pune Police said in a statement.

"The ban has been imposed on the use, sale and storage of flying lanterns from October 28 to November 26, and those flouting the order shall be punishable under IPC Section 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant)," Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and order), Shashikant Shinde, said.

In Mumbai, following a request made by the Fire Brigade, the police had yesterday passed an order to ban the use of flying lanterns to avert the possible threats.

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The Cyberabad police here have booked a Osmania University teacher for allegedly sending objectionable emails to a research student who is now in USA.

The accused, teacher of Communicative English and a research associate in the Department of English at the University, was arrested yesterday for 'cyber stalking' and other relevant offences under the IT Act and IPC, police said.

He was later released on bail, said a senior police official.

He had met the victim when she was doing her post- graduation in English and Foreign Languages University in 2007 and allegedly harassed her by sending objectionable emails seeking intimate relations, police said.

The victim, who is now doing research in USA, lodged a complaint with the Cyberabad police.

"We examined her through Skype and got the required information. Based on that we have registered a case and arrested him," the official told PTI.

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Police has arrested a Jodhpur-based passport and visa agent allegedly involved in the espionage ring run by a Pakistani High Commission official.

After getting a tip-off, police had on Wednesday nabbed Pakistan High Commission official Mehmood Akhtar along with two Indians identified as Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir at Delhi Zoo while the visa agent Shoaib had managed to escape.

Shoaib was detained near Jodhpur last evening and after being brought here, he was arrested, a senior police officer said today.

While Akhtar was yesterday declared persona non grata, Subhash and Maulana has been arrested on charges of sharing of sensitive information and defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border. They were sent to 12-day police custody.

It was found that Shoaib was responsible for recruiting Subhash and Maulana in the module.

Shoaib had come in contact with Maulana around one-and-a-half years back and lured him into activities of collecting vital information about the installations of army and paramilitary forces in Gujarat and Rajasthan, the officer said.

"We had sent a request to Jodhpur Police about detaining Shoaib and yesterday evening he was detained," said the officer.

Shoaib's questioning is likely to reveal information about other spies in the racket.

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BAY ST. LOUIS, Mississippi -- The deadline to apply for the vacant Bay St. Louis police chief position is Friday.

Mayor Les Fillingame says he's already received more than 20 applications from people interested in running the city's police force.

WLOX-TV reports once the deadline closes, Fillingame will work with local and state professionals to evaluate the resumes and develop a list of finalists.

He hopes to interview the top candidates by the end of next week. Fillingame hopes he can recommend a candidate to the Bay St. Louis City Council by mid-November.

Recently, the council began questioning whether the city's police force should be taken over by the Hancock County Sheriff's Department. Last week, council members heard a presentation from the sheriff about what he could offer and what it might cost.
Mehmood Akhtar, the Pakistan High Commission official who was caught for espionage, was trying to gather classified information on deployment of Indian security forces along the western coast, possibly to carry out a strike similar to the 2008 Mumbai terror attack.

Akhtar was trying to gather information pertaining to deployment of security forces along the western coast, Sir Creek and Kutch areas and also about military installations in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Goa, a Home Ministry official said.

"There have been intelligence inputs that Pakistan's ISI was planning to send terrorists through the sea route to carry out a Mumbai-type terror attack in India. Akhtar's activities and his interests to gather information about the western coast buttress the intelligence inputs," the official said.

166 people lost their lives when 10 terrorists, who came through the Arabian sea from Karachi, carried out mayhem for three days in Mumbai in November 2008.

Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir were handing over information to Akhtar about security forces deployment in the Sir Creek area and Kutch region when they were arrested yesterday.

The Pakistani official was to hand over the duo Rs 50,000 for getting information, the official said.

Before being let off because of diplomatic immunity, Akhtar confessed to police about his role in the spy ring. Delhi Police has also done video-recording of his statement.

In his statement to police, Akhtar admitted that he was part of the spy ring for more than a year.

He has named a few officers of the Pakistani High Commission whom he was reporting to with all the information but police were yet to take action against them as there was no direct evidence as of now.

Acting on a tip-off, Delhi Police yesterday nabbed Akhtar, along with Ramzan and Jangir, at Delhi Zoo while a visa agent from Rajasthan, Shoaib, had managed to escape.

Shoaib was detained near Jodhpur last evening and after being brought here, he was arrested.

While Akhtar was yesterday declared persona non grata, Subhash and Maulana have been arrested on charges of passing on sensitive information and defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border. They were yesterday sent to 12-day police custody.

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Pakistani security forces raided a compound in the country's troubled southwest and killed four militants linked to an attack on a police academy earlier in the week, officials said today.

The raid in Quetta, the capital of strife-riven Balochistan province, was carried out late yesterday following an intelligence tip-off about the presence of fighters from the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) militant group.

"A team of anti-terrorist force (ATF) raided the compound and killed four militants after an exchange of gunfire," a senior local police official Abdullah Afridi told AFP.

Speaking off the record, a police official said the militants belonged to the LeJ - a faction of which claimed it had worked with the Islamic State group to carry out the Monday night raid that killed 61 people, the deadliest assault on a security installation in Pakistan's history.

IS had previously also claimed the raid and released photos of the fighters involved, one of whom bore a strong resemblance to a attacker who was killed by security forces in the assault.

The extent of any material support to local groups from IS remains unclear, but affiliation with the notoriously brutal outfit brings the promise of a far higher profile.

The Balochistan government has also formed a joint investigation team (JIT) comprising officials from the army, police and intelligence agencies to probe Monday's attack.

Pakistan has been battling a homegrown Islamist insurgency since shortly after the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, though overall levels of violence have dropped following a series of militatry offensives in the country's western tribal regions.

Monday night's raid though served as a grim reminder that militant groups are still able to carry out major assaults from time to time.

The emergence of IS in Pakistan is seen as a major blow to the country's long-running efforts to quell the insurgency, and comes as the group's key rival Al Qaeda is losing strength in what was once its "home ground".

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The Patna High Court today quashed an FIR filed against IAS officer Jitendra Gupta, who was arrested and later suspended in a corruption case, by the Vigilance Department about three months ago.

A single bench of Chief Justice Iqbal Ahmad Ansari quashed the FIR while hearing a petition filed by Gupta.

The order has come as a relief for the IAS officer whose suspension was revoked by the Bihar government in September. This means that no prosecution would be carried out by the Vigilance in the case.

Gupta, who was sub-divisional officer (SDO) of Mohania in Rohtas district, was arrested by the Vigilance Department on July 12 for allegedly indulging in corruption.

The General Administration Department (GAD) of the state government issued a notice on July 20 suspending him. A case was registered against Gupta in the vigilance police station under anti-corruption law.

Papers of some trucks seized in the sub-division was found in the possession of the IAS officer following a complaint lodged by a trucker.

There is no direct evidence to show that Gupta had demanded money, neither the money was recovered from his possession, the counsel submitted.

The counsel further submitted that the officer has been falsely implicated in the case as he had acted against the truckers for their illegal activities.

The Vigilance court had on July 22 dismissed the regular bail petition of Gupta, a 2013-batch IAS officer.

The arrest of the officer had triggered protests from the state IAS officers' association.

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A gas leak from an oil tanker has caused panic among the people who have been fleeing their houses at Angrabhasa along the National Highway 31 in Jalpaiguri district today.

Many locals have left their houses after the gas started leaking at about 3 AM from the tanker on the national highway, District Magistrate Mukta Arya said.

Electricity was cut off in the area as preventive measure and efforts were on to cap the leak, she said.

Meanwhile, hundreds of vehicles were stranded on the highway and road communication between the Dooars and Assam and Bhutan was snapped.

A police force was deployed in the area.

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A Philippine mayor accused of drug trafficking was killed along with nine bodyguards in a shoot-out with police today, authorities said, hours after President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to intensify his crackdown on crime.

Samsudin Dimaukom, the mayor of the southern town of Saudi Ampatuan, was one of more than 150 local government officials, judges and police identified by Duterte earlier this year as being involved in the illegal drug trade.

The deadly crime war has claimed more than 3,800 lives and drawn criticism from the United States, the United Nations and international rights groups who have accused police of summarily executing suspects.

Police spokesman Superintendent Romeo Galgo said that Dimaukom and his security personnel opened fire after anti-narcotics police stopped their vehicles at a checkpoint on suspicion they were transporting illegal drugs.

Officers returned fire, killing the men in the town of Makilala, about 950 kilometres south of the capital Manila.

"Suspects (were) heavily armed and fired upon the law enforcers, which prompted them to fire back," Galgo said.

Dimaukom made a name for himself by funding the construction of a pink mosque in Saudi Ampatuan in a plea for peace in the town which has been wracked by violence.

Muslim rebels have been waging a separatist insurgency in the southern Philippines for decades.

Duterte, who swept to power in May elections on a pledge to eradicate drugs, has described his critics as "fools" and said he is not breaking any domestic laws by threatening to kill criminals.

After returning from a trip to Japan late Thursday, he threatened to step up police killings of drug suspects.

"If my wish to get rid (of illegal drugs) in my country is not granted, you can expect about 20,000 or 30,000 more. There is a war going on," he said.

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Imagine human excreta falling on you from airplanes flying above!!



A former senior armyman has moved the National Green Tribunal alleging dumping of human waste by aircraft over residential areas near the IGI airport here, which led the green panel to order an inspection of his South Delhi house.

Lt Gen (Retd) Satwant Singh Dahiya has sought criminal proceedings against commercial airlines and levy of hefty fines on them for endangering the health of residents, terming the act as violation of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

Noting the submissions of the petitioner, the green panel directed Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to depute a senior environmental engineer to inspect his house and check the existence of human excreta on the walls.

It also asked CPCB that if excreta was found, samples should be collected for analysis and the report placed before the tribunal.

A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar also issued notices to the Ministries of Environment and Forests and Civil Aviation and CPCB, seeking their replies within two weeks.

Plane toilets store human waste in special tanks. These are normally disposed of by ground crew once the plane lands, but aviation officials acknowledge that lavatory leaks can occur in the air at times. There have been instances, including in India, when people have been injured.

In his petition, Vasant Enclave resident Dahiya has sought creation of a 24-hour helpline for immediate reporting of the incident and a monitoring mechanism to check that no aircraft drops "human soil or excreta" while landing.

"For past more than the week in the early morning, we found that walls and floors of terrace of our house splattered with large patches of excreta dumped by aircraft flying in front of Palam airport at night. This is the second time this has happened. Last time it had occurred in early October when we had spent Rs 50,000 to get the entire exterior resurfaced with fresh paint.

"Diwali is only few days away and being the festive season having recently finished fresh coating of the house exterior at considerable experience to clean up the premises. We are again faced with having our walls completed spattered with waste. We are retired people and cannot afford to have this defacement everyday," the plea said.

The bench, also comprising U D Salvi, said "we direct



senior environmental engineer from CPCB to visit the premises of the applicant and check whether as a matter of fact remnant of human excreta are found on the walls or on terrace floor of the applicant's building or any building adjacent thereto.

"If the remnants are found, its samples should be collected for analysis in order to confirm its nature and analysis report be placed before the Tribunal on the next date of hearing" on November 25.

Advocate B V Niren, appearing for Civil Aviation Ministry, opposed the argument and said plane toilets stored the waste in special tanks which are normally disposed of by ground crews once the plane lands.

In January this year, a woman in a village near Bhopal suffered injuries when a frozen mass bounced off a nearby building and fractured her shoulder.

Aviation experts then believed that the mass could have been either blue ice, a term used to describe sewage leaked form an aircraft lavatory, or a megacryometeor - an extremely large chunk of ice formed under unusual conditions.

Similar incidents have been reported from the US and the UK too.
President Pranab Mukherjee will be first Head of State from India in 18 years to visit Nepal on a three-day State Visit starting November 2, first after democratic constitution was adopted by Nepal last year which is being seen as "special goodwill visit".

Mukherjee is likely to hold discussions on "full range of bilateral, regional and multinational" issues with the political leadership of the Himalayan neighbour ranging from post-earthquake reconstruction projects, concerns of Madhesi community among others.

Among other reasons, political instability in Nepal is seen as a reason for such a long gap in the State Visit to the neighbour



During the three day visit, Mukherjee will be meeting host of political leaders including President Bidhya Devi Bhandari, Vice President Nanda Kishor Pun and Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal besides civil society members including Madhesi leaders and ex-servicemen of Indian army belonging to Gurkhas.

When asked about anti-India sentiments in Nepal, Joint Secretary (North) Sudhakar Dalela said,"We are in a phase of very intensive engagement at a political level and functional level. We are trying to work with Government of Nepal in different areas.

"There have been, in the field of trade or economics, cases where we have concerns about our people working there but we are working with Nepal."



Mukherjee will be accompanied with high-level delegation of Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre, Members of Parliament L Ganesan, Jagadambika Pal, R K Singh besides one more MP whose name is getting finalised, he said.

Besides Kathmandu where the President will hold diplomatic discussions with the Nepalese Government, he will be visiting Janakpur, on the Indian border, considered as hub for Madhesis where he will be accorded a civic reception and Pokhara where he will interact with ex-servicemen of Indian army from Gurkha community.

Mukherjee will also be accorded honorary Doctorate by Kathmandu University.

"I assume discussions will cover all range of issues covering all aspects of bilateral issues, regional issues, international issues...

"During the high level political exchanges we had recently, the Government of Nepal has shared with our leadership its Government's priority and efforts to address all the Constitutional issues by taking all sections of society on board," Dalela said on the question of Madhesi community's concerns in Nepal.

(REOPENS DEL 68)



Madhesis constitute about 35 per cent of Nepali population and are connected with India through social and family bonds.

He said India has welcomed these efforts and hopes that they will further "consolidate" democracy in Nepal and will bring security peace and prosperity there.

The then President K R Narayanan was the last President to visit Nepal in 1998 and before him, Giani Zail Singh had visited the country in 1986.

Dalela said there will no new agreements signed during the visit as the emphasis is on to implement the projects which have already been signed with Nepal.

On the question of Nepal not coming forward with post-earthquake development projects where they needed India's help, Dalela said,"I must say we are moving forward now....We have received some projects in cultural heritage sector and we are trying to work with Government of Nepal to put in place implementation modalities."



India has extended grant assistance of 250 million USD in addition line of credit to the tune of 750 million USD has been extended for the reconstruction projects for the earthquake ravaged country, he said.

A strong earthquake in Nepal on April 25, 2015 had killed nearly 9,000 people and injured nearly 22,000.

When asked about cooperation on anti-terror and porus border with Nepal, Dalela said both countries have very strong security cooperation with Nepal.

He referred to statement issued by Foreign Office of Nepal, as Chair of Saarc, condemning cross border terror.

He said security agencies of both the countries cooperate very closely and in future this cooperation will be strengthened further.
The Rajghat power plant, shut last year for being a major source of Delhi's air pollution, will be converted into a waste-to-energy plant by 2017, Delhi Power Minister Satyendar Jain said today.

Jain today held a meeting with his department officials at Delhi Secretariat to discuss the proposal.

"The proposed waste-to-energy plant will have the capacity to process 4,000 MTD (Metric Tonnes Daily) of solid waste. Delhi produces around 10,000 MTD.

"The current processing capacity of waste in the city is around 5,000 MTD. Rajghat power plant will be converted into waste-to-energy plant by 2017," the minister said.

Currently, two such plants in Ghazipur and Okhla produces around 12 and 16 MW of electricity respectively. Another 1,550 MTD capacity plant in Bawana is stuck due to disagreement in revenue sharing between the North MCD and a private contractor.

Proposal recently received the consent of the three BJP-run civic bodies during the second meeting of the inter-ministerial task force on air pollution and solid waste management.

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In recent years, weve convinced 10 states to ban many extreme confinement practices for farm animals, and we've worked with more than 200 food retailers to phase out eggs and other animal products from factory farms that confine the animals severely. Photo by David Paul Morris/For The HSUS

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The political campaign against Question 3  an HSUS-backed measure to combat extreme confinement of animals on factory farms  is struggling with a crisis of credibility.

First, the opponents are arguing that a measure to give animals raised for food a little room to move is a tax on consumers that will hurt people in poverty  presumably because being decent to animals, they say, is going to increase production costs. The reality is, in a state rich with non-profits that fight hunger and poverty, theres not a single anti-poverty group in Massachusetts that has come out against Question 3. The central argument of our opponents is a political concoction, without any legitimate group providing support for it. In fact, numerous published studies from the egg industry shows that getting hens out of cages would cost the farmer only an extra penny or two an egg. After it made a cage-free pledge in September 2015, McDonalds said it anticipates that it wont raise prices for its food products with eggs even a cent

Whats more, the ad campaign featuring the anti-poverty argument, as exposed today by Boston Globe columnist Scot Lehigh, is funded by Big Ag interests centered in Indiana and Iowa. These groups have no history of aiding anti-poverty campaigns (but the factory farms that they defend have a record of polluting the environment by maintaining massive, open-air manure lagoons and making life miserable for people in rural communities and driving down the property values for homeowners), yet they have trotted out these tired and false arguments for years in an attempt to justify their mass exploitation of animals. All but $100 of the $300,000 or so that the No on Question 3 committee has raised comes from anti-animal-welfare zealot and agribusiness operator, Forrest Lucas of Indiana, and the Iowa-based National Pork Producers Council. Theres a lonely single donation of $100 from a single Massachusetts resident, and that Ben Franklin came courtesy of the opponents lawyer.

This isnt a one-time intervention by Forrest Lucas. He has an anti-animal welfare Super PAC and he is also the sole funder of a group he created called Protect the Harvest, which opposes any and all animal welfare reforms. Among other things, he has put hundreds of thousands of dollars into a losing fight against a Missouri ballot measure to crack down on puppy mills, he has fought against bills and ballot measures to make malicious animal cruelty a felony, and he advocates for the trophy hunting of elephants, leopards, and other rare species.

Its amazing to find that theres really someone who cares not a whit about the lives of animals and fights any and all efforts to prevent cruelty to them. In particular, hes zealous about defending confinement agriculture. Somehow, until The HSUS and other like-minded groups articulated the case against the practice, it became acceptable to imprison animals in cages and crates barely larger than their bodies  a production system that is at odds with any common-sense notion of animal welfare or care, because it immobilizes animals for the duration of their lives.

In recent years, weve convinced 10 states to ban many of these extreme confinement practices. And weve also worked with more than 200 food retailers  from McDonalds to Walmart to Kroger  to change their procurement practices and to phase out purchasing eggs and other animal products from factory farms that confine the animals so severely.

Question 3 is about dealing with the outliers  creating a minimum standard for all farmers and all retailers in Massachusetts to observe. For animals used for food production, this is the least we can do. Im confident Massachusetts voters will see through the smokescreen created by the most extreme and retrograde voices in Big Agriculture and will vote for safer food that comes from more humanely treated animals.
The Supreme Court today directed Rajasthan government to respond to a plea of self-styled religious figure Asaram Bapu, facing trial in rape cases, seeking modification of the court's order directing him to undergo treatment at AIIMS in Jodhpur.

A bench of Justices A K Sikri and N V Ramana directed the state government to file a reply to the plea along with full details of the hospital it proposes for treatment of Asaram.

During the brief hearing, Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appearing for Rajasthan government said there was a Mahatma Gandhi hospital where Asaram could undergo treatment for his ailments.

"There is a Mahatma Gandhi hospital, where all the judges of the High Court undergoes treatment and it has all state-of- art facilities. We can take him there," Mehta said.

"The investigating officer of the case was cross-examined by the defence 89 times and recently they even recalled the prime witnesses in the case, and since then all these sickness things have started," the ASG alleged.

The bench, however, asked the state to file its reply in one week with full details of the hospital.

Asaram had yesterday approached the apex court, seeking modification of its October 24, order directing him to undergo treatment at AIIMS in Jodhpur.

He had said that AIIMS, Jodhpur does not have in-patient facility and sought direction from the court to bring him to All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS), Delhi for further treatment.

The apex court had on October 24 rejected his interim bail plea sought on health grounds.

A seven-member medical board of AIIMS Delhi had told the apex court that Asaram's health condition was stable and that he had refused to undergo several tests.

Asaram was arrested by Jodhpur Police on August 31, 2013 and has been in jail since then. On August 9, the High Court had rejected his bail application in the rape case.

A teenage girl had accused him of sexual assault at his ashram in Manai village near Jodhpur. The girl, who belonged to Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh, was a student living in the ashram.

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The single-tier system of duty relaxation under the proposed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will be the central issue to be discussed at the meeting of trade ministers of 16 countries, including India and China, in the Philippines on November 4.

Under this system, the RCEP member countries will deliberate on finalising the maximum number of goods on which duties will either be eliminated or reduced drastically.

"This will be a crucial meeting of RCEP. Members have agreed to a single-tier system of tariff relaxation. So, the discussions would hover around this, besides issues related to services and investments," an official said.

Prior to the meet, chief negotiators and senior officials of all the 16 countries will discuss the entire gamut of issues on November 3.

RCEP is a mega trade deal that aims to cover goods, services, investments, economic and technical co-operation, competition and intellectual property rights.

As the domestic industry has apprehensions over a deluge in imports from countries like China after the duty cut under the agreement, India may take certain "deviations" for such countries.

Under deviations, India may propose a longer duration for either reduction or elimination of import duties for such countries.

India already has implemented a free trade agreement with ASEAN, Japan and South Korea. On the other hand, the country is negotiating similar pacts with Australia and New Zealand.

Another source said the meeting takes on significance for India as all the member countries want a higher number of items to be covered under trade liberalisation in goods.

The talks for the pact 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 16-member bloc RCEP comprises 10 ASEAN members (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, Laos and Vietnam) and their six FTA partners - India, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.

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Syrian rebels launched a major assault today aimed at breaking a months-long siege of opposition-held districts of Aleppo, as regime ally Russia held off on renewed air strikes.

The European Union said late today its top diplomat Federica Mogherini was heading to Iran and Saudi Arabia for talks on Syria's five-year conflict.

Rebel groups including the Ahrar al-Sham faction and former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front fired rockets into government-held western Aleppo, killing at least 15 civilians, a monitor said.

The rebels also targeted government positions east of Aleppo city and in the coastal province of Latakia, including the Hmeimim military base used by Russian forces allied with the regime.

Moscow says it has not bombed Aleppo since October 18, but senior Russian military official Sergei Rudskoi said today the military had asked President Vladimir Putin for authorisation to resume air strikes.

But the Kremlin said Putin did not agree to the request.

"The Russian president considers it inappropriate at the current moment to resume strikes on Aleppo," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding that Putin thought it necessary to "continue the humanitarian pause" in the war-ravaged city.

"The Russian side retains the right in case of extreme necessity to use all the troops and facilities it has to carry out support of the Syrian armed forces at the necessary level," he added.

Mogherini will visit Tehran on Saturday and Riyadh on Monday for "senior level talks" continuing the EU's "outreach to key actors in the region on the Syrian crisis", an EU statement said.

Today's rebel assault comes more than three months into a government siege of eastern Aleppo, where more than 250,000 people live, and several weeks after the army began an operation to retake the rebel-held east.

Rebel groups "announce the start of the battle to break the siege of Aleppo", said Abu Yusef Muhajir, a military commander and spokesman for Ahrar al-Sham.

The assault "will end the regime occupation of western Aleppo and break the siege on the people trapped inside", he told AFP.

"The breaking of the siege is inevitable," said Yasser al-Yusef, a member of the political office of the Nureddine al-Zinki rebel group.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said at least 15 civilians, including a woman and two children, had been killed, and more than 100 wounded in rebel fire on western Aleppo.

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Syrian rebels fired dozens of rockets at government forces in Aleppo and Latakia province on Friday, in preparation for a bid to break the siege of Aleppo city, a monitor said.

The rocket fire was accompanied by fierce clashes on the outskirts of the government-controlled west of Aleppo, with two suicide car bombings targeting a checkpoint in the Dahiyet al-Assad neighbourhood, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

"The rebels have begun a prelude to their operation to break the siege of Aleppo," Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said.

The Britain-based monitor also reported rebels had fired dozens of rockets at the Nairab military airport and Aleppo international airport, both east of Aleppo city and under government control.

And, simultaneously, rebels fired rockets from Idlib province into the government stronghold of Latakia, killing one person and wounding six.

The rocket fire hit near the Hmeimim military airport, which is used by government ally Russia, as well as near Qardaha, the ancestral village of President Bashar al-Assad, the monitor said.

Abdel Rahman said the operation involved a range of rebel groups, including the powerful Islamist Ahrar al-Sham and former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front, previously known as Al-Nusra Front.

Ahrar al-Sham said on Twitter: "The prelude has begun with different types of weapons (targeting) the positions of the sectarian militias in Dahiyet al-Assad and surrounding areas in western Aleppo."



It also claimed the targeting of Nairab military airport with Grad rockets.

The Observatory said regime forces were returning rocket fire and also carrying out air strikes on the southern and western outskirts of Aleppo.

The city has been divided since mid-2012, and the eastern rebel-held neighbourhoods have been under regime siege near-continuously since July 17.

Rebels successfully broke the siege in early August, opening up a new route into the city from the south, but government forces quickly closed the route, and no aid has entered the east since July.

Damascus launched a Russian-backed assault on eastern Aleppo in late September that has killed hundreds of people and destroyed key infrastructure, including schools.

The assault and siege have prompted international condemnation, with UN aid chief Stephen O'Brien earlier this week describing Aleppo as a "kill zone."



Last week, Russia announced a unilateral "humanitarian pause" intended to allow civilians and surrendering rebels to leave, but only a handful of people left and the UN was unable to evacuate dozens of seriously wounded people.

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The kin of a Northern Railway employee, who was killed in a road mishap in 2014, has been awarded over Rs 40 lakh as compensation by a Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) here.

MACT presiding officer Anoop Kumar Mendiratta awarded Rs 40,30,503 to family of 46-year-old deceased Narender Kumar after it was established that the mishap occurred due to rash and negligent driving of the offending trailer's driver.

"Since negligence is to be assessed on touchstone of preponderance of probability, it has been established that the accident was caused due to rash and negligent driving of container/trailer by the driver," the tribunal said.

"Negligence on the part of respondent number 1 (driver of the trailer) is manifest as the container/trailer had hit the motorcycle from behind and accident could have been avoided in case the vehicle was driven at a reasonable speed," it added.

The tribunal directed SBI General Insurance Company, insurer of the offending vehicle, to pay the amount to Kumar's wife Sharmeela and their three children.

According to the petition, the accident took place on April 26, 2014, when Kumar was returning home in Ghaziabad on his bike from Kharkhari village in UP and was hit from behind by the trailer driven in a rash and negligent manner. Kumar suffered fatal injuries and died on the spot.

The trailer's driver and owner denied negligence and claimed the accident had occurred due to the victim's fault as he was driving the motorcycle in a rash and negligent manner.

The tribunal, however, noted that the manner of accident has not been refuted by the driver of the trailor.

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RSS today opposed the celebration of 'Tipu Jayanti' in Karnataka this year, saying they would stage protests against it as the ruler of the erstwhile Mysore kingdom was a "religious bigot and a violent sultan".

"Our outfits will be out on the streets to stage protests against Tipu Jayanti as the then Mysuru ruler was a tyrant, a religious bigot and a violent sultan," RSS kshetriya sarsanghchalak of Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, V Nagaraj told reporters here.

Tipu Jayanti, slated to be celebrated across the state on November 10, is being observed since last year following a Congress government decision which had triggered a major row and caused violence in Kodagu district in November last.

Nagaraj said celebrating Tipu Jayanti will amount to "rubbing salt into the wounds" of Christians and manyother communities who were persecuted by the then Mysuru ruler.

Even well-known Left historian KM Pannikar had translated the records of religious persecutions of Tipu, written in Arabic and Persian languages into Malayalam and English, he said.

Replying to a query, the RSS leader asked the government to pursue the Rudresh murder case so that the killers get capital punishment.

RSS worker Rudresh was hacked to death by two motorcycle-borne men on Kamaraja Road on October 16 when he was with his friends, after attending a Sangh event.

Four persons were arrested yesterday in connection with the murder.

Nagaraj expressed satisfaction over the arrest of Rudresh'skillers.

"We are happy that the culprits have been arrested and we congratulate the Bengaluru police for it," he said.

"However, our demand before the government is that the casewill have to be properly filed and pursued so that the culpritsget capital punishment," he added.

The RSS leader refuted reports that Rudresh was murdered due topersonal rivalry and said there was no complaint regarding his conduct and he had a great ability to build the Sanghand the BJP in the state.

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Holding the Communists responsible for instigating the political violence in Kerala, RSS today said the Centre and the state government should urgently take action against the perpetrators and ensure that rule of law prevails.

"Government records and various judicial and police reports clearly established the fact that the Communists started violence in Kerala, not only against RSS but also against those who did not accept their ideology," V Nagaraj, RSS Kshetriya Sarsangchalak of Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh told reporters here.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had recently targeted BJP and RSS for the violence in the politically volatile Kannur district of the state, saying the saffron party and its outfits were "deliberately" causing breach of peace in the district.

"Indulging in violence, brainwashing and hoodwinking is the method of Communists, but they don't know it does not work any more," Nagaraj said.

He also asked the Kerala government and the Centre to take appropriate action urgently against the perpetrators of violence and necessary measures to ensure the rule of law in Kerala.

"Actually the law and order is a state subject, but when the killings are of terrorist dimensions in various statesincluding Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, we request the Central government also to pitch in because it threatens the integrity of the country," he said.

Asked about the RSS' opposition to Genetically-Modified crops of certain varieties, Nagaraj said they will oppose it unless some trials take place and an opinion is given thereafter.

"Unless some trials take place and an opinion is given, we want to oppose it (GM crops) and should not be brought into the country," he said.

Moreover, the products of Monsanto have not only been opposed by India, but also by many western countries like France and Germany because nobody knows what would be the long-term outcome of it, the RSS functionary said, adding the agricultural scientists are themselves divided over the issue.

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A Russian court today ordered a blogger to be held behind bars for three months pending trial for hunting Pokemon in church, after he broke rules of his house arrest.

And Ruslan Sokolovsky, a 22-year-old from the Urals city of Yekaterinburg, risks a five-year jail term after being charged with offending religious believers and inciting hatred.

Sokolovsky, a militant atheist, was detained in August after posting a YouTube video that has been viewed more than one million times showing him entering a church and playing Pokemon Go on his iPhone.

He was charged under a controversial law passed in response to the Pussy Riot punk performance in a Moscow church



In 2012 for which two members received two-year jail sentences for hooliganism.

The case has highlighted the growing influence in secular life of the Russian Orthodox Church despite its nominal separation from the state and has sparked condemnation from rights groups including Amnesty International.

The Orthodox Church has also accused him of blasphemy over the stunt in a church built on the site where the Bolsheviks shot the last Tsar and his family in 1918.

Yekaterinburg's Kirovsky district court ruled Friday that Sokolovsky be held behind bars in a pre-trial detention centre until next January after violating the rules of his house arrest, RIA Novosti state agency reported, quoting his lawyer.

Lawyer Alexei Bushmakov said the closed court hearing ordered Sokolovsky's jailing on the request of investigators because his fiancee had come to visit him for his birthday.

The decision was criticised by Mikhail Fedotov, the head of the Presidential Council on Human Rights advisory body.

He told Echo of Moscow radio station: "I think he absolutely doesn't deserve to be held in a detention centre."



"Imprisonment is an exceptional measure," said Fedotov, urging the case's closure due to its "triviality."



Amnesty International has appealed for Russia to immediately release Sokolovsky, calling the charges against him "farcical.

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Russia dismissed as "unconvincing" the findings of a UN-led investigation showing that Syrian forces had carried out three chemical attacks, and said no sanctions should be imposed.

"We believe that the proof is not there for any punitive action to be taken. It's simply not there," Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told reporters following a closed-door Security Council meeting yesterday.

A joint United Nations-Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) panel concluded that government forces carried out three chlorine gas attacks on villages in 2014 and 2015.

It was the first time an international probe blamed President Bashar al-Assad's forces after years of denial from Damascus.

But Churkin told the council that the findings were not strong enough to trigger sanctions.

The conclusions "in most cases... Are not substantiated by sufficient testimonial basis, first of all material proof, they are full of contradictions and therefore unconvincing," he said, according of a text of his remarks.

The findings are "not definitive, have no legally binding force and cannot serve as accusatory conclusions for taking legal decisions," he added.

Britain and France pressed demands for sanctions, arguing that UN resolutions provided for such action in response to the use of chemical weapons.

"Those responsible for using chemical weapons must be sanctioned. There is no other way," French Ambassador Francois Delattre told reporters.

"There should be accountability for every single person involved in any use of chemical weapons in Syria or indeed anywhere else," British Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said.

Government helicopters flying from two regime-controlled air bases dropped chlorine barrel-bombs on the villages of Qmenas, Talmenes and Sarmin, in rebel-held Idlib province, the panel's latest report said.

Chlorine use as a weapon is banned under the Chemical Weapons Convention, which Syria joined in 2013 under pressure from Russia, Assad's ally.

Although previous OPCW reports concluded that toxic gases were used as weapons in Syria's five-year war, they stopped short of identifying the perpetrators.

The panel identified the 253 and 255 squadrons of the 63rd helicopter brigade, which flew from the Hama and Humaymim air bases, and the 628 squadron based in Humaymim as the perpetrators.

The UN-OPCW panel also found that the Islamic State group used mustard gas as a weapon in August 2015.

"We stand firmly behind the report and its conclusions," Virginia Gamba, who led the investigative panel, told reporters.

Russia also rejected a US proposal to extend the panel's mandate - which ends on Monday - for a year, arguing that more time is needed to discuss the experts' future work.

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Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov today called for cooperation to prevent Islamic State jihadists from leaving Mosul and heading to Syria during the offensive under way to recapture the Iraqi city.

"We are interested in cooperation with our Iraqi colleagues to take measures to prevent the outflow of terrorists from Mosul with their weapons, which of course will exacerbate the situation in Syria," Lavrov said following talks in Moscow with his Iranian and Syrian counterparts Mohammad Javad Zarif and Walid Muallem.

"We will discuss this with the United States and other members of the coalition," he said.

The offensive to recapture Iraq's second city, launched on October 17 and backed by a US-led coalition, is seeing tens of thousands of Iraqi troops advance on Mosul in a bid to retake the last major Iraqi city under IS control.

Russia's defence ministry last week urged the coalition not to "drive terrorists" from Iraq to Syria during the offensive, warning it of the risk of "freely roaming" IS jihadist gangs.

The United States said today that up to 900 IS jihadists have been killed in the offensive so far as Iraqi forces allied with Kurdish peshmerga fighters have taken a string of towns and villages in a cautious but steady advance.

Western leaders have meanwhile accused Moscow of committing possible war crimes in the Syrian city of Aleppo through indiscriminate bombing in support of a brutal government offensive to retake the city's rebel-held east.

The Russian defence ministry has said that neither Syrian nor Russian warplanes have bombed Aleppo for 10 days.

Russia has meanwhile denied any role in deadly air strikes on a Syrian school in the rebel-held province of Idlib that killed 22 children.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the strikes had been carried out by "warplanes -- either Russian or Syrian."



Lavrov today repeated Moscow's denial of involvement in the attack, saying that the defence ministry has published "information with facts that refute these claims and show the fabricated nature of this disinformation.

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Every year on January first, the moment I wake up I head to the window to see what my first bird of the New Year will be. My hope is us...
The Russian defence ministry said today it had asked President Vladimir Putin for permission to resume strikes on the Syrian city of Aleppo after a 10-day moratorium.

The announcement came as Syrian rebels launched an assault on government forces to break a months-long siege of rebel-held eastern Aleppo.

"We have appealed to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation with a request to resume air strikes," senior military official Sergei Rudskoi told a briefing.

The Kremlin did not immediately comment on the ministry's request.

At least 15 civilians were killed and more than 100 wounded today by rebel rocket fire on government-held western Aleppo neighbourhoods, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Russia's defence ministry has said that Syrian and Russian warplanes had not bombed Aleppo in the past 10 days and that civilians and rebels wishing to leave the city can do so via humanitarian corridors.

The halt in bombing was initially declared ahead of a short ceasefire that ended at the weekend, with Moscow on Monday ruling out a truce extension for the time being.

Rudskoi added that Russia was ready to "assess any proposal about improving the humanitarian situation in Aleppo, including the introduction of 'humanitarian pauses'", but warned that a halt in bombing should not be used "for fighters to reach their objectives."



The West has accused Moscow of committing possible war crimes in Aleppo through indiscriminate bombing to support Syrian government efforts to retake total control over the city.

Russia has meanwhile denied any role in deadly air strikes on a Syrian school in the rebel-held province of Idlib that killed 22 children on Wednesday.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the strikes were carried out by "warplanes -- either Russian or Syrian.

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Top two lenders in the country, State Bank of India (SBI) and ICICI Bank, today announced a cut of 0.15 per cent and 0.10 per cent in their lending rates respectively under a new system of computation, signalling a further dip in borrowing costs ahead of the busy season.

Private sector lender ICICI Bank was the first to announce a cut of 0.10 per cent in its marginal cost of funds based lending rate (MCLR) across tenors, which was followed by a similar move by the country's largest lender SBI, but of a larger measure of 0.15 per cent.

Under the revised rates, the one-year MCLR which determined a slew of products including home loans for SBI stands at 8.90 per cent, while the same for ICICI Bank are at 8.95 per cent.

The revised rates are effective from November 1 in case of both the banks.

SBI has kept the overnight MCLR, which is the most aggressive offering, at 8.65 per cent, while the one month is at 8.75 per cent.

The announcements come after repeated displeasure shown by the regulator for not passing on the benefits of cuts to borrowers and give a boost to the sagging economic growth. They also come ahead of the crucial "busy season" in the second half of the fiscal which sees a spurt in loan demand.

Under the revised rate structure, the one-year MCLR --- which is used for calculating the rate of interest on home loans -- will come down to 8.95 per cent.

The overnight and one-month MCLR will be 8.75 per cent, while the three-month MCLR has been fixed at 8.85 per cent and six months at 8.90 per cent.

The MCLR was introduced from April this year as a transparent and effective alternative by the RBI, after banks refused to pass on the benefits of its rate cuts to the borrowers.

Even after the introduction of the MCLR, the central bank continues to be concerned on the issue of transmission which was flagged by Governor Urjit Patel at his maiden policy review this month. Banks are given a set formula to compute the MCLR based on cost of funds and are required to review it on a monthly basis, when the calls on the new rate structures are taken.

"I agree that the transmission through bank lending has been less than anyone of us would have liked to," Patel had told reporters.

"We are hoping that over the next quarter or two, keeping in mind the government has also reduced the small savings rates, the MCLR itself will now throw up more transmission."



Since January 2015, the Reserve Bank has reduced repo rate by 175 basis points, including the recent cut, but banks have reduced their base rates only by 60 basis points.

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Comedienne Amy Schumer has penned down an essay, praising current US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton as her inspiration.

The 35-year-old star posted the long note on Medium.Com, in which she also mentioned her recent Beyonce's "Formation" parody.

The video featured Schumer dancing to the song on an island with Goldie Hawn, Joan Cusack and Wanda Sykes, while they were on location filming a movie together.

The actress wrote, "While we were shooting our movie in Hawaii this summer we were all crazy for the album and also for Hillary Clinton. We would rush back to our televisions or phones to watch a stream of CNN to see the convention and watch Hillary and Michelle and so many extraordinary women speak.

"All of the women on set were bonded together from this music and from the election simultaneously. It was such a powerful time.

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regulator on Friday ordered four firms  Eris Energy, KKDIL Nidhi, United Medicine and Surgical Industries and Green India Infrastructure  and its directors to refund investors' money which they raised illegally by issuing securities, within three months.

Besides, the companies and their directors have been barred from the capital market for four years.

Eris Energy had garnered over Rs 2 crore from 205 entities during 2011-12 to 2013-14, KKDIL had raised over Rs 35 lakh from 10,289 investors between 2011-2013, United Medicine and Surgical Industries had raised 71 lakh from to 1,538 persons and Green India Infra Projects also raised funds by issuing securities.

Since the securities were issued by the firm to more than 50 people by each company, they qualified as a public issue that requires compulsory listing on recognised stock exchanges. They were also required to file a prospectus, among other things, which they failed to do.

In four similar-worded orders, the regulator said the companies and their directors "shall within a period of three months from the date of this order, jointly and severally refund the money" collected through the issuance of securities along with an interest at the rate of 15 per cent per annum from the date of receipt of money till the date of such refund".

The firms and their directors have been restrained and prohibited from buying, selling or otherwise dealing in the securities for four years and the ban will continue till the completion of refunds to investors.
Months after walking out of it, a faction-ridden Samajwadi Party (SP) today continued its efforts to stitch an alliance in Uttar Pradesh ahead of the Assembly election due early next year.

SP state unit chief Shivpal Yadav today met RLD chief Ajit Singh to invite him to the party's 25th anniversary celebrations on November 5.

On Wednesday, Shivpal had called up Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar and met his party's senior leaders Sharad Yadav and KC Tyagi.

A weakened SP is now looking for an alliance to take on the BJP and the BSP in the Assembly polls. The difference between Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and party chief and his father Mulayam Singh Yadav has taken an ugly turn. While Mulayam, Shivpal and Amar Singh represent one camp within the party, Akhilesh has the support of Mulayam's cousin Ram Gopal, who has been expelled from the party.

Carrying an invitation from Mulayam, Shivpal had been meeting "socialist friends" in the national capital.

Sources in the JD(U) and the SP said the idea behind the invite was to stitch an alliance in Uttar Pradesh, on the lines of Bihar, ahead of the polls.

An earlier attempt to stitch an alliance of "like-minded" parties had failed after the SP had backed out. Shivpal was involved in roping in the various constituents of the grand alliance till Mulayam himself decided to walk out of it months before the Bihar polls.

"I have come to invite Ajit Singh for SP's foundation day. All the secular parties do not want the BJP to enter Uttar Pradesh. It is an effort to bring together all Lohiawadis and Charanwadis. If it succeeds, we will stop the BJP," Shivpal told reporters after meeting the RLD chief.

On Wednesday, he had said that he had tried to form an alliance earlier too, but Ram Gopal Yadav did not allow it to happen "fearing the CBI".

"RLD has welcomed the statement of Samajwadi Party leader Shivpal Yadav, calling for a coalition of parties against communal forces in Uttar Pradesh," the party's general secretary, Trilok Tyagi, said.

Asked about the alliance, he said, "No decision has been taken yet. RLD will consider the proposal before taking a call."



He, however, said his party was "exhorting" all the 'Lohia-ites' to come together to fight the "communal forces".

RLD had already announced a coalition with Janata Dal (United), Sharad Pawar-led NCP and ex-BSP leader RK Chaudhary's BS4 for the crucial Uttar Pradesh polls.

The mega alliance, which was announced earlier this month, has projected Ajit Singh's son and former Mathura MP Jayant Chaudhary as its chief ministerial candidate.

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Kerala Minister for Local Administration KT Jaleel today sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi's intervention to restrain Union minister Maneka Gandhi from making statements with regard to checking the stray dog menace which has claimed four lives in the last four months in the state.

Jaleel made the statement in the Assembly while referring to Maneka's remark that the Kerala Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act should be imposed on those who cull street dogs to protect the people from their attacks.

The issue of street dogs was raised in the House as a notice for an adjournment motion by the Congress-led UDF Opposition in the backdrop of the gruesome killing of a 90-year-old man at Varkala by a pack of stray dogs on October 26.

"Maneka Gandhi was asking the state DGP to impose KAAPA on those killing street dogs, even though there is no such provision for it. We are lucky that she did not want to impose the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act," Jaleel said.

Terming the Union minister's statement "irresponsible", he said such an opinion amounted to violating the federal system in the country. "Prime Minister Narendra Modi shouldintervene to restrain her from making such statements," he said.

Cutting across party lines, members expressed strong reservation over Maneka's "frequent intervention and remarks" in connection with the measures to check the stray dog menace.

They also alleged that she had virtually put obstacles in the state's anti-stray dog mission.

The lone BJP member in the House, O Rajagopal, however, said the state should not backtrack from its initiatives for the statement of an "individual Union minister".

Explaining the gravity of the menace, Jaleel said four persons were killed in the last four months in stray dog attacks and 701 people, including 175 children, suffered dog bites across Kerala.

This year, 53,000 people had to take treatment for dog bites in government medical college hospitals alone, he added.

As many as 88,172 suffered dog bites in 2013, 1,19,119 in 2014 and 47,156 in 2015 in the state, Jaleel said.

On the demand from several quarters for culling dogs, he said though there was a provision in law to kill dangerous and ferocious dogs, a recent Supreme Court intervention had resulted in stalling the further proceedings in this regard.

The legal option available to contain the menace is to implement the sterilisation programme effectively and other initiatives such as waste management, he pointed out.

The government was aware of the seriousness of the situation and would take all possible measures to put an end to the problem, the minister added.

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The Information and Broadcasting ministry has given permission to a company related to the to operate five channels that they had bagged in e-auction in the first batch of Private FM Phase III expansion last year.

It is learnt that South Asia FM, which had bid for five channels, has been given clearance by the I&B ministry. Earlier, as the Ministry of Home Ministry had not provided the mandatory security clearance to the company, the permissions had been held up.

Red FM COO Nisha Narayanan confirmed the development and said that permissions have been granted by the ministry for five radio channels which will now come up in Chandigarh, Patna, Amritsar, Surat and Jammu.
Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi today urged Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to back Muslim women's crusade against triple talaq saying the JD(U) cannot abandon women's rights on the ground that it was an internal matter of a particular community.

The Bihar government had launched a scheme eight years ago providing an assistance of Rs 10,000 to a divorced or deserted Muslim woman for self employment, a scheme availed by over 17,000 women so far, he said in a statement.

Now that the Muslim women have challenged triple talaq in the Supreme Court, it is imperative for the Bihar Chief Minister to back these women in their endeavour to seek justice against being left in the lurch by their husbands who divorce them citing religious diktats, Sushil said.

The senior BJP leader asked Kumar to clarify whether Muslim women could be left on their own to bear with atrocities and divorce by husbands as per their whims.

He also urged the Chief Minister to extend the benefits of the Muslim Women Divorced/Deserted Scheme to their Hindu counterparts as there should not be any distinction between women on religious grounds, with their needs and problems being identical in the event of desertion by their better halves.

The former deputy chief minister said the JD(U) and its national president Nitish Kumar should not leave the Muslim women at the mercy of their husbands and religious decrees on the ground of these issues being an internal matter of a community as they have been a victim of triple talaq and child marriage in the absence of a legal framework to protect them.

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Syria's rebel groups including the powerful Ahrar al-Sham faction and former al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front fired waves of rockets into government- held western Aleppo, killing at least 15 civilians, a monitor said.

Syrian opposition fighters launched a major assault on government forces to break a months-long siege of rebel-held neighbourhoods of the battered city of Aleppo.

The rebels also targeted government positions east of Aleppo city and in the coastal province of Latakia, including the Hmeimim military base that is used by Russian forces allied with the regime.

The assault comes more than three months into a government siege of eastern Aleppo, where over 250,000 people live, and several weeks after the army began an operation to retake the rebel east.

Rebel groups "announce the start of the battle to break the siege of Aleppo," said Abu Yusef Muhajir, a military commander and spokesman for Ahrar al-Sham.

The assault "will end the regime occupation of western Aleppo and break the siege on the people trapped inside," he told AFP.

"The breaking of the siege is inevitable," said Yasser al-Yusef, a member of the political office of the Nureddine al-Zinki rebel group.

"We will protect the civilians and schools and hospitals from Russian attacks and bring our people food and medicine," he said.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain- based monitor, said at least 15 civilians, including two children, had been killed, and more than 100 wounded in rebel fire on western Aleppo.

The monitor reported fierce clashes on multiple front on the western and southern outskirts of western Aleppo, with three suicide car bombs targeting a checkpoint in the Dahiyet al-Assad neighbourhood. It had no immediate toll in the clashes or bomb attack.

An AFP correspondent in east Aleppo said the assault had boosted the mood in rebel-held districts, with mosques broadcasting "God is greatest" from loudspeakers to hail the battle.

He said residents were burning tyres, sending smoke up over the city in a bid to provide cover for rebel forces from government and Russian warplanes.

The Observatory said rebel forces had also fired dozens of rockets at the Nairab military airport and Aleppo international airport, both east of Aleppo city and under government control.

And rebels also fired rockets from Idlib province into the government stronghold of Latakia, killing one person and wounding six.

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Rebutting Congress' charge of a Rs 20,000-crore scam in alleged forced purchase of GSPC by ONGC, the Gujarat government firm today said discussions between the two firms are taking place on purely commercial basis with a view to achieve business synergies.

Congress spokesman Jairman Ramesh had on Tuesday alleged that Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan is "forcing" state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) to buy Gujarat State Petroleum Corp's (GSPC) gas block in KG basin to "protect" Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"The discussions between the two companies are taking place on purely commercial basis. The objective being to achieve business synergy between the resources of ONGC and GSPC for achieving more domestic production of oil and natural gas by carrying out further development of GSPC's KG Block," the Gujarat company said in a statement.

ONGC, it said, also operates an adjoining block in the KG basin which is due for development where the technological break-through achieved by GSPC in its KG Block can be of immense help for expediting the development.

Ramesh had alleged that Pradhan has ordered a "surgical strike" on GSPC through ONGC as the Gujarat government undertaking owes Rs 20,000 crore to 15 banks.

Denying Congress' charge that an attempt was being made to hide a scam, GSPC said: "The acquisition of stake by ONGC into GSPC's KG Block is meant for achieving synergy for securing energy security for India."



GSPC said the loans advanced by the banks to it were done after "proper assessment" by lenders.

"In fact GSPC had availed services of SBI Capital Markets (a subsidiary of SBI - a Government of India undertaking) for arranging the loan financing for GSPC. SBI Caps has also assisted the banks in evaluation before lending funds to GSPC.

"The proposals for lending to GSPC were cleared by the Board of Directors of the respective lending banks during the tenure of UPA government," it said.

GSPC, the statement said, has always carried out timely servicing of its loans. "GSPC has never ever defaulted even for a day in servicing its loans," it said.

Ramesh had alleged that there have been four CAG reports on GSPC scam, and yet there have been no comments from the government on them.

He alleged that Modi as Gujarat chief minister had made GSPC borrow Rs 20,000 crore after claiming in 2005 that it has found 20 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas reserves.

"After 11 years, they have found only 1 tcf of gas," he claimed adding GSPC has "squandered" the money and is "bankrupt" and therefore unable to repay.

GSPC said all the comments of the CAG pertaining to it and its operations have been tabled before the Gujarat Legislative Assembly and the reports have been discussed in the Public Undertakings Committee.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
An army jawan was today killed in an encounter with terrorists who later mutilated his body near the Line of Control (LoC) in Macchil sector of Kupwara district of Kashmir.

One militant was also killed in the gunbattle, army said here tonight.

"In an encounter close to the Line of Control this evening, one solider was martyred and one terrorist was killed. The terrorists mutilated the body of the jawan before fleeing back into Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir under the cover of firing by Pakistan Army," an army spokesman said.

He said the incident reflected the barbarism pervading in official and unofficial organisations in Pakistan.

"The incident will be responded to appropriately," he added.

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In a unique opportunity for people to experience the opulence of regal India, textile revivalist Umang Hutheesing's collection of royal attires is up for grabs at a selling exhibition here.

Hutheesing, who is considered as the scion of one of India's historical families, has recreated the grandeur from the times of the Mughals and the Rajputs, in an attempt to revive the textile heritage of the country.

The collection, which makes its maiden visit to India after successful sojourns to Japan, Bahrain and Mexico, comprises of Mughal chogas, Rajput gheras, European capes, shawls, and jackets.

"I am part of this profession from the past four years, and my only aim is to create excellence. I want to take Indian heritage to international level.

"Following the Make in India and Incredible India initiatives, I am trying to take my country to the world in the field of royal textiles," he says.

Hutheesing, who has a collection of over 400 royal textiles to his credit, has exhibited at various international museums, including Baroque International Museum in Mexico, National Museum of Bahrain, and Miho Museum, Japan.

Having traveled extensively across the globe, his expertise stems from his rich knowledge of cultures and traditions.

Earlier this year, he was gifted a set of gold sovereigns by the Queen of Bahrain for his royal collection.

"People wanted me to display my works for India as well, so I am in Delhi to display my collections.

"Most of my works in the museums were only for display and not sale, but I felt that I should let people re-live the royalty and this time they are also for sale," he says.

Hutheesing refuses to be addressed as a desginer, and emphasises that what he does is "not fashion".

"It is our culture and tradition, which I am trying to protect and revive. I try to be as original as possible, with no two similar pieces. The artistes are trained to recreate the royal cuts and designs and then the masterpiece is created," he says.

The launch of the collection here has been aptly timed with the Diwali festivities, during which people purchase new clothes, as a ritual.

"These clothes are not for everyday wear. So, Diwali is the best time for this collection as people can wear them during the celebrations and also re-live the royal era," he says.

The exhibition underway at Ogaan boutique on Malcha Marg Market here, has garments that are priced between Rs 50,000 to Rs 5 lakhs. It is set to continue till October 31.

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Questioning Jawaharlal Nehru's policies, Union Minister Jitendra Singh today said if Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel had been given a free hand to deal with Jammu and Kashmir, as in case of other princely states, the situation there would have been different.

Delivering the 59th Sardar Patel Memorial Lecture here, the Minister of State in the PMO said just as Nehru's "midnight arrival" heralded a new era for India, the "twilight arrival" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi can also be described as the beginning of a new era.

Singh said Nehru, free India's first Prime Minister, believed that he knew Jammu and Kashmir better than Patel and thought he should take care of it rather than the Home Minister, who integrated over 560 other princely states into the Indian union.

"The common opinion is that the course of events would have been different if Sardar Patel was given the liberty to handle, like other (princely) states, Jammu and Kashmir as well. Because Nehru believed that he knew Jammu and Kashmir better than Sardar sahab and therefore he should take care of it. And then going to UNO and all those things...," he said.

Noting that the UN resolution was not against the accession of Jammu and Kashmir to India but Pakistan's aggression against the country, Singh said the document itself became "infructuous" as one of its conditions was that Pakistan also had to withdraw from the territory it had occupied, something it refused to do.

"Nevertheless it (UN resolution) gave rise to another school of thought which said that Jammu and Kashmir was something which could be discussed internationally and even at the UN which I personally do not agree. We have no such issue as Jammu and Kashmir," he said.

"It is an integral part of India, it always was. If at all there is an issue it is how to free the part of Jammu and Kashmir which continues to be under illegal occupation of Pakistan," he said.

"I have no hesitation to say time unfortunately proved Nehru wrong. The example of Pir Panjal and Hindi-Chini bhai bhai...That experiment failed in his own lifetime and unfortunately also weighed on him," Singh said.

About the non-aligned movement, Singh said, in less than ten years of Nehru's passing away, Indira Gandhi had to enter into an accord with the Soviet Union because of the growing threat from the US. Nehru was one of the founding leaders of the NAM whose main objective was to build a grouping of nations which were not formally aligned to either the US or the Soviet Union, the two major powers during the cold war.

Claiming Nehru was more English than an Englishman, Singh



said," It is for the first time in the history of independent India that Modi is being hailed as a Prime Minister from India, as India's Prime Minister, an Indian Prime Minister and that is something of a big achievement. Also, it is a reflection of coming of age of Indian democracy."



Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore also spoke.

Describing Patel as the father of 'Swachhata Abhiyan', Rathore said the country's first Home Minister "saved and re-established" India's hold over Kashmir by organising an army which pushed backed the Pakistani tribesmen who wanted to capture it.
In a freak accident, a truck driver was crushed to death after he came under the wheels of another truck while escaping after hitting the same truck and a PCR van in Alipur area of outer Delhi early this morning.

Police said truck driven by Laxman Yadav was coming from the border and it hit another truck that was coming from Mukarba Chowk and turning towards Lavanya farmhouse, near Shani Mandir in Alipur, around 4.35 am. It also hit a PCR van injuring two policemen.

Eye witnesses told police, that Laxman jumped out of his truck after the accident and tried to flee from the spot. Meanwhile, the other truck that he had hit came from behind and crushed him under its rear wheel.

The injured policemen were rushed to Raja Harish Chandra Hospital for treatment. Body of Laxman was sent for autopsy at Jagijivan Ram hospital by the cops who reached there after getting information of the accident.

A case was registered under charges of rash driving and causing death by negligence at Alipur police station and driver of the other truck Jagdish Chand as well as cleaner of the deceased driver's truck were questioned by the police, said a senior police officer.

Jagdish Prasad has been arrested, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As military confrontation increased on the border, two civilians were killed in Jammu region of India in cross-border shelling and firing overnight even as Border Security Force (BSF) on Friday claimed to have killed 15 Pakistani soldiers over the last one week.

BSF, which primarily guards the International Border with Pakistan, said it had also foiled two infiltration bids in Samba district two days back. Besides, BAT (Border Action Team) attacks from Pakistani side along the Line of Control have also been thwarted during the past 24 hours. Firing mortar shells and using automatic weapons, Pakistani troops targeted civilian areas and forward security posts along the International Border and Line of Control in Jammu, Kathua, Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu and Kashmir.

At 1720 hours yesterday, Rangers started unprovoked heavy firing and shelling in Kathua sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba. It continued till 0500 hours today in the area of 24 BSF posts, a senior BSF officer said.

In the Pakistani shelling, one civilian died in Khour belt of Pallanwala sector today, Jammu Deputy Commissioner Simrandeep Singh said, adding another civilian was injured in R S Pura sector. Similarly, one woman Usma Bi, aged 50 years, was killed in shelling by on Gohlad village in Mendhar tehsil of Poonch district on Friday, Defence spokesman said. Another civilian was injured in area, the reports said.

BSF Additional Director General Arun Kumar said as per the ammunition used, it seems Pakistani Army Army is backing the Rangers and has taken over the posts of paramilitary force, which is further cause of escalation.

Kumar, who laid wreath at the moral remains of the BSF martyr Head Constable Jitendra Singh here, said they (Pakistani side) are resorting to heavy firing and shelling and we are giving them befitting reply. He said BSF has inflicted heavy damage on Pakistani side. As far the number of casualities on other side is concerned, which our men have seen through our eyes and instruments, 15 Pakistani soldiers have been killed after the sniping incident of Constable Gurnam Singh (on October 21), he said. Gurnam was injured in the sniper firing and then succumbed to the injuries.

They (Pakistani side) have suffered damage but are hiding them in public domain and they do not accept it. Last night we have destroyed their OP (observation post) towers and some OP towers caught fire due to our firing, Kumar said. He said Pakistani Rangers, Pakistani regulars and civilian population on their side have suffered heavy damage because of the Indian retaliation.

The damage to civilian population is much more (than us)... We have seen large number of ambulances coming and picking up injured. They have been making announcements from mosques asking people to assemble for last rites. All that points that they suffered a lot, the BSF officer said.
UK's counter-terrorism forces have foiled at least 10 terrorist attacks in the last two years and was dealing with around 550 live cases, Scotland Yard said today as it warned that the threat level for terrorism in the country is still "severe".

The figures were disclosed by Neil Basu, the Indian-origin deputy assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan Police and the UK's senior national coordinator for counter-terrorism policing.

"We continue to work at a relentless pace with our key partners, currently dealing with around 550 live cases at any one time. The counter-terrorism network and security services have successfully foiled at least 10 attacks in the last two years, with 294 convictions for terror-related offences," Basu said.

In a blogpost for the UK's National Police Chiefs' Council, he said that the official threat level for international terrorism in the UK is "severe", meaning an attack is highly likely.

"As soon as Daesh [Islamic State] started to lose on the battlefields abroad, it was clear their tactics would be directed closer to home.

"The evidence has been plain to see with the horrors suffered repeatedly by those in France, Germany and Belgium."



Basu also pointed out that there were other threats facing the country besides ISIS, saying he wanted to make the UK a "hostile place for terrorists".

"The continuing threat from Northern-Ireland-related terrorism and al-Qaeda also remains present, with supporters of both seeking to act," he said.

The senior police chief urged the public to be "alert but not alarmed" and report anything suspicious.

He said: "Despite all of our essential prevention work, it is a sad fact that terrorist attacks can and do happen. But if the worst were to take place we are ready, both to respond with maximum effect and to recover.

"The only way for us to prevent terrorism in this country is for the police to be the public and the public to be the police. Communities will defeat terrorism. Strong, cohesive communities - whatever their religion, race, creed or colour - working together to keep this country safe.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Islamic State group appears to be using tens of thousands of civilians in and around Mosul as "human shields," the United Nations' human rights office said today.

The office also has received reports of over 200 people being killed for refusing to comply with IS orders or for previously belonging to Iraqi security forces, spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said in Geneva.

"Credible reports" suggest that IS has been forcing tens of thousands from their homes in districts around Mosul since a massive operation to drive the militants from the city began last week, Shamdasani said, with other civilians being relocated within the city itself.

"ISIL's depraved, cowardly strategy is to attempt to use the presence of civilian hostages to render certain points, areas or military forces immune from military operations, effectively using tens of thousands of women, men and children as human shields," Shamdasani said, using another acronym for the group.

The militants apparently are collecting people from the outskirts of Mosul and pushing them into the city "to be able to keep them close to military installations, close to their offices," she said.

"Many of those who refused to comply were shot on the spot, and even among those who did comply, many of them -- including 190 former ISF officers and 42 other civilians -- were shot dead," Shamdasani added.

The officers, who had been brought from a district south of the city, were killed at a military base in Mosul while the civilians were shot in the Hamam al-Alil district for refusing to join IS.

Those killings reportedly happened on Wednesday, and another 24 former officers with the Iraqi security forces were reportedly killed on Tuesday.

Shamdasani said that the reports "have been corroborated to the extent possible.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Indian American Kerala Cultural and Civic Centre will honour five Indian-American Malayalees for their outstanding achievements and service to the society.

"Kerala Centre has been honouring outstanding achievers since 1991 and every year we invite nominations and the committee has to make a unanimous choice for a candidate in a category to be selected to receive the award and this year is no different from previous years in terms of their achievements," said Kerala Centre board member and trustee Thomas Abraham.

The honorees will be honoured at the Kerala Centre's 23rd Annual Awards Banquet on November 5 in New York.

The honorees include Department of Commerce Assistant Secretary for Global Markets and Director General of the US and Foreign Commercial Service Arun M Kumar, who leads the trade and investment promotion efforts of the US Government and Ram Menon, a Partner at KPMG for corporate leadership.

Other honorees include Jay Radhakrishnan, professor of Medicine at Columbia University and Clinical Chief of the Nephrology Division at the New York Presbyterian Hospital in Medicine, T V RajanBabu, Professor and Kimberly Chair in Chemistry at Ohio State University in Applied Sciences and Manohar Thomas, a Malayalam writer and community activist who has been very active for over 30 years in promoting Malayalam language and literature of Kerala in US forPromoting Literary Work and Community Service.

Kerala Centre president Thambi Thalappillil said the Centre had recognised 131 achievers in the last 23 years who have continued to become bigger achievers and contributors to the society.

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Mining conglomerate Vedanta Ltd today posted 17 per cent rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 1,251.13 crore for the September quarter on better operating performance and said it is open to the idea of venturing into the steel business.

The company had posted consolidated net profit of Rs 1,068.95 crore in the year-ago period.

These numbers are after taxes, minority interest and share in jointly-controlled entities and associates.

"Higher net profit is primarily driven by operating performance. So volumes and cost are getting us higher EBITDA helped along by better prices," Vedanta President Finance and Group CFO G R Arun Kumar told reporters here.

"So it is really the operating performance, its driving it all," Kumar said.

However, the total income declined to Rs 18,029.76 crore for the second quarter of the current fiscal, from Rs 18,898.27 crore in the year-ago period.

Replying to a query, Vedanta Ltd Chief Executive Officer Tom Albanese said, "There will be in future increased steel demand in India. So we would keep our eyes open for the opportunities for additional value added businesses."



He further said: "I think in the first instance we would like to make sure that our iron ore business is strong and then we will make sure that our existing value added business stays strong and then with that strength we can consider other opportunities as well."



About the ongoing stress in the steel sector, he said: "We are trying to look around the corner. We are trying to envision a time when urbanisation picks up in India, when you see more government spending on infrastructure...When you see basically Indian families demanding higher quality housing, when your see basically more manufacturing capacity developing in India.

"What will future India look like if you have 8-9 per cent GDP growth over the next 10 years. That is going to be a huge steel consumer," he said.

Vedanta said revenues in the second quarter of the



current financial year, 2016-17, were 4 per cent lower y-o-y, on account of lower oil and copper prices, lower volumes at Zinc and Cairn India, partially offset by ramp-ups in volume from the Power business.

EBITDA was up 8 per cent on account of higher metal prices, improved cost efficiencies at aluminium business, lower discount to Brent, ramp up of volumes in the power business, partially offset by lower volumes from Zinc India as per the mine plans and lower oil prices, it said.

"Depreciation was at similar levels y-o-y. Higher depreciation on account of capitalisation of new capacities at the aluminium and power businesses, was partially offset by lower depreciation charge at Cairn India due to lower volumes, and closure of the Lisheen mine in Q3 FY2016," it said.

As on September 30, 2016, gross debt marginally increased by Rs 275 crore during the quarter under review to Rs 66,794 crore. Net debt reduced by Rs 2,259 crore to Rs 11,961 crore on account of positive free cash flow.

On the merger of Vedanta Ltd and Cairn India Ltd, the mining major said that it is expected to be completed by the first quarter next year.

It said: "Shareholders of Vedanta Resources Plc, Vedanta Ltd and Cairn India Ltd and the secured and unsecured creditors of Vedanta Ltd have approved the Scheme with requisite majority. The Scheme is now subject to the approval of the jurisdictional High Courts and other regulatory approvals."



The company said that the its board declared an interim dividend of Rs 1.75 per share. The board is expected to announce a dividend policy at Vedanta Ltd this fiscal year following completion of the merger with Cairn India.
A 77-year-old former soldier from China, who entered India during the 1962 Sino-India war after allegedly losing his way and later settled in Madhya Pradesh, is longing to go back to his native land and reunite with his siblings.

Septuagenarian Wang Qi, who lives with his wife and children in Tirodi area of naxal-infested Balaghat district, has been harbouring a desire to see his relatives since the last five decades but his wish hasn't been fulfiled for want of a permit from the Indian government and other procedural roadblocks.

Wang who has grown frail over the years might now face more hardships in visiting his homeland given the prevailing tension in the Indo-China relations but he is still hopeful.

His younger son Vishnu Wang (35) told PTI that his father had joined the Chinese army in 1960 and he entered India from the eastern frontiers after losing his way in pitch darkness one night.

He landed in Assam where he was caught by Indian Red Cross Society and handed over to Indian Army on January 1, 1963.

"My father spent six years in different prisons in Assam, Ajmer, Delhi and the Punjab and Haryana High Court finally released him in March 1969," he said.

"The Indian government had promised to the court that it would rehabilitate my father. He was taken to Delhi, Bhopal, Jabalpur and then finally handed over to Balaghat police," he said.

After coming to Balaghat, Wang, in order to eke out a living, started working as a watchman with a mill where his colleagues started calling him by name Raj Bahadur apparently due to his Nepali features, Vishnu said.

But little did he know that the enemy nation against whom he had waged a war would become his home, where he would rear a family. Qi married his wife Sushila in 1975 but his desire to live a comfortable life was short-lived.

"Soon after my father married my mother, the Indian government stopped his monthly pension of Rs 100," Vishnu, who works with a small business unit as an accountant said.

"My father faced a lot of hardships, wanting to go to China. He tried very hard and even entered into correspondence with the then prime ministers but in vain," he said.

According to Vishnu, Wang also moved a plea in Madhya



Pradesh High Court in 2009 for going to China but couldn't succeed.

"His life has been difficult as he couldn't get Indian citizenship because of his Chinese origin. Hence, he couldn't buy a land or avail other facilities," he said.

Home sick Wang's mother died in 2006 but he could not be with his dear ones in the time of grief, Vishnu added.

Three years later he met his nephew Yun Chun, who had come to India as a tourist in New Delhi and narrated his ordeal to him.

After returning home, Chun got in contact with Chinese politicians and authorities to bring his uncle home. Finally, he met then Chinese Foreign Minister who helped Wang to get a Chinese passport in March 2013.

He said his father wants permission from the Indian government to go to China to see his four brothers and two sisters before he dies but is not getting any help.

"My father talks to them over phone often in his native language," he said.

Wang will return to India after meeting them, he added.

Vishnu lost his elder brother Shyam for lack of money for his treatment in 2007. He had suffered from epilepsy. He has two sisters.

Meanwhile, Balaghat Inspector General of Police G Janardhan said he is aware of Wang's situation.

Another police officer said as the matter relates to External Affairs Ministry and the Chinese Embassy and they can't help him.

However, BSP leader and former MLA of Lanji area, Balaghat Kishore Samrite said he will seek an appointment with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and help Wang get permission to travel to China.
Disheartened by thecontroversy over his plan to hold Diwali celebrations at SriManjunatha temple at Kadri here, Congress Chief Whip in theLegislative Council Ivan D'Souza has decided to shift thevenue to a nearby hall to "avoid any further row over theissue."



VHP regional working president M B Puranik hadregistered his protest against a non-Hindu celebrating Diwaliinside a temple, saying it would "defile" the sanctity of theplace of worship.

D'Souza told reporters here that the venue of the celebrations would be shifted to Gorakshanatha hall in Kadri. The festivities would go on as planned from 3 PM tomorrow, he said.

Stating that he had no political motive as alleged bythe VHP leader, D'Souza said the idea was to involve people of all communities in celebrating the festival of lights.

Similarly, Iftar was held after Ramadan and Christmas would becelebrated in December, he said.

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A Delhi court today sent Shoaib Hasan, the third accused arrested in connection with the alleged Pakistan espionage case, to 11-day police custody after the agency said he was to be confronted with two other arrested men to unearth the larger conspiracy.

The investigating officer said the accused, who was allegedly working for an ISI spy ring, was produced before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Satish Arora and remanded for custodial interrogation till November 8.

Delhi Police claimed that Hasan was involved in the espionage ring in which Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar, described as the kingpin working for Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence, was detained by police for alleged possession of sensitive defence documents.

Akhtar, who worked in the visa section of the High Commission, was yesterday released after questioning as he enjoyed diplomatic immunity, police said.

A court had yesterday sent two persons -- Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir -- to the police custody till November 8.

During the proceedings today, police alleged that more persons were likely to be apprehended in the case and recovery of certain documents and others items was also to be made with the help of the accused.

The agency also said that all the three accused persons would be confronted with each others and taken to various places for the investigation.

Hasan was arrested here today after being brought from Jodhpur, with police claiming that he was in touch with Akhtar for the last three-four years and had visited the neighbouring country six times.

Investigators said they will try to recover data from a 'phablet' seized from his possession, which he had tried to damage when police in Jodhpur detained him last evening.

The police has claimed that Hasan, a passport and visa



agent, was responsible for recruiting the other two arrested accused in the module.

The agency claimed that besides a phablet, some classified documents were also recovered from Hasan.

Hasan was detained near Jodhpur last evening after Delhi police alerted the local police.

The other two accused were arrested on charges of sharing of sensitive information and defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border. The duo were yesterday sent to 12-day police custody.

Hasan had come in contact with Maulana Ramzan around one -and-a-half years back and lured him into activities of collecting vital information about installations of army and paramilitary forces in Gujarat and Rajasthan, an officer claimed.
To improve health services, the West Bengal government will construct five new medical colleges, seven new nursing colleges and even invite private doctors to work part-time in government hospitals.

After a review meeting of the health sector by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, it was announced that five new medical colleges will come up in the state with a total investment of Rs 1,000 crore.

"To increase manpower we are adding five new medical colleges in the government sector in Coochbehar, Raiganj, Rampurhat, Diamond Harbour and Purulia," state's principal health secretary R S Shukla told reporters.

He said they would write to the central government and the Medical Council of India to relax norms in setting up of the new medical colleges in the areas of faculty and infrastructure.

"We want to facilitate the establishment without compromising the quality of learning and teaching," Shukla said.

In another new initiative, the state government would soon issue advertisements inviting private practising doctors to start working for a few hours every month in government facilities on payment basis.

Besides this, the government was also contemplating increase of retirement age of doctors from 65 years.

"All this is being done to increase manpower and availability of doctors in government hospitals," Shukla said adding, to counter the shortage of nurses they were starting seven new nursing colleges in the state.

Officials said the nursing colleges would come up by next year in Ghatal, Barasat, Jangipur, Jhargram, Ulberia, Basirhat and Sagardutta at a total cost of Rs 150 crore.

According to existing rules of the MCI, new medical colleges cannot have more than 100 seats, officials said adding, they would try to expand the number later on.

The Chief Minister would felicitate doctors on December 28 and would also launch a new Swasthya Sathi scheme for non-regular government employees.

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Pakistan today said it will attend the Heart of Asia conference on Afghanistan to be held in Amritsar in December but has not decided on the "manner and level" of participation, a day after India welcomed Islamabad's decision to take part in the meet.

"The Heart of Asia Conference is aimed at bringing development in Afghanistan with the collaboration of other regional countries, which is in line with Pakistan's commitment of supporting all efforts towards peace and stability in Afghanistan. We will be attending the conference," Foreign Office spokesman Nafess Zakaria said during his weekly briefing here.

The spokesman, however, did not specify the manner and level of Pakistan's participation in the meet that comes amidst rising tensions and loss of life due to heavy firing across the Line of Control (LoC).

"However, the decision on the level and manner of participation in the Heart of Asia Conference is yet to be taken," he said.

Yesterday in New Delhi, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup has welcomed Pakistan's participation at the meet to be held on December 4.

To another question, he said that the expelled Indian staffer at the Indian High Commission was involved in activities that were directly against the national security interests of Pakistan.

"Unlike India, which has no proof but it keeps levelling baseless accusations against Pakistan, we have irrefutable proof of Indian state involvement in activities against Pakistan's territorial integrity and national security," he said.

Commenting on reported comments of BJP leader Subramanian Swamy said that India might be pushed to a war with Pakistan if the latter continues its support to terrorism, Zakaria said that in the past too, Indian politicians have cast aspersions on Pakistan and have used this as a tool in domestic politics.

"We see the current political debate about Pakistan in India, in the same backdrop as also its desperation to deflect the world attention from its atrocities in Kashmir. The timing and pattern of heating up LoC by India are suggestive. Pakistan condemns such crass attempts to malign it," he said.

He also said that the 2008 Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) waiver has helped India to embark on a nuclear buildup and increase its military nuclear programme and lamented that the waiver was granted without requiring India to make "any worthwhile non-proliferation commitments".

When asked to comment on a report by a Pakistani think-



tank that India can produce a maximum of 356-492 nuclear weapons, Zakaria said, "Pakistan has long maintained that India's rapidly expanding military nuclear programme poses a grave threat to peace and stability in the region and beyond."



"These concerns have been fully validated by publicly available reports on significant upcoming fissile material facilities and build up of unsafeguarded weapon usable fissile material in India," he said.

"This buildup has been facilitated by the 2008 NSG waiver granted to India, which not only dented the credibility of the non-proliferation regime and undermined its efficacy, but also negatively affected the strategic balance in South Asia.

"It was unfortunate that the NSG did not require India to make any worthwhile non-proliferation commitments at the time."



He said that another country-specific exemption by the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) on the membership question would only further exacerbate the ill effects of the 2008 exemption.

"It remains our hope that the NSG member states would make a well-considered decision this time keeping in view its long- term implications for the global non-proliferation regime as well as strategic stability in our region," he said.

He blamed India for engaging in terror activities in Pakistan and said that Islamabad was working on dossiers based on confession of an alleged Indian agent.

"We have irrefutable evidence of that. We have also shared with you many times that the investigations after the arrest of Kulbushan Jadhav is ongoing and the dossier is being compiled. As soon as the time is propitious, we will submit the dossier to the concerned, particularly the UN Secretary General," he said.
Unidentified gunmen tonight shot dead killed a woman in south Kashmir's Pulwama district, police said.

Beeba, wife of Mohammad Yousuf Matto, a resident of Naina Batwina area of Pulwama was shot inside her house this evening, a police official said.

She was rushed to a hospital but she succumbed on the way.

Police has registered a case and a manhunt has been launched to nab the assailants, the official said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Yemeni rebels have launched one of their longest-range strikes against Saudi Arabia, firing a ballistic missile that was shot down near the holy city of Mecca, the Saudi-led coalition fighting them said today.

But the rebels insisted that the missile had targeted Jeddah, the Red Sea city in the sprawling Mecca region, and not the holy Muslim city.

The coalition has been carrying out a bombing campaign against the rebels since March last year and there have been rebel strikes towards the bases from which the coalition mounts air raids.

Saudi Arabia has deployed Patriot missiles to intercept the rebel fire.

Huthi rebels launched the missile "toward the Mecca area" yesterday evening from their Saada province stronghold just across the border, a coalition statement said.

"The air defence was able to intercept and destroyed it about 65 kilometres from Mecca without any damage."



The rebels' sabanews website said their ballistic missile targeted the international airport in Jeddah.

Islam's holiest sites are located in Mecca and Medina.

The six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council condemned the attack which it described as "clear evidence" that the rebels are not willing to accept a political solution to Yemen's 19-month-old conflict.

The United Arab Emirates' Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan went further, criticising Iran for the attack.

"The Iranian regime backs a terrorist group that fires its rockets on Mecca... Is this an Islamic regime as it claims to be?" he wrote on Twitter.

Qatar called the attack "a provocation to the feelings of millions of Muslims worldwide".

All GCC states, apart from Oman, are members of the Saudi-led coalition. The UAE itself is a major pillar of the Sunni alliance.

The coalition as well as the United States accuse Shiite-dominated Iran of arming the rebels, a charge denied by Tehran.

The Huthi rebels are a minority group that belong to the Zaidi sect of Shiite Islam. They fought six wars against Yemen's government between 2004 and 2010.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A local court has sentenced a 23-year-old youth from Bhayander township here to 10 yers rigorous imprisonment for raping a minor girl in 2012.

Additional Sessions Judge S C Khalipe, in her order delivered yesterday, found Abdul Hamid Hamidullah Shaikh guilty of raping a nine-year-old girl and awarded him 10 years jail and also slapped a fine of Rs 5,000.

Additional Public Prosecutor Vandana Jadhav told the court that the victim and the accused were neighbours. On November 6, 2012, the accused wooed the girl by some means and took her to his house and then committed the crime.

After returning home, the victim confided in her mother and narrated about the incident. The parents later lodged a complaint and the accused was subsequently arrested.

The prosecutor also told the judge that the victim had a bite mark on her chest which confirmed that the accused had also tortured her before raping.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
After drinks on a Saturday night, Akash* opens gay meet up-app to continue an earlier conversation. Theyve agreed to meet at the large ICICI Bank at the corner. After a few nervous minutes of waiting, he recognises a face coming up the street. Their walk home is careful, avoiding the juice shop where policemen usually stand. " life," Akash laughs.
We left our Berlin hotel just before 8am, took almost an hour to get on the highway going to Dresden by bus, including a drive-by of the East Side Gallery, a 1316 m long section of Berlin Wall painted in 1990 by artists from all over the world.

1. The bus that drove us from Berlin to Dresden on Day 4, from Dresden to Prague on Day 5, from Prague to Cesky Krumlov on Day 8, and from Cesky Krumlov to Vienna on Day 9.

2. East Side Gallery, Berlin.

3. East Side Gallery, Berlin.

We arrived in Dresden before noon and were able to check into our hotel, and then quickly regrouped to meet our local guide, Liane, at the square in front of the Opera House. Liane took us on a walk around Dresden, pointing out various interesting places to see. The tour ended around 2pm. Since we were leaving tomorrow morning to go to Prague, we really just had 4 hours to see Dresden, so I chose to see the New Green Vault for its jewelry collection. My Gosh, what an amazing collection they had! I don't know what I missed at the Historic Green Vault and the Zwinger Museums, but I sure was happy that I got to see the New Green Vault. I wish we had another day at Dresden so I got to see the other things too.

4. My hotel room in Dresden.

5. Our local guide, Liane, waiting for us at the square in front of the Opera House.

6. A slow moving Meissen porcelain figure in Dresden.

7. Procession of Princes, a large mural of a mounted procession of the rulers of Saxony. Made from around 23,000 Meissen porcelain tiles, it is known as the largest porcelain artwork in the world.

8. Procession of Princes.

9. Procession of Princes.

10. Neumarkt with Frauenkirche (Church of Our Lady) on the left of the picture. The church was destroyed in the bombing of Dresden during World War II. The rubble sat there for 50 years as a war memorial, and the church finally got rebuilt after the reunification of Germany.

11. Frauenkirche (Church of Our Lady).

12. Neumarkt.

13. Neumarkt.

14. Bruehl Terrace overlooking the river Elbe where our walking tour ended.

15. A drinking vessel at the New Green Vault.

16. A rolling ball clock at the New Green Vault.

17. An ivory frigate at the New Green Vault.

18. The golden coffee set at the New Green Vault.

19. Zwinger Complex.

20. Terrace overlooking the Zwinger Complex.

21. Zwinger Complex.

22. Zwinger Complex.

23. Zwinger Complex.

24. Zwinger Complex.

25. Zwinger Complex.

26. The Opera House again.

27. Dresden old town.

28. Dresden old town.

29. After a long day, reward myself with a Roasted Pork Knuckle with Crispy Skin. :)

(To be continued)
In an effort to check fake currency circulation, especially of higher denominations, the RBI today asked banks to put entire banking areas under the CCTV surveillance and keep all the recordings that can help identify unscrupulous elements.

The Reserve Bank further said that failure of banks in detection and impounding of counterfeit notes and in preventing such currencies from being re-circulated will be violative of the directions and will, therefore, attract penal action.

The RBI expressed concern that some unscrupulous elements are putting into circulation fake Indian currency notes of higher denominations in the course of normal transactions, taking advantage of the gullible and unsuspecting nature of some members of the public.

According to sources, counterfeit currency notes of Rs 100, 500 and 1,000 denomination have to be carefully examined. In order to facilitate identification of people abetting circulation of counterfeit notes,banks are advised to cover the banking hall/area and counters under CCTV surveillance and recording and preserve the recording, it said in a statement.

The RBI has also asked the public to make it a habit of looking at the notes before accepting them in the usual course of daily transactions and help arrest the counterfeiting of Indian banknotes. As per the Master Circular relating to Detection and Impounding of Counterfeit Notes, banks were advised to ensure that counterfeit notes making entry into the banking system are promptly detected and under no circumstance, returned to the tenderer or reissue them.

Banks were also advised that with a view to facilitating the detection of counterfeit notes, all bank branches and identified back offices should be equipped with ultra-violet lamps and other appropriate banknote sorting and detection machines. Further, banks should ensure that cash receipts in the denominations of Rs 100 and above are not put into re-circulation without the notes being machine processed for authenticity, the RBI said.

The instructions are applicable to all bank branches, irrespective of the volume of daily cash receipt. The Reserve Bank regularly conducts training programmes on detection of counterfeit notes for employees/officers of banks and other organizations handling large amount of cash.

The Reserve Bank's website provides information to the public on security features of banknotes. Posters on Know Your Banknotes are also displayed at the bank branches. These help sharpen the perception of consumers so that they can detect counterfeit currency more easily. According to a study conducted by the Indian Statistical Institute, as many as 250 out of every 10 lakh notes in circulation are fake.
On a rainy day in November 2003, Tata Sons Chairman Ratan Tata noticed a family of four on a scooter - the father driving it with a young kid standing in the front, behind the handlebars and wife sitting behind him with another child on her lap.

Ratan Tata was moved by this incident and asked himself whether one could conceive of a safe, affordable, all weather form of transport for such a family. And after four years, Ratan Tata turned his dream into reality with the launch of Nano -People's car- in Delhi.

"Today's story started some years ago when I observed families riding on two wheelers, the father driving a scooter, his young kid standing in front of him, his wife sitting behind him holding a baby and I asked myself whether one could conceive of a safe, affordable, all weather form of transport for such a family," Tata said while unveiling Nano in New Delhi.

He said, "This is been referred to as one man's dream and indeed it was."

"This singular observation sparked several provocative questions about the possibility of creating an affordable "people's car". The two-wheeler observation [with the family of four piled on the scooter] got me thinking that we needed to create a safer form of transport," Tata was quoted as saying in The Innovator's DNA - a book written by Jeff Dyer, Hal Gregersen, Clayton Christensen.

Former Tata Sons Chairman Cyrus Mistry on Tuesday called Ratan Tata's brainchild Nano a loss-making project. He also said that any turnaround strategy for Tata Motors required it to shut it down, but was not done due to emotional reasons.

"The Nano product development required concept called for a car below Rs 1 lakh but the cost were always above this. This product has consistently lost money, peaking at Rs 1,000 crore," Mistry wrote in his five-page email written a day after he was sacked as the Chairman of Tata Sons.

Back in January 2008, Ratan Tata made a statement saying that he was aware of a very steep increase in input prices of steel, tyres and various sundry inputs that could lead to increase in final price of the car. However, he went ahead with the initial price of Rs 1 lakh because it was a promise he had made to the people.

"Since we commenced this exercise four years ago, we are all aware that there has been a very steep increase in input prices of steel, tires and various sundry inputs. Bearing all this in mind, I would like to announce today that the standard car will in fact have a dealer price of 1 Lakh only, VAT and transport being extra. Now having said that, I just want to say that that is because a promise is a promise and that's what we would like to leave you with," Tata had said.

Tata lived upto his promise but Nano couldn't. In fact, the sales number was so disappointing that against the installed capacity of 2,50,000 cars per annum, the car factory at Sanand produced only 42,561 cars in two-year period between January 2014 to December 2015.

Nano sales have been dwindling since 2011-12, when it sold 74,521 cars but the sales plunged to 53,847 cars in 2012-13, followed by 21,130 cars sold in 2013-14 and 16,903 cars in 2014-15.

Earlier in 2014, Tata attempted to reposition the brand from a cheap microcar to a 'smart city car' with the launch of Nano Twist but again it didn't work out for the project.

Despite Tata's several attempts to revive the Nano project, including the GenX which had automatic transmission, the sales never took off.

Ever since Mistry called Nano a loss-making project, many have strated questioning the Tata's decision to continue with the production.

However, Maruti Suzuki India Chairman RC Bhargava backed Ratan Tata for his attempts to offer an affordable cars to the masses.

"The intention was a good intention and Tatas tried to fulfil that intention. Anyway we could not have done it. I think he needs credit for having attempted it," DNA quoted Bhargava as saying.
Marking the 25th anniversary of Apple's first notebook on October 25, Apple took the stage to announce its new, redesigned Macbook Pro at At the 'Hello Again' event in Cupertino, California. The new MacBook Pro comes with a thinner design and as appeared in the leaks has got the 'Touch Bar' with Retina Display above the keyboard. The all new 'Touch Bar' replaces the existing function buttons with on-screen keys. It is more than just a regular function key as the virtual buttons on the strip are changes based on the apps being used. The Touch Bar places controls right at the user's fingertips and adapts when using the system or apps like Mail, Finder, Calendar, Numbers, GarageBand, Final Cut Pro X and many more, including third-party apps. For example, the Touch Bar can show Tabs and Favourites in Safari, enable easy access to emoji in Messages, provide a simple way to edit images or scrub through videos in Photos and more.

Apple has also integrated the Touch ID into the power button. Once the fingerprint is enrolled in the Touch ID on the new MacBook Pro, one can quickly unlock the Mac, switch user accounts and make secure purchases with Apple Pay (abroad) on the web with a single touch. Touch ID enables a quick, accurate reading of your fingerprint and uses sophisticated algorithms to recognise and match it with the secure element in the new Apple T1 chip.

The new MacBook Pro features bright and colourful Retina display , has a larger Force Touch trackpad and an audio system with double the dynamic range. The 13-inch MacBook Pro At just 14.9 mm thin, which is 17 percent thinner and 23 percent less volume than the previous generation, and weighs 1.37kg. The new 15-inch MacBook Pro, at just 15.5 mm thin, is 14 percent thinner and 20 percent less volume than before, and weighing just 1.83kg. The new lineup is powered by sixth-generation dual-core Core i5 with eDRAM, dual-core Core i7 with eDRAM and quad-core Core i7 Intel processors to deliver pro-level processing performance while conserving energy. The new 15-inch MacBook Pro features powerful Radeon Pro discrete graphics delivering up to 2.3 times more performance than the previous generation; while the 13-inch MacBook Pro comes with Intel Iris Graphics. All models feature SSDs with sequential read speeds over 3Gbps and Thunderbolt 3 which consolidates data transfer, charging and twice the video bandwidth in a single port - allowing users to drive a 5K display and power their MacBook Pro with a single cable. Apple has retained the 3.5mm jack, however, the USB ports are replaced with four Thunderbolt 3.0 ports.

13-inch and 15-inch models are set to be available within three weeks in the US, starting at $1799 and $2399. Apple had revealed the India pricing in a press released but later issued an updated press release with no India specific pricing and release date. The earlier email received stated the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar and Touch ID will be priced starting at Rs. 1,55,900 while the 15-inch model will start at Rs. 2,05,900.


Brexit has the potential to offer Irish businesses a once in a lifetime trade opportunity in India if they react quickly and develop bilateral relationships according to the Ireland India Business Association (IIBA).

India is the fastest growing economy in the world and has a population of 1.25 billion people. The scale of the opportunities are vast according to the Chairman of the IIBA, NilaKanthi Ford, who was speaking at the Associations Annual Conference in Dublin yesterday.

The IIBA Annual Conference was attended by senior business executives, government officials and featured a keynote address by Minister Mary Mitchell OConnor, TD.

It facilitated the discussion of specific opportunities for bilateral trade with India as well as the future of education, training and research with India. Specific mechanisms for building bilateral trade in aviation and aerospace, pharmaceuticals and medical devices, agribusiness and tourism were discussed by industry leaders at the seminar.

Speaking at the event, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Mary Mitchell OConnor said, "The trade between Ireland and India has grown significantly with record exports from Ireland last year. Irish companies and education institutions are winning business in India. There is also an increasing interest among Indian companies to set up in Ireland to gain access to the European market and this is very welcome."

Source: www.businessworld.ie
Life inside Greece's refugee camps: "A ticking time bomb"

Published on October 28, 2016

Story by Thomas Schmotz Translation by: Emily Spencer

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Crippling loneliness, a lack of educational opportunities, no prospects, arguments, unsatisfactory medical treatment, flashbacks to images of war and terrible memories - daily life in Greece's refugee camps is gruelling. "Europeans should come and see for themselves just how hard life is here."

Camp life has left deep circles under her eyes. Ten-year-old Schahd shares a tent with her younger sister, three brothers and parents in Karamanlis Sindos, a camp located at the edge of the north eastern suburb of Thessaloniki, which is home to 600 people. The camp is a large, dusty, brick hall, which in the past housed a leather manufacturing plant. Moisture is carried into the tent from the nearby ocean. Mosquitoes fill the neglected fields, leaving bites on the hands, feet, and faces of residents, and which take a long time to fade.

At the camp, the Greek army calls the shots. Surveillance, however, is lax. Two unarmed men in camouflage patrol the area, making small talk. Last spring, the long deserted factory buildings became home to refugee families. There are almost 60 refugee camps of this sort in Greece, under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Health. A good two-thirds of the 60,000 refugees in Greece are languishing in such camps. Following the closure of the Macedonian border and the EU-Turkey deal, they were transferred to these camps, similar to the Idomeni transit camp, which was evacuated in May 2016 after being deemed unsanitary.

"They attacked us with tear gas," Schahd says gingerly, looking back on her time at the Idomeni camp. There is no sign of resentment in her voice, however; Schahd seems to have resigned herself to her fate. The sun throws its warm rays on the factory's narrow window panes. Schahd makes herself useful, helping to distribute the rations. Potatoes with vegetables and a piece of dry bread are available, twice a day.

"If you keep treating people like animals, people will lash out"

Back in the family tent, the girl vents her frustration: "There is nothing to do here. We wait around all whole day. It's hard not to go mad. If only I could go to school!" An education is what the young people here most desire. The tent in the second hall, row four, is barely distinguishable from the others. The blinds are drawn back, and one can see into the room, which serves as a bedroom, dining and living room for the Sbihi family. In Deraa, when Mr Schafik Sbihi was a taxi driver, he was able to give his wife and children a decent quality of life. Then the uprising against the regime in the southern Syrian town began. Today, all that remains of their former life are these four fabric walls. On the wooden dinner table, there is tea and a bowl of green grapes. The family, like many, made the move in the hope of establishing a new life in Europe. But the closure of the Balkans route was a slap in the face. "If we aren't allowed to go any further, Europe could at least pay out money," says Schahd. She recently had a cold, which "lasted about a month because there was no medicine available."

Severe supply problems are being reported in many of the camps, says Hassan, 34, a paramedic from Aleppo. A Kurd, he is working at a camp close to Vasilika, a town in the south-east of Thessaloniki, where he attends to nearly 1,000 people. "There are doctors at the camp, but they don't administer medication," he says. In his tent, he shows us his small but modest collection of medication: prenatal vitamins; asthma spray; diarrhea remedies donated by humanitarian organisations. "I can't offer more than first aid," he explains. The demand is huge, not only for doctors. "Each day, three or four people arrive, suffering from post-traumatic stress. If there is nothing else that can be done, I will call the ambulance. But sometimes it simply doesn't show up. Once we had to wait three hours. Then someone called us and asked: 'Do you need us?' That's how it works here."

In Hassan's camp, Kurds and Arabs are segregated. "There were too many problems between the two groups," reports a Syrian who wanted to remain anonymous. A group of young Kurds voluntarily started a fight, which involved knives. "People fought over petty things, over shared property, over a chair or over food. Everything is in short supply here," the man says. As a general rule, police don't intervene for fear of becoming victims themselves. Many are armed; one in two men have a knife on them. "It's a widespread issue in the camp," says volunteer Johnny Tutton, 33. "It's a ticking time bomb. If you keep treating people like animals, people will lash out."

"I don't want to see people dying, otherwise I would go back to Syria"

Due to the constant stream of new arrivals looking for medical care or advice, Hassan's tent is terribly overcrowded. "I only give them a day's worth of medicine," says Hassan. "Otherwise the tablets will end up being sold on the black market..." During a brief moment of respite, he shows us photos from his operations in Aleppo: pictures of dust-covered bodies in the streets, the bodies of children. A woman in an ambulance; her body covered in a wool blanket, her palid, serene face tainted by two streaks of blood. "I don't sleep more than two or three hours a night," says Hassan. "I relive moments from the camp on a daily basis. The images appear again and again before my eyes. The traumatic memories were bad enough, I couldn't deal with the fights on top of the trauma. I don't want to see people die otherwise I would go back to Syria."

Faced with this dilemma, many do turn and go back. "They take the Syrian route via Bulgaria, then Turkey," says Tutton. Smugglers take the same route. Ali Maleki from Isfahn has no intention of going back. He has already crossed the forbidden Macedonian border. Alone and on foot. "It was the worst experience of my life", explains the 26-year-old. "I had to hide from the police and feed myself with whatever was growing on the trees". His journey was cut short at the Serbian border. "They caught me. In prison, we were often beaten." He points to a huge swelling on the back of his head. Then he was deported. "As I was passing through the border gate, they stopped me." He was sent to another camp, but on the way there he managed to escape from the Greek police. He has lived in the park ever since, explains Ali. In the open space at the edge of Thessaloniki city centre, dozens of families have settled. They spend their days and nights there.

"We are waiting for the call," says Mina. With her partner, brothers, parents and grandparents, the 19-year-old Afghan sits on the barren concrete ground, surrounded by large suitcases. "We want to go to Germany," she explains. It costs 1,000 euros to travel from the Greek border to Serbia. "There are smugglers in Athens," says Mina. Half of the cost of travel has already been paid to the smugglers. The rest will be paid upon arrival.

In the spring, her family fled from Afghanistan. "Our province of Maidan Wardak had been taken over by the Taliban." Her father used to deliver fuel, but he was abducted, threatened and then his business was sold. "If you work again for the Americans, we will kill your children," was the threat from a Taliban soldier that finally made the family leave the country.

"Europeans always think that we come for economic reasons. But that is nonsense". Mina straightens her headscarf. "We used to own a house, land and animals, but everything was sold. I watched bombs be detonated right in front of my eyes, more than once". Mina and her family took a plane from to Teheran and then smugglers brought the family from Turkey to Lesbos. "All of the smugglers were Turks," she says. "Turkey didn't try to stop refugees. It was at the Macedonian borders where our journeys came to an end."

37-year-old Rasuk* has a similar story. Four weeks earlier, he travelled from Turkish Cesme to Chios island on an inflatable boat. "Nobody tried to stop us. The Turks stop perhaps one boat every month, but it's all for the media - it's as simple as that," he explains. The evening sun has settled on the medieval fortress, the main tourist attraction on the opposite side of the street. Under the shadows of the houses, there are small tents and temporary, makeshift shelters for refugees, who are stranded on the island - among them: Syrians, Palestinians, Kurds, Algerians. Tourists still come to this little corner of paradise for their holidays. But there have been fewer of them since the island became home to refugees.

Rasuk has other problems. His voice trembles as he speaks. It takes five seconds or so for him to vocalise the first syllable of his sentence. "It's one of the side effects of working for IS," he says. His arms are covered in ancient, Babylonian symbols. He sits down at a makeshift table with other men. "I worked for the regime, on the Assad communication team," he says. It was a satirical video which attacked Islamists, made in his free time that was his downfall. "Daesh captured me and tortured me. If I had stayed any longer..." Rasuk puts a finger to his throat. He doesn't really feel safe on Chios island. "I am the only atheist here". He suddenly becomes upset, his long beard shaking with anger. According to Islam, apostasy, the renunciation of faith, is punishable by death. But here, they are all in the same boat. Men talk about their lives in the streets, survival, crime, abduction of children, acknowledging that suicide does happen among the refugee community.

Ali, an Iranian refugee, spends all of his time in Thessaloniki park. He sees families come and go. He patiently awaits his chance to cross the border and establish a new life elsewhere. In the meantime, he helps aid organisations whenever he can, translating for them, distributing rations. "If I see someone in distress, I talk to them and try to lift their spirits. There is no point in being sad and distressed, it only makes life more difficult." When the topic of conversation turns to migrant policy, Ali doesn't hesitate to make his opinions known: "Germany did the right thing last year." Now, however, things have changed. Other countries are no longer accepting as many refugees.

"Europeans should come here and see for themselves just how we live here, to open their eyes to the plight of our suffering".

---

*Rasuk's name has been changed to protect his identity.

Story by Thomas Schmotz

Translated from Fluchtlingscamps: Augenwaschen fur Europaer
Which French politicians are standing up for refugees?

Published on October 28, 2016

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At the break of dawn on 24 October, the dismantling of the Calais Jungle began. The nearly 7,000 residents of the French shantytown will be relocated to regions across the country, except Corsica and Ile-de-France. Here is a focus on the French politicians that are in favour of welcoming refugees to their provinces.

And voila. Last Monday, the French government decided to dismantle the refugee camp in Calais. The operation itself is set to last about a week, and aims to escort the nearly 7,000 refugees to various reception centers, eventually relocating them to all four corners of the country. In doing so, France is putting an end to the largest shantytown ever to be established on French soil. This camp has sheltered tens of thousands of refugees who, since 2000, have aimed to illegally enter the UK.

Naturally, this new piece of information sparked some interesting reactions. In France, much like everywhere else in Europe, the dismantling of the Calais Jungle resonates strongly with the current tremors in EU politics, and its attempt to grapple with the largest ever refugee crisis. As a dozen buses made their way out of Calais, many critics (political and non-political) pointed to the general indecision of the French government. Despite the gloomy atmosphere of the situation, politicians around the country have demonstrated solidarity towards refugees. For some, this solidarity has been at the core of their philosophy for a long time.

At the jungles edge hides the best mayor in the world

Grande-Synthe is a small commune of about 20,000 people, situated 40km north of Calais. Its leader? Damien Careme, the environmentalist mayor who was elected in 2001. Since his election he has increased the number of 'green' acts exponentially. However, it was only in March of 2016 that the mayor of Grande-Synthe became known to the larger public by opening a refugee camp. Given the growing number of migrants in his municipality, along with the indecisive attitude of the government, the environmentalist decided to open the first humanitarian camp in France: the HCR [Haut- Comite Refugie, Ed.]. Without a penny from the State, he found support from Doctors Without Borders. Three months later, the State finally approved the financing and management of this camp. The Minister of the Interior, Bernard Cazeneuve, and the Housing Minister Cecile Duflot are obliged to visit what is now the the camp of the exiled and La Liniere with its showers, its varied activities and its canteen. Thanks to his efforts in providing free housing for about 2,800 refugees, Damien Careme is shortlisted for the World Mayor 2016 prize.

A little further south Marie-Anne Chapdelaine, the deputy of the Ille-et-Vilaine department in Brittany, is also known for her humanitarian efforts. Concerned by the frightful discourse of the Front National, this active 54-year-old politician is part of the Socialist Party, and is persistent on the trajectory of "these people, who are fleeing dramatic situations." She insists that their integration will mean "a peaceful co-existence between [refugees] and local politicians, small structures, larger structures and within families." Chapdelaine also draws on the origin of their diaspora, saying: "we should welcome them because if we put ourselves in their shoes, wouldnt we also want to flee Syria or Afghanistan?" As a result, her department has allowed for almost 500 refugees to be housed since the camps demolition. Amongst the communities in question, Cancale is often referred to as a successful example. In this small town of about 5,000, the local hospital has already been serving as a shelter for refugees for three months.

In the east Eric Piolle, mayor of Grenoble, is also emitting a humanitarian aura. Last fall, he participated in the Nuit Debout movement which was well-integrated in the city centre. This time, however, its his turn to showcase his contempt. Similar to when Laurent Wauquiez (the temporary President of the right-wing Republicans) railed against the movement of refugees over fears of "multiplying the number of 'jungles' in France." With the force of a thousand suns, Piolle responded by saying: "Unlike [Wauquiez] claims, all around the country and especially in Grenoble, the French have shown that they are prepared  with whatever means they have  to help these distressed people."

The town hall of Grenoble put in place a welcome platform to make a list of all the proposals from locals, and to link them to the organisation that tracks the movement of refugees. Launched in September 2015, this list allowed 350 people to propose various methods in which to accommodate 25 to 30 refugees at a time [Figures from June 2016, Ed]. At this time, the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes region is ready to host 751 refugees once the Calais camp has been eradicated. We will welcome them with open arms, just as Grenoble has done in the past with Armenian, Algerian, Chilean and Spanish refugees, claims Piolle.

A benevolent France 

Jean-Paul Bret, mayor of Villeurbanne, emphasizes that the relocation plan concerns about 1,784 refugees. According to him, "an effort to show solidarity is absolutely doable." Since the first initiatives in trying to relocate refugees, Bret has proudly advocated the "tradition of hospitality in [his] town. Since the end of the 19th century, [Villeurbanne] has developed thanks to the successive arrival of migrants, forced into exile by misery and oppression." In an "international context where migration has been unrivaled since 1945," he is simply asking for some common sense and responsibility. Hence, helping out "those who are suffering with conviction and without being naive," is only normal.

A "benevolent France" is the concept coined by Marie-Guite Dufay, President of the PS in Bourgogne-Franche-Comte. She came up with this motto in a press release alongside four other presidents in response to Laurent Wauquiezs remark, claiming that he was guilty of instigating fear. In an interview with newspaper Journal du Centre, Dufay stressed that it was necessary to dismantle the Calais Jungle. For her, its important to "relocate these people throughout France. It is a national problem, global, even. It goes beyond the right-left divide." Thus, the BFC region itself will provide 9,000 places, according to the governments relocation plan. Dufay also maintains that it is a question of solidarity: "we will not leave everything up to the north and the Ile-de-France." Insisting on the coming together of citizens, regardless of borders and differences, Dufay concludes: "the matter of refugees concerns everyone: all politicians, all citizens. In 50 years our children and grandchildren will ask us how we welcomed these people."

Carole Delga, president of the Occitanie region, prided herself on the "open and generous" reception of a predicted 1,080 refugees in her region via Twitter. "It is a strategy that we support wholeheartedly, both politically and humanitarianly. We will happily do our part to demonstrate national solidarity [to the crisis]," she explains in a column in La Depeche du Midi. She later added "1,080 refugees in a region of over 6 million inhabitants: where is the danger" For this local politician, who went from the Martres council to the Occitanie region, a rural environment is a great opportunity for those arriving. "They will be going from a hellish environment in Calais to living conditions that are decent and hygienic. They will re-discover peaceful human relations. At the end of their stay, they will be well-rested, rehabilitated and mentally healed."

With the efforts demonstrated by these French politicians, is it safe to say that the same is being done by the government itself?

Which politicians are standing in solidarity with refugees in France? Move your mouse over the map to find out.

Story by Matthieu Amare Je viens du sud de la France. J'aime les traditions. Mon pere a ete traumatise par Seville 82 contre les Allemands au foot. J'ai du mal avec les Anglais au rugby. J'adore le jambon-beurre. Je n'ai jamais fait Erasmus. Autant vous dire que c'etait mal barre. Et pourtant, je suis redacteur en chef du meilleur magazine sur l'Europe du monde. Simon Viguer

Translated from Accueil des refugies : la carte de France des elus solidaires
Any reasonable person would agree that the significance of the decline of philosophy or any announcement that philosophy is dead is referring to the fact that for quite a long time philosophy as a profession has failed to play the role of directional leadership as it is supposed to be. Or we might say that people are disappointed of professional philosophy for its failure to catch up with human cultural development in political and economic as well as scientific and technological fields in the past couple of centuries. No one would reasonably deny the importance of teaching young generations in school about the history of philosophical development and how to live with the help of wisdom shared by philosophers in the past; no one would reasonably deny the importance of philosophizing even for scientists in their own researches especially those avant-garde studies in physics; no one would reasonably deny the meaningful hard work that professional philosophers have been doing in some specific areas of philosophy (e.g. humanity and philosophy of mind[1],[2],[3],[4],[5],[6] , philosophy of justice[7], philosophy of language[8], and so on); no one would even reasonably deny the fact that some philosophical movements at different times and different parts of the world did cause some radical changes of political status of mankind on this globe. The problem is that when all political illusions caused by some false philosophies or short-lived philosophical inspirations faded away, people found that they have not been offered by the profession of philosophy with true insight of life and long-lasting wisdom for their daily social political and economical struggles, for new scientific challenges, for a better understanding of new interpersonal relationship and human-machine relationship, or for a heads up of where our civilization would be heading towards. They have been disappointed by the performance of philosophers in those respects especially after we entered the 21st century. Or we might say that while main stream philosophers are focusing their researches on some detailed knowledge that has not been covered by any independent science, this world is desperately in need of being charged with new wisdom for various big issues and for the direction of where our civilization should move towards in this new millennium.

Since the turn of the 20th century, human civilization has been in a historical stage that bears its own cultural mark and termed as postmodernity. While compared to all its preceding cultural stages including what was once called modernity, this postmodern historical stage could be characterized by revolutions and diversity in many cultural aspects including science and technology, art, and politico-economic changes, and the correspondent global life style and interpersonal relationship changes. It first started with some radical changes in natural science when people were told that space and time was no longer independent with each other and matter could exist in both particle and wave forms at the same time. Then the world experienced some brutal wars and global political turmoil and turnaround (for good or bad) which challenged and changed many traditional views of value. Then artists followed up with their rebellion styles against traditional sense of beauty when expressing their inner feelings about the world that was no longer as what had been told by ancestors. That was followed by new technological breakthroughs and the correspondent industrial revolutions which brought the world into a so called high-tech era with new types of interpersonal relationship that were not familiar to this world.

However, the collective reaction of philosophers, as the supposed professional thinkers, to these radical global changes could be characterized as confused and downtempo although they have been very busy to catch up. Actually most philosophers seem to be busier with commenting existing philosophy theories and formalizing their descriptions with various isms than producing new thoughts. While the formalization of how to introduce historical works could make it easier for the education of philosophy, which is no doubt one of the most important tasks for philosophy as a profession, it could also be very misleading without the lead of a continuation of productive thinking; one typical example is the erroneous attack on metaphysics started by professional philosophical circle.

The division of styles of philosophy into the so called continental and analytic by different natural language backgrounds or the so called different traditions without mentioning some further connections to previous works could also be confusing to young readers. While readers might learn some historical stories by looking into the historical path of this division, they dont really gain much for learning different ways of expressing ideas in philosophy. Actually if you carefully compare the style of Bertrand Russell with the styles of Aristotle, Kant or even Hegel you wont see any fundamental difference in their analytical styles. Therefore, if we are more interested in training young generations for creative philosophical thinking and writing, instead of solely making them in awe of the sophistication of precedent achievements, we might be better off telling young readers different styles of philosophical theories by directly focusing on writing styles instead of by different natural language backgrounds or some more eccentric names for something unfamiliar to most readers. For example, while Nietzsche might be considered very analytical in his philosophical discourses, if we compare his works with Kants (or Aristotles or Hegels or Russells) then we might properly that say Nietzsches works is more descriptive and Kants (or Aristotles or Hegels or Russells) is more analytical although both of them are very insightful. In fact, any analytical work would be built with descriptive work since any reason of analysis applied in an article would be descriptive itself, but would go deeper behind the surface phenomena for reasons or patterns of reason or basic concepts than relatively more descriptive works. But if we compare the works of Nietzsches (or Kants or Aristotles or Hegels or Russells) with the works of Camuss or most of Sartres, then we might feel the contrast between analytical (no matter how descriptive it is) and literarily expressive. Actually if we compare philosophical writing with scientific and literature writing, then we could see that some philosophy works might be closer to scientific writings and some others might be closer to literature writings. This is a manifestation of what I discussed earlier that philosophy is interested in all relations behind all being(s) or we might say that it is a manifestation of the great diversity of the subject matters of philosophical investigation. In the comparison between the works of Nietzsches (or Kants or Aristotles or Hegels or Russells) and the work of Camus or Sartres, we could sense that the former is closer to scientific writings and the latter is closer to literature writings. If we present the comparison of different styles of philosophy in terms of different styles of writing instead of the use of different natural languages of writing or some tag names with complicated historical imprints, then it would be easier for readers to capture the real differences between different authors, which will assist them better appreciate the works and learn the approaches of those authors.

In addition to the dynamic reasons discussed previously, one important reason why the professional philosophy community seems more interested in the presentations of historical works of philosophy, instead of new thoughts about new reality, is the great difficulty to capture the dynamics behind this ever complicated world and then present them with clear descriptive language or analytical language. This lack of capacity to provide metaphysical descriptions with clear and analytical language resulted in a sad phenomenon that in the postmodern times people learn the contemporary philosophy more from life itself or its correspondent cultural manifestations in different forms than from writings of professional philosophers. Even for philosophers, very often they choose literary language instead of descriptive or analytical language to express their perception about the world, which has been reflected in the fact that the Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to two philosophers (Camus and Sartre) primarily for their existentialist novel writing.

Existentialism once was the most influential philosophical movement in the postmodern times and is still a well known school (lets borrow the term of school here even though it might be very controversial for existentialism) of philosophy. Its central claim is as Sartre [5] laid it out that existence precedes essence. The existence that is of the central interest to existentialists is referred to the status of intelligent human being who acts on his own will. The line of logic for this claim could be traced back to the famous Cartesian statement Cogito ergo sum (I think, therefore I am)[9]. While for Descartes the significance of that statement was just a logically rigorous sentence free of any illusion caused by human sensation, which could thus be used as the starting point of his philosophical meditation, it has been widely interpreted as that human mind precedes human physical conditions, partly because of the dualist belief of Descartes. Hegel further developed that idea into that the significance of human life primarily lies in human mind instead of human body as he pointed out[10] that we are in the possession of our thought which permeate all our ideas  whether these are purely theoretical or contain a matter belonging to feeling, impulse, will. Basically following such a theoretical line of thought that human beings are primarily intelligent beings and secondarily physical or social beings, existentialists, theist or atheist, all stand for the idea that each individual is solely responsible for giving meaning to life and living it passionately and sincerely, or authentically. However, while the statements of Descartes and Hegel are logically sound, the existentialist generalization of the same idea to a universal principle of life is logically defective since in an open society people are all interconnecting with each other not only physically and emotionally but also logically. Therefore, the so called meaning of life or real social and physical status of any single individual cannot be solely determined by his/her will no matter what angle of view he/she would like to take when looking at it. Consequently, as a social experiment to build a philosophical foundation for human civilization as a replacement of traditional or religious values, existentialism obviously failed to bring real long lasting vitality to the development of philosophy. Existentialism soon lost its momentum and popularity since its manmade foundation is logically partial and lack of a thorough examination of real human nature (existentialists might even refute the concept of human nature) and social dynamic relationships.

Some politically biased philosophies did cause the world's political landscape to change dramatically in last century, but they also failed to lead the development of philosophy itself despite their proponents claimed so. Although philosophical discussions on political and ethical issues (e.g. philosophy of justice) have always been ongoing, the current global crises and turbulences tell us that those discussions by professional philosophers in this particular area obviously have not created decisive impact on the politico-economic life around the world. One observable deficiency in the discussion in this area is that the discussion is still focusing on applying locally ideal logic to macroscopic issues without delving into the dynamic details of interpersonal systems. Knowledge about the importance of language for thinking especially philosophical thinking is also one important part of Western philosophy of last century; although the quest in this area is still open and could continue to be an important philosophical issue in the coming years it might not play a leading role for the development of philosophy in the near future. Closely related to this is philosophy of mind, which would continue to develop independently of but with the help of psychology. Currently we have not seen any revolutionary breakthrough in this area either. People are still struggling with issues like the significance of quale. Discussions about the relationship between the phenomenological knowledge between different people has not surpassed the theory of correlation between private worlds (or perspectives) of Russell[11].

Postmodern philosophies are generally considered as relativistic for they all bear some relativistic marks here or there. However, the relativistic nature of postmodern way of thinking of the public is not entailed by postmodern philosophies as people often claimed, contrarily, the relativistic views in postmodern philosophies are rather the delayed reflection of the relativistic nature of postmodern reality all around the world. First of all, the relativistic behavior of nature revealed to us by scientists has undoubtedly and profoundly influenced postmodern philosophers way of thinking. More importantly our scientific knowledge about nature which would be considered as the most creditable has been under constant modification and update by scientists, which has been repeatedly reminding us of the relative nature of our knowledge system due to our limited capacity to know things. Besides, revolutionary changes of the political status or political movements in many places around the world subverted the traditional concept of authority in the society. Similarly, in academic society and in schools around the world scholars or students more tend to doubt authoritative theories than ever in the history due to the general awareness of the vulnerability of the academic authority to mistakes. Furthermore, technological breakthroughs, especially the arrival of the high-tech and big data era, created the new life styles and interpersonal relationships that had never been witnessed before. Meanwhile extensive international migrations or tourism and intercultural communications and exchanges helped to broaden the vision and open the mind of people towards life styles and social norms; the commercial and industrial globalization helped to further shaken monotonous traditional social standards in different areas around the world by bringing different cultural values closer.

All these radical social cultural and politico-economic changes without any precedent similarity in the history have burned their imprints on philosophical theories that have been created during the period of postmodernity. In addition, during the postmodern times, it has become a common knowledge in popular culture that there is no absolute mapping between any natural language and reality and it is the relational patterns within the structure of signs that produce the meaning of any part of our language. The awareness of this simple basic nature of language actually has a very profound effect on human philosophical thinking due to the fundamental importance in our everyday life. Back to 200 years ago, the claim that our representation of things as they are given to us doesnt conform to these things as they are in themselves, but rather that these objects as appearances conform to our way of representing them things as we experience them should be distinguished from things as they are in themselves by Kant[12], together with his famous use of the German term noumenon, spawned the course of systematic studying the so called phenomenology first started by Hegel[13] and then continued by others in the following centuries after them. The peak of that venture seemed to be reached by Russell[11] with his speculation about the correlation of private worlds as mentioned earlier. It seems that only after human civilization entered the postmodern times, with the help of modern psychology, the significance of the difference between what we see and what it is in itself started to be fully appreciated by both the academia and the public. This appreciation together with the awareness of the independence of language from its objects in real world undoubtedly endorses the relativistic way of thinking among the public, which is then naturally reflected with enhancements in various cultural forms including philosophy theories.

The downtempo reaction to the radical cultural changes in postmodern times by professional philosophical community is also the main reason for renowned philosopher and scientist to announce the end of philosophy[14],[15]. Finally, perhaps ironically, when the development of mainstream philosophy is virtually stalling, it is found that people are still far behind a fully understanding of many classic works of philosophy written in human history, which would also be one of the issues that need attention by philosophers in the future. If we compare the radical changes in all aspects of our civilization in the postmodern times, what has happened in the field of professional philosophy could be analogized to a mild ripple in a small pond
School counselors will soon be able to apply for the U.S. Department of Educations School Ambassador fellowships, the department announced on Friday.

The ambassador program seeks to connect those working in schools with their peers, and promote their views with respect to public policy. The program already includes the Teacher Ambassador Fellows, which is in its 10th year, and the Principal Ambassador Fellows, which is in its third year. The former is intended to create a community of teacher leaders and help involve teachers in policymaking that impacts the classroom, and the latter is designed to help improve the recruitment and retention of principals, among other things. The newest round of Principal Ambassador Fellows was announced in August .

Counselors will be considered for the next set of ambassadors for the 2017-18 school year.

The Department is expanding the fellowships to include counselors in order to incorporate their perspectives on a variety of issues, from students socio-emotional needs to improving graduation rates. The announcement was made in conjunction with the final meeting of Reach Higher , an initiative begun by first lady Michelle Obama intended to help students complete some form of education after high school.

Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. noted that his mother was a school counselor, and that those in her profession help students and others enlarge their vision of what is possible and take advantage of educational opportunities.

School counselors fill many roles by helping students work through serious social, emotional, academic and personal challenges, while also guiding them along a path to college and career readiness, said King in a statement.

Follow us on Twitter at @PoliticsK12 .
David B. Tyack, an influential education historian, died this morning at age 85.

Tyack was the Vida Jack professor of education emeritus and a professor of history emeritus at Stanford University, where he had taught since 1968. A passionate advocate of the civil purposes of schools, he documented shifting political allegiances in education in books including the 1974 The One Best System: A History of American Urban Education, the 1995 Tinkering Toward Utopia: A Century of Public School Reform (co-authored with Larry Cuban), and the 2007 Seeking Common Ground: Public Schools in a Diverse Society.

He was also a frequent essayist on education and public policy, including for Education Week. In one Commentary , Tyack and his partner, the late Stanford political science lecturer Elisabeth Hansot, argued:

Is education primarily a consumer good or a common good? If Thomas Jefferson, Horace Mann, or John Dewey were now to enter policy discussions on public education, he might well ask if Americans have lost their way. Democracy is about making wise collective choices. Democracy in education and education in democracy are not quaint legacies from a distant and happier time. They have never been more essential to wise self-rule than they are today."

Prior to coming to Stanford, Tyack taught at the University of Illinois from 1967-69 and Reed College from 1959-67. He also previously served as a president of the History Education Society, a vice president of the American Educational Research Association, and was a member of numerous other education and history groups.

In a tribute at the Learning on the Edge blog , Jack Schneider, the director of research for the Massachusetts Consortium for Innovative Education Assessment, described how Tyack informally mentored him as a graduate student at Stanford:

Because we were not in class, there was never an explicit lesson; but because David was a teacherin the fullest, and truest sense of the wordthe lessons accrued over time. As David absorbed me into his orbit, I began to think of myself differentlynot as an accomplished novice but as a novice expert. ... This is what a teacher does. It is a kind of alchemy. The student's future self is conjured, as if by magic spell, and given substance through a new set of habits, skills, and dispositions."

Tyack died at his home on the Stanford campus from complications of Parkinsons disease, according to Daniel Schwartz, the dean of the Stanford Graduate School of Education. He is survived by his sons Daniel Tyack and Peter Tyack.
| BY Ricki Green |

It was a particularly rewarding night for Melbourne-based agencies with Clemenger BBDO Melbourne and TBWA Melbourne winning multiple awards at the ADMA Australian Creativity and Effectiveness (AC&E) Awards, held last night at The Star, Sydney.

Clemenger BBDO Melbourne received the most awards handed out during the evening to one agency, taking home the Grand Prix, the Most Courageous Client, Out-of-Home, Data- Driven Mail and Branded Content gongs for its work on campaigns for Pacific Brands/Bonds and Mercedes-Benz Australia.

TBWA Melbourne won awards in Integrated Campaign, Broadcast and PR categories for ANZs Continued Push for an Equal Future campaign and TBWA Sydney for best Customer Acquisition Campaign for RaboDirects Shonky Savers campaign resulting in hours of deliberation by the judges. The Broadcast category was particularly tight this year with two entries proving exceptionally strong.

Notable in the 2016 Awards was the quality of the Not-for-Profit entries where all campaigns entered were of an incredibly high calibre, a stand-out category in 2016.

For the first time, All AC&E entrants were requested to verify the information they supplied in their entries. Non-compliant entries were reviewed by a new Audit Committee which weighed any additional evidence provided and carried out their own investigations. Recommendations were then given to the third round judges. Only agencies that could prove their results went through to the final round, making the AC&E Awards the most rigorous in the country.

The Boys produced by Clemenger BBDO was the most awarded campaign on the night, including Most Courageous Client for Bonds/Pacific Brands. 

Isobar and TBWA Melbourne both won awards for client ANZ for Banker Desktop (Customer Experience and UX/Interface & Navigation Design) and ANZs Continued Push for and Equal Future (Broadcast and PR Campaign).

In all, the gala evening delivered 32 winning trophies and 35 highly commended trophies during the evening.

Says Jodie Sangster, CEO, ADMA: The AC&E Awards matter to clients and agencies because theyre the only awards in Australia that recognise exceptional creativity and solid business results in equal proportion, not as separate specialisations. Together they have the power to transform a business as the winners tonight have demonstrated. I congratulate all the winners, those who received highly commended trophies and the finalists, all of whom should be very proud of their work.

The Boys features a pair of talking testicles in a new online and TVC campaign, offering a humorous look inside the world of mens underwear.

ADMA Creative of the Year was awarded to Steve Coll (left), ECD of WiTH Collective (who incidentally is an ADMA Board member). The accolade is awarded to the most creative, the most influential, the most driven and prominent individual in the creative world.

The ADMA Marketer of the Year title went to Brendon Cook (right) from oOh! Media. The Jon Clark Award for Outstanding Contribution went to Luke Brown from Affinity. Maureen Teague from HIF was named ADMA Young Marketer of the Year and Melissa Hawkett from 303 MullenLowe was named ADMA Young Creative of the Year. The late Neil Lawrence was inducted into the ADMA Hall of Fame.

The full list of 2016 AC&E Award winners by category comprises:

Ambient/Experiential

eBay Virtual Reality Department Store for eBay by Traffik with Pulse Communications

Apps

Wild About Whales for NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service by Mobbidiction

Art Direction

Stoneleigh No 50: The Instagrammable House for Pernod Ricard/Stoneleigh Wine by Society

Best Use of Search

Always On Regional NSW Search Engine Marketing for Destination NSW by Match

Branded Content

The Boys for Bonds/Pacific Brands Underwear Group by Clemenger BBDO Melbourne

Broadcast: TV, Cinema, Radio

ANZs continued push for an Equal Future for ANZ Australia by TBWA Melbourne

Copywriting

Optus Olympics for Optus by WiTH Collective

Customer Acquisition Campaign

RaboDirect Shonky Savers for RaboDirect by TBWA Sydney

Data Analytics

90 ways to say $1 Chips for KFC Australia by Olgivy Australia

Data Strategy

Telstra Business Check-in by CHE Proximity with CX Agency Lavender.

Data Visualisation

Interactive Buildings: Planning law, in 3D for NSW Planning & Environment by Wunderman- Bienalto

Data-Driven Mail

GLC Hologram for Mercedes-Benz Australia by Clemenger BBDO Melbourne

Digital & Social Advertising

Get Cash for Westpac by Track/DDB Group in collaboration with MediaCom and Facebook

E-commerce Website & Marketing

Sleep is Back for Love to Dream Ltd by Affinity

Integrated Campaign

Supermarket Switch for Aldi by BMF

Integrated Campaign  small budget

Re-Pie-Cling for Goodman Fielder/Pampas by Havas Media Australia

Media Campaign

Soap Tube for Campbells Soup Australia by TKT Sydney

Most Effective Use of Content

Hands off our Ambos for SA Health by Showpony Advertising

Not-For-Profit Campaign

Stop it at the Start for the Australian Government Department of Social Services by BMF

Out-Of-Home

The Boys for Bonds/Pacific Brands Underwear Group by Clemenger BBDO Melbourne

PR Campaign

ANZs continued push for an Equal Future for ANZ Australia by TBWA Melbourne

Social Media Campaign

Hands off our Ambos for SA Health by Showpony Advertising

UX, Interface & Navigation Design

Banker Desktop for ANZ Australia by Isobar

Pinnacle Awards

Grand Prix Award

The Boys for Bonds/Pacific Brands Underwear Group by Clemenger BBDO Melbourne

Overall Customer Experience Award

Banker Desktop for ANZ Australia by Isobar

Courageous Client Award

The Boys for Bonds/Pacific Brands Underwear Group by Clemenger BBDO Melbourne

Excellence Awards

ADMA Marketer of the Year

Brendon Cook, oOh! Media

ADMA Creative of the Year

Steve Coll, WiTH Collective

The Jon Clark Award for Outstanding Contribution

Luke Brown, Affinity

ADMA Young Marketer of the Year

Maureen Teague, HIF

ADMA Young Creative of the Year

Melissa Hawkett, 303 MullenLowe

ADMA Hall of Fame

Neil Lawrence

Case studies of the winning work can be viewed here.
| BY Ricki Green |

Last night, at the 35th annual ADMA awards at Star Casino, Neil Lawrence was awarded the exclusive Hall of Fame award. The award is given to a person or persons who has not only given outstanding service to the industry over a number of years, but who also has demonstrated inspiring leadership and stewardship in how the industry has evolved.

Lawrence died suddenly last year in a tragic diving accident in the Maldives whilst on holiday with his son, Tom so the award was given posthumously.

His children, Tom and Anna Lawrence accepted the award on the night.

Says Tom Lawrence: Dad worked on a lot of brands throughout his career but it was his later work that he was proudest of and that we remember him for; Kevin 07, Jay Weatherill, Anna Bligh, Recognise and finally his campaigning and documentary on the pokies.

Only months before he died, Neil completed his ground-breaking documentary on the poker machine industry, KaChing! Pokie Nation, an expose which reveals the predatory nature of the industry and how the pokies are specifically designed for addiction.

Tom and Anna have now found their own way to continue the conversation their father started and bring this issue to a new demographic. Last Sunday, the pair launched their campaign, Proudly Pokies Free, which aims to reduce the harm the pokies have on Australian communities and celebrates and promotes pokies-free venues in Sydney which do not rely on the unethical revenue.

The event was a huge success with over 500 people attending the launch. Highlights included: Tim Freedman singing Blow Up The Pokies, The Preatures performing who were the secret announcement on the night and Scott Marsh (Casino Mike and Kanye loves Kanye murals) painting a pokies-inspired piece exclusively for the campaign.

With Australia hosting over 20% of the worlds poker machines, Proudly Pokies Free want to challenge the acceptance of the proliferation of these machines in our pubs and clubs. They want to change the perceptions of the pokies industry, see less people getting addicted to the pokies, less venues that have the pokies and more support for pokies- free venues.
| BY Ricki Green |

Australias Lif3 Global has announced multi-award winning actress Rebecca Gibney as a brand ambassador. A passionate advocate for wellness, Gibney encourages all Australians to join the Lif3 movement and safeguard themselves against mobile phone radiation in the brands TVC campaign via PlayTV.

The advanced Smartchip, invented and engineered in Australia, was developed as a safeguard to combat concerns around health risks that could be associated to mobile phone use, such as the reduction of male fertility.

The partnership and TVC marks a key milestone in Lif3 Globals awareness campaign, which has already gained ambassador support from Ricky Ponting and martial arts fighter Soa Palelei.

Gibney said Lif3 is a product that provides peace of mind in a time where we are increasingly health conscious.

Says Gibney: As a working mum Im constantly on my mobile, and Im genuinely concerned with the impacts it could have on my health. We really wont know the full effects until its too late. I know all mums would want to discover any way possible that they can safeguard their children against potential harm, which is why Im so passionate about Lif3.

Im proud to be fronting the Lif3 campaign and hope that people join the Lif3 movement so that we can all enjoy peace of mind without compromising our connectivity in todays mobile world.

Lif3 Global CEO, Don Small, said the campaign encapsulates what Lif3 is about and how a small chip can make the world of difference.

Says Small: Our partnership and TVC with Rebecca makes a clear statement to Australia that more people should be embracing the cutting-edge technology within our Lif3 Smartchips. It is the only scientifically tested product to reduce the radiation absorption rate emitted from mobile phones by up to 95%.

Were thrilled Rebecca Gibney has joined our campaign and is such an enthusiastic ambassador of our message. All of the work and investment into this awareness campaign is testament to the lengths we are willing to go to educate more Australians about this powerful technology that can safeguard their health.

Client: Lif3 Global

Creative: PlayTV

PR: Red Agency
| BY Ricki Green |

Leading Edgewell brand Schick has teamed with J Walter Thompson Sydney to launch a unique new digital campaign, kicking off with Australias first hour long catwalk streamed on Facebook Live featuring former Miss World Australia and influencer Erin Holland.

Developed to showcase Schicks Hydro Silk Gel Reservoir, the new #keepsongiving campaign was also hosted in partnership with the Daily Mail Australia across two locations. A 30 cut down of the catwalk will now be the centrepiece of a four-month campaign on the Daily Mail site, comprising a hub featuring content from leading influencers plus native articles focused on different aspects of feeling confident.

#keepsongiving is the first campaign executed by J Walter Thompson Sydney since its role as creative agency for the Edgewell Personal Care business  including key brands Banana Boat and Schick  was extended to cover all digital marketing activities. The appointment followed a competitive pitch, which saw Thompsons partner with leading digital agency Webling to provide end-to-end expertise across the full range of digital channels. The joint team will now work across Edgewells entire digital ecosystem including brand websites and social media creative and community management for its various brands.

J Walter Thompson Sydneys managing director Jenny Willits said the new campaign was an exciting and engaging way to launch its extended remit with Edgewell, through a campaign that elevates the brands communications beyond just the rational product benefit, to better connect with audiences on an emotional level.

Adds Willits: Not only does the new #keepsongiving platform allow us to speak to the product benefit (moisture that #keepsongiving), but an online charity element of the Facebook Live event also allowed us to communicate a new brand platform (the brand that #keepsongiving) that can be utilised for years to come.

Not only that but its one of the first Facebook live streams to run across two different venues, and resulted in the largest audience for a branded live stream in the country to date. It also demonstrated the strength in the combined, end-to-end expertise across the full range of digital channels that the combined J Walter Thompson/Webling team can provide. Its an incredibly exciting way to start our expanded relationship with Edgewells brands.

Rachel Pullincino, marketing director, Edgewell Personal Care, said they had been impressed by the seamless approach the J. Walter Thompson/Webling team had proposed in its pitch, and taken to its first digital campaign.

Says Pullincino: We were already aware of the outstanding creative and strategic capability of the J Walter Thompson team, having worked on several campaigns together. Teamed with the added strength of Weblings deep digital expertise, it became obvious we had an opportunity not only to streamline our creative and digital communications, but take it to the next strategic level. The #keepsongiving campaign is a great example of how well this can work.
| BY Ricki Green |

Having just celebrated 40 years of bringing cultural and arts events to Sydney shores, Sydney Festival marks 2017 with a new festival director (director, writer and actor Wesley Enoch), an abundance of national and international works, and a new look.

With each appointment of a new festival director, Sydney Festival invites studios to pitch creative to define and represent the new vision for the festival. Alphabet Studios won the creative tender.

Early in the creative development Enoch emphatically stated I am a maker and it is from this, that Alphabet took its creative cues.

A festival made by a maker. A festival inviting all to be makers. A festival to make your own.

Integral to the brief was to retain the essence of the brand. Rethink, retool, reimagine it whilst retaining its integrity. Alphabet did so by taking the existing brand font and re building it  pulling it apart and reassembling, creating and customising a bespoke typeface for the Festival. Shifting and reshaping into various forms across multiple applications, the graphic becomes a metaphor for connections, reinvention, interpretation, energy and the unexpected.

The Festival is about people and for people. Combining a pop palette with a series of beautiful portraits representing audience diversity, a series of eclectic campaign images define the immersive experience of the Festival and the people who love it.

A series of 8 festival brochure covers represent this diverse selection of Sydneysiders and festival-goers.

Conceptualised, art directed and developed by Alphabet and working with Festival team, 2017 merge all the features of what makes Sydney Festival integral to Sydney in Summer.

Client: Sydney Festival

Agency: Alphabet Studio

Art Direction: Tim Kliendienst and Paul Clark

Design: Belinda Rabe

Website Design: Lara Juriansz
| BY Lynchy |

Seven Sunday Films in Jakarta was recently approached by ASUS to create an opulent brand campaign to position its Zenfone3 model as a premium cost smartphone and to show off the phones camera functionality, with the tagline, Built For Photography.

ASUS also came direct to Seven Sunday Films to handle the brands print launch campaign, including copywriting and photography, along with shooting the brand commercial. The production company brought on board CHAI Advertising to help realise the entire campaign, which was turned around in just two weeks.

In the TVC, titled The Power of 3, audiences are introduced to Joe, a young man on a cryptic mission to unravel the secret behind a series of clues left to him by an equally mysterious woman who takes photographs of his every move. As Joe pieces together the puzzle, we join him across bustling city streets and over an old historic bridge until we arrive at a castle. It is here that Joe finally meets his fate with the woman photographer who has been a step ahead of him the whole journey through.

Directed by iClaudius, the commercial was shot in Warsaw, Poland.

Dream jobs like this dont come about often and as usual, Seven Sunday Films provided the platform and support for our team to create a gem of a film, said iClaudius. Couple this with the films stars  seasoned Indonesian celebrities Joe Taslim and Bunga Citra Listari, and this is one of my most memorable experiences to date, and one of my best films ever!

Seven Sunday Films really made our dreams come true, says ASUS brand manager Juliana. The commercial has a very high end quality to it and even in the process of making the TVC, Seven Sunday, the film director, DOP, producers and all of the crew were really passionate perfectionists. ASUS is very grateful to have worked with Seven Sunday.

Seven Sunday Films founder and executive producer, Rodney Vincent, says: The clients brief was to make the spot look opulent and premium, whilst considering all of the key product messages. It was great teamwork, and I must say that I have a lot of respect for the client. They gave us their full trust and support, and I believe projects like these always end up with everyone very happy at the end.

Credits:

Director: iClaudius

D.O.P: Pierre Mouarkech

Executive Producers: Rodney & Ajeng Vincent

Agency: CHAI Advertising

Post Production: Cutting Edge Brisbane
This post is by Larry Dailey, a human-centered design consultant and emeritus professor of journalism.

Individualized Education Plan (IEP) meetings can be parent-versus-school tugs-of-war. Even so, this one was unusual. A state-appointed facilitator was attempting to authoritatively run the meeting. Parents, educators--and even the disabled student for whom the team was attempting to develop a special education plan--were grim-faced.

Tensions eventually became so high that the parents withdrew their consent for the facilitators participation. The facilitator departed, mid-meeting.

Left at the table were the child, the parents and a large number of educators. All were on edge, yet all still wanted an effective IEP meeting. It was time to push the reset button.

The effect of that reset? At the meetings conclusion, the disabled child turned to her father and asked, Is it just me, or was the last part of that meeting fun?

Yes, I replied, it was.

Thanks to a human-centered approach, what began as a contentious IEP meeting had concluded with a noisy, sticky-note driven process that focused on empathy, rather than positional authority. My child, many of the educators and I preferred the latter approach.

At this stage of the process, we borrowed techniques from the brainstorming--or ideation stage of human-centered design procedures. Ideation rules , as practiced by Stanford Universitys d.School and by IDEO, a Silicon Valley innovation firm, require deferring judgement, encouraging wild ideas, building on the ideas of others, staying focused on the topic, having only one conversation at a time, being visual and encouraging a quantity of ideas, rather than singular viewpoints.

So, instead of listening to lengthy, pre-formatted presentations from only a few of the meetings participants, we agreed that everybody in the room would take turns presenting one thought at a time. Each idea would be posted on a sticky note and placed on a table. Posted ideas would be brief, so that we could build on them later. Parents, teachers, the childs and the administrators contributions would all be treated equally. And we agreed that everybody would present at least three ideas.

Most importantly, consistent with the build on the ideas of others rule, we agreed at this stage that no information would be dismissed, discounted or argued against. Simply put, the phrase yeah, but ... was forbidden while the phrase yeah, and ... was mandated. After some initial push-back--administrators did not want to require everybody to talk - the meeting restarted.

As I recall, a teacher who had said little during the meeting, made a remark about my childs delightful sense of humor and how that sense of humor might help her face her disabilities. That empathetic comment shepherded a flock of sticky notes about my childs strengths toward the whiteboard. Everybody now felt they had the permission to participate in a positive manner.

And that, in a nutshell, is how design thinking works. It democratizes meetings by helping people focus on similarities, rather than differences.

Facilitators of the human-centered process bring a range of techniques to procedures that are intended to engage the creative and thoughtful parts of the brain, such as the frontal lobe and that disengage the amygdala, the flight or fight, primitive part of the brain.

In the case of our meeting, instead of arguing about our individual positions, we, as a group, arranged sticky notes in manner that to seemed show a hierarchy of ideas that were most important to us as a group. After that, we discussed the relative advantages and disadvantages of focusing on those procedures. And, because we were actively putting stuff on the wall and moving it around, the process was creative and nonthreatening.

When everybodys focus turned to the quantity of information and building on ideas, there was palpable de-escalation of tensions. To work, design thinking, or human-centered design, requires developing empathy with stakeholders. And it requires coming to meetings with a deep understanding of, and research about, people and the issues they face.

Human-centered design or design thinking, as noted in previous Education Week blogs by Jal Mehta and by Harvard University doctoral students , is beginning to be accepted as a method for improving education in general. In fact, IDEO , Adaptive Path , and Greater Good Studio , three organizations focused on design thinking, have all begun initiatives on general education. That said, little has been written about its potential for changing special education. For example, a Google search reveals almost no human-centered efforts in the field.

As stated previously, design thinking requires deep research, understanding and input from a variety of sources. And, as mentioned, it requires empathy between all participants. That empathy is sorely needed in the IEP process.

Parents may come to these meetings, as we had, impatient for needed changes, since delaying interventions may have lifelong implications for the child. And, conversely, parents may also come to the meetings reluctant to participate, since they are outnumbered by educators. And sometimes parents are afraid to speak because they do not want to alienate their childs teachers and principal.

Likewise, educators sometimes have difficulties in these meetings, too. On the one hand, they may feel that they are trained to understand the science of educational interventions, so their opinion should dominate the conversation. On the other hand, some educators may be reluctant to speak during the meetings, since their supervisors are in the room and they would not want to say something that they think could jeopardize their career.

Carefully-facilitated human-centered approaches equip participants to disregard their positional authority and to work together for a common cause. Trained facilitators learn to refocus meetings when energy lags or when tensions begin to escalate. They learn that an escalation of tension can, rather than signaling hostility, indicate that someone does not feel heard. And they practice techniques, such as grouping sticky notes, that enable synthesis without dismissing or blaming the efforts of group participants. Facilitators learn to pivot techniques as needs dictate.

For example, sometimes meeting participants are challenged to identify their own or other meeting members superpowers. This exercise brings a recognition of the power of the teams diversity. And sometime members role play as other parties in the meeting. During the role play, participants can then say how they perceive the persona adopted during the role play. This can be a humorous way to deescalate tensions while also acknowledging those tensions. Still other times team members are simply challenged to work together to physically build a representation of a problem or solution. This encourages collaboration and empathy.

Of course, simply using the words human centered or child centered will not change the IEP process. Facilitators will need to be carefully trained and then retrained in using techniques such as the ones mentioned here. Fortunately, resources such as IDEOs Design Kit and Design Thinking for Educators Toolkit are beginning to emerge.

Even with those resources, systemic change is needed. And, unfortunately, as has been noted by others in this blog, systemic educational change can be tricky and slow. To make matters more complicated, the documented process of slow systemic change is, inherently, in conflict with the developmental timeline of children who need immediate interventions.

Despite the obstacles that may inhibit this change, I am encouraged by my own experiences with human-centered design. And, I believe that others might be willing to push for design thinking, too, if they could see parents, educators, and administrators all emerge from IEP meetings smiling.

Or if they could hear disabled children emerging from IEP meetings saying that was fun.
Friday, October 28, 2016 at 2:38PM

We want to make a better world, faster. Thats what this Challenge is designed to do, said Sam Sebastian, Managing Director, Google Canada. We have huge expectations for what Canada can deliver through the Google.org Impact Challenge."

Google announced today that it is bringing the acclaimed Google.org Impact Challenge to Canada for the first time. Google.org Impact Challenge is a nationwide competition to find and fund the most innovative nonprofits that are using technology to make Canada and the world a better place. Google.org, Googles philanthropic arm, will award $5 million across 10 organizations to help bring their ideas to life. Five winning organizations will receive $750,000 grants, and five additional finalists will receive $250,000.

We created the Google.org Impact Challenge because we truly believe that technology has the power to transform lives, explained Jacquelline Fuller, director of Google.org. We have seen firsthand the incredible impact that innovative technology can have in addressing complex and difficult social issues, and we are excited to see how Canadian nonprofits will respond to the challenge. Eligible nonprofits are invited to submit their proposals [link] before November 26, 2016. The shortlist of grantees will be announced in February, after which time Canadians will have their opportunity to vote on which project has the most power to change lives.

We want to make a better world, faster. Thats what this Challenge is designed to do, said Sam Sebastian, Managing Director, Google Canada. We have huge expectations for what Canada can deliver through the Google.org Impact Challenge. Not only is Canada home to some of the worlds smartest and most talented tech innovators, but we also have a deep commitment to humanitarian causes both as a nation and as individuals.

One of the five winners will be selected based on votes from the public, and the remaining winners will be selected following a live event at the end of March, when shortlisted projects will pitch their projects to a panel of judges.

The judges for Google.org Impact Challenge: Canada all bring a unique perspective on Canada and deep commitment to charitable causes:

 The Honourable Melanie Joly , Minister of Canadian Heritage

 Dr. Samantha Nutt , Bestselling author and Founder of War Child Canada/War Child USA

 Joseph Boyden , award-winning author and professor

 PK Subban , NHL Defenceman and philanthropist

 Hani Al Moulia , member of the Prime Ministers Youth Council

 Don Harrison , Vice President, Corporate Development, Google

 Jacquelline Fuller , Director, Google.org

Nonprofit organizations across all sectors are invited to submit their proposals no later than November 26, 2016.
There is little that can be done by the target country once a nuclear missile is launched. Most missiles are multi-warhead-capable and deploy their nuclear loads high in the upper atmosphere away from most defence missiles. The US and the USSR/Russia adopted a strategy of mutually assured destruction. The target country would see the incoming missiles and would retaliate with their nuclear arsenal. Everyone was too scared to launch a first strike on that basis, but an accident or a rogue military group may have caused an atomic war that may have destroyed the world.
Thousands of Christmas-obsessed people from across Australia make the pilgrimage to Bredbo each year to visit Leanne's Christmas Barn, and this year she will have thousands of new trinkets from as far afield as the US and Germany to greet them. Included in the new range are a series of tiny vintage caravans, Disney characters and even bone-shaped decorations just for dogs.
"More young people than ever are being impacted by parental cancer," she said. "Even though our service has grown threefold, it is still only reaching a small proportion. There is a lot more work to be done."
Your digital subscription includes access to content from all our websites in your region. Access unlimited news content and The Canberra Times app. Premium subscribers also enjoy interactive puzzles and access to the digital version of our print edition - Today's Paper.
"They're very difficult animals so find because they're extremely well camouflaged and they know how to hide from people, they just stay still under some fallen branches. You could be right on top of them and not know that they're there," Mr Higgins said.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday granted the appeal of a Virginia school district seeking clarification of whether schools must allow transgender students to use the restrooms corresponding to their gender identity.

The courts action in Gloucester County School Board v. G.G. (Case No. 16-273) sets up a high-stakes battle over the rights of transgender students in schools and the authority of the U.S. Department of Education to issue broad interpretations of its regulations.

The high court had intervened in the case over the summer to grant a stay to the Gloucester County school district, which had temporarily blocked a lower-court injunction that would have allowed a 17-year-old transgender student, Gavin Grimm, to use the boys restroom at his high school.

Five justices had granted the stay in August, with Justice Stephen G. Breyer voting with the courts conservative bloc as a courtesy because the court was in its summer recess and to preserve the status quo, he wrote in a concurrence.

It takes only four justices to grant full review of a case, so the conservatives did not need Breyers vote to grant the school districts appeal of a federal appeals court ruling that sided with the student. But the court remains short one member since the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in February and the political gridlock over President Barack Obamas nomination of Merrick H. Garland for the seat. So the justices risk deadlocking on the merits of the case, which would uphold a lower-court decision in favor of Grimm.

The school district had appealed the decision this past April by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, in Richmond, Va., that guidance on transgender students merited deference under a 1997 Supreme Court decision, Auer v. Robbins . That decision says that a federal agencys interpretation of its own ambiguous regulation should be given controlling weight unless the interpretation is plainly erroneous or inconsistent with the regulation or statute at issue.

The 4th Circuit court had ruled based on a letter from a January 2015 Education Department official to the Gloucester County district. (The letter is in the appendix, at Page 121A, of the school districts petition for writ of certiorari .)

In May, the federal Departments of Education and Justice issued a Dear Colleague letter that clarified, in somewhat broader terms, the federal interpretation that transgender students should be allowed to use restrooms corresponding to their gender identity. That guidance was temporarily blocked in August by a federal district judge ruling in a challenge brought by Texas and other states.

The Supreme Courts decision to take up the Gloucester County school districts appeal will keep in place the stay of lower-court rulings that the district had to allow Grimm to use the restrooms corresponding to his gender identity.

In a statement, Troy Andersen, the president of the Gloucester County school board, said, We are grateful that the Supreme Court has granted the school boards petition in this difficult case. The board looks forward to explaining to the court that its restroom and locker room policy carefully balances the interests of all students and parents in the Gloucester County school system.

In an op-ed essay in The Washington Post on Friday, Grimm wrote that he never imagined that the Supreme Court might be deciding whether he could use the school restroom. Under a policy adopted by the Gloucester County school board, and in force under the Supreme Courts stay, Grimm uses a single unisex restroom or a nurses office restroom at Gloucester High School.

I continue to suffer daily because of the school boards decision to make my bathroom use a matter of public debate, Grimm wrote. I feel the humiliation every time I need to use the restroom and every minute I try to hold it in the hopes of avoiding the long walk to the nurses office.

What keeps me going is the knowledge that I am not the only transgender student out there, and I have the chance to make things better so other transgender kids do not have to go through what I am going through, Grimm wrote.

In a statement, Josh Block, a senior staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Unions LGBT project, which is representing Grimm and had urged the court not to take up the case , said it is disappointing that Gavin will probably have to finish out his high school career under this harmful, humiliating policy.

In a short order on Friday, the Supreme Court said it would not take up the first question posed in the school districts appeal, Should this court retain the Auer doctrine despite the objections of multiple Justices who have recently urged that it be reconsidered and overruled?

The court said it would consider these two questions:

If Auer is retained, should deference extend to an unpublished agency letter that, among other things, does not carry the force of law and was adopted in the context of the very dispute in which deference is sought?

And with or without deference to the agency, should the departments specific interpretation of Title IX and [its regulation] be given effect?

Those questions still give the justices much running room that, in the real world, will have an impact on transgender rights and beyond.

Arguments in the case are likely early next year.

For more on the battle over bathroom access for transgender students, view the followingvideo.

This video aired on PBS NewsHour on June 7, 2016.
"What I am saying is this is a very legitimate area of discussion. The question mark has always been over the use of the words 'insult and offend'."
The two companies serve around three-quarters of the Czech market and began cooperating in 2011 in an attempt to expand their rollout of 3G and 4G. It covers all of the Czech Republic except Prague and Brno.

Vodafone is the only other operator in the country, and is smaller than the others. It is not part of the network sharing deal.

The EC said it will look at how the agreement impacts quality improvements in existing infrastructure, and whether it causes delays to the deployment of new technologies or services.

If the investigation finds it is in breach of competition rules, O2 and the Deutsche Telekom subsidiary may have to end the arrangement, or modify it.

CETIN is an infrastructure firm that was span off from O2 Czech Republic last year when the company was split in to two. It runs the fixed-line access network, mobile access network and international services previously offered by O2 Czech Republic.

In a statement to Reuters, T-Mobile said: We are closely cooperating with the European Commission in the given matter. We are convinced that cooperation in the area of network sharing does not curb competition nor innovations. On the contrary it brings benefits to end-customers."
A high school in Colorado plans to open its doors to a select group of 8th graders next fall who want to get a jump on the high school experience.

These students will attend classes on the Littleton High School campus in Littleton, Colo., next year through what the school calls its Early High School program .

Unique Schedule

Students enrolled in the program will take a combination of advanced 8th grade courses in language arts and social studies and typical 9th grade courses in subjects like math, science, and world languages.

The purpose is to give middle school students who want acceleration a bridge between their middle school and their high school program, said Amy Oaks, the schools principal.

The school currently offers an International Baccalaureate program for juniors and seniors, and students who enroll in early high school will have more options when they reach that level.

The accelerated student who comes early and takes care of 9th grade science in 8th grade can take chemistry and physics before they go into IB, said Oaks. Currently, to do that youd have to double up on your science to squeeze physics in there.

But the program is not just for advanced students, although it is expected to be particularly attractive to those who have been identified as gifted. To qualify academically, students just need to be able to read on a 9th grade level, and they need to be ready for algebra.

The bar is not set that high because that is not, in fact, the only student that we think ought to take a look, said Oaks.

Oaks said students who want to participate in vocational programs off campus or who want to take community college classes as juniors and seniors would also benefit.

We think those kids will have more flexibility and time in their schedule if they take care of some of the academic requirements sooner, so were very, very interested in the kids who are on those pathways, too, said Oaks.

The program will be capped at about 60 students the first year. Colorado offers school choice, and students from 35 different middle schools in the greater Denver area attend Littleton High. Early High School may very well be an attractive option for parents and students who want more educational opportunities.

But Oaks stresses that the program is not for students who are looking to graduate early. The districts policy allows students to graduate after completing seven semesters rather than eight, but any student who wants to graduate before that point would have to apply for early graduation.

Were not advocating graduating kids who are 16, said Oaks. Were just advocating letting them have a taste, letting them come over here one year early. Were not even really grade skipping.

Concerns Outside of Class

In some ways, the 8th graders will be isolated from other students. They will all eat lunch together, for example. But they will also share transportation and participate in clubs and activities with students who may be much older.

When filling slots in the program, administrators will consider students social and emotional preparedness for high school.

Still, starting high school is always a big transition for students, and sometimes it can be a little rocky. For instance, what if an 8th grader finds him or herself the victim of bullying?

What we would do if an 8th grader were bullied is no different from what we would do if a 9th grader or a 10th grader were bullied, said Oaks. Bullying is never going to be O.K., and we will always step in and address it.

Mixing students of such disparate ages also raises concerns about the potential for the development of inappropriate romantic relationships.

Oaks said the school would not be comfortable with an 8th grader dating a senior.

Wed need to talk to kids about why this is not appropriate and have our counselors on the phone to parents if were concerned, said Oaks.

Students who are interested in enrolling in the program will have to fill out an application that includes an essay on why theyre interested in Early High School and why they feel theyre ready for it. Their parents will also have to submit an essay that addresses those same questions.
Is It Illegal to Threaten Someone Online?

Since the assimilation of social media into everyday life became nearly unavoidable, lawmakers have been working to strengthen the laws prohibiting cyberbullying, cybercrime, and online threats. Potentially in spite of the Supreme Court ruling in 2014 that reversed the conviction of a man who posted his own original rap lyrics about his fantasy of killing his wife on social media, state's around the country continue to embrace new laws that create for a safer, less hostile online environment.

The Supreme Court's stance on online threats seems to land more in favor of characterizing even the most despicable speech as protected under the first amendment. Despite the Supreme Court's stance that the online harasser's intent matters, states can still regulate and prosecute people they believe have made credible online threats.

Context Matters

When it comes to evaluating whether an online threat is illegal or not, the context is highly relevant. If the threat is clearly made in a way that makes it appear to be a joke, satirical, or sarcastic, then it probably won't be considered a threat. However, if the language appears to be serious, then it must be looked at more closely to determine whether it is legal or not.

Also, context changes with the times. When a recent school shooting is still fresh in the news, making a joke about it, while you may think it's just in poor taste, could very well be viewed by others as a threat, and that can get you arrested.

What Makes an Online Threat Illegal?

While some states don't have specific laws about online threats, all have laws against making criminal threats and bullying. Determining which online threats are illegal requires looking at the individual characteristics of each threat. If an online threat would rise to the same level as an in-person, or telephonic, criminal threat, then the online threat will likely be considered illegal. Usual considerations include:

Who the threat is directed to?

What is being threatened?

Who is making the threat?

Is the threat credible?

What did the speaker really mean or intend?

If the threat is directed at a specific person, with a specific threat of harm, from an easily identifiable source, and appears credible, it is likely the threat will be considered illegal. When the threat does not target an easily identifiable person or group, or does not specify a type of harm, or is just terminally vague (i.e. "Chicago Cubs fans are going to get it"), this is not likely to rise to the level of a criminal threat. However, as the 2014 Supreme Court decision advised, a speaker's intent can make all the difference in determining whether a post is considered a threat or protected expression.

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Why Voter Fraud Doesn't Matter, but Allegations of Rigged Elections Do

A lot of accusations get tossed around come election time, and this year has been no exception. Some are old -- accusations of voter fraud have been thrown around for at least a decade and have spawned strict state voter ID statutes. Some are new -- few candidates, if any, have claimed outright that an election is rigged and refused to say they will accept the results of an election if they lose.

Both claims sound serious, striking at the heart of our democracy. But the negative effects of one of these charges have been disproven, while the consequences of the other may be right around the corner.

The (Mostly) Myth of Voter Fraud

The claim goes something like this: unscrupulous voters could register to vote in more than one place, vote in districts where they don't live, vote more than once, or provide false information to election officials. And as Justin Levitt noted in the Washington Times, this can be a real concern: "This sort of misdirection is pretty common, actually. Election fraud happens ... Or vote buying. Or coercion. Or fake registration forms. Or voting from the wrong address. Or ballot box stuffing by officials in on the scam." And then there's pretending to be someone else at the polls, which Levitt describes as a "clunky way to steal an election."

Levitt began tracking allegations of voter fraud, and looked at "general, primary, special, and municipal elections from 2000 through 2014," a data set containing at least 1 billion ballots. And in all, found just 31 specific, credible allegations of voter fraud at the polls. To put that number in context, all 31 of those votes would not have been enough to swing the state of Florida for Al Gore in the 2000 election. As Senator Cory Booker, D-N.J., put it, "You're more likely to get struck by lightning in Texas than to find any kind of voter fraud."

The Very Real Voter ID Law Response

In response to allegations of voter fraud -- or for more sinister reasons that courts have touched on below -- some states began passing voter ID laws requiring voters to present some form of identification at the polls in order to cast a ballot. Voter ID laws can vary from state to state, from strict photo ID requirements in some states to no ID requirement at all in others.

In general, courts have upheld these requirements. In 2008, the Supreme Court looked at Indiana's ID law that required a person to present a U.S. or Indiana ID in order to cast a ballot. (Voters without a photo ID could cast a provisional ballot, and had to visit a designated government office within 10 days with a photo ID or a signed statement saying they cannot afford one in order to have their votes counted.) The Court found the law constitutional, even though the state failed to produce any evidence of the kind of fraud the law was passed to prohibit.

But some courts have started to push back on overly restrictive ID laws. The federal Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals recently struck down North Carolina's voter identification requirement, but for reasons that may be unique to the state. Along with requiring photo ID in order to vote, the North Carolina law also abolished same-day voter registration and ended preregistration. But it wasn't just the text of the law that the court had a problem with -- it was the context:

... the General Assembly enacted [the laws] in the immediate aftermath of unprecedented African American voter participation in a state with a troubled racial history and racially polarized voting. The district court clearly erred in ignoring or dismissing this historical background evidence, all of which supports a finding of discriminatory intent.

Because the law was passed with discriminatory intent, the court ruled it invalid. Given the near absence of any in-person voter fraud, it's fair to wonder whether these voter ID laws accomplish the goal of preventing fraud, and, if not, what they actually do prevent. Critics of the laws point to a disparate impact on minority and senior voters -- those less likely to have an ID -- and many believe voter ID laws were passed with that purpose in mind. The Fourth Circuit felt the same in its opinion on North Carolina's ID law: "Before enacting that law, the legislature requested data on the use, by race, of a number of voting practices" the court noted. The state's General Assembly then acted on that data in multiple ways, "all of which disproportionately affected African Americans."

The Dangerous Allegation of Election Rigging

Since August, Donald Trump has been suggesting that the "election is going to be rigged." And the type of fraud he's alleging -- "People are going to walk in and they're going to vote 10 times, maybe, who knows?" -- is exactly the kind that voter ID laws are intended to stop and the kind that happens just 31 times in fourteen years. But the fact that an election can't be rigged or could not effectively be swayed in the way Trump imagines doesn't make his claims any less serious.

The legitimacy of any representative democracy is the belief that the government officials selected to represent the people were chosen fairly, and that their presence in government is the will of their constituency. To suggest a rigged election, or a corrupt election process, is to undermine that legitimacy. Absent the legitimacy of elected officials, the laws they enact and represent also lose their legitimacy.

And, according to recent psychological studies, the perceived legitimacy of law effects whether people follow it or not:

... people who respond to the moral appropriateness of different laws may (for example) use drugs or engage in illegal sexual practices, feeling that these crimes are not immoral, but at the same time will refrain from stealing. Similarly, if they regard legal authorities as more legitimate, they are less likely to break any laws, for they will believe that they ought to follow all of them, regardless of the potential for punishment.

Delegitimizing the election's process and results can have dangerous consequences, both during and after the election. Trump has already called on supporters to monitor polling places for possible voter fraud. In limited circumstances, citizens can enforce election laws, but there is a serious concern that poll monitoring will be less about voter fraud and more about voter intimidation.

Trump has also not confirmed that he'll accept the election results if he loses, a stance that has left many wondering what shape that non-acceptance may take, both on his part and from his supporters. And that uncertainty can be a lot more dangerous than the one-in-32 million chance that a single person votes twice.

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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.
Every year, 14th of November is celebrated as Children's Day across India. It is a red letter day for millions of children not just because they will have a holiday and sweets will be distributed at their schools, but also because it is the day that celebrates their childhood, innocence, truthfulness and them in general as the future of the nation.

In fact, November 14 is the birthday of the first Prime Minister of independent India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. Then why celebrate his birthday as Children's Day? Because he was very fond of children as he considered them as the solid foundation for the future of the country. He established IITs and IIMs to help the youth to hone their skills in order to contribute productively to the development of their country.

On the other hand, it is quite significant for the young minds to understand and respect the freedom they are enjoying, how much our ancestors struggled for it and how to utilize it without curbing the independence of others. These are the values that need to be instilled in the children of today and the occasions like Children's Day are the perfect occasions to teach such values.

Children's Day: Tips to make the day a colourful journey

We bring you the full speech of Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru delivered when India got independence from the British. Read it not just to include in your Children's Day speech but also to get an idea of what it takes to earn freedom and then preserve it.

"Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very substantially. At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom. A moment comes, which comes but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to the new when an age ends, and when the soul of a nation, long suppressed, finds utterance. It is fitting that at this solemn moment we take the pledge of dedication to the service of India and her people and to the still larger cause of humanity.



At the dawn of history, India started on her unending quest, and trackless centuries are filled with her striving and the grandeur of her success and her failures.

Through good and ill fortune alike she has never lost sight of that quest or forgotten the ideals which gave her strength. We end today a period of ill fortune and India discovers herself again. The achievement we celebrate today is but a step, an opening of opportunity, to the greater triumphs and achievements that await us. Are we brave enough and wise enough to grasp this opportunity and accept the challenge of the future?

Freedom and power bring responsibility. The responsibility rests upon this Assembly, a sovereign body representing the sovereign people of India. Before the birth of freedom, we have endured all the pains of labor and our hearts are heavy with the memory of this sorrow. Some of those pains continue even now. Nevertheless, the past is over and it is the future that beckons to us now.

That future is not one of ease or resting but of incessant striving so that we may fulfill the pledges we have so often taken and the one we shall take today. The service of India means the service of the millions who suffer. It means the ending of poverty and ignorance and disease and inequality of opportunity. The ambition of the greatest man of our generation has been to wipe every tear from every eye. That may be beyond us, but as long as there are tears and suffering, so long our work will not be over.

And so we have to labor and to work, and work hard, to give reality to our dreams. Those dreams are for India, but they are also for the world, for all the nations and peoples are too closely knit together today for any one of them to imagine that it can live apart Peace has been said to be indivisible; so is freedom, so is prosperity now, and so also is disaster in this One World that can no longer be split into isolated fragments.

To the people of India, whose representatives we are, we make an appeal to join us with faith and confidence in this great adventure. This is no time for petty and destructive criticism, no time for ill-will or blaming others.

We have to build the noble mansion of free India where all her children may dwell. The appointed day has come-the day appointed by destiny-and India stands forth again, after long slumber and struggle, awake, vital, free and independent. The past clings on to us still in some measure and we have to do much before we redeem the pledges we have so often taken. Yet the turning-point is passed, and history begins anew for us, the history which we shall live and act and others will write about.

It is a fateful moment for us in India, for all Asia and for the world. A new star rises, the star of freedom in the East, a new hope comes into being, a vision long cherished materializes. May the star never set and that hope never be betrayed! We rejoice in that freedom, even though clouds surround us, and many of our people are sorrow-stricken and difficult problems encompass us. But freedom brings responsibilities and burdens and we have to face them in the spirit of a free and disciplined people.

Children's day! Ideas for teachers to make it special

On this day our first thoughts go to the architect of this freedom, the Father of our Nation [Gandhi], who, embodying the old spirit of India held aloft the torch of freedom and lighted up the darkness that surrounded us. We have often been unworthy followers of his and have strayed from his message, but not only we but succeeding generations will remember this message and bear the imprint in their hearts of this great son of India, magnificent in his faith and strength and courage and humility. We shall never allow that torch of freedom to be blown out, however high the wind or stormy the tempest.

Our next thoughts must be of the unknown volunteers and soldiers of freedom who, without praise or reward, have served India even unto death. We think also of our brothers and sisters who have been cut off from us by political boundaries and who unhappily cannot share at present in the freedom that has come. They are of us and will remain with us whatever may happen, and we shall be sharers in their good [or] ill fortune alike.

The future beckons to us. Whither do we go and what shall be our endeavor? To bring freedom and opportunity to the common man, to the peasants and workers of India; to fight and end poverty and ignorance and disease; to build up a prosperous, democratic and progressive nation, and to create social, economic and political institutions which will ensure justice and fullness of life to every man and woman.

We have hard work ahead. There is no resting for any one of us till we redeem our pledge in full, till we make all the people of India what destiny intended them to be. We are citizens of a great country on the verge of bold advance, and we have to live up to that high standard. All of us, to whatever religion we may belong, are equally the children of India with equal rights, privileges and obligations. We cannot encourage communalism or narrow-mindedness, for no nation can be great whose people are narrow in thought or in action.

To the nations and peoples of the world, we send greetings and pledge ourselves to cooperate with them in furthering peace, freedom, and democracy. And to India, our much-loved motherland, the ancient, the eternal and the ever-new, we pay our reverent homage and we bind ourselves afresh to her service. Jai Hind."




The call letters/admit cards for the group discussion and interview round have been released. The Bank of Baroda has released an official notification regarding the availability of the PO Interview call letters on its official website.

The CWE for the recruitment of bank Probationary Officer (PO) posts was successfully conducted by the Bank of Baroda on September 25, 2016.

BOB had earlier released a notification for recruitment of 400 Probationary Officer (PO).

How to download call letters?

Candidates who have cleared the main written examination can download their admit cards for the interview round from the official website of BOB

Click on the live link 'Baroda Manipal School of Banking 2016-17 - Download the Call Letter for GD & PI'

Candidates will be redirected to a new page, now click on 'Call Letter for GD & PI'

Candidates have to now input their registration number or roll number along with their date of birth and captcha code to access their admit cards

On successful submission of the above details, PO exam admit cards/call letters will be displayed on your screen

Selection procedure:

Candidates will be selected based on their marks obtained in the written test and their performance in the group discussion and interview round. [Click here for more details on PO selection procedure.]

About BOB:

Bank of Baroda is an Indian state-owned banking and financial services company headquartered in Vadodara (earlier known as Baroda) in Gujarat, India. It is the second largest bank in India, next to State Bank of India.
New Mexico County Sheriff Allegedly Challenged City Mayor to Fist Fight

In the recently filed civil suit in New Mexico against Roosevelt County Sheriff Marlin Parker, the town of Elida's mayor, Durward Dixon, alleges the sheriff challenged him to a fist fight in the middle of the road. Dixon and Parker are at odds over Parker's alleged interference with the Elida police department's enforcement of law and order.

The lawsuit specifically claims that Sheriff Parker returned a dog to its owner after Elida police had taken the dog away for killing chickens. The sheriff returned the dog because he asserted that chickens are not livestock. When Dixon attempted to speak with the county sheriff, Parker refused to discuss the matter on a couple occasions, and on one occasion, according to Dixon, challenged him to a fist fight in the road.

Small Town Drama

Elida's mayor was not happy about filing the civil lawsuit, however he felt that there was no other recourse as his attempts to discuss the matter had fallen flat. Parker staunchly asserts that the challenge to fist fight never occurred and additionally asserts that the county sheriff did not stop Elida police from enforcing the law.

The town's residents are not pleased that their elected officials must resort to the courts to resolve seemingly petty squabbles.

Are Chickens Livestock? And Does It Matter?

State laws vary in how the term "livestock" is defined. Under federal law, in some code sections livestock includes chickens (fowl), but in other sections, fowl are specifically excluded from the definition. Regardless of whether chicken are considered livestock, if a dog attacks a person, animal, or thing, usually law enforcement is justified in removing the animal.

Under New Mexico law, the offending dog was properly removed and could have been designated as a potentially dangerous dog. New Mexico law does prohibit allowing a pet to chase domestic animals in a menacing fashion. Given that the dog in Elida killed chickens, it seems Sheriff Parker may have some explaining to do as to why the dog was returned.

Related Resources:
In order to grapple the problem of fake certificates, the Centre has come up with an innovative solution. The Cabinet had now given the nod to set up National Academic Depository (NAD) to maintain a set of records for all students from school to colleges.

What is NAD?

It is a collection of students' school leaving certificates, mark sheets, degrees, diplomas that will be stored digitally in de-mat format as in stocks. This will be done by National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL) and Central Depository Services Ltd (CDSL), the depositories registered under Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Act, 1992.

How long will it take to set up NAD?

According to the Cabinet meeting, the deadline for creating the depository is three months. Data from all educational institutes would be collected. The idea would be implemented in the year 2017-2018.

How was NAD initiated?

The idea of NAD was announced by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley during his budget speech in February this year.

According to a government press release, requests for access to academic awards, for example, from potential employers and academic institutions would be only on the basis of consent of the student. "The decision aims at bringing another dimension and enhancement of the vision of Digital India," the statement said.

''This would address the problem of fake certificates to a great extent,'' HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said. The educational institutions will have to take the responsibility for the credibility of the students data provided.

Details of educational institutions, boards, eligibility assessment bodies, students and other users will be registered in NAD after verification from banks, employer companies, government agencies and academic institutions. This database will be strictly confidential and authenticated, it is learnt.
To restore the quality of education in the state of Madhya Pradesh, the government headed by education minister Vijay Shah has decided to scrap the no-detention policy of the HRD Ministry.

The no-detention policy is a mandatory provision under the Right to Education (RTE) Act which will let students get promoted until Class 8 however be their performance in the academia.

The revokement of this policy will however become effective in the next academic session only.

This decision was taken by the MP government after the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) meet on October 25, 2017. In the hig-level meet, it was proposed that no child shall be failed till Class 5. The HRD Ministry had given a free hand to the states to decide over the no-detention policy for students beyond Class 5. [You might want to read details on the CABE meeting held on Oct 25]

The majority view of the MP government about not detaining students till Class 8 was adversely affecting learning and teaching levels.

Confirming the move, minister of state for school education Deepak Joshi said that the government convened a meeting and concluded the policy should be revoked to restore quality education.

"We reviewed the policy and found it was adversely affecting both students and teachers. We found teachers were taking their job for granted as they knew students would be anyway promoted to the next class," he said.

This policy will be applicable to all government and private schools in the state, except the schools following the CBSE pattern. According to 2009 RTE Act, primary and middle class students cannot be failed, irrespective of their performance in exams.

According to some surveys, the detention system raised the dropout rate among students, mostly belonging to the economically weaker sections.

To overcome the high dropout rate in schools, the no-detention policy was introduced to provide school children with an environment free from and anxiety of exam.

However, this policy did not bring-in a desired impact, claims the Madhya Pradesh government. Sources in education department said the policy failed because most schools were not complying with guidelines.
An all-star team of comics and science fiction people  impressario Glenn Hauman, writer David "Tribbles" Gerrold, and illustrator Ty Templeton  had their kickstarter for a Seuss/Trek parody "Oh, The Places You'll Boldly Go" unceremoniously shut down when the Seuss estate's notorious attack-lawyers threatened legal action, without any regard for the clear fair use at play.



Popehat's Ken White has lit his "Popehat Signal," looking for pro bono counsel to represent the creators against the dead hand of the Seuss estate.

I believe this project is protected by Fair Use. Under the first relevant factor, it's "transformative," in that it adds a new message or meaning to Dr. Seuss's work. It doesn't merely offer a Star Trek episode in Dr. Seuss style; rather, it uses the style to comment on and contrast the Stark Trek and Seuss sensibilities and styles. With respect to the "substantiality" factor, the parody only uses Seuss's recognizable and oft-parodied style; it does not copy actual art or story lines. With respect to the last factor, the work doesn't harm the market for Seuss's work. In other words, people won't buy less Seuss because they bought this parody.

Popehat Signal: Help Defend A Seuss-Trek Parody Under Fair Use

[Ken White/Popehat]
Ford is conducting three separate safety recalls in North America, covering almost 600,000 vehicles between them.



The first one revolves around 8,026 units of the Mustang GT350 and Mustang GT350R, whose engine oil cooler tube assemblies may have insufficient crimps on the hose that could lead to a hose separation and an oil leak, as the automaker explains.

This condition could lead to engine failure and, in extreme cases, increase the risk of a fire, but the manufacturer is not aware of any accidents or injuries associated with this issue. The pony cars that will have to be taken back to the dealers were built at Flat Rock Assembly Plant from February 24, 2015, to August 30, 2016, and include 6,523 examples in the United States, 957 in Canada, 346 in Mexico, and 59 in federalized territories.

The second safety campaign is also the largest one, as it covers 411,663 units of the 2010-2012 Ford Escape and 2010-2011 Mercury Mariner, powered by 3.0-liter engines, for potential fuel leaks, due to possible faulty fuel delivery modules. The Michigan-based giant hasnt received any reports of accidents or injuries related to this condition and states that dealers will replace the faulty parts free of charge.

For the third and final recall, Ford has turned to the 2017 Super Duty 6.7-liter diesel Chassis Cab vehicles, made in Kentucky from March 21 to August 28, this year, in 182 numbers, to replace the adhesive-mounted protective shield installed on the fuel conditioning module, with a bolt-on metallic protective one, as this could be dislodged. In extreme cases, water spray or road debris could force the drain valve to force open, allowing air to enter the fuel system or causing a substantial fuel leak. The Blue Oval, which is unaware of any accidents or injuries related to this issue, will have its dealers make the necessary replacements at no cost to the owners.

PHOTO GALLERY
Hyundai has launched the electric and hybrid versions of the Ioniq in the United Kingdom, with the first cars starting to arrive at select dealers.



The most affordable of the range is the Ioniq Hybrid, which kicks off from 19,995 (equal to $34,390) and benefits from standard 15-inch alloy wheels, cruise control, DAB with Bluetooth, rearview camera, rear parking sensors, autonomous emergency braking, lane keep assist, and tire pressure monitoring.

The mid-range Ioniq Hybrid Premium starts from 21,795 ($26,585) and adds bi-xenon headlights with LED rear combination lamps, keyless entry, push-button start, heated front seats and steering wheel, 7-inch display instrument cluster, sat-nav, Infinity audio system, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay compatibility, and Wireless Phone Charging, at no extra cost.

Priced from 23,595 ($28,780), the Ioniq Hybrid Premium SE adds leather seats, heated and ventilated front seats, heated leather-wrapped steering wheel, drivers power seat with memory function, Blind Spot Detection with Rear Cross Traffic Alert, front parking assist and a set of optional 17-inch wheels.

Boasting 174 miles (280 km) of zero-emission range, the Hyundai Ioniq Electric is also available for order across the UK, with a starting price set at 24,495 ($29,879) (including the Government Plug-In grant of 4,500/$5,489), which mirrors the Hybrid Premium and comes with LED headlights, rain-sensing wipers, sat-nav and 16-inch alloy wheels.

The Premium SE adds leather trim, heated and ventilated front seats, heated rear seats, leather-wrapped heated steering wheel, front parking sensors, Blind Spot Detection, and specific 16-inch alloy wheels.

All Ioniq EVs feature a standard rapid charge compatibility, which allows the battery to be charged up to 80 percent in 33 minutes.

Next spring, Hyundai will add the Ioniq Plug-In Hybrid to the range, with prices and specs to be announced closer to its on-sale date.

PHOTO GALLERY
Honda has amassed an impressive army of tuned models and concepts for next weeks 2016 SEMA show in Las Vegas, with the spotlight firmly placed on the tenth generation Civic compact.



Highlighting the compact models presence in Sin City, is the baddest one of them all, the new Honda Civic Type R prototype that has just been granted a US visa. Building on the new generation Civic hatch, it offers a preview of the next-years high-performance model, with little, if any changes expected on the production car.

Honda continues to keep its powertrain specs a secret, but word on the street has it that it will use an upgraded version of the 2.0-liter, turbod-four taken from the current model producing over 300 horses.

Joining it at the Las Vegas Convention Center from November 1 will be the 2017 Civic hatch, with a Euro-inspired styling fitted with the brands (tacky, if were to be honest) Factory Performance accessory concepts that add custom accessories such as a decklid spoiler, new emblems, brake rotors and carpet floor mats, in addition to the 19-inch alloy wheels and red underbody spoilers.

Arriving at the SEMA Show straight from the 2016 Global Rallycross season finale, the GRC Civic Coupe Competitive Race car will join the 2016 Coupe Racing Concept, with a FIA-approved safety cage, that will compete in domestic and international endurance events, debuting on December 3-4, at the USAF 25 Hour of Thunderhill.

Hondas extensive lineup will also include the SEGA Sonic Civic, which embodies the spirit of the Sonic the Hedgehog classic video game, as the manufacturer explains, adding custom wheels and tires, an updated exterior, a one-of-a-kind vinyl, and bespoke paint scheme. Inside, the car has special front and rear seats with Katzkin Blue Leather, Sonic the Hedgehog 25th Anniversary embroidered logos and a custom audio-visual system in the trunk, signed by Rockford Fosgate.

Designed as the ultimate street cruiser, the Honda Civic Coupe aLL STaR Performance / Tjin Edition comes with several exterior enhancements, an Axalta Sunrise yellow paint finish, special wheels, custom coilover kit, upgraded brakes and a Katzkin perforated suede and leather interior.

The Civic frenzy continues with the Coupe / MAD Industries, completed with carbon fiber bits and pieces and finished in Aegean Blue and Jet Black, on top of the custom interior. The one-off also benefits from the Eibach Pro Kit Performance Springs and 19-inch wheels and is joined by the Civic Sedan Meguiars Build  Civic X Concept, whose performance is boosted by Greddy Performance Products upgrades.

The last Civic to be shown in Las Vegas is the Body-In-White, which is designed to allow amateur and pro race teams the ability to build new race cars without having to tear apart a production car, according to Honda.

Moreover, a fleet of 2017 Ridgelines will sit on the showroom floor, including a Black Edition / MAD Industries Sport Truck, paired to a Powersports MAD Edition CB500F Naked Sport Bike, both of which come with a similar paint scheme Honda will also present a Tjin Edition that comes together with the TRX250X ATV, and the RTL-E / Fox Marketing, customized with a series of Honda Factory Accessories, and paired with the FourTrax Foreman Rubicon 44 ATV.

PHOTO GALLERY
Photo: Getty Images

In my July 6 MP report, I discussed the many proposed changes by the Liberal Government to increase Canadas CPP system.

That report can be found at http://www.danalbas.com/mp-report/changes-in-cpp.

This week's debate on expanded CPP, known as Bill C-26, is currently before the House of Commons where I voiced opposition.

As I believe in being accountable to citizens ,I would like to share some of the reasons why I believe now is not the ideal time to expand CPP.

One concern I heard loudly from small business owners was the obvious fact that expanded CPP will increase the costs of not only hiring new workers, but also increases payroll costs for existing workers.

It is for this reason that expanded CPP is often referred to as a payroll tax.

While no small business owners told me they would eliminate existing staff due to increased costs, many said future wage increases might instead be directed into covering the CPP increases or that hiring additional workers may be put on hold.

Given that Canadas job numbers are weak and economic growth forecasts are being downgraded, now is not the ideal time to increase employment costs to small business owners.

I also oppose expanded CPP because it is not an ideal retirement asset.

For those who do not live to 65 or only live a few years beyond 65, contributions paid to CPP are of no significant benefit to a spouse or family because the full value of the contributions cannot be transferred through an estate.

Conversely, a TFSA is fully transferable to your family though an estate and does not adversely impact small business job creators.

Ironically, the Liberal Government reduced TFSA contribution levels, arguing they were worried Canadians would be saving too much before turning around to announce plans to increase CPP over concerns citizens were not saving enough thus Government would do it for them.

One of the lesser known criticisms of CPP, and one I raised in Ottawa this week, was the fact that your CPP contributions are being consumed by significantly rising administration costs.

As well-known national media columnist, Andrew Coyne, has also pointed out staffing has increased at the CPP Investment board from five in 1999 to around 1,200 today.

Likewise, operating costs went from $3 million in 2000 to $803 million in 2015 and external management fees have risen from $36 million in 2006 to $1.25 billion in 2015.

These are significant administration increases, especially in light of the fact that the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions reports the CPP, although sustainable currently, has an unfunded liability of $9 billion.

Given that increased CPP adversely impacts small business job creators at a time when the economy is sluggish, this is a serious concern.

On top of that concern is the limited financial transportability of CPP.

As always I welcome your comments, questions and concerns on this or any topic. I can be reached at [email protected] or toll free at 1-800-665-8711.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.
Thank God it wasn't a real child.

A cautionary video prepared by the Delta Fire Department shows the explosive force of a car's airbags.

To drive home the message that small children should not be seated in the front of vehicles, the firefighters set one off  with a child seat and dummy sitting on top.

The resulting slow-motion video shows the dummy and seat launched at least 20 feet into the air.

The firefighters posted the video to Twitter with the message that airbags save lives, but can also do harm.

"Keep kids in the back seat please," they said.

Transport Canada recommends parents place children in the back seat when possible.

If not, turn off the airbags, if the car is so equipped.

 with files from CTV Vancouver
Photo: CTV

UPDATE: 4:20 p.m.

Police have arrested two people who raced across the U.S.-Canada border on motorcycles.

RCMP say the suspects drove separate motorcycles at 1 p.m. through a ditch near the Aldergrove border crossing.

One was arrested right away, but the other managed to escape.

Police used a helicopter to track the suspect to Willowbrook Mall in Langley. He was arrested shortly after.

ORIGINAL: 2:30 p.m.

There is a large police presence this afternoon around the Willowbrook Shopping Centre in Langley.

RCMP in Langley are searching the mall for a man who jumped the border near the Aldergrove border crossing.

Shortly before 1 p.m., two men, on separate motorcycles, attempted to jump the border. One of the men was apprehended while the other was able to make his way north in Canada.

A border patrol helicopter initiated surveillance before turning it over to the RCMP's Air One, which followed the suspect to the shopping centre.

Latest information from police suggests the suspect is no longer in the mall.

The Lower Mainland Emergency Response Team is assisting with the search.

More updates will be provided as they become available.
Photo: CTV

The mother of a teenager, missing since April, is clinging to hope that her daughter is still alive.

Mekayla Bali, 17, disappeared from her hometown of Yorkton, Sask. It was believed at the time that she may have headed to Vancouver.

Her mom, Paula Bali, has now made her second trek to the Lower Mainland, following up on potential sightings. She has now raised enough money to offer a $25,000 reward for information that helps find the teen.

"In my heart I believe she's alive. I don't believe she's safe. My gut tells me we need to look," Paula told CTV News.

Paula was outside Metrotown Mall in Burnaby, where people say they've seen Mekayla.

"We really have no reason why she may be here, and she hasn't expressed an interest to be here, but we're willing to follow up on any bit of information we receive," said Paula.

The worried mother said Mekayla's siblings have also struggled with the disappearance.

"My daughter just had her eighth birthday and she said 'My greatest birthday present would be for my sister to come home.'"

Police are trying to track down a man with a distinctive forearm tattoo of a fiery cross in connection with the case. Mekayla was last seen at a bus station with him.

She is described as 5-foot-2 and 115 pounds. She has blond hair and blue eyes, and she sometimes wears dark-rimmed glasses.

If you have information, contact Crime Stoppers or go to the Facebook page "Lets Bring Mekayla Bali Home."

 with files from CTV Vancouver
Photo: Parks Canada

UPDATE: 7:30 p.m.

Highway 1 has now been partially reopened west of Field, after a rock slide closed the busy highway Monday.

DriveBC reports the highway is now open to single-lane alternating traffic.

Despite the partial open, DriveBC warns of heavy congestion in the area and long delays.

UPDATE: 4:30 p.m.

DriveBC is reporting that Highway 1 is expected to reopen near Field by 8 p.m.

However, motorists are advised this will be to alternating, single-lane traffic only.

Expect long delays after the road opens due to heavy congestion.

ORIGINAL: 3:20 p.m.

The Trans-Canada Highway remains closed west of Field, but DriveBC is reporting it could open by 7 p.m.

The highway has been closed since Monday, after a rock slide brought down 10,000 cubic metres of debris in Yoho National Park.

Two rock scaling workers were injured in the slide, and two pieces of heavy equipment were caught in it.

Meanwhile, work continues to remove the debris and stabilize the rock face.

Since the closure, traffic has been detoured via Highway 95, south of Golden to Radium Hot Springs and back north on Highway 93.
Photo: CTV

British Columbia's police watchdog has concluded the death of a man in custody last week was not the fault of Mounties.

RCMP responded to calls of a break-in at a home in Coquitlam on Oct. 19.

Officers found a man who was severely injured and agitated, and police say a conducted-energy weapon, or Taser, was used on the suspect before taking him into custody.

The man went into medical distress shortly after the arrest and was taken to hospital where he died.

The Independent Investigation Office says the man's death was a result of injuries sustained before the police arrived, and was not connected with the use of the Taser.

The IIO investigates all incidents where people are harmed or killed as a result of police actions.
Photo: Contributed

B.C. parents are urging the province to follow Ontario's lead and ban waitlist fees at daycares.

They say the fees appear to be nothing more than a cash grab  without any guarantee of an eventual placement.

Ontario banned the practice of paying to hold a spot on Sept. 1.

Burnaby mom Sara Banjac was shocked to learn some daycares charge up to $200 to get on their waitlists.

"I paid it, just to get on the list and have a chance of getting a call. And I never did get a call," she told CTV.

In Richmond, Kristi O'Neill said she couldnt find a daycare that doesn't charge the fees, and paid to put her children on seven wait-lists.

"I still have not heard if we have a spot for March," she said. "Can I go back to work or not?"

Minister of Children and Families Stephanie Cadieux said Thursday she was unaware day cares charged such fees in B.C. and promised to look into it.

 with files from CTV Vancouver
Photo: Google Maps

Those travelling between Sicamous and Revelstoke will face significant delays this morning, as new avalanche control systems are being installed on Highway 1.

DriveBC reports there will be multiple closures along the highway from 43 kilometres east of Sicamous to nine kilometres west of Revelstoke between 8 and 11 a.m.

Highway crews will be installing a new remote avalanche control system at several points along the highway, including at Three Vally Gap.

Delays of up to 45 minutes are expected.
Photo: CTV

UPDATE: 11:45 a.m.

British Columbia's public safety minister has stepped in to reassure residents after several reports of targeted violence and deaths connected to gang activity in Metro Vancouver.

Mike Morris says B.C.'s anti-gang units have their targets set on known gang members and their associates and he has confidence the units are working hard on the investigations.

There was a shooting in Burnaby Wednesday that injured a man on the same day that human remains were found alongside a Langley street in what police said was a targeted killing.

On Oct. 16, Langley police said that a "well-established member" of the Hells Angels was murdered and they arrested a man the next day who was allegedly from another crime organization.

Morris says in a statement that he shares the public's concern about the risk to innocent bystanders to gang violence and police are working tirelessly to disrupt and stop these people.

The minister says two, newly established 10-person teams within the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit are now fully operational.

ORIGINAL: 9:45 a.m.

Police are investigating a shooting incident overnight at a Burnaby highrise.

Shots rang out outside the front door of the building on Rosser Avenue about 10:40 p.m.

RCMP believe the incident was targeted, but no one was injured.

It's the second police incident at the building in recent weeks, and the province's anti-gang task force is investigating.

 with files from CTV Vancouver
Photo: Contributed - USGS

The above map shows the location of the major quake and the aftershocks.

Strong aftershocks continue to hit the area near Haida Gwaii.

The latest reported by the USGS registered at 5.2 on Sunday, October 28, 2012 at 12:16:51 p.m. - Pacific Time, one of four (in red) which struck less than 25 minutes apart.

A 5.5 hit seven minutes earlier preceded by a 5.4 at 12:03 and a 6.3 at 11:54 a.m.

As well, there was a 5.1 at 9:17, a 4.2 at 7:04, a 4.1 at 6:45, a 4.8 at 6:09, a 4.1 at 5:38, a 4.0 at 5:18, a 4.1 at 5:05 and a 4.8 at 4:27.

A violent earthquake measuring 7.7 jolted British Columbia's north-central coast Saturday night, frightening residents and forcing many to temporarily leave their homes for higher ground ahead of a possible tsunami.

Tsunami warnings were issued for the North Coast, the Haida Gwaii islands, parts of the central BC coast, the coast of Alaska and as far away as Hawaii.

Early Sunday morning the warnings were downgraded to advisory status, meaning evacuations were no longer necessary, and they were cancelled altogether a few hours later.

Residents near the centre of the quake said the violent jolting lasted for up to a minute, but no injuries or major damage had been reported.

Carsten Ginsburg, who lives in the small community of Bella Coola southeast of Prince Rupert, said the quake lasted about 40 seconds.

"It shook everything. The electricity went out, the power lines were swinging all over the place and stuff was falling off the shelves."

Brent Ward, an earth scientist at Simon Fraser University, said the earthquake was the second largest to hit the country since 1949, when another earthquake was recorded in the same area with a magnitude of 8.1.

"It's an earthquake in an area that gets a lot of earthquakes," he said. "It's a tectonically active area."

Ward said the area is known as the Queen Charlotte fault, where the earth's plates slide horizontally across each other in a strike-slip action, similar to what happens along California's San Andreas fault.

"Stresses build up because of that movement, and every so often we get the release of that stress in the form of an earthquake."

Ward said he wasn't surprised the tsunami warning was shortlived because the strike-slip movement along the fault doesn't generally trigger tsunamis.

"To trigger a tsunami you need to have a vertical movement of the sea floor, and it's that vertical movement that displaces water and triggers the tsunami," he said. "Because it's sliding across each other, you're not generally moving the water."

In fact, hours after the earthquake, Dennis Sinnott, who works at the Institute of Ocean Sciences, said the largest wave hit Langara Island, a northern Haida Gwaii island, and measured just 69 centimetres.

The quake also set off emergency sirens across the Pacific on the islands of Hawaii, but even as people were moving to higher ground, the warning was called off.

In Alaska, the wave surge was just 10 centimetres, much smaller than officials had been forecasting.

Kelli Kryzanowski, manager of strategic initiatives Emergency Management BC, said the initial earthquake occurred at 8:04 p.m. inland on Haida Gwaii and was initially recorded at a magnitude of 7.1 but was quickly upgraded to a magnitude of 7.7.

Kryzanowski said small waves generated by the quake, measured at 28 centimetres and 44 centimetres, also hit the northern tip of Vancouver Island.

"What we're seeing at this time are relatively small sea-level fluctuations," she said.

BC Justice Minister Shirley Bond said there appeared to be little damage from the quake.

"We're certainly grateful at this point," said Bond, who spoke to reporters during a late night conference call. "We're very grateful for that, but we'll wait until we can actually see the impact."

After the quake, Ginsburg said he ran home as quickly as he could to see if there was a tsunami warning.

"Which of course there was," he added.

Ginsburg owns the Float House Inn on the public wharf in Bella Coola and had about six customers celebrating a birthday party.

They all evacuated to about 35 metres above sea level.

"I'm assuming that it's OK," he said laughing. "I'm keeping my fingers crossed."

Bella Coola resident Barb Cornish, 60, said she considers herself a very calm person.

"But I found it quite unnerving," she told The Canadian Press.

Cornish lives in a log house and had been told that it's one of the safest places to be in the event of an earthquake.

But she said it sure didn't feel safe Saturday night.

"The log house swayed and creaked and my light over my kitchen table was swaying, some chimes went off. I stood up and I could feel the undulations under my feet, to the point where I almost got nauseated."

--From the Canadian Press

Here is a list of the quakes and their locations:(All times UTC)

5.3 206km S of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 09:17:27 52.159N 132.149W 10.2

4.2 215km S of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 09:15:48 52.102N 131.653W 10.0

4.5 208km SW of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 08:47:58 52.901N 134.629W 10.0

4.3 216km S of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 08:22:04 52.066N 132.073W 10.0

5.0 198km SSE of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 07:25:22 52.270N 131.493W 10.6

4.9 140km S of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 07:16:37 52.775N 132.456W 11.3

4.6 212km S of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 07:12:14 52.109N 132.221W 10.0

4.4 231km S of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 07:02:19 51.941N 131.836W 10.8

5.0 203km SSE of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 06:16:53 52.268N 131.212W 11.5

4.5 139km SSW of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 05:51:17 52.815N 132.714W 10.3

4.2 181km SSE of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 05:47:08 52.429N 131.451W 10.1

4.1 248km S of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 05:38:38 51.786N 132.312W 10.1

4.3 211km S of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 05:21:36 52.139N 131.571W 10.0

4.3 169km S of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 05:15:12 52.499N 132.222W 10.1

4.5 178km S of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 05:02:49 52.409N 132.165W 10.3

4.3 180km S of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 04:54:46 52.403N 132.439W 10.1

4.7 162km SSW of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 04:41:05 52.592N 132.670W 10.0

4.6 140km SSW of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 04:33:51 52.906N 133.120W 10.0

5.1 237km SSW of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 04:25:17 52.019N 133.370W 10.1

4.8 202km S of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 03:52:24 52.199N 131.986W 10.9

7.7 139km S of Masset, Canada 2012-10-28 03:04:10 52.769N 131.927W 17.5

Check here for the US Geological site.
If you have just started your journey in an online casino or are looking for a new site to play,...
Cemex Latam Holdings 9M16 net sales fall 8%

28 October 2016

Cemex Latam Holdings SA (CLH) announced that its consolidated net sales reached US$1012m in the 9M16. This is a fall of eight per cent during the first nine months of 2016 compared to same period of 2015. The decline was mainly explained as a result of foreign exchange fluctuations and the effect of lower cement volumes from our operations in Panama and Costa Rica.

Jaime Muguiro, CEO of CLH, said: "Despite challenging demand dynamics in markets like Colombia, Panama and Costa Rica, we have delivered strong results. Our EBITDA increased three per cent despite of a decline of four per cent in net sales [in 3Q16], supported by EBITDA margin expansion in all of our operations, compared with the same period in 2015."

Operating EBITDA during the third quarter of 2016 increased by three per cent, while for the first nine months of the year decreased by two per cent, compared to the same periods in 2015. Adjusting for foreign-exchange fluctuations, operating EBITDA in the first nine months of the year increased by six per cent versus the same period in 2015.

During the first nine months of 2016, consolidated cement, ready-mix and aggregates volumes declined by one, 10 and 15 per cent, respectively, compared to 2015. Adjusting for the effect of foreign-exchange fluctuations, net sales and EBITDA in Colombia increased by five and six per cent, respectively, during the first nine months of the year on a YoY basis.

During the first nine months of the year, cement volumes in Colombia increased by two per cent, while ready-mix and aggregates volumes decreased by nine and 15 per cent, respectively, compared with the same period a year ago. Operating EBITDA in Colombia decreased by one per cent to US$60m versus US$61m in 3Q15, with a decline of two per cent in net sales reaching US$173m.

In Panama during the third quarter EBITDA and EBITDA margin increased by eight per cent and 5.1 percentage points, respectively, compared to same period in 2015. Operating EBITDA increased by eight per cent to US$32m during the quarter. Net sales reached US$70m in the third quarter of 2016, a decrease of four per cent compared with the same period in 2015.



In Costa Rica operating EBITDA reached US$14m during the quarter, decreasing by six per cent compared to the same period a year ago. Net sales declined by nine per cent to US$38m, compared with 3Q15.

Free cash flow after total capital expenditures reached US$73m during the 9M16. Strategic capital expenditures were US$32m in the quarter used mainly for our capacity expansion project in Colombia.

Jaime Muguiro added, "We are encouraged by our free-cash-flow generation after total capex, which during the third quarter increased 90 per cent year over year. Our strong cash flow generation was supported by successful working capital initiatives. Our average working capital days in the third quarter were negative for the second consecutive quarter, decreasing by 18 days compared with the third quarter 2015. We have released close to US$70m in working capital investment in the past 12 months."

During the third quarter of 2016, controlling interest net income reached US$43m, increasing 23 per cent compared to the same period of 2015. Net debt was reduced during the third quarter of 2016 to US$969m.

Published under
Cemex' gearing declines to a still high 164 per cent

ICR Newsroom By 28 October 2016

During the first nine months of the year, Cemex' turnover eased by 1.9 per cent to US$10,467.4m, while EBITDA was 8.5 per cent ahead at US$2138.1m. The trading profit advanced by 15 per cent to US$1452.2m while the net interest charge declined by 6.3 per cent to US$888.9m. The pretax profit more than trebled from US$164.7m to US$689.5m. The tax charge declined from 128.4 per cent to 18.2 per cent, leading to a net attributable loss being turned into a US$533.6m profit. The net debt at the end of September was 10.4 per cent lower than a year earlier at US$13,965m, giving a gearing level of 163.9 per cent compared with the 183.5 per cent shown a year earlier. However, only three per cent of the gross debt is short term. The number of employees at the end of September was 0.3 per cent lower at US$42,484. In the full year, Cemex is expecting capital expenditure to reach around US$700m, of which some US$460m would be for maintenance.

Mexico accounted for 20.7 per cent of turnover, compared with 20.3 per cent a year earlier and the Mexican share of EBITDA was 37.3 per cent compared with 37.2 per cent a year earlier. The USA represented 28.9 per cent (24.9 per cent) of turnover and 22.3 per cent (19.9 per cent) of EBITDA. South and Central America produced 12.6 per cent (13.6 per cent) of the turnover and 20.3 per cent (22.6 per cent) of EBITDA, while Europe represented 23.9 per cent (24.3 per cent) of turnover and for 14.1 per cent (15.3 per cent) of EBITDA, and Asia and Africa contributed 11.8 per cent (11.5 per cent) of turnover and 14.4 per cent (13.8 per cent) of EBITDA. Cement shipments in the nine-month period showed a 1.4 per cent improvement to 50.78Mt, while aggregates deliveries increased by 1.8 per cent to 113.07Mt and ready-mixed concrete deliveries were off by 1.6 per cent to 39.14Mm.

The Mexican turnover was 0.6 per cent lower at US$2162.9m, the fourth successive decline. However, EBITDA improved by 8.4 per cent to US$797m and the trading profit rose by 12.8 per cent to US$699.3m. Domestic deliveries of grey cement improved by three per cent and the third quarter showed a 10 per cent advance. Cement prices improved by 18 per cent in local currency, but by just one per cent in US dollar terms. The aggregates volume was very marginally lower and average domestic prices improved by seven per cent, it eased by nine per cent in US dollar terms. Ready-mixed concrete deliveries were off by seven per cent while the local currency price improved by an average eight per cent but came off by seen per cent in US dollar terms.

The US turnover advanced by 1.8 per cent to US$3021.6m as the trading environment continued to improve and the EBITDA advanced by 21.5 per cent to US$476.4m. At the trading level, the profit jumped by 89.5 per cent to US$177.6m. Housebuilding remained a positive factor, single-family housing increasing by two per cent while overall housing starts were off by the same percentage. Industrial and commercial building activity remained weak while infrastructural demand softened after a strong start as projects were delayed and state spending reduced. Grey cement deliveries increased by four per cent in the nine months but declined by two per cent in the third quarter, with the average price improving by four per cent. Shipments of aggregates improved by three per cent but declined by two per cent in the third quarter. In ready-mixed concrete, delivery volumes rose by two per cent but declined by two per cent in the third quarter with prices improving by one per cent.

The Cemex operations in South America, Central America and the Caribbean saw turnover decline by 9.3 per cent to US$1323.9m and EBITDA was 2.8 per cent lower at US$434.1m and the trading profit was off by 2.4 per cent to US$377.4m. Cement volumes advanced by one per cent over the period but declined by two per cent in the third quarter. Prices in local currency were two per cent ahead while they were off by six per cent in US dollar terms. Aggregates volumes were one per cent higher and local prices were eight per cent ahead, while in ready-mixed concrete, volumes fell by 14 per cent though prices were two per cent ahead. In Colombia, the biggest market, cement volumes declined by five per cent, but local prices improved by seven per cent, with aggregates volumes declining by 15 per cent though prices improved by 13 per cent while in ready-mixed concrete volumes were off by nine per cent, but prices improved by five per cent. In Panama volumes declined across the board and by double figures in cement.

Cemex' European turnover declined by 3.6 per cent to US$2501.5m but EBITDA edged ahead by 0.4 per cent to US$302.2m while the trading profit improved by 2.9 per cent to US$155.9m. Deliveries of grey cement recovered by one per cent in the nine months but declined by two per cent in the third quarter. Aggregates shipments across the region recovered by four per cent and ready-mixed concrete deliveries were ahead by two per cent. Cement deliveries improved by seven per cent in Great Britain, eased by one per cent in Spain and were broadly stable in Germany and Poland. Cement prices improved by two per cent in Great Britain, while they came off by four per cent in Poland and by two per cent in Germany and Spain. In aggregates volumes rose by six per cent in Great Britain and in France, and by one per cent in Germany but declined by seven per cent in Spain and by one per cent in Poland. Aggregates prices improved by two per cent in Germany and in Poland, were stable in Great Britain but were off by one per cent in France and by two per cent in Spain. Ready-mixed concrete volumes improved by five per cent in France, by four per cent in Poland and by three per cent in Spain but were off by three per cent in Great Britain and stable in Germany. Ready-mixed concrete prices improved by two per cent in both Britain and in Germany, but declined by four per cent in France and in Poland and by six per cent in Spain.

Asian and African turnover edged ahead by 0.3 per cent to US$1234.1m and EBITDA rose by 12.9 per cent to US$307.8m. Cement volumes improved by four per cent across the region, with volumes advancing by 10 per cent in Egypt and by four per cent in the Philippines. The average cement price was one per cent ahead in local currency terms but off by six per cent in US dollar terms, with prices improving by two per cent in The Philippines but declining by two per cent in Egypt. In aggregates, volumes improved by seven per cent and the average price was four per cent ahead, while in ready-mixed concrete, volumes were off by two per cent, but prices improved by two per cent. There are still no downstream operations in the Philippines.

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(TNS) -- PROVIDENCE, R.I.  South Street Landing, the largest current development project in Providence, is on track to be completed by January.Developer CV Properties LLC, of Boston and Southport, Connecticut, is turning the long-vacant, cavernous old South Street Power Station into Brown University administrative offices and a shared nursing education center for the University of Rhode Island and Rhode Island College.Students are expected to start classes next fall, CV Properties spokesman Eric Cote tells The Providence Journal. Nursing students will practice what they're learning in simulated emergency rooms  facilities designed to replicate a hospital setting. Brown University will occupy the two top floors of the building, which the developer is adding to the original structure.Who: Developer Richard A. Galvin, founder of CV Properties, is leading the redevelopment project. Galvin, 59, graduated from Brown with an economics degree in 1979. Gilbane Inc., the Providence construction and real-estate development firm, is supervising the work of more than three dozen subcontractors. Technically, two separate real-estate entities (affiliated with CV Properties) and National Grid own the land beneath the project.What: The former power station once generated most of the electrical power for the city of Providence. Now, the redevelopment project is expected to include the renovated and expanded university building, a parking garage and two new seven-story apartment buildings collectively called The River House, with 174 apartments for Brown graduate students and others.When: Talk of creating shared space for the two schools' nursing programs dates back four or five years. By June 2013, the three universities, Galvin and state and city leaders were deep into negotiations about how to turn the old power station into a shared facility. Groundbreaking was December 2014.Where: South Street Landing has a strikingly high-profile presence in the city's Jewelry District, a brick behemoth near Route 195 at the intersection of South and Eddy streets. It's riverfront property, on the west side of the Providence River. It's also just south of about 26 acres of vacant former Route 195 land that state leaders are working to develop.Why: Galvin got involved when he replied to Brown's request for a developer to build student housing near its new medical school, which opened in 2011 in a renovated jewelry factory on Eddy Street. The idea of converting the old power station into university space emerged as Galvin and university leaders grappled with the question of what to do with the "hulking, empty building."Project cost: $220 million, according to CV Properties.Price of property: $5,290,301, paid on July 27, 2015, for the old power station and 3.66 acres (four separate parcels), according to the city assessor's office.CV South Street Landing LLC, of San Diego, California, paid $2,290,301 for 350 Eddy St., the parcel with the old power station.CV River House LLC, of the same San Diego address, paid $3 million for 2 South St., 11 Point St. and 15 Point St., the parcels where the apartments will be built.Investors: When CV Properties announced its purchase of the South Street building that summer, the development firm announced it did so with an undisclosed investment from Wexford Science & Technology of Baltimore, a real-estate investment and development company.Historic tax credits are helping finance the project: $22 million in federal credits and $27 million in state credits.Taxes: The City of Providence granted the South Street Landing project three separate tax-stabilization agreements in 2014 and 2015, for the three parts of the project. Those agreements limit the taxes owed on the garage, the nursing school and the apartment buildings through 2029. In the early years, those three properties will be billed $297,863 in taxes, an amount that will increase to $1.23 million by 2029. In all, the three properties are expected to generate about $10 million in property taxes over 15 years.Lease payments: Once URI and RIC begin operating the Nursing Education Center, the two state colleges (and, therefore, Rhode Island taxpayers) will pay an estimated $6 million annually to CV Properties to lease about half the converted power station. Separately, Brown will lease its administrative space.Parking payments: Initially, the state will pay CV Properties $360,000 annually for Nursing Education Center spaces in the garage. That amount will rise to about $470,000 in the seventh year of the lease and eventually adjust to reflect fair market value.Options: The leases for the nursing school building offer Brown and the state the option to buy their respective leased portions of the property in years 6 and 12.The main building: Will house university nursing classrooms and administrative offices.Parking garage: CV Properties is building a 744-space parking garage that's northwest of the main building  on about 1 acre of a 5.5-acre parcel owned by National Grid, which is being leased to the developer. The garage is on track to be completed by year's end. In response to critics who have questioned why the building doesn't seem to match initial architectural renderings, Cote said it's not finished. When it is, he said it will look like those renderings. Then, he predicts, people will realize, "Oh, this is actually a very nice garage and it has aesthetic appeal."Electrical substation: National Grid began construction in the spring on a new substation, sandwiched between the parking garage and the Providence River, to replace the old substation that is still attached to the main South Street Landing building. That substation now helps power the Providence Hurricane Barrier, the main Brown University campus and several hospitals. Work is expected to be complete in 2018, National Grid spokesman David Graves said. Once power is switched over from the old to the new substation, the existing substation will be demolished.Quick view: National Grid's " Work Zone Cam " offers a time-lapse movie of the substation construction. As everything moves at warp speed on your screen, you'll see not only work on the substation but also the parking garage rise up on the vacant land. Then, to see the current status of the project, click on the Home icon at the bottom left of the screen.The River House: CV Properties expects in early 2017 to begin building these two new apartment buildings on the Davol Square parking lot that's south of the main building, spokesman Eric Cote said. Those who now park there are expected to begin using the new parking garage. The River House is scheduled for completion in 2018.Next steps: CV Properties and Wexford, the two firms developing and financing the South Street Landing redevelopment project, have also proposed building a life-sciences complex on about 5 acres of former Route 195 land. That land is visible from South Street Landing, across Eddy Street and to the north. Negotiations continue among those firms, Commerce Secretary Stefan Pryor and the I-195 Redevelopment District Commission.Galvin has said the first phase of that three-phase project would cost about $250 million. Wexford's corporate ownership has since changed, but talks continue with state leaders.
For a rough introduction to my philosophy of blogging, including the Code of Amiability Ito follow on this weblog, please read my fifth anniversary post . I consider blogging to be a very informal type of publishing - like putting up thoughts on your door with a note asking for comments. Nothing in this weblog is done rigorously: it's a forum to let my mind be unruly, a place for jottings and first impressions. Because I consider posts here to be 'literary seedings' rather than finished products, nothing here should be taken as if it were anything more than an attempt to rough out some basic thoughts on various issues. Learning to look at any topic philosophically requires, I think, jumping right in, even knowing that you might be making a fool of yourelf; so that's what I do. My primary interest in most topics is the flow and structure of reasoning they involve rather than their actual conclusions, so most of my posts are about that. If, however, you find me making a clear factual error, let me know; blogging is a great way to get rid of misconceptions.
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About Censored News Censored News is published by Brenda Norrell. Since 2006, Censored News has received more than 20 million pageviews. As a collective of writers, photographers and broadcasters, we publish news of Indigenous Peoples and human rights. Contact publisher Brenda Norrell: brendanorrell@gmail.com

From the publisher Censored News is published by Brenda Norrell, a journalist in Indian country for 40 years. Norrell created Censored News after she was censored and terminated as a staff reporter at Indian Country Today in 2006. She began as a reporter at Navajo Times during the 18 years that she lived on the Navajo Nation. She was a stringer for AP and USA Today and later traveled with the Zapatistas through Mexico. She has been blacklisted by all the mainstream media for 14 years. Contact brendanorrell@gmail.com

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Entertainment / Music

by Staff reporter

THE Kalanga Language and Cultural Development Association (KLCDA) will tomorrow host the 2016 edition of the Luswingo Kalanga Cultural Festival at Luswingo Heritage Site in Tokwana Village, Bulilima District.KLCDA executive secretary Ntando Dumani said the festival, being held under the theme: "Tolumbidza milenje nemipanga yedu (Promoting our culture and traditions)", was part of efforts by the association to preserve Kalanga traditional and cultural practices.Some of the activities include traditional music and dance, poetry, drama, Kalanga jazz and an exhibition of traditional foods, cultural ruins and artefacts.Artists from Botswana and South Africa are expected to attend the fete where local dance groups and poets will also perform.Maretha Dube from the Zimbabwe Indigenous Languages Promotion Association will be the guest of honour."KLCDA will also facilitate a lecture on Kalanga history relating to Luswingo while the highlight of the day will be a guided tour of Luswingo Heritage Site," said Dumani.Luswingo heritage site is located 36 kilometres north of Plumtree Town on a hill by the banks of Thekwane River in Bulilima.It was built by BaKalanga in their distinguished workmanship in the fashion of Masvingo and Khami heritage sites as well as Mapungubgwe and Domboshaba heritage sites in South Africa and Botswana respectively.Though much smaller in size, the stone walled settlement exhibits the combination of both structural and civil engineering skills of early civilisation. 'Luswingo' is a Kalanga word which means 'stone wall'. The heritage site was established to serve as a fortress for the purposes of security.Luswingo Heritage Site was one of the key settlements of BaKalanga in Bulilima as it is between Dombodema and Tokwana areas which are the areas of origin for most BaKalanga in Bulilima who later dispersed to settle in various parts of Bulilima and beyond."Luswingo, like all other similar structures had a spiritual significance to the Kalanga people."The site had however, become a neglected place and we want to revive it so that people can realise its significance once again. We want to turn the site into a renowned artefact," said Dumani.He said the Luswingo Cultural Festival was a way of retracing the steps of the Kalanga community to their cradle in Bulilima District.
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News / National

by Staff reporter

Six Zimbabweans suspected of plotting to overthrow President Robert Mugabe's government are being held by the Hawks in Limpopo following their arrest a fortnight ago.The five men and a woman, aged between 22 and 34, were apprehended at the Grobler's Bridge Border Post in Witpoort near Lephalale on their way to Mozambique to receive military training to force regime change in neighboring Zimbabwe.According to the Hawks, the suspects were arrested with the help of foreign military assistance.Their arrest comes shortly after claims by a Zimbabwean "terrorist" group, Smoke That Thunders, that Mozambique's Renamo bandits had offered them a military training base. The group claimed they were preparing to forcefully end Mugabe's 36-year rule before Christmas.In a video posted online, a man who identifies himself as the group's commander, Jeff Judahosana, said the Mozambique-based group was recruiting men between the ages of 20 and 45.
Best Time to Drink Meal Replacement Shake

Best time to drink meal replacement shake, Protein shakes can be an alternative to meet ones protein needs. When is the best time to drink meal replacement shakes? The best time to drink protein shakes is after exercise and while recovering from illness. The amount one requires is different from person to person.

Interestingly, protein shakes are also safe for consumption even by diabetics. If you have met the best time to drink protein shakes, then the benefits will be maximized.

Best Time to Drink Meal Replacement Shake

Protein requirements vary from one individual to another. Call it the athletes, maybe their needs are higher according to the level of exercise they do. In general, the requirement is 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight.

Furthermore, here is the best time to drink a meal replacement shake:

Recovery period

When in the recovery period after illness or wound healing, a person needs more protein. This is because the body needs protein to build and repair muscles, skin, and other body tissues.

In addition, for those who are sick, the presence of protein also helps fight infection. At the same time, the bodys fluid balance is also better maintained. This protein also helps distribute oxygen throughout the body.

After exercising

The Best time to drink a meal replacement shake with protein is right after an exercise. Not only does it help the recovery process and muscle synthesis, but this nutritious drink also makes you feel full longer.

Whats more, the option to drink protein shakes is much more practical than having to eat a full plate. The recommendation is 20 grams of protein to help with muscle recovery. This figure can add up to 40 grams depending on the intensity and duration of the exercise.

A filling snack

Protein shakes can also be consumed as a snack or part of the lunch meal replacement if time does not allow. So, it is suitable for active and busy individuals. Its easy to make a protein shake and can keep you full for a long time.

If necessary, increase the consumption of vegetables and fruit. In addition, you can also combine carbohydrates and healthy fats to add nutrition.

The aging process

For elderly people, its never too late to try this drink. In fact, it is one of the best times to drink protein shakes. Because, the aging period is a stage of life when nutrients such as protein, calcium, and vitamin D are needed.

Its most important function is of course to maintain bone health. Especially for elderly people who are not sure they can meet their nutritional needs, then protein shakes can be an additional daily nutrient.

Before bed

The best time to drink meal replacement shake can also be just before bedtime. Primarily, for individuals who want to improve performance and recovery after exercise. Likewise for those who are in the program to build muscle.

Why before bed? Because the body can digest and absorb optimally. This will increase the availability of protein for muscle recovery throughout the night at rest.

It is recommended to consume the type of protein casein. This is because the casein digestion process takes place slowly enough so that it can meet protein needs stably overnight.

Is too much protein harmful?

There is a myth that is often circulated that consuming too much protein will be bad for health. Mainly, because it is considered to damage the kidneys and liver. In addition, it can also cause osteoporosis.

However, it should be emphasized that these kinds of myths are not based on scientific evidence. Instead, there are more findings that consuming a lot of protein does not cause harmful side effects. Even so, consuming protein in moderation is much better than consuming it in excess.

The average adult can benefit from consuming 1.4 to 2 grams per kilogram of body weight. Those who consume protein shakes to prevent a decrease in muscle mass, can consume the lower limit of the lowest recommendation. Meanwhile, for those who want to build muscle or lose weight, choose the lowest recommended limit.

Protein is a versatile source of nutrition. That is why, as much as possible do not let the body lack protein. Consuming protein shakes can be an option for those who are worried that their daily diet does not meet their nutritional needs in the form of protein.

The best time to drink meal replacement shake can be at mealtime, while recovering from illness, after exercise, and even before bed. Justly adapted to the requirements of the individual.

Are Meal Replacement Shakes Good for Breakfast

Is it ok to drink meal replacement shakes? Its okay to make your protein shake as a snack, however, you need to think again about making it a substitute for breakfast, or meal replacement shakes for lunch. Although many shakes are loaded with vitamins and fiber, its still better to eat a full menu at your meal to ensure your needs are met and get them from healthy, natural sources.

Because protein shakes are generally made from high protein milk ingredients. Protein alone can indeed help to lose weight, but the nutritional needs of a human being are very complex and not just protein. There is no single type of food in this world that is perfect and can meet the needs except breast milk for babies under 6 months. Therefore, you must get the nutrients your body needs by eating a variety of foods every day.
News / National

by Stephen Jakes

Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP) has called for an urgent cessation of the disturbing trend of violent disruptions of public hearings as witnessed in Harare, Mutare, Mutoko and lately Bulawayo.The organisation said in line with Section 149 (1) of the Zimbabwean Constitution, Election Resource Centre (ERC) is holding countrywide public hearings in Bulawayo, Concession, Gwanda, Gweru, Harare, Mutare and Mutoko."The hearings are aimed at gathering the views of the nation on the petition calling for the right to vote for all eligible voters, electoral justice, a continuous process of voter education, independence of Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) and an improved voter registration process," said ZPP."Rowdy Zanu PF youths, women and known Members of Parliament disrupted in a barbaric way the three meetings that have been held so far. In Mutare Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Committee chairperson Jessie Majome and MDC-T Chief Whip and Mutare Central MP, Innocent Gonese, were assaulted in the violent incident."ZPP said these acts remind us of the violent disruptions that marked some of the hearings around the National Peace and Reconciliation Bill as well as some constitution outreach processes."When citizens gather to hear views and to offer views on certain critical matters such as elections, political activists regardless of affiliation have no place impinging on the rights of those citizens," ZPP said."ZPP is equally disturbed by the violence that took centre stage in the August House on Wednesday October 26. It is sad that some female members of the house allege being indecently abused by the police. ZPP expects officers of the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) to restore law and order when such public and constitutional meetings are held. Zimbabweans cannot tolerate a system that allows for political party supporters to perpetrate violence with impunity."ZPP said Zimbabweans have the right to convene and discuss issues of national interest without fear of victimisation, intimidation or harassment."Zanu PF leaders, youths and women should be reined in by the respective political party leadership and be instructed to respect national processes. At the same time police should be reminded of their mandate as the nation can no longer have incidents where violence is perpetrated either by police or in the presence of police offers without any consequences," ZPP said.
News / National

by Thobekile Zhou

Zanu PF youths disrupted a Justice Legal and Parliamentary Committee meeting on Iminyela Hall in Bulawayo on Friday morning.Police details stood aside without intervening.The meeting has been called off.A similar meeting descended into violence in Mutare leading to committee chair, MDC-T legislator Jessie Majome being manhandled.
Fappening Hacker Ryan Collins Gets 18-Month Prison Sentence

Trending News: The Guy Who Hacked J Law And Kim K Is Finally Getting Jail Time

Why Is This Important?

Because justice has finally been served  but is it enough?

Long Story Short

The guy who hacked the iCloud accounts of over 100 celebrities including Jennifer Lawrence, Kate Upton and Kim Kardashian has been sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Long Story

Ryan Collins is a 36-year-old dad of two from Pennsylvania. He also sparked probably the biggest and far-reaching celebrity scandal in history between 2012 and 2014  and now he's going to prison.

U.S. District Judge William W. Caldwell slapped Collins with 18 months in federal prison for using an elaborate phishing scheme to convince over 100 celebs to give over their iCloud and Gmail log-in info, leading to the scandal known as

The Fappening," reports The Hollywood Reporter. However, Collins wasn't charged with disseminating the pics to 4Chan, where many people first saw the nude pics.

The prison sentence received by Mr. Collins is proof that hacking into the accounts of others and stealing private information or images is a crime with serious consequences," said Deirdre Fike, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBIs Los Angeles Field Office, according to Fortune.

The court said there were more than 600 victims of the hack, primarily female celebrities, but didn't list their names.

Collins isn't the only one who'll sit behind bars for perpetrating the hack known as the Fappening or CelebGate. Edward Majerczyk, a 28-year-old from Illinois, was already charged back in March for his participation in a phishing scam that duped celebs to give out their iCloud and Gmail passwords.

The Fappening was back in the news recently after Ken Bone was discovered to have posted on Reddit that he'd seen the celebrity nude pics. "I saw [Jennifer Lawrence's] butt hole," he said. "I liked it."

Condemning the leaks in a 3000-word interview about the leaks said the Fappening is "not a scandal, it's a sex crime," adding that "it's a sexual violation. It's disgusting. The law needs to be changed, and we need to change."

Will things change? Doubtful. If something comes out like this again, millions of people will probably click  but maybe, just maybe, some won't.

Own The Conversation

Ask The Big Question

Will this prosecution deter future hackers?

Disrupt Your Feed

This seems like way too short of a prison sentence for all the grief this guy caused.

Drop This Fact

Collins originally faced 5 years in jail, but his guilty plea deal recommended 18 months.
A ground-breaking interactive pro bono website that is being launched across the country had its roots in Tennessee, officials said.



The American Bar Association is in the midst of rolling out ABAFreeLegalAnswers.org, the nation's first interactive pro bono site that will help low income citizens obtain free legal advice. The purpose of the website is to increase access to advice and information about non-criminal legal matters to those who cannot afford it. There is no fee for the use of the system or for the advice and information provided by the lawyer.



The ABA adopted the Tennessee model for this national online legal advice platform after seeing the success of TN.FreeLegalAnswers.org, previously known as OnlineTNJustice.org. A joint project of the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services and Tennessee Bar Association, TN.FreeLegalAnswers.org allows Tennesseans to seek free legal advice from volunteer lawyers. Since the website's launch in 2011, it has handled more than 12,500 questions with the assistance of 500 lawyer volunteers.



In 2015, the ABA decided to establish a national online legal advice platform using the Tennessee model, which was the first statewide resource of its type in the country. Currently more than 40 states across the country have signed up to participate in ABAFreeLegalAnswers.org.



George T. "Buck" Lewis, chair of the ABA Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service, notes the impact that these interactive websites can have in helping low income citizens. "In Tennessee alone, we've seen how these online services can help thousands of people who need legal assistance but can't afford a lawyer," Mr. Lewis said. "Magnify that impact across more than 40 states and cities, and you have a very powerful tool for providing timely and critical help to low income people across the nation."



Mr. Lewis, a shareholder in the Memphis office of Baker Donelson, is past chair of the Tennessee Supreme Court's Access to Justice Commission and past president of the Tennessee Bar Association. Mr. Lewis was instrumental in spearheading the development of the Tennessee site, which runs on software created and donated by the IT department of Baker Donelson. Baker Donelson has continued to provide support during the development of the national site.
First Tennessee Bank has paired with Operation HOPE, a financial literacy and economic empowerment nonprofit, to open a new HOPE Inside location in Chattanooga. The new office is inside the First Tennessee branch at 5526 Brainerd Road. The office will provide free credit and money management, homeownership, and small business counseling.

A grand opening event is scheduled for Monday from 3:30-5 p.m.

One of the programs that will be available at the new Chattanooga office, called the HOPE 700 Credit Scores Initiative, focuses on raising client credit scores to 700 through active counseling. On average, credit scores have risen 120 points over the 18-month training course.

HOPE Inside leaders counsel clients on the language of money, transforming established financial mindsets, and creating action plans to improve the way they manage money.

District 6 Councilwoman Dr. Carol Berz said of the launch, The effect HOPE Inside will have on Chattanooga is huge. By empowering individuals to make well-informed decisions with their money, the community as a whole will become stronger. Im excited to have the first HOPE Inside located in my district and appreciate First Tennessee working so hard to promote financial literacy.

First Tennessee Chattanooga market president Jeff Jackson also stated, We are proud to pair with Operation HOPE to bring financial literacy and training to the underserved communities of Chattanooga. First Tennessee understands that a successful community begins with knowledge and understanding of finances, and we are prepared to offer these tools through the HOPE Inside office.






AkzoNobel has inaugurated two new specialty chemicals plants at its multi-site in Ningbo, China, that together represent a combined investment of 80 million. The company has also announced that a further 90 million is to be invested in building a new specialty chemicals plant in Tianjin.

The new facilities in Ningbo are for the Surface Chemistry and Polymer Chemistry businesses. The state-of-the-art site in Tianjin - to be located at the Nangang Chemical Park - is also being constructed for the Polymer Chemistry business and will replace its existing plant in the area.

"There is increasing demand for innovative and more sustainable chemical products and these new facilities will enable us to continue meeting our customers' growing needs," said Werner Fuhrmann, AkzoNobel's Executive Committee member responsible for Specialty Chemicals. "As well as enhancing our customer focus, these investments also highlight our focus on organic growth and our commitment to further strengthening our market positions in China."

The new facilities at the Ningbo site include an alkoxylation facility - which will provide surfactants for the agrochemical, cleaning, viscose and animal feed industries - as well as the company's largest unit for making organic peroxides that are used in the production of crosslinked rubber. The investment will underline AkzoNobel's position as the world's largest organic peroxides producer.

"Investing in state-of-art specialty chemicals facilities, with a focus on sustainability, is only natural as we continue our growth journey in China," explained Dr. LIN Liangqi, President of AkzoNobel China.

Commenting on the inaugurations, Director of the CMC in Ningbo Petrochemical District, Zuyou Hu said: "I am delighted to see AkzoNobel's continued long-term commitment in Ningbo. The new facilities will greatly enhance Ningbo Chemical Base's innovation capability and contribute to its development into one of China's strategic chemical production hubs."

In Tianjin, the planned organic peroxides facility will utilize state-of-the-art technology that meets stringent safety and environmental standards introduced by the Chinese government. Offering more capacity than the existing site, it is being constructed to support efforts by the local authorities to improve safety in the chemical industry, while providing improved manufacturing and quality processes to customers.

"Our investment in Tianjin demonstrates our commitment to maintaining our safety leadership position while fully supporting the growth of our customers," added Fuhrmann.

Construction of the new Tianjin site will start towards the end of 2016. It is expected to be operational in late 2018.
Celebrating jailhouse recovery Audio Article Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle Sears paid a visit to the Chesterfield County Jail last week, meeting with over 50 of the men and women participating in the HARP (Helping Addicts...

An icons legacy memorialized Audio Article Enon Library was dedicated in memory of the Rev. Wyatt Tee Walker on Friday, Oct. 21. Board of Supervisors Chair Chris Winslow, right, was joined by Walkers daughter, Patrice Walker...
Rush University Medical Center wanted to run its hospital more efficiently. So it's taking a cue from NASA.

The Chicago hospital is working with GE Healthcare Partners, an advisory firm within GE Healthcare, to build a "command center" that will use predictive analytics and big data to manage how patients come in, move around and leave the hospital.

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It's the health care version of NASA's Mission Control Center, which monitors and controls operations at the International Space Station.

GE Healthcare Partners is designing the center, which will be housed at Rush on the Near West Side, and said it will open in about a year.

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As is the case in many health care facilities, Rush has a lot of useful data on topics like when a patient will need a transport or when a bed needs to be cleaned. But that information isn't always shared.

"There's not a place where that information is looked at, at one time  (or) someone who's orchestrating all of those efforts," said Cynthia Barginere, the chief operating officer at Rush University Hospital.

When information isn't communicated across departments, that can result in longer waits for patients, Barginere said. The command center will try to combat that.

The engineering team in charge of forecast capability work at GE Healthcare. (John Konstantaras / Blue Sky)

The center will bring hospital decision-makers into one room, surrounded by screens that display algorithms and predictive analytics, which will help staff determine where patients will go and when.

"On any given day at Rush, they discharge, say, 50 patients: 50 patients have gotten well and they go home, but the sequence of when those patients actually leave the hospital is very important," said Jeff Terry, Managing Principal of Healthcare Partners.

"What we're doing is we're sequencing in what order should those 50 patients be discharged, so that we can get the next patient into the (operating room), or so we can get the next patient out of the (emergency department)."

The center could also alert to "perfect storm" conditions.

"A lot of research shows that errors happen when there's a perfect storm of factors on a unit: Somebody called in sick, it's an inexperienced nursing team, it was a really busy morning.  And so in all that activity, they missed something," Terry said. "The command center knows that there's an unusually high risk on that unit. It's monitoring those factors of a perfect storm, so that we can send help to that unit and not wait for something to go wrong."

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The center could also alert doctors that a patient with sepsis conditions needs to be given antibiotics within a certain time period.

"If that's missed, if that doesn't happen in 45 minutes, there's really no check that kicks in to do something about that delay," Terry said. "Our analytics pick that up and say, it's been an hour and they still don't have antibiotics, do something about that."

GE developers and engineers, based at the company's lab in Barrington, will create the algorithms and predictive analytics that will be used in the center.

The command center at Johns Hopkins is displayed on the right next to a prototype of the Wall of Analytics at GE Healthcare. (John Konstantaras / Chicago Tribune)

GE Healthcare Partners also helped Johns Hopkins Hospital with its own control center, which opened in February. There, 24 staffers from different departments work in the same room to examine predictive information to manage the hospital.

Since it opened, patients are now assigned to beds 30 percent faster than before, and transfer delays from the operating room have been reduced by 70 percent, the hospital said in a release this week.

mgraham@tribpub.com

Twitter @megancgraham
According to a report by GlobalWorkplaceAnalytics.com, only about 3 percent of the U.S. workforce work from home at least half the time. But the report also found more than 80 percent of workers would like to work remotely at least part time. (Hero Images / Getty Images)

Oliver Dunford spent about six years working for a London company, traveling regularly to client sites and commuting as much as two hours a day.

"I needed a lifestyle change," Dunford said.

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Boy did he get one.

After taking a job with Mavens, a Chicago-based company that builds cloud-based software for health care companies around the globe, Dunford was allowed to travel Europe and North America looking for the place he wanted to call home, working remotely every step of the way.

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After a holiday vacation, Dunford found his home  the Cayman Islands. (Don't resent him, I already did that for you.)

Now he works his butt off during the day as a solution architect for Mavens and lives the life he wanted after hours  swimming, snorkeling and savoring the warm climate.

Work has transitioned from being a destination to an activity.  Mavens CEO Prasad Kanumury

"You don't find companies that do this for an employee unless that employee gives back," Dunford said. "I work hard for it and put my life and soul into it, and because they support me, I don't think I'll be going anywhere."

That fairly well sums up Mavens' approach to work, an approach I believe more companies should consider.

The firm is based in Chicago, but has workers in five countries. Any of the company's 60 employees can come into the office, but it's not expected. As CEO Prasad Kanumury describes it: "Work has transitioned from being a destination to an activity."

According to a report by GlobalWorkplaceAnalytics.com, only about 3 percent of the American workforce  about 3.7 million people  work from home at least half the time. That's a low percentage, particularly when you consider the report also found more than 80 percent of workers would like to work remotely at least part time.

Many companies remain reluctant to let people work from home, only allowing it occasionally or under certain circumstances.

To me, that's backward thinking. The horse has left the barn when it comes to remote work. The technology exists to do from home virtually anything you can do in an office. Yes, there are certain businesses and careers that require a person's presence, but when there's no compelling reason to be in an office or cubicle, why not give an employee freedom to choose his or her locale?

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"The idea that people might be lazy or just lay around at home, that's a relic of the industrial revolution," Kanumury said. "For us it has increased productivity tremendously."

And it also helps with retention.

"The risk of allowing someone to work remotely and losing some level of productivity is the concern for many," Kanumury said. "But the risk of you losing that person because they want to work remotely, what's the opportunity cost of that, not only to fill that position but the void you have in your company while you're trying to fill that position?"

Jen Ryan is Mavens' director of global operations and has been with the company for six years.

"For the first five years, I was in the office every day, 9 to 5, loved it, loved the people I worked with, loved going there every day," she said. "It was perfect, it matched my lifestyle."

Then she had a baby and her lifestyle changed dramatically.

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"And my relationship with the office changed," Ryan said. "For the first full year, I pretty much worked from home every single day. From a work perspective, it was really easy. I didn't feel like my role was diminished or that my leadership abilities were diminished."

Her husband is from Greece and they spend a month there each year. Ryan works from there as easily as she does from home or from the corporate office.

"Our No. 1 priority is to find people who match our professional values," she said. "When you share that foundation, it becomes very easy to trust one another and to make life decisions that work well for work."

Kanumury recognizes the nature of Mavens' work gives him the right environment to encourage telecommuting.

"It's not for all companies," he said. "So let's narrow down the world. America has become more of a service-based economy, so the theory would be you could have or should have more of this remote working."

The GlobalWorkplaceAnalytics.com report found about half of American workers hold "a job that is compatible with at least partial telework."

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So why isn't it happening more?

"Where remote origin will fail is when companies don't have a vision, they don't have people aligned and marching toward the same end point," Kanumury said. "If you say you're going to enable remote working for everybody and there's not a beacon for people to march toward, you get chaos."

Working Lunch Weekdays Get the latest business news headlines, delivered to your inbox midday weekdays. >

That's not a hard thing to fix. In fact, if your company doesn't have a shared goal and vision, it needs one, regardless of remote workers.

I highlight Mavens as an admittedly extreme example of a work-from-home culture. Its productivity is high, its workers are committed and it benefits from unexpected outcomes, like greater diversity of thought.

With the option to work from home in Chicago or from the Cayman Islands, Mavens hires people from anywhere. They have workers fluent in 10 different languages and people who bring wildly different experiences to the table.

"If I wasn't open to remote working, we'd be myopic about what we believe the world is about," Kanumury said. "It is a global world."

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This approach may not be what some companies want. But the future of work looks a lot more like Mavens than it does an office full of workers.

The sooner companies realize that, the better off we'll all be.

TALK TO REX: Ask workplace questions  anonymously or by name  and share stories with Rex Huppke at rhuppke@chicagotribune.com, like Rex on Facebook at www.facebook.com/rexworkshere and find more at www.chicagotribune.com/ijustworkhere.
In 2008, Forbes Magazine said Bensenville topped its list of America's fastest-dying small towns  but the suburb near O'Hare International Airport refuses to die. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)

Not so long ago the village of Bensenville, a suburb immediately west of O'Hare International Airport , was given up for dead.

In 2008, Forbes Magazine said Bensenville topped its list of America's fastest-dying small towns. The death sentence was attributed to a severe decline in manufacturing and its related jobs, which for decades were the village's lifeblood and economic salvation.

Yet this gritty little suburb, perhaps known best as the home of Victory Auto Wreckers' junkyard and its famous long-running "door-falling-off-the-car" TV commercial, was determined not to die.

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Instead, Bensenville's leaders decided the only way to save the day was to drastically alter the village's way of doing business with business. In doing so, they forged an economic survival plan that could also work for the area's other financially ailing municipalities.

"They were definitely down for the count (in Bensenville). But they did what local leaders have to do: Pick themselves up and start over again," said Brad Cole, executive director of the Springfield-based Illinois Municipal League, which advocates for local governments.

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Bensenville Mayor Frank Soto, an attorney who was elected to that part-time job in 2009, agrees: "We're rising from the dust, after getting beat up."

For many years, Bensenville's main opponent was the city of Chicago and its ambitious plan to expand O'Hare by gobbling up a significant slice of the suburb's northern end.

After decades of dealing with that encroachment and some costly legal tussling, the two sides eventually settled. Ultimately, 665 residences, 110 businesses and 297 acres were sold to make way for the Chicago-owned airport, moves that also erased a sizable portion of Bensenville's tax base.

At the same time, manufacturing was in decline and the suburb's two industrial parks were hurting as vacancy rates hovered around 25 percent, sometimes higher. What's more, relations between village authorities and local business owners were frosty.

Instead of blaming outside forces for their difficulties, Bensenville's new administration peered inward. One of the first realizations: The village's rules and regulations were having a chilling effect on keeping companies and attracting new ones.

So Soto's team scuttled onerous zoning restrictions that were expensive and confusing to real estate interests.

They were definitely down for the count (in Bensenville). But they did what local leaders have to do: Pick themselves up and start over again.  Brad Cole, executive director of the Illinois Municipal League

Bensenville then approved international standardized codes that allow developers to plan in advance for the cost of a new building or rehab project.

It also dumped unnecessary or redundant business regulations while reducing village permit and licensing fees where it could. One of Soto's first moves was eliminating a $1.7 million water surcharge on industrial park tenants, which resulted in over 150 lawsuits being dropped against Bensenville.

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Village officials started working with the area's commercial real estate brokers to attract new light industrial and manufacturing tenants, especially targeting those interested in opening transportation or other facilities close to major highways and O'Hare.

While all this was going on, Bensenville had to address its own disorderly financial house. Its general obligation bonds were rated near junk status and there were budget shortfalls, which resulted in belt-tightening and layoffs, Soto said.

The changes are beginning to make a difference.

This year, the industrial parks vacancy rate is around 4 percent. Current businesses are expanding and new companies are coming around, say village officials.

One coup: In June, Zurn Industries, a commercial water engineering firm, announced it was moving into a Bensenville industrial park from Elkhart, Ind.  a sweet victory for Illinois, which in recent years has seen a number of companies flee to that neighboring state.

Zurn will employ up to 35 employees while a building it shares with another new Bensenville manufacturer, Gelb Industries, employs 40 workers.

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It doesn't hurt that at least 90 percent of Bensenville is in DuPage County, which has lower taxes than neighboring Cook County, Soto argues.

On the residential front, some parts of the suburb, which has an abundance of modest ranch and split-level homes, are recovering from foreclosures due to the mortgage lending crisis. But 41 new houses are being constructed in southeastern Bensenville.

The village has a balanced budget while cash reserves are improving. It is not proposing a property tax increase for 2017, says Evan Summers, village manager.

Meanwhile, Bensenville's creditworthiness is improving, with its general obligation bonds now rated an above-average Aa3, according to Moody's Investors Service.

It's not all roses, however.

On a recent drive through town, the most noticeable irritation is noisy, low-flying planes traveling in and out of O'Hare, especially over the suburb's northern portion.

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And in an era where optics matter, Bensenville has some haunting history.

In 1986, the infamous Spilotro brothers were allegedly executed in a house near Bensenville. The two were later buried in an Indiana cornfield, a scene depicted in the mob crime movie "Casino."

Bensenville is working with the various community and airport groups to ease plane noise levels, Soto says.

And that other matter?

"It's part of our colorful past," says the mayor. "But we're all about the future."

roreed@chicagotribune.com

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Twitter @reedtribbiz
Astellas Pharma's Northbook campus is seen in 2012. The company has agreed to buy Ganymed Pharmaceuticals, a German biopharmaceutical company, in an effort to build on its cancer drug offerings. (Astellas)

Astellas Pharma, which has its U.S. headquarters in Northbrook, has agreed to buy a German biopharmaceutical company in an effort to build on its cancer drug offerings.

Tokyo-based Astellas announced plans Friday to acquire Ganymed Pharmaceuticals in a deal worth up to $1.4 billion.

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Astellas will pay about $463 million to buy the privately-held company. Astellas may then pay Ganymed shareholders up to another $943 million, based on Ganymed's progress developing one new particular drug that mainly targets gastric and pancreatic cancer.

Ganymed has focused on developing a new class of cancer drugs designed to kill tumor cells without hurting healthy tissues.

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"We have a major commitment in oncology," said Steven Benner, Astellas senior vice president and therapeutic area head for oncology. "This brings in another important late stage compound which we believe will have a significant impact for cancer patients."

Astellas' top selling drug is Xtandi, used to treat prostate cancer.

The deal is expected to close within the next several weeks.

lschencker@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @lschencker
Portillo's is looking to open a restaurant in the Minneapolis suburb of Woodbury. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)

Let's be honest: It would be cooler if Portillo's was on the brink of invading Cleveland, just timingwise.

But instead the Oak Brook-based purveyor of Chicago-style dogs and Italian Beef sandwiches is preparing to enter the Minnesota market  apparently the Twin Cities suburb of Woodbury. A development plan for the corner of Hudson Road and Radio Drive is tentatively slated to be considered by Woodbury's plan commission on Nov. 7, followed by the City Council two days later.

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Portillo's is not confirming or denying. But the people of Woodbury are getting excited.

"The calls are starting to pour in. It's like OMG," said Bette Thomas, an administrative assistant in Woodbury's community development department. "Some residents have been jumping out of their skin, they're so excited."

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Portillo's is planning to open its 46th location, in Deerfield, on Nov. 15. So far, the chain already has announced three new locations opening next year  in the Chicago suburb of Harwood Heights; Greenfield, Wis.; and Normal, Ill., which will make 49 in total.

Portillo's is expecting to open four more locations next year, which haven't yet been announced, said spokesman Nick Scarpino.

Woodbury could be one of those, pending regulatory approval.

Here's Scarpino's statement on the matter:

"Because of the overwhelming response we recently received in opening our first restaurant in Wisconsin, Portillo's has been actively looking at potential sites for new restaurants throughout the Midwest. These potential sites include the greater Twin Cities area. We have no new locations to announce at this time, as our efforts so far have been preliminary. We are flattered and humbled that there are many Portillo's fans interested in seeing one of our restaurants built in their city."

In 2014, founder and longtime CEO Dick Portillo sold the restaurant chain to Berkshire Partners, a Boston-based private equity firm, to help grow the company with outside financing. Since then, executives have said the plan is to increase the number of restaurants by 10 to 15 percent every year.

gtrotter@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @GregTrotterTrib
This week, Donald Trump's son, Eric, took a media-accompanied tour of America's oldest brewery, D.G. Yuengling & Son, family owned and operated in the small Pennsylvania town of Pottsville since 1829.

Trump, an heir to his father's billions, was escorted by Richard "Dick" Yuengling Jr., the brewery's fifth generation scion and a billionaire in his own right.

For 45 minutes, the men walked through the brewery, talking about American success stories and the plight of U.S. businesses under the Obama administration (despite the fact that Yuengling has been described as Obama's favorite brew).

"My father's going to make it a lot easier for business to function," Eric Trump told the room, according to the Reading Eagle. "We're going to do it right here in the U.S."

Then Yuengling, 73, who turned the struggling family business into a $550 million enterprise, who shoved the beverage into the marketplace and who oversaw its rise as a cheap but dignified working class beer, offered the embattled and nosediving GOP nominee a political gift: his company's endorsement.

"Our guys are behind your father," Yuengling said. "We need him in there."

But in 2016, the problem with mixing a business brand with politics -- whether the subject is same-sex marriage, gender identity and especially issues and figures as polarizing as Donald Trump -- is that you run the risk of alienating your consumers.

Also, Twitter.

Just ask Target, Chick-fil-A or the Republican presidential candidate himself, whose Trump brand has suffered significantly since he announced his bid for the White House.

So it should come as no surprise that within days of Yuengling's declaration of support, loyal drinks launched a boycott -- at least they declared as much on the internet.

Due to distribution limitations, avid Yuengling fans often go to great lengths to retrieve the traditional lager, like one Kentucky man named Todd who tweeted that he makes regular 90-mile Yuengling runs to neighboring Ohio. Not anymore.

"Supporting racist, misogynist nut-job Trump is the end of the line for me," he wrote on Twitter.

One woman said she'll exchange her Yuengling for wine. Others pledged allegiance to the beer's long line of competitors: Rolling Rock, Pittsburgh Brewing Company, Brooklyn Lager, Modelo.

Bars in Washington, D.C., have announced they're no longer stocking the brew, and one manager at the gay bar JR's posted a video to Facebook that shows him removing the labeled Yuengling handle from the tap.

"Just so you know, when people support things that don't support us, then we don't support them," David Perruzza says in the video, referencing Trump's running mate, the equally polarizing Indiana Gov. Mike Pence. "So goodbye Yuengling, you are the weakest link."

And probably the most substantive call for a boycott came Wednesday, when Pennsylvania State Rep. Brian Sims, who is gay, wrote on Facebook that after consuming the beer for 17 years, he planned to say goodbye.

"I'm not normally one to call for boycotts but I absolutely believe that how we spend our dollars is a reflection of our votes and our values!" he wrote. "I won't reminisce about your product or lament any losses. Goodbye, Yuengling and shame on you."

He later wrote a separate post, tagging at least 16 Philadelphia and surrounding area bars, some in a corner of the Center City neighborhood called the Gayborhood.

"Our communities know a thing or two about voting with our dollars and I won't be using my hard-earned dollars to give power to any company or person who hates me, what about you?!?" Sims wrote.

He ended his post with a spin on a hashtag used often by liberals this election season: "#LoveTrumpsYuengling"

The brewery's Trump endorsement and the call to boycott its brand has been likened to the widespread rejection of fast food restaurant Chick-fil-A in 2012, when its president said that same-sex marriage was "inviting God's judgment on our nation." The president later pledged to concentrate on the selling of chicken and keep the company out of politics, and even ceased donating money to many of the anti-gay organizations it had been criticized for supporting.

The same happened to Target this year, when the department store denounced controversial legislation in North Carolina that required people to use the bathroom that matched the gender listed on their birth certificates, seen widely as discriminatory toward people who identify as transgender. Conservatives pledged to boycott Targets across the country, and for months after stores seems to be plagued by outbursts, altercations and lengthy, disappointed social media essays.

In August, CNN reported that Target had experienced a 7 percent sales drop compared to the year prior, a change that conservatives claimed as proof their boycott worked. Company CFO Cathy Smith, however, told CNN there was no evidence the boycott caused the drop.

In response to the public outcry, Target later announced plans to expand the use of gender-neutral, single-toilet bathrooms across all its stores, a $20 million solution.

What's tough to figure out is if brand boycotts actually matter to a company's bottom line. Ivo Welch, a professor of economics and finance at UCLA, says no.

"Boycotts almost surely will never work," Welch told Freakonomics Radio earlier this year.

This is mostly because there are too many loopholes, he explained, too many ways to get around the boycott. But a government-backed boycott, like trade sanctions or embargos, is far more effective because they are actually enforceable.

"Those are very different from boycotts. Boycotts are basically just part of the population. They're not really enforced. They're not really legal. They are very leaky," Welch told Freakonomics Radio. "So those have never worked, as far as I can tell. Embargoes may work; boycotts almost surely never will work."

Even if a company's bottom line isn't affected, that doesn't mean its brand -- and reputation -- won't be.

What's interesting about the Yuengling case is that its owner, Dick Yuengling, has never before been shy about his political affiliations. A lifelong Republican, he has lobbied for union-busting legislation and donated to the 2000 presidential campaign of George W. Bush, reported CNN.

Yuengling drinkers knew, or could have easily discovered, that the CEO was conservative.

But in this election, conservative does not automatically mean Trump supporter.

Some, though, saw the official confirmation as a blessing. "My favorite beer just endorsed my favorite presidential candidate," one Trump supporter wrote on Twitter.
The 2018 Volkswagen Atlas is displayed at an unveiling event Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016, in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) (Jae C. Hong / AP)

Better late to the three-row crossover party then never for Volkswagen.

The beleaguered German brand took a big step toward recovering from its emissions-cheating scandal by introducing a new seven-passenger SUV.

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Volkswagen says the Atlas will have enough space for seven adults plus their luggage. Third-row seats can be reached easily with innovative folding second-row seats.



The SUVs come with two engine choices: A 2-liter turbocharged four-cylinder with 238 horsepower or a 280-horsepower 3.6-liter V6. Both have eight-speed automatic transmissions.



The Atlas also is compatible with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and it has safety systems available including autonomous emergency braking.



The Atlas SUV was seen as key to reviving flagging U.S. sales even before the scandal rocked the company to its core and caused one of the world's largest automakers to reassess how it does business around the globe.

The 3-row SUV gives VW an entry into the fastest-growing part of the U.S. market, something dealers had sought for years.

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While other automakers have a portfolio of four to six crossovers and SUVs, Volkswagen only had two crossovers, the compact Tiguan and the premium Touareg, which starts just under $50,000.

Volkswagen sales through the first seven months of the year were down by 13 percent compared with the same period before the news of the emissions scandal broke in 2015. The Tiguan compact crossover has been one of the company's few bright spots in the U.S., with sales growing by 49 percent over the same period.

The company hopes to build on that success with the midsized Atlas. Following a test drive in September, Matthias Erb, the chief engineering officer for Volkswagen's North American region, said the new SUV fills a gap that Volkswagen had when it came to growing families.

"If someone already had a Passat but wanted something bigger after having two kids, we didn't have anything to offer them," Erb said in an interview conducted in German. "The Tiguan was too small because a compact SUV offers essentially the same space as a midsized sedan."

According to Autodata Corp., midsize SUV sales were up 4.5 percent in the U.S. through July. That's more than 3 times the total industry increase of 1.3 percent.

Volkswagen's SUV is coming at a good time for the company  provided it is priced competitively, said Rebecca Lindland, a senior analyst for Kelley Blue Book.

Challenges will include changing perceptions among consumers accustomed to thinking of Volkswagen as selling compact sedans, and to try to ensure the SUV fits U.S. tastes by fostering a culture of being "listeners rather than tellers," Lindland said. That way the company can develop an understanding of "what the U.S. market needs versus what other markets need around the world  however illogical or emotional it may seem."

The SUV arrives at dealers in the spring. Pricing wasn't announced. The Atlas will be made at Volkswagen's lone U.S. plant factory in Chattanooga, Tennessee.



Associated Press contributed.
Larry Mowry, who recently rejoined WLS-Ch. 7 as its weekend morning weather forecaster, and his wife, Lisa, last month paid $725,000 for a newly built, six-bedroom, 3,612-square-foot house in Westmont.

A graduate of Valparaiso University, Mowry, 38, handled weekend morning weather duty for ABC 7 in 2004 and before that for CLTV. Mowry had been chief meteorologist at a CBS affiliate in Dallas and had been living in Keller, Texas, a northwest suburb of Dallas until April, when ABC 7 hired Mowry and brought him back to the Chicago area.

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The traditional-style house in west suburban Westmont has 3-1/2 baths, a three-car garage, a master bath with a rain spa, body sprays and heated floors, and a kitchen with stainless steel appliances, granite countertops, lighted cabinets, an island, a built-in wine rack and a herringbone backsplash. Outside on the 0.2-acre property are a brick paver driveway and a brick patio.

"They absolutely love the location of the house," Nick Libert of Exit Strategy Realty, who represented the Mowrys, told Elite Street. "It's a very short walk to the Metra, and that particular house has a fantastic layout, with a bonus space on the third level, and there also was some added customization of the basement area. They looked in a variety of areas, and were looking for wonderful schools, reasonable taxes, access to public transportation and a great small-town feel."

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Crain's Chicago Business first reported on the Mowrys' purchase.

Bob Goldsborough is a freelance reporter.







Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 16 (VHT Studios)

Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 5 Billionaire Ken Griffin, Illinois richest man, paid $58.75 million in November for the top four floors in the Near North condominium building at 9 W. Walton St., known as No. 9 Walton. This photo shows a rendering of the lobby. (JDL Development / E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune (inset))
Like Halloween trick-or-treaters, the podium newcomers keep showing up on the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's doorstep.

Last week's concerts brought the successful subscription series debut of the gifted young German conductor David Afkham. This weekend, it is Andres Orozco-Estrada's turn to lay his international credentials at the feet of the orchestra and its public.

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The 38-year-old baton dervish from Colombia  whose podium outposts extend from London to Frankfurt to the Houston Symphony Orchestra, where he is in his third season as music director  kicked up plenty of visceral excitement at his CSO debut Thursday night at Symphony Center. He brought vigor, confidence and leadership skills that clearly owe to his Viennese training. But once the decibels had subsided, doubts lingered as to the musical uses to which those skills had been applied.

His South American conducting colleague, Gustavo Dudamel, has nothing on Orozco-Estrada in the podium acrobatics department. His entire body appeared to be wired for sound, his arms slicing the air, firing cues in every direction. A demonstrative manner bordering on the brash made his exertions sometimes hard to watch. Did that hyperactivity prove helpful to the orchestra players? One rather doubted it, since they gave back a kind of blunt brilliance that was wanting in tonal refinement and balance.

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His program was all over the map as well, starting out in Hungary and proceeding to Finland, before touching down in New England and finally settling in Germany.

The opening piece, Zoltan Kodaly's "Dances of Galanta," was miles away from the idiomatic Hungarian feeling Fritz Reiner and Georg Solti once instilled in this orchestra. Quite the dancer himself, Orozco-Estrada pulled tempos this way and that  sometimes indulgently slow, sometimes breakneck  sorely testing the woodwinds' ability to articulate fast passages. (Stephen Williamson's clarinet solo, played with rich sound and generous rubato, was the exception.) The dynamic impulse was certainly there, but folkish color and charm went missing.

Could it have been more than a coincidence that the guest conductor's pairing of works on the second half  Charles Ives' "The Unanswered Question" and Richard Strauss' "Also sprach Zarathustra"  was identical to the coupling Susanna Malkki led at her own CSO debut almost exactly five years ago? The only difference was that Orozco-Estrada, oddly enough, yoked these very different works with an attacca, so that the fade-out of the little Ives tone poem led directly into the famed sunrise sequence that opens the big Strauss tone poem.

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CSO history repeated itself in another respect, too. The loud coughs of audience members did much to ruin the ethereal effect of Ives' cosmic questioning  the very same problem that had nearly sabotaged Malkki's performance in 2011. Orozco-Estrada tried earnestly to enforce proper atmosphere, right down to having solo trumpeter Mark Ridenour and colleagues Tage Larsen and John Hagstrom pose their seven questions from various locations in the hall, from the lower balcony to the wings of the Armour Stage.

This orchestra can teach Orozco-Estrada a thing or two about Strauss' sumptuous Nietzschean tone poem, having practically owned the piece since giving the U.S. premiere in 1897, less than a year after it was written, and having recorded it no fewer than seven times.

The conductor showed more of an affinity for that idiom than for anything else on the program, bringing sweeping vigor to the big pages while exposing the Dionysian nerve endings in Strauss' opulent orchestral layout. The low rumble of the organ pedal could well have set off seismographs in distant Schaumburg. But this was Strauss-in-your face, not so much disciplined and searching as it was big-boned and strenuous.

That left Baiba Skride, the sensitive and probing soloist in the Sibelius Violin Concerto, to provide the most consistently satisfying playing of the evening.

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Violin soloist Baiba Skride makes her Chicago Symphony Orchestra debut Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. (Kristan Lieb / for the Chicago Tribune)

The Latvian violin virtuoso, who also was making her CSO debut, summoned a lithe rather than powerful tone, a veiled ribbon of sound with which she brought out the tenderness and introspection in Sibelius' circling lyrical passages. Her playing had a wonderful purity, clarity and quiet to match the patience of the music, especially in the hushed soliloquy that is the slow movement. A less nervy Sibelius than one is used to hearing, then, but refreshing to ear and mind and attentively accompanied by the orchestra.

The program was scheduled to be repeated Friday night as part of the CSO's new series at Wheaton College in Wheaton.

In other CSO news, James Levine has changed the program that will mark his long-awaited return to the CSO subscription series next week. Stravinsky's "Song of the Nightingale" has been dropped in favor of Mozart's Symphony No. 31 ("Paris"). The rest of the program  Schoenberg's Five Pieces for Orchestra and the Berlioz "Symphonie Fantastique"  will stay the same.

The program will be repeated at 8 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday at Symphony Center, 220 S. Michigan Ave.; $34-$220; 312-294-3000, www.cso.org.

John von Rhein is a Tribune critic.

jvonrhein@chicagotribune.com

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Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 122 Sophie Turner as Jean Grey, anger management student, in "Dark Phoenix." The film, the latest in the "X-Men" franchise, costars James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender and Jessica Chastain. Read the review. (Twentieth Century Fox)
The Out of Towner, a legit version of a lobster roll, is so dubbed because it clearly is an exception to a menu that strives to rely on local sources. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)

When I first stopped into La Grange's fourteensixteen, shortly after its early-September opening, I thought that, well, it would do.

The restaurant felt more concept-driven than chef-driven, its decor assembled by checklist, its "New American Craft" manifesto (printed on the menu) a bit too earnest (and a masterwork of gobbledygook besides).

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I still have some of those issues with the place, but on my return visits, executive chef Bret Bohning has shown sparks in his cooking that make me think fourteensixteen, already popular with the locals, has destination potential.

Bohning's opening menu cast a wide, leave-no-taste-behind net, offering pot stickers and Asian-seasoned chicken salad along with burgers, flatbreads, crudo and beef "poke." The revised menu, introduced about a week ago, narrows the melting-pot cuisine somewhat, giving the selection more of a Midwestern, even Chicago, accent.

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For instance, the overly fussy rack of lamb, which crusted the meat with bacon and foie gras, has given way to a more elegant grilled loin of venison, accompanied by a chunky hash of diced celery root and roasted beets, over a stout reduction sauce perked up by pickled cranberry puree. Also new is octopus salad, a warm jumble of bite-size tentacle pieces, black kale and pumpkin puree, united by chorizo vinaigrette. Golumpki, or Polish-style cabbage rolls, are a nod to the area's ethnic history, although Bohning chefs it up a bit by using pork shoulder, carnaroli rice and roasted-garlic puree. Walleye is distinctly Midwestern, though its shredded-crab crust and micro-shiso adornments convey a certain world-traveler status.

Through it all, Bohning keeps it as local as he can. His menu identifies the farms that supply him with chicken, pork and cheese curds, and in a cute nod to that ethos, the lobster roll (a very legit version, by the way) is listed on the menu as the "Out of Towner." A substantial number of menu items are available in vegetarian and/or gluten-free preparations.

The default starter choice should be the flatbread pizza, of which there are three topping combinations: prosciutto with Gouda and apples, mushrooms with pecorino cheese and tarragon, and the day's chef's pick, which might offer shaved speck, smoked provolone and figs. The toppings arrive on brittle, wafer-thin crusts, pre-cut into thoughtful, finger-friendly pieces atop a thick wood board.

Other appetizers include an oddity dubbed "lamb nachos," which contains ground lamb, tomato confit and feta-cream sauce, over and above pieces of grilled pita. It looks like the result of a cooking challenge involving making biscuits and gravy using nothing but ingredients available at a Greek diner. It's a beige mess to the eyes, but guess what  it's one of the menu's best-sellers.

Wood-fired steaks are a kitchen specialty, though the menu mentions them only in passing. There are four cuts available daily, and your waiter will tell you about the aging processes (which vary). I had a very nice Kansas City strip one visit, and though the bordelaise sauce drenching the beef was a good one, it would be more judicious if the sauce weren't quite so omnipresent. And surely there's a better way to arrange the steaks besides propping them awkwardly on a scoop of mashed potatoes.

Desserts are simple and decent enough. There's a fudgy flourless chocolate cake topped with sweetened whipped cream, a rather elegant-looking apple tostada with caramel sauce and salted-caramel ice cream, and a cute "Snickers bar" dessert of chocolate, nougat and peanuts.

The wine list is interesting, once you get past the sticker shock; there are fewer than a dozen bottles priced at less than $90, an odd circumstance in a restaurant whose main courses are generally less than $25 (steaks excluded). Here's the secret: By-the-glass wines, which range from $10 to $17, are available by the bottle for quadruple the glass price. It would be good if the wine list made that clear; as it is, you only know if your server clues you in. Fortunately, servers are very good about doing just that.

The dining room, noisy but comfortable, is a pastiche of urban-rustic design elements. Walls are clad in reclaimed wood or weathered brick; air ducts and other mechanicals are visible between the exposed rafters; Edison bulbs and a steam-punky, plumbing-pipe light fixture provide illumination. It's a dime-a-dozen look in the city, but out west, its freshness date has yet to expire.

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One of fourteensixteen's niftiest touches is the rooftop, wrapped in rough cedar and protected, somewhat, by overlapping triangular fabric. It wouldn't hold up to a severe rainstorm or protect from bitter cold, but it's surprisingly pleasant even on less-than-pleasant days. The owners plan more permanent roofing and heaters, at which point the rooftop could become the most popular venue in town.

pvettel@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @PhilVettel

fourteensixteen

14 W. Calendar Ave., La Grange

708-469-7896

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www.1416lagrange.com

Eat. Watch. Do. Weekly What to eat. What to watch. What you need to live your best life ... now. >

Tribune rating: One star

Open: Dinner Monday to Sunday

Prices: Entrees $14-$36 (steaks market price)

Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V

Reservations: Recommended

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Noise: Conversation-friendly

Other: Wheelchair accessible






In "Inferno," opening Friday, Tom Hanks returns again to play symbol-minded professor Robert Langdon and, in doing so, pay for his kitchen upgrade. We can safely assume that the inferno of the title is a bad thing, as fires usually are in the movies.

"Firestarter"

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Adorable little Drew Barrymore plays a little girl who can start fires with her mind, so you're gonna want to go ahead and buy that pony, Mom and Dad.

"Gone With the Wind"

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Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh in "Gone With the Wind." (Handout)

As if labor isn't bad enough, poor Melanie has to take a postpartum ride in a wagon to get out of the flaming city of Atlanta. Plus, she has to put up with Scarlett and Rhett bickering the entire time.

"Bambi"

You'd think the forest fire would be the most traumatic moment of this animated classic, but then you remember that Disney always recognizes the narrative power of killing off someone's mom.

"Fantastic Four"

Kate Mara as Sue Storm and Michael B. Jordan as Johnny Storm in "The Fantastic Four." (Ben Rothstein / 20th Century Fox)

Granted, Johnny Storm is more of a controlled burn, but he still better not get a job pumping gas.

"Backdraft"

The city of Chicago is on high alert when an arsonist starts imitating Mrs. O'Leary's cow, swearing he'll only stop when the Cubs reach the World Series. PROBLEM SOLVED.

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Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 122 Sophie Turner as Jean Grey, anger management student, in "Dark Phoenix." The film, the latest in the "X-Men" franchise, costars James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender and Jessica Chastain. Read the review. (Twentieth Century Fox)
The United States of America is a place made out of words.

In the European imagination, the New World presented a blank slate upon which to write. (Indigenous peoples saw, and see, things differently, of course.) Without a common language, history, culture or racial identity, Americans had to create a new nation rhetorically as much as politically. From the Declaration of Independence forward, it's been done with words, and all their inherent contradictions: "All men are created equal," wrote a man who owned other men and women.

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Because America is a text, it's open to criticism, editing, and revision. What Thomas Jefferson meant by "men" is not what Martin Luther King Jr. meant when he quoted the Founding Fathers' words almost two centuries later in his "I Have a Dream" speech. Conflicts over what constitutes American identity persist, centered on the divisions built into our nation's history, between the rural and the urban, native-born and immigrants, different races, ethnicities, religions and genders.

These arguments come into especially high relief every four years, during presidential elections, where claims of "true" Americanness have enormous stakes as voters set the nation's course for the coming four years. Two new books remind us that while the terms of the American conversation can change, we keep having the same arguments over and over again, and the rhetorical frameworks in which we have such arguments matter.

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First, journalist Robert Strauss' "Worst. President. Ever.: James Buchanan, the POTUS Rating Game, and the Legacy of the Least of the Lesser Presidents" takes its readers back to the first half of the 19th century. Then as now, the American people were divided over the role of the federal government, immigration and nativism, and the foundation of American racism  slavery and its expansion, containment or abolition.

"Worst. President. Ever." is an engrossing and seamless combination of the personal and the political, history and lively connections to contemporary politics. In digressions from his main subject  the biography of 15th American President James Buchanan  Strauss explores his personal obsession with American presidential history (and various "rating games" played by historians) with charm, good humor and deep scholarship, plus the sort of personal connection one can only get by driving around America visiting presidential libraries and birthplaces. While these sections of the book would be valuable on their own terms as genial memoir, they also illustrate the key fact that the personal is political, and the way that Americans relate to our historical narratives will very often be, if not determined, then highly influenced by their own life experience.

Buchanan, whose indecision and fecklessness most historians credit with helping to cause Southern secession and the Civil War after the election of Abraham Lincoln, may indeed be the nadir of presidential accomplishment. Nonetheless, Strauss depicts him with sympathy and insightful explorations of historical mysteries, including questions about this lifelong bachelor's sexual identity. From his boyhood in rural Pennsylvania to the court of Czar Nicholas (where President Andrew Jackson had sent him as U.S. envoy to marginalize him as a political rival), from London to Washington, D.C., Buchanan led a fascinating life at the center of every key issue of the day.

Strauss illuminates Buchanan's political career on its own terms but also always draws cogent comparisons to our contemporary scene. On the sexuality question, Strauss (who takes an agnostic position) points out the complexity of historical understanding: "If somehow a cache of letters would turn up giving further proof that Buchanan was, indeed, gay, it would no doubt further besmirch his presidency to those unsympathetic to homosexuals, but it would be fascinating to see how gay advocates might embrace this worst president."

Strauss also demolishes some of the myths promulgated by Confederate flag-wavers to this day, such as the Civil War being about "states' rights" rather than slavery. The only right, he points out, that secessionist states seemed concerned with was the right for one group of human beings to own others, based on the color of their skin.

While the political landscape Buchanan negotiated seems remote, with its Federalist, Whig and Know-Nothing parties, the similarities to the 21st century are clear. Buchanan first makes his mark in Congress speaking in opposition to the "Radicals," who opposed funding Secretary of War John Calhoun's request for money to pay the bills of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Strauss describes them as "a faction in the House, much like the twenty-first century Tea Party ... that wanted to limit the federal government from doing much of anything."

Sound familiar? From the Know-Nothings wanting to exclude the Germans and the Irish to some Republicans wanting to keep out Mexicans and Muslims, Americans keep re-fighting the same political battles, in slightly different guises, over and over again.

"Worst. President. Ever.," by Robert Strauss. Lyons, 257 pages, $26.95. (Handout)

But the rhetoric in which the American political conversation takes place truly has changed, and that transformation is the subject of Mark Thompson's "Enough Said: What's Gone Wrong With the Language of Politics." In this invaluable book, Thompson, chief executive of the New York Times Co. and a veteran of the BBC, explores our contemporary political rhetoric and suggests some ways we might restore it to something more like an informed conversation aimed at accomplishing things, and less like a shouting match where no one listens to anyone they don't already agree with.

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Thompson's cogent analysis proceeds from his profound knowledge of classical rhetorical theory and politics from classical Greece and Rome, through the Renaissance and the Enlightenment, and modern society in the U.S. and the United Kingdom. (This may be the first book that cites Lin-Manuel Miranda and Beyonce along with Aristotle and Thomas Hobbes.) In vigorous, nuanced, and energetic prose, Thompson grounds his broader theoretical points in close reading and incisive analysis of the rhetoric around historical events. Some of his episodes are fascinating Decline-of-the-West parallels, such as Tony Blair's speeches in Parliament in the lead-up to the 2003 Iraq War in comparison to Winston Churchill's rhetoric at the outset of World War II.

In other cases, Thompson emphasizes how rhetoric is more than just talk. In his opening chapter, he shows what's at stake in his analysis of how Sarah Palin's "death panels" phrase functioned as a piece of rhetorical art. Her language shaped the real world: "A term that exaggerated and distorted a claim that was itself false, and that in any event had virtually nothing to do with the central thrust of Obamacare, had changed the course of politics."

One of the strengths of this excellent book are Thompson's unexpected juxtapositions. For instance, while it's pretty straightforward to connect the subtext of George Orwell's "Politics and the English Language" to the sort of authenticity politics that fuels Donald Trump's presidential campaign at this very moment, Thompson doesn't stop there. In the most imaginative analysis of Orwell's classic argument that I have ever read, Thompson shows how politicians Orwell would have presumably despised  such as Trump and Palin  actually hew quite closely to his suggestions for how to honestly write and talk about politics. (And the book is as up to date as any hardcover could be: Thompson discusses Trump, and the Brexit vote campaigns, analyzing events from just a few months ago.)

The stakes are high, as American politics ossify into taken-for-granted and unquestionable certainties on every side of every issue, and this prevents political progress on key issues. To show the structural issue that applies at all levels, Thompson writes about the unexpected ouster of Republican House Whip Eric Cantor in 2014, which analysts have attributed to his shifting positions on immigration reform. Cantor's defeat is more than a test case for right-wing extremism; it demonstrates that the "zone of ambiguity and flexibility  that zone where almost all political progress takes place  has become rhetorically insupportable. ... Now it's 100 percent or nothing."

Even critics of our political rhetoric fall into this trap. Thompson describes how "they talk ceaselessly about the broken rhetoric of mainstream politicians, but their own remedy for the ills of our public language seems to consist of only anger and vituperation." Anyone who has ever strayed into the comments section on a political or news website can confirm this fact.

In his discussion of our polarized media landscape, Thompson poses a question: "What will the audience choose to read, watch, and listen to when they can choose anything?" Readers who want to better understand our ongoing American political conversation, with historical depth and rhetorical sophistication, would be well advised to read both Thompson's and Strauss' books.

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'Enough Said'

By Mark Thompson, St. Martin's, 342 pages, $27.99.

'Worst. President. Ever.'

By Robert Strauss. Lyons, 257 pages, $26.95.
Male birth control injections were as effective as other contraceptives in a clinical trial, but the study was stopped early because of side effects. (Ulrich Baumgarten / Getty Images)

A birth control shot for men shows some promise, but researchers are still struggling to improve its effectiveness and deal with severe side effects caused by the injections.

Only four pregnancies were associated with the 266 men receiving the treatment, which is an effectiveness rate comparable to other contraceptive methods, according to results from a new international clinical trial. But the men also experienced mood swings and depression so frequently that a safety review committee halted the study early, the researchers reported.

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No further development is planned for this particular birth control shot for men, but the clinical trial showed that such an injection can suppress sperm counts and prevent pregnancy, said researcher Dr. Mario Festin. He is a medical officer with the department of reproductive health and research at the World Health Organization.

"A male hormonal contraceptive is possible," Festin said. "We have to continue searching for or investigating the right drugs, and their combinations, with the highest efficacy and safety, and acceptability, with the least side effects."

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The concept of a male birth control shot based on the hormone testosterone has been around for decades, said Dr. Edmund Sabanegh, director of the Center for Male Fertility at the Cleveland Clinic.

Such an injection can trick the testicles into reducing production of the highly concentrated testosterone they need to create sperm, Sabanegh said.

"The testicles now shut off their testosterone production, and that means they are seeing a level of testosterone the same as the bloodstream," he said. "That's not enough to make them produce sperm."

The problem always has been the side effects that come with these testosterone shots, Sabanegh said. They include depression, mood swings and increased libido.

This trial aimed at limiting side effects and increasing the effectiveness of the shot by combining testosterone with another sex hormone.

"Giving testosterone alone will suppress sperm production," Festin said. "However, the additional administration of another hormone, usually a progestin, helps increase the suppression of sperm production to lower levels in more numbers of men."

Researchers recruited 320 healthy men ages 18 to 45 from seven countries. The participants all had normal sperm counts and had been in monogamous relationships with female partners between the ages of 18 and 38 for at least a year. The men received the testosterone/progestin injections every eight weeks.

The combination lowered sperm counts to the targeted goal  1 million per milliliter or less  in 274 of the men, researchers reported.

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Of those men, 266 remained in the study to see if the shots would reduce the risk of pregnancy.

"It produced a pregnancy rate of 1.57 per 100 in continuing users, which is comparable to other reversible contraceptive methods, which presently are used by women," Festin said.

However, Sabanegh questioned whether the targeted sperm reduction goal was low enough to be truly effective in widespread use.

"We know that people can routinely cause pregnancies with sperm counts under a million," he said. "The four pregnancies that were caused were in patients who had sperm counts under a million."

Dr. Elizabeth Kavaler, a urology specialist with Lenox Hill Hospital in New York, agreed with Sabanegh.

"The sperm count goal is not that low. It should be lower," Kavaler said. "I wonder if they had 50,000 patients in the trial, where their pregnancy rates would be."

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There also were 771 incidents of side effects assessed to be likely or definitely related to the use of the birth control shot, the findings showed. The most common were acne, increased libido, muscle pain, and mood and emotional disorders.

Twenty men dropped out of the study because of side effects, and the adverse events eventually led to the early end of the study, Festin said.

"The safety committee felt that the number of side effects, particularly the mood changes, were too many," Festin said. The committee also felt "at that point, the study had already proven that the drug combination could already produce the desired effect of lower sperm counts, and the unfavorable side effects may outweigh any further findings."

One suicide occurred during the trial, although researchers ruled it unrelated to the injection.

"That's always alarming," Kavaler said. "They say it's not coming from the effects of the agent, but it's a little alarming."

Despite these results, more than 75 percent of the men said they would be willing to use this method of contraception in the future.

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The clinical trial results were published online in October in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

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Once upon a time  namely, in the 1950s  televisions were big and clunky, yet also status symbols that warranted a prominent spot in America's living rooms. Then came the 1980s, aka the Era of the Armoire. Electronics were to be hidden, preferably in pieces of huge, clunky furniture we'd all wonder what to do with in five years.

Fast forward, and flat-panel TVs seem to be everywhere  in kitchen backsplashes, behind bathroom medicine-cabinet mirrors, and outdoors. "TVs are as important to my clients as dining tables or king-sized beds," says Chicago interior designer Jessica Lagrange.

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And because they're larger, thinner, and lighter weight, there's greater ease and flexibility about where to place them.

Such freedom has led to a conundrum, however: whether to hide them or to display them for what they've become  today's sign of advancing technology, almost akin to integrative artwork. We consulted a host of professionals on what they think are the best way to incorporate TVs into room design. Here's what we heard:

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Hide it: If you prefer a traditional look, Los Angeles designer Sarah Barnard says: "I typically hide it in cabinetry or a wall unit when the style is traditional, since we're looking back, which means a more classic look. Years ago, decor would not have included unsightly electronics," she says. But because the newer TVs are much larger, a cabinet often has to be custom made to fit it and hide the gear, which can end up being expensive. The good news is that the slimness of these TVs pares the depth and makes the cabinetry jut out less, says Chicago architect Elissa Morgante of Morgante-Wilson.

Designer Melissa Lewis, of Lewis Giannoulias Interiors, also in Chicago, prefers to find or design the cabinet first; with so many TV sizes, there's always one that fits.

Atlanta designer Barbara Elliott, of Decorating Den Interiors, prefers to leave a TV in a cabinet in view to avoid the extra step of opening a door or sliding a panel.

Flaunt it: When a more contemporary decor is preferred, Barnard favors leaving the TV in full view since a modern look is more forgiving of technology. Linc Thelen, of Linc Thelen Design in Chicago, concurs. "Sometimes a TV is just a TV, and it's OK to show it off in the way you leave an appliance in full view in a kitchen," he says.

Lagrange also likes to celebrate the sleekness of the latest designs. "Now that they look really good they're often so handsome that they're anything but obtrusive. Deciding whether to leave them out in the open or hide them depends on the homeowner's preferences and aesthetics of each space," she says.

Camouflage it: If you're not sure, consider a middle ground. Some tactics won't hide it completely or leave it in full view, but can make it a bit less noticeable: San Francisco designer Claudia Juestel of Adeeni Design Group may surround it with a frame to match a room's decor; Morgante may paint or wallpaper using a dark palette, so the black TV almost disappears; Thelen may surround it with books in a bookcase as another way to mask it; Lewis favors grass-cloth wallpaper to add texture and coziness; Milwaukee Decorating Den designer Suzan Wemlinger may place it in a corner piece that's an adjunct rather than the major star.

Lower it: While a TV above a fireplace offers a nice dual focal point, the arrangement requires looking up, not a great ergonomic solution. In fact, most people place wall-installed TVs too high, says Elliott. Greg Porthan, custom audio and video installation manager at ABT Electronics in Glenview, Ill., recommends hanging it 46 inches off the ground in a living space where you sit to watch and between 52 and 55 inches high in a bedroom, since you're likely sitting up or lying down.

Skip it: Many homeowners are also reassessing whether to include a TV in some rooms, particularly the bedroom, because viewing a screen's blue light before sleep disrupts the release of melatonin.

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Embrace it: Architect Stuart Cohen of Stuart Cohen & Julie Hacker Architects in Evanston, is finding that some clients forgo a fireplace in favor of a TV for better viewing. "It's more and more the feature that helps center a room," he says. Some even want a TV in their bathroom, and medicine cabinet manufacturers like Robern deliver by incorporating TVs, along with interior outlets for MP-player hookups.

Size it: Whatever direction you take, choose a TV that's in proportion to the size of the room. If the TV's too large, it will throw off the entire room. And a large TV likely will be too close to the couch for safe viewing in a small room, Lewis says. Elliott agrees and suggests a 54- to 60-inch TV that's 10 feet or so from the couch or chairs in a typical 15-by-20-foot room.

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He's a famous lover of cats  and of catty put-downs.

But even by his fearsome reputation, U.S. appellate Judge Richard Posner had some harsh criticism for the U.S. Supreme Court during a recent appearance in Hyde Park.

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"I don't think the judges are very good," Posner said at the Seminary Co-Op Bookstore, at an event captured by C-SPAN's cameras. "I think the Supreme Court is awful. I think it's reached a real nadir. Probably only a couple of the justices, Breyer and Ginsburg, are qualified. They're OK, they're not great."

The 77-year-old Posner, who has been known to reduce lawyers who practice before him in the 7th Circuit in Chicago to a state of gibbering neurosis, placed the blame on politicians who nominate and confirm the judges.

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"Of course the politicians don't care about the quality of the justices  they're politicians," he said, adding that politicos select on the basis of race, or region, or liberal or conservative politics and rely on the brilliance of young law clerks who write most of the court's opinions when they appoint dullards to the bench.

If judges were forced to write their own opinions, "half of them would resign immediately," he added, to laughter.

Posner is known for the brilliance of his legal writing and his prolific academic work. Thanks to his advanced age and forthright opinions, however, it's highly unlikely he'll ever make it to the nation's top court. It's hard to imagine him meekly submitting to a confirmation hearing in the Senate, even if a president were brave enough to nominate him.

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But after the Above The Law blog first reported his comments this week, Posner issued a clarifying note to author David Lat, making it clear he thought the current justices have the proper paper credentials to sit on the Supreme Court, and adding that he thought every justice should have experience in presiding over a trial court.

Still, he wrote, "I know I said some harsh things in my bookstore talk about the Supreme Court and the Justices. I stand by all that. I think the Court is at a nadir. I don't think it's well managed and I don't think the Justices are doing a good job.

"I sometimes ask myself: whether the nine current Supreme Court Justices (I'm restoring Scalia to life for this purpose) are the nine best-qualified lawyers to be Justices," Posner added. "Obviously not. Are they nine of the best 100? Obviously not. Nine of the best 1,000? I don't think so. Nine of the best 10,000? I'll give them that."

Generous words indeed from Posner, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Chicago Inc. on Friday. If we want to know more about his low opinion of the Supreme Court, he told Lat, we'll have to read his forthcoming book.

We're sure the eight remaining justices  and their clerks  are preordering copies on Amazon right now.

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A federal judge sanctioned the city this week, making it the seventh time since 2011 that Mayor Rahm Emanuel's Law Department has been punished for not turning over potential evidence in a police misconduct lawsuit.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan E. Cox on Thursday ordered the city to the pay fees and costs for a second deposition of a Chicago police officer accused of using a Taser on a pregnant woman. The woman, Elaina Turner, suffered a miscarriage soon after the August 2013 incident, according to her lawsuit.

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As part of the routine exchange of evidence known as discovery, the city was required to give Turner's lawyers all documents related to Officer Patrick J. Kelly's disciplinary history. But it failed to turn over records showing that Kelly was involved in a fatal on-duty shooting in 2014. Her lawsuit was filed in 2015.

Turner's lawyers said they did not learn about the shooting  which was investigated by the city Independent Police Review Authority  until Kelly mentioned it during a deposition in June 2016. City attorneys also said they did not know about it until the deposition, according to court documents.

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Cox dismissed the city's argument that it wasn't responsible for the incomplete files because they were produced by IPRA, not the Law Department.

"IPRA is a department of the city that reports directly to the mayor's office," Cox wrote in her 12-page ruling. "Therefore, the city should have known what was (and was not) included in the ... history files that had already been produced."

The city also was slow to turn over records showing Kelly twice had been found unfit for duty after psychiatric evaluations, according to court records. The fitness reports were turned over the day before the officer's deposition, but Cox's ruling only focused on the investigative files in the shooting case.

Law Department spokesman Bill McCaffrey said "the city acted in good faith in its discovery efforts in this case, and once this discrepancy was discovered, and prior to this ruling, offered to cover the plaintiff's expenses for another deposition."

McCaffrey also said "city attorneys have recently undergone training, and the Law Department has adopted new policies and procedures to ensure this oversight is not repeated."

It's unclear how much the city will have to pay for a second deposition, but Turner's attorney, Jeffrey Granich, said it would take "a considerable number of hours" to prepare.

"I'm very pleased with the judge's ruling," Granich said. "We felt the city's reading of our discovery motion and failure to turn over this information was shocking. We look forward to the next deposition."

The ruling marks the second time a federal judge has sanctioned the city for failing to turn over evidence in the past three months. In July, a judge granted attorney's fees to a plaintiff who alleged she was injured in a confrontation with a member of the Emerald Society police bagpipe band. According to the ruling, IPRA knew the accused bagpiper was a Will County sheriff's deputy, but the city did not disclose his identity during discovery.

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The most recent sanctions follow a Tribune investigation into failures in the office of Corporation Counsel Stephen Patton to turn over evidence in lawsuits involving Chicago police officers. The Tribune's analysis of nearly 450 cases alleging police misconduct since Emanuel took office found that a federal judge has had to order the city to turn over potential evidence in nearly 1 in every 5 cases.

In seven cases now, the city's conduct has been found to be so inappropriate that a federal judge took the unusual step of handing down sanctions. Those sanctions led a judge in two cases to take the even rarer step of throwing out jury verdicts that had favored the city and ordering new trials.

Patton told the Tribune earlier this year that he had instituted several reforms to ensure better discovery practices.

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The intersection of Wilson and Manor in Chicago's Ravenswood Manor neighborhood on Oct. 12, 2016. Diverters are set up to reduce traffic on Manor, but Ald. Deb Mell ordered an end to the program on Oct. 28, 2016. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)

After a torrent of complaints about a Ravenswood Manor traffic diversion plan that critics said caused more traffic tie-ups than it averted, Ald. Deb Mell has ordered an end to the program nearly three weeks early, officials said Friday.

City officials confirmed the end of the program, saying Chicago Department of Transportation work crews early Friday removed the wooden "diverter," blockades that directed traffic passing through the neighborhood off two-way Manor Avenue.

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The blockades were intended to calm traffic on Manor Avenue and make it safer for bicyclists and pedestrians, but many residents complained that they ultimately made side streets busier and more dangerous.

Mell announced the end of the plan at a community meeting Thursday night at Horner Park, officials said. Michael Claffey, a CDOT spokesman, said his agency planned to share data on exactly where traffic was affected by the diverters at a later date.

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A separate Manor Greenway project, which aims to calm traffic and create a better climate for pedestrians and cyclists between Horner and Ronan parks, is unaffected by this change.

Officials from Mell's ward office weren't immediately available for comment.

Under a two-month trial and study that started Sept. 19 and was to end Nov. 18, it became impossible to use Manor as a shortcut between Lawrence and Montrose avenues. Drivers on Manor were forced to turn east or west onto Wilson Avenue. North and south turns from Wilson onto Manor were prohibited, blocked by wooden barricades.

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But normally quiet neighboring streets, including Francisco Avenue, which runs southbound somewhat parallel to Manor, had a surge in traffic. Critics also said drivers even shifted to alleys, or drove around the wooden barricades.

The diverter plan led to a "Stop the Diverter" Facebook page and a Twitter handle called @ImManorAve, as well as a Change.org petition with more than 230 signatures.

A spokesman for the Active Transportation Alliance, which promotes biking and walking, said the group was still hopeful the plan could work, saying the diverters will become more vital once two nearby bike trails being built to the south are completed.

But Grace Gaughan, a Ravenswood Manor resident and opponent of the diverter, said she let out a victorious "Ha!" on Friday morning upon seeing that the barricades had been removed.

"I was ecstatic," she said, adding that she and many of her neighbors never wanted the barricades.

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Richard Stephenson, founder of Cancer Treatment Centers of America, left, and his ex-wife, Alicia Stephenson, head into the McHenry County Courthouse on Oct. 17, 2016. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

The ongoing divorce trial involving the founder of Cancer Treatment Centers of America had focused mainly on his personal and financial spheres, but it's also now touched briefly on his political activity and ties to an influential national conservative organization.

Testifying in a McHenry County courtroom this week, Richard Stephenson, the multimillionaire founder of the private cancer hospital network, responded no when asked by his ex-wife Alicia's attorney if he had ever directed an employee to "evaluate" a $12 million contribution to FreedomWorks , a group closely tied to the tea party movement. Stephenson has sat on its board of directors since 2007, he said.

Stephenson, 77, also denied directing anyone to provide money to former Republican Congressman and House Majority Leader Dick Armey , who in 2012 resigned from FreedomWorks. Armey himself told ABC News that year that he agreed to resign as part of a deal with Stephenson under which Armey would receive $8 million over 20 years to do consulting work.

The disputed contributions were originally reported in the Washington Post in 2012 and attributed mostly to anonymous employees. Two election watchdog groups objected to the contributions, saying they were illegal because they were hidden through corporate donations, prompting the U.S. Federal Election Commission to look into the transactions. But, as is common, the commission deadlocked along party lines this year, and took no action.

In their finding, the Democratic members of the FEC concluded that Stephenson "made 20 contributions totaling more than $12 million" to the group under the names of Specialty Investment Group Inc. and Kingston Pike Development LLC. Those companies were formed shortly before the 2012 general election, made contributions to FreedomWorks within days, then dissolved less than a year later, according to the commissioner's so-called statement of reasons.

"The available information demonstrated that Stephenson pledged to make $10-12 million in contributions at an August 2012 FreedomWorks retreat ... and Stephenson dictated how the contributions would be spent," the statement reads.

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Of this and similar cases it wrote about in the statement, the commissioners said: "These matters involved a number of contributors who concealed their identities by using limited liability companies to make large contributions to ... super PACs."

The statement by Republican FEC commissioners, by contrast, concluded that the contributions raised a novel legal question in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's 2010 ruling in Citizens United, which said corporations and unions can make unlimited political contributions. The GOP commissioners wrote that it was therefore unclear if making a contribution through an LLC was legal and called for dismissal of the case.

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Stephenson has been testifying this week at a trial to determine what he will have to pay his ex-wife in their divorce settlement, as they have been unable to come to terms in the seven years since Alicia Stephenson filed to dissolve the marriage.

Her lawyer has sought to shed light on Richard Stephenson's finances to determine Alicia's stake in some of his various financial and real estate holdings and other assets.

The couple were married in 1991 in a storybook wedding at their home in Barrington Hills and raised a daughter who is now grown. But Alicia filed for divorce in 2009, and the marriage was dissolved earlier this year. The couple had a prenuptial agreement that kept their individual property separate after marriage, but which called for Richard to provide up to $250,000 for a house for Alicia, and for monthly payments to be determined by negotiation or by a court.

Alicia Stephenson, who gets nearly $66,000 a month in temporary maintenance from her ex-husband, is seeking ongoing payments that would net her $400,000 per month.

Richard Stephenson testified that over the years, he has made donations to various foundations and churches, including Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington. He said the money came out of his own salary, dividends, bonuses or rent money.

Alicia Stephenson's attorney, Elizabeth Felt Wakeman, also asked him specifically about whether he made donations to FreedomWorks. He testified that he does not remember how much money he has given the group over the years but that he has never given more than $2 million in a single year. He said he helps the group with strategy and research.

Wakeman asked Stephenson if he ever directed a former employee to "evaluate" a donation of $12 million to the foundation and he said no. Wakeman then inquired as to whether he had ever directed an entity  or directed one entity to direct another entity  to pay a stipend or make donations to Armey. Stephenson said no to each question.

In his 2012 interview with ABC News, Armey said Stephenson stepped in amid internal turmoil at FreedomWorks because he "was concerned I was going to resign and sue them before the election. He didn't want an uproar. We all understood if I take any action that made it at all public it would be a press nightmare and we didn't want that before the election.

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"So Dick (Stephenson) was saying, 'You know, Armey, my family and I have heard your story, about how you can't afford to retire and we want to help with your retirement,' " Armey said.

Neither Armey nor anyone from FreedomWorks could be reached for comment for this story.

At the trial in McHenry County, Wakeman returned to what has been her main line of questioning since the proceedings began Oct. 17: the former couple's lavish lifestyle. She posed questions about various sporting events Richard Stephenson has gone to with friends and his former wife. She asked him to detail luxurious trips, including one of his first dates with Alicia, when he took her to the Super Bowl on his private jet. He said he later gave her a $354,000, 10-carat diamond engagement ring.

He described a 10-month family trip around the world where he, Alicia, their daughter and a nanny visited all seven continents.

He further spoke of the former couple's designer clothing, motorcycles and 10 horse-drawn carriages, prompting the judge to ask why Alicia Stephenson's camp needed to know about that, and if he would be expected to factor in the cost of carriages into a settlement. This comment ignited a round of laughter in the otherwise tense courtroom.

Richard Stephenson also testified about his wine collection, quipping that it was fairly extensive "until she moved out."

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Wakeman told Stephenson he had "created a great empire of wealth and organizations and philanthropy," to which he replied, "Thank you."

Wakeman spent much of Thursday morning questioning Dennis Lynde, global managing director for the cancer hospital network and another Richard Stephenson-affiliated company, International Capital Investment Co., about the purchases of several assets and payments for renovations.

Lynde testified that Richard Stephenson has, through trusts or other entities separate from Alicia Stephenson, purchased homes in Indiana and in Paradise Valley, Ariz., as well as 400 distressed homes in Arizona and others in Florida.

Wakeman asserted that a portion of the funds used for those purchases leads back to entities that Alicia Stephenson has ownership in.

Wakeman also sought to make connections between money that Richard Stephenson has spent since the couple's separation to accounts in which she said Alicia Stephenson has a stake. Wakeman cited work done on a gate for his home in Barrington Hills just before his 2014 union ceremony with the woman he legally married this past June, as well as $400,000 in renovations to a home in the Virgin Islands.

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David Grund, Richard Stephenson's lead attorney, objected, calling such questions "absolutely irrelevant." He also noted that any renovations done on the properties where Alicia Stephenson has part ownership would serve to benefit her as well, and that the parties have already agreed that she has part ownership of 10 entities.

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Wakeman also asked Lynde if Richard Stephenson, based on his "current status," could afford to pay $600,000 gross in monthly maintenance; Lynde replied that Stephenson could not. Wakeman has previously said in court that she is seeking $400,000 net for Alicia Stephenson's monthly maintenance.

Earlier, when Richard Stephenson was on the stand, Wakeman asked him about his lawyer's comment during opening statements that Alicia Stephenson was "along for the ride."

Richard Stephenson testified that he never said that to his former wife and did not believe that was the case during their marriage but that "I now believe" the statement to be true.

Robert McCoppin is a staff reporter; Amanda Marrazzo is a freelance reporter.

rmccoppin@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @RobertMcCoppin
In an about-face, Jacquelyn Greco's defense attorneys said Friday that they would call no witnesses on her behalf.

With that surprising announcement, the defense rested, and the case will likely go to the jury Monday  37 years after Greco's husband, Carl Gaimari, was shot to death with his own guns by intruders in his Inverness home while she and three of their children were locked in a closet.

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Authorities allege that Greco was in on the plot to stage her husband's slaying as a home invasion and robbery. They contend she wanted to inherit her husband's money and marry the man with whom she was having an affair, Chicago police Officer Sam Greco.

Sam Greco, whom Jacquelyn married a few months after Gaimari's death but divorced in 1990, has not been charged in connection to Gaimari's slaying but was among the defense witnesses expected to be called. The intruders have never been identified.

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At Jacquelyn Greco's trial Friday morning in Cook County's Rolling Meadows branch court, the prosecution rested its case after four days of testimony, and Greco's public defenders signaled they would begin calling witnesses. But following a brief discussion with their client, the defense lawyers suddenly announced that they would not call witnesses, including Greco herself.

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The defense was denied the opportunity to have witnesses testify about a neighbor of Gaimari's with whom he'd had a property dispute, presumably to suggest to the jury another possible suspect.

The prosecution's case has primarily centered around statements that Greco made in secretly recorded conversations with her sister, Elsie Fry. Fry testified that Greco told her of the plot months before the murder occurred and, in the taped phone calls, Greco seems to beg her sister not to tell that to a grand jury.

"I told you that stuff, and that's enough to put me away. You're the only one who can help me now. Your testimony is enough to put me in jail," Greco tells her sister, who reluctantly cooperated with authorities.

Defense attorneys had countered that Fry made up the story to get back at her sister for suing her over money she lent to Fry.

Bill Stutzman, one of the Inverness detectives who started re-examining the cold case in 2011, testified Thursday that much of the physical evidence in the case had been damaged, destroyed or lost over the years. Some of the damage was due to flooding at the Barrington police station. Barrington police had investigated the original crime because at the time Inverness, an affluent community of large residential lots in the northwest suburbs, did not have its own police force.

Closing arguments are due to start Monday morning.

George Houde is a freelance reporter.
Three teenage girls have been charged after Chicago police released surveillance photos showing a group of teens robbing women in downtown this month, authorities said.



The girls  two of them 15 and the other 13  were each charged with felony counts of robbery, police said in a statement. The 13-year-old was also charged with a misdemeanor count of battery. The three were expected to appear in Cook County Juvenile Court on Friday, but it was not immediately known if they were being charged as juveniles or adults.



Police said the girls turned themselves in after they were identified in surveillance photos released earlier in the week.



In each robbery, a group of teens went up to a woman or girl and hit her in the head, police said in an alert this week. Victims were also kicked. The robbers took cellphones and backpacks containing tablets, then fled on foot.



The surveillance photos show a sequence from a robbery Oct. 19 on Van Buren Street just west of Michigan Avenue. A woman is surrounded by the group of teens and then struggles with them as she apparently tries to flee into the Chicago Club, 81 E. Van Buren St.



The other robberies included:



Oct. 16 at 9 p.m. in the 100 block of North Michigan Avenue.



And Oct. 16, just after 9:10 p.m. in the 200 block of East Randolph Street.
Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson, seen here on Sept. 21, 2016, told aldermen on Oct. 27 that the department hasn't always allocated officers effectively. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)

As Chicago police work to bring surging violence under control, the city will commission the first in-depth study during Mayor Rahm Emanuel's tenure on how officers are deployed throughout Chicago, Police Department officials said Thursday.

The decision to conduct the study, the first such examination since 2010, suggests the department could shake up the placement of officers. After years of saying the city could do without more police, Emanuel announced plans recently to add nearly 1,000 officers.

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During a budget hearing Thursday, Superintendent Eddie Johnson acknowledged that the department hasn't always allocated police effectively throughout the city.

"The department hasn't done a good job of ensuring that some of our police districts have the amount of resources that they could because we have a tendency to pull everything into the most violent districts," Johnson said.

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The issue is politically fraught, with aldermen often facing questions from constituents about staffing levels in their wards. Emanuel, meanwhile, is trying to bulk up the department to combat violence even as he pushes reforms spurred by public outrage over police shootings and alleged misconduct among officers.

In an answer to a question posed by Ald. James Cappleman, 46th, Johnson said aldermen won't have input on the deployment study. Cappleman later said outside the hearing that he asked the question to make the point that the aldermen have limited influence over deployment.

Still, he said, "Every alderman is going to scream for more police in their respective wards. We're going to do that. We have to."

Johnson addressed the issue at the lengthy City Hall hearing during which aldermen largely avoided potentially sensitive questions about ongoing attempts to reform the embattled department, fix the battered disciplinary system and prevent shootings by police. Johnson used the hearing to announce new initiatives, including an advisory panel on community policing and the allocation study led in part by consultant Alexander Weiss. That study should be done within four months, department officials said.

The superintendent and his staff answered numerous questions on plans to add about 970 officers to the department of about 12,000 sworn police over the next two years. The mayor's 2017 budget proposal calls for funding of about $1.5 billion for the department, an increase of about $50 million.

The department is aiming to have two classes of about 100 recruits enter the academy by the end of the year, and department officials hope to start similarly sized classes over the course of next year, department spokesman Frank Giancamilli said. Department officials hope to add to the department's ranks of field training officers, detectives, sergeants and lieutenants during the coming spring and summer, Giancamilli said.

Emanuel announced Thursday morning that the city has arranged to use space at the city colleges and DeVry University to train current officers. That will leave the city to use the academy strictly for new recruits.

Meanwhile, Emanuel vowed in a statement to have a new "state-of-the-art" training facility by 2018, though neither City Hall nor Johnson gave many details. Johnson said city officials were looking for a location for the facility  which would replace the academy  likely on the South or West side.

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The appearance marked Johnson's first budget hearing since Emanuel appointed him superintendent last spring. The 28-year department veteran succeeded Garry McCarthy, who was forced to resign late last year amid the political fallout of the city's release of video of white Officer Jason Van Dyke shooting black teenager Laquan McDonald 16 times.

The U.S. Justice Department is investigating whether Chicago police have systematically trampled citizens' rights, and Emanuel has started making changes to policing in an attempt to get ahead of potentially onerous and expensive reforms federal authorities could seek to enforce by court order.

Almost nothing was said about the federal investigation Thursday, and many alderman focused on complimenting the police who work in their wards or offering their support for Johnson. Many asked him small-bore questions about technical elements of policing, though some probed how the department would be able to hire 1,000 police while also keeping up with an anticipated wave of retirements as well as regular attrition.

Ald. Jorge Cardenas, 12th, said he'd heard that some officers are fatigued and ready to leave the department.

"We better start very soon on this training center," he said. "If we don't ramp up, I don't see us getting through 2018."

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During the Illinois senate debate on Oct. 27, 2016, Rep. Tammy Duckworth spoke about her family's history of involvement in the U.S. military. U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk rebutted by saying, "I had forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington." (Internet - Fair Use)

Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk on Friday apologized to Democratic challenger Tammy Duckworth for questioning her family's ancestry and military background amid harsh criticism that included reactions from the two major campaigns for president and the White House.

"Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service," Kirk posted on his official campaign account on Twitter.

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Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service. #ilsen  Mark Kirk (@MarkKirk) October 28, 2016

Duckworth accepted the apology, also via Twitter, about five hours later. "Thanks, Sen. Kirk. Let's honor my family's service  and your own  by sticking to the issues for the final week," her tweet read.

Kirk's apology came less than 24 hours after he created a social media firestorm over his questioning of the background of the two-term congresswoman from Hoffman Estates during the second and lone Downstate debate of the increasingly bitter campaign.

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In the forum at the University of Illinois at Springfield, Duckworth described her family's long involvement in the U.S. military. She called herself a "daughter of the American Revolution" and noted she had "bled for this nation."

When it was Kirk's turn to offer a reaction, the retired Navy reservist said, "I had forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington."

Duckworth, who was born in Bangkok to a mother of Chinese heritage and a father of British descent, responded that there had been members of "my family serving on my father's side since the American Revolution."

Kirk's comment quickly drew national attention, including criticism from both presidential campaigns.

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, who has been endorsed by Duckworth, weighed in on Twitter. "Thankful for @TammyforIL's  and her family's  service to this country. It's really not that hard to grasp, @MarkKirk," read a post from Clinton's official campaign account.

Thankful for @TammyforIL'sand her family'sservice to this country. It's really not that hard to grasp, @MarkKirk. https://t.co/rKY0rberiB  Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) October 28, 2016

Kellyanne Conway, campaign manager for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, took to Twitter for some payback against Kirk, who pulled his endorsement of Trump this year and has called the former reality show star "unfit" to be president.

"The same Mark Kirk that unendorsed his party's presidential nominee and called him out in paid ads? Gotcha. Good luck," Conway posted on Twitter over an online publication's tweeted headline "Senator Mark Kirk mocks disabled Iraq war vet Tammy Duckworth in debate for her mixed-race heritage."

During the debate, Kirk pointedly said he had unendorsed Trump because of the Republican nominee's criticism of the Mexican heritage of a federal judge from Indiana who was overseeing a trial involving Trump University.

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Democratic groups allied with Duckworth contended Kirk's questioning of her family's heritage and Asian background carried serious racial overtones.

Duckworth is a member of the Illinois Daughters of the American Revolution. In 2011, the organization unveiled a statue in Downstate Mount Vernon that depicts Duckworth standing adjacent to Revolutionary War hero Mary Ludwig Hays, better known as Molly Pitcher.

Duckworth's campaign did not produce a genealogy of her family's military history on Friday. Her father, Franklin Duckworth, was a U.S. Army captain and Marine veteran who served in World War II, Korea and Vietnam. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Eric Schultz, a deputy White House press secretary, said he had not discussed Kirk's comment with President Barack Obama. But Schultz noted the contest for the Illinois U.S. Senate seat, which Obama once held, was "personal" to the president.

"As I understand it, Sen. Kirk apologized over Twitter, but our views on Congresswoman Duckworth are well-known," Schultz said.

"This isn't just another congressional race," Schultz said. Obama "feels very strongly that she deserves a seat in the U.S. Senate."

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Obama came to Chicago this month to raise money for Duckworth and voiced a radio ad on her behalf.

Kirk's remark was the latest in a string of controversial comments the first-term senator has made throughout his re-election bid. That includes likening Obama to a "drug dealer in chief" over U.S. payments as part of the Iran nuclear deal and calling the pact "the greatest appeasement since Chamberlain gave Czechoslovakia to Hitler."

The third and final debate between the two candidates is scheduled for Nov. 4, sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Illinois, ABC-7 and Univision.

Chicago Tribune's Katherine Skiba contributed from Washington, D.C.

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During the Illinois senate debate on Oct. 27, 2016, Rep. Tammy Duckworth spoke about her family's history of involvement in the U.S. military. U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk rebutted by saying, "I had forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington." (Internet - Fair Use)

Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk aggressively went after Democratic challenger Rep. Tammy Duckworth during a Thursday night debate, accusing her of lying and even questioning her family's ancestry and military service.

Duckworth countered Kirk's periodic interruptions by suggesting that his series of controversial statements about President Barack Obama and the nation are "not at all the hallmarks of a senator who is looking out for the people of Illinois."

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The exchanges came during a 90-minute broadcast forum at the University of Illinois at Springfield, the only Downstate debate of an increasingly contentious campaign for a Senate seat crucial to Republican hopes of holding the chamber and Democratic attempts to reclaim a majority.

I had forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington.  Sen. Mark Kirk comment to U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth

During the first joint appearance on Oct. 3 before the Chicago Tribune Editorial Board, Kirk gave short answers and did not engage with his opponent. On Thursday night, the Republican went after Duckworth on a variety of issues ranging from homeland security, military policy and college affordability  though sometimes he struggled to get his words out.

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At one point, Duckworth talked about her family's long history of involvement in the U.S. military, describing herself as a "daughter of the American Revolution" who has "bled for this nation."

When it was Kirk's turn to offer a rebuttal, he offered a single sentence: "I had forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington."

There was an awkward pause, and the comment left some in the audience with a look of puzzlement.

Duckworth, who was born in Bangkok, Thailand, to a mother of Chinese heritage and a father of British descent, replied: "There's been members of my family serving on my father's side since the American Revolution." She said she was "proud of both my father's side and my mother's side as an immigrant."

Kirk's comment drew quick national attention. The left-wing publication Mother Jones called it a "bizarre and offensive quip."

Kellyanne Conway, campaign manager for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, took to Twitter for some payback against Kirk, who un-endorsed Trump this year and has called the former reality show star unfit to be president.

"The same Mark Kirk that unendorsed his party's presidential nominee and called him out in paid ads? Gotcha. Good luck," Conway posted on Twitter over an online publication's tweeted headline "Senator Mark Kirk mocks disabled Iraq war vet Tammy Duckworth in debate for her mixed-race heritage."

Duckworth's campaign send out a campaign fundraising solicitation off Kirk's comment, calling it "outrageous" and "appalling." Her campaign put out a lengthy list of headlines highlighting the attack.

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Kirk, who is recovering from a major stroke suffered in late January 2012, made a series of controversial statements last year. The one that garnered much attention was his live mic reference during a Senate committee hearing of bachelor colleague Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina as a "bro with no ho."

Following the controversial statements, some top Illinois Republicans were privately fretting about Kirk's re-election bid in July 2015, but the GOP stuck by him. At the time, the Tribune reported, officials with the National Republican Senatorial Committee suggested that Kirk stay out of the media.





Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk, right, and Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth, left, face off in their first televised debate on Oct. 27, 2016, at the University of Illinois in Springfield. (Seth Perlman / AP)

"It's got to be a more controlled setting when he speaks publicly," said one Republican political operative familiar with Kirk and the NRSC's strategy back then. "I don't think it takes away from anything that he's trying to do. But he's got to be less in the media. Everything should be about making your point and that's that."

Kirk's campaign largely heeded that message, and even employed a low-risk strategy in the first debate. But on Thursday night, Kirk opened the throttle, and out came the remark about Duckworth's heritage.

Duckworth served in the Iraq War and lost her legs after the helicopter she co-piloted was felled by a rocket-propelled grenade. Kirk served as an intelligence officer in the Naval Reserve.

Kirk, who apologized for embellishing his military record during his successful run for the Senate in 2010, said his "past misstatements of my record have been small and selfish," but paled in comparison to Duckworth's record serving as director of the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs and as an assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs prior to her election to Congress four years ago.

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"I would say the record of my opponent in serving veterans is very questionable," said Kirk, who invited people who he called "whistleblowers" at state and federal facilities to attend the debate.

"These whistleblowers should be commended and applauded and not crushed," said Kirk, who at times haltingly recounted issues surrounding a workplace discrimination lawsuit filed by two women at the Anna Veterans Home against Duckworth. The Illinois attorney general's office, representing Duckworth, has said a settlement of the case has been reached though it is still before a judge and not yet completed.

As Duckworth sought to point out that elements of the lawsuit previously had been rejected by the courts, Kirk interjected, "It's important that Tammy not lie to the people of Illinois." When Duckworth asked for time to respond to Kirk's allegations, the Republican said, "Sorry, when you're lying, you don't get any time."

Duckworth dismissed Kirk's accusations as "stunts" and said she was "proud of my record" in working for veterans.

At one point, Kirk fielded a question about Congress' low approval ratings, and he started out by repeating a well-worn analogy about the Senate being a corral full of 50 wagons and he and Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin, of Springfield, pulling together as the state's two horses.

"I will say, one of the things my opponent has talked about, I lost my train of thought there," Kirk said.

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Kirk later revisited the topic, saying he wanted to "pick up on that one train of thought that I just lost there." He contended Illinois lost jobs "because we had a criminal like Rod Blagojevich, who my opponent served, as governor." The imprisoned Blagojevich appointed Duckworth the state's VA director in late 2006. Kirk's comment drew cheers.

Kirk, who has faced questions about his ability to perform his Senate duties after his near yearlong recovery from the stroke, said "the stroke has made me much stronger as a senator" and "when you conquer something like a stroke" it made him "fight, fight, fight for Illinois."

Kirk, who frequently uses a wheelchair, as does Duckworth, noted, "I think we both agree the next senator from Illinois should use a wheelchair."

That proved one of the more light comments of the evening.

Duckworth said she believed Kirk was "perfectly capable of doing his job. The fact is he is not doing his job." She then reeled off some of Kirk's more controversial comments, such as likening Obama to a "drug dealer in chief" over a $400 million payment made to the Iran government as part of the U.S.-led multinational deal aimed at reducing the Middle Eastern country's ability to develop nuclear weapons.

Though he made the comment about Obama, Kirk responded that "those drug dealer words are not mine." Instead, Kirk noted the $400 million payment was made in a denomination of Euro notes that he said the European Union no longer prints because they were used to facilitate drug dealing and terrorism.

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On immigration, both spoke of their support for a comprehensive plan that would lead to citizenship in contrast to proposals offered by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. But Kirk, who reminded voters he had un-endorsed Trump, said Duckworth wants to bring more refugees from war-torn Syria into the United States than can properly be vetted.

"Congresswoman Duckworth is going to tell you some blabber about how the administration is on top of those guys," said Kirk, who added federal officials have "no database to check against the Syrian refugees."

But Duckworth said Kirk was misleading in referring to comments by FBI Director James Comey and maintained the director "says we can fully vet the refugees."

She advocated more money for checking the background of refugees and warned that with the Islamic State promoting hatred of America, "we simply cannot feed into that by turning our backs."

"I'm not going to leave people to grow up in refugee camps who grow up to be the next generation of insurgents," she said.

Closer to home, Kirk lashed out at Duckworth's support for an eventual plan for free college tuition. "My opponent, her primary spending plan is to offer free stuff like free college," said Kirk, who added it would cost $60 billion to implement when it "only cost $25 billion to get to the moon."

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But Duckworth said college education was important to the nation's future competitiveness and noted Kirk voted against a plan to allow students to refinance their student-loan debt.

"That's just a giveaway to the big banks," said Duckworth, who added that by closing tax loopholes on the wealthy and corporations, free college tuition could be achieved. "I don't think it's a giveaway. I don't think it's a handout. I don't think it's an entitlement."

Kirk responded, "She wants to spend more and tax more and borrow more and push us even further in the red." Duckworth, he said, was "a symbol of everything that's wrong with Washington."

Asked about ways to improve police and community relations, Duckworth spoke of the need for a multifaceted response that included criminal justice reform and "economic justice" in poorer communities. She noted Kirk, at a previous campaign event, had questioned the ability of a senator to have any influence on police and community relations.

Kirk gave a short answer referring only to the response of the Ferguson, Mo., police department to riots that broke out over the fatal shooting of Michael Brown, an African-American teen, by white police officer Darren Wilson in 2014.

"I would say that I have been quite critical of the Ferguson police department. They were too militarized," Kirk said. He called their actions an "inappropriate civil-military relationship" and said law enforcement should be reminded "the people on the other side of the street are voters and taxpayers and not the enemy."

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The third and final U.S. Senate debate will be at 7 p.m. Nov. 4 and broadcast on WLS-Ch. 7. It comes just days before the Nov. 8 election.

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Ads featuring Illinois House Speaker Michael Magidan's face have flooded airwaves across Illinois as Republicans flush with campaign cash from Gov. Bruce Rauner and his allies seek to tie Democrats to him. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)

SPRINGFIELD  Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan's name doesn't appear on the ballot in Kankakee, or in Schaumburg, or in Villa Park. Neither is his name on the ticket in Moline or LaSalle or Marion.

But ads featuring his face have jammed mailboxes and flooded airwaves across Illinois as Republicans flush with campaign cash from Gov. Bruce Rauner and his allies seek to tie Democrats to the longtime speaker, whether the candidates served on his House leadership team or say they've only met him in passing.

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Republicans have tried this approach several times before, including two years ago with Rauner at the top of the statewide ticket and millions of dollars spent on legislative races. The result? Madigan didn't lose a single seat.

It's a difficult strategy to pull off because it requires voters to execute a two-step strategic thought process, driven by the fact that only a few voters in a very safe Southwest Side district get to vote for or against Madigan.

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Not only do Republicans have to establish Madigan as the bad guy in voters' minds, but voters also must be informed enough to know that to cut into Madigan's power, they have vote against the Democrat who's running for the Illinois House. And they may like that particular politician, even if they don't necessarily like Madigan. It's akin to how people might not like Congress, but they like their local congressman.

"Most people have no idea who their legislator is. People in America aren't that interested in politics for the most part  they are busy paying the rent, taking care of the kids, just trying to get through the day," said Chris Mooney, director of the Institute of Government and Public Affairs at the University of Illinois. "Trying to explain what Mike Madigan is and what he does and how he does what he does, it's a complicated story to tell to an audience that's not paying that close of attention."

Republicans acknowledge that past efforts to cast Madigan as the villain have fizzled, but say two things are different: The party has now been pushing the Madigan-as-villain narrative for a long time, especially during the 17-month state budget impasse where they have emphasized political outsider Rauner against political insider Madigan as the through line. And the GOP has tens of millions of dollars more than it has ever had before to attack Madigan and try to link him to Democratic candidates  thanks to Rauner, who made his fortune as a private equity investor, and his deep-pocketed, pro-business allies.

The usual anti-Madigan message has been transformed into an all-out media blitz. The effort has featured everything from the usual glossy mailers and radio and TV advertisements to an hourlong "Madigan" film produced by Illinois Policy Action, the policy arm of the conservative Illinois Policy Institute, which Rauner previously contributed to before becoming governor.

"If people believe Mike Madigan is in charge, then the only way to change the direction of the state is to take away his power. That means at the local level, you elect someone new. That's a very good message for voters," said one GOP operative who asked to speak on the condition of anonymity.

From a campaign perspective, the challenge is one of political transference  getting voters to connect Madigan with the state House candidate, then persuading them to apply negative feelings toward Madigan to the person on the ballot.

The political advertising the GOP is using aims to bridge that gap. In far southern Illinois, Democratic Rep. John Bradley, of Marion, was labeled Madigan's "loyal lap dog" in an attack ad from Republican challenger Dave Severin, of Benton. The spot featured video of Bradley nominating Madigan for speaker. Severin's campaign is largely funded by the Illinois Republican Party and the House Republican Organization, which have spent more than $1 million on the race.

To have a chance at working, the attack has to be as direct as possible. In a northwest suburban district, Democratic Rep. Michelle Mussman, of Schaumburg, is the target of ads run by the Liberty Principles PAC, a group headed by conservative radio talk show host Dan Proft. The group received $2.5 million from Rauner in June, following $1.8 million from Turnaround Illinois in January, a fund created to support legislative candidates who back the governor. Rauner allies Richard Uihlein, a packaging products manufacturer, and Ken Griffin, a billionaire hedge fund magnate, have given the fund another $2.5 million this year.

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The ads highlight Madigan's tax appeals business, saying he benefits from the laws he writes and "spreads the wealth" to friends like Mussman. It ends by encouraging viewers to "vote no on Mike Madigan by voting no on Michelle Mussman."

Meanwhile, in Springfield, Republican Rep. Sara Wojcicki Jimenez, who Rauner helped win appointment to a vacant House seat, is running TV ads labeling Democratic challenger Tony DelGiorno "Mike Madigan's candidate." The spot contains two different audio clips of the Sangamon County Board member praising Madigan and saying he would vote for Madigan as speaker.

DelGiorno has the support of organized labor, which is closely aligned with Madigan, but calls the Madigan label "deceitful and dishonest."

DelGiorno hasn't gotten much from Madigan-controlled funds, and says he hasn't solicited any. "I've met him two or three times at a reception, and had to tell him my name each time. To say I am his puppet, I am his mentor, I don't think that quite fits the bill."

While several other Democratic House candidates did not return calls seeking comment, a Madigan spokesman said the GOP is simply looking for a message to distract from controversial presidential nominee Donald Trump leading the ticket. Spokesman Steve Brown contended Republicans "will say anything" to shift the conversation.

"This has been done before, and it's unclear what effect more spending will have," Brown said. "They figured out, probably too late, that Rauner and Trump are two anchors around their candidates' necks, and they are trying to unwrap those anchors."

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Indeed, trying to link Trump to Rauner  and Illinois Republicans to both  is a big part of the Democratic strategy this fall. Politically ambitious state Sen. Daniel Biss, of Evanston, launched a new super political action committee largely funded by unions, and it's airing radio and TV ads featuring Rauner saying he would support the GOP's nominee for president with sound and video of Trump insulting women and immigrants.

The Republican operative suggested the anti-Madigan strategy has negated any damage Trump has done. The GOP has labeled Madigan "the great equalizer," saying he's helped the GOP remain competitive during a presidential election year, which usually favors Democrats.

Beyond their own efforts, Republicans contend Madigan also has been catapulted from relative obscurity outside the Capitol to a well-recognized figure. During summer 2015, for example, Madigan held near-weekly news conferences to carry the Democratic message that Rauner was to blame for the budget impasse because he was "acting in the extreme."

"When we started this, it was less about building unfavorables and more about letting people know who he is and how Springfield actually works," said Pat Brady, former chairman of the Illinois Republican Party who launched a "Fire Madigan" campaign four years ago. "Now they are trying to take that and win seats with it, and I think they are going to have success."

"It's 'Fire Madigan' on steroids because they have the resources and the funding and a lot of very smart people running these campaigns. It's a lot more well thought out and a stronger strategy than we've ever had," Brady said. "We are in a state that has been dysfunctional for so long that they are looking for someone to blame, and the speaker is an easy target. If we can get across the point that a vote for an individual Democrat is a vote for Madigan, I think that's very effective."

Others are less convinced.

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"We've made Madigan an issue for years. I mean, when I was running for governor re-election, I had quadruple bypass surgery. I credited one of the bypasses to Mike Madigan," former Republican Gov. Jim Edgar quipped to a Springfield audience last month before raising doubts about the strategy targeting Madigan.

"Most voters, they aren't voting on him," Edgar said.

It's the all-politics-is-local idea: Voters care more about the person who shows up on their doorstep than Madigan, who despite his vast influence over state government must answer only to the voters in his district.

That's particularly true Downstate, where lawmakers are known for building relationships in their districts and voters may be less inclined to kick their legislator to the curb simply because of Madigan.

"I think what happens, certainly in my end of the state, is incumbents tend to take care of casework. They take care of their people and they get known for that. They show up at Rotary Club and the Lions Club and church and that ultimately weighs more than these more obscure proxy wars," said John Jackson, visiting professor at the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale.

Madigan's two aces are the higher presidential-year turnout among Democrats and the map. Following the 2010 census, Madigan's party had unfettered control over drawing the 118 House and 59 Senate districts. The boundaries favor Democrats, who hold a supermajority of 71 House seats.

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Given that, a net gain of 12 seats to dump Madigan as speaker is viewed as virtually impossible this go around. Which means not all that much is expected to change at the Capitol, with the budget impasse potentially continuing through the 2018 election when Rauner will seek a second term and the individual House and Senate battles will again be waged.

"They may gain or lose a few seats, but it's hard to imagine that much is going to change at any level other than people are going to be more annoyed with one another because they just got done spending tens of millions of dollars telling people how bad the other side is," said Mooney, the U. of I. professor.

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Twitter @moniquegarcia
Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio speaks to reporters in Phoenix, Ariz., on Jan. 9, 2013. (Ross Franklin / AP)

Sheriff Joe Arpaio has filed a campaign complaint alleging that a political group funded by liberal hedge-fund tycoon George Soros broke election law in running a TV commercial that opposed the lawman's re-election campaign.

The complaint alleges Maricopa Strong failed to provide Arpaio's campaign with a copy of the commercial 24 hours after the group sent it to stations to air.

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The ad features a GOP voter who criticized the Republican sheriff's record in investigating sex crimes against children and expressed support for Democratic challenger Paul Penzone.

Maricopa Strong says in a statement that it provided Arpaio with the appropriate notices.

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Soros has contributed $300,000 so far to the group.

Last week, County Attorney Bill Montgomery filed a similar complaint against another Soros-linked committee that opposes his re-election.

Associated Press
President Barack Obama has now ordered more prisoners released early from federal penitentiaries in a single year than any of his predecessors, after commuting the sentences of 98 people on Thursday.

The announcement of the release of mostly non-violent drug offenders brings to 872 the number of people whose sentences Obama has shortened, with clemency granted to 688 people this year alone. That's more than the past 11 presidents combined.

"While there has been much attention paid to the number of commutations issued by the President, at the core, we must remember that there are personal stories behind these numbers," White House counsel Neil Eggleston said in a blog to be posted to the White House website later Thursday afternoon. "These are individuals -- many of whom made mistakes at a young age -- who have diligently worked to rehabilitate themselves while incarcerated."

Thursday's commutations include 42 prisoners who were facing life sentences for their crimes. Not all will be released immediately; some will not see their sentences expire until late 2018 and will be required to enter residential drug treatment programs.

Obama has sought in the final years of his presidency to reverse decades of drug-war punishments through commutations, after Congress gridlocked on legislation to overhaul criminal justice laws and reduce sentences for nonviolent crimes. Obama and his aides have decried criminal codes mandating years-long sentences for relatively minor drug crimes as unfair and racially biased. Congressional Republicans have raised limited objections to the mass commutations.

"It sounds like the pace is picking up, which is quite welcome," said Mary Price, the general counsel for Families Against Mandatory Minimums, a nonprofit that has championed clemency petitions.

The administration began a program in 2014 to identify prisoners jailed for non-violent offenses who had served at least a decade in prison and would receive lower sentences if convicted today. Last year, the Justice Department announced new rules to ensure that low-level, nonviolent drug offenders would no longer be charged with federal crimes that impose strict mandatory minimum sentences. During his first term, the president signed legislation that reduced the disparity in sentences for possession of powder cocaine and crack cocaine.

Still, some Republicans say Obama is putting violent felons and drug traffickers back on the street. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, sent a letter to the president in September asking him to halt the commutation program.

Goodlatte wrote that an "alarming number" of people who received commutations had been convicted of possessing a firearm during the commission of a felony. He also said some people released had "significant connections to organized crime or gangs."

Critics on the left say Obama could do more.

Clemency Project 2014, a joint effort between FAMM, the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Bar Association, and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, has submitted clemency petitions on behalf of more than 2,100 prisoners to the Justice Department.

"Of course we'd love to see more grants, more often," said Cynthia Roseberry, the project manager for the joint organization.

The former pardon attorney for the Justice Department, Deborah Leff, resigned in January after complaining that her department was not provided enough resources and had been denied access to key officials at the White House. Prisoner advocates say that by providing commutations -- rather than full pardons -- people who are freed can still be subject to court supervision, may not see voting or other rights restored, and still possess criminal records, which complicate job searches.

Obama said in an August news conference that he expected the number of pardons he issued to increase toward the end of his presidency. He acknowledged that the administration had "focused more on commutations than we have on pardons," to that point.

The best solution, he said, would be an overhaul of the criminal justice system by Congress.

"The president's clemency authority is a powerful tool being used to powerful effect, but the individualized nature of the relief granted today also highlights the urgent need for bipartisan criminal justice reform legislation," Eggleston said. "Only Congress can achieve the broader reforms needed to ensure our federal sentencing system operates more fairly and effectively in the service of public safety."

The legislation has stalled in part over some lawmakers' insistence that the bill codify a legal principle called mens rea, which would require prosecutors to show that defendants had willful intent to break the law. Opponents have said corporate executives could exploit those changes to escape punishment for crimes.

Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential nominee, has championed an overhaul on the campaign trail. Clinton promised "end-to-end reform in our criminal justice system -- not half-measures, but full measures" in a Charlotte, North Carolina speech earlier this month.

Some Republicans support an overhaul, pointing to high government spending for incarceration of the world's largest prison population. But Clinton's opponent, Republican Donald Trump, has described himself as the "law and order" candidate and has indicated he supports more stringent law enforcement, including the expansion of controversial stop-and-frisk programs.

White House aides say they still believe it's possible lawmakers could act on an overhaul in the lame-duck session following the election. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, said last month in a speech at the Economic Club of New York he would personally like to see congressional action "sooner rather than later."

"I still hold out hope that the bipartisan effort that's taking place in Congress can finish the job and we can have a criminal justice system, at least at the federal level, that is both smart on crime, effective on crime, but recognizes the need for proportionality in sentencing and the need to rehabilitate those who commit crimes," Obama said in August.
A jury delivered an extraordinary blow to the government in a long-running battle over the use of public lands when it acquitted all seven defendants involved in the armed occupation of a national wildlife refuge in rural southeastern Oregon.



Tumult erupted in the courtroom Thursday after the verdicts were read when an attorney for group leader Ammon Bundy demanded his client be immediately released and repeatedly yelled at the judge. U.S. marshals tackled attorney Marcus Mumford to the ground, used a stun gun on him several times and arrested him.



U.S. District Judge Anna Brown said she could not release Bundy because he still faces charges in Nevada stemming from an armed standoff at his father Cliven Bundy's ranch two years ago.



The Portland jury acquitted Bundy, his brother Ryan Bundy and five others of conspiring to impede federal workers from their jobs at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, 300 miles southeast of Portland. The jury could not reach a verdict on a single count of theft for Ryan Bundy.



Even attorneys for the defendants were surprised by the acquittals.



"It's stunning. It's a stunning victory for the defense," said Robert Salisbury, attorney for defendant Jeff Banta. "I'm speechless."



The U.S Attorney in Oregon, Billy J. Williams, issued a statement defending the decision to bring charges against the seven defendants: "We strongly believe that this case needed to be brought before a Court, publicly tried, and decided by a jury."



The Oregon case is a continuation of the tense standoff with federal officials at Cliven Bundy's ranch in 2014. Cliven, Ammon and Ryan Bundy are among those who are to go on trial in Nevada early next year for that standoff.



While the charges in Oregon accused defendants of preventing federal workers from getting to their workplace, the case in Nevada revolves around allegations of a more direct threat: An armed standoff involving dozens of Bundy backers pointing weapons, including assault-style rifles, at federal Bureau of Land Management agents and contract cowboys rounding up cattle near the Bundy ranch outside Bunkerville.



Daniel Hill, attorney for Ammon Bundy in the Nevada case, said he believed the acquittal in Oregon bodes well for his client and the other defendants facing felony weapon, conspiracy and other charges.



"When the jury here hears the whole story, I expect the same result," Hill told The Associated Press in Las Vegas. Hill also said he'll seek his client's release from federal custody pending trial in Nevada.



U.S. Attorney Daniel Bogden in Nevada, however, said the acquittals in Portland should have no effect in the Las Vegas case. "The Oregon case and charges are separate and unrelated to the Nevada case and charges," Bogden said.



Ammon Bundy and his followers took over the Oregon bird sanctuary on Jan. 2. They objected to prison sentences handed down to Dwight and Steven Hammond, two local ranchers convicted of setting fires. They demanded the government free the father and son and relinquish control of public lands to local officials.



The Bundys and other key figures were arrested in a Jan. 26 traffic stop outside the refuge that ended with police fatally shooting Robert "LaVoy" Finicum, an occupation spokesman. Most occupiers left after his death, but four holdouts remained until Feb. 11, when they surrendered following a lengthy negotiation.



Federal prosecutors took two weeks to present their case, finishing with a display of more than 30 guns seized after the standoff. An FBI agent testified that 16,636 live rounds and nearly 1,700 spent casings were found.



During trial, Bundy testified that the plan was to take ownership of the refuge by occupying it for a period of time and then turn it over to local officials to use as they saw fit.



Bundy also testified that the occupiers carried guns because they would have been arrested immediately otherwise and to protect themselves against possible government attack.



The bird sanctuary takeover drew sympathizers from around the West.



It also drew a few protesters who were upset that the armed occupation was preventing others from using the land. They included Kieran Suckling, executive director of the Center for Biological Diversity, who called the acquittals disturbing.



"The Bundy clan and their followers peddle a dangerous brand of radicalism aimed at taking over lands owned by all of us. I worry this verdict only emboldens the kind of intimidation and right-wing violence that underpins their movement," Suckling said.



One of Ammon Bundy's attorneys, Morgan Philpot, had a different perspective after watching Mumford get tackled by marshals. "His liberty was just assaulted by the very government that was supposed to protect it, by the very government that just prosecuted his client  unjustly as the jury found."



There's another Oregon trial coming up over the wildlife refuge.



Authorities had charged 26 occupiers with conspiracy. Eleven pleaded guilty, and another had the charge dropped. Seven defendants chose not to be tried at this time. Their trial is scheduled to begin Feb. 14.

Associated Press
A California review board denied parole Thursday to Charles "Tex" Watson, the self-described right-hand man of Charles Manson and a key figure in the Manson family's 1969 killing spree in the Los Angeles area.

Watson, 70, was initially sentenced to die in San Quentin's gas chamber for his part in the murder of pregnant actress Sharon Tate and six others. In 1973, his sentence was commuted to life in prison after the state Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was unconstitutional.

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The panel's decision, reached late Thursday, marks the 17th time that Watson has been denied parole, according to Luis Patino, a spokesman for the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. He'll be eligible for parole in five years.

Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey condemned Watson after the parole board's decision was reached.

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"These were some of the most horrific crimes in California history, and we believe he continues to exhibit a lack of remorse and remains a public safety risk," Lacey said in a statement.

Watson was convicted of joining other Manson followers in the Aug. 9, 1969, massacre of five people including Tate, who was married to director Roman Polanski.

Before storming the Polanski home in Benedict Canyon, Watson climbed a pole and cut the telephone wires. He also fatally shot Steven Parent, a man who was visiting a friend at the Polanski estate. Next, Watson and other Manson followers  Susan Atkins, Linda Kasabian and Patricia Krenwinkel  carried out the barbarous slayings.

Abigail Folger was stabbed 28 times; Jay Sebring was shot once, stabbed seven times and found with a rope around his neck; and Wojciech Frykowski was stabbed 51 times and shot twice, according to court papers.

Tate, who was eight months pregnant, was stabbed 16 times and found with a rope around her head.

After the killings, Watson and the other Manson followers  who were covered in blood  drove away, stopping to use a hose to wash off.

The next night, Watson and others fatally stabbed Rosemary and Leno LaBianca at the couple's Los Feliz residence. "War" was carved into Leno LaBianca's chest, and a knife was left stuck in his throat. On the walls, with the LaBiancas' blood, they wrote, "Death to pigs, rise."

The Los Angeles County district attorney's office has long opposed releasing Watson and other members of the Manson family.

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Prosecutors said Manson and his followers  based out of the Spahn Ranch commune in Chatsworth  were trying to incite a race war that the cult leader believed was foretold in the Beatles' song "Helter Skelter."

At Watson's most recent parole hearing in 2011, Deputy Dist. Atty. Patrick Sequeira called Watson the leader of the rampage at Polanski's home; he had announced to the victims: "I am the devil. I am here to do the devil's business."

"His role within the family was a significant one," Sequeira said. "He was essentially the main hit man. These weren't impulsive actions. Murdering seven people on two subsequent nights were not impulsive actions."

During the 2011 hearing, Watson said his decades behind bars had given him time to reflect on his delusional beliefs and horrific crimes.

"My heart is filled with remorse for the tragedy I caused so many people," he said. "I'm so deeply sorry that I allowed myself to get to the place of not valuing life."

Addressing the family members of his victims, he said, "Because I cannot apologize to your loved one, I have chosen to honor their memories by living a clean and sober life."

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The parole board recognized Watson's efforts to reform but found that he still posed a danger to society. The parole commissioners opined that he lacked a depth of insight into the grisly crimes and their effect on the nation.

Watson is in Mule Creek State Prison in Ione, about 40 miles outside Sacramento. Behind bars, he has married, divorced, fathered four children and become an ordained minister.

He also earned a bachelor's degree in business management in 2009.

According to a website for Watson's ministry, he works as a janitor and attends Bible study.

Most of the key players in the Manson murders  including Krenwinkel and Leslie Van Houten  continue to serve life sentences with the possibility of parole. Most, including Manson, have been denied repeated requests for parole.

In 2009, Manson follower Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme was released from prison.

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Atkins, who stabbed Tate to death, was denied parole even when she was terminally ill. She died in September 2009.

matt.hamilton@latimes.com

Twitter: @MattHjourno.

UPDATES:

8:45 p.m.: This article was updated with comments from L.A. County Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey.

7:55 p.m.: This article was updated with the board denying parole for Watson.

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7:45 p.m.: This article was updated with additional background and excerpts from Watson's previous parole board hearing.

This article was originally published at 5:30 p.m.
Martin Nesbitt, chairman of the Barack Obama Foundation, talks with attendees Oct. 27, 2016, after his talk sponsored by the Executives' Club of Chicago. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)

Minority businesses will have a fair shot at contracts tied to the Obama Presidential Center that will be built on Chicago's South Side, the project's chairman told corporate and civic leaders Thursday.

The recent formation of an "inclusion council" by the nonprofit foundation spearheading the presidential library will ensure there's a process "that gives a lot of diverse vendors, contractors and service providers an opportunity to participate," Martin Nesbitt said at an Executives' Club of Chicago luncheon that drew about 300 people.

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The commitment comes as a coalition of community activists is pushing for written guarantees that the massive project will provide jobs, contracts and other benefits to South Side residents.

Nesbitt and the foundation do not support a written pact, but Nesbitt said Thursday that a commitment to diversity is part of the foundation's DNA.

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"Just in case the outside doesn't believe it," he said, "we put a diversity inclusion council together to just make sure we do it the right way."

He also sought to assuage fears that the development would lead to displacement of poor people from neighboring Woodlawn.

"We've heard people worry about whether we are going to displace different socioeconomic classes of people," he said. "No. We like that. We like the people who live together on the South Side of Chicago. ... We want to make that community stronger, not different. We hope a rising tide lifts all the ships."

Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. >

The project, which will include an archival library, museum and foundation headquarters, is estimated to cost at least $500 million and to open in 2021. Situated in Jackson Park, it will be more than a monument to the eight-year tenure of the nation's 44th president, Nesbitt said.

The idea is to create a forum to engage citizens in a host of pressing societal issues, including climate change, gun violence, health care and education.

"If we can make Chicago the center of the world for that idea," he said, "that's powerful."

The hope, as well, is to avoid the attendance pattern experienced by many presidential libraries. They often open to a burst of public enthusiasm and then see traffic wane as individual presidents fade from the public memory.

"The vision is, can we create a compelling reason for people to come and visit this place, and engage in perpetuity," said Nesbitt, a private equity investor and close friend of President Barack Obama.

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kbergen@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @kathy_bergen
If Hillary Clinton wins the election on Nov. 8, as seems likely, and Republicans retain control of at least the House of Representatives, which also seems probable, there will be countless areas of contention between the president and the GOP majority. But there will also be one powerful goal they share: driving the last, bedraggled moderates, and even a few frustrated conservatives, clear out of the Republican Party.

Donald Trump has done his best to send moderate suburban women fleeing. His campaign vacillates between a general theme of Men Behaving Badly and the more specific genre of Men Behaving Badly Toward Women. His uncanny surrogates Rudy Giuliani and Newt Gingrich remain staples of the cable shows, with Gingrich this week seeking to duck questions about Trump's alleged sexual predations by chastising Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly for being obsessed with sex.

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We don't yet know the nature of the war Trump and his campaign chief Steve Bannon intend to wage against the party after November. But the anticipated civil strife will not be a cleanly drawn affair, with Trumpists on one side and sensible conservatives on the other. It will be a battle between pro-Trump reactionaries and anti-Trump reactionaries. The increasingly marginalized GOP professional class, and the neoconservative GOP foreign-policy establishment, will be battling both, seeking to regain lost ground amid a fog of war.

Both Trumpists and anti-Trumpists believe the U.S. faces an existential crisis that requires suspending "business as usual"  that is, democratic norms and practices  to empower themselves. The quantifiable distinction is that the anti-Trumpists also want to destroy the welfare state while the Trump faction wants to appropriate it.

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Don't expect more than a handful of congressional Republicans  hello, Senator Lindsey Graham  to acknowledge the party's responsibility for its presidential fiasco. With the election almost two weeks away, some appear already to have moved beyond it, focusing on new and better ways to make their party a compelling purveyor of lunacy.

It's not just the reckless talk of "impeachment," which conservative media and some Republicans have started even before their target ("Lock her up!") is elected.

More pressing, it seems, is the need to crush House Speaker Paul Ryan on the grounds that he's insufficiently "conservative"  a word that has lost all meaning inside the GOP.

In a Bloomberg Politics survey of voters who lean or identify as Republican, 51 percent said Trump better represents their idea of the GOP compared with 33 percent who said Ryan does. One quarter of the party thinks the 70-year-old Trump should be its public face even if he loses.

Perhaps views will shift in the event of a Trump defeat. But as Norman Ornstein detailed in the Atlantic, Ryan's hold on power is precarious. In one of the most remarkable quotes of a remarkable season, a Ryan loyalist, Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma, told Bloomberg View columnist Al Hunt that perhaps it's time Ryan moved on. "As his friend," Cole said, "it may be best for him to wrap up business and think about his future."

Making Ryan walk the plank, as they did with John Boehner before him, might make sense if the party planned to move in a more moderate direction. The opposite is the case. Ryan's ideology demands shrinking Washington to a fraction of its size and cutting aid to tens of millions. Many of his colleagues lack Ryan's eye for detail; they simply want to burn something, anything down.

Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz, chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, is readying kindling. In The Washington Post this week, the Trump agnostic  Chaffetz will vote for Trump but won't endorse him, a kind of conservative metaphysics  promised "years" of investigations into President Hillary Clinton. It's almost as if Chaffetz is unaware that previous years of investigations have led his party to the very threshold of President Hillary Clinton.

Governing is not the GOP's thing; oversight, Chaffetz told The Post, is "where the action is." Meanwhile, Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan said he wants his Select Committee on Benghazi, the eighth congressional committee to investigate the topic, to continue into the next Congress. Why should Chaffetz get all the action?

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A Trump failure at the polls may also require new improvisations concerning the Supreme Court. Seeking to regain reactionary mojo lost to Trump, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz this week suggested that perhaps deceased Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia shouldn't be replaced at all. Arizona Sen. John McCain had previously raised the notion of blocking all Clinton court nominees  as Republicans have blocked Obama's nominee for most of the year  before McCain backtracked.

The problem, of course, is that Republicans keep losing presidential elections but still want the power over court nominations that the Constitution awards to the winner. Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley of Iowa has said his Republican colleagues can't stonewall forever. But Grassley is not a courageous man; he will cave if pressure is applied.

To the extent that there is a GOP strategy at work, beyond massive resistance to what America, circa 2016, actually is, it banks on the peculiar unpopularity of Clinton. She is not well liked, and she is even less well trusted. Republicans are hoping to erode her shaky support, and hound and harass her into despair.

But the presidency is a powerful platform. And Clinton, her self-damaging penchant for secrecy aside, is a more skilled politician than many realize. Trump's crusade to alienate a record number of college-educated white women voters seems likely to succeed. A vicious war waged by congressional Republicans against the first woman president may do for women what unscrupulous attacks against the nation's first black president appear to have done for nonwhite voters: moved most of them beyond the GOP's reach.

Republican attacks on a new president will take place while the party's own factions are busy clawing at the broken husk of the GOP. It will likely be an energizing time for the party base, which will want revenge for an election it has been told is rigged. Fox News and Breitbart should be lively.

But many old-school conservatives will be on the outside looking in at the madness. And suburban married women, a Republican constituency, and even some of their college-educated Republican husbands, may find themselves acquiring an unexpected affinity for pantsuits.

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Bloomberg View

Francis Wilkinson writes on politics and domestic policy for Bloomberg View.
WASHINGTON  Last week, the U.N.'s premier cultural agency, UNESCO, approved a resolution viciously condemning Israel (referred to as "the Occupying Power") for various alleged trespasses and violations of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Except that the resolution never uses that term for Judaism's holiest shrine. It refers to and treats it as an exclusively Muslim site, a deliberate attempt to eradicate its connection  let alone its centrality  to the Jewish people and Jewish history.

This Orwellian absurdity is an insult not just to Judaism but to Christianity. It makes a mockery of the Gospels, which chronicle the story of a Galilean Jew whose life and ministry unfolded throughout the Holy Land, most especially in Jerusalem and the Temple. If this is nothing but a Muslim site, what happens to the very foundation of Christianity, which occurred 600 years before Islam even came into being?

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This UNESCO resolution is merely the surreal extreme of the worldwide campaign to delegitimize Israel. It features the BDS movement (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions), now growing on Western university campuses and some mainline Protestant churches. And it extends even into some precincts of the Democratic Party.

Sen. Bernie Sanders tried to introduce into the Democratic Party platform a plank more unfavorable to Israel. He failed, but when a couple of Clinton campaign consultants questioned (in emails revealed by WikiLeaks) why she should be mentioning Israel in her speeches, campaign manager Robby Mook concurred, "We shouldn't have Israel at public events. Especially dem activists." For whom the very mention of Israel is toxic.

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And what to make of the White House's correction to a press release about September's funeral of Shimon Peres? The original release identified the location as "Mount Herzl, Jerusalem, Israel." The correction crossed out the country identifier  "Israel."

Well, where else is Jerusalem? Sri Lanka? Moreover, Mount Herzl isn't even in disputed East Jerusalem. It's in West Jerusalem, within the boundaries of pre-1967 Israel. If that's not Israel, what is?

But such cowardly gestures are mere pinpricks compared with the damage Israel faces in the final days of the Obama presidency. As John Hannah of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies recently wrote (in Foreign Policy), there have been indications for months that President Barack Obama might go to the U.N. and unveil his own final status parameters of a two-state solution. These would then be enshrined in a new Security Council resolution officially recognizing a Palestinian state on the territory Israel came into possession of during the 1967 Six-Day War.

There is a reason why such a move has been resisted by eight previous U.S. administrations: It overthrows the central premise of Middle East peacemaking  land for peace  under which the Palestinians get their state after negotiations in which the parties agree on recognized boundaries, exchange mutual recognition and declare a permanent end to the conflict.

Land for peace would be replaced by land for nothing. Granting the Palestinians an officially recognized state in advance makes peace all the more unachievable  it removes any Palestinian incentive to negotiate and strips Israel of territorial bargaining chips of the kind it used, for example, to achieve peace with Egypt.

The result would be not just perpetual war but incalculable damage to Israel. Consider but one example: the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem, destroyed and ethnically cleansed of Jews by its Arab conquerors in the war of 1948-49. It was rebuilt by Israel after 1967. It would now be open to the absurd judicial charge that the Jewish state's possession of the Jewish Quarter constitutes a criminal occupation of another country.

Israel would be hauled endlessly into courts (both national and international) to face sanctions, boycotts (now under color of law) and arrest of its leaders. All this for violating a U.N. mandate to which no Israeli government, left or right, could possibly accede.

Before the election, Obama dare not attempt this final legacy item, to go along with the Iran deal and the Castro conciliation, for fear of damaging Hillary Clinton. His last opportunity comes after Election Day. The one person who might deter him, points out Hannah, is Clinton herself, by committing Obama to do nothing before he leaves office that would tie her hands should she become president.

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Clinton's supporters who care about Israel and about peace need to urge her to do that now. It will soon be too late. Soon Obama will be free to deliver a devastating parting shot to Israel and to the prime minister he detests.

Washington Post Writers Group

Charles Krauthammer is a Washington Post columnist.

letters@charleskrauthammer.com
Editor's note: In September, a Tribune editorial proposed a Schoolchild's Bill of Rights, a declaration of what every child who crosses a public classroom threshold deserves. We invited readers  including schoolchildren and educators in metro Chicago, Illinois and beyond  to submit proposed amendments. Among the responses discussed in a companion editorial:

Every student deserves the excellent school experience that most American adults enjoyed.

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As a former student of a Chicago suburban school district who has taught in the Chicago Public Schools for 13 years, I've seen firsthand the inequitable school system our nation has set up for our children. Illinois, in particular, has the highest funding gap in our nation in terms of how much we fund our wealthy students versus our poorest students.

As a product of the Lockport public school district, a district funded in the middle of the pack compared with others in Illinois, I never felt the need for more funds the way my students at Lindblom Math and Science Academy do or the way my past students in CPS' neighborhood schools have felt. I went to school, on a bus I didn't have to pay for, with other children. I never worried about not having enough textbooks or the age of them. I never sat in an overcrowded classroom, and technology was plentiful even in a time when it was just emerging. Our student body had access to a well-funded art department and plenty of classes to explore the arts. We had a school library, plenty of counselors and a school nurse on hand. Presently, even in the hardest economic times, not much has changed for students in Lockport.

But the children in Chicago and other struggling districts in our nation face a different reality. They attend school with dangerous daily commutes, a lack of resources, limited technology, crowded classrooms, a lack of funding for the arts, and dwindling access to school libraries, counselors and nurses. Our nation's children deserve the right to an equitably funded public education; it is one of the only ways we can level the playing field for children born into different socioeconomic classes in our society.

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 Gina Caneva, teacher and librarian

All students deserve equal access to resources and personnel.

In terms of resources, Lindblom and many other CPS schools are lacking in quantity and quality materials and personnel. In my pre-calculus class, for example, we do not have as many books as we do students. All of our homework comes from said books, and those who do not have the books are forced to either borrow from others or not do their homework because we do not have the money to supply our students with the materials they need to succeed. And before people get the wrong idea, it's not just one class. Many classes here do not have enough books  even Advanced Placement classes that are on strict schedules to make sure students are prepared for the tests. This causes more unneeded stress for students and teachers, all stemming from the lack of funds.

Technology is no different. In suburban schools, they are 1:1 with their technology to student ratio. At Lindblom, we don't have a 1:1 ratio. If teachers need laptops, they have to check them out. Students in wealthier districts have parents who can afford to buy them laptops needed for education. In contrast, most children in CPS receive free or reduced-price lunch. Their parents can't afford to buy them laptops. It's funny how those who can afford their resources have more available at their schools than those of us who can't afford these luxuries. If we are supposed to compete with those who have more opportunities and resources than we are offered at CPS schools, then we need to have access to the same resources that they have. The discrepancy in school funding is appalling and needs to be solved.

When it comes to personnel, 1 in 4 schools in CPS has a library. I consider Lindblom extremely lucky to have a library with an abundance of books and some technology, but much of that has come from outside funding. The library is an open space for students to study, work on homework, get tutored by the Writing Center tutors, or even relax after a stressful day. On an average day before, during and after school, the library is full of students who would have no other place to go if it weren't open. It's hard to believe students don't have an open space like this at their schools. Also as a senior, I benefit from having counselors, but there are only four counselors to serve 1,200 students. It puts more stress on the counselors' plates having to cater to a ton of students ranging in grades, personalities, backgrounds, identities. If the schools were funded properly, there would be a sufficient number of counselors.

We make do with what we can, and the school makes sure we are able to succeed with these setbacks. But it is unfair to public school students to not have the same resources. Just like there are unalienable rights to citizens of the United States, there should be unalienable rights for all students to get a quality and equal education.

 Alyssa Diaz, senior

.

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All students deserve safe and free transportation.

Nearly every day, I have to walk at least 30 blocks to and from school in the Englewood community. I would take two buses, which would make my journey to school more efficient, but I cannot due to my family's financial situation. My mother is unable to afford public transportation for my younger brother and me throughout the entire week, even at the reduced rate the CTA gives. My situation forces me to get up for school earlier than what I normally should and walk through the suspicious blocks of Chicago where I've experienced people trying to sell me illegal items such as drugs and even threaten to rob me.

It is insane that I cannot walk down the streets listening to my headphones because walking requires full awareness of my surroundings. I am sure that this is the same situation for many students in CPS schools but not for many in wealthier school districts or districts that provide free buses for their students. In those districts, children also ride together  not on a public bus filled with strangers. In Chicago, inadequate transportation and dangerous routes to school prevent many students from arriving to school on time or even attending school at all. On the first day of school, CTA allows students to ride free to promote a high attendance rate, but what about the rest of the school year? Students should not be burdened with how they are going to get to school the next day.

 Curtis Robinson, senior

All students deserve reasonably-sized classes.

As a CPS student, I've sat in many classes that have been overcrowded. In my pre-calculus class, there are 30 students in a room with 12 tables. We all compete for the teacher's attention when we need help, which causes the teacher to slow down the class to make sure everyone understands the content. That class always seems so slow, and it frustrates me that we are not caught up with the other classes. On the other hand, my AP statistics class consists of only 14 students. The teacher has time to answer all of our concerns and clarifies everything in a way that we never run out of time.

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Northwestern University researcher Diane Whitmore Schanzenbach recently concluded from a review of major research that large class sizes cause lower test scores. Large classrooms only harm students, since time is limited and not every child's needs can be met. The problem with large class sizes is there is a perception that a great teacher will do a great job no matter the size, but that's not true. In my elementary school, a teacher was given a first-grade class of 50 students due to the budget cuts. That year, they got the lowest test score out of all the first-grade classes, and many children complained that they were behind but they never received attention. Every child deserves to be heard and to be given aid when asked for; no child should be left behind or forgotten.

 Marleny Ochoa, junior

All students deserve a chance to explore the arts.

The arts is another area where you see huge discrepancies between CPS schools and the suburban schools. I know from personal experience. At Lindblom, I have been in plays, musicals and theater classes for five years, and a lack of resources has made it really hard for us to do the best shows we can. However, my cousins who attend suburban schools don't have this issue. They have arts buildings, perfect auditoriums, costume and set budgets, and they have the ability to do two to three well-known shows a year. At Lindblom, we bring in our own clothes for costumes or borrow them from other schools, build sets out of recycled materials we find around school, and our auditorium is worn down. But many CPS schools don't even have auditoriums or arts programs because they don't have the funding to do so, which is unfair to all the people in CPS who want to pursue the arts or even find out more about them.

 Jazmin Gonzalez, junior

All students deserve access to medical care at their school.

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Many schools in our district don't have full-time nurses, and some don't have nurses at all. This is a huge problem because most of these schools are in areas with extremely high poverty rates, which means the children are far more likely to have health problems than children in wealthier districts. Not having a nurse to go to throughout the day can take a toll on their education.

I can speak from personal experience. Just this week, I was feeling really sick to my stomach. Not sick enough to go home, but sick enough to go to our school's nurse. When I went to her office, she was not in there and nobody was there who could sub for her. I had to go through the rest of the day not feeling any better and not able to complete my work to the best of my ability. School nurses are extremely important for helping students have uninterrupted school days and should be in every school.

 Jasmine A. Lewis, senior

Lindblom Math and Science Academy is a selective-enrollment, 7th-12th grade Chicago Public Schools high school in Englewood. Gina Caneva is a 13-year CPS veteran who works as a teacher-librarian and Writing Center director at Lindblom. She is a National Board Certified teacher and Teach Plus Teaching Policy Fellowship alum.
Former Ku Klux Klan leader and current U.S. Senate candidate David Duke, with a group of supporters, speaks in front of a statue of Andrew Jackson, in Jackson Square, on Sept. 24, 2016. (Gerald Herbert, AP)

Anti-Semitism is one of those vicious maladies that ought to be close to eradication, like polio. But it turns out it's more like crabgrass: You can never eliminate it entirely, and given half a chance, it will spread rapidly.

The evidence of that depressing reality is abundant lately. "There's a certain atmosphere in the country that's disturbing," says Ken Jacobson, deputy national director of the Anti-Defamation League, which combats this and other types of bigotry. "There is a new legitimacy to saying things that were beyond the pale."

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Hmm. Where could that come from?

Well, Donald Trump recently accused Hillary Clinton of meeting "in secret with international banks to plot the destruction of U.S. sovereignty in order to enrich these global financial powers, her special interest friends and her donors"  language that echoes the perennial conspiracy theories of Nazis and other anti-Semites.

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"Is it just me or is much of this Trump speech Jew-baiting?" tweeted Julia Ioffe, one of many Jewish journalists who have been the target of vicious anti-Semitic slurs and threats on Twitter.

Some may wonder if she's picking up signals that aren't there. But apparently not. Openly neo-Nazi groups are getting the same message. Andrew Anglin, editor of a far-right website, told the Los Angeles Times, "Virtually every alt-right Nazi I know is volunteering for the Trump campaign."

Anti-Semitism fits comfortably within the anti-immigrant, Islamophobic appeal of a candidate who said an American-born judge couldn't be fair to Trump because he is "of Mexican heritage." And he's fueled it, intentionally or not, with such antics as sharing tweets from neo-Nazi accounts, as well as one tweet of his own that called Clinton "the most corrupt candidate ever," with that phrase embedded in a six-pointed star. Is anyone surprised when former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke exults, "Thank God Trump has emerged and embraced my issues"?

But this phenomenon is not a monopoly of the alt-right. It's also detectable on the left, particularly on university campuses, where campaigns to get schools to disinvest from companies that operate in Israel often end up stimulating hostility toward Jews.

Last year, an undergraduate running for the Stanford student senate asked for the endorsement of the Students of Color Coalition. But when members of the group interviewed her, she said, they asked how her Jewish identity would affect her decisions  a question she interpreted as anti-Semitic. The Stanford Israel Association said some student groups have refused to co-sponsor events with it.

A recent study by the Amcha Initiative found that anti-Semitic incidents on campus increased by 45 percent in the first six months of 2016 and seemed to be connected to the "boycott, divestment and sanctions campaign" against Israel.

The evidence showed that "anti-Semitism was twice as likely to occur on campuses where BDS was present" and "eight times more likely to occur on campuses with at least one active anti-Zionist student group."

A survey by scholars at Brandeis University found that Northwestern is one of several universities "where the majority of Jewish students perceive a hostile environment toward Israel, and over one-quarter perceive a general environment of hostility toward Jews on their campus." At the University of Chicago, Amhca reported 14 cases, up from two in the first six months of 2015.

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The good news is that anti-Semitism is the toxic superstition of a shrinking minority. Since 1992, a 2013 poll found, the share of Americans expressing such attitudes has fallen from 20 percent to 12 percent, the lowest figure on record. Those younger than 39, it showed, are "remarkably free of prejudicial views."

But anyone acquainted with history knows that prejudice can wax as well as wane. Modern social media gives more outlets to bigots who once had none. Visibility can promote the disease.

So vigilance is needed now as much as ever. In the effort to combat anti-Semitism, no victory is permanent, and every generation has to take up the challenge.

Join the discussion on Twitter @Trib_Ed_Board and on Facebook.
The jury system is one of the glories of American law, giving ordinary people responsibility over many serious matters between the government and its citizens. Thursday's acquittal of seven people who occupied a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon could be taken as a vindication of that institution. Or it could be taken as proof that even the noblest human inventions are subject to human fallibility.

The verdicts came as a shock even to the defendants' lawyers. "I had been telling my client you can count on being convicted," admitted defense attorney Matthew Schindler. "You don't walk into a federal court and win a case like this. It just doesn't happen." Said another defense lawyer, fervently if not quite accurately: "I'm speechless."

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There was not much dispute about the events that led to the trial. Brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy were among the armed protesters who organized the January takeover of the 187,000-acre Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, demanding that the federal government surrender control. The siege ended a few weeks later after the Bundys and several followers were arrested while outside the preserve.

The government charged the defendants with conspiracy to prevent federal employees from doing their jobs, as well as weapons offenses. But the defendants insisted their actions were meant only to draw attention to what they regard as federal overreaching. "This has nothing to do with refuge employees or their duties," Ammon Bundy testified. The guns, they said, were needed only in case the interlopers were attacked.

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Obviously the occupiers did impede federal workers. But proving criminal intent was crucial to the government's case, and prosecutors failed to convince the jury. One juror said afterward that the verdict "was a statement regarding the various failures of the prosecution to prove 'conspiracy' in the count itself  and not any form of affirmation of the defense's various beliefs, action or aspirations."

Whether the outcome will advance the occupiers' cause is not at all clear. During the occupation, Arizona rancher LaVoy Finicum, one of the leaders, declared, "It needs to be very clear that these buildings will never, ever return to the federal government." They did return to the federal government, though Finicum didn't live to see it. He was shot to death, apparently reaching for his gun, while trying to escape from police.

The Bundy brothers still face trial on charges related to an armed 2014 standoff at their father's ranch in Nevada. Several people involved in the Oregon occupation pleaded guilty, and others are awaiting trial.

We give the jury credit for undertaking a difficult task and reaching the verdict it thought was warranted by the evidence and the law. But as Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., put it, "The notion that an armed occupation could take over a citizen-owned facility and cause extensive damage, and yet face no consequences within our legal system, is deeply concerning."

Let's hope this outcome doesn't encourage other irresponsible conduct by sympathizers, copycats and vigilantes who think the law is what they say it is. If some people out West don't like Washington's handling of federal lands, we encourage them to pursue change through the peaceful means offered by our system of government. There's an election Nov. 8.
In this Oct. 20, 2008, photo provided by Nikola Halycyone Jordan, Jordan poses with her election ballot in Omaha, Neb. Jordan believes the selfies are a great way not only to share her views on the issues, but also to stress the importance of voting and being civically active. A Nebraska lawmaker added a provision to state election law in 2016 to allow ballot selfies. (Mari Zaporowski / AP)

If a millennial voter goes to the polls but isn't allowed to take a ballot selfie to document the moment on social media, did it really happen? More important, is democracy imperiled?

We're sort of teasing about young people's obsession with smartphone cameras. We're serious about believing voters have a constitutional right to take pictures of themselves in a voting booth with a completed ballot.

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You might be surprised to learn there is an active question surrounding the legality of so-called ballot selfies, with conflicting opinions held by election officials in the Chicago area and elsewhere. Some like the idea; others are appalled and won't allow photography. That means depending on where you vote Nov. 8 or during early voting, you could get in trouble for whipping out your iPhone.

The confusion needs to be resolved.

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Cook County Clerk David Orr, whose office has jurisdiction over suburban Cook elections, says all photography is banned at all polling places, citing privacy concerns. But a spokesman for the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners says city voters have a constitutional right to take ballot selfies. Lake County voters also will be allowed to do so. "As long as they don't infringe on anyone else's ballot security, we are OK with it," Lake County Clerk Carla Wyckoff told us.

The city and Lake County take their cues from recent court decisions that say voters at polling stations who take photos of themselves with marked ballots and then post them to social media are exercising freedom of speech. Laugh if Facebook and Instagram mean nothing to you, but the court rulings said political selfies are protected by the First Amendment.

The question rarely if ever came up before because people in previous generations didn't make photography such an integral part of their lives. Actually, the opposite was true. There were barriers to taking pictures  because most people didn't carry cameras and because of privacy concerns. Polling stations are a prime example: There is a tradition of secret ballots and laws against electioneering, voter fraud and intimidation that seemed incompatible with allowing photography.

"You never want to have that pressure of 'Show me how you voted,'" Orr told us.

The starkest argument in favor of a ban is that shooting pictures of completed ballots could encourage vote buying (show a photo to prove you voted for Candidate X and collect $10). Voter fraud was more common decades ago, but the argument still carries sway. The Associated Press recently identified 18 states, including Illinois, in which current law appeared to view ballot selfies as illegal. The AP said Illinois law declares it a felony to "knowingly" fill out a ballot and divulge it to another person. Conviction could mean imprisonment of one to three years. Whoa.

Times change, though, and selfies rule: selfies at dinner, at Wrigley Field and, sure, at the ballot box. All elections are exercises in free speech, and political discourse  have you noticed?  is ubiquitous today. The internet and social media allow all citizens to express themselves, so no shock that many voters who share their political views on social media want to show Election Day pride with ballot photos. They have a constitutional right to do so.

After a Michigan voter challenged that state's law against polling place photography, U.S. District Court Judge Janet Neff ruled Oct. 24 in favor of ballot selfies, issuing a preliminary injunction against the ban. The judge, citing a similar federal appeals court ruling in a New Hampshire case, said the photo ban was unconstitutional under the First Amendment, agreeing with the plaintiff that other laws in place are sufficient protection against vote corruption.

That makes sense to us. A crucial component of democracy is enthusiasm for our system of government process, and that's what the ballot selfie communicates. Election officials, mindful of their responsibility to protect the integrity of voting, should look for every opportunity to engage and encourage voters, especially young ones new to the process.

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Think of a ballot selfie as the digital equivalent of a citizenship badge. On Election Day many people who perform their civic duty proudly wear a sticker that says "I voted." The photo says the same thing.

Join the discussion on Twitter @Trib_Ed_Board and on Facebook.
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump celebrates with his son Eric Trump , wife Melania Trump and daughter Tiffany Trump after cutting the ribbon at the new Trump International Hotel on Oct. 26, 2016 in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)

Conditions for journalists who cover Donald Trump's presidential campaign have become so bad that some reporters are requesting transfers to Aleppo.

Yes, that's a joke, but not by much. Almost every politician in my experience sooner or later blames the media messengers for an unwelcome message. As the polls and various embarrassments, such as the "Access Hollywood" tape of his "locker room" talk about molesting women, bring more bad news, the media provide a one-size-fits-all scapegoat for his woes.

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Trump calls the media "biased," "dishonest," "corrupt" and "absolute scum," among other choice gems in a constantly escalating scale of invective. Always ignored, by the way, are the tons of free and favorable publicity he has received from media, helping him to win the GOP presidential primaries and run a tight race against Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, mainly by flaunting his bold audacity.

But the public has not ignored the enormous favor Trump has received from the media he constantly beats up. Before NBC reporter Katy Tur tweeted that Donald Trump would be attending a ribbon-cutting ceremony at his new Washington, D.C., hotel recently, her Twitter feed was inundated with tweets from followers asking or demanding that she boycott the event.

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She didn't, but it would have been sweet justice for all the abuse that Trump heaps on "the media." What a delight it would be to say, "Sorry, Donald, buy your own ads."

I, too, have been asked by readers why the news media that Trump knocks around don't get even with him by simply not covering him. I'm sure he would really miss us if we were gone. He might have to start his own TV news channel, which he is rumored to be considering, just to keep his ego fed.

Of course, media boycotts of major newsmakers don't happen, partly because the media are not the vast "conspiracy" that Trump calls us. Sure, Trump in his paranoid desperation may accuse  always without evidence  the news media of collaborating with pollsters, "international bankers" and Clinton's campaign.

But it doesn't take long for media workers to realize what a hard time the folks in each media outlet have organizing themselves, let alone trying to organize for collective action with other journalists. We are competitors in today's media environment, not collaborators, and that's how we should be.

By the way, can everyone please remember that "media" is the plural of "medium," which is what we call each type of news platform  newspapers, magazines, books, TV, radio, the internet and other forms of mass communication? Let's get it right: Please don't say, "The media is corrupt." Say "The media are corrupt." We can argue whether that statement is true or not later.

Tur made news after the Secret Service escorted her from a Trump rally in December after Trump singled her out from the stage for what he called her "dishonest" coverage. Trump also has banned reporters from The Washington Post and other media from time to time. But his attitude and the angry atmosphere at his rallies have been turned up in recent weeks, according to various news reports.

October brought such unsettling headlines as "Trump's Dangerous Game of 'Beat the Press' " (New York magazine), "Press Corps with Trump Now Needs Police Escort as Crowd Shouts 'Whores!' " (People magazine), "Trump Rally-Goers Dismiss His Vulgarities, Offer Their Own for Clinton, News Media" (The Wall Street Journal), and "Frenzied Donald Trump Supporters Are Turning On The Media  And It's Getting Scary" (The Washington Post).

Yes, it is. Having worked a couple of decades as a street reporter before joining the opinion industry, I sympathize with my fellow journalists on the front lines of the news.

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Yet, it is a sign of our healthy press environment that there are some conservative media outlets that offer alternative views. The pro-Trump Breitbart News website headlined, "Triggered: Journalist Snowflakes Scared Trump Supporters Are Turning on the Media." Translation: Journalists are overreacting like "snowflakes," a right-wing nickname for liberals who seek safe zones and "trigger warnings" on college campuses.

Suck it up, says Breitbart. Those hard-working Trump supporters who glare at you in the media pen, some flashing single-finger salutes, and calling names, mean you no harm. Most of them are just letting off steam.

But I hope, when Trump loses the presidential race and the dust settles, as is widely expected, that he does buy his own TV news channel. Then we will see, after all of the abuse he has dished out, how well he takes it.

Clarence Page, a member of the Tribune Editorial Board, blogs at www.chicagotribune.com/pagespage.

cpage@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @cptime
Cook County judicial candidate Carrie Hamilton's campaign committee has posted election signs, pictured here, carrying a design that is similar to the logo for "Hamilton," the hit musical. (Karen Ann Cullotta / Pioneer Press)

Cook County judicial candidate Carrie Hamilton's campaign team hopes that their decision to post election signs carrying a design that pays homage to "Hamilton: An American Musical," turns out to be both clever parody and political strategy.

Featuring a gold background, black star and silhouetted American Revolutionary-era female character holding a gavel, the election signs sprouting up across lawns in the 12th judicial sub-circuit were erected by Hamilton's campaign committee after officials sought legal advice to ensure the design was within the "fair use provision" allowed by law, said Eric Sussman, the candidate's treasurer and spouse.

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"In this particular case, the sign is for a non-commercial use, and we're not going to profit from the design by selling things like T-shirts and hats," Sussman said. "It's a parody, and we're poking a little fun. We also gave away tickets to see 'Hamilton' in a 'Hamilton for Hamilton' free lottery, so hopefully, it will encourage people to remember her name."

Hamilton, a Democrat, is running against Republican David Studenroth.

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Sussman, a Chicago attorney, is the son of the late Arthur Sussman, the former general counsel at the University of Chicago and former vice president of the MacArthur Foundation, which honored "Hamilton" composer and actor Lin-Manuel Miranda with a "Genius Grant" in 2015.

A spokeswoman for Margie Korshak, Inc., which represents the Chicago production of "Hamilton," did not reply to requests for comment.

But Sussman said Hamilton's campaign committee received an email this week from an official affiliated with the musical who had heard about the election sign design being similar to the "Hamilton" logo.

"Suffice to say that they questioned whether our use of the logo on our signs was a copyright infringement and I explained that we spoke to several IP lawyers in Chicago before making our signs who advised us that it falls under fair use as a 'parody,'" Sussman wrote in an email.

While Carrie Hamilton was not immediately available for comment on Friday, Sussman said in regards to "Hamilton" the musical, "the campaign committee believed very strongly in the importance of people recognizing that this is a nation of immigrants and being able to envision our founders as a concept broader than white men - in an age where African-Americans were slaves and women did not have the right to vote.

"To take that one step further and actually have a female judge replacing Alexander Hamilton on the yard sign sends a strong political message - while still having some fun with this incredible musical," Sussman said.

The inspiration for the campaign signs carrying a parody of the "Hamilton" logo was sparked last spring, Sussman said, when he took his wife on her birthday to see the Lin-Manuel Miranda musical on Broadway.

"After we saw the show, we knew it was something very special  and the timing was very fortunate," Sussman said. "The music itself is fabulous, but there are also a number of things that resonated with Carrie, like the diversity of the cast and the take on American history from a different perspective, which makes history new and relevant."

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kcullotta@tribpub.com

Twitter @kcullotta
Salvador Cardenas, a 28-year-old dentist from Aurora, watches out the train window Thursday on his way home from Ohio. Cardenas was in Cleveland for Game 2 of the World Series between the Cubs and the Indians. (Chris Carlson / Associated Press)

With the World Series capturing fans' imaginations, Aurora-area Chicago Cubs fans are showing their loyalty in many ways.

White flags and banners with a blue "W"  the traditional celebration of a Cubs victory  can be seen dotting neighborhood streets and downtown buildings in Aurora.

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Fans like Salvador Cardenas, a 28-year-old dentist from Aurora, are going all out to celebrate the Series. He took an Amtrak train to Cleveland and paid $746 to stand along a rail in left field during Game 2 of the Series, in which the Cubs beat the Indians 5-1.

Salvador Cardenas, a 28-year-old dentist from Aurora, shows off his ticket from Game 2 of the World Series between the Cleveland Indians and the Chicago Cubs in Cleveland. (Chris Carlson / Associated Press)

"I had to call all my patients off. I said, 'Hey, got to do this. I got to go to the World Series,' " he said. "I'm a die-hard Cub fan, so I felt like that came first."

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When Cardenas arrived in Cleveland at 5:45 a.m. Wednesday, he walked to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, found a bench in front and fell asleep with his Cubs blanket covering him. An Indians fan took pity on the chilly morning and added a second blanket, telling him to leave it there when he was done napping.

Later at the Hall of Fame, Cardenas saw Cubs owner Tom Ricketts.

"I was like, 'Hey, Tom,' like I knew him," Cardenas said. "He waved to me. He said hello. He smiled."

In honor of the Chicago Cubs being in the World Series, Lisa Fredenburgh, Aurora University music department chairwoman, led audience members in singing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" at an annual fall choral concert Wednesday. The sing-along concluded a concert by combined Aurora University and Metea Valley High School choir members. (Al Benson / Handout)

The World Series is inspiring residents in other ways. On Wednesday, Lisa Fredenburgh, Aurora University music department chairwoman, led audience members in singing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" to honor the Series during a concert featuring Aurora University and Metea Valley High School chorus members. On Tuesday, the Aurora Police Department got in on the fun, posting on its Facebook page "History's rewrite begin tonight ... GO CUBS!"

And for those fans looking for a unique viewing experience, the historic Arcada Theatre in St. Charles will be showing Game 5 of the World Series on Sunday night on a big screen, with beer, hot dogs and other stadium-style grub for sale.

Ronald Blum of The Associated Press contributed.
Dressed in Chicago Cubs gear, Erick Tapia, 22, a senior accounting and business administration major from Aurora, examines a poster that is part of the Day of the Dead altar at Aurora Universitys Phillips Library. (David Sharos / The Beacon-News)

Aurora University's Phillips Library now includes a Day of the Dead altar.

Students from the school's Latin American Student Organization gathered Thursday to erect the altar, which includes photos, favorite foods and other artifacts representing departed friends and relatives.

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Eva Serrano, group adviser for the organization and assistant professor of foreign languages, said the group has been erecting an ofrenda  or offering altar  yearly on campus but elected to go back to the library site again as it did last year. In Mexico, ofrendas are assembled in homes as well as at village cemeteries and churches in honor of the Day of the Dead.

"We put this altar at the library for the first time a year ago, and because it's a central location, a lot of people were able to see it," Serrano said. "Our group has about 60 members, and this is something one of the subcommittees was delegated to do."

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Students from the group dropped in throughout the afternoon beginning at 3 p.m., armed with paper flowers, pine shavings, sugar skulls and other supplies to erect the seven layers of the altar, which Serrano said "all contain symbolism."

The group has been working about two weeks assembling paper flowers, chains, posters and other elements that were to be used in the display.

"This is the Mexican culture's Halloween, so to speak, and it is seen as an important holiday in their culture," Serrano said. "We invite students and staff on campus to learn more about it."

Latin American Student Organization President Hernan Ramirez said elements of the altar include pictures of the deceased, followed by layers or elements that include flowers, candles, food, Catholic elements, salt and ashes.

Graduate student Adilena Rubio, 23, arranges items on a Day of the Dead altar at Aurora Universitys Phillips Library. (David Sharos / The Beacon-News)

"This is something very important in our culture as well as others in Central American cultures," Ramirez said. "Each item is symbolic. The water, for instance, is for mitigating thirst. The Catholic elements like a rosary or cross were added after the Spanish came to Mexico and brought their influence. The salt purifies the soul, and the ashes are from the Bible, as we're told we return to dust."

Ramirez said the belief is that the souls of those that have died "return on Nov. 1 and 2" and come back to those they have left behind.

"We have posters we'll be putting up that explain all of these elements, and our hope is that people who see this will have their awareness raised about the Mexican culture and understand more about who we are," he said.

Some of the people erecting the altar said the custom was very familiar to them, while for others, like Erick Tapia, 22, a senior accounting and business administration major from Aurora, the custom was less familiar.

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"I met professor Serrano after I transferred here to Aurora University, and she told me about LASO, and I joined and went to some of the events," Tapia said. "My senior year, I wanted to get more involved and ran for an office and became treasurer. I didn't know much about the Day of the Dead celebration on Nov. 1 and 2. I think it's because a lot of us have assimilated into the American culture and lose sight of our heritage's customs."

Marisol Velazquez, 19, a sophomore at AU, said that as a Catholic, "we have always brought photos of our loved ones to grave sites" and that the altar is both "a cultural and spiritual experience."

"This is a tribute to our culture, and I hope people will learn little snippets of information from what we've put up here," she said. "The display is so big, you can't ignore it."

Aurora resident Adilena Rubio, 23, a graduate student, said that this year's Day of the Dead would be especially impactful for her because her father died suddenly just three months ago.

"Not all Latinos are familiar with this practice, but the LASO group has helped a lot of people learn more about their roots," she said. "I lost my dad recently, and I was the one who found him first after his heart attack. I'm the oldest of five kids, and I think I was the one who was supposed to find him. Having foods and things that were meaningful to the person that has died helps us feel closer to them. To me, this is faith-based, and it does make me feel like he's here."

David Sharos is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
The Ingalls Memorial Hospital annual Conquering Breast Cancer Forum was held last weekend at the Odyssey Country Club in Tinley Park. Nearly two dozen breast cancer-specific vendors operated informational booths at the event. (Zak Koeske / Daily Southtown)

The toll of breast cancer, the most commonly diagnosed cancer among women, is felt most acutely in the black community.

Between 2000 and 2014, black women were 41 percent more likely to die from breast cancer than white women, according to a study released earlier this month by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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The reasons are myriad, from a disparity in the quality of health care to a cultural wariness of doctors to a greater likelihood of being diagnosed with a more aggressive "triple negative" form of the cancer.

The Southland Coalition to Conquer Breast Cancer, a collaboration of individuals from Ingalls Memorial Hospital in Harvey and local women's and cancer support groups, formed in 1999 to raise awareness about this stark racial disparity, which at the time was even more pronounced in south suburban Cook County.

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For the past 17 years, the group has held a free annual breast health education and resource forum in October, during Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

This year's event, held last weekend at the Odyssey Country Club in Tinley Park, drew hundreds of women from across the Chicago area who came out to hear presentations by oncology experts and breast cancer survivors, and access resources from nearly two dozen on-site vendors.

"Many of these people are return guests," said Joan Millender, founder and former president of the Southland Coalition to Conquer Breast Cancer. "We see them in the community, they become friends of ours and we want to see them healthy.

"We appreciate them taking their health seriously enough to get up on a Saturday morning and come out to get more information because they may tell a few people. And if you tell a person and they tell a person, then we're all the better for it."

Millender said the coalition's primary goal in holding the annual forum is education  getting the word out about high breast cancer mortality rates among black women in hopes of empowering the community to bridge the racial gap.

"Sometimes we don't feel comfortable going for a mammogram or we don't view it as important until it's almost too late," she said. "Sometimes it is services that are substandard  that (black women) may have gotten a mammogram and they walked away thinking 'I'm good,' only to find out in the next two years or so when they go back, they've got an aggressive breast cancer going."

The latter scenario is all too familiar for Donna Evans, a 23-year breast cancer survivor from Chicago's Chatham neighborhood, who was assured by her former doctor that a pea-sized lump on her breast was not cancerous.

Within a few months, it had grown to the size of an egg and was causing her pain, but she did not return to the doctor, trusting his initial diagnosis. It was only after a different doctor examined her for an unrelated issue and spotted the growth that she was diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer.

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Evans survived the ordeal and has been cancer-free ever since, but the experience transformed her into an advocate for breast cancer awareness. Today, she regularly attends educational and support events in the area, including Saturday's forum, and encourages other women to find qualified doctors and assiduously perform breast self-examinations.

During a recent cancer exposition she attended, Evans said she implored a young woman who found a lump in her own breast to get it checked out. The woman had thus far declined to see a doctor for fear that her boyfriend would break up with her if she was diagnosed with breast cancer and had to have a mastectomy.

"I grabbed her, I said, 'Let me tell you something. When they're throwing the dirt on you, he's going to have somebody else. You need to take care of yourself. You need to be about your business when it comes to you,'" Evans said, and walked away from the woman.

Daily Southtown Twice-weekly News updates from the south suburbs delivered every Monday and Wednesday >

The young woman sought her out later in the day to tell her that she'd thought about their conversation and had decided to see a doctor after all.

"This was a huge event and this young lady walked around that place until she found me, and when she found me she said. 'You said something to me, and I'm going to the doctor Monday,'" Evans said. "I hope she really went and took care of herself."

Stories like Evans' of breast cancer survivors spreading awareness and self-empowerment to other women in the community are what keep Millender energized and confident that the coalition she formed 17 years ago is making a difference.

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"We hope to continue to be here as long as breast cancer is alive and well," Millender said. "We're here to fight it, and hopefully conquer it, at some point in time."

Speakers at Saturday's Conquering Breast Cancer Forum included Kimberly Kruczek, a hematologist/oncologist at Ingalls Memorial Hospital; Terry Mason, the chief operating officer of the Cook County Department of Public Health; and Rosemary Reddice, a breast cancer survivor. Tatisa Joiner, an activist and breast cancer survivor who founded an eponymous breast cancer survivor support group in 2008, emceed the event.

zkoeske@tribpub.com

Twitter @ZakKoeske
Mokena Park District officials said not having an executive director for the last six months has been big a challenge for their agency.

Park board members on Tuesday night debated who should be signing checks and complained that their committees weren't meeting.

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Some board members said they were left in the dark about what was happening in the park district.

Commissioners were not even sure who should attend the annual conference of the Illinois Association of Park Districts.

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Four employees have left since executive director Jim Romanek was terminated in April. Before he was terminated, Romanek was placed on administrative leave when officials cited seven instances in which the executive director had allegedly failed to perform his duties.

In August, board attorney Gina Madden abruptly resigned. Erin Cortilet, who was in charge of special events also left that month.

Romanek's administrative assistant Marianne Jamrok, who signed the checks in Romanek's absence, retired in September. Recording secretary Mary Strand resigned recently, and was replaced at Tuesday's meeting by Phyllis Jacobek, the retired Mokena Public Library director.

Board members also decided they did not want the recording secretary to take minutes during a closed session, but would instead use a tape recorder.

"It's been a little more difficult without an executive director," said board president Mike Bartos, noting that it has been especially difficult to coordinate the current $7.2 million construction project.

That project includes expanding The Oaks Recreation Center and developing a portion of the historic Yunker Farm, both on LaPorte Road.

"It's been hiccup after hiccup," Bartos said of the construction project. "We're hoping to get it done at the lowest possible cost."

With approved changes, that project is now reaching $7.4 million.

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The board interviewed candidates this summer for the executive director's seat, but their top choices withdrew their candidacy. After a recent second round of applicants, Bartos said they hope to interview "three or four" candidates soon.

In the meantime, Commissioner Patrick Markham called on his fellow board members at their meeting Tuesday to be more transparent and informative to their taxpayers by openly discussing their tax levy and posting more information on the district's website.

"I don't want information just to be available (at the district office). I want to see it at home in my boxer shorts. Why do we make it hard for people to get information?" he said.

The park board will conduct a public hearing at 6 p.m. Nov. 22 on its proposed levy, but Markham wanted to discuss it at Tuesday's board meeting.

The levy is proposed to be $3,155,503, a figure that will likely be lowered once final figures come out in March, said Patti Parli, superintendent of finance. Last year, the park district received $2,975,700.

Taxing bodies typically balloon their levy estimates because they can't receive more than what they levy.

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Daily Southtown Twice-weekly News updates from the south suburbs delivered every Monday and Wednesday >

But Markham wanted the board as a whole to discuss the levy increase and possible property tax rebates, not just the finance committee.

"We have to pay our bills first," Parli said. "Without an executive director to guide us, it would be hard to make changes at this time."

Commissioner Kevin Brogan said he has not seen any committee reports "for over a year."

Commissioner Dennis Bagdon agreed, saying, "I am in the dark on a lot of stuff. We need to know what is going on."

Markham suggested they have a "committee of the whole" meeting just to "get caught up."

"If we have a meeting, will you please attend?" Commissioner Steve Kirschsieper asked Markham, alluding to his frequent absences from board meetings.

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slafferty@tribpub.com
John Anthony in his official campaign portrait for the 2014 race for representative of the 75th Illinois House district. (Anna Caccitolo)

Race has defined John Anthony his entire life.

Whether growing up in Chicago's Cabrini Green housing project or serving as the only black Republican in the Illinois House, he always has been labeled.

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And at times, it has made him a target.

But something that happened this month has led him to question the labels that he has worn for 40 years.

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This former state representative, who once served in the Legislative Hispanic Caucus, may not be Hispanic at all. And the man who proudly served as the only Republican African-American in the General Assembly learned that he is mostly white.

Both were startling developments for someone whose racial identity has been an issue for both fellow lawmakers and past constituents.

For example, in 2014, State Rep. Linda Chapa LaVia, D-Aurora, dismissed him during House debate as a "half" because Anthony was believed to be black with Puerto Rican heritage. She later apologized for her "meltdown."

Chapa LaVia seems to have had issues with a black man being a Republican.

And back in his district there were those who took issue with a Republican being a black man.

Anthony represented a conservative, predominantly white northern Illinois district that encompasses both rural and suburban communities.

Racism occasionally reared its ugly head among those who traditionally supported Republican candidates.

In fact, the problem became so severe that Anthony's predecessor Pam Roth, who had vacated her seat to move to Texas, took to social media to defend him.

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"There were people upset that he didn't 'represent' the district. That was how it was put and you could read between the lines. It was disappointing to me that these were issues in the 2013 or 2014 time frame. It was frustrating to me that the district I represented as a white female had people who couldn't look past the color of someone's skin," Roth told me in a telephone interview this week.

In June, Anthony resigned his seat in the General Assembly to accept a leadership position with the Illinois Department of Corrections.

And this month he began his search for his identity.

He took a DNA test to determine his ancestry, which he didn't know much about. He was born to a single, teenage mom and never met his father.

"I was always told he was Puerto Rican and it was a one-night stand," he said. "I've never known who my dad was. I took the DNA test from Ancestry.com. The results have come back. I didn't realize that I was Irish. I'm 13 different ethnicities. I'm not distressed  it's a good thing. But have you ever experienced anything that was so good it was overwhelming? I've waited 40 years to find out who my dad is and I believe I'm on the verge of finding out who the family is."

One of the more startling discoveries of his DNA test is that he is only 44 percent black.

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And there is little clear evidence of whether he is at all Hispanic.

"I'm clueless as to what I am now. This has been an eye-opening experience."

His bewilderment is understandable.

Daily Southtown Twice-weekly News updates from the south suburbs delivered every Monday and Wednesday >

After all, 53 years after Martin Luther King, Jr. said he dreamed of his children being judged by the content of the character rather than the color of their skin, race remains the nation's sore spot.

Sadly, our society still clings to such labels.

Amid his bewilderment, Anthony says he hopes to determine a greater sense of self.

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The DNA test has enabled him to connect with some distant cousins. Through networking with these relatives, he hopes to determine the identity of his father and determine if he has any biological siblings.

"In the next couple weeks, I hope to be visiting someone in Illinois who is of the actual line of my father."

When asked if he still considered himself black, Anthony said: "Well, I'm 44 percent African. I asked my wife, 'What does that make me?' I guess the only thing I'm sure of is that I'm an American."

Scott Raeder is a veteran statehouse journalist. He works as a freelance reporter in the Springfield area.
Elmwood Park police officials said the department has a more stringent protocol in place for its gun range after two guns were reported stolen in 2014 from the range, but two years after the report was filed, officials say no investigation has taken place.

Elmwood Park Police Chief Frank Fagiano said he called the Illinois State Police's gun unit to investigate, but an Illinois State Police official said the phone call and handing over the police report were not enough to initiate an investigation.

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"The proper protocol would have been to send a letter to ISP on Elmwood Park police department letterhead asking for an investigation," said state police Master Sgt. Jason Bradley. He said no request in this format was made by Elmwood Park asking state police to look into the missing guns.

"The only conversation that was had was that there might have been some stolen firearms or firearms in the vault when [an Elmwood Park police officer] was in charge of the gun range," Bradley said. He added that a phone call from the police chief would not be considered a formal request.

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According to a police report from March 15, 2014, a black 9mm semi-automatic Glock pistol and a black Interarms Israeli Uzi 9mm automatic submachine gun were reported missing from the police station's firing range. In the report, Elmwood Park Officer Brian Hock stated that he and Dan Paoletti, a retired range master and officer, were inspecting the range's inventory in February 2013 at the Elmwood Park Training Center.

"Officer Paoletti advised me a Glock 17c and an Interarms Uzi were missing from the department range inventory," the report read.

It went on to say that Paoletti did not have the serial numbers for the weapons at the time and told Hock he would go through his records to try to find the serial numbers.

In his report, Hock stated that Paoletti told him the Glock and Uzi were both in the range inventory when he retired. The report added that when Paoletti came back to the training station to inspect the exhaust system for the firing range on March 12, 2014, he told Hock that he'd found the serial numbers for the weapons and had updated information regarding one of the missing weapons.

"Officer Paoletti advised me he had a friend contact him stating he saw [a] weapon which resembled his father's Uzi and someone was selling it," Hock wrote. "Officer Paoletti advised me his father was given the Interarms Uzi and donated it to the range inventory years prior."

The report further states that Paoletti had learned from a friend about a month before Paoletti's second visit to the range that an Elmwood Park police officer was selling the weapon. Then, on March 13, 2014, Hock's report stated he documented the missing weapons and entered them into a data system as stolen.

"Our attorney prepared to do an internal interrogation, and at that point [the officer] came in with an attorney to offer his resignation," Fagiano said in a phone interview.

Fagiano said he called the Illinois State Police's gun unit, which he believed to be the correct protocol "because they oversee firearm owner's identification cards." He said he gave the Illinois State Police the information on the police report concerning the guns.

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"I thought it was better that an outside, independent agency like the state police should follow up on the missing guns," he said.

An attorney representing the Elmwood Park police officer in another matter released a statement from the man saying he was not responsible for the guns going missing. Bradley, of the state police, said that the police officer was never charged with any gun-related matter.

Bradley said the Uzi was never a documented firearm in Elmwood Park's weapons catalog and that there were some discrepancies when he talked to Elmwood Park regarding how the Uzi was stored and taken out. He said the Glock was a community firearm that could be signed in and out by law enforcement for use at the Elmwood Park gun range.

"So if you're an officer using the gun range and you forgot to bring your weapon to the range or your sidearm was jammed for some reason, you could sign out this community Glock to use at the range," Bradley said.

Because so many different people handled the Glock when it was at the police gun range, Bradley said it would be difficult to investigate its theft.

"Basically all [someone] has to say is 'No I didn't take the gun,' and the case is over," he said.

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Fagiano said the Uzi was never listed in the 2009 report by the gun range master. According to the police report, the Uzi had belonged to Paoletti's father, who had donated it to the police gun range years ago.

"We have a listing of every single gun we have in the department," Fagiano said. "But we're taking at face value that the Uzi existed, but I've never seen it in my time at the department. But we'd rather be safe than sorry, so we entered it into both Westcom and LEADS, two police databases. It's better to err on the side of caution."

Fagiano says he called state police and gave them the police report for the stolen guns and provided the weapons' serial numbers and said the descriptions had been entered into national crime databases.

"I called the state police gun division and asked them for assistance, whatever their protocol is, I don't know," Fagiano said. "Whatever it was, I would have followed it if I had know it."

After the incident involving the stolen guns, Fagiano said the Elmwood Park police created a more stringent protocol for the gun range. Every month, the gun range master must give the police chief a detailed report of who trained and who shot in the range.

"We have checks and balances in place," Fagiano said.

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Bradley said that Elmwood Park still could ask another law enforcement agency to investigate the missing guns, but without a formal request, it would not make sense for an agency to start such an investigation. Another law enforcement agency could already be conducting an investigation, which would lead to a duplication of efforts and a lack of coordination, he said.

"If those firearms are come across by any cop in the United States using these national databases, then it'll pop up. It's going to show up as a stolen firearm," Bradley said. "[But without that formal request for help], we're not going to be coming to sweep up your problems. You can definitely handle your own investigations."

Alex V. Hernandez is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
A man was taken to hospital for an injury to his eye after being shot with a paintball from a passing vehicle Wednesday night in Evanston. Police Thursday afternoon issued a warning of three other similar incidents around the same time.

Around 7:30 p.m. Wednesday in the 1600 block of Emerson Street, a 48-year-old man and a woman, both of Evanston, were walking when several paintball projectiles were shot at them from a white, four-door vehicle that was eastbound on Emerson Street, police said.

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They said both the man and woman were struck by the paintball projectiles. The man was struck once in the left eye and the injury required him to be transported to Evanston Hospital for surgery, police said.

At about 7:20 p.m. Wednesday in the 1000 block of Dodge Avenue, a 45-year-old Evanston woman told police she was exiting her vehicle with her 2-year-old child when she was struck by two paintballs that were fired from a passing vehicle. Around 7:25 p.m. in the 900 block of Ashland Avenue, a dark-colored vehicle drove past four children and fired an unknown air-type gun at them. One of the juveniles was struck in the back, but refused medical treatment. No projectiles were located, police said in the release.

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Then, at about 7:33 p.m. on Asbury Avenue near Dempster Street, a 45-year-old Evanston man was riding his bicycle on Asbury when a white vehicle drove by and fired several paintball projectiles at him, which struck him in the torso, police said. The man refused medical treatment.

Evanston police issued the warning around 5 p.m. Thursday and asked anyone with information to call the Evanston Police Department at 847-866-5040. Information can also be given anonymously via Text-A-Tip by texting 274637 (CRIMES) and texting the word EPDTIP in the message line, followed by the tip.

Brian L. Cox is a freelancer.
Family Service of Glencoe will offer a new program called Senior Connections for the village's senior citizens and caregivers, according to an Oct. 25 statement from the social services agency.

"The intention of Senior Connections is to provide awareness of, advocacy for, and access to an array of services for Glencoe seniors and those who care for them," the FSG statement read. "Program framework is organized into three primary components: outreach and education, social and emotional health, and direct assistance."

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Other village organizations partnering with FSG to develop Senior Connections include the Glencoe Junior High Project, Glencoe Park District, Glencoe Public Library, Glencoe Public Safety and North Shore Senior Center, according to FSG.

"As Glencoe's primary social service agency, it is our mission to care for the social-emotional needs of our older residents," FSG Executive Director William Hansen said, according to the statement.

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FSG is slated to elaborate on the new offerings on Nov. 21 at Glencoe's North Shore Congregation Israel at 1:30 p.m. The featured speaker be Linda Collins, executive director of care options at the North Shore Senior Center.

Programming will be phased in beginning this fall as funding allows, according to FSG.

Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press
Jose Reyes, of Chicago, left, during his trial for predatory criminal sexual assault of a child, aggravated kidnapping, and possession and production of child pornography at the Lake County courthouse. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)

Closing arguments on Friday concluded the trial of Jose Reyes for the alleged kidnapping and sexual assault of a 3-year-old Mundelein girl, but the presiding judge said he will rule on the case Thursday.

Following emotional arguments from both prosecutors and defense attorneys, Judge Mark Levitt said he would take time to review the large amount of evidence in the case before issuing a verdict.

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Just before the trial started Oct. 18, Reyes, 31, of Chicago, opted for a bench trial in front of Levitt instead of a jury trial.

On Friday afternoon, Lake County Assistant State's Attorney Eric Kalata and Assistant State's Attorney Fred Day said evidence in the case was "voluminous and overwhelming," while defense attorney Eric Rinehart said all of the main points of evidence from the state were flawed at some point during the police investigation and prosecution.

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Kalata said Jose Reyes "is a sexual predator so brazen that he just snatched her up as if she were an item at the grocery store" while her two sisters looked on, "stunned."

"He picked her up, tossed her over his shoulder and put her in the car," Kalata said.

Reyes is charged with aggravated kidnapping, predatory criminal sexual assault, and possession and production of child pornography for the alleged Sept. 30, 2013, kidnapping and sexual assault of the girl, who prosecutors said was taken from in front of the Mundelein apartment complex where her family lived. She was returned to the parking lot of the complex less than an hour later.

Kalata said that while DNA taken from the girl's shorts matched Reyes' DNA, and eyewitnesses identified Reyes, it was the defendant himself who provided the strongest evidence by allegedly recording the assault on his cellphone.

"He taped it. The defendant wanted a trophy to relive the experience, her cries of pain," Kalata said.

Rinehart attacked all aspects of the case against Reyes, including contending that the search and seizure of his cellphone was illegal. In a pretrial motion, the defense argued a motion to suppress the cellphone video, claiming that it was illegally searched by the Lake County state's attorney's office, but the motion was denied. Prosecutors said police obtained a search warrant for Reyes' car and phone prior to entering the car at his former workplace in Libertyville and finding the phone.

Rinehart nevertheless told the judge that he does not believe the recording should be considered as evidence.

He also claimed that the graphic definition of predatory criminal sexual assault was not met by the depiction on the video and that because the state did not include other potential charges that would have been more easily proved by the video, that charge should be dismissed.

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Day disagreed with the assessment that the video didn't depict enough evidence to reach the definition of the charge.

Rinehart also called eyewitness accounts "shaky," from the testimony of the girl's sister who was only 9 at the time of the alleged abduction, to the testimony of a mechanic who identified Reyes' car in a picture but had previously said in a written statement that the car he saw driven by the suspect dropping off the girl after the alleged assault was a Nissan Sentra. Reyes' car is a Hyundai Accent.

Rinehart acknowledged that the Reyes trial is a "big, big case" and very emotional, and he asked the judge to review the evidence analytically, not emotionally, saying that the laws that protect everyone must be upheld, even if they involve "technicalities."

"Principles only matter when it's hard (to apply them)," he said.

The cellphone video was shown Oct. 21 in court, and the apparent assault was seen in brief glimpses before the phone was apparently placed down and the screen went black, but audio continued, and music inside the car and cries from the girl could be heard.

The video, as well as still pictures taken from it, were admitted into evidence.

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Also testifying earlier in the trial was Dr. Patrick Dolan, a pediatric emergency room director and sexual assault forensic examiner who examined the girl at Advocate Condell Medical Center on the evening of the alleged assault.

Dolan said he had since viewed the video, and he concluded that the trauma observed on the girl was consistent with actions he saw on the video.

Defense attorney Katharine Hatch argued that Dolan should not be considered an expert witness on the case after viewing the video one time years after the exam and that the injuries mentioned by the doctor could have had numerous other causes.

Reyes faces a sentencing range of 24 to 120 years in prison if convicted.

jrnewton@tribpub.com

Twitter @jimnewton5
An aerial view of flooding on the Fox River in April 2013. (Chris Walker / Chicago Tribune)

The Fox Waterway Agency campaigned over the summer for more funding. The public body was financially behind on dredging projects. And its state dollars have been pulled amid a budget crisis.

But Fox Waterway also had bookkeeping problems. A document associated with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Illinois Emergency Management Agency shows why.

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A Department of Homeland Security report from last year found the agency failed to "account for and expend FEMA grant funds according to federal regulations and FEMA guidelines" in the wake of severe storms in the spring of 2013. The federal Office of Inspector General also stated in the report that, in relation to a $9 million grant, Fox Waterway received at least seven letters from Illinois government officials informing the agency of its need to request time extensions related to the storms, to no avail.

Joe Keller, the executive director of the agency who took his post after the storm and its resulting problems, said the money, "came with strings attached."

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"The agency was responsible for putting up 25 percent of the grant funds," Keller said. "So, to get the money, you had to be in a position to have 25 percent of it available."

The financially challenged Fox Waterway Agency, Keller said, wasn't in such a position.

"It's frankly been dysfunctional," Keller said. "And we're getting close to being more functional."

A truck drives down a street in Fox Lake during flooding along the Fox River and Chain O' Lakes in April 2013. (Chris Walker / Chicago Tribune)

The Fox Waterway Agency was initially awarded a federal grant totaling more than $9 million to deal with the damage from the storms in April 2013, when a combination of late snowmelt and heavy rains across southeast Wisconsin and northern Illinois produced flooding along the Fox River and the Chain O' Lakes. Lake County was one of 11 Illinois counties subsequently declared disaster areas by President Barack Obama, making it eligible for federal assistance funds.

But the agency was audited by the Office of Inspector General. The grant money never came, Keller said, because the agency had to do the relief work first and be reimbursed later. And Fox Waterway didn't have the resources to do the work associated with the grant on its own.

But the federal government didn't pull any punches.

"Due to lack of documentation and/or performance of work that was not within the allotted timeframe, [more than $9 million] was de-obligated from the original grant award to Fox Waterway," wrote FEMA official Cassie Ringsdorf in an email.

A Fox Lake resident gets around town via boat during flooding along the Fox River and Chain O' Lakes in April 2013. (Chris Walker / Chicago Tribune)

The incident even made it into a report prepared by Republican U.S. Sen. John McCain, of Arizona, who wrote that Fox Waterway, "could not tell  how much money it had spent on disaster-related work or even provide documentation backing up its expenditures."

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Julie Morrison, a Democratic state legislator from Deerfield, said Illinois should dissolve the Fox Waterway Agency and put it under jurisdiction of the Department of Natural Resources, if the state has the financial ability to do so.

"If the state of Illinois was in a little better shape financially, I would push very hard for the agency to be dissolved," Morrison said of Fox Waterway. "Again, this is the only stand-alone agency like this. I think this is something DNR should be in charge of."

A Fox Lake resident moves a pump in his flooded yard in April 2013. (Chris Walker / Chicago Tribune)

The Illinois Boaters Association and its Boaters Are Voters PAC, based in Fox Lake, previously claimed Morrison in 2014 created anti-boating legislation after her 10-year-old nephew, Tony Borcia, of Libertyville, was killed by a drunken boater on Petite Lake two years earlier.

She helped pass a bill signed by then-Gov. Pat Quinn requiring a boater to submit to an alcohol test if involved in an accident resulting in injury or death. Morrison denied in a news reports at the time that her nephew's death played a role in her wish to dissolve the Fox Waterway Agency.

Keller acknowledged there were mistakes at the Fox Waterway Agency in the past, before he came aboard.

"The prior management  didn't handle that as well as [it] probably could have," Keller said of the federal inquiry. But, he added, the agency can't adequately do its job without more public funding.

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"There were probably inquiries via the mail from IEMA and FEMA," Keller said. "And there was not a lot of return correspondence."

lhammill@tribpub.com

Twitter @lucashammill
Officials in the Lake County Sheriff's Office are at odds with a local social club for current and retired police officers over its name, which they say confuses people.

The Lake County Sheriff's Police Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 66 is hosting a charity poker game in Gurnee Saturday. But sheriff's officials in June sent the club a letter, after it hosted a similar card game, saying its name misrepresents the organization's relationship with the department. The letter asked the club to stop using "Lake County Sheriff's" on its website and in future advertisements, among other things.

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According to the group's president, Lodge 66 is a social club, open to any retired or active service police officers from any department in the county.

"We get calls all the time from people who ask us why we are soliciting money when they already pay taxes," Undersheriff Ray Rose said.

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Rose said the sheriff's department does not "do solicitiations of any kind," and is not involved with the group "in any way, shape or form."

Rose said there are two unions that represent the patrol deputies, their supervisors and the correctional staff, and they are the Teamsters and Illinois Council of Police Members unions.

"They don't represent or negotiate with anybody," Rose said of Lodge 66.

But current Lodge 66 President Darryl Lewallen said the group was chartered in December of 1973 as a fraternal group, and to establish a lodge with the FOP, it needs at least 10 members. He said the group allows other active law enforcement officers from other agencies to join.

"We accept everyone. We don't discriminate," said Lewallen, adding that he retired from the sheriff's office four years ago.

"We are in good standing with the attorney general and the secretary of state's office," he said.

Illinois Fraternal Order of Police President Chris Southwood, who heads the umbrella organization for FOP lodges in the state, said in a press release that he believes the dispute is politically motivated. Southwood said in the release that Sheriff Mark Curran belonged to the same organization until the group endorsed a different FOP Lodge 66 member who also was running for sheriff.

"All FOP members statewide pledge to stand with our brothers and sisters in Lake County to continue doing what we do best, supporting and raising money for our friends and neighbors who need help the most," Southwood said in the release.

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Curran acknowledged he was part of the group at one time, but said it doesn't matter when it comes to the use of the sheriff's office's name.

Eileen Boyce, a spokeswoman for the Illinois Attorney General's office, said Lodge 66 is listed as a charitable organization with the state under "Lake County Fraternal Order of Police."

"They are registered and they are in compliance," she said. "But we have reached out to them to verify a few things concerning their fundraising process."

fabderholden@tribpub.com

Twitter @abderholden
The Lake Zurich Parks and Recreation Department recently received accreditation for its summer camp programming.

The American Camp Association of Illinois examined the healthy and safety of campers, and confirmed the quality of programs offered to Lake Zurich area kids before making the decision, according to a village news release. The parks and recreation department's various summer camp programs hosted 438 kids in 2016, the release stated.

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"Accreditation is a big deal for our Lake Zurich community," said Bonnie Caputo, parks and recreation manager. "Our staff work tirelessly to improve camp offerings each year. ... Accreditation serves as a reminder that we are headed in the right direction."

Accreditation provides additional training opportunities for staff, as well as music and educational services for campers, according to the release.

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The national American Camp Association accredits more than 2,400 facilities that meet hundreds of healthy, quality and safety standards, the release stated. The Illinois association is responsible for administering accreditation to camp programs throughout Illinois.
A lawsuit is being planned to stop the development of a luxury apartment complex and natatorium at the Hilton Oak Brook Hills Resort, 3500 Midwest Road.

Rachel Robert, an attorney for Day Robert & Morrison, the law firm representing 46 homeowners of the neighboring Oak Brook Hills Condominium Association, said Thursday that two of the title companies for the condo association's property, which includes an easement over the parking lot on which the development is planned, have agreed to fund litigation by the homeowners to stop the development.

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Building there, they claim, would violate the easement agreement.

Robert explained that the homeowners will be the actual plaintiffs in the lawsuit. She said the title companies' interest in pursuing legal action is based on the companies potentially having to make payments to the residents whose titles they hold if the development goes ahead and the easement is lost. The easement is part of the property owned by each homeowner. Robert said the easement is about 9 acres, dates back to 1985 and precludes development.

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She said the challenge to the easement included in the development plans is the "front and center issue," although other issues have been raised by the condo owners, such as a claim that the Illinois Constitution prohibits Westmont from making arbitrary and capricious land use decisions and the development is in direct conflict with Westmont's 2013 comprehensive plan.

"We are very supportive of the homeowners association of Oak Brook Hills and their easement rights, said an Oak Brook resident Jim Pehta, who lives in nearby Midwest Chase and spoke in opposition to the development at a Westmont Village Board meeting.

Oak Brook Village Board member Mike Manzo, who lives in the nearby Saddle Brook subdivision, agreed.

"Many of us feel this project would be a huge negative, mostly because of traffic and traffic-related issues, and I think the Oak Brook Hills homeowners represent the hearts and minds of all of us who don't want to see this development," Manzo said.

The Oak Brook Hills Resort property is next door to Oak Brook, and some Oak Brook officials and residents, including Pehta, spoke out against the project during meetings of the Westmont Planning and Zoning Commission and Village Board.

The Zoning and Planning Commission recommended Aug. 17 against the 6-story, 250-unit apartment/natatorium development; however, the Village Board voted Sept. 8 to give the final approval.

Oak Brook Village President Gopal Lalmalani spoke against the development at the Sept. 8 meeting, expressing concerns about increased traffic and public safety response times, density, nearby property values, increased lighting, noise and storm water run-off.

cfieldman@pioneerlocal.com

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At the urging of nearby residents, the village of Oak Park approved a $302,725.20 expense to install a traffic signal at the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and Washington Boulevard. (Steve Schering / Pioneer Press file photo)

Hey, village board, this was your idea. So, don't cheap out on us now.

For the last few years, Oak Park's elected officials have been busy granting permits, making deals to transform a suburb into a city. High-rise condos and apartments are springing up all over town.

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All those additional people spending money in Oak Park. All the new tax revenue. It is (or soon will be) a bonanza.

But more residences and more people don't just mean more money coming in. More residences and more people also mean more expense for the village to accommodate all the new people  and their vehicles.

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I was reminded of this while reading in the Oak Leaves recently that village officials are concerned about the money they might have to spend on traffic lights. After initially refusing to install a stoplight at Washington Boulevard and Wisconsin Avenue because of the cost (a little over $300,000) trustees reversed themselves and approved the expense.

Residents attending that village board meeting reminded the trustees that over time there has been a severe increase in traffic. One resident said, "Just like the rest of Oak Park it [this intersection] has seen a huge increase in the amount of people there. All those people made for more walking traffic and more car traffic."

Oak Park's elected officials are the apostles of growth. You wouldn't think they'd have to be reminded that what might have been adequate traffic controls for a suburb might not be adequate for a fast- and ever-growing village of Oak Park.

But the village board still doesn't seem to get that growing the village, piling residences up to the sky, isn't all gain.

There are costs to growth. And a large cost is traffic control.

But, Oak Park's officials still are cheaping out.

In order to raise money for the stoplight at Washington and Wisconsin, the village will not install scheduled traffic signal improvements at Oak Park Avenue and Garfield Street. In addition to not doing this project, village staff is recommending that $20,000 slated for traffic signal controller replacement and $80,000 marked for street resurfacing be diverted to pay for the Wisconsin and Washington stoplight.

Oak Park Avenue and Garfield Street is a bad intersection. I see near misses there almost every day. It badly needs better traffic controls. But it won't get them.

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And what about the next legitimately needy intersection clogged because of village growth? What Peter will village officials rob to pay what Paul?

No, Oak Park officials shouldn't look for ways to cannibalize money from legitimate needs.

What they need to do is come up with the money needed for adequate traffic controls for the rapidly growing metropolis they are creating.

Paul Sassone is a freelance columnist for Pioneer Press.
Illinois State Police officials are currently investigating a shooting that took place Friday morning on the Eisenhower Expressway. As of early afternoon Friday, the investigation had closed all westbound lanes of the interstate through Oak Park.

According to Illinois State Police Sgt. Jason Bradley, the shooting occurred at approximately 11:50 a.m. in the westbound lanes of Interstate 290 just east of Harlem Avenue. The incident left one person hospitalized, Bradley said.

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"The incident is currently under investigation," Bradley said. "There is one reported victim in the shooting who has been transported to a local area hospital. Their current condition is unknown."

Bradley said westbound lanes of I-290 will be closed while the state police investigate the area, and he said drivers should consider alternate routes and avoid the area.

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Forest Park Police Chief Tom Aftanas said his agency is assisting with traffic near the intersection of I-290 and Harlem, and said southbound Harlem Avenue is closed between Jackson Boulevard and Harrison Street.

"All I know is there were shots fired on the expressway, and one victim was shot," Aftanas said.

Illinois State Police ask anyone with information related to the shooting to call 847-294-4400. Callers have the option to remain anonymous.

sschering@pioneerlocal.com

Twitter: @steveschering
Another member of the Park Ridge City Council has announced he plans to run for re-election next spring.

In an Oct. 27 email to the Park Ridge Herald-Advocate, Roger Shubert said he has decided to seek a second term as alderman of the city's 4th Ward after considering runs for other local boards.

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"I have enjoyed serving the residents of the 4th Ward over the past three-and-a-half years, and I look forward to running for a second term," Shubert wrote. "I have been fortunate this year to have the chance to explore new opportunities with Maine Township and with the District 64 School Board, but ultimately I wanted to continue to build upon the principles of honesty, integrity, transparency and accountability established by the Park Ridge City Council."

Shubert joins five other incumbents who have announced a re-election run.

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Aldermen Nicholas Milissis of the 2nd Ward, Rick Van Roeyen of the 3rd Ward, and Marc Mazzuca of the 6th Ward have said they will seek another term on the City Council. Acting Mayor Marty Maloney, who also serves as alderman of the 7th Ward, said he will run for mayor in April 2017.

City Clerk Betty Henneman also confirmed her plans to run for another four-year term. She has held the office of city clerk since 1985.

"I feel like I know the community well and I know the people depend on me for information and guidance sometimes," Henneman said. "I think it's a good job for me to fill."

Anyone interested in running for mayor, alderman of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th or 6th Wards, or city clerk can obtain a candidate packet from the clerk's office at Park Ridge City Hall, 505 Butler Place, or online through the city's website, www.parkridge.us.

Other local government seats up for election in April 2017 include seats on the Park Ridge-Niles School District 64 Board of Education, Maine Township High School District 207 Board of Education, the Park Ridge Park District Board of Commissioners and the Maine Township Town Board, which consists of four trustees, a supervisor, clerk, assessor and highway commissioner.

jjohnson@pioneerlocal.com

Twitter: @Jen_Tribune
A Crown Point man with a desire to join a terrorist organization pleaded guilty Friday to distributing information regarding the manufacture and use of explosives, according to the United States Attorney's office.

According to the documents in this case, Marlonn Hicks, 30, allegedly communicated online with multiple individuals who were cooperating with the government. During these communications, Hicks allegedly expressed a desire to travel to territory under the control of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a foreign terrorist organization, a release said.

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Hicks appeared today in U.S. District Court in Hammond before Magistrate Judge Andrew P. Rodovich.

According to court documents, the charge stems from an incident "on or about June 21, 2016."

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Within days of the Pulse nightclub shooting June 12 in Orlando, Fla., in which Omar Mateen killed 50 people, Hicks indicated that he would likely die in the U.S. and subsequently discussed the means by which he planned to carry out an attack within the U.S, the release said. During one of these online communications, Hicks sent a government source a document containing detailed instructions on how to make explosives, according to the U.S. Attorney's office.

Records indicate that Marlonn Hicks, 30, who pleaded guilty Friday to distributing information regarding the manufacture and use of explosives, lived in the apartment building at 144th and Indianapolis Boulevard in East Chicago. (Michelle Quinn / Post-Tribune)

When Hicks sent the document to the government source, Hicks believed that the government source was a like-minded individual who would use the document and instructions to conduct an attack within the United States using explosives, the release said. Hicks intended the attack to be carried out in the name of ISIL and in support of ISIL, the release said.

Hicks, who was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshal, faces up to 20 years in prison, $1 million fine and three years supervised release and must cooperate fully with U.S. authorities, according to plea agreement. No sentencing date has been set.

The case was investigated by the FBI's Indianapolis Division and the Indianapolis Joint Terrorism Task Force. The case is being prosecuted by the National Security Division's Counterterrorism Section and the U.S. Attorney's Office of the District of Indiana.

The Magistrate Judge is recommending that the district court accept the guilty plea, the release said.

Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Mary B. McCord, U.S. Attorney David Capp of the Northern District of Indiana and Special Agent in Charge W. Jay Abbott of the FBI's Indianapolis Field Office announced the charges Friday.

In Lake County, Hicks has a conviction for misdemeanor conversion in October 2007 in Hammond, records show. He was sentenced Oct. 13, 2009, to one year, which was suspended and ordered served on probation, and $3,700 was entered as a judgment against him as restitution to the victim, records show.

A petition to revoke probation was filed, and on May 30, 2013, he was sentenced to one year in Lake County Jail.
A Valparaiso woman got what she wanted when she showed up at the Porter County Jail lobby and demanded to be arrested.

Deputies with the Porter County Sheriff's Department said Rachel Wright, 22, of the 800 block of George Street, arrived around 12:20 a.m. Thursday in the lobby of the Porter County Jail, 2755 Indiana 49.

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Wright told authorities she missed court on Wednesday and wanted to turn herself in and start serving her time, according to a police report. She told a jail officer that if he didn't arrest her, she would start throwing things to catch a new charge for disorderly conduct, the report said.

"Ms. Wright asked to be arrested for trespassing because she was not going to leave the jail lobby," a police report said.

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When Wright showed up in the lobby, she told police there should be a warrant for her arrest since she'd missed a court date, documents said. Police conducted a warrant check and couldn't find any arrest warrants for her.

Police explained that since there were no active warrants for Wright's arrest, she couldn't be booked into the jail, the report said. "Wright insisted that she be arrested and be able to start serving her time," a police report said, though police told her repeatedly to check back in a week or two and see if a warrant was issued for the missed court date.

Wright threw a magazine twice and asked to be arrested for disorderly conduct, police said. An officer told her he wasn't going to arrest her for disorderly conduct and asked her to leave the jail lobby, the report said.

When she asked what would happen if she didn't leave, police told her she could be arrested for trespassing, the report said. She asked if the charge would be a felony or misdemeanor, and police said it was a misdemeanor, the report said.

Police asked Wright to leave several times to avoid a new criminal charge, "but Wright was insistent on being arrested," according to the police report.

Police handcuffed Wright and escorted her to the booking counter on a misdemeanor trespassing charge, the report said.

Amy Lavalley is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
Xel-Ha Escuela de Danza is among the guest performers at La Porte County Symphony Orchestras Latin Rhythms concert Nov. 5 at La Porte Civic Auditorium in La Porte. (Photo Provided by Xel-Ha Escuela de / Post-Tribune)

A journey from Aaron Copland's "Quiet City" to Leonard Bernstein's "West Side Story" is only part of La Porte County Symphony Orchestra's latest concert.

"Latin Rhythms" on Nov. 5 at La Porte Civic Auditorium features guest performers Blue Moon Dance, of Portage; Mariachi Acero East Chicago; and Xel-Ha Escuela de Danza, of East Chicago, plus featured orchestra musicians Charles Steck and Kathryn Brtko.

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"With our organization and our dance school, our mission is to preserve the Mexican culture and Latino cultures and promote cultural awareness so anytime there's something like that I like to get involved," said Debra Bolanos, director of Xel-Ha Escuela de Danza.

"We're going to dance two dances from the state of Jalisco. One is 'The Mexican Hat Dance,' which is very popular. The other is 'El Son de la Negra.' That's a very popular dance also from the region.

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"Those were suggestions I had made to music director Philip J. Bauman because they are well-known through the culture and different people, not just our Mexican culture."

Xel-Ha Escuela de Danza (www.xelhaescueladedanza.org) traces its roots to Escaramuza Charra Las Villistas, a female horseback riding group founded in the 1970s by Bolanos' mother, Celia F. Martinez, which introduced Mexican folklore dance to its members.

"I'm very proud," said Bolanos, of East Chicago, about continuing her mother's legacy.

"It's something that I look back and say, 'Wow.' So many years have passed and we've come this far. We didn't have a studio. We were practicing at church halls and whoever would lend us space. Now we have our own location. It's not huge but it's something that we can call our own."

Bolanos' family offers help with Xel-Ha Escuela de Danza with daughter Alejandra among the dancers in the company, daughter Mariela helping with designing costumes and getting music from Mexico, and son Salvador assisting with marketing.

"They are very artistic, so we put it all together in a package and it comes out. We pull off some wonderful shows so I'm very proud of that. It's a family thing. It's not just me," said Bolanos, noting that her late husband, Salvador, was instrumental in creating indigenous headpieces and costumes.

Xel-Ha Escuela de Danza, which offers classes year-round, features a junior group of children ages 6-12 and a senior group of teenagers and young adults between ages 14-20.

The performance in La Porte features 10 Xel-Ha Escuela de Danza members including residents of Crown Point and Calumet City, Illinois.

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"We don't just focus on dance alone. We focus on the arts, art, the music and the history," said Bolanos, an alumna of Bishop Noll Institute in Hammond, who studied with Ballet Folklorico School of Dance in Mexico City.

"Everything in Mexico and the costumes all have a story behind them."

Jessi Virtusio is a freelance writer for the Post-Tribune.

'Latin Rhythms'

When: 7:30 p.m. Nov. 5

Where: La Porte Civic Auditorium, 1001 Ridge St., La Porte

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Tickets: $30 table seat; $20 adult balcony; $18 senior balcony; free students with identification

Information: 219-362-9020 or www.lcso.net

Etc.: presented by La Porte County Symphony Orchestra
The Mama Pearl's barbecue restaurant in downtown Gary has become a showcase for culture with the intention of bolstering the city's public image.

Now known as ArtHouse: A Social Kitchen, the facility at 411 E. 5th Ave. is anything but high-falluting with three kitchens, including one which measures 2,200 square feet. Project manager Michele Larimer says many of the artistic productions will focus around food, offering aspiring chefs a chance to show off their culinary skills.

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One kitchen still is being used by Mama Pearl's.

"That's the kitchen with the smoker," Larimer said. "That kitchen is about barbecue. The others are for our installations," the first of which is set for Nov. 19 in the late afternoon and twilight hours.

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After that show, Larimer said officials want to have events on a nearly weekly basis through February. Many might be smaller-scale than the initial event, but will feature chefs presenting unique dishes that could be considered an artistic experience in-and-of themselves.

Larimer refers to the main kitchen as the Culinary Business Incubator, which has a goal of helping chefs prepare to open their own businesses.

ArtHouse is the conception of Theaster Gates, a professor of visual art at the University of Chicago who is renown in the area of public art displays intended to beautify urban communities. Larimer said Gates has made almost monthly visits to the ArtHouse site to help carry out his vision.

ArtHouse is intended to be a visual part of downtown Gary, with the location chosen in part because it is visible to motorists on the Indiana Toll Road. Assorted neon lights are to be installed on the exterior to enhance its visibility.

Larimer said she hopes ArtHouse can become an attraction that brings people from across the region. Larimer is a resident of Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood who commutes to Gary on South Shore trains, and says, "too many people don't realize just how close Gary is to Chicago and how accessible we are."

Gary resident Michael Lewers measures wood planks to be cut to size for furniture at Arthouse. (Kyle Telechan / Post-Tribune)

And many people, she says, think of Gary as a place to pass through.

"This is a visible federal highway (U.S. 12) with 30,000 automobiles a day driving by. But most of them aren't used to stopping," Larimer said. "We're going to have to grab their attention."

ArtHouse garnered $650,000 in grants from the Knight Foundation as a means to boost the revitalization of downtown Gary. Larimer has used the money for repairs to the restaurant, saying the building had not been adequately maintained.

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"It wasn't bad, but it needs work," she said. "We're making sure that work gets done."

ArtHouse has a full-time staff of three. Gary-based Powers & Sons Construction Co. was hired for the main repair work and other locals have built furniture to be used at indoor and outdoor events.

"It's important that we include (Gary) in this project," Larimer said. "We want to be part of Gary. We want local people to think we're a part of them."

Gregory Tejeda is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
Munster Police Chief Steve Scheckel is answering his country's call -- from the Department of Homeland Security.

Scheckel said he recently received a "surprise" call from Indiana Homeland Security Director David Kane, who asked him to serve on the agency's Office of State and Local Law Enforcement (OSLLE). He will work as an advisor to those addressing government policy relative to grant funding for law enforcement terrorism prevention activities.

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Kane said he nominated Scheckel because he is" well respected and held in high regard in law enforcement. He has experience with federal grant funds to help make communities stronger, and has the experience and background to evaluate if existing guidance and policies remain viable or require new direction."

Scheckel said he had a previous relationship with Kane through his membership on the District 1 Strike Team, but still was surprised by the request to serve.

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"I told him I was honored, and gave him a tentative 'yes,' provided the town council would give me permission," Scheckel said.

Satisfied the role would not unduly take away from his duties as police chief, the Munster Town Council approved the move..

"This is a great honor to have our police chief selected and we are all very proud of him," said Town Council President John Reed, R-1st.

Scheckel will focus on terrorism prevention and will help decide which regions and local communities receive federal grants for security enhancements and anti-terrorism activities.

"Northwest Indiana, with all its industry, is a potential threat from terrorists," Scheckel said. "I want to help the state receive more funding."

At least 25 percent of Law Enforcement Terrorism Prevention Activities (LEPTA) grants are intended for local law enforcement agencies, according to Reed.

"Because he is part of the panel determining how these LETPA grants funds are allocated, Chief Scheckel is in a great position to advocate strongly for not only Munster, but for all agencies in the region and state of Indiana," Reed said.

Scheckel will travel to locations around the U.S. to listen to local law enforcement officials about the challenges they face in keeping their citizens safe from terrorist attacks.

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Jim Masters is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
Bison move accross a rutted path between tall grass areas while cowbirds follow just after sunrise on an overcast morning at the Nature Conservancy at the Kankakee Sands near Morocco, IN., on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2016. Bison were returned to the area for the first time since the early 1800s. (Mark Davis / Post-Tribune)

As a herd of bison grazes on a small hilltop, spectators recorded the scene with their cellphones and examined them with binoculars.

"I love nature and it's remarkable to have bison so close to home," said Veronica Bohlin, of Morocco.

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Five months after President Barack Obama signed a law making the bison the country's first national mammal, a herd of 23 now roams the prairie at Kankakee Sands in Morocco, just south of Lake County on US 41.

The bison arrived last week after spending 10 years at a Nature Conservancy preserve in South Dakota. Many of the tens of thousands of bison in the United States are preserved in national parks, said Ted Anchor, site manager of Kankakee Sands.

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"It's something to be proud of," Anchor said. 'To have this historical animal that means so much to the country's history is big."

Bison roam the north pasture at Kankakee Sands near Morocco. (Mark Davis / Post-Tribune)

The bison will help manage the land by eating grass, thinning out trees and churning the soil.

"The bison are here as land managers and help with the restoration process of the land," Anchor said.

Their arrival has generated a lot of interest, including more than 500,000 views of a 10-second video on the Nature Conservancy in Indiana Facebook page showing the bison being released on Kankakee Sands..

"Everyone is coming out of the woodwork," Anchor said. "It's incredible how many people are coming out here. It's just amazing how many people would not even consider coming out here but now the bison are bringing out families."

A flock of thousands of Common Grackles makes a stop on the prairie during their migration south at the Nature Conservancy at the Kankakee Sands near Morocco, IN., on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2016. Bison were returned to the area for the first time since the early 1800s. (Mark Davis / Post-Tribune)

Bohlin, who was with her son, said she's been out to Kankakee Sands three times since the animals arrived.

Anchor said preparations for the animals have been underway for three years. A grassland had to be cultivated to produce enough food for the bison year-round. Additionally, Anchor said a corral facility was built to process the bison and an electric fence was erected around the 1,100 acres of prairie land designated for their indefinite stay.

"Bison management is really about keeping them happy on the inside of the fence," Anchor said. "You release them on the site, introduce them to the pasture, have enough forage, enough water, other bison and they're happy. We're trying to make this a natural situation."

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The headquarters at sunrise at the Nature Conservancy at the Kankakee Sands near Morocco, IN., on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2016. Bison were returned to the area for the first time since the early 1800s. (Mark Davis / Post-Tribune)

jaanderson@tribpub.com

Twitter @JavonteA
Alicia Carbajal and Jose Amezcua check out maps showing proposed improvements during a Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority meeting with residents of Munster to discuss newly proposed transit-oriented development and new transit stations at the Centennial Park Clubhouse in Munster, IN., on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2016. (Mark Davis / Post-Tribune)

Residents of Hammond and Munster had chances this week to imagine what neighborhoods around new South Shore Line stations might look like.

On Tuesday, it's Dyer's turn.

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The South Shore's proposed West Lake extension would create two commuter stations in Hammond and one each in Munster and at the Munster/Dyer border.

Planners are developing ideas for transit-oriented development -- housing, shopping and parks within walking distance of the new stations  and have been looking for local residents' ideas on those neighborhoods.

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Hammond would get two new stations: the Gateway station, a few blocks west of the current South Shore station, serving both the existing South Shore line and the West Lake extension; and the South Hammond station, near 173rd Street and Lyman Avenue.

The Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority has advocated for transit-oriented developments with the South Shore Line's two major projects: the West Lake corridor and a second set of tracks between Gary and Michigan City.

"This is a 100-year project and we want to do it right," Bill Hanna, the RDA's chief executive, said Thursday at the Hammond meeting.

The South Shore is applying for a federal grant that would cover half of the West Lake project's estimated $615 million construction cost; local and state governments have committed to pay the rest.

It was standing room only during a Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority meeting with residents of Munster to discuss newly proposed transit-oriented development and new transit stations at the Centennial Park Clubhouse in Munster, IN., on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2016. (Mark Davis / Post-Tribune)

Doug Farr of Farr Associates, the Chicago-based planning and architecture firm hired by the RDA, said the federal grant the requires the South Shore to show that the project would increase mobility, reduce pollution and traffic congestion, and improve economic development around the new stations.

"Imagine that the place where the station will alight is a new neighborhood," Farr said. "What does it need to be prosperous?"

Neighborhoods next to the train stations would have multi-family housing, he said, because the land would be too valuable for single-family housing.

Farr also predicted that, based on past experience, nearby housing values would rise after the West Lake line begins operating.

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Before the meeting, residents marked on large maps where they live, work and shop in Hammond. Later, they used small keypads to indicate their preferences for building and development styles  for instance, two-story instead of three- and four-story buildings around the stations.

Jeff Chipowski, of Munster, checks out maps of proposed improvements during a Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority meeting with residents of Munster to discuss newly proposed transit-oriented development and new transit stations at the Centennial Park Clubhouse in Munster, IN., on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2016. (Mark Davis / Post-Tribune)

In February, Farr will lead another series of meetings to present three development ideas for each West Lake station neighborhood; residents can indicate then which they prefer. In May, the preferred plan for each station will be presented.

About 70 people attended Thursday's meeting in Hammond  fewer than half the number who missed the first World Series game to attend the Munster meeting two nights before.

Farr and others leading the Hammond meeting took pains to say that the transit-oriented development (T.O.D.) would not involve taking property through condemnation -- one of the chief concerns aired at the Munster meeting.

"No one's home will be taken for T.O.D.," Farr said.

However, construction of the West Lake extension would involve some property acquisitions. Public hearings on the construction phase of the project could happen early next year, South Shore Line President Mike Noland said, and the South Shore will respond to every comment at those hearings.

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Munster resident Barry Halgrimson, commenting after the Hammond meeting, said he still hasn't seen details of how the new Munster station would affect his house, which sits near the proposed station.

But, he added, the West Lake project would be a "huge leap" for the region, "an opportunity to develop some rather downtrodden area."

Dave Hein, Hammond's chief electrical inspector, predicted the West Lake project would dramatically increase Hammond's growth.

Residents check the map of affected neighborhoods during a Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority meeting with residents of Munster to discuss newly proposed transit-oriented development and new transit stations at the Centennial Park Clubhouse in Munster, IN., on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2016. (Mark Davis / Post-Tribune)

George Janiec, a former Hammond mayoral candidate, was less enthusiastic about the possibilities.

"Not every place where they put this up is the emerald city," he said. He cited Riverdale, Ill., as an example; Farr had acknowledged earlier that transit-oriented development there has been slow.

Janiec also said public transportation needs to be tied to the proposed stations.

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Paul Rotatori, who lives outside the Munster T.O.D. area, was among residents at the Munster forum who see the potential of the project.

He said he would be able to bike to the train station and hoped the development would bring more attention to businesses along Ridge Road.

Tim Zorn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.

Nancy Coltun Webster contributed.

Dyer meeting is Tuesday

The West Lake transit-oriented development public session in Dyer is scheduled for 6-8 p.m. Tuesday at Plum Creek Center, 222 Schulte St.

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More information on T.O.D. is available at www.westlaketod.civicpage.com. Links to West Lake project information are at www.in.gov/rda and at www.mysouthshoreline.com.
The nearly century-old Willowbrook Ballroom, a legendary dance hall and a scene for one of the Chicago area's most enduring ghost stories, was gutted by fire Friday afternoon.

"The loss of this historical building is a loss to the community," said Willow Springs Fire Chief Daniel Niemeyer. "A thorough investigation of the cause of this fire has begun and will be ongoing."

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The fire call came in at 2:13 p.m. Friday. An employee at Willow Springs Police Department said workers were on the roof of the building at 8900 Archer Avenue in Willow Springs, when it caught fire.

The ballroom, which still offers dancing to a live orchestra, had its heyday in the big band era when performers like Count Basie, Guy Lombardo and Artie Shaw captivated big crowds. The ballroom's "wall of fame" also includes shots of the Guess Who, the Village People and the Chippendales dancers.

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Willowbrook Ballroom co-owner Gediminas Jodwalis said Friday afternoon he did not have an immediate comment on the fire. He and his wife, Birute, have owned the ballroom for 19 years.

Niemeyer said the facility had been evacuated by the time firefighters arrived, and there was smoke coming through the roof. Within minutes of firefighters' arrival, the fire broke through the roof of the structure above the main ballroom, Niemeyer said.

Efforts to extinguish the fire were hampered by poor water supply and access issues. The department had put out a call for tanker trucks to help battle the blaze.

Marsha Norskog, of Tinley Park, who started attending high school dances there in the 1960s, said she was in disbelief and saddened by the fire. The 69-year-old Norskog, who grew up in nearby Hickory Hills, said she keeps a photo of her parents seated at a table in the ballroom in the 1940s.

"It goes back so far, there's just so many memories," Norskog said. "It's really hard to believe that the whole building is gone. It's just always been there."

The ballroom's origins date to 1921, when John Verderbar built an outdoor dance hall and named it Oh Henry Park after its candy bar sponsor. In 1930, it burned to the ground and was rebuilt for a "staggering" $100,000 as the Oh Henry Ballroom. The investment, though steep by Great Depression standards, seemed smart, given the enormous popularity of dance. In the 1950s, extra dining and dancing rooms were added, including the Willowbrook Room restaurant.

Back then, Birute Jodwalis said earlier this month, there was dancing every day and it was not unusual for the place to sell 1,000 tickets, nearly meeting its 1,100 capacity on any given night.

Though the Willowbrook has seen its share of legends, from Otis Day and Gary Lewis to the longtime patron who celebrated his 94th birthday there last year, the one that resurfaces every October is the story of Resurrection Mary, or Anna Norkus.

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There are actually two versions: In one, a young woman who'd been dancing at the Willowbrook has an argument with her boyfriend and decides to walk home. On her way back to Chicago, she is hit by a car and killed. In the other version, the girl leaves the Willowbrook after an evening of dancing but is killed when the car she is riding in, being driven by her father, is hit by another car.

Both versions end with the girl being buried at Resurrection Cemetery in Justice, hence the nickname.

In Jodwalis' office hangs a copy of Anna Norkus' funeral certificate. Anna is believed by some to be the girl in the story.

According to the certificate, the 12-year-old died on July 20, 1927 near 66th and Harlem.

"So there's proof that there was a young lady and that she did die," Jodwalis said. "The legend is she came here to dance a lot."

Daily Southtown columnist Donna Vickroy and freelance reporter Wendy Pacholski contributed.

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cfieldman@pioneerlocal.com

Twitter @chuckwriting
Laura White is a self-described entrepreneur who sells vintage jewelry. She has lived in Winnetka for 17 years and is married and has three children. She talked about her career and her love of art.

Q: How did you get involved in selling vintage jewelry?

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A: I used to design handbags, and they all had vintage buttons on them. I would go to shows and I started collecting vintage jewelry, and it grew from there.

Q: What do you enjoy about working for yourself as opposed to being an employee for someone else?

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A: Obviously, making your own hours and controlling your own environment.

Q: What don't you like about it?

A: Same thing. What you put into it is what you get out of it.

Q: If you weren't working as an entrepreneur, what do you think you would be doing?

A: Probably teaching.

Q: And what would you like to be doing?

A: I'd like to be teaching art history because I love it.

Q: Who is your favorite all-time artist?

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A: Right now, Cy Twombly. He is an abstract artist, but there are so many layers to what he is painting. I like abstract art because it is more of an emotional response to something. You are not looking at a visual thing and saying that is a barn. It is more, 'how does that make you feel,' and that is what pulls you into the painting.

Q: Is there an art museum anywhere in the world that you have never been to that you would love to go to?

A: I've wanted to go to the Tate Modern in London. It has an amazing collection of art with beautiful architecture.

Shout Out is a weekly feature in which we get to know and introduce our readers to their fellow community members and local visitors throughout suburban Chicago.

Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press
Jim Rogers, co-founder of Quantum Fund. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Jim Rogers, renowned US investor and co-founder of Quantum Fund, said he has deep concerns about the global economy's health in the next three years.

Chinese companies should control both their exposure to Western markets and internal debt, he said in an interview with China Daily in Hong Kong last week.

The next year will see "problems and surprises" as the economies of Japan, Russia, Brazil, the United States and Europe will likely get worse, affecting Chinese companies, he said.

Major Western countries are already suffering from a partial recession. Uncertainty will deepen next year, he said.

China is the largest trading country, and will be next great economy in the world. But as the rest of the world has problems, China may not be able to avoid a setback on the global front, Rogers said.

China will have to take the challenge of managing its debt levels at the same time, he cautioned, adding that a major fundamental change in the Chinese economy is the increasing debt of individuals, companies and provincial governments, a far cry from the past.

"There is nothing wrong with debt if you manage it properly," Rogers said. "If you borrowed the money for productive reasons to build factories, improve efficiency, earn sales, make profits and pay off the debts, it's great. But if you didn't or make mistakes, such as to seek too much expansion, you will suffer."

Rogers said he prefers investing in companies in the business of pollution control, healthcare, agriculture, along with those aligned with the government program to strengthen ties with countries on the old Silk Road. "I think those companies will do well, no matter what happens.

"I am bullish on agriculture everywhere, especially in China, as it has been depressed for 30 years globally."

He said the property market in China appears overpriced and a bubble may have formed. "If you want to buy property, go to the farm, the rural areas and countryside."

He believes technology is becoming a great driver of the economy. Two decades ago, it was the US and Europe that led technology. But now, China is set to produce 10 times as many engineers as the US had. And, in the next couple of decades, it will become a leader in technology, he said.

As for his investment preferences, Rogers said: "I am not buying equities and bonds anywhere, but may invest in agriculture commodities. I own gold but am not buying gold and waiting for its price to fall down to buy a lot more."
Every year during the 80 days between mid-September and the start of November, about 400,000 migrant workers leave their hometowns in the rural areas of the provinces of Henan, Sichuan, Gansu and Heilong for the northwestern Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region to help the locals harvest cotton.

Each cotton flower is estimated to weigh five grams on average and each cotton harvester needs to bend 10,000 to 20,000 times if they want to harvest 100 kilograms to 200 kilograms daily with both hands working at the same time.

Xinjiang is a major cotton production base in China. With an output of over 3.5 million tons, Xinjiang contributed 62.5 percent of the nation's total output of cotton of over 5.6 million tons in 2015, much higher than the national provincial contribution rate of 24.6 percent, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

With mechanization underway, special machines are expected to replace people to harvest cotton in Xinjiang in five to 15 years. However, there are both pros and cons to mechanization.

Hiring people to pick cotton often means a greater cost but cleaner and better cotton. It is not easy for cotton farmers to find the right people to help with the laborious work. But using harvest machines requires different cotton seeds and different ways to grow and process the cotton.
A nuclear-powered submarine is berthed at a port of the Chinese Navy Museum in Qingdao, Shandong province, on Oct 15. The vessel will be displayed at the museum soon. [Photo/China Daily]

Chinese military enthusiasts can see tanks, artillery guns and fighter jets in military museums around the nation, but what is coming is probably beyond their expectations-a nuclear-powered attack submarine.

According to an announcement by the North Sea Fleet of the People's Liberation Army Navy, China's first nuclear-powered submarine was towed to a port of the Chinese Navy Museum in Qingdao, a coastal city in Shandong province, in mid-October.

"This boat, which sailed oceans for more than 40 years, will soon be presented as an exhibit to you at the museum," the announcement said. "Before arriving at the museum, the submarine's nuclear parts have been removed, in accordance with international standards, so the boat is completely safe."

The decommissioning of the submarine, together with the safe disposal of its nuclear reactors and waste, indicates China is able to not only develop and operate nuclear submarines, but also properly handle them when they retire, it added.

Though the announcement did not reveal the type and name of the retired submarine, an earlier report by PLA Pictorial said it is the CNS Long March-1, a Type-091 nuclear-powered attack submarine.

As the PLA Navy's first nuclear submarine, the boat was built and commissioned in the early 1970s, the magazine said.

Xinhua News Agency reported that Type-091 submarines were produced based on technology from the 1950s and 1960s, and have short-range weapons.

With a displacement of 5,000 metric tons, the Type-091 submarine is usually equipped with six torpedo tubes, it said.

The PLA Navy has at least 10 nuclear-powered submarines remaining in service, according to the industry bible Jane's Fighting Ships.

Yin Zhuo, director of the PLA Navy's Expert Consultation Committee, said the display of the nuclear submarine will enable the public to increase their knowledge and understanding of the Chinese Navy.

"The Type-091 nuclear submarine had been of great importance because it conducted combat-ready patrols," he said. "Showing such a significant weapon will arouse the public's interest in the PLA Navy's history and future."

The expert also suggested that displaying advanced ships, submarines and weapons at domestic maritime exhibitions would establish a closer connection with the public.

However, Yin said the odds are very low of a Type-092 nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine being displayed at the Chinese Navy Museum after it retires, because such equipment will still be a top secret for many years. No navy in the world has ever put a nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine on display in a museum, he added.
Han Fangming, founding chairman of the Charhar Institute [Photo provided to China.org.cn]

Over 300 officials, business leaders, and scholars at home and abroad rallied at Wenzhou City, Zhejiang Province on Oct. 28 to brainstorm how China's wisdom can contribute to global governance.

Centered on the theme of innovating global governance and public diplomacy, the 2016 Charhar Forum on Public Diplomacy and Wenzhou Public Diplomacy Forum are co-organized by the Charhar Institute, a non-governmental think tank on China's foreign policy and international relations, and Wenzhou Municipal Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

In the face of a changing global landscape, widespread doubts over western liberal democracy, a lingering economic slowdown, and the rise of populism, the world is embracing a new era of globalization and global governance.

"China should unswervingly uphold the global governance system led by the United Nations and provide new initiatives like the BRICS and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), to advocate democracy in international relations and explore new models for common development and win-win situations," said He Yafei, former vice foreign minister, former vice minister of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council.

The veteran diplomat also proposed a change in direction of promoting global governance that involves combining China's wisdom with the merits of the world's civilizations in order to provide global public goods that can keep pace with the changing time.

The discussion of this theme is a follow-up after the G20 Hangzhou Summit last month and echoes President Xi Jinping's call for contributing Chinese wisdom and "pushing the world order and global governance system toward a more just and reasonable direction."

"As a responsible country, undertaking rapid development, China has the confidence and the ability to contribute its wisdom for world peace and global governance," said Han Fangming, founding chairman of the Charhar Institute, vice chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the CPPCC National Committee.

"In an age of global governance, China is transforming from a participant to a leader which contributes its plans for common development."

The event also discussed public diplomacy as several representatives from regional organizations shared their experiences and efforts in enhancing friendly relations between China and the rest of the world.

Public diplomacy needs synergetic efforts among the government, think tanks, universities, businesses and regional associations to keep up the growing momentum in China, said Zhao Qizheng, former minister of China's State Council Information Office, honorary chairman of the International Advisory Committee at the Charhar Institute.

The forum also announced the "Wenzhou Declaration," in recognition of regional and individual efforts to push public diplomacy.
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About 2,000 residents in southern Taiwan took to the streets on Thursday, protesting against the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)'s poor governance and damaging influence on cross-Strait relations.

The crowd was dotted with banners that read: "poor governance, sluggish economy," and marched around the city hall building in the southern city of Tainan.

Protesters were also frustrated by the DPP-ruled Tainan government's decision to raise land and property taxation, increasing the financial burden of local residents.

Liu Kuan-hsiung, chief of Taiwan Community Development Association, said that based on the 1992 Consensus, cross-Strait relations have robustly developed over the past eight years.

However, the DPP has shown poor governance since it came to power in May with many sectors of the economy suffering setbacks, and cross-Strait relations substantially cooling.

People's lives have suffered as as result, Liu said.

He called on people across the Taiwan Strait to stand united, protect the valuable blood relationship and keep a clear mind of the DPP's manipulation of power, inability to govern and wangling of votes.
Liuli (Chinese glass art) artists Loretta H. Yang and Chang Yi from China's Taiwan introduce the liuli work Imminent Spring Dance at a liuli exhibition in Brussels, Belgium, Oct. 27, 2016. (Xinhua/Ye Pingfan)

An exhibition of contemporary Chinese glass art under the name of "A Chinese Liuli Flower" was held in Brussels on Thursday.

On display were 12 glass works made through the technique "Pate de verre", a kiln casting method to make glass. These "dream-liked" glass reflects inconstant character of life which is common in Chinese philosophy, according to an introduction to the works.

"Liuli flower could perfectly express the Chinese concept of 'flower and Buddhism'," Loretta H. Yang, creator of these glass art said.

The exhibition also showed a glass work of flower-de-luce.

A 83-year-old visitor named Susan said it was her first time to see the Chinese glass art, which is "fabulous and enlightening."

Loretta H. Yang was a household name in Taiwan in the 1970s as a result of her renowned acting career and won the Golden Horse Awards for best actress.

She, together with partner Chang Yi, devoted nearly three decades to the Chinese contemporary glass art. Their works have been collected in many renowned museums including the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and the Palace Museum in Beijing.
 Flash

Eduardo Santander, executive director of the European Travel Commission, speaks at a press conference held in Bei-jing to launch "China-EUTourism Year 2018," Oct. 26, 2016. [China.org.cn]

Europe is hoping to attract more Chinese tourists to their member countries through "China-EU Tourism Year 2018," which was initiated on Wednesday in Beijing.

"China-EU Tourism Year 2018" was declared by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and the President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker in July 2016. The initiative is sponsored by the European Travel Commission and "Welcome Chinese" certification organizations, organized by the Select Holding and supported by member countries of the European Commission and the European Travel Commission.

China is now the third most visited countries in the world while the overseas outbound tourism is also booming, with double-digit growth in the past decade.

Eduardo Santander, Executive Director of the European Travel Commission, said at the press conference in Beijing that in 2015 European countries received 10 million Chinese visits. However, this was only 2 percent of Chinese tourists who travelled abroad. This indicated that the EU should do more to attract Chinese visitors and enhance the positive impression of European destinations for Chinese.

Santander added the European countries are still the safest destinations in the world, although they experienced terrorist attacks and other chaos last year.

Besides beautiful urban scenes in Paris, Rome and Budapest, Europe also has many amazing natural wonders as well as cultural heritage recognized by the UNESCO, said Lowri Evans, director general of DG GROW, European Commission. She revealed in her speech at the press conference that the EU is working with the UNESCO to design more tourist routes and connect lesser known but worthwhile scenic spots and attractions.

To support the "China-EU Tourism Year 2018," the EU will provide multilayer business support and assistance, including supporting business summits, holding businesses link-up activities and deepening the involvement of various countries, governments, tourist agencies and private departments. China and the EU also allow investment into each other's tourism sector, in order to promote employment and economic growth, and the two parties will make visa application more convenient.
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Visiting Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said on Thursday that he wanted to review a military agreement with the United States.

Duterte, on his final day in Japan, reiterated his stance that he intended to review the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement inked with the United States in 2014, which allows U.S. troops to maintain military bases in the Philippines and rotate its troops in and out.

"Maybe, I will review the EDCA and ask them (the U.S. military) one of these days to leave the country," he was quoted as saying.

Duterte also said the joint military exercises held between the Philippines and the U.S. have not been as beneficial to Manila as they should be.

During the president's three-day visit, Japan and the Philippines have agreed to enhance cooperation in a number of areas, including Japan providing the Philippines with infrastructural support.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Japan would assist Duterte's war against drugs by helping out with addicts' rehabilitation.

Abe, after a meeting with Duterte a day earlier, said the Philippines will serve as ASEAN chair next year and Japan would provide its utmost support in this regard.

Duterte gave recognition to Japan as being an important dialogue partner for ASEAN.
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Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi said that reconciliation with the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood group is not solely his decision, official Ahram Online reported Thursday.

Sisi made the remarks during a seminar at a national youth conference in the country's Red Sea resort city of Sharm El-Sheikh.

"I was the one who provided the Brotherhood with the opportunity on July 3," Sisi said, referring to the day former Islamist President Mohamed Morsi was removed from power in 2013.

Morsi was ousted by the army following massive protests against his one-year rule. After his removal, Sisi, who was then the army chief, announced a three-step roadmap that was largely supported by political powers, youth leaders and senior religious clerics.

The Egyptian president revealed that he cannot make a decision on reconciliation by himself, adding that "it is the decision of the state."

The Muslim Brotherhood, the largest opposition group in Egypt for decades, was labeled by the government as a terror group, with most of its leaders in jail facing charges of conspiracy, treason and threatening the national security of Egypt.
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The Syrian government forces succeeded on Thursday to retake the city of Soran, one of the largest cities in Hama province in central Syria, just weeks after the rebels had captured it, a monitor group reported.

With reinforcements received over the past few weeks, the government forces completely regained control over Soran, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The London-based watchdog said the city was retaken by government forces Thursday after "intense shelling."

Recapturing Soran enables the Syrian army's artillery to target rebel-held areas all the way to the southern countryside of the northwestern province of Idlib, one of the most important rebel strongholds in northern Syria.

Syrian forces could also use Soran as leverage over the rebels in northern Hama countryside.

The rebels captured Soran on Aug. 29 as part of a wide-scale offensive they unleashed in northern Hama to divert the attention of the Syrian forces from battles in the northern province of Aleppo, where the Syrian army were also making notable gains.
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Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Thursday extended an amnesty for three more months for rebels to disarm and surrender themselves, state news agency SANA reported.

The extension of the pardon, first issued last July, offers more time for rebels to clear their "criminal records" by laying down their weapons and surrender to the government.

The amnesty also offers kidnappers a chance to clear their records by releasing their captives unharmed and without ransom.

An unspecified number of rebels around Damascus have benefited from the amnesty, while others chose to leave for rebel-held areas in the northwestern province of Idlib.

The government renewed its calls recently for rebels to surrender in the northern city of Aleppo, where the Syrian army and Russia declared a unilateral cease-fire earlier October, or to leave for other rebel-controlled areas in the northern countryside of Aleppo or Idlib.

Only seven rebels took advantage of the brief truce and left eastern Aleppo, as the cease-fire was largely rejected by rebel groups who tried to prevent rebels and civilians from leaving.

The Syrian army and Russia have since renewed a broad offensive against rebels in eastern Aleppo.
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Turkish police on Thursday detained 81 people suspected of links to the Islamic State (IS), local media reported.

Among the suspects, who were seized in simultaneous operations conducted in Istanbul and five other cities, 60 are foreigners intending to go to IS camps in Syria and Iraq through illegal routes, the Haberturk daily said.

In the operations, police also seized two guns, 200 bullets, organizational documents, military camouflage and digital materials, the daily noted.

The Turkish army hit as well 94 IS targets in northern Syria early Thursday amid its ongoing operation in the region, the military said.
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At least six Syrian children were killed on Thursday by rebel mortar shelling on government-controlled areas in the northern city of Aleppo, state news agency SANA reported.

The shelling targeted the National School in the Shahba neighborhood in Aleppo, as well as residential areas in the Hamadaniyeh neighborhood in western Aleppo.

SANA said the rebels in the Zahra neighborhood targeted the school.

The attack came just a couple of days after the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor group said Russian airstrikes on rebel-held areas in the northwestern province of Idlib killed 22 schoolchildren.

Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Chirkin described the Idlib deaths as horrible, expressing the hope that "we were not involved."

"It's the easiest thing for me to say no, but I'm a responsible person, so I need to see what my Ministry of Defense is going to say," Churkin said.

Violence has reached a new high in Syria recently after efforts to revive a cessation of hostilities failed in the war-torn country.
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Russian Defense Ministry on Thursday denied the involvement of the alleged airstrikes on a school in the Syrian city of Idlib, saying the evidence spreading among some media was "fabricated."

"The video of an alleged airstrike that appeared in a various foreign media was made of ten clips put together, and shot with a different resolution at different time," the ministry's spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said in a statement.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said on Wednesday that an air raid allegedly carried out by Russian warplanes targeted civilian areas in Idlib, including a school compound, killing at least 26 civilians, most of them children and teachers.

The Syrian state TV quoted a military source as saying that a number of militants had been killed after the strikes on the targets in Idlib, but it neither mentioned any school, nor civilian casualties.

"This is a tragedy. It is an outrage. And if deliberate, it is a war crime," executive director of the United Nations Children's Fund Anthony Lake said Wednesday, calling the strike "the deadliest attack on a school" in the five-and-a-half-year-long crisis in the war-raged Middle East country.
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Russia on Thursday described the latest report by the OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM) in Syria as "unconvincing," saying that the report is "not substantiated by sufficient testimonial basis."

A Syrian tank fires at rebel positions in the Jobar area, east of Damascus, capital of Syria, on Oct. 21, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

Vitaly Churkin, the Russian permanent representative to the United Nations, made the statement at a closed meeting of the UN Security Council to consider the fourth report of the JIM.

"We can say already now that in most cases they are not substantiated by sufficient testimonial basis, first of all material proof, they are full of contradictions and therefore, unconvincing," Churkin said.

The OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM) in Syria was established after the United Nations Security Council in August 2015, unanimously adopted resolution 2235, aimed at identifying those behind chemical weapons attacks in Syria. OPCW stands for the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), an international organization based in The Hague.

"Our attitude to the conclusions of the third report including the fantastic case when the barrel landed vertically straight into a narrow hole is well-known," he said. "The JIM has added nothing new to this story, but for some reasons decided to readjust the initial conclusions on the incidents in Marea, Sarmin and Talmenes."

"As we understand the conclusions of the JIM are not definitive, have no legally binding force and cannot serve as accusatory conclusions for taking legal decisions," he said. "This has been unambiguously affirmed in paragraph 6 of the report."

"It is unclear why the JIM leadership clearly overstepped their mandate and tried in paragraph 52 to form an opinion in favor of holding accountable some individuals," he said.

"Damascus should carry out a comprehensive national investigation on chemical incidents confirmed by the JIM as provided for in Article VII of CWC," he said, referring to the Chemical Weapons Convention, an arms control treaty which outlaws the production, stockpiling, and use of chemical weapons and their precursors.

"We do not see any grounds for using the principle of exterritorial jurisdiction, against the provisions of the convention, to avoid the creation of a precedent, which is absolutely unacceptable to the prevailing majority of the OPCW member states," Churkin said.

The key factor that affected the quality of work of the JIM was "the lack of access to the sites of chemical incidents in the territory controlled by the opposition, which they have been denied" despite the requirements of relevant Security Council resolution, he said. "It was impossible to take sample and to store and process them in accordance with relevant standards."

Earlier this year, the Security Council voiced its concern about the use of chemical weapons by warring parties in Syria, including terrorists.

The JIM, established for a period of one year with a possibility of future extension, is tasked with identifying "individuals, entities, groups, or governments involved in the use of chemicals as weapons, including chlorine or any other toxic chemical" in Syria, according to the Security Council, which reiterated that those responsible must be held accountable.
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The European Union (EU) on Thursday added 10 syrian high-ups to a sanction list which targets those "responsible for the violent repression" against the war-torn country's civilians.

Those persons include high-ranking military officials and senior figures linked to the Syrian government, who under the decision will face a travel ban and an asset freeze, the EU said in a press release.

It added that the names of the persons concerned will be published in the Official Journal on Friday.

The total number of persons targeted by the bloc "for the violent repression" against civilians in Syria reaches 217 after the decision, said the press release.

In addition, 69 entities are targeted by an asset freeze.

More broadly, sanctions currently in place against Syria include an oil embargo, restrictions on certain investments, a freeze of the assets of the Syrian central bank within the EU.

The EU also restricts export on equipment and technology that might be used for internal repression. These measures were last extended on May 27 2016 and are in place until June 1 2017.

The EU said it remains committed to finding a lasting solution to the conflict in Syria, as there is no military solution to the Syrian civil war.
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Kenya's security officer on Thursday shot dead a man of Somali origin outside the United States embassy in Nairobi.

People gather around the body of a man gunned down by Kenyan security officer outside U.S embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, Oct. 27, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

Gigiri divisional police commander Vitalis Otieno said the man had grabbed one of the officers manning the entrance gate to the visa section and stabbed him, injuring him in the head and hand.

In self-defence, the injured police officer shot and killed the man, Otieno said, adding that the motive of the assailant is still under investigation.

Otieno told Xinhua that the unidentified man had other accomplices who ran away from the scene.

The U.S. embassy also confirmed the incident, saying no embassy personnel was injured.
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Libyan coast guards said that over 90 immigrants are still missing after their rubber boat sank off the Libyan coast on Wednesday.

A rescuer holds two young children as migrants disembark from the Siem Pilot on October 24, 2016 in Palermo after rescue operations of migrants. [Photo/Xinhua]

Libya's coast guards' spokesman said the boat was carrying 129 immigrants, 29 of who were rescued, while the rest are still missing or may have drowned.

Three women and a child are among the missing immigrants.

The spokesman said the rubber boat left from the coast of Garabulli, 50 km east of the capital Tripoli, and waves tore the boat, causing water to leak in until the boat eventually sank.

According to Doctors without Borders, 25 immigrants on Tuesday were found dead in the rubber boat off Libyan shores.

Due to regional instability, Libya is a preferred departure point for immigrants aiming to cross the Mediterranean into Europe, with many drowned on the way.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said that 3,740 immigrants died in 2016 during their attempts to cross the Mediterranean.

"On the Central Mediterranean route between Libya and Italy the likelihood of dying is even higher, at one death for every 47 arrivals," revealed the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
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Yemen's dominant Shiite Houthi rebels fired a ballistic missile toward a Saudi target, the group said in a statement issued Thursday midnight.

The Houthis said the missile was aimed at King Abdel Aziz International Airport in the Saudi port city of Jeddah on the coast of the Red Sea, according to the brief statement posted on Houthi-controlled Yemen News Agency at Thursday midnight.

However, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported an hour earlier that a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis from within Yemeni northern province of Saada was intercepted 65 km from Saudi religious holy city of Mecca, about 30 km southeast of Jeddah.

No damage or casualties were reported in the incident, SPA said, adding that the Saudi warplanes hit the missile launch site in Saada and completely destroyed it.

The Saudi-led Arab military coalition has been fighting Shiite Houthi rebels in Yemen since March 2015, trying to restore the internationally recognized government of exiled President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and dislodge Houthis from the capital Sanaa and northern provinces.

International efforts and talks between the war parties have been so far fruitless.X The attack on Thursday night was the latest in a series of ballistic rocketry strikes by the Houthis from Yemen, most of which were intercepted by Saudi military forces.
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Russia has successfully tested its advanced hypersonic glider warhead, also known as object 4202, Russian newspaper Izvestiya reported Friday.

"It's the first totally completed test of the warhead capable of reaching the speed of 7 km/second on the maximum altitude," it said.

The warhead was fired on Tuesday from the Dombarovsky area in Russia's western Orenburg region to the Far Eastern Kamchatka's firing field of Kura.

According to the newspaper, the hypersonic warhead is designed to be installed to replace conventional warheads on promising intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Before entering the dense layers of the atmosphere, the warhead completes a composite maneuver so that missile defense facilities won't be able to intercept it, the newspaper said.
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The Embassy of Pakistan hosted the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FPCCI) delegation on October 28, 2016. [Photo provided to China.org.cn]

The Embassy of Pakistan hosted the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FPCCI) delegation on October 28, 2016. The delegation is on a visit to China for business networking with Chinese companies. The delegation consisted of eight members, headed by Vice President and Regional Chairman FPCCI, Mr. Rehman Aziz. 44 Chinese companies with 57 participants were in the attendance.

The Commercial Counsellor Dr. Erfa Iqbal made the opening remarks, and invited Ambassador Masood Khalid to speak.

The Ambassador said that an FPCCI delegation visit has been long overdue and the timing is perfect as there is an increase in interaction between the two countries.

The Ambassador talked about a new era of cooperation between China and Pakistan in the wake of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor which is creating new opportunities for China to explore the untapped commercial and business potential of Pakistan.

He said that a viable political platform was available on both sides which is ideal for nurturing private sectors of both countries.

Speaking about the trade volume, he said that the current trade of 19 billion dollars is heavily tilted in favor of China but both countries have to join mutual interest ventures in business to increase the volume of Pakistan exports as well.

The Ambassador highlighted the geographical importance of Pakistan as being on the confluence of Middle East, South Asia and Central Asia, adding that the Gwadar Kashghar connectivity is not only beneficial for China and Pakistan, but also for the whole region. This route will be shorter and cost-effective for Chinese trade and energy supplies.

The Ambassador also said that Pakistan has many positives like it is rich in agriculture and minerals and so on, and the labor cost is low, thus it is ideal for China to establish business ventures in Pakistan. But in order to do so, there is a need to create awareness about the untapped potential.

The Ambassador urged the Pakistani business community to have a focused approach in highlighting the market potential of Pakistan and Pakistani products.

The Commercial Counsellor mentioned a few major projects -- where there can be cooperation like establishing SEZs, QAAP (Quaid-e-Azam Apparel Park), Health sector, Vocational Training Institute and Safe City Project. A question-answer session followed the presentation.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Rehman Aziz, leader of the delegation, introduced his delegation members, and thanked the Chinese guests and the Embassy of Pakistan for arranging this fruitful event on such a short notice.
Greece's state-backed Public Power Corporation said on Wednesday that China's State Grid International Development Ltd's bid for a stake in its subsidiary ADMIE has emerged as the highest.

SGID, a wholly owned subsidiary of State Grid Corporation of China, is the sole vehicle for the latter's investments abroad in transmission and distribution.

It bid 320 million euros ($349 million) for a 24 percent stake in ADMIE, valuing the PPC's power grid unit at $1.45 billion.

According to Reuters, ADMIE, which operates more than 11,000 km of high-voltage power cables in Greece, earned an operating profit of of 155 million euros last year. It had a regulated asset base of 1.4 billion euros and a total debt of 490 million euros.

A consortium led by Italian power grid Terna also bid an undisclosed amount for the ADMIE stake last week. But French power grid operator RTE, which was initially among the shortlisted investors, did not make a bid.

PPC's board of directors will now validate the bids on Monday, formally declaring SGID as the preferred investor. PPC's shareholders will meet on Nov 24 to make the final decision.

The deal is expected to be concluded by March, PPC said. SGID did not make any statement till late Thursday.

Under Greece's bailout agreement struck in 2015, 51 percent state-owned PPC will either sell its 100 percent stake in ADMIE or fully privatize the grid by next year.

Joseph Jacobelli, senior analyst with Asia Utilities and Infrastructure Research of Bloomberg Intelligence, said SGID's bid is in line with the trend of Chinese power companies investing abroad.

"Many of these companies are motivated to acquire existing power assets abroad or even build greenfield ones," Jacobelli said. "The motivation stems from at least three factors: a strong balance sheet; the home power market seeing weak consumption; and oversupply which should encourage them to diversify earning outside China."

Also, there is good policy support for overseas expansion, including being able to get financing from key financial institutions like the China Development Bank, he said.

Zhou Ruojun, commercial counselor of the Chinese embassy in Athens, Greece, said in a previous interview that the Greek economy is recovering gradually, so more Chinese companies will seek to invest and execute projects in the east European country.

Many Chinese companies have a growing interest in the energy, hotels and construction sectors of Greece. Cosco Shipping's recent acquisition of a 51 percent stake in the operating company of Greece's biggest port shows the growing confidence of Chinese investors in Greece's future, he said.
LA PAZ - The Union of South American Nations (Unasur) has received the go-ahead from Bolivian President Evo Morales to discuss with China the financing of a railroad which will connect the Atlantic to the Pacific.

"We have received authorization from President Morales to take the first financing steps with the Chinese government," Ernesto Samper, Unasur's secretary-general, told a press conference on Thursday.

He added that Unasur fully supported the trans-continental railway as it is good for Bolivia's growth, and also a tool for regional integration.

"It is worth clarifying that this is not a project for a Bolivian train but a multi-national project involving ... Brazil, Argentina and Peru, as well as certainly being relevant for Paraguay," said Samper.

According to Unasur, by 2021, the completed railway should transport 7 million passengers and 10 million tons of cargo.

The railway, which links the Atlantic and the Pacific, will begin at Puerto Santos in Brazil, cross Bolivia at Puerto Suarez, pass the municipalities of Santa Cruz, Montero and Bulo Bulo before entering Peru and ending at Puerto de Ilo.

The coast-to-coast railway was one of the main cooperation projects between China and Latin America promoted by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang during his four-nation tour of South America in May 2015, which included Peru and Brazil.

Bolivia is currently carrying out pre-investment studies to outline the commercial and logistical prospects, the strategic nature of the transport corridor along which the train would run, an environmental impact assessment, a preliminary design and the construction cost calculation.
Tesla vehicles are being assembled by robots at Tesla Motors Inc factory in Fremont, California, US on July 25, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

Tesla's China recruitment is in full swing, although the site for the the company's China factory has not yet been decided.

The company held a job fair at Sichuan University on Oct 25, following earlier events at Renmin, Tongji and Zhejiang Universities. The open positions include product specialist, pre-sales adviser and technical support staff.

The officer responsible for recruitment told China Business News that the new recruits will not work in the factory, adding that the company's goal was to hire 100 people at the university job fairs. According to China Business News, this is the first time that Tesla has done large-scale recruitment since the company entered China three years ago.

At the Sichuan job fair, department heads of Tesla China introduced the company to attendees. According to an executive, Tesla's charging poles now cover more than half of China, and over 400 super poles have been installed, making China the second largest country in terms of charging capacity, second only to the US.

Tesla's China general manager, Zhu Xiaotong, said in March that management was conducting research about a site for its factory in China.

"We must be prudent in selecting the site because car manufacturing is a very complex process, and we are still in an initial stage," Zhu remarked. Zhu also said that running a factory in China will reduce shipment costs and tariffs, which will lower the car's price by one-third.

At present, Tesla has about 700 employees in Chinese cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.
A visitor learns about a property project at a housing expo in Suzhou, Jiangsu province. [Photo/China Daily]

Despite slowing economic growth, China's housing prices are unlikely to fall much because the sector remains a pillar of economic growth, economists said.

Prices had soared earlier this year prior to the announcement of market-cooling measures.

"Based on data of the first three quarters, I suppose the economy has bottomed out," Zhang Liqun, a researcher with the State Council's Development Research Center, told a monthly seminar of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges on Wednesday.

A remarkable sign is the stable GDP growth. China's GDP expanded 6.7 percent in the third quarter of 2016, in line with the first two quarters.

"China's current macroeconomic situation is better than expected and the positive factors outweigh the negative ones," said Xu Hongcai, deputy chief economist of the CCIEE.

The declines in both exports and investment have been two key downward pressures since 2010.

"Investment is key to stabilizing economic growth," said Zhang."And investment, especially in the fields of infrastructure and property, has initially formed a basis for a safe economic landing."

From January to September, infrastructure investment increased 19.4 percent year-on-year.

Property investment only increased 1 percent in 2015, and rose 5.8 percent in the first three quarters of this year, supporting the stabilization of investment growth as well.

But the property markets of some first-and second-tier cities overheated since early this year, drawing much attention everywhere, which eventually resulted in the policy adjustment, Zhang said."

Housing prices soared in some cities due to policies aimed at property de-stocking, which has resulted in some social problems," said Zhang Xiaoqiang, vice-chairman of the CCIEE.
A man unloads parcels from a ZTO Express delivery vehicle in Beijing. [Photo/Agencies]

ZTO Express Inc, the Chinese delivery service that gets about three-quarters of its business from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, is following its top customer to the US stock market with what is set to be this year's biggest initial public offering in the country.

The company has been seeking as much as $1.3 billion in the sale, which would also be the most a Chinese company raised in New York since Alibaba's record $25 billion offering in 2014.

The deal may mark an inflection point after a string of mainland companies have sought to abandon their US listings and move trading back home, where stocks are commanding higher multiples.

ZTO is set to raise $1.4 billion after pricing the offering above the top end of a marketed range, Reuters reported on Wednesday in New York. It sold 72.1 million US depositary shares at $19.50 apiece, according to the report, which cited an unidentified person.

Zhang Jianfeng, ZTO's vice-president of public relations, said by phone he's not aware of the latest information.

It will also test US investor demand at a time when others are going public through reverse mergers, or backdoor listings, on the Shenzhen exchange.

Such dealswhen a private firm purchases a public "shell" to take over its listinghave proliferated in China as the regulator made it difficult for companies to gain approval for IPOs in Shanghai.

The waiting list for new mainland equity offering approvals exceeds 800, more than mainland's total listings over the last five years, according to the China Securities Regulatory Commission website and data compiled by Bloomberg.

Bloomberg
Newly-appointed Wells Fargo CEO Tim Sloan told employees Tuesday that he is "sorry for the pain" that the bank's employees have suffered as a result of the company's sales practices scandal.

Sloan's company-wide speech, given Tuesday in Charlotte, North Carolina, is the latest effort by Wells Far-go's executives to atone for the fact that the bank's employees, pushed to the limit by impossible sales goals, opened as many as 2 million bank and credit card accounts without customers' authorization.

In the speech, Sloan acknowledged that the bank did not respond to the problems in its branches soon enough and that upper management dodged responsibility for the bad behavior and wrongly placed blame on branch employees.

Wells fired roughly 5,300 employees as a result of the scandal, the vast majority of them lower-level workers.

"Many felt we blamed our team members. That one still hurts, and I am committed to rectifying it," Sloan said.

Wells Fargo is enveloped in the biggest scandal in its 164-year history, which earlier this month forced the abrupt retirement of its CEO, John Stumpf.

The bank faces several class-action lawsuits, as well as criminal investigations by the Department of Justice and the California Attorney General's Office. Even in this bitterly divided election season, members of Congress have found bipartisan unity in their disdain for Wells Far-go and its sales practices.

There are also signs that customers are leaving the bank, or at least paring back their business with Wells.

In its quarterly earnings report released this month, Wells reported double-digit percentage drops in bank account openings, as well as declines in bank branch traffic.

While Wells Fargo has been apologetic to the media, its customers and livid politicians, the bank had done little to make amends with its roughly 260,000 employees. While the sales scandal made headlines, the outrage grew after Stumpf did media interviews in which he appeared tone-deaf and seemed to blame employees, who often earn less than $15 an hour, for what happened.

It took Stumpf being summoned before Congress to publicly apologize for the bank's behavior.

Then came reports from Wells Fargo employees that they were retaliated against for trying to raise awareness of the sales practices through the bank's internal ethics hotline.

Employees also told of developing stress-related health problems. In the speech, Sloan called the reports of retaliation "disturbing."

Along with his early departure, Stumpf was forced to give up $41 million in stock awards as punishment for the bank's behavior.

He is still, however, walking away with tens of millions of dollars in salary he earned as CEO.

Acknowledging that Wells' troubles are far from over, Sloan warned employees more difficult days could be ahead.

"You also should expect more tough headlines, as additional accountability actions occur, and other investigations and reviews are completed. Some of that is going to be very painful for us," Sloan said.

The speech comes as Wells Fargo launched a new television advertising campaign this week to address the scandal. The ads, which began Monday, are being rolled out nationally on major network evening newscasts as well as the Sunday talk shows.

Wells is also buying ads on the major Spanish language networks Telemundo and Univision, said Wells Fargo spokesman Mark Folk.

"My primary objective is to restore trust in Wells Fargo restore pride in our company and mission. That may seem like a longways off today, but I promise you we will," Sloan said.

Associated Press
Children have a birthday party at McDonald's restaurant in Beijing. The US fast-food chain is seeking to sell 20-year mass franchise rights for the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong. [Photo/China Daily]

TPG Capital has exited the race for the McDonald's Corp China operations, leaving two other foreign buyout firms to compete with local bidders in a sale that could fetch as much as $2 billion, sources with knowledge of the process said.

Bain Capital has partnered with Chinese hotelier Green-Tree Hospitality for its offer, while Carlyle Group teamed with Beijing-based conglomerate CITIC Group Corp, the sources said. TPG's erstwhile partner, grocery operator Wumart Stores Inc, is said to be bidding on its own.

They are competing with dairy producer Beijing San-yuan Foods Co, which has also been negotiating terms of a potential deal with McDonald's, according to sources. McDonald's, which is selling 20-year mass franchise rights for the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, plans to pick a winner by mid-November, they added.

The world's biggest restaurant chain is seeking to streamline its sprawling global operations and return to growth by revamping the ownership structure in markets such as China, South Korea and Southeast Asia. Chief Executive Officer Steve Easterbrook, who took the reins last year, is pursuing a turnaround plan to revive the company amid a sales slow-down in the United States.

"The group of potential suitors is so diverse, because Chinese companies are aggressively trying to diversify their holdings," Ben Cavender, an analyst at China Market Research Group, said on Thursday. "There is a dearth of good deals available inside the Chinese mainland."

Shares of McDonald's fell 0.5 percent to $112.11 at the close on Wednesday in New York, extending this year's decline to 5.1 percent.

Bloomberg
MEXICO CITY - China can help to drive the development of emerging Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) members through technological cooperation, a Mexican expert has told Xinhua.

"This is undoubtedly a historic need that can improve ties in the region," said Professor Sergio Martinez at the Center for China-Mexico Studies at the National Autonomous University of Mexico.

The researcher said that the Asian country could drive global economic growth in general through a new Chinese middle-income group boosting the demand for various added-value products and goods.

In terms of APEC members, Martinez advised that they should seek to specialize in order to be complementary.

"In the last three decades, the world has seen progressive productive specialization," he said, adding that emerging economies have entered various stages of global value chains during this process.

However, Martinez warned that though specialization brings short-term benefits, such as increased revenue, it must be accompanied by national strategies to ensure medium and long-term development.

In the upcoming APEC meeting in Peru in November, he hopes that the members will outline proposals to boost their collective economic growth, including new investment plans.

The expert said that the economic growth of the Asia-Pacific region has allowed its emerging economies to grasp an increasingly important part of global GDP.
Roger Radke, CEO of Sivantos Group, speaks at the launching ceremony of Signia in Beijing on October 25, 2016. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Sivantos Group, one of the leading hearing care and aid service providers in the world, unveiled Signia, a new high-end hearing aid brand in Beijing on Tuesday.

"China is undoubtedly an important market for us, and we are the market leader here," said Roger Radke, CEO of the Germany-based group that acquired the hearing aid arm from Siemens in 2015.

A series of hearing aid products and a hearing technology platform Primax were also launched at the press conference.

In an exclusive interview with China Daily website, Radke shared his expectations for China.

How did Sivantos perform last year? What's your forecast for this year?

Sivantos had positive performance in the last year. We have experienced strong double-digit annual growth in the past 21 years, since we started operation in China.

How about China? How much did the Chinese market contribute to your business?

China was undoubtedly very important for Sivantos Group, as it has become the second largest hearing market in the world.

How do you see the opportunities and challenges for your company in China?

With the development of economy, more elderly will desire to enjoy the better hearing world. Hearing aids will be the best choice for them. More potential customers will start to upgrade their quality of life. Meanwhile, as a leading company, more and more customer education resources will be put in that might increase our marketing cost.

China recently reported the Q3 GDP growth of 6.7 percent, what do you think about the market outlook?

There are some data showing that China's GDP growth this year may maintain 6.7 percent. This speed of development is astonishing taking the whole world into consideration, and Sivantos is fully confident in the future development of the Chinese market, and we will keep exploring and invest more in the future.

How much do you invest in China every year and in what ways?

We invested the most part of capital in product development in the past 21 years. The global manufacture center in Suzhou is our largest production base in the world.

What's your company's biggest achievement in China's market?

Sivantos has the perfect hearing service points with hearing experts in China that support us to provide the best products and hearing consulting to hearing loss people.
Ken Allen, chief executive officer of DHL Express. [Photo/Agencies]

Courier giant's boss motivates employees, stimulates creativity with company songs

German companies usually conjure up a serious, no-nonsense image when it comes to management styles. But Ken Allen, CEO of DHL Express, often belts out a song with spirit at work.

People can frequently hear him sing I Wanna Be a Billionaire, a popular song within DHL Express, to encourage employees to reach their life goals, as well as Ain't No Mountain High Enough, the theme song for the company's promotion campaignto stimulate creative ideas and a hardworking spirit.

Allen, in charge of the world's biggest international express delivery service provider by market share, said his company has been focusing its services on "time definite international" services, meanwhile ensuring growth with quality. Dedicated to time-critical business, DHL mainly serves customers who have high demand on safety, timeliness and reliability, to deliver high-end goods between China and the rest of world, such as electronic devices, precise manufacturing parts, and healthcare products.

Not long after it was established 47 years ago, DHL pioneered international express delivery in the Asia-Pacific region and became the first such service provider to enter the Chinese market in 1986.

"The scale of this business will continue to surge in the long run," said Allen, a British national who has been working for Deutsche Post AG, the world's biggest logistics group by sales revenue, for more than three decades.

DHL-Sinotrans International Air Courier Ltd, a joint venture in charge of DHL Express's business in China, has the largest geographical coverage in China, covering 390 cities through its network of 209 facilities. China has also become a stand-alone region for the company this year.

Recently, Allen spoke with China Daily about the company's strategy and his management style. The following are edited excerpts from the interview:

How do you promote your business in China?

We are always investing in China. Whatever we do in the rest of the world helps China. So for example, if we put on a plane to go from New York to Hong Kong, that could be carrying packages for Chinese customers. In all our training, every IT system that we have developed globally will help China, because it all links into the Chinese market.

For example, at the moment, because of the big amount of B2C customers, we have invested in a lot in IT systems. When a shipment arrives you get a SMS message, on where would you like your shipment delivered.

In China, since we have such a big coverage, we constantly buy new vehicles, facilities as well as set up services centers. Every single year we are spending millions in investments in China.

What's the secret of DHL Express's success in China?

I think the relationship between DPDHL and the DHL-Sinotrans has almost mirrored what has happened in China. We formed a joint venture and each provided the best for each other. Sinotrans gave us a complete view about the Chinese market and how to operate here.

The growth of our company reflects the growth of the economy. I think for many reasons, the Chinese government is very focused on developing the economy and improving people's lives. We are trying to do the same thing: we want everybody that works for DHL to feel that they have a great future and we give them great training and we want them to grow with our customers here in China.

How do you assess business prospects in China over the next decade? Are there any new market growth points that you can see?

We are very opportunistic. On the one hand, China is moving its focus more to domestic consumption. What's happened over time is that within China you have this very vibrant middle class, which has immense purchasing power, which is buying more and more things outside and bringing them into China.

Europe and the US are selling a lot of things to China. In the beginning, China made everything for the world and it was all outbound, but now we see the biggest trade coming out of say Spain, Italy and UK and coming to China. That's because China's middle class is buying goods everywhere.

The economy is still very vibrant and a lot of people are saying that China is only growing at 6 percent, but most of the rest of the world would die to grow at 6 percent.

How do you ensure the continuity of your culture and service across 220 countries and regions?

The good thing for us is that we invented this business back in 1969, so the international express business was invented by DHL. Over that period of time, we have built up global standard operating procedures. What we call our business is this big yellow machine, which for example makes a shipment in Beijing which comes out in Australia.

It's very important to have the processes and the IT system but the thing that makes it all happen, the most important thing, is the people. Making sure that your people are exceptionally well-trained, but not just well-trained in what they do, but that they understand how the whole network works.

What is your biggest achievement as CEO of DHL Express?

We want to be the employer of choice, the provider of choice, and the investment of choice. When you have those three things in balance, that's a great achievement. I think the real heroes are the ones growing the business every year by 5 percent to 10 percent revenue, keeping the bottom line moving up as well, being consistent over a long period of time.

How do you handle the hardships or setbacks at work?

I have a great team. When you are doing a job like mine, it's all about the bottom line and the balance. I think the secret is balance. We want to be the employer of choice. We want the people that work for us to be motivated, well paid and happy. I'm very lucky that my wife changed countries with me four times and she's always been supportive of me. If you don't have a very happy settled private life, you can't do these jobs, or you put your family life at risk. Secondly I'm lucky to be with a team that has been at the company for almost as long as I have.

How do you encourage your employees?

Let's just talk about the singing for a minute. Our song for motivating people is an old advertising campaign jingle called "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". It reflects what DHL wants to do.

When we were losing money, and we wanted to make a billion, we came up with the song "I Wanna Be a Billionaire." It's all about talking to people.

When we first train our people, we give them a DHL 'passport.' Every time they do a training course they get a stamp and people like it. It's a bit of a gimmick in a way, but it shows that they are part of the DHL family, and over a period of time when you pass or do a course you get the stamp.

What are the differences between Chinese customers and those from Europe and the US, in their preferences and habits in choosing a service?

I don't think there are differences, because most of our customers are buying relatively expensive items. They are middle class and above consumers who want something very quickly, and they are prepared to pay a premium for that.

How can digital technologies improve your company's business?

The interesting point is that it's a mixture. There's the big data element, to process all this data to improve our qualityand then there's digital marketing to talk to all of our customers.

Like most companies, we understand the power of digital marketing. We understand that's the way the world is going, but what do you actually do? It's all about trying to get the attention of millions of people through our social media channels. In China maybe it is about Weibo, WeChat or any other new digital means, and we keep investing in new digital technologies.

CV

Age: 65

Nationality: British

Career:

2009 onwards: CEO of DHL Express; Deutsche Post AG-Member of the Board of Management

2008: Deutsche Post AG-CEO DHL Express USA

2006: Deutsche Post AG-CEO DHL Express EEMEA

2004-06: Deutsche Post AG-President DHL Express Canada

1985-2004: Various responsibilities at DHL Express Middle East

1985: Entry into DHL Express

1982-85: International Catering& Hotel Company

1972-82: Various UK manufacturing companies

Education:

1971: GCE 'O'-levels,'A' level in accounting

1982: F.C.C.A. (certified accountant)

Family: Married with four children
Robot Jia Jia displays at the 2016 World Robot Exhibition in Beijing, Oct 21, 2016. The exhibition is held from Oct 21 to 25 as part of the World Robot Conference. [Photo/Xinhua]

BEIJING - "Please do not stand too close or my pretty face will be too big in your photos," Jia Jia told her "fans" at the 2016 World Robot Conference in Beijing.

Jia Jia is a typical oriental beauty with shiny hair, bright skin, a slender figure and a tender voice. More importantly, as China's latest interactive robot, she is considerate and humorous.

Aside from Jia Jia, many other robots have delighted the audience during the five-day robot conference that closed this week, such as humanoid robots that can read emotions or write traditional Chinese calligraphy, and robots that can perform medical operations, wait at tables or work in factories.

"If asked to use one word to describe the development of China's robotics industry, I would choose 'explosion,'" said Zhao Jie, director of the Robotics Institute of Harbin Institute of Technology.

Zhao said thousands of companies were established in dozens of robot industrial parks across China, with the number of employees growing rapidly.

China's robot shipments topped 68,000 sets last year, accounting for 26.7 percent of the global market. Asia has become world's largest supplier of industrial robots, taking up 60 percent of the global market.

According to the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), about 75 percent of shipments in the past five years were from China, the Republic of Korea, Japan, the United States and Germany. The average growth of China's robot market over the period stood at 17 percent per year.

"Not only the increasing market size, but I am also optimistic about the manufacturing and development of China's industrial robotics," said Wang Yu, a professor of engineering at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

Wang said that after just one year, roughly one-third of industrial robots used in China were manufactured domestically, and the percentage is still climbing.

In addition to industrial robots, service robots have also received extensive attention. China's service robotics are leading the world in firefighting, disaster relief, health care and catering.

According to an IFR report, an estimated 94,800 professional service robots will be installed from 2013 to 2018, with total sales of $17.1 billion. Medical and military robots accounted for 55 percent of the total sales.

Remebot, China's first neurosurgery robot, was a hit at the conference. The designers said that it was accurate to just one millimeter, and with its help, brain surgery that used to take hours could be done within 30 minutes.

Service robotics has become a major field of development in China's robotics industry, said Sun Bolin, honorary chairman of the product information working committee of the China Instrument Society.

Besides areas such as coal mining, power generation and oil exploitation, service robots can also accomplish much in anti-terrorism, criminal investigation and explosives handling, Sun said.

The National Natural Science Foundation of China announced plans at the conference to invest 200 million yuan ($29.5 million) to support the study of the basic theory and key technologies of robots that can work alongside people.

Chinese companies have also been engaged in cross-border mergers and acquisitions in the robot industry. In April, Wanfeng Technology Group acquired US industrial robot manufacturer Paslin, giving Wanfeng access to advanced automated welding technology and clients that Paslin has developed over 80 years.

Many investment and finance institutions are also eyeing the future of China's robotics industry. "We are actively encouraging listed companies to participate in the industry either through capital contribution or technology acquisition," said Li Xiaoxue, deputy director of the China Association for Public Companies.

"China's robotics industry is transitioning from a follower to a frontrunner," Li said.
Journalists follow the presentation of Huawei's smartphone, the Mate S, ahead of the IFA Electronics show in Berlin, Germany, in this file picture taken September 2, 2015. [Photo/Agencies]

JOHANNESBURG - Chinese telecom giant Huawei on Thursday signed cooperation contracts with global and local music vendors in South Africa to accelerate digitalization of African music.

At the Huawei Southern Africa Partner Summit held in Johannesburg, Huawei inked contracts with Spice Music, Mtech, CCA and other local music vendors.

Africa has shown a great demand for digital services, like music, game and video. According to Huawei's analysis, in five years, digital services' year-on-year growth here will be about 40 percent. However, there remains a big gap between the growing demands and the digital productions.

The summit, aimed at creating a sharing platform to promote digital collaboration in Africa, has attracted over 40 industry partners.

Wilson Feng, President of Huawei's Carrier Business in Southern Africa Region, said at the summit that Huawei is willing to work hand-in-hand with Africa partners to create a better industry ecosystem.

"We will leverage our innovative technologies of digital services, and our global resources to improve African consumers' digital experience, and accelerate African's digital economy development," Feng said.

Through the cooperation, Huawei's digital business cloud will also help their partners in monetization, which means it's a win-win solution for all parties in the ecosystem, he said.

The cooperation with content providers means Huawei will have the copyrights of millions of latest music from the international and local vendors. This is Huawei's first breakthrough into the global music space.

Huawei will then be able to provide the music to telecom operators in South Africa, like Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, etc, which offer music to their end users through their music apps.

The summit also witnessed Huawei's efforts in leveraging its Digital inCloud, a software platform, to integrate content across music, video, gaming and other digital service genres.

Siphumelele Zondi, senior producer and anchor of South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), said there would be a great need for local South African artists to venture into the digital space.

Often local content is on demand but not available on digital platforms, which then promotes piracy, he said.

"Africa is a mobile device intensive environment, and platforms such as Huawei's Digital inCloud can aid the availability of local content to Africa," said Zondi.
Massive smuggling case busted in South China

Xinhua | Updated: 2016-10-28 07:26

SHENZHEN - Customs in the southern metropolis of Shenzhen has busted a huge smuggling case, with 57 suspects detained, authorities said Thursday.



Customs staff have confiscated smuggled amber, lithium batteries, medicine, milk powder and other daily articles, in a case worth 227 million yuan (33 million U.S. dollars) in a recent raid, according to Shenzhen Customs in Guangdong Province.H Authorities found more than six tonnes of amber raw materials worth about 70 million yuan, as well as 620,000 lithium batteries in the raid.



"The suspects imported the amber resources from foreign countries and transported them to Hong Kong, before smuggling them to the Chinese mainland," according to an unidentified customs officer. "The buyers then sold the raw materials or processed ones in cities such as Shenzhen and Beijing."



Shenzhen customs have launched four crackdowns on smuggling so far this year, with 31 smuggling gangs busted and 113 suspects detained.
Jets of the Red Arrows, officially known as the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, fly in formation in Zhuhai, Guangdong province, on Oct 27, 2016. The British aerobatic team will perform at the 11th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition, which will be held from Nov 1 to 6 in Zhuhai. [Photo by Tang Mingming/For China Daily]

Fans of military hardware will have a rare opportunity to see some of the country's top defense technology next week, as the 11th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition gets underway in Zhuhai, Guangdong province.

The six-day event, commonly known as the Zhuhai Air Show, will start on Tuesday and is set to feature some of the best equipment that the People's Liberation Army and State-owned defense giants have to offer.

Products on show at the biennial event, which is the largest arms exhibition in China, will include the latest offerings in the space, aviation, electronics and land armament industries. Fighter jets, transport planes, drones, missiles, tanks and artillery guns are all set to be on display, according to Zhuhai Airshow Co.

Ahead of the show's opening, large numbers of military aircraft have been flown to Zhuhai, including the Y-20 strategic transport plane, KJ-500 early warning and control aircraft, FTC-2000 advanced trainer jet and Z-19E attack helicopter. All were developed and manufactured by the nation's leading aircraft producer, Aviation Industry Corp of China, and are in service with the PLA Air Force.

The Y-20, China's first domestically developed heavy-lift transport jet, was commissioned in July. It has a maximum payload of 66 metric tons and a maximum takeoff weight of more than 200 tons, according to military sources.

AVIC has previously said it wants to export the aircraft once it receives government approval.

The KJ-500 is the latest in the PLA's support aircraft fleet. Its cutting-edge fixed phased-array radar and two passive electronic intelligence arrays are capable of tracking up to 100 targets simultaneously at a distance of 470 kilometers, according to reports.

Meanwhile, the China Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics, one of the nation's largest military drone developers, will showcase the latest model in its Cai Hong series of reconnaissance and combat drones at the air show. These drones have been sold to militaries in more than 10 countries around the world and can compete with any other drones of their kind, according to publicity officers.

Also on display will be the latest from the nation's largest missile manufacturer, China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp, including the first public appearance of the CM302 supersonic anti-ship missile, which is capable of hitting ground targets.

Military enthusiasts are also looking forward to seeing the highly-anticipated J-20 fifth-generation stealth fighter jet.

AVIC and the PLA Air Force have yet to confirm that the plane will be on display, but Chinese media have quoted industry analysts as reporting that it is highly likely it will make its debut at the air show.

Analysts said video clips circulating online show two J-20s completing aerobatic maneuvers in preparation for an aerial display at the event.
Supervisors being made to answer for the illegal acts of underlings to encourage a culture of responsibility

Delegates to the Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee voted on Thursday in Beijing on two documents dealing with the discipline of the Party. [Photo/Xinhua]

Township disciplinary secretary Wu Yongping was taken by surprise when he was summoned to a harshly worded talk by his supervisors at the county level.

Wu is a thirty-something aspiring cadre in Yangqiao Township in southwestern Guizhou province. The hourslong disciplinary talk was to inform him that a village-level official under his supervision embezzled 4,000 yuan ($590) in funds meant for sheep-raising last year. It was determined that Wu had failed to properly supervise and prevent the wrongdoing.

The stern reminder to Wu was part of a provincewide disciplinary campaign of the Communist Party of China that started this year. On an unprecedented large scale, the campaign is aimed at deterring Party disciplinary offenses and nipping them in the bud.

From January to September, more than 148,000 officials were subject to these disciplinary talks.

"The admonitions are aimed at keeping us focused on doing our jobs right and staying away from minor or major wrongdoings," said Wu.

During the campaign, more than 3,200 officials were punished, according to the Guizhou provincial CPC committee.

"No CPC member shall be left out of supervision. No wrongdoing shall be ignored and we shall do all we can to prevent a cadre from becoming corrupt," said Huang Wensheng, deputy secretary of the Guizhou Party disciplinary committee.

"Such talks are not only necessary, but key to ensuring day-to-day supervision," said An Zhifang, professor of public management at Guizhou University.

"Skirting around discipline has been common within the Party, and often few people bother to confront minor wrongdoings. But we should know that turning a blind eye to problems is equal to encouraging them. It is important to pre-empt before grave problems arise," he said.

Since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012, the CPC has launched fierce anti-graft campaigns and reinforced the governance of the Party.

Provinces have been under pres-sure to regulate behavior of CPC members and officials.

"The governance of the CPC concerns the governance of the nation and the people's well-being," said Liu Zhexin, professor with China Executive Leadership Academy based in Shanghai.

"The ruling party is like a brain that should function well with the myriad cells of society.

"The public expects it to keep clean and shield itself from the erosion of graft. It needs a stringent system of rules to hold power in check. This is what the CPC is doing," said Liu.

At a gathering last week to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the success of the Long March, which cemented the victory of the Chinese revolution, Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, stressed strengthening the leadership of the Party and strictly governing the Party in order to achieve the nation's goals.

He pledged unswerving efforts to promote clean governance, fight corruption and strengthen the Party's ability to innovate as well as to purify and improve itself.

"Today, our 'Long March' is to realize the 'two centenary goals' and the Chinese dream of national rejuvenation," Xi said in the speech.

The two goals are building a moderately prosperous society in all respects by the time the CPC celebrates its centenary in 2021, and turning the nation into a modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced and harmonious in time for the People's Republic of China to mark its centennial in 2049.




The successful launch of the Shenzhou XI spacecraft on Oct 17 and its automatic docking with the Tiangong II space lab two days later has brought China one step closer to its objective of building a space station.

Chen Dong, one of the two astronauts aboard Shenzhou XI, became the second Henan province native to travel in space, after Liu Yang, who was also China's first female astronaut, which is a source of great pride to people in the province associated with the project.

The visors on the astronaut's helmets and related plastic components, some of the most important components in space suits, are the fruits of research conducted by the National Engineering Research Center for Rubber Plastic Mould Technology at Zhengzhou University in the central province.

"We have made three kinds of visors. The first two were used in Shenzhou VII and IX, and the third was made for Shenzhou XI," said Liu Chuntai, the center's deputy director.

"The latest mission has much tougher requirements than before, in that the plastic materials must be able to tolerate the -80 C temperature in space."

The two astronauts will live in the Tiangong II space lab for a month, fed by 19 different food produced by the Yongda Group in Hebi, Henan, which specializes in chicken-based meals.

According to Zheng Guimin, deputy manager of the group's external communications department, Yongda also provided main meals and snacks for Shenzhou VII, IX and Xl.

Di Wenge, Yongda's president, said: "So far, the company has produced 47 kinds of food characteristic of Henan for the space missions. They are all popular with the astronauts."

Researchers from Zhongyuan Dahua Co also took part in the research and development of the sound-absorbing foam plastic materials used in Tiangong II.

Meanwhile, Henan Aerospace Precision Work Co, in Xinyang, provided nearly 90 percent of the high-performance fasteners for the Shenzhou series of spacecraft.
On Oct 25, a young man surnamed Chen, who admitted to altering his classmates' college applications, was sentenced to seven months in prison on charges of damaging the computer information system. In court, Chen's mother knelt down before the families of the victims to beg for their forgiveness.

On July 23, two students at Shanxian No. 1 Middle School discovered that they had been admitted to universities to which they did not apply, and reported the case to police. Local police identified Chen, their classmate, as a suspect. A subsequent investigation found that Chen had altered four students' applications in the online application system.

"Chen said he did it out of envy, because these students outperformed him on the college entrance exam," explained Zhu Ruiyu, a police officer handling the case.

On Oct 17, Chen read a letter of apology in court, asking the four victims and their families to forgive him. The four students are now studying in universities to which they were admitted based on the altered applications rather than their actual qualifications. They said they cannot forgive Chen's behavior.

The family members of the students said that the verdict, a seven-month prison sentence, is hard to accept because the punishment is too light.

"It's just seven months. I feel this is unfair. What Chen changed is not just a child's college application; he changed a child's fate," said Tian Minxia, the aunt of one of the victims.
A 26-year-old woman in Suzhou has stirred controversy on the internet as she decided to have a child despite being diagnosed with cancer.

The women surnamed Lin was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma, which is a cancerous tumor in 2014. Her illness did not improve much after several treatments including chemotherapy. Despite warnings from doctors, Lin decided to have her baby after she became pregnant earlier this year. It's reported that Lin's situation has drastically worsened after having the baby and doctors have warned she now only has several months to live.

The story of Lin was brought to the public's attention through Sina Weibo, China's Twitter-like service, where the dying mother was seen shooting videos for her newly-born child. Lin hoped that the video can be a keepsake for her daughter to remember her face and voice.

In the beginning, most netizens found Lin's deed very touching and considerate and praised Lin for her love and respect for life.

However, some netizens later began to question if Lin was just selfish to have the baby. Some argue that, considering Lin's illness, it was very dangerous for both her and the child to have it, and that she may even pass the cancer gene to her child. Even if the child was born smoothly, Lin would not be there to raise her.

One netizen stressed that it is not the reproduction that makes parents great but the process of raising their offspring.

At present, a poll is being conducted by 163.com which invites netizens to express their views on the matter.
22-year-old Cheng Mengting is a People's Congress deputy of the city of Xinyu in Jiangxi province.[Photo/CNS]

The 9th People's Congress of the city of Xinyu in Jiangxi province opened its first session on Oct 25. Chen Mengting, a 22-year-old deputy, was elected as a bureau member of the city-level People's Congress. Now, the young deputy has become an Internet sensation, receiving attention from the citizens of Xinyu.

"This is the first time I have been elected as a deputy of the city-level People's Congress. I am both excited and nervous," said Chen, who is currently the vice director of the civilian service center of Xinxi Village in Xinyu.

Chen said that as a grassroots representative, she will try her best to reflect the voices of ordinary people. To this end, she went around Xinxi Village to investigate, eventually bringing four proposals to the congress that represent the most pressing problems of villagers.

Chen's proposals include providing funds to repair the country road, merging elementary school and purchasing school buses, and opening village bus lines.
Oracle bone characters. [File photo]

ZHENGZHOU -- The National Museum of Chinese Writing on Thursday launched an award program to encourage people from around the world to help decipher oracle bone inscriptions.

According to the museum based in Anyang City in central China's Henan Province, where oracle bones and script were discovered from the Ruins of Yin over 110 years ago, the program will offer 100,000 yuan ($14,700) for each unknown character to be deciphered.

Inscriptions on tortoise shells and animal bones represent the original characters of the Chinese written language. They date back to the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC).

Chinese characters constitute the oldest continuously used writing system in the world. The logograms convey both meaning and pronunciation.

To date, archaeologists around the world have discovered some 4,000 bone inscription characters by studying 160,000 relics, but only 1,600 of the characters have been deciphered.

Oracle bone inscriptions were first discovered in 1899 by Beijing academic and antiquarian Wang Yirong, although farmers had been unearthing the artifacts in Anyang, Henan Province for many years. Wang noticed symbols that looked like writing on the animal bones and tortoise shells.

According to the museum's announcement, the process of deciphering the oracle bone inscriptions has entered a "bottleneck" period and needs enthusiasm and innovation to help tackle the mysterious characters.

The museum's incentive program requires each report submitted by award applicants to have recommendations from two academic experts before they hand in their entries to the museum's expert panel.

It encourages oracle bone enthusiasts to use cloud computing and Big Data to analyze and support their interpretation of a particular character.

If plagiarism or falsification are found, applicants will be considered disqualified to receive the award, the museum warned.
China's famous tenor Mo Hualun performs Granada with the accompaniment of Beijing Symphony Orchestra. [Photo by Chen Yingqun/chinadaily.com.cn]

Alumni of Harvard Business School & Columbia Business School hosted their annual Autumn Concert in Beijing on Thursday night, bringing leading musicians' performance to more than 400 concertgoers.

The concert was held after more than 1,000 people attended the annual conference hosted by the Harvard Business Review, where leading economists and entrepreneurs both from China and abroad thrashed ideas at the one-day meeting.

China's famous tenor Mo Hualun and soprano Chen Xiaoduo, Chinese violinist Chen Xi, pianist Yuan Jie, and the Beijing Symphony Orchestra performed many classic works, such as Granada and O sole mio. This was the fourth concert of its kind.

Brian Yu, the host of the event, said the aim is not only to bring good music to Chinese audience, but also to connect talent in Beijing and to relive memories of studying abroad.
TAINAN -- About 2,000 residents in southern Taiwan took to the streets on Thursday, protesting against the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)'s poor governance and damaging influence on cross-Strait relations.

The crowd was dotted with banners that read: "poor governance, sluggish economy," and marched around the city hall building in the southern city of Tainan.

Protesters were also frustrated by the DPP-ruled Tainan government's decision to raise land and property taxation, increasing the financial burden of local residents.

Liu Kuan-hsiung, chief of Taiwan Community Development Association, said that based on the 1992 Consensus, cross-Strait relations have robustly developed over the past eight years.

However, the DPP has shown poor governance since it came to power in May with many sectors of the economy suffering setbacks, and cross-Strait relations substantially cooling.

People's lives have suffered as as result, Liu said.

He called on people across the Taiwan Strait to stand united, protect the valuable blood relationship and keep a clear mind of the DPP's manipulation of power, inability to govern and wangling of votes.
The strict governance of the Communist Party of China has entered a new era with two regulations passed at a key meeting on Oct 27, paving the way for the Party's national congress next year and its future development.

A regulation on the norms of political life within the Party, and a revision of an intra-Party supervision regulation were adopted at the Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, which ran from Monday to Thursday in Beijing.

Key word 1 - Comprehensive, strict governance of the CPC

Comprehensive, strict governance of the Communist Party of China is expected to inject fresh impetus into the 95-year-old Party and ensure faster economic growth that will contribute more to the global economy.

Xie Chuntao, professor at the Party School of the Central Committee of the CPC, said Party regulations and discipline are instruments for self-management, and they'll become more comprehensive and stricter in the future.





Not only individuals who violate discipline shall face punishment, but Party organizations and disciplinary authorities in charge of supervising them shall also bear responsibility.

Key word 2 - Xi as the Party's "core"

The sixth plenary session officially conferred on Xi Jinping the highest honor of being the Party's "core" leader.

Xin Ming, professor at the Party School of the Central Committee of the CPC, said bestowing on Xi this honor is significant, since it affirms the authority of the central leadership and strengthens the internal solidarity of the Party.

Key word 3 - Political life within the Party

The intra-Party supervision should start with the political life within the Party, and a more comprehensive, stricter governance of the CPC should also start with it, the Plenary Session pointed out.

Xin Ming, professor at the Party School of the Central Committee of the CPC, said a strict political life within the Party is the base of a more comprehensive, stricter governance of the CPC. The new rules should be set according to the changes of the Party, the country and the world.
More and more young people are taking medicines and nutrition food to improve their sex lives, said a recent report by the China Sexology Association (CSA).

Based on online studies and data from China's internet giant - Alibaba, the research shows that about 30 percent of 300,000 respondents who consulted or bought drugs to treat erectile dysfunction (ED) were aged between 18 and 25.

Oct 28 is the National Men's Health Day. The National Health and Family Planning Commission began marking the day in 2000 in an effort to raise public attention to men's health issues.

"More young people are suffering from ED due to stress with the fast tempo of modern life. Compared with the elder generation, young people hold more positive attitude towards medication," said Jiang Hui, deputy director of CSA.

Unhealthy lifestyle, including eating too much fat and sugar, as well as spending hours online on computer or cellphones, are also blamed for the increase in ED among young men, according to Deng Chunhua, doctor from Urology Department of the First Affiliation Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, in Guangdong province.

"About 70 percent of ED cases result from psychological, rather than physical problems. So we strongly recommend patients with ED to see doctors first and not to take medicine without professional guidance," Deng said.

According to the report, Chinese people aged from 20 to 50 have sex 120 times a year on average, 17 times more than those surveyed by Durex in 2004, which claimed that the average number of times people have sex was 103 globally.

Infertility problem is threatening more Chinese couples. In Peking University Third Hospital - the country's leading center for infertility problems, patient visits has climbed by nearly 30 percent after the relaxation of the family planning policy early this year.

As the director of andrology department at the Hospital, Jiang said several factors are blamed for the increase of infertility among the men, such as ED and proportion of viable sperm in each milliliter of semen.

"Despite a rise in the number of medical staff available to treat them, and people's increasing awareness of reproductive health. Other reasons also include environmental pollution and the pressure of work," he said.
The Sichuan Provincial Health and Family Planning Commission has signed an agreement related to construction of an online hospital in the provincial capital of Chengdu with We Doctor, an online medical service provider in China.

Attending the signing ceremony on Thursday, Shen Ji, head of the commission, said that the hospital will use the internet to help people who lack qualified medical service in less developed areas in Sichuan.

Shen said that 88 poor counties in Sichuan suffer from a severe shortage of medical resources.

Thanks to the hospital, patients in the counties can seek medical consultation offered by famous doctors in major hospitals in Chengdu as well as other parts of China, he said.

The Liangshan Yi autonomous prefecture in Sichuan which has the largest Yi population in China is one of the least developed areas in the province. It is expected to benefit from the hospital.

Nearly five million people in the poor counties in the prefecture can receive basic check-ups in local rural clinics when they are sick. The results of the check-ups will be sent to the online hospital through the internet.

Famous doctors with the online hospital can analyze the results of the check-ups and diagnose patients in online video conferences which are attended by doctors in rural clinics in Liangshan and their patients.

"It will improve the accuracy of diagnosis by my clinic and enhance local residents' confidence in out clinic," said Zhang Xuehui, head of the Yinchang township clinic in Xichang, capital of Liangshan.
Systematic regulation will tackle problems, senior officials say

Wu Yuliang, deputy secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China, is surrounded by reporters after a news conference in Beijing on Friday. WANG ZHUANGFEI / CHINA DAILY

Two sets of rules adopted at a key Party meeting  one on the norms of political life within the Party and the other on tightening internal supervision  will help tackle pressing problems in the Party and improve Party governance, senior officials said on Friday.

A communique released after the Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee also called for the 88 million Party members to "closely unite around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core".

Qi Yu, vice-minister of the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee, said the new rule on norms is necessary since bureaucracy, extravagant lifestyle and election bribery are all problems currently faced by the Party.

Qi said a small number of senior officials have had big political ambitions, formed cliques and maneuvered for power and higher positions, which "has greatly damaged the unity and centralization of the Party, greatly harmed the political environment in the Party and tarnished its image".

He said the new norms are a systematic regulation of intra-Party political life.

Wu Hui, a professor at the Party School of the CPC Central Committee, said that the norms and the new intra-Party supervision regulation reflect the Party's determination to fight corruption.

Wu Yuliang, deputy secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Party's top discipline watchdog, dismissed speculation that the crackdown on corruption is selective and politically driven.

"Some people used to accuse us of not opposing corruption, and now that we have enhanced the efforts in the sector, they are saying we're selective. I'm afraid those (critics) may have other purposes or motives," he said at the news conference.

"When uprooting rotten trees, one has to start with the most rotten ones. If that is called selective, I have to say this is just the way we do our work," he added.

At the news conference, Huang Kunming, executive deputy head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, also said that identifying President Xi as the core of the Party is a consensus of the Party and in response to people's call.

"In the process of collecting opinions on the two documents approved at the sixth plenary session, central and local departments as well as the military all expressed their support for specifying Xi as the core of the CPC Central Committee and the entire CPC at the session," he said.

Recognizing the core status of Xi also received universal support from delegates attending the sixth plenary session, he said, adding that the move will help ensure the authority and unity of the Party.

Pierre Defraigne, executive director of the Madariaga-College of Europe Foundation in Brussels, said, "Xi's fruitful credentials make him deserve the core' of China's leadership, which has ensured that China grows at a rapid pace in context of a world economy still under the down pressure in the most advanced economies."

Cheng Li, director of the John L. Thornton China Center at the Brookings Institution, described the communique as a "very good document".

"I believe the sixth plenary session will have its status in Communist Party of China history," he said.

Fu Jing in Brussels and Xinhua contributed to this story.

Contact the writers at caoyin@chinadaily.com.cn
Xian Hui

BEIJING -- Two new members have been added to the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee to fill vacancies, according to a communique released Thursday after the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee.

The two new members, Zhao Xiangeng and Xian Hui, were formerly alternate members of the CPC Central Committee.

The plenary session, held in Beijing from Monday to Thursday, made the decision according to provisions of the CPC constitution.




The strict governance of the Communist Party of China has entered a new era with two regulations passed at a key meeting on Thursday, paving the way for the Party's national congress next year and its future development.

The meeting also declared President Xi Jinping as the Party's "core", a move to further consolidate the top leadership and better lead the country forward.

A regulation on the norms of political life within the Party, and a revision of an intra-Party supervision regulation were adopted at the Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, which ran from Monday to Thursday in Beijing.

Experts said the two rules, with senior officials as the major super-vision target, mark a shift from the initial shock-and-awe ousting of corrupt officials to perfecting the anti-graft regulations and mechanism. Details of the two regulations were not disclosed.

"Party governance has entered a new age - to govern the Party by rigorous rules and regulations," said Wu Hui, a professor at the Party School of the Central Committee of the CPC.

The CPC passed a revised regulation on clean governance, and another specifying sanctions for those who break Party rules, in October last year. It passed a revised regulation on discipline inspections in August last year.

"By introducing all these rules and regulations, the CPC is moving to institutionalize its anti-graft drive started in late 2012,"Wu said.

The initial years of the anti-graft battle saw progress in making officials "dare not be corrupt", but the series of Party regulations will ensure that officials "cannot be corrupt", he said.

In a communique that was released on Thursday after the session, all Party members were called on to "closely unite around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core".

Wu, the professor, said the Party needs strong leadership to push forward reforms. "It will be more efficient and easier to overcome difficulties with the existence of a core leader," he said.

Late Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping coined the phrase "core" leader, saying that every collective leadership needed a core to be reliable. He named Mao Zedong, himself and Jiang Zemin as core leaders.

Zhou Bajun, a senior research fellow of Hong Kong-based China Ever-bright Holdings, said naming Xi as "core" leader recognizes the achievements made under his leadership.

Xi is now head of the Party and the military, as well as being head of state.

Meanwhile, the task of intra-Party supervision, according to the communique released after the session, is to ensure that the Party Constitution, regulations and disciplines are effectively carried out, and that problems such as the weakening leading role of the Party and loose Party governance are solved.

"Unrestricted power or any unsupervised Party members are not allowed to exist within the Party," it said.

The Party also asked for honesty and loyalty from its 88 mil-lion members nationwide. Members shall become more aware of political integrity, keep in mind the bigger picture, recognize the CPC as the core of Chinese leadership and align themselves consistently with CPC Central Committee policy, the communique said.

Luigi Gambardella, president of China EU, a Brussels-based platform that boosts China-EU exchanges, said a more disciplined and united CPC will serve the country's core benefit and will have a positive influence on the Chinese economy's restructuring.

He added, "China's leadership with Xi Jinping at the core is visionary, as they know the importance of the digital transformation of society and they also know how to better govern the Party and serve the citizens in the internet era, which is encouraging."

The meeting also decided that the 19th National Congress of the a meeting held every five years at which a new Party leadership is elected, will be held in Beijing during the second half of 2017.

Given that a major personnel reshuffle is underway ahead of next year's key meeting, the Party stressed that the selection and appointment of officials must not be contaminated by outside interference or misconduct.

Requesting an official post, honor or special treatment is not allowed under any circumstances, the communique said.

It also underscored that the practice of bargaining with Party organizations to secure a promotion or disobeying any decisions made by Party organizations is also forbid-den.

Intra-Party democracy

Intra-Party democracy is vital to the CPC and is fundamental to a positive, healthy internal political environment, according to the communique.

The Party's various responsibilities concerning decision-making, implementation and supervision must be done in accordance with the democratic principles and procedures stipulated in the Party Constitution and regulations, according to the communique.

"No Party organization or individual should suppress or under-mine intra-Party democracy," it said.

Party authorities at all levels must conduct thorough investigations and research, and solicit opinions from various sides before making any major decisions or arrangements, said the communique.

The rights of Party members to know, participate in and supervise and their rights in election must be ensured, it said.

Additionally, all Party members should equally enjoy their rights stipulated in the Party Constitution while performing obligations equally, it said.

"No Party organization or member shall infringe upon the democratic rights of CPC members," the document said.

The communique called on authorities to make it more convenient for Party members to express their opinions and create a "political atmosphere of democratic discussion within the Party".

Party members have the right to responsibly expose or report any Party organizations or members breaking the laws or flouting the Party's disciplines, it said.

Xinhua contributed to this story.

Contact the writer at zhuzhe@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 10/28/2016 page1)
Ctrip.com International Ltd, a leading online travel agency in China, announced it had signed a strategic partner-ship agreement with three US-based travel agencies in an effort to further boost Chinese tourism to the United States.

The three US agencies - Tours for Fun, Ctour and Universal Vision-signed the deal with Ctrip on Wednesday in New York, agreeing to share resources to provide better services for Chinese tourists. The terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

"An important strategy of Ctripis to internationalize and to strategize outbound travel," said Yang Tao, Ctrip's senior vice-president and CEO of the vacation unit.
Tokyo may be the style capital of Asia, but with South Korea and China snapping at its heels and Japan's most iconic brands rooted in Europe, the city is being urged to haul its fashion week into the big leagues.

Tokyo Fashion Week kicked off its spring/summer 2017 season showcase earlier this month with six days of events intended to promote 50 brands, a mixture of the established and the new.

Yet Japanese labels that are household names in the West-led by Kenzo, YohjiYamamoto, Issey Miyake and Comme des Garcons - eschew home shores for the bright lights, prestige and visibility of Paris.
Canada, a popular destination for Chinese people accused of corruption, repatriates dozens of Chinese nationals every year, according to the National Post.

So far this year, the country has returned 24 Chinese nationals, while the previous Conservative government sent back more than 330, the newspaper reported on Sunday, citing data from the Canada Border Services Agency.

Last year, the number reached a 10-year high of 43, while 2010 saw 18, the lowest number, the newspaper said. It added that the statistics do not detail the crimes the people are accused of committing.
A series of cultural events have been planned to mark the 400th anniversary of the death of celebrated playwright Tang Xianzu (1550-1616), who is known to his devoted fans as "The Shakespeare of the East".

The events have been arranged by the local government in Fuzhou, Jiangxi province, where Tang was born.

The Ming-Dynasty (1368-1644) playwright also composed more than 2,000 poems and essays, most of which were written during his later years. He is particularly remembered for his four plays - The Peony Pavilion, The Purple Hairpin, Record of the Southern Bough and Record of Handan - collectively known as The Four Dreams of Linchuan.

As Shakespeare and Tang both died in 1616, an event was held from April 22-30 in Shakespeare's hometown of Stratford-upon-Avon in the United Kingdom to honor the two great playwrights. Tang's masterpiece, The Peony Pavilion, which is one of the most famous Kunqu opera pieces, was staged during the event, along with performances of Fuzhou's local folk opera.

Photos of Tang's hometown will also be exhibited at the University of Leeds and a Shakespeare museum in Stratford.

This September, a three-day event, the third China Fuzhou Tang Xianzu Art Festival, celebrated the legacies of the two playwrights. Opened by a musical, titled Tang Xianzu, performed by the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, the event also saw the opening of the Tang Xianzu Memorial Museum, a stage production, A Midsummer Night's Dreaming Under the Southern Bough, by the University of Leeds - which combined Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream and Tang's Record of the Southern Bough, as well as forums comprising scholars from China and the UK.

In addition, Stratford-upon-Avon and Fuzhou signed a cooperation agreement at Linchuan No 1 Middle School in Fuzhou.

"The memorandum will help strengthen the influence and legacy of the two playwrights. We will invite literary experts from the UK to Fuzhou, and we will also hold a summer camp, which will see our students go to the UK," said Zhang Hongxing, mayor of Fuzhou, during the event in September.

A local Fuzhou-dialect version of The Four Dreams of Linchuan, which was adapted from Tang's four well-known works, was also staged at Beijing's National Center for the Performing Arts, Tshinghua University and Peking University in October.

Exhibitions to mark the contributions made to world literature by Tang and Shakespeare are being held in 26 Chinese Cultural Centers in different countries through December.

Titled Dialogue Across Time and Space: Homage to Tang Xianzu and William Shakespeare, the exhibitions, which started on Sept 1 in Singapore, compare the lives and works of the two dramatists whose influences remain powerful to this day. The shows, which are slated to end in Mauritius, will be accompanied by seminars, forums, movie screenings, live performances and workshops.

chennan@chinadaily.com.cn

The Ganju opera renderings of Tang Xianzus The Four Dreams of Linchuan have been performed in various cities in the United Kingdom.Photos Provided To China Daily

(China Daily 10/28/2016 page11)
Baritone Shen Yang (left) rehearses for the musical The Fugitive as part of the ongoing Beijing Music Festival. [Photo by Jiang Dong/China Daily]

Suitcases, snow, a red sofa, wooden stairs and a raven come together in The Fugitive, a multimedia musical production. This is a world where the late Austrian composer Franz Schubert's famous piece Winter Journeyabout a poet pining for his lost love in the cold and gradually dyingmixes with images based on German poet Wilhelm Mueller's words.

As part of the ongoing Beijing Music Festival, which was launched in 1998 as a major celebration of classical music, the show will be staged on Friday at an art house in the city.

"It has inspired artists of different generations and from different fields to create, to celebrate its legacy. That's why we want to interpret Winter Journey in our own production," says the director Zou Shuang, who developed the idea of The Fugitive over a cup of coffee with Chinese baritone Shen Yang.

As they talked about the production, they realized that the central role of the man, who mourns for his lost love, connects with them, Zou says.
A set of 176 original emoji characters has been donated to the Museum of Modern Art in New York. [Photo/Agencies]

Back in the day, before cars could drive themselves and phones could send stickers and animations, a Japanese phone company released a set of 176 emojis.

The year was 1999 and the tiny 12-by-12 pixel designssmiley faces, hearts of the intact and broken variety, cats, and so onwere mainly popular in Japan. In 2010, Unicode Consortium, which now controls emoji standards, translated the emoji into the Unicode standard, which means that a person in France, for example, can send an emoji to a person in the United States and it will look the same, no matter what brand of phone or operating system they use.

New York's Museum of Modern Art said on Wednesday that it has acquired the original set of 176 emojis. They were a gift to the museum from the phone company, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone.

"From the start (in 1929!), part of MoMA's mission has been to display and collect the art (and design) of our time," Paola Antonelli, senior curator of the Department of Architecture and Design at the museum, says. "Our time is lived today in both the digital and the physical space."

The museum's other digital acquisitions have included the "@" symbol and video games.

As to how a museum acquires something as ubiquitous as a keyboard symbol or an emoji, Antonelli noted design works differently than art, which in many cases is uniquethink of a painting or a statue. Some design elements, such as the "@" symbol, are in the public domain, which means anyone can use them and the museum can simply display them.

The museum will show the emojis in its lobby through the year, using 2-D graphics and animations, and connecting the old emojis with the current generation.

Today, the Unicode Consortium recognizes nearly 1,800 emojis. There's wine, a baby bottle, a dancing woman in a red dress, and, of course, poop. There have been emoji-controversies, such as Apple's decision to replace the gun symbol with a bright green toy pistol.

The human faces in emoji have grown more racially diverse in recent years, and over the summer 11 new emojis were added representing female professionals, rounding out their male counterparts, thanks to a proposal from Google.

New emojis are added regularly, and continue to evolve and reflect our changing times.

"(Emojis) as a concept go back in the centuries, to ideograms, hieroglyphics and other graphic characters, enabling us to draw this beautiful arch that covers all of human history," Antonelli says. "There is nothing more modern than timeless concepts such as these."
An exhibition of contemporary glass art, A Chinese Liuli Flower, opened at the China Cultural Center in Brussels, Oct 27, 2016. [Photo/Chinaculture.org]

To promote Chinese culture, an exhibition of contemporary glass art, A Chinese Liuli Flower, opened at the China Cultural Center in Brussels, on October 27. It will last until November 11.

Belgium boasts of its time-honored glass art. As Roman Empire prospered, glassblowing technique spread from Italy, its birth place, to the rest of Europe. It was not long before Italian glassblowing technicians left for Belgium in droves and built factories there. At the turn of last century, Belgium became an important art center, thanks to the rise of new art, including glass and painting. Besides, buildings featured with streamlines and glass materials were one of urban characteristics.
A woman appreciates the artwork of Han Meilin during the exhibition in Venice, Italy on Oct 27, 2016. The exhibition "The World of Han Meilin" kicked off in Venice on Thursday and will last till Feb 28, 2017. As a global tour exhibition, it will also be held in Paris and Beijing.[Photo/Xinhua]
Yao Zhonghua's show, Magnificent Color of Life, is being held at the National Art Museum of China. [Photo by Jiang Dong/China Daily]

Yao Zhonghua, 77, is a pioneer of art circles in southwestern Yunnan province. His career spanning more than six decades, Yao has been painting the ethnic groups and distinctive landscapes of Southwest China.

Dozens of his oil paintings, watercolors and ink works are now on show at the National Art Museum of China. Titled Magnificent Color of Life, the exhibition marks Yao's longtime commitment to oil painting.

After his graduation from Beijing's Central Academy of Fine Arts in the 1960s, Yao returned to his native Kunming, provincial capital of Yunnan. There he spent a lot of time traveling in mountains and rain forests, and visited villages where ethnic people inhabited. He transformed his studies of Western classicism, romanticism and modern art into creating on canvas the magnificent views and rich palette of Yunnan.

Yao donated 30 of his works on show to the National Art Museum of China at the opening ceremony of the exhibition on Tuesday. The exhibition runs through Nov 6 and will travel to Yunnan Art Gallery in Kunming from Dec 6 to 16.

Yao Zhonghua's show,Magnificent Color of Life, is being held at the National Art Museum of China. [Photo by Jiang Dong/China Daily]

Related:

Scroll of Three Georges joins museum
[Photo provided to China Daily]

If you enjoy dining at fine Italian restaurants, chances are you will soon have a white-coated chef at your elbow, joyously shaving paper-thin slices of fresh white truffle on top of your favorite pasta.

"In Italy, truffles are known as the gift of gods'," says chef Robert Barazzutti of Hong Kong's two Aqua restaurants. "To appreciate the amazing flavor, we present the truffle with a simple homemade egg-yolk pasta and a little cheese or seasoning.

"No more than five ingredients per dish," he adds. That's a standard we've heard from other chefs this month as boxes of the fungal favorite began to arrive on the docks of Shanghai and Hong Kong.

"Tuber magnatum pico (white truffle) needs traditional tagliolini's simplicity," the menu announcement at Opera Bombana says of the pasta dish on its seasonal menu.

"Nature will be the protagonist of avant-garde cuisine," says Aniello Turco, the chef at Mio in Beijing's Four Seasons Hotel, who unveiled his own uber-aromatic white-truffle dishes at a tasting dinner last week.

How special are these fragrant fungi?

The record price for a single white truffle was set in 2007, when Macao casino owner Stanley Ho paid $330,000 for a specimen weighing 1.5 kilograms, discovered by Luciano Savini and his dog Rocco. One of the largest truffles found in decades, it was unearthed near Pisa, Italy, and sold at an auction held simultaneously in Macao, Hong Kong and Florence. In 2010, Ho again paid $330,000 at a truffle auction, this time for a pair of white truffles, including one weighing nearly a kilogram.

Here's a sampling from the truffle menus now on offer around China:

Filetto alla rossini

Blackmore Wagyu tenderloin and foie gras de canard (duck liver) with Madeira sauce is "luxury meets luxury", says the team at Opera Bombana in Beijing. It's part of an a la carte menu available at lunch and dinner; other dishes include Japanese egg confit with Parmigiano Reggiano cream, two delicate handmade pastas, and a chestnut ice cream with caramel sponge. Umberto Bombana, China's original high priest of white truffle, will leave his Hong Kong flagship for ceremonial dinners in satellite restaurants in the weeks aheadwith varying white-truffle menus at each location.

Opera Bombana in Beijing and Otto e Mezzo locations in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Macao.
The new waffle meals have less ice cream and more fresh fruits. [Photo by Jiang Wanjuan/chinadaily.com.cn]

It seems Beijing's cold weather has not cast a chill on Ice Monster's business. The famous Taiwanese brand known for its silky smooth shaved ice is still doing brisk business at its Sanlitun location even as the temperature dips.

For many, Ice Monster is associated with its legendary mango shaved ice, which is a must-eat when visiting Taiwan, and was named the top 10 desserts in the world by CNN. In fact, the ice shop has much more to offer, from fruit popsicles for those on the go, and freshly baked waffles for a quick meal.

Its recently introduced winter products are highlighted by a variety of hot drinks, including fresh fruit tea, black sugar ginger orange juice, and almond tea with pearl barley. Most of them are rich in texture and can make people feel full and warm.

The new waffle meals have less ice cream and more fresh fruits and little pleasant bites such as Oreo cookies to elevate the experience. There are also donuts, which will be served with Ice Monster's iconic caramel sauce.

You can create a "hot and cold" experience by combining the warming new items with its classic Fresh Mango Sensation, mountainous heaps of shaved ice topped with fresh mango, pudding and condensed milk. Caffeine lovers can go with the Coffee Sensation, which is "crazily good" according to its Chinese name. Find out yourself if it lives up to this claim.

You can also find Ice Monster in Beijing at Wangfujing APM and Grand Pacific Mall in Xidan area.
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The National Health and Family Planning Commission and the Ministry of Finance recently issued a document jointly promoting the inclusion of drugs whose prices have been negotiated nationally in the catalogue for the new rural cooperative medical insurance system.

The document instructs all local authorities to incorporate these medicines into the new rural cooperative medical insurance catalogue before the end of October.

On May 20, the National Health and Family Planning Commission issued the first batch of medicines with nationally negotiated prices, which were mainly expensive medicines needed to treat serious diseases, including hepatitis B and cancer. These medicines now cost half what they did before the national price negotiations.

It is an international practice for nations to negotiate the prices of medicines to target expensive patented medicines and those produced exclusively by some pharmaceutical companies. A government negotiates with pharmaceutical companies seeking a lower price for life-saving and other critical medicines so that a larger number of people can afford to buy them for medical treatment.

This is win-win for pharmaceutical companies, patients and governments, and it can help deepen healthcare reform, reduce patients' economic burden and expand the markets for pharmaceutical companies.

China's pilot negotiation program for medicine prices started in October 2015. But media reports say only 19 of the mainland's 31 provinces and regions have negotiated medicine prices with producers so far to include them in the local medical insurance system.
College students attend an intern opportunity fair held in June at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics in Nanjing, Jiangsu province. [Photo/China News Service]

One of the brightest points of China's recently released economic data for the first three quarters is that its employment situation is better than expected.

Such a heartening performance is inseparable from the importance the central government has attached to the employment issue, as indicated in Premier Li Keqiang's government work reports of the past three years and numerous meetings of the State Council, China's Cabinet.

That China has managed to create so many new jobs, despite the profound global economic adjustments and numerous difficult and uncertain factors facing the economy, testifies that there is enough elasticity in its economy despite its slower GDP growth. The better-than-expected employment situation is also proof that China's economic development is on a right road and on a sound footing.

In the past, every 1 percent of GDP growth could help create 1 million new jobs in China. However, with the optimization of the country's economic structure and the rise of the tertiary sector's share, that same GDP growth now means employment for 1.9 million people. This demonstrates that there is no contradiction between China's efforts to increase its employment rate and its efforts to promote a services-oriented structural adjustment.

That it is a dividend of the reforms promoted by the government in various fields also explains why the country has witnessed expanded employment at a time when its economy has slowed.

The series of sweeping reforms the top leaders have promoted, from the simplification of administrative procedures and delegating of central government powers to lower-level governments, to practical measures to encourage mass entrepreneurship and innovation, have injected a new vitality into business startups and job creation.

The expanded employment in the first three quarters proves that China's economic development is more effectively guaranteeing people's access to the fruits of its fast-growing economy.

--IFeng.com
Party General Secretary Xi Jinping (center), newly named the 'core' leader of the Communist Party of China, attends the Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the CPC in Beijing with six other members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the committee. LI XUEREN / XINHUA

The two sets of disciplinary rules and norms of conduct that the Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China introduced on Thursday for all Party members embody what top leader Xi Jinping and his fellow leaders have been doing to build a clean Party and government.

The rules and norms represent the leader-ship's conviction that the Party must strictly govern itself, because as the ruling party, it has the responsibility to lead more than 1.3 billion people to achieve the Chinese dream.

The two sets of rules and norms are part of the Party leadership's strategic design for the nation's long-term governance. They inherit the lessons learned during the Party's 95-year history and include innovations made by the current leadership.

While the innovative measures have focused on senior officials as the major supervision tar-get, the new rules and norms will act as a system of double security and facilitate institution-building for a cleaner Party.

The Party has a history of regulating its members' political life and strengthening intra-Party supervision. The new rules and norms, however, directly target the critical issues that act as a brake on efforts to realize the leader-ship's big picture for a cleaner and more disciplined Party.

The sixth plenary session officially conferred on Xi Jinping the highest honor of being the Party's "core" leader. As the Party's top leader, Xi has led the nation to break new ground in reform and development, domestic affairs and defense and foreign policies.

Bestowing on him this honor is significant, since it affirms the authority of the central leadership and strengthens the internal solidarity of the Party.

The strict adherence by Party members to the rules and norms will develop a clean political ecology and ensure the continued improvement of governance. By implementing the policy decisions of the leadership, the Party will secure the long-term prosperity of the nation.
Zhang Haidi becomes president of Rehabilitation International

Zhang Haidi, chairwoman of China Disabled Persons' Federation, became head of Rehabilitation International (RI), a leading global network for the rights and inclusion of the disabled, in Edinburgh on Thursday.

Zhang Haidi, chairwoman of Rehabilitation International (RI) speaks at her inauguration at the RI Congress in Edinburgh, Scotland, on Oct 27. Lin Wei Guang/For China Daily

A bestselling writer and translator, Zhang was elected RI's incoming president in 2014.

"Our responsibility is to help as many disabled people as possible with access to rehabilitation, thus to see the light, to hear the sound, to sit, to stand, to walk, to run, to equally integrate into society and live a happy life," Zhang said at the inauguration ceremony before the RI Congress on Thursday.

"It is indeed a tremendous honor for me to work for the RI in this role," she added.

Zhang Haidi, chairwoman of Rehabilitation International (RI) speaks at her inauguration at the RI Congress in Edinburgh, Scotland, on Oct 27. Lin Wei Guang/For China Daily

Zhang pledged to make more effort in her four-year tenure to eliminate prejudice and discrimination and promote an equal, sharing and inclusive environment worldwide for people with disabilities.

Born in 1955, Zhang Haidi became paralyzed at the age of five, but she educated herself to the university level before obtaining a master's degree in philosophy from Jilin University. She was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of York in 2013 and by the University of Massachusetts Boston in 2015.

A prolific writer, Zhang's published works include Beautiful English, Dreams in Wheelchair, The Topmost, Enduring as the Universe and collections of short essays.

Zhang is a member of the Standing Committee of the 11th and 12th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and is also head of the Chinese Paralympic delegation.
First lady Michelle Obama embraces U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton as they arrive at a campaign rally in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S. October 27, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

WINSTON SALEM, N.C.- US Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton made her first joint campaign appearance on Thursday with one of her most powerful supporters, first lady Michelle Obama, at a North Carolina rally to urge young people and women to vote.

Clinton, a former first lady who lost the 2008 Democratic nomination to then-U.S. Senator Barack Obama before becoming his secretary of state, praised Michelle Obama for standing up for the rights of girls and women worldwide, drawing a sharp contrast with Republican nominee Donald Trump.

"I wish I didn't have to say this. ... But indeed, dignity and respect for women and girls is also on the ballot in this election," Clinton told a crowd of about 11,000. "And I want to thank our first lady for her eloquent, powerful defense of that basic value."

Michelle Obama's stinging denunciation of Trump after a leaked 2005 video showed him making lewd remarks and bragging about groping women was seen by many as one of the campaign's most striking condemnations of the New York businessman.

Without naming Trump, Obama took him to task again in North Carolina, asking the crowd which candidate they wanted to represent their daughters from the White House.

"We want a president who takes this job seriously, and has the temperament and maturity to do it well. Someone who is steady. Someone who we can trust with the nuclear codes," Obama said.

"I would not be here lying to you: I believe with all of my heart that Hillary Clinton will be that president," she said.

Trump has fallen behind Clinton in opinion polls ahead of the Nov. 8 election amid a series of accusations from women that Trump groped them or kissed them without their consent. Trump has called the allegations "absolutely false."

The latest RealClearPolitics poll average shows Clinton with a nearly 6-point national lead over Trump, fueled by declining support for the former reality TV star among women.
File photo shows Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa is welcomed by spectators during a State visit at the Federal Square in Bern, Switzerland October 17, 2016.[Photo/Xinhua]

HAVANA - Visiting Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa met with Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, and expressed his condemnation for the ongoing US-led trade embargo against Cuba, local media reported on Thursday.

De Sousa met with Castro on Wednesday, just hours after the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly voted for the 25th year in a row to condemn the embargo.

Portugal's head of state hailed the results of the vote, "highlighting that his country condemns the globally rejected extraterritorial policy," state daily Granma reported.

The United States, which consistently voted against the UN resolution calling for Washington to put an end to the half-century embargo, for the first time abstained, with the final vote being 191 countries in favor, none against and two abstentions (including Israel).

A photo of their encounter showed a smiling and still bearded Castro, dressed in a blue track suit, engaged in conversation with De Sousa.Castro thanked De Sousa for his country's support of Cuba.

Castro, who retired in 2006 following a serious intestinal ailment, governed Cuba for 48 years, spearheading the development of cutting edge medicine and biotechnology, despite crippling sanctions imposed by the embargo.

De Sousa arrived in Cuba on Tuesday for an official three-day visit, accompanied by a business delegation, to boost economic and trade ties with Cuba.

It is the first time a Portuguese president visits Cuba.

He next travels to Colombia to participate in the 25th Ibero-American Summit in Cartagena de Indias, and later to Brazil, to attend the 11th Summit of the community of Portuguese-speaking countries.
Business representatives and scholars encouraged African women to start their own business and create more jobs for the continent.

Job creation and industries are the most important things to today's Africa, said Liu Qinghai, head of Center for African Economics Studies, Institute of African Studies of Zhejiang Normal University, during the Women in Tech Africa Summit in Yiwu, Zhejiang province, on Oct 27.

In addition to attracting foreign direct investment from other countries and regions, especially China, starting African people starting their own businesses is one of the most important ways for creating jobs in the continent, Liu said, adding that African women should contribute their own share.

Liu, also the managing editor of Annual Report on the Development of Africa, encouraged African women to improve their dynamic capabilities to fit a changing economic environment. "The world is changing rapidly, especially emerging economies such as African countries, so we must have the ability to respond to these changes very quickly," she added at the summit.

With their wisdom and hard work, African women have become more powerful in recent years. More are playing big roles in economy, technology and cultural development in Africa, and occupying senior positions in companies. African countries such as Botswana and Nigeria have seen more women taking up important roles in business, even though the number is relatively low compared with the Western countries, according to the 2016 Women in Business Survey by business advisers Grant Thornton.

Clas Neumann, head of Global SAP labs Network and Fast Growth Market Strategy Group, said at the summit that he believes African women will become the backbone in the prosperity and development of Africa, and African entrepreneurs will have huge business opportunities in the next 10 years, adding that SAP is willing to help with its R&D networks in the world.

The German management software provider is also paying more attention to women in its leadership. It plans to increase the number of female in its management to 25 percent by 2017.

The summit was co-organized by Women in Tech Africa, SAP and Center for African Economics Studies of Institute of African Studies of Zhejiang Normal University.

renjie@chinadaily.com.cn
TOKYO - One boy was killed and 11 others including eight other elementary school children were injured Friday when a pickup truck plowed into them following a collision on a road as the children were walking to their school in Yokohama, south of Tokyo.

According to the local fire department, the accident, which occurred at 8:10 am local time and killed a 6-year old boy, involved a pickup truck tipping over and hitting the children after a collision with two other vehicles.

Japan's public broadcaster NHK said that eight elementary school children were injured in the accident along with three others, some of whom were drivers or passengers of the vehicles in the crash.

Local police said they intend to arrest the 87-year-old driver of the truck, on suspicion of professional negligence resulting in death and injuries, local media said. The truck struck both a passenger car and a bus, before plowing into the group of children.

Nine elementary school pupils were immediately rushed to a local hospital, but the 6-year-old boy was pronounced dead on arrival, according to local rescue officials. Eleven others sustained injuries, they said.

The accident happened on a relatively busy, yet narrow street in a residential area in Yokohama close to the Kamiooka metro station and a small shopping district.
Chinese advocate for the rights of the disabled Zhang Haidi will take over the top leadership role at Rehabilitation International, a leading global network for the rights of disabled people and their full inclusion in society.

Zhang assumed the new role at the organization's annual meeting in Edinburgh, Scotland, on Thursday. She had been serving as chairwoman of the China Disabled Persons' Federation.

Under her leadership, Rehabilitation International will upgrade its global network, encourage more involvement from developing countries and make the best of rehabilitation expertise, particularly for disabled women and children, Zhang said in her inauguration speech.

"Our responsibility is to help as many disabled people as possible gain access to rehabilitation  to see the light, to hear the sound, to sit, to stand, to walk, to run, to equally integrate into society and live a happy life," she said.

Known as a writer and translator, Zhang was elected as the group's president in 2014, which put on track to take over this year.

Zhang, 61, pledged to make more efforts in her four-year tenure to eliminate prejudice and discrimination and to promote an equal, sharing and inclusive environment worldwide for people with disabilities.

"People congratulate not only me but also China for what it has achieved in recent years to help its disabled people," she told China Daily on the sidelines of Rehabilitation International's World Congress.

Zhang was paralyzed at the age of 5 but educated herself to university standards before earning a master's degree in philosophy at Jilin University. She was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of York in 2013 and another by the University of Massachusetts Boston in 2015.

A prolific writer, Zhang's published works include Beautiful English, Wheelchair Dream, and Unsinkable Boat.

There are about 85 million disabled people in China, less than a third of whom are registered. China had only about 7,000 rehabilitation centers as of 2015, with 232,000 employees.

"China has just entered an important stage with the presidency of a global organization dedicated to rehabilitation and people with disabilities," said outgoing RI President Jan Monsbakken. "I think it's about time for China to hold such a position."

An increasing number of Chinese are rising to key positions in world organizations, ranging from Margaret Chan's appointment as director-general of the World Health Organization to Yang Shaolin's more recent appointment as chief administrative officer of the World Bank Group.

Founded in 1922, the New York-headquartered Rehabilitation International network includes service providers, government agencies, academics and researchers. Its World Congress, staged every four years, will next convene in Denmark in 2020.
(Photo : Getty Images ) China has downplayed its ongoing military drills in the disputed South China Sea.

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China has downplayed its ongoing military drills in South China Sea amid the ongoing dispute among several countries claiming a stake over the island.



The Chinese defense ministry on Thursday described the "surprise" drills in the contested waters as routine "search and rescue" exercises.



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"The search and rescue exercises were being conducted off the coast of the island province of Hainan and were regular drills forming part of annual plans," a ministry spokesperson said.



Earlier, China's Maritime Safety Administration announced that the Chinese military would conduct a one-day drill off the coast of the Hainan province and northwest of the disputed Paracel Islands on Thursday.



The administration also did coordination for the routine exercise, ordering civilian vessels to refrain from entering the region.



Last week, a US-guided missile warship, the USS Decatur, had sailed into the contested waters near Paracel islands (known as Xisha islands in China).



Beijing criticized the US Navy for sailing a warship in the South China Sea and described the incident as "illegal" and "provocative."



"The act is clear evidence that the US is the real trouble-maker in the South China Sea, at a time when the overall situation in the region is embracing positive development," the Chinese defense ministry said.



China and Philippines have long been engaged in a bitter territorial dispute over the ownership of South China Sea, which is also known as West Philippines Sea.



In July, a United Nations supported international arbitration court had ruled in favor of the Philippines and rejected Beijing's historical ownership claims over the disputed territory.



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TagsSouth China Sea, South China Sea Dispute, military drills, China navy drills, Paracel Islands
(Photo : Getty Images) China has strongly reacted to an Indian campaign calling for a complete boycott of China made products in the country.



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China has strongly reacted to an Indian campaign calling for a complete boycott of China-made products in the country.



A New Delhi-based Chinese diplomat said on Thursday that boycotting Chinese goods in India will 'negatively' affect bilateral ties and Chinese investment in the largest South Asian nation.



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"China is more concerned that the boycott will negatively affect Chinese enterprises to invest in India and the bilateral cooperation, which both Chinese and Indian people are not willing to see," Chinese embassy spokesperson Xie Liyan said in a statement.



He also pointed out that China's exports to India accounted for just two percent of the country's total exports, therefore, the boycott of China-made products in India will not significantly reduce China's exports earning.



Liyan further stated that the Indian consumers and enterprises will be the most affected of the said move.



"In the long run, boycott will not only hurt Chinese goods sale, but also cause negative effects to consumers in India. Without proper substitutes, the biggest losers of the boycott of Chinese goods will be Indian traders and consumers," he added.



An Indian social media campaign to ban all Chinese products is slowly gaining popularity across the country.



Last week, renowned Indian Yoga guru Baba Ramdev alleged that China was making money out of India and helping country's arch rival Pakistan.



He also called for complete boycott of Chinese goods. The boycott campaign was started to protest China's support to Pakistan.



Beijing recently blocked New Delhi's bid to designate Pakistan-based terror group Jaish e Mohammed chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist at United Nations. Azhar is believed to be involved in recent Uri terror attack as well as Pathankot airbase attack.



This trade deficit with China is increasing every year. And the sad part is that China is using this money to help Pakistan (2/2)

 Swami Ramdev (@yogrishiramdev) October 19, 2016







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Tagschina, India, Swadeshi, chinese goods, boycott, Narendra Modi
(Photo : https://pixabay.com/en/industry-factory-industrial-plant-1140760/) The country reported 8.4 percent year over year increase in its industrial profit for the first nine months of the year.

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The steel and refining sector offered a fillip to Chinese economy as the country reported year-on-year increase of 8.4 percent in its industrial profit for the first nine months of the year.



According to the data released by the National Bureau of Statistics, China accumulated $685 billion in industrial profit from January to September this year.



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The data showed the steel sector leading the pack with 272.4 percent increase during the first nine months of the year, while oil refining earnings registered 263.8 percent increase.



Stabilized global commodity prices helped these sectors show stellar performance.



Bloomberg quoted Zhou Hao, an economist at Commerzbank AG in Singapore, as saying that China is trying to balance its need to curtail debt and churn out the profits at the same time.



However, the data disclosed that some concerns, as well as the electronics sector, showed a slowdown.



Meanwhile, He Ping, an NBS official said that despite the industrial profit being back on track, there are still some unfavorable characters to look into. He also pointed to weak domestic and international demand. Delayed payments are also adversely affecting the liquidity of the firms.



Increase in debt level is still a big cause of worry. These levels have been found particularly high in steel and coal sectors.



The government is currently implementing policy measures for reducing excess capacity in these sectors. China's debt is currently deemed to be at 250 percent of the GDP. Various national and international financial institutions have issued warnings about the debt level. However, these seem to be under control after various steps have been taken by the Chinese government.



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TagsNational Bureau of Statistics, china, Gross domestic product
(Photo : https://pixabay.com/en/money-rmb-renbinbi-yuan-bank-note-742052/) The country is now looking to make its overseeing regulations more stringent.

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China is boosting its efforts to control rampant credit expansion and strengthen wealth management in its economy.



The country is now looking to make its overseeing regulations more stringent. A new regulation involves banks, including their high yield wealth management into their overall credit. This will help the central bank in keeping an eye on all the products which may be used for the purpose of extending credit.



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According to The Wall Street Journal, a notice dated Oct. 20 revealed the latest policy act undertaken by the authorities. However, the central bank authorities refused to issue any comment on the report.



Recently, the government has undertaken various steps to control credit expansion. The growing debt level in China is being seen as a threat to the domestic as well as global economy.



The main challenge for China is to contain debt levels, without adversely affecting the growth of economy. A senior government advisor said the central bank is looking to scrutinize off balance sheet activities carried out by the banks, while maintaining "overall accommodative monetary stance."



The total amount of outstanding off balance sheet wealth management products is believed to be nearly $3 trillion, as of end of June. The new regulation will require the banks to allocate a portion of this $3 trillion to the same regulatory requirements which are applicable to other assets mentioned in its balance sheet.



Despite a large number of steps undertaken by the government, the debt level still remains a cause of concern. Total debt in China is believed to be well over 200 percent of its Gross Domestic Product, up from 125 percent it had at the end of 2008.



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TagsWealth Management Produts, Gross domestic product, china
(Photo : World Robot Conference ) Ji Jia, the world's loveliest robot

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China is now the world's top maker of industrial robots, accounting for 60 percent of the global market.



China's shipments of robots of all kinds exceeded 68,000 sets in 2015, accounting for 26.7 percent of the global market. Chinese service robotics are also making their mark. China's service robotics lead the world in firefighting, disaster relief, healthcare and catering.



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Some 75 percent of robot shipments over the past five years were from China, the Republic of Korea, Japan, the United States and Germany, said the International Federation of Robotics (IFR). The average growth of China's robot market over the period stood at 17 percent annually.



With its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, IFR is a professional non-profit organization established in 1987 to promote, strengthen and protect the robotics industry worldwide.



"Not only the increasing market size, but I am also optimistic about the manufacturing and development of China's industrial robotics," said Wang Yu, a professor of engineering at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.



Wang said after just one year, one-third of all industrial robots used in China were manufactured domestically, and the percentage is still rising.



As for service robots, an estimated 94,800 professional service robots will be installed from 2013 to 2018, with total sales of $17.1 billion, said IFR. Medical and military robots accounted for 55 percent of the total sales.



Remebot, China's first neurosurgery robot, was a hit at the recent World Robot Conference in Beijing that also featured some of the most human-looking robots yet made. Its designers said Remebot was accurate to just one millimeter. They noted this robot will allow brain surgeries to be completed in as little as 30 minutes compared to the hours this difficult procedure takes today.



One of the androids at the conference, Jia Jia, is among the most lifelike and most beautiful robots yet made. She also talks.



"Please do not stand too close or my pretty face will be too big in your photos," says Jia Jia.



Apart from speaking Chinese, Jia Jia can also recognize faces, identify the gender and age of people and detect facial expressions.



Service robots are normally used in coal mining, power generation and oil exploitation, but can also accomplish much in anti-terrorism, criminal investigation and explosives handling.



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Tagsindustrial robots, service robots, china, International Federation of Robotics, Jia Jia
(Photo : PLAAF) Chengdu J-20 in war paint.

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China is expected to showcase its best and its latest in military aerospace technology at the 11th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition, the largest arms exhibition in China.



To be again held at Zhuhai, Guangdong province, the biennial Zhuhai Air Show will last from Nov. 1 to 6 and is being managed by the Zhuhai Airshow Company.



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China is expected to feature some of the best equipment that the People's Liberation Army and state-owned defense giants have to offer the world.



Products on show at the biennial event will include the latest products and techologies in the space, aviation, electronics and land armament industries. Fighter jets, transport planes, drones, missiles, tanks and artillery guns will be on display.



Ahead of the show's opening, large numbers of aircraft from the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) have been flown to Zhuhai.



The star of the show will likely be the huge Chengdu J-20 multirole stealth fighter, China's first fifth-generation fighter to enter series production. Military enthusiasts are also looking forward to seeing the J-20 up close and personal.



The J-20, is expected to enter service with the PLAAF by 2025. Only some 10 of these fighters have been produced so far and none is combat ready.



Online videos show two J-20s completing aerobatic maneuvers in preparation for an aerial display at the event.



Also be seen at the show will be the Xian Y-20 strategic transport plane; the Shaanxi KJ-500 airborne early warning and control aircraft; the Guizhou FTC-2000 advanced trainer jet and the Harbin Z-19E attack helicopter.



All were developed and manufactured by China's leading aircraft producer, Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), and are in service with the PLAAF.



The Y-20, China's first domestically developed heavy-lift transport jet, was commissioned in July. It has a maximum payload of 66 metric tons and a maximum takeoff weight of more than 200 tons. AVIC will export the aircraft once it receives government approval.



The KJ-500 is the latest in the PLA's support aircraft fleet. Its cutting-edge fixed phased-array radar and two passive electronic intelligence arrays are capable of tracking up to 100 targets simultaneously at a distance of 470 kilometers.



The China Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics, one of the nation's largest military drone developers, will showcase the latest model in its Cai Hong series of reconnaissance and combat drones at the air show.



These drones have been sold to militaries in more than 10 countries, mostly in the Middle East and Africa, and can compete with any other drones of their kind, according to publicity officers.



Also on display will be the newest missiles from China's largest missile manufacturer, China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation. Certain to be a show stopper will be the first public appearance of the CM-302, the export version of the YJ-12 supersonic anti-ship missile, which is also capable of attacking ground targets.



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TagsZhuhai Air Show, 11th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition, People's Liberation Army, People's Liberation Army Air Force, Chengdu J-20, Xian Y-20 strategic transport plane
(Photo : Getty Images) A security expert claimed that cybercriminals using the ransomware tactic have amassed a collective bounty of about $1 billion in 2016.

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Anonymity on the internet is next to impossible and a team of researchers from Stanford and Princeton have conducted a study to prove it.



Over the summer, the team launched what they called the "Footprints Project," which invited individuals to participate in an online experiment that allowed researchers to access their anonymous web browsing history, including information about active Twitter usage.



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Based on that information alone, Footprints successfully identified 11 out of 13 people who visited the site on its first day of operation.



This project is part of a growing body of research that brings heightened alarm to privacy vulnerabilities on the web. The Footprints researchers know online privacy risks aren't new, but their latest research is "another nail in the coffin" to the idea the average person with the average web browser can be private online



"I think the first thing I messaged was: 'This is kind of scary,'" said Stanford undergraduate Ansh Shukla, a senior studying mathematics, who is working on the project with Stanford Engineering assistant professor Sharad Goel and Stanford computer science PhD student Jessica Su.



Researchers ended the Footprints experiment in October. By then almost 300 users had visited the site, and the system had accurately identified 80 percent of them.



How did it work? Users voluntarily participated in Footprints. That gave the researchers permission to gather the names of any websites that a participant clicked on through Twitter while using Google Chrome.



This unique set of links is a fingerprint. To find that user, researchers crawled through millions of Twitter profiles to see who everyone is following.



So imagine that Jane Doe, John Smith and Susie Q all participated anonymously, and that each of these three volunteers follow 100 Twitter accounts.



All three might follow the official Stanford Engineering Twitter account. But Jane and John also follow the New York Times' Twitter account for their news, while Susie instead follows the Los Angeles Times as her newspaper of choice.



Researchers can then deduce that the person who visited links tweeted from Stanford Engineering and the New York Times is more likely to be Jane or John, not Susie.



"Although we happen to use Twitter, it's not like Twitter is uniquely vulnerable," said Shukla. "It doesn't take a lot of recorded characteristics to have people become unique."



For most websites we visit, we often implicitly consent to be tracked through a terms of service or "cookie" (a small file of identifying information left on a computer when you browse online) policy.



Footprints researcher Arvind Narayanan, an assistant professor of computer science at Princeton, previously published a paper that demonstrated how data anonymization is broken on the web. The work became well known outside of academia because Narayanan cross-referenced Netflix user data with Internet Movie Database (IMDb) users to uniquely identify individuals.



"You should kind of go into the internet assuming that everything you go to someone might learn about someday," said Shukla.



While many advertisers and internet companies might not initially know your name, they likely have most of your anonymous browsing history -- even if you regularly clear your cookies.



Shukla hopes that as people realize how easy it is to track their digital footprints, this will lead to a change of policy, such as collecting far less data.



He also envisions new technologies to empower consumers that are more powerful than the "do not track" setting on browsers -- an injunction often ignored by websites.



"Security theater," noted Shukla.



Goel notes that most people don't even realize they are leaving behind digital footprints.



"We conceived this as a consciousness-raising project," he said, adding that he and his team plan to write a journal article about the Footprints experiment.



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TagsAnonymity, Internet, stanford, Princeton, Footprints Project, Online privacy, Cookies
(Photo : Getty Images) Filipino fishermen have gained access to the Chinese-controlled Scarborough Shoal after President Duterte's four-day visit to China last week.

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Filipino fishermen have reported that they were able to fish in the resource-rich Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea on Wednesday without any harassment from the Chinese Coast Guard. This has raised speculations that China finally may have given the fishermen access to the shoal following Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's recent visit to Beijing.



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"We received a radio message that some of our fellow fishermen were able to approach the shoal. The Chinese Coast Guard did not intercept their boats," boat captain Aniceto Achina said on Wednesday.



Achina said some eight groups of fishermen in the shoal have radioed him for more supplies saying the Chinese Coast Guard did not drive them away from the area.



Standoff



Fishermen from nearby coastal towns have also started fishing in the shoal. They said a Chinese patrol ship sailed by but did not shoo them away when they entered the waters near the shoal.



China seized control of the Scarborough Shoal after a two-month standoff with the Philippine Coast Guard in 2012.



Since then, the Chinese Coast Guard has reportedly blocked the shoal and prevented Filipino fishermen from fishing in the area, depriving them of their only source of livelihood for the past four years.



China visit



During his recent four-day visit to China, President Duterte said that he would not raise the South China Sea dispute with Chinese President Xi Jinping, but will instead negotiate for the rights of Filipino fishermen to the Scarborough Shoal.



Duterte told the media on Sunday that the Filipino fishermen might be able to return to the shoal if Chinese leaders stay true to their word.



The Philippine delegation to China with Duterte had revealed that they rejected a proposal from Chinese leaders that said China "would allow" and "permit" Filipino fishermen to access the shoal.



Common fishing ground



The "language," the delegation said, runs contrary to the the recent Hague-based arbitration court ruling that said the Scarborough Shoal (Panatag Shoal in Philippines) belongs to no one country and is a common fishing ground for Chinese, Philippine, and Vietnamese fishermen.



The court ruled in July that China has no legal basis for its territorial claims in the South China Sea and that Beijing's actions had violated the Philippines' rights to explore resources within its exclusive economic zone.



China rejected the ruling dismissing it as "illegal" and "null and void."



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TagsSouth China Sea, Scarborough Shoal, Chinese Coast Guard, Filipino fishermen, standoff, china, Philippines
What Duterte thinks of Obama.

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It seems the Philippines' unbalanced president has finally lost it.



Rodrigo Duterte claims God, or whatever being it is he calls "God," appeared to him in a vision when he was on an airliner packed with his entourage and other passengers returning to his home city of Davao on Mindanao island after his visit to Japan.



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Duterte said "God" threatened to destroy this plane if the coarse and crude ex-mayor didn't stop swearing at other people.



As Duterte narrated later, he was looking at the sky when heard a voice in his head saying, "'If you don't stop swearing, I will destroy this plane right now!"



"And I said, 'Who is this?'



"So, of course, 'It's God,'" said Duterte.



"So, I promised God to ... I wouldn't swear, curse and everything. So you guys hear me right always because (a) promise to God is a promise to the Filipino people."



His audience applauded, as they usually do, since it hard not to clap at a president who loves to make a fool of himself. Then swear at his imagined enemies.



But, Duterte being Duterte, he had to add a caveat.



"Don't clap too much or else this may get derailed."



Whether he "talked" to "God" or not doesn't deflect from the revelation that people who hear voices (unless they're canonized Catholic saints) belong in a padded room with others who have shared this "holy" experience.



What's surprising about Duterte claiming God talked to him in a vision is because Duterte -- a Roman Catholic in name only -- is an atheist or an agnostic, depending on his mood.



Duterte has publicly admitted he believes in God but not in religion. That should make him a theist, but again, he's never admitted his God is the Christian God or a god like the "anitos" or deities worshipped by tribal, non-Christian Filipinos.



He's said he rarely goes to Mass and most certainly doesn't go to confession, where he'd have to tell a Catholic priest how many people he's murdered to receive an absolution, if this is at all possible given the gravity of his multiple sins of murder.



A priest would probably tell him to voluntarily surrender to the police as part of his penance. Now that's impossible given the police are murdering people because Duterte promised cops immunity from prosecution if they killed people, allegedly in the line of duty.



And to those who think the barbarian in Duterte has been banished by this epiphany, think again.



"There is always a time. A time to be foul-mouthed. I don't like anybody reading my mind. It's all calibrated, it's always timing. Watch out for one thing, that's what I've learned, miscalculation," he said.



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TagsRodrigo Duterte, god, Philippines, Murder
(Photo : Getty Images) The Dalai Lama is set to make a visit to India's Arunachal Pradesh region next year.

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China warned India on Friday that the Dalai Lama's proposed visit to the disputed region of Arunachal Pradesh will affect the bilateral ties between both nations.



"The invitation to the Dalai Lama for activity in the disputed areas between China and India will only damage peace and stability of the border areas as well as the bilateral relationship between China and India," said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang.



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The Dalai Lama has been invited to visit Arunachal Pradesh in March next year by Chief Minister Pema Khandu, whose coalition government shares power with nationalist BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party).



Earlier this week, China expressed anger over American Ambassador Richard Verma's trip to the disputed state. Beijing said that the visit clearly signified U.S. interference in internal matters between India and China, adding that it is unacceptable.



Arunachal Pradesh is one of the areas of contention between India and China. China claims that nearly 90,000 sq km (35,000 sq miles), which is under India's control, is part of South Tibet. However, New Delhi has refused to accept China's claim, describing Arunachal Pradesh state as an integral part of India.



As for Dalai Lama, China labels him a "separatist leader," who is seeking to separate Tibet from Mainland China. The controversial figure, who is revered a spiritual leader, fled China in 1959 following a failed uprising. Since then the famous Buddhist monk has been living in exile in India's northern state of Himachal Pradesh.



India's decision to offer asylum to the Dalai Lama in the 1960s was largely perceived as an anti-Chinese move.



India and China have shared a love-hate relationship for several decades. Their mutual trust and bonhomie came to an abrupt end in 1962, when they fought a week-long war to settle a border dispute.



Following the war, China's decision to strengthen ties with India's arch-rival, Pakistan, has further complicated their bilateral relationship.



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Tagschina, Dalai Lama, Dalai Lama's Visit to Arunachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, China and India
(Photo : NOAA) The Ross Sea in Antarctica.

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Russia and China conspired and voted against it for five years but at last the Ross Sea Region (Marine Protected Area) off the west coast of Antarctica became the world's largest protected marine area on Oct. 27.



Home to 10 mammal species; six bird species and 95 fish species, as well as many invertebrates, the Ross Sea remains relatively unaffected by human activities. The park is home to more than 10,000 unique species, including penguins, whales, seals, krill and giant squid.



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The park will come under protection on Dec. 1, 2017. This is the first time a marine park has been created in international waters.



According to the United Nations, 50 percent of ecotype-C killer whales (the smallest of the four types of Southern Hemisphere orcas); 40 percent of Adelie penguins and 25 percent of emperor penguins live in the new park that has an area of 1.6 million square kilometers.



New statutes will ban fishing in 1.1 million square kilometers of the Ross Sea. The remaining territory will be used as a research area with only a small amount of fishing allowed for scientific purposes.



Commercial fishing will still be allowed in the Ross Sea outside of the reserve's boundaries, and farther from critical breeding and feeding areas.



Twenty-four nations and the European Union agreed unanimously to declare the Ross Sea in Antarctica an official Marine Protected Area after negotiations brokered by the UN's Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR).



"The Ross Sea Region (Marine Protected Area) will safeguard one of the last unspoiled ocean wilderness areas on the planet -- home to unparalleled marine biodiversity and thriving communities of penguins, seals, whales, seabirds, and fish," said U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.



The decision to establish the marine protected area ends five years of failed negotiations (mainly caused by China and Russia) among the 25 members of the CCAMLR.



In 2005, CCAMLR commissioned scientific analysis and planning for Marine Protected Areas in the Antarctic.



In July 2013, Russia voted against the proposal to turn the Ross Sea into an MPA, claiming the CCAMLR had no authority to do so. In 2014, Russia -- this time with ally, China -- again blocked the Ross Sea MPA. Russia and China again blocked the proposal in 2015.



It's because of Russia's and China's illogical obfuscation that the MPA will expire in only 35 years. Russia and China only agreed to the MPA in return for the 35 year limit, after which they will be free to fish and hunt in the Ross Sea.



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TagsRoss Sea, Ross Sea Region (Marine Protected Area), United Nations, European Union, Russia, china
CyberHunta.

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A shadowy group claiming to be Ukrainian hackers said they penetrated the computer system of one of Russian president Vladimir Putin's top aides and made off with over one gigabyte of sometimes embarrassing emails detailing some of Russia's secrets in its war on Ukraine.



The group calling itself CyberHunta hacked into the account of an assistant to presidential aide Vladislav Surkov and uploaded over 2,000 emails this week.



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CyberHunta said it had broken into the email account of Surkov, Putin's chief adviser on Ukraine and had published two documents online. One of these documents is about Surkov's plans for destabilizing Ukraine over the next three months and a second on forming a Trans-Carpathian "republic."



The first document is 15 pages long and lists a series of steps Russia should take between November 2016 and March 2017 to destabilize Ukraine and provoke new parliamentary and presidential elections.



Among the steps listed are talks with Ukrainian opposition parties to organize protests in the form of a "Customs Maidan" in the second half of November.



Some western analysts claim CyberHunta might be a CIA proxy and that this episode might mark the beginning of "proxy cyberwars" between the U.S. and Russia. Russia has been conducting a proxy cyberwar against the U.S. for decades, giving it the excuse to deny any direct involvement in any hacking incident.



A Russian politician of Chechen descent, Surkov is widely considered as the main ideologist of the Kremlin. It was Surkov who proposed and implemented the concept of sovereign democracy in Russia in 2006.



According to Surkov, sovereign democracy is "a society's political life where the political powers, their authorities and decisions are decided and controlled by a diverse Russian nation for the purpose of reaching material welfare, freedom and fairness by all citizens, social groups and nationalities, by the people that formed it."



Political analysts see sovereign democracy as the modern resurrection of communism in that it gives absolute state power to the dominant political party, in this case Putin's United Russia party.



From December 2011 until May 2013 Surkov served as the Russian Federation's Deputy Prime Minister. After his resignation, Surkov returned to the Presidential Executive Office and became a personal adviser of Putin on relationships with Ukraine, Abkhasia and South Ossetia.



Surkov's hacked emails include a June 2014 list of casualties from the separatist Donetsk People's Republic in eastern Ukraine. Another email that same month listed expenses to set up its Ministry of Information.



The leaked emails are embarrassing because Putin has consistently denied any connection to the separatists, whether militarily or financially.



Russian-backed rebels in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions proclaimed their independence from Ukraine two years ago and have sought to join Russia. They've established their own "states" with Putin's backing.



The Kremlin dismissed the emails as fake, saying (incredibly) that Surkov doesn't email. Ukraine's National Security Service, however, confirmed the emails are genuine.



The hacks by CyberHunta followed a threat made by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden that the U.S. will be "sending a message" that Putin will recognize.



"He'll know it," said Biden.



"And it will be at the time of our choosing. And under the circumstances that have the greatest impact."



U.S. intelligence agencies are planning for unprecedented cyber covert actions against Russia.



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TagsCyberHunta, Ukraine, hachers, Cyber Attack, Vladislav Surkov, Vladimir Putin, sovereign democracy
(Photo : CCTV) The ski jump bow of the Shandong is clearly visible in this photo.

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Construction of the hull of China's second aircraft carrier, the Shandong (Type 002), is complete, said the Ministry of National Defense.



Completion of the hull is another major milestone in China's attempt to produce its first indigenous aircraft carrier and comes a month after the carrier's island was installed on the flight deck. The ministry said assembly and design work on the Shandong was also finished.



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Workers are now installing equipment inside the carrier that also features a ski-jump aircraft launch system like its sister ship, the Liaoning.



Shandong will become the most powerful warship in the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) because of its offensive airpower; the most sophisticated radar system in the fleet and laser weapons later on.



Shandong is set for commissioning in 2020 after which is will become the flagship of the North Sea Fleet and the East Sea Fleet of the PLAN.



Analysts believe the Shandong will displace between 60,000 to 70,000 tons. Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Company in Liaoning began building the carrier in 2015.



Shandong will probably carry 48 aircraft, a number larger than that of the Liaoning, China's only aircraft carrier that can take 36 aircraft. It will house up to 32 J-15 jets, a huge boost to its offensive firepower, with the other aircraft complement remaining more or less the same.



Liaoning can embark 36 aircraft: 24 Shenyang J-15 fighters; 6 Changhe Z-18F anti-submarine warfare helicopters; 4 Changhe Z-18J airborne early warning helicopters and 2 Harbin Z-9C rescue helicopters.



Cao Weidong, a researcher at the People's Liberation Army Navy Naval Military Studies Research Institute, said China's first indigenous aircraft carrier will probably have an Active Phased Array Radar (APAR) system that can simultaneously track hundreds of aerial and sea surface targets while guiding missiles to these targets.



Cao also confirmed the Shandong will embark some 50 aircraft of various types. More tellingly, the new carrier might be armed with solid state lasers to shoot down drones. The Naval Military Studies Research Institute is the think tank of PLAN.



He said the Shandong's radar system is far better than the Liaoning's. APAR is expected to enhance the Shandong's combat capability because of its longer detection range and better target acquisition.



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Andy Stanley & John Piper debate: If the Bible says it, does that really settle it? Guest Reviewer | 28 October, 2016 by Michael Foust

ATLANTA (Christian Examiner)  A controversial sermon by author and Georgia pastor Andy Stanley has led him to clarify and explain some of its most-debated points, and it also has sparked several other well-known ministers to speak out, including author John Piper.

Stanley preached the sermon, titled "The Bible Told Me So," in August -- and almost immediately received pushback. During it, he expressed concern over using the Bible alone to support the validity of the Christianity faith. He also said he prefers not to use phrases such as the "Bible tells me so" or "if the Bible says it, that settles it."

"Christianity does not hang by the thread of 'the Bible tells me so,'" he said.

Stanley argued that young people taught such a mentality will go off to college, be exposed to scientific arguments against the historicity and traditional teachings of Scripture, and then abandon their faith. Christians, he said, should move past a "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so" approach.

"There is an adult version" of Christianity "that is far less fragile," said Stanley, pastor of North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Ga.

"Christianity does not exist because of the Bible ... any more than you exist because of your birth certificate," he said.

At one point during the sermon, Stanley seemed to doubt the validity of some of the miracles in the Old Testament, but in an Oct. 25 article in Outreach Magazine, Stanley said he had gotten sloppy with his words. He does, he added in the article, believe in the inerrancy of Scripture.

"During [the sermon], I wanted educated, dechurched millennials to know that I knew that those who supposedly know everything are convinced there was no worldwide flood or Hebrew migration from Egypt," Stanley wrote. "While addressing them directly, I gave them the benefit of the doubt to make the following point: Even if those events never occurred, it does nothing to undermine the evidence supporting the resurrection of Jesus and thus the claims he made about himself. And yes ... I know Jesus made claims about the Jewish Scriptures. But this was one sermon in a series of six ... I hadn't gotten to that yet."

Stanley said he believes the Bible "is without error in everything it affirms" and acknowledged that his preaching method "is not traditional." His, goal, he said, is to reach a society that is increasingly skeptical of Christianity  or that has rejected the faith outright.

"Close to half our population does not view the Bible as authoritative, either. If you're trying to reach people with an undergraduate degree or greater, over half your target audience will not be moved by the Bible says, the Bible teaches, God's Word is clear or anything along those line," Stanley wrote.

He explained that about eight years ago he adjusted his preaching to "compensate for an increasingly post-Christian audience."

"As part of my shift," Stanley wrote, "I stopped leveraging the authority of Scripture and began leveraging the authority and stories of the people behind the Scripture. To be clear, I don't believe 'the Bible says,' 'Scripture teaches,' and 'the Word of God commands' are incorrect approaches. But they are ineffective approaches for post-Christian people. I don't regret teaching my children that the Bible is God's Word. But my grown-up kids understand their confidence in the Bible is rooted in their confidence in who Jesus is based on the testimonies of Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Peter, James and the apostle Paul.

"Shifting the conversation away from the authority of Scripture to the authority, courage and faithfulness of the men and women behind our Scriptures has not only enabled me to better connect with post-Christians, it's done wonders for the faith of the faithful," Stanley added. "The stories of the men and women behind the Scriptures are rich, inspiring and, unfortunately, not as well-known as you might think. ... While it's true we would not know these events occurred had they not been documented, two other things are equally true.

"First, they were documented years before there was a Bible (i.e., New Testament bound together with the Jewish Scriptures). Second, it is the events, not the record of the events, that birthed the 'church.' The Bible did not create Christianity. Christianity is the reason the Bible was created. The reason many Christians struggle with statements like these is they grew up on 'The Bible says' preaching. And that's fine as long as one first believes the Bible is inspired."

Stanley's explanation in Outreach was lengthy at more than 7,000 words, and Piper's article also was long, at 5,000-plus words. Piper is founder of Desiring God and former pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minn.

Piper said he had communicated personally with Stanley but added he remains concerned with the direction of his arguments.

"In view of what Jesus and the New Testament writers say about the complete trustworthiness of the Old Testament ('Scripture cannot be broken,' John 10:35), I doubt that generation after generation of teenagers could read that and yet believe at the same time that it does not matter for my faith whether the events of the Old Testament really happened," Piper wrote. "... I am not saying that a person can't be saved without believing in the inerrancy of the Bible. I am saying that making that possibility an apologetic strategy for making Christianity more plausible to one generation will backfire in the next."

Over time, Piper warned, Stanley's approach to Scripture could have an unintended consequence within his audience.

"The evidence for the trustworthiness of the witnesses of the resurrection is too interwoven with the evidence for the inerrancy of the whole Bible," Piper wrote. "I think Stanley is mistaken to think that in the coming generations the edifice of evidence for the gospel can remain standing while surrounding buildings of evidence for the Scriptures collapse."

Piper concluded by urging his audience to join Stanley in caring deeply about winning "post-Christians" to faith in Jesus.

"[J]oin him in moving beyond simplistic and naive-sounding shibboleths; join him in cultural awareness and insight into your audience; join him in the excellence of his teaching and communication skills; and join him in his belief in the complete truthfulness of the Bible," Piper wrote. "And then spend eight years blowing your people's post-Christian circuits by connecting the voltage of every line in the book of Romans with their brains. When it comes to preaching, nothing is more powerful and self-authenticating than the Spirit-anointed, passionate, expository exultation over the inspired text of Scripture. If you don't believe that, perhaps you have never seen such preaching."
Evangelicals deeply divided on Halloween, poll says Guest Reviewer | 27 October, 2015 by Michael Foust

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Christian Examiner)  Evangelical and weekly churchgoers are deeply divided on celebrating Halloween, although at least 50 percent of each group either say they avoid it completely or simply ignore its "pagan elements," according to a LifeWay Research survey.

The 2015 poll asked 1,000 U.S. adults: "When you consider the pagan origins of Halloween, which is closer to your attitude?"

Even handing out candy to neighborhood childrenprovided you're not stingycan improve your reputation among the kids.

Among all Americans, 59 percent said "it's all in good fun," 21 percent try "to avoid it completely," and 14 percent try to celebrate Halloween but stay away from "its pagan elements."

But evangelicals and weekly churchgoers gave very different responses:

? 45 percent of evangelicals said, "it's all in good fun," while 28 percent said they try and avoid it completely, and 23 percent ignore the pagan elements.

? 44 percent of weekly churchgoers said, "it's all in good fun." Thirty percent avoid it completely and 20 percent simply try to stay away from the pagan elements.

Christian leaders and bloggers have landed on various sides of the Halloween debate in recent years.

Focus on the Family President Jim Daly penned an open letter about the subject two years ago, saying he and his wife in the past chose "to allow our sons to engage in the innocent and harmless side of Halloween"  such as letting them dress up in "positive-themed costumes (Captain America, for example)" and go trick-or-treating.

But Daly draws the line at evil-looking costumes.

"Christian or not, it is high time to turn away from the dark, gory and horror-filled side of the holiday," he said.

"[T]he confluence of culture and recent current events raises this matter to a new level," Daly wrote, referencing mass shootings. "There is absolutely nothing entertaining or redeeming about hatchet wielding villains parading in costume or front-lawn displays featuring blood spattered body parts."

Author and apologist Hank Hanegraaff, writing in "The Complete Bible Answer Book," said to understand the debate, it is important to grasp Halloween's history.

"Halloween is indeed rooted in the ancient Celtic feast of Samhain (sah-ween)," he wrote. "The Druids believed that on the eve of Samhain the veil between the present world and the world beyond was pierced, releasing demons, witches, and hobgoblins en masse to harass the living. In order to make themselves immune from attack, people disguised themselves as witches, devils, and ghouls; attempted to ward off evil spirits by carving grotesque faces on gourds illuminated with candles; and placated the spirits with a variety of treats."

Early Christians, Hanegraaff wrote, can teach modern-day Christians a lesson.

"We can learn a lot from how the early Christians responded to Halloween. October 31, the eve prior to All Saints Day was designated as a spiritually edifying holiday (holy day) on which to proclaim the supremacy of the Gospel over the superstition of ghosts. Thus, 'all Hallows Eve,' from which the word Halloween is derived, was an attempt on the part of Christianity to overwhelm the tradition of ghouls with the truth of the gospel," he writes.

Hanegraaff concluded: "[A]lthough Halloween is once again predominately pagan there is a silver lining. Like our forefathers, we can choose to celebrate 'all Hallows Eve' by focusing on heroes of the faiththose who, like Martin Luther, were willing to stand for truth no matter what the cost. We might also use the occasion to introduce our children to such great classics as Pilgrim's Progress. In the end, the trick is to treat Halloween as a strategic opportunity rather than a time of satanic oppression."

John MacArthur's Grace To You website (GTY.org) said Christians should not celebrate Halloween as do "superstitious pagans," but consider using it to "engage the unbelieving world with the gospel of Jesus Christ."

Grace To You listed several ways this can be done by families and churches:

Not participating and explaining to friends and neighbors your stance; Holding Harvest Festivals or Reformation Festivals and inviting the neighborhood; or Participating in a limited form of trick-or-treating.

"There's nothing inherently evil about candy, costumes, or trick-or-treating in the neighborhood," the website said. "In fact, all of that can provide a unique Gospel opportunity with neighbors. Even handing out candy to neighborhood childrenprovided you're not stingycan improve your reputation among the kids. As long as the costumes are innocent and the behavior does not dishonor Christ, trick-or-treating can be used to further Gospel interests. Ultimately, Christian participation in Halloween is a matter of conscience before God.

"Whatever level of Halloween participation you choose, you must honor God by keeping yourself separate from the world and by showing mercy to those who are perishing. Halloween provides the Christian with the opportunity to accomplish both of those things in the Gospel of Jesus Christ."

Updated from original 2015 post.
'Hacksaw Ridge' hero 'wanted God to get all the glory' Guest Reviewer | 28 October, 2016 by Michael Foust

LOS ANGELES (Christian Examiner)  The story of World War II hero Desmond Doss would be nearly unbelievable  if there weren't so many eyewitnesses.

After enlisting as a combat medic and refusing to carry a gun in battle because of his strict Seventh-day Adventist beliefs, Doss found himself in 1945 in one of the war's bloodiest battles: Okinawa in the Pacific theater.

But instead of grabbing a rifle and trying to save himself, Doss put his life on the line and dodged machine gun fire to save 75 wounded soldiers, carrying them one by one out of harm's way. And he survived.

For that and other heroics he received the Medal of Honor, the highest military honor, becoming the first conscientious objector to be recognized with the medal.

His story was the subject of a book (The Unlikeliest Hero) and a documentary (The Conscientious Objector), and on Nov. 3 will be the subject of a movie when Hacksaw Ridge, based on his life, will be released in theaters. It was directed by Mel Gibson, who also directed The Passion of The Christ and Braveheart. Andrew Garfield (The Amazing Spider-Man) plays Doss.

Terry Benedict, a producer of Hacksaw Ridge, told the Christian Examiner that believers everywhere can learn a lot from Doss's story  in the way he refused to compromise his beliefs and in the way he served others. Benedict knew Doss, who died in 2006.

Doss voluntarily enlisted in the war but refused to carry a gun, even though it was required. He thought killing was wrong, although he supported the war's goals.

"He was a man who had a set of beliefs, was convicted of those beliefs, and stood up for those beliefs even though he was being harassed," Benedict told CE. "He also served others and had compassion for others. Desmond very much lived that way, even after the war. He didn't want to be glamorized. He wanted God to get all the glory and the honor, and that is what I promised him would happen with the documentary and the movie."

The Christian Examiner spoke with Benedicts about Doss and the film. Following is a transcript, edited for clarity.

Christian Examiner: Why did Desmond voluntarily enlist if he had these views?

Terry Benedict: As we've heard through history, that was the good war, the justified war. Desmond had a legitimate deferment as a welder at the Navy shipyard of Virginia Beach, but he really felt his calling and giftedness was to be a combat medic. He was very passionate about that, and he wanted to help his fellow brothers in a way that he felt he could best serve them. He wanted to be a combat medic. That was always, from day one, what he wanted to do.

CE: What were his views on pacifism?

Benedict: He was not a pacifist at all. Pacifism, by definition, means that you have no stomach for war and would not participate in in it, at any level. Desmond totally bought into the fact that this war was justified and we needed to do it to protect the freedoms that everybody so cherishes. But he really felt there was a place for him in the military machine as a combat medic. Philosophically, there was no conflict.

CE: When his views became known to those around him, how did people react?

Benedict: His family understood what his motivation was. Some may not have necessarily agreed, but that was the way with lots of families  no one wants to see their son or daughter go off to war and never come back. That's not an easy thing to do. When he joined the military, things began to go sideways pretty quickly, because when he joined, the recruiters at the time said, "Oh, sure, you can be a combat medic." But what they didn't tell him was, "You still have to carry a weapon. And, oh, by the way, you can't tell us you don't want to work on the Sabbath."

CE: How does his story apply to our modern-day world?

Benedict: I think it is so relevant. It is a universal theme that is relevant during any time period but especially today. How often have we seen people really stick up for their beliefs, morally or spiritually?

CE: You knew Desmond. What was he like, personally?

Benedict: He was a what you see is what you get kind of guy. Even though he came from that greatest generation and what is known as maybe a more conservative denomination, he wasn't driven so much by a set of rules as he was by the sort of the ultimate commandment of love, and that's why people didn't understand fully what he was capable of on the battlefield. I had a very grandfatherly relationship with him. He was a tremendous support to me and even to my kids who were very little. My kids were very young  4 and 6 years old at the time that Desmond passed away, and my kids today are 14 and 16 and they remember him very, very clearly and what he was about. And they remember his demeanor with them. He was a man of few words. He was very humble. But he was that kind of guy that when he said something, you listened. When he said a prayer for you, the prayers were always short, like 30 seconds long, but they cut right to the bone. And they were always very poignant and powerful. You had a great sense of peace being around him. You knew he cared about you.

Hacksaw Ridge is rated R for intense prolonged realistically graphic sequences of war violence including grisly bloody images.
In Star Trek scenario scientists suggest colonizing outer space with bacteria on dead astronauts 28 October, 2016 by Gregory Tomlin , |

BATON ROUGE, La. (Christian Examiner)  In what sounds like the plot from the 1982 movie Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan, where a capsule called "Genesis" planted new life on barren planets, a scientist who studies the survival of microbes in extreme environments has suggested other planets could be colonized with bacteria hitchhiking millions of miles on the bodies of dead astronauts.

Gary King of Louisiana State University said in an interview with Astronomy Magazine that a set of circumstances could be constructed to help microbes survive the deep space environment so they could be delivered onto another world.

"We've pulled microbes out of permafrost, and there we're talking about organisms surviving around one million years in suspended animation. Especially if the trip is somewhere close, like to Mars, bacterial spores in the human body will survive for sure," King told the magazine.

When you talk about one-million-plus years with little radiation shielding, then I'd say we're talking about a very limited possibility of microbial survival. But I won't say impossible, if you only need one of the vast number of microbes on the human body to survive the trip.

"It's also possible that other, non-sporing bacteria could survive as well. I'm thinking about microbes like Deinococcus radiodurans, which we know can survive low levels of water and high amounts of ionizing radiation."

Since the trip to another planet would be so long, however, there would have to be some method of shipping a dead astronaut's corpse  a proper storage unit  and a short flight time (because of the amount of radiation it would be exposed to in deep space).

"When you talk about one-million-plus years with little radiation shielding, then I'd say we're talking about a very limited possibility of microbial survival. But I won't say impossible, if you only need one of the vast number of microbes on the human body to survive the trip," King said.

He also said would also have to be some method of safely landing the corpse on a planet to avoid it being burned up on entry into the planet's atmosphere.

Such possibilities are rife with religious implications, chief among them the rejection of the idea that life was created from nothing by God, a tenet shared among both Jews and Christians. And although a human plan to colonize another planet could spell disastrous changes for the other world, scientists believe that enough biological material ejected in space by humans might do the trick if it landed in "a shallow pool" on a receptive world.

Lee Cronin, a chemist who studies the genesis of life at the University of Glasgow, told the magazine the bodies could be viewed "as a sort of starter-pack of chemistry to bootstrap the [genesis] of new life. ... But you'd need to consider a few factors."

"First, how many corpses would you actually need to get onto a planet to make sure you statistically have enough organics to get things moving?" Cronin asked.

"Imagine a huge planet with an ocean, if you have just a single corpse that gets dissolved in a second or two and that chemistry gets spread very, very thinly. Well, it's very difficult to imagine that corpse might help the process along," he told the magazine.

Cronin, in a vein reminiscent of a science fiction film, said an entire, doomed crew would provide enough biological material to get started.

"And who knows," Cronin said. "Hypothetically speaking, it's not impossible to imagine that life on Earth could have started through a similar process."
Militants who are likely associated with the Islamic State have killed at least 30 hostages, including children, in a revenge killing.

The Christian Post reports that the militants carried out the killings near Firoz Koh, the capital of Afghanistans Ghor province, on Tuesday.

The killings are thought to be an act of revenge for the killing of an Islamic State commander by security forces on Monday.

The Islamic State is attempting to establish a caliphate in Afghanistan, just like in Iraq and Syria.

Right now we see them very focused on trying to establish their caliphate, the Khorasan caliphate, inside Afghanistan," General John Nicholson told NBC News on Sunday.

ISIS militants in Afghanistan carry out most of their attacks through the Haqqani network which is actually based across the border in Pakistan. They also primarily target Christians and other religious minorities, but they also see Muslims belonging to other sects as enemies.

Some 13,000 airstrikes have been carried out against the militants, but they still have around 18,000 to 22,000 fighters. The area the jihadis control has also been shrinking. They now control 25,290 square miles, down from 30,115.

Photo courtesy: Thinkstockphotos.com

Publication date: October 28, 2016
About 20 Chinese Christians were beaten by Public Security Bureau in Nanle County on September 25, according to China Aid.

The group of Christians were members of a house church in Henan province of central China.

"A lot of problems have been caused because they [the public security bureau personnel] control, attack and persecute Christianity in Henan. I hope the international community will pray for them," said Zhang Mingxuan, a pastor and president of the Chinese House Church Alliance.

Another couple in Henan province was imprisoned for hanging a cross in their home, which also served as a house church. A woman who visited them was also arrested.

The police raided their house church and confiscated their Bibles and other religious items. China Aid reported that this is the second time the house church was raided this year.

The pastor has been released from prison, but his wife and the female guest are still being detained by the police.

Activists say that the Chinese government has stepped up persecution of Christians under President Xi Jinping.

Hundreds of Christian activists and lawyers have been detained during the last two years, and over 1,200 crosses were demolished and hundreds of churches razed to the ground in a 'beatification campaign' launched by the government.

A member of the Houshi Church told Radio Free Asia that church congregations are under government's radar and are being closely monitored.

"There have been people watching me in the past few days from my neighbourhood committee and the local police station," RFA quoted an anonymous member as saying.

About two months ago, Chinese authorities in Zhejiang imposed bans on prayers in hospitals. The rule states that hospitals will not allow visitors to pray for sick or preach in hospitals.

In the same province, local government in Pingyang County made it mandatory for churches to give all their tithes and income to the authorities.
Dont worry. I wont spoil the ending. But you need to know (if you dont already) that something extraordinary is coming soon to a theater near you.

Before the clock strikes 2017, legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese will deliver his passion project, a movie hes been planning for decades. Its based on a beloved novel by Shusaku Endo about a Portuguese missionary striving to serve persecuted Christians in Japan. And if Scorsese is true to his literary source, and brings his formidable powers to the occasion, he may well deliver one of cinemas most excruciatingly intense films about faith.

Its called Silence. And it corners Christians with a compelling question: Are there any circumstances under which a believer should openly apostatize? Is there any earthly authority who, if he commands a believer to publicly renounce his faith, should be obeyed?

I thought about Silence a lot this week as I revisited one of the most enduringly popular films about faith: A Man for All Seasons. How could I not? Heres another beloved drama in which the word silence plays a prominent role, and in which a faithful Christian is commanded to deny Christs authority.

In both stories, silence is a matter of life and death. But in Endos narrative, the silence in question is Gods: Why will he not intervene and stop the persecution of Japanese believers? In A Man for All Seasons, silence plays a differentbut equally importantrole.

I recommend we prepare for Scorseses film by revisiting this classic. Directed by Fred Zinnemann from a script by Robert Bolt (adapting his own stage play), and starring the great Paul Scofield as Sir Thomas More, A Man for ...

1
I had the privilege or reading a pre-release version of "God Shines Forth: How the Nature of God Shapes and Drives the Mission of the Church." Here are 20 quotes from the book, which you should pick up.
During an interview last night on the Catholic Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN), Donald Trump said, Why would an evangelical or a Catholicalmost you could say anybody of faith, but in particular evangelicals and Catholicshow could they vote for Hillary Clinton?

Trump was also featured on Pat Robertsons Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) the same night, saying if evangelicals turn out to vote, were gonna win the election. [Both videos appear at the end of this article.]

The truth is, evangelicals and Catholics no longer make up the religious voting bloc Republicans relied on for decadesand its Catholics who are stepping away for Clinton. While many evangelicals have given Trump their reluctant blessing, more of their brothers and sisters across the Tiber are increasingly split between the Republican and Democratic presidential tickets.

Most evangelicals of color have backed Clinton, and American Catholics ...

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Worse than what missing the mark does to our soul is what it does to our neighbors.
Judicial Watch Files Lawsuit for FBI Records on Clinton Email Investigation, Tarmac Meeting Between Bill Clinton and Loretta Lynch Contact: Jill Farrell, Judicial Watch, 202-646-5172



WASHINGTON, Oct. 28, 2016 /Christian Newswire/ -- Judicial Watch announced today that it filed a Freedom of Information (FOIA) lawsuit to obtain Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) records relating to its "investigation of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's use of a non-government email server during her tenure." The lawsuit includes a demand for FBI "302" documents, which are reports of FBI investigation interviews. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of Justice (No. 1:16-cv-02046).



The Judicial Watch FOIA lawsuit was filed after the Justice Department failed to comply with a July 7, 2016, FOIA request seeking the following: All FD-302 forms prepared pursuant to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's investigation of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's use of a private e-mail server during her tenure.



All records of communications between any agent, employee, or representative of the Federal Bureau of Investigation regarding, concerning, or related to the aforementioned investigation. This request includes, but is not limited to, any related communications with any official, employee, or representative of the Department of Justice, the Executive Office of the President, the Democratic National Committee, and/or the presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton.



All records related to the meeting between Attorney General Lynch and former President Bill Clinton on June 27, 2016. There is significant controversy about whether the FBI and Obama Justice Department investigation gave Clinton and other witnesses and potential targets preferential treatment.



The FBI extended numerous immunity agreements, including: Clinton's former Chief of Staff Cheryl Mills; John Bentel, former director of the State Department's Office of Information Resources Management; Heather Samuelson, Clinton's executive assistant; Brian Pagliano, an IT employee at the State Department who serviced the Clinton non-government server; and an employee at Platt River Networks, the company that maintained it. It is not clear whether Hillary Clinton received some type of immunity.



Adding to the growing controversy about the handling of the Clinton matter, The Wall Street Journal recently reported this week that finance records show longtime Clinton supporter Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe's PAC gave a $467,500 campaign donation to the wife of Andrew McCabe, the FBI's deputy director. His wife ran for the Virginia Senate in 2015. At the time of the campaign and of McAuliffe's support, McCabe was associate deputy director. McCabe continues to be involved in the investigation of Clinton's email case. Fox News reports that he was recently asked to brief House Oversight Committee on allegations that a State Department official offered a "quid pro quo" with the FBI in an attempt to declassify an email.



MORE: www.judicialwatch.org/press-room/press-releases/judicial-watch-files-lawsuit-fbi-records-clinton-email-investigation-tarmac-meeting-bill-clinton-loretta-lynch

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home World Aid groups in Iraq anticipate influx of refugees from Mosul

Many people have already fled Mosul after more than a week of fighting to recapture the city from ISIS. Aid groups in the nearby regions are expecting more refugees as the battle drags on.

Iraqi forces have recently evacuated more than 1,000 people who are living near the front lines of the battle. According to the International Organization for Migration, about 9,000 people have been displaced since the operation began.

There are some concerns that the influx could overwhelm the resources of the aid groups working in the surrounding areas. There are also apprehensions about the safety of those who are fleeing and some are worried that ISIS fighters might be mixed with the refugees.

Steve Van Valkenburg of Christian Aid Group told Mission Network News that despite the concerns, the objective of Christians who are trying to spread the Gospel in the region remains the same.

He stated that Christian Aid regularly sends aid to its partners and it will be sending even more to help the ministries who are trying to meet the needs of displaced Iraqis.

"I think the one advantage they have is they're not concerned about who the people are, where they come from, why they stayed in Mosul, why they didn't flee before. All they want to know is how can we help and how can we share the love of Christ with them?" he added.

Van Valkenburg believes that some of the Iraqis might become atheists after living under the control of ISIS. However, he is also confident that there will be some who will open their hearts to Christ.

"There is something the Body of Christ can present that other agencies can't present, because they can present aid, but also they can be meeting emotional needs, spiritual needs in a way that other agencies can't a the UN can't do that, typical NGOs can't do that, governments can't do that," he stated.

The aid worker said that the people who are fleeing are hardened, bitter and hopeless and the only hope for them lies in Jesus Christ.
home US Christian college in Washington partners with Planned Parenthood

A Christian college in Washington state listed abortion provider Planned Parenthood as a "community partner." Abortion is also promoted in some of the courses offered by the school.

Whitworth University also allows its students to take accredited internships at Planned Parenthood, according to James Silberman, a senior at the liberal arts college located in Spokane.

In his editorial, Silberman narrated that the course known as "Intro to Women's and Gender Studies" portrays the abortion organization in a positive light and it uses text books that depict pro-life individuals as "violent misogynists."

The senior student also noted that the walls around the campus display flyer cards that refer pregnant women to Planned Parenthood. He added that the school also allowed the abortion organization to set up a booth at the school volunteer fair.

Silberman urged the school administrators to remove Planned Parenthood from the list of its community partners as well as the flyers on the campus walls. He also said that the textbooks being used in the classrooms should be checked for accuracy with regards to claims about abortion.

He acknowledged that the problem is not limited to Whitworth and urged students across the U.S. to check whether their school is supporting the abortion industry.

"If they are, find out to what extent and bring it into the light. Submit articles to campus publications or start a Students for Life club at your school," Silberman urged.

Several students have come out in defense of the school's partnership with the abortion organization.

"It is not a man's place to decide what a woman does with her body. It is a woman's basic right to make the heart-wrenching choice to have an abortion," a student named Carmen Hirota wrote.

"The argument that James makes is perpetuating the oppressive stance in opposition to a woman's right to choose by politicians who think they have a right to make women's most personal, sensitive health care decisions for them," she continued.

Another Christian school was recently discovered to have ties with Planned Parenthood. In August, it was reported that Texas Christian University in Forth Worth, Texas, offered an internship program with the abortion organization for school credit.
home World Christianity now tolerated in Cuba but still faces many challenges

There have been some improvements in the treatment of Christians in Cuba since the constitutional reform in 1992, but church leaders still experience discrimination and harassment from the government.

A group of Cuban church leaders, who wish to remain anonymous, told World Watch Monitor that the persecution Christians experience at present is more subtle than before, but still exists.

"I don't believe that there is explicit, open persecution, but there is implicit, hidden persecution, with very different methods to those used before," one church leader said.

"It's a subtle method, like saying: 'I am not persecuting you, but I have control over everything. I know who you are meeting, I know where you are going, I know what you are doing.' For me, it's a method of intimidation," the leader added.

In the past Christians were not allowed to attend university and join certain fields like politics, psychology, sociology and medicine.

Christians have better opportunities and more freedom to perform church work but one pastor said that the government still maintains some level of control over the churches.

One of the church leaders noted that Christian literature is virtually non-existent in the country and there are no Christian bookshops.

The relationship between the Catholic Church in the government improved after Pope John Paul II visited Cuba in 1998. This eventually led to an improvement in the government's relationship with Protestant churches.

The restrictions in the construction of churches is another major challenge for Christians. There are strict regulations to prevent them from turning houses into churches.

"If, for example, the [Christians] make the room bigger, they say that it is illegal, because you modified the structure of the property. They have classified a series of illegalities so that they can confiscate the house from you," one pastor said.

Last August, Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) reported that the Cuban government targeted as many as 1,400 churches for seizure in 2015. CSW documented 1,606 cases of violations of freedom of religion or belief in Cuba between January and July 2016.
home US Court rules gender discrimination laws do not apply to Iowa churches

A Des Moines church dropped its lawsuit against the Iowa Civil Rights Commission after a court ruled that churches in Iowa are not subject to the state's gender discrimination laws.

Earlier this year, the Commission published the "Public Accommodations Provider's Guide to Iowa Law," which indicated that churches are subject to the anti-discrimination laws regarding restrooms and speech if it holds events for non-religious purposes.

"Where qualifications are not related to a bona fide religious purpose, churches are still subject to the law's provisions (e.g. a child care facility operated at a church or a church service open to the public)," the guide stated.

In July, the Fort Des Moines Church of Christ (FDMCC) filed the lawsuit against the Commission, fearing that it might be punished if it maintained its bathroom policies and continued to preach its biblical views on gender identity.

The church was represented by Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) legal counsel Christiana Holcomb.

According to Christian News, U.S. District Judge Stephanie Rose ruled on Oct. 14 that churches are not considered as places of public accommodation.

She noted that the defendants have stated that the anti-discrimination laws are not likely to be applied to churches because its bathroom policies serve a religious purpose and the events that are held in its buildings are considered to be religious in nature.

The judge denied the FDMCC's request for an injunction as well as the Commission's motion to dismiss the lawsuit.

The commission has made changes to its publication in response to the lawsuit filed by FDMCC.

"Places of worship (e.g. churches, synagogues, mosques, etc.) are generally exempt from the Iowa law's prohibition of discrimination, unless the place of worship engages in non-religious activities which are open to the public," the guide now reads.

ADF announced on Wednesday that it has dismissed the lawsuit against the Commission.
home World ISIS kills 250 kids using dough machine, burns 6 men in bakery

A Christian woman from Syria recounted her horrifying experience with ISIS when the group executed her 18-year-old son and killed several hundred children when it attacked a town in Damascus two years ago.

Alice Assaf narrated how the militants took over her hometown of Adra al-Ummaliya. She said in an interview released recently by the human rights group Roads of Success that ISIS attacked around 6 a.m. on a day her husband was away in Damascus.

Assaf, who was alone with her son and daughter, initially suggested that they run away after witnessing several murders.

"Members of 200 different families were killed right before our eyes," Assaf said, according to an English translation of her video interview.

She decided that it would be better for them to die at home so that other members of the family would know what happened to them. When they got home, she was told that ISIS was killing Christians.

One neighbor let Assaf and her children stay at her house for awhile but they eventually tried to flee. She asked for help from a Muslim neighbor who tried to find an opportunity for the family to escape. Assaf decided to stay with her neighbor because many of the passersby had already been killed.

"Later on, we heard that the militants grabbed six strong men working at the bakery and burned them inside the oven. After that, they caught some 250 kids and kneaded them like dough in the bakery dough machine," she said, adding that none of the children who were killed were older than 4.

She recalled that ISIS started throwing children from the balconies to discourage the army from entering the town.

When two soldiers came to her house seeking refuge, Assaf worried that they might be targeted. Her son refused to leave and told her, "I prefer to die than run away."

One neighbor suggested to her son to use a Muslim name to avoid getting killed but he refused.

"My son said to me, 'No, mother, I don't want to die with an identity not my own. I prefer to die with the name George,'" Assaf narrated.

"I asked my son then to hide, but he refused and said, 'I don't want to hide myself. You are the one who taught me to follow what Christ said' a 'whoever denies me before man, I will also deny before my father who is in Heaven,'" she continued.

Assaf said that one of her neighbors told the militants that soldiers were hiding at her house so they broke in and arrested her son. He was told that he would be spared if he renounced Christianity but he refused.

The Syrian mother said that the militants took her son into the guest room and beat him up. Later on, he was taken to the backyard where he was shot.

Assaf went to search for her son's body in hospitals so she can bury him herself but she found out later that her son was buried by the army in a mass grave. She said that her only consolation is that her son died as a true Christian.
United States Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit. TIMMY HOWARD DICKEY, Petitioner - Appellant, v. JOE ALLBAUGH, Interim Director Oklahoma Department of Corrections; STATE OF OKLAHOMA, Respondents - Appellees. No. 15-6234 Decided: October 25, 2016

Before KELLY, PHILLIPS, and MORITZ, Circuit Judges.

ORDER AND JUDGMENT*

Timmy Howard Dickey appeals from the district court's dismissal of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus, 28 U.S.C.  2254, or in the alternative, habeas relief pursuant 28 U.S.C.  2241, or a writ of audita querela or coram nobis. Dickey v. Patton, 2015 WL 8494009 (W.D. Okla. Dec. 10, 2015). Upon recommendation of the magistrate judge, Dickey v. Patton, 2015 WL 8592709 (W.D. Okla. Sept. 28, 2015), the district court held that Mr. Dickey was not in custody nor entitled to relief on alternate grounds. The district court granted a certificate of appealability on whether Oklahoma's sex offender registration requirements satisfy the in custody requirement, and whether Mr. Dickey is nevertheless entitled to relief under the All Writs Act via the writ of audita querela or the writ of coram nobis. Our jurisdiction arises under 28 U.S.C.  1291, and we affirm.

Background

In 2011, Mr. Dickey was convicted of child sexual abuse and sentenced to five years' imprisonment after being tried by a jury. Aplt. App. 84. On direct appeal, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals (OCCA), held that the record was inadequate to establish one of the elements of the offense. Id. 27. Rather than reverse the conviction, however, the OCCA modified Mr. Dickey's conviction to incest, a charge the state had not elected to bring, and determined his sentence should remain the same. Id. 15, 2829.

Seeking to overturn the decision of the OCCA, Mr. Dickey filed an application for post-conviction relief. The state district court denied his application, and the OCCA affirmed, concluding that incest was a lesser-included offense under the evidence test and thus there was no violation of Mr. Dickey's constitutional rights. Id. 3335. Mr. Dickey then filed the instant federal action.

Because he was convicted of a sex offense, Mr. Dickey is now required to register pursuant to Oklahoma's Sex Offenders Registration Act. Okla. Stat. tit. 57,  581590. He is not permitted to work with children or to work on school premises. Id.  589(A). He is forbidden from living, temporarily or permanently, within a 2,000-foot radius of any school , educational institution, property or campsite used by an organization whose primary purpose is working with children, a playground or park , or a licensed child care center. Id.  590(A). Additionally, it is unlawful for Mr. Dickey to live in a dwelling with another sex offender. Id.  590.1(A). Mr. Dickey contends that these provisions sufficiently restrict his freedom to satisfy  2254's custody requirement, and that the restrictions are more stringent than the Colorado statutory scheme addressed by this court in Calhoun v. Attorney General of Colorado, 745 F.3d 1070 (10th Cir.), cert. denied, 135 S. Ct. 376 (2014).

Discussion

A. Habeas Corpus

Section 2254(a) requires that a petitioner for a writ of habeas corpus be in custody pursuant to the judgment of a State court  in violation of the Constitution or laws or treaties of the United States. 28 U.S.C.  2254(a). Thus, a petitioner must demonstrate that he is in custody and the requirement is jurisdictional. Mays v. Dinwiddie, 580 F.3d 1136, 1139 (10th Cir. 2009). Questions as to the proper interpretation of custody under the statute are legal and reviewed de novo. Id. at 1138.

Custody status is determined as of the time the habeas petition is filed. Spencer v. Kemna, 523 U.S. 1, 7 (1998). The writ is available in situations where a state-court criminal conviction has subjected the petitioner to severe restraints on [his or her] individual liberty. Hensley v. Mun. Ct., 411 U.S. 345, 351 (1973). A restraint is severe when it is not shared by the public generally. Jones v. Cunningham, 371 U.S. 236, 240 (1963). The petitioner need not, however, demonstrate actual, physical custody to obtain relief. Maleng v. Cook, 490 U.S. 488, 491 (1989) (per curiam). For example, habeas corpus is available for prisoners released on personal recognizance or parole, among other situations. See, e.g., Hensley, 411 U.S. at 346, 353 (personal recognizance); Jones, 371 U.S. at 24243 (parole).

Not every restriction involving federal rights warrants the remedy of a writ of habeas corpus. See Lehman v. Lycoming Cty. Children's Servs. Agency, 458 U.S. 502, 510 (1982). Thus, collateral consequences of conviction which have only a negligible effect on liberty or movement, do not satisfy the custody requirement. Virsnieks v. Smith, 521 F.3d 707, 718 (7th Cir. 2008) (collecting cases). For example, restitution or fines imposed on a petitioner do not  there must be a significant restraint on liberty. Erlandson v. Northglenn Mun. Ct., 528 F.3d 785, 788 (10th Cir. 2008). Other collateral consequences of conviction not deemed restraints on liberty sufficient to constitute custody are the inability to vote, engage in certain businesses, hold public office, or serve as a juror, Maleng, 490 U.S. at 49192, revocation of a driver's license, medical license, or a license to practice law, and disqualification as a real estate broker and insurance agent, Williamson v. Gregoire, 151 F.3d 1180, 1183 (9th Cir. 1998) (collecting cases).

In 2014, we joined other circuits in holding that the requirement to register under state sex-offender statutes does not satisfy  2254's condition that the petitioner be in custody at the time he or she files a habeas petition. See Calhoun, 745 F.3d at 1074. We determined that Colorado's sex-offender requirements were not severe enough to constitute being in custody for habeas purposes. See id. at 107274. Mindful of our precedent in Calhoun, Mr. Dickey asserts that Oklahoma's statutory scheme involving sex offenders is more restrictive than that of Colorado because it significantly infringes on Mr. Dickey's rights to live, work, associate, and travel in ways not addressed by this court in Calhoun. Aplt. Br. at 16.

It is undisputed that Mr. Dickey was released from prison before he filed his  2254 petition. Id. at 11. The OCCA issued its decision modifying Mr. Dickey's conviction from child sexual abuse to incest on April 24, 2013. Aplt. App. 2529. He was discharged from the custody of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections (DOC) on November 25, 2013. Id. 88. He then filed his federal petition for a writ of habeas corpus on June 23, 2015. Id. 23. Accordingly, Mr. Dickey had approximately seven months to file his petition for habeas corpus while satisfying the in custody condition of  2254 by being in the physical custody of the Oklahoma DOC.

We now turn to the question of whether Mr. Dickey continues to be in custody even after his release from prison given the nature of Oklahoma's sex-offender registration statute. Although we agree with Mr. Dickey that Oklahoma's statutory scheme is more restrictive than that of Colorado, we do not find that Oklahoma's registration requirements impose a severe restraint on Mr. Dickey's freedom sufficient to satisfy the in custody requirement of  2254. There is no condition of Mr. Dickey's sentence that could subject him to reincarceration or impose an additional restraint on his liberty. He remains free to live, work, travel, associate, and engage in lawful activities without government approval. Like those at issue in Calhoun, Oklahoma's sex-offender registration conditions are collateral consequences of Mr. Dickey's conviction, and not a continuation of punishment. A holding to the contrary would read the in custody requirement out of the statute. Maleng, 490 U.S. at 492.

B. Audita Querela and Coram Nobis

We next address Mr. Dickey's assertions that he is entitled to relief under the All Writs Act via the writ of audita querela or the writ of coram nobis, which do not require that a petitioner be in custody to obtain relief. See United States v. Denedo, 556 U.S. 904, 911 (2009); United States v. Torres, 282 F.3d 1241, 1245 (10th Cir. 2002).

1. Writ of Audita Querela

The purpose of a writ of audita querela is to challenge a judgment that although correct when rendered, is now infirm due to subsequent events. Torres, 282 F.3d at 1245 n.6. An example would be something unanticipated, such as an intervening change in law. Rawlins v. Kansas, 714 F.3d 1189, 1193 (10th Cir. 2013). Mr. Dickey's argument, however, appears to be that the judgment of the OCCA was incorrect at the time it was rendered. Moreover, he has not argued that anything since the decision has made the judgment infirm. Accordingly, Mr. Dickey is not entitled to relief under a writ of audita querela.

2. Writ of Coram Nobis

Although the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure abolished the writ of coram nobis, see Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(e), the Supreme Court has since held in United States v. Morgan, 346 U.S. 502, 50613 (1954), that federal courts are authorized to issue the writ to correct criminal judgments. Coram nobis has a limited use: to fix fundamental errors of law or fact. Murray v. United States, 704 F.3d 23, 28 (1st Cir. 2013). It is an extraordinary remedy, which is available only under circumstances compelling such action to achieve justice  Id. (quoting Morgan, 346 U.S. at 511). Its purpose is to correct errors of the most fundamental character; that is, such as render [ ] the proceeding itself irregular and invalid.  Id. (quoting United States v. Mayer, 235 U.S. 55, 69 (1914)).

The traditional use of the writ of corum nobis, however, is by a court in correcting its own errors, not the errors of courts in other jurisdictions. Finkelstein v. Spitzer, 455 F.3d 131, 13334 (2d Cir. 2006). Accordingly, we have held that federal courts lack jurisdiction to grant a writ of coram nobis with respect to state court judgments. Rawlins, 714 F.3d at 119697; see also Finkelstein, 455 F.3d at 134 (collecting cases). Despite Mr. Dickey's statement to the contrary, Aplt. Br. at 2324, we do not find this understanding of the writ of coram nobis to conflict with the decision of the Supreme Court in Morgan. Because the offending error originated in the OCCA, the federal district court was correct in concluding that it lacked the power to reexamine Mr. Dickey's conviction through a writ of corum nobis.

Because Mr. Dickey was not in custody when he filed his  2254 petition, and is not eligible for relief in federal court under the writs of audita querela or corum nobis, the district court's judgment is AFFIRMED.

Entered for the Court

FOOTNOTES

. Specifically, the OCCA found that the record did not establish that Mr. Dickey was a person responsible for the health, safety, or welfare of the victim, which was an element of the offense of child sexual abuse pursuant to Oklahoma law at the time of the offense. Aplt. App. 2627 (quoting 21 O.S. Supp. 2010,  843.5(E)).

Paul J. Kelly, Jr. Circuit Judge
home US Rev. Mark Creech explains why evangelicals should vote for Donald Trump

Rev. Mark Creech, executive director of Christian Action League of North Carolina, is trying to convince Christians to vote for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump despite the flaws in his character.

In a YouTube video released on Oct. 20, Creech noted that Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton is unpopular among evangelicals. He acknowledged that Trump's temperament does not sit well with some Christians but there are many who chose to forgive and support the Republican candidate.

The pastor argued that a candidate's political position should also be considered in determining their character.

Creech mentioned that in addition to Clinton's past transgressions, the Democratic candidate also supports abortion and prioritizes LGBTQ rights over religious liberty.

"Now it's true that Donald Trump exhibits some disturbing and contemptable conduct. Nevertheless, he is the antithesis of Clinton in his politics," he stated.

"Granted, we don't know if Trump will keep his political commitments if elected, but at least faithful Christians have his promise to work to represent their concerns, while Hillary Clinton has clearly demonstrated, as well as promised, that she will oppose what devout believers know is the cause of Jesus Christ," he continued.

He recounted the words of radio talk show host Janet Mefferd, who stated that she would choose to vote for a Muslim candidate who would allow Christians to maintain their churches over another candidate who espouses Sharia law.

The pastor asserted that the recent attack on Trump is just a distraction to divert the attention of voters away from more urgent matters.

Creech reiterated Trump's vow to stop abortion, appoint conservative Supreme Court justices and repeal the Johnson Amendment, which prevents pastors from endorsing political candidates.

He said that he has not always been a firm supporter of the real estate mogul but the circumstances indicate that either Clinton or Trump will be the next president. He argued that the conservative evangelicals who are unwilling to vote for the Republican nominee are only serving their conscience but not their country.

"You can vote in good conscience for Donald Trump, I intend to pull the lever for him on November 8th, and I want to encourage my fellow evangelicals to do likewise," he concluded.

In another article published by the Christian Action League, Creech recommended the voter guide published by the Billy Graham Evangelical Association. The guide highlights the difference between the platforms of the Democratic and Republican parties.
home World Tomb of Jesus uncovered for the first time in centuries

The original surface of what is traditionally known to be the tomb of Jesus Christ in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem has been exposed for the first time in centuries.

Scientists believe that the tomb has been covered with marble since 1555 A.D. or earlier. It has been identified as a sacred relic in 326 A.D. by Helena, the mother of the Roman emperor Constantine.

Fredrik Hiebert, archaeologist-in-residence at the National Geographic Society, said that the scientists were surprised by the amount of material behind the marble covering.

"It will be a long scientific analysis, but we will finally be able to see the original rock surface on which, according to tradition, the body of Christ was laid," he told National Geographic.

Christian tradition said that Jesus' body was laid on a shelf that was hewn from the side of a limestone cave. The shelf is currently enclosed by a small structure known as the Edicule, which is undergoing restoration.

Thephilos III, the Greek Patriarch of Jerusalem, was pleased as he observed the events at the church. "I'm glad that the atmosphere is special, there is a hidden joy," he told National Geographic.

"Here we have Franciscans, Armenians, Greeks, Muslim guards, and Jewish police officers. We hope and we pray that this will be a real message that the impossible can become the possible. We all need peace and mutual respect," he added.

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is being shared by six different Christian denominations - Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Ethiopian Orthodox and the Syriac Orthodox Church. Some parts of the church are designated as common areas of worship for all sects.

Riots between sects have taken place at the site over the years. Monks from different sects have frequently fought over the rights to maintain certain areas of the church.

The Christian sects agreed to restore the Edicule in March 2016. King Abdullah II of Jordan has issued a royal benefaction to support the project.
'24: Legacy' release date, spoilers: spin-off gets first trailer from FOX

A new hero was introduced in the trailer for "24: Legacy" that had been released months before its pilot premiere next year.

For the first time since 2001, FOX's serial crime drama thriller will feature a new protagonist named Eric Carter. The army ranger, portrayed by "Straight Outta Compton" star Corey Hawkins, will take over the lead from Keith Sutherland's character, Counter Terrorist Unit Agent Jack Bauer.

The trailer revealed that the real-time narration that was used in the original "24" series has been retained in the spin-off. This means that Carter must race against time in order to stop a massive destruction from happening in the U.S. due to another terrorist attack.

Joining Hawkins in the new spinoff series are Miranda Otto as former CTU head Rebecca Ingram, Jimmy Smits as Rebecca's husband and US presidential candidate John Donovan, Teddy Sears as current CTU supervisor Keith Mullins, Anna Diop as Carter's wife Nicole, Dan Bucatinsky as CTU communication analyst Andy Shalowitz, Coral Pena as computer analyst Mariana Stiles, as well as Veronica Cartwright as Donovan's mother Margaret.

Meanwhile, Sutherland was asked by TV Guide in an interview about how he feels about seeing the show without the involvement of his iconic character. According to the actor, fans of the series should still be excited to watch the show even if he is not in it because the real essence of the show is the plot and not Jack Bauer.

He also commended the new cast of the series. "I think they've done an incredible job casting it, and the first couple of episodes are fantastic. I've always believed very strongly that the star of 24 was the idea ... I hope people give it a chance, and I'll be one of the first in line to watch it," the actor said in the interview.

The first episode of "24: Legacy" will air on Feb. 5 following the 2017 Super Bowl.
Christian Students Miraculously Saved From ISIS Terrorist Suicide Bombers: 'The Lord Blinded Their Eyes'

Death was just an arm's length away for seven Christian girls who found themselves for hours sharing a room inside a school with heavily armed Islamic State (ISIS) fighters wearing explosive suicide belts.

Despite the grave danger, the girls found a waywith God's miraculous helpto make themselves "invisible" to the eyes of the enemy: They hid under beds.

"The Lord blinded the terrorists," Bishop Youssef Touma of the Archdiocese of Chaldeans said in a statement obtained by CBN News.

"When love and courage meet, God makes a miracle," the bishop added.

The tension-filled real-life drama took place on Friday when ISIS fighters raided a school in Kirkuk, Iraq, CBN News reported.

The school was one of several targets attacked by ISIS fighters as Iraqi security forces were preparing for a major assault on the nearby city of Mosul.

"The terrorists rushed into the surrounding buildings, including the Dominican nunnery and four homes for the [Christian] students [that] had been chartered by the Archdiocese of Chaldeans," Bishop Touma said.

One of the buildings the ISIS fighters occupied was Bishop's Touma's school, which is home to about 500 students.

At the time of the attack, 30 girls were trapped inside.

Fortunately, Iraqi Special Forces were there to rescue the girls. Braving gunfire from ISIS snipers, the Iraqi troops managed to extract all the girlsincluding the girls who hid under beds.

Bishop Touma hailed Iraq's Special Forces for showing "courage and willingness to sacrifice" in the face of extreme danger.

He also lauded the girls for their display of amazing courage and discipline, which saved their lives.

"The amazing fact is that seven students [were] under the beds for 18 hours without any movement [and] avoided the attention of the four terrorists" inside the room, the bishop said.

The four ISIS terrorists inside the room then went out and reportedly blew themselves up inside the school without injuring any of the students.

"We thank the Lord for his blessings and because He still makes miracles for His children," Bishop Touma said.
Cuba's Crackdown Continues: Pastor Under House Arrest For Loud Worship Services

A pastor of a house church in Cuba has been sentenced to a year of house arrest for loud worship services.

Pastor Juan Carlos Nunez was sentenced by a civil court in the city of Las Tunas, Cuba on 22 November, Morning Star News reports. Pastor Nunez leads the house church Apostolic House of the King of Glory, which is home to 550 worshippers.

Nunez was sentenced under Cuba's environmental protection laws with "disturbing the peace", but a source close to the pastor said the sentence was overly hasty, giving Nunez no chance to make a defence. "The attorney did not have time to prepare because it was a summary [immediate] judgment, without any chance to be able to defend him," the source said. "There was no advance warning."

The charge against Nunez came from complaints by Nunez's neighbours that his church's sound system was too loud. Nunez says that he obliged his neighbours and replaced the church speakers with smaller, 150 watt units. His congregation meets in the courtyard of an apartment complex in Las Tunas, for which Nunez says the minimal amplification barely sufficed.

"We complied with the neighbors' wishes, but the case still went to court," he said.

The Cuban authorities deployed a force of high-ranking 'black beret' army soldiers at the courthouse on the day of Nunez's trial. Local observers said that such heavy force was excessive given that the court only tries civil cases and misdemeanors, not criminals charged with felonies.

Nunez said: "This was a form of intimidation, a show of power...You see, they feared there might be protests, because they themselves know that what they are doing is unjust."

The pastor hopes to appeal what he saw as an overly harsh sentence. "Our mission is to preach the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, and we are suffering for that cause," he said. "We were treated as criminals and enemies of the government. We are children of God unjustly accused and convicted."

Nunez added that "We could avoid this whole problem entirely if they would let us have our own meeting place," saying that the government has refused to grant his church a building permit. The US State Department's 2015 International Religious Freedom Report states that restrictions by Cuba's Office of Religious Affairs (ORA) means that many churches are forced to use their private homes. The report suggests that the number of house churches could be anywhere from 2,000 to 10,000.

Many see the government's restrictions as part of a crackdown on religious freedom. Between January and July 2016, Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) recorded 1,606 violations of religious freedom. These included the demolition and confiscation of church buildings, the destruction of church property and arbitrary detention.

CSW has accused the government of targeting church properties "to tighten its control over the activities and membership of religious groups and thus eliminate the potential for any social unrest." The US State department's 2016 report on religious freedom stated that the Cuban government "monitored religious groups" and "continued to control most aspects of religious life".
Defrock Me Too, Says Colleague Of Atheist Minister Gretta Vosper

A retired minister in the United Church of Canada has asked to be formerly defrocked as an act of solidarity with her colleague Gretta Vosper, facing dismissal because of her atheism.

Rev Beverley Burlock has written an open letter to Church authorities asking to be removed from the roll of clergy because she believes Vosper has been treated unfairly.

In her letter, republished by Vosper on her website, Burlock says: "The United Church has lost its way. I am no longer proud to be associated with it, and have been more and more reluctant to identify myself as one of its ministers."

She says: "Never EVER was I subjected, in any of my pre-ordination interviews over the several years, to such an intensive and excessive interrogation as Gretta faced before the subcommittee, which basically amounted to a heresy trial. (Since when was 'right beliefs', an ancient persecuted offense, a UCC priority?) I did not become a minister who had to swear I believed in a list of set vows that were unalterable and infallible, and sign to that."

She cites the case of a previous Moderator of the Church, who said Jesus was not divine, and accused Church authorities of focusing on "the legal letter of the law, which is so NOT Jesus".

She compares the treatment of Vosper to the treatment of Christ, saying: "Gretta is being treated the same as the 'religious authorities' of his day treated Jesus, who called them out on putting law over compassion."

Burlock says that union of the Church of Canada with the Evangelical United Brethren has led the Church down a more conservative path: "We are no longer the open and exploring, the inclusive and progressive denomination we once were, emphasising social justice issues, which drew so many people, including me, to it."

A Church committee decided in September by a majority vote that Vosper should be recommended for dismissal after interviewing her about her repeated statements that she did not believe in God. She is fighting to be allowed to continue in ministry and has the support of her congregation.
Exclusive: Mystery Over Whether Gay Vicar 'Outed' The Bishop Of Grantham

A gay campaigning vicar has admitted that he spoke to a Sunday Times journalist about the Bishop of Grantham's sexuality before that newspaper was set to run a story on the subject.

Andrew Foreshew-Cain, who is well known in church circles for his forthright views on what he claims are fellow gay clergy who are not yet known about publicly, denied being the source behind the planned Sunday Times story when asked by Christian Today.

But pressed on the matter, he said: "Well, we all spoke to him [the journalist]. He was ringing everybody up who knew."

Foreshew-Cain said, "I am not a fan of outing" and added that the "progressive cause" had not been particularly helped by the revelation that the bishop, Nicholas Chamberlain, was gay, because "everyone rallied round him including the evangelicals".

However, he went on: "The fact that he is gay was widely known including by a lot of journalists. The question is why they do not pursue the Diocesan Bishops who are gay."

The Sunday Times was due to run a story on the bishop's sexuality on 4 September. But when the bishop was approached by the paper, his office in turn contacted the Guardian, which ran what the Sunday Times journalist in question described to Christian Today as "a spoiler" on 2 September.

Nicholas Hellen, the Social Affairs Editor at the Sunday Times, told Christian Today to "mind your own business" when questioned, and pointed out that journalists do not reveal their sources. He also expressed anger at the Guardian for implying that the Sunday Times was preparing to "out" the bishop.

"I am very unhappy because it is untrue, the report in the Guardian that we were going to out a bishop," Hellen said.

Some gay campaigners - including the pressure group OutRage! - believe that people who are not publicly gay should be 'outed' to help the LGBT cause.

A number of politicians have been 'outed' in the past including Peter Mandelson, when the former Tory MP and Times writer Matthew Parris revealed he was gay live on BBC's Newsnight.

But church figures are likely to be dismayed if the tactic has come to the church.

Simon Sarmiento, chair of the LGBTI Mission, said that he would be "surprised" if Foreshew-Cain, who is the vicar at St James' in West Hamsptead, was behind the story but added that outing bishops was "a very bad idea".

A spokesman for the Bishop of Grantham refused to comment on the sourcing question and merely said: "It's business as usual. We are getting on with the job."

Since it was publicly revealed that he is gay, Bishop Chamberlain has received some 700 letters, the vast majority of which are supportive.
Georgia Governor Orders Pastor: Hand Over Your Sermons  and Your Bible, Too

This thing does not happen every day: a government targeting an ordained pastor, ordering him to surrender hard copies of his sermons and his Bible as well.

The act could be not that unusual in a communist country. But it happened in America and was done by the state of Georgia through its governor himself.

In what is viewed as an "unjust assault on people of faith, including the pulpit itself," Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal demanded that Dr. Eric Walsh, a Seventh-day Adventist Church lay pastor, hand over all his pastoral documentationincluding private sermon notes, along with the sermons themselves, and his Bible as wellto the state, Charisma News reported.

Walsh was one of America's leading health administrators until he was fired in 2014 by the Georgia Department of Public Health.

Walsh was fired after Georgia officials reportedly learned of his faith following an examination of his sermons on YouTube, where he tackled such Christian themes as creation, compassion, spiritual growth, the family and Christian living.

Walsh then filed a federal lawsuit against Georgia, alleging unlawful religious discrimination.

The state of Georgia has denied that it fired Walsh for religious reasons. However, in response to his lawsuit, the state is now demanding that he hand over religious documents.

The Family Research Council (FRC) has expressed outrage at the state's demand. It has launched a petition at frc.org/walsh that calls on Governor Deal to "correct this egregious over-reach of the state into church affairs."

"This demand for Dr. Eric Walsh's sermons, sermons notes and ministerial documentation is an alarming display of government intrusion into the sanctity of the church, pastor's study and pulpit," said Tony Perkins, FRC president who is also an ordained pastor. "This is something that I would have expected to see in a communist country, not America."

Perkins slammed "government scrutiny of speech in the pulpit," calling it "unconstitutional and unconscionable."

For his part, Travis Weber, director of FRC's Center for Religious Liberty, called on the State of Georgia to cease its hostility toward people of faith.

"We've recently seen the former mayor of Houston issue subpoenas against pastors in Houston, Texas, seeking their sermons," said Weber. "This action against Dr. Walsh is another unjust assault on people of faith, including the pulpit itself. This cannot go unchallenged."
'Hawaii Five-0' season 7 spoilers: Adam and Kono endangered in Halloween episode; McGarrett to call it quits after season 8?

It wasn't so long ago that Steve McGarrett (Alex O'Loughlin) and Alicia (Claire Forlani) narrowly escaped the clutches of the Chess Piece killer, and now it seems that newly reunited couple Adam (Ian Anthony Dale) and Kono (Grace Park) will be taken hostage in time for the show's Halloween episode.

Based on the trailer for episode 6 of "Hawaii Five-o's" season 7  entitled "Ka hale ho'okauweli," which translates to House of Horrors  cult members wearing blank masks will abduct both Adam and Kono.

According to a report by News Everyday, the team will be investigating the death of a spirit medium which has reportedly been caused by a poltergeist. A poltergeist is a type of ghost that can move objects around and cause physical harm to humans.

Early rumors hint that the kidnapping may not be random as it could be related to something Adam has done in the past. It was further speculated that his time in jail may have sparked the kidnapping, as jail is full of people with shady records and mysterious pasts.

Meanwhile, there seems to be some weight to rumors that actor O'Loughlin could be retiring from the show soon because of health issues.

"I signed on for another two (seasons), which is this year and next year, series seven and eight, and I don't know if I can sustain any more than that just physically," he told News.com.au.

The actor was reportedly suffering from back pains, and the condition was further being agitated by the physical demands of his role as McGarrett.

"Maybe 15 years ago I'd say 'yeah I want to jump off that building' but I was 40 a couple of weeks ago so I kind of know my place. There are certain things you don't try to start doing at 40," he added.

"Hawaii Five-0's" Halloween episode airs on Oct. 28 at 9:00 p.m. on CBS.
United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. DARRIN BLACK; ROGER J. MIRACLE; ANN M. MIRACLE; VIRGINIA LOUISE BLEEG; HAROLD S. MACLAUGHLAN; REBECA MACLAUGHLAN, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. RICK HASELTON; REX ARMSTRONG; ELLEN ROSENBLUM; PAUL DE MUNIZ; WILLIAM MICHAEL GILLETTE; ROBERT D. DURHAM; THOMAS A. BALMER; RIVES KISTLER; VIRGINIA L. LINDER; JACK L. LANDAU; DEBBIE SLAGLE, Defendants-Appellees. No. 14-35170 Decided: October 24, 2016

Before: CLIFTON, MURGUIA, and NGUYEN, Circuit Judges.

MEMORANDUM*

The district court dismissed Plaintiffs' suit on the ground that the RookerFeldman doctrine deprived it of subject matter jurisdiction and, in the alternative, on the ground that Defendants were entitled to absolute judicial immunity. We hold that the RookerFeldman doctrine bars Plaintiffs' suit from proceeding and Defendants are immune from Plaintiffs' claims pursuant to the Eleventh Amendment. See O'Guinn v. Lovelock Corr. Ctr., 502 F.3d 1056, 1059 (9th Cir. 2007) (We may affirm on any ground present in the record.).

Plaintiffs initiated this action against three judges on the Oregon Court of Appeals, the justices of the Oregon Supreme Court, and Debbie Slagle, a county circuit court clerk. All Defendants are sued in their official capacities. Plaintiffs alleged that the Oregon Court of Appeals' decision to vacate state trial court judgments previously entered in their favor, and the Oregon Supreme Court's denial of review of this decision, violated the Due Process Clause, the Takings Clause, and numerous other state and federal constitutional provisions. As relief, Plaintiffs sought, among other things, an order declaring that they had constitutionally protected property interests in the state trial court's judgments and that those interests were taken by unconstitutional state action when the Oregon Court of Appeals vacated the judgments. Plaintiffs also sought injunctive relief in the form of a Writ of Mandamus directing Slagle to reinstate nunc pro tunc the trial court's judgments. Defendants sought dismissal of Plaintiffs' suit on several grounds, including that their action was barred by the RookerFeldman doctrine and Defendants were immune from the suit pursuant to the Eleventh Amendment and the doctrine of absolute judicial immunity. The district court agreed that the action was barred by the RookerFeldman doctrine and Defendants were entitled to judicial immunity and dismissed Plaintiffs' case with prejudice.

1. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C.  1291. We review de novo the district court's dismissal under the RookerFeldman doctrine. Carmona v. Carmona, 603 F.3d 1041, 1050 (9th Cir. 2008). The RookerFeldman doctrine prevents federal district courts from exercising jurisdiction over cases brought by state-court losers challenging state-court judgments rendered before the district court proceedings commenced. Exxon Mobil Corp. v. Saudi Basic Indus. Corp., 544 U.S. 280, 284 (2005); see also Henrichs v. Valley View Dev., 474 F.3d 609, 616 (9th Cir. 2007) (holding that the RookerFeldman doctrine barred the plaintiff's claim because the alleged legal injuries arose from the state court's purportedly erroneous judgment and the relief he sought would require the district court to determine that the state court's decision was wrong and thus void); Kougasian v. TMSL, Inc., 359 F.3d 1136, 1139 (9th Cir. 2004) (If a plaintiff brings a de facto appeal from a state court judgment, RookerFeldman requires that the district court dismiss the suit for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.). Here, the district court properly concluded that the RookerFeldman doctrine barred Plaintiffs' action because it is a forbidden de facto appeal of the Oregon Court of Appeals' decision. Plaintiffs' claims are all based on their argument that the Oregon Court of Appeals incorrectly interpreted Oregon law when it determined that their state court claims were no longer justiciable and that it retained the authority to vacate the trial court judgments. These attacks on the state court proceedings constitute a de facto appeal of the state court judgment because they require the federal court to review both the merits of the Oregon Court of Appeals' decision and its jurisdictional determination. See Henrichs, 474 F.3d at 616; Olson Farms v. Barbosa, 134 F.3d 933, 93637 (9th Cir. 1998) (holding that the RookerFeldman doctrine barred suit where the alleged injury was a state court's incorrect jurisdictional determination). Indeed, Plaintiffs expressly seek relief that would require the federal court to vacate the final state court judgment. See Exxon Mobil Corp., 544 U.S. at 284. Plaintiffs' remaining claims are inextricably intertwined with the forbidden appeal.

2. Defendants are also immune from Plaintiffs' federal suit pursuant to the Eleventh Amendment. The Eleventh Amendment protects states and state officials from claims brought by their own citizens in federal court, unless the state waived its immunity or Congress abrogated the immunity pursuant to constitutional authority. Will v. Mich. Dep't of State Police, 491 U.S. 58, 66 (1989); see also Hafer v. Melo, 502 U.S. 21, 25 (1991) (Suits against state officials in their official capacity  should be treated as suits against the State.). Neither exception applies in this case. Plaintiffs' lawsuit also does not avoid Eleventh Amendment immunity under the Ex parte Young doctrine because the relief they seek is retrospective. See Ex parte Young, 209 U.S. 123, 15960 (1908); see also Seminole Tribe of Fla. v. Florida, 517 U.S. 44, 73 (1996) (holding that Ex parte Young only permits a suit against a state official to go forward when that suit seeks only prospective injunctive relief in order to end a continuing violation of federal law.  (quoting Green v. Mansour, 474 U.S. 64, 68 (1985))).

3. The district court did not abuse its discretion in denying leave to amend and entering dismissal with prejudice. The RookerFeldman doctrine and Defendants' Eleventh Amendment immunity are each fatal to Plaintiffs' claims and it is clear that these deficiencies could not be cured by amendment. See Kendall v. Visa U.S.A., Inc., 518 F.3d 1042, 1051 (9th Cir. 2008).

4. Because we need not assess the merits of Plaintiffs' claims, their Motion Requesting Judicial Notice (Doc. No. 17) is denied as moot.

AFFIRMED.
'Indiana Jones 5' release date, spoilers, news: George Lucas not directly involved in crafting story

"Indiana Jones 5" is going to continue the tradition of the first four films by reuniting director Steven Spielberg with actor Harrison Ford instead of being a reboot. However, it turns out that the film is not going to have one constant collaborator working on its story and script: George Lucas.

Lucas, who is mostly known for creating the "Star Wars" franchise, has always worked with Spielberg on "Indiana Jones" ever since the first movie came out. Lucas would make the story, someone else would then write the script based on Lucas' idea and then Spielberg would direct it. This will no longer be the case for "Indiana Jones 5."

"He's not, to my knowledge," explained screenplay writer David Koepp in an interview with Collider. "I've had no contact with him," he added.

However, it was pointed out that Lucas will still serve as executive producer for the movie. This may mean he will be giving some input or financial backing to the film, but he will no longer be crafting the story, and he will not be collaborating with the screenwriters for the script.

Collider points out that many blame Lucas for the poor reception of the fourth film in the series, "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," particularly because of his insistence of including aliens in the plot. It turns out that numerous writers were hired just to make a script that was satisfactory and even then the movie was poorly received.

Lucas is also blamed for the poor reception of the prequel films in the "Star Wars" franchise. Because of the negative feedback on his work, the report states that the lack of his input on the new film's story might be seen as a positive thing for fans.

Koepp did reveal they are working to fix some of the mistakes they made with previous entries and that they are aiming to begin working on the film in 2017, despite Spielberg being a very busy director.

"Indiana Jones 5" is scheduled to premiere on July 19, 2019.
ISIS Genocide Must Be Punished In Court - Leading European Politicians

ISIS genocide crimes must be investigated by the International Criminal Court, three European politicians urged in a letter this week.

The plea claimed the ICC did have jurisdiction to look into the atrocities because thousands of jihadist fighters came from countries under the court's watch. The letter to Prosecutor Ms Fatou Bensouda came after she refused to launch an examination into the group in April 2015, claiming the ICC could not begin proceedings under it had a referral from the United Nations Security Council.

A stalemate between Russia and the West means "it is extremely unlikely that the Council will refer the situations in Syria or Iraq to the Court", the letter said.

But it said several ISIS leaders come from countries including the UK, France, Germany and Belgium where the ICC does have jurisdiction and so does not need a referral.

The ICC was established under the Rome Statute and signatories of the treaty can be investigated for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and crimes of aggression. Neither Syria or Iraq have signed the Statute so the ICC can only investigate if they are invited to by either nation or if they receive a referral by the UNSC.

The letter is signed by the Catholic peer Lord Alton of Liverpool, the Dutch politicians Dr Pieter Omtzigt and the Swedish MEP Lars Adaktusson. It says there are more than 5,000 ISIS fighters who come from European counties and so the ICC should launch its own investigation.

"Further delay in exercising existent jurisdiction only breeds impunity," they argue. "It would be proper, then, to begin preliminary examinations of atrocities committed by these foreign leaders and under their direction."

It insists that "extremely detailed and carefully researched" evidence has proved ISIS is "committing genocide against Christians and Yazidis".

It concludes: "We therefore call upon you, Madam Prosecutor, to initiate preliminary examinations into the atrocities against Christians, Yazidis, and other religious minorities in Syria and Iraq committed by foreign fighters acting on behalf of Daesh as you empowered to do so under the Rome Statute."

The letter comes after the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) passed a resolution urging the ICC Prosecutor to recognize her jurisdiction over the perpetrators of genocide in Syria and Iraq as far as possible on October 12.

Another co-signatory of the letter, Ewelina Ochab, Legal Counsel for ADF International, said: "The International Criminal Court must take action. The presence of thousands of European foreign fighters clearly places the ongoing genocide under the jurisdiction of the ICC Prosecutor. The impunity must end. Action must be taken before it is too late to save the remnant and before the evidence has been destroyed."
Lifeway Withdraws Books By Christian Author Who Says Gay People 'Are Brothers And Sisters In Christ'

A popular Christian author had her books withdrawn from LifeWay shops on Thursday after she announced her support of gay rights.

The chain of stores announced on Thursday they would pull all books by Jen Hatmaker after she said LGBT couples were "our brothers and sisters in Christ".

"In a recent interview, [Hatmaker] voiced significant changes in her theology of human sexuality and the meaning and definition of marriage  changes which contradict LifeWay's doctrinal guidelines," LifeWay spokesman Marty King told Baptist Press on Thursday.

"As a result, LifeWay has discontinued selling her resources."

Hatmaker has previously said the biblical pattern of one man and one woman is God's plan for families.

But in an interview with Religion News Service on Tuesday Hatmaker said "any two adults have the right to choose who they want to love". She went on to say gay couples should have the "same legal protections as any of us".

She added: "From a spiritual perspective, since gay marriage is legal in all 50 states, our communities have plenty of gay couples who, just like the rest of us, need marriage support and parenting help and Christian community. They are either going to find those resources in the church or they are not.

"Not only are these our neighbours and friends, but they are brothers and sisters in Christ. They are adopted into the same family as the rest of us, and the church hasn't treated the LGBT community like family. We have to do better."

When asked whether she would attend a gay wedding said there was "an easy answer" to that question.

"I would attend that wedding with gladness, and I would drink champagne. I want the very best for my gay friends. I want love and happiness and faithfulness and commitment and community."

If one of her five children was gay Hatmaker had the "same standard across the board". She said: "We want for all of our kids the same thing: faithful, committed marriage and a beautiful family that is committed to God and the church."

She went on to say she thought LGBT relationships can be holy.

LifeWay has now banned books from a number of their former authors including Joel Osteen, William P. Young and Joyce Meyer but it denied having a "blacklist".
Pope Francis Accepts Invitation From South Sudan Church Leaders To Visit War-Torn Nation

Pope Francis wants to visit South Sudan, the world's newest country.

The Pope yesterday accepted an invitation to visit the troubled nation, which gained independence from the north in 2011, at an audience in Rome with church leaders. He will need to be formally invited by the government of South Sudan before he can travel there.

Archbishop Paulino Lukudu Loro of Juba, Episcopal Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul Yak, Primate of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan and Sudan, and Rev Peter Gai Lual Marrow, moderator of the Presbyterian Church of South Sudan were in Rome to share with the Pope some of the traumas being suffered in South Sudan,

Vatican Radio reported that the Pope told the church leaders: "Look, I am with you, I suffer and I live with you. I want to visit southern Sudan. I want to visit South Sudan."

Marrow said: "He accepted the invitation and said that in principle he really wants to come."

South Sudan, where most of the population is Christian or animist, is caught in violent conflict between those that support the present and former president. Peace agreements reached last year failed in July, plunging South Sudan into more violence. Amnesty has described the "deliberate killings of civilians, rapes of women and girls, and looting."

Archbishop Loro said after the meeting that he told Pope Francis some of what is going on.

"There is war, there are killings, there's death, there are refugees, there are people in the camps in the country. There is just disgust about the situation. People feel that although there is a government, it is as if the president is absent.

"We told all this to the Holy Father and we do our best, as a Church, to help in this situation. And we - of course - we asked the Holy Father to come to visit us."

The Catholic church in Sudan asked in January for the Pope to visit. Now all the church leaders have invited him on an ecumenical basis.

During the meeting, the Pope noted the "good and fruitful collaboration" between churches in South Sudan who are working to create reconciliation opportunities. The population "yearns urgently to a secure life and a better future," he was told.

Earlier this year, the Vatican warned of a crackdown on South Sudan media to stop citizens going on talk shows and radio phone-ins to describe what is going on.

Additional reporting by Reuters.
The Glorious Truth Of All Saints Day, And Why It's Better Than Halloween

The old Christian festival of Halloween has been taken over by merchandisers and pumpkin growers. It's even losing its apostrophe, that little reminder that Hallowe'en is really All Hallows Eve  "hallow" is Old English for 'holy' or 'sanctified' and e'en is a contraction of 'evening'.

Christians spend a lot of time on Halloween, protesting about it or worrying about it. Perhaps we shouldn't be too concerned. It's believed to have pagan roots (though some scholars disagree), so may not be all that Christian in origin, and it has always been a chance for people to let their hair down and have a good time; and there's no particular biblical reason why the forces of darkness should be more active then than during the rest of the year.

What's definitely Christian, though, is the day after. All Hallows Day or All Saints Day was designated by Pope Boniface IV as a day to remember all martyrs in AD 609; he chose May 13, but Gregory IV extended it to include all saints and changed the date to November 1.

Catholics (and later Anglicans) have observed it on that day ever since. Evangelical Protestants have always been wary about saints, in reaction to what they feel is the unwarranted and unbiblical place given them by Roman Catholics. It's arguable that the reaction might have gone too far. They are part of the Church Triumphant, while we on earth are still part of the Church Militant; they haven't ceased to live, just because they happen to have died, and in Catholic eyes it makes perfect sense to ask them to pray for us as we continue to fight the good fight of faith.

The other problem Protestants have with saints is that it seems to rank some Christians more highly than others in a rather unhelpful way. Properly speaking, Catholics don't make saints  they declare that someone is a saint after a long and exhaustive process of investigation. But we are all saints, in a biblical sense; in 1 Corinthians Paul writes "To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours" (1:2). We are not saints because we are special Christians, we are saints because we are Christians.

So what should an evangelical Protestant do with All Saints Day? There's a great hymn by William Walsham How (1823-1897) that gives us a clue. For all the saints who from their labours rest is a hymn of thanksgiving for those who've gone before us. It speaks of the struggles we face in our lives today as battles against the forces of evil. Death is not defeat; those who've died have entered into the glorious victory of Christ. "We feebly struggle, they in glory shine," says How. And knowing that they are triumphant in glory encourages us: "And when the fight is fierce, the warfare long / Steals on our ear the distant triumph song / And hearts are brave again, and arms are strong / Alleluia!"

So All Saints Day is a time to be thankful for all those Christians who have lived before us, whether they are officially saints or not. Some are the great teachers and prophets from history. Some are those who've taught and inspired us personally. Some are our friends and family. We can thank God for their witness, and for the way they have transmitted the faith down the generations. We can learn from their lives. We can take time to be grateful for what we've received, and to recommit ourselves to follow in their footsteps.

We are bound together in a great fellowship that transcends time and space; as the hymn says, "All are one in thee, for all are thine."
Third Way: Do You Have to Vote On Election Day?

Must you vote this election? What if one voted for neither Hillary nor Trump? According to a recent report by CBN, many Millennials (the generation aged roughly 18-34) are apathetic, angry and disappointed, and may stay at home on election day.

This may be even more the case for Christian Millenials, who feel morally uncomfortable with both Clinton and Trump. CBN quotes Kirsten Haglund, who says of Millennials:

"I think what you can say generally is that they are just so disturbed about their choices. I think Millennials are really driven by, you know, they're driven by a sense of apathy about what role, about what difference they can really make and what difference government really makes."

Yet Haglund also speaks positively of Christian Millennials whose non-vote stems not from apathy but from a crisis of conscience. Such people still have "a deep sense of purpose when it comes to their role in shaping society."

If there is a third way for Christians to participate on election day, what does it look like?

No 'must' votes?

Many Christians have now openly rejected the idea that one 'must' vote for one of the mainstream candidates. New Testament Professor Darrell L. Bock put it thus: "The choice not to vote for a tornado nor a hurricane reflects a preservation of values about what the church is to be far more important than a four or eight year choice. It is a conscious act intended to speak in the face of injustice coming at us from all sides. There are no musts in this election when it comes to the candidates we have."

Alan Noble, Editor-in-Chief of Christ and Pop Culture, made a similar point well back in June:

"Most conservative evangelicals cannot in good conscience vote for Clinton, and voting for Trump is harmful for our country, conservatism, and our witness to the world  so we must choose to either support a third-party candidate or abstain from voting for president."

Noble later went on to endorse third-party candidate Evan McMullin, knowing that McMullin could never win the election, but as both a protest against Trump and symbol for the kind of conservatism that Noble wants to invest in. It's a choice that looks beyond the current moment of crisis and towards the long term future.

He described a vote for Trump as "a signal to other politicians that the evangelical vote can be gained simply by offering lip-service to a pro-life platform...If we will vote for Trump, who will we not vote for?...Part of the tragedy here is that evangelicals are still a big enough voting bloc that we could prevent either candidate from winning the election."

A vote for Trump he says, is also a deeply damaging witness: "Many of our minority brothers and sisters in Christ are scared, hurt, or threatened by a Trump presidency because of the things he has said and the rabid support of open racists he has received. Listen to their concerns and consider how your public support of Trump might appear to them. If Trump becomes the image of the evangelical presidential candidate, we can expect many young people and minorities to feel further alienated and threatened by the church. "

In Noble's words:

"My objection is to the idea that I must vote for one of two candidates when I believe either will be profoundly harmful to my neighbor. When an election has come to this point, the answer is not to 'hold my nose and vote,' as I have been admonished to do. It requires a drastic action that calls attention to the political and societal rot that brought us here and advocates for a new way forward."

Alternative participation?

Hip Hop artist Sho Baraka wrote for Christianity Today about his refusal to vote for either candidate: "As an African American, I'm marginalised by the lack of compassion on the Right. As a Christian, I'm ostracised by the secularism of the Left."

Baraka sees an alternative way of participating: "Urban Christians are determined to reassert ourselves into the political arena. We refuse to settle for civic engagement that forces us to either neglect our compassion or surrender our convictions. From mass incarceration to the right to life for the unborn, it's time to engage in advocacy that better reflects the love and truth of the gospel.

"Instead of encouraging urban Christians to vote for a false choice this election season, my hope is that we will build a strong base, similar to the Tea Party and the LGBTQ community, that will garner attention from lobbyists, lawmakers, and pundits. The goal is to transcend political parties so that they will no longer be an obstacle. This was the posture of the civil rights movement."

Such approaches highlight other ways to engage. Rather than focusing on one vote every four years, the vision is expanded to something that encompasses far more of our energy. Noble suggests Christians directing their efforts toward local and state level governments who have their own legislative influence and the collective power to restrain an unruly President. Like Baraka, Christians might want to find different ways of advocating for a cause, through social media, working with charities, and public protest and petition.

One example of a tangible Christian 'third way' is Public Faith, a group of Christians which hopes to transcend divisive culture wars, instead providing "A Christian voice for the common good". It aims to display a positive Christian engagement in politics rather than the dogged rhetoric and dubious endorsements that have come to typify the Religious Right. The group, of which Noble was a founding member, describes its vision on its website:

"We believe that neither political withdrawal nor reinvigorated culture wars by Christians will help our nation and communities through the difficult challenges we face. Instead, we seek to offer a different voice: confident and hopeful, equally full of conviction and grace."

However, there are some questions to be asked to those who venture a third way.

There will never be a perfect candidate who satisfies all our criteria of what a good President should be. Our human political systems are broken, limited and often corrupt, but there are no others in this world. As Winston Churchill put it: "Democracy is the worst form of Government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time." We should be hopeful, but we should be wary of being idealistic and refraining our vote until the right candidate or party comes along.

We are called to be salt and light to this broken world, to participate in it, not to ignore it.

There is also a danger that such a stance becomes a cover for apathy. A free vote in society is a rare privilege, something most humans in history, and many still today, do not enjoy. It is a freedom many have died for, and we should not cast it aside lightly. Politics may often seem ineffective, and a vote often even more so, but there is still great power in the political system. Any issue one might care about: education, medical care, poverty, war and peace, social equality  all these can be affected with one's vote.

That said, conscience does matter, and good, wise moral discernment is indispensable for a Christian. Your vote really matters, and so does your integrity.

However one chooses to act on election day, we should take it seriously, and be directed by compassion over apathy, and choose investment over indifference.
Want To Get Those Over-60s Into Church? Seek Them Out At The Gym And In The Political Parties

Churches that want to grow their congregations should consider targeting older people who work out at a gym or who campaign for a political party, new research shows.

People aged over 60 who join a gym are more likely to join a church, the report says.

The finding also applies to mosques and synagogues, even when factoring in the trend in older people becoming more active, according to new analysis of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing.

Research fellow Dr Cesira Urzi Brancati of the International Longevity Centre, who carried out the analysis ahead of the centre's conference in London next month, said there had however been a "marked decline" in the number of people aged 60 to 70 belonging to a religious group in the last decade.

He analysed ageing records from 2004 to 2014.

Not only were over 60s who join a political party eight per cent more likely and those who join four per cent more likely also to join a religious group.

In addition, belonging to a religious group had a small but positive impact on their sense of worth and happiness.

The Church of England recently disclosed proposals to drop its legal requirements for weekly Sunday services as figures published today showed further falls in attendance.

"Outreach programmes by religious groups looking to grow their congregations might best be focused on over 60s who have recently started hitting the gym or campaigning with their local political party of any affiliation," said the International Longevity Centre.

Dave Eaton, policy and public affairs officer, said: "Every aspect of our society and economy is affected by our rapidly ageing population. This analysis might suggest that efforts to boost membership across a range of organisations could be best focused on targeting a new generation of over-60s looking to try something new and become more active."

Former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey of Clifton will address the conference November on the future of faith in an ageing society.
Why I'm Genuinely Worried About A Zombie Apocalypse This Halloween

Zombies don't traditionally wander the streets asking for money or sweets; they're more into blood and gore, generally speaking. For reasons not entirely clear to me, they've become part of the whole debased Halloween observance. Gone are the innocent days of white sheets and witches' hats. The streets will soon be infested with cheerful groups of tomato ketchup-daubed children with plastic axes through their heads. It's all terribly unbiblical.

But is it? Read the prophet Zechariah, and he's so talking about a zombie apocalypse.

"This is the plague with which the Lord will strike all the nations that fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths. On that day people will be stricken by the Lord with great panic. They will seize each other by the hand and attack one another" (14:12-13). 28 Days Later, anyone? Dawn of the Dead?

There are even going to be zombie animals: "A similar plague will strike the horses and mules, the camels and donkeys, and all the animals in those camps" (15).

Now (do I really need to say this?) Zechariah is NOT REALLY TALKING ABOUT ZOMBIES. He's using vivid language to describe the terrible consequences faced by those who fight against God and his people. The whole zombie thing, in today's popular imagination, is pure Hollywood.

But the idea behind it  that the dead can be re-animated and come back to wreak destruction on the living  has a much longer pedigree. The name is believed to come from a Congo word, nzambi, and found its way into English via Haiti and its voodoo religion. It reflects fears in many cultures that the spirits of the dead can persist and do harm.

So biblically speaking  and leaving Zechariah aside  is there anything to be said for this?

In terms of the spirits of the dead returning, there is the strange story in 1 Samuel 28 of Saul and the Witch of Endor, who raised the spirit of Samuel. However we're meant to understand that, it's a long way from the sort of re-animated body envisaged by zombie aficionados.

But maybe there's a different way of thinking about this altogether  not so box-office friendly but far more challenging.

When someone said to Jesus he would follow him after he had buried his father, Jesus said: "Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead" (Matthew 8:22).

Jesus tells John to write to the "angel of the church in Sardis", saying: "I know your deeds: you have a reputation for being alive, but you are dead."

What Jesus is saying in these cases is that there are people walking around among us, to every appearance alive, but dead in everything that really matters. There are zombie Christians, who no longer have a living relationship with God. Those who fail to hear and respond to the message of salvation are dead inside, lacking the new life Christ offers. They don't look any different, but they are.

Christians can get terribly wound up about Hollywood zombies, and it's true that much of how they're portrayed is pretty unsavoury. But the real spiritual danger is elsewhere: it's that Christians go through the motions of faith and lose its living reality, and that we become indifferent to the fact that so many people don't know the Saviour at all.

That's the sort of zombie apocalypse we should really worry about.
Why It's Ok To Be A 'Spineless Christian'

There are some words which certain kinds of Christians recoil from  especially if they're used to describe other Christians. If you're known as "lukewarm", as "backslidden" or "liberal" it's a kind of code for "bad news".

One of the classic words in this genre is "spineless". The word immediately conjures up the kind of believers who are, in the words of James 1:6, "double-minded and unstable in every way". It gets used in election season by Christians on one side of the partisan divide or the other to attack those who they perceive as having surrendered their ethical position to a secular political party.

It gets used more generally by Christians to bemoan others. "Why Some Christians Are So Spineless"? Asked one article. "No More Spineless Christianity" declares another.

This criticism of spinelessness was there in spades in the teaching of Mark Driscoll. He once said, "I cannot worship the hippie, diaper, halo Christ because I cannot worship a guy I can beat up." It isn't just Driscoll, though. Even Billy Graham's daily devotional includes lines such as, "A great problem in America is that we have an anemic and watered-down Christianity that has produced an anemic, watered-down, and spineless Christian who is not willing to stand up and be counted on every issue."

It's clear then, that for many parts of the Church, being 'spineless' has become one of the contemporary deadly sins. But is being spineless really as bad as it sounds?

This question was buzzing round my head when I listened to a song I hadn't played for years. It's by Keane (yes, I have a weakness for sappy indie-pop) and it's called 'Perfect Symmetry'. The title track of the band's third album, it includes the lines, "Maybe you find, life is unkind, and over so soon/There is no golden gate, there's no heaven waiting for you/Spineless dreamers, hide in churches..."

Along with some other references on the album (released in 2008 at the height of the New Atheism fad), it's clear these words were an attempt to discredit religious believers. I suppose the rational, sensible, practical listeners were meant to feel superior to the 'spineless dreamers' hiding in their churches. I had the opposite reaction.

When I heard the words to this song, I agreed with them. Of course churches are full of spineless dreamers. That's kind of the whole point of Church. Didn't Jesus say, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners"? Didn't Pope Francis say, "I see the Church as a field hospital after battle"?

The Church is full of spineless people. The foolish things of the worlds who were chosen by God to shame the wise.

Some of the great heroes of the Jewish and Christian faiths were 'spineless'. King David not only committed adultery, but then had Uriah murdered on the battlefield. That sounds to me like the very definition of spinelessness.

Peter, who'd known and loved Jesus for three years and followed Him everywhere, promised he wouldn't deny Him. Yet, when the time came, Peter denied Jesus not once, but three times. How much more spineless could he be?

Jonah ran away from God  yet another example of a spineless man who ends up a pivotal figure.

There's a risk of turning spinelessness into a virtue, of course. That wouldn't be wise. It's important to have values and virtues and to be able to stand up for them  indeed those who don't stand for something will fall for anything.

Yet it's important to realise just how radical the gospel actually is. If the Church is being true to its calling, then it will always contain people who are struggling to stand up for themselves and for others. It will always contain people who are floundering  and simply telling those people not to be spineless isn't actually going to help.

There's another song that's going round my head now and it's one for the people who feel attacked for being spineless. It's a Brenton Brown song that seems perfect for this subject: "You are the God of the broken, the friend of the weak/You wash the feet of the weary, embrace the ones in need..."
Abstraction as an art form for the 21st century

Christies Amsterdam auctions of Post-War and Contemporary Art on 1 and 2 November include standout pieces by three leading European abstract artists  Gunther Forg, Imi Knoebel and Helmut Federle

Over the course of the 20th century, abstraction changed the visible face of our world  leaping from canvas to canvas, from continent to continent, becoming the defining art form of modernism. Its variations are innumerable, its practitioners masters of its forms: the monochromes of Yves Klein, the grids of Piet Mondrian, the ethereal colour washes of Mark Rothko, the gestural flicks of Jackson Pollock. The work of Gunther Forg, Imi Knoebel and Helmut Federle, however, strips away abstractions utopian ideals and strict dogma of the past, reimagining it as an art form for the turn of the 21st century. Here, we take a closer look at the three artists.

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Gunther Forg



Gunther Forg (19522013), a multidisciplinary German artist whose body of work spanned photography, sculpture, installation and painting, was both a proponent and keen interrogator of the modernist aesthetic tradition. Forg was deeply influenced by Blinky Palermo, the German abstract artist famous for his fabric paintings (cloth pulled over a frame), and his early work consisted mainly of canvases in black acrylic.

Forg expanded into photography in the 1980s, taking architectural landmarks as his subject. Particularly drawn to Bauhaus-era buildings, Forg shot large-scale photos at sharp angles, off-centre or through windows, at once lending his pictures a painterly quality and reflecting a keen interest in fragmentation. Returning to painting later in the 1980s, Forg produced the monochrome lead pieces for which he is perhaps best known: wood panels covered with lead and painted in acrylic. As Forg has said, these works  which mixed media in ways that tested the boundaries of both painting and sculpture  were an attempt to explore a contradictory clarity of form with an expressionist handling. Returning to abstraction from a critical perspective, Untitled (2006) offers a commentary on the paradoxical history of abstract painting.

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Imi Knoebel

As a young man Imi Knoebel (b. 1940), today considered one of the leading contemporary German artists, initially struggled to develop his practice. I thought, Everything has been done already,  he told The Guardian in the summer of 2015. Yves Klein has painted his canvas blue, Lucio Fontana has cut slashes into his. Whats left? If you want to do something, to stay alive, you have to think of something at least as radical.

Ultimately, of course, Knoebel did find his way, studying with Joseph Beuys at the Dusseldorf Art Academy in the 1960s and going on to explore colour, form and space in disciplines ranging from sculpture, painting and photography to installation and light projection. Taking up Malevichs mantle, Knoebels work has remained strictly abstract and minimal, although he moved over the course of his career from black and white to bold, primary colour, often applied on metal plates or plywood board. Among Knoebels most significant works are the nine abstract stained-glass windows he created for the Cathedral of Notre Dame de Reims, installed in 2011 and 2015, each comprised of hundreds of glass pieces in red, blue and yellow.

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Helmut Federle

Swiss painter Helmut Federle (b. 1944), a self-described searcher in the romantic tradition, has referred to himself as drawn to loneliness, the emptiness, the empty spaces, a tendency reflected in his work throughout his career. Federle trained in applied arts in Basel in the 1960s, studying a range of techniques from sculpture and painting to architecture and typography. He moved into complete abstraction from the late 1970s, restricting his colour palette and privileging composition above all.
The A-Z of Andy Warhol

From Campbells Soup Cans to the Velvet Underground and everything in between, a guide to the Pop master  illustrated with works offered at Christies

A is for Andrew Andy Warhol was born Andrew Warhola on 6 August 1928 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He was the youngest of three sons to Slovakian immigrants, Julia and Ondrej. He would anglicise his surname (by dropping the final a) at the start of his artistic career.

B is for Brillo boxes Among Warhols defining works as a Pop artist were the plywood sculptures he painted to resemble the cardboard packaging for Brillo soap pads. Stacked from floor to ceiling at his solo exhibition at Stable Gallery in New York in 1964, they prompted one bemused critic to ask, Is this an art gallery or supermarket warehouse?

C is for Campbells Soup Cans At the dawn of Pop Art, Warhol felt he was being left behind by peers such as James Rosenquist, whod attracted attention for his images of 7 Up bottles. What was even more recognisable than a 7 Up bottle, Warhol wondered, before heading to the nearest supermarket to stock up on soup. For his next show  in Los Angeles in 1962  he produced silkscreen paintings of the cans of all 32 flavours of Campbell's Soup. They were priced at $100 each, yet only six sold. The gallerist Irving Blum decided to buy that half-dozen back to keep the set together  a shrewd move, as it turned out. In 1996 he sold the complete set to MoMA for $15 million.

D is for Dollar bills and Death and Disaster Warhol made no secret of his love of money. He said that a more advanced society than our own would simply hang cash on its walls rather than hang paintings. He also made dollar bills the subject of various artworks over his career. Most lucrative of the lot was the silkscreen canvas, 200 One Dollar Bills, which depicted a 10-by-20 grid of notes and fetched 26 million at auction in 2009.

Warhols Death and Disasters series saw the artist penetrate the veneer of post-war American life to reveal the darker realities that lay beneath. Beginning in 1962, Warhol explored the theme of death through a variety of subjects, appropriating images from newspapers and magazines. Some of the photographs depict race riots, fatal car crashes, suicides, and nuclear explosions. Others are less obvious but no less powerful, such as the Electric Chair, Jackie and Knives series.

E is for Edie Edie Sedgwick was the hard-partying model and society girl who became Warhols muse. The pair made 18 films together, the vast majority of them free-form, avant-garde pieces that had only a limited release in underground cinemas. Sedgwicks cult status soon grew, though. Warhol dubbed her his superstar, and she was his companion at countless social outings in the mid-Sixties. She died in 1971, aged just 28, after a barbiturates overdose.

F is for The Factory and Flowers The Factory was Warhols now-legendary New York studio, where he  and the citys hippest artistic types, Bob Dylan and Allen Ginsberg among them  worked and played. It was here that Warhol shot many of his films; that assistants made prints under his direction; and that infamous parties raged.

Open a larger version of this image Andy Warhol (1928-1987), Flowers, 1964. Acrylic and silkscreen ink on canvas. 14 x 14 in (35.6 x 35.6 cm). Sold for: $435,000 on 5 March 2020 at Christies in New York

Henry Geldzahler, Warhols friend and curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, declared it was he who ultimately inspired Warhol to begin the Flowers series:  I looked around the studio and it was all Marilyn and disasters and death. I said, Andy, maybe its enough death now. He said, What do you mean? I said, Well, how about this? I opened a magazine to four flowers. The magazine was Modern Photography, which in mid-1964 published an article on a new Kodak home colour processing system. To demonstrate the effects of different exposure times and filter settings, the magazines editor included a foldout featuring a photograph of flowers she had taken which illustrated four variants of the image, each with slight colour differences.





G is for Guns On 6 June 1968, the writer-actress Valerie Solanas, an occasional star in Warhols films, burst into The Factory, pulled a .32 automatic from her coat pocket and shot at the artist three times. She later claimed Warhol had had too much control over her life. He survived, but only after five and a half hours of emergency surgery. Warhol had to wear a surgical corset for the rest of his life. Firearms would become a regular subject in his art thereafter  in some 232 drawings, silkscreens and photographs, to be precise.

H is for Hoarding Warhol was master of the mundane  but this extended far beyond introducing everyday subject matter such as soup cans into art. In the 1970s, he began assembling his so-called Time Capsules: boxes of ephemera, ranging from cookie jars and clothing to photographs, notes and newspapers. By the end of his life, he had amassed 610 such capsules. They now form part of the collection of the Andy Warhol Museum, in Pittsburgh.

I is for I. Miller Having moved to New York from Pittsburgh in 1949, Warhol began his career as an illustrator for commercial brands. His biggest success came in the mid-Fifties with the women's shoe company, I. Miller, whose flagging sales and reputation his quirky adverts boosted.

Open a larger version of this image Andy Warhol (19281987), Jackie, 1964. Acrylic and silkscreen ink on canvas. 20 x 16 in (50.8 x 40.6 cm). Estimate: $600,000-800,000. Sold for: $615,000 on 5 March 2020 at Christies in New York

J is for Jackie Kennedy and Jane Fonda He was handsome, young, smart, but it didnt bother me that much that he was dead, Warhol once said of President John F. Kennedy. What bothered me was the way television and radio were programming everybody to feel so sad. It seemed like no matter how hard you tried, you couldnt get away from the thing. In the aftermath of the Presidents assassination in 1963, the artist began working on a series of portraits of Kennedys widow, appropriating media imagery to produce more than 300 works featuring the former First Lady.

Always good for a quote, Warhol once quipped: I am a deeply superficial person. Some critics found his personality  and his art  shallow, pointing especially towards his society portraits from the Seventies. Jimmy Carter, O.J. Simpson and Jane Fonda were among the stars who sat for Polaroid photographs, which he later converted into silkscreen canvases. These werent so much artistic analyses of fame, as his visions of faded stars in the Sixties had been (see K and M)  rather, these appeared to be straight homage paid by one celebrity to another.

K is for The King As in Elvis Presley. Fame was one of Warhols chief preoccupations, and in the one-time King of RocknRoll  being eclipsed in the early Sixties by a new generation of performers like The Beatles  the artist found fascinating subject matter. Warhol relied on a publicity still of Elvis from the film Flaming Star and, in various works in various ways, repeated it across a canvas. Each Elvis figure tends to dissolve into another, symptomatic of the real Presleys decline. Was Warhol perhaps simultaneously suggesting the continual snapping of a paparazzos camera, or even the idea that celebrities had multiple, manufactured personae and could never truly be themselves?

L is for Lichtenstein and Liz Roy Lichtenstein, that is  Warhols Pop Art peer and rival. Both began the 1960s with imagery inspired by comic books, in Warhols case a display window at the department store, Bonwit Teller, featuring subjects such as Popeye and Superman. For his part, Lichtenstein went on to forge a whole career out of comic-book and cartoon imagery with works such as Wham!, Drowning Girl and Look Mickey. It was Lichtensteins runaway success that soon prompted Warhol to look elsewhere for his subject matter: namely the supermarket.

As one of the greatest cinematic icons of the latter half of the 20th century, Elizabeth Taylor was a fitting subject for Warhols celebrity-oriented art. Indeed, of all the many famous stars that Andy Warhol knew and painted, he seems to have held Elizabeth Taylor in especially high regard, seeing her as the absolute epitome of glamour. They became friends in the late 1970s and 80s, and Warhol quipped as a choice of afterlife, he would like to be reincarnated as a big ring on Taylors finger. Taylor first appeared in one of his tabloid paintings, Daily News, a painting documenting her illness of 1961. She resurfaced in allusion only, in The Men in Her Life, a work based on a 1957 photograph, which included both her current husband, Mike Todd, and her future one, Eddie Fisher. Most often, however, Warhol was intrigued with Liz as Hollywood starlet: he multiplied images of her characters in National Velvet and Cleopatra, or more simply portrayed her celebrated beauty in numerous full-face portraits

M is for Marilyn and Mao Following her death in August 1962, Warhol made a series of paintings in tribute to Marilyn Monroe, based on a publicity still from her 1953 film Niagara. He often repeated the still across the same work, evoking both a film frame and Monroes ubiquitous presence in the media. In perhaps his most famous example, the Tate-owned Marilyn Diptych, the images of Monroe begin in luscious colour on the left before fading into ashen tones, and finally oblivion, on the right: as if reflecting the stars fragile mortality.

Andy Warhols 1972 portrait of Mao Zedong marked the artists return to painting after a short period during which he had concentrated almost exclusively on filmmaking. His choice of Chairman Mao tapped into the easing of relations between the United States and China after President Nixons visit to communist China in February of that year. The American public became quickly accustomed to the visage of Chairman Mao, and Warhol mined the myth surrounding the man synonymous with absolute political and cultural power. Both Mao and Warhol understood the force that an image could exercise, and just like the Chinese leader, Warhols rendition of an authoritarian ruler was anchored in the medias power to create, canonise, and commodify personas for collective absorption. By choosing the leader of the worlds largest communist country as his first subject on returning to painting, the foremost chronicler of the consumerist society creates a distinctly Warholian fusion of East and West. And by adopting a an updated version of his silkscreen method of painting, Warhol suggests that Maos popularity could be as much the product of highly effective marketing as the cans of tomato soup or Coca-Cola bottles.

Open a larger version of this image Andy Warhol (1928-1987), Mao: one print, 1972. Screenprint in colours on on Beckett High White paper. Sheet: 36 x 36 in (91.4 x 91.4 cm). Sold for: $37,500 on 4 March 2020 at Christies in New York

N is for Nixon Warhol wasnt the most political of artists, but his support for Democrat candidate George McGovern in the 1972 presidential elections was unstinting. His tactic: to create a poster portrait of the Republican candidate and incumbent president Richard Nixon in a sinisterly pale green colour that suggested he was a devil. The glaring yellow eyes and mouth, which seems to be on the point of foaming, add to the sense of the demonic.

O is for O.J. Simpson In the spring of 1977, the businessman, art collector and sports fan Richard Weisman commissioned Warhol to depict 10 of the most famous sports stars of the era in 40 x 40 inch, multi-coloured portraits. The list included Muhammad Ali, Jack Nicklaus, Pele, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Chris Evert and the American football star and aspiring actor O.J. Simpson. The artist first met Simpson in Buffalo in October of that year, describing him as being movie-star handsome and taking 46 shots on his Polaroid Big Shot camera. Four shots of each athlete were subsequently selected to be made into screens.

The Complete Athletes Series saw Warhol returning to familiar territory, although instead of Campbells Soup Cans and Coca-Cola bottles, his fascination with consumer culture was now directed towards the sports stars of the day.

Open a larger version of this image Andy Warhol (1928-1987), Vitas Gerulaitis, 1978. Graphite on paper. 31 x 24 in (79.4 x 61 cm). Sold for: $50,000 on 5 March 2020 at Christies in New York

P is for Popism This was the name of Warhol's memoir about his life in the Sixties, which he penned in 1980. It was, in fact, largely ghost-written (thanks to the efforts of his friend Pat Hackett), but there are still plenty of pithily Warholian observations. Of Pop Art, he said: The idea behind [it] was that anybody can do anything. Warhol felt that, after centuries of the domination of elite tastes, Pop was a movement that finally democratised art, for artists and viewers alike.

Q is for queen In the mid-Eighties Warhol created a portfolio of screenprint portraits of the worlds four reigning female monarchs: Queen Elizabeth II of England, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and Queen Ntobi Twala of Swaziland. Rumour has it that the English monarch was so fond of her depictions that she had an edition bought for the Royal Collection to mark her Diamond Jubilee in 2012.

R is for race riots A series of silkscreen paintings from 1963-64 derived from three photographs Warhol had seen in Life magazine of police dogs attacking civil rights protesters in Birmingham, Alabama. These images of political oppression and racial segregation offered another diagnosis of America, complementing his Death & Disasters series. In many cases, Warhol repeated his photographic source across the canvas  to such an extent that we start to see a pattern rather than figurative representation. Media overexposure, the point goes, can desensitise us even to the most shocking imagery.

S is for silkscreen This was Warhols trademark technique, one that particularly appealed because it allowed him to paint like a machine, removing evidence of the artists hand in favour of a mass-produced look. The process (akin to that used in the making of T-shirts and greetings cards) involved stencilling photographs onto an acetate plate, which was then transferred onto a meshed screen. Paint was duly applied through the mesh and a design transferred onto canvas. (In the case of silkscreen prints, as opposed to paintings, the process is much the same  except that ink and paper substitute for paint and canvas.)

T is for TV At the turn of the 1980s, Warhol embraced a new format  television. He insisted it was the medium [hed] most now like to shine in, wowed by its ability to communicate far and fast. His first effort was a 10-show series about fashion for a Manhattan cable channel. His next, Andy Warhols TV, featured interviews with celebrities, from Debbie Harry to Stephen Spielberg. His big televisual break, though, came with Andy Warhol's 15 Minutes, which screened nationwide on MTV. It ran for just four episodes  before Warhols death in 1987, aged 58, from complications after a gall bladder operation.

U is for Uccello Warhols isnt a name you usually associate with Florentine Old Masters, but in the Eighties he created silkscreen adaptations of many Renaissance masterpieces  including Botticellis Birth of Venus and Paolo Uccellos St George and the Dragon.

V is for The Velvet Underground Warhol briefly managed rock group The Velvet Underground. His knowledge of music was limited to say the least, but he didnt let a small matter like that get in the way. Warhol designed the now-famous cover for the bands debut album, complete with provocative banana and accompanying text instruction to peel back and see. Warhol also thrust the Velvets to the heart of his Sixties event-spectacular, the Exploding Plastic Inevitable, a template for multi-media rock concerts today, featuring innovative lighting, film projections, the Velvets music  and sporadic whip dancing.

W is for worship As a young man in Pittsburgh, Warhol developed a fondness  bordering on obsession  for Truman Capote. Initially he bombarded the author with phone calls and fan mail, with such regularity that Capotes mother intervened and demanded he stop. Then, when Warhol moved to New York, he often hung around outside Capotes house for hours on end waiting for a sight of his idol. His first exhibition in New York was a set of 15 drawings inspired by A Tree of the Night and other short stories by Capote.

X is for X-rated In the Seventies, Warhols film work moved on from the avant-garde to schlock horror. He produced two films, Blood for Dracula and Flesh for Frankenstein, both of which were given an X rating.

Y is for YouTube Warhol was more than an artist; he was also a prophet. With his most famous quote  In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes  he predicted the rise of reality television and social media in one fell swoop. Since his death, he has also become a hit on YouTube  one of his intentionally banal films, of him eating a hamburger, has reached more than 1.6 million views on the channel.
10 things to know about Marc Chagall

Alastair Smart looks at the life and work of the Russian artist  born Moyshe Segal, revered by Picasso and the Surrealists, and a defining figure in the history of European Modernism

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He described his father as a galley slave in the Russian town of Vitebsk The eldest of nine children, Marc Chagall was born Moyshe Segal, in July 1887, in an area of the Russian Empire thats today part of Belarus. His father, Zachar, hauled barrels for a herring merchant. Although Chagall was exaggerating in his memoir, My Life, when he compared Zachar to a galley slave, the work was apparently so hard that it made him determined to avoid a similar fate, and to pursue his dream of becoming an artist. My heart used to twist like a Turkish bagel as I saw my father lift those weights, Chagall wrote.

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He would leave Vitebsk, but Vitebsk would never leave him



In 1906, aged 19, Chagall moved to the Russian capital, St Petersburg, where he attended art school. His home town became the main source of inspiration for his paintings at this time  as it would be throughout his career, even though he spent most of his life in faraway places. Its often said that revisiting Vitebsk on canvas offered Chagall a nostalgic retreat into childhood, no matter how harsh the realities of his adult life (one marked, at different times, by war, revolution and flight). The bearded man, attired in the long dark coat and Kashkel cap typically worn by the poor Jewish communities in Vitebsk, is a recurrent presence in his paintings, paying tribute to the artists homeland and the culture that shaped him.

The rooster and the violinist that appear in Le peintre, la mariee et son tableau ou Couple et violinist are also among the artists most recurrent motifs, referencing Chagalls rural upbringing and Jewish heritage.

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He absorbed influences from all sides



Chagalls originality lay in his very personal synthesis of the influences he seized on from all sides. As well as Russian folk art and Orthodox Church icons, he drew on Jewish artistic tradition, too  not to mention contemporary Western work, after he moved to Paris in 1911.

The subdued palette of his earlier paintings gave way to passages of strong, pure colour inspired by the Fauves. Used for emotional and/or mystical effect, intense colour would become a feature of Chagalls art thereafter.

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Chagall savoured Frances light of freedom Upon moving to Paris, the artist changed his name to the French-sounding Marc Chagall. Paris was also where he met Pablo Picasso. Never one to lavish praise on a rival unduly, the Spaniard said of the Russian, I dont know where he gets those images from; he must have an angel in his head. For a while, Chagall dabbled with Cubism, but this was a short-lived phase  he found Cubism too rational and geometric, insisting he didnt care for its fill of square pears on triangular tables.

In later life, from the 1950s onwards, he and Picasso would live near each other on the French Riviera. Chagall cherished his adopted home for the phenomenon he called lumiere-liberte, or the light of freedom, and nowhere was the inspiration of lumiere-liberte more intensely felt than in the south of France, where he always kept vases of flowers in his studio. The artist celebrated lumiere-liberte as a joyous renewal of creative possibilities in a series of sumptuous floral paintings, a subject to which he repeatedly returned.

5

He embraced the Russian Revolution  initially, at least Chagall returned to Russia to see his family and fiancee Bella in 1914. He planned to stay just three months, but the outbreak of World War I meant he had to postpone his return to Western Europe indefinitely. In 1917 the Bolshevik Revolution took place, and Chagall was sympathetic to it. He was now, finally, granted full citizenship rights in his own country  something which, as a Jew under the Tsarist regime, he had been denied. He was even appointed Commissar for Art in Vitebsk, although ideological differences soon led to his resignation. Chagalls work had taken an increasingly fantastical turn by this point, full of green cows and flying horses, and his opponents complained this had little to do with Marx or Lenin.

6

He was hailed as a godfather and a genius by the Surrealists



Back in Paris in 1923, Surrealism had become the major intellectual movement in the city, and Chagalls dreamlike visions from the previous decade were hailed as groundbreaking. According to the Surrealists leader, Andre Breton, no work was ever so resolutely magical as Chagalls. The Russian was officially invited to join the movement, but declined.

7

As well as whimsical, Chagall could also be political Levitating lovers are probably the most recurrent characters in Chagalls oeuvre. From 1937 onwards, however, he also began to depict the Crucifixion on a regular basis. The date is no coincidence. Nazi deportations of and atrocities against Jews were becoming ever more prevalent.

Chagalls response was to appropriate the Crucifixion from Christian artistic tradition and reconsider its subject as a symbol of Jewish martyrdom instead (Jesus himself, of course, having been a Jew). Nazi barbarism was clearly the main source of inspiration, but Chagall was also drawing on his experience of anti-Jewish pogroms during his youth in Russia.

8

Chagall spent most of the Second World War in New York



France under Vichy rule was a dangerous place for Jews to live, so Chagall and Bella (now his wife) accepted an invitation of sanctuary in the United States. The artistic highlights of his stay included set and costume designs for Leonide Massines ballet, Aleko, which premiered to great acclaim in 1942. Bella died from a viral infection two years later. In memoriam, her image would recur  as lover or bride  in several of Chagalls paintings until his own death in 1985.

9

After the Second World War he was feted by collectors, critics and curators Chagall received a retrospective at both New Yorks Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and the Art Institute of Chicago before returning to France in 1948. His place as one the key figures of 20th-century art was now assured. Chagall started experimenting in an array of new media: tapestry, pottery, mosaics and, most successfully, stained glass. His penchant for large areas of saturated colour made stained glass a logical choice. His most famous commission was the Peace Window, in celestial blue, for the United States Secretariat building in New York.

10

He was the last surviving master of European Modernism



In 1967, aged 80, Chagall painted two gigantic murals for the lobby of New Yorks Metropolitan Opera House, at Lincoln Center: The Sources of Music and The Triumph of Music, both measuring 30 ft by 36 ft. In glowing red and yellow, he paid homage to the great composers of the past, most prominently Mozart, who flies like an angel above the Manhattan skyline, embracing characters from his opera, The Magic Flute.
Bill Montgomery

Travelers have a new international flight option beginning Sunday when Singapore Airlines launches new service between Houston's Bush Intercontinental Airport and Manchester, England.

Singapore Airlines' first transatlantic flight to and from the U.K. begins service five times a week on Sunday, according to a Houston Business Journal report. The first flight arrives from the U.K. at 3:30 p.m.
General Electric denied reports late Thursday that it's in talks to buy the Houston oil services company Baker Hughes.

The Wall Street Journal, citing unnamed sources, reported earlier that GE approached the Baker Hughes about a takeover. In a statement, GE, headquarterd in Boston, said saying it is only in talks with Baker Hughes regarding partnerships, not a potential acquisition.

"We are in discussion with Baker Hughes on potential partnerships. While nothing is concluded, none of these options include an outright purchase," said GE spokeswoman Jennifer Erickson in an email response.

Baker Hughes declined comment.

Baker Hughes agreed two years ago to sell itself to rival Halliburton Co. for $35 billion, or $78.62 per share. Earlier this year, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit to block the proposed merger, and the deal fell apart.

Baker Hughes shares closed Thursday at $54.55.
The big news in the fashion world this week was the announcement that Bella Hadid is following in her sister Gigi's footsteps, right down the runway for Victoria's Secret.

The 20-year-old model will appear in the fashion show airing Dec. 5 alongside her big sister Gigi. Gigi made her debut with VS last year. Turns out modeling just runs in their genes.
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When voters head to the polls Nov. 8 in Klein ISD, trustee position 7 incumbent, Rick Mann, will be seeking a ninth term. He's unopposed.

The following four people are seeking to be elected as the next Position 6 trustee after Paul Lanham opted not to seek a third term. Early voting runs through Nov. 4.

For more information about polling locations visit, http://www.harrisvotes.org/

Catherine "Cathy" Arellano

https://www.facebook.com/CathyArellanoschoolboard/

Arellano, 63, is a retired educator of 40 years where she taught, supervised, and developed programs and activities for students.

Originally from Galveston, Arellano has been an educator in the district for 29 years at Klein Oak, where her son graduated in 2007.

One of her priorities is communication, "more a two-way communication where stakeholders are given more opportunity to have initial input," she said.

It's about exploring "how we are as a district in providing sufficient facilities, qualified faculty and resources in order for all students to graduate with the endorsement of their choice," for example.

Her other priority is to focus on the students' grade to grade transitions from kindergarten through their senior year to ensure a smooth matriculation. She sees rapid growth as Klein's most pressing concern.

"I want to support growth in course offerings to meet graduation endorsement requirements to guarantee that students are able to pursue their interests in high school and prepare for their futures," she said.

Arellano emphasizes her collaborative approach.

"A focus on diversity awareness, differentiated instruction and digital learning are necessary to ensure success of all students," she said. "With the collaborative support of all stakeholders, education should speak to the individual needs of each student."

Doug James

https://www.facebook.com/DougJamesforKlein/

James, 58, came from his hometown Erie, Pa., ultimately settling in Klein in 1982 after getting a job with Compaq Computers. For the past 14 years, he's owned and operated The D. James Group, a marketing, and creative services firm that works with non-profits, ministries, and cause-based business."

He sees managing anticipated growth and high quality teacher retention as the most important issues facing the district.

"We have to provide specific incentives for accomplished classroom teachers, who don't what to be administrators and want remain classroom teachers. One way is not rewarding them because their classes passed a standardized test, but because students consistently showed mastery of a subject," he said.

"Currently, I have only seen an advancement path through promotion to administrator. I would propose a reward and recognition system that incentivizes innovation, creativity, and advancement," he continued, "In addition, ensuring each campus has outstanding, capable experienced principals and administrators."

He's also focused on preparing the district for a future with shifting demographics by proposing to provide the resources and support needed to accomplish this, so as to improve the district collectively. Again, for James, it's about communicating to make sure everyone is fairly represented.

James is a parent of three who've graduated from the district.

"I believe my professional background makes me uniquely qualified to be a positive addition to Klein ISD board," he said.

Cecilia "Cissy" Saccomano

https://www.facebook.com/electcissy/

Saccomano, 67, is a Brownsville native who has lived in Klein for 38 years.

Saccomano has worked in Klein ISD as a teacher, principal and district administrator for nearly 30 years.

She sells this experience, touting her understanding of the Texas educational system, her role in developing educational strategies, and her experience with community relations.

She also points to her Texas Superintendent's certificate as an example of her understanding of "the competencies necessary for a successful superintendent."

A resident of Gleannloch Farms with her husband, both of her children graduated from Klein Forest High School. She's also on the Board of Directors of the Klein Education Foundation.

"The most challenging aspect of the fast growth we are experiencing is coming up with the M&O funds to staff the new schools we are building," she said. "It is a constant challenge to find the funds to accommodate growth, yet keep a reasonable tax rate."

Saccomano said her experience as a teacher informs her plan to retain the best ones on the district.

That plan includes competitive salary packages, a collaborative and supportive environment, and highlights listening to district teachers' feedback-something she said can be accomplished by offering them more leadership roles like on planning committees.

Aside from fast growth, she sees bridging the achievement gap as a top issue. She wants to ensure English Language Learners and Special Education students have proper resources to achieve to their potential as well as training teachers to work with a spectrum of learners in a society with shifting demographics.

"When I was a teacher, I touched the lives of approximately 150 students per year. As a principal of a middle school, I influenced teachers and students in a school of, on average, 1200 students," she said. "As a Board member, I could devote my talents and energy to 51,000 students and the community of Klein ISD."

Robert Dembo

Dembo, 63, is from Mobile, Alabama. A military veteran, Dembo also worked in Houston's Office of Veterans Affairs. His priority is to raise the performance of all student and close the achievement gap. He sells his leadership skills as one of his defining characteristics.
Nov. 4. That's the date that Houston burger fans have been waiting for. And now Shake Shack, the international burgers/fries/shakes hit, has set the date for the opening of its first Houston store at 5015 Westheimer at the Galleria. Shake Shackers mark your calendar for 11 a.m. on Nov. 4.

The restaurant has already teased local customers with a pop-up at the Pass & Provisions on Oct. 16 that attracted 1,200. It was an indication just how strong Houston foodies are interested in the Danny Meyer burger brand.
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The Interstate 45 Causeway linking Galveston to the mainland has been named after the late George P. and Cynthia Woods Mitchell, leaders in restoring historic buildings on the island.

The Galveston Regional Chamber of Commerce said the Mitchells were "pacesetters in the restoration movement on Galveston Island, and in the tourism industry launching Galveston into the national spotlight."

"In addition to restoring landmark properties including the Hotel Galvez, numerous downtown historic buildings, and the development of the west end, Pirate's Beach and Pirates Cove, the couple revived Mardi Gras! Galveston that continues to draw thousands of visitors to the Island," the news release said.

The chamber had pushed for the renaming, which was marked by a ceremony Tuesday attended by state Sen. Larry Taylor, state Rep. Wayne Faircloth and former state Sen. A.R. "Babe" Schwartz.

The renaming came three years after George Mitchell -- a Texas oilman, real estate developer and one of Houston's wealthiest businessmen -- died at age 94. Cynthia Woods Mitchell -- a patron of the arts, impassioned environmentalist and avid historical preservationist -- died in 2009.

The son of Greek immigrants, George Mitchell was born in Galveston and made his fortune in the oil industry. He was an early proponent of "fracking," utilizing techniques that made shale gas economically viable and that laid the groundwork for later growth in the domestic natural gas industry.

A real estate developer as well, Mitchell is best-known in the Houston area for creating The Woodlands as a forested enclave in sync with nature. The highly performing arts center there bears the name of Cynthia Woods Mitchell.

She embraced a wide range of causes and interests, ranging from the Boy and Girl Scouts to Trinity Episcopal Church and Texas Children's Hospital. She was a benefactor of the Houston Symphony, Houston Grand Opera and Houston Ballet, and was instrumental in creating UH's Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts.

George Mitchell focused on philanthropic efforts after selling his oil and gas company in 2002 for $3.5 billion. He became the largest donor to his alma mater, Texas A&M, giving 135 acres on Pelican Island to establish Texas A&M University at Galveston.

Mitchell's commitment to Galveston's revitalization helped the city recover from Hurricane Ike.

"Born on the Island, George Mitchell had a deep love for Galveston and a lifetime commitment to its progress," the news release said. "It is with deep appreciation and admiration, that the State of Texas has named the entrance to Galveston the George and Cynthia Mitchell Memorial Causeway."
A food service worker at Seven Lakes High School was arrested Thursday morning on charges of possessing child pornography.

The Katy ISD Police Department and the FBI arrested Allan Wayne McNeill, 51, at his Harris County home after electronic evidence was seized from his home.

McNeill, who worked as a central office food service employee, has worked at the district since November 2012.

FBI spokeswoman Shauna Dunlap said McNeill was charged federally with Possession of Child Pornography and Receipt of Child Pornography.

There is no evidence at this time to indicate these crimes involved any students at the school," Dunlap said.

She could not comment further because U.S. Department of Justice policy prohibits commenting on ongoing investigations.

In a letter sent to Seven Lakes High School parents, district officials said they could not elaborate on details of McNeills arrest due to the nature of the investigation.

"The District has initiated the process of termination for this employee," the district wrote. "In Katy ISD, the safety of all students is our top priority, and we will continue to cooperate fully with the FBI during this investigation."

This is a developing story. Check back with chron.com for more details.
A former paramedic with the Houston Fire Department was arrested after police said he exchanged pornographic photos with an underage girl out of state.

According to a criminal complaint filed against Ruperto Martinez Jr. in Harris County District Court, a 14-year-old female was sending and receiving sexually explicit photos and messages to Martinez from Iowa City, Iowa.

RELATED: Katy ISD food service worker arrested on child porn charges

Deputies in Iowa City contacted the Houston Police Department in April after interviewing the teenager. She told Iowa City police that she sent Martinez pictures and videos of her bare breasts through the Kik Messenger and ooVoo apps.

Police were able to trace the Kik and ooVoo accounts to Martinez after receiving an IP address from Comcast. One of the IP addresses returned to Fire Station 93 in Houston, according to court records. Phone numbers and email addresses of the Kik and ooVoo accounts were owned by Martinez.

READ MORE: Texas man gets 30 years for making child porn in Mexico

HPD interviewed Martinez on June 29. He told investigators that he started talking to the girl in 2014, when she was about 12 or 13 years old, according to investigators.

Martinez told HPD that he wanted to "role play" but wasn't into fantasizing. He acknowledged that the he and the girl exchanged nude photos of themselves. Martinez said he felt "kind of bad" about the photos from the teenager and "did not think it was ok" to send and receive the nude images, court documents state.

RELATED: South Texas woman gets 30 years for baby-sitting child porn

Martinez told investigators that he thought the girl was 17 based on conversations they had about school. Martinez admitted to exchanging nude photos with other female minors on Kik. He said he deleted the images afterward because "the girls were too young."

Martinez is no longer employed with the Houston Fire Department. He was arrested on Thursday.
President Obama granted 98 prison commutations for federal inmates, including four from the Houston area, the White Houston announced on Thursday.

Including Thursday's numbers, Obama has commuted the sentences of 872 convicted felons  more than the past 11 presidents combined  and 688 this year alone, White House officials said.

The inmates from Texas all had convictions with lengthy sentences for offenses related to narcotics trafficking.

Edward Lionel Blake, from Houston, was sentenced to 30 years in prison for possessing cocaine base with intent to distribute and conspiracy. He also was ordered to five years supervised release and a $1,000 fine. Under the commutation, Blake's sentence will expire on Feb. 27, 2017.

Charlton Esekhigbe, of Missouri City, was convicted of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams of cocaine and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Esekhigbe was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison along with 10 years of supervised release. Under the commutation, his sentence will expire on Oct. 27, 2018, on the condition that he enrolls in a residential drug treatment program.

"While there has been much attention paid to the number of commutations issued by the President, at the core, we must remember that there are personal stories behind these numbers. These are individuals  many of whom made mistakes at a young age who have diligently worked to rehabilitate themselves while incarcerated," the White House said in a statement released on Thursday.
SAN ANTONIO  As officials released the identity of a woman who was killed while chasing her vehicle that was being towed Tuesday on the North Side, family and friends expressed their shock and sadness on Facebook.

Natalie Estelle Servantes, 28, died due to injuries sustained from a motor vehicle, the Bexar County Medical Examiner said Thursday. Her death was ruled an accident by the medical examiner, but police are still investigating the incident in an effort to "piece together what happened," said SAPD spokeswoman Romana Lopez.
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More than 800 families are waiting to receive Thanksgiving meals from Northwest Assistance Ministries this November.

Every year, the Assistance Department at NAM invites families in need to register for Thanksgiving meals. Qualifying families will receive a traditional turkey and all the trimmings needed to complete a Thanksgiving dinner. The Thanksgiving meal giveaway is valued at $50 per family and it can feed a family of four for three to five days.

"We want families to know that they don't have to do it alone," explained Debbie Peterson, Director of NAM's Assistance Department. "As we continue to see a growing need for Thanksgiving meals every holiday season, NAM wants to be there to provide the extra help some clients may need to feed their families. That's the whole reason behind Neighbors Helping Neighbors here at NAM," Peterson said.

The Assistance Department is expecting to receive 600 people on Saturday, Nov. 19, and 200 more on Monday, Nov. 21. Qualifying families can get registration information by calling the Assistance line at 281-583-4597.

Donations can be delivered to the Joanne Watford Nutrition Center at 15555 Kuykendahl Road, Houston Monday through Friday. For more information, call 281-885-3914.

Help NAM by donating the following food items for their Thanksgiving giveaway. Cash donations and fresh produce are gratefully appreciated.

Other items on the shopping list include , frozen turkey or ham, canned fruit, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, stuffing, canned pumpkin, cream of mushroom soup, canned mixed vegetables, canned yams, chicken broth, canned soup, brownie, cookie and cake mix, turkey or chicken gravy and evaporated milk.

The Joanne Watford Nutrition Center is a choice food pantry that operates like a grocery store. The JWNC enables qualifying clients to shop for and select food items based on the family's nutrition needs.

During the fiscal year 2015-16, the JWNC provided groceries for well-balanced fresh, frozen and non-perishable meals to 18,765 people. As part of the Senior Food Program, 125 low-income seniors received supplemental groceries monthly. More than 1,000 families were provided with holiday food last year.

Northwest Assistance Ministries is a nonprofit, community-based social service agency that strives to meet basic human needs through Neighbors Helping Neighbors. NAM provides assistance in areas such as food, shelter, health, education and domestic violence awareness. During its last fiscal year, NAM touched the lives of more than 115,000 people through its many programs and services.

Dems to feature railroad opponents

On Wednesday, Nov. 2, Cy-Fair Democrats will welcome local opponents of the Texas Central Railroad to present their case. Speakers will include residents whose properties will be affected by this elevated high speed rail line, as well as members of their legal team. Also, in a final drive to bring out Democratic voters to the polls, the party will be sharing phone banking information.

Meeting is at Romero's Las Brazas Mexican restaurant, 15703 Longenbaugh at Texas 6. Meet-and-greet starts at 6 p.m. followed by a 6:45 p.m. business meeting and 7 p.m. program.

Visit http://cyfairdems.blogspot.com/ for more information.

The Get Together Northwest plans lunch

Home Place of Texas will be the featured ministry at the November luncheon of The Get Together Northwest.

The luncheon will be 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nov. 8 in the multipurpose building at Champion Forest Baptist Church, 15555 Stuebner Airline Road, Houston.

Lunch will be sponsored by a mini-grant received from the Center for Neighborhood Enterprise.

Visit www.gettogethernw.org for more information.

PTSD topic of AAUW meeting

James W. Mehrmann, retired U.S. Navy captain, will speak at the Nov. 17 meeting of the AAUW North Harris County Program at Greenwood Forest Residents Club, 12700 Champion Forest Drive. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m.

Mehrmann is director of outreach for the PTSD Foundation of America and will speak about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Visit http://nharriscounty-tx.aauw.net/ for information.

Urban Air now open in northwest Houston

Urban Air Trampoline and Adventure Park, 20502 Hempstead Road, Suite 110, Houston, recently opened.

Facility hours are 3-8 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays; noon-11 p.m. Fridays, 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Saturdays and 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Wednesdays.

The 40,000-square-foot park features wall-to-wall trampolines, mini trampolines, indoor roller coasters, trampoline dodgeball, slam dunk rack and other activities.

Owners are Grant and Stephanie Pederson.

Email info@urbanairtrampolinepark.com, visit www.urbanairtrampolinepark.com or call 832-447-1278.
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The Fort Bend County Commissioners Court unanimously voted Oct. 25 to appoint Lt. Gary Majors to finish the term of longtime Precinct 2 Constable Ruben Davis, who died Oct. 18 after a long illness.

Majors will be constable until Davis' four-year term ends Dec. 31.

Davis had been constable since 1996.

Majors, 47, has spent his entire law enforcement career working in the Precinct 2 Constable's office, which is responsible for the east side of Fort Bend County, including Missouri City.

Majors said he plans to continue running the office the way Davis, whom many described as a role model for finding the balance between policing and protecting, did.

"There won't be any changes," Majors said. "What the constable put in place for us, his tradition of policing, we'll continue to keep that legacy going."

A graduate of the Houston Community College Police Academy, Majors started out as a reserve deputy in 1994. He was hired full-time in 1996 and has been a lieutenant for over 15 years.

"Gary Majors has been in the department for over 22 years, and he's worked in all aspects of the operation," said Fort Bend County Precinct 2 Commissioner Grady Prestage, who recommended Majors to the Commissioners Court. "So he's got all of the requisites and background to know how to run the office."

As a lieutenant, Majors' responsibilities included assisting with the patrol and civil divisions and running the office, Majors said.

Majors lives in Missouri City with his wife and 12-year-old daughter.

Once Davis' term ends Dec. 31, there's a possibility Majors could still continue on as constable.

Davis was running unopposed for re-election. Because there were no other candidates, he will be elected Nov. 8, Fort Bend County Judge Robert Hebert said.

Once the results of the election are canvassed, the commissioners court must appoint a constable to serve just the first two years of the four year term, Hebert.

Hebert said it is possible the court will appoint Majors again.

Majors said he would be open to accepting the position.

In 2018, should Majors want to finish out the four-year term, he must run for re-election, Hebert said.

He can run for a full four-year term in 2020, Hebert said.

Majors said he hasn't decided if he will run in 2018 or 2020.
An undergraduate student's blog post recently went viral when she opened up about feeling hurt after her professor accused her of plagiarism.

Tiffany Martinez, who attends the College of Arts & Sciences at Suffolk University in Boston, said she felt disrespected and invalidated in class.

"My professor handed me back a paper in front of my entire class and exclaimed 'this is not your language,'" Martinez wrote. "On the top of the page they wrote in blue ink: 'Please go back and indicate where you cut and paste.'"

READ MORE: A&M students talk campus racism on social media

Worst of all, Martinez' professor grilled her on the use of the word "hence," writing "this is not your word."

In the question that best summarized her frustration, Martinez asked "How many degrees do I need for someone to believe I am an academic?"

Most people have been quick to show Martinez overwhelming support, but others fail to see why she would react emotionally to an accusation of plagiarism. Some seem to believe she's turning it into a "race thing."

READ MORE: 68 factual errors identified in controversial 'Mexican American Heritage' textbook

Studies show Latinos are treated as if they are less likely to succeed in college, less likely to receive a callback from a job interview and more likely to receive a ticket or to be victims of police brutality.

"At this moment, I am in the process of advocating for myself to prove the merit of my content to people who will never understand what it is like to be someone like me," Martinez wrote. "I understand that no matter how hard I try or how well I write, these biases will continue to exist around me. I understand that my need to fight against these social norms is necessary."

Click through above to see 10 things to know about Houston's changing Hispanic population
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The U.S. Air Force was supposed to start phasing out the A-10 Thunderbolt II in 2017, but it appears those plans have changed.

Air Force Material Command Chief Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski told Aviation Week that the plane will continue to be built for the foreseeable future.

READ MORE: 41 pictures that show why a U.S. aircraft carrier is such a dominate force

"They have re-geared up, we've turned on the depot line, we're building it back up in capacity and supply chain," Pawlikowski said in an Aviation Week interview. "Our command, anyway, is approaching this as another airplane that we are sustaining indefinitely."

The A-10 was supposed to be retired for more F-35s. Aviation Week reports the A-10 has a "critical role in the campaign against Islamic State terrorists in Iraq and Syria," making it a popular model to continue producing.

READ MORE: Air Force wants more training space at U.S. preserve in Nevada

The Government Accountability Office in August said the Air Force hasn't proved that there's another plane available that's more cost effective than the A-10.

Until the Air Force is ordered to move on, it looks like the A-10 will continue to be used for American fights.

"My approach from a sustainment perspective is to approach this as if we're just going to continue to keep these airplanes operating," Pawlikowski told Aviation Week.

Plans to replace the A-10 have been controversial and aviation experts have argued it makes little sense to stop using the plane.

"Why build a replacement for something that needs no replacement and is already the best in the world at what it does?" FoxTrotAlpha's Tyler Rogoway wrote in April. "The Air Force has already paid for a large portion of the A-10 fleet's re-winging, a process that has added many decades of service life to the Warthog. The relatively simple aircraft is also inexpensive to upgrade, allowing to to adapt to future requirements far easier than its supersonic stablemates."
AUSTIN -- Texas' top three elected officials are asking the state's high court to weigh in on gay marriage, namely by clarifying the relationship between the federal courts and state law following the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark decision ruling last year.

Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a joint amicus brief with the court Thursday night asking the Texas Supreme Court for more specificity in the law.
-- Dont miss this from the Express-News David Rauf:

Texas is not taking part in a discount offered by broadcasters that could have allowed it to air up to four times more television and radio ads to educate the public about changes to the state's voter ID law.

The Texas Secretary of State's office has been running a 30-second voter ID television and radio spot in English and Spanishfor almost two weeks, and has estimated that it will spend at least $1.3 million on a paid media campaign through Election Day to fulfill a court order.

Experts, though, have said the TV and radio spend is not nearly enough to spread a message on airwaves in a state the size of Texas, which has 20 total television markets and two of the most expensive in the country in Houston and the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

-- CPS UPDATE: A special task force of state police dispatched to quickly locate 511 children identified as being at the highest risk for abuse or neglect located the first 26 children Thursday, as child protection caseworkers tracked down another 134.

The development came as Henry "Hank" Whitman Jr., commissioner of the Department of Family and Protective Services, requested a $1,000-a-month pay raise for front-line workers who have been quitting in droves due to low pay, leaving the agency unable to carry out its core mission in many areas.

Officials said 10 of the highest-risk children on the list were found Thursday by Texas Department of Public Safety investigators in Houston, 12 in Dallas and four in San Antonio. Authorities said they could not release further details because of confidentiality laws covering the child protection program, per the Chronicles Mike Ward.

>> White House pans Cruz pitch for smaller Supreme Court, Houston Chronicle

>> Texas continues to struggle with larger number of uninsured children, The Texas Tribune

-- Texas officials refute vote-flipping after Trump tweet: Secretary of State Carlos Cascos, a Republican, said on Facebook that there was no evidence of vote-flipping, a term generally used to describe a correctable technical glitch on older electronic voting machines. Cascos' spokeswoman said he was responding to speculation circulating on social media.  Cascos' spokeswoman added that the reports the office has received have not come from voters who personally experienced a problem. Local election officials have said the machines are not malfunctioning and some voters may be inadvertently making errors, per APs Paul Weber.

CAPITOL DAYBOOK - No meetings

SPEED READ

Garcia: In change-election year, GOP trumped itself, San Antonio Express-News

Regulators crack down on telemedicine, denying patients options, Houston Chronicle

Renewable energy growing faster than expected, Houston Chronicle

White House pans Cruz pitch for smaller Supreme Court, Houston Chronicle

The oil bust is fading, but not for corporate earnings, San Antonio Express-News

High-dollar Texas properties tied to Mexico corruption scandal sell for millions, San Antonio Express-News

Angry residents confront Leander city manager over proposed park road, Austin American Statesman

UPS orders 14 Boeing 747 jumbo jets to carry air freight, AP

Former Police Chief David Brown says his retirement is going to be devoted to 'love,' The Dallas Morning News

Dallas ISD trustees approve training demanded by TEA, but not without concerns, The Dallas Morning News

RACE TO THE WHITE HOUSE

-- ICYMI last night:  Joe Biden is at the top of the internal short list Hillary Clintons transition team is preparing for her pick to be secretary of state, a source familiar with the planning tells POLITICO.

-- Pence says he does not anticipate widespread voter fraud  Despite what his running mate has said regularly on the campaign trail, Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pence said Friday morning that he does not expect widespread voter fraud to steal the election out from under the Republican ticket. What I believe is, obviously, George, you've been at this a long time, there certainly have been instances throughout our lifetime and throughout history of voter fraud, Pence told ABCs George Stephanopoulos in an interview on Good Morning America. (Politico)

>> New Clinton ads lay out closing arguments for campaign, AP

>> Trump hits 'corrupt' Hillary Clinton; Mrs. Obama hugs her, AP

-- Trump hopes for a late surge, per CNNs Stephen Collinson: After weeks of devastating headlines, the Republican nominee seemed to give himself a break. He largely avoided incessant talk about allegations of sexual assault by multiple women and claims that the election is rigged -- both of which made wavering Republicans nervous. The drumbeat of WikiLeaks disclosures yielded material to lambast Hillary Clinton and her family's foundation. And news of rising Obamacare premiums gave him an opening to criticize President Barack Obama's legacy that Clinton is running to inherit.
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.
5 Braves land All-Lakes; 6 on All-Academic Cherokee finished atop the Lakes Conference volleyball standings this fall at 5-0 and claimed its first volleyball league title in...

Raptors on to finals with win over Titans HOLSTEIN - The Class 2A #15-ranked Ridge View volleyball team hosted South Central Calhoun for the Class 2A Region 2...

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If you were lucky enough to grow up in 1970s Chicagoland, you knew about WGNs Saturday night Creature Feature, which ran old horror classics, especially those made by Universal Pictures and starring the Frankenstein monster, Dracula, the mummy, and the wolfman. Creature Feature was best remembered for its opening theme, Henry Mancinis Experiment in Terror, which played over a montage from the famous movies, and for its logo, based on a still of Lon Chaneys Man in the Beaver Hat from London After Midnight. Being of tender age, I couldnt get through the shows opening without running out of the roomthough I always came back.

That dynamic of repulsion and attraction has defined horror films from the beginning, and in 2017, when it rolls out a new edition of The Mummy, Universal Pictures is hoping that it will work for a new generation. The studio is embarking on an ambitious reboot of its venerable monster franchise in an attempt to create something like the Marvel Universe of branded characters. After early reports suggesting that the remakes would be done in action/adventure style prompted criticism from traditionalists, the filmmakers promised that horror elements wouldnt be shortchanged. But with a Mummy plot centering around stars Russell Crowe and Tom Cruise, who plays a Navy SEAL hunting terrorists, it sure sounds like a summer shoot em up.

In any case, its not likely that the new versions could stay true to the originals. For one thing, these movies have been parodied for generations. In the early 1970s, when Creature Feature was in its prime, Mel Brooks was putting the finishing touches on Young Frankenstein, and the Monster Mash had been camping up Halloween for a decade. And too much has changed in our cultural DNA, with everything from psychological thrillers to zombie dramas to the torture porn of Saw.

Yet the Universal films would have no constituency for a revival if they didnt retain some cultural power. They left behind a lingering sense of the archaic, of moldy crypts and spider webs, horses and carriages, shadows and stormy nightsand a pervasive sense of the grave. In this, they were carrying on a tradition that began in the mid-eighteenth century, Walter Kendrick wrote in his 1991 study, The Thrill of Fear. Kendrick maintained that the horror tradition arose out of the change in how Western societies viewed death. Up to about 1750 or so, people lived on intimate terms with death, cadavers, and rotnot to mention sewage and waste. Death was less an object of horror than a point of instruction; preachers invoked the decay of the body as a warning. Modernity, which allowed for the tidy disposal of corpses, severed this intimate connection with death while heightening our fear of itespecially with the decline of religious faith. The horror genre, Kendrick argued, lets us confront death elliptically, while making a depressing subject entertaining and even consoling.

Today, its unlikely that the Universal classics would scare many viewers, even young ones, but at their best they were masterworks of cinematic iconography. The early scenes of Dracula (1931), with their Gothic imagery of the counts dilapidated castle, and Bela Lugosis eerie mannerisms, remain evocative. Lugosis Hungarian accent counted substantially in the quotient of his exoticism, but he had other tools in his kit, including penetrating eyes, expressive hands, and a genius for weirdness. Frankenstein (also 1931) opens as funeral rites conclude in a cemetery that looks medieval, with crosses, a crucified Christ, and a reaper-like skeleton standing by. The eventual entrance of the monster, played by Boris Karloff, must rank on a short list of great close-ups. Less than a year after Frankenstein, in 1932, Karloff was transfixing in The Mummy, which combined elements of Dracula and Frankenstein while capitalizing on current eventsit had been only a decade since the discovery of King Tuts tomb, and the idea of dead pharaohs getting up and walking around proved irresistible. The Mummys Egyptian flashback scene is so dreamlike that contemporary viewers might almost believe that it was shot in an ancient world.

The fourth great figure in the Universal pantheon, the werewolf or wolfman, was the most aerobically active of the beasts but also the least mystical. In 1941, The Wolfman created the template, sending Lon Chaney Jr. prowling through the fog as he fulfills the unhappy prophecies of the elderly gypsy fortuneteller (Maria Ouspenskaya). Here the monster is less a metaphor for death or timelessness than for the subconscious id, and he can be destroyed with a mere silver bullet. To neutralize vampires and mummies, you need instruments both practical and sacred, and to slow Frankensteins monster down, you must call on earth, air, fire, and waterthough nothing really works.

Its fitting that the monster would prove to be the most deathless of the group, because the Frankenstein movies lap the field. Their Gothic touches rival those of Dracula, and the monsters boxlike face, the creation of makeup master Jack Pierce, will be recognized for as long as there is a Hollywood. Karloff conveys, as near as probably anyone could have done, how a man-made person, constructed from parts of other persons, might move: with determination, incomprehension, and rage. Frankenstein also boasts the starkest sequence in all the Universal films: wherein the monster plays with the little girl, Maria, and then kills her, unintentionally, when he tosses her into the water in which she had thrown flowers (a scene censored for decades). Her father carries her lifeless body through streets of unknowing revelers. Frankenstein also has the advantage of a high-class literary source (Mary Shelleys 1818 novel, though the film alters it dramatically), and it continuously tosses out ideasnot just the well-trod warning about man playing God but also of the cruelty of the lower orders (like hunchbacks) to those still lower (monsters) and the rapidity with which mobs become set on their goals. Then in 1935, The Bride of Frankenstein surpassed the original and essentially created the Hollywood sequel.

Karloff went on to a long horror career but also branched out with some success, even doing the voiceover narration in How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Such a respectable fate eluded Bela Lugosi, whose foreignness, bad luck, and drug addiction relegated him to ghoulish roles in obscure, low-budget pictures with plots too often resembling this one: A mad scientist develops an aftershave lotion that causes his gigantic bats to kill anyone who wears it.

In a way, Lugosis fate mirrored that of the Universal classics, which became parodies of themselves, reaching their logical terminus in 1948, when the monster starting rotation (minus the mummy) battled Abbott and Costello. In the 1950s and 1960s, the British studio Hammer revived the monsters in color, with the help of Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. Vampire product has always been plentiful, from Anne Rice to Francis Ford Coppola to Twilight. Kenneth Branagh tried, unevenly, to bring to the screen a Frankenstein closer to the Shelley novel (with Robert De Niro as the monster); a Mummy series scored big at the box-office in the 2000s, though it resembled a Raiders of the Lost Ark knockoff; and werewolves never go out of style, with a Wolfman remake hitting theaters in 2010, boasting Benicio del Toro in the starring role but, overwhelmed by CGI, coming across as Spiderman with fur.

Some who love the old films will take heart that these familiar characters are returning for another go round. Others suspect that the action/adventure/superhero model, so pervasive today, will thwart even a directors best intentions. We belong dead, the monster says in Bride of Frankenstein, and maybe Universal should leave old things alone. But if people ever took advice, wed have no monster stories, old or new.

Photo: Boris Karloff as Frankensteins monster
Donald Trump is a moral, intellectual and spiritual failure. He lies, he cheats, he insults, he practices the rankest hypocrisy. He manipulates the tax code to avoid paying taxes. He wields bankruptcy to avoid paying his creditors. And yet. He does not hide behind professions of virtue while practicing his vices. He falters, sins, fails in his obligations, falls prey to his impulses, gives vent to his rage, all in public view. He does not pretend to be decent while behaving indecently.

For millions of decent people, who nevertheless falter in the obligations, surrender to their impulses, make mistakes in the eyes of the tax code and the law, Trump is the antidote (at least up until the allegations of sexual assault) to the prim, priggish, self-congratulatory liberal code of virtues. Trumps followers forgive his abusiveness, callousness and mendacity because it embodies, in the phrase made famous by Isaiah Berlin, the crooked timber of humanity. His failures of character allow them to forgive him his wealth and power.

What his followers cannot forgive is the liberal medias smug enforcement of the straight and narrow path to happiness and success, a smugness and prescriptiveness often born in conditions of prosperity and privilege that are far removed from the way the majority of Americans exist. Most American define success in terms of their families, their workif theyre lucky enough to be working, and at a job with dignityand their attachment to their communities. For most of the media, success is the right school, the right style of parenting, the right cultural products, the right job, the right etiquette in every social situation, the right social attitudes, and the right workout. That difference between how the media defines success and failure and how much of the rest of the country does, is one of the great causes of the divide between the press and the tens of millions of Americans who have rallied behind the exceptionally flawed Republican standard-bearer. It is a reason most of the media never grasped the rise of Trumps base of support. Unless its addressed, one of the legacies of the 2016 election will be a permanent, and deepening, mistrust of and alienation from the mainstream press.

Here is my idea of a newsworthy profile, in the form of a pitch to a magazine or newspaper editor:

Dear Editor, I would like to propose a profile of Duncan Bronteen. Duncan lives with his wife, Ellen, and their two children in Galesburg, Illinois. He works as a carpenter. His wife worked at a daycare center until she was laid off. They have a boy who is 15 and a girl who is 10. Both children attend public school. Duncan goes to work every morning and comes home every evening. Ellen stopped looking for work and now spends her days caring for her kids and working odd jobs here and there. Sign up for CJR 's daily email Duncan is overweight, verging on obese. As a result, he suffers from high blood pressure. Though he belongs to a union, and is paid union wages and has healthcare through the union, he barely has enough money to afford his blood pressure medication. Ellen, in the meantime, has to keep the family going on Duncans modest income and the small, sporadic stream of money she is able to bring in. Some days she is so depressed that she sends the kids to a friends house for dinner. Duncan and Ellens son suffers from ADHD, but because their strapped school district does not have the funds to support him in the special program ne needs, they refused to consider him eligible. Duncan and Ellen had to ask a friend of theirs from church, a psychologist, to lie about certain aspects of their sons condition to get him into the program. What keeps Duncan, Ellen and their kids going is their attachment to their church, where they have developed a wide network of friends. Duncan and his son also hunt, a shared activity that is responsible for both the tight bond between them and Duncans sons rising self-esteem. Their daughter is a natural-born dancer, but as of yet, the family does not have the money to enroll her in the dance classes she dreams of taking. Still, the joy Duncan and Ellen take in encouraging and nourishing both their childrens dreams bolsters their hopes for the future. There is nothing glamorous or sensational or even very interesting about the Bronteen family. They live the way many, if not most, Americans live. I think this would make for a great piece. I look forward to your response!

Of course, any journalist sending out a pitch like that would probably be waiting for a response for the rest of her life.

It is not fair to say that the media missed stories about people like the Bronteens. It is more accurate to say that the media is not interested in them.

Related: 7 photos that capture the absurdity of this election season

Obama famously complained in 2008 about people living in small towns in Pennsylvania and the Midwest who get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy toward people who arent like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations. That statement has had a remarkable, and politically momentous, after-life.

That difference between how the media defines success and failure and how much of the rest of the country does, is one of the great causes of the divide between the press and the tens of millions of Americans who have rallied behind the exceptionally flawed Republican standard-bearer.

To be sure, some of the people Obama was describing make up Clintons deplorables. Others, though, are decent people under pressure who sometimes yield to their fallible natures.

But the establishment media sees the Bronteens in Obamas terms. They ignore them. Turn to or tune into any prestigious media outlet and you will read or see story after story about optimal ways of living, best places to live in, best houses to buy, best colleges to attend, best investment advice, best and most expensive and time-consumingrecipes, and, above all, the best attitudes to have. Not long ago, I read an op-ed by Ezekiel Emanuel, one of the medias favorite advice-dispensing physicians (and the brother of Obamas former chief of staff), arguing that an annual physical examination was a waste of time. That is true if you are going to the gym regularly, eating healthy food, avoiding stress, and staying away from self-destructive behavior. But for the majority of Americans, who have no time to work out or money to join a gym, are stressed out, and thus stumble helplessly into self-obstructive patterns of behavior, an annual physical examination could save their lives.

Last summer, I heard a bartender in a hard-scrabble corner of Maine refer to tourists from New York as you know, people with those gym bodies. I think of that remark every time I watch a Vice episode featuring a Brooklyn hipster, slim and stubbled, talking with calm detachment to, say, a Pakistani who has just lost his entire family to a political disaster. When it comes to covering the Bronteens, an exotic voyeurism that looks right past them is also the order of the day.

A little over a year ago, I published an op-ed in The New York Times about how, at a certain point in my life, struggling to survive as a writer, drowning in debt, I walked away from what I consideredand still considerthe almost-criminal affliction of crushing student loans. The outcry was an eye-opener in terms of how the media responds to economic struggle when the portrayal of it falls outside their accustomed categories of struggle.

My motive in writing the essay was to try to get the issue of student debt onto the national agenda in an election year. Student debt is choking millions of young and not-so-young people, who cannot find work that is equal to their talents, buy a home or start a family. Some people, driven to despair by student debt whose interest accumulates year after year, along with increasing collection-agency fees, have committed suicide. And, unlike other kinds of debtTrumps business debt, for examplestudent debt cannot be relieved through bankruptcy.

What I wanted was to draw attention to the fact that if you are rich, you go to the college of your choice and graduate without debt, or with debt that your family pays off for you, and that if you are middle-class, you dont go to college, or attend a college unsuited to your talents, or graduate from a worthwhile college with debts that will hang over your head possibly for the rest of our life. At the end of the op-ed, I suggested that for people who have nothing to lose, walking away from their debts might trigger a chain of events that would lead to affordable quality higher education for everyone.

Throughout the article I made it clear that I came from humble circumstances, in which my father declared bankruptcy and I had to leave college for a while and work in a menial job. I made it clear that I tried to repay the loans but finally reached a point of despair at which either I walked away from them, or would lose any hope of living a fulfilling life.

The response to my op-ed was rage and outrage, with someone even calling my home and threatening to assault me. I expected some outrage, but not to that extent. What really took me by surprise, however, was the fact that the most virulent response came from the liberal media.

Related: What Trump could (and couldnt) do to restrict press freedom if elected

From the heights of their virtuous aeries, my liberal peers accused me of using the loan money to indulge myself with the luxury of obtaining not one, not two, but three degrees: a B.A., an M.A. and an M. Phil (the last not so much an actual degree but a sort of consolation prize for not completing the Ph.D). I was lambasted for having the audacity to go to graduate school  I had envisioned an academic career  and thus taking out additional loans. I was called feckless for majoring in literature in the first place, a branch of the liberal arts that I loved, rather than going into a field that might have made it possible for me to repay the loans. I was charged with being irresponsible for not repaying my loans when, so the accusation went, so many journalists did repay their loans.

The sharpest accusations had to do with my expectations of a better life for myself than the one I was born into. Why, my outraged liberal detractors cried, after thoroughly Googling me, did I have to go to Columbia? Why didnt I settle for a state school? Several writers suggested that people in my situation, no matter their talents and aspirations, get the idea of going to a distinguished college that they couldnt afford out of their heads, and attend a trade school.

I do not find it difficult to understand why there are people who want to see Donald Trumpor a horse, or a fire hydrant, or a spatula: anything but a blinkered, cloistered liberalas president.

The people who made these arguments, some of whom I knew, some of whom I learned about, all came from privileged and, in some cases, rarefied backgrounds. They went to colleges that recognized their talents, challenged and cultivated their gifts, and, when they graduated, gave them lines out into important places in the world where they could make the life and the living that they wanted. Why, I asked myself, should I and people from circumstances similar to mine, if we had the talent to build careers in the liberal arts, have to settle for an inferior college, or for a trade school when my detractors didnt, simply because their families had more money than ours?

Recalling the medias outrage that I ran up against on account of an essay I wrote calling for making high-quality education available to every young person, no matter their economic circumstances, I do not find it difficult to understand why there are people who want to see Donald Trumpor a horse, or a fire hydrant, or a spatula: anything but a blinkered, cloistered liberalas president.

Ronald Reagans reduction of the top marginal tax rate to 28 percent changed everything in this country, from the cost of healthcare and housing to the price of a college education. One of the other significant changes it wrought was to raise the salaries of journalists to unprecedented levels. It was in the late 1980s when the media began to make the media one of its subjects, and when journalists found themselves striving for social status alongside the powerful social actors they had once held to account. A list of liberal journalists who now routinely lay into Trump but who once supped at his table would need its own website.

Im not normally a silver-lining sort of person, but that complacency and insulation might change now that incomes and livelihoods in the media industry are in free-fall. To make a life as a journalist these days, you have to want it with all your heart. In a way, we are experiencing a return to the old days of the beat reporters who, because they were as materially hard-pressed as so many of their subjects, didnt just instinctively side with the underdog, but instinctively understood the underdog, too. One of the most heartening and inspiring stories Ive read in a long time was the recent article in CJR about Barbara Ehrenreichs Economic Hardship Reporting Project, which pays economically struggling journalists a living wage to fulfill their professional destinies. These are people who know where to find societys hidden truths.

In the midst of the backlash to my student loan op-ed I was sitting in an armchair in my office in a funk. My daughter, five at the time, came over and sang Over the Rainbow to me. My son, then ten, hugged me. I usually cook dinner but that night my wife stepped in, and a warm, comforting aroma rose from the kitchen. We might struggle financially, I told myself, but I have a book coming out, a contract to write another one and, hey, I had just been on TV a few times. The Sanders campaign had linked to my op-ed on its website, and the subject was becoming a prominent issue in the campaign. A friend of mine told me that she had been at a dinner party with some bankers, who expressed concern that some student debtors might follow my example. I had worried the bankers! But most important of all, I had my family. We had little money, but not only had I achieved my youthful dream of becoming a writer, I had fulfilled my adult aspiration to be someone, though fallible, capable of generosity and love.

Just then, the phone rang. It was another friend, who happened to be both very wealthy and a prominent liberal journalist in the establishment media. My friend asked me how much I owed in student loans. I related the amount, which was substantial. There was a pause. How could they expect you to pay that? my friend said. You are barely successful.

Changing the establishment medias notions of failure and success so that the entire country comes into view, and not just a sliver of it, is not going to be easy.

Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today

Lee Siegel , a widely published writer on culture and politics, is the author of six books and the recipient of a National Magazine Award for Reviews and Criticism.
The company that owns an Australian theme park where four people died on a river rapids ride defended its safety record on Thursday as police vetoed plans to reopen to the public three days after the tragedy.

Dreamworld park on Queensland states Gold Coast has been closed as a crime scene since two men and two women died on Tuesday when their raft flipped on the 30-year-old Thunder River Rapids ride.

Neil Balnaves, chairman of Ardent Leisure Group that owns Dreamworld as well as bowling and billiards centers across Australia, the United States and New Zealand, told the companys annual general meeting on Thursday that the ride had passed its annual safety inspection a month ago.

Thats what confounds the tragedy even more for us, because it is  absolutely surprising that a ride could get through that process and everything up to date, Balnaves said.

The park does not take its safety as a casual issue, he said, adding that the company uses international experts to set up the program.

A union has accused management of ignoring safety concerns raised by staff over years.

Dreamworld announced on Wednesday that it plans to reopen with a memorial day and a service for the victims on Friday. Profits would be donated to charity and activities limited to smaller rides, animal attractions, and the water park. Balnaves told the meeting that operations would return to normal from Saturday, although the Thunder River Rapids ride would remain closed until a coroners inquiry reported on the cause of the tragedy.

Dreamworld later said the Queensland Police Service had advised that the park could not reopen this week.

Police had warned that investigators were not prepared to risk the crime scene being compromised through the park being reopened too early. Police have said the investigation could end in charges of criminal negligence.

Ardent chief executive Deborah Thomas said she planned to contact the victims families to express her sympathies and offer financial assistance.

I take my family to Dreamworld. This could have been my family and I completely am sympathetic to what they must be going through, she said.

She told the meeting that the revenue lost due to the tragedy would have a significant impact on Dreamworld profits for the remainder of the fiscal year, which began on July 1.

Balnaves told the meeting he expected the tragedy would continue to have a financial impact in the next fiscal year, but would not affect company assets other than Dreamworld.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
A Hispanic woman says her white co-workers at an Iowa claims office used images of Donald Trump to racially harass her for months after they learned she was angered by his description of Mexican immigrants as rapists, according to a civil rights lawsuit she filed against her company.

Alexandra Avilas co-workers at Sedgwick Claims Management Services  where they administered benefits for Wal-Mart employees  began calling her an illegal immigrant even though shes a natural-born U.S. citizen, according to the lawsuit filed Monday in Iowa district court. The suit claims her former co-workers placed a picture of an angry-looking Trump as Avilas computers screensaver, signed her up to volunteer for his campaign and sent her racist memes, including one that read: Hows Mr. Donald Trump going to deport all these illegals? Juan by Juan.

The Republican presidential candidates promise to build a border wall to keep out Mexican immigrants has for months contributed to racial tensions nationwide. Build a wall chants have been used by high school students to taunt Latino opponents at sporting events in multiple states, including Iowa, Wisconsin and Indiana. At Kent State University, Latinos marching in the Homecoming parade this month said they were taunted with the same chant.

Avila, a 32-year-old mother of one who worked at Sedgwick for three years, claims she faced similar heckling at her white-collar workplace in Coralville, Iowa, from the beginning of Trumps campaign in June 2015 until after she was fired five months later.

Its been a weird political season where one candidate is taking public stances on things that, if the same words were said in the workplace, might constitute violations of our civil rights laws, said Avilas attorney, Paige Fiedler. His candidacy has emboldened some people to feel like that doesnt violate social norms anymore.

Lesley Gudehus, spokeswoman for Memphis, Tennessee-based Sedgwick, declined comment on the lawsuit.

Avila, born in California to Mexican parents, told colleagues she was upset with Trumps 2015 campaign launch when he said of Mexican immigrants: Theyre bringing drugs. Theyre bringing crime. Theyre rapists.

Soon after, the lawsuit claims, colleagues removed the photo Avila had of her young daughter as her computer screensaver and replaced it with a picture of Trump yelling and pointing his finger. When Avila removed the photo, they kept switching it back to Trump, the suit alleges.

An email arrived from the Trump campaign last fall thanking her for the support and asking how she wanted to help, according to the suit. Avila also claims her colleagues sent offensive memes, including one showing a brown-skinned man that read: Found Jesus  he stabbed me twice.

When her department was voting on a potluck menu, one co-worker said Avila was ineligible because she was an illegal immigrant, drawing laughter from Avilas boss, the lawsuit claims. Avila contends that after she complained about the harassment, the company accused her of falsifying timecards by claiming she worked minutes more time than she actually did.

Avila was fired last November and escorted out, with Sedgwick saying it would send her personal property later. When her belongings arrived from FedEx, Avila says they contained a handwritten note that called her La Trumpa and added: Illegal immigrants cant vote or work. Good luck finding a job.

Getting that box in the mail was a horrific experience, Fiedler says.

After her firing, a co-worker sent her an invitation to a Trump rally on Facebook, the lawsuit claims.

The lawsuit, which names Sedgwick and two supervisors, alleges Avila suffered discrimination based on national origin and that the company failed to pay wages she earned.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Mustard Tree Ministries, Inc.'s is holding their fall fundraiser," Fall on the Farm," this Saturday from 1-6 p.m. on Mustard Tree Ministries, Inc.'s Community First Farm, 9125 Snow Hill Road in Ooltewah.

"There will be fun for the whole family - hayrides, face painting, games, bouncy houses, vendor booths, and a petting zoo where you can meet Puppy the baby goat," organizers said.

Tickets are $5 for individuals, $10 for families of 4, and group rates of $20 - $25, depending on the group's size. All proceeds go to benefit MTM's work in Chattanooga and surrounding counties.

"Bring your family and friends for some fall fun on the farm and learn about our Community First project while helping eradicate poverty and homelessness in our hometown," officials said.






AKRON, Ohio - An Akron woman accused of fatally shooting her boyfriend in May 2015 pleaded guilty Thursday.

Bernetta Vickers, 41, pleaded guilty in Summit County Common Pleas Court to one count of manslaughter and one count of tampering with evidence, a news release from the Summit County Prosecutor's Office said.

She was charged in connection with the shooting death of her live-in boyfriend, 33-year-old Dontay Dudley.

Vickers and Dudley were fighting at their house at about 5 p.m. on May 30, 201, when Dudley was shot, police said. He was found slumped in a chair with a gunshot wound to his head, the prosecutor's office said.

Investigators first thought that Dudley had committed suicide, yet the Summit County Medical Examiner ruled his death a homicide.

Police learned that Vickers hid the gun and the shell casing after the shooting, the prosecutor's office said.

Vickers is slated to be sentenced 1 p.m. Dec. 14, the news release stated.

If you'd like to comment on this post, please visit the cleveland.com crime and courts comments section.
Franklin Castle.JPG

Ohio City's Franklin Castle -- considered one of the most haunted locations in the state -- is one reason Cleveland is in the top five of haunted metros in the US. Do you believe in hauntings?

(Lisa DeJong, Plain Dealer)

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Strange voices coming from empty rooms, sounds of crying children and cold spots are but a few of the bizarre occurrences reported by those who have entered Franklin Castle, one of Ohio's most notorious haunted places.

Built in 1865, this Gothic mansion located on Franklin Avenue in Ohio City was home to German immigrant Hannes Tiedemann, his wife, mother, and several children.

The castle is currently holding down the runner-up spot in cleveland.com's hunt for the best haunted landmark in Greater Cleveland. The Mansfield Reformatory maintains a hold on the lead.

Shortly after the family moved in, the Tiedemann's 15-year-old daughter, Emma, died. Not long after, Tiedemann's elderly mother passed away; and during the next three years, the Tiedemanns would bury three more children, giving rise to speculation there was more to the deaths than met the eye.

After Tiedemann's death in 1908, the house has served as a clubhouse for a German Socialist Party, which is rumored to have performed a mass political assassination in the basement; a home; a doctor's office; apartments and even a hide-away for bootleggers during the Prohibition.

Secret rooms and passages exist inside the house, though it is not known how many.

The ghosts are numerous

Reports are that in a small room at the rear of the house, a pile of baby skeletons was found, supposedly the victims of some inept doctor; Today, babies can be heard crying in the walls, witnesses claim.

Stories of political discussions being heard throughout the house could be the victims of the socialist assassination.

There are rumors of an axe murder -- said to have been committed by Tiedemann, himself, of his mistress -- in the front tower room, the victim of which is occasionally reported seen standing in the window.

The secret passageways around the ballroom are said to be where Tiedemann hung his illegitimate daughter Karen. Karen's ghost is the main one reportedly seen in the castle, usually in a third floor room known as "the cold room" because it stays 10 degrees colder than the rest of the house at all times.

Karen, garbed in black, tall and thin, is said to be seen by people in the neighborhood.

Who has owned Franklin Castle?



The house remained largely unoccupied until January 1968, when James Romano, his wife, and six children settled in the long abandoned building. The Romano family reported several encounters with ghosts in their new home - including having their children ask for a cookie to ease the crying of a little girl.

The family attempted exorcisms and even had a now defunct ghost-hunting group -- the Northeast Ohio Psychical Research Society -- investigate the castle.

By 1974, the Romanos decided to leave the house, and sold it to Sam Muscatello, who planned to turn the castle into a church. To raise money for the church, tours and overnight stays at the castle were offered.

Karen's ghost is said to have often encountered staff of the Universal Christian Church, which made an attempt to occupy the building after buying it in September of 1975. A UPI news story which ran a year later details the church's efforts to turn it into a soup kitchen by charging for ghost tours and overnight stays in the haunted castle.

In early 1984, Michael DeVinko, an actor best known for his marriage to Judy Garland, purchased Franklin Castle and almost immediately started making major renovations to the house. Over the next 10 years, DeVinko spent close to $1 million renovating the castle, even going so far as to track down some of the original furnishings. Despite all this, DeVinko still decided to move out and put the house up for sale in 1994.

The most recent owner, Michelle Heimburger, was 25 when she paid $350,000 cash for the castle in April of 1999. She owned it for barely six months when, in the earliest hours of Nov. 8, a vagrant lit a fire inside, causing nearly $200,000 in damages. The carriage house was damaged by fire in 2011.

Heimburger, the absentee landlord, put off doing repairs for more than a year. During that time the place was hung with construction lights and cordoned off but nearly 100 percent unguarded -- this despite the fact that its side door often stood wide open all through the night.

In 2004 there were rumors that Franklin Castle was going to be completely renovated and turned into the Franklin Castle Club. As of 2006, the entire club was proven to be a complete sham, no repairs had ever been made, and the pictures on the website were all either close-up shots of individual architecture, or pictures stolen from other websites. No work had ever been done, no memberships had ever been sold, and there was also evidence the Castle had been used to shoot pornography.

It was announced in July 2011 that Franklin Castle had been rezoned to allow it to become a 3 family dwelling, and that a sale was pending.

The house was featured on the paranormal investigation show Paranormal Lockdown last year, but for now Franklin Castle remains vacant, except for his ghostly residents, today.
Failure to comply with lawful order, Interstate 71: A speeding driver on northbound I-71 near Snow Road led police on a car chase at about 12:25 p.m. Oct. 17 after refusing to pull over.

The man, driving a Jeep Cherokee, was clocked at 114 mph. Police pursued him for 5 miles, then gave up the chase. They were unable to see his license plate number.

Disturbance, Eastland Road: Two Cleveland men, 50 and 35, fought each other at about 2 p.m. Oct. 15 outside North Coast Hotel Liquidation Specialists Inc., 6511 Eastland.

The fight occurred after a road-rage incident. One of the men was driving so fast he almost hit the other man's car in the parking lot. Police did not arrest either man.

Operating a vehicle under the influence, Brookpark Road-West 130th Street: A Middleburg Heights man, 33, was arrested at about 1:15 a.m. Oct. 15 after police found him unconscious behind the steering wheel of a Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck stopped in the middle of Brookpark.

The man's foot was on the brake but the truck was in drive. The truck's window was down, so police were able to wake him, though with some difficulty. Police said the man had overdosed on drugs, alcohol or both.

Grand theft auto, Pemberton Drive: Two unlocked vehicles - a 2015 Ford and a 2009 Ford - were stolen between 1-5:35 a.m. Sept. 9 from a driveway. Police didn't say which models of vehicles were stolen. Both vehicles were found seven days later on Interstate 90 at East 140th Street.

Grand theft auto, Kathleen Drive: A locked 2007 BMW was stolen between 9 a.m. and 5:20 p.m. Oct. 13 from a driveway. The vehicle contained a loaded .45-caliber Ruger P345.

Grand theft auto, Brookpark Road: An unlocked 2007 Ford E-150 was reported stolen at about 8:45 a.m. Oct. 2 from the rear parking lot of Park Place Suites, 14011 Brookpark. The vehicle contained a chop saw, nail guns, a 16-foot aluminum ladder and additional hand and power tools.

Criminal damaging, Glenway Drive: Someone shot BB's at an upstairs window in a house at about 10:30 p.m. Oct. 15. The BB's damaged the window.

Operating a vehicle under the influence, Brook Park Road: A Cleveland woman, 30, was arrested at about 1:35 a.m. Oct. 19 after police saw her car drift left of center near Gi Gi Lounge, 14500 Brookpark.

Theft, Engle Road: An unlocked bicycle was reported stolen at 5:35 p.m. Oct. 17 from outside Circle K, 6300 Engle.

Heroin overdose, Ledgebrook Drive: A Ledgebrook man, 55, overdosed on heroin at about 2:30 p.m. Oct. 15 in his home. He was revived by police with Narcan, a heroin-overdose antidote, and taken to Southwest General Health Center in Middleburg Heights.

Sudden illness, Holland Road: A prisoner in Brook Park jail was taken to Southwest General Health Center at about 11 a.m. Oct. 16 after he complained of stomach pain. Police said the prisoner, a 21-year-old Cleveland man, has a history of medical problems.

If you would like to comment on this story, visit Thursday's crime and courts comments section.
ORANGE, Ohio -- Disobeying a traffic device, marijuana possession; Miles Road: After a North Collinwood man, 19, ran a stop light at Miles and Brainard roads shortly before 10 p.m. on Oct. 21, police pulled his car over near Harper Road and the officer smelled a strong odor of suspected marijuana coming from inside.

Returning from the cruiser after writing out a citation and requesting backup, the officer then reported "a fresh odor of men's cologne mixed with marijuana," eventually finding a little over a half-pound in a backpack belonging to the passenger, a Twinsburg man, 20.

Departmental information, Orange Place: Police responded to at least three separate incidents within an hour's time at the Extended Stay North hotel shortly before noon on Oct. 25, beginning with a call from a manager regarding a guest who may have touched a 16-year-old girl inappropriately, according to her grandmother.

Suspicion, Orange Place: While on a previous call at the Extended Stay North at shortly after 11 a.m. on Oct. 25, police radioed in about a car with a smashed-out rear passenger window. A local report was not required.

Unwanted guest, Orange Place: Just before noon on Oct. 25, police assisted with an evicted party at the Extended Stay North hotel, who then left without incident.

Theft, Lander Road: A resident in the 4400 block of Lander reported shortly after 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 19 that someone stole at least three Hillary Clinton campaign signs from her yard, as well as a neighbor's in the time frame of about 5:30 p.m.

Departmental information/PSA, Lander Road: The Orange Village Fire Department will host its third annual Halloween Fun Fest on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 5 to 8 p.m., featuring the haunted fire station, hayrides, pumpkin decorating, goodie bags, a costume parade, pizza and doughnuts.

For the first hour, there will be fire education and an open house, followed by a live burn and fire engine pumping demonstrations and truck tours. University Hospitals will also be providing refreshments and health screenings.

Then from 6-8 p.m. the Fun Fest will include crafts, games and a photo opp area. Festivities will take place rain or shine.

If you would like to discuss the police blotter, please visit our crime and courts comments page.
PRISON.JPG

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is looking to purchase space at a federal facility in Youngstown to house an expected influx of illegal immigrants.

(File photo)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is working to buy space at a private prison in Youngstown to address an anticipated influx of undocumented immigrants, according to an article from The Wall Street Journal.

The Northeast Ohio Correctional Center currently houses people in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service. The private prison is owned by CoreCivic, formerly known as Corrections Corporation of America.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons ended its contract with the company in 2014 to house convicts there, transferring about 1,400 inmates to prisons in other states.

The Oct. 21 Wall Street Journal article says that Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which is part of Homeland Security, expects thousands to cross the southwest border of the U.S. and Mexico in the coming months.

Part of the surge is due to thousands of Haitians who left their country after a devastating earthquake in 2010. Many fled to South America and have taken several years to arrive at the U.S. border, the article says.

ICE is now holding more than 40,000 people, more than it ever has before, and more than 5,000 Haitians have reached the Mexican border to try to cross at U.S. ports of entry, the article says. When Haitian immigrants present themselves at ports of entry seeking asylum, they are typically turned over to ICE and are held pending deportation, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Homeland Security is also looking to buy space at similar facilities in Cibola County, New Mexico; Aurora, Colorado; and Robstown, Texas, The Wall Street Journal article says.

The negotiations come two months after the U.S. Justice Department said it would phase out the use of private prisons to house federal convicts.

While Deputy U.S. Attorney General Sally Yates noted that ending this practice is because of a decline in the inmate population, the private prison industry has been rife with problems, including an inordinate amount of violence among inmates, according to investigations by the government and news outlets.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, a frequent critic of the private-prison industry, issued a news release Thursday criticizing Homeland Security for seeking to buy beds at the Youngstown facility.

"Incarcerating thousands of immigrants in a private prison before deporting them is unjust and allowing a corporation to profit from it is a travesty," Mike Brickner, the ACLU of Ohio's senior policy director, said in the release. "The DHS's decision to partner with private prisons sends a horrible message about profiteering at the expense of individuals seeking asylum."

ACLU of Ohio attorney Jocelyn Rosnick said offering a bond or electronic monitoring is a better solution. Similar measures are used for people facing other federal crimes.

A call left for a CoreCivic spokesman was not returned.

This story has been updated to reflect the renaming of Corrections Corporation of America to CoreCivic.

If you would like to comment on this story, please visit Friday's crime and courts comments section.
28DARCY-BONUSES3.jpg

Defense Secretary Ash Carter has temporarily suspended the Pentagon's efforts to seek repayment of improperly issued enlistment bonuses for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Pentagon has declared a ceasefire in its bonus battle against National Guardsmen. Defense Secretary Ash Carter has temporarily suspended efforts to claw back enlistment bonuses improperly paid to National Guardsmen during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Carter said the suspension will last until "I am satisfied that our process is working effectively." The Washington Post reports he has assigned Pentagon personnel chief Peter Levine, "to asses the situation and to create a process that can resolve all of the payment cases by July 2017."

Wednesday, Carter told reporters, "Our goal is to have a process that honors the commitment to our service members and also to our responsibility to the taxpayer." Not ruling out that some service members may still have to repay their bonuses, Carter said, "under the law, we have to keep that option open."

The Los Angeles Times/Tribune Washington Bureau broke the story that the Pentagon had been demanding repayment of enlistment bonuses from thousands of California National Guardsmen. The bonuses amounted to $10,000 to $15,000 each, on average. But the repayment amounts being sought have sometimes been as high as $40,000 or more.

During the height of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, recruiters were granting unauthorized bonuses to recruits and soldiers re-enlisting, to meet quotas. The enlistment bonuses were being paid to National Guardsmen in other states as well.

California became the focus of the story because it was the one state that audited the bonus payments, which came to light as the result of a criminal investigation. In 2011, California Guard incentive manager, Army Master Sgt. Toni Jaffe, pleaded guilty to filing false claims of $15.2 million. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison. Three other officers who pleaded guilty to fraud were given probation.

Many of the service members who received bonuses did not know they were unauthorized. As the result of collection efforts, some have had to file for bankruptcy, take out second mortgages, have damaged credit and faced foreclosure.

In a joint letter to the Pentagon, Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbra Boxer wrote the following:

"Thousands of our service members are paying the price for mistakes made by California National Guard managers, some of whom are now serving jail time or paying restitution for their crimes. It is outrageous to hold these service members and their families responsible for the illegal behavior of others."

"These men and women voluntarily re-enlisted with the understanding that they would receive substantial bonuses. The Department of Defense should use its existing authority... to waive the repayment of these enlistment bonuses" and "help those service members who have already fully or partially repaid these incentives."

The current Pentagon process has nothing in place to help service members who have experienced significant hardship in repaying bonuses they thought were awarded in good faith.

California National Guard officials say they alerted Congress to the problem two years ago. They had sought relief by seeking a provision in a defense bill that would establish a 10-year limit on how long the Pentagon could recover improperly paid bonuses. The Congressional Budget Office objected to the proposal because of its impact on the defense budget.

Levine, who Carter tasked with resolving the issue, said the Pentagon's intent will be to have a "surge" of additional personnel to review cases in the now bogged-down appeals process.

There's a quicker way to get out of this quagmire. Continue to prosecute the managers responsible, but make the suspension of collection efforts permanent by waiving the repayment of bonuses. Will it cost the Defense Department a lot of money? Yes it will. But think of the billions of U.S. dollars that disappeared during the Iraq war into the hands of Iraqi agents that the pentagon hasn't been able to account for and never will.

National Guardsman have already paid a high price for their service to our country. Don't make them pay a cent, or a limb, or a life more. The Pentagon's front line should be in Syria and Iraq, not in the wallet of its service men and women.
The Lee University Brass Choir will host its fall concert on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in Pangle Hall.

The concert will be in honor of All Souls Day and Dia De Los Muertos (Day of the Dead). Music to honor those who have passed away will be played at the event. Music from composers such as Clause Debussy, Edvard Grieg, Konstantin Listov, Richard Strauss, and John Williams will be featured.

The Brass Choir currently consists of 23 members and has grown in quality and number since its inception in 2014. The group rehearses and performs throughout the year.

The ensembles ability to tackle difficult works has grown immensely and continues to improve, said Dr. Nathan Warner the ensemble director. This is a testament to the quality of student that this fine music school is attracting.

Dr. Warner is an assistant professor of music at Lee. He has performed with the Chattanooga Sympony, the Knoxville Symphony, Lady Antebellum, and The Temptations, among others. He performs regularly as a classical, orchestral, commercial, big band, and jazz artist in New York City, where he lived for 15 years.

An advocate for music education in the inner-city, Dr. Warner taught music at the St. Mark Evangelist School in Harlem, New York. Dr. Warner is a founding member of the Sugartone Brass Band, one of the few successful second-line bands not indigenous to New Orleans to find success outside of the region.

Dr. Warner received his doctorate from Stony Brook University, his masters at Manhattan School of Music, and a bachelors in music from Indiana University.

The concert is a free, non-ticketed event and open to the public. For more information, contact Lees School of Music at 614-8240 or email music@leeuniversity.edu.
Renown Auctioneer, Carter Stine, has stepped forward to volunteer and host The Salvation Armys first Warehouse Auction Friday and Saturday, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m., at 5001 Covington St., off Rossville Boulevard.

With need still high, and donations low, we had to get creative on new and innovative ways to raise funds, states Major Robert Lyle, Chattanooga Salvation Army area commander. We are grateful to have a friend like Carter Stine to help with this auction.

Mr. Stine states in his expert opinion there will be incredible buys for those who frequent auctions. Hundreds and hundreds of great box lots of glassware and housewares, art, frames, small appliances, sporting goods, antiques, lamps, collectibles, large dragon collection, office desks, over 30 different showcases of all sizes, Chippendale highboy, 1840s Tennessee candle stand, mid-century Danish Chairs, several nice 1960s dressers and chairs, and anything else that may be found in todays home will be sold to the highest bidder, said Mr. Stine.

All are encouraged to come. It is open to the public. Food will be for sale as well.

For more information on The Salvation Army Warehouse Auction, please contact 756-1023.
The Chattanooga Bach Choir announces its 2016-17 Barnett & Company Cantata Series, featuring four concerts focusing on these significant and celebrated choral works by Bach, conducted by artistic director David Long. The first concert takes place on Sunday at 4 p.m., at First Christian Church, 650 McCallie Ave.

There is a suggested donation of $15 at the door; students are free. For more information, visit www.chattanoogabachchoir.org.

Review for the programs:

Celebrating the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, the program includes Johann Sebastian Bachs festive cantata, Gott der Herr ist Sonn und Schild (Lord God is our Sun and Shield) and Georg Philipp Telemanns motet, Ein Feste Burg ist Unser Gott (A Mighty Fortress is our God). Joining the Bach Choir are guest soloists: Beth DuRoy, soprano, Sara Snider Schone, mezzo soprano, and Zachary James Cavan, bass.

The Reformation Day is celebrated Oct. 31, commemorating the date in 1517 when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the Wittenberg church. For this festive occasion, Bach wrote a magnificent musical celebration, lavishly scored for flutes, horns timpani, soloists and chorus. Alternating between the moods of triumph and devotion, the powerful opening movement sets the words of Psalm 84:12 For Lord God is our light and protector. The third movement is an elaborate chorale setting of the famous hymn, Nun Danket Alle Gott (Now Thank We All Our God). Also on the program is Telemanns motet setting of the Reformation hymn, Ein Feste Burg ist Unser Gott (A Mighty Fortress is Our God) for four-part chorus and orchestra, marking the 250th anniversary of the composers death.

The Barnett & Company Cantata Series continues on Jan. 29, 2017, with BWV 81 for the Fourth Sunday after Epiphany, Jesus Schlaft, Was Sol Lich Hoffen (Jesus sleeps, is hope now fading). Then two cantatas for the Easter season follow with BWV 104 Du Hirte Israel, Hore (O shield of Israel, hear us) on April 30, 2017, and BWV 86 Wahrlich, Wahrlich, Ich Sage Euch (Truly, truly I say to you) on May 21, 2017. All three concerts take place at Christ Episcopal Church on McCallie Avenue in Chattanooga.

Chattanooga Bach Choir

David Long, Artistic Director

2016-17 Barnett & Company Cantata Series

Sunday Oct. 30

4 p.m.

First Christian Church (650 McCallie Ave.)

PROGRAM

J.S. Bach Gott der Herr ist Sonn und Schild (Lord God is our Sun and Shield), BWV 79

G.P. Telemann Ein Feste Burg ist Unser Gott (A Mighty Fortress is our God).

Sunday January 29, 2017

Sunday April 30, 2017

Sunday, May 21, 2017

4 p.m.

Christ Episcopal Church (633 Douglas Street at McCallie)

Suggested donation: $15; Free for students

For more information: www.chattanoogabachchoir.org






Native Americans march to a burial ground that was disturbed by bulldozers building the Dakota Access Pipeline.

Authorities used pepper spray and fired bean bags at activists demonstrating against a controversial North Dakota oil pipeline as the standoff there reached a new peak Thursday, according to officials.

Armed soldiers and police in riot gear removed the demonstrators using trucks, military Humvees, and buses Thursday afternoon, according to The Associated Press. Two helicopters and an airplane scanned the operation from the air.



At least 141 protesters were arrested as of midnight Thursday (1 a.m. ET) after law enforcement slowly closed in and tensions escalated, the Morton County Sheriff's Department said in a statement.



Seven protesters used "sleeping dragon" devices, which typically involve PVC or other pipe, to attach themselves to items, and fires were set on a highway and improvised fire bombs were thrown at law enforcement, the Morton County Sheriff's Department said in a statement.

One woman allegedly fired three shots from a revolver at police, an emergency services official said. No one was hit.

The chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe criticized law enforcement's "militarized" response to the camp and called for demonstrations to remain peaceful, but stressed that activists would not give up their cause.



"Militarized law enforcement agencies moved in on water protectors with tanks and riot gear today. We continue to pray for peace," Dave Archambault II said in a statement Thursday evening.



"We won't step down from this fight," he added. "As peoples of this earth, we all need water. This is about our water, our rights, and our dignity as human beings."



Archambault also called on activists to "remain in peace and prayer." "Any act of violence hurts our case and is not welcome here," he said.



Law enforcement were holding a line north of the Backwater Bridge early Friday morning, the sheriff's department.



A woman who was being arrested pulled a .38 caliber revolver and fired three shots at law enforcement, "narrowly missing a sheriff's deputy," North Dakota State Emergency Services Spokeswoman Cecily Fong told NBC News. The woman was taken into custody and no shots were fired by law enforcement, she said.



The protesters were ousted from the camp that authorities said was on private property in the path of the pipeline late Thursday afternoon, Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier told the AP.



The sheriff said that while the camp was secure, officers were still dealing with protesters in the surrounding area, according to the AP. Kirchmeier added that authorities would maintain a presence in the area for the time being to keep protesters off the land. Fong confirmed to NBC News that the camp was cleared.



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Protesters allegedly started two fires on the Backwater Bridge protest site and threw Molotov cocktails at law enforcement Thursday night, Fong said.

About 250 protesters had gathered at the camp and another 80 demonstrators with a dozen horses were at the site of a county road, according to a statement from the Morton County Sheriff's Department.

Protesters on horseback galloped toward the law enforcement line before wheeling around and some had begun throwing objects at the officers, Fong said. Demonstrators also allegedly set four DAPL construction vehicles ablaze, Fong said Thursday evening.

"They've definitely escalated, they're throwing rocks and debris," she said. A handful of officers suffered minor injuries, she said.

Officers fired bean bag rounds and used pepper spray on protesters, Fong said.

Authorities also used a long-range acoustic device with a high-pitched tone to disperse the protesters, who set tires on fire on the highway Thursday afternoon, according to a post on the Morton County Sheriff's Department Facebook page.
Groupon made a significant comeback this year, with the stock up more than 70 percent for the year as of Wednesday. When it reported earnings, both the top and bottom line numbers were slightly better than expected. It is also growing its user base and rationalizing its global footprint.

"It was a non-material acquisition. We look at that in multiple ways, both the financial side and now with what we know about with integrating businesses and operating this business well; we don't see it as a material distraction from our day-to-day operations," Williams told " Mad Money " host Jim Cramer.

Shares of Groupon dropped more than 22 percent on Thursday following the company's announcement that it had acquired competitor LivingSocial for an undisclosed sum. The company's CEO Rich Williams said he was confused by the sell-off, and that the acquisition was "non-material."

When we set out, we said this wasn't going to be instant. It's not going to be simple. But in that path we have also delivered now four quarters of really steady progress.

Investors feared that the LivingSocial deal could make it harder for Groupon to turn a profit in the near-term. However, Williams says he never promised instant change when he took over a year ago. One of his main goals was to simplify and streamline the business, which meant removing businesses that weren't core and have an opportunistic approach for mergers and acquisitions.

"Most people that set out on the magnitude of the change that we set out end up having conversations about roads to recovery that are years long," Williams said. "When we set out, we said this wasn't going to be instant. It's not going to be simple. But in that path we have also delivered now four quarters of really steady progress."

Cramer speculated that shares merely sold off on Thursday because they had run up so much going into the quarter. The stock was priced for perfection, and what investors got was merely good. Williams agreed, stating "I think maybe there was some fast money moving out and some perfection expected, but I think we delivered solid results."

Williams said Groupon looked at LivingSocial through the lens of whether it would allow the company to acquire a significant amount of customers, while also being cost effective. He feels confident that the acquisition will boost the rate of return on a time horizon ultimately.

"We look at it just as like any customer acquisition we do, which is a 12 to 18 month horizon, is it going to pay us back on a gross profit basis. And in this case, we feel strongly that it will," Williams said.

Correction: This article was updated to reflect that Groupon is rationalizing its global footprint.
As the face of real estate grows and changes reflecting the diversity of todays home buyers and sellers the Greater Chattanooga Association of Realtors united real estate professionals in a conversation this week designed to highlight how the market is changing and how local Realtors need to adapt. Through GCARs At Home With Diversity course, participants took an in-depth look at the hot topics of fair housing, diversity and cultural differences, learning to approach real estate in a way that is culturally competent.

Having the proper sensitivity and respect for a home buyer or sellerregardless of their race, religion, gender, familial status, handicaps, etc. is critical to not only being an effective Realtor but also a good neighbor, said Nathan Walldorf, Greater Chattanooga Association of Realtors President. Were called to be both, and continued education opportunities like these are vital to fostering a housing community in Chattanooga thats healthy, vibrant and transcends cultural barriers.



First launched in 1998, At Home With Diversity has since equipped more than 20,000 realtors nationwide with practical tools to service todays increasingly diverse pool of homebuyers and sellers. Tooled into a seven to eight hour class, the course helps real estate agents, brokers, association executives and other industry professionals assess and understand what diversity looks like in their local markets, as well as create a business plan and selling strategy that caters to all clients.



Theres no single snapshot that can capture todays buyer or seller, said Mr. Walldorf. From foreign buyers to single women to millennial first home owners to disabled veterans, todays marketplace is a spectacularly diverse one.



According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) 2016 Profile of International Activity in U.S. Residential Real Estate, international buyers in the U.S. purchased $102.6 billion of residential property from April 2015 to March 2016 a decrease from $103.9 billion in the previous 12-month period but a significant increase from the close to $66 billion invested by foreign buyers in 2011. Additionally, in this years annual survey of Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends by the NAR, single females have emerged as the second most common group of home buyers after married couples.

Delving into this diversifying market, GCARs At Home With Diversity course enables Chattanooga Realtors to apply for national At Home With Diversity certification, earn continuing education credit and receive credit toward the ABR, CIPS, CRS, RSPS and PMN designations. Topics addressed at this weeks seminar included: a national cultural forecast, globalization, adapting for the future, the philosophy of inclusion, predatory lending, fair housing laws and more.
In a rare televised public apology this week, the 64-year-old leader admitted she received help on state affairs from an old friend and informal advisor called Choi Soon-sil. Choi, who holds no post in government, provided advice on speeches and public relations issues during the 2012 presidential election campaign and continued to assist for a period after the 2013 inauguration, Park said.



Several reports in South Korean media suggested that Choi also had access to classified material related to national security and economic policies. And there has been widespread speculation that Choi may have interfered in key government affairs, and exploited her connections to Park to establish two nonprofit foundations using funds from corporate donations. On Thursday, prosecutors established a task-force to probe the unfolding development.

The so-called "Choi-gate" scandal has been compared to the uproar over U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's decision to use a private server for her government emails while she was secretary of state.

Choi, 60, is the daughter of Park's late mentor Choi Tae-min. In mid-1970s, the latter introduced his daughter to Park, who was then acting as first lady following her mother's assassination, and the two women have been friends ever since, according to local media.

The media backlash over Park's apparent indiscretions has been fierce.

"In Park's mind, there has never been a distinction between public and private," said a scathing editorial in Wednesday's edition of independent newspaper The Hankyoreh. "She had no awareness of the importance of protecting important state secrets or of the danger of such secrets being leaked....The current commander in chief of the Republic of Korea lacks the basic attitude required of public servants."
Kevin Plank's underdog story has become synonymous with Baltimore  the city his company Under Armour calls home. Now his investment company, Plank Industries, is looking to rebuild an entire area of the city. Billions of dollars will be poured into Port Covington in one of the largest urban redevelopment projects in the country, which will include housing, retail and an entrepreneurial ecosystem. "We often say that jobs are great, careers are better, and ownership is best," said Plank Industries CEO Tom Geddes. "If we can build a place that has a culture around entrepreneurship, small businesses growing into large businesses and general opportunities  we can give a boost to Baltimore City at a time when it is really needed."

The Port Covington project is already under way with the newly opened City Garage building, which houses three different arms  the Foundry, which is a maker space; Main Street, which is for companies who are pursuing Made in America products and services; and the Under Armour Lighthouse, a testing facility. Several companies, from a whiskey maker to a skateboard manufacturer, currently call City Garage home. Geddes said Plank Industries has invested some $10 million into some 12 businesses operating there.



The billion-dollar bet

Rendering of the Port Covington redevelopment project in Baltimore. Source: Sagamore Development

The entire Port Covington redevelopment will cost more than $4 billion, according to Plank Industries  local media have pegged the price tag even higher, at $5.5 billion. Funding will come from an undisclosed Plank Industries investment, as well as city, state and federal funding, along with income from future tenants and businesses. The project aims to create tens of thousands of jobs  some temporary and some permanent. The master plan, which will take between 15 and 20 years to execute, has been approved by the city, as has $500 million in tax increment funding.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake has hailed the project the "next chapter in Baltimore's future."

Baltimore is also making strides in moving past some of the physical damage done during riots that broke out in the wake of Baltimore resident Freddie Gray's death in police custody in April 2015. The Baltimore Development Corporation established the Baltimore Business Recovery Fund to provide zero-interest loans for up to $35,000. If the stores stay open for two years, the loans will be 100 percent forgiven, according to BDC managing director Susan Yum. The BDC identified approximately 400 businesses suffering from property damage and/or inventory loss. In addition to that, the BDC modified an existing facade-improvement grant program and offered storefront recovery grants for up to $5,000 to be used for exterior repairs, which were "sufficient enough for many to reopen." So far, the BDC has distributed just over $900,000 in 105 grants and loans; approximately 93 percent of businesses who received funding reopened.

People who aren't from Baltimore or don't know much about it often have negative perceptions. ... [Baltimore residents] have a chip on their shoulder to prove to the rest of the world that Baltimore really is a great place. David Narrow co-founder of Baltimore-based Sonavex

Beyond Plank Industries' massive footprint, Baltimore's affordability, educational feeder system and accessibility are among the reasons entrepreneurs are laying down roots. The city ranked as a top 20 metro in 2015 for start-up activity, with 69 start-ups for every 1,000 firms and 1,045 small businesses for every 100,000 residents in the area, according to data from the Kauffman Foundation. World-renowned medical research facility Johns Hopkins has expanded its footprint in the world of entrepreneurship, opening the FastForward tech accelerator in 2013. The center provides education, mentorship, services ranging from legal to accounting and IT, and affordable space to burgeoning companies. Since its launch, 67 companies have been licensed by Johns Hopkins University, and those based on the university's technology have raised more than $1 billion since 2012. There are currently 184 start-ups in the accelerator's ecosystem, and FastForward will continue to expand to a third on-campus location in 2017.

"Quite simply, it's about impact," Johns Hopkins University President Ron Daniels said. "The university is the largest recipient of federally allocated research funding year-over-year for the last 35 years.  Yet the impact that we were having in terms of our capacity to translate that research into services, products and drugs that would impact our patient population and other populations was not being fully exploited. We needed a physical manifestation of our commitment to the importance of transitional research." More from Iconic's Small Business Cities:

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A Google self-driving car at their company's headquarters in Mountain View, California. David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Alphabet finance chief Ruth Porat said on Thursday that the company's moonshots will face "course corrections along the way and that some efforts will be more successful than others." Corrections are presumably underway, and the public is waiting to see the successes, 14 months after the Alphabet structure was put in place. Financially, Alphabet is still Google and Google is swimming in cash. Mobile, YouTube and search advertising drove third-quarter revenue up 20 percent and helped sales and profit exceed analysts' estimates. Its cash balance sits at $83 billion. Take a look at the Other Bets piece of Alphabet, and it's a very different story. Combining all the units, which include Nest thermostats, fiber for high-speed Internet, health-tech division Verily and autonomous vehicles, revenue equaled $197 million, or less than 1 percent of Alphabet's sales. Mizuho Securities analyst Neil Doshi estimates the value of Other Bets at $7 a share, also less than 1 percent of the company's $817.35 stock price at Thursday's close.

watch now

Porat made clear that most of these projects are pre-revenue, and that the key thing to look at is progress. For example, autonomous cars have now driven over 2 million miles and are now being tested in four cities, "enabling us to experience varied weather and driving conditions," she said. But problems within Alphabet's side projects go well beyond money. Top executives have been fleeing, leaving Alphabet without many of the visionaries who were tapped to turn moonshots into eventual reality. Nest founder Tony Fadell left in June, and Chris Urmson, the technology chief behind self-driving cars, departed in August. That month, Bill Maris, who founded and led the company's start-up investing arm GV, stepped aside. Most recently and perhaps most alarmingly, Google Fiber chief Craig Barrat announced his resignation this week. Barrat, who has a PhD in electrical engineering from Stanford University and holds 34 patents, is the type of executive that was supposed to thrive under the Alphabet structure. In his 2015 founders letter announcing Alphabet's creation, CEO Larry Page listed seven things he was excited about, including "empowering great entrepreneurs and companies to flourish."

Larry Page chief executive officer of Google's parent company, Alphabet Inc. David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Chevron returned to profit on Friday, reporting a huge quarterly earnings beat as the company continued to cut costs amid a protracted oil price rout now entering its third year.



Shares of Chevron were up about about 2.8 percent.

"We have made progress toward our goals of lowering the cash breakeven in our upstream business and getting cash balanced," Chairman and CEO John Watson said in a statement. "Capital spending and operating and administrative expenses have been reduced by over $10 billion from the first nine months of 2015 as a result of a series of deliberate actions we have taken."



The oil company reported third-quarter earnings of $1.3 billion, or 68 cents a share, on revenues of $30.14 billion. That profit was down 37 percent from a year ago, when Chevron reported earnings of $2 billion, or $1.09 a share, on revenue of $34.3 billion.

Analyst had forecast earnings of 37 cents on revenue of $30.3 billion.

Chevron has reduced capital spending and expenditures on exploration by about $8 billion year to date. Spending on upstream exploration and production operations accounted for 91 percent of all expenditures in the third quarter.

Production of oil, natural gas and other fossil fuels ticked down slightly from a year ago. Chevron narrowed its loss in its U.S. upstream business by nearly $400 million due to lower expenses and taxes. The loss was offset by a profit of $666 million in Chevron's international drilling segment, which was up slightly from a year ago.

Earnings in Chevron's U.S. downstream business  which includes refining fuels and products that are marketed to consumers  fell by $727 million from a year ago due to lower margins for refined products. Integrated oil companies such as Chevron have seen their refining margins contract as crude oil prices rise. Crude is the raw material for many fuels.
Chipotle Mexican Grill has turned to high-profile investment bankers and lawyers to help defend against activist investor William Ackman, according to two people familiar with the matter on Thursday.

Investment banks Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, as well as law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, are now working for the U.S. restaurant chain, the people said. Chipotle has also hired crisis public relations firm Joele Frank, they added.

Neither Ackman nor his New York-based hedge fund, Pershing Square Capital Management, have publicly made any demands of Chipotle after becoming its second-largest shareholder last month.

Billionaire Ackman is known for buying stakes in publicly traded companies and trying to force changes ranging from removing board members to selling off large parts of the company.

The sources asked not to be identified because the assignments are not public. Wachtell and Chipotle did not return calls seeking comment, Morgan Stanley , Goldman Sachs , and Joele Frank declined to comment on Thursday.

In early September, Pershing Square said in a regulatory filing that it has a 9.9 percent stake in Chipotle, becoming its biggest shareholder after Fidelity Investments.

Chipotle is struggling to revive sales after a string of food borne illness outbreaks last year sent its shares tumbling. As a result, Chipotle on Tuesday posted another dismal quarterly earnings performance.

Executives have vowed to make the chain leaner and more efficient. They have laid out plans for long-overdue investments in digital ordering and payments, deeper cost cuts, and said they would pursue strategic alternatives for its 15-unit ShopHouse Southeast Asian Kitchen chain.

Chipotle in September said it welcomed Pershing Square's investment and appreciated its confidence in the company.

Since then, Pershing Square and Chipotle have met at least once and have had telephone conversations, two people familiar with the matter said. They declined to discuss what the two sides have said to each other.

People familiar with Ackman's thinking have suggested that he believes Chipotle's long-serving board is due for an overhaul, and that it needs to beef up its marketing, cost controls and information technology.

Ackman has been relatively quiet about his latest investment and the company's share price has not moved in his favor. After the initial uptick following news of his stake, shares have fallen nearly 10 percent.

Activist-oriented hedge funds such as Pershing Square have been hit hard by redemptions, with investors pulling roughly 5 percent in capital this year alone, cutting assets under management to about $116 billion, divided among some 78 activist funds, data from Hedge Fund Research shows.
John Podesta, chair of Hillary Clinton's campaign, demanded that FBI Director James Comey release details on new emails the agency discovered related to the Clinton case.

"The Director owes it to the American people to immediately provide the full details of what he is now examining. We are confident this will not produce any conclusions different from the one the FBI reached in July," Podesta said in a statement.

In a letter addressed to Comey and Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Democratic congressmen Elijah Cummings and John Conyers called for full disclosure from the Department of Justice and the FBI "in order to debunk these conspiracy theories and correct the public record."



Clinton was mum Friday afternoon about a renewed FBI probe of her emails as she began speaking at a campaign rally in Iowa.

Podesta added that "it is extraordinary that we would see something like this just 11 days out from a presidential election."
Amazon 's stock will be a "buy" on Monday even after the e-commerce company's disappointing quarter, according to CNBC's Jim Cramer on Friday.

On Thursday, Amazon reported third-quarter earnings well below analysts' estimates. Amazon's shares fell in extended trading immediately after the announcement.

The e-commerce giant disappointed investors after it said spending on warehouses and video production would drag on profits in the holiday quarter. Chief Financial Officer Brian Olsavsky said the spending was a "step-up" compared to what the company did previously. Amazon said it expects fourth-quarter sales in the range of $42 billion and 45.5 billion.

Cramer said investors must recognize that, periodically, companies are bound to drop a "bomb."

"It is just rather amazing to me that everyone's stunned that periodically they do this, and then they sell and you end up missing the big picture," Cramer said on "Squawk on the Street." "I think this is, [on] Monday, a 'buy.'"

He later continued: "There have been very few situations where a stock is down $40 in premarket and every single research piece is a defense. So, you think, who's selling? ... Someone who didn't read the conference call or doesn't know the way that they think. But this is what happens."

Amazon's stock was trading down nearly 5 percent in midmorning trade Friday. The stock is up more than 15 percent year to date.
With this in mind, Cramer outlined the stocks and events on his radar next week:

It was one of the most vicious rotations Cramer has ever witnessed. Health care stocks, which were already under pressure for election season, had massive declines stemming from monster shortfalls. Cramer expects the madness to continue next week.

"I do know that this market seems to want some certainty or it wouldn't have plunged so hard midday," the " Mad Money " host said.

While Cramer doesn't know what will happen with Clinton, the rapid decline in stocks signaled that investors need more certainty in the current environment.

Jim Cramer watched as billions of dollars were shifted out of healthcare stocks, to technical and industrials, and then out of the market altogether on the news that the FBI is probing new emails related to its investigation of Hillary Clinton .

Monday: ZimmerBiomet, General Electric  Baker Hughes news

Zimmer Biomet : Normally Cramer would advise investors to buy on weakness. Considering that the stocks are all in the doghouse, he's staying away.

GE -Baker Hughes deal: Cramer will be looking for clarity on what General Electric is doing with Baker Hughes. The limbo is too much for Cramer.

"While my charitable trust owns GE, if it gives away its oil and gas business at the bottom, where I think it is now, I believe that would be a colossal mistake that might make the stock no longer worth owning," Cramer said.

Tuesday: Royal Dutch Shell, Occidental Petroleum, Pioneer Natural Resources, Gilead

Royal Dutch and Occidental : This group has been all over the map recently. Oil fell on OPEC output concerns on Friday. If it continues to slide next week, Cramer recommended taking advantage of the weakness and doing some buying. He liked Pioneer Natural Resources because it has the best growth of all of the independents.

Wednesday: AmerisourceBergen, Clorox, Time Warner, Facebook, Whole Foods

AmerisourceBergen : Cramer expects the healthcare madness to continue, as he suspects AmerisourceBergen  along with Cardinal and McKesson  has also been a victim of the price war for generic business. If AmerisourceBergen can bounce, Cramer thinks the stocks could put in a bottom.

"Until then, though, don't go near the drug wholesalers," he said.

Time Warner : Cramer plans to listen to the conference call when Time Warner reports to find out more about its decision to be purchased by AT&T for $85 billion.

Facebook : The company has a history of reporting strong numbers, but the stock has run up going into the quarter. Historically, Cramer said it pays to wait until after Facebook reports to buy.

Whole Foods : Many buyers are waiting for Whole Foods to turn around and may be tempted to buy the stock after it reports. Cramer considers that a mistake, and advised investors to take a guilty-until-proven-innocent approach and wait for the turn to happen.

Thursday: Starbucks, Skyworks Solutions

Starbucks : Cramer's charitable trust has been buying Starbucks with a long-term perspective in mind, even as he expects that the U.S. may not have strong numbers. However, its overseas markets have been strong. He recommended waiting and seeing what Starbucks has to say to see if it is possible to buy lower.

Friday: Non-farm payroll

This will be the last non-farm payroll report before the election. If it is strong, Cramer said the market should brace itself for a December rate hike.

"We can't just focus on the quarterly reports without thinking about the broader prism that keeps stocks in check or checkmate, depending on how you look at it," Cramer said.
The Iran nuclear deal is inherently flawed, but the state of Israel is under no existential threat and should respect United States sovereignty as a country, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak said Friday.

"We feel that it's a bad deal, but it's a done deal," Barak told CNBC's "Squawk Box."

He said that while the situation in the Middle East is and will continue to be complicated, the impact of the Iran deal on surrounding countries will not be as chaotic as much of the current rhetoric suggests.

"There is a deal now. The Iranians are not going to break it in the coming five or six years because they want to harvest the benefits of it," he said.

And, while Barak said Iran is likely to continue developing its long-range missiles, sponsoring terror, and fine-tuning its cyberattacks  all of which were excluded from the deal  the former prime minister was confident in the welfare of his country and insisted that it is facing no existential threats.

"I do not underestimate the risk of Iran for a moment. I just keep thinking strategically and concretely," Barak said. "Israel is the strongest country, and I say [that] not just as political position, but as matter of professional judgment."

Any efforts to undo the accord, in Barak's view, would be disrespectful to United States sovereignty. He said the actions of current Israeli Prime Minster Benjamin Netanyahu, who lobbied Congress against the nuclear deal, were an overstep into U.S. politics.

Barak said he would have liked to see Netanyahu meet with President Barack Obama behind closed doors to resolve the issue or suggest changes instead of publicly involving the state of Israel in U.S. affairs.

He also said that any efforts to posthumously cancel the deal would be fruitless.

"All the talks about someone that can come out of the blue or through the ballots and just cancel it [are] a little bit hollow because it's not just [an] American-Iranian agreement. China will not follow, Russia will not follow, Germany and France will not follow," he said.

Barak said he hopes that, moving forward, Netanyahu will be able to sit down with American leaders  behind closed doors  to discuss options for the future. He said it is essential for the countries to work together and make sure their intelligence communities are keeping an eye on Iran's moves.

When asked about the next leader of the United States, Barak chose not to respond definitively due to his personal ties to one of the candidates.

Still, he said, "all candidates  post-election ended up being supportive of Israel. It's based not just on world views, but on wide foundations of common and shared values between the Israeli people and the American ones."
Atlantic Capital Bank, NA announced Friday that it has sold the current home office at 531 Broad St. to Harbert Realty of Birmingham, for $5,375,000. The banks new home office signals the start of a brand transition from the FSG Bank name, currently found in its eastern Tennessee and northwest Georgia markets.



Atlantic Capital will occupy the third floor of Warehouse Row, a commercial space known for its modern look as well as businesses, retail shops and restaurants. The half mile move south is scheduled for Feb. 13, 2017.

Warehouse Row is a great example of Chattanoogas commercial revitalization efforts," said Atlantic Capital President and Chief Operating Officer Mike Kramer. "Weve been privileged to play a role in that process and look forward to building on that as Atlantic Capital."

Playcore plans to move its headquarters from Fourth and Chestnut to the bank building.

The bank will be leasing space from Playcore until the February move.






Oil prices have been under pressure this week as investors raised doubts over whether an agreement on a production cut between OPEC and non-OPEC members would soon materialize.

However, even if a deal over an output cut doesn't emerge soon; one analyst believes prices are still going to climb.

"We think even without an OPEC deal, prices are headed higher and that's purely because of fundamentals," Miswin Mahesh, oil analyst at Barclays, told CNBC on Friday.

"Demand, supply  when we do the numbers, we're getting a deficit as early as Q1 to Q2."

When looking at the first to second quarter, Mahesh said it was possible prices could head towards the $50 to $55 per barrel range.

Meanwhile, Chantico Global's CEO Gina Sanchez argued on CNBC's Street Signs Europe, that unless the market sees some significant news out of the OPEC meetingwhich she said she didn't anticipateoil is likely to trade back down to around $40 per barrel.
Exxon Mobil on Friday said it could write down billions of barrels of reserves, marking a change of course as the company faces federal investigations into how it values those reserves.

During the third quarter, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Securities and Exchange Commission and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's office launched probes to determine if Exxon should have written down the value of its reserves based on drop in global oil prices that began about two years ago. Unlike peers such as BP and Chevron , Exxon has resisted reducing its assessment of how much its reserves may be worth.

In its third-quarter results, reported Friday, Exxon said it could write down as much as 4.6 billion barrels of oil equivalent if the average price of oil for the first nine months of 2016 holds through year end. Low oil prices decrease the value of a company's crude reserves that remain locked underground, but Exxon has argued that it is conservative in the way it books reserves to begin with, so write-downs have not been necessary.

Writing down assets essentially moves them off a company's balance sheet, reducing the potential value they could reap in the future, thereby potentially making the company itself less attractive to investors.

Exxon now says that 3.6 billion barrels of bitumen in its Kearl oil sands project in Canada, and about 1 billion barrels of oil equivalent in North American operations, may not qualify as proved reserves under SEC rules.

Prior to starting the Kearl oil sands project in 2013, Exxon said it "will produce one of the largest and highest quality oil sands deposits in Canada." But Canada's oil sands have been some of the hardest hit energy assets over the last two years, due to the high cost of extracting oil in that part of the world.

Jeff Woodbury, Exxon's vice president of investor relations, noted in a conference call on Friday that the company had conducted a comprehensive evaluation of its reserves in 2015 in light of the oil price downturn. He said cash flow at the time fully covered the costs of carrying those assets on Exxon's books.

However, Exxon "thought it was appropriate to signal the potential impact" of low prices on the assets on an SEC pricing basis. He did not elaborate on the specific mechanisms Exxon uses to evaluate the value of reserves.

"Rest assured we're in full compliance with the rules and standards of the SEC and the Financial Accounting Standard Bureau," he said.

The SEC is also seeking to determine whether Exxon adequately accounts for how climate change could affect its business, after an earlier investigation that Schneiderman launched into that matter.


Vice President Joe Biden is under consideration for secretary of state if Hillary Clinton wins the White House, a trusted source confirmed to NBC News Thursday night.

Politico first reported that Biden is "at the top of a short list" of the Clinton's transition team's list for the post.

Biden, a senator for 36 years who has served as chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee before becoming vice president, has hammered Donald Trump over his cozy statements about Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The White House calls Biden on its website "a leading architect of the U.S. strategic vision of a Europe whole, free and at peace." Biden in an August trip to Latvia assured that nation and the Baltic states of Estonia and Lithuania that the U.S. is committed to defend NATO countries against any Russian aggression.

More from NBC News:

Clinton and FLOTUS take on bullies at joint rally

Conflicting numbers but one clear conclusion - Clinton is ahead

Donald Trump's presidential campaign has a cash flow problem

Clinton has stressed that she is still focused on the campaign even while a transition process is under way.
This commentary originally appeared on The Hill.

When Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood, told GOP nominee Donald Trump from the podium of the Democratic National Convention in July that "women are gonna be the reason you're not elected to be president," she probably didn't forsee a sinking ship of this magnitude.

Trump's terrible October began Oct. 7, when an 11-year-old video from "Access Hollywood" came to light. In it, Trump describes his past sexual assaults of women: "I don't even wait."



This was followed by a line of women who have come forward, describing events where, they claim, Trump actually sexually assaulted them (Trump denies these stories are true). New York magazine lists over 20 allegations of Trump's mistreatment of women that have come out in the past month. And the list grows.



More from The Hill:

Clinton fails to contain the damage from email leaks

Trump losing cash race in final weeks

Clinton comes under pressure from left in campaign's homestretch



Add to all of that the three public debates where the public consensus seems to be that Clinton bested Trump, three out of three.

October was a terrible month for candidate Trump among women, one might think.



Few were shocked when an ABC/Washington Post poll, taken between Oct. 20 and Oct. 22 by Langer Research Associates, was released, trumpeting a headline that Clinton was now in advance of Trump by 12 percentage points nationally among likely voters.



That's what the poll  a snapshot in time  says.



But look at the movie, see where the action is, and a different picture emerges.



Comparing two ABC/Washington Post polls taken a month apart, Trump's disaster of October didn't occur among women, the majority of whom already supported Clinton.



Trump's disaster occurred among his base: men.



In the first poll taken Sept. 19-22  before the "Access Hollywood" video came out  Trump was favored over Clinton by 19 points among all men, a huge advantage for Trump, which reflects the historical advantage Republicans have had with men in presidential elections.



But by the late October poll, the results had flipped. Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton now leads Trump by 3 points in the same group  a swing of 22 points  roughly equivalent to one in five men ending their support for Trump during the past month.



That's a huge swing. One might expect that there is a similarly large swing among women; perhaps larger. But there isn't.

In September, women favored Clinton over Trump by 19 points; come October, that advantage did not measurably increase. A mere 1 point changed  It's now 20 points  minuscule in comparison to the 22-point swing among men.



What happened?



The impact was greatest among white men without a college degree. These men are supposed to be Trump's base  and indeed, they still are the largest single demographic that supports Trump, according to the October poll.



But comparing the September and October polls, one sees Trump's base is abandoning him.



In September, Trump enjoyed being 59-point favorite over Clinton among this demographic, but by October, this lead had shrunk to only 31 points  a change equivalent to Trump losing support of one in four white blue-collar men in October.



That's an abandonment. That's an evaporation.


The Mexican peso fell more than 1 percent against the U.S. dollar after it was revealed Friday afternoon that the Federal Bureau of Investigation is looking at new emails related to Hillary Clinton.

"The market is worried about two things. One, a higher chance that Hillary loses the election. Two, you (could) have a president-elect who's under investigation by the FBI. Even if it doesn't change the election result, it adds some uncertainty in the election aftermath and certainly increases the division in America," said Adam Button, currency analyst at ForexLive.com.

The Mexican peso is generally viewed as a good gauge of how markets are perceiving the U.S. presidential election. Donald Trump has called for the construction of a wall on the Mexico-U.S. border, and has said he would go as far as withdrawing the United States from the North American Free Trade Agreement.

The fell more than 1.5 percent in Friday afternoon trade.
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Several of the City of London's most prominent voices have warned leaders of the European Union (EU) and the U.K. that New York is set to be the winner from Brexit unless they avoid mutually destructive negotiations over the future of the U.K.'s financial sector. The message, which has been repeated throughout the week, served as a thinly veiled warning to EU leaders that unless they co-operate with the U.K. in working towards the least damaging outcome for Brexit, the trading bloc also stands to lose significantly, rather than be well-positioned to benefit from the potential loss of U.K.-based firms' so-called passporting rights. The sharpening of rhetoric can be seen as an attempt to position the EU and the U.K. on the same team as Brexit negotiations proceed, rather than as enemies on opposite sides of the table. It comes on the back of antagonistic messages from leaders, such as EU Council President Donald Tusk, who said last week the only options facing the U.K. were a "hard Brexit" or "no Brexit" and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker who affirmed the EU would be "intransigent" in its dealings with Britain.

The sun sets on Lower Manhattan and One World Trade Center in New York City on October 6, 2016 as seen Hoboken, NJ. Gary Hershorn | Corbis | Getty Images

At a Thursday night banquet for City business leaders, London Mayor Sadiq Khan and City of London Corporation Chairman Mark Boleat took the microphone to lay out in stark terms the threat to financial sector jobs in the U.K. capital posed by challenger cities abroad, such as New York, Singapore and Hong Kong. According to Boleat, "It is already apparent that the biggest beneficiary of any job losses in the U.K. will be New York, and some employment will simply stop as the volume of business can no longer be supported by the higher costs." In his view, a third of jobs lost in the City could move to New York alone, with an equal amount being dispersed among European cities and a final third simply evaporating. Sadiq Khan's speech revealed his frustration that appeals to the U.K. government to focus its concerted efforts on avoiding an acrimonious withdrawal from the EU seemed to be "falling on deaf ears". Turning to the continent, he asserted, "Hard Brexit really is a zero-sum game for Europe."

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Earlier on Thursday, while speaking exclusively to CNBC at his Mansion House residence, Lord Mayor Jeffrey Mountevans, whose main role is to represent, support and promote the City of London, shared a parallel view. "What I'm hearing most is the danger is that perhaps business would go to New York," he said. Beyond viewing Brexit as an opportunity to snap up business, the Lord Mayor also advised consideration of the potential downside for EU enterprises of a diminished London, saying, "We feel it is important for European businesses to have the expert guidance and advice and servicing capability that the City of London provides." A study of the Global Leading Financial Centers published last month showed London just hanging on to its number one position with New York only one point behind - this on a scale that runs to 1,000 points. The strong desire for resetting the tone to create a constructive dialogue as details of the U.K.'s departure from the EU are thrashed out was summarized by the Lord Mayor when he told CNBC, "We are very anxious to retain good links with Europe." He also echoed Khan's warning that the detriment of pursuing a hard Brexit would be felt much more widely than the City. "Not only would it not be for London it wouldn't be good for Europe," he concluded.
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Karma, it turns out, is a borscht. A Ukrainian group calling itself Cyber Hunta has released more than a gigabyte of emails and other material from the office of one of Vladimir Putin's top aides, Vladislav Surkov, that show Russia's fingerprints all over the separatist movement in Ukraine.

While the Kremlin has denied the relationship between Moscow and the separatists, the emails show in great detail how Russia controlled virtually every detail of the separatist effort in the Russian-speaking regions of Ukraine, which has torn the country apart and led to a Russian takeover of Crimea.

And unlike the reported Russian hack of the Democratic National Committee, the Ukrainian hack reached deep into the office of the Russian president.

"This is a serious hack," said Maks Czuperski, head of the Digital Forensic Research Lab of the Atlantic Council (DFRL), which has searched through the email dump and placed selected emails on-line. "We have seen so much happen to the United States, other countries at the hands of Russia," said Czuperski. "Not so much to Russia. It was only a question of time that some of the anonymous guys like Cyber Hunta would come to strike them back." A senior U.S. intelligence official said the U.S. "had no role" in the hack.

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Surkov has been a close aide to Putin for more than a decade, serving as both deputy prime minister and Putin's deputy chief of staff. The hacked emails date from 2014, a period during which Surkov was called the "gray cardinal" of the Kremlin, Putin's behind-the-scenes aide responsible for managing Russia's most crucial operations. He guided separatists not just in Ukraine, but in breakaway "republics" in Georgia as well.

It's as if the Russians were able to hack the email of Ben Rhodes, the deputy national security director and close aide to President Obama.

Specifically, the anonymous Ukrainian hackers were able to download the Outlook email accounts of Surkov's assistants, including a "Masha" and an "Yevgenia," according to the DFRL. Surkov himself apparently doesn't use email. The files included "the inbox, outbox, drafts, deleted email, spam, etc.," said Czuperski, noting 2,337 messages in total were dumped.

More from NBC News: BidenSaid to Be Considered for Sec. of State If Clinton Wins 100+Arrested as Pipeline Protesters Ousted From Camp

Jury Hands Ex-Penn State Assistant $7M in Defamation Case

A senior U.S. official, asked if the material was authentic, told NBC News that there was "nothing to indicate otherwise." Hidden in the one gigabyte file are a variety of materials that provided evidence of Russian involvement at the highest levels in the war in eastern Ukraine, which has taken the lives of 10,000 people, including the 298 passengers and crew of Malaysian Flight 17, shot down by a separatist missile in July 2014 over Ukraine.

There is a list of casualties in the Donbass region of Ukraine sent from a high-ranking separatist official, and a list of candidates for office in a sham election. One email notes that the individuals with asterisks next to their name were "checked by us" and are "especially recommended." Days later, those same names were announced as having been "elected."

There are expense reports and a proposal for a government press office in Donetsk, scene of some of the fiercest fighting -- a three-person operation for separatist propaganda, with an editor, reporter and webmaster.

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President Vladimir Putin on Thursday accused American politicians of whipping up hysteria about a mythical Russian threat as a ploy to distract voters from their own failings in the run-up to the U.S. presidential election. Putin, addressing an audience of foreign policy experts gathered in southern Russia, repeatedly lashed out at the Obama administration, saying it did not keep its word on Syria, did not honour deals, and had falsely accused Moscow of all manner of sins.

The U.S. government has formally accused Russia of a campaign of cyber attacks against Democratic Party organisations, while Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton has accused Republican rival Donald Trump of being a Putin "puppet".

Putin said he found it hard to believe that anyone seriously thought Moscow was capable of influencing the Nov. 8 election.

"Hysteria has been whipped up," said Putin.

He said that was a ruse to cover up for the fact that the U.S. political elite had nothing to say about serious issues such as the country's national debt or gun control.

U.S. is "great power"

"It's much simpler to distract people with so-called Russian hackers, spies, and agents of influence. Does anyone really think that Russia could influence the American people's choice in any way? Is America a banana republic or what? America is a great power."

In Washington, White House spokesman Josh Earnest dismissed Putin's remarks as predictable and said the United States stood by its hacking allegations.

"There's nothing that President Putin had to say today that I find particularly surprising or that in any way undermines the president's confidence in the analysis that's been released by the Department of Homeland Security and the intelligence community," said Earnest.

Russian state TV and some of his past comments have suggested the Russian leader favours Trump, but Putin said he did not back any candidate in the U.S. election and was ready to work with any new U.S. president and to discuss any issue.

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Cleveland State Student Mikaela Broling has been selected as a 2016 Coca-Cola Leader of Promise Scholar. Broling is one of 200 scholars to receive a scholarship in the amount of $1000. This scholarship is designed to provide new Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) members with financial resources to help defray educational expenses while enrolled in a two-year college while also encouraging participation in Society programs.



This years recipients were selected by a panel of independent judges from more than 1,100 applicants. Coca-Cola Leaders of Promise Scholars are selected based on outstanding academic achievement and demonstrated leadership potential.



I was new to this area, and I wanted to be involved in some sort of organization, so I decided to join PTK, stated Broling. I have never received a scholarship like this before, so it was definitely worth it. Im looking forward to all of the opportunities that it will bring. I also plan on transferring to a four-year institution and being able to apply for other scholarships along the way, so hopefully that works out!



I was excited to learn that another Cleveland State Student, Mikaela Broling, from our Athens campus, had received a Phi Theta Kappa Scholarship, stated Karen Dale, PTK Advisor. Last year, the only two students from Tennessee to be selected for the Coca-Cola Community College Academic Team, Bryan Hidalgo (Silver) and Anna McDade (bronze), were from Cleveland State. We are proud to have Mikaela as a member of our Omega Omicron Chapter and congratulate her on the Coca-Cola Leaders of Promise Scholarship.



Ms. Dale continued, The Phi Theta Kappa Website states, With over $90 million in scholarships for eligible members, Phi Theta Kappa helps students finish the dreams they started. I am proud of these students for having the motivation to complete the application process, and I am extremely thankful that our students have received these honors. Mikaela's dream is to be a teacher, and from what I have observed, she will be an excellent one.



The Leaders of Promise Scholarship Program was conceived by International Officers and launched in 2001. The program is a result of the Societys long-range plan, The Alpha Project, which identified the need for scholarships to new Phi Theta Kappa members to assist in their obtaining an associate degree, which also encourages participation in Societys programs. Today, the Coca-Cola Leaders of Promise Scholarship is more relevant than ever as the organization, colleges and communities are actively encouraging completion of a college credential, as associate degree or certificate, among community college students.
St. Johns Restaurant presented a $15,000 check to Childrens Hospital at Erlanger. Josh Carter, owner of St. Johns, hosted the Be a Saint wine dinner in September benefiting the Believe Campaign to build a new Childrens Hospital.

We are thankful to the Chattanooga community for joining us in supporting this very important project, said Carter.

Be a Saint guests were treated to a five course meal, prepared by St. Johns Executive Chef Rebecca Barron and Sommelier Michelle Richards, paired with selected saint wines.

We are incredibly thankful for the generous donation made by those who attended the event at St. Johns, said Julie Taylor, Chief Development Officer and President of Erlanger Health System Foundations. As the only hospital serving children and families across the region, Childrens Hospital at Erlanger is a resource we simply cannot do without. One hundred percent of the money raised for the Believe Campaign will stay local and will go towards building a new Childrens Hospital ensuring continued quality care to our patients now and into the future.
The timing of the latest Hillary Clinton email probe suggests there may be some significant information in the case, two Republican congressmen told CNBC on Friday.

With just 11 days until the election, the Federal Bureau of Investigation sent a letter to lawmakers on Friday stating it is investigating new emails related to Clinton.

The emails were discovered during an FBI investigation in which the devices of former Congressman Anthony Weiner and Clinton aide Huma Abedin were seized, NBC News confirmed. The New York Times first reported the news.

"I would imagine that they have some evidence that's relatively significant to go through the extraordinary step to write a letter to the leaders of all these committees," Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Florida, said in an interview with CNBC's "Closing Bell." DeSantis is a member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, told "Power Lunch" he has taken issue with FBI Director James Comey's decision to not prosecute Clinton and the fact that five people got immunity agreements in the case. Because of that, he thinks the probe into the new emails sends a strong message.

"We don't know what it is but it sure seems like it must be something pretty darn important for that fact pattern to play out and for them to announce just a week and a half before an election that they are going to reexamine things and look at these new emails," said Jordan, who sits on the House Oversight and Judiciary Committees.
"Conflicted."

That's the word political scientist Helmut Norpoth used to describe his current lot in life, one that finds his professional credibility intertwined with a politician who appears to have less and less of it: Donald J. Trump.



With mind-boggling confidence, Norpoth's "Primary Model," his heretofore successful election forecast system, projects Trump to win the presidential election in less than two weeks. The model puts the odds of this above 87 percent.

And despite a blizzard of public polls to the contrary, Norpoth isn't hedging his bet. Instead, with invocations of "Dewey Beats Truman," he's calling into question the consensus of survey research that shows Hillary Clinton on the glide path to 270 electoral votes.



Norpoth's contrarianism comes with the perks of publicity.



At the moment, his results are being regularly heralded by an adoring audience on the right.



I have never gotten anywhere near (this) attention for my other forecasts, Norpoth told CNBC.com in a telephone interview this week. He added that if given the choice between a forecast that is right and gives you almost no publicity (and) a forecast that turns out to be wrong in the end that gets a lot of notoriety, I would certainly take the latter.

But what is the cost of riding this tiger? For some, very little, but for a respected academic like Norpoth there's certainly a risk. And some of his colleagues are already preparing the post-election woodshed for his comeuppance. In January, Norpoth is scheduled to be part of a panel discussion at the Southern Political Science Association meeting in New Orleans.



"He is going to have some 'splaining to do, as they say," said Alan Abramowitz, a political scientist at Emory University. Like Norpoth, Abramowitz also has stewarded a successful election forecasting model, "Time for Change," which likewise predicts Trump will win the election. But while their projections are similar, their reactions have differed greatly.

At a Labor Day gathering of political scientists in Philadelphia, where both men presented their findings, Abramowitz immediately backed away from his. He has since argued that the unique self-destructiveness of the Republican nominee will likely overwhelm the other variables of his model.



"My forecasting model may be the least significant wreckage created by Trump," Abramowitz told CNBC.com.



In a way, Norpoth and Abramowitz are serving as case studies in a separate kind of social science experiment, one that tests the exigencies of academics, presidential politics and modern media. What is clear now is that nobody is talking about Abramowitz's Trump-picking model, while many are talking about Norpoth's.



This time four years ago, similar buzz surrounded the work of two political scientists at the University of Colorado, Kenneth Bickers and Michael Berry, whose forecasting model projected that Mitt Romney would win the presidency with 330 electoral votes. Their model was one of the few that year to use state-level economic data to project voting booth behavior, which seemed compelling on its face.



However, after the votes were counted, and President Barack Obama won, Bickers acknowledged that the model's assumptions about the domestic economy's role in voter behavior were fundamentally flawed. Although he initially indicated he might try to revise the model for future elections, he ended up scrapping it.
Donald Trump's running mate, Republican Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, told CNBC on Friday their administration would repeal Obamacare and usher in a new way for Americans to buy health insurance.

"[We're] committed to allowing ... people to buy health insurance the way we buy life insurance, the way we buy car insurance," Pence said in a "Squawk Box" interview.

"That is across state lines in a competitive marketplace, not with the top-down government takeover of health care which is what Obamacare was from the very beginning," he said.

Trump wants to replace Obamacare with health savings accounts, a way to put tax-free money aside to pay for medical expenses.

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton plans to "defend and expand" Obamacare, adding the so-called public option or government-run health insurance offerings.



Pence also argued that Trump's outrage over his "stolen" tax records is justified, and it's not hypocritical to use the information contained in Clinton's emails.

Not all the Clinton emails were the result of WikiLeaks publishing hacked files, Pence said, adding some were brought to light by Freedom of Information Act requests.

"Many in the national media are buying into the argument from the other side that the issue here is where they came from, not what's in the emails," Pence said.

On the matter of AT&T 's proposed $85 billion buyout of Time Warner , the GOP vice presidential nominee defended Trump's comments about being opposed to the deal.

"One of the things that's appealing about Donald Trump is that he speaks his mind; speaks it plainly," he said. "I think expressing skepticism on that [merger], as policymakers in Washington, D.C., evaluate that merger was more than appropriate."


watch now

A matter of months after the U.K. Independence Party achieved its founding aim of securing Britain's exit from the European Union, the party appears to be fighting for its political life. Long-time leader Nigel Farage quit just after the referendum to be replaced by Diane James, who lasted just 18 days in the job. Then after a fight in Brussels with a fellow UKIP member that ended in his hospitalisation, Steven Woolfe quit labelling the party "ungovernable". In a bid to turn the party around, leadership candidate Suzanne Evans is calling for UKIP to reposition itself as a centrist political force. Speaking to CNBC on Thursday she argued: "There's a desperate need in British politics for that third party that sits at the centre ground, which both the Labour Party and the Conservative Party have completely abandoned."

"I will ditch the right wing, Trump-style rhetoric and appeal to the common sense center," Evans added in a blog post.

Her comments appear aimed at rival UKIP leadership contender Raheem Kassam, whose campaign draws inspiration from Donald Trump's presidential bid. Indeed, his campaign slogan is "Make UKIP Great Again." The UKIP candidate has also praised the Republican presidential nominee's stance on NATO and his proposal to restrict Muslim immigration into the US.





watch now

But according to bookmakers' odds, both Kassam and Evans trail the frontrunner Paul Nuttall in the race to become the next UKIP leader. Nuttall is running on a ticket to make UKIP the party of the "common man and woman" and aims to entice voters away from Labour in the north of England.





watch now

Poll research suggests attempts to rebrand UKIP as a centrist party may prove unpopular with its existing supporters. The study found that 69 percent of UKIP members identify as being right of centre, while just 15 percent consider themselves centrists. Evans told CNBC the issues of immigration and EU-UK relations would remain UKIP's prime focus under her leadership. However, she also promised to take steps to increase the party's representation in parliament and popularity among women.

UKIP currently only has 1 member of parliament, despite the party receiving a 12.6 percent share of the vote in the 2015 general election.

While the UKIP leadership contenders might be split over the party's future direction, they're broadly united in their criticism of the Conservative government's response to the Brexit vote.

In an interview with CNBC, Evans said: "One of my first jobs as the leader of UKIP would be to start campaigning to leave the European Union straight away, because I think we've faffed about far too much."

Nuttall echoed this sentiment in his leadership declaration, writing: "Britain now needs a strong UKIP more than ever, to hold the government's feet to the fire in the Brexit negotiations."

Voting in the UKIP leadership contest begins from the 11th of November. The winner will be announced on November 28th.




Hindu Sena activists organize a hawan and chant mantras invoking the Hindu Gods to help Republican candidate Donald Trump to win the US presidential election at Jantar Mantar on May 11, 2016 in New Delhi, India.

Donald Trump may not be too kind toward foreigners or immigrants when he's on the campaign trail, but there are still groups of Chinese and Indians  both in the United States and in Asia  who support the Republican presidential candidate.

Make no mistake: The vast majority of Asian-Americans favor Hillary Clinton. According to the National Asian American Survey for Fall 2016, Clinton enjoys an almost 4-to-1 advantage over Trump  55 percent vs. 14 percent  with about 1 in 5 still undecided.

Indian Americans tend to lean left, fitting the larger trend among Americans of Asian descent. But a growing number of Hindu Indians support Trump because of his anti-Muslim rhetoric  and Trump has capitalized on this.



In a speech in New Jersey, Trump pledged that he would support Indians and crack down against Muslim extremism. Those strong words from Trump resonated with many Indians, who have seen their country repeatedly struck by terrorism, the most significant example being the Mumbai terror attacks in 2008 which killed more than 200 people.



A vocal, right-wing political group, Hindu Sena, called Trump a "hero," due in part to his ability to "save humanity from Islam and Islamic terror."



Trump's commentary also comes at a time when tensions have been elevated between India and Pakistan over the disputed region of Kashmir.



"Most U.S. leaders in the past have had a pro-Pakistan tilt  so Trump's pro-India comments have been cheered by the [Indian] community," said Professor Ravi Ahuja at DeSales University in Pennsylvania.



Aside from his aggressive words on terrorism, Trump's brand also has equity in India.



"India probably has the highest number of Trump-branded real estate projects outside of North America," said a spokesperson for Tribeca, a Mumbai-based developer that acts as Trump's partner in India. "Trump has five ongoing deals in India with a gross development value of about $1.5 billion" with "more projects likely to be launched in 2017."
A visitor looks at Johnnie Walker bottles at the luxury goods fair in Shanghai China.

Western spirits are starting to see a recovery in China, driven by demand from the growing middle class for premium and iconic American brands.

Following the Chinese government's sweeping anti-extravagance crackdown in 2013, which led to shrinking demand for the high-end liquor, premium brands are indicating that retail demand is returning, as distributors are seeing renewed interest in international whiskey labels.

That demand is being boosted by whiskey bars and tasting clubs, which have focused on imported spirits. Meanwhile, more Chinese restaurants are stocking premium imports.

Whiskey auctions are likewise becoming more prevalent, as spirits are once again being gifted more frequently. That's particularly true of super-deluxe Scotch and malts.

Still, the market remains dominated by traditional drinks such as baijiu, which accounts for an estimated 90 percent share of the spirits market, according to Credit Suisse.

"In places like China we think there's a huge opportunity there to win within the refreshment occasion," said Greg Hughes, U.S. General Manager of Beam Suntory , whose leading American brands include Jim Beam, Maker's Mark and several others.

One spirits category that's particularly strong is single-malt whiskey, which "is increasingly seen as the spirit for connoisseurs," according to IWSR, which tracks consumption and trends in alcoholic beverages.

Despite Japan being one the strongest overseas markets for Scotch by volume, it has struggled in China and Taiwan. But Diageo  the world's largest premium drinks company  sees opportunity in the super-premium end of the market, where cases usually go for upwards of $200. Growth in that segment is being driven by the middle class and a nascent recovery among wealthy consumers.

"The number of whiskey bars or collectors clubs areincreasing in tier-one cities in China, with now over 100 new bars opening up last year," Sam Fischer, Diageo's president of Greater China and Asia, told analysts at a presentation this month.

"And we also see the growing trend of single-malts, as consumers look for brands of quality and heritage."

Overall, China's spirits industry is forecast to generate $143.2 billion in sales in 2016, up 8.3 percent from the prior year, according to Euromonitor International. That would be the best annual growth since 2011, when sales growth paced in the double digits. Euromonitor predicts the industry will bring in $183 billion by 2020.

Increasingly, American brands are playing a larger role in that growth. U.S. spirits exports to China reached an all-time high of $15.1 million in 2015, up 35 percent from 2013 levels, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, a trade group.

"We had stability with on the one hand China improving but on the other hand Africa, Middle East getting tougher," Gilles Bogaert, managing director of finance and operations for Pernod Ricard said last week while discussing the French distiller's financial results to industry analysts. Pernod, the world's second-largest spirits company after Diageo, has global brands including Chivas Regal and Jameson.

Even some of the cognac business in China, a category that has been challenged in recent years, has started to improve.

"We are positively also surprised by the acceleration we are experiencing in Greater China," Luca Marotta, chief financial officer of France's Remy Cointreau, said last week.

In September, the company's Remy Martin division opened a boutique store in a luxury mall in Beijing. The store allows customers to taste pricey Louis XIII Cognac, and dine on caviar and iberico ham. There are miniature bottles as well as the Le Mathusalem version, a larger six-liter size that can cost around $3,000 per bottle.

When asked if the Chinese market was seeing a softening or relaxation in consumer attitudes towards extravagant consumption, Marotta said "there are a lot of rich people that not only want to be pleasured and to buy and drink something very special."

But "it is more the fact that Louis XIII is no more a product of the extravagance habits; it's a more normal upscale product for everybody. Which is good, because it seems that the demographics can be very profitable for this product."

Yet while China's spirits market offers opportunity to Western brands, challenges remain. Almost three-fourths of the alcoholic beverage consumption in the world's most populous nation is for the local baijiu drink or beer, according to Credit Suisse.

To grow their share of the market, a group of American distilled spirits products will be showcased at a Hong Kong International Wine and Spirits Fair in November. A separate marketing event will be held in Shanghai.

A total of 16 leading American distiller brands will be featured, ranging from Beam Suntory's Maker's Mark and Jim Beam to Brown-Forman's Jack Daniel's and Woodford Reserve brands, according to a release by the Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S.

The U.S. craft spirits industry continues to grow, and reached 1,315 distilleries as of August 2015, according to the IWSR. The group predicts the number of distilleries could surpass 2,800 by 2020, or what it called "near-Prohibition status of an estimated 3,000 registered distilleries."

"Given bourbon's fast growth and the specter of M&A, the number of new craft spirits entrants is not surprising," RBC Capital Markets analyst Nik Modi said in a research report Thursday. Nonetheless, the analyst questions whether we could be seeing "a bourbon bulge."

Hughes, the Beam Suntory executive, concedes there are a lot of new entrants and brands emerging, and not just in Kentucky's bourbon country.

"We can't rest on our laurels as there are great distillers out there all over the country laying down great whiskey, and we need to do the same to keep up with what competitors are producing," he said.
Zach Ward, a sophomore at McCallie who lives in East Brainerd, is hosting the Throw Out Cancer 5K race and one mile fun run/walk for his Eagle Scout Leadership Project. It will be held Saturday at Hamilton Place Mall.

The event is to honor Steve Ward, his uncle, and Dan Summerlin, a family friend and co-worker of his father. Both are battling stage IV cancer.

One hundred percent of the proceeds benefit Emily's Power For A Cure, a Chattanooga-based cancer charity that supports Children's Hospital at Erlanger and cancer research. This project has been approved by the Boy Scouts of America and has been promoted heavily through social media, BSA Cherokee Area Council, local businesses, and local news publications.

So far Zach has raised over $3,000 for Emily's Power For A Cure through sponsorship of the race, and roughly 200 runners and walkers have signed up to participate. He anticipates more will register on-site Saturday morning.

Sponsors include: Coca-Cola, Erlanger, CBL, Hamilton Place Mall, ERMC, Ferguson, Food City, National Boiler and more.

The Throw Out Cancer 5K and one mile fun run / walk will be held on Saturday at Hamilton Place Mall, beginning at the upper level Belk parking lot. The race begins promptly at 8 a.m.

Runners and supporters can register online at (https://www.emilyspowerforacure.com/www/docs/117).

Awards will be given for the top three male and female finishers. Awards also will be given to the top three finishers in the following male and female age groups: 14 and Under, 15-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70 and over.

There will be food and drinks on-site the morning of the race.
Russell Angell (Photo provided by the New York State Police)

MARCY, N.Y.  A psychiatric nurse at the Central New York Psychiatric Center is under arrest, accused of using a forged doctors certificate to allow extended work absences without repercussions.

New York State Police have arrested Russell Angell, 43, of Yorkville in Oneida County, the office of New York State Inspector General Catherine Leahy Scott said in a news release.

Angell is charged with two felony counts each of offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree and possession of a forged instrument in the second degree.

The inspector generals investigation found that Angell, a psychiatric nurse II for the New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH), twice used a forged doctors certificate to defraud OMH and enable his extended absence from his state job under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

The certifications allow employees to take repeated spontaneous and extended sick leave without having to provide any further explanations.

He used a forged certificate in July 2015 and again in November 2015 for FMLA leave from his job at the Central New York Psychiatric Center in Marcy.

This defendant used falsified physician certificates to defraud the state so he could make use of critical benefits reserved for legitimate family leave or dire medical issues, Leahy Scott said in the news release. I will continue using the powers of my office to pursue anyone who defrauds the state and takes benefits to which they are not entitled.

Angell was arraigned in Town of Marcy Court and released to reappear Dec. 8, Leahy Scotts office said.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com
The consignor presented a handful of mixed coins to Boningtons coin specialist, Gregory Tong, having no idea that the gold coin shown at lower right was a genuine treasure.

One of Great Britains rarest gold coins sure has an uncanny way of turning up.

For the second time in four years, noncollectors have located a 1703 Vigo Bay gold 5-guinea coin in the inherited belongings of their families, according to the greater London auction house Boningtons Auctioneers.

The family that consigned the latest one found to a Nov. 16 auction had no idea the coin was valuable until a coin specialist at Boningtons appraised it, the firm announced on Oct. 23, almost exactly 314 years since the capture of the ship during the reign of Queen Anne.

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Fewer than 20 examples of the coin were made from gold the British seized from a Spanish treasure ship in 1702 at Vigo Bay, northern Spain.

The coin was reportedly passed down through four generations of the same family and kept in a little boys treasure box. From what the consignors told the auction house, their little boy liked to play pirate with the coin, and other coins, that originally belonged to the childs great-grandfather.

Boningtons spokesman Luke Bodalbhai said, The coin was consigned to us by a gentleman from Hertfordshire whose grandfather had given it to him many years ago when he was a young boy. However, he had no idea what it was worth until recently, when he showed it to our coin specialist, Gregory Tong, [who] immediately recognized the coin and informed the consignor of its value.

According to a press release from the auction house, the consignor said, My granddad travelled all over the world during his working life and collected many coins from the various countries where he had been. As a boy, I was into pirate treasure, so he gave me bags of coins to play with. As time passed, these coins went back into bags and boxes and were forgotten about. Then, after my granddad passed away, I rediscovered the coins and recalled how much I had enjoyed them as a boy. So I gave them to my own son to play with, including the Queen Anne Vigo 5-guinea. He kept it in his treasure box and has been playing pirate with it just as I did, all those years ago.

The story of the coins discovery is worthy of great literature, but then, the story of its creation is also a romantic masterpiece.

Capturing the booty

The Vigo coins were made from treasure that the British fleet seized in 1702 from Franco-Spanish ships returning from America, following Britains unsuccessful attempt to capture Cadiz, on the Spanish coast.

When the war of Spanish Succession broke out in 1702, an Anglo-Dutch coalition immediately began naval operations against Spain, the weaker partner in the French-Spanish alliance. The Anglo-Dutch effort to control the vital port of Cadiz failed, but the coalition learned that the annual parade of Spanish galleons bringing silver and gold mined in the New World was expected to arrive soon at Cadiz. The Spanish ships were accompanied by a small number of French military and merchant ships.

Leaders of the Spanish procession, having learned of the attempt to seize Cadiz, decided instead to disembark at Vigo, arriving on Sept. 23.

The port at Vigo, however, was ill-equipped to off-load the treasure, lacking proper personnel and facilities. Delay in unloading the treasure allowed time for the Anglo-Dutch contingent (under command of Adm. Sir George Rooke, who had just failed spectacularly to control Cadiz) to divert forces to Vigo Bay, anchoring off the coast on Oct. 22.

The next day, the coalition attacked and quickly overwhelmed the contingent of treasure ships at Vigo, as the French and Spanish ships, not anticipating warfare in Europe, were ill-equipped. The victors reaped the spoils, which included silver and gold bullion. According to C.E. Challis, writing in A New History of the Royal Mint, the haul was modest, consisting in good part of ornaments and plate from the cabins of the officers and amounting to no more than 4,500 lb of silver and just 7 lb 8 oz of gold.

The treasure was far less than what had been on board the ships originally, as much of the Spanish silver had already been off-loaded.

The destruction of the fleet, though, was a serious blow to French naval power, and the significance of the action was immediately celebrated with the production of coins.

Production is the appropriate word, as the familiar English pageantry was on full display  a royal warrant called for the coins to Continue to Posterity the Remembrance of that Glorious Action, and the bullion was transferred to the Royal Mint, then in the Tower of London, where mintmaster Sir Isaac Newton himself oversaw the delivery, a special occasion in itself, given his frequent absences.

The Vigo coins struck to commemorate the victory served as propaganda to persuade the well-to-do British public that the war was both worthwhile and going well.

Identifying VIGO coins

The 1703 Vigo gold issues were intended for circulation and comprised half guinea, guinea and 5-guinea pieces. In addition, related silver coins were struck in crown, half-crown, shillings and sixpence denominations, in 1703. (Some 1702-dated shillings were also struck.)

Each of the coins has the usual obverse and reverse design types appropriate to the denomination but on the obverse of each denomination, below Queen Annes bust, the word VIGO was added, engraved into the die. The dies for the Vigo coins were the work of the Mints chief engraver, Henry Harris, and his assistant, John Croker.

The gold coins struck are all very scarce to very rare and would be beyond the means of most collectors. The silver coins, however, were struck in generally large numbers.

Boningtons has not identified the condition of the example it is auctioning, but it has provided an estimate of 200,000 to 250,000 ($244,445 to $305,555 U.S.).

According to the firm, this is only the sixth example of its type to be offered for sale in the last 50 years (although the coin is probably the seventh issue to be offered). It is, however, the second example to come to auction in 2016.

Tracking the 5-guinea coin

St. Jamess Auctions on Feb. 9, 2016, sold an example of the Vigo gold 5-guinea coin for a hammer price of 275,000 ($397,861 U.S.)  the buyers fee was in a range from 20 to 24 percent, depending on the buyers location.

The February piece was graded About Uncirculated 55 by Professional Coin Grading Service, and is one of perhaps three known examples of a specific die variety where the word VIGO appears closer to the queens bust than on other examples.

The owner of St. Jamess Auctions, Stephen Fenton, had figured in the previous latest public auction transaction for the Vigo gold 5-guinea coin, buying an example in 2012 for 296,160 (about $476,871 U.S.), in a Dec. 6 auction in Lewes, England, for a client.

The 2012 example was discovered in early September that year when a longtime customer of Gorringes contacted the firm seeking identification of three coins, two of which were a very worn George IV silver crown and an even more worn Victorian silver crown, along with the rare gold coin. The anonymous customer, a widow of retirement age, found the coins in her late husbands chest of drawers in what may have been his handkerchief drawer.

That example of the famed rarity was reported as Nearly Very Fine, the same condition as an example that Spink sold in March 29, 2007, for 82,000, an equivalent of $161,075.

Spink sold another example of the rarity in 2005, grading it as Extremely Fine with a few hairlines, which realized about 130,000 ($247,195 in U.S. funds).

When Spink sold examples of the rarity in the 2005 and 2007 auctions, the firm reported that only 15 pieces were known in private hands. The actual number of pieces known is somewhat uncertain though.

According to Spinks 2007 auction catalog, only five examples of the 5-guinea coin had appeared at auction within the preceding 45 years, making the appearance of one of the coins at auction almost as rare as the coins themselves.

Counting the 2012 and Feb. 9, 2016, auctions, at least 10 public auction offerings of Vigo 5-guinea coins have been conducted since 1974, with some of those sales re-offering the same coins.

The coin offered in the Spink 2005 auction was sold publicly at least twice previously; in 1974, described as an About Extremely Fine example, it realized 5,000 ($7,090) at Sothebys Douglas-Morris auction. In Spinks Sharps Pixley auction of Nov. 9, 1989, it was described as a generally EF example, but with some faint surface abrasions; it sold for 42,900 ($60,832).

The example sold in the 2007 Spink auction was sold previously in Aureos March 1, 2000, auction where, reported as EF, it realized about $69,115 U.S.

Glendinings sold an EF example at its Vigo sale in 1992 for 44,000 ($62,392).

The June 4, 2001, issue of Coin World reported on an example that failed to sell in Glendinings April 25, 2001, auction. Estimated at 48,000 to 50,000 ($68,064 to $70,900), the coin was described as almost as struck, light hairlines, mirror-like fields  possibly the best existing example.

What was touted as perhaps the finest known example  graded Mint State 61 Prooflike by Numismatic Guaranty Corp., was sold in Ira & Larry Goldberg Coins & Collectibles May 26, 2008, Millennia Collection auction, realizing $414,000. The coin had once been in the famed John G. Murdoch Collection auction of 1903.

No provenance was reported for the example sold in 2016 by St. Jamess, and no provenance information, beyond the four generations of the consignors family, is available for this latest discovery.
The silver ingot from the 1622 Atocha wreck is accompanied by the official certificate of authenticity from the treasure salvor Mel Fisher.

A large and heavy silver ingot from the 1622 wreck of the Nuestra Senora de Atocha highlights Daniel Frank Sedwicks auction No. 20 on Nov. 12 and 13.

A large and heavy silver ingot from the 1622 wreck of the Nuestra Senora de Atocha highlights Daniel Frank Sedwicks auction No. 20 on Nov. 12 and 13.

The wreck of the Nuestra Senora de Atocha is arguably the most famous shipwreck discovered in modern America, so when items salvaged from the Florida wreck are sold at auction, its notable.

Daniel Frank Sedwicks Nov. 12 and 13 Treasure and World Coin auction No. 20 features a silver bar from the 1622 wreck weighing more than 82 pounds.

The Atocha is today the most famous ship in the 28-vessel convoy, which was headed back to Spain in September 1622 after stopping in ports in what are modern-day Colombia, Panama and Cuba.

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As reported in the Jan. 7, 2008, issue of Coin World, Spain had an urgent need for the riches extracted from the New World, since Spain was indebted to international investors. Delays in the arrival of gold and silver would have a catastrophic effect on Spains line of credit. Shipments were relied upon. Spain often compensated investors with New World silver, gold and other commodities that werent even mined yet. Payments were often extended over several years.

The silver haul from Spanish colonial America for the 1622 fleet was so large that it took a reported two months to count and load, and the fleet ended up leaving six weeks late, on Sept. 4. The delay would prove fatal, since it ensured that the fleet would sail into the path of a fierce hurricane on Sept. 6, about 35 miles west of Key West.

During the storm, 20 of the ships were sent to the depths of the ocean, between the Dry Tortugas and the Florida Keys.

Five people survived the wreck of the Atocha and were rescued, but the wreck itself was scattered after another hurricane hit the site one month later.

Efforts to retrieve the treasure began immediately, as Spain sent several vessels to the area, but only half of the treasure from a sister-ship was recovered.

The treasure of the Atocha would not surface, literally, until starting in 1971, when salvor Mel Fisher brought up the first coins located in the wreckage. Full recovery occurred in 1985, when more than 100,000 silver shield-type cob silver coins were found, in all full denominations (1-real sizes and up).

In addition, an estimated 1,000 silver ingots, most the size of bread loaves, were recovered from the Atocha, according to the firm.

The piece highlighting its November auction is from that hoard.

The .9916 fine silver bar weighs 82 troy pounds and 7.36 ounces.

The firm calls it One of the most beautiful, large Atocha bars we have ever handled, noting that it ranks among the best known.

The bar was poured in Potosi, in modern-day Bolivia (the center of silver mining in Spanish Colonial lands), and is dated 1622, the year of the wreck.

The bar measures 14 inches long, 5 inches tall and 3.5 inches wide.

The manifest number (747) is boldly displayed in Roman numerals, as are the fineness marks and three circular tax stamps of Philip IV, two of which are nearly full. The silvermaster mark is clear, and the bold ownership and shipper marks are visible, according to the firm.

In the center is the typical double-scoop assayers bite.

With minimal surface corrosion all over, and traces of black charcoal in crevices on the sides, this is also one of the heavier bars around, according to the Sedwick firm.

The bar is accompanied by the rare complete manifest report (which was available but not widely distributed to original purchasers when the bars were first sold).

To affirm its authenticity, the silver bar is accompanied by the original Fisher photo-certificate, serial No. 85A-S451.

The ingot has an estimate of $30,000 to $60,000.
Ron Harris, VP of Diversity and Inclusion at BCBST, was the featured speaker at this week's Hamilton Place Rotary Club meeting.

In his role, Mr. Harris provides strategic leadership and counsel for diversity initiatives within the organization that include diversity awareness training recruitment, employee development, and community outreach. He also ensures adherence to the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, Equal Employment Opportunity, Affirmative Action Plan and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.



Mr.

Harris is co-founder and a member of the BlueCross Blue Shield Association Diversity Alliance, which connects various BCBS plans throughout the country as a resource to share best practices and address diversity awareness and community outreach. He has been featured in numerous publications local, national and international, such as African American Career World, Edge,and USA Today."Ron engaged us in a lively interactive discussion regarding inclusion, diversity and unconscious bias and how everyone has some sort of unknown bias and how that impacts our communications and relationships with others," officials said.
Murder and music is the focus of award-winning author Randall Franks', best known as Officer Randy Goode from TVs In the Heat of the Night, new book A Badge or an Old Guitar, available Nov. 1.



Sharing entertaining stories for television through scripts became one of the areas that mentors such as Carroll OConnor and Alan Autry inspired me to create, Mr. Franks said. Coming from the background of television drama, the twists and turns of a murder is often the backdrop upon which characters' lives are thrust forward to places they never saw coming.



Mr. Franks, of Ringgold, Ga., won the W.G. Sutlive Award for his first book Stirring Up Success with a Southern Flavor, and after authoring eight non-fiction books since 2003, he polished his latest effort with his long time editor/contributor Rachel Brown Kirkland of Dalton.



My first foray in fiction for some of my readers who watched me on television will feel as comfortable as slipping on a well-worn glove, Mr. Franks said. I love watching and reading the classics in murder mystery, I hope this book reflects my enthusiasm into the lives I create. Set in the small Southern town of McKinney, Ga., we meet a cast of unique characters that circle around the life of main character McKinney police officer James Randall.



While he attempts to hold on to his normal routine, his friends and all he has known in his life as an officer are shaken by circumstance, especially after Nashville comes calling to make him a music star, he said.



Thrown into a world he does not know and really does not think he desires to know, Mr. Franks said his main character lands in the midst of a classic murder mystery on the streets of Music City.



Mr. Franks starred in three TV series and 15 films, with his latest film Broken starring with Soren Fulton and Joe Stevens. He became a country music personality as a youth beginning appearances at major country, folk, bluegrass and gospel events such as Country Music Association Fan Fair, National Folk Festival, National Quartet Convention, National Black Arts Festival, and for the Grand Ole Opry.



"Music City is such a wonderful part of my life, it was fun to create a bit of intrigue winding the musical strings of this murder mystery between the fictional characters that drive our adventure," he said.



With 24 career albums in four genres, he has performed to over 145 million fans around the world. Musically, he is recognized as an International Bluegrass Music Museum Legend and Independent Country Music Hall of Fame member. His latest CD is Keep Em Smilin featuring Christian music and comedy. He is a syndicated columnist featured in newspapers across the Southeast and Midwestern U.S.



His earlier books include Encouragers III: A Guiding Hand,Encouragers II: Walking with the Masters, Encouragers I: Finding the Light, Whittlin and Fiddlin My Own Way with Violet Hensley, A Mountain Pearl: Appalachian Reminiscing and Recipes, Stirring Up Success with a Southern Flavor and Stirring Up Additional Success with a Southern Flavor with Shirley Smith, and Snake Oil, Superstars and Me with Doc Tommy Scott and Shirley Swiesz.



This is the first of my books to also become available as an e-book for digital readers, Mr. Franks said. I hope folks will enjoy putting on A Badge or an Old Guitar and riding along in an old pickup truck for the adventure to see if James Randalls life spins beyond his control or if the song in his heart reaches out to touch us all.



A Badge or an Old Guitar releases Nov. 1, from Peach Picked Publishing through book sellers worldwide and autographed copies may be ordered from Mr. Frank's website.

The book is available in Ringgold at Cottage Treasures, Uniktings, Stuff 4 Less, and in Fort Oglethorpe at Sonshine Christian Bookstore.
Effective immediately, there is a campfire restriction on multiple Georgia Wildlife Management Areas (WMA), according to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Resources Division (WRD).

Due to the lingering and continued drought conditions, there is elevated risk of wildfire in north and central Georgia, said John Bowers, chief of WRD Game Management.

Until further notice, hunters and visitors to the WMAs named below must refrain from building, maintaining, attending or using a fire or campfire (note: commercially available fuel stoves are excluded from restriction):

Allatoona, Arrowhead, B.F. Grant, Berry College, Blanton Creek, Broad River, Buck Shoals, Clybel, Conasauga River, Coosawattee, Coosawattee  Carters Lake, Crockford-Pigeon Mountain, Dawson Forest, Elbert County, Fishing Creek, Hart County, J.L. Lester, Joe Kurz, Lower Broad River, Lula Bridge, McGraw Ford, Oconee, Otting, Paulding Forest, Pine Log, Rich Mountain (state-owned tracts), Sheffield, Soap Creek, West Point, Wilson Shoals and Zahnd.

WMAs located on Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest land are subject to the fire restriction policy established by the USDA U.S. Forest Service, which dictates that campfires are restricted to developed recreation areas only, and confined within receptacles designed for fire in developed campsites. More information can be found at www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/conf/al erts-notices .
Report details family's care for Santulli

Danny Santulli's family has created a hospital room for him in the living room of their Eden Prairie, Minnesota, home, his dad wrote in a report.
The following companies are subsidiares of Lloyds Banking Group: A G Finance Ltd, A.C.L. Ltd, ACL Autolease Holdings Ltd, ADF No.1 Pty Ltd, Addison Social Housing Holdings Ltd, Alex Lawrie Factors Ltd, Alex. Lawrie Receivables Financing Ltd, Amberdate Ltd, Anglo Scottish Utilities Partnership 1, Aquilus Ltd, Automobile Association Personal Finance Ltd, BOS (Ireland) Property Services 2 Ltd, BOS (Ireland) Property Services Ltd, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages (Scotland) No. 2) Ltd, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages (Scotland) No. 3) Ltd, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages (Scotland)) Ltd, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 1 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 2 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 3 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 4 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 5 plc, BOS (Shared Appreciation Mortgages) No. 6 plc, BOS (USA) Fund Investments Inc., BOS (USA) Inc., BOS Edinburgh No 1 Ltd, BOS Mistral Ltd, BOS Personal Lending Ltd, BOSSAF Rail Ltd, Bank of Scotland (B G S) Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland (Stanlife) London Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Branch Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Central Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Edinburgh Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Equipment Finance Ltd, Bank of Scotland Foundation, Bank of Scotland LNG Leasing (No 1) Ltd, Bank of Scotland London Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Nominees (Unit Trusts) Ltd, Bank of Scotland P.E.P. Nominees Ltd, Bank of Scotland Structured Asset Finance Ltd, Bank of Scotland Transport Finance 1 Ltd, Bank of Scotland plc, Bank of Wales Ltd, Barents Leasing Ltd, Barnwood Mortgages Ltd, Birchcrown Finance Ltd, Birmingham Midshires Financial Services Ltd, Birmingham Midshires Land Development Ltd, Birmingham Midshires Mortgage Services Ltd, Black Horse (TRF) Ltd, Black Horse Executive Mortgages Ltd, Black Horse Finance Holdings Ltd, Black Horse Finance Management Ltd, Black Horse Group Ltd, Black Horse Ltd, Black Horse Offshore Ltd, Black Horse Property Services Ltd, Boltro Nominees Ltd, British Linen Leasing (London) Ltd, British Linen Leasing Ltd, British Linen Shipping Ltd, C.T.S.B. Leasing Ltd, CBRail S.A.R.L., CF Asset Finance Ltd, CF1 Ltd, CM Venture Investments Ltd, Cancara Asset Securitisation Ltd, Capital 1945 Ltd, Capital Bank Leasing 12 Ltd, Capital Bank Leasing 3 Ltd, Capital Bank Leasing 5 Ltd, Capital Bank Leasing 9 Ltd, Capital Bank Property Investments (3) Ltd, Capital Personal Finance Ltd, Cardiff Auto Receivables Securitisation 2018-1 Plc, Cardiff Auto Receivables Securitisation 2019-1 Plc, Cardiff Auto Receivables Securitisation Holdings Ltd, Cardnet Merchant Services Ltd, Cashfriday Ltd, Cashpoint Ltd, Caveminster Ltd, Cedar Holdings Ltd, Celsius European Lux 2 S.A.R.L., Central Mortgage Finance Ltd, Chariot Finance Ltd, Cheltenham & Gloucester plc, Cheltenham II Securities 2020 DAC, Cheltenham Securities 2017 Ltd, Chepstow Blue Holdings Ltd, Chepstow Blue plc, Chester Asset Options No.2 Ltd, Chester Asset Options No.3 Ltd, Chester Asset Receivables Dealings Issuer Ltd, Chester Asset Securitisation Holdings Ltd, Chester Asset Securitisation Holdings No.2 Ltd, Chiswell Stockbrokers Ltd, Clerical Medical Finance plc, Clerical Medical Financial Services Ltd, Clerical Medical International Holdings B.V., Clerical Medical Investment Fund Managers Ltd, Clerical Medical Managed Funds Ltd, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Guadalix Hold Co BV, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Guadalix Spanish Prop Co SL, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Megapark Hold Co BV, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Megapark Prop Co SA, Clerical Medical Non Sterling Property Company S.A.R.L., Cloak Lane Funding S.A.R.L., Cloak Lane Investments S.A.R.L., Conquest Securities Ltd, Corbiere Asset Investments Ltd, Create Services Ltd, Credit Card Securitisation Europe Ltd, Dalkeith Corporation, Deva Financing Holdings Ltd, Deva Financing plc, Deva One Ltd, Deva Three Ltd, Deva Two Ltd, Dunstan Investments (UK) Ltd, Edgbaston RMBS 2010-1 plc, Edgbaston RMBS Holdings Ltd, Elland RMBS 2018 plc, Elland RMBS Holdings Ltd, Eurolead Services Holdings Ltd, First Retail Finance (Chester) Ltd, Fontwell Securities 2016 Ltd, Forthright Finance Ltd, France Industrial Premises Holding Company, General Leasing (No. 12) Ltd, General Reversionary and Investment Company, Gresham Nominee 1 Ltd, Gresham Nominee 2 Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 1) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 10) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 11) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 12) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 13) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 14) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 15) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 16) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 19) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 20) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 21) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 22) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 23) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 24) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 25) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 26) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 27) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 28) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 29) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 3) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 30) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 31) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 32) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 33) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 34) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 35) Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 36) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 37) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 38) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 39) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 40) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 41) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 44) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 45) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 46) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 47) UK Ltd, Gresham Receivables (No. 48) UK Ltd, Guildhall Asset Purchasing Company (No 3) Ltd, Guildhall Asset Purchasing Company (No.11) UK Ltd, HBOS Covered Bonds LLP, HBOS Final Salary Trust Ltd, HBOS Financial Services Ltd, HBOS Insurance & Investment Group Ltd, HBOS International Financial Services Holdings Ltd, HBOS Investment Fund Managers Ltd, HBOS Social Housing Covered Bonds LLP, HBOS UK Ltd, HBOS plc, HSDL Nominees Ltd, HVF Ltd, Halifax Credit Card Ltd, Halifax Financial Brokers Ltd, Halifax Financial Services (Holdings) Ltd, Halifax Financial Services Ltd, Halifax General Insurance Services Ltd, Halifax Group Ltd, Halifax Investment Services Ltd, Halifax Leasing (June) Ltd, Halifax Leasing (March No.2) Ltd, Halifax Leasing (September) Ltd, Halifax Life Ltd, Halifax Loans Ltd, Halifax Ltd, Halifax Mortgage Services Ltd, Halifax Nominees Ltd, Halifax Pension Nominees Ltd, Halifax Premises Ltd, Halifax Share Dealing Ltd, Halifax Vehicle Leasing (1998) Ltd, Heidi Finance Holdings (UK) Ltd, Hill Samuel Bank Ltd, Hill Samuel Finance Ltd, Hill Samuel Leasing Co. Ltd, Home Shopping Personal Finance Ltd, Horizon Capital 2000 Ltd, Housing Association Risk Transfer 2019 DAC, Housing Growth Partnership GP LLP, Housing Growth Partnership LP, Housing Growth Partnership Ltd, Housing Growth Partnership Manager Ltd, Hyundai Car Finance Ltd, IBOS Finance Ltd, ICC Enterprise Partners Ltd, ICC Equity Partners Ltd, ICC Holdings Unlimited Company, Inchcape Financial Services Ltd, Intelligent Finance Financial Services Ltd, Intelligent Finance Software Ltd, International Motors Finance Ltd, Kanaalstraat Funding C.V., Katrine Leasing Ltd, LB Healthcare Trustee Ltd, LB Motorent Ltd, LB Quest Ltd, LB Share Schemes Trustees Ltd, LBCF Ltd, LBG Brasil Administracao LTDA, LBG Capital Holdings Ltd, LBG Equity Investments Ltd, LBI Leasing Ltd, LDC (General Partner) Ltd, LDC (Managers) Ltd, LDC (Nominees) Ltd, LDC GP LLP, LDC I LP, LDC II LP, LDC III LP, LDC IV LP, LDC Parallel (Nominees) Ltd, LDC V LP, LDC VI LP, LDC VII LP, LDC VIII LP, LTGP Limited Partnership Incorporated, Legacy Renewal Company Ltd, Leicester Securities 2014 Ltd, Lex Autolease (CH) Ltd, Lex Autolease (VC) Ltd, Lex Autolease Carselect Ltd, Lex Autolease Ltd, Lex Vehicle Finance 2 Ltd, Lex Vehicle Leasing (Holdings) Ltd, Lex Vehicle Leasing Ltd, Lime Street (Funding) Ltd, Lingfield 2014 I Holdings Ltd, Lingfield 2014 I plc, Lloyds (Gresham) Ltd, Lloyds (Gresham) No. 1 Ltd, Lloyds (Nimrod) Specialist Finance Ltd, Lloyds America Securities Corporation1, Lloyds Asset Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Branches) Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Colonial & Foreign) Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Fountainbridge 1) Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Fountainbridge 2) Ltd, Lloyds Bank (I.D.) Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank (International Services) Ltd, Lloyds Bank (Stock Exchange Branch) Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank Asset Finance Ltd, Lloyds Bank Commercial Finance Ltd, Lloyds Bank Commercial Finance Scotland Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (HP) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (No.1) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (No.2) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (No.3) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Asset Finance (No.4) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Wertpapierhandelsbank GmbH, Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets plc, Lloyds Bank Covered Bonds (Holdings) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Covered Bonds (LM) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Covered Bonds LLP, Lloyds Bank Equipment Leasing (No. 1) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Equipment Leasing (No. 7) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Equipment Leasing (No. 9) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Financial Services (Holdings) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Foundation for England & Wales, Lloyds Bank Foundation for the Channel Islands, Lloyds Bank General Insurance Holdings Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Insurance Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 11) Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 17) Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 20) Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 3) Ltd, Lloyds Bank General Leasing (No. 5) Ltd, Lloyds Bank GmbH, Lloyds Bank Hill Samuel Holding Company Ltd, Lloyds Bank Insurance Services Ltd, Lloyds Bank International Ltd, Lloyds Bank Leasing (No. 6) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Leasing (No. 8) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Bank MTCH Ltd, Lloyds Bank Maritime Leasing (No. 10) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Maritime Leasing (No. 13) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Maritime Leasing (No. 17) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Maritime Leasing (No.16) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank Offshore Pension Trust Ltd, Lloyds Bank Pension ABCS (No. 1) LLP, Lloyds Bank Pension ABCS (No. 2) LLP, Lloyds Bank Pension Trust (No. 1) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Pension Trust (No. 2) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Pensions Property (Guernsey) Ltd, Lloyds Bank Properties Ltd, Lloyds Bank Property Company Ltd, Lloyds Bank S.F. Nominees Ltd, Lloyds Bank Subsidiaries Ltd, Lloyds Bank Trustee Services Ltd, Lloyds Bank plc, Lloyds Banking Group Pensions Trustees Ltd, Lloyds Capital GP Ltd, Lloyds Commercial Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Commercial Properties Ltd, Lloyds Commercial Property Investments Ltd, Lloyds Corporate Services (Jersey) Ltd, Lloyds Development Capital (Holdings) Ltd, Lloyds Engine Capital (No.1) U.S LLC, Lloyds Far East S.A.R.L., Lloyds General Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Group Holdings (Jersey) Ltd, Lloyds Holdings (Jersey) Ltd, Lloyds Hypotheken B.V., Lloyds Industrial Leasing Ltd, Lloyds International Pty Ltd, Lloyds Investment Bonds Ltd, Lloyds Investment Fund Managers Ltd, Lloyds Investment Securities No.5 Ltd, Lloyds Leasing (North Sea Transport) Ltd1, Lloyds Leasing Developments Ltd, Lloyds Nominees (Guernsey) Ltd, Lloyds Offshore Global Services Private Ltd, Lloyds Plant Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Portfolio Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Premises Investments Ltd, Lloyds Project Leasing Ltd, Lloyds Property Investment Company No. 3 Ltd, Lloyds Property Investment Company No. 4 Ltd, Lloyds Property Investment Company No.5 Ltd, Lloyds Secretaries Ltd, Lloyds Securities Inc., Lloyds TSB Pacific Ltd, Lloyds UDT Asset Leasing Ltd, Lloyds UDT Asset Rentals Ltd, Lloyds UDT Hiring Ltd, Lloyds UDT Leasing Ltd, Lloyds UDT Ltd, Lloyds Your Tomorrow Trustee Ltd, Loans.co.uk Ltd, London Taxi Finance Ltd, London Uberior (L.A.S. Group) Nominees Ltd, Lotus Finance Ltd, MBNA, MBNA Direct Ltd, MBNA Europe Finance Ltd, MBNA Europe Holdings Ltd, MBNA General Foundation, MBNA Global Services Ltd, MBNA Indian Services Private Ltd, MBNA Ltd, MBNA R & L S.A.R.L., MBNA Receivables Ltd, Mainsearch Company Ltd, Maritime Leasing (No. 19) Ltd, Membership Services Finance Ltd, Mitre Street Funding S.A.R.L., Molineux RMBS 2016-1 plc, Molineux RMBS Holdings Ltd, Moor Lane Holdings Ltd, NFU Mutual Finance Ltd, NWS Trust Ltd, Nominees (Jersey) Ltd, Nordic Leasing Ltd, Ocean Leasing (July) Ltd, Oystercatcher Nominees Ltd, Oystercatcher Residential Ltd, PIPS Asset Investments Ltd, Pacific Leasing Ltd, Penarth Asset Securitisation Holdings Ltd, Penarth Funding 1 Ltd, Penarth Funding 2 Ltd, Penarth Master Issuer plc, Penarth Receivables Trustee Ltd, Pensions Management (S.W.F.) Ltd, Peony Eastern Leasing Ltd, Peony Leasing Ltd, Peony Western Leasing Ltd, Permanent Funding (No. 1) Ltd, Permanent Funding (No. 2) Ltd, Permanent Holdings Ltd, Permanent Master Issuer plc, Permanent Mortgages Trustee Ltd, Permanent PECOH Holdings Ltd, Permanent PECOH Ltd, Perry Nominees Ltd, Prestonfield Investments Ltd, Proton Finance Ltd, R.F. Spencer And Company Ltd, Ranelagh Nominees Ltd, Retail Revival (Burgess Hill) Investments Ltd, SARL Coliseum, SARL Hiram, SAS Compagnie Fonciere De France, SCI Astoria Invest, SCI De LHorloge, SCI Equinoxe, SCI Rambuteau CFF, SW Funding plc, SW No.1 Ltd, SWAMF (GP) Ltd, SWAMF Nominee (1) Ltd, SWAMF Nominee (2) Ltd, Saint Michel Holding Company No1, Saint Michel Investment Property, Saint Witz 2 Holding Company No1, Saint Witz 2 Investment Property, Salisbury II Securities 2016 Ltd, Salisbury II-A Securities 2017 Ltd, Salisbury III Securities 2019 DAC, Salisbury Securities 2015 Ltd, Sandown 2012-2 Holdings Ltd, Sandown 2012-2 plc, Sandown Gold 2012-1 Holdings Ltd, Sandown Gold 2012-1 plc, Savban Leasing Ltd, Scotland International Finance B.V., Scottish Widows Administration Services (Nominees) Ltd, Scottish Widows Administration Services Ltd, Scottish Widows Annuities Ltd, Scottish Widows Auto Enrolment Services Ltd, Scottish Widows Europe, Scottish Widows Financial Services Holdings, Scottish Widows Group Ltd, Scottish Widows Industrial Properties Europe B.V., Scottish Widows Ltd, Scottish Widows Pension Trustees Ltd, Scottish Widows Property Management Ltd, Scottish Widows Schroder Personal Wealth (ACD) Ltd, Scottish Widows Schroder Personal Wealth Ltd, Scottish Widows Schroder Wealth Holdings Ltd, Scottish Widows Services Ltd, Scottish Widows Trustees Ltd, Scottish Widows Unit Funds Ltd, Scottish Widows Unit Trust Managers Ltd, Scottish Widows Fund and Life Assurance Society, Seabreeze Leasing Ltd, Seaspirit Leasing Ltd, Share Dealing Nominees Ltd, Shogun Finance Ltd, Silentdale Ltd, St Andrews Group Ltd, St Andrews Insurance plc, St Andrews Life Assurance plc, St. Marys Court Investments, Standard Property Investment (1987) Ltd, Standard Property Investment Ltd, Sussex County Homes Ltd, Suzuki Financial Services Ltd, Swan Funding 2 Ltd, Syon Securities 2019 DAC, The Agricultural Mortgage Corporation Plc, The British Linen Company Ltd, The Halifax Foundation for Northern Ireland, The Mortgage Business plc, Thistle Financing Holdings Ltd, Thistle Investments (AMC) Ltd, Thistle Investments (ERM) Ltd, Thistle Leasing, Three Copthall Avenue Ltd, Tower Hill Property Investments (10) Ltd, Tower Hill Property Investments (7) Ltd, Tranquility Leasing Ltd, Trinity Financing plc, UDT Budget Leasing Ltd, UDT Sales Finance Ltd, Uberior (Moorfield) Ltd, Uberior Co-Investments Ltd, Uberior ENA Ltd, Uberior Equity Ltd, Uberior Europe Ltd, Uberior Fund Investments Ltd, Uberior Infrastructure Investments (No.2) Ltd, Uberior Infrastructure Investments Ltd, Uberior Investments Ltd, Uberior Nominees Ltd, Uberior Trading Ltd, Uberior Trustees Ltd, Uberior Ventures Australia Pty Ltd, Uberior Ventures Ltd, United Dominions Leasing Ltd, United Dominions Trust Ltd, Universe The CMI Global Network Fund, Upsaala Ltd, Vine Street IX LP, WCS Ltd, Ward Nominees (Abingdon) Ltd, Ward Nominees (Birmingham) Ltd 1, Ward Nominees (Bristol) Ltd 1, Ward Nominees Ltd 1, Waverley  Fund II Investor LLC, Waverley  Fund III Investor LLC, Waymark Asset Investments Ltd, West Craigs Ltd, Wetherby II Securities 2018 DAC, Wetherby III Securities 2019 DAC, Wetherby Securities 2017 Ltd, Wood Street Leasing Ltd, and Zurich Insurance Group - UK Workplace Pensions and Savings Business.

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Commissioner Marie Williams announces the appointment of Sejal West as the deputy commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services.



I am pleased to announce Sejal West as the new deputy commissioner for the Department, said Comm. Williams. As Assistant Commissioner, Sejals extraordinary passion for serving those with mental illnesses and substance abuse disorders helped lead the way for innovative and transformational progress in this State.

Ms. West, 41, started with the department in 2010 and has served as assistant commissioner of Mental Health Services since January of 2012. As assistant commissioner, she directly managed the daily operations and budget for the division of mental health services which is responsible for providing a comprehensive array of mental health services, programs, and supports across Tennessee.

"Under her leadership, the division of mental health services was able to secure an unprecedented amount of federal discretionary grant funding in excess of $53 Million dollars. In her role, she has worked in collaboration with community stakeholders across multiple systems resulting in the development and creation of community based programs and supports. Under her leadership, the department has grown the system of care work resulting in children and families receiving high quality coordinated services and supports tailored to meet their individual needs. She has also led the implementation of OnTrackTN, an innovative approach based on the OnTrackUSA model providing recovery oriented treatment to youth and young adults who have recently begin experiencing psychotic symptoms," officials said.



I am extremely honored and humbled that Comm. Williams has asked me to serve as the deputy commissioner for our Department, Ms. West said. I look forward to continuing on with the great work that our Department is doing through collaboration with our amazing staff, sister state agencies, community partners, and our consumers, we will continue to transform the public behavioral health system in our State.



"Ms. West has shown a strong commitment to the mental health system in Tennessee and is passionate about making sure individuals living with mental illness are able to access high quality community based care. She has several years of experience providing direct services in a community mental health center and understands the challenges and difficulties that individuals living with serious mental illness often face," officials said.



Ms. West received her undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Virginia and her masters degree in counseling psychology from Trevecca Nazarene University. She has resided in the Nashville area since 1997 and currently lives in Brentwood, Tn. with her husband Ben and daughter Sienna Grace.
Luke Klinker knows his way around app development.

Klinker started building his Android app empire when he was a student at the University of Iowa. He embraced Google's Material Design standard and worked with his brother to create clean and intuitive apps that were packed with features and yet easy to use.

These days, Klinker Apps has quite the catalog. EvolveSMS is the company's most popular app to date, according to Google's public statistics -- which might explain why Klinker is now working on a new next-gen multiplatform texting app codenamed "Messenger" (it hasn't officially been released yet, but you can try it as part of a prerelease beta program). He also stays busy keeping up with development on Talon for Twitter, Blur Launcher, and Source News Reader, all of which are distinctively Klinker creations.

It's no surprise, then, that Klinker -- who just finished college this past May, by the way -- considers himself a full-time Android developer. Klinker Apps takes up as much of his life as a full-time job, he tells me, even though he also works as a software engineer for an Iowa-based consulting company. (His brother and former Klinker Apps partner, Jake, moved to Mountain View to start a gig with Google earlier this year.)

So, yeah -- this is absolutely a guy who's got his hands full. And that seems to be just the way he likes it.

I caught up with Klinker to get the lowdown on how Android fits into his own personal life -- what devices and apps he relies on, how he sets up his home screen, and how his mobile tech helps him juggle his ever-expanding array of projects and obligations.

In his own words, this is how Luke Klinker uses Android.

The basics

Your current primary phone: As of this chat, I have a Nexus 6P, but I'm hoping to have my Pixel XL within the next few days! Since the Nexus 4 (my first Nexus phone), I haven't used anything but Nexus as my daily driver.

For me, the main draw -- since the Nexus 5 -- has been the ability to use the preview versions of Android. I have had a few problems with these versions in the past, but that has never stopped me from updating immediately when a new version comes out.

If you have ever used one of my apps, you know I love being able to include the latest and greatest features. To do that, though, I have to be running on the cutting edge, so Nexus phones have been a necessity for me these past few years. I'm stoked to get the Pixel in the next few days!

What case is on your phone (if any): I have never been a case person -- guess I like to live dangerously. I haven't actually broken a phone myself (knock on wood), so I have never felt the need.

I did order one of Google's "Live Cases" for my Nexus 6P when they were announced, but I never really used it. The phones are already big enough. I don't want them taking up any more room than they have to.

Your current tablet (if any): Past tablets had always just collected dust for me. That changed when I got a Pixel C, though. I absolutely love this tablet. The main draw was the quality. I didn't get it right when they announced it, but once the reviews came in about how premium it was (despite some issues), and after my brother got one, I needed one for myself.

Having a keyboard is great. The thing I hated most about previous tablets was how hard it was to type with the on-screen keyboard. This thing has pretty much replaced my laptop for casual tasks. Obviously, I don't code on the Pixel C, so I need a computer for that, but the size and usability of this have been perfect for my usage!

I also have a Nexus 9 and a Nexus 7 on hand. These don't get used all that often anymore, though. They didn't age too well and are both pretty sluggish on normal usage.

Your current smartwatch (if any): Right now, if I wear one, I'm rocking the original LG G Watch. My first-gen Moto 360 just conked out last month. The G Watch might not look like much, but I was surprised to see how well it still ran. It's much quicker than my 360 had gotten.

I don't wear it all the time -- there was a time when I didn't wear a watch at all -- but I had to break one out for testing purposes a few months back and have kept it around since then.

I really like the idea of Android Wear, but as many others have said, I find myself constantly struggling to get real-life usage out of it. Most of the notifications I get are things that I want to reply to right away, so I pull out my phone or grab my tablet -- because I am not a huge fan of talking to a watch in public.

When Google finally rolls out Android Wear 2.0, I will definitely look to update. I pretty much just use this one because I don't feel the need to buy a new one at this point. I would consider myself an early adopter for Android Wear, but it never really became a huge part of my daily routine.

What face you're using on your watch right now: Well, this one isn't too exciting: I have used the Together watch face since it came out -- not because I use it with anyone else but because I like the clean look of the clock. I never wanted anything too flashy to be on my wrist, and it provided a pretty sleek and easy to read clock.

The home screen

A quick walk-through of your phone's home screen setup: I will be the first to say that I'm pretty boring and generic when it comes to my home screen! I only use one page, just because if I put things on other pages, I quickly forget about them and then they never get used. I like just having the single screen to get a quick glance at what needs checked or done.

Obviously, I have all my own apps front and center, because those are by far my most used apps -- which is why I made them! Talon and Source are my most used apps, along with my new "Messenger" app. Inside the Messenger folder, I have all the communication apps. I wasn't a big fan of Allo when I tried it, but I have kept it around for the Assistant.

For me, this setup is all about productivity. When I open the phone, I just want easy access to the services I need to check: email, news, Twitter, Google+ (inside the Talon folder), my calendar, and my to-do list.

What launcher you're using: The past few months, I had been putting a ton of time into my own launcher (Blur) that I released a few years back. I had been using that launcher ever since its release, along with Action Launcher whenever I got bored and wanted something different.

Then I started working on Messenger and that Blur revamp was forced to be put on hold -- just not enough time in the day. I have been on Action Launcher for the past few months now and, of course, really love it. Tons of awesome features here, but my favorite is one of the originals: Covers.

I hide most of the apps from the app drawer that are unused or are on the home screen already. Covers are a perfect feature to group relevant apps together and keep them out of my app drawer.

I may try out the Pixel Launcher when I get the new phone, but I don't see a whole lot of draw to it at this point. Most the features have been adopted very quickly into Action Launcher and many other third-party apps.

What wallpaper you're using: Well, my wallpaper is about as generic as my home screen. You will probably start to see that trend!

I just use the wallpaper from the Pixel C on both my phone and tablet. I have always liked the simple nature wallpapers. I am intrigued by the new live wallpapers that come with the Pixel phones, though, so I'll probably be using one of them after I receive that phone.

Anything else of note (interesting customizations, special icons, etc): I haven't used a custom ROM for a few years now -- and clearly, my setup isn't all that interesting! I really despise widgets, to be honest. I would much rather open up the full app instead, because I know how much more time a developer puts into the app over its widget.

As for special icons, you might have noticed Pulse is one of the icons on the home screen. I will go ahead and say that that is going to be the production name and icon for the new "Messenger" app! Looking forward to pushing that out to everyone before long, similar to the design of the Allo and Duo icons.

The experience and the apps

What's one of your favorite Android-related tips or tricks?

Uninstall the Facebook app -- and while you're at it, might as well uninstall the Twitter app and use Talon instead. ;)

Only kind-of kidding on that. But really, my main tip is to spice up your tablet usage. If you are looking for a new one, get a tablet that you can attach a keyboard to. The Pixel C and its keyboard completely changed the way I used my tablet (see: never used one -> always have it around). You don't have to have the keyboard attached all the time, but just to have it available when you want to write out an email, reply to any kind of notification, or even browse the web is insanely useful.

My tablet has become a huge part of my daily routine now that I can type effectively with it!

Beyond the obvious stock Google programs, a few apps you can't live without right now (and a quick word about why):

I absolutely love Todoist. I installed it a year ago, and it is one of my main productivity apps. I am always thinking of new ideas or catching things that I want to tweak with my work, and I usually get the best ideas when I am out and about. Todoist is the perfect tool for me to quickly organize and add to projects until I can get the ideas tracked back at home. This app is a life-saver for me!

I have also been getting more into podcasts the past few months and use Pocket Casts to manage those. It is easy to use and looks and works great.

Of course, I can't forget about my own work in this list, since they are definitely the most used apps on my phone and tablet!

Pretty much all my communication with friends and family goes through my new text messaging app, Pulse. Almost everyone that I talk to still uses SMS. Since this app is available on any device, I don't have to worry quite so much about leaving my phone up in the bedroom or on the charger somewhere. Pulse has been so fun and unique to make. I couldn't be happier with the outcome at this point.

I am more of a casual Twitter user, but I am on Talon all the time. I do a lot of support through Twitter, but I still find time to browse my own timelines and lists as well. Talon was the first app I ever made on my own -- I started it back when I was a freshman in college -- and it is still by far the app that I spend the most time scrolling through during the day. I love everything about this app. The time spent on it has definitely been worth it!

Last but not least, all of my news goes through Source. I don't have a whole lot of time to watch the news on TV or browse the web during the day, so I rely on Source for a quick look at just the news that I care about. Admittedly, I do much more scrolling and looking at pictures or titles than I do reading articles, but Source works well for that use case, too!

Check out more Android expert profiles below or in the official Google+ collection -- and stay tuned for even more entries in the weeks to come!

Icons in title image courtesy of Freepik and Madebyoliver at flaticon.com.
In the next decade, the mining industry may lose more than half of its jobs to automation, according to a new report. That's not based on future technologies, but on automated equipment being deployed today.

The mining industry is primed for automation. It's capital intensive, buys expensive equipment and pays relatively well.

This industry is adopting self-driving trucks, automated loaders and automated drilling and tunnel-boring systems. It is also testing fully autonomous long-distance trains, which carry materials from the mine to a port, according to the report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development in Winnipeg, Canada.

A broader question is whether mining is a bellwether for other industries. There's no clear answer, but what Aaron Cosbey, a development economist with the institute and a report author, can say is this: "Where you can find robotic replacements for human labor you tend to do it."

Cosbey estimates that automation will replace 40% to 80% of the workers at a mine. New mines and those with many years of life left are the prime candidates for automation.

Automation's impact will affect the high-wage countries the quickest, "and is going to be keenly felt," Cosbey said.

Most affected will be miners in the lesser-skilled trades, including heavy-equipment operators, drivers and maintainers. This will increase demand for people with IT skills who can set up and operate the automation systems -- but at far smaller numbers than the people automation displaces. Local communities, dependent on mining employment, will be hard hit.

Driverless technology, the report said, can lead to a 15% to 20% increase in output, a 10% to 15% decrease in fuel consumption and an 8% decrease in maintenance costs. Maintenance costs are reduced because this is "self-aware machinery" and can monitor itself and signal emerging problems.

Self-driving trucks that operate above ground are cited as examples of automation in this industry, but Volvo recently announced a self-driving truck that can operate underground as well.

The U.S. mining industry employed 634,600 people in 2014, according to data from the National Mining Association. It created another 1.3 million indirect jobs.

Coal mining, because of coal's contribution to climate change, is politically explosive, but it's a relatively small employer. The U.S. Energy Information Administration, in a recent report, put the number of workers at coal mines at 74,900 in 2014. Overall, coal employment fell 6.8% from the prior year.

The government report on coal mining doesn't assess automation, but the data hints at it.

West Virginia had the largest decline in the average number of employees in 2014, the government notes, "declining by 1,951 employees (9.6%), despite only a small reduction (0.5%) in statewide total coal production.

"While there were fewer coal mine employees in the United States in 2014, the average production per employee hour increased by 7.6%," the government found. Increased productivity per employee may be an indicator of technology improvements.
Junior League of Chattanooga is launching its newest fundraiser, Shop, Save, Support  Local. The League will be selling cards that provide shoppers with a discount of up to 20 percent at over fifty local stores.



Cards are $25 each, and the card can be used at any participating store. The Shop, Save Support  Local sale runs from Nov. 9-13. To see a list of participating retailers and to buy a card, visit www.jlcshopsavesupport.com. Card sales are available online through Sunday, Oct.





30, and will also be available at Onward Reserve from Nov. 2-13. Local businesses looking to participate can email Ali Holzaepfel at ali.holzaepfel@gmail.com for more information. Businesses are able to sign up until the first day of the event, but will not have their name included on printed materials.Proceeds from the Shop, Save, Support  Local fundraiser will benefit the Junior League of Chattanoogas initiative to help develop women leaders and volunteerism through outreach, education, and community programs such as Seeds of Change.
College hosts Congressional debate

Connecticut College and The Day newspaper welcomed community members to Palmer Auditorium to watch a debate between candidates for U.S. Congress

Tim Cook, The Day

Nearly 200 people filled Palmer Auditorium Tuesday night to watch a debate between the four candidates running for Connecticuts 2nd Congressional District.

The candidates challenging Democratic U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney for the seat he has held for 10 years are: Republican Daria Novak; Green Party candidate Jonathan Pelto; and Libertarian Daniel Reale.

Connecticut College and The Day newspaper partnered to host the debate on campus, providing a forum within New London that made the event accessible to both the campus and local communities. Students from Connecticut College, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and the regions high schools attended.

As a college whose mission it is to educate our students to be active citizens in the global society, it seems very fitting that we host this debate, said Abigail Van Slyck, dean of the faculty. What a wonderful opportunity for our students to witness democracy in action.

The Days editorial page editor Paul Choiniere and military reporter Julia Bergman served as moderators, incorporating non-partisan policy questions posed by U.S. Coast Guard Academy cadets and Connecticut College students.

The political forum provided the political science and government students with an opportunity to observe the political process in real time. During the 90-minute debate, the candidates addressed topics ranging from climate change and energy dependence to defense spending and health coverage.



This was an opportunity for our students to observe in live format a political debate between congressional candidates, said MaryAnne Borrelli, professor of government. To have it in live format, rather than to merely view it on a TV, provided an added element of experiential learning.

Julio Herrera 20 attended the debate, and said he was interested in how the outcome of the congressional election would impact daily life in his home state. While election discourse is often driven by the presidential race, local elections have just as great an impact, he said.

I really believe that elections like these matter. If we expect change we need it from the bottom up, not the top down.

October 28, 2016
Cllr Charlotte Hodivala is the Mayor of Royal Sutton Coldfield

To call it a privilege to be the Mayor of Royal Sutton Coldfield is somewhat understating how I feel about my role. That role even exists is of huge significance to the town.

I have lived in every single ward of Royal Sutton Coldfield over the years and theres one word I think about that describes the attitude of my fellow Suttonians  and thats pride.

Pride in our history, being a town which can date its existence back to a Royal Charter issued by Henry VIII. Pride in our current town and truly great community spirit that exists. And pride in what our future could hold, for our children and grandchildren.

Thats why reforming our Town Council has been of such magnitude in the eyes the residents of Royal Sutton Coldfield. Going back in history only four decades, Sutton Coldfield was subsumed into Birmingham City Council. Somewhat grudgingly, residents first accepted the fact. But it was a grudge that continued to grow.

We saw decisions about local services made by Cabinet members representing totally different parts of the City. We saw planning decisions go through despite huge local opposition. We saw our roads neglected by an outsourced contract where residential areas just didnt get the attention they deserved. We felt wed lost our voice  and our identity.

So the Localism Act, introduced under the last government, seemed like a chance to retake the reins and regain control of our council. An impassioned and hard-fought campaign was set up to get our Town Council back again after 40 years.

And the reason Im standing here today is as a result of that campaign; a campaign which touched the hearts and minds of Suttonians.

We held a referendum  and were successful. We are now the largest parish council in the UK  and Britains newest democracy.

With this comes real responsibility. People from other parts of the country are going to watch our journey with interest. Other towns may choose to follow the route weve taken, so we want to be a beacon of best practice  and show that it can work.

But most importantly, were going to be scrutinised by our residents. Because its no good having this Town Council if it turns into something akin to a Vicar of Dibleys Tea Party.

As it comes up to six months since our reformation  and halfway through my term in office  Im proud to say that we have a Strategic Plan in place around Six Pillars, which our 24 councillors have agreed reflect the values and ambitions of the wards we represent.

It wont surprise you that with council with 19 Conservative councillors out of 24, that this plan was written by myself and my fellow councillor, Simon Ward. And it unashamedly reflects the Conservative values of this Royal Town.

We have a Council Tax precept to spend of nearly 2 million pounds  with which we can genuinely get a lot done.

Our Strategic Plan is fully costed; were not going to spend a penny we cant afford.

The money we do spend will deliver improvements into each and every ward  and sets the future vision for what we want Royal Sutton Coldfield to become.

Some of the plan is really simple stuff, such as introducing 20 mile-an-hour zones around our schools; some of it is going to take more work, such as getting our highways and byways doing the job and looking the part; and some of it is going to make this an even better place to live, such as looking at making our town more Dementia-friendly and engaging with school children to encourage that sense of civic pride that is so important to our town.

I met with Sir Eric Pickles MP recently, whose Localism Act makes it possible for my role as Mayor to exist today.

As he said: Democracy isnt about fusty old men in suits. Its about engaging every person  young or old. True localism is where the shackles are released and communities can enact the decisions that matter to them.

And whilst localism means we do genuinely have the opportunity to make decisions in the best interests of our town, we have an additional opportunity to strengthen our region through the introduction of a Metro Mayor.

Setting party politics aside, the work that Andy Street has done at the Local Enterprise Partnership shows the leadership we need regionally. He is a superb Metro Mayoral candidate, and I look forward to supporting him in office.

So, as I reach the halfway mark in my term, I can truly say Im proud of the progress weve made so far.

Its been an immense learning curve, as only three of our councillors are double-hatters. And for me personally, it has been an incredibly rewarding  if exhausting!  experience.

As a working mum with two young children, there are never enough hours in the day  let alone when you add the additional responsibilities of being a Town Councillor and Town Mayor.

Ive learned a huge amount. You have to be able to juggle a huge number of different issues at once, whilst setting an overall tone for the town. It has been tempting to say yes to everything  so its taken a good deal of self-discipline to make real promises. Ive been mindful that anything Ive agreed to can genuinely be delivered.

And its in no way a one-man band. I have a talented team of Conservative councillors around me, who have supported the Office of Mayor. I simply wouldnt have been able to do it without them. And I value the support of everyone in the community who has seen this as an opportunity to get on and get things done, rather than make things about narrow special interests.

But there is one woman I really couldnt have done it without  Olive OSullivan, our interim Town Clerk. She has worked on this project since its initiation and I can honestly say that without her dedication, long hours and constant energy that this Town Council would look very different today.

A common frustration amongst councillors  as elected politicians  is where they think their supporting officers and civil servants are putting up blockades which delay, dilute or destroy their aspirations.

When the relationship works properly, it is an absolute blessing. It takes somebody who understands the rules and legal framework but has pragmatism. The attitude of asking: Why have we always done it this way in the past? Why shouldnt we change how we do things?

This creates the tone for a Town Council that is visionary. It means we can ask our residents  our constituents  what they want the future to be, knowing that we have a good shot at achieving it.
Iain Dale is Presenter of LBC Drive, Managing Director of Biteback Publishing, a columnist and broadcaster and a former Conservative Parliamentary candidate.

It will be interesting to see the final lineup in the UKIP leadership contest when nominations close on Monday. The three leading candidates are clearly Paul Nuttall, Suzanne Evans and Raheem Kassam. But a question now is whether any of the more fringe candidates such as David Kurten and Peter Whittle decide to drop out.

All candidates must put down a 5,000 deposit, and the terms for retrieving it are fairly steep. Raheem Kassam will be considered to be the outsider, but his campaign has the support of Arron Banks, whose financial backing could make a very big difference. He was the first to announce and had made quite an impact so far, but will the tacit support of Nigel Farage for him be enough?

Suzanne Evans announced her candidacy on The Andrew Marr Show and she certainly has her fans but, in terms of uniting a fractured party, she is seen by many as as divisive as Raheem. Farage made his views very clear on her candidacy within minutes of her announcing. It will be interesting to see what her strategy is for convincing UKIP members that she can unite all wings of the party.

Paul Nuttall is undoubtedly the unity candidate, but there is a big question mark over whether he really wants the job, and thus has been pressured into standing. The last thing UKIP needs is another 18 day leader. But if the aim of the party is to appeal to northern Labour seats, then hes certainly the man to do it.

Nuttall and Evans get on well personally, and there is a suspicion among Kassams supporters that in effect theyre the same candidate  and that, if either wins, each will make the other their deputy leader. Stitch-up is a phrase often heard in UKIP at the moment. Ill be hosting a UKIP leadership debate on Tuesday evening from 5-6pm on LBC. Kassam, Evans and Nuttall will all be three. I hope you will be too. Should be fun!

         

It must have been difficult for George Osborne to adapting to life as a backbencher, but last weekend he scored a triumph. He was speaking at the annual dinner of Epping Forest Conservatives, who decided to spice up their evening by entertaining the Chancellor with a pub quiz.

The questions were all about previous Chancellors and their record. Osbornes table won at a canter, with the Chancellor really entering into the spirit of it, getting all twenty questions right. And he didnt even need to deploy Project Fear!

          

Talking of Project Fear, we were supposed to be in recession by now with negative growth. Thats what George Osborne told us would happen in June. Yesterday the growth figures came out, and were far higher than any economist had predicted at 0.5 per cent  annualised at 2.3 per cent. Thats not only very far from recession territory; it puts us at or near the top of the growth league.

         

Just who does Mark Carney think he is? He seems to think he is more powerful than the Prime Minister, and that she doesnt have a right to comment on the performance of the economy in case she questions the record of the Bank of England.

If you look at his record, hes been brilliant as a PR man for Mark Carney, but if you turn to at his record of economic predictions and forecasting, youll find its lamentable. He reckons he has single-handedly saved the British economy. I suggest that his record is very different. Quite a few leading economic commentators seem to agree with that.

          

So now we know who will serve on the Brexit Select Committee. Eight of the ten Conservatives are Leave supporters, but it still means that Remain backers have a narrow majority overall  11-9, if my calculations are right, with the DUP providing the only other Leave supporter.

Should make for some interesting reports! Its very good to see some real heavyweights serving on this committee, such as Peter Lilley, John Whittingdale and Michael Gove. In some ways its a shame Anna Soubry failed to be elected by her fellow Conservative MPs. Shed have certainly made the questioning of David Davis entertaining.

        

Im sure I speak for all of you when I wish Nick Boles well in his renewed fight to beat cancer. I was supposed to meet him for a coffee earlier this week, but he texted me to tell me the reason he couldnt make it. Having beaten cancer back in 2007-8, which meant he had to withdraw from the London mayoral race, this latest diagnosis must have come as a bitter blow.

I struggled to think how to reply to the text, to be honest. I mean, what on earth do you say in these circumstances beyond tired old cliches? Im not a religious person, but if you believe in the power of prayer, I hope youll deploy it to its maximum extent. No one deserves to go through this twice.
Close

Yevgeniy Aleksandrovich Nikulin is a 29 year old hacker hailing from Moscow, Russia, who has been arrested for a major BitCoin heist. Nikulin, who was arrested by Czech authorities at the beginning of this month has been tied to a series of hackings that took place at LinkedIn and DropBox.

Nikulin is rumored to be extradited to the USA where he could be charged with numerous crimes, including nine counts of hacking, ID theft and conspiracy against MNCs. The man was earlier able to hack into LinkedIn and DropBox after ID theft of its employees. Nikulin has been described as a successful entrepreneur and a possessor of numerous luxury cars, has taken onto bitcoin heists for profits.

Earlier, Nikulin and his fellow conspirators attempted to sell the FormSpring accounts for as less as $6000. Nikulin, also is rumored to be involved in the 2013 attack on the BitCoin exchange BitMarket.eu. As a result Nikulin forced shutdown of the BitMarket exchange by inflicting damages upon its own servers and a trading platform known as BitCoinica.

Investigation of the incident revealed an IP being traced back to Moscow, that used compromised particulars to steal 620 bitcoins worth around $400,000.

The investigation also revealed that the attacker had made an username "chinabig01" with the email address of "chinabig01@gmail.com". BitMarket.eu's owner reported that the email address didn't look like a disposable address, however it was used on different sites since 2009.

The BitCoin address to which the hacker transferred 620 bitcoins had a total transaction of 1532 bitcoins in February and March 2013, amounting to a little over $1 million. From where the extra 912 bitcoins came from remains to be discovered, however it is possible that these bitcoins came from other trading platforms.

The attacks on LinkedIn and DropBox seem to be the efforts of the same hacker, as the hacking methods, geolocation and online IDs match with the BitMarket.eu hacker. BitMarket experts have pointed out that the hacker wasn't entirely successful in covering his tracks.

See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare
So the DOW has been taking it on the chin, and the futures don't look good. Thankfully, I lost everything in the 2008 collapse, so I'...
Photo: Somebody Decided To Drive A Car On The 606

By Stephen Gossett in News on Oct 27, 2016 9:00PM



The 606 (photo via Ben Campney on Flickr)

Free public service announcement: please dont drive your car on The 606. We know the elevated path is a beautiful transportation amenity, but it is truly for pedestrians and cyclists only, confused motorist.

A photo reportedly taken on Wednesday and posted on Instagram by Joe Prettyman, a local bike courier, according to his social media account, shows the truly bizarre and dangerous sight of, well, check it out below:

A photo posted by Joe (@deathridesapalefixie) on Oct 26, 2016 at 3:26pm PDT



Maybe it was revenge for the time that Divvy cyclist rode down the Dan Ryan Expressway, or up Lake Shore Drive?

The vehicle doesnt appear to be a police car either, Officer Bari Lemmon, police spokesperson, told Chicagoist. There were no calls of service for a car spotted on the pathway on Wednesday, according to Lemmon. It was the kind of incident that should garner a lot of calls, she said.

The driver could potentially be cited for driving on park property, Lemmon added.

Jessica Maxey-Faulkner, Director of Communications for the Chicago Park District, told Chicagoist that the incident has since been reported to the police. The 606 infrastructure has to accommodate vehicular access because it is necessary for emergency and service vehicles, Maxey-Faulkner added.

(Hat-tip to Streetsblog Chicago, who tweeted out the photo to authorities, which made us aware of the image.)
Sen. Kirk's Racially-Charged Comment On Duckworth Is Among His Worst Gaffes

By Rachel Cromidas in News on Oct 28, 2016 2:24PM



Mark Kirk / Getty Images / Photo: Gabriella Demczuk

Sen. Mark Kirk's latest racially-charged gaffe came Thursday night during his debate with U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth, who is challenging him for his senate seat this fall.

The comment came after Duckworth, a military veteran who lost both of her legs in Iraq, described her family's history of service in the U.S.

"My family has served this nation in uniform, going back to the Revolution. I'm a daughter of the American Revolution. I've bled for this nation," she said. "Families like mine are the ones that bleed first."

Kirk replied, seemingly intending to discredit her statement: "I had forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington."

Duckworth is Asian-AmericanShe was born in Thailand and her mother is of Chinese decent and her father is an American, according to NBC.

Duckworth Tweeted a reply to Kirk's comments after the debate:



My mom is an immigrant and my dad and his family have served this nation in uniform since the Revolution #ILSEN pic.twitter.com/ehEBHswFMs  Tammy Duckworth (@TammyforIL) October 28, 2016



Kirk's comment underscores an uncomfortable bias against Americans of mixed racial backgroundsthat they are less patriotic or contribute less to the country, which is not trueas listeners were quick to point out:



To be clear, GOP Sen. @MarkKirk just questioned the Revolutionary War service of Tammy Duckworth's family because she is of mixed heritage.  Brandon Friedman (@BFriedmanDC) October 28, 2016



Even Donald Trump's campaign manager weighed in on Kirk's gaffe, in an ever-so-ironic moment:

The same Mark Kirk that unendorsed his party's presidential nominee and called him out in paid ads? Gotcha. Good luck. https://t.co/IV7miL317s  Kellyanne Conway (@KellyannePolls) October 28, 2016



(Kirk un-endorse Donald Trump in June.)

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee called for an apology from Kirk over the offensive, wrong, and racist" remarks Thursday night. A statement from the Kirk campaign published in the Washington Post and elsewhere did not apologize, but referenced several of Kirk's critiques of Duckworth's campaign.
Top Cop Announces New Panel To Reinvigorate Community Policing

By Stephen Gossett in News on Oct 28, 2016 2:47PM



Photo: Scott Olson / Getty Images

Chicago was once a pioneer in community policing efforts, but such programs have seen a precipitous decline in effectiveness in recent years. Now, the Chicago Police Department is looking to reinvigorate the concept. Supt. Eddie Johnson announced on Thursday the creation of the Community Policing Advisory Panel, a 12-person panel of police officials, academics and community representatives.

The panel is tasked with formulating recommendations and streamlining a new strategy, which it will develop by the end of the first quarter of 2017. Chief of Patrol Fred Waller will chair the panelwhich is made up of two other police officials along with four community leaders, three professors and two city officials, including Ald. Ariel Reboyras (30th Ward).

Chicago was the birthplace and, at one time, a national model for community policing and we need to build upon this history to develop a community policing strategy for the 21st Century. I am grateful to have such a qualified group of individuals helping us develop these recommendations, Johnson said in a press release. To have an effective influence on reducing crime and building public trust, our strategy must give every Chicagoan equal treatment and respect.

Among the panels duties are making an an acknowledgement that Community Policing is the Departments core philosophy and devising strategy to reduce conflict between youth and CPD.

Chicagos most prominent community policing program was the Chicago Alternative Policing Strategy (CAPS), but it now pales in comparison to its heyday in the '80s and '90s due to underfunding.

As the Chicago Reader reported in September:

"In 2016, CAPS has a budget of $3.9 million, less than a third of the funding it had in 1999 and 17 percent less than when Emanuel took office. The police department's overall budget has ballooned to $1.45 billion today; CAPS funding represents just 0.3 percent of CPD's overall budget."

When you go to a CAPS meeting, its basically face-to-face 911. Neighbor has a complaint. Gives it to the cop. The sergeant waits 30 days and gets a report back. ... Face-to-face 911 is not authentic." Ald. Ricardo Munoz (22nd Ward) said on Thursday, according to the Sun-Times.
A letter written to Queen Elizabeth II by Beatle John Lennon when he returned his MBE (Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) to Buckingham Palace has been valued at 60,000 British pounds (73,041.64 U.S. dollars), it was revealed here Thursday.

The hand-written letter was brought forward on Wednesday at a special Beatles memorabilia day held at The Beatles Story exhibition in Liverpool when auctioneers Julien's Auctions were putting values on The Beatles items.

It had been found among a collection of records bought for just 10 pounds at a car trunk sale 20 years ago.

Written by Lennon to Queen Elizabeth II, the letter explained why he had returned his MBE, awarded to each member of the band in the Queen's honors.

According to a spokeswoman for The Beatles Story, the owner of the letter, who wished to remain anonymous, brought the letter at The Beatles Story on Wednesday, where members of the public were being offered free valuations.

"The letter was discovered tucked away inside the sleeve of a record that was part of a collection of 45s (45 rpm records). The letter, which was recently unearthed in the owner's attic, has been described as an 'incredible find' by music memorabilia expert Darren Julien of Los Angeles-based Julien's Auctions."

Until the meeting with Julien on Wednesday night, the owner of the letter had presumed it must have been a copy and was stunned to discover it could be worth such a huge sum of money, added the spokeswoman.

Julien, director at Julien's Auctions, said he was thrilled to have uncovered such a hidden gem during his brief visit to Liverpool.

"Being the birthplace of The Beatles, I was quite confident that we would uncover something special during the memorabilia day at The Beatles Story," Julien said.

"This is a real stand out piece. I believe this letter has the potential to sell for a lot of money at auction, around 60,000 pounds."

He said there was no doubt it was Lennon's hand writing and said it could be "The Beatles find of the year."

Julien's theory on how the letter ended up in the hands of a member of the public is that Lennon never actually sent this version to the Queen when he famously returned his MBE.

"You can quite clearly see that the signature in this letter has been smudged. My theory is that John Lennon never sent this draft because of the smeared ink. If you're writing to the Queen, you want the letter to look pretty perfect, you don't want the ink to be smudged. This suggests that he wrote a second version of the letter, which was the one that was actually sent to The Queen," he said.

Martin King of The Beatles Story added: "This is an absolute gem and we are thrilled to have seen a piece of memorabilia with such historical significance. Ironically, Oct. 26 was the day the Beatles received their MBEs from The Queen so it's quite fitting that the letter was brought in to us on the exact same date."

The letter was just one of a number of items valued during the memorabilia day at The Beatles Story.

Another major find at the valuation was a painting of Beatles drummer Ringo Starr. It was salvaged from the original Cavern Club in Liverpool when it closed its doors in 1973 and was valued at 5,000 pounds. The owner of the painting, Hal Morris, worked as a cleaner at the club and was given the portrait of the drummer by a builder who was about to throw it into a skip.
Mr. Tian Jinchen (L) and Mr. Du Ping unveil the book 'Belt and Road in Big Data 2016'. [China.org.cn]

China issues its first book of data on the "Belt and Road" Initiative -- Belt and Road in Big Data 2016 in Beijing on October 28.

The book is an annual report that presents a comprehensive assessment of the implementation of the initiative and an authoritative evaluation of the cooperation between China and the 64 countries involved and the engagement of its 31 provinces.

The report, released by Du Ping, standing deputy director of the State Information Center (SIC), consists of two volumes: the first offers a comprehensive assessment of the building of the Belt and Road, and the second presents special analysis on important issues, such as international industrial cooperation, regional cooperation, internationalization of RMB and cross-border e-commerce, and puts forward some practical suggestions.

According to Du, there are more than 300 billion pieces of data in the report from domestic and foreign statistics agencies, news websites, social media and various other forums, over 5pb of which is original data, covering more than 60 countries and regions along the routes of the Belt and Road.

It shows that Russia, Kazakhstan, Thailand, Pakistan and Indonesia are the five most cooperative countries in advancing the Belt and Road Initiative and that Guangdong, Zhejiang, Shanghai, Tianjin, Fujian, Jiangsu, Shandong, Henan, Yunnan and Beijing are the top ten most active participants in China.

Industrial cooperation in automobile, construction materials, iron and steel, railway and information communication attract the most attention from overseas. Specifically, Southeast Asian countries care more about the automobile, iron and steel, electricity and information communication industries; countries in the Central and Eastern Europe are eager to absorb infrastructure investment from China, while industrial cooperation, automobile, real estate, highway and power grid construction are the main concerns for Northeast Asian countries.

Supervised by the General Office of Leading Group of Advancing the Building of the Belt and Road Initiative, the report was compiled by the SIC and published by the Commercial Press.

Co-founded by the SIC, the municipal government of Karamay in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and the IZP Group, the Belt and Road Big Data Center is dedicated to building a state-level think tank decided to the initiative and vows to establish a database and a global platform to provide professional services for governments, enterprises and organizations involved in the initiative. It will also exert every effort to build the Belt and Road Initiative's official website - www.yidaiyilu.gov.cn.
Lewis Hamilton says he doesn't plan to take any undue risks over the remaining three races of the 2016 F1 season in his quest to retain his title, but admits there remains a fear reliability gremlins will not give him a fair shot at pressuring Nico Rosberg.

Fresh from notching up his first win for three months in the United States Grand Prix, Hamilton still comes into the final three rounds knowing even a trio of victories won't be enough to surpass Rosberg if the German follows him in second.

A legacy of his damaging engine blowout in Malaysia and third place finish in Japan after a bad start, Hamilton nonetheless comes to Round 19 and the Mexican Grand Prix feeling more relaxed in the knowledge that he could still lose his title even if he performs to his best in the concluding races.

BREAKING POINT: These F1 races really push drivers and cars to the limit

"I approach it the same as I've approached generally every race. Maybe slightly more relaxed than I have others maybe because I have accepted that there are things that are out of my powers, out of my control.

"All I can do is control what is in the car and what I do. So as long as I focus and put all my energy towards that, hopefully I can get results like I did last weekend.

"But if I don't, then you move forwards. I don't think I will be taking more risks than I usually do. I think I am a relatively risky driver, but I don't think I will be taking more than others. I will definitely be cautious of my surroundings, as I always am.

"I am going for it, that is for sure. While my heart is still beating and I still have that drive to win, and there still is an opportunity even if it is only one percent I am going to be going for it."

MEXICAN GP: Six things to watch out for in Mexico City!

Indeed, Hamilton has made persistent reference to his reliability issues in 2016 beyond dramatic Sepang DNF, a persistent fear that he says is unlikely to pass until the chequered flag drops in Abu Dhabi.

"It will probably be a feeling I have more often because I'm on my eighth engine and I've experienced a lot more than any other has this year.

"Now I'm confident everyone is doing what they can and the guys are working so hard to make sure nothing happens moving forward. But again, there are things that are just out of our hands and there have been things this year that are out of our control.

"A couple of races ago in Malaysia I had a brand-new fresh engine and Paddy said 'You can use full power the whole race' so I had no concerns and the thing blew up!

"I guess you just have to take everything with a pinch of salt, and I'm hoping and praying that my car stays intact and strong and solid for the remaining races. If it isn't, then so be it and we will try and bounce back on those next races as well.

Furthermore, Hamilton maintains the story of this year's title battle would be different if he was on a leveller playing field with Rosberg.

"I think if both our cars had been fully reliable all year long we would have had pretty much the same battle we've had all last year and the year before, so I don't see it being any different."

POINTS: Who sits where in the overall standings after the United States Grand Prix

10 things to look out for in F1 in 2017 Video of 10 things to look out for in F1 in 2017

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Speakers: Officials of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee and the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee. Chairperson: Jiang Jianguo, Vice Minister of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee Date: Oct. 28, 2016

Chairperson Jiang Jianguo, vice minister of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee:

Ladies, gentlemen and friends from the media, good afternoon! Welcome to the press conference held by the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee on the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee. The sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee was held in Beijing from Oct. 24 to 27. The meeting approved two documents on the discipline of the Party. General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee Xi Jinping delivered two important speeches. The communique released yesterday concentrated on the important achievements of this plenary session. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, our Party has successively held the third, fourth and fifth plenary sessions of the 18th CPC Central Committee, and made plans for comprehensively deepening reform, comprehensively implementing the rule of law and comprehensively building a moderately prosperous society. The plenary session of this time had a special study of comprehensive and strict governance of the Party. This is a strategic decision with an overall design made by the CPC Central Committee with a view to the strategic layout of the "Four Comprehensives." This is the gradual carrying out and further pushing forward of the CPC Central Committee's governance policy. This is the need to deepen the comprehensive strengthening of the Party discipline. This is the need of our Party to carry out a great struggle, to advance a great project, to accomplish a great task and to achieve a great goal. The plenary session has drawn world-wide attention. In order to help domestic and foreign media have a better understanding of the spirit of the plenary session, today we have invited officials from the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee and the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee to elaborate on the plenary session, interpret "Norms of Political Life Within the Party under the New Situation" and "Regulation on Supervision Within the Communist Party of China" and answer your questions. The officials attending today's press conference include Wu Yuliang, deputy chief of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, Qi Yu, vice minister of the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee, and Huang Kunming, executive vice minister of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee. Now, Mr. Huang Kunming will give us an introduction and overview of the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee and the main arrangement for the study and publicity of the spirit of the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee.

Huang Kunming, executive vice minister of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee:

Good afternoon! The sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee is of tremendous and far-reaching significance to our Party and country. The guiding principle and major achievement of the session have been specified in concentrated form in the communique. I will mainly introduce the following aspects. First, General Secretary Xi Jinping addressed the session. The speech has reviewed and summed up the work of the Party and the government since the fifth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, scientifically analyzed the development of the international situation, Chinas conditions and Party conditions, profoundly interpreted the significance of being strict with discipline, a series of major theories and practical problems on building, invigorating, governing and running the Party, discussed such major issues as regulating the political life within the Party and enhancing the Party supervision within the Party under new circumstances, set clear demands for the Partys and the countrys various tasks and proposed a series of creative new thoughts, ideas and assertions. All of these represent a scientific guide and program of actions for creating a new method for being strict with discipline in an all-round way and improving undertakings of our Party and country. Second, the session deliberated and adopted two documents regarding the discipline of the Party, including the Norms and the Regulation. Third, a resolution on convening the 19th Communist Party of China (CPC) National Congress was deliberated and passed at the sixth plenary session. The 19th CPC National Congress will be held in Beijing during the second half of 2017. To study, implement and disseminate the guiding principle of the sixth plenary session is the important political task of the whole Party and nation at present and in the coming period, and the Party Central Committee issued a special opinion concerning the arrangement of the task. Taking the concerns of international community and media into account, we will introduce the spirit of the sixth plenary session in a complete, accurate, pointed way, to allow the international community to understand China and the Chinese Communist Party in a more overall and deeper way. So much for my remarks for now. Thank you all.





Jiang Jianguo:

Thanks for your introduction, Executive Vice Minister Huang Kunming. Now lets give the floor to Vice Minister Qi Yu to talk about the Norms as well as the details and progress of the Party organization and its team building efforts.

Qi Yu, vice minister of the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee:

Nice to meet you. The sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee has just passed the Norms. My introduction will focus on this document.

The plenum sets a new standard because, firstly, its necessary for completing the "Four Comprehensives" strategy. Coordinating and promoting the "Four Comprehensives" strategy is a new governance guideline decided by the CPC Central Committee with Xi Jinping as its core. The 3rd, 4th and 5th plenary meetings of the 18th CPC Central Committee have already discussed comprehensively deepening reform, comprehensively ruling by law and comprehensively building a moderately prosperous society. The 6th plenum addressed the topic of comprehensively and strictly governing the Party by formulating the Norms and the Regulation. Thus, the each of the "Four Comprehensives" strategy has been researched and deployed during a previous plenum, which is the CPCs holistic design.

The second is the demand to deepen comprehensively strictly governing the Party. The sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, on the basis of in-depth summarization of the actual practices of comprehensively strictly governing the Party since the 18th CPC National Congress, carefully analyzed the new conditions and new issues regarding the construction of the Party in the new situation, and accordingly made new institutional arrangements for strengthening and standardizing the political life within the Party.

The third is the demand for solving prominent conflicts and problems existing in the Party. In the long-term, the condition of the Party's political life has remained sound in general, although some conflicts and problems have surfaced in recently. As for dealing with these issues, the Party has taken a series of new measures since the 18th CPC National Congress, which have led to noticeable improvements in the Party's political ecosystem. To consolidate the positive trend of comprehensively strictly governing the Party, effectively suppressing the rebound and relapse of problems already solved in the past, and preventing new conflicts and problems from emerging and spreading, we must adhere to the unity of constructing the Party based on ideological principles and governing the Party with institutional regulations, perfect standards and consolidate the system.

To formulate the Norms is to carry forward the CPCs fine traditions and valuable experience and to implement the new concepts, philosophies and strategies put forward by the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as its core. The Norms follows the Party Constitution as its fundamental basis and formulates systematic standards for the political life within the Party under new circumstances. The Norms is composed of three parts with 12 chapters.

The first part is the preface. It explains the vital roles and historical experience of the political life within the Party, existing problems, circumstances and tasks the Party faces and the importance and immediacy of strengthening and regulating the political life within the Party under new circumstances. It also puts forward the goals and requirements of strengthening and regulating the political life within the Party.

The second part is the main body. It puts forward 12 aspects regarding the specific requirements and detailed provisions of strengthening and regulating the political life within the Party, including holding firm to ideals and beliefs, sticking to the CPCs basic guidelines, upholding the authority of the CPC Central Committee, straightening out political disciplines, keeping in close touch with the people, sticking to the principle of democratic centralism, developing intra-Party democracy and safeguarding Party members rights, adhering to correct guidance in appointing talent, strengthening the CPCs organizational system, practicing criticism and self-criticism, strengthening control over and supervision of the exercise of power and upholding political cleanness and integrity.

The third part is the conclusion. It is mainly about strengthening the Partys leadership and supervision and high-level officials taking the lead in setting examples to make sure every task is implemented. The Norms puts forward over 160 new major ideas and measures. The promulgation of the Norms is an important milestone in the history of Party building and will surely exert far-reaching influence on the accomplishment of the CPCs governance missions and goals. I will stop here. Thank you!

Jiang Jianguo:

Thank you, Mr. Qi Yu. Next, we invite Mr. Wu Yuliang, deputy secretary of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, to introduce the Regulation and relevant work about the comprehensive and strict governance of the Party, discipline construction and strengthening supervision within the Party.

Wu Yuliang, deputy secretary of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection:

Good afternoon. Id like to give a brief introduction to the amendment of the Regulation. First, Id like to talk about the background for the amendment. Leadership by the Party is the essential feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics. To successfully handle Chinas affairs lies in the party, supervision within the Party and the strict governance of the Party.

Over the years, the CPC Central Committee has attached great importance to supervision within the Party and made remarkable achievements through successful measures. However, we have also noticed that some new problems have emerged, which are exemplified in a weakening Party leadership, lack of Party construction and loose governance of the Party in some localities and departments. Some Party members and officials have a faint awareness of the Party. There are problems of poor organization and lax discipline. The Party discipline is not strictly implemented.

After the 18th CPC National Congress, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core has insisted on rectifying Party conduct, strictly enforcing political discipline and rules by addressing both the root cause and symptoms, making persistent efforts to fight formalism, bureaucratism, hedonism and extravagance, preventing the spread of corruption and resolutely building a system that ensures officials dare not, will not and cannot be corrupt. Through those efforts, the political ecosystem inside the Party has been improved. The measures have won extensive support from the whole Party and all of society. To ensure comprehensive and strict governance of the Party, we must address the problems at the root: negligence of main responsibility and insufficient supervision within the Party. We should make strengthening supervision within the Party a fundamental project of high significance with regards to Party construction, and give a full play to the political advantages of the Party.

General Secretary Xi Jinping made clear requirements on improving the supervision system within the Party at the fifth and sixth plenary sessions of the 18th CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. He clarified the nature, position, effect, mechanisms and measures of supervision within the Party, setting the direction for the revision of the Regulation. In consideration of all factors, the CPC Central Committee decided to include the revision of the Regulation into the major issues of the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee.

Next, Id like to brief you on the Regulations major contents. The revision of the Regulation abided by the Party Constitution, and comprehensively implemented the principles of a series of important speeches made by General Secretary Xi Jinping. An intra-Party supervision system was built with the focus on theories, thoughts and mechanisms. Mechanisms were designed with the focus on power, responsibility and the assumption of responsibilities.

First, we stuck to the Partys leadership and underlined the assumption of responsibilities. Leadership work involves education, management and supervision. When taking the leadership, we must also take up the responsibility of maintaining supervision. We need to ensure that those who are in power also bear responsibilities; those who bear responsibilities conscientiously fulfill their responsibilities; those who use power are under strict supervision; and those who fail to fulfill their responsibilities are held accountable.

Second, we focused on solving problems. We didnt crave big achievements, but tried to solve problems confronting us and make the solutions more practical.

Third, we insisted that trust is not a substitute of supervision. We stressed that there is no no-go area and no exception in intra-Party supervision. We also focused on leading officials, who are few in number but play a crucial role. The Partys leading organs and leading officials, especially major leading officials, are the major targets of supervision.

Fourth, we stuck to democratic centralism. We strengthened the downward organization structure and supervision methods, improved the upward democratic supervision, allowed mutual supervision at the same level, insisted on the integration of intra-Party supervision and external supervision, regulated the interaction of intra-Party supervision and other supervision methods, and formed synergy between law-based governance and rule-based Party discipline.

Fifth, we strived for pragmatic and efficient approaches, focusing on their necessity and feasibility. Based on the experiences from previous practices, we devised practical solutions.





The Regulation consists of eight chapters and 47 articles, which can be divided into three sections.

The first chapter "General Principles," including nine articles, is the first section. It mainly clarifies the aim and foundations of the Regulation, explains the guiding thoughts, the fundamental principles, the work, targets, methods of supervision and a series of important issues, including the strengthening of self-supervision and the building of the supervision system within the Party.

The 27 articles from Chapter Two to Chapter Five constitute the second section, which is the major part of the Regulation. The four chapters respectively stipulate rules on the responsibilities and relevant mechanisms concerning the four supervision subjects - the Partys central organs, Party committees (leading Party groups), discipline inspection organs and the Partys grassroots organizations and Party members. The supervision system within the Party has been set up, featuring the unified leadership of the CPC Central Committee, the comprehensive supervision of Party committees (leading Party groups), the special supervision of discipline inspection organs, the work-related supervision of the functional departments of Party committees, the routine supervision of grassroots organizations, and the democratic supervision of Party members. In particular, one chapter is devoted specially to the supervision of the Partys central organs. This is a major change to the previous Regulation, indicating the CPC Central Committees determination to set an example for organs at lower levels.

The third section includes the last three chapters, including the supplementary provisions. The 11 articles address the integration, improvement and guarantee of intra-Party supervision and external supervision.

Peoples Daily:

Mr. Qi, you mentioned the CPC formulated the Norms of Political Life Within the Party in 1980. I wonder how that is related to the newly issued document. What are the major changes? Thank you.

Qi Yu:

The CPC formulated a set of norms on intra-Party political life in 1980, which was the first time it introduced such norms to manage intra-Party political life and was thus ground-breaking. The main principles and rules in the 1980 version are still applicable today. But as the 1980 version was formulated in the wake of the Cultural Revolution, it addressed the historical conditions and major conflicts at that time. 36 years later, many problems at that time have become outdated, while some problems emerging at that time have grown more conspicuous. Besides, many new problems have cropped up since then. Meanwhile, the CPC has made great achievements and accumulated new experiences in recent years; this is especially true as the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core has strengthened Party discipline since the 18th CPC National Congress and made remarkable achievements and gained rich experience in managing the Party; therefore its necessary to introduce new norms. The new document this time has reaffirmed the major principles, rules and requirements in the 1980 version, while also coming up with a series of new ideas, measures and norms. For instance, the new document emphasizes that sticking to Party leadership means first and foremost sticking to the central, unified leadership of the CPC Central Committee; major policies that affect the Party and the state are only subject to the deliberation and interpretation of the Party; intra-Party networking for ones personal gains, cultivating personal power and forming interest groups are forbidden; Party leaders, especially senior leaders, should pay attention to the ethics within their families and manage their family members and their associates; and the system which requires leading officials to report relevant personal matters should be strictly implemented. In all, the new document inherits and builds on the legacies of the old one, and Party members should obey them at present and in future. Thank you.





Wen Wei Po:

We have noticed that the communique released after the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee has, for the first time, put forward the term "the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core." Could you explain the background and consideration for putting forward this term?

Huang Kunming:

This is a very important question. The sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee pointed out that a leading core is vital to a country and a political party. This is the valuable experience of our Party, and also a profound experience. To ensure that our Party is a strong and powerful Marxist ruling Party, and is a strong leading force in the great socialist cause with Chinese characteristics, we must have a core.

Making clear the core position of General Secretary Xi Jinping is where the fundamental interests of our Party and state lie. It is the fundamental guarantee for the adherence to and strengthening of the CPC leadership. It is also an urgent need to develop the great socialist cause with Chinese characteristics.

Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, General Secretary Xi Jinping has led the entire Party, the entire PLA and the people from all ethnic groups across the nation to create a new stage for the development of Chinese socialism as well as the Party. The progress achieved so far, regarding the stability of reform and development, internal politics, diplomacy and national defense, and the governing of the Party, the country and the military, is of practical and historical significance, enabling the Party and the country to move forward into the future.

General Secretary Xi Jinping has won the heartfelt support from the entire Party, the entire PLA and the people from all ethnic groups across the nation as well as high praise from the international community. As a matter of fact, he is already the core of the CPC Central Committee and the core of the entire Party.

General Secretary Xi Jinping becoming the core of the Party is the consensus of all Party members. While contributing their opinions on the sixth plenary session documents, the central and local government departments and the army all expressed their hope that the meeting should define Xi Jinping as the core of the Party and the CPC Central Committee. At the recently closed meeting, CPC Central Committee members agreed to establish Xi as the core of the CPC Central Committee.

They agreed that the experience since the 18th CPC National Congress has fully proved the core position of Xi, and that he deserves to have the trust of the Party and people to put him at that position. Clarifying Xis core status has a profound and significant meaning, not only for safeguarding the authority of the CPC Central Committee, and the unity and centralized leadership of the Party; but also for the entire country to keep solidarity, seize opportunities, and face challenges, while moving forward to build a stable and prosperous future. Thank you.





Nigeria TV:

In Nigeria, some of our anti-corruption efforts have not really been successful, which has a negative impact and influence over our economic development. Therefore, I wish to ask about China's experience of anti-corruption, since we know that China has been fairly successful in its anti-corruption campaign with cases involving high-level officials. As for my second question, regarding China's future anti-corruption plans, will the private sector be included? I asked this because as we know, the private sector isn't in the government's current anti-corruption plans.

Wu Yuliang:

You raised two questions. For the sake of convenience, I am answering your second question first.

As per the requirement of comprehensively governing the nation according to law, our supervision will cover all public officials who exercise public power. This is about what you mentioned just now  how we deal with corruption in non-government sectors. Any public official will be punishable by law if he/she violates the law through corruption.

As for your first question, I interpret it that you were asking about how corruption will affect economic development. In this regard, the facts from years of our anti-corruption campaign have proved that anti-corruption promotes economic development. I am aware of a reversed saying that anti-corruption campaign may negatively influence economic development. But in fact, not a single country relies on corruption to develop its economy. Even though there may be such cases, their economic development cannot have been sustainable.

Sustainable economic development follows its own internal rules, but it cannot be made possible without a benign external environment. For example, we need to foster a decent environment for investment, establish a fair and just market order and strictly investigate and deal with power-for-money deals. Economic development has to be safeguarded by anti-corruption. Thank you.





CCTV:

The current documentary "Long March" has presented us with the splendid and world-acclaimed undertakings of Party members from older generations who achieved victory through their undaunted and unremitting beliefs. We have also become aware of the communique issued at the plenary session asking the Party members to consolidate their beliefs, which has become the top-end requirement when developing the political life within the Party. My question is: what significance can beliefs and faith bring to the Long March today?

Huang Kunming:

During the 80th anniversary commemorating the victory of the Long March, Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, pointed out that the Long March was a great expedition of beliefs and faith. The victory of the Long March is actually an achievement of idealism and faithfulness.

The Norms passed at the plenary session stipulates in its first provision that theyll fortify the beliefs and faith of the entire Party. To accentuate beliefs as the superior issue, the plenum is dedicated to stressing the beliefs of Marxism, socialism and communism as their lifetime guidelines and consolidating the confidence of Chinas roads, theories, systems and culture with the countrys socialist characteristics. A strong belief will never be an empty slogan or an impractical goal; on the contrary, it has a solid foundation of scientific theories that can be reflected from the performance of every single job, and from the endeavor of building socialism with Chinese characteristics and achieving a moderately prosperous society in all respects. In the final analysis, it can be concluded by the Partys continuous efforts and progress based on their early beliefs, stressed by the General Secretary Xi. Thank you.

Phoenix TV:

My question is for Mr. Wu. Recently, an eight-episode TV documentary named "Always on the Road" has been shown on state television. The documentary uncovered a number of notorious fallen officials and the details of their corruption, with some of them repenting on camera. The documentary has attracted great attention of the public. We are wondering how you see this?

Wu Yuliang:

The wide attention shows public support. First, it shows that comprehensively strictly governing the Party has won the hearts of both the people and the Party members. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core has added comprehensively strictly governing the Party into the "Four Comprehensives" strategy, so as to prevent corruption from spreading. The material of the documentary is from the practice since the 18th CPC National Congress. Receiving public praise means winning the hearts of the people and the Party members.

Second, as the documentarys name says, the CPC is always on the road. The sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee which concluded yesterday sets a new strategic deployment for comprehensively strictly governing the Party, and approves the Norms and the Regulation, which shows the CPCs steadfast determination for comprehensively strictly governing the Party. As long as we can insist in comprehensively strictly governing the Party, promote the anti-corruption campaign and build a clean and honest administration, realizing the Two Centenary Goals and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation will be fundamentally guaranteed. Thank you.





Macao Daily:

My question is for the leader of the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee. You just mentioned that the Norms approved at the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee put forward a series of new measures and new opinions. How will they be implemented? Thank you.

Qi Yu:

There are more than 160 new stipulations and measures in the Norms. Generally speaking, they are detailed and highly feasible, so there will be no major difficulties in implementing them. As for the specifics of implementation, from the practical perspective, I think we should integrate education, supervision, investigation and punishment, and accountability.

Education refers to carrying out publication and education campaigns to make the contents of the Norms known and understood by all Party members and officials as quickly as possible. We should take the study and implementation of the Norms as an important part of the campaign of studying the Party Constitution, studying and implementation the important speeches made by General Secretary Xi Jinping and becoming a qualified Party member. Through regular and targeted education campaigns, we will help all Party members and officials learn the Norms by heart and observe them in their everyday life.

Supervision includes two aspects. On one hand, the Party should keep learning what its officials are thinking and doing, to strengthen routine warnings, supervision and inspection and strengthen regular critique and instruction of its members. On the other hand, Party members, members of the leadership, and supervisors and subordinates should constantly remind each other to observe the Norms, and exercise supervision over each other. When there is a need, the rule offenders should be criticized and their wrong doings rectified. This is also crucial to the implementation of the Norms. As for serious violations of the Norms, as soon as a case is discovered, it should be investigated, and the responsible persons should be punished. Zero tolerance will be given, so as to deter others from following suit.

Accountability means that Party organs and their main leaders must be held accountable if they fail to maintain effective governance and remain indifferent towards activities that violate the Norms. Party organs should be held accountable if they fail to fulfill their main duties at work and fail to exercise supervision.





Lianhe Zaobao (Singapore):

We learnt that the theme of the sixth plenary session is strict governance of the Party and I want to ask questions on anti-corruption. My first question is about "tigers." I noticed that many "tigers" who fell from grace recently were sentenced to death with reprieve or life in prison, which made the public believe that "corrupt officials can live" is an "unspoken rule." Therefore, I want to ask, in the future, will corrupt officials be exempted from the death sentence however big their corruption is? As for my second question, after four years since the anti-corruption campaign started, some public opinions hold that we are doing a selective anti-corruption meant to target political opponents. I'd like to know how the Chinese authorities will respond to this concern.

Wu Yuliang:

I am answering your second question first. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, we have been upholding the principle of finding every single case of corruption and rectifying every single case of graft whenever we discover one. We beat "tigers" together with "flies," "uproot rotten trees," "treat ill trees" and "protect the forest." As for "uprooting rotten trees," we certainly should start with the one that has decayed the most. If this amounts to selection, I would call it an approach to work.

But your question may carry another implication. In the past, people criticized us, saying we didn't fight against corruption; but when we stepped up our anti-corruption effort, they said that our campaign had selective targets. I would say that their allegation had ulterior motives.

The CPC is a party that wholeheartedly seeks the interests of and benefits for the people, and its anti-corruption campaign is entirely for the public interest, because corrupt officials damage the interest of the country and the people, which is completely contradictory to the nature and purposes of the Party. If we do not punish corrupt officials, we will irritate the 1.3 billion Chinese people. This is a most simple math regarding politics.

As for your first question, I mentioned just now that the disciplinary inspection organs are mainly there to supervise discipline and hold those violators accountable. The Party discipline is not the same as, but is stricter than, the laws, and the Party's disciplinary inspection organs only carry out investigations on cases involving disciplinary violations based on the Party Constitution and the discipline punishment regulations. For those cases that violate the laws, the inspection organs, after imposing disciplinary punishments, will transfer the suspects to law enforcement bodies. The legal penalty for these suspects of corruption will be decided by judicial bodies. Thank you.





NBC TV Network:

Here is my question. The U.S. presidential election is approaching its end, and the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee was closed yesterday. Could you please explain to us in which aspects Chinas leadership system is more suitable for Chinas conditions than Americas electoral system? My second question is: Was there any decision made on personnel arrangements at the sixth plenary session?

Qi Yu:

Let me start from your first question. There is an old Chinese saying which General Secretary Xi Jinping has said on several occasions. "To know whether a pair of shoes is a good fit for your feet, you have to put them on." A country must adapt its chosen political system and development path to its own national conditions, history and culture. China has adopted the socialist political system under the leadership of the CPC, which is the choice of history and the people. Over the past 60 years, the New China has achieved universally acknowledged achievements and accomplished miracles in the social developmental history of mankind. Socialism has shown its vigor in the vast land of China. The leadership of the CPC has obtained wide support and recognition from the people. The leadership of the CPC has become the fundamental feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics. It is the best evidence that the socialist political system with Chinese characteristics suits Chinas national conditions.

Let me answer your second question. As the comrade from the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee said just now, the main agenda of the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee is as follows: the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee reports its work to the CPC Central Committee, to study major issues about pushing forward the strict governance of the Party, to formulate the Norms, to revise the Regulation and to review and approve the resolution on holding the 19th CPC National Congress. This is all that I know. Thank you!





Xinhua News Agency:

The sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee which just closed a few moments ago has passed the Norms and the Regulation, from which we have noticed the term: "critical minority" which relates to asking our leaders to have good leadership. Whats your concern over this issue? Thanks.

Wu Yuliang:

Your question is actually the continuation of the last one that was answered by Mr. Qi. Both the Norms and the Regulation stressed that intra-Party political life and supervision should be consolidated and regulated especially among high ranking officials, which is the distinctive character of those two intra-Party rules. First, the positions of the leaders, especially those with high-ranks, decide the behavior of officials who play significant roles in pushing forward the Party and state affairs by regulated leadership and teamwork. Second, it has always been the precious legacy of our Party to let Party members of high ranks be the spearhead for good deeds. Third, were drawing lessons from several officials, such as, Zhou Yongkang, Bo Xilai, Guo Boxiong, Xu Caihou, and Ling Jihua, who were exposed as corrupt when they were in high ranks and investigated after the 18th CPC National Congress. They caused great loss to the Party and taught us severe lessons. Therefore, we need to closely supervise the implementation of the comprehensive and strict governance of the Party and the practice of the Norms and the Regulation especially among top officials. Thank you.





Il Sole 24 Ore

My question is in a current phase like this, what can China contribute to global governance?

Huang Kunming:

Thank you for your question. We know that reform and opening was a significant move in modern China's destiny. The opening up has brought many benefits to China and the world at large.

For a long time, China has worked very hard to push forward the global governance system and make it go in a fairer and more reasonable direction.

Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, the Partys Central Committee with Xi Jinping as the core has proposed many innovative global governance concepts and measures. Examples include the Belt and Road Initiative, building a new type of international relationship with a core spirit of win-win cooperation, upholding friendship and justice while pursuing shared interests, creating a community with a shared future for mankind, and etc. They have all received positive responses and wide recognition from most countries in the world.

At the G20 summit held in Hangzhou not long ago, China left a deep and profound impression as it strived to push for an innovative global governance system. President Xi Jinping proposed at the summit his vision to build an innovative, invigorated, interconnected and inclusive world economy. The summit also reached a consensus to promote global economic growth.

These are the new contributions China has dedicated to global governance. CPC, as the ruling party of the world's biggest developing country, is willing to work with the international community and exercise a bigger role in enhancing and improving global governance. Thanks!

Jiang Jianguo:

Ladies and gentlemen, friends, the press conference has lasted more than 100 minutes. Officials of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee and the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee all gave introductions focusing on the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee and answered relevant questions. I think it is very helpful. We will continue to release information about the CPC to let the public know more about the Party and the country. Thank you and see you next time.
Components & Peripherals News

Lenovo In Talks With Fujitsu On Japan PC Pact As Market Share, Margins Are Squeezed

Matt Brown

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As the PC market's growth slows and competition intensifies, Lenovo is looking to keep channel partners happy in the U.S. and build its premium product line depth around the world.

Earlier this week, Lenovo channel chief Sammy Kinlaw told a crowd a the Best of Breed conference: "I'm charged with growing PCs at a high double-digit growth at a premium to the market."

While it seeks aggressive unit growth, Lenovo is also looking to grow margins with higher-end products. This week Fujitsu confirmed it was in talks with the Chinese firm; the two companies are exploring various avenues of cooperation.

In the U.S. channel market, that news isn't sending shockwaves. "I can't see it making any difference," said Michael Goldstein, CEO of LAN Infotech, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., a solution provider that works with Lenovo. "It's kind of surprising because if you said Fujitsu makes PCs, I would say, 'really?'"

Goldstein said LAN Infotech's Lenovo PC business has been growing, especially with the X1 line in verticals like legal, health care and insurance. "It's definitely growing, and the X1 is pretty amazing," Goldstein said. "We've been loving life with that. Everyone is wondering if they're getting a desktop replacement, they're saying, 'I don't need a desktop anymore, and oh, I can carry it around with me.'"



Related: Lenovo Channel Chief Kinlaw On Life After Chris Frey And The Hyper-Converged Opportunity



But cooperation, on any level, with Fujitsu would give Lenovo a strong foothold in the profitable, high-end Japanese PC market.



"The opportunity in Japan's PC market is premium-heavy," said Jack Narcotta, a senior analyst at Technology Business Research Inc. "It may not move the needle in terms of shipments, but each PC is $800 or $900 rather than the $400 or $500 in the U.S. or EMEA. Lenovo is still No. 1 in the market, but their numbers are going down. When you can't figure out a way to fix that problem, the focus shifts to getting as much profit from the ones you are selling."

Narcotta said the biggest question surrounding the Lenovo-Fujitsu partnership is whether it will help Lenovo's PC business long-term. "What's the long-term play? How long of a runway do they have before they reach saturation in the market and end up in the same place they're in now?" Narcotta said.

In the third quarter, Lenovo shipped 14.5 million PCs, barely edging out HP Inc., which shipped 14.4 million units, according to IDC. Lenovo's total represented a 3.2 percent decline while HP increased its worldwide shipments by a nearly identical amount.



Interestingly, Dell and Asus showed the most growth in the third quarter. Dell's shipments during the quarter grew 6.2 percent; it shipped 10.8 million units giving it ia market share of 15.8 percent. Asus shipped 4.7 million units during the quarter, a year-over-year increase of 5.2 percent, according to IDC.



Fujitsu shunted its Japan PC business to a new wholly-owned subsidiary early this year and had been weighing its options for the business.



In its statement, Lenovo said a joint venture with Fujitsu could provide an opportunity to grow its PC business using Fujitsu's sales, support, R&D and manufacturing acumen together with its own scale and supply chain expertise.

Lenovo said Fujitsu would continue to provide support to customers and channel partners while it works out what form its announced "cooperation" will take.
Carnival Cruise Line has unveiled its 2018 Australia program, announcing that the Carnival Spirit will continue to be based in Sydney full time in 2018.

The cruise line has decided the ship will no longer spend the northern summer in China, as announced earlier this year, but will return to Australia immediately after her scheduled drydock in Singapore in May 2018, according to a statement.

Carnival Cruise Line Vice President Australia Jennifer Vandekreeke said the decision "was based on the current success and popularity of the cruise line's operations in Australia and associated capacity needs."

"Australian guests and travel agents have truly embraced the fun of a Carnival cruise," Vandekreeke said. "We recently welcomed our 500,000th guest onboard our local ships and our forward bookings are strong for next winter, so a decision has been made to keep Carnival Spirit in Australia throughout 2018.

"It's a sensible business move and we think it's one that will be very popular with loyal Australian customers."

Featuring 35 new cruises to and from Australia from April to December 2018, the new program will go on sale on November 4, 2016.

Unveiling details, Ms Vandekreeke said Carnival Spirit would now offer two new 19-night cruises between Sydney and Singapore, where she will be refurbished during her May 2018 dry dock.

The Carnival Spirit's new winter cruises will also include an of seven and 12 night voyages to Vanuatu, Fiji and New Caledonia as well as a range of three-night short cruises and four-night sailings to Queensland's Moreton Island.

Meanwhile Carnival Legend will return to Australia in October 2018 for her fifth extended summer season in Australia.

Already scheduled to sail from Melbourne for an inaugural series of seven cruises in early 2018, Carnival Legend will offer three more cruises from the Victorian capital in November 2018, including a 10-night cruise to New Zealand, a three-night short break and a four-night cruise to Sydney via Hobart.
This week Morrissey Goodale reported three deals in the United States and one international deal involving companies from France and the Czech Republic.

M&A Transactions

10/26/2016

Provider of professional and technical engineering and consulting solutions, NV5 (Hollywood, FL) (ENR #75) acquired JBA Consulting Engineers (Las Vegas, NV) (ENR #357), an MEP engineering, acoustics, technology, and fire protection consulting firm. Link to details

10/26/2016

Hillis-Carnes Engineering Associates (Annapolis Junction, MD) (ENR #403), a consulting engineering provider of geotechnical, environmental, facilities, and construction materials testing and inspection services, acquired Atlantic Geotechnical Services (Ashland, VA). Link to details

10/26/2016

Independent technology consulting firm, The Sextant Group (Pittsburgh, PA) joined with i-SCIENCE (Glendale, AZ), a leader in healthcare, laboratory technology and device planning. Link to details

10/21/2016

Global innovation and engineering consulting firm, Altran (Neuilly-sur-Seine, France) (ENR #259) acquired SWELL (Horice, Czech Republic), a provider of automotive engineering, development and testing services. Link to details

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The core leadership is of vital importance to a country and a political party.

A key meeting of the Communist Party of China (CPC) has called on all its members to "closely unite around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core."

That "the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core" was formally put forward at the meeting, reflects the common will of the entire Party, the military and people of all ethnic groups in China.

Since the 18th CPC National Congress, Xi, as the general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, has led the Party, the military and the people in breaking new grounds and making great achievements in the great cause of building socialism with Chinese characteristics and the Party.

In the new great practices, Xi has already become the core of the CPC Central Committee and the entire Party.

The CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi as the core is where the fundamental interests of the Party and state lie and a fundamental guarantee for the adherence to and strengthening of the CPC leadership.

It is also an urgent demand for the adherence to and the development of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

It will help ensure the authority of the CPC Central Committee, the Party's unity and unified leadership, and long-lasting stability and prosperity of the Party and state.

The call for Party unity around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core was included in a communique released after the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, which was held from Monday to Thursday.

Party members were told to resolutely safeguard the authority of the CPC Central Committee and its central, unified leadership while pushing forward the comprehensive and strict governance of the Party.

To put the Party's key decisions into practice, all Party members should be more aware of the need to uphold political integrity, keep in mind the bigger picture, follow the CPC as the core of the Chinese leadership and act consistently with CPC Central Committee policy.

"Together we must build a clean and righteous political environment, and ensure that the Party unites and leads the people to continuously open up new prospects for socialism with Chinese characteristics," the communique said.

The CPC meeting also approved two documents on the discipline of the Party, including the norms of political life within the Party under the new situation and a regulation on intra-Party supervision, moves that showcased the CPC Central Committee's strong resolve and commitment in practicing comprehensive and strict governance of the Party.

Such efforts will also ensure that the Party is capable of resisting corruption and withstanding risks, thus, safeguarding the authority of the CPC Central Committee and the Party's unity, advancement and purity.

The comprehensive and strict governance of the Party and a strong core of leadership are the key to China's development and the cause of building socialism with Chinese characteristics.

With the unity of the CPC around the CPC Central Committee with Xi as the core, China will gain further impetus to realize its two centenary goals.
I dont get a lot of things.

(Well pause here while the shock passes.)

Halloween is on my duh! list. For the life of me I cannot understand how this once innocent kid-centric tradition has morphed into such a huge adult-centric scream fest.

But then even as a kid I found Halloween confusing.

I mean, all you ever heard from your parents and teachers growing up was never take candy from a stranger. Then Halloween would come along and you would spend the night aggressively soliciting candy from anyone with a porch light on.

Then there was the paranoia over tainted treats. Even though you might only be trick or treating in your immediate neighborhood, you were repeatedly warned against eating anything that wasnt wrapped.

The apparent rationale behind this precaution seemed to be that on every street there was at least one weirdo who celebrated Halloween by putting sharp objects in apples. Aside from the fact that such incidents were about as rare as voter fraud, the other obvious reason this fear was overblown was just common sense:

What kid possessing a bag full of candy would instead opt for an apple?

Halloween costumes were also much less important, the dressing up being little more than a means to an end (candy). Yes, there were clowns. But rather than being seen as something creepy and sinister, they were considered happy and fun loving. All the kids shows on television had a lovable clown. The basic clown personality was probably best captured in a classic scene from the old Mary Tyler Moore Show in which the life philosophy of Chuckles the Clown was recounted at his memorial service:

A little song.

A little dance.

A little seltzer,

Down your pants.

Certainly words to live by.

From humble beginnings, Halloween has morphed into a major national holiday. According to the National Retail Federation, 171 million Americans will spend $8.4 billion celebrating Halloween this year, including $3.1 billion for costumes, $2.5 billion for candy, $2.4 billion for decorations and $390 million for greeting cards.

This puts Halloween in the top 10 in terms of holiday spending just behind the Super Bowl, but well ahead of St. Patricks Day (which just seems wrong). It would be one thing if Halloweens popularity was fueled by increased participation among children, but it is adults who have hijacked the horror show. Sure, the big kids are not out knocking on doors, but they are dressing up in disturbing numbers for parties and gatherings at favorite watering holes.

Although there are pockets of creativity, most of the costumes adults don tend to be generic. Zombies are currently in vogue. You walk into a bar the Saturday night before Halloween and it is the non-walking dead who stand out.

Halloween is not without its tragic side. I am talking here about people who dress their pets in costumes. Dressing an animal in any type of clothing, at any time, should be a felony. A pet who is taken to a dog park dressed in a cute little outfit will require years of therapy to recover from the ridicule.

There is, of course, only one thing worse then a pet in a costume. And that is a pet in a costume that matches the costume worn by the person on the other end of the leash.

Talk about a horror show.

Jim Shea is a lifelong Connecticut resident and journalist who believes the keys to life include the avoidance of physical labor and I-95. He can be reached at jimboshea@gmail.com and on Twitter @jimboshea.
DANBURY  Last months closure of the citys juvenile court has local officials concerned about its effects on area children and families who now must travel to Bridgeport or Waterbury to have their cases heard.

The states judicial branch closed the Main Street court as part of $77 million in state budget cuts.

The closure is not in the best interest of these children, said Cecilia Buck-Taylor, a New Milford-based attorney and state representative who often handles juvenile court matters. They need something stable and local. Im not really sure who this is benefiting at this point.

State Rep. Robert Godfrey, a Democrat whose district includes downtown Danbury, said he plans to meet with members of the Danbury Bar Association to discuss the issue and how it affects their clients.

I didnt expect this kind of consolidation, he said. Dragging local kids to Bridgeport and Waterbury is not good for the administration of justice. When the states chief court administrator, Judge Patrick Carroll, says that we are getting close to the point where judiciary cant guarantee justice, thats frightening and just asking for a lawsuit.

Danbury handled 1,173 new juvenile cases during the 2014-15 fiscal year, while the juvenile courts in Bridgeport and Waterbury handled more than 3,000 cases each during the same time period. Local attorneys are worried their clients will get lost in the shuffle.

Its often beneficial as an attorney to have a good working relationship with the local court officials and prosecutors so you can talk to them about your case, Buck-Taylor said. But when you go down to Bridgeport, its a whole different story.

She said local court officials and prosecutors often have firsthand knowledge of the programs and services available in the Danbury area, while that may not be the case in Bridgeport or Waterbury.

Transportation is a concern, as well.

For people who dont have a car, getting mass transit from Danbury to Bridgeport, well, I just dont see it happening, Buck-Taylor said. Not to mention that many of these kids will have to take an entire day off from school or work to make their court dates. There are probably a lot of other ways the judicial system can cut costs.

But the issue has an up side, Abby Anderson, executive director of the Connecticut Juvenile Justice Alliance, said the Danbury juvenile courthouse still offers probation services for juvenile offenders and houses support enforcement officers. Building staff has been reduced from about 12 people to five after the courts closure.

Godfrey said restoring juvenile services to the local courthouse will be near the top of his priority list when the next General Assembly session starts in January.

When we talk in Hartford about having to make tough decisions, this is exactly what we are talking about, he said. While the courthouse closed, state Department of Motor Vehicles and funding to Danbury Hospital have remained intact. Nobody is happy, he said, But what are the alternatives?
STRATFORD  Timothy Johnson just wanted to die. Hes just lucky Stratford cops had other ideas.

The 40-year-old, disabled Iraq war veteran was shot in the chest last month after police said he lured officers to Russian Beach and confronted them with what appeared to be a working gun.

This week Johnson, of Fernwood Drive, was arrested by State Police and charged with use of a facsimile firearm, interfering with police, second-degree reckless endangerment, threatening and second-degree breach of peace. He is free on bond and under psychiatric care.

Court papers portray Johnson as a mentally and physically wounded veteran who just wanted to die, but couldnt bring himself to do it himself.

Severely wounded in Iraq when the Humvee he was riding in hit an explosive device, he underwent three surgeries, but was left 100 percent disabled, according to medical reports. He was put on numerous medications for pain, but became increasingly delusional and paranoid.

He would often pace his house at night in his uniform, telling his wife he was there to protect her.

But eventually it became too much for her, and she and their two children moved out. She later filed for divorce, according to court documents.

Johnson moved in with his parents in their Fernwood Drive home, but even there he wasnt happy. As his paranoia increased, he installed motion sensor surveillance cameras around the house, court papers say. Then, every morning at 3:30, he would be out walking around the backyard with a metal detector checking for imagined explosive devices. Later in the day he would rake the yard, looking for footprints.

Shortly after 4:30 a.m. on Sept. 14, Stratford dispatch received an emergency call from a man who said there was a man with a gun by the flag pole in Lordship. The man called again to make sure the dispatcher had the right location, and a third time when he thought officers were taking too long to get there, police said.

Asked during one call what kind of gun the man had, the caller replied, Oh a 9 mill Beretta, police said. And when the dispatcher asked for a description of the gunman, the caller described him as an ugly guy.

Pressed further for a better description, the caller continued impatiently, A white guy, Im white, said police, who determined the calls were coming from Johnsons cellphone.

Police said when officers Brian McCarthy and Louis Arbelo arrived at Russian Beach, they were confronted by Johnson with a gun, his back to the water. The man fired several shots at the officers, who returned fire, hitting Johnson in the chest, according to police.

State police said the gun Johnson had appeared identical to a 9 mm Beretta, but only fired blanks.

When Johnson woke up later in the hospital recovery room, he told an officer who was standing nearby that he was sorry for putting the officers in that position. He just wanted to die because he was in Iraq and has PTSD, police said.

Johnson told police, they said, that he purposely stood with his back to the water when they arrived so that any errant shots would land away from the houses.

State police said when they later went to Johnsons bedroom, they found it full of survival gear, surveillance equipment and two body armor vests.

A note written in big letters was left on the bed.

Im sorry, it read.
The state of Connecticut has $1.5 million more to spend following a settlement with South Korean automakers Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. misrepresented the mileage and fuel economy ratings for some of their model year 2011, 2012 and 2013 vehicles

State Attorney General George Jepson said the $1,490,190 that Connecticut is getting is part of a $41.2 million settlement between 33 states and the District of Columbia to concludes a multi-state investigation into the companies' business practices relating to fuel economy estimate adjustments that occurred at a time when gasoline prices in the United States were especially high.

In 2012, Hyundai and Kia restated the mileage on one-quarter of their 2011-2013 model year vehicles after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency questioned their mileage numbers. The companies deny they violated the law, and instead cite lack of clarity in EPA test procedures.

The companies paid $300 million in penalties to the U.S. government in 2014.

"Consumers should be able to trust that the claims auto manufacturers make about their vehicles' gas mileage are truthful and accurate," said Jepsen. "This settlement resolves Connecticut's claims that Hyundai and Kia misled Connecticut consumers about the fuel economy ratings of certain vehicles both on its window sticker claims and in advertising campaigns that were distributed widely throughout the state. I'm grateful to our co-lead and all of our partner states for their cooperation and coordination, which has helped bring today's settlement to fruition."

"This settlement is good news for consumers in Connecticut and throughout the country. It sends a signal to all automobile manufacturers that they will be held accountable for the fuel economy ratings they advertise, and deceptive practices will not be tolerated," said state Department of Consumer Protection Commissioner Jonathan A. Harris.

In 2013, class action lawsuits were settled for vehicle owners nationwide, and 600,000 Hyundai owners are eligible for an average of $353 and 300,000 Kia owners an average of $667 each for extra gas purchased. The automakers say they have paid about 75 percent of those settlementss with car owners. Unfortunately, some appeals have been filed in connection with the settlement and this has halted settlement payments. Until the appeals are resolved by the courts, we are not able to mail out settlement payments, according to a Hyundai/Kia statement.

Connecticut's $1.49 million share of the settlement funds will be deposited in the state's General Fund.
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BRIDGEPORT  The major issue for voters in the 129th House District, which covers Black Rock, is high taxes.

Two years ago, Democrat Steven J. Stafstrom fended off a challenge from popular Republican Enrique Torres and three petition candidates. This time Stafstrom is opposed by Republican Peter Perillo, whose only previous political experience was a failed run for City Council in 1999.

Stafstrom, 34, a political insider, is a lawyer with the Bridgeport firm Pullman and Comley. He is married and has two daughters.

My top priority is continuing to work to reform our antiquated, regressive property tax structure which places an unfair burden on our residents and holds Connecticut back economically, he said.

As a Bridgeport homeowner with young children, I understand the real burden of high property taxes and the resulting frustration that many residents have with inadequate city services and schools.

The current reality of high taxes, struggling schools and reduced services in many of our states cities has caught up with us, as business and residents look out of state for the dynamic, livable, affordable urban life they crave.

Stafstrom said he had a lot of successes during his first term.

Im proud of the work we did last term to start making progress on fixing this decades-old problem, he said. For example, we began sharing a small portion of the regional sales tax with our municipalities.

This has allowed us to cap and cut the car tax and increase municipal aid to Bridgeport by approximately $7 million per year. We also implemented a municipal spending cap to help force the city to live within its means.

Perillo, 59, is married and has three children. A former U.S. Marine, he is general manager of the Red Roof Inn in Milford.

Im a Republican because by nature Ive always been conservative, Perillo said. I dont want to waste valuable time, resources or energy.

Im a Republican because I believe in the core principles of Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan of freedom and justice. Im a Republican because I believe in smaller federal government and stronger, more responsive state government.

He said if elected he will lobby Lockheed Martin to re-open the Sikorsky plant in Bridgeport, attain funding to renovate the Loews Majestic Theater and restore recent cuts in funding for day care.

If elected, my mission will be to fiercely fight for the constitutional rights of every citizen in my district, with no consideration for political or social status, only to do what is right and just, he said.
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MIB. These initials hold a tremendous place in the annals of Connecticuts largest city. During its boom decades, Bridgeports craftsmanship crisscrossed assembly lines day and night. Every western nation on the planet recognized the stamp of Americas manufacturing supremacy.

It was spelled out in three simple words: Made in Bridgeport.

But the citys MIB imprint is also etched with a darker reality: Close encounters of the worst kind.

One of the earliest, and certainly the most famous, of Earths reported MIB incidents. Men in Black, entities from another planet, appeared in bustling downtown Bridgeport in 1953. The exact coordinates: 784 Broad Street.

Albert K. Bender, a Bridgeport factory worker, was the recipient of MIB visits.

Bender was born in Pennsylvania in 1921. After being discharged from the Army-Air Force in 1943, Bender relocated to Bridgeport with this mother, Ellen, and step-father Michael Ardolino.

Albert, in an ironic salute to his job as time-keeper at Acme Shear Co., filled his living space with twenty chiming clocks. Every fifteen minutes, half hour and on the hour, 784 Broad Street resounded with the din of bells, bells, bells.

But the cacophony of alarms was merely a small part of Benders peculiarities. Living in the attic of his step-fathers three-story home, Bender adorned his realm with a collection of monstrosities. Faux skulls, shrunken heads, and bizarre art. Albert complimented the atmosphere with scary sound effects on his record player.

Fittingly, Bender dubbed this attic room his Chamber of Horrors.

Alberts appreciation for the unexplained, combined with a rash of flying saucer sightings, prompted him to form the International Flying Saucer Bureau in 1952. The Bureaus 600 members, with Bender as president, were dedicated to furthering the study of these unknown craft. Shortly after its founding, the IFSB reached out to members around the world through a quarterly newsletter, Space Review.

No sooner had Bender started the IFSB, than odd occurrences plagued him in Bridgeport. Strange phone calls, telepathic messages, ill health, and UFO sightings over southern Connecticut.

Albert repeatedly felt he was being watched. But the worst phenomenon was the odor filling his attic. The stench of burning sulphur.

Sequestered in his Broad Street home, Albert blended his UFO research with mental telepathy. Bender prompted readers of Space Review to memorize and silently recite a letter he penned. Alberts goal was to connect with Alien life via the simultaneous thought-projection of IFSB members.

World Contact Day commenced at 6 oclock in the evening (EST) on March 15, 1953. The telepathic message opened, Calling occupants of interplanetary craft! Calling occupants of interplanetary craft that have been observing our planet EARTH. We of IFSB wish to make contact with you. We are your friends

Benders message did not go over well. In July 1953 Albert was visited in his home by three men. Bender stated All of them were dressed in black clothes. They looked like clergymen, but wore hats similar to Homburg style. The notorious Men In Black, always in threes, made it clear to Bender that he was to cease all UFO work. Before departing the MIB confiscated copies of Space Review, and in their wake, a yellow mist appeared. And, once again, the odor of sulphur.

Albert shut down the International Flying Saucer Bureau. The final issue of Space Review was released in October 1953 and included a cryptic warning, We advise those engaged in saucer work to be very cautious.

In 1956, fellow IFSB member, Gray Barker wrote, They Knew Too Much About Flying Saucers. Barker brought to light Alberts Bridgeport experiences and first coined the phrase, Men In Black.

In 1962, a decade after his own brush with Aliens, Bender chronicled his strange story in a surreal book entitled, Flying Saucers and the Three Men.

Abandoning his forays into UFO research, Albert Bender relocated to California three years after publishing his biography. He passed away just six months ago, on March 29, 2016.

If, as the X-Files television series would like us to believe, The Truth is out there, could these events be explained by Albert Benders mental state? Did the stress of managing an international organization trigger paranoia? Some might say Benders experiments opened a door to an Occult force. Others shudder at the thought of demons. Or, as ufologists avow, it really was Aliens.

Whether the MIB were born of the mind or transported here by Alien science, Bridgeport is at the foundation of how the world became introduced to the Men In Black. Here on the present day corner of Broad Street and North Frontage Road, at the former address of 784 Broad, it makes sense to celebrate Benders legacy. Perhaps one day a plaque will pronounce this Bridgeport locale as a world folklore site: In a home near this spot the Men In Black first appeared. And in a way, were Made in Bridgeport.

Michael J. Bielawa is an author, Bridgeport historian and connoisseur of the paranormal.
Race to the White House [By Zhai Haijun / China.org.cn]

On a rooftop overlooking Charleston, South Carolina, the fading evening light stretches the shadows of centuries-old church steeples across the cobblestone streets.

It's a city that has, somehow, distilled the beauty of a young America, where visitors can wander, breathe in the scent of the jasmine blossoms and listen to the tide roll in along the famous Battery Park.

However, a darker history haunts the city. It was once a hub of slavery, where proud buildings put together by men owned by other men still stand, where the streets still show signs of their unrequited toil and seem to echo with the first shots of a rebellion that divided the country.

As the city where the Civil War began, Charleston's complicated past is at odds with its undeniable charm. Sharing a sense of the city's unique dichotomy, America is an alluring blend of cultures, enveloped in the polished veneer of a shared, universal destiny and yet haunted by a darker history.

Thus, America is a nation of two realities. One represents a beautiful promise, described by Abraham Lincoln as the "last best hope of the Earth," while the other seems to represent the underbelly of this higher ideal, where ends can be used to justify any means.

Today, with the 2016 presidential election at fever pitch, modern American democracy has become less a monument to the Lincolnesque promise of hope than a battleground of opposing beliefs entrenched along party lines.

Never before have two candidates for the presidency generated such impassioned appeals from ordinary Americans fiercely determined to defend their beliefs to the point of political hysteria. Never before have two nominees been so disliked both by their own party and the general population; never before have two opponents been so radically opposed in character and political ideology.

Donald Trump, a woefully inexperienced candidate accused of bigotry and sexual assault, with a history of bad business deals and behind-the-scenes, stands against Hillary Clinton whose candidacy has been called illegitimate by many of her party's supporters, and whose government experience is marred by scandals causing some to brand her criminally unfit for office.

Now only days away from the election on November 8, many Americans and outsiders bemusedly ask, "How did it come to this?"

The candidates, now the only choice for either mainstream party, highlight the growing separation between American political realities. A sense of growing unrest and dissatisfaction with a do-nothing government characterized by misdealing and misrepresentation, hastened a political and ideological separation that could be so damaging.

This division is threatening the foundations of American government, threatening our ability to compromise, and is fostering an inability for Americans to come together and function as a united whole, a lamentable fate for a country supposedly representing the best of all competing ideals, where differences and a diversity of ideas are celebrated as strengths.

Donald Trump truly manifests this separation. The ideas revealed in his campaign represent a dark future of America characterized by division that can no longer be entertained or tolerated.

In the context of a larger world still reeling from the storm of global economic disparity, where conflicts in Syria and the rise of radical terrorist organizations threaten global stability, the outcome of this election could destabilize the existing global order, damage America's image and impair the country's relationships with close allies and closest trade partners like China.

Last May, after refusing to comment on the U.S. election, calling it an "internal affair," Hong Lei, China's Foreign Ministry spokesman, defined "the essence of Sino-U.S. trade and business as mutually beneficial and win-win, and in accord with the interests of both sides. We hope that people in all fields will take a rational and objective view of this relationship."

Since then, Finance Minister Lou Jiwei's description of Trump as an "irrational type" has been followed by others asserting that China "may need to be ready to deal with a partial deterioration of Sino-U.S. relations."

As a supporter of Bernie Sanders, I think Hillary Clinton is far from a first choice candidate and I remain unconvinced that she will best represent my personal convictions and champion my most cherished ideals.

However, in the light of circumstances, one thing is painfully clear - personal convictions no longer matter. Americans must swallow their own dissatisfaction and understand the significance of their choice, especially in the context of global stability and inter-country relationships.

We must abandon the luxury of personal convictions and understand the nation's future in a larger context far more important than our own dissatisfaction or individual beliefs. We must unite in performing the solemn duty of ensuring that the promise of America is protected for future generations.

We must, therefore, vote against Donald Trump and the dark future of a divided America to preserve the "last best hope of the Earth" and the future of all nations as we move deeper into the 21st century.

Having previously lived in Beijing working as a journalist and editor, Kyle Calandra is currently based in America reporting on Sino-U.S. Relations as a contributor for China.org.cn.

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.
The Anti-Defamation League, strongly condeming the verbal assault of a visibly identifiable Jewish traveler at Bradley International Airport,. has praised State Police for making quick arrestes in the case.

The victim of the hate crime was traveling home to Connecticut with his family on Oct. 27 while wearing a yarmulke, when he encountered two men in the airport who reportedly threatened him using anti-Semitic slurs.

State Police said an man called troopers after midnight Thursday after being accosted by two men while attempting to leave the lower level of the airport. The victim explained that the two suspects shouted ethnic slurs and vulgarity at him and his family while they were waiting to leave the airport. The victim was able to avoid a physical confrontation despite the provocation and gathered photos of the suspects as well as their license plate when they fled the area, troopers posted on their Facebook page.

Troopers from Troop H - Hartford gathered the available information and with the assistance of Troop I -Bethany personnel were able to locate and arrest the two men. Both suspects attempted to flee from arresting troopers when located but were taken into custody and transported to Troop H where they were processed.

Arrested were Nicholas R. Diorio, 29, and Anthony Diorio, 31, both of Rockridge Terrace in Prospect. Charges included intimidation based on bigotry/bias, interfering with police, breach of peace and threatening. Both were held on $10,000.

We have seen a recent spike in anti-Semitism around the state and country, and this act apparently fueled by bias is an unfortunate reminder that we have significant work still to do to combat anti-Semitism," ADL Connecticut Regional Director Steve Ginsburg, said in a statement released Friday. "When a victim is chosen because of his or religion, the impact resonates beyond just the person targeted- it can leave the entire community feeling vulnerable. This lack of civility, respect and kindness ignore our countrys shared value of religious diversity. We applaud the Connecticut State Police for their swift action and investigation."

ADLs annual Audit of Anti-Semitic Incidents, which tracks both criminal and non-criminal acts of anti-Semitism, documented 26 incidents in 2015. Over the past three months ADLs Connecticut office has received scores of reports of anti-Semitic incidents across the state, including incidents of vandalism and hate mail.
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Dear weather gods: Thanks for the rain.

While the big weather news for Connecticut may have been the snow in northern areas of the state, southwest Connecticut was blessed with a moderate amount of rain on Thursday.

The National Weather Service says Milford - with a soaking 2.64 inches - had the most rain in southwest Connecticut, followed by the 1.91 inches that fell at Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford. Yes, the rain did help ease our drought, but were still 4.62 inches before average for this time of year.

Here are rainfall totals from the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network and the National Weather Service:

Milford: 2.64 inches

Bridgeport: 1.91 inches

Fairfield: 1.77 inches

Darien: 1.58 inches

Westport: 1.56 inches

Shelton, 1.28 inches

Stamford, 1.27 inches

Norwalk, 1.21 inches

New Canaan: 1.18 inches

Easton: 1.06 inches

Newtown, 1.01 inches

Danbury, 1.01 inches

Ridgefield, .95 of an inch

Monroe, 0. 93 of an inch

Bethel, 0.90 of an inch

Brookfield, .87 of an inch

While rainfall totals were not available for Greenwich, Armonk, N.Y. that borders the town, received 1.33 inches.

Along the shore in eastern Connecticut, Essex led the state rainfall totals with 2.97 inches followed by Westbrook with 2.71 inches, according the NWS.

Across southwest Connecticut there was anywhere from around a quarter inch to just a few flurries.

Snow totals in Connecticut, according to the NWS data, include Burlington and Coventry with two inches, 1.9 inches in Tolland and 1.5 inches at Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks.

As for the weekend, Saturday will be mostly sunny and on Sunday, theres a good chance of rain in ther afternoon.

Winds gradually diminish today as high pressure builds in from the west, brining decreasing cloud coverage from west to east today, the National Weather Service says. It will be notably cooler, with highs mainly from the upper 40s to lower 50s, some 5 to 10 degrees below normal. The high builds to our south tonight and Saturday, as a warm front lifts to the northeast. The result will be a cool temperatures tonight, with lows around 5 degrees below normal and highs on Saturday reaching slightly above normal.

Although some areas got a good soaking, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy will hold a news conference Friday regarding efforts the state is taking to address the ongoing drought that continues to impact water supplies across the state as conditions remain below normal.

Heres the forecast:

Today: Mostly sunny, with a high near 51. Northwest wind 8 to 17 mph.

Tonight: Patchy frost after 2 a.m. Otherwise, mostly clear, with a low around 35. Northwest wind 6 to 14 mph.

Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 57. Calm wind becoming southwest 5 to 8 mph in the afternoon.

Saturday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a steady temperature around 56. Southwest wind 5 to 7 mph.

Sunday: A 40 percent chance of rain, mainly after 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 64. Calm wind becoming northwest around 6 mph in the afternoon.

Sunday Night: A 30 percent chance of rain before 10pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 39.

Monday:Sunny, with a high near 54.
 Flash

Hillary Clinton.

Hillary Clinton appears on the cusp of a commanding victory over Donald Trump, fueled by solid Democratic turnout in early voting, massive operational advantages and increasing enthusiasm among her supporters.

A new Associated Press-GfK poll finds that Clinton has grabbed significant advantages over her Republican rival ahead of Election Day on November 8. Among them: consolidating the support of her party and even winning some Republicans.

"I'm going to pick Hillary at the top and pick Republican straight down the line," said poll respondent William Goldstein, a 71-year-old from Long Island, New York, who voted for Mitt Romney in 2012. "I can't vote for Trump."

Overall, the poll shows Clinton leading Trump nationally by a staggering 14 percentage points among likely voters, 51-37.

The poll finds that Clinton has secured the support of 90 percent of likely Democratic voters, and also has the backing of 15 percent of more moderate Republicans. Just 79 percent of all Republicans surveyed say they are voting for their party's nominee.

With voting already underway in 37 states, Trump's opportunities to overtake Clinton are quickly evaporating. The AP-GfK poll found that 74 percent of likely voters believe Clinton will win, up from 63 percent in September.

"Donald Trump has spent his entire campaign running against the groups he needs to expand his coalition," said Whit Ayres, a Republican pollster who advised Florida Senator Marco Rubio's failed presidential campaign. Ayres called Trump's campaign "strategically mindless."

Even if Clinton's support plummets in the contest's closing days, or she's unable to motivate a strong turnout, it's not clear that Trump could collect enough states to win the 270 electoral votes he needs to claim the White House.

Clinton's team has overwhelmed Trump's campaign in its effort to turn out voters.

A review of campaign finance filings finds that her campaign, the Democratic National Committee and Democratic parties in 12 states have more than three times as many paid employees as Trump's campaign and the main organizations supporting him. Clinton and Democrats had about 4,900 people on payroll in September, while Trump and Republicans had about 1,500.

Both sides benefit from legions of volunteers knocking on doors and making phone calls, as well as outside forces such as unions and super PACs pitching in on voter turnout operations. But key Republican groups are sitting out the race because of their distaste for Trump, further extending Clinton's likely advantage at getting out the vote.

The strength of the Democratic turnout effort appears to be paying dividends in states where voting is underway. Nationwide, more than 12 million voters have already cast ballots, a pace far quicker than 2012.

In North Carolina, a must-win for Trump, Democrats lead Republicans in early ballots, 47 to 29 percent. The Democrats hold an advantage even though turnout among blacks, a crucial bloc for Clinton, is down compared to this point in 2012.

In Florida, a perennial battleground, Democrats have drawn even with Republicans in votes cast, reaching that milestone faster than in 2012. Traditionally, Republicans do well initially with mail-in ballots. But Democrats were able to keep it close.

Clinton also appears to hold an edge in Nevada and Colorado based on early returns.

Trump looks strong in Ohio, Iowa and Georgia. But wins there would still leave him well short of the required votes.

Trump's unpopularity has opened surprising opportunities for Clinton. Her campaign is actively competing for Arizona, a state that has voted for the Democrat in only one presidential race since 1952, and she is also spending money in Georgia, a usually reliable Republican state.

The real surprise is Utah, where the Mormon population has turned its back on Trump.
Democrats saw a surge in new voters in Pennsylvania as midterms near

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Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang will attend bilateral meetings in Turkey and Russia from Nov.1 to 5, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Friday.

Wang will attend the 20th meeting of the Joint Commission for the Regular Prime Ministers' Meetings of China and Russia at the invitation of Russian Deputy Prime Minster Dmitry Rogozin, spokesperson Lu Kang announced at a routine press conference.

Wang will also visit Turkey and attend the first meeting of a governmental cooperation committee mechanism of deputy prime ministerial level between the two countries, at the invitation of Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek. Endi
If the apocalyptic predictions of George Osborne and his Project Fear cohorts had come to pass, Britain would now be spiralling into recession.

Five months ago the then chancellor published a terrifying  and as we now know thoroughly spurious  Treasury analysis claiming a vote to leave the EU would deliver an immediate and profound shock of monumental proportions.

Enthusiastically supported by Bank of England governor Mark Carney and virtually the whole of the economic establishment, he said hundreds of thousands of jobs would be lost, real wages would tumble, house prices would collapse and borrowing costs would soar.

And this, remember, was supposedly just the immediate impact. In the longer term, he predicted every family in Britain would be permanently poorer to the tune of 4,300 a year.

Nissan will build two new models at its Sunderland plant  securing 7,000 production jobs and 28,000 in the supply chain

The Japanese car-maker Nissan had tried to cow its workers into voting Remain

How strange then that we are seeing almost exactly the opposite. The Office for National Statistics announced yesterday that the British economy grew by 0.5 per cent in the last quarter  the first since the Brexit vote  putting us on course to be the best performing nation in the developed world this year.

The Japanese car-maker Nissan (which had tried to cow its workers into voting Remain) also gave British industry a huge vote of confidence by saying it will build two new models at its Sunderland plant  securing 7,000 production jobs and 28,000 in the supply chain  and Toyota said the future of its UK operations was assured.

Meanwhile, unemployment is at an 11-year low, retail figures remain strong, the FTSE 100 recently hit an all-time high and estate agents report the housing market has returned to pre-crash levels.

Even the pounds fall  pounced on by desperate Remainers as evidence of economic instability  is having significant benefits, with exporters already seeing their products more competitive.

Pharmaceutical giant GSK (which also supported Remain) has seen turnover rise by 1.4billion in the last three months alone, mainly due to the weaker currency.

The Mail is not naive enough to believe there arent many daunting challenges ahead and, yes, as night follows day there will be a downturn at some stage. But the figures suggest an economy in good shape to meet these tests.

If the apocalyptic predictions of George Osborne and his Project Fear cohorts had come to pass, Britain would now be spiralling into recession

So the mystifying question is: how could so many economic experts get it so egregiously wrong and why were they so aggressively adamant that Brexit would lead to catastrophe?

Its bad enough that the ex-chancellor and prime minister showed such lamentable errors of judgement. Isnt it even more disturbing that the Bank of England governor  the man responsible for maintaining our economic stability  allied himself to this politically-motivated campaign of deception?

But the real danger in all this is that by inventing and manipulating statistics for propaganda, the Remainers have further destroyed confidence in our political class and undermined trust in government.

After this farrago of myth and mendacity, why should the British public trust statistics put out by the Treasury or the Bank ever again?

With the quashing of Sun reporter Anthony Frances conviction, the Scotland Yard witch-hunt known as Operation Elveden is finally over

With the quashing of Sun reporter Anthony Frances conviction, the Scotland Yard witch-hunt known as Operation Elveden  a five-year investigation into alleged payments by newspapers to public officials  is finally over.

Despite the 20million cost, not one of the 34 journalists arrested was found guilty.

After this fiasco and the disgraceful hounding of elderly celebrities and politicians wrongly accused of child abuse, no wonder hapless Met Commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe is retiring early.
After her waters broke at 2am on a Sunday, she was taken to hospital

After a traumatic first birth, she had planned to have a caesarean

Three in four labour wards have no consultants overnight and just two out of 165 maternity units has one present around the clock, according to new findings.

Here, one mother gives a very honest account opens up about her out-of-hours birthing experience at University College Hospital, Euston, London, that left her 'traumatised' and suffering panic attacks.

Nicola Bonn, 36, a radio broadcaster and parenting blogger from London, tells FEMAIL about her ordeal.

Nicola Bonn, pictured above with her son Louis, after going through a long and agonising birth

Nicola lives with her husband Chris, daughter Poppy who is two and son Louis who is 12 weeks old...

Everything about my birth was organised to a T. Following a traumatic labour with my first child that culminated in an emergency C-section, I wasn't leaving anything to chance second time round.

I was to have the second planned caesarean on August 4th, with one of the very best consultants at the hospital.

Having spent my pregnancy being extremely anxious, the support I had received in planning my perfect birth was phenomenal and my antenatal care went above and beyond my expectations.

Nothing ever goes to plan though does it? When my waters broke at 2am on the Sunday prior to my perfect birth, I panicked.

Pictured in labour before the birth, Nicola says had booked herself in to have a caesarean with one the very best consultants at the hospital but her waters broke early

When Nicola (pictured above with Louis) arrived at the hospital, she was horrified to discover only one trained midwife and two student nurses at the reception of the Assessment Unit

I panicked because I hadn't even considered that I might have to experience contractions again.

I panicked because I wasn't mentally prepared for the situation and the possible emergency scenario that happened previously and I panicked because I knew from past experience that 2am on the weekend is no time to be having a baby.

(Whatever people may tell you to the contrary.)

When I arrived at the hospital I was horrified yet not surprised to discover only one trained midwife and two students at the reception of the Assessment Unit.

My contractions were now every minute, I was screaming my lungs out and due to the lack of available staff I wasn't allowed any pain relief other than paracetamols. No gas and air. Nothing

My contractions were every two minutes within about half an hour of my waters breaking and I was nearly passing out in agony.

I was eventually ushered into a room where I was checked over by a student midwife and then I was informed that I'd have to stay there until they could get me up to Labour ward.

I stayed in that hideous, blood-splattered room for two-and-a-half-hours with the odd sympathetic visit from a midwife.

My contractions were now every minute, I was screaming my lungs out and due to the lack of available staff I wasn't allowed any pain relief other than paracetamols. No gas and air. Nothing.

I was also experiencing panic attacks. Everything had been planned to support me mentally as well as physically following the horrors of my previous birth when my daughter Poppy was sideways and became stuck during my caesarean without which we both would have probably died.

Nicola stayed in a 'hideous, blood splattered room for two and a half hours' and was told she could only have paracetamol as pain relief - no gas and air

Nicola, pictured above with Louis, also started experiencing panic attacks and was reminded of the horrors of her previous birth to daughter Poppy

The thought of a repeat situation was too much to bear but arriving in the middle of the night on a Saturday meant that there was no one available to offer me the relevant physical and mental support.

I wish I could tell you that I managed to eventually locate some inner strength and deal with the situation with say hypnobirthing or yoga but sadly the truth is that I was a banshee - a woman possessed.

I was hysterical and managed to slap my husband round the face whilst begging the midwife for something - anything to relieve the pain. It just felt so wrong, so unfair that in this modern day, in a huge central London hospital, they could not provide me with anything to take away the intense agony.

In the midst of my hysteria, I demanded that my husband called my Mum. 'Are you SURE?' he said with a look of trepidation.

'Get my F-ing Mum' I screamed as my eyes rolled in the back of my head.

Pictured above with Louis in her arms and two-and-a-half year old Poppy under her dressing gown, she says: 'We were told time and time again that no one was available right now because they were dealing with emergencies in theatre'

Fortunately, Nicola (whose son Louis is pictured above) says, 'After ten hours my caesarean was honoured and I must admit that they did a fantastic job. I felt in safe hands and the consultant although not my preferred choice, was excellent'

Within an hour my Mum was there and she was so shocked to see me rolling around the floor screaming that she burst into tears.

She immediately marched over to the midwife desk and demanded to know what was going on. It turned out that all the staff were in theatre and there was no one available to deal with me at that precise moment.

So the pain continued. I swore and my husband and Mum tried their best to calm me down.

Nicola admits she is 'incredibly lucky to have two beautiful children (one of which, Louis, is pictured above being breast fed) who are safe and well but what if I hadn't been so lucky?'

Finally we were taken up to the Labour Ward but once again there was a huge wait for pain relief. I was given gas and air, which took the edge off, but the epidural took about an hour to come in addition to my two and a half hours in the Assessment Ward.

By this time the three of us were all pretty much hysterical. My mother was almost chucked out of the room for informing the midwife that 'this was like a third world hospital' due to the lack of pain relief and general support.

I'm aware that I may sound like a spoilt brat right now. I mean women give birth every day without pain relief.

However, if an emergency situation had developed, I'm not sure that the relevant help would have been available as readily as it might have been on a weekday.

We were told time and time again that no one was available right now because they were dealing with emergencies in theatre. There just didn't seem to be the necessary backup staff.

After ten hours my caesarean was honoured and I must admit that they did a fantastic job. I felt in safe hands and the consultant although not my preferred choice, was excellent.

Here's the thing though. I don't believe that any woman should be forced into a situation where they feel scared or unsafe. Pain relief should always be available, even if it is just gas and air.

Nicola says she continues to love the NHS and all that it stands for but 'this is a situation that can't continue'. Pictured, her son Louis

It is scientifically proven that many women go into labour in the night when they feel cosy and safe, so why on earth aren't our hospitals at their most prepared in the wee small hours? I'm incredibly lucky to have two beautiful children who are safe and well but what if I hadn't been so lucky?

What if the lack of available staff had led to a stillbirth as has happened to a number of women.

I was traumatised after my birth experience mainly because so much of it reminded me of the horrors of my first labour. I had panic attacks for days after but they slowly have subsided and I'm now enjoying the milky cuddles and the gorgeous bonding between my son and his big sister.

I love the NHS and all that it stands for but this is a situation that can't continue. Women need to feel safe and secure when in labour, whatever the time and whatever the day.
Christmas jumpers are notoriously frumpy and a fashion faux pas - but not this year.

Thanks to ultra-trendy fashion label Selfish Mother, which, despite what its name might suggest, loves to give back, a bunch of supermodels have designed the most stylish seasonal tops.

The likes of Poppy Delevingne, David Gandy, Jon Kortajarena, Karen Elson, Laura Bailey, Erin O'Connor and Immy Waterhouse have all lent their star power to the campaign so far.

Poppy Delevingne designed one of a range of Christmas jumpers for Selfish Mother, which are arguably designed the most stylish seasonal tops ever, in aid of Save the Children

Each design features a uniquely silly slogan for this serious cause and will be available to purchase exclusively at Selfish Mother's online store, The FMLY Store, from Saturday 29 October. But you can pre-register to be first in line now at TheFMLYStore.com.

Featuring festive words and slogans including Sparkle, Baubles, Off duty elf, Cracker, Santa's Helper, Nutcracker and Secret Santa, the adult sweatshirts are unisex and priced at 45. Children's versions of the sweatshirt cost 20.

And not only do they look good, but they do good, too. Half the sale price of each Christmas jumper will go to Save the Children, in conjunction with the charity's annual Christmas Jumper Day.

Half the sale price of each 45 and 20 (kids') Christmas jumper modelled here by David Gandy, will go to the charity

David Gandy said: 'I feel honoured that Save the Children has asked me to join this fantastic line up to create my very own Christmas jumper with Molly Gunn'

In support of the global cause, half the price of each sweatshirt (22.50 per adult jumper and 10 per kid's jumper) will go to Save the Children.

This year, Save the Children's annual Christmas Jumper Day is taking place on Friday 16 December. It's back with a bang for the fifth year running.

By signing up at christmasjumperday.org, sticking on a seasonal sweater and donating 2 to Save the Children, fashion fans and philanthropists can help save children's lives, and allow the charity to help forgotten children get the chance to have a brighter future.

Erin O'Connor said: 'I've been luckily enough to see Save the Children's work and every time I meet a child they've helped, it inspires me to continue supporting their vital work'

Speaking about getting involved in the cause, Poppy Delevingne said: 'Save the Children is a truly inspiring organisation. Last year I visited the Democratic Republic of Congo and saw first-hand the vital equipment and training that Save the Children is providing to health clinics to help stop children dying from easily preventable causes like malaria and pneumonia. But more needs to be done.

'And this is why I am working with Save the Children and proud to be supporting their Christmas Jumper Day campaign.

Money raised from the sale of the sweaters could help Save the Children give children living in a refugee camp clothes to keep them warm or buy nutritious food

'It's been great fun designing a slogan and working with Molly. I would encourage everyone to buy my Cracker jumper, because who doesn't want to look like a cracker? But also check out the other jumper delights in the collection.

'Not only can you look festive, but also feel festive too this Christmas Jumper Day, knowing that all your support is going towards saving children's lives, not just in the Democratic Republic of Congo, but all over the world.'

Male supermodel David Gandy added: 'I feel honoured that Save the Children has asked me to join this fantastic line up to create my very own Christmas jumper with Molly Gunn. Save does so much great work every year helping children worldwide and now my very own Nutcracker jumper can contribute to this brilliant cause.'

Immy Waterhouse said: 'I had such great Christmas fun collaborating with the Selfish Mother brand and producing my Baubles sweater for Save the Children's Christmas Jumper Day'

'Money raised from the sale of the sweaters could help Save the Children give children living in a refugee camp clothes to keep them warm through winter or buy nutritious food for their entire family.

'It could also help us to bring essentials like healthcare, education, protection and food to the millions of children around the world who are missing out on the most basic support.

'All this, just by wearing a sweater  it's a very silly way to solve some very serious problems.'

Laura Bailey, seen modelling a design, added: 'As a mother, Save the Children is a charity close to my heart'

Fledgling model Immy Waterhouse, who is the little sister of Suki and stars in the campaign, said: 'I had such great Christmas fun collaborating with the Selfish Mother brand and producing my Baubles sweater for Save the Children's Christmas Jumper Day.

'I look forward to people wearing my design in support of, and raising funds for, Save the Children.'

Model and mother Laura Bailey, who has also lent her good looks to the campaign, added: 'As a mother, Save the Children is a charity close to my heart and it was a pleasure to work alongside them and Selfish Mother to create my Secret Santa sweatshirt for such a worthwhile cause.'

Karen Elson saw the charity's work helping Syrian refugees in Za'atari refugee camp in Jordan and helping mothers to give birth in a safe place with a health worker present in Sierra Leone

Striking male model Jon Kortajarena said: 'By buying this jumper, we can all do our part and be real Santa's Helpers just like save the children helps so many kids around the world every day'
As a little girl Noelia Garella was labelled a monster in primary school.

Now, more than two decades later, she has returned to the classroom to prove her bullies wrong as the first Down syndrome teacher in Latin America.

Noelia, 31, had to break through a wall of prejudice to fulfill her childhood dream of teaching.

Scroll down for video

Inspirational: Noelia Garella is believed to be the first Down syndrome teacher in Latin America

Kindhearted: Ms Garella plays with children at her school in the Argentinian city of Cordoba

Inside Edition reported that her struggles only made her more determined to succeed and when an official told her she should not take classes, her parents and others lobbied on her behalf.

Alejandra Senestrari was the first to give Noelia a job and told AFP about her inspirational quest to win her doubters over.

'There were people in positions of responsibility who were convinced that it wasn't possible for a teacher with Down syndrome to actually teach,' she told AFP.

'With time, even those who had been opposed joined in the initiative to hire Noe as a teacher.

'We very quickly realised that she had a strong vocation. She gave what the children in the nursery classes most appreciate, which is love.'

Overcoming obstacles: Authorities were initially reluctant to hire Noelia because of her Down syndrome

'I adore this': Ever since she was a child Noelia has aspired to become a preschool teacher

Noelia teaches early-learning reading class to two-and-three year olds at the Jermonito nursery in the Argentinian city of Cordoba.

She said her love of children had driven her to become a teacher for as long as she could remember.

'I adore this,' she told AFP.

'Ever since I was little, I have always wanted to be a teacher, because I like children so much.'

'I want them to read and listen, because in society people have to listen to one another.'

Wonderful: 'She gave what the children in the nursery classes most appreciate, which is love,' said Noelia's first boss, Alejandra Senestrari

Rewarding: One of the best aspects of the job, Noelia said, was teaching a young Down syndrome boy in her class

It was particularly rewarding to teach a young boy in her class who also had Down syndrome, Noelia said.

'I have a boy with Down syndrome in my class. He is wonderful.

'Oh, it is lovely when someone like me is born.'

Noelia, who started as a reading assistant in 2012, is thought to be first Down syndrome teacher in Latin America.

Her current boss at Jermonito, preschool director Susana Zerdan, said her example should be a lesson to everyone.

'It has been a unique experience for the staff,' she told AFP.
Ms Shearon said she did not deserve 'hate-filled' attacks she received

Since then she became the target of online trolls who hurled abuse at her

It started with a blog post and ended in a vicious war of words.

The online spat between mummy bloggers Constance Hall and Lisa Shearon, known as The Notorious MUM, was unprecedented and explosive.

In a matter of hours keyboard warriors turned in to online trolls, their ammunition taking the form of sharp quips and abusive comments.

And while the fire has since died down, Perth mother-of-three Ms Shearon has spoken out, telling Kidspot she did not warrant the 'hate-filled' abuse thrown her way.

Speaking out: Mummy blogger The Notorious MUM Lisa Shearon (pictured) said she did not deserve to be trolled online

War of words: Ms Shearon was trolled after writing a blog about fellow mummy blogger Constance Hall (pictured), saying she had 'reservations about the whole Queen movement'

'Cyber bullying, or trolling, or just being a massive online t**t, is simply not acceptable,' she wrote in a column for the publication.

'People are justifying themselves by saying that I started it; that may well be the case, but even if Id started World War III, I still dont think I deserved the personal, hate-filled and vitriolic attacks that came my way.

'Lets put this into perspective  I expressed an opinion; I didnt behead a baby deer.'

Not acceptable: 'Cyber bullying, or trolling, or just being a massive online t**t, is simply not acceptable,' Ms Shearon wrote

The trolling came after Ms Shearon wrote a blog post saying she had 'reservations about the whole Queen movement' pioneered by Constance Hall.

'Im putting my hand up here and saying: Im not a queen. A queen mother, maybe, but not a queen,' she said.

She went on to criticise several aspects of Ms Hall's approach to blogging - some of which included her seeing 'motherhood as a form of oppression' and also celebrating 'belly rolls'.

Ms Shearon attacked the 'cult-like, hero-worship aspect of queendom', before taking a hit at Ms Hall's spelling and grammar.

Not seeing eye-to-eye: Ms Shearon attacked the 'cult-like, hero-worship aspect of queendom' she said was associated with Ms Hall (pictured)

The spat really erupted once Ms Hall's followers brought the post to her attention, and later again when Ms Hall revealed Lisa Shearon's name.

In her piece for Kidspot, Ms Shearon said she had only been trolled once before, and the onslaught of abuse she received in the wake of the recent incident drove her to the 'absolute brink'.

She said most of the abuse was sent through public forums, but she also received her fair share of private messages.

'It was like the trolls reveled in the glory of being seen and responded to. That makes it even more horrible, somehow,' she wrote.

Spreading the message: Ms Shearon, pictured with her children, said she apologised, but urged others to not troll online

Ms Shearon went on to say she apologised to any people who might have 'felt slighted or belittled' by her blog post.

She questioned whether people, and mothers, would have said the comments they wrote online to her face.
It's said to have cost 100 million to make, including employing a team of eight full-time historical researchers and award-winning writer Peter Morgan.

But there's one element that didn't go into producing the new Netflix biopic of Queen Elizabeth's early reign - a meeting with the monarch herself.

Speaking at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts director, The Guardian reported, Morgan explained that he'd 'ducked' meeting the monarch as he wanted to be independent while writing.

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The Crown, which charts the life of Queen Elizabeth II, cost Netflix 100 million to make but the writer Peter Morgan has admitted that he avoided meeting the monarch while writing it

'I wanted to keep my distance, 'he explained. 'I want to be free to write how and what I want.'

The avoidance is unusual given that Morgan has spent so much of his career writing about the monarch.

He penned the 2006 hit film The Queen starring Helen Mirren who went on to win an Oscar for her performance.

In 2013, he picked up the theme again in the stage play The Audience, which focused on Queen Elizabeth's meetings with British Prime Ministers from taking the throne in 1952 to the present day.

Writer Peter Morgan said he would be in a state of shock if he finally met the Queen, pictured at the unveiling of a statue of her late mother in Poundbury, Dorset yesterday

And he admitted that he would be 'in shock' if he finally came face to face with someone he had written so much about.

So it was lucky that when he received his CBE in February this year, it was Prince Charles officiating at the investiture and not his mother.

A month before its premiere and The Crown is already this autumn's must-see television drama.

Peter Morgan receiving his CBE in February 2016. Luckily Prince Charles officiated at the investiture as he's admitted he'd be terrified to meet the Queen

But viewers expecting a polite look at Britain's longest-serving monarch are likely to be shocked - passionate kisses, expletive-ridden dialogue and even a bare royal bottom are all packed into the programme, which has already won over critics.

However not every juicy detail was included in Morgan's screen play.

He revealed that the Queen and Prince Philip were known to share a lot of baths as newlyweds and he toyed with the idea of adding a scene, but ultimately decided against it.

The first ten-episode series begins on Netflix on November 4 and will tell the story from the Queen's childhood to the late 1950s, showing Elizabeth - played by Wolf Hall star Clarie Foy - in some of the most intimate and turbulent moments of her early life.

Claire Foy as Queen Elizabeth II at her wedding with George VI, played by Jared Harris

The first episode opens with King George VI (played by Jared Harris) coughing up blood into a royal lavatory bowl.

The King later uses the c-word as he exchanges limericks with his equerry Sir Peter Townsend, showing that even the Royal Family aren't above a crude joke.

In one scene, Princess Margaret  played by Vanessa Kirby  enjoys an illicit kiss with Sir Peter Townsend (Ben Miles), who later proposed marriage to her but was deemed unsuitable because he was divorced.

In another emotionally charged scene, Margaret furiously confronts the Queen over the man she loves. She interrupts a social gathering and yells: 'I need to speak to my sister. Now!'

The Queen is portrayed as a headstrong young woman determined to fulfil her destiny even at the cost of her personal happiness.
Buying a brand new outfit, getting a spray tan and arranging a luxury mode of transport are all essential when you're going to prom - and not just for the girls.

Research has revealed that teenage boys are now giving their dates a run for their money when it comes to preening for the big night.

Figures from a study by Go Compare reveal that six per cent of boys now get a spray tan in advance of the event.

Research has revealed that teenage boys are now giving their dates a run for their money when it comes to preening for prom night (picture posed by models)

And 42 per cent get their hair professionally cut, which is roughly on a level with the girls who visit the salon.

More than 80 per cent of girls get a new dress and the boys aren't far behind with 74 per cent splashing out on a new suit or outfit.

While roughly a quarter of boys and girls will get a prom night car, 10 per cent of young men opt for something extra special.

Ten per cent choose to arrive in an unusual mode of transport such as a motorbike or even a helicopter.

Six per cent of teenage boys will now get a spray tan to ensure they look their best on prom night (picture posed by model)

Monique Watt who runs the photography website School Prom told The Times that teenagers are becoming ever more adventurous in their quest to stand out.

'Sports cars are popular and we've seen teenagers hire old engines, tractors and even a milk float,' she said.

However it's often the parents who are left footing the bill for the extravagance with teenagers unable to afford the average cost of 190 to attend.

WHO SPENDS THE MOST ON PROM NIGHT? Region London West Midlands Yorkshire East Anglia North East Wales South West North West South East Northern Ireland Scotland East Midlands Daughter's prom 291 214 263 219 223 204 199 222 183 207 150 220 Son's prom 241 201 152 137 155 142 154 113 161 123 154 157 Advertisement

Proms now cost British parents almost 90 million a year with London parents spending the most, splashing out up to 291 on a daughter's prom night.

A spray tan, a new outfit, a corsage and possibly transport to the venue are about the bare minimum for most prom queens.
Getty royal photographer Chris Jackson has finally solved the mystery of who Prince Harry looks like, and it's not who you might expect.

The photographer shared an image of a 1957 edition of the magazine Paris Match on Instagram featuring a bearded member of the royal family.

And followers were bowled over when they realised they were not in fact looking at Prince Harry, but his grandfather the Duke of Edinburgh.

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Getty royal photographer Chris Jackson shared this image of a 1957 cover of Paris Match magazine on Instagram, asking followers to guess who it was

Prince Harry attending the opening of the Field of Remembrance at Westminster Abbey in November 2015

Chris shared the image, saying: 'Spotted this handsome chap on the front of an ancient copy of Paris Match in deepest, darkest France - who do you think it is?!'

Kiwigal021 replied: 'It's Prince Philip? Or is it Harry doing a spot of time travel?'

Kcbrooked was baffled saying: 'That looks like Harry. But if that mag is that old who else is it?'

'Prince Philip, but amazing family similarities - great photo,' Chris told his followers.

Prince Harry in Sydney Australia in 2013 (left) and his grandfather Prince Philip in 1957 (right)

The cover shows the Duke of Ediburgh in his navy uniform with a full red beard - a very rare sight on the normally clean shaven royal.

Haileyvial thought she could see a likeness to both Harry and his brother William while Yukoohno_1983 believed she'd unearthed a royal secret.

'No wonder the Queen is so fond of Harry. He reminds her of her husband, Prince Phillip,' she said.

The Duke of Edinburgh in 1957, the same year the Paris Match cover image was taken

A rare image of Prince Philip sporting a beard, taken in 1945 during a visit to Melbourne

Alexis_the_gr8 said that he wouldn't have noticed the resemblance before seeing the photo, adding: 'Prince Harry looks very much like his grandfather.'

In an added treat for fans of Harry, he today released photographs and videos of him taking part in one of the worlds biggest conversation projects this summer, including shots of him spraying identification marks on a tranquilised animal.

The prince, who has often spoken of how he would like to walk away from his royal duties to live in Africa and work on such projects permanently, spent three weeks in Malawi over the summer where he worked alongside volunteers, vets and experts on the frontline of one of the largest and most significant elephant translocations.

Royal visit: Prince Harry spent his July holidays helping save the African elephant in Malawi, pictured, spraying one sedated animal being moved to a 1million new home

Aid: Harry and a group of workers trying to tip a young male elephant that was trying to fight the sedative drug and head for the trees

One of the pictures was taken by the 32-year-old royal himself, and shows a volunteer trying to get a bull elephant to lie down.

In another Harry explains how he marked several of the young males so that they will be easily identifiable when released back into the bush. The spray paint disappears after a few days, the prince explained.

A third shows Harry with a group of workers trying to tip a young male elephant that was trying to fight the sedative drug and head for the trees.

Harry can also be seen hanging onto a rope for dear life as a powerful bull elephant tries to free itself.

The prince writes: 'This big bull (male) elephant refused to lie down after it had been darted with a tranquiliser.
When it comes to fashion, we are all inspired by what we see; whether it be a well dressed celebrity, a blow-your-mind catwalk presentation or even a super stylish every-day passerby.

As fashion editors, we're moved by all of the above, and then some. We're exposed to under the radar labels; we get a first hand look at collections months before they hit stores; we're tapped into brands with chic-yet-cheap offerings and we shop a lot.

To share our knowledge, FEMAIL brings you Style Swoon, an insider's view of the latest, greatest and on the verge. We hope this weekly Friday series will serve as a buying guide and point of inspiration for the clotheshorses and fashion fanatics alike.

TAYLOR'S SEXY ENSEMBLE

Thigh's the limit: Taylor Swift, 26, flaunted her killer figure in a bandeau top and high slit skirt as she headed to Drake's 30th birthday bash in LA this week

Oozing sex appeal on her way to Drake's 30th birthday party in LA this week, Taylor Swift, 26, showed Tom Hiddleston, 35, exactly what he's missing.

The songstresses showed off her killer physique in a Vatanika bandeau top and a Blaque Label wrap skirt with a thigh high slit. She finished off the ensemble with a duster coat by Meshki,Christian Louboutin heels and a sleek gold clutch.

Love Tay's sultry outfit as much as we do? Re-create the look for less by shopping the below.

GET THE LOOK (Clockwise from top left) Boohoo duster coat, $35, boohoo.com Pretty Little Thing bandeau top, $7, prettylittlething.com House of CB skirt, $103, houseofcb.com Charlotte Russe heels, $25, charlotterusse.com Jessica McClintock clutch, $62, lordandtaylor.com Advertisement

ELIZABETH'S COOL EAR CUFFS

Modern baubbles: Elizabeth Olsen, 27, rocked two uber chic Hirotaka ear cuffs to the American Ballet Theatre Fall Gala

Elizabeth Olsen, 27, stunned in a grey Vionnet halter dress last Thursday at the American Ballet Theatre Fall Gala, but it was her cool modern jewels that caught our attention.

The actress notably does not have her ears pierced, so she added some sparkle and edge to her sleek look with the addition of the two chic pearl ear cuffs by Hirotaka.

Shop her exact ear cuffs below for $195 and $390.

Shop her ear cuffs: Left: Hirotaka Pearl & Gold ear cuff, $195, barneys.com. Right: Hiroaka Pearl & Pave Diamond ear cuff, $390, barneys.com

BOHO INSPIRED BOOTS

Limited edition: Left: ASH 'Heidi' boot, $240, ashusa.com. Right: ASH 'Heidi' boot, $240, ashusa.com

Celeb-beloved shoe brand ASH has released a new capsule collection for fall inspired by the bohemian aesthetic of the 1970s.

The limited edition offerings include these stylish and trendy, flora and fauna embroidered western style boots, as well as slip on wedge sneakers.

The shoes are all made from rich materials and feature ethnic details borrowed from tribes across Slavia and Mongolia. Prices range from $228-$298.
Victoria's Secret star Taylor Hill channels her inner equestrian in the brand's first-ever short film, which sees her riding a horse in the French countryside in racy red lingerie.

The 20-year-old joins fellow Angels Stella Maxwell, Elsa Hosk, Romee Strijd, Sara Sampaio, Josephine Skriver, and Jasmine Tookes in the stunning holiday video that was shot at the famous Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte, located just outside Paris.

For the Marie Antoinette-themed film, A Very Private Affair, the models are wearing ethereal tulle creations paired with pieces from the brand's 'Beautiful' lingerie collection.

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Natural equestrian: Taylor Hill rides a horse in racy red lingerie in the first-ever Victoria's Secret short film

Little Red Riding Hood: The 20-year-old Angel even wore a matching cape while galloping through the French countryside

Party planning: A Very Private Affair begins with Stella Maxwell addressing invitations to the other Victoria's Secret Angels

French countryside: Elsa Hosk dons a stunning tulle ensemble when she received her invitation to the Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte, which is located outside of Paris

The video beings with Stella, 25, using a feather pen to address party invitations before giving them to her butler to hand-deliver to the other models.

The Angels start making their way to the chateau, and Taylor can be seen wearing a red cape and matching lingerie while riding a horse to her destination.

Sara, 25, who is also wearing red, is carrying her heels as she runs across the grounds in a pair of riding boots.

In a hurry: Sara Sampaio is carrying her heels as she runs across the grounds in a pair of riding boots

Perfect pair: Josephine Skriver and Jasmine Tookes arrive together, walking their horses through the gates of the chateau

18th century fashions: Stella greets them at the door wearing a cage crinoline underskirt

Nice ride: Elsa pulls up to the steps of the manor house in a horse-draw carriage

Josephine, 23, and Jasmine, 24, arrive together, walking their horses through the gates of the chateau.

While Josephine is wearing black lace lingerie and a cap, Jasmine is sporting a matching ensemble, only in white.

Stella greets them at the door wearing a cage crinoline underskirt over a purple lace bra and underwear set.

Sweet treat: Inside the residence, the models are surrounded by decadent dessert

Magical moment: The film ends when them outside surrounded by inflatable unicorns

Catwalkers: The models, including Elsa and Taylor, will be heading to Paris next month to film the 2016 Victoria's Secret Fashion show

Big honor: At this year's fashion show Jasmine will be modeling the 2016 Bright Night Fantasy Bra, which is valued at $3 million

She is flanked by four guards who are wearing white powder wigs that were popular in the 18th century.

Meanwhile, Elsa, 27, and Romee, 21, pull up to the steps of the manor house in a horse-draw carriage.

Inside the residence, they are seen playing with masks and crowns as they eat dessert and are waited on hand and foot.

The film ends with them stepping outside to dance outside surrounded by blown-up unicorns.
Three year-old Dylan Askin (right) of Derby whose parents - Kerry (left) and Mike - were preparing to switch off his life support when he came back to life

Blond hair plastered to his forehead, his favourite Mickey Mouse toy by his side, Dylan Askins broken little body could take no more.

Suffering from a rare form of lung cancer, critically ill with bacterial pneumonia, his major organs failing, the doctors told his devastated parents Mike and Kerry it was time to think about letting him go.

Dylans heart rate was a dangerous 200 beats a minute and his oxygen levels so low they could not sustain life much longer.

Cysts covered 80 per cent of his lungs, which kept collapsing and had so many holes they resembled Swiss cheese. The remaining 20 per cent was ravaged by infection.

His kidneys were not functioning and Dylan had internal stomach bleeding. He was not responding to antibiotics and he could die from a cardiac arrest at any moment.

With no hope of recovery, medical staff at Nottingham University Hospitals were preparing consent forms to switch off Dylans life support while his heartbroken family gathered at his bedside to say goodbye.

On Good Friday, March 25 this year, a priest baptised two-year-old Dylan in a poignant ceremony in front of his parents, older brother Bryce, six, three grandparents, two aunties and two cousins. On Easter Saturday, they all came to give him one last cuddle.

I kept telling Dylan I loved him, over and over again. I knew he was dying, but I couldnt bring myself to say the word goodbye, says Kerry, 29, who was 26 weeks pregnant with her third son, Logan.

I sang his favourite song, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and You Are My Sunshine. I didnt want to let him go, but I looked at his poor little body and thought: Are we being cruel keeping him alive?

I remember my dad bending down and whispering in Dylans ear: You can do this, Dylan, you have to get better and if you do I will buy you a big tub of sweets. But Id given up all hope. The truth is Id already let him go, days before the doctors even talked about switching off his life support, says Kerry, of a decision that haunts her to this day.

Dylan had been in intensive care for almost three weeks. Every day he was deteriorating. All the fight had gone out of me and I felt defeated. I was in absolute despair.

Thankfully, the family were spared the most dreadful of outcomes. This week, Dylan  a cheeky, adorable three-year-old ball of irrepressible energy  was hailed the boy who came back from the dead when his almost biblical story of recovery made the headlines.

Suffering from a rare form of lung cancer, critically ill with bacterial pneumonia, his major organs failing, the doctors told his devastated parents Mike and Kerry it was time to think about letting him go

On Easter Sunday, as Mike and Kerry waited to sign paperwork agreeing to switch off Dylans ventilator, excited doctors rushed to his bed with the surprising results of last-minute blood tests. These are not what we expected. Were going to keep treating him, they said.

Defying all medical expectation, Dylan had started to respond to the antibiotics. His oxygen levels went up and his heart rate went down, then his stomach stopped bleeding.

On April 4, Dylan was taken off the ventilator and started breathing on his own. The next day, he showed signs of recognising his parents. The day after that he said Daddy.

Within a week he was talking. After two weeks the last of the chest drains were removed. On April 26, he celebrated his third birthday in hospital and on May 16 he was well enough to be discharged. Last month, Dylan started nursery.

Now, six months on after that terrible night of utter despair, Dylan is charging around the living room in the familys home in Derby, playing with his superhero toys and squabbling with his older brother Bryce, while four-month-old baby brother Logan enjoys a bottle of milk in his mothers arms.

Mike and Kerry still cant quite believe it. With wide smiles, they admit that if any Hollywood scriptwriter had come up with their remarkable story, people would dismiss it as being ridiculously far-fetched.

Dylans heart rate was a dangerous 200 beats a minute and his oxygen levels so low they could not sustain life much longer

Were not religious, but either someone up there was on our side that night or we completely underestimated Dylans strength and sheer determination to live, says Mike.

Even Patrick Davies, head of the paediatric intensive care unit at the Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham, where Dylan was treated, agrees that his case defies medical explanation.

Dylans story is one of drama, despair and recovery, which would be rejected as too outlandish if written in a book, he says.

Today, Dylan still has chemotherapy every three weeks to treat pulmonary langerhans cell histiocytosis  a lung cancer that normally affects adult smokers and a small number of young children.

Affecting one in 200,000 children, it occurs where an over-abundance of immature white blood cells attack the body and eat away the skin, bones and organs.

Dylans strain of the disease, which causes cystic lungs, is rarer still and affects just one in ten million children. The causes remain a mystery.

The cysts that once covered 80 per cent of Dylans lungs have been reduced to 20 per cent thanks to chemo and steroids.

Dylan Askin (right) enjoying life after coming out of hospital. Also pictured are his brothers Bryce (6) and Logan (4 months) and his dad Mike

If his recovery continues, Mike and Kerry  both non-smokers  hope that by the age of five, Dylans cancer will be in remission and he can go on to live a normal, full life.

To look at him now, youd never believe there had been anything wrong with him at all, let alone being hours from having the life support switched off, says Mike, 36, an assistant restaurant manager, who with his wife is hoping to raise awareness and funds for research.

When people see our sons, they look puzzled and ask: Which is the sick one? 

Kerry, who runs an art business from home, adds: He is blissfully unaware of what hes been through. He remembers going in an ambulance, but little else, which is a blessing.

Sometimes, when he coughs, he says: Oh no, I will have to go back to hospital. But his lungs havent collapsed since hes been home.

When we took him to Legoland during the holidays I spent two days chasing him up and down the park and he wasnt even tired.

This is the first time Mike and Kerry have talked about their Easter miracle, but while they are clearly on cloud nine, lingering guilt still casts a shadow over Kerrys joy at having her son back home.

For as they tearfully sang songs to Dylan, took a lock of his baby hair, made prints of his hands to remember him by and cherished every last minute with him, there was also a potentially explosive decision to be made that could have torn this family apart.

While Kerry had lost hope and was ready to sign the consent forms to switch off Dylans ventilator to end their sons suffering, Mike most definitely was not prepared to do this.

I lost my mother to bowel cancer when I was nine months old and it has affected my whole life, says Mike. I wasnt going to lose my son as well without a fight.

Dylan Askin in hospital just after coming off the ventilator

It just felt so unfair. I argued with one doctor about switching off his life support and at one point I was told to leave Dylans bedside, but I flatly refused. Im very stubborn and I just couldnt accept that nothing more could be done for him.

Kerry says: I feel very guilty about that now. Id given up when all the time my precious little boy had other ideas and was still fighting to live.

I regret the decision I almost made every single day and sometimes I feel I dont deserve this beautiful boy.

I was pregnant, my hormones were awry, I couldnt sleep with worry and Id told Mike: I cant be the one who fights for Dylan. I cant cope. Im losing it.

Wed seen other couples torn apart by situations like ours, arguing in hospital corridors. I thought I was being realistic, in accepting the inevitable, while Mike was in complete denial.

So I made an agreement with Mike. I said: If theres no improvement by Easter Sunday, we will contemplate whether we are being cruel keeping Dylan on life support.

But now I feel so grateful for Mikes strength because it balanced out my despair. While I gave up, he kept fighting. I am struggling to forgive myself for trying to persuade Mike to let Dylan go.

At the time I felt cruel making Dylan suffer when, realistically, I was actually being selfish in giving up on him because of my own emotional torment and inability to cope.

In the end, matters were taken out of our hands. Lo and behold, Dylan had other ideas.

It was Christmas Day 2015 when Dylan, until then a healthy little boy, started coughing. Listless and tired, he hardly showed any interest in his presents and barely ate his lunch. Mike and Kerry thought that he had developed a minor chest infection.

As the day wore on and Dylan became increasingly breathless, Mike took him to a walk-in medical centre near their home while Kerry took their older son Bryce to see her parents to deliver the good news about her 12-week pregnancy scan.

After having his oxygen levels checked, Dylan was rushed straight to A&E in Derby and then transferred to the high-dependency unit at Nottingham Hospital when X-rays revealed shadows on his lungs, one of which had collapsed.

A later scan revealed a morass of air-filled cysts on his lungs, and he remained in hospital for a week before returning home.

On February 10, while they awaited test results and a proper diagnosis, Dylan was rushed to hospital again when he suddenly stopped breathing at playgroup.

This time, both his lungs had collapsed and a volunteer playgroup worker had to perform CPR to save his life before the ambulance arrived.

Mike, who was attending a conference in Barcelona, took an emergency flight home and arrived at the hospital that night not knowing if Dylan would still be alive.

When an oncologist confirmed cancer, Kerry and Mike were told their sons condition was treatable. He began chemotherapy, but needed oxygen and chest drains as his lungs struggled to stay inflated.

On March 18, Dylan suddenly went downhill after contracting a chest infection. With a fever spiking at 40c, he suffered a febrile convulsion and stopped breathing.

He was rushed to intensive care and put on a ventilator.

From that moment, Kerry and Mike never left his side, taking turns to sleep by his bed or have a snatched meal, so he was never alone in case the worst happened.

Kerry says: The Thursday before Easter, Dylan had a lung collapse so severe that it was crushing his organs and his heart and he just couldnt recover.

At that point I thought: Were not going to get him back. He wasnt strong enough to fight the infection and the cancer.

None of us thought hed survive. Not even the doctors. I felt so helpless. I was pacing up and down. I couldnt bear to leave his bedside, but another part of me couldnt bear to be there with everything going wrong and no one being able to control it.

As they stuck all these needles in, I was thinking: I hope he cant feel this. I hope he isnt aware of whats happening to him. I hope weve done everything we can for him.

Then I thought about Bryce, who was staying with my parents, thinking how close they were and how I was going to explain to my eldest son that his best friend might not survive.

We had to explain to him that Dylan was very ill and might never come home, that he may have to go to heaven and live with the angels.

By the night of Easter Sunday, however, even Mikes hope was draining away. He finally agreed with Kerry that Dylan could suffer no more and they should consider turning off his life support.

Dylans lung had collapsed again and I was devastated, says Mike. I put out a Facebook message saying we hadnt got our Easter miracle and asked everyone to send positive thoughts and prayers.

Even if Dylan (right) survived, they had no idea if his oxygen-starved brain had been damaged

But as we waited for the paperwork to sign, I kept saying to Kerry: Are we making the right decision? Then, as a side room was being prepared for him, a consultant came rushing back with Dylans blood test results, saying they were better than expected.

Our heads whipped round and we both said No to switching off his life support. Well wait.

But a registrar told us: The decision is now out of your hands. Were going to keep treating him.

It was pivotal moment. From then on, it was a slow, gradual recovery.

Even if Dylan survived, they had no idea if his oxygen-starved brain had been damaged. As the weeks passed, Mike and Kerrys optimism grew and hope returned.

Today, as Dylan excitedly chatters away in front of us, leafing through a toy catalogue looking for Christmas presents, then kisses his dad on the cheek before Mike leaves for work, life seems as close to normal as it could possibly be.

Kerry says: I do look back and wish Id been stronger. Ill always feel guilty that Mike was the one who remained strong, right up to the last minute, when Id given up.

Now were able to be strong together  but it was Dylan who turned out to be the strongest of us all.
Victoria's Secret has reportedly cast more than 50 models for this year's fashion show in Paris, but some of the brand's beloved stars may have missed the cut.

New moms Behati Prinsloo and Candice Swanepoel are presumably skipping this year's show after giving birth in September and October, respectively, but it seems that some of the brand's veterans haven't been invited to return to the runway this year.

While many of the models cast have taken to social media to share their excitement about the show, popular Victoria's Secret runway stars such as Magdalena Frackowiak, Shanina Shaik, and Jacquelyn Jablonski have remained silent.

Missing? Shanina Shaik, pictured walking in last year's Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, is noticeably absent from the list of models who have confirmed they will be appearing

Absent: Polish model Magdalena Frackowiak is also missing from the list of models who are confirmed for this year's catwalk event in Paris, despite becoming a Victoria's Secret regular

Magdalena, 32, has walked the Victoria's Secret runway five times, missing only the 2011 show since 2010.

However, she made international headlines last year when she hit back at a reporter for insinuating that she starved herself before the annual fashion show.

The Polish beauty was getting her make-up done backstage when someone from TMZ asked her what she was was 'most excited' about eating after the show, but she quickly shut him down.

Meanwhile, Shanina, 25, seemed to be in good spirits when she left the Victoria's Secret casting call in New York City earlier this week, however, she has yet to say whether or not she will be traveling to Paris.

No show: The third regular who is thought to have been left off the list of confirmed models is Jac Jagaciak, who is pictured walking the runway at last year's event

Other priorities: Angel Candice Swanepoel is thought to be missing this year's show because she only gave birth to a baby boy with her fiance Hermann Nicoli earlier this month

Rest: Behati Prinsloo is another Angel-turned-new mother who will be absent from this year's show having only welcomed her bay daughter in September

Although she has walked in the show every year since 2011, she stayed eerily silent about her runway status  even when congratulating Victoria's Secret Angel Jasmine Tookes on being chosen to wear this year's $3 million Fantasy Bra in the show.

Shanina took to Instagram on Wednesday to share a photo of her and Jasmine backstage at last year's show in New York, writing: 'Congrats my bestie @jastookes You made me tear up watching your surprise video #VSfantasybra #dreamscometrue.'

Jacqualyn Jablonski and Jac Jagaciak are also VS regulars who have strutted down the catwalk for the brand more than a few times. But despite Jacqualyn being cast in the holiday event six years in a row and Jac being an Angel in 2015, they may be missing out this year.

Skipping the show? Pauline Hoarau (left) and Leila Nda (right) are also thought to have missed the cut for this year's catwalk, despite both walking in last year's Fashion Show

No good: It has been speculated that Gracie Carvalho has also been replaced after she failed to post anything about the castings on social media

Also absent: Yumi Lambert (left) and Maud Welzen (right) are also among the group of models from last year's show who appear to have been cut

And while it is possible that these women will still appear in the line-up next month, Cosmopolitan.com speculates that Yumi Lambert, Maud Welzen, Leila Nda, Pauline Hoarau, and Gracie Carvalho have also been replaced after walking in the 2015 show in New York City.

Of course, aside from the brand's Angels, none of the models are guaranteed spots in the show no matter how many times they have appeared in it.

Gracie, 26, actually made her Victoria's Secret debut in 2010 and didn't return to the brand's runway show until five years later.

And while these ladies are keeping quiet, some of this year's rookies can't help but gush about being cast in the show.

Newbies: Bella Hadid (left) and Lais Oliveira (right) have both been confirmed for this year's show, and both have already celebrated the announcement on social media

She's ready! A video tape of Bella's casting shows her confidently strutting her stuff in lingerie in front of a panel of model agents and Victoria's Secret staffers

Repeat performance: Bella's older sister Gigi will be returning to the show this year, after a triumphant debut on the 2015 catwalk

Back in action: Gigi's best friend Kendall Jenner (left) will also be making her second appearance in this year's show, while VS veteran Karlie Kloss (right) is making her return

Bella Hadid was one of the models who was told her dreams were coming true on Tuesday, and while the 19-year-old did her best to try to hide her joy and keep her casting underwraps, her good news was revealed by a Victoria's Secret staffer Jen Waldman who shared a snap of them both on social media saying, 'One of us made the fashion show cut.'

Georgia Fowler, Herieth Paul, Lameka Fox, Luma Grothe, Xiao Wen Ju, Zuri Tibby, Megan Williams, Maggie Laine, Lais Olivera, Keke Lindgard, Jourdana Elizabeth, and Grace Elizabeth are the other rookies who will be walking in the highly-anticipated show for the first time.

Meanwhile, Bella will be joining her big sister Gigi on stage now that she has confirmed that she will be returning to the Victoria's Secret runway after making her debut last year.
But after strong year in 2015, Aldi lags behind and only win is its mince pies

Asda comes top in five categories - the same number as M&S

It reveals the 50 best supermarket buys for customers this Christmas

Cooking Christmas dinner on the cheap may taste just as good as splashing the cash if a blind taste test is anything to go by.

Budget supermarket Asda has won as many categories as premium store M&S in the much awaited festive taste test released today in a bumper November issue of BBC Good Food Magazine.

It could signal an end of the rise and rise of discount supermarkets Aldi and Lidl, who have increasingly become favourites with the middle classes for their budget versions of high-end items.

The Good Food blind taste test team (pictured) compared products from 10 supermarkets in 18 categories to reveal the 50 best supermarket buys

Asda picked up as many top prizes as M&S in the festive taste test - including in the prestigious turkey category for its 6-9 Extra Special Free-Range British Corn-Fed Bronze Turkey

But now Asda seems to be claiming their crown for offering quality food and drink at low prices.

Aldi and Lidl were not completely out of the picture this year, but had far fewer winners than last year, when Aldi picked up the top prize in four categories.

But the budget supermarkets did scoop gongs in two of the most iconic categories.

Aldi's Six Specially Selected Exquisite mince pies (2.99) were judged as the best in their category, with the judges commenting: 'An unusual twist, with flaked almonds and a strong frangipane topping. The buttery pastry is crumbly, the mincemeat thick, sticky and generous.'

And Lidl was triumphant with its Snowy Lodge Luxury Hand-Decorated Christmas Cake (9.99).

Aldi and Lidl lagged behind Asda and M&S in this year's taste test, but picked up top prizes for Aldi's 2.99 mince pies (left) and Lidl's 9.99 Christmas cake (right)

Asda beat the other nine supermarkets in the Ham category for its Smoked Gammon with Whisky & Ginger Glaze (15)

The experts tasted turkeys from all 10 supermarkets blind before announcing that Asda's was their favourite

The judges said: 'Although its appearance will appeal to children, we thought this cake tasted grown-up  boozy, well-rounded, and packed with juicy fruit and whole almonds. It has a slightly crumbly texture, and generous amounts of marzipan and icing.'

BBC Good Food Magazine is on sale today for 4.35, featuring a Good Food recipe calendar

But it was Asda and M&S who dominated the blind testing, scooping first prize in five categories apiece.

Asda could argue it has claimed the top spot in the most prestigious category, the turkey, with its Extra Special Free-Range British Corn-Fed Bronze Turkey (6-9 per kg).

The judges praised the fowl for being 'plump, glossy and beautifully golden'.

But the budget supermarket also came top for its Smoked Gammon with Whisky & Ginger Glaze (15), Extra Special Cheeseboard (8) and Extra Special Rich & Intense Smoked Salmon (4).

M&S, meanwhile, proved that sometimes you do get what you pay for.

Its luxurious Beef Rib with Porcini (50) was crowned the best alternative Christmas main course - and was the judges' 'hot pick' - while its Butternet & Sweet Potato Rosti (5) was branded the best vegetarian starter.

Experts taste test the centrepiece desserts - before announcing Morrisons' Chocolate Christmas Tree (9) as the winner

The taste testers tried mince pies from every supermarket - but Aldi's 2.99 mince pies were their favourite

M&S triumphed in the panettone category for its 15 cake (left), while Asda beat the other supermarkets in the cheeseboard challenge with its 8 selection (right)

It also came top for its Collection Italian Panettone Classico (15) and in the Christmas pudding category for its Eight-Month Matured Vintage Christmas Pudding (12).

Meanwhile, Waitrose barely got a look in this year, only picking up one highly commended award for its 12-Month Matured Christmas Pudding (7.50).

The test compared items in 18 categories from 10 of the biggest UK supermarkets to reveal the 50 best festive supermarket buys.

BBC Good Food Magazine is on sale today for 4.35, featuring a Good Food recipe calendar.

FULL LIST OF WINNERS: STARTERS Tesco had the best fish starter, according to the judges, with its 32.50 Finest Seafood Platter Fish Starter: Tesco - Finest Seafood Platter (32.50) Vegetarian Starter: M&S - Butternut & Sweet Potato Rosti (5) Meat Starter: Tesco - Finest Drunken Duck Parfait (7) Advertisement

MAIN COURSE WINNERS M&S came top for its Beef Rib with Porcini Turkey: Asda - Extra Special free-range British corn-fed Bronze turkey (6-9 per kilo) Alternative Main Course: M&S - Beef Rib with Porcini (50) Ham: Asda - Smoked Gammon with Whisky & Ginger Glaze (15) Vegetarian Main Course: Tesco - Baked Camembert & Cranberry Melting Middle Quiche (5) Advertisement

SIDES AND CANAPES WINNERS Asda, Co-op and M&S came top Smoked Salmon: Asda - Extra Special Rich & Intense Smoked Salmon (4) Ready-To-Serve Cheeseboard: Asda - Extra Special Cheeseboard (8) Meat and Fish Canapes: Co-op - Truly Irresistible 12 Mini Beef Yorkshire Puddings (4) Vegetarian Canapes: M&S - 12 Cheese & Onion Muffins (5) Advertisement
Halloween weekend has arrived.

Though the actual day - Hallow's Eve - is on Monday, millions will be celebrating the pagan festival tonight and tomorrow.

Whether you are trick-or-treating, partying, or just dressing up for no particular occasion: here are some tips on how to take care of your health while you're at it.

1. DANGERS OF FACE PAINT

Dr Janet Prystowsky, president of Livad Skin Care in New York, is a leading dermatologist.

If skin is your priority, you really should skip the face paint part of your costume altogether.

But if it is essential, Dr Prystowsky has some cardinal rules for you to abide by.

If skin is your priority, you really should skip the face paint part of your costume altogether but there are ways to look after your face if it is really essential

WHAT IS IN FACE PAINT?

First, and most importantly: 'Never use makeup with formaldehyde in it.

'Many inexpensive costume makeups contain ingredients, like preservatives, dyes, and other chemicals that can cause allergic reactions or rashes.'

Formaldehyde is the most concerning of makeup chemicals.

A colorless, flammable gas, it can be found in another of products, including medicines, dishwasher tablets, and cosmetics - including nail polishes, nail hardeners, eyelash glues, hair gels, and, makeup.

It can cause irritation of the skin, eyes, nose, and throat.

High levels of exposure may cause some types of cancers, according to the FDA's 2010 volume of Contact Dermatitis.

IF YOU MUST, HOW SHOULD YOU WEAR FACE PAINT?

'If you want to be safe and wear makeup, opt for high-quality theater makeup and test it out first,' Dr Prystowsky says.

'Test a swab of makeup on the back of your hand the day before you plan to wear it. If there isnt any irritation, then youre probably safe.

'On the day of, make sure to wash your makeup off as soon as youre done with it.

'Even if your makeup is safe, you can irritate your skin or clog your pores by leaving it on overnight.'

2. COSTUMES

ALLERGIC REACTIONS TO MATERIAL

Dr Prystowsky also has some dermatological advice on how clothes can affect your entire body.

'Avoid costumes with metal pieces if you may have a Nickel allergy. Avoid masks and prosthetics if you may have a latex allergy.

'Dont use old clothing thats been in storage without thoroughly cleaning it. Dust, mites, and mold can cause allergic reactions.'

ROMPERS

All-in-one costumes are popular on Halloween.

However, the effort of removing it to go to the toilet may seem like too much, especially when it's cold.

Urinating when you have the urge is essential to avoid bladder infections, yeast infections, or urinary tract infections, which could develop to a more serious kidney infection.

For anyone that is thinking of squeezing into a particularly tight number, it may be worth thinking about the fabric - and whether it is just a bit too small

TIGHT, SKIMPY COSTUMES

It is not true for everyone - men, women, boys, and girls wear all manner of costumes.

But there is no denying that Halloween has something of a reputation for skimpy outfits.

As Lindsay Lohan's character said in Mean Girls: 'In the regular world, Halloween is when children dress up in costumes and beg for candy. In Girl World, Halloween is the one night a year when a girl can dress like a total slut and no other girls can say anything about it.'

And so, for anyone that is thinking of squeezing into a particularly tight number, it may be worth thinking about the fabric - and whether it is just a bit too small.

Last year a study famously warned trousers that are too tight can cause health problems, triggering 'compartment syndrome', causing damage to the nerves and muscles in the legs.

That is in extreme cases.

However, tight lycra costumes commonly cause skin reactions. The tightness can also cause you to sweat more, increasing your risk of fungal or hair follicle infections.

To avoid any of these health issues, try to opt for a more forgiving dress size.

Doctors also advise against squatting too much, so as not to put pressure on the nerves in your legs.

HIGH HEELS

It's a love-hate relationship - women and heels.

They can be a key addition to a Halloween costume. But they come with a plethora of health issues.

From burning feet and damaged nails to twisted ankles and back pain, most of us simply accept the bitter side effects.

New York City-based foot doctor Dr Suzanne Levine has a few key tips to avoid the pain.

First, make sure you are physically fit, particularly your core and your ankles.

'You need to tighten your stomach,' Dr Levine explained. 'I do Pilates every week. You need to do abdominal exercises.'

Second, get some cushioning.

Dr Levine recommends a cushioning insert called Pillows For Your Feet, which acts like a gel pad.

'The key is adding some cushioning to the external part of the shoe.

'It's hard to find that in a high fashion shoe.'

Third, walk correctly.

'Keep your the shoulders back when walking. Walk with a wide step. Making sure your alignment and posture are good. Making sure that your landing on your heel, the outer part of your heel.'

3. COLORFUL CONTACT LENSES

The CDC has issued a warning to costume-lovers: do not wear colorful contact lenses.

We have all seen the electric blue, ebony black, green, and red lenses that people buy to elevate their costume.

But health officials warn they carry a plethora of health problems.

'Decorative contact lenses are medical devices like other contact lenses,' the warning, released on Thursday, said.

The CDC has issued a warning to costume-lovers: do not wear colorful contact lenses

'Wearing decorative contact lenses without being properly fitted by an eye care provider can lead to serious problems  ulcers (open sores), scratches, infection, and vision lossand haunt you long after October 31.'

If you absolutely must wear them, here are three cardinal rules to abide by:

1. GET A PRESCRIPTION: Contact lenses acquired without wear and care education and a prescription are illegal and could lead to serious eye injury or infection.

2. CHECK YOUR BUYING SOURCE: Decorative contact lenses purchased from costume shops, online stores, beauty salons, drug stores, flea markets, or anywhere not issued by an eye doctor will not properly fit.

3. PROTECT YOUR EYES: One night is not worth your eye health. The best way to protect your eyes from potential complications is to talk to your eye doctor and learn about healthy contact lens wear and care habits.

4. HOW TO COPE WITH FEAR - AND WHY IT IS DANGEROUS

Dr Katherine Brownlowe, chief of the Division of Neurobehavioural Health at Ohio State University Medical School, has dedicated much of her research to fear.

In her own research, and working with patients, Dr Brownlowe has explored what fear is, why it affects us, what it does to our bodies, and how to overcome it.

WHAT DOES FEAR DO TO OUR BODY?

'If somebody enters a haunted house, your heart races, your breathing increases, and you feel a scared emotion in your brain and your body is on alert,' Dr Brownlowe says.

'It's fight or flight - is this a threat that I need to respond to?'

Your body triggers the release of hormones that alert your entire body to danger.

This is what gives people adrenaline and sometimes a seemingly super-human kind of strength in dangerous situations (e.g.: people have been known to run on broken legs in the face of danger).

HEART RATE

First, you feel hot as your heart rate rises to around five times its normal pace. This is preparing your body and your muscles to have the energy to fight.

SWEATING

Adrenaline pushes this pumping blood to the surface of your skin. That causes your pores to open, and sweat to pour out.

BOWELS

This physical reaction can also provoke other side effects, like diarrhea and the urge to urinate.

That is partly due to your body's functions going into overdrive.

It is also partly driven by your body's urge to lighten itself.

Your body triggers the release of hormones that alert your entire body to danger

HOW DOES THIS HAPPEN?

There are two brain systems involved with fear, Dr Brownlowe explains.

One we share with animals - a preserved evolutionary function.

One is unique to humans.

This unique system is called the amygdala, located in the temporal lobe. That's the part of the brain that prompts the fear response.

'As humans, we have the amygdala which helps us to rationalize that we are in a haunted house. The scary man in the mask probably isn't going to kill you, he's in character...

'It can quickly calm down your body's reactions, making it a more enjoyable experience.'

There is a downside, though. This unique human reaction can also make us more scared. We can overthink things - building up the prospect of a conversation in our minds, making it seem like a much bigger situation than it is.

Even though it may be nothing, the fear in our brains produces a physical fight-or-flight reaction.

WHY ARE SOME PEOPLE MORE FEARFUL THAN OTHERS?

'We are all born with different temperaments,' Dr Brownlowe explains.

'Some of us are introverts, some of us are extroverts, and there is one kind of person that we refer to as sensation seekers.

People who are high on sensation seeking love the risk and danger of, say, a haunted house. For them, the situation is rationalized to an extent that their body does not tense up, fearing death.

Others, however, are more sensitive to these triggers, and have a more physical reaction to fear.

This all boils down to the subtle differences in our biological makeup, that affect the amygdala and the temporal lobes.

HOW TO DEAL WITH FEAR

Firstly, Dr Brownlowe says, we need to remember that fear is a useful instinct that we have for a reason.

It is ok if you don't want to watch a scary movie.

However, if all your friends are going to a haunted house and you want to join the fun, there are some things you can do.

Here are the top three techniques Dr Brownlowe suggests to her patients:

GROUNDING

Check back into your surroundings, thinking very literally about what you are experiencing and why this scary thing - e.g.: a haunted house - is not real.

5X5

Go through the five senses and list five things for each.

Think of five things you can see, five things you can hear, five things you can feel etc.

Taste, Dr Brownlowe concedes, doesn't really work in this exercise - 'but you get the idea'.

478 BREATHING

This is Dr Brownlowe's favorite. It's one she used herself a couple of weeks ago when she was feeling upset about something - and she insists there is an instant, noticeable benefit.

'Try it when we've finished this interview - I guarantee you'll notice a difference,' she said.

The exercise forces you to focus on counting numbers, and is designed to have you exhaling longer than inhaling.

How it works: breathe in for four counts, hold it for seven counts, then breathe out for eight counts. Repeat as much as you need.

5. EASY ON THE TRICK-OR-TREAT CANDY

A number of studies have found physical and emotional stress drives up your desire to eat fatty and sugary foods.

It is not exactly clear why.

Some research suggested stress increases our cortisol and insulin levels, making our brain demand more sugar.

Other studies showed stress forces us to release a hormone called ghrenlin, which is commonly known as the 'hunger' hormone.

Physical and emotional stress drives up your desire to eat fatty and sugary foods

In theory, turning to trick-or-treat snacks during stress is not a bad idea. These comfort foods have been shown to dull down the stress parts of the brain.

However, too much can be dangerous in many ways.

It can lead to weight gain, which can affect your inflammation levels.

Eating excessive amounts of sugary food can also affect your skin, increasing acne.

And it can cause sleeplessness. So: everything in moderation.

6. EAT PUMPKIN

Pumpkin is highly nutritious and a great seasonal autumn food, and can be enjoyed in a number of different ways.

Flesh, seeds and oil are all highly beneficial to our health for a host of different reasons.

London-based nutritionist Cassandra Barns told MailOnline: 'It contains a good amount of fiber too  around 3 grams per one-cup serving  so will help keep you fuller for longer.'

It is also good for your skin.

Pumpkin, along with vegetables such as carrots, squash and sweet potatoes, contains high levels of beta carotene and other carotenoids.

These are responsible for its bright orange colouring.

Beta-carotene converts to vitamin A within the body, which is one of the most important nutrients for skin integrity.

This allows the skin to stay firm, resisting damage and allowing it heal quicker.

While the compound may also help to prevent free radical damage to our cells that can result in ageing, as it works as an antioxidant.
Cell phones are wreaking havoc on teenagers' sleep patterns, a new study warns.

Adolescents have never had such poor sleep: they sleep less, wake up in the night more, and tend to be more sleepy in the daytime than previous generations.

According to a new study by University of Montreal, it is no coincidence that this is the most social media-dependent generation to date.

Researchers found the more teens spoke on the phone, texted and trawled social media before bed, the worse their sleeping patterns were.

The worrying finding has emerged just a week after the American Academy of Pediatrics loosened its guidelines on screen time for kids, saying we have to be 'realistic' - despite the health dangers.

Two hours a day of talking on the phone, texting or being online increased their risk of getting fewer than eight hours sleep - which is the optimum

But electronic media are becoming a larger part of teen's lives and are often used before bed, warned Jennifer O'Loughlin, an author of the paper in the journal Sleep Health and researcher at the University of Montreal.

To explore the link between time spent using electronics like video games, TVs and phones and the amount of sleep teens are getting, the study team analyzed data from a Montreal-based study of high school students.

More than 1,200 students 14 to 16 years old completed questionnaires between 2008 and 2009 reporting on how often they used electronics, including watching television, as well as how often they did other sedentary activities like reading, doing homework or talking on the phone.

Teens also answered questions about what time they usually went to sleep and woke up on weekdays and weekends.

Researchers found that kids who used computers and videogames for more than two hours per day slept 17 and 11 minutes less, respectively, than youth who used screens for less time.

One in three teens used computers for more than two hours per day and they were more than twice as likely as the others to sleep less than eight hours per night.

Teens who talked on the phone for at least two hours daily were also three times more likely than those who didn't to fall short of eight hours of sleep.

Watching TV had the opposite effect on sleep, and teens who watched two hours or more per day were half as likely to sleep less than eight hours compared to others.

Youth who used the computer or talked on the phone for more than two hours per day also reported more sleepiness during the day than those who spent less time using devices.

Teens who engaged in other sedentary activities that did not involve screens such as reading did not report getting less sleep than their peers.

'Kids need sleep to grow, period,' said Christina Calamaro, a research director who studies teens and sleep loss at Nemours Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, Delaware.

Calamaro added that missing out on sleep increases young people's risk for depression, problems with thinking and attention, and weight gain.

Calamaro advised that parents should model healthy sleep behavior and not use electronics in the bedroom. 'It is important that they set the standard for healthy sleep routines!' she said in an email.

O'Loughlin recommended that parents keep an eye on their children's screen time throughout the day.
his kurta to Gadkari and his pants to Nitish Kumar

To protest against the delay, Vinay

For last three years, Vinay has been trying to get a road constructed from West Champarans Manuapul via Jogapatti, to Navalpur Ratwal Chowk Path

BJP MLA Vinay Bihari devised a unique way to protest.

Vinay stripped down to half-pants and an undershirt to send out a message to the Minister for Road Transport and Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

For last three years, Vinay has been trying to get a road constructed from West Champarans Manuapul via Jogapatti, to Navalpur Ratwal Chowk Path.

The stretch is a 44-km-long road for which Vinay has even sent a letter to Nitin Gadkari and Nitish Kumar.

The construction of road work is being delayed, despite Vinay's regular pleas.

This time, a frustrated Vinay packed his kurta along with a letter and sent it to Nitin Gadkari.

Vinay told Gadkari that he will start wearing kurta only once the construction of the road has begun.

In the letter, Vinay wrote how his kurta was emblematic of Bharatiya Janata Party's pride and honour.

He even told Gadkari that he will start wearing kurta only once the construction of the road has begun.

Not stopping at that, Vinay sent his pyjama to CM Nitish Kumar reminding him the promise he made three years ago.
Royal Bank of Scotland has admitted it could be forced to pay compensation over allegations it deliberately destroyed businesses.

As the taxpayer-backed lender reported another quarterly loss, chief executive Ross McEwan conceded entrepreneurs who claim they were victims of its global restructuring group (GRG) might end up with payouts.

The now-closed GRG was a crack turnaround unit intended to help businesses that struggled to pay their debts.

Admission: Royal Bank of Scotland chief executive Ross McEwan

But it has been claimed that the division instead pushed firms into administration so it could seize their assets to bolster RBSs ailing balance sheet. The Financial Conduct Authority is soon to publish a much-delayed report into the groups practices.

McEwan yesterday accepted GRG had sometimes fallen short of the banks standards, although he insisted there was no evidence of systematic wrongdoing.

No money has been set aside to settle claims against it in this quarters results. However, he left the door open to possible payments for those found to have suffered at its hands.

When we did our first review of this business nearly three years ago, we said we didnt get it all right  I dont think theres any new revelation here, he said.

On the issue of any compensation, we will work with the FCA and see where that comes out to.

He was speaking after NatWest owner RBS revealed a 469m loss for the three months to September 30, down from a 940m profit for the same period a year earlier.

The bank continues to be dogged by problems dating back to the financial crisis, which swallow up any profits from its day-to-day banking operations. This quarter, it would have made a 1.3bn profit if it had not faced legal and restructuring charges.

RBS was rescued by the Government with a 46bn bailout in 2008 and is still 71.5 per cent state owned.

When the rescue package was put together to save the lender, European Union chiefs demanded part of its network was sold to improve competition. It is now scrambling to dispose of 300 branches as soon as possible  and yesterday admitted the EU deadline at the end of next year could be missed.

This could lead to a fire sale overseen by Brussels, although that is widely viewed as unlikely with most expecting a compromise or extension instead.

RBS intended to float the branches on the stock market under the name Williams & Glyn, but abandoned the plans in August. Santander was then rumoured to be considering a bid for the network, but is now understood to have backed off.

Clydesdale Bank has emerged as a new suitor, but McEwan said no deal would be done before the cut-off date.

RBS said the saga had cost it another 301m.

The bank also set aside an extra 425m for lawsuits, fines and other charges relating to past bad behaviour, including a payment to the US National Credit Union Administration for toxic bundles of mortgage debt. Investors are expecting a far higher bill for a similar settlement with the American Department of Justice.
Ferrexpo shares plummeted after its second largest shareholder struck while the iron was hot and cashed in almost half its shares.

Czech billionaire Zdenek Bakala and his business partners offloaded 69m in an apparent bid to reap the benefits of the iron ore companys recent good fortune.

Ferrexpo shares have jumped more than 400 per cent this year, having slumped in 2015, and hit a two-year high two weeks ago after rising pellet prices improved its production outlook. An insider suggested Bakala, 55, who has worked for Credit Suisse First Boston in New York, London and Prague, was most likely looking to cash in on the positive results.

The shares were sold through Wigmore Street, an investment vehicle owned by Bakala and BXR Group. Bakala, who has a fortune of 1.2bn, which he amassed through investment in banking and coal mining, is one of the founders of BXR.

He set up the Czech Republics first private investment group, Patria Finance, in 1994 and has a series of philanthropic projects to his name. Ferrexpo founder Kostyantin Zhevago, who still owns a 50.3 per cent stake in the company, is the youngest self-made billionaire in Europe. Shares in Ferrexpo fell 18.6 per cent, or 23.75p to 104p.

The FTSE 100 finished 0.14 per cent, or 9.69 points higher at 6,996.26 and the FTSE 250 was 0.36 per cent, or 63.51 points better off at 17,644.83.

Student housing provider Unite saw its shares plunge after the Home Secretary unveiled a crackdown on international student visas.

The FTSE 250 company fell 3.35 per cent, or 19.5p to 562.5p after analysts at Morgan Stanley cut its rating from overweight to underweight, fearing the new restrictions on overseas students could leave university halls empty. Amber Rudd raised the prospect of new restrictions earlier this month, including a two-tier visa rule under which university prestige and the quality of the course studied would determine students rights to work in the UK.

Elementis was the biggest riser in the FTSE 350 after it revealed trading was in line with expectations despite challenging market conditions. The chemical company said its overall performance in the three months to September 30 was positive and sales had improved among most of its divisions.

Sales of speciality products were up 6 per cent, compared with the same period last year, coatings were up 5 per cent and personal care up 38 per cent.

Elementis, however, admitted sales in its Chromium division were 4 per cent lower than the same period last year due to the strong dollar.

Paul Waterman, chief executive, said: In Chromium, although the environment internationally remains challenging, contribution margins in North America and the rest of the world were stable.

Shares were up 11.14 per cent, or 23.9p to 238.4p.

Analysts at Berenberg raised Just Eats target price to 600p from 530p. It was enough to send the online food delivery companys shares up 5.6 per cent, or 28.5p to 535p.

Investors attention will turn to Morrisons next week when the supermarket unveils its latest results. Like-for-like sales are expected to be up for the fourth time in a row at 1.5 per cent, driven by the retailers improved food range, but lower than the 2 per cent growth it bagged in the second quarter.

HSBC analyst David McCarthy applauded management for strengthening the balance sheet, which he said will help protect the grocer in a tough trading environment. But he said the company remained in a weak strategic position amid its sector peers.

Shares were down slightly at 0.1 per cent, or 0.3p to 226.1p.

Oil companies were given a boost with Global Petroleum jumping 8.3 per cent, or 0.12p to 1.62p after it moved a step closer to securing permission to explore the Adriatic.
Only 35 per cent of Britons are following government advice and use three random words for their passwords online, a new poll from Ipsos MORI suggests.

Official advice from the National Cyber Security Centre, part of GCHQ, says using three random words in a password is one of the most important actions people can take to protect themselves from the growing threat of cybercrime.

Online fraud is a growing national problem  last year, there were an estimated 2million cybercrime offences committed, according to statistics from the Office for National Statistics.

Strong enough? Having a password with three random words is one of the 'most important actions people can take' according to the Government

A weak password allows hackers to use e-mail to gain access to all personal accounts, leaving people vulnerable to identify theft or fraud, the NCSC warns.

The research also shows that more than a quarter of people have shared their passwords with other people.

Ben Wallace, Security Minister, said: 'Tackling cybercrime not only requires a concerted response from law enforcement and government but also vigilance from members of the public.

'While the Government will invest 1.9billion in cyber security over the next five years, we can all make a difference and protect ourselves from cybercrime by taking some very simple steps, such as using three random words to create a strong password.'

Data last week, data from Get Safe Online and Action Fraud showed that a staggering 10.9billion was lost to the UK economy as a result of fraud, including cybercrime, in 2015/16.

That equates to approximately 210 per person over the age of 16 living in the UK, but represents only reported fraud and cybercrime to Action Fraud.

Four in ten who said they've been victims of online crime said they hadn't reported the incident  this means the overall amount of money lost is likely to be far more.

Danny Lawrence, National Police Chiefs' Council PROTECT co-ordinator for Cyber Crime, said: 'The majority of people do not realise how important something as simple as a strong password can be, particularly for email accounts which are the gateway to all your personal accounts.

'Being a victim of a cybercrime will affect your life in a very real way and small actions like the Cyber Aware campaign is suggesting can make a big difference to protecting yourself online.'

HOW TO MAKE AND THEN CHECK PASSWORDS

According to official government advice, the best way to make a password memorable and strong is to use three random words.

A spokesman from NCSC adds: 'It doesn't matter what inspires you - from watching sport to going out for a bite to eat, thinking random is the best way to keep yourself secure online.

'Your most important accounts are your email, social media and online banking accounts, so it's important to use strong, separate passwords for each of these.'

Furthermore, it would be worth adding a memorable two or three digit number either at the start, in between one of the words or at the end for extra security, as well as capital letters at the start of at least one of the words.

There is a clever tool online called How Secure is My Password. This is Money typed in three random words made up of an animal, an object and a vegetable, along with a two-digit number at the end to test it.

According to the website, it would take a computer programme about 2 sextillion years to crack the password - AKA, impossible.

Using just the animal name with a capital at the start could be cracked instantly, while the same animal with one digit at the end could be cracked in two hours, highlighting the need for a strong password.

Varying results: Using three words and a two-digit number creates a bulletproof password - just a word is useless

We don't recommend putting your own current password in there and neither does its creator, developer Mark Wales.

He says the website is for educational purposes. He assures that no passwords will be sent over the internet, but he recommends using his tool as just a guide.

Another handy website is haveibeenpwned.com. Ignore its weird name, it has been created by security expert Troy Hunt and allows you to tap in an e-mail address to see if you have had any breaches.

According to the website, a 'breach' is an incident where a site's data has been illegally accessed by hackers and then released publicly.

Worrying: The website shows whether an e-mail address has been breached and sold to criminals, along with passwords and usernames

A quick run on an old e-mail address appears to show two breaches the address was involved in  one with MySpace and a second with Last.fm.
A third of banking customers are throwing away the cash carrots handed out for switching accounts on expensive overdraft fees, according to research by Co-operative Bank.

While banks are offering cash incentives currently worth up to 220 in the first year, account holders who stray into the red fork out an average 6.93 each month in authorised overdraft fees, which quickly eats into profits.

Unplanned borrowing comes with even larger penalties at 53 per month and just two months spent in an unauthorised overdraft is enough to wipe out a typical 100 cash incentive.

Eye-watering fees: The average account applies penalties of 53 for unagreed borrowing

One in 10 switchers will have effectively used their entire switching bonus to cover consistent use of their overdraft within just 12 months.

According to Co-operative Bank figures as many as one in three people worryingly now rely on their overdraft to bridge the gap between pay cheques.

Despite this, just one fifth will give a thought to borrowing costs when they pick a new account.

Many will also forget that some banks will withdraw tempting perks such as cashback or in-credit interest for unplanned borrowing or overdraft use.

Matthew Carter, products and marketing director, at The Co-operative Bank, said: Many of the three million successful switches over the last three years will have included an upfront incentive offered by a new provider, however, our research highlights the importance of looking beyond an initial offer, and considering the long-term value and features of the account.

People should think carefully about how theyll use their account then select the deal which best suits their needs  in an effort to avoid any costly surprises in the future. The headline offer and additional benefits are of little use if you are dipping into the red and eroding the value being offered, or are missing out completely on the added incentives just by being in the red.

What to watch out for

Despite the Bank of England cut to the Base Rate in August this year, overdraft costs have in fact risen over the past 12 months.

The average current account charges interest of 14.1 per cent for arranged overdraft use, while dipping into an unarranged borrowing facility costs 13.25 per cent according to recent figures from Moneyfacts.

It is therefore particularly important that those who frequently stray into the red, should make a decent overdraft offering their main priority when switching.

Many banks also add flat-rate usage fees. Nationwide for example charges 50p per day for arranged overdraft use, while Barclays has a tiered daily fee of between 75p and 3 depending on how much you borrow.

While these may seem appealing due to their simplicity, they can often turn out more expensive in the long run and it can make it difficult to compare the actual cost to an account with a traditional interest-charging structure.

For a better idea of what it will really cost you to borrow make sure to check each banks example charges which will show the actual cost for a variety of situations.

You can also find a list of the costs of many popular accounts in This is Moneys guide to avoiding overdraft outrage here.
Supermarket giant said the change was in response to customer feedback

Australian supermarket giant Woolworths has introduced its own range of privately branded products, without the Woolworths logo.

The products include everything from cat and dog food, to Christmas puddings, shredded cheese and milk, reported Perth Now.

Woolworths told Perth Now the new range was developed after insights from customers and said it delivered 'quality and value'.

Australian supermarket giant Woolworths has introduced its own range of privately branded products, without the Woolworths logo

The new Woolworths owned brands include Hillview cheese (left), Baxters pet food, Soften fabric softener (right) and Olsent light globes. The company said the products were introduced after insights from customers

The supermarket said that some customers preferred not to have the retailer's brand on the products they bought.

The new Woolworths owned brands include Hillview cheese, Baxters pet food, Soften fabric softener and Olsent light globes.

The re-branding also encompasses the bran Gold which is featured on products such as strawberry and almond puddings and Christmas puddings.

Other Woolworths products that have been rebranded include Smitten cat food, Farmers Choice milk, Apollo dog food and Chevron batteries.

Woolworths has also actively removed its branding from existing products, such as Herbal Sensations shampoo, which has changed bottle colour and had the branding dropped from the label.

The new products also include Farmer's Own milk (left) and Chevron batteries (right). Woolworths has said some customers prefer not to have the supermarket branding on the products they buy

A new Gold label has also been introduced on the supermarket shelves, which on some dessert options such as puddings (pictured)

Retail expert Gary Mortimer, who is from the Queensland University of Technology, said it was a change of tactic for the supermarket, who has in the past been very open about its own products in the store.

In June, Woolworths said they would be phasing out the 'Homebrand' and 'Select' ranges and replacing them with a new Woolworths label, however there was no mention of the new phantom products.

Mr Mortimer has advised shoppers to turn products over instore before they buy them, and check the labels to see where they're from.

Retail expert Gary Mortimer said it was a change of tactic for the supermarket, who has in the past been very open about its own products in the store. The new range also includes Apollo dog food (left) and Smitten cat food (right)

He said by developing a phantom brand with no connection to a retailer, it provided customers with a product that looked like a national brand but was much cheaper.

'For some consumers private labels carry a stigma of being cheap and nasty,' he said.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Woolworths for a comment regarding the new range of products.
One of Russian president Vladimir Putin's top aides has fallen victim to a massive hack that appears to show close financial and political ties between Moscow and separatist rebels in Eastern Ukraine.

More than a gigabyte of leaked emails were released by a group of Ukrainian hackers from an account used by Putin's adviser Vladislav Surkov.

The cache published by the Ukrainian group CyberHunta reveals contacts between Surkov and the pro-Russia rebels fighting Ukrainian forces.

It also comes as the United States has accused Russia of coordinating the recent hacks of the Democratic party's emails to influence the outcome of the presidential election.

A senior US intelligence official told NBC News the US had 'no role' in the hack.

Scroll down for video

Russian president Vladimir Putin's adviser Vladislav Surkov (right) has fallen victim to a massive hack that appears to show close financial and political ties between Moscow and separatist rebels in Eastern Ukraine

Maks Czuperksi, head of the Digital Forensic Research Lab of the Atlantic Council (DFRL), which has searched through the released emails, called the hack 'serious.'

'We have seen so much happen to the United States, other countries at the hands of Russia,' Czuperski told NBC.

'Not so much to Russia. It was only a question of time that some of the anonymous guys like CyberHunta would come to strike them back.'

Ukraine's National Security Service said on Wednesday the emails were real, although they added the files may have been tampered with.

Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the published emails as a sham, saying Wednesday that Surkov does not use email.

The email address for Surkov does not appear to be a personal account, but instead an address used by Surkov's office and managed by his assistants

The hackers were apparently able to download the Outlook email accounts of Surkov's assistants which included inbox, outbox, drafts and deleted email.

The email address for Surkov does not appear to be a personal account, but instead an address used by Surkov's office and managed by his assistants.

One email sent from the account includes scans of passports belonging to Surkov, his wife and children.

Analyst Aric Toler from the Atlantic Council's DFRL also authenticated some material in the email dump by matching drafts sent to the account with almost identical articles that subsequently appeared in the Russian press.

The large quantity of routine messages included in the 2,337 emails, dating back to 2014, indicated much of it was genuine, Toler said.

The email cache includes messages sent to Surkov by separatist leader Denis Pushilin with rebel casualty lists and expenses for the operation of a press center in the rebel capital, Donetsk.

The United States has accused Russia of coordinating the recent hacks of the Democratic party's emails to influence the outcome of the US presidential election

Another email from the office of Russian billionaire Konstantin Malofeev, who reportedly has ties to the rebels, contains a list of ministers in the separatist government prior to their official announcement.

A series of 2014 emails from Georgy Bryusov, deputy head of Russia's Wrestling Federation, includes a suggestion to create a nationalist group ready to 'fight and defeat' the Maidan, the Kiev square where pro-European protesters gathered before driving the nation's former Russia-friendly president from office.

It is unclear if Surkov responded.

Bryusov hung up the phone when asked by the AP if he wrote the messages.

The conflict in eastern Ukraine that erupted in April 2014 after Russia's annexation of Crimea has killed more than 9,600 people.

A 2015 agreement has helped reduce the scale of fighting, but clashes have continued and efforts to negotiate a political settlement have stalled.

Russian journalist Svetlana Babaeva told The Associated Press emails from her in the cache were genuine.

'I sent those emails,' Babaeva said, referring to three emails in the leak discussing arrangements for an off-the-record meeting between Surkov and editors at her publication.

Russian businessmen Evgeny Chichivarkin, who lives in London, said in a Facebook post on Wednesday that emails attributed to him in the cache were genuine too.

The cache reveals contacts between President Vladimir Putin's adviser Vladislav Surkov and the pro-Russia rebels fighting Ukrainian forces. The conflict in eastern Ukraine (pictured) that erupted in April 2014 after Russia's annexation of Crimea has killed more than 9,600 people

An AP check has also proven that at least some of the phone numbers and email addresses from the cache are genuine.

Surkov, who is under Western sanctions for his role in the Ukraine crisis, has conducted negotiations with high-ranking U.S. officials over Ukraine and, earlier this month, accompanied Putin to Berlin for talks with leaders of Germany and France.

A longtime associate of Putin, Surkov had been a key architect of the Kremlin's domestic politics.

A US official told NBC News that the email dump confirmed much of what the US had already believed - that Russia was pulling the strings of the separatist movement in Ukraine at a micro-level.

Surkov had already appeared on the top of a list of Russians and Ukrainians placed under executive sanctions by President Obama in March 2014, citing his role in the Ukraine uprising, according to the US official.

Under the sanction, Surkov's US assets in the US were frozen and he was banned from entering the country, similar to sanctions imposed on him by the European Union.

Czuperski told NBC he believes there is likely more hacked material but he is not sure if the hackers will continually dump material like Wikileaks.

A longtime associate of Putin, Surkov had been a key architect of the Kremlin's domestic politics (the pair pictured together in 2012)

'It's all time and probability - how much effort you put in and how much effort the adversary puts in,' he said.

The Kremlin was propelled to the heart of US politics in July after Hillary Clinton's campaign blamed Moscow for a damaging leak of emails from the Democratic National Committee.

The emails were published by WikiLeaks, a publishing organization that advocates extreme government transparency.

Washington last week formally accused the Russian government of trying to 'interfere' in the 2016 White House race by hacking US political institutions, including the Democrats behind frontrunner Clinton.

Putin has vehemently rejected the accusations, saying they are meant to divert American voters from domestic problems.

'It's a lot easier to distract people's attention towards Russia's so-called hackers, spies, agents of influence and so on,' Putin said on Thursday.

The Kremlin strongman however adopted a hard line against cyber attacks, saying these are 'unacceptable'.

Putin has offered what appears to be veiled support for Trump, but he said on Thursday that claims the Kremlin would like to see the Republican candidate win were 'absolute nonsense.'

'This is just a method of political struggle, a way to manipulate public opinion on the eve of the US elections,' he said.

Putin nonetheless praised Trump for appealing to disenchanted American electors.

'He represents the views of a significant part of society in the United States that is tired of those elites who have been in power for decades,' he said.

'He just represents the interests of such ordinary people, and he presents himself as an ordinary guy who criticizes those who have already been in power for decades.'

CyberHunta describes itself on its website as a group of Ukrainian hackers opposed to 'foreign aggression' and promised to 'extract and analyze' email correspondence from high-level Russian officials.

Messages left with the group were not returned.
It is an election already surrounded by questions over its integrity thanks to Republican candidate Donald Trump's refusal to promise to accept its outcome.

Claims that the public cannot trust that all votes are accurate and legal have been pushed back by the White House and by the Clinton campaign, who see it as a way to delegitimize the victory they expect in November.

And one academic's claim that there just 31 'credible' incidents of voter impersonation in one billion cast ballots - a claim made in 2014 in the Washington Post - has been posted repeatedly on social media.

But a snapshot survey of convictions for voting fraud committed in the last five years by DailyMail.com suggests that complacency about the integrity of the ballot may be misguided.

We uncovered a series of convictions. Many of them are not for voter impersonation - literally turning up at the polling place and claiming to be someone else - that has been the focus of much of the pushback.

In fact there are other offenses - including voters being paid for the way they cast a ballot, in one case with $10 bags of cocaine; absentee ballots being harvested; and campaign workers getting absentee ballots for voters who had no idea such an application was being made.

The findings also show that many cases are dealt with by plea bargain, with the offenders pleading guilty to a reduced number of charges.

And one intriguing aspect of our findings is about where the fraudulent votes may have been directed.

None of the convictions detailed which party the fraudulent vote had been or was intended to be cast, since to attempt to find out would violate the secrecy of the ballot box.

But supporters of both parties are found on the DailyMail.com list, suggesting neither Republicans nor Democrats have reason to be complacent that the electoral system which will be put to the test on November 8 is above question.

Here are the cases we found.

BUSINESS OWNER WHO VOTED OVER AND OVER

Multiple votes: Robert Monroe voted repeatedly in three elections, one of them the recall election of Wisconsin's Republican governor Scott Walker (right) whom he had supported

Milwaukee County, Wisconsin 2013. A lengthy investigation was launched into voting fraud - and six convictions followed

Robert Monroe, 52. Insurance firm owner. Shorewood, Wisconsin

Charge: 13 counts illegal voting

Conviction: Six counts of illegal voting

Sentence: Year in jail, five years probation

What happened: Cast five votes during recall election for Scott Walker in 2011, two in the 2012 presidential election and multiple times in other 2011 elections. Was said to be a supporter of Walker, the Republican governor of Wisconsin

Leonard K Brown, 56.

Charge: Six counts of illegal voting

Conviction: Five counts of illegal voting

Sentence: Nine months jail

What happened: Voted twice in 2012 presidential election, voted twice in five previous elections

Voting Chad: Gigowski got six months in jail

Chad Gigowski, 28.

Charge: Three counts illegal voting

Conviction: One count illegal voting

Sentence: Six months in jail

What happened: Voted twice on the day in 2012 presidential election in two places

Andrew Shepherd, 32. Special voter registration worker

Charge: One count lying to election officials

Conviction: One count lying to election officials

Sentence: 30 days jail

What happened: Lied that he did not already have a felony record so he could be campaign worker. Registered six voters.

Engineering result: Todd Murray voted twice

Todd Murray, 34. Engineer. West Allis, Wisconsin.

Charge: One count illegal voting

Conviction: One count illegal voting

Sentence: 90 days jail

What happened: Registered and voted on the day of 2012 election in New Berlin, then voted at his own polling place in New Berlin.

Brittany Rainey, 23.

Charge: One count illegal voting

Conviction: One count illegal voting

Sentence: 45 days jail

What happened: Voted despite existing felony record for child cruelty

VOTED EARLY, VOTED AGAIN IN HER PRECINCT

Ohio fraudster: Virginia McMillan

Greene County, Ohio. February 2013.

Virginia McMilllan, 56. Beavercreek, Ohio.

Charge: One count illegal voting

Conviction: One count illegal voting

Sentence: 20 days jail.

What happened: Cast an early ballot then voted in her precinct.

A POLL WORKER AND A NUN WHO USED OTHERS' VOTES

Round-up: Melowese Richardson (left) and Sister Marguerite Kloos (right) were both convicted of voting in other people's names. Kloos had to quit her job as dean at a Catholic university

Hamilton County, Ohio, 2013. 28 subpoenaed in 19 potential cases of voter fraud. Five prosecutions. Four convictions, two more arrest warrants issued.

Melowese Richardson, 58. Poll worker. Hamilton County, Ohio.

Charge: Eight counts of illegal voting

Conviction: Four counts of illegal voting

Sentence: Five years in prison. Freed after eight months.

What happened: Voted as herself, her granddaughter and her comatose sister in 2012. Her granddaughter voted again herself. Also voted for sister in 2008 and 2011. Said in her defense she would 'fight it for Mr Obama'.

Sister Marguerite Kloos, 55. Nun. Delhi Township, Ohio.

Dean of Division of Arts and Humanities at College of Mount Saint Joseph, a Catholic university in Cincinnati.

Charge: One count illegal voting

Conviction: One count illegal voting

Sentence: Probation

What happened: Voted in name of nun who had died a month before. Quit as Dean of Division of Arts and Humanities.

Russell Glassop, 76. Retired. Symmes Township, Ohio.

Charge: One count illegal voting

Conviction: One count illegal voting

Sentence: Probation

What happened: Used his dead wife's absentee ballot.

Margaret Allen, 64. Loveland. Ohio.

Charge: One count illegal voting

Conviction: One count illegal voting

Sentence: Probation

What happened: Used absentee ballot despite being Florida resident

VOTING ACROSS STATE LINES AGAIN AND AGAIN

Kansas, 2015/2016. Secretary of State Kris Kobach said up to 100 cases of double voting had been identified. Four prosecutions have been successfully brought so far.

Plea deal: Oil boss Randal Kilian pleaded to one count of illegal voting

Randal Kilian, 62. Oil company executive. Colorado.

Charge: Three counts illegal voting

Conviction: One count illegal voting

Sentence: $2,500 fine

What happened: Voted in Kansas and Colorado in 2012 election, caught by multi-state database

Ron Weems, 77. Retired. Wichita, Kansas.

Charge: Five counts related to voting fraud

Conviction: Two counts voting without being qualified, one count unlawful advance voting

Sentence: $5,500 fine

What happened: Voted in Wichita and Teller County, Colorado, in both 2012 and 2014 elections

Another plea: Steven Gaedtke was charged with three counts and accepted guilt on one

Steven Gaedtke. USAF Vietnam veteran. Yelville, Arkansas.

Charge: Three counts illegal voting

Conviction: One count illegal voting

Sentence: $500 fine

What happened: Got early voting paper in Kansas despite living in Arkansas - and used it.

Michael Hannum, 64. Omaha, Nebraska.

Charge: Four counts illegal voting

Conviction: Three counts illegal voting

Sentence: $5,500 fine

What happened: Voted in both Johnson County, Kansas, and Nebraska in 2012 election

ABSENTEE BALLOTS FILLED IN BY CAMPAIGNER

Felon: Samuel Jean filled in ballots

Samuel Jean, 43. Campaign worker. Homestead, Florida.

Charge: Two felony counts of unlawfully marking ballot

Conviction: No contest to two felony counts of unlawfully marking ballot

Sentence: Probation, no conviction on official record

What happened: Filled in absentee ballots during 2013 mayoral election in Homestead

CONGRESSMAN'S TOP AIDE AND THE 1,800 BALLOTS

Fake the vote: Jeffrey Garcia (left) was chief of staff to Joe Garcia (right), the unrelated Democratic Congressman, when he was involved in a bid to have 1,800 absentee ballot requests made for voters who had not asked for them

Jeffrey Garcia, 41. Chief of staff to Congressman Joe Garcia. Miami-Dade County, Florida.

Charge: Election fraud Conviction: Election fraud

Sentence: 90 day jail, banned from political campaign work or volunteering

What happened: Directed campaign for Congressman Joe Garcia (D) to submit 1,800 absentee-ballot requests on behalf of unsuspecting voters.

$10 COCAINE BAGS FOR VOTING RIGHT WAY

Texas 2012: A cocaine-bribery ring was discovered at a school board election and a major federal prosecution unfolded

Caught up in scam: Five people were convicted after federal investigation into the Donna School Board, Texas, elections on 2012. The FBI and US Attorney do not routinely release mugshots of convicts

Guadalupe Escamilla, 72. Weslaco, Texas.

Charge: One count vote-buying

Conviction: One count, federal election fraud

Sentence: Time served, three years probation

What happened: Part of a vote-buying ring which traded $10 bags of cocaine or cash equivalent for votes in 2012 Donna Independent School Board election.

Rebecca Gonzalez, 44. Donna, Texas.

Charge: One count vote-buying

Conviction: One count, federal election fraud

Sentence: Four months jail, two years probation

What happened: Part of a vote-buying ring which traded $10 bags of cocaine or cash equivalent for votes in 2012 Donna Independent School Board election.

Diana Balderas Castaneda, 48. Donna, Texas.

Charge: One count vote-buying

Conviction: One count, federal election fraud

Sentence: Not recorded

What happened: Part of a vote-buying ring which traded $10 bags of cocaine or cash equivalent for votes in 2012 Donna Independent School Board election.

Veronica Slavidar, 42. Donna, Texas.

Charge: One count vote-buying

Conviction: One count, federal election fraud

Sentence: Not recorded

What happened: Part of a vote-buying ring which traded $10 bags of cocaine or cash equivalent for votes in 2012 Donna Independent School Board election.

Francisco Garcia, 47. Donna. Texas.

Charge: Four counts total of buying votes, paying for votes, aiding abetting others to buy votes

Conviction: Conspiracy, three counts election fraud

Sentence: 18 months custody

What happened: Handed out the dime bag of cocaine and cash in return for votes in 2012 Donna Independent School Board election.

CHICKEN DINNER, VODKA FOR VOTING AS REQUESTED

Father and son fraud: Hudson Hallum (left) was a Democratic state representative in Arkansas; he, his father Kent and others schemed to buy bundled absentee ballots

Hudson Hallum, 31. State Representative (Democratic). Marion, Arkansas.

Charge: Conspiracy to commit election fraud Conviction: Conspiracy to commit election fraud

Sentence: Nine months home detention, three years probation

What happened: Schemed to buy bundled absentee ballots with chicken dinners and vodka as part of four-strong ring

Kent Hallum, 54. Father of state representative. Marion, Arkansas.

Charge: Conspiracy to commit election fraud Conviction: Conspiracy to commit election fraud

Sentence: Nine months year home detention, three years probation

What happened: Schemed to buy bundled absentee ballots with chicken dinners and vodka as part of four-strong ring

Sam Malone, 32. Police officer. West Memphis, Arkansas.

Charge: Conspiracy to commit election fraud Conviction: Conspiracy to commit election fraud

Sentence: 7.2 months home detention, three years probation

What happened: Schemed to buy bundled absentee ballots in 2011 statewide elections with chicken dinners and vodka as part of four-strong ring

Phillip Carter, 44. Councilman. West Memphis City, Arkansas.

Charge: Conspiracy to commit election fraud Conviction: Conspiracy to commit election fraud

Sentence: One year home detention, three years probation

What happened: Schemed to buy bundled absentee ballots with chicken dinners and vodka as part of four-strong ring

THE ABSENTEE BALLOT-FILLING RING

No Reynolds defense: Olivia Lee Reynolds, 66, and Daniel Webster Reynolds were part of a scheme to fill out absentee ballots illegally - some in favor of her boyfriend Amos Newsome

Olivia Lee Reynolds, 66. Girlfriend of district commissioner. Dothan City, Alabama

Charge: 24 counts absentee ballot fraud

Conviction: 24 counts absentee ballot fraud

Sentence: Two years prison reduced to six months jail

What happened: Filled out absentee ballots in 2013, at least four of them in favor of her boyfriend Amos Newsome who was running for district commissioner against wishes of the voters.

Daniel Webster Reynolds 39. Dothan, Alabama.

Charge: Three counts absentee ballot fraud

Conviction: Three counts absentee ballot fraud

Sentence: Two years probation.

What happened: Schemed with Olivia Lee Reynolds to fill out absentee ballots for Reynolds' boyfriend, Amos Newsome in 2013

More of them: Lesa Coleman (left) and Janice Hart (right) were part of the same scheme to fill out absentee ballots

Lesa Coleman, 50. Dothan, Alabama.

Charge: Seven felony counts absentee ballot fraud

Conviction: Seven counts absentee ballot fraud

Sentence: 180 days jail, three years probation

What happened: Schemed with Olivia Lee Reynolds to fill out absentee ballots for Reynolds' boyfriend, Amos Newsome in 2013

Janice Hart, 65. Dothan. Alabama.

Charge: Felony absentee ballot fraud

Conviction: Misdemeanor absentee ballot fraud

Sentence: Two years probation, one year suspended jail

What happened: Schemed with Olivia Lee Reynolds to fill out absentee ballots for Reynolds' boyfriend, Amos Newsome in 2013

LISTS OF THE DEAD AND MULTIPLE ABSENTEE BALLOTS

Boletera: Deisy Cabrera helped campaign for Democratic Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart and State senator Rene Garcia - but was found with 12 absentee ballots and a list of voters

Deisy Cabrera, Hialeah, Miami, Florida. Helped campaign for Democratic Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart and State senator Rene Garcia

Charge: Felony absentee ballot fraud, two misdemeanor ballot frauds

Conviction: Two misdemeanor ballot frauds

Sentence: Year of probation

What happened: Found with 12 absentee ballots for 2012 Miami-Dade mayoral election and a list of 500 voters saying which were illiterate, blind, dead or had Alzheimer's. Cabrera was described in the Miami Herald as a boletera - a 'small-time ballot broker' who operate in a shady world of being paid to turn out or collect absentee mail-in votes. Under local laws the practice is legal. It is almost impossible to know if an absentee ballot has been filled in by the person whose name it is in, and done so in accordance with their wishes.

MAGISTRATE AND HIS WIFE WHO WENT VOTE-BUYING

Come home to roost: Gary 'Rooster' Risner was a magistrate in Kentucky - but he and his now ex-wife were part of a conspiracy to buy votes for $50 a voter

Gary 'Rooster' Risner. Magistrate. Salyersville, Magoffin County, Kentucky.

Charge: Vote-buying, conspiracy

Conviction: Seven counts of vote-buying

Sentence: Convicted in August 2016, awaiting sentence

What happened: :Democrat Risner was part of conspiracy to pay $50 to voters to back the right slate in county elections then submit absentee ballots for candidates including county Judge-Executive Charles 'Doc' Hardin

Tami Risner. Ex-wife of magistrate. Salyersville, Magoffin County, Kentucky.

Charge: Vote-buying, conspiracy

Conviction: Seven counts of vote-buying

Sentence: Convicted in August 2016, awaiting sentence

What happened: Risner recruited vote sellers as part of conspiracy to pay $50 to absentee voters to back the right slate in county elections

AND STILL AWAITING TRIAL: THE 'MEXICAN REPUBLICAN'

Rosa Maria Ortega, 35. Grand Prairie, Texas

Charge: Five counts of voting as a non-citizen

Conviction: Awaiting trial
on private property while protesters say its tribal land

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Armed soldiers and police dressed in riot gear arrested 141 protesters who set up a camp on disputed land to block construction of the $3.7billion Dakota Access Pipeline.

Several protesters were led away and put in trucks, including at least one who was handcuffed, as authorities converged on the camp in North Dakota.

Law enforcement officers and soldiers driving trucks, military Humvees and buses began to advance at midday and formed a horseshoe-like loop once they reached the camp, where about 200 protesters were waiting for them  some defiant and others praying.

Officials used a loudspeaker to warn protesters to move out as two helicopters and an airplane monitored the operation from the air.

Tires burn as armed soldiers and law enforcement officers stand in formation on Thursday to force protesters off disputed land where they had camped to block construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline

One protester took a picture of this woman, who they said was sprayed with mace while she prayed during the protest

Demonstrators stand near armed soldiers and law enforcement officers. Several protesters were led away and put in trucks, including at least one who was handcuffed, as authorities converged on the camp

Protesters moved in over the weekend to establish a camp on private land where a developer was working to complete the 1,172-mile pipeline that stretches across four states and is designed to carry oil from western North Dakota to Illinois

Thursday's confrontation was the escalation of a dispute that has raged on for months and become the largest demonstration of Native Americans in modern history.

Protesters moved in over the weekend to establish a camp on land where a developer is working to complete the 1,172-mile pipeline, which stretches across four states and is designed to carry oil from western North Dakota to Illinois.

The route of the pipeline skirts the Standing Rock Reservation, where the Sioux tribe says it could endanger water supplies and disturb cultural sites. The state claims no sensitive cultural sites have been found in the area.

Protesters began setting up teepees and tents on Sunday to mark off their camp, which they say is located on tribal land, according to CNN.

Authorities have claimed the group was trespassing on private property and called in reinforcements from seven other states to forcibly remove the protesters.

Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier said in a statement that the protesters' actions 'forced law enforcement to respond'.

'I can't stress it enough, this is a public safety issue,' he said. 'We cannot have protesters blocking county roads, blocking state highways or trespassing on private property.'

Police and soldiers driving trucks, military Humvees and buses began to advance at midday and formed a horseshoe-like loop once they reached the camp, where about 200 protesters were awaiting them on Thursday

The confrontation escalated a dispute that has raged on for months and become the largest demonstration of Native Americans in modern history

The route of the pipeline skirts the Standing Rock Reservation and the Sioux tribe says it could endanger water supplies and disturb cultural sites

Authorities have claimed the group was trespassing on private property and called in reinforcements from seven other states to forcibly remove the protesters. About 100 remained as of Thursday afternoon

But Robert Eder, a 64-year-old Vietnam War veteran from the Standing Rock Reservation, said protesters would return.

'If they take everybody to jail, there will be twice as many tomorrow, and every day that passes more will come,' he said.

Law enforcement officials demanded that the protesters voluntarily leave the disputed land on Wednesday, but they refused.

Thick fog and cloudy skies on Wednesday appeared to stall the law enforcement effort, but the sun came out on Thursday with scattered clouds and a light breeze.

Officials have frequently monitored protesters by air and the Federal Aviation Administration is restricting flights over the Cannon Ball area until November 5, allowing only aircraft affiliated with the North Dakota Tactical Operation Center and banning drones.

With the exception of the small area near the Standing Rock Reservation, the Dakota Access Pipeline is almost finished.

It is being built through the Dakotas, Iowa and Illinois by the Texas-based company Energy Transfer Partners.

The battle over the pipeline escalated earlier this month after a federal appeals court dissolved an administrative injunction that requested Energy Transfer Partners to 'voluntarily pause all construction activity' within the contested area.

It was an unprecedented joint move by the Department of Justice, Department of Army and the Department of Interior, according to ABC News.

And the judges who denied the Sioux tribe's request to continue blocking construction seemed to agree, adding in the appeal that they 'can only hope the spirit of Section 106 may yet prevail'.

Law enforcement officials demanded that the protesters voluntarily leave the private land on Wednesday, but they refused

Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier said in a statement that the protesters' actions 'forced law enforcement to respond'

With the exception of the small area near the Standing Rock Reservation, the Dakota Access Pipeline is almost finished

The section, which is in the National Historic Preservation Act, requires federal agencies to take into account the effects of their undertakings on historic properties.

It also states that federal agencies must give the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation a reasonable amount of time to comment.

Sioux tribal leaders have said they were never consulted before the pipeline's construction began.

The protest has since drawn the attention of activists and celebrities, including Shailene Woodley, Mark Ruffalo, Susan Sarandon and Leonardo DiCaprio.

Ruffalo arrived in North Dakota on Tuesday with solar trailers that will provide protesters with clean energy to power medical tents and other facilities at the camp, according to EcoWatch.

The Spotlight actor, who co-founded clean and renewable energy non-profit The Solutions Project, also called on state Gov. Jack Dalrymple to deescalate the situation at Standing Rock on Thursday.

'The whole world is watching!' Ruffalo tweeted. 'You are responsible.'

Ruffalo previously called the pipeline a 'black snake' running through four states.

'We know from experience that pipelines leak, explode, pollute and poison land and water,' he said. 'But it doesn't have to be that way.'

Protesters began setting up teepees and tents on Sunday to mark off their camp, which they say is located on tribal land (they are pictured here setting up camp along the North Dakota Highway 1806 on Monday)

Mary Young Bear, of Tama, Iowa, cooks buffalo and potatoes over a campfire on Monday at the campsite

Leonardo DiCaprio and activist Rev. Jesse Jackson said on Wednesday that they were on their way to North Dakota.

Chris Hemsworth also took time out of the final day of filming for Thor: Ragnarok to express his support for the protesters.

Still dressed in his Thor costume, Hemsworth and Taika Waititi, the film's director, held up a sign that read: 'We stand with Standing Rock #WaterisLife #NoDAPL #Mniwiconi'.

'Standing with those who are fighting to protect their sacred land and water,' Hemsworth wrote in the caption of the picture, which was taken on the set outside the Gold Coast of Australia.

Hemsworth said he also wanted to take the opportunity to apologize for wearing the 'traditional dress of First Nations people' at a Lone Ranger themed party last New Year's Eve.

'I was stupidly unaware of the offense this may have caused and the sensitivity around this issue,' he wrote. 'I sincerely and unreservedly apolgoize to all First Nations people for this thoughtless action.'

'I now appreciate that there is a great need for a deeper understanding of the complex and extensive issues facing indigenous communities. I hope that in highlighting my own ignorance I can help in some small way.'

Woodley made headlines earlier this month when she was arrested at Standing Rock after protesting for more than two-and-a-half hours on October 10.

The Divergent actress was taken into custody for criminal trespassing with 26 other protesters and spent the night behind bars.

Woodley wrote a lengthy piece about her arrest after she was released, asking readers why so many of them had only heard about the controversy surrounding the pipeline after she was taken into custody.

'The day I was detained, 26 others had to dress in orange as well, as they were booked into the Morton County jail. Did you hear about them?' she wrote in TIME.

Shailene Woodley made headlines earlier this month when she was arrested (pictured left) at Standing Rock after protesting the pipeline for more than two-and-a-half hours on October 10

Woodley wrote a lengthy piece about her arrest after she was released, asking readers why so many of them had only heard about the controversy surrounding the pipeline after she was put behind bars

The protest has also drawn the attention of activists and celebrities including Mark Ruffalo (pictured with Dallas Goldtooth of the Indigenous Environmental Network), Susan Sarandon and Leonardo DiCaprio

The Spotlight actor, who co-founded clean and renewable energy non-profit The Solutions Project, also called on state Gov. Jack Dalrymple to deescalate the situation at Standing Rock on Thursday

Chris Hemsworth also took time out of the final day of filming for Thor: Ragnarok to express his support for the protesters with the film's director Taika Waititi

'Twenty-six men and women who put their livelihoods on the line, to protect their children, your children and my future children.'

'Twenty-six men and women who realize that millions of people depend on the Missouri River for drinking water.'

Like Ruffalo, Woodley then argued that the pipeline would eventually break and leave 'millions of people' with 'crude-oil-contaminated water'.

'I know it is easy to be apathetic or detached from the reality that fossil fuel contamination could actually affect you and the ones you love,' she wrote.

But hear me loud and clear: If you are a human who requires water to survive, then this issue directly involves you.'

'Don't let the automatic sink faucets in your homes fool youthat water comes from somewhere, and the second its source is contaminated, so is your bathtub, and your sink, and your drinking liquid.'

'We must not take for granted the severity of this truth.'

Woodley also shot down reports that the protesters had been anything but peaceful.

'I am not scared. I am not afraid. I am grateful, and I am amazed to be standing by the sides of so many peaceful warriors,' she wrote.

'Standing Rock "protests" are rooted in ceremony and prayer. I've been there.'
Never-before-seen photos show the burnt out, mangled wreckage of the air disaster which killed the French boss of oil giant Total and three crew members.

Oil tycoon Christophe de Margerie's Falcon 50 private jet exploded in a fireball at Vnukovo Airport, Moscow, after clipping a snowplough on the runway during take off.

Haunting pictures from the official crash report show how the plane landed upside down, instantly killing the 60-year-old oil tycoon hours after he had met with Russian prime minister Dmitry Medvedev.

Blackened debris scattered the runway and the plane's nose and wing had been ripped from the collapsed cabin.

Wreckage: Never-before-seen photos show the burnt out, mangled wreckage of the 2014 air disaster which killed the French boss of oil giant Total and three crew members

Burned out: Shocking pictures show the charred cockpit on board the Falcon 50 private jet which exploded into a fireball in Moscow after clipping a snowplough during take-off

Plane parts: Blackened debris scattered the runway and the plane's nose, pictured, had been ripped from the collapsed cabin after the smash during take off at Vnukovo Airport, Moscow. The stricken jet burst into flames and crashed back down onto the tarmac

Killed: Total boss Christophe de Margerie's body was found lying on the cabin floor and his seat belt was unfastened, according to a report by Russia's Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC). Pictured: Mr de Margerie with his wife at a dinner in 2010

A piece of the snowplough was embedded into one of the wings after the October 2014 disaster.

A scathing report by Russia's aviation regulator, the Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC), blamed several airport staff and a catalogue of blunders for the fatal crash.

They included snowplough driver Vladimir Martynenko and his supervisor Vladimir Ledenev, who it ruled had been drinking before the crash.

But trainee air traffic controller Svetlana Krivsun, then 23, who gave the order to take off in foggy conditions was cleared of any responsibility.

She was initially charged after the crash and ended up losing her baby from a stress related illness over the possibility of being jailed for up to seven years.

Her lawyer said in court: 'My client had a miscarriage as a result of the continuous nervous tension.'

Four airport staff are on trial over the crash; Ms Krivsun's supervisor Alexander Kruglov, snowplough driver Martynenko, his supervisor Ledenev and the airport's head of air traffic control, Roman Dunaev.

Martynenko and Ledenev were tested for alcohol around three hours after the crash, which found low levels of alcohol in their blood.

Crash photos: A scathing report by Russia's aviation regulator blamed several airport staff and a catalogue of blunders for the crash in which the jet collided with a snowplough on the runway. Pictured: Official photos show the snowplough had struck the plane's left wing

Not to blame: Glamorous trainee air traffic controller Svetlana Krivsun, pictured, then 23, was cleared over the air disaster, even though she gave the order to take off in foggy conditions

Cleared: Ms Krivsun, pictured, was pregnant when she was arrested and charged over the crash. She lost her baby from a stress related illness because she faced seven years' jail

Errors: The report laid some of the blame on Ms Krivsun's supervisor Alexander Kruglov for 'failing to notice how the snowplough had twice driven onto the working runway'. Pictured: Charred right wing of the Falcon 50 jet

Tragedy: Rescuers found Mr De Margerie's body lying in the passenger cabin 'with his head down' and with his seat belt unfastened, the report said

The report said the alcohol poisoning level in their blood could have negatively influenced their actions.

Martynenko, who denies being drunk, penned a letter begging for forgiveness from the victims' families.

Martynenko and Ledenev have both pleaded guilty in the ongoing trial and face up to seven years in jail. Kruglov and Dunaev have pleaded not guilty.

The report said Ledenev allowed snowploughs onto a runway, often used by Vladimir Putin for domestic and foreign trips, without permission from the ground transport controller.

The report added Kruglov was at fault for 'failing to notice how the snowplough had twice driven onto the runway'.

It also blamed the two pilots, saying the disaster could have been avoided if they had aborted the take-off when they first saw the snowplough 'and used all available braking methods'.

It said the late decision to abort take off could have been down to the 'emotional state of the crew', having endured a 'long wait' at the 'unfamiliar airport' in bad conditions - and wished to return home as soon as possible.

The report placed some of the blame on the two pilots, saying the disaster could have been avoided if they had aborted take-off when they first saw the snowplough. Pictured: The crashed plane's landing gear

Blackened debris was scattered both on and off the runway and the plane's nose and wing had been ripped off from the fuselage. Pictured: Debris strewn on the grass around the airport

Photos from the official investigation into the crash also revealed how a piece of the snowplough, pictured, had embedded into one of the wings

Snowplough driver Vladimir Martynenko and head of shift Vladimir Ledenev were tested for alcohol around three hours after the crash. Low levels of alcohol were found in their blood

The report said the level of alcohol found in driver Martynenko and his supervisor Ledenev's blood could have 'negatively influenced' their decision making. Pictured: Ledenev in court

Snowplough driver Martynenko, pictured on trial, who denies being drunk at the time of the crash, wrote a letter to the victims' families begging for their forgiveness

Supervisor Alexander Kruglov, pictured, is one of four airport staff on trial over the crash. He has been criticised in a report into the tragedy and faces seven years' jail if convicted

It said said rescuers found Mr de Margerie lying in the passenger cabin 'with his head down' and that 'his seat belt was not fastened'.

It also criticised airport safety procedures and claimed there were insufficient measures to make sure staff did not drink on the job.

Mr De Margerie oversaw multibillion pound Total investments in Russia and was killed just as the conflict in Ukraine raised tensions with the West to levels not seen since the Cold War, triggering economic sanctions against Moscow.

Martynenko and Ledenev both pleaded guilty in the ongoing trial and face up to seven years in jail. Pictured: The air traffic control room where permission to take off was given

Mr De Margerie, pictured, oversaw multibillion pound Total investments in Russia and was killed just as its conflict in Ukraine raised tensions with the West

He was one of few Western business leaders in supporting Russia, and questioning the sanctions being imposed on Moscow, though he once labelled Putin 'terrifying' to negotiate with.

Married with three children, he was also known for his good humour and trademark white moustache.

Mr De Margerie steered Total through tough times, defending the company against allegations of corruption during the 'oil-for-food' programme in Iraq.
An Ohio college student who ditched class to head to the opening game of the World Series in Cleveland has won a reprieve from his professor by being honest.

Ohio University professor Damian Nance said Charlie Turner checked into his Tuesday class by swiping a card.

But he wasn't there when Nance took attendance at the end of the session.

Student Charlie Turner (right) ditched class to head to the opening game of the World Series in Cleveland, but won a reprieve from his professor by being honest

Turner came clean after Nance emailed him, asking for an explanation.

'Can you explain this, or should I take it as deceit, for which I have zero tolerance?' Nance asked.

The student told his professor his father had gotten him tickets to the Indians game against the Chicago Cubs - and even included a picture of himself and his brother at Progressive Field.

'I'll be completely honest I came and swiped and gave the kid next to [me] my homework because my dad got us tickets for the World Series in Cleveland,' Turner wrote.

Turner came clean after Ohio University professor Damian Nance (left) emailed him, asking for an explanation

The student told his professor his father had gotten him tickets to the Indians game against the Chicago Cubs -and even included a picture of himself and his brother at Progressive Field

'I'm sorry I didn't want to miss the attendance and I did the homework. I understand if you have repercussions.'

Nance responded by calling it 'an impeccable excuse' and 'no repercussions.' He also added 'Go Tribe!'

He said he let Turner off the hook, not because he's a big Indians fan, but because the student 'fessed up.'

And Turner posted the entire email exchange on Twitter, where it's gone viral with more than 13,000 likes.
Bill Clinton got a rock star's welcome tonight on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh when he made a surprise appearance at one of the Clinton campaign's 'Love Trump Hate' concerts, featuring Jon Bon Jovi.

Bon Jovi, only playing for about 30 minutes, apologized to the crowd at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall for the concert being on 'short notice and not a long show,' though asked them to please come out for Hillary Clinton on election day, as Pennsylvania is a swing state.

'Now, nobody knows how tough that job is except for maybe one person I do know,' the rocker said. 'Will you please welcome to the stage, the 42nd president of the United States, William Jefferson Clinton,' Bon Jovi said to loud shrieking.

Clinton sauntered on stage and talked about what an 'amazing week' he's had. The ex-president just concluded a two-day bus tour of Eastern North Carolina, where he held a number of rallies, but also got to pop into businesses, hold babies, shake hands and take selfies, which he clearly enjoyed.

But that wasn't the cake on top, as he revealed onstage with the rocker.

'I had one of my great cheap thrills of my whole life this week cause I'm on the cover of Billboard magazine with Bon Jovi,' the ex-president revealed.

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Bill Clinton surprised those in attendance at tonight's 'Love Trumps Hate' Bon Jovi concert, which took place on the University of Pittsburgh's campus

After making his surprise entrance, Bill Clinton shook hands with the crowd, who were gathered at Soldiers and Sailors hall, expecting just to see Jon Bon Jovi

Rock star Jon Bon Jovi only played for about 30 minutes, before handing the stage over to Bill Clinton who asked students and other attendees to vote for his wife

'And you're right, he looks a lot better than I do,' Clinton laughed, as an audience member yelled 'handsome' when the president had tried to find the right adjective to describe Bon Jovi's philanthropic work.

Clinton eventually settled on 'effective.'

'But he's a younger man,' Clinton continued, but then added, 'He looked better than I did 30 years ago.'

Bill Clinton said it was a 'cheap thrill' to be on the cover of Billboard magazine alongside Jon Bon Jovi

Bon Jovi is one of the star supporters who's performing in swing states as part of the Clinton campaign's 'Love Trumps Hate' series, with the name clearly meaning to knock Republican nominee Donald Trump.

The aging rocker will do a second 'Love Trump Hates' show a week from Saturday in Tampa, Florida.

Tomorrow, Bill Clinton will make two more Western Pennsylvania campaign stops, in Beaver and then Blair counties, before heading to the opposite side of the state.

Bon Jovi also appeared alongside Bill Clinton last month, at the ex-president's final Clinton Global Initiative in New York City.

The musician was accepting an award at the conference, part of the Clinton Foundation, but refused to answer questions about whether he thought the Clintons were engaged in a pay-to-play scheme between the charity and the State Department.

'I'm not here for that,' he said to DailyMail.com, grinning and wagging a finger.

Bon Jovi explained that his love for Bill Clinton, went back to the former Arkansas governor's original presidential run.

Last month at the Clinton Global Initiative, rock star Jon Bon Jovi attributed Bill Clinton's 1993 inaugural speech for transforming him into a philanthropist

Rocker Jon Bon Jovi (left) joined Bill Clinton (right) onstage at the Clinton Global Iniaitive last month as he credited the ex-president for opening his eyes to charitable giving

'I loved him from the moment I saw him on television campaigning for president in 1992,' Bon Jovi told reporters at CGI. 'When he first came onto the national scene he inspired my generation to get involved in community. It was a younger energy that came into the White House.'

It was Clinton's 1993 inaugural that became the mantra for the rocker's future charity work.

'Many years ago when he said, "There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America," it was inspiration to the Soul Foundation and its inception,' Bon Jovi said.

Bill Clinton gushed about the rock star too, when he took the Manhattan stage.

Bon Jovi had preformed an acoustic version of 'Help.'

'And one of the great gifts  I'll just make this last point and we'll go home  that Jon Bon Jovi has is that he can make more out of a Beatles song than anybody I know.'

While Jon Bon Jovi happily appeared at the Clinton Global Initiative, he wouldn't talk about criticism being hurled at the foundation from Republicans including Donald Trump

Clinton shared that he, his daughter Chelsea and her husband Marc had gone to the Rainbow Room for a 'delayed 70th birthday party.'

The former president turned 70 on August 19.

'And if you're my age you know the lyrics to at least two dozen songs,' Clinton continued.

He noted how the rocker could have sang any one of his own songs.

'But Bon Jovi sang for me on my birthday something that all our honorees have had to live by and learn,' Clinton said, as a handful of people were given awards for inspiring volunteerism.

'In the darkest of times, with the deepest of divisions, with the bitterness of hatred and the stupidness of short-sightedness, the only great hit written by George Harrison: "Here Comes the Sun,"' Clinton said.

Tonight at Pitt, Bon Jovi played that tune again saying it would be the final song of the evening.

Though really it served as an introduction to the ex-president.

'This has been a pretty good month for all of us baby boomers because Bob Dylan also won the Nobel Prize,' Clinton pointed out. 'Bob Dylan's version of "Here Comes the Sun" is "Forever Young."'

'That's what I want to say to you young people here,' he continued. 'Those of you who have more tomorrows than yesterdays have a big stake in this election.'
Nearly 100 federal inmates are set to be released early after intervention from Barack Obama - meaning the outgoing President has commuted more sentences than his 11 predecessors combined.

A clemency push has sped up in recent months, and on Thursday 98 had their sentences reduced.

Obama has now cut short the sentences of 872 inmates, including 688 this year. The latest batch included 42 who were serving life sentences, the White House confirmed.

The clemency push has sped up dramatically in Barack Obama's final months as President, and he has now commuted more sentences than the previous 11 presidents combined

By comparison, George W. Bush granted 11 commutations, and Bill Clinton approved 61.

The previous 11 presidents, from Harry Truman to George W. Bush, issued 690 between them. Since 1900, the president to grant the most commutations was Woodrow Wilson, Justice Department figures reveal. He approved 264.

COMMUTATIONS ISSUED BY THE LAST 11 PRESIDENTS George W. Bush (2001-2009) - 11 Bill Clinton (1993-2001) - 61 George H. W. Bush (1989-1993) - 3 Ronald Reagan (1981-1989) - 13 Jimmy Carter (1977-1981) - 29 Gerald Ford (1974-1977) - 22 Richard Nixon (1969-1974) - 60 Lyndon Johnson (1963-1969) - 226 John F. Kennedy (1961-1963) - 100 Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961) - 47 Harry S. Truman (1945-1953) - 118 Advertisement

The administration has said the move recognizes the 'personal stories' behind the sentences, and reflects Obama's belief that onerous sentencing requirements put tens of thousands behind bars for far too long, largely as a result of the 'War on Drugs' in the 1980s and 90s.

But critics, including Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, have attacked the policy, accusing Obama of being soft on crime.

At a campaign rally in August, Trump told supporters: 'Some of these people are bad dudes.

'And these are people who are out, they're walking the streets. Sleep tight, folks.'

The President's White House counsel, Neil Eggleston, said: 'These are individuals - many of whom made mistakes at a young age - who have diligently worked to rehabilitate themselves while incarcerated.'

Most of the prisoners had been convicted of nonviolent drug crimes, mostly involving cocaine or methamphetamine.

'Some of these people are really bad dudes': Presidential candidate Donald Trump hit out at Obama's clemency drive at a campaign rally in August

Some were also serving time for firearms violations in connection to drug trafficking, possession or sales. Almost all are men who come from every corner of the US.

Earlier this month 102 sentences of mostly nonviolent drug offenders were commuted.

These included Lancell Maurice Harris, from Arkansas, who had been jailed for 421 months in 1993 for drug and firearm charges. He is now set to be released in February.

Some of the prisoners will be released early next year, while some will not be freed until as far forward as October 2018.

President Woodrow Wilson, pictured in 1916, granted the most commutations in the 20th century, with 264, but this still leaves him a long way behind Obama

Among those listed for early release is Massachusetts drug dealer Alberto Lopez, who was serving a life term plus six years' supervised release after being convicted of possession and conspiracy charges related to distribution of heroin and cocaine.

He is due to be set free in February next year.

Obama has used the aggressive pace of his commutations to increase pressure on Congress to pass a broader fix to the justice system while using his executive powers to address individual cases where possible.

Obama has said that onerous sentencing requirements put thousands behind bars for too long

Though both parties in Congress have called for a criminal justice overhaul, momentum has mostly petered out, although both Republicans and Democrats agree the issue needs fixing.

Obama has been calling for years for phasing out strict sentences for drug offenses, arguing they lead to excessive punishment and incarceration rates unseen in other developed countries.

With Obama's support, the Justice Department in recent years directed prosecutors to rein in the use of harsh mandatory minimums.
One of Hillary Clinton's top advisers was aghast at her private email server problems, the newest Wikileaked emails show.

Talking to John Podesta, Clinton's campaign chairman whose emails were hacked, Center for American Progress president Neera Tanden used strong language in late July of 2015 to discuss the ongoing scandal.

Do we actually know who told Hillary she could use a private email?' she asks in a late night email on July 25. 'And has that person been drawn and quartered?'

'Like whole thing is f***ing insane,' she remarked.

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The Center for American Progress' Neera Tanden called Hillary Clinton's private email server 'f***ing insane' and wondered if the person who advised it was 'drawn and quartered'

The Wikileaks release of Hillary Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta's emails shows top advisers complaining about Clinton's 'terrible' instincts and decisions

She and Podesta were discussing the email scandal and also Sen. Bernie Sanders' rise in the poll as Clinton, who had once been considered an easy shoe-in for the nomination, became exposed.

Tanden told Podesta, who headed CAP before rejoining Clinton world and becoming part of the campaign, that she was supposed to go on CNN and talk to Jake Tapper about the newest set of polls.

'They wouldn't tell me results but if I had to guess it - discerning from our prep call -will show Bernie doing pretty well w Hillary and doing as well against Jeb or close to it,' Tanden thought.

Podesta responded with a burn for Sanders.

'PS can you imagine what the Republicans would do to him if he were the nominee?' Podesta wrote.

Answering that email about an hour and a half later, Tanden suggested Podesta not jump to conclusions right yet.

'Well, let's see what the poll actually says,' she said at 7:15 p.m. 'Let's hope the Democratic party is not suicidal.'

Then, a little after midnight, she wrote Podesta back, calling the whole email scandal 'f***ing insane.'

Two of Hillary Clinton's top advisers - John Podesta (left) and Neera Tanden (center) were caught griping about their Democratic candidate

Leaked conversations between Podesta and Tanden have already shed light on how irked even some of Clinton's closest allies were with the news of her secret server and the damage it created for her politically.

A similar back-and-forth, dated September 6, 2015, came at a point in the campaign when many in Democratic circles expected Vice President Joe Biden to jump into the race.

Podesta and Tanden both used the adjective 'terrible' to describe Clinton's instincts and decisions.

'How are you feeling about things?' Tanden asked Podesta.

The campaign chairman, who started the Center for American Progress after leaving the Clinton White House, replied, 'Biden will get in.'

'We are still way more likely than not to win nomination,' Podesta assured Tanden.

'We've taken on a lot of water that won't be easy to pump out of the boat,' he continued. 'Most of that has to do with terrible decisions made pre-campaign, but a lot has to do with her instincts.'

Podesta noted how Clinton was 'nervous' so she was 'prepping more and performing better.'

'Got to do something to pump up excitement but not certain how to do that,' he added.

Tanden wrote back saying how she was not a 'sycophant' to Podesta 'by any means.'

'But the thing that makes me most confident she will prevail is that you are there,' she said, complimenting the longtime Clinton ally.

'Almost no one knows better me that her instincts can be terrible,' Tanden also acknowledged.

In a previous email exchange, the duo seemed miffed by Clinton's decision to use a private email server while at the State Department, a scandal that ended up plaguing the entirety of the former secretary of state's presidential campaign.

'Speaking of transparency, our friends Kendall, Cheryl and Philippe sure weren't forthcoming about the facts here,' Podests wrote in an email from March 15, the same day the news broke about Clinton's personal email use

Podesta was referring to David Kendall, Clinton's counsel, along with her top State Department aides Cheryl Mills and Philippe Reines.

'Why didn't they get this stuff out like 18 months ago? So Crazy,' Tanden said.

She then answered what she had been pondering.

'I guess I know the answer: They wanted to get away with it,' she said.

Trump happily mentioned Podesta's comments last Wednesday at the final presidential debate in Las Vegas.

John Podesta, shown on Hillary Clinton's campaign plane, pushed back against Trump quoting him in Las Vegas, saying Clinton was the 'best leader for the United States'

'Now, John Podesta said you have terrible instincts. Bernie Sanders said you have bad judgment. I agree with both,' the Republican nominee said, addressing Clinton onstage in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Afterward Podesta argued to DailyMail.com that the frankness in his emails, don't undercut his argument for his chosen candidate.

'No, I think, you know, I love Hillary Clinton and I think if any fair reading of what I've said about her or what I think about her indicates that I think she is someone who's a tremendous leader who's gotten tremendous results for kids, for families, for people throughout her public service,' he said.

'So if Donald Trump wants to quote me, than he should fully quote me that she is the best leader for the United States, she's got a tremendous leadership skills,' Podesta said.
A plastic surgeon is broadcasting graphic operations and before-and-after photos of his patients on Snapchat to promote his practice to a wider audience.

Dr. Kourosh Tavakoli, who runs a cosmetic and plastic surgery clinic in Sydney's Double Bay, has joined a growing social media trend of using the photo-sharing app.

Under the Snapchat handle @DrTavakoli2, the Australian surgeon shares his candid snaps of consultations, results and check-ups with breast augmentations, nose jobs and tummy tucks.

Dr. Tavakoli also shares footage of operations, but says he has limited the number to one per week after he received complaints the content was too gruesome to watch.

'We've moved away a little bit away from Snapchatting surgeries because we had a lot of feedback about it being too gory and too much, so it's now less of a huge feature,' he told Pedestrian TV.

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Australian plastic surgeon Dr. Kourosh Tavakoli (left) has been broadcasting his before-and-after cosmetic procedures on Snapchat to promote his practice to a wider audience

Under the Snapchat handle @DrTavakoli2, the surgeon shares his candid snaps of consultations, results and check-ups with breast augmentation

Before going ahead, Dr. Tavakoli asks permission from patients to take images and videos - and up to 50 per cent agree for him to do so.

'They might not consent to surgical video, but a lot do consent to being filmed post-operation in consults and things. I guess because they're awake and they're more in control,' he said.

Patients are required to sign a consent form he calls 'foolproof' to allow him to use photos and videos of their before-and-after.

Dr. Tavakoli started the social media trend just seven months ago - and the platform has become popular among women aged between 18 and 28.

He said the Snapchat channel has attracted new clients, with many even considering plastic surgery later down the track after watching his procedures.

'There's no denying it's been a good thing for the surgery,' he said.

And not only does Snapchat offers an insight into what it's like to go under the knife, but the channel has been used as an educational tool and marketing platform.

The Sydney-based surgeon snaps before-and-after procedures of breast augmentation

One of his clients has detailed her experience on the online forum Cosmetic Journey after undergoing a breast augmentation surgery in June.

'When he was drawing on me he said "so you on Snapchat" and I was like "yes, you can put me on Snapchat Dr T",' she said.

'It was quite brutal looking back on it but I think it provides a really good insight into what went on in your operation.

'He will definitely ask you as I think he's really trying to make his Snapchat big.'

Dr. Tavakoli started the social media trend just seven months ago - and it has been a hit online

Before going ahead, Dr. Tavakoli asks permission from patients to take images and videos

Dr. Tavakoli takes his inspiration from renowned US plastic surgeon Dr Michael Salzhauer, who snaps under @DrMiami.

However, the American surgeon does not shy away from gruesome shots, showing the slicing and incisions, fatty tissues being removed and every implant that goes in.

Giving an honest account of cosmetic surgery procedures, blood, bruising and scarring are clear to see in his Snapchat account.

He has attracted millions of fans for his graphic snaps of breast augmentation, nose jobs, thigh lifts and bum boosts.
The family of legendary horse racing trainer Bart Cummings are involved in a bitter legal battle over his multi-million dollar estate.

Cummings, known as the Cups King after winning 12 Melbourne Cups during his illustrious career, died in August 2015 at the age of 87.

But according to The Australian, his daughters Sharon Robinson and Anne-Marie Casey are disputing their father's will and are now involved in court proceedings to resolve the issue.

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Horse racing trainer Bart Cummings (left), pictured celebrating the 2008 Melbourne Cup win of Viewed with jockey Blake Shinn, died in 2015 and his will is now being bitterly contested

Anne-Marie Casey (right), the daughter of legendary trainer Bart Cummings, is challenging her father's will in court, while son Anthony (left) wants it to be carried out as stated

Valmae Cummings, the wife of horse racing trainer Bart, has been dragged into a bitter legal battle over her husband's will involving her son and daughters

Cummings' son Anthony is reportedly keen for the estate to be divided up as per the specific details in the will and testament and is allegedly upset that his ageing mother Valmae has now been dragged into the family row.

The legal battle began in the NSW Supreme Court on Friday morning, although the matter was quickly adjourned until February 2017. Justice Francois Kunc is scheduled to hear proceedings again next year, but it is expected that the feuding Cummings family will enter into private mediation talks before then.

Despite Bart Cummings' decades of success on the track, he was almost declared bankrupt in the early 1990s after becoming involved in a disastrous tax minimisation scheme that led to debts of $29m.

Anne-Marie Casey, who is challenging her father Bart Cummings' will in court, speaks at the state funeral for the legendary horse racing trainer in Sydney in September 2015

Bart Cummings (second left) won a phenomenal 12 Melbourne Cups as a trainer between 1965 and 2008, before passing away in 2015 at the age of 87

James Cummings (left), the grandson of legendary trainer Bart, is pictured with wife Monica and daughter Adeline. James trains Prized Icon who will race in the Victoria Derby on Saturday

In the end he was forced to do a deal that gave 75 per cent of his income for five years to creditors, but he bounced back and his 60 hectare Princes Farm property in the foothills of the Blue Mountains is believed to be worth around $20m alone.

The Cummings family showdown comes just days before the 2016 Melbourne Cup at Flemington racecourse in Melbourne, with the Carnival kicking off on Saturday with the Victoria Derby.
Harold Martin, 51, is accused of stealing some 500 million pages of information while working as a National Security Agency contractor

Classified information stolen by a former National Security Agency contractor included the names of covert intelligence officers, according to a federal court filing on Thursday.

Harold Thomas Martin III, 51 of Maryland, is accused of stealing some 500 million pages of information  including 'numerous names of intelligence officers of the United States,' court records show.

'Additionally, numerous intelligence sources and methods for highly sensitive intelligence operations would be rendered nearly useless should they fall into the wrong hands,' prosecutors wrote.

FBI agents found a treasure trove of government data in Martin's home, car and property  both in stacks of papers and digital storage devices.

Prosecutors said the crime is 'is breathtaking in its longevity and scale."

FBI agents found a treasure trove of government data in Martin's home, car and property  both in stacks of papers and digital storage devices

A complaint unsealed earlier this month charged Martin, a Navy veteran, with theft of government property and unauthorized removal and retention of classified materials, which together carry a combined maximum of 11 years in prison.

But if prosecutors bring additional charges under the Espionage Act, Martin may be exposed to far more severe penalties if he's convicted.

Martin was arrested around the same time federal officials acknowledged an investigation into a leak online of purported NSA hacking tools.

The group leaking the information called itself the 'Shadow Brokers,' but there is nothing in court filings connecting Martin to that group.

Martin's attorneys will ask a federal judge Friday to consider freeing him from custody as his case proceeds.

US Magistrate Judge A. David Copperthite denied that same request last week, agreeing with prosecutors that Marin is a flight risk, given that enemies of the United States would love to learn more about the top secret information found at his home.

Edward Snowden was also a Booz Allen Hamilton employee and contractor for the NSA when he stole and leaked highly classified documents to journalists, revealing the NSA's bulk collection of millions of Americans' phone records

In arguing that Martin should remain locked up, federal prosecutors said in their filing that a 'substantial portion' of the 50 terabytes of digital information seized from Martin at his home was 'highly classified.'

That information included the names of intelligence officers who operate 'under cover outside the United States' and could endanger their lives, the safety of those they work with and could compromise American intelligence operations.

Martin's public defenders James Wyda and Deborah Boardman have argued that the former US Navy lieutenant was merely a compulsive hoarder and a voracious learner who got carried away, taking home documents in a misguided effort to be more skilled at his job.

A complaint unsealed earlier this month (pictured) charged Martin with theft of government property and unauthorized removal and retention of classified materials, which together carry a combined maximum of 11 years in prison

They said 'he loves his family and his country' and that there's no evidence he shared the information with a foreign nation or intended to.

Edward Snowden was also a Booz Allen Hamilton employee and contractor for the NSA when he stole and leaked highly classified documents to journalists, revealing the NSA's bulk collection of millions of Americans' phone records.

Booz Allen Hamilton fired Martin as soon as the company learned of his arrest and said in a statement Thursday that it had hired former FBI Director Robert Mueller to review its security practices.

Spokesman Craig Veith said Mueller has been reviewing the company's security, personnel, and management processes and practices since Oct. 19 and that the company is 'determined to learn from this incident.'
Seven and Nine breakfast show hosts fired barbs on social media

The legal case has been settled ahead of Friday's scheduled court hearing

On Friday, an email from Nine's executive producer to staff was leaked

But Seven hit back, saying Sunrise had more viewers in regional areas

Nine Network claims Today show was number one breakfast program

The ongoing ratings feud between broadcasters Seven and Nine has seen the stars of the rival breakfast show claim on social media they 'won' the ratings war.

Both Nine's Today host Lisa Wilkinson and Seven's Sunrise host Samantha Armytage tweeted congratulating their own show as the most-watch Australian breakfast show.

The tweets came after a legal case was settled before hitting the Federal Court on Friday morning after Nine reportedly agreed to not refer to the Today Show as 'number one'.

According to News.com.au Nine released a statement this morning claiming Seven had seen fit to drop the case against the Today show, and the hosts took to social media to express their opinion.

Today Show co-host Lisa Wilkinson tweeted on Friday saying Channel Seven had backed down

Seven's Sunrise host Samantha Armytage also tweeted claiming Channel Nine conceded

Lisa Wilkinson followed up with a tweet claiming Today's ratings can't be beaten in 2016

Sam Armytage posted these ratings under the Sunrise logo on her instragram a few hours after sending out tweets on the ratings war

The feud ignited when the executive producer of the Nine Network's breakfast program accused Seven of acting like a 'narky kid' and 'bad losers' in an email sent to his staff.

The Seven Network launched legal action on Saturday after Nine sent out a press release claiming the Today show had 'triumphed' in the 2016 ratings as Australia's favourite breakfast program.

Seven fired back, saying its breakfast program Sunrise has more viewers when regional audiences are counted.

'They're behaving like the narky kid who gets beaten in a kick-about on the oval,' Nine's executive producer Mark Calvert told staff, a leaked email obtained by Mumbrella revealed.

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Seven's Sunrise host Samantha Armytage recieved backlash from some when she tweeted claiming her program was number one

The executive producer of the Nine Network's breakfast program, The Today Show (pictured) accused Seven of acting like a 'narky kid' and 'bad losers' in an email sent to his staff

The Seven Network (Sunrise hosts David Koch and Samantha Armytage pictured) launched legal action on Saturday after Nine sent out a press release claiming the Today show had 'triumphed' in the 2016 ratings as Australia's favourite breakfast program

Seven's Sunrise host Samantha Armytage tweeted congratulating their own show during the feud on the most watched breakfast show in Australia

Today Show co-host Lisa Wilkinson (right) with her co-host Karl Stefanovic (left)

'They're Donald Trump, only accepting the result if he wins.

'They're bad losers. They've forgotten that breakfast television is fun'.

Mr Calvert signed off the email by saying his network was 'undeniably and indisputably' number one in the five capital cities.

He also thanked his staff producing 'the greatest breakfast show on TV'.

The legal case was settled before the hearing after Nine reportedly agreed to not refer to the Today Show as 'number one'.

But, Today Show co-host Lisa Wilkinson tweeted on Friday saying Channel Seven had backed down.

'Channel 7 drops its court case & now concedes Today Show has won the official OZTAM breakfast show ratings for 2016,' she wrote.

'They're behaving like the narky kid who gets beaten in a kick-about on the oval,' Nine's executive producer Mark Calvert (pictured) told staff, a leaked email revealed

The legal case was settled before the hearing after Nine reportedly agreed to not refer to the Today Show (hosts Karl Stefanovic and Lisa Wilkinson pictured) as 'number one'

Seven claimed its breakfast program Sunrise (pictured) has more viewers when regional audiences are counted

Nine had claimed their Today breakfast show was the number one program in the early morning timeslot with 21 of the 40 official ratings weeks in Australia's five major cities, the Australian reports.

But Seven hit back, claiming their programme had more viewers when audiences in metro and regional regions are counted.

Seven lodged a statement of claim in the federal court.

Seven believed Nine's representations were false, misleading and deceptive because they did not consider about 7 million Australian viewers.

Co-host of the Today breakfast Show Lisa Wilkinson was quick to celebrate the show's apparent success in a Tweet on Friday.

Nine claims their Today breakfast show was the number one program in the early morning timeslot with 21 of the 40 official ratings weeks in Australia's five major cities

Co-host of the Today breakfast Show Lisa Wilkinson was quick to celebrate the show's apparent success in a Tweet on Friday

'A huge thank you to all our fabulous, loyal viewers who have just made @TheTodayShow the No1 breakfast show in the country,' she posted to her 220,000 followers.

Even the estranged wife of Today co-host Karl Stefanovic, Cassandra Thorburn, celebrated the success of Nine in a Facebook post, where she also addressed how his job impacted their family.

'Apparently Today Show finally won a year,' Ms Thorburn wrote online.

'This took a huge toll on my family and I, and I'm congratulating myself today for all the effort that went into making that (the ratings) happen.'

'I'm giving myself a pat on the back tonight, as I know many people will also know how much effort I put into it,' she continued in her post.
Shocking CCTV has captured the moment a woman desperately tried to cling to her handbag as she was robbed outside a shopping centre.

The 67-year-old woman was heading home from the shops in Darwin on Wednesday evening when a young man crept up behind her and threw her to the ground.

A distressing security video shows the man following the woman as she leaves the Hibiscus Shopping Centre before attacking her.

Shocking CCTV has captured the moment an elderly woman desperately tried to cling to her handbag as she was robbed outside a shopping centre

The thug is seen tackling the woman to the ground from behind and grabbing her bag, but she refuses to let go and is dragged along the ground for several metres.

Putting up a fight, she clings to the bag and at one point the man loses his hold.

But he comes back again, seizing the bag and leaving the scene, while the woman is left lying on the pavement.

Northern Territory Police are appealing for help tracking down the man, who attacked the woman at about 10.40pm on Wednesday.

Officers described the brazen thief as being of indigenous appearance and say he is slim and aged between 18 and 25.

He was also said to have dark collar-length wavy hair and a beard. At the time of the attack, he was wearing dark trousers and a dark top.

The 67-year-old woman was heading home from the shops in Darwin on Wednesday evening when a man crept up behind her and threw her to the ground

Putting up a fight, the woman clings on to her possessions and at one point the thug loses his hold on her handbag, but he eventually gets away with it

Detective Acting Senior Sergeant David Allan said: 'This is a cowardly attack on an innocent person and Police ask anyone with any information to come forward.

'Police and St John Ambulance attended, the woman was conveyed to Royal Darwin Hospital for swelling and grazing to her legs and shoulder. She has since been released.'
Last month, it was revealed that she had started walking again

Kim emerged from coma more than a month later and has faced a long recovery

Kayla Canedo, 19, Brittany Feldman, 20, Christina Semeria, 19, and Halle Scott, 19 all died in the April wreck

She was released from hospital on Wednesday where she had been recovering from a brain injury

Agnes Kim, 21, was left in a coma after the crash in Georgia on April 27

The only survivor of a fatal car crash that killed four University of Georgia sorority girls has been released from hospital six months after the horrific accident.

Agnes Kim, 22, was released from the Shepherd Center on Wednesday where she had been recovering from a brain injury, according to the AJC.

She will continue her daily rehabilitation at Shepherd Pathways in Decatur in her long road to recovery following the wreck that killed her classmates in April.

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Agnes Kim, 22, was released from the Shepherd Center on Wednesday where she had been recovering from a brain injury. She is pictured here (sitting in her wheelchair) in a photo believed to have been taken after she was awarded her marketing degree by the university

The five University of Georgia students were in Kim's Toyota Camry (pictured) on April 27 that ended up in a ditch on Georgia State Route 15 just outside Watkinsville

'Ms. Kim's family is grateful for the outpouring of support from the community,' the Shepherd Center told the AJC in an emailed statement.

'However, they continue to request privacy.'

Kim was critically injured in the crash along Georgia State Route 15 on April 27 after her white Toyota Camry drifted into another lane and hit another car.

Her friends and fellow students Kayla Canedo, 19; Brittany Feldman, 20; Christina Semeria, 19; and Halle Scott, 19, were all killed.

Kim was left in a coma and woke up more than a month later.

Kayla Canedo (left) and Christina Semeria (right) were killed in a crash along with two other University of Georgia students in April

Halle Scott (left) and Brittany Feldman (right) also died in the crash around along Georgia State Route 15

She was awarded her marketing degree by the university at spring graduation ceremonies two days after coming out of her coma, according to the AJC.

Since May 12, she has been recovering from her traumatic injuries at the Shepherd Center and only recently started talking.

Last month, she released a short video from her hospital bed in Atlanta to thank her supporters following the wreck.

In the footage posted on a YouCaring page, she smiled as she told people she is getting better.

Kim (left and right) was critically injured in the crash after her white Toyota Camry drifted into another lane and hit another car. She was left in a coma and woke up more than a month later

She said: 'Hello, my name is Agnes. Thank you for praying for me. I am getting better. Thank you. I love you all.'

Her friends, who set up the page to help cover her medical bills, then gave an update on her progress.

They said she had started walking, noting it was a 'huge step' in her recovery.

'It has been truly humbling to see how many prayers and how much support has been flooding the Kims' way, and we're amazed to see how the Lord has been faithful in hearing our petitions,' they wrote.

Kim and her friends had been heading north in her Camry when it veered into the southbound lanes and was struck on the passenger side by a blue Chevrolet Cobalt, a Georgia State Patrol said in a preliminary report.

Troopers said they do not suspect alcohol was a factor in the crash and no charges have been filed. Pictured from left, Brittany Feldman, Kayla Canedo and Christina Semeria

It is not known why the Camry drifted into the other lane, however, the State Patrol said troopers do not suspect that alcohol played a role in the crash.

The crash occurred near the Hot Thomas Barbeque restaurant, just outside Watkinsville, 11Alive reported at the time.

The driver of the other vehicle, Abby Short, 27, of Demorest, Georgia, an EMT for Athens, was taken to a hospital but released a short time later.

At the time of the crash, Short was on the Bluetooth in the car with her mom, her fiance told the student-produced newscast, Grady Newsource.

The heartbreaking 911 call she made moments after the two-car accident was released in April.

'The car swerved in front of me and I couldn't stop,' she can be heard telling the 911 dispatcher. 'I'm just hurting a lot. I'm sorry.'

The car carrying the five UGA students hit a blue Chevrolet Cobalt (above) after they veered onto the wrong side of the road

In the call, Short, who was leaving her job at National EMS in Athens when the accident happened, sounded frantic and shaken up as she speaks with the 911 dispatcher.

'I've been in an accident,' Short can be heard saying at the beginning of the call. 'I'm on 15, I don't know where I am.'

The 911 dispatcher asks her if she sees anything around her or a business, to which Short replies no and that she just got on the highway.

'Where am I at? I'm on 15. I'm in a lot of pain ma'am. I'm sorry,' Short tells the dispatcher frantically.

Now that Kim has been released from the Shepherd Center, she will continue her daily rehabilitation at Shepherd Pathways in Decatur

The dispatcher tells her that she is going to send an ambulance, but she needs a location.

Short tells her that another car pulled in front of her and her ankle and 'belly' hurts.

The dispatcher realizes that she knows Short personally and tries to reassure her to stay calm and still throughout the nearly seven minute recording until the call ends as help arrived.

Both cars were travelling at a high speed but no drugs or alcohol were found in either vehicle, he told CBS46.
miles with part being a no fishing zone

The world's biggest marine reserve aimed at protecting wildlife in Antarctica will is set to be created after Russia dropped its long-held opposition.

The deal was sealed by the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) at an annual meeting in Hobart after years of negotiations.

It will see a massive US and New Zealand-backed marine protected area established in the Ross Sea.

The world's biggest marine reserve aimed at protecting wildlife in Antarctica will is set to be created after Russia dropped its long-held opposition. Pictured are penguins in the Antarctic

It will cover more 600,000 square miles -roughly the size of Britain, Germany and France combined - of which 434,000 square miles will be a no fishing zone.

New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully said: 'The proposal required some changes in order to gain the unanimous support of all 25 CCAMLR members and the final agreement balances marine protection, sustainable fishing and science interests.

'The boundaries of the MPA, however, remain unchanged.'

The Ross Sea is one of the last intact marine ecosystems in the world, home to penguins, seals, Antarctic toothfish, whales and huge numbers of krill, a staple food for many species.

It is considered critical for scientists to study how marine ecosystems function and to understand the impacts of climate change on the ocean.

Moscow was the last government opposing the move, largely due to concerns over fishing rights, after China offered its support last year.

The deal will see a massive US and New Zealand-backed marine protected area established in the Ross Sea

Evan Bloom, head of the US delegation at the meeting told AFP: 'We had a lot of talks with them.

'Secretary (John) Kerry reached out to Russian President (Vladimir) Putin and (Foreign Minister Sergei) Lavrov and I think that helped a great deal to convince Russia to come on board.

'This decision is very important not just for the Antarctic but for efforts to promote world marine conservation.'

Moscow has signalled more commitment to conservation in recent times, designating 2017 as the Year of Ecology.

The Ross Sea is named after British explorer Sir James Ross and his great, great, great granddaughter Phillipa Ross said the family was thrilled it was safeguarded

It moved in August to significantly increase the size of a protected zone around Franz Josef Land in the Arctic.

The Ross Sea is named after British explorer Sir James Ross and his great, great, great granddaughter Phillipa Ross said the family was thrilled it was safeguarded.

She explained: 'The Ross family are euphoric that our family legacy has been honoured in the 175th anniversary year since James first discovered the Ross Sea, thanks to the individuals and organisations who have poured their hearts and souls into campaigning for its protection.
pigs have also prompted further debate on eating meat

A family of piglets dressed as pumpkins are winning the hearts of thousands of people on social media.

The video shows the tiny piglets rooting around a pumpkin patch in New York City.

The main stars of this adorable family are Priscilla and Poppleton who have 648,000 Instagram followers @prissy_pig, their own book, toys and merchandise.

Video of family of pigs dressed as pumpkins for Halloween is catching the hearts of many on social media

The video of the miniature pigs in New York is being shared all over Facebook and Instagram

The group leaders are Priscilla and Poppleton who have 648,000 Instagram followers, their own book, toys and merchandise

Prissy and Pop live in Florida with their other farm siblings and often dress up for their fans

The two miniature pigs, also known as Prissy and Pop, live in Florida, with their other cute farm siblings.

They share their regular piggy adventures on their Instagram including exploring the mountains where they live and showing off their outfits in their pram as they travel around the country meeting some of their fans.

They share their regular piggy adventures on their Instagram including exploring the mountains where they live and showing off their outfits in their pram

And really who could resist that little pink snout?

As MailOnline previously reported the two mini pigs have become social media sensations after posing for stylish snaps on the internet and their most recent video has again brought up the debate on eating meat.

The cute pair of stylish swines live with their 'mother' Melissa Nicholson, in Ponte Vedre Beach, Florida.

The video has sparked a debate over whether we should eat meat, especially mass produced meat

The pig's owner Melissa likes to spread the message that 'animals are friends not food

Teacher Melissa will spend her time dressing her pet pigs up to the nines, with bow-ties, ruffles and caps - and then the trio will go to play on the beach and pose for pictures for the pigs' Instagram page.

Teacher Melissa will spend her time dressing up her cheeky pet pigs and then posting pictures online

Melissa dresses Priscilla (pictured) and her brother up in specially made little outfits - much to the delight of the pigs' growing online fanbase

Glamorous Priscilla and her brother Poppleton, posing here on the beach, have 261,000 Instagram followers

The pair will even come to school with Melissa, dressed in tailored blazers - much to the delight of the students.

Melissa said: 'The little pigs have totally impacted upon my life. They bring so much unconditional love to my life.

'My niece started the Instagram page @prissy_pig and we didn't think that it would would be so popular. I remember thinking it would be nice to hit 500 followers. When we hit 100,000 I was amazed- and I still am.'

Animal lover Melissa first became interested in pigs while at University in rural Alabama, when she used to visit pig farms.

Melissa said her niece started the Instagram page @prissy_pig abut they had no idea at the time that it would would become so popular. She says she is 'amazed' by the response

The cute pair of stylish swines named Priscilla and Poppleton live with 42-year-old Melissa Nicholson in Florida

Melissa got Priscilla (right) when she was just six weeks old says she just knew she was an all pink girl. Poppleton (left) has slightly more masculine outfits but often ends up dressed in pink too

The pigs' favourite food is Cheerios and Peanut butter. Melissa says Priscilla and Poppleton love snacks and her schoolchildren have been encouraged to eat healthier so that they can share their food with the little pigs

When a friend posted a picture of a pet mini pig on Facebook, Melissa knew it was the pet for her.

She said: 'I got Priscilla when she was six weeks old and I just knew she was an all pink girl.'

'She loves hugs, is very affectionate and an attention seeker.

'The pigs have given me an awareness that animals are friends not food. I have become a vegetarian again after 20 years.

Melissa says documenting her pigs' lives daily has become a hobby for her so she just tries to have fun with it

The adorable little pigs have become social media sensations after posing for stylish snaps on the internet

When a friend posted a picture of a pet mini pig on Facebook, Melissa knew it was the pet for her

'Priscilla and Poppleton love snacks and the schoolchildren have been encouraged to eat healthier so that they can share their food with the pigs.

'The pigs' favorite food is Cheerios and Peanut butter.

Melissa started dressing up the pampered pigs after taking some seasonal pictures of the pair in Christmas and Halloween outfits, which were originally meant for puppies.

Now she dresses the pigs up all the time in specially made little outfits - much to the delight of the pigs' online fans.

Melissa said: 'Sometimes there is pressure to take pictures for special holidays or occasions, because there is a deadline and I don't want to disappoint fans.

Melissa started dressing up pampered pigs Poppleton (pictured) and Priscilla after taking some seasonal pictures of the pair in Christmas and Halloween outfits, which were originally meant for puppies

Melissa says the pet pigs have given her an awareness that animals are friends and not food

Melissa says the little pigs bring so much unconditional love to her life and changed the way she views animals

'However, it has become a hobby for me, so I just try and have fun with the pictures, documenting their lives on a daily basis.

And for Melissa, the famous piggies are more than just cute pets.

She added: 'I hope to help use Priscilla and Poppleton as spokes piggies to help find homeless animals and to raise awareness that 'animals are friends not food.

'I've started by using them to help my students learn compassion and responsibility and what it takes to care for a pet'.

The pair will even come to school with Melissa, dressed in tailored blazers - much to the delight of the students

Melissa says she hopes to help use Priscilla and Poppleton as spokes piggies to help find homeless animals and to raise awareness that 'animals are friends not food

Melissa says that sometimes there is pressure to take pictures for special holidays or occasions, because there is a deadline and she does not want to disappoint the pigs' fans

Teacher Melissa uses her pigs to help her students learn compassion and what it takes to care for a pet
When the Soviet Union collapsed a quarter of a century ago, the United States indulged in a rash surge of triumphalism. The rest of us simply hoped for a new era of amicable coexistence  even friendship  with the Russian people.

It was not to be. Today, President Vladimir Putin presides over Russian military posturing on a scale unseen since the Seventies at least.

He has massed 330,000 troops on his countrys western frontiers; dispatched a carrier task group through the English Channel to join the murderous bombing of Syria; put 40 million Russians through civil defence exercises, allegedly as a precaution against U.S. nuclear attack; and unveiled a new intercontinental ballistic missile which can supposedly overcome any defence.

A Yars RS-24 intercontental ballistic missile trundles through the Red Square in Moscow earlier this year during the parade to mark the 71st anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany

Some Westerners dismiss all this as mere sabre-rattling by Putin, to deflect his peoples attention from their parlous economic plight.

There is a strand of truth in this. Modern Russia is nothing like as powerful or dangerous as the Soviet Union. But its neighbours  including Sweden, Finland, the Baltic states  are more alarmed than at any time since the Cold War.

Britain and other Nato nations are seeking to provide reassurance by dispatching a few squadrons of warplanes and token troop contingents to the most threatened regions.

Nobody imagines 900 U.S. soldiers in Poland, or 800 British troops in Estonia, can stop a Russian army.

But these tripwire forces are designed to convince Putin that the price of launching another military adventure against his neighbours will be a showdown with the Western powers, under the terms of Natos mutual defence pact.

Vladimir Putin attending a Russian People's Front meeting in the Crimea, which he annexed from the Ukraine in 2014. The annexation was a test and the West failed

The question persists, of course: will the master of the Kremlin believe this?

So often during his 16 years of power have the Americans and their allies threatened him with consequences for bully-boying, whether in Georgia, Ukraine or Syria. And so often, his actions have remained unpunished.

Most of historys conflicts, including two world wars, have come about because of nations misreading each others intentions, or because an aggressor overplayed his hand.

We should not think of Putin alongside the Kaiser or Hitler, but rather with Kim Il-Sung, the North Korean leader who invaded the South in 1950 because he was sure Washington would not intervene, or Soviet leader Khrushchev in 1962, deploying missiles in Cuba, or Saddam Hussein invading Kuwait in 1990.

All of these men acted as they did because they thought they could get away with it.

A host of people died  or almost did, over Cuba  before they learned differently.

For his part, Putin is an absolute ruler who presides over a reality of his own which bears little relationship to that which we see. Within his closed Kremlin circle, nobody rash enough to argue with him keeps his job or fortune.

Like many of his countrymen, he sees Russia as the victim of a Western conspiracy to defraud it of rightful greatness.

He believes the US should accept Russia has a legitimate sphere of influence across the old Soviet Union, which includes Georgia, Ukraine  and the Baltic States, which are members of both Nato and the EU.

Putin would like to be like Stalin. Among many Russians, the old monster, morally indistinguishable from Hitler, still commands reverence, because his country was respected in the world, if only because it was feared.

Moscow taxi drivers sometimes carry miniature portraits of him on their windscreens. Who can imagine their counterparts in Berlin doing the same with images of the Nazi leader?

Because the Soviet Union was a victor in 1945 in what Russians call the Great Patriotic War, they have never been forced to confront the failure of almost everything associated with Bolshevism.

Russia since 1917 has built many formidable weapons systems including the T-34 tank, AK-47 assault rifle and Katyusha rocket system, together with modern fighter aircraft, space probes and state-of-the-art cyber weapons.

Bizarrely, however, the Russians have yet to develop a single consumer product that anybody beyond their borders would choose to buy.

Underlying the communism of the Soviet era was the Russian nationalism which even a Georgian, Stalin (pictured), played on, christening the struggle against Germany as the Great Patriotic War

Putin has developed a new economic model, replacing Soviet collectivism with a gangster entrepreneurialism.

Individuals selected and continuously monitored by the Kremlin are allowed to make money  and Putin himself has acquired a fortune which is said to be as large as 140 billion.

Yet there is no independent judiciary, no legally enforceable property rights, and the KGBs successor, the FSB, wields unchallengeable authority.

Before the 2008 financial collapse, and largely on the back of oil and gas exports, Russia enjoyed a precarious success, with growth of 7 per cent a year. For the past eight years, however, the economy has been shrinking, the population falling and incomes in decline along with oil and gas prices.

It is the failure of Putins domestic policies that has caused him to turn to military adventurism abroad, even at the cost of economic sanctions imposed by the West.

What is remarkable, and indeed frightening, is that most Russian people seem happy to back their tsars campaign to restore through force a foreign influence they are incapable of securing by economic, social or cultural prowess.

The West is unlikely to live at ease with Russia unless or until the latter achieves the confidence and self-respect that can only be achieved through succeeding as a 21st-century society  manufacturing mobile phones and movies, cars and planes, lithium batteries and TV soaps that can command markets abroad.

Meanwhile we are left to cope as best we can with a Russian problem that has not much changed since the great U.S. diplomat George Kennan defined it in his Long Telegram from Moscow to the State Department in Washington in 1946.

At bottom of Kremlins neurotic view of world affairs, he wrote, is a traditional and instinctive Russian sense of insecurity... This thesis provides justification for that increase of military and police power of the Russian state...

Basically this is only the steady advance of uneasy Russian nationalism, a centuries-old movement in which conceptions of offence and defence are inextricably confused.

Kennan was explaining behaviour in line with Putins  albeit in 1946 and on a much larger scale.

We should never ignore the fact that the Kremlins deadly games in Syria, and even its 2014 annexation of Crimea, are small potatoes alongside Stalins 1945 seizure of an Eastern European empire with 90 million inhabitants, his 1948-49 blockade of Berlin, and much else.

George Kennans answer to the Russian problem back in 1946 is still the right one: containment.

The West must make plain that, however much it dislikes Putin, it has no wish to depose him, nor to interfere in Russias domestic affairs.

Beyond Russias borders, by contrast, Western leaders must start saying what they mean and meaning what they say. For the past decade they have failed to do so.

Natos European forces have been allowed to crumble, and the nations of Europe  including Britain  have left the U.S. to bear the burden of our common defence.

Worse, countries such as Germany and Italy refuse to display a principled willingness to participate in the use of force against anybody, for any cause, or in defence of any treaty. They simply hope that enemies will go away and leave them to mind their own business.

In Moscow, Putin sees this  and sneers.

President Obama (pictured) has ushered in an era of passivity which Russia has seen as appeasement and taken advantage of

President Barack Obama was right to recognise new limits to US power when he took office in 2009, after the disastrous tenure of George W. Bush and his Middle East incursion.

However, he was dead wrong in adopting a posture of passivity in the face of repeated acts of Russian aggression.

Perhaps the worst foreign policy failure of the Obama presidency was allowing President Bashar Al-Assad of Syria (who has been kept in power by Russia) to cross his red line with impunity by using chemical weapons against his own people.

It is hard to play poker with Putin, because he is a reckless gambler who could bring catastrophe upon us all by overplaying a hand that includes nuclear weapons.

But certainly, the more the Russian leader is allowed to get away with, the more flagrant will be his next act of aggression.

Western troops are being sent to the Baltic states because credible intelligence indicates that Putin is working to destabilise their governments, partly through subversion among their Russian minorities. He may conceivably even launch an armed intervention.

The first duty of the new U.S. president in January will be to convince the Kremlin that if it sends troops or surrogates into Estonia, Latvia or Lithuania, Nato really will fight.

Meanwhile, the peoples of Europe, including the British, must acknowledge that while nobody wants a war, least of all with the Russians, it is essential to show the resolution to defend our allies and vital interests.

With regard to Syria, the chaos is now too far advanced for the West to launch a useful military intervention. No local faction seems deserving of our support. The Russians are likely sooner or later to founder in the bloody morass they have contributed so much to creating.

On Russias western borders, however, the West must stand firm.

We can probably avert a war, however loudly and often Putin threatens one, but only if the West shows a strength of purpose in foreign policy, which it has been lacking for a generation.

It is a tragedy that Russia, which gave us Pushkin, Tolstoy and Tchaikovsky, should today seem capable of generating only lies, fear and reckless violence.
Women in Britain work nearly 12 days more a year than men due to sexism, a study claims.

The World Economic Forum said women put in 41 minutes more than men every day in paid and unpaid work.

They also revealed that the world gender equality gap is now at its most extreme since 2008. It is not forecast to close until 2186  170 years from now.

The Global Gender Gap Report looked at a range of indicators, including average salaries and positions of the sexes, in 144 countries to measure how equal they were.

Women in Britain work nearly 12 days more a year than men due to sexism, a study claims (stock image)

Britain was ranked 20th behind nations such as Nicaragua, Slovenia and even Rwanda. Across all the nations, women work on average 39 more days a year than men, or 50 minutes a day. In Britain, women spend 454 minutes per day on paid work while men put in 438 minutes, a difference of 16 minutes.

Additionally, women spend 57 minutes per day on unpaid work while men give up 32 minutes, a difference of 25 minutes.

Combining paid and unpaid work, women put in an extra 41 minutes every day.

Report author Saadia Zahidi said that inadequate childcare was a major problem in Britain. Mothers were not only expected to do their jobs but also look after the family. Another factor keeping women in Britain down was bias against them in the workplace, she said.

The report found that in Britain just 35 per cent of women occupy managerial roles and made up 26 per cent of boardroom roles.

When the annual report was started 11 years ago, Britain was ranked 9th but it has slipped down the rankings as other countries have advanced more quickly.

The study concluded: At the current rate of change, and given the widening economic gender gap since last year, it will not be closed for another 170 years.
A Riverside, California, house is displaying a dazzling, free light show this year which involves The Rocky Horror Picture Show song The Time Warp.

Jack o' lantern faces on the home appear to sing the words to the famous tune.

A Riverside, California, house is displaying a dazzling, free 30-minute light show this year which involves The Rocky Horror Picture Show song The Time Warp

Jack o' lantern faces on the home appear to sing the words to the famous tune

Kevin Judd's light show, which runs through October 31, began back in 2008, the Press Enterprise reported.

It used to be featured at the professional lighting designer's house, yet there were complaints and it was relocated two years ago to his friends Mark and Melanie Betty's Deercreek Drive residence, according to the newspaper.

Riverside shuts down the Bettys' street on show nights, according to a report from ABC News.

Kevin Judd's light show, which runs through October 31, began in 2008

It used to be featured at the professional lighting designer's house, yet there were complaints and it was relocated two years ago to his friends Mark and Melanie Betty's Deercreek Drive residence

The show involves around two weeks of preparation from Judd, his wife Amber and others, and features close to 400,000 LED lights, the report said.

Judd told the news outlet: 'Everything is LED so it uses very little power and were only running it 90 minutes four times per week.

'We calculated last year and it was like a whopping $1.50 extra for the month.'

A photo shows onlookers gathered for one of the light shows. Riverside shuts down the Bettys' street on show nights

Speaking to Inside Edition, he said: 'The display has been an ongoing process for several years.

'Everything was not just built this year, but if someone wanted to build everything from scratch... I would think it would take a few months.'
A countess called the NHS a disgrace over a 40 charge for a medical reference months after doctors saved her husbands life.

Multi-millionaire Sara Bathurst accused the health service of blackmail when she was asked to pay a GP to give her the all-clear for a gun licence.

The aristocrat, who as the High Sheriff of Gloucestershire is an official representative of the Queen, has now apologised for her Twitter rant.

Multi-millionaire Sara Bathurst accused the health service of blackmail when she was asked to pay a GP to give her the all-clear for a gun licence

Lady Bathurst received a letter from her GP explaining that there was a charge for a medical reference for her suitability for a gun licence

Lady Bathurst received a letter from her GP explaining that there was a charge for a medical reference for her suitability for a gun licence.

The doctor said the work was not covered by the NHS contract.

But the countess, who is also patron of a local hospital, saw red at the fee and posted a photo of a letter on social media along with a tirade at the health service. She tweeted: My doctors surgery have just demanded 40  blackmailing me into paying them to give police a medical reference for gun licence. disgrace.

The wife of Lord Bathurst has since deleted the tweets, blaming her reaction on being overtired because her husband is still recovering in an NHS hospital.

Labour county councillor Barry Kirby led calls for the countess to consider her position. He said: This goes to show how out of touch Lady Bathurst is about real life.

It is unfortunately quite common that NHS services now have to charge for things like this, but I think in this case it is acceptable that the NHS charge her  a gun licence is not exactly commonplace.

As the Queens representative for Gloucester I hope that she seriously considers her position, it is not acceptable to blatantly attack our fantastic local NHS services for doing their jobs.

'If she was really concerned about NHS charges then perhaps speaking to her high-profile friends would be a better course of action instead of falling out with local doctors on Twitter.

The wife of Lord Bathurst has since deleted the tweets, blaming her reaction on being overtired because her husband is still recovering in an NHS hospital

In August, Lady Bathurst, 52, paid tribute to the extraordinary medical staff who treated her 55-year-old husband Allen when he fell seriously ill

In August, Lady Bathurst, 52, paid tribute to the extraordinary medical staff who treated her 55-year-old husband Allen when he fell seriously ill.

He was admitted to Cheltenham General Hospital in late July suffering severe septic arthritis.

He was placed in an induced coma and on a ventilator machine for more than a week while life-saving treatment could be carried out.

Lady Bathurst is also a patron of Cirencester Hospital League of Friends.

Following the reaction to her outburst she has now apologised.

Responding to accusations that her tweet was ridiculous, she said: Put it down to a silly knee-jerk reaction and being somewhat overtired and concerned about life in general. No offence meant.

Yesterday she said her anger was not targeted at the NHS.
Tory MP Tim Loughton said face-to-face communication had never been more rare and remote

A former minister yesterday told how his daughter texted him from her bedroom asking him what was for dinner, as he warned that children were glued to their mobile phones.

Tory MP Tim Loughton said families were not talking to each other any more because children were addicted to social media.

He said face-to-face communication had never been more rare and remote and that many young people could no longer get up in the morning without putting pictures of their breakfast on sites such as Instagram.

Speaking during a Commons debate on young peoples health, the former childrens minister also warned that social media was not conducive to young peoples mental health.

In a sign of the times, he said: I had an example recently where one of my daughters, I wont name which one, basically put in her request for supper by text message and she was in her bedroom, to my wife and I in the kitchen.

He joked that his response was: Suppers off.

Recent figures showed children who spend more than three hours each school day on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter are more than twice as likely to have poor mental health.

A report from the Office for National Statistics showed that 12 per cent of children who spend no time on social networking websites have symptoms of mental ill health. But the figure rose to 27 per cent for those who were glued to the websites for three hours or more a day. A survey of 2,000 British parents earlier this year found adults typically send 5,800 texts and 260 emails to their partner and children each year  but they spend less than an hour with each other every day.

Mr Loughton said that although communication had become much easier, technological devices had replaced conversations in person. He said: The irony is that in a day when communicating has never been easier  by email, by social media, by mobile device, by tablet or whatever  communications between human beings face to face have never been more rare and remote.

You cant get up in the morning without the latest iPhone, without checking your Facebook, without tweeting what youre having for breakfast and Instagramming a photograph of what youre having for breakfast.

And thats just after youve got up.

Loughton said families were not talking to each other any more because children were addicted to social media

He added: The stresses to succeed in school and the hothouse of exams and testing are not conducive to the best of mental health unless some support is there to help young people through all sorts of challenges which we never had in my day. Mr Loughton also warned of the dangers of the web and the effect websites could have on young people.

He said those websites that encourage self-harm posed a very real risk and that sending sexual texts or images could come back to haunt youngsters online.

He said: In the old days a note passed across a classroom sealed with a loving kiss at worst might end up on a playground floor.

These days the equivalent, and the worst extremes of it is a form of sexting, goes viral and ends up on social media in perpetuity open to millions of people to see it.

Huw Merriman, the Tory MP for Bexhill and Battle, said he believed there was too much pressure being loaded on people too young.

He said: Social media and the internet, as pioneering as it is, is a curse on wellbeing.

The internet service providers need to be forced to do more. Every young person should have the right to have their web history expunged and deleted.

The latest Oxo TV advert reflects the way that childrens obsession with their mobiles has changed meal times.

The commercial, which aired for the first time this month, features teenagers playing on their phones at the table. One even takes a picture of her meal on her mobile and posts it online.
Nasal southern-English accents lend themselves to a type of know-allish pessimism. Television satirists used to mock such Eeyores.

Peter Cook had a character called E.L. Wisty who was a frightful gloomster.

If disaster occurred, Wisty would raise his lugubrious face and gaze at the camera with a bleak satisfaction.

Well there you go, hed say slowly in his thin, joyless tone.

Mr McDonnell is known  notorious  for his fiery political views on such matters as Marxism and Irish republicanism

Television comedians no longer satirise these doom-bucket bores, not least because they themselves nowadays mostly speak like E.L. Wisty.

And yet the spirit of Wisty was evident yesterday at the Institute of Mechanical Engineers, Westminster.

Indeed, he was standing at the lectern in the shape of John McDonnell, Shadow Chancellor.

Mr McDonnell is known  notorious  for his fiery political views on such matters as Marxism and Irish republicanism.

Some say he is the organised muscle behind Jeremy Corbyn.

And yet, incongruously, he has the most unexciting voice. It seldom varies in tone or volume. It just drones away, lightly Estuarine, nasal, a Middlesex mosquito, a Wisty de nos jours.

Rather cheery growth figures had just been announced.

Mr McDonnell turned to the audience with a face of waxen misery and declared that these statistics just showed Britain was going down the drain.

During his half-hour speech, journalists mobile telephones vibrated with a reaction from Downing Street to the news that Nissan had decided to build its new car model in Sunderland.

Theresa May hailed this fantastic news as a vote of confidence that we remain an outward-looking, world-leading nation.

Mr McDonnell, asked about this a few minutes later, said that the Nissan news was merely proof of the chaos of the current Governments economic policies.

Cheer up, John!

Mr McDonnell turned to the audience with a face of waxen misery and declared that these statistics just showed Britain was going down the drain

He had been introduced to the throng by Rebecca Long-Bailey, a 2015-intake Labour MP who has already shot to Shadow Treasury Chief Secretary (other contenders being unavailable).

Ms Long-Bailey announced that our economy needs stability now more than ever.

One can but admire her honesty. Replacing the Tory Government with Corbyn & Co would destabilise the country like nothing else. Perhaps our Rebecca (she has the lower face, disconcertingly, of Rodney Trotter from Only Fools and Horses) did not mean to say that.

Quite a crowd had gathered in the institutes red-chaired lecture hall. There must have been about 400 in the room, a genteel crew soothed beforehand by low-volume classical guitar.

It was the sort of music you imagine being played in the waiting room of a Harley Street shrink.

Mr McDonnell's speech was a marvellous litany of glumness (pictured here in House of Commons)

Apart from one or two old geezers with goatee beards and leather jackets, the audience would not have looked out of place at the well-to-do Festival Theatre, Chichester.

A woman in front of me was reading a book called Life Moves Pretty Fast.

She was stuck on the same page for ten minutes, so perhaps her own life moved more slowly.

Mr McDonnells speech was a marvellous litany of glumness: Abject failure of the Conservatives...cynical promises...under-investment and the slow draining of hope and pride from places that were once thriving communities...debt bubbles...grotesque trickle-up. I started to get the giggles, it was all so Wistyish.

Few winners, many more losers, droned Mr McDonnell, insecurity and poor pay...lost decade in earnings...a lifetime of debt and uncertainty...scorched-earth policy...hurtling towards a chaotic Brexit that will hurt the poorest...tearing up longstanding ties...rock-bottom wages and no public services...brutal, uncaring society...dystopia...job losses and businesses leaving the country...backdoor privatisations of the NHS.

Did he have nothing to celebrate? Apparently not.

Run-down our hard-won rights...job losses as high as 100,000...slump...an economy that has been weakened...vulnerable to shocks...chaos...left behind...chaotic...poison of austerity...chaotic...pain and suffering...six wasted years...chaos.
Students were also sent home with a strange photo of a woman in lingerie

One parent was forced to explain what a 'pervert' was to his 10-year-old

A man has been forced to explain what a 'pervert' is to his 10-year-old son after a Melbourne primary school sent home an assessment with highly inappropriate content.

Grade 5 students at Mount Waverley Primary School were given homework on Tuesday that asked them to assess 'inventions including 'anti-pervert' stockings and a 'flask tie' - a neck tie which conceals a pouch containing alcohol.

One boy needed to ask his parents 'what's a pervert?' in order to even understand the homework, according to the Herald Sun.

Students were sent home with inappropriate material including 'hairy leg stockings' which are said to repel perverts

The homework, given out to the 10 and 11-year-olds, included 'hairy leg stockings' which supposedly repel perverts.

Another proposed invention the children were asked to assess and give their opinion on was a 'coffee mug iron'. But the woman in the photo was wearing only a bra.

Mount Waverley Primary School in Melbourne (pictured) has come under fire for the inappropriate homework

The children were asked to draw the inventions in their work books, consider why they were created, and how well they would sell.

Parent Alan, who spoke anonymously, said he was shocked and appalled by the inappropriate images and their captions.

'The coffee mug-iron caption notes that it is "perfectly handy for those naughty ones who indulge in office romances",' he said.

'Perfectly handy for those naughty ones who indulge in office romances' this picture was captured for the children

He said the caption also noted that 'Nina in her silky black bra is not included'.

'So not only now am I having to explain to my son what a "pervert" is, but I have to explain why there is a woman in a bra in his homework,' he said.

Alan was left dumbfounded and angered at the fact his children were exposed to mature adult content without any parental permission.

The Grade 5 students were also asked to assess a 'flask tie' (pictured)

The relevance and appropriateness of the homework was questioned when it was sent home with the Grade 5 students

He said he was worried the homework was just the tip of the iceberg, concerned about what else his child and the rest of the class might be learning during school hours.

Mount Waverley Primary School principal Greg Paine told the parents the homework had been sent in error and had since been deemed inappropriate.

He said it didn't meet the high values the school upholds and was in the process of conducting an investigation to ensure it didn't happen again.

Mount Waverley Primary School principal Greg Paine (pictured) apologised for the homework which was deemed inappropriate

Mr Paine said the assessment was an honest mistake and apologised sincerely for the school's oversight.

Since Tuesday when the homework was sent home with the students, Mr Paine said he had received two official complaints and two emails.
Britain gave out more residence permits than any other country in the European Union last year  equivalent to granting one every 50 seconds.

Despite growing concerns about mass migration, the UK allowed a staggering 633,017 people from outside the EU to live here  a quarter of the 2.6million permits issued in Europe.

It was followed by Poland with 541,000, France with 226,000 and Germany with 194,000, according to the EUs statistics arm Eurostat.

Despite growing concerns about mass migration, the UK allowed a staggering 633,017 people from outside the EU to live here  a quarter of the 2.6million permits issued in Europe

Britain was the main destination in the European Union for non-EU citizens enrolling in education, handing out 229,097 study visas  43 per cent of all those handed out in the 28-nation bloc.

Another 118,080 came for work and 89,936 for family reasons.

The statistics will cause anxiety because curbing immigration was a key reason Britain voted to leave the EU in Junes historic referendum.

Ministers have increasingly come under fire for failing to get a grip on mass migration, which has increased strain on stretched public services.

In the year to March, net migration  the difference between those arriving in the UK minus those leaving  totalled a near record 327,000.

It is more than three times the Governments target  Prime Minister Theresa May has reiterated her long-standing commitment to cut the figure to below 100,000.

Residence permits allow non-EU nationals to stay in a country legally.

But because Britain does not have an official residence permit system, Eurostat uses UK visas as the nearest comparison - including work, study and family visas, but excluding visitors visas.

In the year to March, net migration  the difference between those arriving in the UK minus those leaving  totalled a near record 327,000. Stock image of a British passport

Home Office officials point out that visas do not indicate an individual wishes to stay in Britain, only how long the specific permit is valid for. This covers those who intend to reside for a few weeks to those arrivals coming for several years.

Most EU countries in the border-free Schengen zone, which Britain has opted out of, usually issue permits aimed at long-term residency.

The Eurostat figures showed Britain issued the fifth highest level of visas by population - 9.7 per thousand people.

Malta (23.1 permits per thousand people), Cyprus (18.4), Poland (14.3) and Sweden (11.3) were higher.

Some 32 per cent of permits handed out by Britain were given to US citizens  201,040  while 80,724 went to Chinese nationals and 71,651 were given to Indians.
The number of worshippers at Church of England Sunday services has dropped by 14 per cent in ten years.

Yesterdays figures confirm a steep decline in the ranks of the Anglican faithful at a time when evidence shows an accelerating fall in Christian belief in the country as a whole.

Sunday attendance, by which the CofE has long measured its congregations, fell to 752,460 in 2015, down from 764,000 in 2014 and around 875,000 in 2005.

The number of worshippers at Church of England Sunday services has dropped by 14 per cent in ten years (pictured is Wakefield Cathedral)

The figure dropped below a million in the late 1990s, prompting the Church to stop publishing it for a period, and is now less than half the numbers of the late 1960s. As well as the loss of one in seven members of Sunday congregations in a decade, there was an 18 per cent drop in the number of weddings in CofE churches, a 28 per cent drop in funerals and an 11 per cent fall in baptisms. Even the most popular services, at Easter and Christmas, showed a fall of 13 per cent and 14 per cent in attendance between 2005 and 2015.

Among the population as a whole, according to the 2011 national census, the number of people who call themselves Christians dropped by four million between 2001 and 2011, and the Christian share of the population fell from 72 per cent in 2001 to less than 60 per cent in 2011.

Since 2000, the Church has produced other ways of assessing the number of worshippers. One was average weekly attendance, first published in 2001, showing there were 1.3million people who went to church at some point in the week. That has now also dropped below a million to 960,000.

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby. Since 2000, the Church has produced other ways of assessing the number of worshippers

The CofE has now developed yet another way of counting  the worshipping community. This takes in anyone who goes to church at least once a month and includes people who, it is considered, would go to church if not prevented by illness or disability.

William Nye, secretary general of the Churchs cabinet the Archbishops Council, said: The Church of England is setting out on a journey of renewal and reform, aiming to reverse our numerical decline in attendance so that we become a growing church in every region and for every generation.
A father and mother have been jailed for a maximum of 48 and 16 years respectively for the sexual assault and torture of their daughter over a 15-year period.

The NSW parents, who cannot be identified, subjected their child to sustained abuse and torture so graphic that some of the details are too vile to be published.

The 59-year-old father began abusing the girl when she was only five years old and it continued until she was 18, the court at Sydney's Downing Centre heard on Friday.

A father and mother (pictured) have been jailed for a maximum of 48 and 16 years respectively for sexually abusing their daughter over 15 years

OFFENCES WERE 'OF AN UNIMAGINABLE MAGNITUDE'

Judge Sarah Huggett in Sydney's District Court sentenced him on Friday to at least 36 years in prison over 73 counts relating to the shocking abuse - the girl's mother was convicted of 13 abuse charges.

Judge Huggett said the chance for any kind of rehabilitation for the father was 'bleak', and that he 'should not be released from custody before he passes away'.

The 51-year-old mother was sentenced to a minimum 11 years for the 13 offences she was found guilty of. Both were found guilty in June following a trial which ran for several months.

Judge Huggett said the man carried out the sexual attacks over 15 years 'for his own depraved and sadistic reasons', and that his offences were 'of an unimaginable magnitude'.

SORDID ATTACKS TOOK PLACE AT CHRISTMAS AND FATHER'S DAY

The father (pictured) was jailed on Friday for a maximum of 48 years

Many of the sexual assaults took place on special occasions such as Christmas and Father's Day.

'It is atrocious in the extreme,' Judge Huggett said of the assaults on Friday.

The father was described as 'selfish, depraved and sadistic', and arrogant with an inflated ego.

'People were hoodwinked as to his true nature,' Judge Huggett said.

On Thursday, harrowing accounts of their shocking abuse, which included rape with sharp metal tools, were detailed by Judge Huggett in graphic detail that had the court horrified at times.

A RUNNING CHAINSAW WAS HELD TO GIRL'S NECK

The court heard how the victim was subjected to having 'tangled barbed wire looped around her' and had a 'running chainsaw held to her neck' by her father to torture his daughter during the rapes.

DAD BOUND TERRIFIED DAUGHTER UP IN A CHICKEN COOP

The father had also held the girl's head under freezing water in a creek, forced her to eat hot chillies while bound in the chicken coop and had threatened her with a machete.

Over the years of abuse the girl's mother was found to be complicit in the assaults and intentionally encouraged the sexual activity, the court heard. She also was involved in a number of indecent sexual acts with her husband on their daughter.

'She will suffer the consequences of his despicable and horrible conduct for the rest of her life

On one occasion both of her parents were sexually assaulting their daughter on a bed when the girl vomited over the side of it.

Because of her abhorrence at having to be involved with the couple she was forced to eat the vomit by the her parent in what was a court case filled with nauseating details and brutal sex assaults.

YOUNG GIRL WAS WRAPPED IN BARBED WIRE BY FATHER

Some of the other abuse used on the girl by her father was wrapping her in barbed wire and making her stand on an ants nest.

In a witness statement the victim - who self-harmed herself on multiple occasions during and after the horrific attacks - said: 'I will be forever damaged by the inhuman treatment I suffered.'

The father and mother were jailed on Friday at the Downing Centre in Sydney

The girl has developed several disorders stemming from complex childhood trauma and requires ongoing counselling and sporadic treatment in hospital.

In the girl's victim statement she also said that she been put through a 'living hell'.

She suffers frequent nightmares and flashbacks so bad she struggles to remain employed, study or enjoy relationships, Judge Huggett said.

I will be forever damaged by the inhuman treatment I suffered

She experiences pain in her ribs, spine and knees due to the abuse she has suffered, the court heard.

In another nasty episode, in 2000 the family went to their local pub.

When they arrived home, the mother, who was by then drunk and slurring her words, offered her daughter, then aged eight, some words of advice when it came to having sex with her father.

TOLD TO 'MAKE NOISES' BY MOTHER DURING SEX WITH FATHER

'It makes it better if you make noises,' the court heard.

Both parents deny their guilt and the father had shown no remorse, Judge Huggett said.

'She will suffer the consequences of his despicable and horrible conduct for the rest of her life,' the judge told the court during her summing up of the case.

With time served, the father will first be eligible for release in October 2049, while the mother can first apply for parole in June 2027.
A young mother who was driving on a suspended learner license when she crashed her car, killing her two-year-old daughter and critically injuring her 11-month-old son, had smoked 'three to four bongs' of marijuana before jumping behind the wheel of her car.

The woman, 21, fell asleep and crashed into a concrete pipe while driving near Willow Tree, in New South Wales' Hunter Region about 300 kilometres north of Sydney, on August 17.

She has pleaded guilty to killing her daughter and injuring her son,The Daily Telegraph reported, and is due to be sentenced next month.

A young mother who was driving on a suspended learner license when she crashed her car, killing her two-year-old daughter and critically injuring her 11-month-old son

Blood tests found traces of cannabis and methamphetamine in her system following the incident and she admitted to police she had smoked 'three to four bongs' beforehand.

A witness statement tendered in the District Court of NSW on Thursday detailed what a neighbor believed to be improper parenting from the mother.

The neighbour said she regularly saw the daughter unrestrained in her mum's car and said she had once confronted the young woman about the issue.

'You are an unfit mother ... and I will do everything to have those kids taken off you,' the neighbor said, according the witness statement seen by The Daily Telegraph.

She said the mother replied: 'No you won't ... It won't happen, no darling.'

The woman cannot be named for legal reasons.

The woman, 21, told police that she had smoked 'three to four' bongs before the crash
We're world-beaters when it comes to drinking tea and queuing.

But at the end of the day, we really seem to struggle  for a study has shown Britain is the most sleep-deprived nation in the world.

Experts fear that our working culture of long hours and meagre lunch breaks is to blame for a new trend of insomnia.

A new study found 37 per cent of Britons are not getting enough sleep (file picture)

A study of 13 countries found that 37 per cent of adult Britons said they werent getting enough sleep, The Times reported.

Two in five said they were so tired that they had no energy left to exercise.

Doug Wright, the medical director of insurer Aviva, which carried out the research, said: Our fast-paced lives in the UK factor in little time for rest and relaxation, while our working culture encourages long hours, both in the office and at home.

Taking time off is discouraged, while the days of taking a full hours lunch break are long gone. Were also famously bad at relaxing during our downtime.

'If were not checking work emails or taking work home with us, were trying to whittle down our personal to-do lists.

Mr Wright said this inability to switch off damages the quantity and quality of our rest.

Two in five people said they were so tired that they had no energy left to exercise (file picture)

Although getting a good nights sleep might not be prized in the UK, its important to make this a priority, he added.

Insufficient sleep can lead to a host of mental and physical health problems, so shouldnt be seen as insignificant in comparison to work or play.

Britons were closely followed in the list of shame by the Irish, with 34 per cent complaining of a lack of sleep.

Next were the US and Canada (both on 31 per cent)  suggesting those in the English-speaking West have a particular problem with ignoring their time in the office.

Such troubles do not appear to be shared by our near-neighbours, however.

Italians were the most well-rested in Europe, thanks to their afternoon naps, or riposos, followed by evening strolls  passegiatas  to clear their heads.

Shops and businesses shut between 12.30pm and 3pm, with many remaining closed entirely on Mondays

It is thought long hours and 'meagre' lunch breaks are the reason behind sleeping problems (file picture)

Yet the more leisurely lifestyle enjoyed on the Continent appears to be under threat  as ministers attempt to replicate the hard-working culture seen in the UK.

The Spanish government is attempting to eradicate the nations famed siestas by changing the end of the working day to 6pm, rather than 8pm or later as is typically the case now, in order to boost productivity and competitiveness on the international stage.

The most well-rested country was India, where fewer than one in ten said they were not getting enough sleep.
This video shows the heart-stopping moment a slackliner wobbled from side to side as he tightroped over a chasm in Tasmania.

Extreme sportsman Ryan Paul Robinson filmed the astonishing footage as he edged along the rope between two massive cliffs.

Mr Robinson is believed to have been at least 50 metres above the water and rocks below as he took on the daunting challenge.

This video shows the heart-stopping moment slackliner Ryan Robinson wobbled from side to side as he tightroped over a chasm in Tasmania

With a GoPro camera attached to his head, the slackliner is seen steadying himself as he makes his first steps across the vast crossing.

The barefooted daredevil wobbles to the left as winds buffet him, but he grips on and continues his breathtaking feat.

Mr Robinson, who was clipped onto his line with a safety harness, is heard breathing deeply as he teeters high above the sea.

Mr Robinson posted the clip on his Instagram page earlier on Friday and described Tasmania as 'one of the most incredible places on the planet'.

'I lost myself in this powerful place, overcome by its strength and overwhelming presence,' he added.

'I was a dot in the sky, a hole punched into the draped blue canvas. And then I walked across the chasm - and found myself again.'

Mr Robinson is believed to have been at least 50 metres above the water and rocks below as he took on the daunting challenge

The barefooted daredevil wobbles to the left as winds buffet him, but he grips on and continues his breathtaking feat

The remarkable stunt, which was filmed earlier this year, is not the first Mr Robinson has taken on.

In September, he filmed himself slacklining 30 metres above the Maoi Tower rock formation in Fortescue Bay, Tasmania.
A simple 50 blood test for the most common form of arthritis could be just two years away following a British breakthrough.

In trials, the test for osteoarthritis was 97 per cent successful and is hoped to predict the illness a decade in advance. It means people at an early stage of arthritis could stop it ever developing by losing weight and taking exercise.

Scientists at Warwick University said a drop of blood could be tested, with a result returned within a few hours based on up to 10 amino acids in the blood which are raised by osteoarthritis.

A simple 50 blood test for the most common form of arthritis could be just two years away following a British breakthrough. Stock image

A private company is understood to be interested in licensing the blood test, while the university is set to hold talks with the NHS.

Osteoarthritis is caused by wear and tear of the cartilage that helps our joints take the strain of bending, lifting, gripping and kneeling. It affects more than eight million people in Britain.

Lead researcher Dr Naila Rabbani said: This test could help people save themselves from having the painful joints and the problems with walking by changing their lifestyle.

She added: Damage to proteins in the arthritic joint have been known for many years but this is the first time it has been exploited for early-stage diagnosis.

Arthritis UK has described research to test for osteoarthritis as of great interest.

Currently there are no simple tests and often by the time it has been definitively diagnosed, the disease is already advanced. At this point, surgery may be the only option as no drugs can rebuild the lost cartilage.

In trials, the test for osteoarthritis was 97 per cent successful and is hoped to predict the illness a decade in advance. It means people at an early stage of arthritis could stop it ever developing by losing weight and taking exercise. Stock image

The Warwick researchers hope their test could allow someone to find out they have it from the first twinge in a joint for which they consult a GP. It means they could reverse the disease by losing weight, exercising more, or even changing their posture to reduce the pressure on their joints.

A similar test is also being developed by Warwick University, based on two compounds in the blood, but results for this are likely to take a few days.

The new test, which could have a result by lunchtime, measures proteins which increase in mass when they are damaged by osteoarthritis. It is predicted to cost 50 to 200 and researchers hope it could be available on the NHS by 2018.

It was tested in 134 patients, with a computer algorithm designed to detect arthritis, and predicted up to 97 per cent of patients.
Ryan Collins (pictured), 36, was sentenced to 18 months in jail for stealing nude photos from the emails of female celebrities

A Pennsylvania man has been sentenced to 18 months in jail for hacking into the email and online accounts of female celebrities and stealing nude photos and videos.

Ryan Collins, 36, pleaded guilty in May to gaining access to more than 100 Google and Apple accounts from November 2012 to September 2014.

Many of the accounts belonged to famous women including Jennifer Lawrence, Gabrielle Union, Kirsten Dunst and Kate Upton.

The father-of-two agreed to take a plea deal after violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.

Federal prosecutors said Collins used a scheme called phishing, in which he was able to get victims to provide information about their accounts in response to emails that appeared to come directly from Apple and Google.

In the scheme, he asked account holders to provide their log-in data, the Los Angeles Times reported.

In some instances, authorities said, he was able to obtain all the files his victims had stored online, including their nude photos and videos.

The married father-of-two (pictured in his previous job as a personal chef) agreed to take a plea deal after violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act

Collins was accused of gaining access to more than 100 Google and Apple accounts from November 2012 to September 2014. Many of those accounts belonged to famous women

The hacked stars included Jennifer Lawrence, left, and Kate Upton, right, but prosecutors said Collins was not suspected of being involved in the leak of those images in September 2014

Prosecutors say there was no evidence that Collins leaked any of the stolen images online or shared any of the information he had obtained.

Collins accessed 50 iCloud accounts and 72 Gmail accounts using the phishing scheme, many of which belonged to female celebrities, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

Kirsten Dunst's stolen graphic photos were also released during the 'Celebgate' leak

He was charged as part of an investigation into the posting of nude photos of numerous celebrities, including Lawrence and Upton, but prosecutors said he was not suspected of being involved in releasing those images.

His hacking was discovered while federal officials were investigating 'Celebgate', which was the widespread online leak of stolen, nude celebrity photos in September 2014.

Collins could have faced up to five years in federal prison, but the judge agreed to the prosecutors' recommendation of 18 months.

According to his Facebook page Collins is married and has two children. He is originally from Hershey, Pennsylvania, and currently lives in Lancaster.

His LinkedIn profile says he graduated from James Madison University in 2003 with a degree in integrated science and technology.

He works as a creative project manager for the eCommerce marketing company Listrak in Lancaster.

He has previously worked as an art director and webmaster, and as a personal chef.
The troubled child abuse inquiry was in meltdown last night amid claims it covered up an alleged sex attack by its top lawyer.

Ben Emmerson QC denied sensational claims he groped a colleague and was allowed to quit 24 hours after being suspended.

An inquiry spokesman refuted that a worker had made a complaint of sexual assault at all.

And Mr Emmersons lawyers issued a furious rebuttal, saying: [He] categorically denies any allegation of sexual assault or bullying or any other misconduct at the inquiry. Any such allegations are completely false.

Lawyers for Ben Emmerson QC (pictured, left) have issued a furious rebuttal. The chairman of the inquiry, Professor Alexis Jay (right), remained silent about why he was suspended last week when she was questioned by MPs

The bombshell allegation reported by BBC Newsnight threatened to deal the 100million Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse a fatal blow.

It was alleged that the lawyer pushed a female workmate against the side of a lift and molested her at the inquiry headquarters in Millbank Tower last month.

According to Newsnight, the alleged victim gave an account of the assault and the inquirys chairman Professor Alexis Jay and her panel were made aware the same day.

She did not make a formal complaint, and Mr Emmerson was allowed to quit on September 29 after being suspended by the chairman over alleged concerns over his leadership.

But last night the inquiry issued a statement denying there had been a complaint as Professor Jay faced allegations of a cover-up. Prof Jay gave the lawyer a glowing send-off just 24 hours after he was suspended.

She was at pains to point out that there was no dispute between Mr Emmerson and herself, issuing an statement confirming his resignation saying he has made an enormous contribution to the inquiry and we wish him well.

It is not true that an inquiry worker made a complaint of sexual assault to the chairman, or to the panel, or to an official Inquiry spokesman

Last night an inquiry spokesman said: The chairman fully stands by the statement she made on 29 September.

It is not true that an inquiry worker made a complaint of sexual assault to the chairman, or to the panel, or to an official.

The alleged victim has refused to comment publically, but is understood to give little credence to the allegations. Her lawyers refused to comment to Newsnight.

Mr Emmerson, who was on 400,000 a year as the lead counsel, has carried on working for the inquiry at home being at a rate of 1,700 a day.

In his resignation letter, Mr Emmerson said he was no longer the right person for the role.

The top lawyer was regarded as the lynchpin, or glue as one victim described him, holding the inquiry together as successive chairs quit.

Handpicked by Theresa May when she announced the inquiry two years ago, the then Home Secretary feted him as one of the UKs most distinguished lawyers in the field of national and international human rights law.

Named barrister of the year by The Lawyer magazine this year, the 53-year-old father of four is a deputy High Court judge.

Mr Emmerson, who is understood to have separated from his wife some time ago, is also the British judge on the international tribunals on war crimes in Rwanda and Yugoslavia and the UN special rapporteur on counterterrorism and human rights.

The barrister, who is one of the founders of Matrix Chambers, has refused to comment on the reason for his suspension.

Prof Jay and her two panel members, Drusilla Sharpling and Ivor Frank, remained silent about why the QC was suspended last week when they were questioned by MPs.

Prof Jay said she would not comment on anything to do with his circumstances.

She denied having any disagreement with the barrister, telling the home affairs select committee: There was no truth whatsoever in the suggestion that he and I had a disagreement about anything. But MP David Winnick, a senior members of the committee shot back: Do you expect MPs to leave it at that?

Daniel Janner, whose father Lord Janner is accused of historic sexual allegations which will be heard as part of the public inquiry, said last night: This inquiry seems to be in meltdown.

And former Tory MP Harvey Proctor, who was falsely accused of rape and murder by a fantasist during Scotland Yards shambolic VIP child-sex probe, said it should be curtains for the inquiry.

This farce has had several acts and now the curtain must come down, he said.
In it he listed women's names and described 'what he liked about them'

They say Cook, a senior majoring in real estate, sexually assaulted them

of Wisconsin students have since come forward

Alec Cook, 20, is accused of sexually assaulting dozens of students at the University of Wisconsin

A University of Wisconsin-Madison student already accused of sexually assaulting a woman in his apartment this month was charged Thursday with sexually assaulting four other women since early 2015.

Alec Cook, 20, of Edina, Minnesota, now faces seven counts of second-degree sexual assault, three counts of third-degree sexual assault, two counts of strangulation, two counts of false imprisonment and one count of fourth-degree sexual assault.

The complaint prosecutors filed Thursday accuses Cook of assaults dating back to March 2015.

Prosecutors said one of the women was assaulted multiple times during a ballroom dancing class she was attending with Cook this past spring.

The other alleged victims were a woman Cook met at a party in March 2015; one he met in a human sexuality class in February; and a woman he met during a psychology class experiment in August.

Cook was charged last week with sexually assaulting a woman in his apartment the night of October 12 after inviting her over after studying together.

Media reports of those charges have driven dozens of women to report to police their encounters with Cook.

The first woman to speak out, who reported the assault on October 12, said she was first contacted by Cook on Facebook, The Wisconsin State Journal reported.

Cook, center, appears Thursday in Dane County Circuit Court in Madison after being charged with multiple counts of sexual assault stemming from the reported assaults of several women between March 2015 and October 2016

Chris Van Wagner, Cook's attorney, displays an enlarged copy of a notebook page belonging to his client while speaking to members of the media following Cook's initial appearance in Dane County Circuit Court Thursday

Officers searching Cook's apartment found a black book listing women he'd met and documenting his 'sexual desires' and statements of 'kill,' authorities said.

An affidavit obtained by WKOW said: 'Each entry showed how he met the female, and what he liked about them.

'Further entries went on to document what he wanted to do with the females.'

The affidavit reportedly said: 'Disturbingly enough there were statements of "kill" and statements of "sexual" desires.'

Dane County Circuit Court Commissioner Brian Asmus set Cook's bail at $200,000 cash during a brief hearing Thursday. Cook made no statement at the hearing.

His attorneys, Jessa Nicholson and Chris Van Wagner, told reporters after the proceeding that they believe the ballroom assaults never happened, noting the complaint didn't cite any witnesses.

The rest of the encounters, they said, were consensual.

His attorneys, Jessa Nicholson and Chris Van Wagner, told reporters after the proceeding that they believe the ballroom assaults never happened, noting the complaint didn't cite any witnesses. The rest of the encounters, they said, were consensual

Suspended University of Wisconsin-Madison student Alec Cook, center, appears with his attorneys Chris Van Wagner, left, and Jess Nicholson on Thursday

Van Wagner showed reporters a page from Cook's book with the word 'Killed?' written at the top and said it's unclear what it means.

He said Cook has been vilified on social media but the prosecution's case is 'just dust'.

'Women are coming forward because they've seen social media postings about Cook and have become frightened, he said.

'He's been painted as the face of evil,' Van Wagner said. 'That's wrong.'

According to the complaint, the accuser from the October 12 incident says she went his apartment after studying with him at a campus library.

Cook allegedly spent time with his victims on campus grounds (above), studying with them in some cases before pouncing on them in private at his apartment

She said he assaulted her for two-and-a-half hours, maintaining what she described as a 'death grip' on her arm or body.

Cook told police the woman never told him to stop, the complaint said.

Another woman came forward two days after charges were filed in that case.

She said she met Cook at her friend's birthday party in March 2015.

Cook (left in a previous photograph and right being arraigned earlier this month)

Two weeks later she visited his apartment, where he allegedly began kissing her forcefully, then sexually assaulted her.

The same day that Cook was charged with the October 12 assault, two other women reported being assaulted by him.

One woman told police she was in a ballroom dance class with Cook during the spring 2016 semester.

She accused him of repeatedly touching her breasts and buttocks while they were dancing despite her telling him to stop.

The touching occurred 15 to 20 times over the semester, she said.

The class instructor told investigators she got an email from the woman saying she was uncomfortable with how Cook was touching her.

The instructor responded by speaking to the class about appropriate contact during dances. She said no other students complained about Cook.

Another woman told police that she met Cook during a human sexuality class and began dating him in January, the complaint said.

Cook (at his initial arrest in October) is a senior at the university

She said he assaulted her at his apartment in February.

She told police at one point she told Cook 'OK, let's just have sex' but she believes she said that to make herself feel as if the assault was consensual, the complaint said.

Another woman told police on Monday that she met Cook during a psychology class experiment.

They had consensual sex at his apartment in August, the woman said, during which he tried to choke her.

After taking a break to smoke marijuana, Cook allegedly tried to have sex with her again, this time slapping her and leaving bruises.

Cook, a senior who is majoring in real estate and land economics, has been suspended from the university.

His fraternity, Phi Delta Theta, has also separated itself from him.

In a statement issued earlier this week, Dean of Students Lori Berquam said: 'This is a serious case and the university is responding.

'Based on the severity of the allegations and the potential impact on the campus community, the university is disclosing that this student is under emergency suspension from the institution.'

In a Wednesday statement, Cook's attorneys Jessa Nicholson and Chris Van Wagner said: 'Alec, a 20 year old business major with no criminal history, has seemingly been charged, tried, and convicted.

'The rapid-fire news cycle, combined with the viral nature of social media, has resulted in a modern-day character assassination that is very real and very wrong.'

They also said in the statement that 'blind acceptance of mere accusations - without hearing testimony seeing physical evidence - leads to the stigmatization of innocent people'.
'If my wishes aren't followed ...you can expect about 20,000 or 30,000 more [dead],' he said

The foul-mouthed Philippine president, who once called the pope a 'son of a b****' and told Barack Obama to 'go to hell,' says he has promised to God he won't spew expletives again.

President Rodrigo Duterte's profanities have become a trademark of his political persona, especially when threatening to kill drugs dealers as part of his war on illegal drugs that has left thousands dead since he took office at the end of June.

Duterte made the stunning pledge on arrival in in his southern hometown of Davao city late Thursday from a trip to Japan.

It came before a Philippine town mayor who was publicly identified by Duterte as a drug trafficking suspect was gunned down Friday with nine of his men at a police checkpoint, in one of the bloodiest operations since the crackdown was launched.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, pictured here on a three-day official visit to Japan, says he has promised to God he won't spew expletives again

Duterte said that while flying home from Japan, he was looking at the sky while everyone was sound asleep and he heard a voice that said 'if you don't stop epithets, I will bring this plane down now.'

'And I said, 'Who is this?' So, of course, 'it's God,'' he said.

'So, I promise God to ... not express slang, cuss words and everything. So you guys hear me right always because (a) promise to God is a promise to the Filipino people.'

Duterte's vow was met with applause, but he cautioned: 'Don't clap too much or else this may get derailed.'

Not swearing appears to be the only thing Duterte has changed his mind about - as a day after the pledge 10 more men were killed in his violent war on drugs.

Philippine police say Mayor Samsudin Dimaukom of southern Datu Saudi Ampatuan township and nine others were killed before dawn in a gunbattle with anti-narcotics officers on Friday

It was one of the deadliest operations since President Rodrigo Duterte launched a crackdown on illegal drugs. According to Superintendent Bernard Tayong, Dimaukom has been named by Duterte as among many politicians suspected to be involved in illegal drugs

Residents watch as police inspect the contents of the vehicles the mayor was travelling in when he was killed

Mayor Samsudin Dimaukom of Datu Saudi was gunned down Friday with nine of his men at a police checkpoint.

Little over a month after he took office on a promise to rid the Philippines of illegal drugs, Duterte in August read out the names of more than 150 officials allegedly linked to illegal drugs, among them Mayor Dimaukom of Datu Saudi Ampatuan township in southern Maguindanao province.

The mayor had turned himself in to police and denied he was involved in the illegal drug trade. He had told the media that he was fighting illegal drugs himself and supported Duterte's crackdown.

At dawn Friday, Dimaukom and the nine others were killed after they opened fire from three cars on officers at a checkpoint in Makilala town in North Cotabato province, Superintendent Bernard Tayong said.

'It was a legitimate anti-drug operation but the subjects opened fire on our troops,' regional police official Superintendent Romeo Galgo Jr. told reporters.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte speaks to journalists after inspecting a coast guard training demonstration at a Japan Coast Guard base in Yokohama, Thursday

Duterte made the stunning pledge not to swear again on arrival in in his southern hometown of Davao city late Thursday from a trip to Japan

Police said they had received information that Dimaukom's group was planning to transport a 'huge' amount of methamphetamine - a prohibited and extremely addictive stimulant drug locally known as shabu - from Davao city, Duterte's hometown, to Datu Saudi Ampatuan town.

Police estimate more than 3,600 suspected drug dealers and addicts have been killed since Duterte took office on June 30. The crackdown has drawn international concern over extrajudicial killings, but Duterte has repeatedly dismissed criticism and vowed to keep his election promise to rid the country of drugs.

Arriving from his state visit to Japan late Thursday, Duterte appeared to issue another warning, saying that thousands of drug suspects may end up dead. He expressed disgust over criticism leveled against him while he battles a drug menace that he said has left many of police officers dead.

'And to say that I should behave and keep on harping on that ... I'll tell you I will triple it,' Duterte said. 'If my wishes aren't followed ...you can expect about 20,000 or 30,000 more.'
Spider specialists have spent their morning milking, or extracting venom, from a tarantula spider.

Australian Museum's spider handlers have been extracted the venom from a huntsman spider as part of their latest exhibit, Spiders: Alive and Deadly, in Sydney.

Kim McKay, Director of Australian Museum said that although human's understanding of spiders has greatly developed, they hope to help people face their fears in the immersive new exhibition.

Spider experts at the Australian Museum will be milking, or extracting, venom from spiders such as Huntsman and Tarantulas as part of the new exhibit, Spiders: Alive and Deadly

Spider experts will be milking spiders for their venom in front of audiences curious about the arachnid creature

The venom collected from the milking sessions will be sent to the University of venom databank, which is the largest in the world

The tarantula, being handled by an expert, is being held from its backside while its fangs are being directed to the plastic tube and pierce the thin plastic above the tube and its venom will drip.

WHY DO SPIDERS GET MILKED? Spiders are milked for their venom by highly trained staff. The venom is used by the Commonwealth Serum Laboratories to make the only Australian anti-venoms that save human spider bite victims. The venom collected at the Australian Museum will be sent to the University of Queensland's venom databank. Researchers will also use the venom to develop pain medications and anti-cancer treatments. Source: Australian Reptile Park and Australian Museum Advertisement

More than 400 different spiders will be on display at the Spiders: Alive and Deadly exhibit from different parts of Australia.

Visitors will also get to learn more about spider venom, silk, hunting habits, their critical role in the ecosystem and how to identify them

Every day visitors will also be able to see 'venom-milking', which will be done by experts.

Dr Rebecca Johnson, Director of the Australian Museum Research Institute, said the venom collected from the milking sessions will be given to the largest venom databank in the world at the University of Queensland.

'[The venom] will be utilised by medical researchers, for potential pain medications and anti-cancer treatments,' Dr Johnson said.

Spider silk can also make biodegradable fishing lines and medical cloths

Dr Rebecca Johnson: '[the venom] will be utilised by medical researchers, for potential pain medications and anti-cancer treatments'

Visitors will also get to see breakthrough spider silk technology, which ranks as some of the toughest and durable material in the world.

The silk can also make biodegradable fishing lines, medical sutures and body armour cloth.
Authorities are trying to determine whether a woman with a history of mental illness tried to light a Molotov cocktail or simply harmless liquid inside a vodka bottle in Times Square, New York.

Ludivine Baugier de Chevestre, 24, of Greenwich, Connecticut, was arrested on Friday and charged Monday with criminal possession of a weapon, placement of a false bomb, and reckless endangerment after police said she was trying to light an unknown liquid in New York, Greenwich Time reported.

But the case could be dismissed if lab results indicate that the liquid inside the vodka bottle did not pose any threat, the New York Daily News reported.

Ludivine Baugier de Chevestre (right), 24, appears in Manhattan Criminal Court on Thursday alongside her lawyer, Michael Farkas (left)

Michael Farkas, de Chevestres lawyer, told Manhattan Criminal Court that authorities should free his client while the charges are pending and the investigation continues.

During the court hearing, de Chevestre tried to address the judge.

'Your honor I would like to make a few points,' she said. 'This has been a very bad experience for me.'

The judge promptly told her to keep quiet.

After her arrest, she was taken to St. Lukes-Roosevelt Hospital for psychiatric evaluation.

De Chevestre is a 24-year-old native of Greenwich, Connecticut, who reportedly has a history of psychological and behavioral problems that necessitated police intervention

Local media in Greenwich report that she has had a history of run-ins with law enforcement.

In November 2015, she was arrested and charged with drunk driving.
The Bundy brothers have been acquitted of federal conspiracy charges after leading a 41-day standoff at a rural Oregon wildlife refuge that grabbed national attention.

Ammon and Ryan Bundy, as well as five additional defendants, were found not guilty of conspiracy to impede federal officers and possession of firearms in a federal facility.

David Fry, Jeff Banta, Shawna Cox, Kenneth Medenback and Neil Wampler were also exonerated.

The decision, unveiled in federal court in Portland on Thursday, is a blow to the US government, which had aggressively prosecuted the right-wing activists who led an armed takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in January and February.

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Ammon (left) and Ryan Bundy (right), as well as five additional defendants, were found not guilty of conspiracy to impede federal officers in a Portland courtroom on Thursday

The Bundy brothers led a 41-day standoff at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge (pictured) that grabbed national attention in January and February last year

The courtroom erupted into chaos on Thursday as Ammon Bundy's attorney Marcus Mumford demanded that his client be immediately released from prison.

US Marshals tackled Mumford to the ground, used a stun gun on him several times and arrested him.

Both Bundy brothers will remain behind bars due to charges they face in Nevada stemming from an armed standoff at their father Cliven's ranch in 2014, US District Judge Anna Brown told the courtroom.

The group took over the bird sanctuary in remote southeastern Oregon on January 2. following a protest to the prison sentences handed down to Dwight and Steven Hammond, two local ranchers convicted of setting fires.

The Bundy brothers and their supporters demanded the government free the father and son and relinquish control of public lands to local officials.

Ammon Bundy gave frequent news conferences and the group used social media in a mostly unsuccessful effort to get others to join them.

He used the protest to shine national attention on the Bundy's family long fight against federal land ownership and restrictions on ranching meant to help protect the environment.

The government, which controls much of the land in the West, says it tries to balance industry, recreation and wildlife concerns to benefit all.

Defendant Shawna Cox (pictured) called her acquittal a victory for the Constitution as she spoke outside the courthouse on Thursday

Her co-defendant Neil Wampler was all smiles as he left the federal court following the verdict

Armed occupiers were allowed to come and go for the first several weeks of the protest as authorities tried to avoid bloodshed seen in past standoffs.

But it all came to a head on January 26, when the Bundy brothers and other key figures in the protest were arrested in a traffic stop outside the refuge, where police fatally shot occupation spokesman Robert 'LaVoy' Finicum.

Most occupiers left after his death, but four holdouts remained until February 11, when they surrendered after a lengthy negotiation.

At trial, the case was seemingly open-and-shut. There was no dispute the group seized the refuge, established armed patrols and vetted those who visited.

'Ladies and gentlemen, this case is not a whodunit,' Assistant US Attorney Ethan Knight said in his closing statement, arguing that the group decided to take over a federal workplace that didn't belong to them.

On technical grounds, the defendants said they never discussed stopping individual workers from accessing their offices but merely wanted the land and the buildings.

But Ammon Bundy and other defendants argued that the takeover was an act of civil disobedience against what they claimed was an out-of-control federal government that has crippled the rural West.

Federal prosecutors took two weeks to present their case, finishing with a display of more than 30 guns seized after the standoff.

Supporters of the Bundy brothers were in tears as they celebrated the news

The decision is a blow to the US government, which had aggressively prosecuted the right-wing activists

An FBI agent testified that 16,636 live rounds and nearly 1,700 spent casings were found.

Meanwhile, the defense argued that the occupation of the refuge was simply a 'Martin Luther King style sit-in', according to the Washington Post.

Bundy testified in his defense, spending three days amplifying his belief that government overreach is destroying Western communities that rely on the land.

He said the plan was to take ownership of the refuge by occupying it for a period of time and then turn it over to local officials to use as they saw fit.

Bundy also testified that the occupiers carried guns because they would have been arrested immediately otherwise and needed to protect themselves against possible government attack.

Ryan Bundy, who acted as his own attorney, did not testify.

Eleven of the Bundy brothers' 26 co-defendants have already pleaded guilty to federal conspiracy charges. One other defendant had the charges dropped.

Seven defendants chose not to be tried at this time. Their trial is scheduled to begin February 14.

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown said on Thursday she was disappointed with the jury's decision.

Across the street supporters of the defendants threw a tailgate party, complete with hot dogs and pocket-sized copies of the Constitution

Ammon Bundy (pictured at the refuge in January) argued that the takeover was an act of civil disobedience against what they claimed was an out-of-control federal government

'The occupation of the Malheur Refuge by outsiders did not reflect the Oregon way of respectfully working together to resolve differences,' she said in a statement.

Meanwhile, defendant Shawna Cox called her acquittal a victory for the Constitution.

'We have to be vigilant people,' she said outside the courthouse. 'Wake up, America, and help us restore the Constitution. Don't sleep with your head in the sand.'

Supporters of the defendants threw a tailgate party across the street from the courthouse, complete with hot dogs, pocket-sized copies of the Constitution and people wearing T-shirts that read 'Free the Bundys'.
A local taxi driver is being hailed a hero for helping save passengers from a horrific bus fire in Brisbane that killed the young driver.

Aguek Nyok kicked out the back door of the flaming bus after he heard eight passengers, including three children, screaming for help in Moorooka, south of Brisbane, on Friday morning.

He was unable to save the 29-year-old driver who was doused in a flammable liquid and set on fire by a passenger after he stopped to let more people on the bus.

'Everyone was shaking... I was just holding the door until the last one got out,' Mr Nyok said.

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Aguek Nyok kicked out the back door of the flaming bus after he heard passengers, including three children, screaming for help

A local taxi driver has been praised as a 'hero' after he busted down the back door of the bus to allow passengers to escape the inferno

A 48-year-old man was arrested at the scene and a murder investigation is underway.

Detectives have said there was no apparent motive for the horrific attack.

The bus was engulfed in flames a short time after it stopped to let three passengers on board at a stop on Beaudesert Street.

'I thought the driver would open the door for them but nah, I stood a few seconds and nothing was happening so I decided to do something about it,' Mr Nyok told Nine News.

He said after the front of the bus exploded the driver ran out 'covered in flames, head to toe'.

Mr Nyok said the six passengers on board were desperately trying to open the rear doors as the front of bus was engulfed in flames.

'Even when the door opened it kept trying to close on me and it was so, so hot in there,' he said.

Mr Nyok was unable to save the 29-year-old driver who was doused in a flammable liquid and set on fire by a passenger after he stopped to let more people on the bus

A bus driver has been killed in a 'senseless attack' after a passenger poured flammable liquid on him and set him alight

Detectives have said there was no apparent motive for the horrific attack

Eyewitness Clair Savage said the taxi driver was a hero.

'I just said to him "you just saved people's lives",' she told the Brisbane Times.

Superintendent Jim Keogh addressed the media from the scene just after 11am Brisbane time and said they had a 48-year-old man in custody.

'Words escape me. It's a horrific incident,' he said.

'A bus driver going about doing his business, supporting the community and has taken his life from him in a senseless and needless act'.

Superintendent Jim Keogh addressed the media from the scene just after 11am Brisbane time and said they had a 48-year-old man in custody

The bus was travelling along Beaudesert Road in Moorooka on Friday morning when the 29-year-old driver pulled into a stop to allow three more passengers on board

Paramedics arrived just after firefighters had contained the blaze to treat passengers for smoke inhalation

Superintendent Keogh said the bus driver stood little chance of survival as the fire was 'substantial'

He said the bus driver stood little chance of survival as the fire was 'substantial'.

Superintendent Keogh said officers do not believe the incident was an act of terrorism and officers have also ruled out robbery as a potential motive.

Police are working to notify the driver's family of the death.

Firefighters managed to contain the blaze on Mayfield Road by 9.20am and 11 people were treated on the side of the road by paramedics for smoke inhalation.

Police said the bus driver stood little chance of survival as the fire was 'substantial'

The fire was completely extinguished by firefighters by 9.20am
Ten women have become the first females to ever graduate the Army's Infantry Basic Officer Leaders Course.

Fort Benning, Georgia, held a graduation ceremony on Wednesday for the 166 officers who had just attained the infantry's iconic blue cord.

For the first time, the male graduates were joined by ten women who had passed the tough training. Only two women out of the 12 who began the course failed to graduate.

They join Capt. Kristen Griest who became the first female infantry officer earlier this year after completing the Armys Maneuver Captains Career Course and transferring into the infantry.

Ten women have become the first females to graduate the Army's gender-integrated infantry office course

Only three women - Griest, Capt. Shaye Haver and Maj. Lisa Jaster - have completed that elite course since it was opened up to women in 2015.

However, Haver and Jaster are not infantry officers.

The graduates are now officially infantry officers, with the ability to lead an Army platoon of infantry combat soldiers.

Those officers will now be eligible to move on to the next challenges such as Ranger school and Airborne school.

Lt. Col. Matthew Weber, IBOLC's commander, said completing the Infantry Basic Officer Leaders Course is the first step in a long process.

'The training of an infantry lieutenant is a process until they step in front of that rifle platoon, and this is but the very first step in that process,' the officer said, Army Times reported Wednesday.

Soldiers at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and Fort Hood, Texas, are now preparing for their first female infantry platoon leaders.

They join the likes of Capt. Kristen Griest who became the first female infantry officer earlier this year

'We are priming the pump and enabling success by initially focusing on two installations,' Maj. Gen. Eric Wesley, head of the Army's Maneuver Center of Excellence, told Army Times.

There are now 11 female infantry officers in the U.S. Army.

However, the first two women to graduate from Ranger School last year faced controversy after their elite status was questioned amid claims that Army officials vowed to pass at least one of them before the course even started.

Back in January 2015 a general is claimed to have told his subordinates that 'a woman will graduate Ranger School' this year, as part of the first ever class to include serving female soldiers.

The general, who has not been named, reportedly added: 'At least one will get through', according to People.

According to unnamed sources, quoted by People , the general's words had a 'ripple effect' through the ranks at Fort Benning, where part of the training takes place, leading to the women being given lenient treatment.

Griest and Haver, who officially graduated from the school on August 21, 2015 alongside 98 male candidates, denied they were offered any sort of concessions during Ranger School itself and accusations they got extra training at a special unit.

After graduating, Griest said their success 'proves that women can take the same stresses as men'.

The move to allow women in the infantry is part of a wider more to encourage more female recruits.

Earlier this year, the Marines were ordered to open all its combat jobs to women - providing they can pass the physical fitness requirements.

However, the Corps claim the move has not been a success with six out of seven female recruits fail to pass the tests - compared to only 40 out of 1,500 male recruits.

Failing the tests, taken about 45 days into basic training, forces recruits into less physically demanding Marine jobs.

Marine Corps leaders initially balked at allowing women into certain infantry, reconnaissance and combat engineer jobs, pointing to studies that showed mixed gender units did not perform as well as male-only units. But Defense Secretary Ash Carter ordered all combat jobs open to women.

The Marines developed a detailed progression of physical standards that recruits must meet to get into the combat jobs. And officials insist that standards will not be lowered to allow more women to pass.

Nearly 86 percent of the women failed the tests, compared with less than 3 percent of the men.

Before the standards test existed, the 40 men who failed would have moved on to combat jobs anyway, a Marine Corps analysis said. So Neller said that the overall quality of the force will eventually improve.
Three family members of missing man Matthew Kyle Fisher-Turner have been charged with his murder after his body was found buried in the backyard a house in Perth.

Police appealed for information to help find Mr Fisher-Turner on October 18, saying he had not been seen since leaving his home in Parmelia on October 1.

Detectives searched a Parmelia residence on Wednesday night and have since charged a 65-year-old man with murder and two other people with murder-related offences, including a 26-year-old man and a 19-year-old woman.

Three family members of missing man Matthew Kyle Fisher-Turner (pictured) have been charged with his murder

The body of Mr Fisher-Turner was found in a makeshift grave in the backyard of his family home (pictured) in Perth

Detective Inspector Peter Clements said on Friday the accused lived at the house and were all related to Mr Fisher-Turner. He declined to say exactly what their relationship was, however.

Mr Fisher-Turner is understood to have lived with his father, older brother and two sisters, WA Today reported.

Police allege Mr Fisher-Turner was murdered at the family home on or about October 1 and then buried.

'His body was found in a clandestine grave and he was removed last night,' Mr Clements said at a press conference on Friday.

Police allege Mr Fisher-Turner was murdered and buried at the family home (centre) on or about October 1

Police will allege all three family members were involved his death, two of them after the fact.

'It was friends of Matthew that raised the alarm bell. They had been to the house and asked some questions,' Clements said at a press conference.

'After a point they decided to contact police. It wasnt actually the family that contacted police.'

All three were due to appear before the Rockingham Magistrates Court on Friday.

Detectives searched the house in Parmelia, Perth, on Wednesday night
Embattled Dreamworld boss Deborah Thomas has finally visited the park as she apologised for her poor handling of the tragedy that claimed four people's lives.

Ms Thomas - CEO of Ardent Leisure, which owns Dreamworld - fought back tears as she arrived at the Gold Coast park and said she had tried to 'do the right thing'.

The under-fire chief executive visited a floral tribute to Kate Goodchild, Luke Dorsett, Roozbeh Araghi and Cindy Low, who died three days ago when a malfunction on the Thunder Rapids ride caused their raft to flip.

Her visit came after she donated her $167,500 cash bonus to the Australian Red Cross, meaning she earned less this year than her predecessor in the role - who did not work a single day.

Under-fire Ardent Leisure chief executive Deborah Thomas has apologised to families of victims from this week's fatal accident at Dreamworld

Ms Thomas, who has been criticised for her handling of the parent company to the theme park's response to the tragedy, made an emotional visit to the Gold Coast on Friday

The under-fire chief executive visited a floral tribute to Kate Goodchild, Luke Dorsett, Roozbeh Araghi and Cindy Low, who died at the park three days ago

Ms Thomas (pictured at the memorial) was slammed for accepting a $843,000 bonus on Thursday and has since announced that she will donate the cash portion of it to charity

Greg Shaw, who quit as CEO of Ardent Leisure last year, took home a $1.49million pay packet despite not working a day in the last financial year, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.

Ms Thomas replaced Mr Shaw as chief executive after he unexpectedly quit in March, but he was given a lucrative golden handshake in June.

According to the company's financial records, he was paid an astonishing $400,000 bonus, as well as a $855,000 retirement package, which included shares.

Ms Thomas was slammed for accepting a $843,000 bonus on Thursday and has since announced that she will donate the cash portion of it to charity.

She was further criticised for claiming she had spoken to the family members of the deceased, only for the mother of two of the victims to reveal she had not heard from anyone at Ardent Leisure or Dreamworld.

'If I haven't handled it as well as we could, we thought we were doing the right thing in terms of the way we approached it through the police,' Ms Thomas said.

'If the families are watching - I have spoken to a number of them - we will look after them.'

Ms Thomas attended the memorial at the park alongside its CEO Craig Donaldson

Ms Thomas walks past flowers left for the four victims after an emotional memorial ceremony

Labelling the tribute as 'extraordinary', Ms Thomas also paid tribute to the park's staff for their response to the week's events

Greg Shaw, who quit as CEO of Ardent Leisure last year, took home a $1.49million pay packet despite not working a day in the last financial year

Labelling the tribute as 'extraordinary', Ms Thomas also paid tribute to the park's staff for their response to the week's events.

'We had the most wonderful ceremony and we are all here today to be part of the family, to hug each other, to provide support to each other,' she said.

'Everybody has been moved by this. Everybody is suffering from this and saddened and it's not just the people who work with us, but their families as well, so I hope that this is the beginning of the healing process.'

Brother and sister Luke Dorsett, 35, and Kate Goodchild, 32, and Mr Dorsett's partner Roozi Araghi, all from Canberra, and Cindy Low, 42, died in the accident on the ride on Tuesday.

Children Ebony Goodchild, 12, and Kieran Low, 10, were thrown clear of the raft, but the four adults became trapped and died.

Ms Goodchild's husband David Turner reportedly scaled a fence and dived into the water in an attempt to save his wife, but was unable to rescue her.

The heroic father cradled his high school sweetheart in his arms as she died.

Kate Goodchild, Luke Dorsett, Roozbeh Araghi and Cindy Low died after a malfunction on the Thunder Rapids ride on Tuesday afternoon

Victims: Two mothers, Kate Goodchild (left), 32, and Cindy Low (right), 42, died in the tragedy

Ms Goodchild's brother Luke Dorsett (on right) and his partner Roozi Araghi (left) were also killed

The park had planned to reopen today, with all profits going to charity, but police overruled the decision as the ride is still a crime scene.

Lawyers told Daily Mail Australia park owners could face substantial negligence claims and employees who may have been responsible could be sentenced to up to five years behind bars.

Dreamworld has since mounted a defence of its safety standards in response to intense scrutiny from the Australian Workers Union, which claim it had warned about problems as recently as three weeks ago.

Australian Workers' Union Queensland Secretary Ben Swan said there had been an 'ongoing tussle' with Dreamworld relating to the park's safety procedures.

He said a number of reports had been made since November 2014.

'I do not necessarily agree that all of the rides have been in proper operating order,' he said during an interview on Sunrise on Thursday.

But a statement from the park refuted Mr Swan's claims, stating it complied with all safety standards and tested every ride each morning.
The group then called for help and gave the unidentified woman water so she did not get

While driving in Arizona between campaign stops on Thursday, Donald Trump's son managed to help a driver stuck in the middle of the road after her car stalled.

Donald Trump Jr, the Republican presidential candidate's oldest son, was captured on video pushing an Impala off a busy street in Mesa alongside two other men.

The group then called for help and gave the unidentified woman water so she did not get dehydrated in the 100-degree heat, according to The Arizona Republic.

While driving in Arizona between campaign stops on Thursday, Donald Trump Jr managed to help a driver stuck in the middle of the road after her car stalled (the pair pictured above)

Tyler Bowyer, the Millennial Chairman for the Republican Party of Maricopa County, filmed the ordeal and shared it on Facebook and Twitter

Tyler Bowyer, the Millennial Chairman for the Republican Party of Maricopa County, filmed the ordeal and said the woman was surprised to learn who pushed her car.

At the time, Bowyer was with Trump Jr as they headed from a rally to another event when they spotted the her car stalling a few vehicles in front of them.

'This JUST happened in Mesa and THIS is why I'm voting for Trump,' he recounted in a Facebook post where he shared the video on Thursday.

'We were on our way from a rally to another event and Donald Trump Jr. hopped out first to help push this ladies car off the road, get some water and call for help.

Trump Jr, the Republican presidential candidate's oldest son, was captured on video pushing an Impala off a busy street in Mesa alongside two other men

In the 10-second video, Trump Jr is pictured pushing the Impala alongside two other men. They assisted in the rescue effort while in 100-degree heat in Mesa

'On the way back from the rally and filmed the whole thing! Needless to say, she was pretty surprised to find out it was Donald Trump Jr pushing her car.

'I will never forget this and it's why I'm proud to be supporting this family! #MAGA'

Brian Seitchik, the Trump for President Arizona State Director, was also in the car at the time and noted Trump Jr was 'the first to jump out to help push the car.'

Bowyer said he has been around a lot of politicians who would have freaked out or gone around the car in the same scenario, but he said Trump Jr was different.

'Before you can blink, he's out there pushing the car,' he told The Arizona Republic.

Bowyer noted that following Trump Jr's actions is why he is voting for Trump. The Republican presidential candidate is pictured with Boywer and his daughter in a photo

On Twitter, Bowyer noted he 'couldn't believe how awesome it was' for Trump Jr to help push the woman's car

Bowyer, who is also the National Leadership Director at nonprofit Turning Point USA, said Trump Jr did not tell the woman who he was before getting back inside the car.

However, others with them ended up revealing his identity.

'She was just stunned. She was taken aback,' Bowyer told The Arizona Republic of when the woman learned it was Trump Jr helping push her car.

'She was like, "Man, I have to be able to tell people about this." So we made him get out and take a picture. And that was it.'

Before heading off, they gave the woman a water bottle they had in their car for her to have while she waited in the hot heat for help to arrive.

On Thursday, Trump Jr spoke at a campaign rally for his father at Arizona State University Thursday

On Thursday, temperatures reached 101 degrees in Mesa, according to Wunderground.

The video Bowyer shared on Facebook of the rescue has garnered nearly 10 million views since it was posted.

As Trump Jr attended campaign events in Arizona, including speaking at a rally at Arizona State University, his father was busy speaking at a rally in Geneva, Ohio on Thursday night.

Trump is working to steady rocky poll numbers amid a series of controversies and self-inflicted wounds with less than two weeks until the November 8 election.

The latest RealClearPolitics poll average showed his rival Hillary Clinton with a nearly six-point national lead over him.

As Trump Jr attended campaign events in Arizona, his father was busy speaking at a rally in Geneva, Ohio on Thursday night

Trump, without evidence, has blamed his sagging poll numbers on a rigged election, and said the media had fixed the opinion polls in order to inflate Clinton's numbers.

Numerous studies have shown that voter fraud in U.S. elections is very rare, and a number of prominent Republicans have denounced Trump's claim that the system is unsound.

While Trump campaigned in Ohio, a plane carrying his running mate, Indiana Governor Mike Pence, skidded off the runway after landing at New York City's LaGuardia Airport on Thursday night.
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Hundreds of mourners filled Western Sydney's Lakemba Mosque to farewell gangland figure Hamad 'H' Assaad, 29, after he was gunned down in an execution-style hit in his driveway in front of his 12-year-old son on Tuesday.

Close family and friends gathered around the coffin to carry it up the steep stairs and into Lakemba Mosque just after Friday's midday prayers.

The circumstances surrounding the execution-style murder of Assaad saw the mourners watched by a police helicopter hovering above.

Assaad was gunned down in his driveway on Tuesday in front of his young son and left in a pool of his own blood outside his home in George's Hall in Sydney's south-west.

Mourners carry gangland figure Hamad 'H' Assaad's coffin from Lakemba Mosque to the hearse on Friday

Mourners could be seen crying uncontrollably as the coffin was carried from the mosque

It was a sad affair at Friday's funeral as close friends and family carried the coffin draped in a cloth with Arabic writing

Assaad, a suspected underworld contract killer, had been the key suspect in the shooting of gangland boss Walid 'Wally' Ahmad - who was executed in the carpark of Bankstown Central in April.

Ahmad was also farewelled at the same mosque, with his funeral attended by a who's who of Sydney's underworld.

But Assad's funeral was unlike that of Walid 'Wally' Ahmad - with family and friends appearing to account for most of the mourners.

After the funeral, Assaad's family were seen carrying the coffin to the waiting hearse. A woman, believed to be his mother, was seen crying behind the pallbearers.

After the coffin was driven away to be buried, family members followed behind in a Rolls Royce to the graveyard.

Mourners hung their heads out of respect for Assaad at the funeral as the procession passed them

Men are seen praying with their hands on knees and heads hung low at the funeral during the procession

The funeral was held in Sydney's west at Lakemba Mosque and attended by hundreds of family and friends

Assaad, who was known as 'H' in underworld circles, was previously investigated by police for three other shootings, including that of colourful Sydney identity Michael Ibrahim (C)

He was also believed to be behind the shooting of Pasquale Barbaro (pictured), 35, who was gunned down in Sydney's inner west, and behind the theft of a large haul of ice, also known as meth, believed to be worth more than $300,000

Assaad, who was known as 'H' in underworld circles, was previously investigated by police for three other shootings, including that of colourful Sydney identity Michael Ibrahim, the brother of nightclub owner John Ibrahim.

Assaad was described by underworld sources as 'wild man' who was proud of his fearsome reputation.

He was also believed to be behind the shooting of Pasquale Barbaro, 35, who was gunned down in Sydney's inner west, and behind the theft of a large haul of ice, also known as meth, believed to be worth more than $300,000.

As the funeral came to an end Assaad's two brothers were seen holding the coffin as they led the body towards the hearse.

Their mother was not far behind as she was heard wailing and unable to control her tears.

As the coffin passed, mourners hung their heads out of respect.

Mourners were also seen praying with their hands on knees and heads hung low, near the stairs of the Lakemba Mosque.

Assaad was gunned down in his driveway on Tuesday in front of his young son and left in a pool of his own blood outside his home in George's Hall in Sydney's south-west

Mourners filled the streets in Sydney's south-west to farewell the suspected contract killer after his death on Tuesday

Close family and friends helped to carry the coffin from the mosque before it was transported to the graveyard

One man wore a jacket with 'Property of ALLAH' printed on the front along with dark sunglasses that were popular with many mourners

After the coffin was driven away to be buried, family members followed behind in a Rolls Royce to the graveyard

Women in conservative dress and babies were among those who turned out to farewell Assaad on Friday

The memorial service was held in Sydney's west on Friday and attended by friend, family and gangland figures

Previously, grieving family attacked cameramen as they waited outside the family home.

However, a family representative approached photographers and requested they 'move away to a respectful distance' from the front of the mosque.

Mourners also flooded social media to offer their condolences during the funeral.

'Allah has gained a soldier, Allahu Akbar may peace and blessings be with you my brother,' said one.

'May Allah have mercy on his soul,' said another.

The funeral to farewell Assaad occurred just hours after police discovered the getaway car used in his murder.

It was found parked in a suburban street engulfed in flames at 2am on Friday morning in Birrong, in Sydney's south-west.

Police ensured their presence was felt, circling above in a helicopter to observe proceedings

'Respect' one man's t-shirt read as he left Lakemba Mosque after Friday's funeral

Assad's funeral was unlike that of Walid 'Wally' Ahmad - with family and friends appearing to account for most of the mourners

Mourners consoled each other at Friday's funeral after Assaad's shocking death on Tuesday where he was gunned down in his driveway

Hundreds gathered to farewell Assad at Australia's oldest mosque in Sydney's west on Friday
Were defending their right to wear what they want and preaching self-love

More than 300 people marched in Barrington, Rhode Island last week

A man who slammed women aged over 20 for wearing yoga pants in public is fighting back after hundreds of people marched in front of his home defending their right to wear what they want.

Alan Sorrentino, 64, of Barrington, Rhode Island, wrote an open letter to his town's newspaper last week describing yoga pants 'disturbing' on adult women - remarks that many readers branded misogynistic.

Days later, hundreds of women and other supporters proudly donned their yoga pants at a parade in Sorrentino's neighborhood in protest at his comments.

Now Sorrentino has told the Providence Journal that his critics are like 'evil sorority girls' who should leave 'an old man' alone - and wants to publish another open letter about yoga pants.

Alan Sorrentino (left), 64, of Barrington, Rhode Island, wrote an open letter last week calling yoga pants 'disturbing' on adult women - prompting a protest outside his home on Sunday (right)

'It was violent. It was scary. It looked like the crucifixion,' Sorrentino said about the parade. 'It was designed to hurt me.'

Sorrentino, who wrote in his letter to the Barrington Times that 'not since the mini-skirt has there been something worn by so many women who should never have it on in the first place', has received attention from media in the United States and even Japan since his letter was published.

But he believes the protesters overreacted.

'Who the hell am I? So what if I said that?' he told the Providence Journal, describing himself as a 'short little gay Italian'.

'I meant to sound like Trump,' he added, but 'I'm a gay Democrat who supports Hillary Clinton.'

The women and protesters who marched in front of Sorrentino's home Sunday (pictured) took the letter as one more act of policing of women's outfits

Sorrentino thought the newspaper would not publish his letter and thought of it as a joke.

He said he drew inspiration from Joan Rivers' scathing red carpet commentaries.

'A joke is designed to fool people; those people were fooled,' Sorrentino previously told WPRO.

He said he had 'assumed the character of a grumpy old man' who 'was too tight to just relax and accept himself in his age and his own ways'.

'It was meant to sound stupid and creepy,' Sorrentino said.

But the women and protesters who marched in front of Sorrentino's home Sunday took the letter as one more act of policing of women's outfits.

'So happy that with the national election, local election... and all the other serious s**t happening around us THIS s**t was given ink,' one of the organizers, Jamie Patrice, wrote on Facebook after Sorrentino's letter ran.

They walked in the neighborhood with signs stating: 'We wear what we want' and 'Love yourself' - all while wearing their favorite pairs of yoga pants.

Sorrentino, who lives with his partner, said he apologized to his neighbors and after the march had to clean up scrawling left on the street by the protesters.

He now wants to publish a new letter about yoga pants, which states: 'Remember, we're all beautiful inside. It's when you start flopping out that things get ugly.'
A mother has tearfully told a court how the horrific abuse her infant son suffered at the hands of his uncle has changed her family's life forever and she doubts the man is ever capable of rehabilitation.

Elise Webber described the traumatic impact of the abuse at Gosford District Court, north of Sydney, on Friday.

'You have taken from Bobby the life he was supposed to have lived,' she said in a victim impact statement, The Daily Telegraph reported.

'I hope my son's face haunts you for the rest of your days.'

Bobby Webber (pictured) was left a quadriplegic after he was severely abused by his uncle in 2014

Bobby suffered such severe injuries that his parents, Elise (right) and Barry (left), were given a 'end of life form' to fill in

Bobby Webber, who was seven months old at the time, was beaten so severely by Andrew Nolan that doctors told his devastated parents to turn off the life support and were given an 'end of life form' to fill in.

Mrs Webber and her husband, Barry, were on their honeymoon when they received a call to say her young son had been hosptalised in September 2014.

The couple cut short one of the 'happiest days of their life' and returned from the Gold Coast to see their boy at Children's Hospital at Randwick.

Bobby endured multiple skull fractures from blunt force trauma, blood pooling in his eye from being shaken so violently, fractured vertebrae, bruised genitalia and bite marks on his body.

Elise and Barry Webber were on their honeymoon when they got a call to say their son had been critically injured

'When we saw his bruised and swollen penis we knew something unspeakable had happened that night,' Mrs Webber told the court.

The boy survived but was left a quadriplegic and is virtually blind.

Nolan, the fiance of Mrs Webber's sister, pleaded guilty in May to abusing the boy over a four hour period at a Central Coast home.

The sentencing hearing continues on Friday afternoon.

Bobby suffered multiple skull fractures, fractured vertebrae and bruised genitalia
his mother to death with a pole in their Adelaide home

A man jailed for killing his 'tiger mum' has had his sentence extended after pleading guilty to possessing child pornography.

Wei Li, 23, is serving a nine-year sentence for bludgeoning his mother Emma Tien to death with a metal pole at the family's Adelaide home in 2011.

Li blamed the violent attack on the physical and verbal abuse his mother inflicted, calling her a 'tiger mum' who put him under pressure to succeed.

Wei Li (pictured), jailed for killing his 'tiger mum' has had his sentence extended after pleading guilty to possessing child pornography

Li is serving a nine-year sentence for bludgeoning his mother Emma Tien to death with a metal pole at the family's Adelaide home (pictured) in 2011

During investigations into his mother's death, police sized Li's computer after he fled overseas and later found 18 files of child pornography on it, ABC News reported.

The 23-year-old pleaded guilty to three charges of possessing pornography between November 2010 and March 2011.

Li accessed the exploitative material as a means of escaping his mother's control, his lawyer Michael Hegarty previously told the District Court.

On Friday Judge Paul Cuthbertson said there was evidence to suggest Li had a sexual interest in the material.

'There is some evidence that some images were accessed by the offender at a later date after they had been obtained or received, suggesting he must have specifically gone back with the intention of looking at some of the images he obtained, Judge Cuthbertson said.

Li has now been ordered by the South Australian District Court to serve an extra 10 months and two weeks in prison.
Suzanne Astle, 48, who lives in a 1.2million property with her family on a wealthy country estate in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, was flung out of the hot air balloon's basket and thrown 20ft to the ground below when it flipped over in high winds, witnesses said

A British mother-of-two died in front of her horrified family after being thrown 20ft from a hot air balloon when it crashed on landing during a once-in-a-lifetime holiday.

Suzanne Astle, 48, who lives in a 1.2million property with her family on a wealthy country estate in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, was flung out of the hot air balloon's basket and thrown 20ft to the ground below when it flipped over in high winds, witnesses said.

She was with her husband, former airline pilot John, 63, and two sons, privately schooled Will, 14, and Sam, when the incident occurred at the end of a dawn balloon ride on Tuesday morning.

The family had booked the 'Magalies River Valley Scenic Balloon Safari' with Original Balloon Safaris  which costs up to 150 per person - during a half-term trip to Pretoria in South Africa. It is understood a hot air balloon ride had been on the family's bucket list of activities they dreamed of doing.

Mrs Astle was thrown from the wicker basket after it careered into trees, bushes and rocks while trying to land in a large agricultural field in strong winds. She was taken to hospital by ambulance but died the following day from serious head injuries.

Her husband John, a local councillor and keen golfer, flew back to their home in Kenilworth last night with their two sons. He was too upset to talk at the house today.

British mother-of-two Suzanne Astle, 48, was flung out of the hot air balloon's basket and thrown 20ft to the ground below when it flipped over in high winds as it came in to land near Mooinooi in South Africa. Pictured: The crashed hot air balloon with rescuers at the scene

Mrs Astle lived in a 1.2million property (pictured) with her family on a wealthy country estate in Kenilworth, Warwickshire. The semi-detached home is accessed by a leafy private road

Speaking on the leafy private road outside his courtyard home, he told MailOnline: 'I don't want to say anything right now.'

A neighbour in one of the large detached properties that lie in the grounds of Grade-I listed Stonleigh Abbey, said: 'There are just no words for it.

'It's shocking. They were towards the end of their holiday I believe. As soon as it happened John flew back with the children, they came back last night.

'I just don't know what he can be thinking right now.'

Another neighbour, who did not wish to be named, said: 'Those poor children. They were so excited for this holiday I just can't believe it.'

One woman, who did not give her name, said: 'They are always so friendly whenever I see them. It's just so awful.'

The hot air balloon tour was organised by a firm called Original Balloon Safaris, run by British expat Bill Harrop.

He said his firm is 'co-operating with the authorities' but also conducting its own investigation into the tragedy.

Speaking to MailOnline today, he said there was nothing that could have been done to prevent the 'freak accident' but said that had the balloon landed 10 metres away, everyone is likely to have survived.

He said: 'We've never had anything like this happen in 35 years.

Survivors and emergency services at the scene of the tragedy after the hot air balloon careered into trees and bushes before flipping over in high winds in north west South Africa

The crash happened near Mooinooi, north west of Johannesburg in South Africa

'Everybody here is absolutely devastated. There's tears in people's eyes, I just feel so sorry for the family.

'The accident was totally freakish, totally unexpected, and totally unable to have been detected. It was caught by a gust of wind. When the wind blows four to six times faster than its forecast, it can catch you out.

'The pilot did everything correctly, his awareness was good, his thought process was good, he aviated all the way to the ground.

'If that field had been 10 metres longer, if those rocks hadn't been there at the end of the landing run, everyone would've been  maybe shaken  but ok.'

He said he drove 50 miles to the scene after hearing about the crash and quickly learned two people had fallen out of the balloon and had been taken to hospital. Others were described as walking wounded and are said to have suffered minor injuries.

The Astle family were the only Brits on board the balloon, and were joined by Italian tourists, a Brazilian couple  the only pair to be unharmed  and South Africans.

A four-year-old girl, from South Africa, also suffered serious injuries after being thrown from the hot air balloon along with Mrs Astle. She was flown to a trauma facility in Johannesburg that caters for children and is said to remain in a critical condition. Her mother also remains in a stable condition.

The pair were the only two people to be thrown from the basket which was carrying 14 passengers and the pilot at the time. Survivors describe having to 'hold on for dear life' as the balloon crashed into trees and bushes before flipping over in high winds.

Survivor Olivia Denny, 70, said: 'The wind swept us away. It felt like driving backwards in a car at 40km/h.

'We were dragged through bushes and rocks before we landed between two trees. We had to hold on for dear life.'

She added to News 24: 'It was supposed to be one beautiful day out, but it turned into an absolute nightmare.'

A paramedic at the scene added: 'The basket tilted when it was about 20ft from the ground because of wind and the lady and a child fell out before it crashed.

'The woman sustained serious head injuries. Her husband and two sons went with her to hospital but doctors couldn't save her. It's an awful tragedy.'

Emergency services said the balloon took off in good weather from Skeerpoort but was struck by high winds as it tried to land near Mooinooi - around 30 miles away.

The tour was organised by a firm called Original Balloon Safaris, which is run by British expat Bill Harrop (pictured above during one of his hot air balloon rides over north South Africa)

The company Original Balloon Safaris (BHOBS), run by Bill Harrop, confirmed weather had been perfect at take off.

A statement released by the adventure firm has questioned whether or not Mrs Astle fell from 20ft, suggesting she was tipped out of the balloon when it hit some rocks.

'The balloon was landed expertly on an open field where it was dragged by unexpected high winds,' the statement said.

'Only when it hit rocks at the edge of the field, did the basket capsize and three passengers thrown overboard.'

Mr Harrop, who was at the bedside of the injured child, said:

'BHOBS has an impeccable safety record over 34 years of flying balloons in South Africa.

'The very experienced pilot did an expert job of landing the balloon in freak weather conditions, thereby limiting injuries.

'The BHOBS team is devastated by the injuries and fatality.

'We wish to extend our deepest condolences to those aboard our flight and their families.

'We are cooperating with the authorities and are conducting our own investigation as to the cause of the accident.'

The company said the mother and child also injured in the tragedy were now in a stable condition.

The pilot was amongst the most experienced in the country, having flown balloons for over 16 years, and the balloon was the newest in the fleet.

On the balloon firm's website, Mr Harrop offers to 'give our clients the most uplifting experience of their lives, fulfill bucket list wishes and help make your special day truly memorable.'

The website adds that the company boasts 'professional pilots, attentive crew, immaculately maintained equipment and five aviation safety awards', making it the 'longest established licensed Balloon Airline in southern Africa'.

Mr Harrop's friend, Graeme Addison, said: 'My friend Bill - the original pioneer of ballooning in South Africa - is mourning a death along with several injured in this reported accident.

'You can't eliminate risk from adventure, no matter how careful and professional you are. A gust of wind at the wrong moment and pouff! the graceful balloon crashes.'

Mr Harrop, who grew up in Yorkshire before setting up his hot air balloon business in South Africa in 1981, said all staff members and the pilot are now having counselling. He said balloon rides were stopped for a day out of respect, but have since resumed.
Aides to Hillary Clinton wanted her to appear at a fundraiser supported by George Soros because they believed this would be a good way for the Democratic presidential nominee to 'make him happy,' according to hacked emails revealed by WikiLeaks.

The new revelations shed light on the degree to which Soros, the 85-year-old Hungarian-born billionaire and mega-donor to the Democratic Party, had Clinton's ear.

On October 7, 2014, a top Clinton aide, Huma Abedin, wrote an email to Robby Mook, who would eventually go on to run Clinton's campaign.

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Hillary Clinton (left) counts George Soros (right), one of the world's richest men, is one of her biggest supporters

Abedin informed Mook that Clinton was having dinner with Soros.

The aide wrote that she anticipated Soros would ask Clinton to appear at a fundraiser for America Votes, a progressive organization that he backs.

Abedin asked Mook how to proceed, to which he replied: 'I would only do this for political reasons (ie to make Soros happy).'

For the past couple of weeks, WikiLeaks has been releasing masses of emails from the hacked account of John Podesta, the most senior operative running the Clinton campaign.

Podesta is also closely tied to Soros.

An October 7, 2014, email exchange between Clinton aides Huma Abdein (left) and Robby Mook (right) showed that they wanted to 'make Soros happy' by having Clinton attend one a fundraisers

The WikiLeaks emails show that Soros' top aides routinely communicated with Podesta, conveying the billionaire's positions on issues ranging from trade to immigration to the Supreme Court.

The emails reveal that Soros aides authored policy papers that reflect their bosses' thinking on a number of issues  and those positions were then shared with Podesta and the Clinton camp.

'In general I think George is more interested in talking about policy than the campaign per se,' Michael Vachon, an advisor and spokesman for Soros, wrote to Podesta on March 7, 2016.

'In a separate email I will send you George's latest thinking on the migration crisis, which he is spending a lot of time on. His other big preoccupation these days is Ukraine.'

Soros' aide would also make sure that the Clinton camp knew of his boss' position on issues like climate change and the Trans Pacific Partnership.

The emails potentially reinforce the perception that Clinton is beholden to deep-pocketed donors, and that those ties could have an undue influence on the policies that she will promote if and when she enters the White House.

The revelations were the latest gleaned from the hacked email account of John Podesta (above), the chairman of Clinton's presidential campaign who also has ties to Soros

Earlier this week, it was learned that Soros is one of five mega-donors who are responsible for one in every $17 dollars that have been spent on Clinton's presidential campaign.

The Clinton campaign proper and SuperPAC Priorities USA had raised a combined $1.14 billion by the end of September, filling their coffers to the brim with the help of the Democratic candidate's wealthy friends and national labor unions.

A Washington Post assessment of Clinton's fundraising found that a fifth of the money that went to her campaign directly or was donated through her joint fundraising committee, the nominating convention host committee, her PACs and the Democratic Party came from 100 individuals or unions.

Major donors to her bid included hedge fund manager Donald Sussman, who donated $20.6 million and investor J.B. Pritzker, whose sister is the current Secretary of Commerce, and his wife, M.K.. The Pritzkers were responsible for $16.7 million; in donations.

Univision chairman Haim Saban and his wife Cheryl gave $11.9 million, while Soros wrote checks in the amount of $9.9 million.
Hillary Clinton wants Vice President Joe Biden to be her Secretary of State, a source claims.

Biden's name allegedly tops the list of internal candidates for the cabinet position for a Clinton White House.

'He'd be great, and they are spending a lot of time figuring out the best way to try to persuade him to do it if she wins,' the source told Politico.

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Hillary Clinton wants Vice President Joe Biden (pictured toegther in January) to be her Secretary of State, a source claims

It would be a rare move if a vice president is appointed to another cabinet position. Typically VPs are not appointed to a new cabinet role unless that role is the president of the United States.

Neither Clinton nor her aides have approached Biden yet, the source claims.

Clinton and Biden have had a lengthy rivalry despite both having served in Obama's cabinet.

Both of them lost the Democratic primary to Obama in 2008. Obama went onto appoint Biden as his running mate while Clinton was named as Secretary of State.

Last year, Biden seriously contemplated another presidential run against Clinton, but he ultimately decided not to following the death of his son Beau.

Neither Clinton nor her aides have approached Biden yet, the source claims

But as the Obama administration comes to a close, Biden has been campaigning hard for Hillary.

The 73-year-old, who has been on Capitol Hill for four decades and served two terms as vice president, hit the 2016 campaign trail with Clinton for the first time in August where he went into bat, trashing Donald Trump as unqualified for the White House.

HILLARY'S SHORTLIST FOR SECRETARY OF STATE, SOURCES CLAIM Vice President Joe Biden Former Undersecretary of State Wendy Sherman. Former Deputy Secretary of State Bill Burns. Nick Burns, former undersecretary of state of political affairs under George W. Bush. Kurt Campbell, who served as Clinton's assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs. Strobe Talbott, deputy secretary of state during President Bill Clinton's first term. Now president of the Brookings Institution. Retired admiral James Stavridis, who was considered as a possible vice presidential choice. Advertisement

Clinton and Biden have also appeared friendly in public, lavishing praise on one another.

The vice president has described Clinton as the best candidate to protect the country and bring economic prosperity to the middle class.

She understands the challenges facing the people in the kind of neighborhoods he and wife Jill grew up in, Biden said.

Clinton has returned the favor, telling her former colleague in the U.S. Senate he is beloved there and everywhere in America.

'N o matter how far he travels he never forgets where he's from,' she said at a rally in Scranton in August.

'As many of you know, his wonderful son Beau  a great father, a great public servant, a great human being  passed away last year, so this is personal to Joe Biden.'

She said: 'He knows it's personal to a lot of families, that's why he's fighting so hard to make a difference, and if I'm elected this fall I'm going to ask Joe to continue the important work he's begun to help us fight and defeat cancer.'

The Democrats have known each other for 30 years.

If Biden is the the preferred appointment for state secretary, he would be the first major Cabinet candidate to go public.

The vice president, who chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee before joining the administration, spent six terms in the Senate and then two terms as President Obama's VP.

Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden shared an awkward hug as they greeted each at the Scranton airport in August

He also kept the portfolio on international issues, such as Iraq and Ukraine, and has been deployed to try and repair some of the damage Trump's divisive campaign has done to America on the international stage.

While he is more than qualified, and has cross-party appeal, Clinton would also be selecting someone she has had major clashes with in the past - including whether or not to leave troops in Iraq or to bomb Syria.

Of course, Biden is not the only candidate.

Other names under discussion include former undersecretary of state Wendy Sherman, former Deputy Secretary of State Bill Burns and Nick Burns, a Clinton advocate and former under secretary of state of political affairs under George W. Bush.

Clinton's assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Kurt Campbell, Strobe Talbott, the deputy secretary of state under Bill Clinton and family friend and retired admiral James Stavridis - who was once considered as a potential running mate.
Edwina Currie is still supporting a Tory friend convicted of stealing 3,100 donated to the Poppy Appeal and wrote to magistrates who let him walk free.

Jeffrey Lawton, 41, the former chairman of the High Peak Conservative Association, was found guilty of stealing 3,135.65 at Southern Derbyshire Magistrates' Court this month.

But despite his conviction for pocketing donated cash meant for war heroes Ms Currie, 70, has refused to accept he is guilty.

The former minister and her husband John Jones said he was 'disorganised' and 'careless' with the 3,135 he raised but never handed to the Royal British Legion.

Close: Ms Currie sent a letter defending her friend Jeff, pictured together, who quit the local Tory party as chairman in disgrace, and still believes he is innocent

Ms Currie sent a letter defending her friend, who quit as the local Tory party chairman in disgrace, and still believes he is innocent.

Her husband John admitted last night he had been 'lucky' to avoid jail after his conviction.

In the dock: Derbyshire Police said Lawton, pictured, had failed to bank some money that had been raised during the Poppy Appeal in November 2014

Instead he walked free and was given a community order, a curfew between 8pm-and 6am until December 13, and ordered to pay court costs of 2,000 and a victim surcharge of 60.

John Jones told the Mirror: 'We are both horrified because we actually don't think he is guilty. He's very careless but a lovely guy.

'Both Edwina and I sent letters to the court as some mitigation. He's not a thief in my opinion but who am I to argue with a judge? Having been convicted, he was very lucky not to be given a prison sentence.

'He's in a real state now and his parents are really distraught.'

Lawton denied the theft, said to have occurred between November 2014 and October 2015, at an earlier hearing in April.

Derbyshire Police said he had failed to bank some money that had been raised during the Poppy Appeal in November 2014.

Defence: Edwina and second husband John, who said: 'We are both horrified because we actually don't think he is guilty'

Lawton was arrested in October last year and then charged over the stolen money in March this year.

The thief caused a row in the year he stole the cash when he claimed town hall bosses have threatened to throw away 10,000 British Legion poppies because they are a fire hazard.

He said: 'This is ridiculous, I've been told they are a fire hazard. If they get thrown away, that feasibly could cost the Poppy Appeal 10,000, as it's not unreasonable to estimate people pay 1 per poppy on average  and I have around 10,000 stored.
The Frenchman charged with murdering two British backpackers at a Queensland hostel may have been suffering from schizophrenia at the time he allegedly went on the stabbing rampage.

Smail Ayad, 29, allegedly killed Mia Ayliffe-Chung, 21, and Tom Jackson, 30, during a knife attack at Shelley's Backpacker Hostel in Home Hill, south of Townsville in August.

It has been claimed Ayad screamed 'Allahu Akbar' as he allegedly butchered the pretty backpacker in front of 30 witnesses, before turning the knife on Mr Jackson.

And on Friday, the Townsville Magistrates Court heard Ayad had been given a preliminary diagnosis of schizophrenia, with his case to be referred to the Mental Health Court.

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Smail Ayad (pictured), 29, may have been suffering from schizophrenia at the time he allegedly went on a stabbing rampage at a Queensland hostel that took the lives of two British backpackers

Mia Ayliffe-Chung (pictured), 21, was allegedly murdered by Ayad in front of more than 30 witnesses. It has been claimed he was obsessed with the pretty young backpacker and also shouted 'Allahu Akbar' as he stabbed her on August 23, 2016

Fellow British backpacker Tom Jackson (pictured), 30, ran in to save Ms Ayliffe-Chung as she was being attacked before Ayad allegedly turned his attention to him. Mr Jackson died a week after the attack.

While he failed to appear in court, Ayad - who was initially charged with the murder of Ms Ayliffe-Chung and attempted murder of Mr Jackson - had the later charge upgraded to murder.

The change to one of the 16 charges Ayad is facing came after Mr Jackson died in hospital a week after the incident.

Magistrate Steven Mosch told the court it had been suggested the case be referred to the Mental Health Court.

'I have got some material on his file ... suggesting the defendant is subject to an involuntary treatment order and these proceedings have now been suspended under the Mental Health Act,' he said.

'There's been a preliminary diagnosis of schizophrenia,' Ayad's solicitor Annabel Wurth said.

Ayad remains at The Park Centre for Mental Health - a secure facility in Brisbane.

His defence team has not yet been handed a brief of evidence or psychiatric report.

The matter was adjourned to the Mental Health Court on February 15 and Ayad was remanded in custody.

Police did not bring him into the courtroom when his matter was first mentioned in late August due to safety concerns following attacks on police after his arrest.

The Townsville Magistrates Court heard Ayad, from France, had been given a preliminary diagnosis of schizophrenia through assessments made since being arrested

The death of Ms Ayliffe-Chung (pictured) made shockwaves not just in Australia but also in the United Kingdom following the attack. In the weeks before she set out on her trip in 2015, she posted about being 30 per cent excited - but 70 percent scared - about her adventure

The horrifying attack occurred at Shelley's Backpackers, a popular hostel in Home Hill, south of Townsville

In addition to the murder charges, the former kickboxer was also charged with 12 counts of assaulting police - including allegations he bit officers - and one count of animal cruelty, for allegedly killing a dog.

Last month he was moved to the secure Brisbane facility and had reportedly 'baited' guards and told psychologists he wanted to die.

Despite allegedly yelling 'Allahu Akbar' during the attack, authorities have found no evidence to suggest his motivations were terror-related.

His alleged Islamic cries stoked debate about Muslim immigration in Australia despite Ms Ayliffe-Chung's mother, Rosie Ayliffe, publicly appealing for the tragedy not to be misrepresented in accordance with her daughter's 'huge respect for everybody'.

Mr Jackson suffered stab wounds to his head and torso and was hailed as a hero after he went to Ms Ayliffe-Chung's aid.

His father Les flew from the UK to North Queensland to be at his son's bedside before he died.
premiership to be binned by May

It is yet another core policy of

Theresa May (pictured earlier this week) abandoned the academy plans to make way for her own radical schools revolution, which will end the ban on new grammars

Plans to force under-performing schools to convert into academies were quietly scrapped last night.

Theresa May abandoned the plans to make way for her own radical schools revolution, which will end the ban on new grammars and increase the number of faith schools.

It is yet another core policy of David Cameron's premiership to be abandoned by Mrs May.

The plans to radically expand the number of academy schools was at the centre of this year's Budget.

The controversial pledge, outlined in the Queen's Speech in May, would have meant any school in an area with poor results would be taken out of local authority control by 2022.

It was one of several academy proposals by former education secretary Nicky Morgan outlined in a flagship Bill due to pass through Parliament this year.

Justine Greening, her successor at the Department for Education, announced the Government was dropping the plans in a brief paragraph in a written ministerial statement.

She insists the Government still wants to encourage schools to make the transition to academies voluntarily.

It is understood the Government wants to shift its focus towards raising attainment among disadvantaged children by consulting on the creation of new grammar schools.

The ministerial statement said: 'Our ambition remains that all schools should benefit from the freedom and autonomy that academy status brings. Our focus, however, is on building capacity in the system and encouraging schools to convert voluntarily.'

The plans to radically expand the number of academy schools was at the centre of this year's Budget. Pictured, the Globe Academy building in London

The decision to scrap plans to expand the academy schools programme is yet another core policy of David Cameron's premiership to be abandoned by Mrs May

Labour politicians, teachers' unions and local councils welcomed the announcement.

Russell Hobby, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: 'It was, and remains, inappropriate to force good schools to convert when the evidence of any benefit is so dubious.'

Richard Watts of the Local Government Association said the move to abandon the academy conversion programme was a sign the Government was listening to concerns raised by local authorities.

He said: Councils have been clear from the outset that the proposals within the Bill focused too heavily on structures, when our shared ambition is on improving education for all children.'

The original plans had aimed to force all schools to become academies but the then Education Secretary Nicky Morgan (pictured) made a humiliating U-turn weeks later announcing that only poor-performing schools would have to convert

Reacting to news the Government had ditched its academy conversion programme, Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner said: 'When it comes to this government's education policy chaos really does mean chaos'

He added: 'In particular, both the forced academisation of schools in areas considered to be 'unviable', and the removal of the council role in school improvement, went against evidence that council-maintained schools perform more highly than academies and free schools in Ofsted inspections, and that conversion to academies did not in itself lead to better results.'

NUT general secretary Kevin Courtney said the move showed the Government's education policy was in 'complete disarray' while Labour attacked ministers along the same lines.

Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner said: 'When it comes to this government's education policy chaos really does mean chaos.'
A Russian student who travelled to Syria after falling in love with an ISIS jihadi online has admitted that she tipped him off that secret services were seeking to trap him.

Varvara Karaulova, 20, was stopped at the Turkish-Syrian border en route to see fanatic Airat Samatov, and when she was deported back to Moscow she agreed to help the FSB with a sting operation on him.

He and his accomplices are feared to be recruiters of potential women suicide bombers.

Varvara Karaulova, 20, who was stopped at the Turkish-Syrian border en route to see fanatic Airat Samatov, and when she was deported back to Moscow she agreed to help the FSB with a sting operation on him

Karaulova was later arrested and now she had admitted tipping off Samatov that their conversations were being bugged

But Karaulova told the jihadi that the secret agents were bugging their conversations, she admitted to the judge after appearing in court.

She now faces up to ten years in jail if convicted of seeking to join a terrorist group called Badr which includes many ethnic Chechens from southern Russia.

Earlier she and her family claimed that packing lace lingerie and bed linen for her trip proved she was not travelling to Syria to become a terrorist or even a suicide bomber, but because she loved 36-year-old Samatov who she had only met online.

She told how after she was halted at the border and reunited with her parents, she ended her plans to go to Syria because although she loved Samatov,she loved her mother and father more and did not want to 'hurt' them.

Airat Samatov, who Karaulova met online and told the court she wanted to go to Syria to meet him because she loved him

Karaulova has admitted that she tipped Samatov off via a messenger service that the Russian secret service were trying to compromise him

The woman then agreed to assist the FSB by continuing to talk to the suspected terrorist on the internet, knowing that her conversations were being monitored by the FSB.

But then she tipped him off via a messenger service that the secret service were trying to compromise him, she admitted.

Prosecutors say she also used various other names online to hide her identity in chatting to the militant, and was actively plotting another attempt to reach Syria.

According to her testimony she had a naive and starry-eyed view about ISIS, despite being a high-flying A-grade university student

She told the court as she wept: 'I felt very lonely, I loved him, I missed him very much.

'At that moment I was sure that he was concerned about me. '

'At first I just wanted to tell that I was okay, but then I just could not stop.'

In one message to her, he told her: 'I wish I am sent to Russia to blow up something.'

Yet she also admitted that earlier, before her trip, when Samatov had disappeared for two months she abruptly went through an online 'wedding ceremony' with another jihadi.

He sent her 200 for a trip to Syria before Samatov reappeared and demanded she return to him, which she did.

She added: 'I was missing Samatov. He asked me to forgive him for another girl he had at this time. I was desperate for him to call me to join him.'

Prosecutors told the court she had undertaken physical and combat training and 'was, for that reason, capable of fulfilling any tasks.'

Yet according to her testimony she had a naive and starry-eyed view about ISIS, despite being a high-flying A-grade university student.

She claimed she had not followed the news and was attracted to travelling to meet her jihadi boyfriend because 'ISIS is a country that cares for its people.'

She now faces up to ten years in jail if convicted of seeking to join a terrorist group called Badr which includes many ethnic Chechens from southern Russia

Under questioning from the judge, she said: 'People don't smoke there nor drink alcohol.'

She testified: 'It is a country where the main goal is not to make money but to care for people and children'

Denying she was being recruited as a suicide bomber, she said: 'A woman is treated like a treasure.

'She is valued for her brain and abilities and not only for her beauty.'

Claiming in court she was motivated only by love, she said: 'I have not joined anything.

'I am not a terrorist and I was certainly not going to become one.
Vladimir Putin is gearing up for a 'hot war' he doesn't want - but will not back down if he provoked over Syria, Britain's former ambassador to Moscow has warned.

Sir Anthony Brenton insists relations between the Kremlin and the West are 'the most dangerous' he has ever seen amid heightened tensions over the country's bombing campaign in Syria.

While Russia 'means business' having sent warships past British shores and displayed its military might, Moscow is 'weak' and does not want a war, Sir Anthony said.

Vladimir Putin (pictured) is gearing up for a 'hot war' he doesn't really want - will not back down in a face-off with the West because the humiliation will topple him, Britain's former ambassador to Moscow has warned

In an exclusive opinion piece for the Daily Mirror, he said it is 'close to impossible' for Russia to back down because the ' loss of face would almost certainly be the end of Putin'.

There has been weeks of posturing between Russia and the West with both sides trading accusations over the brutal civil war in Syria.

Today Russia sent the naval destroyer Smetlivy to Syria to join its fleet their for the coming months.

The heavily armed ship left the Crimean port of Sevastopol to great fanfare en route to Syria via Greece to take part in a festival.

And Sir Anthony added: 'If we act on Syria in any way that could escalate to a Russian attack, they are signalling as clearly as they can that they would retaliate.'

Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson condemned airstrikes on a Syrian school (pictured) that left at least 22 children and six teachers dead

While Russia 'means business' having sent warships past British shores and displayed its military might, Moscow is 'weak' and does not want a war, Sir Anthony Brenton said. Russian troops are pictured in the Novosibirsk region of Russia earlier this month

However, he said that while the situation was dangerous, Russia is also 'weak', spending far less on its military than the West.

He added: 'They do not want war. They would lose. These shows of strength are not an intention to fight, but a signal that fighting must be avoided.'

Sir Anthony, who was British ambassador to Moscow between 2004 and 2008, suggested Russia and the West needed to respect each other's 'vital interests' and said the two parties had managed to pull back from disaster during the Cold War.

Britain this week announced plans to send 800 troops to Estonia at its border with Russia.

Sir Anthony Brenton (pictured) insists relations between the Kremlin and the West are 'the most dangerous' he has ever seen amid heightened tensions over the country's bombing campaign in Syria

More than 200,000 specialists of rescue units and 50,000 units of equipment were said to have been involved in a mass nuclear war readiness drill in Russia

The Royal Navy was placed on red alert after it emerged Russia was sailing a fleet of warships along the British coast en route to Syria

But Sir Anthony said Russia would not attack a Nato country deliberately because 'they would lose'.

While the situation is 'dicey', 'peace still lies in our hands', he said.

Meanwhile, Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson condemned airstrikes on a Syrian school that left at least 22 children and six teachers dead.

He wrote on Twitter: '[The] world will be sickened by Syrian school bombing. 20+ children dead. Russia and Syria regime must end butchery and agree to peaceful solution.'

International development secretary Priti Patel said: Schools should be safe places to learn, not transformed into places of slaughter.

These airstrikes are a barbaric assault on the world's humanity. It is time the Syrian regime, and their Russian backers end this conflict.'

Russia denied involvement in the deadly bombing.

His comments come as Putin accused the West of building up a 'mythical and made-up' threat of Russian aggression to justify increasing military spending and bolstering NATO forces in countries neighbouring Russia.

Putin dismissed claims he is planning to invade another country calling warnings of a new Cold War 'stupid' and 'unrealistic'

RAF personnel are among a 600-strong training group at Lechfield Air Base in Bavaria working with others from France, Spain, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and Italy

'It's very pleasant and profitable to make yourself out to be defendants of civilisation from some new barbarians, but the thing is Russia doesn't plan to attack anyone,' he said.

'It's unthinkable - simply stupid and unrealistic,' he added. 'It's just funny to talk about it.'

His remarks come after a spell of increased aggression, which has included unveiling a new super-nuke capable of obliterating an area the size of Russia.

Putin also sailed warships through the English Channel ahead of a fresh offensive in Syria and last night it emerged Russia had launched a new super stealth submarine.

The Veliky Novgorod is the latest addition to the Black Sea fleet and is capable of striking land, sea and underwater targets.

Video has also emerged of elite Russian soldiers who can parachute out of a plane before using special equipment to plunge 30m below water with underwater submachine guns.

Earlier this week, footage showed Russia carrying out a nuclear war readiness exercise involving 40 million of its citizens while 130 military centres have been put on high alert for drills on the region's ability to respond to attacks from the West.

Meanwhile, RAF personnel are among a 600-strong training group at Lechfield Air Base in Bavaria working with others from France, Spain, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and Italy.

Russia has unveiled chilling pictures of its largest ever nuclear missile, capable of destroying an area the size of France. A contract for the weapons was signed in 2011, and they are expected to be ready in 2018

Each missile contains 16 nuclear warheads, according to pictures revealed online from the Makeyev Rocket Design Bureau. It is also able to evade radar.

The European Air Group members are working with Norway to test their readiness to deploy as a multi-national task force.

It comes as Russia's military escalation on Europe's border triggered the West's biggest show of force in the region since the Cold War.

However, in Germany members of 34 Squadron RAF Regiment carried out Air Traffic Operations and Force Protection exercises alongside forces from other nations.

The US is also hoping for European nations to fill four battle groups of some 4,000 troops as part of Nato's response to Russia. More troops will be sent to the Baltic states and eastern Poland early next year. They will be backed by Nato's 40,000-strong rapid reaction force.
Lord Nelson's iconic speech made on the eve of the Battle of Trafalgar was changed seconds before it was sent to his navy, a note reveals.

Just as Admiral Nelson's navy was about to go into battle against the combined French and Spanish fleet on October 21, 1805, the hero sailor issued a rousing message to the crews.

Onboard HMS Victory he instructed his signal lieutenant, John Pasco, to hoist the message 'England confides that every man will do his duty'.

Just as Admiral Nelson's navy was about to go into battle against the combined French and Spanish fleet on October 21, 1805, the hero sailor issued a rousing message to the crews

In the 1830s John Pasco (pictured right) explained the series of events in the handwritten note (left) that is now to be sold at auction

Signal lieutenant Pasco asked his master if he could change the word 'confides' to 'expects' as the former was not in his signal vocabulary

The famous signal was then given to the fleet and the British went on to defeat the enemy in the Battle of Trafalgar (pictured), a victory tainted by Nelson's death

But Pasco asked his master if he could change the word 'confides' to 'expects' as the former was not in his signal vocabulary.

The famous signal was then given to the fleet and the British went on to defeat the enemy, a victory tainted by Nelson's death.

In the 1830s Pasco explained the series of events in the handwritten note that is now to be sold at auction.

He wrote in third person narrative: 'John Pasco - Captain Royal Navy - was senior lieutenant of the Victory with Lord Nelson at the Battle of Trafalgar but had the honour to make the ever to be remembered signal.

'''England expects every man to do his duty' and he was permitted by Lord Nelson to substitute the word 'expects' instead of 'confides' the word Lord Nelson chose.'

Several years later Pasco wrote a fuller account of the exchange.

He stated: 'His Lordship came to me on the poop [deck], and after ordering certain signals to be made, about a quarter to noon, he said, 'Mr. Pasco, I wish to say to the fleet, England expects that every man will do his duty' and he added 'You must be quick, for I have one more to make which is for close action.'

Lord Horacio Nelson, born in Norfolk, in full regalia painted by Sir William Beechey

'I replied, 'If your Lordship will permit me to substitute the confides for expects the signal will soon be completed, because the word expects is in the vocabulary, and confides must be spelt.'

'His Lordship replied, in haste, and with seeming satisfaction, 'That will do, Pasco, make it directly.''

Almost 200 years after it was penned the revealing note, which is signed at the top, has surfaced at auctioneers Bonhams where it is expected to sell for 3,000.

Sarah Lindberg, from the auction house, said: 'This handwritten note gives an account of what actually happened that fateful day, explaining how the wording was changed.

'Pasco's alteration to Nelson's signal has gone down in history.'

'Anyone who knew Nelson would be interested in meeting Pasco, it could even have belonged to an autograph hunter.

'It's very rare to come across Pasco memorabilia at auction but there are of course countless Nelson collectors, so this piece should generate significant interest.'

At the Battle of Trafalgar, which marked a momentous victory over the French Empire despite the death of the British leader, Pasco was also severely wounded in action, suffering a shot to his right side.

In January 1806 Pasco accompanied the coffin for Nelson's state funeral at St Paul's Cathedral.

He went on to have a distinguished naval career, taking command of six ships, the last of which coincidentally was HMS Victory, where he was promoted to Rear Admiral.

He died in 1853 at the age of 79.

His handwritten note has been brought to auction by a private UK collector but the ownership history before this point is not known.
ISIS terrorists have electrocuted 22 civilians in central Mosul as they send armoured suicide truck bombs towards Iraqi forces trying to liberate the city.

The Iraqi government troops and Kurdish Peshmerga fighters are facing stiff resistance as they advance on the city as they try to freed it from the rule of jihadis.

And as they move closer towards the centre of Mosul, many fear that the terror group will start using more brutal tactics to fend off any attack.

The Iraqi government troops and Kurdish Peshmerga fighters are facing stiff resistance as they advance on Mosul. Pictured is an explosion from an ISIS IED

It comes as Iraqi media reported that 22 civilians were electrocuted and killed by ISIS in the centre of Mosul.

According to Al Sumaria News, the militants had been keeping the civilians inside a prison for almost four months.

They were then executed after they were accused of collaborating with security forces and Peshmerga fighters.

Now 10 days into the battle of Mosul, special forces are still four miles to the east of the city and are constantly having to dodge ISIS firing mortars and armoured suicide truck bombs trundling across the arid plains.

An Iraqi Federal Police vehicle passes through a checkpoint in Qayara in the outskirts of Mosul. It has been reported ISIS killed 22 civilians by electrocuting them

A family grieve over the grave of one of their relatives at a graveyard that was destroyed by ISIS

Once inside the small, sparsely populated villages that ring Mosul, Iraqi forces must contend with explosive booby-traps and hidden snipers.

The fortifications are expected to grow even more lethally daunting once they enter Iraq's second-largest city.

The extremists captured Mosul in a matter of days in 2014, and have had more than two years to build up its defenses and brutally root out any internal opposition. The operation to retake the northern city is expected to take weeks, if not months.

Iraqi forces approaching Mosul from the south, meanwhile, are still 20 miles from the city, and the special forces to the east said they will not push ahead until the other forces are able to tighten the noose.

A Kurdish Peshmerga fighters carries a wounded boy after recapturing Fadiliya village north of Mosul from ISIS

Now 10 days into the battle of Mosul, special forces are still four miles to the east of the city and are constantly having to dodge ISIS firing mortars and armoured suicide truck bombs trundling across the arid plains

Iraqi army Major General Najim al-Jabori said forces south of Mosul retook the town of Staff al-Tut in the Tigris River valley on Wednesday, and said local tribal and militia forces have been deployed to protect the gains while his troops regroup for their next advance.

Meanwhile, during cleanup operations in the area of Tob Zawa, his men found a tire shop that had been converted into a factory for making roadside bombs and attaching armor to vehicles.
Republican Senator Mark Kirk has finally issued an apology to his Bangkok-born Democratic opponent Tammy Duckworth for taking a racist swipe at her mixed heritage background during an Illinois campaign debate.

'Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service', Kirk tweeted to his 9,588 followers at midday on Friday after being called out by shocked and incensed Republicans and Democrats alike.

The night before he quipped that he'd 'forgotten' that the parents of Duckworth - a Purple Heart Iraq war veteran who lost both her legs in the conflict - 'came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington'.

He made the tone deaf comment in response to Duckworth's summary of her family's impressive military history, dating back to the Revolutionary War.

'My family has served this nation in uniform, going back to the Revolution. Im a daughter of the American Revolution', she had said.

Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service. #ilsen  Mark Kirk (@MarkKirk) October 28, 2016

Sen Mark Kirk made the bizarre remark at a head-to-head debate, sparking accusations of racism and a call for him to apologize to his rival

Duckworth tweeted a photograph of herself with her parents, stating that her father's family has served in uniform since the Revolution

'Ive bled for this nation. But I still want to be there in the Senate when the drums of war sound.

'Because people are quick to sound the drums of war, and I want to be there to say this is what it costs, this is what youre asking us to do.  Families like mine are the ones that bleed first.'

Immediately after making the snide remark an awkward silence fell on the debate, followed by an incandescent Twitter audience venting their fury.

Duckworth was born in Bangkok to a Thai mother of Chinese descent and an American father. She became the first member of Congress born in Thailand and was awarded the Purple Heart for her bravery after the helicopter she was co-piloting was shot down by the enemy's rocket-propelled

Her father, Captain Franklin Duckworth, is a veteran of World War Two and the Korean and Vietnam wars.

And her ancestor, Jonathan Duckworth, of Burke, North Carolina, is on the rolls of those who received Federal pensions for military service in the Revolutionary War.

Following the debate, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokeswoman Lara Sisselman issued a statement branding the attack 'offensive, wrong, and racist'.

Iraq 2004 during a break in the mission day: Helicopter pilot Major Duckworth lost both her legs in a helicopter accident later that year and was awarded the Purple Heart for her bravery

Duckworth talks to DAV member and Vietnam Veteran Don Sioss about her injuries and treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, DC on January 7, 2005

Duckworth arrives (left) to address delegates on the final day of DNC at Wells Fargo Center on July 28, 2016 - and right, pictured with President Barack Obama in 2008 to honor America's veterans on Veterans Day at the Bronze Soldiers Memorial November in Chicago

Thankful for @TammyforIL'sand her family'sservice to this country. It's really not that hard to grasp, @MarkKirk. https://t.co/rKY0rberiB  Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) 28 October 2016

Sisselman continued: 'A struggling political campaign is no excuse for baseless and despicable attacks, and Senator Kirk owes Congresswoman Duckworth and her family an apology.'

The Clinton campaign was quick to pounce on the controversy - hitting right back at Kirk with a tweet which read: 'Thankful for @TammyforIL's - and her family's - service to this country. It's really not that hard to grasp, @MarkKirk.4]

Responding to Kirk's comment, Duckworth said: 'Im proud of both my fathers side and my mother, who is an immigrant.' She also tweeted out a picture alongside her parents - both her and her father in army dress with medals on display.

A statue of the Congresswoman was erected by the Daughters of the American Revolution next to Revolutionary War hero Margaret Ludwig Hay in Mount Vernon.

After the criticism, a statement was issued by Kirk campaign spokeswoman Eleni Demertzis, which did not include an apology - in fact it went on to call Duckworth a liar and a failure.

It said: 'Senator Kirk has consistently called Rep. Duckworth a war hero and honors her familys service to this country. 'But thats not what this debate was about. Rep. Duckworth lied about her legal troubles, was unable to defend her failures at the VA and then falsely attacked Senator Kirk over his record on supporting gay rights'.

The controversy was greeted with glee by Kellyanne Conway, Donald Trump's campaign manager.

Kirk angered Trump earlier this year by un-endorsing him and saying he is unfit to be president.

WHAT SHE SAID, WHAT HE SAID - AND THEN THE SILENCE... Tammy Duckworth: 'My family has served this nation in uniform, going back to the Revolution. Im a daughter of the American Revolution. Ive bled for this nation. But I still want to be there in the Senate when the drums of war sound. Because people are quick to sound the drums of war, and I want to be there to say this is what it costs, this is what youre asking us to do.  Families like mine are the ones that bleed first.' Sen. Mark Kirk: 'I had forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington' Advertisement

Duckworth pictured with her husband Major Bryan W. Bowlsbey, a signal officer and fellow Iraq War veteran with whom she served in the llinois Army National Guard. After struggling to conceive, Duckworth welcomed her first child, Abigail Okalani Bowlsbey, in 2014

'Gotcha': Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway tweeted a link to the video of Kirk's 'joke'

MAJOR DUCKWORTH: FIRST FEMALE DOUBLE AMPUTEE OF THE IRAQ WAR Duckworth was working towards a Ph.D. in political science at Northern Illinois University when she was deployed to Iraq in 2004. She lost her right leg near the hip and her left leg below the knee from injuries sustained on November 12, 2004, when the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter she was co-piloting was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade fired by Iraqi insurgents.She was the first female double amputee from the Iraq war. The explosion almost completely destroyed her right arm, breaking it in three places and tearing tissue from the back side of it. Duckworth received a Purple Heart on December 3 and was promoted to Major on December 21 at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, where she was presented with an Air Medal and Army Commendation Medal. She retired from the Illinois Army National Guard in October 2014 as a lieutenant colonel. She returned to school and completed a PhD in Human Services at Capella University in March 2015.[14] Advertisement

Conway tweeted a link to the video, and wrote: 'The same Mark Kirk that unendorsed his party's presidential nominee and called him out in paid ads? Gotcha. Good luck.'

Kirk is no stranger to controversy or racially-charged comments. He previously said Obama was 'acting like the drug dealer in chief' for the administration's cash payment to Iran in exchange for the release of American prisoners.

He insulted African-Americas further by suggesting entrepreneurship within their community should be fostered so 'that the black community is not the one we drive faster through'.

The one that attracted most attention however was his live mic reference during a Senate committee hearing of bachelor colleague Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina who he referred to as a 'bro with no ho'.

Kirk, who also uses a wheelchair due to complications from a stroke, is also a veteran and served as an intelligence officer in the Naval Reserve.

Polls give Duckworth a comfortable lead over the Republican in what is a deep blue state.
The Bataclan music venue in Paris which was the scene of a brutal shooting by jihadist gunmen that killed 90 concertgoers last year is ready to reopen after almost a year under construction.

130 people died in the attacks on the evening of November 13 last year when suicide bombers struck near the Stade de France stadium and gunmen opened fire at cafes, restaurants and the Bataclan concert hall.

The new facade was revealed yesterday after months of renovation  and the venue has defiantly decided to stage concerts days after the anniversary of the attacks.

Pete Doherty will be the first to take to perform at the revamped venue's inaugural gig on November 16.

The Bataclan music hall unveiled its new logo and facade yesterday, as the first anniversary of the attacks where jihadi gunmen slayed 90 concertgoers approaches

The venue has been closed since the night of carnage that also saw suicide bombers strike near the Stade de France and gunmen open fire on customers at restaurants and cafes

The old sign was still at the entrance in March of this year as riot police guarded the concert hall during a re-enactment of the horror as part of the investigation into the attacks

Eli Hodara, 19, who lives near the Bataclan, described the new Bataclan as an important symbol of renewal for Paris and France, which has been in a state of emergency since the attacks last year.

'Since November 13 it is quite something to everyday see the Bataclan closed and under reconstruction,' she told the Associated Press.

'And now .... that there is a renewal, that they are changing their logo, that shows that we are not holding on.

'Of course [the attacks] should not be forgotten, but we should continue to live ... and we should continue to use this hall for shows, concerts.'

The venue's management said it had 'tried to respect the various requests from victims and to respond to them wherever possible'.

Around 260 concertgoers who managed to escape the carnage on that night in November last year returned to the venue earlier this month to confront their memories.

One survivor, 28-year-old Maureen, who did not want to give her full name, said: 'The hall was not as I left it. The emergency exit was only seven metres (23 feet) away, but in my memory the distance seemed infinite.

'I went back there - I didn't have to, but it feels like a sort of victory over what we lived through that day.'

After almost a year under construction, the venue will open its doors again on November 16 for its inaugural concert - a sold-out Pete Doherty gig

Californian band Eagles of Death Metal were on stage when the gunmen stormed in shouting 'Allahu Akhbar' (God is Great).

Eagles of Death Metal frontman Jesse Hughes returns to the scene for the first time in November of last year and stands by the flower memorials a month after the attack

'When I left the Bataclan, I imagined it as a bloodthirsty monster which wanted to consume me,' said Caroline Langlade, of the victims' association Life for Paris.

'In fact it's just a room with walls where something tragic happened. It's not the building itself which is tragic,' she said.

When the trio of jihadists brandishing Kalashnikovs burst into a concert by Californian group the Eagles of Death Metal, Langlade was one of around 40 people in the crowd of 1,500 who barricaded themselves in a room upstairs.

Returning for the first time 11 months later, she was astonished to find that the staircase she had charged up in a terrified state was not wooden and spiral as she had recalled.

Ahead of the opening, around 260 survivors returned to the venue to try to come to terms with the trauma almost one year on. Pictured: A victim lays dead under a blanket outside the Bataclan

Eli Hodara, 19, who lives near the Bataclan, said: 'Of course [the attacks] should not be forgotten, but we should continue to live ... and we should continue to use this hall for shows, concerts.'

'In fact, it was as it has always been - made of concrete and dead straight,' she said.

Florence Deloche-Gaudez, part of the team of psychiatrists who have been working with survivors, said going back to the Bataclan had had a 'calming effect' on many of them, despite the terrible memories it re-awakened.

'It allowed them to relive the event and feel those sensations again - the noises, the smells, what it looked like, the fear,' she said.

'Some froze while others were walking around, retracing the route they had taken that night.'

The visit also gave survivors a chance to talk to other survivors.
A British holidaymaker was left hospitalised after contracting a severe stomach bug during a stay at a five-star hotel in Turkey.

James Lewis, 25, from Stafford, broke a rib after collapsing in his room at Liberty Hotels Lykia, during a break he booked with Thomas Cook.

The gas fitter is now taking legal action against the hotel after claiming his illness could have been caused by alleged hygiene problems, including food being exposed to insects.

James Lewis (left, with partner Josh Faultess) was left hospitalised after contracting a severe stomach bug (right)

James and his partner Josh Faultless had been looking forward to the getaway but just halfway through their trip, both began to suffer with severe gastric illness symptoms, including diarrhoea, vomiting and stomach cramps.

James' symptoms continued for two days and, despite being treated by a doctor at the hotel, he collapsed.

He was then given an IV drip to replace the fluids he had lost, but his health failed to improve.

James was later taken to hospital where doctors explained his kidneys were beginning to fail due to severe dehydration.

He was kept overnight and then flew home to the UK, where his symptoms continue to affect him.

The couple, who spent 1,000 on the break, have told their legal team of a number of concerns they had about hygiene practices at the hotel as they seek to launch action.

James Lewis and Josh Faultless (both pictured) are taking legal action after being struck down with a stomach bug on a Thomas Cook holiday

Among the alarming problems spotted by James and Josh was food which appeared to be undercooked, food being left uncovered for long periods of time and some of the food being exposed to insects.

James said: 'The illness I suffered on holiday is still having a serious impact on me.

'It wasn't just us who were suffering, we could see other people around the hotel struggling with illness. We want to know what caused the illness and make sure these issues are investigated.'

Josh said: 'This was meant to be our annual holiday to relax and spend time with each other. But as soon as we arrived we felt the hotel was not up to the standards we had expected.

'When we both fell ill we spent majority of our time in our room, which was annoying, but when James collapsed it turned into an absolute nightmare. It was awful to see him in such a terrible state and being rushed to hospital.

'The last thing we expected when we booked with Thomas Cook was for one of us to be spending the night in a Turkish hospital due to illness and suffering with a broken rib. We've been left extremely disappointed with what turned into an absolutely appalling holiday.'

Jennifer Downing, an expert international personal injury lawyer at national law firm Irwin Mitchell, representing Josh and James, said: 'The severe illness Josh and James suffered is concerning and shows just how serious gastric illness can be and the long-term impact it can have on those affected.'

Pictured: James Lewis is placed on an IV drip as he recovers from the severe gastric bug he contracted while on holiday

'Perhaps, more worrying, is that they have told us they were not the only ones affected by illness in the time they stayed at the resort and that other people were suffering similar symptoms.

'We have now launched our own investigation into the illness James and Josh suffered at the Liberty Hotels Lykia. We would urge anyone else impacted by illness at the hotel in 2016 to contact us and help with our investigation..'
The doors to a State Department dinner attended by influential academics were swung open by Hillary Clinton for a for-profit university after it donated millions of dollars to her charity, its been revealed.

She got the university a seat at the table when she was Secretary of State and just months later it gave Bill Clinton an honorary chancellor role worth $17.5million over five years.

Doug Becker, the CEO of the university in question - Laureate International University - was lauded by Hillary before the 2009 dinner in an email to her deputy chief of staff that appeared on WikiLeaks.

Doug Becker (left), the CEO of a University that donated $5million to Bill Clinton's charity, was invited to a high-profile 2009 dinner by then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton

She wrote that Becker was someone who Bill likes a lot and that Laureate University should be represented [at the dinner] as the fastest growing college network in the world, according to The Washington Post.

Becker sent his Vice President, Joseph Duffey, to the event and a higher-education expert, Sam Pitroda, told the paper that he would have been rubbing shoulders with key people.

He said: A lot of these private-education guys, theyre looking to get into events like this one. The discussion itself is irrelevant it gets you very high-level contacts, and it gets you to the right people.

Hillary Clinton described Becker as someone who 'Bill likes a lot' and said it should be at the dinner because it's 'the fastest growing college network in the world'

Nine months after the dinner Bill Clinton was given a job by Laureate as a consultant and honorary chancellor and paid $17.6million until 2015 when the contract expired and Hillary formally began her presidential bid.

While Hillary made no mention of Laureates donations in her email asking for it to be on the guest list for the dinner, its public knowledge that Becker donated to her 2008 presidential campaign and that Laureate had boosted the bank account of the Clinton Foundation by up to $5million. That figure comes from the charity's own website.

It follows the revelation that Bill Clinton's office requested favors from the State Department related to Laureate University, according to emails obtained by Dailymail.com.

In the emails, Bill Clinton's top aide Doug Band asked the US ambassador to Malaysia to attend a public event for Laureate University as well as a meeting between Bill Clinton, Doug Becker and the Malaysian Prime Minister.

Hillary Clinton, pictured here during a campaign stop in Winston-Salem

Hillary Clinton's deputy chief of staff Huma Abedin was copied on the messages.

Although the former president attended events at Laureate University's overseas campuses, and the college network sometimes had interests before foreign governments, Bill Clinton's spokesman told the Washington Post that the former president 'never sought to influence any foreign or US official on Laureate's behalf'.

The emails, which were first obtained by the watchdog group Citizens United through a public records request, could raise questions about Bill Clinton's high-paying role with Laureate University - in this case extending invitations to a US ambassador to events with one of his high-paying clients.

The messages show that Abedin made the introduction between Bill Clinton's right-hand-man Band and US Ambassador to Malaysia Paul W Jones on November 5, 2010.

Abedin told Band that the ambassador had 'offered assistance' for Bill Clinton's upcoming trip to Malaysia, where Laureate University had an affiliate college called INTI International University that just months before had been granted 'university status' by the Malaysian government.

'I'm connecting you with our ambassador Paul Jones by email. He has offered assistance, if you need it, from him or the embassy,' wrote Abedin in the email to both Band and Jones.

When asked about Abedins involvement in the requests from Bill Clintons office, State Department spokesman John Kirby said State officials often field outside requests.

A wide range of outside individuals and organizations contact the State Department. Meeting requests, recommendations, and proposals come to the Department through a variety of channels, both formal and informal, said Kirby.
Hundreds of Iraqis have been murdered for defying Islamic State orders to become human shields.

Some 232 civilians were shot on Wednesday alone after they refused to help the jihadists.

ISIS slaughtered more than 200 people and abducted nearly 8,000 families from their homes around Mosul before taking them to the centre of the city to use as human shields.

The United Nations Human Rights Office says at least 232 people in and around the city were shot dead for refusing to follow their orders as Iraqi forces advanced and jihadis retreated.

They also added that men, women and children in villages around Mosul have also been kidnapped and taken into central military installations where the terror group plan to use the tens of thousands of people as a human shield.

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ISIS has slaughtered more than 200 people and abducted nearly 8,000 families from their homes around Mosul. Pictured is a family trying to flee the frontline of fighting in Qayyarah

A UN spokeswoman said: 'Last Wednesday 232 civilians were reportedly shot to death. Of these there were 190 former Iraqi Security Forces officers.

'These reports have been corroborated to the extent possible,' she added, stressing that the number of people killed in recent days could be higher.

It comes as Iraqi government troops and Kurdish Peshmerga fighters are facing stiff resistance as they advance on the city of Mosul as they try to freed it from the rule of jihadis.

Now 10 days into the battle of Mosul, special forces are still four miles to the east of the city and are constantly having to dodge ISIS firing mortars and armoured suicide truck bombs trundling across the arid plains.

Displaced Iraqis arrive at a refugee camp. The UN says more than 8,000 families have been abducted by the terror group

Men, women and children have been flee to refugee camps. It comes as ISIS slaughtered more than 200 people who refused to follow their orders

Once inside the small, sparsely populated villages that ring Mosul, Iraqi forces must contend with explosive booby-traps and hidden snipers.

Elsewhere 22 civilians were electrocuted when ISIS suspected they had been collaborating with government forces.

The fortifications in Mosulare expected to grow even more lethally daunting once they enter Iraq's second-largest city.

The extremists captured the city in a matter of days in 2014, and have had more than two years to build up its defenses and brutally root out any internal opposition.

The operation to retake the northern city is expected to take weeks, if not months.

Iraqi forces approaching Mosul from the south, meanwhile, are still 20 miles from the city, and the special forces to the east said they will not push ahead until the other forces are able to tighten the noose.

Kurdish Peshmerga fighters celebrate after recapturing the Fadiliya village from ISIS, who are putting up a strong resistance

Now 10 days into the battle of Mosul, special forces are still four miles to the east of the city and are constantly having to dodge ISIS firing mortars and armoured suicide truck bombs trundling across the arid plains

Iraqi army Major General Najim al-Jabori said forces south of Mosul retook the town of Staff al-Tut in the Tigris River valley on Wednesday, and said local tribal and militia forces have been deployed to protect the gains while his troops regroup for their next advance.

Meanwhile, during cleanup operations in the area of Tob Zawa, his men found a tire shop that had been converted into a factory for making roadside bombs and attaching armor to vehicles.
Dreamworld won't reopen until at least after the funerals of the four victims killed on a malfunctioning ride in the theme park on Tuesday.

Rides would also not operate until internal and external safety audits were conducted on every one one them.

'No attraction in this park will reopen until internal and external safety audits are completed and peer reviewed,' chief executive Craig Davidson said on Friday.

Dreamworld won't reopen until at least after the funerals of the four victims killed on a malfunctioning ride in the theme park on Tuesday

Rides would also not operate until internal and external safety audits were conducted on every one one them

Kate Goodchild, 32, her brother Luke Dorsett, 35, his partner Roozi Araghi, 38, and Cindy Low, 42 were crushed and drowned to death when a malfunction on the Thunder River Rapids ride flipped their raft on a conveyor belt.

Ebony Goodchild, 12, and Kieran Low, 10, were thrown clear from the raft and survived but watched in horror as their mothers and other family died.

Mr Davidson said parent company Ardent Leisure chief executive Deborah Thomas had ordered the park remain closed until after the funerals.

The decision to further delay the reopening comes as the overturned raft was on Friday winched off the ride by crane

Dreamworld originally announced it would open the gates for a memorial day on Friday before resuming usual business on Saturday

Those plans were cancelled following discussions with police who were still investigating the tragedy

The decision to further delay the reopening comes as the overturned raft was on Friday winched off the ride by crane.

Gold Coast mayor Tom Tate earlier said Dreamworld should only be reopened when the families of those killed were 'happy with it and they're ready to move on'.

While he admitted the park acted too fast announcing the memorial day without clearance from the police, he said criticising it would not help the situation.

Dreamworld originally announced it would open the gates for a memorial day on Friday before resuming usual business on Saturday.

Kate Goodchild, Luke Dorsett, Roozbeh Araghi and Cindy Low died after a malfunction on the Thunder Rapids ride on Tuesday afternoon

Victims: Two mothers, Kate Goodchild (left), 32, and Cindy Low (right), 42, died in the tragedy

Ms Goodchild's brother Luke Dorsett (on right) and his partner Roozi Araghi (left) were also killed

Ebony Goodchild (right) and Kieran Low (left) witnessed their mother's deaths after being thrown from the malfunctioning ride as their father's ran to the scene

Those plans were cancelled following discussions with police who were still investigating the tragedy.

Dreamworld held its own memorial service inside the park attended by more than 1,000 staff.

Ms Thomas finally visited the park on Friday as she apologised for her poor handling of the tragedy, fighting back tears saying she had tried to 'do the right thing'.

Under-fire Ardent Leisure chief executive Deborah Thomas finally visited the park on Friday as she apologised for her poor handling of the tragedy

She apologised to families of victims from this week's fatal accident at Dreamworld

The under-fire chief executive visited a floral tribute to the victims, after she donated her $167,500 cash bonus to the Australian Red Cross.

'If I haven't handled it as well as we could, we thought we were doing the right thing in terms of the way we approached it through the police,' she said.

'If the families are watching - I have spoken to a number of them - we will look after them.'
At the time of the assault Das' wife sat beside him unaware on

Suman Das, 46, was arrested at Manchester Airport after the 18-year old victim claimed he touched her

An Indian businessman who molested a British teenager during a flight to the UK will be supervised at taxpayers' expense for a year after his jail term ends.

Suman Das, 46, was arrested at Manchester Airport after the 18-year old victim claimed he touched her between her legs whilst she was dozing in her seat.

She said she woke up to feel a 'rubbing sensation' and fled to the back of the plane in tears.

At the time of the assault at 30,000 feet aboard a Qatar Airways Boeing 787, Das' wife Sonia was sat beside him unaware of her husband's behaviour.

He was jailed for 20 weeks at Manchester magistrates court yesterday. Following his release he will be supervised in the community for a year, despite being a foreign citizen, at taxpayers' expense.

Das initially claimed he must have touched the girl by accident whilst fidgeting in his seat and offered to apologise - but he later said he could not have carried out an assault as he was asleep.

At court Das, who has been staying with friends in Bolton since his arrest, looked confused and muttered to himself as District Judge Sam Goozee told him: 'This was a sexual assault in circumstances where you took advantage of the victim.

'She was travelling on her own, and it took place next to your own wife in what was a brief but traumatic assault where you touched her extremely intimately. This cause the victim extreme distress. No doubt you are having difficulty facing the consequences of what you did that night.

'But the consequences for her have affected her greatly. You are a man of good character, your references speak of that. This is a very serious offence and you have not demonstrated any remorse or faced up to your actions on that night.'

Migration Watch UK criticised the decision to supervise Das in the UK. Alp Mehmet, vice chairman of the lobby group said: 'Migration Watch UK has long argued that the continued failure to remove those with no right to be in the UK simply undermines confidence in the immigration system. This, to me, is another example of a failure to apply common sense.'

Das who born in India was self employed and had volunteered as an aid worker in the aftermath of the 2015 Nepal earthquake which killed 9,000 people. The incident occurred in July five hours into the flight from the Qatari city of Doha to Manchester.

Das and his wife were visiting the UK for a 'holiday of a lifetime' whilst the unnamed girl was returning to Britain after spending two months travelling in Thailand.

The victim told the hearing: 'He knew exactly what he was doing and he wasn't sleeping. He was looking at me, I saw he was looking at me.

'He must have been looking at me to see if I was awake. He did move very quickly once he saw that I was awake.'

The girl alerted a member of cabin crew and went crying to the back of the plane. In a statement Das said later: 'I may have touched accidentally - but I didn't touch her intentionally.'

Prosecuting Holly Holden said: 'In this case the victim has zero motivation to make a false claim. Her evidence has been consistent and credible throughout. This was an 18-year-old flying alone. She said that the defendant touched her between the legs over her clothing.

'One person sitting next to another may jostle someone with their elbow but to touch them between the legs without knowing is a deliberate action. He gave two versions of events and said he was very concerned that this could prevent him from getting a UK visa and would destroy his life.'

At the time of the assault at 30,000 feet aboard a Qatar Airways Boeing 787, Das' wife Sonia (pictured) was sat beside him unaware of her husband's behaviour

Das and his wife were visiting the UK for a 'holiday of a lifetime' whilst the unnamed girl was returning to Britain after spending two months travelling in Thailand (stock image)

During the hearing Das' wife of 23 years said she had 'complete faith in her husband' and added: 'I have had no concern. Until today I have faith in my husband and still today I have total faith in my husband.'

She also told the court that Das told her following the flight that if he saw the girl and her mother he wanted to talk to them to apologise. He denied sexual assault but was convicted after a trial.

In mitigation Das' lawyer Miss Ellie Akhgar said: 'He has been self employed for a considerable number of years. He also volunteered for the earthquake in Nepal. He got a group of friends together to give aid and water and food to help people in the aftermath of the earthquake.

'Without him these projects have failed, as they have been unable to get the funding without him there. He is saddened to find himself in this position. Before this flight he considered himself to be a proud man. He could hold his head up high and enjoy his holiday of a lifetime.

'Boarding that flight has destroyed his life, it has destroyed his employment and his reputation and it has been discussed on a very public level. It should also be noted that it has contributed to the deterioration in his wife's health.

'I assure you Mr Das will never forget this experience. He knows as he describes himself that he is marked for life. He is of previous good character.

Das was ordered to sign the Sex Offender Register for seven years and a 115 victim surcharge.
Troy Garrod (pictured) has told how he almost died after his toothache triggered a 50 pill-a-day codeine addiction

A gym fanatic has told how he almost died after his toothache triggered a 50 pill-a-day codeine addiction.

Troy Garrod resorted to driving from chemist to chemist - some more than 30 miles from his home in Norwich - to get his fix of the powerful painkiller.

The 28-year-old became reliant on the tablets to numb his toothache and took as many as 51,000 codeine pills over seven years as the addiction took hold of his life.

But he had a terrifying wake-up call last week when he started vomiting blood and was hospitalised with severe pain caused by potentially lethal ulcers that had eroded his stomach lining.

'What started as a painkiller for a small tooth problem became a serious addiction which I wouldn't wish on anyone,' Mr Garrod said.

'It spiralled out of control and I was taking up to 50 per day, which nearly killed me because of the ibuprofen intake.

'I got rushed into hospital last week with severe pains in my stomach. I woke up in the worst agony that I have ever experienced in my life.

'I had loads of internal ulcers and I had to have a couple of blood transfusion procedures for my ruptured stomach walls.'

After five days in hospital, Mr Garrod is now codeine free and set to make a full recovery.

He now wants to share his story to educate others about the dangers of substance abuse.

The 28-year-old became reliant on the tablets to numb his toothache and took as many as 51,000 codeine pills over seven years as the addiction took hold of his life

He had a terrifying wake-up call last week when he was hospitalised (right) with severe pain caused by potentially lethal ulcers that had eroded his stomach lining

The fitness fanatic was first prescribed with codeine in 2009 after he developed severe toothache.

But he was not aware the painkiller can become addictive if taken for long periods of time.

After being made redundant, he became reliant on the 7 per packet drug every day.

He would drive up to 30 miles from home to get his fix without anyone recognising him.

'Originally the codeine was a massive help and it prevented awful toothache that I had.

After five days in hospital, Mr Garrod is now codeine free and set to make a full recovery

The fitness fanatic was first prescribed with codeine in 2009 after he developed severe toothache

'I just started taking more and more but until it got out of control, I was spending so much money on them as well.

'I was travelling to different chemists around Norfolk to buy codeine so that each one didn't recognise me if I went back.

'It was an easy addiction to hide because on the outside, until my stomach ulcers, I looked well and I went to the gym every day.'

Doctors advised Mr Garrod to stop taking the powerful drug, but he was not able to quit his habit.

'The doctors told me to just stop taking codeine but it simply was not possible,' he said.

He lost his job working at a book wholesaler last year which brought on depression and made him even more addicted to codeine.

'I lost my job last year and which made me depressed and even more addicted to codeine,' he said.

'I have since been unable to work and my condition deteriorated each month, it was only a matter of time before I was taken to hospital.

'Codeine is so strong and it's banned in so many countries, I know that there are loads of people around the UK who have suffered from the same experience that I have and I need to raise awareness for this issue.
home Entertainment Google Nexus 7 2016 release date, specs rumors: Smartphone with Andromeda OS; expected to launch before 2017

The upcoming Nexus 7 tablet will reportedly be unveiled before the year ends. Though it hasn't been confirmed, reports are suggesting that the upcoming device will be equipped with an Andromeda operating system (OS).

Tech blogger Evan Blass, who's notorious for his leaks, teased his followers on Twitter that Google is partnering with Huawei to create a 7-inch tablet. According to Blass, Huawei will manufacture the device which will launch by the end of the year. Hence, many speculated that the 7-inch tablet could be the upcoming Nexus 7.

Several rumors about the device have been circulating, but tech enthusiasts are concerned about one particular rumor, the Andromeda OS. According to Neurogadget, the rumored Andromeda OS will reportedly be a combination between the Android and the Chrome OS. Furthermore, rumor has it that Google will be using the alleged OS for its devices starting with the Nexus 7.

A report by Mobile & Apps claimed that the OS will give the tablet desktop capabilities, which will consequently improve multi-tasking features and make it perfect for work. The news outlet also believed that the device will come with an AMOLED display. It will be powered by a Snapdragon 820 and Adreno 530, giving the device a 4 GB RAM capacity. According to the report, the Nexus 7 2016 will have at least 64 GB worth of storage.

Furthermore, the Nexus 7 2016 will reportedly boast a 13-megapixel rear camera. It's also expected to utilize a battery with a 5100 mAh capacity.

Since Google recently rebranded the Nexus smartphones as Pixel and Pixel XL, there have been rumors suggesting that the company might continue to do so. Hence, the alleged Nexus 7 might have the Pixel brand name. Some suggested that the device could be called the Pixel 7. However, Google has yet to respond to the latest allegations, so tech enthusiasts who are excited to get their hands on the upcoming device should treat the reports as speculation until proven otherwise.

Google is expected to unveil the Nexus 7 before the end of 2016.
MPs demand Clark appears before key committee to explain if taxpayers' money was offered to Nissan

Ministers are under fresh pressure tonight to reveal details of the last-ditch 'secret deal' they offered Nissan in their successful bid to keep the car maker in the UK.

Business Secretary Greg Clark and Downing Street are still refusing to say what assurances were in the letter sent to Nissan that contained a commitment to ensure the firm will 'remain competitive' after Britain leaves the EU.

Labour is demanding to know if taxpayer-funded financial incentives were offered, while Mr Clark could be hauled in front of the Commons Business committee next week.

Business Secretary Greg Clark (pictured on Question Time last night) is understood to have flown to Japan with a letter to Nissan's board containing a commitment to ensuring the firm's operations in the UK 'remain competitive' after we leave the EU

In a withering attack on the Government, Shadow Business Secretary Clive Lewis said tonight: 'Does the Government have an industrial strategy or is their plan just to hand out bribes?'

Mr Clark denied the Government had offered financial sweeteners, telling Question Time last night: 'There's no cheque book. I don't have a cheque book.'

Downing Street reiterated today that there was 'no compensation package' and said the assurances it gave Nissan were 'nothing about tariffs'.

But the deal has led to a swirl of controversy, with rival car makers  including US automotive firm Ford - demanding the Government offers them the same assurances it offered Nissan.

Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell blasted the Government for offering 'secret deals behind closed doors' and said it would damage business confidence in post-Brexit Britain.

In a sign of mounting anger at the lack of transparency over the deal, Mr Lewis told MailOnline: 'The Tories' haphazard management of Brexit is becoming more exposed every day.

'Public chaos and secret backroom deals are not going to sustain business confidence through the upheavals to come. Does the Government have an industrial strategy or is their plan just to hand out bribes?'

Whatever assurances were given, it helped persuade Nissan to announce it will continue investing in the UK, delivering a major boost by protecting 7,000 direct jobs at its Sunderland plant and an estimated 55,000 further jobs that depend on the factory.

The agreement in the letter included assurance from the Government that the UK 'is as attractive tomorrow as it is today,' sources told The Times.

In a remarkable intervention, former Tory business minister Anna Soubry said of the deal today: 'This looks like the most amazing sort of protectionism.'

The Nissan plant in Sunderland (pictured) employs around 7,000 people and a total of around 55,000 jobs depend on the factory in total

Nissan's announcement that it is staying in the UK came after Theresa May met Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn for talks earlier this month

Asked to confirm the letter sent to Nissan, a No 10 spokesperson said: 'There's been communications in all forms.The dialogue between Nissan and the Government has obviously been going on for some period of time.'

They added: 'We've made it perfectly clear, Nissan have made it perfectly clear, there was no deal, there was no compensation package, there was nothing about tariffs.

ECONOMY GREW BY 0.5% IN THREE MONTHS SINCE BREXIT VOTE The UK economy grew by 0.5 per cent in the quarter to the end of September, above the expectations of economists The doom-laden predictions of Project Fear lay in tatters last night after official figures showed the economy is continuing to flourish in the wake of the Brexit vote. Despite ministers, experts and business leaders warning of a profound shock, the Office for National Statistics said the economy grew by 0.5 per cent between July and September, the three months after the referendum. The figures leave the UK on course to be the fastest growing economy in the G7 group of leading nations this year. Some MPs even called for the Treasury and the Bank of England to apologise for claiming that a vote to leave the EU would cause an immediate recession. Officials at the ONS confirmed there had been 'little evidence of a pronounced effect in the immediate aftermath of the vote'. Advertisement

'It was just a open and honest dialogue about what the Government sees in the future for the automotive industry of this country and what we are determined to do for that industry in terms of getting the best possible deal leaving the European Union.'

But former prime minister Tony Blair said Nissan must have been given 'very strong assurances' on access to the EU's single market before making the decision to stay.

Jim Farley, vice president for Europe, Middle East and Africa said the Government must offer an industry-wide guarantee that car makers will not be hit by any tariffs imposed after Britain leaves the EU's single market.

'It's got to be something that is not custom-made for each manufacturer,' he told the BBC.

'I can imagine that the UK government is looking at the auto sector as a whole.'

Labour is demanding to know what specific assurances were given to Nissan to persuade it to stay and said the lack of transparency over the Nissan deal reflected the Government's 'chaotic' approach to Brexit.

Jeremy Corbyn said: 'It must be made public, because it is public money that will be used if there are any inducements that have been offered and, quite obviously, if you are offering big inducements to one industry or one manufacturer, then all the others will quite reasonably say ''Well, what about us?''

Commons Business committee chair Iain Wright demanded Mr Clark appear before MPs to give evidence on allegations the Government offered a sweetheart deal.

He told the Today programme: 'On the one hand, it's taxpayers' money, and, I think, we would need to know.

'And, on the other, it could be commercial confidence as well. But, in terms of transparency, in respect of how government will intervene and provide that reassurance and support, I do think that's important.'

It also emerged today that the Government sent a letter to businesses including Nissan to 'pull out all the stop's after Brexit.

Philip Hammond (pictured yesterday) said Nissan's decision to stay in the UK was a vote of confidence in the British economy

The Nissan plant in Sunderland produces the flagship Qashqai, but the company had suggested it was rethinking its investment after the Brexit vote

The letter was sent before the EU referendum in a bid to reassure firms that the Government would 'support competitiveness' if Britain leaves the EU, according to ITV News.

It gives another clue as to how ministers are persuading businesses to stay in the UK in the wake of June's vote to cut ties with Brussels.

Yesterday's key announcement from Nissan related to their new Qashqai and X-Trail models, which it said will be built at its Sunderland plant.

CANADA DEAL IS BACK ON The EU faced embarrasment last night despite salvaging its trade deal with Canada. After days of crisis talks, Belgium announced that the Wallonia region of 3.5million people had finally agreed to stop blocking the landmark agreement. But the breakthrough was too late for Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, who had been due to sign off the agreement in Brussels yesterday but cancelled the visit hours earlier. Critics last night warned that even though the deal has been rescued, the EU's reputation had been damaged. Tory MEP Emma McClarkin said: 'The credibility of the EU on global trade deals is in tatters following this debacle. 'Other countries will now ask whether it is worth the time and effort conducting such deals with the EU.' Wallonia had delayed support for the trade deal over concerns it would affect farming. However, the shambles could demonstrate to the rest of the world how Britain could be a more agile partner than the EU after Brexit. Advertisement

It secures the plants future and safeguards 7,000 jobs.

Pressed on what assurances the Government gave Nissan over Britain's future with the EU, where 80 per cent of Nissan's exports from its Sunderland plant go, Mr Clark told the BBC:

'We have had, obviously, as you might imagine, lots of communication between us, but actually what it rests on is a very strong mutual confidence.'

He later told the Question Time audience: 'The important thing is that they know this is a country in which they can have confidence they can invest. That was the assurance and the understanding they had, and they have invested their money.'

Nissan, whose boss Carlos Ghosn held talks with Theresa May this month, said it had decided to go ahead after receiving 'support and assurances' from the Government.

But both sides flatly denied that ministers had agreed to directly subsidise Nissan in the event of it facing tariffs on exports after Brexit.

In a second boost for Britain's car industry, Toyota also confirmed it will not shift production because of the referendum result.

Mrs May described it as 'fantastic news for the UK', adding: 'It is a recognition that the Government is committed to creating and supporting the right conditions for the automotive industry so it continues to grow.

'This vote of confidence shows Britain is open for business and that we remain an outward-looking, world-leading nation.'

Former prime minister Tony Blair (pictured) said Nissan must have been given 'very strong assurances' on access to the EU's single market before making the decision to stay

Labour gave a muted response to the news. Jeremy Corbyn said he was 'pleased' jobs would be staying in the UK, but urged ministers to publish details of any deal with Nissan.

SHOPPERS STILL CONFIDENT AFTER BREXIT VOTE Retail sales grew at their fastest pace in over a year as shoppers pounded the high street for autumn clothes after an unseasonably warm end to the summer. A monthly CBI survey of 126 firms showed above-average sales for the time of year, with 40 per cent of retailers reporting increased sales volumes in October on a year ago and 19 per cent saying they were down. The figures gave a balance of +21 per cent, well above expectations of +7 per cent and an improvement on the previous month's balance of -8 per cent. The expected sales balance for November also rose sharply to +21 per cent from +7 per cent, a level last seen in December, and orders placed with suppliers were the strongest since March. CBI chief economist Rain Newton-Smith said: 'With our Indian Summer now a distant memory, shoppers have been pounding the high street, with sales of clothing and other retailers outpacing expectations.' But the CBI warned that the slide in the pound since Britain voted to leave the EU was likely to push up prices next year, affecting consumer spending power. Advertisement

He added: 'It must be made public, because it is public money that will be used if there are any inducements that have been offered and ... if you are offering big inducements to one industry or one manufacturer, then all the others will quite reasonably say, 'Well, what about us?'

The Reuters news agency reported a Nissan source as saying the firm had received a 'written commitment of extra support in the event that Brexit reduces the competitiveness of its Sunderland plant'.

But Business Secretary Greg Clark, who held talks with Nissan this month, insisted financial compensation over tariffs was not offered.

He said: 'There is no question of financial compensation over tariffs because we have said that ... we are going to maintain the competitiveness of the sector, and we are going to get the best deal possible.'

Pressed on whether written assurances on tariffs had been given, Mr Clark said: 'What it rests on is very a strong mutual confidence.'

Colin Lawther, Nissan's senior vice president for manufacturing in Europe, also said there was 'no special deal for Nissan'.

He said Brexit had created a 'large headwind' for the firm but it was satisfied with the assurances it had received on the type of Brexit deal being pursued and by Mrs May's commitment to keeping the UK car industry 'competitive'.

Speaking from Tokyo, Toyota's executive vice president Didier Leroy also said he had 'trust in the UK government that it will offer fair treatment' for all companies when negotiating agreements to mitigate the impact of Brexit.

Chancellor Philip Hammond (pictured on a visit to Eastern Docks in Southampton yesterday) said news that Nissan had decided to stay in the UK despite the Brexit vote was a sign of strength ahead of the start of negotiations with the EU next spring

Jeremy Corbyn demanded the Government makes public what assurances it gave Nissan
A mother and daughter competing in Brazil's Miss Bumbum competition have told how their obsession to win the coveted prize led to the mother's partner of six years walking out on them.

Bruna Ferraz, 35, and her daughter Eduarda Moraes, 19, both admit they are desperate to be crowned the country's queen of shapely bottoms.

With both women virtually neck-and-neck in the race with less than two weeks until the grand final on November 9, Bruna and Eduarda both claim they will do anything to pip the other to the post.

'Winning means everything to me, it will change me life forever. But I know it means everything to my mum too,' said Eduarda.

'Now we're both in the final it will all depend on who's got the most beautiful bottom. I admire my mum's bottom. I hope mine will be as firm as hers when I'm her age.'

Scroll down for videos

Voluptuous: Bruna Ferraz (right), 35, and Eduarda Moraes (left), 19, are the first mother-daughter duo to compete in Brazil's illustrious Miss Bumbum competition

Sizing up the competition: With both women neck-and-neck in the race following a public vote, both said they will do anything to win with just two weeks to go until the grand final

Pouting for the camera: Eduarda told MailOnline: 'Winning means everything to me, it will change me life forever. But I know it means everything to my mum too.'

It is the first time a mother and daughter have reached the final of the popular pageant, now in it's sixth year, which also debuts a separate contest for over-55s this year.

In a public vote which whittled the original 27 contestants - one from each Brazilian state - to the final 15, daughter Eduarda came 11th with 450,000 votes and mum Bruna 12th with 400,000.

But when it comes to their assets, mum has the slight edge. She has 43 inches of bottom, compared with her daughter's 42 inches.

Despite the intense rivalry, both women, who live together in Porto Alegre, southern Brazil, claim they are helping each other in their quest for the trophy - especially since Bruna's long-term partner Pedro packed up and left nine months ago.

The plumber claimed he was fed up with the pair constantly comparing their backsides - although Bruna believes he was actually jealous of the male attention they started receiving when they announced their candidatures.

Bruna, representing Brazil's northern state of Roraima, told MailOnline: 'When we got accepted on the competition we were both pretty euphoric. It was all we talked about, and what we had to do to win.

Sealed with a kiss: In the public vote which whittled the original 27 contestants to the final 15, Eduarda (right) came 11th with 450,000 votes and mum Bruna (left) came 12th with 400,000

Priorities: Bruna (pictured), representing Brazil's northern state of Roraima, was so immersed in the competition that her partner of six years walked out on her - after forcing her to choose between him and the opportunity of becoming Miss Bumbum 2016

Bombshells: 'It was an easy decision to make. I would never let anything get in the way of realising my dream, and certainly no man,' Bruna (right) told MailOnline

'He ended up giving me a choice, pull out or he'd leave me. We'd been together for six years, it wasn't the most perfect relationship but we were living just like husband and wife.

'But it was an easy decision to make. I would never let anything get in the way of realising my dream, and certainly no man.

Being in the contest with my daughter is great because we both encourage each other. But of course only one woman is going to win, and we both want to be her Bruna Ferraz

'He actually accepted my decision without any problems, we didn't even argue about it. He just understood that the competition was more important to me than him, and he moved out.'

With him out of the way, Bruna, who owns a company which sells human hair extensions, says she is even more focused than ever on winning the infamous competition.

She said: 'Being in the contest with my daughter is great because we both encourage each other. But of course only one woman is going to win, and we both want to be her.

'But although we are competing against each other, the contest has brought us closer than ever. Eduarda even chose my hairstyle and the bikini I'll be wearing for the final.

The competition: Eduarda believes that her mother, 16 years her senior, can go on to win the competition and promises that if she does: 'I'll be really happy for her, honestly.' Pictured: The 27 original Miss Bumbum competitors

Sacrifice: Eduarda (pictured), representing Rondonia state, left her job as a beauty product salesgirl to compete in Brazil's most hotly-contested beauty pageant

Eduarda (right) says she and her mother work out, eat and keep a very close eye on each other, adding: 'We are constantly checking each other's bottoms to make sure they are in tip top shape'

'The only time she gets angry is when one of her male friends tells her her mum is gorgeous and asks her to set up a date with me. Then she gets really jealous.'

Daughter Eduarda, who is representing Rondonia state, gave up her job as a beauty product salesgirl to compete in Brazil's most hotly-contested beauty pageant - knowing that winning the trophy means overnight fame and often fortune too.

We eat together and keep an eye on what each other is eating, we are constantly checking each other's bottoms to make sure they are in tip top shape Eduarda Moraes

Over 16million public votes were cast last month to decide who would progress to the Miss Bumbum finals, such is the popularity of the contest in the country.

Eduarda said the two are preparing for next month's grand final together, not just for the company but also 'to make sure she's not doing anything else to win that I don't know about'.

She said: 'We talk with each other about everything. We go out training together, we eat together and keep an eye on what each other is eating, we are constantly checking each other's bottoms to make sure they are in tip top shape.

'I know it's a competition, but there's nothing we don't tell each other about, at least I hope there isn't.'

Even though both fierce competitors are desperate to win, Bruna says the competition has brought her 'closer than ever' to her daughter Eduarda (pictured)

Bruna (pictured) told MailOnline: 'I know it's a competition, but there's nothing we don't tell each other about, at least I hope there isn't'

'If I'm honest I think mum could win it. If she does I'll be really happy for her, honestly, once I've dealt with my own disappointment. It's a pity we can't both win, as most people say our bumbums are identical.

'I suppose it's more genetic than anything, that's why it's such a close call.'

Bruna, too, insists that while both are desperate to grab the Miss Bumbum crown, they haven't engaged in any dirty tricks or backstabbing common, unlike many of the other contestants.

She said: 'I wouldn't call it rivalry. We're together in the same competition, one against the other.

'One of the reasons I decided to enter the contest was because I knew my daughter was competing.

'I think it's cool, to be in this together with my daughter. It's an exciting new phase of our lives. '

'Of course we both want to win. I want to be famous for my bottom in Brazil and all over the world.

Over 16million public votes were cast last month to decide who would progress to the Miss Bumbum finals. Pictured: Eduarda, left, posing for a promo shot with her mother Bruna

'If my daughter wins I'll be extremely jealous of her, especially as I want to win more than her.

'I think she is more likely to win than me, because she is young and has a perfect body.

'But I think I will be a better Miss Bumbum, because I'll be able to deal with the attention much better because I have more experience.

'As a mother I have to believe in my daughter's potential. But I hope to God it will be me.'
Ian Millard has been disbarred as a barrister for putting 'anti-Semitic' messages on Twitter

A barrister has been kicked out of the profession after posting 'anti-Semitic' messages on Twitter and appearing to praise Hitler.

Ian Millard has tweeted a series of incendiary messages on the social network, quoting the Nazi leader and hitting out at 'Jews' and 'Zionists'.

In one message, he wrote: 'National Socialist Germany 1933-1945. Its flaws were few, its achievements many. Don't believe Jewish-Zionist lies.'

At a disciplinary tribunal hearing in London this week, the 60-year-old was disbarred from the profession for 'conduct likely to diminish the trust and confidence in barristers'.

The hearing was told of a series of messages posted on Mr Millard's Twitter feed in November 2014, in which he branded politician Michael Gove 'pro-Zionist' and 'pro-Jew'.

The same day, he posted a picture of a swastika with a comment in German about Jews, and a few days later he called French politician Nicolas Sarkozy a 'little Jew', the tribunal heard.

The charges also related to tweets calling government minister Grant Shapps 'the Jew Shapps' and suggesting Conservative MPs were 'Jews and yobs'.

Since the tweets which got him disbarred, Mr Millard has posted regular messages quoting Hitler, including this one, whose caption translates as 'loyalty is my honour'

The tribunal found that Mr Millard's actions had breached Bar standards and he was disbarred from the profession with the right to appeal.

A fellow lawyer who brought the complaint, Jonathan Goldberg QC, said after the hearing: 'A man who spews out such Nazi propaganda is not fit to call himself a barrister, so I feel satisfied.

'As a fine judge said recently; if we can't all learn to get along there is no hope for any of us.'

Mr Millard's Twitter feed shows he has not stopped posting controversial messages and continues to quote Hitler and attack what he calls 'Jew-Zionists'.

Above a Nazi emblem of a swastika and eagle, he tweeted yesterday: 'Whatever happens to us in the course of life, we are back and are pressing forward to ultimate victory.'

In October he tweeted a picture of Hitler, alongside the message: 'There is living amongst us,' wrote Hitler, 'a non-German, foreign race..which..possesses all the political rights that we ourselves have'.'

In another, he wrote: 'Hitler considered that a Jewish homeland would be a threat to humanity' [Deborah Lipstadt, notorious Jew-Zionist, on CNN]. He was right!'

A number of other messages he has since posted include images of swastikas and links to speeches by Hitler

Mr Millard was called to the Bar in 1991 and worked in London on criminal and civil cases, as well as presenting judicial review applications at the city's High Court.

He is understood not to have practiced for some years and is now living in Lymington, Hampshire.

The complaint against Mr Millard, filed in 2014, insisted that his tweets were 'racist, anti-Semitic, anti-black, anti-Muslim' and showed him to be an 'outspoken admirer of Adolf Hitler'.

In his defence, he said he 'rejected these simplistic labels', adding that he had not 'directly insulted or attacked anyone in any way by addressing them on Twitter'.

He insisted calling people Jews was not offensive and that his Twitter account was not related to his work as a barrister, which he no longer carries out.

The disciplinary tribunal was heard at the Bar Council's building in Gray's Inn, London

It is understood proceedings will now be brought against Mr Millard in the US, where he is still a member of the New York bar.

Speaking after the case, Gideon Falter, of Campaign Against Anti-Semitism said: 'Anti-Semitism is a cancer in society and it must be met with zero tolerance.

'We commend the Bar Standards Board's decision, which sends a clear message that anti-Semites will suffer devastating professional consequences for their actions.'
Advertisement

If you never thought buying property was an intimate business - think again.

Australia's top brothel, Scarlet Harem on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, is up for sale to any buyer looking to fulfil their wildest property fantasies.

Crowned the leading sex palace in the country last year, the property includes eight enormous bedrooms and a number of themed 'working rooms'.

The warehouse-style building comes completely decked out with furniture and beds - and is expected to sell for a very pleasurable price.

Scarlet Harem (pictured), the leading brothel in Australia, is up for sale to any buyer looking to fulfil their property fantasies

The enormous eight-bedroom property on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, is expected to sell for a very pleasurable price

The brothel was crowned Australia's best in 2016 and features a number of themed 'working rooms' within

Opened in 2002, the building underwent a major revamp in 2014 that took it to the next level.

From entering the 'Playboy mansion', to Parisian Bourdeaux, a paradise jungle and even a geisha's hothouse, there's a room to meet the wildest of dreams.

Real estate agent Karen Cleeton said unfortunate circumstances had forced the brothel's madam to sell, but that it was a dream opportunity for prospective buyers.

'She's selling it with the total fit-out included, so we are promoting it as a potential to reboot the brothel,' Mrs Cleeton told Daily Mail Australia.

It was first opened as a brothel by madam Paris Satine in 2002, before it was renovated and taken to the next level in 2014

Among the themed 'working rooms' within the brothel is the Playboy Mansion-inspired room (pictured)

The warehouse-style building comes decked out with furniture and beds and will be ready to instantly operate again

In addition to the five 'working bedrooms', the building also features a number of waiting rooms and facilities

Real estate agent Karen Cleeton said the brothel's madam had been forced to sell and it was a dream opportunity for prospective buyers

'It (comes) with the total fit-out included, so we are promoting the potential reboot of the brothel,' Mrs Cleeton told Daily Mail Australia

'It's come on the market, it's got five working themed rooms and also five inductions rooms.

'In total it's actually got eight bedrooms, a girl's bathroom, a sauna area, a managers suite, reception areas are all set up and even the name Scarlet Harem can be transferred into the new owner's name.'

But it's not just prospective future owners who'll be able to step inside the premises.

A rare public open day on Saturday at the 14 Avian St, Kunda Park, Sunshine Coast, Queensland, address will give people the opportunity to look inside.

While what's on the inside is a bit more exciting, it's just another day at the office for Mrs Cleeton.

'For us, we're just selling a building, no different to any other industrial shed, just a bit different inside,' she said.

The property will be put to auction at 2pm on Thursday, December 1, 2016.

A rare public open day on Saturday at the 14 Avian St, Kunda Park address will give people the opportunity to look inside

'For us, we're just selling a building, no different to any other industrial shed, just a bit different inside,' Mrs Cleeton said
Despite pokey van offering them just 60ft of space, pair love their nomadic

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A British couple have braved howling wolves and clocked up more than 75,000 miles while travelling across the world in a tiny camper van.

Adventurous Lauren Winslow-Llewellyn, 27, and Craig Hubbard, 33, both from Brighton, have been enjoying the holiday of a lifetime for the past eight years.

The pair, who met while waiting tables together at a branch of Pizza Express, are currently making their way through North America but have previously travelled through Australia, Asia, Canada, Central and South America, New Zealand and Europe.

Adventurous Lauren Winslow-Llewellyn, 27, and Craig Hubbard, both from Brighton, have been enjoying the holiday of a lifetime for the past eight years (pictured, during the latest leg of their trip in North America)

Lauren and Craig are currently making their way across North America in their beloved 60sqft camper van Daphne (pictured, enjoying a hot tub with water from a hot spring, along Salmon River in Idaho)

Craig and Lauren have no complaints about the van and said they quickly got used to the lack of space (pictured, during the latest leg of their trip in North America)

The couple have enjoyed the vast and varied views of the United States on their voyage (pictured, Lauren leaps into a pose on the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina)

However, while their scenery has been never-ending their accommodation has been a complete contrast.

Lauren and Craig have been cooped up in a 60sqft camper van they call Daphne, a petrol Dodge Ram 1500 primetime bought for 2,900.

Big enough to squeeze in a double bed, but not much else, Daphne has been home for the past eight years on a voyage that if stretched out, would see the couple circle the planet three times.

Most couples would find a week in such cramped conditions a stress on their relationship, but Lauren said the couple manage to make it work - just.

She said: 'We've been together for over nine years and eight of those have been travelling. Of course we bicker and argue, but we have nowhere to escape one another, no spare room to go to, so we just have to get over it and move on - knowing that I'm always right!

'The secret is we both love the same things. We're used to 'van life' and love the lifestyle. Normal day-to-day life can be stressful with careers, children and bills, but without them our life is quite stress-free!'

Daphne was bought by the couple for 2,900 and has just enough space for a double bed and storage units (pictured, during the latest leg of their trip in North America)

Craig and Lauren have had to brave breakdowns and the elements during their trip across the states, including when a stone smashed their windscreen (pictured, during the latest leg of their trip in North America)

The couple say they enjoy the simple pleasures of their nomadic lifestyle as well as waking up in front different landscapes (pictured, during the latest leg of their trip in North America)

Lauren and Craig met while working as waiters at a branch of Pizza Express and saved up together to embark on their voyage (pictured, during the latest leg of their trip in North America)

Pictured: Lauren soaks up the sun on the banks of Muncho Lake in Canada, while Craig enjoys a dip in the beautiful blue water

The couple saved up 5,000 when they first embarked on their journey, kicking off their voyage with Australia, and say they keep their costs down with cheap day trips to beaches and free sight seeing.

Lauren and Craig decided to document the latest leg of their trip, travelling from Canada, then into Alaska and ending in Hawaii, with stunning pictures.

Craig explained America's vast mountain ranges, beautiful lakes, lush forests and idyllic beaches make travelling in their cramped van worth the space sacrifice.

He said: 'There's no denying it's a little on the small side; moving around while bent over or kneeling on the floor to cook takes some time to master but you get used to it and it's just like a mini-home.

'We live very simply. We can't have more than we need as there's not enough space. We appreciate the simple things like running water. If we find a tap, we'll fill up the solar shower and hope to find a private location to wash.

'For us it's the ideal lifestyle. Our home is on wheels, we can pull up at a lake and camp under the stars, wake up and have a refreshing dip, sit quietly and look for wildlife.'

The couple have admitted they experience their 'ups and downs' on the trip but such problems are often soothed by the incredible destinations they reach (pictured, during the latest leg of their trip in North America)

The pair are planning to take a break after their North American trip before house sitting on a Greek island over Christmas (pictured, the couple enjoy the sun as they park on the banks of Lake Muncho in Canada)

Despite years away from home Craig and Lauren are already planning their next big adventure, a trip across Africa (pictured, during the latest leg of their trip in North America)

Pictured: Craig and Lauren's incredible journey across the US has taken in picturesque scenery from Alaska to Hawaii - labelled are some of the states they travelled through and stayed in

The couple have had other vans before Daphne and admit it is not without its troubles.

For their toiletry needs, they often dig a hole if they're in the wood or use public restrooms where available. To wash they either use a solar shower, lakes, rivers or free beach showers.

Lauren said: 'We went through a bad period at the Alaska/Canada border.

'We'd only just left the mechanics and a truck flicked a stone up as we drove through no man's land and smashed our windscreen. A replacement cost us $500.

'Just a few days later we had a leaking fuel injector which could have caused a fire. Then a screw came lose in a pump and was flinging around. It was a nightmare week. One problem after another.

Pictured, the couple test their nerves with a hike along the Smoky Mountains, which border Tennessee and North Dakota

Pictured, the couple set up for a picnic as Craig dangles his legs over the side of a cliff top in McAfee Knob, Virginia

Pictured, the couple enjoy the beautiful beaches of Florida after travelling across the US from Alaska during an epic voyage

'There are ups and downs with van life and travelling in general, but a stressful day can be soothed by finding that idyllic camp location, a moose walking past or the magical sound of wolves howling.

'Sometimes there's days of dull drives but it makes reaching the destination so much more special and the locals sure make each day more colourful.'

Despite being away from home for years, the couple are already planning their next adventure.

Lauren said: 'We plan to head to Mexico for a short break after seven months of living in a van.

'Then we will house-sit for our first time on a Greek island over Christmas time and afterwards we plan to volunteer in Morocco.
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Prince Harry has released photographs and videos of him taking part in one of the worlds biggest conversation projects this summer, including shots of him spraying identification marks on a tranquilised animal.

The prince, who has often spoken of how he would like to walk away from his royal duties to live in Africa and work on such projects permanently, spent three weeks in Malawi over the summer where he worked alongside volunteers, vets and experts on the frontline of one of the largest and most significant elephant translocations.

One of the pictures was taken by the 32-year-old royal himself, and shows a volunteer trying to get a bull elephant to lie down.

In another Harry explains how he marked several of the young males so that they will be easily identifiable when released back into the bush. The spray paint disappears after a few days, the prince explained.

Royal visit: Prince Harry spent his July holidays helping save the African elephant in Malawi, pictured, spraying one sedated animal being moved to a 1million new home

Efforts: Kensington Palace has releaeed new photographs today showing the prince helping move around 500 elephants to a wildlife reserve

Aid: Harry and a group of workers trying to tip a young male elephant that was trying to fight the sedative drug and head for the trees

In a video, narrated by the prince, he added: Elephants are one of the cores of Africa. You cant imagine anywhere like this existing without elephants. 

Artistic: Harry took a photograph of this magnificent beast set to be moved around 200 miles to a new home

A third shows Harry with a group of workers trying to tip a young male elephant that was trying to fight the sedative drug and head for the trees.

Harry can also be seen hanging onto a rope for dear life as a powerful bull elephant tries to free itself.

The prince writes: 'This big bull (male) elephant refused to lie down after it had been darted with a tranquiliser. After about seven minutes the drug began to take effect and the elephant became semi-comatose, but it continued to shuffle for a while! They have a tendency to hone in on forest, rivers and people when in this state. Here we are trying to slow him down!

Up to 500 elephants are being moved over 350 kilometres across Malawi from Liwonde National Park and Majete Wildlife Reserve to Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve, where the elephants will be able to thrive.

In a statement Harry said: Elephants simply can't roam freely like they used to, without coming into conflict with communities, or being threatened by poaching and persecution.

There has to be a balance between the numbers of animals, and the available habitat. Just how nature intended it.

Human populations in Southern Africa have increased annually by an average of 1.16% from 1960 to today, from 73milion to 320million.

There is no question at all that Africas wildlife will be increasingly susceptible to growing human populations and their requirements for land. 

He added: To allow the coexistence of people and animals, fences are increasingly having to be used to separate the two, and try to keep the peace. Once a fence is up, you are now managing a parcel of land. Different rules have to apply whether we like it or not.

Under these conditions human intervention in stabilising nature might be required by park managers.

In this case, African Parks, in partnership with the Malawian government, have re-established a safe area for elephants to be moved back to. This simultaneously relieves the pressure in Liwonde, and restocks Nkhotakota so both populations of Elephants can continue to grow.

If the re-balance doesn't take place, human wildlife conflict will increase and elephants will degrade their habitat. We're then back to having to consider the worst  reducing herds by culling.

Message: Harry explained that conservation work was needed to move 500 elephants 200 miles to a sanctuary

Stuck in: Harry, pictured helping load an animal on to a truck, said: There is no question at all that Africas wildlife will be increasingly susceptible to growing human populations and their requirements for land

Effort: Harry hauling on a rope as up to 500 elephants are being moved over 350 kilometres across Malawi from Liwonde National Park and Majete Wildlife Reserve to Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve, where the elephants will be able to thrive

Passion: In the video, narrated by the prince, he added: Elephants are one of the cores of Africa. You cant imagine anywhere like this existing without elephants. 

In the accompanying video Harry says of the elephant: People can connect with them.

He adds of the problem facing Southern Africas elephant population: In some countries the numbers are dropping unbelievably quickly and in others there are too many. Theres this weird imbalance.

Its amazing to see such unbelievable creatures being moved in a way you could never even dream of. To be with elephants, such massive beasts, is a unique experience. In a weird way they know we are here to helpthey are so calm and so relaxed. They need to be moved to a different place so this is the most efficient and least invasive way of doing it.

He added: Elephants are one of the cores of Africa. You cant imagine anywhere like this existing without elephants'.

The overall picture for elephants in Africa is deeply alarming - due to poaching, habitat loss and human wildlife conflict, numbers are being decimated.

The need to manage and protect those herds which are thriving has become more acute, to ensure there is hope of securing the future of Africa's elephants.

In pockets where elephant populations outgrow their surroundings they can come into conflict with local communities, or find that vegetation is unable to sustain the population.

A balance between the number of animals and the available habitat is required to help relieve pressure in areas like Liwonde.

By moving herds into safe parks like Nkhotakota, it is hoped that the pressure on existing habitats will be reduced, and the population of elephants will continue to grow.

Taking part in this project, Prince Harry was keen to get experience on the front line of conservation, and learn more about the issues affecting wildlife in Africa, aides said.

He wanted to release the video and photographs, to which he has written personal captions, to draw attention to this important work, and the incredible scale and ambition of the 500 elephants project, a spokesman said.

Devotion: Prince Harry has been a devoted conservationist and spent three months embedded with an anti-poaching patrol in southern Africa last year (pictured). He posted this heartbreaking picture near the end of the tour

Frontline: The 31-year-old royal brings valuable field experience from last years three months embedded with bush vets and an anti-poaching teams, gaining a host of hands-on skills. Above, he helps treat a rhinocerous last summer

Once they are sedated and recorded, the elephants are revived with injections in wake-up crates and cattle prods are used to herd them onto flatbed trucks for the day-long journey to their new home

An elephant is lifted by a crane in an upside down position in Malawi, in the first step of an assisted migration of 500 of the threatened species. The animal is unconscious and will wake up unharmed

In all Harry spent almost three weeks on the ground in Malawi with African Parks, a conservation NGO that manages protected areas and national parks on behalf of governments, where he served as part of the expert team and helped implement the first phase of 500 Elephants.

Harry assisted with the first phase of the translocation during which 261 elephants were successfully re-homed in Nkhotakota. The remaining 239 elephants will be moved at a later date.

We are thrilled to have Prince Harry serve as an integral part of our translocation team, said Peter Fearnhead, CEO of African Parks.

He has extensive field experience and was extremely comfortable with the animals, whether helping an anesthetized elephant to the ground and monitoring its breathing to affixing radio collars. He played a vital role in many aspects of this giant operation which requires not only all hands on deck, but a vigilance he exudes, and a commitment to the cause he embodies.

Along with moving elephants, Prince Harry assisted with translocating a male rhino, a host of game species including antelope, buffalo, and zebra, and he facilitated in re-collaring three lions in Majete with GPS collars to monitor and better protect them.

Numbering as many as 10,000,000 a century ago, recent census results indicate that African elephants have been reduced to fewer than 450,000.
A young woman was beaten senseless and robbed, and then dragged away - while an onlooker filmed the ordeal instead of trying to help.

The shocking footage shot in Kazakhstan shows a man attacking a helpless woman.

He appears to have already wrestled her to the ground when the video begins, and proceeds to knock her unconscious.

It is believed the attacker had wanted to rob the woman, who is in her twenties, and he can be seen forcing his hand over her mouth to prevent her from screaming.

WARNING - SHOCKING FOOTAGE



A young woman in Kazakhstan was savagely assaulted by an attacker who punched her in the head until she lost consciousness - and then he stole her bag

He then punches her in the head.

Leaving her lying on the ground, he takes her purse and leaves.

Off-camera it is believed he empties the cash out before then returning to the scene with a second man and throwing the purse on the ground.

More worryingly, he then grabs the unconscious woman and is seen trying to drag her out of the view of the camera, prompting fears that he planned to sexually assault her.

She is left alone on the pavement for a moment while the culprit appears to be emptying her bag out of shot. But then he returns and starts to try to hoist the unconscious woman upright

When it was posted online the video sparked heated debate.

The cameraman, who filmed the whole assault from above, has incurred the wrath of social media users, who have called them callous for continuing to film instead of coming to the woman's rescue.

One user logged in as 'Azheka' said: 'The poor woman was being beaten and there was no one to help her.

'God only knows what happened to her after that.'

Another, with the username 'Samir', said: 'There are three b*****ds on the video: two thugs and one sick cameraman.'

Local media confirmed police are investigating the incident.

Police spokesman Almas Sadubaev said: 'Police officers are carefully studying the video.

'We are trying to determine the location and the identity of the people involved in the incident.'
Police should text warnings to Londoners during terror attacks because an atrocity like the ones seen in Mumbai, Paris and Brussels is inevitable, a major review of counter-terrorism arrangements said today.

Scotland Yard has also been urged to use of temporary barriers to protect against a Nice-style attack with a lorry and shore up security at London City Airport.

Sadiq Khan has asked for an independent review of the city's readiness to deal with a major terrorist incident in the wake of ISIS atrocities in Brussels and Paris, which killed hundreds of people.

Lord Toby Harris of Haringey's report said a marauding firearms attack - such as the method used in Mumbai in 200 - is considered to be the most significant terrorist threat affecting the UK, adding: 'It is when, not if'.

There are 'real concerns' about how easy it might be for terrorists to bring guns into the UK, it said.

Chief Inspector Graham Horwood (right) gives Mayor of London Sadiq Khan a tour of a Special Operations Room in London today, as a major review of counter-terrorism arrangements has warned Britain's borders are not as secure as they should be

The official threat level for international terrorism in the UK currently stands at severe - meaning an attack is 'highly likely'.

And despite the quality and effectiveness of the work carried out by intelligence agencies and police being among the best in the world, a serious attack is 'a matter of not if, but when', according to the report.

The independent study found Britain's borders are not as secure as they should be and efforts to prevent weapons being smuggled into the country must be stepped up.

WEAKSPOTS HIGHLIGHTED BY LONDON TERROR REVIEW Lord Harris made a total of 127 recommendations, including: The Met Police should further explore the use of temporary barriers to protect against a Nice-style attack in London A pilot of new public alert technology to advise Londoners of a major attack, with messages sent directly to mobile devices The installation of CCTV on all Underground and mainline trains Strengthening of security measures on the River Thames A full review of perimeter security at London City Airport Advertisement

Around 850 UK extremists have travelled to Syria and Iraq to join Islamic State, with around half estimated to have returned.

Lord Harris's report said a marauding firearms attack - such as the method used in Mumbai in 2008 and Paris last year - is currently considered to be the most significant terrorist threat affecting the UK.

Guns are more difficult to acquire here than elsewhere in the world, but London is not 'firearms-free', the review warned.

In July and August, Scotland Yard recorded 202 firearms discharges, compared with 87 in the same months last year.

The review said: 'Our borders are not as secure as they should be and much greater efforts should be made to prevent the illegal transportation of weapons and people into the country.

'It would be naive in the extreme to assume that would-be terrorists will not attempt to exploit any such weaknesses.'

Lord Harris's report said a marauding firearms attack - such as the method used in Mumbai in 2008 and Paris last year - is currently considered to be the most significant terrorist threat affecting the UK.

Much more should be done to strengthen the ability to prevent the importation of firearms, the report said, calling on Mr Khan to seek assurances that the routine screening and searching of cars and freight entering the country is being 'significantly enhanced', with an uplift in land-based and sea-based Border Force coverage.

It also said the aerial surveillance capacity that enables the Border Force, National Crime Agency and police to monitor and control the border needs to be enhanced 'given that existing capacity is already fully utilised'.

Fifty of the 73 highest risk crowded places across the country are in London, with any attack in the capital likely to have a significant impact on the national economy, according to the report.

It suggested that the potential cost of a Paris-style attack in the capital could top 1 billion.

Elsewhere, the report said the mayor and Scotland Yard should 'strongly resist' any attempts by central government to move counter-terrorism functions from the Met to the National Crime Agency.

Lord Harris said: 'The quality and effectiveness of the work done by the intelligence services and the counter-terrorist police is amongst the best in the world, and if London were subject to a terrorist attack today, our emergency services response would be substantially faster than five years ago.

'Nevertheless, a serious terrorist attack remains highly possible and we cannot be complacent.'

On the rise: In July and August, Scotland Yard recorded 202 firearms discharges, compared with 87 in the same months last year

Lord Harris added: 'We all have to recognise that London remains a target, that a terrorist incident remains extremely possible and that we all have a part to play in making sure London is a safe, secure and resilient city - we all need to know what to do in the event of an emergency.'

He said all of his recommendations are 'there for a reason', adding: 'I remained concerned about the potential leakage of firearms into the country, which is why I have made recommendations about bolstering the presence to avoid arms smuggling at our borders and so on.'

Mr Khan said: 'We know looking with what happened in Paris and Brussels, in Nice - that there is a real possibility that terrorists want to cause damage to us and our way of life.

'The threat level is severe which means a terror attack is highly likely. I don't want to alarm or concern Londoners but that is a fact of life I am afraid.'

He said it is important to 'evolve' and make sure 'we are doing all that we can, just like the terrorists are'.
A Chinese science graduate has been arrested by police, accused of being the ringleader of an international drug-making gang.

According to the People's Daily Online, the man surnamed Wang earned some 4.5 million yuan (547,000) from making the drugs.

It's alleged that the drugs were distributed to countries including Spain, the Netherlands and Poland.

The story has been compared to that of Breaking Bad (File photo)

The man surnamed Wang was arrested in June for allegedly being a key member of the drug-manufacturing gang.

He reportedly earned 4.5 million yuan (547,000) from making and smuggling the drugs.

Wang had been a hard working science student in his home town of Huanggang city in China's Hunan province.

He went to university in Beijing and studied chemistry and molecular engineering and later joined the local government's talent scheme.

Wang returned to his hometown in 2014 and co-founded a biotechnology company to research cancer drugs and unnatural amino acids.

Wang was arrested in July for the alleged operations in his factory (File photo)

However in March, local police carried out an inspection at a chemical factory operated by Wang's company.

They found unreported sulfuric acid and hydrochloric acid and became suspicious of the business.

In July, police in Shenzhen found an LED light tube containing 500 grams of yellow crystals that was sent from Wang's home town to Shenzhen.

The sender later told police that he wanted to deliver the goods to several countries including Spain, Holland and Poland.

Police later revealed that the sender was Wang who is thought to have hired his cousin and other people to make drugs in the factory, which Wang had rented.

They arrested Wang along with his wife and cousin and a few drug makers at the chemical factory. They siezed over 600 kilograms of drugs as well as 4.6 tonnes of chemicals.
A Far Right Dutch politician is refusing to attend his own trial over claims he incited racial hatred.

Geert Wilders, who claims he is on a mission to stop the 'Islamic invasion', described the case against him as a travesty aimed at silencing him ahead of next year's elections.

The trial opens on Monday before a three-judge bench with the far-right politician facing charges of insulting a racial group and inciting racial hatred for comments he made about Moroccans living in the Netherlands.

Geert Wilders, who claims he is on a mission to stop the 'Islamic invasion', described the case against him as a travesty aimed at silencing him ahead of next year's elections

'It is my right and my duty as a politician to speak about the problems in our country,' Wilders said in a statement Friday, dubbing the case 'a political trial, in which I refuse to cooperate'.

It comes as opinion polls have shown his far-right Freedom Party (PVV) doing well ahead of March elections.

After riding high amid the migrant crisis, the party is now polling neck-and-neck with Prime Minister Mark Rutte's Liberals each predicted to win between 25 to 29 seats in the 150-seat parliament.

Set to last until November 25, the trial focuses on a comment made at a March 2014 rally when Wilders asked supporters if they wanted 'fewer or more Moroccans in your city and in the Netherlands?'

When the crowd shouted back 'Fewer! Fewer!' Wilders answered: 'We're going to organise that.'

It is the second such trial for Wilders who was acquitted on similar charges in 2011.

It is the second such trial for Wilders (centre) who was acquitted on similar charges in 2011

Wilders said Friday he would leave his defence in the hands of his lawyer Geert-Jan Knoops and instead 'go to work' in the parliament in The Hague.

The court confirmed in a statement that the trial would go ahead, adding like any defendant Wilders had the right not to appear.

While the court can force someone to turn up, 'it is not known whether it will do so in this case,' it added.

Wilders' 2014 statements were met with outrage including from the small, but vocal Dutch Muslim community. An avalanche of 6,400 complaints followed, and he faced condemnation from fellow MPs.

Judges earlier this month dismissed arguments by Wilders' lawyers that the trial was 'politically motivated' adding they did not believe it will impact the PVV's election campaign.

Politicians 'are granted broad freedoms of expression because of their official position,' the judges ruled last month.

'Precisely therefore politicians have an important role to avoid feeding intolerance by making these kind of public statements.'

Wilders hit back Friday saying 'it is a travesty that I have to stand trial because I spoke about fewer Moroccans.'

'Millions of Dutch citizens (43 percent of the population) want fewer Moroccans,' he claimed.

'Not because they despise all Moroccans or want all Moroccans out of the country, but because they are sick and tired of the nuisance and terror caused by so many Moroccans.'

Wilders drew flak when he unveiled his party's controversial election programme saying he would confiscate Korans and close mosques if he wins the elections.

He is often described as 'the most heavily guarded man' in The Netherlands and the trial is taking place in a high-security courthouse in Schiphol.

His name has 'appeared on hit-lists drawn up by Al-Qaeda, the Taliban and the Islamic State group', according to his lawyer.

If found guilty, Wilders could face up to two years in jail or a fine of more than 20,000 euros.

But as he would be a first-time offender, a lower fine or community service were more likely options, said Rolf Hoving, Dutch criminal law expert at Groningen University. A conviction will also not bar him from office under Dutch law.

'If he is acquitted ... it will surely boost his popularity, but if found guilty, it will put people off from voting for him,' said biographer Meindert Fennema.

Retired politics professor Philip van Praag agreed, but said a guilty verdict would further isolate Wilders from other political parties.
home Tech Huawei Ascend Mate 9 release date, news & update: Leaked manual reveals high-end smartphone

Huawei reportedly teased their upcoming flagship smartphone, the Mate 9. A leaked manual revealed that the forthcoming smartphone will be a massive device which will have high-end features to compete with the top-tier mobile devices in the market.

Though Huawei's Mate 9 is not as well-known and highly anticipated as Samsung's Galaxy S series or Apple's iPhone series, the device's upcoming features probably might get the device the recognition it deserves. If the rumors are true, the Mate 9 will have a 20-MP dual-lens camera and another 12-MP sensor, with 4x optical zoom. Its screen will have a curved design. Its RAM will be able to accommodate up to 6 GB worth of storage. The device is expected to come in two variants, a more cost-efficient unit and a premium device.

Based on the leaked manual of the Mate 9, the dual-lens will equip a Leica Summarit H1:2.2/27 ASPH camera. The same camera can be found in Huawei's P9 device. With this particular hardware, it will use one color and one monochrome sensor, which will improve the range of photos one can capture.

Rumor has it that the upcoming flagship smartphone could cost at least $475. On the other hand, reports have claimed that the Mate 9 Pro will cost $1,300.

The forthcoming smartphone will be powered by the Kirin 90 processor. It will feature a dual tone LED flash, a USB Type-C port as well as a microSD card slot, so mobile users can expand the device's storage capacity.

Though it hasn't been confirmed yet by the manufacturer, many are expecting Huawei to unveil the Mate 9 this Nov. 3. Previous rumors have suggested that the device will launch in December. Since the company has yet to confirm its launch date, tech enthusiasts should treat the latest reports as speculation until proven otherwise.

Watch out for more updates on Huawei's upcoming Mate 9.


Two couples who went home with the wrong babies after a hospital mix up have admitted to mixed emotions after being reunited with their own children.

The two mothers gave birth at the Kamla Nehru Hospital, in the city of Shimla in northern India's Himachal Pradesh state, five months ago.

Both sets of parents - who share the surname Thakur - said they were overjoyed to have their own baby back but sad to be giving away the child they had been raising as their own.

Incredibly, hospital staff managed to mix up the two babies despite the fact that one of them was a boy and the other a girl.

Sheetal (pictured) admitted that she felt torn after handing over baby girl Anmol to her biological parents, Anjana and Jitender Thakur, in exchange for her son

Anil Thakur, the father of the baby boy involved in the mix up, admitted: 'Today, I don't know if I have won or lost.'

The schoolteacher lodged a complaint after the hospital congratulated his wife, Sheetal, on giving birth to a baby boy but then later handed her a girl.

They confronted hospital staff straight away but were told the baby had not been swapped.

Anil Thakur's original complaint led to a police investigation and a DNA test which confirmed the parents' suspicions that they had been given the wrong babies.

The case eventually went all the way to the Himachal Pradesh High Court which ruled that the couples should swap babies so that both had their biological children.

Police described the incident as an 'isolated and accidental case' and have arrested two people, staff nurse Pushpa Devi and midwife Rupa Devi.

Sheetal Thakur (left) and Anjana Thakur (right) are tearful as they swap the babies in a ceremony to bless both children

Anjana broke down as she handed over the boy she named Nityansh to his rightful mother

It is not clear if the other mother knew what gender her child was supposed to be before taking it home.

'Anmol has now gone back to her family, my son is home. But I'm already missing her. I fought for this, but I haven't been able to eat well now,' he said, fighting back tears.

Sheetal, a nurse who also has a four-year-old daughter, admitted that she too felt torn after handing over Anmol to her biological parents, Anjana and Jitender Thakur, in exchange for her son.

She said: 'It is a very difficult moment for me. I am a mother. I know her so well.'

Anjana, who organised a ceremony to bless both children, broke down as she handed over the boy she named Nityansh to his rightful mother.

'I have a six-year-old son and always yearned for a daughter but today, this is heartbreaking,' she admitted.

The couples have both renamed their biological children. The boy is now called Shivaay and the girl Jannat.

Police described the incident as an 'isolated and accidental case' and have arrested two nurses
But judge at Belfast High Court said there is

The first legal challenge to Brexit has been dismissed as a judge at Belfast High Court rejected claims that Northern Ireland should have a veto on leaving the EU.

A cross-party group of politicians had contested the validity of the historic EU referendum result without a vote in Parliament of Northern Ireland's Stormont Assembly.

Another challenge - heard alongside that of the politicians - argued that the Good Friday Agreement's consent principal that guarantees self-determination without external interference made the people of Northern Ireland sovereign.

A cross party group of politicians, including Social Democratic and Labour party leader Column Eastwood (pictured outside the Belfast High Court today) contested the validity of the historic EU referendum result without a vote in Parliament of Northern Ireland's Stormont Assembly

The case, brought by Raymond McCord, the father of a terrorist-murder victim, argued that as Northern Ireland had voted to stay in the EU it should be given a veto.

Mr Lavery QC, representing Mr MCord, said leaving the EU will have a 'catastrophic effect' on Northern Ireland's peace process.

But Mr Justice Paul Maguire rejected both claims because the implications for Northern Ireland were still uncertain.

He said there was nothing in the 1998 Good Friday Agreement that barred the Government from triggering Article 50, the formal process of leaving the EU.

The cross-party group of MPs argued that the Brexit vote was not valid without a vote in Northern Ireland's Stormont Assembly (pictured)

He told the High Court in Belfast today: 'While the wind of change may be about to blow, the precise direction in which it will blow cannot yet be determined so there is a level of uncertainty, as evidenced by the discussion about how the Northern Ireland land border with Ireland was affected by withdrawal from the EU.'

He added: 'In respect of all issues, the court dismissed the applications.'

Tony MGleenan, representing the UK Government's Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire (pictured) told the court that those trying to stop Brexit: 'That ship has sailed'

It is the first legal challenge to Brexit to be heard by a High Court and parallel cases will be heard in England and Wales in the coming weeks.

The cross-party group challenging the group included Sinn Fein, SDLP, Alliance aned Green party politicians, want the Northern Ireland Assembly to be given a vote on Brexit.

Tony MGleenan, representing the UK Government, told the court that those trying to stop Brexit: 'That ship has sailed'.

In the June 23 referendum a majority of 56 per cent of Northern Irish voters backed staying in the EU.

Earlier this week Theresa May hosted a stormy meeting with the leaders of Northern Ireland, along with those from Wales and Scotland, over the Government's Brexit strategy.

The Pirme Minister demanded the devolved administrations 'play their part' in forging a successful package for the whole of the UK.

Northern Ireland's DUP First Minister Arlene Foster and her Sinn Fein deputy Martin McGuinness said in a joint statement after the meeting: 'We have today emphasised to the Prime Minister in the clearest possible terms the need for the Northern Ireland Executive to be fully represented in the negotiating process regarding future relationships with EU countries.

'That must mean nothing less than high level and ongoing involvement in the process on a continuing basis.'
The new polymer 5 note can be wiped almost totally clean of ink using a simple pencil eraser, it has been revealed.

Bank chiefs claim the new notes are so durable they will last twice as long as the old fiver.

But a print centre manager has exposed a serious flaw after wiping one almost totally clean of ink with an eraser.

Stuart McLean managed to score off large parts of the note's blue dye, leaving only security numbers and the see-through hologram behind.

Bank chiefs claim the new notes are so durable they will last twice as long as the old fiver

But Stuart McLean has exposed a serious flaw and claims they can be wiped of ink with a rubber

The new 5 note is said to be more durable than the old one and able to withstand usability. This is a new note after the Queen has been rubbed out

The polymer note, which has been issued by Royal Bank of Scotland, Clydesdale Bank, Bank of Scotland and the Bank of England, is smaller than traditional fivers and said to last 2.5 times longer.

Banknote manufacturer De La Rue says it can survive a spin in a washing machine without losing its colour.

But Mr McLean said that it could not stand up to an abrasive surface.

He said: 'I used a pencil eraser to rub it out and found that the ink underneath rubbed away as well.

'I kept going and was able to turn one side completely white.'

Mr McLean, who works in Cambuslang, Lanarkshire, performed the experiment on a Clydesdale plastic note, which features an image of the Forth Bridge.

Stuart McLean, who works in Cambuslang, Lanarkshire, performed the experiment on the new 5 plastic note. He is pictured with the new fiver after seeing how much ink he could erase

BANK NOTES: ILLEGAL TO DEFACE, LEGAL TO DESTROY According to the Bank of England, under the Currency & Banknotes Act 1928 it is illegal to deface banknotes by printing, writing or impressing upon them words, letters or figures. The question of whether or not to prosecute in individual cases is up to the police and the courts. However, while it is illegal to deface notes, it is not to destroy them. Source: Bank of England Advertisement

It was issued to commemorate the bridge's 125th anniversary and a portrait of Sir William Arrol.

However, he was also able to reproduce the effect on a Bank of England note, rubbing out the world 'England' to prove the banknote's vulnerability to a colleague.

A spokesman for De La Rue said that notes would not normally lose their ink, and insisted that Mr McLean's had been subjected to 'excessive and abnormal ink wear.'

He added: 'Whilst ink wear is the ultimate failure mode of polymer banknotes in circulation, the ink wear displayed here appears to us to have been achieved by a method not representative of what happens to a banknote under normal circulation conditions.'

The spokesman confirmed the banknote would still be classed as legal currency if someone were to remove the ink.
A jury has awarded a woman $70million in damages against Johnson & Johnson after the woman claimed talcum powder caused her ovarian cancer.

Deborah Giannecchini of Modesto, California was diagnosed with the disease in 2012 and accused the company of 'negligent conduct' in making and and marketing the baby powder.

The lawsuit claimed Mrs Giannecchini contracted the disease after using baby powder in an intimate area.

Deborah Giannecchini, pictured, of Modesto, California claimed using Johnson & Johnson's baby powder in an intimate fashion over many years led to her developing ovarian cancer

Jim Onder, Mrs Giannecchini's lawyer, said: 'We are pleased the jury did the right thing. They once again reaffirmed the need for Johnson & Johnson to warn the public of the ovarian cancer risk associated with its product.'

However, the company has rejected there is any risk to using their product - even in intimate areas - and will appeal the massive award.

Carol Goodrich, spokesman for the company said: 'We deeply sympathize with the women and families impacted by ovarian cancer. We will appeal today's verdict because we are guided by the science, which supports the safety of Johnson's Baby Powder.'

Earlier this year, two other lawsuits in St Louis ended in jury verdicts worth a combined $127million. But two others in New Jersey were thrown out by a judge who said there wasn't reliable evidence that talc leads to ovarian cancer, an often fatal but relatively rare form of cancer.

Ovarian cancer accounts for about 22,000 of the 1.7million new cases of cancer expected to be diagnosed in the US this year.

About 2,000 women have filed similar suits, and lawyers are reviewing thousands of other potential cases, most generated by ads touting the two big verdicts out of St. Louis - a $72million award in February to relatives of an Alabama woman who died of ovarian cancer, and a $55million award in May to a South Dakota survivor of the disease.

Deborah Giannecchini of Modesto, California claimed using Johnson & Johnson's baby powder in an intimate fashion over the course of many years led to her developing ovarian cancer

Much research has found no link or a weak one between ovarian cancer and using baby powder for feminine hygiene, and most major health groups have declared talc harmless. Johnson & Johnson, whose baby powder dominates the market, maintains it's perfectly safe.

But Onder of the Onder Law Firm in suburban St Louis, which represented plaintiffs in all three St Louis cases, cited other research that began connecting talcum powder to ovarian cancer in the 1970s.

He said case studies have indicated that women who regularly use talc on their genital area face up to a 40 per cent higher risk of developing ovarian cancer.

Onder has accused Johnson & Johnson of marketing toward overweight women, blacks and Hispanics - the very same women most at risk for ovarian cancer, he said.

Factors known to increase a women's risk of ovarian cancer include age, obesity, use of estrogen therapy after menopause, not having any children, certain genetic mutations and personal or family history of breast or ovarian cancer.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies genital use of talc as 'possibly carcinogenic'. The National Toxicology Program, made up of parts of several different government agencies, has not fully reviewed talc.

Talc is a mineral that is mined from deposits around the world, including the US. The softest of minerals, it's crushed into a white powder.

It's been widely used in cosmetics and other personal care products to absorb moisture since at least 1894, when Johnson & Johnson's Baby Powder was launched. But it's mainly used in a variety of other products, including paint and plastics.

The two St Louis verdicts were the first talcum powder cases in which money was awarded. A federal jury in 2013 sided with another South Dakota woman, but it ordered no damages, a spokeswoman for Onder's firm said.

Johnson & Johnson has been targeted before by health and consumer groups over ingredients in its products, including Johnson's No More Tears baby shampoo. The company agreed in 2012 to eliminate 1,4-dioxane and formaldehyde, both considered probable carcinogens, from all products by 2015.
A former soldier has said a top university was like a 'war zone' after police were called to violent clashes between pro-Palestinian students and Israelis.

Members of the Israeli Society gathered at University College London to listen to an ex-Israeli Defence Force solider give a speech.

But video footage has emerged which captured the shocking moment people started pushing each other after more than 60 pro-Palestinian protesters attended the event.

One woman has claimed she was the victim of common assault during the incident and police are investigating.

Protesters attended the event at University College London after Israelis gathered to listen to Hen Mazzig give a speech. None of the people pictured are doing anything illegal or involved in the alleged assault

Pro-Palestinian protesters turned up to the event after learning Mr Mazzig was speaking. None of the people pictured are doing anything illegal or involved in the alleged assault

Police were called following the incident at UCL and one woman claims she was assaulted

The protesters arrived at UCL in central London after learning Hen Mazzig would be speaking.

Mr Mazzig, who served as a Humanitarian and UN liaison officer in the IDF, was invited by the UCL Israeli Society to talk to students.

But protesters rushed into the theatre at the university and the room was filled with people holding anti-Israeli placards and Palestinian flags.

They outnumbered the Israeli members who had gathered to watch Mazzig speak about his experiences in the IDF and Israeli-Palestinian politics.

Cameras and flags were shoved in people's faces by the opposing group before one member of the Israeli Society rang the police when protesters stormed the room.

Police arrived at 7.30pm in a bid to take command of the situation and settle the dispute.

Following the disturbance, Mazzig tweeted to his 17,000 followers: 'I had to be rushed out of the event at UCL with security.

'The campus was the war zone and the streets are the safe place. I'm out. My god.'

Israeli society members then secretly organised another emergency change of the location of the speech as they were determined to watch Mazzig speak.

The pro-Palestinian protesters attended the event after learning the location at the university.

The university had heightened security with approximately six members of staff positioned around the theatre.

Throughout the event, more protesters arrived and began shouting 'shame,' 'Free, free Palestine,' and 'From the river to the sea Palestine will be free'.

As activists continued to shout expletives and bang against the windows, Mazzig finally spoke to the audience of 50 about his experiences and about the 'expected behaviour' on the part of what the room termed 'anti-Israeli protesters'.

Following Mazzig's speech about his time in the IDF and his and others present safety on campuses across the UK, others made small comments all of which saw the room erupt in applause.

Most of the remarks concerned how to mobilise more Jewish and Israeli groups on UK campuses to protect against what they saw as aggressive intimidation of their members.

More police arrived to provide protective escort to Hen Mazzig and others inside.

Following the disturbance, Mazzig tweeted to his 17,000 followers: 'I had to be rushed out of the event at UCL with security'

Protesters were singing and shouting as people walked past. None of the people pictured are doing anything illegal or involved in the alleged assault

Officers arrived at the university and provided a protective escort to Hen Mazzig and others inside

A number of Israelis attended the event at UCL to listen to Mazzig speak about his time in the IDF

The former IDF lieutenant, disguised as security staff with a high-vis' jacket, left the room first without any intervention from the students outside. Others anxiously waited longer, on instruction from the police.

A similar event took place in KCL in November 2014, where Mazzig successfully spoke to the KCL Israeli society despite outside disruption, and alleged assault and vandalism from protesters outside thought to be representing the KCL Action Palestine society.

Protesters maintained their right to protest the 'anti-democratic' and 'abhorrent' presence of the IDF soldier, who many claimed to be 'complicit in war crimes' due to his involvement in Operation Protective Edge.

Mr Mazzig said: 'I didn't expect something like this - Jewish students are being intimidated, beaten up.

'The reason not many Israel people are mobilising is because our message is a message of peace and their message is a message of hate, hate can rile people up.

'It's really intimidating to be here in the UK in UCL, because its supposed to be safe space, I feel safer in Israel.'

A Met Police spokesman said: 'Police were called at 19:00hrs on Thursday, 27 October, to a venue at University College London in Gower Street, WC1, to reports of a demonstration.

'Officers from Camden attended the venue. It was understood the demonstration related to a speaker attending a meeting within in the building.

'Officers spoke to security at the university who were happy to let to demonstration go ahead on its grounds. They provided a policing presence during the demonstration.

'Police remained at the venue until the meeting ended safely.
Two carers have admitted neglecting elderly residents at a care home which has been embroiled in a 'dementia doll' abuse row.

Shauna Higgin and Victoria Johnson will be sentenced next month after each pleading guilty to two counts of ill-treating or wilfully neglecting elderly residents at Ashbourne House Nursing Home, Middleton, last year.

The pair were arrested by police earlier this year following an investigation into alleged abuse at the home near Manchester.

Victoria Johnson (left) and Shauna Higgin will be sentenced next month after each pleading guilty to two counts of ill-treating or wilfully neglecting elderly residents

It was alleged that residents with dementia had been tormented by the abuse of 'therapy' dolls used by carers at the home

Officers were alerted to a number of images taken by staff in January.

It was alleged that residents with dementia had been tormented by the abuse of 'therapy' dolls used by carers.

The dolls are given to dementia patients as part of their treatment plans and some come to treat the toys 'like their own babies'.

Higgin, 20, and Johnson, 23, were quizzed by officers before being charged in relation to alleged incidents between December 1 and 26 last year.

They were due to stand trial next year following a plea hearing earlier in July, but will now be sentenced together next month.

Higgin, of Middleton, and Johnson, of Oldham, faced identical charges - four counts of a care worker ill-treating or wilfully neglecting an individual.

Each count related to a resident at Ashbourne House during their time there as care workers.

When they initially appeared at Manchester's Minshull Street Crown Court on July 29, Johnson pleaded guilty to two of the four counts, while Higgin pleaded not guilty to each.

Each count related to a resident at Ashbourne House during their time there as care workers

The pair were due to appear before a jury in February, but the trial has now been vacated after Higgin changed her pleas on Thursday.

In a brief appearance before Judge Andrew Lowcock, Higgin pleaded guilty to two of the four counts - one of which related to the same elderly resident Johnson had pleaded guilty to mistreating.

The pair will be sentenced in relation to each of their two guilty pleas on November 21.

It is understood the remaining counts are likely to lie on file.
A safari guide captured the adorable moment a newborn elephant managed to stand alone for the first time - only to topple over and roll down a hill.

The elephant - thought to be just one hour old - was exploring its new surroundings at the Djuma Private Game Reserve in South Africa's Kruger National Park.

After much perseverance, the adorable animal managed to find its feet - only to tumble down a bank as he tried to keep up with the adults.

The baby elephant loses his footing and tumbles down a slope as he tries to keep up with the herd

He falls completely flat - and other members of the herd quickly rush to his aid

Keeping as close as possible to his mother, the newborn was keen to trot alongside the older elephants

Safari guide Jamie Paterson discovered the newborn in a shady riverbed in the South African reserve.

In the clip, the calf can be seen following his mother as she clears a path through the bush.

He trots along behind her, keeping as close as possible.

After nearly losing his footing, he steadies himself - then slides down a bank as he tries to run after his mother, a few paces away.

The adorable newborn is scooped up by his mother, wrapping her trunk around him to help him back to his feet

After he fell, members of the herd crowded round the elephant to support him

Safari guide Jamie Paterson found the herd, with an identifiable female elephant named Fang - known for her tusks which grow in opposite directions (left)

The elephants were clearing a path through the trees in South Africa, with the youngster trotting behind them

In a particularly heartwarming moment, the elder members of the herd are visibly concerned as they race to the calf's aid, scooping him up with their trunks.

Safari guide Jamie found the herd, with an identifiable female elephant named Fang - known for her tusks which grow in opposite directions.

Older members of the herd swiftly ushered the calf away before they continued on their journey.
An alleged ISIS hacker accused of hiding terror plans on a USB stick disguised as a cufflink will stand trial in March.

Samata Ullah, 33, is accused of using his blog 'Ansar al Khilafa' to anonymously train ISIS recruits in the use of sophisticated encryption techniques.

Ullah, of Cardiff, Wales, also used the messaging app Telegram to contact and offer his services to the 'Cyber Caliphate Army', it is said.

Prosecutors claim the group specialises in 'hacking and writing death writs'.

Samata Ullah, who of helping terrorists with computer techniques, appeared at the Old Bailey

Ullah was arrested after a raid in south Wales in September when a 'large number' of media devices including 30 tiny USB drives inside metal cufflinks were seized by police.

One of the charges against him states: 'Samata Ullah had in his possession one Universal Serial Bus (USB) cufflink that had an operating system loaded on to it for a purpose connected with terrorism.'

Another charge states: 'Samata Ullah had in his possession a PDF version of a book about advanced in missile guidance and control for a purpose connected with terrorism.'

All the alleged offences are said to have taken place between December last year and 22 September this year.

The Old Bailey today heard that almost six terrabytes of data was found by police investigating the case and at least two terrabytes will be used as evidence.

He was arrested in a raid in his street in Cardiff when police seized computer equipment

Mr Justice Holroyde remanded Ullah in custody until 17 November, when an application may be made to move the hearing to Wales.

Ullah, of Cardiff, is yet to indicate pleas to one count of membership of a proscribed organisation, one count of training terrorists, one count of preparation for terrorism, one count of directing terrorism, and two counts of possessing articles connected with terrorism.
Canadian elocutionist Edith Skinner wrote the book that inspired an era of fake Mid-Atlantic accents in Hollywood

In the Golden Era of Hollywood, actors such as Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn spoke with a strange form of English that placed them somewhere between America and Great Britain.

The so-called Mid-Atlantic accent actually wasn't an accent at all, but an affectation concocted by a Canadian elocutionist.

Edith Skinner, from New Brunswick, Canada, studied speech at Columbia University at the end of the silent film era, and afterwards she got into the business teaching drama at Carnegie Mellon and Juilliard and assisting leading stage-speech consultant Margaret Prendergast McLean.

By the the mid 1910s, Skinner moved to Los Angeles and by the 1930s she was the go-to advisor for speech in Hollywood.

Her 1942 book 'Speak with Distinction' laid out her idea of 'Good Speech' - an accent that is 'free from regional characteristics,' 'effortlessly articulated and easily understood in the last rows of the theater'.

The point of Good Speech was to eliminate regionalized accents, to create one a neutral American sound.

The accent was thought to be in response to silent film stars like Clara Bow whose Brooklyn accent was jarring when talkies came about

The accent (popularized by actors such as Katharine Hepburn, left) was thought to be in response to silent film stars like Clara Bow (right) whose Brooklyn accent was jarring when talkies came about

'Your voice expresses you,' Skinner explained in an interview with The Milwaukee Journal. 'You don't want to lose that individual voice God gave you. What I try to do is get rid of the most obvious regionalisms, the accent that says, "you're from here and I'm from there," the kind of speech that tells you what street you grew up on.'

But in reality, her Mid-Atlantic accent sounded like a mix of an upper-class New England accent with a general British accent.

Most Americans today will recognize the accent as the ones old Hollywood stars like Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant.

Your voice expresses you. You don't want to lose that individual voice God gave you. What I try to do is get rid of the most obvious regionalisms, the accent that says, 'you're from here and I'm from there,' the kind of speech that tells you what street you grew up on. Edith Skinner

In Grant's case, his accent was really 'mid-Atlantic' - since he was born in England but moved to the U.S. with an acting troupe at 16.

Some typical characteristics of the accent are the dropping of r's from speech, and the soft pronunciation of vowel sounds.

'In Good Speech, ALL vowel sounds are oral sounds, to be made with the soft palate raised. Thus the breath flows out through the mouth only, rather than through the mouth and nose,' Skinner wrote in her book. 'Each vowel sound is called a PURE SOUND, and the slightest movement or change in any of the organs of speech during the formation of a vowel will mar its purity, resulting in DIPHTHONGIZATION.'

'T' sounds are also enunciated so that a word like 'butter' does not sound 'budder,' as most Americans today would pronounce it.

Words beginning with 'Wh' are also given a strange gutteral hacking noise so that a word like 'what' sounds more like 'cccwhat'.

Glottal stops are also banned, which is awkward in practice for the English language.

While Good Speech was the golden standard during the Golden Era of cinema, it became a thing of the past in the 1960s with the rise of the New Hollywood movement, in which directors like Francis Ford Coppola and John Cassavetes sought to portray average Americans in their more realist films.
Eaton is currently being held in the Decatur County Jail

Police went the couple's home and found her dead inside the bedroom

He went to the police station and allegedly told them he shot dead his girlfriend, Wendy Sabatini, after she rejected his marriage

An Indiana man was charged with murder charge after police say he shot his girlfriend dead when she rejected his marriage proposal.

Jason Eaton, 43, went to the Greensburg Police Department on Tuesday evening and told an officer that he killed his girlfriend, who was later identified as Wendy Sabatini, WXIN reported.

Greensburg police officers then went to the home they shared on the 900 block of East Washington Street in the city.

Jason Eaton (left), 43, went to the Greensburg Police Department on Tuesday evening and told an officer that he killed his girlfriend, who was later identified as Wendy Sabatini (right)

Authorities went to their home and found Sabatini dead inside of a bedroom from an apparent gunshot wound to her head. The couple is pictured above together

The 44-year-old woman's son, who thought she was away at work, let the officers inside of the home.

Her son was unaware of any trouble inside the home, as he had just arrived back from work.

Authorities found Sabatini dead inside of a bedroom from an apparent gunshot wound to her head.

They also seized a gun that was found inside the bedroom.

Eaton, who was detained at the police station, told officer that he went into the bedroom and to ask her to marry him while holding an engagement ring.

Eaton, who was detained at the police station, told officer that he went into the bedroom and to ask her to marry him while holding an engagement ring. The couple is pictured above together

Before he was even able to ask her the big question, Sabatini told him 'no' and declined the proposal. The couple is pictured above together

Before he was even able to ask her the big question, Sabatini told him 'no' and declined the proposal.

Eaton told officers that he went and got his gun from a nightstand and shot Sabatini in the head from behind.

He then left without calling for help and went to an acquaintance's house. Eaton told the woman that he 'messed up' and that he thought he killed his girlfriend, WXIN reported.

Eaton was charged with one count of murder and he also faces a firearm sentencing enhancement charge.

He is currently being held in the Decatur County Jail.
A New Zealand judge is reportedly on sick leave after allegedly striking a young lawyer with one of her crutches at a charity event.

Judge Anna Johns, who sits in the Manukau District Court, is alleged to have had a heated debate with the lawyer, during which a crutch allegedly came into contact with the solicitor.

The judge, according to the New Zealand Herald, was using crutches for support following a hip operation.

Judge Anna Johns is reportedly on sick leave after allegedly striking a young lawyer with one of her crutches at a charity event

The incident is said to have occurred at a fundraising function which was also attended by a number of High Court judges and senior Queen's Counsel, a gathering of the cream of Auckland's legal community.

According to the Herald, the lawyer and the judge became embroiled in a heated exchange at the members-only Northern Club.

During the argument, said the paper, witnesses reported seeing a crutch being used to strike at the lawyer.

Following the incident, a complaint was made to the Judicial Conduct Commissioner, who in turn informed the Chief District Court Judge.

A spokeswoman for the Office of the Chief District Court judge issued a statement saying the 'Chief Judge is aware of a recent complaint made to the Judicial Conduct Commissioner.

'The integrity of the Commissioner's process for dealing with complaints must be respected, therefore it is inappropriate to comment on or interfere in any way in that independenct process. That independence is its strength.

The lawyer and the judge became embroiled in a heated exchange at Auckland's members-only Northern Club

Judge has been on sick leave from the Manukau District Court since a complaint against her came to light

'The judge in question has been on sick leave since the complaint came to the attention of the Chief Judge. The Chief Judge will be making no further comment.'

The paper said it was understood the lawyer who was allegedly struck by the crutch did not make the complaint.

Mr Angus Fletcher, a trustee for the Rangimarie Trust - which prides itself in its social work , including running retirement villages - said that while he did not personally witness the alleged incident.
Uber drivers have won the right to be classed as employees in a landmark legal ruling  which could have wide-ranging impact on other workers in insecure jobs.

Drivers for the taxi-hailing service could now be entitled to the national living wage, holiday and sick pay, as well as paid breaks.

They have previously been treated as self-employed, meaning they missed out on basic employee benefits.

James Farrar and Yaseen Aslam, outside the Central London Employment Tribunal (July 21 2016) who both won Uber case

The GMB union described the employment tribunal decision as a monumental victory for around 40,000 Uber drivers in England and Wales. Meanwhile the Trades Union Congress said the case exposed the dark side of the British labour market.

Frank Field, Labour chairman of the work and pensions select committee, said the ruling would ricochet through the whole gig economy  including for workers on zero hours contracts.

The gig economy refers to the piecemeal work done by individuals who bounce between multiple employers on demand, without having a fixed contract.

Other companies such as courier services Deliveroo and Hermes use a similar business model to Uber, and could experience a knock-on effect from yesterdays ruling.

In July, lawyers for James Farrar and Yaseen Aslam (pictured) told the tribunal they were under tremendous pressure to work long hours and there would be repercussions if they refused jobs

Uber  which operates through a smartphone app in a dozen areas of the UK  insists that it does not give its drivers in England and Wales basic employee benefits because they are self-employed contractors who choose when and where they work.

But two disgruntled drivers have challenged this approach  and won a stunning victory over the San Francisco-based firm.

In July, lawyers for James Farrar and Yaseen Aslam told the tribunal they were under tremendous pressure to work long hours and there would be repercussions if they refused jobs.

The pair said they were effectively controlled by the firm but did not have basic employees rights.

Mr Farrar told judges he earned just 5.03 an hour after expenses in August last year  far less than the national living wage of 7.20 which came into force in April.

After spearheading a class action brought by 25 Uber drivers, 48-year-old Mr Farrar, from Hampshire, said: This is a great victory for mini cab drivers. It has been a rotten trade for a long time. But the exploitation since Uber came to the market has been supercharged.

Mr Farrar told judges he earned just 5.03 an hour after expenses in August last year  far less than the national living wage of 7.20 which came into force in April.

Employment lawyer Nigel MacKay speaks to the media after Uber lost a tribunal case on the employment rights of drivers at the Central London Employment Tribunal Service

Mr Aslam, 35, from High Wycombe, quit Uber last year.

Tribunal judges were scathing of Ubers claims that its drivers are self-employed. Judge Anthony Snelson accused the firm of using twisted language and brand new terminology in its terms for workers.

The ruling means drivers involved in the tribunal could be entitled to compensation for missed holiday pay and back payments for earnings below the living wage.

Uber said it plans to take its case to the employment appeal tribunal. If unsuccessful, it can then fight the case in the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

However, legal experts said the firm will have to change its contracts for all drivers if it loses. Nigel Mackay, from law firm Leigh Day, which represented the drivers, described it as ground-breaking.

He said: It will impact not just the thousands of Uber drivers in this country, but on all workers in the gig economy whose employers wrongly classify them as self-employed and deny them rights.

EMPLOYMENT TRIBUNAL JUDGES QUOTE SHAKESPEARE Employment tribunal judges were scathing of Uber's claims that its drivers are self-employed, even quoting from Shakespeare tragedy Hamlet to underline their dismissal of the private hire firm's arguments. The firm had claimed its workers are their own bosses, with freedom to work as they choose, rather than being employed workers. But the judges found otherwise, ruling the two drivers who brought the test case were employees and entitled to minimum wage and holiday pay. In his ruling, judge Anthony Snelson said the panel had been struck by the 'remarkable lengths to which Uber has gone to compel agreement with its - perhaps we should say its lawyers' - description of itself and with its analysis of the legal relationship between the two companies, the drivers and the passengers.' The panel accused Uber of trying to bamboozle drivers and their passengers. The judge said that any company with the 'function of carrying people in motor cars' from one place to another, that operates as a private hire company but requires its drivers and their passengers to agree otherwise - while using 'fictions, twisted language and even brand new terminology' in its terms for workers - 'merits, we think, a degree of scepticism'. Judge Snelson said: 'Reflecting on the respondents' general case, and on the grimly loyal evidence of (Uber regional general manager) Jo Bertram in particular, we cannot help being reminded of Queen Gertrude's most celebrated line, "The lady doth protest too much, methinks".' Advertisement

Uber said it plans to take its case to the employment appeal tribunal. If unsuccessful, it can then fight the case in the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court

aura Gardiner of the Resolution Foundation, a living standards think tank, speaks to the media after Uber lost a tribunal case on the employment rights of drivers at the Central London Employment Tribunal Service

Research by Citizens Advice has suggested as many as 460,000 people could be wrongly classified as self-employed, at a cost of up to 314million a year in lost tax and national insurance contributions.

Earlier this week MPs on the business committee launched an inquiry into the gig economy amid growing concerns over employment conditions at a number of firms.

UBER'S CASES WORLDWIDE In addition to the decision made by judges in the UK today, in April Uber tried to settle a class-action lawsuit with its California and Massachusetts drivers for up to $100m to prevent its contractors being reclassified as employees. The proposed settlement was rejected by a judge and a trial date is still to be set.

In New York, two former Uber drivers have been found eligible for unemployment payments. According to the state those drivers are being classified as employees, not contractors. Advertisement

The committee is understood to be considering whether to summon Uber executives to give evidence. TUC general secretary Frances OGrady said: This case has exposed the dark side of flexible labour. For many workers the gig economy is rigged, where bosses can get out of paying the minimum wage and providing basics.

Justin Bowden, of the GMB union, described the ruling as the most important employment law decision of the decade.

Jo Bertram, Ubers regional general manager, said: Thousands of people drive with Uber precisely because they want to be self-employed. The overwhelming majority of drivers who use the Uber app want to keep the freedom of being able to drive when they want.

While the decision of this preliminary hearing only affects two people we will be appealing it.

Experts said the ruling would have massive implications on the entire industry (file picture)

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) said the case had exposed the 'dark side' of the UK's labour market.

TUC general secretary Frances O'Grady said: 'The GMB deserve huge credit for shining a light on conditions at Uber and winning this landmark action.

'This case has exposed the dark side of so-called 'flexible' labour. For many workers the gig economy is a rigged economy, where bosses can get out of paying the minimum wage and providing basics like paid holidays and rest breaks.

'What is happening at Uber is just the tip of the iceberg. Lots of people are now trapped in insecure jobs, with low pay and no voice at work.

'We need the Government to get tough on sham self-employment. The Taylor review of employment practices must be a no-holds-barred investigation.

'And it must recognise the important role trade unions can play in ending precarious working.'

This is a monumental victory that will have a hugely positive impact on over 30,000 drivers in London and across England and Wales Maria Ludkin, GMB Legal Director

Maria Ludkin, GMB Legal Director, said: 'This is a monumental victory that will have a hugely positive impact on over 30,000 drivers in London and across England and Wales and for thousands more in other industries where bogus self-employment is rife.

'Uber drivers and other directed workers do have legal rights at work. This loophole that has allowed unscrupulous employers to avoid employment rights, sick pay and minimum wage for their staff and costing the government millions in lost tax revenue will now be closed.

'Uber drivers and thousands of others caught in the bogus self-employment trap will now enjoy the same rights as employees. GMB puts employers on notice that we are reviewing similar contracts masquerading as bogus self employment, particularly prevalent in the so-called 'gig economy'.

'This is old-fashioned exploitation under newfangled jargon, but the law will force you to pay GMB members what they are rightfully due.'

Nigel Mackay from law firm Leigh Day, which represented the drivers, said after the landmark ruling that the work carried out by these drivers 'has allowed Uber to become the multi-billion-dollar global corporation it is.'

He said: 'We are delighted that the employment tribunal has found in favour of our clients.

'This judgment acknowledges the central contribution that Uber's drivers have made to Uber's success by confirming that its drivers are not self-employed but that they work for Uber as part of the company's business.

Jo Bertram, regional manager of Uber London, has said they will be appealing

'Uber drivers often work very long hours just to earn enough to cover their basic living costs. It is the work carried out by these drivers that has allowed Uber to become the multi-billion-dollar global corporation it is.'

Speaking outside the tribunal in central London, he added: 'The tribunal has found the claimants, the Uber drivers, are workers for the purposes of the legislation and that they are therefore entitled to minimum wage and holiday pay.

'This is contrary to what Uber was suggesting, which was that they were self-employed. But they should be entitled to basic workers' rights like everybody else.'

Uber driver Mr Farrar, from Bordon in Hampshire, had earlier told the tribunal that there was 'tremendous pressure' to meet Uber's demands and drivers were forced to choose between safety and doing the job.

He also claimed he had been paid around 5 an hour for some work, far below the minimum wage and what Uber said it paid him.

Mr Farrar dismissed suggestions that Uber is a customer of drivers who run their own businesses, saying it 'in no way reflects the reality'.

He joined Uber in December 2014, almost a year after being made redundant from a job in the technology industry, and works in London and the Home Counties in the evenings and at nights while pursuing his own interests in the days.

Mr Farrar said: 'Working for Uber is my job. I do not run a private hire business - I do not have a service company. I do not advertise 'driving services', I have no-one working for me, I have only one car licensed with TfL for private hire work and I only drive for Uber.'

Drivers in Santa Monica are among those who have protested worldwide about Uber

He added: 'I understand that Uber is arguing that I run my own business and that Uber is a customer of that business, but this in no way reflects the daily reality of my job.'

Mr Farrar said he provides a service for Uber by driving for the company and carrying out work for it, adding: 'I am not sure what service Uber provides to me.'

He added: 'There are times when things have been tight and I have had to work many more hours than perhaps I should have done.

'This time last year I did 91 hours in a week. Is that a choice? I am not sure. I felt I had to do that at that time to survive.'

David Reade QC, representing Uber, argued drivers have a choice about their work, there is nothing to force them to work exclusively for Uber, and they are free to work with other private hire operators.

This time last year I did 91 hours in a week. Is that a choice? I am not sure. I felt I had to do that at that time to survive Uber driver James Farrar

The private tax hire firm said it would be appealing against the judgment.

Jo Bertram, the company's regional general manager, said: 'Tens of thousands of people in London drive with Uber precisely because they want to be self-employed and their own boss.

'The overwhelming majority of drivers who use the Uber app want to keep the freedom and flexibility of being able to drive when and where they want. While the decision of this preliminary hearing only affects two people we will be appealing it.'

The ruling is likely to have significant implications for other operators in the industry.

Alex Bearman, a partner at Russell-Cooke solicitors in London, said: 'The company now faces having to fund costly benefits for its drivers such as holiday pay, sick pay and pension contributions.

'It is possible that it will look to do so by increasing the percentage of each fare that it keeps as commission.'

Aye Limbin Glassey, employment partner at Shakespeare Martineau law firm, said the ruling would 'not only impact Uber but a whole number of other industries and businesses which use self-employed workers'.

She said: 'The very nature of a business like Uber is the flexibility it offers. However, employment practices cannot be left unregulated and rights of workers and employees cannot be ignored unless businesses are willing and ready to face the backlash of legal and reputational repercussions.

'It is stark reality that the application of employment rights will often mean that companies are unable to adopt the agility needed to support its success.

'With consumer convenience the driver of many fast-growing businesses, it is likely that we'll see more businesses of this nature coming to market and using self-employed workers will become a greater concern for companies.'

Uber, which has its headquarters in the Netherlands, has previously argued that UK drivers should not be allowed to enforce UK employment rights in UK courts, and should only seek arbitration in the Dutch courts.
A man has been charged over the death of a bus driver who had 'an incendiary device' thrown at him before being set alight in Brisbane.

The bus was travelling along a main road in Moorooka, south of the city centre, on Friday just after 9am when driver Manmeet Alisher, 29, pulled into a stop to allow three more passengers on board, including a man, 48, who police allege started the fire.

Police have charged a 48-year-old Moorooka man, identified as Anthony O'Donohue, 7 News reports.

He will face Brisbane Magistrates Court on Saturday charged with one count each of murder and arson and eleven counts of attempted murder.

O'Donohue is understood to have a history of mental illness.

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A 48-year-old Moorooka man, identified as Anthony O'Donohue, will face Brisbane Magistrates Court on Saturday charged with one count each of murder and arson and eleven counts of attempted murder

A bus driver has been killed in a 'senseless attack' after a passenger poured flammable liquid on him and set him alight

The bus was travelling along a main road in Moorooka, south of the city centre, on Friday just after 9am when driver Manmeet Alisher, 29, pulled into a stop to allow three more passengers on board

A local taxi driver has been hailed a 'hero' after he busted down the back door of the bus to allow the six terrified passengers, including three children, escape the inferno.

He said after the front of the bus exploded the driver ran out 'covered in flames, head to toe'.

'The people were kicking the window and screaming at me to open the door,' Aguek Nyok told the Brisbane Times.

Mr Nyok said the six passengers on board were desperately trying to open the rear doors as the front of bus was engulfed in flames.

'Even when the door opened it kept trying to close on me and it was so, so hot in there,' he said.

Clair Savage was nearby when she heard horrific screaming and witnessed the passengers trying desperately to escape the bus.

'The flames were all the way up to the ceiling; the whole front cabin was just ablaze,' she told The Courier Mail.

'It was just massive  it was like a bonfire inside the cabin. They got out because a lovely man kicked the door in because the bus driver was trapped and the back door wasn't opening.'

Mr Nyok said the alleged offender was the first person to get off the bus after suffering minor burns himself and appeared to be 'shaken'.

Superintendent Jim Keogh addressed the media from the scene just after 11am Brisbane time and said they had the 48-year-old man in custody.

He said the 'compliant' man was waiting at the scene for officers and believes it was a completely 'random attack' with no apparent motive.

'Words escape me. It's a horrific incident,' he said.

'A bus driver going about doing his business, supporting the community and has taken his life from him in a senseless and needless act'.

A local taxi driver has been praised as a 'hero' after he busted down the back door of the bus to allow passengers to escape the inferno

Superintendent Jim Keogh addressed the media from the scene just after 11am Brisbane time and said they had the 48-year-old man in custody

Detectives have said there was no apparent motive for the horrific attack

Local taxi driver Aguek Nyok has been praised as a 'hero' after he busted down the back door of the bus to allow the six terrified passengers, including three children, escape the inferno

The bomb squad came to make sure there were no explosives devices on board the bus

Superintendent Jim Keogh addressed the media from the scene just after 11am Brisbane time and said they had a 48-year-old man in custody

Mr Alisher, an Indian migrant, had six passengers on board when he pulled into a stop at Marooooka, south of the city centre, on Friday just after 9am

The bus was travelling along Beaudesert Road in Moorooka on Friday morning when the 29-year-old driver pulled into a stop to allow three more passengers on board

Paramedics arrived just after firefighters had contained the blaze to treat passengers for smoke inhalation

Superintendent Keogh said the bus driver stood little chance of survival as the fire was 'substantial'

He said Mr Alisher stood little chance of survival as the fire was 'substantial'.

Mr Alisher was a casual worker and it was his second week on the job.

Superintendent Keogh said officers do not believe the incident was an act of terrorism and officers have also ruled out robbery as a potential motive.

Police are working to notify the driver's family of the death.

Firefighters managed to contain the blaze on Mayfield Road by 9.20am and 11 people were treated on the side of the road by paramedics for smoke inhalation.

They were later taken to hospital as a precaution.

After the 48-year-old man was taken into custody, homicide detectives shut down the street to launch their investigation.

Onlooker Julie Meadley said she saw a mother and child banging on the door from inside the bus when onlookers, including Mr Nyok, jumped into action to pry the doors open.

After the attack, Rail, Tram and Bus Union Queensland state secretary Tom Brown said grief counsellors would be available for other drivers, but many will be 'too upset to work'.

Brisbane City Council Chambers will fly flags at half mast on Saturday as a tribute to Mr Sharma.

After the attack, Rail, Tram and Bus Union Queensland state secretary Tom Brown said grief counsellors would be available for other drivers, but many will be 'too upset to work'

Police said the bus driver stood little chance of survival as the fire was 'substantial'

'The people were kicking the window and screaming at me to open the door,' Aguek Nyok said

The fire was completely extinguished by firefighters by 9.20am

It was travelling along Beaudesert Road in Moorooka on Friday morning when it reportedly 'exploded'

Queensland police confirmed they were responding to a serious incident involving a vehicle on fire at a bus station on the road

On Friday night, a vigil was held for the victim who was a well loved singer, actor and Youtuber.

At the vigil, grieving transport drivers were demanding answers over their colleague's tragic death, prompting another question over the security of driver safety, The Courier Mail journalist Madura McCormack reported.

'For the last ten years we have been telling them that there are a lot of issues especially with violence towards taxi drivers and drivers in the transport industry,' said Queensland Taxi Owners and Drivers Welfare Association President Nash Dosanjh.

'They have completely ignored everything we have ever told them.

'Not a single thing has been done since then and in the last ten years,' he said.

The industry welfare president confronted Brisbane City Councillor Steven Griffiths at the vigil asking for answers.

A vigil was held in Brisbane for Manmeet Alisher on Friday evening with colleagues gathering at Beaudesert Road

Transport drivers attend a vigil held for 29-year-old Manmeet Alisher on Friday evening in Brisbane, Queensland
Guilty: Khin Par Thaing, 30, on Friday pleaded guilty to a battery charge for beating her 7-year-old son with a plastic coat hanger

An Indianapolis mother pleaded guilty Friday to a battery charge after she argued that Indiana's religious objection law gave her the right to beat her 7-year-old son with a coat hanger.

As part of the plea agreement, Khin Par Thaing, 30, will be sentenced to a year of probation for the February attack.

Thaing's attorney in July cited Indiana's Religious Freedom Restoration Act, saying it gives her the right to discipline her children according to her evangelical Christian beliefs.

Prosecutors said Indiana's compelling interest in preventing child abuse outweighs religious protections in state law.

Thaing was accused of beating her son with a coat hanger, leaving him with 36 bruises and red welts.

Thaing is a refugee from Myanmar who was granted political asylum. In court documents filed in the case, she also cited cultural differences as part of her defense.

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Violent punishment: Thaing was arrested in February after an official at her son's school discovered 36 bruises and welt on his body (pictured)

According to court filings, on February 3, Thaing walked into a room and found her son and 3-year-old daughter showing each other their private parts.

She beat both of the children with a plastic coat hanger, the 7-year-old more severely, and then told them to kneel and pray for forgiveness.

'I was worried for my son's salvation with God after he dies,' Thaing said in court documents cited by The Indianapolis Star. 'I decided to punish my son to prevent him from hurting my daughter and to help him learn how to behave as God would want him to.'

Child welfare officials took the children into their care after their mother's arrest.

Her attorney, Greg Bowes, argued in court papers filed July 29 that the state shouldn't interfere with Thaing's right to raise her children as she deems appropriate.

He cited Indiana's Religious Freedom Restoration Act and biblical Scripture stating that a parent who 'spares the rod, spoils the child'.

Thaing, pictured in court Friday, will be sentenced to a year of probation as part of the plea agreement

Marion County Deputy Prosecutor Matt Savage said in an August 5 response that the boy's beating went 'beyond these religious instructions' and said Indiana's compelling interest in preventing child abuse outweighs religious protections in state law.

Indiana's religious objections law, signed by Republican Gov. Mike Pence (who has since become Donald Trump's running mate) last year, prohibits government entities from substantially burdening religious liberties, unless by the least restrictive means to further a compelling government interest.

But nothing in the law specifically mentions parenting and the statute hasn't yet been substantially tested in the courts.

Bowes also cited in his client's defense a 2008 Indiana Supreme Court decision that affirmed the parental right to discipline children in ways parents consider appropriate, even when others could deem that behavior as excessive.

Thaing's attorney in July cited Indiana's Religious Freedom Restoration Act, saying it gives her the right to discipline her children according to her evangelical Christian beliefs. Prosecutors said preventing child abuse outweighs religious protections in state law

During Fridays 15-minute hearing in Marion County Superior Court, Thaing pleaded guilty to a felony battery charge, but under the plea deal Judge Kurt Eisgruber downgraded it to misdemeanor battery, reported the station WTHR.

In exchange for her plea, prosecutors agreed to drop the more serious charge of felony battery and one count of neglect of a dependent.

The 30-year-old defendant was sentenced to time served, which has amounted to two days in jail, followed by a year of probation.

The Indy Channel reported that if Thaing successfully completes her probation, the felony conviction will be reduced to a misdemeanor. If she violates the conditions of her probation, she could be remanded to jail.
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These dramatic aerial photographs show how the sprawling Calais Jungle is gradually being torn to pieces by French authorities.

Pictures show diggers, lorries and workmen moving through a squalid network of temporary huts that once housed up to 10,000 migrants on the outskirts of the French town.

Just weeks ago, images of the same encampment showed tents and caravans packed tightly together around the site's official accommodation for refugees.

Demolition workers are in the process of ripping down the camp after French authorities transported occupants to new accommodation across France.

September: Just weeks ago, aerial images of the Jungle encampment showed tents and caravans packed tightly together around the site's official accommodation for refugees

Today: Pictures show diggers, lorries and workmen moving through a squalid network of temporary huts that once housed up to 10,000 migrants on the outskirts of the French town

Dramatic aerial photographs show how the sprawling Calais Jungle is gradually being torn to pieces by French authorities

Demolition workers are in the process of ripping down the camp after French authorities transported occupants to new accommodation across France

The demolition process has been beset with raging fires while there are fears many will simply return to the site, or set up temporary camps nearby

But the process has been beset with raging fires while there are fears many will simply return to the site, or set up temporary camps nearby.

Today, dozens of youths stranded for two days at the camp as it was being demolished were offered transfers out of the camp as France and Britain battled over who was to blame for their plight.

The migrants, many of them minors, slept in some of the shelters left standing in a part of the slum that was razed in March, a prelude to this week's massive clearance of the camp.

The Care4Calais charity said 107 people bedded down in makeshift schools, churches and mosques. Aid workers on Friday urged them to take buses leaving for shelters in another part of France.

Fifty minors took up the offer and left the Jungle by bus, according to eyewitnesses. Others were still hoping to be transferred to Britain.

Demolition teams have resumed tearing down the makeshift dwellings where around 6,400 people, mostly Afghans, Sudanese and Eritreans, had been living according to official estimates

Nearly 4,400 adults, mostly single men, have been moved to towns and villages around France as part of plans to remove the Jungle camp

Regional security chief Fabienne Buccio declared the camp empty on Wednesday after nearly all the migrants had been bussed away and claimed those left behind were new arrivals lured by the prospect of being admitted to Britain

Most of the migrants in Calais hoped to reach Britain because they have contacts there, speak the language and believe their job prospects to be better than in France

The fate of minors left behind in the blackened mess of the sprawling camp emptied of thousands of migrants this week, some of whom set fire to their shelters on leaving, has sparked a war of words between France and Britain.

France sees the Jungle - one of the most visible symbols of Europe's migrant crisis - as a problem of Britain's making given that most of the migrants living there hoped to sneak across the Channel into England.

On Thursday evening, French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve reacted indignantly to a demand by his British counterpart Amber Rudd that children left in the Jungle are 'properly protected.'

Cazeneuve expressed 'surprise' at Rudd's call.

'These people... had been planning to migrate to the United Kingdom', he said in a statement, insisting that France 'had fulfilled its responsibilities out of solidarity and without trying to shy away' from its duty.

Calais has been a magnet for migrants hoping to sneak across the Channel for over a decade, and many locals fear new settlements will simply spring up in the area after the Jungle is razed

Yesterday, dozens of migrants remained stuck in the Jungle, some of them children, as diggers began tearing down the last remaining shelters in the burnt-out camp

The Jungle, a ramshackle, overcrowded shanty town, came to symbolise Europe's difficulty in dealing with record inflows of migrants from impoverished and wartorn regions of Africa, the Middle East and Asia

The numbers of irregular migrants reaching Europe are sharply down on the 1.3 million who arrived in 2015. But more than 300,000 have made the hazardous Mediterranean crossing in 2016 so far, and many are likely to head for Britain for work, language and family reason

The Save the Children charity said 'the situation for children in Calais after the demolition is the worst it's ever been' and that some children 'had nowhere to go'

Nearly 1,500 children have been moved to a container camp reserved for minors next to the Jungle.

Britain has taken in 274 others since mid-October and is examining hundreds of other applications.

On Thursday, a further eight buses left the ghostly shantytown, carrying 226 adults and 16 minors to shelters dotted around France.

A spokesman for the UN refugee agency UNHCR said Friday the agency had asked that 'special arrangements be made to ensure the safety and welfare of children in the Jungle before it closed.

'We are continuing to work to identify and protect children and other individuals with special needs in Calais,' spokesman William Spindler said in an e-mailed statement.

On Friday, demolition teams resumed tearing down the makeshift dwellings where around 6,400 people, mostly Afghans, Sudanese and Eritreans, had been living according to official estimates.

Dramatic overhead pictures show some of the many caravans left behind at the Jungle as workmen continue their demolition of the site

Pictures also show the burnt out frames of huts built at the site after fire ripped through the encampment during demolition

Diggers, lorries and workmen can be seen flattening the site after migrant occupants were sent to new accommodation across France

Rows of caravans have been lined up on the site while diggers tear down tents and huts left at the site

Demolition: Nearly 4,400 adults, mostly single men, have been moved to towns and villages around France

Excavators are tearing down remaining shelters after the official operation to clear the camp came to a dramatic end, with fires started by departing migrants ripping through the shanty town

Nearly 4,400 adults, mostly single men, have been moved to towns and villages around France.

Regional security chief Fabienne Buccio declared the camp empty on Wednesday after nearly all the migrants had been transported away and claimed those left behind were new arrivals lured by the prospect of being admitted to Britain.

'You can't say the operation is over when there are people left,' fumed Anne-Louise Coury, the Doctors Without Borders (MSF) coordinator in Calais. 'The state still has a serious obligation towards migrants who are minors.'

In sections that had yet to be razed, youths and charity workers huddled around coal fires on Thursday evening.

A giant teddy bear lay face down in the sand and flowers still sprouted from planters, a reminder of a community that had tried to preserve basic pleasures while living in transit.

The slum outside the port of Calais had smouldered through Wednesday night from countless fires, causing some to flee without their possessions

Mechanical diggers and other machines have been breaking down structures in the camp, which was ravaged by fires after authorities moved in to clear the settlement

Aerial pictures show the scale of the Jungle camp as workmen continue to level the huts that had been built up on the site

Destruction: At the time the pictures were taken, a number of tents remained on the fringes of the settlement

Pictures show the blackened remains of buildings destroyed during fierce fires which took hold earlier this week

Aid groups estimated that between 2,000 and 3,000 migrants still intent on crossing the Channel left the Jungle before the evacuation began, some of them fleeing south to Paris

More than one million people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East, Asia and Africa poured into Europe last year, sowing divisions across the 28-nation bloc and fuelling the rise of far-right movements, including Germany's Pegida and France's National Front.

Most of the migrants in Calais hoped to reach Britain because they have contacts there, speak the language and believe their job prospects to be better than in France.

Aid groups estimated that between 2,000 and 3,000 migrants still intent on crossing the Channel left the Jungle before the evacuation began, some of them fleeing south to Paris.

Charles Drane, coordinator of an NGO that helps asylum-seekers sleeping rough in northeast Paris said his charity was now feeding over 1,000 people a day, up from 700-800 a few days ago.

French authorities has said those who agree to be moved to shelters can seek asylum in France. Those who refuse risk being detained and deported.

Many locals fear new settlements will simply spring up in the area after the Jungle is razed.
Army paratroopers are renowned for their dexterity and agility as members of one of the toughest combat forces in the world.

But professionals were captured on camera missing their target as they rehearsed for the National Games opening ceremony in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Six of the men - the Cambodian army's finest paratroopers - drifted hundreds of yards wide of target, landing in traffic on surrounding roads - while another found himself tangled up on a lamppost.

The stricken military paratrooper found tangled on the lamppost was among eight dropped from a plane

The stricken military paratrooper found tangled on the lamppost was among eight dropped from a plane on Wednesday afternoon for a show rehearsal.

They were supposed to land on grass inside the capital's 60,000 seater Olympic Stadium as they practice for the National Games opening ceremony today.

Stunned onlookers captured the moment he floated straight into a the lamppost and was left dangling until help arrived.

He is left swinging precariously some 20ft above the ground for several minutes while passersby fetch stepladders to pull him out of the harness and help him down.

Six of the men drifted hundreds of yards wide of target, landing in traffic on surrounding roads - while another found himself tangled up on a lamppost

Army officials blamed technical problems and windy weather for the mishap involving the men from Brigade 911

Shopkeeper Srey Kouch, who witnessed the mishap, said: 'Some people were laughing at the soldier on the lamppost.

'There were many people driving motorbikes and cars stopping to take videos and photos. I couldn't quite believe it.'

Bopha San added: 'They're supposed to be the military's finest parachutists. Perhaps they were just having a bad day.

'The man was just dangling there by his parachute. I think he was a little bit embarrassed.'

Vath Chamroeun, secretary-general of National Olympic Committee of Cambodia said 'blustery conditions' were to blame

Army officials blamed technical problems and windy weather for the mishap involving the men from Brigade 911.

Commander Chap Pheakdey said: 'They landed in the opposite area from the stadium-onto the street -because there were technical errors.'

Vath Chamroeun, secretary-general of National Olympic Committee of Cambodia said 'blustery conditions' were to blame.
A family were left terrified when a suspected giant Asian hornet flew into their home.

Billy Rockett, 41, from Merseyside, said the two-inch wasp-like creature buzzed into his kitchen yesterday.

The father-of-three caught the bug in a coffee jar and fears it is one the breed of hornets which came to the UK this summer.

Fearsome: A father from Merseyside caught his suspected Asian hornet in his home

Billy Rockett, pictured with his son Sam, said the creature flew into his kitchen yesterday

Mr Rockett, who lives with his wife Janine and three children, said: 'I was in the kitchen and it suddenly flew through the back door.

'I thought it was a really big wasp at first. The cat took a swipe at it. I panicked and grabbed the first thing I could, a used coffee jar, to try and catch it straight away.

'The kids came running through to see what was happening. [My daughter] Anna ran straight out the front door and refused to stay in the house while it was there.

'She wasn't joking, she was crying. She's not particularly afraid of bugs, I think it was more the size of it that scared her.

The family captured the large insect in a bag and are now keeping it in their conservatory

After initially being terrified of the creature, the children now want to give the 'hornet' a name

'Her mum had to take her round to her gran's to stay there, but she wasn't in so they had to come back home.

'From the pictures it looks like it could be an Asian Hornet.

'I read that around 30 to 40 people in Asia die each year from their stings, and within the last year apparently five people in France have died from it too.'

Mr Rockett captured the creature, which has stayed alive for more than a day in a coffee jar in the family's conservatory.

An Asian hornet nest was found in a tree in Tetbury, Gloucestershire, earlier this summer. They been spotted in at least six different locations this year.

SUSSEX WEB DEVELOPER CAME HOME TO FIND ASIAN HORNET 'TAPPING AT THE GLASS' IN HIS WOOD BURNER Mike Onslow from Sudbury, Sussex, and his partner Hannah went to light their log burner, but suddenly noticed a huge Asian hornet (pictured) crawling around inside A web developer came home from work to find an ash-covered Asian hornet trapped inside his wood burner. Two weeks ago Mike Onslow, 27, from Sudbury, Sussex, and his partner Hannah went to light a fire, but suddenly noticed the huge insect crawling around inside. He said: 'We s hut the door as quickly as possible. It was scratching and tapping at the glass. It seemed quite docile but I didn't want to open the door. It was as big as my thumb. I had never seen anything that big before.' The couple left the hornet in the burner and went away for the weekend. When they returned it had gone. Mr Onslow added: 'It seemed to have made its way out while we were away. We were worried there might be a nest in the chimney, but luckily we haven't seen one since.' Advertisement

Mr Rockett is currently waiting on confirmation from experts on what the bug could be.

He said: 'Some people on social media have suggested it could be a European Hornet, which isn't poisonous, but I thought it best to report it.

'When I first caught it I was stuck with it in the jar, so I found a sealable bag and managed to slide it over the top with the jar in the bag, then quickly seal it in.

'Anna stayed out on the drive until it was sealed in the bag. She's ok now as long as it is contained and not going anywhere.

'My son Sam was quite cool with it, he loves animals. And my wife wasn't too bothered as long as it stays in the conservatory. I just want rid of it. The kids keep telling me to give it a name now but I'm saying no.'

This hornets' nest was discovered in the UK in Tetbury, Gloucestershire earlier this summer
As the age-old adage goes, a dog is a man's best friend.

And perhaps the felines of the world have now found their soulmates too, if this tender moment between a kitten and a chimpanzee is anything to go by.

Captured on camera at the Irkutsk city zoo in south-eastern Russia, Lea the young chimp plays with Bobby, an unwanted kitten she took in after it was found in the zoo.

The one-and-a-half-month-old kitten was found in one of the zoo's enclosures.

It has trouble finding a home because zoo staff thought its very short tail gave it a strange look.

They have since discovered that Bobby is likely to be a purebred American bobtail, an uncommon breed which has a tail about one-third the length of a usual domestic cat.

Employees at the zoo kept the kitten, but decided to put it in quarantine so as not to endanger the other animals.

Lea the chimpanzee, who is five years old, spotted the tiny kitten while she was walking around the zoo with one of her keepers.

Lydmila Ivushkina, the head of the zoo, said: 'She saw it through the glass window and could not keep her eyes away.

'She kept on returning to the glass window, as if she was begging to see the kitten.'

The chimpanzee and the kitten finally got a chance to meet three days ago when Bobby's quarantine period ended.

The one-and-a-half-month-old kitten, christened Bobby, was found abandoned in the zoo and rejected by staff because of its 'strange-looking' stumpy tail

Chimp Lea spotted the lonely feline while he was in quarantine to protect the other animals. Head of the zoo Lydmila Ivushkina said: 'She saw it through the glass window and could not keep her eyes away'

Lydmila said: 'She was so happy to see it. The kitten was even happier because it had been very lonely.'

They captured the tender embrace on video, with Lea holding the tiny kitten in her arms, remaining calm while Bobby playfully nips at her.

When they realised the pair had taken such a liking to each other, zoo staff decided to let the kitten stay in the cage with Lea.

But they're taking precautions to make sure the cat can find refuge if the two don't always see eye to eye.

Lydmila said: 'In the future, we plan on making a small hole between the cages so Bobby could have some personal space in case Lea gets too excited.'
Dreamworld is doomed following the death of four people on a ride last Tuesday, according to experts who say the park won't recover from the tragic accident.

David Eager, an associate professor of engineering at UTS said the terrible accident on the Thunder River Rapid's ride will lead the popular Gold Coast tourist destination into a 'death spiral' The Age reported.

'You lose that reputation and you're on a death spiral. They're in the business of bringing fun and enjoyment to millions of people's lives ... and to end up in a situation where you've got four deaths, it destroys your business model,' he said.

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Dreamworld won't reopen until at least after the funerals of the four victims killed on a malfunctioning ride in the theme park on Tuesday - experts say the park won't recover

Rides would also not operate until internal and external safety audits were conducted on every one one them

Police lock a gate near the Thunder River Rapids ride at the Dreamworld Theme Park on the Gold Coast

The associate professor told the paper the 'death spiral' will have a huge impact on the park regardless of any legal action following the police investigation of the accident.

Meanwhile Alison Barrett from Queensland law firm Maurice Blackburn revealed her office had been flooded with calls from people concerned about the park's operations.

'People want reassurance; to know that this is not going to happen again and that they can feel safe going to places like Dreamworld,' she said.

The theme park won't open until after the funerals of the four people killed when a ride malfunctioned on Tuesday.

Rides would also not operate until internal and external safety audits were conducted on every one one them.

'No attraction in this park will reopen until internal and external safety audits are completed and peer reviewed,' chief executive Craig Davidson said on Friday.

The decision to further delay the reopening comes as the overturned raft was on Friday winched off the ride by crane

Dreamworld originally announced it would open the gates for a memorial day on Friday before resuming usual business on Saturday

Those plans were cancelled following discussions with police who were still investigating the tragedy

Kate Goodchild, 32, her brother Luke Dorsett, 35, his partner Roozi Araghi, 38, and Cindy Low, 42 were crushed and drowned to death when a malfunction on the Thunder River Rapids ride flipped their raft on a conveyor belt.

Ebony Goodchild, 12, and Kieran Low, 10, were thrown clear from the raft and survived but watched in horror as their mothers and other family died.

Gold Coast mayor Tom Tate earlier said Dreamworld should only be reopened when the families of those killed were 'happy with it and they're ready to move on'.

While he admitted the park acted too fast announcing the memorial day without clearance from the police, he said criticising it would not help the situation.

Dreamworld originally announced it would open the gates for a memorial day on Friday before resuming usual business on Saturday.

Kate Goodchild, Luke Dorsett, Roozbeh Araghi and Cindy Low died after a malfunction on the Thunder Rapids ride on Tuesday afternoon

Victims: Two mothers, Kate Goodchild (left), 32, and Cindy Low (right), 42, died in the tragedy

Ms Goodchild's brother Luke Dorsett (on right) and his partner Roozi Araghi (left) were also killed

Ebony Goodchild (right) and Kieran Low (left) witnessed their mother's deaths after being thrown from the malfunctioning ride as their father's ran to the scene

Those plans were cancelled following discussions with police who were still investigating the tragedy.

Dreamworld held its own memorial service inside the park attended by more than 1,000 staff.

Ms Thomas finally visited the park on Friday as she apologised for her poor handling of the tragedy, fighting back tears saying she had tried to 'do the right thing'.

Under-fire Ardent Leisure chief executive Deborah Thomas finally visited the park on Friday as she apologised for her poor handling of the tragedy

She apologised to families of victims from this week's fatal accident at Dreamworld

The under-fire chief executive visited a floral tribute to the victims, after she donated her $167,500 cash bonus to the Australian Red Cross.

'If I haven't handled it as well as we could, we thought we were doing the right thing in terms of the way we approached it through the police,' she said.

'If the families are watching - I have spoken to a number of them - we will look after them.'
Jacqueline Veyrac, 76, the millionaire owner of the La Reserve in Nice and the luxury Grand Hotel in nearby Cannes was seized from her home in the south of France earlier this week

The former manager of a gourmet restaurant has been accused of ordering the kidnap of a female French hotel magnate who was snatched and found in the back of a van two days later.

Jacqueline Veyrac, 76, the millionaire owner of the La Reserve in Nice and the luxury Grand Hotel in nearby Cannes was seized from her home in the south of France earlier this week.

Her attackers forced her from her black 4x4 into a white van, while several passers-by looked on.

Now a police source has confirmed a report in the Le Parisien newspaper, which said the former manager of the Michelin-starred restaurant at La Reserve was among nine people arrested over the abduction.

The newspaper identified the main suspect in the case as Giuseppe S., an Italian, and said he was believed to have been holding a grudge against his victim.

The local prosecutor described the case as 'complex' and said it appeared not to be linked to any ransom demand but 'something very personal'.

A witness who saw the kidnapping on Monday described it as 'like a scene from a movie'.

Local media reported at least three kidnappers were in the vehicle. Two of them got out with their faces hidden and grabbed Ms Veyrac.

Veyrac was found in a van in on hillside road in the south of France two days after being kidnapped

'They took her by force, hiding her face with a towel or a scarf,' the prosecutor said, Nice Matin reports.

She was found alive and well two days later, in a white van with false number plates parked in the hills above the Riviera resort.

However, it is not the first time Veyrac has been the target of a kidnapping gang. In 2013 there was an attempt to abduct her outside her garage.

Her husband died five years ago and she now co-owns both of her hotels with her sons.

Jacqueline Veyrac, 76, president of the Grand Hotel in Cannes, was seized from her car in the middle of the day on Monday near her home in Nice (file photo)

The Grand Hotel is one of Cannes' most famous landmarks.

It was first built in 1863, one year after the completion of the Promenade de la Croisette, and was the meeting point for royal families across Europe.
The getaway car used in the shooting of contract killer Hamad Assaad was burned out in a suburban street just hours before his funeral.

Assad, 29, was gunned down in broad daylight in the driveway of his home in Sydney's south-west at 9.20am Tuesday, in front of his 12-year-old nephew.

The black Audi sedan was caught on CCTV speeding away from the scene on Sturt Avenue in Georges Hall after two masked gunman opened fire.

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The getaway car used in the shooting of contract killer Hamad Assaad was burned out in a suburban street just hours before his funeral

Assad, 29, was gunned down in broad daylight in the driveway of his home in Sydney's south-west at 9.20am Tuesday, in front of his 12-year-old nephew

The crucial piece of evidence in the gangland execution went up in smoke beside a park on Gascoigne Road in Birrong, about four kilometres from where Assaad was killed.

Witness Tommy Tran saw the car parked over the road from his house at about 1.30am on Friday and just minutes later it was engulfed in flames.

'The car window, the wheels - everything was exploding,' he told 7 News.

The crucial piece of evidence in the gangland execution went up in smoke beside a park on Gascoigne Road in Birrong, about four kilometres from where Assaad was killed

The black Audi sedan (pictured) was caught on CCTV speeding away from the scene on Sturt Avenue in Georges Hall after two masked gunman opened fire

The torched car was towed away at about 4am to undergo forensic tests, while detectives and riot squad police combed the surrounding streets and parkland for clues.

That afternoon hundreds of mourners packed Lakemba Mosque in Western Sydney to farewell Assaad just after midday prayers.

It was the same mosque that hosted gangland boss Walid 'Wally' Ahmad's funeral after he was shot dead in the carpark of Bankstown Central in April.

Assaad, known as 'H', was the prime suspect in Ahmad's assassination and was being investigated for attacks on Pasquale Barbaro and colourful Sydney identity Michael Ibrahim, the brother of nightclub owner John Ibrahim.

Assaad was gunned down in his driveway on Tuesday in front of his young son and left in a pool of his own blood outside his home in George's Hall in Sydney's south-west

Assaad was preparing to take his young nephew to school when he came under fire on his driveway

In 2010 Assaad was charged with murder in another drive-by shooting, relating to a love triangle, but was found not-guilty of killing Mohamad Alahmad, 37.

He was believed to have had a $250,000 bounty on his head in retribution for these alleged killings and attacks in underworld figures.

The circumstances surrounding the execution-style murder of Assaad saw the mourners at his funeral watched by a police helicopter hovering above.

After the coffin was driven away in a hearse to be buried, family members followed behind in a Rolls Royce to the graveyard.

Mourners carry gangland figure Hamad 'H' Assaad's coffin from Lakemba Mosque to the hearse on Friday




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Hundreds of people have gathered outside Parliament to protest over the jailing of a Royal Marine for the murder of an Afghan insurgent.

Sergeant Alexander Blackman was handed a life sentence after he killed the wounded captive at close range with a 9mm pistol in Helmand province in September 2011.

Blackman's supporters have campaigned for a retrial by claiming he was a scapegoat. Campaigners say that the man was already fatally wounded before being killed by Blackman.

The Ministry of Defence has reportedly banned serving military personnel from attending the show of solidarity.

Former soldiers held a protest in Parliament Square today demanding justice for Sergeant Alex Blackman

Hundreds attended the rally for the Royal Marine, who was jailed for life for killing an insurgent in Afghanistan

Supporters are angry at delays to the Royal Marine's case while he continues to serve time in a British prison

Former and serving members of the armed forces spoke to the crowds at the rally including MP Richard Drax (pictured)

QC Jonathan Goldberg, who is acting for Blackman, told the crowd that English law does not recognise a 'mercy killing', but in the past authorities had the sense not to press charges in such cases.

Mr Goldberg said a soldier would now have to 'ring his solicitor before firing his rifle'.

Footage from another marine's helmet-mounted camera showed Blackman quoting Shakespeare before shooting the insurgent.

He told the fighter: 'There you are. Shuffle off this mortal coil, you c***. It's nothing you wouldn't do to us.'

Blackman's minimum sentence was reduced to eight years but his challenge to the outcome of the original trial was unsuccessful.

Ten months ago, Sgt Blackmans family submitted an application to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) to have his case reviewed.

A supporter holds a flag with Sergeant Blackman's face on it. The crowd are demanding the case is re-examined

More flag raising: Footage from another marine's helmet-mounted camera was used as evidence in Sergrant Blackman's case

Sergeant Blackman will spend eight years behind bars until he is eligible for parole but he lost a challenge to his convicted

QC Jonathan Goldberg, who is acting for Blackman, told the crowd that English law does not recognise a 'mercy killing', but in the past authorities had the sense not to press charges in such cases

The rally due to its prominent position near Westminster was seen by many passers-by and tourists

A comprehensive report delivered by Blackmans legal team, headed by Jonathan Goldberg QC, set out eight significant arguments in support of a case review by the Appeal Court.

They include the fact that his troop had suffered six months on the tour from hell under-manned, under-resourced and under daily Taliban assault, before Sgt Blackman snapped.

His lawyers argue there was significant combat stress which could support his conviction being commuted from murder to manslaughter.

The case has been dogged with delays, despite the CCRC giving it top priority.

Tory MP Richard Drax has previously said: 'While I am delighted that his case is being treated as a top priority by the Criminal Cases Review Commission, it does appear to be taking an inordinate amount of time to conclude.

'Meanwhile, a good man continues to rot in jail, a man whom I believe has not received justice, a man whom has served his country with distinction, a man whom we have turned our backs on when he needed us most.'

Sergeant Blackman's wife Claire Blackman also spoke to all those showing support for her husband

Hundreds of retired Marines - forming a sea of green berets - and members of the public will gather for the demonstration

Former and serving members of the armed forces of all ages attended along with crowds of members of the public

Sergeant Blackman (pictured), known as Marine A at his court martial, killed a Taliban insurgent in Afghanistan in 2011

According to camera footage Sergeant Blackman told the fighter to 'shuffle off this mortal coil, you c***. It's nothing you wouldn't do to us.'

Sergeant Blackman's legal team argue he suffered six months on the tour from hell under-manned, under-resourced and under daily Taliban assault
A predatory Salvation Army worker who routinely raped boys in his care for decades is set to die behind bars after being sentenced to 18-and-a-half years.

Robert Burnett, 77, sought leniency in his sentencing in the Victorian County Court after he was found guilty of preying upon seven boys aged between seven and 13 between 1973 and 1999.

The sickening crimes can only now be reported because Burnett maintained his innocence during 14 separate trials, according to The Age.

Robert Burnett, 77, sexually abused boys in his care as young as seven (court sketch)

Burnett ran Salvation Army homes for boys, raping the vulnerable children at the Bayswater Boys' Home, during sleepovers at his home at Thorpdale or on camping trips.

During sentencing Judge Bill Stuart said Burnett hid behind the guise of being a caring man as he committed the vile abuse.

'During the day you behaved in a normal and caring way but at night you became something different,' he said.

'You are remorseless and you are inciteless.'

Despite maintaining his innocence over the 14 previous trials, Burnett requested leniency in his sentencing because of fears he could die in prison.

He was convicted of 16 charges including two of buggery and another four of sexual penetration of a child under 16.

The hearing continues.
Lithuanians have been handed manuals telling them what to do in the event of a Russian invasion, it has emerged.

The 75-page booklet, called 'Prepare to survive emergencies and war', urges citizens to 'have the will to resist' if Vladimir Putin's forces attack.

Extensive guides range from how to recognise Russian tanks to step-by-step survival tricks, including using condoms to help transport food and water.

It comes weeks after Russia deployed nuclear-capable Iskander missiles into its Kaliningrad outpost that borders the country and Poland - both NATO members.

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Lithuanians have been handed manuals telling them what to do in the event of a Russian invasion, it has emerged

Lithuanians are also told how they should spy on Russian forces in the event of an occupation

Plans to send troops and equipment to Baltic nations were agreed by NATO leaders in July and starting in February, Germany will send up to 600 soldiers and battle tanks to Lithuania.

But despite the military reassurance, Lithuanians remain wary of the threat posed by its superpower neighbour, Crimea having been annexed by Russia two years ago.

Some 30,000 guides have been distributed around the country telling its 3million residents that 'attention needs to be paid to the actions of the neighbouring country - Russia', CNN reports.

Pictures in the guide show survival kits, advice on how to keep warm outdoors and information on how to use a compass and map.

There are also extensive pictures and details on Russian tanks, guns, mines, bullets, grenades and rockets.

Lithuanians are also told how they should spy on Russian forces in the event of an occupation.

The 75-page guide, called 'Prepare to survive emergencies and war', urges citizens to 'have the will to resist' if Vladimir Putin's forces attack

Pictures in the guide show survival kits, advice on how to keep warm outdoors and information on how to use a compass and map

The guide adds: 'It is most important that the civilians are aware and have a will to resist - when these elements are strong, an aggressor has difficulties in creating an environment for military invasion.'

It comes amid heightened tensions in the region and as Russia moved battleships towards the Mediterranean and Baltic Seas, shifted nuclear-capable missile-launchers into its Kaliningrad enclave neighbouring Poland and continued flying bombers down the western European coast.

NATO allies are advancing with plans to deploy thousands of troops and military equipment to the Baltics and Poland.

The plans to send troops and equipment into Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland were agreed by NATO leaders in July.

But Alliance defence ministers, ending two days of talks in Brussels on Thursday, have been fleshing out the contributions that will be stationed near Russia's borders.

'We are responding in a measured and responsible way because we are not seeking a new Cold War. We want to keep tensions as low as possible,' NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Thursday.

There are also extensive pictures and details on Russian tanks, guns, mines, bullets, grenades and rockets

Some 30,000 guides have been distributed around the country telling its 3million residents that 'attention needs to be paid to the actions of the neighbouring country - Russia'

It comes amid heightened tensions in the region and as Putin (pictured) moved battleships towards the Mediterranean and Baltic Seas, shifted nuclear-capable missile-launchers into its Kaliningrad enclave neighbouring Poland and continued flying bombers down the western European coast

NATO allies are advancing with plans to deploy thousands of troops and military equipment to the Baltics and Poland (file picture)

A day earlier, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said that the U.S. will boost its presence in Europe with a brigade - usually some 1,500-3,000 troops - being deployed to Poland in February, among other contributions.

The brigade will take part in military exercises there and send units from the force to Bulgaria, Romania and the Baltic States.

Britain is to send typhoon fighter jets to the Black Sea area, while a battalion of troops, tanks and light armour will deploy in Estonia in the spring, backed by French and Danish troops. Starting in February, Germany will send 400 to 600 soldiers and battle tanks to Lithuania.

Albania, Belgium, Canada, Croatia, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Romania and Slovenia are also playing roles in what NATO has dubbed its Enhanced Forward Presence.

The force is meant to reassure Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland that all 28 NATO allies will defend them in case of attack.

the booklet also shows how to recognise Russian arms, including tanks, guns and mines

The guide has been made available in Lithuanian schools and libraries and will also be put online, according to reports

As Russian fighters have buzzed Alliance planes and ships, and its troops have launched snap exercises - one such lot of unannounced war games was used as a pretext for troops to enter Ukraine, Stoltenberg said - little dialogue has taken place between Moscow and the world's biggest military alliance.

Their main forum for airing disagreements - the NATO-Russia Council - has only met twice this year. Indeed the allies do not seem to share a common vision of what Russia is trying to tell them or how to respond.

On Wednesday, Spain came under pressure for offering to resupply a flotilla of Russian warships suspected to be bound for the eastern Mediterranean to help ramp up Russian and Syrian regime airstrikes.

Malta was thought to be another possible stopover, but it announced Thursday that the vessels could not resupply there either. Greece was thought to be another possibility.

'What we are observing is Russian military practice that diverges widely from NATO practice in scale, scope, content, purpose, and transparency,' NATO's top military commander, U.S. General Curtis Scaparrotti, told the ministers.

'We need to be strategic and coherent in our approach to defending our citizens. Now is the time for the Alliance to remain strong,' he said.




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With the clocks going back tonight and November round the corner, many will be preparing to turn up the heating and don their winter coats.

But you may want to keep those jackets in the cupboard for a few days yet, as forecasters have predicted another weekend of unseasonably warm weather.

Despite tonight marking the official end of British summertime, parts of the country are set to enjoy balmy highs of 17C over the coming days.

Two friends enjoy a boat ride along the River Thames today, in Henley, during another unseasonably mild October day

It was another pleasant autumnal day across many parts of the country today - but it becomes colder next week

The sunny spells (pictured in Harpsden Woods, Oxfordshire) will continue during the weekend as the clocks go back

It was another sunny day in Glasgow today and the pleasant weather will continue until next week

On Saturday the South will be cloudy but mainly dry, whereas the North will see some drizzle. There will be highs of 17C in the South and 13C in the North.

Emma Sharples, a forecaster with the Met Office, told MailOnline: 'This weekend we will get quite a bit more of what we have seen, with light winds and a fair bit of cloud.

'It will be mild, with temperatures reaching 17 degrees in London, which is above average for this time of the year.

'It will be very much a dry story as we go through tonight into tomorrow, although there will be patchy rain in some northern and western parts of the UK.

'It will be a generally cloudy day with brighter spells in many eastern parts of the country.'

The pleasant spell of weather will continue into Sunday, where Britons can also look forward to an extra 60 minutes in bed on Sunday morning, as the UK changes to Greenwich Mean Time.

This marks the official end of British summertime and means the country will have gloomy and dark evenings.

Conditions will stay in the mid-teens for most until the end of Monday, meaning a balmy evening for trick or treaters, before they drop by 6C later in the week.

Ms Shaples said: 'By the middle of next week there will be a change and temperatures will go from being above average to below average for this time of the year, with some places struggling to get above double figures.

'There will be a high chance of frost overnight, clear skies and a bit more of a breeze so the air will feel cooler.'

According to forecasters, Britain is preparing for a long, cold winter of ice and blizzards, with sub-zero temperatures expected within days.

Despite tonight marking the official end of British summertime, parts of the country are set to enjoy an unseasonably warm Halloween weekend

Conditions will stay in the mid-teens for most until the end of Monday, before they drop by 6C later in the week (pictured: another autumnal day in Sheffield)

A lady enjoys a walk in the autumnal sunshine at Westonbirt Arboretum, near Tetbury, Gloucestershire

Conditions remain several degrees warmer than usual for the time of year and it will stay dry for the next few days

As Britons prepare for the dark evenings, a study revealed almost half of us (42 per cent) will batten down the hatches for the winter as the nights draw in.

Stocking up on new winter socks (31 per cent), slippers (21 per cent) and woolly jumpers (29 per cent)  is all part of the human hibernation process, according to the study by a home furnishing retailer.

It also found the average adult only ventured out socially once a week in the bleak winter months.

A separate study of 2,000 workers revealed the average person only leaves their office for 52 minutes during the week.

It was stunning day in Grasmere in the Lake District, Cumbria ahead of the expected unsettled weather later this week

Forecasters have predicted another pleasant weekend of mild autumn weather (pictured: Henley, in Oxfordshire)
A hip-hop artist stood up to a pervert on a New York bus and stopped him from groping a teenage girl - only to end up in handcuffs himself.

The unnamed youngster was sitting in the back of a Q53 bus in Queens when 36-year-old Pablo Levano sat next to her on Tuesday afternoon.

According to the NYPD Levano began speaking to the girl in English before switching to Spanish. The young girl could not understand Spanish so Levano grabbed her hand and started touching her inner thigh.

Moise Morancy left, intervened when he saw Pablo Levano, right, touching a young girl

Officers handcuffed Morancy, pictured, until they could discover what happened on the bus

Moise Morancy was on the bus when he saw the young girl in distress.

Morancy stood up and grabbed Levano just as a fellow passenger started to film the incident.

During the video, Morancy holds Levano until the NYPD arrived.

According to the dramatic footage, Morancy tells Levano: 'Motherf**** that touch a girl without her permission. This is what I'm going to do to you.

'Don't you ever do that s*** again, you hear me? Don't touch her again.'

When officers arrived, Morancy said: 'He was touching a little girl and I was defending her.'

However, he was soon put in handcuffs, along with Levano until officers could adequately determine the sequence of events.

In the video, Morancy can be heard telling officers that he is a college graduate and he was helping the girl.

Officers soon released Morancy - while Levano was arrested and charged with 'forcible touching'.

Officers arrested Pablo Levano, pictured, and charged him with 'forcible touching'

Officers soon released Morancy after they determined he was the hero in the case

According to Morancy's Facebook page he was finalizing his debut mixtape Chronicles of a Ghetto Rose when the incident happened.

He said: 'I'm sitting at the back of the bus when this drunk guy gets on, saying all types of sexual s*** to this little girl sitting next to me.

'At first he started caressing her hand and I saw how uncomfortable it made her. So she let go and put her hands in her pocket. He then proceeded to forcibly do it again. In the process of doing so, he hit my knee and I told him "Yo, bro. Dont touch me."

'Then he started getting aggressive and saying "I can do whatever I want, you BLACK PIECE OF S***!"

Morancy, pictured center with the NYPD officers who attended the scene, praised the police for their handling of the situation after they arrested Levano

Morancy said he could not sit and watch the girl get molested by a grown man

'I was so upset that I kept to myself after because I didnt want the problem to escalate. Out of nowhere, he had the audacity to start feeling on this girls leg. And no one said anything. So I yelled at him so loud that the bus stopped and everyone stared.

'I said "Yo, my n****! Dont f****** touch her again! You heard? Cuz if you do, We gon problems!"

'He replied "Im a real n****, so try me."

'Instantaneously he reached for his pocket and lunged at me. So I had to defend myself. I quickly gave him a couple combos to the face, knees to the nose and elbows to his neck.

'After doing so, I told the people on the bus to record and help me restrain him but no one stepped up until this brave brother Odeh Hammoudeh lent me a hand.

'The police eventually came but started arresting me as well. I was so confused and felt criminalized. Why is this happening to me? I was told that I no matter what the circumstances were, I still assaulted him.
A holiday jet heading to Birmingham from Tenerife was forced to return to the Canary Islands' airport after a passenger set himself on fire with lighter fuel.

Horrified passengers had to endure a length delay on the tarmac whilst police were called to deal with the emergency which also saw the man attempt to burn an air stewardess's face.

Another passenger on board the Monarch flight said they had been unable to disembark for more than seven hours.

A Monarch jet like this one was forced to turn back after a man set himself on fire on board

Monarch flight ZB933A left Tenerife South airport as planned on Thursday morning but turned round and headed back because of 'the disruptive behaviour' of two passengers. The incident was not terror-related.

One woman on board later said a passenger had set fire to his hands with lighter fuel.

She told ITV News: 'After taking off at 11.20am this morning, a passenger was setting fire to his own hands, so the stewardess asked the passenger for the lighter for the duration of the flight.

'He refused and attempted to light the lighter in her face. This information was forwarded to the pilot who decided to divert back to Tenerife South airport where the man was arrested.'

Fellow passenger Hannah Betteson tweeted: 'We was flying for an hour and had to turn back to Tenerife because somebody had lit a lighter [at] a stewardess.

She later added: 'Been flying since 10.30 this morning and I'm not even nearly home.'

Passenger Hannah Batteson tweeted these messages after she was caught up in the drama

The plane was on its way to Birmingham Airport yesterday morning when the drama unfolded

The incident was also confirmed by another passenger who told friends on Tenerife that the man had threatened to set light to himself.

He said they had to stay on the aircraft until the Civil Guard arrived.

The man was reportedly arrested by Spanish police after the plane re-landed at the Tenerife airport. It is understood a second person was also ordered off the aircraft.

After some delay, the remaining passengers were later flown to Portugal where they faced further lengthy wait before getting back to the UK today.

A Monarch spokesman said: 'Monarch can confirm that two passengers were offloaded on board Monarch flight ZB933 from Tenerife to Birmingham on 27 October 2016 due to disruptive behaviour.

'The flight had departed for Birmingham but diverted back to Tenerife airport where a passenger was subsequently arrested upon arrival.'

The plane had taken off from Tenerife South airport but was forced to turn back

The spokesman added: 'Due to crew operating hours expiring the flight is now positioning to Faro, Portugal where a new crew will be available for the return to Birmingham. Customers will be provided with refreshment vouchers upon arrival in Faro.
EU tariffs are a 'price worth paying' to get rid of crippling Brussels red tape, one of Britain's top businessmen has said.

Lord Bamford, the chairman of JCB, issued a vote of confidence in post-Brexit Britain by saying British businesses are 'very adaptable' and would 'take tariffs in their stride' if the EU imposes levies on UK trade after we cut ties with Brussels.

The intervention from the influential businessman and Tory peer - one of the biggest donors in British politics over recent years - comes after a string of good news for Britain's economy this week.

Yesterday official figures showed the economy grew by 0.5 per cent in the three months since June's Brexit vote, confounding doom-laden predictions of a recession from the Remain campaign, while car maker Nissan announced it will continue to invest at its UK plant in Sunderland.

Lord Bamford (pictured with David Cameron last year), the chairman of JCB, issued a vote of confidence in post-Brexit Britain by saying British businesses are 'very adaptable' and would 'take tariffs in their stride' if the EU imposes levies on UK trade after we cut ties with Brussels

Some businesses have warned that the positive economic news will stop once Britain quits the single market and faces tariffs to sell in Europe.

But Lord Bamford said leaving the single market will offer UK business new opportunities - not least because Britain will be able to sign new trade deals with the rest of the world. Members of the trading bloc are banned from signing their own trade deals.

Speaking in the House of Lords he said 'hidden barriers' to businesses caused by EU regulations 'proves that this single market has not created a level playing feel'.

The JCB boss, a major Tory donor, added: 'If tariffs are the price we have to pay to secure free trade agreements with the rest of the world, I think it's a price worth paying.'

Lord Bamford's comments came as Nissan announced plans to continue investing in its UK plant in Sunderland (pictured) despite plans to quit the single market

Business Secretary Greg Clark (pictured on Question Time last night) is understood to have flown to Japan with a letter to Nissan's board containing a commitment to ensuring the firm's operations in the UK 'remain competitive' after we leave the EU

He urged fellow UK firms to 'get behind the Government' ahead of the start of Brexit negotiations next spring.

'We need the Government to secure an exit deal that is in Britain's best interests,' Lord Bamford added.

'A deal that will allow us to become a truly global trading nation. If tariffs are the price we have to pay to leave the EU, well so be it.'

ECONOMY GREW BY 0.5% IN THREE MONTHS SINCE BREXIT VOTE The UK economy grew by 0.5 per cent in the quarter to the end of September, above the expectations of economists The doom-laden predictions of Project Fear lay in tatters last night after official figures showed the economy is continuing to flourish in the wake of the Brexit vote. Despite ministers, experts and business leaders warning of a profound shock, the Office for National Statistics said the economy grew by 0.5 per cent between July and September, the three months after the referendum. The figures leave the UK on course to be the fastest growing economy in the G7 group of leading nations this year. Some MPs even called for the Treasury and the Bank of England to apologise for claiming that a vote to leave the EU would cause an immediate recession. Officials at the ONS confirmed there had been 'little evidence of a pronounced effect in the immediate aftermath of the vote'. Advertisement

Yesterday Theresa May hailed Nissan's announcement of a major expansion of its plant in Sunderland as a 'vote of confidence' in post-Brexit Britain.

Doubts had been raised about whether the firm would push ahead with production of the new Qashquai at the huge plant in the North East in the wake of the Brexit vote.

There had been anxiety that the risk of tariffs being imposed on exports to the EU could make the site less attractive for investment.

But the firm has now confirmed that the Qashqai SUV and X-Trail will be made in Sunderland.

The news comes after Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn met the Prime Minister in Downing Street earlier this month. He emerged saying he was 'confident' the UK would 'remain a competitive place to do business'.

The decision guarantees 7,000 jobs in Sunderland and a further 55,000 linked to the factory in the north east of England.

But ministers came under pressure to reveal details of the last-ditch 'secret deal' they offered Nissan in their successful bid to keep the car maker in the UK.

Business Secretary Greg Clark flew to Japan to meet Nissan's board last week and issued a letter containing a commitment to ensuring the firm will 'remain competitive' after Britain leaves the EU.

It has led to a swirl of controversy, with rival car makers  including US automotive firm Ford - demanding the Government offers them the same assurances.

MPs have also told Mr Clark he must appear before the Commons Business committee to explain the details of the assurances he granted Nissan amid speculation that the Government has pledged taxpayer-funded guarantees.

And Labour blasted the Government for offering 'secret deals behind closed doors' on post-Brexit Britain and said it would damage business confidence.
Atlas Towing had removed Servantes' car from parking lot at apartment complex where she was visiting a friend

and she was dragged for a half-mile

It is believed the young mom was running after a tow truck when her purse got snagged on some

A 28-year-old woman was killed in San Antonio, Texas, while chasing a tow truck as it was hauling away her car Tuesday night.

Police say Natalia Estelle Servantes was dragged by the tow truck for about a half-mile to her death. Her lifeless body was discovered lying in the middle of the road at around 10pm Tusday in the area of Wurzbach Parkway and Blanco Road.

Servantes and her 10-year-old son were visiting a friend at the Salado Springs Apartments Tuesday evening when someone told that her car was being towed away from the parking lot.

Dragged to her death: Police in San Antonio say Natalia Estelle Servantes, 28, pictured left with her son, was killed while running after a tow truck that was hauling away her car

Servantes' body was found lying in the middle of the road in the area of Wurzbach Parkway

The 28-year-old woman had been dragged behind the tow truck for a half-mile

It is believed the woman ran after the truck and was able to catch up with it, but her purse somehow got snagged on a piece of machinery and she ended up being dragged along the roadway, reported WFAA.

News 4 San Antonio reported that the towing company said there was no evidence to suggest that Servantes was on their truck, and the driver of that vehicle told police he was not aware the woman was being dragged until it was too late.

Witnesses in the area told police they heard Servantes screaming.

The Bexar County Medical Examiner found that she died from injuries sustained from a motor vehicle, and her death was ruled an accident, but the investigation into the incident continues.

Servantes' illegally parked car was towed away from the Salado Springs Apartments where she was visiting a friend

The young mom (pictured left and right) leaves her 10-year-old son (seen left with her). A coroner ruled Servantes' death an accident

Servantes' father eulogized his daughter, praising her as a great mother and a very smart person

It has since emerged that Servantes car was removed from the apartment complex parking lot by Atlas Towing.

The owner of the company, Ricardo Venegas, told Fox San Antonio that Atlas has a contract with Salado Springs Apartments to legally remove vehicles parked without a permit in restricted spots.

In Servantes case, the 28-year-old had parked her car in someone elses spot while visiting her friend living in the building, so Atlas was called in to take away her vehicle.
A Texas mother of three has been arrested on accusations of helping cover up a double murder allegedly committed by her husband, a middle school teacher.

Police in Forth Worth say Tiffany Heath, 29, admitted to hiding rifle magazines and cleaning blood in a gun safe at the request of husband Cary Heath.

Cary, 35, is accused of shooting neighbors Daniel Haros and Phillip Garcia with an 'assault rifle' after a Halloween party early Sunday morning. He also beat both men with the butt of his weapon, police said.

Tiffany told detectives that her husband admitted to the slayings  and asked for her help covering it up, the Star-Telegram reported.

Police in Forth Worth say Tiffany Heath, 29, (left) admitted to hiding rifle magazines and cleaning blood in a gun safe at the request of her husband, Cary Heath (right)

Tiffany (right) told detectives that her husband admitted to the slayings  and asked for her help covering it up

'Tiffany Heath admitted to Detective (Kyle) Sullivan that she cleaned the gun safe and that she hid a rifle magazine under the bed in the master bedroom,' wrote Detective E.C. Pate in court papers seeking a search warrant.

Police found both the rifle magazine Tiffany said she had hidden and the gun safe, which had recently been wiped for blood stains, the Star-Telegram reported.

Tiffany and Cary Heath had been married since July 2012 and had three children together, according to a GoFundMe page apparently set up by Tiffany.

'My family and I have recently suffered from a very unfortunate event, which has left us in a time of need,' Tiffany wrote, according to the page, which has since been deleted.

'I have been raising my three boys on my own, and take care of everything financially. I am doing the best I can but I am struggling to keep up. Every little bit is extremely appreciated in our time of need.'

The page had raised nearly $3,000 of its $6,000 goal before it was shut down Thursday.

Cary, 35, is accused of shooting neighbors Daniel Haros (left) and Phillip Garcia (right) with an 'assault rifle' after a Halloween party early Sunday morning

Court documents say the victims and the Heaths attended the same Halloween party at a neighbors' house early Sunday, during which they had a cordial exchange

Detectives are still seeking a motive in the double murder.

Court documents say the victims and the Heaths attended the same Halloween party at a neighbors' house early Sunday, during which they had a cordial exchange, Dallasnews.com reported.

They parted ways, each of the three men going to their own homes.

Minutes later, a 911 caller reported to police that a man standing over Haros with a gun in a nearby driveway, the Star-Telegram reported.

At some point, Cary walked into a neighbor's home and handed his one-year-old child, court records show.

'This is the last time I will see the baby,' the told the neighbor, according to the Star-Telegram. 'I killed two people.'

Phillip Garcia and his father are pictured in this Facebook photo. He was shot dead at 4am on Sunday

Daniel Haros is seen above in a Facebook photo. As of Friday morning, a GoFundMe page had raised more than $8,400 of its original $5,000 goal to help pay for his funeral expenses

Cary was arrested Monday in the parking lot of Permenter Middle School in Cedar Hill, where he was taught eighth-grade science. He has since been suspended.

He was in the US Air Force for 13 years and received a degree in physical education and science during his time in service.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to raise money for funeral costs for Haros.

On the page it says: 'Our hearts break for the families of Daniel Haros and his best friend Phillip Garci, who were maliciously shot and killed early Sunday morning in their driveway.

'Due to circumstances beyond the families control, life insurance has declined payment due to age.

'We are asking for support for this family. Daniel was a wonderful person and loved by many. Please help the family provide funeral services and lay their son to rest. Any help is much appreciated. God Bless!'

As of Friday morning, the page had raised more than $8,400 of its original $5,000 goal.

Tiffany is charged with tampering with evidence and was being held on $5,000 bond. Carey's bail is set at $1 million on charges of capital murder.
Doctors said the child's swollen tongue was restricting his airway

He was taken to hospital where he had to have it surgically removed

A nine-year-old boy was put in intensive care to be treated for horrific injuries after getting his tongue stuck in a plastic water bottle at school.

Trenton Mikkola from Spring, Texas, spent four days in the hospital after getting his tongue trapped in the black plastic bottle in March.

He required surgery and doctors had to cut it away from his mouth.

His mother Tawanna has shared photographs of his swollen tongue and the days he spent in the hospital to warn other parents of how dangerous the bottles can be.

Trenton Mikkola's tongue was severely swollen after he got it stuck on a plastic water bottle

Trenton was attending class at Theiss Elementary School when, while sipping from the bottle, his tongue was sucked in its nozzle.

'My tongue was swollen, and it kept getting bigger and bigger. [My tongue] felt like it was about to explode,' he told KPRC2.

Two school nurses tried to pull the bottle from his mouth but couldn't.

'A maintenance worker then attempted to remove it with pliers but was also unsuccessful, prompting staff to phone his mother.

He visited three hospitals before receiving care at Texas Children's Hospital in Katy where he underwent surgery to have it removed.

The nine-year-old spent the next four days in intensive care.

Trenton said he felt his tongue becoming more swollen until he thought it was going to 'explode'

The nine-year-old had taken a few sips from the bottle when he says his tongue was sucked in

Trenton had to have the bottle surgically removed and spent four days in intensive care on a ventilator afterwards

Trenton has made a full recovery. His mother Tawanna (right) shared photographs of his ordeal to warn other parents of how dangerous the bottles can be

Doctors said the swelling had restricted his airway.

The bottle that was stuck on Trenton's mouth was one similar to the one pictured

Trenton's school said the issue wasn't immediately life-threatening and that staff acted swiftly and appropriately, despite his mother's accusations they should have moved faster.

Sharing her son's pictures, Tawanna said: 'I want parents to see that type of thing and I want schools to be aware that there is a process and a protocol that I think you're supposed to follow.'

A drinks bottle company recalled its range of products in 2012 after another boy got his tongue stuck in a similar incident.

PrintGlobe Inc. issued a recall for its aluminium bottles after an 11-year-old boy in Orlando had to be put on a ventilator because it got stuck on his mouth.
This is the epic moment an 82-year-old grandmother goes crowdsurfing over a bunch of lively commuters on a train.

The elderly lady, who is definitely not the shy and retiring type, makes a rowdy group of mens year when she dives over them on the packed train in Bordeaux, France.

The gang, who are surrounded by cans of Kronenburg, cheer and applaud the grandmother, chanting merci Mamie which translates as thank you, granny.

Taking the plunge: The video begins with the adorable granny gearing up to dive over the men

After the men gently carry her along the carriage she launches straight into a headstand for her final showpiece.

The granny, dressed in a modest white shirt, black trousers and spectacles, exudes joie de vivre as she fist pumps the air after her headstand.

She then joins the men in a little dance before ducking underneath them to get back to her seat.

The video has already been viewed hundreds of thousands of times after it was posted on Facebook with the caption: Whose grandma is this?.

Taking flight! The 82-year-old woman successfully crowdsurfs over the rowdy men on the packed train

The best commute ever: The men are overjoyed by her performance and chant merci Mamie which translates as thank you, granny
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An RAF pilot's photographs and logbook of a disastrous air raid during the Second World have emerged after more than 70 years.

The raid over a Norwegian fjord on German shipping in February 1945 became known as 'Black Friday' as 14 airmen were killed, four were taken prisoner and 10 RAF planes were destroyed.

However Flying Officer Robert Field's Bristol Beaufighter - the aircraft known as the 'whispering death' because of its effectiveness in battle - escaped unscathed.

Upon his return to base, FO Field wrote in his log: 'Intensive flak and enemy fighters, 9 Beaus lost. Very Enjoyable.'

The images, taken from British pilot, Flying Officer Robert Field's gun-sight camera, shows the bombs being dropped on a number of enemy ships in Norway during a disastrous 1945 raid which was dubbed 'Black Friday'

Other pictures show the large plumes of water erupting next to the German ships being targeted in the raid, in which 14 of Field's squadron died

In his logbook, FO Field described the mission as being 'very enjoyable' despite 'intensive flak and enemy fighters'

The logbook belonging to Flying Officer Robert Field (left, with his navigator Flight Sergeant Anstey), as well as photographs of bombing missions, are now going on sale at auction

His logbook has now gone on sale, along with several black and white photos taken from one of the RAF bombers during the raid.

The images, taken from a gun-sight camera, shows the bombs being dropped on a number of enemy ships as well as the anti-aircraft flak coming in the opposite direction.

Others pictures show the large plumes of water erupting next to the German ships being targeted.

Due to the strong defensive positions of the ships, the bombers had to fly through a hail of anti-aircraft fire to reach them. Several of the Beaufighters, including the one pictured, only just made it back

Field took this photograph of one of his escorts, an RAF Mustang fighter, as they sped across the North Sea towards Norway

Operation Black Friday began when a squadron of 32 bombers attacked a German destroyer and several escort ships in a fjord.

Due to the strong defensive positions of the enemy ships, the bombers had to fly through a hail of anti-aircraft fire to reach the vessels which resulted in the heavy losses.

The Black Friday debacle led to a change in tactics by the RAF's anti-shipping squadrons.

The disastrous mission came about because the squadron of Beaufighters had initially targeted German merchant vessels but been diverted when they spotted the naval ships in the fjord.

It was Air Ministry policy that naval shipping should always take priority over merchant shipping.

Following the attack, it was agreed to give a higher priority to attacking merchant vessels.

The items are being sold by Bosleys on November 2 and are expected to fetch 400

This photograph, taken from Field's gunsight camera, shows the raid taking place in February 1945. Ten RAF planes were destroyed in the sortie resulting in the deaths of 14 crew, while four more were taken Prisoner of War having baled out

The logbook and photos are being sold by a private collector who acquired it upon FO Field's death.

In all, FO Field flew in 18 sorties with 144 Squadron until the end of the Second World War.

The Bristol Beaufighter was a two-seat fighter and torpedo-bomber aircraft and less than 6,000 were built.

Bernard Pass, of auctioneers Bosleys of Marlow, Bucks, said: 'Robert Field only joined the RAF in 1941 and was shipped off to America for pilot training.

'He returned to Britain a year later and then had to undergo operational training and it wasn't until November 1944 that he flew in his first operation.

'The Black Friday operation took place on February 9, 1945 so here was an airman who had trained for three or four years for the moment where he is coming up against alive enemy.

'I am sure that is where his description of 'very enjoyable' in his logbook stems from. I'm sure it would have been quite adrenaline-fuelled.'
Viewers have been left stunned as he effortlessly does jumps and spins

One daredevil in America may have earned himself the title of the best mechanical bull rider of all time after demonstrating his incredible stamina and agility.

A video has emerged of Anthony Smith from Virginia, dancing atop the bucking bronco and performing a series of jumps.

The clip has since gone viral, having amassed millions of views around the world.

To the amazement of his audience, Mr Smith performs a series of spins and jumps, as the bull throws him around.

Dressed in a smart suit, tie and shoes, he makes the feat look effortless.

He performed the routine at Professional Bull Riders in Hampton, Virginia - a cowboy bar, nightclub and restaurant.

Delighted viewers and social media users were quick to praise the clip.

One daredevil in America may have earned himself the title of the best mechanical bull rider of all time after demonstrating his incredible stamina and agility

A video has emerged of Anthony Smith from Virginia, dancing atop the bucking bronco and performing a series of jumps

Viewer Melissa Horton said: 'This is cracking me up!'

Sheri Derene added: 'Haha that's awesome'.

Taylor Hedrick wrote: 'Awesome job!'

The clip has since gone viral, having amassed millions of views around the world
Dr Stephen Frost (pictured) told the tribunal Centre he did not believe the soldier had taken the drugs and they were instead sold

A doctor who claims he was sacked for blowing the whistle on a suspected Army drugs racket has claimed medication went missing which had a massive street value.

Dr Stephen Frost said he was rebuffed in his efforts to persuade senior officers of the need for a police investigation into what had happened to a quantity of morphine sulphate painkillers.

The powerful medication - a Class A drug if obtained without prescription - had been given to a soldier recovering from having his left leg blown off in a bomb blast in Afghanistan.

He was only supposed to receive tablets at 10mg strength but was handed a dose of 40 tablets at 60mg strength.

Dr Frost, who does not believe the soldier took the tablets and that they were instead sold on illegally, said: (The pharmacy technician) could have made a mistake, given them to the patient, then the patient thinks to himself, whoopee.

They (the medication) have a massive street value, 40 a tablet, and I have found a forum on the internet where they are discussed like you or I would discuss goods in Tescos.

On the site, (users) are discussing how to use these dangerous drugs  how can I get the best high? Its another world we dont know about.

Earlier in the hearing at the Manchester Tribunal Centre, Dr Frost said he did not believe the soldier had taken the strong painkillers because he was showing none of the likely effects.

Dr Frost said he did not believe the pharmacy technician who handed out the drugs was guilty of anything other than human error but that the soldier went on to commit criminal behaviour

Dr Stephen Frost (pictured with solicitor Helen Clifford) a highly-experienced doctor was sacked by text while on a family holiday after blowing the whistle on the suspected drugs scam

He added: I was sacked to cover-up the misappropriation, it was a cover up.

I asked many times (for the police to investigate). I said the only way this can be resolved is a police investigation.

Questioned by Ministry of Defence lawyer Ashley Serr about why he didnt report the matter to the police himself, Dr Frost replied that he was advised not to by the Medical Defence Union.

Dr Frost added that the Medical Defence Union has backed his call for what happened to the drugs to be considered not only by the police but also as part of a proper pharmaceutical investigation which should involve the MODs adviser on controlled drugs.

The doctor, who has worked for the MOD for 20 years, questioned why only a pharmacy technician was employed at the busy practice at Weeton Barracks, Preston.

The nearest qualified pharmacist was more than two hours away at Catterick, North Yorkshire.

The erroneous prescription came to light in August 2013, two weeks after Dr Frost, a locum, was asked to start work at Weeton. He was told the pharmacy technician had mistakenly ordered the stronger tablets a month earlier.

The tribunal heard he checked with the patient, who insisted that the lower-strength drugs had been dispensed. Dr Frost said that if the soldier had been taking the high-strength tablets as prescribed, he would still have been suffering 'withdrawal symptoms' as the dosage would only have run out days earlier.

After Dr Frosts sacking in September 2013, it emerged military chiefs tried to smear him as a Russian spy, according to tribunal papers.

Dr Frost had previously led a campaign for a full inquest into chemical weapons expert Dr David Kelly's (pictured) death

One senior officer told another in emails that he had an uneasy feeling about Dr Stephen Frosts political views, implying that he was a Kremlin sympathiser.

Colonel Carson Black, who was at the time the British Armys regional healthcare director, sent the maliciously libellous message as Dr Frost launched a legal battle for unfair dismissal.

He accused the 69-year-old GP, who led the campaign for an inquest into the death of weapons inspector Dr David Kelly, of being a conspiracy theorist.

Dr Frost, from North Wales, claims the Ministry of Defence was trying to dig up dirt in an attempt to coerce him into dropping his legal bid. He could be given hundreds of thousands of pounds if he wins the case.

Dr Frost has long questioned the official explanation for the death of Dr Kelly, whose body was found near his Oxfordshire home in 2003 after being exposed as the source of a BBC claim that Tony Blairs Labour government had sexed up a dossier that helped secure war in Iraq.

The Hutton report concluded that Dr Kelly, a UN inspector sent to Iraq to search for weapons of mass destruction, had committed suicide.

The MoD said Dr Frost was dismissed because he failed to highlight the dispensing error to the patient.

Helen Clifford, lawyer at MW Solicitors, who is representing Dr Frost, said: From the outset the MoD has used every weapon available to it to prevent Dr Frosts case from being heard.

This raises significant questions as to the real reasons behind his dismissal. It is of note that the MoD did not refer Dr Frost to the GMC.

The Tribunal has heard evidence this week about secret emails which were sent following his dismissal. Dr Frost says they were sent with the intent to maliciously libel him such that he could not practice as a doctor again.

I believe that this was an attempt to deprive him of the means to bring his case. Dr Frost, in common with all whistleblowers, is a modern day hero.

A man of the utmost integrity who is a credit to his profession. It is a privilege to act for him and to bring hope to all whistleblowers who are facing the same lonely battle.
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has been denied permission to leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London for a funeral.

Swedish prosecutors have ordered him to be detained, citing nothing in the country's legislation permits his release.

It is not clear which funeral he was requesting permission to attend.

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has been denied permission to leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London for a funeral

The 45-year-old Australian computer hacker has been holed up for four years in the embassy and will stay there and miss the ceremony, according to ABC.

He is wanted for questioning over a rape allegation, which he strongly denies, after a 2010 visit to Sweden.
McCombs is suing the airline for negligence and violation of the Americans with Disabilities act

She claims they asked her 'what is your disability anyway?' as she cried

AA staff said he was not registered nor had proper documentation to fly

A decorated US Army veteran who toured Iraq and Afghanistan is suing American Airlines for not allowing her to take her PTSD service dog on board a flight.

Captain Lisa McCombs from Gulfport, Mississippi, was traveling home from Manhattan, Kansas, last October when she was stopped from boarding her flight.

American Airlines staff said she was not allowed to bring her service dog Jake, a brown Labrador, on board because he hadn't been registered to travel.

Claiming she did not have the proper documentation for the dog and that he hadn't been registered to travel, McCombs said they mocked her disability and drove her to tears over 48 hours, refusing her entry to a flight the following day too.

Lisa McCombs was banned from boarding an American Airlines flight with her Service Animal Jake in October last year

She is suing the airline for distress, damages and violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

McCombs joined the US Army in 2005. She was promoted to Sergeant and then Lieutenant before earning the rank of Captain.

After serving in active conflict zones in Iraq and Afghanistan, she was honourably discharged in 2009 and later diagnosed with PTSD.

McCombs was honorably discharged in 2009 after touring Afghanistan and Iraq

Among the many awards she received for her service is the Afghanistan Campaign Medal with Campaign Star, the NATO Afghanistan Service Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Medal.

To cope with her PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder), McCombs was given Jake who is trained to soothe her anxiety and panic.

'When Jake senses that Ms McCombs is about to experience high anxiety and/or a panic attack, Jake moves his body into close contact with Ms McCombs to distract her attention away from the factors that may cause her panic to spike and calm her,' the lawsuit against the airline states.

Service Animals require less in the way of paperwork to travel with owners on flights.

Unlike Emotional or Psychiatric Support Animals which give support to their owners, Service Animals have been specifically trained to perform a task which has a direct impact on the person's disability.

When McCombs showed up for her flight at Manhattan Regional Airport in Kansas last October, Jake was harnessed and wearing a jacket to identify him as a Service Animal.

They were nonetheless approached by an American Airlines staff member who allegedly said: 'Ummm, are you trying to fly with that?', gesturing towards the dog.

McCombs was asked to produce the dog's 'documentation' then told she could not fly with the animal because he hadn't been registered.

She was told to either pay $125 for the dog to travel in cargo or submit documentation for him to accompany her in the cabin which is not a requirement of the Americans with Disabilities act, according to the lawsuit.

She was diagnosed with PTSD after her departure from the military and given Jake to assist her with the disability

Jake is trained to move closer to his owner when she becomes panicked or anxious. The close contact distracts her from the looming anxiety and eases the condition in day-to-day life

Jake was properly dressed in a harness and jacket which identified him as a Service Animal (above) before the flight

'At this point, Ms McCombs' anxiety was really kicking in and aggravating her PTSD,' her lawyer, Christopher Van Cleave, wrote in the suit.

After missing the 5pm flight, McCombs was then 'verbally assaulted' by two members of airline staff, Van Cleave said.

Staff said McCombs had not properly registered him to travel with her and refused them entry to the flight

'(They) verbally, loudly demanded from Ms McCombs: "What is your disability anyway?"'

Crying, McCombs told them she had PTSD. Other passengers who witnessed the exchange comforted her, the lawsuit claimed, and chastised the airline staff for asking her what her disability was.

McCombs was forced to book another flight, leaving the following day, over the phone with the help of an American Airlines representative who assured her Jake would be able to travel.

When she returned she was told, again, that she did not have the proper documentation submitted and she was told to leave the airport.

Police hovered around her until she did so, the lawsuit claimed, then asked if she wanted 'a ride to a local shelter' to spend the night.

Two days after she was originally intended to fly, she was allowed to travel home via Dallas, Texas.

McCombs however claimed that upon arrival at the city's Fort Worth airport, she was further humiliated by 'an entourage' of American Airlines staff who greeted her at the gate with a wheelchair and asked her to identify herself as the 'disabled veteran' on board.

Staff at Manhattan Regional Airport in Kansas (above) drover her to tears, the lawsuit states

HOW ANIMALS CAN SOOTHE THE SYMPTOMS OF PTSD There is not yet sufficient proof to show that dogs can help treat PTSD but the positive effects they can have on coping with the disease daily are well documented. 'Owning a dog can lift your mood or help you feel less stressed. 'Dogs can help people feel better by providing companionship. 'All dog owners, including those who have posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can experience these benefits. 'For example, dogs: - Help bring out feelings of love. -Are good companions. -Take orders well when trained. (This can be very comfortable for a Servicemember or Veteran who was used to giving orders in the military.) - Are fun and can help reduce stress. -Are a good reason to get out of the house, spend time outdoors, and meet new people.' Source: US Department of Veteran Affairs Advertisement

The lawsuit says they shouted: 'We have a disabled veteran, excuse me, a disabled veteran. We are looking for a Lisa McCombs, a disabled veteran.'

'Ms McCombs was embarrassed, humiliated and mortified,' the lawsuit continued.

'This group of representatives insisted on escorting Ms McCombs and Jake...making a spectacle of Ms McCombs and causing unnecessary attention and embarrassment even though Ms McCombs repeatedly assured them that she could manage without their assistance.'

The ordeal was described as 'unforgettable' and 'emotionally scarring'.

American Airlines later contacted McCombs offering her their apologies and free First Class international flights.

The airline issued a statement only to say that it would not comment on the case pending active litigation.
Former Putin aide Mikhail Lesin's (pictured) death has been ruled an accident

The death last year in Washington, DC of Mikhail Lesin, a Russian media executive and former adviser to President Vladimir Putin, was accidental and caused partly by alcohol poisoning after days of heavy drinking, U.S. authorities said on Friday.

Lesin, who was found dead in his hotel room on November 5, 2015 at the age of 57, died partly from 'acute ethanol intoxication,' according to a statement by Washington's Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia.

Lesin served as Putin's press minister from 1999 to 2004. He was named head of Russia's state-controlled Gazprom-Media in 2013 but resigned the following year and moved to Los Angeles.

In 2014, U.S. Senator Roger Wicker asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate Lesin for violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Wicker, a Republican, questioned how Lesin was able to purchase $28 million worth of property in Los Angeles after he stopped working for the Russian government.

While Lesin's death sparked rumors of foul play at the time, law enforcement officials said the Justice Department had no open investigation of the case.

Lesin was found dead in his room at the Dupont Circle Hotel (pictured) on November 15, 2015. U.S. authorities say he died from a combination of alcohol poisoning and accidental injuries sustained during a drunken bender

There were questions about whether Lesin (right) had been assassinated. Lesin was Vladimir Putin (left) press minister from 1999 to 2004

On the night he died, Lesin was scheduled to attend a Washington gala honoring Russian billionaire and philanthropist Pyotr Aven, according to Radio Free Europe. But he never showed up.

The statement issued by U.S. authorities said Lesin entered his room at the Dupont Circle Hotel in Washington for the last time 'after days of excessive alcohol consumption.'

After reviewing video footage and evidence gathered during an investigation of Lesin's death, Washington's chief medical examiner concluded he died 'as a result of blunt force injuries to his head, with contributing causes being blunt force injuries of the neck, torso, upper extremities and lower extremities, which were induced by falls, with acute ethanol intoxication,' the statement said.
Magana was a single mother of five children, ranging in age between five and 14

ICE says Perez has been deported twice in the last 10 years, including in 2005 after he was caught in Texas with 135lbs of marijuana for sale

Four days earlier, Perez, who is in the US illegally, was pulled over for drunken driver but was released on bond

Police say Perez called his daughter to confess to the killing, prompting her to call 911

Magana's body was found in bathroom of couple's home in Wyoming, Michigan; Perez was asleep in bed at the time

Raul Perez, 43, charged with open murder in strangulation death of his

An illegal immigrant from Mexico with a history of deportations and arrests has been charged with strangling to death his girlfriend in Michigan.

Raul Perez, 43, was arrested on Wednesday morning after police say he called his daughter and told her that he had murdered 31-year-old Karla Guadalupe-Magana.

The mans daughter called police, who responded to the couples home at Woodcreek Apartments on 44th Street in Wyoming, Michigan, at around 6am Wednesday.

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Domestic violence: Raul Perez (left), 43, an illegal immigrant from Mexico, is accused of strangling to death his girlfriend, 31-year-old Karla Guadalupe-Magana (right)

Inside, officers found Ms Maganas lifeless body in the bathroom and her boyfriend asleep in bed, reported WOOD-TV.

Perez was arrested on charges of open murder and being a third-time habitual offender. Records show he has been deported twice in the last decade to his native Mexico.

Four days before Magana's slaying, Perez was pulled over in Wyoming and booked into the county jail on a misdemeanor count of operating while intoxicated. At the time of his arrest, the 43-year-old gave deputies a fake name, Jerry Lopes Sosa.

When officials ran his fingerprints through their database, his criminal history was revealed. Record of Perezs arrest in Michigan was then electronically sent to state law enforcement and the US Department of Homeland Security.

Kent County Undersheriff Michelle Young told Mlive.com that it is up to the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement to contact the jail and request that a hold be placed on a suspect, but Perez was brought in on a Friday, and federal agents did not learn of his arrest until he had already bonded out.

Normally, ICE doesn't monitor this type of thing 24/7, Young said, adding that a misdemeanor OWI arrest would not necessarily have raised red flags at ICE anyway.

Since the Kent County Sheriff's Department had no reason to further detain Perez, he was freed. Four days later, he allegedly strangled his girlfriend to death.

In court: Perez, who has been deported twice in the last decade, appeared in court via videoconference for his arraignment Thursday and was ordered held without bond

Single mom: Police found the victim's body in the bathroom as her boyfriend slept in bed. Magana leaves behind five children, ranging in age between five and 14

ICE said they have come in contact with Perez on two separate occasions over the last 10 years.

In 2004, he was picked up in Texas after crossing the border with Mexico carrying 135lbs of marijuana for sale. He was deported the following year, but immigration officials found him back in the US just months later.

Court documents indicate that Perez was convicted of illegal re-entry and deported again in 2008.

On Thursday, the 43-year-old murder suspect appeared in Wyoming District Court via videoconference for his arraignment, at which time a judge ordered him held without bond.

Perez could face deportation after the resolution of the murder case, according to ICE officials.
A feminist bombarded Labour MP Stella Creasy with such violent imagery for twenty-one months the politician feared for the safety of herself and her family.

Stalker Corinna Loughlin, 44, turned up at an anti-rape rally the MP attended and would email her about events she attended and what she was wearing.

Today Loughlin, of Kemp, The Concourse, in Colindale, North London, pleaded guilty to stalking the MP between January 1, 2015 and September 16, this year.

Corinna Loughlin, 44, from Colindale, in North London, today pleaded guilty to stalking Labour MP Stella Creasy between January 1, 2015 and September 16, this year

Loughlin told the police she began emailing the Sutton Coldfield-born politician in support of her campaign to have author Jane Austen on the back of the new 5 note, but the communication got out of hand.

Loughlin has admitted she now follows Theresa May who she believes is a 'real feminist'.

Hendon Magistrates Court heard Ms Creasy, the MP for Walthamstow, was bombarded with emails and letters at her Waltham Forest Labour Party Office.

'The complainant Stella Creasy began receiving emails from Corinna Laughlin approximately two years ago and they came from different email addresses,' said prosecutor Miss Balbir Suri.

Stella Creasy began receiving emails from Corinna Laughlin approximately two years ago and they came from different email addresses but she did not respond and they became more violent

'The emails caused concern due to the nature of the language and the content, which included delusional thoughts about harming other people.

'The MP received emails almost every day and sometimes five or six a day and they often contained abusive language towards other public figures.

'She also described Ms Creasys public appearances and what she was wearing, making the MP believe she was monitoring her closely.'

Death threats were made about well-known individuals, including musician Mark Ronson, and Loughlin also wrote: 'I really need some f***ing money.'

She turned her attention to another individual she described as a: 'Fat ugly queer.'

The MP never replied, hoping to discourage Loughlin, but the emails torrent continued.

'She felt harassed by the sheer number of emails and distressed by the violent language,' added Miss Suri.

After apologising Loughlin said she had followed Ms Creasys because she was a feminist, as she was, and would now follow a real feminist, Theresa May.

Loughlin went to a rally outside the Indian embassy in June, which the MP also attended.

'Loughlin began sending emails mentioning other members of Ms Creasys family she had met outside the embassy.

'Ms Creasy felt Loughlin was fixated on her life and family and was a person with violent tendencies who may attend her office or other events, making her feel vulnerable.'

Loughlin was arrested on September 16.

'She apologised and said she meant Stella Creasy no harm.

'She said she had followed Ms Creasys because she was a feminist, as she was, and would now follow a real feminist, Theresa May.

'It is clear to see the escalation of the stalking and the nature of these messages were clearly disturbing.'

In a statement to police the MP said: 'She was delusional about harming other people and made me fear for my safety. The language used was distressing.'

Loughlin was bailed to return for sentencing on November 28 after the completion of a pre-sentence and psychiatric report.

Her lawyer, of Ullah Law Associates, who refused to give her name, told the court: 'She was suffering from a breakdown.

'She was clearly not herself and this morning she found it very, very difficult and finds this embarrassing.

'She is remorseful and the court needs to know her state of mind and what she was suffering.

'Looking back now she is upset that she would do that.'
A jubilant Donald Trump set off fireworks at a rally in Iowa as he celebrated the news that the FBI has reopened its investigation into Hillary Clinton's classified email scandal.

Speaking to excitable crowds during a campaign stop in Cedar Rapids, The Donald said 'justice will prevail'.

'The investigation is the biggest political scandal since Watergate, and it's everybody's hope that justice at last can be delivered,' he said. 'The FBI would never have reopened this case at this time unless it were a most egregious criminal offense.

'As you know, I've had plenty of words about the FBI lately, but I give them great credit for having the courage to right this horrible wrong.'

Celebrating: Donald Trump grins as he speaks to his supporters at a rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Fury: Hillary Clinton's anger was clear as she held an impromptu press conference in Des Moines, five hours after the FBI director's bombshell announcement

Fireworks were set off at the end of Trump's rally in Iowa, shortly after The Donald told the crowds 'justice will prevail'

In a furious press conference Friday evening, Clinton called on the FBI to release whatever information it has about its restarted investigation of her email scandal 'without delay'.

And she said she did not know 'what to believe' regarding what she called 'rumors' that the new information came from trusted Aide Huma Abedin's laptop  a device she reportedly shared with disgraced ex-Rep. Anthony Weiner.

'We are 11 days out from perhaps the most important election of our lifetimes,' Clinton told reporters in a surprise press conference. 'The American people deserve to get the full and complete facts immediately.'

Asked if she had been contacted by the FBI or whether she was concerned that the new emails would reveal any classified information, Clinton responded to the first part of the question.

'No  we have not been contacted by anyone. First we knew about it is, I assume, when you knew about it, when this letter sent to Republican members of the House was released.

'So we don't know the facts, which is why we are calling on the FBI to release all the information that it has.'

'Lets get it out,' she said.

She observed that FBI director James Comey had said the new information concerning the more than 1,000 emails found on the device may not be significant.

Responding to Clinton's press conference Friday night, Trump said: 'In her very brief remarks tonight, Hilary Clinton tried to politicize this investigation by attacking and falsely accusing the FBI director of only sending the letter to Republicans.

'The investigation is the biggest political scandal since Watergate,' Donald Trump declared at the rally in Iowa

Another Clinton lie. As it turned out, the letter was sent to both Republican and Democratic leaders in Congress.'

Earlier Friday Trump told about 1,600 supporters in Manchester, New Hampshire: 'The FBI has just sent a letter to Congress informing them that they have discovered new emails pertaining to the former secretary of state Hillary Clinton's investigation.'

His supporters promptly erupted in a chant of 'Lock her up!'

'And they are reopening the case into her criminal and illegal conduct that threatens the security of the United States of America,' Trump said.

'Hillary Clinton's corruption is on a scale we have never seen before. We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office,' he declared.

'I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the Department of Justice are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made.

'This was a grave miscarriage of justice that the American people fully understood, and it is everybody's hope that it is about to be corrected.'

He added a moment later: 'With that being said, the rest of my speech is going to be so boring! Should I even make the speech?'

The jubilant crowd screamed: 'Yeah!'

Supporters cheer as Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speaks at a campaign event in Cedar Rapids

Musing on Clinton's future denials and the American public's reluctance to accept the idea that the Democratic nominee for president is corrupt, he said: 'Right now that takes care of itself, I think.'

The FBI's announcement Friday that it was reopening its probe stunned the political world.

Director James Comey said the bureau had come across new messages that 'appear to be pertinent' to her case.

He said in a letter to Congress that an investigative team is seeking to determine if any of the emails contain classified information and whether any of them are 'significant.'

Comey said that after learning about the emails he advised the bureau to take 'appropriate investigative steps' to review the emails.

Comey sent his letter, just 11 days before the November 8 election, to a host of congressional committee chairmen.

'In connection with an unrelated case,' Comey told them, 'the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation.'

It has since emerged that the emails were discovered during the investigation into the Dailymail.com exclusive story from September that Anthony Weiner sexted a 15-year-old underage girl.

Donald Trump took a victory lap as the FBI reopened its investigation into Hillary Clinton's classified email scandal on Friday. He is pictured in Manchester, New Hampshire

Trump seemed to predict the FBI's move on Thursday, insisting that the government should abandon the conclusions of the FBI's first investigation that cleared Clinton of accusations related to her homebrew email server that once hosted thousands of classified documents.

During an afternoon campaign rally in Toledo, Ohio, he recounted some of the more devastating features of the scandal, ultimately declaring: 'We need to reopen the investigation!'

'Hillary Clinton "bleached" and deleted 33,000 emails, lied to Congress under oath, made 13 phones disappear  some with a hammer  and then told the FBI she "couldn't remember"  39 times,' Trump told about 2,500 supporters at the SeaGate Convention Centre.

And citing more recent news, he told fans that 'the Clinton crew gave more than $675,000 to the wife of the deputy FBI director overseeing the investigation into Hillary's illegal server.'

He called that development 'more devastating than anything you've seen so far.'

'It pertains to what they knew,' he said, 'and it makes all of them  they're already liars  but it confirms it for the 75th time.'
Sentenced: Todd West, pictured, pleaded guilty to randomly killing three Pennsylvania residents

A man who pleaded guilty to killing three Pennsylvania residents told a judge he had no good reason for the slayings.

'I just wanted to kill them,' Todd West, 24, of Elizabeth, New Jersey, said Thursday as he pleaded guilty and was sentenced in Lehigh County.

West shot and killed Francine Ramos, 32, and Trevor Gray, 22, while they were riding in a car in Allentown on July 5, 2015.

He said he shot Kory Ketrow, 22, in Easton, about an hour earlier because Ketrow looked 'tired'.

'I don't think I've ever seen a case like this,' Common Pleas Judge James Anthony said in sentencing West to three consecutive life sentences.

'There doesn't seem to be any motive here beyond the desire to kill. Just cold-blooded murder.'

Victims: West shot and killed Francine Ramos, left, and Trevor Gray, right, while they were riding in a car in Allentown on July 5, 2015

West is one of three men charged in the Pennsylvania killings.

Kareem Mitchell, 24, of Newark, New Jersey, and Robert Jourdain, 22, of Easton, are scheduled for trial next year on homicide charges.

Prosecutors contend Mitchell drove around while West picked out his shooting victims.

Jourdain is accused of buying the bullets from Wal-Mart shortly before West gunned down Ketrow nearby. Both men have pleaded not guilty.

Killed: West said he shot Kory Ketrow, pictured, in Easton, about an hour earlier because Ketrow looked 'tired'

West is still awaiting trial in New Jersey on charges he killed his cousin in May 2015, then gunned down three other men on June 25, 2015.

Kareem Mitchell and Robert Jourdain (pictured) are scheduled for trial next year on homicide charges

West is also charged with attempted homicide in another shooting that day.

West's court-appointed attorney declined to comment after Thursday's guilty pleas, which West entered after Pennsylvania prosecutors agreed to not pursue the death penalty.

West was also fined $150,000 and ordered to pay the victims' funeral costs.

Lehigh County First Assistant District Attorney Steve Luksa told the Morning Call: 'This was a heinous crime and he's an evil, evil man.

'But the families did not want to go through the emotional turmoil of a trial.'

The victims' relatives had plenty to say in court, calling West a 'coward'.

'He's a coward. He shot people in the back,' said Richard Bader, Ketrow's stepfather. 'He killed helpless people for no reason.'
Megyn Kelly reportedly got quite the shock earlier this week when she read an interview Rupert Murdoch gave about her private contract negotiations just before she was set to tape her live news program, The Kelly Report.

Murdoch made the decision to make the negotiations very public by granting an interview to one of the newspapers his company News Corp. owns, The Wall Street Journal.

Variety spoke with a a person familiar with Kellys thinking who said that the host was 'bemused' by Murdoch's actions but not so upset that she would consider leaving Fox News because of his questionable negotiating strategy.

In the interview, Murdoch said that keeping Kelly is a priority, but that he has other hosts who could take over the program should she try and go to a rival network.

'[W]e have a deep bench of talent, many of whom would give their right arm for that spot,' said Murdoch.

A rep for Kelly did not respond to mulitple requests for comment from DailyMail.com

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Rupert Murdoch gave an interview to the Wall Street Journal about the negotiations, a paper owned by his company News Corp. (l to r: Katie Couric, Kelly, Murdoch, Martha Stewart and Jack Dorsey, with Kelly's husband Douglas Brunt in the background at the 2014 Time 100 Gala)

Kelly, who is said to be making $15million this year, is reportedly looking to make more than $20million when she renegotiates her contract next July.

Kelly's star has continued to rise over the past year, and next month she will be releasing her first book, Settle For More.

It has also been revealed that Kelly will be appearing Live With Kelly! the day after the election, marking the first time she is set to appear on Ripa's morning show as a co-host.

Her popularity is one of the main reasons Murdoch says he wants to get her contract signer 'very soon.'

GINGRICH ON KELLY FILE Megyn Kelly: If Trump is a sexual predator... Newt Gingrich: He's not a sexual predator. MK: Okay. That is your opinion. NG: You could not defend that statement. I'm sick and tired of people like you using language that's inflammatory, that's not true. MK: Excuse me, Mr. Speaker, you have no idea whether it's true or not. NG: Neither do you. MK: That is right. And I'm not taking a position on it unlike you. NG: When you used the word you took a position and I think it's very unfair of you to do that, Megyn. I think that is exactly the bias people are upset by. MK: I think that your defensiveness on this may speak volumes sir. NG: No. Let me just suggest to you... MK: No, no, no, let me make my point and now I'll give you the floor. What I said is if Trump is a sexual predator, then it's a big story. And what we saw on that tape was Trump himself saying that he likes to grab women by the genitals and kiss them against their will. That is what we saw. And then we saw ten women come forward after he denied actually doing it at a debate to say that was untrue, he did it to me, he did it to me, we saw reporters, we saw people who worked with him. People from Apprentice and so on and so forth. He denies it all. Which is his right. We don't know what the truth is. My point to you is as a media story, we don't get to say the ten women are lying. We have to cover that story, sir. NG: Sure. Okay. So it's worth 23 minutes of the three networks to cover that story and Hillary Clinton had a secret speech in Brazil to a bank that paid her 225,000 saying her dream as an open border where 600million people could come to America, that is not worth covering. MK: That is worth covering and we did. NG: - the tapes of your show recently, you are fascinated with sex and you don't care about public policy. MK: Me, really? NG: That's what I get out of watching you tonight Advertisement

He added however that whether or not Kelly stays at the network is 'up to her.'

It is unclear where Kelly might land if she does not stay with Fox News, but CNN seems like a very likely possibility for the popular host.

Kelly also has a huge fan in CNN head honcho Jeff Zucker, who called her a 'tremendous anchor' earlier this year.

And former CNN president Jon Klein applauded Kelly for not backing down to Donald Trump in the first Republican debate when she questioned him about his treatment of women, this despite the fact that her then boss Roger Ailes was a supporter of the Republican nominee.

'To be able to stand up and ask tough questions to your boss's choice of president shows a certain steeliness,' said Klein.

The article also points out that Kelly also separated herself from other Fox News anchors during the internal investigation into Ailes' alleged sexual harrassment by speaking with the lawyers hired to look into the claims being made by former host Gretchen Carlson.

That revelation about Kelly's speaking with investigators was confirmed by people who were familiar with the matter.

Some have said that Kelly is set to be the center of Fox News after the exit of Ailes, but Murdoch shot down those claims saying: 'We're not changing direction ... that would be business suicide.'

Murdoch also said that he wants to make sure Bill O'Reilly also resigns with the network when his contract is up next month.

One rival news executive told Vanity Fair in August that the rivalry between Kelly and O'Reilly has devolved to the point that one of them will likely leave when their contracts expire.

O'Reilly shot down reports of a feud between himself and Kelly in June however, telling The Hollywood Reporter: 'Oh, thats all fabricated. Shes in a totally different part of the building. The last time I saw Megyn Kelly was in Detroit in March [at the Fox News GOP debate].'

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Fox News said: '[Fox News President] Bill Shine and [Executive Vice President, Programming & Development] Suzanne Scott have maintained a close relationship with Bill and Megyn for years and have helped both of them in many instances, all while co-existing under the same roof.'

Kelly has previously hinted that she would be willing to leave the network where she has worked for the last 12 years.

Rupert Murdoch (right, and with his wife Jerry Hall, left) has said that while he wants to get her signed 'very soon', but said it is 'up to her'

The host of The Kelly File has been in active talks with the network over her contact which expires next July (pictured at the Republican presidential primary debate in Des Moines, Iowa in January

'There's a lot of brain damage that comes from the job. There was probably less brain damage when I worked in the afternoon. I was less well known. I had far less conflict in my life,' Kelly said in an interview with Variety earlier this year.

'I also have three kids who are soon going to be school from 8am to 3pm I come to work at 3:30. I like to see my children.'

Kelly says she's thought about hosting her own talk show but isn't sure 'what the market looks like for that in 2016' and just doesn't think 'that's the perfect thing for me'.

As for co-hosting a morning show like Today, Kelly said she's tried that before and she's not much of a morning person.

'You have to wake up so early. The alarm goes off at 3:30am,' said Kelly.

'When I did America's Newsroom, which started at 9am, I remember saying to the makeup artist at the time, "If you could only know the afternoon me, you'd like me so much better.'"

She then added: 'Listen, this is a fickle business. What if they called me and fired me tomorrow? I have to keep my options open.'
Logan Hunter Rogers, 23, has been arrested in connection to the death of a 13-month-old boy in Cheyenne, Wyoming

Wyoming authorities have arrested a man in connection with the death of a 13-month-old Cheyenne boy.

The search for the boy's body is set to begin Monday at a landfill in northern Colorado.

Capt. Linda Gesell of the Laramie County Sheriff's Office says authorities have arrested 23-year-old Logan Hunter Rogers of Cheyenne.

Gesell says Rogers faces an initial court appearance Friday in Cheyenne on charges of manslaughter and reckless child endangering.

No lawyer has been listed yet as representing Rogers.

Authorities aren't identifying the boy. Gesell says the boy's grandfater notified authorities that the boy was missing on Wednesday. The grandfather said he had not seen the boy since Saturday.

They then found that the boy's mother had written a troubling Facebook post, saying that a man named 'Santiago' had taken her son fishing over the weekend and had not returned.

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Authorities believe the boy's body is in this landfill in Ault, Colorado. They plan to search the landfill on Monday

The boy's grandfather reported the boy missing on Wednesday, telling authorities he hadn't seen the boy since Saturday. The boy's mother posted this strange Facebook post about her son's disappearance without going to police

Authorities do not believe a man named 'Santiago' had anything to do with the boy's death. Above, the home where the boy disappeared from

Police interviewed a man with the same name, who was known to the family, but have determined that he had nothing to do with the boy's disappearance.

After touring the boy's home, authorites found biological evidence suggesting the boy had died.

'Through several interviews, we learned the child was, in fact, deceased,' Gesell told Denver7. 'A party in the home took the child and dumped it in a Dumpster at our community college.'

'We know that the body was dumped sometime Sunday night or Monday,' she added. 'We are trying to narrow that down.'

It's still unclear how Rogers was a relative or knew the boy in some other way.

Trash from Cheyenne goes to a private landfill in Ault, Colorado.

Authorities plan to search a 'newer' area of the dump on Monday. They could search through as much as 200,000 pounds of garbage.
against Thomas in 1991 during his Supreme Court nomination hearing that he sexually harassed her

Anita Hill is calling for a 'fair' investigation into Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas after another lawyer came forward on Thursday claiming he 'groped' her at dinner party in 1999.

Hill, who testified against Thomas in 1991 during his Supreme Court confirmation hearings, said that there should be a 'fair investigation ... by an appropriate body' over Moira Smith's claims that he 'groped' her when she was 23 years old in 1999.

Smith, who is now the vice president and general counsel of Enstar Natural Gas in Anchorage, Alaska, was then a recent graduate of Georgetown University who was spending the year as a Truman Foundation scholar in Washington, D.C.

She told the National Law Journal about the alleged incident involving Thomas, who denies the allegations.

'Justice Thomas touched me inappropriately and without my consent,' Smith said.

'He groped me while I was setting the table, suggesting I should sit 'right next to him.'

Anita Hill (pictured) is calling for a 'fair' investigation into new claims of sexual assault against Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas after a Moira Smith came forward to say he groped her

Smith (left) claims that Thomas (right) groped her in 1999 at a dinner party in suburban Washington. Thomas said the claim is 'preposterous' and 'it never happened'

'He was 5 or 6 inches down and he got a good handful and he kept squeezing me and pulling me close to him.'

Two of Smith's roommates back then confirmed to The Associated Press that Smith told them what happened just after the dinner. Smith didn't go public until this month.

Thomas said the claim is 'preposterous' and 'it never happened.'

Smith's story and Thomas' denial were first published by Law.com.

Hill compared the reaction to Smith's claims to her own alleged experience with Thomas.

She testified that he sexually harassed her when he was her supervisor at the US Department of Education and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

'To say that something like this is coming for political gains  and of course that was an allegation that was directed at me  is undermined by the fact that 16 years before, she went to friends and told people,' Hill told the NLJ Thursday.

'So this is not something that she's told for the first time at this point, this is something that people knew and they seem to be confirming.'

Thomas' high court confirmation in 1991 was nearly derailed by Hill's claims that Thomas sexually harassed her.

The year Smith claims the alleged incident happened, Thomas was already serving on the Supreme Court and had been married for over a decade to his wife Virginia 'Ginni' Lamp Thomas (above together)

During his 25 years on the court, there have been no other allegations against Thomas, who has been married to his second wife Virginia 'Ginni' Lamp Thomas since 1987.

Smith said she was moved to share her experience after hearing that Donald Trump had been caught on tape making crude comments about women and then seeing an Internet meme that made light of the situation.

Smith said on Facebook that she also had been the victim of date rape and was later groped by an acquaintance in a bar.

'As the mother of a young daughter and son, I am coming forward to show that it is important to stand up for yourself and tell the truth. When powerful men commit sexual assault, they count on their victims keeping it a secret,' she said in the statement.

When Smith returned home from the dinner in June 1999, she recounted what happened to her three roommates, said one of the women, Carrie Farmer.

Smith's account became public on Thursday just as Thomas (above) and his supporters were marking his 25th anniversary on the court

'I can't recall if it was that night or the next morning, but she told us that she went to this dinner and then this awful thing happened,' said Farmer, a health policy expert with the Rand Corporation in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

'I don't recall our reaction to it, except I guess we were young and we didn't know what to do with that kind of information.'

Another roommate, Laura Fink of San Diego, would only say that the account published in law.com was accurate.

Fink is a Democratic consultant who made similar claims against former San Diego Mayor Bob Filner, for whom she worked when he was running for Congress.

In 2013, Filner resigned as mayor amid sexual harassment allegations and eventually was sentenced to 90 days of home confinement on charges related to the claims.

Smith's account became public on Thursday just as Thomas and his supporters were marking his 25th anniversary on the court.

The commemorations included an event at the Heritage Foundation Wednesday night, where Thomas was asked whether there is hope for the Supreme Court confirmation process.

Carrie Severino, a former Thomas clerk, said the justice treated his clerks with 'the utmost respect' and allowed her to defer her clerkship for a year because she was pregnant.
Calhoun works three days a week; wants to keep going as long as possible

His coworkers brought a cake Thursday and some came on their day off

Store co-owner praised Calhoun as one of the hardest workers he's seen

Joined McDonald's in 1957; has worked at current location for two decades

A veteran McDonald's employee celebrated his 73rd birthday and his 59th work anniversary on the same day.

Willie Calhoun, who works in Chamblee, Georgia, joined McDonald's aged 14, in 1957.

His 59-year career has spanned four locations and has taken him from Sandy Springs to his current branch, where he has worked for two decades.

Calhoun's coworkers brought him a cake on Thursday while the store's co-owner celebrated him as one of his most dutiful employees - who has no intention to retire any time soon.

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McDonald's employee Willie Calhoun (pictured), who works in Chamblee, Georgia, celebrated both his 73rd birthday and his 59th work anniversary Thursday

'This is a special day for me. It makes me feel great,' Calhoun, known to his colleagues as Mr Willie, told Fox 5 Thursday.

Working on McDonald's, Calhoun said, has been a 'great experience' and he's never thought about leaving. He has spent most of his career working in the kitchen.

'He's one of the hardest workers we have. He's never late, he works as hard as five other staff members that we have,' restaurant co-owner Maj Andalibi said.

Some of Calhoun's coworkers came on their day off to his celebration Thursday.

Calhoun's coworkers (pictured with him) brought him a cake on Thursday while the store's co-owner celebrated him as one of his most dutiful employees

Some of Calhoun's coworkers came on their day off to his celebration Thursday. Pictured are the snacks and cake they shared that day in Calhoun's honor

'He's a wonderful guy. He's got a great attitude back there, a wonderful sense of humor,' Mary Portalatin, who co-owns the restaurant with her husband, told the Brookhaven Post.

'It's incredible how he can do the work, be cheerful at the same time, and sort of get everybody around him in a good mood. He just puts his heart and soul in everything he does.'

Calhoun once worked seven days a week and now spends three out of seven days at his job.
Hillary Clinton dodged questions about a stunning news development that rocked her presidential campaign Friday, avoiding comment about the FBI reopening an investigation that looked into her emails even as she spoke about area flooding.

Clinton spoke to an eastern Iowa crowd about Donald Trump's treatment of women, his business deals, and his treatment of small businesses Friday  but wouldn't touch the information she likely learned aboard the flight from New York Friday morning.

Referencing Trump's 'nasty woman' comment about her in the last presidential debate, Clinton observed: 'I mean really you cant make this stuff up. Donald Trump says he can win  and you know hes right, anything can happen in an election.'

Hillary Clinton landed in Iowa Friday to news that the FBI was reopening an investigation of her emails  and avoided the subject entirely even as she observed, 'anything can happen in an election'

That last statement was proven accurate Friday, when news broke that the FBI was reopening its investigation into her emails. The New York Times later reported that the new information that triggered the change came form devices owned by longtime Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin.

That inquiry was connected to Abedin's husband, disgraced former Representative Anthony Weiner, and his online communications with a 15-year-old girl.

Early in her remarks, Clinton sounded like she was about the talk about the news of the day, but instead she remarked on flooding that caused evacuations in September.

Hillary Clinton traveled to Iowa along with aide Huma Abedin  whose husband's online conduct prompted new email inquiries

Hillary Clinton ones again blasted Trump's conduct towards women at a women geared toward women voters

'Let me say a word about  the recent flooding here in Cedar Rapids'

'Let me say a word about  the recent flooding here in Cedar Rapids,' Clinton said, speaking about last months deluge that ended up sparing the city.

'You escaped a historic flood. But we know that homes and families were still affected and we need to make sure that you have the resources that you need,' Clinton said.

Clinton was mum when she exited her campaign plane immediately after the news broke. There wasn't working wireless on the flight, so she most likely learned after she landed.

There was a long delay on the tarmac before Clinton deplaned. When she did, she waved to reporters and ignored shouted questions about whether the FBI had contacted her about the investigation.

During the flight, Clinton's campaign manager, Robby Mook, spoke to reporters, and stressed an effort to campaign in GOP-leaning Arizona, even as he warned against 'complacency.'

Communications aide Jennifer Palmieri warned that Clinton is 'very superstitious.'
More than one in three of Donald Trump's supporters believe the women who have accused him of sexual misconduct.

Forty-two per cent of Republican voters and 35 per cent of those backing the Republican presidential candidate think the accusations are probably true, an Associated Press-GfK poll has found.

In all, seven in 10 Americans give the allegations credit, the results suggest.

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A poll shows most Americans are upset by Donald Trump's comments about women and believe the accusations made by several women that he kissed and groped them without their consent. He is pictured Friday in Iowa

The poll indicates that the wave of allegations about Trump's treatment of women may blunt the impact of voters' concerns about Clinton.

But the results was taken before Friday's news that the FBI will investigate whether there is classified information in newly uncovered emails related to its probe of her private server.

Those emails were not from her server, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to discuss details publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Before the development, the poll found that about half of voters say her use of the private server while she was secretary of state makes them less likely to vote for her.

But they were more likely to say that Trump's comments about women bother them a lot than to say the same about Clinton's email server, 51 per cent to 43 per cent.

Donald Trump's behavior has long grated on Carolyn Miller, but the allegations he sexually assaulted women was one factor that helped her decide in the last week to cast her ballot for Hillary Clinton.

'I don't think she's a bad person. Trump, I think, is a bad person,' the 70-year-old Fort Myers, Florida, resident said.

'As for Trump's accusers, Miller added, 'I believe them.' And she said her vote for Clinton is 'a default'.

Miller is among the more than 7 in 10 Americans who say they believe the women who say the Republican presidential candidate kissed or groped them without their consent.

The poll was taken before Friday's news that the FBI will investigate whether there is classified information in newly uncovered emails related to its probe of Hillary Clinton's private server. Clinton is pictured Friday in Iowa

Since September, Clinton seems to have consolidated her support within her own party and drawn undecided voters such as Miller to her campaign, or at least pushed them away from Trump.

The billionaire's recent trouble with women seems to be one factor preventing him from doing the same.

He feuded with former Miss Universe Alicia Machado after Clinton noted he'd called her 'Miss Piggy' for gaining weight while she wore the crown.

Days later, a 2005 recording surfaced in which Trump can be heard describing himself sexually assaulting women in a conversation with Billy Bush, then the host of Access Hollywood.

Several women have since publicly accused Trump of groping and kissing them without permission, including a People magazine reporter who said Trump attacked her when his wife, Melania, was out of the room.

Trump called his remarks on the video 'locker room talk,' dismissed the accusations as 'fiction' and said of several accusers that they aren't attractive enough to merit his attention.

He feuded with former Miss Universe Alicia Machado after Clinton noted he'd called her 'Miss Piggy' for gaining weight while she wore the crown. Machado and Trump are pictured together at a Miss Universe workout event in January 1996

Asked Thursday on Fox News Channel's The O'Reilly Factor whether he thinks he would be ahead were it not for the Access Hollywood video, Trump replied: 'I just don't know. I think it was very negative.'

A majority of voters, 52 per cent, say allegations about the way Trump treats women make them less likely to vote for him, including a fifth of Republican likely voters.

And within that group, only about a third say they will vote for him, with about a third supporting Clinton and the remainder supporting third party candidates.

That may help explain why just 79 per cent of Republicans in the poll said they're supporting Trump compared with 90 per cent of Democrats supporting Clinton.

Trump needs to close that gap to have any shot at victory.

Trump has tried to equate the accusations against him with charges of infidelity and sexual assault leveled for years against his rival's husband, former President Bill Clinton.

Trump has paraded the former president's accusers before the cameras and accused Hillary Clinton of undermining her husband's accusers.

The poll shows a majority of voters don't buy Trump's attempt at equivalence.

Six in 10 say the allegations against the Clintons have no impact on their vote.

That's despite the fact that 63 per cent think Hillary Clinton has probably threatened or undermined women who have accused her husband of sexual misconduct.

A 2005 recording surfaced in which Trump can be heard describing himself sexually assaulting women in a conversation with Billy Bush (right), then the host of Access Hollywood

'The vote will be about Hillary Clinton, not her husband,' said Ryan Otteson, 33, of Salt Lake City, who's voting for a third-party candidate, conservative independent Evan McMullin.

Valori Waggoner, a 26-year-old from Belton, Texas, said she believes Hillary Clinton probably did intimidate her husband's accusers, but she said it makes no difference to how Waggoner is voting.

Waggoner was not going to vote for Clinton anyway, because as a doctor, Waggoner said she sees firsthand the inefficiency of the national health care plan that Clinton supports.

But the alleged wrongdoing by Trump made her less likely to vote for the Republican. Instead, she's backing Libertarian Gary Johnson.

The degree of alleged wrongdoing by the Republican and Democratic presidential candidates, Waggoner said, 'are not equal'.

Most likely voters in the poll say they think Trump has little to no respect for women, with female voters especially likely to say he has none at all.

Clinton leads female likely voters by a 22 point margin in the poll, and even has a slight five point lead among men.

In September's AP-GfK poll, Clinton led women by a 17 point margin and trailed slightly by six points among men.

The AP-GfK Poll of 1,546 adults, including 1,212 likely voters, was conducted online October 20 to 24, 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 2.75 percentage points, and for likely voters is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

Respondents were first selected randomly using telephone or mail survey methods and later interviewed online.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has launched a spy-hunting investigation to find out why several of his Musudan-type missile launches have failed.

According to North Korea Intellectuals Solidarity (NKIS) Kim wants to find a link between espionage and the failures.

It is claimed the leader suspects that some failed launches may stem from covert actions by the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and South Koreas National Intelligence Service (NIS).

Kim Jong Un wants to find out why his missiles are failing. Pictured: In a bizarre new propaganda video

It is reported that Kim's investigators will specifically focus on imported missile components, including integrated circuit chips that are part of the flight control system.

As reported by NK News, Kim Heung-kwang, a North Korean defector and the head of NKIS, said: The North imports the integrated circuit chips due to the failure of 100 percent local manufacturing,

Its a big problem if the U.S. and South Korea are found to be involved in the [power] supply line of integrated circuit chips and devised a plot to cause trouble.

It is reported that Kim's investigators will specifically focus on imported missile components

Kim Heung-kwang said North Korea test-fired Musudan missiles eight times from April 15 until October 20, but the North succeeded only once in the launch on June 22.

The latest failed missile launch sparked suspicion that the continued failures may be as a result of sabotage.

As MailOnline previously reported this month North Korea suffered two failed missile test in a week.

As a result the US warned Pyongyang of an 'overwhelming' response to any use of nuclear weapons.

North Korea has suffered its second failed missile test in a week as the US warned Pyongyang of an 'overwhelming' response to any use of nukes (file picture)

The Musudan has a theoretical range of anywhere between 1,500 and 2,500 miles.

The lower estimate covers the whole of South Korea and Japan, while the upper range would include US military bases on Guam.

The US and its two key Asian allies have all condemned Kim's missile tests as a clear violation of UN resolutions banning the North from using ballistic missile technology.

'Our commitment to the defence of our allies, including the Republic of Korea and Japan, in the face of these threats, is ironclad,' said Pentagon spokesman Gary Ross earlier this month.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the military was 'fully prepared' for further provocations, while Japan vowed to 'step up pressure' on North Korea.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (centre) inspects the ground jet test of a new type high-power engine of a carrier rocket, at the Sohae Space Centre, in September

US Secretary of State John Kerry stressed that any use of nuclear arms by the North would be 'met with an effective and overwhelming response'

A Musudan launched in June flew 250 miles into the Sea of Japan (East Sea), and was hailed by leader Kim Jong-Un as proof of the North's ability to strike US bases across 'the Pacific operation theatre'.

Despite the string of failures, some experts believe the missile is moving swiftly towards operational deployment.

A test-fire of a large-caliber rocket is seen being conducted from an undisclosed location in North Korea

North Korea has been hit by five sets of UN sanctions since it first tested a nuclear device in 2006.

After Pyongyang carried out its fourth nuclear test in January, the Security Council adopted the toughest sanctions resolution to date, targeting North Korea's trade in minerals and tightening banking restrictions.
20 people were taken to the hospital for minor injuries they suffered while sliding down the escape chutes during the rapid evacuation

All 161 passengers and nine crew members were able to evacuate

Twenty passengers had to be hospitalized after an American Airlines plane burst into flames on the runway at Chicago O'Hare International Airport on Friday afternoon.

The horrifying scene was captured by one passenger who filmed the chaos inside the plane as everyone tried to get out of the burning aircraft.

American Airlines Flight 383 was departing for Miami and just seconds away from takeoff when there was a sudden explosion on the Boeing 767 plane.

Lets go, lets go, the passengers yelled as they tried to rush each other out of the plane, some of them hysterically screaming as others first tried to grab their bags.

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American Airlines Flight 383 departed Chicago for Miami on Friday afternoon when it blew a tire and damaged an engine, causing the ride side of the plane to burst into flames

Hector Cardenas captured the terror of his fellow passengers, who were begging each other to leave the plane faster after it caught on fire

Sarah Ahmed, one of the last people to leave the plane, said the scene was absolute 'chaos' and described a 'stampede' of people trying to get off the aircraft

The pilot aborted takeoff around 2.35pm and 161 passengers, nine crew members and a dog were forced to evacuate on the runway.

Hector Cardenas captured the terror of his fellow passengers, who were begging each other to leave the plane faster after it caught on fire.

'Please let us out too,' someone can be heard saying in the video as the passengers line up to go down the escape chute slides.

'F*****g go,' one man screams as another woman simply wails 'Please' as she tries to get to the exit faster.

Cardenas then goes down the slide and lets out a scream as the passengers begin falling on top of each other before reaching the tarmac.

'Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God,' Cardenas can be heard saying from behind the camera as he turns it on the plane, a massive cloud of black smoke filling the air.

Sarah Ahmed, one of the last people off the plane, said smoke began to seep into the passenger compartment and she could see flames up against the windows.

Cardenas showed the 'stampede' of people trying to get out of the plane, before letting out a scream on the escape chute as the passengers begin falling on top of each other

Passengers rushed to get down the slide and away from the plane as huge flames erupted from the right side of the aircraft

Ahmed said everyone in the plane immediately began to panic.

'It was chaos,' she told WLSTV. 'I thought it was the day I was going to die.'

'We were almost up in the air. We were full throttle, full speed ahead and then we heard this huge bang and there's fire at the window.'

Ahmed said everyone on the right side of the plane jumped up and ran to the left side.

The plane screeched to a stop and a 'stampede' of passengers immediately began to yell 'open the door, open the door!'.

'Everyone's screaming and jumping on top of each other to open the door,' she said.

Large plumes of black smoke filled the air as frantic passengers slide down escape chutes on the left side of the plane to escape

The pilot aborted takeoff around 2.35pm and 161 passengers and nine crew members were forced to evacuate on the runway

'Within that time, I think it was seven seconds, there was now smoke in the plane and the fire is right up against the window.'

The Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement that the plane made an emergency stop around 2.35pm after experiencing a problem during takeoff.

An earlier FAA statement said the plane had blown a tire, but officials later deleted that information from the statement.

American Airlines said in a statement that the takeoff was aborted due to 'an engine-related mechanical issue'.

A federal official said the flight experienced an 'uncontained engine failure', in which engine parts break off and are spewed outside the engine.

The danger of such a failure is that engine pieces effectively become shrapnel and can cause extensive damage to the aircraft.

The official wasn't authorized to speak publicly about the incident and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

Chicago Fire Department Chief Timothy Sampey said the 20 people who were hospitalized had suffered minor injuries during the rapid evacuation down the plane's escape chutes.

American Airlines said one flight attendant also suffered non-critical injuries.

The injuries mainly consisted of minor bruising and ankle injuries.

'This could have been devastating if it had happened later,' Sampey added.

Passenger Gary Schiavone was sitting in the middle of the plane when he saw a 'big, red ball of flame' in the window, which then cracked due to the heat.

'Twenty seconds later, we would've been up in the air,' he told ABC News. 'We would've been done.'

Chicago Fire Department Chief Timothy Sampey said the 20 people who were hospitalized had suffered minor injuries during the rapid evacuation

Passengers could be seen walking on the grass, some holding their luggage, after the escape

The Federal Aviation Administration tweeted this statement on Friday afternoon, saying the Boeing 767 had blown a tire at 2:35 pm

Schiavone noted that the explosion rang out as the passengers were 30 seconds into watching the safety video - which just happened to be on the instruction that they should not grab their luggage during an emergency.

'It could have caused a big problem,' Schiavone told NBC Chicago. 'Don't get your luggage in a situation like that.'

Firefighters were on the scene in less than 90 seconds, officials said.

But that was enough time for the fire to consume the plane's right-side engine and wing.

A chemical foam and dry chemical was then used to knock out the fire, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Firefighters remained at the scene for several hours as they put out 'hot spots' on the plane.

At least six ambulances responded to the scene and passengers were bused back to the terminal.

American Airlines said it was operating a special flight to take the passengers to Miami on Friday night.

Some passengers at the airport could see the large cloud of smoke from their gate's window

Firefighters were on the scene in less than 90 seconds, but that was enough time for the fire to consume to the plane's right-side engine and wing (pictured here covered in soot)

WHAT CAUSES UNCONTAINED ENGINE FAILURES? Uncontained engine failures are unusual thanks to improvements in designs and the metallurgy. There are many possible causes, including overheating, runway debris or large birds that get sucked into the engine or parts that break when they wear out but aren't replaced during maintenance checks. Tom Walsh, an airline pilot who also works as a security consultant, said that engines that break apart can be especially serious if the parts end up cutting fuel lines or damaging other vital components of the aircraft. But he said even such catastrophic failures don't necessarily doom a plane - even if a pilot runs out of runway and must take off. 'Planes are meant to fly with one engine,' said Walsh, who has also flown Boeing 767s. 'We are trained so that we can lose the engine at the worst possible time ... and then still successfully take off and land.' One of the best-known incidents of uncontained engine failure occurred in 1989, when 111 people were killed when a United Air Lines DC-10 crashed while making an emergency landing at Sioux City, Iowa. There were 185 survivors. Such engine failures are taken 'very seriously' in the aviation industry, said John Cox, a former airline pilot and aviation safety consultant. It's mandatory that airlines report the failures to the National Transportation Safety Board, he said. 'It's something everyone in aviation safety tracks very carefully,' said Cox, president of Safety Operating Systems. Engines are especially vulnerable to overheating that can cause parts to fail during takeoffs when they are already operating at very high temperatures, said John Goglia, a former National Transportation Safety Board member and expert on aircraft maintenance. The giant blades inside the engines are revolving at about 13,000 rpm, he said. When one comes loose, it's like firing a bullet, he added. Advertisement

Jose Castillo, whose father was on the flight, said the passengers were told it would be three to four days before they would receive the belongings they left on the plane.

The runway was closed immediately after the evacuation as the FAA was called to investigate.

Four of the airport's eight runways are currently open, which O'Hare officials said is enough to handle the night's traffic.

The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate.

Another plane burst into flames on Friday at a Fort Lauderdale runway in Florida.

The landing gear of FedEx Flight 910, which was arriving from Memphis, collapsed after it touched down at the airport, according to NBC Miami.

The plane skidded down the runway before it caught on fire.
They have now warned that foreign visitors have better signal than Brits

A report by MPs released today shows that 17million of us have bad mobile phone receptions in our own homes and foreign sim cards work better

Mobile phone coverage in Britain is so bad that foreign visitors often get a better signal, MPs warn today.

Their report found that 17million customers have poor reception at home  or none at all.

It identified 525 not spots where coverage is non-existent. Partial blackspots where signals are provided by only one firm are even more common.

In the South East, almost 30 per cent of customers report dropped calls or blackouts every day. In Wales, just 35 per cent have access to a 4G signal.

The MPs said the refusal of mobile phone giants to allow users to switch networks in areas of poor coverage meant tourists using these roaming services often get a better signal. The firms are also under fire for locking customers into costly deals even where reception is woeful. The parliamentary report accuses network providers of failing to honour promises to improve coverage.

Backed by a cross-party group of 90 MPs, it calls on ministers to make a series of sweeping changes, including:

Changing the law to allow domestic roaming in the UK;

Levying big fines on firms that miss coverage targets;

Ending rip-off fees stopping customers switching provider;

Naming and shaming the worst mobile offenders.

The report comes days after Vodafone was fined 4.6million for serious and sustained breaches of consumer protection rules. It was found to have failed to provide top-up credit to pay-as-you-go customers who had paid for it.

Grant Shapps, chairman of the British Infrastructure Group that produced the report, said the situation was scandalous. The former Conservative Party chairman added: For millions of people and businesses in this country, the mobile phone signal on offer is simply not good enough.

It is crazy that you are better off having a French sim card in this country than a British one  its scandalous.

It is time to get tough with the industry. Regulators and the Government have had the wool pulled over their eyes once too often  The time for excuses is over.

Mobile phone firms oppose the idea of allowing domestic customers to switch between networks using roaming technology  even though they offer the service to foreign customers. In 2014 they struck a deal on the issue with the then culture secretary Sajid Javid.

In return for avoiding a change in the law they agreed to invest 5billion in improving signals, including a guarantee that they would extend coverage to at least 90 per cent of the country by the end of next year.

Grant Shapps (pictured), chairman of the British Infrastructure Group that produced the report, said the situation was scandalous

But todays report warns it is highly unlikely the target will be met.

A 150million Government scheme to put up 600 masts was abandoned this year after managing to achieve progress at just 75 sites in five years.

Ofcom figures show that on average the big mobile phone companies provided coverage to 74 per cent of the geographic area of the UK last year. Three provides the least coverage, at just 68 per cent.

The regulator will publish an update in December.

It's crazy that you are better off having a French Sim card in this country than a British one. It is time to get tough with the industry. Grant Shapps, chairman of the British Infrastructure Group.

The report cites a recent survey finding that over 60 per cent of people suffer patchy signal quality and dropped calls indoors. And the situation is far worse for 4G coverage. In the South West just 46 per cent have access to this and in the east of England the figure is 49.9 per cent.

Former Labour minister Chris Bryant, a backer of the report, said people in his Rhondda constituency in Wales were sick and tired of the terrible reception.

He added: A mobile phone signal these days is an essential part of modern life. We shouldnt be left out.

Sarah Lee, head of policy at the Countryside Alliance, said: Mobile coverage in rural areas is unacceptable, with rural families and businesses unable to rely on coverage in the same way those in urban areas can.

Todays report also criticises mobile firms for locking in customers to costly deals even where they find they have no signal. It says that lack of signal should trigger an automatic break clause in contracts allowing users to switch for free.

Former Labour minister Chris Bryant, a backer of the report, said 'mobile phone signal these days is an essential part of modern life. We shouldnt be left out'

The report said a typical contract lasts for 24 months, and costs around 17.50 a month.

This means a customer who wants to exit a 24-month contract after three months because of poor service faced a bill of up to 367.

Sources at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport said the report was based on out-of-date figures and plans were under way to introduce hefty fines for firms that failed to hit agreed targets.

A DCMS spokesman said: We know how frustrating poor mobile coverage can be, which is why we made it a legal requirement for each of the mobile network operators to provide coverage to at least 90 per cent of the UK by the end of next year.

An Ofcom spokesman said the regulator agreed that mobile coverage has to improve but insisted action was under way. The spokesman said the regulator had a variety of enforcement options if mobile phone firms failed to hit targets.

Vodafone, EE and Three all insisted they were working hard to improve coverage.
An eight-month-old New York boy was struck and killed Friday by an unlicensed driver backing out of a driveway Friday.

Driver Armando Rodriguez, 44, was on reverse between a deli and a commercial building in Queens  when his van allegedly struck the stroller being pushed by the boy's mother about 10:15am, the New York Daily News reported.

Eight-month-old Navraj Raju (left) was killed Friday after he was struck in his stroller (right) by a van backing out of a parking lot in Elmhurst, Queens

Driver Armando Rodriguez, 44, was on reverse between a deli and a commercial building when his van (pictured) allegedly struck the stroller being pushed by the boy's mother

'I saw the van was pulling back fast,' eyewitness Ahmada Ali, 25, told the New York Post. 'The lady was pushing the stroller and the van hit the baby. He kept going back, he didn't see.'

'The baby was under the van. The guy was pulling back and hit the baby,' he said of eight-month-old victim Navraj Raju, whose parents weren't named.

'He reversed one more time, he thought he had a problem with the van. The mother was crying, "Stop, stop, stop" and hitting the van.'

Rodriguez was arrested for allegedly driving without a license. Police have not said if further charges are pending

Baby Navraj was rushed to Elmhurst Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries

Locals rushed to the crash scene and helped pull the baby from underneath the van, which was filled with scrap metal.

Navraj was rushed to Elmhurst Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.

Friends say Rodriguez, who stayed at the scene, is a Mexican immigrant who works as a mechanic and sometimes collects scrap metal for extra cash, the Daily News reported.
A father has attacked a controversial transgender childrens charity for meddling in a dispute over whether his five-year-old son should wear a dress to school.

The man is in a bitter battle with his ex-wife, who believes the boy identifies as a girl.

The mother believes the boy should wear a girls uniform to school, and is being supported by transgender childrens charity Mermaids.

But the father claims his son has simply been confused by his mother  who has been dressing him as a girl since he was two-and-a-half.

Parents in bitter battle over their child's gender: Father brands controversial transgender charity as meddlers in yet another case of a mother dressing her son, five, as a girl

He says his son shows no desire to dress as a girl when with him, and is too young to understand the meaning of gender.

He claims the boys school has been bullied by Mermaids into supporting the mothers wish that he should wear a dress.

Mermaids allegedly told school staff they would be guilty of discrimination if they did not let the boy wear a girls uniform  something the father claims left the school feeling intimidated.

The incident raises new questions about the charity  which has advised schools, the NHS and the Crown Prosecution Service on transgender issues  even though it has no official status and was started by a group of parents in 1995.

Last week it emerged that Mermaids had been supporting a mother who was found to have caused her son significant emotional harm by forcing him to live as a girl.

She had the boy removed from her care by a judge after he found there was no independent or supportive evidence that the seven-year-old wanted to be a girl.

He said the boy, who now lives with his father, had been pressed into a gender identification that had far more to do with his mothers needs than his own.

And the judge condemned social workers for failing to challenge the mother because they were in thrall to transgender equality.

Mermaids described the ruling as a huge injustice.

In the case of the five-year-old, the charity is thought to have been involved with the mother for some time before intervening over his uniform.

The father said: The school, at the beginning, were quite firm [with his ex-wife]. But then she started getting Mermaids involved.

'The school backed down completely.

He said the school had been scared by the suggestions of discrimination. He accused the charity of meddling in something which has nothing to do with them and said it had bullied the school.

The father, 39, who works in logistics, says his son  who cannot be named  does not express any desire to dress as a girl or play with girls toys when he spends the weekends with him and his new wife.

But his ex-wife  who has been dressing the boy as a girl since he was a toddler  took him to see psychoanalyst Michelle Bridgman when he was four.

Miss Bridgman, who is linked to Mermaids and has no clinical qualifications, said the boy was suffering from gender dysphoria.

Father says his son shows no desire to dress as a girl when with him, and is too young to understand the meaning of gender (file photo)

The father said: If my son does decide he wants to be a girl, then that is fine by me  I am not old-fashioned, that doesnt bother me. But at the moment, it just feels like it isnt his decision.

He believes that the authorities, including social workers, are too scared to intervene for fear of being accused of discrimination by the vocal transgender lobby.

The headmaster now wont even talk to me. They are all terrified, he said.

My ex-wife just repeats what Mermaids are saying without much real understanding of the consequences. All Mermaids are is a support group with no medical training.

The mother confirmed Mermaids called the school on her behalf to gently remind them of the law.

She said social services had investigated her ex-husbands complaints and found nothing wrong.

Her son wears a mix of boys and girls clothes  its his choice, she said.

The council, in the Midlands, declined to comment.

Caroline Roberts, chairman of Mermaids, said the charity provides information and resources for families and professionals in an area that is largely misunderstood.

Miss Bridgman said she was upset by the fathers criticisms. She said the boys gender dysphoria is not a clinical diagnosis but an observation.

She said she did not recommend treatment or a permanent change of gender, and would never do so in a child so young.

The 'expert' backed by the NHS...and councils

One of its most vocal figures is its CEO Susie Green, who contacted Mermaids after her child told her that he believed he should have been born a girl

It is promoted by the NHS and councils, runs workshops for teachers and claims to have provided training for police and social services.

But it is far from clear what, if any, professional credentials Mermaids has.

The organisation  which has received lottery funding  began in 1995 as a support group for parents of children affected by gender identity issues.

Mermaids became a registered charity only last year  with its documents stating that as well as supporting families, it aimed to engage and lobby media and medical institutions. But it does not appear to have any professional or clinical expertise in the area of child and adolescent mental health.

One of its most vocal figures is its CEO Susie Green, who contacted Mermaids after her child told her that he believed he should have been born a girl.

She says her daughter is now a happy and confident young woman having taken hormone blocking medication from the age of 13.

It is not thought that Miss Green has any professional qualifications in the field but that hasnt stopped her from instructing schools on how they should support trans children.

She has spoken in the past of trying to encourage schools to help children to transition  including children as young as four.

She said some schools are very reluctant but that about half are accommodating and want to learn.

The NHS provides a link to Mermaids on its NHS Choices website  saying the charity can provide support and put people in touch with other parents with similar experiences.

The Crown Prosecution Service took direction from Mermaids when developing its transgender policies and the charitys helpline has been included on cards it produced for pupils as part of its lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender hate crime project in schools.

A number of councils have allowed Mermaids to help shape policies.

The charity is also linked to Harley Street psychotherapist Michelle Bridgman, who specialises in gender dysphoria in children. Miss Bridgman, 68, who is herself transgender, claims to see between four and seven children a week with gender identity challenges.

She said that Mermaids never sends people to her directly, adding: I am not a medical clinician and do not recommend medical treatments.

Caroline Roberts, chairman of Mermaids, said the charity had won a number of awards for its work.
Police have revealed a photograph of the toy car belonging to Ben Needham which they believe prove the missing toddler died on holiday in Greece.

The tiny car was discovered during a search of land at the farmhouse where the toddler stayed with his family on a visit to Kos in 1991.

It was found on October 15 and Ben's mother Kerry, 43, confirmed the youngster had been playing with the toy on the day he disappeared.

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Police have revealed a photograph of the toy car belonging to Ben Needham which they believe prove the missing toddler died on holiday in Greece

The tiny car was discovered during a search of land at the farmhouse where the toddler (pictured) stayed with his family on a visit to Kos in 1991

She broke down in tears when British detectives showed her the car, revealed Detective Inspector John Cousins, who said police now believed the toddler died in an accident.

Earlier this month Ben's mother said she hoped a Greek digger driver 'is burning in hell' after taking secrets about the youngster's death to his grave.

Police launched a fresh search on the island amid claims Konstantinos Barkas, also known as Dino, may have been responsible for Ben's death as he was clearing land with an excavator near the spot where the child had been playing on the day he vanished.

Mr Barkas is believed to have died from stomach cancer last year and South Yorkshire Police has now formally ended its latest search.

Extensive searches of a fly-tipping site uncovered a yellow toy car police believe the toddler had at the time he disappeared.

Shortly after the revelation earlier this month, Ben's grandmother Christine told the Daily Mirror she remembered buying him two toy cars in Kos town centre.

Ben's mother Kerry (left) said she hopes Greek digger driver Konstantinos Barkas (right) 'is burning in hell' after she claimed he took secrets about the toddler's death to his grave

The toy was found on October 15 and Ben's mother Kerry, 43, confirmed the youngster had been playing with the toy on the day he disappeared

The 64-year-old said: 'I was shaken by it and both me and Kerry (Ben's mother) cried. I just felt sick really. It was a shock. I expected it to have no paint on but I was 90% sure it was Ben's. When I saw it I felt disbelief.'

Referring to digger driver Konstantinos Barkas, also known as Dino, she said: 'It must have been dumped at that site by Dino. It didn't walk there.'

Ben, from Sheffield, disappeared on July 24, 1991, aged 21 months, after travelling to the island with his mother and grandparents.
A disturbing photo of a dog in a small Kansas city with dozens of ladybugs stuck the roof of its mouth has freaked out some pet owners.

The graphic image shows a pooch named Bailey, whose owner says he likes to chase bugs, with between 30 to 40 Asian ladybugs attached to his mouth tissue.

The photo was shared last week on Hoisington Veterinary Hospital's Facebook page, with some viewers so shocked they believed it was fake, KAKE reported.

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A disturbing photo of a dog in a small Kansas city with dozens of ladybugs stuck the roof of its mouth has freaked out some pet owners

The graphic image shows a pooch named Bailey (pictured), whose owner says he likes to chase bugs, with between 30 to 40 Asian ladybugs attached to his mouth tissue

'Not true guys chill out. There's only one case ever reported and that's because the dog are loads of them. So guys let's have some proof if you say you treated them. Because this sure looks like the photo from 2015,' one unbelieving user wrote.

'Isn't true- look up dodo,' another wrote.

But Dr Lindsay Mitchell, who posted the photo, said it was not the first case she has seen, which can cause long-term health issues if untreated in dogs.

'This is the second pup I have seen like this today,' the October 17 post read.

'If your pet is drooling or foaming at the mouth look for these ladybugs.

'They cause ulcers on the tongue and mouth and have a very painful bite.'

Asian ladybugs produce a protective secretion which apparently makes them stick, which is why Bailey had a mouthful.

The longer they remain attached to the animal's mouth, the harder they are to remove and can also cause ulcers, according to Dr Mitchell.

The photo was shared last week on Hoisington Veterinary Hospital's Facebook page, with some viewers so shocked they believed it was fake

Bailey's incident comes amid an infestation of the bugs in Hoisington, with harvest season in Barton County attracting more ladybugs than usual, KAKE reported.

The infestation is also affecting animals that are eating them, including Bailey.

His owner, Frances Jiriks, said one night when he came in to eat, he was lethargic, foaming at the mouth, and did not eat.

After the scary sight, she took him in to see Dr Mitchell and had the ladybugs removed.

Dr Mitchell noted that the cases seen in her office are rare and said she shared the photos in hopes of educating pet owners.

'I posted the photo not to freak people out, but to provide pet owners with an action to take in case they find one of their pets drooling excessively or with apparent foaming at the mouth,' Dr Mitchell told the Great Bend Tribune.

Bailey's owner, Frances Jiriks, said one night when he came in to eat, he was lethargic, foaming at the mouth, and did not eat

After the frightening discovery, she took him in to see Dr Mitchell and had the ladybugs removed

'They could avoid a trip to the veterinarian's office if they check their pet's mouth and if they find the beetles, they can simply remove them with their finger or a tongue depressor.

'They aren't like a tick, so there is no worry that a head or any part of the animal will be left behind to hurt the animal further.'

As for the reason there have been swarms of ladybugs in Barton County recently, one agricultural official told KWCH it is in response to the sugarcane aphid and the lady beetles laying more eggs because their food source 'was so abundant.'
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A sea of green berets filled Parliament Square yesterday as more than 2,000 ex-Royal Marines, ex-servicemen and supporters of jailed Marine Sergeant Alexander Blackman gathered in a mass show of support.

Sgt Blackman, who has spent three years behind bars, was jailed for life for killing a Taliban insurgent in Afghanistan in 2011.

His lawyers, paid for by generous Mail readers, argue he should have been convicted only of manslaughter.

Richard Pendlebury spoke to the war hero in prison.

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Claire Blackman, wife of Marine A with her parents Pauline and James Warner (left) and Marine A's mother Frances Blackman (right) at a demonstration for his murder appeal in Parliament Square in London

The wheels of justice turn slowly. In some cases, very slowly indeed.

Alexander Blackman, former Acting Colour Sergeant of 42 Commando, Royal Marines, doesnt need reminding of that.

He is sitting across a table in the cheerless visitor centre at Her Majestys Prison Erlestoke, in Wiltshire.

As always, he is obliged to wear the thin yellow sash of the convict rather than the proud green beret of his corps.

As we talk, the crump of gunfire comes drifting over Salisbury Plain from the Royal School of Artillery.

It is the sound of soldiers serving Queen and country rather than marking time in captivity at Her Majestys pleasure.

Almost 12 months have passed since Sgt Blackman applied to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) to have his highly controversial 2013 conviction and life sentence for the Afghan battlefield murder of a dying Taliban fighter sent to the Court of Appeal.

Alexander Blackman, former Acting Colour Sergeant of 42 Commando, Royal Marines

In January, the CCRC decided his case was worthy of the highest level of priority for consideration.

But its review has since suffered what one MP has called outrageous delays.Meanwhile, a steady toll is being taken on the man himself.

During our conversation, Sgt Blackmans expression is often strained, while his skin  healthily tanned in the photos from his active service days  long ago assumed a prison yard grey pallor.

The 42-year-old is more muscular than when we last met in August 2015, thanks to his prison gym training for a sponsored power-lifting competition for charity.

Alas, that was cancelled by the authorities, who feared the contest would only encourage some inmates to get body-building steroid pills smuggled into the jail.

Just a bunch of middle-aged blokes trying to do some good, the Marine grumbles of his fellow prisoners thwarted efforts.

Since my last visit, there has been one significant development.

This summer, Erlestoke suffered the worst riot in its history.

Afterwards, 168 prisoners out of a total population of fewer than 500 were removed and dispersed elsewhere in the prison system.

They have not been replaced.

That is because the two wings destroyed in the disturbances remain unrepaired and therefore are uninhabitable.

Soon after the riot, the prison governor stepped down as was previously planned, and a new regime must pick up the pieces.

Such an explosion of communal violence isnt supposed to happen at a low-risk Category C establishment like HMP Erlestoke.

But then, a man such as Blackman  a veteran of five tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, whose superiors thought him a superb soldier  isnt supposed to be here, behind bars.

One cannot help but feel that he has been pitched from one dysfunctional, ill-managed environment  42 Commandos disastrous 2011 tour of Helmand province in Afghanistan, marred by undermanning, heavy casualties and failures in the chain of command  to another.

He is stuck in a jail system which, according to the Prison Governors Association recently, is in a dark place, with unprecedented levels of violence caused in part by chronic understaffing.

A sea of green berets filled Parliament Square yesterday as more than 2,000 ex-Royal Marines, ex-servicemen and supporters of jailed Marine Sergeant Alexander Blackman gathered in a mass show of support

Former and serving members of the armed forces take part in a rally in support of support of Sgt Alexander Blackman, also known as 'Marine A'

Almost 12 months have passed since Sgt Blackman applied to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) to have his highly controversial 2013 conviction and life sentence for the Afghan battlefield murder of a dying Taliban fighter sent to the Court of Appeal

He is stuck in a jail system which, according to the Prison Governors Association recently, is in a dark place, with unprecedented levels of violence caused in part by chronic understaffing

HMP Erlestoke was affected like many other penal institutions.

As a result, some inmates were being locked in their cells for 24 hours at a time, sometimes longer. Frustrations mounted.

There were also complaints by staff that B Category prisoners  those not requiring maximum security, but considered a danger to the public if they escaped  were being housed among what was supposed to be a low-risk, relatively placid population.

Tensions leapt in May with the introduction of a smoking ban throughout the jail  part of a phased prohibition across the entire UK prison system.

The new rule was unpopular to say the least; more than 80 per cent of inmates smoked.

One prisoner who recently left Erlestoke told me that overnight the ban had created a black market for contraband.

A smuggled bag of rolling tobacco, costing less than 20 outside, could fetch more than 100 behind Erlestokes razor wire-topped walls.

With cigarette papers also forbidden, some inmates identified the soft, thin pages of prison library Bibles as an ideal replacement. Others improvised by smoking teabags.

But for most inmates the ban was insurmountable and unbearable. Smoking was perhaps their only pleasure.

Within weeks, HMP Erlestoke exploded  though the Ministry of Justice has, of course, denied any link.

One summer Saturday evening, a small number of prisoners in two of the seven accommodation wings went on the rampage.

Specially trained staff had to be rushed in from other jails in the region to contain the disturbances, which finally ended in the early hours of that Sunday morning.

By then, most of the fixtures and fittings in the blocks affected had been destroyed.

Sgt Blackmans cell window happened to overlook one of the rioting wings.

Claire Blackman joins Royal Marines in Birmingham city centre in a Daily Mail campaign to secure the release of her husband Sergeant Alexander Blackman AKA Marine A, who was jailed for killing an Afghan insurgent

But he wanted no part in the anarchy.

Some guys on my wing came into my cell because of its grandstand view and began shouting encouragement to those in the other block, he says.

I asked them to stop, because if they were seen at my window I would get the blame, and (under the Public Order Act) you can get another ten years on top of your sentence for taking part in a riot.

There will always be some here who have an us and them approach to the prison authorities and life inside. But mine is a strictly me and me or a me and Claire [his wife].

I have no interest in getting into trouble. I am polite to everyone, and if anyone is rude to me I just dont react. I dont know how much longer I will be in here, a year or until 2020, but I dont want to make it harder for me or for Claire.

Our future is the most important thing and I dont want to jeopardise it any more than it has been already. Claire has suffered enough.

He says the highlight of his week is the two hours I get to hold Claires hand during visiting time.

I had seen Claire Blackman shortly before I visited her husband.

She is a redoubtable woman, but the separation and delays are increasingly unbearable for her, too.

The couple have no children, so Claire endures their ordeal largely alone.

As the wife of a Royal Marine, I try to treat our time apart like just another tour, she says.

But this is now the longest tour ever, and I just want him home.

I know I only have to wait a week until I can visit him again, but at times its really hard.

'We both love walking and not being able to share an amazing view, I really miss that.

You can be surrounded by friends and family but still feel lonely.

Before Al was arrested, we had begun to talk about moving out of our terrace home in Taunton and buying a country cottage.

So while I have enjoyed helping a friend find a new house in the country, the house viewings have been tinged with sadness that our life is on hold.

Family celebrations are the times when I most expect to miss Al by my side, but its also those insignificant moments.

Even just ordering a takeaway and settling down for a night in with a film reminds you how lonely life can be without the man you love beside you.

Sgt Blackman is in Erlestoke because of one moments loss of discipline on the battlefield. It took place on September 15, 2011, towards the end of six months service in the Nad-e-Ali district

Her husband is in Erlestoke because of one moments loss of discipline on the battlefield.

It took place on September 15, 2011, towards the end of six months service in the Nad-e-Ali district.

Concerns had been expressed about 42 Commandos leadership even before the tour began.

The British government had also already decided on withdrawing our troops from Afghanistan.

But small groups of Royal Marines soon found themselves isolated and fighting a ruthless enemy.

Casualties among Blackmans close colleagues grew.

Body parts of dismembered Marines were hung in trees as trophies by the Taliban.

A Taliban attack on a British base was repulsed when an Apache attack helicopter strafed the insurgents with cannon fire, mortally wounding one.

A Taliban attack on a British base was repulsed when an Apache attack helicopter strafed the insurgents with cannon fire, mortally wounding one

Blackman and his soldiers found the injured man, heavily armed but dying. There was a discussion about the possibility of getting him airlifted to hospital. Then Blackman drew his pistol and shot the Afghan

Blackman and his soldiers found the injured man, heavily armed but dying.

There was a discussion about the possibility of getting him airlifted to hospital.

Then Blackman drew his pistol and shot the Afghan.

This was captured on film by one of his men, and the film was then by chance obtained by the British police. Blackman was arrested and court-martialled for murder.

He pleaded not guilty.

At trial, he said he thought the Taliban fighter was already dead when shot.

He knew he shouldnt have done it  the act was against the Geneva Convention  but it could not be murder.

He was not examined for possible post-traumatic stress syndrome.

Nor was the lesser charge of manslaughter offered by the Judge Advocate General or the prosecution, or even sought by his defence team.

Remember, this happened on a foreign battlefield, not a UK street.

Blackman was found guilty.

He received a mandatory life sentence with a minimum tariff before consideration of parole of ten years, reduced on appeal to eight.

Sgt Blackman received a mandatory life sentence with a minimum tariff before consideration of parole of ten years, reduced on appeal to eight

Not surprisingly, many saw him as a political scapegoat for an unpopular war, and 100,000 people signed a petition for the conviction to be overturned.

In September last year, fortified with new and compelling evidence that had not been presented at the court-martial, the Mail began a campaign for Blackman to be freed.

Within a month our readers had raised 800,000 to pay for a new legal team to pursue his case.

Meanwhile, Blackman waits at Erlestoke.

One issue that angers him is the activities of the civilian-led Iraq Historic Allegations Team, based a few miles down the road at Upavon.

The Royal Military Polices Operation Northmoor has been more recently established to investigate alleged wrongdoing in Afghanistan.

Both bodies have been fed thousands of claims of misconduct by UK forces against locals.

Many of these allegations are spurious but have been nurtured by compensation-hungry UK law firms.

The cost to the taxpayer is in the many tens of millions.

Another Mail campaign has secured a government promise of an exemption from prosecution for servicemen in future wars.

But the current legal frenzy carries on.

It sickens me, says Sgt Blackman.

[Marines] on visits here have told me how our boys are being harassed by investigators over ancient incidents for which they were cleared by senior officers on the ground, at the time they happened. Now they have been re-activated.

We seem to be the only Armed Forces in the world that pursue their soldiers in this way, yet our military is still magnificent.

[A very senior Royal Marines NCO] told me how he recently went to the States and met his opposite number in the U.S. Marine Corps.

'The American said he would swap ten of his guys for one of ours.

Over there they are focused on numbers and equipment, while we still turn out the best-trained elite soldiers.

'The defence cuts are going too far and the potential prosecutions are a disgrace.

He is furious at the way soldiers are silenced.

Nobody in the military is allowed their own voice if it goes against the official line. Brexit was a good example.

'The Government wheeled out the former top brass who supported the Remain campaign.

'You were supposed to think no one in the military wanted Brexit, which was untrue.

Today the former Marine is a library orderly and studying for an Open University degree in social sciences while also taking a course to be a personal trainer

Today, he concentrates on keeping his head down in prison.

He is a library orderly and studying for an Open University degree in social sciences while also taking a course to be a personal trainer.

Do I want to become a personal trainer when Im released? Not really, he admits.

But I have to face the fact that unless my conviction is quashed, I will leave here with a criminal record.

'And when you are in that position you need to have as many strings to your bow as possible.

'That can only be done by maintaining discipline.

Sgt Blackman is hugely encouraged by the support from Mail readers and others.

He still gets a large postbag to which he cannot afford to reply, given his 13-a-week maximum prison wage.

At the time of my conviction, it was suggested that I was the most evil man ever to wear uniform, so I want to thank all those people from the bottom of my heart, he says.

Not only for standing by me but paying for my new legal team. Without them, I wouldnt have the hope I have today.

There are tears in his eyes.

By the time you read this, a Criminal Cases Review Commission psychiatrist will finally have paid him a visit.

The appointment was promised in April (its amazing what a little encouragement from the Mail and supportive politicians can do to get things moving).

Yesterdays show of support for his cause by ex-servicemen in Parliament Square was, like last years event, awe-inspiring.
Hillary Clinton remarked to her supporters about the 'unusual' election this year  as she and her staff were still taking in the stunning news that the FBI was reopening its investigation into her emails just 11 days before the election.

' Weve got to keep our foot on the gas. Donald Trump says he can still win, and hes right,' Clinton told supporters at Roosevelt High School in Des Moines, to boos from the crowd at mention of her GOP rival.

'You know this has been such an unusual election. I dont take anything, any place or anyone for granted,' Clinton said. 'Im gonna work as hard as I can all the way until the end,' she vowed.

Hillary Clinton spoke about the 'unusual election,' on a day when the FBI announced it was reopening its investigation into her emails

Clinton and her campaign have been warning against complacency for days, amid a string of leads in national and state polls. During her flight from New York to Cedar Rapids, campaign manager Robby Mook issued a similar warning.

It was only minutes later that Clinton and reporters traveling with her learned that the FBI was reopening its investigation.

As she does regularly, Clinton tailored many of her remarks to female voters, with whom she leads nationally  and singled out Trump for reports that he lingered in the dressing room during a teen beauty pageant he owned.

'And he did this even with teenage contestants,' Clinton said. 'Can you imagine?'

The New York Times was first to report that emails were found during the investigation of Rep. Anthony Weiner after he was caught in September sexting with an underage girl.

Clinton campaigned in Iowa throughout the day Friday as word of the bombshell spread

Huma Abedin and Hillary Clinton spoke on board Clinton's campaign plane just hours before news broke on Friday that the FBI was re-opening its investigation into the presidential nominee's emails after new emails came to light during a separate investigation into Abedin's husband, Anthony Weiner

The FBI swooped on Weiner and Abedin after DailyMail.com revealed that he had sent sexual messages to a 15-year-old girl

Clinton dodged questions about a stunning news development that rocked her presidential campaign Friday as she twice exited her campaign plane.

The Clinton campaign fired off a stern statement Friday 'in response to the letter sent by FBI Director James Comey to eight Republican committee chairman in Congress'  suggesting at the outside that some sort of partisan action was at play.

'It is extraordinary that we would see something like this just 11 days out from a presidential election,' Clinton campaign chair John Podesta wrote in the official statement, the campaign's first comment since stunning word broke that Clinton's emails were back under the microscope at FBI headquarters.

'Upon completing this investigation more than three months ago, FBI Director Comey declared no reasonable prosecutor would move forward with a case like this and added that it was not even a close call,' Podesta began his statement.

'In the months since, Donald Trump and his Republican allies have been baselessly second-guessing the FBI and, in both public and private, browbeating the career officials there to revisit their conclusion in a desperate attempt to harm Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign,' he added.

Earlier Friday, Clinton spoke to an eastern Iowa crowd about Donald Trump's treatment of women, his business deals, and his treatment of small businesses Friday  but wouldn't touch the information she likely learned aboard the flight from New York Friday morning.

Referencing Trump's 'nasty woman' comment about her in the last presidential debate, Clinton observed: 'I mean really you cant make this stuff up. Donald Trump says he can win  and you know hes right, anything can happen in an election.'

Hillary Clinton landed in Iowa Friday to news that the FBI was reopening an investigation of her emails  and avoided the subject entirely even as she observed, 'anything can happen in an election'

Donald Trump took a victory lap as the FBI reopened its investigation into Hillary Clinton's classified email scandal on Friday

That last statement was proven accurate Friday, when news broke that the FBI was reopening its investigation into her emails. The New York Times later reported that the new information that triggered the change came form devices owned by longtime Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin.

That inquiry was connected to Abedin's husband, disgraced former Representative Anthony Weiner, and his online communications with a 15-year-old girl.

Early in her remarks, Clinton sounded like she was about the talk about the news of the day, but instead she remarked on flooding that caused evacuations in September.

Hillary Clinton traveled to Iowa along with aide Huma Abedin  whose husband's online conduct prompted new email inquiries

Hillary Clinton ones again blasted Trump's conduct towards women at a women geared toward women voters

'Let me say a word about  the recent flooding here in Cedar Rapids'

'Let me say a word about  the recent flooding here in Cedar Rapids,' Clinton said, speaking about last months deluge that ended up sparing the city.

'You escaped a historic flood. But we know that homes and families were still affected and we need to make sure that you have the resources that you need,' Clinton said.

Clinton was mum when she exited her campaign plane immediately after the news broke. There wasn't working wireless on the flight, so she most likely learned after she landed.

There was a long delay on the tarmac before Clinton deplaned. When she did, she waved to reporters and ignored shouted questions about whether the FBI had contacted her about the investigation.

During the flight, Clinton's campaign manager, Robby Mook, spoke to reporters, and stressed an effort to campaign in GOP-leaning Arizona, even as he warned against 'complacency.'

Communications aide Jennifer Palmieri warned that Clinton is 'very superstitious.'
A strange and troubling drama reached its conclusion behind the red-brick facade of the Civil Hearing Centre in Leeds on Tuesday, involving two QCs (both publicly funded), a High Court judge, several more barristers and solicitors, four Asian men and a vulnerable white girl in her teens known only as Child G.

The case was highly delicate: Rotherham Council was seeking to prevent this girl, who lives in the South Yorkshire town, from what it believed was the very real risk of sex abuse and exploitation at the hands of the four men.

Child Gs tale stretched back to early childhood when she was born into a chaotic, impoverished and broken home. According to the judge, Mr Justice Cobb, she had suffered physical, emotional and sexual abuse from different quarters over a number of years.

Rotherham Council was seeking to prevent 'Girl G' from what it believed was the very real risk of sex abuse at the hands of four men. The news follows several high profile cases where Asian men were convicted of sexually exploiting young white girls

A court order means the men involved in the latest case cannot be named. When abuse was at its height there were fears that taking to the Asian community in Rotherham (pictured) would disturb community cohesion and council staff and police were 'mindful' of being called racist

In 2012, her situation came to the attention of social workers after shed persistently played truant and run away from home, and was found to be regularly self-harming and taking drugs. By 2014, it was feared she was also involved in inappropriate and perhaps illegal relationships with a number of older Asian men.

In particular, the teenager (then still under the age of consent) embarked on what Justice Cobb called personal and sexual relationships with three of the four individuals at the centre of this weeks proceedings.

Even more worryingly, the adult men soon began to be physically abusive towards her.

Police were told, for example, that two of them had assaulted her, while one had also caused criminal damage to her home. At one point, according to Justice Cobb, Child G told officers that she was particularly fearful of one of the men, who had a criminal record for offences associated with drugs and violence.

For a while, therefore, Rotherham Council used the Childrens Act to take her off the streets and into secure accommodation.

But matters came to a head on August 12 when Child G went missing. After a brief search, police found the teenager in a cheap hotel, alongside one of the three older men, who was referred to in court as LL.

Among the items found with them in the hotel were vodka, cannabis, condoms and Asian female clothing, said the judge.

Police quickly established that another older man, referred to as MM, had visited the hotel earlier that day, before leaving.

Brothers Arshid (left), 40, and Basharat Hussain (right), 39, were convicted of multiple rapes and indecent assaults on teenagers in the South Yorkshire town in February

There was no record of the girl having previously met MM, leading to serious concerns about what he might have being doing at the hotel, and the judge said that officers attending at the scene believed that she was the victim of child sexual exploitation.

The police, he added, decided to immediately arrest both LL and MM on suspicion of trafficking.

Temporary injunctions were immediately sought and obtained preventing all four of the Asian men from seeking to contact the girl, who was taken to a safe house.

This month, some 60-odd days later, Rotherham Council was  quite understandably  seeking to have the temporary injunctions made permanent at the family court hearing in Leeds.

To that end, proceedings began last Wednesday.

However, they almost immediately took a series of odd and deeply worrying turns, and the case would soon end in disarray, at huge cost to the taxpayer, with the Asian men once more allowed to fraternise with Child G.

Bannaras Hussain, 36, admitted ten charges - including rape, indecent assault and assault occasioning actual bodily harm in February

We shall consider these events in proper detail later. First, though, a crucial point: that on the streets of Rotherham, the troubling story of Child G happens also to be appallingly common.

For the town has been at the centre of a notorious child-grooming scandal, which since the late Nineties has seen an estimated 1,400 underage girls raped, sexually abused and, in some cases, forced into prostitution, usually by gangs of much older British-Pakistani men.

Like Child G, the vast majority of these tragic victims are white, working class, and emotionally vulnerable, with dysfunctional family backgrounds.

Typically aged 11 or 12 when first targeted, the stories of their abuse tend to be strikingly similar.

Usually they begin with the girl being befriended by an older Asian teenager in a local park or shopping centre, or even at the school gate.

Flattered by the attention, the girl agrees to exchange phone numbers. Messages are shared and a relationship  soon sexual  ensues.

Before long, the older man starts plying his underage victim with alcohol, drugs, cigarettes and other rewards. After a time, he frequently decides to coerce her into sleeping with adult friends and members of his extended family.

Eventually, he may even demand payment in exchange for allowing acquaintances to sleep with her, effectively turning the girl into a child prostitute.

In case after case, young girls caught up in such relationships have ended up being subjected to more serious abuse: beaten, driven hundreds of miles to be sexually abused by groups of men they barely know, set on fire. At least one has been murdered.

Other crimes identified in official investigations, including a damning 2014 report by Alexis Jay  recently named as the latest head of the Governments troubled inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse  have included rape with a broken bottle and girls being ordered to kiss perpetrators feet at gunpoint.

For the hundreds of victims, the trauma of such abuse was for years compounded by the apparent indifference of Rotherham Council, social services and police force to crimes happening under their nose.

Social workers first identified the problem of Asian gangs targeting troubled white girls in the late Nineties. But a climate of political correctness in the Labour-run town meant that they refused to take it seriously, for fear of being called racist.

Also, it is suspected that Labour politicians dont want to offend the Pakistani community, who form a sizeable proportion of their voters.

Over ensuing years, evidence was shamefully withheld from official inquiries. Reports detailing the problem, including a hard-hitting one in 2002 by a lawyer called Adele Weir, were buried by the authorities. Critical case files were lost or stolen, including a crucial tranche which disappeared from the office of a local youth charity called Risky Business in an unsolved burglary.

Even when underage girls approached the police or social workers for help, they were often dismissed as slags or  since they looked older than their years  treated as hardened prostitutes.

At times, the Labour council seemed almost complicit in abuse.

In 2013, its former deputy leader, Jahangir Akhtar, was forced to resign after it emerged that hed brokered a deal with police in which a violent offender whod impregnated a missing 14-year-old girl would go unpunished provided he handed her over at a petrol station.

The offender, who was later jailed for multiple child sex offences, turned out to be a relation of Akhtar.

When Jays highly critical report was published in 2014  tearing shreds out of council staff who were afraid to raise ethnic issues  for fear of being thought racist  Rotherham found itself caught up in a national scandal.

Since then, two major court cases have seen some of the worst offenders punished, with 12 men and two women convicted so far.

In one, which ended in February, six members of a gang led by three brothers  Arshid, Basharat and Banaras Hussain (aged 40, 39 and 36 respectively)  were jailed for a total of 102 years, after being found guilty of 52 offences against 15 teenage girls.

During the trial, jurors were told of a shocking incident when police discovered Banaras Hussain receiving oral sex from a teenage girl in a town centre car park, but ignored it.

When, shortly afterwards, a police car pulled up alongside them and asked what was going on, Banaras Hussain shouted Shes just sucking my c**k, mate. The police car drove off, the court was told.

A fortnight ago, another eight men were found guilty of 19 charges related to the abuse of three teenagers. The main complainant, now grown up, had been 13 years old when she was subjected to acts of a degrading and violent nature.

The ringleader, 30-year-old Sageer Hussain, was the brother of Arshid, Basharat and Banaras. He played a key role in befriending young girls who were then passed to his friends, elder brothers, and associates.

Girls like Katie (pictured) were among the 1,400 children abused in Rotherham over 16 years

Fast forward to last week and with the future of Child G, who is now in her late teens, at stake, Rotherham Council hired a QC, Frances Heaton, and a second junior barrister to argue that the four Asian men ought to continue to be prevented from contacting her.

Also in the family court that day were legal representatives of South Yorkshire Police, including Cathryn McGahey, a QC, and a second barrister, along with a second police barrister representing the vulnerable girl.

In addition to these publicly funded lawyers, there were also two journalists in court: one from The Times, the other from the Press Association.

No sooner had proceedings kicked off than Heaton, the counsel for Rotherham Council, asked for everyone apart from Child Gs barrister to be removed from the room  including, crucially, the journalists  so she could conduct a secret meeting with the judge.

This meeting, later chronicled in Mr Justice Cobbs ruling, saw Heaton announce that having considered with South Yorkshire Police the evidence filed for the final hearing, [her client] no longer considered it appropriate to pursue its applications for the injunctions.

In other words, having brought an extremely important case to court, at huge expense to the taxpayer, Rotherham Council was, at the last minute, seeking to drop it due to a supposed lack of evidence.

The Hussain brothers' uncle, Qurban Ali (left) from Rotherham was also found guilty of conspiracy to rape in February. Shelley Davies, (right) 40, was found guilty of conspiracy to procure prostitutes and false imprisonment

So what on Earth was going on?

It is hard to be entirely sure, though one possible explanation emerged after reporters were allowed back into court.

At this point, having abandoned its efforts to prevent the Asian men from seeing Child G, Rotherham Council said that it would like all four of them to be granted lifelong anonymity.

What is more, the council (supported by South Yorkshire police) wanted its arguments in support of this bid to be heard in private, with newspapers banned from reporting them.

Here, they were out of luck: Mr Justice Cobb said he regarded that level of secrecy, over a case which carried huge public interest, as unnecessary.

However, on the other count, Rotherham got its wish: on Tuesday, the judge controversially ruled that the mens identities should be kept secret for ever, on the grounds that naming them might lead to the identification of the girl.

Karen MacGregor (pictured) took in girls from children's homes in Rotherham purporting to give them a safe haven and support - only to then have them abused

The judge also said there was a risk that given the strength of feeling in Rotherham about those who engage in child sexual exploitation, they would be pilloried and/or targeted in their communities.

All of which means that Rotherham Council has just spent four days in court pursuing an extremely expensive legal case which had only one substantive outcome: preventing the Press from naming four Asian men suspected of inappropriate relations with a very vulnerable teenage girl.

No one is able to explain why they so suddenly abandoned their  on paper, very sensible  attempt to prevent the four men from ever contacting this Child G.

It is a shambolic state of affairs, which cost a huge sum and may have left the vulnerable girl more, rather than less, at risk than she was previously.

Significantly, in this context, the judge criticised a failure of collective responsibility by the police and the council to work in partnership on the case.

If they didnt have enough evidence even to try to pursue the case, or even to ask the judge to keep the four men away from this girl, why did they let it get so far? asks one observer of proceedings.

What was really going on? How much did this all cost? And why did they try to keep everything secret?

The truth is that its impossible to be entirely sure.

In a statement, Rotherham Council blamed the complex nature of such litigation, saying: Work with young people who are at risk of or experiencing child sexual exploitation is very complex, and solutions are often difficult to achieve, particularly where the young person is at the age of consent and is unable to recognise potentially exploitative situations.

One source with knowledge of proceedings says the bid to prevent the four Asian men contacting Child G was dropped because Rotherhams legal team discovered, as they were walking into court, that the councils request wouldnt be supported by South Yorkshire Police.

Quite why the councils in-house solicitors never bothered to speak about this with their colleagues from the police until moments before they turned up in court, I will never know, the source says.

Yet other, cynically minded observers wonder if the case was also dropped in order to avoid Press scrutiny.

Recent history in Rotherham certainly suggests a theme here.

For Rotherham Council has repeatedly smeared and undermined news organisations which have attempted to shed light on child sex grooming in the town.

The ugly scandal was first properly reported in 2010, by the Mails Sue Reid, who following a shocking court case in which five local men of Asian origin were jailed, wrote a report on the troubling taboo of such exploitation.

Disgracefully, Reid was called a liar and a racist, and accused of making up stories that had, in fact, been told to her by victims and their families.

In 2012, a number of police and social service files, detailing awful abuse of girls in Rotherham, were then published by The Times newspaper.

In response, South Yorkshire police accused the paper of exploiting victims.

Rotherham Council, for its part, had previously attempted to obtain a gagging order preventing a Times story from being published.

When that failed, they complained of a politically motivated attack on a Labour council by the Right-wing Press. They then launched an inquiry  not to examine its own misconduct, but to find and punish the source of the leak.

A report has found evidence of widespread abuse of vulnerable white underage girls in Rotherham by asian gangs, and a formidable failure by police and social services to protect the victims

It was not until August 2013, when The Times published the story of a girl called Jessica, who before her 16th birthday had been twice impregnated by a convicted criminal allowed daily contact with her by Rotherhams social services, that a proper investigation, the Jay Inquiry, was ordered.

With this in mind, the former Liberal Democrat MP John Hemming, who has campaigned against secrecy in the family courts, smells a rat about recent events.

Rotherham has a track record of trying to stifle Press scrutiny of what they are up to, and have often behaved as if their priority is covering their backs, rather than protecting children from sexual exploitation. Whatever their agenda in this particular case, they have spent an enormous amount of money on a legal process which achieved very little in terms of protecting a vulnerable girl.

Following the Jay Inquirys publication two years ago, council leader Roger Stone, chief executive Martin Kimber and director of childrens services Joyce Thacker all quit, and councillors resigned en masse.

South Yorkshires police and crime commissioner Shaun Wright, who had been councillor in charge of Rotherhams childrens services from 2005 to 2010, quit three weeks later.

Since then, massive resources have been put into hunting down the men who abused girls with impunity in Rotherham for so many years. A National Crime Agency operation, Operation Stovewood, expected to run for around eight years and costing 30 million, is pursuing 91 offences involving 82 victims. A total of 69 officers were said to be on the inquiry this summer, with funding for another 48 approved by the Home Office.

Their work is supposed to ensure that girls in Britain never suffer at the hands of such evil men again.
When Norah Wood (right), four, saw widower Dan Peterson (left), 82, alone in a supermarket in Georgia she said 'Hi old person!' Since then the two have developed a life-changing friendship

When Tara Wood brought her daughter to a Publix grocery store to buy the four-year-old some cupcakes, she had no idea she would be a life-changing experience.

As Tara pushed her daughter Norah around the store last month, she passed an older man who was by himself.

The old man looked stern and cold, until Norah shouted: 'Hi, old person! It's my birthday today!'

The man stopped and his demeanor changed from distant and serious to warm and friendly.

'How old are you today?' the man asked.

After some time together talking, Norah asked her mom to take a picture of her with her new friend, Dan 'Mr Dan' Peterson, 82.

They hugged and after ten minutes went their separate ways.

Tara posted the picture of her daughter and Mr Dan on Facebook and someone who recognized him reached out to her with his contact information.

It turned out Mr Dan's wife had died in March and he had been suffering from depression and anxiety ever since

But after connecting with Norah, Mr Dan's life has been changed and he said Norah has shown him a type of love he didn't know existed

It turned out Mr Dan's wife had died in March and he had been suffering from depression and anxiety ever since.

The person on Facebook told Tara it was the first time they had seen Mr Dan smile since the death of his wife.

Tara contacted Mr Dan, and ever since Norah and the 82-year-old have developed a friendship unlike any other.

'She has shown me a depth of love, a depth I didn't know existed,' Mr Dan told CNN.

Pictures on Tara's Facebook show the pair enjoying cupcakes together, exchanging stuffed animals and sharing lots of hugs.

Pictures on Norah's mom Tara Wood's Facebook show the pair enjoying cupcakes together, exchanging stuffed animals and sharing lots of hugs

For Mr Dan's 82nd birthday on October 20, the mother and daughter brought balloons and presents - and, of course, cupcakes

'If you just take the time to notice people, you never know how you can positively impact a life,' Tara Wood told CNN

Mr Dan told Tara that before meeting Norah, he hadn't had one night of uninterrupted sleep.

Anxiety kept him up at all hours and made him restless. After meeting Norah, he said he now sleeps soundly.

For Mr Dan's 82nd birthday on October 20, the mother and daughter brought balloons and presents - and, of course, cupcakes.

Mr Dan will also spend a day around Thanksgiving with Norah and her family.
As Chief Medical Officer, Dame Sally Davies advises the nation to walk more

As Chief Medical Officer, Dame Sally Davies advises the nation to walk more to stay healthy.

Yet while she urges the public to take every opportunity to get their steps in  using stairs instead of lifts, for example  figures show she spends thousands on taxis.

Dame Sally billed the taxpayer for 202 cab trips last year, some for less than a mile. Her bill for just over 5,000 on taxis and a chauffeur-driven car was higher than any other health service officials.

Dame Sally has repeatedly urged the nation to walk and take exercise to combat rising levels of obesity.

She recently advised adults to ditch online grocery shopping and walk to supermarkets, as carrying heavy bags would burn off more calories.

She has also told commuters to get off the bus two stops early and walk the rest of their journey, and to use stairs more.

Yet government records show that on several occasions in the past 12 months Dame Sally  who earns 215,000 a year  took a taxi for short journeys that would have taken 15 to 20 minutes on foot.

Last December, for example, she booked a cab to travel 0.7 miles from her office at the Department of Health in Whitehall to Somerset House on the Embankment. The journey would have taken 15 minutes to walk, burning off an average of 70 calories.

In January, she took a cab from her Whitehall office to Waterloo Station just across the Thames, a distance of 0.8 miles. The same journey would have taken a maximum of 16 minutes on foot, burning around 80 calories.

And in February she booked a taxi to travel 0.9 miles from the five-star Delaunay Restaurant back to her office. Campaigners accused her of being hypocritical and wasteful, saying she should practise what shes preached.

Records also show the Chief Medical Officer  who jogs two-and-a-half miles twice a week and describes herself as the nations doctor  routinely takes taxis for longer trips, avoiding public transport.

She spent 90 on one taxi ride in Sweden last September and sometimes takes up to five cabs a day.

NHS chief executive Simon Stevens has urged officials to think like a patient, act like a taxpayer.

Mr Stevens  who never spends public money on taxis  told staff two years ago to take public transport and avoid travelling first class.

Dame Sally, 66, racked up just under 27,000 in the 12 months to March on meals, hotels, business-class flights and cabs. Dame Sally is the highest-earning official in the Department of Health and her expenses dwarf those of her colleagues.

Tam Fry, of the National Obesity Forum, said: Role models should practise what they preach. It is unbelievable that anyone who champions health could justify taking a taxi on expenses for such short trips unless she is disabled.

John OConnell, of the TaxPayers Alliance, said: The hypocrisy of the high priests of the nanny state knows no bounds. We constantly see patronising taxpayer-funded campaigns telling us do more exercise and incorporate more walking, yet public health bosses seem reluctant to take their own advice.

Chris Snowdon, of the Institute of Economic Affairs, said: Charging the taxpayer for taxi journeys that could be made on foot is wasteful and hypocritical.

He added Dame Sallys message on exercise seems to be do as I say not as I do.

The Department of Health said: Unlike her predecessors, the Chief Medical Officer does not have an official car.
Children now face missing out on their local secondary school even if they live a few hundred yards away.

A baby boom is taking its toll on schools across the country, leaving them with far too many applications.

It is forcing them to tighten their catchment areas to the point where they reject children who live just a short walk away.

Children now face missing out on their local secondary school even if they live a few hundred yards away. Rockwood Academy in Birmingham (pictured) is so popular that it turns down anyone living more than 392 metres (429 yards) from the school

Rockwood Academy in Birmingham is so popular that it turns down anyone living more than 392 metres (429 yards) from the school.

Last year 793 pupils applied for its 120 places  the equivalent of almost seven for each seat.

This was despite it only being rated 'good' by the education watchdog, one down from the highest 'outstanding' grade.

It was also linked to the Trojan Horse scandal two years ago, which saw religious hardliners try to impose an Islamic agenda on the curriculum.

Meanwhile, Holte School in the city has a cut-off distance of 613 metres (670 yards), while Ark Isaac Newton Academy in North East London has one of 679 metres (743 yards).

A population bulge has caused overcrowding in primaries for a decade  and now the problem is moving up as pupils grow older.

A baby boom is taking its toll on schools across the country, leaving them with far too many applications. Denbigh High School in Luton (pictured) has to reject anyone living more than 718 metres (785 yards) away

The latest figures have been compiled through Freedom of Information requests by FindASchool, a service for parents. It is the first time statistics have been compiled that show the most difficult secondary schools to enter based on catchment.

Many of the most difficult secondary schools to get into are in areas that have experienced high migration, including Birmingham, London, Luton and Essex.

FindASchool spokesman Dominic Blackburn said: 'The demand for places in all schools is rising and the availability is not increasing at the same rate.

'Parents could find themselves getting a shock when secondary school places are allocated, especially if they just assume they will get into the good local school because they live close.

The data comes ahead of the deadline for secondary applications at the end of this month. Burnt Mill Academy in Essex (pictured) has a limit of 772 metres (844 yards)

'In some cases living more than 400 metres away could mean you are not accepted.'

The data comes ahead of the deadline for secondary applications at the end of this month.

Other schools with tiny catchment areas include Denbigh High School in Luton, which has to reject anyone living more than 718 metres (785 yards) away.

There is also Starbank School in Birmingham, which has a cut off distance of 785 metres (858 yards), and Burnt Mill Academy in Essex, which has a limit of 772 metres (844 yards).
Fixing every pothole on the nations roads would cost almost 12billion, council chiefs said yesterday.

The estimate is a third higher than in 2006 when the backlog of repair work stretched to 10.9 years.

It now stands at 14 years, according to the Local Government Association.

Town halls are calling on the Government to invest 1billion a year to bring roads up to scratch.

Town halls are calling on the Government to invest 1billion a year to bring roads up to scratch and fix damage causing potholes

In a submission to the Treasury for the autumn statement, they have asked Chancellor Philip Hammond to divert a 2p-a-litre slice of fuel duty revenue into road maintenance.

Polling by the LGA suggests that 83 per cent of people would support this idea.

It said harsh winters and decades of underfunding by successive governments had caused the backlog of repairs to spiral.

Martin Tett, the LGAs transport spokesman, said councils were trapped in a frustrating cycle of patching-up rather than carrying out proper resurfacing.

Our roads are deteriorating fast and it would take almost 12billion, and it could be nearly 2030, before we could bring them up to scratch and clear the repair backlog, he said.

Councils fixed a pothole every 15 seconds again last year despite significant budget reductions leaving them with less to spend on fixing our crumbling roads.

They share the frustration of motorists having to pay to drive on roads that are often inadequate. Our roads crisis is only going to get worse unless we address it as a national priority as part of the autumn statement.

Motorists pay billions to the Treasury each year in fuel duty when they fill up their car at the pumps only to then have to drive on roads that are decaying after decades of underfunding. They deserve roads fit for the 21st century.

The RAC Foundation revealed this month that motorists whose cars are being damaged by potholes on crumbling Third World roads are making a compensation claim to councils every 17 minutes.

Harsh winters and decades of underfunding by successive governments caused the backlog of repairs to spiral

But while the number of claims has risen by nearly 9 per cent, the money councils are paying out to hard-pressed motorists is falling.

The RAC said that last year drivers made at least 31,483 claims against local councils for potentially life-threatening vehicle damage.

Those claiming on insurance for damage caused by potholes face losing their no-claims bonus and other discounts.

The main damage is to the suspension and wheels. A cars alignment and tracking can also go awry. The LGA also said inadequate roads were putting businesses at a competitive disadvantage.

It estimates that 27,000 per mile is invested in local roads maintained by councils. In contrast, the Government plans to invest more than 1.1million a mile in national roads, which make up just 3 per cent of the countrys roads.
to close UK plants in favour of France and Spain

Nissan threatened to close its operations in the UK unless it received guarantees that it would not lose out from Brexit, it was claimed last night.

The Japanese car giant warned ministers that production would be switched to plants in France and Spain unless they gave assurances that its competitive position would not be damaged by Britain leaving the EU, it was reported.

The move could have led to the closure of the firms flagship plant in Sunderland, costing 7,000 jobs and creating a political crisis for the Government.

Nissan's relocation could have led to the closure of the firms flagship plant in Sunderland (pictured), costing 7,000 jobs and creating a political crisis for the Government

It was averted after Theresa May agreed support and assurances with Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn this month, which were formalised by Business Secretary Greg Clark in a letter following further talks in Japan, sources told the Financial Times.

Nissan and No 10 both denied that the potential closure of Sunderland was discussed directly by Mrs May and Mr Ghosn.

But the revelations about Nissans hardball tactics will fuel speculation about the nature of the guarantees offered by Britain.

Mr Clark is now set to be hauled before MPs over Labour claims he offered bribes to Nissan to stay in the UK. Mr Clark did not deny he had offered written assurances to the firm in a letter. But he told BBC Question Time that no financial favours were offered, insisting: Theres no cheque book. I dont have a cheque book.

The car manufacturer announced on Thursday it will increase production at its flagship Sunderland plant. The investment, which will see the new Qashqai and X-Trail models built in the North East, was hailed by Mrs May as a major boost for the economy.

It will also secure the future of the plant and see production expand.

But ministers were last night under mounting pressure to come clean about the exact nature of the promises made to the company.

Labour business spokesman Clive Lewis said: Public chaos and secret backroom deals are not going to sustain business confidence.

The car manufacturer announced on Thursday it will increase production at its flagship Sunderland plant. The investment, which will see the new Qashqai (pictured) and X-Trail models built in the North East

Does the Government have an industrial strategy or is the plan just to hand out bribes?

Iain Wright, Labour chairman of the Commons business committee, welcomed the Nissan deal, but said Mr Clark would be summoned to explain what inducements were offered to the firm.

He said: In terms of transparency, in respect of how Government will intervene and provide that reassurance and support, I do think thats important.

But Downing Street said there was no compensation package offered to Nissan, adding that there was nothing about tariffs in the assurances offered to the firm. Nissan also denied it had received any sort of special deal from the Government.

But former business minister Anna Soubry, who had extensive dealings with Nissan until she was sacked this summer, said she would be very surprised if the firm had acted without guarantees that the Government would offset any tariffs.

Miss Soubry, an outspoken supporter of EU membership, said she met Nissan on June 30, a week after the Brexit vote, and that the company expressed profound concerns, about tariffs, and had suggested production could be relocated to a Renault plant in France.

They made it very clear that without a guarantee that they would not be subject to tariffs or if they were subject to tariffs the Government would do something to mitigate the damage of tariffs, she added.

The crisis was averted after Theresa May agreed support and assurances with Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn this month, which were formalised by Business Secretary Greg Clark

Without that, they told me, my understanding actually was that they would go to Renault because they clearly had the capacity there.

No 10 refused to confirm that assurances to Nissan were written down in a letter.

A spokesman said only that ministers used all forms of communication to discuss Nissans concerns.

But it is understood Mr Clark did offer written assurances to the firm ahead of this weeks announcement.
Britain will open its first permanent military base in the Middle East in over four decades next month.

The multi-million-pound Royal Navy facility in Bahrain will house up to 600 UK military personnel.

HMS Juffair, which will be opened by Prince Charles, will become the staging-post for Britain in the Middle East and is designed to assert influence over the Gulf.

Britain will open its first permanent military base in the Middle East in over four decades next month in Bahrains Mina Salman Port (pictured)

It is Britains first new permanent military base in the Middle East since 1971.

Bahrain has paid most of the 30million-plus cost, with the UK contributing around 7.5million.

It will protect ships bringing oil and gas through the Strait of Hormuz. In 2012, Iran threatened to close the strait in response to international sanctions.

Although it is too shallow for Britains new 6.2billion aircraft carriers, the base will be used by special forces and by Navy destroyers, frigates and minehunters to fight extremists in the region and launch missions against Islamic State.

Diplomatic sources said: The project could save the Ministry of Defence millions because they wont have to travel back to the UK.

The base was offered to former secretary Philip Hammond in 2012 to store equipment and launch deadly top-secret missions from.

The opening comes as the UK is pushing to strengthen economic and military ties in the region.

It will be used as a forward operating base and a place to plan, store equipment for naval operations and accommodate Navy personnel, as well as troops from the other services.

One of the main reasons for the base is for it to be part of a contingency operation in case any country tries to block UK commercial ships from passing through the Straits of Hormuz.

The ships carrying oil and gas from countries such as Qatar pass through the heavily-trafficked waterway every 48 hours.

The opening comes as the UK is pushing to strengthen economic and military ties in the region. The Iranian warship Alborz is pictured patrolling the Strait of Hormuz last year.

The shipping waterway connects the Persian Gulf to the rest of the world and Iran regards its proximity to the channel as a key strategic asset and has become a flashpoint for Tehran and Washington.

A Navy source said: If we miss out on too much oil and gas then the lights will start to go out. He said Britain would start to feel the effects as soon as two weeks.

Ships can also be repaired at the base in Bahrains Mina Salman Port.

In 2014 when the project began, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said: This new base is a permanent expansion of the Royal Navys footprint.

It will enable Britain to send more and larger ships to reinforce stability in the Gulf.

Its creation has prompted concerns from human rights campaigners who have said the ruling family in Bahrain is overseeing an on-going crackdown on human rights and freedom of expression.

An MoD spokesman said: It will provide a permanent expansion of the Ministry of Defences presence in the Gulf and to support current, on-going and future operations.
This is the shocking moment a woman brutally slaps a member of staff at a Chinese airport who told her she could not carry oversize baggage on board.

According to the People's Daily Online, the incident took place on October 27 at Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport.

A female passenger confessed to the beating and was detained for seven days and fined 200 yuan (24.23).

Shocking: The woman viciously slaps the security officer leaving her temporarily deaf

Furious rage: The pair were seen arguing before the passenger attacked her

According to reports, the female passenger surnamed Zhang was carrying a large suitcase and insisted on taking it onboard with her.

She told the security officer that she had to take a flight to Harbin while her children and the nanny were catching a flight to Shenzhen.

The female officer told her that she should check in her bag as it was oversized.

When she was told this, the passenger forcibly slapped the security officer.

When the female security officer told her she was not allowed, the woman forcibly slapped her.

The security officer had refused to allow her to carry oversize baggage onto the plane

Painful slap: The security officer was temporarily deafened by the slap and taken to hospital

Horrifying: The passenger was detained for seven days and ordered to pay a fine

The security officer was temporarily deafened by the slap and was taken to hospital by colleagues.

In the footage the passenger can be seen talking with the security officer before suddenly Zhang slaps the officer.

The video has shocked internet users on China's social media site Weibo.

One user commented: 'The young woman suffers temporary deafness and yet the woman was detained for a week and fined 200 yuan? It's not fair.'

While another said: 'Why did she hit the staff? She can just buy a ticket for her luggage.'
A former Pixar executive who won the first ever Oscar for software is taking over a U.S. government agency responsible for improving federal digital technology.

Rob Cook, whose credits include 'Toy Story' and 'Toy Story 2,' will become commissioner of the Technology Transformation Service on Oct. 31.

He will have top secret security clearance.

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Rob Cook poses backstage with Loren Carpenter, not seen, with his Oscar for significant advancements to the field of motion picture rendering as exemplified in Pixar's 'Renderman,' at the 73rd annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles. Cook is taking over a U.S. government agency responsible for improving federal digital technology.

WHAT WILL HE DO? Cook will run the Technology Transformation Service, part of the U.S. General Services Administration. It was created in April to 'transform the way government builds, buys and shares technology.' It includes '18F,' a Silicon Valley-style startup for government digital projects that was the subject of a highly critical review by the agency's inspector general over its financial losses of $32 million and lack of viable financial planning, among other issues. Advertisement

Cook is credited with advancements in software-driven animation.

He said in a statement that the U.S. needs first-rate technology expertise, effective relationships with industry and partnerships throughout government.

He declined, through a spokesman, to speak to The Associated Press. Cook's appointment was for three years.

He has been a Democratic donor to the campaigns of President Barack Obama and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

The technology Transformation Service is part of the U.S. General Services Administration.

It was created in April to 'transform the way government builds, buys and shares technology.'

Cook joined Pixar in 1981 when it was part of Lucasfilm and was the primary author of Pixar's RenderMan software, which creates photo-realistic computer images for animation, effects and design. It has been used in 19 of the last 20 films to win Oscars for visual effects.

It includes '18F,' a Silicon Valley-style startup for government digital projects that was the subject of a highly critical review by the agency's inspector general over its financial losses of $32 million and lack of viable financial planning, among other issues.

Cook will also oversee investments, acquisitions and the presidential innovation fellows program, among other offices.

Cook joined Pixar in 1981 when it was part of Lucasfilm and was the primary author of Pixar's RenderMan software, which creates photo-realistic computer images for animation, effects and design.

It has been used in 19 of the last 20 films to win Oscars for visual effects.

Cook later started a digital imaging company and headed a software company he sold to Microsoft, before returning to Pixar as vice president of software development.

Since 2012, he has been a business consultant to prominent Silicon Valley companies.

'Rob's renowned experience, both as a software developer and in cultivating innovative teams throughout his career, are incredible additions to our long-term goal of enhancing the way government uses technology to deliver world-class services for citizens,' Tony Scott, the U.S. chief information officer, said in a statement.

Cook won an Oscar in 2001 for software and in 2009 an award for a lifetime of contributions to computer graphics from a computer professionals group.
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New high-resolution images taken by a NASA orbiter show parts of the doomed Schiaparelli lander and its landing site in colour on the Red Planet.

Last week, the lander came close to creating history by becoming the first European spacecraft to land on the surface of Mars.

But something went wrong with Schiaparelli during its landing and the robot plummeted towards the surface much faster than planned

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The new image of Schiaparelli and its hardware components was taken by NASAs Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, or MRO, on 1 November. A number of the bright white spots around the dark region interpreted as the impact site are now confirmed as real objects  they are not likely to be imaging noise  and therefore are most likely fragments of Schiaparelli.

THE EXOMARS MISSION The main goal of ExoMars is to find out if life has ever existed on Mars. The spacecraft on which the Schiaparelli travelled to Mars, Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO), carries an probe to study trace gases such as methane around the planet. Scientists believe methane, a chemical that on Earth is strongly tied to life. The second part of the ExoMars mission, delayed to 2020, will deliver a rover to Mars' surface. It will be the first with the ability to both move across the planet's surface and drill into the ground to collect and analyse samples. Schiaparelli was designed to test technologies for the rover's landing in four years. Advertisement

The new image of Schiaparelli and its hardware components was taken by NASAs Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, or MRO, on 1 November.

The main impact site is now captured in the central portion of the swath that is imaged by the high-resolution camera through three filters, enabling a colour image to be constructed.

In addition, the image of 1 November was taken looking slightly to the west, while the earlier image was looking to the east, providing a contrasting viewing geometry.

The European Space Agency said the latest image set sheds new light on some of the details that could only be speculated from the first look last week.

A number of the bright white spots around the dark region interpreted as the impact site are confirmed as real objects  they are not likely to be imaging noise  and therefore are most likely fragments of Schiaparelli.

Interestingly, a bright feature can just be made out in the place where the dark crater was identified in last weeks image.

This may be associated with the module, but the images so far are not conclusive.

A bright fuzzy patch revealed in the colour image alongside the dark streaks to the west of the crater could be surface material disturbed in the impact or from a subsequent explosion or explosive decompression of the modules fuel tanks, for example.

A stereo reconstruction of this image in the future will also help to confirm the orientation of the rear heatshield.

The pattern of bright and dark patches suggest it is sitting such that we see the outside of the heatshield and the signature of the way in which the external layer of insulation has burned away in some parts and not others  as expected.

Finally, the front heatshield has been imaged again in black and white  its location falls outside of the colour region imaged by MRO  and shows no changes.

THE DOOMED LANDER'S PARACHUTE SPOTTED BLOWING IN THE WIND About 0.9 km to the south, the parachute and rear heatshield have also now been imaged in colour. In the time that has elapsed since the last image was taken on 25 October, the outline of the parachute has changed. The most logical explanation is that it has been shifted in the wind, in this case slightly to the west. This phenomenon was also observed by MRO in images of the parachute used by NASAs Curiosity rover. About 0.9 km to the south, the parachute and rear heatshield have also now been imaged in colour. Advertisement

Because of the different viewing geometry between the two image sets, this confirms that the bright spots are not specular reflections, and must therefore be related to the intrinsic brightness of the object.

That is, it is most likely the bright multilayer thermal insulation that covers the inside of the front heatshield, as suggested last week.

Further imaging is planned in about two weeks, and it will be interesting to see if any further changes are noticed.

The images may provide more pieces of the puzzle as to what happened to Schiaparelli as it approached the martian surface.

Following its successful atmospheric entry and subsequent slowing due to heatshield and parachute deceleration, the internal investigation into the root cause of the problems encountered by Schiaparelli in the latter stages of its six-minute descent continues.

An independent inquiry board has been initiated.

This image shows the area where Schiaparelli reached the surface of Mars, with magnified insets of three sites where components of the spacecraft hit the ground. The zoomed insets provide close-up views of what are thought to be several different hardware components associated with the modules descent, including the heatshield and parachute

Esa lost communication with Schiaparelli shortly before the probe was supposed to touch down last Wednesday.

Two days later, pictures captured by Nasa's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter showed a a fuzzy black spot at the landing site  indicating the probe may have exploded.

The latest images indicate that Schiaparelli dug a crater nearly 20 inches (50cm) deep and about 7.9 feet (2.4 m) across when it hit the surface at a speed of more than 186 mph (300 kph).

The agency said it's still analysing asymmetrical dark markings around the site, which suggest the craft's propellant tanks exploded largely in one direction.

Mark McCaughrean, a senior science adviser at the European Space Agency, said data received from Schiaparelli before the crash indicate that the probe may have become confused in the final moments before the crash.

'Fundamentally there's a software issue here between the radar and the on-board computer system,' he said. 'The radar was giving inconsistent info on where it was.'

This led the probe, which was following a pre-programmed descent because the distance prevented it from being controlled in real time, to assume that it was already on the surface.

Data sent back to Earth show that Schiaparelli's thrusters, which were meant to slow it down before the final landing, only fired briefly.

A final report on the crash is likely to be completed next month, said McCaughrean.

'Everybody would like to do it quickly, but you have to get it right.'

Scientists hope that by analysing the data they will be able to avoid the ExoMars 2020 lander from meeting the same fate as Schiaparelli and Europe's Beagle 2 probe, which landed on Mars in 2003 but failed to deploy its solar panels properly, preventing it from functioning.

Only Nasa has successfully performed robotic landings on Mars, most recently in 2012 with the Curiosity rover.

The landing site of the Schiaparelli module within the predicted landing ellipse in a mosaic of images from the Context Camera (CTX) on Nasa's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) on Nasa's 2001 Mars Odyssey orbiter

This pair of before-and-after images, taken by the CTX camera on 29 May 2016 (left) and 20 October 2016 (right), respectively. The 20 October image shows two new features appearing following the arrival of the Schiaparelli test lander module on the martian surface on 19 October

WHAT WENT WRONG DURING SCHIAPARELLI'S LANDING The main engine burn of the Trace Gas Orbiter started at 2:05 PM BST (9:05 AM ET). Atmospheric entry of the Schiaparelli lander was supposed to start at 15:42 BST (10:42 ET),, and landing was at 15:48 BST (10:48 ET). Initially slowed by the friction on its heat shield, the probe was meant to deploy its parachute at altitude of about 6.8 miles (11km). It deployed the parachute slightly early, but this would not have been a problem if everything else had gone to plan. As it neared the ground, three clusters of retro rockets were to be fired, which would have slowed the craft's speed to less than 4.3 mph (7km/h) 6.5ft (two metres) from the surface. The rockets should have switched off after about 30 seconds, allowing the probe to drop the rest of the way. but the rocket only fired for 3 to 4 seconds, meaning the probe was still travelling at 186 mph (300 kph). A special crushable structure built into the spacecraft would have cushioned against the final shock if it had been travelling more slowly. But instead the lander crashed and likely exploded on the surface of the planet. The landing site is Meridiani Planum, a flat region that interests scientists because it contains an ancient layer of haematite. Atmospheric entry of the Schiaparelli lander started at 15:42 BST (10:42 ET),, and landing was at 15:48 BST (10:48 ET). Initially slowed by the friction on its heat shield, the probe deployed its parachute at altitude of about 6.8 miles (11km) Advertisement

The white dot in this image (pictured bottom right) is likely the parachute used as part of the Schiaparellis descent, ESA flight operations manager Michel Denis confirmed. The other new feature is a fuzzy dark patch (top right) that is thought to be the crash site, located about 1km (0.62 miles) north of the parachute

THE FAILED MISSIONS TO MARS: BEAGLE 2 AND OTHER LOST LANDERS An artist's impression showing how the Beagle 2 landing craft may look once it landed on Mars The only previous European Space Agency (Esa) spacecraft to attempt a Mars landing was the ill-fated British-built Beagle 2 on Christmas Day in 2003. After separating from the Mars Express orbiter that carried it to the red Planet, Beagle 2 was not heard from again. It was not until 2015 that scientists discovered the Beagle had landed, but could not communicate after failing to deploy solar panels. Esa isn't the only space agency to lose a spacecraft on the way to Mars. Part of Nasa's Mariner mission, the Mariner 8 was supposed to send images and data back from the red planet. Instead, a launch failure in 1971 meant that it ended up in the Atlantic Ocean without making it into space. In 1999, Nasa's Mars Climate Orbiter disintegrated in the Martian atmosphere. The space probe ventured to close to the atmosphere following a software programming error. Following the successful launch the Sputnik satellite, the Soviets attempted to send the Mars1M to the red planet in 1960m but a technical failure shortly after take off meant that it broke up before it reached orbit, and a second launch, the Mars 1M No. 2, also failed. In 1962, the Sputnik 22 probe, was lost in low Earth orbit, while both Sputnik 23 and and 24 also failed to make it to Mars. In 1969, the Soviets' Mars 1969A exploded shortly after launch over the Altai Mountains. A month later, the Mars 1969B suffered a similar fate, crashing back to the ground just 41 seconds after launch. In 1971, the Kosmos 419 also failed to make it out of low Earth orbit. Later that year, the Soviets' Mars 2 lander made it to the red planet but crashed and was lost. A series of failures followed, ending with Mars 7. After launching in 2011, China's Yinghuo-1, which was the country's first and only attempt at reaching Mars, failed to make it out of Earth orbit and eventually broke up over the POacific Ocean. In 1998, Japan launched the Nozomi probe, which made it to Mars in 2003, but failed to make it into Martian orbit. Contact was later lost. Advertisement

The ExoMars 2016 entry, descent, and landing demonstrator module, known as Schiaparelli, was expected to land on Mars in a region known as Meridiani Planum, pictured. The landing sites of the seven rovers and landers that have reached the surface of Mars and successfully operated there are indicated on this map

Initially slowed by the friction on its heat shield, the probe was meant to deploy its parachute at altitude of about 6.8 miles (11km)

Atmospheric entry of the Schiaparelli lander was supposed to start at 15:42 BST (10:42 ET), and landing was at 15:48 BST (10:48 ET).

Initially slowed by the friction on its heat shield, the probe was meant to deploy its parachute at altitude of about 6.8 miles (11km).

It deployed the parachute slightly early, but this would not have been a problem if everything else had gone to plan.

As it neared the ground, three clusters of retro rockets were to be fired, which would have slowed the craft's speed to less than 4.3 mph (7km/h) 6.5ft (two metres) from the surface.

The rockets should have switched off after about 30 seconds, allowing the probe to drop the rest of the way. but the rocket only fired for 3 to 4 seconds, meaning the probe was still travelling at 186 mph (300 kph).

A special crushable structure built into the spacecraft would have cushioned against the final shock if it had been travelling more slowly.

But instead the lander crashed and likely exploded on the surface of the planet.

The landing site is Meridiani Planum, a flat region that interests scientists because it contains an ancient layer of haematite.

Although the lander crashed, the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) completed its difficult mission - it only had one chance to be captured by Mars' gravity and go into orbit.

Controllers confirmed Schiaparelli's mothership, the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, was back in contact with Earth after a successful manoeuvre to enter orbit around Mars, and is working perfectly and in a 'perfect orbit'.

The Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) probe will tell scientists whether Martian methane is most likely to have a geological or biological origin.

On Earth, the gas is chiefly generated by billions of bacteria, many of which live in the guts of animals such as cows.

But it can also be released by the breakdown of organic molecules deep underground or volcanic activity.

The rockets should have switched off after about 30 seconds, allowing the probe to drop the rest of the way. but the rocket only fired for 3 to 4 seconds, meaning the probe was still travelling at 186 mph (300 kph)

SCHIAPARELLI'S INSTRUMENTS Schiaparelli carries a small science payload, called DREAMS (Dust Characterisation, Risk Assessment, and Environment Analyser on the Martian Surface), to study the environment. DREAMS consists of a suite of sensors to measure the local wind speed and direction (MetWind), humidity (DREAMS-H), pressure (DREAMS-P), atmospheric temperature close to the surface (MarsTem), the transparency of the atmosphere (Solar Irradiance Sensor, SIS), and atmospheric electric fields (Atmospheric Radiation and Electricity Sensor; MicroARES) at Mars. The payload will operate on the surface of Mars for 28 Martian solar days. Schiaparelli carries a small science payload, called DREAMS (Dust Characterisation, Risk Assessment, and Environment Analyser on the Martian Surface), to study the environment. DREAMS consists of a suite of sensors to measure the local wind speed and direction (MetWind), humidity (DREAMS-H), pressure (DREAMS-P), atmospheric temperature close to the surface (MarsTem), the transparency of the atmosphere (Solar Irradiance Sensor, SIS), and atmospheric electric fields at Mars Advertisement

Schiaparelli separated from the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) three days before arriving at Mars. Artist's impression of the TGO (left) separating from Schiaparelli (right). Twelve hours after separation, the TGO performed a course correction to avoid entering the atmosphere, and continued into Mars orbit

TRACE GAS ORBITER - THE INSTRUMENTS ON BOARD THE 'MOTHERSHIP' The Trace Gas Orbiter carries a science payload of four instruments: NOMAD, ACS, FREND and CaSSIS The Trace Gas Orbiter carries a science payload of four instruments: NOMAD  Nadir and Occultation for MArs Discovery NOMAD combines three spectrometers, two infrared and one ultraviolet, to perform high-sensitivity orbital identification of atmospheric components, including methane and many other species, via both solar occultation and direct reflected-light nadir observations. ACS Atmospheric Chemistry Suite This suite of three infrared instruments will help scientists to investigate the chemistry and structure of the Martian atmosphere. ACS will complement NOMAD by extending the coverage at infrared wavelengths, and by taking images of the Sun to better analyse the solar occultation data. CaSSIS  Colour and Stereo Surface Imaging System A high resolution camera (5 metres per pixel) capable of obtaining colour and stereo images over a wide swathe. CaSSIS will provide the geological and dynamical context for sources or sinks of trace gases detected by NOMAD and ACS. FREND  Fine Resolution Epithermal Neutron Detector This neutron detector will map hydrogen on the surface down to a metre deep, revealing deposits of water-ice near the surface. FRENDs mapping of shallow subsurface water ice will be up to 10 times better than existing measurements. Source: ESA Advertisement

Michel Denis, French ExoMars Flight Director, works in the main control room of the European Space Agency (ESA) prior to the expected landing

Engineers stand in the main control room of the European Space Agency (ESA) prior to the expected landing of the decent modul Schiaparelli of European-Russian ExoMars 2016 mission
European watchdogs have sent letters to WhatsApp and Yahoo over privacy concerns about user data, they revealed today.

Whatsapp has been questioned over of its sharing of information with parent company Facebook.

At the same time, Yahoo has been contacted over a 2014 data breach and its scanning of customer emails for US intelligence purposes.

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European watchdogs have sent letters to WhatsApp over of its sharing of information with parent company Facebook. This was its first change in policy since Facebook bought the messaging service two years ago

WHATSAPP'S DATA SHARING Whatsapp has been questioned over of its sharing of information with parent company Facebook. The move was a subtle but significant shift for the messaging app, which has long promised to safeguard the privacy of more than one billion users around the world. In September WhatsApp started 'coordinating' accounts with Facebook by sharing users' mobile phone numbers. The two share device information, such as the type of operating system and other smartphone characteristics. Facebook uses the phone number internally to better identify WhatsApp users on Facebook. This means it can recommend friends or show targeted advertising. The ads would come through a Facebook program called 'Custom Audiences'. Advertisement

European Union data protection authorities expressed serious concerns about WhatsApp's recent change in privacy policy in which it would share users' phone numbers with Facebook.

This was its first change in policy since Facebook bought the messaging service two years ago.

The move was a subtle but significant shift for the messaging app, which had long promised to safeguard the privacy of more than one billion users around the world.

WhatsApp has started 'coordinating' accounts with Facebook by sharing users' mobile phone numbers.

They will also share device information, such as the type of operating system and other smartphone characteristics.

Facebook uses the phone number internally to better identify WhatsApp users on Facebook.

The authorities, known as the Article 29 Working Party, 'requested WhatsApp to communicate all relevant information to the Working Party as soon as possible and urged the company to pause the sharing of users' data until the appropriate legal protections could be assured.'

A spokeswoman for WhatsApp said the company was working with data protection authorities to address their questions.

'We've had constructive conversations, including before our update, and we remain committed to respecting applicable law,' she said.

A recent Amnesty report, published last week, ranked 11 companies that run the world's most popular messaging apps, including Skype, Snapchat and Facebook Messenger

MESSAGING APPS' PRIVACY In a report published last week, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger were declared the most secure messaging apps to use, according to a new report by Amnesty International. However, security experts dispute exactly how safe they are. The Amnesty report ranked 11 companies that run the world's most popular messaging apps, including Skype, Snapchat and Facebook Messenger. The human rights charity looked at how the firms protect users' privacy and their freedom of expression. The organisation based its rankings not on testing, but on privacy and security information that it requested from the 11 tech firms. From those approached, three of the firms - BlackBerry, Google and Tencent - did not respond, says Amnesty. Advertisement

The watchdogs also wrote to Yahoo over a massive data breach that exposed the email credentials of 500 million users, as well as its scanning of customers' incoming emails for specific information provided by US intelligence officials.

The hackers are believed to have grabbed names, email addresses, phone numbers, birthdays, encrypted passwords and the 'unencrypted' security questions and answers of its 500 million users.

The authorities asked the company to communicate all aspects of the data breach to the EU authorities, to notify the affected users of the 'adverse effects' and to cooperate with all 'upcoming national data protection authorities' enquiries and/or investigations.

'Yahoo was invited to provide information on the legal basis and the compatibility with EU law of any such activity,' the watchdogs said in a statement regarding the email scanning.

The Yahoo and WhatsApp cases will be discussed by regulators in November.

WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger were declared the most secure messaging apps to use, according to a new report by Amnesty International, but Electronic Frontier Foundation thinks that the apps could be even more secure

YAHOO THEFT: THE 'BIGGEST HACK IN HISTORY' Cyber-thieves have stolen the details of 500 million Yahoo users in the biggest hack in history - but the internet giant has admitted it happened in 2014 and that it did not notice. Critics called on its boss Marissa Mayer to quit after it emerged last month the business was warned of the hack around two months before it confirmed it. The hackers are believed to have grabbed names, email addresses, phone numbers, birthdays, encrypted passwords and the 'unencrypted' security questions and answers of its 500 million users. The hackers are reportedly selling the stolen data on the 'dark web' for just 3 bitcoin - around $1,800 (1,470) - and the 'treasure trove of secrets' could be used to defraud or blackmail money from Yahoo users or even steal their identities. Yahoo claims that its 500 million users' card details and bank account details are safe and says the hack was 'state-sponsored' but refused to name the country. Advertisement

This news comes as lawmakers in the US have expressed concern over the future safety of US citizens' data.

A group of lawmakers in Congress has asked the Justice Department to clarify how a looming rule change to the government's hacking powers could impact privacy rights of innocent Americans.

The change, due to take place on 1 December, would let judges issue search warrants for remote access to computers located in any jurisdiction, potentially including foreign countries.
A network of treatment centres in Germany is looking to reduce the devastating impact of childhood sexual abuse by pre-empting offenders and offering them treatment.

Adverts being shown on German television and online are targeting potential offenders who are sexually attracted to children, urging them to get help before they act.

Called 'Don't Offend', the project is run at 11 centres throughout the country and has provided treatment to hundreds and information to thousands.

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A controversial programme offered at 11 centres across Germany targets men sexually attracted to children. The therapy teaches men to develop strategies to stop themselves from acting on their tendencies or watching child pornography (stock image used)

In one advert, a man looks with interest at the child sitting in front of him on a train, as a voice asks off-screen: 'Do you like children in ways that you shouldn't?'

'Help is available,' adds the advertisement broadcast on German television and over the internet, advertising the unique therapy programme called 'Kein Taeter werden', offered at Berlin's top university hospital, Charite.

Launched more than a decade ago, the largely publicly funded project calls on paedophiles to undertake a treatment that helps them control their urges.

To date, more than 7,000 people have sought information on the programme which is offered in 11 centres across Germany, including Berlin, Hamburg and Dusseldorf.

Launched more than a decade ago, the largely publicly funded project calls on paedophiles to undertake a treatment that helps them control their urges and avoid offending, which can devastate lives (stock image)

A TREATMENT FOR PAEDOPHILES? Germany's top University hospital Charite is offering a treatment for paedophiles. It uses adverts on TV and online to target people who are sexually attracted to children, urging them to seek treatment before they offend. The treatment is available at 11 centres across Germany and has treated hundreds of patients in over a decade. The head of the programme states that the condition is 'not curable' but that it can be treated. Patients are taught to develop strategies to stop themselves from acting on their tendencies or watching child pornography. The programme also teaches patients to have empathy for potential victims. Advertisement

The approach is unique as it deals with potential sex criminals, or those who have already committed abuses but have managed to escape justice.

Other programmes deal with convicted paedophiles who have also been issued specific orders to seek medical care.

But those heading up the project are clear to state that while the therapy may prevent, it can not cure paedophiles.

'Paedophilia is not curable,' said Klaus Beier, who leads the prevention network as well as Charite's sexual medicine institute.

'But it can be treated,' he added, stressing that 'a paedophile can learn to control his urges.'

The project is grounded on the principle that sexual attraction to children is a medical problem, and as Beier said, 'not a crime' until the urge is acted upon.

Hundreds of people have been involved with the programme. Of these, 659 have undertaken the therapy, with 251 completing the entire programme.

Another 265 are currently being given treatment either in group or individual sessions.

Paedophilia is not curable ... but it can be treated

The World Health Organization too classifies paedophilia as a 'sexual preference disorder'.

Over one or two years, during two-hour sessions every week, the patient is taught to develop strategies to stop himself from acting on his tendencies or from consuming child pornography.

The programme - which targets 'people seeking therapeutic help with their sexual preference for children and/or early adolescents' - also helps the patient to acquire a level of empathy towards potential victims, which could go towards dissuading them from hurting youngsters.

The patient can choose to remain anonymous throughout the treatment, even with their therapist, and at the end of the programme, they can request follow-ups.

Medical help, such as chemical castration, is also offered on a voluntary basis.

Scientists from around the world including countries in North America as well as Switzerland and India, have been watching the project with interest.

The treatment is available at 11 centres across Germany (see map) and has treated hundreds of patients in over a decade

Adverts being shown on German television and online are targeting potential offenders who are sexually attracted to children, urging them to get help before they act

'In France, we are still at the starting point on creating a programme that is similar to Germany's,' said a psychiatrist at France's health and medical research institute Inserm, Serge Stoleru.

He said the response from authorities had been that 'paedophilia is a tricky subject.'

But even in Germany, the therapy programme is controversial.

Not only is there strong societal pressure against the programme, Beier said that even in the pharmaceutical world, there is 'great reticence' towards developing medicine for paedophiles that could take effect rapidly.

However, Jerome Braun, who leads a child protection foundation called Hansel and Gretel that co-funds the therapy programme, said that prevention work must not only be targeted at bringing awareness to potential victims in kindergartens or schools.

'It should also look at potential criminals because each act prevented is a child saved,' he said.
At first glance, you would be forgiven for mistaking this strange glowing object as a bouncy ball.

But the intricate sphere has much more to it than meets the eye.

The object is really a 3D-printed cosmic microwave background - a map of the oldest light in the universe - which researchers say could give us clues on how our universe first formed.

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The object is a 3D-printed cosmic microwave background - a map of the oldest light in the universe - which researchers say could give us clues on how our universe first formed

THE COSMIC MICROWAVE BACKGROUND The cosmic microwave background (CMB) is a glow that the universe has in the microwave range that maps the oldest light. It was imprinted when the universe first became transparent, instead of an opaque fog of plasma and radiation. The CMB formed when the universe was only 380,000 years old - very early on in its now 13.8 billion-year history. Advertisement

The cosmic microwave background (CMB) is a glow that the universe has in the microwave range that maps the oldest light..

It was imprinted when the universe first became transparent, instead of an opaque fog of plasma and radiation.

The CMB formed when the universe was only 380,000 years old - very early on in its now 13.8 billion-year history.

Detailed maps of the CMB have been previously created using the Planck satellite - a space observatory operated by the European Space Agency from 2009 to 2013.

These tell astronomers more about the early universe and the formation of structures, such as galaxies, within.

But more detailed maps are becoming increasingly difficult to view and explore.

To address this issue, researchers from Imperial College, London have created the plans for a 3D-printed CMB.

Dr Dave Clements, who led the study, said: 'Presenting the CMB in a truly 3D form, that can be held in the hand and felt rather than viewed, has many potential benefits for teaching and outreach work, and is especially relevant for those with a visual disability.

Detailed maps of the CMB have been previously created using the Planck satellite - a space observatory operated by the European Space Agency from 2009 to 2013

'Differences in the temperature of the CMB relate to different densities, and it is these that spawned the formation of structure in the universe - including galaxies, galaxy clusters and superclusters.

'Representing these differences as bumps and dips on a spherical surface allows anyone to appreciate the structure of the early universe.

'For example, the famous "CMB cold spot", an unusually low temperature region in the CMB, can be felt as a small but isolated depression.'

The researchers have made the files for the 3D-printed CMB readily available for others to create their own.
Facebook is testing yet another new feature that looks very similar to its rival Snapchat.

A new camera icon has appeared in the app that lets users take selfies and videos and add lively filters, effects and masks.

These creations can then be shared with friends, either privately or in News Feed, but in 24 hours the content vanishes without a trace.

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A new camera icon has appeared in the app that lets users take selfies and videos and add lively filters, effects and masks. These creations can then be shared with friends, either privately or in News Feed, but in 24 hours the content vanishes without a trace

HOW DOES IT WORK? Users either tap the icon or swipe right to launch the new camera. Once you've added the silly masks or action filters, either share it on your wall or privately with a feature called Direct  a messaging area that looks like Instagram's Direct messaging. Each image can only be viewed once and then again as a 'replay' within a 24 hour time-span. However, if your image or clip doesn't receive a response and goes without using 'replay', the conversation and your content disappears Advertisement

Facebook purchased Masquerade (MSQRD) in March, an app that overlays silly live filters on selfies.

This acquisition was part of Facebooks move to make its photo features more playful with stickers, doodles and filters  but until now, MSQRD's technology has only been used with the Rio Olympics and the recent Halloween-themed masks, reports Endgadget.

'After becoming integrated into the larger Facebook family in March, Facebook has been working to leverage MSQRDs imaging technology for video across a wide range of Facebook apps, a Facebook spokesperson told DailyMail.com in an email.

'Weve been able to showcase their best in class technology through Facebooks new camera.'

MSQRD has been combined with Prism-like features that are more advanced blending options than the original image in the new camera.

The camera has yet to be given a formal now and is only being tested in Ireland at the moment, reports Mashable.

'For the initial launch, we have selected dozens of creative effects like masks and to give you the opportunity to play with a broad range of formats, said a Facebook spokesperson.

'Over time, the effects will be personalized and expand to include artwork based on your location, the weather, or a holiday or an event celebrated in your country.'

If are included in the testing group, there should be a camera icon in the top left corner  the same place the Messenger symbol is positioned for everyone else.

Users either tap the icon or swipe right to launch the new camera, which may look very familiar to those who use Snapchat.

The camera has yet to be given a formal now and is only being tested in Ireland at the moment. If are one of the some 2.2 million people in the testing group, there should be a camera icon in the top left corner  the same place the Messenger symbol is positioned

Once you've added the silly masks or action filters, either share it on your wall or privately with a feature called Direct  a messaging area that looks like Instagram's Direct messaging.

Here, your friends can view and respond, and the comments appear as an overlay on the creation instead of a text box.

Each image can only be viewed once and then again as a 'replay' within a 24 hour time-span.

Once you've added the silly masks or action filters, either share it on your wall or privately with a feature called Direct. Here, your friends can view and respond, and the comments appear as an overlay on the creation instead of a text box

However, if your image or clip doesn't receive a response and goes without using 'replay', the conversation and your content disappears  another familiar feature.

On Thursday, Facebook rolled out a similar feature in Facebook Live that lets users superimpose a selection ghoulish masks, just like the filters on Snapchat.

HOW TO ADD GOUHLISH MASKS ON FACEBOOK LIVE Facebook's new temporary features are designed to help users celebrate the scary season. The social media firm said in a statement:'Whether your Halloween style is scary or silly, we hope these features help you celebrate with friends near and far. It will be rolling out the update to enable users to of the platforms video streaming service to superimpose a selection of ghoulish masks on their face and react to comments using ghoulish buttons. To use the masks: Tap the Live Video icon at the top of your Timeline, News Feed or Page. Once you are live, tap the magic wand in the upper left corner of your screen. Select the masks icon in the creative tools tray at the bottom of your screen. Scroll through the options and tap on masks to have them automatically appear on your face when you are live. To remove the mask, simply scroll left in the mask trap and tap the no mask sign. Advertisement

Facebook says the temporary seasonal updates are to help people celebrate Halloween online. The masks will be rolled out over the next few days to Facebook Live users on iOS in the US, UK and New Zealand.
Advertisement

At first glance, it looks like an igloo - but in fact, this could be man's first home on Mars.

National Geographic created the home as part of its research for a new miniseries on the red planet.

The home is now set to be built in London using materials as close to possible as those found on the red planet.

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At first glance, it looks like an igloo - but in fact, this could be man's first home on Mars. National Geographic created it for a new show on the red Planet, and plans to build it for real in London.

HOW IT WILL BE BUILT The igloo will be made from the regolith (Martian soil). The walls will be around 10 feet thick, in order to protect against the harsh Martian environment, It will also use recycled spacecraft parts, including a double air-locked entrance, all designed to protect the early settlers from Mars' unforgiving atmosphere and freezing temperatures. Advertisement

Opening at the Royal Observatory Greenwich in London from November 10th to 16th, the habitat is based on extensive consultation with Royal Observatory Greenwich astronomers and Stephen Petranek, author of How We'll Live on Mars and a consultant on the new show.

Constructed over several months by Cardiff company Wild Creations, the 'show home' is a dome-like structure mined from the Martian soil, combined with recycled spacecraft parts, including a double air-locked entrance, all designed to protect the early settlers from Mars' unforgiving atmosphere and freezing temperatures.

It's exterior will include a transparent viewing dome, large transmitter and stability 'wings'.

The structure will resemble brickwork forged from Martian regolith and microwaved to create sturdy building material

The home is designed to be situated in Valles Marineris, a 4,000km long, 100km wide system of canyons that runs along the equator of Mars.

The walls will be around 10 feet thick, in order to protect against the harsh Martian environment, which include temperatures as low as minus seventy degrees Celsius, cosmic radiation, thin atmosphere and micrometeorite impacts.

The show's plot reveals the crew ill also develop the first Mars colony, called Olympus Town.

It will be in the foothills of Olympus Mons, the planets tallest mountain, where underground lava tubes provide shelter and protection from cosmic radiation.

The common area on the base (left) and the laboratory

The greenhouse in Olympus Town. The team will be seen building their own mini city on the red planet to grow food

According to the script, the first Mars settlers will construct a bare-bones underground habitat in the tubes; over time, future missions would deliver additional materials, and the colony would expand, module by module, according to Wired.

The design is inspired by Buckminster Fullers geodesic domes: lightweight, inflatable modular structures that can be connected by flexible concertina-style corridors.

Set both in 2033 and in the present day, it will feature experts such as Elon Musk explaining exactly what it will take to get to the red planet.

Dubbed a 'global miniseries event', it mixes interviews with experts with scripted elements showing the first crew arriving.

The Daedalus on Mars. The six astronauts in the show travel to their new home in the rocket, which is based on technology just five years away.

The six astronauts in the show travel to their new home in a rocket called the Daedalus, which executive producer Justin Wilkes told Wired is based on technology just years away.

'This is technology that will probably be tested in the next five years,' he said.

The look of the craft is very similar to the craft designed by SpaceX, and Elon Musk features heavily as one of the shows experts.

'Other films say 'Let's make it look cool,' production designer Sophie Becher says.

'We asked, 'How's this going to function? Where are they going to use the bathroom?'

'Daedalus doesn't have wings, but aerodynamically it's almost like a space shuttle,' show adviser and space systems engineer Robert Braun said.

The interior of the Mars rover vehicle from the show, which will take the crew out onto the surface of the red planet.

Ron Howard, the show's executive producer, told journalists at the show's launch, his aim is to find 'this nexus of science, true-life adventure and the drama of our human experience in a scripted format, and intercutting that drama with interviews and documentary footage to offer a really powerful experience for audiences that I hope transports them, stimulates the imagination and fires the belief that space exploration is an important, inevitable aspect of the human experience.'

Worldwide shooting locations have included Hungary, Morocco, Antarctica, and the United States, and the show is directed by Everardo Gout.

Elon Musk, Neil deGrasse Tyson and The Martian author Andy Weir are among those interviewed for the documentary portions.

'It is a tremendous opportunity for us and one that we're pouring all of our energy behind, and hoping to help be the innovators of something really original and dynamic for television,' Howard says.

'We need to be able to get off of earth better, before you can look at getting on to Mars,' said Martian author Andy Weir, another of the experts in the show.

'The main expense is building the booster, and right now we don't reuse boosters.'

'Imagine if you took a flight from New York to London, and at the end of it they thre away the plane.

'What matters is being able to send a large number of people, tens of thousands of people and millions of tonnes of cargo,' said Musk.

The interior of the Daedalus, which will take the team of six explorers to the red planet

I budapest, the interior of the craft wars created for the scripted portion of the show.

'The future of humanity is fundamentally going to bifurcate along one of two directions: either we're going to become a multi-planet species and a spacefaring civilization, or we're going to be stuck on one planet until some eventual extinction event. In order for me to be excited and inspired about the future, it's got to be the first option,' says Musk in the series.

MISSION TO MARS: THE SCRIPTED SHOW The scripted portion focuses on Earth's first crewed mission to MARS aboard the spacecraft Daedalus. Its maiden voyage in 2033 is crewed by a carefully selected international crew of six uniquely qualified astronauts, including American mission commander Ben Sawyer (Ben Cotton), Korean American mission pilot Hana Seung (Jihae), Spanish hydrologist and geochemist Javier Delgado (Alberto Ammann), French mission physician and biochemist Amelie Durand (Clementine Poidatz), Nigerian mechanical engineer and roboticist Robert Foucault (Sammi Rotibi) and Russian exobiologist and geologist Marta Kamen (Anamaria Marinca). Costume designer Daniela Ciancio extensively researched the types of fabrics being created today to make spacesuits lighter, stronger, more flexible and radiation resistant to protect the astronauts of tomorrow. Back on Earth, the MMC control team based in London includes Hana Seung's twin sister, capsule communicator (CAPCOM) Joon Seung (also played by Jihae) and French CEO of the MMC Ed Grann (Olivier Martinez). Once Daedalus successfully lands on Mars and sets up a preliminary base of operations, British nuclear physicist Leslie Richardson (Cosima Shaw) will lead a Phase 2 settlement team along with her husband, world-renowned experimental botanist Dr. Paul Richardson (John Light). Some of the crew exploring Mars. Advertisement

The production team took painstaking efforts to base the scripted narrative in real-world science.

The series writing team worked with an extensive group of experts, both in the public and private sectors, to understand how the science could serve the story.

In terms of the visual look of the series, production designer Sophie Becher turned to NASA and SpaceX to help inform her designs of the Daedalus spaceship and Olympus Town, the first human colony on Mars as portrayed by the series.

The mid-deck of the Daedalus showing the crew quarters and dining area.

Costume designer Daniela Ciancio extensively researched the types of fabrics being created today to make spacesuits lighter, stronger, more flexible and radiation resistant to protect the astronauts of tomorrow.

Neil DeGrasse Tyson is not convinced that we have to send humans to Mars; he bets it would take less effort and less money to figure out how to survive threats to Earth than to colonize another planet in order to maintain the species: 'I think we should visit planets, as you'd visit any place you've never been before. But we evolved on Earth to live on Earth.'

Robert Zubrin, president of The Mars Society and of Pioneer Astronautics, said: 'If the next president were to get up in the spring of 2017 and announce his or her commitment to send humans to Mars, we could be there by the end of that administration's second term.'

'Mars blends feature film-caliber scripted elements set in the future with documentary verite interviews with today's best and brightest minds in modern science and innovation, illuminating how research and development is creating the space technology that will enable our first attempt at a mission to Mars,' the channel boasts.

The year is 2033, and humanity's first crewed mission to Mars is about to become a reality.
SpaceX is closer to understanding last month's rocket explosion at its launch pad and says that it hopes to be ready to launch again before the end of the year.

The company had already targeted the rocket's helium system as being breached.

On Friday, SpaceX said the investigation has been further narrowed to one of the pressurized helium containers, located in the second-stage oxygen tank.

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On September 1, SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket (pictured) exploded as it was being fueled for a routine pre-launch test at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Earlier this month, a SpaceX employee was visited the company's competitor United Launch Alliance

SATELLITE FIRM CLAIMING DAMAGES FROM SPACEX The Israeli owners of the destroyed AMOS-6 satellite have reportedly been hard hit by the loss. In a press conference last month, Spacecom said it could seek $50m from SpaceX following the explosion on the launch pad last week. AMOS-6 was supposed to provide home internet for Africa and the Middle East. In addition, Facebook had signed a deal with Eutelsat to lease broadband capacity from the satellite as part of its efforts to increase internet connectivity across the African continent. Advertisement

SpaceX says it has managed to recreate a system failure in testing and that it can happen entirely through helium-loading conditions.

'Since the incident, investigators from SpaceX, the FAA, NASA, the US Air Force and industry experts have been working methodically through an extensive fault tree to investigate all plausible causes,' the firm said.

'As part of this, we have conducted tests at our facility in McGregor, Texas, attempting to replicate as closely as possible the conditions that may have led to the mishap.

'The investigation team has made significant progress on the fault tree.

'Previously, we announced the investigation was focusing on a breach in the cryogenic helium system of the second stage liquid oxygen tank.

'The root cause of the breach has not yet been confirmed, but attention has continued to narrow to one of the three composite overwrapped pressure vessels (COPVs) inside the LOX tank.

'Through extensive testing in Texas, SpaceX has shown that it can re-create a COPV failure entirely through helium loading conditions.

'These conditions are mainly affected by the temperature and pressure of the helium being loaded.'

SpaceXs efforts are now focused on two areas  finding the exact root cause, and developing improved helium loading conditions that allow SpaceX to reliably load Falcon 9, the firm added.

'With the advanced state of the investigation, we also plan to resume stage testing in Texas in the coming days, while continuing to focus on completion of the investigation.

'This is an important milestone on the path to returning to flight,' the firm said.

Pending the results of the investigation, we continue to work towards returning to flight before the end of the year.

Our launch sites at Kennedy Space Center, Florida, and Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, remain on track to be operational in this timeframe.

The unmanned Falcon rocket erupted in a fireball Sept. 1 during prelaunch testing at Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Both the rocket and the satellite on board were destroyed. Facebook had wanted to use the Israeli-made satellite to spread internet access in Africa.

The SpaceX employee reportedly asked for access to the roof of one of ULA's buildings, which is a little more than a mile away from where SpaceX's rocket launched. The explosion destroyed the rocket and the satellite it was carrying (pictured)

Numerous aviation giants have been pulled into the investigation  including the US Air Force.

The Air Force was called upon two weeks after the blast to inspect the roof of a building belonging to the firms competitor United Launch Alliance (ULA) at its facilities in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

The move came after a SpaceX employee reportedly visited the facility and requested access, according to The Washington Post.

ULAs building is just over a mile away from the site where SpaceXs rocket blew up on the launch pad on September 1, destroying Facebooks $200 million satellite.

There has been intense speculation that an object hit the ill-fated Falcon 9 rocket during fueling.

Now, it has been revealed that SpaceX has obtained still images from video that appeared to show an odd shadow, followed by a white spot on the roof of a nearby ULA building, the Post reports.

A SpaceX employee was denied access to the roof upon a recent visit to the facility, and ULA instead called Air Force investigators.

But, after their inspection, nothing was found in connection to the explosion.

ULA cooperated with the Air Forces 45th Space Wing, and nothing associated with the SpaceX accident was found, a ULA representative told CNBC.

ULA is a joint project between Lockheed Martin and Boeing and is in heated competition with SpaceX over national security contracts that together are worth hundreds of millions of dollars, according to the Post.

Elon Musk took to Twitter on September 9 seeking support and advice as the investigation continues. SpaceX wrote a similar message on its Twitter account as well, which was retweeted by the billionaire SpaceX CEO

It was reported last week that the explosion may have been caused by a large breach in the rocket's helium cooling system.

A preliminary investigation by SpaceX has found the hole in the cryogenic system, which cools the upper oxygen tank of the rocket, occurred just moments before the explosion and appears to have triggered a catastrophic chain of events.

Exactly what caused the breach is still a mystery, the company has said.

A source familiar with the incident reported to the Post that the SpaceX employee told ULA officials that the company was trying to run down all possible leads and that they aren't trying to accuse ULA of anything.

SpaceX's founder and CEO, Elon Musk (pictured), called the failure 'the most difficult and complex' the company has ever had

Just over a week after the explosion, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter seeking support and advice as the investigation continues, calling the event the most difficult and complex failure the firm has ever had.

And addressing claims that a mysterious object may have hit the rocket, Musk said they have not ruled that out.

Musk also wrote on Twitter that he was 'particularly trying to understand the quieter bang sound a few seconds before the fireball goes off'.

SpaceX's launch pad at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida was destroyed (pictured) by the explosion. It has been revealed that SpaceX had still images from video that appeared to show an odd shadow, then a white spot on the roof of a nearby building belonging to ULA

'May come from rocket or something else,' he added.

Earlier this week, Musk said that finding out what went wrong is the company's 'absolute top priority'.

'We've eliminated all of the obvious possibilities for what occurred there,' he said.

SpaceX is leading the investigation with help from the Air Force, NASA and the Federal Aviation Administration.

Despite the investigation, SpaceX has said it intends to return to flight as soon as November.
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A former Royal Navy search-and-rescue helicopter has returned to service - this time as an unusual holiday home.

Stirling farmer Martyn Steedman and his wife Louise bought the Sea King in an online MoD auction in March and have spent nearly 40,000 converting it into glamping accommodation.

The couple's idea for the conversion came during the Sea Kings' final flypast over Stirling earlier this year, which marked the end of active service for the entire fleet.

Martyn Steedman, his wife Louise and sons Josh and Harry on the steps of their retired Sea King helicopter

The Steedman family bought the helicopter at an auction in March this year. Above, one of the bedrooms in the helicopter

The same bedroom area can also be packed away to create a seating space for guests during the day

Also featured on the aircraft is a lounge area with seating and table, which leads into another alcove bedroom

The couple's idea for the conversion came during the Sea Kings' final flypast over Stirling earlier this year, which marked the end of active service for the entire fleet

The 17m-long Sea King ZA127 aircraft was retired from active service in 1994 but was then used in naval training until 2002.

In April, it made its final 320-mile journey by road from Grantham, Lincolnshire, to its new home at Mains Farm Wigwams, situated on the outskirts of the village of Thornhill near Stirling.

The aircraft's exterior has been fully restored, with its new owners retaining and restoring many of the Sea King's original features.

The interior of the helicopter has been transformed into a holiday home that sleeps a family of six with a double and a triple bed as well as a single bed in the tail.

The curved walls have been insulated, wood panelled and painted which gives the inside the look of an upturned hull of a boat.

The aircraft's exterior (pictured) has been fully restored, with its new owners retaining many of the Sea King's original features

The interior of the helicopter has been transformed into a holiday home that sleeps a family of six with a double and a triple bed as well as a single bed in the tail

The curved walls have been insulated, wood panelled and painted which gives the inside the look of an upturned hull of a boat

The focal point is the cockpit (pictured) where guests can enjoy panoramic views over the Stirling countryside

The focal point is the cockpit where guests can enjoy panoramic views over the Stirling countryside.

The flight deck has been refitted with swivel seats and a table painted with an RAF roundel and all the original lighting has been retained and restored.

Many of the Sea King's original features have been retained except for the sonar station, which was removed and donated to The Helicopter Museum in Weston-super-Mare to make way for a shower room and mini-kitchen.

Mrs Steedman said: 'It all started with the Sea Kings being decommissioned and we saw them on the telly flying around Scotland doing their farewell tour and we said it would be great to have one.

'I thought he was joking at first but Martyn said he had put a bid in and it's a bit like eBay and I thought there's no way we're never going to get a helicopter.

'And then he came through saying no-one else has bid against him, so we realised that we had got a Sea King helicopter, and then the reality set in about how we were going to get it up here but we still couldn't believe that we'd got one until it arrived. '

Mr Steedman added: 'We've retained the original dashboard, roof panel switches and foot pedals, so customers can experience the helicopter as she once was and pretend they are flying her on a mission.'

The flight deck has been refitted with swivel seats and a table painted with an RAF roundel and all the original lighting has been retained and restored

The accommodation is expected to welcome guests from spring next year with rates starting from 150 per night for couples

Many of the Sea King's original features have been retained except for the sonar station, which was removed and donated to The Helicopter Museum in Weston-super-Mare to make way for a shower room and mini-kitchen

Mr Steedman, who bought a Haynes manual to help him restore the Sea King, said: 'We couldn't bear to see these much-loved helicopters go on the scrap heap and thought, why not give one a new life in the country?

Mrs Steedman added: 'Farm diversification is pretty commonplace these days, with everything from farm shops to tourist attractions popping up all over the countryside.

'Finding a niche can be tricky but we believe this helicopter conversion will be truly innovative.'

The helicopter also promises to be the ultimate 'boy's toy' for the couple's sons Josh, 13, and Harry, nine, who are more familiar with farming than flying.

Harry said: 'When dad told us what he had bought, we thought he was joking. We can't wait for our first night on board.'

Paul Southering, of Witham Specialist Vehicles, which sold the aircraft on behalf of the MoD, said: 'They are being sold for upmarket garden sheds or man caves.

'The sky's the limit with what you can do.'

The accommodation is expected to welcome guests from spring next year with rates starting from 150 per night for couples.

The Sea King's transformation is featured in the current series of Channel 4's George Clarke's Amazing Spaces.

Left, the interior of the Sea King helicopter before its transformation and right, one of the workmen spraying insulation foam during the revamp

Above, the Sea King helicopter arriving in Thornhill to start life as glamping accommodation in April this year
A former army captain is suing American Airlines after the carrier allegedly refused to let her fly with her service dog, despite the fact that she had all the relevant paperwork.

Lisa McCombs was flying home from Kansas when she was reportedly prevented from boarding her flight twice.

The veteran, who had previously been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, is now suing the carrier for exacerbating her PTSD according to a lawsuit filed this week.

Lisa McCombs was flying home from Kansas when she was reportedly prevented from boarding her flight twice because she had a service dog with her

Lisa McCombs was flying home from Kansas when she was reportedly prevented from boarding her flight twice

The lawsuit was filed in Mississippi according to Army Times, and is in relation to incidents that took place between October 25 and 27 last year.

According to the 35-page brief that detailed the suit, McCombs was travelling home from Kansas after a day trip there with her service dog, Jake.

McCombs is said to have acquired Jake to help her cope with anxiety issues.

Despite having flown out from her home in Gulfport, Mississippi, on American Airlines flight earlier that day, McCombs was prevented from travelling back with the animal.

According to The Mercury, a supervisor from the airline told McCombs: 'Youre not flying with that. We are cancelling your flight.'

After initially being prevented from flying on the 25th, the veteran then had a second flight cancelled on the 26th by the airline despite having a notation on her file to say that she would be travelling with the service animal.

Ms McCombs decided to book a flight from a different airport with Delta Airlines for the 27th.

The former army captain is now suing American Airlines over the incident, which took place last October

The new booking required McCombs to hire a car as well, which left her further out of pocket.

However, before her flight, an American Airlines representative called Ms McCombs and booked her on a third flight and assured her that there would be no further incidents with regards to travelling with Jake.

According to the suit, the veteran and her service dog were able to check in a third time without any issues even though she encountered the same crew twice before.

Ms McCombs claims that she was further humiliated during a transfer when she was called out as 'disabled' by airline staff and was 'escorted' between her flights.

At the time of the incident, Ms McCombs told WLOX: 'A crazy, obnoxious situation took place  arguing back and forth, humiliation, harassment and ultimately my flight was denied.

'The whole situation perpetuated my disability. It sent me into crisis mode.'

Ms McCombs' lawyer Christopher Van Cleave has declined to comment on the pending lawsuit.

A spokesperson for American Airlines told MailOnline Travel: 'We appreciate and thank Ms. McCombs for her service to our country.

According to the suit, the veteran and her service dog (pictured) were able to check in a third time without any issues even though she encountered the same crew twice before

'American Airlines is involved in a wide variety of military initiatives and programs in support of our men and women in uniform, veterans and their families.

'This includes providing support to organizations such as Fisher House and its Hero Miles program, Snowball Express, and charter flights for Salute to the Troops, Seats for Soldiers and Honor Flights.

'Just this past weekend, American Airlines raised more than $2.5 million for the Airpower Foundation, an organization dedicated to supporting members of the military and their families.

'In October 2015, Capt. Jim Palmersheim, Americans senior manager of Military and Veterans Programs  a pilot and U.S. Army veteran  immediately reached out to Ms. McCombs and spoke to her for more than an hour to obtain additional information on what occurred at both Manhattan Regional Airport and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.
It's an answer most seasoned travellers will be able to give with ease - the one place they'd never go back.

And world roamers have taken to an online forum to do just that, sharing their anecdotal reasons as to why certain places left a bad taste in their mouths.

Destinations cropped up from every corner, from Egypt - described as being 'smelly with aggressive shop vendors' - to America, where one visitor said people are 'fake' and Walmart shoppers are 'scary'.

One tourist wrote of the Russian city of Vladivostok (pictured): 'Most sightseeing consists of numerous soviet monuments, which are as fun as sitting on the couch and observing a wall'

Despite its rich culture and the lure of its pyramids, Egypt was one of the destinations that came up most often on the Quora forum thread.

'You get off the plane and immediately everything smells like garbage mixed with soot,' one claimed, adding: 'The local currency I bought at the airport was like dirty grey-pinkish crumpled napkin'.

Another lamented the street vendors, writing: 'They would pretty much grab you off the street into their store and help you try on things - a lot of touching involved. Rejection is not exactly understood and they have a strong grip.'

America, too, attracted its fair share of complaints from visitors.

One holidaymaker complained: 'Places Ive been to (every single one of them) were stained with the smell of weed. It was literally everywhere - in hotel rooms, on the beach, at parking lots.'

She went on: 'Fake friendliness everywhere - they smile as long as you are paying, but talk behind your back. The people freaked me out sometimes. Walking around in Walmart was scary as hell!'

Despite its rich culture, Egypt (pictured) was one of the destinations that came up most often, with one writing: 'You get off the plane and immediately everything smells like garbage'

Luxembourg, a small European country bordering France and Germany, was another country which was covered a few times.

'What this place lacks is liveliness,' one stated. 'We were bored. The trains were half empty, the restaurants were looking dull and the people were unresponsive.'

The people freaked me out sometimes - walking around in Walmart was scary as hell!

Another wrote: 'Luxembourg grabs the top spot. Lived there for a year. Dreadful weather, dreadful food, only finance people and banks.'

In a similar vein, one remarked of Liechtenstein: 'Im aware that people [there] have a high income and a great lifestyle. So they can wipe off their tears of boredom with their money.'

Another concurred, writing: 'A bunch of empty houses for the rich to keep a residency for tax purposes and a bunch of cruise ships.'

A tourist wrote of Luxembourg (pictured): 'We were bored - the trains were half empty, the restaurants were looking dull and the people were unresponsive'

Switzerland also got a look-in, for being perhaps too idyllic.

'It's a lovely country but I constantly feel as if I have an inferiority complex when I'm there,' one remarked. 'Just a little too perfect for my taste.'

Further afield, one traveller took a stab at Canada, albeit a tongue-in-cheek one.

Chile bored me to death in spite of its beautiful landscapes

'There werent enough overly large meals of predominantly fried foods,' he stated. 'There werent enough guns, people were too polite (and kept apologising!!), they insisted on Arabica coffee [and] it got bloody cold.'

Chile was mentioned more than once as being a somewhat reserved place to visit.

'Walk through a crowded market in Santiago or a monument - people just murmur, take a metro - its pin drop silence,' one wrote. 'Finally for the last battering, the food and (lack of alcoholic) drinks.

'Just like a very nice but emotionally unreceptive person makes a bad life-partner, Chile bored me to death in spite of its beautiful landscapes and polite people.'

Another tourist said the same about the Russian city of Vladivostok, remarking: 'Most sightseeing consists of numerous soviet monuments, which are as fun as sitting on the couch and observing a wall.'

Several tourists bemoaned the rude taxi drivers in places including Panama, Jamaica and Paris (stock image)

One noted that their trip to Bahrain had been sullied by Ramadan - an Islamic period of fasting during daylight hours.

'I mistakenly believed [this] wouldnt apply to foreigners. I was wrong,' they wrote. 'I couldnt eat or drink anything while outside the airport. This eliminated one of the main pleasures of travelling to a new country. '

I mistakenly believed Ramadan wouldnt apply to foreigners. I was wrong

Several tourists bemoaned the rude taxi drivers in places including Panama, Jamaica and Paris. And one wrote of Malaysia: 'We got thrown out of taxi just for closing the trunk too fast.'

And last but not least, the case of a traveller with a seemingly indestructible spirit, who said he couldn't name a single place he wouldn't return to.

'I was in Turkey a couple of years ago and got tear-gassed by the police two nights in a row,' he wrote.
If you thought you could reach out to a compensation company to put in a claim for you should your Ryanair flight get cancelled or delayed, you may have to think again.

Ryanair is 'illegally restricting passengers' compensation claims with its latest change in terms and conditions, according to flight compensation company EUclaim.

The updated rules stipulate that customers must submit claims directly to the Irish carrier and allow them to respond before going through a third party. However, the current EU regulation, which allows passengers to claim compensation for delayed flights, says that airlines's obligations to passengers 'may not be limited or waived'.

Ryanair's updated rules stipulate that customers must submit claims under EU Regulation 261/2004 directly to the carrier and allow them to respond before going through a third party (file photo)

According to the updated terms and conditions posted to Ryanair's website, 'Passengers must submit claims directly to Ryanair and allow Ryanair 28 days or such time as prescribed by applicable law (whichever is the lesser) to respond directly to them before engaging third parties to claim on their behalf.

'Ryanair will not process claims submitted by a third party if the passenger concerned has not submitted the claim directly to Ryanair and allowed Ryanair time to respond.'

EU REGULATION 261/2004 EU Regulation 261/2004 came into effect in February 2005 and covers incidences of denied boarding, flight cancellations and delays. It applies to flights departing from the EU or is operated by an EU-based airline. Under the regulation, passengers can claim compensation if their flight was delayed by three hours or more and the delay was caused by the airline. However, if the delay was caused by an extraordinary circumstance, such as strikes or weather issues, the airline doesn't have to pay compensation. Advertisement

However, EUclaim says this change, which it believes came into effect in recent weeks, is illegally limiting passengers' right to claim compensation.

Adeline Noorderhaven, UK Manager of EUclaim said: 'There's no hiding from the fact that these new conditions are illegal.

'Ryanair is attempting to limit passengers' rights to seek legal representation following delays and cancellations that they are responsible for.'

EUclaim cited article 15 of EU Regulation 261/2004, which states: 'Obligations vis-a-vis passengers pursuant to this Regulation may not be limited or waived, notably by a derogation or restrictive clause in the contract of carriage.'

According to the compensation claims company, the airline doesn't have the authority to introduce the restriction since the regulations supersedes any travel agreements drawn up by the airline.

Ms Noorderhaven said: 'You can never limit someone's right to be represented in a case.

'It is the choice of the consumer if they wish to file a claim directly or want someone to do so on their behalf. That is a general consumer right that cannot be diminished by general terms and conditions.'

However, EUclaim says this change is illegally limiting passengers' right to claim compensation (file photo)

She added: 'The ultimate purpose of the Regulation is to protect the consumer and their rights, so we're disappointed to see Ryanair turning their back on their customers in this way.'

A Ryanair spokesperson told MailOnline Travel: 'Ryanair's Ts&Cs are perfectly legal.

'They are designed to ensure that our customers with valid EU261 claims will receive 100 percent of their EU261 compensation without deduction of excessive third party (claims company) costs of up to 100 per claim.

'This is why these claims companies don't like our Ts&Cs  but they are legal and are designed solely to protect our customers.'

The spokesman added that the changes came into effect 'in late 2015'.

Ryanair has previously made amendments to its terms and conditions that were contrary to the stipulations in the EU regulation.

Daily Mail reported in 2015 that the airline lost a legal battle after trying to slash the time limit for compensation from the EU dictated six years to just two.
Zoe Saldana and husband Marco Perego just might be the epitome of 'family goals.'

The twosome brought their one-year-old twins out for a rare family day in Beverly Hills.

The actress, who is currently filming I Kill Giants (to be released in 2017), took a break from work to enjoy her little family.

Team effort: The parents took turns juggling their kids and their matching backpacks

The parents took turns juggling their kids and their matching backpacks.

Stunning 38-year-old Saldana went out for the day sans makeup as usual, showcasing her natural beauty.

Her 37-year-old husband wore his signature look: a suit vest over a loose shirt, and his long hair pulled up.

Natural beauty: The stunning 38-year-old went out for the day sans makeup as usual, her hair loose and relaxed, wearing a large pullover

Saldana wore her dark hair down and in loose waves, split down the middle elegantly.

Her Italian beau seemed to outdo her in accessories, donning a chunky beaded necklace and wallet chain.

When not filming her new film I Kill Giants in Ireland, Saldana makes sure she is home to fulfill mommy duties.

Casual: The Avatar star teamed an oversized blue sweater with a pair of skinny jeans and brown combat boots

The Avatar star teamed an oversized blue sweater with a pair of skinny jeans and brown combat boots.

The couple affectionately carried their twin boys Cy Aridio and Bowie Ezio in one arm and juggled matching backpacks with the other.

The happy family were all smiles during their rare outing.

Beaming: The Star Trek starlet looked thrilled to spend some quality time with her sons

Managing a twin in one hand, and two matching Minion themed backpacks in the other, the Star Trek starlet looked thrilled to spend some quality time with her sons.

The mother and son duo appeared to be in good spirits.

Motherhood suits her - the mom of two was glowing and beaming while spending time with her toddlers.

Break time: The Madden brothers took a break from touring to catch up with Saldana and Perego

The couple usually keep a lowkey profile, but it seems Saldana has some time off from filming as they have been spotted hanging around Los Angeles all week long.

Most recently, the duo met up with friends Benji and Joel Madden.

Love affair: Zoe and Marco began dating in March 2013 and secretly wed just three months later in June

Zoe and Marco began dating in March 2013 and secretly wed just three months later in June.

The couple tied the knot in an intimate ceremony attended by just a few close friends and relatives in London.
Ethel & Ernest (PG)

Verdict: An animated delight

Rating:

How appropriate that Doctor Strange, the new Marvel superhero film, should be accompanied into cinemas (though, alas, rather fewer of them) by Ethel & Ernest, which might almost have been made as an antidote to the CGI-heavy blockbuster.

What a truly lovely, heartwarming film it is  Roger Mainwoods animated adaptation of the graphic novel by Raymond Briggs, of The Snowman fame, about his late parents life together.

Briggs introduces it with the observation that there was nothing extraordinary about my mum and dad, nothing dramatic, no divorce or anything . . . and thats true enough.

Jim Broadbent and Brenda Blethyn lend their voices to Ethel & Ernest, pictured, an animated treat about a couple's life together

Nonetheless they lived through momentous times; the Great Depression, the Blitz, the start of the welfare state and the advent of television.

I went to Briggss house once, to interview him, and he seemed a decidedly curmudgeonly fellow, albeit with a nice line in wry humour, and, just about discernible beneath the grumpiness, a kind heart.

Ethel & Ernest radiates all the humour and kindness and little of the gloom, not even when it shows his parents approaching their deaths after more than 40 years together, or refers to his own wifes mental fragility.

It starts with the courtship  Ernest (voiced by Jim Broadbent) a cheeky milkman on a bike, Ethel (Brenda Blethyn) a ladys maid flapping a duster at the window, which he interprets as a wave.

We then follow them as they marry and, in 1930, in a terrace house in Wimbledon costing 825, set up home.

Rather late in life for those days, they become parents to Raymond, who makes them first proud, by getting into grammar school, and then horrified, by growing his hair and going to art school.

Despite all they have in common, Ethel and Ernest are in certain respects strikingly different.

He is defiantly working-class, while she is desperate to impress the neighbours and move up the social ladder.

Much of the film's humour comes from Ernest's working-class nature clashing with Ethel's desperation to climb the social ladder

Much of the films gentle humour derives from this contrast, but even if that doesnt strike a chord with audiences, I cant imagine that anyone over 40 wont in some way be reminded of their parents or grandparents, especially as the pair grapple with mod cons such as the telephone. What shall I do if it rings while youre out? she frets.

In many ways, Ethel & Ernest covers the same ground as Pixars 2009 hit Up, but its modesty and thoroughgoing Englishness help to make it, for my money, both more entertaining and more moving.
Kevin Jonas and wife Danielle welcomed their second child, another daughter, on Thursday.

Kevin's brother Nick, 24, broke the news from Hawaii where he's filming Jumanji.

He posted a video to Instagram in which he announces he's an uncle again, saying: 'I'm on set here in Hawaii but I just got the best news ever. My brother and his wife had their baby. I'm overjoyed.'

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Spilled the beans! Nick Jonas, 24, who's currently filming Jumanji in Hawaii, announced the news that brother Kevin and wife Danielle had welcomed their second daughter on Thursday

He then added in the caption: 'Congrats Kevin and Dani! We have another Jonas!! Can't wait to meet that beautiful baby girl very soon.'

Kevin, 28, had kept fans informed of the imminent arrival of his new daughter via Twitter.

'Can't believe we're gonna have 2 baby's,' the musician tweeted late Thursday morning.

Prepping: The couple had announced they were expecting again in April sharing this funny Instagram snap showing them in bed and preparing to become parents for a second time

Baby's coming: On Thursday morning, Dani has shared this photo from her bed looking down across her swollen belly with the caption: 'Anytime now'

Tweeting the delivery: Kevin had kept his fans updated via his Twitter feed as he let them know that the new baby was about to make her entrance into the world

He followed up with: 'Waiting is the hardest part.'

Then: 'For me but dani would probably say the contractions hahahaha.'

The couple who wed in 2009 welcomed their first child, Alena Rose, in February 2014.

Howe is this fair? The former hairdresser, who married Kevin in 2009, posted this photo of her husband eating and watching videos on his laptop while she was having contractions

Thrilled: Brother Joe, 27, also chimed in with his congratulations, tweeting that the 'newest addition to the family' is 'so beautiful'

Kevin has said previously that he wanted to be a father to two girls.

That's because, he explained, he's spent most of his life surrounded by boys.

'I want to be surrounded by girls. We're having the hardest time thinking of names for a baby boy,' she shared.

Starting a family: Kevin and Danielle welcomed daughter Alena Rose in February 2014
Jenna Dewan was joined by royalty for a coffee run in Studio City on Thursday.

The 35-year-old's daughter, Everly, got a head start to Halloween as she wore Belle's yellow gown from Beauty and the Beast.

Jenna had her hands full with yummy blended drink and her cell phone as she followed her daughter, three, outside of the cafe.

Coffee with royalty! Jenna Dewan went for a coffee run on Thursday with daughter Everly in Studio City

The doting mom headed out through the parking lot hand-in-hand with her little girl, who must have been having a blast dressed up for a day as the Disney princess from Disney's official collection - which obviously makes it more royal.

Everly's outfit was complete with a pair of purple trainers, and her hair was partially scraped back up into a messy little bun.

Doting mom: The star headed out through the parking lot hand-in-hand with her little girl, who must have been having a blast dressed in the official Disney Princess Belle costume

Jenna opted not to go in costume like her little girl had done.

Instead, the Step Up actress stepped out in style in black trousers, a light green coat, and a white blouse.

She accessorized the look up with her sunglasses and a beaded necklace.

Keeping things casual: Everly's outfit was complete with a pair of purple trainers, and her hair was partially scraped back up into a messy little bun

Stepping out in style! The Supergirl actress stepped out in style in black trousers, a light green coat, and a white blouse

Jenna and her husband Channing Tatum welcomed Everly on May 13, 2013.

The couple wed in 2009 in Malibu.

Jenna, meanwhile, has been busy filming her guest role on the CW show No Tomorrow.

In the episode she enjoys a flirtation with lead character in the show Xavier, who believes the world is going to end in eight months time due to an asteroid colliding with Earth.
Johnny Depp has left United Talent Agency after 25 to join CAA, Creative Artists Agency.

The Pirates of the Caribbean stars dramatic move comes after a series of failed movies and a very public split from Amber Heard.

After spending 25 years at UTA, Johnny Depp is moving to CAA for representation.

No more: Johnny Depp has left United Talent Agency after 25 to join CAA, Creative Artists Agency. Here he is seen in May

Depp started his career with UTA after breaking out in the horror film A Nightmare On Elm Street.

Since then, the actor has gone on to receive many awards including three Oscar nominations.

One for Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street in 2008, the other for Finding Neverland in 2005 and lastly Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl in 2004.

He recently starred in Alice Through The Looking Glass and the TV movie Donald Trumps The Art Of The Deal: The Movie.

Big break: Depp started his career with UTA after breaking out in the horror film A Nightmare On Elm Street

However he hasn't stopped there as the actor is about to start filming Foxs Murder On The Orient Express and will start The Invisible Man for Universal soon.

His next movie coming out will be Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales.

Meanwhile him and Amber Hears finally reached a divorce settlement of $7 million after media scrutiny and Amber accusing him of domestic assault.

Captain Jack Sparrow: A still of Depp in his iconic role in Pirates Of The Caribbean

The Magic Mike XXL star chose to give all the money to the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles and the American Civil Liberties Union, something which Johnny 'deeply respected' her for.

A spokesperson for Depp said at the time: 'Following Amber Heard's announcement that her divorce settlement was to be divided equally and gifted to Children's Hospital of Los Angeles and the American Civil Liberties Union, two exceptionally deserving and important charities.

Award-worthy: Depp pictured in Finding Neverland in 2005, which he got an Oscar nomination for

'Depp has sent the first of multiple installments of those monies to each charity in the name of Amber Heard, which when completed will honor the full amount of Ms. Heard's pledge. Ms. Heard's generosity in giving to these wonderful causes is deeply respected.'

In a statement, Amber announced she would be giving the money away.

She shared: 'As described in the restraining order and divorce settlement, money played no role for me personally and never has, except to the extent that I could donate it to charity and, in doing so, hopefully help those less able to defend themselves.'
Bachelorette's Georgia Love has dismissed rumours that her and new beau Lee Elliott are married but admitted, when she's ready, he will be the one she weds.

Speaking to Matt Tilley and Meshel Laurie on Melbourne's KIIS 101.1, Georgia said reports of secret nuptials are 'not true', but marriage is on the cards for their future.

The 28-year-old appeared shocked at the idea that rumours could emerge that the pair would even consider marrying after knowing each other for two months.

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'Yes, to Lee': Bachelorette's Georgia Love dismisses marriage claims but says new beau Lee Elliott is first in line when she's ready to say her vows

'I want to get married one day, but certainly not after two months,' she proclaimed.

Matt went on to ask, 'To Lee right?' to which she responded, 'Yes, to Lee'.

The brunette media personality then went on to say that people are already tagging her on Twitter for potential venues when she and Lee decide to exchange vows.

'I already had people on Twitter this morning tag me in things and say 'this would be a nice wedding venue when you need one, so give us a call'.'

'This would be a nice wedding venue': The rumour mill was sent into meltdown when Georgia chose Lee in the finale - with Twitter users suggesting wedding venues to the pair

'Absolutely in love': Georgia admitted she had fallen deeply in love with the former Australia's Hottest Tradie for 2011 contestant - with the pair sharing an intimate kiss in the finale

The candid interview also touched on how the pair met secretly to avoid raising suspicion on who ultimately won Georgia's heart.

Lee and Georgia both admitted they referred to the isolated locations as 'wolf creek-esque'.

Speaking to Sydney's KIIS 106.5 Kyle and Jackie O, Georgia again dismissed rumours when the shock jocks questioned Lee's relationship with her sister.

'How are things going with you, Lee, and the sister? Because she didn't pick you as 'the one',' asked Jackie O.

Secret: Georgia and Lee said that keeping their relationship under wraps was difficult as they had to meet up in 'wolf creek-esque' locations post falling in love on The Bachelorette

'I've won her over she's now on team Lee,' said Lee chuckling.

'How did you win her over?' asked Jackie O, before being interrupted by Kyle who added, 'Had sex with her?'

'Sorry Georgia, sorry. This has happened in some relationships you can't cast out on that thing because other people that have done that are like, 'what's wrong with that?',' added Kyle.

'There are already enough rumours, that we're married and having babies or broken up, so we don't need the rumour that Lee slept with my sister, thank you very much,' said Georgia dismissively.

'She's now on team Lee': Georgia's sister Katie wasn't thrilled about her younger sister's decision to be with Lee, but the pair said she's warmed to him since filming stopped

'I get the impression he's saying the right things': Lee received a grilling from big sister Katie who said Lee came off dishonest about his feelings and 'very smooth'

'Don't worry Georgia, you're the better sister, you know how there's always the better one?'

'Your words, not mine,' said Georgia.

'Between you and me Kyle, I agree,' admitted Lee sheepishly.

The comments come after Lee was grilled by Georgia's sister Katie who didn't trust that Lee was being honest about his feelings.

Winner: Despite doubts from her family, Georgia (L) revealed that she had fallen 'madly in love' with Lee (R) and chose him in the final rose ceremony in Singapore

'I'm completely falling in love with you': Matty J admitted that he had fallen in love with Georgia during Wednesday night's episode, which was met with a passionate kiss

'The vibe that I did get from him was that he's very smooth,' Katie shared to camera after meeting Lee.

'I get the impression he's saying the right things. He knows that he's saying the right things,' she added.

Despite doubts from her family, Georgia revealed that she had fallen 'madly in love' with Lee and chose him in the final rose ceremony in Singapore.

This decision saw a heartbroken Matty J visibly devastated, when sent home without the girl of his dreams, after admitting he was in love with her on Wednesday night.

'I really don't want to let you go': This decision saw a heartbroken Matty J (pictured at final rose ceremony) visibly devastated, when sent home without the girl of his dreams
Professor Green has let rip at his ex-wife, Millie Mackintosh, in his explosive new single, One Eye On The Door.

The musician, 32, raps about the former couple's lack of sex life and his drug use in the new track - which is released on Friday - and even hints that cheating was a factor in the demise of their two-and-a-half-year marriage.

One Eye On The Door is the hitmaker's first musical offering since 2014 album Growing Up In Public.

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Ouch! Professor Green has let rip at his ex-wife, Millie Mackintosh, in his explosive new single, One Eye On The Door

Professor Green - real name Stephen Manderson - takes a number of thinly veiled swipes at his reality star ex-wife by suggesting their short-lived union was far from idyllic.

Lamenting an apparent lack of action between the sheets in the opening verse, the rapper suggests he and Millie spent most of their time watching box sets.

The musician also suggests Millie regularly kicked him out of the marital home in south-east London and would only allow him back in if he returned with a gift of material significance.

He spits in the track: 'Me an the Mrs we are getting along/Till I do something wrong - then it's another domestic/People wanna know what my life's like.

'Behind closed doors what's my wife like/It gets crazy in bed - We watch a couple episodes/Of a box set and and then it's night night/When she hears this s**t it's lights out/I'll probably get kicked out of my house/Till I come back with a brand new Chanel bag.'

Honest: The musician, 32, raps about the couple's lack of sex and his drug use in the new track, which hints that cheating was a factor in the demise of their two-and-a-half-year marriage

A second verse finds Pro Green's protagonist wrestling with his conscience; on the one hand fretting about divorce, while on the other putting his wife's feelings to one side while he parties with pals.

Referring to his use of drugs, he raps: 'One minute it was one, the next it was six/S**t I'm dead - I don't know where the time went.

'Where's my phone? S**t sixty-one missed calls/A divorce is on the cards if I don't split/And get my a**e in gear - I'm asking for it.

'A b****rd ain't I - auf wiedersehen/Better get my a**e in gear and get a car quick though, if I'm already gonna get my a**e kicked?

'Then pass it/What's one more half, what's one more spliff/What's one more glass/What's one more line, what's one more toke/I'm already a dead man when I get home.'

In happier times? Professor Green - real name Stephen Manderson - takes a number of thinly veiled swipes at his ex-wife by suggesting their short-lived union was far from idyllic

TIMELINE OF THEIR ROMANCE November 2011: Couple enjoy their first date at the Groucho Club in London after Professor Green sees Millie's sexy FHM cover shoot February 2012: They go public at the BRIT Awards March 2013: Pro Green proposes in Paris September 2013: Couple wed at Babington House in Somerset July 2015: Millie and Pro Green reported to have a huge row in Istanbul. January 2016: They have a make-of-break holiday in Florence, Italy. February 2016: Couple announce their separation. Advertisement

MailOnline has contacted a representative for Millie Mackintosh for comment.

The couple's two-and-a-half-year marriage was dissolved in just 30 seconds in May.

They were granted a decree nisi at Central London Family Court with Millie citing 'unreasonable behaviour' as the reason for their split.

Just one week after their divorce was finalised, the beauty, 27, went public with her ex-boyfriend Hugo Taylor and has been documenting their romance across social media ever since.

Millie and Professor Green split in February after just over four years together.

In a statement at the time, they said: 'It is a mutual decision, we still care deeply about each other and would like it to be known that it is on amicable terms and we wish each other well.'

Wedding bells: The couple tied the knot in a lavish ceremony at Babington House in Somerset in September 2013

Millie and Stephen started dating in November 2011 after the rapper saw her on the cover of men's magazine FHM.

The rapper contacted Millie through her agent and they had their first date at the Groucho Club in Soho.

They went public at the Brit Awards in February 2012, with Stephen proposing on holiday in Paris just over a year later.

The couple tied the knot in a lavish ceremony at Babington House in Somerset in September 2013.

Speaking to The Sun, Professor Green admits he's nonplussed about her ex-wife's potential reaction to the revealing new track.

'I think she'll probably say, "Well at least he's being honest about that. That definitely happened once or twice."

Unlikely pair: Millie and Stephen started dating in November 2011 after the rapper saw her on the cover of men's magazine FHM

Red carpet debut: Millie and Stephen went public at the Brit Awards in February 2012, with Stephen proposing on holiday in Paris just over a year later

New track: One Eye On The Door is out now

He added: 'It's a song that was probably written after a time I got in trouble. I wrote that over a year ago.

'The whole song is just about when you say, "Yeah, I promise I'll be home early, I promise," then your mates go, "Come on, stay for one more drink."'

When they first started dating, Millie and Professor Green acknowledged they came from very different backgrounds.

Millie was educated privately at Hanford Boarding School in Dorset and her family invented Quality Street, although sold the business years ago.

Meanwhile Stephen grew up in an impoverished area of East London and survived being attacked in the neck with a broken bottle in a Shoreditch nightclub in 2009.

Moving on: Just one week after their divorce was finalised, the beauty, 27, went public with her ex-boyfriend Hugo Taylor
He won the heart of The Bachelorette Georgia Love on Thursday night's finale.

But Lee Elliott says it's a shame not more of his captivating love story with the beauty was shown on the Network Ten dating show.

The 35-year-old mechanical planner also told The Sydney Morning Herald he is close friends with The Bachelor winner Alex Nation.

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'They really downplayed me': The Bachelorette winner Lee Elliott says it's a shame not more of his captivating love story with Georgia Love was shown on the Channel Ten show

Lee suggested his romance was not fully captured in the TV series, saying: 'They really downplayed me'.

He also believes the audience should have been shown more scenes to realise it was truly 'a one-horse race'.

Since winning The Bachelorette, Lee has already received a backlash from fans who were supporting underdog Matty Johnson.

When asked if he feared he a hostile reaction like Alex Nation and Richie Strahan faced post-Bachelor, Lee said: 'I certainly like to think I won't quite have that backlash'.

Coincidence? Lee (L) has also revealed that's been good friends with The Bachelor winner Alex Nation (R) for some time

Reality love: Alex Nation (L) won Richie Strahan's (R) heart on The Bachelor earlier this year, but faced a backlash as runner-up Nikki Gogan was the fan favourite

Lee also confessed that he has known 25-year-old Alex for 'a number of years'.

'I know Alex  she's been a friend of mine for a number of years, she absolutely is a sweetheart,' he said, revealing the pair know each other due to living in the 'small town' of Melbourne.

On Thursday, Georgia revealed she had fallen in love with Lee in the dramatic finale of The Bachelorette, leaving Matty devastated.

Finale: On Thursday Georgia revealed she had fallen in love with Lee as she picked him as her final rose receiver in a dramatic Bachelorette finale that left Matty Johnson heartbroken

During the final rose ceremony, filmed in Singapore, Georgia confessed: 'Everything has led me to this moment. I'm absolutely in love with Lee. He makes me feel special'.

'He's fun, he makes me excited for the future and he makes me laugh more than anyone ever has. When Lee told me he loved me...that was the happiest moment of my life,' she continued.

As she held hands with the hunk, Georgia went on to confess: ' There's always been something in my life that's just not quite there..and that's love.

'I've wanted to find someone to complete me. I've been looking for that unique story and that unique someone,' she continued.

In love: During the ceremony, the 28-year-old confessed: 'Everything has led me to this moment. I'm absolutely in love with Lee. He makes me feel special'

Head over heels: As she held hands with the hunk, Georgia went on to confess: ' There's always been something in my life that's just not quite there..and that's love'

'You make me laugh and you make me happy and you make me excited for the future. And you make me want to take on anything and everything. I have fallen so madly in love with you.'

Earlier in the episode, Lee told Georgia he had fallen in love with her as they enjoyed their final filmed single date.

While enjoying a night swim, he said: 'This moment couldn't possibly be any more perfect...There's been something I've wanted to tell you all day.

Looking into the future: She continued to say, 'I have fallen so madly in love with you,' as she went in for a kiss

Heart broken: The news of Georgia being in love with Lee broke the heart of runner-up, Matty Johnson

'You know, I have so fallen in love with you. I dont want to go home without you. I no longer can see a future without you,' he concluded before Georgia pulled him closer to share a passionate kiss.

The night earlier, he admitted to Georgia he could 'see a future' with her after the show.

During Wednesday's episode, Lee revealed: 'I can honestly see a future together. That in the past perhaps used to scare me, but now I couldn't be more excited about thinking about it.'

How he feels: Earlier in the episode, Lee told Georgia he had fallen in love with her

Letting it out: While enjoying a night swim, he said: 'There's been something I've wanted to tell you all day. I have fallen in love with you. I dont want to go home without you'

He also told her: 'Our connection is far deeper, I feel, you know, and far more real than just living in the same state together,' he continued.

'I love thinking we we could start a life together in Melbourne and end up...wherever.'

In his piece to camera, he admitted: 'The feelings I have for Georgia are.. You know, I was going to say I have not felt in a long time, but to be honest, I've not felt ever before.'

Looking forward: The night earlier, he admitted to Georgia he could 'see a future' with her after the show

In touch: In his piece to camera, he admitted: 'The feelings I have for Georgia are.. You know, I was going to say I have not felt in a long time, but to be honest, I've not felt ever before'

But while Georgia fell head over heels for Lee, her sister wasn't too impressed by the lad after they met during the finale in Singapore.

During the grand finale, Katie confessed: 'The vibe that I did get from him was he's very smooth. I get the impression he's saying the right things.

'He knows that he's saying the right things. Saying the things that he thinks we want to hear,saying the right things for this type of situation.

'I think she might be getting a bit swept up with Lee. I think I have been able to call a bad egg out in the past. I don't want to see her getting swept up and then let down again,' she continued.

Not happy: During the grand finale, Georgia's sister Katie confessed: 'The vibe that I did get from him was he's very smooth. I get the impression he's saying the right things'
Lucan is dead, long live Lucan. The 7th Earl may have been declared dead by the High Court in February, 42 years after his disappearance, but his son and heir George Bingham has just sired an heir  or, rather, an heiress  of his own.

Georges wife, Anne-Sofie, has given birth to their first child, Lady Daphne Barbara Bingham. Its the start of a new life and a new era for the family, Danish industrialists daughter Fie, 38, tells me.

Were both thrilled to have been blessed with a beautiful baby girl. She already has a Danish passport.

George Bingham has just sired an heir  or, rather, an heiress  of his own. Georges wife, Anne-Sofie, has given birth to their first child, Lady Daphne Barbara Bingham.

Fie tied the knot with George, 49, in January.

The 7th Earl vanished in 1974 after his childrens nanny, Sandra Rivett, was found bludgeoned to death at the familys Belgravia home.

His wife, Veronica, who was thought to be the intended victim, was injured in the attack and later identified her husband as the assailant.

A death certificate was not issued for the peer until this year, enabling George to inherit the family title.

Whether Veronica, 79, will be invited to the christening remains to be seen. She has not spoken to her children since George was a teenager, when he went to live with her sister, Christina Shand-Kydd.

Model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley raised eyebrows with this boardroom-inspired outfit as she stepped out in West Hollywood this week. The Devon-born blonde, 29, wore a masculine white shirt with oversize cuffs and a pair of wide-leg pinstripe trousers, topped by a matching belt. Im sure Rosie means business, but perhaps her fiance, actor Jason Statham, wants his clothes back?

Model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley raised eyebrows with this boardroom-inspired outfit (left) as she stepped out in West Hollywood this week

Russell Brand called profit a filthy word, but hes happy to enrich his own pockets. One of the web of U.S. and UK companies owned by the Lefty comic, Pablo Diablos Legitimate Business Firm, added more than 500,000 to his total 15 million fortune last year. That should keep the wolves from the door of Russells 3.3 million thatched cottage near Henley.

Eddie's brief encounter

Old Etonian actor Eddie Redmayne grew up in Chelsea, and his taste in underpants is also top-drawer.

The Oscar-winner was spotted in Peter Jones in Chelseas Sloane Square this week, causing hot flushes among the shops female staff as he browsed the mens department.

My spies tell me that Redmayne, 34, chose a pair of cotton pants by Calvin Klein, which cost up to 36 and are a favourite of fellow Old Etonian Prince William. When he went to the undies department, there were a few girls straining their necks, says one observer.

Redmaynes brief encounter will be a blow for gentlemens outfitter Burtonwode, as the well-dressed actor previously namechecked their boxer shorts as his favourite accessory in an interview with Vanity Fair.

As our mocked-up picture shows, nothing comes between Eddie and his Calvins . . .
Kim Kardashian is getting in the Halloween mood.

Even though she has been 'anxious' since she was held at gunpoint during her October 3 Paris robbery, the 36-year-old star is feeling good enough to hang some decorations.

According to People, the Keeping Up With The Kardashians star has decorated her Bel-Air, California mansion with spiders and cobwebs for her two children North, aged three, and Saint, aged 11 months.

Ready for some fun: Kim Kardashian has decorated her home for Halloween, according to People. Here she is seen in NYC in September with daughter North

Very private: The beauty's Bel-Air home is in a gated community

When she was a kid: Kim and Kourtney dressed for Halloween in a flashback photo

'Kim is now excited for Halloween,' a source said.

'She has decorated her [Bel Air] house with spider webs and has costumes for the kids.' In the past, North has been a skunk and a Vogue editor.

'They will celebrate with Kourtney and her kids. Even though Kim has changed her life, she still makes it fun for the kids.'

Out again: On Wednesday Kim went back to West's concert for a second night in a row. This time she had daughter North with her

Her siblings Kylie, Khloe and Kourtney have done up their homes too. On Thursday Kourtney said: 'Halloween was always a big deal growing up and I like to keep the festive tradition going with my kids.

'We always decorate the house with tons of spooky cobwebs, skeletons and pumpkins. We also love getting dressed up togetherall wearing the same theme.'

Kim has been laying low since her robbery.

She's ready too: On Thursday Kourtney said: 'Halloween was always a big deal growing up and I like to keep the festive tradition going with my kids'; here she is seen in 2015

Ready already: Kourtney in a costume for this year's festivities

The 36-year-old has only stepped out to Kanye West's concerts in LA and grabbed frozen yogurt with best friend Jonathan Cheban in Beverly Hills since the harrowing event.

Now the Keeping Up With The Kardashians star is 'starting to get bored with the quiet life out of the spotlight,' according to a Thursday report from People.

This comes after a source told DailyMail she is 'gradually bouncing back.'

New look: The 36-year-old star has been dressing down like she did here on Monday when she went out for frozen yogurt with Jonathan Cheban at the Beverly Glen Deli in Beverly Hills

Even though she was seen on Tuesday and Wednesday at the Pablo concerts, she did not walk in the main entrance, therefore shunning photographers and fans.

But the beauty still liked being out and about, it has been claimed.

'Kim was happy to attend Kanyes concert last night,' a source said. 'She is starting to seem a bit bored. She wants to make plans for more outings and maybe even a trip. Things are slowly getting back to a new normal.'

But don't expect the E! queen to wear see-through dresses and big diamonds at high-profile events again. At least not yet.

Bright lights: The Keeping Up With The Kardashian cameras were on Kim when she attended Kanye West's concert at the Forum on Tuesday

Plenty of security: The pinup had two bodyguards and an E! producer next to her

The day before the robbery: The icon looking sexy in see-through white lace in Paris

'Kim still prefers to lay low,' added the insider. Indeed, the Vogue favorite has left the dresses at home to wear oversized hoodies.

Meanwhile, the show has been going on. The cover girl has been filming scenes for KUWTK. The cameras were seen on her Tuesday at the West gig.

'She has filmed at home with her sister and Kris on a few occasions. She has been able to pick when she wants to film and how much. There is still no pressure,' said the pal.

This comes after a source told DailyMail.com that Kim is on the mend.

'She is slowly getting back to a normal life step by step,' a source told DailyMail.com. 'Kim is still shaken up, but she's gradually bouncing back.'

Still on TV: In a preview for Sunday's KUWTK, Kim expresses concerns about Rob

'She doesn't feel as anxious any more,' added the insider. 'It's taken time, but she's less shaky, less nervous now.'

Instead of parties, she has been at home watching old movies. The star has also been visiting her mother's home in Hidden Hills. 'She has dinner at Kourtney's and Khloe's homes too. Khloe is a great cook,' said the friend.

On Monday Kim wore a hint of brown eye shadow and some lip gloss, which is far less paint than the E! queen normally has on.

The beauty's raven locks were also worn differently with stick-straight locks in the middle that looks like a style Cher has modeled. And the small screen sensation also hid her curves in a bulky hoodie that went down to her thighs. Cut-off shorts and white slides made her look like a college student cramming for a final.

Even the venue Kim chose was modest. The Beverly Glen Deli, located in the small Beverly Glen mall near her Bel-Air home, is very casual.

Both Kim and Jonathan - who is a frequent guest star on KUWTK - went for pink yogurt with rainbow sprinkles. Cheban, who has labeled himself a FoodGod and favors upscale eateries like Nobu, is also not often seen in such a casual place.
It's a popular outfit this month.

Nicky Hilton arrived at the Fashion Group International Night Of Stars Gala on New York on Thursday night wearing a stunning Valentino gown.

The floor-length sheer nude chiffon dress, delicately embroidered and bedazzled with sequins, cost more than $20,000.

Wow: Nicky Hilton arrived at the Fashion Group International Night Of Stars Gala on New York on Thursday night wearing a stunning Valentino gown

If it looked familiar, it is because it is the exact same dress Dianna Agron wore on her wedding weekend less than two weeks ago.

Despite several reports to the contrary however, it was not what the Glee star actually wore down the aisle.

Us Weekly reported shortly afterward that the actress in fact wore a more traditional (but equally stunning) ivory gown at the Moroccan nuptials.

Photos from the intimate ceremony have so far been rare - with the few appearing on social media quickly taken down - but one Instagram shot of Agron wearing the Valentino from a Glee fan site describing it as the 'perfect wedding dress' appears to have tricked everyone.

Rich: The floor-length sheer nude chiffon dress, delicately embroidered and bedazzled with sequins, cost more than $20k

Second: If it looked familiar, it is because it is the exact same dress Dianna Agron wore on her wedding weekend less than two weeks ago

One of many: Despite several reports to the contrary however, it was not what the Glee star actually wore down the aisle  she actually wore a traditional ivory gown. However a Glee fan site posted this picture, claiming this was her wedding dress

Nevertheless it was 33-year-old Nicky's turn on Thursday, who paired the gown with an equally elaborate clutch purse.

She wasn't the only Nicki in an elaborate ensemble either  Nicki Minaj wore a daring black sheer lace bodystocking, with a black bra and some strategically aligned ruffles saving her modesty.

Trailing behind the rapper was a matching cloak, trimmed with fur at the shoulders and a foot-thick ornate leather trim.

Another Nicki: Nicki Minaj wore a daring black sheer lace bodystocking, with a black bra and some strategically aligned ruffles saving her modesty

Smile! Actresses Christina Ricci and Zosia Mamet played opposites in black and white

Hot: Hailey Baldwin looked scintillating in a silky red dress

On her arm was designer Riccardo Tisci, complementing her outfit in an all-black suit, shirt and dicky bow combo.

Also spotted on the red carpet were actresses Christina Ricci and Zosia Mamet, designers June Ambrose and Rebecca Minkoff, and models Pat Cleveland and Joan Smalls.

On the night, Monique Lhuillier received the Career Achievement Award in Fashion; Dallas philanthropist Lynn McBee picked up the Art Patron of the Year Award; while Jerry Hall was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Or was it Magnum? Model Joan Smalls did her best Blue Steel

Wouldn't miss it: Designers June Ambrose and Rebecca Minkoff were on the list

Trailblazer: Pat Cleveland - the first black supermodel - was honoured on the night
She was left heartbroken by Richie Strahan during the grand finale of The Bachelor when Richie Strahan dumped her for Alex Nation.

But Nikki Gogan wasn't alone while watching The Bachelorette finale on Thursday night, which no doubt could have been an experience that would trigger memories of her televised rejection.

The 28-year-old Western Australian beauty was joined by The Bachelorette's Cameron Cranley, and a string of other contestants from the Channel Ten shows.

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Finale time: The Bachelor's Nikki Gogan (far right) watched The Bachelorette finale with eliminated contestant Cameron Cranley (left, back row)

Taking to Instagram on Friday morning, 26-year-old Cameron, who finished fifth on The Bachelorette starring Georgia Love, shared a group snap of the finale viewing session.

'Was amazing to meet the rest of the WA Bachie fam last night to watch the final episode together,' he began the caption.

'Congratulations to @leeroyelliott and @georgiealove you both deserve the happiness that follows! Matty J so much respect for how you held yourself. It takes guts to live your life with your heart on your sleeve like that but it will only bring you great things in the future.'

Hint: The firefighter also made special note of the fact that he had now met Nikki, adding in his caption: '(And yes i met @nikki_gogan )'

The Bachie family: Other familiar faces featured in the group snap included The Bachelor's Tiffany Scanlon, Rachael Gouvignon and Natalie Nazzari and The Bachelorette star Ryan Palk

The firefighter also made special note of the fact that he had now met Nikki, adding in his caption: '(And yes i met @nikki_gogan )'.

Fans were quick to note the special reference, with one commenting: 'The part in brackets is the best'.

Meanwhile another penned: 'Cam if you don't swoop queen @nikki_gogan up then Matty J might try'.

Reality stars: Nikki appeared on The Bachelor earlier this year while Cameron tried to win Georgia Love's heart on The Bachelorette this season

Other familiar faces featured in the group snap included The Bachelor's Tiffany Scanlon, Rachael Gouvignon and Natalie Nazzari.

Meanwhile Cameron's Bachelorette co-star Ryan Palk was also there.

Tiffany shared another group photo, along with the caption: 'One rose to rule them all, one rose to find them, one rose to bring them all and in the darkness bind them The Bachelor; bringing people together since 2013! Watching @thebacheloretteau finale with the WA bachie fam (minus Megan)'.

During Thursday night's episode of The Bachelorette Georgia Love revealed she had fallen in love with Lee Elliot in the dramatic finale, leaving Matty devastated.
Bachelorette's Georgia Love and Lee Elliott have revealed they were so shocked by the locations chosen for their secret rendezvous, and compared them to horror film Wolf Creek.

Speaking to Melbourne's KIIS 101.1 Meshel and Matt, Georgia revealed that keeping their relationship a secret was made easier by 'security and blacked out cars'.

But what really concealed the budding romance were the undisclosed locations chosen by Channel Ten's producers after filming of the reality show stopped.

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'I don't know how they find these places': Bachelorette's Georgia Love and Lee Elliott were shocked by their secret rendezvous locations, comparing them to the set of a horror film

'Where did you go for your secret dates we talking in the mountains? In the country? I'm always thinking in the middle of Australia in the desert,' asked Meshel.

'We referred to them as Wolf Creek,' admitted Georgia, while Lee added, 'I don't know how they find these places.'

The 28-year-old added: 'They were in the middle of absolute nowhere, in these strange houses that they find that have no neighbours.'

'Awesome Wolf Creek dates,' said Meshel.

When asked what the pair would tell their friends when they went to these isolated locations, likened to the gory horror film, they said they'd usually make up excuses.

'We referred to them as Wolf Creek': Georgia admitted that the locations scouted for their secret rendezvous were like the set of a gory horror film (promotional picture of Wolf Creek)

'Awesome Wolf Creek dates': The 28-year-old brunette said the locations were 'in the middle of absolute nowhere', much like the isolated home the serial killer in the film took his victims (pictures victim from Wolf Creek film)

'I'd say I've got a cashy on,' said Lee who works as a mechanical plumber.

While Georgia said she would say, 'I always use the line publicity interstate again', when asked.

The brunette media personality admitted keeping it a secret was easier for her because people knew she would have to be seeing someone at the end of the show.

'It was much easier for me I think than for Lee cause as you said everyone knew I was with someone they just didn't know who.

'I'd say I've got a cashy on': The pair who fell in love on the hit reality show The Bachelorette said they would make up reasons to friends and family to meet up secretly

Loved up: Fans watched on while Georgia recreated the iconic Dirty Dancing lift falling into the arms of her beau - who she would later meet, lying to friends and family, saying she was going to 'interstate publicity' events

'But Lee had to kind of pretend he wasn't with me but maybe he was.'

When speaking to Sydney's Nova hosts Fitzy and Wippa, Georgia repeated how remote the locations were calling the meet-ups 'covert operations'.

'We had these covert operations for us to see each other, it's almost like Survivor.

'They just dropped us in the middle of nowhere for a couple of days and just left us to fend for ourselves.'

'It was much easier for me': Georgia admitted keeping the secret meet-ups under wraps was easier for her than Lee, because people knew she would have to end up with one of the boys

'We had these covert operations': Being in Singapore for the finale (pictured) was the last time the pair were able to openly show their affection towards one another until the show's end

When asked where the locations were, Georgia admitted they were in places like the Hunter Valley, known for it's romantic atmosphere, and Strathbogie Ranges in rural Victoria.

'We had one near the Hunter Valley, another in the Strathbogie Ranges, which sounds beautiful and glamorous.

'But they were the strangest most secluded houses they could possibly find,' she added.

Georgia chose Lee in a brutal Bachelorette finale which saw fan favourite Matty J sent home devastated and shocked by her decision.

Heart breaking: Georgia chose Lee in a brutal Bachelorette finale which saw fan favourite Matty J (pictured) sent home devastated and shocked by her decision
Chris Hemsworth has apologised for his poor choice of costume during a New Year's Eve party last year, while also pledging his support for the Standing Rock protests in the US.

'Standing with those who are fighting to protect their sacred land and water,' he began his Instagram post on Friday.

The 33-year-old actor added: 'I would also like to take this opportunity to raise something that has been bothering me for sometime.'

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Remorseful: Chris Hemsworth has pledged his support for the Native American people while apologising for his own offensive mistake made last year

The Australian actor went on to provide context for his apology, before saying: 'I was stupidly unaware of the offence this may have caused and the sensitivity around this issue. I sincerely and unreservedly apologise to all First Nations people for this thoughtless action.'

The former Home And Away star continued: 'I now appreciate that there is a great need for a deeper understanding of the complex and extensive issues facing indigenous communities.'

'I hope that in highlighting my own ignorance I can help in some small way,' Chris concluded his post.

Controversial: The 33-year-old actor addressed the photo from New Year's Eve that saw him and wife Elsa Pataky (left) dress up in Native American costumes

Not happy: Fans were quick to condemn the pair for their choice of attire at the time

The lengthy apology was accompanied by a photo of the Marvel star posing alongside Thor: Ragnorak's Indigenous director Taika Waititi.

The men were both holding up a sign that read: 'We stand with Standing Rock.'

There have been heavy protests and many arrests in recent days as people fight against the Dakota Access Pipeline that's being built at the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in North Dakota.

Getting personal: One Instagram follower chose to aim their comment directly at 32-year-old actor Chris

Disgruntled: Fans suggested the couple's costumes were an example of cultural appropriation

Chris and his wife Elsa were both previously slammed when their costumes were deemed culturally insensitive.

The Melbourne-born actor was attending a Lone Ranger-themed party at the time.

Fans were quick to condemn the married couple for their choice of attire, with one Instagram user commenting: 'This is so disappointing to see. Native Americans are real, their culture is real.'

Meanwhile, another suggested the couple's costumes were an example of cultural appropriation, writing: 'Can't put into words how wrong this is.'

In theme: Chris' older brother Luke sported a police suit and cowboy hat for the New Year's Eve party

One Instagram follower chose to aim their comment directly at actor Chris. 'Oh no Thor has gone and effed up with this cultural appropriation,' they wrote.

Another simple asked: 'Why Hemsworths? Why?'

Meanwhile other fans took the liberty to defend the couple on social media, insisting the fancy dress party was just a lighthearted social occasion with no nasty intent.

In the image, Elsa donned a feathered headdress, while Chris sported a black wig and war paint.
Robert Sepulveda Jr eliminated the guy who said he loves him the most on Thursday's episode of Finding Prince Charming.

Bleach blonde Justin, 29, had only just professed his adoration for Robert when he was sent packing.

'I'm head over heels in love with this man,' said the model/project manager from Portland before he was evicted during the black tie ceremony.

Elimination episode: Robert Sepulveda Jr had the four remaining suitors meet his family on Thursday's episode of Finding Prince Charming

His departure left only Brandon, Dillon and Eric remaining in the running.

The show opened with Brandon meditating on his feelings.

'I'm definitely falling for Robert at this point,' said the 29-year-old healthcare administrator from Los Angeles,

'The feelings are overwhelming,' agreed Eric, a 35-year-old hair stylist from LA.

Black tie ceremony: Justin was asked to give his tie back by Robert

The final four had developed a friendly 'sister wives' relationship, according to Justin.

Enter the host, former 'NSync boyband member, Lance Bass, 37.

Lance told them they were scheduled for a group date with Robert and his family.

The host: Lance Bass got the show rolling by announcing the guys were meeting Robert's family

His mum, dad and sister would then pick which two men got solo dates with Robert.

Dillon, a 26-year-old fashion publicist from New Orleans, was the only man yet to have a one-on-one.

Robert's family flew from Florida for the event.

Family time: Robert Sr, his wife Merly and Robert's sister Jennifer met the final four

His 'tiny Puerto Rican firecracker' mother has been with his father, Robert senior, for 36 years.

His elder sister Jennifer also showed up.

'She'll put them through the ringer,' said Robert, an interior designer and former escort from Atlanta.

Getting emotional: Robert got emotional talking about how supportive his family has been

Eric was 'intimidated' meeting the family, but Justin steamed in with some jocular small talk.

Dillon managed to bond with Jennifer 'immediately'.

Initially she didn't get a good vibe about teetotaler Brandon, branding him 'fake' but she did a U-turn after talking with him further.

First impression: Brandon at first was branded 'fake' by Jennifer but she changed her mind about him

Without speaking to him at length Jennifer planted Justin in 'the friend zone'.

'My blood started to boil,' said Justin in irritation.

Robert's mother favoured Justin and Dillon but his dad preferred Eric and Brandon.

Friend zone: Jennifer sealed Justin's fate by throwing him in the friend zone

Solo dates were awarded to Dillon and Brandon.

Justin was gutted.

'I'm head over heels in love with this man,' he said, noting that Jennifer was 'tough on him'.

In love: Justin declared that he was head over heels in love with Robert

Dillon and Robert had their first ever 'alone time' at a circus school with personal trainers.

'I was hoping for more of an intimate date,' Dillon sighed.

'Dillon's a lot more flexible than me, it's sexy,' remarked Robert as they got sweaty on the trapeze.

Circus school: Robert and Dillon went on a circus school date

Robert seemed smitten suddenly.

'I know if the world was coming to an end Dillon would be the one to figure it out and rescue me,' he cooed.

When he got back to the house Dillon made the others jealous by waxing lyrical about the rendezvous.

Waxing lyrical: Dillon couldn't help himself and waxed lyrically about his date with Robert

'We don't care to hear these details, but he still can't help himself,' said Brandon.

Next, Brandon got his 'J-Lo in Miami moment' with a date on a swanky yacht.

'I feel the potential of falling in love is there,' said Robert, 33.

Yacht date: Robert and Brandon enjoyed a swanky yacht date

'He's sweet and caring and open, all of the stuff you want in a relationship,' he added as they smooched on deck.

'This is the first time I really felt like, ''he's mine'',' concurred Brandon, who was munching on strawberries.

The black tie affair was sad for everyone.

Tie affair: The gay bachelor considered his options before the black tie ceremony

'Either I or one of my sisters is going home,' lamented Justin.

Dillon was obsessing so much over his grey hairs that he made Eric give him a buzz cut.

'Uggg, Britney Spears!' he exclaimed as he looked in the mirror.

Grey gone: Dillon was so obsessed by his grey hairs that he got a buzz cut

Justin was called out first by Robert during the black tie ceremony.

'I know that I have a stronger connection with the other guys and I have to follow my heart,' Robert told him before asking for the tie back.

Adding: 'You're going to make someone very, very, very, happy, I'm honoured to have been able to spend this time with you'.

Stronger connection: Robert told Justin that he had a stronger connection with the other guys

Robert noted that Justin's upbeat personality had made the house a more joyful place.

'He helped all the other guys in the house bond, it's a really beautiful thing,' he's said.

Finding Prince Charming, which has been renewed for another season, will conclude next week with the men enjoying a 'romantic gateway' to Palm Springs in Florida.
Just the day before she took a photograph of herself in bed and complained about a 'terrible virus.'

But Lena Dunham was looking back to her peerless self as she showcased her figure at a question and answer session in the Big Apple on Thursday.

The actress was grinning as she posed on the red carpet before heading in for her appearance at the Conversation With Girls event at the New York Television Festival.

Miraculous recovery: Lena Dunham looked fit and well at the Conversation With Girls event in New York on Thursday

Lena, 30, was looking as good as ever as she showcased her figure in a tan dress, browl trenchcoat and fur-toed stilettos.

No doubt the ethereal beauty was relishing having the chance to talk at length about her HBO sitcom, which is mercifully ending after season six next year.

The self-styled comedienne had certainly made a remarkable improvement over he condition just a day ago, where she posted a photo of Instagram lying in her sickbed with beau Jack Antonoff.

She said: 'We are breeding a terrible virus in this apartment.

'No one should get near us ever again and there's a chance we shouldn't get near each other #insicknessandinhealth.'

Stunning: The ethereal beauty looked better than ever with her chic bob haircut

Girls night out: She cuddled up to the show's producer Jennifer Konner on the red carpet

Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton campaigner Lena yet again proved her social media savyy after being touted as the driving force behind 'nasty woman' trending on Twitter after the last presidential debate.

Female unpleasantness as a tongue-in-cheek rallying cry is on T-shirts, in memes and in tweets galore - a backlash mocking Donald Trump's insult of his presidential rival, who is cruising in the polls.

Trump's outburst that she is 'such a nasty woman' came during one of his interruptions of his Democratic rival in Wednesday's final presidential debate.

'RT if you're a nasty woman and it's made your life a freakin' pleasure,' Dunham tweeted at the time.
Never say Bryce Dallas Howard isn't serious about her art.

The 35-year-old actress told Marie Claire that she put on 30lbs to play a character obsessed with body image and social media on the Netflix sci-fi drama Black Mirror.

The Help star acknowledged to the magazine that the weight gain came in response to the premise of the episode she's on - in which everything is ranked on a social media number scale.

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Dedicated: Bryce Dallas Howard, 35, told Marie Claire she packed on more than 30 pounds for her role in Netflix's Black Mirror. The actress appeared in London earlier this month for a screening of the program

The Village beauty said that the backstory of her character Lacie Pound 'was a huge part of the subtext of the story,' as the character formerly battled an eating disorder and is seen on Black Mirror working to fit into a size four dress.

'I actually gained 30 pounds and I haven't lost all of it yet,' The Jurassic World actress told the publication, 'so I haven't been like, "I gained 30 pounds!"

'Because I don't know if people can tell the difference.'

Look familiar?: Howard's episode takes place in a futuristic society in which everyone and everything are rated and graded by numbers

Bryce, who has two children with her 35-year-old husband Seth Gabel, expounded on the storyline of the show: She said that her character Lacie finds herself under the gun when her bride-to-be pal Naomie (Alice Eve) sends her a size four dress to wear as one of her bridesmaids, 'and obviously Lacie doesn't fit into it,' Howard said. 'At the end, she couldn't even zip the dress fully up.'

Without getting into spoiler specifics, Howard said that during a critical later moment for her character in the show, she 'wanted to play the moment like she was almost suffocating.

'She takes off the dress, and is metaphorically naked for the first time. That's the moment when she engages ... and there's love, and she's accepted as she is.'

Devotion: The redhead beauty said she's still shedding the last of the 30 pounds she put on to play the role of Lacie Pound, a woman obsessed with her appearance and social media rank

Howard said that the desperation embodied in her Black Mirror role is reflective on a grand scale in a social media-driven society where looks are valued at a premium.

'In the culture we live in, there's this pervasive, shared agreement that there's a certain body type to admire,' the daughter of Hollywood legend Ron Howard told the magazine, 'and it isn't actually based on anything real or substantive ... it's a truly superficial thing, and there's a cost to that.'

She said that the episode of the program, titled, Nosedive, 'asks, "What are the ways we oppress our authentic selves?" and that's a true form of oppression for women.'

Seeing through it all: Bryce said pressures on women to have a perfect figure for their social media pics strike her as a 'subversive' distraction, meant to preoccupy women 'with something that doesn't matter'

She said that the intense pressure on women to have a perfect figure for their social media pics strikes her 'a subversive thing which keeps women preoccupied with something that doesn't matter, and takes up a lot of space, and prevents people from what they're meant to be doing.'

Howard told the publication that the biggest lesson she gleaned from the episode was that people need to understand that social media, is, in essence, a 'cartoon universe,' presenting a deliberate and manicured version of reality.

'The clearer that division is between it not being a reflection of reality, and being a complete make-believe world, the more we're helping ourselves,' the actress said. 'You go on Instagram, and it's just not a real reflection of what people do, and how much pain people are in every day - so that's my mental change.'

Promotional trail: Bryce is pictured here at the This Morning studios in London earlier this month

The introspective entertainer is not the only performer to ever intentionally gain or lose significant sums of weight for their craft.

Matthew McConaughey lost 50 pounds for his brilliant, Academy Award-winning performance in Dallas Buyers Club, telling the BBC that he 'did it in as healthy a way as I found possible.'

His Oscar-winning co-star in the 2013 film, Jared Leto, added a whopping 60 pounds to play John Lennon's portly murderer, Mark David Chapman, in 2007's Chapter 27.

Whatever it takes: Both Matthew McConaughey (left, from Dallas Buyers Club) and Jared Leto (in Chapter 27) have undertaken rash diets for their roles in biopics

'Toward the end of the shoot, one of the glaring issues was the pain I had with my feet,' Leto told the New York Daily News. 'I couldn't walk for long distances; I had a wheelchair because it was so painful. My body was in shock from the amount of weight I gained.'

Perhaps the most famous, and dramatic, illustration of Hollywood weight gain was witnessed around the waist of screen legend Robert De Niro, who packed on 40 pounds over four months to portray boxer Jake LaMotta in 1980's Raging Bull.

Like McConaughey, the tremendous physical changes the actor underwent to preserve authenticity came with a pot of gold at the end of the tunnel - Oscar gold, as the venerated actor took home the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1981.
Channel Nine's Karl Stefanovic has weighed in on his good friend James Packer's rumoured split from American pop sensation Mariah Carey.

The humorous Today host was badgered with questions about the estranged couple's split, in Sydney on Thursday, amid rumours of a cheating scandal.

Karl, 42, expressed his support to waiting photographers while also remaining tight-lipped - saying: 'I love James Packer and I'm sure he'll be absolutely fine.'

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'I love James Packer': Channel Nine's Karl Stefanovic weighed in on James Packer's split from American pop sensation Mariah Carey in Sydney on Thursday

The popular breakfast television host added: 'I have no idea what's going on.'

On Friday morning, Sunrise appeared to confirm split rumours after Mariah's camp released a raw statement to the show.

'Mariah Carey and James Packer had a fight in Greece. They have not seen each other since,' the statement read.

'The fight was not because of cheating allegations or excessive spending by Mariah. James is one of the most successful businessmen in the world.

'He'll be absolutely fine': Karl smirked as he was badgered with questions about the rumoured split commenting his support to his close friend

'I have no idea what's going on': Karl kept a tight lip on what was happening with his friend James as he walked to a glamorous event

'They are trying to work it out but right now they are not sure if they will stay together. They are discussing it and plan to release a statement about their future.'

James failed to attend Mariah's Halloween party over the weekend, where the star was seen posing for photos with ex-husband Nick Cannon and their two children.

There has been much speculation about the cause of the split, with TMZ initially claiming that the R&B diva had a rendezvous with one of her dancers during her Las Vegas residency.

'One of my best friends in the world': James (second from right), who is the son of former Nine Network owner Kerry Packer, and Karl (R) pose together in front of a Christmas tree

The ship that never sinks! Karl posed with James' business partner Brett Ratner, on Packer's yacht, just one week after reporting the tragic terror attacks in Nice

Allegations have since been made about his conduct on their Greece trip, which his camp have branded 'simply untrue.'

James and Mariah became engaged in January, after a whirlwind romance of less than a year.

Karl and James have been close friends for some time, with the pair making headlines in June after the breakfast television was pictured on James' Yacht.

'They have not seen each other since': Mariah's PR confirmed that she and James hadn't seen each other since they had a fight during their trip to Greece (pictured together in Greece)

Karl was seen posed with James' business partner Brett Ratner, in which the pair enjoyed some down-time in St Tropez a week after the Nice terror attacks.

Meanwhile, Karl has faced his own relationship woes, following his recent separation from Cassandra Thorburn.

He reportedly moved out of his Sydney family home to stay with his younger brother Peter Stefanovic at his Bondi apartment.

The couple share three children - Jackson, 16, Ava, 11, and 10-year-old River.
She's the Bachelor star known for flaunting her ample assets in a busty bikini.

And on Friday, Noni Janur was at it again.

Taking to Instagram, the 25-year-old beauty showed off her busty cleavage and naturally cinched waist in a sultry two-piece, while enjoying a snorkelling adventure.

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Bikini babe: Taking to Instagram on Friday, Noni Janur shared a photo of herself in a sultry two-piece, while enjoying a snorkelling adventure

'What a time to be alive perfect morning snorkelling with my girl @beccraven (sic),' she captioned the image, which attracted over 1000 likes within just a few hours of being uploaded.

Noni sported a classic triangle-cut blue bikini top, teamed with a pair of stringed black bottoms.

She stood in the shallow waters, with a snorkeling gear propped on her head.

Flaunting it: She's known to show off her incredible curves in an array of sultry bikinis

The Bali-based swimwear designer shot to fame after appearing on The Bachelor earlier this year.

While Noni failed to win the heart of Richie Strahan, she has made a good friend in fellow contestant Kirralee 'Kiki' Morris.

The pair often flaunt their close bond on social media and Kiki recently confirmed that they are now living together.

She even raised eyebrows by announcing they would be starting a 'new life' together in Sydney after finding fame.

The pair are regularly pictured attending glamorous events together.

Kiki and Noni have a combined 120,000 Instagram followers.
In Superman Returns she plays the Man Of Steel's girlfriend Lois Lane.

And Kate Bosworth almost looked ready to take flight herself on Thursday night.

The actress rocked the sleeviest dress imaginable, which appeared to cross a base-jumping wingsuit with a fake bicep Halloween costume.

Check out those biceps! Kate Bosworth rocked a VERY sleevy dress at an New York event on Thursday night

The 33-year-old beauty still managed to pull off the peach-coloured affair nevertheless.

She was joined by husband Michael Polish at the launch of Idole de Christofle's gold & diamond jewelry collection at BG Restaurant, in New York's Bergdorf Goodman.

her fellow actor opted for a much safer approach of a simple black suit and tie with a white button-down shirt.

Interesting: The frock appeared to cross a basejumping wingsuit with a fake bicep Haloween costume

Owned it: The 33-year-old beauty still managed to pull off the peach-coloured affair nevertheless

Kate will soon be seen in BBC miniseries SS-GB which follows the exploits of a British homicide detective who must investigate a murder in a German-occupied England during World War II.

She is is also set to star in The Domestics, which has been described as a thriller and a survival love story.

In it, a young husband and wife must fight to return home in a post-apocalyptic mid-western landscape plagued by brutal gangs.

Funny: She was joined by husband Michael Polish at the launch of Idole de Christofle's gold & diamond jewelry collection at BG Restaurant, in New York's Bergdorf Goodman

Smile: Olivier Fremont also shared a laugh with the actress

The Californian will not, however, be seen in Finding Steve McQueen, having dropped out last month.

Australian actress Rachael Taylor will replace her in the starring role of Molly Morphy, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

The film is based on the true story of one of the the biggest bank heist in US history, when a gang of Ohio thieves tried to steal $30 million from President Richard Nixons secret California stash of illegal contributions and blackmail money in 1972.

Upcoming: Kate will soon be seen in BBC miniseries SS-GB which follows the exploits of a British homicide detective who must investigate a murder in a German-occupied England during World War II
In theory, The Young Pope sounded hellish: a ten-part, multi-national drama with Jude Law playing the Vaticans first American Pope, a charming Cardinal in his forties with penchants for drinking Cherry Coke, having surreal, sexy, dreams, and gratuitously taking showers that provided the contractually obligatory soft-focus shots of his naked backside.

In fact it was a Godsend, particularly after the contrived, clinical, anti-climax that was Westworld.

Televisions latest Next Big Thing more than lived up to the hype, opening with the most assured, intriguing, and imaginative debut episode of any drama this year, and possibly since Mad Men.

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Impressive: The Young Pope was a Godsend, particularly after the contrived, clinical, anti-climax that was Westworld

The first instalment suggested The Young Pope was a marriage made in heaven  the cinematic pyrotechnics of Oscar-winning Italian director Paolo Sorrentino (Youth, The Great Beauty, and Il Divo) and the influence of the greatest (anti-) heroes in American television (Don Draper, Tony Soprano, and House of Cards Frank Underwood) - men who are not what they appear to be or are consumed by secrets.

Here are 5 reasons why it could become a classic.

1. Its audacious premise

The Young Pope is founded on the unlikely but irresistible idea of the ascendancy to the Vatican of historys first American Pope  now known as Pius XIII, but formerly named Lenny Belardo, a quick-witted, unconventional, Cardinal elected leader of the Catholic Church as a result of a botched plot by his former mentor to accede to the position himself.

What is Cardinal Spencer going to do now that his beloved, detested, protege has become Pope? asks Cardinal Voiello, Belardos most Machiavellian enemy after the new Pope appoints as his advisor Sister Mary (Diane Keaton), the nun who raised him having taken him in as an orphan at the age of seven.

New ground: The Young Pope is founded on the unlikely but irresistible idea of the ascendancy to the Vatican of historys first American Pope

Powerful: The Young Popes debut was dominated by a bravura performance by Jude Law as Belardo/Pope Pius

Intriguing: The Young Pope involved the cinematic pyrotechnics of Oscar-winning Italian director Paolo Sorrentino

Pope Pius/Belardo is thus a classic outsider battling to establish his authority with the Vatican a kingdom much like the White House (in House of Cards), Atlantic City (Boardwalk Empire), Madison Avenue (Mad Men), or New Jersey (The Sopranos).

Ever since I was little Ive learn to confound peoples ideas of whats going on in my head, Pius confides to one colleague, confirming suggestions he has the same enigmatic, troubled past, and issues of dual identity as Don Draper.

Whether the secrets of his past will prove his undoing remains to be seen.

But Sister Mary sounded ominous when she instructed him: your personal aches, your enormous sufferings, your terrible memories, must take a backseat. Ive lived with them, wept over them, but now the time has come for you to let your sorrows fade - to become irrelevant, distant, memories and over-powered by the terrible responsibility that God has given you. From now on you are no longer Lenny Belardo, the fatherless, motherless boy. From now on, you are Pope Pius XIII.

Dramatic: The first instalment suggested The Young Pope was a marriage made in heaven

Noticeably, he didnt say amen !

2. Jude Laws audacious performance

The Young Popes debut was dominated by a bravura performance by Jude Law as Belardo/Pope Pius  a man both confident and conniving enough to assert his individuality as Pope but riddled with the kind of doubts and torment that make him vulnerable to being overthrown (in the tradition of Tony Soprano, Nucky Thompson, Don Draper et al).

His bright blue eyes contradicted his troubled, slightly sinister, smile, particularly as he embarked upon his duel/feud with Voiello.

You will be in charge of politics, finance, appointments, theology, and promotions, he conceded under pressure from the more experienced consigliere. I will take care of worldly matters, travel, adulation of the masses...

A most effective division of roles Holy Father, smiled the ambitious Cardinal, satisfied that his machinations had succeeded, only for Pope Pius to beam evilly: I was just kidding!

His boyish charm concealed a deceptive ruthlessness  even ordering the Vatican priest Don Tomasso to tell him the secret sins revealed in the other Cardinals confessions.

Voiello, he learnt, had admitted to having impure thoughts but only about the Venus of Willendorf, the statue in the Popes library. An innocuous, comical, confession. For now...

Turning heads: The Young Popes debut was dominated by a bravura performance by Jude Law as Belardo/Pope Pius

Troubled: He was a man confident enough to assert his individuality as Pope but riddled with the kind of doubts and torment that make him vulnerable to being overthrown

3. Silvio Orlandos audacious performance as Voiello

Voiellos Italian character and political astuteness were simultaneously so alluring and threatening he could easily have appeared in House Of Cards or The Sopranos, such was the intelligence and cunning behind his plot against the young Pope.

Do you know why all the good souls of this world rage against power? he asked his loyal lieutenant. Because they simply dont know what it is ! Power is knowledge.

Who is Pope Pius XIII? Or rather, who was Lenny Belardo? You need to carry out a small investigation - his weak spots, his trials, tribulations, his sins... Especially his sins. Because the sins we commit in the past are the same ones well commit in the future. Because man is like God. He never changes.

Unfortunately you sensed that he was right.

4. Paolo Sorrentinos audacious direction

Episode One had all of Sorrentinos trademarks from his films like The Great Beauty and Il Divo: the lavish scenery and photography, Scorsese-style shots in slow motion, glossy surreal dream scenes.

The series opened with a baby crawling over a pile of babies corpses, emerging as Pope Pius XIII.

He had yet to give his first speech and we saw him waiting to address the huge crowd of followers standing in the rain, then spreading his arms wide to the heavens instead and stopping the downpour, miraculously bringing out the sun.

Ciao Rome ! he roared triumphantly like a papal rockstar, to joyous, adoring, cheers. Ciao Rome !

Lavish: Episode One had all of Sorrentinos trademarks from his films like The Great Beauty and Il Divo

Entertaining: It included Scorsese-style shots in slow motion, glossy surreal dream scenes

He told them his mission from God was to bring back a celebration of play  the key to being in harmony with God.

And what else have we forgotten? he cried reducing the applause to stunned silence as he continued: we have forgotten to masturbate ! To use contraceptives! To get abortions! To celebrate gay marriages, allow priests to love each other, and even to get married!

A row of three Cardinals fainted, falling like toys.

We have forgotten that we can decide to die if you detest living. We have forgotten that you can have sex for purposes other than procreation without feeling guilty. To divorce. To let nuns say mass. In short, not only have to we forgotten to play, we have forgotten to be happy. And there is only one road that leads to happiness. And that road is called freedom.

Of course it wasnt real just another dream but a subversive, audacious beginning nonetheless  a demonstration by Sorrentino that in The Young Pope anything was possible.

5. Its audacious ending

The paradox of the young Popes charm and unease was best exemplified by the final scene. Having forced Don Tomasso to reveal the secrets of the other cardinals confessions, he insisted on his own  not in the confession box but on the roof, overlooking Rome, under the stars, before the house of God.

Where is it? Tomasso asked doubtfully.

Curious: The paradox of the young Popes charm and unease was best exemplified by the final scene

Revered: Jude Law playing the Vaticans first American Pope

Respect: The Pope joked with a priest: Im saying that I dont believe in God'

There ! the Pope pointed. By the Big Dipper. Thats where Gods house is. Half of a duplex, with a private swimming pool.

My conscience does not accuse me because You do not believe I am capable of repenting, he announced, as if to heaven. And therefore I do not believe in You. I dont believe that You are capable of saving me from myself.

Holy father, what are you saying? quivered the priest aghast.

Im saying that I dont believe in God, the Pope declared, almost enjoying the shock, before seeing the priest becoming overcome with panic and horror and assuring him with his favourite phrase: I was joking !

But judging by the way the colour had drained from his face and the expression of dread in Jude Laws eyes, it was the young Pope who was more shaken by the possibility that what he had just said was true.

Man of many talents: Earlier this week, viewers across Europe directed Jude in a digital first, live-action and totally improvised performance as he teamed up with Lexus Europe

Out and about: The talented thespian returned to the London stage for one night only to star in an 'on the road' theatrical production
Geoffrey Edelsten has a lot of front.

But even the 73-year-old millionaire has nothing on the woman he claims to be his girlfriend, Ashley Kirk - as new pictures of the model show.

Photos from a RUKUS magazine shoot published in their March/April edition show the 26-year-old Playboy model's ample assets in full view.

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Cover model: Ashley Kirk, the 26-year-old Playboy model who Geoffrey Edelsten, 73, claims is his girlfriend, appeared on the cover of RUKUS earlier this year

The striking blonde looks stunning as she shows off her toned physique in a series of snaps for the American magazine.

The most eye-catching pic captures the blonde in a hot pink bikini as her hair falls down over her shoulders.

Ashley's photo shoot was accompanied by a 20-question segment with the model.

Denial: Ashley has denied that she and the Australian millionaire are in a relationship

Showing off: The beauty flaunted her toned body in a series of bikini-clad photos

In the wide-ranging interview, the busty babe revealed that guys compliment her most on her personality, sighting her 'warped' sense of humour as the reason why.

Ashley also admitted that the way a man smells and his sense of humour are two of the main things she looks for in a prospective partner.

It remains to be seen whether Geoffrey sees the funny side of the American, who flatly denied his recent claims that the pair are in a relationship.

Q&A: The Detroit born model answered 20 questions for an article in RUKUS, answering 'personality' when asked what guys compliment her on the most

Money on the mind? Geoffrey sights the fact that the model 'isn't getting paid' for news coverage of their relationship as the reason why she is denying they are together

And while her charms may have enticed Geoffrey, it doesn't seem he had the same effect on her.

A representative for the model told KIIS 101.1 Matt & Meshel on Wednesday: 'I spoke with Ashley who said she is not dating this guy, and will not do an interview. So, I am not sure how the rumours got started.'

Meanwhile, Geoffrey, according to KIIS host Matt Tillie, attributes her denials to the fact that she 'isn't getting paid' for the news coverage.

The elderly medical entrepreneur is currently going through a split from wife Gabi Grecko, lodging the divorce papers in Melbourne this week.

RUKUS magazine can be found on Instagram and Facebook, and print and digital copies are available for purchase. Photographer Andrew Gates is also on Instagram and Facebook.
He captured the nation's heart after being dumped by Georgia Love on The Bachelorette.

And Matty Johnson, 29, revealed he's been overwhelmed by support from fans on social media following the crushing show finale on Thursday.

During an appearance on Friday's edition of The Project, the Sydney Marketing Manager said he was grateful after receiving many words of encouragement while also recalling one bizarre message from an overzealous fan.

Capturing the nation's heart: Matty Johnson, 29, revealed on Friday's edition of The Project that he's been overwhelmed by support from fans on social media following the crushing Bachelorette finale on Thursday

'I got one guy saying he would leave his wife for me,' Matty said laughing.

It remains unclear whether or not the fan was joking.

He went on to explain why he signed up to the Channel Ten reality dating series in the first place while also revealing that he has absolutely no regrets about doing the show.

Odd: While most of the messages have been welcomed, the Sydney Marketing Manager said one overzealous fan was a bit over the top. 'I got one guy saying he would leave his wife for me,' he said laughing

'I think the show's got a huge amount of credibility. You look at people like Tim Robards, Sam Frost and you look at that and think there's a chance to meet someone incredible and create a long-lasting relationship. That was the goal for me,' he said.

'I would [do it again]. Even though the ending wasn't how I wanted it to come together. There were so many incredible experiences. The guys were great, crew were awesome. Just didn't get the girl.'

His high praise comes after fans witnessed former news anchor Georgia, 28, dump Matty for Lee Elliot, 35.

'I'm so sorry because you are so amazing. And I've really genuinely loved every single moment that we've had ... And you deserve... ..someone who's gonna give you back everything that you give and more,' a tearful Georgia said.

As Matty tried his best to keep his composure, he expressed his disappointment.

'I guess it's.....it's, you know... I'm absolutely devastated,' he said nervously.

Devastated: Matty was left heartbroken after being dumped by former news anchor Georgia Love during the show's finale

Viewers watched the charming reality star lean over in agony as he struggled to process Georgia's words.

With his hands resting on his thighs, Matty struggled to breathe as Georgia gently explained that she had instead chosen fellow contestant Lee.

As the pair stood face-to-face in Singapore, he eventually put his own pain aside to wish her well.

Rejection: 'I'm so sorry because you are so amazing. And I've really genuinely loved every single moment that we've had ... And you deserve... ..someone who's gonna give you back everything that you give and more,' a tearful Georgia said

'You know, this... this has been the most.....unforgettable experience. And... ..not because we've been on these incredible dates, not because I've done things that I've never done before, but just because I've got to hang out with you and get to know you and... You're the reason this has been so unforgettable,' he said.

The exact moment Matty's heart broke? The contestant doubles over as he struggles to come to terms with the news

'I wanted to meet someone here who I thought I could spend the rest of my life with and... ..I have. But... Yeah, it just... ..it sucks you don't feel the same way.

He continued: '..I'm so happy you... ..you've found what you were looking for. So... And I'm sure you're gonna make Lee the happiest man in the world. And I wish you guys all the best.'

Disappointed: 'I guess it's.....it's, you know... I'm absolutely devastated,' he said nervously

Humble: As the pair stood face-to-face in Singapore, Matty put his own pain aside to wish 28-year-old Georgia well, after she revealed that she had chosen fellow contestant Lee Elliot

Matty admitted that he was hesitant to leave her after building such a strong bond with the brunette beauty, which prompted her to cry.

'I really don't want to let you go. See you, Georgia Love,' he said softly.

'See you, Matty J,' she said between sobs.

Bye: A heartbroken Matty made a tearful exit with his head in his hands

Tough: Georgia cried as she watched Matty J walk away

On Wednesday, fans watched Matty J drop the L-word during a cheeky swim with Georgia.

On Twitter, people cited the exact moment they thought Matty J's heart broke.

'When he bent over that was the exact moment his heart broke in two,' one cited.

'That was brutal. I can see his heart breaking,' another lamented.

How could she? On Wednesday, fans watched Matty J drop the L-word during a cheeky swim with Georgia

Reality sinking in: He appeared tense after being dumped by the beauty

Elsewhere, viewers vented their outrage despite Lee having been a favourite to win throughout the Channel Ten dating series.

'Why do people on the bachelor and Bachelorette always pick the wrong people like OMG wtf,' one seemingly unimpressed user wrote.

'Honestly heartbroken/mad watching that bachelorette final #wrongguy,' another tweeted.

'Wow never did I think that an episode of the bachelorette could break my heart like this #BacheloretteAU #teammatty,' one tweet read.

Happily ever after: Georgia picked Lee Elliot as her winner
Detention Center

The inmate count at the Platte County Detention Facility Thursday was 84, with 54 from Platte County and 30 from out of county.

Police

Oct. 24

6:41 a.m.  At the intersection of 14th Street and 33rd Avenue, Charles Kuta, 88, 3914 25th St., No. 7, was cited for a traffic signal violation.

1:59 p.m.  At the intersection of 33rd Avenue and Eighth Street, traffic accident. Drivers were Alan Woerth, 49, 1509 Eighth St., and Linda Griffith, 61, Genoa.

Oct. 25

1:24 p.m.  In a parking lot at 4214 38th St., a vehicle driven by Loreto Federizo, 43, 2116 Sixth St., lost control and struck parked vehicles owned by Dennis Kolm, 2618 Seventh St., and Kimberly Hellbusch, 2654 Prairie Place.

Oct. 26

8:49 a.m.  In the 2500 block of 44th Avenue, an unknown vehicle struck a parked vehicle owned by Zach Recek, 2310 17th St., and left the scene.

Sheriff

Oct. 9

7:51 p.m. - On Highway 22, five miles southeast of Platte Center, a vehicle driven by Bradley Beed, 41, Norfolk, struck a deer.

Oct. 12

6:55 a.m.  At the intersection of East 59th Avenue and railroad tracks closed for construction, a vehicle driven by Brent Brabec, 36, Howells, struck the tracks.

Oct. 13

6:30 a.m.  On Highway 91, two miles northwest of Leigh, a vehicle driven b Rochelle Huisman, 54, Leigh, struck a deer.

Oct. 19

3:46 p.m.  In the 1100 block of 17th Street, traffic accident. Drivers were Larry Pacas, 65, Schuyler, and Miguel Ayala-Zavala, 21, 1602 20th St.

Oct. 26

4:40 a.m.  In a parking lot at 818 E. 23rd St., Christian Valdez of Columbus jailed for possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.

5:12 p.m.  Theft at 8652 36th Ave., $75 loss.

Fire

Oct. 26

8:57 a.m.  In the 1400 block of 15th Street, medical.

11:37 a.m.  Accident in Pawnee Park West.

3:43 p.m.  In the 300 block of 23rd Street, medical.

5:19 p.m.  In the 4700 block of 38th Street, medical.

Oct. 27

12:45 a.m.  In the 1800 block of East 32nd Avenue, medical.

4:48 a.m.  In the 3900 block of 32nd Avenue, medical.
She recently split from her husband of 21 years, Karl Stefanovic.

But despite the breakup drama, Cassandra Thorburn looked chic and confident as she stepped out on Wednesday for a meeting with celebrity agent Max Markson.

The power lunch took place just one day before Markson confirmed to Daily Mail Australia that he'd signed a deal with Thorburn to 'relaunch her career.'

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Alright in white! Cassandra Thorburn looked chic and confident as she stepped out on Wednesday for a meeting with celebrity agent Max Markson

The 44-year-old former journalist looked ready to step back into the spotlight in a sleeveless cream zip top.

She paired it with grey, three-quarter length jeans, and a pair of strappy black stilettos.

Thorburn completed the stylish ensemble by pairing her heels with a black Prada handbag.

Fashion: The 44-year-old former journalist looked ready to step back into the spotlight in a sleeveless cream zip top

Style: She paired the top with grey, three-quarter length jeans, and a pair of strappy black stilettos.

Designer: Thorburn completed the stylish ensemble by pairing her heels with a black Prada handbag

Beauty: The 44-year-old wore her brown hair in a short, pixie style cut

PR king Max told Daily Mail Australia on Friday: 'Cass is an outstanding journalist with over 20 years experience in radio, television and of course writing.'

The celebrity agent went on to explain that the mother-of-three will be 'using her experience as an opinionated columnist and on-air TV and radio presenter' to relaunch her career.

It comes after the 44-year-old broke her silence on her split from Today host Karl in an emotional Facebook post.

Pricey? Cassandra rummaged through her purse to pay for a parking ticket

Confident: The former journalist confidently strutted her stuff down the street

Don't trip! The estranged wife of Karl Stefanovic balanced on her dangerously high stilettos as she grabbed a parking ticket

The post read: 'Apparently Today Show finally won a year. This took a huge toll on my family and I, and Im congratulating myself today for all the effort that went into making that [ratings] happen.

'The suggestions, the story ideas, the constant counselling of questions for years.

'I'm giving myself a pat on the back tonight, as I know many people will also know how much effort I put into it,' she continued.

In charge: The brunette beauty looked single and ready to mingle following her split with Karl

Who is she texting? Cassandra was glued to her phone during the outing

Careful! The star tottered her way through a dangerous construction area

The former journalist was later forced to defend herself, telling the Sydney Morning Herald: 'I didn't think there was anything wrong with saying the Today show has won the ratings and I am going to have a drink to celebrate the contribution I made.'

'There was no malice intended. This is the father of my three children... and my husband has always acknowledged me. I don't need acknowledgement from anyone else.'

During the interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, Cassandra refused to comment on her split with Karl but told the newspaper the separation came as 'a shock'.

Good taste: Thorburn made sure that her shoes matched her designer Prada handbag

Is she playing Candy Crush? Cass was back on her phone as she marched down the street

Despite her marriage breakdown playing out in the public-eye, Cassandra insisted she was now feeling 'good' about the future.

Earlier this month, New Idea reported 'no-one' at Karl's workplace were surprised by the news of Karl and Cassandra's split.

'They have been having issues for ages, and no-one at Nine was surprised when they heard they had split,' a source told the magazine.

Is he running late? Cassandra placed a call to PR kingpin Max Markson, who she was scheduled to meet that day

Where are you?! Cass was meeting Max to discuss working together to 'relaunch her career'

No surprise: Earlier this month, New Idea reported 'no-one' at Karl's workplace were surprised by the news of Karl and Cassandra's split

Karl has recently been spotted on and off air without his wedding ring amid reports of a marriage breakdown.

He has also reportedly moved out of his Sydney family home and is staying with his younger brother Peter Stefanovic at his Bondi apartment.

The couple share three children - Jackson, 16, Ava, 11, and 10-year-old River.

There he is! Max finally showed up for the friendly business meeting with the brunette

Call it a comeback: Markson confirmed to Daily Mail Australia that he'd signed a deal with Thorburn to 'relaunch her career'

'Cass is an outstanding journalist with over 20 years experience in radio, television and of course writing,' said Markson
She was busy partying with new BFF Paris Hilton earlier this week.

And Sofia Richie proved she's very much the new socialite of the moment as she attended Kanye West's star-studded Saint Pablo concert in Inglewood, California, on Thursday night.

Mingling with the likes of Kourtney and Kim Kardashian, Brooklyn Beckham and Chrissy Teigen, the 18-year-old daughter of Lionel Richie showcased her model physique in a sheer purple top, revealing a glimpse of her lacy bra.

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Girl about town: Sofia Richie proved she's the new socialite of the moment as she attended Kanye West's star-studded Saint Pablo concert in Inglewood, California, on Thursday night

Staying true to her signature style, the catwalk queen paired her daring blouse with skintight leather trousers and pristine white Adidas trainers.

Completing her hip look, Sofia paired a black bomber jacket, featuring an orange lining, to add a pop of colour to the ensemble.

The blonde beauty looked in high spirits as she waited to enter the Kanye gig, making the most of the time by snapping pictures and sharing jokes with her pals.

Sofia kept her accessories fairly simple with a quirky metallic bag, emblazoned with red and yellow details and a pair of silver hoop earrings.

A daring look: The 18-year-old daughter of Lionel Richie showcased her model physique in a sheer purple top, revealing a glimpse of her lacy bra

Casual: Staying true to her signature style, the catwalk queen paired her daring blouse with skintight leather trousers and pristine white Adidas trainers

Teen style queen: Completing her hip look, Sofia paired a black bomber jacket, featuring an orange lining, to add a pop of colour to the ensemble

Scraping back her shoulder-length locks in a simple ponytail, Sofia kept her make-up minimalistic to showcase her youthful good looks.

Also in attendance was Kim Kardashian - who made a rare appearance following her harrowing Paris ordeal - her sister Kourtney Kardashian, hitmaker John Legend and his model wife Chrissy Teigan, and actor Shia Labeouf.

Kardashian-Jenner 'momager' Kris Jenner returned to see her son-in-law for night three of his tour, once again bringing her toyboy beau Corey Gamble along.

Also spotted arriving together were teen pals Cody Simpson and Brooklyn Beckham, who enjoyed a boys' night out at the gig.

Snap happy: The blonde beauty looked in high spirits as she waited to enter the Kanye gig, making the most of the time by snapping pictures and sharing jokes with her pals

Model behaviour: Sofia kept her accessories fairly simple with a quirky metallic bag, emblazoned with red and yellow details and a pair of silver hoop earrings

Sofia has certainly been enjoying her week, as she spent some quality time with her new bestie Paris Hilton - the former best friend of her older sister Nicole Richie, 35 -on Monday at The Nice Guy in West Hollywood.

The star has been keeping busy since her break up from singing sensation Justin Bieber earlier this month.

Justin - who is currently on his world tour, and Sofia caused quite a stir in the summer when they dated for a mere six weeks.

Their romance culminated in the Baby hitmaker taking a break from social media, after he accused fans of being unkind to his then-flame.

Pretty as a picture: Scraping back her shoulder-length locks in a simple ponytail, Sofia kept her make-up minimalistic to showcase her youthful good looks
She's renowned for her impeccable fashion sense, often seen in glamorous gowns and elegant ensembles.

And Melanie Griffith turned up the style stakes once again when she headed to dinner at West Hollywood hotspot Craig's in Los Angeles on Thursday night.

The actress, 59, turned heads in a charming floral midi-dress that showcased her svelte physique in all its glory.

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Stunner: Melanie Griffith turned up the style stakes once again when she headed to dinner at West Hollywood hotspot Craig's in Los Angeles on Thursday night

Tying her blonde locks back in a ponytail, she accentuated her striking features with a touch of makeup as she headed out for a bite to eat.

The Working Girl star accessorised with earrings, a black handbag, and a ring on each hand as she completed her glamorous outfit with some black peep-toe heels.

Melanie looked a picture of happiness as she entered the diner with a beaming smile on her face.

Her glamorous turnout marked a contrast from Wednesday evening when the star showed off her edgy side, sporting a black, leather ensemble for Kanye West's gig.

Timeless beauty: The American actress, 59, turned heads in a charming floral midi-dress that showcased her svelte physique in all its glory

Working it, girl: Tying her blonde locks back in a ponytail, Melanie accentuated her striking features with a touch of makeup as she headed out for a bite to eat

The golden-globe winner wore a stylish, asymmetrical motorcycle jacket, which cinched in to show off her trim figure.

Melanie coupled the trendy jacket with a pair of skintight, black leather leggings, that highlighted her toned pins.

A mother of three, Melanie's divorce from her husband, actor Antonio Banderas, was finalised last year.

She recently spoke about life as a single woman, telling People: 'I'm single, and lonely, and bored, and confused  but then at the same time, totally curious.

Fashionista: The Working Girl star accessorised with earrings, a black handbag, and a ring on each hand as she completed her glamorous outfit with some black peep-toe heels

'It's almost like I have to throw myself out of the nest.

She added: 'I'm having a very introspective time right now. It's an interesting time. It's just sort of nice. My kids are all great. They're beautiful people.'

Melanie was previously married to Steven Bauer, before later marrying Don Johnson - whom she divorced and wed twice.

Don and Melanie's daughter, Dakota Johnson, 27, is now a star in her own right, having shot to fame thanks to her starring role in the movie adaptation of raunchy E.L. James novel, Fifty Shades Of Grey.
She stunned earlier this week in a figure-hugging frock at Who Magazine's Sexiest People party.

But PR queen Roxy Jacenko ditched the glam in favour of a sweater and trackpants, in one of her signature elevator selfies shared to Instagram on Friday.

The snap, titled 'Casual Fridays,' came shortly after she treated her children Pixie, 5, and Hunter, 2, to a sweet treat consisting of doughnuts.

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'Casual Fridays': Roxy Jacenko, 36, ditched the glam in favour of a sweater and trackpants, in one of her signature elevator selfies shared to Instagram on Friday

Roxy sported a grey Madeline Thompson cashmere sweater, teamed with coordinating sweatpants that clung to her lean legs.

Letting the accessories do the talking, the mother-of-two carried a laptop clad in a Louis Vuitton case and drew attention to her sparkling engagement ring worn on her right hand.

With her shoulder-length blonde tresses falling in soft waves around her face and shoulders, Roxy opted for a minimal makeup palette allowing her plump pout to be the focus.

Sweet deal! Just hours earlier, snaps shared to daughter Pixie's Instagram account saw Roxy's offspring eating doughnuts for dinner

'Dinner time': A clip shared to Instagram shortly after saw the young pair tucking into the Halloween treats with enthusiasm

Just hours earlier, snaps shared to daughter Pixie's Instagram account saw Roxy's offspring eating doughnuts for dinner.

One image saw Pixie and Hunter looking elated at the sight of a box of doughnuts in front of them.

'When you lay your eyes on the first release Halloween @doughnut_time it pays to have people in high places,' penned Roxy on behalf of Pixie.

A clip shared to the site shortly after saw the young pair tucking into the Halloween treats with enthusiasm.

'Dinner time,' the short video was simply captioned.

Fashionista: The casual Friday comes just two days after Roxy stunned on the red carpet in Sydney at Who Magazine's Sexiest People Party

The casual Friday comes just two days after Roxy stunned on the red carpet at Who Magazine's Sexiest People Party.

The fashionista opted for a chic Mary Katrantzou frock that featured bell sleeves and a collection of various prints.

Roxy accessorised with her staple black Azzedine Alaia heels and sparkling wedding rings.

Styling her blonde locks semi-straight, she opted for an elegant makeup palette of a flawless complexion, defined brows, lashings of mascara and a soft pink lip.
He's previously been accused of using plastic surgery or cosmetic procedures to achieve a suspiciously smooth appearance.

But on Friday, Shane Warne looked like your average 47-year-old as he showed off his refreshingly realistic visage in a bearded selfie shared to Instagram.

'Time for the beard to go as way too many grey hairs hahahah,' he wrote.

Average Joe: Shane Warne looked like your average 47-year-old as he showed off his refreshingly realistic visage in a bearded selfie shared to Instagram on Friday

Shane looked drastically different in the selfie compared to outings from recent months.

In September, he sported a surprisingly taut forehead at an after party for Mark Wahlberg's new blockbuster, Deepwater Horizon, at London's Corinthia Hotel.

The bowler's usually creased forehead was as smooth as a baby's bottom, with barely a line to be seen.

What a difference a year makes! Shane Warne looked much more youthful and wrinkle-free (left) compared to his appearance last year (right) at a party in London last month

Despite being a brand ambassador for Advanced Hair and admitting to using hair plugs himself, the Big Blonde -- as ex Elizabeth Hurley affectionately calls him -- has repeatedly denied using Botox or fillers.

In fact, the star has attributed his sometimes wrinkly appearance to weight loss, while crediting his more flattering looks to luxurious facials and a good moisturizer.

Warnie slammed accusations that he's plumped up his visage with fillers during his time on Channel Ten's I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! earlier this year.

Smooth operator: The 47-year-old's forehead was suspiciously smooth while the lines around his eyes appeared much finer and less noticeable than a year before

He's still got it! The notorious ladies man was seen posing with two stunning beauties at the party

'Because I'm old, my face went all like this,' Warne said to his co-stars in the scene as he pulled at his face with his hand.

'But I was 77 kilos and I'm too tall to be that skinny and I looked, I didn't look well.'

He added that he'd be happy to admit he had cosmetic surgery, if he ever had it in the first place.

Natural beauty: Warnie has repeatedly denied undergoing plastic surgery or cosmetic injections, instead crediting his enviable appearance to facials and a good moisturizer

'And everyone said, 'look what Warne's done to his face. What's he done to his head? Lay off the Botox. Get rid of the facelifts. He's had fillers' and I'm like if I wanted to have some, I would have no issue and if someone asked, I'd say, 'Yep, I've had some. But until then'.'

In May, the star explained to The Fix that he takes 'pride in his appearance' and has remained looking youthful thanks to a good beauty regimen and exercise.

'Forty is the new 30, 50 is the new 40. That's why everyone's looking better nowthey're more aware also of how to look after your skin the best way, how to look after yourself better.'
Andy Lee has denied that his children's book is a rip-off of a Sesame Street creation, amid recent criticism.

Readers, fans of his radio show and even his co-host Hamish Blake recently pointed out the similarities between Andy's newly released Do Not Open This Book and The Monster At The End Of This Book, which was published back in 1971.

Speaking on the Hamish and Andy Show on Friday, the author insisted he has never seen a copy of Jon Stone's book.

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Children's author: Andy Lee has been forced to deny he ripped off Sesame Street's The Monster At The End Of This Book when he wrote Do Not Open This Book

He said: 'When Hamish first got the book he said, 'It reminds me of that book, The Monster At The End Of This Book', but I've never read that.'

'I can understand why people think there are similarities, and I'm kind of chuffed by that.'

The similarities between the two books are clear.

The original: In 1971, Jon Stone wrote The Monster At The End Of This Book featuring Grover from Sesame Street

Co-hosts: Andy (L) and Hamish Blake (R) are a popular double act on Australian radio

Both employ reverse psychology on the reader, both use blue cartoon characters and both plead with the reader not to turn the page.

But Andy was adamant that it was all his own work after writing the book in just 40 minutes during a flight.

Originally, he only intended to produce one copy of the book as a gift for his nephew, George, for his first birthday.

But after roping in old friend 'Horgs' from his school days, who works in children's book publishing, it was suggested that the book be sold to the public.

Throwback: Andy (L) enlisted the help of his school friend 'Horgs' (R) to help produce Do Not Open This Book

On air: Andy (R) claims to have never read the 1971 Sesame Street book, which co-host Hamish (L) pointed out has striking similarities to his friend's new book

Just two days after hitting the shelves, the book had sold over 40,000 copies, a remarkable achievement given Australian Society of Authors chief executive, Juliet Rogers, told The Guardian most would be lucky to see a first print run of 3,000.

The same people who pointed out the similarities between the two books also questioned whether the original publishers, Golden Books, might take legal action.

However, speaking to Herald Sun, media lawyer John-Paul Cashen says copyright laws protect the 'expression of ideas' - not the ideas themselves.
She's one of Australia's hottest modelling exports.

And proving she's a natural, Bambi Northwood-Blyth ditched the makeup to reveal her striking facial features in a snap shared to Instagram on Friday.

The 25-year-old, who is enjoying a stay at Melbourne's QT Hotel, drew attention to her blemish-free complexion as she pulled a fluffy robe around her head.

Barefaced beauty! Bambi Northwood-Blyth, 25, ditched the makeup in a snap shared to Instagram on Friday, that saw the model drawing attention to her blemish-free complexion and striking facial features

'Robes san rose kinda a crime but getting all the extra zzzz's at the amazing @qtmelbourne,' Bambi captioned the snap.

She also added in the hash-tags: #SnoozeQueen, #TheRoyalSleep and #Zzzzz.

The snap saw the Sunglass Hut ambassador sport just a fluffy black robe that she pulled up over her head, to zone in on her symmetrical facial features.

Glamorous: Just a day prior, the wife of fashion designer Dan Single, put on a flirty display in a caramel and white striped frock by Zimmermann that featured a plunging neckline

Just a day prior, the wife of fashion designer Dan Single, put on a flirty display at Sunglass Hut's Shades of You Summer Launch.

A caramel and white striped frock by Zimmermann featured a wrap-around tie that cinched in her already slender waist, while the short hem accentuated her lean legs.

Styling her short locks in soft waves around her face, she opted for a glamorous makeup look of a bronzed complexion, defined brows, lashings of mascara and a nude lip.

In good company: A snap shared to Bambi's Instagram account at the event held at Sydney's Double Bay Intercontinental Hotel, saw the brunette beauty cozying up to her husband Dan Single (left)

Also in attendance at the event was Bambi's husband Dan Single, who cut a casual figure in a white button-up shirt, trousers and stylish dark sunglasses.

Bambi has certainly been keeping busy, not just on the modelling front.

She and husband Dan launched their second bottle in their wine range, Pour Les Amour, late last year.

Model friends: Bambi sidled up to Tahnee Atkinson, who rose to fame after appearing on Australia's Next Top Model, at the star-studded event

They launched the brand with a bottle of rose and moved to a sparkling wine in November.

At the Bondi launch for their second bottle, Bambi told the Daily Telegraph the couple weren't finished with the brand yet.

'We're going to fulfil the family. It's creating our ultimate flavour  this is our ultimate sparkling, that was our ultimate rose. Next is an ultimate white and an ultimate red,' she said.

Ventures: Bambi and husband Dan launched their second bottle in their wine range, Pour Les Amour, late last year
Looks like someone has caught the Catch bug - hook, line and sinker.

Tara Reid is either a big fish fan, loves a rooftop or knows where's best to get her picture taken as she returned to the new hot eatery for the second night in a row.

The very slender 40-year-old was spotted leaving Catch in West Hollywood, California, on Thursday night.

Hook, line and sinker: Tara Reid had dinner at Catch in West Hollywood, California, on Thursday for the second night in a row

It is obviously the Sharknado star's new favourite spot as she had dinner at the same restaurant the night before.

The seafood eatery has been been drawing in stars by the droves thanks to its New York version's cool factor and as it has one of the best rooftops - which is a rarity in itself - in LA.

Tara certainly seemed to have enjoyed her night out, descending down the eatery's stairs to where photographers wait with a big smile on her face.

For her night out, the American Pie actress wore a pair of skinny jeans - that were a little loose on her frame - which had rips on them with red plaid patches underneath.

Tasty treat: Tara certainly seemed to have enjoyed her night out, descending down the eatery's stairs to where photographers wait with a big smile on her face

Ready to rock: For her night out, the American Pie actress wore a pair of skinny jeans which had rips on them with red plaid patches underneath with a stomach-bearing crop top and a big faux fur with a vest

High stepper: The star paired the look with impossible to miss bright red platform ankle boots

She wore the low sung denim pants with a stomach-bearing crop top but she added a big faux fur with a vest.

The star paired the look with impossible to miss bright red platform ankle boots.

The actress had worn the same Christian Louboutin boots but in yellow the previous evening when she stopped by the restaurant.

Tara was joined by a group of girlfriends at the eatery after attending an LA Galaxy game.
Advertisement

If there's one thing that makes a celebrity excited, it's a freebie.

And Karlie Kloss was the latest star to enjoy the largesse of house-sharing website AirBnB, with a free stay.

Not that the supermodel was slumming it in someone's spare room.

Instead the 24-year-old forewent a hotel to take up residence in a luxurious $10million Beverly Hills mansion.

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Fancy digs: The 24-year-old supermodel forewent a hotel and instead took up residence in a luxurious $10 million Beverly Hills mansion courtesy of Airbnb for her week-long stay

'Thanks @airbnb for the complimentary LA home away from home,' The Chicago-native graciously took to Instagram on Thursday to thank her hosts for her free stay in the sprawling 5-bedroom and 6-bath estate

Following in the footsteps of stars such as Kim Kardashian and Mariah Carey, the Chicago native made herself at home, in return for a shout out on social media.

'Thanks @airbnb for the complimentary LA home away from home,' Karlie graciously wrote on Instagram as she thanked her hosts for the free week-long stay in the sprawling 5-bedroom and 6-bath estate.

The Beverly Hills home has a prime location off the iconic Sunset Strip, ideal for the NYC-based model to quickly jet to all of her appointments including the 2016 Fashion Awards Nominees Announcement Brunch at Soho House in West Hollywood on Tuesday.

Karlie's temporary retreat features five-bedrooms including the grandiose master where the king-sized mattress lay elevated on a platform across from a fireplace.

Central: The Beverly Hills home has a prime location off the iconic Sunset Strip, ideal for the NYC-based model to quickly jet to all of her appointments while in Los Angeles

Sweet dreams: Karlie's temporary retreat features a grandiose master bedroom where the king-sized mattress lay elevated on a platform across from a fireplace. The beautiful bedroom features loads of natural light and vaulted ceilings

Rub-A-Dub-Dub: The master bath showcases a standing shower and jacuzzi tub surrounded in brown and black marble with a view of the private backyard

The beautiful bedroom features loads of natural light, vaulted ceilings, and large French doors which lead to an outside terrace.

The master bath showcases a standing shower and jacuzzi tub surrounded in brown and black marble with a view of the private backyard.

The modern estate also has a massive kitchen in the main home ( there is also a pool house) with plenty of dining space.

The home also boasts two large living rooms decorated with black and white marble tiling, and luxe furnishings.

No take-out needed: The modern estate has a massive kitchen in the main home ( there is also a pool house complete with a full kitchen)

Let's eat: There is also plenty of dining space to entertain guests

Party house: The home also boasts two large living rooms decorated with chic black and white luxe furnishings

Spacious: One of the living room areas also boasts a large marble fire place

The contemporary crash pad features a lovely yard, a lengthy modern pool, along with a grill area, wet bar and pool house.

The separate pool house also comes complete with a full kitchen - perfect for entertaining her LA-based friends.

In Karlie's social media video, the blonde beauty filmed herself selfie-style standing in front of the beautiful backyard pool.

'Thank you AirbNb for this complimentary stay. I've had the most fabulous time in L.A., and I live out of a suitcase most of the time so it's really nice to have a real house and a fabulous pool. Thank you!'

The best part: The contemporary crash pad features a lovely yard and lengthy modern pool

In addition: The perfect outdoor entertaining area also includes a grill area, wet bar, and pool house complete with a full kitchen

She approves: 'Thank you Airbnb for this complimentary stay. I've had the most fabulous time in L.A., and I live out of a suitcase most of the time so it's really nice to have a real house and a fabulous pool,' Karlie shared a 'thank you' video on Instagram on Thursday
She's often tangled in a complicated web of drama on Made In Chelsea.

But Tiffany Watson, 22, looked radiant and relaxed as she enjoyed a spot of lunch with her E4 co-stars at London's exclusive Chiltern Firehouse on Friday afternoon.

The reality star looked effortlessly chic in a mini skirt and thigh-high boots as she was joined by fellow fashionistas Olivia Bentley, 21, and Frankie Gaff, 22, for a girls' day out at the Marylebone hotspot.

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Ladies who lunch! Tiffany Watson, 22, looked radiant and relaxed as she enjoyed a spot of lunch with her E4 co-stars at London's Chiltern Firehouse on Friday

Tiffany, who is dating MIC's Sam Thompson, fought off the cool autumn weather with a black turtle neck, elegantly topped with a faux-fur gilet.

Paired with a metallic detailed skirt, Tiffany added height to her frame with thigh-grazing heels as she teetered along.

Her golden shoulder-length tresses billowed elegantly in the breeze, while her minimalistic makeup showcased her natural beauty.

Olivia, who is the heiress of luxury car firm Bentley Motors, looked typically stylish as she opted for an all-black ensemble.

Dressed to impress: The reality star looked effortlessly chic in a mini skirt and thigh-high boots as she was joined by fellow fashionista Olivia Bentley at the Marylebone hotspot

Chelsea's finest: Olivia, who is the heiress of luxury car firm Bentley Motors, looked typically stylish as she opted for an all-black ensemble

She paired skin-tight jeans with a loose-fitting black blouse, while artfully matching her silver pendant necklace with the rocker chick zips on her trousers.

Meanwhile Frankie looked like she wasn't quite ready to part from her summer clothing as she flaunted her tanned and toned legs in a striped mini-dress draped over a high-neck white shirt.

Keeping casual, Jamie Laing's girlfriend opted for beige platform trainers while toting her belongings in a bright turquoise bag, which added a pop of colour to the simple outfit.

While enjoying their girly day, Frankie treated her Instagram followers to an insight of their glamorous brunch.

These boots were made for walking: Tiffany added height to her frame with thigh-grazing heels as she teetered into the London hotspot

Isn't summer over? Jamie Laing's girlfriend Frankie opted for beige platform trainers while toting her belongings in a bright turquoise bag

'With my favourites': While enjoying their girly day out, Frankie treated her 131 thousand Instagram followers to an insight of their glamorous brunch

Posing alongside her gal pal Tiffany, she captioned the snap: 'Celebrating @urbanistalife with my favourites.'

While Olivia posted a close-up of the elegant table setting, with the caption: 'How Fridays should always be. At the @urbanistalife event x'.

The ladies' tumultuous relationships with their boyfriends are often the subject of the hit reality show, with Tiffany's causing the most drama so far.

Sam and Tiffany spent the summer in the South of France filming the Made In Chelsea spin-off alongside their co-stars.

But when they returned to UK shores, Tiffany complained that her man wasn't giving her enough attention or appreciating her enough.

Leggy lady: Frankie did not seem fazed by the cool weather as she showed of her lithe legs

Pretty in pink: Olivia posted a close-up of the elegant table setting, with the caption: 'How Fridays should always be. At the @urbanistalife event x'

In the Made In Chelsea series debut earlier this month, the blonde caught the eye of show newcomer Julius, only for her to realise it was Sam she wanted.

Tiffany's elder sister Lucy quit Made In Chelsea last month after four years on the E4 reality show.

A spokesperson said: 'After four amazing years on Made in Chelsea, Lucy feels that now is the right time to explore some other exciting opportunities and projects that she is passionate about.

'Being part of such a successful show has been an incredible experience for her, and she wishes everyone involved all the very best for the future.'
COLUMBUS  Troy Hiemers reasoning for a seeking a Columbus City Council seat is simple.

I love this city, the 47-year-old Columbus native said.

The Marine Corps veteran and regional manager for Midwest Medical Transport was looking for a new way to give back to the city he loves, and he believes his background and experience are a good fit for the city council.

Hiemer, who is a volunteer firefighter and EMT in Columbus and member of the state Board of Emergency Medical Services, is facing Levi Abbott for the four-year council seat being vacated by Jim Bulkley, who is challenging Mayor Mike Moser. The Ward 2 position represents southwest Columbus.

Hiemer, a regular at city council meetings since announcing his candidacy earlier this year, is targeting municipal spending as his top priority.

Although there arent any specific areas where he would like to see cuts at this point, Hiemer said he wants to dig deeper into the municipal budget to ensure the city is being operated in the most cost-effective way.

I think our overall spending can be cut, said Hiemer, who plans to look closely at every expense, from office chairs to vehicles to major projects, if elected.

Hiemer said he also wants to see city officials give more scrutiny to project bids in an attempt to secure better prices. If bids dont meet their specifications, he said, the city should look at other avenues to complete projects.

At Midwest Medical Transport, he said the company saves money by remounting ambulance boxes on a new chassis and closely studying equipment purchases. Similar cost-saving measures can be applied to city spending, he said.

Municipal expenses arent out of hand, he said, but citizens need to know their money is being spent wisely.

Hiemer isnt looking to gouge the city budget.

He said many of the projects currently planned are necessary to keep the city moving forward, including the library/cultural arts center and public safety improvements for the police and fire departments. However, those projects must be completed in an efficient manner, he said.

The council candidate knows progress and visual appeal are important to businesses and families looking at relocating to Columbus.

We cant become a city that just maintains or becomes stagnant, he said. We have to look for ways to bring in the big businesses or the small businesses.

The four-lane expansion of U.S. Highway 30 between Columbus and Fremont will help get new businesses here, according to Hiemer, but other improvements within the city remain equally important.

The local housing shortage is another issue that must be addressed to encourage growth here.

Hiemer said a housing study will give community leaders a better idea of how to address this area, but there are things that must happen regardless of those results.

He believes local developers must respond to the need by constructing more affordable homes and apartments, with tax breaks and grants providing incentives for this work.
She's yet to comment on her ex-husband Professor Green's explosive new single, One Eye On The Door, which sees him rap about the demise of their two-and-a-half-year marriage.

And Millie Mackintosh proved she is above the drama when she took to social media on Friday to post a glamorous picture of herself instead of a cutting response.

The former Made In Chelsea star, 27, exuded glamour in a plunging trouser suit, going braless underneath the black blazer.

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Posing up a storm: Millie Mackintosh proved she is above the drama when she took to social media on Friday to post a glamorous picture of herself

Ouch! This comes after Professor Green let rip at his ex-wife Millie in his explosive new single, One Eye On The Door

The slick suit boasted a pair of flattering trousers, falling to the floor in subtle flares to help elongate her legs.

Millie highlighted her decolletage thanks to a gold three-tier necklace, adding a touch of glamour to her attire.

Her honey coloured locks were worn loose and she sported minimal, fresh make-up for the occasion.

This comes after it was revealed at Pro Green, 32, raps about the former couple's lack of sex life and his drug use in the new track - which is released on Friday - and even hints that cheating was a factor in the demise of their two-and-a-half-year marriage.

One Eye On The Door is the hitmaker's first musical offering since 2014 album Growing Up In Public.

Honest: The musician, 32, raps about the couple's lack of sex and his drug use in the new track, which hints that cheating was a factor in the demise of their two-and-a-half-year marriage

Professor Green - real name Stephen Manderson - takes a number of thinly veiled swipes at his reality star ex-wife by suggesting their short-lived union was far from idyllic.

Lamenting an apparent lack of action between the sheets in the opening verse, the rapper suggests he and Millie spent most of their time watching box sets.

The musician also suggests Millie regularly kicked him out of the marital home in south-east London and would only allow him back in if he returned with a gift of material significance.

He spits in the track: 'Me an the Mrs we are getting along/Till I do something wrong - then it's another domestic/People wanna know what my life's like.

'Behind closed doors what's my wife like/It gets crazy in bed - We watch a couple episodes/Of a box set and and then it's night night/When she hears this s**t it's lights out/I'll probably get kicked out of my house/Till I come back with a brand new Chanel bag.'

A second verse finds Pro Green's protagonist wrestling with his conscience; on the one hand fretting about divorce, while on the other putting his wife's feelings to one side while he parties with pals.

Referring to his use of drugs, he raps: 'One minute it was one, the next it was six/S**t I'm dead - I don't know where the time went.

'Where's my phone? S**t sixty-one missed calls/A divorce is on the cards if I don't split/And get my a**e in gear - I'm asking for it.

'A b****rd ain't I - auf wiedersehen/Better get my a**e in gear and get a car quick though, if I'm already gonna get my a**e kicked?

'Then pass it/What's one more half, what's one more spliff/What's one more glass/What's one more line, what's one more toke/I'm already a dead man when I get home.'

In happier times? Professor Green - real name Stephen Manderson - takes a number of thinly veiled swipes at his ex-wife by suggesting their short-lived union was far from idyllic

TIMELINE OF THEIR ROMANCE November 2011: Couple enjoy their first date at the Groucho Club in London after Professor Green sees Millie's sexy FHM cover shoot February 2012: They go public at the BRIT Awards March 2013: Pro Green proposes in Paris September 2013: Couple wed at Babington House in Somerset July 2015: Millie and Pro Green reported to have a huge row in Istanbul. January 2016: They have a make-of-break holiday in Florence, Italy. February 2016: Couple announce their separation. Advertisement

MailOnline has contacted a representative for Millie Mackintosh for comment.

The couple's two-and-a-half-year marriage was dissolved in just 30 seconds in May.

They were granted a decree nisi at Central London Family Court with Millie citing 'unreasonable behaviour' as the reason for their split.

Just one week after their divorce was finalised, the beauty, 27, went public with her ex-boyfriend Hugo Taylor and has been documenting their romance across social media ever since.

Millie and Professor Green split in February after just over four years together.

In a statement at the time, they said: 'It is a mutual decision, we still care deeply about each other and would like it to be known that it is on amicable terms and we wish each other well.'

Wedding bells: The couple tied the knot in a lavish ceremony at Babington House in Somerset in September 2013

Millie and Stephen started dating in November 2011 after the rapper saw her on the cover of men's magazine FHM.

The rapper contacted Millie through her agent and they had their first date at the Groucho Club in Soho.

They went public at the Brit Awards in February 2012, with Stephen proposing on holiday in Paris just over a year later.

The couple tied the knot in a lavish ceremony at Babington House in Somerset in September 2013.

Speaking to The Sun, Professor Green admits he's nonplussed about her ex-wife's potential reaction to the revealing new track.

'I think she'll probably say, "Well at least he's being honest about that. That definitely happened once or twice."

Unlikely pair: Millie and Stephen started dating in November 2011 after the rapper saw her on the cover of men's magazine FHM

Red carpet debut: Millie and Stephen went public at the Brit Awards in February 2012, with Stephen proposing on holiday in Paris just over a year later

New track: One Eye On The Door is out now

He added: 'It's a song that was probably written after a time I got in trouble. I wrote that over a year ago.

'The whole song is just about when you say, "Yeah, I promise I'll be home early, I promise," then your mates go, "Come on, stay for one more drink."'

When they first started dating, Millie and Professor Green acknowledged they came from very different backgrounds.

Millie was educated privately at Hanford Boarding School in Dorset and her family invented Quality Street, although sold the business years ago.

Meanwhile Stephen grew up in an impoverished area of East London and survived being attacked in the neck with a broken bottle in a Shoreditch nightclub in 2009.

Moving on: Just one week after their divorce was finalised, the beauty, 27, went public with her ex-boyfriend Hugo Taylor
She recently admitted she regretted changing her the size of her boobs trying to emulate the Karadashians.

And now, Pascal Craymer put on a very demure display in a floor-length navy gown as she stepped out in London on Thursday night.

The 29-year-old former TOWIE star oozed sophistication as slipped into the halterneck satin number that displayed her pristine decolletage to perfection.

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Demure darling: Pascal Craymer put on a very demure display in a floor-length navy gown as she stepped out in London on Thursday night

Pascal sizzled in the floor-grazer that cinched in her hourglass figure as she beamed for waiting cameras.

Adding the sex factor to her ensemble, her flowing midnight blue dress featured thick lace-up back that teased as her slender back.

The former reality star teamed her understated attire with a simple silver bangle and ring as she carried a large textured gold box clutch.

Injecting some height into her petite frame, she adorned her feet into a pair of metallic sandals that teased at her navy coloured pedicure.

Sizzle: Adding the sex factor to her ensemble, her flowing midnight blue dress featured thick lace-up back that teased as her slender back

Pascal parted her ombre tresses in the centre as she worked her hair into a soft curl, allowing her chocolate brown locks to be tousled in the wind.

The one-time screen siren accentuated her blue peepers with grey smokey eye while plumping her pout with a nude lip.

Pascal's elegant appearance comes after she admitted watching the Kardashians inspired her to have a breast augmentation five years ago, going from a 34B to a 34DD.

Speaking to The Sun, Pascal said: 'When you watch the Kardashians it makes you want to have your lips and face and almost everything done!

Work it! The 29-year-old former TOWIE star oozed sophistication as slipped into the halterneck satin number that displayed her pristine decolletage to perfection

'Kim K is famous for a certain thing but in our world and reality, and when you want to settle down and have kids thats not natural.'

Pascal added that she hated looking out of proportion and would revert back to her original size if it were possible.

The reality starlet, who used to date Mario Falcone, told the publication: 'When I was around 16 I used to self-harm with a razor. I've never told anyone before but I didnt know how to cope with my body changing, and I was bullied because of it.'

Wind swept: Pascal parted her ombre tresses in the centre as she worked her hair into a soft curl, allowing her chocolate brown locks to be tousled in the wind

Last year, Pascal talked about her regrets over appearing on hit ITV2 show TOWIE, where viewers saw her relationship with Essex heartthrob Mario crumble to pieces.

She told FUBAR radio: 'When I went on the show it was completely new to me, I didn't have a clue. My life turned around overnight.

'I thought me and Mario were going somewhere, so I had to let his fans know that he'd moved on [from Lucy].

'I'd gone out with him for a little while, and suddenly it was everywhere  "She might be the one, I want her to meet my parents."
They've been enjoying the autumnal Spanish sunshine as they film series seven of the hugely popular Game Of Thrones.

But the show's cast and crew - including Emilia Clarke, Conleth Hill and Peter Dinklage - were hard at work on Friday as they shot dramatic scenes on the cliffs of Zumaia in the Basque Country.

Emilia , who plays Daenerys Targaryen in the HBO fantasy series, was seen leaping down steps with her arms flailing as she appeared to chase Peter, who plays Tyrion Lannister.

Intense: Emilia Clarke was hard at work on Friday as she shot dramatic scenes for Game Of Thrones on the cliffs of Zumaia in the Basque Country, Spain

The actress, 30, looked every inch the Queen in her imperial cape as she ran down the steps followed by Jacob Anderson, who plays Unsullied leader Grey Worm.

Emilia was then followed by Conleth Hill, who plays Varys, and the pair appeared to share a moment of intense anguish as Conleth also held out his arms and screamed.

Nathalie Emmanuel, who plays handmaiden Missandei, also let out a shout as she trailed the Mother of Dragons in the breathtaking scenes.

Meanwhile, extras were seen rowing out over the beautiful waters of the Atlantic, followed by a film crew in a rib.

Filming in the past few days has taken place on Itzurun beach, famed for its flysch rock strata, which is one of the longest continuous examples of the geological phenomenon in the world.

Dramatic: The actress, 30, was then followed by Conleth Hill, who plays Varys, and the pair appeared to share a moment of intense anguish as Conleth held out his arms and screamed

Hard at work: Nathalie Emmanuel, who plays handmaiden Missandei, also trailed the Mother of Dragons in the breathtaking scenes for the HBO fantasy series

On the move: Emilia looked every inch the Queen in her imperial cape as she was followed by Jacob Anderson, who plays Unsullied leader Grey Worm

Curious: The actors were also seen looking over the wall at something in the undergrowth

The formation is a mix of hard layers (limestone and sandstone) and soft layers (clay).

Other locations for this run of shooting have also included the shoreline of La Muriola in Barrika, two hours to the West of Zumaia.

It's also believed that cast and crew will be filming on the San Juan de Gaztelugatxe islet, close to Barrika.

Filming for season seven of Game Of Thrones began last month, and is scheduled to go on until February for a mid-2017 air date.

Speaking at the Emmys last month, Emilia told MailOnline that with less than two years left of her hit show she is beginning to worry about the future.

Glorious: Extras were seen rowing out over the beautiful waters of the Atlantic

Make way: The rowers were followed by a film crew in a rib to capture the action

Pristine: Filming in the past few days has taken place on Itzurun beach

'We've like had the cushiest job in TV,' she admitted. 'We're always working. No big deal. And now, yeah, we have to pay off some debts.'

Meanwhile, Kit thinks his character might be safe after being killed off and then sensationally brought back to life last season.

'I feel like one of the safest people on Thrones now,' he told The Wrap back in August.

'Maybe I shouldnt say that. He could die next season, but I felt very safe this season.

'Because if I come back to life in Episode 2, it would be awful storytelling if you kill me in Episode 4. So I felt a bit cocky this season.'
With a rare grey old day in LA, this star brought some sunshine and a lot of laughter into the world.

Emma Stone could not stop giggling as she headed out to run errands on Thursday.

Despite a big night out the previous evening, the 27-year-old was in a fantastic and lively mood in Los Angeles, California.

LOL: Emma Stone could not stop giggling as she headed out to run errands in Los Angeles, California, on Thursday

The La La Land had made herself laugh so hard, that she struggled to even stay upright as she made her way to her car.

Clearly a late night at the FDA and Vogue Fashion Fund party was not mellowing the actress' exuberance.

With a green juice at the ready, the smiling star combated the unusually grey LA weather with a snugly ensemble.

For her errands run, Emma wore a cream knitted sweater with a pair of tight black jeans and ankle boots.

Sweater weather: With a green juice at the ready, the smiling star combated the unusually grey LA weather with a snugly ensemble

Shady lady: For her errands run, Emma wore a cream knitted sweater and some simple black Ray Ban sunglasses

The star - who laughed all the way into the driver's seat - accessorized the look with a black leather cross body bag with heavy gold chain strap and some simple Ray Bans.

The night before, the Easy A actress went for a more glamorous look but still with an understated air.

Emma attended the West Hollywood fashion party wearing a white cotton shirt and a ruffled skirt by Brock Collection.
As a Victoria's Secret Angel who spends much of her time jetting around the world, Alessandra Ambrosio can often be found in a bikini.

But the 35-year-old showed that she can just as easily nail autumn style on Friday.

Alessandra was seen co vered up in head-to-toe black as she was spotted walking her four-year-old son, Noah, to school in Los Angeles.

Fall fashion: Alessandra Ambrosio made a stylish and seamless transition to fall as she stepped out in Santa Monica on Friday

Alessandra dressed for the cooler temperatures on the overcast Southern California day.

Her lithe silhouette was swallowed up by a trendy long-sleeved tunic sweater which featured a longer dark plaid blouse layered underneath.

She teamed the effortlessly chic look with a pair of skintight black leggings.

The five-foot-ten bombshell added a sexy pair of black thigh-high boots which featured a small block heel.

Mama duty: The 35-year-old mother-of-two covered up in head-to-toe black as she was spotted on the overcast day walking her four-year-old son, Noah, to school

Alessandra left her long locks down and topped off the look with a chic wide-brimmed hat and over-sized shades.

The brunette beauty appeared in good spirits as she dropped of her youngest child at school.

Alessandra's look-alike daughter, Anja, who is eight-years-old, wasn't seen on the outing.

Chic details: The five-foot-ten bombshell added a sexy pair of black thigh-high boots and topped off her look with a wide-brimmed hat and over-sized shades

The Brazilian bombshell held on tight to her little blonde boy, who was also dressed for the cooler temperatures and prepared for the rare chance of rain.

Noah sported a blue green rain jacket, navy sweat pants, and black rain boots, and tried to keep up with his famous mom's stride while he held onto a toy helicopter and rolled his backpack behind him.

In just a month's time Alessandra will be stripping to her underwear and storming the catwalk while filming the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show that is going to take place in Paris.
Artie Lange loves Howard Stern - but hes not afraid to rattle his former bosss cage.

The 49-year-old comedian on Wednesday shot back on Twitter after Stern said the lives of his former employees nosedived after they left his radio show, then took aim at Sterns handpicked chief operating officer Marci Turk.

The situation unfolded as Stern chastised writer Benjy Bronk for allegedly showing up late to work, though longtime fans on Stern-centric online forums such as Radio Gunk, Dawgshed and Reddit suspected that the tongue-lashing regarding Bronks tardiness  a topic which has been discussed ad nauseam over the years - was a planned bit for the air.

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Bold words: Howard Stern on Wednesday said of former staffers: You ask the people that left the show what their lives are like now, trust me, it aint pretty.' His former sidekick Artie Lange then took to Twitter to say his life had 'never been better'

Movers and shakers: Stern on Wednesday acknowledged the roles of his chief operating officer Marci Turk (left) and senior vice president Jeremy Coleman (right), as he said, 'Those two run this entire radio organization'

The King of All Media, in trying to convince Bronk he was taking his job for granted, brought up ex-workers on his long-running program: You ask the people that left the show what their lives are like now, trust me, it aint pretty ... a lot of them are Goddamn near a nervous breakdown.

While Lange wasnt specifically mentioned by name, the remarks come about a week after the comedian questioned the drastic changes Sterns made personally and professionally in recent years, on both his Artie Quitter podcast and in an expansive interview with longtime Stern radio rival Gregg Opie Hughes on Opie Radio.

The Too Fat to Fish author, conversing with fans on Twitter, said hes never been happier nearly seven years after his departure from the program, and that he's fortunate to currently be working with one of Hollywoods heaviest hitters.

As of [right] now I'm on the tour all over the U.S. [with] Judd Apatow & Pete Holmes promoting our HBO series Crashing, Lange said.

Moving on: Lange (left) said his career 'has never been better' than the present time, as he's working with Hollywood heavyweight Judd Apatow on Crashing, an HBO series

The New Jersey native noted other positive developments in his career, as he said hes in a groove with his podcast, has a third book due out next summer and is slated to appear on both The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and Conan in the near-future.

My career has never been better, Lange said, adding, No money could get me to go back!

Sterns right-hand man of nearly 10 years made clear he doesnt envy any current employees of the SiriusXM program, as he said, Those guys are in Hell! I got off Marci Turk Island!

Back office bunch: Turk (center) swiftly ascended to the top of Stern's organization after they met via an efficiency program. Here, the exec posed at a 2014 Comic-Con party with longtime Stern soldiers Jason Kaplan (left) and producer Gary 'Baba Booey' Dell'Abate (right)

The Beer League star parted ways with the program in 2009, about four years before Turk swiftly ascended to fill the shows top backstage position in 2013 after initially crossing paths with Stern over a time-management system called Getting Things Done.

Stern gave Turk an emotional endorsement at his January 31, 2014 birthday show in front of a star-studded audience that included Barbara Walters, David Letterman and Robert Downey Jr.

Marci Turk, you are an inspiration to me every single day, you changed my life, thank you! Stern told the crowd, resulting in this weird, confused applause Lange said on his podcast last year.

Strong endorsement: Stern, flanked by his wife Beth, told Turk, 'You are an inspiration to me every single day' and 'You changed my life' in front of an A-list audience at his 2014 bash

In command: Turk has been a backstage powerhouse on The Howard Stern Show since 2013

Seven months later, The New York Post named Turk as the woman responsible for Howard Sterns "PC" behavior in a piece that detailed how she has a very strong hand on how the show is handled and how everyone has to keep Howards brand right.

Wednesdays broadcast marked the first time the former America's Got Talent star had acknowledged his COO by name on his morning show, as he said he would leave the decision how to handle Bronks continual alleged tardiness to Turk and the shows senior vice president Jeremy Coleman.

Im just gonna put this in the hands of Marci and Jeremy ... those two run this entire radio organization, Stern said. Marcis like the general manager, COO; Jeremys the senior executive/producer type. And theyll deal with Benjy, the problem is he has too much access to me.

Shtick king: Stern writer Benjy Bronk's alleged tardiness might have put his job on the SiriusXM show in jeopardy, but Lange offered to 'pay him more' to work on his podcast

The lack of access seemed to hit a nerve with Lange, who tweeted, Imagine asking some ... c--- permission to talk to ur boss. (On his podcast last week, Lange said Turk was telling guys who worked with [Stern] for 20 years, You can't talk to Howard unless you talk to me first, you need permission.)

Lange said hes lent 3 former Stern employees money for rent, all of whom were soldiers who made the show great, sometimes at their own expense. He added, They need a few bucks. I got it. Would Howard do that? We're still waiting for permission from Marci to ask him.

Lange took to Twitter Thursday to clarify the situation, as he said that former co-workers from the Stern show sought his help and advice in approaching the wealthy radio host for financial assistance.

Introspective: Comedy veteran Lange is not above a bit of self-deprecation in his act or tweets

Lange said he reluctantly tried but it was hopeless,' and that it sucks so much red tape exists,' adding, '[I'm] not saying Howard turned them down. He probably never even heard about it. But I got frustrated over how complicated it was.'

Lange added that Bronk, a frequent on-air whipping boy of Sterns, is an insanely talented joke writer,' and offered to 'pay him more' than Stern 'to work on [his] podcast should the allegations of his repeated tardiness be authentic - and his fate on the show lie in Turk's hands.

In spite of his frustration at the current state of affairs, Lange stressed that he didnt want to engage Stern in any type of feud, as he said, I will go high. Unless others continue to go low.

Shot over the bow: Lange pledged to keep a classy demeanor as long as he is treated in kind

The Aristocrats: Lange said his fondness for Stern's wife Beth has kept him from obliging clamoring fans from doing a bit with Gilbert Gottfried on her animal-related work

Lange said that fans have often encouraged him to team up with comedy icon Gilbert Gottfried to lampoon the animal-related efforts of Sterns wife, Beth, but he refuses to.

Fans want Gilbert & I to goof on Beth's Doggy awards! Tape it & destroy it. Be hilarious. I won't. Beth doesn't deserve it, he said, adding, She's a Doll!

Lange wrapped up his remarks in saying that while he has a sad heart he wont be heard alongside Stern again, he cherishes the time he spent alongside the King of All Media.

Doin that show was my dream! It came true, he said. I hope he knows what he meant to me. & I love him. & I wish he'd of taken my call so I wouldn't sound like a p----y on twitter [right] now! Peace.

Daily Mail has reached out to Stern's reps for comment.
She is the Spanish actress known for her age-defying good looks.

And Elsa Pataky, 40, has joked about looking youthful despite being seven years older than her husband Chris Hemsworth.

'I always tell him, "I'm always going to look younger than you, so watch out"', she told The Daily Telegraph this week.

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'Watch out!': Elsa Pataky, 40, has joked about looking youthful despite being seven years older than her hunky husband Chris Hemsworth

'Age is just a number. It's all about how you feel and how young you feel,' the mother-of-three added.

Despite being a Hollywood star in her own right, Elsa revealed she chose to take a break from her career so Chris could enjoy his time in the limelight.

'I'm lucky in that I've been able to decide I just want to have a break of my work because Chris is working pretty hard and taking his moment,' she added.

'I'm lucky': Despite being a Hollywood star in her own right, Elsa revealed she chose to take a break from her career so Chris could enjoy his time in the limelight

Earlier this week, the happy couple shut down rumours of marriage troubles, first reported by Australian magazine Woman's Day.

According to the publication, the couple had been 'taking a little break from each other' and had 'issues' to sort through, and Elsa's recent holiday in Spain without Chris by her side raised alarm bells among their friends.

The tabloid also claimed Elsa, known for her roles in the Fast And Furious series, has received support by her brother Cristian Prieto.

Denying the rumours: Earlier this week, the happy couple shut down rumours of marriage troubles, as reported by Australian magazine Woman's Day

Taking to Instagram on Monday, the 33-year-old Thor star showed off his witty sense of humour with a post addressing the reports.

'Looking for a new wife according to @womansdayaus and other misleading outlets! Honey you still love me right?! (sic)' her captioned a photo of himself and his wife enjoying a cruise.

In less than 15 minutes, Chris' post had been 'liked' by over 51,000 people, including model Cheyenne Tozzi and Neighbours actress Olympia Valance.

'Honey you still love me right?!' Chris and Elsa couldn't resist making a joke about the magazine reports, and reassured fans they are still very much in love




New York City's temperatures skidded towards freezing on Friday, but when Rihanna alighted in town from Paris, she was well-prepared.

The 28-year-old still managed to look stylish when she was spotted strolling through John F Kennedy International Airport in a voluminous black anorak.

As if the outfit weren't cosy enough, the hood was lined with black fur that appeared to be faux.

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Back in town: Rihanna was spotted on Friday arriving in New York City by way of John F Kennedy International Airport

When she briefly pulled the hood from her hair, she revealed she'd slicked her hair back severely and tied it up behind her head.

The rest of her outfit was fairly casual. A white jumper hung loosely from her petite frame, and she'd pulled on a pair of torn light wash jeans with the hems folded up.

Camel-coloured boots rounded out the outfit, and she accessorised with a pair of red-rimmed black sunglasses.

Bundled up: Her voluminous black anorak featured faux fur lining in the hood and a breast pocket that appeared to change colour as she walked

The Barbadian bombshell added a touch of glamour by way of a bulging Prada Impossible True Love bag.

It's possible she's in town for principal photography on Ocean's Eight, which has been shooting in New York City this week.

Director Gary Ross has described the movie to /Film as 'very much an extension and a continuation' of the George Clooney-led trilogy comprised of Ocean's Eleven, Ocean's Twelve and Ocean's Thirteen.

Ready for work: It's possible she's in town for principal photography of her upcoming film Ocean's Eight, which has been filming in New York City this week

Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett and Helen Bonham Carter were spotted shooting the film in the city on Monday. Rihanna's other castmates will include Mindy Kaling, Anne Hathaway and Nora 'Awkwafina' Lum.

Deadline have reported that Sarah Paulson, who won an Emmy for playing Marcia Clark on The People v OJ Simpson: American Crime Story, may complete the eight.

At present, the film is slated for release on June 8, 2018.
The Real Housewives Of New Jersey close out season seven with a two-part reunion show and if the new preview video is anything to go by, the Bravo episode is going to be dynamite.

In a tease released Friday, Theresa Giudice, 44, is seen clashing with co-star Jacqueline Laurita as the two trade barbs.

'You went to jail for lying,' Jacqueline, 46, tells Teresa, as People reported.

'No, it was you,' Teresa retorts, before making the startling claim: 'You or you and Caroline set me up on the government.'

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Gloves come off: 'You went to jail for lying,' Jacqueline Laurita, 46, told Teresa Giudice as the two traded barbs in a preview of the upcoming Real Housewives Of New Jersey reunion show

Dramatic claims: Bravo host Andy Cohen appeared shocked as the two women argued

'Set up': Teresa, 44, seemed to suggest Jacqueline played a part in the government deciding to investigate her and husband Joe for fraud that led to prison sentences for the couple

Teresa spent 11 months in federal prison last year for fraud, and her husband Joe, 44, is currently behind bars at the Federal Correctional Institution at Fort Dix in New Jersey, serving a 41-month prison sentence.

The reality star appeared to be alleging that Jacqueline and former RHONJ castmember Caroline Manzo played a part in the government deciding to investigate the couple and their finances.

The investigation resulted in them being charged with multiple counts of mail, wire and bankruptcy fraud.

Jailbirds: Teresa, who spent 11 months in prison and whose husband is currently serving a 41-month prison sentence on multiple fraud charges, became emotional as she talked about Joe

Cried: The mother of four daughters broke down in tears as she contemplated the possibility Joe could be deported once he's served his sentence because he is not an American citizen

In the preview, Teresa, the mother of four daughters, is also seen crying as she talks about how her husband, who is not an American citizen, could be deported after completing his jail sentence.

Host Andy Cohen and Housewives Melissa Gorga, Siggy Flicker and Dolores Catania also feature in the trailer that suggests more will be learned about Teresa's 'set up' claims on the reunion show, that airs November 6 on Bravo.
Five facts about Antarctic sanctuaries

Agreement was reached Friday to create a vast US and New Zealand-backed Antarctic marine sanctuary in the Ross Sea -- the world's largest -- at a meeting of the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) in Hobart.

But there was not enough time to thrash out consensus on a second massive proposal to protect East Antarctica, spearheaded by Australia and France.

Here are some facts on the plans:

An adelie penguin jumps onto the ice in the Ross Sea in Antarctica John Weller (Antarctic Ocean Alliance/AFP/File)

What's all the fuss about?

Conservationists have been pushing for years to better protect pristine Antarctic waters -- claimed by a host of countries -- from exploitation. Plans were tabled in 2012 to create two massive and remote marine sanctuaries, in the Ross Sea and East Antarctica. Jointly they would account for more than 2.5 million square kilometres (965,255 square miles) of ocean. Each has been modified to allow some fishing and research as long as conservation values are met.

Why so important?

The Antarctic remains one of the world's last wild frontiers, containing some of the most pristine marine ecosystems left on the planet, with many habitats yet to be studied. Antarctica's largely untouched Southern Ocean is seen as a critical laboratory for scientists monitoring the effects of climate change. The area is also home to more than 10,000 unique polar species, including most of the world's penguins, whales, and seabirds, as well as commercially targeted Antarctic toothfish and krill.

What is a Marine Protected Area?

An MPA safeguards all or part of the natural resources in the zone it covers. This includes marine species, biodiversity, habitat, foraging and nursing grounds, and in some cases historical and cultural sites. They are used to complement other management tools including catch limits on fishing. The world's first high seas MPA -- the South Orkney Islands Southern Shelf Marine Protected Area -- was established by CCAMLR in 2009 in the Atlantic Ocean.

Who makes the decisions?

The Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, established by international convention in 1982 in response to growing commercial interest in krill, is an alliance of 24 countries and the European Union tasked with overseeing conservation and sustainable exploitation of marine life. Decisions are made by consensus.

Why so long to reach agreement?
Israel firm wants super-efficient engine to power car revolution

An Israeli firm says a super-efficient engine it has created could drastically reduce fuel consumption and help power an auto industry revolution as manufacturers search for environmentally sound alternatives.

Industry analysts, however, question the reinvented internal combustion engine's chances of success at a time when purely electric car technology is advancing and attracting investors.

The invention from Israeli-based Aquarius Engines is currently being discussed by France's Peugeot, the firm said.

Israeli firm Aquarius Engines says its reinvented internal combustion engine can allow cars to travel over 1,600 kilometres (990 miles) on a single tank of fuel Emmanuel Dunand (AFP)

Aquarius says the cost of the engine will be as low as $100 (92 euros).

According to the firm, the engine can allow cars to travel more than 1,600 kilometres (990 miles) on a single tank of fuel, more than double current distances.

Such efficiency is vital as countries seek to reduce carbon dioxide emissions -- a main cause of climate change. Car engines are a major source of CO2 emissions.

Aquarius's technology works by stripping back the traditional engine under the bonnet.

It replaces the combustion engine with its multiple pistons thrusting up and down with a single piston that goes side-to-side.

It has fewer than 20 parts and a single action, the company said.

In tests by the German engineering company FEV, the Aquarius engine's efficiency was more than double that of traditional engines.

"It is the highest efficiency you will probably meet," co-founder Gal Fridman told AFP at the company's offices near the Israeli commercial capital of Tel Aviv.

"It has the lowest emissions and the highest power-to-weight ratio."

A Peugeot spokesman said: "We are discussing with them, as with many other start-ups, without obligation or a specific project."

For Peugeot and others, the engine could help them compete with the growing popularity of electric cars, John German, senior fellow at the International Council on Clean Transportation, said.

He said the engine would work best as part of a plug-in hybrid system, with manufacturers looking at "the idea of putting a smaller, inexpensive, range extender" alongside a battery and motor.

But he said Aquarius's radical design, and the changes it would require to manufacturing lines, might make companies in a risk-averse industry hesitant.

- Undermining electric cars? -

The technology can also be used to make more efficient back-up generators and other products, the company says.

Aquarius is currently seeking its third round of funding and is aiming for $40-50 million.

But its challenge is to undermine the push towards electric-only cars, said Ana Nicholls of the Economist Intelligence Unit.

She said recent evidence suggested that "people are starting to trend away from hybrid cars towards fully electric vehicles".

US-based electric car maker Tesla is on course to sell around 50,000 vehicles in the second half of 2016, it has announced.

Nicholls said that automotive giants, with research and development budgets stretched thin, could be wary of investing in Aquarius.

"I think the feeling in the industry at the moment is very much that if they are going to put their resources behind something then probably fully electric engines are the way to go."

Aquarius's Fridman argued there is too much "hype" around purely electric cars, and that their actual popularity is limited because of small ranges and high prices.

"50,000 units is nothing," he said of Tesla's projected sales.

"It is amazing as there has been a push from governments, municipalities, etc. And still after 15 years the segment is not really successful."

Franco Gonzalez, senior technology analyst at the IDTechEx analysis firm, said Aquarius was entering the competition late and playing "catch up".

"Automotive companies take seven to 10 years to implement a new technology," he said.

"So Peugeot would need to accelerate their implementation very, very fast to at least catch up to what Tesla, BYD, Nissan and other companies supporting the electric car model are achieving."

German said it was too early to say if the engine could make a major dent.

"A lot depends on the path the electric vehicle revolution takes. If pure battery electrics sell well then there probably isn't much need for this kind of engine," he said.

"But if people balk at the long recharge time and high costs of battery-only cars, then systems like these might be the future."

Shaul Yakobi, inventor and co-founder of Aquarius Engines, poses next to a single piston combustion engine invented by the firm to drastically reduce fuel consumption Emmanuel Dunand (AFP)

Gal Fridman, co-founder of Aquarius Engines, said the firm's single-piston car engine had "the highest efficiency you will probably meet" Emmanuel Dunand (AFP)
Sisi promises to reexamine protest law

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has said the government will look into revising an anti-protest law and take recommendations on releasing jailed youths.

Sisi's comments came at the end of a two-day "youth conference" on Thursday, an effort to reach out to young Egyptians as the country braces for austerity reforms to salvage its battered economy.

Reading a series of conclusions at the end of the conference, Sisi said the government would look into revising the law passed in 2013, months after the former army chief overthrew his Islamist predecessor Mohamed Morsi.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said the government would look at revising a 2013 protest law passed after the former army chief overthrew his Islamist predecessor John Moore (Getty/AFP/File)

The law, which bans all but police-sanctioned protests, has been used to jail activists for up to two years.

"The government will undertake, in coordination with the relevant agencies, to study suggestions and proposals to amend the protest law," Sisi said, before he was interrupted by applause from the audience.

Sisi laughed and said "you really love protesting," adding that the revisions would be presented to parliament.

The committee of youths, he said, would be formed "under presidential supervision to exhaustively examine the youths detained."

It will present its recommendations in 15 days, he said to a standing ovation.

The United Nations and rights groups had asked the Egyptian government to reconsider the protest law.

A crackdown on Islamist supporters of Morsi after his ouster saw hundreds of demonstrators killed and thousands jailed, including secular dissidents.
ExxonMobil strikes huge oil reserves in offshore Nigeria

US oil and gas group ExxonMobil says it has discovered up to one billion barrels of oil in an offshore field in Nigeria, signalling a boost to the country's crude reserves.

The company said in a statement on its website on Thursday that the Owowo field had "a potential recoverable resource of between 500 million and one billion barrels of oil."

Stephen Greenlee, president of ExxonMobil Exploration Company, welcomed the development, saying the company "will work with our partners and the government on future development plans."

Nigeria depends on oil sales for 70 percent of its government revenue Pius Utomi Ekpei (AFP/File)

The Owowo field, which lies about 62 miles (100 kilometres) southeast of Bonny oil terminal in the Niger Delta, is expected to boost Nigeria's efforts to raise oil reserves from 36 billion barrels to 40 billion barrels in the coming years.

The original target of hitting 40 billion barrels in 2010 could not be met due to a lack of new investment in exploration.

The delay in the passage of a key Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) eight years after it was sent to parliament has stalled new investments in Nigeria's oil and gas sector as oil majors are wary about the direction of the industry.

Oil majors have also been divesting from the country's downstream operations -- marketing and the retail market.

Last week, ExxonMobil agreed to sell its 60-percent stake in its Nigerian marketing and retail arm to Nipco Investments, a local firm.

The two companies have signed an agreement for the deal, which is subject to regulatory approvals.
Syrian rebels including jihadists have launched a major offensive against government forces to break the months-long siege of Aleppo, it has emerged.

The assault started with a barrage of rocket fire into the western government-held side of the battered city that killed at least 15 civilians and injured dozens more, a monitor said.

Pictures have emerged of the rebels' makeshift military vehicles driving towards the front line in the western neighbourhood of the city.

Abu Yusef Muhajir, a military commander and spokesman for the powerful Ahrar al-Sham rebel group, said the operation involved an array of opposition factions.

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A makeshift military front loader drives through Dahiyat al-Assad in west Aleppo, Syria

The alleged explosive-rigged make-shift armoured vehicle is pictured on Friday

Photographs showed insurgents approaching Aleppo in tanks and armoured vehicles

Bulldozers, make-shift mine sweepers, pick-up trucks and motorcycles were all seen heading towards the front line

Today's assault, employing heavy shelling and suicide car bombs, was mainly focused on the city's western edge by rebels based outside Aleppo.

It included Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, a former affiliate of al Qaeda previously known as the Nusra Front, and groups fighting under the Free Syrian Army banner. There were conflicting accounts of advances in areas on the city's outskirts.

Photographs showed insurgents approaching Aleppo in tanks, armoured vehicles, bulldozers, make-shift mine sweepers, pick-up trucks and on motorcycles, and showed a large column of smoke rising in the distance after an explosion.

Rebel groups 'announce the start of the battle to break the siege of Aleppo, which will end the regime occupation of western Aleppo and break the siege on the people trapped inside,' he said.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said rebel groups were firing rockets into west Aleppo as well as at government positions east of the city including the Nairab military airport.

Rebel fighters from the Jaish al-Fatah (or Army of Conquest) brigades prepare to fire a home-made mortar launcher during a major assault on Syrian government forces West of Aleppo city

A rebel fighter from the Jaish al-Fatah brigades takes cover while firing a mortar launcher

Rebel fighters prepare to fire a home-made mortar launcher during a major assault on Syrian government forces

A rebel fighter from the Jaish al-Fatah brigades carries mortar shells during the major assault

The men prepare to fire a home-made mortar launcher on Friday

The United States has prevented more powerful weapons such as anti-aircraft missiles from being supplied to rebels partly out of fear they could end up in jihadist hands

A rebel fighter is shown riding in a military vehicle in Dahiyat al-Assad, west Aleppo city

Rebels said they had taken several positions from government forces. But a Syrian military source said the attack on the western side of the city had been thwarted

Pictures showed a large column of smoke rising in the distance after an explosion

Rebels also fired rockets into Latakia province, a coastal regime stronghold, hitting areas near the Hmeimim military base that is used by government ally Russia.

Rocket fire into Latakia killed at least one person and wounded six others, the Observatory and state media said.

Rebels said they had taken several positions from government forces. But a Syrian military source said the attack on the western side of the city had been thwarted. A state television station reported that the army had destroyed four car bombs.

Abu Anas al-Shami, a member of the Fateh al-Sham media office, told Reuters from Syria the group had carried out two 'martyrdom operations', after which its fighters had gone in and had been able to 'liberate a number of important areas'. A third such attack had been carried out by another Islamist group.

Syrian rebels have launched a major offensive against government forces to break the months-long siege of Aleppo, it has emerged. Free Syrian Army fighters are pictured launching rockets towards ISIS positions near Aleppo

Getting ready: Rebel groups have announced the start of the battle to break the siege of Aleppo

A senior official in the Levant Front, a Free Syrian Army (FSA) group, said: 'There is a general call-up for anyone who can bear arms.'

'The preparatory shelling started this morning,' he added.

Heavy rebel bombardment, with more than 150 rockets and shells, struck southwestern districts, the Observatory said.

Fateh al-Sham played a big part in a rebel attack in July that managed to break the government siege on eastern Aleppo for several weeks before it was reimposed.

Abu Youssef al-Mouhajir, an official from the powerful Ahrar al-Sham Islamist group, said the extent of cooperation between the different rebel factions was unusual, and that the largest axis of attack was on the western edge of the city.

'This long axis disperses the enemy and it provides us with good cover in the sense that the enemy's attacks are not focused,' he said.

Rebel groups are seeking to break a government siege of east Aleppo that began in July and has led to food and medical shortages

Opposition forces briefly broke the siege in August, but no aid has entered the east since July

The powerful role played by Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, listed by many countries as a terrorist group, has complicated Western policy towards supporting the anti-Assad opposition.

The United States has prevented more powerful weapons such as anti-aircraft missiles from being supplied to rebels partly out of fear they could end up in jihadist hands.

Syria's civil war, now in its sixth year, has killed hundreds of thousands of people, displaced half the country's pre-war population, dragged in regional and global powers and caused a refugee crisis in the Middle East and Europe.

Grad rockets were launched at Aleppo's Nairab air base before the assault began said Zakaria Malahiji, head of the political office of the Aleppo-based Fastaqim rebel group, adding that it was going to be 'a big battle'.

Last month, government forces launched an operation to recapture the east, backed by Russian air power.
Yemen rebel missile shot down near Mecca: coalition

Yemeni rebels have launched one of their longest-range strikes against Saudi Arabia, firing a ballistic missile that was shot down near the holy city of Mecca, the Saudi-led coalition said Friday.

The rebels insisted that the missile had targeted Jeddah, the Red Sea city in the sprawling Mecca region, not the holy Muslim city.

The coalition has been carrying out a bombing campaign against the rebels since March last year and there have been rebel strikes towards their air bases.

Huthi rebels seized control of the Yemen capital Sanaa in 2015 Mohammed Huwais (AFP)

Saudi Arabia has deployed Patriot missiles to intercept the rebel fire.

Huthi rebels launched the missile "toward the Mecca area" on Thursday from their Saada province stronghold across the border, a coalition statement said.

"The air defence was able to intercept and destroyed it about 65 kilometres (40 miles) from Mecca without any damage."

The rebels' sabanews website said their ballistic missile targeted Jeddah international airport.

Islam's holiest sites are located in Mecca and Medina.

The six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council condemned what it called "clear evidence" that the rebels are unwilling to accept a political solution to Yemen's 19-month-old conflict.

The United Arab Emirates' Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan went further, criticising Iran for the attack.

"The Iranian regime backs a terrorist group that fires its rockets on Mecca... Is this an Islamic regime as it claims to be?" he wrote on Twitter.

Qatar called the attack "a provocation to the feelings of millions of Muslims worldwide".

All GCC states, apart from Oman, are members of the Saudi-led coalition. The UAE itself is a major pillar of the Sunni alliance.

The coalition and the United States accuse Shiite-dominated Iran of arming the rebels, a charge Tehran denies.

- 'Political nonsense' -

The Huthis are a minority group belonging to the Zaidi sect of Shiite Islam. They fought six wars against Yemen's government between 2004 and 2010.

In a statement on sabanews.net, Huthi spokesman Mohammed Abdulsalam accused Saudi Arabia of "political nonsense".

"The Saudi regime which claims it intercepted the missile 65 kilometres away from Mecca which is holy and precious to the hearts of every Yemeni and Muslim could have avoided such media platitude and political nonsense by directly mentioning the city of Jeddah where a military target for the 'Burkan 1' missile lies on its northern outskirts," said Abdulsalam.

"Hiding behind holy sites is... a repugnant attempt to instigate the feelings of Muslims."

Unless the coalition ends its "aggression, lifts the blockade, and seeks peace", the rebels "have the right to confront the aggressors in all legitimate and rightful means," Abdulsalam added.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghassemi called the claims that a missile was fired at Mecca "ridiculous", the official IRNA news agency said.

"We advise Emirati and Saudi officials not to use the holy places of Islam to justify their pathetic political objectives and try to compensate for their failures by such hypocritic and dangerous propaganda," Ghassemi said.

Mecca lies more than 500 kilometres (more than 300 miles) from the border.

It is the second time this month that the rebels have fired a missile of that range.

On October 9, the coalition said it had intercepted a missile near Taif, the site of a Saudi airbase some 65 kilometres (40 miles) from Mecca.

That launch came a day after a coalition air strike killed more than 140 people attending a wake for the father of a rebel leader in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, prompting threats of revenge.

In a separate incident on Thursday, rebel fire hit a two-storey residential building in the Saudi border district of Jazan without causing casualties, the civil defence agency said.
Syria rebels launch assault to break Aleppo siege

Syrian opposition fighters on Friday launched a major assault on government forces to break a months-long siege of rebel-held neighbourhoods of the battered city of Aleppo.

Rebel groups including the powerful Ahrar al-Sham faction and former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front fired waves of rockets into government-held western Aleppo, killing at least 15 civilians, a monitor said.

The rebels also targeted government positions east of Aleppo city and in the coastal province of Latakia, including the Hmeimim military base that is used by Russian forces allied with the regime.

A member of Syria's pro-government forces guards a look out point as they advance Aleppo's rebel-held Bustan al-Basha neighbourhood on October 6, 2016 George Ourfalian (AFP/File)

The assault comes more than three months into a government siege of eastern Aleppo, where over 250,000 people live, and several weeks after the army began an operation to retake the rebel east.

Rebel groups "announce the start of the battle to break the siege of Aleppo," said Abu Yusef Muhajir, a military commander and spokesman for Ahrar al-Sham.

The assault "will end the regime occupation of western Aleppo and break the siege on the people trapped inside," he told AFP.

"The breaking of the siege is inevitable," said Yasser al-Yusef, a member of the political office of the Nureddine al-Zinki rebel group.

"We will protect the civilians and schools and hospitals from Russian attacks and bring our people food and medicine," he said.

- 'God is greatest' -

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said at least 15 civilians, including two children, had been killed, and more than 100 wounded in rebel fire on western Aleppo.

The monitor reported fierce clashes on multiple front on the western and southern outskirts of western Aleppo, with three suicide car bombs targeting a checkpoint in the Dahiyet al-Assad neighbourhood.

It had no immediate toll in the clashes or bomb attack.

An AFP correspondent in east Aleppo said the assault had boosted the mood in rebel-held districts, with mosques broadcasting "God is greatest" from loudspeakers to hail the battle.

He said residents were burning tyres, sending smoke up over the city in a bid to provide cover for rebel forces from government and Russian warplanes.

The Observatory said rebel forces had also fired dozens of rockets at the Nairab military airport and Aleppo international airport, both east of Aleppo city and under government control.

And rebels also fired rockets from Idlib province into the government stronghold of Latakia, killing one person and wounding six.

The rocket fire hit near the Hmeimim military airport, as well as near Qardaha, the ancestral village of President Bashar al-Assad, the monitor said.

- 'A kill zone' -

Syrian state television reported the assault, saying "the army has foiled an attempt by terrorists to attack Aleppo city from several axes with suicide bomb attacks and has inflicted losses on them."

"Terrorist groups have made no advances and clashes are continuing," it added.

State news agency SANA said government planes were carrying out airstrikes south and west of Aleppo.

Once Syria's economic powerhouse, Aleppo has been ravaged by the conflict that began in March 2011 with anti-government protests and has since killed over 300,000 people.

Aleppo has been divided between government control in the west and rebel control in the east since mid-2012, and in September the army announced an operation to recapture the whole city.

The assault, backed by Russian forces, has killed hundreds of civilians and destroyed infrastructure including hospitals, prompting international outrage.

The UN's aid chief Stephen O'Brien this week said Aleppo had become "a kill zone", adding that "nothing is actually happening to stop the war, stop the suffering."

Last week, Russia implemented a three-day "humanitarian truce" intended to allow civilians and surrendering rebels to exit the east through passages to western neighbourhoods.

But few left, and a UN plan to evacuate the wounded failed because security could not be guaranteed.

Russia says it has not bombed Aleppo since October 18, and accuses rebel groups of preventing civilians from leaving.

On Friday, Syria's foreign minister was in Moscow meeting with his counterparts from key allies Russia and Iran.

The battle for Aleppo Sabrina BLANCHARD, Simon MALFATTO (AFP)

The Syrian city of Aleppo has been divided since mid-2012, and the eastern rebel-held neighbourhoods have been under regime siege near-continuously since July 17 Karam Al-Masri (AFP/File)
Sri Lanka panel demands prosecution of ex-bank chief

A Sri Lankan parliamentary panel Friday called for the criminal prosecution of former central bank chief Arjuna Mahendran who was removed three months ago over long-running allegations of insider trading.

A Singapore national of Sri Lankan origin, Mahendran was accused last year of leaking inside information to his son-in-law's firm, allegedly allowing it to make millions of dollars in profits from central bank bond auctions.

The scandal came on the heels of a mounting debt crisis in Sri Lanka -- the country secured a $1.5 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund in July.

Former Sri Lankan Central Bank governor Arjuna Mahendran gestures as he speaks to reporters in Colombo on April 12, 2016 Lakruwan Wanniarachchi (AFP/File)

A bipartisan oversight committee on Friday demanded legal action against Mahendran and his son-in-law.

"They should be prosecuted in a court and action taken to recover the losses incurred by the state due to their actions," committee chairman Sunil Handunnetti told parliament.

President Maithripala Sirisena sacked Mahendran in July, bowing to public pressure, and asked the legislature to investigate the allegations against him.

An ad-hoc ruling party committee had cleared Mahendran of direct involvement last year, but civil society activists pressed for a thorough investigation resulting in the parliamentary panel launching an extensive probe.
Three civilians killed in Indian cross-border fire: Pakistan

Pakistan on Friday accused India of killing three civilians and wounding several others in cross-border fire, as tensions soar in disputed Kashmir.

The incident occurred in Nakyal sector, near the frontier dividing Indian-held Kashmir from Pakistan's Punjab province, Pakistani officials said.

"At least three people including a women and a girl were killed and five others injured when Indian troops opened fire across the border near Nakyal sector on the Line of Control, the de facto border between India and Pakistan," district administration official Adnan Khursheed told AFP.

Both Pakistan and India have claimed Kashmir in full since it was divided in 1947 when the two countries obtained their independence from Britain Tauseef Mustafa (AFP/File)

Zeeshan Nisar, an administration official in Nakyal confirmed the incident, adding that a seven-year-old girl was among the dead.

A doctor at the hospital in Nakiyal sector put the number of injured slightly higher at seven.

"Three of the injured are in critical condition while four injured are stable," Muhammad Nasrullah told AFP.

A local resident of the area said mortar shells had hit a house where a wedding ceremony was taking place.

"A wedding ceremony was going on in a house when mortar shells hit them," Muhammad Naseer told AFP.

Sazia Bibi, one of the injured said she was outside the house to fetch water when pieces of mortor shell hit her.

The latest violence comes after New Delhi announced Thursday it was expelling a Pakistani visa official for suspected spying, with Islamabad responding by saying it would send back an Indian diplomat in an apparent tit-for-tat move.

Relations between the two countries have plummeted in recent months, with India blaming Pakistani militants for a September raid on an army base in its part of disputed Kashmir that killed 19 soldiers.

India said it responded by carrying out strikes across the heavily-militarised border, although Islamabad denies these took place.

Tensions were already high before the attack, with deadly violence over the death on July 8 of a popular militant leader.

Nearly 90 people, most of them young protesters, have been killed in clashes with security forces in Indian-administered Kashmir since then.
Indonesian Muslim designer's hijab collection proves divisive

An Indonesian Muslim designer has drawn global attention with a collection featuring hijabs combined with glittering gowns and flowing tunics, defying conservative critics in her homeland who say the outfits are not modest enough.

When Anniesa Hasibuan showcased her collection at last month's New York Fashion Week, it was the first time the prestigious annual event saw all the models on the catwalk sporting hijabs.

The 30-year-old, who was the first Indonesian designer to have her own show at the event, won praise from fashion critics around the world, which she said was "totally unexpected".

Anniesa Hasibuan's New York Fashion Week collection was the first time the annual event saw all the models on the catwalk sporting hijabs Goh Chai Hin (AFP)

"Everyone appreciated my designs, praise be to God," she said Friday at Jakarta Fashion Week, as she brought her collection back to the city where she lives.

Hasibuan's works have previously featured at shows in London, Istanbul and Cannes but New York Fashion Week cemented her status as a rising star.

Her current collection features colourful tunics, a modern take on the Japanese kimono and sparkly evening gowns with lacey trains, all combined with the hijab -- the traditional covering for the head and neck worn by many Muslim women.

The elaborate outfits are decorated with sequins and embroidery, and combine warm, earthy colours with more vibrant ones such as pink, gold, peach and green.

Called "D'Jakarta", the collection -- which was also showcased on Friday -- is inspired by Hasibuan's love for the Indonesian capital Jakarta where she lives, a metropolis of 10 million people that is a melting pot of different cultures and traditions.

The attention on Hasibuan's work comes after Islamic clothing earlier this year hit global headlines due to a row in strictly secular France over whether Muslim women had the right to wear the burkini swimsuit, which covers all but the hands, feet and face.

French courts ultimately ruled that a burkini ban by some 30 towns was "clearly illegal" and a violation of fundamental rights.

But for Hasibuan, the reception of her work abroad has sometimes been better than in Indonesia, which has the world's biggest Muslim population, and where conservative critics have attacked her for making clothing they deem immodest.

- 'Just a designer' -

The designer said that when she was in New York, people focused more on the artistic side of her designs rather than the religious aspects.

"I felt very comfortable because they didn't care whether I was a Muslim designer or not -- I was just a designer to them," she told AFP.

She is not the first designer from the country to experiment with mixing the hijab with glamourous gowns. Islamic fashion in Indonesia, where most practise a moderate form of Islam, is often more daring and experimental than in other Muslim countries.

Hijabs can be elaborate and expensive in Indonesia, and wealthy women can be seen wandering Jakarta's fancy malls wearing hand-stitched headscarves decorated with precious gems.

Nevertheless rising conservatism across society, which has led to increased attacks on religious minorities and calls for alcohol to be banned, has also targeted designers who try to push the boundaries of Islamic fashion.

While she has received a great deal of praise at home, photos of Hasibuan's designs on her social media accounts have also been flooded with criticism.

"The hijab is not worn correctly because it still shows the neck and chest," Facebook user Ummie Salamah wrote on Hasibuan's account. "Covering your chest is a must -- it is God's order, please do not negotiate."

Some conservative Muslims argue the true aim of wearing the hijab is for women to remain modest and not draw any attention to themselves, and the head coverings should not be elaborately decorated or colourful.

Nevertheless, Hasibuan is determined to stick to designing Islamic clothing with a modern, glamorous twist.

"Controversy is everywhere, I faced it here (in Indonesia) and all over the world," she said. "But I try to stay positive."

Anniesa Hasibuan's current collection features colourful tunics and sparkly evening gowns with lacey trains, all combined with the hijab Goh Chai Hin (AFP)

Islamic fashion in Indonesia, where most practise a moderate form of Islam, is often more daring and experimental than in other Muslim countries Goh Chai Hin (AFP)
A Russian fighter flew dangerously close to a US warplane over eastern Syria, US defense officials said Friday, highlighting the risks of a serious mishap in the increasingly crowded airspace.

The near miss occurred late on October 17, when a Russian jet that was escorting a larger spy plane maneuvered in the vicinity of an American warplane, Air Force Lieutenant General Jeff Harrigan said.

The Russian jet came to 'inside of half a mile', he added.

A Russian fighter flew dangerously close to a US warplane over eastern Syria on October 17. Here Russian Sukhoi Su-25 ground attack aircraft take off from the Hmeimim military base in Latakia province, Syria on March 16

The near-miss took place in Eastern Syria. Russia often transits through the area as part of its constant air patrols over Aleppo

Another US military official, speaking on condition of anonymity , said the American pilot could feel the turbulence produced by the Russian jet's engines.

'It was close enough you could feel the jet wash of the plane passing by,' the official said.

It appeared the Russian pilot had simply not seen the US jet, as it was dark and the planes were flying without lights.

'I would attribute it to not having the necessary situational awareness given all those platforms operating together,' Harrigan said.

He also said it happened in the 'middle of the night, probably somewhere around midnight.'

The incident raises serious questions about the extent to which pilots are able to track the complex airspace they operate in.

An F/A-18F Super Hornet takes off from the US navy's super carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (file image)

The US-led coalition has set up a hotline with Russian counterparts so the different militaries can discuss the approximate locations and missions of planes, and avoid operating in the same space at the same time.

In this case, the American pilot tried unsuccessfully to reach the Russian jet via an emergency radio channel.

The next day, US officers used the hotline to ask Russia what had happened and they said 'the pilot didn't see' the American plane, the official said.

Harrigan said there had been an increase in close calls over the past six weeks, with intentional near misses -- when a Russian jet deliberately follows a coalition plane too closely -- 'happening one every 10 days-ish'.

The rubble of destroyed buildings is seen in Aleppo. Russian planes fly over the city as part of air patrols, and the military has asked to be allowed to resume airstrikes (file image)

Russia is flying constant air patrols over Syria, the vast majority of them over the devastated city of Aleppo, and routinely transits parts of the country the US-coalition operates in, officials said.

Russia says it has not bombed Aleppo since October 18.

The Pentagon periodically chides Russia for 'unsafe and unprofessional behavior' in air operations.
Guinea-Bissau ex-navy chief eyes job back after US jailing

A former Guinea-Bissau navy chief convicted in the US of drug trafficking has asked to resume his military career after returning home having purged his sentence, sources said Friday.

Jose Americo "Bubo" Na Tchuto was sentenced to four years in jail by a New York federal court this month but was released for time already served.

Na Tchuto, who returned home on October 22, asked President Jose Mario Vaz about resuming his military career during an audience with the West African nation's head of state, sources said.

Jose Americo "Bubo" Na Tchuto was sentenced to four years in jail by a New York federal court this month but was released for time already served

"I have returned from a trip which took me away from the country for three years. It's normal that on my return that I come and see the armed forces' commander in chief," he told reporters.

"I discussed my return to the army with (Vaz). Now everything depends on the president. I am a veteran of this country's war of independence, I gave everything for this country," he added.

Asked about his case, Prime Minister Baciro Dja said Na Tchuto was "a son of the nation, a veteran of the war of independence," adding: "He is always welcome in his country".

"I don't know the circumstances of his release, so I can't make a declaration on his case," he added.

A new navy chief, Carlos Alfredo Mandungal, was appointed in July to succeed Sanha Kluce, who died in May.

Na Tchuto was captured off the West African coast by agents of the US Drug Enforcement Administration in April 2013. He pleaded guilty at his trial in May 2014 and was detained in the US until his sentencing on October 4.

His arrest, and the US indictment two weeks later of General Antonio Indjai, head of the Guinea-Bissau army, highlighted the rise in drug trafficking in West Africa, and the country's role as a transit point for the cocaine trade.

Guinea-Bissau has been plagued by military coups and instability since its independence from Portugal in 1974, and in recent years has become a cocaine-trafficking hub.
Syria rebels in assault to break Aleppo siege

Syrian opposition fighters made advances Friday in a major assault on government forces aimed at breaking a months-long siege of rebel-held districts of the battered city of Aleppo.

Rebel groups including the powerful Ahrar al-Sham faction and former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front fired waves of rockets into government-held western Aleppo, killing at least 15 civilians, a monitor said.

The rebels also targeted government positions east of Aleppo city and in the coastal province of Latakia, including the Hmeimim military base used by Russian forces allied with the regime.

Rebel fighters from the Jaish al-Fatah (or Army of Conquest) prepare to fire a home-made mortar launcher during a major offensive against regime forces near Aleppo, on October 28, 2016 Omar haj kadour (AFP)

The assault comes more than three months into a government siege of eastern Aleppo, where more than 250,000 people live, and several weeks after the army began an operation to retake the rebel east.

Rebel groups "announce the start of the battle to break the siege of Aleppo", said Abu Yusef Muhajir, a military commander and spokesman for Ahrar al-Sham.

The assault "will end the regime occupation of western Aleppo and break the siege on the people trapped inside", he told AFP.

"The breaking of the siege is inevitable," said Yasser al-Yusef, a member of the political office of the Nureddine al-Zinki rebel group.

"We will protect the civilians and schools and hospitals from Russian attacks and bring our people food and medicine," he said.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said at least 15 civilians, including a woman and two children, had been killed, and more than 100 wounded in rebel fire on western Aleppo.

- Rocket fire -

The monitor reported fierce clashes on multiple fronts on the western and southern outskirts of west Aleppo, with three suicide car bombs targeting a checkpoint in the Dahiyet al-Assad neighbourhood.

Fighting is continuing in the area near a military academy, it said, but had no immediate toll.

An AFP correspondent in east Aleppo said the assault had boosted morale in rebel-held districts, with mosques broadcasting "God is greatest" from loudspeakers.

He said residents burned tyres, sending smoke over the city to provide cover against air attack.

Heavy rain put the fires out but also hampered Russian and Syrian air operations, creating what one rebel dubbed "a divine no-fly zone".

The Observatory said rebels had also fired dozens of rockets at the Nairab military airport and Aleppo international airport, both east of the city and government-controlled.

Rebels also launched rockets from Idlib province into the government stronghold of Latakia, killing one person and wounding six.

Rockets struck close to the Hmeimim military airport, as well as near President Bashar al-Assad's ancestral village Qardaha, the monitor said.

Syrian state television said "the army has foiled an attempt by terrorists to attack Aleppo city from several axes with suicide bomb attacks and has inflicted losses on them".

"Terrorist groups have made no advances and clashes are continuing," it added.

State news agency SANA said government planes were carrying out air strikes south and west of Aleppo.

- 'UN unprofessional': Lavrov -

Once Syria's economic powerhouse, Aleppo has been ravaged by the conflict that began in March 2011 with anti-government protests and has since killed more than 300,000 people.

Aleppo has been divided between government control in the west and rebel control in the east since mid-2012, and in September the army announced an operation to recapture the whole city.

The assault, backed by Russian forces, has killed hundreds of civilians and destroyed infrastructure including hospitals, prompting international outrage.

The UN's aid chief Stephen O'Brien this week said Aleppo had become "a kill zone", adding that "nothing is actually happening to stop the war, stop the suffering".

Last week, Russia implemented a three-day "humanitarian truce" intended to allow civilians and surrendering rebels to exit the east through passages to western neighbourhoods.

But few left, and a UN plan to evacuate the wounded failed because security could not be guaranteed.

Russia says it has not bombed Aleppo since October 18, but senior Russian military official Sergei Rudskoi told a briefing that the military had asked President Vladimir Putin for authorisation to resume its air strikes.

Also Friday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused UN agencies of "not being professional enough" over Aleppo.

Speaking in Moscow after meeting the Syrian and Iranian foreign ministers, he said: "Their inaction allowed the medical evacuation to be sabotaged."

Lavrov urged the UN to resist the "hysterical campaign of lies about the humanitarian situation in Aleppo".

The United States, meanwhile, reported that Russian and American warplanes had a near miss over Syria on October 17, highlighting the risks of a serious mishap in increasingly crowded airspace.

The battle for Aleppo Sabrina BLANCHARD, Simon MALFATTO (AFP)

Once Syria's economic powerhouse, Aleppo has been ravaged by the conflict that began in March 2011 with anti-government protests and has since killed over 300,000 people Thaer Mohammed (AFP/File)
Putin says not right time to resume Aleppo strikes

The Kremlin said Friday that President Vladimir Putin did not think it was time to resume air strikes on Aleppo after the defence ministry requested that a moratorium on bombing be lifted.

"The Russian president considers it inappropriate at the current moment to resume strikes on Aleppo," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding that Putin thought it was necessary to "continue the humanitarian pause" in the war-ravaged city.

The announcement came shortly after the defence ministry said in a surprise statement that it had asked Putin to allow the Russian air force to resume air strikes in Aleppo after a 10-day halt in bombing.

Rebel fighters from the Jaish al-Fatah (or Army of Conquest) brigades manoeuver an alleged explosive-rigged make-shift armoured vehicle during a major assault on Syrian government forces West of Aleppo city Omar haj kadour (AFP)

It also followed the launch by Syrian rebels of an assault on government forces to break a months-long siege of rebel-held eastern Aleppo.

At least 15 civilians were killed and more than 100 wounded on Friday by rebel rocket fire on government-held western Aleppo neighbourhoods, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Peskov stressed that in spite of the halt in bombing in Aleppo, Russia would deploy all its means to support the Syrian army if necessary.

"The Russian side retains the right in case of extreme necessity to use all the troops and facilities it has to carry out support of the Syrian armed forces at the necessary level," he said.

Senior military official Sergei Rudskoi said earlier Friday that Russia was ready to "assess any proposal about improving the humanitarian situation in Aleppo, including the introduction of 'humanitarian pauses'", but warned that a halt in bombing should not be used "for fighters to reach their objectives".

Russia's defence ministry has said that Syrian and Russian warplanes have not bombed Aleppo for the past ten days to allow civilians and rebels wishing to leave the city to do so via humanitarian corridors.

The halt in bombing was initially declared ahead of a short ceasefire that ended at the weekend, with Moscow on Monday ruling out a truce extension for the time being.

The West has accused Moscow of committing possible war crimes in Aleppo through indiscriminate bombing to support Syrian government efforts to retake total control over the city.

Russia has meanwhile denied any role in deadly air strikes on a Syrian school in the rebel-held province of Idlib that killed 22 children on Wednesday.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the strikes were carried out by "warplanes -- either Russian or Syrian".
EU's Mogherini to visit Tehran, Riyadh for Syria talks

The European Union's diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini will head to Iran and Saudi Arabia for talks on the Syrian conflict, a statement said on Friday.

Mogherini will visit Tehran on Saturday and Riyadh on Monday for "senior level talks" continuing the EU's "outreach to key actors in the region on the Syrian crisis", it said.

The diplomatic push comes with no end in sight to a conflict that has aligned regional powers on opposite sides, with Iran backing President Bashar al-Assad and Saudi Arabia a key supporter of the rebels fighting to oust him.

EU's High representative for foreign affairs and security policy Federica Mogherini arrives for an European Union leaders summit on October 20, 2016 Thierry Charlier (AFP/File)

Syrian rebels launched a major assault Friday aimed at breaking a months-long siege of opposition-held districts of Aleppo, as regime ally Russia held off on renewed air strikes.
Police break up Abidjan demo ahead of constitution vote

Around 1,000 people demonstrated in the Ivorian capital Abidjan on Friday against a weekend referendum on a new constitution which the opposition has denounced as dangerously anti-democratic.

The proposed new constitution has been championed by President Alassane Ouattara, who claims it will "definitively turn the page on successive crises" in Ivory Coast.

But the opposition has called for a boycott of Sunday's referendum on the adoption of a new constitution that changes contentious rules on presidential eligibility.

People hold placards as they gesture and chant slogans during a protest march against the new Ivory Coast's draft constitution in Abidjan, on October 28, 2016 Issouf Sanogo (AFP)

There was a heavy police presence early on Friday as demonstrators took to the streets holding up banners reading "Two mandates is enough" and shouting "Power to the people".

But when several groups of protesters tried to make their way to a square near the presidential residence, police began firing tear gas to stop them, several witnesses told AFP.

An interior ministry spokesman confirmed police had tried to break up the demonstration, saying it was to prevent the protesters from causing a disturbance in Abidjan's business district.

"Some of them with negative intentions tried to go to Place de la Republique which would have disturbed business activity, so we stopped them from reaching these areas."

The Ivorian Popular Front, the party of former president Laurent Gbagbo, is fiercely opposed to the proposed new basic law, criticising the lack of consultation involved and warning it would worsen, not improve, security.

The draft constitution, which parliament overwhelmingly approved earlier this week, changes the rules on presidential eligibility and establishes a senate.

Critically, it would lift the current requirement that both parents of a presidential candidate must have been born in Ivory Coast.

Ouattara's father was born in neighbouring Burkina Faso and the question of parentage was one of the issues which led to months of deadly post-election violence in 2010.

At the time Gbagbo, the defeated candidate, refused to cede power over the issue, triggering widespread violence in which around 3,000 people died.

Ouattara says the amendments will help end years of instability and conflict in the world's top cocoa producer.

The draft also sets up the post of vice president and allows the president to appoint a third of the senate, a provision the opposition is particularly unhappy with.
Russian, US jets had near miss over Syria: US officials

A Russian fighter flew dangerously close to a US warplane over eastern Syria, US defence officials said Friday, highlighting the risks of a serious mishap in the increasingly crowded airspace.

The "near miss" occurred late on October 17, when a Russian jet that was escorting a larger spy plane manoeuvred near an American warplane, Air Force Lieutenant General Jeff Harrigian said.

The Russian jet came to "inside of half a mile" of the US jet, he added.

Russian Sukhoi Su-25 ground attack aircraft take off from the Hmeimim military base in Latakia province, Syria on March 16, 2016 Vadim Grishankin (Russian Defence Ministry/AFP/File)

Another US military official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the American pilot was buffeted by the turbulence from the Russian jet's engines.

"It was close enough you could feel the jet wash of the plane passing by," the official said.

It appeared the Russian pilot had simply not seen the US jet -- either on radar or visually. It was dark and the planes were flying without lights.

"I would attribute it to not having the necessary situational awareness given all those (planes) operating together," Harrigian said.

The incident raises serious questions about the extent to which pilots can track the complex airspace they operate in.

- Hotline to Russia -

Fearing a mishap, the US-led coalition last year set up a hotline with Russian counterparts to discuss the approximate locations and missions of planes.

In this case, the American pilot tried unsuccessfully to reach the Russian jet via an emergency radio channel.

The next day, US officers used the hotline to ask Russia what had happened, and they said "the pilot didn't see" the American plane, the official said.

The rate of close calls has increased over the past six weeks, Harrigian said, with Russian jets intentionally flying close to a coalition plane every 10 days or so.

"An intercept would be when an aircraft rolls in behind one of our aircraft. Could be a tanker, could be a B-52" bomber, Harrigian said.

US officers typically contact the Russians afterward.

We'll "make sure they know we are concerned about that and try to get an understanding of why they felt the need to do it," Harrigian said.

"Typically, it's not a very satisfying answer."

Coalition planes and drones operate in the skies over parts of Syria on a near-continuous basis.

That air traffic will grow heavier still as coalition-backed forces ramp up operations to recapture Raqa, the de-facto capital of the Islamic State group's "caliphate".

Further complicating matters, Turkish and Syrian regime warplanes fly in the same air space too.

Russia conducts frequent air patrols over Syria, the vast majority of them over the devastated city of Aleppo, and routinely transits parts of the country the US-coalition operates in, officials said.

Russia says it has not bombed Aleppo since October 18.

The Pentagon periodically chides Russia for "unsafe and unprofessional behaviour" in air operations and aggressive intercepts.

This latest incident was deemed unsafe, but not necessarily unprofessional, officials said.

Coalition spokesman Colonel John Dorrian, in a videoconference from Baghdad Friday, said the coalition did not assess the incident as "something that was done with nefarious intent".
Russia foreign ministry says Syria school strike photos 'fake'

A Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman on Friday said an expert examination of pictures showing a strike on a Syrian school that UNICEF said killed 22 children, had shown they were fake.

"Today after expert analysis of photographs from the Syrian village of Hass, it turned out that there was no strike on the school and there were no victims either," Maria Zakharova wrote on Facebook.

"The photographs are computer graphics," she said, without giving any details.

A general view shows a damaged classroom at a school after it was hit in an air strike in the village of Hass, in the south of Syria's rebel-held Idlib province on October 26, 2016 Omar haj kadour (AFP/File)

Air strikes on a school in Hass village in Syria's rebel-held Idlib province killed 22 children and six teachers, the UN children's agency UNICEF said on Wednesday.

Russian defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said Thursday that photographs taken by a Russian drone showed that the roof of the school reportedly hit in the strikes showed no damage and that there were no craters attributable to bombs in the area.

And he said that "not one Russian warplane entered that area" on that day.

"This is an absolute fact."

Zakharova had on Thursday initially described the attack as a "terrible tragedy," while insisting that reports of Russian involvement were untrue after the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the strikes were carried out by "warplanes -- either Russian or Syrian".
Palestinian president meets Hamas chief

Palestinian president and Fatah leader Mahmud Abbas has met the head of Hamas and his deputy in Qatar, a Palestinian official said Friday, in a sign of easing tensions.

Thursday's meeting in the Qatari capital was the first between Abbas and Doha-based Khaled Meshaal in two years, and the second between him and the Hamas chief in the Gaza Strip, Ismail Haniya, since 2012.

Abbas's secular party Fatah and the Islamist Hamas have been at loggerheads since the latter seized Gaza in a near civil war in 2007.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas met with the hamas chief for the first time since 2012, in which he stressed the need for "Palestinian national reconciliation", as well as "forming a national unity government and holding elections" Abbas Momani (AFP/File)

The Doha meeting provided the opportunity to "insist on the need to resume dialogue between Fatah and Hamas", Palestinian presidency spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina said.

Abbas stressed the need for "Palestinian national reconciliation", as well as "forming a national unity government and holding elections".

The Palestinian government postponed the first municipal polls in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip in 10 years earlier this month after the high court ruled they should be held only in the Fatah-run West Bank.
20 'minor injuries' after plane fire at Chicago airport

Approximately 20 people were injured when an American Airlines Boeing 767 bound for Miami caught fire Friday as it attempted to take off from Chicago's O'Hare airport, emergency officials said.

The blaze broke out on American Airlines Flight 383 -- with 161 passengers and nine crew on board -- as the plane was on the runway at one of the nation's busiest airports.

"We transported about 20 patients with minor injuries to several hospitals," Juan Hernandez of the Chicago Fire Department told a news conference.

The cause of the incident was not immediately clear, with the Federal Aviation Administration and the airline offering conflicting information Scott Olson (Getty/AFP/File)

He described the injuries as bruises and ankle injuries incurred as passengers exited via emergency slides.

"We are taking care of our customers and crew and are re-accommodating our passengers on another flight to Miami this evening," American Airlines said in a statement.

The cause of the incident was not immediately clear, with the Federal Aviation Administration and the airline offering conflicting information.

The FAA said the plane suffered a tire blowout, but spokesman Tony Molinaro told AFP that that information was preliminary and based on initial reports from the plane's pilots.

In a separate statement, American Airlines blamed the incident on an "engine-related issue."

Timothy Sampey, with the Chicago Fire Department's airport operations, said the fire was in one of the plane's engines.

"There was substantial fire on the starboard (right) side of the aircraft," he said. "There was substantial fuel leak."

Officials did not explain the cause of the leak, saying it would be determined by the ensuing investigation.

Bystanders posted photos and videos on social media showing black smoke billowing from the airliner.

One video showed passengers coming down emergency slides and running away from the aircraft, with black smoke and flames visible on the right side of the plane.

Emergency crews surrounded the jet, which appeared to be intact on the runway, though its right side and right wing were charred.

The FAA said it was investigating the incident and the National Transportation Safety Board had been notified.
Police evict oil pipeline protesters from private land

CANNON BALL, N.D. (AP)  Law enforcement officers dressed in riot gear and firing bean bags and pepper spray evicted protesters Thursday from private land in the path of the Dakota Access oil pipeline, dramatically escalating a monthslong dispute over Native American rights and the project's environmental impact.

In an operation that took nearly six hours, hundreds of armed state and local police and National Guard  some on foot and others in trucks, military Humvees and buses  pushed past burning barricades to slowly envelop the camp.

At least 117 people were arrested. No serious injuries were reported, though one man was hurt in the leg and received treatment from a medic.

Tires burn as armed soldiers and law enforcement officers stand in formation on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016, to force Dakota Access pipeline protesters off private land where they had camped to block construction. The pipeline is to carry oil from western North Dakota through South Dakota and Iowa to an existing pipeline in Patoka, Ill. (Mike McCleary/The Bismarck Tribune via AP)

Among those arrested was a woman who pulled out a .38-caliber pistol and fired three times at officers, narrowly missing a sheriff's deputy, State Emergency Services spokeswoman Cecily Fong said. Officers did not return fire, she said.

Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier said the camp had been cleared by nightfall although police were still dealing with protesters on the perimeter. Though officials earlier said they planned to turn the site over to private security, Kirchmeier said police would stay for now.

"We're not leaving the area," he said. "We are just going to make sure that we maintain a presence in the area so the roadway stays open, and to keep individuals from camping on private land."

Opponents of the pipeline over the weekend set up camp on private land owned by Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners, which is working to complete the 1,200-mile pipeline to carry oil from western North Dakota to Illinois. The route skirts the Standing Rock Reservation and the tribe says it could endanger water supplies and disturb cultural sites. The state of North Dakota says no sensitive cultural sites have been found in the area.

The tribe has gone to court to challenge the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' decision granting permits at more than 200 water crossings. A federal judge in September denied their request to block construction, but three federal agencies stepped in to order construction to halt on Corps-owned land around Lake Oahe, a wide spot of the Missouri River, while the Corps reviewed its decision-making.

Construction was allowed to continue on private land owned by the developer, with a goal of completion by the end of the year.

Thursday's operation to push out the protesters began a day after they had refused to leave voluntarily. Law enforcement repeatedly asked protesters to retreat, at one point using a high-pitched whistle they said was intended to "control and disperse" protesters.

The camp cleared on Thursday is located just to the north of a more permanent and larger encampment on federally owned land that has been the main staging area for hundreds of protesters, including Native Americans from across North America, environmentalists and some celebrities.

Many protesters openly defied the officers, while others took part in prayer circles and burned sage. Enough people were arrested that Morton County sheriff's spokeswoman Donnell Hushka said the county needed additional jails to house them. She said those charged with felonies would be held pending court appearances.

Cody Hall, a spokesman for the protesters, vowed a new camp would be built elsewhere in the pipeline's path, but on federal land.

"It's going to take a lot to move them (protesters) from there," he said.

Authorities said protesters set fire to four large pieces of construction equipment. At least two cars were also burned.

Aaron Johnson, 50, a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux in South Dakota, said he and other protesters weren't happy with the day's outcome. "I came here for peace and prayer," he said. "When somebody sets something on fire, that's not peace and prayer."

___

Nicholson reported from Bismarck, North Dakota.

Tires burn as armed soldiers and law enforcement officers stand in formation on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016, to force Dakota Access pipeline protesters off private land where they had camped to block construction. The pipeline is to carry oil from western North Dakota through South Dakota and Iowa to an existing pipeline in Patoka, Ill. (Mike McCleary/The Bismarck Tribune via AP)

Demonstrators stand next to burning tires as armed soldiers and law enforcement officers assemble on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016, to force Dakota Access pipeline protesters off private land where they had camped to block construction. The pipeline is to carry oil from western North Dakota through South Dakota and Iowa to an existing pipeline in Patoka, Ill. (Mike McCleary/The Bismarck Tribune via AP)

Dakota Access pipeline protesters stand in defiance of law enforcement officers who are trying to force them from a camp on private land in the path of pipeline construction on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016, near Cannon Ball, N.D. (AP Photo/James MacPherson)

Dakota Access pipeline protesters defy law enforcement officers who are trying to force them from a camp on private land in the path of pipeline construction on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016, near Cannon Ball, N.D. The months-long dispute over the four-state, $3.8 billion pipeline reached a crisis point when the protesters set up camp on land owned by pipeline developer Energy Transfer Partners. The disputed area is just to the north of a more permanent and larger encampment on federally-owned land where hundreds of protesters have camped for months. (AP Photo/James MacPherson)

Demonstrators stand near armed soldiers and law enforcement officers who moved in to force Dakota Access pipeline protesters off private land in North Dakota on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016 where they had camped to block construction. The pipeline is to carry oil from western North Dakota through South Dakota and Iowa to an existing pipeline in Patoka, Ill. (Mike McCleary/The Bismarck Tribune via AP)

Dakota Access pipeline protesters confront law enforcement on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016, near Cannon Ball, N.D. The months-long dispute over the four-state, $3.8 billion pipeline reached a crisis point when the protesters set up camp on land owned by pipeline developer Energy Transfer Partners. The disputed area is just to the north of a more permanent and larger encampment on federally-owned land where hundreds of protesters have camped for months. (Caroline Grueskin/The Bismarck Tribune via AP)
LINCOLN -- Past the table piled high with books, beyond the racks of clothes and a large selection of bedding, near the temporary cafe in Pinnacle Bank Arena recently, Jerry Renick perused the woolen winter caps on display.

He had a backpack full of supplies and a navigator named Amanda Owen-Doerr whod led him to the Veterans Affairs services area -- one of more than 50 organizations on hand to help those who came to the seventh annual Project Homeless Connect.

Renick was one of more than 400 people who attended -- a record number -- to take advantage of a wide variety of services.

There were booths offering haircuts and family portraits, medical, vision and dental checks, information on employment and benefits, help with tax preparation, information on education opportunities, car repair and pet care services.

Renick visited an area set aside for veterans, a "stand down" event hosted by Veterans Affairs Nebraska-Western Iowa Health Care System. Such events bring together various veterans services in one place to help homeless veterans with medical care, housing, benefits and offer backpacks full of toiletries and other necessities.

The woolen hats, jeans, shirts and other clothes came from the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association, which collects the donations year-round and distributes them at events like the one held recently.

Renick, who served in the Navy during the Vietnam War, isnt homeless now, thanks to housing assistance through Veterans Affairs, but he was for many years, along with his brother. Originally from Oklahoma, Renick said he hitchhiked through Nebraska once -- and eventually found his way back.

The event is helpful, he said, even though hes no longer on the streets, and he made use of the veterans medical services as well as getting a haircut from one of the other booths and stopping by the pet care station.

Owen-Doerr -- one of nearly 300 community members and college students who volunteered to be "navigators" -- helped him find what he needed.

Each person who comes through the doors is assigned a navigator armed with a clipboard and checklist who makes sure people find what they are looking for.

I have a huge passion for people who become homeless and struggle, and this is a great way to connect them with services in one place, she said. It is a cool event, not just for them, but for us.

Nearby, the Lancaster County Public Defenders Office and Legal Aid were ready to offer people advice and help.

Last year, they drove eight to 10 people to court so they could take care of minor warrants or set up payment plans for fines. This year, attorneys were on hand to do the same for people who owed child support.

The public defender's office tried to use FaceTime to connect people at the arena with a judge, but they had technical problems so they drove them to the courthouse. They hope to try again next year.

I saw it as an easy way to serve more people, said Public Defender Joe Nigro.

Renick didnt need those services, but he found the walk to the arena worth the effort.

Its a good thing, he said.
Toni Morrison receives Bellow award for lifetime achievement

NEW YORK (AP)  Toni Morrison has received a lifetime achievement award from the PEN American Center.

Hundreds of people gathered Thursday night at the New School auditorium in Manhattan to recognize Morrison. The Nobel laureate received a prize named for a previous Nobel winner, the PEN/Saul Bellow Award.

The 90-minute event featured music from mezzo-soprano Alicia Hall Moran and her husband, composer-pianist Jason Moran, along with readings of Morrison's work by actors Adepero Oduye and Delroy Lindo.
Federal judge blocks Alabama abortion restrictions

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP)  A federal judge on Thursday blocked new Alabama abortion restrictions that sought to ban clinics near schools and outlaw a common second trimester abortion procedure.

U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson issued a preliminary injunction Thursday against the provisions, which would have banned abortion clinics within 2,000 feet of K-8 public schools and barred the second-trimester procedure known as dilation and evacuation.

Thompson said the location restriction would force closure of two of the state's busiest abortion clinics  facilities in Huntsville and Tuscaloosa that together perform 70 percent of all abortions in the state. Those clinics are also the only providers of abortions beginning at 15 weeks of pregnancy.

"The availability of abortions in Alabama would be significantly reduced, and abortions beginning at 15 weeks would become almost wholly unavailable," Thompson wrote in the 102-page opinion.

The location bill targeted the Alabama Women's Center for Reproductive Alternatives in Huntsville. The clinic moved to a new location in 2013 in order to comply with a new state law requiring clinics to meet the same building code requirements as outpatient surgical centers. The new location is down the street from a K-8 magnet school.

Thompson also issued an injunction against the ban on abortion through dilation and evacuation, in which the contents of the uterus are removed with forceps. Alabama lawmakers who supported the ban called the procedure "barbaric." The state had argued abortion could still be conducted through procedures, such as an injection of potassium chloride, that first induce fetal demise. Thompson said those procedures are riskier and difficult to obtain.

"As explained, in the absence of an injunction, Alabama women would immediately lose the right to obtain a pre-viability abortion anywhere in the State when they reached 15 weeks of pregnancy, whereas all the State will face is that a likely unconstitutional law passed by legislators will not go into effect," Thompson wrote.

Similar laws have been blocked in Kansas and Oklahoma.

The laws were to take effect Aug. 1, but enforcement was delayed until after an Oct. 4 hearing before Thompson after clinic owners and an abortion doctor challenged the laws.

"It's long past time for our elected officials to stop wasting time and taxpayer money passing laws that violate women's constitutional rights and start focusing on the needs of women and families in this state," said Susan Watson, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Alabama, which filed the challenge.
Kirk, Duckworth spar in first televised Senate debate

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP)  In a debate packed with testy exchanges, Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk ribbed Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth's family history of military service and she criticized him for previous remarks he made against the president, as the candidates made one of their final pitches to voters Thursday.

The Illinois Senate contest is considered one of the most important this November because it's one of a handful of races that could determine which party controls the chamber next year.

Kirk, a first-term senator from Highland Park, is seen as one of the Senate's most vulnerable Republican incumbents, and Democrats consider Duckworth's success on Election Day one of the keys to reclaiming a majority in the chamber. Duckworth has a comfortable lead in the most recent polls, but Kirk says the race is closer than people think.

FILE - In this June 9, 2014, file photo, U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk R-Ill., speaks in his office in Chicago. Illinois was once billed as one of November's most competitive U.S. Senate races. Democrats are now counting on U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth to defeat Illinois Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk as the party looks to reclaim the majority in the chamber, but Kirk warns that counting him out would be a mistake. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green, File)

The two met for their first televised debate in an auditorium at the University of Illinois in Springfield. One of the evening's most awkward moments came after Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran, spoke about how her "family has served this nation in uniform going back to the Revolution." The comment prompted Kirk to quip: "I'd forgotten your parents came all of the way from Thailand to serve George Washington."

Duckworth was born in Bangkok and is the first Asian-American congresswoman from Illinois.

The remark was greeted mostly by silence in the auditorium, and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee immediately called the comment offensive and said Kirk should apologize.

Kirk has been criticized before for statements he's made during the campaign. In August he said President Obama was acting like the "drug dealer in chief" when the U.S. made a $400 million payment to Iran contingent on the return of U.S. prisoners. Earlier in the debate Duckworth cited that as an example of why she thinks Kirk shouldn't be in the Senate.

Kirk spokesman Kevin Artl praised the Senator's debate performance.

"Senator Kirk has always commended Representative Duckworth. He's called her a war hero in his commercials and he commends her family's service," Artl said. "But that's not what this debate was about."

Kirk repeatedly called Duckworth too partisan and said he worried "that she will go to war with the 54 Republicans" in the Senate. He emphasized his bipartisan record, while Duckworth focused her arguments on pledging to improve economic opportunities for working families, saying she wants to ensure they "have a shot at the American Dream."

Both candidates have received high-profile endorsements in the final weeks of their campaign. Former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney praised Kirk as an independent voice in the Senate and said his victory is important to help the GOP control the chamber and "keep America from going off the rails."

Kirk has been a vocal critic of Donald Trump's presidential candidacy and has called for the Senate to hold hearings on Obama's pick for the Supreme Court.

This month, Obama appeared at a fundraiser for Duckworth and recorded a radio ad noting how she made her way through college with the help of loans and grants and highlighting her father's job as a factory worker. Obama says in the ad that Duckworth has "walked in our shoes."
Activists split as Clinton makes push for black millennials

PHILADELPHIA (AP)  Six months into Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, she met with a group of Black Lives Matter activists in Washington to make her case and seek their support.

DeRay Mckesson left disappointed, feeling Clinton lacked a grasp of the issues he had spent the previous year protesting in cities like Ferguson, Missouri, and Baltimore, including police brutality and income inequality. He came out of the October 2015 meeting unwilling to support her publicly.

On Wednesday, though, The Washington Post published an op-ed by Mckesson announcing his plans to vote for her after meeting again with her last week in Cleveland. He said he heard a candidate well-versed in the things that matter to him.

FILE- In this July 10, 2016 file photo, Black Lives Matter activist DeRay Mckesson talks to the media after his release from the Baton Rouge jail in Baton Rouge, La. Six months into Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, she met with a group of Black Lives Matter activists in Washington to make her case and seek their support. Mckesson left disappointed, feeling Clinton lacked a grasp of the issues he had spent the previous year protesting in cities like Ferguson, Missouri, and Baltimore, including police brutality and income inequality. On Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016, though, The Washington Post published an op-ed by Mckesson announcing his plans to vote for her after meeting again with her last week in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Max Becherer, File)

"There was no platform the first time," the 31-year-old Mckesson said in a telephone interview. "There is a platform now. I reflected on the things I've heard her say, commit to and seen in writing, and that's how I came to my decision."

A growing number of black millennials who were initially skeptical of Clinton  questioning her commitment to end mass incarceration, confront racial bias in policing and repudiate her husband's tough policies on welfare and crime during the 1990s  now support her.

Some do so enthusiastically, others pragmatically, because they find Donald Trump so repugnant with his talk of violence in "inner cities" and the need for "law and order."

But other activists are still not convinced that Clinton will address their priorities and are withholding their votes and public support as she makes a final push to enlist a group seen as key to her path to victory in November.

"It's a challenge and we're just facing it head-on," said Clinton aide Christopher Huntley, who focuses on millennials. He said the candidate is mounting a full-court press to reach young black voters and is being helped by "folks who have been skeptical now realizing and coming to that 'Aha!' moment that she's the best one to carry our water."

Clinton's platform includes establishing national guidelines on police use of force; police training in recognizing implicit bias; legislation to end racial profiling; increased funding for body cameras; sentencing reform; and federal aid to create jobs for young people, ex-convicts and small businesses in poor communities.

To help make her case to black voters, she has enlisted the Mothers of the Movement, a group of black women who have lost children to violence. They include the mothers of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown. The mothers joined Clinton on the campaign trail in North Carolina last weekend.

Clinton is also reaching out to Black Lives Matter activists, several of whom have social media platforms that give them tremendous influence, and is campaigning at historically black colleges, deploying surrogates like New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and tapping the likes of rapper Jay-Z to perform a get-out-the-vote concert.

On her 69th birthday on Wednesday, Clinton stopped by "The Breakfast Club," a popular urban radio show. Over the weekend, she tweeted a shout-out to historically black Howard University, which was celebrating its homecoming.

According to a new GenForward poll of Americans ages 18 to 30, 49 percent of blacks say they will definitely vote in November. That's similar to the percentage of all young people. Eighty percent of the likely black voters say they plan to cast their ballots for Clinton, versus 4 percent for Trump.

Clinton has enjoyed strong support from older African-Americans, particularly in the South, where she defeated primary rival Bernie Sanders with 77 percent of the overall black vote in states with exit polling. But in the GenForward poll, black millennials reported supporting Sanders over Clinton during the primary season 46 to 28 percent.

In endorsing Clinton last week in an Elle magazine interview, Brittany Packnett  a St. Louis organizer who was also at both Clinton meetings  voiced some of the conflict felt by young black voters during the election season.

"These young people are understandably asking, 'What is the point of continuing to participate in this system that assaults me?'" Packnett said. "I have been wrestling with the same frustrations, but I have a responsibility to young people, to my community and to our work. The best way I can use my platform is to support Secretary Clinton."

Many black millennials had doubts about Clinton early in the campaign because of a 1996 speech in which she referred to young "super-predators" in the black community. She has since apologized for the remark.

In a heated moment on the campaign trail in April, Philadelphia activist Erica Mines confronted former President Bill Clinton about his support for welfare reform that activists say punished poor people and a crime bill that put many blacks behind bars.

Mines said she plans to vote for an independent next month.

"I do not believe she is someone who can be trusted," Mines said of Clinton. "She has been pushed because of Bernie Sanders to be more left than she has in the past. I do not trust her to do what is right for our communities. I only hear her talk about the middle class, which is not representative of those living at or below the poverty line."

Ferguson protester Johnetta Elzie said Clinton has done nothing to earn her endorsement. Elzie was among the protesters who met with Clinton in October 2015, but did not meet with her last week.

"There is no way I could promise to black people that she's not going to be horrible for us," she said. "That's not the hill I want my credibility to die on. I'm not going to guilt-trip people. I'm encouraging people to vote however you want on Nov. 8  or don't vote."

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Errin Haines Whack covers urban affairs for The Associated Press. Follow her on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/emarvelous.

FILE - In this Friday, Oct. 21, 2016, file photo, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks at a rally at Cuyahoga Community College in Cleveland. Some young black activists who had their doubts about Hillary Clinton are coming around to support her - some enthusiastically, some because they cannot stand Donald Trump. African-American voters are seen as key to Clinton's path to victory in November. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

FILE - In this Dec. 11, 2015 file photo, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks to Lesley McSpadden, right, the mother of Michael Brown, while working the rope line during a campaign stop at a union hall in St. Louis. Brown was shot and killed by a Ferguson police officer in Aug. 2014 setting off the Black Lives Matter movement. African-American voters are seen as key to Clinton's path to victory in November. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)

FILE  In this March 26, 2016, file photo, Black Lives Matter activist DeRay Mckesson, who was seeking the Democratic nomination to run for mayor of Baltimore, chats with campaign volunteers in Baltimore. In a Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016, op-ed in The Washington Post, DeRay Mckesson outlined why he plans to vote for Hillary Clinton. A growing number of black millennials initially skeptical of Hillary Clinton now support her  some enthusiastically, some pragmatically. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

FILE  In this Feb. 18, 2016, file photo, Brittany Packnett, front left, co-founder of We The Protestors and Campaign Zero, and U.S. Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., front right, listen as President Barack Obama speaks to reporters while meeting with civil rights leaders in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington. In an Elle magazine interview published Friday, Oct. 21, 2016, Packnett endorsed Hillary Clinton while voicing some of the conflict felt by young black voters. A growing number of black millennials initially skeptical of Hillary Clinton now support her  some enthusiastically, some pragmatically. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

FILE - In this Dec. 1, 2014 file photo, President Barack Obama, greets Brittany Packnett, center, from the Ferguson Committee, following his meeting with elected officials, law enforcement officials and community and faith leaders in the Old Executive Office Building on the White House Complex in Washington. In endorsing Democratic presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton, last week in an Elle magazine interview, Packnett - a St. Louis organizer who was also at both Clinton meetings - voiced some of the conflict felt by young black voters during the election season. African-American voters are seen as key to Clinton's path to victory in Nov. 2016. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)
Q&A: Fish and politics behind Antarctic marine reserve deal

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP)  Nations from around the world on Friday reached an historic agreement to preserve an area of ocean near Antarctica that's about twice the size of Texas. Here are some questions and answers about the deal:

Q: WHAT'S SPECIAL ABOUT THE AREA?

A: The marine protected area will be in the Ross Sea, considered to be one of the most pristine environments in the world. New Zealand officials say that at different times, the area is home to about one-third of the world's Adelie penguins and 26 percent of the world's emperor penguins. It also boasts thriving colonies of seabirds, seals and whales. Researchers say the region is important to study because it is almost untouched by humans, and should remain that way. Several countries fish in the region for lucrative Antarctic toothfish, which are often sold in stores and restaurants as Chilean sea bass.

In this Jan. 25, 2015 photo, Chile's Navy ship Aquiles moves alongside the Hurd Peninsula, seen from Livingston Islands, in Antarctica. The countries that decide the fate of Antarctica agreed on Friday, Oct. 28, 2016, to create the world's largest marine protected area in the ocean next to the frozen continent. The agreement comes after years of diplomatic wrangling and high-level talks between the U.S. and Russia, which has rejected the idea in the past.(AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

___

Q: WHAT MAKES THIS AGREEMENT GROUNDBREAKING?

A: Individual nations across the globe have set aside dozens of marine reserves. But proponents say this is the first time that a bunch of nations have collaborated to protect an area on the high seas  the open ocean that falls outside the jurisdiction of any one nation. The deal was put together by New Zealand and the U.S.

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Q: WHAT ARE THE DETAILS?

A: The reserve covers 1.6 million square kilometers (617,000 square miles), making it the world's largest marine protected area. About 72 percent will be a no-take zone, where commercial fishing will be banned. In the remaining areas, limited fishing for toothfish or krill will be allowed, although fisher folk will be required to do extra monitoring and tagging so scientists can evaluate what's happening to fish stocks. Researchers can apply to take limited numbers of fish from throughout the reserve.

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Q: WHAT ABOUT THE POLITICS?

A: Many are surprised the deal came together at all, especially because it required the U.S. and Russia to agree at a time when tensions between them are running high. Antarctic fishing is regulated by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, whose members include 24 nations and the European Union. All agreements must be unanimous, which has proved a stumbling block in the past for a group with such divergent politics and interests. Many nations had been pushing for a reserve but a few had resisted, with Russia becoming the final holdout. The deal made some small concessions to Russia by altering the boundaries and by increasing the fishing quota outside of the no-take zone.

___

Q: WHAT'S NEXT?

A: Environmentalists hope the deal will pave the way for future agreements on the high seas, and that one day a big chunk of the world's oceans will be protected as a result. It could also help speed along plans for other marine reserves around Antarctica. The agreement takes effect in December 2017 and, in the no-take zone, runs for 35 years. At that point, the member nations will again need to reach consensus for the reserve to continue  no simple task judging by the contentious nature of past negotiations.

In this Jan. 26, 2015 photo, pieces of thawing ice are scattered along the beachshore at Punta Hanna, Livingston Island, in the Antarctica. The countries that decide the fate of Antarctica agreed on Friday to create the world's largest marine protected area in the ocean next to the frozen continent. The agreement comes after years of diplomatic wrangling and high-level talks between the U.S. and Russia, which has rejected the idea in the past.(AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
Families plead for answers in Australian theme park deaths

SYDNEY (AP)  Relatives of some of the people killed at a theme park when their ride malfunctioned are pleading for answers into their loved ones' deaths.

Shayne Goodchild is the father of two of the four adults killed earlier this week at Dreamworld on Queensland state's Gold Coast. On Friday, he read an emotional statement on behalf of the families of the victims, who died when their raft overturned on the Thunder River Rapids ride on Tuesday.

Goodchild said the families want to know what went wrong with the 30-year-old Thunder River Rapids ride and why their loved ones were killed in such horrific circumstances.
Review: Complex family emerges in lively 'Falsettos'

NEW YORK (AP)  Once upon a time, AIDS hadn't happened yet, there were no legal LGBT rights, and openly gay partners were just beginning to seem possible.

Composer-lyricist William Finn illuminated the story of a gay Jewish man and his extended family in the late 1970s with inventive lyrics and spirited tunes in the sophisticated musical comedy "Falsettos." Groundbreaking for its time, it premiered on Broadway in 1992 amid the growing AIDS crisis, and won two Tony Awards for best book and best score.

Now Lincoln Center Theater has brought a fresh, lively revival to Broadway, starring Christian Borle, Andrew Rannells and Stephanie J. Block, that opened Thursday night at the Walter Kerr Theatre.

This image released by Lincoln Center Theater shows Christian Borle, left, and Andrew Rannells of Falsettos during a performance on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre in New York. (Joan Marcus/Lincoln Center Theater via AP)

The book is co-written by Finn and James Lapine, who directed the original and also expertly helms this complex, fast-paced production. The almost entirely sung show, enlivened with Spencer Liff's sprightly choreography and a small but mighty orchestra, focuses playful wit on tumultuous relationship dynamics. The adults' immaturity is reflected in the set, a cube comprised of oversized building blocks.

"Falsettos" is a bittersweet pairing of two of Finn's one-act musicals "March of the Falsettos" and "Falsettoland." The first act is a domestic drama with humorous twists, as selfish protagonist Marvin (Borle) leaves his confused wife (Block) and precocious son to live with his male lover, Whizzer (Rannells) in 1979. Marvin wants everyone to get along like a family, but his immaturity prevents him from connecting with his unhappy son, Jason.

Borle is a strong, angry Marvin. His often-sardonic expression accentuates Marvin's prickly character. Rannells has a charming artificiality that makes his Whizzer the perfect "pretty boy." They have tense, testosterone-laden arguments as Marvin tries to force the carefree Whizzer into traditional wifely duties.

Block is poignantly sympathetic as Marvin's exasperated ex-wife Trina, perplexed by the collapse of her family and fed up with "the happy men who rule the world." She's especially comical in her despairing tour de force rendition of "I'm Breaking Down," distractedly waving a large knife while forcefully hacking up bananas. Brandon Uranowitz is nebbishly charming as Mendel, Marvin's guilty psychiatrist.

Anthony Rosenthal is enormously appealing as Jason. His alienation worries his parents, while he's expresses concern he'll turn out gay in "My Father's A Homo." Rosenthal's small stature adds zany charm to the often-frenetic pace.

The second, darker act takes place in 1981, kicking off with "Welcome To Falsettoland" about adults needing to grow up and face the music. Tracie Thoms and Betsy Wolfe are comforting as "the lesbians next door," now part of Marvin's family, as is Whizzer.

Borle finally humanizes Marvin when he tenderly sings Whizzer a love song, "What More Can I Say." But soon, Thoms, playing Dr. Charlotte, has the unhappy task of raising the specter of AIDS in "Something Bad Is Happening." Finn brilliantly uses musical comedy to explore what constitutes a family, while humanizing the extensive tragedy of the AIDS epidemic.

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Frequent casino bus crashes draw mounting safety scrutiny

LOS ANGELES (AP)  Rosa Ruiz returned from a gambling jaunt to San Diego before dawn Saturday and was back on another bus that evening, headed for a desert casino.

Like others who routinely board buses bound for distant casinos, Ruiz wasn't so much dreaming of striking it rich, just escaping her normal life for a few hours to socialize, snack and play the slots.

But this night out ended in disaster on the freeway near Palm Springs when the bus slammed into a tractor-trailer in the pre-dawn darkness Sunday. Ruiz was killed along with 12 others, including the bus driver who also owned the USA Holiday bus. It was the latest in a growing number of casino bus tragedies around the country, from New York to Minnesota to Texas.

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016, photo, casino-bound travelers board a tour bus in Los Angeles. Bus tours have been a fixture across the American landscape for years, shuttling gamblers from cities to rural places where casinos are located, particularly in California where tribal operations are often hours away. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Fatalities involving casino buses have become so frequent that the National Transportation Safety Board, which investigates major crashes, is studying them for common patterns, said Earl Weener, an NTSB board member overseeing the crash probe of the USA Holiday bus.

As casinos have proliferated, buses ferrying gamblers have become a fixture. Many, like Ruiz, travel from big cities to out-of-the-way casinos and stay for as little as four hours before the buses head home.

The tours typically draw a similar demographic: older, lower-income and, often, minorities. Many of those killed in the crash last weekend were Latinos, and they boarded the bus in the Koreatown neighborhood of Los Angeles.

"They don't take off from the Santa Monica pier. They don't take off from Beverly Hills," said Dr. Timothy Fong, a psychiatry professor and co-director of gambling studies at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Day and night, people line up at street corners, parking lots and fast food restaurants across the Los Angeles area where the buses arrive and depart for short casino trips.

At the Koreatown location where Ruiz, 53, embarked on her last journey, fellow travelers gathered this week to light votive candles, stick roses and daisies in the bark of a palm tree and remember their lost friends. All the while, white buses pulled up to shuttle others to casinos in the desert or Santa Barbara and San Diego counties.

These so-called curbside carriers are often mom-and-pop operations that have proliferated in the U.S. for tours of all kinds, including gambling trips. Government regulators are stretched to try to ensure all are abiding by safety rules.

Attorney Katherine Harvey-Lee, who has sued bus operators, said casinos typically pay a per-passenger fee to smaller operations like USA Holiday, the one-bus operation owned by Teodulo Elias Vides, who was also the lone driver. Gamblers usually get $20 to $30 in tokens or casino credits.

Vides charged $20 for the roundtrip to Red Earth Casino, a bare-bones operation in the community of Thermal, with about 3,000 residents living next to the Salton Sea, California's largest lake. A gas station and convenience store help draw travelers on Interstate 10, but the casino, packed with penny slots, lacks amenities and glitz. The dining area resembles a school cafeteria with basic offerings of pizza and sandwiches.

The bus would have passed bigger, fancier and better-known Indian casinos to reach the destination 135 miles from LA.

"The fact that this is a way for them to bring gamblers from hundreds of miles away to a place they would never go or would ever have heard of makes one think there has to be a relationship between the operator and the casino," Harvey-Lee said. "They weren't going to a place where some celebrity was playing in the lounge."

The general manager at Red Earth Casino did not return a call seeking comment.

Investigators are looking at Vides' relationship with the casino along with possible mechanical issues on the bus and what Vides did in the hours leading up to the crash to see whether alcohol or fatigue or some other factor might have contributed.

In the first lawsuit filed in connection with the crash, family members for two men killed on the bus sued USA Holiday and Vides' estate Thursday for negligence and wrongful death.

The bus was traveling "freeway speeds," and it did not appear to brake before slamming into the big rig that was moving at 5 mph as it approached utility work, California Highway Patrol Border Division Chief Jim Abele said. The crash occurred just after 5:15 a.m. when most passengers were sleeping.

While the survivors of the crash and others who routinely board casino-bound buses said the trips are mostly for fun and socializing, there can be a darker side.

Concerned that casinos were targeting vulnerable elders in San Francisco's Chinatown, a health care organization there tried unsuccessfully to distribute brochures about problem gambling on buses and at tour bus offices. The companies wouldn't cooperate, so workers hand out literature on sidewalks near the buses.

"For so many of our clients, that trip to the casino represents hope," said Michael S. Liao of NICOS Chinese Health Coalition.

The reality is that most of those people end up losing, and some carry huge debts.

"It's not about how much you lose, but how much you can afford to lose," he said.

___

Watson reported from San Diego. Associated Press writers Amy Taxin in Los Angeles and Elliot Spagat in Salton City contributed to this report.

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016, photo, Tomas Hernandez holds a photo of his late sister, Isabel Jimenez Hernandez, who was killed Sunday, Oct. 23 in a gambling tour bus accident while returning to Los Angeles from a trip to a casino, at a makeshift memorial in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

This Monday, Oct. 24, 2016, photo shows the main entrance to the Red Earth Casino in Thermal, Calif. Bus tours have been a fixture across the American landscape for years, shuttling gamblers from cities to rural places casinos are located, particularly in California where tribal operations are often hours away. Gamblers usually get $20 to $30 in tokens or casino credits. (AP Photo/Elliot Spagat)

FILE - This Oct. 23, 2016 file photo shows the wreckage of a tour bus that collided with a big rig on Interstate 10 in Desert Hot Springs, Calif., near Palm Springs, Calif. The crash killed 13 people and injured over two dozen. Bus tours have been a fixture across the American landscape for years, shuttling gamblers from cities to rural places where casinos are located, particularly in California where tribal operations are often hours away. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Pena, File)

In this Monday, Oct. 24, 2016, photo, a parked truck marks the road to the Red Earth Casino in Thermal, Calif. Bus tours have been a fixture across the American landscape for years, shuttling gamblers from cities to rural places casinos are located, particularly in California where tribal operations are often hours away. Gamblers usually get $20 to $30 in tokens or casino credits. (AP Photo/Elliot Spagat)

This Monday, Oct. 24, 2016, photo shows the main entrance to the Red Earth Casino in Thermal, Calif. Bus tours have been a fixture across the American landscape for years, shuttling gamblers from cities to rural places casinos are located, particularly in California where tribal operations are often hours away. Attorney Katherine Harvey-Lee, who has sued bus operators, said casinos typically pay a per-passenger fee to smaller operations like USA Holiday, the one-bus operation owned by Teodulo Elias Vides, who was also the lone driver. Vides charged $20 for the trip to Red Earth Casino, a bare-bones operation in the middle of nowhere next to the Salton Sea, California's largest lake. (AP Photo/Elliot Spagat)
Acquittal raises fears that militant groups could get bolder

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP)  The stunning acquittal of seven people who occupied a federal wildlife sanctuary during an armed standoff raised fears Friday that the verdict could embolden other militant groups in a long-running dispute over government-owned Western lands.

Meanwhile, a juror said the decision was a rejection of the prosecution's conspiracy case, not an endorsement of the defendants' actions.

Supporters of Ammon Bundy celebrated the verdict and said it could invite more confrontations. The government's top federal land official, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, issued a statement urging all employees to "remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity."

FILE - In this Jan. 22, 2016, file photo, Ammon Bundy, right, shakes hand with a federal agent guarding the gate at the Burns Municipal Airport in Burns, Ore. The stunning acquittal of seven people who occupied a federal bird refuge in Oregon as part of a Western land dispute was a rejection of the prosecutions conspiracy case, not an endorsement of the armed protest, a juror said Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Keith Ridler, File).

An activist from Boise, Idaho, who once camped by a memorial to occupier LaVoy Finicum at the site where he was shot dead by police, predicted that the verdict would encourage others to act.

"I think a lot more people will be revolting, rebelling and standing up against what we see as a tyrannical government," William C. Fisher said in a telephone interview.

The 41-day takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge last January in remote eastern Oregon was part of a larger debate about the use of federal lands in the West. The militants led by Bundy, a small business owner from Arizona, wanted to hand the refuge over to local officials, saying the federal government should not have dominion over it.

The U.S. government owns nearly half of all land in the West, compared with only 4 percent in other states, according to the Congressional Overview of Federal Land Ownership.

One of the jurors in the case asserted Friday that the panel was not endorsing militancy to resolve those issues.

The juror, identified only as Juror No. 4, wrote in an email to The Oregonian/OregonLive that the verdicts were a "statement" about the prosecution's failure to prove a conspiracy charge "and not any form of affirmation of the defense's various beliefs, actions or aspirations."

The acquittal of the white occupiers came on the same day that officers in riot gear evicted protesters from private land in the path of the Dakota Access oil pipeline in rural North Dakota. Officers fired bean bags and pepper spray as they surrounded demonstrators, many of them Native Americans who have spent months fighting over tribal rights and the project's environmental effects. At least 117 people were arrested.

"Are we going to look at these protests the same way?" asked John Freemuth, a public land policy expert at Boise State University. "I certainly think the tribes will have a point if they find themselves arrested and in jail and these Oregon guys get off."

Bundy, his brother Ryan Bundy and five others were charged with conspiring to impede federal workers from their jobs at the refuge.

Chris Rasmussen, a defense lawyer in an armed standoff case that happened two years ago at Bundy's father's ranch in Nevada, said it is "obvious" that Oregon prosecutors gambled in seeking convictions on felony conspiracy charges instead of misdemeanor trespassing charges.

But prosecutors had few other options for serious charges because the defendants never attacked anyone, said Laurie Levenson, a professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles and a former federal prosecutor.

Rather than attempting to retake the refuge headquarters and risking a gunbattle, authorities took a cautious approach. They closed nearby roads and stayed miles away while urging the occupiers to abandon the land.

"The upside of not confronting them was it was less likely there would be violence," Levenson said. "The downside was it was less likely that they could use the assault charge."

The standoff finally ended when the Bundys and other key figures were arrested in a Jan. 26 traffic stop outside the refuge. That's when Finicum was killed. Most occupiers left after his death, but four holdouts remained until Feb. 11, when they surrendered following lengthy negotiations.

Bundy remains in jail because he still faces charges in the standoff at his father's Nevada ranch.

Joel Hansen, Cliven Bundy's attorney, said Friday that he thinks the jury in Oregon "saw through the lies" of a government that "is trying to prove these Bundy brothers and their compatriots were some kind of terrorists."

For Hansen and some others in the rural West, ownership of public land is a constitutional question that has not been settled.

"There is a seething anger among those who use the land," he said, citing the feelings of ranchers, loggers, miners and Indians. "It's all part of tyrannical oppression. Their goal is to manage them out of business to get them off the land."

The Oregon occupiers had chosen, perhaps inadvertently, a part of Oregon where locals and the feds had a recent history of working together. Few who live near the sanctuary welcomed the occupiers, most of whom were from out of state.

Not long before the takeover began on Jan. 2, locals and federal officials had determined the fate of large swaths of land, Harney County Judge Steve Grasty, the top local administrative official, said last summer in an interview.

The High Desert Partnership in Harney County, a group that includes the Bureau of Land Management, the Nature Conservancy and timber business owners, had been working quietly to determine land stewardship, which Jewell credited in her statement on Friday.

___

Associated Press writers Ken Ritter in Las Vegas and Martha Bellisle in Seattle contributed to this report.

___

Follow Andrew Selsky on Twitter at http://twitter.com/andrewselsky .

FILE - In this Jan. 5, 2016, file photo, Arizona rancher LaVoy Finicum, holds a rifle as he guards the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge near Burns, Ore. The stunning acquittal of seven people who occupied a federal bird refuge in Oregon as part of a Western land dispute was a rejection of the prosecutions conspiracy case, not an endorsement of the armed protest, a juror said Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)

FILE - In this Jan. 5, 2016, file photo, a member of the group occupying the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters stands guard near Burns, Ore. The stunning acquittal of seven people who occupied a federal bird refuge in Oregon as part of a Western land dispute was a rejection of the prosecutions conspiracy case, not an endorsement of the armed protest, a juror said Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)

A supporter holds out a copy of the constitution after hearing a verdict outside federal court in Portland, Ore., Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. A jury exonerated brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy and five others of conspiring to impede federal workers from their jobs at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. (AP Photo/Don Ryan)

Defendant Neil Wampler speaks as he leaves federal court in Portland, Ore., Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. A jury exonerated brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy and five others of conspiring to impede federal workers from their jobs at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. (AP Photo/Don Ryan)

Supporters celebrate after hearing a verdict outside federal court in Portland, Ore., Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. A jury exonerated brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy and five others of conspiring to impede federal workers from their jobs at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. (AP Photo/Don Ryan)

FILE - This Jan. 27, 2016, photo provided by the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office shows Ammon Bundy. The leaders of an armed group who seized a national wildlife refuge in rural Oregon were acquitted Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016 in the 41-day standoff that brought new attention to a long-running dispute over control of federal lands in the U.S. West. A jury found brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy not guilty a firearm in a federal facility and conspiring to impede federal workers from their jobs at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, 300 miles southeast of Portland where the trial took place. Five co-defendants also were tried one or both of the charges. (Multnomah County Sheriff via AP, File)
Cruz's Trump flip-flop may hurt his popularity back in Texas

SAN MARCOS, Texas (AP)  It's a refrain Ted Cruz has long used, but he's trotting it out more frequently these days  laying on the Texas charm thick for audiences in his home state, where his popularity may suddenly be on the line.

"Give me a horse, a gun and an open plain, and we can conquer the world," the Republican senator told a recent roundtable of business owners in San Marcos, one of America's fastest-growing communities, fueled by booming job markets in nearby Austin and San Antonio. "That's what our state was built on, and that's what I'm fighting for every day."

Cruz won 11 states and finished a surprising second in the GOP presidential primary, but his popularity may be slipping nationally and back in Texas after he refused to endorse Donald Trump and was booed at the Republican National Convention. Cruz did an about-face in late September and said he supported Trump, but that now looks like unfortunate political timing, coming two weeks before the release of a 2005 video in which the billionaire businessman can be heard bragging about grabbing women's genitals and kissing them without permission.

FILE - In this July 20, 2016, file photo, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Tex., addresses the delegates during the third day session of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland. Cruz won 11 states and finished a surprising second in a Republican presidential primary, but his popularity may be slipping nationally and back in Texas. Cruz was roundly criticized for refusing to endorse Donald Trump at the Republican National Convention. His recent about-face to support Trump may not have helped enough. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

The moves by Cruz angered some establishment Texas Republicans who never fully supported him while alienating parts of his tea party base that had long since embraced Trump and wondered what took Cruz so long. Also disappointed were true-believer conservatives who liked Cruz's shunning of Trump and were sorry to see him abandon it.

Cruz isn't up for re-election until 2018 but he now may face a serious challenger in Texas' Republican primary for U.S. Senate, once unthinkable for a man seen as a rising political star in his state even before he jumped into a presidential race that raised his national profile.

"I believe that he will have a challenger," said JoAnn Fleming, who was Texas tea party chairwoman for Cruz's presidential campaign.

Fleming herself remains a strong Cruz supporter but said the senator's detractors pounced on his holding out on Trump for so long before finally coming around. "I think that that gave them a little initiative and incentive to start figuring out how they were going to try and erode his support," she said.

Republican Texas Rep. Michael McCaul, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, hasn't ruled out challenging Cruz in two years. One of Congress' richest members, McCaul recently called Cruz out, saying he spent "a lot of time since day one running for president." McCaul, though, has had recent missteps, including having to apologize after mistakenly suggesting in September that the Republican National Committee's data has been hacked after that happened to the Democratic National Committee.

Fleming said Cruz remains popular with the same conservative core that helped him upset Texas' Republican establishment-backed lieutenant governor during the state's 2012 Senate primary.

"However the presidential election turns out, we know that a strong conservative has not been elected to the presidency," Fleming said. "The people of Texas are going to want to make sure that they have people representing them in Washington, D.C., that will represent Texas values."

Others saw Cruz's convention speech as selfishly positioning himself for a second presidential run in 2020 rather than supporting his party until then. And they're not sure his late Trump conversion was enough.

Mike Gibson, Republican Party chairman for Fort Bend County, outside Cruz's hometown of Houston, said he thought Cruz's convention speech was a mistake.

"I heard frustration," Gibson said. "But then I also heard people that were very supportive of him because he was sticking by his principles. The Republican Party has been very, very good at throwing themselves on the sword, literally, over principles."

Norma Brady Jeter, a vice president for the Texas Tea Party Republican Women, said opinions among grass-roots conservatives about Cruz's Trump shun and subsequent change of heart remain "very much a mixed bag," but she doesn't see Trump supporters exacting revenge in 2018.

"We worked too hard to get him there," she said of Cruz in the Senate. "A man like him doesn't come along that often."

Cruz in recent weeks has crisscrossed Texas as if he were already running for re-election  touring cotton fields, manning phone banks, encouraging voter turnout and addressing business roundtables. But he says that has more to do with helping Texas Republicans in the Nov. 8 election than his political future.

"I don't spend too much time worrying about critics. There will always be critics," he told The Associated Press. "My focus is on doing what's right for the Texans who elected me."

Long a Senate troublemaker, meanwhile, Cruz has taken steps to improve his reputation with fellow chamber Republicans, which suggests he's mending fences there ahead of a re-election run.

He has campaigned for Republican Senate hopefuls in Nevada and Colorado. He also recently teamed with fellow Texan and Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, a pillar of the powerful congressional establishment Cruz long decried, for Texas fundraisers benefiting six Republican colleagues in tight races.

Among those was New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte, an outspoken critic of Cruz after he helped spark a partial government shutdown in 2013. Underscoring the awkwardness of Cruz's charm offensive, though, was Ayotte's release of a television ad that boasted of past clashes with Cruz. It came on the same day she flew to Texas to raise funds alongside him.

"When partisan politicians led the fight to shut down the government, I led the fight to reopen it," Ayotte said in the ad.
Lost cause? North Korea nuke threat awaits next president

WASHINGTON (AP)  If North Korea has been a foreign policy headache for Barack Obama's presidency, it threatens to be a migraine for his successor. The next president will likely contend with an adversary able to strike the continental U.S. with a nuclear weapon.

Whoever wins the White House in the Nov. 8 election is expected to conduct a review of North Korea policy. It's too early to predict what that portends, but the North will grab more attention of the next president than it did for Obama, who adopted strategic patience: ramping up sanctions in a so-far fruitless effort to force the North to negotiate on denuclearization.

With surprising candor this week, National Intelligence director James Clapper said that persuading North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons is probably a "lost cause." That appeared to challenge to a key tenet of U.S. policy shared by U.S. allies and adversaries alike that agree on the goal of the denuclearization of the divided Korean Peninsula, however distant it may be.

FILE - In this May 10, 2016 file photo, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un waves at parade participants at the Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea. If North Korea has been a foreign policy headache for Barack Obamas presidency, it threatens to be a migraine for his successor. The next president will likely contend with an adversary able to strike the continental U.S. with a nuclear weapon. Whoever wins the White House in the Nov. 8 election is expected to conduct a review of North Korea policy(AP Photo/Wong Maye-E, File)

But Clapper was also channeling what many experts are thinking. Leader Kim Jong Un appears to see nuclear weapons as a guarantee of his own survival. Six-nation aid-for-disarmament talks have not convened since Obama took office in 2009, during which time the North's capabilities have leapt ahead.

"Without a shift in U.S. strategy toward North Korea, the next U.S. president will likely be sitting in the Oval Office when the regime finally acquires the ability to strike the continental United States with a nuclear weapon," said a recent Council on Foreign Relations report.

Speaking at the council in New York on Tuesday, Clapper said that North Korea has yet to test its KN-08 intercontinental ballistic missile, so it is unclear if it works, but the U.S. operates on the "worst-case" assumption that Pyongyang is potentially capable of launching a missile with a weapon on it that could reach Alaska and Hawaii.

Experts have estimated the missile, which can be moved by road, making it harder to target in a pre-emptive strike, could be operational by around 2020.

With five nuclear tests now under its belt, the North may already be able to miniaturize a warhead for use on a short-range missile, if not on an intercontinental missile. It has also launched two rockets into space, and has begun testing submarine-launched missiles. U.S. experts estimate that it now has 13 to 21 nuclear weapons, and could have as many as 100 by 2020  approaching what India likely has today.

Clapper said the best hope for the U.S. is probably to negotiate a cap on the North's nuclear capabilities. But that implies recognition of North Korea as a nuclear weapons state, which the U.S. has said it will not do.

"The dilemma for policymakers in dealing with North Korea is that if one accepts that the door to negotiation of denuclearization with North Korea is closed, the alternative set of options involves either acquiescence to a nuclear North Korea on the one hand or pressure leading to regime change on the other," said Scott Snyder, senior fellow for Korea studies at the council.

Of the U.S. presidential candidates, Democrat Hillary Clinton wants the international community to intensify sanctions as the Obama administration did with Iran, which eventually opened the way for a deal to contain its nuclear program.

Divining what Republican Donald Trump might do is tricky. He wants the U.S. to leverage its trade ties to get China to rein in its unpredictable ally. But he's also said he'd be ready to meet Kim, and suggested detaching the U.S. from the problem by allowing its allies Japan and South Korea to get nuclear weapons.

U.S. experts who held unofficial talks with North Korean officials in Malaysia last week maintain that negotiations on denuclearization are still possible.

"I think the best course would be to test the proposition by some serious engagement in which we see whether their (North Korea's) legitimate security concerns can be met," said Robert Gallucci, who negotiated a 1994 disarmament agreement that curbed North Korea's nuclear program for nearly 10 years.

He added that the concerns of neighboring South Korea and Japan  they face the most immediate threat from Pyongyang  would also have to be met.

"We don't know for sure that negotiations will work, but what I can say with some confidence is that pressure without negotiations won't work, which is the track we are on right now," said another participant, Leon Sigal from the New York-based Social Science Research Council.

But there is a deep, bipartisan skepticism in Washington about talks with Pyongyang, which has recanted on past accords and says it will never give up its nuclear weapons. It claims it needs nukes to deter an invasion by the U.S., which has 28,500 troops in South Korea.

Still, North Korea has not entirely closed the door to talks.
Deep South drought kills crops, threatens herds, dries lakes

ATLANTA (AP)  Six months into a deepening drought, the weather is killing crops, threatening cattle and sinking lakes to their lowest levels in years across much of the South.

The very worst conditions  what forecasters call "exceptional drought"  are in the mountains of northeast Alabama and northwest Georgia, a region known for its thick green forests, waterfalls and red clay soil.

"Here at my farm, April 15 was when the rain cut off," said David Bailey, who had to sell half his cattle, more than 100 animals, for lack of hay in Alabama's scorched northeast corner.

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, Alabama farmer David Bailey looks out of his truck window at his remaining cows, in Dawson, Ala. He looks at the dirt filled farm where green grass used to be ankle deep, says Bailey. Bailey had to sell off half of his cattle heard, more than 100 animals, because he doesn't have enough hay to feed them through the winter. Some of the Souths most beautiful mountains and valleys are filling with desperation as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

"We've come through some dry years in the '80s, but I never seen it this dry, this long," Bailey added. "There's a bunch of people in a lot of bad shape here."

The drought has spread from these mountains onto the Piedmont plateau, down to the plains and across 13 southern states, from Oklahoma and Texas to Florida and Virginia, putting about 33 million people in drought conditions, according to Thursday's U.S. Drought Monitor.

In Mississippi, a man died when his farm field burned out of control, authorities said Friday. In Alabama, blazes have charred more than 12,000 acres in the past 30 days.

"There are places getting ready to set records for most numbers of days in a row without rain. It's a once-in-100-year kind of thing for this time of year," said John Christy, Alabama's state climatologist.

The South has historically enjoyed abundant water, which has been fortunate, because much of its soil is poor at holding onto it. But the region's booming growth has strained this resource. A legal battle between Georgia and Florida over water from rivers and their watersheds goes before a federal court official Monday, and the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to review his recommendations.

The dry weather is only making things worse.

"We're 10 days away from a drought at any given time," Christy explained. "Unlike the Midwest and other places in the country, we are closer to a drought than almost any place else."

Parts of northern Georgia and Alabama have now seen their driest 60 days on record, Thursday's national drought report showed.

If the drought persists, authorities said it could lead to the kinds of water use restrictions that are common out West, but haven't been seen in parts of the South in nearly a decade.

During a major drought in Georgia in 2007, police in Atlanta's suburb of Alpharetta were given the power to criminally cite anyone watering their lawns. In Alabama that year, people were fined for watering on the wrong day and many homes became infested by thirsty ants and cockroaches.

At the height of the 2007 drought, then-Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue prayed for rain with hundreds of residents at the state Capitol. The Georgia Department of Agriculture is reviving the practice: It has announced plans for a Monday "Pray for Rain" gathering with the state agriculture commissioner and Republican U.S. Rep. Doug Collins in the northeast Georgia town of Lavonia.

In west Georgia this month, the Tallapoosa River dropped below the intake the Haralson County Water Authority uses to provide water to at least four small towns. Some major cities are spending big to prevent future water shortages: Atlanta has begun a $300 million project to store 2.4 billion gallons of water  a month's water supply  and pipe it under the city.

This summer was particularly hot as well as dry, with 90-degree temperatures day after day that evaporated what little moisture the soil had left, said Bill Murphey, Georgia's state climatologist.

This summer was the second-hottest on record in Atlanta, where seasonal rains still haven't arrived: During the past 30 days, just over two-tenths of an inch of rain has fallen in Atlanta, 94 percent below normal, and in Cartersville, about 45 miles northwest of Atlanta, the weather service has recorded no rain at all.

The South's usually temperate forests have turned into tinderboxes, worries Denise Croker, a chief ranger with the Georgia Forestry Commission in northwest Georgia.

In the arid western U.S., cigarettes tossed from cars have been known to start forest fires. In the South, higher humidity generally keeps that from happening, but not this year. Even a spark from a chain dragged from a truck could set the northwest Georgia woods on fire, she said.

"Our dirt is like talcum powder," she said.

A man died Thursday in drought-plagued Montgomery County, Mississippi, the state Forestry Commission said. It appeared he was burning an agricultural field despite an outdoor burn ban when the fire roared out of control and overtook him.

Outdoor burning has been banned due to fire risk across parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, and burn permits aren't being issued in parts of Georgia.

"This is the worst drought that I've ever experienced and I've been farming for 45 years," said Phillip Thompson, 60, who spent Tuesday night trying to snuff out a smoldering, 150-acre brush fire near Scottsboro, Alabama, where he farms corn and soybeans. "It's just a bleak situation."

Some of the South's best known crops  cotton, peaches, peanuts and sweet potatoes  have largely escaped damage, because they're mostly produced outside the worst drought areas, and in some cases got rain from Hurricane Matthew and other tropical weather, trade groups said.

Peanut yields will be down due to heat, drought or hurricanes, but that won't likely affect consumer prices, said Dan Koehler, who directs the Georgia Peanut Commission.

As for sweet potatoes, the drought has been both good and bad: Hard ground can damage skin and lead to rot in stored tubers, but they also start curing in the ground when it's really dry, which means "they're really sweet," said Sylvia Clark, secretary of the Mississippi Sweet Potato Association.

___

Associated Press writers Jay Reeves in Brookside, Alabama; and Bill Fuller in New Orleans contributed to this report.

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, a floating swim line rests on the sand as Lake Lanier water levels stand about eight feet below normal as U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Natural Resources Manager Nick Baggett stands on the shore in Buford, Ga. Some of the South's most beautiful mountains and valleys this fall are filled with desperation, as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, a sunken boat is exposed by receding water levels on Lake Lanier as U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Natural Resources Manager Nick Baggett looks on in Flowery Branch, Ga. Some of the South's most beautiful mountains and valleys this fall are filled with desperation, as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, a sunken boat is exposed by the receding water levels on Lake Lanier as U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Natural Resources Manager Nick Baggett looks on in Flowery Branch, Ga Some of the South's most beautiful mountains and valleys this fall are filled with desperation, as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, a floating swim line lays on the shore as Lake Lanier water levels stand about eight feet below normal as U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Natural Resources Manager Nick Baggett casts a shadow in Buford, Ga. Some of the South's most beautiful mountains and valleys this fall are filled with desperation, as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, a boat ramp runs onto the dried up lake shore of Lake Lanier as U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Natural Resources Manager Nick Baggett walks by in Flowery Branch, Ga. Some of the South's most beautiful mountains and valleys this fall are filled with desperation, as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, a floating swim line lays on the shore as Lake Lanier water levels stand about eight feet below normal in Buford, Ga. Some of the South's most beautiful mountains and valleys this fall are filled with desperation, as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, buoys warning boaters of underwater hazards sit exposed as Lake Lanier water levels recede about eight feet below normal in Buford, Ga. Some of the South's most beautiful mountains and valleys this fall are filled with desperation, as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, a floating dock sits on the shore as Lake Lanier water levels recede about eight feet below normal in Buford, Ga. Some of the South's most beautiful mountains and valleys this fall are filled with desperation, as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Natural Resources Manager Nick Baggett fixes a sign posted at a closed off boat ramp where the Lake Lanier shoreline has receded in Flowery Branch, Ga. Some of the South's most beautiful mountains and valleys this fall are filled with desperation, as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, farmer Michael Womack shows smaller than usual soybeans harvested this year due to drought conditions in Tallapoosa, Ga. Womack estimates a normal harvest brings in 45 bushels per acre compared with 14 this year. Some of the South's most beautiful mountains and valleys this fall are filled with desperation, as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, farmer Michael Womack meets with his insurance adjuster after his corn and soybean harvests were affected by drought conditions in Tallapoosa, Ga. Womack estimates his corn production was cut in half because of the drought. Some of the South's most beautiful mountains and valleys this fall are filled with desperation, as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

Brad Lang, a firefighter with the Alabama Forestry Commission, sets a backfire to help extinguish a wildfire near Brookside, Ala., on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. Wildfires have burned hundreds of acres a day in the South as a drought worsens across much of the region. (AP Photo/Jay Reeves)

Alabama Forestry Commission firefighters Jim Junkin, left, and Brad Lang talk about strategies for fighting a wildfire near Brookside, Ala., on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. Wildfires are burning hundreds of acres of land daily across the South amid a drought. (AP Photo/Jay Reeves)

File - In this Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2016, file photo, a couple walks near Lake Purdy where water levels have dropped several feet due to a sever drought, in Birmingham, Ala. Hotter than normal temperatures combined with the below normal rainfall have worsened drought conditions across Alabama. The very worst drought conditions are in the mountains of northern Alabama and Georgia. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

File - In this Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2016, file photo, a thin line of water is visible in the distance of Lake Purdy as the water level have dropped several feet due to a sever drought, in Birmingham, Ala. Hotter than normal temperatures combined with the below normal rainfall have worsened drought conditions across Alabama. The very worst conditions are in the mountains of northern Alabama and Georgia. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, one of the remaining cows on Alabama farmer David Bailey's farm, walks towards a pile of hay to be fed, surrounded by dirt where ankle deep green grass use to be, according to Bailey, in Dawson, Ala. Some of the Souths most beautiful mountains and valleys are filling with desperation as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, an abandoned boat sits in the remains of a dried out pond in Dawson, Ala. Some of the Souths most beautiful mountains and valleys are filling with desperation as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. The very worst conditions are in the mountains of northern Alabama and Georgia. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

In this Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 photo, cattle surrounded by dirt and dead grass can be seen following a tractor to be feed with hay on David Bailey's farm, in Dawson, Ala. "Here at my farm, April 15 was when the rain cut off," said Bailey, "We've come through some dry years in the early '80s, but I never seen it this dry, this long." Some of the Souths most beautiful mountains and valleys are filling with desperation as a worsening drought kills crops, threatens cattle and sinks lakes to their lowest levels in years. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

File - In this Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2016, file photo, Lake Purdy which has receded several feet due to drought, leaves dry, cracked ground where lake water should use to be, in Birmingham, Ala. Hotter than normal temperatures combined with the below normal rainfall have worsened drought conditions across Alabama. The very worst conditions are in the mountains of northern Alabama and Georgia. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

File - In this Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2016, file photo, a couple walks near Lake Purdy where water levels have dropped several feet due to a sever drought, in Birmingham, Ala. Hotter than normal temperatures combined with the below normal rainfall have worsened drought conditions across Alabama. The very worst drought conditions are in the mountains of northern Alabama and Georgia. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

File - In this Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2016, file photo, a thin line of water is visible in the distance of Lake Purdy as the water level have dropped several feet due to a sever drought, in Birmingham, Ala. Hotter than normal temperatures combined with the below normal rainfall have worsened drought conditions across Alabama. The very worst conditions are in the mountains of northern Alabama and Georgia. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

File - In this Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2016, file photo, a deer walks towards a receded Lake Purdy where water levels have dropped several feet due to a sever drought, in Birmingham, Ala. Hotter than normal temperatures combined with the below normal rainfall have worsened drought conditions across Alabama The very worst conditions are in the mountains of northern Alabama and Georgia. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)
Memo describes Bill Clinton's business ventures, fundraising

WASHINGTON (AP)  A 2011 confidential memo written by a longtime Bill Clinton aide during Hillary Clinton's State Department tenure describes overlap between the former president's business ventures and fundraising for the family's charities. The former aide also described free travel and vacations arranged for the Clintons by corporations, reinforcing ethics concerns about the Democratic presidential nominee.

The 13-page memo, by Doug Band, was included in hacked emails from the private account of Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta that were released by WikiLeaks. Band, describing the former president's management of "Bill Clinton Inc.," laid out the "unorthodox nature" of how he and other aides navigated between Bill Clinton's dual interests in seeking out speaking and consulting ventures around the world while he raised funds for the Clinton Foundation.

In the November 2011 memo, Band described "more than $50 million in for-profit activity we have personally helped to secure for President Clinton to date."

FILE - In this Oct. 14, 2016, file photo, former President Bill Clinton campaigns for his wife, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, at Washington Park in Cincinnati. A 2011 confidential memo written by a longtime Bill Clinton aide during Hillary Clinton's State Department tenure describes overlap between the former president's business ventures and fundraising for the family's charities. The former aide also described free travel and vacations arranged for the Clintons by corporations, reinforcing ethics concerns about the Democratic presidential nominee. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)

The Clinton Foundation has been among the biggest vulnerabilities in Hillary Clinton's campaign for the White House. Clinton calendars and emails released by the State Department showed ongoing coordination among Clinton's top aides and Bill Clinton's top aides at the foundation and his private office. Her critics have accused her of providing favors to foundation donors, though there has been no evidence of this. She frequently met privately with people who had ties to the foundation.

Band wrote the memo to lawyers hired by the Clinton Foundation to audit the organization's structure and operations. It did not specifically cite ethics concerns, and in a new statement Thursday Band told The Associated Press that his firm, Teneo, "never received any financial benefit or benefit of any kind" for its work for the Clinton Foundation. Band did not elaborate about what gifts Bill Clinton obtained from his speech and consulting clients.

Hillary Clinton met with or spoke to representatives of at least 15 companies and organizations that paid her husband for speaking engagements during her tenure as secretary of state, according to a review of her planning schedules from the State Department.

Meanwhile, in hacked emails published Thursday:

 Months after Hillary Clinton acknowledged she had used a private email server for work messages, a longtime confidante of Podesta lashed out: "Do we actually know who told Hillary she could use a private email? And has that person been drawn and quartered?" asked Neera Tanden, president of the pro-Clinton think tank, the Center for American Progress. Top State Department officials have said no one in the agency provided such permission and they did not become aware until as late as 2014 that she had used a private server to conduct all her government business.

Band's memo described how he and Justin Cooper, another long-time Bill Clinton aide, helped the former president and his family obtain gifts of "personal travel, hospitality, vacation" and air travel arrangements. Financial records Hillary Clinton filed between 2009 and 2013 listed speeches and limited business income that Bill Clinton earned during her government service but did not list any travel, vacation or other gifts that Band cited in his memo.

Under federal disclosure rules overseen by the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, federal officials and office seekers are not required to list gifts provided to a spouse if the gifts are "independent of their relationship to you."

Norman Eisen, a Democrat who oversaw ethics matters for the Obama administration and in 2011 was also appointed ambassador to the Czech Republic under Hillary Clinton, said OGE rules did not require Hillary Clinton to divulge any gifts provided to Bill Clinton by his business clients.

"There's no there there," Eisen said, adding that he is disturbed that "ethics become weaponized in the course of an election campaign."

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has touted the WikiLeaks releases of Podesta's emails, while the Clinton campaign has repeatedly warned that the releases have exploited emails stolen by hackers working for the Russian government.

"Mr. Band called the arrangement 'unorthodox.' The rest of us call it outright corruption," Trump said Thursday.

The Clinton campaign did not immediately respond to questions from the AP about the Band memo. It said in a statement, "The Clintons are extremely proud of the work of the foundation that has helped millions of people around the world."

Richard Painter, the top ethics official during the administration of President George W. Bush, said he was concerned with Bill Clinton's use of aides who dealt with his private business clients as well as Clinton Foundation donors. In cases Band outlined in the memo, Clinton's speech clients ended up as donors to his family's charity.

"The two should not be conflated because the Clinton Foundation cannot be used for the personal enrichment of anybody including the former president," Painter said.

At the time he wrote the memo, Band had co-founded Teneo Holdings, a New York-based global consulting firm, and was defending his work for his own firm even as he continued working for Bill Clinton and the foundation. Like the former president, other foundation officials also worked both for the charity and Bill Clinton's private office.

Critics have raised concerns about the multiple roles of Clinton aides.

Hillary Clinton's top aides at the State Department  among them her chief of staff, Cheryl Mills, and long-time aide Huma Abedin  at times held multiple roles, according to congressional investigators and the State Department. Abedin worked for the foundation, Teneo and Hillary Clinton after stepping down from her full-time job at the State Department. Mills received permission in early 2009 to work as a "special government employee" for the State Department while she also held a position with the Clinton Foundation. Tech specialist Bryan Pagliano performed private tasks overseeing Hillary Clinton's private computer server at the same time he worked for the State Department.

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Brick workers enslaved for life as Afghan warlords profit

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP)  Every day that Dil Agha works at his backbreaking job at a brick kiln on the outskirts of Afghanistan's capital Kabul, from before sunrise to well after sunset, he digs himself deeper into debt.

He knows he will never be able to pay back what he owes to the kiln owner who lent him a few thousand dollars for a family emergency, and that when he dies, his children will inherit the burden that will ensure his family remains enslaved for generations.

He is one of hundreds of people that the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission calls the "slaves of the 21st century." They toil as indentured laborers at brick kilns that make millions of dollars a year for their owners. The law is powerless to help them and a government official says many in the government are too fearful to speak out.

In this Oct. 4, 2016, photo, an Afghan laborer works at a brick factory in Deh Sabz, on the outskirts of Afghanistans capital, Kabul. Each month, the Deh Sabz districts 350 kilns produce an average of 700,000 bricks, which in a six-month season totals 4.2 million each. Thats 245 million bricks from just one district of Kabul, all made by indentured laborers, some of them children as young as 4 or 5 years old. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

Rafiullah Baidar, the spokesman for the AIHRC said families like Dil Agha's have been stripped of their human rights  to education, health care, and decent working conditions, to name only a few.

"All those people working in the brick kilns are the slaves of the 21st Century," he said. "They are like prisoners; this horrible situation is a complete violation of their human rights."

For the past 15 years, Afghanistan has been the recipient of billions of dollars in aid, most from the United States, to fight an insurgency and rebuild the country after decades of conflict. The country's leaders were in Brussels this month to secure pledges of another $15 billion through to 2020. And yet the economy is not growing, the war is suspended in stalemate, and corruption is rampant.

For people like Dil Agha  who is 23 years old with a wife and three children  the government appears incapable of creating jobs to help them build normal lives.

Afghanistan is one of the poorest countries in the world, with a huge wealth divide: at the top are billionaires, at the very bottom are people like those working at the kiln in the Deh Sabz district, on Kabul's eastern outskirts.

Here, most of the workers are from poor villages in the eastern province of Nangarhar. The kiln boss, also from Nangarhar, lent them money after visiting the village and offering financial help to anyone who needed it.

People working here say the kiln boss then offered them jobs during the warm-weather months, April to October, to repay their loans. The pay depends on productivity but workers say it ranges from 1000-1500 afghanis ($15-$23) per day.

Before they return to their villages for the winter, the manager usually lends them more money so they can buy enough food and fuel to survive the winter months. By the time they return to the kiln for the spring, they owe the manager here, Hashmat Ali, even more money. And so the cycle continues.

Ali is unmoved. "This is how it works," he said. "If something happens to a family or the father dies, his children have to work and pay the debt."

How it works in reality is much more complex: the land on which many of Kabul's 442 brick factories operate is owned by oligarchs and former warlords who operate above the law, said a government official who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.

"All brick kilns in Kabul belong to powerful people and warlords," he said. "First they give loans to very poor people and then make them work as brick-makers and use them as their slaves."

Each month, the Deh Sabz district's 350 kilns produce an average of 700,000 bricks, which in a six-month season totals 4.2 million each. That's 245 million bricks from just one district of Kabul, all made by indentured laborers, some of them children as young as 4 or 5 years old.

Ali said the bricks are sold to construction projects across the country, at 500 afghanis (about $7.5) per thousand raw or 3,200 (about $48) afghanis per thousand baked. This means huge profits for the landowning warlords.

Dil Agha and his family are among hundreds of families who live in these unimaginably harsh conditions, a constant downward spiral of misery and debt they can never escape.

"Until we can find a fundamental solution for their financial problems, create job opportunities according to the laws of the country, find ways to free them from dependency on those money lenders, we won't be able to solve their problems," Baidar said.

Far from helping the kiln workers, the government has little idea how many people are involved either in Kabul or across the country. Hashmat Ali and others like him appear to be operating with impunity in a legal no-man's land.

The National Environment Protection Agency seems to be the only regulatory body that has moved on the kilns  and then only "to protect the environment," according to the agency's head of monitoring and evaluation, Nek Mohammad.

"We managed to move them outside the city to protect the environment, but still that area is not suitable as they create so much pollution, harming the air and environment," he said.

For Dil Agha, the quality of the air he breathes is the least of his concerns. He and his brothers borrowed 650,000 Pakistani rupees, the equivalent of about $6,100, four years ago to pay for medical treatment for their grandmother, who suffered kidney problems, and a sister who had broken her leg. Since then, they have so far only managed to pay back $1,500.

"My little son has no future. When he grows up he will have to make bricks to help pay off my debt," Dil Agha said. "If I wasn't in debt, I could send him to school to get educated so he could have a good future, help himself and us as well."

"But now his future is making bricks, so his future is ruined."

Working nearby in the late afternoon sun is Alifa, who is 65 but much looks older after many years at a Deh Sabz kiln. She is here to help her 70-year-old husband Gul Asgher and 28-year-old son Anwarullah pay off a 70,000 afghani (about $1,000) loan. She has seven other children and 12 grandchildren, she said.

"We don't have anything. We have so many problems living here in this mud and dust," she said, as she measured off a quantity of mud, rolled it in dust and piled it up for the others to press in the oblong brick molds.

"If we're lucky one day we will go back to our village. Otherwise, I'll die here and hope someone takes my body home."

In this Oct. 3, 2016 photo, laborers work at a brick factory in Deh Sabz on the outskirts of Afghanistans capital, Kabul. Each month, Deh Sabz the districts 350 kilns produce an average of 700,000 bricks, which in a six-month season totals 4.2 million each. Thats 245 million bricks from just one district of Kabul, all made by indentured laborers, some of them children as young as 4 or 5 years old. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

In this Oct. 3, 2016 photo, an Afghan boy works at a brick factory in Deh Sabz, on the outskirts of Afghanistans capital, Kabul. Afghanistan is one of the poorest countries in the world, with a huge wealth divide: At the top are billionaires, at the very bottom are people like those working at the kiln in the Deh Sabz district. Each month, the Deh Sabz districts 350 kilns produce an average of 700,000 bricks, all made by indentured laborers, some of them children as young as 4 or 5 years old. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

In this Oct. 3, 2016 photo, Anwarullah, 28, works at a brick factory in Deh Sabz, on the outskirts of Afghanistans capital, Kabul. Anwarullah and his parents work making bricks to pay off a 70,000 afghani (about $1,000) loan. Afghanistan is one of the poorest countries in the world, with a huge wealth divide: At the top are billionaires, at the very bottom are people like those working at the kiln in the Deh Sabz district. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

In this Oct. 3, 2016 photo, Afghan girls work in a brick factory in Deh Sabz, on the outskirts of Afghanistans capital, Kabul. Each month, the Deh Sabz districts 350 kilns produce an average of 700,000 bricks, which in a six-month season totals 4.2 million each. Thats 245 million bricks from just one district of Kabul, all made by indentured laborers, some of them children as young as 4 or 5 years old. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

In this Oct. 4, 2016, photo, Dil Agha, 23, eats breakfast with his children at his home in Deh Sabz, on the outskirts of Afghanistans capital, Kabul, Afghanistan. Every day that Agha works at his backbreaking job at a brick kiln, from before sunrise to well after sunset, he digs himself deeper into debt. He knows he will never be able to pay back what he owes to the kiln owner who lent him a few thousand dollars for a family emergency, and that when he dies, his children will inherit the burden that will ensure his family remains enslaved for generations. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

In this Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2016, photo, Afghan laborers work at a brick factory in Deh Sabz, on the outskirts of Afghanistans capital, Kabul. Afghanistan is one of the poorest countries in the world, with a huge wealth divide: At the top are billionaires, at the very bottom are people like those working at the kiln in the Deh Sabz district. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

In this Oct. 3, 2016 photo, Alifa works in the late afternoon sun at a brick factory, in Deh Sabz, on the outskirts of Afghanistans capital, Kabul. Alifa works to help her 70-year-old husband Gul Asgher and 28-year-old son Anwarullah pay off a 70,000 afghani (about $1,000) loan. She has seven other children and 12 grandchildren, she said. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

In this Oct. 3, 2016 photo, Afghan children, play at a brick factory in Deh Sabz, on the outskirts of Afghanistans capital, Kabul. Each month, the Deh Sabz districts 350 kilns produce an average of 700,000 bricks, which in a six-month season totals 4.2 million each. Thats 245 million bricks from just one district of Kabul, all made by indentured laborers, some of them children as young as 4 or 5 years old. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
The track featured on Clapton's 2013 Unplugged album, prompting the $5 million lawsuit

The heirs of a Mississippi blues musician have filed a lawsuit against rock guitarist Eric Clapton, claiming he gave a songwriting credit to the wrong artist.

A $5 million lawsuit filed in Nashville federal court says while Eric Clapton attributed the song Alberta to Huddie Ledbetter - better known as Lead Belly - in the 2013 re-release of Clapton's Unplugged album, the credit should have gone to Bo Carter.

Miles Floyd, Carter's step-grandson, believes Clapton's song is actually a cover of a track called Corrine, Corrina.

The song was was first licensed in 1929, and over time became interchangeable with Alberta, he claims.

Folk and blues singer Lead Belly died in 1949 at the age of 60 in New York.

Floyd's lawyer, Barry Shrum, told The Tennessean: 'This is a situation where you have the estate, the rightful owners of Bo's intellectual property, just trying to get what's rightfully theirs and get credit where credit is due.

'Bo created this song and started, in essence, a genre in music and influenced many performers in the future, and he deserves that credit.'

The lawsuit claims the song was written by Bo Carter (left), but wrongly attributed to blues and folk musician Lead Belly

Carter sometimes performed alongside his brothers as a group called the Mississippi Sheiks, who were considered one of the most prominent African-American string bands of the 1930s.

The Sheiks covered the song using Alberta, Alberta instead of Corrine, Corrina and called it Alberta Blues, the lawsuit alleges.

Versions of the song have also been sung by Dean Martin, Jerry Lee Lewis, Willie Nelson and others.

Performing as Lead Belly, Ledbetter recorded a song called Alberta in 1940, but that song was not musically similar to the original Corrine, Corrina, the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit includes Clapton and Warner Music Group Corp as defendants. The defendants have yet to respond to the lawsuit.

Carter, whose real name was Armenter Chatmon, died in Memphis in 1964.
Amy Yang eagles par 4, stretches LPGA lead to 3 in Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP)  Amy Yang holed a pitching wedge for eagle on the par-4 11th hole and stretched her lead to three strokes Friday in the hot, humid and stormy Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia.

The 27-year-old South Korean player had a 2-under 69 at TPC Kuala Lumpur, a day after shooting 63 to miss her own course record by a stroke. She parred the first 10, then hit the approach that landed on the front of the green, hopped and rolled in.

"It was about 125 yards, like helping downwind," Yang said. "I hit my pitching wedge, just full pitching wedge to the pin, and it came off really solid off the face."

Amy Yang of South Korea follows her shot on the third hole during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Anna Nordqvist, Mi Jung Hur and Candie Kung were tied for second after the round that was delayed about two hours because of lightning  accompanied by periods of heavy rain  with the last group in the 16th fairway.

Nordqvist had a 68 , and Hur and Kung each shot 65 to match the best rounds of the day. Kung chipped in for birdie on the par-4 18th.

They're playing TPC Kuala Lumpur's East Course, a week after Justin Thomas successfully defended his title on the West Course in the PGA Tour's CIMB Classic.

"There were some tough pin placements out there, a lot tougher than yesterday," Kung said. "Yesterday, I didn't make any putts at all. But today, luckily, they all went in."

Yang made her first bogey of the week after hitting into the water on the par-4 14th.

"Golf can be really easy like yesterday, but it can be also a little slow like today," Yang said. "I'm just going to be patient, do my best."

She returned from the delay  and lunch  to hole a 20-footer for birdie on the par-5 16th.

"I was getting a little frustrated about not making putts and I was getting hungry, so I went back, ate lunch," Yang said. "It actually gave me some time to think about what was going on and think about the next three, how to finish, so it helped."

Both of her LPGA Tour victories have come in Asia, the first in 2013 in South Korea and the second last year in Thailand. She has five top three-finishes this season.

Michelle Wie hung around, while Lydia Ko and Brooke Henderson staggered in.

Wie followed her opening 66 with a 70 to drop four strokes behind. Winless in 57 tournaments since the 2014 U.S. Women's Open, she's coming off a season-best 10th-place tie last week in China. Ha Na Jang (67), Azahara Munoz (70), Jenny Shin (70) and 2014 winner Shanshan Feng (70) joined Wie at 6 under.

The top-ranked Ko closed bogey-double bogey for a 71, leaving her eight strokes back in her first tournament since firing caddie Jason Hamilton. She finished on No. 9 before the storm hit.

"Obviously, that's not that great to end with a bogey and double on the last two holes," Ko said. "But overall, I think I played more solid today compared to yesterday."

Malaysia's Sargunan Suntharaj is carrying the 19-year-old New Zealander's clubs.

"It's been going good," Ko said. "He's got a lot of experience. We've been having a lot of fun out there and he's been trying to keep me cool out here in the heat, which is a pretty big role."

Hamilton shifted to Jang, the Taiwan winner three weeks ago for her third victory of the year.

Henderson had an even worse finish than Ko, making a triple bogey on the par-3 17th and a double bogey on the 18th for a 79  matching her worst tour round as a professional.

Playing for the fifth straight week in Asia, the 19-year-old Canadian was 7 over. She's skipping the Asia finale next week in Japan, then will finish the season the following two weeks in Mexico and Florida.

Nordqvist was on the 18th green when play was suspended, forcing the Swede, Brittany Lincicome and Karine Icher to wait.

"Disappointed that we couldn't finish," Nordqvist said. "Brittany was about to tap-in her foot-and-a-halfer and I was going to putt my 50-footer at the last. A little disappointed that we had to stick around, but, overall, it's a pretty solid day."

Second-ranked Ariya Jutanugarn was 1 over after a birdie-free 75. She has a tour-high five victories  one more than Ko  and leads the money list and the Race to CME Globe and player of the year standings.

Stacy Lewis failed to make a birdie in a 72 to drop to even par in her first event since mid-September.

Defending champion Jessica Korda was 3 under after a 68. She was second Sunday in China, a stroke behind Minjee Lee.

Amy Yang of South Korea plays out of a bunker on the 11th hole during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Michelle Wie of the United States follows her shot on the third hole during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club (TPC) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Michelle Wie of the United States putts on the sixth green during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club (TPC) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Michelle Wie of the United States lines up her putt on the sixth green during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Jenny Shin of South Korea follows her shot on the 11th hole during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Anna Nordqvist of Sweden putts on the seventh green during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Azahara Munoz of Spain follows her shot on the 11th hole during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Michelle Wie, center right, of the United States walks in the rain during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club (TPC) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. Round two has been suspended due to weather conditions. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Jenny Shin of South Korea plays on the 11th hole during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Candie Kung of Taiwan prepares to tee off on the 14th hole during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Lydia Ko of New Zealand acknowledges the crowd after putting on the eleventh green during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club (TPC) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Shanshan Feng of China follows her shot on the 11th hole during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Danielle Kang, right, of the United States and Shanshan Feng of China approach the 11th green during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Danielle Kang of the United States follows her shot on the 11th hole during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)

Jenny Shin of South Korea checks her line on the 11th green during the second round of the LPGA golf tournament at Tournament Players Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul)
Police shoot man wanted for questioning in woman's slaying

MIAMI (AP)  Police have shot and wounded a man wanted for questioning in the killing of a South Florida woman.

Local news outlets report that 65-year-old Vicki Feeley died after she was attacked during a robbery outside her Kendall home Saturday. Investigators confirmed Thursday that she was run over by a vehicle.

Police say officers spotted what they believed to be the vehicle involved in the crime in a Florida City trailer park on Wednesday.
The Latest: EU foreign policy chief in Iran for Syria talks

BEIRUT (AP)  The Latest on the conflict in Syria (all times local):

10:55 p.m.

An Iranian news agency says EU's foreign policy chief has arrived in Tehran for talks on the conflict in Syria.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, right, welcomes his Syrian counterpart Walid al-Moallem during their meeting in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev)

The semi-official ISNA news agency says Federica Mogherini will meet President Hassan Rouhani and the country's foreign minister, Javad Zarif, the following day.

The report says Mogherini will leave for Saudi Arabia on Saturday afternoon. The Sunni kingdom and the Shiite power Iran support opposite sides in the civil war in Syria, now in its sixth year. Iran is one of the staunchest backers of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Mogherini earlier on Friday held talks in Cyprus with Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides on the battle in Iraq to retake the city of Mosul from the Islamic State group.

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9:30 p.m.

Turkey's prime minister says the country will not participate in the United States' operation to kick the Islamic State group out of their capital Raqqa if Syrian Kurdish fighters are included.

Binali Yildirim said Friday Turkey would participate in the fight, "However, if groups we classify as terrorist organizations like the PYD and YPG are included in the operation, we will not be there."

The U.S. considers the Democratic Union Party, or PYD, and its armed wing, the People's Protection Units, or YPG, as the most effective ground force in the fight against IS and has said they will be part of the offensive.

But Ankara views them as an extension of its own outlawed Kurdish group which has fought an insurgency against the state for decades.

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8 p.m.

Russia says its embassy in Damascus has been shelled by militants holed up on the outskirts of the Syrian capital, but no one has been hurt.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said one of the mortar rounds landed Friday near the embassy's main entrance and another exploded outside its fence. It said the building was damaged and four vehicles were also hit.

The ministry said the perpetrators of the attack will be tracked down and punished.

It added that Moscow will carefully monitor the international reaction to the shelling to see "who of our partners denounces terrorism, and who protects ... terrorists and points (out) 'convenient' targets to them."

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7:25 p.m.

Russian president's spokesman says Vladimir Putin has rejected the military's request for the resumption of airstrikes in Syria on the rebel-held eastern part of the city of Aleppo.

Dmitry Peskov says the president turned down the Russian military's request on Friday amid a new rebel offensive underway in the contested Syrian city.

Peskov says that Putin considers it "inadvisable to resume airstrikes on Aleppo," and wants to have humanitarian corridors out of Aleppo's rebel-held districts stay open both for rebels and civilians to leave the city.

Peskov noted that the "humanitarian pause" will give Washington time to honor its pledge to separate moderate rebels from al-Qaida linked militants in eastern Aleppo. He added, however, that Russia retains the right to offer all possible support to the Syrian army.

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6:30 p.m.

The Russian military says it has asked President Vladimir Putin to allow the resumption of airstrikes in Syria on the rebel-held eastern part of the city of Aleppo due to a fresh rebel offensive there.

Lt. Gen. Sergei Rudskoi said the opposition fighters attempted on Friday to break the siege of the eastern, rebel-held part of Aleppo, using rocket launchers, artillery and armor. He says all attacks have been repelled, but have caused numerous casualties among civilians.

He says the attackers took advantage of a 10-day moratorium on military flights over Aleppo, which was announced by Moscow.

Rudskoi said 43 civilians have been killed and 96 wounded in the militant shelling of the government-controlled western Aleppo in the past three days. He particularly noted the shelling of two schools.

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3:30 p.m.

Syrian state media say pro-government forces have repelled a rebel attack in Aleppo as well as a militant attack by the extremist Islamic State group near the contested city.

The SANA news agency reported that the military and allied militias on Friday thwarted assaults on several front lines around the government-controlled western districts of the city, while also repelling a separate IS assault on an Air Force academy to the city's east.

The rebels have launched a large-scale offensive to break the government's siege of Aleppo's opposition-held, eastern districts with three explosive-laden vehicles and dozens of rockets targeting government-controlled western districts.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights is reporting that 15 civilians have been killed in the rebel bombardment, and over 100 wounded.

The Observatory says clashes are ongoing around the city.

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3:10 p.m.

After a three-way meeting in Moscow, the foreign ministers of Russia, Syria and Iran say their countries have agreed to intensify the fight against terrorism in Syria.

Russia's Sergey Lavrov made the statement on Friday after meeting with Syrian counterpart Walid al-Moallem and Iran's Javad Zarif.

Lavrov said at a news conference that the fight would come in parallel with efforts to improve humanitarian aid.

He also reiterated Russian denials that its warplanes were responsible for an attack on a school in Idlib province that the U.N. children's agency says killed 22 children and six teachers.

The Russian military on Thursday dismissed reports of the airstrike as a sham, citing images in the media showing desks standing intact next to a wall blown out allegedly by that very airstrike, while such an attack would have caused more extensive damage.

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2:45 p.m.

Syria's foreign minister says government forces could agree to another cessation of fighting around the city of Aleppo, but only if it receives guarantees from rebel forces that civilians would be allowed to leave the city.

At a news conference with his Russian counterpart in Moscow, Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said Friday that the recent so-called "humanitarian pause" in the Aleppo fighting was ruined by fighters whom he called terrorists firing on the evacuation corridors.

"We are ready to again repeat this attempt after we receive guarantees that confirm that the countries supporting these terrorist organizations are prepared to act so that civilians could use the cease-fire," he said.

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2:30 p.m.

Syrian state media says seven civilians have been killed by rebel shelling on government-controlled areas of Aleppo.

The SANA news agency reported that 70 others were injured in the contested city Friday.

Rebels launched a large-scale offensive to break the government's siege of Aleppo's opposition-held, eastern districts with three explosive-laden vehicles and dozens of rockets to target the government-controlled western districts.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights is reporting that 15 civilians have been killed in the rebel bombardment, and over 100 injured.

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2 p.m.

An official with al-Qaida's branch in Syria says a French member of the group carried out a suicide attack in the northern city of Aleppo against government positions.

The Fatah al-Sham Front official said the French citizen drove a tank rigged with explosives and parked it near government positions then detonated it from a distance. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to brief the media, said the Frenchman then drove another tank into the same place and detonated himself. He did not reveal the identity of the Frenchman.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed that a Frenchman carried out a suicide attack.

The attack comes as part of a large-scale rebel offensive to break the government's siege of opposition-held areas.

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11:15 a.m.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is hosting the foreign ministers of Syria and Iran in Moscow as the Syrian army's siege of the rebel-held districts of the city of Aleppo continues.

Lavrov said in televised remarks on Friday at the start of the talks that Russia will keep supporting the Syrian government while the West is considering news sanctions to put pressure on both countries to halt an offense against rebel-held parts of Aleppo, which had drawn international outrage.

Lavrov will talk with with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem and Iran's Mohammad Javad Zarif separately before the three of them sit down for three-way talks later Friday. Iran is another key backer of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

___

10:45 a.m.

Syrian rebel groups say they have launched a large-scale offensive to break the government's siege of eastern Aleppo, a contested city in the north of the country and the current focal point of the six-year war.

The Islamic Front rebel coalition announced on Twitter Friday morning that the ultraconservative Ahrar al-Sham group targeted a military airport to the east of the city with Grad rockets and destroyed a government position to the west of the city.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said rebels detonated two car bombs against government positions to the city's southwest and attacked with more than 150 rockets.

Ammar Sakkar, the military spokesman for the Fastaqim faction inside the city said "all the revolutionary factions, without exception, are participating in the battle."

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif smiles during his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, left, in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev)

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, right, welcomes his Syrian counterpart Walid al-Moallem during their meeting in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev)
Chinese official: anti-graft drive not politically motivated

BEIJING (AP)  China's nearly 4-year-old campaign against corruption is not politically biased and only seeks to defend the interests of the country's 1.3 billion people, a leading Communist Party anti-graft official said Friday.

Wu Yuliang told reporters that those speculating that the campaign was being used to target political foes were acting out of ulterior motives.

"In the past some people accused us of inaction in the face of corruption, and now that we have intensified efforts to fight corruption, we have been accused of being selective," Wu said. "I'm afraid those (critics) may have other purposes or motives."

Wu's comments came the day after a major meeting of the ruling Communist Party that renewed President Xi Jinping's drive to end corruption and tighten discipline within the 88 million-member organization that has run China since seizing power in a 1949 revolution.

The party meeting also elevated Xi to the position of "core" leader, underscoring his clout and strengthening his dominance ahead of a reshuffle in the top ranks next year.

More than 1 million party members have been punished in the anti-corruption campaign, which has also brought down two former top generals and a past member of the Politburo Standing Committee, the apex of political power.

"When uprooting rotten trees one has to start with the most rotten ones. If that is called selective I have to say this is just the way we do our work," said Wu, who is vice secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.

The ruling party "pursues wholeheartedly benefits for the people, and we are making anti-corruption efforts wholly for the purpose of the interests of the people and the country," he said.

While mainly symbolic, the move to bestow Xi with "core" status reflects his rise as the country's most powerful leader in decades, along with his determination to run the ruling party as a clean institution enjoying unfettered authority.

While this week's meeting kicked off the process of selecting new leaders, Wu and other officials at a briefing Friday said they had no information about future appointments.

Five of the current seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee  all but Xi and Premier Li Keqiang  are due to step down next year according to custom.

While Xi has accumulated a growing number of titles and powers, observers say his need to constantly enforce discipline within the party points to a continuing push-back from rivals and disgruntled members of the rank and file.
UK Uber drivers win case to get paid vacation, minimum wage

LONDON (AP)  Uber's claim that its drivers are contractors  and not employees entitled to vacations  was rejected Friday by a British tribunal, in a ruling that may have implications for a range of companies that rely on self-employed workers.

The employment tribunal ruled that the two drivers who brought the action were employees of the ride-hailing service, and so were entitled to paid time off and a guaranteed minimum wage. Uber plans to appeal.

While the ruling may eventually affect as many as 30,000 Uber drivers, it also has implications for more than 100,000 independent contractors in Britain's s-called gig economy, where people work job-to-job with little security and few employment rights. Such employment, often for app-based services for everything from food delivery to health care, has surged as the Internet cuts the link between jobs and the traditional workplace.

FILE - In this file photo taken Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2014, a woman walks past the company logo of the internet car service, Uber, in San Francisco, USA. A British employment tribunal ruled Friday Oct. 28, 2016, in favor of Uber arguing it is a technology company linking self-employed drivers with people who need rides, and leaving their drivers without entitlement to minimum wages or vacation time. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg, FILE)

"The Uber ruling will demystify much rhetoric on the gig economy being inherently liberating," said Guglielmo Meardi, director of the Industrial Relations Research Unit at Warwick Business School. He said it will drive debate on how to regulate new forms of contracting work.

The ruling could also encourage Uber drivers in other countries to seek recognition as employees. Uber has fought those efforts as the change would raise its operating expenses significantly and go against its business model and identity. The ability to provide cheaper rides has been integral to its success and appeal.

Based in San Francisco, California, Uber describes itself as a technology company that links self-employed drivers with people who need rides.

Jo Bertram, Uber's regional general manager, argued that thousands of drivers want to be self-employed and their own bosses. The company in June released a survey showing that 68 percent of Uber drivers don't drive a set number of hours each week and 41 percent set their hours based on what else they have going on in their lives.

"The overwhelming majority of drivers who use the Uber app want to keep the freedom and flexibility of being able to drive when and where they want," Bertram said in a statement.

Uber said the ruling applies only to the two people who brought the action, though experts say that, if upheld, it could help shape future regulation of the company and industries that rely heavily on self-employed workers. Leigh Day, the law firm that brought the action said other Uber drivers could use the action  a test case  to press their claims that they are also employees.

Attorney Nigel Mackay, who is representing the drivers, said he was pleased the tribunal recognized that his clients were entitled to basic workers' rights.

"Uber drivers often work very long hours just to earn enough to cover their basic living costs," he said. "It is the work carried out by these drivers that has allowed Uber to become the multi-billion-dollar global corporation it is."

A separate effort to identify Uber drivers as employees has fallen short in the U.S. In August, a federal judge rejected Uber's attempt to settle claims by drivers that the company had been exploiting them by treating them as independent contractors instead of employees. The settlement would have given $100 million to about 380,000 drivers.

While companies argue that the gig economy's system of self-employment provides lifestyle benefits for people who choose where to work, set their own hours and take time off when they want to, they also avoid many expenses associated with hiring full-time employees.

Sean Nesbitt, a partner in the employment team at the international law firm Taylor Wessing, estimated that the British ruling could cost Uber millions a year in holiday pay and pension contributions. It would cost even more to guarantee a minimum wage or back pay, said Nesbitt, whose firm is not involved in the case.

"The Uber tribunal judgment announced today is not the end - it is the end of the beginning," Nesbitt said. "It will form a vital part of the debate on the gig economy and almost certainly be appealed, for three reasons: it's economically significant, it affects over 100,000 U.K. workers in related industries, and policy makers are interested in the gig economy."

Prime Minister Theresa May has ordered a study on the implications of the gig economy and tax authorities are beefing up their enforcement unit.

Matthew Taylor, who is conducting the inquiry at May's behest, wrote in the Guardian this month that one in five British workers are in involved in what he called "non-standard working arrangements."
Kirk apologizes for mocking rival's family military history

CHICAGO (AP)  Illinois Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk apologized Friday for mocking his Democratic rival's immigrant background and her claim that her family's military service dates back to the Revolution  comments that drew wide criticism and threatened an already difficult re-election campaign.

"Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service," Kirk wrote in a Twitter post.

During a debate Thursday evening, U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth said her family has "served this nation in uniform going back to the Revolution."

Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk, right, and Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth, left, face off in their first televised debate in what's considered a crucial race that could determine which party controls the Senate, Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016, at the University of Illinois in Springfield, Ill. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)

Kirk responded that he had forgotten that the congresswoman's "parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington."

Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran who lost both legs when the Black Hawk she was piloting was shot down in 2004, was born in Bangkok. Her mother, who is of Chinese descent, was born in Thailand. Duckworth has said her father first went to Southeast Asia while serving with the Marines in Vietnam.

Kirk's remark was greeted mostly by silence in the auditorium of the University of Illinois in Springfield on Thursday evening. Elsewhere, there were quick calls for him to apologize. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee immediately called the comment "offensive, wrong and racist."

Duckworth, the first Asian-American congresswoman from Illinois, later tweeted a photo of herself with her parents, including her father in uniform displaying his medals. Her tweet says: "My mom is an immigrant and my dad and his family have served this nation in uniform since the Revolution."

Kirk left the debate Thursday night without speaking to reporters. Campaign manager Kevin Artl said Thursday the senator has called Duckworth "a war hero in his commercials and he commends her family's service."

Kirk's campaign said the senator tried to contact Duckworth by phone to apologize Friday before posting his apology on Twitter. Duckworth's campaign confirmed he had reached out, but it was unclear whether the candidates spoke.

Kirk's comments drew heavy scorn across social media. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton posted on Twitter that she is thankful for Duckworth's and her family's service, adding: "It's really not that hard to grasp, Mark Kirk."

Donald Trump's campaign manager also took the opportunity to jab at Kirk, who earlier this year withdrew his support for the GOP presidential nominee and has been a vocal critic.

"The same Mark Kirk that unendorsed his party's presidential nominee and called him out in paid ads? Gotcha. Good luck," Kellyanne Conway posted on Twitter late Thursday.

Kirk, who suffered a stroke in 2012 and returned to work one year later, is seen as one of the Senate's most vulnerable Republican incumbents. The first-term senator from the Chicago suburb of Highland Park is running in a state that leans heavily Democratic, particularly in presidential election years.

Kirk has worked to distance himself from Trump and the GOP, saying he is an independent voice who can work with Democrats to get things done. He often notes his "F'' rating from the National Rifle Association and that he broke with his party to call for hearings on President Barack Obama's pick for the Supreme Court.

But Kirk has complicated his own re-election bid with his tendency to make off-color statements. In August, he said Obama was acting like the "drug dealer in chief" when the U.S. made a $400 million payment to Iran contingent on the return of U.S. prisoners.

He apologized in 2015 after referring to South Carolina U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, who's unmarried, as a "bro with no ho."

During his first bid for Senate in 2010, Kirk acknowledged that he had exaggerated some of his own military record, including stating that he came under enemy fire while flying reconnaissance missions in Iraq as a Navy intelligence officer.

Democrats consider Duckworth's success on Election Day one of the keys to reclaiming a majority in the chamber. The second-term congresswoman from the Chicago suburb of Hoffman Estates has a comfortable lead in the most recent polls, but Kirk says the race is closer than people think.

___

Ivan Moreno contributed to this report from Springfield, Illinois.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth, answers questions during the first televised debate with Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk, in what's considered a crucial race that could determine which party controls the Senate, Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016, at the University of Illinois in Springfield, Ill. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)
Tensions soar along frontier in disputed Kashmir region

SRINAGAR, India (AP)  Tensions soared Friday along the frontier between India and Pakistan in the disputed Kashmir region as soldiers from the nuclear-armed rivals continued to shell villages and border posts.

In the latest incident, an Indian paramilitary officer said a civilian and a soldier were killed by Pakistani firing on Friday.

The officer said Pakistani soldiers fired mortars and automatic gunfire at several border posts in the Jammu area in an "unprovoked" violation of the 2003 cease-fire accord between the countries. He said Indian soldiers "befittingly" retaliated.

Kashmiri seaparatist leader, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, shouts slogans during a protest march to the Grand mosque in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. Authorities on Friday imposed curfew in some parts of Srinagar to foil a pro-freedom march to the Grand mosque called by separatist leaders. The march was called in protest after no one was allowed to pray inside the mosque on Fridays for nearly 16 weeks. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

The officer spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to provide information to the media.

He said dozens of villagers living along the frontier were evacuated to safer places.

The Indian military said Friday that its soldiers returned Pakistani fire in at least two places along the Line of Control, the de facto border.

While the Line of Control is guarded by the Indian and Pakistani armies and divides the two parts of Kashmir, each country also has a separate paramilitary border force guarding the lower-altitude frontier separating Indian-controlled Kashmir and the Pakistani province of Punjab.

The two countries often trade accusations about who is to blame for firing and shelling in the region.

On Friday, Pakistan's Foreign Ministry summoned India's high commissioner to protest the deaths of six civilians and injuries to 22 others in Indian firing along the frontier the previous day, the ministry said in a statement.

Meanwhile, a senior officer with India's Border Security Force, Arun Kumar, told reporters in Jammu city that border guards have killed 15 Pakistani soldiers in "retaliatory firing and shelling" since last week.

"We have destroyed their OP (outposts) and damaged a few," Kumar was quoted as saying by the Press Trust of India news agency.

Pakistan's army denied the Indian claim, calling it "absolutely baseless."

In Islamabad, the Pakistani army said in a statement that the claim was part of an Indian propaganda campaign aimed at hiding its losses.

Pakistan Foreign Ministry spokesman Nafees Zakaria accused India of committing cease-fire violations to divert the attention of the international community from its suppression of a wave of recent protests against Indian rule in Kashmir.

On Thursday, each nation expelled a diplomat amid the escalating tensions. Troops from the two countries have regularly traded fire since last month, when India said it carried out "surgical strikes" against militants in the Pakistan-controlled part of Kashmir. Pakistan dismissed the claim and called on India to produce evidence to back it up.

Two of the three wars between India and Pakistan since 1947 have been fought over their competing claims to Kashmir. Each has administered part of Kashmir since 1947. India accuses Pakistan of training and arming anti-Indian militants and helping infiltrate into the Indian side.

Pakistan denies this, saying it only offers moral and diplomatic support to the militants and to Kashmiris who oppose Indian rule.

___

Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad, Pakistan, contributed to this report.

Masked Kashmiri protesters throw stones at Indian paramilitary soldiers during a protest in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. Authorities on Friday imposed curfew in some parts of Srinagar to foil a pro-freedom march to the Grand mosque called by separatist leaders. The march was called in protest after no one was allowed to pray inside the mosque on Fridays for nearly 16 weeks. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

Indian paramilitary soldiers chase Kashmiri Muslim protesters during a protest in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. Authorities on Friday imposed curfew in some parts of Srinagar to foil a pro-freedom march to the Grand mosque called by separatist leaders. The march was called in protest after no one was allowed to pray inside the mosque on Fridays for nearly 16 weeks. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

A Kashmiri couple takes their sick child to a hospital as Indian paramilitary soldiers clash with protesters in the background, during curfew in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. Authorities on Friday imposed curfew in some parts of Srinagar to foil a pro-freedom march to the Grand mosque called by separatist leaders. The march was called in protest after no one was allowed to pray inside the mosque on Fridays for nearly 16 weeks. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

Separatist leader, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, center, is seen through the opening of the gate of his residence as Indian policemen stop him and his supporters from taking out a march to the Grand mosque in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. Authorities on Friday imposed curfew in some parts of Srinagar to foil a pro-freedom march to the Grand mosque called by separatist leaders. The march was called in protest after no one was allowed to pray inside the mosque on Fridays for nearly 16 weeks. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

Indian Border Security Force (BSF) officers carry the coffin of head constable Jitender Kumar Singh, during a wreath-laying ceremony at BSF headquarters in Jammu, India, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. Indian paramiltary officials said that a civilian and a soldier have been killed in firing by Pakistani troops along the volatile frontier in Indian-controlled Kashmir. (AP Photo/Channi Anand)

Indian paramilitary soldiers patrol during curfew in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. Authorities on Friday imposed curfew in some parts of Srinagar to foil a pro-freedom march to the Grand mosque called by separatist leaders. The march was called in protest after no one was allowed to pray inside the mosque on Fridays for nearly 16 weeks. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

A Kashmiri cyclist rides past Jamia Masjid or Grand mosque during curfew in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. Authorities on Friday imposed curfew in some parts of Srinagar to foil a pro-freedom march to the Grand mosque called by separatist leaders. The march was called in protest after no one was allowed to pray inside the mosque on Fridays for nearly 16 weeks. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)
Swedish court convicts German of stealing toxins

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP)  A Swedish court has sentenced a 27-year-old German man to one year's imprisonment for stealing toxic substances from a university where he was a student.

The Uppsala District Court on Friday said Gurkan Korkmaz used the alias LarryFlow to offer lethal substances like ricin on dark-web online markets, but added that it could not be proven he actually sold the substances.

Swedish police started the investigation in the fall of 2015 after receiving tips from U.S. police.
Image of Asia: Welcoming home sailors held by pirates

In this photo by Bullit Marquez, relatives welcome home Arnel Balbero, one of five Filipino sailors who had been held captive by Somali pirates since 2012, when he and others arrived at the airport Friday in the Philippines. The five were among 26 sailors released last week who had been held since the pirates seized them and their Taiwanese-owned fishing vessel in March 2012. International mediators said the release "represents the end of captivity for the last remaining seafarers taken hostage during the height of Somali piracy." Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay greeted the group at the airport as well.
EU, Canada to sign trade pact Sunday

BRUSSELS (AP)  The European Union will sign a long-delayed trade pact with Canada on Sunday after a hold-out Belgian region finally endorsed the agreement.

Ambassadors from the EU nations meeting in Brussels late Friday paved the way for the signature of the deal and for it to be provisionally applied until all 28 member states have legally ratified it.

European Council President Donald Tusk said in a tweet that an EU-Canada summit with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau would be held this Sunday to sign the accord.

Minister-President of Wallonia Paul Magnette, left, attends a session in the Walloon Parliament in Namur, Belgium on Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. The European Union and Canada are closing in on a landmark free trade deal after Belgium cleared internal political opposition to the agreement.(AP Photo/Thierry Monasse)

"I am delighted to confirm that the EU is ready to sign the comprehensive economic and trade agreement with Canada. It represents a milestone in the EU's trade policy and our commitment to it," said Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, whose country now holds the bloc's rotating presidency.

The move came after parliamentarians in Belgium's French-speaking region of Wallonia voted by 58 votes to five, with no abstentions, to support the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement.

Regional Parliament President Andre Antoine said that "Europe must also pass by Wallonia."

Smaller than the U.S. state of New Jersey, Wallonia blocked the deal between more than 500 million EU citizens and 35 million Canadians for several weeks, deeply embarrassing the bloc.

The EU needed unanimity among all its 28 members and Belgium needed the backing of all its regions to approve the pact.

Trudeau had been due to sign CETA with EU leaders in Brussels on Thursday, but was forced to cancel his flight.

Work on the agreement was launched in 2009 and the text was actually finalized two years ago but sat in limbo awaiting endorsement.

Antoine thanked the lawmakers for working in "real democratic transparency."

"This closes two years of work," he said after voting finished.

Politicians in Wallonia had argued that the proposed deal would undermine labor, environment and consumer standards and allow multinationals to crush local companies. Supporters said it would yield billions in added trade through customs and tariff cuts.

Minister-President of Wallonia Paul Magnette attends a session in the Walloon Parliament in Namur, Belgium on Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. The European Union and Canada are closing in on a landmark free trade deal after Belgium cleared internal political opposition.(AP Photo/Thierry Monasse)

Minister-President of Wallonia Paul Magnette attends a session in the Walloon Parliament in Namur, Belgium on Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. The European Union and Canada are closing in on a landmark free trade deal after Belgium cleared internal political opposition to the agreement.(AP Photo/Thierry Monasse)

Minister-President of Wallonia Paul Magnette, right, speaks with colleagues during a session in the Walloon Parliament in Namur, Belgium on Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. The European Union and Canada are closing in on a landmark free trade deal after Belgium cleared internal political opposition to the agreement.(AP Photo/Thierry Monasse)
Congressional race is bitter in wealthy New Jersey district

PARAMUS, N.J. (AP)  In a congressional district across the river from New York filled with million-dollar homes and massive shopping malls, a former speechwriter for President Bill Clinton is waging a well-funded campaign against a seven-term incumbent Republican who has been dragged down by reports he challenged his party's support for gay candidates.

As a conservative in a deep blue state, Rep. Scott Garrett figures he gets to read his political obituary every two years. He has fought off challenges from Democrats since 2002 by prevailing in the rural northwestern areas of New Jersey's 5th District as well as its wealthier  and more populous  suburbs closer to New York City.

This time the challenge is coming from Josh Gottheimer, and the race is being closely watched as Democrats seek to make gains in the GOP-controlled House.

FILE  In this May 8, 2014, file photo, U.S. Rep. Scott Garrett, R-N.J., attends a hearing about the international financial system on Capitol Hill in Washington. The U.S. House race in New Jersey's 5th District between Garrett and his Democratic challenger Josh Gottheimer, a former speechwriter for Bill Clinton, is being closely watched as Democrats seek to win Republican-held suburban districts, and make gains in the GOP-controlled House. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)

They will need to win Republican-held suburban districts across the country to capture House control. That quest has long seemed like a long shot, but GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump's slide in the polls has raised Democratic hopes.

Garrett has been hampered by a controversy over reports last year that he wouldn't donate to a national Republican committee because it supported gay candidates. The fallout has seen corporate donors like PNC Bank and State Farm pull their support.

Gottheimer has taken advantage and raised $4 million through September, compared to Garrett's $1.9 million, according to federal campaign disclosures.

Garrett "has been able to dress up as somebody less extreme, but now I think the facts are coming out," Gottheimer said recently. "We have the resources now to let people know who he is."

With the 5th District's rural counties a Garrett stronghold, densely populated Bergen County to the east figures to be where the election is decided.

For Garrett to keep his seat, he will have to convince voters like Paula Lightbody, of Paramus, a suburb northwest of Manhattan that is best known for its acres of high-end shopping malls.

Lightbody said this month that she was still mulling over whether to vote for Garrett, and she cited his vote against reauthorizing and expanding the Violence Against Women Act in 2013 as a demerit.

"That's something that goes to your heart," Lightbody, 61, said as she inflated Halloween decorations on her front lawn, next to a large sign supporting local Republican candidates. Still, she added, Garrett "is for New Jersey and for lowering taxes, and he wants there to be a middle class and not just an upper class and a lower class."

Gottheimer, a former corporate strategist for Microsoft, has called himself a "new Democrat," socially liberal and fiscally conservative and not averse to reducing regulations on businesses and lowering taxes. It's a message he hopes will resonate in the district's key suburban areas.

The increasingly bitter race has included an online ad from Gottheimer featuring bleeped-out expletives from a grandmother about Garrett's positions and a visit from celebrity chef Tom Colicchio to slam Garrett's record on food safety issues.

In TV ads, Garrett hammers Gottheimer over a lawsuit  later dismissed  from a woman who accused him of intimidating her at his Washington, D.C., apartment building. The woman said she was fearful Gottheimer was going to hit her after he waved his finger at her and spoke aggressively in the lobby. The Gottheimer campaign calls the ad "categorically false."

The House Majority PAC, which backs Democratic candidates, began a $650,000 cable TV ad this week that describes Garrett as "the anti-gay bigot who puts his own agenda over New Jersey." It cites a 2010 Garrett vote against health benefits for 9/11 emergency workers and one this year allowing Confederate flags to be displayed in Department of Veterans' Affairs cemeteries.

It's not yet clear how Trump's sliding numbers will affect Garrett, who released a statement denouncing Trump's taped comments about women. Gottheimer called it a "typical act of desperation," and Garrett later said he would still vote for Trump.

Garrett said he has always planned to vote for the party's nominee, and for Republican candidates in every race.

"We simply cannot afford Hillary Clinton in the White House," he said. "Or someone in Congress who has endorsed all of her positions.'"

___

Associated Press writer Alan Fram contributed to this story.
Tribe Called Quest to release final album

A Tribe Called Quest will release their final record on Nov. 11, which includes material they recorded with rapper Phife Dawg who died in March.

In a handwritten note posted on Facebook, veteran rapper and producer Q-Tip said they were inspired after the hip-hop group reunited for the first time in 18 years last year to perform on "The Tonight Show."
Bundy attorney cited for failing to comply with order

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP)  Ammon Bundy's lawyer will be back in Oregon next year, this time as the accused.

In a bizarre ending to the trial, Marcus Mumford was wrestled to the ground by U.S. marshals and arrested after repeatedly yelling at a judge to let his client go free. U.S. District Judge Anna Brown said Bundy couldn't leave because he's going to a Nevada jail to face charges there.

The U.S. Marshals Service says Mumford was cited for failure to comply with a federal lawful order and disturbance. He was released with a Jan. 6 date to return to court.

Supervising deputy Eric Wahlstrom told The Oregonian/OregonLive that Mumford was shocked with a stun gun in a dry-stun mode. It was placed against him, but no probes were fired into his body.

Mumford told reporters he grew up on a farm and is used to rough treatment.
Politician indicted of war crimes related to Kosovo war

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP)  Kosovo prosecutors have accused a senior politician of crimes in connection with two murders dating back to the 1998-99 Kosovo war.

A special prosecutor's office said Friday said that Fatmir Limaj, a former commander in the Kosovo Liberation Army that fought a separatist war against Serbia, failed to prevent the murder of two Albanians in 1998, discover the perpetrators or take the case to the proper institutions to be investigated.

A statement from the prosecutors mentions the names of two executed Albanians without clarifying the reason for their murder.

Limaj denied his guilt, recalling that he has faced similar charges in the past but was never found guilty. He said the charge was based on the fact that the crime was committed in the area he once commanded.

In a statement emailed to The Associated Press he also accused the prosecutors of mistreating him and of lacking interest in finding the true culprits.

"This case is being abused in order to continue the persecution against me," he said.

In 2005 a U.N. tribunal acquitted Limaj on war crimes charges and in 2012 a Pristina court with international judges cleared him of allegations of torturing and killing Serb detainees during the war.

Limaj, 45, is the leader of the opposition Nisma per Kosoven (Initiative for Kosovo) political party.

Limaj also has served as a government minister with the Democratic Party of Kosovo before breaking away to create his political group.

Some 10,000 people died and 1,700 went missing during the 1998-1999 war as Kosovo fought to break away from Serbia.
Iraqis bury their dead in cemetery destroyed by IS

QAYARA, Iraq (AP)  Sabriya Hammad buried her son in a cemetery that was destroyed by the same people who killed him.

Sitting on cardboard and surrounded by relatives, Hammad sobbed quietly over the mound of earth and rocks beneath a sky darkened by oil well fires set weeks ago by Islamic State fighters. The graveyard south of Mosul is littered with smashed headstones  also demolished by the militants.

"They destroyed everything," Hammad said, looking out over hundreds of smashed headstones, some of them generations old.

A family grieves over the grave of a family member at a graveyard damaged by Islamic State extremists in Qayara, some 31 miles, 50 km, south of Mosul, Iraq, Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. When IS overran Qayara more than two years ago, the extremist group began destroying headstones at the local graveyard, telling residents they were forbidden because they did not exist at the time of the prophet. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)

Iraqi forces drove the extremists out of Qayara last summer as they pushed toward militant-held Mosul, the country's second-largest city and the focus of an offensive launched Oct. 17. But months after the fighters withdrew, residents of Qayara are still coming to terms with the destruction left behind, and the casualties of war are still being laid to rest.

The militants began destroying the headstones shortly after they swept across northern and central Iraq in 2014. They said the headstones were forbidden because they weren't used during the time of the Prophet Muhammad. They also forbade anyone from visiting the graves, which the extremists view as a pagan practice.

The cemetery was marked by war long before IS arrived. It holds the bodies of those killed in suicide bombings, clashes and rocket attacks going all the way back to the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

Hammad's son, Muhammed, was killed weeks after Qayara was declared liberated, when IS launched a counterattack and a mortar round landed in front of his home. The blast killed him and his cousin, and critically wounded his brother. Hammad has seven other relatives buried in the cemetery, somewhere under the jagged stones.

"When I see these destroyed stones on their graves, I feel grief, like they have died a second time," she said.

Abdul Razak Tallab came to the cemetery to visit his sister-in-law, who was killed this month, also by an IS mortar round, and his brother, who was slain by a car bomb in Mosul in 2008.

When IS controlled Qayara, Tallab said the extremists recruited him to drive prisoners to the graveyard to destroy the stones. Men who had been arrested for smoking or shaving their beards were forced to desecrate the graves of their ancestors.

Tallab said he couldn't bring himself watch it, and he made up an excuse to leave.

"How could anyone stay here and see them do that?" he asked. His brother's headstone was broken into pieces, obscuring his name and the dates of his birth and death.

But Tallab remembers.

He also knows the 18 men buried in a row of relatively new mounds.

"Daesh went door to door to shoot each of these men in their own homes," he said, using an Arabic acronym for the group.

As he approached two smaller mounds, he recalled how an entire family died last month when a rocket hit the main street in front of a hospital.

Another grave draped with an Iraqi flag was for a tribal fighter killed by IS in clashes on the other side of the Tigris River. The fighter's daughter was buried beside him, killed when she stepped on a booby trap the militants planted in a field.

As the oil wells burned along the horizon, where towering columns of smoke rose, Tallab said his visits to the cemetery fill him with both sadness and peace. His loved ones are gone, but the gravestones that marked their lives can be fixed.

"We are just waiting for the situation to get better. Then we'll repair all of them," he said. "It's a place that reminds you of the people who came before you and what they left behind."

A woman prays over a grave of a family member at a graveyard damaged by Islamic State extremists in Qayara, some 31 miles, 50 km, south of Mosul, Iraq, Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. When IS overran Qayara more than two years ago, the extremist group began destroying headstones at the local graveyard, telling residents they were forbidden because they did not exist at the time of the prophet. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)

Abdel el Razak Talab carries a gravestone at a graveyard damaged by Islamic State extremists in Qayara, some 31 miles, 50 km, south of Mosul, Iraq, Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. When IS overran Qayara more than two years ago, the extremist group began destroying headstones at the local graveyard, telling residents they were forbidden because they did not exist at the time of the prophet. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)

A man sits inside a graveyard damaged by Islamic State extremists in Qayara, some 31 miles, 50 km, south of Mosul, Iraq, Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. When IS overran Qayara more than two years ago, the extremist group began destroying headstones at the local graveyard, telling residents they were forbidden because they did not exist at the time of the prophet. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)
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Blast east of Egypt's capital kills 1

CAIRO (AP)  An Egyptian security official says one person has been killed after an explosive device targeted security forces in eastern Cairo.

The official said in an Interior Ministry statement that a homemade bomb struck a police convoy on Friday near the district of Ain Shams.

No security forces were hurt but two pedestrians were wounded, one of whom died of his wounds at a nearby hospital.

Egypt has been witnessing recurrent violence three years after the military ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi in 2013. Demonstrations by Morsi's supporters  many held around Ain Shams University  have largely waned amid a heavy security clampdown that has killed and injured thousands.
Man loses latest court fight over violent Facebook posts

PHILADELPHIA (AP)  A U.S. appeals court is affirming the conviction of a Pennsylvania man who posted violent rap lyrics on Facebook that took aim at his estranged wife, an elementary school and the FBI.

The ruling comes after the U.S. Supreme Court said the jury should have weighed his intent and not just the lyrics.

But the appeals court said Friday that no jury could doubt Anthony Elonis knew the posts would intimidate his targets.

Defense lawyers say he was merely venting when he talked of killing his estranged wife, shooting up a school and slitting an FBI agent's throat.

The Bethlehem man has served four years in prison while his appeals test the limits of free speech.

Lawyer Abraham Rein (RINE) says attorneys will review the decision with Elonis before deciding whether to appeal the felony threat conviction.

___
'Everything on the table' in revived Colombia peace talks

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP)  President Juan Manuel Santos told Colombians on Friday that "everything is on the table" in efforts to revive a peace pact that voters narrowly defeated Oct. 2 and said a revised accord could be reached "in a matter of days."

The commander of the rebel Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, Timoleon Jimenez, expressed hope that Santos was right.

"Let's hope the delay doesn't become a boomerang," he tweeted.

Humberto de La Calle, left, head of Colombia's government peace negotiation team, listens as Ivan Marquez, chief negotiator of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) reads a joint statement in Havana, Cuba, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. The statement said many new proposals have been incorporated in the text of a new peace accord after voters narrowly defeated the deal on Oct. 2. (AP Photo/Desmond Boylan)

Santos said in a brief televised speech that government negotiators would return immediately from talks in Havana with leaders of the leftist rebel movement, known by its Spanish initials FARC, and meet Saturday with key political opponents of the initial deal.

The FARC and government negotiators wound up a week of renewed talks Friday by issuing a statement that said new proposals have been incorporated in the text of what would be a modified accord. They did not provide details and said talks would resume next Thursday.

"Everything is on the table," Santos said. "It's a question of good will and making decisions. This can be accomplished in a matter of days."

Santos also said a cease-fire he extended until Dec. 31 after the razor-thin referendum defeat "is fragile and for that reason time is dear. The people have the right to demand a new accord now."

Santos and the FARC signed a peace deal on Sept. 26 amid international fanfare to end a half-century-old conflict that has claimed more than 220,000 lives, mostly civilians, and has displaced more than 6 million.

But voters rejected it by 55,000 votes , with turnout at just 37 percent.

Former President Alvaro Uribe, who led the campaign for "No," tweeted earlier Friday that Santos' declarations to news media "show he wants touch-ups with one sector of the 'No' camp and is avoiding fundamental reforms."

A right-wing hardliner backed by Colombia's landowning rural elite, Uribe seriously weakened the FARC militarily with U.S. assistance as president from 2002-2010.

He has demanded stiffer penalties for rebels who committed war crimes and many of his supporters reject a political role for the FARC, a 7,000-strong peasant army that is Latin America's last remaining major insurgency.
Mana fighting for sea turtles with clothing line

NEW YORK (AP)  Mexican rock band Mana is expanding its fight to save endangered sea turtles with a clothing line.

The band, known for its environmental activism, is stepping into the fashion industry with Ritos del Sol , a line of ecofriendly jeans and T-shirts for men and women.

A percentage of each sale will be donated to the group's Selva Negra Foundation, the nonprofit it created in 1995 to raise awareness and take real action to save endangered species and help underserved communities around the world. It offers four lines  Selva Negra, Cosmos, Laberinto de Concreto and Inframundo  with designs that go from abstract prints inspired in flora and fauna to skulls and a skeleton's ribs.

FILE - In this Oct. 25, 2016 file photo, members of the Mexican rock band Mana, drummer Alex Gonzalez, from left, vocalist Fher Olvera, bassist Juan Calleros and guitarist Sergio Vallin pose during an interview in New York. The iconic band, known for its environmental activism, is stepping into the fashion industry with Ritos del Sol, an ecofriendly brand of jeans and T-Shirts for men and women, available in the US and online. Each item sold would save a sea turtle in the coast of Mexico, according to vocalist Fher. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

The musicians said the idea was presented to them a couple years ago by the designers at a Puebla, Mexico clothing factory owned by a cousin of vocalist Fher.

"The clothing that he makes uses 25 percent of the water that the factories normally use in Mexico," Fher said. "They are also good to their employees, it's fair trade, and they work in indigenous communities not only in Puebla but in Oaxaca."

Drummer Alex Gonzalez said band members weren't initially convinced because "it's not that easy to launch a clothing line and we have seen other bands and other artists (doing it) and some of them have done well, other not so much.

"But more than a business for the band, we wanted for it to be a positive idea and proposal so that when people would buy the clothes they would know that they are doing something beneficial for the environment," he added. "So Fher came up with this idea of supporting the sea turtles that we have in Mexico."

All four band members were involved in the designs of the T-shirts.

"At the end of the day, it had to be clothing that we wanted to use, both on and offstage," Gonzalez said.

___

Online:

https://ritosdelsol.com/

http://www.selvanegra.com.mx/

http://www.mana.com.mx/

___

Follow Sigal Ratner-Arias on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sigalratner

Members of the Mexican rock band Mana, drummer Alex Gonzalez, from left, vocalist Fher Olvera, bassist Juan Calleros and guitarist Sergio Vallin pose during an interview, Tuesday Oct. 25, 2016, in New York. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
Russia voted off UN Human Rights Council

UNITED NATIONS (AP)  The General Assembly voted Russia off the U.N. Human Rights Council on Friday, a stunning rebuke to the country which is increasingly being accused of war crimes over its actions in Syria.

The 193-member General Assembly elected 14 members to 47-nation council, the U.N.'s main body charged with promoting and protecting human rights.

Russia, which received 112 votes, lost its regional seat to Hungary, with 144 votes, and Croatia with 114 votes.

Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin played down the importance of the loss.

"It was a very close vote and very good countries competing, Croatia, Hungary. They are fortunate because of their size, they are not exposed to the winds of international diplomacy. Russia is very exposed. We've been on council a number of years, I'm sure next time we'll get in," he said.

Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, China, Brazil, Rwanda, Hungary, Cuba, South Africa, Japan, Tunisia, the U.S. and U.K. also won seats on the council. Guatemala was the only country running for a seat beside Russia to not be elected.

Human rights groups had called for countries to reject the candidacies of Russia and Saudi Arabia, which has been accused of indiscriminate attacks against civilians in Yemen. Saudi Arabia's election, however, was a foregone conclusion since it was running unopposed for its regional seat.

"In rejecting Russia's bid for re-election to the Human Rights Council, U.N. member states have sent a strong message to the Kremlin about its support for a regime that has perpetrated so much atrocity in Syria," said Louis Charbonneau, U.N. director at Human Rights Watch. "Next year, U.N. member states should make sure that all regional groups have real competition so no one is guaranteed victory."

Britain's Human Rights Minister Baroness Anelay said she was delighted with her country's re-election to the council.
Kiosk owner gets 6 1/2 years for fraud, money laundering

NORFOLK, Va. (AP)  The man behind dozens of mall kiosks in Virginia and other states has been sentenced to 6 1/2 years on charges he illegally hired Israeli nationals.

The Virginian-Pilot reports (http://bit.ly/2eKVnsW) that 36-year-old Omer Gur was sentenced Thursday after pleading guilty on July 6 to conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to launder money.

Court documents say Gur, originally from Israel, illegally recruited foreign nationals to enter the U.S. from Israel and put them to work selling skincare products at mall kiosks.

Prosecutor Brian Samuels said Rasko brought in $14 million using the workers.

Barry Boss, Gur's attorney, argued that Gur's employees were treated better than most people working in the country without legal permission.

Samuels said Gur got the American dream "in the wrong way."

___
Supreme Court to rule in Virginia transgender case

WASHINGTON (AP)  The Supreme Court will take up transgender rights for the first time in the case of a Virginia school board that wants to prevent a transgender teenager from using the boys' bathroom at his high school.

The justices said Friday they will hear the appeal from the Gloucester County school board sometime next year. The high court's order means that student Gavin Grimm will not be able to use the boys' bathroom in the meantime.

The court could use the case to resolve similar disputes across the country, said Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights. "Obviously, for transgender people, the stakes of this case are incredibly high. Whatever the court rules in Grimm may ensure that transgender people are accepted and included as equal members of our society, or it may relegate them to outsiders for decades to come," Minter said.

FILE - In this Aug. 22, 2016 file photo, transgender high school student Gavin Grimm poses in Gloucester, Va. The Supreme Court will take up transgender rights for the first time in the case of a Virginia school board that wants to prevent a transgender teenager from using the boys' bathroom at his high school. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)

A lower court had ordered the school board to accommodate Grimm, but the justices in August put that order on hold while they considered whether to hear the appeal.

Grimm, a 17-year-old high school senior, was born female but identifies as male. He was allowed to use the boys' restroom at his high school for several weeks in 2014. But after some parents complained, the school board adopted a policy requiring students to use either the restroom that corresponds with their biological gender or a private, single-stall restroom. Grimm is backed by the Obama administration in his argument that the policy violates Title IX, a federal law that bars sex discrimination in schools.

"I never thought that my restroom use would ever turn into any kind of national debate," Grimm said in a statement issued after the court announced it will hear his case. "The only thing I ever asked for was the right to be treated like everyone else. While I'm disappointed that I will have to spend my final school year being singled out and treated differently from every other guy, I will do everything I can to make sure that other transgender students don't have to go through the same experience."

Gloucester County school board chairman Troy Andersen praised the court for agreeing to hear what he called a difficult case. "The board looks forward to explaining to the Court that its restroom and locker room policy carefully balances the interests of all students and parents in the Gloucester County school system," Andersen said.

The Education Department says transgender students should be allowed to use restrooms and locker rooms consistent with their gender identities. Among the issues in the case is whether the department's guidance should have the force of law.

Similar lawsuits are pending around the country. The Obama administration has sued North Carolina over a state law aimed at restricting transgender students to bathrooms that correspond to their biological genders.

A federal judge in Texas has sided with Texas and 12 other states in issuing a nationwide hold on the administration's directive to public schools, issued in May. The directive tells schools to allow transgender students to use the bathroom and locker room consistent with their gender identity.

The case probably will be heard in the winter, and it is by no means certain that there will be a ninth justice to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in February. Senate Republicans have refused to act on Judge Merrick Garland's nomination to the high court. A tie vote would be a victory for Grimm, who won in the lower courts, but would leave the issue unresolved nationally.

The Supreme Court split 5 to 3 in August to put the court order in Grimm's case on hold. At the time, Justice Stephen Breyer said he was providing a fifth vote to go along with the four more conservative justices to "preserve the status quo" until the court decided whether to weigh in. Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan dissented.

Grimm had urged the court not to take up his case.

The school board asked the court to settle the matter now. It said that allowing Grimm to use the boys restroom raises privacy concerns and may cause some parents to pull their children out of school.

The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond sided with Grimm in April, saying the federal judge who previously dismissed Grimm's Title IX discrimination claim ignored the Education Department's guidance on bathroom use.

The appeals court reinstated Grimm's Title IX claim and sent it back to the district court for further consideration. The judge then issued the order in favor of Grimm.

___

Associated Press writer David Crary in New York contributed to this report. Durkin reported from Richmond.
Trooper kills man with gunshot during Georgia traffic stop

ELBERTON, Ga. (AP)  Authorities say a Georgia State Patrol trooper shot and killed a man during a traffic stop in northeast Georgia.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said preliminary information indicates the motorist  24-year-old Edwin Amaya Maldonado of Elberton, Georgia  reached for the trooper's gun belt after being pulled over Thursday night in Elbert County.

The GBI said in a statement that the trooper shot Maldonado once, striking him in his upper body.

The agency said the trooper stopped Maldonado for a traffic offense, then suspected he was driving under the influence and without a license. The GBI said the trooper tried to arrest Maldonado, who resisted and reached for the gun belt.
UN expert to examine Israeli human rights groups

UNITED NATIONS (AP)  A United Nations expert said Friday that he will examine the Israeli government's treatment of human rights groups in the region in his next report.

Michael Lynk, the U.N.'s special representatives on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories, said that human rights defenders in the region face scorn and he accused Israel of trying to delegitimize their work.

"The fact that the Israeli government threatened to revoke the citizenship of the executive director of B'Tselem is a particularly worrying path for Israel to wind up taking," Lynk said, referring to the rights groups' appearance before the Security Council earlier this month.

"I am in full support of the statements and the appearance of B'Tselem, the American Friends of Peace Now and any other organizations that appear before the United Nations, trying to highlight the violations of human rights, the violations of humanitarian law and to remind us this occupation is entrenched, is dripping in human rights violations," he added.

In a statement, Israel's U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon called Lynk's comments offensive and said it "shows the immense damage done by Israeli organizations that defame us in front of the international community."
Annual Ibero-American summit losings its luster

CARTAGENA, Colombia (AP)  Spain, Portugal and their former Latin American colonies have been holding annual meetings for a quarter century, few as piquant as the 2007 affair when then-King Juan Carlos lost his temper with Venezuela's president.

"Why don't you shut up?" the Spanish monarch famously chastised the interrupting Hugo Chavez.

This year's session in the colonial Caribbean gem of Cartagena was to have been a celebration of President Juan Manuel Santos' successful negotiation of an end to the Western Hemisphere's oldest and last major armed conflict. But Colombian voters on Oct. 2 narrowly rejected the peace pact he signed with FARC rebels a week earlier.

Street performers act as statues outside a home in the historical center of Cartagena, Colombia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. Cartagena is hosting the 25th Ibero-American Summit, an annual meeting of heads of state from Latin America and the Iberian Peninsula. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

The attendance list attests to the meeting's fading luster. Only a dozen of the 22 heads of state have confirmed their attendance this year. Spain's acting prime minister, Mariano Rajoy, took a pass as did the presidents of Argentina and Brazil.

The late Chavez's successor as Venezuela's president, Nicolas Maduro, is a question mark. His nation is beset by an increasingly desperate economic and political crisis.

Maduro would be apt to encounter rebuke from Peru's new president, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski. The urbane former Wall Street investment banker has shown little patience for Maduro, a former bus driver whom Venezuela's opposition is trying to oust.

Kuczynski called Thursday for Venezuela's suspension from the Organization of American States for failing to honor the Inter-American Democratic Charter. Maduro's government was widely accused of dictatorial machinations when its electoral council suspended the gathering of signatures for a recall election to oust the Venezuelan leader.

Kuczynski said before flying to Colombia that he would also make a point of organizing emergency humanitarian aid for Venezuela due to its acute shortages of food and medicine.

Michael Shifter, president of the U.S.-based InterAmerican Dialogue think tank, said there is no consensus among summit attendees on what to do about Venezuela.

"The leaders will for certain limit themselves to calling for dialogue and a peaceful settling of differences," he said.

Shifter said it should be no surprise that Ibero-American summits after this year will be held only every other year.

"Spain and Portugal are much less influential than in the past," he said, as Latin America increasingly looks across the Pacific to China and other Asian nations.

___

Associated Press writer Frank Bajak in Bogota, Colombia, contributed to this report.

Police stand guard outside the Convention Center, the site that will host the 25th Ibero-American Summit in Cartagena, Colombia, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. The Ibero-American Summit is an annual meeting of heads of state from Latin America and the Iberian Peninsula. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)
Top court ruling attempts to quiet Venezuela birther debate

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP)  It's official: President Nicolas Maduro is Venezuelan.

At least according to a ruling late Friday by the government-stacked Supreme Court that seeks to quiet attempts to disqualify Maduro from holding Venezuela's highest office on the grounds he might also hold Colombian citizenship.

Opposition lawmakers have declared themselves in open rebellion over the suspension of a recall referendum against Maduro and as part of their campaign to force the socialist leader from office have embraced long-standing claims that he was born in his mother's native Colombia.

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro exits an area of Miraflores presidential palace to greet supporters in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. For the most part, residents of Venezuela's capital ignored calls to stay home Friday to protest Maduro, handing a rare victory to the embattled leader. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

The Supreme Court on Friday said a birth certificate provided irrefutable proof that Maduro was born in Caracas, as electoral authorities and even the U.S. government have long maintained.
Scrap 3.4bn Universal Credit cuts, urges Iain Duncan Smith

Former work and pensions secretary Iain Duncan Smith has called on Prime Minister Theresa May to scrap 3.4 billion of cuts to Universal Credit.

Mr Duncan Smith, who resigned from the Cabinet days after the Budget in protest at cuts to disability allowances, said the move would help people back into work.

The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), a think tank chaired by the former minister, released a report in which it says three million claimants of Universal Credit will be 1,000 a year poorer by the time the scheme has fully replaced working tax credits in 2022.

Iain Duncan Smith introduced Universal Credit when he was work and pensions secretary

In 2015, cuts to the Universal Credit "work allowance" were announced - reducing the amount people could earn before benefit payments were withdrawn.

Just 25% of spending to increase the income personal tax allowance reaches those needing it most, Mr Duncan Smith said.

"One of the key elements as you cross into work, the work allowances, those were all reduced. The problem with that is it means it is more difficult to get people into work and keep them in work.

"We want to get people into work, we want them to progress through work, but most importantly, we want to make sure work always pays," he told the BBC.

Mr Duncan Smith is one of the main architects of Universal Credit, and insists that restoring its original work allowances in the Autumn Statement on November 23 would "help those who are just about managing to properly provide for themselves and their families".

The CSJ argues that strengthening the work allowance will help people find work and those in relatively low-paid work will be better supported.

Mr Duncan Smith introduced Universal Credit as part of reforms to combine the income-based employment support allowance, income support, child tax credit, working tax credits and housing benefit.

George Osborne announced a reduction to the Universal Credit "work allowance" in the 2015 Budget and revealed further cuts to welfare spending in the 2016 Budget.

When he dramatically resigned his post days later, Mr Duncan Smith accused the now ex-chancellor and former prime minister David Cameron of chasing an "arbitrary" spending cap by focusing cuts on those who "can less afford to have that fall on them".

During his tenure at the Department for Work and Pensions, he said an expected 300,000 more people would find work under the scheme prior to it being cut.

Downing Street said there were no plans to scrap the cuts.

A No 10 spokesman told a Westminster briefing: "In terms of the Universal Credit, there are no plans to revisit this.

"The current system is working, it is having a transformative effect on people's lives.

"We are seeing claimants moving into work faster and they are staying in work longer than they were before."

Shadow work and pensions secretary Debbie Abrahams said: "Even the man who introduced the Tories' cruel and ineffective social security reforms is backing Labour's call for the Government to reverse these nasty cuts to work incentives in the social security system.

"The Tories claimed they wanted to make work pay, but then slashed the budget of Universal Credit, leaving 2.5 million working families on average 2,100 worse off.
RBS posts 469m loss and will miss Williams & Glyn sale deadline

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has swung to a 469 million loss in the third quarter and confirmed that it will miss a 2017 deadline to sell off its Williams & Glyn branch network.

The figure compares with a profit of 940 million in the same period last year, when the bank's balance sheet was boosted by the sale of US bank Citizens.

RBS was stung by 425 million in conduct and litigation charges, largely linked to the sale of mortgage-backed securities in the US, and 469 million in restructuring costs.

RBS is still 73% owned by the Government

The lender, which is still 73% owned by the Government, said that despite "positive discussions" with interested parties on the sale of Williams & Glyn, it will miss its 2017 deadline.

RBS must offload the Williams & Glyn branches by the end of next year as part of EU conditions linked to its 45 billion bailout at the height of the financial crisis.

The bank said: "RBS is therefore in discussion with HM Treasury, and expects further engagement with the European Commission, to agree a solution with regards to its state aid obligations."

However, the lender is thought to be in discussions with a number of interested parties, including the owner of Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks, CYBG.

Stripping out restructuring and litigation costs, operating profit came in at 1.3 billion for the period, up from 826 million.

Chief executive Ross McEwan said: "We've said that 2015 and 2016 would be noisy as we work through legacy issues and transform this bank for customers. These results reflect that noise.

"Our core business results were good, with a 1.3 billion adjusted operating profit - our best quarter since 2014.

"The core business has now delivered on average over 1 billion in adjusted operating profit for the last seven quarters."

On Brexit, Mr McEwan added: "The economy is holding up, but there is uncertainty. We saw a fall in mortgage applications but that's now back to normal. Time will tell."

The Edinburgh-based bank is also grappling with legal claims surrounding its 2008 rights issue.

On Thursday the RBoS Shareholder Action Group said it will continue its 1.25 billion compensation claim despite reports that the lender is looking to settle some outstanding cases.

RBS chief financial officer Ewen Stevenson said alongside the bank's results: "We are exploring settlement options, but if that fails then we'll be in court in 2017."

Investors reacted positively to the results, with shares 5% up in early trading.

Richard Hunter, h ead of research at Wilson King Investment Management, said: "RBS has yet to emerge from the weight of misconduct fines, restructuring costs, the distraction of the sale of the Williams & Glyn unit, the spectre of the Government stake and the lack of a dividend payment.
Philip gets bird's eye view of south coast from 'vertical pier in the sky'

The Duke of Edinburgh was treated to panoramic views of the south coast when he took a ride on the world's first vertical cable car during its official opening.

Philip glided skywards to a height of 450ft (138m) inside the British Airways i360's futuristic-looking, curved glass pod on Brighton seafront in East Sussex.

At the top, amid sunshine, he took in the 360-degree view across 26 miles (42km) of the south coast, from Bexhill in East Sussex to Chichester in West Sussex - and met the team behind the tower's design and creation.

The Duke of Edinburgh during his visit to the British Airways i360 attraction in Brighton

He was shown the control room and the operating winch, and spent time speaking with the attraction's chairman, David Marks, vice-chair Julia Barfield and chief engineer Dr John Roberts before unveiling a plaque.

The structure opened on August 4 and is the world's tallest moving observation tower, standing where the wrecked Grade I-listed West Pier, built in 1866, joined the seafront promenade.

Designed by Marks Barfield Architects, the creators of the London Eye, the i360 holds the Guinness World Record for the globe's most slender tower with a diameter of 13ft (3.9m) at its widest point.

The attraction - dubbed a "vertical pier in the sky" - experienced some technical problems during the early days of its opening.

But there were no such glitches during the visit of Philip, who has a keen interest in design and engineering and is officially involved in more than 25 engineering institutions worldwide.

Mr Marks said: "Knowing the Duke of Edinburgh's love of engineering and innovation, we were absolutely delighted and honoured that he agreed to open British Airways i360 today, inspect the tower, its viewing pod and the technology that makes it work, and to meet key members of the engineering team and representatives of the community that made this engineering tour de force a reality."

The tower is built of 17 steel cans weighing around 900 tonnes which have been attached together, while the pod was crafted from 24 segments of handmade glass from Italy.

As the Duke arrived, a young girl handed him flowers and a card wishing him an enjoyable visit, and with the words: "I have been up and it was lovely."

Ms Barfield said: "The reason why we thought it would be a good idea to invite him here is because he has been a champion of design for 50 years.

"He is very passionate about the importance of good design. Even the sun rose for his visit here."

Flights on the attraction - which cost an estimated 46 million - depart every 30 minutes and can carry up to 200 passengers.

Mr Marks added: "Its design, engineering and method of construction are innovative, just as the West Pier was in its time.

"And just as the original pier invited Victorian society to 'walk on water', so British Airways i360 invites visitors to 'walk on air'."

Brighton and Hove City Council chief executive Geoff Raw said the official royal opening helped recognise the attraction as of "national importance" and a "popular engineering achievement".

The Duke went on to visit the Royal Marines School of Music at Portsmouth Naval Base to mark the 20th anniversary of the move to its current home.

In his role as Captain General of the Royal Marines, Philip cut a birthday cake celebrating the 352nd anniversary of the Corps of Royal Marines.

During a tour of the school, which moved to the Hampshire base from Deal in Kent in 1996, the Duke posed for a group photograph with the trainee musicians before speaking with some of them and their instructors and visiting the band service's memorial room.

Lieutenant Colonel Nick Grace, principal director of music of the Royal Marines Band Service, said: "It has been a tremendous honour and privilege for the Royal Marines School of Music to host the Duke of Edinburgh, our Captain General.

"It's immensely significant because it's 20 years to the day since the Royal Marines School of Music was opened by his son Prince Edward. This is the first time the Duke has been able to visit us here in Portsmouth.

"It provided a terrific opportunity for our trainees to speak to His Royal Highness and for them to appreciate how military music has played an important role in his life and the esteem in which he holds the Royal Marines Band Service."

Musician Harry Yarnell, 19, from Dover, who plays clarinet and viola, said: "It was an unforgettable experience and a privilege to meet the Duke of Edinburgh.
Ex-business ministers question agreement struck for Nissan manufacturing deal

Nissan must have been told Britain is remaining in the European Union customs union or offered mitigation for the imposition of post-Brexit tariffs before it announced a boost to UK car manufacturing, former business ministers have said.

Downing Street has insisted there was "no compensation package" and "nothing about tariffs" in the assurances the Government gave to the car manufacturer.

But former business minster Anna Soubry, who held initial post-Brexit discussions with Nissan while in government, said she would be "very surprised" if there was no guarantee to mitigate tariffs.

Nissan workers building the Qashqai in Sunderland

She said David Cameron's government was "very seriously" looking at compensation for any duties imposed on the automotive industry once Britain left the EU.

The Remain-backing Tory MP said she met Nissan on June 30, a week after the Brexit vote, and that the company expressed "profound concerns" about tariffs.

She told BBC Radio 4's World At One: "They didn't give the detail of what they wanted, they made it very clear that without a guarantee that they would not be subject to tariffs or if they were subject to tariffs the Government would do something to mitigate the damage of tariffs... that without that, they told me, my understanding actually was that they would go to Renault because they clearly had the capacity there."

On the assurances that helped Nissan decide to build its next-generation Qashqai, and add production of the new X-Trail model, at its Sunderland plant , Ms Soubry said: " I don't know what it is but I would be very surprised if there hasn't been some sort of guarantee to mitigate any tariffs should they be imposed."

She went on: "I can assure you we (Mr Cameron's government) were looking at underwriting any tariffs should that be imposed upon us as we leave the EU.

"So that's what we were looking at and we were prepared to do. So I don't know what's changed in the change of government."

Former business secretary Sir Vince Cable said, if there was no compensation or mitigation offered, it must mean the UK is remaining in the EU customs union as Nissan would not go ahead without "copper-bottomed promises".

If that were the case it would make the role of International Trade Secretary Liam Fox redundant, as the UK would not be able to negotiate its own bilateral trade deals outside the EU.

Sir Vince told The Guardian: "The only way these big supply chain companies are going to commit themselves to Britain - and Nissan is the biggest - is that if they give them guarantees they are not going to be caught up in rules of origin problems, which is what happens if you leave the customs union.

"And if you stay in the customs union, which I think is what we're talking about, what is the role of Dr Fox? Because it means you no longer have an independent trade policy."

He added: "I was involved in discussions with Nissan in their last big round of investment decisions. Even under the coalition they were toying with doing it in France. I find it impossible to believe they would go ahead without some pretty copper-bottomed promises. These guys do not go making decisions on the basis of vague assurances. That is not the way they operate."

As controversy over allegations of a secret deal continued to swirl, Labour chairman of the Commons Business Committee Iain Wright insisted Business Secretary Greg Clark should appear before the watchdog to give evidence on the matter.

Mr Clark has insisted the deal rests on "a very strong mutual confidence" and stressed "there's no chequebook", while Nissan has also denied there was a special agreement.

But Labour has urged the Government to set out exactly what it told Nissan.

Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer said: "It's welcome that the Government have done a deal with Nissan that protects jobs and supports the local community and economy.

"But that deal needs to be accompanied by transparency and accountability.

"We can't have the Government doing deals that affect jobs and the future of our economy without telling the public or Parliament what the basic terms are.
Voters must have chance to change their minds on Brexit, says Tony Blair

Voters must be given the chance to change their minds on Brexit, Labour former prime minister Tony Blair has insisted.

Mr Blair said people need to be allowed to give their view on any Brexit divorce deal with the EU, either through a referendum, or general election.

"There is absolutely no reason why we should close off any options. You can't change this decision, unless it becomes clear in one way or another, that the British people have had a change of mind because they have seen the reality of the alternative.

Blair said: "You can't change this decision, unless it becomes clear in one way or another, that the British people have had a change of mind."

"We are entitled to carry on scrutinising, and, yes, if necessary, to change our minds, because it seems sensible to us to do so. This is not about an elite over-ruling the people.

"If it becomes clear that this is either a deal that doesn't make it worth our while leaving, or, alternatively, a deal that is going to be so serious in its implications that people decide they don't want to go, there's got to be some way way, either through parliament, or through an election, possibly through another referendum, in which people express their view.

"The bizarre thing about this referendum is that we, obviously, took the decision we wanted to leave the European Union, but we don't yet know the precise terms of our new relationship with Europe. Once we get clarity on that then we can decide between two alternatives, and not simply decide what we don't like about Europe, " he told BBC Radio Four's Today programme.

Mr Blair, who described Brexit as "catastrophe", said that talks with French president Francois Hollande this week had given him concerns about the looming negotiations.

"It convinced me that it's going to be very, very tough. We have to understand that we are not going to be conducting this negotiation with a group of European businessmen who may well decide that what they want is the maximum access into the UK, and they may be prepared to be quite forgiving, as it were.

"The people we will be conducting this negotiation with will be the political leaders of the European Union, and their parliaments, so this is going to be a negotiation, in my view, of enormous complexity.

"If you want access into the single market you are going to have to accept obligations, and if you don't have access to the single market, then the economic costs are going to be severe," Mr Blair said.

Writing in the New European newspaper, Mr Blair said: " The issue is not whether we ignore the will of the people, but whether, as information becomes available, and facts take the place of claims, the 'will' of the people shifts."

Tory MP Maria Caulfield, who sits on the Commons Brexit Committee, said: "Tony Blair broke his own promise of a referendum on the EU, encouraged uncontrolled immigration and now can't come to terms with the decision of the people of the UK to leave.

"Instead of desperately trying to find ways to thwart the will of voters and talking down Britain's prospects, Labour should be concentrating on helping to make a success of Brexit."

Downing Street insisted there would be no second referendum and brushed off concerns about Mr Blair communicating his views with Mr Hollande.

A No 10 spokesman told a Westminster briefing: "Tony Blair is entitled to put his views to whom he so chooses.

"But what's important is the PM has been absolutely clear - the British people have spoken, we are listening, we're going to leave the European Union.

"And not only has the PM been clear here but she's also been clear when she's met European leaders.
Drivers win ruling against Uber in case with implications for 'gig' economy

Online taxi firm Uber has lost a legal case on the employment rights of drivers in a ruling which could affect thousands of other workers and trigger massive changes in the "gig" economy.

Two drivers, supported by the GMB union, won a tribunal case against the private hire firm, successfully arguing they were employees rather than self-employed independent operators and should thus be entitled to holiday pay and a guaranteed minimum wage.

Uber claimed it is a technology company rather than a taxi firm, and says employment arrangements allow its 30,000 drivers across England and Wales to be their own boss and work flexibly.

The Uber drivers argued that they should be entitled to holiday pay and receive at least the national minimum wage

But the tribunal panel offered a scathing dismissal of Uber's arguments, suggesting the firm had tried to bamboozle its drivers and passengers with "fictions", "twisted language" and "brand new terminology".

Judge Anthony Snelson even quoted from Shakespeare's great tragedy Hamlet in his withering assessment of the company's defence, saying: "Reflecting on the respondents' general case, and on the grimly loyal evidence of (Uber regional general manager) Jo Bertram in particular, we cannot help being reminded of Queen Gertrude's most celebrated line, 'The lady doth protest too much, methinks'."

He added: "It is not real to regard Uber as working 'for' the drivers, and the only sensible interpretation is that the relationship is the other way around."

The ruling - which Uber said it is appealing against - is likely to have major implications for thousands of employees in the gig economy, in which users acquire on-demand services through apps and websites.

Nigel Mackay from Leigh Day, which represented two drivers, James Farrar and Yaseen Aslam, in the test case, described the judgment as a "game-changer".

He said: "Other companies that are structuring their business in this way will now need to look at those arrangements because they are at risk of a similar finding.

"If you run a technology business you can't just use that to hide from employment law. Just because you are a modern technology business doesn't mean you are above the law."

The case is the first time Uber has faced legal action in the UK over whether its drivers are workers or self-employed.

Uber claimed its drivers have a choice about their work and argued there is nothing to force them to drive exclusively for Uber, giving them freedom to work with other private hire operators.

But lawyers for the drivers claimed Uber acts unlawfully by deducting sums from their pay, often without telling them in advance, including when customers make complaints.

Mr Farrar, from Bordon in Hampshire, told the tribunal there was "tremendous pressure" to meet Uber's demands and drivers were forced to choose between safety and doing the job.

He also claimed he had been paid around 5 an hour for some work, far below the minimum wage and what Uber said it paid him, and dismissed suggestions that Uber is a customer of drivers who run their own businesses, saying it "in no way reflects the reality".

The TUC said the Uber case had exposed the "dark side" of the UK's flexible labour market and was the "tip of the iceberg".

General secretary Frances O'Grady said: "The GMB deserve huge credit for a shining light on conditions at Uber and winning this landmark action.

"For many workers the gig economy is a rigged economy, where bosses can get out of paying the minimum wage and providing basics like paid holidays and rest breaks."

The GMB's legal director Maria Ludkin described the ruling as a "monumental victory" and suggested Uber drivers should join the union to force the company to recognise their rights.

She said: "This loophole that has allowed unscrupulous employers to avoid employment rights, sick pay and minimum wage for their staff and costing the government millions in lost tax revenue will now be closed.

"Uber drivers and thousands of others caught in the bogus self-employment trap will now enjoy the same rights as employees.

Ms Bertram said Uber would appeal against the ruling, saying: "Tens of thousands of people in London drive with Uber precisely because they want to be self-employed and their own boss.

"The overwhelming majority of drivers who use the Uber app want to keep the freedom and flexibility of being able to drive when and where they want.
Jurgen Klopp praises Christian Benteke as Liverpool prepare to face striker

Jurgen Klopp will not be surprised if Christian Benteke comes back to haunt Liverpool on Saturday.

Liverpool paid 32.5million to sign the striker from Aston Villa in the summer of 2015 but then sold him a year later to Crystal Palace.

Now Benteke will line up against Liverpool for the first time since leaving Anfield and will no doubt be looking to prove a point.

Christian Benteke has netted three times for Crystal Palace after leaving Liverpool in the summer

The Belgium striker has made a good early impression at Palace, scoring three goals in seven Premier League games, and he has an admirer in Klopp despite the decision to let him go.

The Reds boss said of Benteke's form: " It's no surprise. When you have a player like Christian in your squad, of course we knew about his quality.

"But every player needs the space to perform, to develop and to show things. For different reasons we couldn't give him all the time (he needed), you lose a little bit of confidence, you feel pressure.

"We couldn't change it and I thought, and I'm pretty sure Christian thinks the same, it made sense. He made the transfer so, for Crystal Palace, what a player.

"We know it best because we had him all the time in training and in all moments he showed always his quality."

Keeping a large squad full of international players happy is a perennial issue for the Premier League's top managers.

This week Simon Mignolet said he would never be happy as a number two after Klopp announced Loris Karius was his first-choice keeper.

But the German insisted his is a happy camp, saying: " I'm always honest and I say my door and the door in the team is always open but it's about performing.

"We have always this agreement: work hard, don't talk too much, win games. If a player doesn't want to be happy I can't keep him happy, but if he wants to be happy it's quite easy for me to keep him happy.

"Being happy only when you make 48 games, it's difficult for each player. To feel you are important for the team, that's 100 per cent true for each player in the squad. I think it's not too difficult to be happy in our team."

Liverpool head down to London looking to make it six wins from seven Premier League games, a run that has put them level on points with Manchester City and Arsenal at the top of the table.

A young Reds team defeated Tottenham in the EFL Cup in midweek and Klopp's impact has been praised by Sir Alex Ferguson.

The former Manchester United manager said the German has revived Liverpool's enthusiasm and that the Reds are title contenders.

"I'm not sure it's allowed if I say I like Alex Ferguson as Liverpool manager," said Klopp with a smile.

"I knew him before and he's a really nice person. He did what he had to do at Manchester and that automatically means it's not good for Liverpool.

"When he has to say something positive about Liverpool, it's better than if he would say something negative so it's all good. But it doesn't mean a lot. It doesn't disturb us or help us."

Klopp, meanwhile, declined to comment on reports that Liverpool have signed 15-year-old Bury defender Emeka Obi and insisted no decision has yet been made about the future of Melwood.

It has been reported that the Reds are ready to sell their long-term training base in order to bring all age groups under one roof. Currently the academy and youth teams train at Kirkby and there is no room to expand Melwood.
Prince Harry hails 'amazing' experience moving elephants across Malawi

Prince Harry has described the experience of moving herds of African elephants hundreds of miles to a safer home as "amazing".

During the summer Harry joined conservationists working in Malawai on the ambitious 500 Elephants project to transport the creatures from an overstocked area to another with less human-wildlife conflict and more food and resources.

Photographs and a video have been released showing the Prince working over three weeks helping to catch anaesthetised elephants and load them on to trucks or into trailers.

Prince Harry worked in Malawi with African Parks as part of an initiative involvoing moving 500 elephants (Kensington Palace/PA)

In one comic image Harry is pictured with eight others hanging on to a rope tied around the leg of a darted bull male trying to escape.

The project is being organised by African Parks, a conservation NGO that manages protected areas and national parks on behalf of governments, which released the video.

In the footage, Harry says: "They need to be moved to another place and this is the most efficient and least invasive way of being able to do it. I can tell you after three weeks there is zero stress on these animals and they're going from one beautiful place to another beautiful place.''

The animals are being moved 200 miles (322km) across Malawi from Liwonde National Park and Majete Wildlife Reserve to Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve, where the elephants will be able to thrive.

The Prince helped with the first phase of the translocation when 261 elephants were successfully re-homed. The remaining 239 elephants will be moved during the second phase next summer.

In another photograph he is seen marking a captured young male, with removable spray paint, so that he can be identifiable when the family group is released back into the bush.

As scenes of elephants wandering free are shown in the video, Harry says: ''Elephants - that's one of the cores of Africa, you can't imagine anywhere like this existing without elephants.

''People can connect with them but one of the fears (is the) overcrowding of elephants and wondering where we are going to put all of these animals.

''In some countries the numbers are dropping unbelievably quickly, in other countries you've got almost too many - there's this weird imbalance.''

Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve supported more than 1,500 elephants 20 years ago but, due to rampant poaching, numbers have dwindled to 100 before the start of the translocation.

When images are screened of animals being driven away on the backs of flatbed lorries, Harry adds: ''It's amazing to see such unbelievable creatures being moved in a way you could never even dream of.''

In another sequence, the Prince, wearing a cap, khaki shirt with the sleeves rolled up and jeans, puts a strap around an elephant's leg and later he is seen helping to guide an anaesthetised animal to the ground with others and then stroking a sedated elephant on a lorry.

He adds: ''To be with elephants - such a massive beast - is a unique experience.''

The conservation organisation WWF says on its website that despite a ban on the international trade in ivory, African elephants are still being poached in large numbers.
Tottenham dismiss talk of move for Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero

Mauricio Pochettino has laughed off speculation that Tottenham are interested in signing Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero.

Pochettino chuckled when quizzed on whether Spurs were tracking Aguero, then scotched rumours linking the White Hart Lane club with the Argentinian frontman.

Reports in the Spanish press have claimed Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea are all weighing up bids for Aguero, who has not been assured of a starting berth in recent weeks.

Mauricio Pochettino's Tottenham side take on champions Leicester

Asked if Tottenham had any interest in Aguero, manager Pochettino said: "Not true, 100 per cent not true."

Pochettino also indicated Harry Kane could return for Spurs' north London derby clash at Arsenal on Sunday, November 6.

Kane has been sidelined with knee trouble since Spurs' 1-0 home win over Sunderland on September 18, but Pochettino remains hopeful the England striker is closing in on full fitness.

Tottenham host Leicester on Saturday, then entertain Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, before travelling to the Emirates Stadium.

"It's difficult to know with Harry, but we'll see," said Pochettino, confirming the 23-year-old will miss the Leicester match.

"If not Wednesday, maybe Sunday (for Arsenal). If not, we have to wait two weeks until after the international break."

Defender Toby Alderweireld will also miss Saturday's Leicester clash with knee trouble, and could also return either to face Leverkusen or Arsenal.

Spurs' Argentinian boss revealed his players almost face tougher training in injury rehabilitation than in regular sessions, in order to maintain peak fitness.

"They are not frustrated, that's a word we don't like to use," said Pochettino, of Kane and Alderweireld.

"They feel very well, they're working very hard and they suffer a lot.

"Do you know why they want to be available quickly? Because we kill them when they are injured.

"They have double sessions every day, and they suffer, to keep fit then.

"It's a good thing to say, 'Hey come on, work hard'. That's a good thing.

"But they are very positive, but you cannot accelerate sometimes the process in your body.

"We can only work hard to keep them fit, and when the doctors say they are available that's when they are available.
Andy Murray maintains his hopes of taking over as world number one

Andy Murray cruised past John Isner in straight sets in the Erste Bank Open quarter-finals to keep alive his quest to be the world number one.

The Scot encountered few difficulties en route to a 6-1 6-3 success over Isner in Vienna as the big American battled a hand injury during the 74 minutes the pair were out on court.

Murray now faces defending champion David Ferrer in the final four on Saturday knowing a tournament victory in Austria, coupled with a success at next week's Masters event in Paris would see him reach the peak of the rankings for the first time in his career, as long as incumbent Novak Djokovic does not reach the final in France.

Andy Murray encountered few difficulties en route to the semi-finals

The top seed in Austria was given an early taste of 6ft 10in Isner's greatest weapon as he delivered two aces from the first pair of points, though the fact he then had to save two break points suggested Murray would be afforded opportunities.

More break-point chances duly arrived and Murray, using the court's depth to make Isner stoop to uncomfortable positions, claimed them to race to the first set in 27 minutes.

It was sealed by an unforced Isner error, his 20th of the set to Murray's one, and the 31-year-old complained about his grip as he took his seat between games.

The trainer was called for and he taped over a blister on Isner's right palm to try to remedy the issue, though Murray reeled off the first three games of the second set and was eyeing an early finish.

Isner finally won a game and pumped up the crowd in relief at doing so and he tested Murray's own serve by going 0-40 up before the Scot dug deep to stave off the threat.
South Africa's under-fire finance minister declines to comment on ANC backing

By Stella Mapenzauswa

CAPE TOWN, Oct 27 (Reuters) - South African Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan declined on Thursday to say whether he was confident of the ruling party's support, less than a week before he appears in court to answer fraud charges in a saga that has rocked the government.

Speaking a day after presenting his mid-term budget to parliament, Gordhan said he had tried not to let his Nov. 2 court case distract him while outlining measures to help kick-start an economy that he forecast would barely grow this year.

Gordhan is accused of fraudulently approving, in a previous post as head of the revenue service, early retirement for a deputy tax commissioner and re-hiring him as a consultant, costing the tax agency 1.1 million rand ($79,000).

He has denied any wrongdoing, saying the case is politically motivated, a sentiment echoed by opposition parties, business leaders and some senior African National Congress (ANC) party figures. The state prosecutor has rejected allegations of political interference.

Asked during a post-budget breakfast meeting whether he was still confident he had political backing, Gordhan said: "I'm not trying to duck, but I'm not going to answer it."

The ructions in government have weakened the rand and bonds in an economy struggling to create jobs. Some analysts say President Jacob Zuma's allies are driving the investigation in a bid to oust Gordhan, something the president denied.

"He (Gordhan) is well aware that while he does have some support inside the ANC, the faction that's supporting him is not winning," NKC Africa Economics analyst Gary van Staden said.

"If you're asked if you have support and you say I'm not answering that question, obviously he thinks he doesn't."

Gordhan, who on Wednesday slashed growth forecasts for the next three years and predicted wider budget deficits than previously expected, said he was not preoccupied with whether he had done enough to stave off credit rating downgrades.

"Our preoccupation is not rating agencies. Our preoccupation is putting the country on the right footing," Gordhan said.

"If we build confidence to the point where we get investment going ... everybody including ratings agencies will believe that we as a government are doing the right thing," he said.

Moody's, Fitch and S&P, who are due to review the credit rating of Africa's most industrialised country in November and December, have warned of downgrades if growth remains weak and Pretoria's commitment to fiscal prudence comes into doubt.

'CORRUPTION IS REAL'

Gordhan told parliament on Wednesday the economy was suffering infrastructure bottlenecks, volatile labour relations, regulatory constraints and red tape, inefficiencies in state-owned enterprises and uncertainties in the policy environment.

Moody's senior analyst Zuzana Brixiova however said on Thursday South Africa would continue to be challenged by slow progress and uncertainty around structural reforms meant to support growth. She also warned that spending pressures were likely to rise in the run-up to the 2019 elections.

In the budget, Gordhan urged public servants to work with integrity, honesty and accountability, a plea his deputy Mcebisi Jonas said referred to rampant corruption in state departments.

"Corruption is real, it's palpable, you can feel it, and you can see it in most agencies," Jonas told the post-budget briefing also attended by Gordhan.
Privacy group launches legal challenge against EU-U.S. data pact

By Julia Fioretti and Dustin Volz

BRUSSELS/WASHINGTON, Oct 27 (Reuters) - A widely expected legal challenge has been filed by an Irish privacy advocacy group to an EU-U.S. commercial data transfer pact underpinning billions of dollars of trade in digital services just two months after it came into force.

The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield was agreed earlier this year after the European Union's highest court struck down the previous Safe Harbour agreement over the transfer of Europeans' personal data to the United States, on concerns about intrusive U.S. surveillance.

The new agreement gives businesses moving personal data across the Atlantic - from human resources information to people's browsing histories to hotel bookings - an easy way to do so without falling foul of tough EU data transferral rules.

Digital Rights Ireland has challenged the adoption of the Privacy Shield pact by the EU executive in front of the second-highest EU court because it does not contain adequate privacy protections, people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

A spokeswoman for the Luxembourg-based General Court - the lower court of the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) - on Thursday confirmed the advocacy group sought the annulment of Privacy Shield decision. The case number is T-670/16.

Digital Rights Ireland declined to comment.

It will be a year or more before the court rules on the case and it could still be declared inadmissible if the court finds the Privacy Shield is not of direct concern to Digital Rights Ireland, two of the people said.

Individuals or companies may challenge EU acts before the EU courts if they are directly concerned within two months of the act coming into force.

"We are aware of the application (for annulment)," a spokesman for the European Commission said. "We don't comment on ongoing court cases. As we have said from the beginning, the Commission is convinced that the Privacy Shield will live up to the requirements set out by the European Court of Justice which has been the basis for the negotiations."

Revelations three years ago from former U.S. intelligence contractor Edward Snowden of mass U.S. surveillance practices caused political outrage in Europe and have cast cross-border data transfers in a pall of uncertainty.

The Privacy Shield seeks to strengthen the protection of Europeans whose data is moved to U.S. servers by giving EU citizens greater means to seek redress in case of disputes, including through a new privacy ombudsman within the State Department who will deal with complaints from EU citizens about U.S. spying.

An official at the U.S. Department of Commerce - which negotiated the pact for the United States - said it knew a legal challenge was a possibility and was monitoring the challenge brought by Digital Rights Ireland.

"The United States stands behind the Privacy Shield Framework and the critical privacy protections it affords individuals in furtherance of supporting robust transatlantic commerce and is ready to explain our safeguards and limitations if necessary," the official said.

Companies had to rely on other more cumbersome legal mechanisms in the wake of the ECJ ruling invalidating Safe Harbour, the framework that for 15 years was used by over 4,000 companies for transatlantic data transfers.
Iran says gas flow to Turkey halted after pipeline blast - Tasnim

ANKARA, Oct 28 (Reuters) - The flow of Iranian natural gas to Turkey halted after an explosion hit a gas pipeline in eastern Turkey, a senior Iranian official told Iran's semi-official news agency Tasnim on Friday.

"Iran's gas flow to Turkey has temporarily stopped because of a blast by some opposition groups inside Turkey around 1830 GMT on Thursday night," Interior Ministry official Majid Aghai told Tasnim.

Sabotage is common on pipelines leading into Turkey from Iran and Iraq, where the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) armed group is based.

A two-year-old ceasefire between the PKK and the Turkish state collapsed in July last year, triggering renewed violence.
Romania - Factors to watch on Oct. 28

Here are news stories, press reports and events to watch which may affect Romanian financial markets on Friday.

DEBT TENDER

Romania sold a planned 600 million lei ($145.58 million) worth of Feb. 2019 treasury bonds on Thursday, with the average accepted yield at 1.22 percent, central bank data showed.

CEE MARKETS

Hungarian government bonds retreated on Thursday ahead of bond auctions which are expected to draw good demand after yields increased across Central Europe in the past few days, tracking a rise in euro zone markets.

NATO

President Vladimir Putin's high-profile military deployments aim to showcase Russian power in any global confrontation with the West, NATO officials say, but the alliance will not seek to match Moscow's actions.

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT

The top court postponed a ruling on a Romanian-American same sex couple's request to have their Brussels marriage legally recognised in Romania to Nov. 29, the first such request to make it to the Constitutional Court. Same sex marriage is not legal in Romania and marriages abroad are not recognised.

For the long-term Romanian diary, click on

For emerging markets economic events, click on

For an index of all diaries, click on
Slovak Republic - Factors To Watch on Oct 28

BRATISLAVA, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Here are news stories, press reports and events to watch which may affect Slovak financial markets on Friday. ALL TIMES GMT (Slovak Republic: GMT + 2 hours) =========================ECONOMIC DATA======================== Real-time economic data releases.................. Summary of economic data and forecasts......... Recently released economic data................ Previous stories on Slovak data.......... **For a schedule of corporate and economic events: http://emea1.apps.cp.thomsonreuters.com/Apps/CountryWeb/#/1C/events-overview =======================EVENTS================================== BRATISLAVA - German, French, Italian finance ministers, EU Economic and Financial Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici and Energy Union Chief Maros Sefcovic will speak at the annual Globsec conference. Related stories: =========================NEWS================================== SLOVENSKE ELEKTRARNE: The likely cost of Slovakia's nuclear power plant at Mochovce has jumped to 5.4 billion euros ($5.9 billion), a government source said, double the original estimate. The construction of two 470-megawatt units at Mochovce - by Slovenske Elektrarne, owned by the Slovak state, Italy's Enel and Czech group EPH - has been beset by delays and budget overruns. Story: Related stories: AUTOMOTIVE: German carmaker Volkswagen will invest 150 million euros ($163.67 million) to build a logistics centre near its assembly plant in Bratislava, Slovakia, the company said on Thursday. Story: Related stories: For real-time stock market index quotes click in brackets: Warsaw WIG20 Budapest BUX Prague PX Main currency report TOP NEWS -- Emerging markets News editor of the day: Jason Hovet on +420 224 190 476 E-mail: prague.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (Reporting by Prague Newsroom)
PRESS DIGEST - Bulgaria - Oct 28

SOFIA, Oct 28 (Reuters) - These are some of the main stories in Bulgarian newspapers on Friday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

-- Tourist visits to Bulgaria have increased by 10 percent this year, when some 11 million foreign holiday makers have visited the Balkan country, Tourism Minister Nikolina Angelkova said. (24 Chasa, Duma, Capital Daily, Trud)

CAPITAL DAILY - Arco Capital Corporation has restructured its loans for Sofia-based business park and took 113 million euros from Unicredit Austria, Unicredit Bulbank and Raiffeisen International in a the biggest corporate refinancing in the country in the past two years.

-- The president approved the last minute changes in the voting code which allowed the opening of more voting sections in the European Union member states. (24 Chasa, Standart, Trud, Capital Daily, Sega)
Syrian rebels bombard Aleppo airbase before offensive-rebel, monitor

BEIRUT, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Syrian rebels launched Grad rockets at Aleppo's Nairab air base on Friday, part of their preparations for a new offensive aimed at breaking the government siege of insurgent-held areas of the city, a rebel official and a monitoring group said.

Zakaria Malahifji, an official with the Fastaqim rebel group present in Aleppo, said a number of insurgent groups would participate in the new offensive and that the bombardment of the air base was part of this.
Germany's CompuGroup makes takeover approach to Agfa

By Maria Sheahan and Robert-Jan Bartunek

FRANKFURT/BRUSSELS, Oct 28 (Reuters) - German medical software company CompuGroup Medical has approached Belgian graphics group Agfa-Gevaert about a possible takeover, the two companies said on Friday.

Agfa makes medical IT products, which would add to CompuGroup's range of software for doctors' offices, pharmacies and hospitals, and also has a portfolio of other products including X-ray machines.

The combined company would have annual sales of more than 3 billion euros ($3.3 billion).

CompuGroup said it had given Agfa's board of directors a non-binding indication of interest but said it was not certain that it would end up making a firm offer.

"The discussions between the companies are at an early stage. No response has been given to the indication of interest and CompuGroup Medical SE has not been able to verify or discuss any of the assumptions and conditions underlying its indication of interest," CompuGroup said.

Agfa, whose market value has shrunk by a third to 616 million euros this year, said its board would evaluate CompuGroup's approach carefully.

The news sent shares in Agfa up 6.2 percent to a six-month high of 3.80 euros.

CompuGroup shares were down 3.7 percent in early trade, with traders citing concerns that the German company would be overtaxing itself with a takeover of Agfa.

"We think a takeover offer by CompuGroup will only occur if they have a solution for Agfa Graphics and the 1.25 billion euros pension liabilities in hand," analysts at KBC said in a note to clients.

CompuGroup has grown through a series of bolt-on acquisitions in recent years, most recently buying a majority in Vega, an Italian distributor of its software, last month.

Agfa, which in 2004 sold its eponymous camera film business which made it a household name, is active in the printing and medical imaging business.

Its healthcare business accounts for about 40 percent of its 2.6 billion euros in annual revenue.
Thailand's crown prince to fly abroad, return next month - sources

BANGKOK, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Thailand's Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn will fly overseas on Friday night and return home next month, three senior military sources with knowledge of the matter said, two weeks after the death of his father, the revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

The departure comes during a timeframe the military government had identified for the prince to ascend the throne, with Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha saying last week it could be within seven to 15 days of the king's death, or even later.

The coronation of the crown prince, however, cannot take place until after the king's royal cremation, in a year's time.

The government has sought to dispel any concern about a royal succession after Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn said he would delay his ascension to the throne while he mourns his father.

"The prince will leave Thailand this evening to attend to personal business and will return next month in time to preside over an official engagement," said a senior military source who declined to be identified, because the matter is sensitive.

The prince has spent much of his adult life abroad, and has a home in Germany where his son, Prince Dipangkorn, is enrolled at a private school.

His departure could trigger market jitters and fuel speculation about complications in the succession, said a senior market analyst who is Thai, and based in Singapore, but who declined to be identified because the topic is a sensitive one.

"The government has been keen to stress that the succession will go smoothly," he said. "The prince's departure could get people talking again about stability in Thailand if the handover does not go according to plan."

Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn, 64, is the king's designated successor, but junta chief Prayuth Chan-ocha said hours after the king's death that the prince had informed him he was not yet ready to assume the throne because he wanted to grieve.
Pakistani police fire tear gas at stone-throwing opposition supporters - TV

ISLAMABAD, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Pakistani police in the city of Rawalpindi on Friday used tear gas in clashes with stone-throwing supporters of Pakistani opposition leader Imran Khan defying a ban on public gatherings.

There was no immediate report of injuries but TV stations carried footage of police firing tear gas and charging with batons at rock-hurling protesters.
Northern Irish court sides with UK premier over Brexit challenge

By Amanda Ferguson

BELFAST, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Northern Ireland's High Court on Friday rejected an attempt to block Britain's exit from the European Union, saying that neither the province's parliament nor its laws could override a decision by the British government.

But it said it would defer to English courts on the wider issue of whether the British government has the right to invoke Article 50 of the EU Lisbon Treaty to leave the bloc without the explicit backing of the British parliament.

Prime Minister Theresa May welcomed the ruling, with a spokesman saying it would allow the British government "to proceed to trigger Article 50 as planned".

One of the plaintiffs, human rights activist Raymond McCord, said he would appeal against the ruling in the Supreme Court, Britain's highest judicial body.

The case is the first judgment in legal disputes over Brexit that are being closely watched by politicians and markets. It comes amid political tension among the four nations of the United Kingdom - England and Wales, which voted to leave the EU, and Northern Ireland and Scotland, which voted to remain.

A case in London will rule on whether May can use the government's "royal prerogative" power to trigger Article 50 without consulting parliament.

"The fact that the government has won in the Northern Ireland case could be seen to indicate that its prerogative power is holding up pretty well," said Stephen Tierney, director of the Edinburgh Centre for Constitutional Law.

"I would personally be surprised if the High Court in England reached a different conclusion," he said.

Scotland's pro-independence government said it did not believe the court ruling gave any clear pointers to its own situation.

"We are considering the judgement, but it must be noted that this case examined the specifics of the situation in Northern Ireland and therefore has no automatic implications for Scotland," a spokesman for the Scottish government said.

STERLING DIPS

Sterling fell to an eight-day low against the euro after the ruling.

Overall, 52 percent of the United Kingdom voted in favour of leaving the EU in June's referendum, but 56 percent of those voting in Northern Ireland backed remaining in the bloc.

There are fears that Brexit could undermine a 1998 peace deal, the Good Friday Agreement, which ended three decades of bloodshed in the province, and could lead to the reintroduction of unpopular controls on the border with the Republic of Ireland, an EU member.

But justice Paul Maguire said it was "not viable" that Northern Ireland should overrule the 52 percent of the United Kingdom as a whole that voted in favour of leaving.

The regional parliament would have a say on legislation passed to enact Britain's exit, but the triggering of Article 50 itself was not a "devolved matter".

"The UK Parliament has retained to itself the ability to legislate for NI without the need to resort to any special procedure," Maguire said.

The arguments about May's rights to trigger Article 50 "have been held over pending the outcome of the English litigation", he added.

SCOTTISH IMPLICATIONS

Rights activist McCord told reporters that the ruling was just a setback and he would continue to fight Brexit.

"I believe what we are doing is correct. Fifty-six percent of the people of this country (Northern Ireland) voted to remain."

A group of politicians and rights groups who launched a parallel case that was merged with McCord's said they were "deeply disappointed" by the rejection of their case, but had not yet decided whether to appeal.

Northern Ireland's largest Irish nationalist party, Sinn Fein, said it would study the judgment carefully and explore every option to ensure the remain vote was respected.

That chimes with the stance of the devolved Scottish government, which is trying to drum up support to keep its membership of the EU's single market for goods and services.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said it would be an act of "constitutional vandalism" to try to ignore Scotland's voice.

"The First Minister has made clear that any proposal to remove Scotland from the EU would need legislation at Westminster, and that legislation would require the consent of the Scottish Parliament," a Scottish government spokesman said.
UK government welcomes N. Ireland court ruling on Brexit

LONDON, Oct 28 (Reuters) - The British government welcomed a ruling by Northern Ireland's High Court on Friday that the law of the province did not restrict the ability of Prime Minister Theresa May to trigger an exit from the European Union.

"We welcome the court's judgement this morning and that it agrees we can proceed to trigger Article 50 as planned," May's spokesman said, referring to the Article 50 legal process of exiting the EU.

In Northern Ireland, there are fears that Brexit could undermine a 1998 peace deal that ended three decades of bloodshed and lead to the reintroduction of unpopular and cumbersome controls on the border with the Republic of Ireland, which is an EU member.
Rio Tinto set to quit Guinea iron ore project with sale to Chinalco

By Barbara Lewis and Rahul B

LONDON/BENGALURU, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Rio Tinto has signed a preliminary deal to sell its stake in Guinea's Simandou project to Chinalco, it said on Friday, injecting impetus into the long-stalled scheme to develop the world's largest untapped iron ore reserves.

For all the project's potential, mining company Rio has voiced frustration over the difficulty of drumming up financing and industry sources said the agreement could open the door to Chinese funding.

China, the world's largest iron ore consumer, provides an obvious market for Simandou, which Guinea is counting on to spur economic growth after the West African country was hit by a crippling Ebola epidemic.

When fully operational, Simandou could double Guinea's GDP, project partners have said.

Guinea's Minister of Mines and Geology, Abdoulaye Magassouba, welcomed the deal and called for the creation of a joint working group with Chinalco to drive the scheme forward.

"This is a very positive event for the project, but we still have long months of work and significant challenges to overcome for the effective relaunching of the project," he said in a statement.

Rio has a 46.6 percent stake in Simandou , while state-owned Chinese metals producer Chinalco has 41.3 percent and the Guinea government 7.5 percent.

If the deal to sell out to Chinalco goes ahead, Rio Tinto will receive payments of between $1.1 billion and $1.3 billion based on the timing of the project's development, it said in a statement, adding that the aim was to seal a final deal in less than six months.

Rio Tinto CEO Jean-Sebastien Jacques said in August that there had been no progress on finding infrastructure funding for Simandou and in October the International Finance Corporation (IFC), an arm of the World Bank, said it was withdrawing from the the project.

'GREAT OUTCOME'

Rio's London-listed shares were up 0.9 percent at 28.20 pounds at 1339 GMT, outperforming a 0.2 percent gain for the wider sector.

Analysts said the deal was bullish for Rio, citing the diffculty of financing the project and uncertainty about when production would start.

David Butler, analyst at Barclays, said the prospect of recovering more than a $1 bln from Rio's stake "is a great outcome".

Over the course of its involvement in Simandou, Rio says it has spent about $1.4 billion out of the project's total investment so far of about $3.5 billion.

One of the many issues has been doubt over demand for iron ore because the steel market, the main user of the raw material, is chronically oversupplied.

Rio's new boss, who took over in June from a CEO with a track record in iron ore, has earned kudos for his Oyu Tolgoi project in Mongolia, which when completed will be the world's third-biggest copper mine.

Analysts and investors have interpreted Jacques' background as suggesting a shift from iron ore and increased focus on copper.
Ex-Miss Finland says Trump groped her

HELSINKI, Oct 28 (Reuters) - A former Miss Finland has accused U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump of groping her in 2006 when she was representing the country in the Miss Universe beauty contest.

Ninni Laaksonen told the Ilta-Sanomat newspaper that the Republican presidential nominee had grabbed her behind before she appeared on a television show in New York with other contestants.

"He really grabbed my butt. I don't think anybody saw it but I flinched and thought: 'What is happening?'," Laaksonen was quoted as saying in the newspaper.

The accusation follows a stream of allegations of inappropriate conduct by Trump from other women in the United States which have put pressure on his campaign as he trails in opinion polls ahead of the Nov. 8 election. Trump has denied the accusations.
Rio Tinto set to quit Guinea iron ore project with sale to Chinalco

By Barbara Lewis and Rahul B

LONDON/BENGALURU, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Mining company Rio Tinto has agreed to sell its stake in Guinea's Simandou project to Chinalco, it said on Friday, potentially kickstarting the long-stalled scheme to develop the world's largest untapped iron ore reserves.

For all the project's huge potential, Rio has voiced frustration over the difficulty of drumming up financing, though industry sources said that the change of ownership could open up access to Chinese funding.

China, the world's largest iron ore consumer, provides an obvious market for Simandou, which Guinea is counting on to spur economic growth after the West African country was hit by a crippling Ebola epidemic.

When fully operational, Simandou could double Guinea's GDP, project partners have said.

Rio has a 46.6 percent stake in the project, while state-owned Chinese metals producer Chinalco has 41.3 percent and the Guinea government 7.5 percent.

If the deal to sell out to Chinalco goes ahead, Rio Tinto will receive payments of between $1.1 billion and $1.3 billion based on the timing of the project's development, it said in a statement, adding that the aim was to seal a final deal in less than six months.

Rio Tinto CEO Jean-Sebastien Jacques said in August that there had been no progress on finding infrastructure funding for Simandou and in October the International Finance Corporation (IFC), an arm of the World Bank, said it was withdrawing from the the project.

Rio's London-listed shares were up nearly 0.5 percent at 28.10 pounds at 1219 GMT, outperforming a less than 0.1 percent gain for the wider sector.

Analysts said the deal was bullish for Rio, citing the diffculty of financing the project and uncertainty about when production would start.

David Butler, analyst at Barclays, said the prospect of recovering more than a $1 bln from their stake "is a great outcome".

One of the many issues for the project has been doubt over demand for iron ore because of the steel market, the main user of the raw material, is chronically oversupplied.

Rio's new boss, who took over in June from a CEO with a track record in iron ore, has earned kudos for his Oyu Tolgoi project in Mongolia, which when completed will be the world's third-biggest copper mine.
More than one million children starve as Yemen war rages - U.N. agencies

By Lin Taylor

LONDON, Oct 28 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Around 1.5 million children in Yemen are malnourished and half the population lives in hunger, United Nations aid agencies said on Friday, three days after pictures of an emaciated Yemeni teenager sparked headlines around the world.

Yemen's 18-month war has left 370,000 children at risk of severe malnutrition - a condition which needs urgent treatment to prevent a child from dying - the U.N. children's agency UNICEF said at a press briefing in Geneva on Friday.

"It is really a dire situation on the ground. When you see mothers who have little to eat themselves and they see their children slipping away, it just breaks your heart," said World Food Programme (WFP) spokeswoman Bettina Luescher at the briefing.

"It really is shocking and horrible to see this in the 21st century."

Overall, almost half of all children in Yemen are stunted, according to WFP. Stunting is where children are short for their age, and is a sign of chronic malnutrition.

Luescher said because of diminishing resources and increased needs the U.N. agency has had to split food aid into smaller rations to reach 6 million people every month.

Around 7 million Yemenis are "desperately in need of food", she said, and the situation could worsen as the war rages.

Even before the conflict broke out, Yemen had one of the highest rates of malnutrition in the world, WFP said.

The agency said it needed $257 million to provide food aid until March next year.

These reports come after recent Reuters photos of a starving 18-year-old girl in a Yemeni hospital attracted worldwide attention.

The teenager is one of more than 13 million people, about half of Yemen's population, who are short of food, with much of the country on the brink of famine, according to the United Nations.

Her picture is a reminder of the humanitarian crisis in the Arabian Peninsula's poorest country where at least 10,000 people have been killed and millions displaced by fighting between the Saudi-led Arab coalition and the Iran-allied Houthi movement.
Brazil prosecutor says any Odebrecht plea deal 'months' away

By Brad Brooks

CURITIBA, Brazil, Oct 28 (Reuters) - A long-anticipated plea bargain deal with the construction firm at the center of Brazil's largest graft scheme is at least "months" away and could fall apart due to interference by fearful politicians, a top prosecutor told Reuters.

Construction firm Odebrecht SA, the largest in Latin America, is accused of being the main corporate driver behind the long-running massive political kickback scheme at state oil company Petrobras.

Local media reports of a nearly final plea bargain have heightened expectations of an impending political bombshell. If top Odebrecht executives turn state's witnesses, they could implicate scores of politicians who took bribes.

"There is no signed deal. There is no agreement. There are many details large and small to work out," said Carlos Lima, a lead prosecutor in the sprawling kickback probe focused on Petrobras, formally known as Petroleo Brasileiro SA Petrobras.

"All these negotiations are extremely complex and they take a long time to finalize because they involve many facts, many people," Lima said on Thursday in an interview at his office in the southern city of Curitiba, where federal police, prosecutors and a crusading judge have led Brazil's anti-corruption fight.

Lima emphasized repeatedly there "is no agreement with Odebrecht, neither with the individuals nor a (leniency) deal with the company."

Lawyers for Odebrecht said in an email they could not talk about the ongoing negotiations with prosecutors.

Graft took place not just in Brazil, but in several other Latin American nations and in Africa where the company has infrastructure projects, some of which are already under investigation, according to investigators.

Marcelo Odebrecht, the firm's former chief executive officer, is serving a 19-year jail term after he was convicted of corruption this year.

For months after his arrest last year, Odebrecht steadfastly refused to consider turning state's witness.

Prosecutors made clear that if he remained silent, they would dismiss any deal for dozens of company executives or the firm itself.

Before he was sentenced this year, Marcelo Odebrecht told lawmakers running a congressional probe into the Petrobras scheme that "to snitch, you have to have something to snitch."

He added that if one of his children had done something wrong, "I'd maybe have more of a problem with the one who snitched than the one who did it."

NOT MUCH CONFIDENCE

The company quickly changed its tune. In March police discovered through documents and records on executives' mobile phones that the company had created a department devoted to tracking billions in bribes paid out to politicians over the years in return for winning bloated government contracts.

The company announced it was willing to cooperate "to help build a better Brazil."

Odebrecht is further motivated to strike a leniency agreement because like other construction firms involved in the Petrobras scheme, it is blocked from winning any government contracts.

Also, credit has dried up and the company is trying to restructure over 100 billion reais ($31.69 billion) in debt.

That led Marcelo Odebrecht's father Emilio, the former CEO, to push his son to strike a deal with prosecutors, according to two government sources.

Lima would not discuss details about the negotiations. While he said he is more optimistic now than a few months ago over a deal, he issued a warning.

"I cannot say I have great confidence that any deal will be reached because we're living with incredible institutional instability," he said. "I don't know how much interest there is on the part of the federal government that these types of deals are reached."

"A good chunk of what is discussed in these negotiations, not just with Odebrecht, involves politicians who are or were active in government."

Critics have blasted new President Michel Temer's government and congressmen from his Brazilian Democratic Movement Party for trying to weaken the independence of corruption probes in an attempt to protect corrupt officials.

Lima pointed to the updating of a 1965 dictatorship-era "Abuse of Authority Law" proposed by Senate leader Renan Calheiros, who is under investigation in the Petrobras graft scheme.

The law would hold judges and investigators criminally liable if a high court overturns a decision ordering the imprisonment of a suspect or dismisses charges. The measure is currently in the Senate in a Congress dominated by Temer's party and its allies.

Federal judges and prosecutors have held protests in recent weeks against the law, saying it is a direct threat against pursuing suspects in the growing number of complex corruption cases surfacing in Brazil.
Colombia child soldiers reluctant to leave FARC 'family' - rebel commander

By Anastasia Moloney

BOGOTA, Oct 28 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - The release of scores of child soldiers from Colombia's FARC rebel group is a top priority, but some are reluctant to leave because they fear an uncertain future away from the insurgents they view as family, a guerrilla commander said.

Victoria Sandino, a commander with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), has a seat at the negotiating table where the government and FARC are working to revive a peace accord signed by both sides but narrowly rejected by voters in a referendum earlier this month.

She said children are wary about leaving rebel ranks.

"They don't want to leave the organization," Sandino told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in a telephone interview from Cuba where peace negotiators are gathered.

"One of the reasons they are telling us this is: 'Well you protected us here during the fighting and the entire period of the war."

"And now that there's no fighting, we are expected to leave ... the environment we know, the people we know, and our family because the FARC organization is a big family for all of us," she said.

Last month the FARC released eight child soldiers aged under 15 as part of peace talks.

Sandino said there are no more combatants under 15 in rebel ranks and reiterated the FARC's commitment to release all its remaining child fighters, mostly aged 16 and 17, despite the referendum result.

But such efforts have been slow, further hampered by uncertainty over the future of the peace accord.

Under the signed peace deal, rebel fighters move to designated areas across Colombia and hand in their weapons.

"There's a lot of resistance on the part of the other minors under 18 with regards to leaving before we all reincorporate (into civilian life)," Sandino said.

PEACE ACCORD

Government and FARC peace negotiators have been mulling over dozens of proposals this week from representatives of those who voted against the accord as too lenient on the rebels.

The "No" side, led by Alvaro Uribe, a former president and opposition rival, wants rebels who have committed war crimes to be confined for five to eight years - possibly on agricultural farms - and banned from elected office.

They were outraged that the accord offered 10 congressional seats and punishments like clearing landmines instead of jail, in return for ending a five-decade conflict that has killed more than 220,000 people and displaced 7 million.

"The spirit of the accord is there, and it will continue and be preserved, but we will and we are trying to collect many of these concerns expressed by many sectors," Sandino said.

Yet there may be little room for manoeuvre as the FARC have repeatedly refused to consider jail time and want to form a political party, experts say.

And the clock is ticking for negotiators to hammer out a new accord before a government ceasefire - extended a second time by President Juan Manuel Santos - ends on December 31.

RIGHTS VIOLATIONS

Around 11,000 children have been recruited into FARC ranks since 1975, according to Colombia's attorney general's office.

Former child combatants have said they voluntarily joined the FARC, many to escape abuse and poverty at home and others because they became orphans as a result of the war.

"They are not prisoners," Sandino said.

But the FARC have long been accused by human rights groups and the government of forcibly recruiting children, especially from Afro-Colombian and indigenous groups, in jungle areas.

Around 6,000 child soldiers have either deserted or been rescued by state security forces. They had been used as porters, messengers and informants, and trained to fight and plant landmines.

A report earlier this month by the U.N. secretary-general on children and armed conflict said some minors were forced to commit serious crimes while in rebel ranks, including one 12 year-old who was forced to torture and kill his friends.

WOMEN FIGHTERS

Sandino, who holds a journalism degree, left for the jungle to join the FARC when she was 25, motivated by the group's Marxist ideals, and moved up the ranks to become a commander.

Women make up 40 percent of the FARC's 7,000-strong fighters and have fought alongside men during combat, she said.

"We have been there shoulder to shoulder with men," Sandino said.

"As we have contributed in the war, so today we are fully ready and with all our ability and our experience to contribute to peace," she said.

While peace negotiators revise the deal, fighters are contemplating the chance of going home and being reunited with their sons and daughters many have not seen for years.

With parenthood not an option in the middle of war, most rebel fighters who got pregnant either had an abortion or handed over their babies to relatives or strangers to look after.

Now what is weighing on their minds is whether they can become a part of their child's life, Sandino said.

"Many of the female guerrillas aren't thinking 'Well now I'm out, so I'll go and pick up my child from a family that helped raise my child'," Sandino said.
U.S. voices concern to Myanmar about reported rapes of Rohingya women

WASHINGTON, Oct 28 (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department said on Friday that it had voiced concern to Myanmar's foreign ministry about the reported rape of Rohingya Muslim women by soldiers during a recent upsurge in violence against the persecuted minority.

State Department spokesman Mark Toner told a briefing that the United States wanted Myanmar to investigate the reported rapes and hold those responsible accountable.

Toner said earlier that the United States had raised the issue with the Myanmar foreign minister, but the State Department later issued a transcript of the briefing saying it had brought the issue up with "the foreign ministry," not the foreign minister.

Eight Rohingya women, all from U Shey Kya village in Rakhine State, described how soldiers last week raided their homes, looted property and raped them at gun point.

Reuters interviewed three of the women in person and five by telephone, and spoke with human rights groups and community leaders. Not all the claims could be independently verified, including a total number of women assaulted.
ATL ( Amana Takaful PLC ) organized a highly successful training programme on road safety in partnership with the Traffic Police Branch of Eravurrecently at the Vantharumul Madhya Maha Vidyalaya,Sittandy. Close to 100 Student Traffic Controllers together with their teachers were seen participating in this exceptionally well organized event that brought about participants from many schools in the locality.

This event which included a lecture on road safety rules followed by a practical session on traffic control was seen as a very timely initiative in creating road safety awareness amongst the students. The programme for the day consisted of a lecture on basic traffic instructions and a practical training session and a follow up discussion conducted by SudathThenuwara, OIC-Traffic Branch, Eravur together with his team. This was followed by a presentation that consisted of accident awareness videos.

Commenting on this timely initiative, SumedhaMirihana, Manager - Marketing Activations, ATL had this to say Sri Lanka records one of the highest death rates by road accidents annually, mainly due to the negligence of the drivers, riders and the pedestrians. ATL as an establishment and as aresponsible insurer that places great value on human life has a greater social responsibility towards awareness creation. This was seen as one of the ways that we could intervene to create awareness amongst the students by linking them with the traffic police divisions for greater knowledge sharing. We hope to carry out more programmes of this nature in future, and also take this opportunity to extend our sincere thanks to the Eravur Traffic Police Branch for their support and assistance.

Also commenting on the event, SugathTenuwara, OIC Traffic Branch  Eravur, who was the chief instructor of the programme said, We are indeed thankful to ATL for this timely initiative, it is of high importance that road safety awareness is created and these rules and regulations are introduced to the children from a young age. We would like to propose that this initiative be continued and this be rolled out to other police divisions as well.

ATL continuously reaches out to customers from all segments of society and offers innovative and state-of-the-art insurance products that are convenient, affordable and reliable. As part of its commitment to remain open to all, ATL serves all communities and employs a multi-ethnic team across its network. The company was also recently upgraded by the Lanka Rating Agency to a rating of BBB/P3/Stable and recently achieved ISO 9001:2008 re-certification.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka) and its public sector wing, will host a high profile regional seminar in November, to help stimulate thinking on how South Asia can take financial reporting practices to the next level. Organised by the South Asian Federation of Accountants (SAFA), World Bank Group, and CA Sri Lanka, the two-day seminar series on Enhancing public financial reporting to promote growth in South Asia will also be supported by the Asian Development Bank.



The programme on November 3 and 4, will bring together policy makers, preparers and users of financial statements, regulators, public auditors, professional accountancy organizations, academia, think tanks and other relevant stakeholders from across South Asia. Officials from international organizations such as International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board will also be in attendance to share their insights on the global trends in reporting.



The aim of the programme is to create awareness on the usefulness of high quality financial reporting for decision-making and promote peer to peer learning for moving towards transparent and comparable financial reporting for enhanced governance and effective fiscal management of South Asian countries.

The importance of public sector accounting and financial reporting on reliability, credibility and accountability of fiscal management is insurmountable.

Governance is a key driver for economic development in South Asia and high quality, comprehensive and transparent reporting is a centrepiece of Governance. Many governments still adhere to the cash basis of accounting, and therefore provide minimal disclosures relative to their debts, liabilities and assets. This calls for transparent and comprehensive public financial reporting for enhanced governance and better fiscal management.



The policy makers, regulators, standard-setters, preparers and users of financial statements continue their efforts to increase transparency and comparability in the financial reporting. The seminar presents the rare opportunity to contribute in this endeavour by disseminating the findings of the 2016 Regional study on Public sector financial reporting in the South Asia region and facilitate policy-dialogue by sharing good practices through peer to peer learning based on identified opportunities and challenges for enhancing public financial reporting environment in South Asia region.
During the past two years, the national government has come in for severe criticism by opposition members, civic action groups and the people for its failure to take legal action against those involved in the Central Banks multi-billion rupee bond scam.



An important step was taken yesterday. Amid conflicting and contradictory statements, the parliamentary Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) presented a much awaited 55-page report to Parliament. Headed by the outspoken Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna frontliner Sunil Handunnetti, COPE in a unanimous report said there was substantial evidence to indicate that the Central Banks former Governor Arjun Mahendran was responsible for the questionable transaction of billions of rupees in public funds. COPE also pointed a clear finger of involvement at the Perpetual Treasuries company headed by Mr. Mahendrans son-in-law

Arjuna Aloysius.



COPE chairman Handunnetti told Parliament yesterday, he was recommending that legal action be taken against those responsible. He said the allegedly plundered public funds should be recovered while new laws should be enacted to ensure that such alleged rackets did not take place in the Central Bank in future.



Responding positively to the COPE report, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said he was recommending to Parliament that the report be submitted to the Attorney General for necessary action. The Prime Minister said the COPE report provided proof of the transparency and accountability of the national government headed by President Maithripala Sirisena and himself. The Prime Minister said previous governments had taken little or no action on earlier COPE reports which had alleged serious misdeeds by top politicians and officials. The Leader of the House and senior Minister Lakshman Kiriella said that about 30 earlier reports by COPE had ended up in the wastepaper baskets of the Rajapaksa regime.



The Joint Opposition leader Dinesh Gunawardena insisted that a parliamentary debate be held on the COPE report before the budget was presented on November 10. Parliament is not scheduled to meet again till then but government leaders said the proposal for the debate could be considered at a meeting of party leaders.



On Thursday joint opposition members alleged that Mr. Mahendran had flown away to Singapore the day before the COPE report was presented to Parliament. But the Prime Minister clarified the situation saying Mr. Mahendran had informed him he was going to Singapore to attend a wedding and assured he would be back within a few days. The premier lashed out at joint opposition members, saying they were tight lipped about former diplomat Udayanga Weerakone who was flying around the world though he was wanted in connection with an alleged multi-million rupee racket over the purchase of Mig aircraft during the Rajapaksa regime.



It is the fervent hope of most people that the Attorney General will act urgently and effectively on the COPE report to ensure that no one in future is allowed to plunder public money directly or by

subtle means.



For the past 10 years, specially billions of dollars in public funds are known to have been plundered by VIP politicians and officials in addition to the huge debt burden to which all the people have been plunged. We hope the Attorney General and the main investigative bodies such as the Financial Crimes Investigations Division (FCID) and the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) will also expedite action to prosecute those allegedly involved in mega frauds. If found guilty they must be punished and action taken to recover the billions they have plundered even if the money is hidden in some secret bank accounts abroad.



October 29 will be a historic day if it means the start of an era in which politics will no longer be a business tainted by corruption and fraud. Those elected to the highest legislative body, provincial and local councils need to be aware from now that they have come forward and been elected to serve the people and give to the country, not to grab from it. President Maithripala Sirisena from the day he was elected has repeatedly stressed he is the chief servant leader of the people. In future those who want to do big business and earn millions need to find some other jobs instead of seeking election to Parliament, provincial or other local councils. If that is the ultimate result of yesterdays COPE report, then there is hope for a new era and politics will no longer be bioscope.
Northern Province Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran has gone abroad without informing the NP Governor. According to reports no other member has been appointed to act for Mr. Wigneswaran.

The chief minister is said to have left Sri Lanka on the 14 to Switzerland and America and is expected to return tomorrow. (Romesh Madushanka)
The countrys cinnamon industry stakeholders yesterday hailed the Cabinets decision to amend the Intellectual Property Act of 2003 to enable Ceylon Cinnamon to obtain Geographical Indications (GI) locally, and be included in a GI register.



This measure will pave the way for certification of cinnamon products originating in Sri Lanka with regard to GI which is a necessary step for international registration of Ceylon Cinnamon to benefit from GI which is the highest level of protection.



The industry is now hopeful that the draft bill in this regard will be approved by Parliament, and a local GI register will thereafter be established by the National Intellectual Property Office (NIPO) to enable Ceylon Cinnamon to be registered in the local GI register.



The cinnamon industry has been lobbying for a long time to register Ceylon Cinnamon for Geographical Indications (GI) in the European Union and other major consumer markets. The delay in this process was due to a lack of protection in relation to intellectual property registration locally, and the lack of a local register for GI. The Export Development Board (EDB) has been authorized by the government to be the holder and protector of the Ceylon Cinnamon certification mark and Geographical Indications, on behalf of the People of Sri Lanka. The Industry now hopes that the EDB will immediately take the necessary steps to register Ceylon Cinnamon in terms of GI.

Obtaining GI internationally depends on the proper protection of quality, and traceability of cinnamon products originating in Sri Lanka. In this regard, it is necessary that EDB implements proper controls over the quality and traceability in the production processes of cinnamon to ensure GI for Ceylon Cinnamon internationally.



The ground work hitherto carried out by The Spice Council, the Ceylon Cinnamon Association and the Cinnamon Training Academy as well as state organizations has gained much publicity commanding an increase in the prices for Ceylon Cinnamon.



Sarada de Silva, Founder President of The Spice Council (TSC) and President of the National Chamber of Exporter of Sri Lanka (NCE) has worked tirelessly from the private sector towards this end.

He has, through the NCE, presented budget proposal for 2017 Budget. All these proposals are private and public sector partnerships to meet the current demand and necessity of the cinnamon industry.

They are, the establishment of 250 good manufacturing production centres (GMP), establishment of bought (Green) tree factories, second stage of Cinnamon Training Academy at Kosgoda, research and mechanisation of cinnamon processing, skills development in the cinnamon industry, GI for Ceylon Cinnamon, acceding to Madrid & Lisbon agreements and establishment of Cinnamon Development Authority.



Unfortunately all the good work done by the state sector and the private sector is negated by a few unscrupulous exporters resorting to the export of poor quality cinnamon, resulting in the rejection and return of many containers by International buyers.



This has been compounded by the importation into Sri Lanka of cinnamon from Madagascar for the purpose of re-export as Ceylon Cinnamon thereby destroying the name an image of Ceylon Cinnamon.



In this context, since the EDB has the right of ownership of the Ceylon Cinnamon mark should take necessary action not only to own the mark but also to defend the mark from such irregular practices including the adulteration and imitation of Ceylon Cinnamon by Cassia, which is a cheaper substitute.
We live in a world of constant change where our daily lives are characterised by such mega trends as digitisation, globalisation, sustainability, urbanisation, connectivity and demographic change. But what impacts are these trends having on personal lifestyles? In what way are our individual needs and values changing? And what, in consequence, do people regard as luxury today? Answers to such questions are provided in a new study on the topic of Affordable Luxury produced by Frankfurt-based think tank Zukunftsinstitut on behalf

of Grohe.



The world-leading manufacturer of sanitary fittings offers a range of products based on a clearly defined set of brand values, namely quality, technology, design and sustainability. To ensure that it can meet the expectations of consumers around the globe, the company regularly analyses the trends of our time. This way it gets a head start in developing innovations, which will be part of peoples everyday lives in future.

Individualisation of luxury



In previous times, luxury was largely equated with societal status and material wealth. However, this perception has changed both globally and locally. Today, only 11 percent of Germans, 21 percent of Americans and 35 percent of Chinese consumers agree with the statement that they consider a product a luxury if it commands a particularly high price. There has been a shift in values to the extent that individual well-being and quality of life are seen as much more important than before.



Peoples perceptions of luxury are linked to their individual and cultural awareness. Around the globe, health and intact social structures rank high on the list of things, which are seen as desirable in life. This paradigm shift is also evident in Sri Lanka with the multitude of so-called luxury brands that are making inroads in to social life here. For instance condominium living, branded clothing and top-notch vehicles are part and parcel of everyday life.

In addition to this shift in values from external appearance to strengthening ones own identity, the democratisation of luxury is another important point highlighted by the study. Many luxuries, which used to be the exclusive to a select group of people, are today accessible to the masses. This does not mean that these things are no longer considered luxuries, given that even discerning consumers today agree that luxury does not necessarily have to come with a big price tag. This development has mainly been driven by technological progress, the general increase in wealth, globalisation and easy access to typical luxury offerings via the Internet.

GroheAG CEO Michael Rauterkus says, We are seeing this phenomenon also with our own products. In 2008, we launched GroheOndus, the first line of digitally controlled faucets. This was an enormous breakthrough in terms of innovative technology and marked an important stage in our development. However, back then we were not yet able to manufacture this product in a way that would have made it affordable for everybody. Ten years on, in the age of smart technology, things have changed and we now offer a digital range, which is substantially different from the offering we started with.

Living space as a luxury

The home plays a special role in peoples perception of luxury in that it is seen as a space for personal development and expression. People around the globe appreciate comfortable living spaces and maximum quality of life, viewing their home as an oasis of relaxation. When it comes to outfitting bathrooms and kitchens, high quality is quoted as one of the most important criteria.

The GroheSensia Arena shower toilet is a product that exactly meets such expectations of contemporary luxury in the bathroom. Using only water and warm air, it provides a touch-free cleaning experience, which leaves delicate skin thoroughly refreshed rather than irritated by paper and chemicals. All settings can be personalised via a remote control or using an app. While odours are immediately extracted, non-stick surfaces combine with innovative flushing technologies to keep the toilet radiantly clean, hygienic and germ-free. As such, GroheSensia Arena meets contemporary expectations of luxury and user-friendliness while contributing to users health and wellbeing in a sustainable manner. Shower toilets are a relatively recent addition to the European sanitary market but have the potential to emerge as a standard category for outfitting luxurious and upmarket bathrooms.

The Grohe strategy is to offer innovative, high-quality products, which consumers perceive as relevant to their lives and as meeting their expectations in terms of intrinsic value and usefulness. This commitment is crystallised in the GroheBlue system, which delivers filtered and chilled table water straight from a special kitchen faucet. This means fewer time-consuming and fuel-guzzling trips to the grocery store; no heavy bottle packs to carry up the stairs and no need to worry about storage space for full bottles and empties.

Groheis the worlds leading provider of sanitary fittings and is available exclusively at Charter House, a unit of the AIPL Group.
Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen meets Head of IFCs Gender Secretariat Henriette Kolb in Colombo on 26 October.

International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group has extended its support to women business and SME initiatives by Ministry of Industry and Commerce thus boosting Ministrys blueprints on Lankan SME development.



Praising Minister Rishad Bathiudeen for his approach to Lankan entrepreneurship, a high profile IFC official said that IFC is ready for a pioneering, four-year long intervention in Sri Lankan women businessand to directly partner with 15 Lankan firms to enlist more women in corporate decision making.



Head of IFCs Gender Secretariat Henriette Kolb noted that the ministrys entrepreneurial thinking is holistic and practical, and thus they are willing to l collaborate in these projects. Minister Bathiudeen, briefing IFCs Henriette said, Our Ministry is working on the national SME policy where a bigger role for women entrepreneurs is envisaged. National Enterprise Development Authority (NEDA) and Industrial Development Board (IDB) are working to develop womens entrepreneurship and NEDA is working on market access for women.



IDB preparing to develop women owned businesses and planning training programs in rural areas in ten districts at first, and all the other districts in four years.



The Industry and Commerce Ministry also started work to open a major project-150 women led apparel cottage factories, the first batch in Districts of Monaragala, Polonnaruwa, Ampara, and Mannar.



There will be six months initial training by Sri Lanka Institute of Textile and Apparel (SLITA) under me with Juki (sewing) machines given to them to start the factories.

National Design Centre under my Ministry gives the design training. When their industries finally start to become businesses, they will then be transformed to Cooperative Society Units with buy-back assurance from the government, An important aspect here is that the factories are linked to the buyers directly, eliminating the middlemen. This is a new enterprise model and we are encouraged that our pilot project has been successful. We will also start e-biz training next month (November) for entrepreneurs to take them online. We look forward to IFCs support in our women entrepreneur initiatives at all levels including micro and SMEs.



It is estimated that Sri Lanka has 1.09 million Micro, SME and large enterprises, of which around 587,300 are registered while another 432,300 are not. 25 percent of all registered enterprises are owned by women (26.3 percent in micro scale, 8.3 percent in small scale, 6.1 percent of medium scale and 4.6 percent of large scale enterprises under women ownership). Meanwhile, if the unregistered 432,300 enterprises are also added, then the womens stake in the countrys private sector economy is significantly higher than presently believed.

We already know of the barriers to Lankan womens progress for example take the tourism sector; the barriers are transport, lack of child care support, and industry perception of women in tourism in particular. IFCS can, as a development organization, support breaking down these barriers in Lankan womens business and SMEs, Henriette added.



Minister Bathiudeen welcomed IFCs support to Sri Lanka and to his Ministrys initiatives in particular and revealed that SMEs are a key component in the governments employment plans. My Ministrys support to women entrepreneurs is not only for business growth, but also to support new employment targets in governments one-million jobs program; still our effort is to do it without being a burden to public funds or the country but by generating self-employment. This is the goal we are trying to win.
Badulla District MP Aravindh Kumar who was wearing a dark orange shirt in Parliament was cautioned about his attire by the employees who were on duty inside the chambers yesterday.

Parliamentary sources said the employees had cautioned him saying, '"Sir your attire could cause an issue". Then the MP apparently left the chambers.

However Serjeant-at-Arms Anil Samarasekara said no one, including he and his deputy, had ordered the MP to leave the chambers.

He confirmed that the Parliamentary dress code does not allow dark coloured shirts for male MPs and said they had to wear either national dress or lounge suits when attending sessions. Female MPs must wear saris, he said.

There have been few occasions when MPs were ordered to leave the chambers as their attire was found to be inappropriate. The most recent instance concerned K Thangeswari who was ordered to leave when she came into the chambers wearing salwar kameez. A similar incident occurred when Srimani Athulathmudali came wearing a skirt and blouse in the 1990s. (Yohan Perera)
By Kalani Kumarasinghe

Despite improved access to information and knowledge, discussing sexual and reproductive health is still a social and cultural taboo for most Sri Lankans. The Annual World Contraception Day campaign attempts to raise awareness about contraception and safe sex. The objective is to enable youth and adults alike to make informed decisions until every pregnancy is a wanted one. In an interview with the Daily Mirror, Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, Colombo University Medicine Faculty, Professor Hemantha Dodampahala uncovers various myths and misconceptions surrounding contraception and why it is vital to make informed choices.



QWhy is contraception important?

Contraception is frequently used in developed countries between unmarried partners. Besides this, there are also provisions for the termination of unwanted pregnancies. But in most developing countries, especially in Asia, the termination of a pregnancy is illegal due to various religious and social implications. Therefore, contraception and the knowledge of contraception are important for every woman and man. The world is experiencing a population explosion, particularly in third world countries.



QHow can contraception be classified?

Contraceptive methods can be divided as non-contraceptive intervention and contraceptive intervention, permanent and temporary methods. Even though Abstention remains an important part of contraception, the practicality of this method is very much debatable. Some couples avoid sexual intercourse during the so-called fertile period. This is referred to as the Calendar method, and stands as the most popular technique of contraception in this country.



QHow does each individual identify which method of contraception fits them best?

For young women, regardless of the marital status, the use of an Oral Contraceptive Pill (OCP) is the ideal choice. This is also recommended for a young married woman who wants to delay a pregnancy for one or two years. This tablet must be taken every day. If you miss a pill, take two pills as soon as you remember it. Missing more than two pills, you need to seek the advice of a doctor.



QWhat is your opinion on the various misconceptions surrounding this method?

There are misunderstandings among women that the use of OCP will lead to permanent infertility. Such theories are time-proven and scientifically disqualified. Even after years of use, women can still regain their ovulation and conception capability. So there is absolutely no risk of infertility or sub-fertility due to the prolonged use of OCP. However, please do remember the pill will not protect you from STDs including HIV. If you ever have to have sex with a person whom you dont know, for an instance when travelling abroad, use a condom during the whole period of sexual intercourse is advised.



QHow and why should married couples with children use contraception?

It is an important duty for a couple to have children, at least three per family, because there is a negative population explosion taking place in the country. A woman who has one to five children must consider using an Intra Uterine Contraceptive Device (IUCD). This device is placed in the womb which will not have any hormonal effects on the body. Women can also opt for injectable-implants. This method does not interfere with the day-to-day sexual activity and can be used up to five years.



QWhen is the use of Emergency Contraception appropriate?

Sometimes with unforeseen circumstances, married or unmarried couples have unprotected sex. In such instances, according to the common practice in Sri Lanka, the woman must take two tablets of Levonorgestrel 750 micrograms, 12 hours apart within the first 72 hours of having unprotected sex. If a woman forgets to take the second tablet, she can still take it up to the first 100 hours, but the success rate will drop from 95% to 75%. All these methods can increase the risk of conception at an abnormal site. Such as ectopic pregnancy when a fertilised egg implants outside the uterus.

However, even if you find yourself pregnant after taking Levonorgestrel, there is no cause for worry. I have seen many such patients.
Otis has been selected to provide high-speed elevators to the prestigious Altair project in Colombo, which when complete will be the tallest residential building in Sri Lanka and will have the countrys fastest elevators.



Otis, the worlds largest manufacturer and maintainer of people-moving products, is a unit of United Technologies Corp. Elevators Private Limited, a joint venture entity between Otis and Aitken Spence, will install the elevators.



Otis is a natural choice for a demanding construction like the 68-floor Altair project, especially because of the reliability and performance that Otis elevators promise. Its been a great opportunity for us to partner an international franchise and to showcase the capabilities of the Otis range in a local setting and we are looking ahead for the completion of the project, commented Surendar Mariappan, Joint Managing Director, Aitken Spence Elevators.



Altair will reach 240 meters  68 floors  consisting of two towers with one tower leaning against the other. Indocean Developers (P) Limited, a venture of South City projects (Kolkata) Limited, chose Otis to supply a total of 19 elevators, including Sri Lankas fastest elevators with a travel speed of 5 meters per second. 7 out of the 19 units will be supplied from Otis Indias Bengaluru factory.

Altair is a unique project with requirements that stretch beyond the ordinary  it is exclusive. Otis technical know-how and credentials gave us the confidence that Otis would be the right fit said Pradeep Sureka, Managing Director, Sureka Group.



Otis worldwide experience in delivering vertical transport solutions in tall buildings, coupled with their strong local presence, made them the right choice to provide us with elevators for Altair, said K. M. Sathian, Director (Projects), Indocean Developers (P) Limited.

We are privileged to work on one of Indocean Developers most renowned projects and an architectural marvel  Altair, said Sebi Joseph, President, Otis India region.
AFP - A Sri Lankan parliamentary panel yesterday called for the criminal prosecution of former Central Bank chief Arjuna Mahendran who was removed three months ago over long-running allegations of insider trading.



A Singapore national of Sri Lankan origin, Mahendran was accused last year of leaking inside information to his son-in-laws firm, allegedly allowing it to make millions of dollars in profits from central bank bond auctions.



The scandal came on the heels of a mounting debt crisis in Sri Lanka -- the country secured a US$1.5 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund in July.

A bipartisan oversight committee on Friday demanded legal action against Mahendran and his son-in-law. They should be prosecuted in a court and action taken to recover the losses incurred by the state due to their actions, committee chairman Sunil Handunnetti told parliament.



President Maithripala Sirisena sacked Mahendran in July, bowing to public pressure, and asked the legislature to investigate the allegations against him.



An ad-hoc ruling party committee had cleared Mahendran of direct involvement last year, but civil society activists pressed for a thorough investigation resulting in the parliamentary panel launching an extensive probe.

Mahendran has consistently maintained his innocence.
The Sri Lanka Chamber of Pharmaceutical Industry (SLCPI) yesterday cautioned the recent move to impose price ceiling on 48 essential drugs through a gazette notification could result in innovator drugs exiting the market, putting the lives of patients who depend on these drugs at risk.



However, the currently imposed ceiling on drug pricing which has been gazetted, runs the risk of innovator drug companies exiting the market due to their inability to price pharmaceutical products as low as what is stipulated by the authorities, a SLCPI statement said.

However, SLCPI said it would comply with the gazette notification by the government, but will keep channels open for further discussion and negotiations.

Full SLCPI statement

The Sri Lanka Chamber of Pharmaceutical Industry (SLCPI) has always held the view that a practical pricing mechanism would ensure fair play to all stakeholders from the patient to manufacturer, importer, distributor and retailers.

The pharmaceutical market in Sri Lanka is largely an import-based, one that enjoyed the opportunity of having access to high quality innovator products from countries around the world as well as generic drugs that were mostly imported from the Asian region. Thus the patients of this country had the freedom to avail themselves of pharmaceutical products based on their needs.



Whilst SLCPI reiterates the above facts, the Chamber is also aware that there may have been some instances where an isolated few would have had excess pricing. However, the currently imposed ceiling on drug pricing which has been gazetted, runs the risk of innovator drug companies exiting the market due to their inability to price pharmaceutical products as low as what is stipulated by the authorities. It is almost impossible for an innovator drug, manufactured after years of research and clinical trials to be priced similar to one of its generic formulations.

While the SLCPI confirms that there are very effective generic products in the market, there are many instances when the quality of some of these products become questionable. Therefore, placing total dependence on this pharmaceutical segment can jeopardise the health of the patient. Furthermore, in the case of the innovator products, it is important that the agencies representing these companies are present in Sri Lanka; if we are abandoned by them our country will be left out of the newer drugs that come in to manage and overcome diseases.



Whilst we sincerely hope that the innovator companies will device a method to continue the availability of these pharmaceutical products in this market; the regulators would need to view this rather serious issue objectively, taking into account all the market forces. Otherwise, there is the strong possibility of innovator drugs, as well as some reputed pharmaceutical manufacturers producing standardised drugs exiting the country.

In that event, patients who are dependent on innovator drugs to manage their life threatening illnesses or in some cases ongoing health conditions, would be left with no option but to look at flying to nearby countries to purchase their needs. This could also lead to illegal parallel imports as well as opening the doors for spurious products to enter the market. These eventualities have become global problems that we need to be aware of in order to ensure proper safeguards.



From the patients point of view, in order for them to be ultimate beneficiaries of the healthcare system, it needs to be sustainable for all stake holders in the supply chain operation, since any breakdown would only hurt end users. From another perspective, as the country moves towards an economically sound future that includes the global market place, it is important for the government to send the right signals to the International community - free market access would only serve to fuel investor confidence.



Whilst the SLCPI is committed to work closely with the government of Sri Lanka in bringing the best possible healthcare services to the people of this country, we expect a meaningful interaction in devising a long-term solution that will benefit the Sri Lankan people. With regard to the present Gazette notification by the government, the SLCPI will comply, but will keep channels open for further discussion and negotiations.
Imagine a job application which says: strong preference is for a woman from Eastern Europe.

And then, the winning candidate? It's a man from Western Europe.

"I'm not a woman and there's nothing I can do about that," Antonio Guterres tells me with an apologetic smile, in an interview for BBC World News last week - his first interview after he received a standing ovation and a unanimous vote in the UN General Assembly.

But the next UN secretary-general took pains to emphasise he was "deeply committed to a big push for gender equality in the UN".

His transition team, comprising three women and two men from Tunisia, the United States, South Korea, Portugal and Jamaica, is already at work to prepare him for his new job which starts on January 1.

One of his senior aides tells me that his deputy UN secretary-general will be a "woman from the south".

Guterres is acutely aware he will be judged on his promise to promote gender equality. There's added emphasis in the midst of accusations of systemic gender bias in the UN club which weighed against the five female candidates who competed against as many men in the final list.

The 67-year-old whose candidacy marked a rare consensus and clarity in the Security Council, the UN's most powerful body, will face herculean battles on many fronts.

The Syrian crisis. (Photo credit: AP)

"He inherits a very difficult world," Russia's UN ambassador Vitaly Churkin says of the man he describes as the "the best candidate available" for the job.

When I remind ambassador Churkin that the first UN secretary-general called the job "the most impossible job on earth", he replies "almost impossible".

Guterres will need to muster all the great skills and goodwill which landed him the job of world's top diplomat.

That includes the political savvy developed during his years as Portugal's prime minister and president of the Socialist International. There's also his understanding of the inner workings of the UN system and the world at large gained through his decade as the UN's refugee chief.

"I saw how he was able to travel the world, pick up the phone and call anyone," recounts Melissa Fleming, his former UNHCR spokesman who is now a special advisor and spokesperson on his transition team. "Everyone was ready to meet him," she says.

Doors were open even though he's known as a man who speaks his mind. His was a diplomat's school of hard knocks as he berated and cajoled world leaders, often unsuccessfully, to do more to respond to the worst refugee crisis in decades.

On a panel of the World Economic Forum, with senior Jordanian and Western officials insisting they could not open their doors to more refugees because of security fears, Guterres bluntly retorted: "Refugees are not terrorists." Then, he said it again, in case it had not been clear.

As he sat cross-legged in a cold shack in Jordan's Zaatari refugee camp, an extended Syrian family huddled around him, a microphone picked up his lament that "Syria hasn't had enough help from the world".

In his interview with me for BBC World News, Guterres describes his job as "an honest broker, a messenger for peace, and a bridge builder".

And he acknowledges his "first and biggest challenge" would be to end the suffering of Syria which "has broken our hearts".

The agony and anguish of Aleppo symbolises the world's failure to stop a nation's descent into appalling destruction and despair.

Successive UN Syria envoys have cited the gridlock in the UN Security Council as a major element in their failure to stop the fighting and provide vital humanitarian aid.

Guterres will open this file at a time when tensions between Russia and the United States, backing rival sides in this terribly tangled conflict, are at their worst since the Cold War of decades ago.

It's still not clear what Guterres can bring to the table. It's often said the job is more secretary than general.

"Someone who won unanimity from the Security Council has more moral authority to push the great powers," says Ghassan Salame, former senior advisor to Kofi Annan when he served as a UN Syria envoy. "He has their confidence and has seen the Syrian tragedy from very close."

Others are more sceptical. "After what we saw during his time as UN refugee chief, I fear we may have an efficient politician, not a leader," remarks a senior Western official.

"But Kofi Annan became a different man so one must hope," he adds, referring to Annan's tenure as UN secretary-general.

Many expect much of a new secretary-general designate who speaks eloquently and passionately, in four different languages, for the values the UN is meant to embody.

But Antonio Guterres will be judged by what difference he makes in the lives of women and men, girls and boys, the world over. That's the job he's signed up for.
Despite the continuing India-Pakistan tensions and a volatile border where Pakistani forces continue to violate the ceasefire, Islamabad has decided to take part in the Heart of Asia (HoA) conference on Afghanistan in Amritsar on December 4.

The conference aims at speeding up reconstruction in war-torn Afghanistan and bringing peace and normalcy to the nation.

Though in India many would be tempted to focus primarily on the visit of the Pakistani delegation, the HoA conference will see participation from around 14 countries - Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and the UAE.

Target

The HoA process, which is being supported by the wider international community, originated under the aegis of the Istanbul Conference in November 2011, which underscored the need for regional cooperation and confidence-building to resolve underlying problems facing Afghanistan and anchoring the state's development in a regional environment that is stable, economically integrated and conducive to shared prosperity.

India, too, has repeatedly underscored the need for improving connectivity in the region to help Afghanistan harness its trade and transit potential.

But for Pakistan, this participation will largely be about showcasing its positive involvement in the larger regional reconstruction.

For a nation that is now more isolated than it has ever been, it is a foreign policy imperative to underline its positive role in Kabul.

The HoA conference comes at a time when Afghanistan has taken an increasingly hard line position vis-a-vis Pakistan and unflinchingly supported the Modi government's agenda of envisioning regional cooperation in South Asia by marginalising Islamabad.

TAPI pipeline. (Photo credit: Google)

It was the Afghan government which first suggested that South Asian states should come together to boycott the SAARC summit in Islamabad over Pakistan's role in "destabilising" the neighbourhood.

In his address to a joint session of Afghanistan's two houses of Parliament earlier this year, Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani had threatened to lodge a formal complaint against Pakistan.

In a departure from his earlier stand, Ghani called on Pakistan to forego attempts to bring the Taliban to negotiations and take military action against the terrorist group.

Despite Pakistan's repeated assertions that it would go after Taliban, negotiations have repeatedly been stalled and deadly attacks in Afghanistan have increased with the Taliban carrying out their offensives.

The government in Kabul is also struggling to hold the overdue parliamentary elections this fall amid the worsening security situation.

American commanders have asked Washington that US troop numbers remain at the current 9,800, and not drop to about 5,500 by the end of the year.

Political tensions are rising with Afghan Vice President General Abdul Rashid Dostum accusing President Ghani of treating him and the Afghan Uzbek minority he represents like the "enemy", issuing veiled threats of violence if the situation doesn't improve.

Politics

Dostum complained that the government wasn't providing sufficient security assistance to northern Afghanistan to help take on the Taliban, taking a swipe at senior security officials by saying that "leadership and management are nonexistent".

Dostum also appeared to issue a challenge to NATO countries, warning them vaguely that "another bomb might explode here, they should be wise".

Amid all this is Pakistan, which for fear of India has continued to scuttle even those regional initiatives that seem purely commercial.

Its military intelligence complex has monopolised the discourse to an extent where Islamabad sees no win-win situations.

Its objective is to ensure that India doesn't win, even if it means a loss for the entire region.

In that spirit, Pakistan has repeatedly blocked the use of its roads for trade between Afghanistan and India.

This has resulted in growing ill will for Pakistan in Afghanistan; even as the latter's relations with India continue to deepen.

Every day that ordinary Afghans lose opportunities for easy, direct trade with India, Pakistan generates more resentment among them.

Initiatives

India's policy vis-a-vis Afghanistan also needs to evolve with these changing ground realities.

New Delhi has been demanding dismantling of havens and terror sanctuaries in the region, besides pressing for deeper engagement of various stakeholders for Kabul's stability and security.

That is easier said than done. Indian interests are being repeatedly targeted in Afghanistan.

The attack on the Indian consulate in Jalalabad in March this year had been the fourth such assault since 2007.

Other Indian consulates in Herat and Mazar-e-Sharif and the one in Kabul have also been attacked.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Afghanistan to inaugurate the new Afghan Parliament and the decision to gift Mi-25 attack helicopters to Afghan forces were meant to underline India's seriousness to preserve its equities in the troubled neighbourhood.

India signed the TAPI pipeline agreement to showcase its continuing commitment to Afghanistan's economic viability.

India has also signed a deal to develop the strategic port of Chabahar in Iran and agreed on a three-nation pact to build a transport-and-trade corridor through Afghanistan that could potentially reduce the time and cost of doing business with Central Asia and Europe.

New Delhi has so far shown an unusual tenacity in its dealings with Kabul.

It now needs to move beyond the binary of economic and military engagement and evolve a comprehensive policy which involves all dimensions of power.

Afghanistan is a tough country and only those who are willing to fight on multiple fronts will be able to preserve their leverage.
The Boeing Company is the worlds largest manufacturer of airplanes and commands more than 50% of the market in some channels and categories. The company and its family of subsidiaries design, develops, manufacture, sell, service, and supports commercial jetliners, military aircraft, satellites, missile defense, human space flight, and related services worldwide. The company operates through four segments including Commercial Airplanes; Defense, Space & Security; Global Services; and Boeing Capital providing products and services to end-users in 150 countries.

Boeing got its start in 1910 when William E. Boeing developed a love for aircraft. Soon after he takes his first plane ride which leads him to build a hangar and begin construction of his first plane. The onset of WWI helped spur the companys growth but business was cut drastically in its wake. The start of WWII was another milestone for the company and one that led to its current position of dominance. The company was incorporated in 1916 and is based in Chicago, Illinois. Boeing employs over 140,000 people in 65 countries making it one of the most diverse employers on the planet.

The Commercial Airplanes segment is built around the iconic 7-series which includes the 737, 747, and 787. The segment provides commercial jet aircraft for passenger and cargo requirements, as well as fleet support services for regional, national, and international air carriers and logistics and freight companies. In terms of global volume, the company estimates about 90% of all air freight is carried aboard one of its jets. This segment also includes the Dreamliner family of planes. The Dreamliner is a game-changing airplane for many carriers as it opens up the potential for new one-stop destinations because of its capacity and range.

The Defense, Space & Security segment develops and manufactures a range of systems including manned and unmanned aircraft, missiles, missile defense systems, satellites, communications equipment, and intelligence systems for governments. Among the many iconic brands within this segment are the AH-64 Apache, Air Force One, B-52, C-17 Globemaster, Chinook, F/A-18, and the V-22 Osprey VTOL aircraft used by the Marines.

The Global Services segment offers a range of products and services that include supply chain and logistics management, engineering, maintenance, upgrades, conversions, spare parts, pilot and maintenance training, technical and maintenance documents, and data analytics to its commercial and defense customers.

Boeing is also a leader in innovation, leveraging its many decades and avenues of experience to further aerospace and defense technology. Among the many innovations is the MQ-25 Stingray which will be the worlds first autonomous aircraft. The Stingray is only one of many areas of research that also include drones and undersea vehicles.
Cardinal Health, Inc. operates as an integrated healthcare services and products company in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, and internationally. It provides customized solutions for hospitals, healthcare systems, pharmacies, ambulatory surgery centers, clinical laboratories, physician offices, and patients in the home. The company operates in two segments, Pharmaceutical and Medical. The Pharmaceutical segment distributes branded and generic pharmaceutical, specialty pharmaceutical, and over-the-counter healthcare and consumer products. The segment also provides services to pharmaceutical manufacturers and healthcare providers for specialty pharmaceutical products; operates nuclear pharmacies and radiopharmaceutical manufacturing facilities; repackages generic pharmaceuticals and over-the-counter healthcare products; and offers medication therapy management and patient outcomes services to hospitals, other healthcare providers, and payers, as well as provides pharmacy management services to hospitals. The Medical segment manufactures, sources, and distributes Cardinal Health branded medical, surgical, and laboratory products and devices that include exam and surgical gloves; needles, syringe, and sharps disposals; compressions; incontinences; nutritional delivery products; wound care products; single-use surgical drapes, gowns, and apparels; fluid suction and collection systems; urology products; operating room supply products; and electrode product lines. The segment also distributes a range of national brand products, including medical, surgical, and laboratory products; provides supply chain services and solutions to hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, clinical laboratories, and other healthcare providers; and assembles and sells sterile, and non-sterile procedure kits. The company was incorporated in 1979 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ohio.
Pediatrix Medical Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides newborn, maternal-fetal, pediatric cardiology, and other pediatric subspecialty care services in the United States and Puerto Rico. It offers neonatal care services, such as clinical care to babies born prematurely or with complications within specific units at hospitals through neonatal physician subspecialists, neonatal nurse practitioners, and other pediatric clinicians. The company also provides maternal-fetal care services, including inpatient and office-based clinical care to expectant mothers and unborn babies through affiliated maternal-fetal medicine subspecialists, as well as obstetricians and other clinicians, including maternal-fetal nurse practitioners, certified nurse mid-wives, ultrasonographers, and genetic counselors. In addition, it offers pediatric cardiology care services comprising inpatient and office-based pediatric cardiology care of the fetus, infant, child, and adolescent patient with congenital heart defects and acquired heart disease, as well as adults with congenital heart defects through affiliated pediatric cardiologist subspecialists and other related clinical professionals; and specialized cardiac care to the fetus, neonatal and pediatric patients. Further, the company provides other pediatric subspecialty care services through pediatric subspecialists, such as pediatric intensivists, pediatric hospitalists, pediatric surgeons, and pediatric ophthalmologists, as well as pediatric ear, nose, and throat physicians; and support services in the areas of hospitals, primarily in the pediatric emergency rooms, labor and delivery areas, and nursery and pediatric departments. As of February 17, 2022, it operated a network of approximately 2,700 physicians. The company was formerly known as MEDNAX, Inc. and changed its name to Pediatrix Medical Group, Inc. in July 2022. Pediatrix Medical Group, Inc. was founded in 1979 and is based in Sunrise, Florida.
Orange S.A. provides various fixed telephony and mobile telecommunications, data transmission, and other value-added services to customers, businesses, and other telecommunications operators in France and internationally. It operates through France; Spain and Other European Countries; The Africa and Middle East; Enterprise; International Carriers & Shared Services; and Mobile Financial Services segments. The company offers mobile services, such as voice, SMS, and data; fixed broadband and narrowband services, as well as fixed network business solutions, including voice and data; and convergence packages. It also sells mobile handsets, mobile terminals, broadband equipment, connected devices, and accessories. In addition, the company provides IT and integration services comprising unified communication and collaboration services, such as LAN and telephony, consultancy, integration, and project management; hosting and infrastructure services, including cloud computing; customer relations management and other applications services; security services; and video conferencing, as well as sells related equipment. Further, it offers national and international roaming services; online advertising services; and mobile virtual network operators, network sharing, and mobile financial services, as well as sells equipment to external distributors and brokers. Orange S.A. markets its products and services under the Orange brand. The company was formerly known as France Telecom and changed its name to Orange S.A. in July 2013. Orange S.A. was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in Issy-les-Moulineaux, France.
Fortune Brands Home & Security, Inc. provides home and security products for residential home repair, remodeling, new construction, and security applications. It operates in three segments: Plumbing, Outdoors & Security, and Cabinets. The Plumbing segment manufactures, assembles, and sells faucets, accessories, kitchen sinks, and waste disposals under the Moen, ROHL, Riobel, Victoria+Albert, Perrin & Rowe, and Shaws brands in the United States, China, Canada, Mexico, Southeast Asia, Europe, and South America directly through its own sales force, as well as through independent manufacturers' representatives to wholesalers, home centers, mass merchandisers, and industrial distributors. The Outdoors & Security segment offers fiberglass and steel entry door systems under the Therma-Tru brand; storm, screen, and security doors under the Larson brand; composite decking and railing under the Fiberon brand; and urethane millwork under the Fypon brand. This segment also manufactures, sources, and distributes locks, safety and security devices, and electronic security products under the Master Lock and American Lock brands; and fire resistant safes, security containers, and commercial cabinets under the SentrySafe brand. It serves home centers, hardware and other retailers, millwork building products and wholesale distributors, specialty dealers, and remodeling and renovation markets, as well as locksmiths, industrial and institutional users, and original equipment manufacturers in the United States, Canada, Europe, Central America, Japan, and Australia. The Cabinets segment manufactures custom, semi-custom, and custom cabinetry, as well as vanities for the kitchen, bath, and other parts of the home directly to kitchen and bath dealers, home centers, wholesalers, and builders in North America under the AOK, Diamond Brands, Homecrest, Kitchen Craft, Omega, and EVE brands. The company was incorporated in 1988 and is headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois.
National Bank of Canada provides various financial products and services to retail, commercial, corporate, and institutional clients in Canada and internationally. It operates through four segments: Personal and Commercial, Wealth Management, Financial Markets, and U.S. Specialty Finance and International. The Personal and Commercial segment offers personal banking services, including transaction solutions, mortgage loans and home equity lines of credit, consumer loans, payment solutions, and savings and investment solutions; various insurance products; and commercial banking services comprise credit, and deposit and investment solutions, as well as international trade, foreign exchange transactions, payroll, cash management, insurance, electronic transactions, and complimentary services. The Wealth Management segment comprises investment solutions, trust services, banking services, lending services, and other wealth management solutions. The Financial Markets segment offers corporate banking, advisory, and capital markets services; and project financing, debt, and equity underwriting; advisory services in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, and financing. The U.S. Specialty Finance and International segment provides specialty finance products; financial products and services to individuals and businesses in Cambodia; and investment solutions, guaranteed investment certificates, mutual funds, notes, structured products, and monetization. It provides its services through a network of 384 branches and 927 banking machines. National Bank of Canada was founded in 1859 and is based in Montreal, Canada.
Banc of California, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Banc of California, National Association that provides banking products and services in the United States. The company offers deposit products, including checking, savings, money market, retirement, and interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing demand accounts, as well as certificate of deposits. It also provides various commercial and consumer loan products, such as commercial and industrial loans; commercial real estate and multifamily loans; construction loans; single family residential mortgage loans; warehouse and indirect/direct leveraged lending; home equity lines of credit; small business administration loans; and other consumer loans. In addition, the company offers automated bill payment, cash and treasury management, foreign exchange, card payment, remote and mobile deposit capture, automated clearing house origination, wire transfer, direct deposit, and internet banking services; and master demand accounts, interest rate swaps, and safe deposit boxes. Further, it invests in collateralized loan obligations, agency securities, municipal bonds, agency residential mortgage-backed securities, and corporate debt securities. As of December 31, 2020, the company operated 29 full-service branches in Southern California. The company was formerly known as First PacTrust Bancorp, Inc. and changed its name to Banc of California, Inc. in July 2013. Banc of California, Inc. was founded in 1941 and is headquartered in Santa Ana, California.
Under Armour, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the developing, marketing, and distributing performance apparel, footwear, and accessories for men, women, and youth. The company offers its apparel in compression, fitted, and loose fit types. It also provides footwear products for running, training, basketball, cleated sports, recovery, and outdoor applications. In addition, the company offers accessories, which include gloves, bags, headwear, and sports masks; and digital subscription and advertising services under the MapMyRun and MapMyRide platforms. It primarily offers its products under the UNDER ARMOUR, UA, HEATGEAR, COLDGEAR, HOVR, PROTECT THIS HOUSE, I WILL, UA Logo, ARMOUR FLEECE, and ARMOUR BRA brands. The company sells its products through wholesale channels, including national and regional sporting goods chains, independent and specialty retailers, department store chains, mono-branded Under Armour retail stores, institutional athletic departments, and leagues and teams, as well as independent distributors; and directly to consumers through a network of 422 brand and factory house stores, as well as through e-commerce websites. It operates in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. Under Armour, Inc. was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland.
Royal Bank of Canada operates as a diversified financial service company worldwide. The company's Personal & Commercial Banking segment offers checking and savings accounts, home equity financing, personal lending, private banking, indirect lending, including auto financing, mutual funds and self-directed brokerage accounts, guaranteed investment certificates, credit cards, and payment products and solutions; and lending, leasing, deposit, investment, foreign exchange, cash management, auto dealer financing, trade products, and services to small and medium-sized commercial businesses. This segment offers financial products and services through branches, automated teller machines, and mobile sales network. Its Wealth Management segment provides a suite of advice-based solutions and strategies to high net worth and ultra-high net worth individuals, and institutional clients. The company's Insurance segment offers life, health, home, auto, travel, wealth, annuities, and reinsurance advice and solutions; and business insurance services to individual, business, and group clients through its advice centers, RBC insurance stores, and mobile advisors; digital, mobile, and social platforms; independent brokers; and travel partners. Its Investor & Treasury Services segment provides asset servicing, custody, payments, and treasury services to financial and other investors; and fund and investment administration, shareholder, private capital, performance measurement and compliance monitoring, distribution, transaction banking, cash and liquidity management, foreign exchange, and global securities finance services. The company's Capital Markets segment offers corporate and investment banking, as well as equity and debt origination, distribution, advisory services, sale, and trading services for corporations, institutional investors, asset managers, private equity firms, and governments. The company was founded in 1864 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.
WASHINGTON  The Supreme Court on Friday said it will decide whether the Obama administration may require public school systems to let transgender students use bathrooms that align with their gender identity, putting the court again at the center of a divisive social issue.

School districts across the country are split on how to accommodate transgender students in the face of conflicting guidance from courts, the federal government and, in some cases, state legislatures that have passed laws requiring people to use public restrooms that coincide with the sex on their birth certificates.

The justices accepted a petition from Gloucester County. On a 5-to-3 vote in August, they said the school board did not have to comply with a lower court's order that 17-year-old student Gavin Grimm, who was born female but identifies as male, should be allowed to use the boys' bathroom during his senior year of high school.

In the Supreme Court's unusual Aug. 3 order granting the stay, Justice Stephen Breyer said he was joining the conservative justices as a "courtesy" that would preserve the status quo while the court considered whether to accept the case. That means the stay will remain in place until the court decides the case next year.

Grimm, referred to as G.G. in court papers, came out as a transgender boy in his freshman year of high school, and as a result of hormone therapy, had a deep voice and facial hair, his lawyers told the court.

"In every aspect of life outside school, G. is recognized as a boy," wrote Joshua Block, a lawyer at the American Civil Liberties Union. "At school, however, G. is singled out from every other student and forced to use separate restrooms because his school board has concluded that G.'s mere presence in a restroom used by other boys is unacceptable."

Grimm sued the school board, alleging that its policy - requiring that students use bathrooms corresponding with their "biological sex" - is discriminatory and violates his civil rights.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit sided with him in April, ruling that his case could move forward. It deferred to the Obama administration's position that Title IX, the federal law banning sex discrimination in public schools, protects the rights of transgender students to use school bathrooms that align with their gender identity.

A month after the 4th Circuit decision, the Education Department issued that guidance to the rest of the nation's public schools.

The move sparked a backlash and a lawsuit by several states that argued the administration had overstepped its authority. A federal judge in north Texas issued a preliminary injunction in August blocking the department's guidance.

The Gloucester board's petition to the court says the department's position "presents an extreme example of judicial deference to an administrative agency's purported interpretation of its own regulation."

It was developed by "a relatively low-level official in the Department of Education" without proper notice and comment, said the petition filed by the board's lawyer, Kyle Duncan.

The petition said the case provides the court an opportunity to reexamine a 1997 precedent, Auer v. Robbins , that affords deference to an agency's interpretation of its regulations. It has been criticized by several conservative justices, but the court earlier this year turned down a chance to revisit it and did the same in accepting the Gloucester case.

Transgender students say using bathrooms that correspond with their gender identity is a civil right and critical to protect their well-being. But some parents, school board members and state legislatures have pushed back, calling for laws and policies that require students to use bathrooms aligned with the sex on their birth certificates. They argue that such rules are necessary to safeguard privacy and traditional values.
The State Council of Higher Educations declaration that private gifts ought not affect public support is right on the money (pun intended). More to the point, its right about the money.

The statement follows last summers controversy over revelations that the University of Virginia had amassed what it called a Strategic Investment Fund worth more than $2 billion.

Controversy focused on two fundamental philosophical differences.

First were questions about how UVa should spend that moneyfor basics such as keeping tuition low versus long-term plans for elevating the quality of university offerings such as programs, facilities and even the hiring of faculty.

Underlying that were questions about even whether the university should have such a fund. Some lawmakers, angry that the money had been quietly stockpiled while UVa sought public financial support, hinted that they might solve the problem by cutting public funding to the university.

Our view, simplified to one sentence, is that savings from UVa operational programs should be recycled back into operations, while money accumulated from gifts can be reserved for strategic uses.

SCHEV addressed part of that issue by saying that universities should not be penalized by cuts in public funding just because the institutions were successful at private fundraising.

SCHEV pointed out that the legislature cant reduce public funding to counteract private donations because state law forbids it.

And theres a good reason for that safeguard.

Virginia should guarantee an adequate level of basic funding for all its colleges and universities. All should be able to start from a level playing field.

That level of funding should be sufficient to support a high quality of education for any student who attends any Virginia school.

But beyond that, there are other levels that schools may climball the way to exceptional excellence and world-class influence. That is the level which UVa has reached.

Again, let us make clear: All students at all Virginia colleges and universities should be confident that they will receive a good education. The state has a responsibility to provide funding sufficient to achieve that goal. There is mounting evidence that Virginia has not done so.

Meanwhile, of course, different colleges and universities have different levels of administrative talent, which affects how efficiently they will use their state funding. They also have different academic identities and programs, which influence the uses of state monies. There will inevitably be some variations in fiscal and educational outcomes due to these differences.

At the same time, some colleges and universities have an enhanced ability to attract private funding; UVa is one of these. Its an issue of both quantity and quality: The larger the university, the more alumni it has from whom to seek donations; and the more prestigious the university, the more likely its alumni are to be successful, affluent and inclined to donate. The results of this dynamic also generate differences among Virginias colleges and universities.

But that doesnt mean the state should enforce uniformityfar from it. Virginias system of higher education serves the commonwealth well precisely because it accepts differences and allows schools to fill a variety of market niches.

As SCHEV said, universities shouldnt be punished for excellenceincluding excellence in their ability to fundraise.

Virginia lawmakers, meanwhile, need to pay more attention to the states own responsibilities toward educationand make sure those responsibilities are met.
This page may be updated if the event is repeated

Past Event - Thursday, January 19, 2017 This page may be updated if the event is repeated

$34.75 & $54.75

2017 What the Hell World Tour with special guests Cole Swindell and Jon Pardi at the Nutter Center.

Country Music Star Dierks Bentley brings his What the Hell World Tour to the Wright State University Nutter Center Jan 19.

Probably no other artist on country radio in the past ten years could manage this kind of range and versatility. Hes had eight No. 1 singles and written every one of them. Hes performed at Lollapalooza, the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, Bonnaroo and the CMA Music Festival, tailoring his sets to each. His instantly recognizable voice and acoustic/electric hybrid sound have propelled him to membership in the Grand Ole Opry and, in 2011, a performance for the President at the White House.

Kicking off January 19th in Dayton, Ohio, the What the Hell World Tour will include special guests Cole Swindell and Jon Pardi, a pair of performers Bentley chose for their youthful exuberance and their ability to keep him laughing.

TICKETS GO ON SALE FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4 AT 10AM
New Delhi: Tata Group hospitality arm Indian Hotels Company today said it plans to challenge the decision of Delhi High Court, which dismissed its appeal against the auctioning of iconic Taj Mansingh Hotel by the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC).

"The company proposes to challenge the dismissal of appeal in the Supreme Court," Indian Hotels Company said in a filing to BSE.

The company had filed an appeal challenging the earlier judgment dated September 5, 2016 of Delhi High Court before a division bench of the High Court. "By the judgment dated October 27, 2016, the company's appeal has been dismissed," it added.

Initially, Indian Hotels had filed a injunction suit against NDMC in April, 2013 before Delhi High Court seeking to restrain NDMC from going ahead with its decision to opt for auction of the hotel.

A bench of Justices Pradeep Nandrajog and Pratibha Rani observed yesterday that NDMC was "within its power" to secure maximum consideration for grant of licence for the property at the prime location of 1, Man Singh Road in Lutyen's Delhi.

"To put it pithily, IHCL (which runs the hotel) has no right under the licence for a renewal thereof and therefore no further issue needs to be considered and decided," the bench said while dismissing IHCL's appeal in which it had challenged a single judge order dismissing their suit seeking to restrain NDMC from auctioning the property.

The property, owned by NDMC, was given to IHCL on a lease of 33 years. The lease had ended in 2011 and the company was given nine temporary extensions since then on various grounds, with three of them granted last year itself.
New Delhi: Private sector lender Karur Vysya Bank today reported a 11.18 per cent decline in net profit at Rs 126.31 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, mainly due to higher expenses.

The bank had recorded a net profit of Rs 142.22 crore in the corresponding quarter last fiscal. The total income of the lender also increased by 2.57 per cent to Rs 1,610.77 crore during the quarter compared to Rs 1,570.27 crore in the corresponding period last fiscal, Karur Vysya Bank said in a regulatory filing.

Its other operating expenses jumped by 54 per cent to Rs 238.92 crore during the quarter under review as against Rs 154.88 crore reported last year.

During the quarter, the gross non-performing assets (NPAs) rose to 2.29 per cent from 1.96 per cent at the end of second quarter of 2015-16.

At the same time, net NPA of the bank also increased to 1.44 per cent from 0.96 per cent of the total assets. Shares of Karur Vysya Bank were trading 0.11 per cent higher at Rs 475.80 on BSE.
New Delhi: Rebutting Congress' charge of a Rs 20,000-crore scam in alleged forced purchase of GSPC by ONGC, the Gujarat government firm today said discussions between the two firms are taking place on purely commercial basis with a view to achieve business synergies.

Congress spokesman Jairam Ramesh had on Tuesday alleged that Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan is "forcing" state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) to buy Gujarat State Petroleum Corp's (GSPC) gas block in KG basin to "protect" Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"The discussions between the two companies are taking place on purely commercial basis. The objective being to achieve business synergy between the resources of ONGC and GSPC for achieving more domestic production of oil and natural gas by carrying out further development of GSPC's KG Block," the Gujarat company said in a statement.

ONGC, it said, also operates an adjoining block in the KG basin which is due for development where the technological break-through achieved by GSPC in its KG Block can be of immense help for expediting the development.

Ramesh had alleged that Pradhan has ordered a "surgical strike" on GSPC through ONGC as the Gujarat government undertaking owes Rs 20,000 crore to 15 banks.

Denying Congress' charge that an attempt was being made to hide a scam, GSPC said: "The acquisition of stake by ONGC into GSPC's KG Block is meant for achieving synergy for securing energy security for India."

GSPC said the loans advanced by the banks to it were done after "proper assessment" by lenders. "In fact GSPC had availed services of SBI Capital Markets (a subsidiary of SBI ? a Government of India undertaking) for arranging the loan financing for GSPC. SBI Caps has also assisted the banks in evaluation before lending funds to GSPC.

"The proposals for lending to GSPC were cleared by the Board of Directors of the respective lending banks during the tenure of UPA government," it said.

GSPC, the statement said, has always carried out timely servicing of its loans. "GSPC has never ever defaulted even for a day in servicing its loans," it said.

Ramesh had alleged that there have been four CAG reports on GSPC scam, and yet there have been no comments from the government on them.

He alleged that Modi as Gujarat chief minister had made GSPC borrow Rs 20,000 crore after claiming in 2005 that it has found 20 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas reserves.

"After 11 years, they have found only 1 tcf of gas," he claimed adding GSPC has "squandered" the money and is "bankrupt" and therefore unable to repay.

GSPC said all the comments of the CAG pertaining to it and its operations have been tabled before the Gujarat Legislative Assembly and the reports have been discussed in the Public Undertakings Committee.
New Delhi/Mumbai: Tata Sons accused its former chairman, Cyrus Mistry, of making "unsubstantiated claims and malicious allegations" against the Indian conglomerate as the gloves came off in a bitter and highly public row over his sacking earlier this week.

The acrimonious exchanges have prompted aides to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to urge restraint in a dispute that could sully the reputation of one of India's oldest and most respected business houses.

Tata Sons has had only six chairmen since it was founded in 1868, growing into a $103 billion international group spanning cars, steel and information technology.

Mistry's parting shot, in a blistering 5-page letter written after he was ousted in a boardroom coup late on Monday, accused the company of failures of governance that he said had destroyed billions of dollars in shareholder value.

He also alleged inappropriate interference by Ratan Tata, the 78-year-old patriarch who hired him and has come out of retirement to run the business in a caretaker role.

Tata, in an 8-paragraph statement on Thursday, dismissed Mistry's claims.

"The correspondence makes unsubstantiated claims and malicious allegations," Tata Sons said in the statement emailed to reporters a day after Mistry's letter was leaked to the press.

"These will be responded to in an appropriate manner," the company said without elaborating, raising the prospect that the war of words could lead to a legal battle.

The country's two largest stock exchanges demanded clarity from Tata's more than two dozen listed units in what could herald scrutiny over why investors were not told of Mistry's concerns earlier.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the capital markets regulator, is looking into whether Tata Sons flouted corporate governance rules, as Mistry alleges in his letter to the board, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.

SEBI has also asked the National Stock Exchange and BSE Ltd for price movement data on all listed companies under the Tata umbrella, one of those people said.

SEBI could not immediately be reached for comment.

At least one unit, Tata Steel, dismissed talk of writedowns. But shares in all the group's major listed companies fell on Thursday.

Public confrontations of this nature are rare in Indian corporate life, particularly when they involve established conglomerates and business elders like Ratan Tata, who ran the Tata group for over two decades before hand-picking the 48-year-old Mistry.

"It's taken everyone by surprise. Nobody would have thought such things could happen at Tata," said J. N. Gupta, a former executive at India's markets regulator and now managing director at Stakeholders Empowerment Services.

Nalin Kohli, a national spokesman for Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party and a Supreme Court lawyer, said: "The larger question will remain whether a legal battle will serve the interests of shareholders."

Culture clash

Inside Tata, a company that promotes its roots in the heritage and social values of the Parsi community, some workers have bristled at the board's treatment of Mistry. But executives also questioned Mistry's efforts to restructure the group.

"It is like a bunch of finance or hedge fund guys that have walked in and decided to cut everything. This is not the Tata way of doing business," said one source close to the Tata group in response to the letter. "If you're picking things that are not working and then trying to get rid of them, where is growth going to come from?"

Ratan Tata was an acquirer in his time at the top, overseeing deals like the $12 billion acquisition of Corus, formerly British Steel, in 2007, and the purchase of Jaguar Land Rover a year later.

Mistry accused the board of failing to give him "room to move", and argued that Ratan Tata had acted as an alternative power centre, in particular driving deals that created two airline businesses.

Its Tata Motors arm extended credit too easily to fuel sales, Mistry said, and when fraudulent dealings surfaced at AirAsia India, they were not acted on fast enough.

In its rejoinder, Tata stated that Mistry, who was appointed a director in 2006 and made executive chairman in 2012, would have been "fully empowered" to lead the group and its companies.

"He would be fully familiar with the culture, ethos, governance structure, financial and operational imperatives of the Tata Group as well as various group companies," the company said. "It is unfortunate that it is only on his removal that allegations and misrepresentation of facts are being made."

"The record, as and when made public, will prove things to the contrary," it added.

One lawyer said Mistry's letter appeared to be presenting arguments that both he and the interests of the company had been the victim of "oppression and mismanagement" as cited in India's Companies Act, 2013.

"It would not be unprecedented for a managing director or chairperson to proclaim oppression - even if he was in charge," said the lawyer, Amir Singh Pasrich, managing partner of I.L.A. Pasrich and Co, a New Delhi-based law firm. He is not advising either side.

Mistry remains a director of Tata Sons and could by law only be removed by shareholders after being given due warning. He also chairs several listed units and his Pallonji family owns nearly a fifth of Tata Sons.

Abhishek Manu Singhvi, a senior lawmaker from the opposition Congress party and lawyer who has been retained by Tata, dismissed Mistry's allegations and questioned his motivation in going public with them.

"I don't see any reason to have allegations and counter allegations, Singhvi told Reuters Television, adding that the "maligning and bad mouthing should stop".
Tata Steel said it is pursuing a process for the potential sale of the South Yorkshire-based Specialty Steels business in the UK.

New Delhi: Tata Steel today said it continues to pursue European consolidation strategy and is in talks with Thyssenkrupp AG for potential JV for European steel business, following purported disclosure from ousted chairman Cyrus Mistry that some group firms could face a potential write-down of USD 18 billion.

"In response to the recent media reports, Tata Steel would like to clarify that it continues to pursue its European consolidation strategy and the talks with thyssenkrupp AG (as announced on July 8, 2016) for a potential joint venture of its European steel business are currently ongoing and progressing," Tata Steel said in a BSE filing.

"However, there can be no guarantee that these talks will result in a definitive agreement between the parties," it added.

The company put it on record that Tata Steel UK is also deeply engaged with all relevant stakeholders in the UK to find a structural solution and a way forward with regard to the affordability of the legacy pension scheme liabilities.

Tata Steel said it is pursuing a separate process for the potential sale of the South Yorkshire-based Specialty Steels business in the UK.

It clarified that any further announcement on the matter will be made at an appropriate time. Meanwhile, the management team and the employees of the company continue to work on improving the underlying performance of the European business amid challenging business conditions, the company said.

These comments from the company come against the backdrop of the high-profile Tata-Mistry case. In an explosive communication to Tata Sons board members, Mistry levelled a series of allegations against Ratan Tata and contended that he was pushed into a position of "lame duck" chairman and changes in the decision-making process created alternative power centres in the Tata group.

He warned that the salt-to-software conglomerate may face writedowns because of five unprofitable businesses he inherited. Mistry further said he inherited a debt-laden enterprise saddled with losses and went on to single out Indian Hotels Co, passenger-vehicle operations of Tata Motors, European operations of Tata Steel, part of the group's power unit and its telecommunications subsidiary as "legacy hotspots".
New Delhi: Telecom Minister Manoj Sinha will meet CEOs of telecom companies on November 1 to review the call drop issue and chalk out a road map for future.

"The minister will meet CEOs on call drop issue...we have held one meeting already and this (upcoming) meeting will be for stocktaking and road map for the future," Telecom Secretary JS Deepak said.

He said that according to TRAI, there has been an improvement in the call drop situation.

Earlier this year, telcos had submitted a 100 day action plan on strategy to address call drop issue. They had committed to set up 60,000 base stations as part of this action plan.

"We will review the plan," Deepak added.
Mumbai: An extensive Bollywood shooting schedule your neighbourhood might be the dream of the average Indian, but not for this Kerala mum.

Saif Ali Khan, whos been shooting his official remake of Chef in Kochi, was the subject of an angry locals displeasure. The shooting was stalled by an anglo-Indian, Auria Keri, who resides in Fort Kochi, who was unimpressed by the disruptive shoot of the Raja Krishna Menon, affecting her childrens studies. The very angry mother put her music system on full volume, retaliating by disrupting the films shoot, which will have sync sound and no subsequent dubbing.

One of the neighbours told Mumbai Mirror, "She was especially troubled that her two children were not being able to concentrate on their studies due to the ongoing shooting schedule." Auria herself had shunned the media. Auria, who runs a spa was also unhappy about the shoot affecting her clientele, since the shoot prevented them from reaching her spa. The lady, married to a German, began using amplifiers and playing ultra loud music.

Kerala State Pollution Control Board officials ended up visiting the location for elaborate scrutiny. "We will submit a report to the police on Friday . However, the sound was within the permitted decibel levels when we reached the spot," said a senior engineer.

Fort Kochi SI, Dwijesh S Fort Kochi's municipal councillor Shiny Mathew revealed, "We received a complaint of noise pollution from the film crew and we alerted the department of pollution. Further action will be taken as soon as we get the report from the department."

Saif, whose last few Bollywood outings have been nothing less than disastrous, desperately needs a hit and the last thing he needed was public outrage against his potential hit vehicle.
A still from the film 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'.

Mumbai: Bajrang Dal activists today demonstrated outside a movie hall in Purulia town in Purulia district protesting against the release of Karan Johar's latest movie Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, which features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan.

Purulia SP Rupesh Kumar told PTI that the agitation went on for roughly 20 minutes.

"Around 9.30 AM, 80-100 activists of the Bajrang Dal demonstrated outside the City Life mall where the film was scheduled to be released raising 'patriotic' slogans," the SP said.

However, the film was released as scheduled, Kumar said.

In the aftermath of the deadly Uri terror attack last month, film distributors decided not to release the film Ae Dil Hai Mushkil also starring Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.
Mumbai: Diwali always holds special memories for everyone. The festival of Lights also proves to be a holiday season, with many taking off for mini vacations with family and friends. Diwali calls for reminiscing old times and preparing to create new memories.

Here is what B-Town is upto this Diwali.

Bollywood Superstar Aamir Khan is currently basking in the heaps of praises coming his way for the stupendous trailer of 'Dangal.' His near and dear ones are of the opinion that the incredible word of mouth generated by the trailer of the movie calls for a celebration. Taking into consideration all the positivity, Aamir has decided to treat his family and friends over the Diwali Weekend. Word has it that the actor who traditionally organises big bashes to celebrate Diwali, will celebrate the festival of lights and the love coming in for the 'Dangal' trailer both together. The actor is to turn host for a private party at his Bandra residence, which will have his family and friends in attendance.

Amidst all the hullabaloo surrounding his upcoming release 'Kaabil,' Hrithik Roshan will be taking time off to celebrate the festival of lights with his kids Hrehaan and Hridaan. The actor is known to be a dotting dad and makes the most of his free time by spending it with his two bundles of joy. We have time and again got glimpses of the handsome trio chilling and having a great time while in each others company, indoors and outdoors. Recently, during an ongoing press conference, the superstar excused himself to receive his son's call, something that he never misses. Known to be a family guy, Hrithik has planned a private Diwali in tow of his kids.

Deepika Padukone, who is a synonym to the festival of lights, courtesy her name is travelling back to her roots. It's Bangalore calling for Deepika this Diwali. The actress will be visiting her hometown to bring in the festival. Diwali is a festival which is very close to her heart and the actress leaves no stone unturned to celebrate in the presence of her family. Unwinding from her hectic promotional schedule for her upcoming Hollywood release, 'xXx : Return of Xander Cage,' she is to visit her parents and sister to roll in the festivities.

Deepika shared, "Diwali is the festival of lights, joy and happiness and has always been a very special festival for all of us! So I decided to spend quality time with my family before I immerse myself in Padmavati". The visit also serves as a break for the actress who will soon start shooting for 'Padmavati.'

This Diwali marks to be extremely special for the Dutt household as it is Sanjay's first Diwali post release from Yerwada Jail. The actor and his family have extensive Diwali plans which begin Dhanteras onwards. Sanjay along with wife Manyata, twins Sharaan and Iqra will perform a Pooja for Dhanteras at their residence; the rituals will be attended by his sisters Priya and Namrata Dutt. Post which, there will be a special family dinner hosted by the Dutt couple. They are also gearing up for Diwali day and have been making extensive arrangements for the Laxmi Pooja at home amidst family. The arrangements for the pooja are being personally looked into by Sanjay himself. Sanjay and Manyata will also be attending Amitabh Bachchan's Diwali bash, later in the night.

It's going to be a Rocking Diwali for Farhan Akhtar, who will be celebrating the festival with his 'Rock On!! 2' team. Amidst the on-going promotional spree, Farhan is to have a get together with his entire team to bask in the festival season.

Tiger Shroff, the young actor who nurtures a close bond with his family has ensured to spend time with Family and celebrate Diwali. Tiger, who is currently shooting for 'Munna Michael' has made sure to be close to his family this festive season. The actor will partake in all Diwali rituals and Laxmi Pooja with parents Jackie and Ayesha Shroff and sister Krishna.

Shraddha Kapoor is gearing up to celebrate Diwali with friends turned family, her 'Rock On!! 2' team. She will also spend a part of her day at home in the presence of her family and conduct Diwali Pooja at home. She is conscious of following traditions, and Diwali festivities have been a constant at the Kapoor household. The young actress will be seen juggling family and friends this Diwali and has planned her day ensuring balance between both.
Mumbai: The makers of Ajay Devgns Shivaay on Thursday decided to file a complaint against Kamaal Rashid Khan after he had posted videos of the opening scenes of the film on Twitter. And Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, which is also releasing on the same day as Shivaay, has also met the same fate.

While it is a known fact that Shah Rukh Khan is doing a cameo in the film and even the director of the film Karan Johar had confirmed it, several pictures from Shah Rukh Khans scene in the film and even the video have been leaked on Twitter.

While there were reports that Shah Rukh Khan plays Aishwarya Rai Bachchans husband in the film, this scene does see the two come together along with Ranbir, and perhaps the reports could be true then.

Ae Dil Hai Mushkil also stars Anushka Sharma, Fawad Khan among others.
This is the time of the year when the newly-wed are pampered and showered with blessings and gifts from their parents and in-laws. Thala Deepavali is special, mainly because the couple will be celebrating it together for the first time. The day starts as early as 4.30 in the morning with a customary oil bath, followed by bursting crackers and wearing brand new clothes. Today, we peek into the lives of actors and directors to check how special their Thala Deepavali is going to be.

Kayal Chandran and Anjana:

Anjana says, Coming from a traditional Brahmin family, we will burst at least one cracker, just for the sake of tradition. I would love to go eco-friendly, but we will have to go by our ancestors advice. We got engaged last year and spent our first Deepavali together by watching Thoongaavanam. This year too, we will catch a movie together. This is what Chandrans family follows. More than me, my mother is fond of making Chandran feel special. She took him shopping and I thought I could surprise him too. When they were on their spree, I took off and got him his favourite perfume.

Nakul and Sruthi:

We have a family dinner and a small pooja today. We are not very fond of bursting crackers. The only crackers we might light are flower pots and fire wheels. We have five dogs and several birds at home and stand by the initiative, Have a pet friendly Deepavali. We dont want to hurt them in any way. I love baking and am receiving a lot of orders to bake sweets for the occasion. Nakul is busy shooting and he makes sure he helps me whenever he is at home. He gifted me a pair of earrings, while I gave him shades, quips Shruti, who also hosts a travel show.

Vikram Kumar and Srinidhi Venkatesh:

The director of Suriya starrer 24, Vikram Kumar shares, I stopped bursting crackers a long time back and my wife doesnt believe in it either. I am looking forward to the wonderful spread of food and will definitely take her out for a movie. I dont know much about tradition followed in both of our houses, so whatever they say, we will follow it to the T!

Ganesh Venkatram and Nisha:

An excited Ganesh asserts, This Deepavali is special to me in many ways. It is my first with Nisha and also marks the first anniversary of our house, which we bought in 2015. As per our customs, we will have an oil bath, wear new clothes and burst crackers. I am extremely concerned about the environment, so I am not keen on bursting them. However, it being our tradition, we might light some that pollute less. I have also planned to surprise Nisha with a special gift. I think the most precious gift one can give ones loved ones is by spending quality time with them. So, I look forward to enjoying my time with our families.

Aari and Nathiya:

Aari plans to fulfill his wifes dream by taking her to her favourite place. He reveals, My wife Nathiya is from Sri Lanka. We plan to visit the country and spend quality time with her family. During our trip, well visit all the tourist attractions and her school, which she really wanted to see. As a pre-Deepavali gift, I gave her a saree. Also, she loves bullock cart rides, but, unfortunately, we couldnt do that in Chennai! I plan to surprise her by taking her on one.
Rating:

Cast: Ajay Devgan, Erika Kaar, Abigail Eames, Sayyeshaa

Director: Ajay Devgan

Tum mein Shiva jaisa kya hai? the lady asks Devgan lustfully.

I held my breath wondering what he will show her. Relax. Its just the tattoos which make our hero so loftily heroic. Just to drive in the heros anointed status we have the noisy background score where star-stuck choruses chant in unison about Shiva the Destroyer, blah blah.

Shivaay is so steeped in self importance so awed by its own intended grandeur it seems to forget there is a story to tell. Story, there is to tell. But the plot is propelled forward in stuttering staccato waves of melodrama and action. Its like Shekhar Kapoor desperately tries to shake hands with Rohit Shetty. But they just cant seem to find a meeting-ground. Not in this Ajay Devgan-directed lopsided melange of mayhem and melodrama.

At one point in this tedious homage to mountain climbing and cross-cultural copulation, debutante Sayyeshaa (she could do better, Im sure) tells us that she wanted to help Devgan because Super-heroes comic books ke baahar nahin milte. Precisely the problem in Shivaay. It wants to make Ajay Devgan a larger-than-life super-hero, the kind that may look appealing in a comic book but appears amply askew in a reallife situation.

And I use real life with much reservation. Shivaay is as real as 300 or Baahubali, minus the comfort of escape into fantasy. Devgan plays a whole lot of super-heroic roles all in the course of one film. He is a mountain climber (a la Sylvester Stallone in the disastrous Cliffhanger) and an unabashed explorer of uncharted territory. That includes a Bulgarian woman Olga (Erika Kaar, listless and clueless). The two are soon shown getting intimate and passionate, while the censor board looks the other way. This is after all, Degvans first stab at on-screen passion, and we all must step back reverentially for the grand occasion.

The fruits of the passionate liaison is a little girl Gaura (Abigail Eames) who alas is vocally impaired. Gaura, I suspect, has been written as a mute character to accommodate the young foreigner actress inability to converse in Hindi. I really cant be blamed for being paranoid about the scriptural contrivances. Shivaay is cluttered with them.

The plot moves from trying to be a Masoom in reverse (illicit liaison and the complications that ensue when the child gets insistently precocious) to being a clamorous wannabe cluttered and confused adaptation of Pierre Morrels Taken where Liam Neeson rescued his teenaged daughter from flesh traders.

Some such catastrophic eventuality crops up in the narrative, like an uninvited viral fever, when our super-hero Shivaays half-Bulgarian speechless daughter insists on meeting her mother who has by then, upped and left (the tattoos have run their course.

Recently we saw the calamitous incidents that awaited the father and daughter when they took off to meet the girls mother in the Korean film Train To Busan. But in oiling his triple tattoos, catering to his demanding daughter and saving the world, I doubt Shivaay has time to watch Korean films. He does seem to have watched Taken closely. The action scenes are shot with the uni-focused singularity of a screen hero who wants to give the audience enough thrills to forget the Hollywood super-hero films.

Alas, its a losing battle. Shivaay is a cumbersome over-blown action drama. While the stunts are quite engaging at times, the drama is unbearable and unintentionally funny. It is hard to even bear with the characters, let alone devote nearly three hours of time to them. The performances are partially to blame. Devgans strong-and-silent act had been done to death. Mercifully he doesnt try comedy here as he did in Action Jackson. Sad to see talented actors like Vir Das and Saurabh Shukla wasted in sketchily written parts.

Aseem Bajajs cinematography captures the bleak foreboding mood of the plot much better than any of the actors. Shivaay is not the light fun crackerjack Diwali film youd like to sit through this festive season. It is laden with an overbearing darkness which eclipses all of the films efforts to pull us into its embrace. The proceedings get so edgy that they finally topple over.
For ages consumption of alcoholic beverages has been considered harmful to health while milk has been promoted among children as a healthy option. But it seems beer enthusiasts have a reason to celebrate as none other than PETA seems to be batting for them.

The People for Ethical Treatment of Animals, known for their campaigns against animal cruelty, have put up an advertisement just outside one of Americas top ranked universities, calling on students to drink beer instead of milk.

The ad which gives scientific reasons for PETAs claims is modelled after the Got Milk? ad campaign which promoted milk consumption, and is titled Got Beer?. It says that while milk causes osteoporosis by depleting bone mass, beer actually protects bones from going brittle.

Apart from blaming milk consumption for harming human health and causing suffering of billions of cows, PETA wrote on its blog that, "Consumption of dairy foods has been linked to serious health problems, including heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and cancer -- as well as conditions such as acne, excess mucus, and symptoms of lactose intolerance, such as flatulence.

The advertisement previously appeared in 2000, but was pulled down after a backlash from many groups including Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), as they called the campaign irresponsible.
New Delhi: Vitamin D supplements are less effective at raising vitamin D levels in pregnant women if they deliver their babies in the winter, have low levels of vitamin D early in pregnancy or gain more weight during pregnancy, a new Southampton study has shown.

The findings showed pregnant women respond differently to vitamin D supplementation depending on their individual attributes. The University of Southampton researchers suggest that supplement levels should be tailored according to individual risk factors.

Vitamin D is a hormone that helps the body absorb calcium. It plays a crucial role in bone and muscle health. The skin naturally produces vitamin D after exposure to sunlight but people also obtain smaller amounts of the vitamin through foods, such as milk fortified with vitamin D.

Evidence suggests vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy can harm maternal health, fetal development and the child's long-term skeletal health.

Study leader Nicholas Harvey commented, "It is important for pregnant women to have sufficient levels of vitamin D for the health of their baby. Our study findings suggest that in order to optimise vitamin D concentrations through pregnancy, the supplemental dose given may need to be tailored to a woman's individual circumstances, such as the anticipated season of delivery."

The Maternal Vitamin D Osteoporosis Study (MAVIDOS), is a multi-centre, double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial of vitamin D supplementation in pregnancy. More than 800 pregnant women were recruited and randomised to take either 1000 units (25 micrograms) of vitamin D every day or a matched placebo capsule from 14 week's gestation until delivery of the baby.

Analysis showed that participants who received the vitamin D supplement achieved different levels of vitamin D in the blood, even though they received the same dose. Researchers found women who delivered in the summer, who gained less weight during pregnancy and who had higher vitamin D levels early in pregnancy tended to have higher levels of vitamin D in the blood than their counterparts. Women who consistently took the supplement also had higher levels of vitamin D than participants who did not.

"Our findings of varied responses to vitamin D supplementation according to individual attributes can be used to tailor approaches to antenatal care," said researcher Cyrus Cooper. "This work forms part of a larger programme of research at the MRC Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit, University of Southampton, addressing the early life determinants of bone development, and will inform novel strategies aimed at improving bone health across future generations."

The study has been published in the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.
The firemen had managed to rescue a woman trying to commit suicide at the Sabarmati Riverfront on Thursday. (Representational Photo: Pixabay)

The rescue team of the Ahmedabad Fire and Emergency Services (AFES) was left baffled after a man lambasted them for saving his wifes life. The firemen had managed to rescue a woman trying to commit suicide at the Sabarmati Riverfront on Thursday which shockingly did not go down well with her husband.

The 37-year-old woman had reportedly taken the extreme step after a fight with her spouse. She revealed to the police that her husband had accused her of infidelity, according to media reports. The couple has two children together.

The husband, a CNG pump owner, quickly arrived at the spot after being alerted of his wifes suicide attempt. Instead of being grateful to the rescuers, he began inquiring that with whose permission they decided to save his wifes life. Not only did he click their pictures but also threatened that he would seek revenge from them in the future.
The woman, who sustained minor injuries, raised an alarm following which a police official on duty in the vicinity nabbed the assailant. (Photo: Representational Image)

Chennai: A 32-year-old man allegedly stabbed a woman in her face at a busy bus terminus here after she rejected his advances, police said.

The man stabbed the 25-year-old with a knife in full public view at the Koyambedu bus terminus last night as she did not respond positively to his proposal, they said.

The woman, who sustained minor injuries, raised an alarm following which a police official on duty in the vicinity nabbed the assailant with the help of others at the terminus.

The man was arrested and produced before a court today which remanded him to judicial custody.

After preliminary inquiry, police said three years ago the man and the victim had worked together in a private firm and at that time too, he had pestered the woman to accept his advances.
Vijaywada: By Friday morning, the Odisha police has handed over 15 of the 28 bodies of slain Maoists to their family members and relatives. It is waiting for the relatives of the other deceased rebels to come arrive at Malkangiri and receive their bodies.

If no one comes forward today to claim the remaining bodies, the police will bury them as per National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) guidelines Malkangiri superintendent of police (SP) Mitrabhanu Mahapatra told this newspaper on Friday.

In another development, it was revealed that six of the four missing villagers who were picked up by the Maoists on Sunday night to cook food for them were killed during the encounter.

The four villagers killed in the crossfire were identified as Shinde Khila of Mukudipali, Kamulu Sanabarisia of Jadamba, Jayaram Khila and Samala Pangi of Similipadar.

Mukudipali, Jodamba and Similipadars are small hamlets under Panasuput gram panchayat located in the Chitrakonda reservoir cut area.

The identities of the two other missing villagers were not yet known.

It may be mentioned here that at least 28 Maoists were killed by during a joint operation by the Andhra Pradesh and Odisha police in Bhejing jungle under Panasput gram panchayat on Monday morning. A Greyhound commando of Andhra Pradesh police was also killed in the exchange of fire.
Police were conducting house-to-house search to recover the guns and ammunitions. (Photo: Representational Image)

Bulandshahr: A police team was allegedly attacked by the residents of Azizabad village in Bulandshahr when it had gone to probe a complaint of loot, police said on Friday.

Sub-inspector Ravinder Singh, along with constable Vimlesh and a jeep driver, had gone to Azizabad village to probe a complaint of loot of Rs 5,000, said Superintendent of Police (Rural) Jagdish Sharma.

When the policemen reached the village, they were attacked by the locals, who also snatched their rifles, cartridges, magazines and mobile phones, the officer said.

While the sub-inspector and the jeep driver managed to escape from the scene, the villagers caught hold of constable Vimlesh and thrashed him, he added.

Later, sub-inspector Ravinder Singh informed the control room, following which reinforcement arrived from the adjoining police station and Vimlesh was rescued, he said.

Police were conducting house-to-house search to recover the guns and ammunitions, said Jagdish Sharma, adding that an FIR has been lodged after identifying 10 assailants and strict action will be taken against the culprits.
As the police started the probe and questioned the employees, Ranjith got scared and asked his associates to return the valuables. (Representational image)

Bengaluru: The Tilaknagar police have arrested a gang of seven members in connection with a dacoity, in which diamond jewels worth over Rs 25 lakh and cash of Rs 10 lakh were robbed in May.

One of the arrested has been identified as Ranjith Kumar, 25, a resident of Netaji Nagar on Magadi Road, who is an employee of Vitrag Jewels Showroom in Jayanagar, to which the valuables belonged.

On May 11, showroom employees Kumar and Ravindra were on their way to deliver the jewels to an industrialist on S.P. Road.

They were also carrying cash of Rs 10 lakh to deposit it in a bank after the delivery. The gang waylaid them and had robbed them of the valuables.

As the police started the probe and questioned the employees, Ranjith got scared and asked his associates to return the valuables.

But the other accused, without Ranjiths knowledge, made duplicates of the jewellery and threw it near the showroom.

The investigation was intensified and the accused were arrested, the police said.

The police have recovered diamond jewellery worth Rs 25 lakh and Rs 4 lakh cash from the arrested gang members.
Narasimha Rao was listed as the director of Touchstone Commodities, located in Irving, Texas, which he claimed was running an import-export business of iron ore, steel and wood chips. (Representational image)

Hyderabad: A Hyderabadi connection has emerged in the US money soliciting scam involving Indian call centres, with the arrest of city origin businessman Bhogavalli Narasimha Rao by the FBI in Irving, Texas.

Rao, 50, was arrested on Thursday for engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity in connection with an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) impersonation scam.

According to the US Justice Department, the victims were contacted by individuals claiming to be IRS agents and told of outstanding warrants for their arrest and that they would be sent to jail unless they deposited money orders or cash into accounts controlled by Narasimha Rao and other accounts used by co-conspirators.

Call centre scam: Hyderabadi managed multiple accounts

Tipped by US agencies Indian police detected a call centre operating from Ahmedabad in Gujarat. Northern District of Texas attorney John Parker alleged that Narasimha Rao had defrauded victims, transferred the money to his accounts and wired it to India. He was produced before a magistrate who ordered his detention.

Narasimha Rao used at least two Bank of America accounts, one in the name of Tekdynamics, Inc. and the other in the name of Touchstone Commodities, Inc. The investigation revealed that he controlled additional accounts used in the scam, including a Citibank account in the name of Touchstone Commodities, it said.

It said that from November 2014 to February 2015, 242 cash deposits to the tune of Rs 11.09 crore in Indian currency was deposited in one of the Bank of America accounts and 60 money orders worth Rs 25 lakh into the second one. An amount of `64 lakh was deposited in the Citibank account

The FBI found that immediately after the victims made the deposits, the money was wire-transferred to other accounts that Narasimha Rao controlled, which he either spent or wired them to accounts in other countries, such as India.

Narasimha Rao was listed as the director of Touchstone Commodities, located in Irving, Texas, which he claimed was running an import-export business of iron ore, steel and wood chips.

Records showed that he was listed as president of Tekdynamics, a firm claiming to be provider of technology, outsourcing and consulting needs with established infrastructure in the US and India.
Jammu: BSF on Thursday said it had killed a Pakistani paramilitary jawan and wounded another after a BSF jawan died and six civilians were injured in shelling and firing from across the International Border in R S Pura and Arnia sectors since last night.

Pakistani troops also violated ceasefire along LoC in Sunderbani sector of Rajouri district on Thursday.

"At 1230 and 1315 hours today, BSF troops in Arnia and R S Pura sectors killed one Pakistani Ranger and seriously injured another in the retaliatory firing," a senior BSF officer said here.

Pakistani Rangers somehow managed to evacuate their grievously injured colleague in the vehicle amidst exchange of fire, officer said.

"Pakistani has resorted to very heavy firing which is being responded in the befitting manner," he said.

Earlier, a BSF jawan died and six civilians were injured when Pakistani troops shelled over 15 Indian border outposts and 29 hamlets with mortar bombs and fired heavily from automatic weapons overnight in R S Pura and Arnia sectors along the International Border (IB) in Jammy district.

"One BSF jawan was injured when he was hit by a bullet in R S Pura sector of Jammu district during the night," the BSF officer said. He died on his way to hospital.

"There was heavy firing and mortar shelling on BoPs and villages along IB in R S Pura and Arnia sectors of Jammu district overnight and continued till this morning," a police officer said.

In the shelling, six civilians were injured in Khopra Basti belt in R S Pura this morning, he said, adding the injured have been taken to hospital for treatment.

Pakistani Rangers started firing heavy mortars and small arm fire towards the Indian side from 2035 hours last night, the BSF officer said.

Pakistan troops also violated ceasefire on the LoC by resorting to firing in Sunderbani sector of Rajouri district.

"Pakistan troops have violated ceasefire and resorted to firing along LoC in Sunderbani sector today," a senior Army officer said. Troops guarding the border retaliated, he added.

Yesterday, an Assistant Sub-Inspector of BSF was injured when a shell fired by Pakistani Rangers exploded near him during overnight ceasefire violation in RS Pura sector along the International Border in Jammu.

As many as 16 people mostly women have been injured in the cross border firing in the RS Pura sector in past two days. 8 civilians were injured shelling in R S Pura and Arnia on October 25.

Jammu Deputy Commissioner Simrandeep Singh said the government has issued an advisory and all the educational institutions near the International Border have been closed in the wake of the firing from across the border.

Border residents are migrating to safer locations in the wake of the heavy firing, Singh said.

A six-year-old boy and a BSF Jawan were killed in the cross border shelling in the RS Pura sector on October 24.

Over 55 ceasefire violations have taken place since surgical strikes by Indian Army against terror launch pads in PoK on September 29.
Gaya (Bihar): With the Supreme Court staying his bail, Rakesh Ranjan alias Rocky Yadav, who allegedly shot dead a Class XII student for overtaking his SUV, police today could not trace him.

A manhunt has been launched and raids are being conducted at various places in order to put him back to jail, Senior Superintendent of Police Garima Malik told PTI.

"As soon as the Supreme Court judgement reached us the police raided Rocky Yadav's house in A P Colony, but did not find him there," the SP said.

The police has filed an application in the court of Additional District Judge SP Mishra seeking non-bailable arrest warrant against Yadav to send him back to jail in accordance with the apex court judgement.

Rocky Yadav's lawyer also filed an affidavit in the court of the ADJ during the day stating that he was out of Gaya and would come before the court tomorrow.

Rocky Yadav's mother and suspended JD(U) MLC Manorma Devi and her husband Bindi Yadav said the family respects the judiciary and their son would appear before the ADJ court tomorrow.

The apex court today stayed the bail granted by the Patna High Court on October 19 to Rocky Yadav in connection with the death of Aditya Sachdeva in the road rage incident- and thus making clear he will have to go back to jail.

Rocky is accused of shooting and killing Aditya Sachdeva, a Class XII student who was driving his Maruti car, for overtaking his SUV on May 7 this year near Gaya.

The incident had triggered outrage across the country. The Nitish Kumar government filed an appeal in the Supreme Court challenging the Patna High Court's granting bail to Rocky Yadav.
Amaravati: The Centre will very soon take steps to start operationalising the special economic package announced for Andhra Pradesh, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Friday.

Addressing a public meeting after laying the foundation-stone for the administrative city in the state's new capital Amaravati, Jaitley said the Centre will grant Rs 2.03 lakh crore in five years to the state through the Finance Commission alone.

"We are giving thousands and thousands of crores to Andhra Pradesh for various projects which is equivalent, if not more, to the special category status," Jaitley said and listed the projects the Centre has sanctioned to the state in the last two years.

"Chandrababu (Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu), you are credited with creating Hyderabad into a modern city and now you have the same opportunity in Amaravati. I am confident in due course Amaravati will become the finest city in India," the Union finance minister said.

"In this task, you are not alone and the Government of India will support you to the hilt," he said.

Terming as unprecedented the act of farmers in the Amaravati region giving away their lands (33,000 acres) under the land pooling scheme for the capital development, Jaitley said "we (AP and the Centre) will together bring smiles on each of these faces".

On the state government's request for exemption of capital gains tax on the sale of developed land in the capital region, Jaitley assured he will "sympathetically consider" and see that an early decision is taken in the matter.

The Chief Minister, who was also present, said he settled for the Centre's special development package to the state as special category status did not look possible.

Union Ministers M Venkaiah Naidu, P Ashok Gajapati Raju, Y S Chowdary, state Assembly Speaker Kodela Sivaprasada Rao, state ministers, MPs, MLAs and others attended the event.

Besides the administrative city, Jaitley also laid the foundation-stone for RBI's regional office building, storm water drainage system in Vijayawada city, underground drainage system in Guntur city and seven seed access roads to the capital city.

Earlier, the Chief Minister hosted lunch for Jaitley at the Taj hotel here and discussed the Centre's financial assistance to the state.

Naidu wanted "legislative backing" to the special development package announced on September 7.

Prior to that, the state BJP felicitated Jaitley at a separate function for having granted the special development package to Andhra Pradesh.
Bengaluru: RSS on Friday opposed the celebration of 'Tipu Jayanti' in Karnataka this year, saying they would stage protests against it as the ruler of the erstwhile Mysore kingdom was a "religious bigot and a violent sultan".

"Our outfits will be out on the streets to stage protests against Tipu Jayanti as the then Mysuru ruler was a tyrant, a religious bigot and a violent sultan," RSS kshetriya sarsanghchalak of Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, V Nagaraj told reporters in Bengaluru.

Tipu Jayanti, slated to be celebrated across the state on November 10, is being observed since last year following a Congress government decision which had triggered a major row and caused violence in Kodagu district in November last.

Nagaraj said celebrating Tipu Jayanti will amount to "rubbing salt into the wounds" of Christians and many other communities who were persecuted by the then Mysuru ruler.

Even well-known Left historian KM Pannikar had translated the records of religious persecutions of Tipu, written in Arabic and Persian languages into Malayalam and English, he said.

Replying to a query, the RSS leader asked the government to pursue the Rudresh murder case so that the killers get capital punishment.

RSS worker Rudresh was hacked to death by two motorcycle-borne men on Kamaraja Road on October 16 when he was with his friends, after attending a Sangh event.

Four persons were arrested yesterday in connection with the murder.

Nagaraj expressed satisfaction over the arrest of Rudresh's killers.

"We are happy that the culprits have been arrested and we congratulate the Bengaluru police for it," he said.

"However, our demand before the government is that the case will have to be properly filed and pursued so that the culprits get capital punishment," he added.

The RSS leader refuted reports that Rudresh was murdered due to personal rivalry and said there was no complaint regarding his conduct and he had a great ability to build the Sangh and the BJP in the state.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday cancelled the bail granted by Patna High Court to Suspended JDU leader Manorama Devi's son Rocky Yadav in the Aditya Sachdeva road rage case.

Rocky is accused of shooting dead class XI student Aditya Sachdeva, son of a Gaya businessman, on May 7 following an altercation over overtaking.

A bench headed by Justice S A Bobde sought response from Rocky on a plea of Bihar government challenging the bail granted to him on October 19.

Senior advocate Rajiv Dutta, appearing for Bihar government, said this was an open-and-shut case and the youth was highly intoxicated. Hence, his bail should be immediately cancelled or the order of the Patna High Court stayed.

The bench said that "charge sheet has already been filed in the case and this may go against you".

The court said it was issuing notice to the respondent (Rocky) and posted the hearing after Diwali.

Police had filed a charge sheet in a Gaya court against Rocky and another accused in connection with the murder. They had also filed charge sheet against Rocky's cousin Teni Yadav, his father Bindi Yadav and his MLC mother's bodyguard, Rajesh Kumar, in the murder case.

The state government had put the case on speedy trial and investigation was completed in three weeks and charge sheet filed within a month of the incident.

Rocky is facing two cases - one of murder of Aditya and another under Excise Act for recovery of liquor bottles from the house of his mother. He was arrested from his father's mixer plant in Gaya on May 10.

His name was included along with his father Bindi Yadav in the case of recovery of liquor bottles which were found when police raided his mother's house looking for Rocky.
Lucknow: Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president Mayawati on Friday said she would order a probe into the various economic decisions taken by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav in the run up to the state Assembly elections, if voted to power.

"Assessing that his party will not return to power, the Chief Minister is taking big economic decisions on a regular basis and they will definitely be probed by the BSP government," she said in a statement.

"Now when the Assembly elections are just round the corner, the Chief Minister is enacting 'drama' to woo different sections of society and making announcements," she said.

Her statement said, "The Uttar Pradesh government's decision to raise honorarium of gram pradhan from Rs 2,500 to Rs 3,000 and distribution of the ruling SP's poll material in the form of steel plates and glasses to school children was aimed at gaining cheap publicity."

The Dalit leader also welcomed the "stern" direction of the Allahabad High Court to the state government for the latter's failure to contain dengue menace.

After being rapped by the HC on the issue recently, Akhilesh Yadav had directed officials to launch a campaign in every district of the state to check the disease.

"Accepting apathy and laxity alone in the court will not serve the purpose.... stern measures and prompt action against those responsible for it is required," she said.

Mayawati alleged that though the state government had said that 113 deaths have taken place, but in Lucknow alone 219 people have died of dengue.

"There is an immediate need to declare dengue an epidemic," she stressed.

Taking a dig at the alleged family feud in Samjawadi Party, Mayawati added that the Chief Minister should take out time from the ongoing family fight and rather concentrate on people's sufferings.

The crucial state Assembly polls are scheduled for next year.
Soon after the incident, reinforcements were rushed to the spot and the injured were taken to Basaguda from where they will be airlifted to Raipur for further medication, he said. (Representational image)

Raipur: Two CoBRA jawans were on Friday injured in a pressure bomb blast triggered by naxals in Chhattisgarh's insurgency-hit Bijapur district.

The incident occurred at around 11:45 AM when a team of Commando Battalion for Resolute Action's 204th battalion was carrying out a search operation in Basaguda police station area, a CRPF official said.

"Security forces were out for the operation since morning to the interiors of Basaguda, located around 450 kms away from here.

"While they were cordoning off a forested patch near Sankanpalli, about 8 kms away from Basaguda, two jawans inadvertently stepped over a pressure IED (Improvised Explosive Device) connection, triggering the blast that left them injured," he said.

Constable Kishore Behera is seriously injured whereas the other constable Nandan of the battalion has sustained minor injuries, the official said.

Soon after the incident, reinforcements were rushed to the spot and the injured were taken to Basaguda from where they will be airlifted to Raipur for further medication, he said.
Itanagar: Union Minister Kiren Rijiju on Friday called for creating a "conducive" atmosphere in the North East so that the investments could flow to the region.

"For investors evincing keen interest in the region, a peaceful atmosphere should be created where they (investors) feel secure," he said addressing a conclave of Young Leaders Connect (YLC) in Itanagar.

Asking the people of the region to remain united, Rijiju said nothing could work in isolation.

"Natural resources can make a region rich, but mismanagement makes it poor. For proper utilisation of resources, skill development is the need of the hour," he said, adding Prime Minister Narendra Modi has transformed the 'Look East Policy' into 'Act East Policy'.

Rijiju said too much negativity prevailed in the North East over the years, which needs to be shed off.

"The people of the region feel they are being neglected and are far away from the mainstream. This perspective needs to be changed as there is nothing called 'side-stream or mainstream', in fact every village in the country is mainstream India. We need to have confidence on us as equal citizens of the country," he said.

The Union Minister of State for Home Affairs said the North East had tremendous potential of having friendly relations with neighbouring countries and all must unite and exist as one.

"We have potentials and problems. If we stay together as one, all our problems will be solved. The North East must integrate and help each other in development," he said.

Dwelling on skill development, the minister said the youths of the region do not prefer to be entrepreneurs, but run behind government jobs.

"This is because of the appeasement policy of the government which normally cripples them," he added.
Hyderabad: CPI on Friday demanded a judicial inquiry into the encounter in which 28 Maoists were gunned down by a joint team of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha police and deplored the action as "highhanded" killings.

In the same breath, CPI general secretary S Sudhakar Reddy also condemned the threat issued to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and his family in a letter, written purportedly by outlawed CPI(Maoist).

Reddy also hit out at RSS for allegedly labelling communists as "anti-Hindu" and said the Left parties neither support nor oppose any religion, but are pitching for secularism.

"CPI severely condemns these highhanded killings in the name of encounters. CPI demands judicial inquiry into the whole incident," a party statement quoted Reddy as saying.

Read: AP CM Naidu's security enhanced after Maoist letter threatening 'revenge'

While he condemned the threat to Naidu, the former Lok Sabha member said "many believe the letter is fake".

"However, targeting political leaders or individuals is condemnable," he added.

Referring to RSS' recent allegations against Left parties that they launched violence against Sangh workers in Kerala, Reddy said the CPI rejects the charges.

Instead, it accused the RSS of targeting minorities, Dalits and Communists, but is labeling Left as "anti-Hindu".

The RSS had made the allegations its Akhil Bhartiya Karyakari Madal (national executive) meeting held here earlier this week.

"First they attack minorities, Dalits and now they are targeting Communists as anti Hindu. Left is not supporting or opposing any religion. Left is for secularism in the Country," he said.

The Maoists were killed in an encounter with a joint team of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh police in an anti-naxal offensive in Odisha's Malkangiri district on the border with Andhra Pradesh on October 24.
Besides, government will also install a mist fountain at one traffic intersection which is yet to identified as a pilot project to curb air pollution. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: In a first, Delhi government on Friday announced a three-tier air treatment system which includes setting up of wind purification units, mist fountains and virtual chimney at five major traffic intersections on trial basis to deal with rising air pollution in city.

The air treatment system has potential to reduce carbon monoxide and particulate emission by 40%-60% emission in 20-30 m radius during peak hours of traffic, Government sources claimed.

Delhi Minister Satyendar Jain, who is also the head of Delhi Task Force formed to formulate policy to curb air pollution, said the government in collaboration with National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) and IIT (Bombay) set up the entire system within 45 days.

He said that air purifiers will be installed at five major traffic intersections - Anand Vihar, ITO, Sarai Kalen Khan, Kashmere Gate and IIT (Delhi) or AIIMS.

Besides, government will also install a mist fountain at one traffic intersection which is yet to identified as a pilot project to curb air pollution.

This is for the first time that the city administration has taken such steps to bring down rising air pollution in the city.

The announcement comes after Jain held a meeting with NEERI Director Rakesh Kumar. IIT (Bombay) has also been engaged by NEERI for design and solutions.

Pollutant-loaded air continued to hang heavy in the national capital ahead of Diwali, when pollution is likely to peak, prompting authorities to urge residents to refrain frombursting firecrackers which they said emit cancer-causing smoke.

"We also plan to install a mist fountain at one intersection. We can bring down PM 2.5 and PM 10 in the air by using mist fountain," Jain told reporters in Delhi.

He said that in Pune, air purifiers have been installed where there have been good results and they can be set up at the central verge of the roads.

"Air treatment system will in place one-and-a-half months. The system will help bring down air pollution in Delhi in winter months as pollution is at its peak in December and January," said a senior government official.

The minister has appealed the residents of Delhi not to burst firecrackers in Delhi to make the city's air clean.

Nearly all the monitoring stations active in the city, cutting across agencies, had PM 2.5 and PM 10 (ultra fine pollutants) several times above the safe limit of 60 and 100 micrograms per cubic metre, keeping the air in the very poor category.

For the second consecutive day, pollutants (PM 10) in Anand Vihar shot up nine times above the safe limit when checked in real-time around 12 PM as per the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC).

Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB) Punjabi Bagh, RK Puram stations had AQI in the severe category which affects healthy people and seriously impacts those with existing diseases.
New Delhi: Congress on Friday expressed concern over the 111-day curfew in the Kashmir valley and burning of 25 schools and asked the government whether it has any roadmap to bring normalcy.

"Does the Government have a Policy, does the Government have a way out, does the Government have a solution, and does the Government have a Roadmap or a Plan. Nation has waited for over 3-4 months, how much longer will the Nation wait?", party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi told reporters.

On the question of ceasefire violations by Pakistan, Singhvi said the party sees it with great alarm and regret and seriousness, as Pakistan is not going to change.

Singhvi also took a dig at the government over the World Bank Report which showed that the ranking of India in the Ease of Doing Business has not changed despite its claims of vast improvement.
Shoaib, a Jodhpur-based man was detained by the Rajasthan Police in the case on Thursday has been sent to custody of the Delhi Police till November 8th. (Photo: Twitter/ANI)

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Friday sent Shoaib Hasan, the third accused arrested in connection with the alleged Pakistan espionage case, to 11-day police custody after the agency said he was to be confronted with two other arrested men to unearth the larger conspiracy.

The investigating officer said the accused, who was allegedly working for an ISI spy ring, was produced before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Satish Arora and remanded for custodial interrogation till November 8.

Delhi Police claimed that Hasan was involved in the espionage ring in which Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar, described as the kingpin working for Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence, was detained by police for alleged possession of sensitive defence documents.

Akhtar, who worked in the visa section of the High Commission, was on Thursday released after questioning as he enjoyed diplomatic immunity, police said.

A court had on Thursday sent two persons, Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir to the police custody till November 8.

During the proceedings on Friday, police alleged that more persons were likely to be apprehended in the case and recovery of certain documents and others items was also to be made with the help of the accused.

The agency also said that all the three accused persons would be confronted with each others and taken to various places for the investigation.

Hasan was arrested on Friday after being brought from Jodhpur, with police claiming that he was in touch with Akhtar for the last three-four years and had visited the neighbouring country six times.

Investigators said they will try to recover data from a 'phablet' seized from his possession, which he had tried to damage when police in Jodhpur detained him last evening.

The police has claimed that Hasan, a passport and visa agent, was responsible for recruiting the other two arrested accused in the module.

The agency claimed that besides a phablet, some classified documents were also recovered from Hasan. Hasan was detained near Jodhpur last evening after Delhi police alerted the local police.

The other two accused were arrested on charges of sharing of sensitive information and defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border. The duo were on Thursday sent to 12-day police custody.

Hasan had come in contact with Maulana Ramzan around one -and-a-half years back and lured him into activities of collecting vital information about installations of army and paramilitary forces in Gujarat and Rajasthan, an officer claimed.
New Delhi: Government has mandated support for Indian languages in all mobile phones to be sold in the country from July 1, 2017 onward.

"In exercise of the power conferred by clause 10(1) of Bureau of Indian Standard Act... the central government, hereby includes the Indian language support for mobile phone as per IS 16333(Part-3) to the schedule of 'Electronics and Information Technology Goods (Requirement for compulsory Registration) Order, 2012", an official notification said.

As per the new mandate, all mobile phones in the country will have to provide text reading support in all Indian languages on their devices.

The new standard mandates mobile phone companies to provide message typing facility in English, Hindi and a regional language of their users choice.

"The provisions of 'Electronics and Information Technology Goods (Requirements for Compulsory Registration) Order 2012' ....shall apply for the aforesaid inclusion by virtue of this order with effect from July 1, 2017," the notification said.

The notification mandates both smartphones and feature phones to provide language support.

"It was one of most awaited step and a landmark decision which will pave way for connecting next 1 billion people most of whom will be non-English speaking. The order is in line with Digital India vision of bridging digital divide," Indian Cellular Association National President Pankaj Mohindroo said.

He said that government and industry were on the same page on this issue.

"The support for Indian language has potential to grow e- governance transactions, e-commerce business etc. multi-fold, once non-English speaking people are able to access mobile platform in their own language," Mohindroo said.
India ranks third in the world among the countries which are impacted by terrorism and inflicted with terror related deaths. (Photo: Representational Image)

New Delhi: India ranks third among world nations most inflicted with terrorism and insurgency related deaths, after the areas ridden with violence by ISIS and Nigeria's Boko Haram, the Supreme Court was told on Friday.

Making this submission, the Chhattisgarh government also claimed in the apex court that more people were being killed in this Naxal-affected state than terror-hit Jammu and Kashmir and the involvement of extreme left-wing activists in the area was adding fuel to the fire.

"Today more security personnel are deployed in Chhattisgarh than in Jammu and Kashmir. Several policemen are being killed in Naxal violence in these areas. We are taking steps to contain the Naxal problems. We are carrying out lot of infrastructural work over there. We are passing through a phase," Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told a bench of Justices M B Lokur and Adarsh Kumar Goel.

"India ranks third in the world among the countries which are impacted by terrorism and inflicted with terror related deaths after the violence affected areas under ISIS and Boko Haram," Mehta said.

He also urged the court to pass some directions for keeping social activists like Nandini Sundar out of the area alleging that "they just want the flame to keep burning".

To this, the court said, "this can't be a solution. They (activist) would want you (state) to be kept out of the area".

Mehta, who appeared along with Chhattisgarh government standing counsel Atul Jha, said "we can't go out of the area.

It is a state and government will have to look after the people. We have responsibilities towards the people".

"Keeping the flame burning is not a solution. There is a CD which shows them shouting 'Lal Salaam' slogans and sloganeering against the state. This will make the problem to continue. Everyone wants peace," the ASG said.

When the bench asked the Chhattisgarh government about the security of political activist Manish Kunjam, Mehta said he was already under security cover.

Maintaining that he had initially said he does not need guards carrying rifles but those with smaller weapons, he said "now he again wanted rifle guards. We can provide that. If he wants central forces security cover that can also be provided.

We are ready to provide central security cover to even petitioner Nandini Sundar."

The suggestion of security cover to Sundar was rejected by senior advocate Ashok Desai and the counsel appearing for Sunder and others, alleging "they wanted to keep an eye on her in the garb of security cover. This is the behaviour of the government".
The Repatriation of Prisoners Act, 2003 was enacted for serving the above purpose. (Representational image)

New Delhi: India and Estonia will soon sign a pact on transfer of each other's sentenced prisoners with the government giving its approval for it.

A meeting of the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given its approval for signing and ratification of an agreement between India and Estonia on the transfer of sentenced persons.

Signing of the pact will facilitate the Indian prisoners imprisoned in Estonia or vice-versa to be near to their families, for serving remaining part of their sentence and shall facilitate their social rehabilitation, an official statement said.

Prior to 2004, there was no domestic Legislation under which foreign prisoners could be transferred to the country of their origin to serve the remaining part of their sentence, nor was there a provision for the transfer of prisoners of Indian origin convicted by a foreign court to serve their sentence in India.

Transfer of such prisoners to their own native countries shall facilitate their social rehabilitation.

Hence, the Repatriation of Prisoners Act, 2003 was enacted for serving the above purpose.

For achieving the objectives of the Act, a Treaty or Agreement is required to be signed with countries having mutual interest with India and later to the notified in the Official Gazette.

India has so far signed pacts on transfer of sentenced persons with United Kingdom, Mauritius, Bulgaria, France, Egypt, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Bangladesh, Brazil, Israel, Bosnia & Herzegovina, UAE, Italy, Turkey, Maldives, Thailand, Russian Federation, Kuwait, Vietnam, Australia, Hong Kong, Qatar, Mongolia, Kazakhstan and Bahrain.

So far total 65 prisoners have been exchanged, out of which 55 were Indians.
Udhampur: Reprimanding Pakistan for the continuous ceasefire violations from the other side of the border, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Friday said that Islamabad should instead initiate dialogue with India to resolve all differences in a civil manner.

Mehbooba said, " Pakistan should initiate dialogue instead of indulging in cross border firing. We ( India and Pakistan ) need to sit together like civilized nations and talk. I think there is a need for Pakistan to take the initiative."

The Chief Minister's reaction comes in the wake of the escalating tension at the border with Pakistan continuing to violate the ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC).

The Border Security Force (BSF) troops killed 13 Pakistani Rangers while retaliating to ceasefire violations this week.

Earlier on Thursday, the BSF personnel gunned down one Pakistani Ranger and injured another in retaliatory firing after Pakistani troops heavily shell five sectors along the LoC and the international border.

The already strained ties between the two Asian neighbours dipped further yesterday when New Delhi and Islamabad expelled a staffer each at their High Commissions, declaring them 'persona non-grata' in tit-for-tat action. Both staffers were given similar deadlines to leave by October 29.

The move took place after the India accused Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar of receiving "sensitive" defence documents.

Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar called Pakistan 's High Commissioner Abdul Basit and declared Akhtar a 'persona non grata' for spying.

In a retaliatory action, Pakistan declared Surjeet Singh, an Indian official at the High Commission in Islamabad , as 'persona non grata' but did not spell out any charge.

The Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs last evening summoned Indian High Commissioner Gautam Bambawale to register protest over the expulsion of High Commission staffer for espionage charges and stated the action is a violation of the Vienna Convention signed in 1961.

Pakistan Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry also conveyed the government's decision to declare Surjeet Singh, an official of the Indian High Commission, as 'persona non grata'.
Hundreds of J&K policemen and CRPF and SSB jawans in riot-gear were fanned out to enforce curfew. (Photo: HU Naqash/ DC)

Srinagar: Several parts of Kashmir Valley erupted again on Friday leaving scores injured in clashes between protesters and security forces.

In the evening, unidentified terrorists barged into a house, shot and critically wounded a 50-year-old woman Beeba Yusuf in Batpora Nyaina village of southern Pulwama district. She was rushed to hospital but died soon, the police said blaming the murder on separatist militants.

Protests were held and stone-throwing incidents took place in summer capital Srinagar and at various places in the districts of Bandipore, Baramulla, Kulgam and Pulwama following the authorities imposed a curfew in capital central Srinagar and security restrictions at some other places to foil the separatists planned march on Srinagars historic Grand Mosque.

An alliance of key separatist leaders had asked people to march towards Srinagars Jamia Masjid to offer Friday prayers as no such congregation has been allowed at this one of the oldest mosques in the Valley since second week of July this year following the killing of militant commander Burhan Muzaffar Wani. During the unrest triggered by Wanis killing which entered its 112th day on Friday nearly 100 people have been killed and thousands others injured.

Kashmirs chief Muslim cleric and separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq who was to lead the proposed Jamia Masjid chalo march was placed under house arrest earlier.

The 43-year-old cleric-politician tried to break the police cordon and march towards the Grand Mosque from his residence in Srinagars Nigeen area but was arrested by police and taken to a nearby police station.

The alliance which calls itself joint resistance leadership had asked people to break siege of Jamia Masjid in central Srinagars Nowhatta areas as no weekly congregational prayers were allowed there on past 15 Fridays.

But the security forces not only laid siege around the place of worship and locked all its entry gates from outside but also sealed roads, lanes and by-lanes leading to it by laying Concertina razor wire overnight.

Hundreds of J&K policemen and CRPF and SSB jawans in riot-gear were fanned out to enforce curfew.

Similar security arrangement was in place around the Mirwaizs residence at Nigeen.

The Mirwaiz had on Tuesday, a day after he was released from jail after two months, while addressing a press conference at his residence announced that he would go to Jamia Masjid where he traditionally delivers sermon and customary pre-namaz speech come what may on coming Friday.

The alliance of which he is a part endorsed it and issued Jamia Masjid Chalo call to the people. He was soon placed under house arrest.

Reports reaching here said that the security forces fired teargas canisters to break protests in Bandipore, Palhallan, Lawaypora, Sopore, Soura and Hyderpora areas of Bandipore, Baramulla and Srinagar districts.

The police in a statement said that restrictions were imposed in parts of Srinagar as a precautionary measure in view of the Jamia Masjid Chalo call.

After Friday prayers some stone-throwing incidents were reported from Srinagar, Pulwama, Kulgam and Sopore. At these places miscreants after Friday prayers assembled and pelted stones on police and security forces deployments.

They were chased away, the police said. It added that in Pulwama, miscreants lobbed a petrol bomb on police and security forces deployment in Pirchoo area. However, no one was injured in this incident.
Ministers Kagodu Thimmappa and Krishna Byre Gowda submit a memorandum to the Union Minister for Agriculture Radha Mohan Singh at Krishi Bhavan in New Delhi on Thursday (Photo: KPN)

New Delhi: With Karnataka facing drought for sixth consecutive year, the state government on Thursday sought central assistance of Rs 3,375 crores to tackle the situation.

Two state ministers, Kagodu Thimmappa and Krishna Byre Gowda, met Union agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh and submitted a memorandum in this regard.

In the meeting, the Union Minister informed the state ministers that a central team will soon visit the drought-hit districts to assess the situation.

After the meeting, revenue minister Kagodu Thimmappa said: "We have declared 110 taluks of 25 districts as drought-hit.... We have sought Rs 3,375.77 crore assistance from the Government of India." The state has also sought a financial assistance of `120.13 crore to help those farmers who have not sown paddy in the Cauvery command area districts, he said.

In the memorandum, the state government said that prolonged continuous dry spell in the drought-declared taluks has destroyed an area of 25.57 lakh hectares crop and loss is estimated at Rs 11,051.33 crore. Though the state had an overall deficit of 18 per cent during South-West monsoon, there is very high spatial temporal variability of rainfall pattern across the state. The state government said the rainfall deficit was (-) 57 per cent in South Interior Karnataka, (-)37 per cent in Malnad during August and (-) 72 per cent in South Interior Karnataka and (-) 36 per cent in Malnad during September. Buoyed by good rains during June, cultivation of kharif (summer) crops was taken up briskly across the state in 71.67 lakh hectares.
As on June 30, while the total sanctioned strength was 21,303, the subordinate courts were functioning with 16,192 judicial officers -- a shortage of 5,111. (Photo: Representational Image)

New Delhi: On a day the Supreme Court rapped the government over delay in appointments to higher judiciary, the Centre said while it's keen to appoint new judges, there is also a need to expedite the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) pending before the collegium for the past two months.

"The government is keen to expedite appointment of judges and as explained in the court, 86 fresh appointments have been made in the high courts. 121 additional judges have been made permanent, 14 chief justices have been appointed and four chief justices transferred," a source said.

The sources said 18 additional judges have been given extension and four judges to the apex court were also appointed. Besides, 33 judges of high courts have also been transferred.

They pointed out that there is also a judicial direction to finalise the MoP, a document to guide appointment of Supreme Court and High Court judges to make collegium more transparent and objective and to make the zone of consultation wider.

The direction was given because the existing system was found to be flawed.

The MoP, as per the direction of the apex court, should be finalised by the Chief Justice of India with a unanimous view of the fellow members of the collegium.

"The government's view is pending before the SC for two months now. That also needs to be expedited now," they said.

While the focus is on shortage of judges in the Supreme Court and the 24 high courts, the situation in the subordinate courts, considered the backbone of justice delivery system, is even worse.

Latest data show there is a shortage of 5,111 judicial officers who run subordinate courts across the country.

As on June 30, while the total sanctioned strength was 21,303, the subordinate courts were functioning with 16,192 judicial officers -- a shortage of 5,111.

In most of the big states, the selection of judicial officers is done by the high courts.

In 11 states the recruitment of subordinate judiciary is done by the high courts, while in 17 states it is done by the state public service commissions.

The 24 high courts face a shortage of nearly 450 judges. Nearly three crore cases are pending in courts across India.
Via CIDRAP, Lisa Schnirring writes: Worsening cholera in Haiti, Yemen prompts stepped-up response. Excerpt and then a comment:

With cholera outbreaks intensifying in two different parts of the world, the World Health Organization (WHO) yesterday announced major response steps: the upcoming launch of a vaccine campaign for hurricane-hit parts of Haiti, and the release of $1 million in emergency funding to support Yemen's battle against the disease.

Haiti's cholera levels had already been trending higher than the past few seasons before Hurricane Matthew hit the country in early October, destroying water and sanitation systems and causing flooding, especially in two western departments.

Yemen, meanwhile, announced its outbreak in early October. It began in the city of Sanaa and is unfolding against the backdrop of conflict with Saudi Arabia that has damaged waters supplies and other infrastructure.

Haiti to launch vaccine drive

From Oct 4 to Oct 24 Haiti has reported 3,423 suspected cases, including 1,065 from Sud department and 752 from Grand'Anse department, according to an update from the United Nations (UN) Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, posted on Reliefweb.

The WHO and its regional office, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) said yesterday that they would support a cholera vaccine campaign announced by Haiti's health ministry. Global health officials have approved the ministry's request of 1 million doses to reduce the disease burden in Sud and Grand'Anse departments. Haiti's campaign will target 820,000 people over age 1 and will begin on Nov 8, according to a press release from WHO and PAHO.

Given that Yemen is under an effective blockade by the Saudis' coalition, and that basic aid still hasn't reached many remote villages in Grand Anse and Sud, it's going to be a challenge to get that million dollars' worth of aid and the cholera vaccine where they might do some good.
Ranchi: The RSS on Thursday condemned the "continued attack" on its cadres in Kerala allegedly by the CPI(M) workers and claimed that as many as 250 swayamsevaks had been "eliminated" in the southern state since 1942.



CPI(M) cadres in collusion with the party's top leadership killed swayamsevaks and cut off limbs of several others as they found their roots being shaken by the people's inclination towards Sangh works, RSS's Jharkhand Sahakaryvah Rakesh Lal alleged.



Addressing a press conference here, Lal said unofficially over 350 swayamsevaks were killed in the last seven decades in Kerala though officially it was 250.



Releasing a copy of the resolution of RSS' Akhil Bharatiya Karyakari Mandal held in Telengana yesterday condemning the killings, he claimed the Marxists were even against their former cadres who chose to leave and the present government in Kerala was "responsible for the violence".



The resolution said despite all these killings, the "morale of the swayamsevaks remained high and they were committed in taking forward the Sangh ideals".



Turning to Jharkhand, he said that there has been an increase of 5000 swayamsevaks in the last one year and the Jharkhand unit has set a target to increase 200 sakhas in the next one year.



Lal said the RSS has been working in the remotest and difficult terrains in Jharkhand for the "welfare of the people in the field of education".



The second resolution taken by the RSS's Akhil Bharatiya Karyakari Mandal (ABKM) was Integral Humanism: The Solution for Present Global Crisis.



The ABKM was of the opinion that the solution to the current challenges, emerging before the world lay in pursuing the philosophy of Integral Humanism based on the eternal Bharatiya vision as propounded by Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay.
New Delhi: Hours after the Supreme Court reprimanded the Narendra Modi led-government for its unwillingness to fill the vacancies in the country's High Courts, the Congress on Friday lambasted the Centre for "eroding" and undermining" the independence of judiciary.

Addressing the media in Delhi , Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi accused the government of using the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) as an instrument of blackmailing the judiciary.

"We know this government's track record in showing its intolerance of dissent, eroding one pillar of democracy, free speech including press freedom as well we have seen its attack on institutions. We have seen its scant respect for secularism and we are now seeing a clear attempt to demean, control or embarrass the judiciary. It is very regrettable that the Memorandum of Procedure is being used by the government as an instrument of blackmail, suggesting that the government will not clear appointments on time or will clear it except for huge delay and make judiciary agree to the MoP proposed by the government," Singhvi said.

He said that the Centre was pressuring the legal system as it wants its nominees in the judicial appointment process.

Read: Keen to appoint judges, says government; puts ball in SCs court

"We cannot have a Supreme Court undermined, sabotaged by bargaining in this manner on the MoP, the state of affairs is shocking," he said.

Expressing its anguish over the tardy process, the bench headed by Chief Justice of India T.S. Thakur earlier in the day said that it has been very patient and tolerant but the government's inaction is scuttling the process of judicial appointments.

"We are not trying to be adversarial, but want cordiality to continue," the apex court bench said.

Noting that courtrooms across the country are being locked because of lack of judges, the bench said the collegium has made various recommendations for the appointment of judges but the government is sitting on them.

The collegium proposes names after due deliberations and vetting but in some cases the recommended names have seen no movement from the government for over nine months, the court said.

Stating that the government is free to express its reservations, the bench said the ruling dispensation must return the names to the collegium instead of sitting on them.

Meanwhile, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi told the court that there is a need to finalise the MoP before passing the names.

The apex court has fixed the matter for further hearing on November 11.

The apex court is particularly peeved at the pendency of 35 appointments it had cleared for the Allahabad High Court, the first batch of eight on January 28 and the second for appointment of 27 judges in August, both are yet to be notified.

In the last week of September, the government notified appointment of at least 25 judges. The apex court collegium is believed to have cleared more than 100 names for appointment to several High Courts after scrapping the National Judicial Appointments Commission in October 2015.

In the first batch of recommendations sent to the government in January for the Allahabad High Court, the apex court collegium is believed to have recommended eight out of 19 advocates approved by the Allahabad High Court collegium and rejected 11.
New Delhi: Slamming Pakistan for expelling Indian High Commission official Surjeet Singh, MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup on Friday said no justification had been provided by Pakistan for the action.

No justification has been provided by Pakistan except completely baseless allegations that his activities were not in keeping with diplomatic norms, Swarup said.

Calling it an afterthought, Swarup said the action had been taken only because India had caught an ISI spy and expelled him on Thursday.

Pakistan continues to be in denial of its anti-India activities including cross border terrorism, Swarup concluded.

Hours after India expelled Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar for espionage and asked him to leave the country, Pakistan declared Indian High Commission official Surjeet Singh persona non-grata (an unacceptable or unwelcome person), directing him to pack his bags.

According to reports, Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry conveyed Surjeet's expulsion to Indian embassy in Pakistan.

A communique from Pakistan's Foreign Ministry expressed deep concern over the Indian official's activities that allegedly violated Vienna Conventions norms.

The ministry has also asked the Indian Commission to make necessary arrangements for Surjeet Singh's deportation on an urgent basis. Singh was been asked to leave the country by 29th October 2016.

Earlier on Thursday, Delhi police had caught Pakistan High Commission official Mehmood Akhtar with sensitive defence documents, including those about deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border.

The Foreign Secretary of India had strongly conveyed to the Pak High Commissioner that the Pak High Commission must ensure that none of its members indulge in activities inimical to India, or behave in a manner that is incompatible with their diplomatic status.

Akhtar had told the police that he had joined the Baloch Regiment of the Pakistan Army in 1997 and came on deputation to the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in 2013 and posted in September 2013 to the Pakistan High Commission where he is presently working as Assistant to Farukh Habib, Counsellor (Trade).
Baripada (Odisha): Activists of the National Students Union of India (NSUI) were arrested for allegedly hurling an egg at Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik during his visit to Mayurbhanj district, police said on Friday.

Four NSUI members, the student wing of Congress, who had shown black flags and hurled an egg at Patnaik during a function at Suliapada government high school on Wednesday, were arrested on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Rakesh Singh condemned the arrests and alleged that NSUI members were beaten up and injured by the BJD workers and demanded action against the persons involved.
A Border Security Force (BSF) person during a night patrol near the fence at the India-Pakistan International Border at the outpost of Akhnoor sector, about 40 km from Jammu. (Photo: PTI)

Islamabad/ New Delhi: Pakistan Army on Friday claimed that none of its soldiers had died in firing at the border, contradicting the BSF's assertion that it had killed 15 Pakistan Rangers personnel while retaliating to cross-border firing.

The BSF on Friday said it had killed 15 Pakistani paramilitary personnel while retaliating to cross-border shelling and firing in which two Indian civilians were killed and two injured in Jammu region.

However, Pakistan's Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) rejected BSF's assertion. "Indian claims of killing any Pakistani soldier at the Working Boundary is absolutely baseless and untrue," the ISPR said in a statement.

"India's claim is part of their propaganda campaign aimed to hide their losses at the Working Boundary and also divert world attention from the Kashmir issue," it said.

Firing mortar shells and using automatic weapons, Pakistani troops targeted civilian areas and forward security posts along the International Border and Line of Control in Jammu, Kathua, Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu and Kashmir.

In retaliatory firing, 15 Pakistani Rangers have been killed so far, the BSF had said.

Pakistani troops are pounding border hamlets with heavy mortar shells to especially target civilians in the latest round of ceasefire violations by the neighbouring country.

Two civilians were killed on Friday while another was injured as Pakistan continued heavy shelling across the Line of Control (LoC) throughout the day.

In four days previously, a six-year old boy and a man have been killed and 24 civilians injured while over 60 cattle have perished and 200 cattle left injured in firing by Pakistani troops. Scores of houses and other structures along the IB in Jammu district are riddled with ammunition from across the border.

The situation worsens during night time as villagers struggle to find a safe place to escape from the gunfire.

"Pakistani troops are now increasingly targeting civilians. They are resorting to heavy mortar shelling and firing targeting our houses and animals," says Subash Chander of village Suchetgarh said.

Subash, whose seven family members were injured as shells exploded in the compound of his house close to IB in Suchetgarh, said the Pakistani troops rain mortar bomb shells and fire from automatic weapons targeting civilians.

"We are sitting ducks for the Pakistani troops, who find civilian targets and their properties to target after they failed to fight with BSF troops," he said.

The firing from across the border had intensified from October 21 when BSF killed seven Pak Rangers and a terrorist in retaliatory firing.

Many people from border hamlets in R S Pura, Arnia, Hiranagar, and Pargwal sectors have fled their homes and taken shelter in migrant camps set up by the state government at safer places.

"As the shell landed in our compound, there was a deafening blast and splinters injured us mostly in legs. All were lying in blood," Subash's wife Kamlesh Devi said.

Kamlesh along with her daughter Sukhi is undergoing treatment in GMC hospital.

Daljeet Kaur, who was working close to her house in Chand Chak (R S Pura), was injured when a mortar shell exploded. She was taken by her husband to hospital.

"It looks as if Pakistan is specifically targeting civilians and cattle with specific. Their guns look for human targets," Kaur said.

In Suchetgarh, Ramesh Chander was returning home on a motorbike when a shell exploded near him, injuring his leg. In Karotana Khurd hamlet close to Indo-Pak border, Pakistani troops shelled the houses of Kuwinder Singh and Bishan Dass.

"We passed the night huddled in one room as the house was shelled," said Kulwinder, who later left his home along with his mother, wife and two daughters.

There are similar horrific tales from people, who feel they living under the shadow of death.

Harbans Lal of Vidhpur says his entire family would have perished had the shell, which pierced through the roof of their house, had landed any closer to the room where they were huddled.

Three shells landed in the compound of the house of Desh Raj of Vidhpur hamlet close to IB in R S Pura.

"One shell hit a vehicle and damaged it. One landed close to wash room and another landed in the compound of the house," he said.
A Border Security Force (BSF) person during a night patrol near the fence at the India-Pakistan International Border. (Photo: PTI)

Jammu: Pakistani troops continued ceasefire violations on Friday with firing and mortar shelling on Indian posts and civilian areas along the LoC and international border in Jammu, Kathua and Rajouri districts, leaving a girl injured.

BSF and Army have responded "appropriately and befittingly" a defence spokesman said.

"There was unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan Army in Sunderbani, Pallanwala and Nowshera sectors of Rajouri and Jammu districts today," the spokesman said.

They used small arms, automatics, 82 mm mortars and 120 mm mortars in the firing and shelling, he said.

"They are being responded appropriately and befittingly. No casualties to our troops have been reported," he said.

Firing and shelling continued overnight along the international border. Some Pakistani posts and villages received heavy damages due to the shelling.

BSF on Thursday said it had killed a Pakistani paramilitary jawan and wounded another after a BSF jawan died and six civilians were injured in shelling and firing from across the International Border in R S Pura and Arnia sectors since last night.

Pakistani troops also violated ceasefire along LoC in Sunderbani sector of Rajouri district on Thursday.

"BSF troops in Arnia and R S Pura sectors killed one Pakistani Ranger and seriously injured another in the retaliatory firing," a senior BSF officer had said.

Pakistani Rangers somehow managed to evacuate their grievously injured colleague in the vehicle amidst exchange of fire, officer said.

"Pakistani has resorted to very heavy firing which is being responded in the befitting manner," he said.

Earlier, a BSF jawan died and six civilians were injured when Pakistani troops shelled over 15 Indian border outposts and 29 hamlets with mortar bombs and fired heavily from automatic weapons overnight in R S Pura and Arnia sectors along the International Border (IB) in Jammu district.
New Delhi: BJP-led governments of three states on Thursday told the Supreme Court that religion is part of the society and that the top court cannot lay down a straitjacket standard of what an election manifesto can contain.

According to a report in The Indian Express, the states of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan said that religion cannot be separated from society and that it is not an anathema to the Constitution.

The Supreme Court last week had made it clear that seeking votes in the name of religion should not be allowed in a secular country like India. The BJP rules states lodged their protest against its ruling.

Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta represented the states and submitted their arguments to a seven-judge bench led by Chief Justice of India T S Thakur, saying that courts cannot define yardsticks for what can be included in an election manifesto.

On Tuesday, the top court had clarified that it is not going into the larger debate as to what is Hindutva now and it will confine the scope to whether religion can be used to garner votes.

Chief Justice T.S. Thakur, heading the seven-judge bench, gave this clarification when counsel for social activist Teesta Setalvad sought impleadment in the proceedings and wanted the court to consider a ban on seeking votes in the name of religion.

The CJI pointed out that seeking votes in the name of religion by a candidate or on his behalf may be a greater evil than seeking votes in the name of caste or language as religious appeal is bound to influence the voters.

The CJI said, in a secular country any appeal to the voters should be in tune with secular philosophy and political agitation advancing the cause of religion with an intent to garner votes is not permissible.
The Centre's stand has created ripples in the country with a section of minority groups and political leaders objecting to it. (Photo: Representational Image)

Lucknow: Amid a raging debate on 'triple talaq', RSS on Friday said it was opposed to any injustice on the basis of gender.

"Muslim women have raised this (triple talaq) issue... Sangh believes that there should not be any injustice on the basis of gender.. Muslim women need to get justice," Prabhu Narain, Sanghchalak of 'Avadh Prant' of RSS, told reporters in Lucknow.

For the first time in India's constitutional history, the Centre had opposed in the Supreme Court the practice of triple talaq, 'nikah halala' and polygamy among Muslims and favoured a relook on grounds like gender equality and secularism.

The Centre's stand has created ripples in the country with a section of minority groups and political leaders objecting to it.

To a question on building Ram temple in Ayodhya, Narain said Sangh had never led the Ram temple campaign nor will it do so in future.

"This campaign is run by people and saints...if they start, we we will help them," he said.
New Delhi: The police has arrested a Jodhpur-based passport and visa agent allegedly involved in the espionage ring run by a Pakistani High Commission official.

After getting a tip-off, police had on Wednesday nabbed Pakistan High Commission official Mehmood Akhtar along with two Indians identified as Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir at Delhi Zoo while the visa agent Shoaib had managed to escape.

Shoaib was detained near Jodhpur Thursday evening and after being brought to Delhi, he was arrested, a senior police officer said on Friday.

He been sent to police custody till November 8 by Delhi's Saket Court.

Delhi police said Shoaib visited Pakistan at least six times, his mother and other relatives stay in Pakistan, he has contacts across the border.

While Akhtar on Thursday was declared persona non grata, Subhash and Maulana has been arrested on charges of sharing of sensitive information and defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border. They were sent to 12-day police custody.

It was found that Shoaib was responsible for recruiting Subhash and Maulana in the module.

Shoaib had come in contact with Maulana around one-and-a-half years back and lured him into activities of collecting vital information about the installations of army and paramilitary forces in Gujarat and Rajasthan, the officer said.

"We had sent a request to Jodhpur Police about detaining Shoaib and yesterday evening he was detained," said the officer.

Shoaib's questioning is likely to reveal information about other spies in the racket.
Srinagar: An army jawan, identified as Mandeep Singh was on Friday killed in an encounter with terrorists who later mutilated his body near the Line of Control (LoC) in Macchil sector of Kupwara district of Kashmir.

One militant was also killed in the gunbattle, army said here on Friday night. In an encounter close to the Line of Control on Friday evening, one soldier was martyred and one terrorist was killed.

The terrorists mutilated the body of the jawan before fleeing back into Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir under the cover of firing by Pakistan Army, an army spokesman said.

He said the incident reflected the barbarism pervading in official and unofficial organisations in Pakistan. The incident will be responded to appropriately, he added.

Earlier, as many as 15 Pakistani border guards and soldiers were killed in Indian troops retaliatory fire along the International Border and LoC in Jammu and Kashmir during past one week, officials said.

However, Pakistans Inter-Services Public Relations dismissed the claim. The Pakistan Rangers and regular army violated the ceasefire at several places along the IB and the LoC by resorting to heavy small arms and mortar fire to target the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Army forward posts and civilian areas, officials in Jammu said.

A woman resident 50-year-old Asma Begum and a boy Ajay were killed in Pakistani firing along the LoC in Mendhar area of Poonch district and in Chamb sector of Jammu district, respectively, J&Ks deputy chief minister, Nirmal Singh said.

Several border residents injured in the firing and shelling from across the IB and LoC were shifted to Jammus government-run medical college hospital. The BSFs additional director general, Arun Kumar, said that 13 Pakistan Rangers and two Pakistani Frontier Force soldiers were killed in Indian retaliation since October 21. The assessment by the BSF is based on calls monitored by Indian agencies. The intercepted calls were made from hospitals asking for help to treat the injured.

The latest skirmishes have taken place in Rajouri, Samba, Abdullian, RS Pura and Suchetgarh sectors and sub-sectors of the LoC and the International Border, the officials said. They also said that heavy mortar shells from Pakistan began around 5 am along the LoCs Noushehra, Sundarbani and Pallanwala areas.
Even the locals can't always agree on what to call their country: Burma or Myanmar. Via The Irrawaddy: Burma Reports First Zika Case. Excerpt:

The director general of the health ministrys department of public health has urged couples in Rangoon not to have babies in the next six months after a pregnant foreigner was found to be infected with the Zika virus in Naypyidaw.

Dr. Soe Lwin Nyein delivered the warning at a press conference about Zika at the Ministry of Health in Naypyidaw on Friday.

Couples, mainly in Rangoon, dont get pregnant in the next six months. If you want to get pregnant, consult with health personnel in advance. For those who are pregnant already, avoid mosquito bites, said the director general.

According to health officials, the mosquito-borne disease is mainly carried by the Aedes aegypti mosquito. Officials have vowed to step up campaigns to suppress this mosquito.

According to Dr. Soe Lwin Nyein, the infected foreigner will be kept under surveillance at her house for two weeks. Both she and her husband are cooperating with the health department.

This is the foreigners third pregnancy. She had two previous miscarriages. But they reported the Zika infection of their own accord and are cooperating with us to not transmit it to others. We, on behalf of our country, appreciate this, Dr. Soe Lwin Nyein said.

The husband is not infected with Zika. He requested not to disclose their citizenship in line with international health provisions regarding confidentiality.

The pregnant woman recently traveled to a country that is experiencing Zika cases, but many infected people dont exhibit symptoms, making it difficult to spot the virus during health checks upon arrival at the airports, said the director general.

The ministry has also issued health warnings in Irrawaddy Division townships that the pregnant woman has recently visited. The ministry confirmed the case on Wednesday evening and made an official press release on Thursday.

Dr. Soe Lwin Nyein told pregnant women not to worry too much about this isolated incident and urged members of the public to join in mosquito extermination efforts.
The police officials are expected to celebrate Diwali between 6 PM to 7 PM at orphanage and old aged homes and senior officers are also asked to join them wherever possible. (Representational image)

Lucknow: In a bid to present its humane face, Uttar Pradesh Police will be celebrating Diwali by distributing sweets and crackers at orphanages and old age homes across the state.

"Crackers, decorative items, candles and sweets should be made available at orphanages and old age homes," Director General of Police (DGP) Javeed Ahmad said in a directive to all the district police chiefs.

"While we celebrate Diwali on October 30 with much fan fare, we must also remember those living in orphanage and old aged homes who could not celebrate the festival for lack of resources. Besides controlling law and order, its moral duty of police to win trust of every section," the DGP's letter said.

"Spending some time with them will be an important step in winning trust of people," he added.

The police officials are expected to celebrate Diwali between 6 PM to 7 PM at orphanage and old aged homes and senior officers are also asked to join them wherever possible.

Additional Superintendent of Police, DGP office, Rahul Srivastva said the move is aimed at generating confidence of people in the force and would help in its image building.
Fire brigades try to douse the fire at the Taj Hotel after completion of combing operation during the 26/11 terror strike in Mumbai. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Following the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, former foreign secretary Shivshankar Menon, who later became National Security Adviser (NSA) to the UPA government, had pressed for immediate military action either against the LeT in Muridke, in Pakistans Punjab province, or their camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, or against the ISI.

According to a report in the Indian Express, Menon believed that a military retaliation would have gone a long way in erasing the shame of incompetence that Indias police and security agencies displayed in the glare of the worlds television lights for full three days.

But in his book, Menon writes that in hindsight, the decision not to retaliate militarily and to concentrate on diplomatic, covert, and other means was the right one for that time and place.

The decision-makers at the highest level concluded after examining all options that there was more to be gained from not attacking Pakistan than from doing so, Menon says in his book.

His rationale is that an Indian attack on Pakistan would have united the country behind the countrys military and weakened the civilian government. Moreover, a limited strike on selected terrorist targets like LeT camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) would have limited practical utility and hardly any effect on the organization, says Menon.

Menon notes that there were other attacks in India before 26/11, but nothing matched the level of organization, the sheer savagery, and the television-style spectacle of the Mumbai attack.

But the former NSA argues that one military confrontation will not end the conflict, which has no solution  and is destined to be long and protracted. Indians must come to terms with this reality, he claims. He also debunks the theory that the Israeli style of confrontation - short responses against non-state actors, not their state sponsors  is suitable to India.

Menon laments the failure of peace efforts during 2004-07 between Manmohan Singh and Pervez Musharraf which were stymied in 2007 by Pakistani domestic politics. He singles out the joint statement between Singh and Yousaf Raza Gillani in July 2009 at Sharm El-Sheikh, which he says was another opportunity squandered in the long list of missed half chances in India-Pakistan relations.

However, Menon states that despite Pakistans efforts, India has not really been affected by radical groups like the ISIS or Daesh, because of its strong social fabric.
New Delhi : Controversial Islamic-preacher Zakir Naik's Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) is maligning India and, therefore, it is correct to ban it, said Minister of State for Parliamentary Affair Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Friday.

"If any person tries to malign society, tries to divide it, create tension between the people and hamper peace in the country then the government and people always will take strict and sever action against them," Naqvi told ANI.

Naqvi said it has become important to restrict such kind of organisations or people and not provide them much freedom.

The government is in the process of declaring the IRF unlawful under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 2011.

Naik came under the scanner after the Bangladeshi newspaper 'Daily Star' revealed that one of the perpetrators of the July 1 terror attack in Dhaka, Rohan Imtiaz, ran propaganda on Facebook that said he was inspired by Naik to carry out the crime.

Naik is banned in both the U.K. and Canada for his alleged hate speeches aimed against other religions.
The bench was unhappy that practically nothing happened in the last one month when the AG said 35 and odd of the 88 names were cleared and remaining will be cleared soon. (Representational image)

New Delhi: In a scathing attack on the Centre for inordinate delay in processing judicial appointments, the Supreme Court on Friday asked the government not to bring the judiciary to a grinding halt. You may now as well close down court rooms and lock justice out. You can have the institution called the judiciary locked it expressed in anguish.

A three-judge Bench of Chief Justice T.S. Thakur and Justices D.Y. Chandrachud and L. Nageswara Rao refused to accept the submissions of the attorney general Mukul Rohatgi that the government had cleared most of the names recommended by the apex court collegium.

The bench was unhappy that practically nothing happened in the last one month when the AG said 35 and odd of the 88 names were cleared and remaining will be cleared soon.

An angry CJI told the AG In Allahabad, out of a sanctioned strength of 165 there are only 77 judges. In Karnataka High Court, an entire floor of courts is locked because there are no judges (as against a total 68 judges with more than half vacant). Once we had a situation where we had judges but no court rooms. But now there are court rooms but no judges.You may now as well close court rooms down and lock justice out. You can have the institution called the judiciary locked.

When the AG defended the delay saying the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) on judicial appointments has not been put in place, the Chief Justice said The MoP is your red herring.
UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav with rickshaw-puller Maniram and Paytm CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma at his residence on Friday  via web

Lucknow: The unending traffic jams in Lucknow may be leaving the local residents irritated and angry but for Maniram, a rickshaw puller, it has brought a windfall.

Vijay Shekhar Sharma, the CEO of a mobile commerce platform, was one of the recipients of the Yash Bharti award on Thursday. Hours later, he was scheduled to meet Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, at the latters official residence.

As he made his way to the CMs residence, his car was caught in a traffic jam. The CEO got down from his car and hired a rickshaw. Since the security officials at Mr Akhileshs residence had been asked to allow the guest to arrive in his vehicle, the rickshaw was allowed inside the CMs residence. The Chief Minister, who welcomed the CEO, was surprised to see him come in a rickshaw.

Mr Akhilesh spoke to Maniram, who belongs to Rae Bareli, about his family, children and home.

About a half an hour later when the rickshaw puller rode out of the CMs residence, he was the owner of a new e-rickshaw, had Rs 6,000 cash in his pocket, approval for a Samajwadi pension for his wife and a Lohia house in Lucknow.

This Diwali has changed my life for me and my family. All our blessings are for the Chief Minister and his family for helping me so much, he told security men posted outside Mr Akhileshs residence.
New Delhi: India on Friday condemned Pakistans action in resorting to a tit-for-tat expulsion of Indian high commissioner staffer Surjeet Singh in Islamabad late on Thursday evening soon after India had declared Pakistan High Commissioner staffer Mehmood Akhtar  caught red-handed by the Delhi Police in an espionage case  persona non grata and had asked him to leave the country by October 29.

Ministry of external affairs (MEA) spokesperson, Vikas Swarup, had earlier hoped on Thursday that Pakistan would not resort to a tit-for-tat expulsion but that was not to be as Islamabad retaliated.

New Delhi said there were absolutely no grounds for Pakistans action and termed it an afterthought after the Pakistani staffer was caught in the espionage case. In another development, Pakistans director-general summoned Indian deputy high commissioner J.P. Singh on Friday.
A Border Security Force (BSF) person during a night patrol near the fence at the India-Pakistan International Border at the outpost of Akhnoor sector, about 40 km from Jammu. (Photo: PTI)

Srinagar: As many as 15 Pakistani border guards and soldiers were killed in Indian troops retaliatory fire along the International Border and Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir during past one week, officials said.

Pakistans Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) dismissed the claim as baseless and untrue and alleged that it was part of Indias propaganda campaign aimed at hiding its losses at the border and to divert the worlds attention from ongoing Kashmir unrest.

The Pakistan Rangers and regular army violated November 2003 ceasefire agreement at several places along the IB and the LoC by resorting to heavy small arms and mortar fire to target the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Army forward posts and civilian areas, officials in Jammu said. A woman resident 50-year-old Asma Begum and a boy Ajay were killed in Pakistani firing along the LoC in Mendhar area of Poonch district and in Chamb sector of Jammu district, respectively, J&Ks deputy chief minister, Nirmal Singh said. Several border residents injured in the firing and shelling from across the IB and LoC were shifted to Jammus government-run medical college hospital.

The BSFs additional director general, Arun Kumar, said that 13 Pakistan Rangers and 2 Pakistani Frontier Force soldiers were killed in Indian retaliation since October 21. The assessment by the BSF is based on calls monitored by Indian agencies. The intercepted calls were made from hospitals asking for help to treat the injured. Mr. Kumar said, There are ceasefire violations repeatedly. Were giving a befitting reply. As far as our people have seen, what we have assessed is, at least, 15 Rangers have been killed. Ob October 21, the BSF had claimed that its men guarding the IB killed seven Pakistan Rangers and a militant in retaliatory fire in Hiranagar sector of J&Ks Kathua district.

The latest skirmishes have taken place in Rajouri, Samba, Abdullian, RS Pura and Suchetgarh sectors and sub-sectors of the LoC and the IB, the officials said. They also said that heavy mortar shells from Pakistan began around 5 am along the LoCs Noushehra, Sundarbani and Pallanwala areas. On Thursday evening, a BSF jawan Jitender Singh, 46, was fatally injured in mortar fire by Pakistani Rangers in R.S. Pura sector.

Mr. Kumar said that he is the third BSF trooper who has died in Pakistani shelling and firing along the IB during the last five days. As many as three dozen civilians have also been injured, one of them a 6-year-old boy- fatally, during this period. In Noushehras Kalal, Baba Khori and Rumli Dhara villages, the firing and shelling started at 7 am on Friday and continued for a couple of hours, police sources said.

Defence spokesman Manish Mehta added, Yesterday (Thursday), unprovoked ceasefire violation continued till night. It again started at three places this morning. We are giving them an appropriate response. He said that during the unprovoked ceasefire violations by Pakistan army which took place in Noushehra, Sunderbani and Pallanwala sectors of Rajouri and Jammu districts, the Pakistani troops used small arms, automatics, 82 mm and 120 mm mortars in the firing and shelling. He added, They are being responded appropriately and befittingly. No casualties to our troops have been reported.

A report from Hiranagar said that three civilians including two girls were injured in Pakistani firing on Friday morning along the IB. The civilians were injured due to mortar shell splinters in Lallai Chak village of Hiranagar sector, a police official said over the phone from Hiranagar. He added that the Pakistan Rangers targeted Lallai Chak, Pansar, Pahadpur and Londi villages which also killed over a dozen cattle and damaged over two dozen residential houses. Following intense firing and shelling from across the border, more than 400 families moved out and relocated to safer locations in Kathua district, report said.

A statement issued by Pakistans ISPR said, Indias claim of killing any Pakistani soldier along the Working Boundary is absolutely baseless and untrue. The IB is known as Working Boundary in Pakistan. The ISPR added, The claim is part of Indias propaganda campaign aiming to hide its losses at the Working Boundary and to divert the worlds attention from ongoing Kashmir issue.

The statement further said that Pakistan army befittingly responded to ceasefire violation by the Indian troops. Flames were seen at the Indian check posts after Pakistani forces gave an effective response to silence the enemys guns, it claimed adding that the exchange of fire took place at around 8pm in Jandroot and Nakyal sectors. It also claimed that the latest violation came a day after cross-border fire left five Indian soldiers dead and destroyed four military posts.

Meanwhile, rich tributes were on Friday paid by the Army to its Rifleman Sandeep Singh Rawat who laid down his life while fighting infiltrating militants in Trangdhar sector of Kupwara district on Thursday. The 21-year-old brave-heart was part of a team that had yesterday intercepted and engaged a group of infiltrating terrorists along the LoC, a statement issued by the Army here said. He was a resident of Dehradun.
The discoms will also file true up claims  expenditure incurred by discoms over what was permitted to them, he pointed out. (Representational image)

Hyderabad: The two power distribution companies are proposing a tariff hike to recover Rs 2,000 crore from consumers in 2017-18. They will submit the proposal to the TS Electricity Regulatory Commission by the end of November.

Discom officials said it was premature to say that the revenue gap would be over Rs 2,000 crore as many factors are taken into consideration before filing annual revenue requirement with the ERC.

Experts say the increase in the power tariff hike next year is due to the nine-hours of free power a day being given to the agriculture sector, one lakh new agricultural connections being released at an estimated cost of Rs 700 crore, and over 2,000 MW being purchased from private producers.

Power consumption is expected to go up as agricultural operations will be in full swing due to increased groundwater levels. The anticipated revenue from the industrial sector is likely to be less as several major industries are going for open access power, an expert said. The discoms will also file true up claims  expenditure incurred by discoms over what was permitted to them, he pointed out.

Telangana discoms make case for big hike in power tarrif from April

All these factors point to a higher tariff increase unless the state government increases its subsidy share, the expert said.

The government paid the discoms a subsidy of less than Rs 5,000 crore in 2016-17, though the discoms spent much more to supply free power to the agriculture sector and subsidised power to domestic consumers.

Though discoms will find a major relief in Ujwal Discoms Assurance Yojana, a Central government scheme under which the state government will take over 70 per cent of the loans of discoms, there is no progress in this scheme after the state government signed an agreement with the Centre to join the scheme.
Ahmedabad: Amid speculation about early Assembly polls in Gujarat, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Thursday indicated that the polls would be held only in December 2017, as per schedule.

"This is the first Diwali of this new government. As the Assembly polls are in December next year, this government will also celebrate the second Diwali in 2017," Rupani said, speaking to reporters in Valsad when asked if his government would celebrate next year's Diwali too.

Rupani took charge as Gujarat Chief Minister in August this year after Anandiben Patel stepped down.

Since this sudden change of guard, Gujarat Congress leaders have been claiming that early Assembly elections are possible. State Congress chief Bharatsinh Solanki recently asked the party workers to gear up for early polls.

"BJP will face severe defeat in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab where polls will be held in the mid-2017. BJP may not want to cloud their prospects in Gujarat with those defeats. So it is highly possible that polls in Gujarat would take place simultaneously with Punjab and UP," Solanki had said.
Danve said instructions were issued to local BJP units to hold alliance talks with local Sena leaders. (Photo: PTI)

Mumbai: In a major thaw in their frosty relations, the ruling allies in Maharashtra - Shiv Sena and BJP on Thursday announced a tie-up for the elections to 212 municipal councils and nagar panchayats.

Announcing this at a hurriedly called press conference in Mumbai, senior Sena leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut, accompanied by state BJP president Raosaheb Danve-Patil, said the two parties will contest these elections together.

"Sena president Uddhav Thackeray wanted an alliance from the very beginning," Mr Raut claimed.

The elections to 212 municipal councils and nagar panchayats would take place between November 2016 and January 2017.

He clarified that this decision was only about 212 municipal council and nagar panchayat polls and added that the Sena president was not in favour of bits and pieces alliance (separate alliances at each place).

"The pre-poll alliance will be stitched up from 'Chanda to Banda' (across Maharashtra)," Mr Raut said.

Danve said instructions were issued to local BJP units to hold alliance talks with local Sena leaders.

"In case there is any dispute over seat-sharing the state level leaders would settle the issue amicably," he said.

Earlier in the day, sources in the Sena said that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis along with Danve held preliminary talks over phone with Uddhav Thackeray today about alliance for the municipal corporation elections in Mumbai and elsewhere.

Further talks will take place post-Diwali, another Sena leader said.

Ahead of the crucial civic polls in Mumbai next year, local leaders of both parties were seen sparring in the recent months.
Bengaluru: The state government is verifying whether it could question the acquittal of state BJP president B.S. Yeddyurappa by a special CBI court in a case of corruption, law minister T.B. Jayachandra said on Friday.

He told the media here it was not clear whether the state or Union government could appeal against the order of the Special CBI court.

Once legal experts present their views on this question, the state government would take an appropriate decision after an elaborate discussion in the cabinet, he added.

Meanwhile, Congress MLC Mr V.S. Ugrappa alleged that the CBI was misused during prosecution of Mr Yeddyurappa, resulting in his acquittal.

Dereliction of duty on the part of CBI officials is evident in the judgment. On acquittal, Mr Yeddyurappa was behaving like Sathya Harishchandra. In that case, let him explain to the people as to why Jindal Steel Works made a donation to Prerana Trust, he added.

He wondered why JSW paid Rs 20 crores to acquire a piece of land which was purchased by Mr Yeddyurappas kin for Rs 20 lakhs an acre. Former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy has pointed at where Rs two crores seized in Vidhana Soudha premises was going to. If a proper investigation is carrier out in the case of seizure of cash, the truth could be unearthed, he added.

Reinvigorated BSY issues notice to rivals

Two days after his acquittal by a CBI court, state BJP president B.S. Yeddyurappa has evidently started flexing his muscles with the state disciplinary action committee, headed by Shankarappa, taking a decision to serve show-cause notices on two leaders who recently embarrassed the Lingayat strongman.

Sources in the party said Tumakuru legislator and former minister, M. Shivanna, and M.D. Nandeesh were served show cause notices, seeking an explanation on charges that they had resorted to anti-party activities. These leaders had reportedly issued statements against Mr Yeddyurappa for over a month. Besides, they also held meetings against Mr Yeddyurappa in Tumakuru, sources added.

Sources said the party would take action after the disciplinary action committee scrutinizes their responses, adding that Mr Shivanna was picked as an ideal example as he hails from Lingayat community. And, initiating action against him would not do cause much damage to the party because Mr Yeddyurappa was the tallest leader among Lingayats, sources added.

Meanwhile, Union minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda on Friday criticized Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and KPCC president Dr. G.Parameshwar for commenting on the CBI special courts order of acquittal of state BJP president B. S. Yeddyurappa.

Mr. Sadananda Gowda told the media these leaders had no respect for the judiciary. Mr Siddaramaiahs statement mirrors the fact that he no respect for judicial orders.

Congratulating Mr Yeddyurappa for emerging clean in the Prerana Trust case, Mr. Sadananda Gowda said the court verdict would not only boost the image of Mr Yeddyurappa but also of the party. It would also help the party step up its attack against the ruling Congress, he added.

The minister said from the beginning, the court order had vindicated the stand of the party that Mr Yeddyurappa was falsely implicated in the case, and was a clean leader.
Barking dogs seldom bite

But they keep me awake all night

Love is such a wild goose chase

How elusive the beloveds embrace?

I know these proverbs are a bit goofy

Its Bachchoo trying to sound like a Sufi

From Forked Tongue Dialogues by Bachchoo

The Narendra Modi government has proposed passing a Uniform Civil Code into law. Its one of those long overdue reforms of democracy which the British Raj was too timorous to touch and Jawaharlal Nehru and subsequent Congress Pms strategically, without resort to principle, left alone. It can be likened in the UK to abolishing the criminalisation of homosexuality in the 1960s or indeed to the legalisation by the David Cameron government of gay marriage. If the Indian Parliament takes this troublesome and antiquated bull by the horns and wrestles it to a well-deserved death in the arena (I am writing this from Spain and getting a bit carried away!) I will shout Ole! And possibly reassess the significance of the reform. Maybe it will be more revolutionary than legalising gay marriage and can be compared to granting British women the vote in the early 20th century.

All the codes of law of the main religious groups of India discriminate in one way or the other against women. The Hindu inheritance laws were and are unfair to daughters of the dynasty, the Muslim divorce law allows a woman to be cast out of a marriage at the whim of a husband. The Parsi law segregates the Parsi women who marry outside the community. It doesnt allow the children of Parsi mothers and non-Parsi fathers to enter the Zoroastrian faith or be integrated with grace into the Parsi community as one of their own. I dont want to get into legal arguments here. I am very well aware that the law as presently formulated without a Uniform Civil Code, while not specifying discrimination, supports it through legal sophistry. All that should be swept into the dustbins of the past. A Uniform Civil Code, even initiated and supported by the Modi government, is as feminist an issue as votes for women was in the UK in the early 20th century. Of course such legislation must ensure that uniform means uniform and the entire public of India, for and against, ought to be involved in the debate.

After the Brexit vote in Britain, I am convinced this debate should not be put to a referendum, but should be vigorously discussed in every media and democratic forum available to the country. Most commentators have already argued the pros and cons of the effects such a code would have on Muslim divorce law and on Hindu inheritance law. There hasnt been much said about how such a uniform code would affect Parsi Zoroastrians, so allow me to rush in where angels fear to tread. In my childhood in Pune, I lived in a neighbourhood at the edge of the cantonment with a substantial number of Parsi families mixed in with Sindhis, Maharashtrians, Catholics and Muslims. On the opposite side of the street, a little way down, lived a Parsi lady with her son who was a few years older than me and my friends from the neighbourhood. This lady used to run a bookshop in the days of the Raj with her husband, catering to the reading needs of, among others, British soldiers stationed in the town.

She had a couple of children and became pregnant for the third time. When the child was born the husband disowned her and the boy because the baby had blue eyes and blonde hair and the husband claimed it was not his. There were no DNA tests in those days so the ladys insistence that she had not committed adultery with a Tommy couldnt be scientifically verified. The husband took his two children and left the lady with her newborn baby. She insisted that he was her husbands child and therefore entitled, as the son of a Parsi father and mother, to be initiated into the faith She even found a Parsi priest who was willing to perform the navjote ceremony which at the early age of seven or eight initiates young boys and girls into Zoroastrianism. The boy had been taught his Parsi prayers but was regularly barred from going into the Parsi fire temple by its priests who sided with the fathers contention that the boy was not deemed a Parsi as he was the illegitimate son of an Englishman.

His mother contrived to have the navjote ceremony in her two-room, dilapidated home. No one from the neighbourhood, except for my grandfather and two of my aunts, accepted her invitation to be guests at the ceremony. As it progressed, a mob of Parsis, men and women, gathered in the street outside her house with black flags and shouted slogans denouncing the ceremony, the priest and, as they saw it, defending the Zoroastrian faith from being polluted by the inclusion of non-Parsi blood. It was, as my grandfather recollected years later, an ugly episode.

He was a fairly progressive sort of person and I am sure he would have welcomed the Uniform Civil Code as he argued, even all those years ago, without any recourse to the genetic sciences, that children were primarily the offspring of their mothers as their bodies were nurtured and brought to babyhood in the womb. Of course times have changed. My sister married a non-Parsi and gave rise to my beautiful nephews and niece. She wasnt ostracised by the family or the community but her children were, by prejudicial tradition, barred from being formally initiated into the Zoroastrian faith. When my half-English twins visited my mother in Bengaluru she was permitted to take them into the firetemple but their cousins, my sisters kids, were barred. The UCC in law should change all that and would go some way to stave off the extinction that the Indian Parsi-Zoroastrian community faces through its dwindling numbers.
The Yahoo and WhatsApp cases will be discussed by regulators in November.

European privacy watchdogs said on Friday they had sent letters to WhatsApp over its sharing of information with parent company Facebook and Yahoo over a 2014 data breach and its scanning of customer emails for U.S. intelligence purposes.

European Union data protection authorities said they had serious concerns about WhatsApp's recent change in privacy policy in which it would share users' phone numbers with Facebook, its first change in policy since Facebook bought the messaging service.

The authorities, known as the Article 29 Working Party, "requested WhatsApp to communicate all relevant information to the Working Party as soon as possible and urged the company to pause the sharing of users' data until the appropriate legal protections could be assured."

A spokeswoman for WhatsApp said the company was working with data protection authorities to address their questions.

"Weve had constructive conversations, including before our update, and we remain committed to respecting applicable law, she said.

The watchdogs also wrote to Yahoo over a massive data breach that exposed the email credentials of 500 million users, as well as its scanning of customers' incoming emails for specific information provided by U.S. intelligence officials.

They asked the company to communicate all aspects of the data breach to the EU authorities, to notify the affected users of the "adverse effects" and to cooperate with all "upcoming national data protection authorities' enquiries and/or investigations.

"Yahoo was invited to provide information on the legal basis and the compatibility with EU law of any such activity," the watchdogs said in a statement regarding the email scanning.

The Yahoo and WhatsApp cases will be discussed by regulators in November.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
The smartphone which is said to feature a 5.5-inch full HD display, is an upgrade to the last years Galaxy A7 (2016).

Samsungs upcoming smartphone  the Galaxy A7 was recently spotted on benchmarking site AnTuTu.

The information showcased on the website suggested that the smartphone, that was carried under the codename SM-A720F, will be running on octa-core 1.8GHz Exynos 7870 chipset coupled with Mali-T830 GPU.

The smartphone which is said to feature a 5.5-inch full HD display, is an upgrade to the last years Galaxy A7 (2016). It remains to be seen whether Samsung will be making any changes to the design.

However, according to the specifications mentioned on AnTuTu, the phone will offer 3GB RAM and up to 64GB of internal storage.

The device is expected to run on Android 6.0.1.

As far as the camera is concerned, the smartphone will sport a 16MP/16MP camera combo.

While the release date hasn't been confirmed yet, the company is expected to unveil Galaxy A7 along with their latest A3 and A5 flagship.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
Cairo: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has said the government will look into revising a protest law under which hundreds of activists have been jailed, after international criticism.

Sisi's comments came at the end of a two-day "youth conference" on Thursday, an effort to reach out to young Egyptians as the country braces for austerity reforms to salvage its battered economy.

Reading a series of conclusions at the end of the conference, Sisi said the government would look into revising the law passed in 2013, months after the former army chief overthrew his Islamist predecessor Mohamed Morsi.

"The government will undertake, in coordination with the relevent agencies, to study suggestions and proposals to amend the protest law," Sisi said, before he was interrupted by applause from the audience.

Sisi laughed and said "you really love protesting," adding that the revisions would be presented to parliament.

The law, which bans all but police-sanctioned protests, has been used to jail activists for up to two years. The United Nations and rights groups had asked the Egyptian government to reconsider the law.

A crackdown on Islamist supporters of Morsi after his ouster saw hundreds of demonstrators killed and thousands jailed, including secular dissidents. Jihadist attacks have since killed hundreds of soldiers and policemen.
The group was formed in 2014 after Islamic State militants took over the Syrian city of Raqqa and declared it to be their capital. (Representational image)

New York: A citizen journalist group that reports secretly from the Islamic State stronghold of Raqqa is being honored with a $50,000 prize for courage.

The New York-based Train Foundation announced Thursday that this year's Civil Courage Prize will go to the group Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently.

The group was formed in 2014 after Islamic State militants took over the Syrian city of Raqqa and declared it to be their capital.

The citizen journalists work anonymously to publicize lashings, beheadings and other abuses by the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS or ISIL.

Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently says its members have been abducted, tortured and killed in retaliation for their work.

The Civil Courage Prize was founded in 2000 and recognizes "resistance to evil at great personal risk."
In his speech 70-year-old at an election rally, Trump read out a list of alleged wasteful expenditure when Clinton was the Secretary of State in the first term of the Obama administration. (Photo: AFP)

Washington: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has accused his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton of spending lavishly on wasteful activities at the State Department, including sending three comedians to India.

In his speech 70-year-old at an election rally, Trump read out a list of alleged wasteful expenditure when Clinton was the Secretary of State in the first term of the Obama administration.

"Hillary Clinton's State Department wasted hundreds of millions of your hard-earned taxpayer dollars on a wild spending binge. Here are some of the shocking revelations about Hillary's spending habits," he said.

Prominent among those include USD 5.4 million on a no-bid contract for Crystal Stemware; USD 167.5 million on cost overruns at the Embassy in Kabul; over USD 200 million on mostly unused police training facilities in Iraq; USD 79,000 to buy copies of President Obamas books; USD 53,000 to polish marble at the Brazilian Embassy; USD 6,30,000 to try to make State Department Facebook pages more popular and USD 2,16,000 to hire an event planner for a 4th of July party in Madrid.

Trump also listed State Department spending USD 88,000 to send three comedians to India among wasteful expenditure.

"The elites in government like Hillary Clinton believe they are entitled to do whatever they want. Hillary Clinton has never earned an honest dollar in her life, she lives the high life at your expense, making money off the rigged system,"he alleged.

The Republican presidential nominee said that he is running to put a stop to the theft of American prosperity.

"I'm running to put an end to the corruption. I'm running to expose the crimes of our ruling class, and to give this country back to the middle class. Hillary pushes trade deals, like the Trans-Pacific Partnership, that enrich her donors and strip the jobs out of your community," he said.

"She wants to raise your taxes, even as she used those taxes to spend lavishly on wasteful projects at the State Department," he said.

"This is an election between the small handful of people who benefit from the corrupt system, and the great majority of American citizens who are the victims of that corruption. Those who benefit from the corruption will say and do anything to keep change from happening," Trump said.

Trump alleged that the Clintons left the White House dead broke, and now they're worth over USD 200 million.

"They didn't create anything, produce anything, invent anything, all they did was sell favours, sell access, and sell out the American worker," he said.

"Hillary even sold out our nation's security with her illegal private server knowing full well it would put you and your family in danger. As moms across this nation put their children to bed each night with a prayer for safety and peace, Hillary was knowingly putting those same families at risk by putting our confidential secrets on an illegal private server," he said.
Amid growing strain in relations, India and Pakistan on Thursday declared a staffer each at their High Commissions in New Delhi and Islamabad 'persona non-grata'. (Photo: Representational Image/PTI)

Washington: Amid escalating tensions between India and Pakistan, the US on Friday put the onus on the two neighbours to resolve their differences through talks after they declared a High Commission staffer each persona non-grata.

"We've seen the reports of these decisions. These are sovereign decisions that nation-states make, and these are issues that we're going to leave to India and Pakistan to work out," State Department Spokesman John Kirby told reporters at his daily news conference.

"These are issues that we believe India and Pakistan need to discuss, need to talk about, need to work out between themselves," Kirby said.

Amid growing strain in relations, India and Pakistan on Thursday declared a staffer each at their High Commissions in New Delhi and Islamabad 'persona non-grata' and sought their recall in tit-for-tat action after Indian police busted an ISI-run spy ring involving an employee of the Pakistani mission.

India declared the Pakistani High Commission staffer as persona non-grata for espionage activities after he was caught by Delhi Police with sensitive defence documents including deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border.

Hours later, Pakistan declared an official of the Indian High Commission persona non-grata over his activities that were in alleged violation of the Vienna Convention and the established diplomatic norms.
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, accompanied by first lady Michelle Obama, greet supporters during a campaign rally in Winston-Salem, N.C. (Photo: AP)

Winston-Salem, United States: Michelle Obama, surprise star of the 2016 White House campaign, hit the trail Thursday with Democrat Hillary Clinton as the former and current first ladies fight to conquer battleground states before Election Day.

Obama has emerged as a compelling force in the hard-fought campaign, delivering powerful arguments against Republican Donald Trump and in support of Clinton's bid to become the first female president in US history.

Michelle and Hillary joined forces on the trail for the first time to headline a rally at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina -- a key swing state where early voting is already under way before the November 8 election.

"It doesn't get any better than being here with our most amazing first lady, Michelle Obama," Clinton said as she introduced a "woman whose voice we need now more than ever."

Taking the podium, Obama hailed Clinton "for her leadership, for her courage and for what she is going to do for this country."

"I don't know about you but I'm fired up! We're going to make this happen," she said.

The 52-year-old wife of President Barack Obama has energized the Democratic camp with a series of speeches taking Trump to task for his strident rhetoric and for what she brands his "frightening" attitude towards women.

And in the closing two weeks of the unprecedented race, Clinton is capitalizing on one of the most popular Democrats in America to help make her case.

Clinton holds the momentum as the clock ticks down to Election Day, the polls crediting her with a compelling lead over Trump, but her Republican rival has pledged to pour millions more of his own dollars into his teetering White House bid.

North Carolina voted for Republican nominee Mitt Romney in 2012, but the southern state has been leaning Democratic in the current White House race.

Clinton is relying on strong turnout from the state's substantial African-American population, and a rally featuring Michelle Obama could inspire them to head to polling stations.

Clinton holds a two-point lead there and the state's Republican leaders worry that Trump's slow collapse will hurt them in congressional races.

Combative Trump

The latest rolling poll average compiled by tracker RealClearPolitics showed Clinton with a 5.8 point lead in a national race against Trump and two outsiders -- pointing to a likely Electoral College victory.

"I feel really good, energized, working hard," the former secretary of state told reporters aboard her plane Wednesday, her 69th birthday.

Trump's standing has been hit hard, particularly among female voters, since this month's release of a 2005 video in which he boasts that his celebrity allows him to grope women with impunity.

But the 70-year-old Manhattan real estate mogul took heart from a new survey that shows him with a two-point lead in early-voting Florida, state where presidential races are often won and lost.

A combative Trump promised supporters in Ohio Thursday, "We are going to win back the White House."

"We don't want to give this away," he said. "We are going to Washington, DC. And we are going to drain the swamp."

Pressed a day earlier on whether he'll open his own wallet to match an onslaught of Clinton ads, Trump said he will have spent $100 million of his own money by Election Day, a sum which would imply him digging much deeper than he has so far.

Polls narrow

A Bloomberg poll out Wednesday put Trump up 45 to 43 percent among likely voters in the Sunshine State, where Clinton has been campaigning -- a close margin in what is a must-win state for him.

The RealClearPolitics poll average still puts Clinton ahead in Florida by 1.6 percentage points. On Friday, President Obama will campaign for Clinton in the state, which he won, albeit narrowly, in both 2008 and 2012.

But Bloomberg's survey shows Trump doing somewhat better than Clinton with independents, who may hold the key to victory in a state that was famously deadlocked in 2000, when the Supreme Court decided the outcome, giving the win to George W. Bush.

Trump also appears to have clawed back ground in Nevada, where a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll has the western state in a dead heat.

And the provocative billionaire may have found a useful card to play in the final hand: Obamacare.

Republicans have attacked the outgoing president's signature health care reform since it was passed, but they have found new traction after officials confirmed this week that voters' premiums will jump an average of 25 percent next year.
Washington: Hillary Clinton entered the final phase of her presidential bid with a resounding campaign cash advantage over Donald Trump.

New fundraising reports show her campaign and joint accounts with Democrats had $153 million in the bank as of last week. Thats more than double the $68 million Mr Trumps campaign and partnership committees had on hand.

Ms Clintons continued fundraising advantage helps ensure the Democratic nominee can keep her sprawling political operation at full strength in the frantic final days of the race. She maintains a staff of more than 800  several times larger than Mr Trumps  and has spent more on advertising than the Republican has every single week of the race.

Over the course of the primary and general elections, Ms Clintons campaign has hauled in $513 million, roughly double what Mr Trumps has. She outpaced him again in the first 19 days of October, the new reports show, when her campaign reaped $53 million as his brought in about $30 million.

While Mr Trump, a New York businessman who says he is worth $10 billion, typically makes a personal contribution of about $2 million each month, he had not done so yet in October. The latest contribution reports, up to date as of Wednesday, show he had given only about $33,000.

The candidates and many outside groups involved in the presidential race are filing their final pre-election fundraising reports on Friday The filings cover the first 19 days of the month.

Meanwhile, Mr Trump on Friday said hed like to cancel the election and be declared the winner. Just thinking to myself right now, we should just cancel the election and just give it to Trump, he said during a rally here, adding Why are we even having it for?
Sangeeta Sharma Brahmacharimayum was found guilty of trafficking in 1,637.1 gm of methamphetamine on October 7, 2013 at the Penang International Airport. (Representational Image)

Kuala Lumpur: A 41-year-old Indian woman, reportedly a beauty parlour owner in New Delhi, has been sentenced to death by the Malaysian high court for trafficking over 1.6 kg of drugs.

Sangeeta Sharma Brahmacharimayum was found guilty of trafficking in 1,637.1 gm of methamphetamine on October 7, 2013 at the Penang International Airport.

She was charged under the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, which carries a mandatory death sentence on conviction.

Sangeeta, who appeared subdued when the decision was conveyed to her by a court interpreter in George Town in Penang State, broke down later, the Star Online reported.

Judicial commissioner Azmi Ariffin ruled that the prosecution had succeeded in proving its case beyond a reasonable doubt.

He said that he found Sangeeta, the former sister-in-law of a senior police officer, had knowledge of the drug in the suitcase she was carrying and, hence, was not an innocent carrier as was raised in her defence, the report said.

Sangeeta was a beauty parlour owner in New Delhi, media reports said.

Azmi said that Sangeeta had testified in court that she came to Malaysia to start a business, buying and selling clothes from India to Malaysia, on the encouragement of a Nigerian man named Prince.

Prince had instructed the accused to hand the suitcase containing clothes to his brother and sister-in-law who would meet her at the Penang International Airport upon arrival, the Star Online report said.

Azmi noted that the accused had only known Prince for a year and had met with him several times in that period.
Dimaukom and the nine others were killed at dawn Friday after they opened fire from a van and an SUV on officers manning a checkpoint in Makilala town in North Cotabato province, police said. (Photo: AP)

Makilala: Two months ago, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte publicly read out the names of a town mayor and more than 150 other officials he accused of involvement in drug trafficking.

On Friday, the mayor and nine of his men were killed in a clash with police, in the deadliest operation in Duterte's anti-drug crackdown. Police estimate that more than 3,600 suspected drug dealers and users have been killed since Duterte took office on June 30.

After his name was read out in August, Mayor Samsudin Dimaukom of Datu Saudi Ampatuan township in southern Maguindanao province turned himself in to police and denied involvement. He told the media he was fighting illegal drugs himself and supported Duterte's crackdown.

Dimaukom and the nine others were killed at dawn Friday after they opened fire from a van and an SUV on officers manning a checkpoint in Makilala town in North Cotabato province, police Superintendent Bernard Tayong said.

"Our men were forced to retaliate when the heavily armed suspects who were on board two vehicles began firing at them," said Senior Superintendent Albert Ignatius Ferro, who heads a police anti-illegal drugs force.

Police found an M16 rifle, four pistols, a 12-gauge shotgun, ammunition and at least 13 small plastic packs of suspected methamphetamine, a stimulant drug locally known as shabu, from the bullet-peppered vehicles of the suspects, police deputy regional chief Senior Superintendent Leonardo Suan said.

Police said they had received information that Dimaukom's group was planning to transport a "huge" amount of methamphetamine from Davao city, Duterte's hometown, to Datu Saudi Ampatuan town.

Duterte's crackdown has drawn international concern over extrajudicial killings, but he has repeatedly dismissed criticisms and vowed to keep his election promise to rid the country of illegal drugs. He originally said he would do so in six months, but extended that deadline by half a year, saying he was overwhelmed by the magnitude of the drug menace.

The extent of Duterte's crackdown is unprecedented in the country. Since he took office, police have arrested more than 31,600 drug suspects, and more than 750,000 people, mostly drug users, have surrendered to authorities, largely due to fears they could end up dead. Police have visited more than 2.6 million homes to urge suspected drug users and dealers to stop.

On Wednesday, police launched a new phase of the crackdown called Double Barrel, which they say will focus on "high-value targets" such as drug lords and those involved in largescale drug production and trafficking.

Duterte said late Thursday he still has a long list of drug suspects including politicians, village officials, judges and policemen, showing a thick pile of documents. "This is the drug industry in the Philippines," Duterte said. "I can't deal with this alone," he said, appealing to the public for help.

He appeared to issue another warning, saying that thousands more drug suspects may end up dead. He expressed disgust over criticism leveled against him while he battles a drug menace that he said has left many police officers dead.

"And to say that I should behave and keep on harping on that, I'll tell you I will triple it," Duterte said.

"If my wishes aren't followed, you can expect about 20,000 or 30,000 more. There is a war going on, I am losing two, three policemen a day. It's a war, how could it be genocide, killing a helpless person there, kneeling," he said. "There's none of that, we do not gather children and young men and shoot them."
Manila: The foul-mouthed Philippine president, who once called the pope a "son of a bitch" and told Barack Obama to "go to hell," says he has promised to God he won't spew expletives again.

President Rodrigo Duterte's profanities have become a trademark of his political persona, especially when threatening to kill drugs dealers as part of his war on illegal drugs that has left thousands dead since he took office at the end of June.

Duterte made the stunning pledge on arrival in his southern hometown of Davao city late Thursday from a trip to Japan.

He said that while flying home, he was looking at the sky while everyone was sound asleep and he heard a voice that said "'if you don't stop epithets, I will bring this plane down now."

"And I said, 'Who is this?' So, of course, 'it's God,'" he said.

"So, I promise God to not express slang, cuss words and everything. So you guys hear me right always because (a) promise to God is a promise to the Filipino people."

Duterte's vow was met with applause, but he cautioned: "Don't clap too much or else this may get derailed."
Police officials then waited for her mother to return, who turned up 10 minutes later. (Photo: Facebook)

Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian police have taken a woman into custody for allegedly tying up her eight-year-old daughter to a lamp post on the streets of Kuala Lumpur as a punishment for refusing to go to school.

Wearing a school uniform, the minor girl was witnessed standing next to a lamp post by shocked motorists, who then informed the police, according to a report in the Daily Mail.

Meanwhile, the distressed girl was left embarrassed as she was unable to move due to being chained up.

When police reached the spot, the girl told them that she was tied up by her mother for misbehaving and that her mother would soon turn up and set her free. Police officials then waited for her mother to return, who turned up 10 minutes later.

She confessed to tying up her daughter as she would often refuse to go to school. The mother-daughter duo were then taken to the nearest police station.

"We established that it was the first time the girl was chained. It was decided to let the mother go home with her daughter, warning her not to do it again," Assistant Police Commissioner said.
London: Men turned it to ruins. Now women aim to help restore Afghanistan's iconic Darul Aman Palace to its former glory.

Long a symbol of the country's decades of war, the abandoned palace in Kabul - bombed-out and bullet-scarred - is to be rebuilt under an ambitious government plan, and women make up a quarter of the workforce.

That's more than symbolic in a country where opportunities for women to develop careers are severely limited.

"Our participation in this important project breaks the taboo that considers women to be too weak to work on construction projects," Zahra Jafari, a female electrical engineer, told Thomson Reuters Foundation by phone.

"It's a huge responsibility on each and every one of us. We strive for excellence and work hard to achieve success beyond expectation. And we want to prove that women are capable of implementing national projects."

The palace's reconstruction was launched by President Ashraf Ghani in May and the government hopes the site, next to a new, Indian-financed parliament, can become the centre of a new government quarter as well as a tourist attraction.

Wearing standard-issue hard hats, 20 women work alongside 60 male colleagues in the skeleton of the European-style edifice that was built in the 1920s by former King Amanullah Khan just outside the capital.

The building was destroyed in the civil wars of the 1990s, when fighting between rival militias killed thousands in Kabul.

"We selected the engineers by only considering their expertise and experience," Sayed Zia Hussaini, senior advisor to the Minister of Urban Development and supervisor of the project, said by phone.

"It was a transparent process and women engineers went through the same selection process as their male counterparts."

Hussaini added that although women made up just 25 percent of the engineers, they were doing 40 percent of the reconstruction work, which will cost $20 million over three to five years.

In traditional Afghan society, it is unusual for women to work outside the home. Instead, they are mostly employed as teachers, nurses, doctors and midwives.

In the late 1990s when the Taliban controlled Afghanistan, women were banned from attending school and even going shopping without a male companion.

After the collapse of the Taliban, women regained some freedom to work outside the home - but many consider working on construction sites a step too far.

Not so Zahra Jafari, who studied electrical engineering at Kabul University.

"By working on this project, we are contributing to the reconstruction of our country and empowering women," she said. "I hope it changes the views of the outside world about Afghan women too."
Identified as Armando Bezerra de Andrade, 36, the victim was said to be a student who was often abused and beaten by his step-mother, before he suddenly disappeared. (Photo: YouTube Videograb)

Guarulhos, Sao Paulo: Brazilian police rescued a man who was locked up and held captive by his family for up to 20 years. He was rescued from the city of Guarulhos, north east of Sao Paulo.

According to a report in the Independent, the man was rescued from a house during an anti-drug raid.

Identified as Armando Bezerra de Andrade, 36, the victim was said to be a student who was often abused and beaten by his step-mother, before he suddenly disappeared.

Police said that he had to be carried to the hospital after being rescued as he was unable to talk.

They also said that the room in which the victim was kept was very shabby and consisted of only one bed and a dirty little toilet.

The bed on which the victim had to sit, sleep and rest the whole day during his 20 years of captivity. (Photo: YouTube Screengrab)

The investigation took a different turn when the victim's father turned up at the police station claiming that he was the one who locked up his son in the room because he was told to and that his son was a drug addict. He told the police that his son himself had told his father to lock him up so that he wouldn't buy drugs.

"This is my son, that house is mine, and I was the one who locked him in there, as he had asked me to. He is a drug user and he showed up at home after being gone for many years, he showed up at home and asked me to lock him up so he wouldn't buy drugs," the victim's father said.

Authorities said that they will be now be investigating whether the victim took drugs or medicines, said a report.
Liverpool: In a further evidence proving that there is no room for critical voices in India disagreeing with government policies, the Director General of Health Services (DGHS) Dr Jagdish Prasad attending the 47th Union World conference on Lung health at Liverpool attacked the global health activists calling them unstable, mentally unwell when they came protesting, calling on Indian government to act and implement the policies and programs required to end TB in India.

Angered and baffled by the response of the DGHS, the global community has decided to take up the issue and involve the International community. There are many of us working in the US, UK, throughout the Europe and china, countries where India is looking to turn for broader friendship and we will make sure that the governments of those countries are aware what their links to India could mean so that they start to feel embarrassed as well about continuing to engage with the Indian government at the international level when such human rights violations are happening in the country everyday, Dr Jennifer J. Furin, lecturer on Global Health and Social Medicine at the Harvard medical school told this newspaper.

Dr Furin was one among those who stormed into the session by the Indian government where they were applauding their achievements in tackling TB. Chanting shame and wearing black T shirts donning PM Modis photo, the protestors unveiled a banner before the audience, urging the DGHS to take back an urgent message to Indias Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Health Minister JP Nadda, to fix nine deadly implementation gaps in Indias TB response.

However, muzzling the critics, Dr Prasad said that he was not "bothered by the activists. My conscience is clear, we dont want to discuss our problems in a foreign land. Activists here are mentally unwell, I will not talk to themthey have no value for me, he said.

Adding that though there have been delays in getting TB drugs but In India if son wants to marry it can take six months for the family to decide, same is for the policies, he justified. He further said that the bureaucracy has delayed things but at least it is happening. There are lot of ifs and buts in the system and I dont want to discuss them here, he stated.

Dr Furin said that the acvitists were not expecting this response from a serving government official. Any type of response that involves insulting people who are actively trying to speak for those who dont have access to care is troubling. It speaks that the government is not prepared to listen to the needs of the people on the ground and take the promise seriously, they will rather discredit the people who are raising the very serious concerns. It also speaks to the fact that the Indian government must be aware at some level that their promises look good on paper but the implementation has just absolutely neglectful. Rather than come back to the issues and say yes we understand the problems and we want to fix them in reality they dismissed the whole thing. We were not expecting that kind of behaviour," she added.

Erica Lessem, Director, TB/HIV Project Treatment Action Group (TAG) said that the only thing that is unstable is the Indian government's response to TB. Letting 1,400 Indians die of TB each day of TB and not providing basic services such as daily treatment for TB, and prevention for the people most vulnerable to TB, is not only 'unstable'-- it is criminal. Yet multiple appeals from Indian patients and calls from Indian civil society over the past months and years have been ignored. The global TB community's appeals letters, tweets, emails, and articles have similarly had no effect. Raising awareness through a peaceful, public demonstration about the Indian government's failure to provide basic quality services was a completely logical and in fact quite moderate-- next step. Rather than criticizing civil society's action, we suggest the Indian government take a hard look at their own inaction on TB."

A campaign #brokenTBpromises by TAG- highlighting the way India has responded to the TB epidemic has been going on and shows that nine policy changes announced by Indias Revised National Tuberculosis Control Program (RNTCP) have had their implementation delayed time and again. The campaign started since August 1, 2016 has publicly counted up each day suggesting that Indias government has failed to implement the policies and programs required to end TB in India.
We are not xenophobes, but we are against the influx of a culture that is against everything we stand for," Wilders recently told AFP. (Photo: AFP)

The Hague: Far-right Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders, who goes on trial on Monday on hate speech charges, believes he is on a mission to stop an "Islamic invasion" of the West.

Reviled and supported in equal measure for his anti-Islam rhetoric, the 53-year-old firebrand has become a divisive figure in the Netherlands, which prides itself on its long but fading tradition of consensus politics and multi-cultural tolerance.

We are not xenophobes, but we are against the influx of a culture that is against everything we stand for," Wilders recently told AFP.

Now the platinum-haired politician is facing charges of inciting racial hatred after pledging in local elections in 2014 he will ensure there will be "fewer Moroccans" in the country.

The creator of the anti-Islam film "Fitna" ("Discord" in Arabic) has previously said his popularity in the Netherlands is due to the fact that "we dare to talk about sensitive subjects like Islamisation and we use plain and simple words that the (Dutch) voter can understand."

The 17-minute film, featuring shocking images of attacks in New York in 2001 and Madrid in 2004 combined with quotes from the Koran drew outrage in several Muslim countries when it was screened in 2008.

In 2011 Wilders was acquitted on five hate speech and discrimination charges because of "Fitna" -- as well as other anti-Islamic remarks made on websites, Internet forums and Dutch newspapers.

Local prosecutors at the time were reluctant to press charges against Wilders, saying his comments criticised Islam as a religion and not Muslims as a people.

Voice of millions'

Wilders says it is "nonsense" that he is branded as "far-right", but has no hesitation branding the Koran a "fascist" book.

He wants to halt Muslim immigration, close mosques and ban the Koran -- which he has infamously compared to Hitler's "Mein Kampf" -- should he win next year's elections.

But Wilders cares little for the opinion of what he terms "the political elites", or the media. He prefers to tweet his thoughts in snappy short sentences.

"Prosecuted for voicing the opinion of millions," Wilders tweeted two weeks ago after judges ruled his trial should go ahead, adding the hashtag "#pleurop," a vulgar Dutch way of telling someone to "go away."

Tight protection

Wilders created his Freedom Party (PVV) in 2006, when he won nine out of 150 parliamentary seats on a ticket to "limit the growth of Muslim numbers".

The party last year was riding high in the polls on a wave of anti-immigrant sentiment, but has slipped from first to second place in recent weeks. But it is still predicted to rake in between 25 to 29 seats in March elections.

Wilders' outspoken views have seen him given round-the-clock protection and he is often described as the "best guarded man in the Netherlands" especially after the 2004 murder of outspoken Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh by a radical Islamist.

His lawyer Geert-Jan Knoops recently told judges his client was "on hit lists drawn up by Al-Qaeda, the Taliban and the Islamic State" group.

Wilders does not talk about his private life -- his second wife is Hungarian -- and has remained mum on speculation that his bloodline is part Indonesian and that he dyes his hair to hide his roots.

He has also worked hard to build his profile abroad and often travels to the United States and Australia to speak to conservative audiences.

"I want to defend freedom, which I think will disappear into thin air the moment the Islamic ideology gains a stronger foothold in (The Netherlands)," Wilders has told AFP.
The claims rested on the 1998 Good Friday Agreement peace accords, which assumed that Northern Ireland's constitutional arrangements could only be changed with the consent of its residents. (Photo: Representational Image/AFP)

Belfast: Northern Ireland's High Court on Friday rejected a legal challenge to Brexit, the first judicial ruling on the issue in the UK.

"In respect of all issues, the court dismissed the applications," judge Paul Maguire said.

With other legal challenges under way elsewhere in the United Kingdom, the verdict will be closely monitored by politicians and financial markets.

A cross-party group of politicians claimed Northern Ireland should have a veto on leaving the European Union, and the Northern Irish Assembly should have a say on whether to trigger exit negotiations with Brussels.

The claim was brought alongside a linked challenge on the impact of Brexit on the Northern Irish peace process.

The claims rested on the 1998 Good Friday Agreement peace accords, which assumed that Northern Ireland's constitutional arrangements could only be changed with the consent of its residents. The verdict comes after three days of hearings earlier this month.

"While the wind of change may be about to blow, the precise direction in which it will blow cannot yet be determined so there is a level of uncertainty, as evidenced by the discussion about how the Northern Ireland land border with Ireland was affected by withdrawal from the EU," said Maguire.

In the June 23 referendum on EU membership, 52 percent voted for the UK to leave the European Union. Within Northern Ireland, 56 percent voted to stay. England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate legal systems within the United Kingdom.
The accused identified as Horst Koenig confessed to killing his wife Grace using a blunt object before suffocating her. (Representational Image)

Berlin: A 53-year-old German man was arrested for murdering and dismembering his wife of ten years -- because he wanted to go on a holiday to Thailand.

According to a report in the Khaleej Times, the accused identified as Horst Koenig confessed to killing his wife Grace using a blunt object before suffocating her. He then cut her body into eight pieces, stuffed them in plastic bags and hid at a warehouse.

The victim's dismembered body was found by authorities who then nabbed Koenig and produced him in a court.

While the case was under trial at the court, prosecutors said that the accused had sent emails to the victim's family informing that she had left him and that he would win her back.

The court was also told that Koenig wanted to go to Thailand to meet a lady he had met online.

Koenig's trial would end by next week and would be sentenced for his crime.
The only way for us to prevent terrorism in this country is for the police to be the public and the public to be the police, officials said. (Photo: AFP)

London: UK's counter-terrorism forces have foiled at least 10 terrorist attacks in the last two years and was dealing with around 550 live cases, Scotland Yard said on Friday as it warned that the threat level for terrorism in the country is still "severe".

The figures were disclosed by Neil Basu, the Indian-origin deputy assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan Police and the UK's senior national coordinator for counter-terrorism policing.

"We continue to work at a relentless pace with our key partners, currently dealing with around 550 live cases at any one time. The counter-terrorism network and security services have successfully foiled at least 10 attacks in the last two years, with 294 convictions for terror-related offences," Basu said.

In a blogpost for the UK's National Police Chiefs' Council, he said that the official threat level for international terrorism in the UK is "severe", meaning an attack is highly likely.

"As soon as Daesh [Islamic State] started to lose on the battlefields abroad, it was clear their tactics would be directed closer to home.

"The evidence has been plain to see with the horrors suffered repeatedly by those in France, Germany and Belgium."

Basu also pointed out that there were other threats facing the country besides ISIS, saying he wanted to make the UK a "hostile place for terrorists".

"The continuing threat from Northern-Ireland-related terrorism and al-Qaeda also remains present, with supporters of both seeking to act," he said.

The senior police chief urged the public to be "alert but not alarmed" and report anything suspicious.

He said, "Despite all of our essential prevention work, it is a sad fact that terrorist attacks can and do happen. But if the worst were to take place we are ready, both to respond with maximum effect and to recover.

"The only way for us to prevent terrorism in this country is for the police to be the public and the public to be the police. Communities will defeat terrorism. Strong, cohesive communities whatever their religion, race, creed or colour working together to keep this country safe."
The accused initially claimed he must have touched her by accident while fidgeting in his seat and offered to apologise, but he later said he could not have carried out an assault as he was asleep. (Photo: Representational Image)

London: An Indian-origin businessman has been found guilty of sexually assaulting a teenage girl during a flight to the UK and jailed for 20 weeks by a UK court.

Suman Das, from Qatar, had been arrested at Manchester Airport after the 18-year old victim claimed he touched her between her legs during a flight from Doha to Manchester as she was dozing in her seat in July.

The 46-year-old had denied the charges but was found guilty at Manchester Magistrates' Court last week and was sentenced on Thursday.

District Judge Sam Goozee said, "This is a sexual assault in circumstances that you took advantage of her. It was a brief but traumatic assault touching her incredibly intimately".

A pre-sentence report stated community service was not an option for Das, who grew up in India and is now based inQatar, as he is not a UK resident.

He will also have a post sentence supervision order for one year after his release, which means he must stay in the UK until that expires. Das was also ordered to pay a 115-pound victim surcharge.

The victim had told the hearing, "He knew exactly what he was doing and he wasn't sleeping. He was looking at me, I saw he was looking at me. He must have been looking at me to see if I was awake."

"He did move very quickly once he saw that I was awake," the victim said.

The court heard how Das' wife, Sonia, was sitting next to him on the Qatar Airways when the incident took place, five hours into the flight.

During the hearing Sonia, his wife of 23 years, said, "I have had no concern. Until today I have faith in my husband and still today I have total faith in my husband."

The accused initially claimed he must have touched her by accident while fidgeting in his seat and offered to apologise-- but he later said he could not have carried out an assault as he was asleep.

Das and his wife were visiting the UK for what was described as a "holiday of a lifetime" whilst the unnamed girl was returning to Britain after spending two months travelling in Thailand.

The girl alerted a member of cabin crew and went crying to the back of the plane.

In a statement, Das said later, "I may have touched accidentally, but I didn't touch her intentionally.
Islamabad: Hours after India expelled Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar for espionage and asked him to leave the country, Pakistan has declared Indian High Commission official Surjeet Singh persona non-grata (an unacceptable or unwelcome person), directing him to pack his bags.

According to reports, Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry has conveyed Surjeet's expulsion to Indian embassy in Pakistan.

Read: Pakistan spy racket: Involvement of BSF men not ruled out

A communique from Pakistan's Foreign Ministry expressed deep concern over Indian official's activities that allegedly violated of Vienna Conventions norms.

The ministry has also asked the Indian Commission to make necessary arrangements for Surjeet Singh's deportation on an urgent basis. Singh has been asked to leave the country by 29th October 2016.

Read: Pakistan summons Indian envoy over 'ceasefire violations'

Earlier on Thursday, Delhi police had caught Pakistan High Commission official Mehmood Akhtar with sensitive defence documents, including those about deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border.

The Foreign Secretary of India had strongly conveyed to the Pak High Commissioner that the Pak High Commission must ensure that none of its members indulge in activities inimical to India, or behave in a manner that is incompatible with their diplomatic status.

Read: Spies stumble out of Pak embassy, 1 asked to leave India, 1 detained

Akhtar had told the police that he had joined the Baloch Regiment of the Pakistan Army in 1997 and came on deputation to the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in 2013 and posted in September 2013 to the Pakistan High Commission where he is presently working as Assistant to Farukh Habib, Counsellor (Trade).

Asserting that terror has become the "central motive" in India's interactions with Pakistan, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said it was important that Pakistan takes action to honour various commitments it has made, including at the highest level, that it will dismantle the terror infrastructure and will not allow its soil to be used for such activities against any country, including India.

In retaliation, Islamabad however condemned India's declaring Pakistan's High Commission staff member as persona non-grata and stated the action is a violation of the Vienna Convention signed in 1961.

Islamabad alleged that the Indian government lifted the staff member 'on false and unsubstantiated charges' and rejected and condemned the detention and manhandling the official.

Pakistan envoy to India, Abdul Basit, also denied the accusations of espionage, saying Islamabad never indulges in activities that are incompatible with its diplomatic status.

Basit strongly protested with Indian Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar over the detention and manhandling of the staffer.
Islamabad: Former Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf has described Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar as a terrorist, saying he has been involved in bomb blasts even in his country.

He, however, he did not give a clear reply as to why Pakistan has not been asking China to get Azhar declared as an international terrorist by the United Nations.

"Why should China be involved when it has nothing to do with him (Azhar)," Musharraf told an Indian news channel, according to a release issued by the TV channel.

A proposal is pending before the UN Security Council for declaring Azhar as an international terrorist but China has been blocking it, claiming that there is not enough evidence to prove that he is a terrorist.

When asked about the espionage case busted today in Delhi involving an employee of the Pakistan High Commission, the former Pakistan Army Chief initially parried the issue saying, "I am not aware of it". But then he added that "if at all it has happened, (it) shouldn't be encouraged", the release said.

It also quoted Musharraf as saying that the Nawaz Sharif government lacks aggression.

The channel said Musharraf accepted Pakistan government's diplomatic failure on international front. He, however, said it does not mean that Pakistan should be taken for granted.

To a question on whether a political leadership or Army is better suited for Pakistan's development, Musharraf said the country had witnessed growth when Army was in power.

When asked about terror camps in PoK, he feigned ignorance saying "I don't know". However, with a smile, he said, "I will let you know only once I get the count of these camps which you are talking about".

On Pakistan's diminishing relations with United States, he said there are certain contentious issues which are being addressed by Pakistan Army.

When referred to the 'surgical strike' and military might of India, he said, Pakistan is a nuclear power with a strong army which can't be bullied.

On Prime Minister Narendra Modi's sudden visit to Pakistan and his meeting with Sharif, he said shaking hands is just an artificial move, but for a formal solution, something concrete needs to be done.
The World Health Organization warned earlier this month that Zika was likely to spread throughout Asia after being detected in 70 countries, including at least 19 in the Asia Pacific region. (Photo: Representational Image/AFP)

Naypyidaw: Myanmar's government said Friday that a pregnant foreign woman has been diagnosed with the country's first case of Zika, a mosquito-borne virus linked to birth defects.

The World Health Organization warned earlier this month that Zika was likely to spread throughout Asia after being detected in 70 countries, including at least 19 in the Asia Pacific region.

While the virus has been present in Southeast Asia for years, there has been an uptick in the number of recorded cases in recent months.

"Authorities confirmed the infection in the 32-year-old foreign woman yesterday following a laboratory test," the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar reported Friday.

Soe Lwin Nyein, the director of Myanmar's public health department, told reporters she was the country's "first Zika victim".

He did not disclose the woman's nationality but said she had been living in Myanmar for several years and was currently in Yangon, the country's largest city.

Zika causes only mild symptoms in most people, including fever, sore eyes and a rash.

But pregnant women with the virus risk giving birth to babies with microcephaly, a deformation that leads to abnormally small brains and heads.

A WHO report released this month warned that Asian countries should expect to see "new cases and possibly new outbreaks of Zika".

It said the virus is "highly likely to further spread in the region" which includes China, Japan, Australia, most Southeast Asian nations and the Pacific islands.

At least 400 Zika cases have been detected in Singapore this year, while Thailand last month reported its first cases of Zika-linked microcephaly in two babies. There is no cure or vaccine for the virus.
It is the first time that a major Pakistani business body issued a statement about snapping trade links with India due to border tensions. (Photo: Representational Image/AP)

Islamabad: A leading Pakistani trade body on Friday warned it may suspend trade with India, citing the "current hostile conditions".

The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) president Abdul Rauf Alam said there was no compulsion to continue trade ties with India, the Dawn reported.

"Pakistan had no compulsions of any sort to continue business and trade relations with India under the current hostile conditions," the newspaper quoted him as saying.

He further said that the entire Pakistani business community was united to take any decision, and given the tense situation in the region, it was not possible to continue trade relations with India.

He pointed out the role of the SAARC Chamber of Commerce and Industry and said that it left them with no choice but to promote trade relations with ECO (Economic Cooperation Organisation) and D-8 (Developing-8) countries.

It is the first time that a major Pakistani business body issued a statement about snapping trade links with India due to border tensions.

Already the cultural and political ties have suffered due to acrimony following the death of a Kashmiri militant leader as well as the Uri terror attack.
Islamabad: Pakistan on Friday said it will attend the Heart of Asia conference on Afghanistan to be held in Amritsar in December but has not decided on the "manner and level" of participation, a day after India welcomed Islamabad's decision to take part in the meet.

"The Heart of Asia Conference is aimed at bringing development in Afghanistan with the collaboration of other regional countries, which is in line with Pakistan's commitment of supporting all efforts towards peace and stability in Afghanistan. We will be attending the conference," Foreign Office spokesman Nafess Zakaria said during his weekly briefing here.

The spokesman, however, did not specify the manner and level of Pakistan's participation in the meet that comes amidst rising tensions and loss of life due to heavy firing across the Line of Control (LoC).

"However, the decision on the level and manner of participation in the Heart of Asia Conference is yet to betaken," he said.

On Thursday in New Delhi, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup has welcomed Pakistan's participation at the meet to be held on December 4.

To another question, he said that the expelled Indian staffer at the Indian High Commission was involved in activities that were directly against the national security interests of Pakistan.

"Unlike India, which has no proof but it keeps levelling baseless accusations against Pakistan, we have irrefutable proof of Indian state involvement in activities against Pakistan's territorial integrity and national security," he said.

Commenting on reported comments of BJP leader Subramanian Swamy said that India might be pushed to a war with Pakistan if the latter continues its support to terrorism, Zakaria said that in the past too, Indian politicians have cast aspersions on Pakistan and have used this as a tool in domestic politics.

"We see the current political debate about Pakistan in India, in the same backdrop as also its desperation to deflect the world attention from its atrocities in Kashmir. The timing and pattern of heating up LoC by India are suggestive. Pakistan condemns such crass attempts to malign it," he said.

He also said that the 2008 Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) waiver has helped India to embark on a nuclear buildup and increase its military nuclear programme and lamented that the waiver was granted without requiring India to make "any worthwhile non-proliferation commitments".

When asked to comment on a report by a Pakistani think- tank that India can produce a maximum of 356-492 nuclear weapons, Zakaria said, "Pakistan has long maintained that India's rapidly expanding military nuclear programme poses a grave threat to peace and stability in the region and beyond."

"These concerns have been fully validated by publicly available reports on significant upcoming fissile material facilities and build up of unsafeguarded weapon usable fissile material in India," he said.

"This buildup has been facilitated by the 2008 NSG waiver granted to India, which not only dented the credibility of the non-proliferation regime and undermined its efficacy, but also negatively affected the strategic balance in South Asia.

"It was unfortunate that the NSG did not require India to make any worthwhile non-proliferation commitments at the time."

He said that another country-specific exemption by the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) on the membership question would only further exacerbate the ill effects of the 2008 exemption.

"It remains our hope that the NSG member states would make a well-considered decision this time keeping in view its long- term implications for the global non-proliferation regime as well as strategic stability in our region," he said.

He blamed India for engaging in terror activities in Pakistan and said that Islamabad was working on dossiers based on confession of an alleged Indian agent.

"We have irrefutable evidence of that. We have also shared with you many times that the investigations after the arrest of Kulbushan Jadhav is ongoing and the dossier is being compiled. As soon as the time is propitious, we will submit the dossier to the concerned, particularly the UN Secretary General," he said.
BSF today said it had killed 15 Pakistani paramilitary personnel over the last one week (rpt) over the last one week even as two civilians were killed today on the Indian side in Jammu in cross-border shelling and firing.



Firing mortar shells and using automatic weapons, Pakistani troops targeted civilian areas and forward security posts along the International Border and Line of Control in Jammu, Kathua, Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu and Kashmir.



BSF said that as per the ammunition used in firing and shelling, it appeared that Pakistani Army is supporting its paramilitary Rangers along the IB. In retaliatory firing, 15 Pakistani rangers have been killed since October 21, BSF said.



"As far as the number of casualities on other side is concerned, which our men have seen through our eyes and instruments, 15 Pakistani soldiers have been killed after the sniping incident of Constable Gurnam Singh", BSF Additional Director General Arun Kumar told reporters here today.



He said a befitting reply was being given to the Pakistani shelling and firing by BSF. "At 1720 hour yesterday, Pakistan Rangers started unprovoked heavy firing and shelling in Kathua Sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba. It continued till 0500 hours today in the area of 24 BSF posts," a senior BSF officer said.



"In the Pakistani shelling, one civilian died in Khour belt of Pallanwala sector today," Jammu Deputy Commissioner Simrandeep Singh said, adding another civilian was injured in R S Pura sector.



Similarly, one woman Usma Bi, aged 50 years, was killed in shelling by Pakistan on Gohlad village in Mendhar tehsil of Poonch district today, Defence spokesman said. Another civilian was injured in area, the reports said.


Espionage ring accused Shoaib was arrested here today after being brought from Jodhpur, with police claiming that he was in touch with the expelled Pakistan High Commission staffer for the last three-four years and had visited the neighbouring country six times.



Investigators said they will try to recover data from a 'phablet' seized from his possession, which he had tried to damage when police in Jodhpur detained him last evening, and question him along with the two other alleged spies Subhash Jangir and Maulana Ramzan arrested in the case.



It is alleged that Shoaib, who is a passport and visa agent, had been responsible for recruiting Subhash and Maulana in the module. "Shoaib visited Pakistan where his maternal grandparents live at least six times," said Ravindra Yada, joint commissioner of police (Crime).



He was in touch with the Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar for the last three-four years, he said. Yadav said that some documents and a phablet were recovered from Shoaib.



"There were some classified documents recovered from him. A phablet was also found with him. He had tried to damage the phablet so that the data cannot be recovered but we will try to recover the information," added Yadav.



While Subhash and Maulana had told the police that Shoaib was also present at the Delhi Zoo when they were handing over the documents to Akhtar, Shoaib told the police that he was present at a hotel.



"He had stayed in the hotel while the other two went to the zoo for handing over documents. When he saw that the mobile phones of the other two were switched off, he sensed something wrong," said Yadav.



The officer also said that Shoaib will be questioned along with Subhash and Maulana to clear the contradictions in their versions. Shoaib's family has a clothes shop in Jodhpur. He was involved in his family business and was also working as a passport and visa agent. Shoaib was detained near Jodhpur last evening after Delhi police alerted the local police.



While Akhtar was yesterday declared persona non grata, Subhash and Maulana have been arrested on charges of sharing of sensitive information and defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border. They were sent to 12-day police custody.



Shoaib had come in contact with Maulana around one-and- a-half years back and lured him into activities of collecting vital information about installations of army and paramilitary forces in Gujarat and Rajasthan, an officer said. "We had sent a request to Jodhpur Police about detaining Shoaib and last evening he was detained," said the officer.


In a bid to rehabilitate and upgrade the skills of the women prisoners lodged at the Tihar, the jail authorities have collaborated with the Pearls Fashion Academy and are imparting training to them in making ethnic and Indian attire.





The three-month, free of cost course  will train the women inmates to design the Indian dresses  which will be followed by western wear and men wear.



The Director General of Prisons, Sudhir Yadav introduced us to the prisoners and said he needs quality work to hone the inmates with professional skills in a similar fashion as we have been doing for our students at the academy, Bela, Associate Professor at Pearls Fashion Academy told Deccan Herald.



One batch of women prisoners have enrolled themselves voluntarily for the course and have been provided equipment by the academy which include tables, stitching machines, ironing machines and toolkits to name a few.



The Academy has provided ten toolkits, 15-16 stitching machines and ten desk forms. Two students would share a desk form, Bela said.



She said the inmates would be trained in the entire module of Indian wear as it is the most popular and widely worn attire by the women in India which would be followed by Western Wear and Men Wear depending on the interests of the prisoners.



Initially we would train them in design inputs, principles of design which comprises knowledge about lines, shapes, colour, garments and elements of design. This will be followed by themes. We will give them magazines and collages to comprehend the designs so that they can execute it in the dresses, Bela said.



The Director General of Prison Sudhir Yadav told Deccan Herald he wants to train the women in whatever they are capable of and polish their skills so that they can grow further in life.



As said by the DG, we will try to give the professional skills to the women. We will give them handouts both in English and Hindi so that they can understand the basics easily. The lessons in Indian module will be followed by teaching on best finishes, what to stitch and pattern making, Bela said.



The prisoners were excited at the training session which started on Tuesday.

The Academy has plans to employ some of the women inmates in the companies after they are released from the prison.



We are planning to employ a few of these inmates full time as a part of the CSR activity of the companies, said Kanica Seth, Assistant Manager (Corporate).



The prisoners in Tihar have been making a wide range of products which include cookies, pickles, diyas, candles and incense sticks which are being sold at various outlets in the capital.




Imagine human excreta falling on you from airplanes flying above!! A former senior armyman has moved the National Green Tribunal alleging dumping of human waste by aircraft over residential areas near the IGI airport here, which led the green panel to order an inspection of his South Delhi house.



Lt Gen (Retd) Satwant Singh Dahiya has sought criminal proceedings against commercial airlines and levy of hefty fines on them for endangering the health of residents, terming the act as violation of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.



Noting the submissions of the petitioner, the green panel directed Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to depute a senior environmental engineer to inspect his house and check the existence of human excreta on the walls.



It also asked CPCB that if excreta was found, samples should be collected for analysis and the report placed before the tribunal. A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar also issued notices to the Ministries of Environment and Forests and Civil Aviation and CPCB, seeking their replies within two weeks.



Plane toilets store human waste in special tanks. These are normally disposed of by ground crew once the plane lands, but aviation officials acknowledge that lavatory leaks can occur in the air at times. There have been instances, including in India, when people have been injured.



In his petition, Vasant Enclave resident Dahiya has sought creation of a 24-hour helpline for immediate reporting of the incident and a monitoring mechanism to check that no aircraft drops "human soil or excreta" while landing.



"For past more than the week in the early morning, we found that walls and floors of terrace of our house splattered with large patches of excreta dumped by aircraft flying in front of Palam airport at night. This is the second time this has happened. Last time it had occurred in early October when we had spent Rs 50,000 to get the entire exterior resurfaced with fresh paint.



"Diwali is only few days away and being the festive season having recently finished fresh coating of the house exterior at considerable experience to clean up the premises. We are again faced with having our walls completed spattered with waste. We are retired people and cannot afford to have this defacement everyday," the plea said.



The bench, also comprising U D Salvi, said "we direct senior environmental engineer from CPCB to visit the premises of the applicant and check whether as a matter of fact remnant of human excreta are found on the walls or on terrace floor of the applicant's building or any building adjacent thereto.



"If the remnants are found, its samples should be collected for analysis in order to confirm its nature and analysis report be placed before the Tribunal on the next date of hearing" on November 25.



Advocate B V Niren, appearing for Civil Aviation Ministry, opposed the argument and said plane toilets stored the waste in special tanks which are normally disposed of by ground crews once the plane lands.



In January this year, a woman in a village near Bhopal suffered injuries when a frozen mass bounced off a nearby building and fractured her shoulder. Aviation experts then believed that the mass could have been either blue ice, a term used to describe sewage leaked form an aircraft lavatory, or a megacryometeor - an extremely large chunk of ice formed under unusual conditions. Similar incidents have been reported from the US and the UK too.


After subdued gold demand in last six months, jewellery and coin sales sparkled on Dhanteras today, with sales seen to grow by up to 25 per cent on higher demand in view of good monsoon and favourable price levels.



Dhanteras is considered to be an auspicious day for buying gold, silver and other valuables and is largely celebrated in North and West India. According to jewellers and MMTC-PAMP India, gold demand has picked up in the wake of good monsoon and favourable price levels. There was positive response and more footfalls.



"There was robust demand for gold and silver coins as also bars this time as prices are at favourable levels. People are buying for investment purpose. We expect 15-20 per cent increase in sales from over the last year," MMTC-PAMP India President (Marketing) Vipin Raina told PTI.



But more sales are expected in the later part of the day, with office-goers in big cities coming in for buying late in the evening, he added. Gold prices are ruling at Rs 30,590 per 10 grams in the national capital, about 16.6 per cent higher than Rs 26,230 on Dhanteras day in 2015. Silver traded at Rs 42,700 per kg as compared with Rs 35,410 per kg last year.



Echoing his point, Kalyan Jewellers Executive Director Ramesh Kalyanaraman said, "The advance booking for jewellery is up by 20-25 per cent compared to last year. The update on sales figures will be known in the evening."



"Prices are lower when compared to last two months. Prices are more or less stable now and also demand has revived in view of the good monsoon," he said. P C Jewellers MD Balram Garg said, "We are expecting 20 per cent jump in volume and 30 per cent in value terms as prices have gone up in the last one year."



This is a conservative estimate, but sales could cross this level, he added. World Gold Council (WGC) MD Somasundaram PR said, "It appears that, as was widely expected, this Dhanteras has ushered in a new phase of optimism around gold, particularly after an unusually difficult first half."



He said in a statement: "Consumers who have been deferring gold purchases are back and the demand for gold jewellery and branded coins seems to be much better than the previous years Dhanteras and Diwali festival."



The good monsoon and a softening of gold prices have "definitely" improved sentiment around this traditional asset class and the wedding season ahead appears promising for trade and consumers alike, he added.



The country's gold demand had fallen 30 per cent to 247.4 tonnes during the first six months of 2016, from 351.5 tonnes in the year-ago period, as per WGC. India is the world's largest gold consumer and imports a sizeable chunk of its total annual consumption of around 900-1,000 tonnes.



All India Gems and Jewellery Trade Federation former chairman Manish Jain said, "There is good response in most parts of the country. About 20-25 per cent increase in sales is expected at the end of the day."



Jewelsify.com founder Hardik Kapoor said the company expects triple-digit growth rate this time compared to last Dhanteras. There has been a drastic rise in diamond jewellery sale and customer's preference has shifted from gold bars to diamond jewellery, he added.



Stating that there is revival of gold demand, Lucknow-based Lala Jugal Kishore Jewellers Director Tanya Rastogi said, "The recent drop in gold prices has triggered sales among watchful buyers. Footfalls have been good."



Mumbai-based Manubhai Jewellers Director Samir Sagar said, "We are excited about the festive rush and are expecting an above-average footfall at our store, with a healthy 25-30% jump in sales of gold jewellery compared to last year."



Anmol Founder Ishu Datwani is expecting demand build-up for both gold and diamond jewellery since gold prices have gone down. "We are expecting at least 20-25 per cent increase in sales this Diwali," Datwani said.



Waman Hari Pethe Jewellers Director Aditya Pethe, said, "This is our first year on e-commerce, and we have noticed a rise in sale on our online store too during this season where light-weight jewellery like pendants, earrings and rings have been popular."


The National Mental Health Survey conducted by the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore, has revealed that mental health problems are widely prevalent in the country. At least 13.7% of Indias population suffers from some kind of mental disorders with around 10.6% of them requiring immediate medical intervention. While depression is the most common mental health problem, almost 2% suffer from serious mental health disorders. The study found that mental health problems are higher among urban populations and those coming from lower income and less educated sections of society. Those availing treatment remain low; with the exception of epilepsy, the treatment gap for all mental health disorders is over 60%.



Stress and breakdown of traditional support systems has made people more vulnerable to anxiety, depression and mood disorders. Worryingly, people are not accessing treatment for several reasons. Social stigma attached to mental disorders is the main reason for this reluctance. People do not want to admit they have a problem or let others know they do as they fear being ridiculed. Even when a person is obviously anxious or distressed, families and friends prefer to ignore it. Awareness of mental disorders and their treatment is also low. Many continue to believe that these disorders are triggered by spirits. Such beliefs prompt people to go to quacks or exorcists for treatment. Chaining patients is not uncommon and in fact, deepens the patients problems. Importantly, availability of treatment and rehabilitation facilities is inadequate or hard to access. Cost of treatment too keeps people away from getting help. It is a matter of concern that only one in five patients is receiving treatment.



India is beginning to act to address problems related to mental healthcare. It adopted a Mental Health Policy a few years ago and relatively progressive mental healthcare legislation is in the process of being enacted. However, budget allocations for health in general and mental health in particular are shrinking. Additionally, even this limited allocation is not being spent as there isnt enough institutional capacity to absorb this funding. Just one psychiatrist is available for every 1,00,000 people in the country. The availability of psychiatric nurses and workers is worse. This shortage must be addressed. Creating public awareness about mental health issues must be prioritised. Availability of counselling facilities in schools and work places must be made mandatory. It is important that people are educated not just about causes and treatment of mental health issues but on appropriate language to refer to these problems. Mental health problems cannot be dismissed any longer as a problem afflicting a small number of people. It is a public health issue.
Union Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi said, a day should come when the recently launched e-box should not receive any complaint and everybody should feel safe in the society.



Delivering the valedictory address of the golden jubilee celebrations of JSS Arts, Commerce and Science College, here, on Friday, she said, unfortunately the e-box launched only two weeks ago, to protect children who have become victims of molestation, has already received 81 complaints.



In most of the molestation cases, the perpetrators are relatives, friends, or somebody known to either the child or the family. So, it is an embarrassing situation for the victims and most of the times the child does not even know that it is a victim of molestation. So, either the child, its parents, relatives or teachers can drop a complaint about the crime. The identity of the complainant and the child will be kept confidential, she said.



Elaborating on a slew of programmes initiated by her ministry to make the society a better and safer place for women and children, she said, there is a provision for all educational institutions to present a gender champion award in all classes to a boy, who behaves well with girl classmates and helps them. From January, all mobile phones will have a panic button which will help women and girls to summon help from the nearest police station in case of some untoward incident. One-stop centres would be set up shortly, where victimised women can avail all kinds of help, she said.



There will be a woman police personnel, an advocate, psychologist and volunteers. In the winter session of the Parliament, law will be amended to make six-month maternity leave compulsory in all establishments, she said.



Speaking about the steps taken to empower women, she said, mahila e-hut is a portal which acts as a bridge between women manufacturers and consumers. Any woman who produces or manufactures any product can upload the details and price and sell it through the portal. Under Support to Training and Employment Programme for Women (STEP), any NGO can avail up to Rs 30 lakh to train up to 200 women in skills that give employability to women and to provide competencies and skill that enable them to become self-employed. Step is there since 1986 and steps are being taken to further popularise it, she said.



Suttur seer Shivaratri Deshikendra Swami, Ministers Dr H C Mahadevappa, H S Mahadev Prasad, Isro Chairman A S Kiran Kumar, former MP A H Vishwanath, UoM Vice Chancellor K S Rangappa, and JSS Mahavidyapeetha executive secretary C G Betsurmath were present.



Recruit more women police, state urged



Union Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi urged the Karnataka government to recruit more women police in view of ensuring more security to women and children in the society, reports DHNS from Mysuru.



Speaking during a function here on Friday, she said, seven states and all the Union territories have implemented 33% reservation for women in the process of recruitment of police personnel. Pointing out that the rate of crime against women and children in the states, where women police have a sizeable presence has come down, she urged the Karnataka government to adopt the model.
Owing to an overwhelming increase in the number of devotees visiting the Hasanamba temple this year, the district administration is considering giving the famous festival an extension beyond Deepavali.





The temple is otherwise, opened once in a year in the month of Ashwija on the Thursday that falls after the full moon (Poornima) day, and closes a day after Balipadyami.



It may be recalled that last year devotees had only nine days to pay obeisance to the deity while it is 13 days this year. With every passing year, the temple and the deity have been gaining popularity as a large number of devotees visit the temple from across the state. However, they are inconvenienced due to the heavy rush as the darshan is limited only for a few days. Most devotees including senior citizens, physically-challenged persons and the locals have to wait for hours to enter the temple. Bearing in mind these considerations, the district administration plans to extend the period up to the next full moon day so as not to disappoint the devotees and enable them to have a good darshan.



The district administration has decided to convene a meeting with members of the Muzrai department, priests, ZP and TP presidents, descendents of the Talawar family, elected representatives and the public, and take a decision in this regard.

According to temple authorities, 40,000 people on an average seek a darshan every day and more than 500 pass-holders visit the temple.



Speaking to DH, temple administrator H L Nagaraju, said, he had received several requests in this regard and added that last year, eight lakh people had offered prayers and this year more than 10 lakh people are expected to visit the temple in 13 days. He elaborated that the temple had earned so far earned Rs 90 lakh by selling laddus. Nagaraju said plans were afoot to introduce a facility to make online booking of tickets available for devotees. He added that once a decision was taken with regard to extending the date of closing the temple, accommodation facilities would be made available at a choultry. He said the authorities were open to suggestions which could be dropped off in a box at the temple.
As the nation debates triple talaq and the common civil code, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sanghs Muslim Rashtriya Manch is attempting to reach out to Muslims to thrash out issues they believe are confronting the community.





To this end, Muslim Rashtriya Manch has organised a national conclave on November 27 at Agra in Uttar Pradesh and will invite top clerics from different schools of followers such as Deobandis and Barelvis and other experts from the community, said a Manch functionary.



The RSS outfit will meet in New Delhi next Thursday to finalise its agenda for the brainstorming session.



The Modi government and the RSS are on the same page as far as the triple talaq and common civil code issues are concerned. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, at a recent public meeting, had called for a review of the process of calling off marriages among Muslims, in order to ensure dignity and equal rights to women.



After the RSS Akhil Bharatiya Karyakari Mandal meeting concluded a few days back, its general secretary Bhayyaji Joshi had commented on similar lines on the topic.



Though Joshi described the triple talaq issue as an internal problem of the Muslim community, he had argued that discrimination based on gender is not right.



Interestingly, he had advocated that the judiciary should take a humane approach towards the issue, hinting that it requires a review beyond religious tenets. The Supreme Court is hearing a petition challenging the triple talaq concept of annulling marriage and the Centre, too, has sided with the petitioners.



On the Uniform Civil Code, the Sangh senior functionary had remarked that law must be upheld without discrimination and without disturbing cultural traditions and social fabric.



Muslims, however, are opposed to the governments intervention in their personal laws.
Tension escalated along the borders in Jammu and Kashmir on Friday as two more civilians were killed in heavy shelling and firing from the Pakistani side.



The Pakistani troops continued to target civilian hamlets and border outposts. In retaliatory action, the BSF said it killed 15 Pakistani paramilitary personnel.



However, according to PTI, the Pakistani army rejected the BSFs assertions, saying none of its soldiers were killed.



Reports said ahead of Diwali, Pakistani troops extended heavy mortar shelling from the International Border (IB) in Kathua to Mendhar on the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch district, in which two civilians were killed and several others injured. While a woman died in Khor belt of Jammu district, the other civilian was killed in Mendhar sector, officials said.



Additional Director General (BSF) Arun Kumar told reporters that a befitting reply was being given to the Pakistani shelling and firing. He said going by the ammunition used, it appears that the Pakistani army was supporting its paramilitary along the IB.



Sources said the 181-kilometre International Border from Kathua to Akhnoor and 200-kilometre LoC from Akhnoor to Mendhar was rattled by very heavy mortar shelling and firing from Pakistan since Thursday night, forcing hundreds of villagers to flee their homes.



They said majority of forward villages in RS Pura sector were empty, with people migrating en masse and taking shelter in the houses of their relatives and friends in safer areas, while a few people have reported at the lodgment centres set up by the state administration.

50-year-old shot dead



A 50-year-old woman was shot dead by unidentified militants in Pulwama in South Kashmir on Friday evening, DHNS reports from Srinagar. Superintendent of Police Pulwama Rayees Bhat said Beeba Begum of Batpora was shot at and injured by militants at her house. She succumbed to bullet wounds.
The Congress on Friday launched a fierce attack on the Modi government for delaying the appointment of judges, an issue over which the Supreme Court expressed its deep anguish.





The Congress termed the Centres insistence on having a new Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) for judicial appointments as a means to blackmail the judiciary to accept the government view on the vexed issue.



We condemn this attempt by the government of the day to erode and undermine yet another pillar of our democracy, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said.



He described the Prime Ministers Office as a File Hold Department as far as judicial appointments were concerned.



The Congress has planned to raise the issue in Parliament when it convenes for the Winter Session from November 16.



We will demand an explanation from the government on setting up the round for a new big fight between the main opposition party and the Centre. This is totally unacceptable, Anand Sharma, the deputy leader of the Congress in the Rajya Sabha, said.



Singhvi said the suggestion by the government that it would not clear appointments of high court judges till the judiciary agreed to the MoP suggested by it was unprecedented and unheard of.



He said after the Supreme Court struck down the National Judicial Appointments Commission there should have been quietus on that front.



You cannot have a Supreme Court judgement undermined, sabotaged, obstructed by bargaining in this manner on the MoP, Singhvi said.



The government and the judiciary have differences of opinion on the new MoP for judicial appointments. The Centre wants a greater say in the appointments with the right to reject the recommendations of the Supreme Court Collegium on appointments of high court judges.



The Court has been insisting that the appointments be cleared according to the old MoP.



According to Singhvi, there were 450 vacancies in the post of judges of the high courts across the country. The cumulative sanctioned strength of high court judges is 1,100.
Mahatma Gandhi sounds frighteningly unrealistic on non-violence and it is difficult to find many major instances of its effectiveness in present times, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor writes in his new book.





Tharoor says it is increasingly argued that Gandhi could embarrass the British but not overthrow them and the colonisers realised their game was up when the Indian soldiers who were fighting with them rebelled during the World War.



They could jail an old man and allow him to fast, but they could not indefinitely suppress an armed rebellion that had 320 million people behind it. Gandhi won the moral case, the soft power battle, in todays parlance, but even without military victory, the rebels and mutineers in uniform won the hard-power war, he writes.



Evaluating the appeal of Gandhism in the book An Era of Darkness: The British

Empire in India, Tharoor believes that Gandhism flounders when right and wrong are less clear-cut and cited Gandhis inability in preventing partition. In more complex situations, it cannot and, more to the point does not work as well.



Describing Gandhis view that the willing sacrifice of the innocent is the most powerful answer to insolent tyranny as frighteningly unrealistic, he says, for many smarting under injustice across the world, that would sound like a prescription for sainthood or for impotence. Mute suffering is all very well as a moral principle but it has rarely brought about meaningful change.



Though it attracted luminaries like Martin Luther King and Nobel Peace Prizes for self-declared Gandhians, he said non-violence has offered no solutions to people who fell prey to the might.



A slew of countries got freedom only after violent struggles, he reminds.



He argues that non-violence could work only against opponents vulnerable to a loss of moral authority and governments capable of being shamed into conceding defeat. The British were susceptible to such shaming.



But in Mahatma Gandhis own day, non-violence could have done nothing for the Jews of Hitlers Germany, who disappeared unprotestingly into gas chambers far from the flashbulbs of a war-obsessed press. It is ironically to the credit of the British Raj that it faced an opponent like Mahatma Gandhi and allowed him to succeed, Tharoor writes.



He quotes Nelson Mandela, who admired Gandhi, to buttress his point, saying the South African icon explicitly disavowed non-violence as useless in his struggle against the ruthless apartheid regime.



However, Tharoor says if Gandhism has had its limitations exposed in the years after his assassination, there is no denying Gandhis greatness as he destroyed the credibility of colonialism by opposing principle to force.
City doctors have advised citizens on eye care and respiratory care during Diwali. While they have warned patients with conditions like asthma to stay indoors, they have advised others to take necessary precautions.





Patients with a history of pulmonary diseases have been advised to stay indoors for the next five days. Dr Vivek Anand Padegal, pulmonologist, Fortis Hospitals said, During this time of the year, as there is an increased content of smoke in air. It is best for patients with conditions such as asthma to remain indoors for the next few days, he added.



According to Dr Arun Samprathi, founder, Samprathi Eye Hospital, Suspended particulate matter (SPM) causes eye and nose problems, results in headaches, affects mental acuity, and severely restricts the breathing process. Nitrogen dioxide settles on the linings of the respiratory surface, and reduces the intake of oxygen for the body, he added.



He warned that one must keep a bucket of water nearby for emergencies and for pouring on fireworks that do not go off and wear protective eye gear while bursting crackers.



According to doctors from the Lions Eye Bank, one must not rub eyes in case of an eye injury.



Also, if the particle is large or stuck in the eye, one must not attempt to remove it but see the doctor instead.



If there is any chemical that has entered the eyes, immediately irrigate the eyes and under the eyelids, with water, for 30 minutes. See an eye doctor immediately, the note read.



Meanwhile, at Shankara Eye Hospital, staff members came forward to sign up for organ donation. Each day, we treat so many patients and understand the need of pledging the organs and the best way to do it was to start from the hospital so that the word can spread through the stake holders in the industry, Dr Kaushik Murali, president, Sankara Eye Hospital said.


The Kannada and Culture department on Friday decided to go ahead with the Tipu Jayanti celebrations on November 10. The state-level celebrations will be organised in Bengaluru.





This was decided at a meeting convened by Kannada and Culture Minister Umashree in Bengaluru.



According to official sources, the meeting was convened after the state intelligence wing reportedly advised the government not to organise the Jayanti, especially after the incidents of violence witnessed in Kodagu last year.



Two persons, including a member of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, had died in the clashes between two groups.



However, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is supposed to have instructed officials to go ahead with the Jayanti celebrations. Also, unlike last year, this year, the Kannada and Culture department has been vested with the responsibility of organising the event. Last year, the Directorate of Minorities had organised the celebration.



To invite Hindu seers



Umashree had convened the meeting, which was attended by Ministers Tanveer Sait and Roshan Baig as well as the heads of the Wakf Board and Urdu Academy.



At the meeting, it was resolved to invite Hindu religious leaders, including seers Veerabhadra Channamalla of Nidumamidi Mutt, Sri Bharati Teertha of Sringeri Shankar Mutt and Vishwesha Teertha of Pejawar Mutt, in a bid to showcase that the Jayanti is not a religious event.



When contacted, Baig said that there were no reports from the intelligence wing. He said that the Nidumamidi Mutt seer would be the speaker, and efforts were on to contact other seers.



He argued that Tipu Jayanti is not a religious celebration. We are keen that the Sringeri Mutt swami participates because till date the Mutt has carried on with the tradition of Sultan Aarti. Tipu had helped restore the temple at Sringeri after it was plundered by the Marathas. He had even donated money and jewels to the temple, Baig added.



RSS to back protests against event



The RSS will oppose the governments plan to celebrate Tipu Jayanti and will support protests planned by members of the Sangha Parivar.



Addressing reporters, RSS Kshetriya Sanchalak V Nagaraj said Tipu was intolerant and a bigot. He was an intolerant king. He killed innocent Kodavas. Several historians including Kirmani and Mutthanna have chronicled Tipus religious hatred and bigotry, he said, reports DHNS from Bengaluru .



Nagaraj said there was no demand from the Muslim community for holding Tipu Jayanti. It is obvious that the government is organising Tipu Jayanti on November 10 with political interest in mind.



The RSS has not organised any protest to oppose Tipu Jayanti. The RSS will support protest rallies planned by various organisations in Chitradurga and Bengaluru on November 2 and 8 respectively, he said.



Roshan baig, Minister: We are keen that the Sringeri Mutt swami participates because till date the Mutt has carried on with the tradition of Sultan Aarti. Tipu had helped restore the temple at Sringeri after it was plundered by the Marathas. He had even donated money and jewels to the temple.










A high-level team headed by Agriculture Ministry Joint Secretary Niraja S will tour the drought-hit areas of Karnataka from November 2 to 5.





The 10-member team will hold a preparatory meeting with state government officials on November 2 at Bengaluru and visit drought-hit areas from November 3 to 5 in three teams. They will visit Chikkaballapur, Ramnagaram, Bengaluru Rural, Mysuru, Mandya, Tumakuru, Chitradurga, Davangere, Haveri, Dharwad, and Koppal districts, Karnataka Revenue Secretary Ganga Ram Baderiya told reporters in New Delhi.



Karnataka has already declared 110 taluks as drought hit and is contemplating on adding 25 more taluks to the list if the state does not get rains in one week, he said.



Karnataka Revenue Minister Kagodu Thimmappa met Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh in New Delhi and sought Rs 386.44 core aid from the Centre to take up relief works in flood-hit areas of the state.



Several districts, mainly, Kalaburagi, Bidar and Yadgir were affected by floods in mid-September due to heavy rain and, large scale standing crops were destroyed.



The Union minister promised to sanction funds to the state at the earliest, Thimmappa told reporters after the meeting.



In Bengaluru, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister T B Jayachandra said the government has submitted a report to the Centre seeking a compensation of Rs 3,373 crore for drought-relief.



This includes Rs 120 crore for the Cauvery basin farmers who have incurred heavy losses owing to crop damage. Jayachandra said that 88,984 hectares of land had remained unsown in this region and the government has fixed a compensation of Rs 13,500 per hectare.



To buy onions



Owing to a crash in onion prices, the state government has decided to intervene and purchase onions from the farmers at a price of Rs 6.24 per kg. Jayachandra said that the government, which has already released Rs 50 crore for the purpose, will start purchasing onions from growers from November 2 onwards.




The Bengaluru police are considering setting up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe into the murder of RSS worker R Rudresh as they see a larger conspiracy behind the crime.



Police believe that the four suspects arrested on Wednesday night and Thursday morning had links with the Popular Front of India (PFI) and the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI).



A top police officer, who did not want to be named, said, As investigation progresses, various angles are emerging. It seems to be a bigger conspiracy than what we had suspected. We suspect leaders of some organisations who acted as a support system to those arrested.



Since the case is sensitive and has communal undertones, police are considering constituting an SIT.



The case needs to be investigated in a systematic matter. There are many people who played a part in Rudreshs murder and we will arrest them soon, the officer said.



Meanwhile on Friday, the suspects  Mohammed Sadiq alias Mohammed Mazhar, 35, a resident of JC Nagar, Waseem Ahmad, 30, from Austin Town, Mohammed Mujeebullah, 44, a resident of RT Nagar, and Irfan Pasha, 30, from Govidapura  were produced before a local court which remanded them in 14-day police custody.



Another officer, who is part of the investigation, said the suspects had undergone training in Kerala on how to carry out the killing.



Sadiq is said to have told the police about how Rudreshs growing political prominence in Shivajinagar and the surrounding areas unnerved many local politicians. Rudresh was wooing local Muslim leaders to join the BJP. This made local leaders of the community jittery and they feared losing their clout.



Rudresh was also working to strengthen the RSS in Shivajinagar, which didnt go down well with Muslims, the officer said, also requesting anonymity. Asked about the suspects links with the PFI and the SDPI, the officer said that a probe was under way into the nature of the association, if any.



The four men are said to have plotted the murder for at least two months. It was a well-planned killing and the suspects worked on minute details and made sure that no clue was left behind.



They conducted a recce of Kamaraj Road a day before Rudresh was killed. They used a fake registration number. At least four CCTV cameras had caught the men fleeing the spot after the murder, the officer said.



RSS suspects SDPI, PFI role in murder



The state unit of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) suspects that those involved in the murder of its worker R Rudresh on Kamaraj Road in the city recently, are affiliated to the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) and the Popular Front of India (PFI).



Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru on Friday, RSS Kshetriya Sanchalak (state head) V Nagaraj sought verification of the antecedents of the four men arrested for Rudreshs murder.



If it is established that they have links to the SDPI and the PFI, then the government should ban the two organisations. He said the RSS would also seek death penalty for the culprits.



He said the RSS national annual meet Akhil Bharatiya Karyakarini Mandal Baithak held in Hyderabad between October 23 and 25 had passed a resolution condemning the politically motivated murders of RSS and BJP workers in Kerala. As many as 242 RSS workers have been murdered in the state since 1969, he said.



Replying to a query, Nagaraj said it was for the court of decide on the rape case against Raghaveshwara Bharathi, the head of the Ramachandrapura Mutt.



The RSS has no role to play in the issue. It is to be decided by the Havyaka community, the CID and the court, the senior RSS functionary said.
The KR Puram police recently arrested two men, an Afghan and an Iraqi national, for raping a 15-year-old girl.

The arrested are Mujtaba Jalal (23), an Afghan national and Karam Abdul Ahmed (23), an Iraqi national. Both of them are residents of Battarahalli near KR Puram and were studying in a private college. A few days ago, Jalal and Ahmed met the victim through a common friend at a club.



After partying, the duo offered to drop the victim home as it was on the way to their house. The victim agreed and accompanied them. All of them were in an inebriated state and the duo forcibly took the victim to their house and raped her. Later, they dropped her back home and warned her against revealing the incident, said the police.



The victim started developing health complications and when she visited the doctor, the sexual assault came to light. The victims parents who were informed, lodged a complaint, based on which, the arrests were made, police said.
The HAL police arrested four persons, including a woman, for peddling heroin near Marathahalli on Thursday.





The police said the arrested are Mubarak Shah (40), Murshid (32), Bablu Shaikh (30) and Muneera Shaikh (35). They are all natives of West Bengal. The police have seized heroin worth Rs 10 lakh from the suspects.



The arrested would come down to the city frequently to sell heroin and get back to their hometown. After procuring the narcotic substance from drug dealers in West Bengal, the four would sell it to college students and people working in multinational companies in the city.



They would stroll around tea shops set up near MNCs in Marathahalli and Bellandur areas.



When the employees came to have tea and snacks, they would approach them and sell the drugs, added the police. A case has been registered in HAL police station.
Union Minister for Statistics and Programme Implementation D V Sadananda Gowda on Friday demanded that the government should put on hold the controversial steel flyover project till all doubts are clarified.





Gowda, also accused the Siddaramaiah government of hushing up the project details. The government has not bothered to meet those protesting against the project and clarify their doubts. It (the government) has not been able to convince me too...There is no transparency as far as the project is concerned. This has led to lot of suspicion in the minds of people, he told reporters here.



The former chief minister asked the government to clarify on five key issues: Whether toll will be imposed or not; impact on environment after axing 800 trees; reasons for escalation in the project cost by Rs 600 crore in six months; reason for the government not giving Value Added Tax (VAT) exemption and source of funds for implementing the project.



He said people are concerned about the impact on environment due to the project. Cutting 800 trees will definitely upset the ecology in Bengaluru. Why is the government not ready to meet these people (those opposing the project for environmental reasons)? It is the responsibility of the government to convince everybody and take everybody along, he added.



Cost of the project has shot up by Rs 600 crore in six months. This is despite decline in steel prices by 50%. The steel flyover being a public project, the government can waive off VAT and thereby bring down the cost by Rs 200 crore. But, the government has included VAT while estimating the total project cost. Besides, it is impossible to impose toll on users. Any such move will lead to traffic congestion, he pointed out.



The government has maintained secrecy on the source of funds for implementing the project. The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) does not have major source of revenue. The BDA is on the verge of becoming bankrupt. So, the government has to clarify as to how it will mobilise such a huge sum for the project, Gowda demanded.



He, however, admitted that people are putting up with hardship due to traffic jam on the airport road and that the government should take measures to ease the congestion. Gowda also advised the government to develop alternative road to the Kempe Gowda International Airport to decongest core Bengaluru areas.



Gowdas dilemma



As the MP from Bangalore North constituency, D V Sadananda Gowda is said to be in a dilemma: He can neither openly oppose the project nor support it.



Though his party, the BJP, has been vehemently opposing the steel flyover, Gowda has been cautious on the issue, lest he incurs the wrath of citizens who want the project to be implemented to decongest the airport road. Gowda said he has not been able to take a stand as the government has failed to clear his doubts.


If there is one aspect of Thoroughbred racing where you can say the sport has come a long way, it is the on-air presence of so many talented female analysts and interviewers. It is an avenue that has been paved by females such as the great Charlsie Cantey, who was as knowledgeable about racing and provided as much, if not more, insight than any male before her, taking the viewer behind the scenes and into the barn with her expertise.

Cantey was followed by Sharon Smith, who brought the world of racing into the homes of ESPN viewers, and then Jeannine Edwards, who like Cantey, moved from local TV to major networks covering the Triple Crown and Breeders Cup and more, branching out to other sports.

A familiar sight during the Triple Crown and a number of major races throughout the year is Donna Barton Brothers on horseback, providing the viewer with insights on the horses and track condition before the race and interviewing the winning jockeys as they return following the race.

These are just a few of the many females that have opened the door for a new generation of TV journalists, analysts, hosts, and interviewers.

If you have followed racing the past several years you no doubt are familiar with many of these talented on-air females.

What makes this years Breeders Cup unique and provides another measure of interest to the event is that three of the most prominent of these females  Britney Eurton, Maggie Wolfendale, and Millie Ball -- have family connections to Breeders Cup starters.

Eurton, who auditioned for and was hired by TVG in 2014 and has rapidly grown into a network mainstay with her pre- and post-race interviews, analysis, and features, will have a pair of rooting interests in the Breeders Cup, with BC Turf hopeful, four-time grade II winner Ashleyluvssugar, and Juvenile Fillies starter, grade II winner and grade I-placed Champagne Room trained by her father, the veteran Peter Eurton, who took Britney and the family on a magical journey to their first Kentucky Derby in 2014 with Dance With Fate. It didnt take Britney long to make a name for herself with her exuberance and infectious personality.

Wolfendale, daughter of trainer Howard Wolfendale who has received rave reviews for her in-depth analysis of the horses in the paddock on Belmont Park Live and Saratoga Live, as well has her post-race interviews, is married to trainer Tom Morley, who has one of the leading contenders for the Filly & Mare Sprint in Haveyougoneaway, who has won three consecutive stakes, including the grade I Ballerina Stakes and grade II Honorable Miss Stakes. Wolfendale, who is expecting the couples first child, is a licensed trainer herself and serves as assistant to her husband. She has amazed viewers with her astute knowledge of all the horses and their physical strengths and flaws.

British born Ball, a successful jockey and exercise rider for Hall of Fame trainers Bobby Frankel, Bob Baffert, and Richard Mandella and who worked for 12 years as host and analyst for HRTV and now for Xpressbets XBTV, is married to trainer Tim Yakteen, who has Zuma Beach Stakes winner Big Score in the Juvenile Turf. No one in this country provides more insight into the European invaders than Ball, and no Breeders Cup is complete without her updates of the latest news abroad.

If you watch TVG, the NYRA telecasts, or XBTV, you already know all three and have witnessed their excitement and sheer jubilation, as restrained as they try to make it in front of the camera, whenever Peter Eurton, Tom Morley or Tim Yakteen win a stakes race, and you have seen the look of pride on Britneys and Maggies faces as they interview the winning trainer, trying their best to keep their emotions in check and remain professional.

The unadulterated joy and pride they feel goes back to Charlsie Cantey when she covered the 1980 Belmont Stakes for CBS and saw her husband Joe Canteys 53-1 shot Temperence Hill upset Genuine Risk. Charlsie, stationed up around the sixteenth pole, made a mad dash along the rail to get to the winners circle, where, after encouragement from hosts Jack Whitaker and Frank Wright, she, still out of breath, gave her husband a big kiss. It was a wonderful moment on national TV and perhaps took some of the sting out of Genuine Risks gallant defeat.

That was a special unrestrained moment of bliss that we could see repeated if Ashleyluvssugar, Champagne Room, Haveyougoneaway, or Big Score should win a Breeders Cup race.

Although they dont have a Breeders Cup starter this year, a mention must also be made of Christina Blacker and her husband Dan, who trains in Southern California. Christina also is a host, analyst, and interviewer for TVG and has been one of the most popular on-air personalities for a number of years for both TVG and HRTV. Dan, a graduate of the Darley Flying Start program, also worked as an assistant to Richard Mandella, as well as Tom Albertrani, while Christinas father, Frank Olivares, was a successful jockey who retired from the saddle in 2004 at age 54.

So we have a new generation of racing ambassadors in front of the camera, all with racing backgrounds, who provide knowledge and a vibrant on-air presence and who add a great deal to the image of the sport.

And if one of them should experience the thrill of seeing their loved one win a Breeders Cup race, what a glorious scene we will witness.
Noida Toll Bridge Company Ltd announced on Friday it has filed an appeal before the Supreme Court of India against the judgement of the High Court of Allahabad, in the case of the Federation of Noida Resident Welfare Associations vs NTBCL.

The AIM-traded firm was ruled against by the High Court on 26 October, in the case which challenged the validity of the Concession Agreement entered into between FONRWA and Noida Toll Bridge Company.

At the time, the High Court upheld the Concession Agreement, but held two specific provisions relating to levies and collection of fees to be inoperative and directed the company to stop collecting the user fee, making the bridge toll free.

The appeal has been admitted today by the Honourable Supreme Court of India and an interim order is expected to be delivered after the Supreme Court resumes after the Diwali break, Noidas board said in a statement.
Barclays: JP Morgan keeps at neutral with a target price of 190p.

Standard Life: Jefferies stays at buy, 391p target.

Senior: Berenberg reiterates buy with a 220p target.

Imperial Brands: Deutsche Bank reiterates buy with a 4600p target.

ITV: Credit Suisse reiterates outperform with a 210p target.

Smiths Group: Jefferies keeps at hold with a target price of 1375p.

Just Eat: Berenberg keeps at buy with a target price of 600p.

Lloyds: Deutsche Bank stays at hold with a 58p target.

Tesco: Credit Suisse reiterates underperform with a 130p target.

BT Group: Deutsche Bank reiterates sell with a 345p target.

Astrazeneca: Jefferies keeps at buy with a target of 6000p.
Tescos shares fell on Friday as Credit Suisse reiterated an underperform rating and target price of 130p, citing structural problems.

Credit Suisse said while Tesco reported a 34.4% increase in operating profit to 515m in the first half, it was not from better trading.

Tesco posted a return to sales growth in the first six months of the year, up 0.6% in the UK. However, pre-tax profit dropped 28.3% to 71m as the supermarket invested in efforts to regain market share amid fierce competition in the sector.

On October 5, Tesco reported strong UK operating profit, bolstering its claim that the core business is back on track  we are not yet of that view, said Credit Suisse analyst Stewart McGuire.

More than 100% of operating profit was generated via cost savings and we estimate that like-for-like sales at its largest stores (which constitute almost 50% of space) remain materially negative once online sales are excluded.

Credit Suisse said Tescos results showed weak free cash flow and a deteriorating balance sheet. Retail free cash flow fell from 281m in the first half of fiscal year 2016 to 203m in the first half of 2017. Total debt rose by nearly 2.5bn to 18bn, even after including one-time disposals of subsidiaries and properties as well as working capital inflows, the analyst noted.

Tesco also revealed a three-year, 1.5bn cost savings programme, which would represent a 2.7% increase in group margin at current trading levels.

The company has scheduled a capital markets day on 16 November; until then, we remain sceptical of reaching such lofty targets, McGuire said.

We incorporate 100m and 300m of net cost savings for fiscal years 2018 and 2019, respectively, but keep our below consensus estimates unchanged.

Credit Suisse, however, raised its full year 2017 forecast on UK and return on investment earnings before interest and tax by 16%, driven by the cost savings programme. The 2018 and 2019 estimates were also lifted by 17% and 49%, respectively.

The bank increased its UK terminal margin from 2.2% to 2.5% after Tesco restated is like-for-like numbers.

However, any benefits from these changes are substantially offset by the 3.2bn increase in debt due to pension liabilities, McGuire said.

Our discounted cash flow-based price target does not change, and on a multiple basis, shares still appear expensive versus the sector.

Shares fell 1.14% to 211.81p at 0932 BST.
News that the US Federal Bureau of Investigation had reopened an investigation into the use of unauthorised electronic mail servers by ex-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sent the green back rapidly lower and in turn put an unexpected bid into precious metals.

As of 1856 BST, December 2016 gold futures on COMEX were advancing by 1.08% to $1,283.207oz, alonsgide a jump of 1.34% in silver to 1.34%.

Soon afterwards traders screens were filled with alerts that a technical meeting of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries had reached an apparent impasse as Iraq and Iran refused to freeze their respective level of crude oil production.

That sent front month Brent crude oil futures immediately lower by 1.39% to $49.77 a barrel and those for West Texas Intermediate by 1.53% to $48.96.

Bloombergs commodity index slipped 0.33% to 85.93 while the US dollar spot index was down by 0.56% to 98.34.

On a related note, Brazil was due to attend OPECs meeting in Vienna on Saturday as the oil cartel seeks to enlist the help of outside producers.

In other developments, the number of US onshore oil rigs in operation declined by two in the latest week to reach 441, that was 137 less than the number that was active one year ago.

Natural gas futures on NYMEX were the exception, rising 0.98% to $3.10/MMBtu while November 2016 RBOB gasoline futures gave back 1.30% to $1.4677 a gallon and similarly-dated heating oil futures retreated 1.85% to $1.5410 a gallon.

Spot platinum was 2.20% higher to $985.50/oz..

Agriculture futures gave back back some of the previous sessions gains, with December 2016 corn futures off 0.70% to $3.55 a bushel with wheat losing 1.63% to $4.0775.

Bulk metals were generally higher, with copper futures on COMEX gaining 1.41% to $2.1940 a pound.
US industrial giant General Electric has held talks with Baker Hughes on a potential merger agreement.

Reports suggest that GE is prepared to fork out more than $20bn for the company, in a move that could radically alter the structure of both firms.

General Electric have announced that they are discussing a variety of options for the merger, but that an outright acquisition is not on the table.

"We are in discussion with Baker Hughes on potential partnerships," a GE spokeswoman said

"While nothing is concluded, none of these options include an outright purchase," the statement added.

Houston-based Baker Hughes has a market capitalisation of around $23bn, and posted revenue of $15.7bn in 2015.

In 2014, it agreed to be acquired by rival Halliburton for $35bn, but the US Justice Department blocked the deal, which ultimately broke down.
Russian president Vladimir Putin has accused politicians in the United States of attempting to shift attention away from their own presidential election by exaggerating the threat posed by his government.

Relations between Russia and Western powers have been tense in recent months after fighting intensified in Syria, with Putin's government having been accused of war crimes over their involvement in airstrikes in the country.

Speaking at a conference attended by several foreign policy experts in southern Russia, Putin aimed a volley of accusations towards the US.

"Hysteria has been whipped up," Putin said. He added that the focus on Russia was simply a "ploy" to distract the public from failings in Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump's policies.

"It's much simpler to distract people with so-called Russian hackers, spies, and agents of influence. Does anyone really think that Russia could influence the American people's choice in any way?" Putin asked.

Putin also commented on Republican Trump's campaign, saying that he has found a formula that appeals to a lot of voters, despite his brash style.

"He has chosen a method to get through to voters' hearts," said Putin. "He behaves extravagantly of course, we see this, but I think there's a reason for this."

Although Putin rubbished claims that Russia was poised to mount an attack on the West, he did say that they would not be pulling back from the Syrian city of Aleppo any time soon, referring to the rebels there as a "nest of terrorists".
London stocks fell in early trade as investors digested some uninspiring consumer confidence data, although Royal Bank of Scotland was a bright spot after a third-quarter update.

At 0835 BST, the FTSE 100 was down 0.4% to 6,957.14.

At the same time, oil prices retreated, with West Texas Intermediate down 0.6% at $49.43 a barrel and Brent crude down 0.5% at $50.19.

Investors were mulling over two surveys on Friday, neither of which provided too much cheer. A survey from market research firm GfK showed sentiment dropped in October for the first time since the Brexit vote, with its consumer confidence index down to -3 from -1 the month before.

Meanwhile, the YouGov/Cebr consumer confidence index fell to 109.3 in October, marking its lowest level since 2013 apart from the drop in July after the Brexit vote.

In corporate news, Royal Bank of Scotland rallied after its third-quarter update. The bank reported a loss attributable to shareholders of 469m compared to a profit of 940m in the same period last year as it took a hit from litigation and restructuring costs. However, adjusted operating profit came in at 1.3bn, up from 1.1bn the year before and beating company-compiled consensus of 734m.

Engineer Smiths Group was trading flat after saying it will de-risk its pension liabilities further with a 250m bulk buy-in agreement with an insurer.

International Consolidated Airlines Group gained ground despite reporting a drop in third quarter operating profit before exceptional items to 1.21bn from 1.25bn a year ago and cutting its earnings outlook.

Tullow Oil advanced after receiving a $345m loan to cover April's scheduled amortisation and ensure the company has enough headroom throughout 2017 as it refinances its bank facilities.

There are no major UK data releases due, but in the US the first release of third-quarter GDP is at 1330 BST, while University of Michigan sentiment is at 1500 BST.

CMC Markets Michael Hewson said the Q3 GDP figures are expected to show a jump to 2.4% from 1.4% in Q2.

An improvement in Q3 would be most welcome given that it would break a run of 5 consecutive quarters of slower GDP growth. A number significantly lower than what is being expected, below 2%, could well take some of the heat out of the recent US dollar rebound, though Im not sure it will alter the probability that the Fed will look to act on rates in December. Next weeks Fed meeting is more than likely to be a do-over given the proximity of the US Presidential election 6 days later, with the Fed remaining on the sidelines, despite the three September dissenters.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 6,957.09 -0.42%

FTSE 250 (MCX) 17,540.92 -0.23%

techMARK (TASX) 3,388.32 -0.31%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 202.50p 3.11%

International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 422.10p 2.08%

Pearson (PSON) 751.00p 1.08%

British American Tobacco (BATS) 4,653.00p 0.91%

Barclays (BARC) 191.90p 0.73%

Imperial Brands (IMB) 3,955.50p 0.44%

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 3,144.00p 0.32%

Capita (CPI) 595.00p 0.25%

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,633.50p 0.18%

3i Group (III) 660.50p 0.15%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Land Securities Group (LAND) 965.50p -1.98%

Intu Properties (INTU) 276.10p -1.88%

Dixons Carphone (DC.) 310.70p -1.52%

Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,785.00p -1.49%

British Land Company (BLND) 569.50p -1.47%

ITV (ITV) 170.00p -1.22%

Associated British Foods (ABF) 2,443.00p -1.21%

Royal Dutch Shell 'A' (RDSA) 2,057.50p -1.15%

BP (BP.) 487.95p -1.12%

HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 620.50p -1.12%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Elementis (ELM) 235.80p 9.93%

Electrocomponents (ECM) 379.20p 4.12%

Sophos Group (SOPH) 231.80p 3.07%

Inchcape (INCH) 652.00p 1.32%

Tullow Oil (TLW) 288.30p 1.30%

Halfords Group (HFD) 343.40p 1.30%

Fidelity China Special Situations (FCSS) 193.60p 1.10%

Just Eat (JE.) 512.00p 1.09%

Vesuvius (VSVS) 369.00p 1.07%

Serco Group (SRP) 139.10p 1.02%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Unite Group (UTG) 561.00p -3.61%

Amec Foster Wheeler (AMFW) 452.20p -2.94%

Berendsen (BRSN) 1,004.00p -2.52%

IP Group (IPO) 150.80p -2.14%

CMC Markets (CMCX) 186.00p -2.11%

Zoopla Property Group (ZPLA) 300.20p -1.83%

Workspace Group (WKP) 626.00p -1.73%

John Laing Group (JLG) 270.30p -1.60%

Big Yellow Group (BYG) 690.00p -1.50%

Vectura Group (VEC) 137.10p -1.44%
London stocks were set for a weaker open on Friday as investors looked ahead to some key US economic growth figures.

The FTSE 100 was expected to start 13 points lower than Thursdays close at 6,973.

There are no major UK data releases due, but in the US, the first release of third-quarter GDP is at 1330 BST, while University of Michigan sentiment is at 1500 BST.

CMC Markets Michael Hewson said: The main focus today is likely to be on the first iteration of US Q3 GDP, which is expected to show a jump to 2.4% from 1.4% in Q2. An improvement in Q3 would be most welcome given that it would break a run of 5 consecutive quarters of slower GDP growth.

A number significantly lower than what is being expected, below 2%, could well take some of the heat out of the recent US dollar rebound, though Im not sure it will alter the probability that the Fed will look to act on rates in December. Next weeks Fed meeting is more than likely to be a do-over given the proximity of the US Presidential election 6 days later, with the Fed remaining on the sidelines, despite the three September dissenters.

In corporate news, Royal Bank of Scotland reported a third-quarter net loss of 469m compared to a profit of 940m in the same period last year.

This included a 469m restructuring cost, 425m of litigation and conduct costs and a 300m deferred tax asset impairment.

Engineer Smiths Group is to de-risk its pension liabilities further with a 250m bulk buy-in agreement with an insurer. The trustee of the Smiths Industries Pension Scheme has entered into a bulk annuity buy-in agreement with Pension Insurance Corporation, an insurer of defined benefit pensions, covering 254m worth of liabilities relating to over 3,000 legacy pensioners and dependants.

International Consolidated Airlines Group posted its group consolidated results for the nine months to 30 September on Friday, with third quarter operating profit 1.21bn before exceptional items, down from 1.25bn a year ago. The FTSE 100 firm said the net foreign exchange operating profit impact for the quarter was an adverse 162m, with passenger unit revenue was down 13.7% and at constant currency down 5.9%.Diluted earnings per share were up 18.3% before exceptional items and 23.8% after exceptional items.
Blair interjected for the first time on Brexit since the referendum saying he accepted the verdict of the vote but recommended giving the 16 million people who backed the remain side another voice when we have a clear sense of where were going.



He said the voting outcome was a catastrophe on BBC Radio 4s Today programme, suggesting that a second referendums should not be ruled out if the public change their minds.



Blair called on Theresa may to keep her options open including the possibility of staying in the union if public opinion shifts.

"If it becomes clear that this is either a deal that doesn't make it worth our while leaving, or alternatively a deal that's going to be so serious in its implications people may decide they don't want to go, there's got to be some way, either through Parliament, or an election, or possibly through another referendum, in which people express their view," said Blair.



"The issue is not whether we ignore the will of the people, but whether, as information becomes available, and facts take the place of claims, the 'will' of the people shifts.



Blair called on the 48% who voted in to come together to fight against the result in an article in the New European newspaper.

Were the insurgents now. We have to build the capability to mobilise and to organise. We have to prise apart the alliance which gave us Brexit."



The ex-PM said Remain voters must win the argument that concerns about immigration, globalisation, stagnant incomes, housing and squeezed public services will only worsen if we no longer have ties with the union.



"We are entitled to try to persuade, to make the argument, and not to be whipped into line to support a decision we genuinely believe is a catastrophe for the country we love," he added.



With the government saying it would not provide a running commentary on its stance before negotiations begin, Blair feels it is unclear what the outcome will be.



"We've got to work out: are the freedoms that we are going to gain really so substantial that we want to leave the European Union?," he added.



Blair is not convinced the benefits of trading with the UK will weigh in very high in negotiations with EU officials.



"I'm convinced that it's going to be very, very tough. We have to understand we are not going to be conducting these negotiations with a group of European businessmen who might well decide that they want maximum access to the UK. The people we are going to be conducting these negotiations with are the political leaders of the European Union and their parliaments.



Blair, who was Prime Minister between 1997 and 2007, told Esquire magazine earlier this month that he was condiering looking into whether there was a role for him in UK politics, after his departure for almost half a decade.



On Friday, he said the current options left millions of people in the middle with noone to represent them. This is a decision of those who are active in politics now. My view simply is this, if you end up in situation where the political choice is between a hard Brexit Tory party and a hard-left Labour party, there are millions of people who feel politically homeless, he said.



UKIP MP Douglas Carswell tweeted that Mr Blair was "seeking to de-legitimise and reverse" the referendum result.



Tory MP Maria Caulfield, member of the Exiting the European Union Select Committee, said Blair broke his own promise of a referendum on the EU, encouraged uncontrolled immigration and now cant come to terms with the decision of the people of the UK to leave. Instead of desperately trying to find ways to thwart the will of voters and talking down Britains prospects, Labour should be concentrating on helping to make a success of Brexit.
Deepening problems in Frances nuclear power sector are threatening to increase energy bills for UK consumers this winter because of a squeeze on the supply of imported electricity. Safety concerns over the resilience of certain components has led to the shutdown of several French reactors, cutting the amount of French electricity available for export across the English channel. Britain has relied on imports for more than 7 per cent of its electricity so far this year, most of it through subsea interconnectors with the French and Dutch power grids.  Financial Times

The mayor of London is to warn the government that its hard-headed, hard-nosed, hard Brexit approach is reckless and will cause the loss of millions of jobs, not just in the financial district but across the UK. Sadiq Khan will tell business leaders that the vote for Brexit did not mean the government needed to choose a route of economic self-sabotage and will urge Theresa May to approach the UKs departure from the EU with more pragmatism. - Guardian

European Union leaders have expressed hope of signing a trade deal with Canada after Belgian politicians overcame differences that had been blocking the treaty. The Belgian prime minister, Charles Michel, confirmed that leaders of five regional parliaments had reached an agreement with the federal government shortly after midday on Thursday.  Guardian

Barclays and Deutsche Bank tried their damnedest not to be party poopers on the 30th anniversary of the biggest regulatory shake-up in the history of the City. But in the end it was less of a Big Bang and more of a damp squib really.  Telegraph

Thousands of small companies have been fined for failing to enrol staff in a workplace pension as businesses struggle to cope with the biggest overhaul to retirement savings in generations. An increase in enforcement action by the pensions regulator resulted in more than 3,700 businesses being issued with penalties between July and September, compared with 861 in the previous three months.  The Times

Tata Sons, the ultimate parent company of Jaguar Land Rover and Tata Steel UK, could embark on a multibillion-pound asset sale or bring in friendly Asian or Middle Eastern sovereign wealth fund investors to buy out the stake held in Tata by the family of Cyrus Mistry, its deposed chairman. News of the attempts to cut Mr Mistry out of Tata came as the Indian family which controls the international trading empire increased the heat in one of the most poisonous corporate defenestrations of recent times.  The Times
British Airways and Iberia parent International Consolidated Airlines Group flew higher on Friday as it reported a 3.6% drop in third-operating profit before exceptional items to 1.2bn, which was a touch above analysts expectations.

The company said the net foreign exchange operating profit impact for the quarter was an adverse 162m, while passenger unit revenue was down 13.7% and at constant currency down 5.9%.

In terms of the outlook, IAG said that at current fuel prices and exchange rates, it expects its operating profit for 2016 to be around 2.5bn and has seen no significant change in its short-term trading conditions.

Housebuilders Barratt Developments, Taylor Wimpey and Persimmon all gained, with traders pointing to a media report that privately-owned housebuilder Cala Group has been approached about a takeover by a mystery Chinese bidder ahead of a government push to deliver one million new homes by 2020.

According to Sky News, Cala is in early-stage talks with the potential buyer, which is understood not to be Vanke Group, the country's biggest residential developer.

Risers

International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 440.20p 6.46%

Whitbread (WTB) 3,651.00p 3.40%

Barratt Developments (BDEV) 453.50p 3.33%

Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 142.80p 2.81%

Next (NXT) 4,934.00p 2.66%

Pearson (PSON) 762.50p 2.62%

Persimmon (PSN) 1,712.00p 2.45%

easyJet (EZJ) 943.50p 2.44%

Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 249.70p 2.34%

Carnival (CCL) 3,833.00p 2.16%

Fallers

DCC (DCC) 6,550.00p -1.80%

Intu Properties (INTU) 276.70p -1.67%

Dixons Carphone (DC.) 310.40p -1.62%

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Why J.D. Vance is crucial to GOP's U.S. Senate hopes

While the GOP deals with unpredictable races in states such as Pennsylvania, Republicans hope Ohio will show up for Senate candidate J.D. Vance.
The South Middleton Township supervisors tackled a potpourri of topics on Thursday night, including a proposed subdivision, a Chinese sky lantern ban and municipal disposal of autumn leaves.

The board unanimously approved a final minor subdivision plan on Thursday that involves reconfiguring two existing lots at East Springville and York roads, comprising 16 acres and 6 acres, respectively. The 16-acre lot was occupied by a house and a barn, while the 6-acre parcel had no dwellings.

Supervisors accepted the plan under the condition that owner/developers Crock & Henderson permit the township to curve a sharp corner of East Springville and York intersection that runs across a small portion of the subdivision. Although the township has no timetable for restructuring that portion of the intersection, officials concur that its a bad turn.

The approved subdivision reconfiguration situates the house and barn on a 2.85-lot, with no buildings proposed for the remaining 19.37 parcel, according to township documents. The plan was presented to officials by John Madden, of Madden Engineering Services Inc.

Also on Thursday, supervisors gave township manager Cory Adams the go-ahead to publicly advertise a proposed ordinance that would ban Chinese skylighters, or sky lanterns, in the township. The board could finalize the proposal by the end of the year.

Chinese skylighters are like mini hot air balloons, but with a candle in the middle. We dont know where they can land, board President Bryan Gembusia said.

Theres been all kinds of bad things (because of Chinese skylighters). Theyve caused barn fires. A cow got one stuck in its throat, Supervisor Duff Manweiler said.

Adams said he revised an original ordinance proposal that would have allowed tethered sky lanterns in the township. This completely eliminates them, tethered or not, Adams said.

Also, board Vice Chairman Tom Faley announced that the township will begin its annual leaf disposal pickup on Oct. 31, continuing on weekly cycles throughout the municipality through Dec. 2.

Residents are asked to place bagged leaves at their curbs for pickup. Faley urged residents not to tie their filled bags so that municipal workers can leave the bags for reuse.

I believe this is our most appreciated township service. Its a very, very good service. Ive never had a complaint, Faley said.

Finally, officials welcomed township resident Matt Miekley, who will serve as a junior supervisor through the 2016-17 school year. He is a senior at Trinity High School.
Carlisle Police Department has a history of not waiting for an incident like Ferguson to prompt a review of its use-of-force doctrine, according to Steve Latshaw, interim police chief.

Policies, procedures and topics regarding when and how to use force are touched on every year as part of annual officer training, Latshaw told an audience of local residents who had gathered Thursday for a panel discussion on criminal justice at YWCA Carlisle.

Among the questions asked of the 19-year veteran of the borough police department was whether officers in Carlisle review media coverage of past incidents of unrest for lessons learned on the use of force.

While he acknowledged such events clearly have an impact, Latshaw said it has always been the practice of the Carlisle department to be proactive and to review use-of-force options and alternatives with officers.

We train on it all the time, he told residents. Latshaw added how scenario-based instruction addresses the steps officers need to take to assess a situation and what options are available if a confrontation escalates.

I look at every use-of-force report that comes to the Carlisle Police Department, Latshaw said. We dont have a lot of use-of-force in the borough of Carlisle.

There were six cases of Taser deployment in all of 2015 for a department that averages upwards of 2,500 incidents per month, the chief said. A lot of those incidents are policemen dealing with people breaking the law.

Many are cases where the criminal does not want to be arrested.

The department is fortunate in having on its roster the commander of the Cumberland County special response team as well as experienced trainers certified in the use of the Taser, Latshaw said.

As part of the discussion, Sentinel reporter Joshua Vaughn reviewed statistical data showing a racial disparity in the local justice system while District Attorney David Freed talked about bail reform as one method to address disparity.

Freed also briefed the audience on efforts underway to legislate expungement reform so that minor offenders subject to criminal background checks do not continue to suffer for a mistake with lost job or housing opportunities.

The panel also included Brandon Flood, executive director of the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus, who challenged audience members to bring concerns before lawmakers and collaborate with community stakeholders in framing policy.
Sometimes anger provokes truth: bare, free, not to be stifled or evaded. Sometimes anger, indignation, despair, full blown love of the life of ones people, ones own land and planet, can bring fierce flower to the poets heart. Then we are blessed with passionate words of resistance that can become the foundation of prophecy. A change for which there is no turning back. Such is the case of this poet." - Alice Walker

Rafeef Ziadah is one of the most powerful, compelling and passionate women performance poets of our time. Her poems 'We Teach Life Sir' and 'Shades of Anger' went viral and became internet sensations within days of being released on YouTube. With wit and precision, her words touch a chord of honesty and beauty that transcends cultural barrier and entrenched beliefs.

Rafeef was born in Lebanon, a Palestinian refugee without official papers or a passport and with a dream of a homeland free of the decades long military occupation by Israel. She has walked a long road to attaining citizenship (Canadian) and to finding her voice in the dual and complimentary worlds of poetry and activism. Every poem is a true story based on conversations I have had with Palestinians and refugees in many different parts of the world. I hope each story connects with and touches people here in some way beyond the media headlines and news statistics says Rafeef.

A regular visitor to Ireland, Rafeef has found a shared affinity with the Irish people, both in literature and in idealism. In May 2016, she had a private meeting with President Michael D Higgins before her countrywide sell out shows, which included a memorable evening at Dublins Abbey Theatre. A long time exponent of nonviolent resistance to oppression, Rafeef was delighted to meet Cathryn O'Reilly, one of the Dunnes Stores Strikers, who in 1984, upheld their unions instructions and refused to handle South African Apartheid goods. This boycott resulting in a long strike and much hardship for the young shop assistants but ultimately became a beacon of hope to South Africans suffering under apartheid. Cathryn was thanked personally by Nelson Mandela. Referring to non-violent resistance to oppression, Rafeef said As the Palestinian-led movement for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israels regime of oppression gains ground around the world, we are inspired by the historic example of the workers at Dunnes Stores and hope to see such grassroots acts of solidarity supporting the Palestinian struggle for freedom, justice and equality. It is no coincidence that the word boycott was coined in Ireland and continues to be a powerful tool of action for all oppressed.

The acclaimed poet was back in Ireland this week, presenting her exciting blend of poetry and music on themes of exile, dispossession and resistance. No doubt it will be one of many visits. Keep an eye out for her performances and meanwhile check out the YouTube links below for a taste of her unique talent. Funny, passionate and diminutive in stature but packing a big punch of strong thoughtful words which give a voice to the undocumented, to those incarcerated in deportation cells and refugee camps and to the many people seeking justice everywhere in the world, Rafeef Ziadah is an inspirational and inspiring woman.

Check out her poems here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aKucPh9xHtM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bj-9f8sjr9w
Friday 28th October

Big Dance and Jiving Competition Abbey Hotel

St Nauls Big Dance and Jiving Competition takes place, Friday, October 28th in The Abbey Hotel, with music by Kieran McAree. Open Jiving Competion - enter on the night or ring 086 8330202 to register. Competition entry fee: 15 per person (includes entrance to dance). Dance tickets 10.

Fancy Dress Halloween Disco in SJB, Donegal town

St John Bosco Centre on Friday, October 28th, 7-9pm. Prizes for best dressed, fun and games, tricks and treats for all, 5 per child, everyone welcome

Jazz on The Lennon

Friday brings the Welcome To Town session in Conways at 6pm with Romane playing the first festival concert in Ramelton Town Hall at 8pm.

Quiz in Killybegs

A table quiz will be held in Harbour Bar, Killybegs, on Friday, October 28, at 9.30pm to support the work being done in Haiti by Gina Heraty. Gina has been on the afflicted island for many years but is working hard these days to help people overcome the devastation of Hurricane Matthew, which killed more than 900 and has been followed by a serious outbreak of cholera. As well as wind damage, the hurricane brought catastrophic flooding to the island, destroying crops, roads and buildings, and more than a million people are in need of food aid.

Saturday 29th October

Halloween Leghowney Country Market

The next Leghowney Country Market this Saturday 29th October 11am to 1pm. Leghowney Country Market will be celebrating 7 years and the spooky feast of Halloween. We are holding a pumpkin carving competition - we ask each family to carve out their pumpkin at home and bring along to the market on day where you can win some lovely market prizes. We will have some Pumpkin Carving demos. Pumpkin Recipes for all that goodness you scoop out of your pumpkin. You will have the chance to make your own chocolate apples-bob for apples and maybe some more surprises. Put on your Halloween costume and fly on over to Leghowney Country Market on Saturday 29th of October for some spooky fun. Find our poster on Leghowney Country Market page "Like" and "Share" to win a lovely "5 Mile Fry for two!

Jazz on The Lennon

There are three concerts on Saturday Kourosh Kanani and guests play a 2pm acoustic gig at a mystery location while Irene Ypenburg (Amsterdam) and Manouche (Belfast) are in the Town Hall at 5.30pm followed by Dario Napoli in the same venue at 9pm.

Sunday 30th October

Pop Up Museum for cancer care

There will be a Pop Up Museum, a treasure trove of culture and history in the St John Bosco Centre, Donegal Town this Sunday and Monday, October 30-31, 12-6pm, organised by the South Donegal Vintage Club.

Call in to explore an Aladdin's cave of memorabilia, culture and history.

The event will also feature a celebration of the 85th Anniversary of the consecration of the St Patrick's Basilica in Lough Derg. Display of documentation on the construction and dedication vestments photos and other memorabilia will be on display.

Jazz on The Lennon

The Town Hall aso hosts the closing concert on Sunday at 2.30pm.

Murder Mystery Ball

A Murder Mystery Charity Ball in Aid of ICARE and local Charities will take place in the Inishowen Gateway Hotel, Buncrana on Sunday 30th of October at 6:45 pm. This is a Black-tie event, red carpet, champagne reception and Dinner party followed by a Spooktacular Halloween Disco. Ticket can be purchased at the Inishowen Gateway.

Donegal town Railway Heritage Centre

Donegal Railway Heritage Centre, Sunday, October 30th, 12 to 5pm. Fancy Dress Competition, Disco, Movies, Party Games, Colouring In, Party Bag for Everyone. Fancy Dress Winners announced at 3pm. Have a ride on our new Thomas the Tank Engine. 5 per child. Telephone 074 9722655 for more details.

Bank Holiday Monday 31st October

Childrens Halloween Party, Drimarone

At the Bluestack Centre, Drimarone on Monday, October 31st, 6-7.30pm. Lots of prizes, party games, refreshments and more. 5 per child.

Termon Complex, Pettigo

The parent's committee of Scoil Mhuire Pettigo will hold a Kid's fancy dress Party/Disco on Monday 31st October from 5 till 7pm in the Termon Complex. The evening will include Halloween games, trick or treat at the witches den and drinks and treats are included. Admission is 5 per child and accompanying adults are free of charge. Family discounts will be available. All children must be accompanied by an adult.

Leghowney Halloween Party

Leghowney Haunted Hall on Halloween night 7pm to 9pm for a good old fashioned Party with games and treats.

If you have an event you want listed send it to editorial@donegaldemocrat.com
A man who hijacked a car in Derry and eventually crashed it in Donegal has been jailed for three years.

Kevin Doherty, whose address was given on court papers as c/o Magilligan Prison, pleaded guilty to hijacking and dangerous driving on July 5, 2013.

Derry Crown Court heard a woman walked towards her car in the Clooney Terrace area of the Waterside shortly after 10pm.

As she got into her car, the 25-year-old appeared at the drivers door and screamed at her to get out of the f****** car.

He grabbed the woman and pulled her out of the vehicle.

The court heard his face was covered by a scarf and the injured party attempted to pull it down from his face.

Doherty drove off in the vehicle stopping to pick up two females at an off-licence.

The car was seen going through a red light, speeding and driving on the wrong side of the road.

Police pursued the car across the Foyle Bridge as it headed towards Donegal and at times it was travelling at 100 mph.

Police eventually abandoned the chase for safety reasons.

CCTV footage showed the car being driven erratically.

Half an hour after the hijacking, the car crashed between Muff and Quigleys Point in Donegal.

Doherty was taken to Letterkenny Hospital and was detained by Gardai.

He was sentenced to eight months in custody in the Republic and disqualified from driving for 10 years.

Doherty was then arrested in the North three weeks after being released from prison.

The court heard that he had 45 previous convictions and this offence occurred some three weeks after he was released on licence from a previous sentence.

Judge Philip Babington said he was satisfied that the defendant posed a significant risk of re-offending .

The judge said the incident was completely unacceptable and was aggravated by the fact that it had taken place under the cover of darkness and that violence had been used.

He added it was luck that prevented Dohertys driving causing serious injury.

Doherty was sentenced to three years in prison with half of that being spent in custody and half on licence.

He was also disqualified from driving for three years.
A 58-year-old man has been sentenced to four and half years in prison after admitting to eleven sample counts of indecent assault on two young sisters.

Leo McFarland, of Oak Grove, Millfield, Buncrana appeared before Donegal Circuit Court this morning for sentencing.

The victims, who have waived their right to anonymity, were aged five to seven years and seven to nine years old respectively when the assaults took place.

The former taxi and mini-bus driver had originally denied a total of 53 charges. After one of the victims gave evidence at the opening of the trial earlier this year, he pleaded guilty to eleven sample charges of indecent assault on Kathleen McCallion (nee Brady) and Caroline Brady, contrary to Section 10 of the Criminal Law Rape Act 1981 between December 1, 1983 and December 31, 1985.

They lived at Convent Road, Carndonagh where the defendant, who was in his mid-20s, was a neighbour, and they were friends with two of his daughters.

The court heard that he repeatedly assaulted them in his home and in a minibus he parked behind his house.

With both young girls, he "played a game" of asking them to look for sweets or keys in his trouser pockets, which had a hole in them, and they would touch his penis. He gave them sweets afterwards. This "game" escalated over time, and the assaults took place frequently, several times a month, they said.

After they told their mother what happened, she confronted Mr McFarland. The abuse stopped and the families had no further contact with each other.

Impact statements from victims

In their victim impact statements, both women described how they'd grown up "feeling different from other girls, dirty" and wondering why this had happened to them. They blamed themselves and could not trust other people, especially men and often wondered what their lives would have been like if this had not happened to them.

They suffered from panic, anxiety and depression, especially after becoming mothers, when they worried that they would not be able to protect their own children.

Kathleen McCallion described how she struggled to overcome anorexia, alcoholism and suicidal thoughts.

Judge John O'Hagan noted that the maximum sentence was 10 years and said he believed the offences were "in the middle" of the scale of severity.

There were "very many" aggravating factors in the case, he added, including the young age of the girls, the fact that Mr McFarland was an adult, married and the father of their friends, his repeated denials from his initial arrest in 2012, the lateness of his plea last February, and the devastating impact of his actions on his victims.

Judge O'Hagan said, "These girls were aged five to nine years when these offences took place. That is a very impressionable, formative time for young girls, a time of great innocence for young girls, a time for getting to know life gradually and not have their innocence taken away from them. That was absolutely crushed by Mr McFarland.

"That wonderful, wonderful sense of trust that children of that age have for adults, and faith and admiration for them, was taken advantage of and smashed into the ground like a broken bottle and you can't put the pieces back together again."

Judge O'Hagan said that the defendant's career and life had been destroyed by his actions, and he had to take that into account as mitigating factors.

Probation and psychiatric reports indicated that Mr McFarland had only "limited" insights into the effects of his actions.

Judge O'Hagan sentenced him to four and half years in prison on each of the eleven charges, to be served concurrently.

The sisters both told the Donegal Democrat afterwards that they felt "relieved" at the sentence.

Kathleen McCallion added, "Now it's finally over, after six years going through the court and 30 years hanging over our heads. The judge was very good. We are grateful that we have been heard and believed."
Dear Editor:

What bothers me is that many of these people know that Donald Trump is a disastrous choice for this country, but they want to stir things up and feed in to his dramatic and disgusting antics.

Trump cannot control himself on Twitter. How do we expect him to act dealing with other world leaders? The fact that hes not a politician does not make matters any better  it makes things worse. Trump is a reality star, not a world leader.

The comments Trump has made concerning women were not as disturbing to me as what hes said about our nations heroes; our fallen veterans and the brave men and women that put their lives out there for our county, only to return with scars that may never be healed.

The world saw a great victory in 1989 with the fall of the Berlin Wall. Building a wall on our nations border would be a kick in the face to the progress that was made less than 30 years ago. It would also make the United States appear unwilling to coexist with the rest of the world. After all, lets not forget that we are a nation of immigrants.

Trumps ideas to ban a certain religion from entering the country should be sobering for any thinking and feeling human being. Its a reminder of what happened during the Holocaust, and shortly after when many were suffering in internment camps. These were innocent people, just like us.

Do the research and search your heart before voting for a dangerous fascist. I cannot view a vote for Trump as anything less than un-American. When the curtain falls, youll have to look your children and grandchildren in the eye and tell them the truth about the choice you made.

Nate Curlen

Carlisle
Home Four wheelers 2017 Hyundai Azera/Grandeur Revealed  Start Of A New Hyundai Design Revolution oi-Dennis James

South Korean carmaker Hyundai has unveiled the first images of the all-new Azera sedan, which is sold in Korea as the Grandeur.

{photo-feature}
Popular Louth pub, Fitzpatricks of Jenkinstown has retained its listing in the 2017 Michelin Eating Out In Pubs Guide just published.

The sole standard bearer for Louth, Fitzpatricks, described as a first class hostelry with a clientele that returns time after time, is one of twenty-five pubs from the Republic of Ireland and seven from Northern Ireland featured in the publication.

In overall terms, County Down leads the way with six listings followed by Cork with five, Clare with four and Kildare with three. Dublin, Galway and Mayo each received two listings with Antrim, Kerry, Leitrim, Louth, Sligo, Tipperary, Wexford and Wicklow each having one listing.

Produced by leading tyre manufacturer Michelin - this years Guide recommends more than 500 pubs spread across England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland of which 38 are new entries and all of which are selected, first and foremost, for the standard of their food.

Noting that the quality of cooking in some of these pubs rivals that of restaurants, Guide editor Rebecca Burr (who also edits the famed Michelin Guide Great Britain & Ireland) commented that: We are increasingly witnessing how pubs can provide a platform for young chefs to start their own businesses, and how inventive these chefs can be, particularly when it comes to the sourcing of their ingredients.
Union Cabinet approves agreement between India and Estonia on the transfer of sentenced persons

Published: October 27, 2016

The Union Cabinet has given its approval for signing and ratification of an Agreement between India and Estonia on the transfer of sentenced persons.

This agreement will facilitate the Indian prisoners imprisoned in Estonia or vice-versa for serving remaining part of their sentence in their country and be near to their families. It will also facilitate their social rehabilitation.

Background

India had enacted Repatriation of Prisoners Act, 2003 under which foreign prisoners are transferred to country of their origin to serve the remaining part of their sentence and transfer of prisoners of Indian origin convicted by a foreign court to serve their sentence in India. The transfer of such prisoners to their own native countries was to facilitate their social rehabilitation. India has so far signed bilateral Agreements on Transfer of Sentenced Persons with 27 countries in pursuance of the Repatriation of Prisoners Act, 2003. So far total 65 prisoners have been exchanged, out of which 55 were Indians.

Month: Current Affairs - October, 2016

Topics: Cabinet Decisions  India-Estonia  National

Latest E-Books
A few short years ago Melanie Perkins was desperately pitching her graphic design start-up to investors, uncertain whether shed secure the support necessary to fulfil her mission to democratise design. Today, she and co-founders Cliff Obrecht and Cameron Adams are being courted by large firms, keen to get in on the action.

Since launching three years ago, the home-grown graphic design start-up has amassed more than 10 million users from 179 countries plus a workforce of 120 across two offices  one in Surry Hills, Sydney; the other in Manila, the Philippines.

Today it is worth US$365 million, more than double its 2015 valuation. Perhaps the clearest indicator of the companys success, however, has been the glowing endorsement from within Hollywood. Actors Woody Harrelson and Owen Wilson injected cash into the company, last year, with the latter stating: Canva is on fire! This could be a game changer.

Weve been used to catch criminals

Perkins told Dynamic Business that whereas design tools have typically been too complex and too expensive, Canva is focused on making design accessible to everyone.

We provide a simple-to-use product with thousands of professionally designed templates and more than a million stock images, so anyone can easily make their own business cards, presentations, posters, flyers, social media graphics and more, she said.

Consequently, theres no typical user. Were used by big companies such as Huffington Post, Yelp and Lonely Planet, by thousands of people who are self-employed, by many charities and all kinds of people. Its been used in ways we never imagined. For example, a sheriff in the US uses it to make Wanted posters and so Canva has been used to catch criminals.

It took an absurd amount of determination

The origin of Canva can be traced back to 2007, when Melanie was undertaking a double degree in arts and commerce at the university of Western Australia. In addition to her studies, she taught students how to use design programs including InDesign and Photoshop. Watching her peers struggle with these tools (they were hard to learn, and harder to use), Melanie began to reimagine graphic design as an online, collaborative and user-friendly experience.

This led to the launch of Fusion Books, which Melanie co-founded in 2008 with Cliff, her boyfriend and fellow student. Over a five-year period, the company grew to dominate the school yearbook market with its online design tool, and expanded into New Zealand and France.

When Cliff and I started out, we had no money and no engineering or business experience, Melanie admitted. We did not even know what a start-up was, nor did we know anyone who was in one. We just had a problem that we wanted to solve and an absurd amount of determination. The technology wed built made the yearbook creation process fun and easy for design novices; however, Cliff and I knew all along that it could be applied more broadly so after a few years we began to work on what became Canva.

More and more professions are having to design

Canva launched in August 2013, with Melanie as CEO and Cliff as chief operations officer (COO). Cameron Adams rounded out the leadership team, joining Canva as the chief product officer (CPO). According to Melanie, Adams  formerly an interface designer with Google, working on Wave and other projects  played a critical role in getting the company off the ground.

Before anyone would invest in us, we had to find the right tech team, she said. We had huge plans so we needed people who were technically excellent with a background in building products for massive user bases. One of our first investors, Google Maps co-founder Lars Rasmussen, helped us find Cam. Cliff and I quickly brought him on as our third co-founder.

Melanie said Canva has spent the three years since launch combatting a notion thats divorced from the reality of the modern business world.

Until recently, graphic design was considered a niche market, she said. However, a growing number of professions  from social media managers to salespeople  are having to harness the power of graphics to communicate ideas to their audience effectively.

While graphic design has become an invaluable skill in business, many of the available tools were developed prior to the internet and their core features havent changed. Weve had the opportunity to reimagine these productivity tools from the ground up to cater for everyone, including the modern workforce.

Same vision, just more evidence to back it up

Building and maintaining the momentum of a high-growth start-up has, Melanie explained, been incredibly challenging for the simple reason that the nature of the challenges continues to evolve  and there are new ones every week.

In the beginning, the key challenge was dealing with rejections from potential investors and team members and powering on, she said.

We were pitching a crazy, ambitious plan and for every few people who said yes to us, there were hundreds more who said no or not yet. It took a full year of meeting investors plus six months in San Francisco and one hundred revisions to our pitch deck to raise our first round of investment. We actually travelled to San Francisco twice. Both times we anticipated a two-week trip, and both times we only left the US because our three-month visa was due to expire. We were really struggling to get things rolling and it took an incredible amount of willpower to see it through. For a long time, we had no idea if things would actually end up coming together.

Since then, the experience of raising capital has changed dramatically for us and our more recent rounds of raising investment couldnt have been more different from those early struggles. For the first $US15 million round, we had five big firms fly out from San Francisco to learn about our company and pitch to us. We were taken out for dinners, we were pitched on how they could help our company. In fact, a number of investors even presented to our whole Sydney team.

I find it a little bit amusing that while weve gone from desperately pitching our hearts out to having investors pitch us, our vision hasnt changed. What it comes down to is the fact that at each stage of our journey, weve had different evidence to back it up. At the start it was just an idea, then we had a great team, then we built a great product, then 23 had great charts that were moving in the right direction, now millions of users and an incredible fan base. Every investor has a different appetite for risk and consequently prefers companies at different stages of their journey. You have to believe in your vision for a long time before anyone else will.

Today, the challenges facing Canva are more around: how to keep a rapidly growing team of more than 100 people as happy and productive as possible; working out what should get done first of our hundreds of ideas; and how to keep making the company better and better.

Were still realising our original pitch

Despite the tremendous growth of Canva (its a third of the way to joining the Unicorn Club), Melanie said success hasnt dulled her motivation, nor that of her co-founders Cliff and Cameron.

Every day is different at Canva and it can be a bit of a rollercoaster, she said. Canva keeps growing, the challenges keep evolving but and there is always more to do. It probably helps that I love challenges.

From the outside, it may appear as though Canva is fairly well established. Ten million users might sound like a lot, but its only 0.03% of the internet-using population. Weve only done 1% of what we know is possible with Canva. There are still core pillars of our product mentioned in our pitch deck from four years ago that weve only started work on, so we have a long way to go yet!
Small businesses often have specific financing needs and may require funding support to compete in international markets or to fulfil export-related supply chain contracts.

For businesses trying to navigate that next growth phase into an overseas market, there are a number of differences between exporting and operating in Australia which will have an impact on a businesss finances. Understanding all of the costs associated with exporting will help small businesses make an informed decision on whether their business is ready to meet an export contract.

There are four steps all SMEs should take to ensure export success:

Keep your financial health in check

As your business grows, ensure you have an accountant that understands the fundamentals of your business. Your accountant will help you stay on the right track with your finances as you expand into new markets.

Understand your cashflow requirements

One of the most common problems encountered by growing businesses is when their growth rate outstrips their capacity, which can create pressure on working capital. By developing detailed cashflow projections into the future, you can ensure you are able to plan and manage your cashflow to avoid problems.

Build a strong relationship with your banker

Your banker is crucial in your growth journey. Successful SMEs will keep their banker informed on a regular basis by keeping them updated on what their plans are, what direction they are heading in and any financial issues they anticipate. If you involve your banker closely in your business, it will be much easier to get help the day you run into trouble.

Consider alternative sources of funding

One area small businesses continue to struggle with is finding alternative sources of export funding if their bank cant help. One such alternative is Efic, the Governments export credit agency.

Putting it into practice

An example of a company which has addressed these considerations and successfully secured alternative sources of funding is Queensland tour operator Frankland Islands Cruises. Working out of Cairns, Frankland Islands Cruises has taken thousands of people on tours around the Great Barrier Reef since 1992.

Travelling out to the Frankland Islands, which are a unique set of islands originally discovered by Captain Cook, offers the opportunity to visit five eco-systems while on the one tour. So its a nature-based tour of the Great Barrier Reef, says Ron Cusick, CEO of the company.

Offering a wide range of activities including an island walk, glass bottom boat tour, snorkelling and diving, the business, which has a strong export market, aims to offer tourists a unique experience.

Taking advantage of a Japanese opportunity

Frankland Islands Cruises was approached by a Japanese company wanting to develop a charter program of 80 days over the year. The contract would represent 30% of total business for Frankland Islands Cruises.

Securing the contract was one step; delivering on it was the next. Ron explains, we needed new equipment, and to set up the activities on the island prior to the tour each day with the reverse at the end of the day, thereby providing a turnkey product that allows their customers to get the most out of their experience on the day.

With new equipment needed, but finance difficult to raise through the private market, Frankland Islands Cruises needed to look elsewhere for financial help.

A key challenge is that marine products are very hard to raise finance for across the board. Our bank was unable to help. They simply do not lend to marine and boat businesses and were not willing to consider it. We found out about Efic and made contact. From there the process was very easy, says Ron.

Funding growth

Efics Small Business Export Loan provides small exporters with an unsecured loan of up to $250,000 to support a single export contract. Completed online with a choice of repayment terms, and with funds available in as little as nine business days, the loan was designed to help small export businesses gain access to the finance they need fast.

The online application process was very user-friendly. The great thing is that we could pick the repayment term we needed, deciding how quickly we wanted to repay the loan.

The Japanese market has been in decline for five years, but this program that Efic helped fund has reversed that incredibly for our business. The spin-off has been that a lot of other companies in the area have gained increased Japanese business as a result of the charter program, says Ron.

Andrew Watson
       :         , 10     5    
The Mine Au Breton Historical Society in Potosi, along with the Paranormal Task Force, is hosting three events Saturday, including a special historical tour, a haunted interactive historical tour and an overnight ghost hunt.

Mine Au Breton Historical Society President Jerry Sansegraw said they have two or three hunts a year at three of their properties.

We work with the Paranormal Task Force and they handle the booking, advertisement and everything like that, said Sansegraw. They conduct the ghost hunts and they have a program on the ghost hunting equipment and demonstrate how they use it. Then after that they turn them lose to use what they learned from the class to see what they can find. Some people also bring their own equipment ...

Sansegraw said the people who come for the first event are broken up into three groups and they will go to each property, which will include the opportunity to explore the inside and hear the history of the Long-Banta House, the Old Presbyterian Church and the Austin-Milam-Lucas Store.

There will be someone from our society there and they will tell the history of each property as they come there, said Sansegraw. They are also taken through the building while its daytime to get a feel for what each building looks like for when they come back at night for the ghost hunt.

All three buildings also contain a wealth of displayed items historic to the buildings and the history of Potosi as well. Visitors are given the opportunity to also learn about some of the more famous and infamous burials within the adjacent City and Presbyterian Cemeteries.

Visitors will hear stories about the bizarre incidents that surrounded the burial of Moses Austin, the father of the iconic Stephen Austin, the founder of Texas, and will also see Moses' grave, said Sansegraw. They will also hear about the historical ax murders which led to the famous double hanging, the mysterious suicide at the historic old store and the Confederates invasion of Potosi during the Civil War.

Sansegraw said this is the first time they have ever held an event like this, but the Paranormal Task Force has done this at other places before. Also a portion of the proceeds from the days event will go to the Mine Au Breton Historical Society to help with the upkeep of the historical buildings.

The five-hour haunted interactive historical tour is for those who want a bit more than just history. They can learn about everything in the Historical Tour, plus hear the tales of the hauntings within these historical buildings. In addition, those attending will learn the basics of ghost hunting from members of Paranormal Task Force and get some time to hunt ghosts themselves. They will also get to use some of the handheld equipment used for ghost hunting that is seen on the television shows.

The overnight ghost hunt is for those who wish to pursue the Phantoms of Potosi on their own through the night. They will have access to all three historical and haunted buildings and the adjoining cemeteries. There is even a historical and haunted location at the Sweet Memories Shop where visitors can purchase food, snacks and beverages or to just to take a break.

There will be members of Paranormal Task Force at each building throughout the night to give any assistance that may be needed and they will let attendees use some of their handheld ghost hunting equipment.

The first event, the special historical tour, will be from noon to 3 p.m. and costs $20 per person. The second event, a haunted interactive historical tour, will be from 4 to 9 p.m. and cost $30 per person. The final event of the evening is an overnight ghost hunt and that will go from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. and will cost $50 per person for those who attend either of the other tours or $65 for those who didnt attend the other tours.

The check-in location for each event will be at the Sweet Memories Shop at 105 W Breton Street in Potosi. Plan on being there prior to the start time of your event to allow for time to check in. Those interested in attending should visit www.paranormaltaskforce.com/events.html for more information or to purchase tickets.
A refresh of Apples flagship laptop, the MacBook Pro, likely will be the highlight of an event scheduled for this Thursday at the companys headquarters in Cupertino, California.

The update to its flagship MacBook line couldnt come at a more critical time.

Apple has been under increasing pressure from Dell, Lenovo and others in this space and needs to up its game considerably lest it be accused of neglecting notebook users and customers, said Charles King, principal analyst at Pund-IT.

Apple will make a play for corporations at the event by focusing on specific business class qualities in the new products.

That would emphasize the value the company has gained from its partnership with IBM, King told TechNewsWorld.

But frankly, he added, Apple needs to make a far better case for the benefits its products offer to corporate customers than it has in the past.

OLED Touch Bar

One of the new features likely to grace the MacBook Pro is an OLED touch bar above the keyboard, which reportedly will be similar to the butterfly keyboard found on the 12-inch MacBook.

The bar would perform a variety of functions  for example, display notifications, identify open apps, and control parts of the operating system.

As cool as the bar sounds, its overall impact on the laptop will be minimal, maintained Jeff Orr, senior practice director for mobile devices at ABI Research.

Maybe theres some productivity efficiencies that can be gained by it, but its not going to fundamentally change the product offering, he told TechNewsWorld.

More USB-C Ports

The new MacBook Pro also is expected to have four USB-C ports.

Apple has been losing market share because it hasnt kept its MacBooks up to date, particularly on the port side, said Bob ODonnell, chief analyst at Technalysis Research.

Thats a big issue with USB-C becoming a standard port, he told TechNewsWorld. Now the MacBook will have all standard ports in a way that we havent seen for quite some time from Apple.

With the addition of the USB-C ports, some ports may be dropped. Could one of the ports targeted for elimination be the headphone jack, already scrapped from the iPhone 7?

I dont think they will, because most people plug in external speakers through the headphone jack, said ODonnell.

However, they could make a philosophical statement by taking it out, he added.

Apples rationale for removing the headphone jack from the iPhone 7 was to provide a great experience thats wire and cable free, and to save space within the unit, Orr noted.

Those arent motivators for doing that with the MacBook, he said.

Whats more, Mac owners may not be ready for such a change. After the release of the iPhone 7, Orr said he heard Apple customers remark, At least I can still use my audio products on my Mac.

Thunderbolt 3 Forecast

The addition of more USB-C ports on the MacBook also could mean Apple is ready to embrace Thunderbolt 3.

Thunderbolt is a hardware interface developed by Apple and Intel. The first two generations of the technology connected devices to a computer through a Mini DisplayPort, but Thunderbolt 3 uses a standard USB-C port.

Im expecting updated MacBooks with modular features enabled through ThunderBolt 3 over USB-C, said Patrick Moorhead, principal analyst at Moor Insights and Strategy.

This can enable even thinner designs  but with the ability to connect to much higher performance graphics and storage if desired, he told TechNewsWorld.

iMac and 5K display

Some other features Apple watchers expect to see in the new MacBook Pro are a fingerprint scanner, which would facilitate the use of Apple Pay from the laptop; the addition of AMD graphics; and up to 2-terabyte solid state drives.

There are rumors that Apple will offer the laptops in a variety of new colors, such as space gray, silver, gold and rose gold.

A new 13-inch MacBook Air with USB-C ports also might be introduced.

Its been rumored that Apple could announce some new iMacs and a 5K display as well. While not total discounting those possibilities, highly regarded Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities indicated they are highly unlikely.

However, even if those products were announced at Thursdays event, they wouldnt be ready for shipping until next year, he noted.

Maybe Apple is planning another event for that time that would be for all its desktop models: the iMac, Mac mini and Mac Pro.
Shares of Samsung Electronics fell sharply on Tuesday after the company confirmed reports that it had halted production of its flagship Galaxy Note7 smartphone, just launched this summer.

The move came after several replacement phones reportedly smoldered or caught fire.

Shares fell 8 percent in the Korean market.

Samsung had been working with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission on a voluntary recall and replacement program, spurred by reports that dozens of the new devices had burst into flames due to faulty lithium-ion batteries.

Regulators also had banned them from commercial aircraft.

Regulators Investigate

The CPSC will continue its active investigation into the reports of phones overheating and burning in multiple states, said Chairman Elliot Kaye, who praised Samsung, along with retailers and carriers, for suspending Note7 sales and replacements.

No one should have to be concerned that their phone will endanger them, their family or their property, Kaye said. Due to the ongoing safety concerns associated with Galaxy Note7 phones, it is the right move for Samsung to suspend the sale and exchange of all Galaxy Notes7s.

The Federal Aviation Administration has urged passengers not to use, charge or stow any of the Galaxy Note7 phones in checked baggage.

The FAA referred to last months safety alert, which notes that dangerous or defective lithium-ion batteries cannot be transported via air cargo and carry heavy restrictions for passenger or crew transit.

One of the highest-profile incidents involving a Galaxy Note7 phone occurred last week, after a passenger who had boarded a Southwest Airlines plane scheduled to fly from Louisville to Baltimore reported smoke emitting from his Galaxy Note7 replacement device, according to Lori Crabtree, spokesperson for Southwest.

All passengers and crew safely exited the plane through the main cabin door, she told the E-Commerce Times.

Brand Damage

The Samsung brand, which has enjoyed a longstanding reputation for quality, likely will take a beating, as the recall and subsequent halt of sales expose something seriously amiss in the production and quality control process at the company.

This is a disaster that keeps on growing for Samsung and their brand, observed wireless analyst Jeff Kagan.

This problem should never have occurred. The devices should have been tested thoroughly, and this problem should have been found before it hit the market, he told the E-Commerce Times.

While Samsung has other mobile phones and other devices in its product line, the damage has spilled over to some of those other devices as well, Kagan noted. Some consumers have lost trust in the overall brand.

Other companies have been dethroned for less than this, he said.

Theres a perception  based on anecdotal evidence and analyst forecasts  that Samsung has been losing market share to Apple, which happened to release its top-of-the-line iPhone 7 within weeks of the Galaxy Note7 release.

Samsung was the market leader for mobile phones worldwide during the first half of the year, with 22.8 percent of the market compared to Apples 13.8 percent, according to market share data from Gartner analyst Tuong Nguyen.

In the U.S., Apple led in the first half with 36.8 percent market share, compared to Samsungs 26 percent.
UPDATE, 5:57 a.m. EDT: According to Reuters: Police arrested 141 Native Americans and other protesters in North Dakota in a tense standoff that spilled into Friday morning between law enforcement and demonstrators seeking to halt construction of a disputed oil pipeline. Police in riot gear used pepper spray and armored vehicles in an effort to disperse an estimated 330 protesters and clear a camp on private property, according to photos and statements released by the Morton County Sheriffs Department.

In Cannonball, North Dakota, more than 100 police with military equipment are advancing on a resistance camp established by Native American water protectors in the path of the proposed $3.8 billion Dakota Access pipeline. Photos and multiple videos posted to Facebook Live depict more than 100 officers in riot gear lined up across North Dakotas Highway 1806, flanked by multiple mine-resistant ambush protected military vehicles, a sound cannon, an armored truck and a bulldozer. There have also been reports from water protectors that the police presence includes multiple snipers. Police appear to be evicting the camp in order to clear the way for the Dakota Access pipeline company to continue constructionwhich was active at times on Thursday just behind the police line.

Police advance towards blockade on Hwy 1806 to evict #OcetiSakowin from 1851 treaty land and pave way for the #DakotaAccessPipeline. #NoDAPL pic.twitter.com/VRQAGRdN10  Unicorn Riot (@UR_Ninja) October 27, 2016

Happening now: 100+ Police in ND approaching #NoDAPL frontline resistance camp with multiple MRAPs, sound cannon, armored truck, bulldozer pic.twitter.com/QzqEhO4Kgk  Democracy Now! (@democracynow) October 27, 2016

Cody Hall of Red Warrior Camp told Democracy Now! that behind the line of police, the Dakota Access pipeline company is carrying out construction with cranes and bulldozers on the sacred tribal burial site where on Sept. 3, unlicensed Dakota Access security guards unleashed dogs and pepper spray against Native Americans.

PHOTO: Just behind militarized police line on Highway 1806 in North Dakota, Dakota Access pipeline company actively continues construction pic.twitter.com/CQgYXV3JGn  Democracy Now! (@democracynow) October 27, 2016

Water protectors have set up a blockade of the highway using cars, tires and fire. Elders are also leading prayer ceremonies.

Happening now: #NoDAPL water protectors blockading highway 1806 with cars, tires & fire amid fears 100+ police about to raid resistance camp pic.twitter.com/GGwD8IRAK5  Democracy Now! (@democracynow) October 27, 2016

Dallas Goldtooth of the Indigenous Environmental Network reported in a Facebook Live video posted Thursday just before 2 p.m. local time that police have begun arresting water protectors in the ongoing standoff.

[facebook https://www.facebook.com/dallasgoldtooth/videos/10105866816394723/ expand=1]

Sacheen Seitcham of the West Coast Women Warrior Media Cooperative told Democracy Now! police have used tasers against water protectors and that she was hit with a concussion grenade.

The frontline camp sits directly in the proposed path of the Dakota Access pipeline on private property purchased recently by the Dakota Access pipeline company for $18 million. In establishing this frontline camp, water protectors cited an 1851 treaty, which they say makes the entire area unceded sovereign land under the control of the Sioux. Over the weekend, police arrested more than 120 people in a peaceful march to this site during which police deployed tear gas and used rubber bullets to shoot down drones the water protectors were using to document police activity.

Governor Uses Emergency Order to Bring Out-of-State Police to Dakota Access Pipeline Protest https://t.co/S1VMjO1XnA @KXLBlockade  EcoWatch (@EcoWatch) October 27, 2016

Ahead of Thursdays apparent police raid, the Federal Aviation Administration also issued a temporary no-fly zone for the airspace above the resistance camps for all aircraft except for those used by law enforcement. This order means Native Americans can no longer fly drones to document police activity, but the police can continue to fly their surveillance drones and helicopters.

The apparent police raid of the resistance camp comes only minutes before Standing Rock Sioux youth flooded the Hillary Clinton campaign headquarters in New York City to demand Clinton oppose the Dakota Access pipeline.

As a young person I want to know what the next four years are going to entail, said Garrett Hairychin. Is Hillary going to be focused on protecting our land? I want to know if my younger family is going to be safe. Our present situation is in dire need of a leader that still remembers that our kids are here. We want to protect the future for the young ones that come after us. Im here to support my family.

As police in ND seem poised to raid #NoDAPL camp, Standing Rock youth flood Clinton campaign HQ to demand she oppose Dakota Access pipeline pic.twitter.com/4ixgjiuGpk  Democracy Now! (@democracynow) October 27, 2016

Reposted with permission from our media associate Democracy Now!
The Pew Charitable Trusts and Bertarelli Foundation applaud todays action by the Chilean government to create one of the worlds largest fully protected marine parks in the waters surrounding Easter Island, a Chilean territory in the South Pacific Ocean. The park was announced by Chiles President, Michelle Bachelet.

The new marine park will be the third-largest fully protected area of ocean in the world. Photo credit: The Pew Charitable Trusts

At 631,368 square kilometers (243,630 square miles), the new marine park will be the third-largest fully protected area of ocean in the world. The indigenous community of Easter Islandor Rapa Nui, as the island, its indigenous people and their language are knownproposed the park to safeguard the biodiversity of the islands waters, which are home to 142 endemic species, 27 of which are threatened or endangered. The park also will help the Rapa Nui continue centuries-old subsistence fishing practices within an area that extends 50 nautical miles from the shoreline.

Proposed Easter Island Marine Park

Pews Global Ocean Legacy program, in collaboration with the Bertarelli Foundation, has supported the Rapa Nuis efforts to protect their ocean waters since 2012. The Rapa Nui will now finalize their proposal through a consultation process with their entire community.

World famous for its Moai statues, Easter Island will now be known as a global leader in ocean conservation, said Joshua S. Reichert, who leads environment initiatives at Pew. This announcement is an important step toward establishing the worlds first generation of great parks in the sea.

Creation of the Easter Island park protects one of the last near-pristine ocean wildernesses on Earth, said Reichert and one that holds great cultural, religious and economic importance to the Rapa Nui people. It is both a triumph for the Rapa Nui and for the government of President Bachelet.

Research and progress toward the park was made possible with the support of the Bertarelli Foundation, which has made significant investments in securing other large-scale protected areas. The foundations support enabled the largest scientific assessment ever completed of the islands marine environment, an economic analysis of the impact of a marine park, education and training for the local population, the facilitation of cultural exchanges with other native Polynesian people and assistance with monitoring for illegal fishing activities.
Instead of moving to safe, natural alternatives, Johnson & Johnson wants to replace plastic microbeads with more plastic. They recently came out in the New York Times against the California microbead ban, even after pledging in 2013 to ban microbeads in their products.

Across the country in states like Colorado, Illinois, New Jersey and Oregon, Johnson & Johnson is working to sabotage microbead bans with a sneaky loophole. By subtly tweaking the definition of a microbead, the loophole would allow companies to replace traditional plastic microbeads with other types of dangerous plastics, like the type used in cigarette filters.

Plastic microbeads are found in beauty products like toothpaste and facial scrubs in staggering quantities. One tube of exfoliating scrub can contain more than 350,000 plastic microbeads. Its estimated that 471 million microbeads are released into the San Francisco Bay every day. No microbead alterative that still uses plastic will stop the toxic effect microbeads has on our oceans and our health.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bic7QEVRNe4

expand=1]

5 Gyres and a coalition of leading environmental groups have cosponsored the California bill, AB 888. It would ban toxic plastic microbeads in California and pave the way for the widespread use of degradable alternatives like apricot pits, sea salt and ground almonds.

The bill faces major opposition as it heads to the California state Senate from beauty care giant Johnson & Johnson, who called the bill too restrictive in the New York Times. Thanks to massive public pressure from 5 Gyres, Johnson & Johnson already pledged to remove plastic microbeads from its products. So why would they oppose a law that simply makes them keep their promise?

Our California legislators have heard from Johnson & Johnsons lobbyistsNow they need to hear from you.

Click here to send a letter to your California state Senator today to choose the ocean over lobbyists and pass AB 888 for plastic-free waters.
A St. Louis jury has awarded $70 million in damages to a California woman who claims she developed

ovarian cancer after using Johnson & Johnsons trademark baby powder for decades. The jury also held talc supplier and co-defendant Imerys liable for damages as well.

Baby powder is one of the most commonly-used household products in America. Flickr

Thursdays verdict is the third consecutive loss for the company

over repeated claims that extended use of talcum powder can cause this relatively rare but lethal form of cancer. Two previous St. Louis juries awarded verdicts to plaintiffs Jacqueline Fox and Gloria Ristesund of $72 million and $55 million after concluding that talc exposure causes ovarian cancer.

The latest case involves Deborah Giannecchini of Modesto, California, who was 59 when she was diagnosed with Stage IV ovarian cancer four years ago, according to Montgomery, Alabama-based law firm Beasley Allen.

Giannecchini had used Johnson & Johnsons Baby Powder for feminine hygiene for more than 40 years. She has gone through multiple surgeries, chemotherapy regimens and even had her spleen, colon, uterus and ovaries removed. Her lawyers said that she has an 80 percent chance of dying in the next two years, according to Bloomberg. The lawsuit accused the company of negligent conduct in making and marketing its baby powder.

Yet another jury has heard the evidence outlining a link between Johnson & Johnsons talcum powder products and ovarian cancer, and has decided that there is a clear connection, Beasley Allen lawyer Ted Meadows, who helped lead the litigation, said in a statement.

When is enough going to be enough? Despite repeated verdicts that hold the company accountable, Johnson & Johnson has refused to remove its talcum powder products from shelves, has refused to warn consumers about the risk, and continues to deny its responsibility. Its time for this company to come clean and put consumer health ahead of profits.

Johnson & Johnson to Pay $72 Million in Lawsuit Linking Talcum Powder to Ovarian Cancer https://t.co/PFpyo2rSrm @AmericanCancer @SU2C  EcoWatch (@EcoWatch) February 26, 2016

The jurors came up with their verdict after three hours of deliberation. Juror Billie Ray, 76, of St. Louis, told Bloomberg after the trial that Johnson & Johnson should have provided a warning label on the product to let consumers decide whether to use the product.

It seemed like Johnson & Johnson didnt pay attention, she said. It seemed like they didnt care.

Giannecchini was also pleased with the outcome. Ive waited for a long time for this, she told Bloomberg. Ive wanted this so badly.

About 2,000 women have filed suits against Johnson & Johnson over talcum powders link to ovarian cancer.

Beasley Allen stated in its press release that the disease strikes about one in 70 women, though studies show that women who use talc-containing products on their genitals as a daily hygiene habit have a 30 to 60 percent increased risk of developing ovarian cancer.

An expert at trial testified that in the last 34 years, since the time of the first epidemiological study in 1982, approximately 127,500 women have died as a result of ovarian cancer that could be attributed to talcum powder use on the genitals, and an estimated 1,500 women will die within the next year as a result of talc use, the firm added.

However, the American Cancer Society states that many scientific findings have been mixed, with some studies reporting a slightly increased risk and some reporting no increase.

Johnson & Johnson maintains that their flagship product is perfectly safe and all three cases are being appealed.

Spokeswoman Carol Goodrich released the following statement:

We deeply sympathize with the women and families impacted by ovarian cancer. We will appeal todays verdict because we are guided by the science, which supports the safety of Johnsons Baby Powder. In fact, two cases pending in New Jersey were dismissed in September 2016 by a state court judge who ruled that plaintiffs scientific experts could not adequately support their theories that talcum powder causes ovarian cancer, a decision that highlights the lack of credible scientific evidence behind plaintiffs allegations.

Imerys spokesman Dan Rene told Bloomberg that the company is disappointed with the verdict. The company had been cleared in the two previous St. Louis trials.

This verdict serves to undermine efforts by the scientific community to determine the true causes of ovarian cancer, Rene added. The theories relied upon by plaintiffs experts lacked scientific foundation.
Its no secrethere in the U.S., theres an election coming up. Its soon. Its a big decision for American voters. And its a big deal.

Its also not the only decision with global consequences this fall. Because at the same time the U.S. campaign season was getting into the business end of things, more and more leaders all around the world were deciding to stand up to climate change and sign on to the historic Paris Agreement. In fact, 86 parties (representing over 61 percent of global emissions) have already joined this landmark agreementwhich will now go into effect on Nov. 4, four days before the U.S. votes. Interesting timing, dont you think?

Coincidence or not, the timing of the two events highlights whats at stake for our planet in these decisions and whyweve learned anything after months and months of way too many ads, speeches and debates, its that politicians go where the voters tell them. So lets make the climate issue their issue, the one they cant afford to ignore. And not just this year, but in every year that follows.



Why now? Because with the Paris Agreement becoming official, we finally have the framework to fight climate change together as one planet in a way we never have before. And with all the incredible progress were seeing in

renewables and other areas of solutions, we finally have the tools and technology to make a global shift from fossil fuels to clean energy, affordably and effectively. Want proof? Here are seven reasons were hopeful for the future, because the solutions are out there:

1. Renewables are growing and getting cheaper

Due to declining costs and improvements in renewable technologies, solar and wind projects are being built in more places around the globe more cheaply than any time in history. On top of that, if the

price of photovoltaic cells continues to drop as rapidly as it has over the past 10 years, solar power could be as cheap as coal almost everywhere by as early as 2017!

According to some studies, almost 100 percent of the worlds energy needs could be met with renewable sources by mid-centuryas long as the right supportive public policies are put in place to help implement them. Thats where our elected leaders come in

and where you come in too.

2. Cost of rooftop solar is competitive

In many places across the U.S., not only is solar power becoming more affordable than ever before, its actually becoming cost competitive with most utility rates for energy from fossil fuel. When solar power costs the same (or less!) as purchasing power from the grid, its called solar grid parity, and its an important milestone in demonstrating the cost-effectiveness of harnessing the power of the sun. The U.S. is well on the way to achieving the SunShot Initiatives 2020 goal of solar grid paritywith several major regions following suit.



3. Remarkable progress in energy storage

How we create energy with renewables is important. How we

store this energyso we can use it when neededis just as critical. Thats because the sun doesnt shine 24 hours a day every day, nor is it always windy. The good news is this: were seeing incredible progress in energy storage. For example, a bill for Californias energy storage mandate passed unanimously, instructing the states investor-owned utilities to greatly expand electricity storage capacity. And since then, the state has expanded the mandate to allow even more energy storage. Similar policies in Japan and Germany are spurring similar growth in energy storage overseas.

4. The electric grid is evolving

Just like energy storage is important for renewable energy to thrive, a smarter and more flexible electric grid is critical too. Smart grids improve energy efficiency, save money, and can improve reliabilityall great reasons to move away from fossil fuels towards cleaner sources of energy. And since the grid is evolving and more renewables are being introduced, there is huge potential to revolutionize the energy marketfor the benefit of the environment and economy.

5. The electric vehicle market is booming

Sure, the news that Tesla was releasing its cheapest electric car yet threatened to break one corner of the internet, but thats not the only sign the electric vehicle industry and market are booming. Just look at China: the government has expanded incentives for electric vehicles, waiving or even cutting sales taxes. And plug-in cars are even changing the face of auto racing! Just last year, Miami hosted a Formula E race, where all the race cars were electric. How cool is that?

6. Transportation is more efficient and public transit is growing

[facebook https://www.facebook.com/climatereality/videos/953793291353982/ expand=1]

A

recent survey by Consumer Reports found that the overwhelming majority of Americans (84 percent, in fact) believe automakers should keep making cars and trucks more and more fuel efficient. And automakers are listeningand not just in the US. At the same time use of public and mass transportation is growing rapidly. Technical improvements for new vehicles could avoid about 1.4 gigatons of CO2 annually by 2030, several countries are implementing eco-driving programs, and emissions mandates on cars in the US and EU are saving drivers at the pump in a big way. Meanwhile, huge investments in public transportation in countries like India and Colombia are helping contribute to energy conservation, land preservation, reduced air pollution, and so much more.

7. Energy efficiency is improving and saving you money

The more efficient you are at a task, youre wasting less time to complete it, right? It works the same way with energy: the more efficient energy is, the less youll waste. Listen to this: a study across certain countries showed in just five years, energy efficiency measures avoided the consumption of 570 million tons of dirty energy. In other words, without these measures, energy use across these countries would have actually increased by 5 percent.
(Photo: Osservatore Romanot)Pope Francis received a refugee's teapot as an invitation to work together for the suffering neighbor when he met a group from the Lutheran World Federation in 2013.

INTERVIEW WITH POPE FRANCIS

On the Occasion of His Apostolic Trip in Sweden

Ulf Jonsson S.J.

 La Civilta Cattolica

WORKING TRANSLATION PROVIDEd BY "LA CIVILTA CATTOLICA"

During a meeting of the editors of the European cultural journals of the Society of Jesus, in mid-June, I expressed to Fr. Antonio Spadaro, editor of La Civilta Cattolica, a desire that I had in my heart at the time: to interview Pope Francis on the eve of his Apostolic Trip to Sweden, October 31, 2016, to participate in the ecumenical commemoration of the 500 years of the Lutheran Reformation. I thought that an interview was the better way to prepare the country for the message that the Pope would address to the people during his visit. As director of the Swedish cultural journal of the Jesuits, Signum, I thought this goal rightfully dovetailed with our mission.

Ecumenismas dialogue between religions, and also with non-believersis of

great concern to the Pope. He has expressed it in many ways. But above all, he himself is a man of reconciliation. Francis is deeply convinced that men and women must overcome barriers and fences, of any kind. He believes in what he defines as the "culture of encounter". And this so that all can cooperate in the common good of humanity. I wanted this vision of Francis to touch minds and hearts before the Pope's arrival in Sweden. The interview would be the best means to reach such an objective. I said this to Fr. Spadaro, with whom I continued to reflect until August, when together we arrived at the conclusion that it would be truly opportune to present this request to the Pope in a way that he could decide whether or not to fulfill it. The Pope took time to reflect on his opportunity. At the end, the answer was positive and he gave us an appointment at Santa Marta, Saturday, September 24, 2016, in the late afternoon.

It was a really beautiful day, both because of the temperature and the brightness

of the sky. Going through the Roman traffic in a car with Fr. Spadaro, I felt anxious, but content. We arrived 15 minutes before the expected time. We expected to wait, and instead we were immediately invited to go up to the floor where the Pope has his room. When the elevator opened, I saw a Swiss Guard who greeted us courteously. I heard the Pope's voice talking cordially with other people in Spanish, but I did not see him. At a certain point, he appeared with two people, conversing amiably. He greeted me and Fr. Spadaro with a smile, indicating to us to go into his room. He would come in a moment.

I was struck by the simplicity and warm familiarity in his welcome. We were told

at the reception desk that the Pope had had a non-stop day and I, therefore, thought he would be tired. Instead, I was very surprised to see him so full of energy and relaxed.

The Pope came into his room and invited us to sit where we preferred. I sat in an easy chair and so did Fr. Spadaro, seated facing me. The Pope sat on the sofa in between

the two chairs. I wanted to introduce myself in my Italian, which is limited but sufficient to understand and dialogue with him. After some banter with the Pope, we turned the recorders on and started the conversation. Fr. Spadaro had translated some questions from English that I would like to ask the Pope and that he then had prepared, but then the conversation between the three of us flowed naturally, in a friendly atmosphere and without artificial distances. Above all, it was forthright and direct, straightforward and without that atmosphere typical of encounters with great leaders or dignitaries. I no longer have any doubt of the fact that Pope Francis loves conversation, communicating with others. Occasionally he took time to reflect before answering, and his answers always conveyed a sense of serious involvement, but not ponderous or sad. On the contrary, during our visit several times he gave us signs of his humor.

Holy Father, on October 31st you will visit Lund and Malmo to participate in the ecumenical Commemoration of the 500 years of the Reformation, organized by the Lutheran World Federation and the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity. What are your hopes and expectations for this historic event?

I can think of only one word to say: to come close. My hope and expectation is that of coming closer to my brothers and sisters. Closeness does all of us good. Distance, on the other hand, makes us bitter. When we are distant, we close within ourselves and we become individual entities, incapable of encountering each other. We are held back by fears. We need to learn to transcend ourselves to encounter others. If we do not do this, we Christians, too, become sick because of our divisions. My expectation is that of being able to take a step of closeness, of being closer to my brothers and sisters in Sweden.

In Argentina, the Lutherans make up a rather restricted community. Have you had the opportunity to make direct contact with them in the past?

Yes, some. I remember the first time that I went into a Lutheran church. It was in their main church in Argentina, in the Calle (Spanish: "street") Esmeralda in Buenos Aires. I was 17 years old. I well remember that day. My work companion, Axel Bachmann, got married. He was the uncle of the Lutheran theologian Mercedes Garcia Bachmann. And, also, Mercedes' mother, Ingrid, worked in the laboratory where I worked. That was the first time I attended a Lutheran celebration. The second time was a stronger experience. We Jesuits have the Faculty of Theology at San Miguel, where I taught. Nearby, less than 10 kilometers away, there was the Lutheran Faculty of Theology. The rector was a Hungarian, Lesko Bela, a truly good man. I had very cordial relations with him. I was a professor and had the chair of Spiritual Theology. I invited a professor of Spiritual Theology of that Faculty, a Swede, Anders Ruuth, to hold lectures on spirituality together with me. I remember that was a truly difficult time for my soul. But I had a lot of trust in him and opened my heart to him. He helped me a lot in that moment. Then he was sent to Brazilhe also knew Portuguese welland then he returned to Sweden. There he published his qualification thesis on the "Universal Church of the Kingdom of God", which began in Brazil at the end of the 70's. It was a critical thesis. He had written in Swedish, but it had a chapter in English. He sent it to me and I read that chapter in English: it was a gem. Then time went by... In the meantime, I

became an auxiliary bishop of Buenos Aires. One day, the then-Archbishop Primate of Uppsala came to visit me in the bishop's residence. Cardinal Quarracino was not there. He invited me to their liturgy in the calle Azopardo, in the Iglesia Nordica of Buenos Aires, formerly called the "Swedish Church". I spoke to him about Anders Ruuth, who had returned again to Argentina to celebrate a wedding. We met on that occasion but it was the last time: one of his sons, the musicianthe other one was a doctorcalled me one day to say that his father was dead.

Another chapter of my relations with the Lutherans concerns the Church of

Denmark. I had a good relationship with the pastor at the time, Albert Andersen, who is now in the United States. He invited me twice to give a sermon. The first was in a liturgical context. On that occasion, it was very delicate. To avoid creating embarrassment about participation in Communion, the liturgy was not celebrated, but a Baptism. Later he invited me to hold a conference for their youth. I remember that I had a very strong discussion with him long distance when he was already in the United States. The pastor had chided me a lot because of what I had said about a law concerning religious issues in Argentina. But I must say that he chided me honestly and sincerely, as a true friend. When he returned to Buenos Aires I went to apologize because, in fact, the way I had expressed myself had been a bit offensive. Then I had a great closeness with Pastor David Calvo, an Argentinian, of the Iglesia Evangelica Luterana Unida. He also was a good man.

I also remember that for the "Day of the Bible", which is celebrated in Buenos Aires at the end of September, I returned to the first church which I had visited as a young man, in calle Esmeralda. And there I encountered Mercedes Garcia Bachmann. We held a conversation. That was the last institutional encounter I had with Lutherans while I was archbishop of Buenos Aires. Since then I have continued to have relationships with individual Lutherans on a personal level. But the man who did so much good in my life was Anders Ruuth. I think of him with so much affection and gratitude. When the Archbishop Primate of the Church of Sweden came here to see me we made a reference to that friendship between the two of us. I remember well when Archbishop Antje Jackelen came here to the Vatican in May 2015 on an official visit. She gave a very nice speech. I met her later also on the occasion of the canonization of Elizabeth Hesselblad. Then I was also able to greet her husband. They are truly pleasant people. Then as pope, I went to preach in the Lutheran Church of Rome. I was very impressed with the questions that they asked then: that of the child and that of the woman on intercommunion. Beautiful and profound questions. And the pastor of that church is really good!

In ecumenical dialogue, the different communities should be mutually enriched with the best of their traditions. What could the Catholic Church learn from the Lutheran tradition?

Two words come to my mind: "reform" and "Scripture". I will try to explain. The first is the word "reform". At the beginning, Luther's was a gesture of reform in a difficult time for the Church. Luther wanted to remedy a complex situation. Then this gesturealso because of the political situations, we think also of the cuius regio eius religio (whose realm, his religion) became a "state" of separation, and not a process of reform of the whole Church, which is fundamental, because the Church is semper

reformanda (always reforming). The second word is "Scripture", the Word of God. Luther took a great step by putting the Word of God into the hands of the people. Reform and Scripture are two things that we can deepen by looking at the Lutheran tradition. The General Congregations before the Conclave comes to mind and how the request for a reform was alive in our discussions.

Only once before has a pope visited Sweden and that was John Paul II in in 1989. That was a time of ecumenical enthusiasm and of a profound desire for unity between Catholics and Lutherans. Since then the ecumenical movement seems to have lost vigor and new obstacles have arisen. How should these obstacles be handled? What are, in your opinion, the best means to promote unity among Christians?

Continuing to dialogue and to study the issues clearly belongs to the theologians. On this there is no doubt. Theological dialogue must continue, because it is a path to follow. I think about the results that were achieved on this path with the great ecumenical document on justification. It was a great step forward. Certainly, after this step I imagine it will not be easy to go forward because of the different ways of understanding some theological questions. I have asked Patriarch Bartholomew if what was told about Patriarch Athenagoras was true, what he said to Paul VI: "Let the two of us go ahead and we will put the theologians on an island to discuss among themselves". He told me that it was a true remark. But, yes, theological dialogue must continue, even if it will not be easy.

Personally, I believe that enthusiasm must shift towards common prayer and the works of mercy -- work done together to help the sick, the poor, and the imprisoned. To do something together is a high and effective form of dialogue. I also think about education. It is important to work together and not in a sectarian way. There is a policy we should have clear in every case: to proselytize in the ecclesial field is a sin. Benedict XVI told us that the Church does not grow by proselytism, but by attraction. Proselytism is a sinful attitude. It would be like transforming the Church into an organization. Speaking, praying, working together: this is the path that we must take. Look, in ecumenism the one who never makes a mistake is the enemy, the devil. When Christians are persecuted and murdered, they are chosen because they are Christians, not because they are Lutherans, Calvinists, Anglicans, Catholics or Orthodox. An ecumenism of blood exists.

I remember an episode that I experienced with the parish priest from the parish of Sankt Joseph at Wandsbek, Hamburg. He brought forward the cause of the martyrs guillotined by Hitler because they taught the catechism. They were guillotined one after the other. After the first two, who were Catholics, a Lutheran pastor condemned for the same reason was murdered. The blood of the three was mixed. The parish priest told me that it was impossible for him to continue the cause of the two Catholics without including the Lutheran. Their blood was mixed! But I also recalled Pope Paul VI's homily in Uganda in 1964, that mentioned unity, Catholic and Anglican martyrs together. I had this thought when I, too, visited Uganda. This also happens in our day: the Orthodox, the Coptic martyrs murdered in Libya... It is ecumenism of blood. So: praying together, working together and understanding ecumenism of blood.

One of the major causes of restlessness in our time is the spread of terrorism clad in religious terms. The encounter at Assisi placed the accent on interreligious dialogue. How did you experience it?

All the religions were there who had contact with Sant'Egidio. I encountered those who Sant'Egidio contacted. But there were so many, and the encounter was very respectful and without syncretism. All of us talked of peace and we asked for peace. We together said strong words for peace, what the religions truly want. You cannot make war in the name of religion, in the name of God. It is blasphemy, it is satanic. Today I received about 400 people who were at Nice, and I greeted the victims, the wounded, people who have lost wives or husbands or children. That madman who committed that massacre did so believing he did it in God's name. Poor man, he was deranged! Charitably we can say that he was a deranged man who sought to use a justification in the name of God. This is why the encounter at Assisi is very important.

But you have recently talked about another form of terrorism, that of gossip. In what sense and how do you overcome it?

Yes, there is an internal and underground terrorism that is bad habit to root out. I describe the bad habit of murmurings and gossip as a form of terrorism. It is a form of deep violence that we all have available in our soul and it requires a profound conversion. The problem with this terrorism is that we can all implement it. Every person is capable of becoming a terrorist simply by using the tongue. I don't speak of the quarrels that are done openly, like wars. I speak about a sneaky terrorism that you do by throwing words like "bombs" and that do a lot of evil. The root of this terrorism is original sin and it is a form of crime. It is a way to gain space for yourself by destroying the other. A deep conversion of the heart is necessary, then, to overcome this temptation, and we need to examine ourselves a lot on this point. The sword kills so many people, but the tongue kills more, the Apostle James says in the third chapter of his Letter. The tongue is a small member, but it can develop a fire of evil and burn all our life. The tongue can be filled with deadly poison. This terrorism is difficult to subdue.

Religions can be a blessing, but also a curse. The media often report news of conflicts between religious groups in the world. Some state that the world would be more peaceful if there were no religions. How do you respond to this criticism?

Idolatries that are at the base of a religion, not the religion itself! There are idolatries connected to religion: the idolatry of money, of enmities, of space greater than time, the greed of the territoriality of space. There is an idolatry of the conquest of space, of dominion, that attacks religions like a malignant virus. And idolatry is a false religion, it is wrong religiosity. I call religion "an immanent transcendence", namely a contradiction. But the true religions are the development of the capacity that humanity has to transcend itself towards the absolute. The religious phenomenon is transcendent and it has to do with truth, beauty, goodness and unity. If there isn't this openness, there is no transcendence, there is no true religion, there is idolatry. The opening to

transcendence then absolutely cannot be a cause of terrorism, because this opening is always united to the search for truth, beauty, goodness and unity.

You have spoken often in very clear terms of the terrible situations of the Christians of the Middle East. Is there still hope for a more peaceful and human development for the Christians in that area?

I believe that the Lord does not leave his people on their own. He will not abandon them. When we read of the hard trials of the people of Israel in the Bible or remember the trials of the martyrs, we see how the Lord always comes to the aid of his people. We recall in the Old Testament the murder of the seven brothers with their mother in the Book of Maccabees. Or the martyrdom of Eleazar. Certainly martyrdom is one of the forms of Christian life. We recall St Polycarp and the letter to the Church of Smyrna that gives us the story of the circumstances of his arrest and death. Yes, in this moment the Middle East is a land of martyrs. We can without doubt speak of a Syrian martyr and martyrdom. I want to cite a personal memory that remains in my heart. At Lesbos, I met a father with two children. He told me that he was very in love with his wife. He is Muslim and she was Christian. When the terrorists came, they wanted her to take of her cross, but she did not want to do it and they slit her throat in front of her husband and children. He continued to say: "I love her so much, I love her so much". Yes, she is a martyr. But the Christian knows that there is hope. The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Christians. We have always known it.

You are the first non-European pope for more than 1,200 years at this point, and have often highlighted the life of the Church considered "peripheral" in the world. Where, according to you, will the Catholic Church have its more lively communities in the next 20 years? And in what way will the European Church be able to contribute to the Catholicism of the future?

This is a question tied to space, to geography. I have an allergy to talking about spaces, but I always say that you see things better from the peripheries than you do the center. The liveliness of ecclesial communities does not depend on space, on geography, but on spirit. It is true that the young Churches have a fresher spirit and, on the other hand, there are aging Churches, Churches that are a bit asleep, who seem to be only interested in preserving their space. In these cases, I don't say that the spirit is missing. It is there, yes, but it is enclosed in a structure, in a rigid way, fearful of losing space. In the Churches of some countries, you see precisely that this freshness is missing. In this sense, the freshness of the peripheries gives more space to spirit. We need to avoid the effects of a bad aging of Churches. It does us good to reread the third chapter of Joel, there where he says that the elderly shall dream dreams and the young will see visions. In the dreams of the elderly, there is the possibility that our young people have new visions, have a future again. Instead, the Churches at times are closed in programs, in programming. I admit it. I know they are needed, but I have a hard time putting hope into an organizational flowchart. The spirit is ready to push us, to go forward. And the spirit is in the ability to dream and to ability to prophesy. This for me is the challenge for all the Churches. And the union between the elderly and the young is for me the challenge

of the moment for the Church, the challenge to its capacity for freshness. This is why at Krakow during World Youth Day, I recommended to the young people to speak with their grandparents. The young Church rejuvenates more when the young people talk with the elderly and when the elderly know to dream great things, because this ensures they prophesy. If the young don't prophesy, the Church lacks air.

Your visit in Sweden will touch one of the most secularized counties of the world. A good part of its population does not believe in God, and religion plays a fairly modest role in public life and society. According to you, what does a person lose who doesn't believe in God?

It is not losing something, but is about not adequately developing a capacity for transcendence. The path of transcendence gives place to God, and in this the little steps are even important, even that of being an atheist to being an agnostic. The problem for me is when one is closed and one considers their life perfect in itself, then one closes in on oneself without the need for a radical transcendence. But to open others to transcendence there's no need to use so many words and discourses. Whoever lives transcendence is visible. He or she is a living witness. In the lunch that I had at Krakow with some young people, one of them asked me: "What must I say to my friend who does not believe in God? How do I convert him?". I answered him: "The last thing that you must do is to say something. Take action! Live! Then, seeing your life, your witnessing, the other one will perhaps ask you why you live thus". I am convinced those who don't believe or don't seek God, maybe haven't felt the restlessness that comes from seeing a witness. And this is very tied to affluence. Restlessness is rarely found in affluence. This is why I believe that against atheism, that against closure to transcendence, prayer and witnessing are truly worthwhile.

Catholics in Sweden are a small minority, and for the most part composed of immigrants of various nations of the world. You will encounter some of them celebrating Mass at Malmo on November 1st. How do you see the roll of Catholics in a culture like that of Sweden?

I see a healthy coexistence where each one can live their faith and express their witnessing living an open and ecumenical spirit. You cannot be Catholic and sectarian. We must strive to be together with others. "Catholic" and "sectarian" are two words in contradiction. This is why at the beginning I wasn't planning to celebrate a Mass for the Catholics on this trip. I wanted to insist on an ecumenical witness. Then I reflected well on my role as pastor of a flock of Catholics who will also come from other countries, like Norway and Denmark. So, responding to the fervent request of the Catholic community, I decided to celebrate a Mass, lengthening the trip by a day. In fact, I didn't want the Mass celebrated on the same day and in the same place as the ecumenical encounter to avoid confusing plans. The ecumenical encounter is preserved in its profound significance according to a spirit of unity, that is my desire. This has created organizational issues, I know, because I will be in Sweden for All Saints Day, which is important here in Rome. But in order to avoid misunderstanding, I wanted it to be so.

You are a Jesuit. Since 1879, the Jesuits have carried out their activities in Sweden with parishes, the Spiritual Exercises, the journal "Signum", and in the last 15 years, the Graduate Institute "Newman". What commitments and what values should characterize the apostolate of the Jesuits today in this country?

I believe that the first task of the Jesuits in Sweden is that of favoring dialogue in every way with those who live in the secularized society and with believers: talking, sharing, understanding, standing alongside. Then clearly favoring ecumenical dialogue is necessary. The model for Swedish Jesuits must be St Peter Faber who was always in journey and who was guided by a good, open spirit. The Jesuits don't have a quiet structure. We must have restless hearts and have structure, but restless.

Who is Jesus for Jorge Mario Bergoglio?

Jesus for me is He who has looked at me with mercy and has saved me. My relationship with Him has always had this principle and foundation. Jesus has given meaning to my life here on earth and hope for the future life. He looked at me with mercy, he took me, he put me on the street.... And he has given me an important grace: the grace of shame. My spiritual life is all written in Chapter 16 of Ezekiel. Especially in the last verses, when the Lord reveals that he will establish his covenant with Israel saying to them: " I will re-establish my covenant with you, that you may know that I am the Lord, that you may remember and be ashamed, and never again open your mouth because of your disgrace, when I pardon you for all you have done". The shame is positive. It makes you act, but it makes you understand what your place is, preventing any pride and vainglory.

A final word, Holy Father, on this trip in Sweden....

What comes spontaneously for me to add now is simply: go, walk together! Don't remain closed in rigid perspectives, because in these there is no possibility of reform.

***

The Pope, Fr. Spadaro and I have spent about an hour and a half together in conversation. At the end, Francis accompanied us to the elevator. He recommended we pray for him. The doors closed while he waved to us and with a radiant smile that I will never forget.

Outside it was already dark. St Peter's cupola, illuminated, reveals its splendor

while get into the car to return in time for supper in the community of Civilta Cattolica.
More than 270 teachers, principals and education thought leaders met at the Education Symposium 2016 in Sydney on Thursday to discuss the direction of education in NSW.Speakers at the event included renowned Finnish education expert, Pasi Sahlberg , NSW Education Minister, Adrian Piccoli , Department secretary, Mark Scott and executive director of the leadership development organisation Agile Schools, Simon Breakspear.One of the talking points of the event was the decline in teaching standards, which Piccoli blamed on examples such as the primary teacher who avoids technology lesson because her own knowledge is not up to speed and the Year 7 geography teacher who says its not his job to teach children to read.However, despite these challenges, Piccoli said he was confident that they could be overcome through reforms being undertaken by the Department, including a five-yearly accreditation of teachers requiring them to meet set standards.In an interview with The Educator, Piccoli acknowledged that principals were too often juggling multiple tasks at once, some of which were distracting them from their core responsibility of school improvement.Principals are very conscientious people. They want to do everything. They want to do the teaching and learning and performance management, but they also want to call the plumber and do the photocopying.This is an issue that occupies my mind a lot. Were trying to reduce the workloads of principals but also make sure their health and well-being is supported at the same time, he said.Piccoli said the Department was looking at giving principals permission to step back from the lower order work in order to devote more time and energy to teaching and learning.Wed like to give them the permission, as well as the resources, to ditch some of that stuff and focus on teaching and learning. After all, thats why theyre there, he said.He pointed to the Departments The Learning Management Business Reform (LMBR) overhaul as being one initiative to help relieve large workloads that many principals are struggling to cope with.Theres of course an initial increase in workload as you change a big system like that, but ultimately the idea is to make it a neater system so that it removes some of the duplication, he said.Piccoli also suggested that the day-to-day work of principals be looked at forensically to examine areas in which duplication can be identified and removed.Well be able to see what we can take away or stop duplicating. Many principals tell us that a lot of their time is taken up by things that are duplicated, he said.In terms of improving teaching outcomes, Piccoli said one of the biggest calls to action was the de-privatisation of teaching, which would be delivered through peer observation.We want to see a real difference in teacher performance, and school performance is where weve had teachers, instructional teachers and principals working together, he said.For example, its not just the one teacher in front of one class. Its one teacher in one class with someone observing them, and the next day those roles are reversed.Piccoli urged more sharing of practice between teachers which he said would allow for constructive feedback.Thats where I see the most positive change in terms of teaching practice, he said.
A coalition of groups focused on children and media launched a new campaign today to encourage state lawmakers to promote digital citizenship in schools.

The aim is to spur adoption of new legislation requiring the formation of state-level advisory committees charged with finding ways to help ensure students use classroom technology safely and ethically while becoming savvy consumers and creators of online media and information.

Our kids are now living in a digital world, and we need to teach them how to make smart choices so they can take advantage of all that tech has to offer while avoiding the dangers, said James P. Steyer, in prepared remarks he was expected to deliver Oct. 28 to the Twitter Digital Citizenship Summit in San Francisco. We believe that good online behavior mimics good offline behavior.

Steyer is the founder and CEO of the nonprofit Common Sense Media, whose advocacy wing, Common Sense Kids Action, will lead the new campaign. The group is joined by Media Literacy Now, the Digital Citizenship Institute, and the National Association for Media Literacy Education. Together, they hope to initially persuade 20 states to pass new digital-citizenship legislation in 2017.

Their model is Washington state, where Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, earlier this year signed into law a measure requiring the office of the state superintendent of public instruction to convene a statewide advisory committee that will devise best practices and recommendations for instruction in digital citizenship, internet safety, and media literacy.

Beginning next school year, Washington districts will be required to conduct annual reviews of their relevant policies.

From cyberbullying (bullying, threats, or intimidation that happens online or electronically) to sexting (the exchange of sexually explicit images or messages via digital-communications tools), the downsides of students online lives have in recent years garnered significant legislative attention. Often, the approach has been to respond to problems after they arise.

Now, though, experts say theres a growing focus on prevention and proactive efforts to promote healthy behaviors.

This isnt an issue that can be solved with a one-time fix, said Sunny Deye, a program principal at the National Conference of State Legislatures. It requires a mechanism for schools to address ongoing issues as they come up.

Teaching Respect, Responsibility

The need for internet-safety instruction for children has long been evident: Back in 2009, for example, the Pew Research Centers Internet and American Life Project found that 15 percent of teenagers who owned cellphones had received nude or nearly nude images of someone they know via a text message. More recently, Pew found that 22 percent of teenagers with relationship experience have had a partner insult them or be mean to them on the internet or via a cellphone. Overall, 4 in 10 of all internet users are the victims of some form of online harassment.

State Legislative Action Several states in recent years have enacted legislation around digital literacy and digital citizenship: Washington: A 2016 law provided for a process by which students, parents or guardians, teachers, librarians, other school employees, administrators, and community representatives may engage in an ongoing discussion on safe technology use, internet use, digital citizenship, and media literacy. A 2015 law modified the duties of teacher-librarians to include instruction in digital citizenship. Utah: A 2015 law required school community councils to provide for education and awareness on safe technology utilization and digital citizenship. The aim was to empower students to make smart media and online choices and help parents and guardians learn to discuss safe technology use with their children. Florida: A 2014 law requiring public schools to provide K-12 students with opportunities for learning computer science also permitted elementary and middle schools to establish digital classrooms to improve digital literacy and skills, such as coding. Maine: A 2011 law required the state commissioner of education to develop a program of technical assistance for instruction in digital literacy, including offering professional development and training for educators in the effective use of online learning resources. Source: National Conference of State Legislatures

But as the internet, social media, and digital devices have become increasingly ubiquitous, theyve also presented children with new opportunities to connect with others, engage in school, and take part in civic and public life.

To reflect that dual reality, digital citizenship should cover both media literacy and responsible online behavior, many experts and educators now believe. While there is no single, universally accepted definition, the term is generally used to cover strategies to help students learn internet safety and security; manage their digital identities and reputations; engage in appropriate and ethical digital conduct; build healthy relationships; prevent cyberbullying; critically evaluate online information sources; and learn to access, analyze, produce, evaluate, and interpret a wide range of media.

Digital citizenship can play a strong role in preventing negative experiences, said Monica Bulger, a senior researcher at Data & Society, a New York City-based research institute. Its also an opportunity to teach respect, responsibility, and how to engage in civil society.

Common Sense Media is among the groups that have produced free curricular materials for schools. A sample lesson for young children might focus on how to respond when someone is mean online. For high school students, lessons might cover the consequences of oversharing on the internet or an examination of how online identities might affect future educational or professional opportunities.

Despite the availability of such resources, though, districts have typically been scattershot in their approaches to such instruction in the classroom.

The federal Childrens Internet Protection Act requires schools receiving federal E-rate discounts to adopt an internet-safety policy, block or filter obscene online content, and provide for educating minors about appropriate online behavior, including interacting with other individuals on social-networking websites and in chat rooms, and cyberbullying awareness and response, according to the Federal Communications Commission.

In many states, however, the development and implementation of such policies has been hit or miss.

Thats historically been the case in Washington, said Dennis Small, the director of educational technology in the states office of public instruction. Some districts were being very deliberate and thoughtful, he said. Whats not successful is when students get a canned video from 10 years ago that talks about AOL chat rooms and being safe on MySpace.

Preventative Measures

Following the passage last spring of Washingtons new digital-citizenship law, Small and others are hoping to see a more consistent approach.

The legislation stipulated that the state education department convene and consult with an advisory committee consisting of educators, parents, and media-literacy experts, among others. The group was given the responsibility of revising the states ed-tech standards and internet-safety policy and gathering materials and ideas that can be shared with schools. Those schools will, in turn, be tasked with replicating the process on a local level, beginning next school year.

Ongoing concerns about inadequate state education funding mean the new digital-citizenship legislation didnt come with any new dollars. The committees recommendations are also likely to be modest, focused more on updating standards and sharing free resources than requesting that lawmakers allocate millions of dollars for new teacher professional-development efforts.

Marko Liias, a Democrat in the Washington state senate who sponsored the law, said it is just one step in a long-term strategy.

Right now, we dont have to reinvent the wheel. Its about finding the best things already out there, sharing them, and launching a conversation, Liias said. In the future, when we find some strategies that really work, lets put some money behind them to spread them more widely.

Its an approach that makes sense to Common Sense Kids Action and its partner organizations. Model legislation the groups intend to push is drawn heavily from the new Washington law, said JR Starrett, the groups director of advocacy.

Educators and school administrators are concerned with their students digital lives, Starrett said, but theyve become increasingly frustrated by the limitations of laws focused narrowly on hot-button issues such as sexting or cyberbullying.

They want to find preventative measures, he said. Thats why Washington caught our eye. It creates a floor, rather than a ceiling, and it allows districts to tailor policies around digital citizenship and media literacy to their own needs.
There are two candidates vying for the St. Francois County public administrator seat in the election on Nov. 8.

Gary Matheny

Republican Gary Matheny, 62, is married and has three children. He graduated from Southwest Missouri State University in 1976 with a Bachelors of Science degree in economics.

Matheny received a law degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1985 and practiced law in St. Louis until he moved to Farmington in 1993. Since that time he has been practicing law locally.

Matheny is an organizing member of the Simple Church of St. Francois County and is currently the chairman of the St. Francois County Republican Central Committee. Matheny said he has only held elected offices within the Republican Party.

Matheny said he is running because his friends at Life, Inc. in Farmington asked him to run because he is sympathetic to the issues that disabled people face.

Dani G. Bryan

Democrat Dani G. (Lindsey) Bryan, 58, is a lifelong resident of St. Francois County and has been married for 38 years to Bill Bryan, Sr. They have three sons, Eric (Sarah) Bryan, Bill Bryan, Jr. and Dan (Jackie) Bryan. She added they have six grandchildren and another one on the way. All of their children are residents of St. Francois County.

Bryan graduated from North County High School in 1976 and attended Mineral Area College.

In June of 1990, she was hired as a probate division clerk by the Honorable James H. Kelly and continued working for him through his retirement in 2010. After mandatory court consolidation she is presently an employee of Circuit Clerk Vicki Weible, but is serving as chief probate division clerk under the Honorable Shawn McCarver. Prior to being hired as a probate clerk, Bryan was a legal secretary for seven years for a local law firm.

Bryan holds membership in the Missouri Professional Association of Court Clerks and the St. Francois County Democrat Club.

She said her current endeavor, running for public administrator, is the first time she has ever pursued an elected position.

Bryan said she chose to run for St. Francois County Public Administrator because of her great ambition for the office. She feels she owns strong knowledge and experience that is essential to maintain the position. She said she had indicated to the current Public Administrator, Kenneth Rohrer, several years ago that she was very interested in becoming his successor should he decide to retire.

Bryan said in January of this year, following Rohrers decision not to seek re-election, she was sure that this was an opportunity she could not pass up and was very excited to face head-on. Bryan said she has much compassion and concern for the public administrators wards (a person for whom a guardian is appointed) and protectees (a person for whom a conservator is appointed).

She added she tries to put look at is as if her family members were having to make healthcare or appropriate living placement decisions, and making sure all funds received are properly being used on their behalf and not exploited when unable to do so personally.

Bryan said she would want someone who truly cares and is knowledgeable and experienced making those decisions, and who has their best interests at heart just as if they were a family member. She feels she is that person and said her motto is Because Everyone Needs Someone Who Cares.

Bryan said she is extremely familiar with the duties of the public administrator and the probate code, and has been processing and auditing the public administrators estates for 26 years. She feels she will be able to devote herself full-time to the Office of Public Administrator, and is very confident that she is qualified to do the job.

Bryan reiterated she received her experience working under Judge Kelly, who served 34 years on the bench as Probate Division Judge, from long-time Probate Division Clerk JoAnn McDowell, having served 36 years, and from Carla McMillian, serving 32 years. She said she learned from the best.
If Election tallies take time, don't assume it's something nefarious

An accurate count is paramount and cannot be rushed. County election workers need a reasonable amount of time to do their jobs and follow the law.
Profanity-laden texts written six months ago by St. Francois County Ambulance District Administrator David Tetrault to then-Rock Township Ambulance District Chief Margie Sammons has resulted in a three-day suspension without pay for the long-time administrator who also serves as a Region 4 board member of the American Ambulance Association (AAA).

According to minutes obtained by the Daily Journal, Tetrault was issued the immediate suspension by the St. Francois County Ambulance Districts board of directors who met in closed session Monday night at the district office in Farmington. Voting in favor of the suspension were board members Al Sullivan Jr. (District 1), Chuck Farr (District 2), Ron Kennon (District 3), Larry Cruse (District 4) and Susie Webb (District 6). Voting against Tetraults suspension was District 5 board member David Kater.

Tetrault  who has headed the countys ambulance district since March 2002  was disciplined for texts he wrote in late April to Sammons, whom he apparently became acquainted with in his position as an AAA Region 4 board member while she was serving as president of the Missouri Ambulance Association (MAA) in 2015.

A story appearing in the Jefferson County Leader reports that Sammons, who had worked for the district for 28 years, retired and three of the Rock Township Ambulance District resigned Sept. 30, just two days after district attorney Mark Bishop took possession of the Rock Township-owned cell phone and iPad used by Sammons.

Rock Township covers 108 square miles in Arnold, Kimmswick, Imperial, Barnhart and part of Fenton.

According to the Leader, following a Sunshine Law request, Attorney Bishop turned over copies of three months of text messages from the devices Sammons had used. Some of the messages referred to what appeared to be an effort to remove Dan Meyer from the Rock Township board after he became critical of Sammons over the ambulance districts state narcotics license being allowed to expire for the third time in early 2015.

After the narcotics license incident was first made public in April, Meyer expressed his displeasure with Sammons attempted cover up and unwillingness to take responsibility for the oversight. This apparently led to an attempt to have Meyer kicked off the board.

Texting Tetrault, Sammons discussed the narcotics license issue and also said she wanted the MAA attorney to deal with Meyer. Tetrault noted, however, that whomever filed a complaint against Meyer would have their name released publicly, something that apparently neither of them wanted to do. The texts also appear to show that Tetrault was using his leverage through his position with AAA to influence state legislators and even used AAA resources to do so.

Tetrault started in 1985 as a police dispatcher in the St. Louis area, but soon decided his real interest lay in emergency medicine. He worked in that field starting in 1987/88 after gaining the appropriate degrees. He worked his way up from EMT for Christian Health Services, now BJC, to be supervisor of what he described as the largest hospital-based ambulance service in Missouri and Illinois. He held that position for around seven years before relocating to the Farmington area.

Tetrault replaced Craig Walk, who held the position of ambulance district director for four years. Prior to being named administrator, Tetrault worked in Mineral Area Regional Medical Center's emergency room.
The man accused of attacking House Speaker Nancy Pelosis husband in their San Francisco home carried zip ties with him when he broke in. That word comes from a person briefed on the investigation who spoke on condition to anonymity to The Associated Press. It's the latest parallel to the U.S. Capitol riot of Jan. 6, 2021. Police say the suspect confronted 82-year-old Paul Pelosi early Friday and, according to AP reporting, demanded to know, Where is Nancy? Rioters who swarmed the Capitol trying to overturn Joe Bidens election victory over Donald Trump roamed the halls and shouted menacingly, demanding Wheres Nancy? Some in the siege were seen inside the Capitol carrying zip ties.
Minister issues fishing licence reminder



DEFA Minister Geoffrey Boot MHK

The Minister responsible for the Island's fisheries is warning anyone caught fishing without the necessary paperwork will be prosecuted.

It comes after a fisherman from Scotland was fined 12,000 and had a catch worth more than 4,500 seized for fishing for queen scallops in Manx waters without a licence.

Environment, Food and Agriculture Minister Geoffrey Boot insists the Department is committed to protecting the Island's fishing industry, which includes ensuring stocks are sustained through licensing.

He adds that his Department will continue to apprehend and prosecute anyone found to be violating the rules.

Full details of the licensing requirements for fishing in Manx waters can be found on the Government's website.
Country

Afghanistan Albania, People's Socialist Republic of Algeria, People's Democratic Republic of American Samoa Andorra, Principality of Angola, Republic of Anguilla Antarctica (the territory South of 60 deg S) Antigua and Barbuda Argentina, Argentine Republic Armenia Aruba Australia, Commonwealth of Austria, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Bahrain, Kingdom of Bangladesh, People's Republic of Barbados Belarus Belgium, Kingdom of Belize Benin, People's Republic of Bermuda Bhutan, Kingdom of Bolivia, Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana, Republic of Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) Brazil, Federative Republic of British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago) British Virgin Islands Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria, People's Republic of Burkina Faso Burundi, Republic of Cambodia, Kingdom of Cameroon, United Republic of Canada Cape Verde, Republic of Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad, Republic of Chile, Republic of China, People's Republic of Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia, Republic of Comoros, Union of the Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, People's Republic of Cook Islands Costa Rica, Republic of Cote D'Ivoire, Ivory Coast, Republic of the Cuba, Republic of Cyprus, Republic of Czech Republic Denmark, Kingdom of Djibouti, Republic of Dominica, Commonwealth of Dominican Republic Ecuador, Republic of Egypt, Arab Republic of El Salvador, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Faeroe Islands Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Fiji, Republic of the Fiji Islands Finland, Republic of France, French Republic French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon, Gabonese Republic Gambia, Republic of the Georgia Germany Ghana, Republic of Gibraltar Greece, Hellenic Republic Greenland Grenada Guadaloupe Guam Guatemala, Republic of Guinea, Revolutionary People's Rep'c of Guinea-Bissau, Republic of Guyana, Republic of Haiti, Republic of Heard and McDonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras, Republic of Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region of China Hrvatska (Croatia) Hungary, Hungarian People's Republic Iceland, Republic of India, Republic of Indonesia, Republic of Iran, Islamic Republic of Iraq, Republic of Ireland Israel, State of Italy, Italian Republic Jamaica Japan Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Kazakhstan, Republic of Kenya, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Kuwait, State of Kyrgyz Republic Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon, Lebanese Republic Lesotho, Kingdom of Liberia, Republic of Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein, Principality of Lithuania Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Macao, Special Administrative Region of China Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Madagascar, Republic of Malawi, Republic of Malaysia Maldives, Republic of Mali, Republic of Malta, Republic of Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania, Islamic Republic of Mauritius Mayotte Mexico, United Mexican States Micronesia, Federated States of Moldova, Republic of Monaco, Principality of Mongolia, Mongolian People's Republic Montserrat Morocco, Kingdom of Mozambique, People's Republic of Myanmar Namibia Nauru, Republic of Nepal, Kingdom of Netherlands Antilles Netherlands, Kingdom of the New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua, Republic of Niger, Republic of the Nigeria, Federal Republic of Niue, Republic of Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway, Kingdom of Oman, Sultanate of Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Palau Palestinian Territory, Occupied Panama, Republic of Papua New Guinea Paraguay, Republic of Peru, Republic of Philippines, Republic of the Pitcairn Island Poland, Polish People's Republic Portugal, Portuguese Republic Puerto Rico Qatar, State of Reunion Romania, Socialist Republic of Russian Federation Rwanda, Rwandese Republic Samoa, Independent State of San Marino, Republic of Sao Tome and 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 US Virgin Islands Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. 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
Flash has gone from being ridiculously expensive to largely affordable over the past five years. And a staggering drop in price has been paralleled by another spectacular occurrence. The capacity of Solid State Drives (SSDs) has gone through the roof.

Higher-capacity, lower-cost flash has resulted in 1 TB to 16 TB 2.5-inch SSDs, said Greg Schulz, an analyst for StorageIO Group. There are already some proof of concept technology demonstrations that should enable current densities to be able to double within the same footprint with reduced price over the next few years.

As a result, SSDs continue to eat into the market share of Hard Disk Drives (HDDs). Here are some of the top trends, tips and considerations related to high-capacity SSDs. This includes where the market is heading, when these huge SSDs are useful and when to avoid them, and more.

3D NAND

Lets review a few basics. NAND is a type of non-volatile storage where power is not needed to retain data. NAND flash is popular in MP3 players, cameras, USB drives and SSDs. 3D NAND is one of the big drivers of high capacity. It is a form of flash where memory cells are stacked vertically in order to achieve higher densities and reduce cost.

The advancements in 3D NAND have resulted in scaling and cost reductions that are outpacing Moores Law, said Danny Cobb, Corporate Fellow and Vice President of Technology Strategy, Dell EMC. Current generation flash chips are being used to create 2.5-inch SSDs that hold over 16TB of valuable, instantly retrievable business information.

As this technology has evolved, flash makers have been able to push the envelope on capacity, resulting in huge leaps in capacity over a short period.

High capacity SSDs are emerging with the transition to 3D NAND, delivering high capacity without sacrificing reliability or endurance, said Julie Herd, Director Storage Product Management at NetApp. Customers are investigating high-capacity SSDs in order to minimize their storage footprint in already crowded datacenters.

Doubling Up

How rapidly are SSDs likely to go in terms of capacity? Thats hard to say. But Ivan Iannaccone, Director of Product Management, HPE 3PAR, said that as SSD technology evolves with the introduction of new ways of packaging NAND flash such as using 3D NAND and vertical technologies, SSD expansion will continue at a predictable rate for some time to come.

We are seeing the overall capacities of solid state disks doubling about every 12 months, said Iannaccone.

Outgrowing HDDs

As well as doubling in capacity each year, SSDs are also outpacing the capacity increases of HDD of late. Samsung announced 16TB drives in April this year followed by a preview of 32TB drives in August 2016 (planned for release sometime next year). Compare this with HDD drives that are still around 10TB today and expected to grow to 20 TB by 2020, said Satinder Sharma, Senior Manager in Product Management, Tintri.

And while there is a big cost difference between the two options, the gap is narrowed by space savings technologies like deduplication, compression and cloning, said Sharma.

Data Management

As capacity rises, the chances of something going wrong rise, too. Thats why data management is so important. So flash OEMs and storage array makers are increasingly focusing on software features to make flash arrays more reliable.

There are new data management features being introduced for SSDs to optimize endurance and data management, including a new industry standard Multi-Stream Write introduced to the market with NetApp ONTAP 9 and Samsung SSDs, said Herd.

Saving Space

When does it make sense to introduce high-capacity SSDs? For those wanting to pack as much high-performance storage into as small a space as possible, high-capacity SSDs are obviously one answer. Another reason to implement them is lack of space.

If an organization is space constrained and needs a very dense rack unit (RU), then high capacity SSDs are the right choice, said Herd. This would include those who need to consolidate legacy performance HDD-based systems in order to shrink their footprint from 2-3 racks of HDD down to 2-3 shelves of SSD.

Smaller Datasets

But that might not be the right approach for every user. Herd added that those focused on the best performance with smaller datasets would be better suited with smaller capacity SSDs.

Maximum system performance can be achieved with only 1 or 2 shelves of SSDs (regardless of size) and many datasets (especially transactional datasets) are not large enough to fill a high capacity SSD, said Herd. The only concern would be that after the controller has reached its performance limit, then adding more SSDs will not increase the performance of the system any further. However, adding more SSDs will not negatively affect cost or performance of the system.

Think in Futures

It is vital, therefore, to understand what the key criteria are for purchase. Best density will drive the discussion to high-capacity SSD. Best performance per system (with smaller datasets) would keep a customer on a smaller capacity SSD.

Also, understanding the rate of growth of your data will help with planning initial and future purchases, said Herd.

Fewer SSDs or Larger SSDs?

The main gains of all-flash comes from latency reduction and this can be achieved with fewer high capacity SSDs just as it can with multiple small capacity SSDs. However, in the former case, you are going to be able to lower the cost per IOP due to greater drive density.

There is always a tradeoff when it comes to IOPs density, said Iannaccone. The only caution is around the overall amount of IOPs/throughput that a single SSD can produce. The fewer drives, the lesser the overall system performance until the controller bottleneck is hit.

SAS SSDs for Failover

There are various kinds of SSD such as SAS, SATA and PCIe. SATA and PCIe drives are generally designed for server-side deployments. Therefore, IT managers who want to build their own all-flash array for shared storage with capacity should opt for SAS SSDs.

SAS SSDs are the only drives available today with dual ports, said Walter Hinton, Director of Client and Enterprise Solutions Marketing, Western Digital. Dual port means that each drive may be mapped to two separate controllers for fail-over and multi-path IO.

Look Beyond SSDs

It is quite possible to implement high-capacity, high-performance SSDs and yet fail to realize the expected gains. This could be caused by a failure to understand your workloads and access time and throughput requirements.

In some cases, the bottleneck will be the network or CPU, not storage, said Hinton.

Controller Bottleneck

The controller, too, can be the bottleneck. Therefore, organizations need to be thoughtful about the relationship between their SSD capacity and their controllers. Back in the day, the compute power available in storage controllers to extract IO from HDDs was much higher than what a collection of drives could deliver. Getting more performance was all about using as many drives as possible.

Today, however, the performance of SSDs has outpaced what a storage controller can deliver. Each flash drive is capable of delivering >100,000 IOPs. Which means, for instance, that 24 of them can deliver >2.4M, but the storage array is limited to what controllers are capable of delivering.

Organizations need to ensure that they are not putting too much capacity behind a storage controller, said Sharma. They need to pick systems that can at some point scale-out instead of scaling up in order to ensure a good IOPs/TB ratio. Using a small number of high capacity drives or even too many smaller capacity drives behind the same controller may result in poor IOPs/TB, which is not good for consolidation.

Rule of Thumb

As a rule of thumb: If a storage controller can deliver 400,000 IOPs, you dont want to have more than 400-600 TB of logical capacity behind it, so as to maintain high IOPs/TB. 600 TB of logical space translates to around 150 TB of physical space at a modest 4x data reduction. That is only ~10x 15.36 TB drive. In this case, it may be better to go with 20 x 7.6 TB SSD to get the performance benefit of flash. One can go lower on IOPs/TB and store more data behind the same controllers if the goal is to store archive data rather than manage performance oriented workloads.

Organizations should pick a size of SSD that jives with the performance capabilities of their storage controllers, said Sharma.

Heavy Writes

There are many other areas to pay attention to when determining if high-capacity SSDs are right for you. If you have heavy write activity, a high-capacity SSD may not have the endurance required. You may need a tiered architecture with write-intensive caching on the front end and a persistent back-end data store (capacity SSD or capacity HDD). A good example of this approach is VMware Virtual SAN, suggested Hinton.

Dont Put All Your Eggs in One Flash Drive

One huge SSD drive might be great in terms of capacity and performance. But it also represents a single point of failure.

You want to have enough drives such that the failure of 1 doesnt impact application service levels. More drives can enable more performance, given the right array design, said Danny Cobb, Corporate Fellow for Technology Strategy at Dell EMC.
The European Parliament has awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom to Yazidi activists Nadia Murad and Lamiya Aji Bashar, victims of sexual slavery carried out by the Islamic State. Both women were imprisoned by ISIS in 2014 in their hometown of Sinjar, and they were subsequently sold and resold many times as sexual slaves. Nadia and Lamiya then managed to escape to Germany where they advocate on behalf of the ISIS victims of sexual violence.

I think that it is a very symbolic and significant decision to support these two survivors who came to Europe as refugees. We are now supporting them in their fight for, not only the dignity we have to grant to everybody, but also for their fight to give testimony as a witness to these atrocities, Parliament President Martin Schulz commented. However, he also emphasized that although the giving of prizes is meaningful, the EU must foremost fight those who perpetrate such hideous acts.

ALDE leader Guy Verhofstadt said that both Nadia and Lamiya are inspirational women who have shown incredible bravery and humanity in the face of despicable brutality. Spanish MEP Beatriz Becerra of ALDE added that They could have decided to be victims, but, on the contrary, they decided to use their personal suffering to help all women and girls that remain in the hands of terrorists, as well as fighting for justice for the victims of the Yazidi genocide.

This year, the other nominees for this prestigious prize were Turkish journalist Can Dundar and leader of the Crimean Tartars Mustafa Dzhemilev. Last year, the prize was awarded to Saudi blogger and dissident Raif Badawi, who was convicted of insulting Islam through electronic channels including apostasy and sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1000 lashes. The prize has been awarded since 1988 to exceptional individuals and organizations that fight for human rights around the world.
Written by ACM





*Strasbourg/Angelo Marcopolo/- EU Parliament's Votes Today revealed a Surprise: At least 1 out of 3 MEPs seem to already Support or Hesitate for an immediate and clear Full Stop Now of Turkey's controversial and UnPopular EU-bid, and this Includes some among the Best and most Experienced MEPs, spreading throughout All Political Groups nowadays, (See Facts Infra), after the recent abrupt Worsening of the Human Rights' situation in that Country, Neighbour of Syria, Iraq and Iran, particularly after this Summer's strange and Short-lived, alleged "Coup" Attempt, which was notoriously hit by many atrocious Lynchings of disarmed Young Conscripts by Brutal Mobsters, Followed by Unprecedented, Massive waves of Torture, Dismissals and/or Arrests of many Thousands of suspected Dissidents from various Political Horizons, not only Soldiers, but also MPs and Elected Mayors, Judges, Teachers and Other Civil Servants, Businessmen, Journalists, etc., in Addition to several Media Closed, etc., as it results on the occasion of this Noon's reactions by MEPs whose large Majority Adopted a Resolution Slaming Ankara's Authorities for Gross Violations of Freedom of Expression and/or of the Press in the case of the latter.



The Move Topicaly meets the Main Thrust of the very Successfull, crystal-Clear Win, with an Historic Record of Popular Participation, in the landmark 2007 Elections in France, by former President Nicolas Sarkozy, (currently elected Leader of the new Main Opposition Party "the Republicans", and a recently declared Candidate for the Crucial Forthcoming, April-May 2017 New Presidential Election, obviously Important for all the EU, especially at the Eve of a subsequent National Election in Germany, etc), which had been notoriously Based particularly on his Pre-Electoral promise to precisely Stop Turkey's controversial and unpopular EU bid. (It was Later transformed in a Compromise "Freezing" 5 core Negotiation Chapters, without which a Full Accesion to the EU is Impossible, and a promise to Start an EU-level Debate "on the Future of Europe", including that Question on Turkey, obtained after Heavy Pressure by former EU Commission's President Barroso - now a controversial Employee of USA-based Financial MultiNational private Compagny "Goldman Sachs"- at the Same Time that he had been wounded in his Private Life and fell so Ill that he even had to enter biefly in a Hospital, just Before making his 1st Official Appearance at EU Parliament in Strasbourg : Comp., f.ex. : ...).This had notoriously Helped the EU to Bypass (with a clear Agreement of the French People) the Institutional Blockade provoked earlier, on 2005, by a Failed Euro-Referendum on a Draft EU Constitution, which was Replaced, later-on, by a "Simplified" "Lisbon Treaty", (entered into Force on 2010), as Sarkozy had foreseen and said. Recently, (on 2016), moreover, the French Top Political Leader clearly ReNewed his Original Aim, this time for an EU-Level Collective and Definitive Move.

Today, it's about 233 MEPs who either Voted Explicitly in order to "Put an End", immediately Now, to Turkey's controversial and UnPopular EU bid, (alias : "Negotiations on Accession of Turkey to the EU"), or, significantly, Abstained on that notoriously "Hot" Issue, or even chose (with various Pretexts, or even withOut) to Not Participate at all to such a Vote, against 518, out of 751 MEPs elected in EU Parliament since 2014. I.e. about 1 out of 3 MEPs, Despite a notorious Pressure in order to Impose Turkey upon the EU, f.ex. by the Out-Going US President Barack Hussein Obama (a "Socialist"/Liberal), Together with the traditional UK Foreign Office stand, (even if New UK Prime Minister, Theresa May, has been reported, personaly, as one among those Leaders who do Not Accept that), Added also to several (even if Not All) other, mainly Socialist or Leftist Governments in the EU, etc.



+ Moreover, to those 233 MEPs should be, Obviously, Added also Many Others, (f.ex., particularly among the Biggest, ChristianDemocrat/EPP Political Group), who Use (and had even been Elected by EU Citizens in order to do so, according to their explicit Pre-Electoral Promisses : F.ex. Most French, German, Dutch, Austrian, and other, Center-Right MEPs) to Oppose Turkey's controversial and UnPopular EU-bid in principle, but, may have, eventualy, prefered to Do it at anOther Moment of Time, and/or in a Different overall Context, on the Basis of anOther Draft Text in the foreseable Future, (f.ex. Officially Tabled by their own Political Group), etc., or, even more Simply, perhaps be Unaware of Today's Attempt to Vote on that Important Issue, (partly "Hidden" mainly in the 3rd Amendment to a Draft Resolution which initialy Focused only into Slaming Turkey for its Blunt Treatment of Journalists and Media, in particular), i.e., possibly keeping an overall Assessment on All Human Rights, Democracy and Rule of Law's recently Growing Massive Violations by Turkey for Later-on. Not to mention even those who might, eventualy, believe that, as long as, f.ex., at least 4 out of those 5 Chapters Previously "Freezes" by Sarkozy, Still remain Excluded out of anty EU - Turkey Talks, (1 having, however, recently Opened for Talks by the current, Outgoing French President Hollande, a Socialist), then, they should Not Fear any eventual Danger for EU's External Borders to eventualy Extend until Syria, Iraq and Iran, as things stand, (Rightfuly of Wrongly)...



In Addition, it's also a Fact that the Current Majority of MEPs is just a "Snapshot" or "Mirror" of a Political and Ideological Landscape in the EU, as it Was, in the Past, Several Years Ago, i.e., practicaly around the End of 2013, (since the Latest EU Parliament's Elections took place at the 1st Part of 2014, on May). I.e. at a Moment and in a Context when Neither Recent, 2016 Developments in Germany and France, etc., Nor a "BREXIT" Majority didn't yet exist among the British People, (whose Current Majority notoriously Voted for getting Out of the EU also Because Many Feared that Turkey might Enter inside, sooner or later nowadays, as even former Prime Minister Cameron's reaction, during those Pre-Vote Debates, to Suddenly Declare that "Turkey won't Enter into the EU, not even on the Year 3.000", clearly Revealed, in Addition to UKIP Leader, MEP Nigel Farage's, notorious and Loud "No to Turkey's Accession into the EU !", which allowed him to Spectacularly Multiply the Number of his own MEPs, since the 2009 EU Elections).

But, on the Contrary, at a Moment of the Past, when, shortly after a Socialist Presidency in France (back from May 2012 onwards), German Chancellor Angie Merkel, had been Obliged to strike a Controversial Political Compromise with the Socialists (most notoriously Favorable Turkey's EU-bid), Back on December 2013, (i.e. after a Post-MidNight Re-Calculation of the latest National Election Results, back on October 2013, had Deprived her from just 4 MPs more, that she Needed in order to be Able to Form an Autonomous Government with an Absolute Majority at the Bundestag, not even with about 40% of German People's Votes back on September that year, while also Throwing her Former Allies : the Liberals, Exceptionaly Out of the Parliament, Shortly After they had Angered US President Obama by their Refusal to Accept a Military Invasion of Syria. Comp. f.ex. : ...). Resulting into a Controversial "GroKo", which, after Raising Merkel's own Doubts since the Beginning of 2015, (See, f.ex.: ...), has Notoriously Started to be already Denied by a progressively Growing Number of German Voters, during almost all the Latest Regional Votes to several Federated "Landers", from nearby Baden-Wurtemberg, up to Saxony, and Pomerania, even in Berlin itself ..., (as also Sarkozy observed in his Recent Speech at Reichstett, near Strasbourg, where he Pleaded, on the Contrary, on favor of "a Frank Alternative" to the Left . Comp., f.ex.: ...).

The Difference is that, the Governing ChristianDemocrats CDU/CSU apparently have, Nowadays, several New Possibilities for anOther Coalition, f.ex., if not with a Restored "Green" Party, almost as it originaly was, may be with "AfD" at their "Right", as they might evolve, and/or Merkel's familiar former Allies : the Liberals, whom all Polls show that they would Find soon the Way Back to their Seats at the Bundestag, Resulting Next Year, on 2017, into an Entirely Differend Political Landscape, most Probably with Many More MEPs clearly Opposed to Turkey's controversial EU bid, (particularly in the Run-up to the forthcoming sEU Elections of 2019).



As for the Fact that Many, if not all, among those who, Exceptionaly, did Not Participate to this Vote Today, (i.e. 128 MEPs), might be Opposed to the controversial and UnPopular Turkey's EU bid, (Comp. Supra), one can, f.ex., cite at least the Concrete Example of Well-Known, Rightist MEPs Bruno Gollnisch and/or Jean-Marie Le Pen, (NI), who, indeed, did Not Take Part to that Vote Now. (While, f.ex., Gollnisch was Present here Yesterday, Wednesday, when he Voted, in EU Parliament, inter alia, also for an anOther Critical Amendment, which practicaly Threatened to Interrupt, under Certain Conditions, EU Funds to Turkey, etc). As well as UKIP's Leader Nigel Farage, "BREXIT"'s main insprirator, (another "Non Participant" Now), who has become Notoriously Opposed to Turkey's EU bid at least SInce the 2009 EU Elections, (Comp. Supra), etc.



But, perhaps, what's the Most Important Fact to Note in Today's above-mentioned Vote, is that, Astonishingly, those MEPs who actually Voted for an Immediate Stop to Turkey's EU-bid right Now, came from the Widest possible, Full Political Spectrum of EU Parliament, originating in All its Political Groups, Taken Together :



F.ex., Among Various Others, Not Only French Rightist MEP Schafhauser of Strasbourg, (already a Former Centrist !) from the "ENF" Group ; British James Carver (UKIP), as well as Italian MEP Isabella Adinolfi ("5 Stars" of Beppe Grillo : Most Popular Party in her Country) from the "EFDD" Group ; or the Atypical Rightist MEP from Poland, Janusz Korwin-Mikke ("Independents" : i.e. Together with Greece's Rightist "Golden Dawn" Party's Fountoulis, whose Son was Murdered by a "Leftist" Terrorist) ; but also Dutch Peter Van Dalen from the "Conservative/Reformist" Group of "ECR" where the British Governing Party plays an Important role ; and, Surprisingly, "ChristianDemocrat/EPP" mainstream MEP Lars Adaktusson from Sweden, (a vice-President of EU Parliament's Delegation on Afghanistan) ; as well as "Liberal" MEP Enrique Calvet Chambon from Spain (who Voted for an Identical alternative Resolution tabled by ENF) ; and even "Socialist" MEP Elena Gentile from the Italian Governing Party ; MEP Anja Hazenkamp, a Scientist and Plant/Animal protector, Member of the Bureau at the Group of the "Left", from Netherlands ; and Jan-Philip Albrecht, Digital Privacy Specialist, and vice-President of EU Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties/Justice/Home affairs, German MEP from the "Greens" ; (etc).



So that it's, Obviously, Not just an Initiative by Only 39 MEPs from French Rightist Marine Le Pen's "ENF" Group, (which had Tabled and Alternative Resolution with the Same Call, and in which Recently entered also a Transfuge from the ChristianDemocrat/EPP Group, Italian MEP Borghezio, who Tabled the quite More Succesful Amendment (which is under Discussion here) to another, Joint Resolution supported by all the Other Parties, but Also a clearly Wider Number of 105 MEPs from All Political Parties represented in EU Parliament, that Voted in Favor (or, at least, Abstained, for a small part of them), who, Added to those who, curiously, preferred Not to Take Part on that "Hot" Vote, Exceptionaly, Total some 233 MEPs Today, (See Details Supra). So that they canNot be Simply Ignored in any Democratic European Society, (considering even the above-mentioned Fact that they come from ALL Political Parties : Comp. Supra).



>>> Naturaly, however, the Most Surprizing development is that there are also Certain among the Most Important, Experienced and/or Influential, Top MEPs, from Various Parties, who Voiced Today their Support to that Move to "End" the Controversial and Unpopular Turkey's EU bid Now :



- F.ex., among others, also the President of EU Parliament's Foreign affairs Committee (competent also for EU Enlargement and Neighborhood), Experienced Long-Time MEP Elmar BROK, from the Governing ChristianDemocrat/EPP Party in Germany, ("Yes" on the above-mentioned Amendment), as well as the President of EPP's prestigious "PanEuropa" Think Tank/Working Group, also Experienced Long-Time MEP Paul RUBIG, another ChristianDemocrat from Austria ("Yes" on the above mentioned Alternative Resolution, with the Same Call), while Luxembourg's ChristianDemocrat/EPP, Experienced twice former EU Commissioner, Top MEP Viviane REDING Voted "Abstention" ; France's "Liberal" MEP, President of the "European Movement" there, and Experienced former Long-Time Journalist, Jean-Marie CAVADA, (who Voted "Abstention" on that "Hot" Amendment), as well as Mainstream French MEP, Candidate for the 2017 Presidential Election, Jean-Luc MELENCHON, Leader of the Country's "Left" (who Voted in Favor), ...side by side with the Leader of French Rightist "National Front" Party, and President of EU Parliament's "ENF" Group of MEPs, Marine LE PEN, (one of the Front-Runners for the 2017 crucial Presidential Election in the Country) ; Bureau Member of "Conservative/Reformist" Group, Long-Time MEP Helen THEOCHAROUS, (a former "ChristianDemocrat/EPP"), Founder and Leader of brand New "Solidarity" Party which Named the New President of the Parliament (former MEP SYLOURIS) of Cyprus, the Incoming Chair of the PanEuropean, 47 Member Countries Strong, CoE, (the Organization for Human Rights, Democracy and Rule of Law, on which many -including EU Commission's Chief, Jean-Claude Juncker- count also for Monitoring developments in Turkey), from the Same "ECR" Group as her Collegue, vice-President of EU Parliament's Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, Hans-Olaf HENKEL, leading "Conservative" MEP, a Computer (IBM) and Industry Economist/Manager, Honorary Doctorate and/or Professor at the Universities of Dresden and Mannheim, as well as France's "Legion d'Honeur" award, from Germany ; Mainstream Young "Socialist" MEP Andi CRISTEA, former Director at the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Justice in Romania, and currently President of EU Parliament's Committee on Moldova ; the vice-President of EU Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties/Justice/Home affairs, "Green" MEP from Germany, Jan-Philip ALBRECHT, a Digital Privacy Specialist (Comp. Supra) ; Co-President of EU Parliament's "EFDD" Group, Italian MEP David BORRELLI, from Beppe Grillo's atypical "5 Stars" Movement, Most Popular Part in the Country, who Won also Capital City Rome Mayorship on 2016) ; vice-Chair of EU Parliament's "EFDD" Group, and vice-President of Fast-Growing recently "AfD" Party of the "Right" in Germany, "EFDD" MEP Beatrix VON STORCH ; vice-Chair of EU Parliament's "ECR"Group, Flemish MEP from Belgium, Helga STEVENS ; Long-Time former Leader of Rightist Party "Jobbik" in Hungary, "Independent" MEP Zoltan BALCZO ; former President of Germany's NPD Rightist Party and Long-Time Army Engineer, MEP Udo VOIGT ("Independents"), as well as Former NATO General in Brussels, now Head of Delegation for Greek Rightist Party "Golden Dawn" (3rd in the Country), Georges EPITIDEIOS ; Bureau Member of EU Parliament's "ECR" Group, former Long-Time Journalist, MEP Nikolay BAREKOV, from Bulgaria, another EU External Borderline Member Country vis a vis Neighbouring Turkey ; (etc).



----------------------------------



+++ In Addition, Parallel Converging Moves by Various EU Parliament's Groups of MEPs, asked f.ex. to "Cancel the <<Dirty Deal>> of EU - Turkey on Migrants" ("EuroLeft") ; and/or Stressed anew, more Vigorously than ever, that "as long as Turkey does Not Comply with EU's Conditions, there will be No "Free VISA"" for 80 Millions of Turks, (both Mainstream ChristianDemocrat/EPP MEPs from Slovakia (currently President of the EU during July-December 2016), Eduard Kukan, Long-Time former Foreign Minister and UN Envoy, and Manolis Kefalogianis from Greece, President of EU - Turkey Delegation, both told recently "Eurofora", (echoed Even by most "EuroLEFT" Group MEPs !).



While the "ECR" Group of MEPs had already Tabled an initial Amendment Restricting EU Funds for the Controversial EU - Turkey Deal on Migrants, (notoriously obtained by Ankara after Heavy Pressure on the EU, on a Shady Sunday Meeting in a Brussels' City with Exceptional Blockade of Public Transports due to Islamic Terrorist Attacks), and a Majority in EU Parliament Voted and Adopted, Yesterday (Wednesday, October 26), against Restricting Other, more Vital EU Funding Programs, (such as, f.ex., on EU Cohesion, Humanitarian Aid, Development in Africa, etc), just in order to Find Money for Turkey's above mentioned Controversial and UnPopular Deal.



Particularly, since more and more Facts show, from Early 2016 until Now, that it's even Useless, in real Practice, given mainly the Efficiency of Western Balkans' Route Closure by Many European Countries' Borders Checks, as well as elsewhere Inside the "Shenghen" Area, (that EU Commission prolonged for 3 More Months, in a Decision taken last Tuesday, October 25 in Strasbourg), just After Last Week's EU Summit in Brussels officialy Acknowledged the usefulness and called to Support Western Balkan Countries' Border Monitoring. (Comp. already, "Eurofora"s Pioneer Analysis of HNCR + OIM Data, Published as Early as, already since the Beginning of May 2016, and Confirmed later-on, at : .... +... +...)





(../..)





***





("Draftnews", as already send to "Eurofora" Subscribers/Donors, earlier. A more accurate, full Final Version, might be Published asap).

***
Awarded for the first time in 1988 to Nelson Mandela and Anatoli Marchenko, the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought is the highest tribute paid by the European Union to human rights work. It gives recognition to individuals, groups and organisations that have made an outstanding contribution to protecting freedom of thought. Through the prize and its associated network the EU assists laureates, who are supported and empowered in their efforts to defend their causes.

The prize has so far been awarded to dissidents, political leaders, journalists, lawyers, civil-society activists, writers, mothers, wives, minority leaders, an anti-terrorist group, peace activists, an anti-torture activist, a cartoonist, long-serving prisoners of conscience, a film-maker, the UN as a body and even a child campaigning for the right to education. It promotes in particular freedom of expression, the rights of minorities, respect for international law, the development of democracy and the implementation of the rule of law. Several laureates, including Nelson Mandela, Malala Yousafzai, Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad, went on to win the Nobel Peace Prize.

The European Parliament awards the Sakharov Prize, with its EUR 50 000 endowment, at a formal plenary sitting in Strasbourg towards the end of each year. Each of the Parliament's political groups may nominate candidates, as may individual MEPs (the support of at least 40 MEPs is required for each candidate). The nominees are presented at a joint meeting of the Foreign Affairs Committee, the Development Committee and the Human Rights Subcommittee, and the members of the full committees vote on a shortlist of three candidates. The final winner or winners of the Sakharov Prize are chosen by the Conference of Presidents, a European Parliament body led by the president, which includes the leaders of all the political groups represented in the Parliament, making the choice of laureates a truly European choice.
National Portrait Gallery

Jimmy Carter is perhaps the most disdained president of recent history. Thinking about the late 1970s, the American public generally remembers the energy crisis, the hostages in Iran whom Carter couldnt free, his national malaise and thats about it.Which is unfair. At first he was very popular, for common man moves like walking with his family during the inaugural parade. Carter offered welcome relief from the Greek tragedy of Richard Nixon and the Roman farce of Gerald Ford.His being a peanut farmer was celebrated, and companies offered products trying to capitalize on Carters grinning likeness. The government quickly moved to make it stop.On May 3, 1977, Assistant Attorney General John M. Harmon prepared a memo suggesting the Federal Trade Commission might prevent the presidents likeness from being used commercially.The commission could probably prohibit the use of advertisements, labels, or trade names which implied that the president endorsed, profited from, or was connected with the sale of a particular product, he wrote. The prestige of the presidency and President Carters well-known background would probably allow the commission to eliminate most of the attempts to attach the presidents name to peanuts and peanut products.
In an article at Vox, a website the offers to explain the news for readers, Sean Illing shares an interview with science educator Amanda Glaze. Unfortunately, in Teaching evolution in the South: an educator on the war for science literacy,' he repeats the mistake of many media sources, mischaracterizing an academic freedom law as authorizing instructors to teach creationism.

I lived and taught in Louisiana until recently, and there you had a well-educated Republican governor [Bobby Jindal] who was backing a law that allowed creationism to be taught in public school science classes. And he had the overwhelming support of the state legislature.

This is incorrect. Permit me to explain to Sean Illing. The law that he refers to, the Louisiana Science Education Act (LSEA), does not authorize the teaching of creationism. Rather, it permits teachers to present the scientific evidence both for and against neo-Darwinism. (Illing also contests whether there is indeed a scientific debate  more about the evidence and controversy here.)

The text of the law includes the following statement:

This Section shall not be construed to promote any religious doctrine, promote discrimination for or against a particular set of religious beliefs, or promote discrimination for or against religion or nonreligion.

As I mentioned in a previous article on the LSEA:

Lets be clear: If a teacher presents creationism and is sued, the LSEA will offer that teacher no protection. In any event, teaching creationism in public schools is unconstitutional according to the Supreme Court (Edwards v. Aguillard, 482 U.S. 578).

Louisianas academic freedom law serves the purpose of giving teachers who would like to present both sides of the scientific controversy over evolution the freedom to do so without fear of retaliation. But media accounts often fail to portray this clearly.

Photo credit: Evan-Amos (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.
Oh My Bot will be instrumental in analysing how a Chat Bot can help enhance the brands interaction with customers and potential stakeholders

KRDS Singapore, part of the Paris headquartered KRDS Group, along with its offices in Hong Kong, UAE, India and China, have launched a new Chat Bot agency to help brands leverage the chat bot revolution on instantmessaging apps.

Oh My Bot is an agency dedicated to the development and design of conversational user interfaces, chat bots and human moderation services for instant messaging applications.

The department will assist brands with building an effective bot strategy that is best suited for the brands business goals. Oh My Bot will be instrumental in analysing how a Chat Bot can help enhance the brands interaction with customers and potential stakeholders. The agency will develop and host a chat bot on Facebook, WeChat and other Messaging Apps offering seamless integration with the brands CRM Strategy. Oh My Bot! will also provide brands with reliable technical support and human moderation services to further enhance the interaction with customers online.

Commenting on the development, PreethamVenkky, Director at KRDS Singapore said: Consumers have already embraced the new communication medium - instant messaging. While the rise of Messenger, WeChat and WhatsApp has been meteoric, the presence of brands in the messaging space has been negligible. Bots built atop the APIs of these platforms allow brands to engage more seamlessly and provide the most appropriate information to their customers. There is a need for fresh new thinking in this space. This prompted us to launch an agency by assembling the best experts in the field. OMB (Oh my Bot!) will serve to be the one-stop agency for building custom chat bot experiences for brands that aim to fulfill the needs and expectations of their customers.

Read more news about (internet advertising India, internet advertising, advertising India, digital advertising India, media advertising India)
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Hi,



My husband was born in SA and does not have an original birth certificate but does have a poor certified copy. We have ordered a new one from the SA embassy in London but as any one who has dealt with SA, this can take anywhere from 6-8 months, if it does come in the end at all!!



Anyways the question is has anyone used letters from family verifying birth, location, parents etc. when applying for a family visa and what did it entail??



Thanks for any advise or comments



Rbotes
First off it is a proposal that has not been submitted at this time. Secondly Congress is on election break and will have probably many more things on it plate when it comes back. The proposal has nothing to do with future COLA raises. It was initial proposed because it looked like no COLA was going to happen this year.



Chuck
October 30, 2016 is the 17th annual Create a Great Funeral Day. This is an opportune time to start a funeral planning conversation.

"It's appropriate that Create a Great Funeral Day comes right before Halloween and the Day of the Dead celebration," said death educator Gail Rubin. "Before ghosts can go a-haunting and spirits of the deceased can be celebrated, someone's gotta die."

The idea behind Create a Great Funeral Day is to consider how you would like to be remembered. By letting loved ones know how you'd like your life celebrated, the survivors' experience can be so much easier. One available tool is the Have the Talk of a Lifetime program (www.TalkofaLifetime.org), which encourages families to start conversations about life and what matters most.

Create a Great Funeral Day began in 2000, started by Stephanie West Allen. She saw her husband struggling to pull together a meaningful funeral for his mother, who had left no directions before she died. Observing his grief, Allen felt that knowing what her mother-in-law might have wanted would have eased the pain of memorial service preparations. As a result, she authored Creating Your Own Funeral or Memorial Service: A Workbook.

"Create a Great Funeral Day prompts us to be mindful of our mortality. This self-awareness enables us to plan reflectively in advance, so we don't leave our families to react, disorganized and stressed, after our death," explained Allen.

"A fear of funeral planning equates to fear of death. Those who hold fear in one area of their lives often have fear in other areas. It won't kill you to move away from the fear of funerals," said Rubin.

Since people are more inclined to deal with downsizing their excess stuff than to plan for end-of-life, Rubin wrote KICKING THE BUCKET LIST: 100 Downsizing and Organizing Things to Do Before You Die. The book, now available in both eBook and paperback formats, is two-thirds about downsizing and one-third about making end-of-life plans.

Rubin is available for interview by calling 505-265-7215. Click here for more information about KICKING THE BUCKET LIST.

###
In the latest Trump campaign controversy, Donald Trump has faced claims from 14 women that he groped and raped some of them, leading even more Republicans officials, religious leaders, and women to drop their support. Even so, many supporters have rallied around him, including one Trumpster who wore a T-shirt with the message: "Trump can grab my p**sy" and an arrow pointing down.

The perfect response to this controversy is a satiric cartoon and commentary book published to a five star review  Trump Is an Animal! by Gini Graham Scott, Ph.D. It shows how Trump is like male animals of all types who are constantly fighting other animals for power, territory, and females. So if Trump is treating women like objects he can easily grope, have sex with, and assault, that's because he's like a male animal showing off his power and being aggressive to females.

To illustrate, Trump Is an Animal! features Trump like a kicking kangaroo, baaad ass baboon, battling bear, raging rhino, fighting fur seal, angry cock, dueling dragon, menacing chimp, biting snake, and many more creatures. For people who want to relax or take out their anger with their crayons, the book is also a coloring book, along with a commentary on how Trump has been able to chase off his political foes. But as more and more women come forward claiming abuse and a lawsuit moves forward charging Trump with raping a 13-year old girl, the book helps to show why Trump may behave as he does and thinks he can get away with it by claiming the women are lying. However, now that a half-dozen lawyers have volunteered to defend these women, much like animal trainers offering to tame the beast, maybe Trump can't get away with such lies anymore. The campaign has become like a referendum on what is acceptable social behavior, especially towards women and minority groups, though perhaps many voters supporting Trump don't really care.

For all these reasons, Trump Is an Animal! is the perfect response in showing up Trump behaving much like many number. It's available on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Trump-Animal-Illustrated-Coloring-Different/dp/1535223154, on Kindle, and the illustrations are on PivotShare https://changemakersproductions.pivotshare.com/media/trump-is-an-animal!/50025.

And if you think Trumps recent behavior has been unhinged and nuts, Scott has a book called Trump Is Nuts!, also on Amazon with a five star review at https://www.amazon.com/Trump-Nuts-Illustrated-Guide-Coloring/dp/0692738037, on Kindle, and on Pivot Share.

Scott has even created a website featuring a nearly a dozen books about Trump and the election campaign at www.trumpisnuts.net or www.whoistrumpreally.com.

The author, Gini Graham Scott, Ph.D. brings to the series a background as a sociologist and popular writer  and she is also a registered Republican. She received her Ph.D. at the University of California, Berkeley, and has several MAs, including one in Anthropology and another in Pop Culture and Lifestyles from California State University, East Bay. She is getting an additional MA there in Communication. She has published over 50 books with major publishers and 40 with her own publishing company, Changemakers Publishing. She also helps clients with writing their books and helping them publish them or find publishers and agents.

Nancy Parker

Executive Assistant

Changemakers Productions

Changemakers Publishing and Writing

Lafayette, California

bookpub@att.net

(925) 385-0608
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Hill Country author Paulette Jiles, whose critically acclaimed novels include Enemy Women and The Color of Lightning, is one of five finalists nominated for the National Book Award for Fiction for her new book News of the World, released Oct. 4.

Jiles, who lives on a ranch near Utopia, made the long list for the prestigious award in September, and the five finalists were announced Thursday. The winner will be announced Nov. 16.

Charles Frazier, author of Cold Mountain, has called News of the World a powerful, richly realized journey comparable to True Grit and Lonesome Dove.

Jiles novel opens in 1870 in North Texas, where Capt. Jefferson Kyle Kidd travels in the rain and cold from town to town giving readings from the latest newspapers, bringing the news of the world to isolated towns on the Texas frontier.

In Wichita Falls, he is asked to return a captive girl to her relatives near San Antonio, 400 miles to the south. For a $50 gold piece, the old man and the 10-year-old girl start out on a hazardous journey, no less risky because the girl considers herself now a Kiowa and does not have the slightest desire to return.

Bandits and Comanche raids and violent weather make the journey difficult, but so does the 10-year old girl, who cant speak English, eats with her hands and knows how to use a revolver.

In the end, Kidd finds he must return her to relatives who dont want her, even though he and the girl have become trusting friends.

Jiles is one of the featured authors at the 2016 Express-News Book & Author Luncheon, set for Nov. 11 at the Marriott Rivercenter downtown.

Its the 25th anniversary of the luncheon, which has raised more than $3 million for cancer drug research. Tickets are $85.

To order, go to makelivesbetter.uthscsa.edu/bookauthor or call 210-567-1206.

The other nominees for the National Book Award for fiction are

Chris Bachelder, The Throwback Special (W. W. Norton & Company)

Karan Mahajan, The Association of Small Bombs (Viking Books/Penguin Random House)

Colson Whitehead, The Underground Railroad (Doubleday/Penguin Random House)

Jacqueline Woodson, Another Brooklyn (Amistad/HarperCollinsPublishers)

sbennett@express-news.net
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Candice Millard doesnt attempt to cover the full spectrum of Winston Churchills adventure-filled life in her new biography.

That would require a shelf full of books.

Instead, in Hero of the Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape and the Making of Winston Churchill, she focuses on a singular event that brought the 24-year-old Churchill his first public acclaim: his capture and audacious prison break from a POW camp during the little-remembered (at least in the United States) Boer War, in what is now South Africa.

I first heard the story 25 years ago, and it has stayed with me ever since, said Millard. Once I started researching, I was hooked.

The book captures Churchill in all his young-gun glory, born to the aristocracy, yearning for adventure and supremely confident in his future.

I have faith in my star, the future British prime minister wrote his mother, that I am intended to do something in the world.

Churchill had landed a plum assignment as a newspaper war correspondent when, just two weeks after arriving at the front in 1899, he was captured by Boer rebels, who ambushed the armored train he riding in.

He eventually escaped from a Pretoria prison camp.

More Information Hero of the Empire By Candice Millard Doubleday, $30 See More Collapse

With help from British sympathizers, he made a harrowing dash across hundreds of miles of African veld to the safety of what was then Portuguese East Africa.

It took Millard five years to research and write the book, in part, she said, because there is so much primary material available.

Newspapers at the time covered the war extensively and, after his escape, couldnt get enough of young Churchill.

It seems like everyone who came in contact with him  on both sides  also wrote about their experience, said Millard.

This will be Millards second appearance at the Express-News Book & Author Luncheon. In 2011 she appeared with her book Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President, about the life, assassination and unnecessary death of the 20th U.S. president James A. Garfield.

rmarini@express-news.net

Twitter: @RichardMarini
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BANDERA  The community of Polly vanished decades ago from local maps, but a group is working to preserve its surviving structures  and the story of its founder, Jose Policarpio Polly Rodriguez  to inspire future generations.

Polly equals the likes of James Bowie, Davy Crockett and Kit Carson. He was a Texas Ranger, a judge, a county commissioner and a successful rancher, said Rudi Rodriguez, 66, a great-great-grandnephew of the storied frontiersman. He did things that we marvel about and we read in history books.

Having already fixed up Pollys Chapel and the cemetery in the defunct settlement 6 miles outside Bandera, the Polly Texas Pioneer Association now plans to restore the abandoned schoolhouse where local kids were educated from 1892 to 1946.

This is going to be not only a historical project, but we also hope to make this into an educational and community center, Anna Lunoff, association chairwoman, said of the one-room building given to the group last spring by the Bandera Independent School District.

The San Antonio-based association kicks off its capital campaign at 10 a.m. Saturday with a ceremony at the school, on Bear Creek Road, which needs $60,000 or more of improvements, from a roof replacement to electricity and plumbing.

To prepare, Lunoff and others gathered at the schoolhouse last weekend to clear brush, make minor repairs and hang some battery-operated lights.

Among them was Flo Hopkins, 81, who grew up in Polly and attended first grade at Privilege Creek School District No. 20 before its one school was consolidated with Bandera Rural High School District No. 1 in 1946.

The teacher used to pick me and other kids up along the way in her car. Other kids came on horseback, recalled Hopkins, who still lives here. It was for all the grades. When the little kids like myself had to go to the bathroom, the older kids would have to take them to the outhouse.

Rodriguez bought 360 acres along Privilege Creek in 1858, where a fort, post office/general store and cemetery were added over the decades as his holdings here swelled to 4,000 acres.

The town had 300 people by the mid-1890s, according to the Texas Handbook, but declined sharply after that, eventually fading to a few dozen.

Polly is extremely important, said Alison Ramos, 86, a Bandera resident whose late husband was kin to Polly Rodriguez. Polly was such a great example for other Latinos, not just with what he did as a ranger and all this, but the fact that he had a dream.

Pollys Schoolhouse is one of the few remaining examples of the frontier-era community schools that once numbered 63 in Bandera County, said Roy Dugosh, chairman of the Bandera County Historical Commission.

Hes backing efforts to get a state historical marker for it. If that works out, the Pioneer Association also will seek a state historic district designation for the community and to get it listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Born in Mexico in 1829, Rodriguez moved with his family in 1841 to San Antonio, where at age 20 he was hired as a government scout assigned to lay out a road to El Paso, recounts the Handbook of Texas.

His military service earned him a presidential citation for gallantry and valor in action, according to published reports, and included siting Army fort locations.

Trained as a gunsmith and surveyor, Rodriguez joined the Bandera Home Guards division of the Texas Rangers during the Civil War and later was elected justice of the peace and county commissioner in Bandera County, where he also preached in his namesake chapel and on a traveling itinerary as a Methodist circuit rider.

He wed twice and had nine children before succumbing to pneumonia, contracted in 1914 while delivering blankets and other supplies to a widow in Poteet, said Rudi Rodriguez.

An autobiography by Policarpio Rodriguez published in 1891, The Old Scout, formed the basis for a 2002 book by Rudi Rodriguez called A Tejano Son of Texas. But his story is little-known in Texas today and underappreciated by some historians, Rudi Rodriguez said.

Historians have continuously omitted the stories of Tejanos, he said. Our legacy and heritage in Texas extends back 150 years before the Alamo.

zeke@express-news.net
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WASHINGTON - Campaigning in Colorado this week, Texas U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz road-tested the idea of a shrunken Supreme Court - effectively blocking any justice picked by Democrat Hillary Clinton should she win the presidential election.

The idea has picked up steam in conservative circles as Donald Trumps campaign has fallen behind in the polls, alarming Republicans who fear the first liberal Supreme Court majority since the 1970s.

It also signals that the GOP blockade on nominee Merrick Garland, President Obamas pick to replace the late Antonin Scalia, will continue past the Nov. 8 election.

The White House blasted the GOP over the standoff Thursday, with Obama Press Secretary Josh Earnest telling reporters that the calls for continued inaction threaten the same kind of dysfunction that has infected Washington for the last six years.

Cruz, campaigning Wednesday for a Republican Senate candidate in Colorado, stirred the political pot by suggesting that Republicans could block a Democratic president from filling a Supreme Court vacancy indefinitely.

Citing Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyers recent comment that the current eight-member court works about the same as the regular nine-member complement, Cruz appeared to lay the groundwork for a smaller court.

There will be plenty of time for debate on that issue, Cruz said. There is long historical precedent for a Supreme Court with fewer justices. ... Just recently, Justice Breyer observed that the vacancy is not impacting the ability of the court to do its job. Thats a debate that we are going to have.

Cruz spokeswoman Catherine Frazier played down the comment on Thursday, saying many seem to think that hes out advocating for that, which isnt the case. He simply noted that theres a precedent for it.

Cruz made the nomination of strong conservatives to the Supreme Court a major focus of his primary campaign, particularly as Trump began to close in on the GOP nomination in late April.

The stakes for the high court also have helped keep many conservative evangelicals in the Republican fold, even as Trump battles an image of crass behavior toward women, compounded by multiple allegations of sexual misconduct.

I just want the people to remember: United States Supreme Court, Trump told Pat Robertsons Christian Broadcasting Network in a transcript released Thursday. Whether they love me or like me or dont like me, were going to put great justices, pro-life justices, were going to put Second Amendment justices and I think for the evangelicals its so important that they get out and vote.

But with Clinton leading in most major polls, and time running out for a Trump comeback, Republicans have begun to talk about ways to stop her from appointing a ninth justice who could tip the ideological balance of the court.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott joined the fray Thursday, praising Cruz on Twitter: @SenTedCruz: GOP may block Supreme Court nominees indefinitely, he tweeted. This may be only way to save the Constitution.

Cruzs rhetorical shot across the bow follows that of Arizona U.S. Sen. John McCain, who said earlier this month that Republicans would be united in blocking any Clinton nomination. He later backed off those remarks, but the issue has taken on a life of its own.

Cruzs position takes on added significance because he is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which gets first crack at Supreme Court nominations. The committees chairman, Iowa Republican Chuck Grassley, has taken a softer tone, telling reporters last week that we cant simply stonewall Clinton judicial appointments.

Texas U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, also sits on the judiciary panel. He has said nothing about any prospective Clinton nominees. He has made it clear only that there is no chance the Senate will consider Garlands nomination in the upcoming lame-duck session of Congress.

Democrats, meanwhile, have raised the alarm. Ted Cruz and John McCain may have given away the Republican game plan on the Supreme Court, Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid wrote in an email Wednesday to the liberal Progressive Change Campaign Committee. And we need to treat it like the constitutional crisis it will be if Democrats dont take back the Senate majority.

The Supreme Court could dwindle to seven, then maybe six, justices, Reid added. It would turn our justice system and our democracy on its head. The founding fathers would roll over in their graves.

The impasse over Garland and the possibility of future gridlock if Clinton gains the White House also is likely to spark a new partisan battle over the super-majority requirement for approving judges or overriding a filibuster, which currently stands at 60 votes.

As questions about the Supreme Court have intensified in the presidential election, a number of conservative analysts have laid out the theoretical underpinnings for a GOP blockade. Michael Paulsen, a professor at the University of St. Thomas Law School in Minneapolis, argued in a National Review article last week that Congress could pass a law reducing the Supreme Court from nine to six seats. A smaller court means diminished judicial activism, he wrote.

Ilya Shapiro, a legal scholar at the libertarian Cato Institute in Washington, wrote an essay in the Federalist this week arguing that Republicans would be in their rights to ignore or vote down any Clinton appointee with whom they disagree. As a matter of constitutional law, he wrote, the Senate is fully within its powers to let the Supreme Court die out, literally.

In an interview, Shapiro said that voters are the ultimate backstop. If the voters think theyre acting in bad faith, or if they dont agree with the reason why theyre doing it, then they can vote them out.

The Constitution is silent on the size of the Supreme Court, and the number of justices is set by Congress. The first high court was composed of six members. It has fluctuated throughout history - usually depending on the number of federal circuits - but it has stood at nine since 1869.

Constitutional scholar Jonathan Turley of The George Washington University said that the high courts current size - one of the smallest in the world - is more a matter of happenstance than reasoned debate. He long has argued to increase its size, perhaps to as high as 19, to reduce judicial power and de-emphasize the importance of any one judicial pick.

Ever since we went to nine justices, weve been plagued by the problem of a swing justice, Turley said. The court effectively becomes a court of one, and, obviously, that problem is going to increase if you reduce your count even further.

Justice have become too important, Turley continued, and so the political system shuts down.

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, clashing with the Supreme Court over the New Deal majority on the court, sought unsuccessfully in 1937 to appoint six additional justices.

Turley and other legal scholars say that while there may be legitimate reasons to reconfigure the size of the court, immediate political expediency should not be one of them.

With all due respect to all these people, it just looks partisan, said Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond. Thats the problem.

RELATED: See a list of the major Supreme Court rulings made in 2016.

kevin.diaz@chron.com
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A police officer shot and killed a man officials say was armed and holding a woman against her will in an apartment near Terrell Hills on Thursday.

Several San Antonio Police Department and San Antonio Fire Department units were dispatched to the Whispering Heights Apartments at 223 Rainbow Drive around 2:05 p.m. for the incident.

According to SAPD Chief William McManus, the woman, who police believe is in her early 20s, called her mother to say she had been forced to stay in the apartment for several days.

The womans mother called police, who heard a scream when they arrived at the apartment. Officers burst through the door into the apartment, where the man was armed with a rifle, McManus said.

The man, described by police as in his 30s, pulled the firearm on a police officer. That officer then fired two rounds, striking the man both times.

The gunman was transported to an area hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

The woman suffered head injuries as a result of a possible assault by the man in the apartment. She also was transported to an area hospital.

The officer, a seven-year veteran of SAPD, will be placed on routine administrative duty pending the outcome of the investigation, McManus said.

McManus said drug paraphernalia was visible inside the small apartment.

The incident on Rainbow Drive is the second officer-involved shooting in San Antonio this week. On Tuesday, SAPD officers shot and wounded an armed man they described as suicidal at a Northeast Side auto shop.

Staff Writer Kolten Parker contributed to this report.

twhite@mysa.com

Twitter: @TylerLWhite
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Stirring up memories of Halloween past, residents of the Villa de San Antonio senior community center distributed sweet gifts Thursday to lift the spirits of abused and neglected children.

The memories began earlier in the week, when the seniors gathered to stuff Halloween bags for the kids and talked about going trick or treating.

But one member of the group, Mona Harris, 86, never knew the thrill of going house to house for mystery treats.

She was one of nine children raised by a widowed mother on a farm in Laredo. In that rural area, the farms were too far apart to engage in the traditional rounds, she said, so her mother made them lollipops to eat on the night also known as All Hallows Eve.

When Harris raised her own six children, she made sure they enjoyed the luxury she never had.

I wish my childhood would have been like this, Harris said, as she stuffed chocolate into plastic bags Wednesday. We didnt have this back then.

For two mornings, Harris and 19 other residents, some of them in Halloween finery, made 200 bags of candy and gifts for the children at the Childrens Shelter, an emergency shelter for children in the states protective custody. Drawing from two grocery carts overflowing with goodies, they pulled out all kinds of candy, eyeballs, mini notepads, pencils and stickers for the bags and added handwritten notes.

A grinning Gerry Garcia, 81, flashed a pair of vampire teeth when residents passed by the group as they worked.

Instead of handing it out at the door, Garcia said, this is what were doing,

Thursday morning, four residents, business development director Natalie Guevara and resident relations director Kelly Nass delivered the bags to the shelter.

Were trying to normalize Halloween for them, Guevara said.

She said the holiday project is an extension of the partnership the senior community has with the nonprofit shelter. For the past four years, a group of women called the Quilt-a-Beasts have sewn more than 1,000 quilts for kids at the Childrens Shelter.

This is a beautiful example of how anyone of any age can have an impact on a person, said Anias Biera Miracle, a shelter executive, thanking the elders for their time and love. Our children trick-or-treat on our campus and our children love candy! When our children put on their costume, they brighten up when they are a butterfly, a super hero or any costume and it gives them joy and a reprieve of their trauma.

On Halloween, the Villa de San Antonio residents will complete their good work by handing out candy to toddlers visiting at the residents center from two day care centers.

At the candy-packing event Wednesday, Isabel Walker, 87, sat across from Noah Stone, 85, wearing an orange beach hat and a pumpkin T-shirt his granddaughter made for him. Stone, a retired obstetrician, told the group when kids came to his Brownsville home and pushed the intercom system button, hed open the door and growl at them. Theyd scream, he said, smiling at the memory, but they always came back.

Jenny Villanueva, sales/relations coordinator, helped Santos Venzor, 90, tie the last bags

We enjoyed it, Venzor said. Were happy to still be a part of it.

vtdavis@express-news.net
AUSTIN  A special task force of state police dispatched to quickly locate 511 children identified as being at the highest risk for abuse or neglect located the first 26 Thursday as child protection caseworkers tracked down 134 more.

The development came as Henry Hank Whitman Jr., commissioner of the Department of Family and Protective Services, requested a $1,000-a-month pay raise for front-line workers who have been quitting in droves because of low pay. The exodus has left the agency unable to carry out its core mission in many areas.

Officials said four of the highest-risk children on the list were found Thursday by Texas Department of Public Safety investigators in San Antonio, 10 in Houston and 12 in Dallas. Authorities said they could not release further details because of confidentiality laws covering the child protection program.

Of the others on the list, 86 were found to have already been seen by caseworkers.

Although all of the children on the high-priority list were supposed to have been seen within days of a report of abuse, some had not been seen for weeks, even months. State senators on Wednesday had demanded they be located and seen immediately.

Patrick Crimmins, a spokesman for the child protection agency, said no child was removed from his or her home. Officials said the hunt for the remaining 265 would continue today.

Before Thursdays search, Region 8, an area that includes San Antonio, had 59 children categorized as highest risk  meaning Child Protective Services is required to send a caseworker within 24 hours  who had not been seen as of Oct. 17, a CPS spokeswoman said. Caseworkers had not visited 342 children who were at the next-lowest level of risk, who by state statute are supposed to be seen within 48 hours.

An even larger group of children was not seen in a timely manner in Region 8, the data show. Caseworkers failed to check on 197 priority one children and and 1,503 priority two children within the required time frames.

Whitman, in his revised action plan Thursday, asked Senate leaders to immediately find money for the pay increases and said he plans to implement a new program to train supervisors on Dec. 1. Low pay, oppressive supervision and poor management has been cited as among the leading causes of high employee turnover, in some areas as high as 40 percent.

Because so many employees are leaving the agency, caseworkers have fallen behind in investigating cases of abuse and neglect, even as the state has faced a shortage of housing for the increasing numbers of children being placed in foster care.

With starting salaries as low as $34,000 a year, the pay hike proposed by Whitman would raise that base pay to $46,000. Whitman earlier said a one-shot pay increase in the Midland area cut turnover significantly, and during a Senate hearing Wednesday he had said he would likely ask for higher pay scales.

His proposed salary hikes would add $8.2 million to a request for $53.3 million more to overhaul CPS, an amount that left some senators balking Wednesday. Finding those funds may be a challenge with a drop in state revenues expected to leave legislative leaders looking for perhaps as much as $4 billion more to make ends meet in the new two-year budget to be debated starting in January.

At a cost of about $57,000 to train each new caseworker, agency officials have estimated they are losing tens of millions of dollars to the high turnover rates. Echoing sentiments of other committee members, Sen. Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo, said that was tanamount to opening a window at the Capitol and throwing out millions of dollars in cash.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Jane Nelson, a Flower Mound Republican who was among senators who demanded fast action Wednesday to curb the agencys myriad problems, said: I have also asked the agency for daily updates on their efforts to address this crisis.

For the past decade, lawmakers have allocated more and more funding to repair chronic problems in foster care and child protection programs as caseloads mushroomed. From a budget of $1.2 billion in 2002, the agencys current budget is $2.8 billion.

Last December, a federal judge in Corpus Christi ruled that Texas foster care system was unconstitutional because of continuing, systemic flaws that subjected children to repeated exposure to physical, sexual and psychological abuse.

Whitman said that as soon as legislative leaders find funding for higher pay or more staff, he will begin implementing changes that are not funded in his current budget. Among other things, he has requested more than 800 additional employees  including more than 500 front-line case managers and investigators  to address the growing number of abuse and neglect cases.

As part of the additional hires, Whitman is seeking 200 additional investigative caseworkers and an additional 100 special investigators, along with more caseworkers to handle family-based safety services and conservatorships.

Express-News Staff Writer Melissa Fletcher Stoeltje contributed to this report.

mike.ward@chron.com
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One of the most persistent attack lines from Republicans in this years presidential race is that a Hillary Clinton victory would be the practical equivalent of a third term for Barack Obama.

Theres a good reason for this strategy. Over the past 65 years, its been brutally tough - verging on impossible - for either major party to hold on to the White House for a third consecutive term. Since 1952, weve had eight presidential contests in which one party was trying to maintain its grip on the presidency after holding it for at least two consecutive terms. In seven of those races, the party in power lost the election.

This trend doesnt exempt on the basis of an outgoing presidents popularity. Dwight Eisenhower and Bill Clinton left office with solid public approval and the country basking in peace and prosperity, only to see their vice presidents go down to heartbreaking losses (of course, Clintons VP, Al Gore, carried the popular vote in 2000, but a loss is still a loss).

Its not a hard phenomenon to understand. Swing voters tend to get antsy after eight years of one party controlling the presidency. Its what the late Albuquerque Journal columnist Paul Wieck once called the itch for change that people in this country want to scratch at regular intervals.

This year should have provided one of those change elections.

Even with Obamas approval rating at a robust 57 percent in a recent Fox News poll, the bowling pins were all lined up for this years Republican nominee to make the case for change: that a 1 percent annual rate of economic growth is not enough, the threat of terrorist attack from ISIS is too much and the nation is in a general state of stagnation.

John Kennedy took advantage of a similar mood in 1960 by arguing that it was time to get the country moving again. Jimmy Carters 1976 campaign mailers tapped into the nations post-Watergate depression by stating, Theres nothing wrong with our country that strong, competent and compassionate leadership cant change.

This election was served up on a platter to the GOP, and, unless the polls are deceiving us, theyve squandered the gift.

Theyve squandered it because Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton has done what all status-quo candidates must do when they encounter an antsy electorate: make the election a referendum on their opponent; make voters so nervous about the change candidate that they retreat to the unsatisfying safety of the known. On that score, GOP nominee Donald Trump has given her all the ammunition she needed.

The most common line used against change candidates has been that theyre too deficient in experience and/or maturity to be entrusted with the nuclear button. Richard Nixon tried it with Kennedy in 1960, Gore with George W. Bush in 2000 and John McCain with Obama in 2008.

Another approach is to suggest that theres something innately unsettling or untrustworthy in the character of the change candidate. Gerald Fords 1976 campaign hinted that Carter was a flip-flopping enigma whose high-beam smile masked something weird.

Hubert Humphrey argued in 1968 that the so-called new Nixon was just a reupholstered version of the same bitter man who had kissed off the media six years earlier with the assurance that it wouldnt have him to kick around anymore.

For the most part, change candidates have been able to deflect these attacks. Before Trump, the one modern exception occurred with a contender who couldnt be more different than the brash New York mogul. Michael Dukakis, the 1988 Democratic nominee, was/is a fastidious technocrat so averse to waste that he collects Thanksgiving turkey carcasses and uses them to make soup for the next year.

But the campaign team for his Republican opponent, George H.W. Bush, constructed one of the most devastating attack strategies in American political history and successfully caricatured Dukakis as a convict-loving, bleeding-heart, big-government wimp. A double-digit August lead for Dukakis quickly evaporated.

In the case of Trump, he has done Hillary Clintons work for her. He has caricatured himself  as a thin-skinned, narcissistic loose-cannon prone to vengeful tweets and impulsive proposals. The toxic stench surrounding his character has created this crucial effect: While 61 percent of white college grads backed 2012 Republican nominee Mitt Romney, only 46 percent support Trump, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

Bottom line: In an election climate ripe for change, the Republican Party trumped itself.

ggarcia@express-news.net

Twitter: @gilgamesh470
Reading Louis-Ferdinand Celine Today. Two-Day Master Class and Workshop with Greg Hainge

PhD School at the Faculty of Humanities at University of Copenhagen

18-19 janvier 2017

The French writer Louis-Ferdinand Celine (1894-1961) is one of the most read and highly regarded authors in 20th century French literature. But he is also one of the most controversial because of his ardent anti-Semitism. After the publication of four violent pamphlets in the interwar period, Celine was forced to flee from the advancing Allied armies in the summer of 1944. He spent six years in Denmark before he could return to France.

Though his oeuvre continues to be widely read and discussed in his home country, the work on Celine in a Danish academic context remains scarce, and even though excellent scholars continue to read and teach Celine, the area of interest is more often than not narrowed down to his first two novels from the 1930s.

This workshop will take up this challenge and ask what ways a scientific approach to Celine could follow today. At the same time, we will try to broaden the scope and admit his later literary production as object of literary research. As it turns out, Celine remains highly relevant to some of the most fruitful research fields today such as posthumanism, affect theory, witness literature, studies in place, space, cartography, geography, and many more.

Through papers and discussions, we will investigate and map out the Celinian landscape in 2016, and in so doing, hopefully kick-start an academic reception of Celine in Denmark. Excellent papers might also be considered for an anthology on Celine that the organizers are currently preparing.

Associate Professor Dr Greg Hainge from the University of Queensland, Australia, will participate as lecturer and discussant. Greg Hainge has published extensively on Celine and serves as a member of the Societe des etudes celiniennes in Paris (The Society for Celinian Studies).

Participants are in no way required to be experts on Celine though the papers should of course be related to the author. We invite all PhD students interested in or working on topics such as (but in no way limited to) French literature, literary genre, modernism, art and literature, linguistics, literary style, posthumanism, witness literature, theory of translation, affect theory, voice and tone, literature and politics, censorship, anti-Semitism, space, place, geography, cartography, war and literature, nostalgia, autobiography, autofiction, literature and history, topology and literature.

The course will be conducted in English.

ECTS: 1.5 for participation, 3 for participation with paper.



Time: 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM.



Max. number of participants: 20 in total.



Max. number of paper presentations: 12.



Preparation: Participants are expected to read the course material circulated beforehand. Please hand in your abstract of max. 250 words for your paper presentation no later than December 16th, 2016 to phdschool@hum.ku.dk.

Registration: Please register via the link in the box on the right on the website no later than December 1st, 2016.

Course organizer: If you have any questions about the course, please contact Troels Hughes Hansen, zxp794@hum.ku.dk.
When it comes to marketing your farm and farm products, social media is not optional. Consumers want the story behind their food: who grew it, where it came from, and how it was produced. A social media presence gives your farm credibility and brand recognition. Adding social links to online content and webpages boosts your farms rank in search engine results (SEO).

Social media makes your farm accessible to customers. It allows them to virtually participate in food production, connect with you, and engage in conversations about the farm and how you do business.

Platforms are ever-evolving and new apps gain popularity every day. Keeping up with technology and trends is easier if you have a social media strategy. Design an effective social media strategy in 3 steps:

Step 1. Determine purpose

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other digital media are platforms to share your farm story with the world, but what story do you want to tell?

Farm social media serves several purposes. Farmers use it to market products, educate customers, advocate Ag issues, highlight special events, or simply to share life on the farm.

Determining the purpose of your social media activity will help you pick the right platforms and create effective content for each platform.

Step 2. Pick your digital platforms

There are dozens of social media platforms. Even the most tech savvy farmer cant maintain a presence on every platform. Instead of stretching your farm thin, pick a few favorable platforms and engage.

The best platforms for your farm are the ones your customers already use. The chart provides a snapshot of 5 popular digital media platforms. 72% of websurfers use Facebook; that statistic is a great reason to start your social there. Consider your current customer profile and what social network they are already using.

Step 3. Create content

Popular media for posts differs for each platform. Instagram is for pictures. Snippets shine on Twitter. Each platform has post text limits and other nuances. Farmer marketers should craft their content to fit each platform.

Get more miles out of your content by tweaking it for fit, then posting it on multiple platforms. For example: I post a recipe on my farm blog, share it on my farm Facebook page, put a delicious looking pic on Instagram, then tweet about it in less than 140 characters.

Managing your farms social media can be time consuming. Free media management tools can save you time. Each platform offers prescheduling options and analytics. Hootsuite and Social Sprout are web services that allow you to connect and manage multiple platforms at the same time. Coschedule Blog analyzed 16 studies of social media to discover the best days and times to post. The chart includes a summary of findings.

Learn social media skills

Keep up with changing digital platforms and stay sharp through education. A variety of free tutorials for everything from creating podcasts and short videos to how to take better Instagram pics is available online. Socialmediaexaminer.com offers tips and tricks for major platforms.

As more farmers realize the benefit of getting social, organizations like The Food and Farm Institute and Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA) have added social media workshops to their educational offerings. I attended a Social Strategies session for farmers at the OEFFA conference this spring. The Food and Farm Institute and Herdmark Media hosted a Telling Your Farm Story seminar this year.

Sharpen your social media skills by following farms, rural enthusiasts and Ag advocates. Notice what they do well and apply it to your farm social media. Likes, hearts and retweets will give you a good idea what type of content your customers enjoy. Last but not least, dont be afraid to try new things. Ask for feedback and adjust your social media strategy to better serve your customers.

Reading list

The New Rules of PR by David Meerman Scott

Content Rules: How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, Webinars (and More) That Engage Customers and Ignite Your Business by Ann Handley

Everybody Writes by Ann Handley

Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook by Gary Vaynerchuk

Likeable Social Media by Dave Kerpen

References

 Maeve Duggan, The Demographics of Social Media Users, Pew Research Center, August 19, 2015, accessed October 22, 2016 from http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/08/19/the-demographics-of-social-media-users/

 Nathan Ellering, What 16 Studies Say About The Best Times To Post On Social Media, Coschedule Blog, April 13, 2016, accessed October 23, 2016 from http://coschedule.com/blog/best-times-to-post-on-social-media/
Focus on Ag: What the worsening drought conditions really tell us

Drought conditions in the Midwest have worsened over the last few months, but Kent Thiesse says the long-term impact of drought isn't always understood.
A farmer hailed as a conservation stalwart of the very best kind has been honoured with a national award for wetland creation.

Richard Waddingham from Norfolk accepted the Marsh Award for Wetland Conservation at the AGM of the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT).

The award, run in partnership by the Marsh Christian Trust and the WWT, honours exceptional individual achievement in local wetland conservation.

In his introduction at the award ceremony, Dr Carl Sayer from University College London, who has been working with Richard for 10 years, said: Richard has inspired countless people to value and love the British countryside. He has been a conservation stalwart of the very best kind.

Richard has farmed at Manor Farm, Briston in North Norfolk since the 1950s. He commented: I think, as a country, were on the threshold of realising that water management is as important to us as food.

The ponds are special because I havent made them; they are the source of two rivers and Im the watershed between them.

Manor Farm is a commercially successful business. Its 243 hectares are intensely farmed with a mix of eight crops and livestock.

'Richards ponds seem to be key to the birdlife thats flourishing on his land'

Yet within the operation there are also orchid meadows, grassland margins, old hedges, blue-bell woods and 40 or so small marl-pit ponds. Richard has spent his life managing the land and water resources by traditional methods.

'Conservation concern'

The result is a network of spring-fed ponds that is bucking the national trend by providing habitat with high water quality thats invaluable for biodiversity.

Plants, insects, amphibians, fish and farmland birds are all currently thriving at Manor Farm. At a time when farmland birds in the UK are doing particularly badly  according to last months State of Nature report, 12 of the UKs 26 farmland breeding birds are now of conservation concern, while the Farmland Bird Indicator shows a decline of 54% since 1970 - those on Richards land are doing well.

The traditional methods themselves are simple: Richard periodically clears silt from inside the pond and overhanging vegetation from around the edge, especially on the south side, to provide oxygen and light. This work uncovers old seed banks and promotes the growth of water plants.

This in turn enables a balance between plants, insects and birds to be established, and extends the food chain beyond the ponds into the terrestrial landscape.

Richard rotates this treatment around the 40-odd ponds so that, at any point in time, there is a mixture of shady and recently-cleared ponds on the farm.

Key for the wildlife

Geoff Hilton, Chief Scientist and Acting Director of Conservation at WWT, said: Richards ponds seem to be key to the birdlife thats flourishing on his land, so maybe the rest of us are missing a trick.

It could be that water quality is central to such success: there are all these forgotten ponds in the countryside that we could restore and manage, and they could be fantastic at propping up farmland bird populations.

Building on Dr Sayers research, a number of PhD students from UCL are now contributing to a UCL pond restoration research group, and rolling out an action plan to other areas.

Dr Sayer commented: Pond management doesnt take long or cost much but there are huge gains to be made in terms of increased biodiversity.

Our work has shown that Richards ponds have more substantial populations of farmland birds, much greater diversity, and a much higher number of visits of birds including yellowhammers, linnets and swallows. We think its due to the much higher numbers of insects emerging from Richards open ponds.

Richards work at Manor Farm has been the inspiration for the Norfolk Ponds Project, a partnership project that involves several conservation organisations in the county.

The project aims to spread the message that pond conservation and intensive agriculture can co-exist in Norfolk and across the country.
The European Commission has said it does not currently have enough information to 'adequately assess' whether cross-compliance rules under the Common Agricultural Policy are effective.

According to a new report from the European Court of Auditors, the auditors found that performance indicators gave only a partial view, procedures remained complex and the Commission had no reliable cost estimate.

Cross-compliance links agricultural subsidy payments to the environment and other rules farmers have to follow.

The auditors examined whether cross-compliance management and control systems were effective and whether they could be further simplified.

They carried out two surveys among Paying Agencies and Farm Advisory Bodies and visited three Member States  Germany (Schleswig-Holstein), Spain (Catalonia) and the United Kingdom (Northern Ireland).

They concluded that the information available did not allow the Commission to adequately assess the effectiveness of cross-compliance. Despite changes to the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) for 20142020, cross-compliance management and control systems could still be simplified, they said.

'7.5 million farmers subject to rules'

Despite changes to CAP for 20142020, cross-compliance management and control systems 'could still be simplified'

7.5 million farmers are subject to the cross-compliance rules, said Mr Nikolaos Milionis, the Member of the European Court of Auditors responsible for the report.

But the Commission currently cannot be sure whether the system is contributing to a more sustainable and environmentally friendly agriculture in the EU.

The auditors found that performance indicators used by the Commission gave only a partial view of the effectiveness of cross-compliance. The indicators did not take into account the level of non-compliance by farmers.

Furthermore, the Commission did not analyse the reasons for infringements or how to address them.

CAP changes for 20142020 did reduce the number of cross-compliance obligations for farmers by removing requirements not sufficiently relevant to farming activity, but procedures remained complex.

Simplification measures, such as the small farmers scheme, have to be 'balanced' against the need to achieve the objectives of cross compliance, the auditors suggest.

Cross-compliance system

Farming practices under the new greening payment have similarities with previous standards of good agricultural and environmental condition.

Consequently, say the auditors, there are currently two sets of complementary agricultural practices with the same objectives: maintenance of land and protection of bio-diversity.

Despite their similarities, the rules are checked under two control systems. This may lead to inefficiencies in control systems and additional bureaucracy.

The costs of implementing cross-compliance are not sufficiently quantified, say the auditors. As long as the Commission does not have a reliable estimate of the overall cost at cross-compliance level, it cannot ensure that the cross-compliance system is cost-effective.

They also found that the sanction system did not ensure a sufficiently harmonised basis for calculating administrative penalties for EU farmers who did not comply with the rules. The application of the severity, extent, permanence and intentionality factors for similar cases varied significantly between Member States.
Prince Charles is joining a UK-France government initiative to improve the condition of global soils.

Both governments are meeting the Prince to discuss the need to improve the health of soils worldwide.

Prince Charles has praised the French government's signature project on soil health, the 'Four per Thousand Initiative', which seeks to increase the organic content and health of soils worldwide.

In the coming weeks, ministers from both government's will debate how to store more carbon in soils.

They will also discuss how to restore degraded soils, improve fertility and increase food security.

The Prince will also speak next month at the world climate conference COP22 Marrakech in Morocco.

'One and a half Olympic swimming pools per hectare'

Peter Melchett, Soil Association policy director, said the Soil Association 'strongly supports' the French government initiative.

We have had a similar target set before COP21 in January 2015 - to increase organic matter in UK arable and horticultural soils by 20% over the next 20 years.

This target was based on the scientific evidence that in northwest Europe, organically managed soils have significantly higher levels of organic matter - an average increase of 21% over 20 years.

There have only been three studies in the UK, they found the increase here for arable soils was 50%.

We believe - at 20% in 20 years - it would be possible to increase the water holding capacity of arable farmland in the UK by the equivalent of one and a half Olympic swimming pools per hectare, reducing flooding and increasing resilience to droughts, and reducing ghg emissions in the UK by the equivalent saved by taking nearly 1 million cars off the road.

'Extraordinarily important'

Mr Melchett said the French initiative is 'extraordinarily important', as it has put greenhouse gas emissions from farming on the global climate change agenda for the first time since Kyoto, which held the first climate agreement in 1997.

It highlights the desperate need to stop emissions of greenhouse gases from soils - especially lowland drained peat - and the huge potential for sequestering carbon in agricultural soils.

In the UK, ghg emissions from farming have been level since 2008 (CCCs latest report out on 13 Oct), while industry and power generation emissions have fallen around 50%.

The UK farming industry has not begun to tackle ghg emissions, but we hope that the commitments made by the UK at COP21 will change that.

Lord Krebs from the Committee on Climate Change said: The health of the UK's soils is of critical importance for the productive capacity of our agricultural land.

A combination of population and economic growth are expected to increase global demand for food in the future. At the same time, climate change could reduce the capacity of the land globally to keep pace with growing demand.

It is, therefore, essential that we are doing all we can to protect the long-term productive capacity of our agricultural soils," Lord Krebs concluded.
Brexit offers Britain an opportunity to tailor a new support scheme and rewilding projects MPs on the Environmental Audit Committee were told.

The academics giving evidence said Brexit gave Britain an opportunity to shape a support scheme which supports both wildlife and food production  promising rewilding projects would stop short of introducing wolves to the Scottish highlands.

Future rewilding could involve the reinstatement of missing species, including apex predators, which play a crucial top-down regulatory role in ecosystems.

Trees for Life said that the Eurasian lynx  already reintroduced to areas of Europe such as the Alps and Jura mountains, is a realistic candidate for reintroduction.

"It offers little threat to sheep and none to humans. It is a specialist predator of roe deer, a species which has multiplied in Britain in recent years and which holds back the natural regeneration of trees through intensive browsing," they said.

But Countryside Alliance said lynx and wolves are just as likely to prey on ground nesting birds and livestock, as they are on wild deer.

"This was demonstrated in July this year when a lynx escaped from Dartmoor Zoo, killing four lambs belonging to a local farmer, before being recaptured," the said.

Income sources

Issues including changes in the devolved administration and the role that managed rewilding can play in conservation and restoration were part of an inquiry launched by the committee in July.

Experts giving evidence to the committee said rewilding would give upland farmers access to potential income sources.

"There is no single definition of rewilding. It can refer to a complete withdrawal of land management practices, but generally it is used to describe a change in management practice involving the proactive restoration of land, habitat and wildlife to its uncultivated or unmanaged state," the Countryside Alliance said in its written evidence to the committee.

Rewilding has the additional benefit of creating vibrant natural landscapes which stimulate tourism and ecological awareness, while also soaking up greater quantities of CO2, helping bring the economy towards carbon neutrality.

Helen Meech, director at Rewilding Britain, said: "With MPs currently consulting on new approaches to management of Britains natural environment post-Brexit, we feel it is high-time we allowed landscapes the space they need to rewild, creating natural wetlands and bringing back the wildlife that was once common to Britain.

"Rewilding also has benefit of improving water quality and stimulating the revival of vibrant ecosystems rich in wildlife."

Vision of hope

Professor Richard Brazier from the University of Exeter said: "Rewilded areas help to mitigate soil erosion, diffuse pollution and flash flooding that we see from intensive agriculture, so as far as I can see the two go hand in hand."

Alan Watson Featherstone, who at the end of 2015 was awarded an alternative New Years honour by The Guardian newspaper, in a celebration of the heroes of the year, said: "Rewilding offers an exciting vision of hope. In the Highlands of Scotland we have an opportunity to reverse environmental degradation and create a world-class wilderness region - offering a lifeline to wildlife including beavers, capercaillie, wood ants and pine martens, and restoring natural forests and wild spaces for our children and grandchildren."

Professor Sue Hartley from the British Ecological Society agreed, saying: "There is an opportunity to look for win wins. It would be good to get away from the dichotomy of intensive production and rewilding, it is more integrated than that."
Two Northern Irish farmers have been jailed following convictions for a range of animal welfare offences.

The two farmers, from Armagh, were convicted at Armagh Magistrates Court on the 25 October.

Both farmers received five months imprisonment on six charges and three months imprisonment on three charges, to run concurrently.

The farmers have been disqualified from keeping all animals for life, and the government was awarded a deprivation order in respect of nine animals currently in its possession.

They have both been fined a combined total sum of 2000.

The case arose as a result of an anonymous complaint about the welfare of the animals kept on the premises.
A group of three UK businesses in the agricultural industry will be travelling with other EU nations to help bolster exports in Asia.

European agriculture Commissioner Phil Hogan, along with numerous businesses, producers and organisations, will be travelling to Hong-Kong, Vietnam and Indonesia from 1-9 November.

This is part of Commissioner Hogan's diplomatic offensive started in the beginning of 2016 to open up new markets to EU agri-food products and follows on from similar trips to Colombia, Mexico, China and Japan.

Nations from all across the EU will be represented, and from the UK these include representatives from:

Fayrefield Foods Ltd: Mr. Neil McFarlane, deputy managing director will be travelling to Vietnam, Singapore & Indonesia.

Fayrefield Foods is a British based company with European offices in Denmark, Germany and Spain.

Established in 1982, it is one of Europe's largest dairy sales and marketing companies owning and representing a number of well-known dairy brands and with a growing reputation for their label.

The balance is either traded or sold as ingredients into the industrial sector.

The company suppliers all major multiple retailers, independents and discounters as well as wholesalers and manufacturers worldwide.

All its cheese are pre-packed at their state-of-the-art packing and distributing centre in the UK. Fayrefield Foods have the best expertise and resources required to build their business.

Scotch Whisky Association: Martin Bell, Deputy Director, global affairs will be travelling to Vietnam.

Founded in 1912, the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) is the representative body of the Scotch Whisky industry. Its 63 members together account for around 95% of Scotch Whisky production.

The SWA represents the industry to governments on trade policy matters up to and including the World Trade Organisation and takes legal action to protect the Scotch Whisky geographical indication in the industrys 200 markets worldwide.

The Agriculture & Horticulture Development Board (AHDB): Jonathan Eckley, senior export manager, also travelling to Vietnam

AHDB is a statutory levy board, funded by farmers and processors. AHDB is managed as an independent organisation.

The purpose is to equip levy payers with independent, evidence-based information and tools to help them grow and be- come more competitive and sustainable.

The AHDB Pork Export Departments main aim is to maximise exports of red meat and offal by supporting the industry in developing existing markets and creating new opportunities worldwide.

This Asian export mission will create opportunities for these UK organisations. It will provide information for their respective markets, together with the opportunity to identify key market participants to support future export activity to grow market presence.
Convert 10% of arable land to agroforestry, Woodland Trust says
Trudeau scrapped a trip to Belgium late Wednesday shortly after news that the Belgian government had failed to make decisive headway to lift a crucial veto of the trade deal by the regional government for Wallonia.

Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel announced Thursday morning that days of negotiations with Wallonia has resulted in a deal.

"This is good news," Michel said. He added that the new text provides guarantees for farmers and on a corporate dispute settlement system that will allow Belgium to sign the deal.

Trudeau's office was awaiting a call from EU President Donald Tusk's office early Thursday with further details.

"This is a positive development, but there is still work to do," Alex Lawrence, a spokesman for Canadian International Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland, said in an email. "Canada has done its job. We negotiated a progressive agreement that will create jobs and growth for the middle class. Canada remains ready to sign this important agreement when Europe is ready."

Tusk said he would contact Trudeau "only once all procedures are finalized" for the European Union to sign the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, also known as CETA.

Beyond the Belgian regional parliaments backing the agreement, the adjustments would have to be vetted by the 27 other EU countries. That makes a signing ceremony on Thursday impossible.

Trudeau said Wednesday that Canada was prepared to wait to sign CETA, which took seven years to negotiate.

"We are confident that in the coming days we will see a positive outcome for this historic deal," Trudeau told Parliament in Ottawa.

Politicians in Wallonia, which has a population of 3.6 million compared with over 500 million for the whole EU, had argued that the proposed accord would undermine labour, environment and consumer standards.

A veto by Wallonia would have prevented Belgium from supporting the Canadian trade deal, which requires unanimous support from the European Union's 28 member states.

Source: Meatbusiness
Warrenton, VA (20186)

Today

Areas of patchy fog early. Cloudy skies this morning will become partly cloudy this afternoon. High 74F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Clear to partly cloudy. Low around 50F. Winds light and variable.
What does a more efficient Caleb Love look like for the Tar Heels?
Leah Remini wants to encourage others to speak out about Scientology.

Leah Remini

The 46-year-old actress abandoned the controversial church in 2013 after 30 years and has been working on a new A&E docuseries 'Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath' in order to expose it.

She said: "For too long, this multi-billion-dollar organisation bullied victims and journalists to prevent the truth being told. It is my hope that we shed light on information that makes the world aware of what is really going on and encourages others to speak up.

"Even though I had been a member of the church for a long time, I was stunned by some of the things I learned. There is a lot more to this story than anyone knows. And this series is breaking ground in bringing that information to light."

Leah previously revealed that Nicole Kidman inspired her to leave the Church of Scientology.

The 'King of Queens' actress claims the Oscar winner, who divorced the religion's most high profile member Tom Cruise in 2001, gave her the "confidence" to abandon her faith, even though they'd never met before.

She said: "Nicole Kidman was an inspiration to me at the time I left the church.

"Knowing that she went on to have a successful and happy life, both personally and professionally, helped to give me confidence.

"She left and she was okay. Knowing that helped to give me confidence and comfort."

The - who calls Nicole her "guardian angel" in her book, 'Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology' - also claims Scientology torn Nicole's relationship with her adopted children, Isabella, 23, and Connor, 21, apart after her split from Tom.

She said: "I felt very sad for this family, that they seemed to have been torn apart. That something outside the family had come between a mother and her children."
Sam Lavery will sing Bonnie Tyler's 'Total Eclipse of the Heart' for Fright Night week on 'The X Factor' on Saturday evening (29.10.16).

Sam Lavery's Fright Night Twitter post

The 17-year-old wannabe pop star has the challenge of covering Bonnie's 1983 global smash hit, which has gone on to become her staple song and a karaoke favourite of the British public.

To calm her nerves Sam has had a good luck message from 65-year-old Bonnie's best friend, North East entertainer Lorraine Crosby.

Lorraine - who duetted with Meat Loaf on his 1993 hit 'I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)' - said: "Hope she nails the song, good luck! Jim Steinman's epic track 'Total Eclipse...' is one of the biggest power ballads of all time."

Lorraine, 55, also posted on Twitter: "Good luck Sam."

Sam is thrilled to get message of support from Lorraine and retweeted a news item about her her performance along with the caption: "Wow thank you so much xxx (sic)"

The pretty brunette can't wait to step onto 'The X Factor' and sing for the public and the judges, Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh, Nicole Scherzinger and Louis Walsh, and gave her 26,7000 followers a sneak peak of her outfit.

Along with a selfie photo of her in a flesh-coloured bodice, she wrote: "Not longggggg (sic)"

Elsewhere on Fright Night, Honey G will rap Will Smith's 'Men In Black' - the theme song to his 1997 sci-fi film - while Matt Terry is going to take on Nina Simone's spellbinder 'I Put a Spell on You'.

Gifty Louise will once again cover a Fifth Harmony track when she delivers 'I'm In Love With a Monster', Emily Middlemas will be putting her unique spin on Radiohead's 'Creep' and 5 After Midnight will attempt to turn Michael Jackson's iconic 'Thriller' into a boy band track.

'The X Factor' will air on ITV at 8:00 pm on Saturday.

Full list of 'X Factor' Fright Night performances:

Boys:

Matt Terry: Nina Simone - 'I Put a Spell on You'

Ryan Lawrie: Backstreet Boys - 'Everybody'

Girls:

Emily Middlemas: Radiohead - 'Creep'

Sam Lavery: Bonnie Tyler - 'Total Eclipse of the Heart'

Gifty Louise: Fifth Harmony - 'I'm In Love With a Monster'

Overs:

Honey G: Will Smith - 'Men in Black'

Saara Aalto: Lady Gaga - 'Bad Romance'

Groups:

5 After Midnight: Michael Jackson - 'Thriller'

Four of Diamonds: Ella Henderson - 'Ghost'
Cornell Law Library

A new center at Cornell Law School aims to help eliminate the death penalty across the globe through research and lawyer training.





The school on Tuesday announced the launch of the Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide - an initiative made possible by a $3.2 million grant from the Atlantic Philanthropies, the private foundation of university alum Chuck Feeney, founder of the Duty Free Shoppers Group.





The center, led by Cornell professor Sandra Babcock, aspires to help end capital punishment internationally by highlighting the flaws in the application of the death penalty worldwide, and by strengthening the training of defense lawyers who handle such cases. Administrators say it's the 1st center of its kind in the United States. A handful of schools have domestic-focused death penalty centers or death penalty clinics, including the University of Texas School of Law; Yale Law School; Harvard Law School; and the University of California, Berkeley School of Law. The new center will elevate the international death penalty research Cornell Law faculty started in 2011.





"I think this is the right moment for a center like this to explicitly focus on the convergence of national and international [death penalty abolition] movements and fill in the gaps in the research that's being down around the world," Babcock said.





The centerpiece of the initiative is a summer institute for capital defense lawyers around the world to convene and share notes on effective defense strategies. The first institute will convene death penalty defense lawyers from sub-Saharan Africa, where the judicial system is plagued by a lack of resources, Babcock said. Future conferences will focus on other regions. "The resources available to lawyers around the world who are working on these issues is really nonexistent," she said.





The center also will conduct research on the death penalty and maintain a free online database on capital punishment law and practices around the world. Among the items on the center's research agenda are how discrimination impacts Latinos facing the death penalty in the United States, and the gathering of information on the death penalty and vulnerable groups, such as women and people with metal illnesses or intellectual disabilities.





The center will house law school clinics focused on the international death penalty and human rights.





"Capital punishment has emerged as one of the most important human rights issues in the 21st century, and I am pleased that the Atlantic Philanthropies has recognized Cornell Law School's leading role, globally, in this debate," said law Dean Eduardo Penalver.





Feeney, 85, graduated from Cornell University in 1956, and co-founded the Duty Free Shoppers Group - the airport-based purveyor of perfume, booze and candy - 4 years later. He transferred his nearly 39 % ownership in the company to the Atlantic Philanthropies in 1984, which is focused on funding health and social programs around the world. Feeney, though the foundation, had donated about $100 million to Cornell University.

Experts Debate the Death Penalty

Experts from the Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide addressed the death penalty as an ethically controversial issue and predicted that it will gradually fall out of use going forward.





On Tuesday, the center brought a panel of experts to Myron Taylor Hall, where they facilitated a discussion on the domestic and international implications of the movement against the death penalty.





The use of capital punishment in the criminal justice system is severely flawed, because it can be difficult to fairly discern who deserves the death penalty, argued Denny LeBoeuf, the current director of the American Civil Liberties Union's John Adams Project.





"To believe in the death penalty, you have to believe 2 things," LeBoeuf said. "You must believe that there is a category of ... murderers who, by virtue [of] their character and the crime they have committed, have no right to life."





Due to these moral concerns, the death penalty is less socially acceptable today than it has been in the past, according to Delphine Lourtau, the executive director of the Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide.





"There is a strong and very clear global trend not only towards outright abolition of the death penalty, but also towards a decreased reliance on capital punishment as a regular feature of criminal justice," Lourtau said. "The 2nd big takeaway point ... is that increasingly the death penalty is only applied by a small minority of states."





Lourtau explained that China performs more executions than the rest of the world combined and said Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and the United States "together represent over 90 % of the remaining executions."





Victor M. Uribe, a minister from the Mexican Foreign Service, also shared insights on capital punishment in Mexico, a country which banned the practice in 2005. Even before it was prohibited, the death penalty was "applied very rarely," he said - the last military execution occurred in 1961.





"Mexico is absolutely opposed to the imposition of the death penalty in any circumstance," Uribe said.





Looking forward, Sheri Lynn Johnson, the assistant director of the Cornell Law School's Death Penalty Project, predicted that complete abolition of the practice in the United States will take time.





"There are people now who are saying that the Supreme Court is going to strike it down, and I'm not optimistic that's going to happen anytime soon," Johnson said. "What I do think we are going to see and have been seeing is abolition - or maybe not abolition, but continued decrease in the willingness of most states, actually all states, to use the death penalty."





Other panelists concurred that the road towards successful elimination of the death penalty looks promising. Lourtau pointed out that the United States is the only country in North, Central, or South America that has performed an execution in the past 7 years.





International pressure will also contribute to a move away from the use of capital punishment in the United States, according to LeBoeuf.





"The death penalty is increasingly seen as a human rights issue, not a criminal justice issue," LeBoeuf said.





The Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide - the 1st of its kind in the United States - was established in 2011 to coordinate efforts to end practice of the death penalty through research and renewed awareness, according to the center's official website.





"Cornell is really an ideal place to ideal place to house this center because it has a unique concentration of faculty that have spent decades defending people facing the death penalty," said Sandra Babcock, the center's founder and faculty director.

 | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; send a submission; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com



Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE!

Source: New York Law Journal, October 26, 2016Source: The Cornell Daily Sun, October 27, 2016
Huntsman Textile Effects, the leading provider of high quality dyes and chemicals to the textile industries, a division of Huntsman Corporation, a publicly traded global manufacturer and marketer of differentiated chemicals, and the Zhejiang Jihua Group, a leading dyes and chemicals manufacturer in China, entered into a strategic partnership agreement.Under the agreement, the two companies will cooperate in a wide range of areas to jointly capitalise on the growing need for dye and chemical solutions for China's textile sector. The partnership will help the two companies speed up their supply chains to react more quickly to customers' demand and increase cost efficiency for customers.

Huntsman Textile Effects, the leading provider of high quality dyes and chemicals to the textile industries, a division of Huntsman Corporation, a publicly traded global manufacturer and marketer of differentiated chemicals, and the Zhejiang Jihua Group, a leading dyes and chemicals manufacturer in China, entered into a strategic partnership agreement.#

The forming of the strategic partnership marks a further step forward for the existing co-operation between the two companies. In August, Huntsman Textile Effects, a major innovator with more than 700 patents, announced it had granted a sole licence to Jihua for manufacturing, sales and marketing of Huntsman's patented reactive Super Black dyes in China. With the agreement, Huntsman and Jihua are now selling the Super Black products under their respective tradenames. In addition, Huntsman also awarded Jihua Group the right to sub-license its patented Super Black dyes in China.The strategic alliance will help further strengthen the two companies' capabilities of serving their customers in China and speed up their expansion in the country while raising standards for the whole industry.Rohit Aggarwal, president of Huntsman Textile Effects said, The strategic alliance will allow us to create greater cost and operational efficiencies and we can react quicker and be more nimble to our customers in China. The alliance will also help to pave the way for us to enter into further discussions with Jihua Group to broaden our cooperation to include other reactive dyes and intermediates in the future. (GK)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
The Prime Minister says Fiji has drawn a line under its disciplined forces acting in an undisciplined manner and there will be zero tolerance for any acts of torture or other human rights abuses.

He said that whatever may have occurred in the relative turmoil of the past, human rights abuses of any kind are legally and morally unacceptable. And Fiji is determined to bring the perpetrators of such abuses to justice.Addressing a regional meeting in Natadola on the implementation of the United Nations Convention on Torture in the Pacific, the Prime Minister said the provisions in the Constitution that prohibit torture and other forms of cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment must be respected without exception. And this applies especially to the countrys law enforcement agencies.He said that while Fiji has never had a state-sanctioned policy of torture, there have been isolated instances of individuals or groups from the disciplined forces resorting to acts of torture and other forms of punishment that violate the human rights of their fellow citizens.The Prime Minister said there is no excuse for this behaviour and the record shows that Fijis laws prohibiting torture and other forms of abuse are being enforced. He cited as evidence the police investigation into whether excessive force was used to apprehend a group of criminal suspects in Navua  an incident captured on video. He also cited the current trial in Lautoka relating to the alleged rape and subsequent death of a detainee, Vilikesa Soko.The Prime Minister spoke of a culture of buturaki in Fiji  of beatings  that was deeply ingrained in the Fijian psyche. He said Fiji has long had a culture of people resorting to violence, whether it is against women in the home, instilling discipline in our children or the police attempting to extract confessions from criminal suspects. But these practices are no longer acceptable in the modern age.The PM said Fiji has embarked on a process of culture change beginning in the nations schools, where corporal punishment is now banned to deter children from resorting to violence as adults. And Fijians are now saying far more forcefully than in the past that violence of any form has no place in national life.The Prime Ministers call for culture change was echoed in an address to the delegates from around the Pacific and beyond by the Attorney-General, the Honourable Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum.The AG said the effort to combat torture and other forms of cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment could not be confined to the disciplined forces alone. It required a complementary approach that also addressed human rights abuses in the home  including violence against women  and violations against students at school and employees in the workplace.The AG said Fiji has gone beyond the provisions of the UN Convention on Torture by specifically prohibiting violations in the home, at school and in workplaces in Section Eleven of the Constitution.The AG also said that to deal with torture and other cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment, countries must adopt the concept of complementarity, which means the adoption of laws and policies that promote respect for human rights. In Fijis case, it includes the implementation of the Domestic Violence Decree and Child Welfare Decree, which specifically deal with the reporting of violence and abuse against women and children and provides mechanisms of redress.He also referred to the Information Bill that is before Parliament and the United Nations Convention against Corruption, that will further promote a culture of transparency and accountability.-ENDS-
27 October 2016, Israel: The President of Israel His Excellency Reuven Rivlin conveyed his personal and the Government of Israel's sincere gratitude towards Fiji's peacekeepers.

In a telephone conversation with the President His Excellency Major-General (Ret'd) Jioji Konrote, His Excellency Rivlin commended the Fijian soldiers for their professionalism and for their neutrality in contributing to peace in the Middle East.His Excellency Rivlin asked His Excellency Konrote to convey Israel's gratitude and best wishes to all of Fiji's soldiers.The telephone conversation between the two Heads of States was initiated by the President of Israel after an initial courtesy call on him by His Excellency Konrote had to be cancelled due to a delayed flight from Amman, Jordan on Tuesday 25 October.The delayed flight was caused by massive fogging in Amman. Efforts to reschedule the courtesy call fell through due to the tight schedules of both Presidents.However, His Excellency Konrote was honoured to be able to speak with His Excellency Rivlin by phone. He also reassured President Rivlin of Fiji's commitment to serve humanity through peacekeeping duties in countries that require such services.His Excellency Konrote is on an official visit to Fiji's peacekeeping troops in his capacity as President and Commander-in-Chief of the Republic of Fiji Military Forces.He earlier met separately with the Prime Minister of Lebanon, Hon. Tammam Salam and the President of Iraq His Excellency Fuad Masum who both not only commended Fiji's soldiers but also assured Fiji that their respective nations will do all they can to ensure the safety of our soldiers.-ENDS-
HON. PM VOREQE BAINIMARAMA'S SPEECH AT THE COMMISSIONING OF THE RENOVATED VUGALEI DISTRICT SCHOOL AT NAIMASIMASI VILLAGE TAILEVU





Children of Vugalei District School,

Villagers of Naimasimasi,Elders of the villageLadies and GentlemenBula vinaka and a very good morning to you all.Its a pleasure to be with you all here in Naimasimasi in Tailevu to open the newly renovated Vugalei District School  a project that has brought modern, functional educational facilities to the deserving students of Naimasimasi.Being here with you all today is a true joy for me, because any opportunity that I have to meet with ordinary Fijians in their communities serves as a reminder of why my Government is so committed to uplifting our people. To hear your stories, to share in your optimism for our future and to spread the benefits of our growing economy renews my drive to work as hard as I can on behalf of the Fijian people so that we can continue bringing new advancements, infrastructure and opportunities to villages just like Naimasimasi all across our islands.It is especially wonderful for me to be here today because I have found giving our children greater educational opportunities to be the most fulfilling part of my job as Prime Minister.I am incredibly proud of the work we have already done to boost access to education and improve the quality our education systems. That work has given Fijis students an unprecedented range of educational options and helped create a culture of academic excellence that will reap benefits for generations to come.When my Government first launched the free education initiative, we did so because our vision for this country extends far beyond any one term in office or, indeed, any one generation. We did so because we believed it to be our duty to make our children better prepared for the challenges of the future so that they are suited to build on the success we have already achieved.The renovation of this school is a part of that same vision. It represents an investment of $253,857, and I would like to thank the Republic of Fiji Military Force Engineers Regiment for putting those funds to good use through their work in renovating this institution.The 190 students who are served by this school will now have buildings and facilities that they can be proud to call their own.They can attend classes, and learn and grow alongside each other with the knowledge that this Government -- that their nation -- cares deeply about their success and achievement. That we are prepared to invest in educational infrastructure that is worthy of their enormous potential as future leaders of this country.This newly renovated school sends a strong message to these students. It says that they matter, that their achievements matter and their futures matter. That if they work hard, there will be a reward.For 77 years, the Vugalei District School has served your village and helped prepare your young people for adulthood. As your school looks to next chapter, know that my Government will be there -- every step of the way -- to make sure that your students and your community share fully in our nations progress.Fiji is on the move. Every year we are taking our country to new heights, not only by growing our economy, but by bringing more Fijians into the mainstream. We are building a foundation of prosperity for our people, and today it is a great pleasure to again extend that foundation to the people of Naimasimasi Village.To the students of Vugalei District School, please respect this significant investment in your education. That doesnt only mean that you should properly care these new facilities, but also study hard and learn as much as you can. If you do so, you will earn the pride of your parents, your community and your nation.I look forward to watching your community put this newly renovated school to good use.Vinaka Vakalevu. Thank you.
PM. HON VOREQE BAINIMARAMA'S SPEECH AT THE COMMISSIONING OF THE NEW KOROVOU FIRE STATION





The Honourable Minister for Local Government, Housing, Environment, Infrastructure and Transport, Parveen Bala

Cabinet Ministers;Management and Staff of the National Fire Authority;Distinguished Guests;My Fellow Fijians;Bula vinaka and a very good afternoon to you all.Im delighted to be here with all of you today to officially commission this new Korovou Fire Station.Just two days ago, I was in Korolevu opening another fire station to service the people of the Coral Coast, and Im very proud to be here today to do the same for the people of Korovou.Just like Korolevu, your community now has dramatically improved access to the life-saving services of the National Fire Authority. Emergency response teams will now stand at the ready to protect your lives, your homes, your property and your livelihoods from the massive damage that fires can cause to your communities.My Government takes the threat that fires pose to families and businesses throughout our country very seriously. Far too often, do we read stories about families who have been left destitute after their homes have been destroyed, or businesses  which may have been built over decades reduced to rubble in an instant.We all know that those tragedies do not take place only in urban areas, but that they can strike anywhere at any time. That is why it is vital we make the services of the NFA as widely accessible as they can be -- in rural and urban areas alike -- and that is why this new fire station is so important.Every minute that emergency services are delayed in responding to a crisis can cost lives. For too long, many of our villages, towns and settlements have faced that reality. It is in the immediate aftermath of an incident that response services can do the greatest good, and in many cases, emergency services have been too far away to respond effectively. The communities near Korovou, for example, were reliant on the Nausori Fire Station -- nearly 30 kilometres away.With the establishment of this new fire station, those days are over. And my Government will continue working overtime to extend the services of the NFA as widely as possible throughout our islands.Those services arent only limited to fire emergency response, the NFA responds to a wide-range of emergencies, including road accidents, hazardous material exposure and flooding, and also sends emergency ambulance responses.Not so long ago, in March of this year, we all remember the incident in Wailotua in Tailveu, when a privately owned truck carting a 20-foot container of Sodium Cyanide  a dangerous chemical  veered off the road into a waterway.It was the NFA that stepped up got that situation quickly under control. Our firefighters safely removed the harmful materials, contained the spillage and stopped the harm from spreading to nearby communities. You now have that same level of professional, capable emergency response services right at your doorstep. And while I hope that our firefighters wont have to save any of you from disasters down the road, if need-be -- rest assured -- they will be there.The NFAs presence here will bring your community a newfound peace of mind, but we cannot forget that it is incumbent on all of us to do what we can to keep our people and communities safe from harm.We need to take extreme caution in maintaining the electrical wiring in our homes. We need to make sure our appliances are turned off and are unplugged when not in use. We need to keep flammable materials out of the house and keep our gas containers away from heat sources. We need to keep hazardous materials away from children and teach them the dangers of playing with fire.We have to be careful when smoking in our homes, when lighting our candles and our mosquito coils and even when cooking in the kitchen. Any of these activities have the potential to causes fires that can cause widespread damage and end lives. So please be vigilant. Please take these risks seriously. Please help us all keep our communities safe from harm.Ladies and gentlemen,This fire station is an investment that my Government is happy to make, because it will bring your communities a peace of mind that no one can put a price on. Our peoples safety is our ultimate goal, and this station will provide a level of comfort and security never before experienced in Korovou.My Government is a caring Government. Our priority is people. And this new station will protect the people of Korovou  their investments, their homes, their properties and their businesses. Now you can continue to advance your local economy with the knowledge that your progress is protected by the NFA  our firefighters will be there should you need them.To our firefighters who will be working in this new station, I ask that you serve these deserving communities to the best of your ability. You will be relied upon to provide life-saving services, and that is a responsibility that should be respected at all times.With that, it is my sincere pleasure to declare this new fire station officially opened.Vinaka Vakalevu. Thank you.
Hong Kongs Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) is digging into UBS's role as a sponsor on more than one IPO. That could lead to the Swiss bank being stripped of a licence that allows it to sponsor Hong Kong listings and advise on mergers and acquisitions.

It is not the only bank that faces that risk. The investigation is only the first chapter in a long list of similar probes taking place in Hong Kong, said a person who works with both the regulator and bankers on enforcement issues.

Everybody is under the microscope, said the person. There are around 8 to 12 serious ongoing investigations at the SFC around this topic.

These investigations come after the SFC hired a tough new head of enforcement. Thomas Atkinson, who started in May, has already made a series of moves to clear through a backlog of cases and has privately said he wants to focus on the high-impact cases.

Mega mess

There is precedent for the SFC stripping a firm of its corporate finance licence. The regulator revoked Mega Capital Asias corporate finance licence in April 2012, the result of the firms sponsorship of an IPO by clothing company Hontex in 2009.

But that was before the SFC announced a tougher set of rules for sponsors. In October 2013, the regulator told sponsors they needed to do better  and earlier  due diligence of potential IPO candidates, adding potential criminal liability to those firms that did a poor job. Since then, the regulator does not appear to have revoked another firms licence.

It remains unclear what IPOs in particular the regulator is investigating. UBS has sponsored only one Hong Kong listing this year  that of Everbright Securities  but it seems likely the investigation goes back a few years.

Last year, the bank was a co-sponsor on six deals and the sole sponsor of one, from Shanghai Haohai Biological Technology. Since other banks are firmly in the SFCs crosshairs, UBS may have only been one of several sponsors on the deals under investigation.

Some of the companies UBS brought to the IPO market have faced their own sanctions from the regulator. China Metal Recycling, for instance, faced a wind-up order from the regulator last February. The SFC said the company was involved in a highly complex, sophisticated and dishonest scheme to deceive investors. UBS and China Merchants Securities sponsored the 2009 listing, according to Dealogic data.

UBS has generated $112 million of revenue from its ECM business in Asia Pacific so far this year, according to Dealogic. That puts the bank tenth in the league table. Last year, UBS was the third highest-earner in the market, after hauling in revenue of $312 million.

UBS declined to comment. The SFC confirmed the investigation was underway, but did not give any more details than that.

Additional reporting by Anita Lam, Danny Leung and Ray Chan.
THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/27/16 -- Alset Energy Corp. (TSX VENTURE: ION) ("Alset" or "the Company") is pleased to announce the appointment of Allan Barry Laboucan, of the Allan Barry Reports, as the Company's new President and CEO effective immediately. Alset will benefit from his experience and network of professionals in the mining sector, as well as a broad network of retail to institutional investors following his work, as it moves through a strategic phase for the Company's growth prospects in the lithium sector.

Allan Barry Laboucan, President and CEO of Alset Energy stated: "Alset Energy has some high quality assets and I'm excited to join the team in moving the projects forward through the challenging stages of development. When I analyzed Alset's lithium project in Mexico, I stayed focused on the quality of the assets. The Mexican salars stood out as a project that would have low costs for exploration and economic evaluation phases as well as the potential to be low cost from a development and production perspective. Drilling success and the lithium price, as well as how quickly emerging markets for lithium grow, will ultimately dictate the path we take going forward. I can close by saying that without a doubt I'm excited to take over the leadership of Alset at this time".

Alset is currently working through the requisite permitting in order to conduct exploration drilling in the salars and expect the paperwork to be filed with the appropriate authorities within the next month with drilling to commence in the first quarter of 2017. This work will enable the Company to better understand the historical work and provide insight into the potential for lithium production from brines and thus guide further efforts to advance the projects.

About Allan Barry Laboucan

Allan is a First Nations mining entrepreneur that started working in the mining sector in 1993. During his career he has worked with some of the most talented people in geosciences that have mentored him throughout his career.

In 2005, Allan founded Allan Barry Reports and the success of his reports opened doors for appearing many times on business television and online media. His reports are highly respected with some of the top talent in the sector appearing as guests on his online shows broadcast on his website.

About Alset Energy

Alset Energy is a TSX Venture listed junior exploration company focused on exploring and acquiring mineral properties containing the metals needed by today's high-tech industries. The Company is actively exploring in Mexico and Canada.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of Alset Energy Corp.,

- Stephen Stares, Director

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.

The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements relate to information that is based on assumptions of management, forecasts of future results, and estimates of amounts not yet determinable. Any statements that express predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not statements of historical fact and may be "forward-looking statements."

Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: risks related to failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis and on acceptable terms; risks related to the outcome of legal proceedings; political and regulatory risks associated with mining and exploration; risks related to the maintenance of stock exchange listings; risks related to environmental regulation and liability; the potential for delays in exploration or development activities or the completion of feasibility studies; the uncertainty of profitability; risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of drill results, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; risks related to the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses; results of prefeasibility and feasibility studies, and the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations; risks related to gold price and other commodity price fluctuations; and other risks and uncertainties related to the Company's prospects, properties and business detailed elsewhere in the Company's disclosure record. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements. These forward looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's expectations or projections.

Contacts:

Alset Energy Corp.

Allan Barry Laboucan

(604) 505-4753

www.alsetenergy.ca



Investor Relations:

Daniel Boase

(416) 566-2673




VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 11/16/16 -- Klondex Mines Ltd. (TSX: KDX)(NYSE MKT: KLDX) ("Klondex" or the "Company") today announced that, in connection with the filing of a preliminary short form prospectus (the "Preliminary Prospectus"), its independent technical report titled "Independent Technical Report for the Hollister Gold Project, Nevada, USA" in respect of the Hollister gold project ("Hollister") has been filed on SEDAR and is now also available on the Company's website. SRK Consulting (Canada) Inc. ("SRK") authored the report, which is dated October 25, 2016, with an effective date of May 30, 2016.

The Preliminary Prospectus has been filed by the Company in furtherance of its agreement to qualify the common shares of the Company to be issued on the exercise or deemed exercise of the special warrants of the Company (the "Special Warrants"), which were issued to holders of subscription receipts of the Company ("Subscription Receipts") upon the acquisition by the Company of Hollister (the "Acquisition"). The Subscription Receipts were sold on a "bought deal" private placement basis on August 18, 2016 (the "Offering"). For further information regarding the Offering and the Acquisition, please see the Company's press releases dated August 18, 2016 and October 3, 2016, respectively, as well as the other filings of the Company which are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and EDGAR at www.sec.gov.

The special warrants and underlying common shares offered have not been registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons absent U.S. registration or an applicable exemption from the U.S. registration requirements. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities.

About Klondex Mines Ltd. (www.klondexmines.com)

Klondex is a well-capitalized, junior-tier gold and silver mining company focused on exploration, development, and production in a safe, environmentally responsible, and cost-effective manner. The Company has 100% interests in three producing mineral properties: the Fire Creek Mine and the Midas Mine and ore milling facility, both of which are located in the state of Nevada, USA, and the True North Gold Mine (formerly the Rice Lake Mine) and mill in Manitoba, Canada. The Company also has 100% interests in two recently acquired projects, the Hollister mine and the Aurora mine and ore milling facility (formerly known as Esmeralda), also located in Nevada, USA.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Information

This news release contains certain information that may constitute forward-looking information or forward-looking statements under applicable Canadian and U.S. securities legislation (collectively, "forward looking information"), including but not limited to information about the filing by the Company of a prospectus and the timing of any qualification of the common shares of the Company underlying the Special Warrants. This forward-looking information entails various risks and uncertainties that are based on current expectations, and actual results may differ materially from those contained in such information. These uncertainties and risks include, but are not limited to, the strength of the global economy; the price of gold and silver; operational, funding and liquidity risks; the degree to which mineral resource estimates are reflective of actual mineral resources; the degree to which factors which would make a mineral deposit commercially viable are present; the risks and hazards associated with underground operations; and the ability of Klondex to fund its substantial capital requirements and operations. Risks and uncertainties about the Company's business are more fully discussed in the Company's disclosure materials filed with the securities regulatory authorities in Canada and United States available at www.sedar.com and www.sec.gov, respectively. Readers are urged to read these materials. Klondex assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking information or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from such information unless required by law.

Contacts:

Klondex Mines Ltd.

John Seaberg, Senior Vice President, Investor Relations

and Corporate Development

O: 775-284-5757 or M: 303-668-7991

jseaberg@klondexmines.com

www.klondexmines.com




Regulatory News:

Bravida Holding AB (STO:BRAV):

July September 2016

Net sales amounted to SEK 3,289 million (3,302)

The order backlog increased by 19% to SEK 8,475 million (7,099)

Operating profit increased by 13 to SEK 189 million (168)

The operating margin improved to 5.8% (5.1)

Adjusted operating profit was SEK 200 million (195) Specific costs were SEK 11 million (27). The adjusted operating margin was 6.1% (5.9).

Profit after tax was SEK 133 million (109)

Cash flow from operating activities was SEK -57 million (-201)

Net debt amounted to SEK 2,783 million (2,972)

One acquisition was completed in the quarter, adding annual sales of SEK 290 million

Earnings per share were SEK 0.66 (0.54)

January September 2016

Net sales increased by 2% to SEK 10,515 million (10,287)

Operating profit increased by 16% to SEK 591 million (507)

The operating margin improved to 5.6% (4.9)

Adjusted operating profit was SEK 602 million (571) Specific costs were SEK 11 million (64). The adjusted operating margin was 5.7% (5.5).

Profit after tax was SEK 419 million (231)

Cash flow from operating activities was SEK 13 million (146)

Five acquisitions were completed in the period, adding annual sales of SEK 479 million

Earnings per share were SEK 2.08 (1.15)

CEO statement

"Continued improvement in margins, better cash flow and a strong order backlog"

Continued improvement in margins and better cash flow

Bravida's operating margin improved in the third quarter from an underlying 5.9 percent to 6.1 percent. Sales and earnings performance in the quarter show that our 'margin over volume' strategy is sustainable.

Operating margins have improved in Sweden, Denmark and Finland as a result of our improvement initiatives and careful selection of projects. The operating margin in the Norwegian business has decreased but is still the highest in the Group. Operations in Finland are developing according to plan.

Considering our seasonal fluctuation our operating cash flow in the quarter was acceptable, an improvement of approximately SEK 150 million.

Unchanged net sales

Our net sales were unchanged in the quarter. This was due to certain factors that are independent of one another. Faced with tough competition in Stockholm, we have according to Bravida's strategy 'margin over volume', decided to not accept projects with low margins, which resulted in lower net sales in the region. We have also taken action on the cost side in Stockholm. In recent months, the order backlog in Stockholm has been built up to an acceptable level with good margins, which will increase our growth in the region. In 2014 and 2015, Bravida had several high volume projects in production which have now been completed. This contributed to a high growth and high comparative figures.

It is pleasing that we are growing within service at some 7 percent over the period January to September and by 2 percent in the quarter.

Acquired business contributed with a 5 percent growth, which is in line with Bravida's financial targets. Continued good pipeline for acquisitions at attractive multiples.

Record-high order backlog

Our order backlog, which only includes installations, is continuing to increase and by the end of the third quarter it was once again at a new record level of SEK 8.5 billion, which represents an increase of SEK 500 million over the past quarter. In recent years, Bravida has successfully carried out a number of major installation assignments as part of various hospital projects. More recently, these have resulted in several new major orders relating to new-builds, redevelopments and refurbishments of other hospitals, such as projects in Uppsala University Hospital and Kungalv Hospital in Sweden, and a hospital in Gdstrup in Denmark, which will lead to future growth.

Continued competition for labour

Bravida will grow and we will need more employees. We are working intensively with our resource issues and we are gradually strengthening our employer brand to be able to compete for skilled employees in the future.

Gradual improvement in demand

Several of our large construction company customers are also improving their order backlogs, which is positive for our own business going forward. We will see continued good demand for Bravida's services, and our growth will gradually improve. The demand will be balanced against shortage in resources and price pressure which will continue our focus on 'margin over volume'.

Mattias Johansson, Stockholm, October 2016

This information is information that Bravida Holding AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation and the Securities Markets Act. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out above, at 07:30 CET on 28 October 2016.

A webcasted telephone conference will be held at 09:30 CET on 28 October 2016.

Bravida is a leading multi-technical service provider i the Nordics, with about 9,000 employees. Bravida delivers specialist services as well as complete electrical, heating and plumbing, and HVAC solutions, offering everything from design and project planning to installation, operation and maintenance. Bravida is represented in around 140 locations in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland. www.bravidagroup.com/en/

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161027007043/en/

Contacts:

Bravida

Mattias Johansson, +46 8 695 20 00

CEO and Group President

or

Nils-Johan Andersson, +46 70 668 50 75

CFO

IRcontact@bravida.com
Second quarter (1 July-30 September 2016)-- Revenue rose by 2 percent to MSEK 1,879 (1,839). -- Operating profit amounted to MSEK 131 (131), corresponding to an operating margin of 7.0 percent (7.1) . -- Profit after financial items totalled MSEK 126 (126). -- Net profit amounted to MSEK 96 (96). -- Earnings per share totalled SEK 3.40 (3.40). -- Cash flow from operating activities amounted to MSEK 79 (57) and cash flow per share for the most recent 12-month period totalled SEK 17.70 (16.05). -- The return on equity for the most recent 12-month period was 14 percent (14). -- The equity/assets ratio at the end of the period was 51 percent (49). -- The operational net loan liability declined to MSEK 183 (451). -- Acquisition of a successful sales company in the UK and Ireland in order to strengthen the position of the Group's premium brands. Closing took place in early October 2016.Reporting period - 6 months (1 April-30 September 2016)-- Revenue rose by 3 percent to MSEK 4,014 (3,893). -- Operating profit increased by 2 percent to MSEK 264 (260) and the operating margin was 6.6 percent (6.7) . Operating profit for the first quarter of the preceding year was impacted by non-recurring items totalling MSEK +15 and the underlying earnings growth for the reporting period thus amounted to 8 percent. -- Profit after financial items rose by 2 percent to MSEK 255 (250). -- Net profit increased by 3 percent to MSEK 195 (190).Events after the end of the reporting period-- Acquisition of one of Norway's leading industrial resellers with approximately MNOK 240 in revenue strengthened the Group's position as a supplier to Nordic industry. Closing is scheduled to take place in November 2016.PRESIDENT'S STATEMENTThe Group's revenue, measured in local currency, rose by 2 percent during the first six months of the 2016/17 financial year. Operating profit increased by 8 percent during the period (adjusted for non-recurring items totalling MSEK +15, which impacted operating profit for the first quarter of the preceding year). The construction and civil engineering sector continues to grow, while demand from the industry remains relatively weak. The earnings trend for TOOLS Sweden has been negative during the last quarter and we are now implementing measures to improve the future profitability.A certain portion of our growth will come from acquisitions and we have completed two strategic acquisitions in recent months. Within Bergman & Beving, we acquired IQ Supplies - a successful sales company for our subsidiary Teng Tools, with sales in the UK and Ireland. This acquisition was fully in line with Bergman & Beving's strategy to strengthen the position of our premium brands. Within Momentum Group, we acquired Astrup Industrivarer - one of Norway's largest industrial resellers, with five branches in western Norway. This acquisition reaffirms Momentum Group's goal of being the best choice for customers when it comes to consumables and components for professional end users.With a healthy cash flow and strong balance sheet, we are creating the right conditions for the long-term profitable growth of Bergman & Beving and Momentum Group - both through organic growth and with attractive new acquisition opportunities.Stockholm, October 2016Ulf Lilius President & CEOPlease download the complete document here:Attachment:https://cns.omxgroup.com/cds/DisclosureAttachmentServlet?messageAttachmentId=591847
Iskandar Rahmat

3 years after he murdered 2 men, former police officer Iskandar Rahmat is fighting to save his own life.





The Court of Appeal reserved judgment on Wednesday (Oct 26) on Iskandar's appeal against 2 death sentences handed down to him for the murder of Mr Tan Boon Sin, 67, and his son Chee Heong, 42, on Jul 10, 2013.





Iskandar's lawyer, Wendell Wong, argued the murder convictions should be overturned and replaced with reduced charges, sparing Iskandar the noose. He urged the apex court to consider new evidence in the form of 2 reports - a forensic pathology report and a psychiatric report.





The forensic pathology report states that Iskandar suffered defensive injuries, lending weight to the defence's case that Mr Tan Boon Sin was the aggressor, and that Iskandar had wrested the knife from his hand and killed him in self-defence.





The latter report said Iskandar was diagnosed with 2 mental illnesses at the time of the murders. This "abnormality of mind ... substantially impaired his mental responsibility" for the killings, psychiatrist Dr John Bosco Lee stated.





FATHER, SON DIED FROM MULTIPLE STAB WOUNDS





Iskandar, 37, was found guilty of two counts of murder and sentenced to death on Dec 4 last year. High Court Justice Tay Yong Kwang found "no doubt" that the policeman, facing bankruptcy and dismissal from the force, intended to kill the elderly man for his money.





When Mr Tan's son, Chee Heong, appeared "at the most inopportune moment" at his father's house, "he quickly became collateral damage", Justice Tay said.





Father and son died from multiple stab wounds - 21 and 17 respectively - on areas like the scalp, face, neck and chest. The elder Tan died in Iskandar's arms, while the younger Tan staggered out of the house and collapsed behind a car in the driveway.





His body got caught under Iskandar's getaway car and was dragged for nearly 1km before it dislodged in front of Kovan MRT station. It also left a trail of blood leading back to 14J Hillside Drive, where the other body was discovered.





During his 10-day trial, Iskandar insisted he stabbed the men in self-defence, when the elder Tan came at him with a knife after he realised Iskandar had tricked him into removing S$600,000 in cash from a safe deposit box.





Iskandar maintains all he intended to do was to rob the man, not kill him.





The younger Tan barged in to find Iskandar covered in his father's blood and wielding a knife, and came at him with fists clenched, Iskandar had testified.





Prosecutors said Iskandar intended to kill Mr Tan for the money and decided to finish his son off too, to "silence completely the 2 persons who had seen him".





DIAGNOSIS OF MENTAL ILLNESS THREE YEARS LATE, "UNRELIABLE"





On Wednesday, they attempted to block Mr Wong from presenting new evidence, pointing out that the reports were prepared more than 3 years after the killings and more than 8 months after the trial.





In response to Mr Wong's submission that Iskandar was suffering from Acute Stress Reaction and Adjustment Disorder around the time of the murders, Deputy Public Prosecutor Lee Lit Cheng pointed out Iskandar himself had denied this at trial.





Iskandar cannot be allowed to now rely on "unreliable, self-serving" reports based on interviews 3 years after the fact, the prosecutor argued.





Urging the apex court to uphold the death sentence, DPP Lee said Iskandar had "no choice" but to kill Mr Tan "or face certain reprehension", because of the great lengths to which he had gone to trick the elderly man into removing cash and valuables from a safe deposit box.





PLAN GONE WRONG





Iskandar called Mr Tan from a payphone on Jul 10, and introduced himself as an officer from the Police Intelligence Department. He told the elderly man the police had "intel" that his safe deposit box would be "hit". Mr Tan agreed to replace his valuables with a CCTV camera, under the impression that he was participating in a secret police operation.





The men met later that afternoon at a Shell petrol station in Paya Lebar, where Iskandar passed Mr Tan a dummy CCTV camera to put in his safe deposit box.





Mr Tan did as he was told and returned later with cash and valuables in tow. Iskandar offered to escort him home as he was carrying a lot of money, and Mr Tan agreed.





It was when the pair arrived at the Tan family home at Hillside Drive that things went horribly wrong.





"Your client is the only person alive who was there," Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon said, pressing Iskandar's lawyer for an explanation as to why Mr Tan and his son ended up dead, when Iskandar claims he was the one attacked with a knife.





The CJ pointed out there appears to be no explanation for why Mr Tan allegedly attacked Iskandar suddenly, after following the policeman's instructions and even allowing him into his home.





"I have to tell you that that's something that causes me a great deal of difficulty," CJ Menon said, especially because "the only evidence (Iskandar has) put forward pivots on this point - that (Mr Tan) attacked him".





Mr Wong said there was no way the murder weapon could have come from Iskandar. The policeman was dressed in office wear and would not have been able to conceal a knife under his clothes, he argued.





To that, the prosecution reiterated that no knives were missing from the Tan family home and highlighted that Iskandar was "able to describe the knife in detail". He even drew a picture of it for investigators, despite the fact that its details would have been obscured by blood, DPP Lee said.





Iskandar's family was allowed to spend a few minutes with him after the 3-hour hearing. The Tan family was not present.

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Source: channelnewsasia, October 26, 2016
Espoo, Finland, 2016-10-28 07:45 CEST (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- SRV GROUP PLC PRESS RELEASE 28 OCTOBER 2016, AT 08.45SRV-implemented Okhta Mall shopping centre in St. Petersburg receives European Property AwardThe Okhta Mall shopping centre, implemented by SRV in cooperation with the Finnish investment fund Russia Invest, has won an award in the European Property Awards 2016 competition. The shopping centre was recognised for both architecture and marketing.Recognition at the European Property Awards is considered to be one of the real estate sector's most distinguished accolades. In the competition, an international jury of over 60 experts assesses new properties from the standpoints of architecture, real estate development, interior design and real estate marketing. The Okhta Mall was awarded in two different categories: shopping centre architecture (Retail Architecture) and project marketing (Development Marketing). The 2016 awards were presented yesterday, 27 October, at the 25th anniversary gala of the European Property Awards in London.In addition to architecture and marketing, the Okhta Mall has been recognised for its ecological aspects. From the very beginning, it has been an objective of the approximately EUR 200 million investment project to adhere to the main principles of sustainable development. The Okhta Mall was the first Russian shopping centre to receive a LEED GOLD certificate."Okhta Mall is our flagship project in Russia and the cornerstone of our operations in Russia and St. Petersburg. The goal was for the Okhta Mall to be a modern Scandinavian and ecological shopping centre. It is truly excellent that the Okhta Mall has been recognised so soon after opening for what it aimed to achieve," says Veli-Matti Kullas, SVP, Project Development in Russia.Construction work on the Okhta Mall began in autumn 2013, and the shopping centre opened in August 2016. The shopping centre, which has a total floor area of 140,000 square metres, is one of St. Petersburg's biggest as well as the largest retail project implemented in the city in recent years. Its leasable commercial space totals 78,000 square metres. The Okhta Mall's investors are SRV Group Plc and the Finnish investment fund Russia Invest, which is owned by SRV together with Ilmarinen, Sponda, Etera and Onvest. The Finnish architectural firm L Architects Oy was responsible for the modern Scandinavian design.For further information, please contact:Veli-Matti Kullas, SVP, Project Development in Russia, tel. +358 40 501 5280, veli-matti.kullas@srv.fiPaivi Kauhanen, SVP, Communications, tel. +358 50 598 9560, paivi.kauhanen@srv.fiwww.srv.fiFrom SRV's public image bank you can download pictures of the Okhta Mall shopping centre:https://www.srv.fi/en/srv-company/media/image-bankYou can also find us in the social media:Facebook LinkedIn Twitter InstagramSRV - Building for life
Braas Monier Building Group S.A.: Publication of Reasoned Opinion in response to Standard Industries' Offer Document published 14 October 2016; publication of Q3 2016 trading update; announcement of revised dividend policy

DGAP-News: Braas Monier Building Group S.A. / Schlagwort(e): Ubernahmeangebot Braas Monier Building Group S.A.: Publication of Reasoned Opinion in response to Standard Industries' Offer Document published 14 October 2016; publication of Q3 2016 trading update; announcement of revised dividend policy

28.10.2016 / 08:13 Fur den Inhalt der Mitteilung ist der Emittent verantwortlich.

Publication of Reasoned Opinion in response to Standard Industries' Offer Document published 14 October 2016; publication of Q3 2016 trading update; announcement of revised dividend policy

The Board of Braas Monier continues to reject Standard Industries' offer of EUR 25 per share

Luxembourg, 28 October 2016. The Board of Directors of Braas Monier (the "Board") today publishes its Reasoned Opinion (the "Reasoned Opinion") in response to Standard Industries' Offer Document published 14 October 2016 (the "Offer Document").

After careful review of the Offer Document the Board is of the opinion that Standard Industries' offer is inadequate from a financial perspective. The Board therefore advises the shareholders of Braas Monier to reject Standard Industries' offer.

The Board bases its recommendation on the following key considerations.

1. No premium for control

- Standard Industries' takeover offer of EUR 25 per share is at a discount to the current market price of above EUR 26 - The takeover offer is also at a discount to independent analysts' consensus trading target share price of EUR 26-27 - The average customary control premia paid for European companies over the last 20 years has been 36% - EUR 25 per share does not provide shareholders with a customary premium in exchange for control - The Board also notes that EUR 25 is the price per share which 40 North (Standard Industries' affiliate) paid in June 2016 for its non- controlling 29.1% shareholding in Braas Monier - The actions of Monier Holdings, which has been seeking to exit for some time, do not validate any offer price

2. Unrecognised value for synergies

- Standard Industries has indicated its intention to combine Braas Monier with Icopal - The Board believes that EUR 30-40 m would be a reasonable estimate of the amount of annual synergies which would arise from a combination of Icopal and Braas Monier. This estimate is supported by an analysis undertaken by a leading international management consultancy firm - EUR 30-40 m equates to less than 2% of Braas Monier's and Icopal's combined revenues and is in line with the level of synergies announced with other combinations of building materials manufacturers - The EUR 30-40 m synergies would arise both from revenue gains principally from cross-selling, and cost savings from areas such as duplicate corporate and regional functions, procurement, logistics and the removal of public company costs - EUR 25 per share cash offer would deprive Braas Monier shareholders of any benefits arising from synergies

3. Discount to most recent comparable transaction

- The 2016 acquisition of Icopal by Standard Industries' subsidiary, GAF Corporation, is the most comparable recent transaction in the sector - Standard Industries paid a multiple of 10.6x EBITDA for Icopal - Braas Monier has superior financial metrics compared to Icopal. Braas Monier's EBITDA margins are substantially higher than Icopal and Braas Monier generates c.2.5x the annual operating cashflow of Icopal, however the Offer by Standard Industries represents only 8.7x EBITDA

4. Unrecognised value in German pension schemes

- Braas Monier's pension liabilities relate almost exclusively to German pension schemes which are (a) unfunded (with no legal funding obligation) and (b) closed to new entrants - Since 2011 the Braas Monier pension liabilities have increased by almost EUR 200 m due principally to changes in discount rate assumptions. During this period the cash outflows under these pension schemes have remained stable at around EUR 15 m per annum, an amount which is not expected to increase materially in future years - The after tax pension liability under these pension schemes at 30 September 2016 was EUR 374 m. This accounting liability is derived in accordance with IFRS and assumes that this sum would be invested in high quality corporate bonds (or similar risk assets) generating investment returns of around 1% per annum - This contrasts with the c.8% equity free cashflow yield which Braas Monier currently generates at the current share price - Jefferies (the independent equity analyst) estimates that this mismatch could add a further EUR 2-3 per share of value to an acquiror which takes a long term view of the value of these pension liabilities

5. Significant future shareholder value as an independent company

- Braas Monier has successfully implemented a strategy of significant rationalisation and restructuring, resulting in a strong improvement in earnings and cashflows and a significant reduction of net debt - These material improvements in Braas Monier's financial position have enabled it to implement a successful strategy of organic and inorganic growth; to undertake a refinancing which will improve annual cashflow by around EUR 12 m, of which around EUR 6 m has been realized during Q3 2016; and to implement a progressive dividend policy - Braas Monier is strongly positioned financially and operationally to benefit from any recovery in its European markets. Braas Monier offers: - A sector leading equity free cashflow yield of c.8% - High cash generation with material further deleveraging expected in the medium term - High operational leverage, which the Board believes will generate improved earnings and even greater cashflows in any European recovery - Strong pricing power and sector leading sustainable EBITDA margins - A high quality platform for growth which is well positioned in all its key markets and with a strong geographic footprint - A successful ongoing M&A strategy with a well-developed pipeline of future opportunities

Braas Monier's financial adviser Rothschild has provided a fairness opinion concluding that the offer consideration is inadequate from a financial point of view. UBS has also provided a fairness opinion concluding that the offer consideration is inadequate from a financial point of view.

Further the Board notes a lack of clarity on certain matters in relation to Standard Industries' offer including: - The Offer Document provides no firm commitment in respect of employees;

- The Offer Document provides no details on future intentions in relation to matters including: strategy; use of assets; delisting; future of the business; and Board composition; and

The full text of the Reasoned Opinion is available on the Braas Monier website under the following link: www.offer.braas-monier.com

It is expressly noted that the Reasoned Opinion alone is binding. The information provided in this press release is not to be understood as an explanation or supplement to the statements in the Reasoned Opinion.

Publication of Q3 2016 trading update In conjunction with the Reasoned Opinion, Braas Monier also today released a trading statement for Q3 2016. The trading statement is available on the Braas Monier website under the following link: www.braas-monier.com/investor-relations/reports-presentations/index

Change of Dividend Policy and Dividend for 2016 The Board of Directors has previously stated its commitment to focus on generating high sustainable free cash flows and allocating them wisely. In this context the Board of Directors has undertaken a review of its dividend policy with the aim of paying a dividend which appropriately reflects the Company's financial condition, results of operations, capital requirements and investment opportunities.

Accordingly the Board of Directors has today decided to adjust Braas Monier's progressive dividend policy and link it more directly to the Company's adjusted free cash flow which the Board of Directors deems to be more appropriate for a well-balanced capital allocation. Therefore the Board of Directors has adopted a dividend policy with a total annual dividend payout ratio in the range of 30% - 50% of Braas Monier's adjusted free cash flow. Adjusted free cash flow is defined as net cash from operating and investing activities excluding growth capital expenditure (such as M&A) and significant one-off items incurred in the relevant period. Braas Monier retains its commitment to a net debt / Operating EBITDA ratio of no greater than 2.0x.

As a consequence of the Company's current operating and financial position and future prospects, the Board of Directors will propose to shareholders a total dividend of EUR 0.70 per ordinary share in respect of the financial year ending 31 December 2016 at the Annual General Meeting to be held on 10 May 2017.

Investor and Analyst presentation on Friday 28 October 2016 at 11am CET Braas Monier will hold a conference call regarding the Reasoned Opinion and the Q3 2016 trading statement. This call will be held on Friday 28 October 2016 at 11am CET. The call will be communicated by webcast under the following link: www.audio-webcast.com/cgi-bin/visitors.ssp?fn=visitor&id=4081

Enquiries:

Braas Monier: Achim Schreck Director Group Communications / Investor Relations Tel: +49 6171 61 2859

Rothschild: John Deans Tel: +44 (0) 20 7280 5000 Scott Harris: Alice Squires Tel: +44 (0) 207 653 0030 CNC Communications: Harald Kinzler Tel: +49 69 5060 37579

Forward-Looking Statement This document contains forward-looking statements relating to the business, financial performance and results of Braas Monier Building Group S.A. (the 'Company') and/or the industry in which the Company operates. The words 'anticipate', 'assume', 'believe', 'estimate', 'expect', 'foresee', 'intend', 'may', 'plan', 'project', 'should' and similar expressions are used to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts; they include statements about the Company's beliefs and expectations and the assumptions underlying them. These statements are based on plans, estimates and projections as they are currently available to the management of the Company. Forward-looking statements therefore speak only as of the date they are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update any of them in light of new information or future events. By their very nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. These statements are based on the Company's management's current expectations and are subject to a number of factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors (including, but not limited to, future global economic conditions, changed market conditions affecting the building materials industry, intense competition in the markets in which we operate and costs of compliance with applicable laws, regulations and standards, diverse political, legal, economic and other conditions affecting our markets, and other factors beyond our control). This document is intended to provide a general overview of the Company's business and does not purport to deal with all aspects and details regarding the Company. Neither the Company nor any of its directors, officers, employees or advisors nor any other person shall have any liability whatsoever for any errors or omissions or any loss howsoever arising, directly or indirectly, from any use of this information or its contents or otherwise arising in connection therewith. This document speaks as of its date and the material contained in this presentation reflects current legislation and the business and financial affairs of the Company which are subject to change and audit.

28.10.2016 Veroffentlichung einer Corporate News/Finanznachricht, ubermittelt durch DGAP - ein Service der EQS Group AG. Fur den Inhalt der Mitteilung ist der Emittent / Herausgeber verantwortlich.

Die DGAP Distributionsservices umfassen gesetzliche Meldepflichten, Corporate News/Finanznachrichten und Pressemitteilungen. Medienarchiv unter http://www.dgap.de

Sprache: Deutsch Unternehmen: Braas Monier Building Group S.A.

4, rue Lou Hemmer 1748 Senningerberg Groherzogtum Luxemburg Internet: www.braas-monier.com ISIN: LU1075065190 WKN: BMSA01 Indizes: SDAX

Borsen: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Munchen, Stuttgart, Tradegate Exchange

Ende der Mitteilung DGAP News-Service

515457 28.10.2016

ISIN LU1075065190

AXC0055 2016-10-28/08:13
OTTAWA (dpa-AFX) - The Japanese yen weakened against the other major currencies in the Asian session on Friday. The yen slipped to a 2-week low of 114.89 against the euro and more than a 3-week low of 106.04 against the Swiss franc, from yesterday's closing quotes of 114.69 and 105.94, respectively. The yen dropped to 128.24 against the pound, from yesterday's closing value of 128.01. Against the U.S. and the Canadian dollars, the yen slipped to a 3-month low of 105.37 and a 1-week low of 78.73 from yesterday's closing quotes of 105.28 and 78.64, respectively. If the yen extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 116.00 against the euro, 107.00 against the franc, 132.00 against the pound, 107.00 against the greenback and 80.00 against the loonie. 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.
Regulatory News:

July-September 2016

Net sales SEK 8,895m (9,218).

Operating income SEK -101m (33).

Adjusted operating income SEK -41m (81).

Items affecting comparability, net, SEK -60m (-48).

Net income for the period SEK -145m (22).

Earnings per share -0.07 (0.01).

Cash flow from operating activities SEK -634m (-264).

January-September 2016

Net sales SEK 28,123m (28,917).

Operating income SEK -71m (848).

Adjusted operating income SEK 258m (426).

Items affecting comparability, net, SEK -329m (422).

Net income for the period SEK -208m (615).

Earnings per share SEK -0.10 (0.31).

Cash flow from operating activities SEK -36m (749).

Message from Hakan Ericsson, President and CEO

Our results are dominated by continued challenges, above all in the form of sharply falling mail volumes, but also by tough competition in the logistics market. Measures are being taken to further cut costs and to create new income streams through an attractive Nordic end-to-end offering.

Net sales excluding acquisitions, divestments and currency effects declined by 4% in the third quarter to SEK 8,895m (9,218). The decrease was mainly due to a further sharp fall of, in all, 8% in the Group's mail volumes, 6% in Sweden and 17% in Denmark. To a certain degree, this is being offset by the continuingly strong growth in e-commerce. Volumes of B2C parcels increased by around 20%. Adjusted operating income totaled SEK -41m (81) in the quarter and SEK 258m (426) for the first nine months of the year. The deterioration is attributable mainly to lower income in Denmark and Sweden as a result of the decline in mail volumes, which could not be fully offset on the cost side. The reported operating income, including items affecting comparability, for the first nine months of the year was SEK -71m (848). The items affecting comparability, net SEK -329m (422), this year relate in the main to the sale of the non-Nordic operations of PostNord Stralfors and last year to a capital gain on the sale of a property in Copenhagen.

Danish postal regulation has now been modernized to be more closely aligned to the needs of businesses and private individuals. Effective July 1, economy mail is now the standard letter service in Denmark and from November Saturday deliveries will cease. In order to adapt operations on Denmark to sharply lower mail volumes, a series of robust measures are being implemented in an ongoing process. However, as income for the mail business has declined enormously over recent years, it is challenging to find ways of compensating fully on the cost side.

In Sweden, we are now seeing growing volume losses in the mail business. The Swedish operation, which has constantly adjusted its costs to lower income levels, has been able to produce results that are to some extent acceptable, despite the volume losses on the mail side. Having previously had to deal with volume losses of around 4% annually, we now need to adapt costs to volume decreases in the order of 6-7%. The remaining potential for rationalization is not expected to reconcile the need for essential cost efficiencies with a good mail service within the framework of current postal regulation. The current review of regulation of the postal sector is, against that background, very urgent.

The debate about service levels, price ceilings and actual customer needs is important. However, it should start from what is economically sustainable, from the perspectives of both business and the social economy. On its own, the combination of rising pay in our personnel-intensive organization and falling volumes is leading to constantly increasing delivery costs per item. Both the current price ceiling and the model proposed by the inquiry into postal legislation restrict PostNord's ability to operate a good postal service across the whole country under reasonable economic conditions.

"As sure as a letter in the post" has been the external acknowledgement of the professional pride that has characterized the whole delivery organization. Over the past two years, this pride has unfortunately come under challenge. Much driven by the major, essential changes implemented mainly during 2015 to establish reasonable economic conditions for mail and parcel distribution. During the year, we again reinforced quality levels. However, this will not be sufficient, and we are now focusing on further raising the quality experienced by mail customers and recipients. Disruptions in quality have caused our service and quality to come under intense scrutiny in social and traditional media in recent months.

Thus our transformation is not just about cutting costs and increasing efficiency. It is just as much about continuing to develop and clarify our offering in order to improve the quality perceived. With the help of new processes, total quality assessments will be performed to determine how recipients perceive the quality of our services. The findings from these assessments will without delay be translated into priority measures within our continuous program of improvement and our service development.

We deliver! PostNord is the leading supplier of communication and logistics solutions to, from and within the Nordic region. We ensure the postal service to households and businesses in Sweden and Denmark. With our expertise and strong distribution network, we develop options for tomorrow's communication, e-commerce, distribution and logistics in the Nordic region. In 2015, the Group had 35,000 employees and sales of about SEK 40 billion. The Parent Company is a Swedish public limited company headquartered in Solna, Sweden. Visit us at www.postnord.com

This information is such that PostNord AB (publ) is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation and the Securities Markets Act. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out abow, at 08.30 CET on October 28, 2016.

We deliver! PostNord is the leading supplier of communication and logistics solutions to, from and within the Nordic region. We ensure the postal service to households and businesses in Sweden and Denmark. With our expertise and strong distribution network, we develop options for tomorrow's communication, e-commerce, distribution and logistics in the Nordic region. In 2015, the Group had 35,000 employees and sales of about SEK 40 billion. The Parent Company is a Swedish public limited company headquartered in Solna, Sweden. Visit us at www.postnord.com

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161027007073/en/

Contacts:

For further information, please contact

PostNord Media Relations,

Emma Riblom

tel: 46 10 436 10 10,

e-mail: press@postnord.com
The following is a statement from The Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority (RAKIA), the investment arm of the UAE Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah:

The Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority (RAKIA), the investment arm of the UAE Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah, has filed a lawsuit against US-Iranian Farhad Azima in the London High Court.

The case brought by the RAKIA centres around two separate claims of misconduct. The first claims centres on the sale of the Sheraton Metechi Palace Hotel in Tbilisi from RAKIA Georgia to Eurasia Hotel Holdings Ltd, a company beneficially owned by Mr Houshang Hosseinpour. RAKIA alleges that Mr Azima took a 'secret commission', that went way beyond the agreed 5% commission of the sale price of the Hotel and in fact led to him receiving a 10% interest in the Hotel worth $6.25 million.

Other allegations made by RAKIA suggests Mr Azima paid, the then CEO of RAKIA Georgia, Khater Massaad $500,000 for his facilitation of the deal. Massaad has recently been arrested in Saudi Arabia and is awaiting extradition.

The second aspect of the case brought by RAKIA against Azima concerns a joint venture proposed by him in late 2015 to buy military aircraft valued at $52 million. RAKIA claims that the proposal was in fact an attempt to deceive RAKIA out of millions of dollars.

The High Court claim form states that "Mr Azima was aware that the joint venture submitted... grossly overstated the value of the aircraft" and that "Mr Azima [falsely] represented that the proposed joint venture had the 'backing' of the US government, including that the US Government would sponsor and support the proposed joint venture and would serve as its ultimate customer."

RAKIA is now seeking $2.6 million in damages. The main trial date is yet to be confirmed.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005042/en/

Contacts:

RAKIA Media Office

E: RAK@bellpottinger.com

T: +44 20 3772 2460




New Super Hero characters will team up with Samarium at the London Comic Con to fight the daily battles against IBD and complete the IBD Unmasked Super Hero Squad - The Unbeatables

OSAKA, Japan, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TSE: 4502) along with the support of Marvel Custom Solutions today announces the launch of four new Super Hero characters and the first chapter of a new graphic comic book at the popular London Comic Con, 28th - 30th October 2016. This first-of-its-kind global initiative - IBD Unmasked - has been designed to highlight both the daily battles and the remarkable strength of the unsung Super Heroes of the global inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) community. Takeda is the first pharmaceutical company to partner with Marvel Custom Solutions on a disease awareness campaign raising awareness of health conditions.

The new team of Super Heroes - The Unbeatables - were created by Marvel Custom Solutions with input from a panel of IBD patients from around the globe. The Super Heroes will appear in a new opening chapter of the IBD Unmasked graphic novel series available online at www.IBDunmasked.com, where visitors can also create and share their own Super Hero avatar, take part in quizzes and download tips to help them talk to their doctor, family or friends about their condition. Comic Con visitors can view a live painting demo by a Marvel illustrator and meet Samarium, the first of the IBD Super Heroes. You can track what's going on via the campaign hashtag IBDUnmasked.

"Patients told us about the physical and emotional battles they face every day from living with IBD and particularly highlighted the isolating nature of this disease. Through working with Marvel Custom Solutions and our global panel of patient advisors, we were able to creatively bring these insights to life and create parallels between the strength, perseverance and positivity of comic book Super Heroes and those living with IBD," explained Elissa Johnsen, Head, Global Product & Pipeline Communications, Takeda. "At Takeda we believe that IBD Unmasked will continue to celebrate the strength that real-life IBD Super Heroes exhibit every day and go on to spark powerful conversations, transform perceptions, and ultimately improve understanding of the impact of these diseases."

There are more than 5 million people worldwide who live with IBD,which includes the two most common types - ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD). For these people, everyday activities like getting together with friends and family or going to the cinema may be challenging. The condition affects people of all ages and diagnosis is most common in early adulthood.

In a large European study of people living with IBD, 48 percent of respondents reported that their lives are significantly or somewhat impacted by IBD symptoms even between flare-ups, IBD prevented 35 percent of people from pursuing an intimate relationship and 26 percent reported that IBD has gotten in the way of making and keeping friends.

"IBD Unmasked uses the medium of fantasy and fiction in an attempt to highlight the hidden reality and daily battles that people with IBD have to fight every day," said Dr. James Lindsay, consultant in Gastroenterology at Barts Health NHS Trust. "Feeling comfortable about discussing symptoms and their impact on your life is a crucial part of every consultation.Therefore, I encourage people with IBD to use the online IBD Unmasked resources to enhance consultations with their healthcare team so they can map out the best management plan for them."

"Marvel Custom Solutions is excited to be part of this unique partnership with Takeda, which has given us the opportunity to collaborate with such a courageous group of patient advisors to bring to life our new IBD Unmasked Super Hero squad, The Unbeatables," said Darren Sanchez, Editor and Project Manager, Marvel Custom Solutions. "We strongly hope that our characters Luminaria, Switchback, Rubblerouser, Datawave and the inaugural Samarium, inspire the very brave, real-life warriors with IBD across the globe, to speak out and celebrate their strength."

IBD Unmasked patient panel member, Seb Tucknott, comments "It has been a wonderful experience to be on the patient panel working with Marvel and Takeda to bring IBD experiences to life. What makes IBD Unmasked unique is its power to inspire people actually living with the condition, and in an imaginative way. IBD can be scary, but this campaign replaces fear with inspiration, empathy and humor - helping real-life IBD Super Heroes fight their own IBD battles every day."

Follow the Super Heroes story and conversation on the Twitter handle, @IBDunmasked, and via IBDunmasked.

To learn more about IBD and theIBD Unmaskedinitiative, visitwww.IBDunmasked.com. Note: the site will direct visitors to appropriate site and language, based on their location.

About Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn's Disease

Ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD) are marked by inflammation in the GI tract. UC impacts the large intestine only, which includes the colon and the rectum. The most common symptoms of UC include abdominal discomfort and blood or pus in diarrhea. CD can impact any part of the digestive tract and common symptoms may include abdominal pain, diarrhea, rectal bleeding, weight loss, and fever. There is no known cause for UC or CD, although many researchers believe that the interaction between genes, the body's immune system, and environmental factors play a role. The aim of UC and CD treatments is to induce and maintain remission, or achieve extended periods of time when patients do not experience symptoms.



Takeda's Commitment to Gastroenterology

Takeda is a global leader in gastroenterology. With expertise spanning more than 25 years, the company's dedication to innovation continues to evolve and have a lasting impact. Beginning in the 1990's Takeda pioneered gastroenterological breakthroughs in proton pump inhibitors. Since that time, Takeda's global capabilities have expanded into the specialty care market in gastroenterology and biologics with a focus on ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. Takeda's expertise also remains focused on therapeutic agents that work to reduce the production of acid in the stomach, and options for the treatment of chronic idiopathic constipation, irritable bowel syndrome with constipation and opioid-induced constipation. Through specialized and strategic in-house development, external partnerships, in-licensing and acquisitions, Takeda currently has a number of promising early stage GI assets in development, and remains committed to delivering innovative, therapeutic options for patients with gastrointestinal and liver diseases.



About Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited
SIENA, Italy, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Philogen S.p.A., a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing innovative immunology and immuno-oncology protein therapeutics, announced that the European Commission (EC) has granted Orphan Drug Designation to L19TNF - a non-covalent trimer of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) fused to an antibody specific to the extra-domain B of fibronectin in single-chain variable fragment format - for the treatment of soft-tissue sarcoma.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160212/332646LOGO )



Soft Tissue Sarcoma (STS) affects approximately 2.8 in 10,000 people in the EU and a recent statistic estimated 5-year survival rate of 58 % for patients suffering from STS within the EU.

The EC decision is based on a recommendation by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products (COMP). Orphan Drug Designation is granted for medicinal products that are intended for the diagnosis, prevention or treatment of rare diseases affecting less than 5 in 10,000people in the European Union (EU). The Orphan Medicinal Product status of L19TNF entails a number ofincentives, including 10-year market exclusivityonce the product receives marketing authorisation.

"We are very pleased to receive Orphan Drug Designation for L19TNF in soft tissue sarcoma.," said Dr. Duccio Neri, co-founder and CEO of the Philogen group. "The initial clinical results with L19TNF are very promising and we look forward to continue the development of such an important drug".

About L19TNF

L19TNF is a fully human antibody-based biopharmaceutical product, which allows for selective accumulation of the anti-cancer agent TNF in high concentrations at the site of disease.

The recruiting Phase Ib study (PH-L19TNFDOXO-01/12; EudraCT 2012-000950-75) is assessing safety of the combination of doxorubicin and L19TNF in advanced solid tumours including patients with STS.

For additional information, visit: http://www.philogen.com/en/news/

About the Philogen group

Philogen is a clinical-stage biotechnology company engaged in the discovery and development of novel biopharmaceutical products. Philogen's strategy is to deliver bioactive agents, for example cytokines or drugs to the site of disease using antibodies and ligands that specifically and efficiently target stromal antigens. This technology has generated a strong proprietary pipeline of clinical-stage products and also pre-clinical compounds in an array of disease indications. Philogen is headquartered in Siena, Italy, and has research activities at its subsidiary company Philochem in Zurich, Switzerland. Philogen is independently owned, and has signed agreements with several major pharmaceutical companies. For more information, please visit http://www.philogen.com
STAINES UPON THAMES, England, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Company Announces 100,000 Donation to Local NHS Trust

Mallinckrodt plc (NYSE: MNK), a leading specialty pharmaceutical company, has announced that it will be opening its new Global Corporate headquarters in Staines-upon-Thames outside London.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161028/433676 )

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150105/167103LOGO )

The creation of this new Corporate Headquarters in the UK reflects the company's global focus and, in its first phase, will involve the creation of new positions and the movement of key roles from other jurisdictions to locate approximately 45 new jobs in Staines-upon-Thames. The new offices will house the company's corporate strategy functions under Gary Phillips, M.D., Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer.

Commenting, Mark Trudeau, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mallinckrodt, said: "Today's announcement confirms the UK's strategic importance to Mallinckrodt as we continue our transition to become a high-growth, global specialty pharmaceutical business. Our work at this site will drive our efforts to build a diversified, global, specialty pharmaceutical company focused on creating shareholder value by improving revenue growth and profitability. Moreover, as someone who has previously lived in the UK, I look forward to spending a significant amount of my time each year in Staines."

Spelthorne MP Kwasi Kwarteng commented: "Mallinckrodt's decision to establish its global headquarters in Staines-upon-Thames proves that the town is very much 'open for business'. We have the people, skills and resources that international business requires, and it gives me great pleasure to welcome Mallinckrodt to the area. I first met representatives of the company last year when they were looking at this new investment in the UK and I am proud that my suggestion they consider the Staines area has now come to fruition."

To coincide with the announcement and, in a demonstration of Mallinckrodt's commitment to supporting local healthcare providers and the patient community, the company is also announcing the donation of 100,000 to the local Ashford and St. Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, the largest provider of acute hospital services in Surrey. The donation will help the Trust to continue to provide a high quality service to more than 380,000 people in the boroughs of Runnymede, Spelthorne, Woking and parts of Elmbridge, Hounslow, Surrey Heath and beyond.

Dr. Paul Crawshaw, Divisional Director for Women and Children's Services and Consultant Neonatologist at Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: "We are delighted that Mallinckrodt has chosen to link with Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals, and in particular with our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, and wishes to make such a generous donation. This is a significant sum and will make a real difference to a number of projects across the Trust, such as improving and expanding the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit."

Mallinckrodt is a global business that develops, manufactures, markets and distributes specialty pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical products and therapies, as well as nuclear imaging products. Areas of focus include autoimmune and rare diseases; immunotherapy and neonatal respiratory critical care therapies; analgesics and haemostasis products; and central nervous system drugs.


TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- Emerita Resources Corp. (the "Company" or "Emerita") (TSX VENTURE: EMO) is pleased to announce that the Provincial Court of Seville, an appellate court, has ruled in favour of Emerita in its appeal of the lower court's decision that there was not sufficient evidence of any criminal act in the Aznalcollar project tender process (See press release issued November 25, 2015).

The Aznalcollar project public tender process consisted of two stages. The first stage required bidders to provide detailed corporate information and demonstrate industry expertise. The second stage required submission of a detailed plan for the development of the Aznalcollar project. After the first stage of the public tender process was completed, the Andalucian government panel responsible for awarding the Aznalcollar project (the "Panel") determined that the only qualified bidders were Emerita and a group comprised of Minorbis and Grupo Mexico ("Minorbis-Grupo Mexico").

The appeal was heard by four judges of the Provincial Court of Seville (the "Court") who ruled unanimously in Emerita's favour in a 59 page judgement. The judges' decision was based on: (i) Minorbis-Grupo Mexico failing to submit the necessary documentation as required by the tender process; (ii) a failure by the Panel to consider the technical merits of the tender bids; and (iii) granting the mining rights to the Aznalcollar project to Los Frailes Mining, a company that did not participate in the tender process, contravened applicable laws governing public tenders in Spain.

The judges found that there is evidence of gross negligence and misconduct and indicated that there may be evidence of possible corruption and prevarication. As such, the Court has ordered the criminal case to be reopened against the Panel.

Emerita's Spanish legal counsel has summarized the key findings from the Court's ruling below.

Deficiencies with the Bid by Minorbis Grupo-Mexico

The judges found that the bid submitted by Minorbis-Grupo Mexico should not have passed to the second stage of the tender process. The relationship between Minorbis and Grupo Mexico was not properly demonstrated in the documentation submitted to the Panel. Among other things, Grupo Mexico never registered in Spain or with the Spanish consulate, which was a requirement of participation in the Aznalcollar tender. Further, Minorbis-Grupo Mexico never submitted the necessary documentation demonstrating its solvency, which was a mandatory requirement established in the tender process, as set out by the Panel. The Panel contradicted the tender requirements by declaring that the Minorbis-Grupo Mexico bid was submitted solely by Minorbis and that Grupo Mexico had just provided technical and financial support. The Court determined that this was not possible since Minorbis had been formed just 3 weeks prior to the deadline for submission of the tender, and according to administrative law in Spain, a company participating in a public tender has to demonstrate minimum experience and track record in that particular industry.

Failure to Consider the Technical Merits of the Tender Bids

The judges concluded that the Panel had failed to consider the technical details of the tender bids. As an example, the Panel did not consider that Emerita's bid contemplated double the investment compared to Minorbis-Grupo Mexico's bid. This decision fails to consider one of the principal objectives of the tender process, promoting investment to the region and creating opportunities for the community.

Los Frailes Mining did not Participate in the Tender Process

The judges concluded that awarding the Aznalcollar project rights to Los Frailes Mining, a company that never participated in the tender process, contravened the laws and regulations governing public tenders in Spain. Although it is not clear if it was Minorbis or Minorbis-Grupo Mexico that participated in the tender, the Aznalcollar project was granted to Los Frailes Mining, a company that was created after the completion of the tender process.

The conclusion by the Court is that there are numerous administrative irregularities of a serious nature which occurred during both stages of the public tender process and as such the crime of "Prevarication" cannot be discounted. The judges have ordered the case reopened against the Panel. This is a firm decision by the Court which cannot be appealed.

The Court's decision is a lengthy document written in Spanish. The Company is having it translated to English and is working with its Spanish legal advisors to fully analyze the ruling and will provide a more detailed update in the near future. The Company is also seeking advice on the legal process moving forward. The Company's Spanish legal counsel has advised that under Spanish law, if it is found that the awarding of a tender involves the commission of a crime, the tender is automatically awarded to the next qualified bidder. In the Aznalcollar tender, Emerita is the only qualified bidder.

The Aznalcollar project hosts the past producing Aznalcollar and Los Frailes zinc-lead-silver deposits. If awarded the tender, the Los Frailes deposit would be Emerita's focus of development for restarting mining operations at the site. The local community is strongly supportive of an environmentally and socially responsible approach to developing the site.

According to Joaquin Merino, President and CEO of Emerita; "We are excited by this development. Emerita continues to maintain that its bid was superior and it should have been awarded the Aznalcollar project pursuant to the tender process. We are fully committed to working with the Government and the community to develop the Aznalcollar project to the highest environmental and social standards."

About Emerita Resources Corp.

Emerita is a natural resource company engaged in the acquisition, exploration and development of mineral properties with a primary focus on exploring in Spain and Brazil. The Company's corporate office and technical team are based in Sevilla, Spain with an administrative office in Toronto, Canada.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Information

This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, without limitation, statements regarding the Aznalcollar project, the significance and impact of the Court's rulings, participation in any public tenders, the ability of the Company to be granted any mining rights pursuant to a public tender process, and the Company's future plans. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved". Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Emerita, as the case may be, to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including but not limited to: general business, economic, competitive, geopolitical and social uncertainties; the actual results of current exploration activities; risks associated with operation in foreign jurisdictions; ability to successfully integrate purchased properties or mining rights awarded; foreign operations risks; and other risks inherent in the mining industry. Although Emerita has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Emerita does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

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.

Contacts:

Emerita Resources Corp.

Joaquin Merino

+34 (628) 1754 66 (Spain)



Emerita Resources Corp.

Helia Bento

+1 416 309 4293 (Toronto)

info@emeritaresources.com




CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - The Australian dollar weakened against the other major currencies in the pre-European session on Friday. The Australian dollar fell to an 8-day low of 1.4411 against the euro, from an early high of 1.4339. Against the U.S., the New Zealand and the Canadian dollars, the aussie dropped to a 2-week low of 0.7573, a 4-day low of 1.0622 and a 3-day low of 1.0142 from early highs of 0.7608, 1.0664 and 1.0175, respectively. The aussie slipped to 79.76 against the yen, from an early high of 80.02. If the aussie extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 1.47 against the euro, 0.74 against the greenback, 1.04 against the kiwi, 0.99 against the loonie and 77.00 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.
Hassan Rouhani (L), Recep Erdogan (center), Ali Khamenei (R)

Three Turkish citizens were reportedly executed in Iran 11 days after Erdogan paid an official visit to Tehran.





Iran Human Rights (October 27 2016): Iran Human Rights (IHR) has discovered that three Turkish citizens were executed in Iran last year on April 18, 2015. The executions took place 11 days after Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrived in Tehran on an official visit with both Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.





According to information received by Iran Human Rights from confirmed sources, the three Turkish citizens were hanged on April 18, 2015 at Mashhad's Vakilabad Prison for alleged drug related offenses. According to close sources, the three men were convicted of drug charges in three separate cases. They have been identified as: Mehmet (Mohammad) Yilmaz, Faruk Guner (46 years old), and Matin (surname unknown at this time).





These three prisoners were reportedly not granted their last prison visit with family members before they were executed. Additionally, close sources say that the Iranian authorities informed the families of one of those executed the same day and another family on April 27, 2015. Their bodies were reportedly returned to Turkey on May 8, 2015.





"We are not certain whether the imminent executions of the three Turkish citizens were part of the talks between Erdogan and the Iranian authorities. It's also unclear whether the Turkish authorities took any action to help save their lives. The timing of the executions and lack of public reactions by the Turkish government is highly questionable", says Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, spokesperson for Iran Human Rights.





At least two of the men were reportedly jailed in Iran for four years before they were executed. According to their families, they did not receive fair trials.





"I travelled to Iran seven times in order to deliver my dad's medication to him. During that time I was able to witness the investigation process of his case. The Turkish authorities did nothing for my dad. All they did was introduce our family to a lawyer. We gave the lawyer power of attorney, but the lawyer did nothing...The Iranian authorities confiscated my dad's truck, which was worth 80 thousand Turkish lira. My family is currently still paying off the truck through monthly installments," Michael, one of Mehmet Yilmaz's children tells Iran Human Rights.





"An Iranian had planted a bag containing 26 kilograms of opium in my dad's truck and then left. This individual had arranged with my dad to be picked up again at the Neyshabur city pit stop. However, this individual was arrested in Neyshabur by Iranian authorities. The Iranian authorities showed up at Neyshabur pit stop and informed my dad that they had caught the owner of the bag. They told my dad to not worry, that he's a guest in Iran, and asked him to go with them to give a testimony. However, the authorities ended up executing both my dad and the owner of the bag. Until the last moments, my dad and his friends were anticipating to be sent back to Turkey, because the Iranian authorities had told them not to worry and that they would be returned to Turkey soon."





Faruk (Farooq) Guner was father to nine children, ranging from the ages of 6 and 20, who are currently living off charitable donations. One of Faruk Guner's family members, who spoke to Iran Human Rights, criticized Erdogan's inaction. Erdogan was Prime Minister of Turkey at the time of Guner's arrest.





Huda Guner, Faruk's wife, had previously told a local Turkish website: "Faruk was a driver of a transit truck. He would load and unload cargo between Afghanistan and Turkey. In that process, someone hid drugs in the cargo and he was arrested for it. Faruk had told us by phone that Iranian authorities were subjecting him to torture and that they had chained his feet. He would ask us to call the Turkish Prime Minister's office and request for their help. We tried to meet with Erdogan, but they wouldn't even let us near the Prime Minister's office."





Although the executions were carried out last year, official sources in Iran and Turkey, including the media and judiciary, have not released any public comments or statements.





"We call on the international community and the Turkish government to investigate the testimonies by the family members of these prisoners that their loved ones did not receive fair trials and were subjected to torture," says Amiry-Moghaddam.

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Source: Iran Human Rights , October 28, 2016
On 27 October 2016, the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders of AB Linas Agro Group (code 148030011, address: Smelynes St. 2 C, LT-35143 Panevezys, Lithuania) decided to allocate the Company's profit for the financial year ended 30 June 2016 and to pay out 0.0076 EUR dividend per share before tax.



Dividends will be paid to the shareholders who at the end of the tenth business day following the day of the Annual General Meeting that adopted a decision on dividend payment, i.e. on 11 November 2016 will be shareholders of AB Linas Agro Group.



Till 25 November 2016 the dividends will be paid out in the following order:



- to the shareholders, whose AB Linas Agro Group shares are kept in personal securities accounts operated by securities account operators other than Swedbank, AB the dividend amount, after deduction of personal income tax or corporate income tax applicable by the laws of the Republic of Lithuania, will be transferred to all the account operators' bank accounts at the same time.



- to the shareholders, whose AB Linas Agro Group shares are kept in personal securities accounts operated by the authorized custodian Swedbank, AB the dividend amount, after deduction of personal income tax or corporate income tax applicable by the laws of the Republic of Lithuania, will be transferred to the shareholders' accounts with Swedbank, AB.



Dividends for the financial year ended 30 June 2016 will be taxed in the following order:



- dividends paid to natural persons-residents / legal entities-residents of the Republic of Lithuania and natural persons-residents / legal entities-residents of foreign countries are subject to corporate income tax of 15 per cent, unless otherwise provided for by the laws.



For additional information please contact Swedbank, AB by phone +370 5 2582485

Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de
The Annual General Meeting (hereinafter - the Meeting) of AB "Linas Agro Group" (hereinafter - the Company) was held on 27 October 2016.The total number of the Company's shares is 158,940,398, the number of shares granting voting rights is 158,157,426, and the own shares in amount of 782,972 acquired by the Company do not grant voting rights.In total 11 Company's shareholders, who owned shares of the Company at the end of the Accounting day of the Meeting (20 October 2016), participated in the Meeting having 125,644,648 share votes, which amounted to 79.44 percent of the total number of the Company's share votes.6 (six) duly filled General Voting Ballots were presented to the Meeting.Four Board members of the Company took place in the Meeting: Darius Zubas (Chairman of the Board, the Head of the Company (CEO) - The Managing Director), Tomas Tumenas (Finance Director of the Company (CFO), Dainius Pilkauskas and Vytautas Sidlauskas (Deputy Chairman of the Board).The quorum existed.Decisions of the Meeting:1. Presentation of the Company's Audit committee activity report.Decision: Presented (enclosed). No voting.2. Presentation of the independent auditors' report.Decision: Presented (enclosed). No voting.3. Presentation of the consolidated annual report of the Company for the financial year 2015/2016.Decision: Presented (enclosed). No voting.4. Approval of the consolidated and the Company's set of financial statements for the financial year ended 30 June, 2016.Decision: Approve the consolidated and the Company's set of financial statements for the financial year ended 30 June, 2016 (enclosed).Results of voting:FOR - 125,473,320 votes (including 101,732,789 share votes of shareholders who voted in advance).AGAINST - no votes.DID NOT VOTE - 171,328 votes (including 171,328 share votes of shareholders who presented the General Voting Ballot in advance).5. Approval of the payment of bonuses to the members of the Board of the Company.Decision:5.1. Allocate EUR 245,000.00 (two hundred forty five thousand euro) of the net profit of the Company as bonuses for the members of the Board of the Company for the financial year 2015/2016, and pay EUR 35,000.00 (thirty five thousand euro) to each member of the Board of the Company;5.2. Instruct the Finance Division of the Company, having deducted the taxes due, to pay the bonuses to the members of the Board of the Company by 30 November 2016.Results of voting:FOR - 125,473,320 votes (including 101,732,789 share votes of shareholders who voted in advance).AGAINST - 171,328 votes (including 171,328 share votes of shareholders who presented the General Voting Ballot in advance).DID NOT VOTE - no votes.6. Approval of the Distribution of the Company's Profit.Decision: Approve the Distribution of the Company's Profit:1) Retained earnings - profit (loss) of the previous financial year EUR at the end of the accounting financial year 27,169,0 93 2) Net profit (loss) of the financial year EUR 4,993,77 4 3) The profit (loss) of the accounting financial year not recognized (EUR in the profit (loss) account 62,131) 4) The transfers from the reserves EUR 105,000 5) The shareholder's contributions to cover the losses of the - Company (if shareholders decided to cover all or part of losses) 6) The total profit (loss) available for appropriation EUR 32,205,7 36 7) The part of the profit allocated to the legal reserve EUR 250,000 8) The part of the profit allocated to the reserve of the own share - acquisition 9) The part of the profit allocated to the other reserves - 10) The part of the profit allocated for the payment of dividends* EUR 1,201,99 6 11) The part of the profit allocated for payment of annual bonuses to EUR the Board, employees and other purposes 245,000 12) Retained earnings - profit at the end of the financial year EUR carried forward to the next financial year 30,508,7 40* allocate EUR 1,201,996 for the dividend payment for the financial year ended on 30 June, 2016, which consist EUR 0.0076 with taxes per one share of the Company (calculated without own shares acquired by the Company).Results of voting:FOR - 125,644,648 votes (including 101,904,117 share votes of shareholders who voted in advance).AGAINST - no votes.DID NOT VOTE - no votes.7. Election of the Company's auditor for the financial year 2015/2016 OF THE COMPANY and establishment of the payment for the services.Decision:7.1. Elect Auditor of the Company "ERNST & YOUNG BALTIC" (code 110878442, address Subaciaus St. 7, Vilnius, Lithuania);7.2. Establish the payment for services not more than EUR 30,000.00 (thirty thousand euro) (VAT excluded) for the audit of the Company's and consolidated financial statements for the financial year 2016/2017;7.3. Entrust the Managing Director of the Company to conclude and sign the agreement with elected Auditor.Results of voting:FOR - 125,644,648 votes (including 101,904,117 share votes of shareholders who voted in advance).AGAINST - no votes.DID NOT VOTE - no votes.8. Election of the Company's Board members.Decision: Taking into consideration that the term of the current Company's Board expired on 24 October 2016, to elect to the Board of the Company for the four-year term of the Board:1. Andrius Pranckevicius2. Arturas Pribusauskas3. Arunas Zubas4. Dainius Pilkauskas5. Darius Zubas6. Tomas Tumenas7. Vytautas Sidlauskas.Results of voting:Each candidate collected the same number of electoral votes:FOR - 125,644,648 votes (including 101,904,117 share votes of shareholders who voted in advance).AGAINST - no votes.DID NOT VOTE - no votes.Sincerely Chairman of the Board Darius ZubasAttachment:https://cns.omxgroup.com/cds/DisclosureAttachmentServlet?messageAttachmentId=591979
Online printer offers live-tracking and flexible delivery

Together with its best-known brand print24.com and in collaboration with its delivery service providers, the online printer UNITEDPRINT SE is now offering new and flexible delivery options without any extra charges!

With the new dispatch features, customers now receive their parcels bang on time and, thanks to a practical live-tracking, delivery can be accurately monitored to within 30 minutes. Customers who use the new print24.com features free of charge are informed the day before by email about the actual delivery date and can respond individually. If no one is there to receive the parcel, delivery can be easily postponed by up to seven days or the item can be left with a neighbour or at a parcel centre. Alternatively, the customer may wish to issue a delivery authorisation note or have the parcel delivered to a different address.

Ali Jason Bazooband, Managing Director for Innovation/Marketing of print24.com, commented: "We're proud to be working closely with our delivery service providers and delighted that our customers are benefitting even further from the many options provided by our delivery services! Our flexible delivery process is now even more convenient and without any additional costs for our customers!" The new delivery options are already open to all print24.com customers and can be easily selected for almost any order.

print24.com is a UNITEDPRINT SE brand, a global and innovation-oriented e-commerce company for print and media. As one of Europe's leading online printers, UNITEDPRINT SE is represented in the marketplace by the renowned brands print24, Easyprint, Unitedprint, getprint, printwhat, FIRSTPRINT, DDK PRINT BIG, infowerk, and Unitedprint Shop Services (USS). The company employs a staff of over 700 people at 26 locations worldwide (in Germany, 21 other European countries, and in Brazil, China, Canada, and the US). In addition to the standard print products, the company provides its customers with high-quality products ranging from the textile printing, photo printing, advertising equipment printing and gastronomy sectors. Customers can also benefit from their 24-hour availability as well as their 30/60/90-payment model, which is unique in this sector.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005255/en/

Contacts:

unitedprint.com SE

Maria Lehmann

0049-(0)351 27225388

presse@unitedprint.com
INDIANAPOLIS, IN -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- Equities First Holdings, LLC (EFH, www.equitiesfirst.com), a global lender and a leader in alternative shareholder financing solutions, announced today that the company has fully concluded a transaction with Andrew Newland, CEO of ANGLE plc, by returning 1.35 million shares of ANGLE plc (AIM: AGL.LN) (OTCQX: ANPCY) stock to him, which was used as collateral in a financial transaction.

This two-year financing facility, originated on October 27, 2014, was one of EFH's first transactions executed in the United Kingdom after the acquisition of Meridian Equity Partners Limited. EFH acquired Meridian in the summer of 2014 and rebranded the acquired operation as Equities First (London) Limited.

Equities First (London) Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority of the United Kingdom, register number 605564.

"The return of collateral to clients is business-as-usual for Equities First Holdings," said Al Christy, Jr., Founder and CEO of EFH. "As a company, EFH and its subsidiaries have completed more than 700 transactions, and we have a perfect track record of returning our clients' collateral upon maturity and repayment."

The market disclosure made by ANGLE plc related to this transaction can be found here.

About Equities First Holdings

Since 2002, Equities First Holdings, LLC (EFH) has provided clients with alternative financing solutions, supplying capital against publicly traded stock to enable clients to meet their personal and professional goals. EFH provides capital against shares traded on public exchanges around the world. The company has completed more than 700 transactions and delivered more than $1.4 billion USD in funding to date.

EFH is a global company with offices in nine countries, including wholly owned subsidiaries Equities First (London) Limited, Equities First Holdings Hong Kong Limited, Equities First Holdings Singapore Limited, and Equities First Holdings (Australia) Pty Ltd. For more information, visit www.equitiesfirst.com.

DISCLAIMER

This release is intended for informational use only, and does not constitute an offer, stated or implied, of any type. Equities First Holdings, LLC and all of its subsidiaries work exclusively with individuals classified as sophisticated investors or Professional clients. The Equities First Holdings platform is not intended for retail investors.

Contacts

MEDIA

Brandon Russell

+1-317-429-3500

media@equitiesfirst.com




MADRID, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

PharmaMar (MSE: PHM) has announced today that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has accepted to assess the Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) for Aplidin (plitidepsin) in combination with dexamethasone for the treatment of relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (MM).

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150203/727958-b )



PharmaMar submitted the above mentioned application for the antitumor drug of marine origin, Aplidin, in combination with dexamethasone given the positive results obtained from the ADMYRE study. Plitidepsin could be a therapeutic alternative for patients suffering from relapsed and/or refractory multiple myeloma.

After this acceptance, the EMA is going to start the assessment of this potential treatment for a type of blood cancer which accounts for 10% of all hematological malignancies.

The ADMYRE clinical trial is a randomized, Phase III study where the efficacy and safety of Aplidin with dexamethasone versus dexamethasone alone in patients with relapsed/refractory MM after at least three, but no more than six, prior therapeutic regimens has been evaluated. The results of the ADMYRE study showed a statistically significant 35% reduction in the risk of progression or death over the comparator. The study met its primary endpoint.

About multiple myeloma

Multiple myeloma is a relatively uncommon type of blood cancer, which accounts for 10% of all hematological malignancies, this being caused by malignant plasma cells that very rapidly multiply[i]. Normal plasma cells are white blood cells, which form part of the immune system, found in the bone marrow that produce the antibodies necessary for fighting infections[ii]. Abnormal cells produce a type of antibody that does not benefit the body and accumulate, thus preventing normal cells from functioning properly. In 2015, 26,850 new cases were diagnosed in the US, and about 11,200 people died from this disease[iii].In Europe, the incidence is 4.5-6.0 out of 100 000 diagnosed per year[iv], and the prevalence is 18 cases per 100 000 diagnosed over five years[v].

i. http://www.cancer.org/cancer/multiplemyeloma/detailedguide/multiple-myeloma-what-is-multiple-myeloma

ii. http://www.myeloma.org.uk/information/what-is-myeloma/

iii. http://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/mulmy.html

iv. http://www.esmo.org/Guidelines/Haematological-Malignancies/Multiple-Myeloma

v. GLOBOCAN 2012, IARC - 6.9.2016

Paula Fernandez / Media Relations (+34-638-79-62-15) and Investor Relations (+34-914444500)
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.
LONDON, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Stevan Zivanovic to consult in the Test Lab. Infuse to exhibit, as will partner Hewlett Packard Enterprise.

Infuse Consulting, a modern software testing consultancy, is pleased to announce its sponsorship of the Test Lab at EuroSTAR 2016.

Web video: https://youtu.be/y-2eLceCnHE

The Test Lab is a dedicated environment inside the EuroSTAR expo area that allows attendees to actively participate and do some real testing in a live testing environment. There are real systems to test, the kit needed to test it, and expert assistance on hand from experienced Test Lab staff. Lab sponsorships fund investment in the lab's technology.

The founders of the world's first Test Lab, which started at EuroSTAR, will return to launch the new look Test Lab 2.0. James Lyndsay and Bart Knaack will bring new and updated features to an already hugely popular part of EuroSTAR.

As a seasoned software testing professional, Infuse's Stevan Zivanovic, Service Delivery Director and Product Owner for useMango[TM], will be in the Test Lab on 2nd November as a consulting resource for Test Lab participants. He will help them with their testing challenges and experiments.

Infuse will also have a stand (#50) in the event expo. At the stand, there will be demos of their test automation tool, useMango [TM]. This test automation tool has a certified integration with Hewlett Packard Enterprise ALM, but is also open for integrations with other test management tools. Among other offerings, Infuse will also be promoting its Service and Network Virtualisation solution (see video), powered by HPE Software, with whom Infuse is a gold-level partner.

"There are a number of trends that are driving a need for more modern software testing: digital transformations, Agile and DevOps adoptions, more sophisticated test environment management, and continual improvements in test automation," explains Nalin Parbhu, Founder and CEO of Infuse Consulting. "We see EuroSTAR as a great forum to share knowledge on these key topics and learn from others."

EuroSTAR 2016 will begin on 31st October in Stockholm.

For more information, visit the EuroSTAR 2016 page.

About Infuse Consulting

Infuse is a UK software testing company that provides modern software testing, transformation consulting and test environment management. We specialise in test automation and performance engineering.

For more information, visit infuse.it

Contact: Nalin Parbhu, Founder and CTO, Nalin.Parbhu@infuse.it , +44(0)20-3755-5135
HONG KONG, CHINA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- Nicholas Tse, celebrity Hong Kong actor, foodie and television chef, will join as a special Michelin guest at the inaugural Michelin and Robert Parker Wine Advocate Gala Dinner on November 11 held at Studio City, Macau. This exclusive event will feature a special fourteen-hands dinner prepared by seven international chefs, six of whom are recognized by the Michelin Guide.

This Gala Dinner is one of the highlights of the first Michelin Dining Series organized in Hong Kong and Macau throughout 2016 and 2017.

During the Gala event, in addition to presenting a special dish, Nicholas Tse will take the stage with Michael Ellis, International Director of the Michelin Guides, and together, they will comment and share their thoughts on the vibrancy and the dynamism of the Chinese culinary scene.

As a food lover and a major Chinese artist, Nicholas Tse will be acknowledged as a "Friend of Michelin." Michelin is indeed delighted to salute the positive contribution Nicholas Tse is making through his work.

Nicholas Tse is the host of Chef Nic, a food travelogue shot in locations from Africa to Finland, featuring international and Asian celebrity guests. In each episode, Tse goes in search of great cuisine and culturally unique dishes, while creating recipes of his own in the process. In addition to his show, Tse's passion for culinary can be seen in his own bakery, two cookie brands, and his eponymous brand of kitchen equipment.

More information and tickets for the Michelin Hong Kong Macau 2017 Dining Series, including the November 11 Gala Dinner, are available at the Michelin Guide Hong Kong Macau's bilingual website: https://guide.michelin.com.hk/

The website also features other information such as the full selection from the Michelin Guide Hong Kong Macau 2017, and original daily editorial content created by editors and experts from Michelin and Robert Parker Wine Advocate.

A new app, available on Apple and Android mobile platforms, will go live on November 9 allowing users to browse the full selection of the Michelin Guides worldwide, and even directly book a table at restaurants listed in the Michelin Guide Hong Kong Macau.

Please find chef biographies, press releases and high-resolution images here:

http://bit.ly/senses-gala

Official Partners

The Michelin Guide Hong Kong Macau 2017 Dining Series is proudly brought to you by the following partners:

Official Title Partner

Melco Crown Entertainment

Official Supporting Entity

Macau Government Tourism Office

Premier Partners -------------------- Mercedes AMG Official Cars Partner 1010 Official Mobile Network Provider The Club Official Loyalty Program Partner Badoit & Evian Official Waters Partner Perrier-Jouet Exclusive Champagne Partner (Macau) Martell XO Exclusive Cognac Partner (Macau) Tiger Beer Official Beer Partner Lucaris Official Crystalware Partner VZug Official Kitchen Appliances Partner Chope Official Reservation System Provider Deliveroo Official Food Delivery Provider Nespresso Coffee Partner

Image

Nicholas Tse - First 'Friend of Michelin'

Nicholas Tse recognised as first ever 'Friend of Michelin', in conjunction with the inaugural Michelin and Robert Parker Wine Advocate Gala Dinner, Senses: A Sensorial Gourmet Journey on November 11. (Photo Credit: Robert Parker Wine Advocate)

http://release.media-outreach.com/i/Download/5985

SENSES gala dinner held at Studio City Macau will feature a special fourteen-hands dinner prepared by seven international chefs, six of whom are recognized by the Michelin Guide. (Photo Credit: Robert Parker Wine Advocate)

http://release.media-outreach.com/i/Download/5984

Video

Celebrity Hong Kong actor, foodie and television chef, Nicholas Tse recognised as first ever 'Friend of Michelin'. (Video Credit: Robert Parker Wine Advocate)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ULfg6aFV7Q

Company logo

Robert Parker Wine Advocate

http://release.media-outreach.com/i/Download/5794

Michelin Guide

http://release.media-outreach.com/i/Download/5987

About Robert Parker Wine Advocate

For more than 35 years, The Wine Advocate, and later RobertParker.com, has been the global leader and independent consumer's guide to fine wine. The brand was established by world-famous Robert M. Parker, Jr., the only critic in any field to receive the highest Presidential honour from three countries -- France, Italy and Spain. Robert Parker Wine Advocate provides a wealth of information to its subscribers, including a searchable database of more than 300,000 professional wine ratings and reviews plus articles, videos, daily news content, online retail availability and pricing, an active, professionally moderated bulletin board, a mobile app for easy access to the comprehensive online database of reviews, and much more.

In 2016, Robert Parker Wine Advocate partnered with Michelin to launch Michelin guides in Singapore and other Asian markets. It provides full support in the form of a digital platform, a series of exclusive dining events and editorial support to increase the footprint of Michelin guides in Asia.

For more information, visit www.RobertParker.com.

About the Michelin Guide

The Michelin guide selects the best restaurants and hotels in the 28 countries it covers. Providing a showcase of gourmet dining around the world, it highlights the culinary dynamism of a country, as well as new trends and emerging young chefs. Creating value for restaurants through the distinctions that it attributes each year, the Michelin guide contributes to the prestige of the local gastronomy, thereby making cities and countries more attractive to tourists. Backed by its rigorous selection method and longstanding knowledge of the hospitality industry, the Michelin guide provides customers with unique expertise that enables it to offer them a true quality service.

The different selections are available in both print and digital versions. They are accessible via the Web and on a full range of mobile media that offer navigation capabilities adapted to individual usage as well as an on-line booking service.

With the Michelin guide, the Group continues to support millions of travellers, allowing them to live a unique mobility experience.

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LONDON, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

- With Photo

From October 18 to 21, senior representatives of ThomasLloyd participated in the historic Philippine Presidential trade and diplomatic mission to China. The diplomatic summit and ceremonial signing of important trade and cooperation agreements in Beijing took place between Xi Jinping, President of the People's Republic of China, and Rodrigo Duterte, President of the Republic of the Philippines, in the presence of senior politicians and up to 400 businessmen.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161028/433686 )



'My state visit to China signalled a turning point in our shared history and showed that both countries are fully capable of working together for mutual beneficial cooperation even as we remain committed to settle disputes peacefully in full adherence of international law,' President Duterte said.

Both sides affirmed their partnership and declared a shared ambition to achieve sustainable development and inclusive growth that will benefit the people of both countries in the years ahead. Together, they committed to enhance economic relations in several priority sectors, such as infrastructure and energy, through the promotion of trade, investment and economic cooperation under the Memorandum of Understanding on Strengthening Bilateral Trade, Investment and Economic Cooperation. Within the framework of the summit, eleven MoUs were signed, including one between ThomasLloyd and its Philippine and Chinese stakeholders in the biomass sector, for a total of USD 7.9 billion of commitments, which would create up to two million jobs in the Philippines. Today China is the second biggest trade partner of the Philippines, its 4th biggest export market, and largest supplier of imports. These agreements create extensive mutual market access and provide the basis for closer cooperation in the political and economic field.

As part of this historic agreement and ceremony, a commitment to the ThomasLloyd biomass projects, currently under construction in the Philippines and funded by ThomasLloyd SICAV-SIF-Cleantech Infrastructure Fund as the principal financial sponsor, was signed on behalf of ThomasLloyd by the Managing Directors and Regional CEOs Tony Coveney and Mike Airey, for Bronzeoak by President Arthur Aguilar and Senior Vice President Don Maria Y. Dia, and for Wuxi by Director Zhang Yun and General Manager Lu Yicheng. Further construction of the power plants South Negros BioPower Inc. and North Negros BioPower Inc., along with the soon to be completed plant San Carlos BioPower Inc., represent the continued successful cooperation between ThomasLloyd's European investors, Philippine developers and Chinese engineers. This cooperation already stands today as a template for business between the three communities.

T.U. Michael Sieg, Chairman and Group CEO of the ThomasLloyd Group sees the Group's invitation to and participation in the Beijing visit 'as special recognition of the previous successes of ThomasLloyd Group and its Chinese and Philippine partners. The results of the summit, and the many meetings which took place around it, will form the basis for faster growth and development of Philippine infrastructure.' Based on the summit outcome and the climate of goodwill now existing, ThomasLloyd projects hope to benefit directly from the new appetite from Chinese banks and other financial institutions to support vendor finance and project finance for Chinese exports in capital goods to the Philippines.

During the state visit, commercial agreements between the participating project partners, Bronzeoak Philippines Inc., Wuxi Huaguang and the ThomasLloyd Group, were signed in a ceremony, in the presence of President Duterte and other senior members of the Philippine government. These contracts form the basis for a long-term cooperation, a faster implementation and successful realisation of the biomass power plants on Negros Island in the Philippines. The power plants comprising 70MW near the cities of Manapla, San Carlos and La Carlota on Negros Island will convert sugarcane waste into electricity using a low carbon-emitting process, Circulating Fluidized Bed Boiler Technology. Before this use as feedstock for biomass power plants, sugarcane waste was burnt in the fields, a now illegal practice that contributed significantly to air pollution. With its use of local sugar cane waste, this project is an exciting development for all the stakeholders and a boost for the local community. This will bring further economic growth and better standards of living, particularly in rural areas of the region contributing to the enhancement and protection of the environment, and improving the local population's overall quality of life.

Referring to this, Tony Coveney, Managing Director and Head of Project Finance at ThomasLloyd Group, said:

'It was a privilege and an honour to participate in this landmark event in Beijing. The inclusion of our projects, in which we have invested, is recognition of the impact and success we have had and continue to have in partnership with Bronzeoak and Wuxi. As with our successful solar projects, ours is an investment template for others to follow.'

Mike Airey, Managing Director and CEO Asia Pacific added: 'We are honoured to accept this recognition of the work we have been doing over more than five years in the Philippines. We hope this landmark meeting will mark yet another important step by both countries and that it will significantly contribute to greater economic and trade development in the Asia-Pacific region as a whole. This milestone for us, as a global investment and advisory firm, has brought us closer to the Chinese capital and banking markets, opened up new growth potential and provided us with a new range of strategic and commercial options.'

Click here and download pressrelease and press pictures:

http://www.thomas-lloyd.com/en/thomaslloyds-portfolio-biomass-projects-set-benefit-new-era-chinese-philippine-relations-following-state-visit-president-duterte/

About the ThomasLloyd Group

ThomasLloyd Group is a leading global investment and advisory firm, principally dedicated to the cleantech and infrastructure sector(s) in Asia and Australasia. The Company is based in London and Zurich, as well as 14 other locations in 9 countries in North America, Europe and Asia. The services it provides encompass capital raising, M&A and corporate finance for private and stock-market-listed companies, project financing and management for project developments, and investment consulting, wealth management and funds for private and institutional investors. The ThomasLloyd Group has 200 employees and currently manages assets worth more than three billion US dollars. For more information visit: http://www.thomas-lloyd.com

Note to Editors:

A picture accompanying this release is available through the PA Photowire. It can be downloaded from http://www.pa-mediapoint.press.net or viewed at http://www.mediapoint.press.net or http://www.prnewswire.co.uk.

For further information, please contact:

ThomasLloyd Group

Press Department

Malte Liesch

Tel +49(0)89-599-890-313

Fax +49(0)89-599-890-323

public.relations@thomas-lloyd.com

http://www.thomas-lloyd.com


Since 2004, October 29 has been dedicated to raising awareness for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis

People with psoriasis and supporters across the world organize celebratory activities

The International Federation of Psoriasis Associations set "Breaking Barriers" as this year's theme

Today, people with psoriasis come together around the world, calling for understanding of the disease they live with. Psoriasis is a severe, painful, chronic, inflammatory, non-communicable disease, affecting over 125 million people worldwide. Up to 30% of them will develop psoriatic arthritis (an inflammation of the joints) and all run an increased risk of comorbid diseases like diabetes or cardiovascular diseases. As yet, there is no known cure for psoriasis. On World Psoriasis Day, the global psoriasis community unites to celebrate its strength! In campaigning for improved life quality, the community is joined by a global network of psoriasis supporters, from family and friends to healthcare professionals, patient organizations and policy-makers.

"Breaking Barriers" theme on World Psoriasis Day 2016

Every day, people living with psoriasis face immense barriers to their life quality. In the healthcare system, patients often struggle to get a correct diagnosis. The treatment and care they need, may be unavailable or unaffordable. In school and at work, people with psoriasis can miss out on valuable opportunities because their disease forces them to take sick leave. Finally, stigma, discrimination and prejudice often make it harder to get support in relations. The burden of psoriasis is thus so much more than its physical effects. The disease also takes a heavy mental, emotional, social and economic toll both on individuals and the societies they live in.

That is why this year's World Psoriasis Day theme is "Breaking Barriers for People with Psoriasis." The International Federation of Psoriasis Associations (IFPA), which is the driving force behind World Psoriasis Day, explains this choice. "Over the past years, a lot has happened in the field of global psoriasis advocacy. The World Health Organization (WHO) has officially recognized psoriasis as a severe, chronic inflammatory disease through a groundbreaking resolution and Global Report on Psoriasis. IFPA members have also succeeded in forging active partnerships with national health authorities. This means we are better equipped than ever to make a difference for people with psoriasis," says Lars Ettarp, President of IFPA. "But we want to take things to the next level. On World Psoriasis Day, we want to fight prejudice, stigmatization and discrimination to raise more awareness, understanding and hope. By breaking down barriers, we help people with psoriasis gain access to diagnosis, treatment and improved life quality."

World Psoriasis Day activities worldwide

Across the world, IFPA's members will be organizing festive activities. These range from awareness walks, free health screenings and special children programs, to handing out information brochures, holding lectures and conferences, or even giving interviews on national TV. In the Philippines, Josef de Guzman (Chairman of IFPA's World Psoriasis Day Steering Committee) will be out and about with PsorPhil, the national psoriasis patient organization he founded. For Mr. de Guzman, World Psoriasis Day has a very personal meaning: "I look around me in the psoriasis community, and see people defying the odds every day. Working hard to chase their dreams despite the daily challenges of psoriasis, they manage to reach the pinnacle of success. This shows that when given the opportunity, people with psoriasis too can excel in whatever they do. That is why World Psoriasis Day is so important: we need to address the ongoing stigma, fear of public rejection and discrimination still felt by a lot of us. October 29 brings us one step closer to the point where people with psoriasis no longer need to miss out on opportunities because of our condition."

How to support World Psoriasis Day

On October 29, anyone can support the World Psoriasis Day campaign in a few easy ways. You can speak up about World Psoriasis Day on Twitter, using the hashtag WPD16 or breakbarriers. On Facebook, you can share IFPA's animated "Breaking Barriers" campaign film (even available with Mandarin Chinese, Cantonese, French or Spanish subtitles.) IFPA is also organizing a global Thunderclap campaign, which functions like an online flashmob. Sign up no later than October 28 via our Thunderclap page to share a World Psoriasis Day support message on your social media. Finally, you can reach out to someone with psoriasis in your family or group of friends, and give them a big hug to let them know you are there for them.

Further information

To read more about World Psoriasis Day, visit: www.worldpsoriasisday.com

More information about the 2016 campaign can be found here.

IFPA's press room can be accessed here.

The International Federation of Psoriasis Associations (IFPA) is a non-profit organization made up of national and regional psoriasis associations from around the world. As the global psoriasis patient organization, IFPA's goals are to empower its members, improve living conditions for patients, raise awareness of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis and cooperate with fellow stakeholders. Since its founding in 1971, IFPA has continuously sought to resolve the challenges facing over 125 million patients in the international psoriasis community.

To learn more about IFPA, visit: 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/20161028005286/en/

Contacts:

The International Federation of Psoriasis Associations

Contact person:

Mr. Lars Ettarp, IFPA's President

Lars@Ettarp.se,

or

Mrs. Sophie Andersson,

IFPA's Executive Director

Sophie.Andersson@ifpa-pso.com
Generation Xers and Gen-Yers like me have a hard time showing interest in what goes on in Washington. But we had better end our apathy  and soon  or well spend the rest of our lives paying for it. Members of the generation that came before us  the Baby Boomers  are trying to pull a scam under the guise of protecting Social Security. If they succeed, we  and our children  will be the poorer for it.



Everyone knows Social Security is in trouble (and President Bushs Commission to Strengthen Social Security released its report on reform yesterday). But few people understand what that trouble is and whom it will affect. Understanding that is the key to understanding the scam.



Right now, Social Security is in great health. This year, like so many before, hundreds of billions of dollars will pour into it from FICA and payroll taxes, and only some will go back out as benefits to retirees. The rest will be exchanged for government bonds, which the federal government will pay back  with interest  to Social Security in the coming years.



But things will change in the next decade, when the Boomers will retire and start collecting benefits. By 2016, so many people will be drawing Social Security that the money needed to cover benefits will be more than what we Gen-X/Y workers will be paying in taxes. Fortunately, the program will be able to cash in the bonds that its now buying, and will use the repaid principle and interest to keep up the benefits.



However, that can only support Social Security for a few more decades. The bonds will all be cashed in by 2038, just as we Gen-Xers (whose Social Security tax money will purchase many of those bonds and whose federal tax money will pay them off) approach retirement age. So, just as were about to collect Social Security, there will be nothing left in the Social Security storehouse for us to collect.



Hence, the Social Security crisis does not involve todays seniors  Social Security will have plenty of money for the next 35 years. Instead, the crisis concerns us Gen-X/Yers, who will pay in a lot and receive just a little.



Ever since we Gen-X/Yers began working, weve paid 12.4 percent of our earnings to Social Security  half taken through the FICA tax on our paycheck and half through the payroll tax. In the coming years, Congress likely will increase that rate to more than 17 percent to delay the 2038 catastrophe. What is more, the Medicare tax (which is now a mere 2.9 percent) will increase because that program faces an even worse crisis than Social Security.



In contrast, the Boomers will get a bargain. When they entered the workforce in the late 1960s, they paid only 6.5 percent of their earnings to Social Security and nothing to Medicare. For about half of their working years, the Boomers paid 10 percent or less to Social Security and less than 1.25 percent to Medicare. Only from 1990 on, when the Boomers had earned paychecks for a quarter-century, did they start paying 12.4 percent to Social Security and 2.9 percent to Medicare  the same percentage we Gen-X/Yers have paid our whole lives.



Thats the Boomers bargain: Theyve paid less of their earnings into Social Security than we Gen-X/Yers, yet theyll receive more in benefits than we will and well pick up the tab. And when we retire, there will be no money saved in Social Security to pay for our retirement, unless we pull the same scam on our children that the Boomers are pulling on us.



The Boomers are working hard to protect their sweet deal. Many Boomer-elected politicians claim its too risky to change Social Security and do away with the scam. One, Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), even asserts that the program is in no trouble at all and should be left alone.



But we Gen-X/Yers are catching on; were seeing through the phony claims and recognizing the generational cash-grab scam for what it is. And we are beginning to realize that we need to offer this warning: If the Boomers dont reform Social Security now, theyll have no right to complain when we do so in the future.
Mitsubishi Motors Public Relations Department http://www.mitsubishi-motors.com +81-3-6852-4275

TOKYO, Oct 28, 2016 - (JCN Newswire) - Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) today announced its sales and financial results for the first half of the 2016 fiscal year (FY) ending March 31, 2017 along with a full-year forecast revision.1. Performance overviewMMC posted consolidated net sales of 864.9 billion yen for the first half of fiscal 2016 (April 1 through September 30, 2016), a 19% or 204.9 billion yen decrease over the same period last fiscal year.MMC posted an operating income of -31.6 billion yen, a decrease of 90 billion yen over the same period last fiscal year due to the impact of a halt in production and sales for some models stemming from the issue of improper conduct in fuel economy testing in Japan, increased market quality measure costs, and the appreciation of the Japanese yen.MMC posted an ordinary income of -28.2 billion yen, a decrease of 86.7 billion yen over the first half of FY2015. Net income for the first half of FY2016 attributable to owners of the parent was -219.6 billion yen, a decrease of 271.7 billion yen, due to the booking of an extraordinary loss of 166.2 billion yen related to losses incurred as a result of improper conduct in fuel economy testing issue.2. Sales volume (Retail)Global retail sales volume for the first six months of FY2016 totaled 436,000 units, a decrease of 16% or 85,000 units over the same period last fiscal year. Sales volumes by regions were as follows.Japan: Sales volume totaled 29,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 37% or 17,000 units. Sales fell sharply, affected by the improper conduct in fuel economy testing issue.North America: Sales volume totaled 69,000 units, about the same level as same period last year. Strong sales of the Outlander were countered by a drop in sales of the Mirage.Europe: Sales volume totaled 90,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 13% or 14,000 units. A drop in sales in Russia due to the stagnant state of its economy was compounded by a continuing inventory shortage of the ASX compact SUV (RVR or Outlander Sport in some countries) in Western Europe as well as a decline in sales of the Outlander PHEV, mostly in the Netherlands.Asia: Sales volume came to 140,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 8% or 12,000 units.In the ASEAN region, sales volume totaled 98,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 1% or 1,000 units. Firm sales of the Pajero Sport (Montero Sport in some countries) and aggressive sales promotions in the Philippines and Thailand boosted overall sales volume, however sales of light commercial vehicles in Indonesia slowed due to sluggish raw material prices.In the North Asia region, sales volume totaled 42,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 22% or 11,000 units. The fall in sales was due to decreased competitiveness stemming from a lack of new MMC-brand models in China.Other Regions: Sales volume totaled 108,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 28% or 42,000 units. Sales in the Middle East and Latin America plunged under economic downturns stemming from the fall in oil prices.3. Revision to fiscal 2016 full-year forecasts- Sales volume: 933,000 units (29,000 units down from June 22, 2016 forecast)- Net sales: 1840.0 billion yen (70 billion yen down)- Operating income: 27.6 billion yen (52.6 billion yen down)- Ordinary income: 28.2 billion yen (60.2 billion yen down)- Net income attributable to owners of the parent: 239.6 billion yen (94.6 billion yen down)About Mitsubishi MotorsMitsubishi Motors Corporation is the fifth largest automaker in Japan and the fifteenth largest in the world by global unit sales. It is part of the Mitsubishi keiretsu, formerly the biggest industrial group in Japan, and was formed in 1970 from the automotive division of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.Throughout its history it has courted alliances with foreign partners, a strategy pioneered by their first president Tomio Kubo to encourage expansion, and continued by his successors. A significant stake was sold to Chrysler Corporation in 1971 which it held for 22 years, while DaimlerChrysler was a controlling shareholder between 2000 and 2005. Long term joint manufacturing and technology licencing deals with the Hyundai Motor Company in South Korea and Proton in Malaysia were also forged, while in Europe the company co-owned the largest automobile manufacturing plant in the Netherlands with Volvo for ten years in the 1990s, before taking sole ownership in 2001.Source: Mitsubishi MotorsContact:Copyright 2016 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved.
WINNERSH, UNITED KINGDOM -- (Marketwired) -- 02/21/17 -- Vernalis PLC (LSE: VER)

LSE: VER

21 February 2017

Vernalis plc

Unaudited Interim Results for the six months ended 31 December 2016

Tuzistra XR prescriptions growing steadily as 2016/2017 US cough cold season progresses

Two further NDAs from cough cold franchise accepted for review by FDA with potential approvals later this year

Vernalis plc (LSE: VER) today announces its unaudited consolidated results for the six month period ended 31 December 2016.

US Commercial performance:

Tuzistra XR prescriptions increased almost six-fold to 11,586 for the six month period (2015: 1,976), reflecting: increased insurance coverage and pharmacy stocking improved sales-force effectiveness following expansion to 100 representatives and refinement to both marketing messaging and physician targeting improved patient affordability following enhancements in our patient assistance program

Validation of the potential of Tuzistra XR seen across the US, with high performing sales representatives in all regions

Focus for the second half of 2016/17 is to further improve sales-force effectiveness and increase the number of high performing representatives

Reported revenues for Tuzistra XR were  0.8 million (2015:  0.6 million) Underlying patient prescription demand has increased significantly and now accounts for ~64 per cent of sales volumes (2015 ~15 per cent) The remaining ~36 per cent (2015 ~85 per cent) reflects expanded pharmacy stocking (~29 per cent vs 2015 ~45 per cent) and expanded wholesaler inventories (~seven per cent vs 2015 ~40 per cent) Pharmacy stocking has continued to expand since the end of the half year Inventory levels with wholesalers are now approaching more normalised levels



Financial Highlights for the six months ended 31 December 2016

Revenue was  5.6 million (2015:  6.1 million) US Commercial net revenues (including Tuzistra XR and Moxatag) were  0.9 million (2015:  0.6 million) and represents deliveries made to wholesalers Research collaboration income was  3.2 million (2015:  3.8 million) due to lower FTE income in the period Frovatriptan royalty income was down seven per cent at  1.5 million (2015:  1.6 million); as the expected market entry of generics resulted in a price reduction that was partially offset by a foreign exchange gain on translation

Operating costs before exceptional items were  21.7 million (2015:  19.0 million) with the increase due to the further expansion of the US Commercial sales team

Loss for the period was  11.0 million (2015:  10.2 million loss before exceptional items)

Balance sheet remains strong with  74.2 million of cash resources and no debt at 31 December 2016

Cash resources including cash and cash equivalents and held to maturity assets reduced by  9.8 million in the six months to 31 December 2016 and included: Cash used in operations of  12.8 million (2015:  10.7 million) $3.0 million ( 2.3 million) milestone payment to Tris was made for the acceptance of CCP-07 NDA by FDA for review.  4.4 million unrealised foreign exchange gain (2015:  2.7 million)



US Commercial Pipeline:

CCP-07 NDA filed and accepted for review by FDA with a PDUFA date of 20 April 2017

CCP-08 NDA filed and accepted for review by FDA with a PDUFA date of 4 August 2017

Two further programmes in active development at Tris, with proof-of-concept ("POC") targeted by the end of 2017

Other Operational Highlights:

Frovatriptan (marketed): Underlying Menarini sales for the six months to 31 December 2016 down 31 per cent at EUR 8.7 million (2015: EUR 12.7 million) due to patent expiry and market entry of generics, as previously highlighted

NCE Development Pipeline: The Company announced in February 2017 that Corvus Pharmaceuticals Inc had reached the predefined criteria for expansion of the cohort of patients with renal cell carcinoma treated with single-agent CPI-444 in the ongoing Phase 1/1b study. The expansion of this study triggered a $3 million milestone payment to Vernalis under the licensing deal with Corvus. Promising evidence of single-agent activity has also been seen in patients in other disease-specific cohorts, including lung cancer and melanoma

Research Collaborations: Five active collaborations at 31 December 2016

Expected Newsflow (all dates calendar years):

CCP-07: potential FDA approval (Q2 2017)

CCP-08: potential FDA approval (Q3 2017)

POCs on two remaining programmes in cough cold pipeline (CCP-05 and CCP-06) (by end of 2017)

End of 2016/17 season Tuzistra XR trading update (June/July)

Receive payments for achieving milestones under existing collaborations

Secure new research collaborations

Continue to leverage our US commercial infrastructure with possible complementary new product acquisitions/in-licensing

Ian Garland, Chief Executive Officer, commented,

"We are encouraged with the progress we have made in the last six months as we continued to expand our sales and saw further progress in our cough cold development pipeline.

"Midway through the 2016/17 cough cold season we have seen Tuzistra XR prescriptions continue to grow steadily. We believe the emergence of high performing sales representatives in all regions across the US validates the market potential for Tuzistra XR. We are, however, still in the early stages of the launch and our focus for the second half of the season is to drive sales-force effectiveness and so further increase the proportion of high performing sales territories. With continued prescription growth expected, the annualised run-rate at the end of June 2017 should provide a more meaningful predictor of sales performance for future years.

"We expect to achieve a number of milestones from the remainder of the cough cold franchise in 2017, including potential approvals by FDA of CCP-07 and CCP-08. We also continue to seek other opportunities to leverage our US commercial infrastructure and remain very excited about the growth potential of the business."

Presentation & Conference Call

Vernalis management will host a presentation at 9.30am (UK) today at the offices of FTI Consulting 200 Aldersgate, Aldersgate Street, London, EC1A 4HD. It will also be available via webcast at http://www.vernalis.com/investor-centre/presentations-and-webcasts and www.cantos.com and via conference call, which can be joined by dialling: +44 (0) 20 3003 2666, Passcode 5780976# Please contact Jack Bower at FTI consulting +44 (0) 20 3727 1000 for details.

-- ends --

Enquiries:

Vernalis plc: +44 (0) 118 938 0015 Ian Garland, Chief Executive Officer David Mackney, Chief Financial Officer Canaccord Genuity Limited (Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker):+44 (0) 20 7523 8000 Rupert Winckler Henry Fitzgerald-O'Connor Emma Gabriel Shore Capital (Joint Broker) +44 (0)20 7408 4090 Bidhi Bhoma Toby Gibbs FTI Consulting (Financial Communications): +44 (0) 20 3727 1000 Ben Atwell Simon Conway Stephanie Cuthbert

Click on, or paste the following link into your web browser, to view the associated PDF document.

http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/3727X_1-2017-2-20.pdf

This information is provided by RNS

The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

END

Vernalis plc:

Ian Garland, Chief Executive Officer

David Mackney, Chief Financial Officer

+44 (0) 118 938 0015



Canaccord Genuity Limited (Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker):

Rupert Winckler

Henry Fitzgerald-O'Connor

Emma Gabriel

+44 (0) 20 7523 8000



Shore Capital (Joint Broker)

Bidhi Bhoma

Toby Gibbs

+44 (0)20 7408 4090



FTI Consulting (Financial Communications):

Ben Atwell

Simon Conway

Stephanie Cuthbert

+44 (0) 20 3727 1000




EQS-News / 28/10/2016 / 17:06 UTC+8 *To Business Editors* *For Immediate Release* *China Zhongwang Adjusted Net Profit Increases by 4.1% * *To RMB2.62 Billion in the First Three Quarters of 2016* ** * ** *Continues to Optimize Product Mix, Gross Margin Expanded to 38.3%* (Hong Kong, 28 October 2016) - *China Zhongwang Holdings Limited* ("China Zhongwang" or the "Company", together with its subsidiaries, the "Group", stock code: 01333), a world's leading fabricated aluminium product developer and manufacturer, announced its unaudited consolidated results for the nine months ended 30 September 2016 (the "Period under Review"). During the Period under Review, the Group's external sales volume increased by 4.3% year-on-year to approximately 587,000 tonnes. The total revenue amounted to approximately RMB12.47 billion. As the revenue contribution from high-end products continued to increase, gross margin expanded by 3.5 percentage points, year-on-year, to 38.3%. Adjusted net profit rose by 4.1% to RMB2.62 billion when compared to the corresponding period of last year. *Mr. Lu Changqing, President and Executive Director of China Zhongwang*,said, "During the Period under Review, the Group seized the opportunity brought by the transformation and upgrading of industries and maintained stable business growth by optimizing our product mix, upgrading production capacity, and investing in R&D and innovation. These contributed to the increase in gross margin. The first production line of Tianjin aluminium flat-rolled product project is currently undergoing trial production and is expected to commence production by the end of the year. In addition, the Group received a majority of votes in support of its proposed A-share spin-off of the industrial aluminium extrusion business at the Extraordinary General Meeting held in September. Upon completion of the spin-off, the Group will have a clearer business structure, which will benefit the Group's long-term development." *Aluminium Extrusion Business - * *Capitalize on the Competitive Edge of Self-supply Materials to Enhance Profitability * During the Period under Review, the Group continued to optimize its product mix. Phase I of the high-precision aluminium project at Yingkou has been put into full operation, providing the Group with high quality raw materials at below market prices and further enhancing its profitability. One of the two ultra-large 225MN extrusion presses is expected to commence production in 2017 and the other has been delivered to the plant for installation. The newly added capacity will enable the Group to meet the demand for high-end fabricated aluminium products from the sectors of transportation, machinery and equipment and electric power engineering, etc. *Deep Processing Business - * *Continue to Grow, Adding Impetus to Business Development * Benefited from the light-weight material development in the transportation sector, the Group continued to augment sales of the existing deep-processed large-sized products and optimize its product mix. During the Period under Review, sales volume of deep-processed products saw a year-on-year increase of 39.8% to approximately 75,000 tonnes. Leveraging its outstanding design and R&D capabilities of products, the Group will continue to increase the proportion of high-end finished products to enhance its overall profitability. *Aluminium Flat-rolled Product Project in Tianjin - * *Commence Production by the End of the Year to Develop Long-term Competitiveness* The first production line of the high value-added aluminium flat-rolled product project in Tianjin is expected to commence commercial production by the end of this year and is currently processing small-volume orders from potential customers on a trial basis. In the meantime, the Group will accelerate the pace of product certification to be fully prepared for the gradual production of high value-added products upon operation. Looking into the future, *Mr. Lu *concluded, "With the material upgrade in the transportation sector and equipment upgrade in the industrial sector, the market has shown increasing needs for light-weight materials. China Zhongwang will proactively strengthen its long-term competitiveness through production capacity expansion and industry chain extension. The production of the aluminium flat-rolled product project will become the Group's long-term growth driver while the smooth progress of the proposed spin-off will enhance its overall value as well. The Group is committed to strengthening its foothold as a leading comprehensive developer and manufacturer of high-end fabricated aluminium products, striving to reward shareholders with positive returns." _- End -_ *About China Zhongwang Holdings Limited* China Zhongwang is the second largest industrial aluminium extrusion products developer and manufacturer in the world and the largest in Asia. It has, over the years, been focusing on the light-weight development of transportation, machinery and equipment and electric power engineering sectors through the provision of quality industrial aluminium extrusion products. It now has over 90 internationally advanced aluminium extrusion production lines, including 21 production lines of large-scale aluminium extrusion presses of 75MN or above. The Group's unique core competitiveness in the industry lies in its comprehensive strength of four-in-one model, i.e. the integration of smelting and casting, die design, advanced equipment and R&D capability all under one roof. In addition, to further leverage its existing strengths in the industry, the Group is developing the high value-added aluminium flat-rolled product project. The planned annual production capacity of the two production lines under construction reaches 1.8 million tonnes. Upon completion, the project will become the world's largest top-notch aluminium flat rolling production base with state-of-the-art equipment. This new business venture will not only enable the Group to further capitalize on its leading edge in aluminium alloy smelting and casting and product R&D, but also achieve synergistic development with its existing industrial aluminium extrusion and deep processing businesses by taking full advantage of shared resources. For further information on the Group, please visit www.zhongwang.com [1]. Document: http://n.eqs.com/c/fncls.ssp?u=LJMODTISYH [2] Document title: ENG PDF Key word(s): 9-month figures 28/10/2016 Dissemination of a Press Release, transmitted by EQS Group. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. Media archive at www.todayir.com 515599 28/10/2016 1: http://public-cockpit.eqs.com/cgi-bin/fncls.ssp?fn=redirect&url=b31b0ac782b2ccfe4c4d6c231a010b46&application_id=515599&site_id=vwd&application_name=news 2: http://public-cockpit.eqs.com/cgi-bin/fncls.ssp?fn=redirect&url=ed203606f11182de19225f3fea936f5b&application_id=515599&site_id=vwd&application_name=news

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 28, 2016 05:06 ET (09:06 GMT)
VIENNA (dpa-AFX) - Austria's producer prices declined at a slower pace in September, preliminary figures from Statistics Austria showed Friday. Producer prices fell 1.4 percent year-over-year in September, following a 1.7 percent decrease in the previous month. The measure has been falling since February 2013. The annual decrease in September was mainly caused by the price declines in the fields of energy and intermediate goods. At the same time, prices of both capital and consumer goods registered rises in September. Month-on-month, producer prices edged up 0.1 percent in September, after remaining flat in the previous two months. 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.
TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- Bill Downe, Chief Executive Officer of BMO Financial Group (TSX: BMO)(NYSE: BMO), today announced that Frank Techar is appointed Vice-Chair, BMO Financial Group, effective November 1, 2016. Mr. Techar is currently the Chief Operating Officer.

Darryl White will succeed Mr. Techar as Chief Operating Officer, BMO Financial Group, effective November 1, 2016. During his 22 years with BMO, Mr. White has held a progression of leadership roles in BMO Capital Markets, serving most recently as Group Head. Mr. White possesses a deep understanding of the banking industry, risk management and global markets and has spent his career working directly with customers of the bank. He will continue to maintain close working relationships, at the most senior levels, with the largest clients of the bank.

As Chief Operating Officer, Mr. White will provide strategic leadership for the bank's Personal, Commercial and Wealth businesses across North America and globally. He will oversee Marketing in addition to ensuring the bank's technology function delivers strategic capabilities to all these groups.

"Darryl White's leadership has been steadfast at every juncture of his banking career and his experience will complement the experience of his team as they work to ensure our operating groups are positioned for future success," said Mr. Downe. "For two decades, he has been directly engaged in global markets and a fast-changing, complex banking environment. This experience will serve him well as he assumes the role of Chief Operating Officer."

Mr. White and Mr. Techar will be working closely together in their future roles. "Frank Techar has been an outstanding COO," added Mr. Downe. "This appointment recognizes his broad and deep experience as a business leader and officer of the bank."

In his new role as Vice-Chair, Mr. Techar will work to accelerate business growth in all markets, but particularly in the U.S. Midwest, which continues to be a mainstay of the bank's growth plans. "Three years ago, we embarked on a multi-year plan to redefine our businesses on both sides of the border. Frank's leadership and knowledge of the Midwest market are going to be instrumental as, over time, we grow our businesses and consider expansion opportunities. Continuing to build a highly visible and growing market presence in the U.S. remains a priority."

Patrick Cronin is appointed Group Head, BMO Capital Markets, effective November 1, succeeding Mr. White. Mr. Cronin is currently Chief Operating Officer of BMO Capital Markets and previously served as Head of Trading Products. Mr. Cronin has excelled in multiple senior leadership positions in one of the most competitive and demanding segments of the banking industry.

Mr. Downe also announced that, in recognition of the growth experienced by the bank in Wealth Management and its current global reach, the business will now be organized around two attractive but distinct growth opportunities: institutional asset management and retail wealth management, with each to be led by a senior leader. Gilles Ouellette, the current Group Head, Wealth Management, is appointed Group Head, BMO Asset Management, and Vice-Chair, International, BMO Financial Group. Joanna Rotenberg is appointed Group Head, BMO Wealth Management. Both appointments are effective November 1, 2016. Ms. Rotenberg brings significant and relevant experience to the role of Group Head having served as the bank's Head of Personal Wealth, Head of Strategy and Chief Marketing Officer in addition to having been a key partner at McKinsey and part of their Wealth Management practice, prior to joining BMO.

Mr. Downe confirmed that Cameron Fowler will continue to lead Canadian Personal and Commercial Banking, as Group Head. Mr. Fowler is stewarding a significant bank-wide transformation as customers rapidly adopt new ways of transacting. He holds cross-enterprise responsibility for the Banking Partnerships, Payments Systems and Channels that support all four operating groups. There will be no changes in the leadership of the bank's U.S. personal and commercial banking operations, which will continue to be led by Alexandra Dousmanis-Curtis, Group Head, U.S. Retail and Business Banking, and by David Casper, President and Chief Executive Officer, BMO Harris Bank N.A., and Group Head, Commercial Banking.

Consistent with the current operating model, Mr. Casper, Ms. Dousmanis-Curtis, Mr. Fowler, Mr. Ouellette and Ms. Rotenberg will report to Mr. White, as will Chief Marketing Officer Connie Stefankiewicz and Chief Transformation Officer Lynn Roger.

Mr. Techar, Mr. White and Mr. Cronin will report to Mr. Downe, as do the bank's corporate functions.

"We have confidence in this team," said Mr. Downe. "They have overseen a strong period of growth and with the organizational changes announced today, they will have new challenges to broaden their skills, enhance their experience and move us closer to our customers.

"The bank is in the middle of a multi-year transformation which is yielding significant results," Mr. Downe added. "We see a big opportunity in continuing to build a strategic capability as it relates to the banking experience we deliver and I look forward to continuing to work with these leaders to take the bank to the next level."

"We are fortunate to have a globally respected Chief Executive leading our bank," commented Robert Prichard, Chairman of BMO's Board of Directors. "Looking ahead, we take confidence in the continuity of leaders in key roles as we develop and challenge the next generation with the right assignments at the right time. Bill and the team have a full agenda," concluded Mr. Prichard.

About BMO Financial Group

Established in 1817, BMO Financial Group is a highly diversified financial services provider based in North America. With total assets of $692 billion as of July 31, 2016, and over 45,000 employees, BMO provides a broad range of retail banking, wealth management and investment banking products and services to more than 12 million customers and conducts business through three operating groups: Personal and Commercial Banking, Wealth Management and BMO Capital Markets.

Contacts:

For News Media Enquiries:

Paul Gammal, Toronto

(416) 867-3996

paul.gammal@bmo.com



Frederic Tremblay, Montreal

(514) 877-1873

frederic1.tremblay@bmo.com



For Investor Relations Enquiries:

Jill Homenuk, Toronto

(416) 867-4770

jill.homenuk@bmo.com



Christine Viau, Toronto

(416) 867-6956

christine.viau@bmo.com

Internet: www.bmo.com




Company will manage surveillance aircraft programme at two locations

LONDON, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Royal Air Force has awarded Raytheon U.K. a 131 million extension of its contract to manage support services for the Sentinel surveillance aircraft programme. The award extends the contract to 2021.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161026/433478

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160930/414008LOGO

Raytheon will optimise the design, modification, configuration management and support aspects of Sentinel at RAF Waddington and at Raytheon's facility in Broughton, Wales.

"The Sentinel fleet is well-recognised for the outstanding contribution it has made to military and surveillance operations around the globe over the last nine years," said Richard Daniel, chief executive officer of Raytheon U.K. "As well as creating new jobs in Broughton, the extension of the Sentinel fleet will support several hundred highly skilled jobs within Raytheon and its supply chain, while maintaining world leading expertise in the customer community."

Raytheon U.K., supported by the Welsh Government, has invested in a new hangar at Broughton to ensure that its Airborne ISR, for Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance, continues to provide end-to-end, design-to-flight-trials capability for improved operational availability. The new investment will allow Raytheon U.K. to undertake export work as well as to optimise Sentinel support, resulting in considerably reduced time and cost of 8C deep maintenance checks.

The full range of Raytheon's technical support for the Sentinel fleet includes fleet management, maintenance planning, maintenance service, technical and engineering services, obsolescence management, air vehicle integrity, supply and procurement service, training, design service and overarching service management.

About Raytheon U.K.

Raytheon U.K. is a subsidiary of Raytheon Company. It is a prime contractor and major supplier to the U.K. Ministry of Defence and has developed strong capabilities in mission systems integration in defence, national security and commercial markets. Raytheon U.K. also designs, develops and manufactures a range of high-technology electronic systems and software at facilities in Harlow, Glenrothes, Waddington and Broughton.

About Raytheon

Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN), with 2015 sales of $23 billion and 61,000 employees, is a technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, civil government and cybersecurity solutions. With a history of innovation spanning 94 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration, C5I' products and services, sensing, effects, and mission support for customers in more than 80 countries. Raytheon is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts. Follow us on Twitter @Raytheon.

This document does not contain technology or technical data controlled under either the U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations or the U.S. Export Administration Regulations. E16-VRXN.

www.raytheon.com

Media Contact

Nick West

+44 207 872 5602

nick.west@raytheon.co.uk
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- Advantage Lithium Corp. (the "Company" or "Advantage Lithium") (TSX VENTURE: AAL) has, further to the news release of September 14th, now signed the definitive agreement to acquire 100% interest in the Stella Marys project, Salta Province, Argentina (the "Property"). Stella Marys in an advanced lithium brine project, comprising 1,472 ha, located in the western sector of the Salinas Grandes salar within Argentina's "Lithium Triangle" of developing and producing projects, including the country's two lithium producers. The property is adjacent to Orocobre's Salar de Salinas Grandes lithium-potassium-boron brine project, which hosts a near-surface, low sulfate inferred resource estimate of 56.5 million cubic meters of brine grading 795 mg/l lithium (239,200 tonnes lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE)) and 9,547 mg/l potassium (1.03 million tonnes of potash equivalent) and 283 mg/l boron.

Orocobre's shallow inferred mineral resource potentially extends onto the Stella Marys property, where a previous operator is reported to have completed a comprehensive exploration program of mapping and sampling, geochemistry, some drilling with pump tests, and preliminary engineering.

David Sidoo, President and CEO, of Advantage Lithium, commented: "The acquisition of the highly-strategic Stella Marys project is an important milestone for Advantage Lithium and establishes our presence in this important lithium district. We plan to aggressively develop our key projects and we have the funds to do so. Just as we have commenced drilling at our Clayton NE project in Nevada, just a few months after closing the agreement, so we expect to begin exploration work at our exciting Stella Marys property within a short period of time."

Project Highlights

-- 1,472 ha lithium brine project immediately adjacent to a significant shallow depth, inferred resource, which has substantial grades and good chemistry -- Prior exploration work includes mapping, sampling, geochemistry, drilling with pump tests and preliminary engineering -- Salta province of Argentina is ranked by Fraser Institute (2015 survey) as one of the most favourable jurisdictions in Central and South America for exploration -- Near to excellent infrastructure corridor of road, rail, and power

Details of the Agreement

In order to acquire the Property, the Company must pay: (a) a non-refundable deposit of US$100,000 upon signing of the LOI (which has been paid); (b) a further US$250,000 and 300,000 common shares of the Company on the earlier of the date of TSXV acceptance and 90 days from date of the LOI; (c) a further US$250,000 and 300,000 common shares on the six month anniversary of TSXV acceptance; and (d) a further US$650,000 and 900,000 common shares on the first anniversary of TSXV acceptance.

The technical information in this news release has been prepared in accordance with the Canadian regulatory requirements set out in National Instrument 43-101 and reviewed on behalf of the company by Ross McElroy, P.Geol., Technical Director for Advantage Lithium Corp., and the Designated Qualified Person for the company.

Further information about the company can be found at www.advantagelithium.com.

About Advantage Lithium Corp.

Advantage Lithium Corp. is a resource company specializing in the strategic acquisition, exploration and development of lithium properties and is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. Common Shares are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "AAL". The company is earning an interest from Nevada Sunrise Gold Corp., in a portfolio of five lithium brine projects in the Clayton and Lida Valley regions of Nevada, USA, together with certificated water rights in the Clayton Valley. The company has also entered into an LOI agreement to earn interest from Radius Gold Inc. in four lithium brine projects in the states of Chihuahua and Coahuila, Northwest Mexico. In addition, the company has entered into an LOI to acquire 100% of the Stella Marys lithium brine project in Argentina's Lithium Triangle.

ADVANTAGE LITHIUM CORP.

David Sidoo, President & CEO

Cautionary Statement:

Certain information contained in this press release constitutes "forward-looking information", within the meaning of Canadian legislation. Generally, these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur", "be achieved" or "has the potential to". Forward looking statements contained in this press release may include statements regarding the future operating or financial performance of Advantage Lithium which involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties which may not prove to be accurate. Actual results and outcomes may differ materially from what is expressed or forecasted in these forward-looking statements. Such statements are qualified in their entirety by the inherent risks and uncertainties surrounding future expectations. Among those factors which could cause actual results to differ materially are the following: market conditions and other risk factors listed from time to time in our reports filed with Canadian securities regulators on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. The forward-looking statements included in this press release are made as of the date of this press release and the Company and Advantage Lithium disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable securities legislation.

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.

Contacts:

Advantage Lithium Corp.

David Sidoo

President & CEO

604.343.3760

604.683.1585 (FAX)

info@advantagelithium.com

www.advantagelithium.com




CALGARY, ALBERTA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- BACANORA MINERALS LTD. ("Bacanora" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: BCN) (AIM: BCN), the Canadian and London listed lithium exploration and development company, is pleased to confirm the previously announced appointment of James Strauss as a Director of the Company (with immediate effect) as a result of the completion of all regulatory checks required under AIM Rules (see the Company's announcement released on 18 October 2016).

James Digby Ronald Strauss (aged 47) is the founding partner of Strauss Partners Ltd. He has worked as a stockbroker in the City of London for over 25 years, specialising in the natural resources sector for nearly 20 of these. He was previously Managing Director of UK Equity product at BMO Capital Markets, prior to which he was a director of Hargreave Hale Ltd. where he founded, developed and then sold a Mining institutional sales and research department. Jamie started his career in 1986 at Strauss Turnbull (subsequently bought by Societe Generale). Jamie has experience in sales, research, transaction structuring, IPOs and syndication. He is a Non-Executive director of Altius Minerals and Gold Standard Ventures. He was on the board of Extorre Gold Mines until its successful sale to Yamana in 2012. He is also a trustee of The Julian Baring Scholarship Fund.

Set out below are details of Mr. Strauss's current directorships and those that he has held within the last five years.

Current Directorships Past Directorships (past 5 years) Strauss Partners Ltd Salt Lake Potash Ltd Altius Minerals Corp Extorre Gold Mines Ltd Gold Standard Ventures Corp Appleton Resources Ltd Y-Risk Ltd Stonehurst Aviation Ltd Strauss Partners LLP

ABOUT BACANORA:

Bacanora is a Canadian and London listed minerals explorer (TSX-V: BCN and AIM: BCN). The Company explores and develops industrial mineral projects, with a primary focus on lithium. The Sonora Lithium Project, which consists of ten mining concession areas covering approximately 100 thousand hectares in the northeast of Sonora State. The Company, through drilling and exploration work to date, has established an Indicated Mineral Resource (in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101")) of 4.5 million tonnes (lithium carbonate equivalent) and 2.7 million tonnes Inferred. A Pre-Feasibility Study completed in Q1 2016 demonstrated the positive economics associated with becoming a 35,000 tpa lithium carbonate and 50,000 tpa SOP producer in Mexico. The Company is led by a team with lithium expertise which have proven mine development, construction and operational experience.

Reader Advisory

Except for statements of historical fact, this news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward-looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. We cannot guarantee future results, performance or achievements. Consequently, there is no representation that the actual results achieved will be the same, in whole or in part, as those set out in the forward-looking information.

Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made, and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking information. Some of the risks and other factors that could cause the results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information include, but are not limited to: commodity price volatility; general economic conditions in Canada, the United States, Mexico and globally; industry conditions, governmental regulation, including environmental regulation; unanticipated operating events or performance; failure to obtain industry partner and other third party consents and approvals, if and when required; the availability of capital on acceptable terms; the need to obtain required approvals from regulatory authorities; stock market volatility; competition for, among other things, capital, skilled personnel and supplies; changes in tax laws; and the other risk factors disclosed under our profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Readers are cautioned that this list of risk factors should not be construed as exhaustive.

The forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. We undertake no duty to update any of the forward-looking information to conform such information to actual results or to changes in our expectations except as otherwise required by applicable securities legislation. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Contacts:

Bacanora Minerals Ltd.

Peter Secker

CEO

info@bacanoraminerals.com



Cairn Financial Advisers LLP, Nomad

Sandy Jamieson/Liam Murray

+44 (0) 20 7148 7900



Numis Securities Ltd, Broker

John Prior/James Black/Paul Gillam

+44 (0) 20 7260 1000



St Brides Partners, Financial PR Adviser

Hugo de Salis/Frank Buhagiar/Elisabeth Cowell

+44 (0) 20 7236 1177




VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 03/02/17 -- Orca Gold Inc. (TSX VENTURE: ORG) ("Orca" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update on the ongoing Pre-Feasibility Study (the "PFS") on its Block 14 Gold Project ("Block 14" or the "Project") in the Republic of the Sudan.

The PFS is progressing well with most of the component parts completed. However, due to the delay in receipt of laboratory test results, the PFS is now expected to be finished and reported by June, 2017.

Highlights:

-- Water Exploration: testing in four production scale boreholes has confirmed that the aquifer can accommodate the 1.8 Mtpa throughput scenario used in the Preliminary Economic Assessment (the "PEA"), dated July 26, 2016. A second geophysical survey to expand the footprint of the current water resource will begin by mid-March to provide for production expansion. -- Geotechnical Assessment: analysis of logging and test work from a 1,420m diamond core drilling programme supports an increase in the overall slope angle of the pits by at least 8 degrees (from 43 degrees to 51 degrees ), which will result in the reduction of waste stripping. -- Mineral Resource Update: a 7,062m infill drill programme has successfully confirmed and expanded the PEA resource estimate, with Indicated Resources going up by 10%. Inferred Resources within the PEA design pit shells have been reduced to less than 3% of the total material.

Details:

Water Exploration

As part of the PFS, a series of four production scale boreholes have been drilled across the HA8 aquifer, 55km north of the proposed process plant location. Pump testing of these boreholes, as supervised by the Company's consultants, GCS Water and Environmental Consultants, has confirmed that the aquifer is able to accommodate the 1.8 Mtpa throughput scenario used in the PEA, dated July 26, 2016.

Part of the PFS involves the investigation of employing alternative tailings disposal methods to maximize water recovery towards achieving a process plant throughput of up to 2.4 Mtpa. At the same time, the Company is mobilizing a second geophysical survey towards expanding the footprint of the current water resource with the aim of identifying additional water for the Project and the region as a whole. PFS work to date suggests that a throughput level of 2.4 Mtpa optimizes project economics. A filtered tailings option and/or the discovery of more water gives optionality in achieving that throughput level.

Geotechnical Assessment

Based on results from a 1,420m diamond core drilling programme designed by SRK Consulting (UK) Ltd., and subsequent analysis of geotechnical logging and laboratory test work, the pit slope design criteria has been revised from that employed in the PEA. The geotechnical work now supports an increase in the overall slope angle of the pits by at least 8 degrees (from 43 degrees to 51 degrees ), with a concomitant reduction in waste stripping.

Mineral Resource Estimate

As detailed in the February 2, 2017 news release, MPR Geological Consultants have completed an updated Mineral Resource Estimate for the Project following the completion of 7,062m of infill drilling conducted as part of the PFS. The updated Mineral Resource Estimate, using a cut-off grade of 1.0 g/t, comprises an Indicated Resource of 30.6 Mt grading 1.82g/t for 1.792 Moz of gold and an Inferred Resource of 9.7 Mt grading 1.7g/t for an additional 0.536 Moz. In comparison to the previous estimate (July 2016), Indicated Resources have increased by 10% or 159 koz and Inferred Resources have decreased by 15% or 98 koz. The drilling was directed within the PEA design shells and has reduced the Inferred Resources within those shells to less than 3% of total material. Accordingly, the infill programme has successfully confirmed and expanded the PEA resource estimate.

Metallurgical Test work

Metallurgical test work is running behind schedule due to internal, analytical issues at the metallurgical laboratory. The consultant, SGS, has assured the Company that all test work is now scheduled for completion by the end of March 2017.

Commenting on these updates at Block 14, Rick Clark, CEO and Director of Orca, said, "The confirmation of the project water supply at HA8 is a critical tick on the path to production for Block 14. Further, we expect the project to be materially enhanced by the ability to increase the production throughput rate. The geotechnical results will also improve the economics of the project by reducing the strip ratio. The delay in the completion of the PFS is unfortunate but it is important that we have complete confidence in the metallurgical data forming the basis of the PFS."

About Orca Gold Inc.

Orca Gold Inc. is a Canadian public company engaged in the acquisition and exploration of mineral properties in North and West Africa. Orca's principal asset is the Block 14 gold project, located in northern Sudan (near the border with Egypt). A PEA was completed on the Block 14 project in 2016 and an updated resource estimate was announced in February 2017.

Orca Gold recently announced a deal with Kinross whereby Orca will acquire all of Kinross' property rights and interests in the West African country of Cote d'Ivoire. Upon closing of this transaction Kinross will own an 8.6 % interest in Orca. Orca intends to immediately commence exploration on this very prospective property package.

The Company is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "ORG".

The technical contents of this release have been approved by Hugh Stuart, BSc, MSc, a Qualified Person pursuant to National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Stuart is the President of the Company and a Chartered Geologist and Fellow of the Geological Society of London.

The Mineral Resource estimate was carried out by Nic Johnson of MPR Geological Consultants of Perth, Western Australia who is considered to be independent of Orca Gold Inc. Mr. Johnson is a member in good standing of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists and has sufficient experience which is relevant to the commodity, style of mineralization under consideration and activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Johnson consents to the inclusion in this press release of the information, in the form and context in which it appears.

Samples used for the results described herein are prepared and analyzed by fire assay using a 50 gram charge at the ALS Chemex facility at Rosia Montana in Romania in compliance with industry standards. Field duplicate samples are taken and blanks and standards are added to every batch submitted.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws, including statements regarding Orca's (the "Company", the "Corporation", "we" or "our") plans and expectations relating to the Block 14 project ("Block 14") in northern Sudan and the Pre-Feasibility Study ("PFS") currently being conducted by the Corporation. These statements relate to analyses and other information that are based on forecasts of future results, estimates of amounts not yet determinable and assumptions of management. Statements concerning mineral resource estimates may also be deemed to constitute "forward-looking statements" to the extent that they involve estimates of the mineralization that will be encountered if the property is developed. The assumptions, risk and uncertainties outlined below are non-exhaustive. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results, performance or achievements of the Corporation, or industry results, may vary materially from those described in this presentation.

Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, identified by words or phrases such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "plans", "projects", "estimates", "assumes", "intends", "strategy", "goals", "objectives", "potential", "possible" or variations thereof or stating that certain actions, events, conditions or results "may", "could", "would", "should", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved, or the negative of any of these terms and similar expressions) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements and forward-looking information are not guarantees of future performance and are based upon a number of estimates and assumptions of management at the date the statements are made including without limitation, assumptions about the following (the "Forward-Looking Factors"): future prices of gold and other metals; successful exploration, development, and production of Block 14; the timing and completion of the PFS; performance of contractual obligations by counterparties; operating conditions; political stability; obtaining governmental approvals and financing on time; financial projections and budgets; obtaining licenses and permits; government regulation of the Corporation's mining activities; environmental risks and expenses; market conditions; the securities market; price volatility of the Corporation's securities; currency exchange rates; foreign mining tax regimes; insurance and uninsured risks; financial projections and results; competition; availability of sufficient capital, infrastructure, equipment and labour; dependence on key personnel; dependence on outside parties; conflicts of interest; litigation; land title issues; local community issues; estimation of mineral resources; realization of mineral resources; timing and amount of estimated future production; the life of Block 14; reclamation obligations; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be evaluated; and anticipated costs and expenditures and our ability to achieve the Corporation's goals. While we consider these assumptions to be reasonable, the assumptions are inherently subject to significant business, social, economic, political, regulatory, competitive and other risks and uncertainties, contingencies, many of which are based on factors and events that are not within the control of the Corporation and there is no assurance they will prove to be correct.

Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors relating to the Forward-Looking Factors above, and those factors disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Corporation's documents filed from time to time with the securities regulators in the provinces of Canada.

In addition, a number of other factors could cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Corporation to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information, and there is no assurance that the actual results, performance or achievements of the Corporation will be consistent with them. For further details, reference is made to the risk factors discussed or referred to in the Corporation's annual and interim management's discussion and analyses on file with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities and available electronically on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com. Although the Corporation has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events, results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements and forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events, results, performance or achievements not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements or information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Such forward-looking statements and information are made or given as at the date of this presentation and the Corporation disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable securities law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or forward-looking information.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Contacts:

Elina Chow

Investor Relations

416.645.0935 x 226




Release no. 27/2016 With reference to release no. 25/2016 of 26 October 2016, changes in Columbus A/S' Articles of Association as a consequence of the adoption made by the Annual General meeting about new guidelines for incentive programs, cf. section 139 of the Danish Companies Act have today been registered in the Danish Business Authority. At the same time the new Articles of Association are hereby published. Ib Kune Thomas Honore Chairman CEO & President Columbus A/S Columbus A/S For further information, please contact: CEO & President, Thomas Honore .: +45 70 20 50 00 Translation In the event of any inconsistency between this document and the Danish language version, the Danish language version shall be the governing version. Attachment: https://cns.omxgroup.com/cds/DisclosureAttachmentServlet?messageAttachmentId=592073

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.
Not at all. If a jury in that state wants to let 7 out of state outlaws come into their state and roughshod over them, that's their business. As long as that jury understands that the next time the federal government may not be there to help if something goes horribly wrong.



And also don't forget the federal government still can sue them civilly for damages where the case just has to be proven by a preponderance of the evidence, and there won't be a friendly gun nut jury to acquit them on that one.



And lets not forget that the Bundy's tax problems haven't gone away, or the land use fees he owes, with penalties and interest, and I have the feeling with a Hillary Clinton IRS, those problems are going to grow exponentially, and there won't be a gun nut jury there to get him off on tax evasion charges, which in the case of the Bundy's are at felony level, and upon a conviction can probably kiss his ***, and his ranch goodbye.



See you then.







And he might have gotten acquitted by a gun nut jury, but he isn't going anywhere. And now his lawyer is in jail with him. LMFAO.
OAKVILLE, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- Saint Jean Carbon Inc. ("Saint Jean" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: SJL), a carbon science company engaged in the exploration of natural graphite properties and related carbon products, is pleased to announce that the Company has received TSX.V approval and has closed the transaction for the additional 27 lithium claims in South Wabouchi which was news released on September 30, 2016. The claims are contiguous with the Whabouchi Lithium Project the Company acquired in August 2016. These claims are located in the James Bay region of Quebec and lie approximately 45 kilometres southeast of the village of Nemaska. The Property is comprised of one large block of 27 mineral claims covering 1,458 hectares (14.5 km2) located on the southern margin of the volcano-sedimentary Mountain Lake belt. The Property neighbours to the north Hinterland Metals Inc. (C:HMI news, June 22, 2016) and Durango Resources to the south. The Property is located approximately 15 kilometres southeast of Nemaska Lithium Inc.'s Whabouchi hard-rock (spodumene) lithium project. The terms of the purchase of the 27 mineral licenses required a one-time issuance of 1,000,000 common shares of the capital stock of the Company to the vendors.

The Company has also amended the terms for the non binding and non-arm's length agreement to acquire the past producing Glen Almond quartz mine in Quebec which was announced November 26, 2015. The amended agreement calls for a one-time issuance of 500,000 shares in the capital stock of the Company at closing. This is down from the 1,500,000 shares and $10,000 announced previously.

About Saint Jean Carbon

Saint Jean is a publicly traded carbon science company, with interest in graphite mining claims in the province of Quebec in Canada. For the latest information on Saint Jean's properties and news please refer to the website: http://www.saintjeancarbon.com/

On behalf of the Board of Directors

Saint Jean Carbon Inc.

Paul Ogilvie, CEO and Director

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.

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS: This news release contains forward-looking statements, within the meaning of applicable securities legislation, concerning Saint Jean's business and affairs. In certain cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "intends" "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved".

These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations, and are naturally subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances that may cause actual results to differ materially. The forward-looking statements in this news release assume, inter alia, that the conditions for completion of the Transaction, including regulatory and shareholder approvals, if necessary, will be met.

Although Saint Jean believes that the expectations represented in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that these expectations will prove to be correct.

Statements of past performance should not be construed as an indication of future performance. Forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications of whether or not such results will be achieved. A number of factors, including those discussed above, could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. Any such forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.

All of the forward-looking statements made in this press release are qualified by these cautionary statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking information is provided as of the date of this press release, and Saint Jean assumes no obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.

Contacts:

Saint Jean Carbon Inc.

info@saintjeancarbon.com

(905) 844-1200




Regulatory News:

Arctic Paper (STO:ARP)

In reference to current reports nos. 9/2016, 20/2016 and 27/2016 the management board of Arctic Paper S.A. (the "Company") informs investors that on 28 October 2016 the Company and Arctic Paper Kostrzyn S.A. (the "Borrower") received documents confirming the release of security interests that have expired in connection with the repayment by the Borrower of the indebtedness under the credit facility agreement for a facility in the amount of PLN 359,000,000 (in words: three hundred and fifty nine million zlotys) dated 6 November 2012, as subsequently amended, amended and restated and most recently amended by amendment agreement no. 7 dated 15 December 2015, entered into between Bank Polska Kasa Opieki S.A. ("Pekao") as security agent and lender, Bank Zachodni WBK S.A. ("BZ WBK") as lender and mBank S.A. ("mBank") as lender, and the Borrower and Arctic Paper Mochenwangen GmbH and Arctic Paper Investment GmbH as guarantors, and the Company as joint and several debtor with the Borrower and as the obligors' agent, under which Pekao, BZ WBK and mBank made available to the Borrower a multicurrency term loan facility and an overdraft facility on the terms set out in the facility agreement (the "Facility Agreement").

The Company informs investors that it has received from the Banks documents confirming the release of all of the security interests related to the Facility Agreement in connection with the repayment thereof, i.e. (a) the security interests governed by Polish law comprising statements on submission to execution, mortgages over the Borrower's real properties, registered pledges over the Guarantors' and the Borrower's bank accounts, powers of attorney to the Borrower's bank accounts, registered pledges over the Borrower's shares, financial pledges over the Company's bank accounts, security assignments of claims under insurance policies and intercompany loans, loan subordination agreements, and also (b) the security interests governed by German law comprising pledges over the Guarantors' shares, pledges over the Guarantor's and the Borrower's bank accounts, a land charge over the real properties of Arctic Paper Mochenwangen GmbH, security assignment of claims under the insurance policies, security assignment of machines and loans subordination agreement.

The Company has informed investors about the establishment of the security interests in connection with the Facility Agreement in current report no. 19/2012 dated 6 November 2012 and current report no. 27/2012 dated 23 November 2012 and current report 29/2012 dated 28 November 2012.

This information is disclosed pursuant to Art. 17 sec. 1 of Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 April 2014 on market abuse (market abuse regulation) and repealing Directive 2003/6/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Commission Directives 2003/124/EC, 2003/125/EC and 2004/72/ECand was submitted for publication on 28 October 2016 at 3:30 pm CET, in reference to Arctic Paper's current report no. 28/2016 filed with the Warsaw Stock Exchange

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005489/en/

Contacts:

Arctic Paper

Per Skoglund

acting President of the Management Board

tel. +46 733 21 70 09


Michael Bjorklund, winner of the "Chef of the Year" title in both Sweden and Finland, is in charge of Viking Line's updated Christmas buffet. The culinary year on board the Company's red-and-white-painted vessels will reach a climax from November 18 to December 26, 2016, when we serve up our Christmas buffet loaded with delicacies. Along with classic dishes and flavours, this year's Christmas buffet includes specialities from the Finnish mainland, Sweden and Aland.

Michael Bjorklund, who is well known from a number of television series and as the restaurateur of Smakbyn, located next to Kastelholm Castle in Aland, has worked with Viking Line in a number of different contexts. Now their partnership is being expanded to also include the Christmas buffet on board the Company's red-and-white-painted vessels.

"For me, top-quality ingredients are the basis of good food. I also place great value on clean, distinct flavours and seasonal food. The Christmas menu includes classics as well as new taste experiences from both Sweden and Finland as a brand-new feature," says Michael Bjorklund, who has planned Viking Line's Christmas menu for the first time.

The obvious star of the Christmas buffet is ham, which is coated in mustard made according to Bjorklund's own recipe. Seafood delicacies from various parts of the Nordic region and in different forms smoked fish, lutefisk and herring play a key role. Sweet Christmas treats will be served up on the dessert table, which will offer all kind of titbits for every taste.

Pictures by Tuukka Ervasti:

https://goo.gl/photos/xM2HWJFvt88tKnq57

Viking Line is a public limited company and a market-leading brand in passenger traffic on the northern Baltic Sea. It offers passenger services, recreation and cargo carrier services on the vessels Gabriella, Mariella, Amorella, Rosella, Viking Cinderella, Viking XPRS and on the flagship Viking Grace.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005494/en/

Contacts:

Viking Line Abp:

Christa Gronlund

Communication Manager, Marketing Communications

358 9 123 5242

christa.gronlund@vikingline.com

or

Johanna Boijer-Svahnstrom

Communication Director, Corporate Communications

358 18 270 00

johanna.boijer@vikingline.com
MIAMI, FL--(Marketwired - October 28, 2016) - Dr. Sergio Gonzalez-Arias, chief of neurological surgery at Baptist Hospital and chair of the Department of Neuroscience at FIU's Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, will join the College of Medicine's executive team as executive associate dean for clinical affairs.

Gonzalez-Arias, who will begin his new position with the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine in January 2017, will oversee all clinical functions at the College of Medicine, including the students' clinical experience; all strategic partnerships with hospitals and other clinical sites where students perform their clinical rotations; and development of Graduate Medical Education.

"We have been fortunate to work with Dr. Gonzalez-Arias as a key member of our faculty since 2010. Now he brings to his new position a wealth of clinical experience that will add to the development of clinical programs to the College of Medicine," said Dr. John A. Rock, founding dean of the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine and FIU senior vice president for health affairs.

Wayne Brackin, executive vice president and chief operating officer for Baptist Health South Florida, said Gonzalez-Arias has made important contributions to the field of neuroscience.

"Dr. Gonzalez-Arias is a well-respected neurosurgeon who has advanced his profession and expanded the comprehensive neuroscience offerings at Baptist Health," Brackin said. "As the founding medical director of Baptist Health Neuroscience Center he has developed and implemented surgical and technological advancements that have had a profound impact on our patients."

Gonzalez-Arias is the founding and current medical director of Baptist Health Neuroscience Center. He has served as chief of Baptist Hospital's Department of Surgery and is a past president of the medical staff. He is a fellow of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and the American College of Surgeons. He served as chair of the international committee of the Joint Council of State Neurosurgical Societies and is a past president of the Florida Neurological Society.

"I am excited about this new opportunity at the FIU College of Medicine, which will allow me to continue building on its impressive growth, which I am honored to have been part of for several years," Gonzalez-Arias said. "In keeping with the best practice of a multidisciplinary approach to medicine, I look forward to collaborating with the university's hospital and community partners to research, innovate and continue making a significant positive impact on medical education and healthcare in our community."

Dr. Gonzalez-Arias is a graduate of the University of Zaragoza (Spain) and completed his residencies at Rush-Presbyterian St. Luke's Medical Center and the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital.

About Baptist Health South Florida:

Baptist Health South Florida is the largest healthcare organization in the region, with seven hospitals (Baptist Hospital, Baptist Children's Hospital, Doctors Hospital, Homestead Hospital, Mariners Hospital, South Miami Hospital and West Kendall Baptist Hospital), nearly 50 outpatient and urgent care facilities, Baptist Health Medical Group, Baptist Health Quality Network and internationally renowned centers of excellence. The not-for-profit, faith-based Baptist Health has approximately 16,000 employees and 2,300 affiliated physicians. Baptist Health South Florida has been recognized as one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For in America and as one of the World's Most Ethical Companies. For more information, visit BaptistHealth.net and connect with us on Facebook at facebook.com/BaptistHealthSF and on Twitter and Instagram @BaptistHealthSF.

About The FIU Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine:

The Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine was approved in 2006 by the Florida Board of Governors and the Florida Legislature, and in February 2013 the medical degree program received full accreditation from the Liaison Committee for Medical Education. The College graduated its inaugural class on April 29, 2013. Among the innovative elements of the HWCOM is a program called Green Family Foundation NeighborhoodHELP' that sends teams of medical students along with their counterparts in social work, nursing, and law into the community. The College of Medicine's mission is to lead the next generation of medical education and improve the quality of health care available to the South Florida community. For more information visit http://medicine.fiu.edu/

About FIU:

Florida International University is classified by Carnegie as a "R1: Doctoral Universities - Highest Research Activity" and recognized as a Carnegie Community Engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offers bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as business engineering, computer science, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes almost $9 billion each year to the local economy and is ranked second in Florida in Forbes Magazine's "America's Best Employers" list. FIU graduates are consistently among the highest paid college graduates in Florida and are among the leaders of public and private organizations throughout South Florida. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission with multiple state-of-the-art research facilities including the Wall of Wind Research and Testing Facility, FIU's Medina Aquarius Program and the Advanced Materials Engineering Research Institute. FIU has awarded more than 220,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, the Miami Beach Urban Studios, and Tianjin, China. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and more than 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.

Contact:

Georgi Morales Pipkin

georgip@baptisthealth.net

786-596-6534
BROOKLYN, New York, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

QYResearchReports.com has added a new research report to its database on the global industries of electronics and semiconductors. The report, titled "Global Software Testing Services Market Research Report 2016," highlights the key factors that will continue to drive this market in the coming years. The report pays more attention to the current factors and how they are affecting the global software testing services market today. The report thus enlightens its users with the various points of entry and points of avoidance in the global software testing services market.

The global software testing services market has become an integral part of the IT world today, as many players are offering comprehensive services that allow a company of any size measure out its focused aspects. The global software testing services market can span across several segments, including specialized testing, performance testing, automation solutions, functional solutions, and consulting.

The report moves on into the manufacturers within the global software testing services market and the strategies that they employ. This helps understand the competitive index a lot more clearly and gives the report's users a better idea on the various parameters that key manufacturers are rated by. This includes the product types, the current scenario in the market competition, current trends and their future outlook, and mergers and acquisitions. The report also provides a detailed report on the import and export rates in the global software testing services market along with the overall supply and consumption rates across the world

Get Free PDF Brochure for more Professional and Technical industry insights athttp://www.qyresearchreports.com/sample/sample.php?rep_id=837253&type=E

The global software testing services market is explained in a brief manner within the report's overview segment. Here, the global software testing services market is tracked in terms of its various segments on the basis of software testing types, applications, and regions.

The report provides a geographically segmented analysis of the global software testing services market, wherein lies a valuable tool for regional players in the market. They can use this segmented guideline to create a better position for themselves in their own region, or look to another region for better opportunities. The report draws special attention towards the regions North America, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, China, and Europe. For each region, the report tallies the overall factors that influence their software testing services markets and then provides an overall global outlook from 2011 to 2021.

Browse Complete "Global Software Testing Services Market Research Report 2016" with TOChttp://www.qyresearchreports.com/report/global-software-testing-services-market-research-report-2016.htm

The report provides a highly data-rich description of each of the key players in the global software testing services market. Each player is distinguished using frameworks that include details on these players. The list of top compares includes Accenture, CapGemini, IBM, and Wipro. For each player, the report provides a detailed view on their core area of expertise along with up to date information on their current manufacturing base, their products and services as accessible in majority of the regions.

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TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- Lakeside Minerals Inc. (NEX: LAK.H), (the "Company" or "Lakeside") is pleased to announce that it intends to complete a private placement.

The Company will undertake a financing, (the "Offering"), subject to TSX Venture Exchange ("TSX-V") approval as more fully described below, for aggregate gross proceeds of up to $500,000, issuing up to 10,000,000 units ("Unit") at a price of $0.05 per Unit on a post-consolidation basis. Each Unit will consist of one (1) common share of the Company (a "Common Share") and one half (1/2) of one share purchase warrant ("Warrant").

Each full Warrant will entitle the holder to acquire one common share of the Company at a price of $0.10 per Common Share on a post-consolidation basis for a period of 24 months from the closing date.

The proceeds of the Offering will be used for general working capital and to satisfy various liabilities to arm's length parties.

About Lakeside Minerals Inc.

Lakeside Minerals Inc. is engaged in acquiring, exploring, and developing mineral properties. The Company's flagship Launay property is located in the heart of the Abitibi, 48 km northeast of Rouyn-Noranda. The Launay property straddles a significant extent of the Macamic deformation zone: a major deformation zone in the Abitibi subprovince located north of the Porcupine-Destor deformation zone. Lakeside is also pursuing potential acquisitions of interests in undervalued mineral exploration properties.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Contacts:

Lakeside Minerals Inc.

Yannis Banks

Chairman

(416) 777-6169

ybanks@foundationmarkets.com

www.lakesideminerals.com




INFINITI RESEARCH: SOLAR ENERGY RISING IN POPULARITY AND POWER FOR CONSUMER ELECTRONICS

An uptick in demand for clean, renewable energy and increasing concerns about the impact of customer electronics on the environment is leading to innovations and growth in the way that these electronics are powered. More consumers are turning to solar energy to meet their energy needs. According to Infiniti Research, the global market for solar batteries will experience positive growth over the next few years, growing at a CAGR of more than 16% until 2020, and the global smart solar market will grow at a CAGR of 15% until 2020.

Looking for additional research on clean energy? Contact our market intelligence analysts

Solar energy solutions are revolutionizing the consumer electronics industry and decreasing its negative impact on the environment and sustainability. Solar batteries reduce waste and save customers money, as they are reusable; they also have an increased lifespan, are less likely to overheat or leak, and are easier and safer to dispose of. Solar grids are also bringing convenience and innovation to this industry. Lightweight, portable solar grids can be used to power chargers for cell phones and other electronic devices, allowing consumers to charge their devices on-the-go. These grid chargers are ideal for camping and traveling, as well as everyday use, and help to combat greenhouse gas emissions.

The SolPad Mobile smart grid is one of the best examples of how revolutionary and environmentally-friendly, clean energy can fuel our everyday devices. SolPad Mobile, which was showcased at the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, was designed specifically to power consumer electronics both at home and off the grid. The SolPad Mobile weighs approximately 25 pounds-much lighter than typical solar grids-and can be used both as a singular electricity source and as part of a solar micro-grid chain. Its battery can be charged via its solar panel in about ten hours, or via grid power in about five hours. The SolPad mobile, once charged, can then be used to power cell phones, laptops, and other small electronics, as well as larger consumer electronics like televisions, stereos, and even microwaves and refrigerators.

The market for solar energy solutions for consumer electronics is young, and is continuously growing and evolving. Because of this, market intelligence is essential for vendors to identify and capitalize on untapped areas for growth and innovation. Infiniti Research can help you to stay up to date with industry news and developments, identify your key competitors, and find strategies and software that will best ensure your business's long-term success. Backed by research centers in multiple emerging markets, Infiniti Research uses information from around the globe to track technological trends and identify key and niche corporations in the field of renewable and clean energy, letting you know the best area to invest.

How can Infiniti Research help you? Request a brochure

About Infiniti Research

Established in 2003, Infiniti Research is a leading market intelligence company providing smart solutions to address your business challenges. Infiniti Research studies markets in more than 100 countries to help analyze competitive activity, see beyond market disruptions, and develop intelligent business strategies.

With 13 years of experience and offices across three continents, Infiniti Research has been instrumental in providing a complete range of competitive intelligence, strategy, and research services for over 550 companies across the globe.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170307005209/en/

Contacts:

Infiniti Research

Jesse Maida

Media Marketing Executive

US: +1 630 333 9501

UK: +44 208 123 1770

www.infinitiresearch.com

Contact Us
EDMONTON, ALBERTA -- (Marketwired) -- 11/07/16 -- The Honourable Melanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage, will host an event in Edmonton on Monday with representatives from a variety of cultural sectors as part of the consultations on Canadian Content in a Digital World.

Representatives from the media are invited to take pictures at the beginning of the event. A media availability will follow Minister Joly's remarks. In order to engage and hear from as many Canadians as possible on the future of Canadian content in a digital world, Canadians from across the country will have the opportunity to follow and contribute to this event through Facebook Live.

Please note that all details are subject to change. All times are local.

The details are as follows:

DATE: Monday, November 7, 2016 TIME: Artistic performance and B-roll at 1:00 p.m. Opening remarks from Minister Joly at 1:10 p.m. Media availability outside the room at 1:40 p.m. PLACE: Winspear Centre, Studio Room 4 Sir Winston Churchill Square NW Edmonton, Alberta

Stay Connected

Follow us on Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and Flickr, DigiCancon

Contacts:

Pierre-Olivier Herbert

Press Secretary

Office of the Minister of Canadian Heritage

819-997-7788



Media Relations

Canadian Heritage

819-994-9101

1-866-569-6155

pch.media-media.pch@canada.ca




ALBANY, New York, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The global human vaccines market is dominated by GlaxoSmithKline plc. Sanofi, Pfizer, Inc., and Merck & Co, Inc. These players collectively accounted for over 70% of the market in terms of revenue in 2015. Analysts at Transparency Market Research have identified some of the key strategies adopted by players in the Human Vaccines Market in order to gain a competitive edge over the rest. These include mergers and acquisitions, collaborations and acquisitions for market penetration, the establishment of local production sites, the expansion of product portfolios, and expansion activities in regions with high growth potential.

A focus on research and development is also a successful growth strategy, TMR finds. For instance, Pfizer, Inc. has always focused on R&D in order to improve innovation and productivity. It is presently working on various pipeline products for different therapies and innovating new capabilities that can position it for long-term leadership across the globe.

The global human vaccines market was valued at US$28.3 bn in 2015 and is estimated to reach US$72.5 bn by 2024, registering an 11.2% CAGR during the forecast period.

Inquire for a Sample Copy of the Research Report: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=16127

Hospital Pharmacies and Drugstores Prominent Distribution Channels for Human Vaccines

By age group, pediatric vaccines accounted for a 57.5% share in the global human vaccines market in 2015. Adult vaccines, on the other hand, are expected to expand at a 13.2% CAGR from 2016 to 2024. Based on product, the pneumococcal segment accounted for the majority share in in 2015, with the hepatitis segment exhibiting strong growth during the forecast period.

On basis of vaccine type, the conjugate vaccines segment accounted for the majority share in the global human vaccines market in 2015. On the other hand, the combination vaccines segment is expected to expand at an outstanding CAGR from 2016 to 2024. By distribution channel, the hospital pharmacies segment led the global human vaccines market. However, the drugstores segment is projected to expand at a considerable pace through 2024.

Geographically, North America dominates the global human vaccines market and is estimated to reach a value of US$28.0 bn by 2024. Asia Pacific is the most promising market for human vaccines and is expected to expand at a high CAGR of 12.5% during the forecast period.

Browse Research Report with Complete TOC:http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/human-vaccines-market.html

Minimal Side Effects of Vaccines Bolstering Large-scale Adoption

An extremely low risk of serious and fatal side effects associated with vaccines is one of the primary factors driving the market for human vaccines around the world. Similar to other drugs, vaccines are associated with a few side effects; however, most of the times, these are rather mild. Soreness, swelling, redness at the site of injection, fever, rash, or itchiness are the most common side effects of vaccines. Several healthcare organizations, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the US FDA, the American Medical Association (AMA), and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommend the use of vaccines owing to their safety.

Complementing this factor is the growing awareness among patients and the general population regarding the benefits of vaccination. This can be attributed to a rise in awareness programs by government, private, and not-for-profit organizations. "The celebration of the National Immunization Awareness Month in the month of August in the U.S., for instance, is a great way of spreading awareness and getting more people to opt for vaccination," the author of the report states.

High Costs Deterring Market Growth

Strict regulatory requirements is a major hurdle for most players in the global human vaccines market. In addition to this, high costs pose a significant challenge. "The discovery and development of new vaccines require immense capital. Moreover, the transportation, storage, and handling of vaccines can also be extremely heavy on the pocket," the TMR analyst reports. Apart from this, the containment of technical expertise in the hands of a few major players also acts as a deterrent on the growth of the human vaccines market.

Speak to Research Expert for any Query:http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=ASK&rep_id=16127

Global Human Vaccines Market, by Vaccine Type

Conjugate

Recombinant

Inactivated

Combination

Attenuated

Others

Global Human Vaccines Market, by Product

Pneumococcal

Influenza

Hepatitis

HPV

Meningococcal

Rotavirus

Measles and Mumps

Typhoid

Combination

Others

Global Human Vaccines Market, by Age Group

Pediatrics

Adolescents

Adults

Geriatrics

Global Human Vaccines Market, by Distribution Channel

Hospital Pharmacies

Drugstores

Others

Global Human Vaccines Market, by Geography

North America U.S. Canada Europe

Germany France U.K. Italy Spain Rest of Europe

Asia Pacific (APAC) Japan China ASEAN Rest of APAC

(APAC) Latin America (LATAM) Brazil Mexico Rest of LATAM

(LATAM) Middle East & Africa (MEA) GCC South Africa Rest of MEA

& (MEA)

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WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Khizr Khan, the father of slain Pakistani-American soldier Humayun Khan, joined Hillary Clinton at a rally in Manchester, New Hampshire, Sunday. The Democratic candidate thanked Khizr Khan, his wife and their son Capt. Humayun Khan for their sacrifice, their strength and commitment to America's ideals. Clinton vowed to be a president for all Americans, and said 'we must make sure it remains a place, where everyone is included, where people who are willing to work hard can get ahead and stay ahead, where we recognize the importance of the American dream and we believe and we will ensure it is big enough for everyone, not just a few.' Khizr Khan recalled the outburst of support he has received from across America since his Democratic National Convention speech and called Secretary Clinton 'the strongest, most qualified representative of the fundamental values which have made this country a symbol of hope and dignity for all throughout the world.' Reflecting on whether his son, as a Muslim, would have a place in Trump's America, he asked the crowd to make sure we never find out, saying, 'thankfully, Mr. Trump, this isn't your America. And on Tuesday - and on Tuesday - and on Tuesday - and on Tuesday we are going to prove America belongs to all of us.' 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.
Its illegal to discriminate hiring on the basis of relgion... So Obama broke the law.. Can we impeach the SOB now?Obama the racist, who goes around accusing whites of being racist. Most divisive person on the planet. Worst president ever.Obama is a bigoted racist pig
Globoforce, a leading provider of social recognition solutions, today announced former First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, will be a keynote speaker at its WorkHuman 2017 conference, May 30-June 1, in Phoenix, Ariz., at the JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort.

Michelle Robinson Obama served as First Lady of the United States from 2009-2017, transforming the position and becoming a role model, champion and inspiration for women, families, and young people across America and around the world.

"Michelle Obama has inspired us in every sense of the word," said Eric Mosley, CEO of Globoforce. "As First Lady, she was wholeheartedly dedicated to the human cause - striving to uplift others, improve the quality of life for people around the world, and giving a voice to the people who often go unheard. She has long recognized the importance of diversity of ideas and people, and the fundamental need for people to feel valued and appreciated. We are honored to host such a strong leader-Michelle Obama's energy and passion will help propel the WorkHuman movement and inspire top senior HR leaders in the world to create more human workplaces where employees feel a sense of belonging and can be their most authentic selves."

As a transformative First Lady, Mrs. Obama launched and led four key initiatives: Let's Move!, to address the challenge of childhood obesity; Joining Forces, to support veterans, service members and their families; Reach Higher, to inspire young people to seek higher education; and Let Girls Learn, to help adolescent girls around the world go to school.

Before becoming First Lady, Michelle Obama attended Princeton University and Harvard Law School. She started her career as an attorney at the Chicago law firm Sidley Austin, where she met her future husband, Barack Obama. She later worked in the Chicago mayor's office, the University of Chicago, and the University ofChicago Medical Center. Mrs. Obama also founded the Chicago chapter of Public Allies, an organization that prepares young people for careers in public service.

WorkHuman is dedicated to helping educate, energize, and engage business and HR leaders to build a more human-focused work culture. he movement serves as the catalyst for creating a more inclusive and human workplace - one that values individuals as key components to the growth and success of an organization. The annual event has grown exponentially in size since the inaugural event in 2015.

At WorkHuman 2017, Mrs. Obama will join "Seinfeld" and "Veep" actress and comedienne Julia Louis-Dreyfus, LGBTQ Rights Advocate and actor Chaz Bono, and New York Times best-selling author and Quiet Revolution co-founder Susan Cain, and top-ranked Wharton School professor and New York Times best-selling author Adam Grant as WorkHuman keynote speakers.

For more information or questions about the conference, call toll-free at 844-975-4626 (844-WRKHMAN) or visit www.workhuman.com.

About Globoforce

Globoforce is a leading provider of social recognition solutions, helping companies build stronger, more human cultures through the power of thanks. Named one of the Best Workplaces by the Great Place To Work Institute, Globoforce is trusted by some of the world's most admired companies to inspire and energize employees and create best places to work. Our award-winning SaaS technology and proven methodologies empower HR and business leaders to take a modern, more strategic approach to recognition programs. What results is measurable business success, qualified by increases in employee engagement, retention and productivity. The company pioneered the WorkHuman movement, created to galvanize organizations and leaders worldwide to create a more human workplace. Globoforce is co-headquartered in Framingham, Mass., and Dublin, Ireland.

To learn more:

Visit: http://www.globoforce.com

Read: http://globoforce.com/globoblog

Follow: Twitter @Globoforce LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/globoforce Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/globoforce



WorkHuman: Be part of the movement. Join us at the annual event in Phoenix, Ariz., May 30-June 1, 2017.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170406006098/en/

Contacts:

Globoforce

Shweta Agarwal, 508-229-1541

Senior Manager, Public Relations

Shweta.Agarwal@globoforce.com

or

Greenough Communications

Maria Kucinksi

mkucinski@greenough.biz
WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Thursday, the Republican National Committee (RNC) announced the party has raised $282.2 million this cycle for its presidential candidate Donald Trump, and it currently has $51.2 million cash on hand. The RNC said in a statement that it raised $19.9 million between the beginning of this month and October 19 - the period covered by the last regular FEC reports due before the Nov. 8 election. 'With Election Day less than two weeks away, our party remains focused on securing the resources needed to elect Republicans up and down the ballot,' said RNC Chairman Reince Priebus. 'Small dollar donors continue to fuel a truly grassroots campaign to elect Donald Trump and protect our GOP majorities in the House and Senate,' he added. 98 percentage of the donations were under $200, and the Republicans received an average donation of $64 during October 1-October 19, the figures released by the party shows. However, Trump lags behind in fund-raising by his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton. Over the course of the entire election cycle, the Clinton campaign had raised $513 million. And in the pre-general election period of October 1 to October 19, Clinton raised $52.8 million. 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.
LONDON, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

UK-founded performance marketing technology company - Smarter Click Technology has acquired Admedo's performance marketing company MDNA Media this week.

The acquisition is a significant move for Smarter Click's continued expansion into digital advertising and strengthens their technology stack. The company already offers their clients on-site remarketing through Smarter Overlays and Smarter ReMail. This acquisition will strengthen the offering enabling the provision of accessible and transparent programmatic advertising to their clients.

"After a fantastic year on year growth from the efforts of a growing Smarter Click team, we're excited to further increase our product portfolio and reach within the digital space with David Ayre appointed as UK Country Manager. Acquiring the MDNA platform supported by Admedo's technology will allow us to continue offering clients a fully transparent platform and to engage and convert customers at every stage of their interaction with the brands that we are working closely with. Both company's ethos of transparency and accessibility are something we intend to maintain and scale" said Ennis Al-Saiegh, co-founder of Smarter Click.

Admedo are continuing to develop their programmatic technology stack and this acquisition enables Admedo to focus on providing the wider industry with a market-leading platform. Nick Moutter, CEO and Founder of Admedo, said: "We are delighted with the acquisition by Smarter Click further providing the Performance Marketing industry with a "one-stop shop" that provides clients with the accessibility and transparency we have built our own platform on".

David Ayre, Performance Director of Media DNA will be joining Smarter Click's co-founders Ennis Al-Saiegh, Henry Boyson & Joe Gilmore as Country Manager (UK) with the existing team based in Moorgate.

Media Contact:

David Ayre

Country Manager (UK),

Smarter Click

david@smarterclick.co.uk


Syngenta and ChemChina today announced that the EU review of ChemChina's acquisition of Syngenta will enter Phase II with effect from 31 October. The regular duration of Phase II is up to 90 working days. The companies intend to continue constructive discussions with the EU authorities in order to conclude the review as early as possible.

About Syngenta

Syngenta is a leading agriculture company helping to improve global food security by enabling millions of farmers to make better use of available resources. Through world class science and innovative crop solutions, our 28,000 people in over 90 countries are working to transform how crops are grown. We are committed to rescuing land from degradation, enhancing biodiversity and revitalizing rural communities. To learn more visit www.syngenta.com and www.goodgrowthplan.com. Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Syngenta.

Additional information and where to find it

This release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to purchase or a solicitation of an offer to sell company securities. The solicitation and offer to buy company securities will only be made pursuant to the Swiss offer prospectus and the offer to purchase and other documents relating to the U.S. offer that have been filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). investors and security holders are urged to carefully read the tender offer statement on schedule to filed by the offeror with the SEC and the solicitation/recommendation statement on schedule 14d-9 with respect to the offer filed by the company with the SEC, since these materials contain important information, including the terms and conditions of the offer. Investors and security holders may obtain a free copy of these materials and other documents filed by the offeror and the company with the SEC at the website maintained by the SEC at www.sec.gov. Investors and security holders may also obtain free copies of the solicitation/recommendation statement and other documents filed with the SEC by the company at www.syngenta.com.

Cautionary statement regarding forward-looking statements

Some of the statements contained in this release are forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the expected consummation of the Swiss and U.S. public tender offers, which involves a number of risks and uncertainties, including the satisfaction of closing conditions for the offers, such as regulatory approval for the transaction and the tender of at least 67% of the outstanding shares of the company, the possibility that the transaction will not be completed and other risks and uncertainties discussed in the company's public filings with the SEC, including the "risk factors" section of the company's form 20-f filed on February 11, 2016, as well as the tender offer documents filed by the offeror and the solicitation/recommendation statement filed by the company. These statements are based on current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future statements. These statements are generally identified by words or phrases such as "believe", "anticipate", "expect", "intend", "plan", "will", "may", "should", "estimate", "predict", "potential", "continue" or the negative of such terms or other similar expressions. If underlying assumptions prove inaccurate or unknown risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results and the timing of events may differ materially from the results and/or timing discussed in the forward-looking statements, and you should not place undue reliance on these statements. The offeror, ChemChina and the company disclaim any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of developments occurring after the period covered by this release or otherwise.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005644/en/

Contacts:

Syngenta International AG

Media Office

Tel: +41 61 323 2323

Fax: +41 61 323 2424

www.syngenta.com

or

Media:

Leandro Conti

Switzerland: +41 61 323 2323

or

Paul Minehart

USA: +1 202 737 8913

or

Analysts/Investors:

Jennifer Gough

Switzerland: +41 61 323 5059

USA: +1 202 737 6521






BEIJING, Oct. 28,2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Honghua Group Limited ("Honghua" or the "Group") (Stock Code: 196.HK), announces that the Group held the Sino-US LNG industry development seminar in Beijing today, and the "Sino-US Integrated Solution to LNG Industry" leading by the Group along with the Sino-US top companies in LNG industry. Shanghai Honghua Offshore Oil and Gas Equipment Co., Ltd. ("Honghua Offshore"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Group, entered into the first offshore LNG platform ("PLNG") construction Heads of Agreement (HOA) with Argo LNG Partners, LLC. ("ARGO"), with a total amount of approximately US$1.8 billion.

Honghua, the creative leading corporation along with Sino-US top partners, including GE, Braemar, Wood Group and China Aerospace (Shanghai) etc, announced the "Sino-US Integrated Solution to LNG Industry". Honghua together with Sino-US top partners initially introduced fixed platform technology into LNG factory design and developed the PLNG. PLNG has unique advantages, including: establishment in American federal waters to avoid approval period; the integration of port and factory, converting overseas EPC project to Chinese manufacturing to achieve low cost, controllable cycle, and convenient construction.

Mr. Zhang Mi, Chairman of Honghua commented, "We are pleased to announce 'Sino-US Integrated Solution to LNG Industry' and enter into the first PLNG construction HOA. We always adhere to the concept of 'Creative Manufacturing' and have successfully developed the new 'Super Offshore' model with integrated construction of offshore platform, implemented the concept of 'Offshore Equipment Manufactured Onshore' and the unique advantage of "Honghai" crane this time, as well as expanded the global market in advance."

About Honghua Group Limited (Stock Code: 196.HK)

Honghua is one of the largest land drilling equipment manufacturers in the world, which is primarily engaged in manufacturing conventional land drilling rigs, digital drilling rigs, accessories of drilling rigs, as well as the parts and components for the drilling rigs or for the maintenance of the drilling rigs in operation. Leveraging on the strong R&D strength, high-quality production facilities and mature international sales network, the Group's 80% products have been sold to a large number of famous enterprises all over the world. In 2014, Honghua has obtained sales orders of offshore drilling platform and started to manufacture in its Qidong offshore equipment production plant.








CALGARY, ALBERTA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- Grand Power Logistics Group Inc. (the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: GPW) announces that it has entered into an Amalgamation Agreement (the "Agreement") with 2001123 Alberta Ltd. ("Newco") pursuant to which the Company will be taken private by way of an amalgamation (the "Amalgamation") between Newco and the Company.

Newco is a corporation owned by Mr. Tong (Ricky) Chiu ("Chiu") and Sheng Ning (Candace) Wong (the "Acquirors"). The Acquirors collectively own approximately 18,154,627 common shares or 22.33% of the issued and outstanding common shares (the "Shares") in the capital of the Company. As at October 27, 2016, the Company had outstanding 81,309,278 Shares.

Pursuant to the Agreement, the Acquirors will, directly or indirectly, through the Amalgamation, pay $0.09 per Share in cash (the "Offer Price") to holders of all of the issued and outstanding Shares that are not directly or indirectly, owned by the Acquirors. Each shareholder of the Company, other than Acquirors, will receive one redeemable preferred share of the amalgamated company for each Share held immediately prior to the Amalgamation. Each redeemable preferred share will then be redeemed for the Offer Price. The total cash consideration for the aggregate Offer Price will be $5,683,915. The Amalgamation, if consummated, will result in the Company being taken private and delisted from the TSX Venture Exchange.

The Offer Price represents a 64% premium to the closing price of the Shares on October 27, 2016 on the TSX Venture Exchange.

The Amalgamation, if consummated, will constitute a "business combination" for the purposes of Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101").

The board of directors of the Company (the "Board") formed a special committee (the "Special Committee") comprised of independent directors Gerry Peacock and Rudolph Cech to evaluate the Amalgamation and make recommendations to the Board. The Special Committee has engaged Burstall Winger Zammit LLP as its legal advisors.

The Company intends to seek approval from the majority of minority shareholders to comply with requirements of MI 61-101. Because the Company is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange, the Amalgamation will, pursuant to Section 4.4(1)(a) of MI 61-101, be exempt from the formal valuation requirements of MI 61-101.

The Special Committee retained Evans & Evans, Inc. as an independent valuator, who prepared a Comprehensive Valuation Report and Fairness Opinion dated October 12, 2016 (the "Report") with respect to the proposed Amalgamation. The Report concluded that the Offer Price was not fair from a financial point of view. The Special Committee, however, after considering both the Report and other factors relevant to the Amalgamation, resolved that the Board should:

-- submit the Amalgamation to a vote of the shareholders at a shareholders' meeting and, in furtherance thereof, authorize the Company to enter into the Amalgamation Agreement; and -- make no recommendation to the shareholders as to how they should vote in respect of the Amalgamation but advise shareholders they should take into account the consideration discussed by the Special Committee in the information circular for the shareholders' meeting.

The Company has convened an annual general and special meeting of shareholders (the "Meeting") which will take place on December 22, 2016 for shareholders to consider and, if thought appropriate, to approve the Amalgamation.

The completion of the Amalgamation is subject to a number of conditions precedent that are customary to this type of transaction, including, but not limited to, the approval of at least two-thirds of the votes cast by holders of Shares at the Meeting, the approval by at least a simple majority of the votes cast by the shareholders other than the Acquirors, and the acceptance of the Amalgamation by the TSX Venture Exchange.

Assuming the satisfaction of all conditions, the proposed transaction is expected to close as soon as practicable following the Meeting. However, there can be no assurances that the Amalgamation, or any other transaction with the Acquirors, will be completed.

Details of the terms and conditions of the Amalgamation, together with a summary of the Report, will be included in a management information circular, which will be mailed to the shareholders as soon as practicable and will also be available for download at www.sedar.com.

No actions are required to be taken by shareholders at this stage. The Company will communicate with shareholders in due course with respect to the Amalgamation.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulations 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.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENTS REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION

Forward-looking statements or information are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements or information, including, without limitation, risks and uncertainties relating to the completion of the Amalgamation or related transactions, obtaining the required shareholder approval of the Amalgamation and applicable regulatory approvals required with respect to the Amalgamation. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements or information. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. The Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update forward-looking statements or information except as required by law, and the reader is referred to the full discussion of the Company's business contained in the Company's reports filed with the securities regulatory authorities in Canada at www.sedar.com.

Contacts:

Grand Power Logistics Group Inc.

Alan Chan

CFO

(403) 237-8211

alanchan@grandpowerlogistics.com




MONTREAL, QUEBEC -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- The Honourable Melanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage, today hosts the fifth of six in-person discussions taking place across the country with representatives from a variety of sectors and members of the general public. This discussion is taking place as part of the consultations on Canadian Content in a Digital World.

Renowned for its vitality and creativity in digital technologies, Montreal aims to become a leader among the world's smart digital cities by 2017. Numerous cutting-edge businesses call the Quartier de l'Innovation home and demonstrate Montrealers' expertise in artistic and digital content creation.

Rapidly changing technological advances are affecting how Canadians produce and consume cultural content; as a result, the cultural sector is facing new challenges and opportunities. These consultations will help the Government of Canada determine the best ways to assist the cultural sector in navigating these changes and seizing opportunities to contribute to the country's economic growth and innovation.

These in-person events will contribute to the success of the consultations by making it possible to gather valuable input from a variety of voices in the arts and culture scene.

In order to involve as many Canadians as possible and hear their views on the future of Canadian content in a digital world, we are offering them the opportunity to follow and contribute to this Montreal in-person event through Facebook Live. Canadians are also invited to participate in the last Facebook Live event, which will be held on November 7, during the last in-person discussions, in Edmonton.

In addition to being invited to the in-person and Facebook Live events, all Canadians are welcome to join the conversation and take part in the discussions at any time through the Web portal and social media using the hashtag DigiCanCon. They also have the opportunity to lead in-person discussions in their communities using the consultation kit available online.

A performance by author-composer-performer Karim Ouellet, as part of the introduction to the event, will inspire participants in their dialogue on the wealth and diversity of Canadian content in the digital world.

Quotes

"Montreal, home of many successful and world-renowned artists, creators and cultural businesses, is a great place to continue our conversation. I know that these discussions will allow our Government to better understand the needs and expectations regarding Canadian content creation, discovery and promotion in this new environment in which we live. I hope that, in addition to the participants attending the in-person event today, Canadians across the country will join us and contribute through the Facebook Live event. Together, let's be innovative and find new ways to create and promote quality Canadian content that stands out."

-The Honourable Melanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage

Quick Facts

-- This consultation process follows a pre-consultation questionnaire completed by close to 10,000 Canadians. -- The Department of Canadian Heritage developed a discussion paper based on the results of the pre-consultations. This document will help guide this phase of the consultations on Canadian Content in a Digital World. -- Throughout this process, the Government of Canada will listen to Canadians to learn how best to strengthen Canadian content creation, discovery and export in a digital world and to examine the federal government's current cultural policy toolkit. -- These discussions will be guided by three key principles. The approach will: -- focus on respecting citizen choice and supporting creators in making great, compelling content; -- reflect Canada's incredible diversity in the content that is produced and support the production of news information and local content that is credible and reliable; and -- drive social and economic innovation by forging strong links between creativity, economic growth and social resilience. -- Canadians have until November 25 to provide their input.

Associated Links

Consultations - Canadian Content in a Digital World

Expert Advisory Group Announced

Stay Connected

Follow us on Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and Flickr.

Contacts:

Pierre-Olivier Herbert

Press Secretary

Office of the Minister of Canadian Heritage

819-997-7788



Media Relations

Canadian Heritage

819-994-9101

1-866-569-6155

PCH.media-media.PCH@Canada.ca




VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- B2Gold Corp. (TSX: BTO)(NYSE MKT: BTG)(NAMIBIAN: B2G) ("B2Gold" or the "Company") will release its third quarter and year-to-date 2016 results before the North American markets open on Thursday, November 3, 2016.

B2Gold executives will host a conference call to discuss the results on Thursday, November 3, 2016 at 10:00 am PST / 1:00 pm EDT. You may access the call by dialing the operator at 416-340-2218 or toll free at 866-225-0198 prior to the scheduled start time or, you may listen to the call via webcast by clicking http://www.investorcalendar.com/IC/CEPage.asp?ID=175345. A playback version of the call will be available for one week after the call at 905-694-9451 or toll free at 800-408-3053 (passcode: 9532466).

About B2Gold Corp.

Headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, B2Gold Corp. is one of the fastest-growing intermediate gold producers in the world. Founded in 2007, today, B2Gold has four operating mines, one mine under construction and numerous exploration projects in various countries, including Nicaragua, the Philippines, Namibia, Mali and Burkina Faso. Construction of B2Gold's Fekola mine in southwest Mali is on schedule and on budget, and is projected to commence production in Q4 2017. As a result, B2Gold is well positioned to maintain its low-cost structure and growth profile.

Based on current assumptions and updates to B2Gold's current year guidance and long-term mine plans, the Company is projecting consolidated gold production of between 535,000 to 575,000 ounces in 2016; between 520,000 to 570,000 ounces in 2017; and (significantly increasing to) between 900,000 to 950,000 ounces in 2018, with the inclusion of the anticipated first full year of production at the Fekola mine.

ON BEHALF OF B2GOLD CORP.

Clive T. Johnson, President and Chief Executive Officer

For more information on B2Gold please visit the Company website at www.b2gold.com.

Contacts:

B2Gold Corp.

Kerry Suffolk

Treasurer

604-681-8371

ksuffolk@b2gold.com



B2Gold Corp.

Katie Bromley

Manager, Investor Relations & Public Relations

604-681-8371

kbromley@b2gold.com

www.b2gold.com




Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - October 28, 2016) - Austral Gold Limited (ASX: AGD) (TSXV: AAM) advises that the following documents will be dispatched to shareholders today:

2016 Notice of Annual General Meeting

Proxy Form

Annual Report (to those shareholders who have requested it)

If you are interested in the information disclosed in these documents, including the date of the meeting and the record date for determining who is entitled to vote at the meeting, the Company has filed, and invites you to access, a complete copy of these documents on the Company's profile on SEDAR, www.sedar.com.

About Austral Gold

Austral Gold Limited is a growing precious metals mining, development and exploration company building a portfolio of quality assets in Chile and Argentina. The Company's flagship Guanaco project in Chile is a low-cost gold and silver producing mine with further exploration upside. The company is also operator of the underground silver-gold Casposo mine in San Juan, Argentina. With an experienced local technical team and highly regarded major shareholder, Austral's goal is to continue to strengthen its asset base through acquisition and discovery. Austral Gold Limited is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV:AAM) and the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX: AGD). For more information, please consult the company's website www.australgold.com.

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.

On behalf of Austral Gold Limited:

"Stabro Kasaneva"

President and CEO

Further information please contact:
TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- Further to its press release dated August 10, 2016, Brompton Funds Limited (the "Manager"), as manager of Symphony Floating Rate Senior Loan Fund (the "Fund") (TSX: SSF.UN), announces that the Fund's forward agreements (the "Forward Agreement") with The Bank of Nova Scotia were terminated on October 27, 2016 (the "Termination Date"). The Fund now invests directly in the securities portfolio. The Fund will continue to pursue its investment strategy directly without the Forward Agreement.

Based on the October 26, 2016 net asset value per Class A unit and Class U unit of the Fund, respectively, the Manager estimates that the 2016 distributions paid to Class A unitholders and Class U unitholders will be characterized as return of capital. This estimate is based on several assumptions including the estimates of income, gains and losses, fees and expenses of the Fund to the end of 2016. Changes in assumptions could affect the estimate.

In subsequent years, distributions paid by the Fund are no longer expected to be characterized primarily as capital gains or returns of capital, but rather a portion of distributions will be characterized as ordinary income, although the Fund may still distribute capital gains or returns of capital in the future.

About Brompton Funds

Brompton Funds, a division of Brompton Group which was founded in 2000, is an experienced investment fund manager with approximately $2.0 billion in assets under management. Brompton's investment solutions include TSX listed closed-end funds, mutual funds, hedge funds and flow-through limited partnerships.

About Symphony

Symphony Asset Management LLC is the investment manager of Symphony Floating Rate Senior Loan Fund. Backed by an institutional-calibre integrated credit platform and supported by a 21-member team of experienced credit investment professionals, Symphony manages approximately US$14.9 billion in senior loans and has approximately US$18.2 billion in total assets under management, as at September 30, 2016. Funds sub-advised by Symphony are the top three ranked funds by Lipper over a ten-year period as at September 30, 2016(1) for the senior loan asset class. Symphony is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nuveen Investments Inc.

(1) Source: Lipper September 30, 2016 Monthly Report provided to Nuveen Investments Inc. Rankings should not be construed as a statement of client experience or endorsement. Ranking is based on annual total returns across the 15 funds in the Loans Participation Fund category which had at least 10 years of operating history as at the date of the ranking.

You will usually pay brokerage fees to your dealer if you purchase or sell units of the investment fund on the Toronto Stock Exchange or other alternative Canadian trading system (an "exchange"). If the units are purchased or sold on an exchange, investors may pay more than the current net asset value when buying units of the investment fund and may receive less than the current net asset value when selling them.

There are ongoing fees and expenses associated with owning units of an investment fund. An investment fund must prepare disclosure documents that contain key information about the Fund. You can find more detailed information about the Fund in the public filings available at www.sedar.com. Investment funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated.

Certain statements contained in this news release constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking information may relate to matters disclosed in this press release and to other matters identified in public filings relating to the Fund, to the future outlook of the Fund and anticipated events or results and may include statements regarding the future financial performance of the Fund. In some cases, forward-looking information can be identified by terms such as "may", "will", "should", "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "intend", "estimate", "predict", "potential", "continue" or other similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts. Actual results may vary from such forward-looking information. Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and we assume no obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances.

Contacts:

For further information, please contact your

investment advisor, call Brompton's investor relations line

at 416-642-6000 (toll-free at 1-866-642-6001),

email info@bromptongroup.com

or visit our website at www.bromptongroup.com




Publicis Groupe (Paris:PUB) (EURONEXT: PUB FP), rated Baa2 by Moody's and BBB+ by Standard and Poor's (both with a stable outlook), announces that it has successfully priced its offering of EUR 500 million maturing November 3 rd 2023 with an annual coupon of 0.50 corresponding to a spread of mid-swap +50bps.

Publicis intends to use the net proceeds of the issue to partially repay the 1.6 billion usd bank loan that was subscribed in January 2015 to fund the acquisition of Sapient Corporation Inc and its general corporate purposes.

BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole-CIB and Citigroup acted as Global coordinators and active bookrunners for the offering; BofA Merrill Lynch, Commerzbank, HSBC, J.P. Morgan, Societe Generale Corporate Investment Banking and Standard Chartered Bank acted as passive bookrunners.

Warnings

This press release is for information purposes only and is not an offer to sell securities or a solicitation to buy securities in any jurisdiction. The securities mentioned in this press release were not and will not be offered through a public offering and no related documents will be distributed to the public in any jurisdiction.

The circulation, publication or distribution of this press release is forbidden in any country where such circulation, publication or distribution would be an infringement of applicable laws and regulations.

This announcement is not an offer for sale of securities in the United States or any other jurisdiction. Securities may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an exemption from registration under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Publicis Groupe does not intend to register any of the securities mentioned in this announcement in the United States or to conduct a public offering of securities in the United States.

About Publicis Groupe The Power of One

Publicis Groupe [Euronext Paris FR0000130577, CAC 40] is a global leader in marketing, communication, and digital transformation, driven through the alchemy of creativity and technology. Publicis Groupe offers its clients seamless access to its tools and expertise through modular offering. Publicis Groupe is organized across four Solutions hubs: Publicis Communications (Publicis Worldwide, Saatchi Saatchi, Leo Burnett, BBH, Marcel, Fallon, MSL, Prodigious), Publicis Media (Starcom, Zenith, Mediavest Spark, Optimedia Blue 449, Performics), Publicis.Sapient (SapientNitro, Razorfish, DigitasLBi, Sapient Consulting)and Publicis Health.These 4 Solution hubs operate across principal markets, and are carried across all others by Publicis One, a fully integrated service offering bringing together the Groupe's expertise under one roof. Present in over 100 countries, Publicis Groupe employs nearly 80,000 professionals.

www.publicisgroupe.com | Twitter:@PublicisGroupe Facebook: www.facebook.com/publicisgroupe | LinkedIn: Publicis Groupe http://www.youtube.com/user/PublicisGroupe | Viva la Difference!

Not for distribution in the United States, Canada, Australia or Japan.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161028005839/en/

Contacts:

Publicis Groupe

Peggy Nahmany, 33 (0)1 44 43 72 83

Corporate Communications

peggy.nahmany@publicisgroupe.com

or

Jean-Michel Bonamy, 33 (0)1 44 43 77 88

Investor Relations

jean-michel.bonamy@publicisgroupe.com

or

Chi-Chung Lo, 33 (0)1 44 43 66 69

Investor Relations

chi-chung.lo@publicisgroupe.com
OTTAWA, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- As Monday, October 31 marks the government own deadline to finally fix the problems plaguing the Phoenix pay system's, public service employees represented by the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), the Canadian Association of Professional Employees and the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) will rally in downtown Ottawa to pressure officials into repairing the system once and for all.

"The government set its own October 31 deadline to eliminate the backlog of cases dating back to June 1, but we still don't know if public servants should expect a "trick" or a "treat" Monday. Our patience is wearing thin", worries PIPSC President Daviau.

"This is a problem that should already be mouldering in the grave," said Jessica Squires, Chair of CAPE's Mobilization Committee. "It's unacceptable that there are public servants out there that are still not getting paid for the important work they perform on behalf of Canadians."

PIPSC President Debi Daviau, PSAC President Robyn Benson and CAPE Mobilization Committee Chair Jessica Squires will address participants and will be available to the media to discuss the ongoing failure of the Phoenix pay system.

Event: Halloween Rally - Haunted by Phoenix! Location: Elgin and Wellington (in front of the Prime Minister's Office) Date: Monday, October 31st, 2016 Time: 12:00 pm (noon)

Contacts:

Pierre Lebel, Communications,

CAPE

(613) 236-9181 (cell.) or (613) 889-1027

plebel@acep-cape.ca



Alroy Fonseca, Communications,

PSAC NCR

(613) 262-3658

fonseca@psac.com



Johanne Fillion, PIPSC

(613) 228-6310 ext 4953 or (613) 883-4900 (cell.)

jfillion@pipsc.ca




TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- African Metals Corporation (the "Company") (TSX: AFR)(FRANKFURT: OWW) hereby provides a status update to the Management Cease Trade Order ("MCTO") issued by the British Columbia Securities Commission ("BCSC") on September 30, 2016. The MCTO prohibits all trading in and all acquisitions of the securities of the Company, whether direct or indirect, by Simeon Tshisangama, Chief Executive Officer, and Daniel Gregory, Chief Financial Officer, until two full business days following the receipt by the BCSC of the Company's audited annual consolidated financial statements as at and for the financial year ended May 31, 2016 ("Annual Financial"), related management discussion and analysis ("MD&A") and applicable officer certifications (collectively, the "Annual Financial Materials"), or as further ordered by the BCSC.

The Company is currently attempting to arrange financing to enable it to continue the audit process of its Annual Financial statements. The Company expects to finalize and file its Annual Financial Materials along with its Interim Materials before the November 29, 2016 deadline imposed under the MCTO. The Company confirms that it intends to satisfy the provisions of the alternative information guidelines found in sections 4.3 and 4.4 of National Policy 12-203 Cease Trade Orders for Continuous Disclosure Defaults for so long as it is delayed in filing the Annual Financial Materials. The Company is not aware of any other material information concerning its affairs which has not been generally disclosed.

About African Metals Corporation: African Metals Corporation is a Canadian listed company focused on the discovery and development of copper and cobalt deposits in the world renowned Africa Copper Belt in the Democratic Republic of Congo ("DRC"). The Company through its 100% owned BVI subsidiary, African Metals Holdings (BVI) Ltd ("AFH"), holds a 71.25% interest in the Congolese subsidiary, Luisha Mining Enterprises Sarl ("LME"). LME holds legal title to the 16.2 sq.km. large scale mining permit licence, PE 4881, called the Luisha South Project, located in the Katanga Province of the DRC. AFR holds an option to increase its equity interest to 90% in LME, upon a Qualified Person defining a certain minimum Indicated Resource tonnage for contained copper and cobalt. AFR must also make certain milestone payments in a mixture of cash and shares to reach the milestone of a 90% interest.

The Luisha South Project is located 75 kilometres northwest of Lubumbashi, the capital of Katanga Province. Please see the Company's press release of August 16, 2016 for the Company's latest update on its business and affairs.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulatory Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.

This press release includes certain forward-looking statements concerning the future performance of the Company's business and operations as well as management's objectives, strategies, beliefs and intentions. Forward-looking statements are often identifiable by the use of words such as "may", "will", "might", "would", "plan", "believe", "expect", "anticipate", "intend", "estimate", "scheduled", "forecasts" and similar expressions or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases. Such statements include the Company's anticipation that the audit will be completed before the November 29, 2016 deadline imposed under the MCTO. They also include the Company's intention to satisfy the provisions of the alternative information guidelines found in sections 4.3 and 4.4 of National Policy 12-203 Cease Trade Orders for Continuous Disclosure Defaults for so long as it is delayed in filing the annual financial statements, related MD&A, and CEO and CFO certificates.

Forward-looking statements are based on the current opinions and expectations of management, and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those currently anticipated by such statements. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include, among other things, the possibility that events will not be consistent with the Company's expectations, the availability of financing, and other risks identified in the Company's documents filed with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities at www.sedar.com. Any forward-looking statement speaks only of the date on which it is made, as may be required by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements.

Contacts:

Company Contact:

Daniel Gregory

Chief Financial Officer

Office: (416) 955 0101

E-mail: dangregory811@gmail.com




NEW YORK, NEW YORK -- (Marketwired) -- 10/28/16 -- Brookfield Investment Management Inc. will host a conference call for the Brookfield Global Listed Real Estate Fund, Brookfield Global Listed Infrastructure Fund, Brookfield Real Assets Securities Fund and the Brookfield U.S. Listed Real Estate Fund (the "Funds") on November 4, 2016 at 4:30pm ET. The Funds' investment team will provide an update on the Funds and an update on general market conditions. If you have questions about the Funds that you would like answered on the conference call, please send an e-mail to funds@brookfield.com by 4:00pm ET on November 2, 2016.

The conference call will be available on 800-319-4610. A replay of the conference call will be available soon after completion of the call by calling 855-669-9658 (passcode: 0928) through November 18, 2016.

Brookfield Investment Management Inc. (the "Firm") is an SEC-registered investment adviser and represents the Public Securities platform of Brookfield Asset Management. The Firm provides global listed real assets strategies including real estate equities, infrastructure equities, real asset debt and diversified real assets. With over $16 billion of assets under management as of June 30, 2016, the Firm manages separate accounts, registered funds and opportunistic strategies for institutional and individual clients, including financial institutions, public and private pension plans, insurance companies, endowments and foundations, sovereign wealth funds and high net worth investors. The Firm is a wholly owned subsidiary of Brookfield Asset Management, a leading global alternative asset manager with approximately $250 billion of assets under management as of June 30, 2016. For more information, go to www.brookfield.com.

Brookfield Investment Funds are managed by Brookfield Investment Management Inc. The Funds use their website as a channel of distribution of material company information. Financial and other material information regarding the Funds is routinely posted on and accessible at www.brookfield.com.

A fund's investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses must be considered carefully before investing. The prospectus contains this and other important information about the investment company, and it may be obtained by calling 855.244.4859 or visiting brookfield.com. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing.

Mutual fund investing involves risk. Principal loss is possible.

Brookfield investment Funds are distributed by Quasar Distributors, LLC.

Contacts:

Brookfield Place

250 Vesey Street, 15th Floor

New York, NY 10281-1023

(855) 777-8001

funds@brookfield.com




Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has acquired UK-based Genfour, a pure play automation service provider with deep domain expertise and industry experience in assessing, implementing and managing automation solutions. The acquisition strengthens Accenture's capabilities as a leading provider of intelligent automation services. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

The addition of Genfour expands Accenture's ability to apply intelligent automation solutions that helps clients transform and re-engineer their business processes. Clients can take advantage of data-driven insights that enable faster, more informed business decisions and better quality of service to their customers. Genfour's automation professionals will join the Accenture Operations global Intelligent Automation team and be an integral part of the new Accenture Center of Excellence for Intelligent Automation in the U.K.

"Intelligent automation is transforming the way businesses across industries operate, driving new levels of productivity, innovation, compliance, quality user experiences and improved decision making," said Manish Sharma, group operating officer, Accenture Operations. "With a strong track record of building and managing flexible, scalable automation solutions, Genfour's highly skilled professionals will help accelerate the transformation and re-engineering of our clients' business processes through intelligent automation, enhancing our ability to deliver on the promise of as-a-Service."

Accenture has trained more than 70,000 professionals on new architectures, intelligent platforms and automation over the past year. To date, automation solutions have been implemented for more than 80 percent of Accenture Operations clients.

"With growing demand for intelligent automation solutions, we're excited to be joining Accenture to help build better automated processes and tackle complex process opportunities for clients," said James Hall, CEO, Genfour. "We look forward to continuing to help clients use automation to successfully implement a digital workforce that can ultimately improve both internal operational efficiencies and customer experience."

Founded in 2012, Genfour is a privately held company headquartered in Cwmbran, in Wales, United Kingdom, serving clients across multiple industries, most notably in insurance, banking and utilities.

About Accenture

Accenture is a leading global professional services company, providing a broad range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries and all business functions underpinned by the world's largest delivery network Accenture works at the intersection of business and technology to help clients improve their performance and create sustainable value for their stakeholders. With approximately 401,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries, Accenture drives innovation to improve the way the world works and lives. Visit us at www.accenture.com.

Forward Looking Statement

Except for the historical information and discussions contained herein, statements in this news release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "may," "will," "should," "likely," "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "projects," "believes," "estimates," "positioned," "outlook" and similar expressions are used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. These include, without limitation, risks that: the transaction might not achieve the anticipated benefits for the company; the company's results of operations could be adversely affected by volatile, negative or uncertain economic conditions and the effects of these conditions on the company's clients' businesses and levels of business activity; the company's business depends on generating and maintaining ongoing, profitable client demand for the company's services and solutions, including through the adaptation and expansion of its services and solutions in response to ongoing changes in technology and offerings, and a significant reduction in such demand or an inability to respond to the changing technological environment could materially affect the company's results of operations; if the company is unable to keep its supply of skills and resources in balance with client demand around the world and attract and retain professionals with strong leadership skills, the company's business, the utilization rate of the company's professionals and the company's results of operations may be materially adversely affected; the markets in which the company competes are highly competitive, and the company might not be able to compete effectively; the company could have liability or the company's reputation could be damaged if the company fails to protect client and/or company data from security breaches or cyberattacks; the company's profitability could materially suffer if the company is unable to obtain favorable pricing for its services and solutions, if the company is unable to remain competitive, if its cost-management strategies are unsuccessful or if it experiences delivery inefficiencies; changes in the company's level of taxes, as well as audits, investigations and tax proceedings, or changes in tax laws or in their interpretation or enforcement, could have a material adverse effect on the company's effective tax rate, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition; the company's results of operations could be materially adversely affected by fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; the company's business could be materially adversely affected if the company incurs legal liability; the company's work with government clients exposes the company to additional risks inherent in the government contracting environment; the company might not be successful at identifying, acquiring, investing in or integrating businesses, entering into joint ventures or divesting businesses; the company's Global Delivery Network is increasingly concentrated in India and the Philippines, which may expose it to operational risks; as a result of the company's geographically diverse operations and its growth strategy to continue geographic expansion, the company is more susceptible to certain risks; adverse changes to the company's relationships with key alliance partners or in the business of its key alliance partners could adversely affect the company's results of operations; the company's services or solutions could infringe upon the intellectual property rights of others or the company might lose its ability to utilize the intellectual property of others; if the company is unable to protect its intellectual property rights from unauthorized use or infringement by third parties, its business could be adversely affected; the company's ability to attract and retain business and employees may depend on its reputation in the marketplace; if the company is unable to manage the organizational challenges associated with its size, the company might be unable to achieve its business objectives; any changes to the estimates and assumptions that the company makes in connection with the preparation of its consolidated financial statements could adversely affect its financial results; many of the company's contracts include payments that link some of its fees to the attainment of performance or business targets and/or require the company to meet specific service levels, which could increase the variability of the company's revenues and impact its margins; the company's results of operations and share price could be adversely affected if it is unable to maintain effective internal controls; the company may be subject to criticism and negative publicity related to its incorporation in Ireland; as well as the risks, uncertainties and other factors discussed under the "Risk Factors" heading in Accenture plc's most recent annual report on Form 10-K and other documents filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Statements in this news release speak only as of the date they were made, and Accenture undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statements made in this news release or to conform such statements to actual results or changes in Accenture's expectations.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170403005785/en/

Contacts:

Accenture

Duncan Burford, 44 208 611 4826

duncan.burford@accenture.com
Decision Tech, a London, UK-based market leader in Ofcom accredited price comparison for home communications, acquired sellmymobile.com, a Burntwood, UK-based price comparison site for buying and selling used mobile phones, for an undisclosed sum.

The amount of was not disclosed.

Led by CEO Michael Philips, Decision Tech operates broadbandchoices.co.uk, and provides the technology, data and performance analytics powering telecoms comparison on major brands including Gocompare.com and confused.com.

The acquisition of sellmymobile.com forms part of Decision Techs strategy to grow its portfolio of consumer facing brands and develop new products for its partners, The company in 2014 acquired The Right Group, a developer of mobile handset and tariff comparison technology which handles over 250,000 product data points.

Decision Tech generated an EBITDA of 2.2 last year.

FinSMEs

28/10/2016
Privy, a Boston, MA-based email marketing startup, raised a new round of funding.

The amount of the deal was not disclosed.

The round was led by Mike Volpe and Yoav Shapira at Operator.vc, with participation from Bill Cohen, Managing Partner, and Todd Breeden, Principal, at KiwiVenture Partners II. Operator.vc and KiwiVenture Partners II joined existing investors including Hubspot, Accomplice, 500 Startups, etc.

The company intends to use the funds to continue scaling its list growth product.

Led by CEO Ben Jabbawy, VP Engineer Peter Cai and three other developers, Privy offers a free website widget and landing page tool to grow the email list and incentivize conversions. Its free plan allows users to capture inbound leads on their website and spin up mobile friendly landing pages in seconds. Paid users can track ecommerce or in-store sales derived from every campaign.

FinSMEs

28/10/2016
Healthcare private equity firm Essex Woodlands closes its latest fund, at $543.1m.

According to a regulatory form filed with the SEC, Essex Woodlands Fund IX, L.P., was subscribed by 25 investors.

The doc lists Managing Directors Petri Vainio, Martin Sutter, Ron Eastman, Steve Wiggins and Richard Barry as people related to the offering.

Founded in 1985, Essex Woodlands focuses on pharmaceuticals, medical devices, healthcare services and healthcare information technology areas having been involved in the founding, investing and/or management of over 150 companies, ranging across sectors, stages and geographies.

Generally speaking, the firm targets companies with revenues ranging from $20M to $200M that are EBITDA-positive or soon to be positive, led by proven management teams who seek to build leading healthcare businesses for the long-term.

The team is comprised of over 20 senior investment professionals with offices in Palo Alto, Houston, New York and London.

Essex Woodlands has more than $3 billion under management.

FinSMEs

28/10/2016
If the nation's next president is interested in knowing what young Americans would like to see him or her accomplish, West Albany High School students have a list of suggestions.

Juniors in American Literature classes taught by Michelle Balmeo and Margie Graves are participating this year in a nationwide project, "Letters to the Next President 2.0."

Created during the 2008 presidential campaign by the National Writing Project, the online effort invites educators who work with youth ages 13 to 18 to register and sign up a site/school.

Participants publish their letters online at https://letters2president.org. A map shows the origin of each.

Submissions are open through Election Day, Nov. 8. As of this week, the site had received close to 3,000 letters on topics ranging from tuition to racial inequality to animal rights.

Letters from West Albany students also run the gamut. Illa McCaulou, for instance, wants the next president to reduce pollution, especially as it affects the Great Barrier Reef.

"I think America needs to follow in Australia's footsteps and put more money into preserving natural land features like the Great Barrier Reef," she said. "It's not just up to one country. It's up to the entire planet."

Classmate Eva Gamboa wrote her letter to urge the president to take action on equal pay for women.

The Institute for Women's Policy Research has published a report stating if current trends continue, women and men won't receive equal salaries until 2059, Gamboa said. She believes presidential action should shorten that term.

"I picked (the topic) because I think there's a lot of career jobs that are the same ... and it ends up that men still earn more than women," she explained.

Academically, Balmeo said, the lesson hits a number of important skills. Students are required to write "argument" papers to meet Language Arts content standards, which include understanding the audience, taking the appropriate tone, anticipating and addressing counterclaims  and, of course, using proper spelling and grammar.

Writing to the next president is "argument, but it's argument with purpose," she said. The wider audience also appeals: "They're not just writing for me."

West students said the project's global reach is alternately empowering and terrifying.

The letters on the website don't list students' last names (although all West students interviewed or publicized for this story were all right with giving them), but even so, it can be nerve-wracking to stick your neck out, said Elizabeth Frenzel.

'It's kind of a sense of, 'Oh. Wait. What?'" said Frenzel, who chose gender roles as her issue. "You're nervous, because you want to make your point good so it can be heard."

She and her classmates in Balmeo's class agreed this was an assignment they could get behind, however.

"I feel like it's important the president hears our voice," said Jack Lamont, who urged the new president to tackle cyberbullying.

Added Courtney Rich, who advocates creating an independent watchdog group to evaluate allegations of police brutality: "You get to come up with your own ideas ... It gets out there that there's a problem."

As a teacher, Graves said the project is a great way to help students learn research skills, especially since they choose their own topics and thus are able to look up anything they might be passionate about.

"I hope they will come out of this comfortable with the research and writing process, of course, but I also hope that they will realize that their voices are powerful and that their ideas are important," she said. "Most of all, I want them to know that they should pay attention to what's at stake in an election and understand how crucial their votes will be."

It's tough to be a high school kid, Balmeo added. Nearly every minute of every day is already preplanned, from when you get up to when you eat to what you do after school.

It's easy to get apathetic under those circumstances, she said, which makes the letter-writing project a chance for students to sound off on something they feel really matters.

"Hopefully, if a few of them feel like their voices are heard, that's a success."
Hitting out at Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray, who had protested against the release of Ae Dil Hai Mushkil and Raees for roping in Pakistani artistes, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in an interview with CNN-News18, said, "I will even act against Raj Thackeray if he violates the law."

Earlier this month, in a move to boycott Pakistani artistes from working in India, Raj Thackeray-led MNS asserted that they would not let Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (which features Fawad Khan in a cameo) and Raees (which marks the Bollywood debut of Mahira Khan) release in India, or be screened in theatres. The group warned that any filmmaker who defied their diktat would be beaten up.

Following which Ae Dil Hai Mushkil director Karan Johar said that he would stick to his release plan, even as certain distributors and theatre owners were against it, citing their safety. On 18 October, the MNS intensified its plans and issued an indirect threat of vandalism to the multiplexes if they screened the movie.

Speaking in support of cross-border artistes, the chief minister said, "I am with creative people and if they legally come to India, we will protect them as per the law. Sentiments are not in the favour of Pakistani artists, but we will go by the Constitution.

"When MNS started their protest, we sent them behind bars. If censor board clears a film, no one can stop it from releasing in the theatres," he said.

On the actor Shabana Azmi's remarks on him for "brokering the deal and buying patriotism for Rs 5 crore', Fadnavis maintained that he had opposed the offer of Rs 5 crore contribution from the producers to the Army Welfare Fund.

Every producer who has cast Pak artists will give Rs 5 crore to Army relief fund:Raj Thackeray after his meeting with CM Fadnavis & producers pic.twitter.com/Bz7ggflKCx  ANI (@ANI_news) October 22, 2016

Producers will have to give in writing that they will not take Pakistani actors in their films: Raj Thackeray pic.twitter.com/0D8h4HH1eh  ANI (@ANI_news) October 22, 2016

The MNS withdrew their protests, after Fadnavis approached party chief Raj Thackeray for a compromise.

Addressing a press conference, Thackeray had initially said that Fadnavis called him to reach a compromise and then corrected himself and said when he was in touch with the CM.

Watch the interview here:
The Ratan Tata-Cyrus Mistry fracas has spiraled quickly, with both camps airing a fair amount of their dirty laundry out in public. Many are anticipating an historic legal clash to take place between the two titans of Indian industry soon.

While Cyrus Mistry has a number of legal options at his disposal under the extant legal framework as well as the Companys Articles of Association, his best bet would be to go through his fathers company, Shapoorji Pallonji, a principal shareholder in Tata Sons, and file a petition for oppression and mismanagement under Sections 397 and 398 of the Companies Act, 1956.

The Tata Group, however, also seems to have enough evidence but Mistrys claims put up a strong defence in front of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).

Tatas strategy predicates on being able to show that Mistrys removal was in the best interest of the company and its shareholders. Let us explore what legal defences are open to Tata Sons under the Act.

As stated in an earlier article published by Firstpost, Section 397 provides for relief if the affairs of a company are conducted in a manner which is prejudicial to public interest or oppressive to any members. Section 398 provides that members of the company may apply to the Tribunal if a material change has taken place in the management or control of the Company, including but not limited to an alteration in its Board of directors, and that such a change will result in prejudice to public interest or the interests of the company.

Under this Section the Tribunal may pass orders to rectify the situation. Under the Act, Shapoorji Pallonji would have to establish that Mistrys removal is an action that is detrimental to the interests of the Tata group.

For one, Mistrys ouster was completely legal as per the Companys Articles of Association. The Articles require the board of directors to vote on bringing a new chairman in and the same procedure is to be followed when removing the chairman of the board. This was the procedure followed when Mistry was brought in and when he was removed. Courts have established that bona fide decisions consistent with the companys memorandum and articles are not to be equated with mismanagement even if they turn out to be erroneous or cause temporary losses.

The change in the control and management of the company and the appointment of new executives as a result thereof cannot be questioned under Section 398, and the court will not interfere with the affairs of a company in a case where the act complained of is within the realm of the companys powers under its articles and memorandum.

In terms of Mistrys email and the allegations he has levelled in it, specifically the losses that the salt-to-steel conglomerate incurred in certain business deals such as NTT Docomo, are not necessarily instances of mismanagement when viewed through the prism of recent court rulings. In fact, Mistrys improper handling of the DoCoMo arbitration and the subsequent $1.2 billion that was awarded against Tata will certainly not bode in his favour in front of the NCLT.

The NCLT has a wide range of powers when disposing of a petition under Section 397 or 398 of the Act. These powers are enumerated in Section 402 and they include the ability to pass orders to regulate the companys conduct in the future, termination of agreements between the company and directors, and any other matter in which it thinks a just and equitable provision should be made.

The expansive nature of the powers granted to the NCLT under the Act imposes a strict burden of proof on Shapoorji Pallonji and Cyrus Mistry to back their allegations against Tata.

The Tata group has already issued a response to Mistrys email, stating that the allegations in his correspondence are baseless and that he was not hindered in any way when running the conglomerate. It will be interesting to see how Mistry attempts to take on an organization that has been around since the time of the American Civil War.

(The author is the founder of Hammurabi & Solomon and a visiting fellow with the Observer Research Foundation)
Bengaluru: Nearly a month into the protests over the steel flyover in Bengaluru, the campaign has seen several twists and turns already. As the beda (No) protesters turned to social media to garner support for their campaign from Bengalureans, a beku (Yes) campaign has started on social media. Albeit, late into the campaign, the beku group has been out-shouted by the beda group for being pro-government and for being initiated by the ruling Congress.

In the cosmopolitan city, the Kannada words beda and beku have found popular hashtags along with English phrases to give it a local flavour. So, you have hashtags #steelflyoverbeda and #steelflyoverbeku trending on Twitter, Facebook, Whatsapp and Youtube with each group warring over how genuine or factual the other groups information is.

For each post put out by the beku group, citing the traffic snarls and long commute on the existing Hebbal flyover, there are several counter posts by the beda group.

Hundreds of members of the beku group even hit the streets to counter the nearly 5000-strong human chain the beda group had undertaken earlier. Several residents from North Bengaluru Residents Welfare Associations shouted slogans for "Steel flyover beku". Commuters complained of getting stuck on the existing Hebbal flyover from anywhere between 20 minutes to one hour during peak hours and how the steel flyover would help them reach their destinations sooner.

North Bengaluru will be directly affected by the steel flyover, which will start at Chalukya circle and go to Hebbal, leading to the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA). The flyovers aim is to de-congest the busy Bellary road and North Bengaluru areas. Considered to be the longest flyover at a 6.72 km stretch, the steel flyover is estimated to cost Rs 1,791 crore and is expected to be completed in 24 months. The project will be executed by Larsen and Toubro Ltd (L&T) and Nagarjuna Ltd, with the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) overseeing it. BDA will acquire around one acre for the project. The steel flyover will involve destruction of three flyovers, two skywalks and one magic box underpass and the chopping of 812 trees, intrinsic to the spirit of Bengaluru.

Bangalore Development Minister KJ George has personally taken up the battle for the flyover, by taking to social media with constant updates on the project. He also told India Today, "We have taken public opinion into consideration and 70 percent of the suggestions in favour of the flyover. It is time and again discussed in many forums, I have personally discussed this with the vision group members and now there is a misconception that this is only for VIP's, that is not true, it is for all."

What the minister is talking about is a June press release put out by BDA about suggestions it invited on the project from experts and interested persons either by contacting or through email. Accordingly, 299 suggestions have been received through emails. Out of which 73% have opined in favour of implementing flyover project. The remaining persons have requested to identify alternative route, conventional concrete method and to exhibit detail project.

Both the ministers and the BDA statement were countered by the beda group trolling this information, with tweets expressing concern for the 300th person.

The Karnataka government also held an all-party meet where the BJP, JD(S) and AAP opposed the steel flyover and the meeting ended with the BJP representatives walking out. Union Minister DV Sadananda Gowda, whose Lok Sabha constituency is from Bangalore North, has also expressed concern over the project, he had even sought a meeting with Bengalurus elected representatives.

The Karnataka government has further followed up its campaign for the steel flyover with animated videos of the congested existing Hebbal flyover and a futuristic 3D animated video on the BDA website. This video shows buses and trucks plying over the new flyover, to counter the beda groups claims that this was a VVIP flyover. With a tiny image of a Congress flag fluttering in the background, the viewer is taken through a six-lane steel flyover from Race Course Road, Dr Ambedkar Road, Raj Bhavan Road and Millers Road to Hebbal.

This BDA video has been trolled extensively by the beda group. Here is one comment on the video posted on Facebook:

With a first movers advantage, the beda group has been garnering more and more strident voices to its group. The "beda" group conducted a public debate with several prominent citizens addressing other citizens last week. Historian Ramachandra Guha spoke on the disease of gigantism. Deccan Herald reported on Thursday, that renowned space scientist UR Rao has raised objections to the steel flyover telling the chief minister that it would come in the way of the telescopic observation at the Jawaharlal Nehru Planetarium.

The beda group also undertook an online and physical referendum from citizens, with ballot boxes springing up all over the city and volunteers going into Metro trains, malls, Majestic bus station and offices and collected over 40,000 signatures.

With criticism from the beku group that the beda group consisted mainly of south Bengalureans who did not have to face the daily traffic congestion in North Bengaluru, the beda group has begun garnering voices from North Bengaluru on social media to counter this.

@TimesNow ppl who are protesting are from Bangalore South. If the opinion survey conducted with Bangalore North the #SteelFlyover is a must  C.G.R (@chigare74) October 26, 2016

Sorry am from Hebbal in Bangalore north n this #Steelflyover is going to be a disaster. #VVIPFlyover @TimesNow https://t.co/cGAKG095Zc  #SteelFlyoverBeda (@gkundra) October 26, 2016

But, in a clear signal of not succumbing to pressure from the beda group, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has said the government would go ahead with the proposed 1791 crore steel flyover project. BDA has also issued a letter of acceptance to L&T on Wednesday, signaling its go-ahead on the project.

What is alarming is that there are also reports that the project cost could go up by another Rs 400 crore, easily crossing Rs 2000 crore, with the governments plans to extend the steel flyover from Hebbal to Esteem mall. This move is likely to face another round of protests, as it would be in violation of the Karnataka lake Conservation and Development Authority Act 2014, and the buffer zone guidelines issued by the Karnataka High Court and the National Green Tribunal.

Bengalurus infrastructure projects have always been mired in controversy, with citizens and activists crying foul until either the projects get scrapped or get implemented regardless of the protests. And sadly, it looks like this is one project thats not getting scrapped regardless of the countless voices being added to the beda group.
The Border Security Force (BSF) on Friday said that 15 Pakistani soldiers have been killed in the past week after Indian security forces personnel retaliated to the repeated ceasefire violations by Pakistan along the border in Jammu and Kashmir.

"We are not yet confirmed about the number of causalities on the other side, but approximately, 15 Pakistani army men have died," ANI quoted Arun Kumar, ADG, BSF, as saying. He also said that India's security forces would never fire on civilian population but would retaliate if Pakistan violated the ceasefire.

We will never fire on civilian population. But if Pakistan fire upon us first, we will surely retaliate: Arun Kumar (ADG, BSF) pic.twitter.com/35UCrjqwrX  ANI (@ANI_news) October 28, 2016

NDTV also reported that two Pakistani Frontier Force soldiers and 13 Pakistan Rangers had been killed, according to an initial assessment by the BSF.

Meanwhile, two civilians have died in India because of the repeated ceasefire violations by Pakistan. One civilian was killed in the Khor belt of Jammu district while another was killed due to Pakistani shelling along the Line of Control in Mendhar sector of Poonch.

Pakistani troops have been pounding border hamlets with heavy mortar shells to especially target civilians in the latest round of ceasefire violations by the neighbouring country.

In the past four days, a six-year old boy and a man have been killed and 24 civilians injured while over 60 cattle have perished and 200 cattle left injured in firing by Pakistani troops. Scores of houses and other structures along the international border in Jammu district are riddled with ammunition from across the border.

The situation worsens during night-time as villagers struggle to find a safe place to escape from the gunfire.

"Pakistani troops are now increasingly targeting civilians. They are resorting to heavy mortar shelling and firing targeting our houses and animals," Subash Chander of village Suchetgarh said.

Subash, whose seven family members were injured as shells exploded in the compound of his house close to the border in Suchetgarh, said the Pakistani troops rain mortar bombshells and fire from automatic weapons targeting civilians.

"We are sitting ducks for the Pakistani troops, who find civilian targets and their properties to target after they failed to fight with BSF troops," he said.

The firing from across the border had intensified from 21 October when BSF killed seven Pakistan Rangers and a terrorist in retaliatory firing.

Many people from border hamlets in RS Pura, Arnia, Hiranagar, and Pargwal sectors have fled their homes and taken shelter in migrant camps set up by the state government at safer places.

"As the shell landed in our compound, there was a deafening blast and splinters injured us mostly in legs. All were lying in blood," Subash's wife Kamlesh Devi said.

Kamlesh along with her daughter Sukhi is undergoing treatment in GMC hospital.

Daljeet Kaur, who was working close to her house in Chand Chak (RS Pura), was injured when a mortar shell exploded. She was taken by her husband to a hospital.

"It looks as if Pakistan is specifically targeting civilians and cattle with specific. Their guns look for human targets," Kaur said.

In Suchetgarh, Ramesh Chander was returning home on a motorbike when a shell exploded near him, injuring his leg. In Karotana Khurd hamlet close to the border, Pakistani troops shelled the houses of Kuwinder Singh and Bishan Dass.

"We passed the night huddled in one room as the house was shelled," said Kulwinder, who later left his home along with his mother, wife and two daughters.

There are similar horrific tales from people, who feel they living under the shadow of death.

With inputs from PTI
WATERLOO  Voters in Waterloo will be asked this November to approve a new permanent tax rate limit for the city.

The city is asking voters for permission to impose $2 per $1,000 of assessed value, but according to the wording for Measure 220-162, it intends to levy just 40 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value this next fiscal year.

If approved, the tax rate will be the first for the city.

Nelson said it's her understanding voters have turned down a similar request twice before, although county election records could not confirm that belief. Waterloo citizens did turn down a vote to disincorporate the city in November 2002, and residents at the time talked about setting a tax rate, but no vote resulted.

Right now, residents pay nothing extra on their property taxes. The 40 cents would amount to about $57 for the tax lot in Waterloo with the highest value, Nelson said.

City Recorder Cathy Nelson said if the request passes, the city would raise a little more than $5,234 each year, which it would set aside for emergency street repairs and for any matching funds required by grant and loan programs.

Right now, Waterloo is not eligible for any grants or loans because it cannot muster the minimum 5 percent match requirement out of its current budget.

"Almost any grant out there has a 5 percent match," she said.

Waterloo's total revenue, including all franchise fees, Oregon Department of Transportation street taxes and funding from the Oregon Liquor Control Commission from sales at the town's one store, is $36,651.

The current budget of $61,651 includes a $25,000 grant for street repairs for which the city applies every year, but it has only received that grant once in the past decade, Nelson said.

Waterloo has no water or sewer  its 250 residents rely on wells and septic systems  but it is responsible for 4.1 miles of streets, Nelson said. It also pays an electricity bill of $500 a month for streetlights.

Right now, she said, the city has no way of funding anything but the most minimal of street repairs, and it cannot set aside money against a future water or sewer system without being able to apply for grants to do the necessary studies.

"We're not looking to line our pockets," she said. "We need to have money set aside so that we can help the city."

Nelson said she knows of no organized campaign either for or against the measure.
New Delhi: Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama is scheduled to visit Arunachal Pradesh early next year, a move which may raise the hackles in the official establishment in China that claims the state to be a part of southern Tibet.

Dalai Lama will travel to Arunachal at the invitation of state's Chief Minister Pema Khandu and the visit is understood to have been cleared by the Centre. The spiritual leader is likely to visit Tawang, the seat of a Buddhist monastery.

Last week, China has reacted strongly to American envoy Richard Verma's 22 October tour to Tawang, saying the Ambassador visited a "disputed region".

When asked about the Dalai Lama's visit to Arunachal, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said he is a "guest of India" and is free to travel across the country.

"Dalai Lama is a revered spiritual figure and an honoured guest of India. He is absolutely free to travel to any part of the country.

"It is a fact that he has a sizeable following among the Buddhists in Arunachal Pradesh who like to seek his blessings.

"He has visited the state in the past as well and we see nothing unusual if he visits again," Swarup said.

Arunachal government sources said the state was looking forward to the Dalai Lama's visit.

China claims Arunachal Pradesh as part of southern Tibet and routinely protests visits by Indian leaders, foreign officials as well as the Dalai Lama to the area.

In the wake of the US envoy's visit, China had gone to the extent of warning the US that any interference by it in the Sino-India boundary dispute will make it "more complicated" and "disturb" the hard-won peace at the border.

Sources said the Dalai Lama's visit is likely to take place in March.
Vadodara: In a tragic incident on the eve of Diwali, at least eight persons were killed on Friday in a fire that broke out at a cracker shop in Rustampura village of Vaghodia tehsil of Vadodara district, police said.

The fire started at a cracker shop in the evening and spread to the adjoining cracker shops and residential structures, Vadodara (rural) SP Saurabh Tolumbia told PTI.

"Police and fire brigade rushed to the spot and brought the fire under control. We have pulled out eight bodies from the site," he said.

Relief was being provided to those injured, he said adding that the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.

Police and fire officials were deployed in large number at the spot, Tolumbia said.

Earlier this week,
India on Friday condemned Pakistan's move of declaring persona non grata an officer posted in its high commission in Islamabad without providing due reasons or explanations.

"Government notes with regret the government of Pakistan's decision to declare Surjeet Singh, Assistant Personnel and Welfare Officer in the High Commission of India in Islamabad, persona non grata and expel him and his family members," the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement. "No justification has been provided by the government of Pakistan except for the completely baseless and unsubstantiated allegation that his activities were not in keeping with diplomatic norms," it stated.

MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup also noted that Pakistan's action is obviously an afterthought and lacks any reasonable cause. "It is obvious that the step is an afterthought following yesterday's apprehension of Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar in Delhi while indulging in anti-India activities," the External Affairs Ministry statement said.

"Pakistan's action further confirms that it continues to be in denial of its anti-India activities, including cross-border terrorism," he added.

India and Pakistan on Thursday announced they would each expel one of the other's diplomats amid growing tension between the nuclear-armed arch-foes over the disputed region of Kashmir. India said it would expel a Pakistani diplomat based in New Delhi who allegedly ran a spy ring that collected sensitive information about Indian security operations along its border.

Following this, late on Thursday night, Pakistan's foreign ministry said it had declared an Indian diplomat, Surjeet Singh, persona non grata and given him 48 hours to leave the country, which the Indian side alleged was an afterthought and merely a retaliatory move.

Police in the Indian capital said the Pakistani diplomat was detained on Wednesday outside the gates to Delhi Zoo, where he had met two Indian associates whom police believe he had recruited to spy for him. The Pakistani diplomat, who reportedly worked in Pakistan High Commission's visa section, and his alleged Indian accomplices were found with forged documents, defence-related maps, deployment charts and lists of officers working along India's border with Pakistan, Indian police said in a statement. "There was high probability that the information passed on by these anti-national elements to PIO (Pakistan intelligence operative) is being used against the national interests and could be highly detrimental for national security," they said, adding they had been trying to break the spy ring for six months.

An Indian foreign ministry spokesman said the man, who was released from custody under diplomatic immunity rules, must leave the country by Saturday.

Pakistan's High Commission in New Delhi, however, rejected the allegations, saying in a statement it "never engages in any activity that is incompatible with its diplomatic status." Later on Thursday, Pakistan's foreign ministry announced it had declared Singh persona non grata and informed the Indian High Commission he had until Saturday to leave the country.

The statement said Singh was accused of activities "that were in violation of the Vienna Convention and the established diplomatic norms" but did not elaborate. India and Pakistan have been at loggerheads since a group of Pakistani militants killed 19 soldiers in September at an army camp in Kashmir, an allegation that Pakistan denies.

India said it had sent special commandos into Pakistan-controlled Kashmir to kill militants in a retaliatory operation that sharply soured relations between the neighbours. Pakistan says the operation never happened and accuses India of inventing it to distract attention from its crackdown on protests in Kashmir.

With inputs from agencies
In 1971, the playground of the high school, where I studied in Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh was taken over by the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). We didnt mind it because the jawans played volley ball with us and gave us chapathis at lunch time. The CRPF was there in big strength to weed out Naxalites who infested the countryside around.

Two years after the 1967 peasant uprising in West Bengals Naxalbari  the village that got the group their name  the Naxalites began to unleash terror in the Srikakulam district, bordering what was then Orissa.

Its more or less in the same region that Maoists  as Naxalites call themselves now  have been getting a severe beating from the police forces of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha this week. After Mondays 'encounter' at Malkangiri in Odisha, in which 24 Maoists were killed, the police are continuing their combing operations in the area. They have gunned down six more Maoists since Monday and among those killed are some of their important leaders, while many others are still on the run.

Perhaps the Naxals have never had it so bad since the death of their original founder Charu Mazumdar in the police lockup in 1972. With a publicly professed goal to 'overthrow' the Indian government through 'armed struggle' and 'extreme violence', they decimated thousands of security personnel and civilians in the last five decades. However, they are now coming to learn that terror begets terror.

Forty-five years after I left Srikakulam, I still remember the stories of Naxalites beheading landlords who according to them were exploiting the peasants.

And to spread terror, they circulated photographs of severed heads they hung from doorposts of the landowners homes. I remember those gruesome photographs as if I saw them yesterday. And with the blood of those they butchered, they wrote slogans about revolution on the walls , declaring their allegiance to Marx and Lenin.

It was not till many years later that I was able to meet some Naxalites in the bowels of rural Telangana. They were all young, both boys and girls, ranging from postgraduates to school or college dropouts. They were gung-ho about the revolution that they day-dreamed was just round the corner to metamorphose India into a heaven on earth, a society of equals where there would be no injustice.

They threw at me rhetoric that included phrases like fight against imperialists, annihilation of class enemies and armed struggle.

At first they looked like cases of juvenile delinquency, kids out to have ideological fun who would soon get bored with it and settle down to jobs and marriages. Some did, but many went on and on, and the movement grew from village to village, district to district and state to state.

It was with both fear and hope that villagers, especially adivasis, supported them. The rural folk was terrified of what the red mobs, with weapons looted from police stations, would do if they didnt back them. At the same time, villagers who were victims of exploitation at the hands of landlords, corrupt officials and the police saw hope in the Naxalites. Moreover, Indira Gandhis institutionalisation of caste-based vote-bank politics and corruption added to the neglect by successive Congress regimes in the states only drove adivasis closer to the Marxist-Leninist 'soldiers'.

And by the time different Naxal outfits merged into Communist Party of India (Maoist) in 2004, they became active in what is called Indias Red Corridor, starting from the Nepal border and cutting through West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and parts of Karnataka and Kerala. The Maoists, as they were called since the merger, had an army of nearly 12,000 foot soldiers across states.

Besides, they had, and still have, lakhs of supporters and sympathisers everywhere, especially among academic bauddhiks (so-called intellectuals) who routinely find places in the media and dubious institutions starting from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) to small-town colleges. Most of the bauddhiks, at least the ones I had the misfortune of being acquainted with, talk Maoism by day and drown themselves in scotch by night, but thats another matter.

Its not surprising that the Maoists virtually run parallel governments in small parts of the Red Corridor, collecting taxes, providing amenities like healthcare and even running kangaroo courts for quick justice. All this filled the Maoists with the cheap thrills of a successful revolution.

At some point, they were also in touch with Sri Lankas Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for weapons and training, and they still have an open channel of communication with their counterparts in Nepal. The talk of Maoists joining hands with Islamic terrorists or getting arms from China has, however, never been confirmed.

On a rare occasion in 2006, even Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, known for his economy of words, spoke up. He described Maoists as the biggest internal-security threat India faced. In 2009, the CPI (Maoist) was banned under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

Maoist numbers and support dwindling

The good news, however, is that all this has been changing, even if at a slow pace. Their numbers have been dwindling and support diminishing.

The decline of the movement is not a sudden development. In a rare interview to Rahul Pandita, author of Hello Bastar: The Untold Story of Indias Maoist Movement, the General Secretary of the CPI (Maoist) and the supreme commander of the Maoists Mupalla Laxman Rao alias Ganapathi admitted in 2009, Our war is in the stage of strategic defence ... (it) will last for some more time.

The Maoists were also in touch with LTTE for weapons and training, and they still communicate with their counterparts in Nepal. The talk of Maoists joining hands with Islamic terrorists or getting arms from China has, however, never been confirmed.

And in 2013, According to a report in Tehelka, Ganapathi admitted in a letter to party members that Maoists faced a leadership crisis with numbers of both leaders and members on the decline.

Indeed, the strength of the partys Politburo has dropped from 14 to seven and the Central Committee from 40 to about 20, with the rest either killed by the police or lodged in jails. The number of the partys active members or armed soldiers has fallen from nearly 12,000 to about 8,000.

This could be attributed to the fact that the police forces across states have stepped up their hunt for Maoists, killing them in real or fake encounters, and welfare schemes of governments have been benefitting affected villages, though to a small extent.

Besides, Maoists have also been digging their own graves by turning arrogant. Stories of their atrocities  killing innocent villagers on a mere suspicion of being police informers and forced recruitment  have been heard with increasing regularity. And they have been increasingly resorting to extortion, blackmail, illegal mining and even poppy cultivation to raise money for their operations.

Moreover, there has been internal bickering. The rift between the dominant Telugu lobby and the non-Telugu leaders and members has been widening. A good number of them have surrendered to the police and turned informers.

Its clear that this weeks police 'encounters' on the AP-Odisha border were made possible because either the villagers or disgruntled Maoists blew the whistle.

The Maoists are down, yes, though not out. But now is the time to totally weed them out and remove the ideological pollution from Indias rural-scape. As in the case of forest brigand Veerappan, the Maoists biggest strength has been support from villagers, voluntary or forced. The authorities have been trying, and must continue to, deprive them of this support.

Any let-up in the combing operations by the police or the welfare schemes aimed at tribals would only help the ideological terrorists to regain strength. Ideological or not, the Maoists are terrorists and members of a banned organisation, and they and their supporters and sympathisers must be dealt with accordingly.
A 15-acre annexation in Jefferson has sparked not only a land use appeal to the state, but also a Marion County Circuit Court case that seeks to put the matter before voters.

The court case was filed by the Select Reform Committee of Jefferson, a group that has three residents running for the Jefferson City Council as its chief petitioners: Bob Burns, Stan Neal and Brad Cheney. Mayoral candidate Cyndie Hightower is the treasurer for the group, according to court records.

All four are members of Jeffersonians for Jefferson, which also filed an appeal to the Land Use Board of Appeals regarding the City Councils approval of the annexation, which came in August.

The annexation could bring 60 homes to the south end of town. Council members who voted in favor of it expressed frustration with the recently passed Senate Bill 1573, saying that the state law superseded the city charter and eliminated the ability of voters to determine annexations.

J4J opposed the loss of voter approval on annexations.

However Hightower and Neal previously have spoken out against the annexation, saying it would negatively impact the small town and its schools.

Cheney, Neal, Burns and Hightower live near the annexation areas borders.

Burns stressed that the debate regarding the annexation was regarding the lack of voters to determine the issue, however.

I didnt care if they decided to put a housing tract behind my house.  I will respect the vote of the people, he added.

Court case

In August, the Select Reform Committee of Jefferson tried to put the annexation on the ballot as a referendum.

We went out and got all the necessary signatures, considerably more than we needed actually, Burns said.

The city declined to process the referendum petition.

They didnt want us to vote, so we went to the circuit court to allow the referendum to go through, Burns said.

The Marion County Circuit Court case, filed on Aug. 31, is a writ of mandamus that seeks to force the city and City Recorder, Sarah Cook, who also is named as a defendant, to put the annexation before voters for approval.

The City, acting through its Council, usurped the electorates right to vote, reads the writ.

The city responded with a motion to dismiss. It is the Oregon Legislature that has authority over the mechanisms for annexation. The Legislature can mandate annexations without a popular vote, despite local charter provisions that might provide to the contrary, the motion states.

Oral arguments were heard in court on Oct. 11. A judge said it could be 30 days before a decision is made on the motion, said Cook.

The Hamby Family Limited Partnership, which owns the annexation property, also filed a motion to dismiss.

LUBA appeal

In early August, Jeffersonians for Jefferson filed a notice of intent to appeal the annexation to the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals. An objection to the official record was filed on Sept. 30 regarding the annexation proceedings.

There are certain rules that the city has to follow before they get to the vote.  Rules need to be followed. We protested on that basis.  Its basically an appeal on procedural grounds, Burns said.

The objection states several procedural error claims, including that: the draft minutes of the City Councils Aug. 4 meeting do not reflect J4Js attempt to place procedural objections before the council; that the city did not review or include written testimony in the record; and that City Council members engage in ex parte communications that are not included in the record.

The city of Jefferson responded to the objection on Oct. 17, saying that the petitioners didnt demonstrate why the alleged defects to the record are material, and that the written testimony and other matters were properly excluded from the record.

The record objection is still under consideration by the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals, but an order regarding that is likely in the next few weeks.
Pakistani troops resorted to heavy shelling and firing on Indian posts and civilian areas along the LoC and international border in Jammu, Kathua and Rajouri districts on Friday, taking the number of ceasefire violations by Pakistan to over 56 post the surgical strikes.

The victims  two girls and a man  were injured due to mortar shell splinters in Lallai Chak village on Friday.

The cross-border firing on 24 October led to the death of a six-year-old boy and a BSF jawan, injuring 10 people, including eight civilians. Pakistani troops targeted over 25 border outposts in the border hamlets along International Border using small and automatic weapons as well mortar bombs in the border areas.

The troops again violated the ceasefire on 25 October where eight civilians were injured in shelling in RS Pura and Arnia sectors. On 27 October, a BSF trooper was killed and seven civilians were injured when Pakistani troops shelled over 15 Border outposts and 29 hamlets with mortar bombs and fired heavily from automatic weapons over the night in Katgus sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba.

The ceasefire violations have only increased since the surgical strikes which were carried out by Indian Army on 29 September on terror launch pads in PoK, in which four persons, including three security personnel, died and over 25 were injured.

The Army has constantly been on alert, and have been advising people to stay indoors as firing continues across the Line of Control.

The indiscriminate mortar shellings in Lallai Chak, Pansar, Pahadpur, Londi villages and other places along the LoC have damaged over two dozen houses compelling more than 400 families to migrate to safer locations.

#WATCH Locals in Nowshera (J&K) talk about living in constant fear as heavy shelling & ceasefire violations continue from Pakistan pic.twitter.com/lAkKc63CaK  ANI (@ANI_news) October 28, 2016

Over a dozen cattle have also perished in these villages.

The entire population of Abdullian village in RS Pura sector has also migrated after Pakistan Rangers targeted civilian and BSF facilities in the area during the last five days.

Meanwhile, curfew imposed in Srinagar

Authorities on Friday imposed curfew in parts of Srinagar in view of the separatists' call for a march to the historic Jamia Masjid here ahead of Friday prayers.

Curfew has been imposed in Nowhatta, Khanyar, Safakadal, Rainawari and Maharaj Gunj in the old city and Batamaloo in uptown, a police official said.

As many as 85 people, including two policemen, have been killed and thousands of others injured in the ongoing unrest in the Valley. Around 5,000 security forces personnel have also been injured in the clashes.

Over 300 persons have been booked under Public Safety Act.

With inputs from agencies
The Supreme Court on Friday stayed the Patna High Court order which had granted bail to Rakesh Ranjan Yadav alias Rocky Yadav, accused of shooting dead Class XII student Aditya Sachdeva for overtaking his car on 7 May in Bihar.

Rocky Yadav will now have to go back to jail. A day after the high court had granted him bail, Bihar government had decided to challenge the order in the Supreme Court.

The state government is going to file an appeal in the Supreme Court challenging the bail granted to Rocky Yadav by the Patna High Court, Principal Additional Advocate General Lalit Kishore had told PTI.

He had, however, refused to divulge details about the grounds on which the state government went in for the appeal. Police had arrested Rocky from his fathers mixer plant in Gaya on 10 May.

Police had filed a charge sheet in a Gaya court against Rocky and another accused in connection with the murder case. They have also filed charge sheet against Rockys cousin Teni Yadav, his father Bindi Yadav and his MLC mothers bodyguard Rajesh Kumar in the murder case. The state government had put the case on speedy trial and investigation was completed within three weeks and charge sheet filed within a month of the incident.

After the high court had granted bail to Rocky, the parents of the victim had hit out on the verdict.

"This is a very bad day for Bihar, I appeal to the government to take some measures to save Bihar from the jungle raj," Shyam Sundar, father of Aditya Sachdeva, had told ANI. "We have all the proofs with us but still justice is denied, money and power have again silenced the truth," ANI had further quoted Sundar as saying.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had assured the parents of the victim that justice will be done in the case when he had visited their house in Gaya town in June.

With inputs from PTI
Greater Noida: Making a veiled reference, Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday said Pakistan was indulging in a proxy war and has been trying to harm India by taking "cowardly" aid of terrorism.

"The neighbouring country has been carrying out proxy war. But terrorism is not a weapon of the brave but of cowards. Those who fight from behind are called cowards... they take the help of terrorism," he said.

Speaking at the 55th raising day event of border guarding force Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) at its camp here, he said strict vigil by the force has resulted in 60 percent lesser transgressions into the Indian territory by the Chinese People's Liberation Army this year.

Referring to the current tensions between the two countries, he said the neighbour has been trying to harm India and was attempting to break and "destabilise" it by resorting to terrorism.

Singh said an "evil eye" is being cast on India to thwart its progress as it is marching on as one of the fastest growing economies of the world.

The situation along the Indo-Pak border continues to remain tense after terrorists attacked an Army camp in Uri killing 19 soldiers on 17 September.

In a retaliatory action, Indian Army carried out surgical strikes on terror launch pads in PoK on 29 September. Firing by both Indian and Pakistani forces towards each other's positions have been continuing leading to several deaths on both sides.

Singh had earlier instructed border guarding forces not to fire towards the enemy first, but not to count bullets if they are fired upon.

Later, while taking questions on the ceasefire violations by Pakistan, he said, "Our soldiers are responding to them befittingly."

To a question on the espionage case involving a diplomat of the Pakistani High Commission in India, he said the government is taking necessary action.

There have been several incidents in the past in the icy heights of Himalayas when ITBP had noticed transgression by the Chinese forces and there had been confrontations between the two sides.

All such transgression were successfully foiled by the ITBP personnel, Singh said.

At Friday's event, the Home Minister honoured some ITBP personnel whose action led to foiling of PLA's attempt to transgress Indian territory at Chumar in Ladakh two years ago.

Singh said due to the intensive vigil and bravery of Indian forces, no country in the world can now cast an evil eye on India and every time he sees these men and women he is filled with pride and confidence that the country is safe.

He also appreciated the personnel of ITBP, posted in Indian missions in Afghanistan, who had foiled terror attacks in Indian consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif and Jalalabad early this year as well as for undertaking effective anti-Naxal operations.

The Home Minister said it was the responsibility of the government to ensure that the morale of the jawans is not let down and various steps are being taken for this.

Chiefs of all forces have to ensure this, he said, adding that he would try his best to resolve the problems of the jawans.

Rajnath said the Home Ministry has recently enhanced the ex-gratia payments made to the families of the personnel killed on duty.

"I feel this amount is also less as compared to the valour and sacrifice of our men...we will work to do more for our jawans," he said.

Singh said the housing satisfaction level of the ITBP and other paramilitary forces has been enhanced from 14 percent to 25 percent but this needs to be further enhanced as he said it was "not sufficient".

He wished the troops of paramilitary and defence forces on the forthcoming festival of Deepawali even as he underlined that the country sleeps in peace because the jawans are ever-vigilant on the borders and in the hinterland.

Assuring that the government will undertake more welfare measures for the jawans, he said it will even ask for contributions in this regard if it is so required.

The Home Minister laid the foundation stone of a new building for Institute of Archaeology (IA) here in the presence of Culture and Tourism Minister Mahesh Sharma.

Speaking on the occasion, Sharma termed the institute as a gift to the city and the country and said it would be a model institute.

Currently, the institute is being run from a temporary space in Lal Quila. The cost of the institute is Rs 300 crore and it will be ready in 18 months, he said.

IA is an academic wing of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) under the Ministry of Culture.
A constitutional bench of the Supreme Court hearing the case of using religion during elections to seek votes asked a question on Thursday (28 October) that should have been asked a long ago.

In our public discourse, we hear a lot about secularism. But can secularism remain aloof from religion?, the Apex Court asked, saying  it will be difficult to accept as a proposition that a political party should have nothing to do with religion and those who have something to do with it must cease to be political parties. But this was not all. The Bench then went on to ask, Secularism does not mean aloofness to religion but giving equal treatment to every religion. Religion and caste are vital aspects of our public life. Can it be possible to completely separate religion and caste from politics?

While an answer to the ticklish question that the Supreme Court has asked will be different from different parties that have approached (are approaching, something the CPM did on Thursday) the Court, the most notable component of that question happens to be secularism. The Apex Court now defines secularism to be equal treatment to every religion, a definition that has eluded the political and intellectual consensus in this country so far.

Ironically, "secularism" has been never defined by its political and intellectual champions in India. Though the 42nd Amendment in 1975 by Indira Gandhis Congress government did incorporate the word "secularism" to the preamble of our Constitution, it did not define what secularism was. Ironically, her Congress party, which dominated the then Rajya Sabha in 1978, foiled an attempt to actually define secularism as "equal respect to all religions" by defeating an amendment bill to that effect, the bill that had already been cleared in the Lok Sabha during the Janata regime of Morarji Desai.

In my considered view, the absence of a clear definition of secularism in our political parlance has created two problems. One, it has resulted in a situation where we witness "communal politicians" becoming "secular" overnight and vice versa, with everything depending on the political convenience of the parties and their supporters. Secondly, the way it has been practiced in India, secularism has been reduced to be essentially anti-Hindu but pro-minorities viewpoints or measures. And this has been systematically promoted by what is known as Nehruvianism, the Left-Liberal framework that dominates Indian public discourse.

It is instructive here to note that in 1949, Nehru had said that 'to talk of Hindu culture would injure India's interests'. He had admitted more than once that by education he was an Englishman, by views an internationalist, by culture a Muslim, and a Hindu only by accidental birth. In 1953, Nehru had written to Kailash Nath Katju: "In practice, the individual Hindu is more intolerant and more narrow-minded than almost any person in any other country.

Of course, Nehru did the right thing by trying to remove some degraded practices within Hinduism, but the problem with him was that he was not bothered about the similar reforms in other religions. Nehru codified the Hindu personnel laws (concerning Hindus diverse customs, rituals and practices) in 1956, but he backtracked on doing so towards Muslim personal law. No wonder why J B Kriplani, a veteran socialist, opposed the Hindu Code Bill on the ground that the Nehru government was communal. Kriplani had told Nehru, If you want to have a divorce for Hindu community, have it; but have it for Catholic community also. I tell you this is the democratic way, the other is the communal way. It is not the Mahasabhites who alone are communal, it is the government also that is communal, whatever it may say. I charge you with communalism because you are bringing forward a law about monogamy only for the Hindu community. You must bring it to the Muslim community. Take it from me that the Muslim community is prepared to have it but you are not brave enough to do it."

It is under Nehruvian secularism that the Government appoints trustees to manages Hindu temples (and maths) of Viswanath, Tirupati, Puri, Nathdwara and Guruvayur. But the same Government considers it communal to do likewise in the case of masjids, churches and Gurudwaras. Secularism of the Nehruvian variety says that it is progressive to denounce a Hindu Swami for trying to influence his or her followers, but it is communal to raise finger at those who issue fatwas and hukamnamas.

As Arun Shourie has pointed out in his book Religion in Politics, during the freedom struggle, if you looked upon a Muslim as being someone apart, as being someone other than just a human being like yourself, the progressive was bound to brand you communal. Today, unless you look upon the Muslim as separate, that is, unless you see him as a Muslim rather than as just a human being like yourself, the progressive brands you communal. Fifty years ago when a Hindu scholar by his deep study perceived and wrote about The Essential Unity of All Religions  the title of Bhagwan Das famous work  that was looked upon as humanist scholarship at its best. Today when a scholar points to the identity of what is taught in Granth Sahib and what is taught in say, the Hindu Bhakti tradition, it is taken as proof positive of a deep conspiracy to swallow Sikhism.

In fact, India today is much more divided than what it was at the time of partition in 1947, thanks to the perverse manner in which secularism or for that matter the identity politics is being practiced in the country. The victims of any crime or injustice these days are being seen in terms of their religions and castes, not as normal human beings who are all equal under Indian laws. What is worse, depending on their identities, both the victims and the guilty must get different treatments, if we go by the demands of the so-called secularists.

And these secular double standards are seen in the politics of the country.

In fact, the Congress manifesto in January 1989 for the Mizoram election promised to promote Christian socialism. It stated As Christians, it is our bounden duty to proclaim the gospel. To fulfill this irreversible responsibility we need secularism in letter and spirit It is but reasonable that the Christian should lend support to the Congress.

Similarly, in his book Communal Road to Secular Kerala, sociologist George Mathew has described how late Indira Gandhi wooed the Church to issue directives to vote in favor of the Congress lead UDF in the early 1980s. The Christian Bishops appealed for support to only those candidates who believed in God, with an obvious reference to UDF led by the Congress. And we all know how the Rajiv Gandhi government overturned the Supreme Court judgment on the famous Shah Bano case by bringing about a fresh legislation in the Parliament, with a clear motive to woo the Muslim electorate.

The moral of the story is thus clear. There cannot be true secularism unless all the religions in India are treated equally under Indian laws and politics is liberated from the hegemony (not necessarily influence) of religion. The Supreme Court has done well in providing a definition of secularism. In that sense, the ongoing case should be the referral point for defining secularism, not Hinduism.
The Bharatiya Janata Party is keeping a close eye on each development in the ongoing family feud within the ruling Samajwadi Party. Their concern with the infighting within the Yadav clan, however, is strictly limited to political purposes as it could translate into potential electoral gain or loss for them in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.

A recent emotive statement issued by powerful Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Azam Khan, who happens to be the Muslim face of the ruling party in UP, has put the BJP on alert. Khan virtually wrote off the prospects of SP in the upcoming elections, while adding that the Muslim community still had time to think and ensure that a BJP government is not formed in the state.

"The Muslim community and leadership want to move with secular Hindus (read Mulayam Singh Yadav and company) but it does not want to fight a lost battle. Nor does it want to be associated with untrustworthy political forces. The ongoing political developments in the state and nation have placed Muslims in a deep sense of anxiety because they sense a very dark future. It is a matter of regret that without doing anything for the community, they (BJP) consider Muslim vote as their fiefdom. But Muslims are neither water bubbles nor thali ke baingan, which can be tilted to any side at will," Khan said in his statement.

His statement is relevant not just in the context of the SP feud but is also reflective of the Muslim community's feeling at large, that could have its own bearing on the outcome of the UP polls.

From BJP's perspective, a down and out SP doesn't serve as good news. It needs the SP to have a good presence in the state, if not a very strong one. It will be counting on the usual rabble-rousing speeches of some of the SP leaders, aimed at assuaging the feelings of the Muslim community.

The SP's alienation of the Muslim community helps the BJP to cash in on the counter polarisation in the state. Like in the 2014 parliamentary elections, the BJP pitched SP as a villain and took advantage of the latent feelings among the Muslims. A weakened SP is still acceptable for the BJP but only if it is seen to be in the fight  in the reckoning for power  as in a tri-polar election (between BJP, BSP and SP), even a small vote swing could determine a win or loss.

But now, the prospects of a bipolar election between BSP and BJP looms large on the horizon. Going by the present developments, SP is already relegating itself to the third position. After talking to a number of senior leaders in the BJP, both in the government and in the organisation, Firstpost got a sense that while they were still hoping for a tri-polar election, they are now coming to terms and gearing up for a head-on fight with the BSP; weighing its pros and cons, and preparing accordingly.

A senior party leader said: "Initially, we thought that a fight within the Yadav family was a noora kushti (fake/fixed wrestling bout) but now it looks to be real. The problem is that if SP is not seen as a strong force, then the Muslim consolidation might happen in favour of BSP. Though it is true that the Brahmin community, which had propelled BSP to power in 2007, will go with the BJP this time, our fear is a possible Dalit-Muslim consolidation in favour of Mayawati."

Another BJP leader, rooted to the ground in UP, said: "A potential Dalit-Muslim consolidation is a matter of concern for us. It worries us on two counts. First, it may give Mayawati a numerical edge if she is able to win the confidence of some other communities. But more than that, a Dalit-Muslim combination is a secularists dream and they have been working in that direction for some time."

"Second, this kind of a combination would be bad news for us. Remember, we supported Mayawati on more than one occasion to let her become the chief minister. That was on an ideological count because the Sangh Parivar's philosophy was to bring Dalits into the Hindutva fold. That process has been ongoing for the last 30 years. For the past two years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is sincerely working on upliftment of the Dalit community and the party too is working in tandem, devoting so much of its time and energy. There is still some time left and I hope that in the days to come, things would indeed be different on the ground."

BJP is also relying on Mulayam's cumulative goodwill in the Muslim community, and hoping that the SP supremo will still manage to get some Muslim votes, effectively reducing the Muslim vote share of the BSP. The developments within SP since Thursday has many in UP political circles believing that a patch up within the Yadav clan is on the cards and that they would ultimately fight the election as one party.

There is another angle to this already complex equation in UP. Given a situation where the SP goes into the elections as a marginal force and the Muslims move over to the BSP, then the Yadavs, at least in some pockets, would vote for the BJP in order to block Mayawati's chances.

As it is, the BJP is working heavily on its Dalit outreach program. At the same time, it is keeping the latent Hindutva tone alive for cashing in on polarisation of any kind. It is not without reason that Modi chose Lucknow as the venue for Vijayadashami celebrations, where he began and ended his speech with chants of 'Jai Sri Ram, Jai Jai Sri Ram'. Similarly, Amit Shah, in his Etawah rally (a Mulayam stronghold) talked of the surgical strikes and issued the 'Jai Jai Sri Ram' chant.

Then came the public debate on the proposed Ram Museum in Ayodhya. The party leaders did not want to talk on the contentious issue of Ram Mandir but still wanted to convey a message that they were sincere about Lord Ram and had not abandoned him.

According to a BJP leader, when engaged in an electoral battle resembling a war, forceful slogans are important to raise the morale and fighting power of the party's cadre and sympathisers. The 'Jai Jai Sri Ram' chants, according to him, fit that bill perfectly.

And now that Modi and Shah have both sounded the symbolic 'battle cry', the rank and file would be happy to follow the slogan, one that was a rousing greeting in the party and the Sangh Parivar throughout the 1990s.
JALALABAD, Afghanistan An airstrike in Afghanistan on Friday hit the home of a Taliban commander in the eastern province of Nangarhar and caused several civilian casualties, government and insurgent spokesmen said.The strike targeted the home of Mawlawi Mohammad Alam, a Taliban commander in the Sherzad district, said Attaullah Khogyani, a spokesman for the provincial governor, adding that there were casualties but he could not confirm numbers.A police official said the strike was carried out by an unmanned aircraft and killed four people inside the house.A dozen wounded civilians, among them seven children and five women, were taken to the local hospital, said Najibullah Kamawal, the director of provincial health services, four of them in critical condition.

U.S. forces had carried out a strike in Sherzad on Friday in defence of "friendly forces", a spokesman for the NATO-led Resolute Support mission said in Kabul, the capital, but gave no details. Reports of civilian casualties would be investigated, he added."We take all allegations of civilian casualties seriously and will work with our Afghan partners to review all related material," Brigadier General Charles Cleveland said in an emailed statement.

In a statement, the Taliban said American and Afghan forces had carried out a ground attack on Mohammad Alam's home, followed by an airstrike, in which two civilians were killed and more than 30 wounded.The United States has unleashed many raids against Islamic State and al Qaeda militants in eastern Afghanistan, most recently on Sunday, when officials said two al Qaeda leaders were killed in the neighbouring province of Kunar.

However, new combat rules issued this year have also given U.S. commanders greater scope to attack Taliban militants, pushing up the number of airstrikes sharply. (Reporting by Rafiq Sherzad and Hamid Shalizi in KABUL; Writing by James Mackenzie; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Washington: President Barack Obama is returning to Florida to help Democrat Hillary Clinton get out the vote.

Obama will hold an evening rally for Clinton in Orlando, along the "I-4 corridor" that's home to large numbers of potentially persuadable voters. Florida is one of just a handful of states that an Associated Press analysis rates as a toss-up between Clinton and Donald Trump.

White House officials say Obama will be traveling to boost Clinton nearly every day until Election Day. He's used other events for Clinton to hammer Trump over his treatment of women and minorities and his unfounded claims that the election is "rigged" against him.

The president's appearance comes a day after Clinton and first lady Michelle Obama held a joint campaign rally in North Carolina.
TODAY

Frankenstein double feature, 7 p.m., Whiteside Theatre, 361 S.W. Madison Ave., Corvallis. James Whales classics Frankenstein (1931) and Bride of Frankenstein (1935) will be shown. Admission: $5, $7 at the door. Advance tickets: http://frankensteins.bpt.me.

FRIDAY

Candlelit tour followed by ride on the Trolley of Terror, 6, 7, 8 and 9 p.m., Monteith House Museum, 518 S.W. Second Ave., Albany. Hear ghost stories about the museum, then hear ghost stories of downtown Albany on the trolley. Sponsored by the Monteith Historical Society. Cost: $10 per adult, $5 per child. Reservations: Albany Visitors Association, 541-928-0911.

Haunted Barn Maze, 7 to 10 p.m., 31000 Land Lab Road, Lebanon. Cost: $5 per person; free for those age 6 or under. This is a fundraiser for the Lebanon Future Farmers of America.

Summit's BOO-gie Down Halloween Costume Dance, 8:30 p.m. to midnight, Summit Grange Hall, 19854 Summit Highway. Annual all-ages costume dance welcomes all goblins, ghosts and witches to get their Halloweird on in Summit and celebrate a spooky night of rock 'n' roll dancing with the Loose Joints Band, children's and adult costume parade, treats and old-time country fun. Admission: $5 per person.

SATURDAY

Annual Albany Downtown Association Halloween costume contest and trick-or-treating, 10 a.m., Albany Eagles Lodge, 127 Broadalbin St. S.W. Magic show by Jeff McMahon, followed by a costume contest for ages birth to 12 years. Prizes will be awarded to a boy and girl in each age category. Trick-or-treating at participating businesses will follow from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Participating businesses will display orange and black balloons. The Albany Downtown Association, 126 S.W. Ferry Street, will distribute dental care bags from Pediatric Dental Associates. Information: 541-928-2469 or www.albanydowntown.com.

Halloween Carnival, noon to 2 p.m., First Christian Church, 432 S.W. Ferry St., Albany; entrance on the northwest side of the building. Open to all Albany children and families. Free event featuring games, crafts, face painting and an opportunity to trick or treat.

Trick-or-treating, 1 to 2:30 p.m., Timberview Care Center, 1023 S.W. Sixth Ave. in Albany. Dress up your children of all ages, or yourself, and come by to trick or treat indoors. Residents and staff will be in costume and will hand out treats to those who visit. Information: Anne Haddock, 541-926-8664.

Candlelit tour followed by ride on the Trolley of Terror, 6, 7, 8 and 9 p.m., Monteith House Museum, 518 S.W. Second Ave., Albany. See details above.

Corvallis Belly Dance Performance Guild Halloween Spooktacular, 7 p.m., Old World Deli, 341 S.W. Second St. Donation: $5. Information: 541-497-4419 or www.corvallisbellydance.org.

Frightmare, 7 to 11 p.m., former YMCA, 3311 Pacific Blvd. S.W., Albany. Memorial Middle School is sponsoring a haunted house to raise funds for a students' trip to Washington, D.C.; the school will receive 90 percent of the proceeds, and the Mid-Willamette Family YMCA will receive the remaining 10 percent. Cost: $10 per person, or $40 for five people.

Haunted Barn Maze, 7 to 10 p.m., 31000 Land Lab Road, Lebanon. Cost: $5 per person; free for those age 6 or under. This is a fundraiser for the Lebanon Future Farmers of America.

The Haunt, 8 p.m. to midnight, Memorial Middle School, 1050 Queen Ave. S.W., Albany. Halloween dance party open to students in grades 8 through 12. The event will feature DJs Jordon DJ Young Young, Alec Ayo Olson, Cabeau Sugar Cannon Schuerger and Mike Chaos Montes. Admission: $10 at the door, or $20 for a VIP ticket that includes express-line entry, a free beverage, a meet-and-greet with the evenings disc jockeys, and a poster signed by all four DJs. A portion of proceeds will go to school clubs and activities.

VIP ghost hunt experience, 10 p.m. to 1 a.m., Monteith House Museum, 518 S.W. Second Ave., Albany. VIPs will be joined by experienced paranormal investigators and learn how to use various pieces of ghost-hunting equipment. VIPs then will get to help conduct a paranormal investigation of the Monteith House. Each VIP experience is limited to 10 people. Sponsored by the Monteith Historical Society. Cost: $40 per person. Reservations: Albany Visitors Association, 541-928-0911.

SUNDAY

Halloween party, 3 to 5 p.m., Corvallis Elks Lodge, 1400 N.W. Ninth St. Open to all children in the community. There will be activities, costume contests, food, beverages and more. Information: 541-758-0222.

Fall Festival, 4 to 6 p.m., Grant Avenue Baptist Church, 1625 N.W. Grant Ave., Corvallis. Free family-friendly outdoor carnival (in the gym if it rains) for the community. Warm apple cider, games, face painting, other activities. Children of all ages welcome; costumes encouraged. Information: www.grantavebc.org.

Annual Harvest Festival, 4 to 7 p.m., gymnasium, Eastside Christian Church, 1910 Grand Prairie Drive S.E., Albany. Carnival games, dinner, candy, treats, a photo spot, costumes and fun for the entire family.

MONDAY

Downtown Trick or Treat, 1 to 5 p.m., Corvallis.

Halloween/Autumn Masquerade Party, 2 to 3:30 p.m., Lebanon Senior Center, 80 Tangent St. Open to those 50 or over and those with disabilities. Carnival-type games to earn treats. Costume contest. Co-sponsored by the center, the Lebanon Veterans Home, Willamette Manor and Brookdale Senior Living.

Trick-or-treating, 2 to 4 p.m., Corvallis Caring Place, 750 N.W. 23rd St. All are welcome. Information: 541-753-2033.

Trunk or Treat, 3 to 5 p.m., Main Street between 12th and 17th streets, Philomath.

Glow 2016, 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. shows, Albany First Assembly, 2817 Santiam Highway S.E. Free event for the whole family. Glow sticks, candy, prizes, music, inflatables and more. Information: 541-926-2291 or albanyfirstassembly.org.

City of the "Dam"med yard display and show, continuous shows from dusk till 10 p.m., 2020 N.W. Elder St., Corvallis. The Grim Beaver will preside over the fallen in the 12-minute automated show, which features music, video, lights, lasers and custom-made animatronic characters similar to those at theme parks. Eight-minute break between shows. Guests can talk to a magic mirror that is equipped to dispense tricks or treats. Free and suitable for the entire family. Shelter in case of bad weather. Information: cityofthedammed.com.

TUESDAY

Dollar$, Not Decay campaign, 3 to 7 p.m., Timberhill Dental, 2356 N.W. Professional Drive, Corvallis. For every pound of Halloween candy children bring to the office the day after Halloween, dentist Kurt Black will give them $2 (half-pounds will be rounded up), plus a free toothbrush. Black also will give a matching cash donation to Jackson Street Youth Services based on the amount of candy collected. Information: 541-754-0144 or www.timberhilldental.com.
Washington: The five Indian call centres charged with defrauding thousands of Americans, stole more than USD 300 million from their victims, US Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson has said.

The official on Thursday said an inter-agency effort resulted in the indictment of all five call centers and 56 people, including 31 from India, as well as the arrest of 20 others in the US, most of whom are Indians.

Johnson said these were "engaged in defrauding thousands of victims, stealing more than a total of USD 300 million."

The scheme involved a network of call centers based in Ahmedabad, where associates of the ring would call victims in the US impersonating Department of Homeland Security, Internal Revenue Services, or other government officials, demanding payment in order to clear fictitious arrest warrants, orders of deportation, or unpaid income tax, Johnson said.

The five Ahmedabad-based call centers that made calls to people living in the US are Hglobal, Call Mantra, Worldwide Solution, Zoriion Communications and Sharma BPO Services.

The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), Department of Homeland Security, Department of Justice, the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Trade Commission announced the indictments, the result of a three-year investigation that was the largest single domestic law enforcement action connected with the impersonation scam.

"To date, more than 1.8 million people have reported to TIGTA that they have received an impersonation call; more than 9,600 victims reported that they paid the impersonators a total amount that exceeds USD 50 million," TIGTA Inspector General J Russell George said.

"The largest single amount paid as a result of the IRS impersonation scam as charged in the indictment is USD 136,000, paid by a victim in California," George said.

The US Senate Aging Committee, that studies issues related to older Americans, received more than 1,100 calls from senior citizens across the country on its fraud hotline in 2015.

The most common complaint reported to the fraud hotline continues to be the IRS impersonation scam.
By Stephen Kalin and Maher Chmaytelli

| SOUTH OF MOSUL, Iraq

SOUTH OF MOSUL, Iraq The Iraqi army was trying on Thursday to reach a town south of Mosul where Islamic State has reportedly executed dozens to deter the population against any attempt to support the U.S.-led offensive on the jihadists' last major city stronghold in Iraq.Eleven days into what is expected to be the biggest ground offensive in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion of 2003, army and federal police units were fighting off sniper fire and suicide car bombs south of Hammam al-Alil, the site of the reported executions, an Iraqi military spokesman said.The militants shot dead dozens of prisoners there, most of them former members of the Iraqi police and army, taken from villages the group has been forced to abandon as the troops advanced, officials in the region said on Wednesday.The executions were meant "to terrorise the others, those who are in Mosul in particular", and also to get rid of the prisoners, said Abdul Rahman al-Waggaa, a member of the Nineveh provincial council. Some of the families of those executed are also held in Hammam al-Alil, he said. U.N. human rights spokesman Rupert Colville on Tuesday said Islamic State fighters had reportedly killed scores of people around Mosul in the last week.A Reuters correspondent met relatives of hostages south of Mosul. One of them was a police officer who had returned to see the family that he had left behind when his village fell under the militants' control two years ago. "Im afraid they will keep pulling them back from village to village until they get to Mosul. And then they will disappear," he said, asking not be identified to protect family members still in the hands of the fighters.Reuters also spoke to a woman and an elderly man who were part of group of families forced to march two to three days to reach Mosul from the villages of Safiya and Ellezaga, about 30 km (nearly 20 miles) and 50 km (30 miles) to the south.Children and the elderly were released when they arrived in Mosul, on Tuesday, and told to stay with relatives, they said, speaking on the phone from one of the few places where there is still telephone coverage, on the city's edges.A resident of Mosul, Rayyan, said he saw the families when they arrived in the city, "their bare feet bleeding and covered with dust as if coming from under the rubble."

"We cried when we saw them," he said.FIERCE DEFENCE

Islamic State fighters are keeping up their fierce defence of the southern approaches to Mosul, which has held up Iraqi troops there and forced an elite army unit east of the city to put a more rapid advance on hold.The fall of Mosul would mark Islamic State's effective defeat in Iraq. The city is many times bigger than any other that the ultra-hardline militant group has ever captured, and it was from its Grand Mosque in 2014 that the group's leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, declared a "caliphate" that also spans parts of Syria.

U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Tuesday an attack on Raqqa, Islamic State's main stronghold in Syria, would start while the battle of Mosul is still unfolding. It was the first official suggestion that U.S.-backed forces in both countries could mount simultaneous operations to crush the caliphate.The front lines east and north of Mosul have moved much closer to the edges of the city than the southern front and the combat ahead is likely to get more deadly as 1.5 million residents remain in the city.Worst-case U.N. forecasts see up to a million people being uprooted. U.N. aid agencies said the fighting had so far forced about 16,000 people to flee. "Assessments have recorded a significant number of female-headed households, raising concerns around the detention or capture of men and boys," the office of the U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Iraq said on Wednesday.The coordinator, Lise Grande, told Reuters on Tuesday that a mass exodus could happen, maybe within the next few days.

CHEMICAL WEAPONS

It was also possible that Islamic State fighters could resort to "rudimentary chemical weapons" to hold back the impending assault, she said.The militants are suspected of setting on fire a sulphur plant south of Mosul last week, filling the air with toxic gasses that caused breathing problems for hundreds of civilians. A senior U.S. official said about 50,000 Iraqi ground troops are taking part in the offensive, including a core force of 30,000 from the governments armed forces, 10,000 Kurdish fighters and the remaining 10,000 from police and local volunteers. About 5,000 to 6,000 jihadists are dug in, according to Iraqi military estimates.Roughly 5,000 U.S. troops are also in Iraq. More than 100 of them are embedded with Iraqi and Kurdish peshmerga forces advising commanders and helping coalition air power to hit targets. They are not deployed on front lines.The warring sides are not giving casualty figures in their own ranks or among civilians, each claiming to have killed hundreds of enemy fighters. The Iraqi army said it killed 772 insurgents since the start of the offensive on Oct. 17, and captured 23. About 100 towns, villages and hamlets were taken back, it added in a statement. (Writing by Maher Chmaytelli; editing by Giles Elgood)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Michelle Nichols

| UNITED NATIONS

UNITED NATIONS Syria should investigate accusations that government forces carried out chlorine gas attacks and Islamic State militants used mustard gas, Russia said on Thursday, dimming Western hopes that U.N. sanctions could be imposed on those responsible.The 15-member council met behind closed doors to discuss the findings of an inquiry by the United Nations and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), which blamed the Syrian government for three toxic gas attacks.France, Britain and the United States hope to persuade Russia to agree to a 12-month extension to the mandate of the inquiry, which expires on Oct. 31, before starting negotiations on a draft resolution to punish those blamed for such attacks."The conclusions of the JIM (Joint Investigative Mechanism) are not definitive, have no legally binding force and cannot serve as accusatory conclusions for taking legal decision," Russian U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told the council, according to a copy of his remarks."Damascus should carry out a comprehensive national investigation on chemical incidents confirmed by the JIM," he said, adding that while Russia is still studying the latest report, most cases in the international inquiry's report were "full of contradictions and therefore, unconvincing."

The United States has circulated a draft resolution to the council to renew the mandate for the inquiry and the council could vote on the measure as early as Monday, diplomats said."We want to have a much stronger mechanism, which would also be looking at the terrorist chemical threat," Churkin told reporters, adding that Russia wanted the mandate expanded to include attacks beyond Syria.

U.S. forces confirmed the presence of a sulphur mustard agent on Islamic State munition fragments in Iraq earlier this month.Syria's government on Wednesday denied that its forces had used chemical weapons during the country's nearly six-year civil war.In its fourth report to the Security Council last Friday, the international inquiry found that Syrian government forces had used helicopters to drop barrel bombs of chlorine gas. It found those flights came from two bases where the 253 and 255 squadrons, belonging to the 63rd helicopter brigade, were based.

"Those responsible for using chemical weapons must be sanctioned," French U.N. Ambassador Francois Delattre told reporters ahead of the meeting. "If the Security Council is not able to unite on the proliferation and the use of weapons of mass destruction in the 21st Century, frankly, what is the use of the Security Council?"Virginia Gamba, head of the international inquiry, told reporters that the yearlong investigation had served as a deterrent and that there had been a drop in the number of accusations of toxic gas attacks. However, she said in the past month 14 allegations of such attacks had been made. (Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Steve Holland

| MANCHESTER, N.H.

MANCHESTER, N.H. A stronger-than-expected U.S. economic report on Friday came at a good time for Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, although Republican contender Donald Trump's campaign blasted the numbers as "dismal."The Commerce Department reported that the economy grew at a 2.9 percent annual rate in the third quarter, its fastest pace in two years and higher than the expected 2.6 percent, thanks to a surge in exports and a rebound in investment. With just 11 days to go before the Nov. 8 election, the report bolstered Clinton, who has positioned herself as the best candidate to continue years of economic expansion under President Barack Obama.More Americans say jobs and the economy are their No.1 priority when they decide who to vote for than any other issue.Trump argues that as a successful businessman and political outsider, he is the best person to take a new approach to rebuilding an economy that has sent too many jobs overseas and left many Americans struggling to find decent jobs.His campaign said the figures are still not good enough."America can do better than the modest growth of 2.9 percent recorded for the 3rd quarter and the dismal growth of 1.5 percent for the past year," Dan Kowalski, Trump's deputy policy director, said in a statement.

"Growth hasn't risen above 3 percent for a full year in any year of the Obama presidency," he said.While many voters do not follow economic indicators closely, outside experts said the release was still a good one for Clinton. She is seeking to solidify her lead in opinion polls as the Democratic Party works to win as many seats as possible in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, where Republicans now control majorities."Today's release will likely improve the perception of economic conditions in the U.S. and slightly increase the odds of a Democratic president remaining in the White House," said Brian Schaitkin, senior economist at the Conference Board.

Clinton's camp said Friday's report showed "real progress" since Obama took office in 2009, when the country was struggling to emerge from economic recession."With more than 15 million jobs created since early 2010 and real median incomes growing more than 5 percent last year, it's clear we've made real progress coming back from the crisis," Clinton senior policy advisor Jacob Leibenluft said in a statement.But he added that there is still more that can be done.Clinton was campaigning on Friday in Iowa, where polls show she and Trump running neck-and-neck, and in Michigan, a traditionally Democratic state hit hard by the movement offshore of many formerly well-paying American manufacturing jobs.

Trump was holding rallies in Iowa as well as in another closely contested swing state, New Hampshire, and in Maine, where his campaign sees a chance to grab one of four electoral votes.In the last weeks of the campaign, Clinton has dramatically widened her advantage over Trump in ad spending, amid questions over the celebrity businessman's pledge to contribute more than $100 million of his own money.He spent $56 million through the end of September, and only $31,000 since, according to filings. Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway said on Fox News reports that the candidate has stopped putting his own money into his campaign are not true. "He has said publicly many times he is in for $100 million and he is happy to invest in his campaign," she said. (Additional reporting by Doina Chiacu and Patricia Zengerle in Washington; Writing by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Alistair Bell)

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Beirut: Fierce fighting broke out around the Syrian city of Aleppo on Friday as rebels announced a large-scale offensive to break the government's siege of opposition-held areas.

A reporter inside the city on the pro-government Mayadeen TV channel reported attacks on "all sides" of the city, "from the furthest points north to furthest south."

Sounds of heavy gunfire, mortar fire, and explosions were heard in the background of his broadcast. Dark smoke was seen rising above the city on the overcast morning.

Presumed government or Russian jets were also heard flying overhead. The reporter said they were targeting rebel positions.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said rebels detonated two car bombs against government positions to the city's southwest and attacked with hundreds of rockets. It said at least one of the vehicles was driven by a suicide bomber for the Al-Qaeda-linked Fatah al-Sham Front.

Aleppo is the focal point of the six-year war. President Bashar Assad has said he is determined to retake the country's largest city and former commercial capital. The government has maintained a siege on the rebel-held eastern quarters since September. The UN estimates 275,000 people are trapped inside with dwindling supplies of food and medicine.

The Islamic Front rebel coalition announced on Twitter on Friday morning that the ultraconservative Ahrar al-Sham group targeted a military airport to the east of the city with Grad rockets and destroyed a government position to the west of the city.

Ammar Sakkar, the military spokesman for the Fastaqim faction inside the city, said "all the revolutionary factions, without exception, are participating in the battle."

This is the second attempt by rebels to break the government's siege. They opened a corridor to the east for the month of August after pro-government forces first applied a blockade in July.

Rebels launched the offensive as the Russian, Syrian, and Iranian foreign ministers met in Moscow. Iran and Russia are Assad's main backers and have committed air power, ground forces, and military advisers to the war.
By Ellen Francis and Angus McDowall

| BEIRUT

BEIRUT Syrian rebels including jihadists counter-attacked the army and its allies on Friday aiming to break a weeks-long siege on eastern Aleppo, insurgents said.The assault, employing heavy shelling and suicide car bombs, was mainly focused on the city's western edge by rebels based in the countryside outside Aleppo. It included Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, a former affiliate of al Qaeda previously known as the Nusra Front, and groups fighting under the Free Syrian Army (FSA) banner. The offensive prompted the Russian Defence Ministry to ask President Vladimir Putin for permission to resume air strikes against militants in rebel-held eastern Aleppo after 10 days in which the army said it had not struck, Russia's Interfax news agency reported.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based war monitor, said more than 15 civilians had been killed and 100 wounded by rebel shelling of government-held western Aleppo. State media reported that seven civilians were killed.There were conflicting accounts of advances in areas on the city's outskirts.Aleppo, Syria's biggest pre-war city, has become the main theatre of conflict between President Bashar al-Assad, backed by Iran, Russia and Shi'ite militias, and Sunni rebels including some supported by Turkey, Gulf monarchies and the United States. The city has been divided for years between the government-held western sector and rebel-held east, which the army and its allies put under siege this summer and where they launched a new offensive in September that medics say has killed hundreds. Photographs showed insurgents approaching Aleppo in tanks, armoured vehicles, bulldozers, make-shift mine sweepers, pick-up trucks and on motorcycles, and showed a large column of smoke rising in the distance after an explosion.Fateh al-Sham said in a statement that rebels had gained control over Dahiyet al-Assad, a suburb with a low-rise residential district of about a square kilometre on the southwest corner of the city. Zakaria Malahifji, an official with Fastaqim, a nationalist rebel group in the offensive, said insurgents had captured the residential area but not the whole of Dahiyet al-Assad. The Observatory said rebels had gained most of the suburb. But a Syrian military source said earlier that the army and its allies had thwarted what he called "an extensive attack" on south and west Aleppo. A state television station reported that the army had destroyed four car bombs.

REBEL BOMBARDMENT

Abu Anas al-Shami, a member of the Fateh al-Sham media office, told Reuters from Syria the group had carried out two "martyrdom operations", after which its fighters had gone in and had been able to "liberate a number of important areas". A third such attack had been carried out by another Islamist group.A senior official in the Levant Front, an FSA group, said: "There is a general call-up for anyone who can bear arms.""The preparatory shelling started this morning," he added.

Heavy rebel bombardment, with more than 150 rockets and shells, struck southwestern districts, the Observatory said.Fateh al-Sham played a big part in a rebel attack in July that managed to break the government siege on eastern Aleppo for several weeks before it was reimposed.Abu Youssef al-Mouhajir, an official from the powerful Ahrar al-Sham Islamist group, said the extent of cooperation between the different rebel factions was unusual, and that the largest axis of attack was on the western edge of the city. "This long axis disperses the enemy and it provides us with good cover in the sense that the enemy's attacks are not focused," he said.JIHADISTS

The powerful role played by Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, listed by many countries as a terrorist group, has complicated Western policy towards supporting the anti-Assad opposition.The United States has prevented more powerful weapons such as anti-aircraft missiles from being supplied to rebels partly out of fear they could end up in jihadist hands.The Syrian military source said Friday's attack had been launched in coordination with Islamic State, a group against which all the other rebels, including Fateh al-Sham, have fought. Islamic State fighters did clash with the Syrian army on Friday at a government-held airbase 37km (23 miles) east of Aleppo, next to territory the jihadist group already controls, the Observatory reported.Syria's civil war, now in its sixth year, has killed hundreds of thousands of people, displaced half the country's pre-war population, dragged in regional and global powers and caused a refugee crisis in the Middle East and Europe.Mouhajir, the Ahrar al-Sham official, said cloudy weather was helping to reduce the aerial advantage enjoyed by the Syrian military and its Russian allies. Inside Aleppo, tyres were also burnt to create a smokescreen against air strikes. Grad rockets were launched at Aleppo's Nairab air base before the assault began said Malahifji of the Fastaqim rebel group, adding that it was going to be "a big battle". The Observatory also said that Grad surface-to-surface rockets had struck locations around the Hmeimim air base, near Latakia. (Additional reporting by Tom Perry and Lisa Barrington in Beirut and Polina Devitt in Moscow; Writing by Angus McDowall, Editing by Angus MacSwan/Tom Perry)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Andrew Cawthorne

| CARACAS

CARACAS In a curious convergence of events on the same day last week, four Venezuelan provincial courts issued identical rulings, state governors quickly hit Twitter to celebrate, then the election board emailed a short but bombshell statement.Opposition hopes for a referendum to recall President Nicolas Maduro were dashed, on grounds of fraud in an initial signature drive. The vote was off.For many in the opposition, that settled a years-old debate about the nature of Venezuela's socialist government, uniting them in conviction they are now fighting a dictatorship.Their new militancy heightens the risk of unrest as the South American OPEC member of 30 million people grapples with a dangerous economic and political crisis."Can anyone in the world now really doubt that Venezuela is living in tyranny?" said housewife Mabel Pinate, 62, dressed in white among thousands of protesters who took to the streets against Maduro on Wednesday."We are sick of this. It's time to toughen up and do what we must to save Venezuela," added Pinate, whose husband was fired from state oil company PDVSA by Maduro's predecessor Hugo Chavez and whose two children have gone abroad.After pinning its hopes on a referendum this year - which could have triggered a presidential election and put them in power after 17 years of leftist rule - the enraged opposition Democratic Unity coalition has taken its gloves off.It is holding a symbolic political trial of Maduro in the legislature, organising daily street protests, and shunning talks with the government that had been announced by the Vatican for this weekend. Recalling tactics that led to a short-lived coup against Chavez in 2002 and a shutdown of the oil industry, the coalition has also called for a general strike on Friday and a march to the Miraflores presidential palace next week. "We've reached the limit," said Henrique Capriles, a usually moderate opposition leader, calling the government "Satan.""Does the opposition have anything to negotiate with the government? Nothing. Why does the government want dialogue? Because the water has risen to its neck," he said. Some hardliners, most notably veteran activist Maria Corina Machado and jailed protest leader Leopoldo Lopez' wife Lilian Tintori, are calling for Gandhi-style civil disobedience.

'I FEAR NOBODY'

The government is vowing an iron fist.It says well-known troublemakers, who were behind the 2002 putsch, are again seeking a coup against an elected government, with the help of the United States and compliant foreign media."I fear nobody and nothing!" Maduro told red-shirted supporters at one of his daily rallies and TV appearances this week.The ruling Socialist Party's No. 2, Diosdado Cabello said any companies heeding the strike call would be seized by workers and the military. "We're not going to allow craziness."

Long proud of its democratic credentials after winning numerous elections under Chavez, the ruling Socialist Party says it is the opposition flouting Venezuela's democracy given that independent institutions shot down the referendum.Officials also argue that the very existence of protests and virulent public criticism of Maduro prove democracy is alive and well in Venezuela.Maduro insists the referendum decision was made by independent judges and electoral officials based on technical criteria, and denies the Socialist Party had any sway over the result. But critics say both the judiciary and electoral council have long been in the government's pocket.The Supreme Court has repeatedly shot down legislation passed by the opposition-dominated Congress while interpreting the constitution to favour the executive branch and limit the reach of lawmakers.And the elections council has steadily shifted the requirements for requesting the recall vote.Maduro would have faced probable defeat and removal from power if the referendum had gone ahead.

His challenge now is to contain street protests and respond to deep anger among all Venezuelans at the dreadful state of the economy.Food shortages, long shopping lines and runaway prices have eroded the ruling "Chavismo" movement's popularity among the poor and seen Maduro's ratings slide to just over 20 percent. But as unhappy as they are, disaffected former "Chavistas" are not yet ready to throw their lot in en masse with coalition leaders they still view with suspicion."They are all from privileged families. How can they represent me?" said Orlando Diaz, 47, a mechanic and father of four from a slum in western Caracas who has seen work dry up and income tumble during a nearly three-year recession."Do I hate Maduro? Yes. He has betrayed the comandante (Chavez), he is a fool. Will I join these people in their crying and marching? No way. Frankly, I don't know where to turn. I don't see a future, I just have to find bread for my family today and tomorrow. That's all I think about."The opposition's challenge is how to incorporate people like Diaz and his neighbours from the gritty hillside Antimano "barrio", into their street push. On Wednesday, they drew hundreds of thousands nationwide, but students and traditional supporters remained at the vanguard.Scores of people on both sides were killed during anti-Maduro protests in 2014 and there was new violence on Wednesday, with dozens of injuries and arrests. A policemen was shot dead in an incident the government blamed on demonstrators. "A recall referendum in 2016 would have meant the automatic exit from power of 'Chavismo'," said local pollster Luis Vicente Leon. "Eschewing democratic codes and values, the government preferred to assume ... the risk of a popular reaction."The next presidential election is due at the end of 2018 and most Venezuelans assume another candidate will emerge from within "Chavismo" instead of Maduro. But given the events of recent days, opposition supporters are beginning to wonder if that election will even take place. (Reporting by Andrew Cawthorne; Editing by Kieran Murray)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Brian Ellsworth and Anggy Polanco

| CARACAS/SAN CRISTOBAL

CARACAS/SAN CRISTOBAL Venezuela's streets were quieter than usual on Friday, but a strike called by the opposition drew patchy participation after the socialist government threatened to seize businesses that closed. "The strike is a good pressure tactic ... but if I don't work, I don't eat," said insurance agent Adolfo Diaz, 38, trying to reach work despite fewer buses in the western city of San Cristobal where sentiment is strong against President Nicolas Maduro.Venezuela's opposition Democratic Unity coalition called for a 12-hour shutdown as part of escalating protests after authorities scuttled its push for a referendum to recall the OPEC nation's unpopular socialist leader.The government vowed to take over any companies heeding the strike, sending inspectors to ensure they were open. It posted intelligence agents outside Venezuela's main private company Polar. The beer and food conglomerate was working normally.Business leaders faced arrest if they joined in anti-government actions."We are going to look for the big company owners, the leaders of (business group) Fedecamaras if they insist on a coup d'etat like in 2002 ... they will go to jail," said Diosdado Cabello, the ruling Socialist Party's second in command, recalling a short-lived putsch against Maduro's predecessor Hugo Chavez.In the capital Caracas, where hundreds of thousands of demonstrators attended anti-Maduro rallies on Wednesday, traffic was lighter than normal for a weekday and some parents kept children from school.

But businesses such as bakeries and pharmacies were open, with customary lines of shoppers seeking basics like bread and flour which have gone scarce in Venezuela's economic crisis."I support the opposition, but I don't agree with this strike," said Eduardo Martinez, 51, unemployed, standing near a bakery line in eastern Caracas. "As you can obviously see, people are going about their business as usual."EARN OR PROTEST?

Cafe owner Alfonso Brito, 54, said he opposed Maduro but could not afford to close for the day, especially given losses on Wednesday during the rallies. "You're making people decide between earning a living or protesting," he said, adding that he had fewer customers than usual.Traffic was light and public transport fell by about half in the western state of Tachira, where earlier in the week masked protesters clashed with police, witnesses said.As well as Friday's strike, the opposition is carrying out a political trial of Maduro in the National Assembly and is vowing to march to the Miraflores presidential palace next week unless the recall referendum is revived.

Polls show most Venezuelans want a plebiscite and that Maduro would lose if it went ahead. If he lost a referendum this year, it would trigger a presidential election and a chance for the opposition to end 17 years of socialist rule. Despite having the world's largest oil reserves, Venezuela is suffering a third year of recession, with many skipping meals due to shortages and soaring prices. Maduro blames the situation on a U.S.-led "economic war" against him and the fall in global oil prices. His supporters were holding rallies on Friday to oppose the strike.The opposition says Maduro, 53, has effectively carried out a "coup" by sidelining the legislature, arresting opponents and leaning on compliant institutions to squash the referendum. He says it is his foes who are seeking to topple him illegally."The only thing the opposition wants is to ruin the country," said Miguel Acevedo, a 48-year-old tax official, en route to work in his regulation red shirt. "Look around: today the country has said no to the opposition." (Addtional reporting by Diego Ore, Corina Pons, Eyanir Chinea; Writing by Andrew Cawthorne; Editing by W Simon)

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Earlier this week Samsung confirmed the Galaxy S8 launch for early next year. Now more information about some features of the next flagship have been revealed by Samsungs executive.

Samsungs Vice Chariman Lee Jae-yong told the Wall Street Journal the Galaxy S8 will sport a slick design and improved camera. The phone will also feature an enhanced artificial intelligence which could be a result of its recent acquisition of Viv Labs, co-founders of Siri. Another rumor earlier this week stated that the Galaxy S8 will be the first smartphone to feature optical fingerprint recognition technology so that the fingerprint sensor could be embedded inside the display itself instead of placing it under the home button.

As per previous rumors the Samsung Galaxy S8 is rumored to pack a 5.5-inch 4K display, suitable for VR, powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 830 or Samsung Exynos 8895 10nm SoCs and pack 6GB of RAM. Rumors also say that Samsung will expand the curved display to the top and bottom edges of the phone for a full-screen curved look.

Samsung Galaxy S8 is expected to be unveiled at the Mobile World Congress 2017 in February and launch it in March.

Source
Regardless of how well or poorly the stock market is performing, one thing is for certain: Dividend stocks are always in style.

I've often said that dividend stocks are the foundation of a great retirement portfolio -- and for good reason. For starters, companies that pay dividends usually have a long history of profitability and a sound long-term outlook. A business that doesn't have a clear path to growth typically isn't going to pay a dividend. In other words, buying dividend stocks often means buying into high-quality, profitable companies with long histories of success.

Secondly, dividend stocks can help hedge the stock market's inevitable moves lower. Since 1950, based on data from Yardeni Research, the S&P 500 has corrected lower by at least 10% (when rounded to the nearest digit) on 35 occasions. Owning dividend stocks is a great way to help hedge against these market swoons. As an added bonus, since dividend stocks tend to attract long-term investors, they can sometimes also be far less volatile during corrections.

Lastly, dividend stocks give you the ability to take advantage of compounding over time by reinvesting your payout back into more shares. Doing so allows your ownership in a business to grow, as well as your corresponding payout. Compounding is a tactic some of the smartest money managers use to increase the value of their funds over time.

But some of the best dividend stocks can be found floating well below investors' radars. Here are three bargain bin high-yield dividend stocks you've probably been overlooking this fall.

GlaxoSmithKline PLC

For high-yield investors looking for an anchor-type stock to add to their portfolio this fall, I'd suggest digging deeper into U.K. drug giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK -0.30%). Shares of GlaxoSmithKline have slumped nearly 11% over the trailing three-month period.

The biggest hurdle for GlaxoSmithKline, which is commonly referred to as GSK, has been the decline in Advair sales. Advair, which has for a long time been GSK's flagship COPD and asthma drug, was once an $8 billion a year drug. However, it's lost its patent exclusivity and is likely a year or two away from facing generic competitors. As such, GSK has been forced to reduce its list price on Advair to keep it competitive in the meantime. By 2020, Advair's sales may dip to as little as $2 billion. Where GSK's growth will come from next has been a major source of debate.

The answer to this question comes in two forms. First, GlaxoSmithKline has benefited from innovation at ViiV Healthcare, where it's a majority owner. ViiV is the company responsible for next-generation HIV therapy Triumeq, as well as Tivicay. At their current torrid growth pace, both drugs could near $3 billion in annual sales in 2016.

A second source of growth for GSK has come from the launch of its numerous next-generation, long-lasting COPD and asthma inhaled medications. Following a brief period of instability where GSK struggled to get insurer coverage for Breo and Anoro Ellipta, both inhaled therapies are now humming along nicely and scooping up market share. In fact, new drug launches for GSK are now outpacing the loss in sales the company is dealing with from mature drugs losing exclusivity.

Another aspect of GSK's success has been its cost-cutting. GlaxoSmithKline remains on track to save nearly $3.7 billion annually on costs thanks to its efforts to restructure its pharmaceutical business, revamp its supply chain, and following its asset-swap with Novartis. This swap, which saw GSK sell its small-molecule oncology business and purchase Novartis' vaccine segment, allowed the two companies to form a consumer products joint venture that should save both a lot of money.

Sporting a 5.4% dividend yield and a healthy 23% operating margin over the trailing 12-month period, GlaxoSmithKline could be just what the doctor ordered.

Corrections Corporation of America

Just as the name implies, Corrections Corporation of America (CXW 1.06%) owns and operates private correctional and detention facilities throughout the United States.

Shares of the private detention operators have been absolutely slammed since the end of June, losing about two-thirds of their value. The primary culprit behind that move, and the reason CCA's yield is now well above the 15% mark, can be traced to the U.S. Justice Department's decision in mid-August to end its practice of hiring private companies to manage the prison population. In the coming years, the DOJ plans to phase out the use of privately operated prisons, with Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates commenting that they simply don't save the federal government much in costs.

While this is far from good news, and the $2.16 per share in funds from operations (FFO) that the company is paying out via dividends is probably not sustainable, Wall Street appears to have overshot to the downside with its pessimism.

CCA's management team was quick to point out after the DOJ announcement that only prisons associated with the Federal Bureau of Prisons are affected. For CCA, this equates to 7% of its total business. Think about this for a moment: 7% of its total business being affected effectively wiped out two-thirds of its valuation. Doesn't make a lot of sense to me, and it's something you, the reader, should be questioning as well.

The long run outlook for CCA still appears to be favorable. The U.S. had the highest incarceration rate in the world as of 2013, 716 persons out of every 100,000 in a correctional facility. Despite having just over 4% of the world's population, the U.S. accounts for 22% of all incarcerations. Even with an easing of drug offenses surrounding marijuana, it's going to be tough to reverse this trend at the judicial level. I believe this implies a constant need for CCA's services.

Even with reduced EPS estimates going forward, it wouldn't be surprising if CCA's dividend yield stuck around 10%, or higher, given that it's a real estate investment trust and required pay 90% or more if its earnings to shareholders. There could be a few hiccups left for CCA to contend with, but this appears to be a broken stock trading at an attractive valuation and not a broken business model.

Mobile TeleSystems

A final bargain bin high-yield stock worth a look is a telecom giant you've possibly never even heard of before: Mobile TeleSystems (MBT). Mobile TeleSystems, or MTS as it's more commonly known, is Russia's largest mobile telecom operator, and like the other companies above it's had a rough past few months. Despite being up for the year, it's down 15% over the trailing three-month period.

The biggest issue for MTS is its size. Russia's mobile market his highly concentrated and competitive among just a few players, and the mobile phone saturation rate is exceptionally high. In easier-to-understand terms, Wall Street pundits are having a hard time deciphering where MTS' next wave of growth is going to come from.

Adding fuel to that fire, Russia's ruble has been extremely volatile as crude prices have fallen. Crude is a major source of revenue for the Russian government, meaning a decline in crude prices has a major impact on its economic growth. MTS also recently exited the Uzbekistan market, which coerced the company to lower its full-year sales and profit outlook.

In spite of these very real concerns, there are a handful of reasons why Mobile TeleSystems could be worth a closer look.

Arguably the biggest reason to consider buying a telecom providers like MTS is the opportunity for data package and network upgrades. We often take for granted our access to 4G and LTE networks in the U.S., whereas we fail to realize that only some of the largest Russian cities have access to these data speeds. There are areas within Russia and its neighboring countries that are still introducing 3G technology. As this network rollout continues over the coming decade, the demand for smartphones and larger data packages is only likely to increase, giving MTS that elusive second-wave of growth.

Fundamentally, Mobile TeleSystems is more than capable of generating $4 billion-plus in cash from its operations each year, which should help fund small acquisitions to expand its spectrum, as well as boost its efforts to roll out LTE networks in more Russian cities. Remember, the bigger the LTE presence, the more likely consumers are to demand bigger data packages, and therefore the better pricing power for MTS.

Currently valued at less than nine times next year's projected profits and toting around a dividend yield of close to 11%, this somewhat volatile emerging market telecom provider looks every bit the part of a bargain bin high-yield dividend stock.
Image source: Getty Images

Who doesn't love growth stocks? They make for incredible stories -- if you can catch them.

Consider: On Sept. 8, 1997, Motley Fool co-founder David Gardner bought roughly 3,500 shares of Amazon.com. At the time, shares were trading for only $3.19 each. His total investment -- on behalf of The Motley Fool -- was around $11,000.

Here's what it's done since:

AMZN data by YCharts

That's right. David's $11,000 investment is now worth over $3 million.

What this means for you...

One of the reasons David invested in Amazon was the company's tremendous track record of growth. In order to help you find the next monster growth stock, I went hunting for some of the companies growing the fastest. What does this mean? To make the list, a company had to have three traits:

A market cap of at least $2 billion.

Revenue growth over 30% for the last five years.

Earnings growth over 25% for the last three years.

Here are the stocks that rose to the top.

A discount e-tailer working in the Middle Kingdom

E-commerce is still in its nascent phase in China, but that hasn't stopped Vipshop (NYSE: VIPS) -- think of the name like "VIP Shop" -- from doing serious business. The company sets up flash sales for high-quality products at significant discounts.

Currently valued at over $8 billion, the company has grown revenue by 315% per year over the past five years, while seeing EPS jump 190% per yearover the past three years. And yet, the stock is down 54% from its all-time highs set in 2015.

What gives?

In short, it seems that investors aren't happy to see sales growth slowing as fast as it is. While the company's second-quarter release blew past expectations, Vipshop sees revenue growing by around 40% for the upcoming quarter. While that's still a solid figure, many think the company should be accomplishing more based on how early we are in the Chinese internet revolution.

Some are also concerned that as larger companies see the success that Vipshop is having, they will move in and undercut Vipshop on prices even more -- because they can afford to lose money over the short term while securing market share.

Buying a new house? Your broker probably uses this software.

You can be forgiven for flinching when you hear names like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The organizations played a central role in the subprime-lending crisis that led to the Great Recession. But that shouldn't stop you from taking a look at a similarly named entity: Ellie Mae (NYSE: ELLI).

The company's software provides the Encompass platform used by real estate professionals. This platform helps to manage customer relationships, make the loan-origination process more seamless, and comply with all necessary regulations.

Over the past five years, sales have grown by 43% per year, while EPS has moved up 25% per year over the past three years. But the stock appears to be equally expensive, trading at 133 times earnings.

I, however, think that Ellie Mae is a good deal, even at today's prices. Most importantly, the Encompass platform that the company provides gives it an important moat: real estate professionals have been switching over to Encompass in droves, and once they do they're often loath to switch again. Years and years of data and relationships are on the platform. While that data could be transferred, it would be a headache to accomplish -- and cost a fortune to retrain employees on a new network.

And for those worried about the price tag, it's worth noting that the stock trades at "only" 72 times freecash flow, and "just" 52 times non-GAAP earnings-- which backs out the role of stock-based compensation.

Making it easier to get your paycheck

While industry stalwarts Paychexand ADPdominate the market for processing and cutting payroll checks, there's a new player on the block: Paycom Software (NYSE: PAYC). Unlike the former two, Paycom is the first payroll provider that works exclusively online.

While the company's record of 40% revenue growth per year over the past five years is impressive, Paycom has been able to grow EPS by an eye-popping amount. Back in 2013 -- before going public -- the company produced $0.02per share in earnings. Over the past 12 months, it has moved all the way up to $0.72 per share. That comes out to a growth rate of over 300%.

Obviously, that type of growth can't continue forever, but Paycom is continuing to win over clients. By combining payroll with other services -- dubbed human capital management by Paycom -- the company is able to provide one cloud solution for many different HR purposes. While I'm not an HR expert, I do know that this is a significant step up from what's provided by today's legacy players.

While you might be scared away by Paycom's 80 times trailing earnings price tag -- or its 70 on a non-GAAP basis -- it's important to remember that the company still has lots of market share to grab, and would likely make a very attractive buyout candidate, trading at just over $3 billion.

What to do with this information

I've listed these three high-growth stocks in reverse order of how I feel about them -- Paycom seems to have the best moat, while Vipshop the thinnest. But all three of these stocks are expensive and risky. The good thing to know is that you only need to invest a small amount to make a big difference -- over time -- if you get a true long-term winner and can hold it for decades.

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.

Brian Stoffel owns shares of AMZN. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends AMZN and ELLI. The Motley Fool recommends ADP and PAYC. 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.
China stocks dipped on Friday, as investors sifted through a slew of corporate earnings to assess China's economic health, with weakness in big-cap infrastructure stocks offsetting strength in financials.

The blue-chip CSI300 index fell 0.1 percent, to 3,340.13, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.3 pct to 3,104.27 points.

For the week, both CSI300 and SSEC gained 0.4 pct, climbing for the third straight week.

Earlier gains in the week were capped by signs that the recent economic recovery is shaky.

"Generally speaking, the market is relatively stable, as investors pin hopes on the success of state company reforms despite short-term risks from yuan depreciation and rising money market rates," said Wu Kan, Shanghai-based head of equity trading at investment firm Shanshan Finance.

Profit growth in China's industrial firms in September slowed sharply from a month ago as some key manufacturing sectors suffered weak activity and rising debt, official data showed on Thursday.

A Reuters poll, however, showed activity in China's manufacturing sector may have shown mild expansion in October.

Investors found some solace also in third-quarter results from banks and brokerages, pushing up the financial sector.

China Construction Bank Corp reported its bad loans declined for the third quarter, the first drop since 2012, signaling that a slide in asset quality at the country's top state-owned commercial banks may be reaching a pause, soothing some concerns over a debt crisis.

Most other sectors were down, with a continued correction in industry and infrastructure stocks dragging on the market.

(Reporting by the Shanghai Newsroom; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
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What happened

Shares of application networking specialist A10 Networks (NYSE: ATEN) have been crushed today, down by 24% as of 12 p.m. EDT, after the company reported third-quarter earnings results with sales falling short of market expectations.

So what

Revenue in the third quarter came in at $55.1 million, which translated into non-GAAP net income of $0.2 million, or $0.00 per share, by the time you reach the bottom line. Analysts were expecting sales of $59.1 million and an adjusted net loss of $0.01 per share. Investors are punishing the company for the top-line shortfall.

Now what

CEO Lee Chen attributed the shortfall to several orders in North America coming in late that could not ship in time to be included in the third quarter. These deals will be pushed into future quarters. Chen expressed disappointment in the sales results, but believes the company can continue to drive leverage in its operating model. A10 Networks has also authorized a share repurchase program of $20 million over the next year.

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.

Evan Niu, 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.
Xerox Corp's quarterly revenue fell nearly 3 percent, the seventh straight quarter of decline, as sales of its printers and copiers continued to fall.

However, Xerox reported net income attributable to the company of $181 million, or 17 cents per share, in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, compared with a net loss of $34 million, or 4 cents per share, a year earlier.

Total revenue fell to $4.21 billion from $4.33 billion.

Xerox, which said in February it would separate its legacy printer operations from its business-process outsourcing unit, said the separation was on track to be completed by the end of the year.

(Reporting by Aishwarya Venugopal in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
The safety of Australias top-selling ute, the Toyota HiLux, has been called into question after it nearly rolled over during a routine swerve test by reputable Swedish magazine Teknikens Varld.

A disturbing video shows the latest Toyota HiLux went up on two wheels, nearly flipping on its side after a simple swerve at 60kmh  also known as a moose test because it simulates what happens when a driver takes sudden evasive action.

The worst affected model was the flagship Toyota HiLux SR5, which nearly rolled except for the quick thinking of the expert driver.

The middle-of-the-range Toyota HiLux on smaller wheels and tires also went up on two wheels in the same maneuver.

Every other ute tested at the same or higher speeds passed the test.

The magazine exposed the same flaw in the previous generation Toyota HiLux in 2007.

More automotive news from News.com.au

When a Mercedes failed this test in the 1990s it was withdrawn from sale until a fix could be established.

Teknikens Varld journalist Linus Projzt said the Toyota HiLux demonstrated extremely dangerous behaviour.

Aint good enough, not even close, he said, holding a copy of the 2007 magazine exposing the previous model Toyota HiLuxs safety flaw.

News Corp Australia sent the following questions to Toyota: Does Toyota dispute the test? Is Toyota planning to review the HiLux suspension or steering? Should customers be concerned?

A statement from Toyota Australia said: Toyota takes the report published by the Swedish automobile magazine, Teknikens Varld, on this emergency-avoidance test seriously and Toyota is currently in discussions with the publication to understand their test results in more detail.

Toyota said local engineers undertook an unprecedented six-year program to develop and evaluate the model specifically for Australian conditions (covering) 650,000km of real world driving here in Australia.

The Toyota HiLux has been Australias top-selling workhorse for the past three decades and has been among the Top Three most popular cars overall for the past five years.

The Toyota HiLux is also the best selling vehicle outright in Queensland, West Australia and the Northern Territory.
Shania Twain is an icon in country music, and this winter, shell earn her official medal. Twain will be honored with Billboards Icon Award at the 2016 Billboard Women in Music ceremony on Dec. 9 in New York.

Shania Twain is a groundbreaking artist whose successful country-pop crossover blazed the trail for a new generation of country stars like Taylor Swift, Billboards 2014 Woman of the Year, and Carrie Underwood, explains Janice Min, president and chief creative officer of the Hollywood Reporter-Billboard Media Group. Shes fearless in her career, following her own path and pushing the boundaries of the country music genre as she creates music that has proven to be timeless. She is revered in the industry and we are honored to present the Icon award to her.

Throughout her career, Twain has earned four No. 1 albums on Billboards Top Country Albums chart. Additionally, her "Up!" album also topped the Billboard 200, while "Come On Over" remains the No. 1 country album of all time and the second best-selling album overall since Nielsen Music began tracking sales in 1991.

In addition to Twain, Halsey will also be honored with the Billboard Icon Award and Madonna will be named 2016s Woman of the Year. The event will air on Lifetime on Dec. 12 and is broadcast as part of the magazines Women in Music list, which identifies the 50 most powerful female executives in the industry every year.
If only sex were all fun and games. Even though it can result in many nice thingscloseness, orgasmsit can also lead to sexually transmitted diseases. Although you shouldnt feel ashamed if you contract one, ignorance is absolutely not bliss; some untreated STDs can lead to complications like infertility.

Every person needs to be tested, Edward W. Hook III, M.D., professor of medicine, epidemiology, and microbiology at the University of Alabama, tells SELF. The question about how often people need to be tested for sexually transmitted infections once theyve been tested the first time is a function of a number of things, like their number of partners, and their partners number of partners.

What STDs should you be tested for? It can be a little tricky, but here are the basics. The two biggies are chlamydia and gonorrhea. Chlamydia is the most commonly reported STD in the United States, and gonorrhea is also incredibly common. Whats worse, they can both be asymptomatic, are both on the rise, and when left untreated, both can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease, which can cause infertility.

Ironically, doctors often dont test for the two most common STDsherpes and HPV (theyre reported less often than chlamydia because people often dont realize they have them). The reason is just that: Theyre so damn common that sometimes its not even worth finding out. Since 67 percent of the global population has HSV-1, the kind of herpes most likely to cause cold sores, and one out of every six Americans between 14 and 49 has HSV-2, the type that usually causes genital herpes, your doctor likely wont test for them unless you specifically ask or have symptoms. Doctors dont start screening for HPV, which can cause cervical cancer, until you turn 30, preferring to rely on routine Pap smears to detect signs of cervical cancer before then.

When it comes to HIV, everyone between the ages of 13 and 64 should get tested at least once, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends. Beyond that, if you have risk factors, like having recently had sex with someone whose sexual history you dont know, or having more than one sex partner since your last test, you should get an HIV test at least annually. Heres a full list of potential risk factors.

If youre experiencing any strange itching, burning, or other worrisome symptoms down below, you should see a doctor to figure out whats up. But even if youre symptom free, you should know how often you need to get tested (and then actually do it). Its not always so clearand thats why we put together this handy guide to help you know when to go, based on whats going on in your love life.

This is how often you need to get tested if

...youre in a dry spell but have had sex within the past year:

If youre engaging in sexual activity at least once a year and youre between the ages 21 and 25, you should be getting tested for chlamydia annually. The prevalence of chlamydia up until age 25 is so high that its important to test for it, board-certified ob/gyn Antonio Pizarro, M.D., tells SELF.

Since gonorrhea is also a common STD in people of that age range, your doctor will likely want to check you out for that as well, Hook explains. At this appointment, you and your doctor can discuss your sexual history and which other STD tests you might need.

If you're over 25, the standard guidelines say you should get tested for gonorrhea and chlamydia if you have a new partner or partners, or if youve had unprotected sex.

...youre in a dry spell, but you got tested for all STDs soon after the most recent time you had sex.

Good job! But you might want to get tested again. It takes six months after infection for an HIV test to show up as positive, Hook explains. That means if you ran out and got tested right away, it would have been too soon for the disease to present.

...youre currently having casual sex:

If you have a new partner, ideally you both would be tested together ahead of time and have full disclosure, Pizarro says. But it doesnt always work that way in real life, which is why using barrier methods like condoms and dental dams is a must, he says.

So is getting tested more often than once a year. If you have multiple partners, particularly if youre not using [protection], you should consider more frequent testing, Hook says. He recommends at least every six months.

...youre just starting a relationship:

Honestly, if youre serious about each other, you should go get tested tomorrowor at least before you start having unprotected sex (and ideally before that, since there are some STDs condoms dont protect against). Getting tested is not a matter of distrust, its a matter of respect for one another, Hook says. It allows people to enter the relationship with confidence about their partners status, which is optimal if they want to move forward in a sexual relationship and not have to worry about things like condoms unless there are other reasons for doing so.

It doesnt need to happen the very day you define the relationship. But its good to have that information so that if either of you has an STD, you can get rid of it or start any necessary treatment early on in the relationship.

...youre in a long-term relationship:

Doctors will offer testing based on the above recommended guidelines for your age, risk factors, and symptoms. What you do with that is up to you. You could decide to get tested three times in the relationship, and if nothing crops up, hold off on further testing unless your relationship status changes, Hook says. Or, when your doctor brings up testing, you can talk it out with them.

If a patients in a relationship and feels like they havent been exposed and would rather not be testedalthough plenty of patients have been exposed in committed relationships and end up with surprisesI would certainly have to respect that, Pizarro says.

Keep in mind that if youre polyamorous or in an open relationship, you may require more frequent testing depending on your specific situation. Your doctor can offer more guidance on that front.

And if you start to experience strange symptoms, you or your partner has cheated, or anything else makes you think you might have been exposed to an STD, you should definitely get tested, Pizarro says.

...you have previously tested positive for an STD, no matter your relationship status:

Your doctor will help you figure out a treatment plan, but you should also make a follow-up appointment six months after originally testing positive. Any woman who has one STD diagnosed and treated is more likely to have an STD again within the next six months, Hook says. Getting tested might be scary, but along with practicing safe sex, its one of the most empowered ways to take control of your health.
Municipal Judge Bryce Abbott slid into a high-backed leather chair behind a stack of bloated manila files documenting the dilemma of adults seeking refuge in Kansas' groundbreaking mental health court.

He shoved enough progress-report files aside to create a line of sight to defendants and family members, social workers, counselors and the public defender and prosecutor gathered in front of him for a review of dozens of ongoing cases. Action began with the "Rocket Docket"  a kind of flash-bang, front-of-the-line reward for folks dealing responsibly with their nonviolent criminal misconduct, underlying behavioral health condition and, often, a multitude of housing, employment, substance abuse, transportation or anti-social issues.

These courtroom exchanges were swift, relaxed and suggested the cycle of incarceration for some of these offenders could be severed, according to The Topeka Capital-Journal (http://bit.ly/2eMtH59 ).

"You haven't been in trouble," Abbott said to one of the first called to the bench. "Keep it up."

Moments such as these displayed the promise of intervention by officers of the court monitoring law-breakers in a way far different in style and substance than most defendants were used to. The backbone of the operation, a rarity in the Kansas court system, is the public-private collaboration on case management under the discretionary eye of a judge devoted to a concentrated caseload.

Since its inception in 2009, Abbott said, the Wichita Municipal Court's voluntary version of therapeutic jurisprudence improved quality of life for graduates, diminished recidivism and saved taxpayers millions of dollars. It was started with a U.S. Department of Justice grant and sustained with financial backing by the city.

As names of participants were checked off the judge's list, a middle-age male struggling to cope was ushered into the courtroom. Evidence was external. He was wearing Sedgwick County Jail's standard ill-fitting orange jumpsuit. An encounter with Wichita law enforcement left his ankles and wrists bound in chains that clanked with every move.

Standing before Abbott, the defendant began ranting about rivals real or imagined. His remarks were spiced with a four-letter word that crudely referred to intercourse. In most courtrooms, that kind of obscene talk would produce an unequivocal rebuke from the bench: Shut up or get out. In this setting, structured with fragile defendants in mind, Abbott let it slide, briefly, before affirming decency boundaries.

"We have rules," the judge said. "One of those rules is we don't curse in court."

His initial admonition and a stern reminder didn't silence the defendant's toxic tongue, but the exchange exposed limits of what some view as a radical experiment in judicial intercession. Frustration, as well as elation, awaits local units of government in Kansas pivoting to a problem-solving court to slow the revolving arrest-prosecute-incarcerate-release merry-go-round ridden by offenders enduring psychotic episodes.

"We've patted ourselves on the back and had our hearts ripped out on the same day," Abbott said. "A criminal might choose to be a criminal, but the mentally ill do not choose to be mentally ill."

In a handful of Kansas cities  Topeka, Lawrence, Kansas City and Wichita  there are independent movements to sculpt judicial programs channeling low-level offenders diagnosed with an illness of the mind to a separate court docket. It's a recognition that old-school punishments often fell short.

The objective in alternative courts has been to help people step beyond an adversarial process into a program to improve access to services for those with mental illness, promote participation in treatment and reduce recidivism. Ingredients of change range from medication and therapy to housing and vocational rehabilitation. The judge regularly meets behind closed doors with lawyers and mental health staff to talk about the status of each case before meeting participants in open court. Drug testing is routine.

The target is a durable recovery for individuals that deflates the rising cost of incarceration for city and county governments without sacrificing public safety.

"I've heard from a couple folks, 'Well, maybe you're a soft-on-crime type. You're coddling these people,' " said Jason Geier, a Topeka Municipal Court judge involved with the city's alternative court. "Nobody's getting a free pass. There are punitive measures taken against them. At the same time, in conjunction with that, they're getting the assistance they need."

Mental health courts in Kansas have arisen in an organic manner by drawing upon local community priorities. Federal grants often played a key role in launching these courts across the country, but there is no statewide initiative in Kansas. Other states, including Oklahoma, have aggressively adopted the concept to deal with defendants in psychological distress.

The advent of drug, veteran, domestic violence, truancy and mental health dockets in Kansas led to a judicial commission's call in 2013 for establishment of guidelines to promote consistency.

Specialty courts can help defendants in a compromised mental state navigate a complex legal system, said Gladys Williams, a therapist with COMCARE of Sedgwick County and an integral part of the city's mental health court.

"It can be an overwhelming process," she said. "We have to be mindful that these things can be so familiar to us. We use our jargon. When you have a mental illness and don't know where to begin . it is definitely not the easiest."

Kansas municipal and district court officers involved with alternative courts are versed in obstacles to reordering a justice system that has evolved across the nation into a de facto dumping ground for people with major mental health problems.

Richard Cagan, executive director of the Kansas chapter of the National Alliance for Mental Illness, said closure of state mental hospitals in Kansas, including Topeka State Hospital in 1997, wasn't followed with commensurate investment into community mental health service centers. The safety net in Kansas was stripped of thousands of psychiatric hospital beds available to the mentally ill. Over time, corrections facilities became a common destination for people afflicted by mental illness.

"We're still institutionalizing people. It's just a different system," Cagan said. "The idea is to not take people to jail in the first place. It's to get them into a treatment environment."

As underfunded state hospitals and community mental health centers in Kansas fell short of meeting demand for services, men and women with untreated illnesses would stumble from arrest to arrest for trespassing, disorderly conduct, loitering, shoplifting and drug possession. A majority of these low-level offenders would be candidates for a mental health court, but most don't have that option because so few exist in the state.

The result: People with mental illness are disproportionately represented behind barbed wire and steel doors of jails and prisons.

"I strongly believe people can recover from mental illness," said John Boutwell, who lives in Hutchinson. A couple years after he was diagnosed with a mental illness in 1994, he was charged with kidnapping after taking what he thought was a "joyride." He spent 41 months in federal prison.

Incarceration isn't the answer for people trapped by an illness that takes over the mind, he said.

"It took a lot of courage to admit there is something wrong with my brain," said Boutwell, an advocate of courts and other public services designed specifically for the mentally ill. "I want to be heard. I want to be part of the solution. We're too quiet."

Thirty-eight percent of inmates in Kansas Department of Corrections prisons during 2014 had a mental disorder  an increase of 126 percent since 2006.

Johnson County Sheriff Frank Denning said about 20 percent of inmates jailed in the state's most populous county were mentally unstable. Johnson County has a diversion program for cases involving mental illness, but the jail continues to serve a robust population of those with mental illness.

"I have been running the largest mental health hospital in the state of Kansas," he said.

Leawood resident Joy Branum said her adult son, Jonathan, knows well the inside of Denning's jail. She said a troubling irony of the high-security facility was that her son would likely fall through the cracks.

"I'd rather have my son in an animal shelter. He would get help," Branum said. "I was given the impression that in the jail system, he could get help. To me, he's falling further into the abyss."

She said he was convicted of a felony during a trial that didn't touch on his mental state. She's convinced her son, a military veteran and college graduate, has an undiagnosed mental illness. To add complexity to crisis, she said Jonathan declined treatment.

There is little hope of compelling her 30-year-old son to accept medication or therapy. She said prosecutors made clear Jonathan needed to take responsibility for his criminal conduct.

During a jail visit, Branum reminded her son of his goodness and intelligence. She told him that she loved him. She asked him the question of why.

"Why are you walking down this road? Next thing I know, he took that phone and bashed his face in."

Opposition to mental health courts exists among politicians uneasy about the investment required to implement a new branch of the judiciary and anxious that constituents might interpret an affirmative vote as evidence of being wishy-washy on crime.

Outside the political system, there is lack of appreciation for the number of people in Kansas struggling with mental illness.

"There are a lot of folks that are living with mental illness," said Kathleen Lynch, a district court judge in Wyandotte County and a leader in formation of alternative court models.

Concerns also have been expressed about mental health courts perverting the justice system when a person's best chance of obtaining critical health services resulted from getting arrested. Detractors argue mental health courts often expand an individual's sanction to include a treatment regimen lasting longer than a sentence for the original crime.

Others question why a mentally ill person who refuses to consume prescription medications as part of a court-monitored program could be sanctioned for that decision.

"Any kind of coerced procedure that involves administering drugs . amounts to a kind of psychosurgery," said David Oaks, director of MindFreedom International, an organization that some associate with Scientology.

"The length of time they are denied liberty ought not to be affected by their decision to take prescribed psychiatric drugs," he said.

Some judges remain uncomfortable taking on the role of a social worker at the intersection of a problem straddling criminal law and mental health.

Instruction in law schools, including Washburn University and the University of Kansas, doesn't place emphasis on introducing students to the mental health landscape they're likely to encounter if practicing in the justice system.

Judge Lloyd Swartz, wearing a dark robe and displaying a warm demeanor, welcomed Terry  first names only for privacy reasons  to a session of the Alternative Sentencing Court. It was launched in January 2015 by Topeka Municipal Court with a $91,000 U.S. Department of Justice grant and $25,000 from the Kansas Health Foundation to provide treatment, rather than jail time, for those charged with misdemeanor offenses and diagnosed with a mental illness or in the clutches of alcohol or drug addiction.

In a large room, but sitting near mental health professionals, court officers and others, Terry explained how he took a walk in Gage Park recently when he felt tension rising in his head. Terry's prior criminal offense was battery, but his challenges go deeper than a single episode.

He asked the judge if it would be reasonable to personally apologize to the victim.

"Send a letter of apology," Swartz advised.

Brandon, proud of his new pair of glasses, was warned by Swartz not to get cute during an upcoming health assessment.

"When you try to play games with them or try to outsmart them, you may be hurting yourself," the judge said.

Andrew said he landed a job and reported attending his first Alcoholics Anonymous meeting.

Michael told the judge he was in crisis over the weekend. "I'm still not doing well," he said.

The judge praised his decision to visit a crisis center, urged him to attend more group sessions, handed him a few bus passes and promised to have a Topeka police officer check on his welfare.

It was a relatively uneventful Wednesday in Topeka's special court, a voluntary opportunity for people to maintain freedom while receiving treatment for mental illness and associated maladies. All in this program were found guilty of misdemeanor crimes, sentenced and agreed to take part in the yearlong program process to avoid jail. They were referred by police officers, jail officials, judges or Valeo Behavioral Health Care, an agency that works with participants.

"Everybody we see has a component of mental illness," said Swartz, who is clear about his mission. "Find people who are not able to connect with the resources necessary to stay out of trouble. It makes their lives better. It makes the city of Topeka a better place to live."

In the program's inaugural year, there were 29 participants. Six graduated, including the first, Paula. There were inevitable relapses, but a measure of success could be found in someone who stayed out of jail for six months after compiling a record of weekly multiple arrests. A majority of those eligible choose to sit in jail.

In October, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt directed $50,000 in funding to the Topeka Alternative Sentencing Court.

"Providing the best public safety services and crime prevention requires a dedicated staff of local officials," Schmidt said.

Mike Kagay, a Republican unopposed in the November election for district attorney in Shawnee County, said sufficient demand existed to start a track in Shawnee County District Court for cases tied to mental illness. He will take office in January and assume a platform to advocate that view.

"We need to work with these folks and give them some structure  give them an opportunity to succeed, not just incarcerate them. They are mentally ill and they can't necessarily control all their actions," he said.

After three years of study, the Douglas County Commission voted in August to allocate more than $440,000 for launch of a mental health court in January 2017. The county's blueprint for reform doesn't stop there.

A land swap with the Lawrence school district brought into the county's possession land for construction of a proposed mental health intervention center. The next piece of the puzzle would be renovation of part of the county jail built in 1999 to better care for people in throes of a mental health episode.

"We have a big vision," said Craig Weinaug, the Douglas County administrator. "A typical jail cell is the worst place to put someone who is seriously mentally ill."

A consultant's report evaluated status of the jail and potential of a mental health court. That analysis showed existing programs designed to reduce recidivism were addressing inmates interested in changing their lives, which meant those still incarcerated were increasingly violent and more likely to have an untreated mental health disorder.

Data on Douglas County inmates booked in April, July and October 2014 and in January 2015 showed 18 percent had a mental, behavior or emotional disorder resulting in functional impairment of major life activities. These mentally ill inmates stayed in jail an average of four days longer than those without a diagnosed disorder: 13.9 days versus 9.7 days.

Eighty percent of the mentally ill people with mental illness booked into Douglas County's jail were not charged with a violent offense, but all had previously received mental health treatment, and 70 percent had been patients at a psychiatric hospital.

The proposed mental health court wouldn't serve the entire range of people incarcerated at the jail. An estimated 11 percent of men and 12 percent of women booked by the county would meet a five-point criteria list for participation in a mental health court.

County Commissioner Nancy Thellman said loss of state aid for Bert Nash Mental Health Center in Lawrence made clear the need for a new approach to the problem. She favors a one-step-at-a-time approach process that begins with a mental health court financed with existing county resources before turning to voters for approval of funding for the crisis center and jail expansion.

"Hopefully, there will be a number of instances where this will be a viable and improved alternative to incarceration," said County Commissioner Jim Flory.

The informality of court sessions led by Lynch, the Wyandotte County District Court judge, was never intended to minimize seriousness of a docket comprising people who might require court-ordered mental health treatment.

The idea of ditching the black robe and tradition of compelling all to rise when the judge stepped into the courtroom was to make the environment more comfortable for those with their independence hanging in the balance.

Lynch said she owed that intimidation-reducing step to a woman who experienced psychotic symptoms triggered by the sight of a cloaked judge behind a deep bench.

"I was raised by folks who said, 'If you see a need, you need to try to solve the problem,' " Lynch said. "We redid things in the courtroom. We had a big, open room. It was not very good. The patients couldn't speak to their lawyers confidentially. We kind of gave them cubicles."

Lynch handles the district court's "care and treatment docket," which requires a judge's decision on whether individuals are a danger to themselves or others. Judges can decide to mandate outpatient treatment or order a trip to Osawatomie State Hospital in Miami County.

She prefers to call it a "wellness docket," but the term hasn't caught on beyond the downtown Kansas City courthouse.

"We try to find, for lack of a better word, that sweet spot. Where do we need to be?" she said.

Lynch also is among advocates of a proposed state law allowing placement of a 72-hour involuntary hold on people in meltdown. Under the proposal, local or regional crisis centers could have three days to stabilize a person against his or her will and without court order.

The idea failed to gain traction in the Kansas Legislature due to the potential cost and concern about infringement of civil rights.

Lynch said forcing a person into Rainbow Mental Health Facility, a 22-bed crisis-intervention unit in Kansas City, could put them in better condition to participate in care decisions. She said alternatives to the 72-hour hold were an emergency room, jail or worse.

Charlie Ross and Annie Neri, both of Lawrence, know what it's like to be treated in a state mental hospital.

"I never want to go back to the hospital. It was a horrible experience," said Neri, who has worked as a peer counselor for people with mental illness.

"I went in, unable to speak. Delirious," Ross said. "I was terrified to the point I couldn't speak."

Both went voluntarily to a state hospital but believe community-based networks of crisis facilities, close to therapists and family, would serve Kansans better than unfamiliar hospitals or jails. Loss of state and federal funding for mental health services during the past decade has led to backlogs at mental health centers that force vulnerable people to deal with crisis alone, they said.

Neri said more Kansans ought to try walking in shoes of people with mental illness and to be more willing to invest tax dollars in lives of those struggling to attain normalcy. A new perspective would build support for a nimble judiciary interlocked with a safety net for the mentally ill, she said.

In doing so, she referenced then-U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback's attempt to absorb the plight of inmates during a 2006 overnight stay at Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola. She also pointed to the 2010 decision by voters to commit $18 million to renovating Lawrence Public Library.

"There is a funding issue," Neri said. "We like libraries. We built one. Do we like mental health?"
AstraZeneca's high hopes for cancer immunotherapy were dented on Thursday as the recruitment of new patients with head and neck cancer into two clinical studies was put on hold, following instances of bleeding.

The drugmaker said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had placed a partial hold on enrolment into the final-stage Phase III trials involving two of its immune system-boosting drugs, although the studies are still continuing with existing patients.

Trials of durvalumab and tremelimumab in different cancer types are also progressing as planned. Durvalumab is being tested on its own and with tremelimumab in various cancers.

Expectations for the combination treatment have been building in particular in lung cancer, where the two-drug cocktail is being tested in a broad range of patients as an alternative to initial chemotherapy.

News of the problems in head and neck cancer first surfaced on the website clinicaltrials.gov, run by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, which said one of the trials, known as KESTREL, had been "suspended".

"The trial is not suspended," an AstraZeneca spokeswoman said. "We have a pause or a partial clinical hold on enrolment of new patients."

Shares in AstraZeneca fell more than 4 percent in U.S. trading on concerns that the setback might signal wider problems for durvalumab.

AstraZeneca sought to play down concerns, however, stressing that pivotal data in lung cancer were still expected in the first half of 2017.

It also said that bleeding was a known complication in treating head and neck cancer, given the proximity of tumors to major blood vessels and use of prior cancer therapies, which may involve surgery and radiation.

Merck's rival immunotherapy drug Keytruda is already approved for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, the same condition that AstraZeneca is testing for.

Bernstein analyst Tim Anderson said there was some reference in the medical literature to a decrease in blood platelets, which are needed for clotting, when patients were given so-called CTLA4 drugs like tremelimumab, although cases were rare.

Both Anderson and Deutsche Bank's Richard Parkes said it was unclear if bleeding constituted a real drug side effect or not.

AstraZeneca said it had submitted its analysis of bleeding events to the FDA for review and would work to provide the required information to resume new patient enrolment as soon as possible.
An institution calling itself the Genesis II Church of Health and Healing is anything but, according to a man who says an elixir promoted by the church as a "miracle cure" is the same concoction that killed her, ABC News reports.

Doug Nash says he and his wife, Sylvia Nash (or Sylvia Fink, per a March Washington Post article), were on a sailing trip around the world in 2009 when they stopped in the Vanuatu Islands.

It was there they ran into other travelers hawking an anti-malaria concoction, and after purchasing a sample of Miracle Mineral Solution, or MMS, Sylvia tried it.

Right away, things went wrong. "She said, 'Oh my God, that's awful," Doug says, recalling that about 15 minutes after her negative taste test, Sylvia started complaining about not feeling well.

By evening, her symptomsdiarrhea, vomiting, nauseahad become so bad, Doug suspected she'd been poisoned. His 56-year-old wife died before help could arrive. The autopsy noted she had ingested sodium chlorite (MMS' main ingredient), which is basically industrial bleach, federal prosecutors say.

"They might as well be selling Clorox," the DOJ's Ben Mizer tells ABC. The "healing" medicine was traced back to a firm called Project GreenLife, and in 2015, operator Louis Daniel Smith was convicted and sentenced to four-plus years in prison for hawking the product as a cure for a variety of maladies.

But the Genesis church founded by Jim Humblean elderly man who says he came from another galaxy, per the Posthas built up its following around MMS and claims thousands of success stories.

Making things harder for the feds: Supplements like this aren't FDA-regulated. Meanwhile, its promoters keep pushing it. "If they do lock me up, I know how to do out-of-body travel. I can go anywhere, see anything I want to see," one of the church's "bishops" told the Post. (An "Elixir of Long Life"?)

This article originally appeared on Newser: Woman Dies After Drinking 'Cure' That's Basically Clorox
If past is prologue, and it usually is, then a Hillary Clinton presidency may be engulfed and disabled by scandal.

Make that plural --scandals. As a consequence, she is likely to accomplish little on behalf of the American people. In other words, her presidency could be dead on arrival the moment she is sworn into office.

How do we know this? First, the FBI announced Friday that it is reopening its criminal investigation of Clintons personal email server.

FBI Director James Comey did not give details except to convey that, in connection with an unrelated case, new evidence had been uncovered. The Director said his agency would review these new emails to determine whether they contain classified information.

This is a stunning new development. It will surely do enormous damage to Clintons chances of winning the office she has long coveted. But if she is elected notwithstanding, the FBI investigation itself will hobble her presidency from the outset. The cloud of distrust and scandal that already hovers over Clinton could grow exponentially.

Second, the powerful chairman of a congressional committee and many others on Capitol Hill are vowing to pursue their investigations of wrongdoing by Clinton. These are the very people with whom the new president must work to accomplish anything meaningful on behalf of Americans who are yearning for something other than gridlock in Washington.

But the WikiLeaks emails are like gasoline on a fire. Clinton doesnt deny their authenticity. And every day begets yet another damning revelation of misdeeds and concomitant cover-ups. Even Clintons own aides and allies express bewilderment over her chronic mistakes. Some are appalled.

Why would Clinton behave with such reckless abandon when so much is at stake? Because Clinton seems addicted to misbehavior, yet never recognizing it as such.

As pointed out in my last column, she routinely breaches the bounds of propriety. She steps right up to the line of illegality and dangles her foot over it, unconscious or uncaring of the repercussions.

If her activities are not illegal, they are surely unethical. By her own actions, she has transformed herself into the poster child for moral turpitude. And there is no reason to believe she will suddenly stop upon assuming the nations highest office, should she win the election. Indeed, sitting in the Oval Office may only serve to embolden her to push the envelope of opprobrium even further.

Lets review. She stands accused of deliberately evading public disclosure laws by hiding emails on a private server, then lying about it. She is suspected of using her position as Secretary of State to confer benefits in exchange for money from foreign donors (notoriously called pay-for-play). It looks like she and her husband leveraged their charity foundation to enriched themselves personally to the tune of tens of millions of dollars.

And those are just her recent shenanigans. Illegality? Graft? Corruption? Malfeasance? Pick your favorite noun.

Investigations Into What?

Clinton did not tell the truth in several of her statements, according to FBI Director James Comey. The Chairman of the House Oversight Committee, Rep. Jason Chaffetz, has sent an official referral to the FBI to open an investigation into whether Clinton perjured herself in her sworn testimony before Congress when she insisted she did not send or receive anything marked classified via her private emails. Thats just one of her alleged deceptions.

Under Title 18, Section 162 of the federal code, a perjury conviction carries up to 5 years in prison. So the matter of lying to Congress is not just a pesky issue that will vanish after November 8th. Rep. Chaffetz is determined to pursue it and so are many of his colleagues. But thats not all.

Chaffetz is now curious about whether the FBIs decision not to recommend criminal prosecution of Clinton for mishandling classified documents was swayed by the $ 675,000 given by a close Clinton ally to the wife of the FBI official overseeing the investigation. It smacks of illegal influence-peddling.

And what about the claim of an FBI agent that Clinton aide Patrick Kennedy tried to declassify and bury one of Clintons legally toxic documents in a quid pro quo favor for the Bureau? That smacks of obstruction of justice. Again, Chaffetz wants to know. And so does Speaker of the House Paul Ryan who is promising to dig into the suspicious offer.

There is also the matter of whether Clintons wholesale deletion of thousands of emails after Congress had issued a subpoena for them constitutes destruction of evidence which is also a crime. How did that happen? The people who seem to know are invoking the 5th Amendment against self-incrimination. More immunity deals might loosen lips.

Numerous reports indicate that wealthy donors to Clintons foundation secured special access to her as Secretary of State. This, too, may be part of the upcoming congressional investigation. It is against the law for a public official to use his or her position to confer benefits in exchange for money. Sen. John Cornyn, the second-ranking GOP senator, is demanding answers.

The Big-Bucks Gravy Train

There are multiple reports that the FBI has opened a criminal investigation into potential corruption within the Clinton Foundation. Newly leaked emails show that charity official Doug Band, while raising money for the foundation, also steered millions of dollars to Bill Clinton. Quite the cozy relationship. However, if the foundation was not operating strictly as a charity under the laws governing non-profit groups, it could be deemed an illegal enterprise. In other words, criminal fraud.

How much money did the former president pocket? One Band email is especially revealing : President Clintons business arrangements have yielded more than $ 30 million for him personally, with $ 66 million to be paid out over the next nine years should he chose to continue with the current engagements.

The boat-loads of cash came from Clinton foundation donors --the same donors who had business before Clinton's State Department and some of whom appear to have received benefits therefrom. For example, Hillary helped UBS avoid the IRS, and then Bill got paid $ 1.5 million dollars. Thereafter, their foundation received a ten-fold increase in donations. If that was a reward for Hillarys machinations, then it constitutes bribery under federal law, 18 U.S.C., section 201.

When asked recently to explain what appears to be blatant double dealing and the stench of pay-for-play, the Clinton campaign did not really deny it, but simply said the charity did wonderful work. It certainly did --it did wonderful work enriching the Clintons bank account.

If you ever wondered how Bill and Hillary got so outrageously rich, Band's emails make explicit the compelling and incriminating evidence the Clintons used their foundation for personal profit. It's a prosecutor's dream. A "smoking gun" document if ever there was one.

While Bill has stayed mum on the subject, Chelsea Clinton expressed some dismay that Band was using the foundation to hustle business, but I doubt she was objecting to her future inheritance. After all, why derail the gravy train when its running on a slick track at high speed?

More than 50 House Republicans have urged the Department of Justice to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the Clinton Foundation. Yeah, fat chance. The objectivity of Attorney General Loretta Lynch was shattered when she hung out with Bill on her plane for a half hour just before she decided there would be no criminal prosecution of Hillary. And if she becomes president, there is zero Clintons newly appointed A-G will decide to investigate the new boss. No one wants to become the next Archibald Cox. (See Saturday Night Massacre.)

Watergate Redux

Speaking of Watergate, after Richard Nixon fired Cox, Congress began to toy with the notion of creating a special prosecutor who was not controlled by the executive branch which he or she was investigating. You know, conflict of interest and all that. Thus, the Independent Counsel Act was enacted. This is a nifty legal device which could be employed to investigate Clinton by circumventing DOJ.

Yes, the law has expired. But it could be reauthorized immediately by Congress since the full language of the statute still exists. It was resurrected once before, so it can be done again. Coincidentally, the most famous Independent Counsel, Kenneth Starr, composed a report that led to the impeachment of yes Bill Clinton. (See blue dress.)

Of course, the President must sign the bill into law. But would Obama now, or Clinton later, dare to veto legislation meant to curb the abuses of power? How could that be justified? Think of the political backlash.

Much can be learned from Nixons demise. He aided and abetted crimes, lied and obstructed justice. In the end, it caught up with him and he resigned in disgrace. The only American president to do so.

At the time, a young Hillary Rodham was serving as a junior member of the House Judiciary Committees impeachment inquiry staff which was investigating Nixon and Watergate. Given all that has happened and all she has done, one wonders if she learned anything from that experience.

She might have learned how power corrupts. And yet, here we are.

She might also have learned that scandals tend to disable presidents. Since it is likely that Clinton has been thinking (or dreaming) of becoming president for a very long time, why would she engage in such risky and aberrant behavior? It is truly confounding.

Hillary Clinton may well end up assuming the presidency. But winning an election is different than the hard business of governing. Thats what Nixon learned after his landslide victory over Sen. George McGovern in 1972.

Nixon viewed his re-election as an overwhelming mandate. Yet, the scandal of Watergate soon engulfed him. It so consumed his presidency and the publics perception of him, that a weakened Nixon lost the ability to work with Congress. Very little legislation was accomplished for the benefit of the American people.

Nixon squandered the publics trust and good willby his own inexplicable actions. Maybe it was the intoxicating influence of high office. Or maybe it was simply his own inner demons.

But Americans have reason to worry that a President Hillary Clinton could suffer a similar and tragic fate.
Donald Trump is again gaining on Hillary Clinton. Is it because of ObamaCare? Is it because of WikiLeaks? Or could it be because frustrated voters demand change, and that Clinton is the poster child for the status quo? Trump is not the perfect messenger, to be sure, but he is embracing a perfect message: its time to shake up the establishment, or, as he says, to drain the swamp. It is time for a new Contract with the American Voter, and he is offering just that.

As he often does, Trump stomped on his own headlines when he presented his Contract in Gettysburg last week. He included an off-script tirade against the women who have accused him of sexual improprieties.

Predictably, the mainstream media focused on Trumps threats to sue his female accusers instead of the content of his speech, which was a shame. Nonetheless, as he has continued to campaign on some of the promises contained in that program, voters are paying attention. Simply put, he is saying what the majority of Americans wants to hear, and Hillary is not. She sounds out of touch with the country, because she is.

While Hillary pushes to ban the sale of assault weapons, for instance, support for such a measure has sunk to an all-time low. In a recent Gallup survey, only 36 percent of the respondents said they approved of making such weapons illegal, while 61 percent did not approve. While Hillary demonizes our police as biased and calls for more federal oversight, approval of our cops has soared to its highest level in 50 years, with 76 percent of the country saying they have great deal of respect for the police.

Voters understand how incestuous our capital is  how exiled pols feed off the bounteous flow from corporate lobbyists as they await their next at-bats. It is an insidious ecosystem that benefits only the participants, skews policy and can only be overturned by an outsider.

By contrast, whether it is calling for term limits on members of Congress, or freezing the size of the federal workforce, Trump is laying out ideas that voters applaud.

He proposes a requirement that for every new federal regulation, two existing regulations should be eliminated. For anyone who has tried to start up a new business, struggling through the often conflicting web of rules and requirements mandated by Washington bureaucrats is often the hardest part of the job. Theres a reason why for the first time in 35 years, business deaths outnumber births. Obama himself called for clearing the thicket of federal regulations -- even as he crushed one industry after another under a veritable tsunami of new rules.

Trump is calling for a 5-year ban on government officials becoming lobbyists, a lifetime ban on White House workers lobbying on behalf of a foreign government and a complete ban on foreign lobbyists raising money for candidates in American elections.

Voters understand how incestuous our capital is  how exiled pols feed off the bounteous flow from corporate lobbyists as they await their next at-bats. It is an insidious ecosystem that benefits only the participants, skews policy and can only be overturned by an outsider.

By highlighting corruption issues, Trump reminds voters that Hillary is entangled in endless controversies, almost all of which have to do with the questionable means by which the Clintons have personally amassed hundreds of millions of dollars.

Americans will not expect Hillary to drain the swamp; she feeds off the swamp.

Trump also promised to protect American workers, by renegotiating our trade deals, by holding China and other trading partners to account, by encouraging domestic energy production and by redirecting taxpayer money from overseas climate control ventures into domestic infrastructure projects.

He vowed to undo the unconstitutional executive actions taken by President Obama, suspend immigration from terror-prone regions and replace Justice Scalia on the Supreme Court.

He also promised to launch tax reform aimed at growing the economy, to employ private-public partnerships in rebuilding our infrastructure, send education dollars and policy-making back to communities, where they belong, and repeal and replace ObamaCare. The list of common-sense proposals goes on to include securing our borders and tamping down crime.

Trumps Contract was a gift to the millions of Americans alarmed that the Obama White House is dishonest and corrupt and that the Clinton White House will be even worse.

It was a gift to those worried that our economy is incapable of providing opportunity, and that, thanks to failing schools and crumbling infrastructure, our country is becoming uncompetitive.

Trumps message is a clarion call for those worried that liberal nostrums will allow crime to again threaten our neighborhoods.

People sense that nothing can be fixed until everything is fixed, that incrementalism is not enough.

There are few days left before the election. It looks close, though Hillary still has the advantage.

The real question before voters is whether they will be bold enough to elect a candidate who wants to change the trajectory of the country, to push back against the failed policies that have crushed our entrepreneurs and degraded our schools, to clean out the corrupt stables of Washington and to give power back to the people.

Yes, Trump is a populist  a term used derisively by the liberal elites. That means a member or adherent of a political party seeking to represent the interests of ordinary people. Isnt that what we want?
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump sounded several familiar refrains Thursday, claiming that the media and polls were biased against him while raising questions about opponent Hillary Clinton's health.

"I think 93 percent of the stories [the media] write are negative," Trump told Fox News' Bill O'Reilly on 'The O'Reilly Factor.' "Even if its a positive story, theyll always find a way to make it negative."

Trump appeared to be citing a recent study by the Media Research Center, which found that 91 percent of the network news coverage of Trump was devoted to negative stories about the real estate mogul.

"You know Im not quite used to it, because I used to get great publicity," Trump admitted. "Now, no matter what you do it doesnt make any difference."

Trump also claimed that NBC had committed an "illegal act" by recording his now-infamous 2005 conversation about women with "Access Hollywood" host Billy Bush. The tape caused a firestorm when it was made public by The Washington Post earlier this month.

"The microphone was not supposed to be on, not that I make that as an excuse for myself," Trump told O'Reilly. "[But] that was a private dressing room - yeah that was certainly illegal, no question about it."

Under California law, it is a crime to record private conversations without the consent of all parties -- as long as the participants have a reasonable expectation that no one is listening.



The GOP nominee did not say whether he would take action against the network, saying only "You'll see. You'll see."

The billionaire also described Hillary Clinton as "low-energy" while questioning her physical well-being.

"I saw her after the second debate and she could barely make it to the car," Trump said. "This is not what we want. This is not what we want to negotiate with China, to beat ISIS, to work against Putin.

"Look, theres something going on and I dont know whats happening," he added. "She goes away for 3, 4, 5 days and she doesnt leave the house and then she comes back."
FBI Director James Comey told his bureau that he broke with custom in alerting lawmakers that the investigation into Hillary Clintons private email server was being reopened because of its political sensitivity.

In an internal memo obtained by Fox News, the beleaguered director noted that the FBI typically would not communicate with the public when reopening a case, according to a Department of Justice source. But Comey said he had to in this case because Clinton is seeking the White House in an election on Nov. 8.

Of course we dont ordinarily tell Congress about ongoing investigations, but here I feel an obligation to do so given that I testified repeatedly in recent months that our investigation was completed, Comey wrote. "I also think it would be misleading to the American people were we not to supplement the record.

At the same time, however, given that we do not know the significance of this newly discovered collection of emails, I dont want to create a misleading impression, Comeys letter continued. "In trying to strike that balance, in a brief letter, and in the middle of an election season, there is significant risk of being misunderstood, but I wanted you to hear directy from me about it."

The bombshell revelation that newly discovered emails had prompted a new look into whether Clinton or those around her had broken the law my mishandling sensitive information rocked the race for the White House Friday.

Comey informed key Republican and Democrat lawmakers that new emails had surfaced that were relevant to the investigation, and warranted a new look.

Comey announced in July that the FBI had wrapped up a year-long investigation into Clintons use of a private email server for official business and concluded that while she was extremely careless, he could not recommend that the Justice Department seek an indictment. The decision was blasted by Republicans, and FoxNews.com reported earlier this month that career DOJ and FBI workers were furious.

Word of the server, at Clintons home in Chappaqua, N.Y., first broke in early 2015. Clinton had used the private email server to conduct government business while serving from 2009-2013, but insisted that she handed over all work-related emails to the State Department.

The FBI investigation determined that thousands of messages that would later be marked classified by the State Department retroactively were on the server. Federal law makes it a crime for a government employee to possess classified information in an unsecure manner, and the relevant statute does not require a finding of intent.
The Hillary Clinton campaign came under fire from Erica Garner on Thursday, the daughter of Eric Garner who was killed by a police officer in New York City, after the latest batch of emails released by WikiLeaks revealed how the Democratic presidential nominee talked about her fathers death.

In a series of tweets, Garner expressed anger at the information that poured out from the email release.

Im troubled by the revelation that you and this campaign actually discussed using Eric Garner  Why would you want to use my dad? she said. These people will co opt anything to push their agenda. Police violence is not the same as gun violence.

WIKILEAKS: CLINTON VP LIST DIVIDED INTO RACE, GENDER 'FOOD GROUPS'

I'm vey (sic) interested to know exactly what @CoreyCiorciari meant when he said I know we have an Erica Garner problem in the #PodestaEmails19, she added.

Garner also tweeted out links to hacked emails from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta that show staffers trying to figure out how to word an editorial on gun violence that would later run in the New York Daily News.

I know we have Erica Garner issues but we don't want to mention Eric at all? I can see her coming after us for leaving him out of the piece, Clinton press secretary Nick Merrill wrote in an email.

Another aide Maya Harris chimed in saying, Eric Garner not included because not killed by gun violence.

Garner responded to that quip, saying she was glad that the Clinton team had Harris to explain why they wouldnt use her father in the gun violence piece.

Eric Garner died in July 2014 after he resisted arrest for allegedly selling cigarettes illegally in Staten Island. Officer Daniel Pantaleo was seen on video taking Garner down with a chokehold. Garner died minutes later.

Click for more from The New York Daily News.
John Podesta, the chairman of Hillary Clintons campaign, could barely contain himself when a Clinton aide emailed him a picture of a shirtless Bernie Sanders lounging at an exclusive resort on Martas Vineyard.

Can we tweet? Podesta wrote in a 2015 email, according to a recent Wikileaks dump. Clinton staffers shared the email, and snarky remarks.

Omg, Brian Fallon, Cintons press secretary, wrote. I think we shd (sic) give to NY Post.

Just days after the campaign caught wind of the picture of Sanders in the shade during a Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee retreat at Marthas Vineyard, gossip maven Perez Hilton posted the picture on Facebook.

Not known for his political accumen, Hilton stumbled on the perfect caption: I wonder what @MikeBloomberg would think about this??? @BernieSanders lounges at elite Marthas Vineyard pool, summer 2015, after helping raise money from Wall Street lobbyists.

It was not clear if Team Clinton sought to publicize the photo to show Sanders, a champion of the working class, at an exclusive locale or if the goal was to circulate an unflattering picture of a septuagenarian in a swimsuit.

In an MSNBC report titled, Bernie Sanders a regular at high-dollar donor retreats, it was pointed out that Sanders was once even spotted chatting sociably for close to an hour with a financial services lobbyist who was in a hot tub while the senator sat nearby.

Through much of the primary, Clinton sought to distance herself from Wall Street. In some of their most heated debates, Sanders appeared to land some punches that tied her to banks.

I stood up against the behaviors of the banks when I was a senator, Clinton said during an April debate. I called them out on their mortgage behavior.

Oh my goodness, they must have been really crushed by this, Sanders said.

A spokesman for Sanders did not immediately respond to an email from FoxNews.com about the picture. But since losing the nomination fight, Sanders has embraced the Clinton campaign and said I am determined to implement the agenda of the Democratic Party platform which was agreed upon by her campaign.

Sanders supporters were not always so forgiving. One commenter replied to the picture on Hiltons Instagram account, Hillary put you up to that onelol nice try! Ps Im glad Hillary can love the gay community for 3 years and thats enough for you (sic) turn your back on someone who has been fighting for equality for decades.

Kenneth Corcoran, 61, a machinist in New Hampshire, said this kind of campaigning is what turns him off from national politics. The former Sanders supporter said he is on top of the issues and has followed the WikiLeaks dump and has been unsatisfied with her explanations.

If Im in a particularly foul mood on [election] day, I may vote Trump, he said. Just to stick a pen in the Clintons.
Did the Clinton Foundation, for all its good works, serve as a giant slush fund?

That question has surged to the forefront of the campaign in the wake of another Wikileaks dump, and one of the biggest accusers turns out to be Chelsea Clinton.

The Chelsea criticism is a bombshell, one that exploded with enough force that it propelled the lead story in both the New York Times and Wall Street Journal and an above-the-fold piece in the Washington Post.

This is stolen material, as Hillary Clintons campaign regularly reminds us, but it echoes what the foundations harshest critics have long argued: that there was an amorphous line at best between fundraising for charitable projects and lucrative income for Bill Clinton and those around him.

Now we have the former presidents daughter, whose name is on the foundation, accusing his aides of hustling business to win clients at foundation events. We have Chelsea insisting that these aides were taking significant sums of money from my parents personally.

And we have longtime Hillary loyalist Huma Abedin concerned about the former secretary of State promising to attend a foundation event in Morocco at the request of its king, who had just promised a $12-million donation to the foundation. She created this mess and she knows it, Abedin wrote.

As the Times puts it, In the years before Hillary Clinton announced she would run again for president, her top aides expressed profound concerns in internal emails about how foreign donations to the Clinton Foundation and Bill Clintons own moneymaking ventures would affect Mrs. Clintons political future.

Most voters arent going to drill down into the details. But all this plays into perhaps the most damaging narrative against her, that she and her husband skirt ethical rules, are not trustworthy, are cashing in on public service and are too close to big donors and corporations that help support their lifestyle.

As with the earlier dump in which top advisers challenged Hillarys political instincts and refusal to apologize for the email scandal, these messages pack a punch because they are from people who are within the couples orbit.

The same goes for a memo about Bill Clinton Inc. from Doug Band, a top aide and then a key player at the Clinton Foundation. He said part of his job was securing in-kind services for the President and his family  for personal travel, hospitality, vacation and the like.

As the Post puts it: Band also detailed a circle of enrichment in which he raised money for the Clinton Foundation from top-tier corporations such as Dow Chemical and Coca-Cola that were clients of his firm, Teneo, while pressing many of those same donors to provide personal income to the former president.

Band wrote, for instance, that Teneos partners had raised more than $8 million for the foundation and $3 million in speaking fees for Bill Clintonand that hed lined up deals that could pay the former president $66 million over the next nine years.

(Band, in an earlier leaked email, dismissed Chelsea as a spoiled brat kid, but it seems she was trying to bring some accountability to the operation.)

In one example cited by the Journal, businessman Declan Kelly, a friend of Bill, introduced him to a top UBS Group executive, Bob McCann. Mr. Kelly subsequently asked Mr. Mccann to support the foundation[and] also encouraged Mr. Mccann to invite President Clinton to give several paid speeches, which he has done. The take from those speeches: $1.5 million.

At some point, you have to ask: How many millions did the Clintons need to lead a luxurious lifestyle? And why risk how bad this would look as Hillary was gearing up to run for her husbands old job?

Of course, she is running against Donald Trump, who flaunts a gold-plated existence and has run into legal problems with his own foundation. But he has an actual business, and much of the Clintons income was tied to the family charity.

This is not going to swing the election. But with Trump having gone several days without saying something controversial, the news environment, however briefly, has turned against Clinton in this final stretch.
Hillary Clintons campaign chair John Podesta made multiple attempts to get a Pulitzer Prize-winning former New York Times correspondent to write an op-ed calling for the extradition and jailing of the American dentist responsible for killing Cecil the Lion, emails released this week show.

After an initial August 2015 email from Podesta to Barry Bearaks New York Times email address, first reported by the Washington Free Beacon, generated a bounceback message indicating Bearak no longer used the papers email system, Podesta followed up with another Times writer four minutes later. Can you pass on to Barry, he asked Celia Dugger. He must not be using the NYT email anymore.

Podesta included the message he wanted passed along. As the only person anyone knows who has spent time in a Zimbabwe jail, you should pen an oped calling for his killers extradition, he wrote to Bearak. What an asshole. Missed you at the mini-reunion.

Podesta was alluding to the time Bearak was thrown in prison by notorious Zimbabwe leader Robert Mugabe while covering the countrys 2008 elections and Mugabes backlash against opposition forces.

Click for more from The Washington Free Beacon.
Republican vice presidential candidate Mike Pences scary landing Thursday night is another example in a laundry list of problems that have taken place at LaGuardia Airport in New York City.

The aircraft, a Boeing 737, tore up two tracks of concrete on the runway before coming to rest on a patch of grass. The Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement, "A crushable concrete runway safety technology called an Engineered Material Arresting System stopped the plane."

Pences incident isnt the first problem to have taken place at the Queens airport. On March 5, 2015, Delta Air Lines Flight 1086 skidded off Runway 13 at the airport, landing on a berm on the edge of the bay. About two dozen people were injured in that incident on the frigid day.

Two years earlier, landing gear on a Southwest Airlines plane collapsed on landing. The plane veered onto the grass in that incident, which injured 16 people.

The infamous Miracle on the Hudson in January 2009 happened after the U.S. Airways plane took off from LaGuardia. The jet made a water landing in the Hudson River after it had suffered dual engine loss. A flock of geese were sucked into the jets engines, which was determined to be the cause of the accident.

Two of the more tragic incidents in recent memory came within three years of each other.

In March 1992, USAir Flight 405 crashed into Flushing Bay just after taking off the LaGuardia. The accident killed 27 people. Icy wings and the failed process to de-ice planes was what caused the crash.

In September 1989, USAir Flight 5050 crashed while taking off, killing two passengers and injury 15 others. The plane had ran off the end of the runway and dove into Bowery Bay.

Thursdays incident didnt cause any injuries. There were roughly 40 passengers and crew on board. They were all evacuated through the back of the aircraft as a large amount of emergency personnel responded to the scene.

Click for more from PIX11.
Republicans renewed calls Friday for Director of National Intelligence James Clapper to suspend classified briefings for Hillary Clinton in the wake of the FBI reopening its investigation into her use of a private email server when she served as secretary of state.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., blasted Clinton, saying she betrayed the publics trust by carelessly mishandling highly classified information.

Ryan then called on Clapper to suspend briefings until this matter is fully resolved.

California Rep. Devin Nunes, the Chairman of the House Intelligence Select Committee, added that it is impossible to see how Director of National Intelligence James Clapper can believe Clinton or any of her implicated staffers should ever again be provided access to classified information."

Other lawmakers including Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., and Rep. Mike Pompeo, R-Kansas., also put pressure on Clapper.

We cant run the risk of more intelligence that puts Americans at risk of being exposed, Pompeo said.

Ryan wrote to Clapper on July 6 calling for the director to deny briefings to Clinton after FBI Director James Comey said Clinton had been extremely careless in her handling of sensitive information.

Clapper later said he would not withhold briefings from any nominated presidential candidate.

Nominees for president and vice president receive these classified briefings by virtue of their status as candidates, and do not require separate security clearances before the briefings, Clapper wrote.
Donald Trump and fellow Republicans are reviving long-simmering allegations of murky deals and pay-to-play surrounding the Clintons, in the wake of new revelations from WikiLeaks-published emails about how the family, their foundation and the Hillary Clinton State Department operated alongside each other.

The more emails WikiLeaks releases, the more the lines between the Clinton Foundation, the Secretary of States office, and the Clintons personal finances are blurred, the GOP presidential nominee said in a statement Thursday.

Emails unearthed from Clinton Campaign Chairman John Podestas hacked account reveal numerous conflict-of-interest concerns raised by Clinton Foundation staffers and subsequent efforts to separate the entangled companies and roles that made Bill and Hillary Clinton wealthy. The messages also dredge up the several companies that donated to the Foundation  and at the same time had business before the State Department during Hillary Clintons tenure as secretary of state.

If the Clintons were willing to play this fast and loose with their enterprise when they werent in the White House, just imagine what they will do if they are given the chance to control the Oval Office, Trump said.

BILL CLINTON INC.: EMAIL DETAILS HOW AIDES HELPED MAKE EX-PRESIDENT RICH

During a rally in Springfield, Ohio, on Thursday, Trump alluded to a 12-page memo written by Bill Clinton confidant Doug Band and revealed on Wednesday by WikiLeaks. The document spelled out in detail how Band and Clinton aide Justin Cooper had used their connections at global strategies company Teneo to enrich Clinton, while also raising funds for the Clinton Foundation. The memo claimed that Band and Cooper were responsible for earning Clinton at least $50 million in fees for speeches and other business ventures.

Mr. Band called the arrangement unorthodox. The rest of us call it outright corruption, Trump said at the Springfield rally.

Teneo, which was co-founded by Band, issued a statement to FoxNews.com on Wednesday saying the company never received any financial benefit or benefit of any kind from Bands work on behalf of the Clintons.

As the memo demonstrates, Teneo worked to encourage clients, where appropriate, to support the Clinton Foundation because of the good work that it does around the world, the statement said.

Teneo was founded in June 2011, while Band and Cooper were still employed by the Foundation. Bill Clinton soon also signed on as an adviser for Teneo.

But after Chelsea Clinton was brought on as a board member in November and Podesta as a special adviser at the same time, staffers began complaining about potential conflicts of interest and other misdeeds within the company, emails show. Band had his own list of allegations, implicating Bill Clinton in unnamed conflicts of interest, too. The Foundation also was undergoing an internal audit.

The Hillary Clinton campaign was seemingly well-aware of the ethical concerns surrounding the organization as it prepared to launch in early 2015. One unearthed email from now-Campaign Manager Robby Mook to key Clinton advisers cited Foundation vulnerability points.

This included Money from foreign governments; Overseas events with foreign leaders or government officials; and Especially lavish/high-end hotels for events.

Eventually, Band and Cooper left the Foundation but remained advisers to Clinton. Clinton resigned from his role at Teneo but became a client.

Trump spokesman Jason Miller on Thursday called for the Clintons to release all the internal documents related to the Clinton Foundations in-depth investigation into whether they were violating IRS charity rules because of the money-making efforts of the Clintons.

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus also ripped the Clintons over the Bill Clinton Inc. memo that detailed how aides helped secure lucrative speaking gigs and posts for the former president.

This memo is the smoking gun for how the Clintons used their foundation to create a massive for-profit paid speaking and consulting business to enrich themselves, Priebus said in a statement. All of their talk about charitable work masks the fact they were eager to get their own cut of the action. That the Clintons raked in millions of dollars while these same donors had business before Hillary Clintons State Department points to a rampant pay-to-play culture that would be on full display should Hillary Clinton be elected president."

The Clinton campaign has rejected any pay-to-play claims and has blasted WikiLeaks daily postings as the work of the Russian government.

"We are still not confirming the authenticity of individual emails hacked by the Russian government to influence the election by weaponizing WikiLeaks, campaign spokesman Glen Caplin said in a statement.

Fox News also reported Thursday that while Podesta was serving with Clintons State Department, his sister-in-law Heather Podesta was hired by defense contractor Raytheon as a lobbyist in 2012. In that role, she lobbied the State Department, records show, while Raytheon was the prime contractor in numerous foreign military sales worth billions that year.

Todays report that a large government contractor hired the sister-in-law of Clinton campaign Chair John Podesta while he was at the State Department in order to win a massive arms contract shows the depths of the corrupt Clinton machine while she was at State, Trump spokesman Miller said in a statement.

Josh Schwerin, a spokesman for the Clinton campaign, told Fox News that the nominee never took action as secretary of state because of any donations and any suggestion to the contrary is false.

In a statement, Raytheon said its lobbying practices and policies are fully disclosed and comply with all federal, state and local laws. Heather Podesta sent Fox News a one-sentence email saying: I never lobbied the Secretary or John Podesta on this matter.

FoxNews.coms Cody Derespina and Fox News James Rosen and Mike Emanuel contributed to this report.
A Donald Trump voter in Texas was arrested Monday for wearing a T-shirt to the polls that mocked Hillary Clintons infamous comment in which she said half of Trump supporters were a basket of deplorables.

Brett Mauthe, 55, was arrested in Bulverde, Texas after wearing a pro-Trump hat, and a T-shirt saying basket of deplorables, according to KSAT 12.

Mauthe told the outlet that while he removed the hat at the request of officials, he refused to turn his T-shirt inside out and said he was not aware that wearing it was a violation of the election code. When he refused to remove the shirt, he was arrested.

Other voters told KSAT they didnt realize the rules, which prohibit "electioneering" by the voting booths, applied to voters.

I dont feel like you should be preaching to anybody, but I do feel like you should be able to wear a shirt if you want and if it has the candidate, local resident Georgina Pereida said.

Cynthia Jaqua, the Comal County elections coordinator, told MySanAntonio.com that it is almost unheard of for anyone to be arrested on an electioneering charge, but noted that Mauthes behavior is in violation of the code.

Electioneering is prohibited within a 100-foot marker. You cannot express views for or against a candidate or political party by wearing buttons, T-shirts, hats, whatever else or carrying signs, she said.

Mauthe was released on a $500 bond and is charged with a misdemeanor which carries a possible fine of $500.
A labor union boss has resigned after running a controversial political attack ad that targeted a doctor whose family was killed in a horrific 2007 Connecticut home invasion.

Fox 61 reports that Paul Filson's resignation Thursday as executive director of the 55,000-member SEIU Connecticut State Council came in the face of widespread criticism of the ad in which Dr. William Petit and GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump are accused of an attack on women and families.

Filson ran a political action committee that produced the online ad with money from the SEIU and other Connecticut labor unions, the station reported.

Petit was the only survivor in the 2007 Cheshire, Conn., home invasion in which his wife and two daughters were killed. The convicted killers were sentenced to death but are now serving life sentences in prison after the state abolished the death penalty.

The doctor is a Republican candidate for the Connecticut state legislature and is locked in a tight race against 11-term incumbent Democrat Rep. Betty Boukus.

The SEIU in a statement announcing Filsons resignation apologized to Petit and said the ad should have never run in his district under any circumstances," the station reported.

Petit denounced the ad at a press conference Wednesday. Im appalled that anyone would stoop this low, he said, according to the station.

Fox 61 reported that Boukus joined him at the press conference. She also denounced the ad and said she had nothing to do with it.

The Hartford Courant reported that at first Filson rejected criticism the ad was underhanded.

He later expressed remorse, according to the paper.

We can only imagine the pain that Petit has gone through, and would never target his loss for our political agenda, he said, according to the Courant.

Click for more from Fox 61.
For those who remember last year's dress illusion, there's now a new illusion online involving shiny legs. The dress illusion found viewers dividing into it's-blue-and-black and it's-white-and-gold teams, and then arguing about the colors of a dress photo for days. This new shiny legs optical illusion won't have the same, er, legs, because the photographer has already spilled the beans, or rather the paint, according to Insider.

The truth behind the shiny-legs photo that had the internet guessing https://t.co/X7t0UmVik2 pic.twitter.com/291PpbKMsc  Digital Trends (@DigitalTrends) October 27, 2016

Hunter Culverhouse posted a photo of legs on Instagram. Right off some of her followers were convinced the legs were oiled up, covered with gloss, or had some other substance to make them shiny. Others never saw shininess but instead knew immediately what was really going on.

IS THIS DRESS WHITE AND GOLD OR BLACK AND BLUE? THE EXPERTS HAVE AN ANSWER

According to Insider, the shiny-looking-legs shot wasn't intentional but was meant to show what they'd done after working on a project for art class.

15 OF THE BEST IPHONE 7 CASES AND COVERS FOR YOUR SHINY NEW PHONE

Culverhouse emailed Insider, "I had some white paint left on my brush and put random lines on my legs, [and it] turned out to be a completely confusing picture for everyone on the internet. The first time I posted it, it didn't go completely crazy," Culverhouse wrote in an email. "But then I reposted it again and other big accounts started to post it and share it. Then it took to Twitter and YouTubers started tweeting about it as well."

SAMSUNG LAYS AN INTEL-POWERED GOLDEN EGG WITH THE SHINY GALAXY TABPRO S 2-IN-1

So it turns out the legs aren't shiny at all, but streaked with white paint. After the "shiny legs" photo went viral it gained attention outside Instagram and took off on Twitter.

Optical illusions attract attention, most often just for fun. Even once we figure out what's really in the image our minds seem to pause while we try to "click" the image back and forth to see it both ways. And it's not just an internet trick -- earlier this year painted optical illusion road blocks were used to slow traffic near school zones in India.
The worlds of comic books and cruising are colliding next year.

Disney Cruise Line says it will be bringing some super guests aboard in 2017, with its first ever "Marvel Day at Sea" featuring superheroes and super villains of the Marvel Universe.

The Marvel superhero event will be part of the itineraries for seven voyages on the Disney Magic departing from New York City in late 2017, and will feature characters from Marvel comics, films and animated series.

For one day on each of the seven sailings of the Disney Magic, passengers will be transported to a world of all things Marvel, including interactions with iconic superheroes and villains, a themed deck party, activities for the younger set, special merchandise and unique food and beverage offerings.

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The day will also feature screenings of movies from Marvel and from the Disney XD channel, including Avengers Assemble, Ultimate Spider-Man and Guardians of the Galaxy.

Characters scheduled to appear include Spider-Man, Captain America, Thor and many others. The activities will also feature fireworks and trivia games, as well as Marvel-themed games, activities and arts and crafts.

The Marvel Day at Sea on the Disney Magic includes Bahamian-bound seven- and eight-night cruises departing from New York on Oct. 6, 14, 28; Nov. 4, 11 and 18, 2017. The themed day will also be included on the Oct. 21, 2017 seven-night Canadian Coast cruise.
Planning and booking your trip to Cuba just got a little bit easier.

On Thursday, TripAdvisor announced it received a license from the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) that will allow the site to provide and sell travel-related services to Cuba for both U.S. and international users.

Travelers can now compare prices of hotels in major Cuban cities including Havana, Varadero and Santiago de Cuba. TripAdvisor can also display advertising to promote Cuban travel-related activities and book flights, cultural tours, restaurants attractions and short-term rentals.

RELATED: Cuba 101 - What you need to know before you go

For U.S. travelers, however, the site can only sell travel arrangements for trips that qualify under one of several government-approved categories, including family visits, journalistic activity and professional research, among others.

A representative for the company confirmed to FoxNews.com that while the comparison feature is available, the site expects its direct booking services will be available within the next couple of months.

"Cuba continues to be one of the only countries in the world where the United States imposes significant travel restrictions. We applaud President Obamas policies to ease these restrictions and build relations with our island neighbor just 90 miles south of Florida," TripAdvisor president and CEO Stephen Kaufer said in a statement Thursday.

RELATED: Which US airlines fly to Cuba?

Seth Kalvert, senior vice president, general counsel and secretary, TripAdvisor, thanked congress and President Obama for giving TripAdvisor the greenlight to Cuba-- but requested fewer restrictions in the future.

Said Kalvert, We urge Congress to make these relationships permanent by passing legislation that gives U.S. citizens the unrestricted freedom to travel to Cuba."
Authorities say three teens killed a young couple inside their Pennsylvania home and robbed them of a safe.

Twenty-six-year-old Timothy Gardner and 20-year-old Jacqueline Brink were found slain in their Cherryhill Township home early Thursday.

State police have charged 18-year-old Nathaniel Price, of Indiana, Pennsylvania, and 19-year-old Justin Stevenson and 17-year-old Isaiah Scott, both of Clymer, with criminal homicide and robbery.

All three remained jailed without bond. Scott's attorney declined comment Friday. Online court records don't list attorneys for Price or Stevenson.

Indiana County District Attorney Patrick Dougherty says the investigation is ongoing and the cause of the victims' deaths wasn't immediately released.

Scott is charged as an adult and faces a preliminary hearing along with the others Nov. 8.

___

This story has been corrected to show Scott is 17, not 18.
A bear mauled a man out with his dogs before dawn Thursday on a runway of the small airport in the southern Alaska town of Seward, officials said.

The unidentified man was walking or jogging with his dogs on the airport's main runway when he was mauled by the brown bear with two cubs accompanying her, said state transportation department spokeswoman Shannon McCarthy. He suffered injuries described as non-life threatening.

The bear may have attacked the man to protect the cubs, McCarthy said. The airport has signs warning that trespassing is prohibited but is not completely fenced in.

The 55-year-old man used his cellphone to report the attack at 6:46 a.m. and was taken to a hospital for treatment, said Seward Police Chief Tom Clemons.

At one point, airport personnel said, the bear returned to where the injured man was but the bear did not attack again and wandered off, McCarthy said.

Seward is a fishing and tourism city of more than 2,700 on the Kenai Peninsula about 75 miles southeast of Anchorage.

The airport lies between mountains and the head of Resurrection Bay in area where sightings of black and brown bears are frequent, Clemons said.

"They come in my front yard," he said.

The airport was closed after the mauling and reopened about an hour later. It does not have a staffed control tower, and pilots are required to check that runways are clear.

Clemons said officers would search for the bear but have not decided whether it should be killed if found.
The Bundy brothers remained in jail Friday following a dramatic acquittal a day earlier in a courtroom that erupted into chaos after an attorney yelled at a judge for their release, resulting in him being subdued with a stun gun and arrested.

A jury delivered an extraordinary blow to the government Thursday in a long-running battle over the use of public lands when it acquitted all seven defendants involved in the armed occupation of a national wildlife refuge in rural southeastern Oregon.

After the verdicts were read, an attorney for group leader Ammon Bundy demanded his client be immediately released and repeatedly yelled at the judge. U.S. marshals tackled attorney Marcus Mumford to the ground, used a stun gun on him several times and arrested him.

U.S. District Judge Anna Brown said she could not release Bundy because he still faces charges in Nevada stemming from an armed standoff at his father Cliven Bundy's ranch two years ago.

SUSPECT ACQUITTED OF MURDER AFTER TINDER DATE PLUMMETED OFF BALCONY

The Portland jury acquitted Bundy, his brother Ryan Bundy and five others of conspiring to impede federal workers from their jobs at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, 300 miles southeast of Portland. The jury could not reach a verdict on a single count of theft for Ryan Bundy.

Even attorneys for the defendants were surprised by the acquittals.

"It's stunning. It's a stunning victory for the defense," said Robert Salisbury, attorney for defendant Jeff Banta. "I'm speechless."

The U.S Attorney in Oregon, Billy J. Williams, issued a statement defending the decision to bring charges against the seven defendants: "We strongly believe that this case needed to be brought before a Court, publicly tried, and decided by a jury."

The Oregon case is a continuation of the tense standoff with federal officials at Cliven Bundy's ranch in 2014. Cliven, Ammon and Ryan Bundy are among those who are to go on trial in Nevada early next year for that standoff.

While the charges in Oregon accused defendants of preventing federal workers from getting to their workplace, the case in Nevada revolves around allegations of a more direct threat: An armed standoff involving dozens of Bundy backers pointing weapons, including assault-style rifles, at federal Bureau of Land Management agents and contract cowboys rounding up cattle near the Bundy ranch outside Bunkerville.

LANDLORD ACQUITTED OF MANSLAUGHTER IN FIRE THAT KILLED 6

Daniel Hill, attorney for Ammon Bundy in the Nevada case, said he believed the acquittal in Oregon bodes well for his client and the other defendants facing felony weapon, conspiracy and other charges.

"When the jury here hears the whole story, I expect the same result," Hill told The Associated Press in Las Vegas. Hill also said he'll seek his client's release from federal custody pending trial in Nevada.

U.S. Attorney Daniel Bogden in Nevada, however, said the acquittals in Portland should have no effect in the Las Vegas case. "The Oregon case and charges are separate and unrelated to the Nevada case and charges," Bogden said.

Ammon Bundy and his followers took over the Oregon bird sanctuary on Jan. 2. They objected to prison sentences handed down to Dwight and Steven Hammond, two local ranchers convicted of setting fires. They demanded the government free the father and son and relinquish control of public lands to local officials.

The Bundys and other key figures were arrested in a Jan. 26 traffic stop outside the refuge that ended with police fatally shooting Robert "LaVoy" Finicum, an occupation spokesman. Most occupiers left after his death, but four holdouts remained until Feb. 11, when they surrendered following a lengthy negotiation.

Federal prosecutors took two weeks to present their case, finishing with a display of more than 30 guns seized after the standoff. An FBI agent testified that 16,636 live rounds and nearly 1,700 spent casings were found.

During trial, Bundy testified that the plan was to take ownership of the refuge by occupying it for a period of time and then turn it over to local officials to use as they saw fit.

Bundy also testified that the occupiers carried guns because they would have been arrested immediately otherwise and to protect themselves against possible government attack.

The bird sanctuary takeover drew sympathizers from around the West.

It also drew a few protesters who were upset that the armed occupation was preventing others from using the land. They included Kieran Suckling, executive director of the Center for Biological Diversity, who called the acquittals disturbing.

"The Bundy clan and their followers peddle a dangerous brand of radicalism aimed at taking over lands owned by all of us. I worry this verdict only emboldens the kind of intimidation and right-wing violence that underpins their movement," Suckling said.

One of Ammon Bundy's attorneys, Morgan Philpot, had a different perspective after watching Mumford get tackled by marshals. "His liberty was just assaulted by the very government that was supposed to protect it, by the very government that just prosecuted his client  unjustly as the jury found."

There's another Oregon trial coming up over the wildlife refuge.

Authorities had charged 26 occupiers with conspiracy. Eleven pleaded guilty, and another had the charge dropped. Seven defendants chose not to be tried at this time. Their trial is scheduled to begin Feb. 14.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Six months into a deepening drought, the weather is killing crops, threatening cattle and sinking lakes to their lowest levels in years across much of the South.

The very worst conditions  what forecasters call "exceptional drought"  are in the mountains of northeast Alabama and northwest Georgia, a region known for its thick green forests, waterfalls and red clay soil.

"Here at my farm, April 15 was when the rain cut off," said David Bailey, who had to sell half his cattle, more than 100 animals, for lack of hay in Alabama's scorched northeast corner.

"We've come through some dry years in the '80s, but I never seen it this dry, this long," Bailey added. "There's a bunch of people in a lot of bad shape here."

The drought has spread from these mountains onto the Piedmont plateau, down to the plains and across 13 southern states, from Oklahoma and Texas to Florida and Virginia, putting about 33 million people in drought conditions, according to Thursday's U.S. Drought Monitor.

Wildfires raged Thursday near Birmingham, Alabama. Statewide, the blazes have charred more than 12,000 acres in the past 30 days.

"There are places getting ready to set records for most number of days in a row without rain. It's a once-in-100-year kind of thing for this time of year," said John Christy, Alabama's state climatologist.

The South has historically enjoyed abundant water, which has been fortunate, because much of its soil is poor at holding onto it. But the region's booming growth has strained this resource. A legal battle between Georgia and Florida over water from rivers and their watersheds goes before a federal court official Monday, and the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to review his recommendations.

The dry weather is only making things worse.

"We're 10 days away from a drought at any given time," Christy explained. "Unlike the Midwest and other places in the country, we are closer to a drought than almost any place else."

Parts of northern Georgia and Alabama have now seen their driest 60 days on record, Thursday's national drought report showed.

If the drought persists, authorities said it could lead to the kinds of water use restrictions that are common out West, but haven't been seen in parts of the South in nearly a decade.

In 2007, police in Atlanta's suburb of Alpharetta were given the power to criminally cite anyone watering their lawns. In Alabama that year, people were fined for watering on the wrong day and many homes became infested by thirsty ants and cockroaches.

In west Georgia this month, the Tallapoosa River dropped below the intake the Haralson County Water Authority uses to provide water to at least four small towns. Some major cities are spending big to prevent future water shortages: Atlanta has begun a $300 million project to store 2.4 billion gallons of water  a month's water supply  and pipe it under the city.

This summer was particularly hot as well as dry, with 90-degree temperatures day after day that evaporated what little moisture the soil had left, said Bill Murphey, Georgia's state climatologist.

This summer was the second-hottest on record in Atlanta, where seasonal rains still haven't arrived: During the past 30 days, just over two-tenths of an inch of rain has fallen in Atlanta, 94 percent below normal, and in Cartersville, about 45 miles northwest of Atlanta, the weather service has recorded no rain at all.

The South's usually temperate forests have turned into tinderboxes, worries Denise Croker, a chief ranger with the Georgia Forestry Commission in northwest Georgia.

In the arid western U.S., cigarettes tossed from cars have been known to start forest fires. In the South, higher humidity generally keeps that from happening, but not this year. Even a spark from a chain dragged from a truck could set the northwest Georgia woods on fire, she said.

"Our dirt is like talcum powder," she said.

Outdoor burning has been banned due to fire risk across parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, and burn permits aren't being issued in parts of Georgia.

"This is the worst drought that I've ever experienced and I've been farming for 45 years," said Phillip Thompson, 60, who spent Tuesday night trying to snuff out a smoldering, 150-acre brush fire near Scottsboro, Alabama, where he farms corn and soybeans. "It's just a bleak situation."

Some of the South's best known crops  cotton, peanuts and sweet potatoes  have largely escaped damage, because they're mostly produced outside the drought area, and in some cases got rain from Hurricane Matthew and other tropical weather, trade groups said.

Peanut yields will be down due to heat, drought or hurricanes, but that won't likely affect consumer prices, said Dan Koehler, who directs the Georgia Peanut Commission.

As for sweet potatoes, the drought has been both good and bad: Hard ground can damage skin and lead to rot in stored tubers, but they also start curing in the ground when it's really dry, which means "they're really sweet," said Sylvia Clark, secretary of the Mississippi Sweet Potato Association.
Authorities in the Atlanta suburbs say a good Samaritan was shot and robbed after he stopped to help two women who said they needed assistance.

Police in Gwinnett County say the women flagged him down just west of Lawrenceville on Thursday between noon and 1 p.m. and appeared to be in distress. Authorities say the man was lured behind a town home and confronted by three teen-aged boys, one of whom had a handgun and demanded that he empty his pockets. Police said Friday the 41-year-old victim was then shot three times.

Police say he's listed as stable at Gwinnett Medical Center and is expected to live.

Authorities are seeking the public's help in identifying the suspects.

Lawrenceville is about 30 miles northeast of Atlanta.
A former New Orleans police officer is set for a change-of-plea hearing on charges related to deadly shootings by police after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Attorneys had said in court filings that plea negotiations were underway with Gerard Dugue (DOOH'-gay), who had pleaded not guilty to obstruction of justice and other charges. His change-of-plea hearing is set for next Friday  three days before his scheduled trial.

Dugue is the last remaining defendant in connection with the shootings that happened on Sept. 4, 2005, days after levee failures caused catastrophic flooding in and around New Orleans.

Earlier this year, four former officers pleaded guilty in connection with the shootings that killed two unarmed civilians at New Orleans' Danziger Bridge. A fifth pleaded guilty in the cover-up.
Officials issue new rules to help students have their federal loans erased in situations where their schools had fraud and misconduct involved.

Federal education officials have been working to create a more detailed system for students to file claims since the Education Department received thousands of claims from former students of the now-defunct Corinthian Colleges chain, which closed or sold all of its campuses last year amid allegations of fraud.

New rules announced by the department on Friday will clarify that students are eligible to have loans erased if their college misrepresents the quality of its programs or the success of students; if the college breaks a "contractual promise" with its students; and if a state or federal court rules that the loan should be forgiven.

The previous rules were from 1995 containing little detail for when and how claims could be submitted by students, and how it should be resolved by the department.

"Today's regulations build on that progress by ensuring that students who are lied to and mistreated by their school get the relief they are owed, and that schools that harm students are held responsible for their behavior," Education Secretary John B. King Jr. said in a statement.

The rules would create an Education Department process that allows loan forgiveness for groups of students in situations of widespread misconduct. Colleges would also be financially on the hook for repaying loans instead of taxpayers, and schools would be banned from forcing students to sign documents saying they won't sue over misconduct.

"This complex and burdensome regulation will crush career education with financial requirements not imposed on others in higher education  including institutions that have lower graduation rates and higher default rates," Steve Gunderson said. Gunderson is president and CEO of Career Education Colleges and Universities, a for-profit college lobbying group.

Since the rules proposal, for-profit colleges have lobbied against them, saying they were an unfair regulation.

President Barack Obamas administration has crack-downed on for-profit colleges accused of misconduct. The Corinthian Colleges chain was under heavy pressure from the Education Department when it shut down last year. In that case, more than 15,000 student claims of misconduct have been approved, leading the government to clear $247 million in loans.



The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Over the decades, the stone house and grounds that served as Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's headquarters at Gettysburg sprouted a motel, restaurant and other modern structures that dismayed preservationists and Civil War buffs keen on historic authenticity.

Now, after a $6 million restoration that erased decades of development at the 4-acre site, the property looks much as it did in July 1863, when Lee suffered defeat in a bloody three-day battle that turned the tide of the war.

"If Robert E. Lee would ride up tomorrow, he would recognize his headquarters. And for over 100 years that wasn't the case," said James Lighthizer, president of Civil War Trust, the nonprofit that bought the house and grounds from private owners and completed the restoration.

On Friday, more than 600 people are expected at a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the site, which now includes a walking trail and interpretive signage. Plans call for the property to be turned over to the National Park Service.

The area around the circa-1830s house was the scene of heavy fighting on the battle's first day, and its strategic location atop Seminary Ridge made it an ideal spot for Lee's battlefield headquarters.

"He's dictating and writing a lot of orders, he's using that as a base from which to observe the enemy, and he is responding to crises and events as they occur," said Garry Adelman, Civil War Trust's director of history and education.

The longtime occupant, a widow named Mary Thompson, is believed to have remained in the home during the battle, and lived there until her death in 1873.

The home was left out of Gettysburg National Military Park, then gutted by fire in the late 1890s. By 1921, it had become General Lee's Headquarters Museum, a commercial venture that transformed the surrounding property.

"Without question, this was one of the most important unprotected historic buildings in America," Lighthizer said.

Civil War Trust acquired the property in January 2015 after a fundraising effort that included major gifts, grants and smaller donations from more than 11,000 people.

Workers removed dormers that were added to the home in the 1900s, replaced the roof, fixed the interior and demolished all modern buildings, including a Comfort Inn. The land was returned to its 1863 contours, and fencing installed to replicate what was there at the time. An apple orchard  another feature of the Civil War-era landscape  will be planted in the spring.

"It was by far the most complex restorative effort we've ever done, and nothing else is even close," Adelman said.

With nearly all work complete, Gettysburg National Military Park plans to expand its boundaries to include Lee's headquarters.

The park service will use the house for special programming and open it to the public several days a year, including around the battle's anniversary, similar to how it operates Union Gen. George Meade's headquarters.

"I think there were a lot of folks who are aficionados of Gettysburg who probably never expected to see Lee's headquarters in such a state of preservation," said Park Superintendent Ed Clark. "Civil War Trust really has worked miracles."

Lighthizer said it was a longtime imperative of the group.

"We're not the oldest democratic republic in the world by accident. We went through a lot of trials and tribulations, and this site marks one of the pivot points in how we remained a democracy, how we remained a unified nation," he said.

"And that story needs to be told."
Waves, wind and darkness hampered the ocean search off Hawaii for a Chinese man reported missing while attempting to set a sailing record, the U.S. Coast Guard pilot who was the mission's air commander said Thursday.

"It was pretty frustrating not to find him, not to hear him," Lt. Ben Powers said at Air Station Barbers Point in west Oahu, the morning after the Coast Guard called off its search for Guo Chuan. "The hardest thing we do is search for a person in the water because it's a huge ocean."

Guo, 50, was attempting to set a sailing record from San Francisco to Shanghai. The search was suspended after a U.S. Navy crew from the USS Makin Island went aboard Guo's 97-foot trimaran about 620 miles northwest of Oahu and found only his life jacket.

As one of the pilots of one of the HC-130 Hercules planes that participated in the search, Powers spent hours scanning the ocean for Guo through 4-to-6-foot waves. There was no moon, he said, so illumination was low even with night-vision goggles.

Rescuers radioed Guo every 15 to 30 minutes, Powers said. There was no response.

"When the person's in the water basically the only thing above the water is the person's head," Powers said. "So that's really what we're looking for  something the size of a human head from an aircraft from 300 to 700 feet."

Because Guo's boat was well-tracked, rescuers had a good idea where he fell into the water, Powers said.

Guo "was a professional mariner with a deep passion for sailing. Our thanks to our Navy partners who helped us search for this vessel in a timely manner so far from shore in an attempt to locate Mr. (Guo) Chuan. Our deepest condolences go out not only to his family and friends but also to his racing team and the sailing community," said Capt. Robert Hendrickson, who directed the Coast Guard's search.

Guo's sailboat, the Qingdao China, is adrift, and its main sail has been taken down, the Coast Guard said. The Coast Guard says it broadcast a warning to mariners to beware of the drifting boat.

Guo's racing team plans to recover the sailboat, the Coast Guard said.

Guo was the first Chinese person to sail around the world in 2013, according to his website, guochuanracing.com.

Guo left San Francisco on Oct. 18 to challenge the solo nonstop trans-Pacific world record. The current speed record for that journey is 21 days, and he was trying to sail from San Francisco to Shanghai within 20 days, the website says.

In Beijing, the Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that China's consulate general in Los Angeles had alerted the U.S. Coast Guard in Hawaii when it learned that Guo could not be reached. Spokesman Lu Kang said Chinese diplomats had helped in the coordination of the search and continued to monitor the situation.
A Massachusetts fisherman and former U.S. Army private has been honored by Poland for his role in returning cultural treasures stolen by the Nazis during World War II.

The Gloucester (GLAH'-stur) Times (http://bit.ly/2eEjtp8 ) reports Curtis Dagley was awarded a Bene Merito medal for helping save the 15th-century altarpiece of St. Mary's Church in Krakow.

The revered, hand-carved altarpiece tells the story of the role of Mary in helping her son, Jesus, make amends for the sins of the world. More than 200 figures adorn it  some 12 feet tall.

Dagley was also recognized for his imprisonment by Communist authorities in Poland. After he returned home, he worked as a fisherman in Gloucester for more than 40 years.

Dagley received the medal Thursday at Gloucester City Hall.

___

Information from: Gloucester (Mass.) Daily Times, http://www.gloucestertimes.com
Wyoming authorities have arrested a man in connection with the death of a 13-month-old Cheyenne boy. The search for the boy's body is set to begin Monday at a landfill in northern Colorado.

Capt. Linda Gesell of the Laramie County Sheriff's Office says authorities have arrested 23-year-old Logan Hunter Rogers of Cheyenne. Gesell says Rogers faces an initial court appearance Friday in Cheyenne on charges of manslaughter and reckless child endangering.

No lawyer has been listed yet as representing Rogers.

Authorities aren't identifying the boy. Gesell said someone at the boy's home told investigators that the body had been dumped into a trash container at a local community college. Trash from Cheyenne goes to a private landfill in Ault, Colorado.
In a story Oct. 23 about 83 missing Nigerian soldiers, The Associated Press erroneously quoted senior military officers. The story should have quoted Nigeria's Premium Times newspaper citing senior military officers.

A corrected version of the story is below:

Some 83 Nigerian soldiers are missing in action since Boko Haram Islamic extremists attacked a remote military base in the northeast, Nigeria's Premium Times newspaper reported, quoting senior army officers.

The soldiers were unable to fight back and fled because Boko Haram had superior fire power, Premium Times said, quoting officers who spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to give information to reporters.

Morale also was low among the troops because they were being rationed to one meal a day and their allowances were being pilfered by their commanders, the newspaper said.

Army spokesman Col. Sani Kukasheka Usman reported last week that "some" soldiers were missing and 13 wounded when the insurgents on Oct. 17 attacked their base in Gashigar village, on the border with Niger. Usman has not responded to requests for the actual number.

Dozens of fleeing troops jumped into the Niger River and 22 were pulled from the water by soldiers from that neighboring country, Premium Times said. Many soldiers are feared to have drowned, it said.

President Muhammadu Buhari promised to better arm Nigeria's military when he was elected in March 2015, blaming corruption for the deaths of thousands including soldiers in the 7-year-old Islamic insurgency that has killed more than 20,000 people.

Billions of dollars meant to buy arms were stolen or diverted to the presidential campaign of former President Goodluck Jonathan, according to ongoing court cases.

Military officers also are currently facing courts-martial for allegedly selling arms and ammunition to Boko Haram, indicating the corruption bedeviling the country's fight against the Islamic extremists continues despite government efforts to halt graft.

Still, the military in the past year has succeeded in dislodging the insurgents from most towns and villages where they had set up an Islamic caliphate. But the extremists continue to attack remote villages and main roads that they have mined. Nigeria's army has reported thwarting and killing several suicide bombers in the past month.

The United Nations has warned that tens of thousands among the 2.6 million people forced from their homes by the insurgency are facing famine-like conditions that already are killing children.
A court in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg has moved to detain a blogger who was already under house arrest pending trial for playing "Pokemon Go" in a church.

The Kirovsky district court on Friday ruled that 21-year-old Ruslan Sokolovsky violated the terms of his house arrest because his girlfriend visited him on his birthday.

Investigators have charged the video blogger with inciting religious hatred, the same offense that sent two women from the Pussy Riot punk collective to prison for two years in 2012.

Sokolovsky posted a video on his blog earlier this year showing him playing the smartphone game in a church built on the supposed spot where the family of the last Russian tsar, Nicholas II, was killed.
Nearly a year after the curious death of a former aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin in a Washington hotel room, authorities announced Friday that he died accidentally from numerous bodily injuries after "days of excessive consumption of alcohol."

The investigation into Mikhail Lesin's death has now been closed after the District of Columbia's chief medical examiner changed the cause of death from "undetermined" to "accident," the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a statement. Lesin, 57, was Putin's former press minister and helped found the English-language news service Russia Today.

Based on video and other evidence and interviews with witnesses, officials said Lesin entered his room at the Doyle Dupont Circle Hotel on the morning of Nov. 4, 2015, after a dayslong drinking binge and was injured while alone in his room. His body was found the next day. Russian news media, citing relatives, initially reported that Lesin had a heart attack.

Blunt force injuries to his head and body were released as the cause of death in March, but authorities didn't say how he got the injuries.

LaShon Beamon, director of communications for the D.C. Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, confirmed Friday that the death has been ruled accidental with the chief cause listed as blunt force trauma to the head. Contributing causes were listed as blunt force trauma to the neck, torso and upper and lower extremities, along with acute ethanol intoxication. She said District law prevents release of the autopsy report or any other information, though she said the autopsy report can be provided to Lesin's family.

Annual reports submitted by the medical examiner's office show that intoxication plays a role in a large number of the accidental deaths investigated by the office.

A day after the autopsy details were released in March, foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the Russian Embassy made multiple requests for information about the investigation, but received no substantive material. State Department spokesman John Kirby said at the time that State Department officials facilitated communication between Washington, D.C., police and the Russian government. Kirby said he did not know why Lesin was in the country when he died.

On Friday, Russian Embassy spokesman Yuri Melnik declined comment.

Lesin built a career in television advertising in the early 1990s, making his company the industry's leader. In 1999, he was named Russian media minister and played a key role in getting Putin elected in 2000. Lesin oversaw the Kremlin's efforts to establish state control over Russia's top private TV channel, NTV, and helped tame other media.

In 2004 he was named Putin's adviser, and in the following year oversaw the launch of Russia Today, currently known as RT, a state-controlled channel intended to reach a global audience.

From 2013-2015, Lesin served as the chief executive of Gazprom Media, a state-controlled holding company that includes NTV television along with the nation's top independent radio station, Ekho Moskvy, and several other media outlets.

Paul Joyal, managing director for public safety and homeland security at Washington-based National Strategies Inc., and an expert on Russian intelligence, said suspicion about Russian involvement in the death is not unjustified.

"Whether it's an accident or not, I don't know," said Joyal, who himself was shot in 2007, in a case that remains unsolved, after criticizing Putin on national television. "But it sure is strange."
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The Latest on the conflict in Syria (all times local):

11:15 a.m.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is hosting the foreign ministers of Syria and Iran in Moscow as the Syrian army's siege of the rebel-held districts of the city of Aleppo continues.

Lavrov said in televised remarks on Friday at the start of the talks that Russia will keep supporting the Syrian government while the West is considering news sanctions to put pressure on both countries to halt an offense against rebel-held parts of Aleppo, which had drawn international outrage.

Lavrov will talk with with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem and Iran's Mohammad Javad Zarif separately before the three of them sit down for three-way talks later Friday. Iran is another key backer of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

___

10:45 a.m.

Syrian rebel groups say they have launched a large-scale offensive to break the government's siege of eastern Aleppo, a contested city in the north of the country and the current focal point of the six-year war.

The Islamic Front rebel coalition announced on Twitter Friday morning that the ultraconservative Ahrar al-Sham group targeted a military airport to the east of the city with Grad rockets and destroyed a government position to the west of the city.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said rebels detonated two car bombs against government positions to the city's southwest and attacked with more than 150 rockets.

Ammar Sakkar, the military spokesman for the Fastaqim faction inside the city said "all the revolutionary factions, without exception, are participating in the battle."
A judge in Northern Ireland has dismissed one of the legal challenges to Britain's decision to leave the European Union, or Brexit.

A group of politicians in Northern Ireland had sued before the Belfast High Court, arguing that lawmakers in the Stormont Assembly should have a say on whether to trigger negotiations with Europe.

Lawyers for the Britain's government had argued there was no legal barrier to Brexit.

The case is separate from a landmark legal challenge being heard before Britain's High Court, which argues that Parliament needs to act before Prime Minister Theresa May can trigger negotiations to leave the 28-nation bloc.
Kosovo prosecutors have accused a senior politician of crimes in connection with two murders during the 1998-99 Kosovo war.

The special prosecutor's office said Friday said that Fatmir Limaj, a former commander in the Kosovo Liberation Army that fought a separatist war against Serbia, failed to prevent the murder of two Albanians in 1998, discover its authors or take the case to the proper institutions to be probed.

In 2005 a U.N. tribunal acquitted Limaj on the war crime charges and in 2012 a Pristina court with international judges cleared him of allegations of torturing and killing Serb detainees during the war.

Limaj, 45, is the leader of the opposition Nisma per Kosoven (Initiative for Kosovo) political party.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, which Serbia has never recognized.
Nations from around the world on Friday reached an historic agreement to preserve an area of ocean near Antarctica that's about twice the size of Texas. Here are some questions and answers about the deal:

Q: WHAT'S SPECIAL ABOUT THE AREA?

A: The marine protected area will be in the Ross Sea, considered to be one of the most pristine environments in the world. New Zealand officials say that at different times, the area is home to about one-third of the world's Adelie penguins and 26 percent of the world's emperor penguins. It also boasts thriving colonies of seabirds, seals and whales. Researchers say the region is important to study because it is almost untouched by humans, and should remain that way. Several countries fish in the region for lucrative Antarctic toothfish, which are often sold in stores and restaurants as Chilean sea bass.

___

Q: WHAT MAKES THIS AGREEMENT GROUNDBREAKING?

A: Individual nations across the globe have set aside dozens of marine reserves. But proponents say this is the first time that a bunch of nations have collaborated to protect an area on the high seas  the open ocean that falls outside the jurisdiction of any one nation. The deal was put together by New Zealand and the U.S.

___

Q: WHAT ARE THE DETAILS?

A: The reserve covers 1.6 million square kilometers (617,000 square miles), making it the world's largest marine protected area. About 72 percent will be a no-take zone, where commercial fishing will be banned. In the remaining areas, limited fishing for toothfish or krill will be allowed, although fisher folk will be required to do extra monitoring and tagging so scientists can evaluate what's happening to fish stocks. Researchers can apply to take limited numbers of fish from throughout the reserve.

___

Q: WHAT ABOUT THE POLITICS?

A: Many are surprised the deal came together at all, especially because it required the U.S. and Russia to agree at a time when tensions between them are running high. Antarctic fishing is regulated by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, whose members include 24 nations and the European Union. All agreements must be unanimous, which has proved a stumbling block in the past for a group with such divergent politics and interests. Many nations had been pushing for a reserve but a few had resisted, with Russia becoming the final holdout. The deal made some small concessions to Russia by altering the boundaries and by increasing the fishing quota outside of the no-take zone.

___

Q: WHAT'S NEXT?

A: Environmentalists hope the deal will pave the way for future agreements on the high seas, and that one day a big chunk of the world's oceans will be protected as a result. It could also help speed along plans for other marine reserves around Antarctica. The agreement takes effect in December 2017 and, in the no-take zone, runs for 35 years. At that point, the member nations will again need to reach consensus for the reserve to continue  no simple task judging by the contentious nature of past negotiations.
The rocket-propelled grenade fired from a small boat Tuesday at a liquefied natural gas tanker landed harmlessly on the massive vessel's deck, but still reignited a fierce debate about the right of sailors to defend themselves at sea.

The attack, off the coast of embattled Yemen, targeted the Spanish ship Galicia Spirit, hauling gas from Qatar, and raised the prospect of a terror attack on a spectacular scale.

MISSILE FIRED AT US SHIP FROM YEMENI REBEL-HELD TERRITORY

The use of RPGs in an attack against a vessel in this shipping choke point is very worrying, UK security broker ASKET said in a note sent to industry insiders.

Another security firm noted the vessel had no ability to defend itself.

[We] understand that the vessel had no armed security team on board, and that the vessel sustained small arms fire as well as the RPG, British maritime security agency MAST told Reuters.

Experts could not say if the weapons fired at the Galicia Spirit could have penetrated her hull and touched off an explosion. But, as during the wave of pirate attacks off the east coast of Africa in recent years, the high seas run-in sparked new debate about defenseless ships going through dangerous passageways.

There has been a step change in the use of violence offshore in the region over the past month, said Ambrey Risk, a UK security firm, reported by Splash 24/7.

None of the assailants was able to board the ship, with all of the crew escaping the incident unharmed. A Djibouti naval vessel escorted the tanker for the remainder of its journey through the dangerous waters.

The area in question, the Bab al-Mandab strait, is one of vital importance as well as a hotbed of violence. Roughly four million barrels of oil, as well as a host of other goods pass through its tumultuous waters daily, while civil war rages on the shores of Yemen.

It was a little over two weeks ago when a US Navy destroyer, the USS Mason, was fired upon while patrolling close to where the incident with the Galicia Spirit occurred. Iranian-backed Houthi rebels are suspected in that attack.

Barry Parker, a New York-based maritime business expert, acknowledged that armed contractors aboard ships stopped the problem with piracy in Somalia. But he said the incident off the coast of Yemen was different and said conflicts there will be almost exclusively focused on the civil war.

If attacks like Tuesday's are related to the war - the cargo was from Qatar, which is aligned with the Saudis who in turn oppose the Houthis - vessels might be better served by additional patrol boats as well as designated transit lanes.
A Swedish court has sentenced a 27-year-old German man to one year's imprisonment for stealing toxic substances from a university where he was a student.

The Uppsala District Court on Friday said Gurkan Korkmaz used the alias LarryFlow to offer lethal substances like ricin on dark-web online markets, but added that it could not be proven he actually sold the substances.

Swedish police started the investigation in the fall of 2015 after receiving tips from U.S. police.

Korkmaz, who pleaded innocent, was ordered expelled from Sweden and banned from returning for five years.
A Swedish court has sentenced a 47-year-old man to seven years' imprisonment for the aggravated sexual abuse of more than 100 under-aged girls via chatrooms, in the largest case of its kind in the Scandinavian country.

The Boras District Court said Friday the man, who was not identified, posed as a young woman or man to contact 114 girls via social media and convinced them to perform explicit sexual acts for him via their webcams.

The court in Boras, east of the southern city of Goteborg, said most victims were aged between 12 and 14, and were abused between late 2010 and mid-2015 when the man was arrested.

The defendant had admitted some of the offences but denied others. It was not immediately clear whether he would appeal.
Syrian rebels launched a broad offensive for Aleppo Friday as the Russian, Syrian, and Iranian foreign ministers vowed to intensify their fight against terrorism in the country.

The battlefield allies met in Moscow as the Syrian government is looking to cement its authority over the divided northern city and the contested suburbs of the capital, Damascus.

Fighting for Aleppo appeared to have calmed by the afternoon after rebels assaulted the city's government-controlled western side with three vehicle bombs and at least 150 rockets in the morning. The Syrian military said the rockets were Russian-made Grad missiles.

At least 15 civilians were killed in the volley, according to pro-government TV stations. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group also said that 15 civilians were killed, and over 100 injured.

A reporter inside the city for the Lebanon-based Al-Mayadeen TV channel had reported attacks on "all sides" of the city, "from the furthest points north to the furthest south."

Sounds of heavy gunfire, mortar fire, and explosions were heard in the background of his broadcast, as dark smoke was seen rising above the city on the overcast morning. Presumed government or Russian jets were also heard flying overhead.

An afternoon broadcast from the city on Lebanon-based Al-Manar TV depicted a quieter scene, though sporadic gunfire and missile attacks were heard in the background.

Rebels said they seized a factory and pushed into government-held neighborhoods in southwestern Aleppo, but the Syrian military said through SANA that it had repelled the offensive from all fronts, with support from allied militias.

"The Syrian army and its allies are in control on the ground and armed groups were not able to change the map," the military statement said. "Fighting is still ongoing but the intensity has dropped."

This is the second attempt by rebels to break the government's siege of Aleppo's opposition-held eastern districts, where the U.N. estimates 275,000 people are trapped. U.N. Special Envoy Staffan De Mistura has estimated 8,000 of them are rebel fighters, and no more than 900 of them affiliated with the al-Qaida-linked Fatah al-Sham Front.

The area has been subjected to a ferocious campaign of aerial attacks by Russian and Syrian government warplanes, and hundreds of people have been killed in recent weeks, according to opposition activists and trapped residents.

Rebels opened a corridor to the east for the month of August after pro-government forces first applied a blockade in July, but they were not able to hold it as the government and its Russian ally pounded the gap with artillery and airstrikes. Pro-government forces reapplied the siege in early September.

The setback caused the rebels to pursue a different tack, and they are trying to draw government forces into street fighting in the densely-inhabited western part of the city, according to rebel spokesman Ammar Sakkar. They are hoping this will dissuade the government and Russian air force from using heavy weapons and aerial munitions.

"We want to force the regime into street battles, in addition to opening several fronts," said Fastaqim spokesman Ammar Sakkar. "It may go beyond lifting the siege to liberating the whole city."

Friday's attack began with rebels detonating three vehicle-borne explosives against government positions to the city's southwest and attacking with hundreds of rockets, the Observatory said. It said at least one of the vehicles was driven by a suicide bomber for Fatah al-Sham, which also announced the offensive.

Fatah al-Sham claimed credit for two car bombs, saying in a statement that a "martyrdom-seeking fighter" drove a tank laden with explosives and parked it, before it was detonated and the fighter "returned to his brothers."

The Islamic Front rebel coalition also announced on Twitter that the ultraconservative Ahrar al-Sham group targeted a military airport to the east of the city with Grad rockets and destroyed a government position to the west of the city.

Sakkar, said "all the revolutionary factions, without exception, are participating in the battle." He said hundreds of fighters were participating in the attack, adding that the total number of participants was "much higher."

"What the rebels did today, it was very much a technical thing to try to tell the regime ... we can get more weapons and get to Aleppo," said Bassam Barabandi, political adviser to the Syrian opposition's High Negotiations Committee, in an interview in Washington.

The Syrian army depends on battlefield assistance from Lebanese and Iraqi militias, as well as Russian air power and Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard forces.

The Russian military says it has asked President Vladimir Putin to allow the resumption of airstrikes in Syria on the rebel-held eastern part of Aleppo due to the fresh rebel offensive there.

Lt. Gen. Sergei Rudskoi said the opposition fighters took advantage of a 10-day moratorium on military flights over the city to attempt to break the siege of the eastern rebel-held part of the city. He says all attacks have been repelled, but 43 civilians have been killed and 96 wounded in the rebel shelling.

Putin rejected the military's request for the resumption of airstrikes on the rebel-held eastern part of Aleppo. The president's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said that Putin considers it "inadvisable to resume airstrikes on Aleppo," and wants to have humanitarian corridors out of Aleppo's rebel-held districts stay open both for rebels and civilians to leave the city.

The Syrian government has labeled the country's armed opposition "terrorists." Syria has sunk ever deeper into a costly civil war since security forces cracked down brutally on popular demonstrations in 2011.

Near the capital Damascus, meanwhile, the Syrian army captured an army missile base that was held by rebels, as well as a castle. Syrian troops have been on the offensive near Damascus for weeks.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in a news conference with his Syrian and Iranian counterparts the intensified fight would come in parallel with efforts to improve humanitarian aid access.

But U.N. official Jan Egeland said Thursday it was the Syrian government that had denied humanitarian access to eastern Aleppo as part of a monthly U.N. plan to access 25 besieged and remote areas in Syria.

Western nations accuse Russia of deliberately attacking a U.N.-backed aid convoy in September in rebel-held territory, killing over a dozen humanitarian workers and destroying hundreds of tons of cargo.

Aleppo is the focal point of the war. President Bashar Assad has said he is determined to retake the country's largest city and former commercial capital.


Sunbelt Business Brokers, the Worlds Largest Business Brokerage Franchise, Opens a New Office in Carrollton, Texas

Independence, OH - October 28, 2016 - (PR.com) - Sunbelt Business Brokers, the worlds largest business brokerage franchise, is pleased to announce the opening of a new Sunbelt Dallas office located in Carrollton, TX. Aaron Comeaux, the new office owner, brings years of professional experience to buyers and sellers in the Texas business community.

Brian Knoderer, Sunbelts President, stated, We are very pleased that Aaron Comeaux is now representing Sunbelt in the Carrollton market. Aaron has been working with Sunbelt for a number of years in the Baton Rouge, Louisiana office. Aaron is a seasoned executive with over 25 years of diverse business experience as a corporate executive and business owner. Both business buyers and sellers in the Carrollton marketplace can have confidence in Aarons experience and professionalism.

Located less than twenty miles from Dallas, Carrollton is one of the most populous areas in Texas. With its proximity to Dallas, Carrolltons population grew by 193% over a ten-year period. Now seen as a suburb of Dallas, the city has been voted as one of Americas Top 100 Places to Live. Additionally, Carrollton is home to corporate headquarters to a major division of Halliburton Energy Services, Fastsigns and Motel 6. The other top employers located in Carrollton includes McKesson, Hilton Reservations Worldwide and the Baylor Medical Center. Carrollton is diversified with the addition of numerous small businesses.

I am very excited to be marketing to all businesses in such a dynamic and diverse market. The number of businesses with values ranging from $100,000 to $30 million is staggering. This market is a perfect fit for our services and we look forward to offering our services in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area, added, Aaron Comeaux.

Sunbelt of Carrollton can be contacted at the following: 4689 Mustang Parkway, Carrollton, TX 75010. For further information, please call 972-402-5360 or e-mail Aaron Comeaux at aaronc@sunbeltnetwork.com.

Please see the website: http://www.sunbeltnetwork.com/dallas-tx/

About Sunbelt

Sunbelt business brokers sell more privately held businesses than any other brokerage franchise in the world. The expansive experience and knowledge of the Sunbelt network encompasses primarily the Main Street and Middle Market segments, with select offices also specializing in Mergers & Acquisitions. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, each office is individually owned and operated by highly qualified franchise owners.

SOURCE Sunbelt Business Brokers

Contact:

Shari Kosec

Sunbelt Business Brokers

216-674-0645 x616





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Providence Ann Prov Moeller, 72, of Stafford County, passed away on Tuesday, October 25, 2016 after a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer.

Prov was born in Shelby, Mississippi, on February 28, 1944, the daughter of Dominick and Rose Malatesta Bravata. She spent her childhood in Cedarville, Illinois. After graduating with honors in business education from nearby Freeport Senior High School, Prov worked as a clerk-steno for the Illinois Department of Public Aid. She later graduated magna cum laude from Northern Illinois University with a bachelor of science in education degree. She married Thomas G. Moeller on Dec. 28, 1968.

Prov was a dedicated teacher who spent more than 30 years teaching in Iowa and Virginia. She taught at the former Montfort Academy and later moved to Hartwood Elementary School in Stafford County, where she taught third grade until her retirement in 2006.

She was an active member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society and a longtime member of St. Mary Catholic Church, where she volunteered her time in a number of activities. Prov loved life and lived it to the fullest. She was a problem-solver who was always solving the next problem that arose. She was an avid crossword and Sudoku player, an accomplished seamstress, and loved to refinish and reupholster furniture. In addition, she made many counted cross-stitch pieces that she gave to family members and friends. She also loved digging in the dirt in the yard and taking care of her flowers. Prov spent many hours engaged in interior decoration projects, including painting and wall papering. She loved music, playing on the piano for many hours at a time, which she referred to as banging on the piano. She also enjoyed traveling in both the United States and Europe. Prov was a loving person and was always looking to perform some kindness for friends and relatives. She also liked to bake things to take to her friends. Her biggest love, however, was her family, especially her grandchildren. Her family and many friends will miss her, and her death puts a void in their lives.

Prov was predeceased by her parents, Dominick and Rose Bravata.

She is survived by her husband, Thomas Moeller; two sons, Kurt (Michelle), of Bethesda, Md., and Scott (Mary Kathryn), of Tulsa, Okla.; four grandchildren, Alexander, Gregory, Nicholas, and Lucy; and a sister, Albina Ascher (Doug), of Calhoun, Ga.

The family will receive friends from 6 to 8 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 30 at Covenant Funeral Service, Fredericksburg.

A mass of celebration will be held at noon on Monday, Oct. 31 at St. Mary Catholic Church. Interment will be at a later date at St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery in Freeport, Illinois.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be sent to the Little Sisters of the Poor, 1503 Michael Road, Richmond, VA, or to the UMW Catholic Campus Ministry, 1614 College Ave. , Fredericksburg, VA 22401.

The family would like to thank the many friends and neighbors who have supported us these many months.

Online guest book is available at covenantfuneralservice.com.
The mechanism they found, known as push-pull control, is a way of transmitting an accurate symbol through bags of goo [i.e., cells], instead of a nice wire or something that a human would use, he said.

And as illogical as it may seem, the existence of push-pull control in these types of signaling pathways could explain why certain cancer drugs work as they do, the researchers said.

A 'seemingly ramshackle' system

Brent, Andrews and their colleagues study a certain type of information cascade  one in which the cell needs to communicate to its DNA not only what is happening on its surface, but the magnitude of that external event.

There are many such situations in our cells and in simpler beings where a cell needs to respond in different ways to different amounts of an environmental cue. For example: insulin-sensing fat cells in our bodies scale their conversion of sugar to fat storage in response to increasing levels of the insulin hormone. Or, in the case of the type of cells that Brent, Andrews and their colleagues study, single-celled yeast looking for a mate respond to the highest level of mating pheromone in their surroundings by growing in that direction, an environmental response that requires precise changes in approximately 200 of the yeasts genes.

Cells are tiny, and yeast cells especially so, but that fraction of an inch distance between cell surface and its genes is immense when you consider that any information transmitted relies on the chance collision of molecules as they float through the cells soupy interior.

Its seemingly ramshackle; its seemingly chaotic, Brent said. No human designer would ever design such a system.

Given the randomness inherent in cellular information transmission, its perhaps not too surprising that cells dont use the same technique a human engineer would. But in a previous study published in the journal Nature in 2008, Brent and his colleagues found some evidence for a logical technique.

To design an information transmission system that accurately conveys both what a signal is as well as its magnitude, humans would typically use something known as closed-loop feedback control, Brent said. In closed-loop control, the output of the system figuratively loops back to influence the activity of the system itself.

Think the heating system in your house, Brent said. When the temperature of the room drops below a certain threshold, the furnace kicks on and produces heat. When the room is warm enough, the thermostat tells the furnace to turn off.

In yeast, when information is transmitted through the pheromone-response cascade, each protein involved activates its downstream partner  starting with a protein that sits on the cell surface and recognizes pheromone molecules in the environment, and ending with proteins that change the activity of the genes involved in mating. In their 2008 study, the researchers had found that one piece of this pathway exhibited what looked like the same type of negative feedback control as the furnace and thermostat.

We had found an example of negative feedback in the system and were so excited that we figured this must be the key to the universe, Brent said.

So Andrews set out to model the entire system to more precisely pin down the mechanism. And thats when their closed-loop feedback theory fell apart.

The activity of so-called inactive molecules

To get at the mechanism, Andrews developed a computer program that broadly mimics the yeast pheromone-response system. He asked which type of signaling cascade produced the same sort of alignment between input and output as live cells exhibit. Based on their past study, one of the first models they tried was the sort of negative feedback for which theyd seen evidence.

That was surprising  it was supposed to work, but it didnt, Andrews said.

Getting to the answer from that point took many years and a lot of computational power, he said. Rather than addressing the relatively simple question, Can this model do that? The answers yes or no, Andrews said, they had to ask what mechanism, chosen from an infinite number of possible choices, matched the experimental data. So it was an enormous problem, he said.

Racking their brains for different mechanisms, models and parameters, the researchers tested 30 different types of mechanisms and millions of different models.

All of them failed. Except for one, Andrews said.

The winning mechanism is known as push-pull control, and its a bit unusual. In push-pull, the inactive forms of the proteins in the information cascade actively keep the steps ahead of them shut off, while the active forms turn those steps on. Their finding raises the question of whether its accurate to call these proteins inactive in the first place, Andrews said.

Active stuff does something, an inactive thing doesnt do much, thats the assumption, he said. Theres sort of a big shift here. Were saying, wait a moment, we think the inactive form is actually much more important than we give it credit for.

There are hints that push-pull control exists in nature. Theres evidence of it in plants, and the Fred Hutch researchers collaborators from the Institute of Physiology, Molecular Biology and Neuroscience in Buenos Aires, Argentina, have confirmed these computational results in living yeast, Brent said.

And their results have a biological tie to human cancer, too. The yeast pheromone-sensing pathway is closely related to a human-signaling system known as the epidermal growth factor receptor, or EGFR, pathway. Mutations in the EGFR protein are commonly found in certain cancers, including non-small cell lung cancer, glioblastoma and head and neck cancers  these mutations ramp the system into overdrive, causing cells to grow and divide out of control and eventually become tumors.

Certain cancer drugs block intermediate steps in the EGFR pathway  drugs such as trametinib, sorafenib and vemurafenib. And these drugs wouldn't work the way they do if closed-loop feedback was taking place in the EGFR pathway. Since the cancer-causing mutations lead to overactivity in the EGFR protein, closed-loop feedback control in the pathway would override the action of drugs blocking steps downstream of EGFR. But the drugs work, meaning it's possible push-pull control could be ruling this human system as well, Brent said.

It's just a speculation, he said, but based on their findings in yeast, it is a strong one.
Collaboration: Its a hot topic in cancer research these days, particularly since Vice President Joe Biden took on the Cancer Moonshot initiative. Scientists and institutions across the country are joining forces to accelerate cancer research like never before, and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center is deep in the mix.

What does this mean for breast cancer, a disease that strikes 250,000 women and men  and kills nearly 41,000 of them  each year? We checked in with breast cancer researchers at Fred Hutch and Seattle Cancer Care Alliance to see what theyre particularly enthusiastic about as Breast Cancer Awareness Month draws to a close.

Collaborations and combinations

Along with research institutions pooling ideas and talents, scientists are also exploring the advantages of combining different drugs and treatments.

Combinations are the key, said Fred Hutch clinical researcher and Seattle Cancer Care Alliance oncologist Dr. V.K. Gadi, at the recent Northwest Metastatic Breast Cancer Conference.

Of particular interest are biologics, engineered drugs like the breast cancer therapeutic Herceptin that target certain features found within a tumor.

Biologics are not things that grow on a tree. We didnt find them in the soil, said Gadi. These things were engineered from the ground up. We found a problem in a cancer cell that was unique to that cancer cell, and we went off and designed a therapy for it. There are a ton of these medicines and were getting to the point where were not just using them one by one by one.

Researchers are currently figuring out how to combine these biologics in new  and less toxic  ways. Combination therapies make sense, particularly in breast cancer, because tumors often have a host of genetic mutations. The combined agents can attack and overwhelm the cancer before it can mutate yet again.

Really, these are where all of our hopes lie, said Gadi. Were learning how we can safely combine these things so we dont have overlapping toxicities.
Tempi Releases the Tempi "Precision" Metronome

Tempi LLC releases the Tempi Precision Metronome which will help musicians of all ages make perfect music.

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Stanfield, North Carolina: Tempi LLC, a company that manufactures musical instruments, releases its Tempi Precision Metronome. As they grow with the goal of helping musicians succeed in their endeavor, they finally released their new product that will make each musician play perfect music.

One of the greatest challenges a musician faces is making music with perfect rhythm or constant tempo and playing in harmony with other musicians. This has been a problem for beginner musicians or even those that have played musical instruments for some period of time. Tempi LLC has seen this struggle and this is one of the reasons why they created the Tempi Precision Metronome.

This metronome will help musicians create the perfect rhythm for every song they play. It will improve their skill by developing focus and alertness, both physically and mentally, in their performance. For beginner musicians, especially, they become focused on the notes rather than on the timing as they slow down to learn the notes accurately. At times, even experienced musicians struggle in performing with other musicians. The Tempi Precision Metronome will help them listen to more than just themselves as it increases musical awareness through listening and visualizing.

https://www.amazon.com/Traditional-Mechanical-Metronome-Musicians-Swinging/dp/B015ULU8HI

Another challenge for musicians is the shifting of the difficulty of notes and chords. Beginners tend to speed up their tempo on the easy part of a song and slow down on the hard part. The metronome will help them play at a constant tempo as it gives them the correct tempo they should follow all throughout the song.

Because of the accuracy and durability of the Tempi Precision Metronome, musicians who have gotten one for themselves have sent their rave reviews about the product. Eli Hatley, a purchaser in Amazon.com, said "This metronome is a very high quality metronome. Of my 10+ years of playing musical instruments, this is the best metronome I have used by far! You set it to the proper tempo, and it keeps time very accurately. This product is very sturdy, and I can tell it was made to last. Thanks again!"

Tempi Precision Metronome offers more than what it's worth. It makes musicians fulfill their goals, and that is, to succeed in their field.

About Tempi LLC: Tempi LLC, is a US based company that is dedicated in helping music lovers, beginners and musicians achieve success. All of their products are created in line with the philosophy: "offer elegant, superior products that have the potential to provide exceptional musical success." They pride themselves on keeping ahead of the industry with their continuous research and drive to improve. Learn more by visiting their website at: http://tempibrand.com

For more information, please visit http://tempibrand.com/mechanical-metronome/

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Organization: Tempi LLC

Address: Charlotte NC



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Ft. Lauderdale Criminal Defense Lawyer Wins 2016 Nation's Top 1 Percent Award

Ft. Lauderdale Criminal Defense Attorney Ron L. Baum, P.A. won the 2016 Member of the Nation's Top One Percent sponsored by the National Association of Distinguished Counsel, NADC, coming out on top over thousands of other competitors.

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Broward County Criminal Defense Attorney Attorney Ron L. Baum, P.A. was named winner of the Member of the Nations Top One Percent Award beating out thousands of other attorneys to take home top honors. The National Association of Distinguished Counsel NADC presented the award to Ron L. Baum at North Wales, PA, via an online ceremony. Details about the award can be found on the company website at https://www.distinguishedcounsel.org/.

Potential award recipients were required to present credentials to a selection committee in order to be in contention for the Member of the Nations Top One Percent. They were judged based on their proven ability to elevate the standards of the Bar and provide a benchmark for other lawyers to emulate., Members are vetted by a research team, a blue ribbon panel of attorneys, and a judicial review board. The roster of NADC members truly consists of the leading legends of the legal profession. They are featured prominently on networks and in publications such as ABC, NBC, CBS, MSNBC, FOX, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Time, and Newsweek.

Ron L. Baum, Managing Partner of Ron L. Baum, P.A. was pleased receive the distinction, saying:

"The Law Office of Ron L. Baum has a proven track record of 28 years getting results in and out of the courtroom. It is exciting to see that our hard effort has been rewarded two years in a row with a Top One Percent Nation's award."

As one of the best and top criminal lawyers in Broward County, Attorney Baum helps clients facing Misdemeanors and Felony charges, including but not limited to: Drug Charges, Domestic Offenses, Probation Violation, Theft/Burglary Allegations and DUIs.

The Law firm of Ron L. Baum works with clients needing counsel on criminal law only. Their focus on this subject matter allows them to be thorough and detailed on their area of expertise. The firm has solved a broad range of criminal cases including recent high profile cases where the experience they hold came into play to win the case. They also work on less complex cases so long as it falls within the criminal law spectrum.

Legal Leaders chose Ron Baum as one of "South Florida's Top Rated Lawyers" 4 years in a row. Highly recognized among the Florida legal community, he earned 5 consecutive Hat Trick Awards from the Broward Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (each separate award represented 3 consecutive felony jury trials with the Defendant being found not guilty on all counts in each case).

Persons interested in learning more about Ron L. Baum, P.A. and the award can visit the website at http://www.ronlbaum.com or directly at ronald@ronlbaum.com.

For more information, please visit http://www.ronlbaum.com

Contact Info:

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Email: ronald@ronlbaum.com

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Increasing Internationalization And Student Mobility To Boost Global K-12 International Schools Market

MarketResearchReports.biz has announced addition of new report "Global K-12 International Schools Market 2016-2020" to its database.

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The report, titled 'Global K-12 International Schools Market 2016-2020' provides an extensive analysis of the global K-12 international schools market. Market dynamics such as drivers, trends, restraints, and investment opportunities have also been studied in detail in this study. The growth prospects in this market and its overall landscape have also been encapsulated under this report. The main vendors dominant in the market have been evaluated on the basis of their product introductions, strengths, and weaknesses.

The first part of the report presents the market overview and provides an introduction to the overall K-12 international schools market. International schools refer to the types of schools that promote education by the implementation of an international curriculum or by adopting a national curriculum that isn't similar to the one adopted by the national curriculum of that school.

The global K-12 international schools market is predicted to rise at a CAGR of over 7.0% from 2016 to 2020. The increasing internationalization and student mobility have come up as key factors driving the overall growth of this market. In addition, numerous scholarships and enhancements in career opportunities in nations such as Australia, Canada, the UK, and the U.S. have also allured a number of students to opt for higher education abroad, thus positively impacting market growth. Furthermore, the growing requirement to have fluency in nation-specific languages and to attain knowledge on western learning style will boost the count of students taking admissions in international schools, thus providing impetus to the development of the market.

For Sample Copy, click here: http://www.marketresearchreports.biz/sample/sample/825415

The increasing employment of educational technology within international schools and the increasing importance given to educators' professional development are the prime trends seen in the global K-12 international schools market. On the other hand, the report opines that there are some factors that may work against the development of the K-12 international schools market. These include dearth of quality teachers, presence of strict government regulations, and issues taking place in the UK owing to Brexit.

The segmentation of the market comes next in the report. The market has been segmented in terms of curricula and geography. On the basis of curricula, the report segments the market into British curriculum, American curriculum, and International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum. Of these, British curriculum held a share of around 33% in 2015. This is owing to the rising acceptance of British curriculum in top global institutions to pursue undergraduate courses. In addition, the growing UK chains such as Dulwich College, Shrewsbury, and Harrow in developing regions will provide impetus to the growth of this segment.

By geography, the report categorizes the market into Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific (APAC), and the Middle East and Africa (MEA). Amongst these, APAC is predicted to lead the market for K-12 international schools all through the forecast horizon. This is due to the growing inclination amongst parents in APAC toward getting their children enrolled in schools presenting international curricula. In addition, the rising disposable income of individuals residing in this region will positively impact the growth of the APAC K-12 international schools market.

The prominent vendors in the market are Nord Anglia Education, GEMS Education, Cognita Schools, Maple Leaf Educational Systems, and Esol Education, among others, as per this study.

For more information, please visit http://www.marketresearchreports.biz/pressrelease/2631

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CLD Brands Hosts Product Demos in Schools to Celebrate the Music Triangle Set

CLD Brands is celebrating the launch of Music Triangle Percussion online by hosting product demos in music classes. Further information can be found at www.coupondealsdiscounts.com and https://www.amazon.com/Music-Triangles-Metal-Beaters-Holders/dp/B01IJLNLGG/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1477605710&sr=8-8&keywords=percussion+music+triangle.

--

In a creative change of pace, Online Retailer/eCommerce Store "CLD Brands", will be celebrating the launch of the music triangle percussion instrument set by hosting product demos in music classes. It's reported the event will take place on Tuesday, November 1st at 10:30 AM EST.

In a space where most competitors simply hang new signage, send out mass emails and fail to cause much of a stir, CLD Brands has opted to be a little more creative with it's Music Triangle Percussion Set launch taken the product samples to the users.

London Damon, Owner at CLD Brands, says: "The company wanted to be creative with the triangle percussion instrument set launch because it allows the Sales Team to put the product in the hands of children and the music teachers."

It should be really worthwhile and CLD Brands is going to provide each student with a high quality instrument to take home and practice with. It should go great unless music class is canceled!

CLD Brands has always thrived on the idea of standing out and making a commotion. It's all part of the fun and it's going to provide more value for customers upon receipt of a set of 2 triangles, which is better than what other businesses who choose to do things the 'regular' way are doing. This launch celebration is just one of the many ways CLD Brands achieves that goal.

When asked about Music Triangle Percussion, London Damon said: "It's going to be a real hit because there is no other company providing a set of two triangles, bonus beaters and a velvet carry bag".

The Music Triangle Percussion Set is ready to launch Tuesday, November 1st. To find out more, click here.

For further information about CLD Brands, please visit CLD Brands.

For more information, please visit http://www.mycldbrands.com

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Organization: CLD Brands

Address: PO Box 4730



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Rural crime is reaching new levels across the country, with machinery and livestock theft, burglary and vandalism topping the list.

NFU Mutual puts the cost of rural crime in the UK at 42.5m/year (based on the latest figures published in 2015).

Reporter Philip Case headed off to Hampshire, which is bucking the national trend, seeing a fall in rural crime last year of 29%.

He joined PC Andrew Reid and some of the local farmers to find out what is being done to cut the risk of countryside crime.

See also: Video: Farmers top tips to fight rural crime

With its combination of rolling fields, small villages and isolated farms, north Hampshire presents a tough challenge for police officers.

PC Andrew Reid is the area beat officer for north Hampshire, covering an area from Whitchurch to Hook.

He says poaching, hare coursing, fly-tipping and theft of farm tools and machinery  especially vintage tractors  are particular issues in the area.

Hare coursing

Illegal hare coursing is a particular problem in the area, says PC Reid.

People will travel for miles to take part in this crime. Only last week we had a vehicle come down from Buckinghamshire.

The fields here are large. You have high points and you can see right across. But, thankfully, many have flints, which the dogs dont like because they can cut their paws  so they are less inclined to run. Sadly, it doesnt stop the vehicles.

Farmer Angus Jannaway, based in Upton Grey, a village near Basingstoke, is a typical victim of rural crime in the region. He has suffered instances of illegal hare coursing and machinery theft.

He says hare coursers and joyriders were making his life unbearable, so he decided to dig trenches around his fields to prevent access to his land.

Trenches

We have had enormous trouble with members of the community going through the hedges and riding round the fields, he explains.

We had a single-furrow forestry plough made in Scotland, which I commissioned to dig trenches. Other landowners have been hiring us to go round the farms and do their fields.

Mr Jannaway says the trenches have kept trespassers off his fields. But criminals are still targeting his farmyard.

Tool theft

Last year, a ram-raiding gang smashed their way into his shed overnight and stole 7,000-worth of tools.

They just stole every single tool we had. Every chainsaw, every strimmer, everything just disappeared, he says.

In response, Mr Jannaway now keeps his tools locked away in a steel chest, in a bunker behind a steel door.

Internal roller doors, CCTV and lighting also protect the building. Incredibly, Mr Jannaway has added an extra layer of security by investing thousands of pounds in concrete barriers around his farm to prevent intrusion.

There is nothing more we can do. Its like a fortress, he says. The downside is that it takes time if you want to get a spanner out of the workshop.

Tractors stolen to order

Alan Hutton, who farms in a neighbouring village, had his John Deere tractor stolen in September 2012.

PC Reid says the thieves parked the tractor under power cables on an old military site in Arborfield, believing the cables would interfere with the tracking signal.

However, officers were able to recover the tractor and return it to Mr Hutton, largely intact.

Tractors were being stolen to order, transferred into shipping containers at ports such as Southampton, ready to be sent abroad. They were being driven in lorries to Poland and other eastern Europe countries to be sold for cash.

Now, though, according to NFU Mutual, tractor theft prevention techniques such as Datatag DNA marking, individual keys, immobilisers and improved tracking and tracing technology are thwarting efforts to steal high-value tractors.

PC Reid says: We are seeing an increase in the theft of vintage tractors and quad bikes. The vintage tractors havent got the security  one key fits all and that sort of thing.

In certain countries they are going to in Europe the fields are smaller, so [these tractors] are ideal.

Preventing machinery theft

Mr Hutton believes a layered approach is the best way to prevent theft of farm machinery.

All our tractors are always kept inside, if possible, he says. Some, such as the JCB, are barricaded behind an older tractor, so they have got to get two machines out.

Criminals are using telehandlers to ram-raid shops and steal cash machines. Forklifts also appear to be going.

We lock and bolt everything. A steel barrier with inverted locks protects our farm shed.

If youve got CCTV, put a sign up. Youve got to look after yourself. The police cannot do everything. They dont have the resources any more.

Darren Ivy, who manages a farm in the Candover Valley, near Basingstoke, has installed CCTV above his farm buildings.

It records any movements on a 2GB memory card, which lasts more than a fortnight, he says.

But Mr Ivy thinks there is no substitute for the eyes and ears of his local beat bobby.

PC Reid controls all the crime around here. Its definitely noticeable  no two ways about it, he says. He knows the area. His physical presence also helps deter criminals.

If we havent got our local bobbies, which we all vouch for, whats the world going to come to?

Reporting crime

Farmers must report every instance of crime on their land  no matter how small or large, says PC Andrew Reid.

A recent survey of 17,000 farmers in England and Wales carried out by the National Rural Crime Network found more than one in four (27%) fails to report crime.

This chronic under-reporting is not helping police build a true picture of rural crime, says PC Reid.

The police need to know what is happening, when its happening and if there is any pattern to it, he adds.

We appreciate that police may not investigate everything that comes through.

But it still needs to be recorded that an incident has happened on farms. It may well be linked with other crimes.

PC Reid also urges farmers to report suspicious vehicles to their local police by calling 101.
Story Highlights Down from 83% in 2000 and 73% in 2007

Less than half of young adults say problem is "very serious"

One-third say drugs are a serious problem in their local area

PRINCETON, N.J. -- Sixty-five percent of Americans describe the problem of illegal drugs in the U.S. as "extremely" or "very serious." Although still well above the majority level, the percentage is down significantly from 83% in 2000 and 73% in 2007.

The results are based on Gallup's annual Crime poll, conducted Oct. 5-9. The U.S. has long struggled with problems coming from the sale and use of illegal drugs, such as drug-related crime and drug addiction.

Americans have frequently mentioned drugs as the most important problem facing the country in the past. It ranked as the No. 1 problem on the list from May 1989 through April 1990, including September 1989 when a high of 63% mentioned it. That poll was conducted shortly after President George H.W. Bush gave a nationally televised address to outline his anti-drug strategy in an attempt to fight the crack cocaine epidemic and the international threat posed by Colombian drug lords.

From 1970 through 2000, an average of 8% of Americans named drugs as the most important problem facing the country. Since 2007, the average has been 1%.

The fall in concern about drugs may also reflect less-prominent federal anti-drug efforts in recent years than in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. In fact, more recently, much of the news about drug policy has focused on state-level efforts to decriminalize marijuana. Those efforts are consistent with shifts in public opinion, as Americans' support for legalizing marijuana has nearly doubled, from 31% in 2000 to 60% today.

Americans' perceptions of the drug problem in the U.S. may also have become more politicized over time. In 2000, Republicans (84%), Democrats (84%) and independents (79%) were about equally likely to describe the drug problem as "extremely" or "very serious." Today, there is a wide partisan gap, as 81% of Republicans and 57% of Democrats hold that view.

Republicans may view the U.S. drug situation more negatively because a Democratic president is in office. When George W. Bush was president in 2007, Republicans (69%) were less likely than Democrats (75%) to describe the U.S. drug problem as being serious. Republicans this year may also be responding to Donald Trump's making drug traffic from Mexico a campaign issue.

Aside from Republicans, every major subgroup in the U.S. is much less likely today than in 2000 to believe illegal drugs are an extremely or very serious problem in the country. Declines have been largest among Democrats, young adults and nonwhites, who now rank among the groups least likely to view the U.S. drug situation as this serious.

In fact, less than a majority of 18- to 29-year-olds, 45%, now hold this view -- compared with 71% in 2000. This drop could reflect a generational change, as today's young adults were between the ages of 2 and 13 in 2000, and are therefore likely unfamiliar with strong government anti-drug efforts of the past.

Views of Drugs in U.S. as an Extremely/Very Serious Problem, by Subgroup 2000 2007 2016 % % % Gender Men 77 66 59 Women 86 80 70 Age 18 to 29 years 71 71 45 30 to 49 years 80 63 63 50 to 64 years 88 77 72 65+ years 91 89 77 Race White 80 71 69 Nonwhite 90 80 57 Party identification Republican 84 69 81 Independent 79 74 58 Democrat 84 75 57 Church attendance Weekly 91 82 76 Monthly 82 73 68 Seldom/Never 76 68 59 Education College graduate 74 65 59 College nongraduate 85 77 67 Household income Less than $30,000 86 83 68 $30,000 to $74,999 82 76 66 $75,000+ 73 59 60 Place of residence Big/Small city 82 n/a 62 Suburb 78 n/a 59 Town/Rural area 72 n/a 73 n/a = not available Gallup Crime Polls

One in Three Say Drugs Are Serious Problem in Local Area

Americans express far less concern about drugs being a problem in their local area. The poll finds 32% of Americans describing drugs as an extremely or very serious problem in the area where they live. That is consistent with what Gallup has measured on six other occasions since 2000, with the percentage typically near 30%.

In addition to the 32% who currently describe drugs as an extremely or very serious problem in their local area, 35% say it is a "moderately serious problem," and 31% say it is "not too serious" or "not serious at all."

Americans' more positive assessments of the drug situation in their local area than nationally are consistent with their tendency to rate their own situation much better than the situation in the rest of the country. This includes assessments of crime, education, healthcare, and their overall satisfaction.

Americans who describe their local area as suburban (22%) are much less likely than those who say they live in a city (33%) or a town or rural area (39%) to rate drugs as an extremely or very serious problem in their area.

Implications

A majority of Americans continue to believe drugs are a serious problem in the U.S., but the percentage has fallen significantly since 2000. The continuing high concern about drugs probably reflects Americans' recognition that drugs can harm people, but the decline in the level of concern might reflect reduced news media and government focus on drugs as a problem. Both presidential candidates have raised the drug issue during the campaign, although it has not received nearly as much attention as other issues such as immigration and trade, or character concerns about the candidates.

Younger adults, who have never known a time when drugs were among the most prominent issues on the national landscape, show far less concern about drugs than older adults do. They have also come of age at a time when Americans, particularly those in their age cohort, support legalizing marijuana. Given the differences by age in concern about the drug problem, the trend toward lesser concern about drugs could continue in the decades to come.

Historical data are available in Gallup Analytics.

Survey Methods

Results for this Gallup poll are based on telephone interviews conducted Oct. 5-9, 2016, with a random sample of 1,017 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 survey methodology, complete question responses and trends.

Learn more about how the Gallup Poll Social Series works.
that these late deciders know quite a lot about both candidates. Its not that they want to learn new information. Theyve concluded that Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are each deeply flawed, and theyre trying to pick who they perceive as the lesser of two evils. It is an agonizing decision for most of the dozen voters who gathered in a conference room in North Carolinas biggest city.

Katie Burak, 30, a financial planner, worries that there could be more riots and racial strife in her hometown if Trump wins. But she does not trust Clinton and worries that she would not rise to the occasion when national tragedies inevitably strike.



Im typically more conservative, she said. But what scares me about Trump, with the recent protests, I worry what might happen to our cities and our towns if hes elected, especially when were so divided. But I also think he can bring new expertise and smart people who can advise him.



The self-described moderate added that she does not think Clinton has empathy. Shes too well prepared, shes too well spoken, said Burak. She looks too good behind the podium.  I dont envision her as motherly or grandmotherly. I cant see her relating in difficult situations. Only when she has time to prepare does she look good.



Burak said either one could still get her vote hesitatingly. I dont know what to do, she said.

#

First off, I should specify that it has been many, many years since I took the SAT, and I understand that the test has undergone all sorts of changes since dinosaurs walked the earth. Also, while I did pretty well on the "verbal" portion of the test, I consistently did better on the math portion. (That's all there was in those antediluvian days.) This was surprising, in that I thought of myself, and was generally thought of, as more of a "word person" than, certainly, a math one.Part of my problem may have been the tiresome and unproductive habit of wasting time and thought on trying to figure out the most nearly correct answer (among the multiple choices -- which themselves presented such a curious representation of reality -- offered by test-makers who hadn't thought out their choices nearly as completely as they imagined) rather than focusing on which answers the test-makers meant to get back. Actually, I tended to get trapped in the content of, say, the little texts about which we were then supposed to answer questions (and still think of the one that explained that "Horatio Alger novels" aren't at all what our cliched image tells us they are).Nevertheless, nevertheless. I'm wondering whether those same reasoning skills that were tested by the little-text Q-and-A's might be transferable to the post in this morning's"Daily 202 (Morning intelligence for leaders), " The agonizing torment of a dozen undecided voters in North Carolina ," by James Hohmann with Breanne Deppisch, reports on "a focus group in Charlotte last night," which purports to have shownAmong the focusees, I was especially struck by this one.And I'm thinking that this little text might be investigated using some of the same reasoning skills applicable to SAT questions. A professional test-maker could probably rig up more professional questions than these, but here's a rough draft.(a) So there will be less riots and racial strife in Charlotte.(b) ???(c) ???(d) ???(a) It doesn't say, but probably it's all the lies and distortions offered by Trump.(b) It doesn't say, but maybe this refers to the decades' worth of lies and distortions offered by right-wing sociopaths for whom vilifying Clintons is better than sex.(c) It doesn't say, but Benghazi! Benghazi! Benghazi!(d) It doesn't say, but it must be all those e-mails leaked by WikiLeaks showing that Clinton knows how to cozy up to the rich and powerful -- something that Donald Trump has never done. (Probably Katie reasons that WikiLeaks didn't have any of those e-mails when they might have been used against Clinton in the Democratic primaries, to benefit Bernie Sanders, and of course Julian Assange himself says, apparently with a straight face, that among all the billions and billions of documents WikiLeaks has access to, there isn't a single one that contains significantly disparaging information about Trump.)(a) It doesn't say, but never mind her extensive experience at the upper levels of government and international relations, it's clear that she couldn't handle a crisis, unlike Trump, who we know responds to even the slightest slight by throwing a hissy fit, which will scare the dickens out of people like Vladimir Putin and the fiendish leaders of ISIS.(b) ???(c) ???(d) ???(a) It doesn't say, but he's rich, isn't he? (Well, isn't he?) And he can't have gotten rich just by finagling and conniving with and against other rich people and exploiting subordinates and other people without power, can he?(b) It doesn't say, but even though he's really never made much money by providing goods or services, he knows all about the Art of the Deal, doesn't he? And doing deals that transfers money from other people's pockets topockets is just the kind of skill a president needs, isn't it?(c) Um . . .(d) Well . . .(a) ???(b) ???(c) ???(d) ???(a) "Shes too well prepared, shes too well spoken. She looks too good behind the podium. I dont envision her as motherly or grandmotherly. I cant see her relating in difficult situations. Only when she has time to prepare does she look good."(b)Does Katie hear what she's saying?

Labels: 2016 presidential race, Hillary Clinton, Trump
Elon Musk Latest News & Update: Tesla Maker & Billionaire Wants To Begin Colonizing Mars In 2018

Elon Musk is aiming to colonize Mars as a backup measure in case Earth is destroyed by any catastrophic event. The billionaire CEO of SpaceX want to take one million people to the red planet at an affordable price of $200,000 per person at most.

Business Insider revealed that Elon Musk detailed his colonization scheme, which involves four phases. He explained how his Interplanetary Transport System, consisting of rockets, fuel pods, space ships and other components would accomplish the task, at the International Astronomical Congress in Guadalajara, Mexico.

According to Elon Musk, the first step involves sending Dragon scouting missions, hopefully in 2018, to ensure that they can land on Mars without making a crater and finding the best means to introduce water for the Sabatier Reaction. Elon Musk explained that the missions will also provide more information on the technologies required to land huge payloads propulsive on Mars, as well as the total Mars colonization architecture.

Elon Musk wrote on Reddit that the second phase will include a fuel pod spaceship filling the tanks of a crewed ITS spaceship. Elon Musk plans to build the pieces of a full-scale methane fuel factory.

The depot will refuel the ITS spaceships so that these can return to Earth. Building a propellant plant on Mars will allow the steady arrival and return of spaceships between the two planets.

The third phase in Elon's Musk's plan will launch the first crewed mission with equipment that will create the rudimentary base and finish the propellant plant. The base will have power, grow food, recycle water, and produce oxygen, among other things.

Elon Musk revealed that the first colony on Mars will be named Mars Base Alpha. After it is built, colonists will use their habitats as a homebase to complete the fuel factory.

The final step will have them attempt to double the number of flights between Earth and Mars, until the city can grow independently. Any colony may only require 10,000 volunteers for basic genetic viability.

Elon Musk is keen on building a city on Mars, instead of mere survival. However, Elon Musk cautioned that the initial trips to colonize Mars will be highly risky.
Xiaomi Mi Note 2 Release Date, Specs & Update: With Galaxy Note 7 Out; China Phone Is A Strong Contender To Google Pixel

With the Galaxy Note 7 good as gone, this China phone is making promise in becoming a strong competitor, even against Google Pixel. This where the Xiaomi Mi Note 2 steps in.

According to CNET.com, The Xiaomi Mi Note 2, manufactured by Xiaomi Technologies, is a good alternative for the Samsung Galaxy Note 7. With a distinctive body design of a curved glass on both sides, the Mi Note 2 has a 5.7-inch full HD display using the state-of-the-art flexible OLED screen technology that "lightly wraps around the edges," writes Engadget.

Considered to be lightweight, the Xiaomi Mi Note 2's ergonomic design makes gripping the device more comfortable, compared to the heftier Galaxy Note 7. Powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor, it also provides a 6GB on RAM and 128GB on internal storage. With its Android operating system, the Mi Note 2 runs on a Xiaomi-customized MIUI 8 skin. Just like any skin out of China, this device lacks an app drawer.

The Xiaomi Mi Note 2's main camera uses a higher resolution - the 22.56-megapixel Sony IMX318 sensor. Though it does not have optical stabilization qualities, such as the laser auto-focus, it does provide an electronic image stabilization for 4K video capture. As for the front camera, it is an 8-megapixel f/2.0 imager with Sony's IMX268 plus auto-focus, which is very appealing for those who love selfies.

Other key specifications include a non-removable 4,070 mAh battery with Quick Charge, 1080p resolution, fingerprint, accelerometer, gyro, proximity and compass sensors. The potential price for the Xiaomi Mi Note 2 would be approximately at $485 when it becomes available to the public. It comes in Piano Black and Glacier Silver colors.

Set to be available by November 1, the Xiaomi Mi Note 2 will have a special model that will support 37 different 4G LTE bands, thus making it very much accessible in almost any country.
Divergent Star Shailene Woodley Latest News & Update: A Fearless Acitvist, Faces Charges?

"Divergent" actress Shailene Woodley was arrested due to criminal trespassing. She was arrested while having a peaceful protest and now facing two months in jail with $3,000 in fines.

According to Just Jared Jr. Shailene Woodley was with three others namely Kendrick Sampson, Ezra Miller and Jaden Smith. The three protested together with many others against Dakota Access Pipeline to support the Climate Revolutionary rally held at Levitt Pavilion Mac Arthur Park in LA.

Shailene pleaded not guilty for the criminal trespassing in North Dakota courtroom last Wednesday. She was not physically present but she was represented by her attorney Alexander Reichert. She believed she was arrested because she was able to record a video of the protest which has been viewed by 40,000 people and of course she was famous.

Meanwhile, HofMag wrote that Shailene Woodley will be very much interested in doing another "Divergent" movie and she did not sign for "The Divergent" series. She also clarified that she was being happy doing that kind of protest.

"Feeding off the hype of a celebritys arrest aint going to save the world. But, standing together will." -Shailene Woodley pic.twitter.com/cRSesYa7LC  Shailene Woodley (@ShaileneArmy) October 20, 2016

Like everyone else she also does trespassing and she accepted it. Shailene celebrated her activism and she was even honoured for her activism by the Environmental Media Association. She also urged people to live a more compassionate life and to think more about the environment.

Shailene Woodley will stand trial for pipeline arrest in January, faces two months in jail https://t.co/eHDkihcbhO pic.twitter.com/g9FmbfU3So  Daily Mail Celebrity (@DailyMailCeleb) October 24, 2016

Shailene added that it's not about helping the environment, but it's more about recognizing that she also wanted her children to live a life with a beautiful nature or even oceans. It's not about saving the earth, but it's more about recognizing that the younger generation has the right to live a life with a beautiful nature and a healthy environment.


How To Fight Zika: Mosquitoes To Be Infected With Bacteria?

Two foundations, the Wellcome Trust and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, along the Brazilian, U.K. and U.S. governments, funded a plan that will release an army of infected mosquitoes to two large areas of Brazil and Columbia. The aim of the foundations is to stop the spread of the Zika virus, which can cause brain damage in infants and illness in adults.

This plan is supported by the World Health Organization (WHO). The mosquitoes will be infected by Wolbachia so it could eliminate the spread of Zika.

Researchers at Australia's Monash University have been working on this project for the past decade, according to The Guardian. The project was initially aimed to infect mosquitoes with Wolbachia in order to eliminate dengue. Now, this plan will be used for terminating the spread of Zika.

This plan has been tested in Australia, Vietnam and Indonesia, and most of them succeeded. With its success, scientists want to do the same thing in Columbia and Brazil. This technique was developed by Monash University in Australia. The group of researchers spent the last decade conducting field trials.

The first trials will take place in Bello in Columbia and Rio de Jeneiro in Brazil in 2017. Scientists will monitor the areas, Telegraph UK reported.

Zika has spread through 50 countries. It is believed it is the cause for nearly 2,200 cases of microcephaly, an abnormal smallness of the head of the babies, and with brain damage.

"If it works, it will be truly remarkable, but it has to still be working in ten years," Dr Philip McCall, a medical entomologist who studies mosquito control at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, UK, said.

Meanwhile, Professor Scott O'Neill, of Monash said they have a major problem with Zika virus that will be transmitted around the world. He added there are no effective treatment to control the disease transmitted by a mosquito.
Apple TV Release Date, News & Update: Tech Giant Focusing On Software; 2017 Launch Expected! Impressive Specs & Features Revealed! More Details

If reports are to be believed, Apple could be releasing a next-generation Apple TV in 2017 to celebrate the gadget's 10th birthday. Earlier reports suggested that the gadget was set for a 2016 release. However, a 2017 release seems more plausible.

While the Apple TV never really featured in the main portfolio of the company's products, with Apple updating it less often compared to its other gadgets, the ever-increasing demand for streaming media and other smart-home applications and gaming platforms have put the TV into the company's main portfolio.

Rumors suggest that the 5th Generation Apple TV will improve on its functions and features dramatically. In fact, Apple CEO Tim Cook said that the Cupertino company has big plans for the Apple TV and the surrounding smart TV ecosystem.

Thus, Cook's comments on the future of the gadget at Apple's Q3 2016 earnings conference call have intrigued fans once again who are now expecting nothing less than dramatic when the next-generation Apple TV launches.

The gadget may have an upgraded interface that will enhance user experience a lot for those who are signed up to various content providers. Moreover, Apple may focus more on improving the software rather than the hardware of the Apple TV, writes Recode.

As per Recode, Apple could be developing a software-based program guide. In fact, the Apple TV maker mentioned it while speaking on tvOS 10 at WWDC in June. There is a new feature on tvOS 10 that allows users to sign in once with a login id and password.

Once done, the operating system will automatically sign in to all services such as Prime Video, Amazon, Netflix to name a few. Apple is also reportedly in talks with content providers for creating a trusted and simple interface that would enable users to access and browse everything they want. Stay tuned to GamenGuide for more Apple TV news and updates!
'Daredevil' Season 3 Spoilers Latest News & Update: Season 3 Characters Rooted;The appearances Of The Punisher, Micro And Luke Cage ?

Netflix affirmed last July that the "Daredevil" will return for another season. Since the "Daredevil" season 2 has finished with an intriguing cliffhanger, fans are basically amped up for what will happen next on season 3.

In spite of the fact that it has been said that the "Daredevil" season 3 won't be seen until 2018.This came about to numerous fans and film commentators begin to calculate or speculate on who and what will happen next on Matt Murdock's mission.

As indicated by B2C (Business 2 Community), there may be a possibility that Bullseye will show up. The Bullseye is known to be a long-term foe of "Daredevil" as the Bullseye needs to murder each vigilante on his hit list.

If you are a fanatic of the Marvel Comics, you may recall that Bullseye slaughtered Elektra and Karen Page. For us, we won't expect Bullseye yet, since Elektra is anticipated upon to be revived, and everything will take after, it is possible that she will be a scalawag and or still in favor of "Daredevil."

Steve Dillon art brought to life : Daredevil Season 2 pic.twitter.com/pdxXg0nHAc  Cool Comic Art (@CoolComicArt) October 23, 2016



On the "Daredevil" season 2 finale, you will see Frank Castle drawing out a CD at the back of a photograph named Micro. This is affirmed to be David Linus "The Microchip" Lieberman is known to be the immense arms builder of Frank Castle.

As Charlie Cox said in a meeting, it might be a ton of time before "Daredevil" season 3 will be unveil, yet Netflix will ensure it will be a huge hit once more. The Defenders, Iron Fist and The Punisher are set to release this 2017.
'Hawaii Five-O' Season 7 Spoilers: Cult Plays Deadly Halloween Hunt With Kono & Adam As Prey; Steve Dabbles in Paranormal With Medium's Death

The next episode of "Hawaii Five-O" Season 7 will have some spooky elements just in time for Halloween. It's title of "Ka hale ho'okauweli," also seems appropriate since it actually translates to "House of Horrors" in English.

According to the "Hawaii Five-O" official Twitter page, Adam Noshimuri (Ian Anthony Dale) and Komo Kalakaua (Grace Park) will be kidnapped apparently by a death cult. Meanwhile, the promo for the episode shows Steve McGarrett (Alex O'Loughlin) and Danny Williams (Scott Caan) worried sick apparently for the safety of Kono and Adam.

The kidnappers of the couple appears to be wearing masks similar to the one used by Ghost Face in the "Scream" movies. Also seen in the teaser for the "Hawaii Five-O" episode are Kono and Adam chained apart on posts with the other victims of the cult.

In another scene from the "Hawaii Five-O" promo trailer, the couple along with other girls are shown being led into the woods by cheering masked men. They appear to be getting ready for a deadly Halloween night hunt with their victims, including Kono and Adam, as their helpless prey.

It's unfortunate that the kidnapping of Kono and Adam comes so soon after their happy reunion. Adam was finally released from jail last week as reported by Gamenguide. What could the kidnappers' intention be for kidnapping them?

The upcoming episode of "Hawaii Five-O" Season 7 will also somehow delve with the paranormal as it showcases the murder of a medium with a dark and questionable past. His death will be caused by a violent spirit which apparently scared him to death.

Watch whether Kono and Adam will be able to get out of he dangerous situation they got into by themselves or Steve will realize in time that they are in trouble and come to their aid with the rest of the Hawaii Task Force members on "Hawaii Five-O" Season 7 episode 6. It airs on Friday, October 28, on CBS.
One Direction Latest News: 4 Of 5 1D Members Now Have Solo Careers; Louis Tomlinson Forming An All-Girl Group With Simon Cowell?

One Direction surely made its name as one of the most sought-after boy bands since they have been introduced to "The X Factor: UK". For more than three years, they still warm the hearts of their fans, even if one of them, Zayn Malik, has left the group in 2015 and went for a solo career. Not until the first half of 2016 when Niall Horan, Harry Styles, and Liam Payne have also left the group to start their individual careers as solo artists.

Niall Horan, who left One Direction after Zayn Malik launched his career as a solo performer, recently kicked off his career as a solo artist with the release of his first-ever solo single titled "This Town." It debuted on Vevo with an acoustic vibe in a black-and-white video. He has signed a deal with Capitol Records, along with Liam Payne.

Harry Styles is geared towards multiple directions on his career as he has signed a solo recording contract with Columbia Records, the same record producer for One Direction. E! Online further reports that aside from his singing career, Harry is currently filming Christopher Nolan's World War II drama titled "Dunkirk."

Liam Payne announced last July 21 on his Twitter account that he had signed to Capitol Records as a solo artist. He furthers his tweet by saying, "One Direction will always be my home and family but I'm very excited to see what his chapter brings." MTV reports. However, there are updates about him sealing a North American deal with Republic Records.

But, a surprising move is being made by Louis Tomlinson. Teaming up with Simon Cowell, Louis is seen to be making a girl group version of One Direction!

According to Billboard, Louis had an interview with "X Factor's Xtra Preview," and he mentioned that he "is lucky enough to be working with Simon, who was One Direction's mentor since they have started. We've got a few different projects going on at the moment one of which is we're trying to put a girl band together."

Being an "X Factor" living testimony, with One Direction placing third in the seventh season, Louis returned to the show to become a guest judge this season.
Samsung Galaxy Tab A Release Date, Specs & Features: New 10.1 Inch Device with S Pen; Things to Know Before Buying

Samsung is on the news too frequently these days, but unfortunately it is not for good reasons. The tech giant is currently facing crisis after it was forced to issue recall and stop production of Galaxy Note 7 mobile phones following reports of explosions and fire.

Now, Samsung is hoping to get back in the competition and redeem itself from failure by releasing the newest 10.1-inch Galaxy Tab A with S Pen. The company is confident enough that through its new innovative offering, people will come and trust them once again.

On Oct. 24, via press release, the company announced the launching of Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 with S Pen in the United States. The powerful tablet offers stronger processor and vibrant display that most buyers want to see in a gadget.

Features

Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 with S Pen features large screen complemented with sharp 1,920 x 1,200 display resolution. It has an S Pen that enhances users' multitasking experience. In addition, the unit is lightweight, only 1.22 pounds, and it is enclosed in sleek casing that is available in black and white.

"With an embedded S Pen, consumers can discover more ways to express themselves," Business Wire quoted Gary Riding, Samsung America Senior Vice President of Product Marketing. "They can write, take screenshots, draw and edit with precision."

Specifications

Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 with S Pen runs on Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow and it is powered by Exynos7870 octa-core processor. It has 3GB RAM and 16 GB memory storage that can be extended by up to 256 GB of micro SD support. The tablet also boasts 8MP rear and 2MP front cameras.

Of course, Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 with S Pen also offers various connectivity options like bluetooth, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac and USB 2.0. Its battery capacity of 7,300mAh provides users pf up to 14 hours of playback or internet time.

Price and Release Date

Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 with S Pen has a starting price of $349.99. The device is set for Oct. 28, 2016 release.
Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX and 2.5 ReMIX Release Date, News & Update: Kingdom Hearts Bundle To Include Six Previous Installments

Every Kingdom Hearts game that has been released has been adored and raved about by those who have played it. With more installments in the franchise coming, those who would want to revisit their experiences playing earlier installments are in for a big treat as "Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX" and "2.5 ReMIX" are headed to the PlayStation 4. These come in a form of bundles of the previous games in a remastered compilation that will bring in all six adventures on a single disc.

Polygon reports that this release is done by Square Enix to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the "Kingdom Hearts" franchise on March of 2017. The "Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX" and "2.5 ReMIX" trailer showcases some classic moments across the six games that will be included in the franchise that have been remastered for the upcoming release.

Some notable moments that might spark some memories that were shown are those in "Kingdom Hearts," "Birth by Sleep" and "Kingdom Hearts 2," which have been upgraded to their final mix versions. The other three games in the package are "Chain of Memories," "358/3" and "Re:coded" and will also be remastered to suit its PS4 release.

IGN reports that this upcoming Kingdom Hearts bundle was announced at the Paris Games Week and that the collection will launch for the PS4 on March 28, 2017. This means that it will be released just around two months after the "Kingdom Hearts HD II.8 Final Chapter Prologue" release date, which was recently postponed to January 2017.

For those who could not wait to get their hands on this remastered collection, they can now pre-order the bundle at Amazon. "Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX" and "2.5 ReMIX" were initially exclusive for the PS3 so its PS4 release could mean more than what fans expect.

The release of this collection will allow die-hard "Kingdom Hearts" fans to once again play nearly every game in the series to anticipate further instalments in the franchise that might come a little later. Its release date, which is March 28, 2017, is actually exactly fifteen
'Fast & Furious 8' Release Date, Cast, News & Update: Paul Walker Confirmed Making Appearance? Vin Diesel Speaks Up About Conflicted Emotions

Paul Walker's name has been almost synonymous to the "Fast and Furious" franchise. However, his untimely demise back 2013 left the release of "Fast and Furious 7" hanging. The production team made it work through technology, and they aim to bring him back for the "Fast & Furious 8."

Paul Walker and "Fast and Furious" 8

With Paul Walker's shocking death three years ago, the production of "Fast and Furious 7" was left in the balance. The movie was set for a 2015 release and per usual, Walker was portraying a pivotal role in the film. The production team found a remedy to this dilemma though through using imaging technology that seemed to resurrect Walker in all his glory. But, it did not stop "Fast & Furious 8" from happening.

Fast forward to 2016, "Fast & Furious 8" is already in development. The production team aims to once again bring Walker's character back into the mix. However, his best friend and co-star Vin Diesel had admittedly conflicted emotions about the stint.

Vin Diesel said that just talking about bringing Walker back is very profound. He actually even thought about discontinuing the movie series as he did not know the exact direction of the story without his best friend. However, "Fast & Furious 8" is definitely moving forward, and it is still up for debate if Walker would actually be in the movie. What is clear though is that there would be some form of tribute or call back to his character in the upcoming movie.

Cody and Caleb Walker

Paul Walker's brothers, Cody and Caleb, continued to work on "Fast and Furious 7" after the actor's demise. Their movements and actions were recorded and Paul's face was digitally superimposed in post-production. Vin Diesel said that this process helped all of them grieve and eventually move forward. Caleb also stated that he learned a lot more about his brother from his close friends and co-actors. Are they returning in "Fast & Furious 8" movie?

It is still under debate whether or not Cody and Caleb will be returning to work on "Fast &Furious 8." Meanwhile, the brothers have been continuing to work on Paul's passion project. Reach Out Worldwide is now helping the flood victims in Louisiana.

"Fast & Furious 8" will be showing in cinemas on April 12 next year. Stay tuned to GamenGuide for more "Fast & Furious 8" news and updates!
PlayStation Plus November Lineup Latest News & Update: Another 'Meh' Month? Sony Includes 'Everybody's Gone to the Rapture, Dirt 3 & More

Another month, another lineup of fresh new games for the PlayStation Plus. For the month of November, Sony is once again dishing out six new games for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3 and the PS Vita. However, to the dismay of the fans, it looks like the company is going away with triple A games and would instead bring more independent titles.

'Everybody's Gone to the Rapture'

This is the headliner and is the first game for the PlayStation 4. This game was released last year, and is the spiritual successor of Dear Esther. "Everybody's Gone to the Rapture" is set in an English town where players must uncover the mystery and find the missing inhabitants.

'The Deadly Tower of Monsters'

This game is playable once again for the PlayStation 4 and was released just earlier this year. Follow Dick Starspeed as he crashes in Gravoria. In "The Deadly Tower of Monsters," players have to fight dinosaurs, nukular ants, and other stuntmen to make it to the tower.

'Dirt 3'

This racing game is playable through the PlayStation 3 and was released back in 2011. You can race against opponents in different tracks, including night, rain, and snow. "Dirt 3" also offers online multiplayer racing through the PlayStation Network.

'Costume Quest 2'

This RPG is once again playable via the PlayStation 3 and was released in 2014. This Halloween-themed game lets players to trick and treat and eventually fight villains while in costume. "Costume Quest 2" follows the brothers Wren and Reynold to save Halloween.

'Letter Quest: Remastered'

This game is available for the PS Vita and can be cross bought for the PlayStation 4. It was released earlier this year. "Letter Quest: Remastered" allows the player to demolish the opponents with upgrades, weapons, books, and other equipment.

'Pumped BMX+'

The last entry on the list, this game is for the PS Vita, and can also be cross bought for the PlayStation 4. It enhances on the mobile experience of the mobile predecessors. "Pumped BMX+" introduces new stunts, tricks, vehicles and equipment.
'Game Of Thrones' Season 7 Predictions SPOILERS: Lena Headey's Cersei Lannister Gets Betrayed By Euron Greyjoy, Loses The Iron Throne?

Fans have been busy looking for photos of Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen together but there have been no updates on Cersei Lannister or Euron Greyjoy in "Game of Thrones" Season 7. Although it is possible that Lena Headey and Pilou Asbaek will begin shooting more scenes later in the year, their characters might not get along very well.

Is it possible that Cersei Lannister will find a new ally only to realize that she has made a truly formidable opponent? Will Euron Greyjoy betray the new Queen of the Seven Kingdoms and take the Iron Throne for himself in "Game of Thrones" Season 7?

Will Cersei Lannister Regret Her Alliance With Euron Greyjoy In 'Game Of Thrones' Season 7?

GamenGuide has previously reported about the possible alliance between Cersei Lannister and Euron Greyjoy in "Game of Thrones" Season 7. The two characters are expected to work together so Cersei can get rid of Daenerys Targaryen while Euron gets to own her three dragons. However, the new King of the Iron Islands might have other plans as well.

It's no secret that Euron Greyjoy will stop at nothing to claim power, since he killed his own brother Balon to become the Salt King. There is a huge possibility that Euron will immediately betray Cersei Lannister so he can have the Iron Throne in "Game of Thrones" Season 7. However, Lena Headey has other things to worry about other than losing control of Westeros.

'Game Of Thrones' Season 7 Star Lena Headey Ordered To Bring Son Back To US

TMZ reports that Lena Headey received orders from a judge requiring the "Game of Thrones" Season 7 star to bring her son Wylie back to the U.S. Headey had brought the boy to England to enroll him in a school in Yorkshire. However, her LA-based ex Peter Loughran insists their custody agreement allows him to see Wylie 10 days every month, which would be impossible with the boy in the UK.
SpaceX Falcon 9 News & Update: Falcon 9 Launches November; Florida Supports SpaceXs Dragon Spacecraft Launch 2018; No KSC Visit From Trump

The tragic explosion of Falcon 9 last September 1 marked the temporary defeat of the SpaceX aerospace company. Although it was reported that the explosion was a sabotage to destroy the image of the company, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk denied such theory.

As reported by Gamenguide, CEO Musk explains that the explosion was due to the formation of solid oxygen in one of the helium bottles located at the upper portion of the rocket's stage tanks. Although there are concerns about future threats, Musk pointed out that SpaceX possesses a technology that records such events.

However, amidst the tragedy, SpaceX remains confident that the Falcon 9 will be able to operate the soonest time. It is reported by Florida Today that SpaceX will launch Falcon 9 in November, and is expected to use pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center (KSC).

Goal is 100 people on each trip, eventually more https://t.co/kCtBLPbSg8 pic.twitter.com/wbXJ6AeWyl  SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 27, 2016

An ongoing project is carried out at Kennedy Space Center to renovate SpaceX's pad 39A in preparation to launch astronauts using the dragon capsules headed for the International Space Station in 2018. The state of Florida has been very supportive of this cause, as Florida deems it an important milestone in creating more jobs.

Future Mars mission departing from historic Pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center https://t.co/kCtBLPbSg8 pic.twitter.com/Zvk4BNybee  SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 27, 2016

SpaceX received an initial $5 million from the state of Florida, and is expected to receive another $25 million should Space Florida continue its plan to invest for the project. It is also reported that presidential candidate, Donald Trump have no plans of visiting Kennedy Space Center. It is said that Trump will be holding a rally in Oralndo International Airport.

SpaceX assures the public that further investigation on the said incident is still ongoing.
Kate Middleton Pregnancy Update: Prince William Names Third Baby after Princess Diana? Pippa Middletons Sister Confirmed 4 Months Pregnant? Queen Elizabeth Overjoyed?

Kate Middleton and Prince William are reportedly expecting their third baby together. Now, new reports are claiming that the father of Prince George and Princess Charlotte is planning to name his upcoming bundle of joy after his mom, Princess Diana.

Kate Middleton Pregnancy Update: Prince William Giving Tribute to Late Mother by Naming Third Baby after Her? Prince George, Princess Charlotte Having Younger Sister Soon?

Celeb Dirty Laundry reports that Kate Middleton and Prince William has agreed to name their upcoming third baby after Princess Diana. Sources have claimed that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge want to give tribute to the former wife of Prince Charles by naming their second baby girl after her.

Rumors have it that Kate Middleton, who is reportedly four months pregnant now, and Princess William have really been trying so hard for another baby after Prince George and Princess Charlotte as they want to expand their brood. However, there are also speculations saying that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge decided to have another baby to escape their Royal responsibilities.

According to reports, both Kate Middleton and Princess William are considered as the laziest Royal couple in the history of the British monarchy. Sources have divulged that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are using Prince George and Princess Charlotte to escape Royal duties.

Though these reports could possibly be true, neither Kate Middleton nor Prince William has confirmed anything as of yet. So, fans of Prince George and Princess Charlotte's parents should take everything with a grain of salt until it has been proven true and correct.

Kate Middleton Pregnancy Update: Pippa Middleton Not Pleased At All? Prince William's Sister-in-law Forced To Cancel Wedding Due To Duchess Upcoming Baby?

Meanwhile, GamenGuide has previously reported that Pippa Middleton is not, at all, happy with these Kate Middleton pregnancy rumors. According to reports, the sister-in-law of Prince William has decided to cancel her wedding with fiance James Matthews.

Insiders have claimed Pippa Middleton knows that the attention of the public is on the upcoming third baby of Kate Middleton and Prince William. Since she reportedly wants to have the public's full attention on her upcoming wedding, the fiancee of James Matthew had to delay her big event.

"Pippa is worried that Kate's pregnancy will overshadow the nuptials. Pippa desperately wants the focus to be on her rather than her sister's baby bum," a Life & Style Magazine source has divulged of Kate Middleton's pregnancy, as stated by Celeb Dirty Laundry. "She may put off the wedding until Kate has had her baby. Pippa is planning things around Kate."

Both Kate Middleton and Prince William are yet to comment on these reports. Stay tuned to GamenGuide for the latest news and updates about Kate Middleton's alleged pregnancy.
Once Upon A Time Season 6 Latest Spoilers, News & Update: Snow, Charming To Play Crucial Role In Evil Queens Defeat

The battle between good and evil in the ABC series "Once Upon a Time" Season 6 may claim the life of show's Savior or vanquish the Evil Queen. Latest spoiler news hint of the important role that the Charmings will play in the upcoming fight.

"Once Upon A Time" Season 6 will soon challenge Prince Charming a.k.a. David (Josh Dallas) and Snow a.k.a. Mary Margaret's (Ginnifer Goodwin) bond as the Evil Queen (Lana Parrilla) unleashes another one of her dastardly plans. In an interview with TVLine, co-creator Adam Horowitz teased that the Charmings' "shared heart" will play a critical part in the battle with the villainous queen.

However, it is still unclear if the showrunner is referring to David and Mary Margaret's close bond as husband and wife or if some form of magic will somehow link the two characters together. Storyline speculations tease of the couple potentially feeling the same emotions and suffering the same physical pain together.

Meanwhile, the upcoming "Once Upon a Time" Season 6 episode 6 will feature Regina's (Parrilla) attempt to rescue Archie (Raphael Sbarge) from the Evil Queen and Zelena (Rebecca Mader). Titled "Dark Waters," Regina will try to distract the Evil Queen while David and Mary Margaret face off with Zelena to save Archie.

The ABC series' upcoming episode will also show Aladdin's (Deniz Akdeniz) inner turmoil as he keeps his distance from Jasmine (Karen David). However, Emma (Jennifer Morrison) will try to persuade the former Savior to connect with Jasmine again. The princess will need Aladdin's assistance to save her beloved Agrabah for the second time.

Episode 6 will also give viewers a peek at Hook's (Colin O'Donoghue) past and the time he spent onboard the legendary Nautilus as Captain Nemo's (Faran Tahir) prisoner. Forced to do the captain's bidding, Hook will embark on a mysterious quest.

"Once Upon a Time" airs every Sunday on ABC. Watch the preview below:
A surge in the share price of a real estate tycoon's construction company rocketed him into billionaire status.

A stock rally has shot property tycoon Trinh Van Quyet, 41, into the coveted place as Vietnam's second billionaire.

On Thursday VnEconomy reported that Quyet, the chairman of property developer FLC Group, held 93 million shares in the company valued at VND561 billion and 279.6 million shares of Faros Construction Corporation, worth VND22.113 trillion.

The news site reported Quyet's total assets at VND22.674 trillion ($1.02 billion).

On December 31, 2015, Quyet, a native of the northern province of Vinh Phuc, purportedly had just VND972 billion. The site attributed the sharp rise in Quyets fortunes to a 653 percent jump in Faros' share prices between now and the start of last month.

Faros serves as the primary contractor on several property projects backed by FLC throughout the country. The total value of the Faros' completed projects is estimated to be roughly VND20 trillion.

Faros has also invested in construction projects valued at VND4.5 trillion. The company expects pre-tax profits of VND450 billion this year, VND624 billion next year and VND663 billion in 2018.

VnEconomy quoted real estate services provider Savills as saying the total value of FLCs property projects, including apartment buildings and resorts, exceeded $3 billion.

Vietnam's first billionaire, Pham Nhat Vuong, has an estimated worth of VND30.989 trillion ($1.39 billion) as of October 27. Vuong is founder and chairman of real estate giant VinGroup.

Related news:

> Ho Chi Minh City's property market recovers, but not without risks

> Foreign investors circle Vietnams property market

> Debt-ridden Vietnamese property group to sell rubber plantations in Laos
Broadchurch Season 3 Air Date, Spoilers, News & Update: When Can Fans Expect TV Series To Air On ITV, Netflix?

"Broadchurch" Season 3 is now in the works and fans are now waiting for its release date on ITV and Netflix. The British crime drama has been known for its distinctive detective story that features Ellie Miller (Olivia Colman) and Alec Hardy (David Tennant).

"Broadchurch" Season 2 maintained the mystery and intense scenes that were first seen in its predecessor. With that, fans are now expecting to see the same in "Broadchurch" Season 3 or even exceed what the show first offered.

As the showrunners confirmed the return of "Broadchurch" Season 3, viewers are now waiting for the announcement of its official release date. ITV has yet to reveal the show's airing, but many believe it will be in 2017 as it began filming in May 2016.

Netflix Life reported that after "Broadchurch" Season 3 airs on ITV, viewers can expect it to be seen on Netflix after one to six months. Of course, Ellie Miller and Alec Hardy are bound to return along with Jodie Whittaker, Andrew Buchan, Arthur Darvill, Carolyn Pickles and Adam Wilson.

Meanwhile, it was recently reported that "Broadchurch" Season 3's production has been spotted ongoing and behind-the-scene clips are now emerging online. David Tennant and Olivia Colman are seen in their characters as Alec Hardy and Ellie Miller.

Julie Hesmondhalgh, too, is seen in an unknown role yet for "Broadchurch" Season 3. However, it has been said that the "Corrie" star's has a very important role in the coming new installment of the television crime drama.

In between breaks of "Broadchurch" Season 3 production, Julie Hesmondhalgh is openly mingles with her fans as she accommodates everyone for a photo opp. Evidently, fans who are on the set hold their phones and take pictures with the stars.

'Broadchurch" Season 3 will be filmed in West Bay, Bridport and Clevedon in Dorset on the south coast of England. ITV has yet to announce the official return of "Broadchurch" Season 3 on the small screens.
Rotary got started in Long Beach in 1917 when seven local businessmen met with a New York Rotarian who talked about his club there.
Aug. 8, 1960  Oct. 19, 2016

Janice died unexpectedly due to complications during routine surgery on Oct. 19, 2016, in Tacoma, Washington.

Born Aug. 8, 1960, in Corvallis to Boyd and Louise Nash, Janice grew up active in church and attending Dixie, Cheldelin and Corvallis High School, graduating in 1978. She received her associates from Ricks College in Rexburg, Idaho, and her bachelor's from OIT in Klamath Falls. She returned to Corvallis to work as a phlebotomist at The Corvallis Clinic.

Janice became reacquainted with childhood friend Ted Anderson, whom she married June 16, 1984. Children soon arrived, and the family was blessed with Megan Nicole, Corinne April, John Terrance and Dean Isaac. In all the places we lived, she enjoyed serving in church. Family was always the focus and center of her life.

Survivors include her husband, four children, three grandchildren, parents and in-laws, two brothers and a sister, and all their extended families. We all miss her greatly, and look forward to being reunited with her.

The funeral will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 2, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 4141 Harrison Blvd., Corvallis. Private interment will be at New Tacoma Cemetery in University Place, Washington.

Please sign the guestbook at www.newtacoma.com.
Im writing to recommend the approval of Philomath ballot Measure 2-102. I will address concerns expressed in recent letters to the editor and a flyer.

It would be foolish of me to try to suggest this proposal is no big deal. There will be impacts as in any growth. However, much of what has been said by opponents is either inaccurate, leaves out pertinent information or throws out unlikely possibilities.

I will try to give you my perspective on the project. I gain nothing by these comments other than to live in a growing community which is good for all of us not a stagnant one as we do now.

The Lowther property has been in Philomaths Urban Growth Boundary since the citys first comprehensive plan. When annexed, it will come in as low-density residential. That means single-family houses and possibly a few duplexes on street corners.

One complaint is that the development is too big at 660 homes. It might feel better if it were divided up. However, it is useful to have a large piece of property that the city can make sure appropriate size water, sewer and streets are planned all at once. As you will note on their plan, they show it built in phases. So that essentially divides it up. They will build one phase and as that fills up start on the next.

The developer has indicated it might take 10 years to build. Philomath has never grown that quickly. With current demand several homes will be built in the beginning, then it will slow down. Currently the only lots available in Philomath are for expensive homes. There is a need for more modest-valued homes for young families which the developer has proposed to build.

The market will dictate how long it will take for the development to be built out. The idea that apartments could be built would require a change in zoning which has public hearings where we could give input. We would not let that happen.

There is concern about water supply. There is adequate water as the city has water rights in place, wells and access to water from Rock Creek for backup and is currently planning beyond that for additional options for water storage. Once last year, the state asked the city to curtail water usage down to 3.2 cubic feet per second. The most the city treatment plant can pull out is 0.95 cubic feet per second and the city never has had a need to exceed it.

So in the worst water situation, the city still could take out three times what they normally do. Also, the city is already planning for upgrades to the water treatment plant as it is near time to expand.

There is concern that the city will have to pay for the development. That wont happen. The developer will pay for all the improvements in the development and they will pay for additional improvements outside the development.

If needed, the city will require bonds to assure infrastructure is built. Those 660 homes will contribute approximately $24,000 each or a total of $16 million for SDCs (system development charges) to pay for future improvements and pay back the city for improvements already made.

There is concern that there will be more expenses for all current residents. Currently because there has been a lack of development, money is getting tighter for the city. New development will increase the tax base bringing in more funds for city expenses. At last years tax rate, if those 660 homes were valued at $200,000 they would pay approximately $2,500,000 in property taxes annually which would pay for city, county, library, fire, schools operation. An average four-person family in Philomath pays approximately $116 per month. This would mean those 660 homes would pay approximately $918,000 per year for city utilities.

There are concerns regarding traffic. The property has access to both Highway 20/34 and Chapel Drive which will spread out traffic. It is true Highway 20/34 needs to be widened to Corvallis. This development will help move that forward. It would be nice now if there was a traffic light at 26th Street and Highway 20/34. It will likely be required for this development.

Many letter writers complain that we dont have a solid plan for public review. That is true. This annexation vote has created that problem. The property must be annexed before the planning process begins.

The city has a very good planning process which the developer has to go through. After annexation the process includes required traffic, water and sewer, and storm drainage studies. City engineers and staff analyze the proposal and reports and evaluate the development in conjunction with the impacts on the city as a whole.

They will make recommendations to the planning commission who will further evaluate the proposal and staff recommendations. The public will hear all the information and will testify during the hearing. Then the planning commission will deliberate and make a decision.

If it is approved and there is no appeal, the project moves forward. If the decision is appealed the issue goes to the city council for deliberation just as in the planning commission process. If the city council decision is appealed, it goes to the Land Use Board of Appeals. As you can see the residents are well protected.

Philomath has been looking and planning forward since the mid-80s. For the last 20 years, Philomath has been one of the most financially stable in the state due to financially sound planning. I know because I was mayor when we began aggressively planning for the future. Subsequent councils and staff have continued this planning. You can trust in the current mayor, council, planning commission and staff to ensure a proper development.

Finally, I want to make sure everyone knows that last year, the Oregon Legislature made annexation votes illegal. This vote could be thrown out by the court.

Vote yes on Measure 2-102 annexation of the Lowther property.
Police are looking into what could be a larger wildlife trafficking network.

Police in the central province of Nghe An said on Friday that they had arrested two people suspected of trafficking wild animals.

Police said that two months ago, they detected an illegal network trafficking tigers between Laos and Vietnam. The alleged kingpin is Le Van Duc, 26, from Nghe An.

They followed Duc and arrested him on Thursday while he was staying at a neighbor's house.

The neighbor, Nguyen Thi Hue, 48, allegedly helped him hide illegal items.

At her house, police seized a tiger carcass, a tiger skin and a tiger head, which were all frozen and weighed 64 kilograms in total.

Police are investigating the case.

A frozen tiger carcass and a tiger skin seized at the scene. Photo provided by the police.

Education for Nature-Vietnam, one of Vietnam's few locally based conservation groups, said that most tigers confiscated in Vietnam originate from other countries like Laos and Thailand. They are used in traditional medicine, despite no scientific basis, or as decorations.

From 2006 to September this year, the organization has investigated 971 cases of trading, transporting, selling and advertising tigers or tiger products. They have helped rescue 14 live tigers and confiscate 69 dead tigers.

Related news:

> Tiger farms feed illegal trafficking in Vietnam

> Police seize 4 frozen tiger cubs, arrest one

> Conservationists cringe at wildlife farming in Vietnam
Welcome to my genealogy blog. Genea-Musings features genealogy research tips and techniques, genealogy news items and commentary, genealogy humor, San Diego genealogy society news, family history research and some family history stories from the keyboard of Randy Seaver (of Chula Vista CA), who thinks that Genealogy Research Is really FUN! Copyright (c) Randall J. Seaver, 2006-2021.
Donation center for refugees : Running strong after a half year but in need of help

BONN Combined efforts to open a central donation center for refugees have proved successful. Still, more help is needed and volunteers are welcome.

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A half year ago, the City of Bonn teamed up with Deutsche Post DHL , the German Red Cross and the church parish of St. Petrus to open a central donation center with second hand clothing, shoes and household items for refugees. Many of the emergency facilities housing refugees did not have their own donation systems so the idea was to have one central place where everyone could go for their needs. The donation center opened on April 1 of 2016 and has since handed out 41,795 items.

The donation center is in a 700 square meter hall which DHL no longer used and donated to the cause. It is on Kaiser-Karl Ring on the corner of Vorgebirgsstrasse. Around 200 volunteers work at the center; they are organized by co-founder Jan Erik Meyer of the St. Petrus parish office. Registered are 150 Besteller or users. These are facilities, people or organizations that make use of what the central donation center has to offer.

Over 7,000 articles have been distributed out for men, more than 6,000 for women and around 6,000 items for the kitchen, just to name a few categories. On the average, around 1,200 articles are handed out weekly.

Under the DHL volunteer program, Global Volunteer Day, around 20 DHL employees spent their afternoon working at the center. For Frank Stockhausen, one of the volunteers, it was a privilege to participate. A truck came in with a load of donations, which the group unloaded and carried in to the center for sorting.

According to Meyer, more help is needed. We need volunteers to come in three days a week for half-days. Secondly, we are happy for any donations whether from private persons or companies, he says. He also encourages anyone in Bonn who is helping or providing for needy persons to register with them as a user. One last thing, he also asks people to check online before coming in with donations. At www.sachspenden-bonn.de, one can see what items are urgently needed and what articles are not being accepted at all. At the moment, the website lists the following needs:

+++Urgently needed+++

kitchen utensils: pots with covers, pans, cooking spoons, spatulas, spoons

mens shoes, including soccer and sports shoes

winter jackets for men, sizes XS - M

baby clothing

buggies and strollers

winter jackets for children

backpacks

Address: corner of Vorgebirgsstrae and Kaiser-Karl-Ring (for Navigation systems enter: Bonn, Frankenbad/Kunstverein). Online map: http://www.sachspenden-bonn.de/anfahrt.html

Entrance: Those with donations can enter into the courtyard from Vorgebirgsstrae

Opening hours: Thursday and Friday 3 - 7 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Contact information: (0176) 26 93 35 50

info@sachspenden-bonn.de for general information

spende@sachspenden-bonn.de for donations
Investigators gathers tools and earth movers used by the employees of Long Son Company. Photo by VnExpress/Q.T

A suspect in the shooting that ended in three deaths and 16 injuries in Dak Nong Province surrendered on Friday morning.

A suspect in the shooting that ended in three deaths and 16 injuries in Dak Nong Province gave himself up to the police on Friday morning after several days in hiding.

Police say they'd been looking for Dang Van Hien, 40, since October 23, the day he and three other men opened fire on a group of forestry workers in Quang Truc Commune.

Authorities say the four alleged attackers are all residents of Binh Phuoc Province and that have long held a grudge against the Long Son Limited Company.

The grudge, they say, began over land disputes that have galvanized the region.

Last Sunday, 33 Long Son employees travelled to the home of Hoang Van Thang, 51, in the forested borderland between Quang Truc and Dak Ngo Communes.

Company officials informed Thang his land had been given to the firm by provincial authorities, while Thang insisted on his right to land he'd farmed for years.

Company officials accused Thang of having illegally occupied the area and proceeded to use earth movers to clear the site.

A group of men arrived to the scene and began obstructing the operation, setting off a clash with Lang Son's employees. Hien and three unidentified accomplices arrived at the conflagration and began opening fire on the workers, killing three and injuring 16 others.

Hundreds of police officers continue to search for the gunmen, who fled the scene.

Dak Ngo Commune official Le Van Minh, said illegal logging and land disputes have plagued the area for years.

"Locals often occupy disputed forest land," Minh said. "Whenever the authorities reclaim that land and assign it to forestry companies, the locals become angry."

Vietnam does not technically allow land ownership but grants land-use rights, which confer the same rights as freehold property.

Related news:

> 3 shot dead, 15 injured in alleged land dispute in Central Highlands
The news site failed to follow its operation guidelines and ignored repeated warnings from authorities.

Vietnams Ministry of Information and Communications has issued a three-month suspension to news website Tam Nhin (www.tamnhin.net) that began on Thursday.

In a decision issued the same day, the ministry said Tam Nhin violated rules defined in its operating license. The news site failed to follow the ministry's guidelines and continued to commit violations despite repeated warnings from authorities.

Further details of the violations remain unavailable.

After three months, the ministry will review the case and decide if the site, which covers a wide range of topics, can resume operations. Tam Nhin, launched in 2013, is owned by Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations (VUSTA).

On October 3, the ministry also issued a three-month suspension to news website PetroTimes, the official mouthpiece of the Vietnam Petroleum Association, for having violated press regulations.

The site's owner sacked PetroTimes editor-in-chief Nguyen Nhu Phong earlier this month; the government revoked Phong's press card the same day.

In another case, editor-in-chief Vo Dang Thien of news site Infonet and his deputy Pham Thanh were suspended for 15 days, starting October 19.

The ministry said officials will review the role the two editors played in undisclosed violations at the news site, which covers a wide range of topics.

Related news:

> Vietnamese news site PetroTimes suspended; top editor fired

> Vietnam suspends top editors of news website
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Protecting the worlds oceans  an important goal of Germanys climate diplomacy

The worlds oceans are vital to our survival. They regulate the global climate and are a source of food and income for billions of people. Only a very small part of the seas enjoys legal protection, however. Our diplomats are working in New York right now to change this state of affairs.
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Whats so special about Project Tango?

Apart from the fact that Project Tango is Google's brainchild, it's the innovative features that come along with it is what makes it special. The Project Tango will allow the smartphone to capture 3D objects in your surroundings, for instance, your home and help visualise things thereby helping the one's who are visually impaired.

Though, it was initially aimed to help visually impaired people, folks at Google have found that it can be used for various other real-life applications. These include mapping and navigation, architectural designing, depth perception and gaming as well. Speaking of which....

Click Here for New Tablets Best Online Deals

Turn your home into a gaming arena

The Google's Project Tango allows you to turn your own home into a virtual, fanciful environment thereby creating an entirely different world to give a richer and deeper experience.

What about its internals?

As far as the specifications are concerned, the smartphone features a gigantic 6.4-inch QHD display (1440x2560). At the heart of the device is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 chipset which both Qualcomm and Lenovo claim to be tailor-made for the Tango. It packs 4GB of RAM coupled with 64GB of internal storage space which should be sufficient for a normal user. The device is backed by a 4,050mAh battery. The imaging department is taken care of by a 16MP camera at the back and an 8MP selfie shooter.

Aimed for a layman?

Ever since the inception of Project Tango, Google has been dreaming about commercialising it. So yes, a normal user can get hold of the device powered by Project Tango very soon perhaps as early as November 1 if you're a US resident. Indian consumers will have to wait for a while, though.

How much will it be priced at?

The smartphone is expected to be priced at USD 499 (approximately Rs. 33,360) which not to mention is a decent price considering the kind of innovative features it brings to the table.

Click Here for New Android Smartphones Best Online Deals
Xiaomi Mi 6: Here 5 Rumored Features of the 2017 Flagship Smartphone Features oi -Abhinaya Prabhu Xiaomi Mi 6, the upcoming flagship smartphone to be launched in 2017 has been leaked revealed its specifications.

Xiaomi is one of the few Chinese smartphone makers that has been quite successful in India, but its presence across the globe is yet to be felt. By carefully and strategically planning its entry in the global markets, Xiaomi can get the much desired spotlight.

While Mi Note 2 and Mi Mix are already announced in China, there is no clear information on when the Mi fans in India will get these smartphones. In the meantime, the upcoming flagship smartphone from the manufacturer - Mi 6 has hit the headlines.

Also Read: Why Xiaomi Mi Note 2, Mi Mix, Mi 5s Will Not Be Released in India

The Xiaomi Mi 6 is the sequel to the Mi 5 and its kins Mi 5S and Mi 5S Plus. The Mi 6 is speculated to be the first Xiaomi phone to be launched in the western markets such as the U.S. and Canada. The Mi 6 is rumored to arrive with promising specifications as mentioned below.

Xiaomi Mi 6 to feature 4K display The Mi 6 is likely to bestow a relatively larger display than the that's seen in its predecessor. The display is claimed to be a 4K screen with a resolution of 4096 x 2160 pixels that will give a pixel density of 700 ppi. Also, it is speculated to feature Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection as it is a flagship phone. Snapdragon 830 SoC to be used The alleged Xiaomi Mi 6 is speculated to be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 830 chipset that is likely to be paired with 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of internal storage capacity. Also, the storage capacity is believed to be expandable up to 1 TB. Mi 6 to be a camera prowess Xiaomi's upcoming flagship could be a camera prowess as it will feature a 23 MP rear snapper and a 7 MP front-facer, as claimed by rumors. Both the camera units are likely to be accompanied with dual LED flash for better photography even in low ambient light conditions. Might feature a physical home button As per the ongoing rumors and speculations, the Mi 6 might be launched with a physical home button that is embedded with a fingerprint sensor as well. The device is believed to be fueled by a decent 3,490 mAh battery operating under its hood. Even Mi 6 pricing has hit the web While there is enough time for the Mi 6 to be unveiled, the gossip mongers have even revealed the estimated pricing of the 2017 flagship smartphone. It is expected to be priced between $450 and $500.

Best Mobiles in India

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OKWU to Unveil its Incredible Range of IoT-ready Smartphones with 4G LTE Support News oi -GizBot Bureau

OKWU, one of the fastest growing Mobile Technology companies in India, is all set to unveil its niche line of 'smarter' phones. The smartphones will be launched on November 15that the Indian Habitat Centre.

Touted to be the next-gen eco system of the gadgets and appliances, OKWU smartphones are designed for tech-savvy generation and promote a smarter/automated way of living. With refined craftsmanship, premium materials and sophisticated smarter technology.

SEE ALSO: Diwali Sale: Top 10 Exchange Offers on Old Phones up to Rs. 20,000

OKWU phones features:

Screen - HD display with resolution 1280x720

4G LTE enabled

Body: Metal finish

Stock android

Pricing: Starting from 6K

U-Arena: Creating an intelligent ecosystem of connected experiences

OKWU is more than just a smartphone; it's a connection point to an ecosystem of devices. The USP of the new smartphone is that it drives on innovative technology and is one of the pioneer brands to augment IoT technology in mobile phones.

OKWU smartphones are android-based phone, which enhances machine-to-machine interactions, doing much more than just surfing the web and running applications. It features apps that communicate with other devices, allowing users to control, monitor and track various appliances through the phone.

"U-Arena", OKWU's solo invention is the first-of-its-kind platform that promotes an automotive lifestyle. This built-in intelligent tool features apps that help users to integrate all their devices and appliances with the smartphone.

Make in India Initiative

With the emergence of Chinese players in the Indian markets with smartphones, gadgets and IoT devices,OKWU is a stand-alone brand promoting the 'Make in India' initiative. OKWU engages the growing Indian smartphone user base with revolution IoT-enabled gadgets that set the tone for the future.OKWU's inclusion of a new series of affordable phones showcases the brand's continued commitment and support to the government of India's initiative to digitally empower every Indian.

Mr. Anshuman Atul, CEO and Managing Director, OKWU commented, "It is time for us to upgrade from a smart phone to a smarter phone. Our niche series of smartphones features progressive technology and pre-installed apps that enables an automated lifestyle. Through our

IoT-enabled gadgets and devices, we strive to make a difference in the lives of 21st century habitants. He further added, "We believe in building a truly urbane brand, constantly working on pushing the limits of software technology that continues to defy boundaries of engineering to perfect the user experience."

SEE ALSO: Why Honor 8 is a complete package?

The company focuses on shaping the future of smartphone market, making breakthrough technology easily available and accessible to the masses. OKWU smartphones will be manufactured and assembled in Shenzhen, China and the company plans to have their own assembly unit in India ahead.

-Press Release

Best Mobiles in India

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'Feels Like Home Season 2' offers something real and tangible to think about; takes home a pertinent point - if your intentions are good, there is nothing in life that isn't achievable.
India 'to expel Pakistani diplomat over spying'

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 9:19AM

India has declared a Pakistani diplomat persona non grata for "espionage activities" and said it will expel him from the country, as tensions are already running high between New Delhi and Islamabad.

India's Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar summoned Abdul Basit, the Pakistani high commissioner to New Delhi, on Thursday morning to inform him of the decision to expel the staffer, who has been identified as Mehmood Akhtar, a visa official at the Pakistani mission.

Akhtar had briefly been held in Indian custody a day earlier but had been let off due to his diplomatic immunity, according to reports.

The Pakistani "staffer has been declared persona non grata for espionage activities," Indian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Vikas Swarup added on Twitter on Thursday.

According to a report by The Times of India, the 35-year-old Akhtar had been found in possession of "highly classified army-related documents" in the Indian capital, New Delhi.

Ravindra Yadav, Delhi's police crime commissioner, in a press conference also confirmed the report, adding that the visa official had been arrested on Wednesday with documents included information on deployment of India's border security forces.

Basit filed a "strong protest" with the Indian Foreign Ministry over the detention of Akhtar, saying it violated diplomatic conventions.

"Pakistan never engages in activity that is incompatible with its diplomatic status," he was quoted as saying by an unnamed Pakistani diplomatic source, who spoke to AFP.

Meanwhile, Indian security forces arrested two men from the country's Rajasthan Province, identified as Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir, who had allegedly handed over the sensitive documents to Akhtar.

Relations between India and Pakistan have been further strained in recent months, with India blaming Pakistan for a raid on an army base in Indian-controlled Kashmir in September that killed 19 soldiers. New Delhi responded with what it called "surgical strikes," infuriating Islamabad.

Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan but claimed in full by both since the two countries gained independence from Britain in 1947.

They have fought four wars with one another, three of which have been over Kashmir.

India and Pakistan agreed to a ceasefire in Kashmir on November 26, 2003, and launched a peace process the following year. Since then, there have been sporadic clashes, with the two sides trading accusations of violating the ceasefire along their de facto border.

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Former Russian Defense Ministry Official Sentenced For Treason

October 27, 2016

A Moscow court has sentenced a former Defense Ministry official to 12 years in prison for treason, the latest in a string of treason cases heard by Russian courts.

The Moscow City Court on October 27 also stripped Andrei Belyayev, a retired colonel, of his rank.

Belyayev was arrested on October last year, though no information was ever released as to the allegations he faced, and the trial was held behind closed doors.

He was identified only as being a former employee of the Defense Ministry.

Russian media said he possessed a Swedish residency permit and a Swedish driver's license.

The case is one of a growing number brought by Russian authorities in recent years, often targeting people for disseminating sensitive information that is already publicly available.

Last year, a scientist named Gennady Kravtsov was sentenced to 14 years in prison after he applied for a job in Sweden and included on his resume information about a new military satellite.

Based on reporting by Interfax and TASS

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/russia- defense-official-belyayev-sentenced- treason/28078630.html

Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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India Expels Pakistani Staffer on Spying Charges

By Anjana Pasricha October 27, 2016

India has expelled a staffer of the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi, accusing him of running a spy racket that accessed sensitive information about Indian security operations.

Islamabad rejected the allegations saying he had been detained on "false and unsubstantiated charges."

The expulsion Thursday comes as relations between the nuclear-armed neighbors have hit a low, following a militant attack last month on an Indian army camp in Kashmir that killed 20 soldiers.

Indian foreign ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said the employee, Mehmod Akhtar, who worked in the Pakistani High Commission, had been detained outside the gates of Delhi Zoo, where he allegedly received documents pertaining to national security from two Indian associates.

Alleging that he was an agent of Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence, Swarup said, "We have definitely busted an espionage ring and the ringleader has been asked to return to Pakistan within 48 hours."

Delhi Police earlier said the employee had been found with documents relating to the deployment of Indian troops on the Kashmir border. They said the official had been recruiting Indian nationals for the past two and a half years to spy for ISI.

Rejecting the Indian charges, in a statement, the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi said "we deplore the Indian action." It said the Pakistan High Commission never engages in any activity that is incompatible with its diplomatic status.

Kashmir fighting

The incident also comes as exchanges of artillery fire across the disputed Kashmir border continue to escalate with casualties reported on both sides. On Thursday, the Indian army said one solider was killed in the firing, the third to have died in the past week.

The Kashmir border became volatile after the Indian army said it conducted cross border raids to take out terrorist camps. Pakistan denied any such strikes took place and said India is trying to take away attention from a spike in unrest in Indian Kashmir.

Since the militant attack on the Indian army camp, New Delhi has led a campaign to diplomatically isolate Pakistan. It pulled out of a regional South Asian summit to be hosted by Pakistan last month, leading to its collapse.

But Thursday the Indian Foreign Ministry said New Delhi would welcome Pakistan's participation in an upcoming conference on Afghanistan due to be held in the Indian city of Amritsar in December in which foreign ministers of 14 countries are scheduled to take part.

Pakistan's adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs, Sartaz Aziz, has said Islamabad would attend the meeting.

Saying they have no official confirmation from Islamabad, Indian foreign ministry spokesman Swarup said, "We certainly could welcome all countries to Amritsar because we are totally committed to peace and prosperity in Afghanistan ... so we would welcome of course participation from Pakistan."

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U.S. Department of Defense

Press Operations

News Transcript

Presenter: Lieutenant General Stephen Townsend, commander, Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve October 26, 2016

Department of Defense Press Briefing by Lt. Gen. Townsend Via Teleconference from Baghdad, Iraq

CAPTAIN JEFF DAVIS: Good morning. Before we get started I just wanted to alert you at 12:30 we will be having an off-camera press briefing back in the press office with Deputy Press Secretary Gordon Trowbridge to discuss the California National Guard matter, so that's at 12:30.

We're pleased to be joined today by Lieutenant General Stephen Townsend, the commander of Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve. Joining us live from Baghdad.

General, I just want to make sure we can hear you and you can hear us.

LIEUTENANT GENERAL STEPHEN TOWNSEND: I hear you loud and clear. How do you hear me?

CAPT. DAVIS: Let's a get a little more volume here in the studio if we can.

And, sir, we'll turn it over to you for any opening remarks you had.

LIEUTENANT GENERAL STEPHEN TOWNSEND: Okay, thanks.

Good morning. It's evening here in Baghdad.

I appreciate this opportunity to offer a few thoughts on our campaign to defeat ISIL in Iraq and Syria. I'll start with an update on the progress of the Iraqi security forces and the support coalition troops are providing them in the ongoing fight for Mosul. Then I'll give you a short update on our developing plans to liberate Raqqah and Syria.

First, progress toward Mosul. The Iraqi security forces have developed a lot of momentum over the past two years. And now we're seeing that momentum continue against ISIL, our common enemy, in Mosul. The ISF are steadily advancing on multiple axes toward the city. The Mosul offensive is a large and extraordinarily complex operations that the Iraqis have been planning for a very long time. They're the ones making the decisions and their forces are the ones who will enter Mosul and raise the Iraqi flag in the center of the city.

We assisted them with the planning and preparation of forces and have provided advice and assistance such as air and artillery strikes and intelligence to support the Iraqi operations.

The coalition has delivered more than 2,100 aerial bombs, artillery and mortar shells, HIMARS rockets and Hellfire missiles since the Iraqis started operations to liberate Mosul on October 17th. This relentless campaign of strikes has removed hundreds of fighters, weapons, and key leaders from the battlefield in front of the Iraqi advance.

Our coalition leaders and advisers on the ground coordinate daily with Iraqi and Kurdish security forces to adjust our support, because we understand their forces are fighting every day for their very lives and their freedom from ISIL, also known as Daesh.

All of this support is in addition to the substantial investment in weapons, equipment and training the coalition has provided to the ISF to ensure they have what it takes to be successful.

A few days before Mosul operations began, I attended the Iraqis' final operational briefing where each commander responsible for a different axis of advance provided their plan to the prime minister. I can tell you that it was clear to me that night that the sovereign nation of Iraq owns this fight. There's a lot of hard fighting ahead, but we're confident the Iraqis will be successful.

On behalf of the coalition, I want to recognize the heroic sacrifices of the Iraqi and Kurdish security forces and their martyrs and their families. It's good to see them pressing steadily forward on the battlefield and we will continue supporting them until Mosul and all of Iraq is free from ISIL.

Now, a bit on Syria. Our Syrian partners in Turkey continued advancing and pushed ISIL farther from Turkey's border. This is a complicated battle space, amid regional security concerns and adjacent to a civil war, and that makes for a complicated planning effort.

We're working with our allies, our partners, coalition members to refine the military plan for the isolation and eventual liberation of Raqqah. While that planning effort is ongoing, we will continue conducting precision strikes to reduce the enemy's freedom of movement, attack their leaders and command and control, and their ability to (inaudible) space is crowded and complicated.

We're finding that Daesh, with their brutal treatment of anyone who doesn't share their twisted ideology, is generating a willingness among local populations to fight them and drive them from their safe havens. This gives us confidence that ISIL will also be driven from Raqqah.

Our coalition is committed to their defeat because we understand that defeating them in Iraq and Syria is an essential step in the defeat of ISIL around the world.

In closing, I want to remind the people of the United States and of all the nations of the coalition, their troops in this region are serving selflessly and with great courage in harms way to ensure the defeat of ISIL. You should be proud of their efforts as you hope and pray for their success and safety. I am now -- I know that I am proud to stand in their ranks.

And with that, I'll take your questions.

CAPTAIN JEFF DAVIS: Sure.

We'll start with Bob Burns from the Associated Press.

Q: General Townsend, question for you about Raqqah, which you mentioned briefly there, and a little bit of what you said was broken up by the audio. But I wonder if you could describe in some detail the main ways in which a Raqqah operation will be different than the Mosul operation?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK, Bob. I think I understood your question there.

So the main ways that Raqqah will be different than the Mosul operation. OK, so the first big difference is it will be in Syria rather than in Iraq. That's pretty obvious.

I think secondly, it's going to be with a partnered force rather than the partner being a nation-state's armed forces like the Iraqi armed forces. It's going to be our partners, our local partners in northern Syria. So that's probably a big difference.

It's also going to be done with a lot lighter coalition footprint. We'll have fewer coalition troops there, less combat capability there. We'll have to apply coalition combat support in a different way than we're doing here in Iraq.

And then, as I alluded to in my opening comments, which you may not have heard, it's a very complicated battle space.

Like I said, it's -- there are a lot of regional security concerns that are in competition there. And the Syrian regime's involved, the Russians are involved, Turkey's involved. It's hard. And there's -- oh by the way, there's a civil war going on right next door.

So it's gonna be a tough -- very tough political environment and a security environment, I think, for our effort there.

Q: (inaudible) on whether it's like to be a longer operation given that it's a smaller -- I believe it's a smaller geographic area will take longer to accomplish than Mosul?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK. I think I see what you're talking about with the audio connection.

Is that Bob Burns with a follow-up? All I heard was smaller geographic area than Mosul. Could you say that again, the rest of the question please?

Q: Yes. General, this is Bob Burns again. And I was asking you if you would be able to describe in terms of the difference with Mosul, whether Raqqah is likely to take longer to accomplish?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: Yeah, I probably don't want to commit to any timelines, Bob. I would think that because of all the complicating factors that I mentioned earlier, the ultimate liberation of Raqqah will probably take longer than Mosul, would be my guess. We're planning to do in stages to isolate Raqqah first, followed by an eventual seizure to liberate Raqqah.

But it's probably fair to say with the complexity and the fact that we haven't really got it underway yet that it'll probably take longer than Mosul.

Q: Thank you.

CAPT. DAVIS: Next, we'll go to Tom Bowman with National Public Radio.

Q: Hey general, staying on Raqqah for a second, we've been told for quite some time now that there aren't enough local forces to take Raqqah. Has that changed? Do you now have sufficient local forces? Or before you move with this Raqqah operation, you're gonna still have to recruit, train and equip more local forces? That's one question.

The other is on Mosul. You and others have repeatedly said that the Iraqi security forces are on schedule to have the momentum. I'm just wondering, from your perspective, what keeps you up at night when you look at the Mosul operation? Is it, you know, possible political troubles with Turkey, with the Shia Militias? Is it a humanitarian catastrophe with more than a million people in the city? Or is it just getting bogged down -- the Iraqi forces getting bogged down in urban fighting? Or is it all of the above?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK. Thanks, Tom.

So on Raqqah, I believe that there are sufficient local forces already available for that operation. However, we have a plan to do, as you suggested, recruit and equip and train more local forces for that operation. So that's part of our campaign plan to generate additional combat power for that future operation.

On your second question regarding Mosul and what keeps me up at night, quite honestly, I'm so exhausted that nothing keeps me up at night. But if there were something that were to keep me up at night, it would probably be all of the above -- all the things that you just answered, all those things you just mentioned.

Q: I have one more. Of those three, which is your most concerning?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: I think the -- you know, of course, I'm concerned just like any commander would be, and now technically, I'm not the commander of the Mosul operation. There's an Iraqi commanding general in charge of the Mosul operation. But as the commander of the coalition supporting effort here, just like any commander, I'm always concerned that we've applied enough combat power, that we've anticipated the contingencies, we've figured out in advance what the enemy might do, and we've got plans for that.

So, I'm concerned about all of that. And I think we've anticipated that, and it doesn't really keep me up at night. The thing that probably -- probably deserves more of our attention than anything else in the coming days is what does the security situation look like in the aftermath of the liberation of Mosul, and what does the political situation look like in the aftermath of the liberation of Mosul.

And quite honestly, the Iraqis are working on those -- those problems. And there is a political process, you know, talks under way to figure out. They've got an overarching plan and how to make that plan as good as it can be. But that's probably -- the aftermath is probably the thing that would trouble me the most.

CAPT. DAVIS: Next we'll go to Barbara Starr with CNN.

Q: (off mic) Townsend, a number of questions, if I might here. Can you help us understand why specifically a lighter footprint for the Raqqah operation? What makes you think Turkey and Russia won't cause you trouble over this? And this force that you're talking about training, should we assume you believe -- you -- that this would be a non-Kurdish force?

So can you expand on all of this a bit more?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK. Barbara, I think I got your questions. So why a lighter footprint? And then I think your second question was sort of the composition of the force that we would -- partner force that we would employ.

So, the first question, why a lighter footprint. Mainly because we don't have a good presence, an existing presence in Syria, northern Syria. All those complicating factors that I mentioned earlier. So here we have developed bases that we've used before; existing relationships with the government. We have a lot of government of Iraq support for our presence here. So it's considerably more robust than it is in Syria.

We're also trying to keep a footprint that's very light there and to avoid worsening any of the complicating pre-existing conditions that I mentioned earlier when I talked about Syria. So we're just trying to do it with a very light footprint and it's pretty deliberate.

I have no doubt that we'll apply the right amount of coalition support to the effort there. And if at some point we decide that more is required, I'll flag that up to my superiors and they'll decide what we'll do. This, as -- to your second question, which I thought I heard had to do with the composition of the force.

So there's a force there called the Syrian Democratic Forces, SDF. They have an Arab wing which we refer to as the Syrian Arab Corps. That force is fairly robust, over 30,000. And a good portion of them are Kurdish forces, Syrian Kurds. But also, another part of that force is -- a significant part of that force is Arabs and other ethnic groups that are from that region.

So we will train the forces that we need. And specifically, we're going to try to recruit and train a force that's from the local area of Raqqa. So that's what's made our -- one of the factors that's made our efforts in Northern Syria successful to date, is we have recruited, in each case -- and Manbij is a good example of this -- we've recruited forces from the local area that were part of the assault force to liberate that area. And they form the core of the whole force that will stay.

So in Manbij there was a military formation known as the Manbij Military Council. It was part of the SDF formation that marched across Northern Syria, that laid siege to Manbij, that assaulted Manbij and liberated Manbij. Now the Manbij military council has secured the Manbij pocket --- the securing -- the -- the SDF or Syrian Democratic Forces, have largely withdrawn from the Manbij pocket. And the Manbij Military Council has stood up the Manbij Civilian Council to govern there while they provide security. So we're going to try to follow that model for Raqqa. That will take a lot of effort and take a bit of time.

CAPT. DAVIS: Yes?

Q: Does this mean, General Townsend, when you say recruit and train from the Raqqah area, that you will be having U.S. forces in the Raqqah area to do that training? Will that training take place inside Syria near Raqqa, as I think you're suggesting?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: Well, I think actually most the recruiting will be done not by us, but it will be done by our local partners. They're quite capable of doing this and there's a -- there's really -- we haven't found a shortage of volunteers who want to go fight ISIL or Daesh, as we refer to them. There's no shortage of folks who want to do that, especially if they're going back to liberate their own home town.

So the local forces will do most of that recruiting. We'll help them. They're -- they're actually quite capable of running their own training. They run what we would call basic training -- basic combat training, they do that themselves.

We actually only assist with specialty courses, weapons, leadership courses, those kind of things. And I don't think that training will be done in the vicinity of Raqqah. Probably most of these folks will be recruited by their means, and moved or told to meet at an offset training location in northern Syria.

CAPT. DAVIS: OK. Next, we'll go to Idrees Ali with Reuters.

Q: Thank you, general.

You described the -- the sort of isolation of Raqqah is going to be complicated. One complication would be sort of this Turkish and Turkey YPG sort of dynamic. Turkey has said they would not like the Kurds or the YPG to take part in this. But obviously, they're part of the SDF. So, how are you gonna sort of balance that factor?

And -- and is the YPG going to take part in this or is Turkey gonna take part in this? Because it sounds like it's either/or from their end.

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK. That's a tough one. I would use my out and say that our connection is garbled, but the truth is I heard the question.

OK. So how are we going to thread that needle with Raqqah, with the SDF and -- and our NATO allies, Turkey? As you correctly laid out the problem there, Turkey doesn't want to see us operating with the SDF anywhere, particularly in Raqqah.

So, the facts are these. The only force that is capable on any near frame -- near-term timeline is -- are the Syrian Democratic Forces, of which the YPG are a significant portion. So, we're negotiating, we're planning, we're having talks with Turkey and we're gonna take this in steps. And we think there's an imperative to get isolation in place around Raqqah because our intelligence feeds tell us that there is significant external operations attacks planning going on, emanating central in -- centralized in Raqqah.

So, we think it's very important to get isolation in place around Raqqah to start controlling that environment on a pretty short timeline. So, we're gonna take the force that we have and it will -- we will go to Raqqah soon with that force. And I think that the Syrian Democratic Forces, to include the Kurdish YPG and the Arab -- Syrian Arab Corps, will all be part of that force to go and place isolation at Raqqah.

What happens after that is still to be determined between our government, our local partners and Turkish government. And I don't know how that will work out. The Turks have expressed an interest to be involved in that. And we'll -- we'll work through that later. But I think that we'll move soon to isolate Raqqah with the forces that are ready to go soon.

Q: When you say soon, you mean a few weeks?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: I mean soon. This -- the enemy's listening to this broadcast I'm assuming. So, I'm not gonna talk about timelines.

CAPT. DAVIS: OK, next we'll go with Kasim Ileri of Anadolu.

I look follow up Idrees' question. You said there are discussions about including of Turkey in this Raqqah operation. Militarily, do you think that there are disadvantages of including Turkey with about force in Raqqah operation?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK, I had a hard time following that. I heard it, I know it had something to do with Turkey and Raqqah and operation, but I couldn't quite get the gist of your question. Could you please ask that again?

Q: So Turkey has long been saying that they want to be involved in Raqqah operation with their ground forces and all other efforts. But militarily -- according to you -- are there disadvantages of including Turkish armed forces in Raqqah operation?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: I think -- so yes. Turkey has expressed a desire to be involved in that operation, and because of the time imperative that I talked about a moment ago, I think we need to go pretty soon. And I think that we'll go with the forces that can go on the timeline that we need. We're willing to entertain any partner, not Turkey or anyone else, who is willing to go down to help liberate Raqqah from ISIL.

That's any partner that's willing to join the coalition and be a part of the coalition to take the fight to Raqqa. We're willing to take -- there'll be advantages to taking any partner down there.

Q: On Sinjar. We know that PKK wants to involve in fight against Daesh around Sinjar. Do you think that it's going to make it easier for the coalition to drive ISIL out of Sinjar area if PKK take role or take the fight over there?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK. Yes, I've heard reports of PKK being located out in the Sinjar area. That's a bit downstream from what we're working on right now, which is Mosul. There are facts -- if they're there, then it's not clear to me how many are there and what exactly they're doing although I know that they were part of the force that kept Daesh, or ISIL, out in 2014 and liberated the Yazidis in the Sinjar region. So I think they're -- if they're there, they're a fact of life on the ground and we're going to have to work in and around them when eventually the Iraqi security forces go to Sinjar. But I think actually -- you know, the force that's really going to liberate Sinjar is going to the be the Iraqi security forces and they'll probably take help from whoever's out there and then folks who are supposed to be there will be welcomed back in to take up their homes again and folks who aren't from there will probably be asked to leave, whoever they are.

CAPT. DAVIS: Next we'll go with Joe Tabet of Al Hurra.

Q: Let me -- let me ask you this -- you just said that Turkey doesn't want us to deal with the SDF and you highlighted the role of the SDF in fighting ISIS. Is it -- is it fair to say that you, the coalition and Turkey, are not on the same page when it comes to the upcoming operation in Raqqah?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: Well, the coalition's pretty big, 60-plus nations, it varies here and there. And pretty diverse views about how to prosecute the campaign. And we listen to all of those, take in all those views, and then we eventually make a determination how we're gonna proceed. And I'm sure that there are members of the coalition who concur with whatever those decisions and plans are and there's probably members of the coalition who don't.

So we take everybody's advice into consideration and then we decide what the coalition needs to do to defeat Daesh in Iraq and Syria. So that's what we're doing.

Q: Yeah. Let me -- let me -- let me re-ask you the question in a different way. When I said the coalition, I meant -- when we talk about the coalition, we mean the United States.

So my question is, given what you said about Turkey -- about Turkey's demands, is it fair to say that the United States and Turkey are not on the same page when it comes to the upcoming operation in Raqqah? And I have a follow-up, please.

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK. Yeah, I knew what you meant.

I'm not gonna say it's fair to say that. I will say that we may have differences of opinion about how to prosecute this operation that are coming up. And the coalition is arriving at a decision about how we're gonna prosecute the operation. We're gonna go with who can go, who's willing to go soon. And then we'll -- once we get initial isolation in position, we'll -- we'll look at how we prosecute the operation further.

Q: Turkey's defense minister just announced that Turkish fighter jets are ready to take part of the Mosul operation, but he asked the Iraqi government to keep the PMF outside Mosul. What's your comment on that?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK. I think I heard most of that. So Turkish fighter jets in Mosul. So we welcome -- as I said before, we welcome any nation that wants to join the coalition, follow coalition rules, procedures and direction about the execution of the campaign. And we welcome -- and that have the approval of the government of Iraq. Every nation that's operating in Iraq today that's part of the coalition has had approval by the government of Iraq to do that.

So if Turkey or any other country meets all those requirements, they'll be welcome to join and participate.

Then I didn't quite catch the last -- I heard an acronym but I wasn't -- I didn't really follow the last part of your question.

Q: Yeah the question was, the -- the Turkish defense minister asked the Iraqi government to keep the PMF out of the Mosul operation. Do you have any -- anything to say on that?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: Yeah so there are -- the PMF are pretty a variety of folks. There are Shia-dominated PMF groups. There are Syrian -- or I'm sorry, Sunni-dominated PMF groups.

There are Christian groups and other smaller, ethnic groups of PMF out there. And the operative kind of guidance that the government of Iraq has been operating on is to not send any group of PMF to Mosul that would not be welcomed by the inhabitants, the residents, there.

So their plan does employ PMF in Mosul. But all of those groups are -- consist of local fighters who are returning to Ninewa Province and Mosul City. So they're predominately Sunni.

There are also some Christian and some other groups, small numbers of those, small groups. There aren't many Shia groups but there are some. The other groups are being assigned to tasks that are supporting the larger operation.

And this is all the decision of the government of Iraq. Getting to the point that one of you asked me you know, about what keeps me up at night. It's got to do with the -- you know, the -- kind of the acceptance of this liberation and the follow-on political situation solution that's in place in Mosul after the liberation.

So if the Iraqis are more in tune to this than we are and so they've decided what groups are going into Mosul and what groups aren't going into Mosul and they were aware of Turkish concerns and other folks' concerns.

A lot -- there have been plenty of voices from outside that have made their concerns known about what group should be where. And the government of Iraq is figuring this out and making the decisions.

And so far, I think they're pretty good ones.

CAPT. DAVIS: Tolga Tanis of Hurriyet.

Q: Thank you, General Townsend.

About this upcoming operation in Raqqah, there are ongoing clashes between Turkish military and the YPG forces in Afrin (inaudible).

And also, the Turkish president said to today if YPG doesn't withdraw from Manbij, the Turkish military will force them to withdraw from Manbij. So given the fact that during the siege in Manbij, YPG lost at least 800 militants according to the U.S. sources.

And given the fact that there are ongoing clashes between Turkish military and YPG in Afrin, are they (inaudible) to join this Raqqah operation without condition?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK I think I actually followed almost all of that except the last little bit. All of your preamble I got, I didn't get -- quite get the question. Say the question again.

Q: Question, do you believe that YPG will join the Raqqa cooperation easily while there are ongoing clashes with Turkish military and while Turkish President said that YPG must withdraw from Manbij.

Are they ready to join this Raqqa cooperation do you think?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK. I think I got the question.

So yes, we've seen in recent days we've seen Turkish Air Force strikes on the Afrin Kurds, and we've seen Turkish artillery strikes on the Afrin Kurds.

We don't think that -- remember in my opening remarks when I said this is a very complicated battle space with competing security agendas in the region and adjacent to a civil war? All of these things come together right there between Turkey and Manbij and Afrin and Aleppo and that area. All of these things overlap right there. It's extraordinarily difficult.

So we just kind of point out when members of the coalition aren't engaging Daesh, they're doing other activities, that's not helpful for the coalition. It's not part of the coalition. And we ask members of the coalition to refrain from undertaking activities that are not focused on the defeat of Daesh.

And as I said before, we're willing to march South with anybody -- to Raqqah -- with anybody who's willing to join the coalition, follow the direction that the coalition's taking and to go defeat Daesh in Raqqah and start that pretty soon.

Q: Follow up sir, just to be -- I mean are you concerned about any fight between Turkish military and YPG in Manbij? And if it happens, can YPG join the Raqqa cooperation?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK. So we haven't seen since late August I think, Turkish strikes against the Manbij pocket. That area has been liberated from ISIL and it's been turned over to local inhabitants who are securing it and governing it. Which I think is the right solution. No Daesh, local security, local governance. That seems to me like what anybody in the region would want to see happen.

We also have coalition forces that are there with them, because ISIL is nearby. And they're there to keep ISIL from -- help the local security forces -- our local partners there -- from losing control of the Manbij area. We've, we're talking to Turkey every day about what we're doing there. Those are good productive talks. The Turks have not fired into the Manbij pocket since the end of August when our efforts to push ISIL out of there converged.

They were pursuing ISIL South from their border and we were pursuing ISIL Westward around Manbij and Northward, and those forces -- those pursuits converged there and we had some tense moments there until it got settled.

Since late August, early September, there's been pretty low friction between Turkey and the Manbij FLOT. And we'd like to see that continue.

CAPT. DAVIS: Luis Martinez with ABC News.

Q: Hi general.

Earlier you mentioned the term "imperative" a couple of times to describe the operation towards Raqqa, particularly with respect to external operations planning. What are you describing there, are you -- is there something that's imminent that in terms of those external operations that you need to prevent?

Is there something that you can do in the lead up to the actual encirclement of Raqqah that can be done to prevent these external operations that you seem to be describing?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: Well, I don't want to characterize the intelligence too much in this unclassified and public forum. I will say that we actually aren't sure how pressing it is, and that's what's worrying us. So we're not sure, we know they're up to something. And its an external plot, we don't know exactly where, we don't know exactly when. You can understand this because you've been following these kinds of terrorist plots for a number of years, and we're gonna try to head it off.

So what we're doing right now is a pretty much continuous watch and strikes in the Raqqah area when targets emerge that we can strike. And so we're gonna do those kinds of suppressive fires until we're ready to amount -- to mount and approach and in isolation of Raqqa.

But there's -- I think, a sense of urgency about what we have to do here because we're just not sure what they're up to, and where, and when. But we know that this plot planning is emanating from Raqqa. Not unlike it emanated from Manbij before the fall of Manbij, the liberation of Manbij. So we think we gotta get to Raqqah pretty soon, and until we can get down there, we're doing a pretty significant set of suppressive fires that are ongoing and continuous.

Q: Follow-up on that, sir.

When -- does this mean that you've accelerated your timeline for the encirclement of Raqqa? And also, Raqqah -- though it's the hub for these kind of operations, it typically means that they have personnel already in place somewhere else. By taking out the center how does this affect the planning if it -- individuals may already be overseas?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: I think -- I didn't quite get the second part of the question, I got the first part. Did we accelerate our timeline for Raqqa? I'll go ahead and answer that and then you can -- if I didn't get that right, you can restate it and you can state your second part of your question which I didn't make out.

So did we accelerate our timeline for Raqqa? No, I'm not sure that we did accelerate it. So since I arrived a little more than two months ago to take command of the CJTF, we've had a broad plan to pressure Mosul and Raqqah simultaneously, or nearly so. Probably a better description would be overlapping. So we -- we're pressuring Mosul now in a fairly significant way that you're seeing play out in the news every day.

And now we want to pressure Raqqah so that the enemy doesn't have a convenient place to go. He's got other places to go but he's gotta make some choices that maybe weren't his first or second choices.

So that's really been our plan all along, and we're still moving forward with that plan. Like I said, not really overlapping pressure on both of those two nodes. So I wouldn't say that we particularly accelerated our timeline.

But if you could ask -- I don't know if I got the first part of the question right or not, and if you would ask the second part of the question right or not. And then, if you would ask the second part of your question which I couldn't hear.

Q: Thank you, sir. You did get the first part right. The second half has to do with -- you talked about -- outside of Iraq and Syria, can you elaborate on that? Outside of Iraq and Syria, can you elaborate on that?

And if you go into Raqqah which is the hub for external planning, how do you affect a plot that may already be in the works of personnel who would carry out those plots overseas?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK, so I won't talk -- again, not real clear but I think I got it. I won't try to characterize ISIL's activities outside of Iraq and Syria because I don't -- that's not my -- that's not my lane.

And so I don't pay that much attention to it. I focus on Iraq and Syria. We know that there's external plotting and for example, in Manbij, coming out of Manbij, we found links to individuals and plot streams to France, the United States, other European countries.

So we know that this is going on in Raqqah, as well. And so I think that's why its necessary to get down there to Raqqah. We know that it's a -- a focal point of ISIL external operations, planning, plotting.

Its their capital, that's another reason why its important to get down there soon to take away the physical part of their so-called Caliphate. You know, so that's why we want to get down there.

External operations plus it's the capital of the Caliphate. And again, sorry if I didn't get your whole question right.

CAPT. DAVIS: Let's go to Lucas Tomlinson with Fox News.

Q: General, what can you tell us about fighters moving between Syria and Iraq, particularly for Mosul, leaving Mosul going to Syria or vice versa, fighters going from Syrian reinforcing Mosul.

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: Sure, there are fighters moving around in ISIL controlled territory. They're been -- they've been doing that for the last two years, they're still doing that. What we're generally sensing is they're trying to insert -- so we don't have a complete encirclement of Mosul.

That's not necessary to prosecute the assault on Mosul to liberate it from ISIL. So the enemy has a way in and a way out. And he's doing some movement of fighters, we're not seeing large movement in or large movement out.

We are detecting some movement and some of that movement is pre -- before -- existing before the attack began, before our attack began. So I think he's probably sending some reinforcements and messages and supplies in and he's moving key leaders out. And we've seen him move some family members out. Which I think is probably an indicator of how he thinks Mosul's going to go when he's moving family members out. I think that's what you were asking me about, to characterize the movement in and out.

Q: Is the coalition trying to strike these fighters moving in and out and some of these maybe families as well?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: Yes when we can identify ISIL fighters, we strike them. We generally don't when we see a car full of women and children. We don't. It's hard; sometimes it's hard to see inside of a car. So they've gotten pretty savvy since Fallujah when we saw entire columns, convoys of ISIL fighters trying to leave in open trucks and technical vehicles in the column, weapons and ISIL flags flying.

They learned from that experience and they're moving in a more discrete way now. But we're looking. And we're listening. And when we see ISIL fighters moving there, we'll strike them.

Q: Despite the airstrikes inside Mosul since the start of the operation according to the coalition, does that take away from the efforts in Syria? It appears that some of the strikes in Syria have gone down since the start of the Mosul operation. So my question is, is this surge of airstrikes in Mosul taking away from strikes inside Syria?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: So any commander who's pursuing operation designates a main effort and their supporting efforts. And the purpose of that is to allow the commander and subordinate commanders to know what's the most important thing we're doing today. We might be doing several things today, but there's always a most important thing. And that important thing is usually weighted with the weight of effort of the enablers and our combat power.

So we're doing a supporting operation, we're not conducting the attack on Mosul. But we're supporting the Iraqi's attack on Mosul. So there's a whole coalition supporting operation that's behind and backstopping the Iraqi operation. So that's our operation.

And for operation I've designated Mosul as the main effort. And so accordingly, I'm pressing the weight of resources to make sure the main effort is successful. So what that means is other efforts will get by with some less. They'll still get enough to get their job done. But we're going to press the main effort. You can't defend or attack everywhere at once. To be successful you've got to weight that main effort and that's what we're doing.

CAPT. DAVIS: We'll go to Corey Dickstein with Stars and Stripes.

Q: Thank you, sir.

You mentioned that the complete encirclement of Mosul wasn't necessary. But for the Raqqah fight, will you have to completely encircle it? And then continuing on that, do you expect a similar you know, kind of defensive strategy from ISIL for Raqqah with suicide attacks, IEDs outside and then a harder urban fight in the city center?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK. So -- now, I don't really want to characterize our plan for the assault -- the isolation and then subsequent assault on Raqqah. We'll make decisions -- actually, Syrian commanders will make decisions about what needs to be done there to completely encircle, to partially encircle and to attack from this direction or attack from that direction. They'll make those decisions. We're -- we haven't reached that stage of the planning with them yet.

Then, do I expect to see the same kind of fight as we're seeing in Mosul? Yes, I would think so. We're seeing ISIL, Daesh, fighting very hard, pretty stuff resistance. He's got an external disruption zone. We expect a very hard defense in-depth, in the center of the city probably. That's probably similar to how I would defend the city, so I think it's probably how they will defend -- and they've pulled out no -- you know, they've pulled out all stops.

As you mentioned, suicide bombers and indirect fire, rockets and mortars and VBIEDs and all of that. I think they'll do the same thing -- similar to that in Raqqah.

Q: (off mic). I know you guys don't want to talk about where U.S. forces are in Syria, but can you talk at all about what role, as advisers, they'll have in that effort? Will they move down toward Raqqah with -- with SDF?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: So you're right, I won't talk about locations of our -- of our folks in Syria. We have folks there. The roles they perform; they equip, they train some of the partner force. We do that at various locations. And we have advise/assist teams that will accompany the partner force wherever they go to defeat Daesh.

CAPT. DAVIS: Andrew Tilghman from Military Times.

Q: General, following on that thought about the force -- the U.S. force in Syria, you've described a level of urgency about the Raqqah operation. And I know you don't have any troop announcements to make today, but I'd like to ask your thoughts on the U.S. presence there.

Do you -- would more U.S. troops in Syria be helpful? Is that under active consideration? Or do you think that that's unlikely because of the complex nature of the battlefield? What is your thinking on that?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: I think my leaders will ensure we have the right resources. There are -- my leadership is from -- from General Votel at Central Command, the chairman and the secretary of defense in the Pentagon and the commander-in-chief. They listen to our requirements and requests, and they're responsive to them.

So we'll have what we need to get the job done in Raqqah.

CAPT. DAVIS: Next to Tony Capaccio with Bloomberg.

Q: Sir, I had a couple of questions. There's been a lot of publicity recently about ISIL's use of drones, either armed or unarmed, for ISR. Can you put that in perspective? Have you seen a great deal of use or is it just episodic onesies and twosies? And what is your capability with existing electronic warfare systems to defeat them?

And then I had a follow up on a different subject.

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK, I think I heard your question fairly clearly. It was about ISIL's use of drones, or remotely piloted vehicles, or unmanned aerial systems -- we'll call them drones for short. So, the ISIL makes extensive use of drones. It's not episodic or sporadic. It's relatively constant and creative.

So we've seen them use them mostly for reconnaissance and surveillance; the same way we use drones. We have detected them using them for fire direction in the past. By that, I mean to control and adjust the indirect fires that they're shooting at the -- our partner forces and at us.

More recently, they've gotten a bit more creative and they have dropped small explosive devices into our partner force positions. Those haven't had, fortunately haven't had a great effect. Excuse me. And recently we saw an example of a Trojan horse, we think, UAV or drone where it was landed in our partner forces lines.

They thought they had good fortune, they had captured an enemy drone. And when they went to collect it and bring it into their lines for examination, it exploded and created casualties. And so, we expect to see more of this. We've put out procedures to our formation to be on guard for this.

And our government is working really hard to come up with solutions. So, we have solutions ranging from electronic attack like you suggested to kinetic kills with small arms fire. And we've downed a number of drones by a number of different means. All of them with varying degrees of success.

Our government has recently fielded several systems, very high priority fielding programs. Other coalition partners are also fielding their programs here in concert with ours. And we're going to try them out here in the field to see how well they work. And we have solutions right now that can work and we're trying to find better solutions for this pretty thorny problem.



Q: Different subject. The expeditionary targeting force -- the special operations force that Secretary Carter announced last year, what role is it having in the shape on the Mosul operations and potentially for Raqqa? Would they be conducting simultaneous if not separate from Iraqi Security Force operations to kill ISIL personnel?

Yes, so that's a fairly sensitive special operations force that we have here. And I'm not going to go into great detail about what they do. Suffice it to say that they're -- we have such a force and it's pressing the fight on the enemy and I like it very much.

Q: Thanks.

CAPT. DAVIS: We are -- no, I don't have time for follow ups.

Last one, sir, I know we're out of time. But Paul Sonne, I promise that's the last.

Q: Sir, thanks for doing this.

Back to this question of Turkish involvement in Raqqa. Is it your assessment that if Turkey has extensive involvement in the campaign to retake Raqqah that that would provoke some sort of response from Russia or the Assad regime? That there are maybe worries that Turkey moving further into Syria than it already has could complicate the battle for Raqqah vis-a-vis Russia or the Syrian government?

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK. I think I got the gist of your question. It wasn't completely clear, but it had to do with Turkey's involvement in the Raqqah operation, I think the Syrian regimes response to that. I don't know -- I hadn't really thought that through like that. I just know that right now Syria seems to have their hands full. And so it's necessary for our coalition to move about inside Syria to defeat Daesh-ISIL because it poses a threat to Syria, Iraq, the region, and our own nations.

So like I said, we'll welcome any contributing nation that wants to make themselves part of the coalition to go fight Daesh in Syria. But that -- join the coalition has to come with not -- can't just come with a whole bunch of strings. They got to be willing to go do what the coalition needs done. We try to employ coalition contributions whether they be troops or capabilities, we try to always, we employ them within the bounds of the wishes of their government.

Once we set out what that arrangement is, then the coalition employs those capabilities. So we'll use whoever wants to go do that, fight Daesh in Raqqa, that's a tough place, probably won't be a very long list. And I would imagine Syria probably isn't thrilled with any of us there doing that. But it's necessary to do.

CAPT. DAVIS: I'm sorry we've gone over time. Appreciate your time today in briefing us. And we look forward to seeing you again soon.

LT. GEN. TOWNSEND: OK. Thanks a lot. Thanks for listening.

http://www.defense.gov/News/News-Transcripts/Transcript-View/Article/987897/

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U.S. Department of Defense

Press Operations

News Release

No. NR-382-16 October 26, 2016

Statement by Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook on Strikes against Al-Qaeda leaders in Afghanistan

On October 23rd, U.S. forces conducted precision strikes in Kunar Province, Afghanistan, targeting Faruq al-Qatani and Bilal al-Utabi, two of al-Qaeda's most senior leaders in Afghanistan. We are still assessing the results of the strikes, but their demise would represent a significant blow to the terrorist group's presence in Afghanistan, which remains committed to facilitating attacks against the United States, our allies, and partners.

Al-Qatani served as al-Qaeda's emir for northeastern Afghanistan, assigned by the group's leadership to re-establish al-Qaeda safe havens in Afghanistan. He was a senior planner for attacks against the United States, and has a long history of directing deadly attacks against U.S. forces and our coalition allies. Likewise, al-Utabi is assessed to have been involved in efforts to re-establish a safe haven in Afghanistan from which to threaten the West, and in efforts to recruit and train foreign fighters.

After an extensive period of surveillance, the United States targeted al-Qatani and al-Utabi at what was assessed as command-and-control locations in remote areas of Kunar province. If these strikes are determined to be successful, eliminating these core leaders of al-Qaeda will disrupt efforts to plot against the United States and our allies and partners around the world, reduce the threat to our Afghan partners, and assist their efforts to deny al-Qaeda safe haven in Afghanistan.

http://www.defense.gov/News/News-Releases/News-Release-View/Article/987885/

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US secretly using Tunisia airbase for drones spying on Libya: Sources

Iran Press TV

Wed Oct 26, 2016 8:57PM

The US military forces have secretly been using an airbase in Tunisia for drone operations to gather intelligence from inside oil-rich Libya, officials say.

The announcement was made by unnamed sources cited in a Washington Post report on Wednesday.

Libya has been struggling to contain the Daesh Takfiri terrorists, who started expanding their presence in the country following the overthrow and death of longtime dictator, Muammar Gaddafi, in 2011.

The base has apparently been in use since late June in an alleged effort to support the Libyan government's fight against the terrorists currently in control of the northern city of Sirte.

The US has also been using bases in Niger and Djibouti but those ones are farther away.

Efforts by the administration of President Barack Obama to Access the airbase were meant to keep drones and small Special Operations teams within striking distance of the militants and close a "blind spot" for US and Western spy agencies.

The officials also asserted that the drones were unarmed and tasked with gathering intelligence, adding, they could be armed in the future if Tunis agrees.

The Tunisian government is yet to issue a possible response to the report.

Drones tasked with assassination in the North African country usually fly out of Naval Air Station Sigonella on the Italian island of Sicily.

Daesh took advantage of a chaos gripping Libya since 2011, when a NATO military intervention followed the uprising that led to the death of Gaddafi.

The reason for keeping use of the airbase secret has been mentioned as part of the Obama administration efforts not to harm Tunisia's "young democracy," as put by the Washington Post.

Washington conducts targeted killings through remotely-controlled armed drones in several African and Middle Eastern countries.

The United States claims the airstrikes target members of al-Qaeda and other militants, but according to local officials and witnesses, civilians have been the victims of the attacks.

The airstrikes, initiated by former US President George W. Bush, have been escalated since Barack Obama took office in 2009.

International organizations and human rights groups say the airstrikes flout international law.

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Inherent Resolve Strikes Target ISIL in Syria, Iraq

From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release

SOUTHWEST ASIA, Oct. 27, 2016  U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Officials reported details of yesterday's strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

Attack and bomber aircraft and rocket artillery conducted seven strikes in Syria:

-- Near Abu Kamal, a strike destroyed an ISIL oil wellhead and an oil pump jack.

-- Near Shadaddi, four strikes engaged three ISIL tactical units and destroyed three fighting positions and an anti-air artillery system.

-- Near Raqqah, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit.

-- Near Ayn Isa, a strike destroyed an ISIL heavy machine gun.

Strikes in Iraq

Attack, bomber, fighter, rotary and remotely piloted conducted 11 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of the Iraqi government:

-- Near Rutbah, a strike destroyed five ISIL bunkers.

-- Near Kisik, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a tunnel.

-- Near Mosul, seven strikes engaged three ISIL tactical units; destroyed eight anti-air artillery systems, seven fighting positions, five tunnels, four mortar systems, three weapons caches, two vehicle-borne bombs, two vehicles, a vehicle-borne-bomb facility, a command-and-control node, a tunnel entrance, a heavy machine gun and an artillery system; and damaged two ISIL tunnels.

-- Near Rawah, a strike destroyed an ISIL bunker.

-- Near Sultan Abdallah, a strike destroyed an ISIL dump truck.

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. Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike.

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 it poses to Iraq, Syria, the region and the wider international community. The destruction of targets in Syria and Iraq further limits ISIL's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.

Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

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Taiwan, Japan to hold dialogue on maritime affairs

ROC Central News Agency

2016/10/27 21:15:14

Taipei, Oct. 27 (CNA) Taiwan and Japan will hold a dialogue on maritime affairs cooperation in Tokyo on Oct. 31, Foreign Minister David Lee () said on Thursday.

Topics will include Taiwanese fishermen's activities around Okinotori, a 9-square-meter uninhabited Pacific atoll that Japan controls, Lee said in a committee meeting in the Legislature.

Tokyo claims the atoll is an island and argues it is therefore entitled to a 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone. Earlier this year, it arrested and seized the fishing boat of a Taiwanese fisherman fishing in the nearby waters, sparking a diplomatic row between the two countries.

Taiwan's government had said at the time that the atoll cannot possibly be considered an island because it's around the size of two queen size beds and cannot support economic life. Therefore Japan is not entitled to an exclusive economic zone and Taiwanese fishermen should be free to fish in the area, the then government had argued.

Lee said the objective of the dialogue is to resolve maritime affairs between the two countries, including fishing disputes, rescue operations at sea and marine scientific research.

Tsai Ming-yao (), secretary general of the Association of East Asian Relations (AEAR), will lead Taiwan's delegation, which will be comprised of officials from the Fisheries Agency, Coast Guard Administration, Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and National Security Council, according to a MOFA news release.

Chiu I-jen (), chairman of the AEAR, will also be present at the meetings, the news release stated.

(By Tang Pei-chun and Kuo Chung-han)

Enditem/cs



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NATO Secretary General: We are as united as ever

NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

27 Oct. 2016

NATO Defence Ministers wrapped up two days of talks in Brussels on Thursday, which marked progress in creating four NATO battalions in the Baltic States and Poland, closer cooperation with the European Union and training for Iraqi officers. "Over the past two days, we assessed the various challenges confronting NATO," said Secretary General Stoltenberg. "We took stock of our progress since the Warsaw Summit  and we mapped out the road ahead. We are as united as ever in our determination to protect our citizens."

Ministers discussed measures to strengthen NATO's deterrence and defence  including the deployment of four multinational battalions to the east of the Alliance in early 2017, led by Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States. The Secretary General called the deployment "a transatlantic demonstration of rock-solid support for our Allies." He also said that the plan is on track, clear evidence that "this Alliance does what it says  and we deliver on our promises." Ministers also considered progress on NATO's presence in the Black Sea region, comprising a Romanian-led multinational brigade. They stressed the importance of cyber in NATO operations and discussed new demands of the NATO Command Structure.

Another important topic of discussion was how NATO can enhance its efforts to project stability in its neighbourhood. In that context, ministers agreed that training and capacity-building of Iraqi armed forces should begin in Iraq itself in January, building on existing training of Iraqi officers in Jordan. The Secretary General called the expanded training mission "an important contribution to the fight against ISIL".

Ministers also decided that NATO's new maritime operation Sea Guardian will support the EU's Operation Sophia, providing situational awareness and logistical support. NATO will have ships and maritime patrol planes available to assist Operation Sophia in the Central Mediterranean within two weeks. Calling this cooperation "yet another example of NATO and the EU working hand-in-hand to increase European security," the Secretary General stressed the importance of the two organisations developing closer ties. He also commented on recent initiatives to strengthen European defence, stating that as long as the two seek to complement not duplicate each other "a strong Europe will make NATO stronger."

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Defence Ministers take forward NATO-EU cooperation

NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

27 Oct. 2016

Allied Defence Ministers discussed practical steps to take forward NATO's cooperation with the European Union on Thursday (27 October 2016). Ministers were joined by the EU High Representative Federica Mogherini, as well as the Defence Ministers of Finland and Sweden.

Briefing the media, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg highlighted the benefits of closer NATO-EU cooperation. He noted that, in the Aegean Sea, NATO's deployment supports Greece, Turkey and the EU's border agency Frontex in breaking the lines of human trafficking. "That is why last night we decided to continue our Aegean deployment," said Mr. Stoltenberg.

Allies also decided last night that NATO's new Operation Sea Guardian will support the EU's Operation Sophia. Within two weeks, NATO ships and planes will be in the Central Mediterranean, ready to help increase the EU's situational awareness and provide logistical support.

Today, ministers addressed ways to deepen NATO-EU cooperation in the areas of countering hybrid threats, cyber defence, coordinated exercises and supporting partners. Ministers also discussed recent initiatives to strengthen European defence. The Secretary General underlined that a strong Europe will make NATO stronger, especially by delivering more capabilities and by increasing defence spending among European Allies.

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USS Ross Completes Operations with Charles de Gaulle Carrier Strike Group

Navy News Service

Story Number: NNS161027-10

Release Date: 10/27/2016 10:39:00 AM

By Petty Officer 1st Class Theron J. Godbold, Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa/U.S. 6th Fleet Public Affairs

MEDITERRANEAN SEA (NNS) -- Guided-missile destroyer USS Ross (DDG 71) completed operations with Charles de Gaulle carrier strike group Oct. 26.

Ross was integral for the completion and successful execution of missions in support of Operation Inherent Resolve while attached to the Charles de Gaulle carrier strike group.

Quote:

"Working with the Charles de Gaulle carrier strike group was a great experience which showcased the strength of our interoperability. We conducted a full spectrum of military operations as we continue to show our support to our NATO allies to maintain a safe, secure, and prosperous European region." - Cmdr. Russell Caldwell, commanding officer, USS Ross (DDG 71)

Quick Facts:

Ross was assigned to the Charles de Gaulle carrier strike group from Sept. 19 to Oct. 26.

Ross provided multi-warfare defense support to French aircraft carrier FS Charles de Gaulle (R91) in support of Operation Inherent Resolve, completed 12 air defense exercises, 4 personnel exchanges, and more than 20 cross-deck operations during 36 days with the strike group.

Ross, forward-deployed to Rota, Spain, is conducting naval operations in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operations in support of U.S. national security interests in Europe.

Ross deployed from Naval Station Rota July 14.

U.S. 6th Fleet, headquartered in Naples, Italy, conducts the full spectrum of joint and naval operations, often in concert with allied, joint, and interagency partners in order to advance U.S. national interests and security and stability in Europe and Africa.

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UAE welcomes UN peace plan to end crisis in Yemen

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 6:58PM

The United Arab Emirates, a key Saudi ally in its deadly aggression against Yemen, has welcomed a new United Nations peace proposal to end the Yemen conflict.

"The UAE supports the efforts of UN [Special] Envoy [for Yemen] Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed knowing that the mission of a mediator is always tough," Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash said on his Twitter account on Thursday.

The remarks came two days after the UN envoy submitted the plan to Yemen's Houthi Ansarullah movement and its allies.

According to informed sources, the roadmap urges agreement on naming a new vice president after the withdrawal of Houthis from the capital Sana'a and other cities and their handover of arms to a third party.

The initiative further calls on former Yemeni president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, to transfer power to the vice president who would appoint a new premier to form a government.

"The roadmap represents a political solution for the Yemeni crisis," Gargash said, adding, "UN efforts represent a chance to bring Yemenis back to the political track. Other alternatives are gloomy."

The Hadi administration, however, said that it had not received any roadmap for a political settlement.

Peace talks, which were held between Yemen's opposing parties in Kuwait, ended in deadlock in August.

Earlier this week, Ahmed made a visit to Sana'a, where he held meetings with Yemen's warring sides and called for a return to a cessation of hostilities to allow aid deliveries.

The Riyadh regime resumed its deadly airstrikes on Yemen on Sunday hours after a three-day truce in the conflict-ridden country expired.

Yemen has seen almost daily military attacks by Saudi Arabia since late March 2015, with the UN putting the toll from the aggression at more than 10,000.

The offensive was launched to crush the Houthi Ansarullah movement and its allies and reinstate the former Yemeni government.

The Houthi Ansarullah fighters took state matters in their own hands after the resignation and escape of Hadi, which threw Yemen into a state of uncertainty and threatened a total security breakdown in the country, where an al-Qaeda affiliate is present.

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NATO chief downplays concerns over formation of joint European army

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 5:28PM

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has downplayed suggestions that EU military buildup might undermine the Western alliance as the bid to establish an independent European army appears to gain momentum.

"I strongly believe it is absolutely possible to strengthen European defense without duplicating efforts by NATO," Stoltenberg said on Thursday, adding, "EU leaders have (also) conveyed that this is not about the EU doing collective defense, the EU building structures that would compete with NATO."

Stoltenberg made the remarks following a meeting between European Union's foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, and NATO defense ministers in Brussels.

Mogherini, one of the strongest supporters of a joint European defense force, has drawn up a global strategy for the bloc, which says the 27-nation bloc should seek "strategic autonomy" to face multiple security threats, ranging from conventional to hybrid warfare, from the Ukraine crisis to Syria, from poverty in Africa to massive refugee flows.

The proposal has sparked concerns that the bloc is seeking a more independent role.

Mogherini on Thursday said the bloc does have civilian and military operations, such as in Africa or in the Mediterranean, and needs to improve command and control centers to run them.

She, however, attempted to downplay concerns that the formation of an EU force could lead to the duplication of NATO functions, saying, "But this can be done ... without any kind of overlapping or duplication with NATO."

In July, an EU strategy document said that the bloc should look to create greater military autonomy from NATO. It stated the EU could no longer rely on the alliance regarding various security issues and must instead develop an ability to "act autonomously if and when necessary."

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker was the first to call for the establishment of an EU army in March 2015.

"A joint EU army would show the world that there would never again be a war between EU countries," he said.

His suggestion, however, received a cool response from NATO.

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Tunisia denies hosting US drones for Libya operations

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 4:45PM

Military officials in Tunisia have rejected claims that the country is hosting a base for US drone operations against the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group in neighboring Libya.

Tunisia's Defense Minister Farhat Horchani on Thursday ruled out any possibility that foreign forces could have direct access to Tunisian military bases or run their own in the country.

"We don't -- and won't -- have a foreign military base in Tunisia," Horchani said, adding, "We were one of the few first countries to oppose a foreign military intervention in Libya."

A Tunisian Defense Ministry spokesman also said on Thursday that the North African country has never allowed Washington to operate unmanned planes from its territory for anti-Daesh missions.

"Tunisian soil has never been and never will be used to strike targets in Libya. The drones are used by Tunisians and no one else," Belhassen Oueslati said, adding, "As part of Tunisian-US bilateral cooperation, we have acquired drones to train our military personnel to use this technology and to control our southeastern border with Libya and detect any suspicious movement."

The remarks came after US media claimed that Washington has expanded its deployment of drones to North Africa as part of a secret program.

A report by the Washington Post said on Wednesday that unmanned aircraft and US military personnel had been deployed to a facility in Tunisia to conduct spy missions in neighboring Libya. The paper added that "drones began flying out of the Tunisian base in late June," claiming that the dispatch of the planes was a key element of the extended US air offensive against a Daesh stronghold in Libya.

Daesh, which is known for its terror acts in Iraq and Syria, has been operating mostly in northern Libya, a country which slipped into chaos in 2011 following the ouster of longtime dictator, Muammar Gaddafi.

Forces loyal to Libya's unity government, which enjoy the support of the West and the United Nations, have been battling Daesh militants over the past six months in the coastal city of Sirte.

US Africa Command (AFRICOM) said on Thursday that since August 1, Pentagon has carried out 351 airstrikes in Libya to help Libyan forces in the fight in Sirte.

"There are US service members working with the Tunisian security forces for counter-terrorism and they are sharing intelligence from various sources, to include unarmed aerial platforms," said Colonel Mark R. Cheadle, spokesman for US Africa Command.

Tunisia, which is frequented by Western tourists, has suffered several major attacks by the Daesh terrorist group.

Last year, a total of 59 foreign tourists were killed in two such assaults by Daesh on the National Bardo Museum in Tunis and a beach resort.

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Two top al-Qaeda leaders killed in northeastern Afghanistan

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 1:57PM

Afghanistan's intelligence service says two top al-Qaeda leaders were killed in a drone airstrike in the country's troubled northeastern region.

Afghanistan's National Directorate of Security (NDS) confirmed in a statement on Thursday that the top militant leaders had been killed during an aerial raid by the so-called US-led military alliance in the province of Kunar, which borders Pakistan.

"Faruq al-Qahtani, Bilal al-Utabi and a third member of the group were killed in a coalition strike in... Kunar province," the NDS said in a statement, without naming the third one.

"The strike was carried out in coordination with NDS," the statement added.

An Afghan intelligence official in the province also said that two al-Qaeda operatives of Arab origin had been killed in the strike.

Abdul Ghani Mosamem, a provincial spokesman, said that the airstrike killed at least 15 militants, including two Arabs. Mosamem noted that a number of Pakistani Taliban militants were also among the fatalities.

US officials in Washington said on Wednesday that the strikes had targeted al-Qahtani and his deputy al-Utabi on Sunday.

They noted that multiple Hellfire missiles "leveled" two different compounds in Kunar where the men were believed to be hiding.

The US spy agency, CIA, has used hundreds of unmanned aircraft to conduct surveillance flights and airstrikes since Washington and its allies invaded Afghanistan in 2001. The CIA regularly uses drones for airstrikes and spying missions in Afghanistan as well as Pakistan's northwestern tribal belt near the Afghan border.

Washington has also been conducting targeted killings through remotely-controlled armed drones in Somalia and Yemen.

The US claims the airstrikes target members of al-Qaeda and other militants, but according to local residents and witnesses, civilians have been the victims of the attacks in most cases.

The airstrikes, initiated by former US President George W. Bush, have escalated since Barack Obama took office in 2009.

Obama has defended the use of the controversial drone attacks as "self-defense."

International organizations and human rights groups say the strikes flout international law.

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US Deploys Drones to Tunisia for 'Training Operation' - Embassy

Sputnik News

20:50 27.10.2016(updated 20:51 27.10.2016)

US unmanned aerial systems were deployed to Tunisia for a joint training mission, the spokesman for the US Embassy of Tunisia in Washington, DC, Houssem Abbes, told Sputnik on Thursday.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik)  On Wednesday, Pentagon official revealed to the Washington Post on condition of anonymity that the United States had been secretly using an army base in Tunisia to operate intelligence missions in Libya.

"We deny these reports and we do not have any American military base in Tunisia," Abbes stated. "It is just a kind of cooperation, a training operation between the two countries."

Earlier in the day, Tunisian Defense Ministry spokesman Belhassen Oueslati told Sputnik that the country did not allow the United States to use a base of the national army to operate drone missions against Daesh positions in Libya.

 Sputnik

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Ethiopian Troop Withdrawals in Somalia Raise Concern of Al-Shabab Resurgence

By Harun Maruf October 27, 2016

Ethiopian troops who have been fighting Al-Shabab militants in Somalia have vacated a series of military bases, sparking fears of a militant resurgence and a possible setback for African Union efforts to stabilize the country.

On Wednesday, Ethiopian troops vacated their posts in Tiyeglow which was seized from Al-Shabab in August 2014. It was the third town the Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) vacated this month after El-Ali on October 11 and Halgan on October 23.

Experts have linked the withdrawals to the frequent anti-government protests in Ethiopia and the recent declaration of the state of emergency, but Ethiopian officials dismissed the connection.

Communications Minister Getachew Reda told journalists in Addis Ababa that the troop withdrawals have "nothing to do" with the state of emergency.

He said the troops were in Somalia to assist the African Union mission there but were not part of the mission, AMISOM. He said keeping the troops there is posing an "economic burden and logistical challenges" to his government.

Reda said the withdrawn troops have not yet returned to Ethiopia. But military sources tell VOA that the troops are being gathered in the towns of Beledweyne and Huddur, in western Somalia, before they start crossing the border into Ethiopia.

The troop withdrawal comes at a vulnerable time, as the government is organizing elections throughout November and AMISOM is on the defensive following a string of high profile Al-Shabab raids on key military bases, including an attack on El-Adde earlier this year.

AMISOM spokesman Joseph Kibet Murrey told VOA that the troops have left a "vacuum."

"That will now force AMISOM to rethink on how we are going to take back those positions and keep those positions. Definitely it will affect our operations, and our planning," he said.

Murrey said the ENDF forces pulling out were deployed in Somalia through a "bilateral agreement" between the government of Somalia and Ethiopia.

"Those troops are not under AMISOM control, and AMISOM command," he said. "[W]e are not sure because it was something outside our jurisdiction, but we believe there must have been an agreement between the governments of Somalia and Ethiopia to enable these troops to move out their positions."

In Somalia, Defense Minister General Abdulkadir Ali Dini told VOA it's time the Somali government works towards self-reliance.

"Defending the country is the job of every Somali. If you don't build your national army the anti-peace elements will continue to cause problems," he said.

"Any country can help you but for how long? It's up to the people and the leaders of Somalia in confronting this, and to prepare for the unexpected which is happening without consultation."

Asked if Ethiopia informed his government about the withdrawal, General Dini said countries have the right to make their decisions based on their "interests" and "without interference" from another country.

"This is how Ethiopia sees its interest; they know what is best for their interest," he said.

Impact on civilians

The withdrawal also revived the nagging question of when the Somali government will build an army capable of protecting civilians. As Ethiopian troops moved out, Al-Shabab moved in and targeted people suspected of working with foreign troops.

In Tiyeglow town for instance, Al-Shabab militants arrested two men, a father and son, and executed them for "collaborating" with the Ethiopians. In El-Ali town, four men were similarly executed by Al-Shabab including a clan elder and a shop owner after they were accused by the militants of "spying" for the foreign troops.

It was the same case in Adan Yabal town in May when four elders were also shot dead by the militias on similar charges.

These killings and the disorganized nature of the Ethiopian withdrawals from the towns have angered many ordinary Somalis and is destroying confidence in the AU mission, according to officials, some of whom expressed their discontent privately.

Hassan Barre Makaran, chairman of Moqokori, which was vacated by Ethiopian troops on September 15, said the troops did not tell him that they were leaving.

"It was not something that we were aware of. We only found out when they were leaving," he said. "I asked  why didn't you tell us, things will go wrong, can you wait until we get a replacement force? They said, 'We have orders.'"

The chairman of El-Ali made a similar statement, saying he only learned of the withdrawal when he saw the troops pulling down their tents.

In addition to the troops currently being withrdrawan, another 4,400 Ethiopian troops were merged into AMISOM in January 2014. Uganda, Kenya, Djibouti and Burundi are the other troop contributing countries.

Dini said the Somali government is grateful for the sacrifice made by those countries that sent their troops the country to help Somalia.

General Dini said he feels for the victims of Al-Shabab.

"I understand their pain, those who were harmed by the anti-peace," he said. "I urge them if we don't defend ourselves, no one will. Ultimately, the person on the right side will win against the anti-peace and the merciless."

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Burundi Officially Informs UN of Intent to Leave ICC

By James Butty October 27, 2016

Burundi has presented its letter of intent to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC) to U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

"I can tell you that that has been done," Burundian Foreign Minister Alain Nyamitwe told VOA Daybreak Africa. "There is no going back."

African nations have criticized the ICC for focusing almost exclusively on Africa since the treaty creating the tribunal, the Rome Statute, entered into force in 2002.

"I believe that there are some other politically motivated reasons which have pushed the ICC to act on African cases. How many times have you heard about the ICC investigating crimes committed in Iraq? How many times have you heard the ICC investigating crimes committed in Afghanistan? Or let me go further, which group has been under investigation for crimes committed in Libya?" Nyamitwe said.

Burundi's parliament passed legislation earlier this month to withdraw from the ICC. Two other African nations, South Africa and Gambia, have since announced they will also withdraw. South Africa notified the U.N. of its decision October 19.

'Huge blow'

"This is really a huge blow to victims of atrocity crimes," said Elise Keppler, the associate director of the international justice program for Human Rights Watch.

HRW is one of 24 African and international human rights groups that have come together to call on African states to reaffirm their support for the ICC.

Burundi's decision to withdraw from the court may be related to allegations of ongoing abuses in the country since President Pierre Nkrunziza's controversial bid for a third term last year, Keppler said.

"There has been a spiraling of abuses in Burundi's political situation and the issue of term limit and its president," Keppler told VOA. "In fact, there was a commission of inquiry there and investigators, as I understand it, who were expelled from the country after documenting abuses. So, I think we can see Burundi clearly has a kind of callous interest in trying to remove itself from the International Criminal Court."

Under investigation

ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda announced in April she was opening a preliminary investigation into Burundi after receiving information "detailing acts of killing, imprisonment, torture, rape and other forms of sexual violence."

Burundi's government says it is exercising its right as a sovereign nation to withdraw from the Rome Statute.

"We believe that it is too much fabrication to say that the government of Burundi has withdrawn from the ICC because it was accused of crimes against humanity," Foreign Minister Nyamitwe said. "I challenge you and I challenge that lawyer. I think one has to be clear that the ICC has not indicted anybody in Burundi of crimes against human humanity, of genocide or any other crimes that fall within the court's jurisdiction."

The Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute of the ICC will meet November 16-24. The assembly's president and Senegal's justice minister, Sidiki Kaba, has called for dialogue on the issue of states withdrawing from the court.

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DRC Tensions Continue Despite Regional Backing of Election Delay

By William Clowes October 27, 2016

Central African heads of state meeting Wednesday in Luanda, Angola, endorsed the deal signed last week in the Democratic Republic of Congo that delays that country's elections by nearly two years. But the regional stamp of approval has not diminished tensions in the country itself.

The African Union-mediated agreement pushes elections in the DRC from next month to April 2018. President Joseph Kabila will stay on until then at the head of a new power-sharing government, though his elected mandate expires in December.

Angola's president, Jose Eduardo dos Santos, himself in power since 1979, said Wednesday the accord will help "put an end to the climate of contestation and destabilization."

Violent protests over the delayed elections killed more than 50 people in September, according to rights groups and the United Nations.

The regional summit's closing statement congratulated Kabila for convening what was billed as the "national dialogue" that produced the agreement. Dos Santos urged those in the DRC who did not participate in negotiations to sign up to the deal.

Not all on board

However, that does not appear likely. The endorsement of regional leaders has done little to dampen the anger the agreement has aroused among Kabila's opponents. The country's main opposition coalition, known as the Rassemblement, or the Assembly, boycotted national dialogue talks.

Franck Diongo, a leading Rassemblement figure, told VOA the African Union and the regional blocs are showing a negative solidarity. He said the Luanda summit was a syndicate of dictators who feel a need to stick together. But he added that the Congolese people will have the last word.

The Rassemblement has called for a public meeting November 5 in which Diongo said veteran opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi will lay out their plan of action.

La Lucha, a prominent civil society group, has also denounced the agreement and the role of the African Union, which it accused of displaying "arrogance, disdain and condescension" during the negotiations.

Activists arrested

In the eastern city of Goma, at least 17 members of La Lucha were arrested this week while protesting the accord. In Kinshasa, authorities banned a sit-in in front of AU headquarters.

Under the DRC's constitution, Kabila is not eligible to stand in the next elections, having served his two-term limit.

The Congo Research Group, part of New York University, polled nearly 8,000 people nationwide and found that less than eight percent of Congolese would vote for Kabila if an election were held this year.

The survey also found that more than 80 percent of respondents oppose a constitutional revision to allow Kabila to run for a third term and 74 percent say he should step down this year.

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South Africa's Zuma Stops Release of Corruption Report

By Thuso Khumalo October 27, 2016

South African President Jacob Zuma is leaving no stone unturned to stop the release of a report that implicates him in alleged corruption.

It is the latest chapter in a series of corruption scandals in the past year that have eroded support for Zuma and his party, the African National Congress.

Two weeks ago, Zuma halted the release of a report from South Africa's former anti-corruption chief, Thuli Madonsela. Zuma intercepted the report October 13, a day before it was to be released.

At the time, Zuma said he acted so the report would present his side of the story.

"I interdicted it because she (Madonsela) was going to issue a report, having not talked to me, or asked me questions," he said.

In his latest affidavit to the courts, Zuma questions why he is portrayed in one of the affidavits as an implicated person instead of as a subject of investigation.

He also argues that Madonsela, the former Public Protector who produced the report, made him believe he would be given an opportunity to respond to the allegations, but that did not happen.

Gupta link

In its current form, the report is likely to prove embarrassing to the South African president. It is said to contain allegations linking Zuma to the powerful Gupta family and showing the Guptas' huge influence inside the Zuma administration.

The Guptas are a family of Indian-born businessmen who moved to South Africa in the 1990s. The Guptas oversee a sprawling business empire in South Africa that includes interests in mining, energy, technology and media.

According to local media, who were leaked elements of the report, Deputy Finance Minister Mcebisi Jonas told investigators he was offered millions of dollars by the Guptas to take over former Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene's position and promote the family's business interests.

Former ANC Member of Parliament Vytjie Mentor has also said she was promised a Cabinet post by the Gupta family and that is also part of the report.

"The claims about the Guptas have also attached to them claims regarding their proximity to the president and the president's son."

It is now up to the courts to decide if the report will be released. If released, it could be so damaging that Zuma could have no option but to step down.

But not releasing the report is causing controversy within Zuma's party. Mentor is one of party members concerned.

"If a president for instance is directly or indirectly implicated, l am sure the president can take leave," she said.

The court is set to hear Zuma's application Tuesday. Opposition parties have vowed to use every legal avenue to make sure the report is released.

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China 'to hold drills in disputed South China Sea'

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 8:50AM

Chinese naval forces are gearing up to conduct military drills near disputed islands in the South China Sea, in what appears to be a reaction to a recent US patrol in the area.

China's Maritime Safety Administration made the announcement on its website, declaring that the maneuvers were planned for Thursday, without providing any further details.

The move was prompted less than a week after a US guided-missile destroyer sailed through the contested waters, allegedly conducting a "navigation freedom operation" close to the Paracel Islands, over which China has territorial disputes with its neighbors.

The Friday operation swiftly elicited a Chinese Defense Ministry statement, saying the US warship patrol near the islands was "illegal" and "provocative." It added that the patrol had seriously damaged mutual trust between the two countries.

"This is serious illegal behavior, and is intentionally provocative behavior. China's Defense Ministry is resolutely opposed to this and has lodged serious representations with the US side," the statement said.

The US has time and again risked heightening tensions with China through military presence in the South China Sea, questioning Beijing's insistence on sovereignty over the disputed waters.

China has, in response, accused Washington of meddling in regional issues and deliberately escalating the situation in the region.

Unannounced drills with Saudi Arabia

In a separate development, a Chinese military publication has said a small number of special forces from China and Saudi Arabia have conducted joint "anti-terrorism" drills, a first of their kind between the two countries.

China's People's Liberation Army Daily said on Thursday that 25 people from either side had taken part in the two-week drills from October 10, near the Chinese southwestern city of Chongqing. The forces reportedly focused on anti-terrorism combat skills and tactics, Reuters reported Thursday.

It was not clear why the holding of the drills had not been announced publicly until after their purported completion.

"This joint anti-terrorism training is directed at raising the two militaries' ability to combat terrorism and non-traditional security threats," the paper said.

Earlier this year, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Saudi Arabia, vowing to expand security cooperation to oppose terrorism.

Chinese media also announced on Tuesday that more than 400 troops from China and Tajikistan had held joint anti-terrorism drills from October 20 to 24 along the remote mountainous Tajik border with Afghanistan.

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Isnilon Hapilon is a fugitive who is wanted in connection with the May 2001 kidnapping of

20 people, including three Americans, in Palawan, the Philippines.



A Philippine citizen, Hapilon is approximately 45 years old, has a thin build, stands 165 centimeters tall, and has black hair, brown eyes and occasionally wears a slight mustache. He is also known as Abubakar Hapilon, Amah Hi Omar and Bakkal.



Hapilon is a senior leader of the Abu Sayaf Group, a terrorist organization operating in the southern Philippines that is also integrated with the worldwide network of Islamic terrorists..



In this capacity, he was deeply involved in the May 27, 2001, attack on the Dos Palmas resort on Palawan in the Philippines. Twenty individuals were kidnapped in the raid, including three Americans, two of whom were killed.

Sometime in 2013, Abu Sayyaf released a video in which Hapilon claimed to have officially broken up with al-Qaeda and pledged alliance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and to ISIL, also known as DAESH.

Hapilon was indicted in the District of Columbia for involvement in terrorist activities against U.S. nationals and other foreign nationals in and around the Republic of the Philippines. The Rewards for Justice program is offering a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to Hapilon's arrest or prosecution.

The U.S. guarantees that all 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. If you have information on this man, contact the Regional Security Office at the nearest U.S. Embassy, and the tip line at www.rewardsforjustice.net or e-mail information to RFJ@state.gov.
Unrestricted power, unsupervised Party member not allowed in CPC

Xinhua

Source: Xinhua | 2016-10-27 20:25:43 | Editor: huaxia

BEIJING, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Unrestricted power or any unsupervised Party members are not allowed to exist within the Communist Party of China (CPC), said a statement released after a key CPC meeting on Thursday.

Supervision is the fundamental guarantee for exercising power properly, as well as a crucial measure for strengthening and regulating political life within the Party, according to the communique of the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, which ran from Monday to Thursday.

Party organizations and leading officials must not hide violations of Party discipline and laws, or problems reported by Party members, and must deal with such issues in a timely manner, said the communique.

It added that leading officials involved in issues reported should not participate in, intervene or meddle with investigations.

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UN votes to condemn US embargo on Cuba, US abstains for first time

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 11:9AM

The United Nations General Assembly has passed a resolution condemning the United States' sanctions regime against Cuba.

On Thursday, the assembly adopted the annual resolution by an overwhelming 191 votes in favor of putting an end to a decades-long US economic embargo against Cuba.

The measure was met for the first time in 25 years with an abstention by the US itself, which had vehemently opposed the resolution over the years.

Another road not taken

"The United States has always voted against this resolution. Today the United States will abstain," US Ambassador to the UN Samantha Power had said ahead of the vote, drawing applause from the assembly members.

"After 55-plus years of pursuing the path of isolation, we are choosing to take the path of engagement," she said.

Power said, however, that the abstention did "not mean that the United States agrees with all of the policies and practices of the Cuban government," including "serious human rights violations."

Calling it a positive but very limited step, Havana welcomed the UN resolution.

'Act of genocide'

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez described the US shift as positive, but said that Washington must take concrete steps that go beyond the "vote of one delegation in this forum."

"The blockade continues to be a massive, flagrant and systematic violation of the human rights of all Cuban men and women and qualifies as an act of genocide," Rodriguez said.

The United States broke off diplomatic relations with Cuba in 1961 and placed an official embargo against the country in 1962.

The two countries became ideological foes soon after the 1959 revolution in Cuba, which brought Fidel Castro to power, and their ties remained hostile even after the end of the Cold War.

Washington and Havana, however, restored diplomatic relations after 18 months of secret talks that led to a joint announcement on December 17, 2014.

The United States and Cuba officially restored diplomatic relations on July 20, 2015. Nevertheless, Washington continues to maintain its commercial, economic, and financial embargo, which makes it illegal for US corporations to do business with Cuba.

Barack Obama, who visited Havana in March, has been the first sitting US president to visit Cuba in nearly a century.

Washington keeps pressuring the Cuban authorities over what it claims are human rights violations in the large Caribbean island country.

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US, Japan, South Korea agree to put more pressure on North Korea

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 6:52AM

Senior officials from the United States, Japan and South Korea have agreed to step up pressure on North Korea to get it to abandon its nuclear and missile programs.

The three deputy foreign ministers meeting in Tokyo on Thursday made clear that North Korea now requires broader international pressure and tougher sanctions because it poses a new level of threat.

"We will not accept North Korea's possession of nuclear weapons, period," US Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters after meeting with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts.

Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Shinsuke Sugiyama echoed Blinken's comments. "We reaffirmed the necessity to increase pressure against North Korea to have it give up its nuclear and missile development and realize the denuclearization of the peninsula," Sugiyama said.

China, North Korea's lone major ally, and Russia have pushed for a resumption of six-party talks on denuclearization in North Korea. The talks, which also involve the United States, Japan and South Korea have been on hold since 2008.

North Korea conducted its fifth and biggest nuclear test on September 9, prompting the UN Security Council to announce that it would begin to prepare a fresh round of sanctions against Pyongyang in the wake of its recent nuclear test.

But despite sanctions and international pressure, Pyongyang has pledged to continue its nuclear program to protect itself from the threat posed by the presence of US forces in the region.

North Korea has been testing different types of missiles at an unprecedented rate this year, and the capability to mount a nuclear warhead on a missile is especially worrying for its neighbors South Korea and Japan, as well as the United States.

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Preparing for the Long Shot: Range of BrahMos Cruise Missile to be Doubled

Sputnik News

19:13 27.10.2016

Developments in the last fortnight indicate an unprecedented buildup of confidence between India and Russia as evident from the many deals and agreements that have been reached.

New Delhi (Sputnik)  India and Russia have approved the proposal to double the range of the BrahMos, world's first supersonic cruise missile at the 16th Russia-India intergovernmental commission on military cooperation meeting.

Sources told Sputnik that during the annual summit in Goa, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached an agreement to develop different range of the BrahMos.

One of the ranges agreed upon was to double it from current range of 186 miles which received final nod on October 26 during the Russia-India intergovernmental commission on military cooperation meeting co-chaired by Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar and his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu.

"Russia is India's time tested and closest partner and it will continue to remain our primary defense partner," Manohar Parrikar, Indian Defense Minister, said after the meeting on Wednesday.

The proposal to increase the range of BrahMos was under consideration for a long time and now it is formalized after India became a member of Missile Technology Control Regime this year. It is said that only minor changes will be enough to extend the range of BrahMos up to 372 miles.

Currently, BrahMos is capable of hitting targets beyond the radar horizon and can be launched from sea based and land based weapon systems. Test fire of an air-launched version of Brahmos cruise missile expected to be held in February next year. The 2.5 metric ton Brahmos air-to-ground missile will be fired from an IAF (Indian Air Force) Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter aircraft that has undergone modifications to accommodate the new weapon. A successful preliminary trial has already been carried out, and two more dummy trials are in the pipeline before the actual test.

 Sputnik

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India to Begin Trials of Homegrown AIP Equipment in December

Sputnik News

17:03 27.10.2016(updated 17:07 27.10.2016)

Delays had forced the Indian Navy to abandon its plan to deploy AIP in Scorpene submarines.

New Delhi (Sputnik)  India's Defense and Research Development organization (DRDO) is preparing for trials of its long delayed Air Independent Propulsion (AIP).

Sources say that AIP trials are expected to begin in December this year, and if they proceed on schedule, it is likely to be ready for installation by 2020. India had planned to equip its two Kalveri-class submarine with homegrown AIP.

On October 18, Sputnik had reported that due to delays in the development of AIP by DRDO, the Indian Navy had decided to do away with its plan to equip homegrown AIP into the last two Scorpene-class submarines, also known as Kalveri-class submarines.

The first Kalveri-class submarine is expected to be inducted by January 2017, with a delay of more than four years. India has planned to induct the last two submarines of this class in 2020 and 2022. French firm DCNS won a contract to build six Kalveri-class submarines at a cost of USD 3.5 billion. DCNS had also proposed to set up a 100% Indian subsidiary to manufacture AIP but it failed to impress Indian authorities because of similar AIP technologies being developed by DRDO.

AIP is vital equipment for modern submarines that enhance their survivability under water. It uses limited amounts of stored liquid gas which ultimately is used to charge the battery of the submarines. Due to this, submarines can remain under water for longer periods of time. As development of homegrown AIP is being delayed, it might attract foreign manufacturers from Russia, Germany and Sweden to propose construction of AIP under technology transfer in India, so that the probability of winning a contract for an additional six submarines under the Indian Navy project 75i is increased.

 Sputnik

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India for Selective Blacklisting of Foreign Defense Companies

Sputnik News

16:55 27.10.2016

The previous government's comprehensive blacklisting norms are a major hindrance to India's defense acquisition calendar.

New Delhi (Sputnik)  India has decided to scrap its extant policy of blanket blacklisting of the entire defense conglomerate even if a group company or its representative was being investigated for unethical behavior.

The previous Government's blacklisting policy was stated to be a hindrance to timely imports of defense hardware and ongoing acquisition projects. The policy has also led to diplomatic disagreements with South Africa and Israel after the previous government banned their companies Denel and IAI.

Under the new policy, likely to be approved soon, only the company directly accused of bribery or kickbacks will face punishment. Other companies will be free to participate in bids for defense equipment.

"If I have a platform where the company has been banned, I can't stop operating that platform as the supplier is now blacklisted. So whose loss is it? You have to see national security considerations and not resort to knee-jerk reactions," rationalized Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar. He heads the Defense Acquisition Council (DAC) which will approve the new policy soon. The establishment has extensively deliberated on the policy, said sources.

The new policy is likely to have clauses to exempt errant companies from being blacklisted if national security considerations necessitate continuation of the project. The government has already done this on a very selective basis. But such instances have been rare and the overall blanket ban policy tends to jeopardize crucial deals such as torpedoes for new submarines because another group company of the same defense conglomerate has been banned after the surfacing of allegations of bribery.

The changes are part of the government's drive for a more practical and implementable defense purchase policy. Earlier this year, the government allowed foreign firms to appoint "agents" to India on strict terms and conditions.

Amit Cowshish, a former Financial Adviser to the Ministry of Defense, backed the proposed changes. "There is surely a need to adopt a more pragmatic approach to blacklisting. It (removing blanket ban) will be good if it happens. Blanket blacklisting has far-reaching implications for defense acquisitions. It could disrupt an ongoing contract, depriving the armed forces of the equipment being procured. Considering inter-dependencies of equipment manufacturers, it could also impact other unrelated acquisition programs."

Sources say that the new policy will ban a foreign entity or agent, if found guilty of bribing Indian officials, from dealing on behalf of the company or its subsidiary. Moreover, the blacklisting will be product-specific.

"Blanket blacklisting policy generally restricts competition in respect of future procurement as there are anyway very few original equipment manufacturers in the world," says Cowshish. Generally there are no more than four to five equipment makers who largely integrate specialized parts produced by niche companies.

Currently, the Indian government has banned 15 defense suppliers, including some major foreign defense firms, due to corruption and bribery charges.

 Sputnik

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Peshmerga forces won't enter Iraq's Mosul: Kurdish leader

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 3:39PM

The leader of Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region has assured that Kurdish Peshmerga forces will not set foot in Mosul during a joint operation with the army and allied fighters aimed at liberating the Daesh-held northern city.

"The Peshmerga will not enter the city of Mosul," Masoud Barzani said in a news conference with Chairman of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI) Ammar Hakim, in Zartac Mountain, near the city of Nineveh, on Thursday.

Barzani further said the Kurdish fighters are coordinating their role in the Mosul liberation operation with the Iraqi military, adding that the collaboration will continue.

The Kurdish leader further highlighted unity among different Iraqi political parties, adding that Daesh was no more a threat as most areas are back in control of the Iraqi forces.

Last week, the Popular Mobilization Units, a mainly-Shia military group backing the Iraqi army in the Mosul offensive, also said its forces would not march into Mosul, adding that Iraqi army soldiers and security personnel would enter the embattled city.

Barzani further referred to recent Daesh terror activities in the Kurdish-controlled city of Kirkuk, saying the Takfiri terror group is making desperate attempts to cover up its defeats in the Mosul battle.

"We were able to control the situation quickly and kill the terrorists," the Kurdish leader said.

Terrorists launched several rounds of attacks in the city of Kirkuk over the weekend as Iraqi officials are focused on the Mosul offensive.

On Friday, at least 100 Daesh elements went on a rampage in Kirkuk to divert an Iraqi and Kurdish military advance on Mosul. The incident left 99 civilians and members of the security forces dead as well as 63 militants, according to Iraqi security officials.

For his part, Hakim highlighted the need for avoiding rifts in Iraq and staying focused on the fight against Daesh.

He further stressed that a Turkish base present in Bashiqa near Mosul was not welcome.

"This (Turkish) base, and the forces that came to the base, were present without coordination with the Iraqi government. They are armed forces, and we strongly refuse the participation of any non-Iraqi fighter in this battle," Hakim said.

Last December, Turkey deployed some 150 soldiers, equipped with heavy weapons and backed by 20 to 25 tanks, to the Bashiqa camp.

Ankara claimed the deployment was part of a mission to train and equip Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces in the fight against Daesh, but Baghdad denounced the unauthorized move as a violation of Iraq's sovereignty.

Recently, Ankara claimed that his country is involved in the Mosul operation, but Baghdad denied such a role.

Last week, the Iraqi army, volunteer Shia and Sunni fighters as well as Kurdish Peshmerga forces launched a long-awaited operation to wrest control of Mosul, the last stronghold of Daesh in the Arab country.

Many believe that the recapture of Mosul, which fell to Daesh in 2014, would signal the terror outfit's total defeat in Iraq.

Iraqi Special Forces commanders said Thursday that the Mosul operation was proceeding as planned and they were now waiting for further gains in the south before resuming their push toward the city.

"The operation has not been stopped and is proceeding as planned," Special Forces Brigadier General Haider Fadhil said.

In another development on Thursday, the US estimated that up to 900 Daesh terrorists have been killed in the Mosul liberation operation so far.

General Joseph Votel, the head the US military's Central Command, said the operation was taking a heavy toll on the Takfiris.

There are between 3,500 and 5,000 Daesh elements in Mosul and up to another 2,000 in the broader area, according to US figures.

More Daesh tunnels uncovered

Also on Thursday, Iraqi troops discovered several tunnels used by Daesh terrorists in recently recaptured villages of Bartella and Bazwaia, located between 5 and 7 kilometers east of Mosul.

"When we entered the Khazna Taba neighborhood (in Bartella) and after we liberated it, we found several tunnels," said Razed Qusai al-Kinani, a member of Iraqi Counterterrorism forces.

One of the tunnels, which is 200 meters long and 10 meters deep, was used by Daesh for meetings and allowed the terror outfit's ringleaders to move around during the battle, he added.

Elsewhere in the village of Tob Zawa, the Iraqi troops found a tire shop that had been converted into a factory for making roadside bombs and attaching armor to vehicles.

They also discovered another tunnel in the village equipped with fans and lights that ran from beneath a mosque out to a road.

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Iraqi forces gain more ground in push to retake Mosul

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 6:44AM

Iraqi government forces have managed to liberate more areas around the northern city of Mosul as part of a massive offensive aimed at retaking the entire city from Takfiri Daesh terrorists.

Iraq's Joint Operations Command (JOC) announced that security forces had liberated Qala region and taken control of Janin military base east of Mosul, located some 400 kilometers north of the capital Baghdad.

Commander of the Mosul Operations, Major General Najm al Jabouri, also said his forces established control over the villages of Saf al-Tuth and Nana on Wednesday, following a fierce exchange of gunfire with Daesh snipers.

Additionally, Iraqi armed forces welcomed more than 1,000 Iraqi refugees from the recently-liberated village of Shoura, located 40 kilometers south of Mosul.

The government forces are going to transport the internally-displaced people to a processing center and refugee camps within the next few days.

Peshmerga forces not to enter Mosul

The prime minister of Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region said Peshmerga forces will not enter Mosul in order to avoid the danger of a "potential ethnic conflict."

Nechirvan Barzani, however, issued a veiled warning to the Iraqi central government, suggesting that the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) wanted to take over the administration of Mosul after it was liberated.

Mosul is of paramount significance to the KRG, he said, warning that the city would become the birthplace of another terrorist group if it is not administered well after liberation from the grip of Daesh extremists.

"We had al-Qaeda in Iraq yesterday. We have Daesh today and tomorrow we will have another group if Mosul is not going to have a good administrating system," Barzani said on Wednesday.

"What is really important and needs discussion is what happens in Mosul after Daesh," he said.

Kurdish forces have used the void to take over the control of several regions in Iraq, including the oil-rich Kirkuk, after Takfiri militants were ousted.

Some critics have partly blamed Kurdish forces for the fall of Mosul after they allegedly withdrew as Takfiri terrorists closed in on Iraq's second city.

Hashad Shaabi to open new front

Furthermore, Iraqi Defense Ministry spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Rasool told al-Sumaria television network on Wednesday that pro-government Popular Mobilization Units are going to open a new front in Mosul in the coming days.

Hadi al-Amiri, the head of the Iraqi Badr Organization, also stated that Popular Mobilization Units are in no rush to launch an offensive against Tal Afar west of Mosul, stating that the volunteer forces aim to enlist people from various walks of life for the operation.

There are reports that about 50,000 Iraqi ground troops are involved in the Mosul offensive, including 30,000 army troops, 10,000 Kurdish Peshmerga fighters and the remaining 10,000 from police and Popular Mobilization Units.

International aid agencies have warned that the military operation to retake Mosul has displaced about 10,600 people from their homes.

"Assessments have recorded a significant number of female-headed households, raising concerns around the detention or capture of men and boys," Deputy Special Representative of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, Lise Grande, stated on Tuesday.

She noted that a huge exodus of people from Mosul could occur within the next few days, warning that Daesh terrorists could resort to "rudimentary chemical weapons" as part of efforts to hold up Iraqi army and federal police units.

Daesh militants in possession of Turkish, Saudi arms

The official website of the People's Mobilization Units, quoting pro-government commander Udai al-Khadran, reported on Wednesday that Iraqi forces have confiscated Turkish and Saudi munitions and military equipment from Daesh militants around Mosul.

Khadran said Emirati and Kuwaiti businessmen regularly pay for brand new pickup trucks crossing the Turkish border into Daesh-held areas in the northern and western parts of Iraq, and Turkey provides the extremists with various types of ammunition.

The People's Mobilization Units went on to say that Turkish military experts continue to train Daesh militants, and the country's artillery units are protecting Daesh-controlled regions against any counter-terrorism operation.

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Daesh executing civilians as Iraqi forces advance

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 12:51AM

Daesh executes over 230 civilians in Mosul as the battle to liberate the Iraqi city from the Takfiris gains momentum.

"Daesh militants continued to commit atrocities in the province of Nineveh, they executed 190 people in the area of Hammam al-Alil after taking them hostage in different areas of Mosul," said the chairman of the Iraqi parliamentary human rights committee, Abdel Rakhim Shamri, on Wednesday.

He added that another 42 people were taken from the village of Arij and executed after they refused to cooperate with the terrorists.

Shamri also called on Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to facilitate the airlifting of civilians from Daesh-held areas in Mosul as the terrorists are using them as human shields.

On Tuesday, the UN human rights office said it had preliminary reports about scores of mass killings by Daesh around Mosul in the past week.

UN human rights spokesman Rupert Colville told a regular UN briefing in Geneva that the bodies of 70 civilians with bullet wounds had been discovered by Iraqi security forces in Tuloul Naser village on October 20, and 50 police officers being held outside the city had also reportedly been killed.

Daesh employing scorched earth policy

On Wednesday, the commander of the Mosul operations, Major General Najm al Jabouri, announced that government forces had liberated the villages of Saf al Tuth and Nana after engaging enemy snipers stationed close to the villages.

Locals report that Daesh militants are employing a scorched earth policy destroying buildings, farms, detonating explosives, torching industrial plants and kidnapping and killing civilians as they are forced to retreat.

"My brother was killed by Daesh, because he wanted to join the security forces. Anyone who wanted to join the security forces would be killed. They took a lot of people, they carried them in pickup trucks, and I have no idea what their fate will be," said a resident of Nana village.

Regional officials have confirmed the terrorists are kidnapping and executing people as they are forced to retreat by advancing Iraqi forces.

A member of the Nineveh provincial council, Abdul Rahman al-Wagga, noted that the executions were carried out "to terrorize the others, those who are in Mosul in particular."

"Daesh was taking families from each village it left," he added.

Earlier, military sources announced that Peshmerga fighters had established control over Dirik village near the town of Bashiqa, which lies 12 kilometers northeast of Mosul.

Iraq's Joint Operations Command also announced that Iraqi counter-terrorism units were only two kilometers away from Mosul.

Since the beginning of the operations, the Iraqi army, backed by volunteer forces, has been engaged in a large military offensive to cleanse Mosul of Daesh terrorists. The city fell in 2014 when the terror group started ravaging the country, naming Mosul as its so-called headquarters in Iraq.

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Obama Asks Erdogan To Coordinate With U.S., Iraq In Fight Against IS

October 27, 2016

U.S. President Barack Obama has personally intervened in a dispute between Turkey and Iraq involving the battle against the Islamic State (IS) extremist group, asking Turkey's leader to coordinate his actions with both Washington and Baghdad.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has vowed to join the battle to liberate the northern Iraqi city of Mosul from IS, despite protests from Baghdad that Turkish troops don't belong on the ground there.

In his first move to mediate the conflict between the two key neighbors and U.S. allies, Obama in a phone call with Erdogan on October 26 pointed out the need for close coordination between Ankara and both U.S. and Iraqi forces that are pressing the Mosul battle, to ensure the success of the campaign, the White House said.

Appearing to take Baghdad's side in the spat, Obama also called for "continued dialogue" between Turkey and Iraq to "determine the appropriate level and form of Turkey's participation" in the anti-IS campaign.

The White House said Obama and Erdogan "affirmed their strong support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iraq," touching on a particularly sore point for Baghdad, which has accused Turkey of violating its borders.

Based on reporting by AP and Reuters

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/obama-asks-turkey- erdogan-coordinate-us-iraq-fight-against- islamic-state-mosul/28077627.html

Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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ELKO  The folks at Taylor Chiropractic have been treating aches and pains in Elko since 2004. Dr. Wade Taylor began the practice after he finished his studies at Parker College in Dallas the prior year.

One of the newest services at the clinic is the decompression unit that helps patients manage chronic spinal pain. This involves a non-invasive traction therapy that differs from traditional traction treatment.

This has helped a lot of patients, said office manager Michele Doren.

Taylor Chiropractic won the gold level in the Readers Choice Awards for Best Chiropractor. Massage therapist Sadie Griffeth also won bronze for Best Masseuse.

I love my job, said Griffeth, who has been with the organization for two years. Its a good place to work. They take care of you for sure.

Besides providing good customer service, the business is well known by the public for their support of Young Life and other youth organizations.

We do a lot of donations throughout the community, said Doren.
Internationally-backed Libyan forces attack Daesh positions in Sirte

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 6:39PM

Libyan forces have launched a fresh offensive against Daesh positions in the Mediterranean port city of Sirte.

On Thursday, fighters from the nearby city of Misrata, allied with forces of the UN-backed unity government in Tripoli, were pushing their way through the last pockets of resistance in the city's Ghiza Bahriya District.

They were supported by tanks and armored vehicles during the renewed offensive.

"Bonyan Marsous forces and the Libyan army forces are advancing onto Ghiza Bahriya to free it ... The Bonyan [forces] have been advancing in Ghiza Bahriya and thank God there have been no causalities so far, there are only some wounded," said Hussien Edra, a member of the Bonyan Marsous Brigade.

In May, the internationally-backed pro-government troops started a large-scale military operation, including street-by-street fighting backed by heavy airstrikes and artillery fire, to eradicate Daesh militants in Sirte. They have so far recaptured most areas in the city.

Most of Daesh commanders in the city fled to other places and the remaining rank has been holding out via sniper fire, booby traps and car bombs.

Sirte is the only key base of the Takfiri militant group outside Iraq and Syria.

The city fell into the hands of Daesh Takfiri militants more than a year ago after the group extended their reach into North Africa by taking advantage of the chaos gripping Libya.

The North African country has witnessed unrest since 2011, when a NATO military intervention followed the uprising that led to the ouster and killing of long-time dictator, Muammar Gaddafi.

Liberating the key city would deal a major blow to the militant group in its drive to expand its influence to territories beyond the Middle East.

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Putin Denies Russian Interference In U.S. Presidential Election

RFE/RL October 27, 2016

President Vladimir Putin has again dismissed allegations that Russia has been meddling in the U.S. presidential election, saying those claims were just an effort to distract the attention of the U.S. electorate from real issues.

In a wide-ranging speech in which he also defended Russia's actions in Syria, Putin told an annual meeting of foreign academics and analysts on October 27 that allegations of Russian interference in the election were "mythical and fictitious."

He said the United States was using the claims to distract from issues like the federal debt and police violence and it was absurd to say the country could be susceptible to Russia's influence.

"Does anyone seriously think Russia can somehow influence the choice of the American people? Is the U.S. some kind of banana republic? The United States is a great power. Please correct me if I'm wrong," Putin said, triggering laughter in the audience.

The allegations of Russian meddling have become a prominent issue in the campaign between Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and her Republican rival, Donald Trump. U.S. intelligence officials recently accused Russia publicly of coordinating the hacks of Clinton's campaign emails.

Putin's comments came during a meeting of the Valdai Club, an invitation-only, government-sponsored gathering that brings together foreign academics and experts on Russia for closed-door discussions with Russian leaders and officials.

Praise For Trump

Putin also gave subtle praise to Republican candidate Donald Trump, saying he had behaved "extravagantly" during the campaign because he represented ordinary voters and wanted to get his message across.

"He has chosen a method to get through to voters' hearts," Putin was quoted as saying.

Clinton has accused Putin of personally ordering the cyberattacks targeting her campaign and prominent current and former U.S. officials in what she characterizes as a Kremlin operation to tilt the election in Trump's favor.

Trump, who has advocated repairing ties with Moscow battered over the conflicts in Ukraine and Syria, has called this claim absurd and cast doubt on the U.S. intelligence community's allegation of Russia's complicity in the cyberattacks.

The Russian leader told the October 27 meeting that claims that Moscow is favoring Trump are "complete nonsense."

'Thwarted' Syrian Peace

Turning to Syria, Putin claimed that his efforts to reach a deal with U.S. President Barack Obama on ending the civil war in Syria have been thwarted by "forces" in Washington.

"A united front to defeat terrorism has in fact not been created," he said. "In Washington there were forces that did their best to ensure our agreements did not take off."

Putin did not elaborate on who in Washington has allegedly scuttled the efforts to end the bloodshed in Syria.

But he told the audience that "my personal agreements with the U.S. president" on the matter "did not work either."

"It seemed that -- after long negotiations, enormous efforts and complicated compromises -- a united front for the struggle against terrorism started taking shape," Putin said. "However, that did not happen."

The Obama administration has accused Moscow of stoking the conflict with ongoing operations in support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in his war against Islamic State militants and more moderate groups seeking his ouster.

Putin defended Moscow's support for the siege of the rebel-held eastern districts of the city of Aleppo by Assad's army, calling it a necessary move in order to defeat militant forces there.

He said there is choice between "keeping a terrorist nest there or crushing that nest while minimizing civilian casualties."

Russia's aerial campaign to support the offensive by Assad's forces on Aleppo has triggered international condemnation, including accusations of repeatedly striking civilian targets.

With reporting by AP, Reuters, Interfax, and RIA Novosti

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/putin-syria-peae- thwarted-washington/28078734.html

Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Malta Refuses to Refuel Russian Warships Heading For Syria - Foreign Minister

Sputnik News

17:59 27.10.2016(updated 18:04 27.10.2016)

Malta will not refuel Russian warships heading for Syria, Foreign Minister George Vella told local media on Thursday, amid claims that a Russian battlegroup may be refueled in the Mediterranean near the island country.

MOSCOW (Sputnik)  Earlier in the day, Russia's former Chief of Naval Staff, Adm. Viktor Kravchenko told RIA Novosti that the Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov, accompanied by seven ships and sailing to the Syrian coast, might undergo the next refueling in the Mediterranean, from the Black Sea Fleet tanker near Malta.

Vella, contacted by The Times of Malta broadcaster, did not specify the reason for the refusal.

According to the news outlet, his statement was a reaction to an internet petition by an online campaign group called Avaaz, which said that Russian warships and submarines heading for Syria are likely to approach Malta to refuel, and called on the Maltese authorities to prohibit entry to "this death fleet."

On October 15, the Russian Northern Fleet's press service said that the Russian task group headed by the aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov was sent to the Mediterranean to hold drills and strengthen capabilities.

On Wednesday, Russian embassy in Spain confirmed the withdrawal of a request to Spanish authorities for the entry of Russian ships to the Ceuta harbor for refueling on its way to Syria, as Madrid was criticized by NATO for considering granting the Russian naval group access to the port.

 Sputnik

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Syrian forces purge terrorists from town in Hama province

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 5:16PM

Syrian army soldiers and their allies have managed to liberate a key town in the country's west-central province of Hama from the grip of Takfiri terrorists.

An unnamed Syrian military source said on Thursday that the recapture of the town of Suran came after intensive operations against the gatherings and fortified positions of terror outfits in the area.

"Units from our armed forces in cooperation with the people's defense forces regained control over the municipality of Suran and the farms surrounding it," the source said.

He also noted that the clashes prior to the town's liberation left a large number of terrorists dead and many more injured, destroying their armored vehicles as well as cars equipped with machine guns.

Members of the Syrian army's engineering units are detonating explosive devices and mines planted by militants to prevent the Syrian forces' advance, he added.

Over the past few weeks, the Syrian forces have wrested control of several areas across the war-torn country as they press ahead with their counter-terrorism operations.

Since March 2011, Syria has been hit by militancy it blames on some Western states and their regional allies. Backed by the Russian air cover, the Syrian military is engaged in an operation to rid the country of Daesh and other terrorist groups.

The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and United Nations Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura have put the death toll from the Syria conflict at more than 300,000 and 400,000, respectively.

This is while the UN has stopped its official casualty count in Syria, citing its inability to verify the figures it receives from various sources.

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6 children killed in terrorist rocket attacks in Syrian city of Aleppo

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 2:21PM

At least six children have been killed and over a dozen people injured after Takfiri terrorists launched rocket attacks on a school as well as a house situated in residential areas of Syria's Aleppo.

Syria's official SANA news agency reported that three children lost their lives and 14 students sustained injuries on Thursday when rocket shells hit al-Wataniyeh School in Aleppo's western neighborhood of Shahba.

The terrorist groups, who carried out the attack, were positioned in Aleppo's Zahra neighborhood, the report said, adding that the incident caused material damage to the school building and classrooms.

Another rocket attack also struck a house at the residential Assad suburb in al-Hamadaniyeh neighborhood, killing three brothers and injuring another one.

Aleppo, Syria's second largest city, remains divided between government forces in the west and foreign-backed terrorists in the east, making it a frontline battleground.

The Syrian army has set up several humanitarian corridors to facilitate the transfer of the civilians caught up in Aleppo's terrorist-held parts as well as those militants who lay down arms.

However, reports coming out of Aleppo's occupied regions indicate that the Takfiri groups are blocking the exit of civilians. They are also using people as human shields and threatening those trying to leave.

In another development on Thursday, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad issued a legislative decree, extending for three months the validity of an earlier measure pardoning militants who turn in their weapons.

The order stipulates that the militants who turn themselves in to Syrian authorities, lay down their weapons and release their captives will be granted amnesty.

Damascus-UN cooperation on aid delivery

Additionally on Thursday, the United Nations' Syria humanitarian advisor said that the Damascus government has approved 23 of 25 proposed areas to receive aid supplies in November, among them 17 besieged regions.

Jan Egeland assured that the world body was "not giving up" on medical evacuations from Aleppo and delivery of food and medical equipment.

He also noted that the Russians would like to help facilitate access to eastern Aleppo.

Since October 18, Russia and Syria have suspended airstrikes targeting foreign-backed Takfiri terrorists in Aleppo to allow the evacuation of civilians.

EU approves more anti-Syria bans

Also on Thursday, the European Union added 10 top Syrian officials to its sanctions list over the crisis in Syria.

The bloc said in a statement that those targeted were "high-ranking military officials and senior figures linked to" the Damascus government.

The EU is expected to publish the names of the 10 people sanctioned on Friday.

The move brings to 217 the total number of individuals hit with travel bans or asset freezes. Another 69 entities are also affected by asset freezes, while the bloc also has in place other bans against Syria as a whole, including arms and oil embargoes as well as investment restrictions.

Last week, EU leaders agreed to increase sanctions against the Syrian government over the situation in Aleppo. They further raised the possibility of sanctions against Russia, but the plans were scrapped after sharp differences emerged among EU member states.

Turkish military 'to go for Manbij, Raqqah'

Additionally on Thursday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the country's military in neighboring Syria will target the Syrian cities of Manbij and Raqqah after seizing al-Bab.

In a speech in Ankara, which was broadcast live, Erdogan announced that he had informed his US counterpart, Barack Obama, about his plans for the operation in a Wednesday telephone conversation.

"Now we advance towards al-Bab because al-Bab is an important center for them (Daesh terrorists). They will leave al-Bab as well. That is how our fight will continue. Then we will move towards Manbij and Raqqah," he said.

Turkish special forces, tanks and jets backed by planes from the US-led coalition launched their first coordinated offensive in Syria in August. Damascus has denounced Turkey's military intervention as a breach of its sovereignty.

Ankara claims the operation, dubbed "Euphrates Shield," was aimed at "terror groups" such as Daesh and US-backed Kurdish fighters.

Turkey has been part of the US-led coalition purportedly fighting Daesh in Syria.

The mission, which comes without the approval of the Syrian government or a UN mandate, has done little to eliminate the terror groups and has, on numerous occasions, targeted civilians and Syrian infrastructure.

Earlier this week, Amnesty International said that as many as 300 civilians had been killed in 11 attacks conducted by the Washington-led alliance in Syria since September 2014.

The UK-based rights group further urged an investigation into potential violations of international law during the so-called campaign against terror.

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Russia: No jets have flown over Aleppo for past 9 days

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 10:40AM

Moscow says Russian and Syrian aircraft have not carried out any sorties over Aleppo for nine days in line with their "humanitarian pause."

The Russian Defense Ministry responded on Thursday a day after a monitoring group sympathetic to militants claimed that airstrikes had killed at least 26 people in a village in Idlib.

Russia's Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin challenged the UN and the West to provide evidence of continuing airstrikes in Aleppo.

Churkin said no aircraft has approached the city at a distance of less than 10 km since a unilateral moratorium was announced by Russia and Syria on October 18 "in response to the UN call, and as a goodwill gesture."

"If you have any information that there were any missile and bomb strikes, please provide this information," Churkin said, adding he expected an "objective analysis" of the current situation.

Churkin also criticized the UN for failing "to thrash out in a proper way the operation on evacuation of the sick and injured people."

"The UN staff members have failed to exert required pressure on patrons of the illegal armed units so that the militants could cooperate with humanitarian workers."

The Russian ambassador also hit out at UN aid envoy Stephen O'Brien for bias and arrogance after claiming that Aleppo had become a "kill zone" under Russian and Syrian bombs.

The US, Britain and France rushed to his defense in one of the stormiest council sessions in weeks after Churkin accused O'Brien of failing to recognize that Russia and Syria had declared a humanitarian pause.

Churkin criticized the UN official for failing to present the facts objectively while foreign-backed rebels and al-Qaeda-linked terrorists are hampering a UN plan to evacuate the wounded from Aleppo.

"Please leave this kind of report to a novel that you might write one day," the Russian ambassador told the UN official.

In Moscow, Russian Foreign Ministry said Takfiri militants continue to indiscriminately target residential neighborhoods of Aleppo, using makeshift rocket launchers, and preventing civilians from leaving the city's militant-held east.

"Aircraft of the Russian aerospace forces and the Syrian air force have not been carrying out any flight closer than the 10-kilometer zone around the city of Aleppo for nine days," ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.

Warships won't join Aleppo campaign

The Foreign Ministry also dismissed as absurd suggestions from NATO that a new Russian battle group heading to the Mediterranean would join the campaign against terrorists in Aleppo.

The rebuttal came after NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg warned on Tuesday that the ships could be used to launch more airstrikes.

Andrei Kelin, a senior Russian Foreign Ministry official, told the RIA news agency that Stoltenberg's statement was unhelpful.

"The concerns are not based on anything as our planes have not come near Aleppo for nine days. Our battle group is in the Mediterranean. Our ships have always had a presence there," said Kelin.

'Double standards'

Meanwhile, Syria's Ambassador to the United Nations Bashar al-Ja'afari denounced double standards towards the ongoing conflict in his country.

Ja'afari lashed out at the US for supporting the so-called moderate militants in eastern Aleppo. He said Takfiri terrorists are now in possession of US-built rockets.

He also slammed Turkey's aggressive policies toward Syria amid US support, saying it violated the basics of international law.

Ja'afari said Saudi Arabia - another key ally of the West - is supporting terrorism while Wahhabi muftis are fanning the flames of bloodshed in Syria, Iraq and Yemen through their decrees.

The entire Syrian population, he said, is suffering from the militancy being sponsored by Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar and Israel.

Ja'afari called on all members of the UN Security Council to exercise their responsibilities concerning the establishment of security and peace across the globe.

No Russian, Syrian role in 'air raid' on Idlib school

In another development on Thursday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, rejected as "a lie" claims that Russian and Syrian warplanes had conducted fatal air raids in the northwestern province of Idlib.

She was reacting to reports that 22 children and six teachers were killed in airstrikes that hit a school and nearby areas in Idlib.

The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights claimed "warplanes -- either Russian or Syrian -- carried out six strikes" in the Idlib village of Hass, where the school is located.

Zakharova further stressed "the Russian Federation has nothing to do with this terrible tragedy, with this attack," adding that Moscow has called for an immediate investigation into the incident.

Commenting on the reports on Idlib airstrikes earlier in the day, Russia's UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said "it's horrible, horrible. I hope we were not involved."

"It's easy for me to say 'no' but I'm a responsible person. I need to see what our Defense Ministry is going to say," he added.

The Russian Defense Ministry also said in a Thursday statement that it had sent a drone to investigate the reported incident in Idlib, adding, however, that there was no evidence of an airstrike in the images taken by the aircraft.

Defense Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov said Moscow has analyzed the photos and videos provided by Western media outlets as "evidence" of the so-called air raid.

"The video published in a range of Western media outlets appears to consist of more than 10 different shots, filmed at different times of the day, and in different resolutions that were edited into a single clip," stated Konashenkov.

"The photograph published by AFP shows that only one wall of the school is damaged, and all the desks inside the classroom are in place. The outer fence seen through the hole has no traces of damage from bomb fragments. In a genuine airstrike this is physically impossible  the furniture would have been swept away by the blast wave, and there would have been damage marks on the classroom wall and the outer fence," he added.

The air raid was initially reported on Wednesday by sources linked to foreign-backed militants in Syria, including the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) later said that it had received reports of an attack on the school, with its executive director, Anthony Lake, called the incident a "tragedy" and an "outrage."

Konashenkov further said "our evidence points to UNICEF falling victim to another scam," urging the UN body to "check its sources more carefully " to protect its reputation.

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Russia Hit With Outrage At UN Over Attacks On Syrian Children

RFE/RL October 27, 2016

Russia has been confronted with sharp accusations at the United Nations of killing dozens of children and other civilians in Syria, provoking an angry response from Moscow's UN ambassador.

The UN's Children's Fund, UNICEF, and monitoring groups reported on October 26 that air strikes by Syrian or Russian warplanes killed 35 people, including at least 22 children and six schoolteachers in rebel-held Idlib Province.

"This is a tragedy. It is an outrage. And if deliberate, it is a war crime," UNICEF director Anthony Lake said.

Lake said the school compound in the village of Haas was "repeatedly attacked," in what may have been the deadliest attack on a school since the Syrian civil war began more than five years ago.

A photograph circulated on social media showed a child's arm, seared off above the elbow, still clutching the strap of a dusty black rucksack.

"When will the world's revulsion at such barbarity be matched by insistence that this must stop?" Lake asked.

Russian UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, apparently taken aback by the charges, said: "It's horrible, horrible. I hope we were not involved."

Churkin said he was consulting with the Russian Defense Ministry to determine who was responsible.

The Russian Defense Ministry on October 27 issued a statement saying that neither Russian nor Syrian government aircraft had conducted any air strikes in the Aleppo area over the last nine days.

Aleppo's 'Apocalyptic Horror'

Later, in a tumultuous meeting of the UN Security Council on the siege of Aleppo, UN humanitarian chief Stephen O'Brien accused Russia and Syria of using starvation tactics and turning the city into a "kill zone."

Describing what he called an "apocalyptic horror" in the city, where 400 people have been killed in less than a month, O'Brien accused Syria and Russia of waging a deliberate campaign to "make life intolerable, make death likely."

O'Brien said leaflets dropped on rebel-held areas of Aleppo by Syrian and Russian aircraft made their intentions "chillingly clear."

"This is your last hope.... Save yourselves," the leaflets read, according to O'Brien. "If you do not leave these areas urgently you will be annihilated."

O'Brien said he was "incandescent with rage" over the UN council's failure to stop the suffering. "The buck stops with you," he told members of the powerful panel.

That provoked an angry response from Churkin, who said it was "outrageous" that the UN had refused to acknowledge the humanitarian cease-fire that Russia says it has unilaterally imposed in Aleppo in the last week to allow delivery of humanitarian aid.

Churkin, who said that "terrorist" groups in Aleppo had prevented the delivery of the aid, accused O'Brien of "arrogance" for making such strong accusations against Moscow.

"If we needed to be preached to, we would go to a church," said Churkin, who is chairing the UN council this month. "Please leave this kind of report to a novel that you might write one day."

U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power assailed Russia for the latest violence, saying Moscow never worked cooperatively with the UN during its supposed pauses in fighting to ensure the delivery of humanitarian relief.

"You don't get congratulations and credit for not committing war crimes for a day or a week," she said.

Power insisted the goal of the Russian and Syrian bombing campaign was to "make civilians relent and cry uncle," and again challenged Moscow's claim that it is only fighting terrorists.

"Does Russia believe that all of the children in eastern Aleppo are Al-Qaeda members?" she asked.

After being upbraided before the council by Churkin, the UN's O'Brien said he would not "retract, qualify, or disclaim any fact or part of my earlier statement."

Turning to address Moscow's ambassador directly, O'Brien said: "I am prompted to state the age-old truth: Don't shoot the messenger. Stand up for the beleaguered people of Syria and...stop the war now."

With reporting by AP, AFP, Reuters, and dpa

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/russia-churkin -hit-with-outrage-un-over-attacks-on- syrian-children/28077523.html

Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Russia Registered US Attack Drone in Area Where Idlib School Was Attacked - MoD

Sputnik News

20:00 27.10.2016(updated 20:58 27.10.2016)

Russian reconnaissance means have registered a US attack drone in the area where a school in Syrua's Idlib had been bombed, the Russian Defense Ministry said Thursday.

A US' MQ-1B Predator drone has been seen in the area, the ministry's spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.

No Russian aircraft entered the area over the Syrian Idlib, where the alleged strike took place, he added.

Moreover, Russian UAVs have not registered any signs of the destruction of the school's roof or shell craters, Maj. Gen. Konashenkov said. A Russian drone has been sent to the area Thursday morning, he added.

"According to a photo made by a Russian UAV, the school's roof is not damaged and there are no bomb craters in the area near the school. Similar imformation may be requested from our American colleagues. Russian reconnaissance means registered a US' MQ-1B Predator attack drone."

Video footage published in media showing the alleged strike on the Idlib school have been fabricated, the ministry added.

"Video footage published by a number of foreign media outlets of an alleged strike on the residential area of Hass [in Idlib] consists of more than 10 pieces pasted together, being shot at different times of the day."

Moreover, Konashenkov added that the school's fence has not been damaged at all, while if an aerial bomb exploded, "the fence and all the walls of the buildings would have been destroyed and damaged by shrapnel, while the furniture would have been swept away by the shock wave."

According to the spokesman, the photo published by the AFP agency showed that the nature and the extent of the damage sustained by the school were not similar to the destruction caused by airstrikes.

Earlier in the day, the executive director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Anthony Lake said that as many as 22 children and six teachers were killed in an attack on a school in Idlib. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova condemned the attack on a school in Syria's Idlib and called for an investigation into the bombing. She also said that international media "launched an attack" on Russia by claiming that Moscow and Damascus are behind the bombing without presenting evidence.

The UNICEF has fallen victim to another hoax by the White Helmets NGO, the Russian Defense Ministry spokesman added.

"Before making statements, UNISEF officials should check the sources of its information," he said, adding that such a respected organization shiuld not undermine its reputation.

 Sputnik

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UNSC Should Refer School-Bombing Case in Idlib to ICC - UN Envoy

Sputnik News

19:47 27.10.2016(updated 19:50 27.10.2016)

The UN Security Council should immediately refer the case of a school bombing in Syria to the International Criminal Court now that Russia supports such an investigation, UN Special Envoy for Global Education Gordon Brown said at a briefing Thursday.

UNITED NATIONS (Sputnik)  Earlier in the day, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova condemned the attack on a school in Syria's Idlib and called for an investigation into the bombing. She also said that international media "launched an attack" on Russia by claiming that Moscow and Damascus are behind the bombing without presenting evidence.

"The Security Council should meet now because while Russia vetoed a resolution to refer atrocities in Syria to the International Criminal Court in 2014, the Russian [Ministry of] Foreign Affairs spokesperson has just said of the school killings that we demand all international organizations join the investigation without further delay," Brown told reporters.

Earlier in the day, the executive director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Anthony Lake said that as many as 22 children and six teachers were killed in an attack on a school in Idlib.

 Sputnik

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'We are not giving up,' despite evacuation failure - UN envoys on Syria

27 October 2016  Expressing their disappointment that the sick and wounded were not evacuated from Syria's war-torn eastern Aleppo, the United Nations Special Envoy for Syria and his Senior Advisor today vowed to press on with their efforts to extract those with medical emergencies and get assistance to those with desperate needs inside the city.

"This is a dirty, ugly, horrible war, so we should never be surprised when things go wrong, over lack of trust, or pre-conditions that are put by either side," Staffan de Mistura, the UN Special Envoy on Syria, told the press following a humanitarian taskforce meeting on Syria, in Geneva today.

Underscoring their resolve to continue to push on for the people trapped in the city, Jan Egeland, Senior Advisor to Mr. de Mistura, added: "[] We are not giving up [] You cannot tell Fatima, age eight, that she cannot get treatment outside the besieged area because conditions are not met on many other areas."

Mr. de Mistura also informed the press of the support from the countries at the taskforce meeting as well as their appreciation of the role of the UN humanitarian actors on the ground, including the Humanitarian Coordinator Ali Al-Za'tari.

At the briefing, Mr. Egeland further emphasized that both the evacuations as well as getting food and medical aid into the city are important humanitarian operations and not allowing either of these to proceed is a violation of humanitarian law.

He also reiterated the Special Envoy's message of unanimous support from all countries at the meeting, including from Russia, the United States to try humanitarian again, on all fronts.

Eastern Aleppo has not received humanitarian supplies in large quantities since the end of June.

Mr. Egeland also told the media that there had been some progress in other areas, including reaching over 180,000 people in some besieged areas in Al Waer, Moadamiyeh, Duma, and by air drops Deir-ez-Zor.

But he added that surgical supplies were still not allowed to be delivered.

Mr. Egeland further noted that, meanwhile people's lives continued to be in balance in a "tit-for-tat" between Government and the opposition groups on allowing humanitarian supplies.

"This has also meant that [] 54 patients, 27 in Foah and Kefraya, 27 in Madaya are waiting to be evacuated and they are not. One young person died in Madaya while they are quarrelling on other issues," he said.

Expressing hope the issues holding back a response are resolved, he called on all parties to the conflict to help humanitarian actors alleviate the suffering of the people, particularly given that winter is approaching.

"I fear it will be a very, very cold winter for too many," he said.

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ELKO  The Bureau of Land Management is planning to remove 1,100 horses from a part of northern Nevada that also contains priority sage grouse habitat.

The helicopter gather in the Owyhee Complex is set to begin Tuesday.

This gather is a management action necessary to lessen the impacts of the overpopulation of wild horses in the Owyhee Complex has on important Greater Sage Grouse habitat said Alan Shepherd, BLM Nevada Wild Horse and Burro Program Manager. These actions are in conformance with the 2015 Nevada and Northeastern California Greater Sage Grouse Sub-regional Plan Amendment.

The total gather area covers more than 1.2 million acres of both private and public lands. Although an August aerial survey counted 3,067 horses, the Appropriate Management Level for the complex is 483-779 horses, according to the BLM.

All of the horses identified for removal will be transported to the Palomino Valley Wild Horse and Burro Adoption Center near Reno, where they will be prepared for the BLM adoption program. Horses not adopted will be placed in off-range pastures where they will be humanely cared for and retain their wild status and protection under the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. The BLM does not sell or send any horses to slaughter.
UN Calls for War Crime Probe Into Strike on Syrian School

By VOA News October 27, 2016

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for an investigation Thursday into an air strike on a school in Syria that killed more than 20 people, most of them children, the day before.

"If deliberate, this attack may amount to a war crime," Ban said in a statement from his spokesman.

Former British prime minister Gordon Brown also called for a war crimes investigation, calling the attack the "worst assault on school children among 98 separate attacks on Syrian schools in the last two years."

Warplanes carried out six strikes Wednesday on a village in rebel-held Idlib, including on a school complex, leaving six teachers and 22 of their students dead, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Both the observatory and the White House have said that either the Syrian or Russian governments are responsible for the attacks.

"We don't know yet that it was the Assad regime or the Russians that carried out the air strike, but we know it was one of the two," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.

But Russian defense ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said Russian warplanes did not enter the airspace over the school at the time in question, also claiming that footage from a Russian drone of the damaged site was not consistent with an air strike, according to Russian agencies.

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Officials defend Taiwan's national sovereignty

ROC Central News Agency

2016/10/27 21:29:14

Taipei, Oct. 27 (CNA) Taiwan's high-ranking officials in charge of China affairs expressed regret and discontent on Thursday after a Chinese official stated a day earlier that Taiwan has never been a country.

At a regular press conference on Wednesday, An Fengshan, a spokesman for China's State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said Taiwan is an indispensable part of China and has never been a country.

An made the remarks in response to a question concerning a Taiwanese official's recent remarks that ties across the Taiwan Strait are special state-to-state relations.

China considers Taiwan a part of its territory, to be reunited by force if necessary.

But Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Minister Chang Hsiao-yueh () on Thursday said An's comments were inappropriate.

"We are absolutely an independent sovereign nation," Chang said during a legislative session, adding that the nation's title is the Republic of China although it is better known as Taiwan in the international community.

Later that day, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) also called a news conference and issued a press release to express Taiwan's regret over the matter.

Chiu Chui-cheng (), vice minister and spokesman of the MAC, said that the ROC is an independent sovereign state and has its own constitution and national leader elected by its people.

China's unilateral statement will not change the fact that the ROC is a sovereign state but will only hurt the feelings of Taiwan's 23 million people and harm the peaceful and stable development of cross-strait relations, Chiu added.

Chiu also called on the two sides across the strait to settle disagreements through communication and dialogue, which he said would help foster benevolent interactions and develop the relationship between the two sides.

(By Wen Kuei-hsiang, Chen Chia-lun and Evelyn Kao)

Enditem/cs

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U.S. reiterates support for Taiwan's Interpol participation

ROC Central News Agency

2016/10/27 12:05:12

Washington, Oct. 26 (CNA) The U.S. Department of State reiterated Washington's support for Taiwan's meaningful participation in the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) Wednesday, ahead of the organization's annual assembly next month.

The United States has long opposed measures adopted by international organizations that unilaterally determine the status of the Taiwanese people without their consent, said Grace Choi, spokeswoman for the State Department's East Asian and Pacific Affairs Bureau.

"As a general matter, we support Taiwan's membership in international organizations where statehood is not a requirement, and support its meaningful participation, as appropriate, in organizations where its membership is not possible," Choi told CNA in an e-mail.

"We remain committed to Taiwan's meaningful participation in organizations like Interpol, the World Health Organization, and the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change," she said.

Recognizing that combating cross-border crime is a shared responsibility, the U.S. supports constructive efforts to cooperate and share information to address international crime, and welcomes the contribution of the Taiwanese people, she added.

Taiwan was forced to withdraw from Interpol in 1984 when China joined the organization.

Both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives passed a bill in March requiring the U.S. secretary of state to develop a strategy to obtain observer status for Taiwan in Interpol. The bill was then signed into law by President Barack Obama.

There has been no confirmation that Taiwan will be able to attend the Nov. 7-10 Interpol general assembly in Bali, Indonesia, although Foreign Minister David Lee () said in early October that Taiwan would apply to participate.

Lee said Thursday in Taipei that Taiwan cannot be optimistic about its prospects for taking part in the meeting next month.

U.S. Rep. Matt Salmon, chairman of the Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, told CNA Wednesday that the U.S. government should continue to use its influence to persuade other Interpol members to allow Taiwan to take part in the organization.

He also promised to continue efforts to help Taiwan participate in Interpol meetings.

Meanwhile, Taiwan's representative to France, Zhang Ming-zhong (), noted that Taiwan is not able to join the I-24/7 global police communications system because it is not a member of Interpol.

Taiwan recognizes the need for the world to work together to counter terrorism, and hopes to share information with other countries to combat cross-border crime, but its efforts to establish a connection with Interpol have so far been unsuccessful, Zhang said.

He said he wrote to the Interpol secretariat in Lyon last year to express Taiwan's willingness to share information about People's Republic of China nationals using counterfeit Republic of China passports within the European Union, but did not receive any response.

A similar outcome ensued when he again wrote to the organization this year to try to share Taiwan's experience in solving an ATM theft spree committed by an international crime ring, according to Zhang.

(By Rita Cheng, Tony Liao, Emmanuelle Tzeng and Y.F. Low)

ENDITEM/J

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Turkey orders arrest of pilots in post-coup crackdown

Iran Press TV

Thu Oct 27, 2016 9:10AM

Turkish prosecutors have issued arrest warrants for 73 air force pilots as part of Ankara's ongoing crackdown on alleged plotters and sympathizers of the July 15 coup attempt.

The arrest warrants were issued on Thursday as police forces launched operations across 17 provinces to detain the pilots over their alleged links to US-based opposition figure Fethullah Gulen, Anadolu reported.

The operations focused on an air base in the central Turkish province of Konya, the news agency added.

According to Turkey's private Dogan news agency, the suspects are accused of "armed rebellion against the Turkish Republic" and membership in what Ankara calls the Fethullah terror organization or FETO.

The latest detentions will bring to more than 300 the number of pilots dismissed or arrested as part of the coup investigation.

Other media reports said more than 200 soldiers and civilians were to be arrested in coup-related operations on Thursday.

Last week, police detained 47 soldiers in a similar operation focused on the Konya base, of which 29 were subsequently remanded in custody, according to Dogan.

On Wednesday, Ankara said it had replaced three quarters of provincial police heads as part of the crackdown.

Since the July 15 coup attempt, Turkey has arrested 35,000 people and sacked or suspended more than 100,000 others in the civil service, judiciary, police, military and elsewhere.

Gulen denies involvement in the failed coup.

The crackdown has raised concerns among European countries and human rights organizations, who have urged the Turkish government to show restraint and act within the rule of law.

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Turkey Suggests Participation of Free Syrian Army in Raqqa Op Instead of Kurds

Sputnik News

15:44 27.10.2016(updated 15:45 27.10.2016)

Ankara suggested the partipation of the Free Syrian Army's (FSA) in the operation to retake Daesh's de facto capital of Raqqa instead of the self-defense forces of the Syrian Kurds, Turkey's Defense Minister Fikri Isk said Thursday.

ANKARA (Sputnik)  Earlier in the day, US-led coalition commander Stephen Townsend said the United States and Turkey were in talks over the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) involvement in the operation to free Raqqa from Daesh.

However, Ankara opposes SDF's involvement since the force includes People's Protection Units (YPG), which Turkey considers to be an affiliate of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), outlawed in the country.

"Turkey argues that the operation for the liberation of Raqqa from Daesh should not involve participation of another terrorist group  YPG [Kurdish People Protection Unit]. As for alternatives, Turkey is ready to offer them. We, in particular, suggest using the support of the local forces, mainly the Free Syrian Army," Isik was quoted as saying by the Anadolu Agency.

On Wednesday, Isik met with his US and French counterparts, Ashton Carter and Jean-Yves Le Drian, to discuss fighting against Daesh terrorists. Carter said that the US-led international coalition intended to start the operation to liberate Syria's Raqqa in a few weeks.

In August, Turkish forces, backed by US-led coalition aircraft, began a military operation dubbed Euphrates Shield to clear the Syrian border town of Jarabulus and the surrounding area of Daesh. As Jarabulus was retaken, the joint forces of Ankara, the coalition and Syrian opposition continued the offensive southwest.

 Sputnik

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Turkey May Strengthen Military Presence in Iraq Due to Increased Daesh Threat

Sputnik News

13:37 27.10.2016(updated 13:38 27.10.2016)

Turkey is considering the deployment of more troops to the camp in northern Iraqi town of Bashiqa due to increased threat from Daesh terrorist group, if Ankara-Baghdad talks on the camp status come to a deadlock, Turkish media reported, citing government sources.

ANKARA (Sputnik)  Relations between Turkey and Iraq deteriorated after Turkey dispatched its troops in Iraq allegedly to fight Daesh in late 2015. The Turkish government said its forces would participate in the operation on the liberation of Mosul, however, Iraqi authorities claim they have not given their consent for this participation.

According to the Hurriyet Daily News newspaper, earlier in October, Ankara proposed to Baghdad a draft agreement on the current and future status of the camp with a condition that the Turkish servicemen will remain in Bashiqa until the end of a current operation on liberation of Mosul from Daesh.

On October 17, a Turkish delegation visited Iraq and presented the document to the authorities in Baghdad, the publication said citing its sources. The next round of talks is possible in case of a positive reply from Baghdad, according to the media outlet.

The bilateral tensions have run higher after the Turkish parliament earlier in October extended a mandate allowing Turkish troops to be deployed in Iraq and Syria to combat terrorists for an additional year.

Following this step, the Iraqi parliament adopted a resolution voicing protest against Turkish military presence in the camp in northern Iraq, located about 19 miles northeast of Mosul. The lawmakers demand its government take the necessary legal and diplomatic measures, including a review of the economic relations between the two countries. Ankara has condemned the resolution.

On October 17, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Abadi announced the start of the operation to retake Mosul from Daesh. The offensive is backed by airstrikes by the US-led international coalition.

 Sputnik

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Turkish Army Destroys 103 Daesh, Kurdish Forces' Positions in Northern Syria

Sputnik News

11:45 27.10.2016(updated 12:04 27.10.2016)

Turkish forces have destroyed 94 Daesh positions and 9 PYD positions in the past 24 hours, the Turkish General Staff said in a statement on Thursday.

ANKARA (Sputnik)  Turkish forces have destroyed 94 positions of the Daesh terrorist group and 9 positions of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) in the past 24 hours as part of the Euphrates Shield operation in northern Syria, the Turkish General Staff said in a statement on Thursday.

"Our Armed Forces have hit 94 Daesh positions and 9 PYD positions. The Free Syrian Army [of Syrian opposition, FSA] liberated a settlement in the area of the city of Mari, the total area under its controls in the north of Syria amounts to 1,305 square kilometers [some 504 square miles]," the Turkish military said.

The General Staff added that two FSA fighters were killed in the hostilities, 16 were injured. A Turkish serviceman was injured in the mortar attack carried out by terrorists.

On August 24, Turkish forces, backed by US-led coalition aircraft, began a military operation dubbed Euphrates Shield to clear the Syrian border town of Jarabulus and the surrounding area of Daesh, outlawed in Russia and many other countries. As Jarabulus was retaken, the joint forces of Ankara, the coalition and Syrian rebels continued the offensive southwest.

Ankara considers PYD, and its military wing YPG (People's Protection Units) operating in Syria an affiliate of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is outlawed in Turkey.

 Sputnik

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Turkey Provides US With Evidence Sufficient for Arrest of Cleric Gulen

Sputnik News

11:25 27.10.2016(updated 12:05 27.10.2016)

Turkey hopes for the arrest of the Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, who is blamed for an attempted coup in the country, Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said on Thursday.

ANKARA (Sputnik)  Ankara provided relevant US authorities with evidence of the guilt of opposition Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, who is believed by Ankara to be the mastermind behind a recent failed coup attempt, that should be sufficient enough for his arrest, Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said on Thursday.

"We have submitted sufficient even more than sufficient, evidences to have him [Gulen] detained," Bozdag said following talks with his US counterpart, Loretta Lynch, in Washington, as quoted by the Anadolu news agency.

He added that his visit to the United States is "the first time a Turkish justice minister visits a country for extradition of a criminal residing in that country" and warned that US courts should process the evidence before Gulen might flee the county and apply for asylum in another state.

On July 15, a military coup attempt took place in Turkey. More than 240 Turkish citizens were killed and over 2,000 people were injured, before the rebellion was suppressed the following day.

The Turkish authorities have accused dissident Islamic preacher Gulen of orchestrating the attempted coup and demanded his extradition from the United States, where Gulen has lived in self-imposed exile since 1999. Gulen himself has denounced the rebellion and declared his innocence.

 Sputnik

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Turkish Prosecution Orders to Detain 73 Military Pilots Over Alleged Gulen Links

Sputnik News

10:48 27.10.2016(updated 12:07 27.10.2016)

The Turkish Prosecutor's Office authorized the detention of 73 military pilots suspected of having links with the movement of Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen who is believed by Ankara to be the mastermind behind a recent failed coup attempt, local media reported on Thursday.

ANKARA (Sputnik)  The operation in carried out across the country in 17 provinces of Turkey, according to Anadolu news agency. The media added that 71 out of 73 pilots to be detained had rank of first lieutenant.

On July 15, a military coup attempt took place in Turkey. Over 240 people were killed during the coup attempt and an estimated 2,000 were wounded. Ankara has accused dissident Muslim cleric Gulen, who has been living in the US state of Pennsylvania since 1999, and his followers of playing a key role in the coup.

According to the Turkish Justice Ministry, a total of 32,000 military officers, high-ranking civil servants, judges and teachers suspected of being Gulen supporters have been arrested in Turkey after the failed coup attempt.

 Sputnik

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Turkey Announces Detention of Dozens More Military Members

By VOA News October 27, 2016

The post-coup attempt fallout continued in Turkey Thursday as authorities ordered the detention of 73 air force pilots alleged to have been part of the failed July putsch.

Turkish state media reported that 45 pilots were detained during police operations across the country, while the others, who had previously been detained, were formally arrested.

Of those detained Thursday, 71 were lieutenants in Turkey's air force and two were colonels, according to the prosecutor's office in Konya, the city where the warrants were issued.

The officers are accused of having links to a group led by U.S.-based Muslim preacher Fetullah Gulen, who Turkish authorities say masterminded the coup attempt. He denies any involvement.

Since the coup attempt, around 100,000 military, police, judiciary and education employees have been fired. Around 30,000 have been arrested for alleged links to the coup.

Thousands of judges have been detained under emergency rule, including two members of the Constitutional Court.

Gulen, according to experts, has hundreds of thousands of supporters in Turkey, who have built a wide network of businesses and private schools and supporters across the country.

The government has said it is determined to break up this network, which it accuses of not only supporting the coup attempt, but running a parallel state that favors its supporters and crushes opponents.

Western nations have expressed concern over the legality of the post-coup purge, though Turkey has maintained that it's acting within the law while dealing with an unprecedented danger.

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SPRING CREEK  The meeting room was packed with concerned customers as representatives of Spring Creek Utilities came to speak to residents about being overcharged for water.

Vice President of Operations James Eason estimated there are about 600 customers who have had their rates inflated after having their meters misread.

Eason said the Spring Creek Utilities employees who were reading meters on the affected routes will no longer be servicing those areas.

Eason further explained that there are three tiers of water consumption and the 600 customers had been billed at the second tier consumption rate when they should have been billed at the first tier rate.

The first tier rate charges customer $3.47 per 1,000 gallons, the second tier charges customers $4.57 per 1,000 gallons and the third tier costs $5.29 per 1,000 gallons. Customers were moved to the next payment tier after exceeding a certain gallon usage in a month.

After meeting with Public Utilities Commission of Nevada, Spring Creek Utilities plans to credit the accounts of the 600 over-billed customers and adjust their bills accordingly.

The PUCN agreed to our suggestion of moving everybody into the third tier for their consumption, Eason said.

Though the water company claims only 600 customers have had their meters misread, many in attendance believed the problem was more widespread than that and claimed a high number of meters in Spring Creek were miscalculating water usage.

Devin Rattazzi said they have had issues with over-billing when air has gotten stuck in their meter and registered it as water being used.

Its standard physics, man. When you hit an air pocket that meter is going to spin until it hits water again, he said. I can afford it because my wife and I work at the mines. But these people that are on a fixed income?

Eason then claimed that meters could not register more water than is actually being used.

Roger Cody was not sure of the reason for the increase in his bill but was one of many customers who claimed his bill had increased while his water use decreased.

I called your office on the 19th and I said oh my god I cant believe my bill. Its higher this month than it was the last month and Ive used less water this month than I did the previous month, he said. My bill, last month, was $470  My new bill for using less water is now $681. I used less water and got billed $211 more. Can you explain this?

Cody also asserted that the rate customers pay for water should enable the utility to pay for employees who will get an accurate read on a meter.

Issues with customer service regarding the companys billing practices were also a frequent topic of conversation during Wednesdays board meeting. With customers unsure if they should pay bills they felt were incorrect, many said they were told by customer service to pay their bill or have their water shut off.

Sharon Shoddard said her water bill quadrupled in July and she had trouble getting in contact with customer service for an explanation.

Ive called your customer service half a dozen times with very little response back except for once and he left me a message telling me not to pay my bill until it was fixed, she said.

After not paying her bill while she worked to resolve the issue, she received a shut off notice on her door and paid the bill to avoid having her water shut off.

Assemblyman John Ellison has been working with the SCA to resolve the issue with Spring Creeks water service and praised the board for addressing an issue that many in Spring Creek are passionate about.

This problem has been going on a long time and were going to address that issue at the Legislature, he said. Theyve been working hard and theyve stayed behind this.

With other matters that needed to be addressed in the meeting, a list of affected customers was compiled for Spring Creek Utilities to get in touch with and attempt to resolve their issues personally. The water company is also planning to have another meeting separate from the associations regular board meetings to talk about the problems that were brought up.

Even though the meeting was contentious at times, Eason said he was glad he was able to talk to the disgruntled customers.

Im very thankful the association asked us to come here and explain whats been going on with the meters and the billing, he said. We have resolved some issues and I think other issues we werent aware of were brought to light.
UK Gov't Support Deal to Sentinel Surveillance Aircraft to Sustain 160 New Jobs

Sputnik News

17:38 27.10.2016(updated 17:47 27.10.2016)

The UK government supports the British Sentinel surveillance aircraft, that will ensure 160 new jobs across the United Kingdom.

MOSCOW (Sputnik)  The UK government struck a deal with Raytheon UK, a technology company specialized in defense and security products, to support the British Sentinel surveillance aircraft, in a step that will ensure 160 new jobs across the United Kingdom, UK Minister for Defense Procurement Harriett Baldwin said Thursday.

"This new support contract will sustain 160 jobs across the UK and demonstrates the very tangible benefits which Defense is bringing to the nation's economy," Baldwin said in a statement.

Under the contract, the Raytheon UK will provide the Sentinel with support and maintenance service for the next five years, in order to continue meeting the UK's Royal Air Force (RAF) operational requirements. About 120 people will be hired at the RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire and 40 other people will be hired at the Hawarden Airfield near Broughton, North Wales.

The Sentinel is a surveillance aircraft that is capable of scanning areas from a high distances, to give troops persistent, accurate and all-weather surveillance intelligence. It has served in many countries including Afghanistan and as part of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) operations in Libya in 2011.

 Sputnik

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Surveillance aircraft support deal sustains around 160 UK jobs

27 October 2016

Minister for Defence Procurement, Harriett Baldwin announces 131.5 million support contract for RAF's Sentinel surveillance aircraft.

The Minister also visited Kent Periscopes in St Asath to view their new innovative periscope assembly facility, before hosting the small and medium sized enterprise (SME) Forum which included a showcase of SME products and services for defence and a more formal meeting to discuss issues such as market access for SMEs and intellectual property.

The deal with Raytheon UK will provide the Sentinel aircraft with in-service support and maintenance, meaning it can continue to meet the RAF's operational requirements. With the ability to gather intelligence on enemy movements and track specific targets, the Sentinel remains a key element in the UK's operations against Daesh in Syria and Iraq.

Minister for Defence Procurement, Harriett Baldwin said:

"Sentinel aircraft provide vital intelligence to our Armed Forces, giving them the ability to make decisions that helps keep Britain safe, including on current operations against Daesh."

"As part of our 178 billion equipment plan, this contract is supported by a Defence budget that will rise every year until the end of the decade, meeting the NATO commitment to spend 2% of GDP on Defence. This new support contract will sustain 160 jobs across the UK and demonstrates the very tangible benefits which Defence is bringing to the nation's economy."

The new contract to provide support for the aircraft for the next 5 years is expected to sustain around 120 jobs at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire and 40 roles at Hawarden Airfield near Broughton, North Wales.

Chief Executive Officer of the MOD's Defence Equipment and Support organisation, Tony Douglas, said:

"This support contract demonstrates how we are working collaboratively with industry to sustain UK jobs and to ensure our equipment remains fit for purpose and continues to meet the needs of our military customers."

"This contract was required to deliver on the decision in the 2015 SDSR to extend this key airborne surveillance platform, and I am delighted with the speed that the DE&S delivery team have worked with industry to negotiate this new contract, which is a testament to their drive, professionalism and delivery focus."

The Sentinel fleet provides an 'eye in the sky' airborne mission management system that gives troops persistent, wide-area, all-weather surveillance. The aircraft uses air to ground search capabilities, by scanning areas from a safe distance to protect the Armed Forces in delivering actionable, accurate information. The aircraft have served on numerous operations, including Afghanistan and as part NATO operations in Libya in 2011.

Based in St Asath, Kent Periscopes designs and manufactures optical systems for some of the MOD's key armoured fighting vehicle programmes through companies such as Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics and Babcock. The Ajax programme alone has helped sustain 20 jobs at the company. After securing major long term business on MOD programmes, Kent Periscopes has invested around 250,000 to further expand their business and increase their workforce by a third by 2018.

Minister Baldwin continued:

"The investment that Kent Periscopes have made in their new facilities is testament to the highly skilled work force and the economic benefits Defence delivers in Wales and across the UK."

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UK maritime personnel train the Libyan Coastguard

27 October 2016

UK Armed Forces personnel will tomorrow begin operations to help train the Libyan Coastguard, the Defence Secretary Michael Fallon has confirmed.

The training, previously announced at the G7 in May 2016, will see a small team of Royal Navy personnel provide training to the Libyans in coastguard activities, such as search and rescue. As part of the EU's mission in the Mediterranean, Operation Sophia, the training will increase Libya's ability to secure its own borders by increasing their Coastguard's ability to disrupt people smuggling and illegal arms trafficking in and around Libya.

Specialist trainers from the Royal Navy will also teach the Coastguard in naval expertise, such as how to sail alongside, board and inspect vessels.

The training programme underlines the UK's support to Operation Sophia, which aims to disrupt the activities of the smugglers who continue to exploit migrants trying to reach Europe.

Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said:

"People smuggling across the Mediterranean saw 3,000 people drowned at sea last year. To help prevent more lives being lost, the Royal Navy will provide training support to the Libyan Coast Guard. Fighting the smuggling of people and arms will save lives and make Britain safer and more secure."

Following a thorough and effective vetting process, the training will began on Friday 28 October, and will be delivered over the next three months. The programme will take place aboard European ships.

Other British ships and personnel are involved in Operation Sophia. Earlier this month RFA Mounts Bay resumed duties patrolling the Mediterranean to counter illegal arms trafficking, taking over from HMS Diamond.

Today in Brussels the Defence Secretary followed yesterday's announcement that RAF Typhoon jets would deploy to the Black Sea region and UK troops to the Baltic region, with discussions about a wider maritime role for NATO, working in co-operation with the EU.

He said:

"Our jets and troops will help protect NATO's flanks by air and land, and today we see a wider role for NATO at sea, helping to protect the Mediterranean and making us safer by working with the EU in tackling the flow of illegal migration, arms and potential terrorists."

Backed by a defence budget rising in real terms for the rest of this parliament, the UK is also meeting NATO's 2% defence spending target.



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Last week we discussed the state ballot measure that would legalize the recreational use of marijuana in Nevada. We have mixed views on that issue, but there are three other important state ballot questions we oppose.

Question 1 would require background checks for almost all gun sales or transfers. That might sound harmless enough or maybe even beneficial to some folks. But its quite the opposite.

For example, the measure would prevent a person from selling or even lending a rifle to a neighbor or lifelong friend for hunting or target shooting without first going to a licensed dealer, paying fees, and awaiting results of the background check before completing the transaction. By this measure, zealots who despise the Second Amendment seek to punish people who exercise their rights under it.

And through such sneaky backdoor measures they also seek to regulate gun ownership ultimately out of existence. Over time, recording all transactions will provide the government with the data necessary to create a registry of all privately owned guns. Question 1s burdens on law-abiding gun owners would curtail private gun ownership.

One reason the Bill of Rights guarantees our right to bear arms is that Britain confiscated the colonists weapons in order to subject them to unlawful taxation and severe ill treatment. Governments in the United States and around the world are nowadays far more interventionist and capable of significant tyranny than the British crown ever was.

So granting the government the data to facilitate the location and confiscation of all weapons creates a serious threat to our civil freedoms, as well as to our abilities to protect ourselves from criminals when the police cant.

Further, strict controls on the legal gun market have not stopped violent attacks. For example, Norway led all countries in the concentration of rampage shootings between 2009 and 2013 despite strict controls. At 15.3 shootings per one million people, its rate was more than 20 times greater than ours.

Question 3 would amend Nevadas constitution to require the legislature to provide for a competitive retail market in electric energy generation and supply. It does not apply to electric transmission and distribution service, which quite reasonably would continue to be franchised and regulated by the state as a natural monopoly service.

In short, all customers or groups of customers would have the freedom to contract with any supplier for their electric power, which would continue to be delivered to them by the electric utilities under state regulation.

In principle, this reform is a great idea, as demonstrated by significant reductions in prices and improvement in services in recent decades as a consequence of similar regulatory reform in many transportation, communication, energy and other industries. For example, such retail competition in Texas has provided most consumers rates lower than they had 15 years ago, while many monopolistic markets, like Nevada, have seen substantial rate hikes during that time.

However, while such reforms should be welcomed, they do not belong in the state constitution. Constitutions should be limited to fundamental matters of government organization, the rights of citizens, and specifying and limiting the powers of government, etc.

Under Nevadas constitution, the legislature already has the power to do all the good things this measure would require. However, particular provisions of this measure may be found defective or in need of change. As long as such reforms are done legislatively, they can be remedied timely by the legislature. Thats not the case if they are enshrined in the constitution.

Finally, Question 4 should be rejected for the same reason. This measure would amend the Nevada constitution to require that the legislature provide by law for exemption from state taxes on a wide range of durable medical equipment.

While this may be a good idea, it raises many questions in context of the various things the state does and does not tax. But even if one concludes as a matter of sound tax policy that these items should be tax-exempt, the legislature already has the power to exempt them now. Once again, enshrining these provisions in the constitution would prevent timely reform of any parts of the proposal that may be found to merit change or repeal later.
Editor:

Our Constitution which limits the Federal government, not State governments, in order to guarantee liberty, is on the ballot and the outcome will determine the direction of the courts and whether judges will faithfully and impartially perform all the duties under our founding document or dilute, attack and destroy it.

Our representatives dont even seriously deliberate many pieces of legislation (some so massive theyre not even read) and Congress is becoming an administrative body simply overseeing the bureaucratic policy-makers. The solution? Cut the size and scope of government down to a size they can handle for the pay they get and for working less than half a year.

American workers average about 245 days each year. Compare that to the 160-180 days a year that Congressmen are in session, enjoying not only an August recess, but 191 paid vacation days per year. Last year, during their less than half-years worth, they spent $3.6 trillion taxpayers money. If we spent $255,000 per day, we could pay Congress to stay home and save money!

In 2009, Congress began following in Marxs footsteps, redistributing our wealth and putting under government control, healthcare, banking and auto industries, all inroads from capitalism to Socialism.

Illegals are still crossing our borders, helping themselves to our jobs, housing and a multitude of taxpayer benets. Public health and crime are of little consequence, so who cares if they dont assimilate and become Americans? We accommodate them by allowing them to become hyphenated Americans.

Obama is pro-Muslim, and walking in look step with him is Hillary Clinton who intends to extend an open invitation to even more radical Islam followers and their Sharia law.

Cloaked in secrecy she will prohibit rearm ownership by committing the U.S. to international treaties and foreign gun control laws.

The news media is as desperate to ignore Hillarys foggy records as she is to hide them.

Trumps message is to undo 8 years of Obamas and Hillarys destruction on virtually every aspect of our nation.

This election, Im not as worried about voter ID laws as I am about voter IQ.

Thelma Homer

Elko
Congressional candidates Jane Dittmar and Tom Garrett both touted their records of compromise and working with others to create solutions during the eighth and final candidate debate for the 5th District.

Dittmar and Garrett  who are running to replace Robert Hurt in the House of Representatives  sparred over question topics like job creation, terrorism, agriculture and trade deals during the debate at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research Thursday night.

However, both candidates returned several times to the theme of working together  saying they would be able to bridge partisan divides in Washington.

 We need to send people to Washington who will work together, Dittmar said when asked about the Affordable Care Act. Dittmar noted Congress has attempted to repeal the healthcare law 60 times, rather than work to fix the 2009 legislation.

Garrett touted his record as a patron of bipartisan legislation while part of the Virginia General Assembly, sponsoring bipartisan bills against student restraint and rolling back Standards of Learning testing burdens.

 On just about everything on the political spectrum there is wiggle room, Garrett said.

The debate began with a question about how to rebuild and strengthen the Dan River Regions economy. Dittmar said one of the biggest factors was the expansion of broadband internet across the district  something she has made a pillar of her campaign.

 We have a digital divide all over the district, Dittmar said.

Garrett pledged to undo harmful trade deals as one solution to a sluggish economy. He blamed the North American Free Trade Agreement partly for shutting down Dan River Inc. a decade ago. He also blamed overregulation for crippling small businesses and said he supported workforce development.

 I promise you that we can be a regional leader once again, Garrett said.

Garrett also slammed Obamacare for increasing heath care rates across the country, and called out President Barack Obamas claim that members could keep their current health plans.

 When you build your campaign on a lie, you fail, Garrett said.

On foreign security threats, Dittmar listed climate change as one of the most pressing national security issues, citing national security sources.

 They are very serious about that threat, Dittmar said.

Garrett said a nuclear capable Iran or North Korea was the greatest existential threat to the country.

On immigration, Garrett took a hard line against illegal and legal immigrants now living in poverty in the United States.

 We shouldnt bring in people who can add to the debt, Garrett said.

He also voiced his displeasure with FBI Director James Comey, saying the country could not adequately vet refugees from places with political Islamic violence.

 Since we cant, we shouldnt be bringing in 10s of 1,000s of young men between the ages of 18 to 32 from those nations, Garrett said. When we can vet then, then we can.

Dittmar said she would argue for a version of the 2013 comprehensive immigration reform bill that passed the Senate but did not make it to the floor of the House of Representatives.

After Garrett was asked what the biggest difference was between himself and Garrett, he admitted it to be the hardest question of the debate. He said he liked and respected Dittmar, but added the biggest difference was political ideology.

Dittmar agreed, and said she respected Garrett, adding the biggest difference was Garrett was one of the Tea Partys favorite state senate members, while she would bring changing and working together back to Washington.

Metcalfe reports for the Danville Register & Bee.
A man who met a woman at a local hotel for sex but was robbed instead testified against the five people charged in the incident during a preliminary hearing in Danville General District Court Thursday afternoon.

Four of the five suspects  James Dickerson, Charles Graham, Heather Inman and Wilson Virts  had robbery charges certified to the next Danville Circuit Court grand jury. Larceny charges against all four defendants were dismissed.

The fifth defendant, Summer Scott, had both robbery and larceny charges against her dismissed.

In court, the five defendants sat at two tables with their attorneys  Aaron Burgin, Justina Ehiawaguan, James Martin, William Meyer and Claudette Robertson  as Danville Chief Deputy Commonwealths Attorney Petra Haskins questioned the victim about the evening of July 29.

That night, the man expected to meet Inman at the Innkeeper hotel on Riverside Drive, according to Danville General Court criminal complaints and a police incident report.

He testified in court that he began talking to Inman through PlentyofFish.com, a dating website.

They exchanged messages through the websites app and through text, he continued. They had casual conversations and he planned to meet her at the hotel room and pay her at the end, he said in court.

He testified that he had between $200 and $250 to spend that evening.

With the hotel room already paid for, the man went to a local Chinese restaurant for food, and then went to the room.

Once inside, she wanted to know that I had the money, and he gave her a $100 bill  half of what he intended to give her, he testified.

As the man sat on the corner of the bed watching television, Inman went to the bathroom, he testified. Two men walked out of the bathroom, holding knives, he testified in court.

The man gave them his wallet and they took his money. You gave them $100? Martin asked. Nobody took or tried to take the money from you, he questioned.

I was concerned that they were going to stab me so he gave them the $100 bill, he said. During the incident, he testified he told the men, I will give you the other half if I can leave.

Before he could leave, he was told to take out his phone and delete the texts and messages on the PlentyofFish app between Inman and him.

During the investigation, Danville Police Officer J.D. Dixon went to the hotel and approached the five suspects.

He found three knives on Dickerson, Graham and Virts  one on each of them, Dixon testified.

Officer J.D. Montgomery wrote in a General District Court criminal complaint that Inman handed him one $100 bill and Scott handed him the other.

Livingston reports for the Danville Register & Bee.
Danville Police with the help of four federal and state law enforcement agencies have announced a drug investigation that has led to charges for cocaine, crack cocaine, heroin and other offenses. On Monday, a Danville Circuit Court grand jury indicted 18 people, and 16 of the suspects have already been arrested, according to a Danville Police Department news release.

Danville Police were assisted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, U.S. Marshals Service, Virginia Department of Alcohol Beverage Control and Virginia State Police.

Two suspects remain at large  Eric James Blandon, 35, and Eric Wimbush, 38.

The names of the indicted men and women who have been arrested are:

 Thomas Leon Averett, 65: possess 0.15 grams of crack cocaine with intent to distribute;

 Carl Arnett Coleman, 49, possess 1.0 gram of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possess 0.08 grams of crack cocaine with intent to distribute;

 Courtney Demond Davis, 34, possess 1.0 ounce of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possess 1.9 grams of heroin with intent to distribute, possess 0.10 grams of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, possess 0.77 grams of k-2 with intent to distribute, possess 13.1 grams of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possess 3.0 grams of marijuana with intent to distribute, possess 0.50 ounces of crack cocaine with intent to distribute;

 James Fredrick Gill, 62, possess 6.0 grams of marijuana with intent to distribute;

 Michael Douglas Gillison, 25, possess 1.5 ounces of marijuana with intent to distribute, possess 1.0 ounce of marijuana with intent to distribute;

 Gary Neal Hightower, 50, possess 0.8 grams of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possess 0.8 grams of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possess 0.8 grams of crack cocaine with intent to distribute;

 Kevin William Jenkins, 50, possess 0.8 grams of crack cocaine with intent to distribute;

 Terry Ray Jennings, 60, possess 0.7 grams of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possess 3.0 grams of crack cocaine with intent to distribute;

 Abby Dean Lewis, 28, possess five Loratabs;

 Joseph Donnell McCain, 29, possess 2.0 ounces of crack cocaine with intent to distribute;

 Marcus Antuan Reeves, 31, possess 0.31 ounces of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possess 1.0 ounce of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possess 1.0 ounce of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possess firearm by a convicted felon;

 Derrick Shante Walden, 29, possess 2.0 ounces of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possess 4.0 ounces of crack cocaine with intent to distribute;

 Shemeka Danielle Walden, 31, possess 2.0 ounces of crack cocaine with intent to distribute;

 William Marcelea Walton, 44, possess 0.80 grams of powder cocaine with intent to distribute, possess 0.02 ounces of powder cocaine with intent to distribute, possess 0.80 grams of powder cocaine with intent to distribute;

 Marcus Deshaun Warren, 22, possess 0.15 grams of crack cocaine with intent to distribute; and

 Bryan Eugene Whitehead, 35, possess 0.8 grams of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possess 0.8 grams of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possess 0.4 grams of crack cocaine with intent to distribute.
Danville City Council has three issues it wants to focus on  violent crime, education and sustained economic growth.

The discussion at a recent retreat was passionate because everybody was very concerned about the future of Danville. Weve made a lot of progress in recent years, but we want to continue that success by focusing on these three areas, which are intertwined, City Manager Ken Larking said.

Reduce violent crime

In Augusts State of the Region address, Mayor John Gilstrap said five out of the six categories for violent crime have been trending down in Danville for the last 10 years  the only category that breaks that trend is homicide. To date, Danville has had 12 homicides  the highest for the city since the Virginia State Police started keeping crime statistics in the 1970s.

Larking said they will be working with Danville Police Department in order to address the crime issue as soon as possible.

We need to be vigilant and reassuring the people who live in the community that the information that they give us is important, that well keep it confidential, and itll lead to some results in the community, Larking said, encouraging residents to work with Danville Police Departments theme of see something, say something.

Education

Larking said the Danville School Board and City Council will have a joint meeting Wednesday where the two boards will talk about having a retreat to discuss visions for the school system and how to make those visions a viable reality.

Thats all about continuing to improve the relationship between the two elected bodies and recognizing that each has the ultimate goal of providing a great education for students that live here, Larking said. Because its gonna have a positive impact on the community as a whole.

Enrollment is down in Danville this year, with 181 fewer pupils than expected, which meant a budget shortfall of about $1 million. However, most small infractions, suspensions and bus infractions decreased during September when compared to 2015.

Sustained economic growth

Weve had some success with the new job announcements, which is great. We have existing businesses that are expanding, either with capital investment or with jobs or both, Larking said.

Danville has had several large economic development announcements in the past year, from the unveiling of plans for the 500 block of Craghead Street, North Americas Kyocera hub, Overfinch and the addition of 150 new full-time jobs at Telvista. Larking said theyd like to improve quality of life in Danville by making Danville more attractive and to encourage businesses to be successful.

Weve had great success in the River District, but theres something that we wanna continue to make strides in. If theres anything we can do there to make it better, obviously we wanna do that, Larking said.

Overall, Danville City Council has lofty goals for the future of the city, and they are willing to help to make those goals a reality.

They wanna have a community with a low violent crime rate, they want a community where the education system is excellent, that the children going through the system will be able to achieve whatever success that they wanna have in life so that they can go on to be successful adults, Larking said. They also wanna see our city grow and be a place where people can have economic opportunity and great quality of life, and those are our really long-range goals. Thats what their vision and hope is for the city of Danville.

Larking will continue meeting with city department heads and taking feedback in order to compile strategies to make these goals achievable in the short- and long-term. He hopes to have a document put together for Danville City Council by the first meeting in December.

You have to look at where we are, and our needs to make the most significant and efficient improvement in those areas, Larking said. It will take a lot of self-examination  where weve been, where we are now, where well be and how well best get there.
District attorneys offices in Rockingham and Caswell/Person counties are at the heart of a criminal investigation into whether there has been a theft of state funds, law enforcement and judicial officials confirmed this week.

The State Bureau of Investigation confirmed Wednesday that since July 25 agents have been investigating both district attorneys offices.

No charges have been filed. Agents from the SBIs Hickory office are investigating alleged theft of state funds from the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts, the SBI stated in its response to a public records request for details filed by the News & Record.

Iredell County Superior Court Judge Joe Crosswhite, at the request of the Administrative Office of the Courts, issued the order for agents to begin looking into the theft allegations.

I can confirm there is an ongoing investigation into the possible thefts of state funds, Crosswhite said Wednesday. Both counties are being investigated.

Kent Williamson, vice chairman of the Caswell County Board of Commissioners, confirmed in late September that he also knew about the criminal investigation into the Caswell County District Attorneys Office, but his details were limited.

The county manager told us there was an investigation going on in our district attorneys office, Williamson said. Actually, he had the county attorney call and tell each of us about the investigation on his behalf.

Neither Rockingham County District Attorney Craig Blitzer nor Caswell/Person County District Attorney Wallace Bradsher returned detailed requests for comment left Wednesday on their cellular and office telephones.

No one interviewed for this story would comment on the specifics of the investigation, and very few details are available to the public. There is no indication that either district attorney is under investigation.

More than 31 people make up the district attorney offices that stretch across three counties.

Bradsher, who became district attorney of both Caswell and Person counties on Jan. 1, 2011, leads a team of 14 .

Craig Blitzer took office on Jan. 1, 2015. He has a staff of 15.

Caswell County Manager Bryan Miller told the News & Record he is not officially aware of an SBI investigation into the district attorneys office.

SBI criminal investigation records do not fall under public record laws in North Carolina, although the public is able to access limited information, including the time, date and nature of an apparent violation of law and the name of the complaining witness.

The SBI on Wednesday released information to the News & Record that revealed the alleged theft and the identity of the judge who initiated the order to investigate.

Judge Crosswhite said a Caswell County judge, whom he did not name, first was made aware of the allegations but that judge said felt he was too close to the situation to oversee the case. That judge contacted the Administrative Office of the Courts, which asked Crosswhite to step in.

He ordered the investigation in late July and said Wednesday that he is awaiting a report from the SBI on its findings.

Crosswhite said he will not be the one to issue charges if they are warranted. Instead, he will review the file and tell the SBI if there is sufficient findings to go further with the investigation.

If the investigation does go forward, Crosswhite said he believes the case will be assigned to a district attorneys staff to be determined at that time.
Toronto - PJX Resources Inc. (PJX or the Company) is pleased to announce an update to the previously announced non-brokered private placement of Flow Through (Flow Through Units) and Non-flow Through Units (Units) at a price of $0.17 per Flow Through Unit and $0.15 per Unit for gross proceeds of $1,500,000 (the Private Placement). The Private Placement has been fully subscribed and the Company will make provision for an over-allotment option to allow the Company to increase the size of the Private Placement by up to 30% to issue a combination of Flow-Through Units and Units at a price of $0.17 per Flow Through Unit and $0.15 per Unit for gross proceeds of $1,950,000 (the Increased Offering). All other terms and conditions of the Private Placement previously announced by the Company in its news release dated October 26, 2016 will remain the same in the Increased Offering.PJX is a mineral exploration company focused on building shareholder value and community opportunity through the exploration and development of mineral resources with a focus on gold. PJXs primary properties are located in the historical mining area of Cranbrook and Kimberley, British Columbia.Please refer to our web site http://www.pjxresources.com for additional information.Linda Brennan, Chief Financial Officer(416) 799-9205info@pjxresources.comForward-Looking Information: This News Release contains forward-looking statements. Forward looking statements are statements which relate to future events. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to exploration results, the success of exploration activities, mine development prospects, completion of economic assessments, and future gold production. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as may, should, expects, plans, anticipates, believes, estimates, predicts, potential, or continue or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. These statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking-statements.

Although PJX has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

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.
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Oct. 28, 2016) -

NOT FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES OR TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES

West Kirkland Mining Inc. (TSX VENTURE:WKM) ("West Kirkland" or the "Company") announces that it has closed a private placement of common shares of the Company with two of its major shareholders for $1,650,000 at $0.10 per share (the "Private Placement").

The Company issued 16,500,000 shares at a price of $0.10 per share for aggregate gross proceeds of $1,650,000. There were no finder's fees or commissions paid on the Private Placement which was arranged by management with the Company's major shareholders. Following the Private Placement Sun Valley Gold Master Fund, Ltd. and Ruffer LLP, on behalf of its clients, will hold 33.19% and 16.84% respectively of the common shares of the Company.

The Company intends to use the net proceeds of the Private Placement for general working capital, targeted resource expansion drilling, regional exploration, and phase-two permitting on its 75% interest in the Hasbrouck Project in Nevada. Clover Nevada LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Waterton Precious Metals Fund II Cayman, LP, ("Waterton"), owns the remaining 25% interest in the Hasbrouck Project. Waterton has indicated to the Company that they will fund their 25% share of project expenditures.

The shares sold in this Private Placement will be subject to a four-month resale restriction from the date of closing.

The securities offered pursuant to the Offerings have not been, and will not be, registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") or any U.S. state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons absent registration or any applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable U.S. state securities laws. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities in the United States, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

About West Kirkland Mining Inc.

West Kirkland owns a 75% interest in the Hasbrouck Gold Project in Tonopah, Nevada. A completed Pre-Feasibility Study and Environmental Assessment with construction level drawings and full permitting for the phase-one Three Hills Mine provides a shovel-ready gold project. West Kirkland also holds a 60% interest in the open pit heap-leach TUG Gold Project in Utah in Joint Venture with Newmont.

On behalf of the Board of West Kirkland Mining Inc.

Frank R. Hallam, CFO and Director

Authors and Qualified Persons Statement

Sandy McVey, P.Eng., Chief Operating Officer for West Kirkland, and a non-independent Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101, has also reviewed the information contained in this news release and has verified the data.

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains forward-looking information or forward-looking statements (collectively "forward-looking information") within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information is typically identified by words such as: "believe", "expect", "anticipate", "intend", "estimate", "postulate" and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. Forward-looking information in this news release includes, without limitation, the statements regarding the use of proceeds and the holdings of the Company's major shareholders and other statements that are not historical facts. Information concerning mineral resource/reserve estimates and the economic analysis thereof contained in the prefeasibility study are also forward-looking statements in that they reflect a prediction of the mineralization that would be encountered, and the results of mining it, if a mineral deposit were developed and mined. Although West Kirkland believes that such timing and expenses as set out in this press release are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations and estimates will prove to be correct. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking information provided by the Company is not a guarantee of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking information as a result of various factors, including, but not limited to, the state of the financial markets for the Company's equity securities, the state of the market for gold or other minerals that may be produced generally, significant increases in any of the machinery, equipment or supplies required to develop and operate a mine, a significant change in the availability or cost of the labor force required to operate a mine, a significant increases in the cost of transportation for the Company's products, variations in the nature, quality and quantity of any mineral deposits that may be located, the Company's ability to obtain any necessary permits, consents or authorizations required for its activities, to raise the necessary capital or to be fully able to implement its business strategies and other risks associated with the exploration and development of mineral properties. The reader is referred to the Company's public filings for a more complete discussion of such risk factors and their potential effects which may be accessed through the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

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.
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By Mike Kelly of the San Angelo Standard-Times

SAN ANGELO  A San Angelo man arrested after police found about 18 pounds of meth stashed in two locations at his residence will have a preliminary hearing Nov. 9 in federal court in Lubbock, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas said.

Benny T. Martinez, 37, made his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge E. Scott Frost on a complaint, unsealed Wednesday, Oct. 26, charging possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney John Parker said.

Frost ordered that Martinez remain in federal custody. A preliminary hearing is set for Nov. 9.

The Texas Department of Public Safety raided Martinez's property on Wilma Lane, off U.S. 67 in a rural area about 12 miles west of the San Angelo city limits, Oct. 21, a news release from the U.S. Attorney said. The state troopers were acting on reports that Martinez was involved in a methamphetamine distribution operation, the release said.

While executing a search warrant, troopers found Martinez attempting to leave the house through a bedroom window, the release said. A search found stashes of meth hidden in a pantry ceiling and buried near an outbuilding, the release said. The DPS also seized two .22 caliber rifles, approximately $13,700 in cash, a vacuum sealer and food saver bags, a digital scale, rolls of plastic, and "adulterants consistent with those used to dilute controlled substances," the U.S. Attorney said.

The meth discovered on the property totaled 8.467 kilograms, or 18.67 pounds. Drug use varies by individual, but many meth users consume up to a gram per day; at that rate, the stash would have amounted to about 8,500 such doses. The street price of meth, according to several Internet sources, ranges from $60 to $100 per gram in Texas.

Martinez faces a penalty of 10 years to life in prison and a fine of up to $10 million.
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By Mike Kelly of the San Angelo Standard-Times

The Tom Green County Elections Office sent out a plea Thursday afternoon for voters to review the recently revised rules for voter identification at the polls in Texas.

There has been confusion at polling places since several provisions of the state's voter ID were suspended by a federal court decision.

"There is some concern that voters might have been misled on what is required to vote," county elections officer Vona Hudson said.

In a statement to clarify the rules, Hudson said:

"Voters are reminded that the law for the photo ID requirement has changed. In an effort to have voters prepared when they present to vote, they have been advised to have a photo ID ready to present. If a voter possesses a Texas driver's license, a Texas Election Identification Certificate, a Personal Identification card, a Texas handgun license  all issued by DPS, a US Military ID card, US citizenship certificate or US passport, they will be required to present that form of ID or vote provisionally and bring the ID in up to 6 days after the election to cure their ballot and have it counted. This form of ID cannot be expired more than 4 years.

"If a voter does not possess one of the above forms of ID, they may present one of the other acceptable forms of ID  valid voter registration certificate, certified birth certificate (original), copy of or original utility bill, copy of or original bank statement, copy of or original paycheck, or copy or original of other government document. Anyone voting with one of these forms of ID will be required to sign a Reasonable Impediment Declaration and will be allowed to vote a regular ballot. This form of ID must have the voter's name on it and an address. There are some exemptions that voters can apply for."

Any questions on voter identification should be directed to the Tom Green County Elections Office at 325-659-6541.
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Its policing of energy industry has been issue

By Marty Schladen, USA TODAY Network Austin Bureau

AUSTIN  Reports from multiple sources indicate that Texas regulators struggle to document spills of oil and toxic chemicals and to enforce rules against them.

But it's unclear whether a panel tasked with reviewing the agency responsible for regulating the oil and gas industry will recommend meaningful reform when it meets Nov. 10.

The Sunset Advisory Commission  a panel of eight lawmakers and two citizen appointees  will vote at that hearing on what legislation it will recommend for the 2017 session of the Legislature to govern the Texas Railroad Commission's continued existence.

Despite its name, the Railroad Commission hasn't regulated railroads in years. Instead, it's the chief regulator of the Texas oil and gas industry. The Sunset Commission staff is again recommending that the Railroad Commission's name be changed to the Texas Energy Resources Commission to better reflect what it does.

Even such a cosmetic change has proved difficult. Most state agencies are subject to sunset reviews once every 12 years, but the Railroad Commission is enduring its third review since 2010 because objections to a name change and other reforms have stymied reform legislation.

Among the most serious concerns raised this year by the Sunset Commission staff are big gaps in oil spill reporting and enforcement.

"Despite the attention given to the Railroad Commission's oil-and-gas enforcement program in recent years, the agency continues to struggle to provide reliable data to show the effectiveness of its efforts," the Sunset Commission staff wrote in its report. "Basic questions such as how many severe violations occurred, what percentage of violations were repeat violations, and how many operators with severe violations did not face legal enforcement last year remain unanswered."

In a series of reports this year, the El Paso Times confirmed that. Even though the Railroad Commission had Civil Air Patrol photos of numerous oil spills during recent floods, it didn't respond to some warnings, its reports were spotty, and it didn't warn people downstream.

Cyrus Reed, conservation director of the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club, said the news reports have added pressure for the Railroad Commission to better police spills. But, he said, many of the problems are attributable to antiquated computer systems and inadequate staff at the Railroad Commission.

"They can't respond to all this stuff," Reed said. "They just don't have enough people."

Asked about the sunset staff's critique of the Railroad Commission, spokeswoman Ramona Nye referred to the agency's 2018-19 budget request. It would add $11.6 million to the agency's $22.4 million base budget for oil-and-gas monitoring and inspection.

Rep. Dan Flynn, R-Van, is a member of the Sunset Advisory Commission who has defended the Railroad Commission in earlier hearings. On Thursday, he agreed the Railroad Commission's information technology system is out of date.

"I think the team at the Railroad Commission has tried their best to ensure that many aspects of necessary recording of information has taken place, but currently they are hampered by a very old IT infrastructure that limits even the best of human efforts," Flynn said in an email. "They have from my understanding over four terabytes of information still on the old FORTRAN system and desperately need to upgrade their system so that not only can they track issues like oil spills and other important aspects like the plugging of wells, but so the public and ordinary Texan can have transparency."

However, criticisms of the Railroad Commission run beyond oil spill reporting. Reed said the agency doesn't bother to track spills of fluid from hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. Some experts say fracking fluid is potentially more toxic than crude oil.

In addition, the Sunset staff said the Railroad Commission is too slow to impose fines when its rules are broken. It also called on the Railroad Commission to develop a definition of "repeat violators" and report them on its website.

That proposal has drawn mixed reviews from industry.

"It is difficult at best to maintain complete compliance on a daily basis, and publishing those infractions potentially, and possibly unfairly, taints opinions of governing agencies and the public in general," the Panhandle Producers and Royalty Owners Association wrote to the Sunset Advisory Commission. "Reporting is already available for those in the industry."

However, the Texas Oil and Gas Association sees the issue differently.

"We expect there to be robust reporting and enforcement," Todd Staples, the group's president, said in an interview Thursday. "When we look at those things, that's the reason we think the Railroad Commission is there."

Staples said previous Railroad Commission sunset bills have lost focus and gotten bogged down. For that reason, he said, the oil and gas association is neutral on a name change for the Railroad Commission, but it recommends that the issue be removed from the sunset process.

But Reed of the Sierra Club said the sheer size of the oil-and-gas lobby can also be an obstacle to reform. When lawmakers convene in January, they'll be confronted with more than 100 energy industry lobbyists, Reed said.

Marty Schladen can be reached at 512-479-6606; mschladen@gannett.com; @martyschladen on Twitter.
Acting Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy walks out of Congress after losing the vote. Ballesteros (EFE)

In an expected step on his way to attaining a second consecutive term in office and ending a 10-month political deadlock, Spains acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy lost the first round of a congressional vote on Thursday evening, falling six seats short of the majority he needed in the 350-member chamber.

But the Popular Party (PP) leader is widely expected to win a second vote on Saturday, thanks to the opposition Socialists pledge to abstain.

Organizers said they expect around 10,000 people to join the Saturday protest

The vote was cast after a heated debate in which speakers cited Vichy France and the failed Spanish coup of 1981 to respectively defend and counter claims that Rajoy is being eased into power undemocratically.

Addressing one of the most fragmented parliaments since Spain returned to democracy four decades ago, Rajoy attempted to build bridges by offering to work with other parties on national issues such as employment or education. But he fell short of offering to repeal the controversial reforms he introduced during his first term in office.

Rajoy was met with hostility from the anti-austerity Podemos, whose secretary general Pablo Iglesias acted  and was treated by the caretaker PM  as the de facto leader of the opposition despite having fewer seats than the Socialists, who are currently leaderless, following the resignation of Pedro Sanchez on October 1.

He was also harshly criticized by regional parties, while emerging center-right grouping Ciudadanos warned that it will withdraw its support if Rajoy fails to deliver on his pledges for reform.

March on Saturday

In September 2012 there was another large protest outside Spanish Congress. Gorka Lejarcegi

Two far-left groups have called a protest march outside Congress on Saturday, coinciding with the second vote that will presumably usher in Rajoy as prime minister.

The organizers are a group called Izquierda Castellana (Castilian Left) and EH Bildu, the party that is heir to ETAs outlawed political wing Batasuna.

The central government's delegation in Madrid has authorized the march, saying it will send around 1,200 police officers to Congress.

Organizers said they expect around 10,000 people to join a protest whose slogan is Ante el golpe de la mafia, democracia (Against the mafias coup, democracy).

Our starting point is the notion that we are still living under the 1978 regime, in a phony democracy built over a monarchy that was inherited from the dictatorship, and we want to propitiate a new constituent process, a necessary step to change the system, said Alberto Albino Torre, one of two people who filed the request to stage the march. Torre has a police record for attempting to burn down an ATM. I was arrested and released without charges, he said.

Both the United Left coalition and Podemos have expressed sympathy for the march on Saturday. The former's leadership will officially take part in it, while Pablo Iglesias is adopting a wait-and-see approach.

English version by Susana Urra.
After earlier surviving a court challenge filed by some of the largest lobbying organizations in the state, the Arkansas Medical Cannabis Act was disqualified Thursday by the state Supreme Court in a ruling on a lawsuit supported by the backer of a competing ballot measure.The high court issued its opinion invalidating some of the signatures gathered in support of Issue 7, and that left it with too few. The ruling came down on the fourth day of early voting in Arkansas for the Nov. 8 general election.Supporters and some opponents of the two competing ballot measures to allow marijuana to be used for medical purposes lamented the timing of the court's decision. More than 144,000 people had already voted by Wednesday evening -- more than 8 percent of registered voters. About 21,000 more people voted Thursday.Votes for and against the initiated act won't count, and voters who have already cast ballots won't get a redo."For every signature, there are stories," said Aubrey Buchanan, who held an Issue 7 sign outside the Pulaski County Election Commission on Thursday morning. "This is life. People are dying, and they're sick and they're hurt. Can't we have a choice?"She said she did not support Issue 6 -- the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment.
North Carolina

Indiana

Missouri

West Virginia

Montana

As this election year began, it looked as if the GOP might break its own record for the number of governorships under the party's control. That's looking less likely now.Democrats are not only hanging tough in states that typically vote Republican for president -- including some that appear to be sticking with Donald Trump this year -- but actually leading in several of them."In theory, the stars should have been aligned for the Republicans," said John Messmer, a political scientist at St. Louis Community College.He was referring to the governor's race in Missouri but might well have been describing the contests in Indiana, Montana, North Carolina or West Virginia.Republicans currently hold 31 governorships, compared with 18 for the Democrats. Alaska Gov. Bill Walker is an independent. The GOP's modern high is 32. Democrats are defending eight of the 12 governorships up for grabs this year, including those in three states that voted against Barack Obama twice.But polls show Democrats enjoying slim leads in the five red states mentioned above, each of which supported Republican Mitt Romney for president four years ago. (For the latest ratings of all 12 gubernatorial races, click here .)"All of these states are ones where Democrats have outperformed the top of the ticket in recent key Senate and/or gubernatorial races," said Kyle Kondik, who follows gubernatorial elections for, a political newsletter published by the University of Virginia.As Kondik notes, all of these races naturally have their own idiosyncrasies.In North Carolina, Democratic state Attorney General Roy Cooper has enjoyed a fundraising advantage and a polling lead for months against GOP Gov. Pat McCrory.The governor has been pummeled by Democrats and much of the North Carolina media for signing House Bill 2, which blocked anti-discrimination measures protecting LGBT individuals. Since its passage in March, numerous companies and major sporting events have pulled out of the state.Nevertheless, the race has tightened in recent weeks. Two polls released this week showed a virtual tie, including one that had McCrory up by a point. A third poll, though, showed Cooper ahead by 6 percentage points.McCrory's comeback has coincided with his handling of Hurricane Matthew, for which he's won praise."McCrory has learned the lesson that you don't mess up a natural disaster," said Ferrell Guillory, a journalism professor at the University of North Carolina.But McCrory's recent surge may also have something to do with the political fundamentals of the state. Republicans dominate its state government, but North Carolina is more purple than red -- it voted for Obama in 2008, although it switched back to Romney in 2012. Given the state's closely-divided political culture, a close race was probably inevitable."My sense is the voters have gone back to their partisan tribes," said Michael Bitzer, provost of Catawba College.If the election ends up being tight, it's possible that turnout efforts could make the difference. North Carolina is considered a presidential battleground state, but Hillary Clinton is devoting far more resources to it than Trump. The state Democratic Party has more than 300 people on its payroll -- three times as many as the state GOP. And Clinton is outspending Trump in the state by a 2-to-1 margin.Down-ballot Republicans are having to run ahead of Trump to have a chance in many states. But there are a number of places -- including Indiana -- where Trump looks to be comfortably ahead, yet Democrats could still win the race for governor.The state is the home of Trump's running mate, Gov. Mike Pence. Pence was up for re-election but stepped aside to join the national ticket.His replacement was Eric Holcomb, who had taken the job of lieutenant governor just this spring. Holcomb's late start has hurt his chances against John Gregg, a former state House speaker who has been running virtually ever since losing to Pence four years ago.Campaign finance regulations prevented Pence from transferring as much of his treasury to Holcomb as both had hoped. Nevertheless, the bulk of Holcomb's funding has come either from Pence or the Republican Governors Association.Recent polls show Gregg up by four or five points, just outside the margin of error."Holcomb has not been able to get over any kind of hump," said Ed Feigenbaum, editor of. "The people of Indiana don't know the guy. He comes across as likable, but he hasn't done anything to distinguish himself."Missouri is another state where Trump is ahead, but the Democrat is leading the governor's race to replace term-limited Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon.State Attorney General Chris Koster was once a Republican but is now the Democratic nominee. Koster continues to fashion himself as a conservative and has maintained the support of some traditionally Republican groups. He's won endorsements, for instance, from the National Rifle Association and the Farm Bureau."Like Jay Nixon, he will likely do better in rural Missouri than Democrats would normally be expected to do," said Peverill Squire, a political scientist at the University of Missouri.Koster's opponent is Eric Greitens, who was once a Democrat. Greitens is also a former Navy SEAL and his campaign has relentlessly hit the message that Koster is an insider and the state needs a political outsider to shake things up.But Greitens had to survive a tough primary election season that only finished in August, and some say his outsider message may not resonate with Missouri voters."At the federal level, it's all, 'Let's drain the swamp,'" said Messmer, the political scientist at St. Louis Community College, suggesting a strongly anti-incumbent mood regarding politicians in Washington. "At the state level, voters seem to be satisfied with governance."Like Missouri, West Virginia hasn't supported a Democrat for president since Bill Clinton in 1996. Once solidly Democratic, it's turned red, with the GOP winning control of both legislative chambers in 2014.West Virginia is likely to be one of Trump's strongest states, but the governor's race isn't turning out as Republicans had hoped. The Democratic candidate for governor, Jim Justice, is enjoying a double-digit lead in the polls against Republican nominee Bill Cole, the state Senate president.Justice has pulled off something that was once common among southern Democrats but has lately become rare and difficult: He's managed to separate himself from the national party that's unpopular in the South.How?Justice says he won't vote for Hillary Clinton. Beyond that, the coal baron -- the richest man in the state -- has been able to maintain an independent image. He's associated more with hospitality and sporting events as the owner of the Greenbrier resort hotel than partisan politics.And, of course, he has more cash at his disposal than Cole."The kind of race he's running is very much tied to his image as a leading businessman and a staunch defender of the coal industry," said Scott Crichlow, who chairs the political science department at West Virginia University. "The Cole campaign seems to be much less visible than the Justice campaign."Finally, in Montana, Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock, who won narrowly in 2012, looks like a reasonably safe bet for re-election.His approval ratings are in the 60s, and a poll released Tuesday showed him leading his Republican opponent, software executive Greg Gianforte, by a 12 percentage point margin."Bullock is an incumbent and he's also a popular incumbent," said Jeremy Johnson, a Carroll College political scientist. "Even though Montana has a Republican lean, he's established enough goodwill that some voters who might vote Republican for other races will cross and vote for Bullock."It wouldn't be a huge shock if Republicans end up winning in any of these states. But a combination of the candidate mix and the fact that Democratic turnout is strongest in a presidential year has kept Democrats competitive in more red states than seemed likely as the year began."There are voters in these places willing to split tickets, and in each of them Democratic candidates are giving them a reason to do so," said Kondik, of the University of Virginia. "Whether they can maintain that up until Election Day, though, is an open question."
Speaking Swahili in Kansas

Paying for It

A 9-year-old girl, misdiagnosed with the stomach flu, died after a doctor failed to communicate to her Vietnamese-speaking parents that the drug he prescribed for her could have dangerous side effects.A 78-year-old stroke victim had to have her leg amputated after doctors and nurses didnt understand her when she complained, in Russian, of pain and numbness.And a 7-year-old boy suffered organ damage because his pediatrician mistakenly diagnosed him with strep throat, having struggled to communicate with his Spanish-speaking father and grandparents during repeated visits over several weeks.New federal rules requiring thousands of hospitals, doctors and dentists to provide free interpretation and translation services for people who dont speak English aim to prevent tragedies like these, which were among those included in a study of interpretation-related malpractice cases in four states.The new rules, which apply to providers who receive Medicaid reimbursement or other federal funds, are expected to expand access to preventive care and reduce medical costs, at least in the long run. A language other than English is spoken at home in 21 percent of U.S. households.The language services are going to keep people healthier and that will end up saving health care dollars down the road, said Cary Sanders of the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network. Its a small investment for a big return.But some struggling rural hospitals and smaller medical and dental practices are worried about the cost of following the new rules, which require them to offer interpretation and translation services for the most popular 15 languages in their state.In a letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the American Medical Association argued that the financial burden of medical interpretive services and translation should not fall on physician practices. The AMA suggested that insurance plans should be required to cover those services.The American Dental Association described the new rules as confusing, duplicative and burdensome, as well as unnecessary, and a coalition of dental groups that includes the ADA warned that dentists may turn away Medicaid patients who dont speak English to avoid having to comply.And the American Osteopathic Association, which represents doctors who practice osteopathic medicine, is worried about how the rules will affect small practices. If physicians dont receive additional funding or the rules are enforced in a strict manner then I can see some doctors choosing not to take Medicaid patients, said Laura Wooster, interim senior vice president of public policy for the group.Some states have their own laws related to language services. A number of states, including Kansas, Louisiana and Michigan, require that non-English-speaking women considering abortions receive information about the procedure or have their questions answered in their own languages.Some states, such as Michigan, require that information about HIV testing be made available in English and Spanish. New Jersey requires its health department to disseminate information on breast cancer in English and Spanish.The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin. In 2000, President Bill Clinton issued an executive order reiterating that hospitals and other health care providers that receive federal financial assistance under health plans such as Medicaid, Medicare and the Childrens Health Insurance Program have to meet the language needs of non-English speaking patients.But Clintons order didnt specify how to do so. Without any guidance, many providers have been relying on family members  even minor children  to serve as interpreters.An article published in August in the journal Health Affairs found that a quarter of the hospitals with the greatest need for language services (based on the surrounding population) did not provide such services in a systematic way, and nearly a third of all U.S. hospitals dont offer language services at all.The services are definitely not matching the need, said Melody Schiaffino, an assistant professor at the Graduate School of Public Health at San Diego State University and one of the coauthors of the Health Affairs paper.Using an interpreter unfamiliar with medical terminology can produce dangerous misunderstandings. A study published in 2012 found that serious medical errors were less likely to occur with professional health care interpreters than with interpreters who dont have special training, such as bilingual friends or family members, or no interpreters at all.A provision in the 2010 Affordable Care Act (ACA) aimed to shore up interpreting services and this month the federal government is finally rolling out rules that detail the specific steps that health care providers must take. The rules apply to about 900,000 physicians, and 133,343 hospitals, home health agencies, nursing homes and other health facilities. It also applies to at least 180 insurers.Under the rules, health care providers must post notices telling patients and their families that language services are available. Websites and other written materials must be translated into the 15 most frequently used non-English languages spoken in the state.In Kansas, that means providing interpretation and translation services for the states 525 Swahili speakers. Providers in Idaho must be prepared to help 245 residents who speak Ukrainian, while those in Alabama must be ready to serve 484 residents who speak Japanese.The rules require that providers offer interpretation services during direct encounters and translations of vital written communications, including discharge and medication instructions, explanations of benefits and appeal notices.They also require that interpreters be trained in medical terminology and health care ethics. Family members or friends may not substitute for a trained interpreter unless requested by the patient, and bilingual staff members can only interpret in an emergency.The new regulations apply to all hospitals and other health care providers  doctors offices, dental offices, and clinics  that take federal money. Doctors who see patients on Medicaid are covered, but physicians who treat patients in certain Medicare plans would be exempt (unless they also see patients on Medicaid). The regulations also apply to insurance marketplaces created under the ACA, and insurers that participate in them.Health policy experts say the new rules will improve the health of non-English speakers by making it easier for them to get preventive care, helping them avoid more serious  and costly  health crises. Studies have found that language barriers prevent patients from receiving regular checkups, cholesterol and cancer screenings, breast exams and flu shots. When they do visit a doctor, non-English speakers often misunderstand their doctors advice, or struggle with prescription directions.If someone cant understand what their doctor says or what they are signing in a consent form, that is not considered equal access to health care, said Marina Hadjioannou Waters, a vice president of the National Council on Interpreting in Health Care, which advocates for greater availability of interpreting and translation services for non-English speakers.The requirement also may save money by making it less likely that non-English speakers will be readmitted to the hospital after they are released, and by reducing the likelihood of malpractice claims.One analysis of medical malpractice claims found that 2.5 percent of the reviewed claims were the result of inadequate language services.The Medicaid programs in 14 states (Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, and Wyoming) and the District of Columbia will cover the cost of language services, according to the National Health Law Program, which assists low-income people with health care.For patients who are not covered by Medicaid or for those who live in other states, providers must pick up the tab.Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis has 140 full- and part-time interpreters who speak 23 languages (Spanish, Somali and Hmong are the most common languages requested). The hospital expects to provide language services 340,000 times by the end of the year.Michelle Chillstrom, who oversees the program at Hennepin County Medical Center, said the cost is about $8.8 million a year, out of a total budget of $850 million. The hospital receives about $3.4 million in reimbursement from Medicaid and other medical assistance programs, she said.Michigans Medicaid program does not cover language services. At the University of Michigan Health System, interpretation and translation costs about $3 million a year out of a total budget of $3.1 billion, according to Michelle Harris, who oversees the program there.The hospital system has 100 in-house interpreters, and in the last year they provided help in 80 languages. The hospital receives about 2,000 requests a month, most frequently for Spanish, Mandarin and Arabic.Like many others, the Minnesota and Michigan hospitals contract with private companies for more obscure languages they may encounter among patients, and often use video conferencing for those services.Thats how hospitals in less-populated areas frequently meet their language service needs. Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston contracts with a private company to provide all interpretive services through video links. A spokeswoman for the hospital said its greatest needs are for Somali, because of a large refugee population that was settled in central Maine, and French, as a result of the French-Canadians who move across the border for work.The National Rural Health Association and Americas Essential Hospitals, which represent public and nonprofit hospitals, said their members were worried about paying for the new requirement, though they support its intent.Rosemary Blackmon, chief operating officer of the Alabama Hospital Association, said the new rules may be perplexing to some hospitals in her state.They have to have notices in the top 15 languages spoken in the state, Blackmon said, but we have counties that probably dont even have a single person who speaks a foreign language.
Description

GIS - 28 October, 2016: A promotional campaign geared towards enhancing the image of Rodrigues as a tourist destination kicked off yesterday at Labourdonnais Hotel in Port-Louis. This three-day campaign on the theme  Rodrigues Naturellement will focus on traditional dance and music and the authentic feature of the Island as a tourist destination.

The objective of this campaign, organised by the Deputy Chief Commissioners Office, in collaboration with the Commission for Tourism , Air Mauritius and other stakeholders, is to showcase and enhance the unique assets of Rodrigues and to incite Mauritian tourists to discover the island. Seeking to achieve a target of 100,000 tourists this year, this event will tap in a potential niche market in Mauritius.

The Commissioner for Tourism, Rodrigues Assembly, Mr Richard Payendee, who was present at the opening ceremony, said that Rodrigues should be publicised as an island that should be visited at least once in a lifetime.

According to him, the promotional campaign is the ideal platform for Rodrigues to benefit from maximum visibility as a tourist destination. At the core of this campaign is the opportunity to establish fruitful business contacts with tour operators in Mauritius. On that score, he called for more collaborative work between Mauritius and Rodrigues as both islands complement each other, in order to strengthen the tourist industry.

For his part, the Director of Rodrigues Tourism Office, Mr Phillipe Francois, while recalling the strong tourist market that already exists in Mauritius, underscored the need to further exploit and reinforce this promising market by renewing and updating the image of Rodrigues. With 42,867 Mauritian tourists out of 64,197 tourists in 2015, Mauritius remains the lead market for Rodrigues .

In line with its promotional strategy and to further exploit the opportunities and increase the visibility of Rodrigues on the international scene, similar campaigns in Reunion Island and France are also planned.

Second edition of La Tourn e e Rodriguaise

The Commission for tourism is leading a delegation of 100 participants at the second edition of La Tourn e e Rodriguaise 2016 . The first edition was held on 20-22 April 2016 comprising the same range of activities devised to project the authentic culture of Rodrigues. Mauritius is hosting this event from the 27 to 29 October 2016.

A series of activities showcasing its authentic culture has been planned for this campaign spanning over 3 days, from 27 to 29 October. They comprise road shows, cultural shows, distribution of promotional materials, authentic creole cuisine and sales exhibition of crafts and entrepreneurial products and a Soiree Rodriguaise with traditional creole music and dance. A workshop on Tourism is also on the agenda.
Description

GIS - 28 October, 2016: A first batch of thirty young graduates in the field of Engineering received yesterday their letters of offer for placement facilities under the placement scheme for trainee engineers in the public sector, for which 200 trainee engineers have been enrolled.

The Scheme, which is in line with the strategy of the Government to create job opportunities for young graduates as announced in the Budget 2016-2017, aims at ensuring the employability of these graduates after the completion of the training.

The ceremony for the handing over of letter of offer was held at the seat of the Ministry of Labour, Industrial Relations, Employment and Training, at the Victoria House in Port Louis in the presence of the Minister of Labour, Industrial Relations, Employment and Training, Mr Soodesh Callichurn.

Addressing the young graduates, Minister Callichurn called upon the youth to take advantage of the several programmes put in place to address the unemployment problem among youth namely, the Youth Employment Programme, the Back to Work Programme, and the Dual Training Programme. This, he said, reflects Governments strong commitment to provide better matching skills for the unemployed youth to integrate the labour market. According to him, all these efforts are bearing its fruits with a decrease registered in the rate of unemployment which, as recorded by Statistics Mauritius, stands at 7.4% in the second quarter of 2016.

The Minister of Labour also announced the introduction of a new mechanism, namely the National Skills Development Programme, aimed at providing unemployed youth with technical skills that are highly in demand in certain priority sectors to address the problems of skills mismatch. The programme will target some 4000 youths in the age group of 16 years to 30 years as well as unemployed persons up to the age of 35 in sectors such as: ICT, tourism and hospitality, nursing and paramedics and construction and industries.

It will be recalled that under the Trainee Engineers Scheme, the young graduates in the fields of civil, mechanical, electrical and mechatronics, will undergo a two-year pre-registration practical training at the Ministry of Public Infrastructure and Land Transport and other public bodies under the supervision of a Registered Engineer. They will be paid a monthly stipend plus travelling allowance.

Initially set at 200 young graduates, the Scheme is being extended to another batch of 200 bringing the total to 400 trainee engineers. This after the positive response and the numerous applications received for enrolment under the Scheme.
(TNS)  WASHINGTON  Federal regulators on Thursday, Oct. 27, approved tough new rules requiring high-speed internet service providers to get customer permission before using or sharing sensitive personal data, such as web browsing or app usage history and the geographic trail of mobile devices.Cable and wireless companies that offer broadband service would not have to first get a customers approval before using or sharing any non-sensitive data, such as a persons name, address and type of data plan. Consumers would have to opt out of the sharing of that information.But such information is limited  most customer data will be considered sensitive  and internet service providers have not had to get permission to use or share that data.The privacy regulations approved by the Federal Communications Commission on a partisan 3-2 vote will be phased in over the next two years.Consumer advocates applauded the agencys action.As the internet has become ubiquitous, broadband providers have gained a unique, all-encompassing window into our daily lives, said Jonathan Schwantes, senior telecom policy counsel for Consumers Union. We think these new rules are strong, fair and necessary as we live more and more of our lives online.But the rules were strongly opposed by cable and wireless companies, including AT&T Inc., which wants to expand its media empire  and its trove of consumer data  with the proposed purchase of Time Warner Inc.The broadband providers complained that they now will face tougher restrictions on the sharing of valuable customer data than Google Inc., Facebook Inc. and other internet companies.The FCCs definition of sensitive data also includes the content of communications, Social Security numbers and information about financial activity, health or children.FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, a Democrat who proposed the rules, said broadband subscribers will finally be in the drivers seat in deciding how their sensitive personal information is used.It is the consumers information. It is not the information of the network the consumer hires to deliver that information, Wheeler said. The consumer has the right to make a decision about how her or his information is used.Wheeler and the two other Democrats who make up the commissions majority, Mignon Clyburn and Jessica Rosenworcel, said consumers have fewer choices about how they access the internet  either from their home or via mobile devices  and the agency was required to enact new rules for broadband providers under the expanded authority over the companies gained under net neutrality rules adopted last year.The FCCs rules dont apply to individual websites or social networks, which are overseen by the Federal Trade Commission. Before the net neutrality rules, the FTC also oversaw internet service providers.The rules approved Thursday were softened from a proposal made by Wheeler in March that would have required customers to opt in before any of their personal information could be shared by their internet service provider.After complaints from the broadband industry, Wheeler proposed distinguishing between types of information, as the FTC does.But the communications commission expanded on the FTCs definition of sensitive data, including information about web browsing and app usage.That was a key reason why the FCCs two Republicans, Ajit Pai and Michael ORielly, said they voted against the new rules. They said broadband providers should not face tougher privacy restrictions than internet giants such as Google and Facebook.Consumers should not have to be network engineers to understand whos collecting their data, Pai said, calling the FCCs actions corporate favoritism.ORielly said there were very lucrative categories of consumer information that broadband providers will have more difficulty using and sharing than website operators. And the FCCs privacy rules endanger the advertising-supported online ecosystem, he said.There is a trade-off, ORielly said. You are willing to trade your information for certain services.Broadband providers and industry trade groups said that consumer privacy is important but that the FCC went too far.Joan Marsh, AT&Ts senior vice president of federal regulatory policy, said the company was pleased that the FCCs rules more closely resemble those of the FTC. But she said it was illogical that the FCC determined that sensitive data should include web browsing and app history data.In this regard, the FCCs order falls short of recognizing that consumers want their information protected based on the sensitivity of the information collected, not the entity collecting it, she said.The agencys divergent approach will ultimately serve only to confuse consumers, who will continue to see ads based on their web browsing history from internet companies, Marsh said.Under the new rules, broadband providers also would have to notify customers about the type of information being collected, how it could be used and the types of entities with which the information is shared.Broadband providers would be free to use or share any data that is stripped of key identifying details so it cant be linked to a specific person or device.The rules also require internet service providers to notify customers within 30 days after determining that a data breach has occurred. The companies would have only seven days to notify the FCC of any data breaches and would have to notify the FBI and the Secret Service of breaches that affect more than 5,000 customers.Also, Wheeler said the FCC has begun working on rules addressing the clauses in contracts consumers sign for internet service that require disputes be settled through private arbitration instead of in court. Proposed rules are expected by February.Consumer advocates and some lawmakers said tougher privacy restriction on broadband providers were needed.Broadband providers should not be allowed to collect massive and detailed dossiers about consumers without their consent, said Sen. Edward Markey, D-Mass.Jeff Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy, said broadband providers want to track consumers online activity and make money from sharing that data with advertisers.AT&T would gain access to data about consumers who watch content from HBO, CNN and other Time Warner properties, and thats a big reason for the proposed deal, Chester said.The merger is really about data, he said. Using the Time Warner content as kind of a Trojan horse  to lure people in  children, families, adults, everybody  and build a very significant business in advertising.
Tech in Government Uniformly Sucks

Reimagining Transportation

Broadband Two Ways

RICHMOND, Calif.  In what seemed to serve as a microcosm of the old meeting new, industry leaders, government officials and representatives from nonprofits spoke about retrofitting historic cities to adjust for population growth and overhauling human mobility. The event was the 10th annual Meeting of the Minds Summit, held in the old Ford Motor Co. Assembly Plant in Richmond, Calif., and the purpose was to explore what cities are doing, and demonstrate the potential benefits of utilizing technology to enhance the future of society.Gathering for the two-day event on Oct. 26 and 27, more than 400 opinion-shapers, policy-makers, leading thinkers and innovators from more than 25 countries exchanged strategies and insights to build cross-sector alliances.The upcoming election has everyone talking, including Dana Chisnell, co-founder of the Center for Civic Design and consultant for the U.S. Digital Service. In a discussion about the role technology plays in making citizen experiences with government more effective and efficient, Chisnell noted the potential benefits it holds for assisting in elections.One of the public sector's most critical jobs in handling elections is to ensure voter accessibility and intent. Take the infamous butterfly ballot used during the 2000 election in Florida, a situation that helped to spark Chisnell's interest in technology in the public sector. It was a mess, and did nothing for easing voter confidence. The butterfly ballot, which has names down both sides and a single column of punch holes in the center, led to widespread allegations of mismarked ballots.Election officials are gonna get sued, said Chisnell. The question is: What for?So many tools could be implemented to avoid confusing ballots and increase accessibility. But many barriers still make it difficult for governments to adopt these measures, she explained.Tech in government uniformly sucks, Chisnell said, adding that procurement practices were meant for tanks and battleships, not software systems. It is getting better, but slowly, she noted.One solution Chisnell offered is to avoid pooling funding into expensive election-only technology. Buying reusable machines that can handle different types of software makes problem-solving easier. Counties and cities utilizing software-as-a-service align with this model.If you asked a crowd what transportation will look like in five, 10 or 50 years, chances are you'd hear a lot of different responses. Connected and autonomous vehicles and shared transportation systems are all potentially game changing theories that, according to James Kuffner from the Toyota Research Institute, could be the next biggest shift in transportation since the introduction of automobiles.It is hard to argue with the fact that our current transportation systems are incredibly inefficient, said Kuffner, citing numerous facts: Vehicles sit idle nearly 95 percent of the time; 93 percent of the time, drivers are in a car alone commuting to work; and there are an estimated 1 billion parking spots for 253 million vehicles. In Los Angeles alone, there are 18.6 million spots for some 5 million vehicles.Not only could autonomous vehicles be an incredible public safety benefit, but they could also drastically increase peoples productivity and create a higher quality of life. Kuffner argued that we could even put the vehicle network completely underground, counting on the influx of zero-emission vehicles.We can finally start rebuilding cities for humans, not cars, he said, adding that parking structures can serve as charging stations away from urban centers, thus reducing urban density.In order to prepare for this future, local governments should keep in mind three important things when trying to regulate the possible shared transit system, said Aarjev Trivedi, founder and CEO of Ridecell, a software company that specializes in mobility-as-a-service (MaaS).For governments, it is crucial to let residents and potential businesses know what is happening on the regulatory side. What is even more crucial, according to Trivedi, is opening up transit data and having ridesharing companies open their data. While not forcing the complete disclosure of users, it is invaluable for cities to know how many vehicles are on the streets and where they are.One key issue with overhauling transportation networks as they currently stand is overcoming system fragmentation. Tying into transparency, vehicle data should be compiled by departments of transportation, transit authorities and private actors.Nobody knows exactly what transportation networks will look like in the future. The market for autonomous vehicles seems to be rapidly evolving, and private industry needs to be at the table when compiling and drafting regulations.Many argue that Internet connectivity is a necessity. There has been much progress when it comes to Internet speed, but the disparity between the haves and have nots in urban centers like New York City and San Jose, Calif., is an urgent need that must be addressed.Although still in the early stages of municipal broadband rollout, San Jose is determined to raise the floor of its cities. Although the city refers to itself as the "Capital of Silicon Valley" given that several tech companies headquarters are in and on the periphery of city borders, nearly 20 percent of the population lives on less than $20,000 a year.As a part of the mayors Smart City Vision, one of the main pillars is the push for inclusivity.Kids are sitting outside of libraries trying to complete their homework, said city Chief Innovation Officer Shireen Santosham, adding that the first step in this effort is simply to locate where everything is. And figuring out, block by block, what Internet options are available where is a massive undertaking, she said.But the work needs to be done so that concrete steps can be taken, whether that's working with private Internet service providers (ISPs) or the city developing its own network.On the other side of the country, Joshua Breitbart, special adviser for broadband at the New York City Office of the Mayor, shared his experiences in providing broadband across the boroughs. The first project was to convert old public telephone booths to Wi-Fi-enabled kiosks . By agreeing to franchise the locations and have advertising pay for the installation, the city was able to undertake this program and continues to build a corridor of Internet connection.The second project Breitbart mentioned was an effort to deliver free Wi-Fi to public housing residents. As a demonstration project, the Mayor's Office is set to deliver broadband Internet to nearly 7,000 Queensbridge public housing residents for free. This program could receive assistance from the federal Lifeline subsidy, which reimburses low-income residents $9.25 for broadband support.There are more than 400,000 people living in public housing, so the project provides an example of the feasibility of connecting low-income residents to high-speed Internet.Dont let the perfect be the enemy to the good, said Breitbart.
The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS), according to state records, recently sought to hire a technical writer with familiarity in agile and SCRUM to write the procurement documents for the new CA-MMIS contracts that will subsequently restart the project. (Earlier this year, California and system integrator Xerox agreed in a formal settlement to stop CA-MMIS development and replacement, and DHCS said it would start over.)

Choosing to move ahead with agile wouldn't be too surprising in this case, given that in 2014 the DHCS-Xerox team began using some agile and sprint techniques in an attempt to retool the CA-MMIS project. One of the people who came aboard at that time was Peter Kelly, then-chief of the CA-MMIS Project Management Office. Kelly soon after moved on to lead the state's Child Welfare Digital Services organization, which has become well known as it's beginning to use agile end-to-end in modernizing the state's child welfare information system; some have called it the big demonstration project for agile in California state government.

It also appears California will use a modular procurement approach for CA-MMIS, which could align well with an agile development methodology. According to recent state records, "pursuant to recent decisions and directives from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, DHCS has determined that the processes included in the current FI contract"  referring to the canceled fiscal intermediary contract with Xerox  are to be separated into multiple separate contracts  or modules. These modules will consist of one or more for the Business Operations components; one or more for the Information Technology (IT) System Maintenance and Operations components; and one or more for the Replacement System Design, Development, and Implementation components."

The CA-MMIS project appears to be moving forward again. According to information provided to TechWire, DHCS plans to release a "lessons learned" document in November about the suspended CA-MMIS project. A new overarching Project Status Report (PSR) planning document also is in development.

Which of California's major state IT projects will be the next to use agile development principles as part of a revamped approach?Although no official announcements have yet been made, there are indications that one candidate could be California's $458 million Medicaid Management Information System (CA-MMIS). Here are a few signs that point to agile being a possible path forward:
(TNS) -- The cyberattack that occured Friday, Oct. 21, which took down Twitter, Netflix, Reddit, and other popular websites for hours across the country, originated from 100,000 Web-enabled devices harnessed together by a malicious software program.Thats the conclusion of Dyn, the New Hampshire company that manages a significant portion of the Internets infrastructure and was the target of the attack.This attack has opened up an important conversation about internet security and volatility, Dyn Executive Vice President Scott Hilton said in an analysis issued Wednesday . Not only has it highlighted vulnerabilities in the security of Internet of Thing devices that need to be addressed, but it has also sparked further dialogue in the Internet infrastructure community about the future of the Internet.Dyns analysis confirms both the magnitude of the attack, which is the largest on record and unfolded in two major waves during the day Oct. 21, but the relative ease with which attackers can enslave vulnerable web devices to cause mischief  or worse.The companys estimate of 100,000 sources, which include home security cameras, DVRs, wireless routers, and other devices that are connected to the Web and largely unprotected by strong passwords or other protection, is a tiny fraction of the tens of millions of devices available for infection and deployment as a malicious botnet. In this case, they were yoked together via a program called Mirai, which has been publicly released, sharply increasing the chances it can be used for malicious purposes by groups or individuals.Indeed, U.S. intelligence chief James Clapper said this week that the attack appeared to be the work of a non-state actor  that is, not such usual suspects as Russia or China. Thats cold comfort, since Clapper also said that such non-state attackers can be even more nefarious than governments.Concern about the potential to turn workaday consumer devices into instruments of cyber-mayhem has been growing along with the scale of attacks known as distributed denials of service, or DDoS. These involve sending such an immense volume of messages to a website that legitimate users cant reach the site. A major attack on the website of security expert Brian Krebs last month forced the site off the Internet for several days, possibly in retaliation for articles he had published about Israeli hackers.That attack, like the Dyn episode, involved a Mirai user who had enslaved an army of insecure Web devices. These often are consumer devices that can connect to the Internet to allow owners to access video recordings or to download software updates  program grids for TV set-top boxes, say  in ways that are out of the control of their owners. Often, the Internet connections are safeguarded by easy-to-hack passwords.One can expect more regulatory attention to be paid to such devices as their exploitation by hackers expands. The manufacturer of an entire line of vulnerable webcams identified as possible sources of recent DDoS assaults, Chinese electronics company Hangzhou Xiongmai, issued a recall for some of those devices this week . The European Commission is pondering rules requiring device manufacturers to upgrade the security of their products. But with dozens of international companies operating in that market, it may be difficult to stem the threat.Dyns analysis provides a fascinating glimpse of how a DDoS unfolds and the challenges in fighting it off. The first attack started at about 7:10 a.m. Eastern time. The second wave began just before 11 a.m. and lasted for more than an hour.Dyn engineers noticed a surge in incoming data traffic from a large number of disparate sources heralding a DDoS and launched their defenses. These attacks were successfully mitigated by Dyns Engineering and Operations teams, Hilton write, but not before significant impact was felt by our customers and their end users. Users trying to access the affected websites got messages stating that the websites were down.But that only helped to magnify the attack. Users or computer servers turned away because of the storm of illegitimate data kept trying and retrying, which only increased the torrent of traffic. Because its hard for the target to distinguish legitimate traffic from attack traffic, theres no way to let only legitimate users through.Dyn says its withholding some information about the attack, which is under investigation by law enforcement agencies. But one reality seeps through its statement: more and bigger attacks are certain to be lurking just over the horizon.
The blaze destroyed the filling station in Ciudad Juarez. Sonia Corona

More information La batalla por los precios de la gasolina en Mexico se libra en la frontera

Around 9.40 pm on October 24, the Mexican-US border city of Ciudad Juarez was shaken by a huge explosion.

Local residents initially assumed the blast was a bomb set off by one of the countrys warring drug cartels, but responsibility lay with a man who was filling containers with 14,000 liters of cut-price gasoline. When a spark ignited the fuel, it set off a huge blaze.

Mexico intends to liberalize its filling stations from January 1, 2017

The reason the man was buying gasoline in Ciudad Juarez rather than in his home town of Casas Grandes, some 280 kilometers away in the state of Chihuahua, is that it was 25% cheaper.

Gasoline prices in Mexico are set by the government. When President Enrique Pena Nieto partially liberalized the countrys oil industry in 2013, he decided to lower the price of gasoline by 25% in filling stations within a 45-kilometer belt along the US border.

This was an attempt to end the long-standing practice among Mexicans in northern states of traveling into the United States, where gasoline is cheaper, to fill up their vehicles.

The result has been a flourishing trade in cut-price gasoline bought at the border stations.

For example, the man at the Ciudad Juarez filling station would have paid $7,850 for 14,000 liters of gasoline. The same amount costs around $10,400 in the rest of the country.

A Pemex gas station in Mexico City. Reuters

Staff at border filling stations who engage in the illegal trade face prison terms of up to 25 years, but many are prepared to take the risk for a cut of the profits.

State-owned Pemex, which has the monopoly on gasoline distribution in Mexico, forbids the sale of fuel in unauthorized containers. Nevertheless, many small rural communities, often in remote areas, club together to buy cut-price gasoline.

Mexico intends to liberalize its filling stations from January 1, 2017. The countrys Energy Regulation Commission (CRE) will select a number of areas where gas stations will be able to set their own prices depending on supply and demand, a move that is expected to push prices down in those areas.

Gasoline distributors in Mexico have also complained about serious shortages in central and northern areas in recent years due to theft of gasoline from pipelines and deposits that sometimes leave pumps dry at filling stations around the nation.

English version by Nick Lyne.
Nico Rosberg says he is maintaining his focus, despite comments made by F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone.

Mercedes' Niki Lauda reacted angrily when Ecclestone admitted he hopes Lewis Hamilton wins the title, because the Briton is the better ambassador for the sport.

"I spoke to him personally and he said that's not exactly the way he said it," Rosberg said in Mexico, where the German has his first title 'match point' of the year.

"Anyway, it's not something that's important to me -- I focus on my thing and that's it."

However, it's not the only noise surrounding Rosberg's 26-point lead that, statistically, he should be able to hang onto until the chequered flag in Abu Dhabi.

Many people - Hamilton included - think Rosberg's campaign has been significantly boosted by persistent technical problems on the sister car.

"If I had had a reliable car, then this season would have taken a different course -- more like 2014 and 2015," the Briton said on Thursday.

"But I have to live with it."

Rosberg told reporters that he is shutting out all that sort of noise.

"Those are two examples that you've given me and that's the nature of the business," he said. "It's always going to be like that so I like to focus on the people who really support me."

2016 would be Rosberg's first title, but his countryman Sebastian Vettel has won no fewer than four times.

The Ferrari driver said in Mexico: "For Nico it's important to try to keep his focus and not think about it too much. Then it's just down to your own performance.

"But Nico has been performing on eye-level with Lewis this year, so he need not be worried. From a German perspective, it would be nice if Nico did it," Vettel added.

(GMM)
Diana Lopez-Pinel, the mother of missing teen Diana Quer. Gtresonline

A shellfish collector in Spains northwestern Galicia region has found the smartphone of missing Spanish teenager Diana Quer who went missing more than two months ago.

The phone  a white iPhone 6  was found on Thursday by the man as he hunted for shellfish in muddy ground under a viaduct in Taragona  an area that was the target of intensive police searches carried out in September after cellphone reception data indicated it was last place where the device was used.

The phone is the first evidence to be found in the two-month search for the missing teen

The phone is the first physical evidence obtained by police of the teen who went missing after saying goodbye to friends at the local fiestas in the coastal village of A Pobra do Caraminal in the early hours of August 22.

The case received national headlines with much of the attention focused on the young womans family situation.

Soon after the teen went missing, it emerged that a court was taking custody of Quers younger daughter away from the mother.

Local residents of A Pobra, where all three spent their summer holidays, reported hearing a loud family dispute shortly before Diana Quers disappearance, while some relatives have insisted that she was being illegally detained by her mother, although they did not use the term kidnapped.

In September, police grilled Quers mother for several hours, asking why she had not told them about her troubled relationship with her two daughters.

The Civil Guard has been working on the supposition that Quer was picked up by someone and driven from A Pobra to a house some 20 kilometers away in the direction of Taragona. This route would have seen her passing the point where her phone was discovered.

Diana Quer was last seen on August 22nd.

A month after Quer disappeared without trace during summer holidays in A Pobra, police remotely accessed her phone to see if it contained any messages that would provide more information as to her whereabouts.

While the contents of the phone are largely known, its discovery marks a milestone in the investigation into the disappearance of the young woman signaling that something took place in her last known location.

English version by George Mills.
Los Bordos, one of Ecatepec's most dangerous areas. Oswaldo Ramirez

More information Sobrevivir en Ecatepec, una cuestion de fe

Four women cross themselves before setting off up the steep hill into what has been described as the most dangerous place to live in Mexico. Much of Los Bordos, a slum in Ecatepec, about half-an-hour from the capital, Mexico City, has no running water or electricity, few schools, and fewer hospitals, and most worryingly for the four friends, no police. More than 600 women have been murdered here since 2012.

Everybody who lives in Los Bordos knows how dangerous it is, says one of the women, 46-year-old Eva Diaz, who has lived here for 20 years and has two sons. Be careful, she adds, because just a few hours ago on this hill a woman was held up at gunpoint and robbed.

Ecatepec lacks police officers: gangs control Los Bordos, using young boys to act as lookouts

With a population of more than 1.5 million, Ecatepec is the second-most-populated city in Mexico State, which rings the north and west of Mexico City, and tops government tables for murder, kidnapping, mugging and carjacking. The local police say that they deal with around one female murder victim a day.

Ecatepecs mayor, Indalecio Rios, admits that the city has a problem. It all began back in the 1980s, when the place began to fill up with people from other areas who were looking for work in the capital. The population soon doubled, and Ecatepec was not ready for it. People began building homes on the hillsides of what is now Los Bordos before there were any services there. This created the marginalization and the violence that we are living through today, he says.

The slum of Los Bordos, with its pastel-colored homes sprawling across the hillsides, can be seen clearly from Ecatepecs two main avenues. The murder rate in Los Bordos has risen dramatically in the last 10 years: from 198 in 2006, to 516 in 2015, higher than those in the states of Chiapas, Colima, Durango, Morelos, or Coahuila. Iztapalapa, one of the toughest districts of Mexico City, which has a similar population, recorded a relatively modest 198 homicides last year.

Many of Ecatepecs youngsters do not bother attending school, and can be seen hanging on street corners during the day while their parents are at work. Local criminals use them to sell drugs or to commit murders, knowing that if they are caught they cannot be sent to prison.

Youngsters hang out on the streets of Los Bordos, Ecatepec. Oswaldo Ramirez

A recently installed cable car now runs up and down the hillside, making the journey in to Mexico City, which takes two hours, a little safer than using the communal microbus taxis that operate here. I dont know of anybody who has not been robbed in a microbus, says 64-year-old Petra Cedillo.

Mexico has a crime problem and Ecatepec hasnt escaped it. Our challenge is to solve it, but we lack the resources, says the mayor. What Los Bordos lacks are police officers: gangs control the hillsides, using young boys to act as lookouts in the streets below. The absence of any law and order has led local people to sometimes take matters into their own hands: a banner hangs across one of the main streets that reads: Stop! If we catch you stealing well lynch you.

Halfway up the hill, the four women take shelter from the sun under a tree. They must be home before 9pm, they say, because after dark, the streets of Ecatepec are even more dangerous. If you are cornered by a thief, pray to God that he only steals your purse, says Eva Diaz.

English version by Nick Lyne.
STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARTSAKH

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

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Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully

The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces

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STATEMENT BY SECRETARY ANTONY J. BLINKEN

This criminal act is another proof that the Armenophobia policy. Tatoyan

Nikol Pashinyan, Nancy Pelosi discuss a number of issues related to the Armenian-American agenda and regional developments

Delegation by Nancy Pelosi Accompanied by Alen Simonyan Visits Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex

Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi Arrives in Yerevan

Armenian Revytech, global technology leader SAP and financial services software specialist SAP Fioneer sign a cooperation agreement

With 120 million drams donated by Mikael Vardanyan, the defenders of the homeland will be treated in a new building

OSCE Chairman-in-Office and OSCE Secretary General call for immediate cessation of hostilities along Armenia-Azerbaijan border

Statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh

USA Embassy Message for U.S. Citizens
A emotional courtroom audience heard the sentence handed down in the case of Jacob Tripplet.

Hell be going to prison and wont be getting out any time soon.

Triplett pleaded no contest in May to six felony charges, including second-degree murder, related to the abuse and neglect of his four children.

He was sentenced to between 128 and 166 in prison, 40-50 years of which will be served concurrently and 88-116 years will be served consecutively. Triplett was initially charged with first-degree murder, but that charge was reduced to second-degree murder after a plea agreement he made wi...
Cheri Braden, 37, of Green River, passed away Oct. 18, 2016, at her home. A lifelong resident of Green River, Braden died following a sudden illness.

She was born on Jan. 5, 1979, in Rock Springs, the daughter of Ronald and Marilyn Young Braden.

Braden attended schools in Green River and was a 1997 graduate of the Green River High School.

She enjoyed her children and loved taking them swimming in Salt Lake City at hotels.

Survivors include her parents Ronald and Marilyn Braden of Green River; her companion of nine years, Tyler Pehrson of Green River; one son, Colten John Pehrson of Green River; three daughters, Alise Jayden Pehrson of Green River, Issabelle and Graicy Montoya, both of Pennsylvania; two brothers, John Braden and Jason Braden both of Green River; one sister, Cami Braden of Green River; several aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by two sisters, Chrystal and Monica Braden and one niece, Maicy Braden.

Funeral services took place Wednesday. Interment will be in the Riverview Cemetery. Condolences may be left at Vase Funeral Home.
Louise Wesswick was born on Feb. 24, 1935, to Louis and Christine Hostar Wessick in Rock Springs.

She attended schools in Rock Springs and furthered her education at the University of Wyoming, where she earned a bachelor's and master's degree in home economics.

She taught at Natrona County High School in Casper in 1957 and 1958 before taking a position at the University of Wyoming, where she remained for the next 31 years.

She traveled extensively, including a trip to the Scandinavian countries to study consumer issues.

She traveled to the former Soviet Union to exchange ideas on the position of the consumer in both countries. She retired from the University of Wyoming on May 18, 1990 and returned to Rock Springs to contribute to the community and caregive for her sister Arlene.

As director of the Wesswick Foundation, established in June of 1998, Louise distributed funds to many organizations throughout Wyoming.

The foundation is a longtime supporter of the Western Wyoming Community College, including the Arlene and Louise Wesswick Lecture Series. Her last project was to purchase a book for every elementary student in Green River.

As a result of her very generous contributions to philanthropic causes she was awarded the Governor's Arts Award in 2010 at a gala event in Cheyenne. Louise continued to be a very generous and caring person until her death.

She was a life member of the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences, a member of the Wyoming Mortar Board, Phi Upsilon Omicron, Gamma Sigma Delta, Western Regional Educators of Family Economics Resource Management, and the American Council in Consumer Interests.

Louise loved her great-great nieces Ella and Olivia, reading, theatre and watching sports. She enjoyed people and treasured each and every relationship.

She is survived by her brother, Ernest Wesswick and wife Fern of Lakewood, Colo., and several nieces and nephews, including Debra and Kevin Callas of Rock Springs and Raven Jonathan, Ella and Olivia Beattie of Casper. Lifelong friends Lilia, Shirley and Diane Albertini, David and Fred Fedrizzi and her extended family at the WWCC.

She was preceded in death by her parents; sisters Arlene Wesswick, Pauline Carr, Wilma Williams and brothers, Louis and Tony. Funeral services took place Monday.

Condolences may be left at the http://www.vasefuneralhomes.com.
Robert Ray Young, Sr., 67, of Green River, passed away Oct. 18, 2016, at the Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County. He had been a longtime resident of Green River and former longtime resident of Rock Springs, Young had been in ill health for the past three years.

He was born Feb. 6, 1949, in Woodward, Okla., the son of Clyde Young and Dorothy Vincent Young.

Young attended schools in Casper and graduated from the Kelly Walsh High School in 1967.

He married Samantha Berrie in Casper in 1969.

Young was employed as a parts salesman for many years in Oil Field Equipment.

His interests included fishing, hunting, four-wheeling, and spending time with his family.

Survivors include his wife Samantha Young of Green River; four sons, Robert Young Jr. and wife Michelle of Denali, Alaska, Devin Young, Trevor Young and Jody Young, all of Green River; seven daughters, Mondee Matzner of Coos Bay, Ore., Kacee Young and spouse Lonnie of Hot Springs, Ark., Terra Poling, Shannon Kontz, Kelly Deain and spouse Brandon, Cassidy Young, and Abby Young, all of Green River; three brothers, Clyde Young and Terry Young, both of Casper, and Albert Young of California; 13 grandchildren; several cousins, nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents and one daughter, Donna Young.

Cremation has taken place.
The fight in California over a ballot initiative that would begin to control the price of pharmaceuticals paid by state programs shows how difficult it is to do something about the high price of prescription drugs.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. drug spending rose 7 percent this year - the biggest increase in 24 years  and most Americans now think drug prices are unreasonable. So its not surprising the pharmaceutical industry is running scared and, with its deep pockets, is spending big to convince millions of Californians to vote No on Prop 61, a Nov. 8...
During the past week, weve received a few phone calls from concerned residents regarding the upcoming general election.

The calls stem from one concern in particular: the legitimacy of the results. Fears ranging from Russian influence hijacking local results to the dead rising from the grave to cast their ballots are out there, but we think the election will remain untainted.

Sweetwater County Clerk Dale Davis said it wouldnt be impossible to influence an election in the county, but said it would be extremely difficult to pull off. A nefarious party would have to hack into the individ...
STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARTSAKH

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Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders

PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces

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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

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Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully

The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces

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STATEMENT BY SECRETARY ANTONY J. BLINKEN

This criminal act is another proof that the Armenophobia policy. Tatoyan

Nikol Pashinyan, Nancy Pelosi discuss a number of issues related to the Armenian-American agenda and regional developments

Delegation by Nancy Pelosi Accompanied by Alen Simonyan Visits Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex

Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi Arrives in Yerevan

Armenian Revytech, global technology leader SAP and financial services software specialist SAP Fioneer sign a cooperation agreement

With 120 million drams donated by Mikael Vardanyan, the defenders of the homeland will be treated in a new building

OSCE Chairman-in-Office and OSCE Secretary General call for immediate cessation of hostilities along Armenia-Azerbaijan border

Statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh

USA Embassy Message for U.S. Citizens
Hillary drinks wine? Sad!

This week, Eric Trump toured Yuengling, Americas oldest brewery that also makes Pennsylvanias quintessential beer, to really cement his dads Joe Six-Pack appeal in the swing state. The 45-minute visit was led by none other than Dick Yuengling, the companys billionaire owner who doesnt care much for Obama, unions, or paying taxes:







Thank you to Dick Yuengling for an amazing tour of the oldest brewery in the U.S! @Yuengling_Beer #PottsvillePA #MAGA pic.twitter.com/XrGVbbOiI3  Eric Trump (@EricTrump) October 24, 2016

The 73-year-old beer baron told Trumps son, on the record and in front of reporters, Our guys are behind your father. We need him in there. Apparently, he forgot about the toxic effect Trumps name has on brands of basically any kind these days:



Regularly drive 90 mile from KY to OH to get @Yuengling_Beer but supporting racist, misogynist nut-job Trump is the end of the line for me  Todd Bird (@Tbird215) October 27, 2016

@Yuengling_Beer WOW. Last day I drink your product. Don't do politics- ruins businesses.  ---Christa--- (@christa12lara) October 27, 2016

@Yuengling_Beer Welp, I enjoyed your beer but I have a policy against supporting companies that support racist, misogynist assholes.  Deep Time (@rstackjr) October 28, 2016

I missed documenting my final hate meal @ChickfilA but snagged a pic of my final hate beer @Yuengling_Beer #MakeAmericaHateAgain pic.twitter.com/n8aiZGTeaj  Josh Evans (@joshie_WVU) October 28, 2016

And the fallout is actually worse than possibly empty social-media threats: Brian Sims, Pennsylvanias first openly gay legislator, announced in a Facebook post that he was abandoning Yuengling after 17 loyal years, then tagged a bunch of Philadelphia gay bars and asked them to take the beer off their taps, too. Several agreed immediately, like JRs Bar, whose manager put up a video of the tap handle being unceremoniously removed:



This one is for you Yuengling. #yuengling Posted by David Perruzza on Thursday, October 27, 2016

Sims is pleased enough with the response so far that hes now vowing to expand the boycott to businesses outside the LGBT community. Suffice it to say its not been a great year for Trump among Pennsylvanias iconic food and drink institutions.


Introduction

Google was always a service - the best search engine on Earth. Now under the Alphabet umbrella, Google is becoming a brand - for online services yes, but also for hardware. Leading the charge are the Pixels, Google's equivalent to Samsung's Galaxy or Apple's i-gadgets... and every bit as premium.

True, the Pixel name debuted with a Chromebook, later adopted for an Android tablet, but it will definitely be remembered for the phones. This must be the company's biggest marketing push for a Google-branded hardware product.

It's not just that, Google even put a promo for Allo on the most valuable real estate on the web - Google.com. Allo, if you haven't heard, is the new messaging client (paired with video chat app Duo) and is at the heart of the Pixel phones. The AI assistant available in Allo is more prominently featured in the Pixels and you can talk with it, not just text. Then there's Google Photos, Google Drive and so on. This perfectly mirrors Apple's strategy of iMessage, iCloud, etc.

Software is Google's forte, but the company is new to hardware. With both Apple and Samsung flexing supply chain muscle, will the hardware of the Google Pixel XL live up to the pricing that exactly matches the iPhone 7 Plus (and tops the Galaxy S7 edge)? Let's see.

Google Pixel XL key features:

Aerospace-grade aluminum unibody (glass window on the back); splash and dust resistant (IP53)

5.5" AMOLED screen of QHD resolution, 534ppi, 100% NTSC; 2.5D Gorilla Glass 4

Quad-core Kryo processor, Adreno 530 GPU, 4GB of RAM, Snapdragon 821 chipset

Google-loaded Android 7.1 Nougat; 2 years of OS upgrades from launch, 3 years of security updates

12.3MP camera, f/2.0 lens, 1.55m pixels, Phase and Laser AF, dual-LED, dual-tone flash; 2160p and 1080p @ 30/60/120fps video capture

8MP selfie camera, f/2.4 lens, 1.4m pixels; 1080p video capture

Comes with 32GB or 128GB of built-in storage, no expansion

Fingerprint reader, Android Pay

LTE Cat 9 or 11 (450Mbps or 600Mbps downlink, 50/75Mbps uplink); Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.2 (A2DP, LE), GPS + GLONASS, NFC

3,450mAh battery; Fast charging over USB Type-C

Main shortcomings:

Most expensive Google phone yet

No stereo speakers

No water resistance

No OIS for the camera

No wireless charging, no IR port or FM radio

Snapdragon 821 chipset is downclocked to 820 speed

Standard Nexus cons: no microSD slot, sealed battery

Design is arguably bland

We openly admit to being a little salty. Don't get us wrong, we haven't been spoiled by the likes of Xiaomi, OnePlus, ZTE and others. Hell, you can buy TWO Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus phones for the price of one Pixel XL, that one has a Snapdragon 821 too, not to mention dual cameras and no weird glass windows on the back.

What we're pouting about is that the Pixel XL isn't clearly better than the Nexus 6P it is supposed to replace and it didn't bring back any of the features that the 6P dropped from the Nexus 6 spec sheet.

Not a good time to be cutting features, especially when Apple has everything short of an Always on screen (which the Pixels also lack) - dual cameras, water resistance, the best mobile chipset, truly awesome screen, even stereo speakers!

Apple was in the opposite situation compared to Google - it was known for its hardware, its software was laughed at (remember Apple Maps at launch?). But now iMessage is one of the best respected messengers, iCloud is reliable and cheap, even Maps has improved massively.

Can Google walk the same path in the other direction - from beloved software (Search, Maps, Android) and an overpriced Chromebook Pixel to the world's best smartphone? We have a ticket to the preview show and it's called the Google Pixel XL - shh, the trailers are starting!
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Keeping up with Samsung's ever-growing device lineup is getting extra difficult with each passing month. 2016 in particular, saw an explosion of brand new device families and offers, only a few of which arguably have what it takes to stand out.

The fresh new "C" lineup definitely falls under this category. We already reviewed the Galaxy C5 and C7, both of which intriguing, mid-range, yet stylish metal-clad smartphones on a budget. By all accounts, Samsung is now looking to improve on the pair of devices with new "Pro" versions. They were first spotted a month or so ago and now the bigger C7 Pro surfaced again on the India import tracker Zauba.

The handset, bearing the model number SM-C7010 was featured in two listings on the website. The units are obviously intended for testing, which could mean a release is pending soon. Sadly, there isn't really any more info in the leak to comment on, apart from the cited 5.7-inch panel size. The included price is obviously not representative of the market value, since it roughly translates to $200, compared to the $400 or so the basic C7 goes for.

Sadly, there is no extra info to go by at this point, so we just have to play the waiting game.

Source | Via




Haiti - Social : Caracas / Port-au-Prince in 3:30 instead of 6:00





This week Venezuelan society "Aserca Airlines" announced a new route that will connect Venezuela with Haiti in 3:30 instead of 6:00 previously.



This new route between the Simon Bolivar International Airport of Maiquetia (few km of Caracas) and the Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, will no longer pass through Panama, but will stop to the Las Americas International Airport in the Dominican Republic.



The new route offers four weekly flights in both directions :



From Caracas, Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday

Departure at 7:00 a.m. arrival in the Dominican Republic at 8:30 a.m.; departure from Santo Domingo at 10:45 a.m., arriving in Port-au-Prince at 10:30 am (local time in Haiti). Total 3:30



From Port-au-Prince, Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday

Departure 11:30 a.m. arrival in the Dominican Republic at 12.15 (Pawa Dominicana); departure from Santo Domingo 6:00 p.m. arriving in Caracas at 7:30 p.m.



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - Politic : PM pays tribute to the Haitian militaries





On Thursday, Prime Minister Enex Jean-Charles, also Minister of National Defence (MDN), honored the body of military engineers and the medical and health body of MDN dispatched in Les Cayes and Jeremie during the passage of Hurricane Matthew.



The Minister of National Defence, Jean-Charles took the opportunity to hand over a plaque of honor and merit to the nurse Agena Farah Louis. From Bonbon to Jeremie, defying the wrath of Matthew, agents of the Mandatory Mixed Civic Service (SCMO) of health and medical bodies of MDN, led by the nurse Agena Farah Louis, have provided first aid care and administered medication to hundreds of serious injuries of Matthew.



Moreover, to facilitate the free movement of the first food aid, medical and health to the victims of Hurricane in Les Cayes, to Jeremie and Leogane, of Haitian military engineers have rendered accessible several sections of roads blocked by fallen trees and remove more than 500 cubic meters of alluvium deposited by rain.



At work despite the violence of the hurricane on 3 and 4 October, MDN military engineers also curate bank and gullies while helping to move people in danger.



See also :

https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-18818-icihaiti-matthew-government-deploys-its-military-engineering-corps.html



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Zaruhi Postanjyan: I do not feel the need of Tsarukyan's return

During todays parliamentary briefings, opposition lawmaker Zaruhi Postanjyan spokes about the recent four-day sitting of the National Assembly and the new government program. She said the Republic of Armenia. She said the Republic of Armenia will not have an opportunity to carry out an independent policy as long as the Soviet KGB operates in the country. Speaking about Gagik Tsarukyan possible return to politics, Zaruhi Postankyan said Tsarukyan continues to remain a lawmaker which means he has not left politics. He [Tsarukyan] has only been forbidden to head the party (the Prosperous Armenia Party  BHK) that he founded. This is a typical manifestation of authoritarian regimes. He was simply told to step down as the party leader. Let us look at everything in a different way. Let us analyze the events that happed in April and summer. A new cabinet was formed in the country where Russia has an important role. There is problem in Armenia to control the opinion of opposition masses, there is a problem to defuse hatred and economic crisis, there is also a problem to attract additional forces, she said. Asked whether Tsarukyans return is a must today, Postanjyan said, Perhaps his supporters long for his return, but I do not feel the need.




Haiti - UNICEF : Haiti funding needs nearly triple





Three weeks since Hurricane Matthew made landfall in Haiti, UNICEF said it would need an additional $22.5 million to meet the increasing needs of children in the country, including in the hurricane-hit areas.



"Children in Haiti have for years been vulnerable to poverty, severe weather patterns, violence, malnutrition and poor water infrastructure," said Marc Vincent, UNICEF Representative in Haiti. "Hurricane Matthew made a precarious situation even worse and we need the international community to come together to help us address childrens increasing needs."



UNICEF increased its Haiti appeal from $13.4 million earlier this year to $36.6 million. The additional funds will help provide families and children across Haiti with basic health, nutrition, education and protection services including :



Cholera vaccination for people living in high-risk areas;



Nutrition services to malnourished children under the age of five and pregnant women;



Family tracing and reintegration for unaccompanied and separated children;



Recreational and psychosocial support to children affected by the hurricane;



Safe water for drinking, cooking and personal hygiene, including for persons displaced by the hurricane;



Adequate water, sanitation and hygiene services for people living in cholera-affected areas;



School supplies and learning materials for children in areas hit by the hurricane.



Right before the hurricane struck, UNICEF prepositioned water bladders, water treatment units and bottled water in the South and GrandAnse departments to help families be better prepared. UNICEF was on the ground 24 hours after the hurricane hit and since then, working with partners, has continuously scaled up its response, providing to date :



10,000 emergency packs including blankets, hygiene kits and buckets to families in South and GrandAnse departments;



Nearly 20 water treatment plants to bring water to approximately 100,000 people per day in the South, GrandAnse and Nippes departments;



More than 1,000,000 Aquatabs for water treatment, allowing about 80,000 people to have access to safe water for 15 days;



50 cholera kits, 20 washing points and information to 2,000 people on safe hygiene practices to prevent the spread of cholera;



Increase from 5 to 14 the number of teams deployed 24-48 hours after each suspected cholera case to provide immediate assistance. On average each team responds to 10 households which might be at risk.



170 metric tons of emergency supplies flown in from Panama and Copenhagen.



To donate to UNICEF visit : www.unicef.org and click Donate on the top right



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - Politic : PAP mayor met the private sector





This week at the Convention Centre of the Bank of the Republic of Haiti (BRH), the Mayor of Port-au-Prince, Ralph Youri Chevry and his administration met with the private sector.



During this meeting, where was also present of Representatives of the international community, including Canada, partner of the municipality of Port-au-Prince via the city of Montreal https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-19018-icihaiti-port-au-prince-unveiling-of-the-1st-street-name-pole.html , Mayor Chevry has outlined its 2016-2020 General Policy and communicated the budget of the City Council for the fiscal year.



The presentation of the mayor focused on 3 strong points of his program: urban revitalization, economic development and good governance, security.



Attract investors, boost the business sector and assure the citizens a safe and clean city, are the commitments that took Ralph Youri Chevry in the presence of his interlocutors, who have taken note.



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - News : Zapping politics...





The CEP does not intend to change the date of the second round

Many political actors including presidential candidates continue to call for the advancement of the date of the second round, to allow the inauguration of newly elected President of the Constitutional February 7, 2017. They believe that the Provisional Electoral Council ( CEP) can not take the investiture of Presidents Rene Preval and Michel Martelly as "jurisprudence" to trample with impunity the date prescribed by the Constitution. For its part the CEP seems deaf to the increasing appeals and does not intend to change its timetable, constitutional or not.



Dubai will print the balots for the 2nd Round

Wednesday, Nicole Simeon, the Spokesperson of the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) has confirmed that there will be no tender for the printing of sensitive material including ballot papers for the second round of elections and that the firm Dubai "Al Ghurair," which won the tender for the first round, which was awarded the contract. Noting that this decision was taken in order to meet the deadline of 69 days between the two rounds. The firm of Dubai having guarantee that sensitive material will be ready 10 days after receiving the models.



Chancellor Delienne in Paris

Thursday morning in Paris, Pierrot Delienne, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, on the sidelines of the Ministerial Conference on Peacekeeping in Francophone environment, which was held in Paris on 26-27 October 2016, met with his French counterpart Jean-Marc Ayrault.



5th Coordination Council of FAES

Thursday, the Fund of Economic and Social Assistance (FAES), held its 5th Regional Offices Coordination Council. The Director General, Lucien Francoeur, the Deputy Director, Ms. Carmithe Israna Germain and senior executives of the FAES was present: on the agenda: the post-Matthew status; the presentation of the progress of ongoing activities and projects by the technical departments; the presentation of the 2015/2016 work report; the presentation of the work program and annual budget 2016-2017...



Minister of Education in Washington

Thursday at the headquarters of the Organization of American States (OAS), Jean Beauvois Dorsonne the Minister of National Education, participated from 26 to 28 October 2016 with the Ministers of Education of Member States including Haiti, to the preparatory Summit of the th meeting of Ministers of education of the OAS.



The CEP met the human right sector

Thursday, the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) met again with the sector of human rights around the upcoming elections...



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Levon Zurabyan: Tsarukyans precedent was very bad (video)

Head of the Armenian National Congress (HAK), Levon Zurabyan, today spoke about HAKs possible cooperation with other political forces in the 2017 parliamentary elections. We do not expect political parties to respond to our statement publicly because these issues are solved in a different way. I do not want to speak about their reaction. We did not receive and did not even expect to hear public responses from serious political parties. The formation of opposition poles that will have an impact on society is done through negotiations rather than statements, Mr. Zurabyan added. Speaking about Gagik Yeghiazaryans return to politics, the head of the HAK faction said, I do not want to speak about something which is not a fact yet. Later we shall understand what political forces are involved in the struggle. There will be negotiations, alliances will be formed, then you can ask me for my opinion and I will answer you with great pleasure. We consider our cooperation possible with those forces that want to change the regime and establish democracy in the country. Tsarukyans precedent was very bad in this context.
State-by-State Look at Employer Health Insurance Costs Finds Workers Premium Contributions and Deductibles Growing More Slowly But Eating Up Greater Share of Incomes

New Commonwealth Fund Report Finds Workers in Arizona, Florida, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Texas Have Nations Highest Health Insurance Cost Burdens; Nationally, Employer Health Insurance Costs Have Grown at Slower Pace Since Affordable Care Act

From Commonwealth Fund

New York, NY, October 26, 2016Employees contributions to their health insurance premiums rose more slowly between 2010 and 2015 in 30 states and Washington, D.C., and their deductibles grew more slowly in 27 states, according to a new Commonwealth Fund state-by-state analysis that compared the cost of employer health insurance between 2006 and 2015. Still, many families are spending, on average, a bigger share of their income on health care than they were prior to 2010. That is because median incomes, despite their recent surge, have not kept pace with health care costs.

The report, The Slowdown in Employer Insurance Cost Growth: Why Many Workers Still Feel the Pinch, found that families spent an average of 10.1 percent ($6,422) of their income on health insurance premiums and deductibles in 2015. But there were differences among states. In Mississippi, which has the lowest median income and among the highest health insurance contribution levels, families were at risk of spending 14.7 percent of their income, on average, on health insurance costs. In Arizona, Florida, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas, families could pay 12 percent or more. Families in the District of Columbia and Massachusetts had the lowest health insurance costs as a share of income, at 6.8 percent and 7.3 percent, respectively.

The good news is that premiums in employer plans are growing more slowly on average, as is the amount employees are being asked to contribute, said Sara Collins, Vice President for Health Care Coverage and Access at The Commonwealth Fund and the studys lead author. Unfortunately, many employees with moderate incomes arent feeling the benefits of these slowdowns, because they havent yet experienced the sustained growth in their income needed to keep up with health costs.

When looking at total premium costs in employer plansthe total cost of coverage to both employer and employeethe researchers found that annual premium growth rates for single policies have slowed down in 33 states and the District of Columbia since 2010. Louisiana experienced the largest slowdown, as average premium growth fell from 7.8 percent a year between 2006 and 2010 to 2.4 percent from 2010 to 2015. However, premiums have continued to grow by 5 percent per year or more in Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Kentucky, Maryland, New Hampshire, New York, and Utah.

Effect of the Affordable Care Act on Employer Health Insurance Costs

According to the report, employer health insurance premiums for single policies grew an average of 4.7 percent in the years leading up to the ACAs passage and 3.8 percent in the years following it. The slower growth in employer premiums is in line with the slowdown in overall health care costs that began in 2009, the researchers say. They note, however, that the ACA provisions affecting employer planscovering preventive care without cost-sharing and allowing young adults to remain on a parents plan until age 26do not appear to have increased employer health insurance premiums and have been absorbed relatively easily by U.S. employers.

Additional Report Findings

Deductibles. Nationally, average deductibles for single-person plans grew 8.5 percent a year between 2010 and 2015. But there were differences among states, as deductibles grew at a slower pace in 27 states and at a faster pace in 22 states and the District of Columbia.

Employee premium contributions. While employee premium contributions grew more slowly, they still accounted for a larger share of peoples income than in earlier yearsan average of 5.8 percent of median income nationally, compared to 4.2 percent in 2006. There was wide variation between states, as employee contributions ranged from 4.2 percent of median income in Hawaii to 9 percent in Mississippi.

Moving Forward

The report concludes that while employer premium costs and employee contributions to their health insurance costs have grown more slowly since 2010, many Americans continue to be pinched by their health care costs. Prior Commonwealth Fund research suggests that people living in states with a combination of higher average deductibles and lower median income may be particularly at risk of going without needed care because of costs.

The authors note that additional years of strong income gains will improve families ability to afford their health care. And innovation in health plan design to incentivize, rather than discourage, people to get the care they need would also help. Nevertheless, with medical costs being the primary driver of insurance prices, keeping cost of health care in check will be critical to keeping employer premiums and deductibles down.

The vast majority of people under age 65 in the U.S., 154 million, get their health insurance through an employer, and many of them struggle to pay for it, said Commonwealth Fund President David Blumenthal, M.D. It would help if employers designed health plans that help their workers afford timely care. But since employer health insurance costs are driven by overall health care costs, it is also crucial to implement provider payment reform and quality improvement initiatives that keep health care costs down while improving patient outcomes.

Methodology

This issue brief analyzes state-by-state trends in private sector employer-based health insurance premiums and deductibles for the under-65 population from 2006 to 2015. The data on insurance premiums and deductibles come from the federal governments annual surveys of employers, conducted for the insurance component of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS). The premiums presented represent the average total annual cost of private group health insurance premiums for employer-sponsored coverage, including both the employer and employee shares. The study also examines trends in the share of premiums that employees pay and average deductibles for single-person and family plans.

The researchers compared employees average out-of-pocket costs for premiums and average deductibles to median income in states to illustrate the potential cost burden of each, as well as the total if the worker/family incurred these average costs. To do this, they compared premium contributions with median household incomes for the under-65 population in each state, using a weighted average of single and family premium contributions compared with single and family median household incomes. They took a similar approach for deductibles. Income data come from the U.S. Census Bureaus Current Population Survey (CPS) of households. The CPS revised its income questions in 2013, affecting the denominator in the ratio estimates. Prior to 2014, this is derived from the traditional CPS income questions, while ratio estimates from 2014 are derived from the revised income questions. Two years of CPS data are averaged to generate reliable state-level income estimates.

This analysis updates previous Commonwealth Fund analyses of state health insurance premium and deductible trends.
Give employees opportunities to be themselves; Encourage employees to bring out their signature strength; Question the status quo, and encourage employees to do the same; Create challenging experiences; Foster broader perspectives; Voice and encourage dissenting views.

t organisations reward behaviour and performance that conform to the shared norms and attitudes within the company.And the pressure to conform only gets more intense as workers climb the organisational ladder, said Francesca Gino, professor of business administration at Harvard Business School.By the time we reach high-level positions, conformity has been so hammered into us that we perpetuate it in our enterprises, she said at Harvard Business Review.But whats so wrong with conformity?Gino cited a survey that found 49% of more than 2,000 US employees said they regularly felt the need to conform to their organisation and reported a less positive work experience.She said conformity actually decreases employee engagement and constrains [their] ability to innovate or to perform at a high level.Psychologists call it the status quo bias, she said, and it makes employees stick to usual ways of thinking and doing, leading them to feel bored and complacent.Of course, not all conformity is bad. But to be successful and evolve, organisations need to strike a balance between adherence to the formal and informal rules that provide necessary structure and the freedom that helps employees do their best work, she said.To strike the optimal balance  think carefully about the boundaries within which employees will be free to deviate from the status quo.Gino proposed six strategies to help leaders encourage constructive nonconformity (a term she coined to describe rebel behaviour within an organisation)Authenticity allows employees to understand their own strengths and weaknesses, she said, and letting them lead themselves can foster creativity.Additionally, consider giving employees some freedom to choose responsibilities within their assigned roles, she said.As a leader, show employees that youre not afraid to question policies already set in place. Dont be tied down to practices just because its the way [the company] has always done it and emphasise to employees that the company is not perfect.She cited the example of Pixar Animations co-founder Ed Catmull and how he routinely tells new hires about mistakes the company has made in the past.Emphasizing that we are all human and that the organisation will never be perfect gives employees freedom to engage in constructive nonconformity, she said.Gino also stressed the importance of hiring employees with diverse perspectives.[Dont] hire people whose thinking mirrors that of the current management team, she said.Instead, take a cue from Catmull and hire prominent outsiders, give them important roles, and publicly acclaim their contributions.
Continuing with his release of position papers on the need to restore real North Carolina values to the North Carolina General Assembly, Art Sherwood, the Democratic candidate for N.C. Senate District 45, today issued a video and paper titled, Real North Carolina Values: Integrity. The first installment on North Carolina values focused on civility.

Sherwood said, Only 19 percent of Americans trust government, according to the Pew Research Center. Why is that? North Carolinas own Billy Graham has some insight that might help. He said, When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost.

Sherwood continued, Billy Graham is right. What we have lost is character  specifically, the character trait of integrity. He was also right in saying, The world is watching how we walk and how we talk. We must have the highest standards of morality, ethics and integrity if we are to continue to have influence.

Sherwood offered, I have made no secret of the fact that a primary motivation for me to seek office is to address the damage caused by the misappropriation of Christian beliefs by conservatives for political gain. That is not to say I am opposed to Christianity; indeed as Ive written here and here, I am a professing Christian. While I have no desire to impose by beliefs on others through the political process, I am also compelled to do my best to live by my faith in the public square in a manner that reflects favorably upon my faith  to the betterment of my neighbors. Clearly, too many elected officials have not.

He explained, That is why government is no longer trusted and why the intermingling of the church with government has compromised it to the point that it has lost its prophetic voice, and hence has become irrelevant to young people. I am compelled to do what I can to reverse these trends, and so it is a major reason I seek election to the North Carolina General Assembly. I will do my best to serve with integrity. I will cooperate with others. I will be honest with them. There will be no back-room deals. I will always keep my ears tuned to my constituents. And, I will do my best to prove to my colleagues that my word is my bond. If I can do that, I am confident of success, because proven, consistent personal integrity leads to cooperation, as it is the foundation of trust.

Senate District 45 includes five counties  Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Caldwell and Watauga. Sherwood is a resident of Caldwell County. Early voting is underway and runs through Nov. 5. Election Day is Nov. 8.

*Release from Sherwoods campaign

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Union of Informed Citizens: CSTO and Armenias security (video)

Since 1994 Armenia has been a member of the Collective Security Treaty, which was then transformed into the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). Let's see how the membership to this organization contributed to the security of Armenia and Karabakh. Azerbaijan has remained the main threat to the security of Armenia and Karabakh throughout the past 20 years And as long as the United States and Western European countries are refusing to sell any arms to Azerbaijan, it is, with great enthusiasm, done by Armenias so-called allies in CSTO - Russia and Belarus. Another member of the CSTO, Kazakhstan, is considered one of the strongest political supporters of Baku and openly supports Azerbaijan, while Nursultan Nazarbayev always finds an excuse for not visiting Armenia. As a reminder, Belarus made a statement supporting Azerbaijan during the April war, while Russia has supplied Baku with 85 percent of offensive armament in recent years, which enabled Azerbaijan to attack Armenia and take control of some territories. Stopping Azerabaijani offensive costed around a hundred lives. Against this background it is not surprising that none of the CSTO member countries condemned Azerbaijan not only for attacking Karabakh on April 2016, but also for shelling peaceful villages and killing civilians in Tavush region, an indisputable part of Armenia, on September 2015. And this in spite of the fact, that the CSTO member states were obliged not only to condemn Baku, but also offer military assistance to Armenia to protect the borders of Tavush region. During the October 14, 2016 CSTO summit in Yerevan, the Russian Foreign Minister said that Turkey can have a positive impact on the Karabakh conflict, thus encouraging Turkeys greater participation in the Karabakh issue. Even more, though it was envisaged that during the summit, a new CSTO Secretary General would be elected by Armenias proposal, none of it happened either. Nevertheless, the Armenian side was forced to join the statement against the NATO anti-missile systems development and deployment Despite the fact that NATO missile systems are exclusively defensive weapons and have no connection to Armenia. Moreover, Armenia has been a NATO Partner country since 2005, and Turkey is the only one among NATO member states who supplies arms to Azerbaijan, even significantly less that Russia does. *** It's hard to tell who needs this military alliance if even during the bombing of civilian areas in one of its member states, other states do not offer military support, not even condemning the aggressor, and continue to sell him weapons. And as long as the CSTO is trying to compete with NATO, it should be noted that if any country bombs a peaceful settlement in one of NATO member countries, it will have serious problems with NATO member countries just a few hours later And to imagine that NATO will sell weapons to the enemy of one of its member states is simply beyond possible. Union of Informed Citizens
Playhouse actor sets stage for $1M cancer center boost

An actor who has performed for more than 20 years at the Flat Rock Playhouse has become the biggest donor so far to the Pardee Comprehensive Cancer Center, making a cash donation and matching pledge challenge that would total $1 million, the Pardee Foundation announced Friday at the close of its annual Women Helping Women luncheon at the Blue Ridge Conference Hall at BRCC.

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Brian Robinson is giving $500,000 now and challenging the community to match his gift of another $250,000, for a total of $1 million.

He recently returned from a wellness retreat, where each meal began with a moment of gratitude.

"The one blessing which I have been the most guilty of taking for granted has been my health," he said. "At the end of those two weeks I had a newfound awareness and appreciation for my health that I had never had before."

When he got back to Flat Rock, his friend, Debbie Rouse, a member of the cancer center capital campaign, offered to take Robinson on a tour of the new Cancer Center, which will begin seeing patients next month.

"I was overwhelmed by the life force already present in the building," Robinson said. "It is filled with light, it radiates warmth, and very soon it will pulse with life as it will treat not only those already existing patients in this community, but also the more than 500 new patients a year who will come there to have the most precious gift restored to them, their health."

"Many of you in this room have already made a commitment to this new place of healing," he told the full house gathered for the annual luncheon. "I am honored to now stand with you. To those of you still considering a gift, I hope my challenge will encourage you, knowing that every dollar you give will be doubled. Every gift no matter the size will make a difference. This place of miracles is going to change people's lives for the better, today, tomorrow and long after we are all gone. I hope you will join me."

The gift is a major step forward for the Pardee Foundation in its goal of $6 million for the cancer center, giving the capital campaign a total of about $4 million so far, said Kim Hinkelman, executive director of the Pardee Foundation.

This was not Robinson's first substantial donation to a local cause. In June 2015 he gave $318,000 to help start the theaters newly formed educational program, Flat Rock Playhouse Studio 52. He has performed on stage at the Flat Rock Playhouse since he left graduate school at UNC at Chapel Hill. He first performed at the Flat Rock Playhouse in 1993 when Artistic Director Robin Farquhar cast him in a leading role in the musical City of Angels. Over the next 20 years he went on to play leading roles in more than 22 productions, including 1776, Thoroughly Modern Millie, A Few Good Men and My Fair Lady. A native of Tennessee with extensive film and television credits, Robinson earned a bachelors degree in history from the University of Virginia a graduate degree in the professional actors training program at UNC at Chapel Hill.

He has appeared in commercials for Food Lion, Time Warner Cable, Coca Cola, Subway and Tylenol. He had a featured role in Gospel Hill, starring Angela Bassett and Danny Glover and directed by Giancarlo Esposito.
A model and aspiring actor who appeared in RTE's Love/Hate was allegedly caught with 4,500 worth of ecstasy tablets just a month after being on the show.

Daniel Doyle (30), with an address in Ballymun, north Dublin, appeared before Dublin District Court charged with being in possession of drugs for sale and supply.

He featured on the hit RTE drama Love/Hate during the fifth series, when it was filmed on location in his native Ballymun. Mr Doyle has also worked as a fitness model.

During filming, he put pictures of him and actors Tom Vaughan-Lawlor (Nidge) as well as Charlie Murphy (Siobhan) on his social media account.

Searched

The alleged offence was committed less than a month after he appeared on the TV programme.

Over two weeks later on November 12, 2014, gardai searched a property in Balcurris Park West, Ballymun.

During the course of the search 450 ecstasy tablets valued at approximately 4,500 were recovered.

Giving evidence, Det Gda Ronan McMorrow said he arrested the accused in relation to the drug seizure on October 4 of this month.

He was taken to Ballymun Garda Station where he was arrested, cautioned and charged with being unlawfully in possession of controlled drug, MDMA, commonly known as ecstasy.

Mr Doyle was also charged with being in possession of ecstasy for the purpose of selling or otherwise supplying on the same date.

A book of evidence was served on the accused yesterday by Det Gda McMorrow and Judge Brennan issued Mr Doyle with the formal alibi caution.

The prosecution made no objection to bail and the defendant was remanded on bail on his own bond of 100.

A legal aid application was also made by the defence, as well as a Section 56 application which means that any recording of garda interviews or questioning of the accused must be given to his defence counsel. He will appear again before Dublin Circuit Court next month.
A woman who effectively lost two front teeth when she dived into a swimming pool that lacked appropriate "no diving" signs has been awarded 38,097 by the High Court.

Mr Justice Seamus Noonan increased the 35,000 award made last year by the Circuit Court to Timea Babos, of South Brown Street, Dublin.

The incident occurred at West Wood Club, a popular gym in Clontarf, Dublin, in November 2011.

Mr Justice Noonan said Ms Babos (32), an assistant manager at the Marker Hotel in Dublin, had put in a very modest claim and West Wood was fortunate the case had not been brought initially in a court of higher jurisdiction.

He said the signage at the Olympic-size pool which had a single depth of 1.35m was "woefully inadequate" and he did not accept West Wood's claim there was a lifeguard on duty at the time.

Unsafe

It was quite clear West Wood was negligent and there was no question of contributory negligence, he said. Ms Babos, in diving into the pool, had no reason to believe it was unsafe to do so, he said.

West Wood had appealed the Circuit Court award and argued there was contributory negligence.

A few days after the accident she returned to her native Hungary for dental treatment. She required two crowns and root canal treatment. The court was told she still has to be careful how she bites when she eats.

Mr Justice Noonan, affirming the Circuit Court order and increasing it, said Ms Babos had effectively lost her two front teeth which was cosmetically difficult for anyone but more so for an attractive young woman.

She would require to have the crowns replaced every five to 10 years and they would never be as good as the natural teeth, he said.
Susan McCarthy stabbed a woman in the head with a bottle

A mother who repeatedly stabbed a woman in the head with a broken beer bottle has been jailed for three years.

While attacking her victim, Susan McCarthy (22) told 23-year-old Leanne Delaney: "I hope you f***ing die."

McCarthy also stabbed Ms Delaney's friend, 22-year-old Celina Daly.

Sentencing McCarthy at Limerick Circuit Court, Judge Tom O'Donnell said: "This was a vicious, frenzied, horrific assault on two strangers."

He said Ms Delaney's injuries could have been fatal, given McCarthy's "high level of violence and aggression".

Arguing

McCarthy pleaded guilty to assault causing harm. She also admitted producing a dangerous article during the course of an assault.

McCarthy told gardai she "lost it" after claiming Ms Delaney and a man were arguing at 2.30am in an apartment next to hers in Parnell Street, Limerick.

When the victims left the building, McCarthy followed them on to the street, knocked Ms Delaney to the ground and set upon her with the broken beer bottle.

John O'Sullivan, prosecuting, said McCarthy "sat on top" of her and repeatedly stabbed her in the head. She also kicked her as she lay on the ground.

"It was a frenzied attack," he said.

Gardai found the victim unconscious on the ground with "blood pouring out of her".

McCarthy was heard shouting: "I hope she f***ing dies. She's only a f**ing junkie." She then told her: "You won't be doing that again."

McCarthy, who had taken a concoction of alcohol and tablets, was still at the scene when gardai arrived. She told officers: "I bottled her."

When asked if she was sorry, she said she was not.

McCarthy said she knew Ms Delaney was seriously injured and that, but for the intervention of a man who pulled her off of her, she "would have kept going until she was dead".

During the assault, Ms Delaney suffered a punctured lung as well as cuts, bruising and light scarring to her face and torso.

Abusive

McCarthy, who has a five-year- old son, had convictions for engaging in abusive, insulting or threatening behaviour.

She initially told gardai she saw Ms Delaney holding "a big knife", but this was accepted by her defence as a "bogus story".

A psychiatric report said McCarthy "suffers mood swings, and has a history of anger management".
A Dublin grandmother realised her weight was out of control when she couldn't fasten her seatbelt on a Ryanair flight to Malta.

Mum-of-five Valerie O'Donovan (41) said it was the most embarrassing moment of her life - and spurred her on to lose 10st with Slimming World.

Valerie, from Tallaght in south west Dublin, struggled with her weight for more than a decade. At her heaviest, she weighed more than 22st.

Problem

While she never considered herself slim, Valerie says her weight became a particular problem after welcoming her youngest boys, twins Lee and Keane, 15 years ago.

The retail worker admitted that when her children were younger, her weight ruined every family holiday because she was so uncomfortable with her size.

"I remember I was so worried about my body that I was paddling in the pool in Ibiza in this huge denim skirt, which probably brought more attention to me than if I was wearing a swimming suit," she said. "I used to have such a hard time, and give everyone else a hard time while I hid away in the shade."

Deciding to tackle her weight, Valerie joined Slimming World a month before her brother's wedding in Malta and was delighted to lose more than a stone before the big day.

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However, her joy evaporated after boarding a Ryanair flight to the wedding.

"I was really embarrassed to find that the seatbelt wouldn't close over me. It was so embarrassing and I was really upset on the plane, but I didn't tell anyone about it and managed to hide it so I didn't have to ask for a seatbelt extender," she said.

"In Malta, I never had experienced heat like it. It was so hot over there.

Nightmare

"I managed to get a black maxi dress for the wedding, but I was so uncomfortable that after the ceremony I changed into a little dress and leggings.

"Everyone was asking how I was coping in leggings in the heat. It was a nightmare, but I just wanted to cover up."

Upon her return, Valerie stuck to her Slimming World plan. Two years later, the M&S worker has lost 10st 7lb.

"For so many years, going on holiday made me feel like an outsider. Now I'm finally joining in the fun," she said.
The family of a young man murdered in a case of mistaken identity feel not enough is being done to bring his killers to justice.

Innocent Dean Johnson (21) was shot dead just yards from his home in the Harelawn Estate, Clondalkin on August 24, 2013.

Several people have been arrested in relation to the gangland shooting, but no charges have been brought before the courts.

Horrible

Speaking to the Herald, Dean's family said: "Has enough been done? No, not really. At first we thought there was. You always think there will be with the response at the start.

"It's a horrible thing what happened and everyone is affected by it. A person being killed is bad but when the wrong person, an innocent person gets killed, it's messed up."

Dean's mother Betty thanked the local community for their support, and said a headstone was being erected at her son's grave in the coming weeks, three years after the funeral.

"We didn't get any support from the Government. Dean's friends did a benefit and the community helped out."

Meanwhile, South Dublin County Council (SDCC) has voted to erect a memorial at the site Dean was killed.

Another family member said: "I'm proud to say I come from an area with great people."

Sinn Fein Cllr Mark Ward, who came across the murder scene moments after the shooting, has also accused Tanaiste Francis Fitzgerald of abandoning her constituents.

Abandoned

"The night Dean Johnson was murdered is something that still haunts me," he said.

"The sight that met me was horrific - a young man face down, unmoving and covered in blood.

"I and other neighbours did our best to help Dean while we waited on the emergency services. He was pronounced dead soon after.

"Minister Fitzgerald and her government colleagues have abandoned the community of Clondalkin, particularly North Clondalkin.

"While I am pleased that the process has begun to erect a lasting memorial to Dean, I am dismayed by the lack of government resources in place to tackle the fundamental problems, above all in an area represented by the current Tanaiste and Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald."

The Herald previously revealed how a suspect in the murder had become one of the largest distributors of cocaine in the capital.

The dangerous criminal has been the target of the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau (DOCB) and the Special Crime Task Force in recent months.

More than 500k of drugs was seized from his gang in the space of a week earlier this year, while a massive operation was also carried out this month on him and his associates.

A number of garages, car showrooms and other businesses were raided and over 1m in assets and cash were seized by gardai.
Who were the top Washington County football performers in Week 9?

Big plays and turnovers were plenty as the winners overwhelmed the losers in the final week of Washington County's regular season.
(JTA)-Which is braver: Riding a motorcycle across the length of Africa, or taking on an adaptation of a Philip Roth novel for your first directing gig?

For a second, actor Ewan McGregor is stumped by the question-but he quickly recovers.

"I think this ['American Pastoral'] was more dangerous," he told JTA, chuckling.

As part of his role as a UNICEF ambassador, in 2007 the leading man traveled 15,000 miles by motorcycle from Scotland through Europe and across Africa, all the way to Cape Town, South Africa. There his biggest obstacles were potholes.

But staying true to the Hollywood trope that every actor really just wants to direct, McGregor apparently sought an even bigger challenge with his desire to work behind the camera.

McGregor, of course, has spent the past two decades building a considerable reputation as an actor. Starting with his brilliant portrayal of heroin addict Mark Renton in "Trainspotting," he has starred in well-received independent films such as "Salmon Fishing in Yemen" as well as blockbusters like "Moulin Rouge!" and the three "Star Wars" prequels, where he portrayed the young Obi-Wan Kenobi.

But the inaugural directorial project he decided to take on-an adaptation of Roth's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel-is one that might foil the most experienced directors.

"American Pastoral" is the eighth movie made of Roth's work-nearly all of which have been critically panned and commercial failures. "Goodbye Columbus" was the exception, achieving both critical and commercial success on its release in 1969. More recently, "Indignation" received positive notices, but failed to gain traction with audiences.

Moreover, unlike "Columbus," a novella, and "Indignation," a shorter book, "Pastoral" is longer-the hardcover clocks in at 423 pages-more nuanced and, as a result, more difficult to adapt to the demands of the screen.

And if that wasn't daunting enough, in addition to directing, McGregor also plays the lead role of Seymour Levov-a handsome, goyish-looking Jewish athlete turned successful businessman known as the Swede.

Yet none of this deterred the 45-year-old Scottish-born actor.

"I didn't think it was dangerous at the time," McGregor said. "I thought John Romano's script was beautifully written and got right to the heart of the story.

"I didn't feel it was an uphill battle. I didn't think I had to reach for something because it was all there in the script. And if you're going to start your directing career based on a novel, why not make it an amazing novel?"

"American Pastoral" is considered among the best, if not the best, of Roth's works. In addition to the Pulitzer, it made Time magazine's list of the 100 greatest novels of all time.

The book, like some other novels by Roth, is narrated by his alter ego, Nathan Zuckerman, and is centered on American and Jewish identity. Here, Zuckerman returns to Newark, New Jersey, for his 45th high school reunion to discover the Swede, his best friend's larger-than-life big brother, had just died.

The Swede had seemed destined for greatness: He was a multi-sport star, a Marine Corps officer and heir to the family's Newark glove factory. Over the objections of his father, Lou (Peter Riegert), he marries Dawn (Jennifer Connelly), the shiksa former beauty queen.

"Perfect wife, perfect house, perfect baby," Zuckerman (David Strathairn) narrates. "Something was smiling down on him. This is the way I always thought it would be for him. He was the Swede."

But it wasn't to be. His daughter, Merry (played as a teenager by Dakota Fanning), is a stutterer with emotional problems. She becomes radicalized, plants bombs that kill three people and is forced to go underground. The Levov family disintegrates just as the nation around it erupts into riots, violent demonstrations and domestic terrorism.

McGregor said he had read Roth before: "The Human Stain," "Portnoy's Complaint" and "I Married a Communist"- "which, to my shame, I didn't complete," he admitted.

But McGregor said he hadn't read "American Pastoral" until after he had been offered the script. He agreed to the role, but as often happens in Hollywood, years went by and nothing happened.

"We got close to the film disappearing, so I threw myself into the mix and offered to direct," he said.

McGregor threw himself into the book, reading and rereading portions every day. He listened to Ron Silver's audio recording while driving.

"My goal was to sop it up and sear the book into my soul," he said.

And he largely succeeded. While some might disagree with what he put in and what he left out, McGregor effectively captured the book's essence-that nothing is what it seems, that beneath the seeming tranquility of postwar American life simmered anger, subterfuge and lies.

McGregor also elicits extraordinary performances from his cast, particularly Fanning, whose emotional turmoil and its impact on her family is at times heartbreaking.

But not everyone is impressed-recent reviews have ranged from tepid to damning. The response from critics following the premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September was decidedly mixed, most often suggesting his direction was uninspired.

"I never read critics," McGregor said. "I never liked to as an actor-I find it difficult to read harsh things about my performance. But I'm under no illusions. I know there were some hard ones coming out of Toronto."

The reviews may be part of the reason he is so actively promoting the film-McGregor is making the rounds these days on TV with appearances on "The Today Show," "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and the like.

He's been talking to the press, too-sometimes with unexpected results.

"I was reminded this morning [in another interview] that the Swede is not my first Jewish character," McGregor said. "I played Jesus in "Last Days in the Desert.'"

It raises the issue of how comfortable he was playing a Jewish character. Very comfortable, it turns out.

"I'm married to a Jewish woman," he said of wife Eve Mavrakis. "My children are Jewish and we brought them up as such. It is sort of the only religious experience I've ever had, so I was very proud to be telling this story since half my family is Jewish."

McGregor said he attends synagogue from time to time with his family, which includes four daughters ranging in age from 5 to 20. Each of the older three have had a bat mitzvah.

Perhaps because he himself is not Jewish, McGregor took extra care with Jewish tradition in the film, a touch he added at the movie's denouement.

"I wanted the Mourner's Kaddish at the end of the film [at Swede's burial]," he said. "It was not of great importance to him, but I think it's part of what Roth was exploring, if we can turn our backs on who we are."

McGregor had recently returned from Iraq, where he visited several refugee camps and spoke at UNICEF offices.

Asked if he had ever heard the expression "tikkun olam"-he hadn't-I suggested that his efforts to repair the world were, in a small way, very Jewish and appreciated.

"That's a lovely thing to say and means a great deal to me," McGregor said, demonstrating the kind of "nice guy" temperament that had made the Swede famous in Newark.

"American Pastoral" opened in 15 cities across the country on Oct. 21 and expands nationally in the following weeks.
My Jewish Roots workshops sponsored by the Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Orlando (JGSGO) continue in November with their third workshopFind DNA Ancestors and Cousins. DNA research has become increasingly popular as a genealogic tool to discover distant relatives, family mix and origins. JGSGO member Laurence Morrell described the results of his recent DNA testing.

The way this all got started was that I was curious about my genetic background. In 2012, I signed up with Family Tree for their DNA testing program, not knowing what to expect. After submitting a DNA sample, I was sent information about the results, which I still dont fully understand. A short time later, I received an email from Family Tree with a list of names of possible relatives. The first on the list was a Roger Morrell. That got me excited. Who was Roger Morrell? Are we related, and if so how? I followed the instructions on how to make contact, which I did. Soon thereafter, I received a response from someone with a totally different last name. What gives? After numerous emails sharing information we established that yes, perhaps we are related.

Heres how. Roger Morrells grandfather was Joseph Morrell. I had never heard of him. Martha, Rogers niece, provided me with some information that allowed me to begin my own research. This Joseph Morrell lived in Savannah, Georgia, at the same time or shortly after my great-grandfather, Solomon Morrell lived there. Josephs wife, Rachel Morrell, which is the same name as my grandmother, died in Savannah in 1897 due to a tragic accident. She is buried there in the Laurel Grove Cemetery, apparently in a paupers section. Their daughter, Rosa, was also buried there years later.

Joseph Morrells naturalization papers left a paper trail that was too coincidental for him not to be related somehow. His first papers were filed in Meriden, Connecticut, where my Uncle Phil and my grandmother were both born. Both my great-grandfather and Joseph eventually made their way to Savannah, Georgia, where their second papers were filed.

Looking at the 1900 Federal Census (Savannah, Georgia), I was unable to find a Joseph Morrell. However, I was able to find information about his children. With information given to me by my new relative, I was able to determine that yes, these were the children of Joseph and Rachel Morrell. After his wife died, Joseph was unable to care for the children, Rosa, Jennie, Jacob and Samuel. Rosa, Jennie and Jacob were sent to the Hebrew Orphans Home in Atlanta, Georgia. Samuel (Sammie) remained as a boarder with a family in Savannah.

Apparently this action caused a rift in the family. Joseph eventually took three of his children back: Rosa, Jennie and Jacob, but they eventually became estranged, with little contact with their father after that. Through email contact with my new cousin, I was able to glean additional information. But, there was still nothing definite to solidly connect Joseph Morrell to my great-grandfather, Solomon Morrell.

Like any good sleuth, I dug deeper and deeper. I began to search city directories under the name Joseph Morrell. I was able to trace his movements and his marriage to his second wife Freda Posner. The one bit of information that really got my attention was a city directory entry from Passaic, New Jersey. There was a listing for a business Morrell and Son and Morrell. It listed Solomon Morrell, his son Philip Morrell and Joseph Morrell. In my mind, that had to be the smoking gun. There had to be some kind of relationship between Solomon and Joseph. They were either brothers or first cousins!

Additional information came to light with the 1930 Federal Census. Joseph Morrell was living in Los Angeles, California. Why out there? He had always been on the East Coast. Well, I found Solomons sister, Ethel, was living in L.A. My grandfather, Henry Morrell, the son of Solomon Morrell from his first wife, was also living in LA. Coincidence? I dont know.

One more document I want to get, but have not proceeded with yet, is Josephs death certificate from 1937. I want to see if Josephs fathers name is Solomon, the same as my grandfather Henrys father. In that case, Henry and Joseph would have been brothers, and Joseph would have been my great uncle. If it is different, then in my way of thinking they were first or at least second cousins. Either way, I am still enjoying contact with my new relatives until someone proves me wrong.

The third in the series of Workshops held by the JGSGO, Find DNA Ancestors and Cousins, will be held Thursday, Nov. 10 from 7 till 9 p.m. at UCF Hillel. The featured speaker will be genetic genealogist Diahan Southard, who has been in the field for 16 years. She will take the mystery out of DNA and provide the direction to accomplish your genealogy goals. The Workshop is free and open to the public. Please bring your own laptop to participate in the lab portion. It is also possible to attend live via the Internet.

Pre-registration is required to participate either in-person or online: http://www.jgsgo.org/MyJewishRoots. For more information about Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Orlando, visit http://www.jgsgo.org and like us at http://www.facebook.com/jgsgreaterorlando. Questions? Email info@jgsgo.org.
Recently, Israeli lawmaker Merav Ben-Ami disclosed that she is pregnant. Although this is not unusual news, Ben-Ami, a Knesset member for the centrist Kulanu party, is 40, single, and having a baby via in vitro fertiliation (IVF).

Ben-Ami is only one of 5 million women who have gone the IVF birth route since Louise Brown gave birth to the first IVF baby in 1978.

One would think conceiving a child is the easiest, most natural thing to happen to a woman, however, according to the Centers for Disease Control, 12 percent of women between the ages of 15 and 44 in the United States have difficulty getting pregnant naturally or carrying a pregnancy to term. One in eight couples nationally have struggles with conceiving. In the Jewish community, it is one in six.

Not only is the inability for couples or single women to get pregnant frustrating, but the cost is almost self-defeating. In the United States alone, the cost for IVF is about $12,000 for one "round" of fertilization, plus medications, which cost between $3,000 and $5,000. There is no guarantee of conception after one round of treatment (It took Ben-Ami three rounds before her pregnancy "took."); and health insurance often does not cover these costs.

Fortunately, for Israelis, the government pays for infertile couples to have two babies with IVF-That's a generous program.

But what about American women who want to have a child but the cost for IVF is just too exorbitant? IVF treatment in Israel is a viable option.

Natalia Goldenberg, a former Lake Mary, Fla., resident, recently moved to Israel and launched the concierge service Oceans to Oceans Medical Services earlier this year to bring those who are struggling with infertility to Israel for treatment.

"The goal of my company is to help Americans find hope again in building a family during their struggle with infertility," she told The Heritage in a phone interview.

"The enormous financial burden of healthcare in the United States is prohibitive, especially that of In Vitro Fertilization. However, Israel is a world leader in IVF with more procedures per capita than the United States without debt-inducing costs," Goldenberg stated.

Just what is the cost for Americans who travel to Israel for IVF? Approximately $8,500-which includes doctor fees, medicine, blood work, one procedure, and also includes freezing embryos.

The idea of going to another country for a medical procedure is overwhelming. Where does one start? What doctor, what hospital, how long is the stay?

Goldenberg's goal with Oceans to Oceans is to make the process as seamless as possible. Among the services included are: initial on-boarding and physician selection; compiling medical history; scheduling initial skype consult with a physician; assist with planning pre-treatment screenings or tests and ultrasounds locally; scheduling a treatment date in an Israeli hospital (Oceans works exclusively with two hospitals in Tel Aviv); assist with communication, sperm or egg donor selection (if applicable); helping with cost effective options, inclusive packages (includes hotels, tours, drivers); a personal case manager; follow up once patient returns home.

"We are here to put your mind at ease," said Goldenberg. Oceans' goal is to make fertility treatments more obtainable while providing integrity and transparency."

Goldenberg said that the service works with its patients from the first consultation (which is free) to following up when patients return home (see the step-by-step process on Oceans' website). And the service is not limited to Jewish men and women. "While my focus is on the Jewish community, there are no limits to what kind of couple can benefit from a service like this," Goldenberg stated. "I want to reach as many singles and couples as I can to help them find success in their pursuit of a future baby."

To learn more about Oceans to Oceans and the IVF procedure, visit http://www.oceansmedicalservices.com or Goldenberg's Facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/ocenasmedicalservices.
(JNS.org)-Archaeologists have discovered evidence the Romans had breached Jerusalem's so-called "Third Wall" at the end of the Second Temple period in 70 C.E., the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced.

Remains of a tower protruding from the so-called "Third Wall" that surrounded Jerusalem was found along with many ballista and sling stones that the Romans had fired from catapults as Jewish guards defended the wall, the excavation found.

The discovery was made last winter in the Russian Compound in the city center where construction was underway to build the new Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design campus.

"This is a fascinating testimony of the intensive bombardment by the Roman army, led by Titus, on their way to conquering the city and destroying the Second Temple," IAA excavation directors Dr. Rina Avner and Kfir Arbib said. "The bombardment was intended to attack the sentries guarding the wall and provide cover for the Roman forces so they could approach the wall with battering rams and thereby breach the city's defenses."

The first-century Romano-Jewish historian, Josephus, an eyewitness to the war, provided details about the construction of the "Third Wall" that was started by Agrippa I and designed to protect the new quarter of the city called Beit Zeita. It was completed 20 years later by the defenders of Jerusalem to fortify the city against the Great Revolt against Rome.

Josephus detailed how the wall started in Hippicus Tower, now identified with David's Citadel. From there, it continued north to the Psephinus Tower, which defended the northwestern corner of the city wall. Then, the wall turned east toward the Tomb of Queen Helena, which is now identified with the Tombs of the Kings.
(World Israel News)A list of the top 10 beneficiaries of 2015-2016 campaign contributions from individuals who subscribe to Islamic supremacy, compiled by the Middle East Forums Islamist Money in Politics (IMP) project, has U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton at the top.

Clinton, IMP claims, raked in $41,165 from prominent Islamists who, according to IMP, subscribe to the same Islamic supremacism as Khomeini, Bin Laden, and ISIS.

This includes $19,249 from senior officials of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a staunchly anti-Israel organization with alleged ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.

An ADL profile on CAIR, among other sources, notes that the FBI has distanced itself from CAIR over the years. In an April 2009 letter to the Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology, and Homeland Security, the FBI explained that it suspended contact with CAIR because of evidence... demonstrating that CAIR and its founders were part of a group set up by the Muslim Brotherhood to support Hamas.

In November 2014, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) placed CAIR and a number of other American Muslim groups on a list of terrorist organizations.

The Middle East Forum, a Philadephia-based non-profit organization, according to its mission statement, promotes American interests in the Middle East and protects Western values from Middle Eastern threats.

IMP holds politicians accountable for accepting funds from sources linked to the enemy. It shines a light on Islamist influence in U.S. politics by making public the campaign contributions of 1,356 leading figures in Americas most important Islamist groups. To date, IMIP has documented 2,974 Islamist contributions worth $1.43 million.
"The war brought about scarcities of just about everything...except misery. 'Alle raise,' (everybody out), the German soldiers screamed as they pounded on our door with the butts of their rifles."

Thus began a 4,500-mile journey from Poland through Russia and Siberia and eventually to Uzbekistan in Central Asia, as the speaker and author's family used bribery and darkness of night to flee as the Nazis invaded Poland in 1939.

Milton Kleinberg, who walked this long walk, will be visiting Orlando on Sunday, Nov. 6 at 7 p.m. in Nate's Shul 1701 Markham Woods Rd. in Longwood. All are welcome to come hear his amazing story first hand.

Young Mendel, from age four to 14, tells in vivid detail the wretched journey in cramped cattle cars through frigid Russia, the indignities of being in forced labor, the shame of begging for bread just to survive, and death of those closest to him. The family's plight includes abandonment, hunger, and separation (and later remarkable twists of fate and reunion) quite unlike other Holocaust stories.

Milton Kleinberg will give a personal account of how, through great sacrifices by his mother, he managed to survive the worst atrocities in human history and his uncertain days in a Polish Children's Home, scrabbling for fallen fruit, and surviving kidnapping and murder on the Black Road, and return to German Displaced Persons camps at war's end. Eventually immigrating with a lump-in-the-throat passage to America past the Statue of Liberty and into a land of opportunity tinged with bigotry yet with a promise to future generations.

In the words of Liz Feldstern of the Institute of Holocaust Education, "Bread or death adds another important voice to understanding a narrative that affected millions of people in millions of different ways. Anne Frank has become the voice of those who went into hiding. Elie Wiesel and Primo Levi are the voices of Auschwitz. Gerda Weissman Klein is the voice of the death march. Hadassah Rosensaft is the voice of the DP camps. Perhaps Milt Kleinberg will be the voice of those deported to Soviet labor camps."

To RSVP visit http://www.JewishNorthOrlando.com or call Chabad of North Orlando 407-636-5994. Tickets are $12 and there is an early bird discount of $10 if you buy your tickets before Nov. 1.
Donald Trump speaking as Hillary Clinton looks on during the third U.S. presidential debate, which was held in Las Vegas, Oct. 19, 2016.

(JTA)-Hillary Clinton has been reticent about making Iran a major issue throughout the campaign: It's a hard straddle for her between her skepticism of the nuclear deal reached last year and honoring the legacy of President Barack Obama. (Her running mate, Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., was a prominent backer of the deal, and in a rare tonal differentiation from Clinton, has emphasized the deal as a win.)

Yet she was the first to mention Iran in the final debate on the University of Nevada, Las Vegas campus. It was one of several cudgels she used to depict Trump as beholden to Russia. Her most prominent gambit was in goading him to condemn Russia's responsibility for the hacks into the private emails of her associates as unprecedented interference in the U.S. election. That led to this notable exchange:

Trump: "(Putin) has no respect for her. He has no respect for our president. And I'll tell you what: We're in very serious trouble because we have a country with tremendous numbers of nuclear warheads-1,800, by the way-where they expanded and we didn't, 1,800 nuclear warheads. And she's playing chicken. Look, from everything I see, (Putin) has no respect for this person.

Clinton: "Well, that's because he'd rather have a puppet as president of the United States."

Trump: "No puppet. No puppet. You're the puppet! No, you're the puppet!"

Clinton worked in her Iran reference when she circled back to Russia a few questions later, after moderator Chris Wallace of Fox News Channel pressed the Democratic nominee on her plans to defeat the Islamic State, the terrorist group also known as ISIS that controls swathes of land in Syria and Iraq.

"I am hopeful that the hard work that American military advisers have done will pay off and that we will see a real-a really successful military operation," she said, referring to the thrust underway against ISIS in Mosul, the group's stronghold in Iraq. "But we know we've got lots of work to do. Syria will remain a hotbed of terrorism as long as the civil war, aided and abetted by the Iranians and the Russians, continue."

This was a subtle-probably too subtle-reference to Trump's suggestion in the second debate that the United States may as well concede Syria to Russia and Iran, a prospect that horrifies Israel and the pro-Israel community. (It was Wallace, not Clinton, who later in the debate cornered Trump on his views on Syria, Russia and ISIS.)

But Clinton's reference to Iran, and to Mosul, gave Trump the opening for one of his most cogent and damaging arguments against the Obama administration's foreign policy, and the opportunity to tie it to a prospective Clinton presidency. The assault on Mosul, Trump argued, may be successful, but ultimately it would be a gift to Iran, which he depicted as the prevailing power in Syria and Iraq. And that's when he brought in the deal, reviled by Republicans as well as by Israel's government, which exchanged sanctions relief for Iran to a partial rollback in its nuclear program.

"So Mosul is going to be a wonderful thing. And Iran should write us a letter of thank you, just like the really stupid-the stupidest deal of all time, a deal that's going to give Iran absolutely nuclear weapons," Trump said. "Iran should write us yet another letter saying thank you very much because Iran, as I said many years ago, Iran is taking over Iraq, something they've wanted to do forever, but we've made it so easy for them. So we're now going to take Mosul. And do you know who's going to be the beneficiary? Iran."

Those Jewish names

Trump has taken flak from Jewish commentators-most recently Rabbi Jonah Pesner, who heads Reform Judaism's Religious Action Center-for invoking, in a sinister way, prominent Jewish figures.

He was at it again Wednesday and it's always hard what exactly to make of it. He also cites Jewish names (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his son-in-law Jared Kushner) in a positive way to reinforce his arguments, and the Jewish folks he derides, he has genuine beefs with.

On the other hand, Trump seems to subtly emphasize the names-and that coupled with his invocations of grand secret conspiracies is guaranteed to make folks nervous.

The first mention Wednesday went to Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the Supreme Court justice who attacked Trump this summer as a "faker" and then apologized. He cited her as the kind of justice he would definitely not appoint.

"Something happened recently where Justice Ginsburg made some very, very inappropriate statements toward me and toward a tremendous number of people, many, many millions of people that I represent. And she was forced to apologize. And apologize she did. But these were statements that should never, ever have been made," Trump said.

It's a legitimate reference, but also emblematic of Trump's tendency to swerve into personal affronts when he should be dealing with issues. Ginsburg's attack on him seemed to take precedence, in his mind, over how she and others would rule on abortion and on gun laws.

The second Jewish name check was George Soros, the financier who backs an array of liberal causes. It came up when Clinton attacked Trump for not paying his fair share of taxes.

"So let me just tell you very quickly, we're entitled [to tax breaks] because of the laws that people like her passed to take massive amounts of depreciation on other charges, and we do it," Trump said. "And all of her donors-just about all of them-I know [Warren] Buffett took hundreds of millions of dollars, Soros, George Soros, took hundreds of millions of dollars... Most of her donors have done the same thing as I do."

Refugees

Refugees these days are seldom Jewish, but the issue remains a priority of an array of Jewish groups, particularly HIAS, the immigrant activist group.

Faulting Obama (and by extension, Clinton) for the carnage in the Syrian city of Aleppo, Trump pivoted to the entry of Syrian refugees into the United States, something Clinton has said she wants to expand.

"She's taking in tens of thousands of Syrian refugees, who probably in many cases-not probably, who are definitely in many cases, ISIS-aligned, and we now have them in our country, and wait until you see-this is going to be the great Trojan horse," he said. "And wait until you see what happens in the coming years. Lots of luck, Hillary. Thanks a lot for doing a great job."

The "Lots of luck" stirred a social media hornet's nest-the "tens of thousands" of refugees will arrive only if Clinton is elected. Was Trump, behind in the polls, in a Freudian way, conceding?

In any case, here's how Clinton responded:

"He's made these claims repeatedly. I am not going to let anyone into this country who is not vetted, who we do not have confidence in. But I am not going to slam the door on women and children. That picture of that little 4-year-old boy in Aleppo, with the blood coming down his face while he sat in an ambulance, is haunting. And so we are going to do very careful, thorough vetting. That does not solve our internal challenges with ISIS and our need to stop radicalization, to work with American Muslim communities who are on the front lines to identify and prevent attacks."

Jewish immigration advocates, led by HIAS, back Clinton's argument-refugees coming into the United States are vetted, they say, to a fault, with the process lasting up to two years. Most Jewish groups would also be aghast at Trump's certainty that "in many cases" the refugees are "definitely ISIS-aligned." For them it smacks of the nativists who in the 1920s and '30s insisted that Jews fleeing Europe did not have American interests at heart. (On the other hand, hawkish groups believe Syrian immigrants "pose a grave danger to all Americans and an even greater danger to American Jews," as the Zionist Organization of America said.)

Qatar and Saudi Arabia

Dinging Clinton's charitable foundation, Trump brought up donations by Middle Eastern autocrats.

"It's a criminal enterprise, he said. "Saudi Arabia giving $25 million, Qatar, all of these countries. You talk about women and women's rights? So these are people that push gays off business-off buildings. These are people that kill women and treat women horribly. And yet you take their money.

That's a bizarre gambit for a developer who has extensive dealings with the same folks.
For the past four years, TOP Jewish Foundation (TOP) has engaged and partnered with Goldman Sachs as its investment adviser of their $40 million portfolio. On Nov. 9 at 12:30 p.m., TOP invites both individuals and organizations to a special briefing featuring the team that manages their portfolio. The event will take place at the Lowndes, Drosdick, Doster, Kantor, & Reed, PA, office, located at 215 N. Eola Drive in Orlando. The agenda will comprise of an economic and market outlook, an inside look into Goldman Sachs Institutional Client Solutions, and highlights from TOPs investment portfolio.

We have been fortunate to have found a true partner in Goldman Sachs. They are extremely dedicated to constructing a solid investment portfolio that is consistent with our investment objectives and within our risk tolerance. They are truly focused on achieving better than benchmark returns on our investments. At this same time, they consistently deliver the same high level of service that we look to provide our donors and clients, remarked Bob Kokol, TOP Jewish Foundations vice chair Investments. Kokol was part of the team that selected Goldman Sachs and crafted TOPs unique anti-terror investment policy.

TOP Jewish Foundations $40 million portfolio is comprised of investments from individuals and institutional donors. Individuals can invest through donor-advised funds or endowments and organizations invest through managed funds and endowments. All of these investments ultimately benefit both Jewish and non-Jewish nonprofits throughout the country.

We make giving easier in many ways such as processing donations of stock, life insurance, Israel bonds or real estate. Overall, we help donors manage their philanthropy and potentially make giving go farther, explained Bonnie Wise, TOP Jewish Foundations vice president Investments.

TOP was founded in 1980 to ensure that the Jewish community has a permanent base of support. This community foundation now manages over 700 individual charitable funds, many of which serve as a permanent source of perpetual income to agencies across central Florida. Now celebrating its double chai anniversary, TOPs mission is unchanged and its organization more visible than in years past.

To register or for more information, call 813-769-4785, email Ellen@topjewishfoundation.org. Cost to attend the conference has been underwritten by the TOP Jewish Foundation and lunch will be included.
Israeli politicians and Jewish activists here and there are calling for unity, typically behind whatever point of view they are supporting. In extremis, we hear that it is essential for the survival of Israel or the Jewish people.

Yet it never takes long before we hear other Israelis or Jews demanding unity behind something quite different.

God Himself gave us the label of a stiff-necked people, in the 32nd chapter of Exodus. The meaning since then has involved antagonism, stubbornness, argumentative, and going into minute detail in order to distinguish our point of view from others.

The latter trait fits the conception of pilpul, which has intrigued confused, and annoyed Talmudic scholars for more than two millennia concerned with following the convoluted arguments of those who came before them.

Gods accusation of our being stiff necked occurs in one of several stories where Israelites are portrayed as anything but unified.

It concerns the peoples demands for idols, and Moses having to persuade God not to destroy His people.

The story of Sodom and Gomorrah is another of the early stories. Along with that later line about David loving Jonathan more than any woman, those places of sin portray the people as mixed up in what the late-arriving English language labels LGBT.

Also prominent is the story of Korahs rebellion (Numbers 16). And in Ezra, one of the last books in the Hebrew Bible, we see that Jewish men were not always content to select Jewish women as their wives. The Book of Ruth also portrays intermixing. So much for racial purity, or those who think that non-Jewish in-laws threaten the continuation of a long family history.

Beyond the time of the Bibles creation, one of the earliest, and most prominent stories of something other than Jewish unity appears in the work of Josephus, who was both historian and participant in an especially bloody incident of Jews conflicts.

Dispute may be a piece of our early acquisition of literacy, and the intellectual sophistication that produced the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament, a couple of thousand years of rabbinical commentary, as well as a disproportionate number of Nobel Prizes. Dispute comes along with a power of expression, and the thinking associated with it.

At every juncture, past and present, we hear those saying that we must be unified. Yet diversity and dispute are among our strengths.

They are also among the causes of what has been called anti-Semitism since the 19th century, but has been around a lot longer. Again we can thank Josephus for documenting an earlier set of expressions that were similar to what weve recorded through the Holocaust and up to the Palestinians and their friends.

Currently on the agenda are disputes about the killing of a Palestinian terrorist in Hebron, and the vacating of settlers homes in the West Bank settlement of Amona that the Supreme Court decided were built on land owned by Palestinians. Both cases are muddied by dispute and more than a bit of complex detail.

In the case of the Palestinian seemingly shot dead by a soldier when he was already inert, pathologists have testified for each side that the soldier killed him, and that he was already dead when the soldier shot. There has also been competing testimony from respected senior IDF personnel and retired generals. While some have said that the soldier violated the IDFs norms and should be punished, others have questioned the capacity of soldiers to decide under pressure when or who to shoot, and the clarity of this case with respect to the IDFs rules.

The story of Amona combines Palestinian claims of land ownership, with the claims of the residents that they had Israeli government approvals for the purchase or construction, and the Supreme Courts ruling that key documents were forged. Israeli politicians to the right of center have been working to find a way to evade Supreme Court decisions to remove the settlers. So far the Attorney General has nixed them, saying that they would threaten the continued existence of Israels rule of law. One of the most bizarre involves moving the homes of settlers to land that is not disputed.

Somewhat more reasonable, but not yet tested, are proposals for compensation that could be put on the shelf until Palestinians are willing to accept the money.

Whatever transpires should not encourage anyone to expect a quick removal of Jews from the West Bank, even from those plots said to have been owned by individual Palestinians. It was 2006 when the Supreme Court ruled for the first time that Amonas constructions were illegal, and had to be vacated.

In both disputes about the soldier in Hebron and the settlement of Amona, its not necessary to wander too far to the right before encountering Israelis who argue that we shouldnt bend over backwards to be fair or humane to Palestinians, as long as they teach in schools, media, and mosques about the justice of killing Jews.

Along with these details, we live with the noise produced by AIPAC and JStreet, the media and activists funded by Sheldon Adelson on the right, George Soros on the left, Haim Saban somewhere between them, and Jewish media personalities across the spectra of numerous western countries.

It all makes it difficult for us and others to understand the Jewish phenomenon. It also makes it likely that Jews at least hear, and that some actually consider a variety of perspectives before making important decisions. That, along with the skills to explain ourselves to other Jews and to non-Jews, is somewhere close to the essence of our strength.

Calls for Jewish unity may sound right, but those calling for it are talking to some other people.

As always, dispute as well as praise are welcome.

Irashark@gmail.com.
You have to wonder if the barbarians fighting under the flag of the Islamic State still believe that 72 virgins will be waiting for them in paradise once they become martyrs.

I say this not because the leaders and foot soldiers of ISIS have suddenly woken up to the possibility that this belief is based, according to several scholars, on a mistranslation of the relevant verse of the Quran; that would be expecting too much of them. I say this because they have already had a taste of that paradise here on earth, as a result of their campaign of genocide against the Yazidi religious minority in Iraq and Syria. One aspect of this horrific slaughter has been the kidnapping of thousands of Yazidi women and girls to serve as sexual slaves to these savages.

A recent report from the U.N. Human Rights Councila body that spends most of its time condemning Israel for alleged human rights violationssheds some light on both the scale and the nature of the genocide, which was ignored by the

international community for far too long. The campaign against the Yazidis was launched by ISIS over two years ago, in August 2014, when its forces began an assault upon the Yazidi villages in Sinjar, a district in the northern Iraqi province of Nineveh. At least 5,000 Yazidis have been killed during the genocide, while 3,200 women and children remain in ISIS captivity. About 70,000, estimated to make up 15 percent of the overall Yazidi population, are reported to have fled Iraq.

The stories related by the U.N. report will be depressingly familiar to anyone who has studied genocide over the last century. Men and boys are either executed or forcibly converted, while women and girls exist solely for the use and pleasure of ISIS terrorists. The manner of the persecution is gruesome. After we were captured, ISIS forced us to watch them beheading some of our Yazidi men, said one 16-year-old girl. They made the men kneel in a line in the street, with their hands tied behind their backs. The ISIS fighters took knives and cut their throats.

Despite this reign of terror, the Yazidis have not been destroyed as a distinctive group. Before the ISIS attacks began, around 700,000 Yazidis are said to have lived in Iraq, the largest single concentration of the religions followers. Kurdish in terms of their ethnicity, the Yazidi faith is described by scholars as syncretic, which means it combines elements of other religions, including Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity and Islam. Based on that, its worth noting that ISIS isnt the only Islamist group that regards the Yazidis as infidels. The theology of more mainstream Islamist groups, like the Muslim Brotherhood, assigns them a similar status.

Presently, the main focus for the Yazidis is the rescue of their women and girls from the clutches of ISIS. Often this is done through ransom payments, involving middlemen who collect huge sums from their familiesone recently reunited family paid a total of $34,000 for their two daughterswhich are then paid to ISIS. After their release, both girls said they didnt expect that they would see each other again, describing their captors as dirty and abusive, who subjected them to regular beatings.

What this illustrates is the need for greater physical security for the Yazidis, as well as for other religious minorities in the region, if and when ISIS is defeated. Without that concrete measure, continued religious and ethnic conflict in the Middle East will target vulnerable minorities first and foremost.

For that reason, the decision of the Iraqi parliament on Oct. 4 to reject Yazidi and Assyrian Christian appeals for separate provinces should spark concern. The Iraqi people reject any decision that partitions the Nineveh province. The people of the city determine the destiny of their city in the post-Islamic State (IS) stage, said Ahmed al-Jabra, a Sunni member of parliament, justifying the vote. Conveniently, for the Sunni Arab population, the vote also means that Yazidis and other minorities, who have been dispossessed from the region, will be reluctant to come back. Viyan Dakhil, a Yazidi member of the Iraqi parliament, has already said that Yazidis will be wary of returning to the Nineveh province without significant changes in its administration.

It was Dakhil who first alerted the world to the slaughter of the Yazidis in 2014, when her emotional plea to the world to save her people went viral on the internet. In a speech earlier this year at the U.N. in Geneva, arranged by the dedicated staff of the U.N. Watch nongovernmental organization, Dakhil declared, The international community has to support us, to call upon the U.N. Security Council to recognize what is happening to us as genocide, and to refer our case to the International Criminal Court. And there are signs that process is in motion, with both the U.S. and British governments formally acknowledging that the Yazidis have experienced a genocide in the legal sense of the term.

What is worrying is that measures to protect the Yazidis from future brutalities have been set back by the Iraqi parliament decision. As Jews from Middle Eastern countries know only too well, being a minority in the midst of profound instability in Arab and Muslim societies is not a fate anyone would want. The only way to protect yourself is by exercising some significant degree of self-determination, including the right of self-defense, secured by international guarantee. After all, we Jews were only able to say Never again once we secured the means to prevent further persecution, in the form of the state of Israel. The other religious minorities of the Middle East deserve no less.

Ben Cohen, senior editor of TheTower.org & The Tower Magazine, writes a weekly column for JNS.org on Jewish affairs and Middle Eastern politics. His writings have been published in Commentary, the New York Post, Haaretz, The Wall Street Journal, and many other publications. He is the author of Some of My Best Friends: A Journey Through Twenty-First Century Antisemitism (Edition Critic, 2014).
Last week, the United Nations Educational and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) voted to declare that this millenniums-old site was not Jewish at all, but exclusively Islamic.

This outrageous vote is an affront not just to the Jewish people, but to all those who value the vital role of historical truth in navigating current global issues.

And yet, two dozen countries voted in favor of the resolution, with only six opposingthe United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, The Netherlands, Lithuania and Estonia. Many other countries abstained, including France, Italy, Spain, and Sweden.

A vote of abstention is a vote of silence. For Jews, these abstentions carry an extra sting. In our history, we have far too often witnessed the staggering costs of silence. We have experienced the pain of a world that looks away when anti-Semitism lurches forward.

In 1946, Winston Churchill expressed his hope that the UN would come to be a true temple of peace.

For the UN to fulfill its potential and become a temple of peace, it must start by reversing its outrageous erasure of the Jewish peoples ties to the Temple Mount.

Ronald S. Lauder is president of the World Jewish Congress.
Great suffering is occurring in Iraq and Syria. The region is ravaged by terror. Millions have been forced from their homes. Christians and other ethno-religious minorities have suffered genocide at the hands of the Islamic State (ISIS).

The shutting down of U.S. military operations in Iraq created political instability that left a power vacuum filled by terror groups bent on destroying Western civilization. ISIS has forced millions of Iraqis and Syrians from their homes destabilizing the surrounding nations and exporting the problems of the Middle East to Europe.

In March, the U.S. House of Representatives voted unanimously that the Islamic States slaughter of Christians in Iraq and Syria amounted to genocide. And under extreme pressure, Sec. of State John Kerry joined Congress in the genocide declaration.

The U.S. State Department has brought thousands of Muslim refugees into the country, intentionally overlooking the plight of Christians. Out of 10,000 Syrians refugees permitted into the U.S., only 56 were Christian. And yet Christians make up 10 percent of Syrias population.

ISIS is targeting Iraqi Christians specifically because they are Christian. They stand in the way of its goal to establish a pure Islamic caliphate in the Middle East and beyond.

We must stand to protect our Christian Arab brothers and sisters suffering from this terrible genocide in Muslim countries. Reverend Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference (NHCLC), has said, Its time for the church to help create a firewall of protection against the persecution of Arab Christians.

Solutions are already being proposed for this effort.

Congressman Jeff Fortenberry (R-Neb.) introduced a resolution that provides American support for the establishment of a safe haven province in the Nineveh Plains region of Northern Iraq. This genocide has been recognized by the full weight and moral authority of the United States and many international entities, and it provides a gateway for further policy considerations, Fortenberry said, while introducing the resolution. One next step must be the resecuritization and revitalization of the Nineveh Plain, allowing the repatriation of those who had to flee.

The Nineveh safe haven would provide protection for religious minorities, allowing them to rebuild their homes and restore their cultures without fear of death, torture or destruction.

Robert Nicholson, executive director of the Philos Project, which promotes positive Christian engagement in the Middle East, said, As indigenous people, they have a right to stay. They need protection, especially in places where they were targeted for genocidal elimination. The Iraqi government and the Kurdish Regional Government have recognized the need for the Nineveh Plain Province. Its time for United States to do the same.

A protected, semi-autonomous region would help decentralize the Iraqi government, which is crucial to maintaining stability in a post-Islamic State power vacuum.

If we dont decentralize, the country will disintegrate, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al Abad said in April 2015. To me, there are no limitations to decentralization.

As Christian refugees look to return to their abandoned homes in Iraq, they need safety assurances. The province proposed in Nineveh would be a solid foothold in the preservation and restoration of Christianity in the Middle East.

This safe haven is the last chance we have, said Rabee Mano, an Assyrian Christian refuge from the Iraqi town of Qaraqosh, or Christianity will be finished in Iraq.

As Christians, we support the Fortenberry resolution, H.Con.Res. 152, and hope all Americans will join us in doing so as well.

Mario Bramnick, a pastor and attorney, is president of the Hispanic Israel Leadership Coalition (HILC), the largest pro-Israel International Latino Christian organization in America and around the world. HILC is subsidiary of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference.
Investigators with the McDowell County Sheriffs Office are looking for a Marion woman who was last seen on the afternoon of Wednesday, Oct. 26.

The brother of 67-year-old Bonita Barteen Barham, of 63 Bearcliff Village Drive, reported her missing from the residence at 8 p.m. on Wednesday.

Barham is reportedly driving a dark gray 2013 Kia Sorento with North Carolina license plate AMM-3523.

Anyone with information concerning Barhams whereabouts is asked to call the McDowell County Sheriffs Office at 652-2235 or the McDowell County 911 communications center at 652-4000.
Catawba County will be getting a new Cook Out at the site off U.S. Highway 70 at a property that was once home to the AMF Colonial Lanes bowli
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During the Cold War, the US and the Soviet Union regularly expelled spies in tit-for-tat actions. These expulsions were never about espionage, they were political signalling. A similar pattern has emerged between India and Pakistan.

In textbook spycraft, if you have identified an enemy operative, you try and turn him into a double agent or feed him misleading information. Expulsion kills off a potential source of information and means the replacement has to be identified.

Read: Pakistan high commission staffer asked to leave, 3 Indians held for espionage

Spy expulsions show to the other side and the public at home the degree of political determination behind a policy. The present Indian action should be seen as part and parcel of the hardening of stances between the two subcontinental rivals over the past two years.

This downward trend has gone further south since the attack on the Uri army base in Kashmir. But the origins seem to lie in the Pakistani militarys anger at Indias provision of lethal weaponry to the Afghan National Army, a general sense in Islamabad that China will cover their back and the recent public protests in Kashmir.

Read: Pak diplomat met spies every month, gave them tasks to extract information

India-Pakistan relations has become an unremitting story of bad if largely symbolic news. India has deliberately wrecked the South Asian regional summit scheduled for Islamabad in December. It has said it will press ahead with barrage and dam construction along rivers covered by the Indus Waters Treaty. The two now cross swords and words at each and every level. These range from the derisory, such as the ban on Pakistani artistes in Indian films, to the dangerous, such as the increased shelling and firing along the Line of Control.

Read: Spy pigeon with Urdu code on wings lands at house in Hoshiarpur village

There is still no reason for alarm. The death toll even along the de facto border is a fraction of what compared to what existed before the original Line of Control ceasefire agreement was signed. The global community has declined to involve itself in the present skirmish, curbing any potential Pakistani enthusiasm for widening the confrontation.

However, this is a status quo that is fundamentally unstable. It is a safe bet that the Pakistani military will seek some pay back India for the cross-border raids against militant staging camps. A terrorist attack within India or against Indian facilities in Afghanistan should not be discounted.

With the photo-ops between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Nawaz Sharif now in abeyance, the diplomatic vacuum that has been created will be filled with the voices of the shrill and short-sighted. The exchange of fire along the LoC is taking a few lives every week and is forcing the evacuation of thousands of villagers.

More to the point, the hardline posture taken by India must ultimately serve a larger national interest in handling Pakistan. At present this interest seems confined largely to the Uttar Pradesh elections.

After they are over, Prime Minister Narendra Modi needs to make some longer-term calculations as to where and how he wants to handle the relationship with what one Western intelligence chief told Indian interlocutors was the neighbour from hell.
Ferozeshah Tughlaq had a sandstone pillar carefully transported in 1356 from Ambala to his new capital in Delhi. He asked scholars to decipher the strange messages carved into the stone. In the hoary traditions of court etiquette, they assured the Sultan that, in fact, they predicted the coming of a great Emperor, Feroze Shah.

A testament to the persuasive nature of sycophancy, the pillar still takes pride of place on the ramparts of the Ferozeshah Kotla. It would be almost 500 years before the brilliant young Secretary of the Asiatic Society in Calcutta, James Prinsep, would conclusively decipher the Asokan Brahmi script inscribed on it. The code-breaker relied on a body of epigraphic knowledge built up by earlier scholars. His own skills were honed by years as a numismatician; he was at this time an employee of the Government Mint. Thus was the Ashoka of Buddhist canon transmuted, from a shadowy figure in textual tradition to one who left a wealth of material evidence.

A bust of William Jones, who founded the Asiatic society in 1784. Jones had wanted to include Indians as members, but the Societys membership was entirely European until 1829. (India International Centre)

The brainchild of William Jones, a judge of the Supreme Court at Calcutta, the Asiatic Society had been established in 1784. It was meant to be a meeting place for a small group of 30 amateur scholars (in the real world, men of business) to discuss ideas. This was very much in keeping with the European tradition of the 18th century  a sort of intellectual adda  and modelled on the Royal Society in Britain.

Read:Dalit leader objects to activists portrait at Asiatic Society hall

Oriental Jones already knew Persian, and he hoped to use his phenomenal gift for learning languages - he knew 28 in all - to learn Sanskrit, and to write a Digest of Hindu and Muslim Law, so that his judgements could be based on customary law. But we remember him today, not so much for his work in jurisprudence, as for his translations of Sanskrit texts, including Kalidasas Shakuntala, the Hitopadesha, and the Manusmriti. Goethe and the German Romantics, in particular, were overwhelmed by Shakuntala. Very significantly, Jones also made what was, at the time, the extraordinary assertion that Sanskrit had a kinship with Greek and Latin; it was their beautiful sister. He declared eloquently, at a meeting of the Asiatic Society, that Sanskrit possessed a wonderful structure; more perfect than the Greek, more copious than the Latin, and more exquisitely refined than either.

Painting of a Benares ghat by William Daniell, in the Asiatic Societys collection. (India International Centre)

William Jones, as the founder of the Society and its leading light, had wanted to include Indians as members, but the Societys membership was entirely European until 1829, when some distinguished Indians were invited to join. As historian Nayanjot Lahiri points out, not all the 19th century discoverers and deciphererswere European. Sometimes, because their work was written in Indian languages, and more generally because of the conditions of power at that time, their contribution often went unnoticed.

Read:This excerpt from a book demolishes Ashokas reputation as pacifist

The expansion of the Society was followed, once James Prinsep took over as secretary of the Society, by the publication of an appeal in the Societys Journal inviting naturalists, chemists, antiquaries, philologers and men of science, in different parts of Asia, to send their observations to Calcutta. Although many of the treasures collected by the Society were transferred to the Indian Museum, it retained artefacts including copper plates, coins and the manuscript collections.

Portrait of Rajendralala Mitra, the first Indian President of the Asiatic Society. (India International Centre)

The world, however, was changing. New views on Indian tradition were articulated by Macaulay, who regarded the Orientalists as misguided. There was much public acrimony; letters to The Friend of India, published under the title Pre-eminence of the Vernaculars, or the Anglicans Answered warned against Macaulayism. Anglicanism referred to the introduction of education in English at the expense of Indian languages, but there was also a growing disquiet among more conscientious Christians, including the Governor-General, Lord Bentinck, at the intellectual immersion in idolatrous traditions. Those of the sectarian persuasion won the day. Gradually, the Society became less and less influential, as a number of professional institutions were established. It never reached the same influence and eminence again.

Read:Homophobia was a part of Macaulays plan to educate Indians

Shortly after he became Viceroy, in 1899, Lord Curzon addressed the Asiatic Society of Bengal. Not for him the moral cant of the parsonage - the duty of the imperial government, he declared, included the preservation of Indias culture. He revived the Archaeological Survey under the leadership of a trained archaeologist, John Marshall. The genuflection he made towards the Society, from which the Survey had originally emerged, was sincere. However, the day of the dedicated and gifted amateur was over. As, most conclusively, was the heyday of the Asiatic Society.

(Supriya Guha is the writer of a PhD thesis on the history of midwifery in colonial Bengal. The exhibition, titled Time Past and Time Present:Treasures of Human Knowledge at the Asiatic Society, is on till October 31, at the India International Centre, Lodi Estate.)
Among the stories that are passed on through generations of Purani Dilliwallahs are those of Chawri Bazaars tawaifs or courtesans. The market around Jama Masjid, popular for its designer wedding cards and hardware goods, was once the stylish promenade for the Shahjahanabad elite. It is said that almost every staircase on the street would lead to a bordello.

Tawaifs of Chawri Bazaar, From Bordello to Brothel, an experiential walk by a local organisation, GointheCity. Dont go for the walk with the hope of actually seeing any bordellos. Barring a couple of examples, it is hard to find any surviving structures of that era. But the walk is an opportunity to find out the history of the courtesans, how they settled in the Walled City, the way they were perceived by their patrons and why they had to leave Chawri Bazaar.

Read:In the company of the tawaif: Recreating the magic with darbari kathak

Take, for example, their contribution to the culture of Shahjahanabad. These women were repositories of etiquette and refinement. Their patrons used to send their sons to them to learn the art of speech. You can compare them to the grooming classes people run today, said Gaurav Sharma, explorer, GointheCity.

Gaurav Sharma, who will be conducting a walk on the tawaifs of Chawri Bazaar, says that the courtesans were among the most sophisticated women of their times. (Raj K Raj/HT PHOTO)

Or the fact that Pathan and Negroid womenmany of them trained in martial arts--used to guard the bordellos. The randis as they were known owned several mansions and were as rich as the landed aristocracy of the day. Firdaus jaan was so beautiful that noblemen had to take prior appointments to meet her, noted RV Smith in his book The Delhi That No One Knows.

Read:Delhi's GB Road struggles to keep a dying history alive

You might know of Ghalib ki haveli in neighbouring Ballimaran the mansion in which the poet once lived as a tenant. But not many people know that Ghalib was extremely fond of a dusky dancing girl in Chawri Bazaar.

The walk is also an opportunity to clear misconceptions about nautch girls. In his book Nautch Girls of the Raj, former civil servant and historian Pran Nevile has tried to recreate the phase when visiting a courtesan was considered to be a status symbol. The Ramlila and other religious processions used to pass through Chawri Bazaar. Many young men would join the procession so that they could get a glimpse of courtesans standing in the atariya (balcony). Once the procession had gone past the street, these men would disperse. Such was their charm! said Sharma, referring to Neviles book.

The fall of the nautch girls started after 1857 when puritanical Englishmen and social reformers of India such as Bipin Chandra Sen launched a tirade against them.

Read:The Akhara and the kotha

In the early 1990s, they were branded as fallen women and were relocated to Garstin Bastion road, near Ajmeri Gate which was then considered the outskirts of the city. It was there that gradually the difference between nautch girls and prostitutes started fading.

(The walk Tawaifs of Chawri Bazaar: From Bordello to Brothel, will take place on October 31, and November 3 - 5 in Chawri Bazaar. For bookings: www.gointhecity.com. Charges: Rs 500 per person)

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Additional chief secretary of home department, Basant Pratap Singh will take over as the 30th chief secretary of Madhya Pradesh on November 1 replacing Anthony JC de Sa.

The 1984-batch IAS official has been appointed as officer on special duty (OSD) to the chief secretary, a practice followed before full-fledged appointment of an IAS official to the top state post.

Singh said he would do his best to live up to the expectation of the government which had reposed its faith in him.

Earlier, Chouhan introduced Singh as the new chief secretary-designate to his ministerial colleagues during the state cabinet meeting on Thursday.

The cabinet also feted de Sa for his contribution to the states development. Hailing from Uttar Pradesh, the July 1, 1958-born Singh will assume office on the states foundation anniversary and will serve as the chief secretary for two years. He is due to retire four months ahead of 2018 assembly elections.

Like the incumbent CS, Singh too is a student of humanities and did his post-graduation in Philosophy from Allahabad University. Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan also holds a post-graduation in Philosophy and is a gold-medallist from Barakatullah University, Bhopal.
Just after few hours after the meeting of chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan with senior police officials of the state in which the CM praised Bhopal police for efficiently maintaining law and order, Rs 24.93 lakhs were stolen from Bhopal Co-operative Central Bank Limited on Wednesday evening at 1100 Quarters area in Shahpura locality here.

Incident came into light on Thursday morning

The incident came into light on Thursday morning after the security guard of the bank found the lock of the main gate broken. Police have recovered the footage of CCTV cameras installed in the bank in which the accused thief is seeing moving inside it, police said.

According to the police, on Thursday when the security guard of the bank reached bank at 9 am, he saw the lock of its main gate broken. He then informed the manager of the bank about the incident who then informed about the same to the police on Dial 100. The police reached the spot within 15-20 minutes. The bank was having total amount of about Rs 40 lakhs.

Locker of the bank was broken

Upon reaching the bank we also found the locker of the bank broken from which the amount was missing. The glass of a window of the bank was also found broken. We have recovered the CCTV footage from the bank in which the accused could be seen clearly, said Mayank Awasthi, additional superintendent of police (Zone 2), adding that he entered the bank at about 7 pm on Wednesday evening and remained there for about one and a half hours.

Accused knew the location of the locker: ASP

In the initial investigations it seems that the accused was well aware of the topography of the bank and knew the location of the locker from where he stole the amount. We are suspecting the accused to be an ex-employee of the bank or a person who was well aware of the functioning of the bank. While stealing the money he didnt touched the cash bundles of small denomination and only took the bigger denomination of notes with him in his bag which he had brought with him, added Awasthi.
The Madhya Pradesh Government came under fire from SC/ST students after a government college in Mandsaur district distributed college bags with SC/ ST scheme written on it.

The SC/ST students of the Rajiv Gandhi Government PG College said though it was a good initiative but there was no need to write the name of the scheme over them as this leads to profiling and humiliation.

The students not belonging to the SC/ST community look down on us and we face discrimination, one of the students told ANI.

We demand those in power not to do such acts if they really want to bring us to the mainstream, he said, adding that many students either apply stickers or ink on the written words or do not carry the bags to college to escape the humiliation.

When asked about the same, BJP leader and Madhya Pradesh Higher Education Minister Jaibhan Singh Pawaiya said, There is no such scheme of the higher education department in which bags printed with SC/ST scheme are to be distributed in universities.

As soon as the matter came to my knowledge, I ordered the Principal Secretary to investigate which scheme these bags have been distributed under and why unnecessarily the name of the scheme has been printed on these bags, he added.

Assuring stringent action against those responsible, he said, Even if it is someones mistake, we will make sure such things dont happen again.

Congress leader Pankaj Chaturvedi took on the BJP-led government in the state, saying the motive behind this initiative is to humiliate the SC/ST students.

We condemn such an act and our leaders have taken notice of this. We will take this matter to Delhi and ensure justice is meted out to the students, he added.

The initiative also drew the ire of the Congress students wing NSUI as its members were seen raising slogans against the state government while accusing Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan of being anti-Dalit.
Several Bollywood actors have set up their base in Mumbai for work. However, they try to visit their homes during festive times. Deepika Padukone (right), who hails from Bangalore, too,is all set to go home to celebrate Diwali with her mother Ujwala, father Prakash and sister Anisha.

The actor has had a packed schedule this year due to her shooting stints in Toronto, Canada, for her first Hollywood film, starring Vin Diesel. Now that the shoot has been completed, she will begin working for film-maker Sanjay Leela Bhansalis next.

Watch: The trailer of XXX: Return of Xander Cage

Next week onward, Deepika will begin shooting for Padmavati. It is going to be hectic, and the weekend is the only time that she will get to spend with her family. Since Diwali falls during the weekend (Sunday, October 30), the actor will fly to Bangalore to celebrate the festival with them, says a source.

Time to relive those special memories with your loved ones.. Watch @deepikapadukone share some sweet moments with her father Prakash Padukone and mother Ujjala Padukone in the latest commercial of Divyam Collection by Tanishq. Link in Bio. How are you creating lasting memories this Diwali? A photo posted by Deepika Padukone (@deepikapadukone) on Oct 27, 2015 at 5:26am PDT

The source adds that Deepika will be leaving for Bangalore on October 28.

When contacted, Deepika says, Diwali is the festival of lights, joy and happiness. It has always been a very special festival for all of us. So, I decided to spend quality time with my family before I immerse myself in Padmavati.
Bollywood doesnt need a reason to party and when its Diwali time, hosting a card party is nothing short of a tradition. Among those who top the list for organising these high-stakes bashes are filmmakers Ekta Kapoor, Sajid Khan, actors Aamir Khan, Akshay Kumar, Shilpa Shetty, Shah Rukh Khan and famous Bollywood families including the Bachchans and the Roshans. For some, its an annual tradition to invite friends from the fraternity for a lavish get together, others make the most of festivity and play the best of their cards.

While Ektas guest list for the annual taash party is a heady mix of the whos who from the industry including Karan Johar, Neelam Kothari, Neetu Singh, Siddharth Mlahotra, Sonakshi Sinha, Varun Dhawan, Shraddha Kapoor etc, indulging in multiple rounds of flash and rummy all through the night, Rakesh Roshans buddy party turns out to be a get together for the veterans including Rishi Kapoor, Prem Chopra and Jeetendra, who reportedly play stakes ranging between Rs 5 lakh to Rs 50 lakh.

Filmmaker Farah Khan makes it a point not to miss brother Sajid Khans annual Diwali card party. (Satish Bate/ HT Photo)

Filmmaker Sajid Khans card party, too, is known to be a happening do, and quite a high rolling one over the years, with sister, filmmaker Farah Khan, and actors Riteish Deshmukh and Malaika Arora being regular attendees. Talking of Khans, they are no behind when it comes to inviting friends over for Diwali bash. Shah Rukh Khans bash is overlooked by wife Gauri, who takes charge to design the menu and theme for the party.

As for actor Aamir Khan, sources say he plays safe at the card table, but is a lavish host. Flash, poker and rummy are played at the half a dozen card tables put up at his Mumbai residence. The stakes, sources say, go from Rs 5 a point to Rs 5,000 a point.

Diwali card party at Bachchan residence remains a sought after affair and shutterbugs crave to clicks the stars best in their party attires. A source says, Like every year, Mr. Bachchan would be throwing a Diwali party this year also. But they dont share the guest list because its a family affair and they prefer to keep it private only.

Some big names, however, will be absent from the Diwali buzz in the country this year. Actor Akshay Kumar, for instance, has flown to the Maldives with family to ring in the festival. And desi girl Priyanka Chopra will celebrate in New York. The actor has reportedly planned to host a Diwali bash at her New York house for her Quantico crew and especially requested the DJ to play the Bollywood numbers.

Actor Priyanka Chopra will celebrate Diwali in New York with her Quantico crew.

Celebrating Diwali in true Punjabi style, Shilpa Shetty and Raj Kundra also host a card party for their Bollywood pals every year, but therell be a void this time. Because of Shilpa Shettys fathers demise, the family wont have any Diwali get together year, confirms a source.

Besides the top names from the industry, there are more in the list whod be having gala Diwali celebrations. Dilwale actor Varun Sharma who will be celebrating Diwali with his friends and family in Punjab says, Its not very often that I get to meet my family and my childhood friends, but this year, Ive taken a Diwali break and I will be speeding my time with my close ones and will host a Diwali card party for them. Theres no money involved when we play card games and since Im going to be in Punjab, cant invite my film friends.

Actor-producer Sachiin Joshi also hosts a Diwali card party every year. This year around too, Sachiin and his wife Raina Joshi would be hosting a Diwali party. Apart from family and friends, this fun-filled lavish affair will also be host to many affluent business men, sportsmen and actors. Like every year this years theme for the party promises to wow everyone, informs their spokesperson.

Follow @htshowbiz for more

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I was nine when I watched Karan Johars first movie, cried and became a lifelong fan. I loved the linear characters, the straight if somewhat sagging storylines and the larger-than-life setting that all of his movies came with. It was a relaxing watch and a great escape, even if youd had to defend the dodgy Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham to friends.

But the miracle of the current administration and political leadership is that they have turned ultimate candy floss into a political moment. Which is why when Ae Dil Hai Mushkil releases today, I will be queuing to watch it first-day first-show.

A movie that didnt stand out at first glance has been transformed into something extraordinary by the repeated interventions of politicians, who have used the film to score brownie points.

The movie that reportedly features Fawad Khan for a small-ish role -- showing him not more than a few minutes onscreen  ran into all sorts of trouble earlier this month with pop-nationalists who decided to make the film a battle of competitive patriotism.

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray won the duel with a combination of physical threats, extortion calls and blunt violence. The state government caved in and the chief minister acted as a mediator -- in the process, Bollywood bent over, agreeing to not work with Pakistani actors  as if blacking out Fawad Khan would deter militants in Kashmir.

The director, whose production house has featured many Pakistani actors in the past, also gave in  to prove his nationalism and ensure his bottom line didnt take a hit.

I want to go watch Ae Dil Hai Mushkil today to show that it doesnt matter  it doesnt matter if our artists dont toe the line laid down by electioneering politicians.

I want to suffer Aishwaryas possible simper and Ranbirs hamming because it is important that as audience, we take a stand on what is perpetrated in our names  that we understand that artistes boycott is an easy way to gain some political capital and nothing else.

I have eagerly waited for Karan Johar movies all my life because they made me feel better, even Student of the Year.

But for the first time, his movies have become a vehicle of resistance against those who want to use nationalism to muzzle free speech  against leaders who use threats to shut up dissidence and against those who recklessly use images of dead soldiers for private propaganda.

I am watching Ae Dil Hai Mushkil because for the first time, watching a Karan Johar movie has become important as a social act of resistance  to stop a surge in toxic nationalism and re-assure people that they can differ on the most fundamental questions of our democracy without being hunted.

Rs 300 and an early morning wake-up seem like a small cost for this. Fawad Khans bearded smile might just be the confidence-building measure India and Pakistan were desperately searching for.

Follow @htshowbiz for more

The author tweets @dhrubo127

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Tata Steel will continue with its stated strategy of consolidating the European steel business and work toward making its pension liabilities in the UK affordable while changing course for the sale of one of its plants, a senior company official said on Friday.

There has been a lot of noise recently on our European business. It is necessary to present the true picture to various stakeholders. We will continue with our European consolidation strategy and also with the talks for a possible joint venture with Thyssenkrupp AG, group executive director (finance and corporate) Koushik Chatterjee told HT after a meeting with top fund houses. Tata Steel on Friday met with top brokerages and funds including HSBC, Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan, Deutsche Bank and others to reassure investors about the continuity in their plans.

There has been speculation about Tata Steel Europe following ousted chairman Cyrus Mistrys mail to directors of Tata Sons that spoke about likely write-down of $10 billion by the company due to an erosion in the value of its assets.

A GBP 700 million deficit in the pension scheme of Tata Steel UK has been one of the major obstacles in the restructure of the business that includes a possible sale or a joint venture. The Tatas have been talking to UK government about a revamp in the structure of the pensions, although it is not clear on what the Tatas have offered.

In the meeting with fund houses in Mumbai, Tata Steels Chatterjee is reported to have said that the company has sought to shift to fixed defined contribution from defined benefit, to make it more affordable. This however could not be confirmed.

Tata Steel said it also plans to pursue a separate process for the potential sale of South Yorkshire-based Speciality Steels business in the UK. The sale process of this plant had been held up after the change in leadership at the Tata Group on Oct 24 when the Tata Sons board voted to replace Cyrus Mistry.

The company has also finalized agreements that will see the Canadian government pick up equity stake in an iron ore project in Canada that will ease supplies of the key raw material for Tatas European steel business.

Tata Steel Europe will have to buy iron ore from this project, like any other buyer. Sale of iron ore to the European steel business will be done at arms length, said Chatterjee.

Early Friday, Tata Steel Minerals Canada signed definitive agreements where the government of Quebec will invest Canadian$ 125 million as equity and Investment Quebec will lend Canadian$ 50 million as debt for the iron ore project.

The investment by the Quebec government will see it own 18% equity stake in Tata Steel Minerals Canada, that has mining operations in the Quebec-Newfoundland and Labrador peninsula.

Investors welcomed the agreement with shares of Tata Steel rising 1.5% on the BSE after the announcement.

Iron ore is the raw material from which steel is made. The erstwhile Corus, now Tata Steel Europe, did not have a continuous supply of iron ore that was one of the factors to push the European steel business into losses. Unlike Europe, Tata Steel in India has ownership of iron ore mines which has kept its production costs among the lowest in the world.

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There is a reason ousted Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry went after the Nano. Data from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers says it may have been the cheapest car around but not the hottest. Its sales dropped 70% over the last six years.

In an email on Tuesday to the Tata Sons board, Mistry said there was no sight of profitability for the car and the only way out was to scrap it. However, it continues for emotional reasons and because it supplies parts to an electric car company part-owned by Ratan Tata.

But Tata Motors insiders say Ratan Tata, Mistrys predecessor as Tata Sons chairman and the driving force behind the Nano, had a plan to turn the cars fortunes around. But the plan did not take off after he made way for Mistry in December 2012.

There was a lot of research and development on the Nano platform There were plans to use it to develop an air car (which uses compressed air to drive), and hybrid and electric cars, said one of them.

Read | Financial statements present true and fair value, says Tata Steel

Tata Motors was working with Norwegian electric vehicle and component maker Miljbil Grenland. It picked up 67% stake in the company. Tata said that it will give five bodies to Miljbil Grenland.

For the air car, Tata Motors was working with French form Motor Development International on a seven-year project. After 2010, Tata Motors gave Miljbil Grenland funds to develop the battery technology.

Tata also had plans for an automatic version. Also, the cars that were to be exported to Latin America and Europe would have been feature-rich.

Eventually, Tata Motors sold all its shares in Miljbil Grenland to the Canadian lithium cell manufacturer Electrovaya.

In 2015, Ratan Tata had made another investment in Ampere Vehicles, makers of electric two and three wheelers. The company denied having bought any Nano body shells from Tata Motors.

There were few technology learning from the Nano, but you cannot cut corner in building a car The current car was not safe, said Deepesh Rathore, London-based analyst of Emerging Markets Automotive Advisors.

Read | Boardroom battle brings brand Tata in focus

Automobile industry experts say the Nano is nothing to be ashamed of. The Nano was developed to tackle a phenomenally bold challenge at an unheard-of price. It is not uncommon for pioneers to fail, said an former Tata Motors executive who had worked on the Nano project.
If the British Prime Minister is so eager to work more closely with India, why does her government treat Indians so badly? This is the question Indian politicians and journalists should be asking Theresa May as she comes to Delhi next week to meet Narendra Modi.

This is her first visit since she assumed power a few months ago, which has raised expectations.

But Mays real aim this week is not to forge a new deal with India, but reassure voters back home. You see, the UK cant legally make any trade deals with India until it is officially out of the European Union - by 2019 at the earliest.

The British PM is more concerned with showing Britons they will do fine without the EU than a trade deal with India. India is being used as a prop to cover up the problems the Conservatives are facing after the Brexit vote. For that reason some loud but empty announcements would suit them nicely. They can tell Britons the trip shows the UK can stand tall after Brexit, even if the announcements mean little in reality. This trip is a show for their own benefit, not Indias.

Read: J&K a matter for India and Pakistan to sort out: Theresa May

Theresa May isnt even being accompanied by big companies eager to invest in India. Her team tried to spin this by saying they were more interested in promoting smaller businesses, but this is nothing more than poor excuse for a more worrying truth. Big British businesses arent arriving with the PM because they are uncertain about their future after the Brexit vote. They are unlikely to make big international investments until they know of Britains own trading status within the EU.

This gives Narendra Modi and Indian journalists the upper hand. But while it may suit Indian politicians to proffer some niceties about the British-Indo relationship and move on, this is not enough.

Indians travelling to the UK are treated appallingly by the British government and its time the Modi asked why this is the case. These are some questions they should ask.

Read: Kashmir a bilateral issue between India, Pakistan: UK PM Theresa May

First: Why is it being made harder for Indian students to study in Britain and look for jobs, while Chinese students get the opposite treatment?

Since 2010, when May became home secretary, the number of Indian students studying at UK universities has declined enormously: From approx. 40,000 a year to 25,000 students in 2016. The number of Chinese students has risen from approx. 55,000 to 90,000 a year over the same period.

This is partly because May has made it much harder for students to look for jobs after they finish. They are treated with suspicion by the immigration system and pushed to leave as soon as possible.

Last week the UK government even lost a court case in which they had (wrongly) accused thousands of foreign students - many of them Indian - of doing fraudulent English language tests. These youngsters had followed the rules but had been threatened with deportation and losing money and qualifications anyway. Will the PM speak up for Indian students?

Read: Theresa May is bad news for Indians looking towards Britain

Second: Why is it being made harder for Indian companies in the UK to hire skilled workers from outside? India is the third-largest investor in Britain and Indian companies are its largest manufacturing employer.

But every year the rules to hire foreign workers are being made harder. This means that Indian companies that invest in the UK are finding it more difficult to bring over their own skilled staff. Even the restaurant industry, which is in dire need of more Indian chefs, is pleading with the government to relax the rules. They have been ignored.

Now the Conservative government even wants to go as far as naming and shaming companies that employ too many foreign workers. This could create a toxic environment where foreigners face even more hostility and discrimination than they do already.

Third: Why is it being made harder for Indians to unite with their families in the UK? Mays pledge to cut immigration has broken up families and made it much more expensive and bureaucratic for Indians to join their families in the UK.

In 2012, the UK government brought in a rule that a husband or wife must earn over 18,600 a year if they wanted to bring over their partner from abroad. That has resulted in hundreds of extended separations for low income households.

Meanwhile, the cost of a visa to the UK from India - whether for visiting or working - has been rising exponentially and is set to increase further. It will be tempting for Modi to let May pull the wool over Indian eyes, but its not enough. Its time India behaved like a major power and asked why its citizens are treated so badly by the UK.

Sunny Hundal is a writer and lecturer on digital journalism based in London

The views expressed are personal

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A cringe-worthy Donald Trump video dropped this week. No, it wasnt another episode of the Republican presidential candidates serial sleaziness, but rather a campaign video endorsed by The Donald targeted at Indian-Americans. Briefly, it culls clips from his short speech at the charity event organised by the Republican Hindu Coalition in Edison, New Jersey earlier this month. Featured prominently is Trumps gushing over the Indian prime minister and a grinning image of Narendra Modi. Just in case this pandering missile missed its target audience, theres the line, Ab ki Baar, Trump Sarkar.

Read | Ab ki baar Trump sarkar: Donald reaches out to Hindu Americans with new ad

Weve watched this film before. In another fall election in North America last year, Modi made a cameo in a campaign video. That was in the Canadian parliamentary election last October, and that particular commercial was tagged Harper Sarkar, Fir Ek Baar, referring to Canadas then Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Days later, Liberal Party leader Justin Trudeau swept the elections. Harper is no longer the leader of the Conservative Party and has also resigned his parliamentary seat and stepped away from politics.

Trump, however, is taking that mauled mantra and chanting it to the handful of faithful he has within the Indian-American community. His campaign may believe Hindus in America, particularly, will be receptive to his anti-Muslim rhetoric, and his daughter Ivanka appearing at a Diwali function at a Virginia temple will put some sparkle into his step, but polling consistently suggests he will be lucky to capture 20% of this demographics vote.

Read | This election, Indian Americans in Virginias Loudon county are the kingmakers

There are plenty of reasons why Trumps efforts have proved as effective as a damp pataka. Trump may vow to be Indias best friend, but Indian-Americans largely realise that the next occupant of the Oval Office will almost certainly need New Delhis co-operation. This isnt just a function of a high growth economy, but as the Asian architecture alters, with a China-Russia axis emerging, and even the Manila dissing Washington, the relationship with India is possibly among the few promising bilateral propositions for the United States.

Trump may have garnered some traction with his dark and dire vision of a Democrat-led government by exaggerating economic anxieties, but Indian-Americans are also among the most affluent groups in the country and arent quite living the American nightmare that he has dreamed up.

Then theres his focus on immigration. Trumps positions have proved offensive even to those affiliated to Sangh frontal units in the US. A couple of them pointed out that a minuscule minority, as Hindus are, should be very concerned over the trickle-down effect of such xenophobia. It isnt as if Trump has done much to tamp down tempers. In fact, his approach has been to attack the H1B programme, one that has been the pathway into the US for a large section of Indian-Americans.

Read | Clinton and Obama: First ladies make an odd political couple

And while Trump takes a feigned shine to Hindu Americans, his partys evangelical base has always dulled the Republican Partys outreach to this community.

Finally, the battering that the Trump brand has taken will curb his support among Indian-Americans just as it has among the general populace. While two of every three Indian-Americans have traditionally leant Democrat, that number could rise as votes are tallied on November 8. And the Clintons have gained the communitys affection over decades. In fact, in 2008, they vastly preferred Hillary Clinton to then senator Barack Obama in the Democratic Party primaries, although the president has since nursed this constituency, and also nurtured a new generation of Indian-American leaders.

The Trump video was distributed along with a fund-raising email that states: Mind it, this is the only ethnic group Mr Trump addressed in such large numbers in this entire campaign. Even so, multiple factors make his play for Indian-American votes something of a Hail Mary pass. Few will be surprised if he even underperforms Mitt Romneys 2012 tally with the community.

Read | Trump closes gap with Clinton ahead of North Carolina campaign

So far, Indian-Americans havent gone gaga over MAGA, the hashtag for Trumps Make America Great Again slogan. As with the majority of American voters, they look set to opt for the obvious over the odious.

Anirudh Bhattacharyya is a Toronto-based commentator on American affairs

The views expressed are personal

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Three more birds died in Delhi on Friday, two at Shakti Sthal and one at Paschim Vihar DDA Park, taking the toll due to suspected bird flu to 73.

We have shut down the park at Paschim Vihar in west Delhi after the report of two dead ducks there came. Another duck died at Shakti Sthal but it was already sick for a couple of days, a Delhi animal husbandry department official told HT.

Delhi development minister Gopal Rai also met the coordination committee, formed to combat bird flu, to discuss the measures to be taken by the government.

The minister has asked all agencies having any water bodies under their jurisdiction to maintain strict vigil. Action will be taken if there is any lapse on their part, the official said.

All government departments have been asked to spread lime powder around every water body. Officials are also spraying anti-virus sodium hypochlorite on birds where they usually gather.

Delhi zoo, Hauz Khas district park and Shakti Sthal are already shut down. A government official had told on Thursday that it will take at least 45 days to declare the zoo as completely safe and before it can be opened for visitors.

After the deaths stop, every 15 days tests will be done and the zoo wont be reopened until we are completely sure that it is virus-free. This may take up to three months, the official said.

A total of 12 water birds, including painted storks, ducks and pelicans died of H5 avian influenza on its premises since October 14. A team of Central Zoo Authority is stationed at the zoo to monitor the situation.

A team of scientists from National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune have already visited the Delhi zoo and collected samples, sensitised and trained zoo staff about bio-security measures against avian influenza. Now they will conduct a genome study to ascertain the cause and origin of this H5N8 virus.

Those who are handling dead birds are being given tamiflu vaccine. Spots where migratory birds come are also being closely monitored.

Test results have come back as negative from samples sent from poultry at Ghazipur chicken mandi. The Delhi government had on Monday issued an 11-point health advisory which asked people to avoid direct contact with bird secretions and carcasses, consume only completely cooked chicken and not to consume uncooked or half cooked chicken or half boiled or half fried eggs.

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The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to probe the complaint of a retired army man, who claimed the terrace of his house in south Delhis Vasant Enclave is being repeatedly spattered with human excreta falling from aeroplanes.

Lieutenant general (retd) Satwant Singh Dahiya sought criminal proceedings against commercial airlines. Terming the act as violation of the Centres flagship Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, he pleaded for hefty fines on airlines for endangering the health of residents.

For over a week now, we have found that walls and floors of our terrace are splattered with large patches of excreta dumped by aircraft flying in front of Palam airport at night. This is the second time this has happened. The last time it happened early in October and we had to spend R50,000 to get the entire exterior repainted, Dahiya stated in his plea.

Noting the submissions of the petitioner, the green panel directed the CPCB to depute a senior environmental engineer to inspect his house and check the existence of human excreta on the walls. It directed the CPCB that if excreta were found, samples should be collected for analysis and the report be placed before the tribunal.

The bench headed by NGT chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar also issued notices to the ministries of environment and forests and civil aviation and CPCB, seeking their replies within two weeks.

Dahiya also sought creation of a 24-hour helpline for immediate reporting of such incidents and a monitoring mechanism to check that no aircraft drops human soil or excreta while landing.

Diwali is only few days away and we just completed fresh painting of the exterior of our house. But again our walls are completely spattered with waste. We are retired people and cannot afford to have this defacement every day, Dahiya added.

Plane toilets store human waste in special tanks. These are normally disposed of by ground crew once the plane lands, but aviation officials acknowledge that lavatory leaks can occur in the air at times. There have been instances when people have been injured.
The Allahabad High Court ruling directing the Noida Toll Bridge Co-- the concessionaire for the Noida DND flyway-- to stop levying a toll fee will be welcomed by thousands of commuters. The court in its ruling said that levy of the toll was unfair and unjust.

The project, one of the earliest to follow the PPP (public private partnership) model in transportation with the governments of Delhi, UP and IL&FS, was showcased as the way forward. But for the government, which has been trying to attract private investment, especially in the cash-starved infrastructure sector, the court order may prove somewhat damaging.

The story does not end with the 121-page ruling. It is obvious in this case that the matter will now be dragged to the next stage -- compensation. The PPP agreement will now be scrutinised with a fine toothcomb to pass on the blame game and accountability.

Depending on the fine print and if the concessionaire can manage to establish that nothing went wrong on its part, it is possible the government would have to bear the additional expenses to compensate.

India would require an investment of about $1.5 trillion in the infrastructure sector over the next 10 years. The government has also embarked on an ambitious project of connecting 700,000 villages with roads by 2019 as part of a massive modernisation plan. At this stage, such examples of intervention may not help the governments plan in any way.

Read: No toll tax on DND flyway, rules Allahabad high court

True, the courts always have the power to intervene in matters where public interest is at stake but what happens to the much-hyped PPP model that the government was depending on to develop the cash-starved infrastructure sector remains unanswered.

Such sudden interventions, arising out of public litigations, can become a headache for the government as well as the private sector and the uncertainty will linger on. In this years economic survey, chief economic adviser Arvind Subramanian underlined the need to redraw the PPP model to make it more effective. Undoubtedly, this must be done and design modifications to the contractual arrangements of the PPP model must be undertaken immediately. Certain PPP projects need to be revisited and revitalised.

This needs to be done through a well-thought-out mechanism. Halting a running project may not yield the desired results and knee-jerk reactions are no solution. Neither the Centre nor the states have the capacity to handle the scale and number of projects that are required in the infrastructure sector.

mahua.venkatesh@hindustantimes.com

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As air pollution in Delhi-NCR is touching critical high, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Friday pulled up the neighbouring states for being unable to curb large scale burning of crop stubble.

Directing Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh to comply with its earlier order in the matter, the green court directed them to file affidavits detailing steps taken by them for its implementation. The court had asked them to take coercive and punitive action against those who burn agricultural waste.

A bench headed by NGT chairperson Swatanter Kumar said joint affidavits should be filed by the respective states agriculture and environment secretaries.

It stated that the report should also mention their future action plans, besides incentives given to farmers in return of crop residue taken from them for alternate purposes.

In the event of non-filing of affidavit, the concerned secretary should be present before the tribunal on December 2, the next date of hearing, the bench said.

Read: Delhi chokes on smoke from neighbouring states

The details should also include number of equipments purchased by states to dispose of agriculture residue from the fields, challans issued to defaulter farmers, the amount recovered from them, steps taken on media advertisements to educate farmers on the issue, the tribunal order and other relevant factors, it added.

During the hearing, advocate Naginder Benipal, appearing for Punjab, told the bench that the Union environment secretary has convened a meeting of UP, Punjab, Rajasthan and Haryana on November 3 to decide the issue.

The NGTs order came on a plea by environmentalist Vikrant Tongad who had sought a ban on burning of agricultural waste and remnants in open fields.

Last year, the NGT had fixed the environment compensation amounts per incident of crop burning to be paid by small land owners having less than two acres of land at Rs 2,500, medium land owners holding over two acres and less than five acres at Rs 5,000 and those owning over five acres at Rs 15,000.
The Supreme Court will hear on Friday an appeal filed against the Allahabad high court order that stopped collection of toll tax collection on the 9.2km-DND flyway.

The Noida Toll Bridge Company Limited (NTBCL) mentioned its petition on Thursday before a bench, headed by Justice AR Dave, that agreed to list the matter for an early hearing on Friday.

NTBCL operates the toll bridge and has asked the SC to put the high court order on hold.

The Allahabad HC had on Wednesday ordered the private concessionaire to stop collecting user-fee from commuters, saying they were being illegally taxed.

The eight-lane flyway that connects Noida to South Delhi opened in Ferbuary 2001. The toll was Rs 8 after the flyway opened, but it was gradually hiked to Rs 28 per trip.

About 1.5 lakh vehicles use the DND flyway on a weekday.

The HC order came on a public interest petition (PIL) filed in 2012 by the Federation of Noida Residents Welfare Associations (NRWA), which claimed that the company had already accumulated sufficient profits for undertaking construction of the flyway on a Build Own Operate Transfer but continued to charge Rs 28 per trip from commuters that was illegal.

The HC had faulted the Noida Development Authority for delegating the power to a private company to collect the toll fee.

This case is a glaring example of misuse of power by a public authority in first, entering into the agreement, and then framing regulations to bring the clauses of agreement with a private person (company) in line with the legislation so as to give it a statutory backing, the HC had said.

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Filmmaker Mahmood Farooqui, convicted of raping an American student, directed a play with Tihar prisoners as actors inside jail number three on Friday evening.

The co-director of the 2010 satire movie Peepli Live has been in Tihar Jail for the last three months.

The one-hour play, Court Marshal, was enacted by over 15 jail inmates, including undertrials and convicts. The play was about an undertrial hearing of an army person booked for murder.

The prisoners have been practising hard to improving their acting skills for the past one month, officials said.

Farooqui and the rest of the prisoners rehearsed in ward number 11 for at least seven hours a day. Prisoners would memorise dialogues at night and rehearse the next day. The rehearsals helped inmates overcome stage fright and depression, said officials.

This is the first time that prisoners hosted an event, performed on stage, danced and sang along with showing their acting skills as part of Diwali celebrations, said Tihar Jail director general, Sudhir Yadav.

Some life-term prisoners, booked for murder or rape, had gone into depression. The play helped them in diverting their minds, thinking of their favourite actors and putting all efforts in showcasing their acting skills, said officials.

One of the undertrials was frustrated because his family never visits him in jail. He has been in Tihar for almost two years now. But since he began rehearsing for the play, he changed drastically. There was a good improvement in his behaviour. He came out of depression and began talking to other inmates, which he rarely did earlier. We were surprised by his excellent acting skills. So he was assigned one of the main roles in the play, said a senior jail official.

Till last year, music bands were called from outside to perform on stage as part of Diwali celebrations, officials said. This time, before the play began, a few inmates came on stage to play the guitar, harmonium and other instruments. One convict in his 60s read out poems he wrote especially for the occasion. Two undertrials sang Bollywood songs, while another hosted the show.

Over 500 jail inmates were part of the audience who saw the play. Most of them were for first time offenders, said officials.

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This is a disaster waiting to happen  the words of the Delhi high court about restaurants operating from the first floor flats of the Capitals posh Khan Market with no proper measures for escape in the event of fire. Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw said the flats at Khan Market, most of which have now been turned into commercial establishments, were constructed for residential purposes. Most of them have narrow staircases, which pose a threat to customers in the event of a fire. These open onto narrow service lanes in which the fire brigade cannot enter.

While the court has said restaurants and eateries will be liable for the loss or damages to life or property of anyone from any incident of fire in their premises, it must be asked how these establishments came up in the first place with no fire safety measures. The court further directed Delhi Fire Service to re-visit its policy which exempts restaurants with a seating capacity of less than 50 persons from obtaining clearance under the Delhi Fire Service Act.

Read: Khan Market eateries disaster waiting to happen, warns high court

Even if a restaurant has a small seating capacity, there can be no excuse for not observing fire safety norms. If this is the case with Khan Market, one can imagine the situation in other crowded markets in Delhi, many of which have serious fire hazards like exposed and hanging wiring and few exit routes. This is of a piece with how casually fire safety is taken in India despite major fires in residential complexes, temples and other public places.

Official records show that there are just 2,900 fire stations in all of the country when at least 8,500 are required at the very minimum. Fire is a state subject but most states simply do not provide enough resources for fire safety. The fire departments are ill-equipped and do not have enough staff. Urban fire services are deficient by 72.75% in fire stations, 78.79% in manpower and 22.43% in fire fighting and rescue vehicles.

Read: 80% govt hospitals in Delhi dont have basic fire safety measures in place

One way to minimise the outbreak of fires is for the authorities to rigorously enforce the law that any building under construction will not be given an operational clearance unless its promoters comply with fire safety norms.

A safety audit of all buildings must be carried out at regular intervals, something which is hardly ever done. Now we see a case of building permits being handed out liberally with no check on whether safety measures have been incorporated into the plans.

If restaurants or commercial buildings which are fire hazards do not comply with the rules, they should be shut down after proper warning. Fire safety worries are always heightened as Diwali comes around every year. We wish all our readers a safe and happy Diwali.
Daly College (DC) Indore, which was to start its private university under the name DC University, has dropped plans to do so and is aiming at expanding Daly College Business School (DCBS).

The decision came in after introspecting several aspects of starting the university, out of which, shutting down of DCBS is said to one of the most important ones.

Talking to Hindustan Times, principal of DC and director of DCBS, Sumer Singh said, We wanted to expand in higher education, so we chose to start a separate private university of our own. However, we had to drop the idea due to some reasons.

As per the states rules, no private university could run foreign courses which would have led us to shut down DCBS that has been running successfully since 1998, said Singh.

He also suggested that Association of Indian Universities (AIU) has come with new rules that allow All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to have foreign collaborations in other courses. This reason has led decision makers to think in favour of expanding DCBS.

Since we could now have foreign collaborations for other courses without having to start a separate university, we might as well expand DCBS. This is being seen as a positive step towards DCBSs progress, he said.

Singh also said DCBS has already started looking out for foreign collaborations including one with a Singapore-based university. The announcement of DC University was made in December 2014 in the presence of chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
As talks have begun to form a grand alliance in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, all eyes are on chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi amid reports of a not-so-comfortable relation between their seniors: Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

The other mediator, Amar Singh who recently returned to the SP, is cooling his heels at home after he was held responsible for an intense feud going in the partys first family.

Mulayam had last year walked out of Bihars grand alliance on learning about JD(U) leader Nitish Kumars meeting with the Congress top brass. Much water has flown down the Ganga since then. The grand alliance proved its political prowess by winning the Bihar assembly polls after a rout in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

The scenario is similar in Uttar Pradesh, where all opposition parties were decimated by BJP leader Narendra Modis juggernaut  and they are still struggling to recoup.

Besides, the Yadav family feud has weakened the Samajwadi Party and the common perception is it might lose its precious minority votes to Mayawatis BSP.

Mulayam, who had grown in Lohias anti-Congress boots, however, has not been averse to taking support from the grand old partyas he did in 1989. He had also offered support to the UPA, which, however, was declined by Gandhi.

The 76-year-old SP patriarch also believes that any political dispensation at the Centre in 2019 would not be possible without the Congress.

Now, as a generational shift is taking place in both the parties, Rahul and Akhilesh are taking charge. It is common knowledge that both like each other at the personal level, though they have been at loggerheads, politically.

Incidentally, both had so far pursued the ekla chalo philosophy. For, according to them, the party organisation usually weakens in surrendered seats. But a resurgent BJP and their parties own health is apparently driving them to change their stance and agree to ally.

The Congress legislators, who were summoned to Delhi by Rahul Gandhi on Thursday, advocated an alliance with secular forces. According to senior Congress leaders, Rahul was not only receptive but had also responded favourably.

The choice of the secular force is limited  the BSP or the SP. So far, the BSP has repeatedly clarified that there will be no pre-poll alliance though Mayawati never ruled out post-poll arrangements.

Thus, the Congress is left with only one option and that is the SP.

A veteran Muslim leader had once told HT in Bahraich, Mark my words: Rahul will lead the Centre, Akhilesh the state.

Senior Congress leaders are quite hopeful of positive talks between Rahul and Akhilesh.

We want a respectable arrangement, said a Congress leader who firmly believes their return to power would be via power.

On the sidelines, SP state president Shivpal Singh Yadav has already initiated a dialogue to bring together the followers of Mahatma Gandhi, Lohia and Charan Singh.

He met KC Tyagi of the Janata Dal-United and Choudhary Ajit Singh of the Rashtriya Lok Dal primarily to invite them to the SPs silver jubilee celebrations on November 5. This will be the platform on which the non-BJP parties will showcase their strength.

Ajit Singh is projecting his son Jayant Choudhary as his partys leader. The Congress has declared Sheila Dikshit as its chief ministerial face, while SP chief Mulayam has left it to the legislators to elect their leader. But Akhilesh remains the SPs choice.

The Congress leaders, however, have said a majority of the Opposition parties will agree on Akhileshs name. The problem, though, lies in sharing seats. Second, Nitish Kumar is still not open to an alliance with Mulayam, but his partner Lalu Prasad may prevail upon him.

As talks commence, leaders of all hues and shades keep their fingers crossed. As for Akhilesh, he is going ahead with his rath yatra. Even the Congress believes he has emerged stronger from the feud in the SP.
The Supreme Court on Friday directed Rajasthan government to respond to a plea of self-styled religious figure Asaram Bapu, facing trial in rape cases, seeking modification of the courts order directing him to undergo treatment at AIIMS in Jodhpur.

A bench of Justices A K Sikri and N V Ramana directed the state government to file a reply to the plea along with full details of the hospital it proposes for treatment of Asaram.

During the brief hearing, Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appearing for Rajasthan government said there was a Mahatma Gandhi hospital where Asaram could undergo treatment for his ailments.

There is a Mahatma Gandhi hospital, where all the judges of the High Court undergoes treatment and it has all state-of- art facilities. We can take him there, Mehta said.

The investigating officer of the case was cross-examined by the defence 89 times and recently they even recalled the prime witnesses in the case, and since then all these sickness things have started, the ASG alleged.

The bench, however, asked the state to file its reply in one week with full details of the hospital.

Asaram had yesterday approached the apex court, seeking modification of its October 24, order directing him to undergo treatment at AIIMS in Jodhpur.

He had said that AIIMS, Jodhpur does not have in-patient facility and sought direction from the court to bring him to All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS), Delhi for further treatment.

The apex court had on October 24 rejected his interim bail plea sought on health grounds.

A seven-member medical board of AIIMS Delhi had told the apex court that Asarams health condition was stable and that he had refused to undergo several tests.

Asaram was arrested by Jodhpur Police on August 31, 2013 and has been in jail since then. On August 9, the High Court had rejected his bail application in the rape case.

A teenage girl had accused him of sexual assault at his ashram in Manai village near Jodhpur. The girl, who belonged to Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh, was a student living in the ashram.
A man hacked his wife to death over delay in serving him food, in Bhojpur district of Bihar on Thursday.

The incident took place at around 10 am at Mushar Toli of Hawelipur village in Charpokhri police station area of the district.

Charpokhri station house officer (SHO), Kunwar Prasad Gupta, said Shivmangal Ram asked his wife Durga Devi to serve him food. But Devi did not serve him because she was talking on the phone. This angered Ram, who picked up a sharp-edged weapon and attacked his wife, killing her on the spot, Gupta said.

Ram was arrested and Devis body has been sent to the Ara Sadar Hospital for a post-mortem examination, the SHO said.

Rams uncle, Hareram, who tried to save Devi was also injured in the attack, Gupta said, adding that he was undergoing treatment at the Charpokhri Primary Health Centre.

Gupta did not confirm allegations by some villagers that Ram was under influence of liquor when he attacked his wife.
The Supreme Court on Friday stayed a Patna high court order granting bail to Rakesh Ranjan alias Rocky Yadav, the main accused in the killing of a student in a road rage case in Bihar.

Yadav, who allegedly shot dead class XII student Aditya Sachdeva for overtaking his SUV in Gaya on May 7, will have to go back to jail for now.

A bench headed by justice SA Bobde sought response from Rocky, son of a suspended JD(U) MLC, on a plea of Bihar government challenging the bail granted to him on October 19.

Senior advocate Rajiv Dutta, appearing for Bihar government, said this was an open-and-shut case and the youth was highly intoxicated. Hence, his bail should be immediately cancelled or the order of the Patna high court stayed.

The bench said that charge sheet has already been filed in the case and this may go against you.

The court said it was issuing notice to the respondent (Rocky) and posted the hearing after Diwali.

Read: Bail for Gaya road rage accused draws flak, forces govt into damage control

Rocky is the son of suspended JD(U) MLC Manorama Devi and alleged history sheeter Bindi Yadav. The couple, accused of sheltering their son while he was on the run after the murder, were recently granted bail.

Police had filed a charge sheet in a Gaya court against Rocky and another accused in connection with the murder. They had also filed charge sheet against Rockys cousin Teni Yadav, his father Bindi Yadav and his MLC mothers bodyguard, Rajesh Kumar, in the murder case.

The state government had put the case on speedy trial and investigation was completed in three weeks and charge sheet filed within a month of the incident.

Rocky is facing two cases - one of murder of Aditya and another under Excise Act for recovery of liquor bottles from the house of his mother. He was arrested from his fathers mixer plant in Gaya on May 10.

His name was included along with his father Bindi Yadav in the case of recovery of liquor bottles which were found when police raided his mothers house looking for Rocky.
Its time for BJP workers to get lessons on social harmony, foreign policy and resource mobilisation for the party. Starting next month, Indias ruling party will roll out the next phase of its programme to train workers on these and 15 other subjects.

The BJP claims to be the worlds largest political outfit with 11 crore members. It has set a target to train 1.5 million of them on the partys ideology, history and others.

The new subjects have been approved by party chief Amit Shah and will be included in the course for state and national level sessions that start after Diwali. Cadre working at senior levels should have an understanding of all such issues, a BJP leader told HT. It has nothing to do with the criticism of BJP over Dalit issues.

These subjects were not part of curriculum for mandal and district level training programme, currently underway in different states.

Instructions have been given to also invite women leaders and those belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Each training session will involve about 150 participants, another BJP office-bearer said.

The BJP was at the centre of controversy following the suicide of University of Hyderabad scholar Rohith Vemula, the flogging of Dalit men on suspicion of cow slaughter in Gujarat, and other such incidents related to Dalits. After mounting pressure, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had to break his silence, remarking,If you want to shoot, shoot me, not Dalits. Agitations in BJP-ruled states, such as the reservation stir in Gujarat and the Maratha protests in Maharashtra, too created unrest.

The idea of India, social media for political work, relations with media, election management and government-party relationship are other subjects added to the curriculum for training senior leaders. Experts on these subjects are being approached for developing the learning materials.

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This Diwali is going to be a cracker of a festival for Nisha Chanderwal, a second year BA student.

I bought a bright red kurta with gold-colour zari dupatta from Snapdeal, my first online purchase, the 19-year-old resident of Alwars Umren village told HT recently.

No courier service reaches my village. So I gave my aunts home address in Alwar. They paid in cashI paid her when I picked up the parcel, she added, explaining the circuitous delivery and payment process that is common in rural India.

Nisha is elated for one more reason: She has finally got even with her 20-year-old brother, Ashok. He has a smartphone, but doesnt even let me touch it, saying girls should not use the Internet. But now thanks to Googles Internet Saathi Programme (ISP), I dont need his phone or his help, said an elated Nisha.

In July 2015, technology giant Google launched ISP in partnership with Tata Trusts, one of the countrys oldest philanthropic organisations, to bring rural women online in India. Today, the initiative is live in 25,000 villages across 10 states with 1,900 saathis. The final mission is to reach 300,000 villages. Google is adding up to 500 additional saathis per week. More than 100,000 women have been trained so far.

Google started this programme because Internet usage by women in rural areas is low.

Only one in 10 Internet users in rural India is a woman, Sapna Chadha, marketing head, Google India, told HT. With ISP, we are creating an enabling environment that empowers them while also bridging the technology gender divide. We believe that easy access to information can transform lives. Our mission is to organise the worlds information and make it universally accessible.

Along with access to information, getting more and more women online has other benefits: If women are a minority online, they become vulnerable to harassment and violence. Women cant only be consumers of the Internet but must contribute their views, and make the space equitable, said Rohini Lakshane of the Bangalore-based The Centre for Internet and Society (CIS), which is funded by the Kusuma Trust.

Google and Tata Trusts are leveraging their core strengths for ISP. While Google provides the hardware (phones and tablets), training and Internet connectivity. Tata Trusts does the identification of saathis and the monitoring.

We tie up with government departments to roll out the project. For example, in Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh, we are working with the rural livelihood mission. The government helps us to identify villages, set selection criteria and logistics such as venues, explained Prabhat Pani, project director, Tata Trusts.

The programme first chooses a few women and trains them on how to use a mobile phone, shoot photos and videos and the basics of Internet. Then the women are sent out on bicycles with a smartphone and a tablet to teach others in their villages.

The programme has opened a new world for many. Google is like a book. You can get whatever information you need. I am illiterate but I use voice search for information, said Phoolwati, a 45-year-old resident of Nangli Jamawat, Umren.

Her friend Manju is now the villages undisputed selfie queen. I love taking videos and photos, she said, adding that she also searches for information on MGNREGA or education loans for her children.

According to Google, the new online entrants are searching for news, recipes, designs for clothes, images and information on pilgrimages, farming and cattle-related information and government schemes.

For Google, it makes immense sense to get more people online. The company is targeting huge and untapped demographics who are entry-level users. Going forward, they will have a huge first-mover advantage if there is scope to monetise Googles services, explained Lakshane.

By 2020, about 315 million rural Indians will be connected to the Internet, compared to around 120 million now. Thats about 36% of the countrys online population. By 2020, this share of rural India will jump to 48%, creating a huge opportunity for brands and marketers in places where establishing stores is a challenge, says a study by the Boston Consulting Group, The Rising Connected Consumer in Rural India.

The first signs of this market potential were evident during the pre-Diwali online festival season sale. E-tailers posted growth in sales compared to last year thanks to growing smartphone penetration in small towns and villages, cheaper data tariffs and free hotspots. While Google did not divulge the exact revenues that it is spending on ISP, Chadha said it has helped the company to understand the needs of users in rural areas and what role the Internet can play.

Along with ISP, Google is also working with the Indian government on two projects that aims to give more people access to the Internet.

First, the Project Loon, which uses high-altitude balloons to create an aerial wireless network with up to 4G speeds for providing Internet access to rural and remote areas.

Second, the company is partnering with RailTel to provide free wi-fi access in stations.

The ISP has no immediate profits for Google. The average revenue Indian per user is less than say a user in US. But getting more people online helps Google because its search engine is most used, Praneesh Prakash, policy director, CIS, told HT. In the long run, the company will earn when people access its services and also from advertising revenue.

Nevertheless, the ISP is addressing a major problem. Many are afraid to go online because they dont know how they can benefit. While the Saathi programme is not a philanthropic effort, its good that Google is addressing this issue through its training programmes, Prakash said.

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At least 15 Pakistani soldiers could have died in retaliatory firing along the Jammu border, the Border Security Force (BSF) said on Friday, as repeated ceasefire violations sparked panic among residents of frontier villages.

Two civilians were killed -- one in Khor belt of Jammu district and the other in Poonchs Mendar sector -- in Pakistani firing, officials said. A girl was wounded with Pakistans firing and mortar shelling targeting Indian posts and civilian areas along the Line of Control, the de facto border, and the international border in Jammu, Kathua and Rajouri districts.

In the past four days, a six-year old boy and a man have been killed in the offensive by Pakistan. There are reports that over 400 families have migrated from the border villages and 24 civilians have been injured.Over a dozen cattle have perished in these areas.

Read | 2-3 Pakistani soldiers killed in retaliatory firing by Indian troops: Army

The Border Security Force and the army have responded appropriately and befittingly, a defence spokesperson said.

BSF additional director general Arun Kumar said 15 Pakistani army men could have died in Indias retaliation against the ceasefire violations, though the force did not confirm the number of causalities on the other side. The BSF also said Pakistani forces were pushing militants into India.

A damaged gate of a house after firing from the Pakistani side of border in Abdullian village in RS Pura. (Nitin Kanotra /HT Photo)

The defence spokesperson said: There was unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan Army in Sunderbani, Pallanwala and Nowshera sectors of Rajouri and Jammu districts today (Friday).

The official said Pakistan used small arms, automatics, 82mm mortars and 120mm mortars.

It (the firing) continued till 5. 00am on Friday..., said BSF Jammu frontier DIG Dharmender Pareekh.

Officials believe some Pakistani posts and villages have suffered heavy damage in Indias response.

Read | Pakistan lodges protest over Indias ceasefire violation on LoC

This has never happened before, such heavy firing from Pakistan...Everyone is so scared, a resident of Rajouri told news agency ANI.

Rajouri station house officer Mohd Younis Choudhary said: We are ready...(we) dont want any casualties. This is heavy shelling. (We) have asked locals to stay indoors.

BSF officials pay floral tributes to soldier Sushil Kumar, who lost his life in firing by Pakistan, during a wreath laying ceremony at BSF's Paloura Camp in Jammu on Monday. (PTI)

Relations between India and Pakistan have hit a new low after four militants attacked an Indian Army base in northern Kashmirs Uri in September, killing 19 soldiers. India blamed Pakistan-based militants for the assault, a charge Islamabad promptly denied.

On Thursday evening too, the Pakistani army fired bullets and mortar shells relentlessly at multiple Indian frontier villages along the border in militancy-hit Jammu and Kashmir, triggering a war-like situation in those areas.

Skirmishes are common along this border, but the attack intensified after Indian troops killed a Pakistan Rangers soldier in retaliatory action against heavy overnight shelling in the RS Pura and Arnia sectors of the international border.

A BSF soldier too was killed on Thursday in firing by Pakistani troops in Abdullian area of RS Pura sector in Jammu district --- the third such death of a border force personnel within a week since skirmishes erupted.
Bahujan Samajwadi Party president Mayawati on Friday said she would order a probe into the various economic decisions taken by chief minister Akhilesh Yadav in the run up to the state Assembly elections, if voted to power.

Assessing that his party will not return to power, the chief minister is taking big economic decisions on a regular basis and they will definitely be probed by the BSP government, she said in a statement.

Now when the Assembly elections are just round the corner, the chief minister is enacting drama to woo different sections of society and making announcements, she said.

Her statement said, The Uttar Pradesh governments decision to raise honorarium of gram pradhan from Rs 2,500 to Rs 3,000 and distribution of the ruling SPs poll material in the form of steel plates and glasses to school children was aimed at gaining cheap publicity.

The Dalit leader also welcomed the stern direction of the Allahabad high court to the state government for the latters failure to contain dengue menace.

After being rapped by the HC on the issue recently, Akhilesh Yadav had directed officials to launch a campaign in every district of the state to check the disease.

Accepting apathy and laxity alone in the court will not serve the purpose.... stern measures and prompt action against those responsible for it is required, she said.

Mayawati alleged that though the state government had said that 113 deaths have taken place, but in Lucknow alone 219 people have died of dengue.

There is an immediate need to declare dengue an epidemic, she stressed.

Taking a dig at the alleged family feud in Samjawadi Party, Mayawati added that the chief minister should take out time from the ongoing family fight and concentrate on peoples sufferings.

The crucial state Assembly polls are scheduled for next year.
China objected on Friday to Dalai Lamas scheduled visit to Arunachal Pradesh, saying the invitation to the Tibetan spiritual leader will only damage peace and stability of the border areas and affect New Delhis ties with Beijing.

The invitation to the Dalai Lama for activity in the disputed areas between China and India will only damage peace stability of the border areas as well as the bilateral relationship between China and India, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said.

His comments were in response to Dalai Lamas scheduled visit to Arunachal Pradesh early next year at the invitation of the states Chief Minister Pema Khandu. The visit is understood to have been cleared by the Centre. The spiritual leader is likely to visit Tawang, the seat of a Buddhist monastery.

Read: On Arunachal Pradesh, New Delhi must tell Beijing to mind its own business

China claims Arunachal Pradesh to be a part of southern Tibet and routinely protests visits by Indian leaders and foreign officials to the area.

Last week, Beijing reacted strongly to American envoy Richard Vermas October 22 tour to Tawang, saying the ambassador visited a disputed region.

In the wake of the US envoys visit, China had gone to the extent of warning the US that any interference by it in the Sino-India boundary dispute will make it more complicated and disturb the hard-won peace at the border.

Read: Nothing unusual about US envoy Vermas visit to Arunachal: India

When asked about the Dalai Lamas visit to Arunachal, external affairs ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said he is a guest of India and is free to travel across the country.

Dalai Lama is a revered spiritual figure and an honoured guest of India. He is absolutely free to travel to any part of the country.

It is a fact that he has a sizeable following among the Buddhists in Arunachal Pradesh who like to seek his blessings. He has visited the state in the past as well and we see nothing unusual if he visits again, Swarup said.

Arunachal government sources said the state was looking forward to the Dalai Lamas visit.
The Allahabad high court on Wednesday ordered the Noida Toll Bridge Company Ltd (NTBCL), which manages the DND Flyway, to stop collecting user-fee from commuters, saying they were being illegally taxed.

The eight-lane, 9.2km road connecting Noida with south Delhi, was opened on February 6, 2001. The toll for a car was Rs 8 for each journey initially, but it was gradually hiked to Rs 28.

Almost 150,000 vehicles use the flyway on an average weekday; 110,000 vehicles pass through the Noida toll gate and an average 40,000 use the Mayur Vihar link road opened in January 2008.

Here is a look at how other states manage toll plazas:

Maharashtra

Toll-free Maharashtra was the Bharatiya Janata Partys promise before the 2014 assembly polls.

Status: Has scrapped 53 toll plazas besides exempting small vehicles from toll on another 61. 14 big toll plazas continue to collect nearly Rs 450 crore a year in Mumbai and Pune.

Reason: A committee said the state will lose Rs 13,000 crore per annum if the plazas are removed

Mumbai-Pune expressway

The toll collection started in 2000. Present rate for a one way trip for a car is up to Rs 140.

Andhra Pradesh

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) proposed toll plaza on the Chennai-Kolkata highway (NH-16) in Nellore district is being resisted by locals and political parties.

Reason: It falls within Nellore Municipal Corporation and therefore no toll should be collected from people living in the city. Another plaza at Venkatachalam is within 15 km of the proposed one and this violates the National Highways Fee Rules that stipulate a distance of 60 km between two toll plazas.

Status: Due to protests, NHAI has not been able to set up the plaza.

Kondayapalem toll plaza

Proposed rates are Rs 25 for cars for a one-way trip and Rs 35 for a return trip in a day. For buses and other heavy vehicles, the rates are Rs 85 for one way and Rs 125 for a return trip in a day.

Read| Removing DND Flyway toll to create traffic mess in south, central Delhi: Expert

Tamil Nadu

Status: The NHAI collects toll at 42 plazas

State government and trade unions have criticised annual revision of rates without consulting them.

In January of this year, a total toll collected was Rs 195.34 crore.

Haryana

Protests by locals forced the government to slash rates at Makdoli toll plaza on Rohtak-Gohana. Even the new rate of Rs 113 for single crossing and Rs 170 for a round journey did not satisfy locals who want an exemption for vehicles registered within 25 km of the plaza.

States government, however, exempted vehicles registered within 20 km from toll on NH-10 at Sampla following a protest by locals in September.

The rate was Rs 56 for single crossing and Rs 86 for multiple crossings in one day.
At least eight people were killed on Friday in a fire that broke out in a crackers shop in Rustampura village of Vaghodia tehsil of Vadodara district, police said.

The fire started at a cracker shop in the evening and spread to the adjoining cracker shops and residential structures, Vadodara (rural) SP Saurabh Tolumbia told PTI.

Police and fire brigade rushed to the spot and brought the fire under control. We have pulled out eight bodies from the site, he said.

#WATCH 8 dead, many injured after fire broke out in fire crackers shop in Vadodara (Gujarat). Injured shifted to hospital. pic.twitter.com/V3PfAYKP6Q  ANI (@ANI_news) October 28, 2016

Relief was being provided to those injured, he said adding that the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.

Police and fire officials were deployed in large number at the spot, Tolumbia said.
The Samajwadi Partys ruling Yadav clan, which is beset by a strife that is threatening to hamper the ruling partys prospects in the February-March assembly polls, is famous for its bonhomie during festivals.

The bitter power tussle in the family has raised questions whether the Yadavs will come together on Diwali this time as the crisis within the ruling party seems to be far from over.

The clans heavyweight politicians or even its lesser known leaders take a break from politics and assemble mostly in their ancestral village Saifai or in state capital Lucknow on festivals like Holi, Raksha Bandhan, Eid, Janmashtami, Navratri, Diwali and Saifai Mahotsav, weddings or engagement ceremonies.

In the past, the Yadav family has never missed celebrations at their native village, whatever the political situation was.

Read | The Yadavs of Uttar Pradesh: Taking a look at Indias biggest political family

The results of the 2012 UP assembly election were announced on March 6 and the Samajwadi Party began preparing for the swearing-in on March 15.

In the intervening period, the party witnessed a behind-the-scenes tussle between party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadavs brother Shivpal Yadav and their cousin Ramgopal Yadav on whether Mulayams son Akhilesh should be made the chief minister or not.

Despite the differences, the entire clan had assembled in Saifai on Holi on March 8 and drenched in colours.

And when the family celebrates, villagers from far and near join in every time.

But this time people are wondering. They are hoping against hope that everything gets sorted out before Diwali. It is already Dhanteras today (Friday), Etawahs Anurag Gupta said.

Shivpal had shown the first signs of the feud publicly in Mainpuri on August 14 when he threatened to resign. On August 15, Mulayam openly came out in support of Shivpal. Akhilesh went to his uncle Shivpals house in Lucknow to get a rakhi tied by his cousin (Shivpals daughter) a few days later.

Read | Thanks to the SP squabble, non-Yadav OBC votes could go to the BJP

The feud was in a nascent stage then. Now, it has grown substantially and the differences in the party came to the fore once again on Thursday as Mulayam skipped the Yash Bharti awards function after Akhilesh refused to dismiss a minister expelled from the party.

The clan assembles in Lucknow to celebrate every Eid and the last time it was no different. Amar Singh, who Akhilesh blames for the strife in the family, too had joined the celebrations.

Both Shivpal and Mulayam were present when Akhilesh did grih-pravesh or a house-warming ritual for his new permanent government accommodation in Lucknow during Navratri (early October). Kannauj MP and Akhileshs wife Dimple Yadav performed the puja on that occasion.

A few weeks later, Akhilesh sacked Shivpal and three ministers from his cabinet.

In retaliation, Shivpal, who is the partys state chief, sacked pro-Akhilesh minister and Ayodhya MLA Pawan Pandey from the party two days later. Shivpal is adamant on not taking Pandey or over 30 other Akhilesh loyalists, who have been ousted from the SP, back.

Similarly, Mulayam has shown clear signs that he is in no mood to take Ramgopal Yadav back. Ramgopal, who was the partys national generally secretary, was expelled from the party on October 23.

Read | Akhilesh ki Dileri, Modi ki Dahaad: Political twist to Diwali crackers in UP

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Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday to discuss the situation in Kashmir Valley, which continues to witness unrest for over 100 days.

During the meeting, Abdullah stressed for an early dialogue with all the stakeholders who were willing to come to the table for negotiation so the stalemate can end in the Valley.

The former chief minister, who has been touring the entire state, said that the Prime Minister listened to him patiently and was receptive to his suggestions.

I am sure that the Prime Minister will urgently address all the issues that have been flagged by me and others from the state, Abdullah told PTI after the meeting.

The former chief minister said the National Conference has played the role of a constructive opposition party and would continue to do so.

We are willing to do anything for the people of the state who have been victims of unrest for over three months now.

The education sector has suffered. Tourism industry, which is the mainstay of the economy, has been hit badly. The people living along the Line of Control and International Border are suffering. I have requested to take into consideration all these factors and make attempts to bring some relief to the people in the state, he said.

Abdullah, however, refused to share other details about the meeting.

The meeting took place in the most cordial atmosphere and the Prime Minister was equally concerned about the situation in the state, the NC leader said.

About 85 people, including two policemen, have been killed and thousands injured in the Kashmir unrest, triggered by the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani in July. Around 5,000 security forces personnel have also been injured in clashes.
The Supreme Court should make appointments of judges in higher judiciary a transparent process, the law ministry said on Friday, hitting back at the top court hours after it admonished the government for not filling up vacancies.

PP Chaudhary, minister of state for law and justice, told HT that the Supreme Court collegium should focus on clearing the memorandum of procedure (MOP), a set of guidelines on appointment of judges to the apex court and 24 high courts in the country.

The SC collegium is a body of the countrys top five judges headed by the chief justice.

Read | Centre considering SC/ST and OBC quota in appointment of district judges

When the Supreme Court in its own judgment of December 16 stressed on a fresh MOP, the focus should be on finalising that and not on filling vacancies hurriedly and in a non-transparent manner, Chaudhary said in what is by far the strongest reaction by a minister in the perceived stand-off between the judiciary and the executive.

Two months after the SC struck down the National Judicial Appointments Commission Act in October 2015, a five-judge bench had laid down the guidelines for a fresh MOP for making appointments to the higher judiciary.

Does the SC want judges appointments to remain non-transparent in spite of the December 16 judgment? No doubt there is no time limit prescribed in it for finalising the MOP but we sent them the draft MOP on August 3. The SC should immediately finalise it so we can fill the remaining vacancies in a transparent manner under the fresh MOP, Chaudhary said.

He said filling up more vacancies based on the old MOP goes against the spirit of the December judgment.

Citing statistics to bolster the governments argument, the minister said on an average, the SC collegium rejects nearly 30 per cent of the names sent to it by the high courts. The high courts withhold names for another 30 per cent of the vacancies.

Read | Why dont you shut down courts? SC slams govt over delay in appointing judges

The rejections are due to lack of transparency in the process and the SC in its judgment had visualised that problem, Chaudhary said. He said while the process for filing up a judges position should be started six months before it falls vacant, the recommendations have only been coming three to four years later.

He said in a particular instance in the Sikkim HC, there was a delay of nine years on the part of the HC collegium in sending the name of candidates for appointment.

Due to the NJAC matter pending in court, vacancies were not filled up between April and December 2015. The government wrote to the CJI in January saying pending the finalisation of the MOP, appointments could continue.

Chaudhary said the Modi government has made 86 fresh appointments of high court judges while 139 additional judges have been made permanent or their terms extended since then.

Four judges have been appointed to the SC and 14 chief justices to the HCs. No other government in a nine-month period has made so many appointments. It shows our intent, he said.

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The government took a U-turn on the civil-military rank disparity on Friday, deciding to form a panel to look into the row a day after it ruled out a relook at the new norms that have angered the armed forces.

Defence ministry sources said the government has decided to re-examine the complicated issues surrounding the rank-equivalence structure to settle the matter once and for all.

Some aspects related to rank parity may not have been fully addressed. The panel will pore over all relevant documents and letters issued during the last 30 years, a source said.

The committee will also look into the decision of a group of ministers (GoM) on the matter in 2009, which the armed forces are citing to push their case for rank parity with civilians.

There would have been no controversy if the 2009 GoM decision ratified by the cabinet had been studied along with other documents and court rulings, a senior army officer said.

The rank parity controversy erupted after hindustantimes.com broke the story on October 24 about a government letter dated October 18 downgrading the status of military officers compared to their civilian counterparts.

The next day, defence minister Manohar Parrikar assured the armed forces that any discrepancy in rank structure would be corrected in a week. But the militarys hopes were dashed on Thursday when the defence ministry said the existing rank equation would stay.

Under the new norms, a civilian principal director who was equivalent to a brigadier was equated to a major general, a director-ranked officer to a brigadier and a joint director to a colonel.

Till now, a major general was on par with a joint secretary and a colonels civil administration counterpart was a director. A lieutenant colonel, earlier equivalent to a joint director, has been scaled down to a deputy director.

The rank issue has threatened to widen the civil-military divide against the backdrop of the armed forces concerns over the 7th pay commission report and the one rank-one pension (OROP) scheme.

The rank equation is followed while assigning duties, it decides the channel of reporting, plays a role when officers are sent for training courses and also determines perks such as stenographic and secretarial assistance.
Pakistani forces targeted at least 24 Indian posts in Jammu overnight, resorting to heavy firing that sparked panic among residents in villages along the border.

The Indian Border Security Force (BSF) retaliated as the ceasefire violation continued, with firing by the Pakistani Rangers being reported from Jammus Kathua district, especially Hiranagar, and Samba.

There were reports that over 400 families have migrated from the border villages.Over a dozen cattle have perished in these areas.

It (the firing) continued till 5. 00am on Friday..., said BSF Jammu frontier DIG Dharmender Pareekh.

An official said Pakistan used small arms, automatics, 82mm mortars and 120mm mortars in the firing and shelling.

Heavy firing was also reported in Rajouri district --- namely Nowshera, Pallanwala and Sunderbani sectors --- in the morning.

This has never happened before, such heavy firing from Pakistan...Everyone is so scared, a resident of Rajouri told news agency ANI.

Rajouri station house officer Mohd Younis Choudhary said: We are ready...(we) dont want any casualties. This is heavy shelling. (We) have asked locals to stay indoors.

BSFs Pareekh said some Pakistani posts and villages were believed to have received heavy losses in Indias retaliatory fire.

Except for minor injuries to a girl, there were no adverse reports on our side, he said.

Relations between the neighbours hit a new low after four militants attacked an Indian Army base in northern Kashmirs Uri in September, killing 19 soldiers. India blamed Pakistan-based militants for the assault, a charge Islamabad promptly denied.

Later in that month, India said it carried out surgical strikes on militant hideouts across the Line of Control, the de facto border between the two countries.

On Thursday evening too, the Pakistani army fired bullets and mortar shells relentlessly at multiple Indian frontier villages along the border in Jammu and Kashmir, triggering a war-like situation in those areas.

Skirmishes are common along this border, but the attack intensified after Indian troops killed a Pakistan Rangers soldier in retaliatory action against heavy overnight shelling in the RS Pura and Arnia sectors of the international border.

A BSF soldier too was killed on Thursday in firing by Pakistani troops in Abdullian area of RS Pura sector in Jammu district --- the third such death of a border force personnel within a week since skirmishes erupted.

(With agency inputs)

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Indian space agency ISRO is aiming for a world record by putting into orbit 83 satellites -- two Indian and 81 foreign -- on a single rocket in early 2017, a top official of Antrix Corporation said.

He said the companys order book stands at Rs 500 crore while negotiations are on for launch order for another Rs 500 crore.

During the first quarter of 2017 we plan to launch a single rocket carrying 83 satellites. Most foreign satellites are nano satellites, Rakesh Sasibhushan, chairman-cum-managing director of Antrix Corporation told IANS.

Antrix Corporation is the commercial arm of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

He said all the 83 satellites will be put in a single orbit and hence there will not be any switching off and on of the rocket.

The major challenge for the proposed mission is to hold the rocket in the same orbit till all the satellites are ejected.

He said ISRO will use its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle XL (PSLV-XL) rocket variant for the record launch.

For ISRO, launch of multiple satellites at one go is not a new thing as it has done it several times in the past.

According to Sasibhushan, the total payload/weight carried off into space by the PSLV-XL rocket will be around 1,600 kg.

Citing non-disclosure agreements, Sasibhushan declined to name the clients whose satellites ISRO will put into orbit.

He said some satellites belong to clients whose satellites ISRO put into orbit in the past.

Meanwhile, ISRO is conducting high-altitude tests with its own cryogenic engine that is expected to power the heavier rocket Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle-Mk III (GSLV Mk III).

The GSLV Mk III has a capacity to carry around four tonnes of load.

The rocket is scheduled to be flown in January 2017.

The GSLV Mk III rocket is expected to save precious foreign exchange for India as it pays to launch heavier satellites through foreign space agencies.

In an interaction, ISRO Chairman AS Kiran Kumar said the agency is looking forward to developing four-tonne communication satellites that will give the same output as a six-tonner.
The residents of building number 2350 at Gali Meer Madari in Chandni Chowk were shocked to know that their address was mentioned in the Aadhaar card the Pakistani diplomat, who was detained for running an ISI espionage ring, managed to procure.

The Aadhaar card Mehmood Akhtar, who is posted at the Pakistan high commission, showed to Delhi Police has his name as Mehboob Rajput.

We have never seen any such person in the area. I am confused how our address was quoted. Media persons entered Gali Madari for the first time and unfortunately not for a good reason, said Mohammad Qasim, a 50-year-old resident.

Read | Hostilities escalate as India, Pakistan expel high commission officials

In Gali Meer Madari, building number 2350 has been home to 12 families for the last 60 years. The original owners vacated it during partition in 1947.

The buildings residents, while looking at the picture of Mehmood Akhtar, denied seeing him ever. Many of them said that despite being citizens of India, they were yet to get Aadhaar cards. But someone from across the border managed to get one.

The photo they were showing on TV was grainy. So I thought maybe he was someone from our neighbourhood. Fortunately, he was not, said Mohammad Asif, 43.

Read | Pakistan shells, fires on frontier villages along International Border, LoC

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The Supreme Court rebuked the government on Friday for scuttling the working of judiciary by sitting on the appointment of judges in various high courts despite the recommendation of a recruitment collegium.

Today we have a situation where courtrooms are locked because there are no judges. For example, Karnataka. Why dont you lock the courts? a bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur asked, adding: Executive inaction is decimating the institution (judiciary).

The bench is hearing a public interest litigation on the judicial appointment process in 24 high courts, which together have more than 450 vacancies against the sanctioned strength of 1,041.

You are scuttling the working of the institution, the bench, which has been asking the government to show urgency, said.

Read | Real issue is judicial overreach, not judges appointment

The bench disapproved of the Centres cherry-picking of names for Allahabad high court, where the government has cleared only two of the eight recommendations made by the Supreme Court collegium.

India is the only country in the world where judges appoint judges under a collegium system established by the apex court in 1993. Top judges take all decisions on judicial appointments and the government does not have any say in the process.

The National Judicial Appointment Commission (NJAC), which was enacted by Parliament with unanimous decision of political parties, was declared unconstitutional by a constitution bench last year.

Since then the government and the judiciary have been at loggerheads, with the Chief Justice of India pointing out that delay in judicial appointments was making it difficult for courts to function.

Read | Centre thwarting judges appointment, hurting judiciary: Supreme Court

CJI Thakur, who broke down earlier this year while talking about the problem, had also expressed disappointment that Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not mention the issue in his Independence Day speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort.

On the government saying the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) for judicial appointments wasnt ready, the court said it will constitute a five-judge bench to clarify that appointments should not to be held up if the MoP wasnt ready.

Initially, the court wanted to summon the secretaries of the department of justice and the Prime Ministers Office, but later chose to refrain on the attorney generals request.

Last month, attorney general Rohatgi had told the top court that the government alone cant be blamed for judicial vacancies as many posts were lying vacant for over five years.

Read | Collegium-cleared judges to be appointed in 2 months

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The arrest of two alleged spies in the espionage racket has opened a can of worms with 13 Border Security Force (BSF) officers now under the scanner for leaking secret information to the two men.

According to sources, the racket was on for the past 18 months.

Diplomat Mehmood Akhtar used to give a specific task to the two alleged spies - Maulana Ramzan Khan (50) and Subhash Jangir (37) - who would then contact personnel from the paramilitary and army to take out the required information. Their area of operation was in the border areas of Rajasthan and Gujarat.

Akhtar sitting in the Pakistan high commission in Delhi used to call a meeting and direct the men to get specific documents that included maps of the armys secret deployment, codes exchanged between army bases, inputs received from across the border and even strategies charted out on maps in a code language, a police source said.

Akhtar paid the two men between Rs 30,000 and Rs 50,000 per document. At times, they were asked to get information verbally for which they were paid between Rs 15,000 and Rs 20,000.

According to police, Maulana Ramzan Khan had a good network among personnel.

We had been tracking Maulanas movement for the past one month and found that he had a good network in the army and paramilitary. He was also in touch with former BSF personnel, one of them being his distant relative. He would visit the base as a maulana and befriend people. It is still unclear if he paid money to the personnel in exchange of information, a police source said.

Read: Condemn manhandling of our diplomat: Pak on Indias espionage charge

Sources also said the men never exchanged information or documents via email or WhatsApp.

They used to meet once in a month at either Jama Masjid or Purana Qila, where the spies used to hand over the information to the diplomat. It is during these meetings that the diplomat assigned them the next task. They were not in touch through emails and made sure they met physically, a police source said.

Recently, Akhtar had asked them to arrange a list of BSF officers deployed in the region along with their home addresses and contact details.

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Shoaib Hussain could have been arrested on Wednesday morning along with two of his associates had he not stayed back in the hotel room in Old Delhi.

According to the police, Shoaib came to Delhi from Rajasthan with Maulana Ramzan Khan and Subhash Jangir, for their monthly meeting with diplomat Mehmood Akhtar and were supposed to hand over secret documents related to border postings, troop movement maps and list of BSF personnel, in Rajasthan and Gujrat, to him. Hussain, however, chose not to come for the meeting, supposedly sensing that there may be a raid.

The trio reportedly checked into a hotel in Old Delhi on October 25. The next morning Khan and Jangir got ready for the meeting, but Shoaib refused to go with them. He told the duo that he was tired and wated to rest. The police suspects that he was asked to stay back in the hotel by an operative.

Shoaib told the police that when his associates did not return to the hotel, he called them. When their phones were found to be switched off, he sensed that they may have landed in trouble and he packed his bags and left for Rajasthan.

Police said that they got leads about Shoaib leaving for Rajasthan and they send a team to arrest him. He was nabbed in Jodhpur and brought to Delhi on Thursday night. We had been tracking his movements for the past few months. We are now questioning him on his links with other spies in other parts of the country, a police officer said.
Mehmood Akhtar, the Pakistan high commission official who was caught for espionage, was trying to gather classified information on deployment of Indian security forces along the western coast, possibly to carry out a strike similar to the 2008 Mumbai terror attack.

Akhtar was trying to gather information pertaining to deployment of security forces along the western coast, Sir Creek and Kutch areas and also about military installations in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Goa, a home ministry official said.

There have been intelligence inputs that Pakistans ISI was planning to send terrorists through the sea route to carry out a Mumbai-type terror attack in India. Akhtars activities and his interests to gather information about the western coast buttress the intelligence inputs, the official said.

166 people lost their lives when 10 terrorists, who came through the Arabian sea from Karachi, carried out mayhem for three days in Mumbai in November 2008.

Indian citizens Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir were handing over information to Akhtar about security forces deployment in the Sir Creek area and Kutch region when they were arrested.

The Pakistani official was to hand over the duo Rs 50,000 for getting information, the official said.

Before being let off because of diplomatic immunity, Akhtar confessed to police about his role in the spy ring. Delhi Police has also done video-recording of his statement.

In his statement to police, Akhtar admitted that he was part of the spy ring for more than a year.

He has named a few officers of the Pakistani high commission whom he was passing on all the information but police were yet to take action against them as there is no direct evidence as of now.

Acting on a tip-off, Delhi Police on Thursday nabbed Akhtar, along with Ramzan and Jangir, at Delhi Zoo while a visa agent from Rajasthan, Shoaib, had managed to escape.

Shoaib was detained near Jodhpur on Thursday evening and after being brought to New Delhi, he was arrested on Friday.

Akhtar was on Thursday declared persona non grata while Subhash and Maulana have been arrested on charges of passing on sensitive information and defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border. They have been sent to 12-day police custody.
Police has arrested a Jodhpur-based passport and visa agent allegedly involved in the espionage ring run by a Pakistani High Commission official.

After a tip-off, police had on Wednesday nabbed Pakistan High Commission official Mehmood Akhtar along with two Indians identified as Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir at the Delhi Zoo while the visa agent Shoaib had escaped.

Shoaib was detained near Jodhpur last evening and after being brought here, he was arrested, a senior police officer said on Friday.

While Akhtar was on Thursday declared persona non grata, Subhash and Maulana has been arrested on charges of sharing of sensitive information, defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border. They were sent to a 12-day police custody.

It was found that Shoaib was responsible for recruiting Subhash and Maulana in the module.

Shoaib had come in contact with Maulana around one-and- a-half years back and lured him into collecting vital information about the installations of army and paramilitary forces in Gujarat and Rajasthan, the officer said.

We had sent a request to Jodhpur Police about detaining Shoaib, said the officer.

Shoaibs questioning is likely to reveal information about other spies in the racket.
RSS on Friday opposed the celebration of Tipu Jayanti in Karnataka this year, saying they would stage protests against it as the ruler of the erstwhile Mysore kingdom was a religious bigot and a violent sultan.

Our outfits will be out on the streets to stage protests against Tipu Jayanti as the then Mysuru ruler was a tyrant, a religious bigot and a violent sultan, RSS kshetriya sarsanghchalak of Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, V Nagaraj told reporters here.

Tipu Jayanti, slated to be celebrated across the state on November 10, is being observed since last year following a Congress government decision which had triggered a major row and caused violence in Kodagu district in November last.

Nagaraj said celebrating Tipu Jayanti will amount to rubbing salt into the wounds of Christians and many other communities who were persecuted by the then Mysuru ruler.

Even well-known Left historian KM Pannikar had translated the records of religious persecutions of Tipu, written in Arabic and Persian languages into Malayalam and English, he said.

Replying to a query, the RSS leader asked the government to pursue the Rudresh murder case so that the killers get capital punishment.

RSS worker Rudresh was hacked to death by two motorcycle-borne men on Kamaraja Road on October 16 when he was with his friends, after attending a Sangh event.

Four persons were arrested yesterday in connection with the murder.

Nagaraj expressed satisfaction over the arrest of Rudreshs killers.

We are happy that the culprits have been arrested and we congratulate the Bengaluru police for it, he said.

However, our demand before the government is that the case will have to be properly filed and pursued so that the culprits get capital punishment, he added.

The RSS leader refuted reports that Rudresh was murdered due to personal rivalry and said there was no complaint regarding his conduct and he had a great ability to build the Sangh and the BJP in the state.
Residents of Saifai in Etawah district are seeking divine intervention to end the feud in the Samajwadi Partys first family and ward off any bad omen.

Saifai is the native village of party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and other members of the family.

A three-day Shanti Yajna (ritual for peace) began in the village on Thursday noon.

Over 20 villagers attended the daylong rituals on the Rajeshwari temple premises amid the chanting of Vedic hymns by two local priests.

Another aim of the yajna is to ensure the Samajwadi Party retains power after the 2017 UP assembly elections.

We are saddened by the happenings; All of us are tense and wish to see the family united, said Jyoti Yadav, a Saifai resident.

Sab pahle jaisa ho jaye (We hope everything falls into place), Jyoti said.

Read: In this UP village, meet the Yadav SP chief Mulayam and family listen to

Dashrath Singh Yadav, a contractor, and Sudhir Yadav, another villager, are the organisers of the yajna that will conclude with a feast for 21 girls on Saturday.

Everyone in the village is worried about the crisis in the family of netaji (Mulayam), Dashrath explains.

The yajna is a way to seek divine help so that things return to normal, he says.

We are reciting the Gayatri Mahamantra that is the biggest shield against any bad omen, says Pandit Rajesh Kumar Mishra, one of the priests officiating at the function.

Saifai, 18 km from Etawah, has a population of 7,000.

Since the crisis erupted, the entire village has maintained a stoic silence. People avoid any public discussion on the developments in the SPs ruling Yadav family.

Read: The Yadavs of Uttar Pradesh: Taking a look at Indias biggest political family
The Supreme Court on Friday tore into the government for scuttling the working of judiciary by sitting over appointments of high court judges, triggering a fresh round of confrontation with the Centre.

Today we have a situation where courtrooms are locked because there are no judges. For example, Karnataka where one floor is shut. Why dont you lock the courts and lock out justice? Chief Justice of India TS Thakur said. Executive inaction is decimating the institution (judiciary).

Hours later the Centre hit back, saying the court should make appointments in higher judiciary transparent. Minister of state for law and justice PP Chaudhary told HT that the Supreme Court collegium should focus on clearing the memorandum of procedure (MoP), a set of guidelines on appointment of judges to the apex court and high courts in the country.

The Centre and the top court are at loggerheads since the SC struck down the national judicial appointments commission (NJAC) act . The law was brought in to end more than 20-year-old practice, unique to India, of judges appointing judges under the collegium system, with government having no say in the process.

The court had asked the government to frame the MoP, to be finalised in consultation with the CJI and the collegium but the two sides have failed to agree on it.

We dont want to give rise to a situation where one institution clashes with another. We have waited patiently, but would surely save the institution from any kind of an onslaught, the CJI-headed bench told the government.

The court even wanted to summon senior PMO and justice department officials but later decided against it on attorney general Mukul Rohatgis request.

Read| Real issue is judicial overreach, not judges appointment

The countrys top law officer has till November 11 to update the court about the steps taken by the government. Rohatgi has to also explain why the government was cherry-picking from the list of candidates cleared by the collegium.

The court was hearing a public interest litigation seeking a direction to the government to speed up judicial appointments in 24 high courts which are together short of 450 judges. More than four million cases are pending in these courts.

You are scuttling the working of the institution You cannot bring the entire institution (of judiciary) to a grinding halt, the bench said.

The court, which has asked the Centre to show urgency, disapproved of the government clearing names selectively when Rohatgi said of the eight names sent for Allahabad high court, two were cleared.

What about the rest?...If you have any grievances with any names please send the files back, the CJI said. We are also humans and can make errors. We will rectify the mistake, if any.

CJI Thakur got more upset when Rohatgi said the appointments couldnt be fast-tracked because the MoP was not in place. He reminded Rohatgi that the government had assured the court that appointments would not be stalled even if the MoP was pending. If you insist that MoP should be in place then we can constitute another five-judge bench to clarify its not required, he said.

Justice Thakur said the government couldnt force a deadlock if there was no unanimity on MoP. Why did you make those appointments? Now, have you changed your mind, he asked the AG, referring to 86 appointments that were made after the court struck down NJAC.

What are you waiting for? Some kind of a revolution, the court said.

The government also came under fire from the opposition. The Congress accused the Modi government of weakening democratic institutions. This government has been systematically and deliberately undermining democratic institutions of this country, including judiciary, Congress spokesman Abhishek Manu Singhvi said.

The case will now be heard on November 11.

Read| Centre thwarting judges appointment, hurting judiciary: Supreme Court

(With inputs from Jatin Gandhi)

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Moderate separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was detained after he attempted to defy restrictions to offer prayers at the historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar, where Friday prayers have not been held for 16 consecutive weeks.

Mirwaiz, who is also the chief cleric at the mosque, tried to come out of his residence in Nigeen, where he has been under house arrest, but policemen immediately took him into custody.

He has been lodged in Nigeen police station, Mirwaizs close aide, Shahid-ul-Islam, said.

An official from the Nigeen police station confirmed the development.

Curfew was imposed earlier in the day in sensitive parts of capital Srinagar following Mirwaizs announcement on Tuesday to break the Jamia Masjid siege at Friday prayers and slammed the government for not allowing people to pray in the mosque.

Not a single soul was allowed to march towards Jamia Masjid, Islam said.

An official of Nawhatta police station confirmed that no prayers were held at the 15th-century mosque.

Police said that the curfew has been imposed in the core old city areas including Nawhatta, Rainawari, Maharaj Ganj, Khanyar and Safa Kadal. The restrictions were also imposed in volatile Batamaloo.

Separatists have been agitating since the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani in an encounter with security forces on July 8.

People have not been able to offer Friday prayers for weeks in the historic mosque in the Nawhatta area of the states summer capital as police and Central Reserve Police Force have imposed restrictions on the movement of people owing to the shutdown and protest calls by separatists.

On Thursday, Mirwaiz accused the government of sabotaging the Jamia Masjid programme and deploying massive military in and around Jamia Masjid area, sealing all roads lanes and by lanes leading to the mosque, setting up new bunkers in the area and harassing and scaring the people living there.

The rest of Kashmir, where authorities have not imposed any restrictions, was shut for the 112th day following Wanis death. Schools, colleges, businesses and public transport have been closed.

As many as 90 people, including two policemen, have lost their lives and over 10,000 have been injured in the ongoing unrest. Around 5,000 security force personnel have also been injured in the clashes. Over 300 people have been booked under stringent Public Safety Act (PSA).

In their latest protest programme for the week, the joint separatist leadership have asked people to organise a Freedom rally after the Friday prayers where the separatist leadership will address the nation.

They have also asked women and employees to organise rallies on different days during the week. On November 3, a day-long Azadi convention has been announced for the villages.
Shoaib Hussain, who allegedly helped a diplomat posted in the Pakistan High Commission here recruit spies, worked for other ISI agents as well, police sources said.

The 26-year-old was arrested by Delhi Police crime branch on Thursday night from Jodhpur and brought here.

Three Indians, all hailing from Rajasthan, were arrested for allegedly passing on secret information about border deployment to a diplomat, Mehmood Akhtar, who worked for the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and is an assistant in the high commissions trade section.

Sources said Shoaib, a passport and visa agent, not only worked for Akhtar but other ISI operatives as well.

During questioning, Shoaib hinted that he worked for ISI operatives posted in different parts of the country. We are still to ascertain if these people are posted in the High Commission or elsewhere, a police source said. We suspect it to be a big ongoing racket and more arrests are likely.

Shoaib would frequent the Pakistan High Commission with applications of people who wished to visit Pakistan to either meet their families or for trade.

During his visits, he met Akhtar, who was posted in the visa section of the High Commission.

Akhtar befriended Shoaib and asked him to rope in potential spies to work for him.

Akhtar told Shoaib that he required persons who could easily have access to army and paramilitary bases. Shoaib then went through visa applications and called few people for a general interaction. He then zeroed in on Maulana Ramzan Khan, who worked as a teacher at a local mosque, and Subhash Jangir, a vegetable vendor, both residents of Nagaur in Rajasthan, for the job, police sources said.

Akhtar offered the men good sums of money for work. Sources said Shoaib also charged between Rs 1 lakh and Rs 5 lakh for roping in people for the spying job.
An army jawan was killed on Friday and his body mutilated by a group of militants close to the line of control in Jammu and Kashmirs Macchil sector. The militants fled to Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir under the cover of Pakistani fire.

One of the infiltrators was also killed in the gunfight, an army spokesperson said. In a despicable act, the terrorists mutilated the body of the Indian Army soldier This act will invite an appropriate response, the spokesperson said. Sources said the militants, who attacked 12 Indian posts, beheaded the soldier.

The barbarism was a true reflection that pervaded official and non-official organisations across the border, the spokesperson said.

In 2013, Pakistani soldiers crossed the line of control and attacked a patrol party, killing two soldiers and mutilating the bodies. One of the soldiers was also beheaded.

Earlier in the day, the BSF said it had killed 15 Pakistani soldiers in the last one week, a claim dismissed as baseless by the Islamabad that said six civilians died in Indian firing a day ago.

Civilians continue to be in the firing line on the Indian side as well. A woman and a 15-year-old boy were killed when Pakistan targeted Indian posts and villages along the LoC on another day of heavy cross-border shelling.

An army officer and Border Security Force personnel were also injured in Poonch district, but the army and BSF denied that the men were wounded.

Talking to mediapersons, BSF additional director general Arun Kumar said the border guards had killed 15 Pakistani Rangers during the week following the death of constable Gurnam Singh who was shot by a sniper on October 21.

We lost three BSF jawans and two were injured in the past one week but we have retaliated strongly, killing at least 15 Pakistani Rangers, Kumar said.

The Pakistan army, however, said the claims were propaganda. Indian claims of killing any Pakistani soldier at the working boundary is absolutely baseless and untrue, the Pakistans Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.

Pakistans foreign ministry said six people were killed and 22 wounded in Indian firing on Thursday. The foreign office said it summoned Indian deputy high commissioner JP Singh to protest the ceasefire violations.

In Jammu, BSFs Kumar said the ammunition being used by the other side indicated that the Pakistan army had taken over from the Rangers at the border.

A 50-year-old woman, Asma Bi, was killed when a mortar shell hit her house in Goulad village in Balakote sector of Poonch, police said.

Fifteen-year-old Ajay Kumar was killed in Gigrial in Akhnoor sub-division of Jammu, where four civilians were injured Thursday night.

(With inputs from HTC Delhi, agencies)
Savji Dholakia, a generous diamond tycoon in Gujarat, is once again giving away hundreds of cars and flats to his employees as a bonus for meeting company targets.

Dholakia, who runs a diamond export firm in Surat, announced his company will give 1,260 cars, 400 flats and pieces of jewellery to his employees ahead of Diwali, which falls on the weekend.

Our aim is that each employee must have his own home and car in the next five years. So we have decided to gift cars, homes and jewellery to employees, Dholakia, owner of the Hare Krishna Exports, said.

Read | From cars to flats to jewellery for staff: Meet the super generous Savji Dholakia

...We are arranging for houses for those who already own cars, while those who dont have a four-wheeler will get one, he said.

He said the rewards were in recognition of the outstanding performance and dedication shown by employees in the last five years.

The company will be spending an estimated Rs 500 million (Rs 50 crore) under the loyalty programme to reward an unknown number of staff from a total workforce of 5,500.

Most employees receive presents of some kind from their bosses during Diwali, the festival of lights, but they are usually boxes of Indian sweets.

But Dholakia has been making headlines by giving expensive gifts to his employees since 2012, when three employees received cars for their performance.

The generous boss gave 491 cars and 207 flats to his employees under a similar programme in 2014.

The company will exclude previous years beneficiaries from the new scheme.

Dholakias firm is one of the leading polishing companies in Indias diamond hub Surat and exports diamonds to some 75 countries.

The diamond merchant, who hails from Dudhala village in Amreli district in Saurashtra region, established and nurtured his business using a loan from his uncle.
The talk of a Bihar-style grand alliance in Uttar Pradesh gained momentum on Thursday following a meeting between Congress veteran Ghulam Nabi Azad and Janata Dal (United) leader Sharad Yadav.

Sharad Yadav had also called on Congress president Sonia Gandhi at her 10, Janpath residence on Tuesday and later met Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Shivpal Yadav.

Both sides dismissed the suggestion that the meetings were held to discuss the contours of the possible grand alliance of secular parties in poll-bound UP. Both sides maintained that Sharad Yadav met Gandhi to inquire about her health and discussed with Azad the strategy for the upcoming winter session of Parliament.

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said his party has an alliance with the JD(U) in Bihar and to interpret the meetings in any other way will be wrong.

However, sources said the alliance issue also came up for discussion especially in the wake of Shivpal Yadavs statement that SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav had authorised him to explore the possibility of a mahagathbandhan on the lines of Bihar to collectively take on the communal forces in next years UP elections.

The SP chief had last year walked out of a similar rainbow coalition of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), JD(U) and the Congress for Bihar elections, but the bitter ongoing family feud has left his party weakened and prompted a rethink in his poll strategy.

While the JD(U) had already floated the idea of a fifth vertical with the Congress and the RLD of Ajit Singh as its part, these parties are clearly wary of Mulayams wavering moves and treading cautiously on the alliance path.

Officially, the Congress virtually ruled out any grand alliance in UP insisting that party vice-president Rahul Gandhi wanted to set things right in the state which is in bad shape for past 27 years.

Our stand is more than clearWe have been saying 27 saal, UP behal. Rahul Gandhis yatra is not founded on lust for power but to bring new paradigm of politics in the state, Surjewala said.
Making a veiled reference, home minister Rajnath Singh on Friday said Pakistan was indulging in a proxy war and has been trying to harm India by taking cowardly aid of terrorism.

The neighbouring country has been carrying out proxy war. But terrorism is not a weapon of the brave but of cowards. Those who fight from behind are called cowards...they take the help of terrorism, he said.

Speaking at the 55th raising day event of border guarding force Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) at its camp in Greater Noida, he said strict vigil by the force has resulted in 60% less transgressions into the Indian territory by the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army this year.

Referring to the current tensions between the two countries, he said the neighbour has been trying to harm India and was attempting to break and destabilise it by resorting to terrorism.

Singh said an evil eye is being cast on India to thwart its progress as it is marching on as one of the fastest growing economies of the world.

Situation along the Indo-Pak border continues to remain tense after terrorists attacked an Army camp in Uri killing 19 soldiers on September 17.

In a retaliatory action, Indian Army carried out surgical strikes on terror launch pads in PoK on September 27. Firing by both Indian and Pakistani forces towards each others positions have been continuing leading to several deaths on both sides.

Singh had earlier instructed border guarding forces not to fire towards the enemy first, but not to count bullets if they are fired upon.

Later, while taking questions on the ceasefire violations by Pakistan, he said, Our soldiers are responding to them befittingly.

To a question on the espionage case involving a diplomat of the Pakistani High Commission in India, he said the government is taking necessary action.
Tensions between India and Pakistan have escalated further after a Pakistani high commission staffer was briefly detained for allegedly running a spy ring that collected sensitive information about Indian security operations.

Delhi Police detained Mehmood Akhtar on Wednesday and also arrested two Indian citizens at the Delhi zoo when they were meeting to exchange sensitive documents. A third Indian was arrested on Thursday. Akhtar, who was released from custody under diplomatic immunity rules, has been asked to leave the country by Saturday.

Pakistan has denied the charge and accused Indian investigators of manhandling Akhtar. It also expelled an Indian embassy staff in a tit-for-tat move, saying Surjeet Singhs activities were against diplomatic norms. New Delhi has rejected Pakistans accusations.

Read: Pak diplomat met spies every month, gave them tasks to extract information

Here are 10 things to know about the latest controversy:

Delhi Police crime branch arrested two Indian nationals over charges of spying for Pakistan in New Delhi. (Sonu Mehta/HT Photo)

1. Akhtar initially identified himself as Mehmood Rajput on being questioned and was carrying a forged Aadhaar card that said he was a resident of building number 2350 at Gali Meer Madari in Chandni Chowk.

2. He later told Delhi Police he is a serving head constable with the Pakistan Armys Baloch Regiment, which he joined in 1997, and he came on deputation to the Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI) in 2013.

3. Akhtar had been working with the Pakistan high commission in India for the past three years where he was assigned the visa consultation unit. He was warned by his seniors to lie low because they believed there are Indian spies in the high commission.

4. At the visa section, Akhtar checked every application to find out about the financial status of the applicants. He also checked if the applicants had relatives in Pakistan and tried exploiting poor residents.

5. Delhi Police have said Akhtar used to recruit Indians for spying and send information to Pakistan for the last one-and-a-half years. Documents on defence deployment and border area maps were recovered from the three men. They had lists of BSF men who were deployed, transferred or retired.

6. The two arrested Indian citizens have been identified as Rajasthans Maulana Ramzan Khan and Subhash Jangid. Sohaib Nagaur, the third person who was arrested later, is a visa agent and was allegedly working as a spy for Pakistans ISI.

7. Akhtar used to give a specific task to Khan (50) and Jangid (37) who would then contact personnel from the paramilitary and army from border areas of Rajasthan and Gujarat for the required information. Akhtar recently asked them to arrange a list of BSF officers deployed in the region along with their home addresses and contact details.

8. Khan, a native of Barmer district, moved to Nagaur several years ago and was the imam of the Qureshi mosque in the city. Jangid belongs to Inana village and fought the 2013 assembly elections as an independent from the Khinwsar constituency. Jangid ran into heavy debt after the polls and moved to Nagaur to set up his business.

9. Neighbours claimed that Jangid frequented Delhi for purchasing goods for his shop and that Ramzan did not have many friends in the area but a large number of outsiders used to visit him.

10. The men never exchanged information or documents via email or WhatsApp. They used to meet once in a month at either Jama Masjid or Purana Qila, where the spies used to hand over the information to the diplomat, who assigned them the next task.

Read: Residents shocked to know their address was on Pak diplomats Aadhaar card

Read: Expelled diplomat Akhtar tried to exploit people with kin in Pakistan
A woman was shot and killed by unknown gunmen in Jammu and Kashmirs Pulwama district on Friday evening, police said.

Unknown gunmen fired upon a woman identified as Bebee, wife of Muhammad Yousuf Matoo, in Naiana Batpora village of Pulwama district outside her residence today (Friday) evening. She succumbed at the hospital, police said in Srinagar.

Police said unknown persons also torched a school in Dooru area of Anantnag district on Friday evening.

In another incident, the vehicle of a ruling PDP activist was torched by miscreants in Chinkral Mohalla (Habba Kadal) locality of Srinagar city, an official said.
Into the Inferno

Director - Werner Herzog

Rating - 4/5

The soil that we are walking upon is not permanent. There is no permanence. No permanence to what we are doing, no permanence to the efforts of human beings. No permanence to art. No permanence to science. These are words you could only hear in a Wener Herzog film, spoken, hopefully, in that famed, unmistakably meditative monotone, by the legend himself.

There will be many quotes in this review. To not quote Herzog, one of the bravest, most important filmmakers to ever pick up a camera, and certainly the one blessed with the most iconic voice since Elvis, would be like going to one of The Kings shows and not humming the songs on your way back home.

Into the Inferno, his newest documentary, comes just a few months after his last one, and in true Herzog fashion, both films couldnt be more different. In Lo & Behold, he brought his trademark existentialism in an examination of artificial intelligence, virtual reality and the Internet - even offering Elon Musk to be his test subject as they send people on one-way trips to Mars. But for Into the Inferno, Herzog returns to a subject that has fascinated him for years. He made a short film about it in 1977 (La Soufriere) and will revisit it for his next fiction film, also due out this year (Salt and Fire).

Volcanoes.

Yes, volcanoes.

His words, the cadence with which he says them elevates his subjects. He finds magic in the unlikeliest places. Here, he isnt simply talking about volcanoes, and the all-consuming power they wield. He isnt just investigating their importance to different cultures around the world, from the birthplace of humanity in Ethiopia to the birthplace of North Korean dictatorship. He is a philosopher, a thinker of the highest order. He is incapable of making an empty film. In the words of the great critic Roger Ebert, Even his failures are spectacular.

Fortunately, Into the Inferno is one of his better ones.

Werner Herzog and Clive Oppenheimer (L), take a peek Into The Inferno. (Netflix)

For decades, he has obsessed, like so many of his characters, about one idea, the theme that connects several of his films  from the fictional ones like Fitzcarraldo and Aguirre, the Wrath of God to his documentaries (which I prefer). Films like Grizzly Man, Encounters at the End of the World are all driven by eccentric men at their centre, isolated at the outer reaches of civilisation, and their extraordinary dreams. Impossible dreams. They are puny, insignificant against their chosen adversary, nature  born with death sentences hanging like a noose around their necks, but also with unrelenting ambition.

Herzog says as much when he visits Indonesia in this film, accompanied by Professor Clive Oppenheimer, his volcanologist friend and presenter. Obviously, there was a scientific side to our journey, he says, But what we were chasing was the magical side; the demons, the new gods.

The crew gazes Into The Inferno in a production still from Werner Herzogs new documentary. (Netflix)

It could not care less about what we are doing up here, Herzog says, speaking of the inconceivably majestic, living force of nature beneath his feet. This boiling mass is monumentally indifferent to scurrying roaches, retarded reptiles and vapid humans alike.

When they go to Iceland, whose cold, black landscape doubled as alien territory in films like Interstellar and Prometheus, Herzog recites from an ancient document predicting a volcanic apocalypse. Neath the sea, the land sinketh, the sun dimmeth. From the heavens fall the fair bright stars, gusheth forth steam and gutting fire, he says, turning the yellowed, crumbling pages. Toward the heavens soared the hurtling flames. The fates I fathom, yet farther I see of the mighty gods, the engulfing doom comes the darks and dragon flying

The Inferno looks back at Werner Herzog, and terrified of what it sees, erupts. (Netflix)

For decades, Werner Herzog has invoked that famous Nietzsche quote in his work: If you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you. He even named a film after it in 2011 (his death penalty documentary Into the Abyss). He questions the role of man, insignificant in his opinion, in the grander scheme of things. In Into the Inferno, he has created one of the most literal metaphors of his career. There is a hypnotic power to seeing men, gazing up at the towering infernos in front of them, their chrome protective gear making them appear minuscule, insect-like against the all-consuming volcanoes. But Werner Herzog is here, as he has been for more than four decades, capturing this foolishness.

But does Herzog realise, that for more than four decades, he has been staring into his own abyss... his own inferno? Does he know what documenting these stories can do to a man? These stories of tragedy and hope and loss that he learns about, staring into eyes just as insane as his

Follow @htshowbiz for more

The author tweets @NaaharRohan

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The Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay (IITB) has warned its students against engaging in religious preaching on campus, after authorities found some senior students and external organisations proselytising and distributing pamphlets outside the institute gate and hostels.

In an email to all the students at the premier institute, Soumyo Mukherjee, dean, students affair, wrote that these activities are against the rules and regulations of the hostels, adding those who participate in them will be punished.

Another email by editors of Insight, IITBs in-house magazine, suggests there have been many recent instances of different religious and cultural groups from outside the institute visiting campus, with the help of senior students and staff and indulging students, especially freshmen, in proselytising activities.

We came across multiple instances of pamphlet distribution around hostels and outside the main gate, inviting students to these group activities. These cultural groups claim to be conducting sessions to benefit students, but in truth have been found proselytising religious beliefs on campus, read the mail.

According to sources, several groups cutting across religious lines are active on campus. While students belonging to Tableeghi Jamat  the movement to promote Islam  court other students in the hostels, Hindu neo-spiritual groups often promote workshops on yoga and stress management. Some Christian groups allegedly distribute pamphlets and a few Hindu students are said to be running a daily shakha (meeting of the local unit) at IIT-B.

Mukherjee, who found out about these activities through some student mentors, said extreme religiosity could distract students from academics. The students might not be studying and reading religious texts instead, he said, adding that the institute is trying to reduce students overall involvement in extra-curricular activities.

While accepting that preaching ones belief is a constitutional right, he said, I dont have problem with a discourse, but proselytising with the intention of converting someone is different. In a hostel, some constitutional rights have to be given up for the sake of discipline, he said.

The decision has not gone down well with some students who believe that these activities are harmless. They point out that only a small group of students is involved in religious activities in a campus that is buzzing with all kinds of extra-curricular activities.

IIT students are not robots. Just because they stay in a hostel, doesnt mean they study for 24 hours a day. Some may go for movies, others may partake in religious activities, said an MTech student.

A PhD student said the impact of such activities on academics cant be generalised. Some students become more focused in their study as religion keeps them away from useless activities. On the contrary, many students, who are involved in festivals such as Mood Indigo, lose out on academics, he said.

However, some students agreed with the step taken by the institute. We dont know what these external groups are putting the students through, said Shreeyash Menon, an editor of Insight.

Others suggested that grouped religious activities may lead to conflicts at the premier institute. Unlike JNU, IIT-B is a technical institute. One should refrain from these activities to preserve its prestige, said another PhD student.

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In a bid to get rid of IAS officer Tukaram Mundhe, elected representatives from Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) on Friday met chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray to ensure that the state government does not supersede the resolution passed by them to send Mundhe back to the government.

The exercise was undertaken after Fadnavis indicated backing Mundhe by saying that he is an efficient officer and Navi Mumbai needs him.

The nine-member delegation led by mayor Sudhakar Sonawane first met Thackeray and later Fadnavis at his official residence late in the evening demanding that their resolution be accepted which would lead to Mundhes exit from the satellite city. Fadnavis, however, assured them that the decision would be taken considering all the sides, claimed sources.

In a special meeting convened on October 25, NMMC corporators passed a no-confidence motion against Mundhe with 104-6 vote in the 111-member House. Members from Congress and Shiv Sena supported the motion proposed by the ruling Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), while six BJP corporators voted against it. The state government, however, can use its special powers to suspend or rescind the resolution.

Mundhe, who was hand-picked by the chief minister, has also submitted a report to the state government on the entire episode and Fadnavis is likely to take a call on the issue only by next week. The municipal commissioner has also received ample support from the citizens for cracking down on corruption in the civic body of Mumbais satellite city, and acting swiftly on illegal encroachments.

Sena, who is at the side of corporators, said any decision allowing Mundhe to continue to serve at the post will be considered as anti-public. Everyone is against Mundhe and staying him on the post is against public interest, said a senior Sena leader, requesting not to be named.

Meanwhile, according to sources, the elected representatives had plans of meeting governor C Vidyasagar Rao but the idea was later shelved due to time constraint.

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Former Hollywood couple Lady Gaga and Taylor Kinney is reportedly thinking about giving their relationship a second chance.

According to a source, Gaga, who ended her engagement with her former fiance in July after five years of dating, is still in contact with the actor and is thinking about rekindling their romance, reports dailymail.co.uk.

Gaga and Taylor are talking every day about giving it a second chance, Life & Style magazine quoted a source as saying.

The duo started their relationship in 2011 after meeting on the set of her You and I music video.

It was earlier reported that Kinney has begun a new relationship with a South Philadelphia woman called Alanna DiGiovanni.

Taylor Kinney has starred in films like Zero Dark Thirty and TV series Chicago Fire. (YouTube Grab)
The Haryana government on Thursday dismissed another 53 of around 12,000 employees of National Health Mission (NHM) who continued their strike for the third day to press for their demands, including regularisation of their services.

As health services across the state continued to be hit by the strike, health minister Anil Vij also ordered imposition of Section 144 of Cr PC within a radius of one km of hospitals so as to keep striking employees at a distance.

Vij said those dismissed included nine NHM employees each in Gurugram and Sirsa districts, six each in Sonepat and Palwal, five in Panchkula, four each in Faridabad and Jind, three each in Bhiwani and Rewari, and two each in Hisar and Karnal.

They were preventing other employees from performing their duties. Earlier also, we had dismissed six employee leaders, he said.

Similar action would be taken against those who would continue the strike, he added.

On the impact of the strike on health services in the state, Vij said orders had been issued to all civil surgeons to engage new drivers for ambulances in place of the drives of the referral transport services who went on strike, so that patients did not suffer.

He said a number of striking employees had decided to return to work in various districts that on Thursday.

Meanwhile, extending support to the NHM employees protest, the Haryana Sarv Karmchari Sangh urged chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar to intervene to resolve the issue.

WONT TOLERATE STRIKE: VIJ

Health minister Anil Vij said strike cannot be tolerated at a time when NHM employees are needed the most as there was outbreak of dengue and chikungunya in the state. They were warned not to go on strike, still they went ahead with it, he said while alleging that former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda had appointed his workers in NHM during the Congress regime by setting aside all rules. Now, these employees are instigating and forcing others to go on strike, he added.

WILL FIGHT TILL END: NHM

Dr Atul Gijwani, general secretary, NHM employees association, said, It is unjust on the part of government to have taken such a stand against us. It is our right to demand regularisation of our service as most of us have been working with NHM for over 15 years at low salaries. Also, the state government had assured us of regularising our services and even started preparing a policy to do so on the lines of Punjab and New Delhi. If the government continues stifling our voice, we will intensify our agitation.
Showing scant regard for protection of child rights, the district administration is sitting on more than 650 release certificates (RCs) of the rescued child labourers who were employed in various commercial and domestic establishments in Ludhiana. As a result, the rehabilitation of these child labourers is in a limbo over a period of 4 years now.

Attribute it to the sheer apathy on the part of the district administration or a deliberate attempt to stage eyewash; these child labourers, mostly working in industrial units in Ludhiana were rescued from 2012-2016, release certificates are either not prepared or are lying pending with the child welfare commission and respective SDMs (sub-divisional magistrate).

Sources in the administration revealed that 121 RCs are pending with the district child rights protection office (a unit of CWC), 103 RCs are pending with SDM (east) and 58 RCs are not even signed by administrative officials, while around 350 RCs certificates are not even prepared.

As per the data procured from an NGO, 607 children have been rescued by the administration till June 2016, while a number of raids conducted afterwards put that number to 650 till now, as claimed by a member of the NGO. The Bonded Labour Act, 1976, mandates that a release certificate is a must for the economic and academic rehabilitation of the rescued child labourers and a grant of Rs1 lakh (male child labour) to Rs 3 lakh (Rs 2 lakh for female while Rs 3 lakh for rape victims) be released for the purpose by the resident commissioner of the native state of the rescued child.

The district education and labour department have also played their part by giving tacit approval to the menace condescendingly. The State Action Plan for Elimination of Child Labour mandates that the education department must enroll the rescued child labours to provide them elementary education but not even a single child is enrolled.

Similarly, the district labour department officials did not forward the records of majority of the rescued child labours, in the absence of which the process to release certificates could not be completed.

Moreover, the administration has failed to ensure that former get their back wages (wages for the extra work taken by their employer).

OFFICIALS PASS THE BUCK

When contacted, in their bid to avoid divulging the details about the enrolment of rescued child labours, Gurjot Singh, district education officer, primary and Paramjeet Kaur, DEO, secondary, passed the buck to each other.

The deputy commissioner of Ludhiana, Ravi Bhagat, who is the chairman of the District Taskforce Committee for Elimination of Child Labour, could not be contacted despite repeated attempts.

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Former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot was on Friday appointed as the head of the Congress screening committee for Punjab assembly polls. This six-member screening committee will scrutinise applications for party ticket for the upcoming assembly polls in the state, and the partys central election committee will finalise the candidates thereafter in consultation with the party leadership.

Besides Gehlot, the committee comprises party secretary in charge of the state Asha Kumari, Punjab Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh, Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Charanjit Singh Channi, former Indian Youth Congress chief Rajiv Satav and former MP Meenakshi Natarajan.

The announcement was made by chief Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala, who said party president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi have approved the setting up of the committee.

Congress has been in political wilderness for 10 years in the state and is striving to get power back from the ruling Akali-BJP combine. The party, which is going to polls with former CM Capt Amarinder Singh as its face, is facing stiff competition from the new entrant Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

The high-stakes Punjab Assembly election is slated for early next year and campaigning is on in full swing in the state.
The police, on Thursday, claimed to have busted a gang, involved in the smuggling of weapons from Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), and arrested two persons, including a resident of Kathua in J&K, and recovered eight illegal weapons from them.

Inspector general of police (IGP), Bathinda zone, SK Asthana, along with senior superintendent of police (SSP) Swapan Sharma, said at a press conference here that one Rocky, a resident of Ruldu Singh Wala village, here was nabbed by the police a few days ago with an illegal weapon who, during interrogation, revealed his links with the gang. Rocky is now out on bail.

The police have arrested another accused, Kamaljit Singh alias Rinku, a resident of Jasrota in Kathua while his accomplice Birbant from Sirsa in Haryana is yet to be nabbed. The police have recovered eight made-in-China .30-bore pistols with 100 cartridges from the accused. Rocky revealed that he and Birbant Singh had met at a marriage ceremony seven years ago. Both contacted Rinku for supply of weapons saying that the .30 bore pistols were in huge demand. Rinku used to purchase the weapons from a fruit seller in Srinagar and supply the same to Rocky and Birbant . said Asthana. The accused bought an arm at Rs 1.5 to 2 lakh and sell it between Rs 3 lakh to Rs 6 lakh.
Minister of state for external affairs VK Singhs timely intervention has paved way for the safe return of about 1,000 Indian workers who were allegedly being harassed by a private construction company in Saudi Arabia.



However, these workers will return empty-handed as their employer, Saad Group, has refused to pay their salaries and other benefits for the past several months.

Talking to Hindustan Times from the industrial city of Dammam in Saudi Arabia, Veer Singh, who belongs to Yamunanagar, said, VK Singh had come here and taken up the matter with the labour ministry of Saudi Arabia. Now the Indian embassy here will provide us visas to return to India. Most of the workers will hopefully reach India around Diwali.

Veer Singh, who moved to Saudi Arabia around five years ago, along with his Yamunanagar based friend Suresh Kumar, on a work permit, will be returning without any money. He alleged that the company did not provide them the salary and other benefits for the past ten months.

The construction company owes around Rs 32 crore to 1,000 workers which they have refused to pay us. Now, we have to return without money, he said.

He added, We have filed a case in a labour court of Saudi Arabia. Officials of the Indian embassy told us that they will send the money into our accounts, if the court decision comes in our favour.

Meanwhile, parents of Veer Singh are waiting eagerly for his return even as they resent that he is returning empty-handed after a hard work of several years.

My son will be coming back after five years, but without any money as his company did not pay his salary for the past 10 months. The workers did not even get food and other benefits from the company, said Gurnam Singh, father of Veer Singh.

Union minister of external affairs Sushma Swaraj ji should take up this issue with the government of Saudi Arabia, he demanded. The construction company had not renewed their identity cards, which are mandatory to go outside the factory, for the past ten months.

Veer Singh said they had filed a police complaint against the company and also approached the labour court and the Indian embassy, following which Sushma Swaraj had intervened in the matter. On October 20, Swaraj tweeted, Indian workers in Saad group will start returning home today. My colleague @GenVKSingh is in Saudi Arabia to accomplish this task.

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Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan has been shooting for Sarkar 3, the third installment of Ram Gopal Varmas thriller set in the world of Maharashtra politics. He has been posting pictures from the shoot regularly. On Oct 27, however, he has a special guess -- Baahubali director SS Rajamouli. Big B posted pictures of them together.

The 74-year-old actor tweeted a moment of the meet and wrote alongside, The genius director Rajamouli of that colossal film Bahubali on set of SARKAR 3 .. a simple humble man !!

T 2424 - The genius director Rajamouli of that colossal film 'Bahubali' on set of SARKAR 3 .. a simple humble man !! pic.twitter.com/c6K8vPQpC1  Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) October 27, 2016

The third installment of the Ram Gopal Varmas Sarkar franchise is loosely based on Hollywoods Godfather and has vamped up the entire cast, which includes Manoj Bajpayee, Ronit Roy, Amit Sadh, Jackie Shroff, Bharat Dhabolkar and Rohini Hattangadi.

Big B, who features as Subhash Sarkar Nagare in the movie, expressed his happiness of being a part of the movie over a tweet.

This SARKAR 3 is getting more out of everyone, than any before .. privileged and so humbled that 3 series contain me .. he wrote.

T 2424 -This SARKAR 3 is getting more out of everyone, than any before .. privileged and so humbled that 3 series contain me .. pic.twitter.com/3evZ3NeeHK  Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) October 27, 2016

He even took to his blog to post on the films preliminary reception and wrote, I saw the first scene of Sarkar 3 edited by RGV of Ram Gopal Varma and shared it with some. A stunned silence preceded the gushing praise that followed. From common house wives to seasoned head of work departments, If this is the first scene, they said, wonder what will happen after this and how will the strength of the first scene remain in such prominence compared to what shall follow later.

Meanwhile, Rajamouli will release the second and final part of his epic drama Baahubali on April 28, next year.

Last week, on Prabhas birthday, the makers revealed the films first look and Rajamouli wrote alongside, MAHENDRA BAAHUBALI is ARRIVING .... #Baahubali2FirstLook. #WKKB. .

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Arjun Bijlani: On this auspicious day, I plan not only to buy some gold, but to do something for the needy. I plan to go to orphanage and treat them to some really good food.

Divyanka Tripathi Dahiya: I will be buying a gold coin this Dhanteras because I think thats the best way to invest money. This is my first Dhanteras after marriage, so its even more special.

Actor Divyanka Tripathi Dahiya is investing her money by buying gold coins.

Shivin Narang : I have been planning to buy a phone for a while now, but I decided to wait until Dhanteras as this day is auspicious . In tune with tradition, I will buy a gold ring too.

Actor Shivin Narang has been waiting for Dhanteras to come to buy a new phone.

Deepika Singh : For me, on Dhanteras it is important that I buy something in gold. Could be jewellery or coins... what exactly Ill decide when I actually go shopping, but its going to be gold for sure.

Actor Deepika Singh says she will either buy jewellery or gold coin this year.

Ssharaad Malhotraa: Like every year, this year, too, I look forward to buying something for the house, may be an artifact, a painting, cutlery, or perhaps a piece of furniture. Last year, I bought some gold because the markets appeared to be doing really well, and everyone said it would be a great time to invest. This year, maybe Ill go for a a silver chain instead, since I dont own a single one.

Actor Ssharad Malhotraa is thinking of buying something for his house this year.

Vivian Dsena: I will buy gold biscuits this Dhanteras. Gold is considered lucky and gives me a positive feeling too, so this is something I do every year. I also look at it as a form of investment. Its not just about money but the emotions attached to what I buy on this auspicious occasion.

Actor Vivan Dsena is planning to buy gold biscuits this Dhanteras.

Hunar Hale : This is going to be my first Dhanteras after my wedding. We have made a huge investment in our house in Mumbai in terms of setting it up, but as a ritual, I plan to buy two silver coins this year and hope to continue doing that every year.

Actor Hunal Hale is buying two silver coins this year.

Karan Patel : Every year, my mother buys something for Dhanteras and now since I have got married I, will also buy something this year. It is going to be a one silver coin and one gold coin.

Like every year, actor Karan Patel plans to buy something for his mother.

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Trump Place Apartments are luxury living at one of New Yorks finest addresses, with marble floors, grand entrance halls, attentive doormen and magnificent views across the Hudson River.

But behind closed doors, residents are squabbling over whether to remove the Republican nominees name from the facade to protest his divisive run for president and allegations that he sexually assaulted women.

A group of residents from the complex on Riverside Drive -- on the Upper West Side, a wealthy, generally liberal enclave -- launched a petition two weeks ago to take down the large letters that spell out Trump on the front of the building.

The New York billionaires name is his core asset, emblazed on a dozen skyscrapers dotted around Manhattan, helping him amass a personal fortune that is partly bankrolling his bid for the Oval Office.

The petition slams Trumps appalling treatment of women, history of racism, attacks on immigrants, mockery of the disabled, tax avoidance and outright lying as antithetical to the values in which the organizers believe.

Many of the staff are minorities or immigrants, and working in a building that bears the Trump name is insulting, it says.

Since Trump leases his name to buildings he does not own, part of our rent is being used to increase Trumps net worth, it complained.

So far, 465 supporters have signed the petition. But not everyone is on board in the cossetted corridors of homes to the rich and successful, including CEOs of companies such as KPMG, Viacom and HSBC.

I think its nonsense, said one harried father disappearing into an elevator. When they are going to have to pay for it, they are not going to do it.

One of the buildings on Riverside Drive bearing the Trump name is seen in New York. (AFP File Photo)

We live here regardless, and we love the staff, thats all that matters, said Ann Rae, who walks passes through the building at least three times a day to walk her dog and says she has always been friendly with everyone.

Some of the people who have signed -- we dont even know them, not even sure they live here, she said.

Not going to change anything

Its not that we like the name... its disgusting some of what Trump has said, Rae added. But its one of the things about living in New York -- there are so many things and buildings in New York that say Trump.

Its not going to change anything, taking out the name, she said.

But Brittany Ashby, mother of two young children, said she was in favour of the petition.

She rents a two-bedroom apartment for $9,000 a month that she believes is worth several million dollars -- not one of the buildings priciest.

I am only a renter, by the time anything gets done, I will be out of there, she said. But if I owned a place, and you are there for life, to be associated with it forever, that is a different thing.

The petition is not listed for discussion at the buildings next board meeting, scheduled for late November. By then, after the election, it could be a moot point, Ashby admitted.

Democrat Hillary Clinton holds the momentum two weeks before the November 8 election, and polls give her a commanding lead over Trump.

But the petition reflects the growing threat to Trumps business interests from his self-inflicted wounds on the campaign trail, which have already cost him at least one business associate.

Luxury apartments in buildings bearing his name no longer command sale price premiums, despite being up seven percent on the market rate last year, according to a study by the Redfin real estate agency.

The Trump Organization did not respond directly to requests for comment about the petition.

But a spokesperson told AFP: The sole focus of our property management division is to provide unparalleled white glove service, meticulous attention to detail and a warm friendly atmosphere.

We will continue to exceed all expectations while providing the highest levels of luxury and service.
In his latest attempt to cast doubt on the election process, GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump raised suspicions on Thursday about the voting machines in reliably Republican Texas despite producing no evidence of an actual problem.

A lot of call-ins about vote flipping at the voting booths in Texas. People are not happy. BIG lines. What is going on? Trump said in a message to his followers on Twitter.

An email sent to his campaign to determine where the candidate got his information was not immediately returned.

Texas secretary of state Carlos Cascos, a Republican, said on Facebook that there was no evidence of vote-flipping, a term generally used to describe a correctable technical glitch on older electronic voting machines. Cascos spokesperson said he was responding to speculation circulating on social media.

Our office has received reports concerning rumors that some voting machines may be changing candidate selections when voters cast straight party ballots, Cascos said in his statement, which was posted a day before Trump sent his Twitter message. We are actively monitoring the situation, and have yet to receive any verified reports of machines changing votes.

Cascos spokesperson added that the reports the office has received have not come from voters who personally experienced a problem. Local election officials have said the machines are not malfunctioning and some voters may be inadvertently making errors.

The machines work exactly as intended. There was no vote-flipping, said Shannon Lackey, the elections administrator of Randall County, in the Texas Panhandle.

Vote-flipping generally describes a circumstance in which a voter claims an electronic voting machine  usually of the touchscreen variety  changed the selection from one candidate to another. Election officials say those claims usually are traced to user error.

When they do occur, it is typically during a process called straight-ticket voting that is used to select all candidates from one party. Voters might press the button next to a candidate a second time to affirm their choice, but instead wind up de-selecting the candidate.

If voters notice a wrong selection, they can correct it before submitting their ballot.

The case cited in Randall County involved straight voting on a machine made by Hart InterCivic that uses a wheel to make selections. In many instances, calibration errors on touchscreen machines  the Diebold AccuVote is the most famous for this  have led to flipping. The machines simply need to be recalibrated.

In Georgia, a voter this week reported trying to cast an early ballot for Clinton but said Trumps name kept showing up instead. A spokesperson for secretary of state, Brian Kemp, said it appeared the county improperly tested the machine but said its office was confident machines were not flipping votes.

Trump has claimed over the final weeks of the presidential campaign that the election is rigged against him and suggested the possibility of widespread voter fraud. The billionaire has provided no evidence supporting those claims.

In the meantime, voting rights groups in Texas said there is actual evidence of misinformation at some polling places over a newly weakened voter ID law.

Voters who do not have one of seven previously required forms of photo ID can cast a ballot this year by signing an affidavit, but some polling locations put up outdated signs listing the old rules.

A hotline set up by voting rights watchdogs has received about 300 calls since early voting started in Texas on Monday, said Zenen Jaimes Perez, a spokesperson for the Texas Civil Rights Project. He said some callers said they were mistakenly turned away because they didnt have a photo ID.

Perez said the problems do not seem to be an overt attempt to suppress the vote.

I dont think weve seen a trend of intentionally trying to get people out of line, he said.

The stricter ID law was passed in 2011 by the Republican-led state Legislature and was found by a federal appeals court this summer to disproportionately affect minorities and poorer people, who tend to vote Democratic. Texas had enforced the full law in previous elections but was under court order to let voters without a photo ID cast a ballot this time.

Trumps suggestion of problems in Texas is all the more unusual because the state is so reliably Republican. While polls show a tighter than normal presidential race, Texas has not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since Jimmy Carter in 1976 and Hillary Clinton is not campaigning there.
The famous Afghan girl immortalised on a 1985 cover of National Geographic magazine, who was arrested by Pakistani authorities on charges of possessing forged identity papers, is likely to be released next week, the Afghan envoy in Islamabad said on Friday.

Omar Zakhilwal, who has been pursuing the case of 46-year-old Sharbat Gula with Pakistani officials, said a court in Peshawar will hear case on November 1, in which we expect Sharbat Gula to be released.

He said in a post on his official Facebook page that an Afghan legal team had taken up Sharbat Gulas case with legal departments. He also took up her case with Pakistans foreign policy chief Sartaj Aziz.

The arrest in Peshawar of Sharbat Gula, one of the worlds most recognised and famous and Afghanistans most beloved image, has deeply saddened all Afghans without exception and has hurt their emotions, Zakhilwal wrote in his post.

The action was a complete contradiction of the Pakistan governments efforts to win hearts and minds in Afghanistan, he added.

In light of the implications Sharbat Gulas arrest as well as release can have for Pak-Afghan people-to-people relations and also the legal weaknesses with the case on which she is charged, I requested Mr Sartaj Aziz that the Pakistan federal government issues a directive to release Sharbat Gula immediately. Mr Sartaj Aziz gave me his assurances for which I am grateful, he said.

Zakhilwal also dismissed the charges leveled against Sharbat Gula, saying the Pakistani identity card she had was not fake and neither was it obtained fraudulently. He added there were more than 500,000 Afghan refugees who had been issued Pakistani IDs and the interior ministry was very well aware of this.

He pointed out a deadline set by Pakistan for Afghan refugees to return these ID cards was November 15, which was more than two weeks away.

If Sharbat Gula is released, the Afghan government will facilitate her familys immediate repatriation and support her to resettle in her own country, Zakhilwal said. The envoy said Sharbat Gulas husband and eldest daughter had died and she had sold her house just before her arrest.

Sharbat Gula was arrested with two men, said to be her sons, in Peshawar on Wednesday. An official of Pakistans National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) said she could face seven to 14 years in jail and a fine of up to $5,000 if convicted by court of fraud.

In 1984, National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry took the haunting image of Sharbat Gula, then aged about 12, at Nasir Bagh refugee camp on the edge of Peshawar. The photo, which became the most famous cover image in the magazines history, was likened to Leonardo Da Vincis Mona Lisa.

After a 17-year search, McCurry tracked Sharbat Gula in 2002 to a remote Afghan village, where she was married to a baker and the mother of three daughters. National Geographic also made a documentary about her life that dubbed her the Mona Lisa of the Afghan war.

Some three million Afghan refugees live in Pakistan, especially in the northwestern Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province and the semi-autonomous tribal areas. Many Afghans fled their country after the Soviet invasion in 1979 and some obtained identity papers in a bid to stay on in Pakistan.
An airstrike in Afghanistan on Friday hit the home of a Taliban commander in the eastern province of Nangarhar and caused several civilian casualties, government and insurgent spokesmen said.

The strike targeted the home of Mawlawi Mohammad Alam, a Taliban commander in the Sherzad district, said Attaullah Khogyani, a spokesman for the provincial governor, adding that there were casualties but he could not confirm numbers.

A police official said the strike was carried out by an unmanned aircraft and killed four people inside the house.

A dozen wounded civilians, among them seven children and five women, were taken to the local hospital, said Najibullah Kamawal, the director of provincial health services, four of them in critical condition.

U.S. forces had carried out a strike in Sherzad on Friday in defence of friendly forces, a spokesman for the NATO-led Resolute Support mission said in Kabul, the capital, but gave no details. Reports of civilian casualties would be investigated, he added.

We take all allegations of civilian casualties seriously and will work with our Afghan partners to review all related material, Brigadier General Charles Cleveland said in an emailed statement.

In a statement, the Taliban said American and Afghan forces had carried out a ground attack on Mohammad Alams home, followed by an airstrike, in which two civilians were killed and more than 30 wounded.

The United States has unleashed many raids against Islamic State and al Qaeda militants in eastern Afghanistan, most recently on Sunday, when officials said two al Qaeda leaders were killed in the neighbouring province of Kunar.

However, new combat rules issued this year have also given U.S. commanders greater scope to attack Taliban militants, pushing up the number of airstrikes sharply.
China on Friday objected to a scheduled visit to Arunachal Pradesh by Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama, saying it would damage ties with India and amount to New Delhi breaching a political commitment on the boundary issue.

Beijings sharp reaction came after it became known the Dalai Lama would visit Arunachal Pradesh  claimed by China as south Tibet  in early 2017 at the invitation of state Chief Minister Pema Khandu.

We are seriously concerned about the relevant information, foreign ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said on Friday when he was asked about the planned visit.

Chinas strong reactions on the issue of Arunachal Pradesh  twice in less than a week - are the latest indication that bilateral ties continue to be rocky.

Read | On Arunachal Pradesh, New Delhi must tell Beijing to mind its own business

For China, the Dalai Lamas visit is doubly troublesome - first, it claims Arunachal Pradesh, and second, Beijing considers the spiritual leader a secessionist engaged in anti-China activities. China usually refers to the Dalai Lama a dangerous splittist plotting Tibetan independence, a charge he denies, saying he is only seeking autonomy for the region.

He last visited Arunachal Pradesh in 2009 amid strong objections by China.

Chinas position on the eastern section of the China-India border is consistent and clear. The Dalai clique is engaged in anti-China separatist activities and has very disgraceful behaviour on issues relating to the China-India boundary question, Lu said, lashing out at the Dharamsala-based Tibetan leader.

The Indian side is well aware of the severity of the Dalai Lama issue as well as the sensitivity of the China-India boundary question.

Lus reaction was unequivocal about Chinas stand on the issue: Under such circumstances, Indias invitation to the Dalai Lama for activity in the disputed areas between China and India will only damage peace, stability of the border areas as well as the bilateral relationship between China and India.

We require the Indian side to honour the political commitment on Tibet-related issues and abide by the bilateral consensus on boundary question, refrain from taking any action that may complicate the issue.

Read | Nothing unusual about US envoy Vermas visit to Arunachal: India

He said India should not provide any platform for anti-China separatist activities by the 14th Dalai Lama. By doing so can we maintain sound and steady growth of the bilateral relations.

Last week, Beijing reacted strongly to US envoy Richard Vermas October 22 tour of the Tawang region of Arunachal Pradesh, saying the ambassador visited a disputed region.

External affairs ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup described the Dalai Lama as an honoured guest of India and said he is free to travel across the country. It is a fact that he has a sizeable following among Buddhists in Arunachal Pradesh, who like to seek his blessings. He has visited the state in the past as well and we see nothing unusual if he visits again, he said.

Besides the border dispute, India and China have had testy exchanges over the issues of New Delhis inclusion in the Nuclear Suppliers Group and Beijing blocking a bid to get Pakistan-based Jaish chief Masood Azhar sanctioned by the UN Security Council.

Read | With Beijing, does Delhi have a Tibet card?
Chinas J-20 stealth fighter aircraft will make its public debut at a Chinese air show next week, when war planes from the Pakistan Air Force will join its Russian and British counterparts to perform.

Three JF-17s of the Pakistan Air Force will take part in the 11th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition, also known as Air-show China, Chinese defence ministry spokesperson Col Wu Qian said.

Shen Jinke, spokesperson of the Peoples Liberation Army, said Chinas J-20 stealth fighter, the new-generation war aircraft, will make its public debut at the show to be held in Zhuhai City of Guangdong province from November 1 to 6.

The J-20 made its maiden flight in 2011.

Shen said the fighter jet will help the air force better fulfil the mission of safeguarding national sovereignty, security and territorial integrity.

Shen said, though it will not fly, the domestic Y-20 heavy transport aircraft will be displayed at the 11th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition, state- run Xinhua news agency reported.

The Y-20, a versatile plane with a maximum takeoff weight of about 200 tonnes, is designed to carry cargo and personnel over long distances in complicated meteorological conditions.

It officially entered military service in July this year.

Other aircraft such as the H-6K bomber, the J-10B fighter jet and the KJ-500, which is Chinas early warning and control aircraft, will be showcased at the exhibition.
A former Indian student of a US public research university, whose gay roommate killed himself in 2010 after being captured in a sexual act on webcam, has pleaded guilty to attempted invasion of privacy.

The 24-year-old Dharun Ravis plea on Thursday, came after an appeals court in September threw out a 15-count conviction against him in the 2010 death of 18-year-old Tyler Clementi, USA Today reported.

New Jerseys Superior Court Judge Glenn Berman sentenced Ravi to 30 days in jail - the time he has already spent in prison - after he was convicted of briefly spying on Clementi and a man known only as M.B., for a few seconds on September 19, 2010, at the Rutgers University.

By pleading guilty to the third-degree felony, Ravi accepted a deal with state prosecutors to drop all other charges after an appellate court threw out his conviction.

Ravi is a citizen of India living legally in the US. The plea that includes no additional penalties, officially ended the case involving Ravi.

Ravi Pazhani, the father of Dharun Ravi Ravi, listens as his son appears before Judge Joseph Paone Thursday. (AP)

In this December 2011 file photo, Jane Clementi, the mother of Tyler Clementi, looks at family photographs as her husband Joseph Clementi, (back left), speaks to a reporter in their home in Ridgewood. (AP file)

Clementi, an accomplished violinist, leapt from the George Washington Bridge on September 22, 2010, days after Ravi, his freshman roommate, live-streamed him in the sexual act with the other man.

Clementis death had raised the issue of how young gay men are treated by the society. His parents, Joe and Jane Clementi, later founded the Tyler Clementi Foundation to combat online and offline bullying, harassment and humiliation.

In a statement issued after the hearing, Jane and Joe Clementi said they have learned a lot through the process of pleas, convictions, time served and appeals.

Prosecutors did not charge Ravi in the death of Clementi, who left no explanation for his suicide. But shortly before his death, Clementi learned that Ravi had spied on him with a webcam and used social media to encourage others to view his having sex with another man in the dorm room they shared.

In a Twitter message, Ravi said: Roommate asked for the room till midnight. I went into mollys room and turned on my webcam. I saw him making out with a dude. Yay.

On Thursday in the court, Ravi kept his eyes on his cellphone. When asked by the judge if he had any statement to make before he was sentenced, Ravi responded, I have nothing to say, NYT reported.
The coloured houses and bustling squares of villages nestled in the mountains of the Marche region in central Italy were abandoned in a matter of hours as earthquake survivors fled.

As residents from Visso to Ussita and Castelsantagelo reeled from two powerful quakes on Wednesday and gazed in desolation at the collapsed buildings and cracked church towers, firemen ordered them to leave for security reasons.

Many in Ussita had already run from their homes as the first quake hit at 7:10pm, and were somewhere safe by the time the second, 6.1 magnitude quake, toppled walls at 9:18pm.

There have been nearly 700 aftershocks since then.

Residents rest in a sport center where they found a temporary shelter in the town of Camerino, central Italy. (AP Photo)

Those hoping to go back have to be escorted by firefighters: We help one by one those who want to return home to recover personal items, essential things, fireman Michelangelo Garetti told AFP.

Locals line up to identify themselves and point out their houses. One man, Otello, said he wanted to recover some valuables and also clothes for the winter, which promises to be long and hard.

While this is an area of lush green forests and valleys in bloom in the warm months, temperatures plunge once the snows fall.

Few houses are safe and in any case we dont trust them. The ground has been dancing under our feet in this small valley for the past two months, said the man, who is being put up by relatives in nearby Macerata.

Wooden bungalows

Ussita had already been shaken hard by a deadly nighttime earthquake on August 24 which hit a few dozen kilometers to the south.

Now locals are either with relatives, or in hotels near the coast, or sleeping in campers, said Lara Manzoni, a 30-something resident who moved from Bergamo in the north of Italy a year ago to settle in Ussita.

Although she works for a frozen pizza company in a nearby village, she and hundreds of colleagues must wait for experts to verify to what extent the companys premises were damaged before she can return to work.

A woman feeds her baby in a shelter in Camerino, central Italy. (AFP Photo)

I sent my children to my mother in Bergamo to keep them safe, but I could not see myself leaving all these people in trouble, she said.

Although the government has promised that all destroyed or damaged buildings will be rebuilt, I do not know if Ill stay.

I might leave the Marche region entirely, or buy a camper myself, she said.

In the meantime she is lending a hand at the villages campsite, which reopened out of season on Wednesday to accommodate some 250 quake survivors in its Alpine chalet-style wooden bungalows.

Some locals were lucky enough to already have their own, others have been lent chalets -- bedding and all -- by absent owners.

On a hill overlooking the site stands the villages once-prized attraction: a 15th century tower, now cracked from top to bottom.
Sabriya Hammad buried her son in a cemetery that was destroyed by the same people who killed him.

Sitting on cardboard and surrounded by relatives, Hammad sobbed quietly over the mound of earth and rocks beneath a sky darkened by oil well fires set weeks ago by Islamic State fighters. The graveyard south of Mosul is littered with smashed headstones  also demolished by the militants.

They destroyed everything, Hammad said, looking out over hundreds of smashed headstones, some of them generations old.

Iraqi forces drove the extremists out of Qayara last summer as they pushed toward militant-held Mosul, the countrys second-largest city and the focus of an offensive launched Oct. 17. But months after the fighters withdrew, residents of Qayara are still coming to terms with the destruction left behind, and the casualties of war are still being laid to rest.

The militants began destroying the headstones shortly after they swept across northern and central Iraq in 2014. They said the headstones were forbidden because they werent used during the time of the Prophet Muhammad. They also forbade anyone from visiting the graves, which the extremists view as a pagan practice.

The cemetery was marked by war long before IS arrived. It holds the bodies of those killed in suicide bombings, clashes and rocket attacks going all the way back to the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

Hammads son, Muhammed, was killed weeks after Qayara was declared liberated, when IS launched a counterattack and a mortar round landed in front of his home. The blast killed him and his cousin, and critically wounded his brother. Hammad has seven other relatives buried in the cemetery, somewhere under the jagged stones.

When I see these destroyed stones on their graves, I feel grief, like they have died a second time, she said.

Abdul Razak Tallab came to the cemetery to visit his sister-in-law, who was killed this month, also by an IS mortar round, and his brother, who was slain by a car bomb in Mosul in 2008.

When IS controlled Qayara, Tallab said the extremists recruited him to drive prisoners to the graveyard to destroy the stones. Men who had been arrested for smoking or shaving their beards were forced to desecrate the graves of their ancestors.

Tallab said he couldnt bring himself watch it, and he made up an excuse to leave.

How could anyone stay here and see them do that? he asked. His brothers headstone was broken into pieces, obscuring his name and the dates of his birth and death.

But Tallab remembers.

He also knows the 18 men buried in a row of relatively new mounds.

Daesh went door to door to shoot each of these men in their own homes, he said, using an Arabic acronym for the group.

As he approached two smaller mounds, he recalled how an entire family died last month when a rocket hit the main street in front of a hospital.

Another grave draped with an Iraqi flag was for a tribal fighter killed by IS in clashes on the other side of the Tigris River. The fighters daughter was buried beside him, killed when she stepped on a booby trap the militants planted in a field.

As the oil wells burned along the horizon, where towering columns of smoke rose, Tallab said his visits to the cemetery fill him with both sadness and peace. His loved ones are gone, but the gravestones that marked their lives can be fixed.

We are just waiting for the situation to get better. Then well repair all of them, he said. Its a place that reminds you of the people who came before you and what they left behind.
Islamic State forces in Iraq have abducted tens of thousands of men, women and children from areas around Mosul and are using them as human shields in the city as Iraqi government troops advance, the UN human rights office said on Friday.

The ultra-hardline Sunni militants, also known as ISIL, killed at least 232 people on Wednesday, including 190 former Iraqi security forces (ISF) and 42 civilians who refused to obey their orders, UN human rights spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said.

Credible reports suggest that ISIL has been forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes in sub-districts around Mosul and have forcibly relocated numbers of civilians inside the city itself since the operation began on the 17th of October to restore Iraqi government control over Mosul, Shamdasani told a briefing.

Nearly 8,000 families, of roughly six people each, were abducted in sub-districts including Shura, she said.

US military personnel sit in a bunker as an incoming mortar alarm is called at a coalition air base in Qayara, some 50 kilometers south of Mosul, Iraq. (AP)

Read: Iraqi forces evacuate 1,000 civilians from Mosul front lines

ISILs depraved cowardly strategy is to attempt to use the presence of civilian hostages to render certain points, areas or military forces immune from military operations, effectively using tens of thousands of women, men and children as human shields, Shamdasani said.

Many of those who refused to comply were shot on the spot, she said.

The reports, corroborated by the UN, were by no means comprehensive but indicative of violations, she added.

Iranian-backed Iraqi Shiite paramilitary groups are about to launch an offensive on Islamic State positions west of Mosul, assisting in the military campaign to take back the city, a spokesman said on Friday.

Read: Battle against IS: Why the Mosul offensive can shape or break Iraq further

UN high commissioner for human rights Zeid Raad al-Hussein has voiced deep concern at reports that some individuals in the areas south of Mosul have embarked on revenge killings and have vowed on television that there would be eye-for-eye revenge against those who sided with ISIL, Shamdasani said.

Some villagers have also been prevented from returning to their villages due to their perceived support of ISIL, she said.

Read: Up to 900 Islamic State jihadists killed in Mosul battle: US
Malaysia will sign a contract to purchase Littoral Mission Ships from China when Prime Minister Najib Razak visits Beijing next week, according to a Facebook posting by the countrys Ministry of Defence.

The text of a speech to be delivered by Malaysian defence minister Hishammuddin Hussein was posted on Facebook on Tuesday, but was later removed after Reuters asked a defence ministry spokesman for comment.

The purchase of the patrol vessels, if it proceeds, would be Malaysias first significant defence deal with China and comes amid rising tensions in the South China Sea and as the United States and China compete for influence in the region.

Chinas foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said on Friday he was unclear on the specifics of the situation. But responding to a Reuters question at the daily ministry briefing he noted China and Malaysia continue to cooperate and communicate regularly across all spheres.

Malaysias ties with the United States became strained after the Department of Justice filed lawsuits linked to a money-laundering investigation at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), which Najib founded and had overseen as chairman of its advisory council.

Najib is travelling to China on Sunday for a week-long visit.

On November 5, 2016, the defence ministry will sign a contract for the procurement of Littoral Mission Ships (LMS) with SASTIND (the State Administration for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense), which is an important part of the schedule during the Prime Ministers official visit to China, the Facebook post quotes Hishammuddin saying.

However, a video recording of the speech at the Malaysian defence ministry by Hishammuddin does not mention this contract.

A defence ministry spokesman declined to comment and the prime ministers office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Littoral Mission Ships are fast patrol vessels that can be equipped with a helicopter flight deck and carry missiles. They are primarily used for coastal security, maritime patrol and surveillance, but can also be deployed for disaster relief and search and rescue operations.

China claims most of the South China Sea as its territory. But Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have rival claims to parts of the waterway, which commands strategic sea lanes which carry some $5 trillion worth of trade a year.
Pakistan Army on Friday claimed that none of its soldiers had died in firing at the border, contradicting the BSFs assertion that it had killed 15 Pakistan Rangers personnel while retaliating to cross-border firing.

The BSF said it had killed 15 Pakistani paramilitary personnel while retaliating to cross-border shelling and firing in which two Indian civilians were killed and two injured in Jammu region.

Fifteen Pakistan troopers have been killed and 20 injured. We have destroyed some of their border outposts and damaged a few others, BSF Additional Director General Arun Kumar told reporters in Jammu on Friday. He was speaking on the sidelines of a wreath-laying ceremony to honour BSF trooper Jitender Singh killed in Pakistan shelling.

However, Pakistans Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) rejected BSFs assertion.

Indian claims of killing any Pakistani soldier at the Working Boundary is absolutely baseless and untrue, the ISPR said in a statement.

Indias claim is part of their propaganda campaign aimed to hide their losses at the Working Boundary and also divert world attention from the Kashmir issue, it said.

Firing mortar shells and using automatic weapons, Pakistani troops targeted civilian areas and forward security posts along the International Border and Line of Control in Jammu, Kathua, Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu and Kashmir.

In retaliatory firing, 15 Pakistani Rangers have been killed so far, the BSF had said.

Pakistan troops have been targeting civilian areas and forward security posts along the International Border in Jammu, Kathua and Samba districts during the last five days.
Pakistani security forces raided a compound in the countrys troubled south-west and killed four militants linked to an attack on a police academy earlier in the week, officials said Friday.

The raid in Quetta, the capital of strife-riven Balochistan province, was carried out late Thursday following an intelligence tip-off about the presence of fighters from the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) militant group.

A team of anti-terrorist force (ATF) raided the compound and killed four militants after an exchange of gunfire, a senior local police official Abdullah Afridi told AFP.

Speaking off the record, a police official said the militants belonged to the LeJ -- a faction of which claimed it had worked with the Islamic State group to carry out the Monday night raid that killed 61 people, the deadliest assault on a security installation in Pakistans history.

IS had previously also claimed the raid and released photos of the fighters involved, one of whom bore a strong resemblance to an attacker who was killed by security forces in the assault.

The extent of any material support to local groups from IS remains unclear, but affiliation with the notoriously brutal outfit brings the promise of a far higher profile.

The Balochistan government has also formed a joint investigation team (JIT) comprising officials from the army, police and intelligence agencies to probe Mondays attack.

Pakistan has been battling a home-grown Islamist insurgency since shortly after the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, though overall levels of violence have dropped following a series of military offensives in the countrys western tribal regions.

Monday nights raid though served as a grim reminder that militant groups are still able to carry out major assaults from time to time.

The emergence of IS in Pakistan is seen as a major blow to the countrys long-running efforts to quell the insurgency, and comes as the groups key rival Al Qaeda is losing strength in what was once its home ground.
At least 15 civilians were killed and more than 100 wounded by rebel rocket fire on government-held western neighbourhoods of Syrias Aleppo on Friday, a monitor said.

Rebels were firing hundreds of missiles into west Aleppo as part of an operation to break a government siege of districts they control in the east, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The Observatory, a British-based monitoring group, said hundreds of shells and rockets had fallen on various western neighbourhoods of the city.

Read|
Rohingya Muslims say Myanmar soldiers raped or sexually assaulted dozens of women in a remote village in the northwest of the country during the biggest upsurge in violence against the persecuted minority in four years.

Eight Rohingya women, all from U Shey Kya village in Rakhine State, described in detail how soldiers last week raided their homes, looted property and raped them at gun point.

Reuters interviewed three of the women in person and five by telephone, and spoke to human rights groups and community leaders. Not all the claims could be independently verified, including the total number of women assaulted.

Soldiers have poured into the Maungdaw area since Oct. 9, after an insurgent group of Rohingyas that the government believes has links to Islamists overseas launched coordinated attacks on several border guard posts.

Citing evidence garnered by interrogating suspected militants, the government blamed the attacks on an armed group it says is made up of some 400 Rohingya fighters.

The militants, who have identified themselves as the previously unknown Al-Yakin Mujahidin in videos posted online, are accused of killing nine police officers and five soldiers, and of stealing a cache of weapons.

The crisis in northern Rakhine marks the biggest challenge Myanmars six-month-old civilian government has faced, and raises questions over de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyis ability to maintain control of the countrys military, observers and diplomats say.

The United States has raised the issue directly with Myanmars Foreign Ministry and would like to see authorities investigate these allegations fully and take whatever actions against the perpetrators are warranted, State Department spokesman Mark Toner told a briefing in Washington.

A State Department official who spoke on condition of anonymity said Scot Marciel, the U.S. ambassador to Myanmar, has been raising the issue consistently since the attack and spoke to the Foreign Ministry about it on Thursday.

Suu Kyis relationship with the army remains strained because of the constitution, drafted by the military in 2008, which bars her from the presidency. It also guarantees the army key ministerial posts, including defence, border affairs and home affairs.

Diplomats and United Nations officials say privately that the Oct. 9 attacks and subsequent crackdown have shattered years of work rebuilding trust between the Muslim and Buddhist communities in Rakhine after ethnic and religious violence broke out there in 2012.

They tore my clothes

A 40-year-old woman from U Shey Kya told Reuters that four soldiers raped her and assaulted her 15-year-old daughter, while stealing jewellery and cash from the family.

They took me inside the house. They tore my clothes and they took my head scarf off, the mother of seven told Reuters in an interview outside her home, a cramped bamboo hut.

Two men held me, one holding each arm, and another one held me by my hair from the back and they raped me.

Zaw Htay, the spokesman for Myanmar President Htin Kyaw, denied the allegations.

Theres no logical way of committing rape in the middle of a big village of 800 homes, where insurgents are hiding, Zaw Htay said.

Zaw Htay telephoned a military commander in Maungdaw, whose name he did not disclose, during an interview with Reuters this week. The commander said troops conducted a sweep of U Shey Kya village on Oct. 19, but left without committing abuses.

The military did not respond to an emailed request for comment about the accusations.

Security crackdown

The escalation of violence threatens to derail Suu Kyis goal of ending years of ethnic war in Myanmar, undermining the nations surprisingly smooth democratic transition that started a year ago with her historic election win, observers and diplomats say.

Though feted as a champion of democracy, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate has faced international criticism for not doing enough to ease the plight of around 1.1 million Rohingya living in Rakhine, most of whom are denied Myanmar citizenship.

After the first attacks, Suu Kyi urged the army to act in accordance with the law.

Men carry the body of an 11-year-old boy, who died due to illness, during his burial at a Rohingya village outside Maugndaw in Rakhine state, Myanmar. (REUTERS)

The military, which oversaw decades of authoritarian rule and now presents itself as a responsible partner in Myanmars transition, has declared an operation zone in northern Rakhine.

Residents and activists say civilians are being caught up in the security crackdown, and say scores more have been killed than the 33 alleged attackers that official reports have acknowledged.

Muslim propaganda

U Shey Kya villages official administrator, Armah Harkim, said he was working to verify the latest accounts, adding most residents believed them to be true.

Zaw Htay, the presidents spokesperson, accused residents of fabricating the allegations as part of a disinformation campaign led by the insurgents, which he compared to the tactics of Islamist groups Islamic State and al Qaeda.

Colonel Sein Lwin, the police chief for Rakhine State, dismissed the claims as propaganda for Muslim groups.

Reuters reporters travelled to U Shey Kya village on Thursday, passing nearby villages where dozens of houses were recently burnt down, and interviewed three women who said they were raped by soldiers.

Five other women from U Shey Kya have also detailed in a series of telephone interviews how Myanmar soldiers raped them. The accounts are backed up by at least three male residents of the village and a Rohingya community leader in Maungdaw who has gathered reports about the incident.

The residents said some 150 soldiers arrived near U Shey Kya on Oct. 19.

Most male residents left the village as they believed they would be suspected as insurgents. The women said they stayed behind in the belief the military would burn down empty homes.

Soldiers dismantled the fences around homes, residents said, removing possible hiding places as part of what authorities called a clearance operation.

A 30-year-old woman described being knocked off her feet by soldiers and repeatedly raped.

They told me, We will kill you. We will not allow you to live in this country, she said.

The women said soldiers took gold, money and other property, and spoiled rice stores with sand.

We cant move to another village to find medical care, said a 32-year-old survivor. I dont have clothes now or food to eat. It was all destroyed. Im feeling ashamed and scared.
Russia on Friday failed to win re-election at the United Nations Human Rights Council in a vote rights groups said reflected international disapproval of Moscows involvement in the war in Syria.

The UN General Assembly elected Hungary and Croatia instead to represent eastern Europe at the 47-nation council, which monitors and investigates rights violations worldwide.

The outcome was an upset for Russia, which has been a member for all but one year since the council was set up in 2006.

Asked about the defeat, Russian ambassador Vitaly Churkin quipped: We need a break.

Croatia and Hungary fortunately, because of their size, they are not as exposed to the winds of international diplomacy. Russia is quite exposed, he said.

We have been there a number of years. I am sure next time we are going to get it.

More than 80 human rights and aid organizations had urged UN member-states to vote Russia off the council for its military support of President Bashar al-Assad in Syrias bloody civil war.

Russia has been accused by Western powers and rights groups of indiscriminate bombings in the Syrian government operation to seize rebel-held eastern Aleppo.

Some 250,000 civilians in east Aleppo have been living under siege since July and food rations are expected to run out soon, the United Nations has warned.

It clearly will be a wake-up call to Moscow, said John Fisher, Human Rights Watchs Geneva director.

We sincerely hope that the message they will take from todays vote is the need to make sure their engagement in Syria corresponds with international human rights and humanitarian law.

Russia picked up 112 votes, while Croatia won 114 and Hungary 144. The three countries were competing for two regional seats.

It was only the second time that a permanent Security Council member was voted off, after the United States in 2001 lost its seat on the Commission of Human Rights, the councils predecessor.

They bomb a hospital one day, they run for the Human Rights Council the next. And they wonder why they missed the cut? commented a Western diplomat, who declined to be named.

The 193 member-states voted to fill 14 seats at the Geneva-based council.

Human Rights Watch had warned that a vote to re-elect Russia and Saudi Arabia risked weakening the council in its work to hold abusers to account.

Saudi Arabia is back

Saudi Arabia, which was re-elected with 152 votes, was almost guaranteed to retain its seat as part of a clean slate of four countries vying for four regional seats.

China, which has been criticized for its rights abuses, was also re-elected, while Cuba and Egypt, also cited for their dubious rights records at home, won seats as well.

Croatia, Iraq and Rwanda were elected for the first time.

The other elected members were Brazil, Britain, Japan, South Africa, Tunisia and the United States.

Saudi Arabia secured its seat despite an outcry over the military campaign waged by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, which has left nearly 7,000 people dead, mostly civilians.

The coalition has carried out air strikes in Yemen that have hit civilian targets such as a community hall in Sanaa that was recently destroyed during a funeral, killing more than 140 people.

The non-election of Russia shows that the nations of the world can reject gross abusers if they so choose. This makes the election of Saudi Arabia, China and Cuba even more preposterous, said UN Watch executive director Hillel Neuer.

Created in 2006, the rights council monitors violations and notably set up a groundbreaking commission of inquiry on North Korea that led to calls for war crimes prosecutions of the Pyongyang regime.

The council this month asked the commission of inquiry for Syria to carry out a special investigation of rights abuses in Aleppo.
A Russian fighter flew dangerously close to a US warplane over eastern Syria, US defence officials said Friday, highlighting the risks of a serious mishap in the increasingly crowded airspace.

The near miss occurred late on October 17, when a Russian jet that was escorting a larger spy plane manoeuvred in the vicinity of an American warplane, Air Force Lieutenant General Jeff Harrigian said.

The Russian jet came to inside of half a mile, he added.

Another US military official, speaking on condition of anonymity , said the American pilot could feel the turbulence produced by the Russian jets engines.

It was close enough you could feel the jet wash of the plane passing by, the official said.

It appeared the Russian pilot had simply not seen the US jet, as it was dark and the planes were flying without lights.

I would attribute it to not having the necessary situational awareness given all those platforms operating together, Harrigian said.

The incident raises serious questions about the extent to which pilots are able to track the complex airspace they operate in.

The US-led coalition has set up a hotline with Russian counterparts so the different militaries can discuss the approximate locations and missions of planes, and avoid operating in the same space at the same time.

In this case, the American pilot tried unsuccessfully to reach the Russian jet via an emergency radio channel.

The next day, US officers used the hotline to ask Russia what had happened and they said the pilot didnt see the American plane, the official said.

Harrigian said there had been an increase in close calls over the past six weeks, with intentional near misses -- when a Russian jet deliberately follows a coalition plane too closely -- happening one every 10 days-ish.

Russia is flying constant air patrols over Syria, the vast majority of them over the devastated city of Aleppo, and routinely transits parts of the country the US-coalition operates in, officials said.

Russia says it has not bombed Aleppo since October 18.

The Pentagon periodically chides Russia for unsafe and unprofessional behaviour in air operations.

This incident was deemed unsafe, but not necessarily unprofessional, officials said.
Shia rebels in Yemen fired a ballistic missile toward the holy Muslim city of Mecca overnight, Saudi Arabia said on Friday, the insurgents deepest strike yet into the kingdom amid the countrys stalemate civil war.

Rebel media in Yemen said the missile targeted an international airport in Jiddah, though Saudi Arabia said it was intercepted and destroyed 65 kilometers (40 miles) from Mecca, which is home to the cube-shaped Kaaba that the worlds Muslims pray toward five times a day.

The missile launch shows the capability of Yemens Shia rebels, known as Houthis, and their allies to continue to strike Saudi Arabia. It also drew the immediate anger of Saudi citizens, as the protection of Mecca is a key pillar of the Saudi royal familys prestige and the countrys national identity.

The Saudi military said the missile, fired on Thursday night from Yemens northwestern Saada province bordering the kingdom, caused no damage. The Saudi military has a supply of US-made, surface-to-air Patriot missile batteries it previously has fired at Houthi-launched missiles.

The military said in a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency that it immediately targeted the area where the missile was launched in airstrikes.

Read | Obama admin arms sales offers to Saudi Arabia top $115 billion: Report

The Houthis and their allies, including forces loyal to former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, have a stockpile of Soviet-era Scud missiles and locally-designed variants. The Houthi-controlled satellite news channel al Masirah published a bulletin saying its forces had fired a Volcano-1 variant missile at Jiddahs King Abdulaziz International Airport, without mentioning Mecca. That airport is 75 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Mecca.

The Houthi-controlled SABA news agency said the missile directly hit the airport and caused massive destruction. There were no immediate delays or diversions affecting the airport on Friday.

A Houthi ballistic missile fired earlier this month targeted Taif, home to Saudi Arabias King Fahd Air Base, which also is near Mecca.

Read | Saudi Arabia intercepts missile fired from Yemen, says coalition

Yemen, on the southern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, has been in the midst of a civil war since September 2014 when the Iranian-backed Houthis swept into the capital of Sanaa and overthrew the countrys internationally-recognised government. In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition of Arab countries began a military campaign against the Houthi forces, saying its mission served in part as a counterbalance to Irans influence following its nuclear deal with world powers.

The Saudi-led campaign initially had the logistical and intelligence support of the US, but mounting civilian casualties from its airstrikes led to US pulling back, especially after a Saudi strike earlier this month on a funeral in Sanaa killed some 140 people and wounded over 600. The US also fired Tomahawk missiles at mobile Houthi radar sites after reporting its warships came under fire in the Red Sea near the crucial Bab al Mandeb strait.

In recent days, two commercial ships reportedly have come under fire in the same area.
Syrian rebels including jihadis counter-attacked the army and its allies on Friday aiming to break a weeks-long siege on eastern Aleppo, insurgents said.

The assault, employing heavy shelling and suicide car bombs, was mainly focused on the citys western edge by rebels based in the countryside outside Aleppo. It included Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, a former affiliate of al Qaeda previously known as the Nusra Front, and groups fighting under the Free Syrian Army (FSA) banner.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based war monitor, said more than 15 civilians had been killed and 100 wounded by rebel shelling of government-held western Aleppo. State media reported that five civilians were killed.

There were conflicting accounts of advances in areas on the citys outskirts.

Aleppo, Syrias biggest pre-war city, has become the main theatre of conflict between President Bashar al-Assad, backed by Iran, Russia and Shiite militias, and Sunni rebels including some supported by Turkey, Gulf monarchies and the United States.

Read | Rebel rockets kill 15 civilians, wound 100 in government-held Aleppo

The city has been divided for years between the government-held western sector and rebel-held east, which the army and its allies put under siege this summer and where they launched a new offensive in September that medics say has killed hundreds.

Photographs showed insurgents approaching Aleppo in tanks, armoured vehicles, bulldozers, make-shift mine sweepers, pick-up trucks and on motorcycles, and showed a large column of smoke rising in the distance after an explosion.

Fateh al-Sham said in a statement that rebels had gained control over Dahiyet al-Assad, a suburb with a low-rise residential district of about a square kilometre on the southwest corner of the city.

Zakaria Malahifji, an official with Fastaqim, a nationalist rebel group in the offensive, said insurgents had captured the residential area but not the whole of Dahiyet al-Assad. The Observatory said rebels had gained the west part of the suburb.

But a Syrian military source said earlier that the army and its allies had thwarted what he called an extensive attack on south and west Aleppo. A state television station reported that the army had destroyed four car bombs.

Rebel bombardment

Abu Anas al-Shami, a member of the Fateh al-Sham media office, told Reuters from Syria the group had carried out two martyrdom operations, after which its fighters had gone in and had been able to liberate a number of important areas. A third such attack had been carried out by another Islamist group.

A senior official in the Levant Front, an FSA group, said: There is a general call-up for anyone who can bear arms.

The preparatory shelling started this morning, he added.

Heavy rebel bombardment, with more than 150 rockets and shells, struck southwestern districts, the Observatory said.

Read | For Syrian women under siege, a special struggle: Their periods

Fateh al-Sham played a big part in a rebel attack in July that managed to break the government siege on eastern Aleppo for several weeks before it was reimposed.

Abu Youssef al-Mouhajir, an official from the powerful Ahrar al-Sham Islamist group, said the extent of cooperation between the different rebel factions was unusual, and that the largest axis of attack was on the western edge of the city.

This long axis disperses the enemy and it provides us with good cover in the sense that the enemys attacks are not focused, he said.

Jihadis

The powerful role played by Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, listed by many countries as a terrorist group, has complicated Western policy towards supporting the anti-Assad opposition.

The United States has prevented more powerful weapons such as anti-aircraft missiles from being supplied to rebels partly out of fear they could end up in jihadi hands.

The Syrian military source said Fridays attack had been launched in coordination with Islamic State, a group against which all the other rebels, including Fateh al-Sham, have fought.

Islamic State fighters did clash with the Syrian army on Friday at a government-held airbase 37km (23 miles) east of Aleppo, next to territory the jihadi group already controls, the Observatory reported.

Read | UN blames all sides after Syria evacuation plan fails

Syrias civil war, now in its sixth year, has killed hundreds of thousands of people, displaced half the countrys pre-war population, dragged in regional and global powers and caused a refugee crisis in the Middle East and Europe.

Mouhajir, the Ahrar al-Sham official, said cloudy weather was helping to reduce the aerial advantage enjoyed by the Syrian military and its Russian allies. Inside Aleppo, tyres were also burnt to create a smokescreen against air strikes.

Grad rockets were launched at Aleppos Nairab air base before the assault began said Malahifji of the Fastaqim rebel group, adding that it was going to be a big battle.

The Observatory also said that Grad surface-to-surface rockets had struck locations around the Hmeimim air base, near Latakia.
The Hollywood studio that made the latest Transformers blockbuster must pay a Chinese scenic area more than two million yuan ($300,000) because it failed to include the parks logo, state media reported.

A court in Chongqing ordered Paramount Pictures and its Beijing partner to pay the money to a park in the southwestern municipality, the official Xinhua news agency said late Thursday.

The films are wildly popular in China, with Chinese companies from milk producers to banks flocking to link their products to them, and when Transformers: Age of Extinction came out it became the countrys highest ever grossing movie.

Some of its scenes were filmed in the gorges and caves of the Wulong Scenic Area, and the tourism group managing the park claimed that it had a product placement agreement for the logo to be shown in the footage.

It filed suit in 2014, saying that its contract had been violated and demanding 20 million yuan in compensation, reports at the time said.

Neither Paramount Pictures nor its Chinese partner 1905 Internet Technology could be reached for comment by AFP on Friday.

Age of Extinction was the fourth film in director Michael Bays robot action franchise, with a fifth instalment due next year.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Thursday distanced itself from Sharbat Gula, Nat Geos famed Afghan Girl who has been detained by authorities in Pakistan for alleged forgery.

The United Nations refugee agency in Pakistan claimed that Sharbat Gula - known as Afghanistans green-eyed Mona Lisa - is not a registered refugee.

We cannot extend any assistance to the detained Afghan woman as she is not registered refugee with UNHCR, Senior External Relations Officer UNHCR Pakistan Dan McNorton told Dawn.com.

Sharbat Gula, who fled Afghanistan during Soviet occupation shot to fame after her photograph as a young refugee was published on the cover of National Geographic back in 1985 on her arrival to Peshawar.

Gula was arrested a day earlier from her Peshawar residence by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) for alleged forgery of a Computerised National Identity Card (CNIC).

She faces seven to 14 years prison time and fine between $3,000 to $5,000 if convicted by court over fraud, a National Database Registration Authority (Nadra) official said Wednesday.

Nadras vigilance department and an official of the FIA rejected information provided on the Nadra form as fake, and the FIA official ordered cancellation of CNICs of Gula and her alleged sons.

Details of the form had claimed that Sharbat Gula had two sons. The FIA official maintained that she has two daughters and a two-year-old son.

According to the UN refugee agency, the first census of Afghan refugees in Pakistan started in 2006 and the refugees that turned out at registration offices got Proof of Registration (PoR) cards thus getting permission of their legitimate stay in Pakistan.

I think Sharbat Bibi missed that opportunity and could not register herself as refugee, Duniya Aslam Khan explained when asked as to why the refugee agency could not register her.

The UNHCR was contacted by Afghan diplomats in Islamabad anticipating that she will be rescued by the refugee agency for being refugee.

Expressing concern over the arrest of Sharbat Gula, the Afghan government has decided to take up the issue with Pakistani government, sources said Thursday.

An official at the Afghan Consulate in Peshawar told DawnNews the Afghan government will pursue the case in a Pakistani court and provide a lawyer and legal assistance to Gula, who is an Afghan national.

She is an Afghan national and our embassy in Islamabad will take up the case with the Foreign Office for early release of Sharbat Gula, he said, requesting not to be named.

Quoting family members, the official said Sharbat Bibi was not feeling well and they were also worried about her health.

Afghan Ambassador to Pakistan Dr Omer Zakhilwal tweeted in Pashto saying the Afghan government will help rescue the detained Afghan woman from police custody and will rehabilitate her in Afghanistan.

Sharbat Gula became famously known as the Afghan Girl when National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry captured her photograph at the Nasir Bagh refugee camp situated on the edge of Peshawar in 1984 and identified her as Sharbat Gula.

She gained worldwide recognition when her image was featured on the cover of the June 1985 issue of National Geographic Magazine at a time when she was approximately 12 years old.

That photo has been likened with Leonardo Da Vincis Mona Lisa.

National Geographic also made a short documentary about her life and dubbed her the Mona Lisa of Afghan war.

She remained anonymous for years after her first photo made her an icon around the world and until she was discovered by National Geographic in 2002

Meanwhile the American photographer who took the iconic National Geographic image of Gula in 1985 has vowed to do anything possible to help after reports she has been arrested in Pakistan.

Photographer Steve McCurry posted to Instagram that this was an egregious violation of her human rights.

He wrote: We are doing everything we can to get the facts by contacting our colleagues and friends in the area.

I am committed to doing anything and everything possible to provide legal and financial support for her and her family.

I object to this action by the authorities in the strongest possible terms. She has suffered throughout her entire life.
Beneath the heatless winter sun, soldiers sprint across hastily constructed pontoon bridges spanning a 55-foot-wide moat, their war cries drowned out by a deafening artillery barrage. Raising improvised bamboo ladders against the walls of the enemy fort, the attackers scramble up even as defenders on the battlements above unleash a shower of hand grenades. The explosives detonate in midair, snapping ladders in half and sending dozens of screaming men to their deaths 45 feet below.

As surviving attackers clamber over the rim of the forbidding wall, the fight degenerates into a series of brutal hand-to-hand melees, with steel broadswords and shorter but no less lethal bayonets drawn for the close-quarters slaughter, as commanders astride Mongolian warhorses ride from section to section, desperately trying to organize their scattered forces atop Chinas fabled Great Wall.

Though such images might seem representative of one of the many ancient battles that swirled around Chinas most famous fortification, the fight described above actually took place on the chilly morning of Jan. 3, 1933, at the outpost of Shanhaiguan. Long abandoned and left in a state of disrepair since the 1644 Manchu invasion, the obsolescent Great Wall was granted a new lease on life in the 20th centuryonly this time from the north came not nomadic tribal warriors but the industrialized juggernaut of Japans elite Kwantung army.

In a poignant twist of fate the Great Wall, that ancient masterpiece of military fortification, saw its last action at the dawn of World War II in Asia.

The Second Sino-Japanese WarWorld War IIs often overlooked missing section of the jigsaw, as British historian Antony Beevor puts ittook root long before Germanys 1939 invasion of Poland. Indeed, by the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936, which gripped the Western worlds attention, China had been embroiled for five years in an even bloodier military conflict with Japan.

By the early 1930s the Kwantung armygarrisoned on Manchurias Liaodong Peninsula since shortly after the 190405 Russo-Japanese Warhad evolved into a totalitarian militarist faction within the greater Japanese army that favored expansionism on the Asian mainland. On Sept. 18, 1931, taking advantage of Japans turbulent political environment, the Kwantung army independently orchestrated the Mukden Incident (a staged bombing against a Japanese-owned rail line) and the subsequent invasion of Manchuria in a shocking act of insubordination against the Tokyo civilian governments anti-expansionist policy.

On the Chinese side Chiang Kai-sheks Kuomintang central government was distracted by its ongoing civil war against Mao Zedongs Chinese communists, as well as by warlord factionalism within the Kuomintangs own National Revolutionary Army (NRA). Although an ardent nationalist, Chiang was convinced China was not ready for full-scale war against Japan and adopted the controversial policy of first internal pacification, then external resistance. Hence Chinese forces in Manchuria put up virtually no resistance against the Japanese invasion.

Predictably, it wasnt long before the Kwantung army aspired to further conquests and turned its sights southwest to the Chinese provinces of Hebei and Rehe (pronounced RUH-huh). Rehedescribed by a postwar correspondent as full of tumbling mountains, violent rivers and troubleimmediately bordered Manchukuo, Japans puppet state in conquered Manchuria. Less mountainous Hebei lay south of Rehe, the Great Wall serving as a rough border between the two. Behind the Great Wall lay the bustling metropolises of Beijing (officially Peiping at the time) and Tianjin and then the vast expanse of the North China Plain. After failing to secure Rehe-Hebei as a buffer zone by appealing to a corrupt local warlord, the Japanese decided to take more direct action.

The Kwantung armys first move was a powerful preliminary attack on the fortified Chinese garrison at Shanhaiguan, on the easternmost end of the main stretch of the Great Wall. Shanhaiguan (Pass of Mountain and Sea in traditional Chinese) was named for its strategic position on the narrow corridor leading from Manchuria into China proper. On the evening of Jan. 1, 1933, after staging a grenade attack, the neighboring Japanese garrison commander brazenly labeled the Chinese defenders terrorists and ordered them from the pass. When they refused, the Japanese launched a combined arms attack on the garrison the next morning. Compared to their adversaries in the Kwantung armys 8th Division, the ill-prepared Chinese defenders had little to offer. Other than a handful of Maxim guns and light mortars, their only noteworthy defenses were the centuries-old Ming Dynasty ramparts and watchtowers. Tanks, armored trains, a squadron of Kwantung army bombers and inshore warships from the Imperial Japanese Navys 2nd Expeditionary Fleet pummeled Chinas ancient fortifications.

Despite a heroic stand by the Chinese defenders, the Shanhaiguan garrison fell after a day of brutal house-to-house fighting. The Japanese had cracked the easternmost tip of the Great Wall. But instead of advancing toward Beijing, the Kwantung army shifted its focus westward, away from the Bohai Sea, to the mountains of Rehe.

On February 11 Governor-General Nobuyoshi Muto, commander in chief of the Kwantung army, and his chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Kuniaki Koiso, revealed the plan for Operation Nekka, whose strategic objective was the complete eradication of Chinese military forces in Rehe. Although Japanese units had already broken through the Great Wall at Shanhaiguan, a rash advance toward Beijing along the coastline would expose a long and vulnerable right flank to the Chinese. Although it was doubtful the hard-pressed defenders could or would take advantage of the opening, Muto did not want to take chances. The Kwantung army would first clear out all areas north of the Great Wall in guanwai (outside the wall, as the Chinese termed it) before crossing into guannei (inside the wall).

Muto launched Operation Nekka on February 23 and within hours received news of Japans censure by, and subsequent dramatic walkout from, the League of Nations. The bold offensive called for two divisions and three independent brigades to advance on Rehe along three main southwestward axes, sweeping across the province to deliver a powerful knockout blow to Chengde, the provincial capital just north of the Great Wall. If all went as planned, the nearly 100,000-strong combined force of Kwantung and Manchukuo soldiers would secure the province before Chinese reinforcements arrived.

It was the Chinese themselves who in large part facilitated the dramatic Japanese victory

In fact, the plan went far too well, certainly beyond Mutos and Koisos most optimistic expectations. But it was the Chinese themselves who in large part facilitated the dramatic Japanese victory.

As proven in previous battles, Chiangs National Revolutionary Army, though poorly trained and equipped, did not lack brave soldiers and capable field commanders. But the NRA command, from the presiding Military Affairs Commission down to the divisional level, was beset by fierce warlord factionalism. Though roughly equal in number to the invading force, the ill-prepared Northeastern Army, commanded by playboy warlord Zhang Xueliang, collapsed like a house of cards before the Japanese onslaught. As Lt. Gen. Yoshikazu Nishis 8th Division marched into Chengde on March 4, the dilapidated remains of the Great Wall along the border between Rehe and Hebei provinces became the last line of strategic defense for Beijing, Hebei and the entire North China Plain.

Contrary to popular belief, the Great Wall is not one contiguous fortification spanning China. It is, in fact, an intricate network of defensive walls, forts, trenches, bunkers and natural barriers built, rebuilt and relocated over the centuries by successive Chinese dynasties as their territories expanded or contracted. The majority of the surviving sections of the Great Wall date from the Ming Dynasty (13681644), among the most ardent wall-building dynasties of imperial China. Under continual threat of Mongol, Jurchen and Manchu invasion from the north, the Ming constructed multiple layers of both temporary and permanent walls that ran a remarkable 5,500 miles from the Korean Peninsula west to the Taklamakan Desert.

Although by 1933, almost three centuries after the fall of the Ming Dynasty, the majority of the Great Wall in Rehe-Hebei was in a sorry state of neglect, the vast stretches still standing posed a serious obstacle to any attacker. Following natural contours, the serpentine barrier effectively sealed off most passages through the mountains to the North China Plain, leaving only a handful of heavily fortified passesGubeikou on the western edge of Rehe, Xifengkou at the center, Lengkou and Jielingkou on the eastern endthrough which an army might maneuver. Even with aircraft and armored cars, Japans 20th-century army had no alternative but to assault these fortresses head on with uphill charges against enemy fire from embrasures and arrow slitsjust as Chinese engineers had intended when they designed the fortifications centuries earlier.

The Japanese commander immediately ordered all units to disregard their original orders and move south to secure the key passes along the Great Wall before the Chinese could organize effective resistance

While the pace of victory in Rehe took even the Japanese by surprise, Muto knew better than to bask in success. When word reached him on March 4 of the fall of Chengde, the Japanese commander immediately ordered all units to disregard their original orders and move south to secure the key passes along the Great Wall before the Chinese could organize effective resistance and block the route to Beijing. Unfortunately for the Japanese, they had advanced so rapidly that their motorized spearhead was compelled to wait for the bulk of their slowly marching infantry to catch up. That left the Chinese an opening.

After warlord Zhangs humiliating performance in Rehe and his subsequent resignation, Chiang placed forces in the region under the command of General He Yingqin and a contingent of staff that answered directly to the Chinese chairman. Unlike his ignominious predecessor, He realized the gravity of the situation and immediately ordered the battered Northeastern Armys remaining divisions to mount an emergency defense centered on the four major Great Wall passes. While anticipating reinforcements from farther south around Beijing-Tianjin, the general would not wait on them.

He understood the Great Wall constituted but a single line of defense with no depth, and while the Chinese had the advantage of terrain, they would be unable to hold in the face of overwhelming Japanese firepower. Thus his plan called for Chinese forces along the Great Wall to delay the Japanese as long as possible, buying time for He to set up a perimeter defense on the outskirts of Beijing and Tianjin. He also requested additional reinforcements from the elite Central Army. Chiang promptly approved. Realizing the extent of the Japanese incursion in Rehe-Hebei, the Chinese commander in chief had called off his thus far unsuccessful Fourth Encirclement Campaign against communist forces in Jiangxi.

Great Wall fortifications at the four key passes feature successive gatehouses that create consecutive barbicans in the narrow pass. Long stretches of the wall descend precipitous slopes to link up with these fortresses, effectively thwarting any possible enemy flanking maneuvers.

When the main force of the Japanese 14th Mixed Brigade and 8th Division finally arrived at Xifengkou on March 10 to launch their assault, the bulk of the reinforcing Chinese 29th Corps was there to meet them. Fierce fighting ensued as the Japanese launched wave after wave of attacks. Under Lt. Gen. Song Zheyuans astute command, soldiers of the poorly equipped 29th avoided long-range firefights, which obviously would have given the enemy an advantage. Instead, they let the Japanese approach within 300 feet before rushing out to engage them, thus negating the attackers superior firepower by forcing them into close-quarters combat, at which the 29th was highly adept. Many of the Chinese wielded a traditional saber known as the dadao, which proved especially effective in the bloody, medieval-style melees atop the ramparts.

Over two days of fighting the high ground and sections of the Great Wall around the fortified pass changed hands multiple times. More than once the Japanese managed to break into and briefly occupy the first of Xifengkous two barbicans, only to be driven back by the resolute Chinese defenders.

On the night of March 1112 the 29th Corps launched a counteroffensive, led by its best swordsmen and martial artists, who used woodcutters trails to infiltrate the Japanese positions. Their superiors specifically instructed the raiders to avoid using firearms and instead rely on the dadao as much as possible. When these elite fighters stumbled on the Japanese 14th Brigades artillery positions, they wreaked havoc on the unsuspecting enemy, slaying scores of soldiers in their barracks, destroying artillery pieces with grenades and setting ammunition dumps afire. Seeking to take advantage of the enemys disarray in the rear, the main Chinese forces mounted an ultimately unsuccessful frontal assault against Japanese positions.

After ransacking as much as they could, the Chinese raiders vanished into the predawn mist as the disciplined Japanese overcame their initial shock and Chinese casualties began to mount. Though strategically insignificant, the daring raid delivered a blow to the morale of the overconfident Japanese. In its wake Muto grudgingly called off his attack on Xifengkou, gaining the ragtag 29th Corps lasting fame in Chinese military history.

In late March and early April 1933 the Japanese launched probing attacks on Luowenyu, about 35 miles northeast of Xifengkou, but the 29th Corps held firm. At the same time fierce battles raged at the other passes along the Great Wall in Rehe-Hebei, and the results for the Chinese were often less favorable.

After switching hands three times, Lengkouon the eastern flank of Xifengkoufinally fell to the Kwantung armys 6th Division on April 11. As soon as the Japanese achieved that significant breakthrough, the entire Chinese defense along the Great Wall began to crumble. Exploiting its success, the 6th advanced farther south toward Qianan, threatening to encircle Chinese positions at Xifengkou and Jielingkou. On April 13 He ordered defenders at the two passes to retreat, by which time the 29th Corps, originally 15,000 strong, had suffered more than 5,000 casualties.

At Gubeikou the Chinese Central Armys 17th Corps, which had marched up from southern China, fought a more modern but by no means less savage battle against the spearhead of the Kwantung armys 8th Division. While the Chinese lost the actual fortification at Gubeikou on March 12, they managed to put up a successful elastic defense to prevent the Japanese from exploiting their breakthrough. The 17th also mounted a number of night raids and counterattacks similar to those conducted by the 29th but using German-supplied Bergmann MP 18 submachine guns instead of cold steel. By May 15 the 17th had suffered more than 4,000 casualties in its fighting retreat toward Miyun and had to be replaced by the Central Armys newly arrived 26th Corps. By that point Japanese bombers were already circling over Beijing and Tianjin.

Having foreseen the collapse of the Great Wall defenses, He swiftly regrouped his forces for a last-ditch defense at Beijing. By late May Chiang also seemed willing to finally step up to protect his northern metropolis, allotting He one cavalry brigade, two independent artillery regiments and 11 additional infantry divisions from the Central Army, including the German-trained and -equipped 88th Division.

Then the fighting stopped.

With Rehe and northern Hebei firmly in Japanese hands, the Kwantung army had accomplished its goal of securing the southern border of Manchukuo. Facing mounting pressure from both the international community and anti-militarist politicians at home, Muto ultimately decided to bring an end to his grand invasion, halting his forces just shy of Beijings city walls. Terms of the Japanese-proposed cease-fire, which became known as the Tanggu Truce, naturally did not favor the Chinese, but Chiang acquiesced regardless, setting the stage for the July 1937 Marco Polo Bridge Incident and subsequent 193745 Second Sino-Japanese War. In the meantime, as the Rehe Incident came to its tentative conclusion, a false peace returned.

The 1933 Battle of Rehe was peculiar to early 20th century Asia, where full-scale Westernization was slowly but surely supplanting traditional ways of life. Just like everything else from that turbulent time of revolutionary changes, the militaryfor a brief momentalso endured a shaky coexistence of the old and the new. As defenders set up their machine guns behind stone battlements, and attackers employed both bamboo siege ladders and aircraft, such surreal scenes of anachronism were unique among the battlefields of World War II. It was in this almost fantastical setting the last major engagement on the Great Wall unfolded, virtually unseen by the rest of the world. MH

Freelance writer Jiaxin Du contributes to both Chinese- and English-language periodicals. For further reading he recommends Forgotten Ally: Chinas World War II, 19371945, by Rana Mitter, and The Second World War, by Antony Beevor, which includes a general account of Chinas participation in World War II.
Two UFOs were captured flying over the lunar surface last year. They were a couple of saucer-shaped UFOs, or perfect discs in military formation.

They were caught by sky watcher Richard205maria, who used a telescope with a camera to film them carefully. He put it up on his YouTube channel on October 23, 2016, titled "Double UFO - alien ships crossing the Moon?"

"Here is an old video that I recorded last year and I'm coming back to take a closer look at those very strange objects," Richard205maria wrote.

With a number of images and videos speculating on the existence of aliens on the Moon, according to HNGN, there is a lot of public interest in the sightings. The latest lunar video captured immediate attention from thousands of viewers.

UFO blogger Scott C. Waring also put up the video in UFO Sightings Daily blog, calling the disc-shaped objects "perfect saucers," whose shape does not make them open to the possibility of being "man-made" satellites.

"His editing software allows us to see its actual shape... a perfect saucer... two of them," Waring commented. "There is no way these disks are satellites."

Waring said that man-made satellites, which are never perfect discs, do not even fly "side-by-side or very close together" due to the risk of accidentally bumping into each other.

Such satellites have projecting arms with solar panels and communication antennae, he said.

"Satellites won't be side-by-side for risk of crashing into one another and destroying each other," Waring continued. "We don't see any arms or solar panels to collect energy or transmit messages."

Were they in a military formation? Waring said their very shape seemed to indicate that they were alien fighter crafts ready for combat.

"These are actual UFOs, flying in military style, because they are flying with a wingman, to keep each other out of possible trouble," the UFO hunter argued. "These two... are prepared to fight, and that worries me."

However, one YouTube commentator dismissed Waring's argument, and said the twin UFOs might be a Naval Ocean Surveillance System (NOSS) double or triple satellite formations, which track seagoing vessels.

Usually, the NOSS satellite formations can be spotted in a triangle formation, with two or three objects flying close by. They are usually too dim to be visible, but sometimes they become bright enough to be seen at night.

Another critic said they might be part of the U.S. Secret Space Program fleet.

"Makes you wonder if they are U.S. space craft?" the conspiracy theorist commented on Waring's UFO Sightings Daily.

"One thing we do know, as long as the ruling class and the compliant media stay in control, we will never know the truth," another answered.

Supporters of the UFO theory said that the two alien "perfect disks" were in a tight military formation.

"This is an important video for the archives. Two objects seemingly of the same size traveling at the same speed same direction."

The video adds grist to the Conspiracy Theorists' mill, who believe that U.S., Russia, China, Japan, and the E.U. are part of independent secret space programs, cahoots with alien species.

Michael Salla, who runs the Exopolitics blog, says that NASA programs are only convenient "smoke screen" for a space program by Pentagon along with Greys and Reptilians. It is thought that the US spends billions of dollars in black budget to fund this program.

Being in a struggle with the Russians, it is believed that both the Big Two powers are locked in space combat.

A few commentators were even more dismissive. One of them called the second disk a shadow of the first one. "I think it was a round craft and its shadow."

"Meteor and shadow? Anyone?"

"The top object does appear to be a disc, canted just enough to have an oval appearance," a viewer observed. "The object below looks like a shadow of the object above."

YouTube/Richard205 Maria

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
In an alarming development, Russian President Vladimir Putin has sent two warships to reinforce the Baltic fleet of the country in Kaliningrad. The move has come in response to reports that alliance defense ministers are pushing the NATO to deploy four battle groups in the Baltic area.

The two Russian warships that have been sent to the area are Buyan-class corvettes and they are loaded with nuclear-capable Kalibr cruise missiles that go by the codename Sizzler, reports International Business Times. They have a minimum range of 1,500 kilometers and are also said to be carrying conventional warhead.

According to secret military sources, the Serpukhov and Zelenv Dol have entered the Baltic Sea and would become part of the newly formed fleet. Notably, earlier this month, Russian Defense Ministry had said the two warships left their base in the Black Sea to join the naval force in the Mediterranean.

However, this is not all. Russia would be further bolstering its Baltic fleet and is expected to send three more small warships by the end of 2020. The Bastion and Bal land-based missile systems are also to be added and they are anti-ship missiles with a maximum range of 300 kilometers.

Meanwhile, Sweden has confirmed the presence of the two warships in the region, reports The Telegraph. The Defense Minister of the country, Peter Hultqvist said that they are worried by the presence of the warships in the Baltic Sea as the development would escalate the tension in the region and affect all the countries round the Baltic.

However, he did not give any more information. As for Moscow, it is silent but it goes without saying that the deployment will raise tension in Poland and Lithuania, the twin countries that share borders with Kaliningrad and are in a frenzied state since 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea. In the beginning of this month too, the twin countries had protested when Russia moved nuclear-capable Iskander-M missiles into Kaliningrad.

It is worth mentioning here that the deployment of Russian warships comes at a time when NATO is planning its biggest build-up since the Cold War, generating fears of a third world war.

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Europe is on the verge of becoming the next battleground following reports of military mobilizations. Both the West and Russia are set to establish striking positions as part of defensive maneuvers from both sides.

NATO's growing military presence in Eastern Europe has prompted the Federation to send three divisions along its borders.

According to Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, Russia troops will be stationed at Russia's western and southern flanks.

He points out that the swelling of NATO forces on Russian fronts is a concern which is why countermeasures are being implemented by the Defense Ministry. Structures for the new military divisions will also be erected.

Although information about Russian deployment is very limited, the media as divulged that around 30,000 soldiers will be sent at the sites.

Meanwhile, US Defense Secretary Ash Carter states that NATO is looking at putting about 4,000 troops in Poland and the three Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. The contingent will reinforce the 4,200-strong US Armored Brigade which was stationed in the area back in February.

Carter further adds that military augmentation in Europe's eastern front will be supplied by NATO on a regular rotation basis.

Andrei Kelin, a Senior Russian Defense Ministry official, warns that the NATO build-up introduces a perilous standpoint considering that the deployment is within Russian borders.

Since 2014, Washington and its European allies have been worried about Moscow's mobilizations when it forcibly acquired Crimea from Ukraine. Russia's show of force at the Baltics has prompted the three states to request for the stationing of NATO personnel in the region.

In recent weeks, Russia has engaged in maneuvers which simulated attacks on an American warship at the Baltic Sea. In addition, aerial engagements by the Federation's fighter jets against US planes are also included. Although US has reacted against Russia's provocative moves, Moscow has downplayed such concerns. Despite the amassing of troops at the Baltics, the Kremlin has reiterated that there are no plans to engage militarily at the region.

NATO analysts reveal that surface-to-air missiles are being deployed in Kaliningrad in order to stave off the Atlantic organization's air access.

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Real life X files of UFO sightings will be revealed soon and will be made available online. These UFO files are collected from real sightings of this extra-terrestrial life.

The Central Library of Air Force had already released these UFO files that come in 80 digital reports that would give proofs to strange sightings.

According to Express.co.uk, these UFO files consist of specific UFO sightings details like the date, the location, the added facts and information, the experts' findings, proposed classification or declassification of files, interviews of witnesses and images, photos or maybe videos of the strange sightings.

Majority of these sightings happen in Spain and the Spanish government particularly its Ministry of Defence has released reports that would show strange UFO sightings in Spain around 1962 and 1995.

The defence ministry shared that some of these UFO sightings happen in one place while some are covered in several points and locations of the Spanish geography.

The first sighting was recorded in 1962 while the last was in 1995 and those were taken from different locations in Spain.

One of the testimonies include a prison guard and two sailors who claimed to have seen a bulky object in the sky with opaque light that keeps on changing its form every after five minutes. This was recorded in Ferrol dated April 2, 1996.

Moreover, one of the most popular of these UFO sightings in Spain is the Lugo incident involving a driver who had witnessed a round object with two meters diameter. According to the witness, the end of the object is shaped as a shell while the other end is flat and that the object is illuminated by a bizarre light.

However, the Ministry debunked that UFO sighting and claimed that it is just an incident of optical illusion wherein the light of the sun reflects on a granite rock.

Apart from these sightings, more are even recorded which the witnesses and UFO experts claimed as inexplicable events, despite the government's constant negation.

As these X files of real UFO sightings will be revealed, humans are still searching for answers to prove the existence of the extra-terrestrial life.

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Angelina Jolie was just interviewed by the FBI for approximately 4 hours to uncover truth about what happened in the alleged altercation between Brad Pitt and their son, Maddox inside a private plane.

As reported by USWeekly, the actress gave her full cooperation during the inquiry and people are speculating if the two FBI agents have uncovered something about the plane incident.

The two agents also spoke to the kids but it was Angelina Jolie who disclosed the things that might help in the investigation. They want to have a breakdown of everything that took place starting from when the plane took off and when it landed. These agents are really looking for things to help them weigh charges of assault.

Rumors are escalating that Jolie just shared things what she knows could be best for their six kids and for her soon to be ex-husband, Brad Pitt. If this what really transpired from the private meeting, will there be a chance that Pitt will be absolved from the child abuse case that he is dealing at this time or the more he will be indicted with Jolie's revelations to the FBI?

It has been speculated also that both Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are taking things safely because they do not want a bitter and nasty court battle. But with the constant revelations of each negative side, people would doubt if that will happen.

Apart from the NBI, the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services has also conducted its extended investigation on Brad Pitt. This latest news can mean one things and that this must be something serious, the fact that they are still not giving up on the case.

It can be recalled that Brad Pitt failed to give legal response to Angelina Jolie's filing of divorce. According to some sources, the reason could be related to this since there is still an on-going investigation.

Brad Pitt has already submitted himself to interviews and voluntary drug tests and which both gave negative results. According to InTouch, Pitt is doing everything to show he is a model father and to win the child custody case or not, a joint custody.

As long as Angelina Jolie will cooperate fully with the authorities and with Brad Pitt's constant action of showing to everyone that he's not the one at fault and as a good dad, then this divorce battle and the child abuse case will run properly.

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
News, events, history, and other mid-week tidbits.

Tuesday, October 25, 4:30  7 p.m.

Orr Area EMS Open House

Brats and burgers will be served. Event includes a new ambulance tour and blood pressure screenings. For more info: 218-780-3798.

Orr Fire Hall

4540 Lake St., Orr

Tuesday, October 25, 12  6 p.m.

Essentia Health Job Fair

Talent recruiters and department managers will be on-site at Essentia Health-Virginia. Candidates from all backgrounds are encouraged to attendnurses, nursing and clinical assistants, surgery technicians, radiology technicians, respiratory therapists, human resource professionals, and those interested in environmental services or nutrition services. Essentia staff will greet candidates, conduct an initial screening and filter them to appropriate hiring managers for interviews. Select candidates will be verbally offered a position before leaving. Candidates are asked to bring a resume, but its not required. Attire is business casual. For more info: www.essentiacareers.org.

901 9th St. N., Virginia
Are you a tourist photographer seeking your next destination to capture those unforgettable natural shots of the world's beauty? Dead Vlei should be your very next stop. This dried-up marsh located near Sossusvlei in the Namib Desert in Namibia, is a darling picturesque whose fascinating images are commonly used colorful desktop savers across the globe, with gracefully yet somber trees that have frozen in time.

Characterized by a cracked salt pan, scorched skeletal acacia trees believed to be over 900 years old and surrounded by the tallest sand dunes in the world; Dead Vlei was formed after river Tsauchab flooded to form the clay pan. However, it later surrendered to the persisting climate change in the area, drying up to the extent that even the once towering trees failed to decompose, but were instead scorched black. Yet, there is sign of life in the resolute endurance of plant species such as clumps of nara and salsola shrubs, which survive from the morning mist.

Reasons to visit

Apart from the opportunity to photograph some of the most captivating images of the Dead Vlei, a morning or evening 4-wheel trail drive below the towering red sand dunes will give you an experience of the most beautiful sunrise and sunset. They form a celestial view as the sunrays strike from the clear skies, through the ghostly trees reflecting into the dead desert.

Nearby attractions

Sossusvlei is another salt and clay pan near Dead Vlei and is mainly surrounded by the Red Dunes. Like Dead Vlei, its trees have also been scorched black by Namib's blistering sun. Sossusvlei is River Tsauchab's final destination. In addition, Namib Naukluft National Park is one of the largest conservation areas in Africa, covering approximately 50,000km and protecting the Namib Desert; one of the oldest in the world. It is advised to take the route from south-central Mariental; to avoid the treacherous mountain passes and at the same time capture exceptional views of the desert.

Accommodation

Sossus Dune lodge is in Sesriem within the Naukluft Park and provides guests the efficiency of reaching Dead Vlei before sunrise and leave after sunset. Additionally, add luxury to your Dead Vlei experience at the Moon Mountain Lodge found in the Naukluft Mountains near the charming little Solitaire village. The lodge provides outdoor activities including short distance helicopter flights, ballooning and horse riding and a private splash swimming pool to cool off from the sizzling heat. Guests enjoy an array of traditional Namibian dishes from the lodge's Nebula Restaurant and drinks from the onsite Cosmos Bar.
HENDERSONVILLE, Tennessee  The U.S. hotel industry reported positive results in the three key performance metrics during the week of 16-22 October 2016, according to data from STR.

In year-over-year comparisons, the industry's occupancy increased 2.6% to 72.3%. Average daily rate (ADR) rose 3.2% to US$129.03. Revenue per available room (RevPAR) grew 5.8% to US$93.26.

Among the Top 25 Markets, Norfolk/Virginia Beach, Virginia, recorded the only double-digit increase in occupancy (+19.7% to 67.1%) and the largest increase in RevPAR (+21.0% to US$59.01). ADR in the market was up 1.1% to US$87.93.

Five additional markets saw a double-digit lift in RevPAR for the week: St. Louis, Missouri-Illinois (+17.8% to US$79.99); Seattle, Washington (+16.2% to US$122.03); Phoenix, Arizona (+16.1% to US$99.76); Orlando, Florida (+15.4% to US$97.50); and Anaheim/Santa Ana, California (+10.6% to US$133.65).

Orlando was the only Top 25 Market to post a double-digit increase in ADR (+10.1% to US$123.57).

Houston, Texas, experienced the steepest declines in occupancy (-10.1% to 70.0%) and RevPAR (-8.3% to US$82.48). ADR in the market increased 2.0% to US$117.77.

San Diego, California, reported the largest decrease in ADR (-4.6% to US$151.38).

About STR

STR provides premium data benchmarking, analytics and marketplace insights for the global hospitality industry. Founded in 1985, STR maintains a presence in 15 countries with a corporate North American headquarters in Hendersonville, Tennessee, an international headquarters in London, and an Asia Pacific headquarters in Singapore. STR was acquired in October 2019 by CoStar Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSGP), the leading provider of commercial real estate information, analytics and online marketplaces. For more information, please visit str.com and costargroup.com.

Jeff Higley (STR)

VP, Digital Media & Communications

+1 (615) 824-8664 ext. 3318

STR
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Capsule Hotels: Small Spaces With Big Potential

Sleeping in a box which is 2 meters long and a little over 1 meter high and wide is becoming the low cost, Japanese-style choice of thousands of international travelers.

Launched in Osaka in 1979 to enable local businessmen enjoy an evening out, capsule hotels are now mainly aimed at international travelers. Growing numbers of these hotels have opened in recent years across Asia and into Europe and the Americas to cater for the rise in single travelers looking for low-priced rooms for one which equally offer opportunities to socialize with others in shared leisure facilities.

Capsule hotels offer budget tourists and backpackers a cheaper and more alternative to conventional hotels and hostels in expensive city locations such as Singapore, says Frank Sorgiovanni, Senior Vice President with JLLs Hotels & Hospitality Group.

The city state has seen more than 10 such hotels launch since 2012 with more in the pipeline. Australia is opening its first capsule hotel this year and its no coincidence that the new Capsule Hotel will launch in Sydney, Australias most expensive city. It will be pitched at the solo traveler that might have outgrown the backpacker hostel, according to designer Chris Wilkes. But, rather than competing solely on cost, the hotel is being designed to have a boutique design hotel feel.

A fast changing sector

Specialist hotel groups are leading the growth and development  including Yotel, which started at the UKs London Gatwick Airport in 2007, now has bases in three other European airports and plans for more in the US, Middle East and Asia.

Low cost travel and IT are the two main drivers behind the growth, says Yasokazu Terada, Executive Vice President in JLL Japans Hotels & Hospitality Group. The number of low cost travelers has been supported by low-cost carriers and they have become able to easily find good-quality capsule hotels through online booking sites.

Indeed, good IT systems are key to a business model with high occupancy rates and a rapid turnover of guests. Its this model that allows capsule hotels to charge competitive rates which, according to Sorgiovanni, tend to be about half the rate of hostels and a third of three star hotels.

The Yotel at Amsterdams Schipol Airport, for instance, charges about US$51 (46) for a four-hour stay in its seven square meter cabins, $87 overnight and $17 for an hours use of a shower cabin. The NineHours chain of three hotels in Japan charges, for example, about US$50 overnight and has nap rates during the day of $10 for the first hour and $3 for additional hours.

Adding personal touches

The spartan, single-sex traditional model will not work for everyone  and many operators are creating niches as they adapt the formula to their local and international markets and to the prospect of increasing competition. Hanois Noi Bai International Airport, for instance, now has double pods at Terminal T2, for instance; a free laundry service is provided at Balis M Boutique Hostel.

Yotel, with its ensuite facilities, luxury bedding and sound-proofing is a leader in the more luxurious end while South Americas first capsule hotel, the $12-a-day Capacete in Rio de Janeiro is hoping to draw artists and thinkers through Wednesday evening talks, a bookshop and ambience.

In Japan, capsule hotels have also become more than just places to sleep. The Anshin Oyado in Tokyo has a bar with craft beers as well as an artificial hot spring and mist sauna. The female-only Nadeshiko, also in the Japanese capital, provides guests with a free kimono during their stay. Terada says: They typically have a guest lounge and host regular social events to facilitate communication among guests. They are selling experience rather than physical accommodation facilities. Staff tend to be more casual and friendly than in traditional hotels, he adds.

A big future for small spaces

With the capsule concept evolving to keep pace with demand, a very positive outlook is on the cards for the sector, says Sorgiovanni. If capsule or cabin hotels continue to offer secure, technologically advanced and innovative designs at a much cheaper price point  those cost-sensitive travelers will continue to embrace this new offer.

And, in Japan, Terada predicts growth in line with an increase in the number of foreign visitors over the next four years. Running up to the Tokyo Olympics in 2020, the Bank of Japan forecasts that construction investment, including in hotels, will increase substantially during 2017 and 2018.

With many cities around the world grappling with the challenge of accommodating a growing appetite for international travel and a lack of city center space, capsule hotels could prove a useful addition to their hospitality offerings. Certainly, the growing capsule hotel sector is working hard to show that small can mean beautiful and, does not mean compromising on quality and creature comforts.

Source - JLL Real Views
Azealia Banks sat down with Access Hollywood to share her version of the events that transpired in Russell Crowes hotel suite earlier this month. Banks has filed battery charges against Russell Crowe, whom she alleges called her racial slurs, choked her, and spat on her before tossing her out of the room. She broke down crying multiples during her interview with Access Hollywood.

Every time something like this happens, Im always like being blamed for like wanting this kind of attention, she said. Like, who fucking wants to tell someone they got spat on? Thats humiliating. Im just really, really humiliated.

Crowe and the rest of guests, including RZA, all claim that Banks was behaving erratically and insulted Crowes musical taste and threatened to cut the throat of him and a woman in the room before being forcibly removed.

It just happened so fast, Banks recalls. She explained that Crowe mocked her career, she fired back. Everyone was like, Oh my god. How dare you!' When asked what made Crowe snap, she said, Who knows? Maybe it was the moonshine? Maybe it was the rejection? Maybe it was the jokes?

She started crying again once the subject of the missing surveillance tapes arose. And then theres no tape. You call the hotel, like where is the fucking tape?, she said. Like, wheres the tape? And theyre just like, oh, theres no cameras in that hallway. Its like, how can there not be no cameras in that hallway? Youre full of shit.

She also claimed that RZA told her, Dont say anything.

In the week after the incident, RZA publicly denied Banks claims and called her an obnoxious erratic individual.

Watch Banks full Access Hollywood interview below.

Azealia Banks
Chicago rapper, Calez, has been a staple in the Windy City rap game for over the past few years now, contributing to his old 2008ighties crew & working with fast-rising stars like Alex Wiley, Mick Jenkins, & Chance the Rapper in the process, but now its his time to shine. Looking to build off his growing momentum, partially thanks to his impressive new songs Baby & Still Good, the Chicago rapper decides to come through today and share with fans his newest body of work called Baby.

Laced with 10 records in total, the project is a musical journey of Calez life over the years, from struggling in homeless shelters to having a baby with his girlfriend, Calez has a lot to get off his chest. Heres what the Chi-town rapper had to say about the project in a statement via email

A lot has changed for me since I dropped Kid With Raps, just a few years ago I was just a kid from Chicago trying to make it on the internet. Now being a dominant voice in Chicagos music scene is such a humbling experience. I felt like people got a small dose of me from early tapes and 2008ighties. My God how things have changed now. Baby is just a piece of our journey. This for those nights at the homeless shelter listening to music, spending countless hours practicing, and writing in hopes to make impact. From 87th to Cal City, Dolton, South Holland where I made my mark. For those black men that feel pain, imprisoned mentally, physically. This for Mom, Raisyn, and Jess! Shout out to the whole South Suburbs too man tell everyone else to kill that noise. We up now! Tell them I said it.

Stream/download the free album today. (Tracklist below)
Brian Jones, Amy Winehouse, David Bowie & Lemmy are paid tribute to on the lead single

Today is a very good day because theres a new Alabama 3 album hitting the racks/digital platforms.

Entitled Blues, but unlike the Stones not a covers record, its trailed by the wonderful (Ill Never Be) Satisfied. Brian Jones, Amy Winehouse, Jim Morrison, Hank Williams, Lemmy, David Bowie and Ian Curtis are among the fallen rock greats who feature in the accompanying video, which says "Enough already!" to the Grim Reaper who's been working overtime this year.

You can catch the chaps live in the Belfast Limelight (November 11) and Dublin Academy (12) and read Mr. Tyaransens highly entertaining chat with Larry Love in the next issue of Hot Press.
Light from the Outside World has been a phenomenal success. How has that experience been for you personally?

Its been wonderful. All shows have been full and very well received. Not just by people from Electronic Music, but from listeners of Classical. I think what is most unique is that the mixing two genres together in this way creates something new.

How does a collaborative process with an orchestra work? What challenges did you face?
The Cadence of Others is the wonderfully titled third studio album from We Cut Corners. Opening with a hypnotic nursery-song hook on first track Middle Kids, the album pulls you in  and doesnt let you go for its full ten tracks. The meaning of the album title is evident early on: the duo have let experiences, people and conversations wash over them, then forged lyrics  with appropriate instrumental accompaniments  from the cadences of everyday life.

The album is threaded together intricately by lovely piano and string codas, which lead one song into the next. The recording took place in a church, which goes perfectly with the hymn-like quality of some of these songs.

But the real driving force  as with all We Cut Corners albums  is the lyrical weight. There are great turns of phrase throughout: Kill you with my kindness/ blind you with my blandness; and I was a reckless child/ now Im a childless wreck spring to mind, as the band negotiate fizzled out love, growing pains and isolation.
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About 79 percent of Americans say global warming is happening, with majorities from both political parties supporting government action to address the problem.

So when will Republican politicians accept scientific fact and do something?

The UT Energy poll of 2,043 Americans by the University of Texas at Austin's Energy Institute found that 89 percent of self-identified Democrats and 62 percent of self-identified Republicans accept the overwhelming scientific consensus about global warming. In 2012, only 45 percent of Republican accepted climate change science as fact.

That's in direct contrast with Republican leaders, both nationally and in Texas, who still question whether humans burning fossil fuels for the last 250 years has contributed to a warming planet and rising sea levels.

"Some of these findings reflect entrenched positions of the two parties," Sheril Kirshenbaum, the poll's director, said. "But it's worth noting that nearly a majority of Republicans, along with 76 percent of Democrats, support steps to reduce carbon emissions."

Most importantly, perhaps, 91 percent of Americans under the age of 35 accept climate science. This might account for why millennials overwhelmingly reject Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, who has called climate science a Chinese hoax to destroy the U.S. economy.

Not surprisingly, 62 percent of millennials support phasing out coal as a source of electricity, while only 28 percent of seniors do. About 52 percent of millennials support a carbon tax, while 77 percent of senior citizens oppose one.

On hydraulically fracturing wells, only 47 percent of Americans said they understood what the technology involved, but of those, 45 percent oppose the technology, with only 40 percent support it. Opposition to fracking has grown 8 percent since last year, according to the poll.

The results appear to show greater awareness of the issues surrounding fossil fuels. The industry needs to think about how it will respond to these changing attitudes, because if history serves, any attempt by fossil fuel companies to change the public's mind will likely fail.

Republicans should also recognize they need to get with mainstream scientific opinion, because the American public already has.
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Owners of White Oak Music Hall have struck a deal with the city of Houston to allow shows scheduled this fall to be held on the temporary outdoor stage that had sparked outrage among some nearby residents, who complained the concerts cause excessive noise in their Near Northside neighborhood.

The city issued the new temporary permit Thursday to allow the shows to go forward before the developers build the permanent outdoor venue. The owners agreed to a list of compromises outlined in a letter from the city to developer Will Garwood of WOIH Partners.

The music hall operators issued a statement addressed to "Houston Live Music Fans" Thursday to confirm the news about the music venue's status.

"Long story short, it turns out that putting up an outdoor stage is a little more challenging than anticipated, but we've finally figured it out and appreciate the good folks at the city of Houston for guiding us through the process," the statement says. " ... It means that our permanent stage will be landing on planet Earth this coming spring - no more temporary stage going up and down!"

Previously, Mayor Sylvester Turner and other city leaders said the operators would not be able to hold shows indefinitely on a temporary outdoor stage, as the developers indicated they planned to do roughly 50 times a year. Turner said earlier this week that, with a permit to build the permanent outdoor stage in hand, the situation has changed.

Residents in the gentrifying neighborhood north of downtown claimed the developers flouted city rules, consistently violate the sound ordinance and cause parking and traffic congestion in the area dominated by single-family homes.

Under the terms of the agreement between the city and music hall, the temporary stage can be used Thursdays through Saturdays only, with the exception of one show already on the books for next Wednesday.

The developers also cannot hold outdoor shows at the same time as shows scheduled at the venue's indoor stage, and they will be required to use sound monitors for all events scheduled on the temporary stage. They will also be required to provide a detailed listing of all events, whether public or private, held at the music hall through February.

Construction of 38 outdoor bathroom facilities and nine lavatories will begin Nov. 21 and should be completed by January. Construction of the permanent facilities will begin on Feb. 6 and wrap up by April.

The venue owners had been rushing to obtain a permit and working with the city to make final their plans for a permanent outdoor stage, in part, to accommodate a handful of large shows, including Pet Shop Boys and Morrissey, planned for this fall.

Developers applied to have their plans for the outdoor structure, which had been rejected several times, expedited. The plans were approved by various city departments last week.

The city previously approved an economic development agreement to reimburse the developer up to $1.1 million for public improvements to sidewalks, landscaping and street lighting, and for an upgrade to the public sanitary-sewer line.

In order to receive the funds, the developer will have to hold at least one job fair for the Near Northside community, offer at least four rehearsal times each for John Marshall Middle School and Northside High School, and allow roughly 500 parking spots to be used by the public on days the hall is not used.

Resident Kerry Whitehead, in a letter to the mayor and city council members, cited lingering issues with traffic control, parking and sound, and said the city's code and ordinances were enough "to ease the transition and arrival of this project."

"The neighborhood bears the burden of every misstep made in the permitting process," Whitehead said in the letter, which she shared Thursday with the Chronicle.
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Even with construction fences still surrounding it, the sleek gray brick, glass and steel architecture of Rice University's Moody Center for the Arts beckons with a sense of ambition.

Director Alison Weaver aims to fulfill that vision when the building opens on Feb. 24. She has curated an eye-opening first slate of exhibitions and programs by leading artists whose work fuses ideas about society, politics, technology, science and the humanities.

"It's like art-plus, the conversations it can engender," Weaver said.

She was talking about the work of Mona Hatoum, the Lebanese-born Palestinian superstar who will be in residence next spring, working on an exhibition that will open at the Menil Collection next fall.

But Weaver could just as easily have been describing the intent of the Danish-Icelandic conceptual artist Olafur Eliasson's "Green light - An artistic workshop," which will occupy the Central Gallery; the large-scale photographs of Thomas Struth's "Nature & Politics," which will fill the premier Skylight Gallery; Diana Thater's nine-channel video "The Starry Messenger" in the Reception Gallery; and interactive digital works by the Tokyo collective teamLab in the two Media Arts Galleries.

New York's Dusan Tynek Dance Theater will perform a new site-specific work at the nearby James Turrell sky space, with a chorus from the Shepherd School of Music. As the Moody's inaugural season progresses through mid-May, its Studio Theater will host two theatrical productions: David Auburn's "Proof" (a collaboration between the schools of visual art and drama and math), then Lisa Peterson and Denis O'Hare's "An Iliad," with original music written and performed by Shepherd School students.

More Information More info: moody.rice.edu Moody Center for the Arts Where: 6100 Main Opening: Feb. 24, 2017 Information: moody.rice.edu See More Collapse

"It was important to signal what we're going to be," Weaver said. "Being on the campus of a research university, we have access to some special perspectives."

All exhibitions and lectures at the Moody will be free and open to the public. Theater performances will be ticketed.

The first shows could draw Rice's brainiac engineers and scientists - as well as the broader community - like moths to light, literally.

Eliasson's project invites visitors to make geometric wooden lamps that they may purchase or contribute to an evolving installation, as multiple lights are combined to form a monumental artwork.

With 3-D-printed joints and electric filaments, each unit takes some time to build.

"It's not a 'snap it together in five minutes' situation. You have to paint the wood, print the joints, string the electrical - it's a real process, and it takes several hours to build one," Weaver said.

That's intentional: Eliasson wants participants to engage with people they don't know while they're working, and he loads the tables with newcomers from other countries.

Launched last year in Vienna, the "Green light" project was the artist's empathetic response to the Syrian refugee crisis and the current geopolitical situation, "with a lot of people in flux and displaced," Weaver said. The lights symbolize a welcoming spirit.

The Moody will partner with Interfaith Ministries of Greater Houston, which has a large refugee services program, to bring international participants to its workshops.

"Houston has settled more refugees than any other city in the U.S. in the last few years, and they're an incredibly diverse group," Weaver said.

Proceeds from the sale of lights will benefit the charity and cover the cost of the recycled materials.

Struth's photographs are landscapes of the human-kind, exploring highly technical environments such as the inside of a NASA research aircraft that carries a 17-ton telescope.

"They inspire a sort of awe. They're gorgeous formally and visually, but they're also a little bit terrifying - far from our natural world," Weaver said.

She sees teamLab's work in the Media Arts Galleries at the cutting edge of art, technology and the visitor experience as the Japanese collective's work utilizes motion-sensing software that is animated by visitors. The Moody show will include "Flowers and People," a fun, sound-filled, full-immersion room where visitors will see a life cycle unfold: Seeds appear to sprout from their hands, grow into flowers and die.

And it's more than selfie bait. Because computer science is the most popular major at Rice, Weaver expects academics to be curious about the back-end of teamLab's work.

Thater's "The Starry Messenger" will be quieter but also hypnotic, offering a changing vista of the Milky Way filmed from Los Angeles' Griffith Observatory Planetarium.

She also is excited about bringing more dance to the Rice campus. Dusan Tynek has collaborated with Turrell before. He's inspired by the legendary artist's use of light and geometry, Weaver said.

Weaver is thrilled with the way the building has come together. Michael Maltzan's architecture is designed to foster openness, a sense of possibility and transparency.

"I'm really loving the brick," Weaver said. "It changes with the light. That gives the building a dynamic feel that I hope we'll echo with our programs."

molly.glentzer@chron.com
KEENES, Ill. - Sarah Frey is the undisputed pumpkin queen of America.

She grows more jacks (field shorthand for the basic big orange Halloween model) than anyone else in the country. This fall, she shipped more than 5 million. If it hadn't been so hot and humid, she would have shipped more.

So it's a little awkward when she throws shade on a crop that helped her buy the black Cadillac Escalade she drives along rural roads here in the state that grows more pumpkins than any other.

"I was over orange pumpkins 15 years ago," she said. "That's a terrible thing to say, because our biggest percentage of acreage is jacks. But it's just not where I'm at with pumpkins."

Frey, 40, crushes any image you may have of a pumpkin farmer. She has a taste for fedoras and an impressive collection of Frye boots in her closet. She also has farmland in seven states and millions of dollars in produce contracts in her desk drawer.

And she thinks America is ready to cook, not carve.

More Information Six heirloom squash varieties Cook with these squash varieties or use them to add color to your autumn decor. Silver Moon This is a lovely pumpkin to fill with beef stew or even macaroni and cheese. The seed cavity is small, and the bright orange walls are thick, so it can be roasted and processed into plenty of puree to use in baking. The pumpkin stores well and has nice, large seeds for roasting. Red Kuri A small, nutty squash, this is easy to roast and takes well to warm, savory and hot spices. The flesh is smooth, and the skin is edible. It's a good squash to braise. Lakota This Native American heirloom is making a comeback. The Lakota has very orange, smooth flesh, but it can be bland, so roast it with cumin, garam masala or other warm spices. The bumpy, colorful skin makes it attractive for decorating, and its thin skin makes it easy to roast. Triamble This is a hard-to-find Australian variety that is sometimes called a shamrock or tri-star pumpkin. Although it has more flavor than other squash varietals, the triamble is better for decorating than cooking because its size (it can top 10 pounds) and hard texture challenge even dedicated cooks. The triamble stores well for several months. Kamo Kamo A squash that has long been a staple of the Maori in New Zealand, this small, mottled green pumpkin is sometimes sold as kami kami. Kamo kamo are delicious young, prepared in the manner of a summer squash. It ripens into a hard winter squash that can be roasted or boiled and mashed with butter like a potato. Speckled Hound This thick-fleshed pumpkin can weigh 3 to 6 pounds. It almost looks as if it were painted and makes for a beautiful and long-lasting ornamental pumpkin. It's also delicious, with a sweet and nutty, dry light-orange flesh that can be stuffed and roasted whole. See More Collapse

To that end, she has been planting fields with rough-skinned peanut pumpkins and beautiful slate-green Jarrahdales from Australia. She's growing boxy speckled hounds and blue-green marina di Chioggias, blistered specimens with a sexy Italian name.

(Technically, they and the jacks are squash, which are part of the huge Cucurbit family, which also includes gourds, melons and cucumbers. Calling them pumpkins is more a matter of convenience than botany.)

That the pumpkin queen wants people to think beyond the jack-o'-lantern means that it is likely to happen, if only because of the volume of pumpkins she moves through a deep and wide slice of Middle America's retail haunts. If you've bought a pumpkin at Wal-Mart or Lowe's, the odds are good that it came from Frey Farms.

Pretty and edible, too

Edible pumpkins make up about a third of her harvest. Some go to processors to be canned, and some are sold as decorative elements. A new line she developed, Pumpkins of the World, is aimed in part at cooks; she's pushing retailers like Target, Trader Joe's and Wal-Mart to market it that way.

"People who shop at Wal-Mart are just as educated about food as anyone, and they probably cook more than anyone, and they all know how good squash is for you," she said with the kind of conviction that makes you glad you are not negotiating with her. "I don't think this is a trend that's going away."

The pumpkin spice latte aside, squash isn't exactly an American cultural barometer. Still, there have been some significant recent developments. In the mid-aughts, a handful of varieties popular mostly with heirloom-seed geeks rose up as stars of the home decor set. With their curves and bumps and unusual coloring, they became Pinterest princesses, finding champions in high-end urban designers and Martha Stewart devotees.

Frey, who got her start helping her mother sell melons from the back of a truck when she was still in elementary school, knows a good produce opportunity when she sees one.

So she branched out from jacks, planting unusual varieties and convincing her biggest retail partners that they should sell the unusual-looking mix of pumpkins to aspirational shoppers looking to change up their fall decorating.

She called her new line Autumn Couleur, trademarked the name and shipped them out in branded cardboard bins ready to be plopped down onto the store floor.

At some point, people began asking if they could eat them.

"I always knew you could eat them, but I was like, why would you?" she said during a drive to an enormous packing plant and farm she owns in southern Indiana from the southeastern Illinois farm where she grew up. "Then I thought, 'Jeez, what a waste to throw them away when they are done making your house look good.' "

She knew that only the most dedicated cook would want to crack open a 12-pound pumpkin and process it for food, so she pored through seed catalogs and selected a group of smaller pumpkins from around the world that would grow well, look good on a porch and perform in the kitchen.

At this point, every heirloom-seed saver and farmers' market denizen may be muttering, "So what?" People have been growing and eating hard winter squash for ages, in North America and beyond. Pumpkin shows up in Indian curries, in Mexican moles and in stews across Africa.

Building an empire

Frey's father farmed and tried to make money raising racing thoroughbreds. Her mother sold cantaloupes and watermelons to local grocery stores. Eventually, her brothers all left for college, or other pursuits. She stayed behind, doing whatever she could to make a buck.

By the 1990s, she had taken over her mother's melon routes, selling fruit from their farm and what she could buy from others in the area. She was still a teenager when she got her foot in the door at Wal-Mart, back in the days before the company had central distribution centers and you could still cut a deal with a store manager.

"It was the Wild, Wild West then," she said.

The skills she developed negotiating with Wal-Mart became a case study at the Harvard Business School. Frey, who holds an associate degree in science, said her real education came from the many mistakes she has made.

"If I went on to a nice Ivy League school, I could have saved myself a lot of money," she said.

Frey figures she has sold close to $1 billion's worth of produce in her lifetime. Watermelons were the moneymaker, and still are. Pumpkins make up less than a quarter of her take, but she calls them her "pet crop."

They came from desperation: Her father got sick, and the farmhouse was in foreclosure. So she bought it from the bank, along with the 80 acres she grew up on. The land sloped and was mostly clay. Perfect, she thought, for pumpkins. They would extend the growing season into the early fall and wouldn't take much tending.

"Everybody in the county thought the Frey girl had lost her mind," she said. She kept buying farmland and growing more pumpkins and melons, sometimes contracting with older farmers whose children had left. She and her family now own about 15,000 acres.

"Some women buy shoes," she said. "I buy farms."

She still finds it hard to turn down an opportunity. The latest is trying to win the emerging market for watermelon juice. She calls hers Tsamma, after the wild melon. Her main competitor has Beyonce as an investor. It's her kind of fight.

Several family members work with her, including her brothers. She has an ex-husband who does, too.

"I got a lot of knees under my table," she said, including her two school-age sons, Luke, 10, and Will, 12.

Frey dreams of a life in which she can cook more and wheel and deal less. Though she knows she'd go crazy if she stayed in the country all the time, a simpler farm life, like the one she spent most of her childhood plotting to leave, has new appeal.

"I find myself looking back and yearning for some of the simple pleasures we had as kids," she said. "I always go back to this place where I just want to walk the fields and then come home and stuff a baby pumpkin."
Its no longer a sport here and there. Street art is becoming a common sight coloring the facades of Houston intervened by artists from the city and other parts of the world.

Just last week, during the second annual Houston Urban Experience Mural Festival, over a hundred artists from the city and around the world, including from Puerto Rico, Spain, Mexico, and Brazil; painted over 20,000 square feet worth of wall space within Houston.

Street artist GONZO247, who is the founder of the Houston Urban Experience (HUE) and organizer of the annual festival, said the enthusiasm in the city for street art has increased significantly.

Explaining the role he has played in this journey, he said that "It just got to a point where I realized that Houston needed more color on the streets."

"On top of that," said the artist, who is a Latino, "Houston is the most diverse city in America, so I thought it would be cool to have the artwork reflect that."

The City of Houston has played a major role in supporting this art, including the festival but also other projects like the "Mini Murals." This one is using traffic signal utility boxes around the city as canvases "brimming with creative opportunity (and) inviting artistic expression for all to enjoy," as the organizers from the artists' community Fresh Arts say on their website.

As the popularity of street art increases among Houstonians, GONZO247 hopes to continue the tradition of hosting HUE while eliminating the old bad reputation of street art.

"I think now more than ever people are embracing it. It used to be misunderstood and feared, but now it's actually accepted, and it's in demand," GONZO247 said.

"Before, when they would see art pop up, they thought it was gang related. You know, spray paint meant gangs. As you can see here, it's a lot of bright colors, and there's a lot of positive things happening," said the artist, pointing to some of the paintings resulting from the festival.

Social Media role

The presence of Houstons street art in social media has echoed this form of expression as another source of pride for Houstonians.

With many artists replacing signatures with Instagram handles, GONZO247 thinks social media's played a big part in street art being accepted, with murals around Houston being shared through them.

"Every artist now puts their social media handles because there's more that viewers can do with it," GONZO247 said. "In the past, you would just sign it, someone might take a picture of it on film; they might print it, put it in an album in their house and no one ever saw it again." But that is no longer the case.

Additionally, the street art has evolved with the creation of art with new techniques. GONZO247 said that "In the past, we used to all just use spray paint. Now it's like brush work, stencils; there's so much more that's going on than just spray paint."

The following are examples of street artists that are expanding the universe of this art and participated in the HUE festival.

Anat Ronen (Instagram: @anatronen1971)

Born in Israel and resident of Houston, Anat focuses on painting murals with latex and acrylics.

"I started painting murals, and then I was introduced to street art, and I fell in love," Ronen said. "So murals is my work and street art is my hobby."



Ronen's painted over 400 murals in Houston, Florida, Arizona, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Kansas City and has gone overseas to paint in China and Germany.

"This is a true free form of art because there are no rules, there's no restriction," Ronen said. "I do it with the brushes, not with spray paint, so anything really is allowed on the streets."

Ronen is one of the few artists that don't include her social media handle in her artwork: "God knows that social media has been very good to me, but I don't like to over saturate it.

DECK WGF (Instagram: @deckwgf)

From the Bronx, New York, DECK WGF has 31 years of experience in graffiti writing.

"I find inspiration in everyday life," DECK WGF said. "Since I'm a graffiti artist, I take cues from comic books, political statements and just current affairs."



His interventions in Houston can be found on the side of the old Kim Son banquet hall on Leeland and St. Emanuel.

With the popularity of street art increasing, DECK WGF said a lot of artists that haven't worked on their craft are jumping on the trend because it's a safe alternative to graffiti...

You have good artists, and I don't know art in particular, but it's a little bit different when you get a wall out in the open, and you do something that's not up to par."

Tyler Kay (Instagram: @TylerKay)

Tyler Kay is a director at the Bisong Art Gallery in Houston and a student at the University of Houston's master's program.



Lay said that her participation in HUE this year gave her the opportunity to create her first street art mural, although she produces murals and custom commissions.

"Primarily, street artists use spray paint, but I do brush work. I do it all with a two-inch brush."

Kay's mural for HUE can be found on the side of 1213 Maury St. Her inspiration comes from floral clusters. She enjoys the thought of painting something where it makes people take a moment out of their day to stop and look.

"We're always caught up in the rush of our everyday," Kay said. "I just think that people don't take enough time to look at the beautiful things around, so if I have to put it on a 25-foot wall to get someone to stop, take a different route home, or just realize the beauty in our city, especially. I think that I'm doing good," she said.

Efren Diosdado is a student at the University of Houston and a member of its El Gato Media Network, dedicated to developing college students into communication professionals. Diosdado is a contributor through a collaboration between Calle Houston and El Gato.
Happy Friday from Campus Chronicles, where this week weve been following Rice University President David Leebrons new leadership post at the Association of American Universities and Texas A&M Universitys expansion efforts on the Texas border.

Leebron, whos been in charge at Rice for 12 years, will lead the board of directors at the Association of American Universities - the group of top U.S. and Canada research colleges - for the next year. Its a particularly important job during an election year, as hell have to adapt to a new administrations higher education priorities and the values of a new Congress.

Texas A&M University will begin constructing an academic center in the Rio Grande Valley, a fast-growing, high-poverty area, in December. The University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley said it welcomes the Aggie expansion, so long as there is significant distinction between their offerings.

Speaking of A&M going into new territory Washington D.C. commuters this week saw a wall of Aggie maroon and white underground in that city's Metro rail transit system. The advertising effort, aimed to attract potential students and national research money, will cost $150,000 for about five and a half weeks, according to the Washington Post. (Heres an overheard quip about the ad buy.)

A freelance photographer wants to be paid for the University of Houstons use of his photo of the city skyline.

Some voters at Texas Southern University say theyre pulling the lever for Hillary Clinton, because they don't like Donald Trump.

A nice paycheck for recent college grads: The National Association for Colleges and Employers found a slight uptick in salaries for the Class of 2016 compared with their counterparts who graduated a year ago. Most of the pay increase was driven by computer science majors securing high-paying entry level jobs.

At the University of Texas at Austin, conservative students held an affirmative action bake sale, changing the price of cookies based on a students race and sex. UTs student newspaper streamed a protest of the event here.

To kick off your weekend, heres a piece from Atlas Obscura about the myth of 100 missing brains at UT.

Drop me a line at Lindsay.Ellis@Chron.com or on Twitter @lindsayaellis.
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Nude and voluptuous, her eyes toward heaven, the colossal bronze woman reclines next to busy Westheimer Road, an apple in one hand. She's the last big woman in the life of Fernando Botero, one of Latin America's  and the world's  best-known artists.

"It's the last monumental sculpture that I made and the last one that I will create," Botero, 84, says of "Reclining Woman with Fruit." A permanent injury to one his arms means that he's no longer able to make oversized pieces.

The two-ton woman was hoisted into place Monday, outside the new building for Art of the World Gallery, at 2201 Westheimer. On Friday, the gallery, owned by Houston residents Liliana Molina and Mauricio Vallejo, will open with a show of Botero's work: roughly 30 of his paintings, drawings and sculptures.

To many, Botero's paintings and sculptures are instantly recognizable for one reason: Their people and animals are notably rotund. But, says the artist, "I have never painted a fat person. I am interested in largeness, the big dimensions, the voluptuous; that's the treatment I give to all my work, both people, and objects."

Like Botero, the new gallery's owners are from Colombia. "It's an honor for us to present a solo exhibition of Botero for the first time in Houston to mark the opening of our gallery," says Molina.

And like the two-ton woman on Westheimer, their ambitions are ample.

AS ITS name implies, Art of the World won't limit its artists to a single continent or heritage. But its roster  which includes Spain's Picasso and Cristobal Toral, Colombia's Gustavo Velez and Hugo Zapata, Texas' Jesus Morales, and Costa Rica's Jimenez Dereda  has a significantly Hispanic tilt.

The gallery's opening is yet another sign of Houston's emergence as the U.S. hub of Latin American art.

"Houston has become a premier center for contemporary Latin American art due in no small part to Mari Carmen Ramirez, the Wortham Curator of Latin American Art at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston," says Rex Koontz, director of the University of Houston's School of Art. (For this story, the Chronicle was unable to reach Ramirez, who was traveling abroad.)

The Puerto Rican-born Ramirez, considered one of the most influential Latin American art curators in the world, arrived at the MFAH in 2001, aiming to expand American's perception of Latin American art beyond Frida Khalo and Diego Rivera. Since then, the museum has systematically expanded its Latin American collection, adding 550 modern and contemporary works  many by avant-garde artists barely seen before in the U.S.

"In fact," adds Koontz, Houston "has also become the place in North America for people to study that art. The ICAA (International Center for the Arts of the Americas), a research center for the study of Latin American art housed at the MFAH, is second to none in that area."

Latin American art is also increasingly popular with Houston's collectors and galleries. Sicardi Gallery, which specializes in this region, represents artists such as Venezuelan Carlos Cruz-Diez, a pioneer of kinetic art.

And events such as the Houston Art Fair are showing a growing number of artists from that region.

Latin American artists' growing presence in Houston is sometimes even visible from the streets. The five bright-colored crosswalks that connect the MFAH's main campus are works of public art by Cruz-Diez. Another is at the front of the University of Houston's Welcome Center.

Art of the World Gallery aims to achieve similar visibility -- and Botero's woman is just the start. Molina and Vallejo say they hope to present monumental artworks temporarily in parks and shopping malls.

MOLINA AND Vallejo moved to Houston in 2002, when Colombia was in the midst of a drug trafficking crisis. "While everyone was putting their eyes in New York, Miami or Los Angeles for the arts, we saw a potential and a great opportunity in Houston," says Vallejo.

"Here we know very good private collections both of Anglo and Hispanic collectors living in areas like River Oaks, the Woodlands, Rice (Village) or Tanglewood," adds Molina. Several collectors in Houston already own pieces from Botero,

Unlike some of the avant-garde, abstract works in the MFAH's Latin American collection, Botero's recognizable figures are big, fat crowd-pleasers. He says that he is also interested that his work can communicate "with everyone, from the elites to the most humble people."

Some critics have suggested that his work lacks depth. Botero said he is not interested in that line of questioning: "My artwork speaks for itself," he says. "My work communicates with people without having to have a translator on the side to explain what it means."

On Westheimer, his naked lady will recline through the second week of February. "Does [she] need more explanation to be understood?" he asks.

Olivia.Tallet@chron.com

Twitter: @oliviaptallet
Scott Solomon is an evolutionary biologist at Rice University.

This week his book "Future Humans" was published by Yale University Press. In the book, Solomon offers compelling evidence about how humans continue to evolve and how modernization  things better health care, global travel and even online dating  might change our evolution going forward.

Solomon traveled the globe doing research for the book. Among his highlights: interviewing wannabe Mars colonists in the Utah desert and meeting one of the world's foremost facial recognition experts who showed up for the meeting and had his hair dyed green and red. (Solomon thinks it might have been for research but isn't sure.)

Solomon spoke to the Houston Chronicle about the book and the future of humanity, providing of course, that we don't get wiped out by an asteroid, super volcano, disease or nuclear war.

Q: Scott, your new book offers a fascinating look at not only our evolutionary past, but also our evolutionary future. So first things first. Can you tell me if my descendants will be taller, thinner and possibly have fewer freckles?

A: (Laughs) The short answer is "no." I can't tell you that. We do have some ideas about the trends at least in the way certain physical features might be evolving. But really, we're at a point today in which we have much more information than ever before about how we have evolved and how we are evolving. We are not yet at the point  and we may never be at the point  where we can predict in a specific way how any species including humans will evolve far into the future. So that wasn't quite the goal of my book. Rather, the goal was to consider the ways in which we're evolving today and how that might change in the future or not.

Q: One of the things you do talk about is that as populations grow  and certainly the human population is doing just that  more mutations enter the gene pool. Is that a good thing or a bad thing for our evolution?

A: That's a good question. It's neither and both at the same time. On the one hand, we have to be cautious about making judgments about how any of this is either positive or negative. I try to really remain an objective observer. But the reason that mutations can be beneficial from the point of view of evolution is that evolution can only happen if there's variation among individuals. If there is variation and that variation influences an individual's likelihood to survive and reproduce, then that is something that will evolve in the future. So evolution is really not so much about what we think of as survival of the fittest. It's really all about babies. And any trait that makes an individual have more babies is a trait that's going to become common in future generations. We have mutations entering our gene pool today at a rate that's really unprecedented in human history. What that is doing is bringing more variation into our gene pool, more raw material so to speak, for our evolution to work with.

Q: One of the really interesting parts of the book, I thought, was the effect of modernization on our evolution. In the book you mention a study on how menopause used to be beneficial to evolution because grandmothers are good for survival of a species. But now because of advances in technology, women are having children at much older ages, which in effect changes that idea. Can you talk a little more about how modernization will affect our evolution going forward?

A: There are a number of ways in which we can look at how modernization is affecting evolution. You mentioned menopause. Menopause is a strange phenomenon, if we compare ourselves to other species. If we compare ourselves to our closest relatives, the idea that you would stop reproducing at a particular age but continue to live a long life after that, that's really hard to understand from an evolutionary perspective. There have been a number of hypotheses that attempt to make sense of this phenomenon. One idea is that because pregnancy and childbirth are relatively dangerous for humans compared with other species, so at some point it might be more beneficial for a woman, from an evolutionary perspective, to start caring more for her living children and her grandchildren than to continue making more children. So this is the so-called grandmother hypothesis. But pregnancy and childbirth is becoming much less dangerous in industrialized nations as a result of better health care and more modern facilities.

Q: Any more examples of how modernization is affecting our evolution?

A: Absolutely. One of the big ones is transportation and globalization in terms of how people move around the Earth today. We move around the world in a way that is unprecedented in human history. We can wake up on one side of the world and go to sleep the next night on the other side. Not only is that true for transportation, people are increasingly moving and living in a part of the world where they were not born. Every year, we have more and more international migrants. What we're seeing is more and more mixing of populations. At the same time, we have more and more interracial marriage happening, populations of people that were once relatively isolated are coming together and having children at higher rates than have ever happened before. So what we're seeing is a mixing of gene pools and that again is adding to that diversity that we have in our gene pool as a species. So that's probably having a positive benefit in terms of opportunities for evolution as we move forward.

Q: One of the examples that I thought was interesting that you cite in the book is online dating and how it's changing what we know about mate selection. It's not something we typically think about in terms of evolution but you make that connection. Can you explain?

A: Again, evolution is about babies. And how we choose our mates is very important to this point. This is something we don't know as much about in humans as we do in other species like frogs, and birds. This has been studied a lot. What we do know about humans is that people use visual cues like how symmetrical a person's face is. That has an influence on how attractive we find that person to be and that seems to be linked to the quality of their genes, meaning that someone with a more symmetrical face might have higher quality genes. Maybe they'll be better and fighting off diseases for example. There are other cues, too, such as olfactory cues, or smell cues. When we smell another person we actually can get information about that person and it turns out women are especially good at this. Women are able to detect the smell of men who are more symmetrical in their faces and they're also able to tell the difference between men who might be related to them versus those more distantly related to them. But these things are changing in a modern world. Of course we use perfume and deodorants to cover up our smell. In online dating, which is becoming much more common in many parts of the world, especially with young people, visual information is commonly used. But something like smell is lost. It gets even more interesting because men tend to rely more on visual cues on average and women rely more on smell cues on average so it looks like online dating may be setting up a situation where it favors the cues used more by men than women.

Q: During your research, you traveled across the globe and this country. Could you describe one of your favorite moments?

A: One example of that was I visited the Mars Dessert Research Station in Utah. This is a place out in the middle of the desert in Utah. It's a place where people visit to conduct experiments in order to better understand what it would be like to have a human colony on Mars. They are very passionate about the importance of establishing a colony on Mars for the future of our species. They were people who were willing to sacrifice their own lives to make that a reality.

Q: How would colonizing Mars or another planet change our evolution?

A: I think it's a really interesting question because when we talk about establishing a permanent human colony on Mars. Most often the reason given for doing that is our long-term survival as a species depends on it because some catastrophe could happen here on Earth  and eventually  one likely will whether that's an asteroid hitting the Earth like the one that killed the dinosaurs or something more self-inflicted like climate change or nuclear war. By making ourselves an interplanetary species, we hedge our bets for survival. But we also know from looking at other species on Earth that any time populations become isolated for long periods of time that very often leads to a situation where the isolated population evolves differently from the population that it came from and evolves into a distinct, separate species. So I think there's a very real possibility that if we establish a permanent human colony on Mars  and it's successful  that we could actually evolve into a distinct species, which to me is kind of ironic because the whole point of establishing a colony there is to ensure the long-term survival of our species but in the end it changes us forever.

Q: So you're saying that there is a chance my descendants will be taller? We just might have to move to Mars to make that happen.

A: It is interesting to think about. It gets more into the realm of speculation. But yeah, because there's very little gravity and very high radiation on Mars interesting things could happen. On the one hand, science fiction writers have imagined people on Mars to be very tall and thin because we know that less gravity can sometimes to lead to lower bone densities in astronauts. But I actually think the opposite could happen. I think we would end up with denser skeletons primarily because of the constraints imposed by pregnancy and childbirth in low gravity.

Q: In the book, you present research that makes a pretty strong case that we could be entering into another mass extinction. How does understanding our evolution help, if we're all going to be taken out by a super volcano?

A: I think it's really interesting to think about what could happen to our species simply by biological evolution and that's what I really tried to focus on with the book. What are the ways in which our species is going to keep evolving whether we're aware of it or not? But at the same time, there's also the same possibility that we could direct our own evolutionary change. We have the ability today to edit genomes, to make intentional changes to the DNA sequence of our chromosomes in a way that would be passed from one generation to the next. So there is a possibility that in the future we could intentionally manipulate our genetics in a way that leads us toward a new evolutionary direction.
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Maricela Guillen-Villalobos slid her 2-year-old's arms gently into a burgundy vest Friday morning, then tied a black cape around his neck. To complete the Halloween costume, she cut two small pieces of medical tape to look like fangs, colored the tips blood-red, and attached them to his bottom lip.

She smiled nervously.

When she was pregnant with Santiago, or "Santy," Maricela had imagined how fun it would be to dress her baby for special occasions. That was before doctors told her the boy had a debilitating heart disorder  before she realized he'd spend much of his young life connected to medical equipment at Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital.

Now she was about to take him outside for the first time since he was an infant.

"All he knows is the room," she said.

A team of hospital staffers lifted Santy-The-Vampire and his portable ventilation system out of bed and into a red wagon, taking great care to make him comfortable. After a few minutes, Mom lifted the wagon's handle and started to pull.

Staffers in the pediatric intensive care unit cheered as she led him down the hall, trailed by a convoy of nurses, infection control experts, therapists, child life specialists and a doctor. One pushed a cart loaded with life-saving medical equipment ... just in case.

Only a week earlier, Maricela had told a hospital worker that she wished Santy could leave his room more, maybe walk the hospital's hallways, though she knew even that could be dangerous. "My dream," she'd said, "would be to take him outside."

Child life specialist Bethany Hibbetts caught word of the comment and went to work. She coordinated with Santy's doctors and a host of hospital administrators  days of work  to get him a few hundred feet from his room to a patch of grass near the hospital entrance. "Everyone at the hospital loves Santy so much," Hibbetts said. "We all wanted this for him."

Maricela was excited but scared when she heard the plan. Once, when moving from one wing of the hospital to another for a test, Santy had a heart attack. What would happen if they took him outside? How would he react to the sound of ambulance sirens or the glare of sunlight?

Maricela decided her son deserved the chance to find out: "I wanted him to feel the wind and watch the leaves."

A hospital security guard was waiting for them. She propped open an emergency exit at the side of the building and smiled as Maricela stepped through, pulling her son behind her.

The boy's eyes grew wide as he stared up at blue sky for the first time. Mom's eyes grew wide, too.

The fresh air felt great, she said. She practically lives at the hospital, staying at her son's side day and night, leaving only to use the bathroom and shower.

"I just have him, and he's very sick," she said. " I don't want to miss any second of him."

Maricela wheeled him onto the grass, then put a witch's hat on her head.

She kneeled by his side, for just a few minutes, smiling under the shade of an oak tree.
In the video above, Ashton Bingham received an easily discredited call claiming to be from the IRS, rather than simply hanging up, he decided to see just how long he could keep the scammer on the line. At one point, the scammer even believes he's successfully tricked Aston into repaying five figure tax-debt with Target gift cards.

Three Houston-area men charged with participating in a $300 million international call center scam will remain in federal custody at least until they are able to get lawyers to represent them.

The three men appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephen Wm. Smith Friday afternoon in shackles and handcuffs, wearing street clothes.

All three requested a hearing, set for Tuesday, to determine who their attorneys will be. The magistrate judge granted each man a chance to make a phone call while in the federal court building.

READ MORE: Feds charge two dozen nationally in $300 million call center fraud

Facing charges are Sunny Joshi, 46, and Manoj Joshi, also known as Rajesh Bhatt, 52, both of Sugar Land, who are accused of being managers for a call center; and Nilesh Pandya, 53, of Stafford, who is accused of being a runner.

All three men have been charged with conspiracy, wire fraud and money laundering. Sunny Joshi is the sole defendant in the case charged with willfully and knowingly making a false statement while applying for a passport by saying he had never used another name when. He alone is also charged with using a passport obtained as a result of a false statement.

The three were among 61 defendants - with four in Texas - charged in a federal indictment unsealed Thursday in Houston alleging the scams were operated from a network of call centers based in India.

READ MORE: Have you been the victim of a telephone extortion scam?

More than 15,000 people were cheated by the callers, who posed as IRS, homeland security and other government officials and demanded their targets pay thousands of dollars in unpaid fines on the spot or face arrest, public humiliation or deportation, according to the indictment.

The scheme targeted mostly South Asian immigrants and elderly people, according to federal officials.

More than 50,000 people had their identities stolen to help further the scam, officials said.

The indictments list a variety of charges that include wire fraud, money laundering, passport fraud, false personation of an officer of the U.S. and conspiracy. Criminal charges have also been filed against five call centers that officials said operated in Ahmedabad, in the western state of Gujarat, India.

For information about how to report such scams to the federal goverment, go here.
With early voting already under way in Harris County, two prominent attorneys chimed in Thursday on the contentious race for district attorney.

Defense attorney Rusty Hardin, one of the city's most renowned litigators, held a press conference to release emails from the DA's office to bolster his claim that ads against Republican DA Devon Anderson by challenger Kim Ogg are misleading.

About the same time, attorney Randy Schaffer released a scathing open letter to Anderson challenging her derogatory reference to Ogg as a "liberal, pro-choice lesbian" in a recent interview.

The clashes were the latest fireworks in a months-long battle between the two campaigns, with the latest University of Houston poll showing Ogg leading in the tight race.

In his high-rise downtown Houston office, Hardin told reporters the entire criminal justice system, not the incumbent district attorney, failed a mentally ill rape victim who was jailed for almost a month last year.

Hardin is representing Nicholas Socias, the trial prosecutor at the center of the controversy, in a federal lawsuit.

"What happened to the victim is incredibly horrible," Hardin said. "But Nick was confronted with the problem, absolutely convinced that if this man was not tried in this particular case, that he not only would continue to rape again, but his rapes were getting more and more violent."

The plight of the mentally unstable rape victim made headlines this summer after she was jailed over the Christmas holiday. She had broken down on the witness stand while testifying against a serial rapist, and prosecutors feared she would not return to court.

The woman, known as Jenny, was taken to the mental health ward at St. Joseph's Hospital and moved a few days later to the Harris County jail, where she was held as a material witness. She was accidentally misclassified as a suspect and put in general population for weeks where, she said, she was beaten by another inmate and assaulted by a jail guard.

Anderson was roundly criticized for her office's action, but officials have maintained that the rapist would not have been convicted without the woman's testimony.

That criticism has carried through to campaign mailers and television commercials from Ogg and her supporters. One commercial features Jenny's mother, in shadows, detailing her daughter's ordeal and urging voters to support Ogg, the Democratic candidate.

It was that commercial, Hardin said Thursday, that forced him to speak out. Emails he released Thursday showed that Socias did work to get Jenny out of the general population, and that Jenny could have been released to her mother.

Jenny's mother, who is battling cancer, has maintained that she did not have the strength to deal with her adult daughter if she had chosen to go to her residence in East Texas.

Hardin said his press conference was not coordinated with the Anderson campaign.

Anderson released a statement saying the ads were distortions and directed the public to the campaign's Facebook page.

"I publicly addressed the distortion of the truth surrounding this case and my opponent's ads in a video on my Facebook page last night," Anderson said in the statement.

After Hardin's press conference, Wayne Dolcefino, a spokesman for Ogg, said the candidate has pledged to never jail a rape victim.

"Devon Anderson and her prosecutors just don't get it," he said. "You don't jail a rape victim. Now they're attacking the mother of a mentally ill woman and that's just sad. It smacks of desperation."

Thursday afternoon also saw the release of an open letter to Anderson from well-known attorney Randy Schaffer about a comment she made earlier this month about Ogg's sexual orientation in an interview with conservative podcaster Vlad Davidiuk.

The comment came after Anderson was asked about criticism she has received from fellow Republicans for her actions in a well-publicized case involving Planned Parenthood. Those charges were eventually dismissed.

"We filed over 116,000 cases last year. That's about how many we file every year. They have a problem with me on one, maybe two cases," she said. "When they get a liberal, pro-choice, lesbian district attorney, I wonder how many cases they'll have a problems with, with her?"

In his open letter, Schaffer wrote that Anderson's decision to "play the sexual preference card" demonstrates that she is not qualified to be district attorney.

"How can the community have confidence that the Harris County District Attorney's Office does not discriminate on the basis of sexual preference when you suggest that a lesbian is less qualified to be the district attorney?" he wrote. "If your opponent were African-American or Jewish, would you have referred to her race and religion?"

The letter asks if Anderson believes prosecutors or judges who are gays or lesbians are not qualified for public service.

"You insulted every gay prosecutor and member of your staff, not to mention our courthouse community, when you suggested that a person is less qualified for public office because of sexual preference," he said.

When the interview surfaced last week, Anderson said the "feigned outrage" was not newsworthy.

"I was making a point about how conservative, pro-life, Republicans would feel about how Kim Ogg might address the approximately 116,000 cases this office handles on an annual basis," she said. "I have described myself as being conservative and pro-life. The description is factual. I said she was a liberal, pro-choice, lesbian. She has proudly described herself as such in the past."

Ogg called the statement homophobic.

"It is not surprising that a district attorney who jails rape victims would resort to homophobic attacks on me and my family in the closing days before voting begins," Ogg said. "It is further evidence of her poor judgment."
He called himself "Rico Pimping" and was well-known for wearing fedora hats, fabulously colorful suits and lots of jewelry while driving around Houston in his gold Jaguar.

On Friday, a judge sentenced Mark Anthony Inestroza to 35 years in prison after hearing that he used charm, then threats and finally violence to force women into prostitution.

Wearing an orange jail uniform, the 23-year-old was stoic as visiting Judge Frank Price sentenced him for the felony offense of compelling prostitution of a minor.

"He is a pimp. He prides himself on being a pimp," prosecutor Ann Johnson said after the punishment was handed down. "The court sent a very strong message to the community that no longer will we allow human trafficking."

Inestroza was convicted of threatening to use violence to force a 16-year-old to prostitute herself with more than a dozen men over three days. Police began investigating when the teen's mother called authorities after being shown online ads for the girl.

History of violence

Waving hundreds of paper copies of computer screenshots of other women from an escort website posted by "Rico Pimping," Johnson told the judge that investigators have no idea how many women Inestroza forced into prostitution before being arrested three years ago.

"These are all the women he sold," Johnson said, as she argued for a life sentence. "He is a sexual predator for profit."

Maverick Ray, Inestroza's attorney, had argued for the minimum punishment, 15 years in prison, saying the young man made some bad decisions after his father disappeared and his mother was deported to her native Honduras.

"I think drugs and depression led him down this bad path," he said.

Prosecutors Friday called two other women to testify that Inestroza has a history of using violence to get his way.

Wakes up crying

Early in the day, a woman he put on the street described how Inestroza changed from a sympathetic boyfriend to an abusive pimp.

"I still wake up in the night crying," the 23-year-old woman said. She and another woman testified that Inestroza brutally beat a third prostitute who fled to Bryan-College Station, severing the top half of her ear from her head and putting her in the hospital for a week.

"He went from charming, sweet and understanding to being mentally abusive to me and physically abusive to her," the 23-year-old woman testified. "Some days it was good; some days it wasn't so good."

She said Inestroza once handcuffed her to a pipe behind a toilet in a cheap motel room, but she was finally able to escape to the motel office.

"When they saw the handcuffs, they called the police," she said. "At first, I just told them he was my boyfriend."

After the sentence, the 23-year-old witness had tears in her eyes as she hugged two other former prostitutes who testified against Inestroza. The three women had been sitting in the front row of the courtroom gallery staring down the former pimp as he was led to a holding cell.
AUSTIN - A special task force of state police dispatched to quickly locate 511 children identified as being at "the highest risk" for abuse or neglect located the first 26 children Thursday, as child protection caseworkers tracked down another 134.

The development came as Henry "Hank" Whitman Jr., commissioner of the Department of Family and Protective Services, requested a $1,000-a-month pay raise for front-line workers who have been quitting in droves due to low pay, leaving the agency unable to carry out its core mission in many areas.

Officials said 10 of the highest-risk children on the list were found Thursday by Texas Department of Public Safety investigators in Houston, 12 in Dallas and four in San Antonio.

Authorities said they could not release further details because of confidentiality laws covering the child protection program.

Of the others on the list, 86 were found to have been mistakenly listed because they had already been seen by caseworkers.

Although all of the children on the high-priority list were supposed to have been seen within days after their alleged abuse was reported, some had not been seen for weeks, even months. State senators on Wednesday had demanded they be located and seen immediately.

Patrick Crimmins, a spokesman for the child protection agency, said none of the children were removed from their homes. Other officials said the hunt for the remaining 265 would continue Friday.

In his revised plan, Whitman on Thursday asked Senate leaders to immediately find funding for the pay hike and said he plans to implement a new program to train supervisors Dec. 1.

Low pay, oppressive supervision and poor management has been cited as among the leading causes of high employee turnover, in some areas as high as 40 percent.

Pay raises effective

Because so many employees are leaving the agency, caseworkers have fallen behind in investigating cases of abuse and neglect, even as the state has faced a shortage of housing for the increasing numbers of Texas children who are being placed in foster care.

With starting salaries as low as $34,000 a year, the pay hike proposed by Whitman would raise that base pay to $46,000.

Whitman earlier said a one-shot pay increase in the Midland area cut turnover significantly, and during a Senate hearing Wednesday he had said he would likely ask for higher pay scales.

His proposed salary hikes would add an additional $8.2 million to a request for $53.3 million more to overhaul Child Protective Services, an amount that left some senators balking at the Wednesday hearing.

Finding those additional funds might be a challenge with a drop in state revenues that is expected to leave legislative leaders looking for perhaps as much as $4 billion more to make ends meet in the new two-year budget to be debated starting in January.

At a cost of about $57,000 to train each new caseworker, agency officials have estimated they are losing tens of millions of dollars to the high turnover rates.

Echoing sentiments of other committee members, Sen. Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo, said that was tantamount to "opening a window at the Capitol and throwing out" millions of dollars in cash.

Senate Finance Committee Chair Jane Nelson, a Flower Mound Republican who was among senators who demanded fast action Wednesday to curb the agency's myriad problems, said she was reviewing the new plan filed by Whitman late in the day.

"Time is of the essence, so our workgroup is moving quickly to review the new recommendations," she said. "I have also asked the agency for daily updates on their efforts to address this crisis."

John Wittman, a spokesman for Gov. Greg Abbott, said the governor supports Whitman's proposal as a start to repair a system that has been troubled for years.

Budget expanding

For the past decade, lawmakers have allocated more and more funding to repair chronic problems in foster care and child protection programs as caseloads mushroomed.

From a budget of $1.2 billion in 2002, the agency's current budget is $2.8 billion.

Last December, a federal judge in Corpus Christi ruled that Texas' foster care system was unconstitutional because of continuing, systemic flaws that subjected children to repeated exposure to physical, sexual and psychological abuse.

"The court does not understand, nor tolerate, the systemic willingness to put children in mortal harm's way," the judge wrote in a ruling.

During Wednesday's hearing, in which lawmakers blasted Whitman for not quickly addressing key problems such as failing to check on children at the highest risk of abuse or neglect, senators and agency officials repeatedly suggested that higher pay would be a first step to address turnover so the agency can stabilize its operations.

Whitman said as soon as legislative leaders find more funding for higher pay or more staff, he will begin implementing changes that are not funded in his current budget. Among other things, he has requested more than 800 additional employees - including more than 500 front-line case managers and investigators - to address the growing number of abuse and neglect cases being reported in Texas each year.

As part of the additional hires, Whitman is seeking 200 additional investigative caseworkers and an additional 100 special investigators, along with more caseworkers to handle family-based safety services and conservatorships.

Susan Carroll contributed to this report.
Six teams of Justice Department officials will be dispatched to observe Election Day voting at 75 polling locations in Harris County as part of an investigation into allegations that the county failed to provide reasonable access to mobility-impaired voters.

Harris County will field its own teams on Election Day as part of an arrangement approved Thursday by U.S. District Judge Alfred H. Bennett.

Bennett, however, told county officials that he found it "deeply disturbing" that Justice Department observers saw a visibly armed county investigator with a badge filming an elderly African-American woman with a walker entering a polling place this week for early voting.

"That's voter intimidation," the judge said, ordering the Harris County Attorney's Office to provide written notice explaining how it plans to avoid a repeat of the scenario.

The filming was meant to record the accessibility of the site, a county attorney said, explaining she was surprised to hear the investigator was in close proximity to voters and that his sidearm was visible.

The judge also asked whether there had been any complaints of ADA violations during early voting, which began Monday in Texas. Harris County officials said it had neither seen nor heard of any, but the Justice Department legal team said it knew of four complaints so far, in addition to the incident of the woman with the walker.

The details were revealed during a hearing Thursday in Houston in a Justice Department lawsuit accusing the county of civil violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act because it doesn't provide appropriate parking, ramps, sidewalks, entry ways, voting space and other mandatory accommodations at voting sites.

The county says it has fielded no such complaints and denies its polling sites are out of compliance with ADA regulations.

"They have taken the position that there is a systemic problem," said Laura Beckman Hedge of the Harris County Attorney's Office. "We believe this is a fishing expedition."

'There is no excuse'

Elizabeth Johnson, the lead attorney for the Justice Department, who flew in from Washington, D.C. for the hearing, admitted to the judge she was casting a wide net.

"Our claim is it's a system-wide problem and we'd like to survey polling places that we haven't seen before," she said.

The local allegations come amid heightened concerns about voter fraud and voter suppression nationwide that have surfaced in the contentious presidential election. Early voting started this week in Texas for the Nov. 8 general election.

Lex Frieden, a professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center who helped write the American with Disabilities Act, said Harris County is probably better than most areas in providing accessibility but that local officials should fix the problems that exist or find other locations.

"We need to be assured that nobody faces barriers," he said Thursday. "In a city the size of Houston, there is no excuse for using a polling place that is not accessible."

Bennett reined in the Justice Department lawyers' initial request to send 12 teams of observers to 200 sites on Nov. 8, settling on six teams at a maximum of 75 sites. The Harris County legal team plans to send its own teams to the same polling locations to record how accessible they are. To do that, Hedge said, the county will hire more helpers.

The judge also narrowed the focus to voting sites the Justice Department has identified but that hasn't yet visited and that Census data indicate have higher populations of mobility-impaired voters.

Repeated investigations

The Justice Department filed suit in August against Harris County, alleging polling sites do not meet federal regulations.

Justice Department officials began by investigating 86 polling sites during a special election in January 2013 - seven were early voting locations and 79 were used exclusively on Election Day. Officials found that 59 sites were not compliant with ADA standards, although 52 could be remedied with temporary modifications.

Harris County has remedied or stopped using the locations, Hedge said.

Justice officials observed the county's polling sites again during a special election in May and found the majority were inaccessible, "with some requiring permanent architectural remedies or relocation to an alternative accessible site," Johnson noted in a subsequent letter to the county.

Justice Department lawyers presented the county with a consent decree, which Harris County officials soundly rejected.

Shortly thereafter, the Justice Department sued Harris County for non-compliance.

The judge asked Justice Department lawyers to identify the 75 target sites for both parties to observe by Monday.
When Houstonian Emma Primas was born in 1905, women did not yet have the right to vote. Later, as a black woman, she faced poll taxes and literacy tests.

On Thursday, at 111 years old, Primas proudly cast her ballot in this year's election.

Introducing Primas as a "Texas star," U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Houston, hosted one of Texas' oldest voters at a press conference outside the Griggs Road early voting location in south Houston on Thursday.

Wearing a patriotic "Fort Bend Votes" sticker on her lapel, Primas urged voters to exercise their right to vote, pointing to the obstacles she faced as inspiration.

"It's always important to vote. As soon as I got eligible to vote, I did," Primas said. "I wanted to a long time ago, but it wasn't available for us, especially for black people in that time, but later on when it did become available I went down to vote, and I've been voting ever since."

Primas reflected on her struggles in a 2009 interview after she was honored by President Barack Obama at the White House during an Easter prayer breakfast.

"First, they let white women vote, and then they decided to let black folks vote. But you had to buy a poll tax. So I paid the poll tax so I could get a chance to vote," Primas said in 2009.

In addition to encouraging voter turnout, Lee also used the event to criticize Harris County's decision to make election day voting locations different from early voting locations, and not having the locations finalized.

"Many of our polling places are going to be moved, consolidated. That is voter depression," Jackson Lee said. "I promise you there will be droves of people going to the wrong location to vote."

Hector DeLeon, director of communications for the Harris County Clerk's office, said that some locations are subject to change because they may not comply with state or federal regulations.

"When you look at the polling locations, very few polls are being relocated," DeLeon said, adding that the county does not own many of the voting facilities, which leads to some difficulty in finalizing locations.

When asked who she voted for, Primas demurred, saying "I'm keeping that to myself."
Where is Wright Patman when you need him?

A longtime East Texas populist, Patman represented Texas' first congressional district in Washington for 46 years, where he worked as chair of the House Committee on Banking and Currency to block bank mergers and slow the concentration of corporate power.

Over his storied career, the maverick politician fought to get World War I veterans their promised bonus payments, stopped Wal-Mart style stores from undercutting mom-and-pop shops, and was the first Democrat to investigate Watergate. In an unlikely alliance, Patman worked closely with Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis on limiting the power of wealthy families, foundations, corporations and banks.

Think of him as a cross between Ron Paul and Elizabeth Warren.

And we imagine he'd be spitting mad to read about AT&T's plans to buy Time Warner in a $85.4 billion deal.

That merger would result in a media company that not only controlled television and internet access - including DirectTV - but also the movies and shows aired over those networks. Experts call it a vertical merger, in which a company buys one of its suppliers, and we're seeing more of them in the media world. In 2009, Comcast had little trouble purchasing NBC/Universal in a similar melding of telecom and media company. But in the past seven years, the United States political landscape has undergone a disorienting upheaval.

Both the Republican and Democratic tickets have expressed concern about the AT&T merger.

"Less concentration, I think, is generally helpful, especially in the media," vice presidential candidate Tim Kaine said on "Meet The Press."

The leaders of the antitrust subcommittee of the Senate Judiciary Committee have also called for a thorough investigation as to whether it would create a harmful monopoly. And the FCC has to approve that the merger is in the public interest, as well.

From Donald Trump's neo-nationalism on the right to Bernie Sanders' left-wing socialism, there's a growing skepticism of concentrated power in the corporate world. This pushback comes after years of bipartisan support for this sort of consolidation.

In The Atlantic this month, Matt Stoller wrote about the turning point when Baby Boomer politicians replaced New Deal populists like Patman. A Great Depression-era fear of monopolies gave way to a new generation that saw large corporations as key to efficient management and new innovation.

Looking at the corporate landscape, however, it is hard to deny that we've swung too far. It isn't just a question of whether these super-sized behemoths reduce consumer choice. There's a greater danger of yielding so much power to individual entities that it undermines our republic.

As Justice Brandeis said, "We may have democracy, or we may have wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both."

We're seeing that play out as our government has no trouble rushing to save banks that have become too big to fail, but is all too slow when mill towns crumble in a changing economy.

We also see it as private companies conspire to violate individual liberty. In 2013, AT&T was caught selling customer data to law enforcement at a cost of millions of dollars per year to taxpayers. The telecom collected cash while authorities circumvented the Constitution.

Imagine the sort of power AT&T would wield after this merger.

The AT&T-Time Warner deal may end up being worthwhile, but we'd feel more comfortable if it were scrutinized by the likes of Patman or Brandeis. And it has been a long time since men of their caliber held power in Washington.
Every day is a struggle for special-needs students like Joseph Espinoza, a 17-year-old who was abused as a child and has been diagnosed with Asperger syndrome, post-traumatic stress disorder, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

Living in Texas makes that struggle harder because Joseph and his family and others like them have to fight to get the services they need from public schools. For a decade, Texas has operated under a heartless decree issued by the Texas Education Agency that no more than 8.5 percent of students should receive special education services. This decree - which was enacted by bureaucrats without a public announcement - was largely unknown outside of special education circles until exposed in a series of groundbreaking reports by Chronicle reporter Brian Rosenthal.

The way the agency should move forward is clear. As called for by Texas House Speaker Joe Straus, the Texas Education Agency should suspend its enrollment benchmark immediately. Moreover, the agency should fully cooperate in shedding light on the ban, its consequences and its enforcement. It should not only apologize to Joseph and other Texas families for denying them services, but it should redouble its efforts to ensure that Texas children receive the services they need.

Unfortunately, TEA Commissioner Mike Morath has taken the path often trodden by beleaguered bureaucrats who end up making a bad situation worse. He's not only defended the indefensible but has stonewalled requests for more information.

Joseph, the other special education children and their families deserve better.

Although Morath has said his agency would conduct a detailed review of what happened, his initial position is that the cap was an "indicator" and not a mandatory goal. It's hard to reconcile the agency's position with the reality of special education in Texas. Our state has the lowest percentage of students in the nation receiving services. Texas special education students are five times more likely to be expelled to a disciplinary school than the national average, according to Rosenthal.

The agency also maintains that it did not punish districts that did not comply. Rather than arbitrarily weeding out students, it claims to have reduced the number of kids in special education with new teaching techniques.

Again, something is not adding up. Districts eliminated categories of support services in some instances. Several years ago, San Felipe Del Rio CISD in West Texas stopped serving children with one form of autism. In Northwest ISD near Fort Worth, administrators told parents that they no longer gave speech therapy to high schoolers who stutter.

The TEA could clear up any confusion by releasing correspondence with districts that pertain to punishment, if any, that it imposed on districts for going over the 8.5 percent benchmark. Instead, it's taking the position that the records are exempt from public review because they are part of a program audit. Attorney General Ken Paxton's office has agreed.

Without more information from the state, special-needs advocates can't be sure of the state's methods used to enforce the cap. But partial records are available from a single district, and these paint a disturbing picture.

In 2007, the agency sent five employees to spend a week in Laredo. They ended up ordering corrective action. Subsequently, the Laredo Independent School District purged its special ed rolls, discharging nearly one-third of its special education students, according to district data. More than 700 children were forced out of special education and moved back into regular education. Only 78 new students entered services. It's impossible to know what happened to these discharged students as a result of actions by officials who are supposed to have the best interests of Texas children at heart. Texas does not meaningfully track children who leave special education. Many just fell through the cracks.

Undoubtedly, some stories will track Joseph's. After years of receiving help, Joseph passed all his classes for the first time. At that point, College Station ISD discharged him from special education because he didn't need the services anymore.

Without extra help, Joseph now is failing his classes. Joseph's parents are still trying to get him back in to receive special education services.

They are not alone. Many parents have waged years-long frustrating and often unsuccessful campaigns to get their children into special education, unaware that the 8.5 percent cap was the problem.

Agency officials can never make up for the pain and harm caused by its actions. But the agency can be transparent about what happened. Transparency will help ensure that Texas' most vulnerable students will never again be allowed to become the casualties of an uninformed bureaucratic policy.
Voter experience

Regarding "User error, not vast, liberal conspiracy responsible for voting problems in Texas" (Chron.com, Tuesday), as a resident of Tarrant County for the past four and a half years I know that in my precinct very few voters have experience using electronic voting machines because they were using mostly paper ballots.

So new technology plus a lot of older voters (again only going by my precinct) equal plenty of opportunity for user error.

Vicki Hustede, posted via Facebook

Students needing help

Regarding "Straus: Halt cap on special ed" (Page A1, Thursday), many members of the Texas House, like a lot of parents and educators across our state, are concerned that Texas Education Agency policies over the last decade have kept students from receiving needed special education services, as the Houston Chronicle has reported.

These agency policies are in place to make sure that schools do not send students into special education programs when it's not warranted. But questions have been raised about whether those policies have gone too far and prevented eligible students from getting services when appropriate.

This week, I asked Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath to suspend the policies that may be giving schools incentive to keep students out of special education. Doing so would allow the agency, working with the Legislature, to develop a more lasting solution and determine the amount of resources needed to implement it.

The House looks forward to working with the Commissioner and other educators to address the problem identified in the Chronicle's coverage and make sure students get the help they need.

Joe Straus, R-San Antonio,Texas House Speaker

Traffic fatality

Regarding "Student killed trying to cross 5-lane street" (Page A1, Thursday), it's ridiculous that students have to wake up and try to make their way to school when it's still dark outside.

Whoever decided Daylight Savings Time should go on so long into October obviously didn't consider the thousands of children across the state who must wait for the bus or walk to school in the dark.

It's time for the Texas Legislature to abolish Daylight Savings Time completely. Also, it's so absurd to start first-period class at 7 a.m.

Randal Jones, Houston

Pension watchers

Regarding "Wary firefighters OK pension plan" (Page A1, Tuesday), it looks like finally the fireman's union is making some concessions on their pension and accepting a more realistic rate of return.

To the Houston Retired Firefighters Association president who said his members are displeased with the vote: Well, the rest of the country with retirement accounts has been displeased for a number of years. It is not a time when you easily get double-digit returns like the '80s!

Skip Fix, Katy

Checking ballots

Regarding "With race tight in Texas, Trump suggests scandal afoot" (Chron.com, Thursday), the reason you get to check your ballot before casting it is that people make silly mistakes on them all the time. If you ever cast a ballot without checking it, you were just not doing it right.

Linda Coblentz, posted via Facebook
As someone who spent 35 years in the uniform of the United States Marine Corps, 24 years working with the Senate Armed Services Committee, and 15 years in the defense industry, alongside serving on numerous national security boards and commissions, I could not disagree more vehemently with GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump's repeated assertions that our military is a "disaster" and our generals are "rubble."

Let's start with our senior military leaders he has described as "rubble," and some in his coterie have called "wimps." If we look at the record, performance and credentials of the current seven members of our Joints Chiefs of Staff, the 10 combatant commanders leading our regional and functional commands, and the three commanders on the ground in South Korea, Afghanistan and Iraq, we have collectively the finest and most experienced generals since Eisenhower, Marshall and Nimitz.

Today's general officers are the most educated, prepared, innovative, precise and worldly leaders this country has ever known. Take for instance, "Fighting Joe" Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs and a four-star general, given his nickname by the troops for having led from the front in many a gunfight in the early days of the March to Baghdad. Dunford is a graduate of the United States Army War College, Ranger School and the Amphibious Warfare School. He holds a master of arts degree in government from Georgetown University and a second master of arts in international relations from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.

In fact, if we only look at the formal educations of the seven Joint Chiefs, we have a collective 12 undergraduate and advanced degrees from universities in all corners of the United States, in fields ranging from aeronautical engineering to philosophy, from chemistry to political science, and from business administration to national security.

Most of today's leaders were company-grade or junior field grade officers at the time of the Sept. 11 attacks, veterans of the first Iraq war, and have served in positions of ever-increasing responsibility during 15 years of continuous war. They know what it is to hold a dying young American in their arms, and what it means to be responsible for the lives of our children who serve. They know the psychological and physical toll of prolonged war. These are not shrinking violets, and they don't hesitate to give their objective professional military judgments to both administration and congressional leaders. They have a code of conduct that bounds them to remain nonpartisan, and they steer clear of political statements and endorsements (or admonitions) of political candidates. In fact, on April 8, Dunford told the Associated Press, "It's very important that we have the trust of the American people, and it's very important that that trust be founded on us being apolitical."

He acknowledged that the military has a responsibility to inform the public, but must walk a fine line doing it: "I think we focus on the issues and educate people on the issues, as opposed to directly responding to whatever political debate may be out there." Our next president will be extremely fortunate to have this generation of well-informed, courageous generals to advise him or her on the very challenging security environment and unstable and dangerous world we face. Rubble, indeed.

In terms of our military overall, I am not aware of any true defense expert - ally or enemy - who thinks the U.S. military is a disaster. We spend more on defense than the next eight countries combined. Bar none, we have the finest and most powerful military in the world, in part because our all-volunteer force attracts the best and brightest to serve their country.

Words matter. When a presidential nominee calls our military a "disaster," it has a real and serious impact on the way our allies and adversaries perceive our military, and is detrimental to the morale of our men and women in uniform.

We do, however, have shortfalls that need immediate attention. We need to improve the war-fighting readiness of our units based in the U.S.; our aging weapons systems are in need of modernization; and we urgently need to reform DOD's massive overhead and inefficient business processes. But even if Trump's critiques of the military were based in these arguments, his claims still have no merit. And I have little faith that he fully grasps the nuanced problems that face the Pentagon.

Instead, he peddles meaningless bombast and gratuitous slander of our men and women in uniform. He insults one of our greatest war heroes, Sen. John McCain, and all prisoners of war in the process, he belittles the Purple Heart, he attacks a Gold Star family, and he has dangerously flippant views of the use and proliferation of nuclear weapons.

As a Marine infantry platoon commander in Vietnam, I saw too many of my Marines wounded and killed in action. There is no easy way to earn a Purple Heart, and nobody ever "wants" it, as Trump so cavalierly put it. Those of us who have served our country in combat know this. Mr. Trump, you would understand too, if you had volunteered in the Vietnam era, as so many of us in your age group did. Had you done so, we might have been spared your glib comments about Purple Hearts, prisoners of war and Gold Star families, and your baseless claims that do so much harm.

Punaro, retired from the U.S. Marine Corps, served 24 years in the Senate Armed Services Committee, including 14 as staff director, and 15 years in the defense industry. He is author of "On War and Politics: The Battlefield Inside Washington's Beltway."
In multiple-choice tests we encountered in school, there was often the option of answering a question with "none of the above" if we believed none of the answers provided were correct.

When voters seek to answer the question of who should serve as president, governor or mayor, what can they do if they do not believe any of the candidates are qualified or will really serve the people's interests? What if a voter cannot in good conscience support any of the candidates for that particular office? What are the options in Texas?

Currently, a voter must either cast a vote violating one's conscience or not vote in that race.

One might withhold a vote due to indecision or lack of knowledge, but it is quite frustrating to have considered each candidate carefully but not have an option to say "no" to all of them.

Our election system should not only encourage participation by those who are satisfied with one of the candidates but also welcome those who are not.

It should recognize the opposition's voice.

As we approach the general election and reflect on many months of campaigning, it's time to consider how we can improve our elections process. Is it working well? Is it yielding the best candidates? If not, is there something we can do to improve it?

Many consider voting to simply be the selection of the lesser of two evils, which is a sad commentary on our times (and points to a deeper problem).

But this is the dilemma many face when considering the current field of presidential candidates. Which one is less evil?

Certainly, not all are in this position - many do fully support a candidate in the upcoming election for president - but it seems there are more voters now than in previous cycles who are dismayed by the current choices.

This predicament is not exclusive to the presidential race. There are plenty of races down the ballot for which voters may wish to oppose all the candidates.

When people are faced with such questions, they either tend to not vote in that particular race or - if it is high up on the ballot - not bother to go to a poll at all.

At a time when voter engagement is dangerously low and political cynicism is high, we should consider any proposal that has the possibility of prompting all qualified voters to carefully consider the candidates and express their conviction through voting for a candidate or against them all.

This is hardly a new idea.

Nevada has a form of "none of these candidates" voting, along with numerous countries around the world, including Sweden, Finland and India. It is an idea that still needs some fleshing out, however.

If we were to institute a "none of the above" option and that choice won a majority or a plurality of votes in a particular race, a second election might be required where the previous candidates would be disqualified from running.

Another option would be to allow the "none of the above" vote to inform the winning candidate of that portion of the electorate's dissatisfaction and lack of confidence.

Dragging the election process out is not something many of us are likely to embrace, but it is time to take a serious look at how we conduct our elections. We must make sure our elections promote accountable government and allow voters to actively participate - whether they agree with the candidates on the ballot or not.

Simpson represents Gregg and Upshur counties in the Texas House of Representatives. This commentary first appeared on TexasTribune.org.
Nearly a week before Election Day  and as early voting totals are skyrocketing across Texas  its, perhaps, fitting that President Obama has cut an ad urging Harris County residents to vote straight-ticket for Democrats on their ballots.

We saw how we can make change happen when we vote the Democratic ticket, he says in the video released Friday, urging people not to wait until Election Day to vote. Thats how you elected me. Thats how youll turn things around in Harris County.

As he nears the end of his presidency, Obama increasingly has become involved in down-ballot races this year. A New York Times story last week noted that Obama is helping more than 150 state-level Democratic candidates, which is his biggest effort to bolster local Democrats since he took office.

So, his video aimed at energizing Harris County Democrats is hardly surprising, especially given the national speculation that the party is on course to win back a majority in the U.S. Senate. Add to that a handful of Texas House races, mostly in Houston and Dallas suburbs, that are more competitive this year than usual. Mark Jones, a Rice University political science professor, wrote earlier this month that Texas Democrats may expand their state House caucus by up to a dozen members. The fact remains that down-ballot races in Texas, a state already plagued by chronic low voter turnout, hardly get the kind of attention they are this cycle.

Harris County, in particular, has emerged as a battleground county in Texas during the Obama years. Go back to 2008, when the president was only a candidate and a few Democratic organizations poured money into Harris County elections at almost unpreceded levels. Former Chronicle reporter Alan Bernstein wrote, in July 2008, that a coalition of Democratic groups had raised more than $3 million to be funneled to Houston-area elections.

That year, for example, Democrats running for judicial posts in the county were swept in office as Obama beat GOP nominee John McCain, 51 percent to 49 percent, at the top of the ticket. Last week, Houston Public Medias Andrew Schneider wrote about the 2008 wave and noted that experts think it could happen again this year, turning over the steady gains GOP judicial candidates made in the intervening years. That is also the case for two other high-profile county elections: district attorney and sheriff. In a University of Houston poll released last week, the Democratic district attorney candidate, Kim Ogg, held a 7-percentage point lead over incumbent Republican Devon Anderson. In the sheriffs race, Republican incumbent Ron Hickman held just a 1-point lead over Democrat Ed Gonzalez, well within the margin of error.

Back to Obamas video. In 2012, he won Harris County by about 500 votes, carrying 49.4 percent to Mitt Romneys 49.3 percent. If this year provides Democrats a wave, even a small one that shows a handful of Republican hopefuls the door, much of it may be due to straight-ticketing vote. The Republican Party of Texas knows this too, as party officials and state elected officials have urged supporters to vote for GOP candidates up and down the ballot. Waves can be tricky like that.
Texas County Memorial Hospital is among more than 100 hospitals joining a national network aimed at improving healthcare.

Board members heard at last weeks monthly meeting that TCMH will take part in a two-year Hospital Improvement and Innovation Network (HIIN) project sponsored by the Centers for Medicare Services (CMS). TCMH entered into a contact with the Missouri Hospital Association.

The hospital will not receive any significant funding for participating in the project, but TCMH staff will have access to data and resources related to the project.

The broad goals of the project will be an overall reduction in all causes of patient harm and a reduction in readmission of hospital inpatients less than 30 days since the first admission, said Amanda Turpin, TCMH quality management director.

MHA will collect and compile data from TCMH and other hospitals in the state. The data will then be collected and compiled into national data by the American Hospital Association Health Research and Educational Trust. The program will last two years with the possibility of a third year.

Turpin highlighted key parts of the program, which include antibiotic stewardship, hospital acquired infections, workplace violence, physician leadership, patient engagement and healthcare disparities.

This project focuses on new and upcoming CMS requirements, and it will help us prepare appropriately, Turpin said.

There will be ongoing reporting of data to MHA and immersion projects that will require intense focus and rapid updating of data. Webinars, networking, and on site education will also be part of the project.

TCMH is already making plans to participate in two immersion projects related to the HIIN project: Safe Training and Responsible Restraint (STARR) and antibiotic stewardship.

The STARR program will provide workplace violence training for TCMH staff. With the training, TCMH will develop a violence deescalation program to use when needed at the hospital.

According to Doretta Todd-Willis, TCMH chief nursing officer, TCMH should have a violence de-escalation program in place, but the hospital has lacked the funds for successful planning and implementation of such a program.

In 2017, all hospitals will be required to have an antibiotic stewardship program in place. It is designed to promote the appropriate use of antibiotics to improve patient outcomes, reduce microbial resistance, and decrease the spread of infections caused by multidrug-resistant organisms.

TCMH will use the HIIN immersion project to develop policies and procedures for an antibiotic stewardship program at the hospital.

While this project does require additional data collection and reporting, it is an overall benefit for our hospital, said Wes Murray, chief executive officer at TCMH. We will benefit and be better prepared for CMS regulations coming our way by participating in HIIN.

OB FACELIFT COMPLETED

Murray reported that an obstetrics department facelift was completed earlier in the month by the hospitals maintenance department. New lighting, ceiling tiles, paint and bathroom floor covering were included.

It had been awhile since we freshened things up in the OB department, and a little bit of work has gone a long way in making improvements, Murray said.

TCMH added family medicine/obstetrician, Cory Offutt, MD, in July. Jennifer Groner, DO, also a family medicine/obstetrician, is joining TCMH in mid-November.

Offutt and Groner joined three family medicine physicians, an obstetrician/gynecologist and a certified nurse midwife providing complete maternity care and obstetrics services at TCMH.

Our OB department is doing a great job providing an excellent patient experience, and with the diverse slate of OB providers we have available for patients to choose from, we hope to grow our OB services in the upcoming year, Murray said.

The TCMH maintenance department is now working on renovating four old patient rooms on the hospitals east wing for use in the new cardiopulmonary rehabilitation program.

CARDIOPULMONARY REHABILITATION

TCMH recently received a $357,000 grant from the Missouri Foundation for Health (MFH) to fund a three-year outpatient cardiopulmonary rehabilitation program. Patients will qualify for the multidisciplinary program following testing for lung disease. The 12-week program will help patients improve lung function and activities of daily living.

Murray reported that funds from the grant will be utilized to employ a part-time secretary for the program and a full-time respiratory therapist. Dr. Juan Mella, pulmonologist at TCMH, will oversee the program and the patients in the program.

FINANCIAL UPDATE

Linda Pamperien, TCMH chief financial officer, presented the financial statement for September. A decline in inpatient revenue and an increase in contractual adjustments for patients that are not able to pay for their healthcare services left TCMH with a negative bottom line of $468,745 in September and a year-to-date negative balance of $985,746.

In September we had an average daily census of nine patients, and only nine patients were admitted to swing bed, too, Pamperien said, noting there were times the census dropped to two patients during the month.

Outpatient volumes were up at the hospital in September, according to Pamperien.

Murray reminded board members that TCMH physician staff levels are still not where they were several years ago. TCMH continues to recruit for an additional full-time general surgeon.

Present at the meeting were: Murray; Turpin; Pamperien; Todd-Willis; Joleen Senter Durham, director of public relations; Dr. Jonathan Beers, TCMH chief of staff; and board members Dr. Jim Perry, DO, Janet Wiseman and Omanez Fockler. TCMH board members Russell Gaither and Mark Hampton were absent.
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Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Italian Minister of Justice Andrea Orlando (Photo: VNA)



He pledged that the Government of Vietnam always backs the two ministries cooperation as he believed it will contribute to enhancing the strategic partnership between the two countries.

Vietnam considers the building of institutions as a breakthrough in the countrys development strategy, the PM told visiting Italian Minister of Justice Andrea Orlando during their meeting in Hanoi on October 27th.

With special attention paid to completing institutions, the Government of Vietnam has drastically direct the enforcement of law in reality, while creating favourable conditions for socio-economic development and serving the people and enterprises, he said. The PM also highlighted the significant role of the justice sector during that process.

He proposed that Italy advises the EU to soon sign and approve the Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement.

He also expressed hope that Vietnam and Italy will boost their economic, trade and investment ties, thus further raising two-way trade.

Vietnam always supports Italian investors to do long-term business in the country and implement effective projects, especially in areas of Italys strengths and Vietnams demand, he stated.

On his part, Orlando said that during his working visit, a memorandum of understanding on bilateral cooperation will be signed, laying a foundation for the effective partnership in justice, and contributing to expanding the relationship between the two sides.

Lauding Vietnams reform efforts over the past years, especially in justice, he said that Italy is always interested in bills being discussed by the National Assembly of Vietnam, including the Law on Belief and Religion and the Law on Associations.

Orlando affirmed that the strengthening of justice cooperation will help boost partnership among enterprises of both countries./.
Understanding the ever-changing payroll compliance landscape Managing compliance on a global scale could prove to be the greatest challenge for HR and payroll professionals in 2016. In order to meet this challenge, businesses should aim to improve data management practices in partnership with a global payroll provider while striving to achieve a deep understanding of the ever-changing compliance landscape. Managing Data Effectively The first step to improving data management practices is understanding which types of data are being tracked. Payroll data can be broken down into four major categories: (i) employee data  such as basic demographics, base salary or rate, address and bank details; (ii) elective elements  for example, car allowances or performance bonuses; (iii) workforce management data  including time and attendance data and absence information; and (iv) documents  such as signed work contracts and verified sick notes. An organization must understand each payroll data category well  down to the country level, and the current source of each data type within their organization. Additionally, firms need to map the processes in which the data is captured. Although this sounds like a straightforward task, many multinational firms struggle with both data sourcing and process identification across the globe. In a recent study, global strategic advisory firm The Hackett Group found data integrity to be the biggest glob...
Humane Society International is praising Mexico Citys Legislature for unanimously passed a reform to Mexico Citys Animal Protection Bill to create the Animal Protection Institute of Mexico City. HSI offered technical assistance during the drafting discussions. The Institute will work as a policy hub and will:

Coordinate and conduct stray animal population surveys

Establish training criteria for officials dealing with animal welfare

Coordinate and promote free spay/neuter campaigns

Coordinate humane education efforts

Issue guidelines for government response to extreme cruelty cases, including dogfights, hoarding and puppy mills

Safeguard animal welfare and regulate dog pounds

Anton Aguilar, HSI/Mexico executive director, said: We are very pleased with the creation of the new Animal Protection Institute of Mexico City, which will coordinate animal welfare policies ranging from humane education to sterilization and anti-cruelty campaigns. Mexico City is making significant strides in animal protection in Mexico and Latin America.

The reform also:

Recognizes animals as sentient and conscious beings

Mentions the five freedom principles that define animal welfare as freedom from hunger and thirst; from discomfort; from pain, injury or disease; from fear and distress; and for animals to express their natural behavior.

Requires that kennels register before the Institute, and spay/neuter their animals

Requires people who leave their animals in an animal shelter to pay for sterilization and vaccination

Prohibits the sale of animals at public markets

Donate to HSI to support our efforts to save animals from cruelty and neglect.

Media Contact: Raul Arce-Contreras, rcontreras@humanesociety.org, +1 301.721.6440
Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung and his Belarusian counterpart Vladimir Semashko (Photo: VGP)

Addressing the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung said that over the past years, the political and diplomatic relationship between the two countries had developed very strongly. However, the economic, trade and investment cooperation has not matched its potential, with the two-way trade turnover in 2015 of only USD125 million.

According to the Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister, the Vietnam - EAEU Free Trade Agreement which went into effect on October 5th is an opportunity and favourable condition for the two countries to increase cooperation in economic, trade and investment areas.

Belarusian Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir Semashko shared the viewpoint of his Vietnamese counterpart that the traditional friendly relationship between the two countries was a convenient factor for the cooperation. Meanwhile, the two countries leaders paid great attention to promoting the cooperation, especially in energy, engine manufacturing, automobiles, education and training.

Belarus attaches great importance to expanding cooperation with Vietnam, especially in economics, trade and investment, he confirmed.

He added that agencies from the two countries would work more strictly with each other to tackle any obstacles for raising the two-way trade turnover to some USD500 million per year.

In the near future, Belarus large enterprises, including those in mechanics, energy, automobile, engine manufacturing and rubber will come to Vietnam seeking opportunities and cooperation with Vietnamese firms, as well as expanding existing projects.

The Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister, during the meeting, urged Belarus to create favourable conditions for Vietnamese commodities, especially agricultural products, to enter the Belarusian market./.
New Democrats say an immediate $155-million investment for First Nations children is a matter of life and death, not "confetti."

NDP MPs pounced Friday on comments made by Cynthia Wesley-Esquimaux, the academic tapped by the Liberal government to lead national consultations to overhaul First Nations child welfare services.

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Wesley-Esquimaux told CBC News that Liberals are prepared to spend more but wont take money and throw it up in the air like confetti and hope it lands where it needs.

It might be confetti to them but it is life and death to too many children, NDP indigenous affairs critic Charlie Angus said during question period.

New Democrats tabled a motion this week demanding the investment in order to comply with a ruling from the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal that the government stop discriminating against First Nations kids in its delivery of welfare services on reserves. The tribunal has issued two compliance orders urging the Liberal government to act.

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Though Liberals earmarked $71 million for First Nations child welfare in their first budget last March, advocate Cindy Blackstock has pegged the need at more than $200 million this year.

The NDP motion directly addresses the shortfall identified by Blackstock, the executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada, who took her complaint to the tribunal in 2007 along with the Assembly of First Nations.

In the House of Commons Friday, Angus also said new figures from public accounts show the department of Indigenous Affairs and Northern Development did not bother to spend $900 million over the last year.

That is money that could have gone to children, to houses and to education, he said. With all that money unspent, how come the Liberals cannot find the money to be in compliance with the ruling and stop fighting Cindy Blackstock and the children?

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Why can they not put that money where it is needed?

'It has to be based on what children need'

Yvonne Jones, parliamentary secretary to the indigenous affairs minister, responded that the government accepts the ruling and is taking action by setting out to truly reform the system.

The tribunal ruling said that the Government of Canada should invest in the child welfare of indigenous children based on the need in the country, not based on a number that the New Democratic Party or some individual wants to put forward, Jones said.

It has to be based on what children need in the country. That is what we intend to do.

Saskatchewan MP Georgina Jolibois also demanded to know if Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett believes Blackstock wants to throw money up in the air like confetti for these kids?

MP calls out Trudeau

Jones said that ending discrimination can only be achieved through a full reform of the current broken system.

Quebec MP Romeo Saganash charged that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was not living up to his promise to establish a true nation-to-nation relationship with First Nations  something Saganash said requires action as well as respect.

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Instead of ending discrimination, Saganash said, Trudeau is questioning Blackstocks figures.

Is this really what we should expect from what the prime minister calls his most important relationship? he asked.

Again, Jones said Liberals are working hard to reform the system and lift indigenous children out of poverty.

We are the first government to really tackle this problem, and we will make sure it happens, she said.

"Either this government believes that they comply with the laws of the land or they think theyre above it."

Angus told The Huffington Post Canada that he has been surprised by the governments response, accusing them of acting like Blackstocks numbers have come out of thin air.

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Theyre starting to fight this strange proxy war with the credibility of Cindy Blackstock, which I find really shocking, he said.

Angus said that while he has great respect for Bennett, First Nations kids on reserve are dying all the time because they cant get access to services others take for granted, including mental health resources.

While an overhaul of the system is a worthy goal, the first step is meeting the compliance order and getting money in the field right away, he said.

Either this government believes that they comply with the laws of the land or they think theyre above it, Angus said.

'The ball is in your court, Justin Trudeau'

On Wednesday, the Manitoba legislature passed a motion condemning the federal government for its response to the tribunal ruling.

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MLA Wab Kinew released a video on Twitter calling on federal Liberals to end the gap when it comes to First Nations kids on reserve.

The ball is in your court, Justin Trudeau, Kinew said in the clip.

Manitoba legislature condemns the lack of action. It's time the Feds do the right thing and equally fund social services for First Nations pic.twitter.com/pBTvgzbZto  Wab Kinew (@WabKinew) October 26, 2016

The NDP motion also demands the government adopt Jordans Principle, a policy stating that no First Nations child should be denied health services because of bureaucratic squabbling over money and jurisdictional feuds.

MPs will vote on the motion Tuesday.

With files from The Canadian Press

Also on HuffPost
Facebook is being accused of discrimination after it emerged that advertisers on the social network can exclude people based on their "ethnic affinity."

That doesn't mean they can be excluded based on race. But it does show that advertisers can stop people from seeing their ads if their social activity indicates an "affinity" for an ethnicity such as African-American, Asian-American or Hispanic.

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The social media giant's Adverts Manager allows advertisers to prevent certain demographics from seeing their ads.

It says that exclusions can help advertisers better target their ads, and reach people who are more likely to buy products or services.

Advertisers can also include specific audiences for their posts, i.e. shoe company ads can be targeted to customers who are interested in fashion.

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While these methods can help to target consumers, public interest news site ProPublica discovered that Facebook's system also allows advertisers to exclude users who show a particular "ethnic affinity," like African Americans, Asian Americans and Hispanics.

There is no option for including (or excluding) people who show a "White" or "Caucasian" affinity.

ProPublica bought an ad targeting Facebook users who were house-hunting, and it managed to exclude users with an affinity for all three ethnic demographics mentioned above.

Civil rights lawyer John Relman told the news site that this is "massively illegal," as it constitutes a violation of the U.S. Fair Housing Act.

The Huffington Post Canada tried out the Adverts Manager, though it didn't buy an ad. And indeed, it is possible to choose a particular ethnic affinity.

A screengrab from Facebook's Adverts Manager:

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Facebook introduced the function as part of a "multicultural advertising" effort, Steve Satterfield, privacy and public policy manager, told ProPublica.

He noted that the social network has policies that prevent advertisers from discriminating against people based on race.

Christian Martinez, Facebook's head of multicultural, issued a press release on Friday stating that its policies prohibit negative exclusion, such as an apartment that won't rent to black men.

"If we learn of advertising on our platform that involves this kind of discrimination, we will take aggressive enforcement action," he said.

Facebook said advertisers use targeting to determine with which audiences ads resonate best.

'For example, some audiences might click on Spanish-language ads for a World Cup sponsorship vs. other audiences might click more on the same ads in English, so the sponsor might run one campaign in English that excludes the Hispanic affinity group to see how well the campaign performs against running that ad campaign in Spanish."

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'Not the box you check on the census'

Facebook previously told tech website Ars Technica's Annalee Newitz that it is not engaged in racial profiling, since it determines your ethnic affinity based on your activity.

For instance, it may determine you have an "African-American" affinity based on posts about BET or Black Lives Matter, but that doesn't mean it thinks you're black.

Martinez said the social networking site is giving advertisers the ability to reach people whose likes and other activity "suggest theyre interested in content relating to particular ethnic communities  African American, Hispanic American and Asian American."

"Anyone can use ad preferences to learn whether theyre seeing ads based on these interests, and choose whether or not they want to receive these kinds of ads," he said.

Facebook does not currently have a means for people to identify themselves as belonging to a certain race or ethnicity.

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But the social network is, in essence, monetizing the way you express your identity by monitoring your likes, shares and comments, "not the box you check on the census," Newitz added.

Facebook's "exclusion marketing" allows advertisers to prevent users that belong to specific demographics from seeing its ads. (Photo: Reuters)

Advertisers can exclude people based on other factors, too.

Ads can also be hidden from users based on their relationship status, interests, behaviours and which generations they belong to.

Note: Facebook issued a press release and responded to this article after original publication. This story has been updated to include their comments.

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Also on HuffPost
Gay and single Canadians who struggle to have kids will now be considered infertile, under an upcoming standard by the World Health Organization (WHO).

WHO is expected to announce this new definition for infertility soon, which will be more inclusive for those outside of heterosexual unions or who want to parent without a sexual partner.

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This move puts pressure on countries that prohibit gay and single individuals from using fertility treatments or receiving government reimbursement. Nations like France, which only allow heterosexual couples to access in vitro fertilization (IVF), can justify their strict rules by WHO's current interpretation of infertility.

Right now, WHO calls infertility a disease of the reproductive system, made evident through a lack of pregnancy after more than a year of unprotected sex. The organization also considers infertility a disability, on the grounds that it seriously impairs infertile people from a major life activity.

The new definition nixes the idea of infertility as just a medical condition. It will expand on the right to reproduce as one that goes beyond biological means.

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Fertility physician David Adamson, one of the new definition's authors, told the Telegraph that these standards strengthen the idea that everyone should be able to start a family.

"It puts a stake in the ground and says an individual's got a right to reproduce whether or not they have a partner. It's a big change," Adamson says. "It fundamentally alters who should be included in this group and who should have access to healthcare. It sets an international legal standard. Countries are bound by it."

To be clear, WHO hasn't changed any existing definitions. WHO still maintains a glossary with multiple existing definitions on what infertility is. The organization stated that it will not recommend fertility care services based on the change, and will just be introducing the new definition to health ministers worldwide.

This definition of #infertility does not make any recommendations abt the provision of fertility care services https://t.co/fbkyxzWocd  WHO (@WHO) October 22, 2016

This could possibly reform how Canada treats infertility, since WHO partners with 28 collaborative centres in the country, including Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada.

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Eligibility for fertility services differs from province to province. Ontario's government-funded fertility treatments, for instance, can be used by any gender, sexual orientation and relationship status.

On its site, the Ontario Ministry of Health states that "while single people or people in same-sex partnerships may not be medically infertile, they may use fertility treatments in order to build their families."

That used to be the case in Quebec, where a gay couple set precedent in 2014 when the government paid for their IVF expenses. However, Quebec, which was the first to fund IVF in 2010, cut its funding last year.

Canada's fertility at a glance

Canada has a low fertility rate, Statistics Canada reports. One in six heterosexual couples experience infertility.

Infertility rates in Canada are estimated at between 11-16%. More linking #Infertility and the #primarycare provider https://t.co/EDZxg07ih5  machealth (@machealth_) October 21, 2016

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IVF coverage changes depending on where you are in the country. Manitoba offers a tax credit that reimburses up to 40 per cent of costly medical procedures.

British Columbia only covers some diagnostic tests and small treatments. Publicly-funded IVF is not covered in Alberta or Nova Scotia, which the Chronicle Herald states is home for state-of-the-art fertility technology.

IVF is not offered at all by Prince Edward Island or Newfoundland and Labrador.

Right now, Ontario's fertility clinics are booked up until 2018, the National Post reports.

In response to the WHO's announcement, Health Canada provided Huffington Post with the following statement: "Health Canada recognizes that more and more Canadians are turning to assisted human reproduction to help build their families. Access to fertility treatments, including in vitro fertilization, falls outside of federal jurisdiction and does not have implications for Health Canadas current consultation regarding the Assisted Human Reproduction Act. Health Canada will review the revised definitions when they are received from the World Health Organisation for any potential implications."

Also on HuffPost
You may not know Charles Taylor's name, but if you live in Canada, you know his work.

Renowned as one of the world's greatest living thinkers, the 84-year-old Montreal philosopher recently won the inaugural US$1 million Berggruen Prize for having ideas that promote "the advancement of humanity."

Here's where all the philosophy majors pause for a second to email this article to their disapproving parents. When you do, make sure to mention that the McGill professor emeritus has previously won two US$1.5 million prizes. He was also named to the Order of Canada in 1995 and the Order of Quebec in 2000.

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But even more interesting than a million-dollar philosophy prize, which Taylor will receive during a Dec. 1 ceremony in New York, is that he won it for his work promoting multiculturalism and combating xenophobia. The nine-member Berggruen Prize jury chose Taylor for supporting "political unity that respects cultural diversity" and "demonstrating that Western civilization is not simply unitary, but like all civilizations the product of diverse influences."

Taylor's pioneering writings, including Sources of the Self: The Making of Modern Identity,Multiculturalism and The Politics of Recognition and A Secular Age have helped shape Canada's official policy of multiculturalism. He's also been warning about the dangers of Islamophobia for years, including calling out the niqab debate during last year's federal election.

"In a world that's becoming more xenophobic, his voice is a voice of inclusion and moderation, not one of creating barriers or walls." Nicholas Berggruen

"He's a very deep thinker and he's got a lot of influence and he's a really a humanist," explains Nicholas Berggruen, a German billionaire whose Berggruen Institute think-tank gave out the new philosophy award. He is also the co-founder of The Huffington Post's WorldPost site that focuses on global stories.

"In a world that's becoming more xenophobic, his voice is a voice of inclusion and moderation, not one of creating barriers or walls," Berggruen says. "The world has been going in the direction [of diversity] and Canada is a product of it in some ways, but there are times when you have big setbacks. I feel like the jury selected someone who believes in human values of cooperation, not division."

The Huffington Post Canada got on the phone with Taylor to talk about the importance of multiculturalism, as well as some of those "big setbacks" like Trump, Brexit, Europe's far-right parties, that "barbaric cultural practices" hotline and the poll showing that 68 per cent of Canadians prefer assimilation.

The award announcement describes you as "the anti-xenophobe philosopher for our time." Can you elaborate on why you received this honour?

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A lot of my work concerns the issue of how you come to understand people with very different cultures. Im very much a proponent of multiculturalism and, along with Will Kymlicka and a few other people in Canada, we produced a lot of the theory behind it.

The goal of the Berggruen foundation is to improve mutual understanding between different cultures of the world [and] my work has been addressing that kind of issue for such a long time.

How did your work help inspire Canadian mosaic versus the U.S. melting pot approach?

The whole point of Canadian multiculturalism is to produce equal citizenship. So its very much concerned with the integration of people from elsewhere, immigrants, into Canadian society and Canadian polity as equals.

The move to multiculturalism is to cancel the assumption which everybody had 50 years ago or more that a Canadian was either somebody from the British Isles or from Normandy if you were in Quebec. But you can be fully Canadian if your ancestry takes you back to Poland, takes you back to Italy, takes you back to India, takes you back to China and so on. So it's an instrument of integration.

Now I don't see why that should be considered political correctness.

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Radio host Laura Ingraham gestures while speaking during the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio on July 20. (Photo: Getty Images)

Well, because Trump and others considers their xenophobic worldviews to be anti-political correctness.

Yes I know, and he's trying to excuse or justify his absolutely unconscionable remarks which are totally false in many cases. Like Mexicans are rapists or Muslims are considered a priori to be jihadists unless they prove otherwise.

So he's trying to justify that by saying he's anti-political correctness. It is certainly true that in certain branches of American society, people are leaning over backwards and not saying this and not saying that. That's certainly true. So he has a target there, but he's using that target as an excuse to say things that are totally indefensible.

What did you think about the barbaric cultural practices hotline suggested during the Canadian election?

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That made me laugh. One of the most barbaric practices in human history is scapegoating. That's exactly what the Harper government was doing: scapegoating people with niqabs, scapegoating people who are slightly different. That's the most barbaric cultural practice. I felt like phoning them up and saying 'I have one for you'.

That was how I felt when the refugee stuff came up. This is exactly what happened to Jews in the 30s in Canada. How are we making the exact same arguments about Muslims and it's 2016?

Exactly! Its an absurd thing to do. Its all holes to fall into. And we have our own version of that in Quebec, because we are very protective of our traditional cultures here and that led to our episode with the Charter of Values a couple years ago, which fortunately we defeated. But it was quite a big struggle.

"One of the most barbaric practices in human history is scapegoating. That's exactly what the Harper government was doing."  Charles Taylor

Simply spoken, these are total stereotypes being imposed on certain segments of the population and are being used as an excuse to remove some of their rights. So you know it's a scam, it is something thats totally fraudulent and it needs to be denounced.

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Now there's a CBC/Angus Reid poll that found 68 per cent of Canadians want minorities to do more to fit in and disagree with minorities being encouraged to keep their culture and language and customs. When I dug into the numbers it was not only almost predominantly older white Canadians. It was also the highest provincially in Quebec.

That makes perfect sense to me, it fits with my experience. Multiculturalism is something which started in Canada roughly in 1970 or shortly after and it encountered a lot of opposition. With each age cohort, it's got less and less strong, so you know that is excellent progress. Its a statistical norm that people don't like a lot of other people from very different cultures coming in in great numbers and very fast. There is this common fear: are they going to change us?

I heard that again and again in Quebec and the encouraging story in Canada is that that's less and less the reaction of people the younger you get. Even in Quebec as well. The somewhat more discouraging thing is that it is higher in Quebec than the rest of the country. Yes, were totally aware of that, once youve been in this life and death struggle in Quebec about the Charter of Values and so on and you realize how strong that still is, because we're dealing with a group and a culture thats been under threat for 200 years from the Anglophone majority in North America. So it has understandable more immediate reactions to this kind of cultural shift.

Who Are Second-Gen Canadians? See Gallery

While it is a good thing that it's more the older generations and less the younger generations, it's still a huge number. It's a bigger number than it was when multiculturalism became official policy in the 70s and even a bigger number than in the States. To me that ties in with Trump and with Brexit and the nationalist parties rising across Europe. Why do you think that this is happening in Canada and also globally?

There are three reasons why. One is that we have to take this discomfort with a lot of people coming in as one of the givens of human life. Now it's much worse in Europe because they arent used to being an immigrant society receiving people from outside.

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Secondly, the people that we are letting in at the moment are all people who by definition have a lot of points," which means that they are highly trained, they have skills we need and so on. Whereas in the European case, very often you have people coming in just to do the most minimal jobs, really low education, so they were much more difficult to assimilate into mainstream society.

"These are total stereotypes being imposed on [the Muslim] population as an excuse to remove some of their rights. So you know it's a scam."  Charles Taylor

Then on top of all that you get [the] 2008 collapse and the very, I think, ill-advised policy of austerity that the Europeans adopted in the face of the Greek crisis, which meant that there was also tremendous pressure with people losing jobs. So that makes for a perfect storm and we were not without some of those elements in North America, too. You know a lot of people in the Rust Belt feel that they've lost jobs as people from outside are being let in. And they feel there is some kind of connection.

And I havent mentioned jihadism. There are obviously some Muslims who are wreaking havoc in the most terrible way, so all that together produces a great move of sentiment about closing the frontiers.

That's the reason for Brexit. You look at those Labour areas in the north which are the equivalent to the American Rust Belt. The official policy of the Labour Party was remain but a lot of the voting base voted leave.

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Evolution Of Trump's Muslim Ban See Gallery

How much of how much of this is long term blowback from colonialism?

A lot of it in Europe is, I would say the French case, very definitely so. In the British case, less so. In the Dutch, also to some extent so but in the French case, unquestionably so.

I've described it as white fright but there is a dominant group that fears it's losing its grip on power because of all the reasons that you've said. So there's a lot of pushback.

I think the losing-the-grip-on-power thing is much more important in the States because it really is clear that that's going to be a minority white society very, very soon, right? Nothing like that is going to arrive even in the distant future in France or U.K. or Germany.

What do you think it is fuelling that specifically here in Canada? There's a lot of anti-Asian racism in Vancouver and anti-black racism here in Toronto and a lot of anti-Muslim racism across the country despite the fact that [Muslims] are only three per cent of the population.

That latter one is to a large extent a product of the geopolitical situation, jihadism and so on. It wouldn't have been there 20 or 30 years ago when they were kind of an unknown quantity yet.

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That there's racism, you're pushing an open door. Im not at all denying that. We see it [in Quebec], too, very, very clearly. But is it of the kind that is going to cause a real serious attempt to undo some of these policies? I don't see that as a force today. But if Trump were to be elected, and I'm pretty convinced he wont be  Im wiping my brow in relief  but its obviously the case in Europe that this is much, much stronger force which is really turned over whole situations.

"[Multiculturalism has] so obviously been a tremendous source of dynamism economically to our society."  Charles Taylor

So how do we make it better?

I know Quebec much better than I know the rest of the country but in this society we see very clearly what to do, and we're to some extent slowly doing it: get the younger cohorts to see the world in a different way.

But how do we convince older Canadians to also be on board with multiculturalism and cultural diversity?

In the Canadian case, it's so obviously been a tremendous source of dynamism economically to our society. So theres a talking point there. And then theres the aspect of fairness, how much do you want your sentiments to be played out in policies that are going to actually hurt people in a quite unfair way.

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Suffice to say, the Queen probably doesn't do a lot of her own grocery shopping.

But on Thursday, Her Majesty visited a Waitrose supermarket in Poundbury, a new development by Prince Charles, in the county of Dorset, England.

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Queen Elizabeth II looks at products on the shelves at a Waitrose supermarket during a visit to the town of Poundbury on October 27, 2016 in Poundbury, Dorset. (Justin Tallis - WPA Pool/Getty Images),

The Queen was joined by husband Prince Philip, the Prince of Wales and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, and together, the Royal Family watched the opening of a new district centre, Queen Mother Square. The Queen also unveiled a statue of the Queen Mum.

The royals also toured the supermarket, and it looked as if Queen Elizabeth was a bit out of her element as she wandered up and down the aisles of food, stopping at various points to look more closely at the products on the shelves. (According to People.com, she was "reportedly intrigued by the array of cheeses at the specialty cheese counter.")

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Queen Elizabeth II goes through the check-out during a visit to a Waitrose supermarket in the town of Poundbury, southwest England, on October 27, 2016. (JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/Getty Images)

Although the Queen likely doesn't drop by her local grocery store to stock up on food for the palace, not all the royals get their staff to do their shopping for them.

Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall look at food hampers during a visit to a Waitrose supermarket in the town on October 27, 2016 in Poundbury, England. (Justin Tallis - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

The Duchess of Cambridge reportedly does her own grocery shopping and has been spotted pushing her cart inside supermarkets several times.

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Even the late Princess Diana, who was one of the most famous women in the world, was seen grocery shopping, just like a regular mom.

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Adam Capay marked the end of his teen years in solitary confinement at a Thunder Bay, Ont. prison.

And spent several more birthdays after that behind bars.

Yet, he hasn't seen a trial.

Capay has been in segregation for four years  1,500 days  after being charged in the death of another inmate.

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The United Nations has stated that any length of solitary confinement longer than 15 days amounts to "torture" because of the lasting mental damage from social isolation.

In addition, the Supreme Court of Canada has previously ruled that a "reasonable delay" in reaching trial shouldn't be any longer than two and a half years.

There's no telling how long Capay's case would have dragged on, if not for Renu Mandhane, Ontario's chief human rights commissioner.

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Mandhane visited the jail where Capay was being held earlier this month. A guard tipped her off about the inmate's situation, and the commissioner found him in a windowless room, under the glare of 24-hour artificial light.

"He just seemed like a broken individual, somebody who had suffered a lot," she told The Huffington Post Canada in an interview. (Watch video here.)

"Those kinds of things  sensory deprivation is what it's called legally  they aren't techniques that you associate with a modern correctional facility in Canada."

Mandhane's revelations have led to a firestorm of criticism.

The government is now reviewing segregation in Ontario's prisons. And on Wednesday, Capay was moved into a different cell. He is still segregated from the general population, but the 23-year-old can now use a day room, television, and phone.

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Mandhane was appointed to the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) last fall.

She told Ultravires she she spent "a long time thinking" before applying for the position in February 2015. She was offered the job six months later.

Mandhane graduated with an arts degree from Queen's University in 1998. She volunteered at the school's Sexual Health Resource Centre while she was an undergrad, which sparked her interest in feminist and human rights.

In a profile for Queen's Alumni Review, she said the centre was where she "could discuss the things that mattered."

Mandhane continued her studies at the University of Toronto, where she earned a law degree.

She went on to study international human rights at New York University, graduating with a master's degree in law in 2003.

Mandhane worked as a criminal lawyer for four years, then returned to the academic world. She was the director of the International Human Rights Program at the University of Toronto  which she called her "baby"  before moving to the OHRC.

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Mandhane was born in Calgary. Her parents, Jaman and Nilima Mandhane, immigrated to Canada from India. During Madhane's childhood, South Asians were rare in the city  so much so that people would ask her dad to take a picture, according to the Toronto Star.

Mandhane told the newspaper that she travelled to India and other countries during her childhood, exposing her to injustices early on.

In 2012, Mandhane penned an op-ed for The Toronto Star about how female inmates with mental health issues are treated in Canadian prisons. She wrote about Ashley Smith, a 19-year-old who died by self-inflicted strangulation in 2007. At the time, Smith was on segregated suicide watch at Grand Valley Institution for Women in Kitchener, Ont.

Her death was ruled a homicide in 2013, after an inquest found that corrections staff failed to properly care for her.

Mandhane wrote that cases like Smith's are all too common, and that others share "eerily similar stories."

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With files from The Canadian Press

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A Brampton, Ont. mom was shocked to discover that her son had been segregated from his classmates.

For weeks, six-year-old Anelka Edwards had been restricted to a small square, made with masking tape, on the floor of his Grade 1 classroom at Brisdale Public School. The tape, which also limited Anelka to a pie-shaped slice of his shared desk, was used by a long-term substitute teacher to teach him to respect personal space.

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The taped-off space where Anelka was restricted to moving during class.

For isolating her son from his classmates, his mother Colene Edwards is condemning the disciplinary tactic as distressing and racially charged.

"We are not looking for special treatment, we just want to be treated fairly," she told CityNews Toronto. "Anelka is the only black student in his classroom and he was segregated from other students."

Edwards discovered the tape at parent-teacher night and couldn't believe the teacher's explanation.

She [the teacher] said he was getting into other kids' personal space, and he was so big and tall and his arms are long, so she felt he needed this box, this pie shape," she told CityNews. "I asked her Where do the other children play? She said, They go around the classroom. I said, Can they leave freely? She said, Yes. So I said, Where does my son stay? She said, He stays in the box.

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The mom said the substitute teacher had called her many times since the first day of school to talk about how "big and awkward" her son is. Anelka is about four-foot-two and hasn't had previous disciplinary issues with other teachers or the principal.

When Edwards told the principal what was happening, he had "no idea" the teacher had been doing it.

Brisdale's principal declined to comment as he was unable to speak on Edwards, her son or Anelka's classroom.

He is not a child who beats up on other children. He is not a child that misbehaves," the mom told CityNews. "He is like any six-year-old boy. He gets excited sometimes.

As a result of his mom's investigating, Anelka has been moved to another classroom and the tape has been removed.

Like Edwards, those online who heard what happened to Anelka were outraged.

Shame! #Anelka should be able to move freely in his classroom-- basic human right in #Canada. Heartbreaking news: https://t.co/O948RamUx0  Bryn Ludlow (@CreativAge) October 28, 2016

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I don't think any six year old knows what "personnal space" means https://t.co/a3CXMNFw30#BlackTwitter  RussellArcher (@Russellarcher) October 28, 2016

Peel District School Board (PDSB), which represents schools in Brampton, as well as Mississauga and Caledon, finished an investigation into the segregation. In a statement to CityNews, they chose not to comment on race. Only family communication and the strategy used were related to the issue, PDSB states.

Days before news of the boy's plight broke, the same school board released an action plan based on the marginalized experiences of black male students. Of the 87 black youth surveyed, they reported that teachers racially profile in hallways and stereotype them as gangsters. Respondents say they feel like some teachers "expect them to mess up," and are incredulous when they get good grades.

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The results mirror what's been found for the educational system at large. Black male youth are disciplined more harshly than other groups, and a Seattle study found that this skewed treatment starts when they're as young as five years old.

In an interview with CityNews Toronto, Anelka says he loves going to the library and seeing his friends at recess.

For Anelka, he's still adjusting to his new classroom, but his treatment in his last one hasn't changed his goals.

When asked what he wants to be when he grows up by CityNews, he says: "A teacher. Because I get to teach everyone."

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When it comes to choosing a career, its money, not passion, that drives Canadians.

Thats the implication of a new poll from Angus-Reid, which asked 4,500 respondents whats most important to them when it comes to job satisfaction.

Fifty-four per cent said pay and benefits; only 19 per cent said personal fulfillment, and 12 per cent said type of work.

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Angus Reid says this might not be a bad thing.

The old saying do what you love may actually be terrible advice that glorifies glamourous work and denigrates necessary jobs for which few people have a deep passion, the study said.

Luckily for Canadian workers, perhaps, personal fulfilment isnt at the top of the list when it comes to factors driving their career satisfaction. A better saying for them might be Cuba Gooding Jr.s mantra from 'Jerry Maguire': Show me the money.

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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was jeered by a crowd of youth this week when he echoed Finance Minister Bill Morneaus assertion that Canadians will have to adjust to changing careers  job churn, as Morneau called it.

But the new poll suggests many Canadians themselves would like to change careers. Nearly two-thirds  63 per cent  said they are either interested or very interested in changing careers, their employer, or at least their job position.

Thats despite the fact that a vast majority of Canadians are satisfied with their work. Seventy-four per cent said they are satisfied or very satisfied with their job.

Still, a significant share of employees are worried about the precarious work situation that Trudeau and Morneau highlighted with their comments.

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Twenty-eight per cent said they are unsatisfied with the degree of job security they have.

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At the signing ceremony (Photo: VGP)

The Agreement was signed on October 26by Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh and Cambodian Minister of Commerce Pan Sorasak on the sidelines of the 8th Summit of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam (CLMV 8) and the 7th Summit of Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS 7).

Under the Agreement, the enterprises of each country will have greater opportunity for gaining access to each others market. In particular, preferential treatment that Cambodia gives to Vietnam is special treatment higher than that for other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which will facilitate Vietnamese goods higher competitiveness compared to the others on the Cambodian market.

The agreement allows 29 kinds of Vietnamese goods to enjoy zero import tax in the Cambodian market, including milk and cream, cassava starch, meat products, products made from rice, candy, paint, plastic products, paper, pottery, iron and steel and products made from iron and steel.



Meanwhile, 39 kinds of Cambodian goods enjoying zero tax when imported into the Vietnamese market include meat, fresh by-products, lemon, rice, cake, leaves to produce tobacco (with quota), plastic products, books and notebooks, clothing and bicycles.

The agreement is expected to further promote Vietnam - Cambodia bilateral trade, including trade in agricultural, fishery and industrial products, with an aim to improve the lives of people, especially those living in border areas, and contribute to sustainable economic development in each country under the principle of equality and mutual benefit.

The signing of the agreement helps to carry out the Vietnam - Cambodia joint declaration during Vietnamese State President Tran Dai Quangs visit in June, striving to increase the two-way trade turnover to USD5 billion in the years to come./.
subodhsathe via Getty Images three beautiful diwali diyas, selective focus, bokeh in the background, perfect for diwali greeting

Editor's note: This article was originally published in 2016. In 2018, Diwali starts on Nov. 7th.

Diwali is one of the biggest and most beautiful celebrations in India. Marking Hindu New Year, this ancient five day festival celebrates the triumph of light over dark and good over evil. Witness incredible light displays, mesmerising fireworks and symbolic burning of candles, while families get together to feast and share gifts.

This year Diwali is celebrated from October 30th and we've put together some of our favourite destinations to celebrate this one of a kind festival.

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Varanasi, India

Photo Credit: Booking.com

Varanasi comes alive even more at this time of year and you'll be blown away by the incredible fireworks going in every corner of the city. For the best view head to the Ganges and see the breath taking visage of the water lighting up and the diyas (lamps) floating down the river. Known for its abundance of culture and history, after being mesmerized by the bright lights across the night sky, spend your day exploring the bustling street markets and indulge in Diwali sweets and brightly coloured clothes.

Photo Credit: Booking.com

Built in the 18th Century and one of the oldest structures in Varanasi, the BrijRama Palace is the perfect place to stay for a bit of luxury when visiting this part of India. With views overlooking the Ganges (the perfect spot to catch the fireworks), a rooftop terrace and beautifully decorated room, you can sit back and relax after exploring the local sights.

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Kandy, Sri Lanka

Photo Credit: Booking.com

Sri Lanka is a symbolic place to celebrate Diwali and here you can't miss the the lighting of lamps and distribution of misiri, figurines of sugar crystals. Kandy is a great base to explore the country and travellers can either head to the beaches or stay in nearby villages to join the friendly locals celebrate after dark with colourful ceremonies.

Photo Credit: Booking.com

This quaint homestay, Bee View is a relaxing stay away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Guests can enjoy beautiful views and delicious food prepared by the friendly hosts. It's also a great location for hiking and a perfect starting spot for to explore further afield.

Udaipur, India

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Photo Credit: Booking.com

Udaipur's majestic lakes are a beautiful spot to watch the Diwali lights and fireworks, not to mention it's full of royal history and plenty of things to do. Enjoy a camel ride, feast on Marwari delicacies and pick out ethnic Rajasthani souvenirs from the local markets. Come Diwali the main streets are lit up, making for a completely magical experience.

Photo Credit: Booking.com

Built in 1746, the iconic Taj Lake Palace is a beautiful sight - full of incredible architecture and made with marble. Guests can enjoy breath-taking views of the City Palace and Machla Magra hills, indulge in luxury spa services and enjoy fine-dining authentic cuisine at the Neel Kamal restaurant.

Mumbai, India

Photo Credit: Booking.com

Festivities are celebrated more privately here, rather than with a public festival but none the less, the city is completely lit up as everyone's private party includes a mesmerising firework display. Visitors should head to Mumbai's iconic Queen's Necklace to watch the most spectacular fireworks or go to Juhu Beach if you fancy perusing delicious food stalls while watching the display in the skies.

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Photo Credit: Booking.com

If you love a room with a view, Taj Lands is the perfect option. Just 200 metres from the seafront, it offers panoramic views of the Arabian Sea. After watching the fireworks at Juhu beach, travellers can retreat back to enjoy the beautiful spacious rooms, health club, and spa. The onsite restaurants offer delicious international, Indian and Oriental menus for you to take your pick from.

Goa, Anjuna, India

Photo Credit: Booking.com

Diwali celebrations in Goa consist of competitions in each village to see who can make the biggest and scariest version of the demon Narakasura (to celebrate Lord Krishna defeating him!) The demon is then burned at dawn, the day before the main day of Diwali. There are of course plenty of late night fireworks for you to enjoy and Goa is a great place for beaches, nightlife and relaxation.

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Photo Credit: Booking.com
yaruta via Getty Images Superhero kid wearing boxing gloves against blue sky background. Girl power and feminism concept

What are you going to be for Halloween? The answer for many girls will be different in 2016: after 11 years as the most popular costume, princess has been beaten out by superhero.

Halloween and the costumes we choose are mirrors of our culture, reflecting back to us our values, taboos and norms. As a young girl, I used Halloween to rebel against the impossible ideals that told me I should be nice, polite and docile while waiting passively for Prince Charming to sweep me off my feet, defend my honour and protect me from the world. I rejected being a princess and saw myself as empowered: I dressed up as an '80s punk rocker with colourful hair and ripped stockings. Even more outrageous, I once trick-or-treated as a yuppie male business executive. Challenging gender roles on Halloween made me feel super-powered.

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When young girls choose to be superheroes for Halloween, it shows us that gender norms are changing. It demonstrates that girls are demanding the space to grow into powerful leaders who celebrate their strengths, and stand up for themselves and others.

When young girls choose to be superheroes for Halloween, it shows us that gender norms are changing.

I say this with confidence because I know a number of young women who dream of themselves in decision-making seats. They realized their vision when they sat in these seats, including Canada's ambassador to the United Nations, the minister of finance, and my own role as CEO, as part of Plan International Canada's #GirlsBelongHere initiative for International Day of the Girl earlier this month.

These young women, just like five-year old Ainsley who gained Internet fame for dressing up in a hot dog costume instead of a sparkly dress during Princess Week, are bucking gender trends. They are redefining expectations of what it means to be a girl, and transforming power relationships.

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Seeing girls prefer to be superheroes rather than princesses for Halloween demonstrates a powerful shift. For centuries and across many cultures, our heroes have been represented only by men. Capitalizing on this legitimate and inspiring identity for women and girls, the United Nations (UN) appointed Wonder Woman as their honourary ambassador for the empowerment of women and girls last week. As the UN put it, "women and girls who rise up for a better world, and the men and boys who support and stand with them, are superheroes in their own right."

I believe that everyone who stands up for the empowerment of women and girls is a superhero, and that everyone is responsible for creating gender equality. However, we must also be critical of the types of superheroes we've come to know and love, because they haven't always been inclusive of all people. We cannot be blind to the fact that Wonder Woman, and the other superheroes de jour, such as Harley Quinn from Suicide Squad or Rey from Star Wars, are fair-skinned and reflect western ideals of beauty and dress -- need I mention that superhero costumes for girls tend to include a short skirt?

When I hand out candy on October 31, I hope to encounter a vast array of superheroes. I also hope that princesses of old can continue to recognize their power as women and pass on new values so that their girls can continue to choose to be whoever they want, including superheroes on Halloween.

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Similarly, their boys can challenge the stereotype of being a superhero or macho man, and choose to dress up as princesses. We cannot trick ourselves into thinking that such a world currently exists. But we can work together and treat others with respect so that equality in all its forms, including gender equality, is the result of transformed power relations rather than something we're just trying on for size.

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Ask any Canadian kid to name the world's most endangered ecosystem, and chances are you'll hear one of the following answers: 1) rainforests; 2) coral reefs; 3) leave me alone.

Ignoring the last answer, there's a good reason why kids, and most other people, think that rainforests and coral reefs are the most endangered ecosystems, the planet's most critical and urgent habitats in need of conservation. Tropical rainforests and coral reefs are incredibly important for protecting the planet's biodiversity. They are a cornucopia of millions of species and display the incredible and beautiful forces of life that create diversity. We are continuing to lose tropical rainforests, and coral reefs are at increasing risk from pollution, rising water temperatures and ocean acidification (the latter two a consequence of climate change). There is no question that both of these are endangered.

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Now, what if I told you the world's most endangered ecosystem isn't tropical rainforests or coral reefs? It's a different habitat. And one that is much closer to home than you might think.

The world's most endangered ecosystem

Endangerment comes down to risk -- the risk of losing a species, habitat or ecosystem for future generations. When we look at the risk factors for endangerment -- past loss, current amount of conservation, potential for future loss -- the winners (actually, the losers) are temperate grasslands, including the good, old Great Plains of Oh Canada that stretch across southern Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta, and the grasslands of B.C.'s interior.

The world's most endangered ecosystem is right here at home.

Globally, temperate grasslands cover about eight percent of the Earth's land surface. They generally exist in the interior of continents, where there is not enough rain and snowfall to support forests.

There are many reasons why temperate grasslands are endangered. They are the original breadbasket of the world. Over 50 per cent have been converted to crops and other land uses. Much of the remaining are intensively grazed, replacing what were some of the planet's greatest concentrations of wild grazing animals with cattle, goats and sheep.

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Around the world, temperate grasslands are faced with continuing habitat loss, fragmentation and desertification, impacting both biodiversity and local people that rely on healthy grasslands for their livelihood.

A picture of decline

In many ways, the fate of Canada's temperate grasslands mirrors the fate and state of this ecosystem around the world. More than 70 per cent of Canada's prairie grasslands has been converted. A 2010 report on the status and trends of Canada's major habitat types found that our grasslands are the only major ecosystem type in our country that is impaired, and continuing to decline.

The endangerment of grassland habitat in Canada has cascaded into the endangerment of many grassland species. More than 60 Canadian species at risk depend on this habitat, including species that symbolize our grasslands, such as plains bison, swift fox and greater sage grouse. Just this year, a report on the State of North America's Birds concluded that many grassland birds are rapidly declining, and some species have lost over 70 per cent of their population in the last 40 years. The songs of birds such as Baird's sparrow, Sprague's pipit and chestnut-collared longspur are slowly dimming on our prairies.

We need grasslands, and grasslands need our help

The loss of Canada's grasslands is a loss for Canadians. In addition to wide-open prairies, our grasslands also contain wetlands, lakes, rivers and valleys. Canada's grasslands support fishes, waterfowl and breath-taking avian migration spectacles as millions of birds stop to rest and feed during their migration to the boreal and Arctic.

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Grasslands can also showcase how people and nature can coexist. Many of Canada's grasslands have a long history of sustainable cattle grazing. This grazing has supported generations of prairie ranchers, can help to maintain grassland health and benefits many species of prairie wildlife.

The loss of Canada's prairies is also a loss for the world. Among the last places on Earth to shelter grasslands at a meaningful scale are the grasslands of North America's Great Plains, and despite a loss of 70 per cent, Canada has some of largest and best sites remaining. A global assessment of critical places to conserve temperate grasslands identifies Canada's prairies as a priority.

From early efforts to protect the last wild plains bison that roamed the prairies, to the establishment of "regeneration" national parks, to protect dwindling populations of pronghorn antelope, to the return of swift fox to its native habitat in 1983, Canadians have shown a passion and ability to conserve and restore our grassland heritage.

Conservation is a community effort

The Nature Conservancy of Canada has protected more than 197,684 acres (80,000 hectares) of grasslands in properties from coast to coast, including large, intact areas such as Old Man on His Back in southern Saskatchewan. There is also a key, and immediate, opportunity to conserve large areas of prairie and maintain local ranching economies by protecting community pastures in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba -- public lands that are managed to protect both biodiversity and sustainable grazing in local communities.

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Here in Canada, we have opportunities to protect and restore habitats that are important for Canadians, and important for the world. We have an opportunity to protect and restore our grasslands.

This post originally appeared on NCC's blog,Land Lines.

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Every year around Halloween I like to dig into my photography archives and see what creepy photos I can post to a themed blog to present to the Huffington Post's readers.

In 2014 I showed you 13 Photos of Creepy Abandoned Places, in 2015 we pretty much stuck with the same theme and I showed you 20 Photos of Creepy Old Abandoned Houses. So, since my trend is to provide a list format, how about this year for Halloween we look at 31 even more unbelievable photos from abandoned buildings?

I've gone pretty deep into my archives to see what I can find, I've featured photos from abandoned insane asylums, vacant hospitals, abandoned houses that seem as though the owners just up and left and many other derelict and creepy old buildings.

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What I do is known to some as "urban exploring." Urban exploring is defined as the study of parts of civilization that are normally unseen or off-limits, such as abandoned structures, drains, rooftops or active facilities.

So, in a nutshell, I and many others out there have a genuine interest in abandoned buildings and we really like to explore them and photograph them. Some of us like to put the photos out there for the general public to see, because it would seem there are are a great deal of people who also find this fascinating.

Now, I will let you decide for yourself if there is beauty to be found in decay, you probably had no idea that people even do this, or that this is even a thing!

On to the photos:

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An abandoned church in New York State

An abandoned church in Detroit that is now undergoing restoration

An abandoned cathedral in Detroit that was once visited by Mother Theresa

An abandoned house in Ontario that is almost fully in tact.

The morgue fridge in an abandoned Ontario psychiatric hospital

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An abandoned auto factory in Detroit

A bird skeleton in the former Buffalo State Asylum

The stained glass capped dome in a cafeteria of a former tuberculosis hospital

An index of "Psychiatric Symptoms" found in the basement of an old Ontario Psychiatric hospital

See the rest of the photos in the slideshow below:

If you like the photos above and want to see more abandoned photography you can follow Freaktography on Instagram, Facebook or on his website at www.freaktography.com
This past summer, I covered the 7th G(irls)20 Summit. As the Official Global Correspondent I learnt about the G20 and how it operates. I worked with high potential young women from around the world to develop and formulate a detailed communique, which was presented to G20 Leaders before they met in China. The purpose of this was to help G20 Leaders keep their 2014 commitment to reduce the gender gap in labour force participation by 25 per cent by 2025, and create 100 million jobs for women in the labor force.

As I look back upon my time spent in Beijing, I marvel at the opportunity I was given. At 14 years old, I had the invaluable experience of meeting successful CEOs, Ministers, Ambassadors and most importantly, the delegates. Ranging from the ages of 18-23, these are the future leaders in 20+ countries. They have the passion, will and intelligence to fight for their beliefs. Although the delegates came from all corners of the world with unique life experiences, there was a common thread that bonded everyone; raising awareness for female labour force participation.

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During the week leading up to the summit, the delegates and I were immersed in eight intensive workshops. They were facilitated by G(irls)20 partners such as Norton Rose Fulbright, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Bain. We had hands on learning on how to maximize economic engagement from women, create sustainable job opportunities, leadership and entrepreneurship skills, and finally impact investing. Although these were closed door-workshops, set up G20 style, I was granted special access to learn from brightest experts in these fields.

One of my favourite conversations took place with Katie Telford who is the Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. She shared her journey with me about her efforts in spearheading the campaign that led to gender parity in Justin Trudeau's cabinet. One of the key takeaways from our conversation was the insight I acquired concerning our Canadian Prime Minister. As a self-proclaimed feminist, his ideals about gender equality are successfully being put into action in the Canadian society.

Holly Ransom, the 25-year-old CEO of Australia-based Emergent, told me her phenomenal story on a bus ride to a reception hosted by the Ambassador of Canada to China. She lead the G20 Youth Summit and Co-Chaired the UN Global Coalition of Young Women Entrepreneurs. Holly reminded me that while there have been numerous world female leaders in developed and developing countries, the glass ceiling still exists in corporate boardrooms. She specifically highlighted that one quarter of the world's population is under 30 and female. Imagine that. We are the generation that will get the job done.

It wasn't all work and no play! Not only did we visit Tiananmen Square but we also climbed one of the wonders of the world; the Great Wall of China. What a surreal experience. Imagine, the monumental task of building sections of that wall over hundreds of years. Ours might be less of a physical challenge but it is no less significant.

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If I had to offer one key takeaway, it would be that engaging young females like myself needs to happen more often. I truly believe that we, as young women, bring a particular energy, perspective and drive. It's our future, we deserve to be at the table making decisions.

By Shyla Devi Gupta, Official Global Correspondent, G(irls)20 Summit 2016, Beijing, China.
PhotoAlto/Sigrid Olsson via Getty Images Wirelessly sharing data between smartphones

It's official: Canadians are cutting the cord and hungry for data.

This week, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) released its full Communications Monitoring Report. While filled with insights, it contains two major takeaways about how Canadians' viewing habits.

First, more and more Canadians are moving from traditional TV to online platforms like Netflix to view content. Second, they're using more data than ever before.

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In fact, to use the CRTC's own language, data consumption has "skyrocketed over the last year," jumping 40 per cent from 2014 to 2015 -- even in the face of steep and rising prices for communications services.

So with official government reports confirming that citizens are jumping ship on outdated TV offerings in favour of the streaming revolution, you may be wondering: "When will our data caps catch up?" After all, data caps are currently one of the main limiting factors for cord cutters.

Dollars for data, Canadians are paying more per gigabyte than just about anywhere else in the world.

Right now Canadians pay some of the highest prices in the industrialized world for lackluster telecommunications services due, in large part, to market concentration -- a small handful of companies have a stranglehold on 90 per cent of Internet service offerings.

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A recent survey of data caps available in the Canadian market reveals that customers seeking unlimited data have few affordable options. In fact, Canada is one of the only countries in the OECD to impose data caps on residential Internet subscriptions. And, unfortunately, the majority of Canadian businesses and residents face data caps that are as low as their costs are high.

For example, on wireless, a recent report from Digital Fuel Monitor shows that, dollars for data, Canadians are paying more per gigabyte than just about anywhere else in the world.

With data usage expected to grow exponentially in the coming years, it's often asked: "What's Big Telecom's plan to meet growing demands for data?"

Well, here's where things get messy. Enter: zero-rating.

Rather than investing in capacity for their core service -- the Internet -- the management of Canada's Big Telecom giants have found a different strategy they hope will allow them to keep both their costs and your data caps low.

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Zero-rating is a highly controversial billing practice -- deemed anti-competitive and illegal in a growing number of countries around the world -- that allows telecom providers to favour some services over others by exempting them from your monthly bill.

What does this look like in practice? The most famous Canadian example was when Bell Mobility created a Netflix competitor called Mobile TV brimming with Bell-owned content that didn't count against your monthly cap, while Netflix did. The result? To watch the same amount of content on Netflix, you had to pay 800 per cent more for the data.

Worryingly, zero-rating hands immense gatekeeper powers to our telecom giants.

The Bell-owned Mobile TV program was eventually deemed anti-competitive for discriminating against competing service like Netflix, but most of Canada's big Internet service providers are trying to reclaim these powers in an important CRTC hearing starting next week.

Experts are concerned that since zero-rating, in effect, justifies data caps (the practice doesn't work if there is no data cap to bill against), allowing zero-rating to distort demand and remove incentives for telecom providers to invest in their networks.

And perhaps most worryingly, zero-rating hands immense gatekeeper powers to our telecom giants.

If you don't believe the experts, ask Rogers Communications, who unexpectedly opposed zero-rating. This year the company explicitly told the CRTC that zero-rating "practices do give ISPs the ability to act as gatekeepers in every case" and that such programs "are examples of anti-competitive behaviour."

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Canadians are speaking out, and there is industry support to ban zero-rating. The Commission's own research has highlighted the undeniable demand for data. No doubt there is an urgent need for our telecom giants to heed CRTC Chairman Jean-Pierre Blais' call and meet this demand.

But, if history is any guide, they aren't going to do it on their own.

Responding to today's report, Blais challenged Canada's telecom providers: "industry must ensure that it meets the changing needs of Canadians, who increasingly want to watch and listen to content on the platform of their choice."

Under the direction of Chairman Blais, the CRTC has long promised to put Canadians at the centre of a worldclass communications system. But next week, that will be put to the test as all eyes turn to the Commission, who will hear from a range of stakeholders on data caps, zero-rating and the importance of Net Neutrality over the course of their week-long public hearing.

If today's report tells us anything, it's that Canadians are craving more Internet. Let's hope the CRTC is listening and creates rules that will incentivize Canada's telecom companies to walk the walk, and create a truly world-class telecommunications system.

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Josh Tabish is Campaigns Director for OpenMedia, an international digital rights non-profit that works to keep the Internet open, affordable, and surveillance-free. Find him on Twitter @jdtabish or @OpenMediaOrg.

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"Mama's Heart" is for baby Malachi and his courageous mama. And for every women who finds herself grieving the loss of a little one. You are loved. (Watercolour: Amy Wetton/Wild Canary Studio)

One afternoon seven years ago, my best friend called me as I was walking home from a yoga class and told me that her baby had died.

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I remember her voice, a calm and steady flow of disbelief, recounting how she had been waiting to feel that reassuring movement inside her belly. How she drank some juice and laid down on her side and waited again. And how, finally, when there was no sign to assuage her fear, they went to the hospital.

The ultrasound found no heartbeat.

She was nearly full-term with her second son, and we all were awaiting his arrival, thinking she would give birth any day. She delivered him two days later. The umbilical cord had become wrapped around his neck, but he was an otherwise perfect baby boy. She named him Malachi.

I was not yet a mother and, though I grieved with her, I couldn't begin grasp the oceanic depth of her loss. Even now as a mum of two, I don't know it. I have not experienced miscarriage or loss personally (thankfully). The story I'm sharing doesn't come from the same sacred space as women who bravely recount their experiences after losing an unborn child or infant. This story about women supporting women -- mothers caring for mothers -- and what we can do to help carry our sisters through their grief.

It is far too common an experience to remain the subject of whispers.

Being with my friend through her heartbreaking loss changed something in me. It made me realize that supporting women through childbirth and as new moms was calling me. It lead me to become a doula. And through my work I'm always advocating for maternal wellness, in all its manifestations. As many as one in five pregnancies ends in loss. That is a reality of human biology that the human heart must bear. It is far too common an experience to remain the subject of whispers.

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In the days and weeks after Malachi died, I remember my friend saying that beyond coping with bereavement itself, the hardest part about trying to carry on with life after her loss was that so many people said nothing.

Nothing.

Can you imagine? I hear this same deeply unsettling story again and again from women who experience loss. Women who are left with a profound sense of loneliness and isolation.

So, let's talk. If you know someone who has experienced a miscarriage, later pregnancy or infant loss, here are three things you should do:

Acknowledge:

Let her know you are thinking of her. Make a phone call. Send a card. Skip the cliches ("Everything happens for a reason...") and reminders that she can try again or has other children. This life lost, however brief, matters. It's OK to stumble over your words or not know what to say. As human beings we protect ourselves from difficult emotions, like sadness and grief. It's natural to feel uncomfortable talking about the loss of a pregnancy; the death of an infant. (There's even a line a cards available now created specifically for miscarriage and loss, if you're having a hard time finding the right words.)

Support:

Encourage her to reach out to a local support organization where she can connect with other women coping with loss and counselors who can help guide bereaved parents through their grief. Do not rush her. Do bring over a prepared meal if you live nearby, or offer to take care of older children if she has them. Listen when she wants to talk about it. Sit together when she doesn't. Hold her hand. Let her cry. When she's ready, make a lunch date and get her out of the house.

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Remember:

Despite what many folks think, a woman usually does not want to forget about the baby she has lost. If the child has a name, say it. She will be happy to hear it, even if it makes her sad. Many families plant a tree or have a ceremony of some kind to remember their baby. Ask about those plans. As the years pass, remember the date and reach out to let her know you're thinking of her and that her baby is not forgotten.

Tip-toeing around this very common experience only makes it more difficult and isolating.

With the passing of Bill 141 -- the Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness, Research and Care Act -- in Ontario last year, October 2016 marks the province's first official Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. (October 15th was the ceremonial date.)

Along with investments in research and support organizations, Bill 141 rests on a mandate to destigmatize miscarriage and infant loss. Over the past few weeks many women have shared their stories, helping to break the silence around miscarriage and later loss and create safe spaces where women can find support.

Often women don't share news of their pregnancy until after the first trimester, when miscarriage is most common. Sadly, this means that most women who experience loss find themselves in a place where it might seem easier, at first at least, to carry on and not tell. I hope that the efforts of Bill 141, along with more and more women opening up about their experiences, will encourage women not to carry the burden of their grief alone.

Tip-toeing around this very common experience only makes it more difficult and isolating. On October 15, I announced a special project that I hope will help to open the conversation and create a way for family and friends to lovingly acknowledge and support these mamas. Tenth Moon Mothercare's Mama's Heart care package is a special gift to help soothe the hearts of women who experience miscarriage and later loss. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the package will support The Pregnancy and Infant Loss (PAIL) Network .

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When military officers meet to dine, there is no gentle tapping of the glasses to draw the attention of the group. Nor is there a gentle "excuse me" murmured at ever increasing volume until the room settles down.

Nope. A genial, but no-nonsense fellow briskly raps a gavel at the front of the table and immediately has your attention. Time to stand and toast the Queen--and it needs to be done the proper way. And when I say proper, I mean the same way John Graves Simcoe might have done it when he led the Queen's York Rangers during the American Revolutionary War.

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So it was on a crisp Saturday evening recently at the York Armoury in Toronto. As reservists in fatigues trained on the ground floor, I made my way upstairs to the Officers Mess for the Rangers' annual Brandywine and Queenston Heights Mess dinner. In a wood-panelled room decorated with portraits of royalty, commanders past and banners from the Rangers' long history I found diners in tuxedos, formal military attire, fine frocks, (and a dark business suit in my case) standing around chatting and sipping sherry.

It was my introduction to the ancient, and to me foreign, institution of formal military dining.

"The main thing is that this is an officer's mess where the officers met in fellowship. Although it may seem very formal it's actually less formal than in the military world," former QYR Commander Don McKenzie told me. He organized the evening.

"This is really meant to be the officers' home. And so that the primary thing. It's about fellowship."

The title of the dinner commemorated two key moments from the Rangers' past. John Graves Simcoe, before he became Ontario's first Lieutenant Governor, led the regiment in the famous battle of Brandywine during the American Revolutionary War in 1777. It was the largest engagement of the war and one that that Brits prefer to remember because they won.

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Simcoe was also at the Battle of Yorktown, which did not go so well and effectively ended the British effort to keep the 13 Colonies in the fold. But famously, he refused to surrender the Rangers colours and now they are displayed proudly at the front of the dining room.

Queenston Heights in the War of 1812 was another high point for the Queen's York Rangers--another British victory over the Yankees.

In 2016 they are now a reserve unit, governed by a Regimental Council which includes both current and former members and some civilians--all of whom collaborate to govern and support the Rangers.

Those with a military background are expected to know the protocols of a formal mess dinner--the civilians not so much. So, in advance of the evening, McKenzie sent a wry aide memoire to all the guests with advice on how one should conduct one's self.

A silver tray should be at the entrance for business cards, a glass of dry sherry should be offered upon arrival and unit members should make the effort to engage newcomers in conversation.

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"What we'd like to do is to expose them to the tradition of the regiment and to make them familiar with the customs and traditions of a mess dinner and how it's conducted here," said McKenzie, with just a hint of a touch of Scottish burr in his accent, a product of his youth in Glasgow.

Exactly 15 minutes before dinner, Pipe Major Dave Sanderson stationed himself at the front of the room and played a short passage on the bag pipes. He performed a similar alert at the five-minute mark, warning all in need of a bathroom break to get it done.

At the appointed hour, all guests should leave their unfinished glasses of sherry elsewhere and be standing in their places as the head table is piped in.

I forgot the part about holding the chair for the female guest to my right, but my colleague Vicki Ollers either did not notice the oversight or forgave my ignorance as we took our seats.

The aide memoire urged diners to make conversation with table mates on either side and to ensure that all have access to bread, butter, salt and pepper. It dryly advised of one exception:

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"When a junior subaltern asks something: it is proper then to announce loudly "Mr.

Fotheringay-Smythe wants the bread" and then pass it in the opposite direction.

This cruelty is amusing to all except the victim, whose character is hardened the

better to prepare him for the rigours of the campaign and to inflict consternation on

the enemies of the Regiment."

The real ceremony came at the end. Once everyone had eaten, the President of the Mess Committee (PMC) Matt Lennox briskly rapped his gavel twice and announced that there would be a five-minute break to allow the serving staff to clear the table before the toasts.

There is an ancient reason for all this, centring on the "loyal toast" to the monarch, which always comes first.

"A little echo of 18th century Britain," explained McKenzie, motioning to the water glass, which must be removed.

It seemed that if you held your port over it, there was a seditious meaning.

"Because you might have some Jacobite Scot who would toast the Queen 'over the water'. That would mean you're not actually toasting the reigning monarch, you're toasting the rebel James who's lurking in Rome." That would refer to the unhappy King James II, deposed in 1688 for his Catholic sympathies.

Table cleared of rebellious symbols, we took our seats and poured our port. PMC Lennox rapped his gavel, invited us to stand and glasses were raised to the Queen.

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Protocol demands that you sit after each toast, then rise at the gavel as toasts are made in succession to the Colonel in Chief (Prince Andrew), Fallen Comrades, Allied and Affiliated Regiments and finally the Regiment itself.

Honourary Colonel Darrell Bricker gave a short speech recalling the long history of the Queen's York Rangers, including the 111 who died in the Battle of the Somme exactly 100 years earlier.

"And they continue to serve," said Bricker, noting that Rangers saw action in Canada's Afghanistan mission.

McKenzie explained that here is where all the traditions of the mess dinner still matter.

"It really is building this fellowship of a corps of officers," he said.

"If it lends someone just a little extra courage, a little extra effort, then it has done its job."
Chris Helgren / Reuters Canada's Finance Minister Bill Morneau makes an announcement about the country's housing market at government offices in Toronto, Ontario, Canada October 3, 2016. REUTERS/Chris Helgren

Finance Minister Bill Morneau will soon release the government's Fall Economic Statement and the expectation is for more stimulus spending and higher deficits. The surrounding debate in Ottawa has been mostly focused on "how" and "what" of deficit spending and insufficiently on "why" and "when." One increasingly gets the sense that theory and evidence are being subordinated by an impulse to borrow and spend.

The risk is that the adjective "extraordinary" is dropped from our conception of fiscal stimulus altogether and budgetary deficits are once again normalized. Outlays exceeding revenues becomes the default instead of the exception. Real trade-offs between the short- and long-term are neglected. And we end up with more red ink and little to show for it save for more debt and higher taxes over the long-term.

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The government's update is bound to show deteriorating economic conditions and in turn a worsening fiscal picture. New estimates from TD Economics cut economic growth by $148 billion over the next five years and anticipate another $23 billion in accumulated federal deficits over same timeframe. Yet this disappointing news has done seemingly nothing to diminish Ottawa's proclivity for stimulus spending.

Short-term stimulus spending is far from costless.

Quite the contrary. Reports are the government is now committed to using even larger budgetary deficits to stimulate economic growth. Fortunately for the minister there's no shortage of ideas about how and on what he should be spending. Attend a pre-budget consultation of the parliamentary finance committee and one will hear countless ideas for new spending based on "economic impact" analysis and the power of the multiplier effect. Just "invest" in company X or industry Y and the rate of return will be three-, four-, five-fold, or more. If only it were that easy.

This focus on how and on what Ottawa should spend subverts more fundamental questions about why and when deficit spending is an appropriate fiscal policy response.

Short-term stimulus spending is far from costless. A large body of economic research shows that there are long-term costs that should be weighed against possible short-term gains. We may make the judgement that it's worth it to reduce future generations' prosperity somewhat to mitigate economic hardship present today. But we need to recognize that this is what we're doing.

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There's been no such debate here in Canada.

There's no "free lunch" in other words. That's why fiscal stimulus should be "extraordinary." The onus should be on those who advocate for deficit financing to make the case that the trade-offs are worth it and that the long-term risks will be minimized.

There's been no such debate here in Canada. The tension between short- and long-term objectives has been minified. "Strategic investments" by the government have become the answer to the country's challenges. The multiplier will solve everything, including Ottawa's rising and protracted budgetary deficit. If only it were that easy indeed.

As part of his economic and fiscal update, Minister Morneau should codify a clear set of principles to guide Ottawa's fiscal policy. These so-called "fiscal rules" would focus on the "why" and when" of stimulus spending and incorporate clear benchmarks for eliminating the current budgetary deficit.

The budget process can thus become less transactional and more focused on big-picture questions.

The test should focus on the national economy rather than regional differences, and a sustained downturn rather than a short-term economic adjustment. Slowed growth is different from a major economic contraction as we experienced in 2008 and 2009, and the fiscal policy response should therefore be different. Calls for more fiscal stimulus every time global markets fluctuate or growth projections are revised downward risks intellectualizing irresponsibility.

The goal should be to restore the baseline assumption that the government should impose the taxes needed to pay for services it proposes to provide. Deviations from this baseline can be permitted where circumstances warrant but the onus should then be on the government to justify its decision and plan for returning to balance as soon as practical. "Extraordinary" should mean extraordinary.

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Such fiscal rules would not help the government manage short- and long-term trade-offs, they can support the role of Parliament in scrutinizing fiscal policy in general and specific spending proposals in particular. New spending can be weighed against current spending and the relative merits can be judged. The budget process can thus become less transactional and more focused on big-picture questions about the long-term conditions for economic growth and rising living standards.

Minister Morneau's upcoming Fall Economic Statement represents an opportunity to shift the current fiscal policy debate from dollars to sense. It's time to get back to basics.

Sean Speer is a Munk senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute.

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shutterstock dry leaves of green tea in...

Tea is only second to water when it comes to beverage popularity -- so popular that it's consumed as much as coffee, soft drinks, and alcohol combined. There's always time for better tea, though, so here are ten tips and tricks to take your tea to the next level.

1.Temperature Is Key

When you ask someone why they do not like tea, often times the answer is Well, it just tastes bitter" What's interesting about this response is that a lot of people do not realize that they are likely responsible for creating that bitter taste. To simplify steeping guidelines, ideally when you think black tea, it is safe to think boil. For all other tea (Green, Oolong, Pu'erh, White) you want your water to be under boiling. The reason for this, when you use boiling water, you actually risk burning the tea leaves, which can make your tea taste bitter or astringent.

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Heating the water to the optimal temperature will also draw out the right balance of amino acids. This is what helps to create the optimal level of flavor, sweetness, and tannins. If the water temperature is too low, it may not extract the full range of flavors. If the temperature is too high, the tea will taste overly bitter and astringent.

2.Timing is Everything

Temperature is just as important as timing. Under steeping can result in a bland and boring brew while over steeping can produce an undesirable level of tannins, astringency, and too strong of a beverage. Generally, black tea and oolong should be steeped 4-5 minutes, green and white tea 3-4 minutes, and herbal blends 5-6 minutes. Of course, at the end of the day it's all about preference.

3. Not all Green Tea Is Created the Same

When finding the right type of green tea for you, think about how green tea is processed. Two of the most popular styles of green tea are Japanese green tea and Chinese Green tea. What's the difference and why does it matter? My mentor, Shabnam Weber (Tea Sommelier Educator & Owner of The Tea Emporium) explains it perfectly:

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"Imagine you are cooking broccoli, and you choose to pan roast it on your stove top. What does that taste like? It tastes roasted, nutty, and charred. This is how Chinese green tea is generally procssed. It is pan fired. Now imagine you take that broccoli, but this time, you choose to steam it. The flavour is more soft, vibrant, grassy with a hint of sweetness. Japanese green tea is generally steamed during processing.

Not only will knowing these two primary key differences in the styles of green tea will help you choose what style is suited for your own preferences, though you will also look like a total pro next time you enjoy a cup at a restaurant and say with confidence in front if your company which country the tea you are tasting is likely from. At Tease Tea, we tend to prefer using Japanese green tea for our fruit forward blends to compliment the sweet undertones and floral blends with Chinese green tea to match that earthiness.

Left: Pan fired Chinese green tea. Right: Japanese steamed green tea.

4.Warm Your Cup

Such a simple yet amazing life changer. Why warm your cup? When you warm your cup before steeping tea, you are retaining the temperature of your tea longer. Therefore, you can enjoy your tea at optimal flavour longer. It's like serving food on cold plates. Just don't do it, it makes people cringe.

5. Less Is More

General rule to not over complicate things: 1 heaping tsp per cup (8 oz) of water. That's it, that's all. Do not over stuff your tea filter or infuser. Doing so will not allow the leaves an opportunity to actually expand and grow or release their full flavours. Overstuffing your infuser constricts this process or emits too much flavour into your cup which can result in a tanic, bitter cup of tea. Plus, why would you use too much tea in one cup if you don't have to?

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1 Heaping tsp per cup -- that's all you need!

6. You can re-steep many teas

Not only can you steep all tea except black tea, with each reinfusion, you will discover a new a whole new flavour profile unlike the cup you enjoyed previously. This pro tip makes that one cup go a long way!

7.Tea Is the Most Consumed Beverage on the Planet Next to Water

Tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world next to water, and can be found in almost 80% of all U.S. households. It is the only beverage commonly served hot or iced, anytime, anywhere, for any occasion. On any given day, over 158 million Americans are drinking tea.

The economic and social interest of tea is clear and its consumption is part of many people's daily routine, as an everyday drink and as a therapeutic aid in many illnesses. Today, there are more than 1,500 types of teas to choose from because over 25 countries cultivate tea as a plantation crop!

If you're not so much into drinking the stuff, there are other ways to benefit from its properties. Green tea particularly is good for your skin from inside and out, having antioxidant, antibacterial and anti-aging properties.

8. Tea is not just for drinking

If you're not so much into drinking the stuff, there are other ways to benefit from its properties. Green tea particularly is good for your skin from inside and out, having antioxidant, antibacterial and anti-aging properties. It soothes skin inflammation, reduces acne and, apparently, it prevents hair loss! Read on to find 13 of our favorite homemade green tea beauty recipes.

9.Tea can be a Mood Stabilizer and Ultimate Focus Booster

Tea is known to be a rich source of flavonoid antioxidants. However tea also contains a unique amino acid, L-theanine that may modulate aspects of brain function in humans. L-theanine significantly increases activity in the alpha frequency band which indicates that it relaxes the mind without inducing drowsiness.

10. All Tea Comes From the Same Plant

What is tea technically? Tea is also known as Camellia Sinensis, and all black, green, white, oolong and pu'erh teas come from this one plant. Considering how vastly different each style is, this is surprising to many people. The difference of between each style comes down to mainly how they are harvested and processed. Think of it like wine. There are two grapes, white and red. From there you have hundreds of varietals. All from one plant.

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Loose Leaf vs. Bags -- What's the Deal?

I get asked this a lot! Tea bags are undoubtedly more convenient than loose tea, but what you trade in convenience you probably are giving up in taste and quality. Tea Muse explains it like this:

"There is, of course, a huge taste difference. Teabags generally contain bits of tea leaves (typically fannings and dust), not whole leaves, and these leaf fragments brew up a nice cup of blah tea. As any tea expert will tell you, one of the essential requirements of brewing tea is giving the leaves enough room to expand so that their flavor is properly extracted. Because space is limited in a traditional teabag, the size of the tea leaf is smaller to compensate. Thus, the quality of the flavor is decreased. Thus, loose tea reigns supreme."
At the MoU signing ceremony (Photo: VGP)

The information was announced at the 10th Information Communication Technology (ICT) Day in Hanoi on October 26th.

Having been held annually since 2007, Japan ICT Day is the most important cooperation activity between Vietnamese and Japanese IT companies held by the Vietnam Software and IT Services Association (VINASA) and the Vietnam-Japan IT Cooperation Club (VJC).

There are currently over 10 Vietnamese software enterprises establishing companies or branches in Japan, making the sector the one with the largest number of enterprises investing in Japan.

Nguyen Thanh Hung, Deputy Minister of Information and Communications, said that the ministry always considers cooperation with Japan an important factor for the development of the IT sector in Vietnam.

Besides, the Ministry has put forth five key tasks for the development of the sector, including developing human resources, especially high quality human resources; building concentrated IT areas, hi-tech zones and software parks; modernizing the national information infrastructure; efficiently applying IT in State-owned agencies, enterprises and society; and promoting start-ups in the IT sector.

While Ms Yuko Adachi, Vice President at Gartner Japan, appreciated the great development of the IT sector in Vietnam. According to her, Vietnam has a lot of competitive advantages, including support from the Government, good infrastructure, political stability, large number of human resources, good ability in language, good protection of customers information, and compliance with international standards.

During Japan ICT Day 2016, Vietnam and Japan signed two Memorandums of Understanding on promoting deeper cooperation among members of the two countries IT associations./.
Carmen MartAnez TorrAn via Getty Images A young hand touches and holds an old wrinkled hand

The Canadian euthanasia issue marks a time of upheaval in medical ethics and the healthcare system which could be compared to events a century ago in Russia.

The Bolsheviks were not preordained to take over from the previous government, but their ruthlessness and aggression were unmatched. They demonized competing ideas and purged the social structures. They made their own laws. Nothing was allowed to stand. All was justified for public good, the good of the Proletariat.

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The polite Canadian version seems to be that all control is justified by public funding. If a hospital accepts public money, a uniformity of euthanasia access is expected, a literally deadening uniformity.

People who would be ignored if they insisted that all welfare recipients be required to think alike, or that all Canada Council grants be used to create the same work of art, grab attention by bullying Catholic caregivers and hospitals which, like all hospitals, could not survive without tax dollars.

Every day thousands of Canadian patients are humanely transferred between homes and hospitals. Some are seeking a procedure offered in a different building, for which an ambulance ride and a change in the wallpaper would not arouse comment in normal times.

But in August of this year, a Vancouver patient had an interval of poor pain control while he was being transferred from St. Paul's Hospital to be euthanized elsewhere. The lapse in medication was, ironically, triggered by the euthanasia consent process itself, followed by a pharmacy mix-up.

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That provided a gotcha! moment for activists which was exploited to demand that all hospitals must now offer their premises for the use of doctors who want to euthanize patients on site. There are howls of outrage that St. Paul's, a Catholic hospital, is a euthanasia-free zone in keeping with its principles.

This indignant bluster is an attempt to ignore the caution and limitation that the Supreme Court and Parliament tried to place on euthanasia. The new law really just excuses police from charging a doctor with murder if stringent eligibility rules are rigorously followed.

This narrow exception allowed euthanasia in order to protect the right to life proclaimed in Section 7 of the Charter. That may seem bizarre, but the Court decided that having the eventual option of death at the hands of a doctor was likely to prevent earlier do-it-yourself suicides. Flimsy or not, that was the hinge of the Carter decision and for now we are stuck with it.

Taking a mere exception to a murder charge and spinning it as a right to be euthanized everywhere and anywhere in Canada is audacious but transparently political. The euthanasia lobby, flushed with its recent success, wants a monopoly on power, and a health care monoculture that sweeps away all opposition.

People who think differently are not even to be allowed into medical school.

Inviting such extremism into our society would be, to say the least, unhealthy. True diversity and freedom would not be served by it. The activists now attacking Catholic hospitals would not stop there. Everything is a one-way street for them. Their Utopia is euthanasia on demand.

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Having convinced themselves that they are the only true humanitarians, no compromises are possible. Like someone who wears far too much perfume, they can't understand why others would not want the common space pervaded by their own superior preferences.

The problem is not "religious hospitals." The problem is zealous ideologues whose inability to accommodate those outside their faction will damage the fabric of our culture.

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The five things you need to know on Friday, October 28

1) TURNING JAPANESE

The Queen famously does not carry any cash. Now it seems that Business Secretary Greg Clark does not carry cheques. "There's no cheque book. I don't have a cheque book," he said, on Question Time last night, as he denied the Government had offered financial sweeteners to persuade Nissan to build new models in its Sunderland factory. "The important thing is that they know this is a country in which they can have confidence they can invest. That was the assurance and the understanding they had and they have invested their money, he said.

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The decision to protect 7,000 jobs was obviously a huge boost to Theresa May and all those Brexiteers who say we can continue to attract overseas investment despite the Brexit vote. But Labour claims that the deal underlines the lack of transparency over how the Tories are dealing with life after the EU. And amid suggestions that promises were made on new tech, research and electric car production, the forensic Shadow Brexit Secretary Keir Starmer isnt going to let it lie.

Clark's department refused to comment on a report in the Times that he had written to Nissan's board promising to ensure that UK operations would "remain competitive" after Britain left the EU. According to the Times (which has an excellent write-through in the paper), Clark's letter was regarded by Nissan as a promise that it will not have to bear the cost of punitive tariffs on car exports if Britain leaves the EU customs area without a free trade agreement in place.

The Telegraph reports the boss of JCB saying higher tariffs may be a price worth paying for the end of all that Brussels red tape. Just how many firms agree with that, and how many can get reassurances similar to Nissans, remains to be seen. I suspect some Brexiteers will argue that factor-by-factory deals, not just sector-by-sector deals, are actually not a nightmare. It may even appeal to Theresa Mays inner micromanager. But it may involve hiring a lot more civil servants in BEIS.

As for his Bankers Brexit, John McDonnell may seize on the news this morning that Royal Bank of Scotland has reported a 469m loss. The bank received a 45.5bn bailout during the financial crisis and is still largely owned by you and me.

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2) BLAIR V OASIS

Tony Blair is certainly one person who thinks that Brexit Britain wont be an oasis of milk and honey, no matter how many bespoke sweeteners are offered to some firms. Hes given an interview to the Today programme (to be aired in full at 8.10) in which he suggests that the EU referendum vote can be reversed, and should be reversed.

This sounds like a shift from his previous equivocation. But it is of course in line with his long-held pro-EU beliefs. Yet the fact remains that for many Leavers, Blairs 2004 decision not to place restrictions on Eastern European migrants is the single biggest factor that fuelled the Brexit vote in Labours northern heartlands. Bigger than years of newspaper stories banging on about Brussels bananas. Bigger than Up Yours Delors.

Dont forget Blairs Esquire interview earlier this month when he hinted at a comeback of some kind. There's a limit to what I want to say about my own position at this moment. All I can say is that this is where politics is at. Do I feel strongly about it? Yes, I do. Am I very motivated by that? Yes. Where do I go from here? What exactly do I do? That's an open question. Lets see how open.

3) TONGE OUT

I said on Wednesday that the Lib Dems had scored their first own goal in the Brexit/Heathrow by-election in Richmond Park, with a photo of candidate Sarah Olney alongside former MP Jenny Tonge. What was surprising about that pic - tweeted by the partys press office - was that Tonge was no longer taking the Lib Dem whip because of past alleged anti-Semitic remarks.

Last night she finally quit after being suspended over hosting a Lords meeting where Jews were reportedly blamed for the Holocaust. Tim Farron, who once criticised Nick Clegg for failing to take swift enough or tought action against Lord Rennard, has tried to make up ground. But why didnt they suspend Tonge earlier? Sufficient grounds would have been her recent letter blaming Israel for the rise in anti-semitic attacks in Britain. She had written: It is surely the case these incidents are reflecting the disgust amongst the general public of the way the government of Israel treats Palestinians. Which itself was pretty disgusting. Jihadi Jenny, indeed.

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Meanwhile, Zac Goldsmith has the mixed blessing of being endorsed by UKIP, who arent putting up a candidate. The bump he gets from the tiny Kipper vote (4% in 2015) could well be outweighed by the Remainer backlash.

BECAUSE YOUVE READ THIS FAR

Watch John McDonnell explain how Britain is hurtling towards a chaotic breakfast . Eggs, muesli, porridge, croissants all on one plate?

4) ACADEMY REWARDS

Ah, the Thursday night drop. Yes, near the end of a long week, the Government decided to slip out the news that it was not going ahead with forcing all schools to become academies. In a Written Ministerial Statement, Justine Greening announced the scrapping of the Education For All Bill. Former Education Secretary Lucy Powell says: It is about time that Ministers put the final nail in the coffin of these proposals. And it looks like legislation on new grammars wont now be introduced until the next Parliamentary session in May. The BBC says ministers are holding meetings with rebel MPs to try to win them over before the end of the consultation.

Meanwhile, we have more evidence of the abuse MPs, particularly women MPs, continue to get for doing their job. Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner has shown HuffPost several emails she has received, attacking her northern accent and suggesting shes stupid. You sound as thick as mince, says one. Nice.

5) PAYS YEMENI, TAKES YOUR CHOICE

Emily Thornberry has hit back at her own MPs after more than 100 of them failed to back the Opposition day motion on Yemen. The motion called for the UK to withdraw support from the Saudi-led military coalition but many Labour MPs claimed British involvement was crucial to getting Riyadh to comply with international law. In a Facebook post, Thornberry said she was disgusted that all but one brave Tory MP voted against the motion and disappointed that some of my Labour colleagues abstained. Judging from the backlash on social media against those Labour MPs, with calls for their deselection by some pro-Corbyn members, this is an issue that may not go away (as we say in our podcast, see link below).

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COMMONS PEOPLE

Listen to our latest Commons People podcast HERE. Lots on Heathrow, Brexit, Corbyn and the PLP, plus Yemen.

If youre reading this on the web, sign-up HERE to get the WaughZone delivered to your inbox.
Photo credit: Assaad W Razzouk

Conventional wisdom has been turned on its head: The UN is leading the fight against climate change while the private sector is hiding, ducking and pretending. Worse, it does not appear that the capital markets, still dancing to the tune of oil prices and oil men, are paying any attention at all.

Earlier this week, CDP, an NGO, released a report analysing progress by businesses on climate. It makes grim reading.

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From 1,839 large companies in the CDP sample, we learn that only 15 companies have science-based emission reduction targets that can withstand simple scrutiny.

What about businesses committed to replacing our fossil fuel-based infrastructure with a clean energy one? Just 11 per cent of the CDP sample companies have targets for renewable energy consumption, while more than two-thirds of electric power companies have no renewable energy generation targets whatsoever.

Businesses are fast asleep, despite alarm bells going off all around them. Amazingly, the much-maligned United Nations is not. Drowning in the US presidential election cacophony, you would be excused not to have noticed that we have had an unprecedented run of major positive developments in the planetary fight against climate change, all in the space of two weeks; and all led by UN bodies.

The UN to the Rescue

First, we learned that the Paris climate agreement received enough worldwide backing to enter into force on 4 November, a record-speed for the ratification of any treaty.

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A few days later, nearly 200 countries agreed another deal to reduce then eliminate hydrofluorocarbons (or HFCs), a potent greenhouse gas used as coolants in refrigerators and air-conditioners. HFC gases are thousands of times more destructive to the climate than carbon dioxide, and their growing use is a strong contributor to global warming.

At about the same time, yet another landmark UN accord was struck by 191 countries to begin to curb emissions from passenger and cargo flights. The airline and shipping industries have been stand-out laggards (though not the only ones) in the fight against global warming, so this is the UN trying to get them to move.

That is a lot of positive, momentous action in a short period of time.

But the UN isn't done yet. In less than two weeks, the next global climate conference, Cop22, kicks off in Marrakech, Morocco. Delegates will work hard to build on the momentum created by the Paris climate accord, the HFCs breakthrough and the aviation industry deal; and to turn momentum into actionable, measurable and verifiable progress.

UN Climate Action Trickles Down Fast

Big business and the financial markets should stand and take notice, otherwise their continued climate slumber will lead to the destruction of massive shareholder value (and therefore the pensions of tens of millions) as well as many lives.

Fund managers, risk managers and corporates are missing the forest for the trees: UN climate action will trickle down, and fast. In power generation for example, we've pretty much said good bye to coal, with China alone cancelling more coal capacity this week than the entire UK power generation fleet. Yet in the fantasy world of the financial markets, the prices of both thermal and coking coal are in the midst of an insane price rally.

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Similarly, oil prices are rising in the midst of a take-off of the electric car revolution, and with clear signs that either China, India, Norway, Germany or the Netherlands are likely to be the first country to ban the sale of oil-fuelled cars. (More than 50 per cent of demand for oil is from the transportation sector). Investors need to wake up to this new, clean reality.

How Not to go the Kodak Way

Businesses that don't want to go the Kodak way should take a close look at how the chemical industry joined the fight against climate change. Some of the most profitable chemicals used in air conditioning and refrigeration have been HFCs. But when governments started the work to ban HFCs, the industry couldn't fight back, it was too late. Instead, chemical companies embraced the intensely competitive task of innovating to find the best new chemicals to use. It wasn't an effort driven by idealism, but rather by forward-looking survival needs.

The fossil fuel extraction, power and transportation industries, as well as the global financial industry (pension funds, fund managers and banks) aren't following the lead of the chemical industry. Companies and funds are neither credibly including climate risks in their project assessments, nor incorporating carbon risks in their business decisions. If they were, the financial markets wouldn't so irresponsibly price coal and oil forward. They know fossil fuels won't be there much longer, but somehow choose to ignore incredibly material facts.
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It's 11pm in Calais and my colleagues have just come home after spending hours trying to negotiate a place to sleep in a warehouse for three young 13 to 14-year old Eritrean boys. Despite their pleading, despite most of the jungle being burnt to the ground, they failed in their mission tonight. These boys were not given a safe place to sleep. They had to be taken back to the Jungle, which is now more dangerous than it has ever been.

This week was always going to be bitter sweet.

The looming demolition of Calais's Jungle camp created the urgency that led to hundreds of children finally making it to safety in the UK - and the happy scenes of families reunited that we've seen on our TV screens and in our papers.

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#CalaisJungle is on fire. Extremely concerned for children both inside containers in camp and those who have not be registered pic.twitter.com/zm07Ie6Fv6  Dorothy Sang (@DorothySang) 26 October 2016

But those of us working on the ground knew straight away that it was also going to put vulnerable children at risk. Save the Children, along with the Refugee Youth Service, has been working round the clock to prepare the children. Unfortunately, like so many things in the Jungle, it hasn't gone to plan.

The last eviction saw complete chaos, with tear gas, rubber bullets and terrified children. So we were prepared for the worst. With more than 8,000 people in the camp, including 1,000 children who are on their own, we knew it would be a huge undertaking to get everyone registered and out of the camp in just 12 hours. But we really thought lessons would have been learnt.

Starting to get dark and we are still waiting to get children into safe accommodation #CalaisJungle@SaveUKNewspic.twitter.com/i5QzBgJN1O  Dorothy Sang (@DorothySang) 27 October 2016

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Sadly, we were wrong. Instead, children have been pulled from pillar to post with a lack of clear information. For days now, organisations working here in Calais have been calling for a stop to the demolition while children are not in safe accommodation, yet for days we have seen those calls ignored.

And now I see after fires have ravaged the camp, which have forced children to flee, that the French authorities are hailing this moment as a success. "Mission Accomplished," they say. "The Jungle camp is finally cleared!" Well, let me tell what success looks like.

Yesterday I saw a 17-year-old boy with a broken leg forced to hobble up the road to register, then turned away without so much as a second glance as registration was closed. Turned away and given no alternative for a place to sleep.

Last night was possibly one of the most dangerous nights for children in the Jungle, yet hundreds still remained.

I sat with a terrified boy from Afghanistan. Everyone he knew in the camp had gone, and without a space in the container camp for children, he was being asked to sleep alone in the Jungle - a prospect which totally overwhelmed him as he sat with his head in his hands.

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Let me tell you about another Afghan boy, aged 15, who started queuing at 4am, then fainted. Or the Eritrean boy who attempted to register on four occasions, and whose shelter was broken into and all of his stuff stolen while he queued.

This doesn't cover the many children we know had to be treated for crush injuries. Or the children for whom we couldn't find a safe place to sleep last night and who were taken in by one of the community mosques in the Jungle - only to watch that go up in flames.

And we're still counting the children who have run far away from the camp. Children who were so close to finding some shelter, but will have ultimately given up hope of this process ever providing them with safety, and will now continue to face grave risks alone in Europe. We may never know how many children have been lost.

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That is what "success" looks like today in the Jungle camp.
October 10th was World Mental Health Day and yet I sometimes wonder how much progress we are making when it comes to truly understanding the concerns and needs of our ever-growing mental illness epidemic here in the U.K.

What concerns me most about this thought is that, in 2016, it shouldn't be possible for there to be such stigma surrounding mental health. Why? According to Mind, 1 in 4 people in the U.K will experience a mental health problem each year. Mental health illness isn't just 'something that happens to somebody else'; the statistic says 'each year' not 'last year. It doesn't discriminate, there is no specific age or 'type'. 10% of mothers and 6% of fathers in the U.K have mental health problems at any given time. It doesn't know about class systems or what school you went to, or that you might be sick or elderly. In fact, depression affects around 22% of men and 28% of women aged 65 years and over. Around 450 million people around the world currently experience a mental health issue of some kind.

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This leads into my main concern because, at the same time, it is estimated that 85% of older people with depression receive no help at all from the NHS. It is also the UK's 'hidden disgrace': as evidence collected by the Equality and Human Rights Commission has exposed that mental health problems are leading to a pay gap as high as 42% as people with Mental Health issues struggle to find jobs in which they are given responsibility and a decent wage. It has got to a point where I have spoken to individuals who are inclined to leave their mental health condition off of their job application because the stigma is so bad they feel they will not be given the job. On top of all of this, the media continue to play a key role in how mental illness is portrayed to the public. Newspapers link mental illness with violence (more than they do with success stories) and they portray people with mental health problems as dangerous or evil.

Who can forget The Sun newspaper's infamous 'BONKERS BRUNO LOCKED UP' headline after Frank Bruno was admitted to hospital? Yesterday I read a tragic news story and my heart went out completely.

The headline should have read widow of Dr Jeroen Ensink, 41, a lecturer who was killed by student, Femi Nandap, on December 29 last year, just days after she gave birth to their baby daughter, calls for an inquiry into "mental health homicides". Instead, it read: 'The widow of a renowned scientist, stabbed to death by a cannabis-addicted psychotic, has slammed Britain's health and legal system for allowing her husband's killer to wander the streets. The 23-year-old barefoot killer, smiled as he repeatedly knifed his victim, who had been on his way to post cards to relatives telling them the good news about the birth.'

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This concerns me deeply. Words are powerful and the wording of articles about tragedies like these is that they stigmatise and discriminate against those with mental health illnesses. Of course we do have an issue here, a very serious one. The NHS and the police service need to do much more to safeguard some of the most severe cases of mental health patients from themselves and the public. I completely agree with the sentence handed to Mr Nandap. Still when it comes to the big taboo surrounding mental health, the situation of is exacerbated by the media. Misrepresentation like this is what isolates people. It's what makes people scared to admit when they have a problem. It's what can lead people to suicide. Rapper Kid Cudi recently spoke out to say his mental health condition makes him feel isolated, ashamed and embarrassed. Of course, his social media followers were supportive of him but for as long as the system pigeonholes people and the media pushes stereotypes, too many of our sons, daughters, partners, parents, grandparents and friends will suffer in silence.

When The Express ran a piece with the headline 'GET THE VIOLENT CRAZIES OFF OUR STREETS' or when mother-of-two Britney Spears public nervous breakdown (in which she visited a barbers and shaved her hair off) was written as 'SHEAR MADNESS' 'GOODBYE MOMMY' and 'SHOCKING PICS OF BRITNEY ON THE EDGE OF BREAKDOWN', we know the media isn't helping. Especially when they rarely print facts like 'according to the authors of a report by the University of Manchester report people who kill strangers are more often young men who are intoxicated, rather than people with mental illness'.

So, this is my bugbear. I've only scratched the surface of this issue and yet despite all of this stigmatisation, there is only ONE day of global awareness! We need to have an open dialogue surrounding mental health issues. Our media needs to be less sensationalist in how they portray mental illness. We definitely need more than one day of awareness a year to do this. As it stands, 50% of mental health problems are established by age 14 and 75% by age 24. 10% of children and young people (aged 5-16 years) have a clinically diagnosable mental problem. If they are our future, then we need to change our attitudes. Especially as 70% of children and adolescents who experience mental health problems have not had appropriate interventions at a sufficiently early age.

If we don't 'get real' about mental health issues in the U.K, then who will teach them how to?
What a ghastly spectacle the American presidential election has become: Tawdry, tendentious and abusive. And how we love it.

This really has been the antidote to politics as some dried out, dull search for middle ground by equally matched professional power pursuers. Finally we're all getting to indulge in the sort of emotions normally triggered by something eye-popping over the fence at Halloween. It is hard to remember not very long ago when politics was all about a careful triangulation towards the centre ground if you wanted to win power. Not now. Heir to Blair? More like heir to Blair Witch.

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Donald Trump may not have elevated any debate or convinced anyone about his respect for women, but he has certainly engaged people with political process. If Hillary Clinton wasn't up against The Donald her campaign would have been wise to invent him.

Not that Mr Trump's bombastic behaviour, name calling, divisive positions and the accusations surrounding him are anything to shrug off. But they do make for a vivid challenger, someone to vote firmly for or against. I doubt anyone is sitting on the fence.

My personal bet is that more people will vote in this presidential election that any in recent history, which will reflect a level of engagement that democratic politics everywhere needs.

American voters have certainly been given a lot of extra-curricular activity to pore over. 'Trump and sex' pumped into Google produces more results (131 million) than 'Trump and economics'. But that still produces 113 million results, so people are clearly paying attention to the other stuff, too.

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Of course, it's all really none of my business, except as a spectator with a general interest on the next incumbent leader-of-the-free-world. But the Brexit vote here, regularly cited by The Donald, is where the real spice to our fascination lies. We know from recent experience that polls and gut instinct can be plain wrong if unexpected forces are unleashed. What people say to polling organisation and do in the polling booth is now consistently different, if the experience from our last general election and the Brexit poll is any guide.

Politicians in the rest of the world may have noticed this, and perhaps it explains the sharp tack away from the centre we have seen from Mr Trump. There is every sign that the Republican presidential campaign has given up trying to build any kind of consensus or rainbow coalition of interests to represent, having barely bothered to try in the first place. Instead, it's heading for alienated and angry white men. Whether there are enough to swing it for Trump is questionable. Most polls have Mrs Clinton, who has run a calm policy-rich campaign, comfortably ahead. We shall see.

Historically, politics was often both highly personal and highly combative, but eventually settled by the Twentieth Century into a sort of cutting civility (think Michael Gove). Trump is really only taking Americans back to a more showman-like past: Gasps and outrage being the equivalent to bread and circuses as attention-grabbers in a social media era with short attention spans.
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Imagine you are in the home of a refugee, discussing the horrors they have lived through, when they serve you the only food they have as a sign of honour.

What would you do?

It is a conundrum faced regularly by those of us who work in humanitarian aid in Turkey. It is a fine art to balance our desire to help those facing such hardships with the need to also respect the custom of hospitality of the Syrian refugees that we work with and support.

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Syrian traditions of honouring a guest is a huge part of their identity, and their dignity is an integral part of their ability to stand strong in the face of experiences of immense loss and suffering. These customs are also an unbreakable link to their past, forever linking them to their homeland and ancestors. But by accepting this generosity means less for them and for their families, for those whose need will inevitably outweigh ours.

This is a balance I wrestled with when I recently visited one of our healthcare centres funded by humanitarian aid from the European Union in the southern Turkish city of Nizip. There I was welcomed by some Syrian members of the International Medical Corps team, including Khadija, a soft spoken woman in her mid-thirties who had bought a gift of Syrian Baklava especially for the meeting. This is an important tradition shared by Syrians and Turks alike - to 'eat sweet and talk sweet words'.

Although the sweets were placed in front of me, Khadija would get up and hand me one each time she saw I had finished the last. This was her way of honouring me as a guest and to refuse would be a significant sign of disrespect. The high honour that they showed me was not only surprising but humbling at the same time.

The delicacy around tradition became clear again later as we visited the home of a Syrian family that I was to work with for a media story.

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In traditional circumstances, as a guest I would never go empty handed: like Khadija I would be expected to have bought sweets as a gift. However, I was advised not to take any presents as it could create a sense of false hope or worse - my gesture could be misinterpreted as favouritism. Not only was I uncomfortable going against my own Turkish traditions - I was also uncomfortable to be unable to honour their cultural traditions, but I was sure that the advice of my colleagues should be followed.

After listening to the family's experiences of fleeing their homeland, our conversation turned to the subject of Syrian culture and food. Realising how much I liked their regional cuisine, they insisted that we stay for lunch - proud that they could make me more comfortable in their new home. We accepted their generosity while fully aware of the family's financial struggles, and I suspected with a heavy heart that we would be eating food that had been intended for them.

In their culture the food is prepared solely for the guests and the members of the family don't participate in the feast. To refuse would be offensive - but I tried to eat little to prevent their scarce provisions being stretched too far. However, whenever I paused, one of the family would take the spoon from me, refill it with the best part of the pilau dish and gently feed me as is customary.

Their kindness, their warmth and generosity was humbling especially after hearing of the extreme difficulties that this family had suffered. It left me speechless. As we departed, the eldest son assured us that 'this is your home now, you are welcome anytime'.

As we made our way back to our headquarters I felt grateful that war had not been able to erase this aspect of their culture - an aspect that is so human and so beautiful. I only wish that the professional boundaries under which we operate could have been different, that I could have repaid them with a gift to equally honour them. Should I ever find myself in their difficult situation, I can only hope that I would be as kind and generous.

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Articulate

The Calais refugee camp is now nothing but flattened earth, charred here and there by fire, and with only a few shipping containers left standing. In these containers, children are processed and - where they are lucky, and if 'luck' could ever be the right word - will have onwards passage organised for themselves. That the children are being processed and that this processing is being done in a shipping container, could not be a crueller or clearer indication that human lives are being treated as if only a commodity, and a commodity that nobody really wants. Within the scattered debris and broken shelters of Calais there were, noticed only by some to whom they had very recently been dear, also the colourful remains of paint brushes and acrylic paint.

In among the chaos and the dismal conditions of Calais, there were glimmers of a better version of Europe than these Syrians, Afghans, Eritreans and other nationalities were treated to behind the razor wire fencing. One such instance came as a partnership between Hummingbird Project and Articulate, the latter an arts charity of which I am a trustee.

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Articulate have, for over 10 years, been developing and delivering expertise that use the arts and creative practice to help young people deal with traumatic situations. The charity began its work with street-involved youths in Ecuador and Brazil, and have been partnering with The Hummingbird Project in the Calais refugee camp for the last year.

In the camp, our work showed us the same human, tender results we have seen it produce elsewhere. It wasn't just that an opportunity for creativity could offer a little bit of joy in the all too hard reality of many refugee lives - though that was partly true; it was more the relief of a safe space where an adult could present a child (and these, it can't be repeated enough, are only children) with nothing more problematic than materials for some drawing and painting. It was the opportunity those children had to process a little of what they'd seen by making masks, creating pictures or making other artistic responses to trauma.

Art can too easily be dismissed as only 'play', but in a year when the idea of taking back control has been badly abused, it genuinely did offer some of the young people of Calais, for a while, the opportunity to tell a story on their own terms, and with agency for that which they created. There were positive, functional consequences that followed from this - having built a relationship based on trust, Articulate and Hummingbird were able to help refugees with communication and administration when dealing with other agencies in the camp. Even this though, seemed somehow less significant next to the human value gained by stories reproduced through art. As one volunteer put it simply, "some children stay all day." It was, they added, "a place where children can be children again." People made powerless by this world gained a power to create something. Emotions and experiences internalised deep inside could be externalised onto a blank piece of paper that, for once, did not offer the confrontation of a dictator's goons or a European private security border guard.

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These projects are now over and we are left again to put our faith in the politicians, hoping that they can see the human stories in those who are now disappeared from Calais but not disappeared altogether. We can hope that lawyers are able to rescue some of these lives from what shreds of legislation they have been afforded. In the artwork we saw created in the camp, those stories were always so apparent, whereas in other media they are always so faithfully ignored.
As you will have seen in the headlines this week, the military offensive on Mosul has begun and while discussions and questions may circulate about what this means for the future of ISIL, for us at Unicef, the focus has to be on children.

Pictures of families fleeing the conflict in Mosul have become commonplace over the last couple of weeks c.Unicef/Soulaiman

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Estimates put the number of civilians living in Mosul at 1.2-1.5 million and it is thought that almost half are children, who may require lifesaving assistance as the conflict intensifies over the coming days and weeks.

Already since May of this year, conflict to the south and east of Mosul has forced the displacement of more than 200,000 people who have fled south in what is being called the 'Mosul corridor', and this is one of the anticipated route for hundreds of thousands more people who will flee as the violence escalates.

Remember the scenes of thousands of people coming out of the liberated Fallujah? The numbers coming out of Mosul are likely to be many times more than that.

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Debaga Refugee Camp Spreads out in Northern Iraq c.Unicef/Anmar

Debaga, is one refugee camp along the Mosul Corridor, where already thousands of refugees have arrived. The camp has swelled from 5,000 to over 30,000 in less than six months and both government and aid agencies are already facing the daily struggle to provide shelter, clean water, food and other basic services to children and families. Sadly, this demand is only likely to increase.

Omar is one child already in Debaga who has felt the full force of the conflict in Iraq. For two years, Omar, 15, and his family lived under the harsh rule of armed groups in his village of Haji Ali. When the Iraqi army advanced to retake the nearby city of Qayyarah last August, his family were dubbed government sympathizers and expelled from their ancestral home.

"We walked about a kilometre to the banks of the Tigris and waited there until the battle was over. We cannot go back home because the village still comes under fire."

Despite now living in a refugee camp, Omar now spends his mornings in a Unicef supported child friendly space and reads books in the afternoon. He is learning to read and write English and has hopes of one day becoming a translator.

There are many more stories like Omar's to come, however, and as more and more people flee Mosul, they are only likely to get more harrowing.

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At Unicef, colleagues in Iraq have been preparing for this moment for the last couple of months and are ready to meet the exodus coming out of Mosul. We have enough water, showers, latrines and hygiene kits for over 150,000 people, with plans to increase this to 350,000 over the next few weeks and teams of psychosocial carers on standby so that the needs of children are met as much as possible.

One of the things we are particularly worried about is immunization. For the past two years none of the children who have been in Mosul have been immunized against polio or measles. An outbreak of either one of these deadly diseases could be catastrophic and this is why we have deployed teams to immunize refugee children fleeing the city.

Children take part in education activities in Debaga Camp c.Unicef/Mackenzie

Although we have done as much as possible to ensure that these services are ready to be delivered as quickly as possible, ultimately this is a political crisis, and groups on all sides of the conflict need to ensure that they respect civilians, especially children's, lives . One of our biggest fears is that children will be used as human shields and exposed to excessive force and violence as the conflict escalates.

This is not acceptable, and so alongside humanitarian interventions, at Unicef we continue to advocate on behalf of these children at the highest level to try and ensure their safety and wellbeing.

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It's not easy though and we need your help. Unicef's humanitarian appeal in Iraq already has funding appeal of 114 million but more money is desperately needed over the coming days, weeks and months.
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"Let me take you to east Aleppo ... in a deep basement, huddled with your children and elderly parents, the stench of urine and the vomit caused by unrelieved fear never leaving your nostrils, waiting for the bunker-busting bomb you know may kill you in this, the only sanctuary left to you, but like the one that took your neighbour and their house out last night; or scrabbling with your bare hands in the street above to reach under concrete rubble, lethal steel reinforcing bars jutting at you as you hysterically try to reach your young child screaming unseen in the dust and dirt below your feet, you choking to catch your breath in the toxic dust and the smell of gas ever-ready to ignite and explode over you."

These are not my words; they are the words of one of the United Nations' most senior officials Stephen O'Brien, the UN's under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and its top emergency relief coordinator. He is a former Conservative MP and was a minister in the Department for International Development from 2010 to 2012. Not a man, in other words, who is prone to hysterical and exaggerated outbursts. (You can read the full text of his speech here. It's worth it.)

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They are also the words of a man who is, as he told the UN security council on Wednesday, "incandescent with rage". And they were aimed, above all, at Russia whose UN envoy, Vitaly Churkin, reacted with disgraceful insouciance by suggesting that O'Brien should leave his comments "for the novel you're going to write some day".

If only it were fiction. And how obscene that a senior Russian diplomat should suggest that it is. Here is more from O'Brien's description of life in east Aleppo; and it is not fiction.

"Bombings take place in plain sight, night and day, day in and day out. Hospitals destroyed, doctors killed. Schools destroyed, children denied education. Water stations destroyed, families cowering in basements.

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"Peoples' lives destroyed and Syria itself destroyed. And it is under our collective watch. And it need not be like this - this is not inevitable; it is not an accident - it is the deliberate actions of one set of powerful human beings on another set of impotent, innocent human beings."

The Russians, whose indiscriminate bombing raids in support of Syrian government forces are responsible for the overwhelming majority of civilian casualties (far greater, for example, than those inflicted by the Islamic State group and their allies), have been dropping leaflets over civilian areas of east Aleppo. O'Brien quoted what they say: "This is your last hope ... Save yourselves. If you do not leave these areas urgently, you will be annihilated ... You know that everyone has given up on you. They left you alone to face your doom and nobody will give you any help."

Ponder those words in all their stark cruelty: "Everyone has given up on you. They left you alone to face your doom." Their cruelty lies in the fact that they are true. As O'Brien himself pointed out, it need not be like this - it is not inevitable, nor is it an accident. The suffering of the people of Aleppo is the result of a deliberate policy, deliberately carried out.

And it is not only the people in the east of the city, under siege by government forces, who are the victims. As befits a UN official, O'Brien also drew attention to attacks by rebel groups on the other side of town: over the past month, rebels fired "more than 184 mortars and other projectiles into western Aleppo, reportedly killing at least 100 people, including 17 women and 22 children, and injuring 533 persons".

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So how can this unconscionable tragedy be stopped? Amid all the glib talk of no-fly zones, few commentators are prepared to spell out what would be the consequence of shooting down Russian warplanes. Impose more sanctions on Russia? Does anyone really think that would stop them?

Too often, the world looks the other way when thousands of people are being slaughtered: Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge, the Rwanda genocide of 1994, the Srebrenica massacre of 1995. But to say something is difficult is not sufficient, and to turn away is immoral.

Stephen O'Brien deserves the highest praise for pointing the finger directly where it needs to be pointed - at the governments represented on the UN security council. He looked them in the eye and he gave it to them straight: action must be taken and the violence must be stopped.
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
I can't drive a car, let alone a boat and once I even managed to crash a vehicle which could only go 2MPH. So it's a bit of a risk that I'll be embarking on a boating trip around the Great Lake Alqueva in Portugal for the weekend. But it really is that easy apparently...

Photo credit: Amieira Marina

We pull up to Amieira Marina on late afternoon in October with the hot sun beating down on us. The 30C heat is most welcome after leaving a damp and chilly London a few hours ago. We'd flown from Gatwick to Lisbon then drove two hours to Amieira Marina on Lake Alqueva. We enjoy a beer overlooking the harbour and then we are taken into orientation where we learn a bit about Lake Alqueva and the boat which will be our home for the next three nights.

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Great Lake Alqueva

Lake Alqueva is Europe's biggest man-made lake - and anyone can learn to drive a boat on it in just one hour. You do not need any sailing experience, so that dream can become reality.

After a short orientation and briefing on the lake, we are shown to our houseboat. Within 10 minutes of boarding the boat we have learned how to stop, steer and dock our new home. It really is as easy as that and even I have managed to master it during our short time onboard. The boat is limited to 10MPH and sleeps up to two people, but there are boats which can sleep up to 10 people.

Photo credit: Karl Cowell

The Great Lake Alqueva is 250 square kilometres of tranquil water. Having flooded the valleys cut through the land by two major rivers there are inevitably shallow areas where the land was higher. Using a route map on a GPS in the cockpit eliminates any danger. There is also a sonar device which shows depth and obstacles in the water. The GPS and sonar are incredibly accurate so even the most nautically challenged can enjoy a trip around the lake in total safety.

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Where to visit

The next morning off we went to discover The Great Lake Alqueva, a hidden gem overlooked by neighbouring Lisbon and the Algarve.

Our boat was fully stocked with fresh meats, cheeses, plenty of fruit juice and most importantly, wine.

So made our way towards Estrela. The lake is surrounded by ancient villages, there are 9 villages in total around the Lake Alqueva, two of which are in Spain, so there is plenty to explore and discover.

As the boat can also be controlled from the top deck, we glide along sitting up top with the wind in our hair with a couple of beers and the hot sun beating down on us. As the lake is man-made the waters are really still, so its perfect for those who suffer from sea sickness as the journey is so smooth.

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Photo credit: Karl Cowell

The journey from each village varies, it took us over an hour to reach our first village, Estrela and it was my job to throw to ropes to the dock as I can't be trusted to reverse the boat. Here's a tip, things move on the boat. Don't do what I did and run out to do the ropes and find out that the sliding glass door has closed during the reverse...after you've run into it.

Estrela

Once we are docked, with the help of a very friendly local fisherman, and my head has stopped spinning we fire up the BBQ. We cook our mixed grill, which was one of the freshly prepared dishes waiting for us onboard on arrival. As we feast on our lunch all we can hear around us is the sound of a cow bell echoing. It's dead quiet and ever so peaceful and the views are mesmerising.

Well fed and watered we safely reversed out of Estrela, waving goodbye to our fisherman friend and navigated our way to Monsaraz where we would be spending the night.

Photo credit: Karl Cowell

Monsaraz

After around three hours of sailing we arrive in Monsaraz, a must-see village which has a population of just 70. The fortified town is built on a rocky spur and gives a 360 view of stunning scenery. The village itself is also undeniably beautiful, it has a preserved mediaeval town-museum, a fortified castle and every cobbled alley way brings you to more surprisingly beautiful views, fresh white buildings or some of the stunning local artwork of the region.

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Photo credit: Karl Cowell

Photo credit: Roxii Hoare-Smith

We spend the evening in tiny traditional Portuguese restaurant which is bustling with locals from the small village. There's one wall covered in vintage radios and jugs on our table constantly being filled with the restaurant's own homemade red wine.

Photo credit: Roxii Hoare-Smith

Our table shares large bowls of chickpeas in a warm broth which we pour over pork belly and sausages. Copious amounts of red wine wash down the delicious traditional Portuguese pork and chickpea stew. We can't help but go for seconds as well as satisfying our sweet tooth with Toucinho do Ceu. This Portuguese almond cake literally translates as 'Bacon from Heaven'.

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When we head back to our boat we sit on the top deck and stargaze. It's not every day we get to see a sky like this.

The sky in this region is considered by UNESCO a reservation for stargazing. As the night falls you can get a perfect view of the sky and sparkling stars. The sky is completely cloudless and the moon shimmers on the lake, creating a view I thought only existed on the big screen. A fox runs past on the grassland behind us with the fluffiest tail I have ever seen. This definitely confirms that I am no longer in London.

Luz

Luz is our last stop of the trip before we make our way back to Amieira Marina and depart our houseboat the next morning.

Luz is the only village to be submerged by the dam waters, and which had to be literally relocated. A museum was created here, its collection consists of objects from the inhabitants, and where all the memories of the old village are recorded. This is the perfect opportunity to grab the bikes off the boat and cycle to the village.

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Photo credit: Roxii Hoare-Smith

Food and Wine

Guests can pre-order cooked meals from the Marina's restaurant kitchen which specialises in local cuisine - and wines! There are also restaurants and supermarkets in some of the villages.

On our first night we dined at Amieira Marina's Panoramic Restaurant and Bar. The restaurant gives a, you guessed it, a panoramic view of the lake and serves regional food of Alentejo. Feast on dishes such as the incredibly tasty Sheep's cheese, Codfish fritters, Shrimp rissoles, Chickpeas with Salt-cod and Octopus.

The Alentejo region is the perfect place for wine lovers as it has the best wines that Portugal has to offer. Alentejo is renowned for its red wines, which are rich, fruity and easy drinking. The wines we had in the local restaurants were so full of flavour, very affordable and not a hangover was in sight.

But what else is there to do?

Besides drinking good wine, basking in the sun and enjoying complete tranquility?

Bikes and canoes can be loaded on to your boat. Water sport opportunities include kayaks, ski, wakeboard and 'banana' tow. There is also opportunities for hot air balloon rides, horse and carriage riding, moto quad and kart cross rentals.

Guests can also arrange tours and visits to the wineries and olive oil factories, with tastings included.

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Amieira Marina is ideal for families and couples. It is a wonderful opportunity to experience the peace and beauty of a largely ignored part of Portugal. Tourism has made little impact here and life continues much as it has for centuries.

Photo credit: Karl Cowell

How To Get There

Flights to Faro or Lisbon are all year around from most major airports. Transfer time is around two hours.

How Much Is It?

A visit to Amieira Marina start at just 1,300 for a 7 night family holiday for 4 people.

Boats are available for 2 - 10 people.
Responsible travel is one of the most rewarding ways to explore the world. And with today's threatened ecosystems, vulnerable virgin forests and endangered animal kingdoms, it's more important than ever to reduce our footprint, do our bit for the environment, and give back to communities along the way. Besides, some of the best experiences in life come from volunteering! It's great for CVs, personal development and for that intangible thing we all want.....a little bit of soul searching.

One of my first experiences in travel was volunteering teaching in Honduras and I absolutely loved it and it gave me a taste for more! Here are seven volunteer programs I'd love to try sometime...

1. Teach English in Thailand

The best thing about teaching English in Thailand is the positive impact that will come from your work - you're helping to set young kids up for life with a new set of skills! Having a good grasp of the English language gives young Thai people great job opportunities within Thailand's huge tourist industry - one of the biggest industries in the country and one which opens doors for many who otherwise wouldn't be able to find a well-paid job. These kind of programs involve working in schools and community centres, and you don't necessarily need a PGCE to apply.

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2. Volunteer with Primates in Africa

You can volunteer with primates across the whole of the continent so it really gives you a fantastic opportunity to travel. Sanctuaries such as Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage in Zambia, Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary in Kenya, Lilongwe Wildlife Centre in Malawi, or the Chimpanzee Eden or Vervet Monkey Foundation in South Africa all have a number of different programs for caring for chimpanzees, baboons, monkeys and many other species.

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3. Join Kenya's HIV Program

Assist local NGOs and hospitals with care and support in HIV wards. This medical elective is suitable for students or career breakers and will also include other responsibilities such as doing community outreach work and helping to education vulnerable communities. A great option for those in or looking to get into a medical career.

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4. Turtle Conservation in the Seychelles

Combining exotic beaches with conservation work. I'd love to try this to gain my PADI diving qualification whilst working with Hawksbill turtles, Green turtles and Lemon sharks. Plus, imagine waking up on the beach every morning and getting the free time to explore this paradise archipelago of more than 100 islands!

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5. Community Development in Fiji

Community development is always a very hands-on project, and one which would give me great pleasure. The rewards and results are calculable as it involves everything from assisting with construction projects, setting up community initiatives, fresh water management, waste management, and environmental monitoring. If you like seeing the fruits of your labour, then this is one for you.

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6. Teach Buddhist Monk Children in Laos

Famed for its French colonial architecture, hill tribes and beautiful Buddhist monasteries, Laos is one of the most underrated countries of South East Asia. What it lacks in coastline, it certainly makes up for in lush green valleys and river scenery. For a culturally immersive travel experience, I would love to try volunteering with novice monks in a Buddhist monastery, helping to teach them basic subjects whilst learning all about their world, their history, their culture, their food.

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7. Women's Empowerment in India

It's hard to imagine a world where women don't have equal rights as men but in many parts of India, gender inequality continues to be a problem. Women's empowerment programs place volunteers in community centres, colleges, schools and homes where you will provide counselling and take part in workshops teaching women numeracy, English, computer skills as well as other important skills to help them progress in life and be much more independent.

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John Snyder, CEO and Co-Founder, Grapeshot

As a CEO and serial entrepreneur, I spend a great deal of time thinking about whats next, distinguishing between game-changing moments and flash-in-the-pan trends, and getting out in front of major advancements that will disrupt the way we do business. In recent months, every VC investor I meet with inevitably brings up the topic of Artificial Intelligence. Its certainly the buzzword du jour, and with good reason. Computer Science graduates can now take their pick of major global employers, while marketers are now anxious they could face redundancy because of it.

Artificial Intelligence is a source of great wonder and optimism but as always with change and uncertainty come levels of fear and pessimism. Remember the resistance to real-time bidding and the fear it would replace the roles of media buyers?

So which is it for you: Riches or Redundancy? Maybe, neither.

Before you pick a side, let's consider IBM's response.

I'm struck that IBM dismisses Artificial Intelligence as a misnomer. And it frightens people. Forever associated with Orwellian Dystopian movies. The Matrix. 2001. WestWorld. They never end well. Instead IBM rebrands AI as Augmented Intelligence. They sensibly are positioning that its the best way forward to use machine learning to add to our intelligence, not replace it. Smart.

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Augmented Intelligence can become a valuable tool to refine marketing activity. We are on the cusp of a data explosion. AI tools can help filter through mass amounts of data, identifying key metrics and trends allowing marketers to consistently optimize campaigns. While it is of course impossible to definitively predict the future, through predictive technology we are closer now than ever before. Predictive technology allows marketers to get a first look at content that will be trending within 72 hours at a 75% success rate.

Something the machines find difficult to assess is the quality of data. They organize the data into something more useful, shareable, actionable. However, what if there is an anomaly skewing the data? The old adage poor quality in, poor quality out is as relevant as it ever was. It's beholden on us all to assess the validity of the data before using it to make decisions. How was the data collected? What is the sample representative of? How fresh is the data? All the honed techniques of the quantitative research industry are more important today than prior to the machine learning revolution.

Another area suited for the humans: interpreting the results. Look not just for the correlations - that AI can do just fine - but the causations. When we have the insight, check that it makes sense. Evaluate the risks in the decision. We all know GPS horror stories. It doesn't matter whether the machine was loaded with duff data or incomplete instructions, if your car is heading off the jetty into the river then you intervene! IBM CEO David Kenny has pointed out that Watson in early days started with knowledge extraction: reading documents, finding common phrases, associating those together. Then it has to get corrected. The human element was imperative at the start: yes, thats right or no, thats wrong. Then the system learns over time and gets better as you continue correcting it.

At the recent ANA conference in Florida, Mark Pritchard, Chief Brand Officer at P&G reminded everyone the reason why we all got into this in the first place is as important as ever. "Doing good creative work also requires time, he said. "And we have a problem, because we're spending too much of our time on measurement of advertising vs. the quality. We're fiddling with measurement debates while consumers are blocking our ads. Measurement is not going to make crappy advertising better." While this was part of a broader statement about the roles of agencies, there is application in this discussion. The promise of AI is that it frees you from the research/analysis time suck, giving that time back to you to luxuriate in creative thinking, insight and problem solving.

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Rwandan President Paul Kagame

Rwanda, a name indelibly associated with the genocide of as many as 1 million people, is today a beacon of hope on the African continent -- in large part due to the leadership of President Paul Kagame. After his election as President in 2000, he vowed to heal the country, promote good governance, advance human development, and pursue an economic vision that would make Rwanda a middle income country by 2020. He initiated the drafting of a constitution to enshrine pluralistic governance and democracy. He grew the service sector, from banking and finance to trade, medical services, and tourism.

Acting on the conviction that women's empowerment is essential to national development, Kagame instituted a quota system in parliament to guarantee them a minimum number of seats. Today, via transparent elections, women have far exceeded the quota by simple winning at the polls. They now hold 64 percent of the country's parliamentary seats, the highest proportion of any parliament in the world.

Perhaps of greatest significance to a nation bloodied by its recent past, Kagame has achieved a model of post-conflict justice and reconciliation that is on par with that of post-Apartheid South Africa. After the genocide. he revived the country's traditional "Gacaca" community courts and deputized them to try over a million = suspects. The courts were mandated to grant lenient sentences, to be commensurate with the defendants' degree of remorse and sharing of truth and therefore closure to the victims' families. Meanwhile, Kagame steered the "National Unity and Reconciliation Commission" to offer peace education, inculcate liberal egalitarian values, provide trauma counseling, and, above all, promote just, transparent, democratic institutions capable of helping to defeat the conditions that lead to civil conflict.

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In Kagame's view, national reconciliation ultimately rests with the population itself. As he told an audience at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania recently, all the peace-building projects his government has built carried an underlying message to Rwandan citizens: "You are part of this. Ensuring your security isn't going to be achieved by somebody doing it for you. You need to participate and ensure that you give security to others and you can expect that others will give security to you." Praised for his role in supporting the effort, he said it would be follow for him or other Rwandans to rest on their laurels: We have built a very firm foundation, but then you have to build on top of that. We are now in the phase of building on the foundation. The foundation is there: people understand the reason to get along and to give and take. They understand that not everything will be rosy and not all people will be satisfied, but there will be a balance that allows us to move forward."

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President Kagame in conversation with former British prime minister Tony Blair at the World Economic Forum on Africa, May 2016.Over time, Rwanda has become one of the fastest growing economies in the world, achieving an average of more than 8 percent growth over the 16 years Kagame has held the reigns. The wealth, moreover, is far more evenly distributed than the many kleptocracies on the content where impressive GDPs mask massive graft and a hoarding of wealth to the privileged few: In health and education, Rwandans are benefiting from the country's new resources and capacities. Poverty, still alarmingly present, has nonetheless been significantly reduced.

Small wonder, as the President's second term draws to a close this year, that the population has called for the immensely popular Kagame to run for a third. A constitutional amendment making it legal has sailed through parliament and won majority popular support in a national referendum. Kagame has signaled that he will run, win, and accept the popular mandate.

Yet he is is facing international pressure to refrain from running for a third term of office. Earlier this year, upon receiving word of Kagame's likely third bid for the Presidency, the U.S. State Department said it was "deeply disappointed," and warned that it would likely "weaken democratic institutions." America's UN Ambassador, Samantha Power, stated that she "expect[s] President Kagame to step down at the end of his term in 2017." The European Union, for its part, was no less emphatic: EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini declared that the move "weakens the credibility of the constitutional reform process, as it undermines the principle of democratic change of government."

But defenders of Kagame see a double standard underlying the international campaign against his third term. For example, Germany, from which much of the pressure comes, is itself currently led by a Chancellor serving her third term in office. In the U.S., Senators and Congresspeople serve without term limits, and the American Presidential term limit is still a relatively recent development: Over four consecutive terms, Franklin Delano Roosevelt ably led the country through the Great Depression and Second World War. There is a feeling of Rwanda that Kagame is the nation's "Roosevelt," and his leadership is sorely needed at a critical moment for the country. Yet outsiders would deny the population their preferred candidate.

At the same time, Kagame is not without his international supporters. Earlier this year at the World Economic Forum in the Rwandan capital Kigali, American businessman and philanthropist Howard Buffett wholeheartedly endorsed a Kagame third term. Buffett, himself vested in Rwanda, said, "If I didn't think president Kagame was going to be here for another seven years," he said, "we wouldn't even consider doing some of the things we're trying to do." Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, himself a three-term head of state, lent his voice in support of a Kagame third term as well.

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Among Kagame's international boosters, a pattern emerges: They are supporters of the traditional "Pax Americana" who recognizes that he has been promoting liberal universalist principles and good governance within his country. They are also know that he has been a friends to American and British entrepreneurs and companies as they strove to make their way into African markets. Rwanda is one of Israel's closest friends on the African continent to boot. And last Tuesday evening, Moroccan King Mohammed VI came to the Rwandan capital Kigali for a series of meetings with Kagame and senior officials. The two leaders signed more than two dozen bilateral agreements to deepen trade, investment, and cooperation for governmental reforms and human and economic development. From the standpoint of the Moroccan monarch, boosting relations with Rwanda falls into a broader vision of Morocco as a guarantor of peace and development across the continent and a bridge between the continent and Morocco's staunch American and European allies. The king went to great lengths to voice his appreciation for Kagame's leadership.
Dear Millennials and Independent Voters,

Leave the angst at home. Go vote and vote for Hillary Clinton and a Democratic Congress, and the next day join the fight for what we believe in. There really is no other choice. Not the Green Party or Libertarian.

I was on the electoral battle line as an environmental leader during the 2000 election in Florida, where Democratic candidate Al Gore made historic blunders. What happened then should make it clear why the only vote this election cycle is for Hillary Clinton and for a Democratic Congress.

During the 2000 presidential campaign, millennials and independents were angered by Gore and his campaign advisors who guided the candidate in the final months, avoiding issues like the environment.

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The Gore campaign reckoned the line delineating their candidate from George Bush was so bright, so clear and self-evident that there was no need to emphasize his core positions. When pressed on local controversies like the redevelopment of the Homestead Air Force Base, they snarled, "Get a life!"

Perhaps the Gore team worried the environment would be used to gin up campaign money against him and jeopardize battleground states like Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida. Perhaps they were sensitive to the argument against environmental protection as a job killer or something other people could afford. Whatever the case, Gore was silent.

For millennials and independents in 2000, Ralph Nader filled the breach.

Reportedly, today's millennials and independents are not thrilled by Hillary Clinton, but if you are interested in reform, pay attention to history. The corporate backlash against what millennials and independents want is real and far better organized than you are.

There is no way to sugarcoat this point: whatever one thinks of George W. Bush, Jr., "incurious" or a good guy misled by advisors, those in his inner circle pushed the United States to terrible outcomes. American voters and taxpayers would take those outcomes back in a heartbeat if we could.

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Dick Cheney, Bush's vice-president, and Donald Rumsfeld, secretary of defense, lied to the American public and steered the US to a war in Iraq that cost trillions and treasure in American blood. Cheney diverted environmental policies to fossil fuel industry lobbyists, costing precious lost time in the battle against climate change.

Consider Trump's inner circle as a reliable indicator of what a Trump presidency would hold for America. Trump never served, not for a day and not for a term, in public office. Like Florida's governor, health care scammer Rick Scott who heads the shambolic Trump national campaign finance team, Trump would arrive at the executive office with a slate of advisors so empty and blank of talent, he would have to fill thousands of slots in the federal government by relying on the advice of the same re-treads and lobbyists who populated the earlier Bush administrations or, worse yet, from the ranks of GOP staffers on Capitol Hill.

The candidate whose sexual groping on live television sent his poll numbers into a dead zone is being advised by Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House who represented the Moral Majority while having an affair as his wife lay dying of cancer, Roger Ailes, Fox News architect and alleged groper who the Murdochs terminated from his gun-filled sanctum protected by surveillance cameras. Trump advisors include NJ governor Chris Christie who may yet face criminal charges for creating a commuter disaster on the George Washington Bridge to punish a political enemy. Rudy Giuliani, former mayor of NYC, blamed President Obama for 9/11 and is unhinged by his own illogical arguments in defense of Trump. Business leaders for Trump are mainly tied to fossil fuel industries and climate change deniers.

Trump's rise to the top of the Republican Party has already eroded the credibility of the United States. Financial markets are reacting adversely to his campaign. In the astonishing event Donald J. Trump would be elected, putting conspiracy theorists and liars in the White House, financial markets would buckle.

There are some voters who lament both candidates. Some claim we can "survive" Donald Trump, that he won't get anything done so just let the bull-in-the-Oval Office.

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Millennials and independent voters: Donald Trump knows so little, demonstrates such vanity and volatile connection to reality, that you must leave your angst at home. This is no time for magical thinking.
My mom is an incredible cook. I spent my childhood getting nourished by her mouth-watering Chicken Marbella and sweet corn frittatas, nursed back to health with her chicken soup, and immersed in Jewish tradition with her noodle Kugel, Matzo Brei, and slow cooked beef brisket. Home is the smell of my mom's cooking.

Whenever people ask my mom for her recipes (which happens often), she graciously shares and never fails to mention her secret ingredient: love.

I couldn't help but think of this the other day when I had the chance to sit down with Giovanni Rana, the founder and owner of Giovanni Rana Italian Pasta, who said the same when I asked him about his pasta. He made it clear that despite all of his know-how in the world of pasta, the most important ingredient of all--for his pasta and his success--is love.

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The business of food these days is tangled up in politics, art, environmental issues, competition, status and celebrity, so it was particularly heartwarming to spend time with Giovanni, a mega successful CEO, who still sees his product as good old-fashioned love, as nourishment for families, as delightfully filling bellies of happy children and partners, friends and neighbors around the table.

And Giovanni, a perfect representation of the sweet, loving Italian grandfather I wish I had, truly embodies this love. His warmth was palpable and his smile infectious. And his story was all heart.

Giovanni grew up in a Cologna Veneta, in the province of Verona, Italy. At 13, he left school to work in his family bakery with his two brothers. Though he worked through the night (his shifts started at midnight), he fell in love with his pasta making duties--he loved the time he spent avere le mani in pasta, meaning with his hands in the dough and delivering the bread from the bakery to the villagers.

After a decade of working in the family business, Giovanni's mother sat Giovanni and his brothers down for an important talk.

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"The three of you can't live from the same bakery," Giovanni remembers her telling them sternly. "Each of you need to find your own way, your own journey, your own inspiration."

It was just after World War II and Giovanni had been noticing the incredible shifts in the lives of the villagers--particularly the women, who were getting jobs outside of the home for the first time. As he delivered the bread each day, he recognized that traditional Italian habits and customs--particularly that of "fresh pasta made in the home by grandmothers, mothers and aunties"-- was radically shifting. These women no longer had the time to make the dough, but fresh pasta was only available in some grocery stories, and only on Saturdays.

And so Giovanni thought: I will be their hands, I will be their rolling pin, I will make the pasta for them.

Giovanni told his mom of his idea and recalls that his mom thought he was crazy, that no one would buy fresh pasta from outside of their house.

But Giovanni knew they would. And he was committed to making the pasta, as he told me, "in a way that reflected the same love and care that the women would have put into it."

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What has turned into Giovanni Rana Italian Pasta, a huge global enterprise, was built one delivery at a time, on the back of a $9 secondhand motorbike--as Giovanni hand delivered hand-made tortellini door to door.

Giovanni's son, Gian Luca Rana, who has run the company for the last two decades, helped Giovanni carry the trays of pasta when he was small. This, Giovanni, told me, was absolute bliss--he loved building this business and sharing this "adventure" with his son.

Hearing about Giovanni's curiosity and passion inspired me. He used to sleep with a notepad on his nightstand because he would come up with ideas in the middle of the night and didn't want to lose them. He built a plant around his house so he could go into the kitchen whenever inspiration struck. He asked anyone and everyone for recipes, and never tired of asking questions and tasting new foods or combinations of ingredients.

He was never afraid to learn and try something new--whether it was making and selling fresh pasta commercially or investing in customized pasta making machines to replicate the loving movements of his own two hands in the dough. Now Giovanni and his family share his pasta with the world. Anyone who has met him is a witness to his commitment to be true to himself, follow his dream and share it with others.

Giovanni has enjoyed a lifetime of success, fulfillment and joy because he went for that dream of his - and we get to enjoy the labor of his love in every bite of his pasta.

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Portugal has announced the world's first participatory budget on a national scale. The project will let people submit ideas for what the government should spend its money on, and then vote on which ideas are adopted.

Although participatory budgeting has become increasingly popular around the world in the past few years, it has so far been confined to cities and regions, and no country that we know of has attempted it nationwide. To reach as many people as possible, Portugal is also examining another innovation: letting people cast their votes via ATM machines.

'It's about quality of life, it's about the quality of public space, it's about the quality of life for your children, it's about your life, OK?' Graca Fonseca, the minister responsible, told Apolitical. 'And you have a huge deficit of trust between people and the institutions of democracy. That's the point we're starting from and, if you look around, Portugal is not an exception in that among Western societies. We need to build that trust and, in my opinion, it's urgent. If you don't do anything, in ten, twenty years you'll have serious problems.'

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Although the official window for proposals begins in January, some have already been submitted to the project's website. One suggests equipping kindergartens with technology to teach children about robotics. Using the open-source platform Arduino, the plan is to let children play with the tech and so foster scientific understanding from the earliest age.

Proposals can be made in the areas of science, culture, agriculture and lifelong learning, and there will be more than forty events in the new year for people to present and discuss their ideas.

The organisers hope that it will go some way to restoring closer contact between government and its citizens. Previous projects have shown that people who don't vote in general elections often do cast their ballot on the specific proposals that participatory budgeting entails. Moreover, those who make the proposals often become passionate about them, campaigning for votes, flyering, making YouTube videos, going door-to-door and so fuelling a public discussion that involves ever more people in the process.

On the other side, it can bring public servants nearer to their fellow citizens by sharpening their understanding of what people want and what their priorities are. It can also raise the quality of public services by directing them more precisely to where they're needed as well as by tapping the collective intelligence and imagination of thousands of participants.

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The model began in Porto Alegre, Brazil, in 1989, and has become popular around the world in recent years, with more than 1,500 places estimated to have adopted some variation. The largest by funding is in Paris. In 2016, only its third year, the scheme disbursed 100million (some $110million) and it plans to have spent 500million ($550million) by 2020.

Although Portugal has allocated only 3million for this first year, the fact that it is operating nationwide has given rise to some special characteristics. For one thing, Portugal has ten million inhabitants, compared with some two and a quarter million Parisians, of whom 158,000 voted. For another, while one pot of money has been allocated to specific regional projects, the proposals drawing on the national pot must improve the links between different parts of the country by working across them.

'Portugal is well-established in terms of its territory, borders, population, and has a cohesive identity,' said Fonseca. 'But we need to be able to better connect the interior and the littoral, urban and rural areas, and we have a chance to do it because we are a medium-sized country that is very coherent.'

Nevertheless, it is difficult to reach people in the poorest and most rural areas, and one of the perennial problems with participatory budgeting is that people who are already marginalised often fail to assert their agenda. This is where the ATM idea comes in.

Although it will not be used this year, because the project is still very much in the trial phase, the use of ATMs is potentially revolutionary. As Fonseca puts it, 'In every remote part of the country, you might have nothing else, but you have an ATM.' Moreover, an ATM could display proposals and allow people to vote directly, not least because it already contains a secure way of verifying their identity. At the moment, for comparison, people can vote by text or online, sending in the number from their ID card, which is checked against a database.

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For now, Fonseca and her colleagues are concentrating on making this trial run smoothly. Before taking this job, she ran Lisbon's participatory budget for six years, developing it in discussion with colleagues from Paris, New York and Brazil, and she believes that it will take at least five years for the nationwide program to become known and recognised.

'I've been in this process for so many years now and I always have the same feeling,' she said. 'In these times of so much information, you're so surrounded by content and social networks that it's difficult to get to people and say: this is happening. We'll probably get a lot of people voting if we have a good lot of proposals. If people see proposals that they relate to, that they see will be good for their regions, for their cities, for their neighbourhoods, then people will campaign and they will vote.'
Americans expect presidential candidates to be transparent when it comes to disclosing tax returns from years' past. However, the expectation that candidates will be forthcoming with their personal financial information is a fairly recent phenomenon. Individual income tax returns - including those of politicians running for office - are part of Americans' right to privacy under federal law. U.S. presidents and presidential candidates, like all U.S. citizens, enjoy this protection of their privacy.

The custom of having presidential candidates disclose their tax returns began in 1968, when George Romney (the father of Mitt Romney) made his tax returns available to the public while preparing his campaign to run against Richard Nixon and Lyndon Johnson. Although presidential candidates are not required to publicize their personal financial history, disclosing this information allows Americans to vet the people who run for office - those who are to govern them.

Since George Romney's show of financial transparency in the 1968 presidential election and beginning on a consistent basis in the early 1970s, nearly all presidential candidates have chosen to release their returns publicly.

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Donald Trump's contradictory claims about his personal wealth and his reluctance to disclose information about his personal finances have been the source of much controversy in the 2016 election. Since Richard Nixon, every major party nominee to run for president has publicized their tax return history before election day.

Whether or not Donald Trump will break with tradition remains to be seen. In the meantime, as we wait for Donald Trump to show his cards, I've compiled a timeline which explores the history of presidential candidates disclosing their tax returns. Below, I've emphasized when candidates' desire for financial privacy was controversial.

Richard Nixon does not release his tax returns.

George Romney releases 12 years of tax returns.

Richard Nixon refuses to release his tax returns... again.

The IRS audits President Nixon. Submitting to the audit, Nixon utters his now-famous refrain: "People have got to know whether or not their president is a crook. Well, I am not a crook."

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The Internal Revenue Service orders President Nixon to pay more than $400,000 in back taxes for making improper deductions.

Gerald Ford becomes president after Richard Nixon resigns amid the Watergate scandal. Though President Ford does not release his tax returns in their entirety, he releases a summation-not an itemized breakdown-of his returns from 1966 - 1974.

The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 is passed. The Act requires all presidential and vice presidential candidates to file a Public Financial Disclosure Report with the Federal Election Commission.

The jointly-filed tax return of Vice-Presidential nominee Sarah Palin and her husband Todd lists $151,556 in household income, of which $107,987 was earned by Sarah. Todd Palin incurred $9,639 in losses from "Snow Machine Racing," according to the document.

The Tax History Project maintains an online archive of presidents' and presidential candidates' returns. Visit their website to look at the tax returns of every U.S. President since Franklin D. Roosevelt.

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Sign welcomes arrivals at Juan Santamaria International Airport.

Next time you get off a jet at Costa Rica's main airport at San Jose check out the name of the terminal. You'll spot the same name around the country on avenues, statues, parks, plazas and shopping centers. Even on casinos.

That name - Juan Santamaria - first made the headlines in April of 1856, when Americans were in a bitter election year. Few were aware, or even cared, what was going on thousands of miles south of the border in Nicaragua. Actually, something that would have a profound effect on America's future was taking place down there. Among the main players were an American billionaire and his vast steamship empire, a mercenary army hired by the billionaire, a Nicaraguan rebel army, the U.S. Congress, what later runed out to be the Panama Canal and a 24-year-old drummer boy in the Costa Rican army.



Small hotels dot the country's resort areas.

Enter the Billionaire

When gold was discovered in Northern California in the mid-1800s, railroad

magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt hit paydirt with a fleet of steamships carrying miners down the east coast to ports in Nicaragua, where they hopped on smaller steamers (also owned by Vanderbilt) to cross the country on river routes through the jungles. On the other side, Vanderbilt's bigger steamships waited to take them up the Pacific shores to San Francisco.

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About half-way up the Mexican coast, ships packed with 49ers typically stopped at Mazatlan to let the lads enjoy a little R&R at the city's restaurants, libraries and museums (and likely at places of other delights). Then they re-boarded the steamers for a trip up the west coast to San Francisco, and then riches in the gold fields.



Travelers can drive from coast to coast in Costa Rica in less than three hours.

At the time, France had struck out in an attempt to dig a 50-mile-long canal out of the muck and jungles of Panama, and the U.S. congress was mulling heavy lobbying to take over the failed French venture. Vanderbilt, on the other hand, was said to be putting pressure on Congress to build a canal across Nicaragua by linking up the country's lakes and rivers (over which he already operated a transport service). But Congress was reluctant to act, one reason being that rebels threatened to unseat the government of Nicaragua.

Enter the Mercenaries

Congress could hardly back the Nicaragua project in the middle of a rebellion, so Vanderbilt stepped in to restore stability to the country - by footing the bill for an army of American mercenaries to boot out the rebels.



Roadside markets sell fresh fruits and vegetables.

Led by a 30-year-old adventurer named William Walker (who'd once tried to invade Mexico), the mercs earned their keep and sent the rebels packing. But then Walker double-crossed Vanderbilt. He took over the government, declared himself president and renamed the country "Walkeragua" (with English as its official language). While he was at it, he also took over Vanderbilt's trans-Nicaragua water transit system.

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History is a little fuzzy on what happened next. In one report, Vanderbilt retaliated by getting neighboring Costa Rica to declare war on Walker; in another, Costa Rica strongman Juan Rafael Mora decided to invade Nicaragua on his own.

In any event, a key battle took place at Rivas just north of the border, and when the dust settled Walker had cleared out. And Costa Rica had a national hero.



Little girls wear flowers in their hair on the holiday.

Enter the Drummer Boy

At the high point of the battle, the Costa Ricans found themselves pinned down by Walker's men, who'd holed up in a strategically located building. But Juan Santamaria, a Costa Rican drummer boy, saved the day when he volunteered to toss a torch on the thatched rood of the building, even if it meant exposing himself to heavy fire.

The boy's plan worked. The enemy abandoned the building, letting the Costa Ricans move on to occupy the town. But the victory turned out to be bittersweet because it was learned later that the boy had died, gunned down by an enemy sniper.



Children get ready to celebrate Juan Santamaria Day.

Santamaria has been remembered ever since then as Costa Rica's national hero. And if you happen to be there on April 11, you'll find yourself enjoying an annual holiday in his honor

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Footnotes: Walker's end came in 1860, when after a failed foray in Honduras he ended up facing a firing squad. He was 36 years old at the time.
Dear Co-Chairs McGovern and Pitts,

I write to you from my jail cell in East Riffa, Bahrain, where my government has arbitrarily detained me since 13 June 2016 in relation to my work as president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR). Though this is not the first time I have been detained for my work as a human rights defender, I am currently facing charges related solely to exercising my right to free expression. This time, I could be sentenced to up to 15 years in prison for tweets. After I wrote an open letter describing my situation in the New York Times, the authorities leveled another charge of "spreading false news" against me, which can add another year in prison. But no matter how many charges my government bring against me for speaking in defense of human rights, I cannot be silent.



Yet, while I have grave concern for the rapid deterioration of my country's human rights situation, I also retain great hope that the United States - as one of Bahrain's closest allies - can stand as a champion for free civil society and democracy.



Since 2011, Bahraini authorities have imprisoned thousands of individuals on charges related solely to their exercise of free expression, assembly, and association. Due to this influx of prisoners of conscience, Bahrain has the largest number of prisoners per capita in the entire Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Arbitrary arrests, torture, and enforced disappearances occur almost daily.



My case represents just one of countless examples of the systematic failure of Bahrain's legal system to ensure impartial investigations, guarantee defendants their due process rights, and implement basic fair trial standards. One of the tweets for which I am currently on trial described the epidemic of torture within Bahrain's prisons and detention centers, for example. In the years since 2011, the Bahraini criminal justice system has only deepened its reliance on abuse to extract false confessions. Many victims I encounter report that courts used coerced confessions as the primary or even only evidence for convicting and incarcerating them.



The Bahraini government regularly points to new mechanisms through which victims can submit complaints about torture and other violations as signs of positive reform. However, these institutions are deeply flawed and often lead to further abuse. The government's accountability mechanisms, such as the Ministry of Interior's Office of the Ombudsman, are neither impartial nor independent. Indeed, rather than reduce abuse, the Ombudsman has appeared to conceal it. We have documented cases where the authorities have retaliated against victims who try to utilize the Ombudsman's complaint processes. When defendants attempt to raise allegations of torture in court rather than through a formal complaint, judges regularly ignored the claims or threatened to dismiss them, continuing the trial in absentia.



Bahraini authorities also routinely prevent detainees from accessing a lawyer. Prosecutors are not required to inform detainees of their rights, and if a detainee does request the presence of a lawyer, officials typically demand the attorney arrive immediately. If the defendant's lawyer cannot make it to the location within a half hour, the interrogation or trial will proceed without them. In many cases, the authorities have threatened to subject defendants to further torture and abuse for requesting legal assistance.



Once court proceedings begin, defendants are at the mercy of a biased judiciary that lacks sufficient independence from the government. Judges are appointed by royal decree and many are members of the ruling Al Khalifa family. More still, a significant number of those judges who are not royals are foreign contractors. These foreign judges typically serve on short-term contracts available for renewal at the discretion of royal authorities. It is therefore in the judges' interest to issue verdicts that please the ruling family. With most forms of free expression, assembly, and association already criminalized under Bahraini law, trials quickly devolve into "kangaroo courts" wherein judges issue harsh sentences for charges that violate international law and perpetuate arbitrary detention. A number of Bahrain's leading human rights defenders remain imprisoned on life sentences for their peaceful participation in the 2011 pro-democracy movement, for example, such as my friend and BCHR cofounder, Abdulhadi al-Khawaja. The government has done the same for the country's most prominent political figures, including Dr. Abdujalil al-Singace, activist and leader of the Haq opposition movement.



Despite multiple promises to reform, including its acceptance of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) report, the Government of Bahrain has failed to implement proposals to increase judicial independence, institute protections for due process, and ensure fair trials. By flouting basic human rights and due process, the Bahraini government has further undermined the country's embattled civil society, fueling protests and political instability not seen since 2011.



The United States and Bahrain are close military allies, but the relationship can no longer be dominated by a myopic view of security. My current detention is representative of a broader, nearly unprecedented attack on Bahraini civil society in recent months that has included the mass judicial harassment of religious leaders and the dissolution of the largest opposition group, al-Wefaq. In May, a Bahraini appellate court overturned al-Wefaq Secretary-General Sheikh Ali Salman's acquittal on charges of "attempting to overthrow the government" regarding a peaceful political speech he delivered. This apparent case of double jeopardy extended his total prison sentence from four years to nine years. The leaders of other major opposition groups, such as the Secretary-General of the al-Wahdawi political society, Fadhil Abbas, remain in prison on charges related solely to their free expression. Although authorities recently released the leader of the Wa'ad society, Ibrahim Sharif, after he completed a year-long prison term related to a political speech, prosecutors are reportedly seeking to appeal the original sentence to secure additional prison time. The government's campaign against civil society and free expression, and particularly the 'legal' repression of the criminal justice system, has driven the probability of successful dialogue and political reconciliation to a record low.



To secure long-term stability in Bahrain and the region, the US must take a more comprehensive view of the security partnership, taking action to champion civil society actors and promote opportunities for peaceful, democratic political dialogue. I therefore urge the US Congress to cut off weapons sales to Bahrain until the government releases all political prisoners and truly implements human rights reforms such as those outlined by the BICI in 2011. I similarly call on Congress to publically request contingency plans for the relocation of the US Navy's Fifth Fleet from the Department of Defense, as the Bahraini government increasingly jeopardizes the tenability of the base. Finally, the US must also pressure Bahrain to include human rights education in bilateral security cooperation to address problematic trends, including religious discrimination, which deepen societal division and increase the likelihood of police violence. In the absence of such reform, US military assistance will effectively empower a disproportionately foreign-born, sectarian security force that systematically excludes the country's majority Shia population.



The United States Government is in a unique position to drive human rights reform in Bahrain, and I believe it is time, together with Congressional leadership, for it to fully leverage this influence to promote positive change in my country. Without strong US support for human rights reform, the Bahraini government will continue to undercut a peaceful resolution to the political crisis and drive further insecurity in the region. It is up to Congress to ensure the US Government makes both the ethical and the strategic choice on Bahrain, for they are one in the same. The US needs to fulfill its stated commitments to promote human rights and freedom in all nations, and especially in its closest allies.



Sincerely,



Nabeel Rajab
Mother with newborn baby sleeping, symbolizing love and child care

The current child care system in the United States isn't working well for anyone, even though the majority of children in the United States are being raised in families where all parents work for pay, and the majority of children have, since the 1990s, been in some form of "non-maternal" care from the age of six months. The Care Index, a data and methodology collaboration between New America, a nonpartisan think tank, and Care.com, the largest online market for caregiving, data shows that no one state is providing all three of the pillars that constitute a functioning early care and learning system that supports both working families of all socio-economic levels and the child development needs of all children: affordable cost, high quality, and easy availability.



Instead, families must rely on a patchwork system that that is expensive to the point of keeping some parents, typically mothers, out of the workforce; difficult to find; and mediocre at best, with teachers paid poverty wages, turnover high and small providers operating on razor-thin margins.



The Care Index found that the average cost of child care in centers is nearly one-fifth the median household income, and nearly two-thirds of a minimum wage workers' earnings. Nationally, only 11 percent of centers and family homes are accredited to meet quality standards. As for availability, the New America Care Report profiled one parent in Georgia who wanted to find quality care for her two young children close to her work, but couldn't afford any licensed establishment within a 20-mile radius.



There is a reason that this hodgepodge child care infrastructure exists in the United States: Policymakers decided in the early 1970s that child care was the private responsibility of families, not a public investment in the economy for the good of society and the future, and that a functioning child care system would have "family-weakening implications."



In 1971, Congress passed the Comprehensive Child Care Development Fund, a bipartisan effort to create a network of nationally funded, comprehensive child care centers. They were to be administered at the local level and provide high-quality early education, nutrition, and medical services. The services were to be universal, available to all regardless of income on a sliding scale. (During World War II, under the Lanham Act, the federal government supported 3,000 such child care centers in every state, except New Mexico, in order for women to go to work.)



The idea of a government role in child care had broad public support in the early 1970s. Surveys showed that a majority of both men and women not only favored setting up a workable child care system, but that they thought the federal government should play an important role in supporting it, Kimberly Morgan writes in her book, A Child of the Sixties.



Yet President Richard Nixon vetoed the bill, writing that it would have committed the government "to the side of communal approaches to child rearing over against the family-centered approach." A government role in child care, he said, should be an "evolutionary" decision, taken after "great national debate," with an eye to "cement[ing] the family in its rightful position as the keystone of our civilization."



The time for that great national debate is now.

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Family is still a keystone, but the shape and structure of what constitutes a family has evolved, opening up ties of love and choice, unlike in the early 1970s, when breadwinner-homemaker families were more of the norm for middle-income families, and were held up by policymakers as the ideal family arrangement. Families' relationships to work has evolved, too, with families where all parents work in the marketplace now the norm. Lawmakers in the 1970s, and even some today, worry that a quality child care system will only encourage parents, namely mothers, to work outside the home. Yet that happened anyway--a majority of mothers of young children now work for pay both out of choice and necessity--without any encouragement or supportive child care system at all. Mothers are now the primary breadwinners in 40 percent of dual-income and single parent homes.



By failing to act in the 1970s, the makeshift early care and learning system that sprang up as a result not only doesn't work, but the system itself is now what's weakening families--creating financial hardship and stress for parents and families, particularly the most vulnerable, for teachers, and providers. The system is failing businesses, and failing to provide all children with rich, developmentally appropriate early care and education at a time when their brain architecture, the foundation for all future learning, is rapidly forming.



And the subject of that great debate should be not whether, but how to create a high-quality, affordable, easily available early care and learning system for all children from birth to age five for all families, particularly those most vulnerable, that:



Gives all parents better choices, both in how to combine their work and home lives, with more autonomy over flexible, predictable work schedules and career trajectories, and in how to organize early care and learning for their children that best suits their families' needs.

* Supports all children's healthy brain and socio-emotional development.

*Values paid and unpaid care work.

*Enables early care and learning teachers to be well paid and well trained.

*Ensures businesses will have workers able to focus and be productive, knowing their children are safe and well cared-for.



A functioning system will require a rethinking of the current jerry-rigged structure. Our goal with the New America Care Report is to provide a broad vision of how critical a high quality early care and learning system is for a fair and egalitarian society, to establish some basic principles, to thoroughly explore a handful of innovative policy ideas, like universal basic income, and to set the stage for that great debate. Although not a comprehensive list, a functioning system will, at a minimum, require:

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Sufficient and sustained funding for high quality early care and learning from the public and private sectors. Currently, parents shoulder 60 percent of the cost of care; federal, state and local governments 39 percent, largely to subsidize care for a small share of the working poor population; and private businesses and philanthropy 1 percent. Just as in K-12 education, parent tuition alone cannot cover the cost of care, even when teachers are paid very low wages. And families tend to need child care when parents are younger, and so haven't had time to save (as many families do for children's college education) and are nowhere near their full earning potential.

Some small efforts to address the dysfunctional system are already underway: New York City has experimented with offering middle class parents child care loans; some small providers are forming Shared Services Alliances to reduce costs; Louisiana has implemented refundable school readiness tax credits to promote quality; and a handful of states, including Georgia, offer tax incentives to companies to build centers and subsidize the cost of care for their employees. These efforts could be part of a larger solution to provide and pay for quality early care and learning, but on their own are inadequate.

Well trained and well paid early care and learning teachers and the professionalization of the workforce. Currently, the lack of training and the poverty wages that teachers make lead to high turnover rates, instability, and variable quality.

Paid Family Leave for all parents. This would not only give families important time to heal and bond, but would also help solve, in part, the lack of affordable, quality infant care. The Care Index found that infant care in licensed care centers is more expensive than public university in 33 states.

Universal, voluntary, publicly funded, high-quality pre-K programs. A number of studies have found significant, long-term benefits from high-quality publicly funded pre-K, including better performance in kindergarten and a greater likelihood to graduate from high school, with the greatest impact seen on those from low-income and dual language families.

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Focusing resources, training and programs at dual-language learners, a fast-growing part of the population.

Other innovative experiments, like home visiting programs; two-generation approaches that support both parents and children; and teacher training based on brain science, like the free, online Cox Campus at the Atlanta Speech School; show great promise. And while the cost of broad, systemic change may appear great, the real costs of continuing to lurch along in the current system without the full support of the public sector are even greater.
Hillary Clinton, Democratic presidential nominee, has derided "Don't do stupid stuff" as a worthless organizing principle of President Barack Obama's foreign policy.

But her substitute of "Doing stupid stuff" is even worse.

As Secretary of State during President Barack Obama's first term, Ms. Clinton single-handedly compounded problems of international terrorism, nuclear proliferation, war, refugees, and human rights from North Korea and China to South Asia, the Middle East and North Africa to Europe and Russia.

In sum, Ms. Clinton foreign policy makes former President George W. Bush look like a Talleyrand, Metternich, or Bismarck.

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Emblematic was her imbecilic orchestration of war against Libya in 2011 to overthrow anti-jihadist Muammar Gaddafi. The secular Libyan leader had recently abandoned weapons of mass destruction, had paid billions in compensation to the victims of the bombing of Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie, and had been removed from the United States list of state sponsors of terrorism. He was no threat to any national security interest of the United States.

Secretary of State Clinton should have rewarded Gaddafi with economic, trade, and investment incentives. Such diplomatic savvy would have encouraged North Korea and Iran to abandon their nuclear ambitions which were fueled by worries that the United States would otherwise overthrow their respective regimes by force and violence.

Instead, Ms. Clinton chose war--a monumental blunder that continues to haunt the United States.

1. Clinton's justification for war was Gaddafi's human rights violations in Libya. That casus belli invited wars of aggression everywhere because no nation is without warts. Thus, Russia invaded and annexed Crimea under the pretest that Ukraine was oppressing its Russian ethnic citizens. It could use the same pretext to invade the Baltic States. That is why the United Nations Charter prohibits war except in self-defense under Articles 2, paragraph 4 and Article 51. Clinton flouted that international prohibition.



2.Clinton's war justification was a stupendous lie known to one and all. On her watch, the United States maintained amicable relations with numerous countries beset with human rights records as bad or worse than Libya's, for instance, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, Yemen, China, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Ethiopia.

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3.Clinton lied to Russia in denying that an ulterior motive for the United States military intervention in Libya was regime change and the killing of Gaddafi. Strutting like Julius Caesar, Clinton clucked, "We came, we saw, he died." Clinton's lie gratuitously alienated Russia, and invited a new Cold War.

4.Clinton's war splintered Libya into hundreds of tribal, ethnic, sectarian, or personal militias. The nation was thrown into an ongoing hydra-headed civil war, which gave birth to ISIS in Sirte and rival governments in Tripoli and Tobruk. Gaddafi's cache of conventional arms fell into the hands of international terrorists throughout the Middle East. The lawlessness and chaos Clinton's war created fueled the terrorist assassination of our Ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens; and, the flight of millions of refugees from Libyan shores to Europe and tens of thousands of drownings in the Mediterranean Sea.

5.Clinton's war fortified the determination of North Korea and Iran to develop, maintain, or expand nuclear arsenals to deter the United States from invasion. Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper, recently testified to Congress that negotiating nuclear disarmament with North Korea is now a pipedream. Additionally, Clinton's so-called "Pivot to Asia" antagonized China and ended any possibility of its necessary cooperation in stopping North Korea's nuclear adventurism. The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action negotiated by President Obama with Iran only postpones fulfillment of its nuclear ambitions for ten years.

Hillary Clinton's Libyan war is the very definition of doing stupid stuff. The multiplicity of calamities that ensued was as predictable as the force of gravity. Libya had never practiced democracy. It had never embraced democratic norms. It sported 140 tribal networks. Civil society was embryonic. Its political development was pre-Magna Charta. And corruption was endemic.

Depend upon it. If Ms. Clinton is elected President, her "doing stupid stuff" foreign policy will find expression in wars with Syria, China, and Russia with consequences far worse than the disasterous fallout from Libya.
Lately it has been rewarding to watch my partner start her own new business venture. It has been both an opportunity to teach and distill my knowledge of entrepreneurship in a more succinct way. The act of teaching always seems to test whether one is truly knowledgeable about something.

To that end, I have realized that despite the plethora of business advice and entrepreneurship information out there, there is no one-size fits all answer for success. There is nothing that is a necessarily a must when it comes to business. Everyone has their own process so these are four of the things that I hope every new entrepreneur should consider not follow or implement blindly.

Step 1: Find an easy source of traffic.

No matter what you are building, there are simple ways of getting traffic and more challenging ones. The simplest is to tell your friends face to face. This is a great source of easy traffic, but it does not scale very well unless you have a large friend group. My girlfriend is selling mala beads and crystal necklaces so I naturally recommended she get on Etsy for immediate, relevant traffic.

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The people on Etsy are not only relevant, but the platform ranks well in Google's search engine as well. Which leads me to...

Step 2: Develop a basic site and learn SEO

There is no doubt entrepreneurs can be successful without an online presence much less SEO, but the reality is, things are much easier with both. My girlfriend's site is super simple, but it works for the purpose she needs. She learned how to develop it herself, which is also invaluable for developing her own self-reliance. She also had to learn basic SEO, but with a simple platform like WordPress, there are plenty of plugins she learned to use with great effect.

Step 3: Test small

Rome wasn't built in a day and her business will not be either. As she continues working her full-time job, she has dedicated $3-500 to starting her business, which is a far cry from the thousands (or millions) of dollars that people believe is necessary.

According to philosophy in the Lean Startup, it actually works better to start small, test, and quickly change course as the market determines. Failure is inevitable, but so long as it is part of the process of learning, it will be valuable for an early-stage entrepreneur.

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Step 4: Have a global view

The last step is one that people should try and maintain no matter what they do in life, but particularly in entrepreneurship and business. I've learned business with the 4 Hour Work Week mentality, which has taught me how easy it is to outsource tasks.

I didn't realize this wasn't common knowledge, but many new entrepreneurs don't often think globally enough. She tried printing labels with a U.S. based printer, but I showed her an Italian option with twice the quality, which was still cheaper after shipping. The world is your oyster if you can remember to swim in it.
Hey, I believe in supporting veterans, service members, and their families year round. They deserve a lot more credit than they get.

I'm a sponsor of the Bob Woodruff Foundation's event Stand Up For Heroes (SUFH), and the money raised goes to support programming and resources for the folks who give up so much for our country.

The Craig Newmark Foundation just

to the SUFH benefit concert to a US Army veteran and Bronze Star Recipient, John Cianci. Bruce Springsteen (among others) will be performing. John told us his story which he's given us permission to share.

John said that he listened to Bruce Springsteen every morning and every evening while he was deployed in Iraq in Desert Storm. He listened so often that he went through four cassette tapes of Born in the USA.

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In 2009, shortly after his mom passed away, John when through a rough patch where his wife moved out and his business was failing. One day, during this time, John was driving and Born in the USA came on radio. He said it was almost like he was reliving all the good things in his life, like he was in concert, back in college, attending Springsteen's Born in the USA tour. At that moment, something really odd happened--John passed someone standing on the side of the road who he had not seen in almost 25 years. It was a soldier who he'd considered "his boy" in Desert Storm, a 19 year old service member he had taken under his wing years previously, on the ay they left for Operation Desert Shield in 1991.

After their roadside reunion, John pulled away and heard a commercial for Springsteen's upcoming concert. He decided to call up his wife, who had moved out, and he invited her on a date to the Springsteen concert. She said yes. The concert was so powerful that John returned the next night, too. He was, and still is, so moved by Springsteen's commitment to veterans. It was these moments that were the catalyst for the beginning of John's recovery.

It is such an honor to be able to award these tickets to John Cianci, and to be at the very same concert with him years later. You can still get your tickets, sponsor, or follow along using the hashtag # #Stand4Heroes.

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I'll never forget the first time I crossed our American national border and what an eye-opening experience it was: a trip through Mexico and into Central America, with revelations of vivid new people, languages, and traditions that lay beyond the confines of this young traveler's own small tribe.

I've since traveled farther afield; and while the knowledge I've gleaned from these pilgrimages is precious indeed, none can quite compare to the moment of wonder the first time I ascended in an airplane and peered out the window--not merely crossing a border, but seeing beyond them all. I kicked myself for being so impressed by the obvious lack of dotted lines around our neatly-divided world. Astronaut Cady Coleman describes a similar feeling of awe when looking at the Earth from space: "After living in space, it's actually hard for me to feel that I'm the citizen of one country."

We don't need to be astronauts to have such a profound experience that alters the way we relate to the world and our place within it. For me, it has always been music which most surely summons a sense of wonder and appreciation for the incredible variety of human expression. I thirsted for a project through which I could engage this same diversity--but it seemed like too big a tale to tell on my own, and too great a journey to make without companions.

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Then in early 2013, what seemed at first like a distant mirage had gained more clarity and presence. As composer for the Chicago-based chamber music organization Fifth House Ensemble, I found myself for the first time among musicians who wanted to use our talents to accomplish something more than simply presenting music as a kind of museum experience. Founded in 2005 by flutist and Executive Director Melissa Snoza, the ensemble's mission has been to build on the collaborative power of chamber music in engaging artists of other disciplines, educational institutions, and underserved communities through music presented at the very highest level. Fifth House Ensemble is all about reaching beyond the traditional perceived borders of what classical music can be, so perhaps it's only natural that we soon found ourselves talking with the globetrotting folk band, Baladino. And that's when we formed the first inkling of an idea that would grow to become our new album Nedudim, released earlier this year on Cedille Records.

Rooted in the rich traditions of Middle Eastern, European, and American folk music, Nedudim is a celebration of music that transcends borders and merges ancient and modern instruments--with arrangements that place classical mainstays such as violin, flute, and piano alongside the shofar (ram's horn), oud, didgeridoo, and many others from all across the map. Baladino originally hails from Tel Aviv and while many Americans might be most familiar with Orthodox Klezmer music, it's the Mediterranean-tinged wanderings of the Sephardic Jews and their ancient melodies that inspire the band's thoroughly modern, virtuosic interpretations. Baladino often performs in parts of the Middle East where they do not feel especially welcome due to complex cultural politics, so the idea of home as an inner place--and one's musical identity--pushed our explorations further.

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The inspiration behind Nedudim (Hebrew for "wanderings") began with a simple question: what is your earliest musical memory?

Through a co-creation process with a diverse group of cultural partners across Chicago representing Israel, Spain, Iran, and India, we met with our future audiences and shared our most personal formative memories. Along the way, we were thrilled to affirm the power of music in forming our sense of identity, and also impressed by how every culture's music plays a crucial role in marking the most important life events from birth, marriage, and the passing of loved ones. In sharing our stories we came to see how our diverse tellings and traditions are different ways of inflecting the timeless stories that connect us all, more so than we often appreciate. By engaging our audiences through these sessions, their musical memories led us all across the map, each step of the journey music as an indelible part of cultural identity.

The resulting album reflects the same process of musical and cultural inquiry, featuring music chosen by each musician that reflects a cherished musical experience--from my new arrangement of Robert Beaser's old American mountain song "He's Gone Away" that restores the original lyrics, to West Coast composer Ken Benshoof's Traveling Music reimagined as a musical journey through a menagerie of exotic instruments. Some of the most exciting musical moments resulted from familiar traditions colliding in unexpected ways, as in the album's funky Greek Blues and a version of my fiddle-driven Black Bend, where folk and bluegrass licks play off of Persian-influenced improvisation.

Much of the source material may be foreign to Western ears, yet at the same time it is not esoteric but representative of each home culture's mainstays. Take for example Baladino vocalist Yael Badash's earliest musical memory of the lullaby "Durme Durme" that frames my composition Native Tongues: it's hard to find a Jewish lullaby collection that doesn't include some version this song that accompanied Sephardic Jews fleeing Spain and dispersing into exile communities in North Africa, the Balkans, and North America. The words are touchingly direct, "Sleep my little one. Sleep without worry or pain." Soon the music meanders to other musical memories, both literal quotations of cherished melodies and my evocations of stories and situations--the sound of sirens, the hiss of a tea kettle, and a host other melodies and memories collected from our community sharing sessions.

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Native Tongues features so many references to different musical styles that a lot of the fun came in composing the transitions that morph the melody from the sound of one culture into that of another by playing with the "connective tissue" or point of similarity between seemingly unrelated tunes. It's a vivid way to show off the hidden relationships among joyous outbursts of different source material, and for our listeners to hear important part of their own experiences reflected back in the work we created together.

Just as my view of Earth was transformed by achieving an elevated view of the whole, I feel like my musical world--and my view of classical music--will never be the same after working on Nedudim. In this case, we achieved a musical work that is reflective of the communities it aimed to serve, and many of our partner cultural organizations have gone on to collaborate with Fifth House Ensemble on additional projects. We were thrilled to work with GRAMMY-winning producer Steven Rodby on this album and here he offers a closing peak at what made the journey together truly such a source of enlightenment:

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"Why don't you add Bluetooth? Or have an app? Or put more sensors in it? You can get in the Apple Store!". So goes the argument to be a part of the Internet of Things, but at what cost? Being connected isn't always the right approach, for products or for consumers.

Those familiar with product development will be achingly aware that every dollar added to the cost of a product equals several dollars taken out of the consumer's pocket. The more features you include, the higher that cost. Bluetooth functionality alone can add $3-5 to a manufacturer's costs, which can mean an extra US$20 on the store shelf. Wifi capabilities are often more than double that. And that's before you add in app and software development costs.

But economic impact aside, what's the cost on our brains and cognitive development, especially at a young age? With the US Department of Health and Human Services estimating that American children spend seven hours a day in front of electronic media, this has become an increasingly hot topic. Research is emerging that indicates devices like iPads are hindering emotional development, stunting speech, as well as social interaction. A study by Boston university noted that "these devices also may replace the hands-on activities important for the development of sensorimotor and visual-motor skills, which are important for the learning and application of maths and science." In an interview with the New York Times, Steve Jobs even admitted that didn't let his kids use an iPad at home for fear that they would become technology addicts.

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Fortunately there is fierce competition from the world of touch and feel. The Rubix cube remains the best selling toy of all time, at a whopping 350 million cubes sold. LEGO had it's best year ever in 2015, producing over 40 billion bricks, and becoming the world's largest tire manufacturer. Hundreds of thousands of people, young and old, are attending Maker Faires worldwide, with that number growing at a staggering pace. At the end of the day, as intense as the onslaught of the "digital" and "connected" are, touching, building, and creating are at our core.

As a co-founder of 3Doodler, I've also been able to see first hand the power of a tactile experience over a connected one, particularly through our work in education. Back in 2014 we started to work with teachers for the blind and partially sighted, using our pens to draw instant tactile learning aids. And now with the kid-safe 3Doodler Start, which is completely cool to the touch, the scope for getting hands on has jumped another level.

In 2015 we ran a case study together with a UK-based school who found, conclusively, that tactile experiences gave visual learners a welcome leg-up in class. An equally staggering outcome was the way tactile driven technology levelled the gender gap in STEM education, with girls adopting tactile technology tools faster than boys, leading to increased enrolment in engineering subjects.

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The Turken Foundation acquired a property and wants to build a student dormitory at 762-766 Second Avenue in New York City. Turken was registered as a 501(C)3 not-for-profit educational organization by the US Internal Revenue Service in June 2014. According to its web site, Turken was established by the Ensar and Turken foundations in Turkey. (1) Before the dormitory project is finalized, questions should be addressed about the source of Turken's financing, as well involvement of board members in money laundering, corruption, sexual misconduct, and Islamist education.

Fact

Turken had no assets in 2014. (2) In 2015, however, it received a gift of more than $24 million. (3)

Question: Where did the money come from?

Fact

Turgev received a donation of $100 million from a foreign account identified as "Royal Protocol." (4)

Question: Is Saudi money being used to support the dormitory project?

Fact

Members of the Saudi royal family are known financiers of madrassas, informal education centers around the world that propagate Wahhabiism, an extremist interpretation of Islam.

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Question: Will the New York dormitory function as a madrassa?

Fact

In October 2014, Ensar was given land in Urlu owned by the national treasury worth 20 million Turkish liras. Ensar built villas in Urlu, which it described as "Islamic Education Camps." (5)

Turkey's Chairman of the Board, is a former president and founding member of the NOOR-Ul-Iman in New Jersey, an Islamist educational school. (6)

A Turken director is a founder of the Albanian Islamic Cultural Center and Private Miraj Islamic Schools. In 2015, Turken gave of $312,000 to the Albanian Islamic Cultural Center in Staten Island. (7) The center was listed in a report by the New York Police Department Intelligence Division among "Albanian Locations of Concern." (8)

Question: Is Turken supporting Islamist education radicalizing youth?

Fact

Turgev involves many family members of Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Edogan. Its board includes President Erdogan's son (Bilal Erdogan), daughter (Esra Albayrak), son-in law's brother (Serhat Albayrak), brother in-law (Ziya Ilgen), Bilal's mother-in-law (Reyhan Uzuner), and his daughter's relative by marriage (Hafize Sule Albayrak). (9) The board also includes members of Erdogan's Justice and Development Party (AKP), including members of parliament, mayors, businessmen, and their family members. (10)

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Question: Is Turken independent of the Erdogan family and Erdogan's political party?

Fact

Bilal Erdogan has been implicated in a series of alleged money laundering and corruption scandals, including using illicit funds to acquire real estate. Recordings were leaked of Bilal and his father, as the police were moving in to arrest corrupt officials and their family members on December 17, 2013. Erdogan called Bilal and instructed him to dispose of cash at several family homes. "Now I'm telling you, whatever you have in the house, get rid of it, OK?" Later Bilal told his father, "[We still have] "30 million euros (US$39 million) that we could not yet get rid of" and suggested they give them to a businessman "or buy a flat." According to Bilal, "Berat (his brother -n-law) has an idea to buy villas from Sehrizar Apartments. What did you think?" (11) The real estate registry confirmed that Berat bought two villas.

Question: Is there a pattern of using illicit funds to purchase real estate?

Fact

The Bologna Public Prosecutor Manuela Cavallo investigated claims that Bilal violated both European and Italian financial laws when he moved to Italy in October 2015. Bilal was accused of laundering roughly $1 billion. (12)

Question: Are funds for the dormitory project derived through money laundering?

Fact

In return for the donations to Turgev and Ensar, individuals benefit from facilitated construction permits, governmental approvals, and facilitation with other government regulatory processes in Turkey. (13)Turkish media reported at least 7 instances where Turgev benefitted from influence peddling. During their 2013 corruption probe, Turkish police uncovered 19 suspect donations to Turgev from Turkish businessmen. (14)

Question: Are funds raised through a "pay to play" scheme?

Fact

Media reports in Turkey indicate that representatives of the foundations have engaged in a pattern of sexual misconduct with students, including rape, (15) sexual coercion using videos, (16) child pornography, (17) and homosexual assault. (18)

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Question: Should community members be concerned?

These questions raise concern about the dormitory project and, more broadly, Turken's compliance with US tax law. They should be addressed before the dormitory project is approved.

Notes

Omer Faruk Albayrak and H. Ibrahim Bacaci are board members of both Turken and Ensar. "Board of Directors," TURKEN, http://turkenfoundation.org/about-us.php TURKEN 990 FORM 2015 Mustafa Cakir, "99 milyon 999 bin 990 dolar bagsms [Donated 99 million 990 dollars," Cumhuriyet, April 9, 2014, http://www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/haber/turkiye/59069/99_milyon_999_bin_990_dolar_bagismis.html Anlamak.org "Member, Noor-Ul-Iman School Board of Directors," Noor-Ul-Iman School, http://www.nuischool.org/nui-at-a-glance/bod/br-behram-turan/ TURKEN 990 FORM 2015 "Albanian Locations of Concern." NYPD Intelligence Division: Demographics Unit http://hosted.ap.org/specials/interactives/documents/nypd/nypd-albania.pdf "TURGEV Genel Kurul Uyeleri[TURGEV Board of Members]," http://www.turgev.org/tr/genel-kurul-uyeleri/1/ "Ogul, kz, damat,es,dost akraba olmayan TURGEV'e giremez[Those who are not son, daughter, son-in-law, wife, friend, or relative cannot come into TURGEV]," Cumhuriyet, February 20, 2014, http://www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/haber/turkiye/43237/Ogul__kiz__damat_es_dost_akraba_olmayan_TURGEV_e_giremez.html "BASCALAN Erdogan'n Yalanlarnn ve Yolsuzluklarnn Kayd [Head Theif Erdogan's Lies and Corruption]," YouTube, February 24, 2014 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cvf4aeRLu0E Michael Day, "Bilal Erdogan: Italy names Turkish president's son in money laundering investigation allegedly connected to political corruption," Independent, February 17, 2016, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/bilal-erdogan-italy-investigates-turkish-presidents-son-over-money-laundering-allegedly-connected-to-a6879871.html "9 Soruda TURGEV [TURGEV in 9 Questions]", Diken, March 5, 2014, http://www.diken.com.tr/9-soruda-turgev/ Ibid. Selin Girit, "Turkey child abuse: Scandal shocks Karaman, BBC, April 19, 2016" http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-36071773 Ibid. "FBI'n Yakaladg O profesor de Ensar Baglantl [The Professor the FBI Caught is also Ensar Affiliate]," Gazete Port, March 28, 2016, http://gazeteport.com/2016/fbiin-yakaladigi-profesor-de-ensar-baglantili-33577/. Iklim Ongel, "Ensar'da yeni skandal [New Scandal at Ensar], " Cumhuriyet, March 26, 2016 http://www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/haber/turkiye/504770/Ensar_da_yeni_skandal.html.
"No whining, no griping, pull yourself up by your bootstraps." That's how Susan Story describes the hard lessons she learned growing up in rural Alabama.

Then why is the corporation she leads as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), American Water, complaining about opposition to its plans in West Virginia?

The president of its subsidiary there has said the corporation is "between a rock and a hard place." Faced with aging pipes across nine counties, American Water wants to charge West Virginia residents more to replace those pipes. But the corporation, the country's largest publicly traded private water utility, also wants to make a profit on the deal--a 9.75% markup to be exact. That would be on top of the $476 million in profit they made last year across 47 states and Canada.

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West Virginia residents served by American Water aren't having it. Their rates have gone up five times in nine years, making their water the fourth most expensive among major systems in the country.

On top of that, American Water is implicated in the infamous 2014 chemical spill that forced nearly 300,000 people in those nine counties to go without water for days. They also provide water in nearby Pennsylvania and Ohio for shale gas drilling, also known as "fracking," a strange side business for a corporation hired to provide clean water to the public.

Residents want their water back. "A publicly-owned utility is going to ensure public health and wellness is placed above profits," says Charleston City Council member Karan Ireland.

She's right. When corporations buy or operate water utilities, the public loses control over water and the decisions that go into providing it. Corporations can cut costs by delaying needed maintenance or letting go of employees, which can slow response time to emergencies. Private water is also more expensive. Across the country, private water systems typically charge 58% more than those owned by the public.

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The impact of privatizing water fits a familiar pattern. As we've detailed, the privatization of public goods like water, education, and transit has helped fuel an increasingly unequal society.

Removing a fundamental human right like water from public control really only makes sense to corporate executives and investors.

Though making sense doesn't seem to matter all that much to them. After receiving $164 million in tax breaks earlier this year to relocate American Water's headquarters to Camden, NJ, Susan Story said, "In all honesty, the tax credits make it more attractive to be in Camden." American Water needed help from Camden.
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump attends a campaign event on the tarmac of the airport in Kinston, North Carolina, U.S., October 26 2016. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri

January 20, 2017 dawned bright. Temperatures approached the lows of the second Ronald Reagan inaugural, but that cold was nothing compared to the frigid atmosphere as the Obamas and Trumps traveled down Pennsylvania Avenue for the swearing in. Official civilities between principals were maintained, barely. However, the two sets of aides had been waging a very public PR war almost since The Donald's shock election victory on November 8.

The differences between the two presidents were many and immediately evident. One of the most dramatic was the use of Twitter. For President Barack Obama, the service was another form of official communication. Tweets directly connected President Donald Trump's mouth to his gut, with little interference from his brain. It was vintage Trump.

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The barrage started on his return to the Oval Office after the swearing in.

*Waste of time having to play nice to Barry. Stupid tradition. He's a failure. You won't see him back in White House. For winners now!*

Early that afternoon Trump took phone calls from House Speaker Paul Ryan and several foreign leaders.

*Spkr Ryan called. Wimp & traitor. Thot I couldn't win. Now knows why I get so much ... Melania says can't say that, but you know what I mean.*

*British PM Theresa May called to congrat. Brits are OK, tho we whipped 'em in Revolution. Made sure she remembers. I'll be in charge here.*

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The president held his first press conference the following week. He spent more time attacking the reporters than answering their questions.

*Media thinks so smart. I got elected, not them. If don't report facts will bar from White House. Or sue. Most should be in jail with Hillary.*

The president's early weeks were filled with meetings with foreign ambassadors, delegations, and leaders, who hoped to take his measure. He rarely held back.

*Met Euro wimp ambassadors. Will tell SecState Bolton to keep them away. Except French. She's a looker. But Melania says I can't, you know.*

Still, he surprised his critics, arranging early summits with Russia's and China's leaders. His take remained unique.

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*Met Putin. Strong leader. Knows what wants. Told him to take Syria. So many crazies. Nothing we can do. If he can fix, add to Russia.*

*Chinese prez to town. They really do look alike. Will tell to fix trade deficit. Maybe build wall in California. They can keep their toys.*

*Met Xi Jinping. Dumb name. No wonder China a mess for so long. He said if we stop imports, will dump US debt. Told him we'd nuke 'em.*

Trump's meetings with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer rarely fit the usual model. The president was insistent about his agenda.

*Met Senate "leaders." Are corrupt establishment. Constitution should let me select. Told 'em to pass my bills. If not, will declare as law.*

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*Told Mitch--not a "leader" name--to drop this advise and consent crap. I won the election. Americans like a winner. Founders liked winners.*

The president's relations with the Pentagon weren't always easy. He went through three defense secretaries in his first year.

*Met Jt chiefs, guys with lot of stars. Said want plan to defeat ISIS. Basically, who should we bomb? And bomb? Traitor McCain should like.*

*Military dudes agst my idea for nuke alert agst ISIS. Fear "instability." Stupid. I'm prez. People voted for me. Not loser crook Clinton.*

*Wimp generals appt'd by failed Barry. Oppose carpet bombing Syria. Say "intl law" crap. I figure kill 'em all. Solve problem. Vlad liked.*

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President Trump generally didn't travel abroad much. His aides convinced him to attend the NATO summit to ease European concerns about administration policy. It might have been better if he stayed home.

*Busy making America Great Again. Foreign leaders should come here. We're greatest. They're losers. And long plane rides are boring.*

*Went to Europe. NATO meeting. Whiny losers. Begged me to save them. Told 'em to pay us. Pitiful. Maybe we can trade them for Russia.*

*Weird country names. Who came up with Estonia? Lithuania worse. Too many letters. Want US troops there. Said no--ask the Europeans. Whined.*

The president was no more a fan of the United Nations than his Secretary of State and former acting UN ambassador John Bolton.

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*Spoke at UN today. Wasted space. Great spot for condos. A Trump Tower spectacular. Will ask John about sending dumb diplomats home.*

*Told general assembly US is great. Who needs them? We could bomb 'em all. They should pay us not to. A little old fashioned "protection."*

President Trump's strategy of letting others come to America paid off. Many seemed to believe that they could schmooze him and smooth over the bilateral relationship. He rarely seemed willing to cooperate.

*Held fancy dinner for South Korea's prez. Woman, but not hot. Big disappointment. Waste of good food. But state dept. wimps say important.*

*Germany's Angela Merkel came by. Loser, didn't follow me on immigration. She's lost support. Offered her our Syrian refugees.*

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*What's with the Pope? Wants to talk politics. Boring. Thot Catholicism was religion. Still, nice photo op. Waiting for woman pope. If is hot!*

*Met Philippine prez. Funny name, Duterte. But tough like me. Likes women. Told him to bring a couple on next trip. Is real man. A winner too.*

*Talked to someone from South America. Forgot who. Asked Bolton why we bothered. Does anything matter there? Should be colony of US. Losers.*

Lots of economists, foreign leaders, and consumer groups pressed Trump to change his position on foreign trade. But he paid little attention.

*Met with economists. Threw numbers at me on NAFTA, TPP. Waste of time. I've been to Ohio. Who needs their "facts"? I'm for real people.*

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*Back from Asia. Japan PM Abe, another silly name, said Japan sacrificed for TPP. Took advantage of weak Obama. Reminded of Pearl Harbor.*

*Found out big trade deficit with Germany. Knew didn't like that chick Merkel. Called her to tell to stop. Said we'd build Atlantic wall.*

President Trump's plan on immigration ran into expected opposition. He didn't take the news well.

*Senate won't vote on my plan for wall w/ Mexico. Called "Mitch." Told him to stop traitor Dem filibuster. Dumb rule. I won the election.*

*"Latino" activists oppose my plan. Bunch of Mexicans. Hate America. Bet they are all born in Mexico. Why we have to control borders.*

*Called Mexico president. Neto, Nieto, whatever. Jerk won't pay for wall. Forgets we won war. Told Pentagon to buzz Mex City w/couple B2s.*

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*Liberal creep in Canada won't change NAFTA. Stupid kid. Told him we'd build wall there. Stop Muslim terrorists coming in. And Canada exports.*

However, some of the administration's more unusual initiatives bore fruit.

*North Korea's fat boy likes hot chicks too. Told Bolton we could talk. Suggested hold Miss Universe there if give up nukes. Great deal.*

*South Korea new prez, Ban Ki whatever, called. Stupid to choose UN dude as prez. Agst me going to North. Wimp. Told him we pay, we decide.*

*Talked to Vlad Putin. My bud. Agreed he should take over weird country "Georgia." Why same name as US state? Which voted for me. A winner!*

*Told State employees to earn salaries. Send bills to Europe for NATO. Time to pay up for 60+ years. Plus interest. Big profit for US.*

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While Washington's usual elites, vested interests, and powers were horrified by President Trump's erratic and provocative policies, the American people loved having someone say what so many of them believed but were afraid to verbalize. He cruised to reelection with most of the "Never Trumpers" trying to climb aboard his bandwagon and Democratic nominee Sen. Tim Kaine discredited when he was discovered using an alias to visit Hillary Clinton in prison.

Lewd comments were forgotten and blustering threats were forgiven as The Donald basked in a big election victory. Some said it was a time for reconciliation, but not President Trump.

*To you who opposed me, criticized me, f### off. Oops, Melania says shouldn't say. Wait for friendly IRS audit letter. I beat IRS. You won't.*

*Americans love a winner. I'm a winner. The biggest in history. Four more years! You voted agst me? I know who you are.*

*US is great, not great enough. Will be soon. I will spend next 4 years making it greater. Maybe rename country Trump America. Sounds great!*
No, not that tape. We've seen it more than we care to admit and yes, it is repugnant. But I'm referring the tale of the tape comparing Secretary Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump on key issues that working people in transportation sectors care about.

Transportation unions have spent more than a year in this presidential campaign building a case for policies that modernize our economy and lift up working people. Policies like massively expanding federal investment in our badly deteriorated transportation systems and infrastructure. Reversing the frightening collapse of the middle class and severe decline in peoples' wages. And reforming labor, trade and other policies to give millions of working people a chance to raise their wages and be part of an expanding middle class through union representation and collective bargaining on the job.

On those issues and many more, this election has become the biggest no-brainer for working people once the facts are known. Here are a few:

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On Investing in TransportationSecretary Clinton has come out swinging with a serious plan that would spend more than a half a trillion dollars on our infrastructure. Billions would be allocated to transit and rail systems, air traffic control and airport modernization, highways and bridges, and our port and maritime network. It would put millions to work, is actually paid for with a corporate tax reform proposal, and -- unlike most candidates we've seen over many decades -- Secretary Clinton has pledged to move her plan forward in her first 100 days in office.

Trump talks about rebuilding our infrastructure but his rhetoric doesn't match his views or his deeds. Trump's platform disses America's commuters by eliminating all funding for public transit. His plan breaks up Amtrak, a move that would threaten the rides of 30 million people who travel on Amtrak annually, put 20,000 jobs at risk and make the highway congestion crisis even worse by putting more cars on our roads. More recently, Trump abandoned any plan to direct new federal spending on transportation. Instead, he took a page from the right-wing think tank community and recycled a discredited idea that we can somehow find the trillions needed for our infrastructure improvements solely through public-private partnerships. His running mate, Governor Mike Pence, has spent a career in politics voting in favor of almost every proposal to hollow out transportation funding.

On Raising Wages and Collective Bargaining RightsTrump says he'll fight for working people and create jobs, but the facts tell a different story. Trump has endorsed national right-to-work legislation, a sure recipe to destroy unions and cut the wages of working people. Trump has endorsed a plank that would destroy the bargaining rights of federal workers, including those who work on the frontlines at the FAA and as Transportation Security Officers. And as a real estate mogul and hotel development giant, his record as an employer is deplorable.

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Secretary Clinton sees it this way: "I've always believed that when unions are strong, families are strong and America is strong." She has endorsed sweeping reforms to empower more workers to form and join unions. Clinton has also declared, "Right-to-Work is wrong for America" because she knows what we know: these laws crush wages. It is for this reason that the labor movement endorsed Clinton as the only candidate in this race who will expand collective bargaining as part of an economic plank to raise wages and put millions to work modernizing our economy.

On Trade and GlobalizationSecretary Clinton has staked out the right views on how to fix our broken trade laws and agreements starting with an aggressive stance against the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP. Closer to home for transportation workers, Secretary Clinton has come out strongly against the threat of foreign airlines, such as Norwegian Air International, that want to violate our trade rules while securing the right to provide air service into the United States.

Trump talks a good game on trade but his record tells a different tale. He rails against companies that move their production overseas and kill U.S. jobs, but most of his Trump clothing line is made in China and other low-wage countries. Trump says he'll fix our unfair trade rules that have devastated critical industries such as steel, but his own construction projects use Chinese steel, as a steelworker explains it. And unlike Secretary Clinton, Trump hasn't said a word about protecting U.S. airline jobs from trade violations by rogue, flag-of-convenience airlines.

Finally, there's the track records of the candidates to consider. In addition to having better policy proposals and a clear stance on issues that affect transportation workers, Secretary Clinton can build on her strong record in the United States Senate where she got things done, promoted and fought for the interests of working people, and understood how to advance legislation with bipartisan support. Trump? No clue -- he doesn't have a record on anything that doesn't brandish his name.

Learn more at www.shewillfixit.org and be sure to vote - either now if early voting is permitted in your state - or on November 8th.
The aesthetics of modern architecture are no longer limited simply functional designs, but rather have been imbued into contemporary pieces of fine art. This newfound appreciation for homes, as art, has led to a revolution in the home building space that has sparked innovation and creativity from designers around the world.

The best home builders are those that combine characteristics common to fine art and blend them with nature to create stunning buildings that fans of luxury can call home.

One of the leading teams in this space is Dreamscape Modern Builders. They pride themselves on being able to push architectural concepts to their limits to create stunning free-standing homes. In their latest, award-winning work, they've come up with a new project titled 'The Art Colony,' and as a result, we've seen tremendous innovation take place.

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They created three phases in their series:

Phase 1

This phase brilliantly captures the essence of modern architectural design, placed in the world of residential building. The structures are all influenced by the New Museum in New York City, and they broke ground by featuring cutting edge, extreme design.

Nicknamed the Lego Houses and the Stacked Boxes, these homes set a new benchmark for home building and are now open at least once a year by request of Rice University and the University of Houston.

Phase 2

Their next phase, phase 2, focuses on leveraging light to differentiate and build an unforgettable style. They are spacious, luxury homes that push the boundaries of all things we know about art and design to create a brand new experience. The multi-level living spaces open up to an incredible view of the Houston skyline.

The team also focused on adapting to the climate, and built in a creative privacy screen to combat the tough summer heat. Starting at dusk, these screens also light up creating a beautiful piece of public art. These homes were featured on the Modern Architecture + Design Society's Modern Home Tour and are currently on the market for sale.

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Phase 3

The final phase of the Art Colony is on track to be completed in the Spring of 2017. This complex will consist of four single-family homes. They will each have a custom exterior rainscreen that features a glowing night light effect to create an incredible work of art. Viewing from the outside, you will be able to see a canvas of jaw-dropping digital art displays.
It's great to see a few of our city's big bad news outlets ( CPR , Denver Post , Fox 31 Denver , and KMGH-TV Denver 7 ) finally getting around to covering Arvada's state senate race, which will likely determine control of Colorado government.

The candidates, Republican Laura Woods and Democrat Rachel Zenzinger, aren't being challenged sufficiently on their stances on the issues (See some of their positions, on abortion to guns, here) or on the politics of the race. Some outlets have returned to the races a few times in coverage, which is good, but more attention is required. Some of our state's most prestigious news entities have essentially dropped the ball on the race.
Freehold, N.J.Having funded projects in and travelled to India, and serving on the Board of the Indo-American Arts Council, not to mention assisting each year with the South Asian Performing Arts Festival and the South Asian Literary Festival, I have had my share of Indian food... Imagine my surprise this week when I discovered the most delicious Indian food I have ever tasted, plated to perfection, in small town New Jersey!



Aloo Bonda, Deghi Chilli Yogurt, Tamarind, Banana Crisp.

Located in the quant, historic community of Freehold, New Jersey -- an hour southwest of Manhattan -- Aarzu Restaurant opened this summer. I was delighted to join its owner Kamal Arora, managing partner Archana Sharma, executive chef Shravan Shetty, and chef Dayanand Shetty as they celebrated their first Diwali in the new venue. It was simply the best Indian food I have ever experienced.



Writers from across the East Coast gathered for the special Diwali tasting menu.

Photo: Jingo Media.

I was particularly impressed to meet renowned restaurateur Kamal Arora of the Arora Hospitality Group. His is the quintessential Made-It-In-America immigrant story and he and his team are particularly impressive. The Aarzu Restaurant and banquet facility is the Arora Hospitality Group's latest culinary venture.

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Charred Cottage Cheese, Panch Phoran Tomato Relish, Masala Papad.

Photo: Jingo Media.

Specializing in modern Indian cuisine with a focus on taste, texture and presentation, Aarzu is hosting a week-long Diwali Festival with a specialized Indian New Year tasting menu, in-house henna artist and live tabla player, all in an attempt to engage and excite the community and educate them about the significance of this important Hindu holiday.



Frozen coconut snow, rose nimbu sharbat reduction - heaven in your mouth.

Photo: Jingo Media.

When entering a restaurant, I usually note its ambiance and look forward to experiencing its service. A friendly maitre'd and pleasant waitstaff are essential. I found the service and atmosphere of Aarzu to be world-class.



Hirva Thecha Fennel Shrimp, Squid Pakora, Mushroom Khichdi, Truffle Oil.

Photo: Jingo Media.

"The Indian New Year is an auspicious time when we celebrate with our families, and food is at the heart of that celebration," said Arora, who has several other successful New Jersey restaurants under his belt. "We would like to invite the community-at-large to become a part of the Aarzu family and indulge in our Diwali festival to mark an important milestone for our newest restaurant."

Owner Kamal Arora, executive chef Shravan Shetty, chef Dayanand Shetty, and

managing partner Archana Sharma celebrated their first Diwali in new venue.

Photo: Jingo Media.

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Heading a foundation, I particularly appreciate corporate social responsibility. I was impressed chatting with managing partner and fellow philanthropist Archana Sharma Post-Diwali, Aarzu who told me that for every meal they serve they will donate a meal of equal value to the local food bank for the entire month of November!

Dhaba butter chicken and fenugreek with a shot glass of patiala lassi.

Photo: Jingo Media,

"In the spirit of Thanksgiving and the upcoming holidays, we want to help the less fortunate in this community," she told me. "As a socially-responsible small business, we want to ensure that no one in our community goes hungry this time of year."



Dark Chocolate Halwa Mud, Cocoa Hazelnut Soil, Sugar Rangoli.

Photo: Jingo Media.

I always think of the M's when I think of the parts of New Jersey I like best - Maplewood, Metuchen, and Montclair.... But Freehold grabbed my heart and the Aarzu Restaurant soothed my soul.

Diwali -- the Hindu Holiday of Lights -- ends this Sunday, October 30th. Now would be the perfect time to make a reservation at this Indian hotspot. I know my Jewish friends often celebrate Christmas with Chinese or Indian food! In truth, however, any day would be a good day to enjoy the incredible pan-Indian cuisine.



NYC-based writers covering the special Diwali tasting at Aarzu in New Jersey.

Photo: Jingo Media.

If you meet Kamal Arora or Archana Sharma up front, or chefs Shravan or Dayanand from the kitchen, please give them my best!

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The Arora Hospitality Group Arora Hospitality Group was founded with a vision to take the Indian culinary industry to unparalleled heights in the U.S. and beyond. The brand consolidates all its restaurants and catering operations, including Moghul Caterers, Mithaas, Moghul Express, Papa Pancho Pizza, Urban Spice and, now. Aarzu, under one umbrella. The aim of Arora Hospitality Group is to give its guests an unprecedented culinary experience through its preparations, presentation, innovation, service and quality. Arora Hospitality Group has taken it upon themselves to popularize Indian food and expose it to the mainstream U.S. audience. With the growing diversity of restaurants, they hope to see Indian culinary options widely available all across the country. For more information, please visit AroraHospitality.com. To schedule a private tasting at your convenience, please contact Jitin@JingoMedia.com.
According to the bi-annual study by the London Zoological Society and the World Wildlife Fund, global wildlife populations have declined by 58% since 1970. Freshwater environments, lakes and streams and their surroundings, says the report, are the most damaged, with on average 81% of their 1970-level non-human animal life now missing.

Methodological critiques of the report - deeming its authors to have mashed vast and variegated data excessively into too few signal numbers - abound. But no serious biologist denies that we are in the midst of an enormous extinction event. "Event" is the proper term, although not all mass extinctions happen with one great bang, of the Asteroid-Dinosaur variety. For perspective, the rebounding of new life after a mass extinction takes millions of years. On that scale, the demise happening right now all around us is horrifically sudden.

To summarize the report cause-and-effect-wise: since 1970 we have doubled, crowding out, consuming, and otherwise destroying more than half of our closest relatives.

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This week we begin the Torah anew with Genesis.

Far too commonly, when we think theologically, we regress not only into a pre-Copernican mindset, but into a pre-Darwinian worldview as well.

We tend, spiritually, to look up at the heavens much as our ancient ancestors did, considering all we see as the glorious backdrop for a main attraction down here on earth.

Perhaps even more grievously, we also tend to forget (or we never properly learn) that natural selection is not teleological. Evolution does not operate by targeting any predetermined end. The pressures of each moment and the materials available in it determine what will go forward and how - and these successive moments and materials are conditioned by the ones that come before them, not, as biologists would point out, by any definite foreknowledge of the moments and materials that will come after.

As biologist Ernst Mayr put it: to enquire "why" in evolutionary terms is not to ask "what for" but rather "how come."

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Giraffes were not made with long necks so that they could reach the tops of trees. Rather, giraffe-like animals born with long necks fared better in their circumstances than short-necked siblings, and thus survived more optimally to breed with one another, and hey presto (eventually), giraffes.

This is a subtle but fundamental distinction - and it threatens to make a nonsense of such purposeful biblical and divine dicta as "Let us make a human being" (Genesis 1:26).

What spiritually meaningful story can we tell, in good faith, in our times - as we read our Torah anew this year?

Well, here is a try:

In the beginning of our cosmos there was an impulse to create that entailed in itself the possibility of everything that we know ever to have happened in this universe and everything that ever will happen.

In a moment of trust, or faith, or hope, or sheer insistence upon self-expression, such as human terms cannot possibly encompass, the impulse's Source - which from our vantage-point boggles the mind as the unfathomable No-thing before time - took a step into physical actuality.

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It was an explosive step, a sudden tumult of existence perfusing in nanoseconds and over eons, roiling changing subatomic particles flying apart and then consolidating themselves, under governing variables co-evolving through a tug-o-war into something like stability, the resulting atoms coming together here and there, through vast expanses of being - as best as we can glimpse and fathom the beginning.

Everything was possible in that one first step - but only possible: in some instances, highly likely; in some, extraordinarily improbable. It would all depend on how things went, each frame of the filmstrip depending on the occurrences of each previous one. We know enough today not to speak of clockwork inevitabilities, but of clouds of possibility.

It is difficult to determine where we ourselves fall in the range of likelihood. What reckoning we can manage suggests that our species, capable of such contemplation, must be an extraordinarily rare being - which is saying a lot, considering the scale of the place, and of time.

Throughout enormous expanses of time and space, nothing much seems to happen at all. The universe is a nearly empty and almost uneventful expanse, a thin, loose web of substance and occurrence over gigantic tracts of darkness, of nothing we can see.

Here and there, bits of hydrogen get together and get interesting.

This has happened before, in several cycles, starting much earlier than the birth of our sun. The heavier elements we know today can only have been generated in supernova explosions, the demise of a previous generation of stars from a more undifferentiated time.

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Our moment, too, will pass.

Meanwhile, where elements come together, possibilities multiply. Things happen. The ancient generative impulse tries on many forms. How does it go for them? That depends on so many things. Right here, right now - on this tiny planet, on the physical scale of our human hands, and at this juncture in the story of earthly life - the answer turns out to depend greatly upon what we humans choose to do, with our eyes open.

In that way, one of these cosmic moments is not like the others.

That is as mind-boggling and awe-inspiring a truth as any tale told in ancient terms of legend. Has such a thing ever happened before? Will it ever happen again? As far as we know, there is just this one chance for us to show what happens when it does.
Image of world map

These are tough times to be a mainstream party or candidate in Europe. Economic anxiety has left voters all over the continent grumpy. Fears about migration, displacement, national identity, and terrorist attacks are kindling anger.

Voters are flocking away from established parties as a result. In Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel is suffering blow after blow in regional elections as voters shift to the anti-immigrant Alternative fuer Deutschland party. In Ireland earlier this year, the two main centrist parties, Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, won less than a majority of the vote for the first time in the country's history. Spain has not had an elected government for over nine months because the center-right Popular Party and center-left Socialists have lost so much vote share to new or extreme options.

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With the center no longer holding, populist leaders and parties are on the rise. According to the Economist, the populist vote has doubled since 2000. Fully a fifth of European voters back a populist party of the right or left. Such parties hold posts in nine countries' governments.

The populist roots are diverse. In Western Europe and Scandinavia, the far right is attracting voters into anti-EU and anti-immigrant parties like Geert Wilder's Party for Freedom in the Netherlands, and Marine Le Pen's Front National in France. In central and eastern Europe, more nationalist and ultraconservative parties hold power, such as Poland's Law and Justice and Hungary's Fidesz. Southern European states hit hardest by the economic downturn, like Spain and Greece, have moved to the far left propelled by the Podemos and Syriza, respectively. Still, common threads of frustration bind all these populist forces together: immigration, jobs, EU, and resentment against a political establishment that seems corrupt, out of touch, or both.

With anger and fear building, the post-World War II tide of integration has given way to a new tide of disintegration. Following Brexit, voices in France, Italy, Austria, and the Netherlands are calling for their own referendums to leave the EU, and regional voices in Scotland, Catalonia, and Flanders continue to press for separation and independence.

As centrifugal forces continue to tear at Europe's political unity and stability, here are four dynamics to watch - all of which could make life even harder for those who long for a return of stable, centrist politics in Europe:

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First, coalitions will be harder to form and harder to hold. Post-election coalitions are often messy by the nature of parliamentary systems and proportional representation electoral systems. Often, there are minor parties that become the kingmaker in coalition deals and then hold the government hostage over fringe issues.

But the rise of populist parties makes it even harder. Beyond the Spanish case, several inconclusive European elections this year produced fractured parliaments, hostile coalitions, and unstable governments. In Slovakia, for example, eight radically different parties won seats in parliament including two from the far right. The result: a weakened prime minister forced to patch together an unstable coalition of rival parties, rife with disagreements.

Second, voters may not reward success. Or at least, they may have a very different definition of what economic success looks like. Even when the macro-economic statistics tell a story of recovery - inducing politicians to pat themselves on the back and ask for another term - voters are often living a different reality. Too many are still out of a job and saddled with new taxes and charges. Even those who return to work often complain the work is part-time, lower salaried, or less certain. Even where the macro numbers look like good news, the reality still feels pretty grim where most voters live.

In Ireland, the ruling Fine Gael party went into their 2015 elections with all of the economic indicators telling a success story. Ireland rescued its banks after they crashed in 2010, exited the bail-out engineered by the European Commission, European Central Bank, and International Monetary Fund, and ended austerity budgets. The GDP returned to Celtic Tiger growth rates and unemployment fell back to single digits. But feelings remained raw long after the austerity budgets had ended, and Fine Gael was forced into a minority government of dubious longevity.

Third, referendums are on the rise and they are dangerous for the establishment. There is an easy but perilous attraction to the idea of taking power out of the hands of the politicians and putting it direction into the hands of the people. Brexit, of course, is the prime example. And even though that didn't end well for David Cameron, his political demise is unlikely to dissuade others from using referendums as a political tool to grapple with populist frustration.

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The lure of referendums is almost irresistible to politicians of nearly every stripe. For some mainstream leaders, calling for a direct popular vote is a way to push back on perceptions that they are elitist and out-of-touch. For populist leaders, referendums offer a way to stir the pot further fuel anger against mainstream policies. Yet even some of the populists are getting burned by referenda results: Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban held an early October referendum on his anti-immigration agenda; it got strong majority support - but turnout was so low, well below the mandatory 50% threshold, that, to his embarrassment, the referendum failed.

Finally, Russia is doing its best to disrupt campaigns and influence elections in Europe. The Cold War may be over, but Russia has been waging a Cool War to undermine the EU, Europe's mainstream parties, and other institutions of European strength.

Russia had long exerted political pressure in neighboring democracies, such as by crashing websites in Estonia and exploiting frozen post-Soviet conflicts in the Republic of Georgia to weaken a democratically elected government. Now Russia has become bolder, directly bankrolling numerous parties on both extremes, such as France's National Front, Britain's UKIP party, Hungary's Jobbick, and Greece's Golden Dawn. Unsurprisingly, each of these parties praise Vladimir Putin and vocally oppose sanctions on Russia for its annexation of Crimea.

At the same time, Moscow-based online trolls are launching cyber-attacks that propagate fictitious stories in attempts to sway public opinion. Obviously, this effort has not stopped at Europe's borders: witness the computer hacking of America's Democratic Party this year, believed to be the work of Russian intelligence agencies. But Russia has a more direct interest and purpose in Europe, where it still longs to regain lost influence, and actively works to hurt the chances of countries in the Balkans and elsewhere from gaining full EU membership.



With more than a dozen European elections slated for next year, the continent finds itself in its most precarious political position since the fall of the Soviet Union. Disturbingly, with fragile governments, hostile electorates, more frequent referendums, and a meddling former superpower on its periphery, this might just be the new normal.
Homes are meant to make us feel safe and protected, however, different circumstances or objects in the home could contribute to it being unattractive Health hazards like rodents and bugs hiding in corners, mould and second hand smokes may be present in our homes. And while some of these hazards are easy to fix, some require an overhaul of lifestyle and habits.

Sonya Lunder, a senior researcher at Environmental Working Group says Toxic chemicals are everywhere, so exposure is really difficult to avoid. However, she further says that there are things we can proactively do to keep our houses safe and healthy.

You have young children? Researchers say children spend about 90 percent of their time indoors so it's not far-fetched to conclude that having a safe environment is very critical for their health.

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Let's look at some of the hazards, some obvious, some not, and tips on how to guard against them.

1. Be careful with hot liquids



Your young child could get seriously burned in the bath tub.

"Hot water can burn skin just like fire," says Meri-K Appy, president of the Home Safety Council.

Always test the water temperature before dunking your child into the tub. Also, restrict children's access into the kitchen while cooking. And while serving them meals, ensure their beverages, broths or soups are not too hot. It could spill and scald their hands.

2. Look out for Poisons



Cleaners, drugs, perfume, mouthwash, look out for products that could be harmful to your child. Check for components in the products so as to watch out for any allergies your child may have. More than a million children are poisoned by ingesting common household items every year.

3. Window Locks



A child is naturally curious and that's the problem with windows. With all the amazing and exciting view outside the house, they attract children's attention without the innocent ones knowing the danger they are potentially in. Research says that every year, more than 4,000 kids end up in the emergency room after falling out of a window. So please use your locks. It's the easiest way to prevent your child from opening a window. And if you are lucky, your windows have permanent locks pre-installed. If not, install window guards on all upper floor windows.

4. Ban those Bugs!



The best way to ban bugs safely is to keep them out. Prevention is always better than cure. Keep your food under wraps. Don't leave pet food out overnight. Wash your pets regularly with soap and hot water. Natural herbs like lemon, wormwood and rosemary can discourage fleas from sticking around. You can make a mix with water in a spray bottle and spritz dogs every other day.

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However, by some sneaky crooked way they got in? Termites, roaches, bed bugs, ants? Invest in effective pest control practises.

5. Clean house



We know the importance of cleaning. By removing dirt and germs, cleaning helps us to stay healthy, care for others, our homes and belongings, and make our surroundings more pleasant. However, cleaning is easier if you don't have to de-clutter every step along the way. Make it a habit to keep things in their proper places and involve every member of the family in the process. There is no excuse for anyone to not help out, except they are sick or physically unable to. Even toddlers can be taught to put their toy into the toy box. Get everyone involved and get organized

6. Be Prepared for Fire



Have a smoke alarm on every floor and room, as well as the basement. Remember to test them monthly. Have a fire blanket and bucket. Have a multipurpose extinguisher within reach. When using an extinguisher, remember the PASS: Pull the pin. Aim at the base of the fire. Squeeze or press the handle. Sweep at the base of the fire from side to side until it goes out.

7. Maintain and Make repairs



Remember when you said you'd repair that hole in the wall or door? Or fix that wire hanging out the roof? It's time to fulfil that promise. Have your chimney cleaned and inspected. Check your bulbs and wirings. Polish your floors. Make sure window casings are well sealed. A window may have double casings or panes of glass, but it won't retain heat if improperly sealed.

More Tips


by Taeku Lee, Ph.D.

Our first installment on Asian American voters reviewed the potential for this often disregarded group to be pivotal in 2016 and reported findings from the most recent survey of their vote preferences in this year's presidential and Congressional races. Asian American voters, in sum, find overwhelming favor with Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton over Republican nominee Donald Trump and with Democratic congressional candidates over their Republican counterparts. To review: in the race to be our 45th president, Clinton outpolled Trump 63 percent to 17 percent (or a two-way split of 78 percent to 22 percent). In down-ballot congressional races, Democrats were favored over Republicans by a 59 percent to 21 percent margin (or a two-way split of 74 percent to 26 percent).

This second installment dives deeper into the data from the Asian American Decisions (AAD) pre-election poll-to examine some reasons why Asian American voters appear to so heavily favor Democratic candidates again in 2016. Specifically, this post examines reason-based and feeling-based sources of their support for Clinton and Trump. Do Asian American voters feel pulled between the dictates of their mind and the beguilements of their heart?



Issue Salience and Party Proximity

In most years and for most elections, political scientists often think about a citizen's vote choice as an informed, rational choice between two candidates, much in the same way that we might shop for something. With shopping, we might first ask what goods we should shop for, and then ask which of the products available better suit our needs and preferences. Carrying this analogy over to elections, we would first find out what a voter cares most about and then ask which candidate or party is closer to his or her views on those issues. The AAD survey followed this line of thinking by asking respondents: "Thinking about the 2016 election, what are the most important issues facing the United States that our politicians should address?" and for those issues mentioned, following-up by asking "which party is closer to your views?" and "which presidential candidate is closer to your views?"

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Figure 1 shows the distribution of answers to the first question, tallying up to two "most important" issues respondents mentioned. As in previous surveys of Asian Americans and with the general views of all Americans in other polls like Gallup, the economy continues be topmost in the minds of problems mentioned. Nearly 1 in 2 respondents mentions the economy or jobs as one of the two top issues facing the nation. After the economy, Asian Americans are most concerned about terrorism and national security (29 percent), politics and government itself (19 percent), health care (17 percent), income inequality and poverty (16 percent), and race relations and racism (13 percent). Notably, while education and immigration are often considered core issues for Asian American voters, their salience in 2016 appears secondary to these other issues.

When respondents were then asked whether Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump is closer to their views on these most important issues, Clinton's advantage over Trump becomes quite clear. With the sole exception of terrorism and national security, where 42 percent of respondents favor Trump's views and 40 percent favor Clinton's, Asian American registered voters' views on their most salient issues align far more often with Clinton than with Trump. On the economy, Clinton is favored over Trump by a two-to-one margin; on health care and race relations, the advantage is roughly four-to-one; on income inequality and poverty, it is almost 10-to-1. Even on public outrage over politics and government itself, arguably Trump's signature feature as an "outsider" candidate, Clinton enjoys a 59 percent to 42 percent advantage.

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There is a clear take-away here: if Asian American voters are voting with their heads and on the issues, that calculus clearly favors Clinton over Trump.



The Year of Angry Voter?

Of course, 2016 may not be like most elections and most years. Much of the public accounting of this year's campaign has been a story of angry voters using their ballots as battering rams against the gates of the DC establishment. So, how do emotions factor into the Asian American vote?

Here, the AAD poll asked respondents if either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton, "because of the kind of person s/he is or because of something s/he has done or said" had made them feel one or more of the following: angry, afraid, hopeful, or proud.

The AAD poll finds that Asian American registered voters, like the rest of the nation's electorate, have been roused by this year's campaign. Roughly three in four respondents answered that Donald Trump had evoked feelings of anger (79 percent) and fear (73 percent), while only 23 percent felt hopeful and 14 percent proud in response to Trump. On Clinton's ledger, a substantial number of respondents too felt anger (43 percent) and fear (34 percent), but unlike Trump, an even greater share of respondents felt proud (48 percent) and hopeful (55 percent) in response to her candidacy. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Asian American women are especially likely to attach positive feelings to Clinton's candidacy: 65 percent report feeling proud and 70 percent hopeful, compared to only 37 percent and 49 percent, respectively, for Asian American men.

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What makes these contrasts in emotions even more powerful is the difference it makes in the likely votes of Asian Americans. The effect of negative sentiments toward Trump and positive sentiments toward Clinton in Figure 3 are unsurprising and near totalizing: Asian Americans who are made fearful and angry by Trump are nearly uniformly disposed to vote for Clinton (93 percent); Asian Americans who are made hopeful and proud by Clinton fall just shy of unanimous in their intent to vote for Clinton (99 percent). More notable is the difference between positive feelings for Trump and negative feelings for Clinton. Even among Asian Americans who feel the swell of pride from Trump, only a minority (38 percent) expect to vote for him; with hope, the proportion is an even smaller 21 percent. By contrast, even among those who feel anger and fear from Clinton, a majority expect to vote for her (57 percent and 52 percent, respectively).



(Never) Mind the Gap!

The results of the AAD pre-election poll show some of the foundation for the likely lopsided Asian American vote in favor of Democrats this coming election Tuesday. Clinton nearly runs the table on the issues that matter most to Asian American registered voters, but for Trump's slim advantage on the issue of fighting terrorism and national security. Moreover, in the clash of sentiments, negative feelings against Trump and positive feelings toward Clinton are nearly perfectly associated with the intent to vote for Clinton. The flip side of the coin-positive feelings toward Trump and negative feelings against Clinton - do not have nearly the same relationship to intent to vote for Trump.

As a final share-out for this blog, these advantages Clinton holds help to shed light into why there is no apparent "enthusiasm gap" among Asian American registered voters. The narrative of voters who see Clinton as a lesser of two evils and who support her only begrudgingly does not seem to hold for Asian Americans. Both Clinton supporters and Trump supporters in the AAD poll were asked "How enthusiastic would you say your support is"?

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In the first cut at this question, there is no visible drop-off in enthusiasm between respondents who expected to vote for Clinton and those who expected to vote for Trump. Fully 35 percent in the Clinton camp were "very enthusiastic" and another 32 percent were just "enthusiastic" in their support. On Trump's side, 29 percent were "very enthusiastic" and 32 percent "enthusiastic." In fact, if anything, enthusiasm among Asian American registered voters appears to favor Clinton over Trump.



Figure 4 shows the levels of enthusiasm for three key groups of Asian Americans: Republicans who intend to vote for Trump, Democrats who intend to vote for Clinton, and non-partisans who intend to vote for Clinton. [N.B.: There is an insufficient number of Republicans who intend to vote for Trump in this sample survey.] What the findings show is that enthusiasm is weakest among Asian American Republicans who favor Trump, with only 20 percent who are "very enthusiastic" and 38 percent who are "not too enthusiastic." For Democrats supporting Clinton, 32 percent are "very enthusiastic" and another 38 percent are "enthusiastic. Even among non-partisans who support Clinton, the highest level of "very enthusiastic" is conspicuously higher at 36 percent than for Trump Republicans.

Coming Next

These findings on the role of voters' salient issues, sentiments, and enthusiasm is the second in three installments about the Asian American vote leading up to Election Day. Next week's final post will examine whether and how background characteristics like gender, age, ethnicity, and nativity shape turnout, vote choice, and mobilization. These results preview a major Election Eve poll that Asian American Decisions will conduct in partnership with Asian American and Pacific Islander Civic Engagement Fund and several other co-sponsoring organizations. The 2016 Eve poll will include a nationally representative sample of Asian American voters as well as oversamples in seven additional states: Florida, Illinois, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Virginia. Findings from the Election Eve poll will be selectively released November 8 and November 9.

Taeku Lee is managing director of Asian American Decisions and Professor of Political Science and Professor of Law at the University of California, Berkeley.

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by Adrian D. Pantoja, Ph.D.

Throughout this presidential election, much has been written about the importance of Latino voters; turnout rates have been projected and political preferences dissected. The tenor of these writings suggest that Latino voters will turn out in record numbers against Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and the Republican Party.

However, it would be presumptuous to conclude that the political views and behaviors of 13 million Latino voters have been thoroughly analyzed. These voters represent over two dozen ancestries and reside in nearly every state in the country. Indeed given the geographic and cultural diversity of this population, scholars have long-debated whether the pan-ethnic labels "Latino" or "Hispanic" are politically or socially meaningful. Of course, there are many ways to divide the Latino electorate to determine their degree of political differences or commonalities. In American politics, the most important divisions are geographic. During a presidential election, differences across states are of particular importance as the outcome of the election is based on which candidate wins the states with the most electoral votes.

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About 62 percent of Latinos reside in four states: California (15 million), Texas (10.4 million), Florida (4.7), and New York (3.6 million). These four states also happen to have the largest allocation of the Electoral College votes--a total of 151. A presidential candidate needs 270 electoral votes to win the election. Given the political weight of California, Texas, Florida and New York, it is important to analyze and compare the political views and behaviors of Latinos in these states. The data used for this analysis comes from a survey of 400 registered Latinos in seven states carried out by the National Association of Latino Elected Officials Education Fund and Latino Decisions. I limit the analysis to the four largest states. From the data I find evidence of both political diversity and commonality.

Presidential elections are won and lost at the state level. Given that reality, how are the presidential contenders doing among Latino voters in the powerhouse states?



Figure 1 above shows that the margin of support for Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton relative to Donald Trump is substantial. Nonetheless, important differences are observed. For example, there is a 15-point gap in support for Clinton between Californians (78 percent voting for Clinton) and Floridians (63 percent voting for Clinton). One could conclude that the differences are driven by the ancestries of the Latinos residing in those states--left-leaning Mexican Americans in California vs. right-leaning Cuban Americans in Florida.

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However, Florida is no longer synonymous with Cuban Americans given that they constitute a mere 30 percent of the Latino electorate in the state. Also, if ancestral differences were determinative, how would one explain the 10-point gap between Californians and Texans, both states with Mexican American majorities. The diversity we are observing underscores the power of geographic differences.

In a separate tracking poll by the National Association of Latino Elected Officials Education Fund and Latino Decisions, I documented the top five policy issues for the broader Latino electorate. The issues, ranked highest to lowest, are: immigration, jobs, wages, combating terrorism, and lowering the costs of health care. However, the data is a national snapshot of the Hispanic electorate. Given the importance of the geographic differences, how does the ranking of top policy issue vary across the four states under investigation?



The results of the current survey (not shown) reveal that the top five policy issues found in the tracking poll also emerge as the top issues across three of the four states. New York is the exception, where affordable housing edges out lowering the costs of health care as the fifth most important issue. With that exception, Latinos across the four states are similar in assigning priority to the issues of immigration, improving wages, job creation, combating terrorism, and lowering health care costs.

Yet, when it comes to ranking the top policy issue (Figure 2) we see important differences. Immigration is the top issue for Latinos in California. Lowering the costs of health care is ranked first by Texas Latinos. In New York, improving wages rises to the top. Florida's Latino voters list combating terrorism as the top issue. In short, the top-five issues for Latinos are the same, while the rank-order of those issues varies across the four states. Once again, this finding underscores the importance of state-level contexts.

Some scholars contend that Latinos are too diverse to be categorized under a single pan-ethnic label. Others argue that despite their diversity, Latinos are more alike than different politically. The data presented here is supportive of both propositions. Overall, Latinos are voting for Hillary Clinton and the top issues underlying their vote are similar across the four states with the highest concentrations of Hispanics. Although Clinton is winning the Latino vote, the degree to which she is winning depends on where those voters live. In a close election, the margin by which a candidate wins the Latino vote could be the difference between victory and defeat. While many argue that immigration is driving the Latino vote in this election, it matters most to Latinos in California. In Texas, New York and Florida, other policies edge out immigration as a top issues for Latinos.

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In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump singled out immigrants and Latinos as significant threats to the nation. Given this rhetoric, the political coalescing of Latinos was expected. Yet, even in this context, important political differences emerge across Latinos living in California, Texas, New York and Florida. In the absence of a politically threatening environment, we anticipate seeing greater political diversity among Latinos. In fact, there may come a time when talk of the Latino or Hispanic vote recedes into history much like that of the Italian or Irish vote.
Wooden Overcoats

S2E1: The Ghost of Piffling Vale

The delightfully funny and fast-paced soundcast sitcom Wooden Overcoats is back. It's been months since its first season concluded but given the rich production value and the tight writing, Season 2 looks to be worth the wait if the kickoff episode is any indication.

Things pick up essentially where they left off -- Rudyard Funn and Eric Chapman, owner/undertakers of two rival funeral homes are competing for the dying denizens of the tiny Channel island village of Piffling Vale, which is scarcely big enough to support one of them.

Rudyard's sister, Antigone, has been made a partner in the business; their way-over-qualified assistant Georgie is still...assisting. And the whole series of misadventures is narrated by Madeline, the mouse with dreams of publishing her memoirs.

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The episode that opens the second season is Halloween-appropriate, in that the sitcom-wacky plot involves Rudyard and his staff having to put on a seance in order to summon the spirit of a customer's deceased brother. That was the condition by which Funn Funeral Home was able to snatch the business away from Chapman's but, unfortunately, things don't quite go as planned and hilarity ensues.

(For more on the new season of Wooden Overcoats, I interview series creator David K. Barnes and Tom Crowley, who plays Eric Chapman, in the latest installment of Succotash, my Comedy Soundcast Soundcast. Available on the Laughable app, iTunes, SoundCloud and Stitcher.)

  

This installment of Gilbert Gottfried's Amazing Colossal Podcast jumps the rails almost as soon as it leaves the station, so you know it's going to be especially good.

Guest Dana Gould is on equal footing with host Gottfried when it comes to being a storehouse of arcane knowledge about movies, television, and a host of other topics both popular and obscure. Both guys have also been doing standup comedy forever so share that background and friends. Gould has his own soundcast, The Dana Gould Hour, wrote on the The Simpsons for seven years and a number of other projects, including the upcoming Stan Against Evil, which debuts next week on IFC.

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The reason things take a weird turn from the jump on this show is that Gottfried, reading from a written intro for his guest, mistakenly refers to Dana as "she" at one point which then leads to him joking about his guest's "neatly trimmed" private parts and then both men tagteam their way down a spiral of off-color references on the same theme.

Fortunately, co-host Frank Santopadre is there and, through extreme effort of will, is able to get the runaway train hurtling back down the right track, more or less.

They talk about old fashioned Hollywood fixers (ala Showtime's Ray Donovan), a legion of character actors almost nobody knows, how the movie Mars Attacks! could have been more successful,and ponder how Sean Connery's James Bond was more than just a tad "rapey."

Gould gets his dead-on impressions of Adam West and Don Knotts in there, and both he and Gottfried perform the song Something Stupid as dueling Vincent Prices.

I know, I know -- how can you not listen?

  

Given the tone of this wacky election cycle, it seems quite appropriate that this year has brought us Two Beers: A Tipsy Political Round Table. Hosted by UCB comedy vets (and married couple) Cody Lindquist and Charlie Todd, the podcast invites a variety of guests on stage in front of a live crowd to "chug two beers" and discuss the politics of the week.

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Put up at the UCB Theatre East, this week's show features a trio of female writers: Ashley Nicole Black (Full Frontal), Desi Lydic (The Daily Show), and Joan Walsh (The Nation).

As the presidential race gets down to its last days, the docket of four women and one man plows pretty heavily over Donald Trump's mounting series of gaffes, errors, and misdemeanors. Hillary Clinton isn't let completely off the hook, but does get off pretty easy.

The panel goes after the lame duck Senate and their obstructionist ways in stalling out over the appointment of a ninth Supreme Court justice. And there's a lot of discussion around what the aftermath of the election might look like in the Senate, the House, and the country at large.

At times the tone turns serious (how can it not with what the U.S. is facing come November 8th?), but then it veers wildly back into oncoming comedy. And with phrases like, "I think Paul Ryan is a spineless f__k. He could have stood up to Trump and been King of S__t Mountain for life," popping up some 40 minutes in, it's clear where political discourse has been beerjacked.

At only two brews per guest, the show never goes completely south, which is food for thought: Perhaps long-running political panel shows like Meet The Press might be well-served by introducing an open bar to the proceedings.

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Podcasts I'm also listening to this week: Slate's Culture Gabfest -- Beige Goo Edition; and Wrestling with Westworld -- Epi104: "Dissonance Theory"

  
Audio mixing desk in use

After witnessing Dr. Dre working in the studio for many years I would have to say that one of most important facts missing from the NWA movie is not just aspects of Dre's personal and political life and vision, but a clear description of the high level of sonic mastery and expertise that he has exhibited and presented to the world for the past 30 years.

When Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin presented Def Jam's hip hop productions to the world with classics by Run-DMC, LL Kool J and Beastie Boys, they brought not only productions that had dynamic and socially relevant songs to the world, but also a level of sonic excellence that was achieved by bringing top musicians and mixing engineers into the studio to engineer and fine tune those sound recordings.

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The difference between Dr. Dre and most producers is that when most producers get to a level where they feel they have the songs strong enough, they then bring in top level Grammy award winning mixing engineers like Manny Maroquin, Serban Ghenea and Jimmy Douglass to fine tune the sonics and perfect them. Most successful hit producers are usually known to be paired with a world renowned sonic genius who has studied electronics and the use of probably either the Neve or SSL consoles who will then take the music and fine tune the frequencies in order to maximize the sonic experience. These mixers are well studied and learned persons who have mastered and perfected the art of combining science and math with audio technology on the same level as a person who has mastered any other complex scientific machinery that is extremely difficult to operate and requires a highly proficient level most often associated with technical geniuses.

Take a look at an SSL console. You've probably seen them in pictures and have always stopped to think, "How do they use that thing?" "How do they operate all of the levers and buttons?" As a music producer I will guarantee you that most of the people you've probably seen sitting in front of these consoles in a picture have no idea how to operate them proficiently either.

While watching Straight Out Of Compton one of the interesting things to note is not only "Boyz In The Hood" a great and timeless recording of Eazy E that soulfully captures a bit of LA inner city history, but it's also a recording so sonically proficient that 30 years later it stands up well next to anything recorded and on the radio today. This anomaly is the case of all of Dre's most well know records and let's get to the reason why.

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Many of Dre's most famous recordings not only begin with him programming the first kick and snare drum, but they also end with him mixing the records with a scientific and sonic mastery created by his own two hands. Dre is not only the producer of the song and a writer of his music but is also the engineer who has mixed all of the recordings that he has released. There is no other scientific genius brought in to enhance his sounds or "man behind the curtain," because he is that scientific technical genius. Most, if not all of the greater producers of all time have brought in the greatest drummer to set the tone and rhythm of the recording. Dre as the drum programmer is that drummer on his greatest records. At the end of producing the vocal and then getting a song sounding strong, Quincy Jones, Rick Rubin, T-Bone Burnett and most of the current all time greats and Grammy Producer of the Year winners then bring in the top mixer and sonic mathematician engineers of their generation to mix their productions. Sonic scientists like Tom Lord Algae, Bruce Sweiden and David Ferguson often come to mind as the mixers who have enhanced the productions of the greats to make them sonically brilliant and timeless. One of the main facts missing from a movie about musicians and recordings is that Dr. Dre is not only producing but is also mixing his own records personally to some of the highest audiofile quality ever witnessed.

Much of the modern tone of globally appreciated hip hop recordings was developed by the Doctor's hands. Kanye West once discussed his dream of making New York beats with "Los Angeles sonics. " Kanye West wrote the summary for Dr. Dre in an article about greatest artists in Rolling Stone magazine where he stated Dr. Dre's song "Xplosive" as where he "got his whole sound from."

Dr. Dre is at the core of the development of taking hip hop records to that higher level of scientific and audio mastery. Influences of his mixing and placement of kick, snare and vocal can be heard in everything today from Britney Spears to Madonna to One Direction records and anything else that uses hip hop beats made with drum machines that imitate his crisp, clear, clean and thumping production sound.

In Straight Outta Compton I witnessed Dre doing a bit of production work (in comedic fashion), getting ready to record 2pac's vocal on "California Love" and developing the keyboard line on "G Thing". In between there were NWA performances, family back story, business and police confrontations and sexual liaisons.

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However, if the story were really "keeping it real" to what Dr. Dre is regularly all about on a daily level, what you would really see would see on screen would be Mr. Young painstakingly behind the SSL console for hours, days and years on end first learning and then perfecting the use of electronic engineering on his mixing console and applying those skills with detail on the level of the highest rated electronic engineer in any field, and then using that rare and unprecedented skill to deliver recordings of the highest sound quality of our modern generation. No other big name producer has even come close to his programming and engineering skills, that have projected the recordings of Eminem, Gwen Stefani, Snoop Doog, Mary J Blige and yes, even JJ FAD's "Supersonic" into perfected sonic hits that can stand up forever as timeless and spectacular.

When buying a product from a company often we have the choice to choose the high end most expensive version or possibly a cheaper version that is more applicable to the budget of the average person. One thing we can agree on that the most important thing on a Beats headset is the signature of Dr. Dre, which represents and stands for decades of sonic achievement.

So, take the Compton soundtrack album and put it on in your Beats headset, or even better on the highest quality pair of speakers that you can get in front of. Not trying to sweep any personal drama under the rug, but while listening to Dre's sonic excellence, remember that although Van Gogh cut off his ear in 1888, more than 100 years later what we all know and appreciate is that Starry Night is an artistic achievement in human developmental accomplishment.

..... and yes I just compared Dr. Dre to Vincent Van Gogh.

Mark Batson is a multi-platinum award winning producer, musician and songwriter for Alicia Keys, Leann Rimes, Dave Matthews Band, Anthony Hamilton, Skylar Grey, Grace Potter, Seal, Dr. Dre and Eminem. He is an alumnus of Howard University and also former pianist for The Smithsonian Institution's African American Culture Department.
U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk took to Twitter Friday to apologize after created a national media firestorm Thursday during a debate with his odd remark that questioned his Democratic opponent, U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth's heritage. (See the first video below.)

Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service. #ilsen  Mark Kirk (@MarkKirk) October 28, 2016

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Kirk noted challenger Duckworth's family heritage and sought to link her to imprisoned former Gov. Rod Blagojevich during a 90-minute debate that found the senator on the offensive and, at times, rambling.

Kirk's aggressive approach Thursday was a marked contrast from that of the last debate between him and Duckworth on Oct. 3, when Kirk was low-key and often gave short answers before the Chicago Tribune editorial board.

Duckworth at times appeared taken aback by Kirk's statements, as when early in the debate he spoke over her to say, "We agree on one key point. That we both believe the next senator from Illinois should use a wheelchair."

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When Duckworth, answering a question about American involvement in the Middle East, said that her family "served this nation in uniform, going back to the Revolution," Kirk replied, "I had forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington."

Kirk's comment was met with awkward silence from the crowd. Duckworth, who was born in Thailand, responded, "There's been members of my family serving in uniform on my father's side going back to the Revolution. I'm proud of both my father's side and my mother, who's an immigrant. She became a citizen in her 50s. And I'm just as proud of that."

Asked by media panelist Jim Leach of Springfield radio station WMAY-AM 970 about whether his stroke has affected his ability to handle "the rigors of this demanding job," Kirk was emphatic in defending his health.

"I would say that the stroke has made me much stronger as a senator," Kirk said. "When you conquer something as difficult as a stroke, you get in there and you're going to fight, fight, fight to make sure you deliver for the people of Illinois."

Duckworth said she did not believe Kirk's health should be an issue in the campaign.

"I think the senator is perfectly capable of doing his job. The concern I have is he's not doing his job," Duckworth said.

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The event was sponsored by The State Journal-Register, University of Illinois-Springfield, WICS NewsChannel 20 and Springfield radio stations News/Talk 94.7 and 970-AM WMAY.

Adam Rife of WICS moderated and the media panel featured State Journal-Register political columnist Bernard Schoenburg, Leach and WICS reporter Jordan Abudayyeh.
The word "metamorphosis" does not even do Lisa Lampanelli justice. From notorious roaster to playwright, Lampanelli is slowly moving to a more centered direction with her play "Stuffed" focusing on four women with varied eating issues, but still keeping her signature razor sharp wit on stage during her stand up. Lampanelli sat down to chat with me about her new play "Stuffed", her absolute adoration for Howard Stern, and how she is learning to not compare herself to anyone else at all.





You have gone through a complete transformation, both personally and professionally. You appeared recently on "The Wendy Williams Show" and looked absolutely stunning!

Yes, thank you! My boobs will never match hers though, I'll tell you that! (laughs). Basically, I think some of the weight helped take some of the walls down in reality, so basically I got a little more confident. I'm definitely not super confident, but I am confident that I don't have to hide behind those layers of fat and that I can actually open up to people a little more. I just think the walls come down as you do things better for yourself. Plus, adopting a dog and getting a little bit more joy in my life has kind of helped me be, just a better person and not be so angry and defensive.

In addition to your weight loss, you also went through a divorce recently correct?

Yeah I did; The divorce happened right after we both had the weight loss surgery. We both just didn't have that much in common anymore. I was on The Howard Stern Show this morning and I was talking about it and it was kind of like, we didn't have that much to do together anymore and we were just like friends". So it was just time to move on, you know?



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Can you believe that Howard Stern has become such a lightning rod during this election cycle? As a longtime friend and guest, it must be surreal to see it happening.

I love it; It just goes to show how important he has become, it's so awesome. It used to be that in media, Johnny Carson used to be the most important person when he would invite you over to sit on the couch after your comedy skit. Now it's whatever Howard Stern says goes. There is no one that has ever made me feel more good about myself or when I feel accepted or funny; when Howard laughs at a joke, you know you've earned it. It's easy to make some people laugh; with that guy it happens if you are really on point. I always felt that if you have made it on Stern, you have made it. Today was the first day I had been on in a few years, and I felt that I had really been missing it, it was great.



In the political climate today, comedy is such a welcome reprieve. Do you think that as a female comic you have any kind of responsibility?

I don't. I think it's your choice really. It's important to have the choice, it's important if that happens to be your thing. I have just as much respect for somebody if they get up there and they happen to be a frivolous and funny girl or guy. So if, say a Carrot Top or a ventriloquist does not use the stage to share their views, that's fine; thank God we can do it if we want to, and not do it if we don't. I personally feel that my views come out most when I'm talking about my play, food, weight issues, and things like that. Other than that, I don't find myself wanting to preach too much. Especially with comedy, they're paying for comedy, not for prose.



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Amy Schumer recently had people walk out on her in Tampa, Florida over comments she made about Donald Trump. That is somewhat indicative of what you are saying.

You know, I would rather have someone walk out on the show than have someone in there who is not enjoying themselves. if I can have just one thousand people a night have a good time, I'm fine. Even if, for example, in Montclair, N.J (Lisa will be at The Wellmont Theatre in Montclair N.J. on November 5th) I can make Trump jokes and Hillary Clinton jokes equally and have people not get pissed off because I really don't care that much either way. I think you just say whatever you want and people know that I'm joking and know that the really important things to me aren't these things. Hey, if you gotta take it on the chin for your views, God bless, I'm proud!

Without getting too political, were you shocked at what came out in those Trump/Billy Bush tapes? You had an up close view of Trump as a contestant on "Celebrity Apprentice".

Um, not really. I don't think all men talk like that My brother, my father, I always say, they're gentlemen. I just don't imagine that men talk that way all the time. I don't know though, there's something about powerful rich white guys..and it's not just Trump. That's my own prejudice, which I should't have, I hate all rich white powerful men; maybe that's why I keep marrying guys that don't have anything! (laughs)

What are you loving right now? What's making Lisa Lampanelli laugh, or really feel inspired?

I really love talking about the things I talked about on Stern today; crazy politics, but definitely in a lighter way. People's appearance and people's craziness versus some deep issue. Really, my transformation as a person is funny, going from a two hundred and forty-eight pound battle axe to someone that actually resembles a human is really fun to talk about on stage and to talk about that journey. I still slip up all the time; I always like to say "I'm still workin' on my self". Every week though, there is a new story about how I snapped on somebody and almost murdered people. I think I really want to show, especially through the play "Stuffed",that we're really still working on ourselves. Everybody is a dented can; everybody. We're just trying to not be the person that gave everybody botulism.



I like to always quote Elaine Stritch and say "everybody's got their bag of rocks". Statements like that are incredibly profound and incredibly true.

Isn't it though? I wish I could say I didn't, but man, it is true

Now that you're a single woman, are you finding dating as a newly slim woman more difficult?

Oh no, I still don't have any interest. It's weird, when I got out of my marriage, I realized that I had been dating from the time I was twelve years old until I was fifty-two years old, at that time. I just did not ever feel like I had gotten too much out of it, and when the sexual component comes out of it, meaning when you are going through menopause and not really into it with anyone, I thought "my life is so good now, why do I want to mess it up"? I'm not totally closed off, but I think that anything right now would just seem like it would throw everything off kilter. You never know though I never say never. I think if somebody fits in, that would be great. I just think that between the family, the friends, the dog and the work, I'm okay.

I think your play "Stuffed" is such a unique and phenomenal piece of work. Tell me about it.

Yeah, I got lucky that producer, director and actor-wise, they really got what I was trying to do. It was to show four women who are still working on themselves, four different types of eating problems. Today when I was on Stern, Howard asked if a guy would like it, and I mentioned that the day before, 90% of that audience was dudes and not all gay. What's going on?! I think men hear my name and want to see something funny and then get sucked into the emotional part of it. I just love that I can't even stereotype people. I can't say that "men won't dig this". You never will know when a guy or a girl is going to be more open than you thought they'd be. I'm just thrilled that I get to do what I want every day. It's so amazing to have that kind of life where I can't even complain; what happened?!



I have spoken with many comediennes, like Joan Rivers and Wanda Sykes, and you are one of the top funny ladies that so many gay men absolutely gravitate to you. What is it about the community that you think makes you absolutely adored by us?

I just think that I always felt like an outsider. I don't know why, I just didn't fit in with any group and i think a lot of gay people grow up feeling really different and not fitting in; I think that draws us together. You're just a bunch of freaks who really feel after a while "you know, we're not really freaks because we're all the same". I think it's people who didn't feel cool and people with a sense of humor. Let's be honest. some gay men, you could joke with them mercilessly and they'll stand up and cheer. I think it's people that don't take themselves too seriously because life is too short.



With your play and everything you have going on, what else is there that you want to do?

Eventually the play is going to end unless we end up extending which is obviously a great thing because you want to extend a little bit. I'm thinking it's going to be so much fun to reconnect with everyone family and friend wise. I have started doing some-I know it sounds super gay (laughs)-some spirituality work involving painting and art. I was thinking "okay I can get through those pursuits' and then work on another play with these same four women involving love relationships because I love these same four characters now. I think I'm going to keep doing that playwriting stuff now, and if something comes up that I like, I'll do it. Even if it's something for free, if it tickles me, I'll do it. If it just kind of has a weird feeling that's a little negative, or if it doesn't have me going "cool", I'm not gonna do it. Even if it's something that pays a lot, I just don't think we have a lot of time to waste here.



Spirituality is something that is becoming so prevalent now, with painting being at the forefront of "centering many people like Rosie O'Donnell and Howard Stern himself. Do you think getting older automatically means getting more centered?

I think for some people do, some don't. There are always going to be the ones that feel content to drink themselves to death or eat themselves to death. Anybody I know is working on themselves. Anyone I know is saying "the old me used to do this, now the new me does this". We just aren't looking around saying "don't waste time" and be a better person. I hate corny slogans, but its kind of like "make somebody's day every day" and don't be an a-hole; you don't have to.

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Meditation is something that is really becoming popular, even from a very simple place. Are you finding the same?

Yes! I was laughing at people when they did it, now I'm doing it.

If you had the chance, what would u tell the Lisa Lampanelli from twenty years ago?

Compare and Despair. Whenever you compare yourself to anybody, you despair. Whether you find yourself putting yourself above them, which is not good, or below them, which makes you feel worse about yourself. The second you feel yourself wishing you were that person or wish you had what they have, think about that: you don't want that. If you're thinking about what they have on the outside, you don't want what they have on the inside. If I could never compare myself to anyone again I would be a very successful person.
If you think the on-demand economy is a new phenomenon, think again.



Case in point: Webvan. The once-lauded delivery startup quickly fell from grace when it triggered the dot-com burst in 2000. The company, which was once valued at $8 billion and holds the title of highest IPO in Silicon Valley history, attempted to create a universal delivery system where consumers could order groceries and other items online and have the items on their doorsteps in just an hour. However, through a series of small but crucial errors, Webvan faltered, eventually shuttering its doors and losing $850 million worth of funding.

Lesson learned (almost).

Far from marking the end of the on-demand economy, though, Webvan's legacy has become an important lesson for the myriad startups that have cropped up in recent years with plans to get instant delivery right. Companies and projects like Sprig, Google Express, and Instacart (from the founder of Webvan) all aim to tackle on demand in a different way.

Some of them are going to fail. And some already have. Living at the heart of all this growth and collapse, I've seen where on-demand contenders are repeating Webvan's mistakes (wrong target audience and pricing, complex infrastructure, and expanding too quickly) and where others need to go in order to start becoming profitable--and bring on demand to the mainstream.

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What's at stake?

To make sense of the recent boom in on-demand services and the rise of e-commerce, one needs to understand what the driving force of the phenomenon is. The simple answer? Market opportunity, aka money. Consumer behavior has evolved and so have the companies that want to stay relevant. Looking back to the previous decade, total U.S. sales from e-commerce have grown from $27.6B in 2000 to $143.4B in 2009--a compound annual growth rate of 20.11%. As for this decade, e-commerce in the U.S. is expected to have an annual growth rate of 9.8% between 2013 and 2018. Overseas, Europe is expected to grow larger, with an annual growth rate of 12% within the same time frame, and China's e-commerce retail sales last year increased by 42.1% to $672 billion, accounting for over 40% of all global e-commerce retail sales, with the market expected to reach $1.57T by 2018.

Fun Fact: According to a Credit Suisse survey, e-commerce may become more popular in emerging markets than developed countries, with total annual retail sales forecasted up to $3.5T as internet access rises rapidly and disposable incomes expand.

How the market is evolving to capitalize on e-commerce.

Robbie Whelan of The Wall Street Journal reports on the rise of online shopping that's causing warehouse builders to redraw the map of logistics hubs across the U.S. According to popular e-commerce market data, Amazon is one of the leading e-commerce platforms worldwide but is in no way resting on its laurels. In 2013, Amazon's senior management team proposed Project Dragon Boat--an aggressive global expansion of the company's Fulfillment By Amazon service, which provides storage, packing, and shipping for independent merchants selling products on the company's website. This would develop a global delivery network that controls the flow of goods from factories in China and India to customer doorsteps in Atlanta, New York, and London. The company also recently made a big move toward establishing its own global logistics and transportation network, showcasing its first cargo plane, "Amazon One," at the Seafair Air Show in Seattle. This Boeing 767-300 is the first of the fleet of 40 freight jets that the company plans to fly over the next two years. These moves look to turn FedEx and UPS into Amazon rivals but will also position the company against Chinese counterpart Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.

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"We're excited to supplement our existing delivery network...by adding 20 planes to ensure air cargo capacity to support one- and two-day delivery for customers."

- Dave Clark, Amazon VP of Worldwide Operations & Customer Service

Alibaba has aggressive plans of its own. In April, the company announced the acquisition of a controlling stake in Lazada, a leading e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia, marking Alibaba's expansion in the region. Because Alibaba seeks growth opportunities outside China, Lazada's growing consumer base in a region with a population of more than 550 million-- including around 200 million internet users--makes perfect sense.

Other industry news, like Walmart announcing its purchase of Jet.com, illustrates the aggressive means in which companies are quickly ramping up e-commerce capabilities as the market continues to grow. Even department stores like Macy's and Nordstrom have begun rolling out virtual fitting rooms--providing a hybrid experience of brick-and- mortar meets e-commerce. Macy's also recently announced that it will be closing 100 stores, as it continues to evolve and stave off competitors like Amazon.com.

The time to get it right was yesterday.

So while we're seeing smaller--and noticeably larger--companies evolve their e-commerce capabilities, we're reminded of the mistakes of yesteryear. Here are the three most important considerations successful on-demand companies need to take in order to secure lasting success:

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1.Automation: Make it seamless to transfer information/data across the supply chain. The less time it takes, the more agility you adopt to respond to market changes.

2.Real-time knowledge sharing networks: Better end-to-end visibility gives you a single source of truth to rally around. This translates to inventory-level tracking to prevent stock outs, up-to-the-minute route information to circumvent shipping delays, and advanced notice of events that can put your supply at risk.

3.Multi-enterprise collaboration: When supply chain partners at all tiers of the supply chain can sense and respond to changes in a timely manner, they are better equipped to collaborate on shared goals for improving operational efficiency, reduce risk, or take advantage of opportunities.

What does the future of e-commerce entail?

It's two-fold. The sooner consumers get their hands on a product, the sooner they know whether they truly like it or not--and then communicate to the world (via Facebook, Twitter or a blog, for example). This helps the company that released the product react, by either increasing or decreasing production. In other words, the sooner a consumer gets a product, the sooner the company can make educated decisions on its supply chain strategy. Until then, they're making million-dollar decisions based on guesstimations.

On the other hand, it opens up the door to the reverse supply chain: a series of activities required to retrieve a used product from a customer and either dispose, recycle or reuse it. For a growing number of industries, reverse supply chains are becoming an essential part of business. In fact, many companies are being forced to set up such a system because of environmental regulations or consumer pressures (back to the first point).

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Adapt or die.

No matter where your company is in the transition to supporting the on-demand economy, the race started long ago--and there are still several laps to go before the finish line. Assess where your organization is in the process, and act fast--or prepare to be beaten out by the competition. Take note of what industry leaders are doing, and find out what solution best fits your own company's needs. Different products and company sizes require different resources, strategies,and execution. At the heart of your strategy, be sure that end-to-end visibility is a cornerstone.


My mom died last week. It was saddest day of my life. My mom was my rock, my best friend, a mirror into which I gazed upon my past, the person I am today, and with any luck, who I just might become.

At 4AM on October 18 my mom took her last breath in my arms. I would have expected the sky to split and time to stand still with a deafening roar. Instead, it was very quiet and small.

My cousins called my mom "tut," short for tete, which is Czech for Aunt. My cousin Colleen arrived just a moment after my mom passed. She pressed her face to my mom's and closed her eyes. "Oh Tut, you've flown away," she said, and I have never found such solace in words before in my life. I like the idea that my mom, the essence of that great, great lady, just flew away into a perennial blue sky on a soft warm breeze.

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Two days after my mom passed we learned my dad needed triple bypass heart surgery...immediately. There was no time to worry--much--and even less time to grieve my mom. Memorial services were postponed as we rallied around my dad. Although I am an only child, I say "we" because as long as I've been back in Wisconsin I have not been alone. My cousins excel at circling the wagons.

I was warned that open-heart surgery at his age, 88, was not a slam-dunk by any stretch. I should prepare for the worst. I could hardly breathe. This couldn't be happening. Mom passed away Tuesday and now I was potentially looking down the barrel of a double memorial. No no no no no.

Pops went into surgery at 8:30AM and was in the ICU by noon. I was allowed to see him at 1PM. My tough old pops had a huge tube coming out of his mouth, which had been taped shut around the tube. His hands were tethered so that he wouldn't inadvertently try to yank out the breathing tube. "Hi pops," I said and his eyelids fluttered open. He blinked a couple of times as if to say hello.

A nurse came in and told me my dad was doing incredibly well. He was still groggy from the anesthesia and until he could stay awake and breathe on his own they needed to leave the breathing tube in. Dad shook his head back and forth, lobbying for the removal of the tube. "Not until you can stay awake and breathe on your own," the nurse repeated before walking out. Pops immediately went back to sleep. What the heck, I figured. Let him sleep.

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By 6 PM they really wanted my dad to stay awake and start breathing on his own. A nurse leaned over my dad and said loudly, directly into his ear, "We need you to stay awake for 45 minutes, Tom. Then we can pull the breathing tube."

He blinked--they were annoyed looking blinks. "Some people like music to keep them awake. Would you like some music to keep you awake?" He nodded, and I swear I saw him roll his eyes. He glanced at me and wagged his index finger. Pops was in the house.

"Good," the nurse chirped. "What kind of music does your dad like?"

"Oh, he LOVES Bruce Springsteen!" I told her. "Bruuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuce!" Pops began violently shaking his head from side to side. The nurse switched on a Christian rock station and set the speaker by my dad's head. He appeared to have a mini seizure.

"Not a fan of Christian rock?" the nurse asked, crestfallen.

"He likes Sinatra," I told her.

She found a Swing and Big Band station and walked out of the room. The Benny Goodman song that had been playing ended, and a program of Billy Holiday classics began. Pops has never been a fan of Lady Day, but I didn't expect him to go berserk. He started to shake, his hands flapping at his sides.

"What is it, dad? Are you in pain?" he shook his head no, and then made crazy rotations with his hands, index fingers pointing out. One finger had a blood oxygen monitor attached to it, which must have signaled danger to the nurse as dad was whipping it around, because she flew into the room and straight to my dad's side.

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"What is it, Mr. Ferderbar? Are you in pain?"

"I already asked him that," I said. Pops began breathing fast, his eyes darting from me to the nurse to the TV screen, which told us we were being treated to an hour of Billie Holiday. He flapped his hands.

"Are you having trouble breathing?" I asked. The nurse told him to calm down, that the breathing tube is uncomfortable, but you can't choke to death. Pops rolled his eyes then began motioning with his right hand, as if he were writing.

"Get him a pen!" I shouted. The nurse handed my dad a pen and pad of paper, but with the monitor on his right index finger, and considering he was tethered at the wrists, all he could do was make swirlies and gibberish, doing most of the writing in thin air.

"Do you need to use the bathroom?" the nurse asked him, and my dad looked at me imploringly...but what was he asking?

"Are you hungry?" I asked. "Thirsty?"

"He can't eat or drink until the breathing tube comes out," the nurse reminded us.

"Maybe he wants to be turned," I offered, and my dad made little fists, which he shook at me as best he could considering he couldn't move his arms. He flung the pen across the room with a flick of his wrist, and then he began "writing" on the bed sheet with his index finger. He wrote deliberately, emphatically, precisely and...angrily?

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The nurse grabbed the pen and pad and told my dad to spell out what he wanted one letter at a time. He looked relieved. The fists relaxed. He slowly drew a letter, as if we were halfwits and it was the first day of Halfwit School.

"A W, hmmm," said the nurse, like we were playing charades. "Are you...wet?"

Dad narrowed his eye to slits, which I knew was his way of saying something very very bad, but which the nurse misinterpreted. "Warm!" she cried out, possibly expecting a prize. "You're too warm!"

Dad went crazy. His whole body shook, his eyes rolled back in head, then he made fists that he shook in the nurse's general direction. He drew the same letter over and over and over, as emphatically as possible. W. W. W. W. W.

"What else starts with W," I asked aloud and red laser beams shot out of my dad's eyes and straight into my face.

Another nurse walked in and asked whether everything was all right. All of pop's monitors were beeping and alarms were going off left and right. He asked the other nurse how long pops had been awake. We looked at the clock. It had been 45 minutes.

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Well, let's get this breathing tube out," he said, and then asked me to leave the room for a moment. When I was summoned to return pops was sitting up in bed.

"Oh, you look so much better," I said. "You really scared me there."

"It was an M," my dad said. "For music. As in 'change the music.' The music that was supposed to keep me awake was putting me in a coma!"

"It looked like you were drawing a W," I said weakly.

"It was an M!"

Pops comes home tomorrow. We'll grieve, and laugh and share memories of my mom--a lot of good stuff that begins with the letter M.
Nick Cave, Until, Mass MoCA

There is nothing so sweet as combining nature and art.

Rearview of new-ish Tadao Ando reflecting pool, Clark Museum of Art, Williamstown, Mass

The last time I wrote about this magical elixir was when Creative Time took over the north end of Central Park in a site specific installation of dancers, sculpture and sailboats.

Nick Cave, Until, Mass MoCA

Last week I had the chance for a day trip to the Berkshires and was able to peep at leaves and at the work of two artists who held their own with colors that popped at Mass Moca --always a dramatic destination--with Nick Cave and Alex Da Corte strutting their stuff.

Alex Da Corte, Free Roses, Mass MoCA,

The museum is a veritable funhouse of fall color easily rivaling the reds, yellows, oranges and greens you can spy through the oversize windows.

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Nick Cave, Until

Cave installed a number of site specific pieces that will take you through a forest of ornaments on your way to a cloud topping Wunderkammer of found objects, ceramics and the contents of his own crazy closet mind reached only by yellow ladders, through woven beads of brightness on your way to a mylar waterfall of pom poms.

Nick Cave, Until

Cave--erstwhile grand puppeteer-- offers these pieces as a reaction to racism and racial profiling, specifically in response to the phrase "innocent until proven guilty" and in solidarity with the stop-and-shoot cases in the news. But you will not necessarily take that more didactic lesson away from this exhibition Until without my telling you. What one gets in the giant gallery is awe at his imagination and his craft.

Nick Cave, Until

Yet Cave hopes it's a change agent as an event space inciting conversation about race as it travels to Australia and the Crystal Bridges Museum (funded by a Walmart heiress--where they could really use some shaking up. Or possibly a line designed by Nick Cave.)

Nick Cave, Until

Alex Da Corte is someone I discovered when he took over the Luxembourg and Dayan gallery in Manhattan. In fact I found that smaller venue gave him a tighter focus that I preferred in his zany, decor-meets-art practice.

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Alex Da Corte, Free Roses

Still, he has a wild and witty approach to the world I find engaging in Free Roses, so called after a fantasy stimulated by a flower seller near his home in Philadelphia. Also riffing on found objects juxtaposed with items integral to daily living, Da Corte remixes, restages, begs, borrows and steals his way through suburbia using carpeting (a favorite element of his), lighting, swans and dogs on tracks, everything you might want in the dwelling of your mind, in Disneyland or as I prefer, in Jean Cocteau's La Belle et la Bete, decorative elements that have a way of coming to life when you least expect it.

Alex Da Corte, Free Roses

I don't want to spoil your experience of these two giant installations, like a good mystery story, I don't want to give away the ending. Or the beginning.
The question more people are asking is how will Hillary be able to unite the country after she is elected. This campaign has made it clearer than ever how divided a nation we are. Donald Trump's incredibly negative and divisive campaign, his speech and his actions, have exacerbated the divisions. We have seen some people take his campaign as permission to model poor behavior voicing their own racism, homophobia, sexism and misogynistic tendencies.

These divisions won't go away or be healed quickly. It will take time, education and rational people in both the Republican and Democratic Party working hard to heal the rifts and allow the country to move forward together. My optimism leads me to believe it can and will happen.

The reason for that optimism is Hillary Clinton. She has a lifetime of experience working to heal rifts and sooth hurt feelings. Actually many women have the same experience in their own lives and their own families.

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One indication of Hillary's ability to succeed is how American's view her every time she is in a position of power or in office. In those situations her approval ratings go up every time. When she was Senator from New York her approval rating was at about fifty-eight percent. It was even higher when she was Secretary of State at around sixty-five percent. When she was First Lady of the United States her approval ratings went up and down often depending on what Bill did but peaked at sixty-seven percent. One must also remember for twenty years she has been voted most admired woman in the world in the Gallup poll.

So Hillary has shown her ability to bring people together and to change their feelings towards her. When she didn't get universal healthcare passed during her husband's administration she didn't give up working for children. It was reported in a Penn Live Oped "Hillary made adoption and foster care one of her priorities. She worked across the partisan aisle, with two unlikely partners: former Republican Minority Whip Tom Delay of Texas and business leader Dave Thomas of Wendy's, a lifelong Republican. Together, they held events at the White House to raise awareness, and built support for legislation that would encourage adoptions, provide more aid for foster families, and help foster children find permanent, safe, loving homes. The first piece of legislation was the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997, which provided support and services for adoptive families, and increased foster adoptions by 64 percent by 2002."

Hillary worked with Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) to get the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) passed. Nick Littlefield, Senator Kennedy's top domestic policy adviser, said, "Hillary was a one-woman army inside the White House to get this done." Even after the new program was signed into law according to David Nexon, Senator Kennedy's former healthcare staff director, "The work wasn't done and Hillary knew it. It was up to the states to make sure low-income children could enroll and receive high-quality care. Hillary worked alongside Republican governors across the country, including Pennsylvania Gov. Ridge, New Jersey Gov. Whitman, and Utah Gov. Leavitt to promote the Insure Kids Now campaign and make sure the children who needed coverage were able to sign up."

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Then when in the Senate Hillary worked with Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and others on healthcare for the National Guard. In 2007 on Voice of America when talking about working across the aisle Graham quipped "that his relationship with Clinton is a good example of that. We have become, actually, good friends. And that was a surprise to both of us."

Hillary like many women tends to be more of a nurturer. She has brought up an amazing daughter and kidded recently even though she will be the Commander-in-Chief she will still be approving the china and flowers for State dinners. She like so many women is tough. But like so many women she is able to share credit or even give credit to others if it will mean achieving her goals.

All one has to do is watch Hillary as the campaign nears its end. She is speaking more of uniting people; Democrats, Republicans and Independents. She understands the difficulty of what she will be up against but I will put my money on Hillary to succeed. 'Stronger Together' is not just a slogan to her; it is her vision for our future, a better future for all.

This column first appeared in the Washington Blade.




by Chris Lester, SAS Information Technology Manager, Client Systems Deployment and Support (and First Sergeant, United States Air Force Reserve)

I come from a family of slightly above average military participation. Both of my grandfathers (and other members of my extended family) served during World War II. Military service has always been in my blood.

I began active duty in 1989 as a military working dog handler in the Air Force.

I left a year early with the intention of pursuing a college degree and returning as an officer - but life had other plans. I always knew I wanted to return to the reserves, and in 1994 I did. I was again doing what I loved to do - even if only part-time - while also doing what I had to as a civilian in a full-time private sector job.

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At the time, I was working as a broadcast announcer where movement is expected and frequent. I relocated with a new radio-related job, and a continued desire to serve my country. This fell apart in just over a year. While I had not even met my annual commitment, "two weeks a year" was proving to be problematic for my then employer. The general manager wanted to get rid of me because of my Reserve duty.

I enjoyed my civilian job, and loved serving my country. But, with a wife and kids to feed I was left with no choice.

I left the Air Force Reserve in 1997.

Ironically, "Corporate Realignment" due to nationwide radio consolidation led to me being let go anyway, just 8 months later.

The instability of radio wasn't for me, or my family. So, I decided to switch gears and pursue a career in Information Technology. While I also wanted to reestablish my Reserve career, I refrained because I assumed most companies would frown upon any military obligations that could take me away from my "real job" - as my previous employer had.

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A friend sent me three job postings for a company called SAS, a private software company in Cary, NC. Having been there a year himself, he had nothing but good things to say about his new employer, and thought I'd be a great fit there.

I was hired at SAS in the summer of 1998. My new career was a blast - I started as a hardware repair technician, quickly adding on responsibilities for new vendor product testing and evolving workplace initiatives. It was hard to believe that a workplace existed where I could in essence bring my hobby to work every day - and offer real business value to boot. Plus, the benefits were amazing, and my colleagues - including management - were like nothing I'd ever experienced in the workplace. I still refer to it as that time that "I zigged when I should have zigged."

Finally Balancing Work, Life and Duty

I needed this (amazing) civilian job, but I had sat on the military sidelines too long. I felt a strong pull to return to the reserves, yet I was still gun shy from the experience with my previous employer. Two of my SAS coworkers (and members of the North Carolina National Guard) assured me that SAS would be supportive of my Reserve duties. This was reassuring, but before I would sit down with a military recruiter, I wanted to let SAS Human Resources know what I was doing and why. The conversation went something like:

SAS HR Manager: "That's fine. And thank you for your desire to serve."

Me: "That's it?"

SAS HR Manager: "I need a copy of your orders if they send you somewhere long term. Otherwise, yes. That's it."



I was floored. Ecstatic. And in the Air Force Reserve recruiter's office the next day.

Gator Sector, Kirkuk Regional Airbase, Iraq. Photo by Ben Werner

Six months after rejoining, I touched down in Southwest Asia for a Joint Expeditionary Tasking; Air Force Security Forces assigned to the 125th Military Police Battalion. Not only was SAS supportive of my 7-month absence, I received care packages, a really nice welcome home party, a plaque thanking me for my service - and, my job... just as I'd left it.

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In 2007, I deployed again - this time to Kirkuk Regional Airbase, Iraq. The care packages continued, and I returned home 8 months later to another cool plaque, another awesome party, and my first daughter - born one month after I had landed in Iraq.

Homecoming at SAS. Photo by John Pochinski.

When I returned from deployment, my lovely little bundle of joy was already in the on-site SAS daycare center.

I'd take off again in July of 2012, to a much less austere location, Incirlik Air Base, Turkey. With many more airmen under my charge, the care packages from my SAS co-workers shifted to them, including powdered Gatorade to mix in our water coolers, helping to fend off the 100+ degree heat on the flight line.

Members of the reserves are encouraged to take care of The Triad: Their family, their civilian employer and the Air Force. I was now lucky enough to work with SAS - an employer that supports its own triad: work, life and duty.

I quickly learned that SAS is committed to - and recognized for - supporting military organizations and veteran employees, as well as committed to hiring veterans, reservists, and members of the National Guard.

Just a few examples include:

Pro Patria Award recipient - SAS was honored with the highest state-level award given to a civilian employer by the Employer Support of Guard and Reserve (ESGR), North Carolina Committee, a Department of Defense program. The award recognizes companies for hiring and supporting reservists and members of the National Guard.

SAS VETS internship program - SAS Veteran Employment, Training and Support provides valuable work experience for military personnel transitioning into the civilian workforce as a student pursuing a degree in IT.

Veteran Recognition - SAS recognizes and thanks employees who have served in the armed services in various ways, including free lunches for veterans, and USO package deliveries in honor of SAS veterans.

Partnership with Enable America - SAS partners with this nonprofit group to offer career mentoring for service veterans. This partnership also focuses on Disability Mentoring Day, which offers disability mentoring and career development for wounded warriors and disabled veterans. SAS recently hosted participants who spent one-on-one time with mentors learning about the business and their mentor's role.

SAS was also involved in the creation of The Veterans Freedom Park in Cary, NC where the company is headquartered. The park features a memorial court of service flags and benches leading up to a stunning 90-foot, white granite spire. The five seals from each branch of the military circle the base of the spire, creating an intimate and inviting space for reflection.

Saying Thanks at 40,000 Feet

This summer, I had the opportunity to say thanks to my employer in a very unique way. I arranged for SAS CIO Keith Collins to participate in the ESGR Boss Lift.

This was a chance for me to invite him to the base, showcase what reservists do, and the missions behind some of those surprise and sometimes inopportune, "Out of Office" emails. Keith attended a mission briefing and then took part in an actual mission aboard a KC-135R "Stratotanker", refueling AWACS aircraft. He still hasn't stopped talking about it.

For me it was the opportunity to put two jobs I love in the same place, at the same time... and maybe even show off a little bit of both.

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Many Christians have abandoned or even oppose the celebration of Halloween, believing it to be linked with pagan darkness. Granted, our culture is drawn to zombies and scary clowns, but the holiday is profoundly Christian in its roots.

At the very heart of Halloween is an understanding of the Communion of Saints. As Christians we acknowledge the eternal nature of souls, and know that we are part of the kingdom of God, just like those who are already in heaven. After all, God's kingdom is not bound by space or time. Liturgical church services acknowledge that communion is participated along with the saints in heaven who celebrate it eternally. This historical understanding is demonstrated in both the Bible and in early Christian documents.



In the early days of the church, death was a very present and obvious part of life. Unlike today, the dying weren't out of sight in hospitals and nursing homes. Christian art in convents and monasteries often included skulls and bones, and death was an accepted topic of meditation. Prayer for the dead was commonplace, and prayer for church martyrs was a regular part of the liturgy.

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The idea for the Feast of All Saints came about during the reign of Emperor Diocletion (284-305AD), who instituted the worst and most extensive of the persecutions. Prior to that time individual martyrs were honored on their own day, typically in a location associated with the person being remembered, using whatever relics were available. But because of the persecution, the sheer numbers of those to be honored grew to the point at which having individual days was not possible. The church therefore formalized the group feast in about 609AD. Sacramentaries from the 9th and 10th centuries list the Feast of All Saints on the liturgical calendar as Nov. 1.

The church taught that Christian martyrdom resulted in sainthood, meaning that martyred souls were immediately received into heaven. The church also taught that entrance into heaven by those who weren't martyred was not necessarily immediate, and that the prayers of Christians on earth helped our departed brethren progress to heaven more quickly.

The sacred art of the Feast of All souls illustrate souls being helped into heaven from the place of fiery purgation which Paul describes in 1 Cor 3, and summarizes in verse 15. As with the Feast of All Saints, the church eventually formalized the existing practice of praying for the souls being prepared for heaven by establishing the Feast of All Souls in about 998AD.

The ancient Jewish practice of beginning the Sabbath celebration on Friday evening evolved within Christianity into vigils before major feasts. This is why we have the Easter Vigil, Christmas Eve services, etc. The vigil for the Feast of All Saints is the night before November 1; October 31. It was called the holy or "hallowed" evening because the feast celebrates the church's holy ones. The term "hallowed evening" was later shortened to Hallowe'en, and eventually to Halloween.

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Customs related to All Saints and All Souls days come from many ages and cultures, for example, ancient Romans enjoyed drinking cider and bobbing for apples. Superstition said that the dead could roam the streets for one night, and in some country parishes, food was set out for visiting spirits and families would recite Psalm 129 (De Profundis, which is still part of the Office of the Dead in the Catholic Church) before going to bed. Someone was assigned to ring a bell throughout the town warning townspeople that it was not safe in the streets because of wandering spirits. Another custom was to bang on pots so that the people in hell would know they weren't forgotten.

The custom of trick-or-treating seems to have evolved from wassailing in Europe. On All Souls Day, English beggars would walk from village to village promising to pray for dead loved ones in exchange for pieces of shortbread with currants for eyes, called "soul cakes". In the middle ages, morality plays were popular, with costumed children acting out the wonders of the beatific vision, the torments of hell, and the frustrations of purgatory. Jack-o-lanterns seem to have come from an old Irish folktale of a miser who's ghost repented of his sins by walking around at night with a lantern carved from a turnip, warning others to change their ways. People began carving his miserly face in turnips to remind themselves of his message. All of these customs transformed over time to today, where costumed children carve pumpkins and go door to door asking for treats.

In our culture, the Christian meaning which has always been present in the celebration of the two hallowed feasts has been stripped away, replaced by a shoddy facade of pretend demons, phony monsters, and ersatz witches. Because of this shift many denominations and Christians no longer pay attention to the communion of saints as we are called to through these feasts. They think that Halloween is a day to celebrate evil, put together by those with nefarious motives. But the solution isn't to replace Halloween with harvest festivals. We need to put the holy back in it, by remembering that we are part of God's mystical body, that we are one body in heaven and on earth, and that as such we cannot be separated by death.
In a world that's constantly developing technology to improve your cup of coffee, stumbling upon a simple, no-frills but ingenious new product is refreshing. When the company in question happens to have a noble goal--in this case, donating water filters to areas in need--it's not only refreshing but inspiring.

Enter Libra Coffee's Pourtables, which hit the market just a few weeks ago. Pourtables are individual disposable pour-over pouches that allow you to make coffee pretty much anywhere. They're also biodegradable. You simply affix the pouch to your cup, tear open the pouch and pour hot water onto the grounds. Since all you need is hot water, they're ideal for camping. But they're also great if you're traveling or simply too busy to brew a proper cup.

Libra Coffee founder Eric Medina says he thought of the idea as he grew increasingly addicted to his phone and found the growing need to unplug by camping and spending time outdoors. But the worst part about camping was the coffee, he says. So he came up with a solution that extends well beyond fulfilling his own needs.

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Libra Coffee donates water filters to the regions where it sources coffee beans. For every bag of coffee you buy through its subscription service, or every 10-pack box of Pourtables, Libra donates $1 to the water filters effort. One filter can provide five years' worth of clean water for 100 people. So far, Libra Coffee has sourced beans from farms in Ethiopia, Colombia and Guatemala, and given filters to the areas around the respective farms.

The single-source coffee in Pourtables comes from a collective of coffee farmers in Colombia. The pouches are available on Libra Coffee's website, as well as on Amazon, and they'll be rolling out at some speciality stores soon.
Maithripala Sirisena, Sri Lanka's president, was already having a bad month. Nevertheless, according to The Daily Mirror, Mr. Sirisena is looking to make things even worse.

Evidently Mr. Sirisena believes that some Sri Lankans -- including the media and those working for nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) -- should refrain from commenting on matters of national security.

Here's part of that Daily Mirror piece: "I have to say this clearly: some media behaved in an unacceptable manner abusing the media freedom that exists today. But, no matter how much they criticize, oppose or attack me, I will never lose confidence in the armed forces and will always be committed to do the utmost for the welfare, honor and dignity of the three armed forces and our heroic soldiers," President Sirisena said.

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Complaints about people abusing the media freedom that exists today? Criticizing journalists and NGOs? Perhaps Mr. Sirisena is searching for his inner Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Quite recently, the head of Sri Lanka's Bribery Commission resigned after Mr. Sirisena criticized it and two other government investigatory bodies. (Widespread corruption was a major reason why Mr. Rajapaksa lost the presidency in January 2015.) Those comments, made earlier this month, caused a storm and Mr. Sirisena has been (rather unsuccessfully) trying to walk them back since that time.
Donald John Trump (DJT) is accomplishing a feat most Kenyans would have thought impossible.

In an accomplishment worthy of a Nobel Peace Prize since he's already bagged the Emmy that eluded him when he was "Head Firer" in the "Apprentice", the Queens-born self-proclaimed billionaire has seamlessly melded and weaved together disparate aspects of Kenya's socio-political landscape while also morphing into a Rorschach Test for the country's 42+.

How so you ask?

Well consider that a major knock on Raila Amolo Odinga's (RAO) legacy has been his inability to graciously accept defeat in elections; always complaining that his victory was "stolen" from him by a system that is "rigged". This perpetual Raila complaint is as much a Trumpism as the expressions "bigly" and "yuge".

While responding to a (hypothetical) question during the last debate against challenger Hillary Clinton whether he would concede the elections were he to lose on November 8, 2016, Mr. Trump wounded his fledgling campaign, most likely mortally, with his Railaesque response. In the setting Las Vegas sun and in true reality TV fashion, Donald Trump offered that he would "look at it at the time" and keep the voters "in suspense" regarding whether he was going to accept the results! Supporters of Jubilee gleefully pointed out the foregoing aspect of the two personalities who are loved and despised in equal parts -- in their respective polities.

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DJT meet RAO

Mr. Trump, who like Kenya's "Prince" Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta (UMK) was born with the proverbial silver spoon in his mouth, has also crossed (Kenya's) political divide and joined President Kenyatta in convincing the working-class voters in their respective country that these two beneficiaries of old money, some of it suspect, are just like them -- blue-collared working-class everyday Americans and Kenyans.

Talk about spinning a yarn!

DJT meet UMK.

Simultaneously, "The Donald" and "Agwambo" have also morphed into "outsiders" supposedly fighting the "corrupt" and "entrenched insiders". I could be wrong but isn't Uhuru Kenyatta, son of Kenya's first president, political project of its second and godson of Mwai Kibaki -- its third president -- the ultimate "insider"?

To his rabid supporters, UMK is "a good man surrounded by 'bad' people".

Unfortunately for "outsiders" DJT and RAO, they have also partaken in the avarice that is endemic in DC and NBI respectively. Both Trump and Odinga have been accused of avoiding taxes and the ubiquitous KOT (Kenyans on Twitter) quickly paired the hashtag #RailaAnotherTramp with the labels "tax cheat" and "sore loser". For his part, the "good man" "Kamwana" as Uhuru is also called, has "only" presided over the most corrupt government in Kenya's history -- a remarkable feat by any measure.

With apologies to Thomas Frank, what IS the matter with Kansas and Kenya?

As previously written, Donald Trump's nationalistic, xenophobic, ethnocentric and faux patriotic rhetoric that unabashedly advocates the "otherization" of opponents may as well have been plagiarized from Uhuru Kenyatta's playbook. At a minimum, DJT's dog whistles to the party faithful harkens to the School of Socio-Political Discourse embodied by UMK's Rudy Giuliani, one Moses Kuria who supposedly tells "it" like "it" is, is "real" and eschews "political correctness" while displaying blissful ignorance about their respective country's history.

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There is also startling congruency between Trump's and Kenyatta's take on "law & order". While the two leaders tout their support for the "men in blue", they do so while disregarding police misconduct even in the face of overwhelming (video) evidence. Gross police misconduct in Kenya was on vivid display during the anti-IEBC protests just as it was in Ferguson, Cleveland, New York, and Tulsa. At least one can argue that there is a modicum of due process for victims of law enforcement overreach in America with some very specific and punitive outcomes as seen in Ferguson and Cleveland and most recently, San Francisco.

The same cannot be said for Kenyans who have been on the receiving end of police batons and bullets.

Given the rhetoric (of denial) by folks such as Sophie Wanuna who incredibly proclaim that none of the anti-IEBC protestors lost their lives due to violent police response, these Kenyan victims like their PEV brethrens will be waiting for a very long time for justice.

I won't even get into a discussion about extra-judicial killings, also implicating Kenya's law enforcement AND the country's leadership.

Finally, in seeking to "take their country back" thus revising AND reversing America's journey towards a "more perfect union"; away from the "Whites Only/Coloreds Only" public facilities, slavery and lynch mobs, Donald Trump and his supporters synced up quite well with Uhuru Kenyatta's Shujaa Day speech. In the October 20th address celebrating Kenya's heroes of yore, Mr. Kenyatta failed to recognize his father Jomo's nemesis Jaramogi Oginga Odinga. For those who don't know Kenya's history, Jaramogi forewent the opportunity to become Kenya's first president, demanding first Jomo Kenyatta's release from unlawful detention. Kenyans know how Jaramogi's magnanimity played out.

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Uhuru also refused to acknowledge Tom Mboya, the man who singularly created the pipeline of students between Kenya and America that indirectly yielded one Barack Hussein Obama. For all his planning and organizational skills not to mention "post-tribal" outlook, Mboya was assassinated, reportedly on orders by Jomo or those close to him.

Finally, Mr. Kenyatta did not acknowledge his current rival oftentimes "Brother" and multi-partyism stalwart Raila Odinga.

Talk about being thin-skinned or vindictive or both. However, given his father's dark role in Kenya's history, with two of the three "shujaas" no less, I totally understand why UMK would seek to revise the country's history.

So, let's all take a minute and acknowledge Donald Trump's uncanny ability to unify the diametrically opposed and multi-layered sides of Kenya's socio-political environ just as he has galvanized opponents of racism, misogyny, religious intolerance and overall boorishness here in America.

RAO/UMK meet DJT.
Mother and baby

I recently heard from a woman so fearful about sperm bank repercussions that she wouldn't make a phone call to the Donor Sibling Registry (DSR) for fear of having the call somehow traced by her sperm bank, and she even opened up an anonymous email address just to ask me about signing up to the DSR and contacting her donor.

She included this sperm bank contract verbiage:

Purchaser agrees that Purchaser has no right to learn the identity of a donor and will not, directly or indirectly through a third party, make any attempt to contact a donor.

This appears to be no more than a fear tactic, as we know of no one ever sued by a sperm bank/clinic for reaching out to their donor (by a parent) or to their biological father/mother (by a donor conceived person) either via the DSR or through any other method. (We have 16 years of experience and more than 52,000 members on the DSR.)

Many egg and sperm donors and recipient parents have been told by their doctors, clinics, agencies and sperm banks that there are laws prohibiting donors and parents/offspring from connecting. Recently, a parent signed up to the Donor Sibling Registry who used Cryogenic Laboratories (Fairfax/GIVF/CLI, shipping to Canadian and worldwide clinics), saying, "if the laws change, this donor might be willing to meet his offspring." When I questioned her about it, she said that she was told by CLI that there were laws prohibiting contact between donors and families.

There have never been any laws that prohibit contact between genetic relatives formed via gamete donation. Any such agreement signed by recipients and donors forbidding contact is therefore inoperative.

An attorney who is also a donor conceived person weighs in on the topic:

Family law trumps contact law: Family law always puts the best interest of the child before all. A parent can't sign a contract that restricts what is in the best interest of the child. No court would rule against this as it's unenforceable.

It would seem that the sperm banks and egg clinics who continue to spread this false information have done so only to protect their own liabilities. For example, if a sperm bank promises donors or families a limit of 10 or 20 children per donor, revelations that the actual number is in many cases considerably higher (in one known example, around 200) would shed light on the gross shortcomings of their record keeping. If medical issues are reported to an egg clinic or sperm bank and not shared among families, or if the sale of gametes from which serious medical issues are known continues to be sold and sick children are born, the subsequent facility liability could be severe.

As a donor I updated my medical records between donations. They did not pass those updates on to previous recipients NOR recipients that came after those updates. I only know that because a family that came after that insisted on contact. She showed me all of the info she had gotten on me. Those updates were not included. Any of the updates I have done since have not been passed on to her either.

There is also the risk that families might discover that donors were not necessarily honest with self-reported health and education information they reported on their donor profiles.

All of these scenarios are frequently encountered by families on the Donor Sibling Registry, underscoring the need for honesty, accurate record keeping, and accountability by sperm banks and egg clinics. These facilities need to stop falsely threatening families and donors who wish to reach out to one another. Mutual consent contact can be made between any of the parties, at any time. Connecting with first degree genetic relatives via the DSR, social media, Google or DNA testing is completely legal.

It's time for these egg and sperm selling facilities to stop working so hard to keep donors and recipients from each other, and start supporting and promoting contracts that allow contact right from the start on the Donor Sibling Registry.

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What Does A Relationship With The Donor Sibling Registry Do For Your Sperm Bank/Egg Clinic/Agency?



CONTACT: The issue of contact between the donor and the recipient family (and half-sibling families) is removed from the hands and focus of the facility. Messages, photos and medical information can be shared, all while remaining private.

CONSENT: Since the DSR relies on mutual consent; the facility doesn't need to be worried about protecting anyone's privacy.

CHOICE: Each party can remain anonymous if they choose, so the decision is ultimately in the hands of those involved. Each party can decide how much information they're comfortable sharing.
New York, NY USA - July 16, 2016: Donald Trump speaks during introduction Governor Mike Pence as running for vice president at Hilton hotel Midtown Manhattan

This piece was originally printed in The Hill in the Contributor Blog on October 20, 2016

There is one thing I agree with Reince Priebus about this Presidential election. Priebus, the Republican National Committee Chairman, said this election presents a "binary choice."

He's right and the choice before us could not be more clear.

On the one side we have Donald Trump -- a nationalistic-strongman demagogue with non-democratic instincts. Trump pits American against American, denigrates women (and we thought it couldn't get any worse, but it has), African-Americans, the disabled, his opponents, those who disagree with him, blames Mexicans and Muslims for our problems and has called for restrictions on free speech and press.

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Our First Amendment is what distinguishes America from all others. No country has as free a media and as strong a free speech right as America and Donald Trump wants to limit and reduce your right to free speech and press. And perhaps most troublesome of all, through his dog-whistle rhetoric, he has legitimized the white nationalist movement through his policy ideas and by not strongly denouncing them clearly and regularly.

And by the way, he has no coherent policy agenda to address the challenges facing America. But he does have a nice campaign slogan.

On the other side we have Hillary Clinton, who does not denigrate, does not spew hate speech, is accepting of all Americans for all our faults, is a strong and clear supporter of American democracy interests at home and abroad and has a clear and coherent policy agenda for addressing the challenges facing the U.S. and the world. And her campaign slogan is pretty good too.

Make no mistake, she has flaws. After more than 40 years in the media spotlight as the spouse of a governor, the First Lady of the country, a Senator and most recently Secretary of State we know her well including her strengths and weaknesses. But Hillary is no Donald Trump. She believes in the democratic traditions, laws and norms we have built over 220 years and will preserve them, not break them as Trump has told us he will.

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The clearest and most irrefutable example of Trump's danger to our country was revealed at the last debate when he threatened to put Hillary Clinton in jail if he won the Presidency. Any analysis of his statements disqualifies him for office - any office. First, it is a clear violation of our democratic principles. Electoral winners in America do not punish political opponents. It may go on in Russia, China and South America, but not in the United States. But perhaps worst - it is an impeachable offense -- of which he does not even understand why. This is what Nixon would have been impeached for had he not resigned - directing independent federal offices to take actions regardless of due process, law and the constitutional right of a presumption of innocence. Trump has already decided she is guilty because he did not just say he would have the Department of Justice appoint a special prosecutor (this is a decision solely for the DoJ to make), but he said "you'd be in jail" if he was President.

Donald Trump is the most extreme candidate for President we have seen, certainly in any of our lifetimes, perhaps in our history.

Defying a century of action, Trump's policies would destroy our leadership in the world by isolating the U.S. by ripping up trade compacts, treating our allies and friends and our international security obligations like pay for play schemes, encouraging nuclear weapons proliferation and ordering U.S. soldiers to engage in torture and the killing of innocent women and children.

While demonstrating a lack of understanding and support for democratic values, he also praises and expresses admiration for the worst global tyrants. Most glaring is his fondness for Vladimir Putin, who has destroyed the burgeoning Russian democracy that emerged after the collapse of Communism. While no longer a communist nation, Russia today is as cruel as ever. Its international behavior is as brutal and its economy is as unfair as the days of Stalin. But not to be outdone, he has also praised the brutal leadership of Communist China, Saddam Hussein and has even praised North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un. At one point he said of Syrian's leader Bashar al-Assad, "I think in terms of leadership, he's getting an A and our president is not doing so well."

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What is it that draws Trump to these leaders? It is their dictatorial rule of their countries. They are the law. This is not the American way. As Nixon demonstrated, no President is above the law.

We are a nation of laws. Trump likes dictators.

If Trump is elected, our democracy will be at risk.

RNC Chairman Priebus is right - this election is a binary choice and the only choice is clear - it is Hillary Clinton, unless you favor risking our democracy.

###
When I reviewed The Da Vinci Code ten years ago, I found the feature adaptation of Dan Brown's best-selling novel beset with glacial pacing and a decidedly un-cinematic structure. Despite my many qualms, director Ron Howard and star Tom Hanks (turning in his usual thoroughly reliable performance as Brown's hero, Harvard Professor Robert Langdon), certainly weren't among Da Vinci's problems. When the pair reunited three short years later for follow-up Angels & Demons (based on Brown's first Langdon novel), it seemed to mostly address the pacing problems of the previous installment, and I found it mostly engrossing (albeit mostly forgettable too).

So, two movies in, I was fifty-fifty on this series. And now, after an extended seven-year gap, Hanks and Howard are back once more for Inferno, an adaptation of Brown's 2013 novel of the same name. Featuring a script by David Koepp (going solo after co-writing Angels with Akiva Goldsman), this third entry boasts the usual panoply of ancient mysteries, elaborate puzzles, and beautiful travelogue shots of several European locales, but also gives a greater sense of who Langdon is as a character, filling in his backstory to the extent that we actually feel something for him beyond the normal fondness that Hanks effortlessly engenders.

As the film begins, Dr. Langdon lies in a hospital bed in Florence, Italy. Suffering memory loss following a concussion, he has no idea how he ended up in Italy, or why an assassin just showed up at the hospital trying to kill him. Making his escape with the help of Dr. Sienna Brooks (Felicity Jones), Langdon finds that he's in possession of the first in a series of clues pointing the way to a deadly virus (called "Inferno") set to be released in a matter of days, that will signal a cataclysmic, extinction-level culling of the human race. With his memory still on the fritz, Langdon must work with Brooks to find the virus, all the while evading the arrayed forces trying to capture and/or kill him.

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As I said up-top, a big part of the charm for these movies is simply having Tom Hanks being dependably Tom Hanks. However, with the extended gap between the second film and this one, I was kind of surprised at how altogether welcome it was to see him slip back into this, his one and only franchise role. That Langdon isn't an action hero in the traditional sense, that he gets by on quick thinking and book smarts is also a pleasant switch from what we're conditioned to expect, and it also helps keep the character engaging even as the sixty-year old Hanks enters his second decade playing the character.

Speaking of Hanks' age, given the yawning chasm between the two players actuarially, I was also relieved that the filmmakers refrained from doing the usual Hollywood thing and playing Brooks as a potential love-interest for Langdon. That said, Jones does get plenty to do above and beyond her role as a sounding board for the professor (as well as those of us in the audience, natch). In addition to Jones, there are also memorable supporting turns by Omar Sy, Ben Foster, and the always-watchable Irrfan Khan, who's managed to build a heck of a career stateside these past few years in addition to his massive Bollywood stardom.

As to the whole ticking clock as we build-up to the climax, it pays off in a satisfying enough way (though if you're coming at this as a fan of the book, be warned that the entire third act is a massive swerve from the original). We've now had three Robert Langdon movies over ten years, and of those, Inferno is unquestionably the best. While it may not be particularly earth-shattering, or even stay with you once you leave the theater, it is a reasonable approximation of the kind of pulpy page-turner that keeps folks occupied in airport terminals as they await their flights. As Jones says part-way through the film, "It's nice to have you back, professor." It's weird how thoroughly I agree with that sentiment. B

For more movie talk, including an interview with director/star Ewan McGregor about his new film American Pastoral, be sure to check out the latest episode of the MovieFilm Podcast at this link or via the embed below. If you like what you hear, hit subscribe and leave a review!
Music Publishing News Roundup 10.27.16: Songwriters Hall Of Fame  Grammys In My District  EMI vs. MP3tunes

The Songwriters Hall announced the list of nominees for the 2017 Songwriters Hall of Fame, including Max Martin, Madonna, and Jay Z. If inducted, Jay Z would become the first rapper to enter the prestigious music organization.

Five songwriters or songwriting groups will be officially inducted at a gala in New York in June of 2017. Other performing nominees include Cat Stevens, Sly Stone, Chicago, and Gloria Estefan.

The Recording Academys third-annual Grammys in My District event brought over 2,000 creators to 315 Congressional district offices. Musicians and artists such as Cyndi Lauper, Rodney Darkchild Jerkins, and Terence Blanchard are leading the charge to attend meetings at the offices of local elected officials to air their concerns and issues directly into lawmakers ears. Daryl Friedman, the Academys chief industry, government, and member relations officer, said, you have Congress in the process of a six-year copyright review where they're looking at all aspects of the Copyright Act, and they're coming up on the final two years of that review. That sets the stage now for action."





A U.S. appeals court ruled that the record companies and music publishers of the former EMI Group can pursue additional copyright infringement claims against MP3tunes. The now defunct online music storage firms founder Michael Robertson was ordered to pay $12.2 million after a federal jury found him liable for copyright infringement in 2014. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York rejected his appeal.

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The Digital Single Market is a priority for the European Commission, but national interests are taking precedence over pan-European idealism at the cost of e-government progress.

The UK is lagging behind its European competitors on digital government, according to management consultancy Capgemini, while national interests are slowing down progress towards the Digital Single Market.

CapGemini assessed 34 European governments progress towards digitising their services for its eGovernment 2016 Benchmark report, carried out on behalf of the European Commission  Future-proofing eGovernment for a Digital Single Market. The report, published earlier this month, uses metrics including the availability and usability of public services online, government transparency and how much control citizens have of their data.

With the Digital Single Market set down as a priority for the Juncker administration in Brussels, theres also some bad news, as the report warns:

Today, however, there are still many barriers to maximising its potential and which confine digital services within national borders, leaving users unable to use cross-border online services efficiently and smoothly. The cross-border mobility indicator is not yet even half way to being fully achieved. The low rate of 48% indicates that online cross-border transactions are rare.

In large part this is because national interests take priority over pan-European ones:

The past years of benchmarking eGovernment show that cross-border services lag significantly behind national services. The gap currently is 24 percentage points, implying that the availability and quality of services on offer to non-residents is inadequate. Studying in another country in many cases still includes paper application processes and face-to-face encounters before being able to commence.

There has to be a paradigm shift here, argues the report:

If it works across borders, it will automatically work within a country. Interoperability is crucial here: if online services are put in place with other countries (electronic IDs, sharing and re-using data in back offices etc.), it automatically means they are in place for national service providers. This would require countries to agree on and use the same interoperability standards for sharing and re-using data (perhaps through a central component for data exchange). It would be the source of different dynamics within national eGovernment operations but could provide the lever to really move forward, instead of progressing incrementally as we have seen over the past years.

The report cites the key challenge for governments as being to deliver the potential of the Digital Single Market by successfully collaborating and joining-up across domains and tiers and borders. This has some particular challenges:

Some countries are smaller in size and therefore can use a relatively direct governance model (e.g. Malta), or have adopted a centralised model, whereby one organisation owns a clear mandate to lead the implementation of its eGovernment strategy (e.g. Denmark, Estonia). This is not generally the case in Europe, nor easy to realise. Countries vary in size and in democratic traditions, are organised differently and are hence more dependent on cross-agency collaboration to get things done.

Performers

The UK is classed as a moderate performer in the lowest grouping of countries in the report along with most of eastern and southern Europe. Countries in northern and western Europe are classed as either a steady performer or accelerator. That results in what Capgemini describes as a Digital Diagonal across Europe  with the UK on the wrong side of it.

To be fair, the UK does do well in some areas. It comes in second for mobile readiness of its e-government services, behind Iceland, and does well in user centricity and cross-border mobility:

Most countries do not apply a consistent approach to design mobile-friendly public sector websites across domains and leave opportunities to make services and information available through mobiles unused. Most countries are much more advanced in the user centricity of their websites than mobile friendliness. Only the UK manages to provide mobile-friendly websites across domains, and is therefore also able to open up the online information and services to mobile internet users. Many other countries do not provide their users with mobile-friendly interfaces, and so hinder users access to information any time, any place. This is information that is already online. It seems a missed opportunity that is definitely worth exploring  as the number of mobile internet users is increasing exponentially.

Where the UK struggles is with the limited rollout of the Verify authentication system for e-government services. Verify is intended to allow people to use online services with a single-sign on for services across government and providing secure access to personal data.

Overall, European governments are making progress with an average score of 73% in user-centricity, up by 3% on the previous year. But only one in four websites are sufficiently mobile friendly, and transparency is still unsatisfactory with a ranking of just 51%. The report states:

The results indicate year-on-year progress across all the European countries compared. There is, however, a big difference between the compound indicators, with much better performances for usability and online availability of services than for the ease and speed of using those services. This shows that many Member States are not focusing enough on the quality of the users experience. Despite progress in general (low growth of 3 percentage points), public authorities in Europe still have some way to go to reach acceptable transparency standards. The transparency of public organisations data stands out by being 10 points above the average. It is also positive that users have gained better access to personal data that is handled on the governments websites, but they still face considerable barriers when it comes to the clarity of the service delivery process.

My take

A very in-depth report from Capgemini that rewards some detailed attention. The conclusions are a combination of encouraging and discouraging, but present a frank and pragmatic assessment that is more useful than the self-promoting declarations of how great everything is that comes too often from the political class.

Source: http://diginomica.com/2016/10/24/europes-e-government/
It's critical to help clients make the most of the plans they have
Dan Higgins, Mary Wheat, Joel Huntington, Linda Tyer, Deb Bolesky.

Republic Services Donates $1,000, Food to South Congregational Pantry



Dan Higgins of Republic Service, pantry organizers Mary Wheat, the Rev. Joel Huntington, Mayor Linda Tyer, and Deb Bolesky of Republic Services on Thursday. PITTSFIELD, Mass.  Republic Services donated $1,000 and boxes and boxes of food to the South Congregational Food Pantry on Thursday.

The money will go toward buying more food, particularly meat and vegetables, and the company restocked the starches, with dozens of boxes of pasta, macaroni and cheese and the like.

The church served a total of 588 families last month, the highest it has seen, and the organizers expect even more with the onset of winter.

The pantry is open to all residents in Berkshire County and provides food to hundreds of people in need. Huntington and Wheat said the volunteer-run program works as a way to supplement the income of many who struggle to keep up with the bills. Providing the food allows for people to use their limited resources to paying rent, heating, or other bills.

"Most of these people work but they don't make enough to make ends meet," Wheat said.

The program dates back some 26 years when the church was handing out just bags of food. It later joined the Western Massachusetts Food Bank, which sends the church 38,000 pounds of food every month. The program rose from serving 60 families to now approaching 600.

Wheat said the growth in numbers is both because there is more need and that the program is now more know.

"It keeps growing," Wheat said.

Republic Services is the city's contracted trash hauler which routinely makes donations to organizations and programs in the city including past donations to the Berkshire Community Action Council, the Boy Scouts, the Christian Center, the Crane Memorial Center, the Marilyn Hamilton Literacy Program, the Rites of Passage Empowerment Program, Youth Alive, the 4th of July Parade, the Farmer's Market and even to replace decorations on the city's Christmas tree.

"We know there are many needs in the community and each year we work in partnership with the city to identify where we can have the biggest impact on those at risk. The South Congregational Food Pantry needs all of our support, especially at this time of the year when the need is critical for hundreds of families," said Dan Higgins, the company's Northeast Area Municipal Services Manager.

The $1,000 came from the company while the food was donated by the employees. Tyer said the donation comes at the right time.

"We are standing here and the snow is falling and we know that as Thanksgiving approaches and Christmas comes more and more families are going to be in need," Tyer said.

All of the proceeds will go toward the food because the operations are all volunteer with last month 72 volunteers put in more than 1,000 hours to the program.



Rev. Joel Huntington helps carry in the boxes of food donated by Republic Services. "We have hundreds of volunteers and we all work together," the Rev. Joel Huntington said. "It is so energizing to be here."

Not only does the church run the pantry throughout the year but also is the host of the annual Thanksgiving angels program. That is a completely separate food program with volunteers and other donations to provide Thanksgiving meals to hundreds of local families. This year that is scheduled for Nov. 21 from noon until 6 p.m.

Huntington added that at the church, the volunteers also have clothing available, bring in health services, and has service agencies in to help sign people up for other assistance  a particular benefit for those who may not have vehicles to get to those organizations.

"It's sort of one-stop shopping," Huntington said.

While the church and the mayor thanked Republic Service profusely for the gift, Higgins said the company is just happy to be making a difference.

"We appreciate our partnership with the city and we feel really special being involved in supporting you. It is incredible how you support the community each day," Higgins said. "We are happy to support you and make a difference."
Those without EZ Pass transponders are subject to a .30 fee per gantry they pass under by the pay-by-plate system.

E-ZPass Website Overloaded With Applications Ahead of All-electronic Tolling

PITTSFIELD, Mass.  The state Department of Transportation is overloaded with applications for E-ZPass transponders.

The all-electronic tolling goes into effect on Friday. But the state's website had become so overloaded with requests at times that it crashes. MassDOT is now setting up in-person locations to get people signed up and launched a grace period to refund any additional fees incurred during the rollout.

At the Lee Service Plaza, eastbound between Exits 1 and 2, this weekend MassDOT will be on hand to process transponder applications. State Rep. Tricia Farley-Bouvier is using her office to collect the paper applications, which MassDOT is collecting every day. The applications are also available at the registry and at AAA locations.

"The online access has been extremely difficult," Farley-Bouvier said on Wednesday. "It is just jammed with so many people trying to do it."

Once a customer gets the transponder it takes some five days for the online account to be actived. Farley-Bouvier said to alleviate some of the issues, the department has crafted a fee forgiveness program.

Motorists without E-ZPass accounts will be billed by license plate; for those who haven't signed up yet or whose accounts are not yet active, include an application or account information when paying the bill to receive credit for overpayment. The fees are 30 cents per gantry, meaning a one-way trip could cost a Berkshire driver as much as $11.20 between the pay-by-plate fees and the regular tolls.

"There is an opportunity to get that extra fee waived," Farley-Bouvier said. "These fees will be adjusted to the regular Mass E-ZPass rate."

The grace period is expected to be active for six months.

Farley-Bouvier said her office will be active in helping constituents through that process as well. Despite so much of a backlog now, which has grown from just three days to more than a week to get the transponders activated, and a vendor struggling to keep up with demand, Farley-Bouvier said the program will be rolled out as planned.

The toll workers already know when their last day ends  at 10 p.m. Friday night there won't be anyone to take the tolls  and the contracts and timeline for the demolition of the toll booths have already been scheduled.

"To push it back would make the problem worse," Farley-Bouvier said. "I am approaching this as a constituent service issue."

The existing tolling websites will be shut down and the new website will be activated in conjunction with the "go live" date for all-electronic tolling.

"As of Saturday, when the new system comes online, there is more bandwidth so it will be easier," Farley-Bouvier said.

The scrambled to ensure all can sign up or activating the new accounts isn't the first problem with the roll out of the tolling system. Farley-Bouvier said earlier this summer she had constituents who signed up for the transponders at the Farmer's Market only to have them not be activated quick enough. That led the customers to take the E-ZPass lane expecting the tolls to be taken out of their account balance and instead received fines approaching $100 for a round trip.

"They were fined as if they didn't take a ticket," she said.
Hickson Rejoins Berkshire Bank as SVP Commercial Regional President

PITTSFIELD, Mass.  Jim Hickson has rejoined Berkshire Bank as senior vice president/commercial regional president for the Pioneer Valley and Connecticut markets.



In his new role, Hickson will focus on growing the Commercial Lending Business, as well as, expanding relationships with products and services offered through the bank's other business lines, including wealth management, private banking, insurance and retail banking.



Hickson brings to the bank more than 26 years of financial experience. His previous roles include Commercial Banking Team Leader for People's United, SVP ABL Relationship Manager Berkshire Bank, and also held positions within TD Bank, KPMG Consulting and Fleet Capital.



"We are very pleased to have Jim return to the bank in this new role. Jim's appointment further demonstrates our commitment to the Pioneer Valley and will enable Berkshire to continue to develop our already strong presence in Connecticut, under the direction of SVP, commercial regional leader Peter Samson," said senior executive vice president of commercial banking George Bacigalupo.



Hickson holds a bachelor's degree from Boston College and an MBA from Boston University. He is board chair and president of the Board of Directors for Common Capital, a board member for the New England Certified Development Corporation, and serves on the Wilbraham Friends of Recreation. Jim resides in Wilbraham with his wife and three daughters.




iciHaiti - Social : Vale timoun yo a project of 1,8 million Euros





Wednesday, the European Union and its partners: the international organization AVSI, the Institute of Welfare and Research, the National Commission for Justice and Peace, the Organization for the Promotion of Young and Children in difficulty closed the project "Vale Timoun yo" a public-private partnership for the protection of children in armed groups and other cases of violence in Haiti, funded to the tune of 1,8 million euros by the European Union.



This project allowed to strengthen the child protection system in several poor neighborhoods of the capital, particularly in Cite Soleil and Martissant. Through the intervention of therapists and social workers in different environments including schools, family and prisons, the project has helped to identify and respond to many cases of violence against children. Other project benefits include support of 900 abused children, 500 children associated with armed groups, 100 women, family head and 100 young girls mothers in the most insecure areas of the capital. In addition, 700 other children were educated and a psychosocial support was provided to 400 families. More than 2,400 children within ten schools will be better protected thanks to the adoption of a code of conduct.



IH/ S/ iciHaiti


















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
The 10 Best Places for Bird Watching in Israel this Migration Season

The Fellowship | October 28, 2016

Every year some 5,000 birders visit Israel, as its location at the crossroads of three continents  Europe, Asia, and Africa  brings feathered friends from all over the world.

While youre likely to see between 80 and 110 species of birds in the skies over Israel even during the off-season, during the two major annual migrations  in the spring and fall  you can expect to see up to 200 species of birds.

Israel21c recently compiled a list of the 10 best places to see the migrating birds this fall, including:

Hula Valley Bird Watching Center

One of the countrys prime birdwatching spots, the Hula Valley  located between the Golan Heights and the Naftali Ridge  is a must stopover on any bird tour of Israel. The center specializes in ringing demonstrations, birding tours and educational activities.

Twitchers can check off black storks, egrets, cranes, spoonbills, Pallass gulls, pied kingfishers, black francolin, Dead Sea sparrow and clamorous reed warblers at this birding center. Try to visit during the International Hula Valley Bird Festival in November, though its beautiful all year round. Theres a handicapped accessible boardwalk available.
Prime Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Groysman during a meeting with French business representatives has urged the businessmen to invest in Ukraine.

"Invest in Ukraine, earn profit, reinvest it and be successful, while we will do our best to promote this," Groysman said at the opening of the French-Ukrainian business forum in Paris.

The premier said the priority fields for investment are energy, machine building, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, IT, wood processing, light industry and infrastructure.

He said government has established an ongoing dialogue with businessmen to understand its daily issues and respond to emerging difficulties.

"Volodymyr Groysman said economic growth is renewing in Ukraine. According to him, international trade in the country has risen by 25%," the report reads.
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Ukraine has issued UAH 721.236 million (about $28.25 million) in fines for Russian airlines flights to the annexed Crimea in violation of Ukrainian and international laws, Ukraine's State Aviation Service has told Interfax-Ukraine.

Since the annexation of Crimea by Russia, Ukraine has issued over 5,000 acts to fine the Russian airlines.

However, "not a single kopeck" of the fines has been paid by the Russian air carriers, the Ukrainian regulator said.

As was reported, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on September 16, 2015, enacted a decision by the National Security and Defense Council dated September 2, 2015, on individual special economic sanctions and other restraints. Russian airlines, including the giant Aeroflot, are also on the sanction list.

Namely, the sanctions were introduced against 224 Letny Otryad (The 224th Flight Unit), VIM Avia, Gazprom Avia, Donavia, Kogalymavia, Orenburg Airlines, Polet, Red Wings, Rossiya, RusJet, RusLine, S7, Transaero, Ural Airlines, Yakutia, Yamal, and others.

Ukraine's government also endorsed a ban on flights by the abovementioned Russian airlines from September 25, 2015. Sanctioned are 29 Russian airlines, including 27 who unlawfully flew to annexed Crimea and two Ukrainian companies, which were "nationalized" by the so-called "government of the temporarily occupied Crimea."

Poroshenko has recently issued an order to expand the list of the sanctioned airlines from Russia.
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The actor-director can be seen reprising his role in Going Places, a remake of French comedy Les Valseuses (1974). The film tells the story of two petty thieves who attempt to couple with a woman hoping to experience her first orgasm (yes, that is the plot).

Quintana is said to be one of the two central characters - unsettling considering Big Lebowski character Walter Sobchak (John Goodman) references his sexual deviancy.

The official synopsis reads: John Turturro plays Jesus Quintana in Going Places, a film about a trio of misfits whose irreverent, sexually charged dynamic evolves into a surprising love story as their spontaneous and flippant attitude towards the past or future backfires time and again, even as they inadvertently perform good deeds. When they make enemies with a gun-toting hairdresser, their journey becomes one of constant escape from the law, from society and from the hairdresser, all while the bonds of their outsider family strengthen.

Going Places co-stars Bobby Cannavale, Audrey Tatou and Susan Sarandon. No other characters from The Big Lebowski are expected to show up despite Jeff Bridges recently admitting he'd be up for playing "a little cameo" of The Dude in the future.

John Turturro in 'Going Places'

Turturro memorably appeared in one scene of the 1998 film which saw him bowling to the Gipsy Kings' version of "Hotel California" before uttering the immortal line: "Nobody f*cks with the Jesus.

No release date has yet been set.
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Ever since Daniel Craig made those infamous comments - "I'd rather slash my wrists than play James Bond again" - people have been speculating over who could replace him as 007.

Actor Roger Moore, who once played the spy, has since revealed who he wants to play the next incarnation of the character.

I do think [Poldark actor] Aidan Turner looks very good, he told TalkRadio, according to the Huffington Post. Moore also said Tom Hiddleston would be a good choice, praising The Night Manager actors work with UNICEF, a charity both stars have championed.

Moore also revealed who he wouldnt want playing Bond, saying it could never be a female: You could have a female, a Jane Bond, but it would have nothing to do with James Bond. No, Bond is Bond.

Earlier this year, Gillian Anderson put her name forward to be the next Bond, while the likes of Idris Elba, Jamie Bell, and Charlie Hunnam are thought to be Sonys favourites if Craig leaves the series.

The eight contenders to be the next James Bond Show all 9 1 /9 The eight contenders to be the next James Bond The eight contenders to be the next James Bond Jamie Dornan, 36 PA The eight contenders to be the next James Bond Aiden Turner, 35 The eight contenders to be the next James Bond Idris Elba, 45 Getty The eight contenders to be the next James Bond Michael Fassbender, 41 Getty The eight contenders to be the next James Bond Luke Evans, 39 Luke Evans Getty The eight contenders to be the next James Bond Jamie Bell, 32 Jamie Bell Getty The eight contenders to be the next James Bond Charlie Hunnam, 38 Getty The eight contenders to be the next James Bond Tom Hiddleston, 37 The eight contenders to be the next James Bond James Norton, 32 BBC

However, whether he will depart remains up in the air: Craig recently told fans he loved playing the spy, a U-turn on his previous comments.

Recently, the head of Britains Secret Intelligence Service, Alex Younger, said James Bond would never become an MI6 officer in real life, calling the character immoral.
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Theres only a couple of months to go before Martin Scorseses new offering Silence opens in cinemas and we still havent seen a trailer or even any footage from it.

The director is apparently still toiling away in the editing room, but while he isnt ready to go public with a teaser, some clips were shown to press by Paramount last night.

Variety reports that they had a hallucinatory quality, involving shots of a gaunt Liam Neeson dropping to his knees in prayer, images of Japanese men being hung on crosses, and cloud-flecked vistas of stunning mountainous countryside.

Neeson plays the films Jesuit missionary protagonist, with Adam Driver and Andrew Garfield co-starring.

Early Oscars 2017 contenders Show all 19 1 /19 Early Oscars 2017 contenders Early Oscars 2017 contenders La La Land Whiplash director Damien Chapelle opens this years Venice Film Festival with this original musical starring Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling as a couple of dreamers trying to make it big in Hollywood: she, a lonely aspiring actress; he, a cocky jazz pianist. The trailer promises a neon-soaked, dreamy take on the classic Golden Age musical, all big-hearted romance and wholesome glamour. Expect La La Land to explore some darker emotional territory alongside all the toe-tapping, too. In cinemas here on 13 January. Early Oscars 2017 contenders Silence Martin Scorseses passion project since 1991 is yet to receive a release date but rumours abound that it will be out in time for the Oscars. Based on a novel of the same name by Japanese author Shusaku Endo, the story centres on two Jesuit missionaries sent to 17th century Japan to spread Christianity and find their mentor Once there, they endure brutal persecution at the time of Kakura Kirishitan (Hidden Christians) following the defeat of the Shimabara Rebellion. Silence sounds weighty, intense and full of hard-hitting promise. Early Oscars 2017 contenders Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk Brokeback Mountain and Life of Pi director Ang Lee has narrowly missed out on a Best Picture win twice now but this adaptation of Ben Fountains acclaimed novel could be the film that finally wins him some overdue glory. The cast includes Kristen Stewart and Vin Diesel with newcomer Joe Alwyn in the lead as 19-year-old soldier Billy, who is brought home for a victory tour after serving in Iraq. Told in flashbacks, the drama reveals the horror of what really happened to his squad in contrast to Americas flashy, patriotic perceptions. Out here 6 January. Early Oscars 2017 contenders A United Kingdom Oyelowo plays Prince Seretse Khama, inaugural Botswana president from 1966 to 1980, in this follow-up to 2015s Belle. Films about real life people often hold clout with the Academy when done well and with Gone Girls Rosamund Pike playing Khamas eventual wife Ruth Williams, A United Kingdom should pull in cinemagoers. Khama sparked a global stir when he married the white Londoner in the late Forties and the first pictures from the movie promise beautiful costumes and cinematography. A United Kingdom will open the London Film Festival before its general release on 25 November. Early Oscars 2017 contenders Loving Ruth Negga and Joel Edgerton star as Mildred and Richard Loving in this historical drama about an interracial couple sentenced to prison in Virginia in 1958 for the crime of getting married. Out here just in time for the Oscars on 3 February. Written and directed by Jeff Nichols, Loving earned positive reviews from critics when it competed for the Palme dOr at Cannes and received a standing ovation for understated, strong performances. Early Oscars 2017 contenders Manchester by the Sea One of the best scripts co-producer Matt Damon had ever read, this tragedy about an uncle who is forced to take care of his teenage nephew after the boys father dies while trying to reconcile with his ex-wife stars Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams and newcomer Lucas Hedges. It was bought at Sundance by Amazon for $10 million and arrives in the UK on 13 January. Early Oscars 2017 contenders Nocturnal Animals Designer Tom Ford has cinematic strings to his bow, as proved with 2009s Venice premiere The Single Man. Hes back in the chair for this drama-thriller starring Amy Adams as a remarried art gallery owner whose ex-husbands violent new book begins to haunt her. Jake Gyllenhaal, Isla Fisher and Armie Hammer also star. Due in UK cinemas on 4 November. Early Oscars 2017 contenders The Light Between Oceans Michael Fassbender stars alongside last years Best Supporting Actress winner Alicia Vikander in the big screen adaptation of ML Stedmans 2012 novel of the same name. Derek Cianfrance is the man behind the camera for this story about a lighthouse keeper war veteran who rescues a baby girl with his wife after she washes up on an adrift rowboat. Then, in steps another Oscar winner, Rachel Weisz, as the woman who threatens to break their happy family apart. Out in the UK on 4 November - bring tissues. Early Oscars 2017 contenders American Pastoral Ewan McGregor makes his directorial debut with this period adaptation of Philip Roths novel American Pastoral. The drama - set in the 60s - centres on a successful businessman (McGregor) whose missing daughter (Dakota Fanning) is accused of a violent bombing in post-war America. Out in the UK on 11 November. Early Oscars 2017 contenders Queen of Katwe Indian-American filmmaker Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding) is the director behind this long-awaited biopic of Ugandan chess prodigy Phiona Mutesi. That Mutesi is played by 12 Years a Slave Oscar-winner Lupita Nyongo is reason enough to anticipate this Disney-produced film, out here 21 October. Disney Early Oscars 2017 contenders Free Fire Ben Wheatleys new action thriller will close the London Film Festival. Set in Massachusetts in the late Seventies, Free Fire stars Oscar-winning Room actress Brie Larson in the lead alongside Cillian Murphy. It follows the heart-stopping game of survival after shots are fired during a meeting between Justine, two Irishmen and two arms dealers who are selling them a stash of guns. Expect blood, sweat and irony with bravura filmmaking from the High-Rise director. Reaches UK cinemas sometime in 2017. Early Oscars 2017 contenders Paterson Jim Jarmuschs Palme dOr contender sees Adam Driver take the lead as a bus driver poet from Paterson, New Jersey. Each night after work, he has dinner with his wife Laura before walking his dog (2016s Palm Dog winner) to the bar for one beer. Then one day, a small disaster strikes. Early Oscars 2017 contenders The Founder Michael Keaton has starred in the last two Best Picture winners Spotlight and Birdman. Here, he takes on the role of ruthless McDonalds founder Ray Kroc, with the film telling the story of the fast food empires origins. The ambitious entrepreneur on a journey to theme didnt end so well for last years Joy, so it remains to be seen whether The Founder can live up to expectations as an Oscars contender. Out here 30 September. The Weinstein Company Early Oscars 2017 contenders Sully Clint Eastwood returns with Sully: Miracle on the Hudson, about the hero pilot who, in 2009, successfully landed his plane along the Hudson River after it was disabled by a flock of geese, saving all 155 crew and passengers. Tom Hanks takes the lead as Chesley Sullenberger in a biopic that sounds like it could tick a lot of Oscars boxes. Based on the autobiography Highest Duty, the thriller marks Eastwoods first directorial effort since 2014s American Sniper. Out 2 December. Early Oscars 2017 contenders Jackie Pablo Larrain directs Oscar winner Natalie Portman as late first lady and fashion icon Jacqueline Kennedy in what he has promised will not be another classic biopic. Set in the days immediately after John F Kennedys 1963 assassination, the film sparked great excitement among distributors after a seven-minute promo screened at Cannes. Release date unknown at this stage. Early Oscars 2017 contenders The Girl on the Train The Helps Tate Taylor is in the directors chair for this years Gone Girl about a troubled woman who becomes embroiled in a murder case after developing a fixation on a beautiful couple from her commuter train. Expect a film pulsating with creepy, voyeur vibes, a la Rear Window, based on Paula Hawkins bestselling thriller. Out in the UK on 7 October. Early Oscars 2017 contenders Florence Foster Jenkins Meryl Streep has been widely praised for her turn as the 1940s New York heiress who couldnt sing (and we mean really couldnt sing) yet somehow became an opera singer with the help of her patient husband St Clair Bayfield (Hugh Grant) and pianist Cosme McMoon (Simon Helberg). Directed by two-time Academy nominee Stephen Frears, the film proved heartwarming and inspiring upon its release earlier this year and was embraced by both film lovers and critics. Early Oscars 2017 contenders Christine Rebecca Hall set Sundance ablaze in January, earning five-star reviews for the performance of her career in Christine, about the news anchor who killed herself live on air in 1974 after suffering from depression. Yet to receive a UK release date, Christine arrives in US cinemas in October, with Antonio Campos also one to watch for directorial accolades come awards season. Courtesy of Sundance Institute Early Oscars 2017 contenders Arrival Paramount Pictures

Based on a novel of the same name by Japanese author Shusaku Endo, Silence looks at persecution in the time of Kakure Kirishitan ("Hidden Christians") following the defeat of the Shimabara Rebellion.

Paramount chief Brad Grey said that Scorsese has been trying to make the film for 28 years.

Release dates are still pretty vague, but Silence has been pencilled in for 1 January, 2017 in the UK.
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A judge has rejected the Met polices request to keep the names of the officers who investigated Fabric nightclub undercover a secret.

The report that the officers produced after visiting Fabric disguised as clubbers played a major role in the subsequent closure of the club.

The Met argued that, if they lost their anonymity, the officers safety and ability to do their job would be at risk, but, at a preliminary hearing, District Judge Robin McPhee said that there was significant public interest in Fabrics appeal against its closure.

The police had a keen interest in the nightclub, as shown in documents obtained by The Independent detailing its Operation Lenor (named after the fabric softener).

If I had a power to withhold names and serial numbers of officers it would be wrong of me to exercise that power, McPhee said, adding: I find no real safety implications and no real evidence that they will not attend court to give evidence.

The Met forced a review of Fabrics licence following the officers visit on 2 July, declaring the club a safe haven for drugs.
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A revamped East End boozer has been named Michelins pub of the year.

The Marksman in Bethnal Green is already an established foodie destination, renowned for its brown butter and honey tart, game curries and its modestly titled fried potatoes.

Downstairs at The Marksman, a converted East End boozer

Now it has been recognised as the top British food pub, with Michelin Guide editor Rebecca Burr describing it as a proper neighbourhood pub with new-era pub food.

The inspectors said they enjoyed the devilled mussels on toast, skate with shrimps and turnip tops, and pheasant and trotter pie  all carefully cooked, perfectly balanced and full of flavour.

The pub has been open for decades but was recently taken over by chef-owners Tom Harris and Jon Rotheram, alumni of the renowned St John outlets in London.

But while the food is unarguably top notch, online critics say the service can often let the pub down.

Reviews on TripAdvisor and Google repeatedly mention flaky service and sullen staff, with one writer saying: The food was very good. It's a shame that the service is so, so bad.

While The Marksman was the inspectors overall winner, 38 pubs from across the UK have been added to the guide.

They were chosen by Michelins 120 full-time inspectors who scour the UK and Europe looking for the latest gastronomic talent.

Burr told The Independent: While pub closures continue, hundreds of pubs are thriving thanks to excellent cooking and carefully selected drinks.

Our guide recognises the best of the best, as the British pub food scene continues to get stronger.

Part of the boom in great pub food is the freedom to experiment that chefs have in smaller establishments.

Theres a great community spirit about some of the pubs on the list. Weve heard of allotment owners bringing in fresh produce to chefs in return for a couple of pints.

Michelin's Eating Out In Pubs 2017 is out now.

East Midlands

Fox & Hounds, Charwelton

Royal Oak, Eydon

White Horse, King's Sutton

East of England

Pint Shop, Cambridge

Crown & Punchbowl, Horningsea

Little Dunmow, Flitch of Bacon

Unruly Pig, Bromeswell

Swan, Long Melford

Swan, Statford St Mary

North West

Higher Buck, Waddington

South East

Garibaldi, Beaconsfield

Pointer, Brill

Russell Arms, Butlers Cross

Sun Inn, Dummer

White Hart, Overton

Haddington Arms, Upton Grey

Compasses Inn, Crundale

Duke William, Ickham

Globe and Rainbow, Kilndown

The Duck, Pett Bottom

The Beacon, Royal Tunbridge Wells

Plough, Kelmscott

South West

Mexico Inn, Longrock

St Tudy, St Tudy Inn

Rams Head Inn, Dolton

Wild Duck, Ewen

Bell Inn, Stroud

Seymour Arms, Blagdon

Redan Inn, Chilcompton

Bunch of Grapes, Bradford-on-Avon

West Midlands

The Pound Inn, Leebotwood

Yorkshire and Humber

Bluebell, Arkendale

Aysgarth Falls, Aysgarth

Grantham Arms, Boroughbridge

Alice Hawthorn Inn, Nun Monkton

Scotland

The Bellachroy, Dervaig, Isle of Mull

Wales

Raglan Arms, Llandenny
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Brexit will take Britain back to the 1970s and nothing good can ever come of it, a former Bank of England policymaker said today.

Adam Posen, who sat on the Bank of Englands Monetary Policy Committee from 2009 to 2012, said Brexit is going to be an ongoing source of chronic pain for the UK for many years.

Speaking from Frankfurt, Mr Posen said Brexit would be very, unquestionably bad, but still not be terminal, and compared Britain outside the EU to a patient with arthritis.

It is going to put the UK in many ways back to where it was in the 1970s and early 1980s. Being uncompetitive, people having less faith in the stability of the regime, he said in an interview with Bloomberg.

Mr Posen said Britain faces stagflation, a situation of stagnant economic growth with rapidly rising prices faced in the late 1970s. The spiral of increasing prices reduced the value of peoples wages and led to dozens of strikes, repeated power cuts and a three-day working week during what became known as the winter of discontent.

Talking about how the UKs economy will look in 10 years time, he said: Of course, the economy will survive, the City will survive in a smaller state  but will the average person in Britain be worse off economically? Yes.

Asked whether there was anything positive about Britains looming exit from the European Union, Mr Posen replied, No.

In the run-up to the vote, the American economist warned that Brexit was delusional fantasy.

The EU will also suffer, Mr Posen said, because of the end of a mutually beneficial relationship but the UK, as the smaller partner, will inevitably suffer more.

Brexit Concerns Show all 26 1 /26 Brexit Concerns Brexit Concerns Brexit will put British patients at 'back of the queue' for new drugs Brexit will put British patients at the back of the queue for vital new drugs, the Government has been warned  forcing them to wait up to two years longer A medicines regulator has raised the alarm over a likely decision to pull out of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), as well as the EU itself. ealth Secretary Jeremy Hunt dropped the bombshell , when he said he expected the UK would quit the EMA  because it is subject to rulings by the European Court of Justice. Getty Images Brexit Concerns London to lose status as 'gateway to Europe' for banks One of Germanys top banking regulators has warned that London could lose its status as gateway to Europe for the banking sector after Britain quits the European trading bloc. Andreas Dombret, who is an executive board member for the BundesbankGermanys central banktold a private meeting of German businesses and banks earlier this week in Frankfurt that even if banking rules were equivalent between the UK and the rest of the EU, that was still miles away from [Britain having] access to the single market, the BBC reports. Jason Hawkes Brexit Concerns Exodus The number of financial sector professionals in Britain and continental Europe looking for jobs in Ireland rocketed in the months after the UK voted to leave the European Union Shutterstock Brexit Concerns Brexit is making FTSE 100 executives richer Pay packages of many FTSE 100 chief executive officers are partly tied to how well share prices are doing rather than the CEOs performance -- and some stocks are soaring. ritish equities got a boost since the June vote because the likes of Rio Tinto, Smiths Group and WPP generate most sales abroad and earn a fortune when they convert these revenues back into the weakened pound. Sterlings fall also made UK stocks more affordable for overseas investors. Rex Brexit Concerns Theresa May: UK to leave single market Theresa May has said the UK "cannot possibly" remain within the European single market, as staying in it would mean "not leaving the EU at all". Getty Brexit Concerns Lead campaigner Gina Miller and her team outside the High Court Getty Brexit Concerns Raymond McCord holds up his newly issued Irish passport alongside his British passport outside the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns SDLP leader Colum Eastwood leaving the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns Migrants with luggage walk past a graffiti on a wall as they leave the 'Jungle' migrant camp, as part of a major three-day operation planned to clear the camp in Calais Getty Brexit Concerns Migrants leave messages on their tents in the Jungle migrant camp Getty Brexit Concerns The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (Adra) which distributes approximately 700 meals daily in the northern Paris camp states that it is noticing a spike in new migrant arrivals this week, potentially linked the the Calais 'jungle' camp closure - with around 1000 meals distributed today EPA Brexit Concerns Migrant workers pick apples at Stocks Farm in Suckley, Britain Reuters Brexit Concerns Many farmers across the country are voicing concerns that Brexit could be a dangerous step into the unknown for the farming industry Getty Brexit Concerns Bank of England governor Mark Carney who said the long-term outlook for the UK economy is positive, but growth was slowing in the wake of the Brexit vote PA Brexit Concerns The Dow Jones industrial average closed down over 600 points on the news with markets around the globe pluninging Getty Brexit Concerns Immigration officers deal with each member of the public seeking entry into the United Kingdom but on average, 10 a day are refused entry at this London airport and between 2008 and 2009, 33,100 people were detained at the airport for mainly passport irregularities Getty Brexit Concerns A number of global investment giants have threatened to move their European operations out of London if Brexit proves to have a negative impact on their businesses Getty Brexit Concerns Following the possibility of a Brexit the UK would be released from its renewable energy targets under the EU Renewable Energy Directive and from EU state aid restrictions, potentially giving the government more freedom both in the design and phasing out of renewable energy support regimes Getty Brexit Concerns A woman looking at a chart showing the drop in the pound (Sterling) against the US Dollar in London after Britain voted to leave the EU Getty Brexit Concerns Young protesters outside the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, to protest against the United Kingdom's decision to leave the EU following the referendum Getty Brexit Concerns Applications from Northern Ireland citizens for Irish Passports has soared to a record high after the UK Voted in favour of Leaving the EU Getty Brexit Concerns NFU Vice President Minette Batters with Secretary of State, Andrea Leadsome at the National Farmers Union (NFU) took machinery, produce, farmers and staff to Westminster to encourage Members of Parliament to back British farming, post Brexit Getty Brexit Concerns The latest reports released by the UK Cabinet Office warn that expats would lose a range of specific rights to live, to work and to access pensions, healthcare and public services. The same reports added that UK citizens abroad would not be able to assume that these rights will be guaranteed in the future Getty Brexit Concerns A British resident living in Spain asks questions during an informative Brexit talk by the "Brexpats in Spain" group, about Spanish legal issues to become Spanish citizens, at the town hall in Benalmadena, Spain Reuters Brexit Concerns The collapse of Great Britain appears to have been greatly exaggerated given the late summer crowds visiting city museums, hotels, and other important tourist attractions Getty Brexit Concerns The U.K. should maintain European Union regulations covering everything from working hours to chemicals until after the government sets out its plans for Brexit, said British manufacturers anxious to avoid a policy vacuum and safeguard access to their biggest export market Getty

He also said the plummeting value of the pound was inevitable, because the UK had become less competitive as a result of the Brexit vote. If the currency didnt fall to reflect this, he said, the UK would essentially be like Greece, he said, implying that UK companies would have to make big job cuts to make up for the fact that they would be less productive.

Greece has seen massive unemployment, a deep recession and swingeing austerity cuts as it remained in the euro currency union. If it had been able to devalue its currency, such cuts may not have happened, economists have said.

The pound has further to fall against the euro, Posen predicted. Sterling fell on Thursday, even after the first growth data to cover the period since the June referendum came in ahead of analysts predictions.
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Government proposals to allow faith schools to be entirely segregated are dreadful, the education head responsible for the opening of new Catholic schools in England has said.

Speaking to TES magazine, Catholic Education Service (CES) director Paul Barber argued that religious selection in faith schools would be of no benefit to pupils, since students of different faiths can share the same values.

His comments relate to plans underlined by the government to lift a cap on the proportion of places that new faith schools can offer to pupils of their own religion.

Recommended Read more Faith schools accused of segregating male and female staff

This would allow schools to select pupils entirely on the basis of religion for the first time in over six years  arguably advocating closed religious communities within education

The move back to schools of 100 per cent one faith is dreadful, he said.

Were very clear about the nature of the education that were offering: an unapologetically Catholic education.

 Grammar schools dominate PMQs

If others want to be part of that, then we want to have the spaces to be able to welcome them. Thats a real blessing for the pupils: to have children of other faiths in our schools.

As example, Mr Barber said non-Catholics often choose to send their children to Catholic schools based on their reputation for having strong educational and ethical values.

Muslim parents choose our schools, he added, they recognise that we have a set of values that, broadly, they share.

Simply that we understand religion and take it seriously, rather than pretending that religion doesnt exist.

Since the current cap came into effect six years ago, the CES has refused to open any new Catholic schools, as it claims it would go against canonical law to have to potentially turn away Catholics in order to fill quotas.

With plans in place to remove this cap, however, the education body says it has plans to open between 30 and 40 new Catholic schools.

Faith schools, particular Catholic and Church of England schools, are consistently oversubscribed in England thanks to a tradition of high league table rankings.

This year's school league tables revealed more than half of top performing primary schools are faith-based, despite representing only a third of all schools

Currently all new faith schools may only allow 50 per cent of oversubscribed places to be allocated to those of the schools own religious denomination

Responding to the proposed changes, government officials said the rules would be changed to allow new Catholic schools to open, but insisted a series of new guidelines will be put in place to ensure faith schools fully integrate their pupils with children of other backgrounds.


Hungary is ready to allocate EUR 50 million under a project for the construction of a bypass road around the west-Ukrainian town of Berehove and a road that will link Berehove with Mukacheve, Hungary's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto has said.

The Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and Hungary on Friday met in Kyiv where they agreed to start investing in a number of infrastructure projects in the Transcarpathian region.

"Today we have agreed on the timeframe for developing infrastructure projects in Zaparpattia - up to five infrastructure projects. And we will begin to invest in one of the projects - this is a ring road around Berehove, which will lead to the border," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin said at a press conference.

The parties also discussed issues of bilateral cooperation, the opening of new crossing points, as well as the introduction of joint customs and border control.
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The women who have accused Donald Trump of sexually assaulting and grabbing them, have come from various geographic locations. The latest woman to make the allegation comes from Finland.

Former Miss Finland Ninni Laaksonen, 30, told the Ilta-Sanomat newspaper the Republican presidential nominee touched her before she appeared on a television show in New York in 2006.

He really grabbed my butt, said Ms Laaksonen, who said Mr Trump was a "slimy man". I dont think anybody saw it, but I flinched and thought, What is happening.

Ms Laaksonen said no one witnessed Mr Trump grabbing her (YouTube)

The accusation follows a stream of allegations of inappropriate conduct by Mr Trump that have been made by more than a dozen women. Mr Trump has denied the claims, which started after video footage from 2005 emerged in which the Republican candidate bragged about groping women and getting away with it because of his celebrity. He has threatned to sue his accusers.

Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Show all 16 1 /16 Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump E Jean Carroll Author Carroll alleges that Trump pinned her against a wall and forced himself upon her in the changing rooms of a Manhattan department store in the mid-90s Getty Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Kristin Anderson Anderson alleges that Mr Trump touched her genitals while at a club in the early 1990s Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Jessica Leeds Leeds told the New York Times that Mr Trump groped her on an airplane in the 1980s BBC Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Natasha Stoynoff Stoynoff alleged that Mr Trump forcefully kissed her before an interview at his Mar-A-Lago estate in 2005 Everipedia Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Karena Virginia Virginia alleges Mr Trump groped her in 1998 outside of the US Open tennis tournament BBC News Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Temple Taggart Taggart claims Mr Trump gave her a kiss without consent during a rehearsal for a 1997 Miss USA pageant Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Summer Zervos The former Apprentice contestant alleged that Mr Trump kissed and groped her at a Beverly Hills hotel in 2007 Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Alva Johnson A former staffer for Trump's campaign, Johnson alleges that Trump forcibly tried to kiss her after a rally in August 2016 MSNBC Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Jennifer Murphy The former Apprentice contestant said Mr Trump "surprise kissed" her - but she said it did not bother her Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Jill Harth The makeup artist accused Mr Trump of "attempted rape" while in his daughter's room in 1997 Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Mindy McGillivray McGillivray alleges Mr Trump groped her at Mar-A-Lago in 2013 AP Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Rachel Crooks Crooks says that kissed her on the cheeks and mouth when she introduced herself to him in 2005 Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Mindy McGillivray McGillivray claims that Trump grabbed her backside at Mar-a-Lago in 2006 CNN Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Cassandra Searles The former Miss Washington alleges that Trump repeatedly grabbed her backside and invited her to his hotel room Getty Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Jessica Drake Drake claims that when she and two other women arrived to Trump's hotel room at his invitation, he arrived at the door in pyjamas and tightly hugged and kissed each of the woman without permission Getty Every woman to make sexual assault claims against Donald Trump Ninni Laaksonen The former Miss Finland claims that Trump squeezed her behind before they appeared together on the Late Show with David Letterman in 2006 EPA

Mr Trump has claimed that the women making the accusations are seeking publicity. He has also dismissed several of the accusers, suggesting they were not attractive enough for his attentions.

Reuters said Ms Laaksonen could not be reached for comment on Friday. She said the assault happeened before she was due to appear on the The Late Show with David Letterman.
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The man who hacked into the email accounts of more than 100 women to steal nude photos and videos has been sentenced to 18 months in jail.

Ryan Collins, 36, from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, plead guilty in May to gaining access to at least 50 Apple iCloud and 72 Gmail accounts between November 2012 and September 2014.

Many accounts belonged to female celebrities such as actresses Jennifer Lawrence, Kirsten Dunst and Kate Upton whose nude photographs were released online in what became known as "The Fappening".

Female celebrities affected by 'The Fappening' hack Show all 5 1 /5 Female celebrities affected by 'The Fappening' hack Female celebrities affected by 'The Fappening' hack Jennifer Lawrence Female celebrities affected by 'The Fappening' hack Ariane Grande Female celebrities affected by 'The Fappening' hack Victoria Justice Female celebrities affected by 'The Fappening' hack Kirsten Dunst Female celebrities affected by 'The Fappening' hack Kate Upton

Collins sent fake emails that appeared to be from Apple or Google to encourage his victims to unknowningly hand over their usernames and passwords.

The process, known as "phishing," allowed collins to hack into private email accounts and steal personal information, including nude photos and videos.

"In some instances, Collins would use a software program to download the entire contents of the victims' Apple iCloud backups," the Pennsylvania US Attorney's Office said in a statement.

"In addition, Collins ran a modeling scam in which he tricked his victims into sending him nude photographs."

However, the attorney's office noted that investigators have not uncovered any evidence Collins uploaded or shared the information and images or that he was linked to the actual leaks.

 Reddit attempts to ban The Fappening

Collins was the first person arrested in connection with the security breach.

A second man, Edward Majerczyk, 29, plead guilty to the same charge in September and is due to be sentenced in January. He faces up to five years in prison.

Investigators have said the hacks were not related.
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Republican Vice Presidential candidate Mike Pence walked away unhurt after his plane slid off a runway in New York during a landing in bad weather. There were no reports of any injuries.

Reports said Donald Trumps running mate went and checked on the media travelling with him after the jet fishtailed and skidded at LaGuardia Airport at around 8pm on Thursday night.

The plane made a rough impact when it landed. The pilot slammed on the brakes and travellers could smell burning rubber, the Associated Press said. Mr Pence said mud splashed on the front windows of the cockpit. The plane apparently was brought to a halt when it skidded into a collapsable concrete barrier.

Mr Pence was due to attend an event in New York but it was cancelled as a result (Twitter)

All of the passengers, including Mr Pence, were evacuated through the back of the plane. Live television footage showed Mr Pence standing in the rain near the plane among emergency vehicles, talking to police and other officials.

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump called Pence to check on him after the incident, the campaign said.

Mr Trump did reach out to Governor Pence. Hes glad that everyone on board is safe, Trump spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said in a statement.

Mr Trump called his running mate from his motorcade while en route to a rally in Geneva, Ohio.

MSNBC said the plane, with about 30 people onboard, was coming from Fort Dodge, Iowa, where Mr Pence had participated in a campaign event. Mr Pence had been scheduled to attend an event in New York on Thursday night, but it was cancelled.

The incident comes just a day after Mr Pence announced the death of his beagle.

Maverick, who was 13, "passed away quietly" on Tuesday evening, the Indiana governor said in a tweet.
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Fears over Russian military operations in Europe have been fuelled by reports the country has been bulking up its firepower in a small province nestled between Poland and Lithuania.

Around the size of northern Ireland with a population of nearly one million, the Kaliningrad Oblast region is separate from the rest of Russia and was a closed military zone in the Soviet period.

Polish defence minister Antoni Macierewicz expressed concerns this week that warships with long-range cruise missiles sent to the Russian exclave on the Baltic sea could change the balance of power in the area.

This is an obvious cause for concern, he told reporters at a Nato meeting in Brussels. Moving such ships on the Baltic [sea] changes the balance of power.

Nuclear-capable Iskander missiles were deployed in Kaliningrad this month for the first time in two years, according to a Russian military spokesperson, sparking fears the region could become a flashpoint amid rising animosity between Russia and the West.

Kaliningrad was part of Germany until it was annexed by Russia after World War Two and is the countrys only port that stays ice-free throughout the year.

Servicemen have been seen working in the region to increase security at important bases and further military radar systems are reportedly being constructed.

Russia soldiers have been seen assembling at bases near Kaliningrad (AFP/Getty Images)

Tensions have been escalating between Nato states and Russia since the latters intervention in Ukraine beginning in February 2014, which was criticised by leaders across the world.

Russia says it believes its borders are under threat as Nato forces draw closer, sparking fears of a potential Cold War-style standoff in the Baltic states as Russia assembles military forces in eastern Europe.

According to Nato strategists, Russia is layering surface-to-air missiles in Kaliningrad in an effort to block off Nato's air access to the three Baltic states and areas of Poland.

The main challenge is not individual events or deployments, Nato Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told Reuters.

It is the overall picture, where we see a substantial increase in Russia's capabilities at sea, in the air and on land; exercises with a more aggressive patterns.

We will not mirror what Russia is doing, said Mr Stoltenberg. We are not in a Cold War situation.

Norway, which has a long border with Russia, will allow 330 US troops to be stationed on its soil for a limited period from next year, the first time foreign troops have been posted on its territory since the end of World War Two.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

Mr Stoltenberg hopes to convene another Nato-Russia Council  the forum bringing together Grushko, Russia's top diplomat to the alliance, and Nato envoys - in the next few weeks, diplomats say.

Russia unveiled its biggest ever nuclear missile this week, said to be powerful enough to almost destroy an area the size of New York state with a single blast.

Pictures were released by the Makeyev Rocket Design Bureau of the ballistic missile, nicknamed the Satan II, which could go into production by 2018, according to Russian news site Russia Today.
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Images from a Nasa satellite show the European Space Agencys Schiaparelli lander has created a shallow crater on Mars after it crashed onto the surface of the planet.

The paddling pool-sized Schiaparelli lander lost communication with the ESA moments before landing and hit the surface at 190mph (300kph), creating a crater 50cm deep.

A dark patch can be seen around the probe, which suggests a fuel tank exploded, and could provide essential clues as to what went wrong.

 Watch robot probe Schiaparelli's planned Mars landing

The impact locations shown in the images are within about 0.9 miles of each other but are inside the intended landing zone, according to ABC News.

The probe was supposed to touch down using a parachute and a combination of a heat-shield and retro-rockets. It has been discovered the back cover and parachute were deployed earlier than they should have been.

Schiaparelli was carrying instruments that were intended to be used to help understand the Martian atmosphere and determine whether it might be possible that life ever existed on the planet.

It was part of the ESAs ExoMars 2016 mission, which placed the Trace Gas Orbiter into orbit around Mars.

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 main purpose of the mission was to work as a test run for a much larger attempt in 2020, when a rover was planned to be sent to the planet.
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An imam who attempted to sue the BBC for calling him an extremist has had his case thrown out at the High Court, where a judge found he had made dangerous speeches on jihad.

Shakeel Begg, the chief imam at the Lewisham Islamic Centre, claimed damages for libel over an edition of Sunday Politics aired in 2013.

The presenter, Andrew Neil, named the 47-year-old among a number of extremist speakers, saying he had referred to jihad as the greatest of deeds for Muslims.

Mr Begg denied being an extremist and claimed the BBC had defamed him, providing evidence of inter-faith work in London communities and cooperation with the police.

But the High Court threw out his case on Friday, finding that the BBCs allegations were substantially true and that the imam was an extremist Islamic speaker who espouses extremist Islamic positions.

Mr Begg had recently promoted and encouraged religious violence by telling Muslims that violence in support of Islam would constitute a mans greatest deed, read its judgement.

In a witness statement, he described himself as a proponent of tolerance, peace, nonviolence, understanding between the faiths, cooperation with the police  and the participation of Muslims in civil society but a judge said his substantial community work was at odds with a series of speeches given between 2006 and 2011.

Mr Justice Haddon-Cave, sitting in the Queens Bench division, said: The Court concluded that that Mr Begg was something of a Jekyll and Hyde character: he presented one face to the local and inter-faith community and another to particular Muslim and other receptive audiences.

A general view of the Lewisham Islamic Centre in south-east London (Getty Images)

Thus, on the occasions when it has suited him  and he was speaking to predominantly Muslim audiences and/or audiences who might be receptive or sympathetic to his message  he shed the cloak of respectability and revealed the horns of extremism.

His reputation for respectability is likely to have made his [extremist] messages all the more compelling and seductive to his audiences.

For this reason, therefore, his words would have been all the more effective and dangerous.

Mr Justice Haddon-Cave said Mr Begg repeatedly espoused views in line with Salafi Islamism, including violently extreme position on jihad.

The Court said it was all too easy for someone in Mr Beggs position of power and influence as an imam to plant the seed of Islamic extremism in a young mind, which is then liable to be propagated on the Internet, a statement said.

For the reasons given in the judgment, the Court dismissed the claimants claim.

Evidence presented included a speech given by the imam at a meeting organised by the Kingston University Islamic Society in October 2006, where he encouraged his audience to wage jihad in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 31 October 2022 GBs James Hall competes during the mens parallel bars qualification at the World Gymnastics Championships in Liverpool AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 October 2022 People dressed in Halloween costumes paddle board along the river Avon in Christchurch, Dorset PA UK news in pictures 29 October 2022 Members of the public take pictures as police officers remove activists from a road during a Just Stop Oil protest, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 28 October 2022 A cosplayer attends the MCM Comic Con London 2022 at the ExCel Centre in London Reuters UK news in pictures 27 October 2022 98-year-old D-Day Veteran Bernard Morgan, whose story is among those featured on the giant poppy wall, during the launch of The Royal British Legion 2022 Poppy Appeal, at Hay's Galleria in central London PA UK news in pictures 26 October 2022 A meerkat explores a pumpkin in the enclosure at Wild Place, Bristol, where some of the animals are having pumpkin treats as part of their environmental enrichment PA UK news in pictures 25 October 2022 King Charles III welcomes Rishi Sunak during an audience at Buckingham Palace, where he invited the newly elected leader of the Conservative Party to become Prime Minister and form a new government PA UK news in pictures 24 October 2022 Rishi Sunak celebrates with Tory MPs outside the Conservative Campaign Headquarters after becoming the new leader of the Conservative Party Reuters UK news in pictures 23 October 2022 The Green Man at October Plenty, Borough Market's annual Autumn Harvest festival, in London, which returns for the first time post pandemic PA UK news in pictures 21 October 2022 Sculptor Peter McKenna puts the finishing touches to a pumpkin that will form part of the Planet A Hebden Bridge Pumpkin Trail in the West Yorkshire town PA UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in 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Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA UK news in pictures 27 September 2022 David White, Garter King of Arms, poses with an envelope franked with the new cypher of King Charles III 'CIIIR', after it was printed in the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 26 September 2022 A gallery staff member poses next to a painting by Lucian Freud - Self-portrait (Fragment), 1956 - on show at a photocall for the Credit Suisse exhibition - Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery in London PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2022 Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg in Liverpool before the start of the Labour Party annual Conference which he opened with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II and sang the national anthem PA UK news in pictures 24 September 2022 Handout photo issued by Buckingham Palace of the ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2022 A climate change activist protests against UK private jets while lighting his right arm on fire during the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 Arena in London EPA UK news in pictures 22 September 2022 Woody Woodmansey, Lee Bennett, Kevin Armstrong, Nick Moran and Clifford Slapper attend the unveiling of a stone for David Bowie on the Music Walk of Fame at Camden, north London PA UK news in pictures 21 September 2022 A flock of birds in the sky as the sun rises over Dungeness in Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2022 Flowers which were laid by members of the public in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland are collected by the Hillsborough Gardening Team and volunteers to be replanted for those that can be saved or composted PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2022 The ceremonial procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the long walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the committal service at St Georges Chapel AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 18 September 2022 A man stands among campers on The Mall ahead of the Queens funeral Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers Nathan Collins fouls Manchester Citys Jack Grealish leading to a red card. City went on to win the match at Molineux Stadium three goals to nil. Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 16 September 2022 Members of the public stand in the queue near Tower Bridge, and opposite the Tower of London, as they wait in line to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 15 September 2022 Members of the public in the queue on in Potters Fields Park, central London, as they wait to view Queen Elizabeth II lying in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 14 September 2022 The first members of the public pay their respects as the vigil begins around the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2022 Crowds cheer as King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort arrive for a visit to Hillsborough Castle Getty UK news in pictures 12 September 2022 Crowds line the Royal Mile, Edinburgh, as King Charles III joins a procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles Cathedral following the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II Katielee Arrowsmith/SWNS UK news in pictures 11 September 2022 Members of the Public pay their respects as the hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard of Scotland, is driven through Ballater AFP/Getty

You want to make jihad? he said. Very good. Dont shout and scream and fight with your Muslim brother who is doing something else for the deen [belief of Islam]. Take some money and go to Palestine and fight, fight the terrorists, fight the Zionists in Palestine if you want to do this.

In another speech at the Lewisham Islamic Centre in May 2009, Mr Begg claimed destroying the disbelievers and hypocrites was a religious duty for Muslims, adding: Fighting is prescribed upon you  those who fight have a higher status [with Allah] than those who do not fight.

The BBC also cited his comments at a 2010 rally outside the American Embassy in London in support of Aafia Siddiqui, an alleged al-Qaeda supporter jailed for attempting to kill Americans, and at a dinner held by Cage, the organisation that campaigns on behalf of Muslim prisoners, later that year.

During a protest outside Belmarsh prison the following year, Mr Begg expressed support for Muslim inmates detained under terror laws for speaking truth to power in a speech the High Court called particularly sinister.

In an article posted online in February 2009, Mr Begg accused a moderate Islamic scholar, Sheikh Tawfique Chowdhury, of signing a deal with the devil and betraying his covenant with Allah for giving a speech to counter-terrorism officers in Cardiff.

A spokesperson for the BBC said: We were right to stand by the journalism of Sunday Politics.

The judge has concluded, based on the evidence, that Imam Begg has preached religious violence and an extremist worldview in his remarks.

Lewisham Islamic Centre has not yet responded to The Independents request for comment.
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A boy who died in hospital was left so dehydrated by nurses after undergoing a major operation that his parents found him sucking on wet wipes, a damning report has found.

Sean Turner had life-saving heart surgery at Bristol Childrens Hospital, but passed away six weeks later after suffering a catastrophic brain haemorrhage.

The inquiry found NHS staff guilty of 22 failures in the aftercare of the four-year-old, who was not given the best possible chance of survival, reports the Bristol Post.

Sean, who was born with his heart on the right side of his body, died in 2012 after being given anti-clotting medicine for three days instead of the recommended six hours.

The report also found University Hospital Bristol Foundation Trust guilty of failing to be open with Seans parents in the lead up to his death.

The trust has been ordered to write an open and honest acknowledgement of the failings identified as well as an apology of the impact.

Robert Woolley, chief executive of the trust, said: "I would like to extend our condolences again to Sean Turner's family for the sad loss of their son.

"I am deeply sorry for our failings in care and for the impact they had on Sean and his family. We want to get our care right for every child, every time, and I bitterly regret that we didn't do this for Sean.

The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? Show all 19 1 /19 The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36454.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36456.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36455.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36457.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36458.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36459.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36460.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36461.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36462.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36464.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36463.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36466.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36467.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36468.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36469.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36470.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36472.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36473.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk The NHS at 60: has the dream been matched by reality? 36474.bin Nick Wilkinson/Newsteam.co.uk

I am also very sorry that we compounded their grief by giving inaccurate and incomplete responses to their subsequent complaint.

The report did not find that Sean would definitely have lived without the multiple failings.

It read: Nevertheless, the distress Mr and Mrs Turner have suffered, and continue to suffer, will undoubtedly be compounded by the uncertainty - however small - of never knowing whether Sean might have survived if everything that should have been done for him, had been done."
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The Government must urgently increase measures to prevent extremists from exploiting security weaknesses to bring weapons into the UK, a counter-terror report has warned.

A review of Londons readiness to respond to a Paris or Brussels-style atrocity listed 127 recommendations to combat the threat posed by Isis supporters and other groups.

Lord Harris of Haringey, who was appointed to undertake the review by Sadiq Khan, said the most significant terror threat was of a marauding terrorist firearms attack (MTFA) using guns, grenades, suicide bombs, sieges and hostage taking.

 Chemical attack at London City Airport was a 'terror incident'

Such tactics would stretch emergency service resources, and contribute to the confusion and panic created. If such an attack did occur, multiple casualties would be inevitable, said his report.

The diversity of these attacks, and the introduction of new methods by terrorists, means that we need to be prepared not only for those types of attacks we have seen before, but also for attacks the nature of which we cannot yet know.

At least 850 jihadis are believed to have travelled from the UK to join the so-called Islamic State in Syria, with around half having returned to pose a new and intensified threat on home soil.

Authorities are also vigilant over signs of online radicalisation and lone wolf attacks, like those in Nice and Orlando, as bomb-making and attack manuals continue to circulate on the internet.

London has been listed as one of many global targets by Isis in online propaganda videos and the report said the volume of icons, tourist attractions and government buildings, as well as a busy transport system and large public events, made individual targets difficult to predict.

Fifty of the 73 highest-risk crowded places across the country are in London, with any attack in the capital likely to have a significant impact on the national economy, possibly costing losses of up to 1 billion.

The review assessed London's ability to respond to an attack on the scale of those seen in Brussels and Paris

Several terror plots have been thwarted in the past year but Lord Harris said the UK should not become complacent about counter-terror efforts, particularly at borders including St Pancras International railway station, Heathrow and London City Airports and the River Thames.

Guns are more difficult to acquire here than elsewhere in the world, but London is not firearms-free, the review warned.

"There are real concerns about how potentially easy it might be for terrorists to bring firearms into the UK, Lord Harris said.

"Our borders are not as secure as they should be and much greater efforts should be made to prevent the illegal transportation of weapons and people into the country.

"It would be naive in the extreme to assume that would-be terrorists will not attempt to exploit any such weaknesses."

An increase firearms discharges has been recorded in London, with July and August, seeing 202 recorded by Scotland Yard, compared with 87 in the same months last year.

Lord Harris called for enhanced searches of cars and freight entering the country and increased aerial surveillance by the Border Force, National Crime Agency (NCA) and police, but did not recommend any increase in the number of armed officers.

He added: It is vital to ensure that there is neither unnecessary duplication between the organisations, nor that gaps emerge because of a lack of sufficient coordination.

His other recommendations included barriers to protect against hostile vehicles like the lorry used in Nice, London-wide public alert technology, CCTV on all underground and mainline trains, increased security on the River Thames and extra resources for the London Ambulance Service.

In pictures: Terror attack exercise in Manchester Show all 7 1 /7 In pictures: Terror attack exercise in Manchester In pictures: Terror attack exercise in Manchester Counter-terror exercise at the Trafford Centre The emergency services and volunteers take part in a simulated terror attack at the Trafford Centre on 10 May, 2016 in Manchester, England. PA In pictures: Terror attack exercise in Manchester Counter-terror exercise at the Trafford Centre Emergency forces and shoppers take part in a simulated terror attack at the Trafford Centre on 10 May, 2016 in Manchester, England. Getty Images In pictures: Terror attack exercise in Manchester Counter-terror exercise at the Trafford Centre The emergency services and volunteers take part in a simulated terror attack at the Trafford Centre on 10 May, 2016 in Manchester, England. Getty Images In pictures: Terror attack exercise in Manchester Counter-terror exercise at the Trafford Centre The emergency services and volunteers take part in a simulated terror attack at the Trafford Centre on 10 May, 2016 in Manchester, England. Getty Images In pictures: Terror attack exercise in Manchester Counter-terror exercise at the Trafford Centre Emergency services and volunteers take part in a simulated terror attack at the Trafford Centre in Manchester on 10 May 2016. Getty Images In pictures: Terror attack exercise in Manchester Counter-terror exercise at the Trafford Centre Emergency services and volunteers take part in a simulated terror attack at the Trafford Centre in Manchester on 10 May 2016. Getty Images In pictures: Terror attack exercise in Manchester Counter-terror exercise at the Trafford Centre People playing the role of injured shoppers react during an exercise at the Intu Trafford Centre in Trafford, Manchester, on May 10, 2016. PA

Lord Harris, the former chair of the Metropolitan Police Authority, also called for police and security services to work with businesses, local authorities and residents in the capital on how to prevent a terrorist attack and what to do in the event of one.

The quality and effectiveness of the work done by the intelligence services and the counter-terrorist police is amongst the best in the world, and if London were subject to a terrorist attack today, our emergency services response would be substantially faster than five years ago, he said.

Nevertheless, a serious terrorist attack remains highly possible and we cannot be complacent.

London needs to become a city where security and resilience is designed in and is part of the citys fabric, and where everyone who lives and works here sees security and resilience as their responsibility just as much as it is for the emergency services and civic authorities.

Mr Khan, who commissioned the review after taking office as Mayor of London, praised the work of emergency services and security forces.

There is more that can be done by a wide range of organisations, and Lord Harriss many recommendations deserve careful consideration and exploration over the coming months so we can take steps to ensure we are as prepared as possible, he added.

The report was released on Friday, just days after counter-terror measures were mobilised over a chemical incident at London City Airport and a device found on a Tube train at North Greenwich, which the suspect has claimed was a prank.

The UKs threat level remains at severe, meaning a terror attack is considered highly likely.


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The RAF has scrambled fighter jets to escort a passenger plane to an airport in Scotland after it lost communication with the ground.

Typhoons were sent to find the Volaris Airlines Airbus A320 to Glasgow Prestwick Airport, where it landed safely yesterday afternoon.

The alarm was raised when the plane lost contact at around 2.40pm, triggering a mid-air emergency.

A spokesperson for the RAF said the Typhoon jets were sent at supersonic speed, triggering a loud sonic boom heard across Scotland.

Quick reaction alert Typhoon aircraft were launched today from RAF Coningsby and RAF Lossiemouth to identify an unresponsive civilian aircraft," he added.

The Typhoon aircraft were authorised to transit at supersonic speed for operational reasons, any inconvenience caused to local residents is regretted.

Communications were re-established and the aircraft has been safely escorted by the Lossiemouth aircraft to Prestwick Airport.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 31 October 2022 GBs James Hall competes during the mens parallel bars qualification at the World Gymnastics Championships in Liverpool AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 October 2022 People dressed in Halloween costumes paddle board along the river Avon in Christchurch, Dorset PA UK news in pictures 29 October 2022 Members of the public take pictures as police officers remove activists from a road during a Just Stop Oil protest, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 28 October 2022 A cosplayer attends the MCM Comic Con London 2022 at the ExCel Centre in London Reuters UK news in pictures 27 October 2022 98-year-old D-Day Veteran Bernard Morgan, whose story is among those featured on the giant poppy wall, during the launch of The Royal British Legion 2022 Poppy Appeal, at Hay's Galleria in central London PA UK news in pictures 26 October 2022 A meerkat explores a pumpkin in the enclosure at Wild Place, Bristol, where some of the animals are having pumpkin treats as part of their environmental enrichment PA UK news in pictures 25 October 2022 King Charles III welcomes Rishi Sunak during an audience at Buckingham Palace, where he invited the newly elected leader of the Conservative Party to become Prime Minister and form a new government PA UK news in pictures 24 October 2022 Rishi Sunak celebrates with Tory MPs outside the Conservative Campaign Headquarters after becoming the new leader of the Conservative Party Reuters UK news in pictures 23 October 2022 The Green Man at October Plenty, Borough Market's annual Autumn Harvest festival, in London, which returns for the first time post pandemic PA UK news in pictures 21 October 2022 Sculptor Peter McKenna puts the finishing touches to a pumpkin that will form part of the Planet A Hebden Bridge Pumpkin Trail in the West Yorkshire town PA UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA UK news in pictures 27 September 2022 David White, Garter King of Arms, poses with an envelope franked with the new cypher of King Charles III 'CIIIR', after it was printed in the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 26 September 2022 A gallery staff member poses next to a painting by Lucian Freud - Self-portrait (Fragment), 1956 - on show at a photocall for the Credit Suisse exhibition - Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery in London PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2022 Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg in Liverpool before the start of the Labour Party annual Conference which he opened with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II and sang the national anthem PA UK news in pictures 24 September 2022 Handout photo issued by Buckingham Palace of the ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2022 A climate change activist protests against UK private jets while lighting his right arm on fire during the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 Arena in London EPA UK news in pictures 22 September 2022 Woody Woodmansey, Lee Bennett, Kevin Armstrong, Nick Moran and Clifford Slapper attend the unveiling of a stone for David Bowie on the Music Walk of Fame at Camden, north London PA UK news in pictures 21 September 2022 A flock of birds in the sky as the sun rises over Dungeness in Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2022 Flowers which were laid by members of the public in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland are collected by the Hillsborough Gardening Team and volunteers to be replanted for those that can be saved or composted PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2022 The ceremonial procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the long walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the committal service at St Georges Chapel AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 18 September 2022 A man stands among campers on The Mall ahead of the Queens funeral Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers Nathan Collins fouls Manchester Citys Jack Grealish leading to a red card. 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Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 16 September 2022 Members of the public stand in the queue near Tower Bridge, and opposite the Tower of London, as they wait in line to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 15 September 2022 Members of the public in the queue on in Potters Fields Park, central London, as they wait to view Queen Elizabeth II lying in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 14 September 2022 The first members of the public pay their respects as the vigil begins around the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2022 Crowds cheer as King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort arrive for a visit to Hillsborough Castle Getty UK news in pictures 12 September 2022 Crowds line the Royal Mile, Edinburgh, as King Charles III joins a procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles Cathedral following the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II Katielee Arrowsmith/SWNS UK news in pictures 11 September 2022 Members of the Public pay their respects as the hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard of Scotland, is driven through Ballater AFP/Getty

The Mexican plane, which is understood to have been en route to Iceland, landed safely and an investigation is being carried out into the loss of communications.

A spokesperson for Police Scotland said a full emergency response was put into action and the incident was under investigation.

An aircraft has been diverted to Glasgow Prestwick Airport, Ayrshire around 2.40pm, following reports of a temporary loss of communication," she added.

The aircraft landed safely at 3.57pm. Emergency services are in attendance to establish the full circumstances.

Airport officials said some roads were temporarily closed as a precaution as investigations continued.
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Northern Irelands High Court has rejected the first legal challenge to Theresa Mays power to push ahead with Brexit.

Those behind the case argued the Prime Minister does not alone have the right to trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, launching Brexit talks and a two-year countdown to Britain leaving the EU.

Recommended Read more Tony Blair says there must be a second vote on Brexit

But after several days of hearings, the court in Belfast threw out the case brought by a cross-community group of politicians and human rights campaigners.

Mr Justice Paul Maguire said the implications for Northern Ireland were still too uncertain to rule in its favour, adding: While the wind of change may be about to blow, the precise direction in which it will blow cannot yet be determined.

So there is a level of uncertainty, as evidenced by the discussion about how the Northern Ireland land border with Ireland was affected by withdrawal from the EU.

He added: In respect of all issues, the court dismissed the applications.

Lawyers behind the case tried to argue that decision-makers at Northern Irelands devolved Stormont Assembly could veto Brexit, assert influence over triggering Article 50 and protect peace process guarantees enshrined in the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, which largely ended republican and loyalist violence.

Brexit Concerns Show all 26 1 /26 Brexit Concerns Brexit Concerns Brexit will put British patients at 'back of the queue' for new drugs Brexit will put British patients at the back of the queue for vital new drugs, the Government has been warned  forcing them to wait up to two years longer A medicines regulator has raised the alarm over a likely decision to pull out of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), as well as the EU itself. ealth Secretary Jeremy Hunt dropped the bombshell , when he said he expected the UK would quit the EMA  because it is subject to rulings by the European Court of Justice. Getty Images Brexit Concerns London to lose status as 'gateway to Europe' for banks One of Germanys top banking regulators has warned that London could lose its status as gateway to Europe for the banking sector after Britain quits the European trading bloc. Andreas Dombret, who is an executive board member for the BundesbankGermanys central banktold a private meeting of German businesses and banks earlier this week in Frankfurt that even if banking rules were equivalent between the UK and the rest of the EU, that was still miles away from [Britain having] access to the single market, the BBC reports. Jason Hawkes Brexit Concerns Exodus The number of financial sector professionals in Britain and continental Europe looking for jobs in Ireland rocketed in the months after the UK voted to leave the European Union Shutterstock Brexit Concerns Brexit is making FTSE 100 executives richer Pay packages of many FTSE 100 chief executive officers are partly tied to how well share prices are doing rather than the CEOs performance -- and some stocks are soaring. ritish equities got a boost since the June vote because the likes of Rio Tinto, Smiths Group and WPP generate most sales abroad and earn a fortune when they convert these revenues back into the weakened pound. Sterlings fall also made UK stocks more affordable for overseas investors. Rex Brexit Concerns Theresa May: UK to leave single market Theresa May has said the UK "cannot possibly" remain within the European single market, as staying in it would mean "not leaving the EU at all". Getty Brexit Concerns Lead campaigner Gina Miller and her team outside the High Court Getty Brexit Concerns Raymond McCord holds up his newly issued Irish passport alongside his British passport outside the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns SDLP leader Colum Eastwood leaving the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns Migrants with luggage walk past a graffiti on a wall as they leave the 'Jungle' migrant camp, as part of a major three-day operation planned to clear the camp in Calais Getty Brexit Concerns Migrants leave messages on their tents in the Jungle migrant camp Getty Brexit Concerns The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (Adra) which distributes approximately 700 meals daily in the northern Paris camp states that it is noticing a spike in new migrant arrivals this week, potentially linked the the Calais 'jungle' camp closure - with around 1000 meals distributed today EPA Brexit Concerns Migrant workers pick apples at Stocks Farm in Suckley, Britain Reuters Brexit Concerns Many farmers across the country are voicing concerns that Brexit could be a dangerous step into the unknown for the farming industry Getty Brexit Concerns Bank of England governor Mark Carney who said the long-term outlook for the UK economy is positive, but growth was slowing in the wake of the Brexit vote PA Brexit Concerns The Dow Jones industrial average closed down over 600 points on the news with markets around the globe pluninging Getty Brexit Concerns Immigration officers deal with each member of the public seeking entry into the United Kingdom but on average, 10 a day are refused entry at this London airport and between 2008 and 2009, 33,100 people were detained at the airport for mainly passport irregularities Getty Brexit Concerns A number of global investment giants have threatened to move their European operations out of London if Brexit proves to have a negative impact on their businesses Getty Brexit Concerns Following the possibility of a Brexit the UK would be released from its renewable energy targets under the EU Renewable Energy Directive and from EU state aid restrictions, potentially giving the government more freedom both in the design and phasing out of renewable energy support regimes Getty Brexit Concerns A woman looking at a chart showing the drop in the pound (Sterling) against the US Dollar in London after Britain voted to leave the EU Getty Brexit Concerns Young protesters outside the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, to protest against the United Kingdom's decision to leave the EU following the referendum Getty Brexit Concerns Applications from Northern Ireland citizens for Irish Passports has soared to a record high after the UK Voted in favour of Leaving the EU Getty Brexit Concerns NFU Vice President Minette Batters with Secretary of State, Andrea Leadsome at the National Farmers Union (NFU) took machinery, produce, farmers and staff to Westminster to encourage Members of Parliament to back British farming, post Brexit Getty Brexit Concerns The latest reports released by the UK Cabinet Office warn that expats would lose a range of specific rights to live, to work and to access pensions, healthcare and public services. The same reports added that UK citizens abroad would not be able to assume that these rights will be guaranteed in the future Getty Brexit Concerns A British resident living in Spain asks questions during an informative Brexit talk by the "Brexpats in Spain" group, about Spanish legal issues to become Spanish citizens, at the town hall in Benalmadena, Spain Reuters Brexit Concerns The collapse of Great Britain appears to have been greatly exaggerated given the late summer crowds visiting city museums, hotels, and other important tourist attractions Getty Brexit Concerns The U.K. should maintain European Union regulations covering everything from working hours to chemicals until after the government sets out its plans for Brexit, said British manufacturers anxious to avoid a policy vacuum and safeguard access to their biggest export market Getty

But Northern Irelands senior legal adviser, attorney general John Larkin, told the court that nothing in the 1998 agreement had been affected by Brexit, adding that there were no substantive obligations that required continued membership of the EU.

A barrister for the UK Government said no court could block the will of the people as expressed in the 23 June referendum.

The judge said it was difficult to see how the court could overlook the fact that the UK Parliament had retained the ability to legislate for Northern Ireland without any special procedure.

He said this power of the Prime Minister's was not one in which the court could intervene: Any suggestion that a legitimate expectation can overwhelm the structure of the legislative scheme is not viable.

Some 56 per cent of Northern Irish voters backed Remain, but some unionist-dominated areas supported Leave. The largest party in Northern Ireland, the Democratic Unionists, campaigned for an exit.

In London, an investment manager and hairdresser are taking legal action opposing the right of the Government to trigger Article 50 without a vote in Parliament.
Ukraine's Health Ministry has signed a medicine procurement agreement with Britain's Crown Agents to use 2016 budget funds.

Crown Agents told Interfax-Ukraine that the agreement was signed on October 27.

Soon it would be specified under what programs and what cost of the procurement will be.

Crown Agents recalled that on November 6, 2015 the agency signed a contract with the Health Ministry to buy child and adult cancer medicines worth $32 million

"Under the program Crown Agents has finalized 92% of all supplies. The rest of them are to be finished before December 7, 2016. 29 companies, 45% of which are direct manufacturers, supply 314 items," Crown Agents said.

Crown Agents said that during medicine procurement using 2015 budget funds, the price of medicines for the Health Ministry was cut by 37.9% on average, and the price of around 84% of items was lower than in 2014.
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Downing Street has rejected Tony Blairs call for the British people to have a second chance to vote on Brexit, saying that the ex-Labour Prime Minister speaks only for himself.

No 10 hit back after Mr Blair said the public should be given another chance to have their say on leaving the European Union when it becomes clear what Brexit looks like.

The ex-Labour leader said it could be either through a vote in Parliament, an election or a second referendum and made his comments after penning an article in which he issued a rallying cry for Remain voters to prise apart the alliance which gave us Brexit.

But Ms Mays spokesperson said: The PM has been absolutely clear  the British people have spoken, we are listening, we're going to leave the European Union.

And not only has the PM been clear here but shes also been clear when shes met European leaders. There will be no second referendum, Britain is leaving the European Union.

Downing Street also brushed off concerns about Mr Blair communicating his views with the French President Francois Hollande, adding: Tony Blair is entitled to put his views to whom he so chooses. Tony Blair speaks for himself.

Mr Blair had argued that during the referendum people were yet to see the alternative future they were committing to, but said it would become clearer as Brexit negotiations began.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 31 October 2022 GBs James Hall competes during the mens parallel bars qualification at the World Gymnastics Championships in Liverpool AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 October 2022 People dressed in Halloween costumes paddle board along the river Avon in Christchurch, Dorset PA UK news in pictures 29 October 2022 Members of the public take pictures as police officers remove activists from a road during a Just Stop Oil protest, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 28 October 2022 A cosplayer attends the MCM Comic Con London 2022 at the ExCel Centre in London Reuters UK news in pictures 27 October 2022 98-year-old D-Day Veteran Bernard Morgan, whose story is among those featured on the giant poppy wall, during the launch of The Royal British Legion 2022 Poppy Appeal, at Hay's Galleria in central London PA UK news in pictures 26 October 2022 A meerkat explores a pumpkin in the enclosure at Wild Place, Bristol, where some of the animals are having pumpkin treats as part of their environmental enrichment PA UK news in pictures 25 October 2022 King Charles III welcomes Rishi Sunak during an audience at Buckingham Palace, where he invited the newly elected leader of the Conservative Party to become Prime Minister and form a new government PA UK news in pictures 24 October 2022 Rishi Sunak celebrates with Tory MPs outside the Conservative Campaign Headquarters after becoming the new leader of the Conservative Party Reuters UK news in pictures 23 October 2022 The Green Man at October Plenty, Borough Market's annual Autumn Harvest festival, in London, which returns for the first time post pandemic PA UK news in pictures 21 October 2022 Sculptor Peter McKenna puts the finishing touches to a pumpkin that will form part of the Planet A Hebden Bridge Pumpkin Trail in the West Yorkshire town PA UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA UK news in pictures 27 September 2022 David White, Garter King of Arms, poses with an envelope franked with the new cypher of King Charles III 'CIIIR', after it was printed in the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 26 September 2022 A gallery staff member poses next to a painting by Lucian Freud - Self-portrait (Fragment), 1956 - on show at a photocall for the Credit Suisse exhibition - Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery in London PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2022 Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg in Liverpool before the start of the Labour Party annual Conference which he opened with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II and sang the national anthem PA UK news in pictures 24 September 2022 Handout photo issued by Buckingham Palace of the ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2022 A climate change activist protests against UK private jets while lighting his right arm on fire during the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 Arena in London EPA UK news in pictures 22 September 2022 Woody Woodmansey, Lee Bennett, Kevin Armstrong, Nick Moran and Clifford Slapper attend the unveiling of a stone for David Bowie on the Music Walk of Fame at Camden, north London PA UK news in pictures 21 September 2022 A flock of birds in the sky as the sun rises over Dungeness in Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2022 Flowers which were laid by members of the public in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland are collected by the Hillsborough Gardening Team and volunteers to be replanted for those that can be saved or composted PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2022 The ceremonial procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the long walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the committal service at St Georges Chapel AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 18 September 2022 A man stands among campers on The Mall ahead of the Queens funeral Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers Nathan Collins fouls Manchester Citys Jack Grealish leading to a red card. City went on to win the match at Molineux Stadium three goals to nil. Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 16 September 2022 Members of the public stand in the queue near Tower Bridge, and opposite the Tower of London, as they wait in line to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 15 September 2022 Members of the public in the queue on in Potters Fields Park, central London, as they wait to view Queen Elizabeth II lying in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 14 September 2022 The first members of the public pay their respects as the vigil begins around the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2022 Crowds cheer as King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort arrive for a visit to Hillsborough Castle Getty UK news in pictures 12 September 2022 Crowds line the Royal Mile, Edinburgh, as King Charles III joins a procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles Cathedral following the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II Katielee Arrowsmith/SWNS UK news in pictures 11 September 2022 Members of the Public pay their respects as the hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard of Scotland, is driven through Ballater AFP/Getty

He said: If you want to retain that access to the single market there will be various obligations that are imposed upon you, in relation to the free movement of people, to legal obligations  you are going to have to work out at that point, are the freedoms that were going to enjoy  really so substantial that we want to leave the European Union?.

Another possibility is that you actually go for a much harder form of Brexit, you leave the single market altogether  then youre going to be able to calculate, how much pain, how much difficulty, economic/social restructuring, is going to be necessary to make a success of that.

Speaking on Radio 4s Today programme, he went on: If it becomes clear that this is either a deal that doesnt make it worth our while leaving or, alternatively, a deal that is going to be so serious in its implications, people may decide that they dont want to go, theres got to be some way, either through Parliament or through an election, possibly through another referendum, in which people express their view.

Writing in the New European newspaper, Mr Blair highlighted the sharp fall in the pound as a negative prediction about our economic future, and the blocking of a Canada-EU free trade deal by the Walloon regional parliament in Belgium as evidence that Brexit may not take the form many Leave voters had imagined.

He said that Brexiteers are envisaging free market, free trading, light regulation, low tax, low social protection like in city states Hong Kong and Singapore, something he claimed not all Leave voters would back.

He said Remain voters must win the argument that staying in the EU should stay on the table, warning that anger and anxiety about immigration, globalisation, stagnant incomes, housing and squeezed public services will only get worse outside the EU.

Right now there is one point and one point only to win: we should keep every option open, Mr Blair wrote.

That this should even be contentious speaks loudly about how much those of us, and after all we were 16 million people, who believe Britains future lies within the European partnership, have been shoved on to the defensive.

He said people supporting Remain are the insurgents now. We have to build the capability to mobilise and to organise. We have to prise apart the alliance which gave us Brexit.
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Tony Blair has said the British people should be given another chance to have their say on leaving the European Union when it becomes clear what Brexit looks like.

The ex-Prime Minister said it could be either through a vote in Parliament, an election or a second referendum.

He made his comments after writing an article which issued a rallying cry for Remain voters to mobilise, organise and prise apart the alliance which gave us Brexit.

Mr Blair argued that during the referendum people were yet to see the alternative future they were committing to, but said it would become clearer as Brexit negotiations began.

He said: If you want to retain that access to the single market there will be various obligations that are imposed upon you, in relation to the free movement of people, to legal obligationsyou are going to have to work out at that point, are the freedoms that were going to enjoyreally so substantial that we want to leave the European Union?.

Another possibility is that you actually go for a much harder form of Brexit, you leave the single market altogetherthen youre going to be able to calculate, how much pain, how much difficulty, economic/social restructuring, is going to be necessary to make a success of that.

Speaking to BBC radio, he went on: If it becomes clear that this is either a deal that doesnt make it worth our while leaving or alternatively, a deal that is going to be so serious in its implications, people may decide that they dont want to go, theres got to be some way, either through Parliament or through an election, possibly through another referendum, in which people express their view. 

Writing in the New European newspaper, Mr Blair highlighted the sharp fall in the pound as a negative prediction about our economic future, and the blocking of a Canada-EU free trade deal by the Walloon regional parliament in Belgium as evidence that Brexit may not take the form many Leave voters had imagined.

Brexit Concerns Show all 26 1 /26 Brexit Concerns Brexit Concerns Brexit will put British patients at 'back of the queue' for new drugs Brexit will put British patients at the back of the queue for vital new drugs, the Government has been warned  forcing them to wait up to two years longer A medicines regulator has raised the alarm over a likely decision to pull out of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), as well as the EU itself. ealth Secretary Jeremy Hunt dropped the bombshell , when he said he expected the UK would quit the EMA  because it is subject to rulings by the European Court of Justice. Getty Images Brexit Concerns London to lose status as 'gateway to Europe' for banks One of Germanys top banking regulators has warned that London could lose its status as gateway to Europe for the banking sector after Britain quits the European trading bloc. Andreas Dombret, who is an executive board member for the BundesbankGermanys central banktold a private meeting of German businesses and banks earlier this week in Frankfurt that even if banking rules were equivalent between the UK and the rest of the EU, that was still miles away from [Britain having] access to the single market, the BBC reports. Jason Hawkes Brexit Concerns Exodus The number of financial sector professionals in Britain and continental Europe looking for jobs in Ireland rocketed in the months after the UK voted to leave the European Union Shutterstock Brexit Concerns Brexit is making FTSE 100 executives richer Pay packages of many FTSE 100 chief executive officers are partly tied to how well share prices are doing rather than the CEOs performance -- and some stocks are soaring. ritish equities got a boost since the June vote because the likes of Rio Tinto, Smiths Group and WPP generate most sales abroad and earn a fortune when they convert these revenues back into the weakened pound. Sterlings fall also made UK stocks more affordable for overseas investors. Rex Brexit Concerns Theresa May: UK to leave single market Theresa May has said the UK "cannot possibly" remain within the European single market, as staying in it would mean "not leaving the EU at all". Getty Brexit Concerns Lead campaigner Gina Miller and her team outside the High Court Getty Brexit Concerns Raymond McCord holds up his newly issued Irish passport alongside his British passport outside the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns SDLP leader Colum Eastwood leaving the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns Migrants with luggage walk past a graffiti on a wall as they leave the 'Jungle' migrant camp, as part of a major three-day operation planned to clear the camp in Calais Getty Brexit Concerns Migrants leave messages on their tents in the Jungle migrant camp Getty Brexit Concerns The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (Adra) which distributes approximately 700 meals daily in the northern Paris camp states that it is noticing a spike in new migrant arrivals this week, potentially linked the the Calais 'jungle' camp closure - with around 1000 meals distributed today EPA Brexit Concerns Migrant workers pick apples at Stocks Farm in Suckley, Britain Reuters Brexit Concerns Many farmers across the country are voicing concerns that Brexit could be a dangerous step into the unknown for the farming industry Getty Brexit Concerns Bank of England governor Mark Carney who said the long-term outlook for the UK economy is positive, but growth was slowing in the wake of the Brexit vote PA Brexit Concerns The Dow Jones industrial average closed down over 600 points on the news with markets around the globe pluninging Getty Brexit Concerns Immigration officers deal with each member of the public seeking entry into the United Kingdom but on average, 10 a day are refused entry at this London airport and between 2008 and 2009, 33,100 people were detained at the airport for mainly passport irregularities Getty Brexit Concerns A number of global investment giants have threatened to move their European operations out of London if Brexit proves to have a negative impact on their businesses Getty Brexit Concerns Following the possibility of a Brexit the UK would be released from its renewable energy targets under the EU Renewable Energy Directive and from EU state aid restrictions, potentially giving the government more freedom both in the design and phasing out of renewable energy support regimes Getty Brexit Concerns A woman looking at a chart showing the drop in the pound (Sterling) against the US Dollar in London after Britain voted to leave the EU Getty Brexit Concerns Young protesters outside the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, to protest against the United Kingdom's decision to leave the EU following the referendum Getty Brexit Concerns Applications from Northern Ireland citizens for Irish Passports has soared to a record high after the UK Voted in favour of Leaving the EU Getty Brexit Concerns NFU Vice President Minette Batters with Secretary of State, Andrea Leadsome at the National Farmers Union (NFU) took machinery, produce, farmers and staff to Westminster to encourage Members of Parliament to back British farming, post Brexit Getty Brexit Concerns The latest reports released by the UK Cabinet Office warn that expats would lose a range of specific rights to live, to work and to access pensions, healthcare and public services. The same reports added that UK citizens abroad would not be able to assume that these rights will be guaranteed in the future Getty Brexit Concerns A British resident living in Spain asks questions during an informative Brexit talk by the "Brexpats in Spain" group, about Spanish legal issues to become Spanish citizens, at the town hall in Benalmadena, Spain Reuters Brexit Concerns The collapse of Great Britain appears to have been greatly exaggerated given the late summer crowds visiting city museums, hotels, and other important tourist attractions Getty Brexit Concerns The U.K. should maintain European Union regulations covering everything from working hours to chemicals until after the government sets out its plans for Brexit, said British manufacturers anxious to avoid a policy vacuum and safeguard access to their biggest export market Getty

He said that Brexiteers are envisaging free market, free trading, light regulation, low tax, low social protection like in city states Hong Kong and Singapore, something he claimed not all Leave voters would back.

He said Remain voters must win the argument that staying in the EU should stay on the table, warning that anger and anxiety about immigration, globalisation, stagnant incomes, housing and squeezed public services will only get worse outside the EU.

Right now there is one point and one point only to win: we should keep every option open, Mr Blair wrote.

That this should even be contentious speaks loudly about how much those of us, and after all we were 16 million people, who believe Britain's future lies within the European partnership, have been shoved on to the defensive.

He said people supporting Remain are the insurgents now. We have to build the capability to mobilise and to organise. We have to prise apart the alliance which gave us Brexit.
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A date has been set for a High Court court challenge that could halt British arms sales to Saudi Arabia  amid mounting accusations the country is committing war crimes

Two judges will conduct a three-day judicial review of arms export licences issued by the British government for military hardware to the autocratic government.

The review will start on 7 February 2017, having been granted permission to proceed on 30 June this year.

Recommended Read more Labour MPs rebel against call for UN probe into Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia is conducting a military operation in Yemen and has been accused by UN bodies, human rights groups, and other NGOs of committing war crimes. Reports on the ground say it has bombed civilian targets including funerals, international hospitals, schools, and food factories.

Yemen is facing a humanitarian emergency, with an estimated 20 million people in need of humanitarian aid and facing possible starvation, in part thanks to a blockade by Saudi forces.

The British Government has issued 3.3 billion in arms licences for export to the country since the bombing began, including, 1.1 billion for bombs, missiles and other explosive projectiles  so-called ML4 licences.

Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world other than the UK that has access to the deadly Paveway IV bomb manufactured by Glenrothes-based Raytheon UK.

Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has defended selling arms to the autocracy (Reuters)

The Governments own arms export conditions say that licences should not be issued if there is a possibility they could be used to commit war crimes.

Ministers have however refused to consider suspending arms exports to the country  and sensationally claimed that Saudi Arabia is best-placed to investigate its own alleged atrocities. Saudi Arabia has repeatedly cleared itself of any significant wrongdoing when it has investigated its own military.

The Saudi government has approached this matter with great seriousness, and the seriousness it deserves, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said in Parliament on Wednesday.

Saudi-led coalition airstrikes have hit civilians areas (Getty)

But the House should be in no doubt that we in this country are monitoring the situation minutely and meticulously, and will continue to apply our established criteria for granting licences with fairness and rigour, and in full accordance with UK law.

He added: To those who say, as apparently they now do in this motion, that we should simply disregard those legal procedures, be in no doubt that we would be vacating a space that would rapidly be filled by other Western countries who would happily supply arms with nothing like the same compunctions or criteria or respect for humanitarian law.

10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Show all 10 1 /10 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In October 2014, three lawyers, Dr Abdulrahman al-Subaihi, Bander al-Nogaithan and Abdulrahman al-Rumaih , were sentenced to up to eight years in prison for using Twitter to criticize the Ministry of Justice. AFP/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2015, Yemens Sunni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi was forced into exile after a Shia-led insurgency. A Saudi Arabia-led coalition has responded with air strikes in order to reinstate Mr Hadi. It has since been accused of committing war crimes in the country. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Women who supported the Women2Drive campaign, launched in 2011 to challenge the ban on women driving vehicles, faced harassment and intimidation by the authorities. The government warned that women drivers would face arrest. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Members of the Kingdoms Shia minority, most of whom live in the oil-rich Eastern Province, continue to face discrimination that limits their access to government services and employment. Activists have received death sentences or long prison terms for their alleged participation in protests in 2011 and 2012. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses All public gatherings are prohibited under an order issued by the Interior Ministry in 2011. Those defy the ban face arrest, prosecution and imprisonment on charges such as inciting people against the authorities. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2014, the Interior Ministry stated that authorities had deported over 370,000 foreign migrants and that 18,000 others were in detention. Thousands of workers were returned to Somalia and other states where they were at risk of human rights abuses, with large numbers also returned to Yemen, in order to open more jobs to Saudi Arabians. Many migrants reported that prior to their deportation they had been packed into overcrowded makeshift detention facilities where they received little food and water and were abused by guards. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses The Saudi Arabian authorities continue to deny access to independent human rights organisations like Amnesty International, and they have been known to take punitive action, including through the courts, against activists and family members of victims who contact Amnesty. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Raif Badawi was sentenced to 1000 lashes and 10 years in prison for using his liberal blog to criticise Saudi Arabias clerics. He has already received 50 lashes, which have reportedly left him in poor health. Carsten Koall/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Dawood al-Marhoon was arrested aged 17 for participating in an anti-government protest. After refusing to spy on his fellow protestors, he was tortured and forced to sign a blank document that would later contain his confession. At Dawoods trial, the prosecution requested death by crucifixion while refusing him a lawyer. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Ali Mohammed al-Nimr was arrested in 2012 aged either 16 or 17 for participating in protests during the Arab spring. His sentence includes beheading and crucifixion. The international community has spoken out against the punishment and has called on Saudi Arabia to stop. He is the nephew of a prominent government dissident. Getty

And more importantly, we would at a stroke eliminate this country's positive ability to exercise our moderating, diplomatic and political influence on a crisis where there are massive UK interests at stake.

The House of Commons Arms Export Control Committee is split on whether or not the Government should immediately suspend arms sales to Saudi or wait for the outcome of the judicial review.

Labour, the SNP, Greens and Lib Dems have all called for arms sales to be suspended to the country.

Andrew Smith of Campaign Against Arms Trade, which brought the legal challenge through its solicitors Leigh Day, said more people would likely be killed in Yemen while the challenge was coming to court.

On Wednesday night MPs chose to put the UK's toxic relationship with Saudi Arabia and arms company profits ahead of human rights and upholding our own rules on arms sales, he said.

These arms sales aren't just immoral; we also believe them to be illegal, he said. Our legal action will see arms exports to Saudi Arabia given the scrutiny they deserve.

But it shouldn't take legal action to stop the UK from arming one of the most brutal dictatorships in the world.

Between now and next February, it is likely that thousands more people will die and Saudi will commit more war crimes.
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The Foreign Office has refused to deny whether it backed Saudi Arabias renewed membership on the UNs Human Rights Council, despite alleged war crimes by the kingdom in Yemen.

It comes after a meeting of the UN General Assembly in New York elected 14 members to the council, including the oil-rich kingdom, through a secret ballot. The 193-member assembly also voted Russia off the UNHRC, which lost its regional seat to Hungary.

When asked whether the UK voted for Saudi Arabia, a Foreign Office spokesman told The Independent: We do not reveal our voting intention.

Recommended Read more Date set for court challenge to ban British arms sales to Saudi Arabia

It will be Riyadhs third term in the organisation, despite mounting pressure from international human rights groups. In January, the country beheaded 47 people in one day, including the prominent Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr.

Earlier this month the Saudi-led coalition admitted responsibility for the bombing of a funeral in Yemen that killed 140 people and wounded 600 more  blaming the wrong information. However, Saudi Arabia has repeatedly says that its actions in Yemen comply with international humanitarian law.

The Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron, told The Independent: It is appalling that the UK would consider supporting any country as chair of the Human Rights Council which didnt itself uphold fundamental human rights at home and abroad. Saudi Arabia in particular consistently disregard not only the rights of their own citizens, but have also been involved in serious violations of International Humanitarian Law in Yemen.

The acceptance of repressive regimes as members of the HRC severely compromises the efficacy of the organisation as a voice for democracy and human rights. It is time for complete transparency from our government over how they wield their vote, as attempts to cover up their preferred candidate further undermines the accountability that must be shown when it comes to this important body."

10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Show all 10 1 /10 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In October 2014, three lawyers, Dr Abdulrahman al-Subaihi, Bander al-Nogaithan and Abdulrahman al-Rumaih , were sentenced to up to eight years in prison for using Twitter to criticize the Ministry of Justice. AFP/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2015, Yemens Sunni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi was forced into exile after a Shia-led insurgency. A Saudi Arabia-led coalition has responded with air strikes in order to reinstate Mr Hadi. It has since been accused of committing war crimes in the country. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Women who supported the Women2Drive campaign, launched in 2011 to challenge the ban on women driving vehicles, faced harassment and intimidation by the authorities. The government warned that women drivers would face arrest. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Members of the Kingdoms Shia minority, most of whom live in the oil-rich Eastern Province, continue to face discrimination that limits their access to government services and employment. Activists have received death sentences or long prison terms for their alleged participation in protests in 2011 and 2012. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses All public gatherings are prohibited under an order issued by the Interior Ministry in 2011. Those defy the ban face arrest, prosecution and imprisonment on charges such as inciting people against the authorities. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2014, the Interior Ministry stated that authorities had deported over 370,000 foreign migrants and that 18,000 others were in detention. Thousands of workers were returned to Somalia and other states where they were at risk of human rights abuses, with large numbers also returned to Yemen, in order to open more jobs to Saudi Arabians. Many migrants reported that prior to their deportation they had been packed into overcrowded makeshift detention facilities where they received little food and water and were abused by guards. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses The Saudi Arabian authorities continue to deny access to independent human rights organisations like Amnesty International, and they have been known to take punitive action, including through the courts, against activists and family members of victims who contact Amnesty. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Raif Badawi was sentenced to 1000 lashes and 10 years in prison for using his liberal blog to criticise Saudi Arabias clerics. He has already received 50 lashes, which have reportedly left him in poor health. Carsten Koall/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Dawood al-Marhoon was arrested aged 17 for participating in an anti-government protest. After refusing to spy on his fellow protestors, he was tortured and forced to sign a blank document that would later contain his confession. At Dawoods trial, the prosecution requested death by crucifixion while refusing him a lawyer. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Ali Mohammed al-Nimr was arrested in 2012 aged either 16 or 17 for participating in protests during the Arab spring. His sentence includes beheading and crucifixion. The international community has spoken out against the punishment and has called on Saudi Arabia to stop. He is the nephew of a prominent government dissident. Getty

Raising the issue at Prime Minister's Questions in recent weeks Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour leader said: Three years ago the United Kingdom backed Saudi Arabian membership of the UN Human Rights councils. On the 28th of October, there are elections again for the UN Human Rights Council.

A UN panel has warned that Saudi Arabias bombing of Yemen has violated international law.

He then cited concerns from Amnesty International over executions and discrimination against women, before adding: Will her government again be backing the Saudi dictatorship for membership of that committee?

Ms May refused to answer the question directly, only saying that where there are legitimate human rights concerns over Saudi Arabia, then the UK would raise them with the country.

She added: "In relation to the action in Yemen, we have been clear that we want the incidents that have been referred, to be properly investigated.

We want the Saudi Arabians, if there are lessons to be learnt from those, to learn lessons from those.

But I reiterate a point that Ive made in this House before, that our relationship with Saudi Arabia is an important relationship. Its a particularly important relationship in relation to the security of this country and counter-terrorism.

Yemen descended into full-blown civil war between the Saudi-backed exiled government and Iranian-allied Shia Houthi rebels in March 2015, when Houthi fighters took control of the countrys capital. Since then, more than 10,000 people have died, the UN says, more than three million people have been displaced and the country is on the brink of famine.
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Natos signatory countries have a problem with not spending enough of their budgets on defence, the alliances secretary general has said.

Jens Stoltenberg said member countries had to stop the cuts and continue to raise spending on their militaries.

Nato has said its member countries should spend at least two per cent of their GDP on defence; both Labour and the Conservatives support this policy.

Recommended Read more Nato to station thousands of troops in Russian border countries

Abroad, however, most countries spend far less. Of the 28 countries signed up to the defensive pact, only the United States, Greece, Poland, Estonia and Britain are meeting the commitment.

France and Turkey are the only other Nato countries with spending levels above 1.5 per cent of GDP, with the others nowhere near meeting the minimum commitment.

We have a problem and thats why we decided that we have to do something with the problem, Mr Stoltenberg told BBC Radio 4s Today programme.

In 2014 we made a decision to stop the cuts and invest We see that the trend has shifted  2015 was the first year with an increase in defence spending among Nato allies and 2016 we expect even more increase.

It is extremely important that there is no doubt that Nato is there to protect all allies against any threat and that Natos security guarantees are unconditioned, they are absolute.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. 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Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. 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"This is the best way to prevent a conflict and the best way to prevent anyone from attacking Nato allies.

US presidential candidate Donald Trump said earlier this year that he would consider not defending Nato allies that did not spend up to the target.

Mr Stoltenberg struck a cautious tone on the alliances relationship with Russia.

We dont see an imminent threat against any Nato ally, but we see a more assertive Russia, he said.

We are not in a Cold War but we are not in partnership with Russia we were in after the Cold War.

He defended a planned build-up of Nato troops along Russian borders, arguing that the move would send a very clear signal of deterrence and that Russia itself had tripled its defence spending in recent years.
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When I was growing up in Uxbridge, all I wanted to do was run a sandwich shop, says a man called Raheem Kassam, who is, unfortunately, not running a sandwich shop in Uxbridge. The fact that I am standing here today, shows you how far we have come.

Where he is standing, here today, is on a crate behind the bar in a shut pub at half past ten in the morning. Kassam, once Nigel Farage's chief advisor, is the "Faragist candidate" for the Ukip leadership, and as if proof were required, he has hired a pub to prove it. "Our legacy is Nigel. Nigel is our legacy," he says. Kassam is 30 and looks 40, which makes him 20 and 25 years younger than Nigel respectively.

That 20 TV cameras and 15 plastic Union Jack-waving activists have gathered at the Westminster Arms, long before opening hours, has served as unfortunate siren call to eight Royal Marines in their green berets, momentarily distracted from their "Justice for Marine A" protest happening simultaneously in Parliament Square, who have falsely imagined there might be an out-of-hours pint to be had. There isnt. Three lagers have been poured, but they are what is known in political circles as meta-lagers. Had the cameras not been there to film them, they would never have been poured.

The Marines are in town, by the way, to protest the ongoing legal action against of one of their number, who admitted to the "mercy killing" of two mortally wounded Taliban fighters, and found himself in court.

Ukip, despite the factionalism, the fist fights and the possibly imminent bankruptcy, show no sign of wanting to be put out of their misery. Carrying mortal wounds, Ukip is determined to fight on, even with the battle already won.

The activists are reliable enough, cheering on cue every time anyone says the word Brexit or Nigel, which they do, a lot. One lad, in his early 20s, wearing his green "Grassroots Out" tie from the referendum campaign that finished four months ago, is so desperate to fit in he is gamely sipping alcohol-free beer, at half past ten in the morning. Another, waving her little Union Jack for the cameras, claims its "Just like being at a wedding, isnt it?" She must have been to some very low-budget weddings.

Raheem, apparently, is here to stand up for "pride, patriotism, aspiration," which have apparently "been beaten down by the liberal left."

But hes also here to drink a pint for the TV cameras, and he gainfully grimaces through a full three sips before Michael Crick of Channel 4 News corners him and reads back a few of his choice tweets, including a now deleted one about telling Nicola Sturgeon to "tape her mouth shut and close her legs so she cant reproduce."

Kassams nervous reach for the lager at this point seems almost involuntary, a stalling for time, but it definitely pays off. A few seconds later and hes realised hes got a watertight defence: That was before I knew shed had a miscarriage.

Kassam is not the favourite in the Ukip leadership race, but victory is not beyond him. Ukip is the third largest party in the country. It won almost four million votes at the last general election. That makes Kassam a significant figure in British politics. That, more than anything, shows how far we have come.
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Zac Goldsmiths constituency support is holding firm at the start of his by-election campaign, a new poll has found.

The former Richmond Park MP resigned over the Governments announcement it would expand Heathrow Airport earlier this week  triggering a by-election.

A BMG poll for Londons Evening Standard newspaper found that Mr Goldsmiths support was solid on 56 per cent of the vote  down by just two points from the last general election.

Recommended Read more Labour MPs call for the party to stand down against Zac Goldsmith

Despite Mr Goldsmiths significant level of support the Liberal Democrats have already consolidated their support from 2015, up ten points to 29 per cent.

Labour were on 10 per cent, down two points on 2015, while other candidates were on five per cent, down five per cent.

The opposition part, which came second in the seat and held it until 2010, has not yet announced a candidate  meaning there could be all to play for once activists hit the streets.

Mr Goldsmith was roundly defeated when he stood to become Mayor of London at the start of this year  after a controversial mayoral campaign that sought to associate the evenal winner Sadiq Khan with "extremists".

That campaign was branded "racist" and "disgusting" by critics, including some Conservatives.

Mr Goldsmith has said he wants the by-election campaign to be about Heathrow  however it is understood that any candidate fielded by the Lib Dems is likely to be against Heathrow as well.]

The former MP's opponents could try to make his conduct during the Mayor of London election an issue  or raise the fact he is an ardent Brexit supporter, in one of the most pro-Remain areas of the UK.

At the start of this week three Labour MPs from across the party urged Jeremy Corbyn not to stand a candidate at the by-election, in order to not split the anti-Tory vote.

The party will however stand a candidate at the by-election, it is understood.

The Conservatives are not standing against Mr Goldsmith, who is seeking to be re-elected as an independent.
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Refugees make a substantial positive contribution to the economy of their host country if they are welcomed and given plots of land, according to the first major study of its kind.

Researchers working with the World Food Programme (WFP) visited two major refugee settlements in Uganda, which hosts more than 700,000 people fleeing conflicts in neighbouring countries yet has one of the most progressive approaches to asylum seekers in the world.

The study found that for every refugee household in Uganda receiving cash aid from the WFP, the local economy was boosted by more than $1,100 dollars a year.

Refugees who were given cash spent most of it buying food from local producers and vendors, and contributed more to the Ugandan economy than those who were given the equivalent amount in food aid.

Recommended Read more The six refugee crises the world forgot

But Uganda is particularly remarkable because many refugee families are given a plot of agricultural land and raw materials to build their own home upon arrival.

These families contributed more positively to the local economy than those not given their own land, boosting it by an additional $220 a year, as they hire agricultural labour from other households and purchase tools and supplies from local businesses.

While they are not necessarily more efficient than their Ugandan neighbours, refugees [also] realise higher yields because they invest considerably more labour, said study co-author and WFP refugee programme manager Jaako Valli.

Professor J Edward Taylor of the University of California, Davis, led the research involving surveys of some 1500 households and 385 businesses, and has previously published a study on the benefits of cash aid over food aid to refugees and their host communities in Rwanda.

The multipliers [to the local economy] are significant, regardless of whether a refugee family receives cash or food, he said.

Uganda has been subject to a great deal of international attention for the way it has fostered positive relations between host communities and refugees, despite the huge numbers arriving every day from conflicts in South Sudan, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Speaking at Barack Obamas New York summit on refugees last month, the Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni said it was his countrys approach to welcome those fleeing conflict as your unfortunate brothers and sisters, while recognising the business opportunity they bring.

It is not correct to treat African refugees as if they are flukers seeking to consume the resources of the indigenous people, he said. While in exile, both out of humanness and far-sight, the refugees need to be well-treated.

[And] when peace returns to their tormented land, they will go back and become your treasured partners in production and exchange of goods and services with their former hosts, he said.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

As far as the farsighted is concerned, even the time in exile is important and useful It is the time to establish future business links.

WFP Deputy Country Director Cheryl Harrison said in a statement: This is the first time in Uganda that we have been able to calculate the economic impact of humanitarian food assistance.

It is also the first time that we have calculated the economic impact of Ugandans generous approach to providing agricultural land to refugees. The results show clearly that refugees benefit those countries that welcome them and give them what they need to build new lives.
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An 11-year-old boy found dead at his familys Los Angeles home in August had been confined to a wardrobe by his mother for three years, it has emerged.

When Yonatan Daniel Aguilar vanished in 2013, his mother, Veronica Aguilar, told people he had been sent to live at an institution in Mexico. Despite previous allegations of abuse, the police, social workers and school officials never investigated. Even the boys stepfather, Jose Pinzon, appears to have been unaware that Yonatan was at home the whole time.

According to court records obtained this week by the Los Angeles Times, Aguilar, 39, kept her son locked in a bedroom cupboard, where he was sedated with a sleep-inducing syrup. Police found the childs malnourished body spotted with pressure sores from the tiled floor and surrounded by cups of the liquid medication.

Pinzon told police he only learned his stepson had died when his wife told him on 22 August and asked him to care for her three remaining children. Pinzon assumed she would travel to Mexico to bury Yonatans body, but instead she led him to the wardrobe, where he found the boys lifeless body, weighing little more than 15kg, in a space too small to stretch his legs.

Pinzon then ran to a nearby convenience store in the Echo Park neighbourhood, where he called the police. Aguilar has pleaded not guilty to murder.

Her three other children told authorities that they had known where their brother was for the past three years, but were forbidden by their mother from telling anyone. It is thought Yonatan may have been autistic. His eldest brother, who is 18, said the family had recently moved to Echo Park from another home, where Yonatan had also been hidden in a cupboard.
Poroshenko, Erdogan agree to step up on FTA, discuss procedure for further ties at highest level

President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan as part of a telephone conversation have agreed to step up negotiations on a free trade area (FTA), and discussed the procedure for further ties at the highest level, the press service of the Ukrainian states head said.

Poroshenko informed the Turkish leader on increasing the period of visa-free stay from 60 to 90 days during the 180-day period for Turkish citizens on the territory of Ukraine. A similar decision the Turkish government earlier adopted with regard to Ukrainian citizens. Poroshenko called it an important step in the development of interpersonal relations and economic ties between the two countries.

The two sides condemned the human rights violations in the occupied by Russia Crimea. President Erdogan once again stressed he doesnt recognize the results of Russian parliamentary elections in the occupied peninsula.
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A Colombian city has launched an initiative to end the use of honorific titles in a bid to create a more equal and peaceful society.

The Latin American country is deeply divided by class and unofficial titles such as doctor are used to denote someone of a higher social status, even if an individual holds no such qualification.

Maurice Armitage, Mayor of Cali, in the countrys south west, announced the egalitarian initiative in early October.

Recommended Read more Colombian tourism hit by rejection of peace deal

Titles indicating social superiority, including the likes of don and senor, have now been banned from public offices.

Municipal workers, including Mr Armitage, are to be addressed solely by their given name.

The day that Colombians can refer to each other, unmarked apart, is the day that we can began to implement peace in this country," the mayor said. From now on, Im not the mayor, Im Maurice.

Honorific terms are deeply ingrained in Colombia's highly unequal social hierarchy, which has its roots in Spanish colonialism.

The massive growth of the country's middle class in recent decades has disrupted this, however, leading to more people calling for change.

The countrys bitter civil war, a peace deal to end which was recently rejected by the public, was strongly driven by inequality, with Farc guerrillas adhering to a communist ideology and haling mostly from poor rural areas.

Colombia: Two hundred years of freedom? Show all 10 1 /10 Colombia: Two hundred years of freedom? Colombia: Two hundred years of freedom? 416866.bin GETTY IMAGES Colombia: Two hundred years of freedom? 416869.bin GETTY IMAGES Colombia: Two hundred years of freedom? 416868.bin AFP/GETTY IMAGES Colombia: Two hundred years of freedom? 416867.bin AFP/GETTY IMAGES Colombia: Two hundred years of freedom? 416870.bin AFP/GETTY IMAGES Colombia: Two hundred years of freedom? 416871.bin AFP/GETTY IMAGES Colombia: Two hundred years of freedom? 416863.bin AFP/GETTY IMAGES Colombia: Two hundred years of freedom? 416865.bin GETTY IMAGES Colombia: Two hundred years of freedom? 416862.bin AFP/GETTY IMAGES Colombia: Two hundred years of freedom? 416864.bin GETTY IMAGES

Mr Armitages measure was welcomed by two national newspapers, who argued that Mr Armitage was putting into practice what many people felt.

In an editorial, El Tiempo wrote that ,with the practice of using the social titles still prevalent, it makes sense to think that colonialism with all its vices is still breathing among us [applying Mr Armitages idea to] the language of everyday life can begin to topple that prejudice.

El Espectador said: We support such measures by forcing a reflection on language, opening the door to change the relationships between people.

 Colombian President announced as winner of Nobel Peace Prize

Mr Armitage is not the only public leader to do away with honorifics. Rodrigo Duterte, president of the Philippines, issued an executive order in July banning the use of social titles, including His Excellency for himself or his cabinet.

The move reflected Mr Dutertes populist style - he often speaks in the language of the street and is known for his no-nonsense approach.
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When Jennifer S Hollands pet chameleon went missing, she figured it was only a matter of time before the tiny lizard would die of dehydration. A day later, Holland found him safe and sound, nestled gently in the moist, warm mouth of her dog, Tai.

I dont know why Tai didnt bite down, the DC-based writer says. She [would chew] on everything else.

Though we cant know Tais thought process, it does seem that dogs have an uncanny ability to empathize across species lines, Holland says. In fact, dogs are the original cross-species communicators, having befriended us humans some 30,000 years ago.

For her new book, Unlikely Friendships: Dogs, Holland has collected 37 true tales of dogs bonding with creatures across the zoological spectrum, including reptiles and birds. The way dogs can pick up on the needs of creatures so different from themselves is inspirational, says Holland, who will give a talk at Politics and Prose on Wednesday.

Looking at the current political climate, Im starting to think maybe we should be learning something from these dogs, she says.

Poldi, a Belgian Malinois,has a pygmy owl for a best buddy (Tanja Brandt)

Hooting and howling

Ingo and Poldi, a Belgian Malinois and a pygmy owl, live in Dusseldorf, Germany, where they go outside and watch deer together. Their owner was surprised when the two bonded because Ingo is not a very friendly dog, Holland says. This is a dog that youd expect to immediately pick up and shake this bird and kill it, and instead they are really buddies, she says. One time, when Poldis foot was injured in a hawk attack, Ingo gently licked the owls wound and kept her company while she healed.

Laska, a German shepherd-like dog, helped nurse this abandoned fawn back to health (Frank Hecker Naturfotografie)

Licked back to life

In 2009, the Hecker family in Germany took in a fawn whod lost her mother. Despite the familys best efforts, the little deer, Tirza, remained stressed and weak. As a last-ditch effort, they let their gentle dog, Laska, try to soothe the deer. Laska licked the fawn until she calmed down enough to eat  and the two became inseparable until Tirza grew up and returned to the company of other deer in a nearby wildlife preserve.

A stable relationship

When Leslie Stark brings her Doberman to the stable in Lima, Peru, where she keeps her horse, the strangest thing happens: The dog lies down and the horse gives him a full-body massage. Afterward, the two romp around together, though Stark keeps an eye on them and pulls the dog away if it looks like they might be getting too rough, Holland says.

Where not to visit if you love animals Show all 9 1 /9 Where not to visit if you love animals Where not to visit if you love animals Monkey shows Chimpanzees are forced to perform demeaning tricks on leashes and are often subject to cruel training techniques. Animals who are confined to small, barren enclosures and forced to perform unsurprisingly show symptoms of stress and depression. Chimpanzees have been documented rocking back and forth, sucking their lips, salivating and swaying against enclosure perimeters in distress. Getty Where not to visit if you love animals Marine parks Some parks confine orcas to concrete tanks and force them to perform meaningless tricks for food - many die in captivity. Orcas are highly intelligent and social mammals who may suffer immensely, both physically and mentally, when they're held in captivity. Getty Where not to visit if you love animals Tiger shows Tigers are forced to live in an unnatural and barren environment and have to endure interactions with a constant stream of tourists. Since tigers never lose their wild instincts, across the world they are reportedly drugged, mutilated and restrained in order to make them safe for the public. However, every year, incidents of tiger maulings are reported at this type of tourist attraction. Getty Where not to visit if you love animals Donkey rides Sunning on the beach is great for humans  we can take a quick dip or catch a bite to eat when we get too hot or hungry. But it's pure hell for donkeys who are confined to the beach and forced to cart children around on the hot sand. Some donkey-ride operators at beach resorts in the UK even keep the animals chained together at all times. Getty Where not to visit if you love animals Swimming with dolphins Some marine parks use bottlenose dolphins in performances and offer visitors the opportunity to swim with dolphins. Unfortunately, people are often unaware that these animals are captured in the wild and torn from their families or traded between different parks around the world. Getty Where not to visit if you love animals Canned hunting Lions are confined to fenced areas so that they can easily be cornered, with no chance of escape. Most of them will have been bred in captivity and then taken from their mothers to be hand-reared by the cub-petting industry. When they get too big, they may be drugged before they are released into a "hunting" enclosure. Because these animals are usually kept in fenced enclosures (ranging in size from just a few square yards to thousands of acres), they never stand a chance of surviving. Getty Where not to visit if you love animals Running of the Bulls Every year, tourists travel to Pamplona for the Running of the Bulls. The bulls who are forced to slip and slide down the town's narrow cobblestone streets are chased straight into the bullring. They are then taunted, stabbed repeatedly and finally killed by the matador in front of a jeering crowd. The majority of Spaniards reject bullfighting, but tourists are keeping the cruel industry on its last legs. Getty Where not to visit if you love animals Horse-drawn carriages City streets are no place for horses. The animals toil in all weather extremes, suffering from respiratory distress from breathing in exhaust fumes as well as numerous hoof, leg and back problems from walking on pavement all day long. As easily spooked prey animals, horses subjected to the loud noises and unexpected sounds of city streets are likely to be involved in accidents, even deadly ones. Getty Where not to visit if you love animals Zoos The zoo community regards the animals it keeps as commodities, and animals are regularly bought, sold, borrowed and traded without any regard for established relationships. Zoos breed animals because the presence of babies draws visitors and boosts revenue, yet often, there's nowhere to put the offspring as they grow, and they are killed, as we saw with Marius the giraffe in Denmark. Some zoos have introduced evening events with loud music and alcohol which disrupt the incarcerated animals even further. EPA

Meerkat manor

When the Bent family in Derbyshire, England, brought home a meerkat named Timone, they thought shed join up with their existing colony of meerkats. Instead, the established meerkat gang attacked the newcomer, leaving her isolated and scared. Enter Poppy, a Chihuahua-Maltese mix. This little dog, its like he noticed the meerkat was lonely and filled in, Holland says. Now the two are inseparable, eating, sleeping and even taking baths together.

 Washington Post
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Donald Trump has been criticised for claiming a US soldier killed in the Iraq War would still be alive today if he had been President.

The soldiers father, Khizr Khan, who gave an emotional speech at the Democratic Convention against Mr Trump in July, branded the remark cruel.

The Republication Presidential candidate made the claim when speaking to ABC News but said he believed the solider was a hero.

"Had I been president, Captain Khan would be alive today. We wouldn't have been in this horrible, horrible mistake, the war in Iraq," Mr Trump said.

Humayun Khan was 27-years-old when he was killed by a car bomb in 2004 in Iraq.

His father responded to Trumps comments by saying: "This is the most cruel thing you can say to grieving parents, that if I was there this would not have happened."

Mr Khans speech at the Democratic Convention caught the attention of the country when he attacked Mr Trump for his anti-Muslim rhetoric.

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

As he spoke his wife stood by his side, which Mr Trump claimed implied she was not allowed to talk  a response that received strong condemnation from within his own party.

The controversy was one of many in the Republican's campaign, which saw him backtrack on a proposal to ban Muslims from entering the US and be ridiculed for inaccuracies on Isis.
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The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is looking into newly discovered emails linked to Hillary Clintons just 11 days before the presidential election, reigniting a massive controversy that has haunted the Clinton campaign for months.

Three months after the investigation into Ms Clinton's emails recommended no criminal charges be filed, FBI director James Comey said on Friday he had found more messages that appeared to be "pertinent" to the investigation of Ms Clintons alleged misuse of her personal email server when she was Secretary of State.

The emails on a government computer were reportedly obtained via the FBI's investigation into former congressman Anthony Weiner, the former husband of Clinton aide Huma Abedin, over allegations he sent sexual messages to a minor.

Speaking about the investigation on Friday evening, Ms Clinton said she had learned of the newly discovered emails from news reports.

Ms Clinton said that the American people deserve to get the full and complete facts immediately. She urged the FBI to explain this issue in question, whatever it is, without any delay.

Let's get it out, she added.

Republicans have seized on the news to denounce her candidacy, while Clinton campaign chair John Podesta said the FBI "owes the American public" the full details of what it has found to clear up any whiff of controversy so soon before the election.

I'm confident whatever they are will not change the conclusion reached in July, Ms Clinton said.

In a statement earlier in the day, Mr Comey said: In previous congressional testimony I refer to the fact that the FBI has completed its investigation of former secretary Clintons personal email server.

"Due to recent developments I am writing to supplement my previous testimony.

"In connection with an unrelated case the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent, and I am writing to inform you that the investigative team briefed me on this yesterday and I agreed the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation."

He said he "cannot yet assess whether or not this material may be significant", and did not say how long the investigation would take.

Few details are available. The emails were found on a government computer and were not related to WikiLeaks.

 FBI director says 'no charges' for Hillary Clinton amid email scandal

The email controversy has dogged Ms Clinton's campaign for months.

She repeatedly said she handed over 33,000 emails to the FBI and the Justice Department to determine whether she had sent or received top secret or classified information on an unsecured server.

The FBI also denied a "quid pro quo" arrangement with the state department to downgrade certain information in the emails from "classified" to "unclassified".

 Trump Blasts Clinton Over Leaked DNC Emails

Mr Comey told the Justice Department in July that although Ms Clinton had displayed "extreme carelessness" which could have lead to adversaries hacking her account, he did not recommend any criminal charges.

The Justice Department agreed with the FBI's recommendation the same month.

As the news broke, Ms Clinton was flying to Iowa to speak alongside women's rights leaders at two rallies. Ms Clinton did not comment on the news during her first rally Friday afternoon at Cedar Rapids.

At a rally in New Hampshire, Donald Trump told the crowds: "Hillary Clintons corruption is on a scale we have never seen before. We must not let take her criminal scheme into the oval office.

"I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the Department of Justice are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made."

He has previously said Ms Clinton should be behind bars and accused her of "deleting thousands of emails" to hide them from the FBI, which Ms Clinton denied.

The news was also jumped on by Republicans including house speaker Paul Ryan, who said Ms Clinton had "nobody but herself to blame but herself".

"She was entrusted with our nation's most important secrets, and she betrayed that trust by carelessly mishandling highly classified information," he said in a statement, renewing his call to exclude Ms Clinton from any classified briefings until the matter was "fully resolved".

Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus also called for Ms Clinton to be "disqualified" from running for president.

Donald Trump's campaign manager Kellyanne Conway said on Twitter that a "great day" for their campaign "just got even better".

Along with the investigation over her emails sent and received as Secretary of State, the US government recently accused Russia of hacking emails from the Democratic National Convention, which exposed Ms Clinton's team's apparent planned smear of former opponent Bernie Sanders.
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A man who went missing in 1993 has been discovered living with a new family and a stolen identity in Florida.

Richard Hoagland made a panicked call to his wife, Linda Iseler, when she was at work on 10 February 1993, saying he was on his way to hospital.

She and her two sons, Matthew, 9, and Doug, 6, never saw him again.

"He devastated us. He left us with nothing, absolutely nothing. I was very broken," she told ABC News.

He was declared legally dead in 2003. His wife moved on and and remarried.

Meanwhile Hoagland had traveled 1,000 miles south from their home in Indianapolis to the small town of Zephyrhills, Florida.

He remarried under the name of Terry Symansky - a fisherman who died in a freak accident in 1991 - and had another child.

Terry Smyanky died in 1991 with no wife or children (Pasco County Sheriffs Office)

He stole the identity by renting an apartment from the fishermans father and taking his sons death certificate once the landlord had died, and using it to apply for a birth certificate and a driving licence.

Smyanskys nephew exposed the con after doing some research on ancestry.com and saw that his uncle had married two years after his death.

Hoagland, now 63, faces several fraud charges. Pascoe County police called him a "selfish coward" for the cover-up.

Sheriff Chris Nocco said: "This is a person who has lived his life destroying others."

His third wife, Mary Hickman, said she found a briefcase of documents relating to his first identity after he was arrested.

Hoagland told police he wanted to leave his second wife but did not want to get another divorce after being married to Linda for 11 years.
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A 68-year-old woman is believed to have been mauled to death by her pet dogs in the US.

Daisie Bradshaw's body was found in her basement by her daughter, who called emergency services telling them a pair of German shepherds could have eaten her mother.

New York Police Department (NYPD) said officers responding to the call in Staten Island found Ms Bradshaw beaten, bruised and unresponsive. She was declared dead at the scene, reports Inside Edition.

Two dogs were found in the basement and her body shows defensive wounds and bite marks, NYPD confirms.

A Police Emergency Service Unit took the dogs away from the scene after sedating them.

The New York medical examiner is to determine the official cause of death while the investigation into the fatal incident is ongoing.

Popular dog breeds then and now Show all 10 1 /10 Popular dog breeds then and now Popular dog breeds then and now Bull terrier then Popular dog breeds then and now Bull terrier now Popular dog breeds then and now English bulldog then Popular dog breeds then and now English bulldog now Popular dog breeds then and now German shepherd then Popular dog breeds then and now German shepherd now Popular dog breeds then and now Airedale terrier then Popular dog breeds then and now Airedale terrier now Popular dog breeds then and now Shetland sheepdog then Popular dog breeds then and now Shetland sheepdog now

In August, a three-year-old boy from Halstead in Essex died after being bitten by a dog.

A few days earlier, a man in his fifties in West Yorkshire was attacked by a dog and died from his injuries.
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A police operation to remove protesters from the path of an oil pipeline in North Dakota erupted into chaos yesterday, with officers in riot gear firing rubber bullets and pepper spray.

Demonstrators set alight a roadblock made from tyres and wood as police moved in to clear the road and disperse the assembled crowd during a six-hour stand-off.

Native American tribe the Standing Rock Sioux have been joined by environmental campaigners and other tribes in a months-long protest over the construction of a new $3.8 billion (3.1 billion) crude oil pipeline.

They say it will wreck sacred sites and threaten water supplies for millions as it crosses the Missouri River near their reservation in the midwest US state.

Authorities said 141 people were arrested in the clashes, while protesters have accused the police of using undue force towards a peaceful demonstration.

Protester Dallas Goldtooth told Associated Press police were very aggressive and had also used rubber bullets and a concussion grenade.

An aerial photo of the stand-off between protesters and police provided by Morton County Sheriff's Office (Reuters)

Tensions between protesters and police intensified last weekend when around 200 demonstrators moved onto private land on the planned route of the Dakota Access Pipeline.

The land had recently been acquired by Dallas-based natural gas company Energy Transfer Partners, which received the go-ahead for construction of the controversial pipeline in July.

Law enforcement asked protesters to leave peacefully on Wednesday and were refused. On Thursday, some 200 officers in riot gear moved in to remove the protesters.

A roadblock is set alight during the protest (Screenshot from footage published by Unicorn Riot)

We have repeatedly seen a disproportionate response from law enforcement, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Chairman Dave Archambault said in a statement.

The Native American-led protest has grown into a larger movement in the United States, drawing in other tribes, environmentalists and advocates for Native Americans.

The police action today was to remove protectors from this land, said North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple said at a news conference.

Hopefully, we have persuaded these protesters that our state highways and county highways, private property, is not the place to carry out a peaceful protest.

Freelance journalist Jihan Hafiz was been arrested during a protest last weekend. Ive covered conflicts overseas, and I never imagined I would see this kind of show of force against peaceful people, she told The Guardian after her release.

Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier said protesters were free to exercise their free speech rights as long as it was done legal and lawful.

The tribe has asked the Obama administration to intervene to stop the pipeline construction and for the Justice Department to oversee local law enforcement.

If they would only listen to us, and understand our struggles for the water for the benefit of everybody, we wouldnt be in this spot, a protestor told alternative news site Unicorn Riot in a video report.

Climate change protests around the world Show all 25 1 /25 Climate change protests around the world Climate change protests around the world People rally to promote climate protection in Rome, Italy Climate change protests around the world Hundreds of demonstrators gather in front of City Hall in Los Angeles, California EPA Climate change protests around the world People hold hands to form a human chain during a gathering called by ecologist organisations in Marseille, southern France, to protest against global warming a day ahead of the United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP21) held in Paris Climate change protests around the world Demonstrators clash with French riot police during protests on Place de la Republique, ahead of the COP21 World Climate Change Conference 2015 in Paris, France Climate change protests around the world Demonstrators clash with French riot police during a protest on Place de la Republique ahead of the COP21 World Climate Change Conference 2015 in Paris, France Climate change protests around the world A group of people perform during a rally to promote climate protection in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Climate change protests around the world A protester sits next to his sign that reads 'Monsanto the Devil Incorporated ' as he joined hundreds of demonstrators who gathered in front of City Hall in Los Angeles, California EPA Climate change protests around the world Environmentalists dance during a protest near the Place de la Republique after the cancellation of a planned climate march following shootings in the French capital, ahead of the World Climate Change Conference 2015 (COP21), in Paris, France Reuters Climate change protests around the world People protest next to characters dressed as wild animals during a march against climate change near the Monument to the Revolution, in Mexico City AP Climate change protests around the world Protesters carries a banner while they take part in a protest about climate change at New York City Hall steps in lower Manhattan, New York Reuters Climate change protests around the world People take part in a protest about climate change around New York City Hall at lower Manhattan, New York Reuters Climate change protests around the world People rally to promote climate protection in Piazza Castello, Turin, Italy Climate change protests around the world A woman holds a globe during a protest for the global climate day in Lugano, Switzerland Climate change protests around the world Yemenis hold banners as they participate in the Global March for Climate in the old city of Sanaia, Yemen Climate change protests around the world Protesters dressed as Santa Claus take part in a protest about climate change at New York City Hall steps in lower Manhattan, New York Reuters Climate change protests around the world People gather at the Legislative Palace in Montevideo, during the Global Climate March to demand action on climate change telling world leaders on the eve of a crunch UN summit that there is "no planet B". From Sydney to London, humid Rio to chilly New York, at least 683,000 hit the streets in 2,300 events across 175 countries at the weekend, co-organiser and campaign group Avaaz said, calling it the largest number of people to protest over climate change all at once Getty Images Climate change protests around the world Climate change protests around the world Demonstrators participate in the Global March for Climate in Athens, Greece Climate change protests around the world A man wearing a Bernie Sanders mask leads hundreds of demonstrators who marched near City Hall in Los Angeles, California EPA Climate change protests around the world Patricia Hauser joined hundreds of demonstrators who gathered in front of City Hall in Los Angeles, California Climate change protests around the world A woman holds a poster of a sick Earth as she joined hundreds of demonstrators who gathered in front of City Hall in Los Angeles, California EPA Climate change protests around the world Hundreds of demonstrators march around City Hall in Los Angeles, California EPA Climate change protests around the world A demonstrator holds cut-out of US Democratic Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders as she joined hundreds of demonstrators who gathered in front of City Hall in Los Angeles, California EPA Climate change protests around the world George Patten holds a sign that reads 'No Fracking Ever!' as he joined hundreds of demonstrators who gathered in front of City Hall in Los Angeles, California EPA Climate change protests around the world Gabrielle Sosa wears 'Rising Sea Levels' sign as she joined hundreds of demonstrators who gathered in front of City Hall in Los Angeles, California EPA

The federal government has twice asked the pipeline operator to voluntarily pause construction near the tribe's reservation while the authorities reconsider the project's route, but courts have refused to compel a halt.

Energy Transfer Partners, which insists the pipeline complies with the law, resumed construction on 11 October.
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A federal court jury delivered a surprise verdict on Thursday acquitting anti-government militant leader Ammon Bundy and six followers of conspiracy charges stemming from their role in the armed takeover of a wildlife centre in Oregon earlier this year.

The outcome marked a stinging defeat for federal prosecutors and law enforcement in a trial the defendants sought to turn into a pulpit for airing their opposition to US government control over millions of acres of public lands in the West.

Bundy and others, including his brother and co-defendant Ryan Bundy, cast the 41-day occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge as a patriotic act of civil disobedience. Prosecutors called it a lawless scheme to seize federal property by force.

Jubilant supporters of the Bundys thronged the courthouse after the verdict, hailing the trial's outcome as vindication of a political ideology that is profoundly distrustful of federal authority and challenges its legitimacy.

We're so grateful to the jurors who weren't swayed by the nonsense that was going on, defendant Shawna Cox told reporters. God said we weren't guilty. We weren't guilty of anything.

As the seven-week-long trial in the US District Court in Portland climaxed, US marshals wrestled to the floor Ammon Bundy's lawyer, Marcus Mumford, as he argued heatedly with the judge over the terms of his client's continued detention.

The Bundys still face assault, conspiracy and other charges from a separate armed standoff in 2014 at the Nevada ranch of their father, Cliven Bundy, triggered when federal agents seized his cattle for his failure to pay grazing fees for his use of public land.

The outcome of the Oregon trial clearly shocked many in the packed courtroom. Attorneys exchanged looks of astonishment with the defendants, then hugged their clients as the not-guilty verdicts were read amid gasps from spectators.

Outside the courthouse, supporters celebrated by shouting Hallelujah and reading passages from the US Constitution. One man rode his horse, named Lady Liberty, in front of the courthouse carrying an American flag.

The verdict came after four days of deliberations. One juror, a former federal employee, was dismissed over questions of bias on Wednesday and replaced by a substitute.

The 12-member panel found all seven defendants - six men and a woman - not guilty of the most serious charge, conspiracy to impede federal officers through intimidation, threats or force. That charge alone carried a maximum penalty of six years in prison.

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The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. 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The defendants also were acquitted of illegal possession of firearms in a federal facility and theft of government property, except in the case of Ryan Bundy, for whom jurors were deadlocked on the charge of theft.

The takeover of the wildlife refuge was initially sparked by outrage over the plight of two imprisoned Oregon ranchers the occupiers believed had been unfairly treated in an arson case. But the militants said they were also protesting larger grievances at what they saw as government tyranny.

The standoff led to the shooting death of one protester, Robert LaVoy Finicum, by police shortly after the Bundy brothers were arrested, and left parts of the refuge badly damaged.

More than two dozen people, in all, have been criminally charged in the occupation, and a second group of defendants is due to stand trial in February.

Mumford told reporters he believed Ammon and Ryan Bundy would remain in custody for the time being but may be transferred to Nevada.

Four co-defendants were free on their own recognisance during the trial. A fifth, David Fry, the last of the occupiers to surrender in February, was released hours after the verdict.

Reuters
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A Republican senator has been widely criticised for his attempt to undermine his female opponent - a disabled army veteran - by highlighting her ethnic heritage.

During a debate for the Illinois senate, Democratic representative Tammy Duckworth said that: My family has served this nation in uniform, going back to the Revolution. Im a daughter of the American Revolution.

Mr Kirk was given 30 seconds to respond to the same question.

Recommended Read more Amy Schumer releases video after Formation parody is branded racist

He turned to her and said: I had forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington.

Two-term lawmaker Ms Duckworth, after an awkward pause, responded that she was proud of her parents' immigrant status.

She later tweeted: "My mum is an immigrant and my dad and his family have served this nation in uniform since the Revolution."

The representative was born in Bangkok. Her mother is of Chinese heritage and her father is of British descent.

As reported by the Washington Post, Eleni Demertzis, a spokeswoman for his campaign, said that he has called her a war hero and honored her familys service to the US.

But thats not what this debate was about," she said.

"Rep Duckworth lied about her legal troubles, was unable to defend her failures at the VA [Veterans Affairs] and then falsely attacked Senator Kirk over his record on supporting gay rights.

Mr Kirk then backtracked on his refusal to apologise and tweeted later on Friday: "Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service. #ilsen."

Hillary Clinton jumped on the spat, thanking Ms Duckworth and her familys service to the US military.

Its really not that hard to grasp, Mark, she added.

Mr Kirk withdrew his endorsement of Donald Trump in the summer after Mr Trump expressed doubt that an Indiana judge could treat him fairly as he was of Mexican heritage.

Mr Trump's campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, also seized on the debate to denounce Mr Kirk.

"The same Mark Kirk that unendorsed his party's presidential nominee and called him out in paid ads? Gotcha. Good luck," she wrote.

Mr Kirk suffered a major stroke in 2012 and is vulnerable to lose the election, with a recent poll from independent firm Victory Research finding that 53 per cent of voters did not believe he could carry out his duties.

The Chicago Tribune decided to endorse Ms Duckworth, an army veteran who lost both her legs during the Iraq War, over Mr Kirk because they believed his health would impair his professional abilities.
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Heading into the final week of the election, the Clinton campaign still faces questions about the ongoing email controversy.

Recommended Read more Hillary Clinton speaks out on latest FBI email probe

The Federal Bureau of Investigation announced it will reopen the investigation into Hillary Clintons use of a private email server after learning of a new batch of emails pertinent to the investigation.

In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent, FBI director James Comey said in a letter to congressional Republicans. He added that the Bureau will work to determine whether the emails in question contained any classified information.

As the political press focuses on the new investigation, it still remains unclear whether the continued investigation will put a damper on the momentum the Clinton campaign has built up throughout October.

US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Show all 12 1 /12 US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Republican U.S. presidential nominee Donald Trump shakes hands with Democratic U.S. presidential nominee Hillary Clinton at the conclusion of their first presidential debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York Reuters US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures President Barack Obama embraces Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton on stage at the party's convention in Philadelphia US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Donald Trump's wife Melania delivered a speech at the GOP convention in Cleveland that was later found to have been cribbed in part from Michelle Obama's 2008 convention address AP US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Hillary Clinton talks to reporters aboard her new campaign plane on Labour Day, 5 September, her first 'press conference' since 2015 (Getty Images) US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Donald Trump held a joint press conference with Mexican leader Enrique Pena Nieto in Mexico City in August, hours before reiterating his harsh immigration plans at a campaign rally in Arizona Reuters US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Bernie Sanders officially endorsed Hillary Clinton, saying his progressive vision for a transformed America would be best served by the defeat of Donald Trump Reuters US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Khizr and Gazala Khan appeared at the DNC to slam Trump for his stance on Muslim immigration, citing the case of their son Humayun Khan, who was killed in combat while serving as a Captain in the US Army in Iraq US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson is doing better in polls than any third party candidate since Ross Perot, 20 years ago Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Green Party candidate Jill Stein (centre) marches with supporters in Colorado AP US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Hillary Clinton and Virginia Senator Tim Kaine at a rally in Kaine's home state in July, days before Ms Clinton tapped him to be her running mate Getty US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Trump on the campaign trail with his vice presidential pick, Indiana governor Mike Pence AP US election 2016: the race for the White House in pictures Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage appears at a Trump rally in Mississippi in August, where he told the crowd that he 'wouldn't vote for Hillary Clinton if you paid me'.

Why is this in the news?

Republican nominee Donald Trump has insisted the emails are the smoking gun that prove Ms Clintons alleged corruption  despite the FBI previously declaring no criminal wrongdoing by the former Secretary of State. But Mr Trumps constant calls for the imprisonment of Ms Clinton seemed to have little impact on her upward trajectory in the race to the White House. But as Ms Clinton leads by wide margins in all of the major national polls 11 days ahead of the election, the reemergence of the email scandal could slow down that momentum.

Where did the FBI find these emails?

The emails were reportedly found as FBI officials seized electronic devices belonging to top longtime aide Huma Abedin and her husband, former Congressman Anthony Weiner, amid his own sexting scandal, according to the New York Times. The emails were not related to the thousands of emails stolen from campaign chair John Podesta's account, as published by Wikileaks.

What does this mean for the campaign?

It remains unclear whether or not this will have a major detrimental impact to the Clinton campaign. NBCs Pete Williams reported that a senior law enforcement official said there was no evidence that the emails in question were originally withheld from the FBI.

But the revelation further fuels the common perception that Ms Clinton is distrustful.

How did Hillary Clinton respond?

Ms Clinton delivered a statement Friday evening in Des Moines, Iowa.

We are 11 days out from perhaps the most important national election of our lifetimes. Voting is already underway in our country, she said. So, the American people deserve to get the full and complete facts immediately.

Her remarks echoed a statement issued by her campaign chair earlier that day.

Mr Podesta accused Mr Trump and the GOP of baselessly second-guessing federal investigators in a desperate attempt to harm Hillary Clintons presidential campaign.

"FBI Director Comey should immediately provide the American public more information than is contained in the letter he sent to eight Republican committee chairmen," he said. "Already, we have seen characterizations that the FBI is 'reopening' an investigation but Comey's words do not match that characterization. Director Comey's letter refers to emails that have come to light in an unrelated case, but we have no idea what those emails are and the Director himself notes they may not even be significant.

"It is extraordinary that we would see something like this just 11 days out from a presidential election."

How did Donald Trump respond?

Mr Trump issued a statement Friday afternoon celebrating the FBI and Justice Departments decision to reopen the investigation, while singing a familiar song about Ms Clintons alleged corruption.

Hillary Clintons corruption is on a scale we have never seen before, he said. We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office.

I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the DOJ are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made. This was a grave miscarriage of justice that the American people fully understand. It is everybodys hope that it is about to be corrected.

At a campaign event in New Hampshire, Mr Trump said the FBI probe was "bigger than Watergate", the scandal that led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon.
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Pavlo Klimkin has expressed hope that the results of the investigation into the downing of flight MH-17 of Malaysia Airlines, which took place in Donetsk region in July 2014, will be presented in the spring of 2017.

"I hope that the investigation will be completed next year, maybe, in spring or a little later and we will have final results," Klimkin said on "Left Bank with Sonia Koshkina" program aired on 24 TV channel.

The minister said that there are two possible options to bring the perpetrators to justice: international tribunal and the court of national jurisdiction - the Ukrainian side has already elaborated the legal procedure in both cases.
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Americas widening political fault-lines have opened up a crack in the beer connoisseur community, after the owner of the oldest brewery in the US announced his support for the 2016 Republican presidential nominee, Donald Trump.

Recommended Read more Donald Trump informs wife Melania she will be doing more speeches

This week, billionaire Richard "Dick" Yuengling, Jr, the fifth-generation boss of the DG Yuengling & Son brewery in Pottsville, Pennsylvania  est. 1829  gave a tour of the premises to Mr Trumps son, Eric, who called it an amazing American success story.

Mr Yuengling, a lifelong Republican whose business is based in a key swing state, responded with a ringing endorsement for Mr Trump. Our guys are behind your father, the 73-year-old said, adding: We need him in there.

That was too much for some Democrat-leaning Yuengling drinkers, who took to Twitter to urge a boycott of the beer. Kentucky native Todd Bird said he would no longer make the 90-mile drive to Ohio to partake of his preferred tipple, calling Mr Trump a racist, misogynist nut-job.

Several bars in Washington DC announced they would stop serving Yuengling, according to the Washington Post. Pennsylvania state representative Brian Sims, who is gay, wrote a post on Facebook ending his 17-year relationship with the historic lager.

Trump supporters, meanwhile, were delighted by the news.

President Obama once suggested Yuengling was his favourite beer. No word yet from the White House on the controversy.
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Rodrigo Duterte's latest crackdown on illegal drugs has left the mayor of a town in the Philippines among 10 people killed in a gunfight with an anti-narcotics squad.

Police said Mayor Samsudin Dimaukom, of southern Datu Saudi Ampatuan town, was killed along with nine others before dawn on Friday.

The authorities said they were killed in a gunfight when they fired from three cars on officers at a checkpoint in Makilala town in North Cotabato province.

According to Superintendent Bernard Tayong, the mayor had been named by Mr Duterte as among many politicians suspected to be involved in illegal drugs.

 Philippines: President Rodrigo Dutertes 100 days in office

Police estimate more than 3,600 suspected drug dealers and addicts have been killed since Mr Duterte took office on 30 June.

So far police have launched more than 23,500 raids and arrested 22,500 suspected drug dealers and addicts.

More than 1.6 million houses of drug suspects have been visited by police to invite them to surrender and stop using drugs, or disengage from the drug trade.

Around 732,000 addicts and dealers have surrendered, apparently for fear of being killed. The sheer number has surprised Mr Duterte and the national police, prompting them to scramble for land and money to build rehabilitation centres.

The president said his crackdown on drug dealers and criminals will continue because he "cannot kill them all".

The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Show all 9 1 /9 The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On killing drug addicts These sons of whores are destroying our children. I warn you, dont go into that, even if youre a policeman, because I will really kill you. If you know of any addicts, go ahead and kill them yourself as getting their parents to do it would be too painful The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Message to China I will go there on my own with a Jet Ski, bringing along with me a [Phillipino] flag and a pole, and once I disembark, I will plant the flag on the runway and tell the Chinese authorities, Kill me  AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Christmas message to law-breakers If you do not want to stop, and just continue committing crimes, then this would be your last Merry Christmas AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On sex life I was separated from my wife. Im not impotent. What am I supposed to do? Let this hang forever? When I take Viagra, it stands up AFP/Getty Images The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On the drugs trade None of my children are into illegal drugs. But my order is, even if it is a member of my family, kill him'" AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Insulting the Pope We were affected by the traffic. It took us five hours. I asked why, they said it was closed. I asked who is coming. They answered, the pope. I wanted to call him: Pope, son of a wh**e, go home. Do not visit us again AFP/Getty Images The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Joke about rape I saw her face and I thought, 'What a pity... they raped her, they all lined up. I was mad she was raped but she was so beautiful. I thought, the mayor should have been first AFP/Getty The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Insulting Barack Obama "Mr Obama should be respectful and refrain from throwing questions at me about the killings, or son of a bitch, I will swear at you in that forum" REUTERS The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On Abu Sayyaf Islamic militants "If I have to face them, you know I can eat humans. I will really open up your body. Just give me vinegar and salt, and I will eat you. If you annoy me to the fullest... I will eat you alive. Raw" EPA

Mr Duterte was elected in May on the promise of preventing the Philippines from becoming a narco-state and vowed to kill those involved in importing or selling illegal drugs.

He even likened his national crackdown to the Holocaust and said he would be happy to slaughter as many addicts as Adolf Hitler massacred Jews.

The US, the EU, the UN and human rights watchdogs have been alarmed by the brutality of the crackdown.

Amnesty International said Mr Dutertes first 100 days as President have been marked by state-sanctioned violence on a truly shocking scale.

The President has said he intended to extend his crackdown by maybe another six months.
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The outspoken Filipino president, Rodrigo Duterte, has vowed to never swear again after he made to a promise to God.

Mr Duterte has become known for his profanity  such as calling Pope Francis a son of a bitch and telling US President Barack Obama to go to hell for his criticism of the war on drugs which has seen the extrajudicial killings of thousands of people since June.

The controversial politician made the pledge when he returned to his home city of Davao City in the south of the country after a trip to Japan on Thursday.

He explained that while he was flying home he heard a voice threatening to down the plane if he did not stop swearing.

He said heard the voice say If you don't stop epithets, I will bring this plane down now.

And I said, 'Who is this?' So, of course, 'it's God, the continued.

So, I promise God to ... not express slang, cuss words and everything.

So you guys hear me right always because a promise to God is a promise to the Filipino people.

The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Show all 9 1 /9 The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On killing drug addicts These sons of whores are destroying our children. I warn you, dont go into that, even if youre a policeman, because I will really kill you. If you know of any addicts, go ahead and kill them yourself as getting their parents to do it would be too painful The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Message to China I will go there on my own with a Jet Ski, bringing along with me a [Phillipino] flag and a pole, and once I disembark, I will plant the flag on the runway and tell the Chinese authorities, Kill me  AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Christmas message to law-breakers If you do not want to stop, and just continue committing crimes, then this would be your last Merry Christmas AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On sex life I was separated from my wife. Im not impotent. What am I supposed to do? Let this hang forever? When I take Viagra, it stands up AFP/Getty Images The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On the drugs trade None of my children are into illegal drugs. But my order is, even if it is a member of my family, kill him'" AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Insulting the Pope We were affected by the traffic. It took us five hours. I asked why, they said it was closed. I asked who is coming. They answered, the pope. I wanted to call him: Pope, son of a wh**e, go home. Do not visit us again AFP/Getty Images The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Joke about rape I saw her face and I thought, 'What a pity... they raped her, they all lined up. I was mad she was raped but she was so beautiful. I thought, the mayor should have been first AFP/Getty The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Insulting Barack Obama "Mr Obama should be respectful and refrain from throwing questions at me about the killings, or son of a bitch, I will swear at you in that forum" REUTERS The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On Abu Sayyaf Islamic militants "If I have to face them, you know I can eat humans. I will really open up your body. Just give me vinegar and salt, and I will eat you. If you annoy me to the fullest... I will eat you alive. Raw" EPA

The decision is a turnaround for the 71-year-old who has been compared to US presidential candidate Donald Trump due to his outspokenness and determination to oppose what he called the self-serving elites running the country.

He has condemned the human rights groups and foreign governments who have called for him to end his crackdown on illegal drugs in the country. Thousands of those suspected of being involved in the trade have been killed since he took office at the end of June.

While campaigning for the presidency last year, Mr Duterte caused outrage among the countrys Roman Catholic bishops when he complained about the Popes visit to Manila causing a major traffic jam.

He told supporters: I wanted to call. 'Pope, you son of a bitch, go home.' Don't visit here anymore.

It comes as Mr Duterte distanced himself from his countrys historic ties with the US saying Washington cannot treat Manila like a dog on a leash.

Earlier this week he said he will not honour the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement which allows US troops to be stationed on the countrys islands.

During a recent trip to Beijing Mr Duterte signalled he wished to move closer to the countrys former regional adversary, saying an economic partnership with China was the Philippines only hope for the future.

The two countries had previously been at loggerheads over their conflicting claims to the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea but the Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled in the Philippines favour in July.

Additional reporting by AP
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Taiwan is poised to become the first Asian country to legalise same-sex marriage after the death of a prominent gay professor.

The country is already regarded as one of the most progressive in the region when it comes to equal rights and there is already some legal recognition of same-sex relationships.

But the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has now introduced a bill to formally recognise same-sex marriage, following an outcry over the apparent suicide of French-born professor Jacques Picoux on 16 October.

His partner of nearly 40 years, Tseng Ching-chao, died of cancer last year and friends said Professor Picoux had been devastated that he was denied the right to make medical decisions on his behalf in his last moments.

He also discovered later that he had no legal rights to the property they had shared, Pink News reported.

Following his death, LGBT groups in Taiwan demanded a change to the law with the Taiwan LGBT hotline saying: How many more human lives do we have to lose as a result of the governments gross negligence?.

Pride Watch Taiwan called Professor Picouxs death a pivotal moment for the gay rights movement.

The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe Show all 15 1 /15 The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 15. Italy Getty Images The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 14. Macedonia The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 13. Poland Getty Images The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 12. Liechtenstein The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 11. Lithuania The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 10. Latvia This content is subject to copyright. The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 9. San Marino The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 8. Moldova The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 7. Belarus Getty Images The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 6. Ukraine Getty Images The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 5. Monaco The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 4. Turkey Getty Images The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 3. Armenia The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 2. Russia Getty Images The top 15 worst countries to be gay in Europe 1. Azerbaijan Getty/AFP

Activist Cindy Su told the Guardian: We actually can see that there are about 66 legislators who will probably vote yes on marriage equality.

Thats a majority of 58.4 per cent, the first time in Taiwanese history that we have more than half.

The DPP politician who drafted the law, Yu Mei-nu, said the story had touched people and the LGBT community was very angry.

She said: While many local governments accept household registrations from same-sex couples, it is just an executive measure that does not give them full legal rights.



This time we want an overall rule added: Gays and heterosexuals will have the right to equally enjoy the benefits of marriage, including parental authority over children and freedom from discrimination in adoption cases.

There is also a need for a partnership law, but it should apply equally to heterosexuals and gay people.

The bill will change the definition of marriage to specify that it is between two people rather than the existing stipulation that it is between a man and a woman.
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An Australian couple have been handed long prison sentences for sexually abusing, torturing and locking up their daughter for more than 15 years.

Sydney District Court was told the father used a number of sharp tools to rape and torture the girl.

The girl was tied up in a shed or a plastic box for up to three days at a time at the family's property in rural Northern New South Wales. She was first abused by her father at 5 years old.

The court heard he held the girl's head under water in a creek, wrapped her in barbed wire, threatened her with a chainsaw and forced her to eat hot chillies.

Presiding Judge Sarah Huggett called the crimes as "atrocious in the extreme" and described the father as "selfish, depraved and sadistic".

The father, aged 59, was convicted of 73 offences and sentenced to 48 years in prison - he will be eligible for parole after serving 36 years.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. 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Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. 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Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. 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The mother, aged 51, was convicted of 13 offences and sentenced to 16 years in prison and will have to serve at least 11 years.

The couple denied all charges. The victim, now aged 24, first complained about her parents in 2011 while in a psychiatric hospital. They were arrested by police in 2013.
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A bus driver has died after being set on fire by a Molotov cocktail in the Australian city of Brisbane.

Manmeet Sharma, 29, burned to death in front of his passengers, who included children, in what police condemned as a "senseless attack" on Friday.

Bystanders kicked down the back doors of the municipal bus to rescue the other travellers as the vehicle began to fill with smoke.

Recommended Read more Frenchman reportedly infatuated with backpacker killed at hostel

Police said an attacker threw an "incendiary device" on to the bus as passengers boarded, leaving witnesses "deeply traumatised" by the incident.

The flames were all the way up to the ceiling; the whole front cabin was just ablaze, witness Clair Savage told the Courier Mail.

It was just massive  it was like a bonfire inside the cabin. They got out because a lovely man kicked the door in because the bus driver was trapped and the back door wasnt opening.

The rescuer, taxi driver Aguek Nyok, said to newspaper: I thought I had to help the people get out or theyre going to die. The bus was already on fire.after they got out, I realised there were three kids inside there. It couldve been my kids."

Six people escaped from the bus and eleven were given medical treatment for smoke inhalation and other injuries.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

A 48-year-old suspect was arrested at the bus stop and placed in custody. In addition to murder, he has been charged with the attempted murder of the other passengers and arson.

Police Superintendent Jim Keogh told reporters: "It's a horrific incident here in the quiet suburb of Moorooka.

"This is a rare one where it appears to be no apparent motive.

"A bus driver, going about, doing his business, supporting the community, has had his life taken from him in what is a senseless and needless act.

"It's lucky the whole bus didn't become engulfed in flames."
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A British woman has been killed in a hot air balloon crash in South Africa after a freak change in weather conditions.

Susan Astle, a 48-year-old mother of two, was thrown from the basket of the balloon as it passed over a mountain in Mooinooi, 80 miles from capital Johannesburg.

The crash landing in a field reportedly saw the balloon bounce along the ground and hit a tree, leaving her with serious head injuries.

Ms Astle is reported to have been on a half-term holiday with her husband, John, and their two sons when the accident occurred. She was rushed to hospital in a critical condition but later died from her injuries.

Recommended Read more 16 people feared dead after hot air balloon crash in Texas

Two of the other people 14 people on board  a four-year-old girl and her mother  suffered internal and spinal injuries in the accident. They are being treated in hospital in Johannesburg, where the child was reported to be in a serious condition.

The British owner of the company that organised the trip, Bill Harrop, told Sky News the balloon was forced to land after it got into trouble in high winds.

He said: "The winds were between four and six times what was forecast, they were sustained winds too.

"It seems to have been a whole change in the weather systemit was a freak turn of events."

The winds reached speeds of up to 30 knots  six times more than was forecast, he added.

Mr Harrop said: It had to make a fast landing because of the gusting winds [and] got dragged across the field.

"And only because it got dragged beyond the perimeter of the field, it then hit some rocks and bushes and things which then capsized the basket."

He said the balloons pilot and other staff at the company were being given counselling.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

Another passenger on the balloon said she was holding on for dear life.

Olivia Denny, 70, said: We wanted to land in an open veld, but when we were about to land, the wind just swept us away."

It felt like driving backwards in a car at 40 kilometres an hour.

"The wind dragged us through the bushes and rocks before we eventually landed between two trees. We had to hold on for dear life."

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We are supporting the family of a British national who sadly died in South Africa on 25 October."
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The latest World Bank ratings have damaged France's post-Brexit attempts to take over from the UK as the European hub for international business.

France was rated 29th in the world for "ease of doing business", behind less economically developed countries such as Georgia, Latvia and Macedonia.

Despite the French government's recent efforts to make the country more attractive for businesses, its position actually dropped one place since last year.

In the same rankings, the UK was the seventh-easiest place for doing business, with Germany at 17th and New Zealand topping the list.

The French government has been trying to simplify its financial regulations, particularly speeding up the process of transferral of ownership - for which it was ranked by the World Bank at 100.

It currently takes an average of 68 days to register a property in France compared to four days in Denmark, reports The Local.

France has also been ranked at number 82 for "getting loans from banks". Due to the high rates of business tax in France, it was placed in 63rd position for that category.

Brexit Concerns Show all 26 1 /26 Brexit Concerns Brexit Concerns Brexit will put British patients at 'back of the queue' for new drugs Brexit will put British patients at the back of the queue for vital new drugs, the Government has been warned  forcing them to wait up to two years longer A medicines regulator has raised the alarm over a likely decision to pull out of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), as well as the EU itself. ealth Secretary Jeremy Hunt dropped the bombshell , when he said he expected the UK would quit the EMA  because it is subject to rulings by the European Court of Justice. Getty Images Brexit Concerns London to lose status as 'gateway to Europe' for banks One of Germanys top banking regulators has warned that London could lose its status as gateway to Europe for the banking sector after Britain quits the European trading bloc. Andreas Dombret, who is an executive board member for the BundesbankGermanys central banktold a private meeting of German businesses and banks earlier this week in Frankfurt that even if banking rules were equivalent between the UK and the rest of the EU, that was still miles away from [Britain having] access to the single market, the BBC reports. Jason Hawkes Brexit Concerns Exodus The number of financial sector professionals in Britain and continental Europe looking for jobs in Ireland rocketed in the months after the UK voted to leave the European Union Shutterstock Brexit Concerns Brexit is making FTSE 100 executives richer Pay packages of many FTSE 100 chief executive officers are partly tied to how well share prices are doing rather than the CEOs performance -- and some stocks are soaring. ritish equities got a boost since the June vote because the likes of Rio Tinto, Smiths Group and WPP generate most sales abroad and earn a fortune when they convert these revenues back into the weakened pound. Sterlings fall also made UK stocks more affordable for overseas investors. Rex Brexit Concerns Theresa May: UK to leave single market Theresa May has said the UK "cannot possibly" remain within the European single market, as staying in it would mean "not leaving the EU at all". Getty Brexit Concerns Lead campaigner Gina Miller and her team outside the High Court Getty Brexit Concerns Raymond McCord holds up his newly issued Irish passport alongside his British passport outside the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns SDLP leader Colum Eastwood leaving the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit PA wire Brexit Concerns Migrants with luggage walk past a graffiti on a wall as they leave the 'Jungle' migrant camp, as part of a major three-day operation planned to clear the camp in Calais Getty Brexit Concerns Migrants leave messages on their tents in the Jungle migrant camp Getty Brexit Concerns The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (Adra) which distributes approximately 700 meals daily in the northern Paris camp states that it is noticing a spike in new migrant arrivals this week, potentially linked the the Calais 'jungle' camp closure - with around 1000 meals distributed today EPA Brexit Concerns Migrant workers pick apples at Stocks Farm in Suckley, Britain Reuters Brexit Concerns Many farmers across the country are voicing concerns that Brexit could be a dangerous step into the unknown for the farming industry Getty Brexit Concerns Bank of England governor Mark Carney who said the long-term outlook for the UK economy is positive, but growth was slowing in the wake of the Brexit vote PA Brexit Concerns The Dow Jones industrial average closed down over 600 points on the news with markets around the globe pluninging Getty Brexit Concerns Immigration officers deal with each member of the public seeking entry into the United Kingdom but on average, 10 a day are refused entry at this London airport and between 2008 and 2009, 33,100 people were detained at the airport for mainly passport irregularities Getty Brexit Concerns A number of global investment giants have threatened to move their European operations out of London if Brexit proves to have a negative impact on their businesses Getty Brexit Concerns Following the possibility of a Brexit the UK would be released from its renewable energy targets under the EU Renewable Energy Directive and from EU state aid restrictions, potentially giving the government more freedom both in the design and phasing out of renewable energy support regimes Getty Brexit Concerns A woman looking at a chart showing the drop in the pound (Sterling) against the US Dollar in London after Britain voted to leave the EU Getty Brexit Concerns Young protesters outside the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, to protest against the United Kingdom's decision to leave the EU following the referendum Getty Brexit Concerns Applications from Northern Ireland citizens for Irish Passports has soared to a record high after the UK Voted in favour of Leaving the EU Getty Brexit Concerns NFU Vice President Minette Batters with Secretary of State, Andrea Leadsome at the National Farmers Union (NFU) took machinery, produce, farmers and staff to Westminster to encourage Members of Parliament to back British farming, post Brexit Getty Brexit Concerns The latest reports released by the UK Cabinet Office warn that expats would lose a range of specific rights to live, to work and to access pensions, healthcare and public services. The same reports added that UK citizens abroad would not be able to assume that these rights will be guaranteed in the future Getty Brexit Concerns A British resident living in Spain asks questions during an informative Brexit talk by the "Brexpats in Spain" group, about Spanish legal issues to become Spanish citizens, at the town hall in Benalmadena, Spain Reuters Brexit Concerns The collapse of Great Britain appears to have been greatly exaggerated given the late summer crowds visiting city museums, hotels, and other important tourist attractions Getty Brexit Concerns The U.K. should maintain European Union regulations covering everything from working hours to chemicals until after the government sets out its plans for Brexit, said British manufacturers anxious to avoid a policy vacuum and safeguard access to their biggest export market Getty

In its favour, France did come first for "trading across borders" and 18th for "enforcing business contracts".

Paris has been mooted as a possible successor to London as Europe's financial services capital, and its hopes will be bolstered by the news that the UK's economic growth has slowed to 0.5 per cent after Brexit.

Last week, the European Union's lead Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier demanded that all talks be conducted in his native tongue of French rather than English.
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Hani Salam escaped civil war in Syria and survived the journey from Egypt to Europe. But when he saw men with bushy long beards at a mosque near his current home in Cologne last November, he was worried.

The men's appearance reminded him of Jaish al-Islam, the Islamist rebels who took over his hometown near Damascus, said Salam, 36, who wears a moustache but no beard. One of them told Salam that good Muslims grow beards, not moustaches, he recalled - a centuries-old idea that he dismisses.

Everything about this mosque made me feel uneasy, he said.

Syrians in Germany say many of the country's Arab mosques are more conservative than those at home.

Over two months, a dozen Syrians in six places of worship in three cities told Reuters they were uncomfortable with very conservative messages in Arabic-speaking mosques. People have criticised the way the newcomers dress and practise their religion, they said. Some insisted the Koran be interpreted word-for-word.

Muslims bow their heads during Friday prayers at the Turkish Kuba Camii mosque (Wolfgang Rattay/Reuters)

It is a highly contentious issue in a country where Europe's migrant influx is already having deep political and social consequences. In Germany this year Alternative for Germany, a populist party that says Islam is incompatible with the German constitution, has gained ground. There have been several attacks by militant Muslims. Syrians and others say the mosque problem is adding to mistrust.

In Germany, other different faiths are traditionally supported by the state. But most of the country's four million Muslims originally came from Turkey and attend Turkish-speaking mosques which are partly funded by Ankara.

Last year around 890,000 asylum-seekers, more than 70 percent of them Muslims, entered the country. Around a third came from Syria. Many of them do not want to go to Turkish mosques because they do not understand the sermons. They prefer to worship where people speak Arabic.

Yet in these mosques, other problems arise. They are often short of funds, or else supported by Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states. Some back ultra-conservative or highly literal interpretations of Islam, such as Wahhabism or Salafism.

Unfortunately it is true that a large majority of Arabic-speaking mosques are more conservative than Turkish mosques, said Professor Mouhannad Khorchide, who heads the Centre for Islamic Theology at Muenster University. That poses problems for integrating those who are less conservative.

How can one absorb these people if they are interested in their religion? said Khorchide. When there is a shortage of offers the Salafists try to fill the gap.

In Cologne, Salam said that 75 Syrians live in the same hotel as his family. Of them, only one veiled woman prays at the nearest Arabic mosque.

One time when I was there, a Salafist asked a young Arab man to leave because he was wearing shorts, he added. At the Turkish mosque no one cares what you're wearing.

In a windowless ground floor room inside the Arabic mosque one Friday in August, some 200 men, including about two dozen with bushy beards and trimmed moustaches typical of ultra-Orthodox Muslims, crowded for prayers.

The Turkish Kuba Camii mosque near a hotel housing refugees in Cologne (Wolfgang Rattay/Reuters)

Afterwards, a worshipper scolded three Lebanese men for saluting him when he entered the mosque. They had interrupted the sermon, which he said was forbidden. Your Friday is gone! he told them, lifting his hands toward his face and pressing his fingers together to emphasise that their actions had made their prayers void.

The imam who led the prayers said the community is not political or violent. Asked about the Syrians who felt uncomfortable at mosques like his, he said: It's an honour to be called a Salafist. We are only interested in giving members of our community pure Islamic teachings.

Even though Salam can't understand the sermons in Turkish, he said he has started going to a Turkish mosque instead.

A 2008 survey of Muslims and Christians in Europe by the state-funded WZB Berlin Social Science Centre found fundamentalist attitudes were less prevalent among German Muslims than elsewhere in Europe, but still quite widespread: For example, nearly half the Muslims it surveyed in Germany felt religious law to be more important than secular law.

Germany's domestic intelligence agency has recorded more than 320 attempts by Salafist Muslims to contact refugees last year, often by offering food, clothes, free copies of the Koran and help with German to asylum seekers living in shelters.

Earlier this month, a Syrian committed suicide in prison after he was arrested on suspicion of planning to bomb an airport. His brother and friends in Germany have said he was brainwashed by ultra-conservative imams in Berlin.

The intelligence agency has advised local authorities against housing asylum-seekers near Salafist or Wahhabi mosques.

Refugees settle in Germany Show all 12 1 /12 Refugees settle in Germany Refugees settle in Germany Germany Mohamed Zayat, a refugee from Syria, plays with his daughter Ranim, who is nearly 3, in the one room they and Mohamed's wife Laloosh call home at an asylum-seekers' shelter in Vossberg village on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. The Zayats arrived approximately two months ago after trekking through Turkey, Greece and the Balkans and are now waiting for local authorities to process their asylum application, after which they will be allowed to live independently and settle elsewhere in Germany. Approximately 60 asylum-seekers, mostly from Syria, Chechnya and Somalia, live at the Vossberg shelter, which is run by the Arbeiter-Samariter Bund (ASB) charity 2015 Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany A refugee child Amnat Musayeva points to a star with her photo and name that decorates the door to her classroom as teacher Martina Fischer looks on at the local kindergarten Amnat and her siblings attend on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. The children live with their family at an asylum-seekers' shelter in nearby Vossberg village and are waiting for local authorities to process their asylum applications. Approximately 60 asylum-seekers, mostly from Syria, Chechnya and Somalia, live at the Vossberg shelter, which is run by the Arbeiter-Samariter Bund (ASB) charity Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Kurdish Syrian asylum-applicant Mohamed Ali Hussein (R), 19, and fellow applicant Autur, from Latvia, load benches onto a truckbed while performing community service, for which they receive a small allowance, in Wilhelmsaue village on October 9, 2015 near Letschin, Germany. Mohamed and Autur live at an asylum-applicants' shelter in nearby Vossberg village. Approximately 60 asylum-seekers, mostly from Syria, Chechnya and Somalia, live at the Vossberg shelter, which is run by the Arbeiter-Samariter Bund (ASB) charity Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Mohamed Ali Hussein ((L), 19, and his cousin Sinjar Hussein, 34, sweep leaves at a cemetery in Gieshof village, for which they receive a small allowance, near Letschin Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Mohamed Zayat, a refugee from Syria, looks among donated clothing in the basement of the asylum-seekers' shelter that is home to Mohamed, his wife Laloosh and their daughter Ranim as residents' laundry dries behind in Vossberg village on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. The Zayats arrived approximately two months ago after trekking through Turkey, Greece and the Balkans and are now waiting for local authorities to process their asylum application, after which they will be allowed to live independently and settle elsewhere in Germany Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Asya Sugaipova (L), Mohza Mukayeva and Khadra Zhukova prepare food in the communal kitchen at the asylum-seekers' shelter that is their home in Vossberg village in Letschin Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Efrah Abdullahi Ahmed looks down from the communal kitchen window at her daughter Sumaya, 10, who had just returned from school, at the asylum-seekers' shelter that is their home in Vossberg Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Asylum-applicants, including Syrians Mohamed Ali Hussein (C-R, in black jacket) and Fadi Almasalmeh (C), return from grocery shopping with other refugees to the asylum-applicants' shelter that is their home in Vossberg village in Letschin Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Mohamed Zayat (2nd from L), a refugee from Syria, smokes a cigarette after shopping for groceries with his daughter Ranim, who is nearly 3, and fellow-Syrian refugees Mohamed Ali Hussein (C) and Fadi Almasalmeh (L) at a local supermarket on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. All of them live at an asylum-seekers' shelter in nearby Vossberg village and are waiting for local authorities to process their asylum applications, after which they will be allowed to live independently and settle elsewhere in Germany 2015 Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Kurdish Syrian refugees Leila, 9, carries her sister Avin, 1, in the backyard at the asylum-seekers' shelter that is home to them and their family in Vossberg village in Letschin Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Somali refugees and husband and wife Said Ahmed Gure (R) and Ayaan Gure pose with their infant son Muzammili, who was born in Germany, in the room they share at an asylum-seekers' shelter in Vossberg village on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. Approximately 60 asylum-seekers, mostly from Syria, Chechnya and Somalia, live at the Vossberg shelter, which is run by the Arbeiter-Samariter Bund (ASB) charity, and are waiting for authorities to process their application for asylum 2015 Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany German Chancellor Angela Merkel pauses for a selfie with a refugee after she visited the AWO Refugium Askanierring shelter for refugees in Berlin Getty Images

We know of at least 90 Islamist mosques where activities aimed at refugees are taking place. These mosques are largely Arab-dominated and influenced by Salafism, said Hans-Georg Maassen, head of the agency.

At the al-Nur mosque in Berlin, which is run by Wahhabis, Syrian Abed al-Hafian said he was alarmed by a strict interpretation of the Koran and Hadith, a collection of sayings of the prophet. He recalled a sentence from Hadith that the preacher quoted on his first Friday: 'Every novelty (in religion) is innovation, and every innovation is misguidance, and every misguidance leads to the hellfire.'

I had never heard that sentence in Syria, said the 42-year-old father of three, who arrived in 2014. The message is clear and is directed at us Muslims: 'Don't you dare interpret your religion. Take the Koran word for word.' It's a problem.

He said he decided to take what he wants from the sermons and ignore the rest.

Even though officials accept that not all Salafists are violent, some Syrians worry that if they go to Arabic-speaking mosques, they may be seen as radicals.

In Hamburg, Syrian Kurd Abu Mohammad said he has avoided going to a mosque since he arrived in Germany two years ago because his parents, who came here a decade ago, told him it could only bring trouble.

The government is obviously monitoring Salafists, said the 32-year-old father of six, using a nickname because he said he fears for his safety and that of relatives still living in Damascus.

I have a two-year visa and the last thing I want is trouble.

The problem may be rooted in the schisms in Islam, but it is made worse by the structure of religious funding in Germany. Since the start of the 20th century Germany has had a system of collecting taxes for worship, which are then paid out to religious groups like Catholics, Protestants and Jews.

Muslims cannot benefit from this, because the four main organisations that represent Muslims in Germany can't agree to merge into one religious body, a requirement to receive taxes.

Most communities can't even afford a proper mosque ... And most can't pay a well-educated imam to serve their community, said Daniel Abdin, co-chairman of the Shura Council in Hamburg, an umbrella organisation for the city's Muslim community.

So you end up with a situation where people with little or no knowledge of modern theology are serving as imams.

Five years ago, the government set up five Islamic theology centres to train imams and Islamic educators with a 20-million-euro ($22 million) grant from the Education Ministry. The strategy has been partly successful: Islamic studies are taught to Muslim pupils in many schools.

But few of the more than 1,800 students who have graduated from the theology centres have gone on to serve as local imams.

Nonetheless, Khorchide and other Islam experts are hopeful that the influx of Muslim asylum-seekers with an open approach to religion is an opportunity to promote a more moderate Islam in the Arabic-speaking mosques.

In Hamburg, Abu Mohammad says he has stopped attending mosque at all.

I pray at home, he said. I'm sure Allah listens.

Reuters
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Russia could overrun Natos current military force in the Baltic states in a matter of hours, according to a US think-tank, leaving the Western alliance with few options but to concede the loss of some of its most vulnerable members.

In a damning report, the US Army-linked Rand Corporation said Natos military assets in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were so mismatched with Russia as to be inviting a devastating war, rather than deterring it.

The think-tank said it carried out a series of war games exploring a scenario in which Russia tried to annex the capitals of either Estonia, Latvia, or both, similarly to how it seized the peninsula of Crimea in 2014.

The outcome was, bluntly, a disaster for Nato, the report found, with every playthrough of events ending with Russian forces in or at the gates of Tallinn and Riga within 60 hours.

With Russia outnumbering Nato ground battalions by almost two to one, and possessing much heavier weaponry than the Baltic defence forces, some simulations had the capitals falling in as little as 36 hours from the start of hostilities.

As presently postured, Nato cannot successfully defend the territory of its most exposed members, the think-tank concluded.

How Russian forces would overrun Nato troops on route to Riga and Tallinn, with a substantial Russian force defending its oblast at Kaliningrad on the Polish border (Rand Corporation)

The war games come as Russia and the West make moves which increasingly point to a prolonged quarrel - though not yet the open hostilities envisaged by Rand.

In recent weeks alone, Russia has moved battleships toward the Mediterranean and Baltic Seas, shifted nuclear-capable missile-launchers into its Kaliningrad enclave neighbouring Poland and continued flying bombers down the western European coast.

And in a separate report, Rand observed that Russia was more than capable of ignoring norms on territorial aggression when it sees fit.

As part of its simulations, Rand imagined what action would be available to Nato if Russia chose to take Tallinn and Riga, describing them as a limited number of options, all bad.

It said the alliance would have to choose between three options: to launch a major counter-offensive and take back the cities in a prolonged conflict; to threaten Moscow directly in a bid to force Russia to withdraw; or to accept the military development, at least in the short to medium term.

The first two options, Rand suggested, could quickly escalate to the potential use of nuclear weapons. The latter would, at best, lead to a new cold war.

Nato has itself said it is aware of what seems a growing mismatch against Russian forces on its easternmost border.

Speaking on Thursday, the alliances top military commander, US General Curtis Scaparrotti, said: "What we are observing is Russian military practice that diverges widely from NATO practice in scale, scope, content, purpose, and transparency.

We need to be strategic and coherent in our approach to defending our citizens. Now is the time for the Alliance to remain strong.

Nato allies are advancing with plans, agreed in July, to station thousands of troops and military equipment to the Baltic.

The US said on Wednesday it would commit a full brigade, some 1,500 to 3,000 troops, to Poland in February. The UK is to send typhoon fighter jets to the Black Sea area, while a battalion of troops, tanks and light armour will deploy in Estonia in the spring, backed by French and Danish troops. Starting in February, Germany will send 400 to 600 soldiers and battle tanks to Lithuania.

But this is still some six to seven times short of the commitment Rand says would realistically make a difference in the event of an all-out Russian attack.

The think-tank speculates that it would take a force of about seven brigades, including three heavy armored brigades  adequately supported by airpower, land-based fires, and other enablers on the ground and ready to fight at the onset of hostilities to prevent the rapid overrun of the Baltic states.

This would come at an annual cost to Nato members of some $2.7 billion. That is not a small number, Rands report admits. [But] it hardly appears unaffordable, especially in comparison with the potential costs of failing to defend Natos most exposed and vulnerable alliesthat is, of potentially inviting a devastating war, rather than deterring it.
Ukrainian army positions in Donbas came under 54 attacks over the past day, the press center of the army operation staff said on Facebook.

Thirty-four provocations were observed in the Mariupol sector, the press center said, adding that Ukrainian army positions came under attack of large-caliber machineguns, grenade launchers and small arms in Hranitne and Talakivka and 82mm and 120mm mortars near Taramchuk, Pavlopil, Novotroyitske and Slavne. Weapons of infantry combat vehicles, mortars of both calibers, machineguns and grenade launchers were fired on Ukrainian army positions in Maryinka, Krasnohorivka and Shyrokyne, while 152mm tube artillery and 120mm mortars were used in Vodiane, it said.

The truce was breached 17 times in the Donetsk sector, the staff said. According to it, machineguns, grenade launchers and mortars of various calibers were fired on Ukrainian army positions in Zaitseve, Opytne, Mayorsk and the Butovka mine, while weapons of all calibers, including 152mm artillery, were engaged in attacks in Avdiyivka.

Ukrainian soldiers thrice came under attack in the Luhansk sector, and small arms were used again near Novo-Oleksandrivka and the suburbs of Stanytsia Luhanska, the report said.
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A couple in Germany are facing court after they stopped their teenage son from attending a local mosque on a school trip because they were afraid he would be "indoctrinated" by Islamic extremists.

In a letter to the school's geography teacher, quoted by German news organisation NDR, the 13-year-old's father said "for years we have been hearing reports about religiously motivated violence connected with Islamic people".

The local authority then ordered the parents to pay a penalty of 150 euros each (135) for their son's truency, since regional laws in Germany allow parents to be fined if their children do not attend classes.

But the couple opposed the fine and now face a trial in a district court, German weekly Der Spiegel reported.

Lawyer for the parents, Alexander Heumann, argued the couple had a right to keep their son away from the mosque because they feared for his "bodily safety".

He denied that the decision to prevent him going to the mosque was Islamophobic.

The couple are reportedly not religious and maintain that "you can not force someone against his free will to enter a religious building."

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. 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Yet critics have pointed out that Mr Heumann is a former member of anti-immigrant party Alternative for Germany (AfD) and helped found the Dugida, a branch of the far-right Pegida movement, which warns against Islamisation of society.

Politics within Germany  as in much of the rest of Europe and the US  has become increasingly polarised following Angela Merkel's decision to welcome refugees to the country in 2015.
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Is it simply a case of karma? Or is this a deliberate cyber payback from the US?

After a series of leaks of hacked emails belonging to senior member of the Democratic Party and Hillary Clintons campaign, this week it was the turn for the disclosure of correspondence belonging to a top aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The emails suggest direct political and financial ties with pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.

Mr Putin has denied any connection to the separatists, whether with military or financial support, despite widespread evidence to the contrary. Fighting has raged in eastern Ukraine for two years, since rebels in the Donetsk region proclaimed their independence from Ukraine and sought to join Russia. Anywhere up to 10,000 people have been killed.

A group called Cyber Hunta hacked into the account of an assistant to presidential aide Vladislav Surkov (YouTube)

USA Today said a Ukrainian group called Cyber Hunta hacked into the account of an assistant to presidential aide Vladislav Surkov and uploaded more than 2,000 emails this week. Mr Surkov, although under sanctions for his role in the separatist conflict, travelled to Berlin this month with Mr Putin for a summit on Ukraine.

The hacked emails include a June 2014 list of casualties from the separatist Donetsk Peoples Republic (DNR) in eastern Ukraine, sent by then-chairman, Denis Pushilin. Another email listed expenses to set up the DNRs Ministry of Information.

The leaks followed claims from US intelligence agencies that Russia was responsible for a series of hacks on American officials. Some analysts suggested these new leaks could be a retaliation.

Earlier this month, Vice President Biden told NBC that the US would be sending a message over the hacking that Mr Putin would recognise.

Hell know it, Mr Biden said. And it will be at the time of our choosing. And under the circumstances that have the greatest impact.

Mark Galeotti, senior researcher at the Institute of International Relations in Prague told USA Today that while there was no evidence that the leak was the direct retaliation that Mr Biden had threatened, there was plenty to suggest it was.

I cannot help but wonder if this is the kind of response that US policymakers have been hinting at, following the various hacks blamed on Russia, either working through Ukrainians or simply handed to them, he said.

This kind of a leak is enough to warn the Russians that the USA has certain capabilities and is willing to use them. Welcome to the world of proxy cyberwars.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the emails as fake in comments to Russian news agencies, saying that Mr Surkov did not use an email. But Ukraines National Security Service said Wednesday that the emails were real.

The leak of the emails came as a new poll suggested that most Republicans believe Russia is attempting to influence the US presidential election.

Some 55 per cent of US adults, including 51 per cent of Republicans and 65 per cent of Democrats, said they thought Russia was trying to tip the scales in the election. The Reuters poll said most believe it is trying to help Mr Trump win.
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Fierce fighting has broken out in the Syrian city of Aleppo as rebel groups launch a new offensive to break the governments siege of opposition-controlled areas.

At least 20 armed groups have united for the offensive against Bashar al-Assads forces, including Jabhat Fateh al-Sham (formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra) and other Islamist divisions, as well as Turkmen and Free Syrian Army brigades.

Footage showed heavy gunfire, mortars and explosions as dark smoke was seen rising above the city and jets flew overhead.

Syrian state media said government forces had repelled the rebel offensive to the south and south-west of the city, quoting military sourcing accusing the groups of synchronising with an alleged Isis assault on an air force academy to the east.

The Syrian army and its allies are in control on the ground and armed groups were not able to change the map, the Syrian army said in a statement. Fighting is still ongoing but the intensity dropped.

But rebel groups claimed they had seized control of several districts, advancing on regime territory in western Aleppo.

Footage claimed to show huge suicide bomb blasts and fierce battles against government troops in devastated suburbs of the divided city.

The assault started with rebels detonating three vehicle bombs at regime posts in the south-west and launching volleys of rockets, monitors said.

Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, which changed its name after claiming to cut ties with al-Qaeda earlier this year, claimed credit for two of the martyrdom missions, saying one was carried out by a French jihadi.

Reported rebel attacks and territory are seen in green, regime in red and Kurdish groups in yellow, in Aleppo on 28 October (Liveuamap)

The Islamic Front coalition said its Ahrar al-Sham faction targeted a military airport to the east of Aleppo with Grad rockets and destroyed a government position to the west of the city.

At least 15 civilians were killed in the rebel bombardment, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, with more than 100 wounded and clashes continued around the city.

The state-controlled Sana news agency said at least seven civilians had been killed by rebel shelling on government-controlled areas and 70 others injured.

Ammar Sakkar, military spokesperson for Fastaqim Union rebel group in Aleppo, said hundreds of fighters were taking part in the offensive.

All the revolutionary factions, without exception, are participating in the battle, he told the Associated Press.

The Jaish al-Fatah Islamist alliance led a previous offensive to break the siege of Aleppo earlier this year, fighting through regime territory to reach rebel-held eastern districts for the first time in months, but the fighters were soon pushed back by a government counter-attack.

In pictures: Aleppo bombing Show all 14 1 /14 In pictures: Aleppo bombing In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Smoke rises after airstrikes on the rebel-held al-Sakhour neighborhood of Aleppo, Syria April 29, 2016. Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A Syrian family runs for cover amid the rubble of destroyed buildings following a reported air strike on the rebel-held neighbourhood of Al-Qatarji in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, on April 29, 2016. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A man reacts as he stands on blood stains at a site hit by airstrikes in the rebel held area of Aleppo's al-Fardous district, Syria, April 29, 2016. Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo The damage of the airstrikes in the rebel-held area of Aleppo on April 28 Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo The damaged the Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF)-backed al-Quds hospital after it was hit by airstrikes, in a rebel-held area of Syria's Aleppo Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Syrians evacuate an injured man amid the rubble of destroyed buildings following an air strike on a rebel-held of Aleppo on April 29, 2016. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo People inspect the damage at a site hit by airstrikes, in the rebel-held area of Aleppo's Bustan al-Qasr AP In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A man leads a woman in tears and child out of the scene after airstrikes hit Aleppo AP In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Civil defence members search for survivors after an airstrike at a field hospital in the rebel held area of al-Sukari district of Aleppo Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A Syrian boy is comforted as he cries next to the body of a relative who died in a reported air strike in the rebel-held neighbourhood of al-Soukour in the northern city of Aleppo Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A Syrian family walks amid the rubble of destroyed buildings following a reported air strike in the Bustan al-Qasr rebel-held district of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Syrian civil defence volunteers and rescuers remove a baby from under the rubble of a destroyed building following a reported air strike on the rebel-held neighbourhood of al-Kalasa in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Syrians help a wounded youth following an air strike on the Fardous rebel held neighbourhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Syrian civil defence volunteers evacuate people from a damaged building following a reported airstrike in the rebel-held neighbourhood of Tareeq al-Bab in the northern city of Aleppo

Besieged civilian areas have since been intensively bombed by Syrian and Russian jets, prompting international condemnation and an investigation into possible war crimes by the UN.

Humanitarian agencies estimate that 275,000 people are trapped inside eastern Aleppo with dwindling supplies of food and medicine.

President Assads forces and his backers implemented a temporary pause on air strikes under intense pressure earlier this month but as the new rebel offensive started, the Russian defence ministry said it asked Vladimir Putin for permission to resume the campaign.

The battle came as the Russian, Syrian and Iranian foreign ministers met in Moscow in the wake of international condemnation of air strikes that killed 22 children at a school.

The Russian defence ministry previously said that Syrian and Russian warplanes had not bombed Aleppo in the past 10 days and claimed civilians and rebels wishing to leave the city can do so via humanitarian corridors.

The city, once the most populous in Syria, has been divided between government and opposition control since 2012, becoming a symbolic battleground in the countrys brutal civil war.
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Isis slaughtered at least 232 people near its Iraq stronghold of Mosul last week, the UN has said.

"Last Wednesday 232 civilians were reportedly shot to death," UN rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva.

"Of these there were 190 former Iraqi Security Forces officers," she said. "These reports have been corroborated to the extent possible," she added, stressing the number of people killed in recent days could be higher.

Up to 900 Isis militants have been killed in the offensive to retake the city, according to the US.

In pictures: Mosul offensive Show all 40 1 /40 In pictures: Mosul offensive In pictures: Mosul offensive A doctor carries an Iraqi newborn baby at a hospital in Mosul, Iraq July 18, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi girls play at a yard of a school in Mosul, Iraq July 18, 2017alal Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A woman on crutches who is a relative of men accused of being Islamic State militants is seen at a camp in Bartella, east of Mosul, Iraq July 15, 2017. Picture taken July 15, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A displaced girl, who fled from home carries a doll at Hamam al-Alil camp south of Mosul, Iraq July 13, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi federal police members and civilians celebrate in the Old City of Mosul on 9 July 2017 after the government's announcement of the "liberation" of the embattled city. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's office said he was in "liberated" Mosul to congratulate "the heroic fighters and the Iraqi people on the achievement of the major victory" AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A picture taken on 9 July 2017, shows a general view of the destruction in Mosul's Old City. Iraq will announce imminently a final victory in the nearly nine-month offensive to retake Mosul from jihadists, a US general said Saturday, as celebrations broke out among police forces in the city. AFP In pictures: Mosul offensive Members of the Iraqi federal police raise the victory gesture as they ride on a humvee while advancing through the Old City of Mosul on 28 June 2017, as the offensive continues to retake the last district held by Islamic State (IS) group fighters. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Smoke billows as Iraqi forces advance through the Old City of Mosul on 26 June 2017, during the ongoing offensive to retake the last district held by the Islamic State (IS) group. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi man wearing the green scarf of the Shi'ite faith kisses an Iraqi Army soldier on safely reaching the Iraqi forces position as Iraqi civilians flee the Old City of west Mosul where heavy fighting continues on 23 June 2017. Iraqi forces continue to encounter stiff resistance with improvised explosive devices, car bombs, heavy mortar fire and snipers hampering their advance. Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A picture taken from the inside of an Iraqi forces armoured vehicle shows residents walking through a damaged street as troops advance towards Mosul's Old City on 18 June 2017, during the ongoing offensive to retake the last district still held by the Islamic State (IS) group. Military commanders told AFP the assault had begun at dawn after overnight air strikes by the US-led coalition backing Iraqi forces. They said the jihadists were putting up fierce resistance. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi Army soldiers advance in a destroyed street after an Iraqi forces airstrike targeted an Islamic State sniper position 17 June 2017 in al-Shifa, the last district of west Mosul under Islamic State control. IS snipers, as well as car and suicide bomb attacks continue to hinder the Iraqi forces efforts to retake the final district. A series of airstrikes by Iraqi helicopter gunships attempted to hit multiple Islamic State sniper positions in al-Shifa. Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier frisks a displaced Iraqi man at a temporary camp in the compound of the closed Nineveh International Hotel in Mosul on 16 June 2017 which was recovered by Iraqi troops from Islamic State group fighters earlier in the year. A screening centre set up in the compound's fairgrounds sees a constant stream of Iraqis fleeing the battle for Mosul, awaiting their turn to be checked by the Iraqi forces who are searching for suspected Islamic State (IS) group members. The small fairground lies at the end of a pontoon bridge across the Tigris recently opened to civilians that is the only physical link between the two banks of the river. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqis staying at the al-Khazir camp swim in a river near the camp for internally displaced people, located between Arbil and Mosul on 11 June 2017. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi government forces drive on a road leading to Tal Afar on 9 June 2017, during ongoing battles to retake the city from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi policeman carries a poster bearing an image of Mosul's iconic leaning minaret, known as the "Hadba" (Hunchback), on 22 June 2017. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqis stand in line to receive food aid in western Mosul's Zanjili neighbourhood on 7 June 2017, during ongoing battles as Iraqi forces try to retake the city from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. Living conditions in Mosul have again deteriorated since the start of the Iraqi government's offensive on the city in October in which they retook a large part of the west of the city. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Displaced Iraqis carry lightbulbs and sacks as they evacuate from western Mosul's Zanjili neighbourhood as government forces advance in the area during their ongoing battle against Islamic State (IS) group fighters on 13 May 2017 AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) flashes the victory gesture as he patrols in western Mosul's al-Islah al-Zaraye neighbourhood on 13 May 2017 AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi army soldiers from the 9th armoured division on a truck flash the sign of victory as they drive back from Mosul to the town of Qaraqosh (also known as Hamdaniya) Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Members of Iraqi forces flash the sign of victory on their vehicle as they advance towards Hammam al-Alil area south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi security forces gestures in Hammam al-Alil, south of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi children, one flashing the sign of victory, greet Iraqi army's soldiers from the 9th armoured division in the area of Ali Rash, adjacent to the eastern Al-Intissar neighbourhood of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Peshmerga forces look at a tunnel used by Islamic State militants near the town of Bashiqa, east of Mosul, during an operation to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier takes a photograph with his phone as his comrade stands next to a detained man, whom the Iraqi army soldiers accused of being an Islamic State fighter, who was fleeing with his family in the Intisar disrict of eastern Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iranian Kurdish female members of the Freedom Party of Kurdistan (PAK) hold a position in an area near the town of Bashiqa, some 25 kilometres north east of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi families, who fled their homes in Hamam al-Alil, gather on the outskirts of their town Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Displaced people walk past a checkpoint near Qayara, south of Mosul, Iraq AP In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi families who were displaced by the ongoing operation by Iraqi forces against jihadists of the Islamic State group to retake the city of Mosul, are seen gathering in an area near Qayyarah In pictures: Mosul offensive A boy who just fled Abu Jarbuah village is seen with his family at a Kurdish Peshmerga position between two front lines near Bashiqa, east of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi child eats a pomegranate upon the arrival of Iraqi forces in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive People who just fled Abu Jarbuah village sit as they eat at a Kurdish Peshmerga position between two front lines near Bashiqa, east of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A couple who just fled Abu Jarbuah village are escorted by Kurdish Peshmerga soldiers Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Women carry a boy over a wall as civilians flee their houses in the village of Tob Zawa, Iraq AP In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier and a civilian ride a motorbike as smoke rises behind them, on the road between Qayyarah and Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi forces, wearing a skull mask, waits at a checkpoint for people fleeing the main hub city of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier sits at a checkpoint in an area near Qayyarah Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi men prepare food portions for Iraqi forces deployed in areas south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi forces celebrate upon the arrival of vehicles bringing food to them Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi childen smoke cigarettes upon the arrival of Iraqi forces in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi forces distributes drinks to children in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty

The offensive, launched on 17 October, has seen tens of thousands of Iraqi fighters advancing from the south, east and north in a bid to retake the last major Iraqi city under Isis control.

Backed by air and ground support from the US-led coalition, federal forces allied with Kurdish Peshmerga fighters have liberated a string of towns and villages on their advance towards Mosul.

More than 10,000 people are believed to have fled their homes because of the fighting, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said on Wednesday.

Isis captured Mosul in a matter of days in 2014, and have had more than two years to build up its defenses and brutally root out any internal opposition.

The operation to retake the northern city is expected to take weeks, if not months.

 Dramatic footage shows Elite Iraq forces battle on road to Bartella in fight for Mosul

Many fear Isis will resort to more brutal tactics as the forces converge on the city, which is still home to more than a million people. So far they have counterattacked with car and suicide bombs and have used civilians as human shields.

Iraqi medics have been trained in "mass casualty management" in the event of a chemical weapons attack, the WHO has said.
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A Russian fighter jet flew dangerously close to a US warplane over eastern Syria, US defence officials said.

The near miss occured when a Russian jet escorting a larger spy plane manoeuvred in the vicinity of an American warplane on 17 October, Air Force Lieutenant General Jeff Harrigan said.

The Russian jet came to "inside of half a mile," he added.

Another US military official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP the American pilot could feel the turbulence produced by the Russian jet's engines.

"It was close enough you could feel the jet wash of the plane passing by," the official said.

In pictures: Aleppo bombing Show all 14 1 /14 In pictures: Aleppo bombing In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Smoke rises after airstrikes on the rebel-held al-Sakhour neighborhood of Aleppo, Syria April 29, 2016. Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A Syrian family runs for cover amid the rubble of destroyed buildings following a reported air strike on the rebel-held neighbourhood of Al-Qatarji in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, on April 29, 2016. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A man reacts as he stands on blood stains at a site hit by airstrikes in the rebel held area of Aleppo's al-Fardous district, Syria, April 29, 2016. Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo The damage of the airstrikes in the rebel-held area of Aleppo on April 28 Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo The damaged the Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF)-backed al-Quds hospital after it was hit by airstrikes, in a rebel-held area of Syria's Aleppo Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Syrians evacuate an injured man amid the rubble of destroyed buildings following an air strike on a rebel-held of Aleppo on April 29, 2016. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo People inspect the damage at a site hit by airstrikes, in the rebel-held area of Aleppo's Bustan al-Qasr AP In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A man leads a woman in tears and child out of the scene after airstrikes hit Aleppo AP In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Civil defence members search for survivors after an airstrike at a field hospital in the rebel held area of al-Sukari district of Aleppo Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A Syrian boy is comforted as he cries next to the body of a relative who died in a reported air strike in the rebel-held neighbourhood of al-Soukour in the northern city of Aleppo Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A Syrian family walks amid the rubble of destroyed buildings following a reported air strike in the Bustan al-Qasr rebel-held district of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Syrian civil defence volunteers and rescuers remove a baby from under the rubble of a destroyed building following a reported air strike on the rebel-held neighbourhood of al-Kalasa in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Syrians help a wounded youth following an air strike on the Fardous rebel held neighbourhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Syrian civil defence volunteers evacuate people from a damaged building following a reported airstrike in the rebel-held neighbourhood of Tareeq al-Bab in the northern city of Aleppo

It appeared the Russian pilot had simply not seen the US jet, as it was dark and the planes were flying without lights.

"I would attribute it to not having the necessary situational awareness given all those platforms operating together," Mr Harrigan said.

The near miss highlights the risks of a serious collision in the increasingly crowded airspace above Syria.

The US-led coalition has set up a hotline with Russian counterparts so the different militaries can discuss the approximate locations and missions of planes, and avoid operating in the same space at the same time.

 Drone footage of Aleppo

In this case, the American pilot tried unsuccessfully to reach the Russian jet via an emergency radio channel.

The next day, US officers used the hotline to ask Russia what had happened and they said "the pilot didn't see" the American plane, the official said.

Mr Harrigan said there had been an increase in close calls over the past six weeks, with intentional near misses - when a Russian jet deliberately follows a coalition plane too closely - "happening one every 10 days-ish".

Russia is flying constant air patrols over Syria, the vast majority of them over the devastated city of Aleppo, and routinely transits parts of the country the US-coalition operates in, officials said.

Russia says it has not bombed Aleppo since 18 October.

The Pentagon periodically chides Russia for "unsafe and unprofessional behaviour" in air operations.

This incident was deemed unsafe, but not necessarily unprofessional, officials said.

Additional reporting by AFP
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Police were called to an event at University College London after violent clashes between pro-Palestinian protesters and members of a pro-Israeli group.

Officers entered the lecture hall to accompany members of UCLs Friends of Israel society away when a talk by a former Israeli Defence Force (IDF) agent was disrupted by demonstrators.

Footage taken of the event on Thursday night shows crowds of pro-Palestinian protesters at the university venue, holding banners while chanting shame and free Palestine.

Metropolitan Police said they were investigating an alleged assault on one woman at the event, but that no arrests had been made.

Former IDF intelligence officer Hen Mazzig had been due to give a talk on his experiences.

Speaking to The Independent, he said the pro-Palestinian student group had contested the universitys decision to allow him to speak for several weeks.

I don't think any speaker from any country no matter his background, ever faced something like this, he said.

It was one of the worst events I have ever held. Being rushed in by security and spending half an hour inside the room while angry mob is banging on the doors, screaming outside, chanting terrible things against me. I was afraid for the safety of the students and myself.

Student news in pictures Show all 34 1 /34 Student news in pictures Student news in pictures South Korean policemen detain a student demonstrator during a protest against South Korean President Park Geun-Hye EPA Student news in pictures South Korean policemen detain student protestors during a protest against South Korean President Park Geun-Hye outside the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea. The protesters demanded that the parliament takes steps to impeach President Park Geun-Hye EPA Student news in pictures Filipino demonstrators face off with anti-riot police during a protest near the US Embassy in Manila, Philippine EPA Student news in pictures Hundreds of protesters including Indigenous People, students and militant groups marched towards the US Embassy to protest against the presence of US military troops and condemning the violent dispersal which left at least forty people hurt including twenty police officers and three people who were run over by a police van EPA Student news in pictures A federal judge in Mexico has ordered that a once-fugitive police chief be held on charges of kidnapping in the disappearance of 43 students Student news in pictures A man holds up a photograph of a missing student with a caption reading 'We are missing 43,' during a meeting marking the 25-month anniversary of the disappearances of 43 students in the southern state of Guerrero, in Mexico City. A federal judge in Mexico has ordered that a once-fugitive police chief be held on charges of kidnapping in the disappearance of 43 students AP Student news in pictures Miguel Perez, an intern student from the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, puts away his cell phone before walking into the operating room at the Dr. Isaac Gonzalez MartInez Oncological Hospital in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Once they complete their general surgery training, many residents are moving to the United States in search of better wages, one of the main factors linked to the current shortage of specialists in the Island Student news in pictures Fewer EU students have applied to start university courses in the UK next autumn. There was a 9% fall in the numbers who had applied for courses, according to admissions service UCAS. PA wire Student news in pictures University students protest against President Nicolas Maduro, in Caracas, Venezuela. Masses of protesters jammed the streets of Venezuela's capital on the heels of a move by congress to open a political trial against Maduro, whose allies have blocked moves for a recall election AP Student news in pictures University students protest against President Nicolas Maduro, in Caracas, Venezuela AP Student news in pictures Thousands, most of them high school students, march during a demonstration in Madrid, Spain, on a one day strike to protest about the country's education law that increases the number of annual exams AP Student news in pictures Students gather on the west mall to confront the Young Conservatives of Texas student organization over a controversial bake sale on The University of Texas campus in Austin, Texas. The Young Conservatives of Texas chapter at the University of Texas-Austin sparked the protest with an affirmative action bake sale. The club encouraged students to buy a cookie and talk about the disastrous policy that is affirmative action Student news in pictures Donald Parish Jr, right, confronts Electrical and Computer Engineering senior Dewayne Perry over a controversial bake sale on The University of Texas campus in Austin, Texas. The Young Conservatives of Texas chapter at the University of Texas-Austin sparked the protest with an affirmative action bake sale. The club encouraged students to buy a cookie and talk about the disastrous policy that is affirmative action AP Student news in pictures Brigham Young University announced that students who report sexual assault will no longer be investigated for possible violations of the Mormon-owned school's strict honor code that bans such things as alcohol use AP Student news in pictures Students of secondary education march to protest against the final examinations and LOMCE (The Improvement Quality Education Law) law, after a call by trade unions, in Murcia, Spain EPA Student news in pictures South African police have used stun grenades and rubber bullets to disperse hundreds of protesters who had marched to the parliament building to call for free university education, where the finance minister was giving a budget speech AP Student news in pictures Police break up student protests outside the parliament in Cape Town, South Africa Reuters Student news in pictures South African Policemen fire rubber bullets at student protestors in Cape Town, South Africa AP Student news in pictures A student protestor is hit by a rubber bullet in Cape Town, South Africa AP Student news in pictures An injured student is helped by colleagues during protest outside the parliament during South African Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan's medium term budget speech in Cape Town, South Africa Reuters Student news in pictures Plaintiffs and bereaved families of elementary school students killed in the tsunami that followed a major earthquake in northeastern Japan in 2011, show banners that say 'victory in a suit filed with the Sendai District Court' in Sendai. A Japanese court ordered municipalities to pay $13.7 million dollars to families of school children who were swept away to their deaths by the 2011 tsunami Getty Student news in pictures A group of student at Ewha Womans University calls for a thorough investigation into those involved in years of engagement with state affairs backstage by Choi Soon-sil, a personal confidante of South Korean President Park Geun-hye, at the school's front gate in Seoul, South Korea EPA Student news in pictures Students raise placards during a strike action called by the student union, in Madrid against university entry exams Getty Student news in pictures Libyans throw a newly graduated student into a fountain as they celebrate during the graduation ceremony for students from the Faculty of Pharmacy at the Al-Arab University in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi Getty Student news in pictures Libyans celebrate as they attend the graduation ceremony for students from the Faculty of Pharmacy at the Al-Arab University in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi Getty Student news in pictures Libyans celebrate as they attend the graduation ceremony for students from the Faculty of Pharmacy at the Al-Arab University in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi Getty Student news in pictures Thousands of Thai Catholic students take part in mourning tributes and in singing the Thai Royal Anthem to honour late Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej at Saint Dominic School in Bangkok, Thailand EPA Student news in pictures Students of Silpakorn University paint portraits of the late Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej at the university campus in Bangkok Getty Student news in pictures A student of Silpakorn University paints a portrait of the late Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej at the university campus in Bangkok Getty Student news in pictures St Andrews University students take part in a foam fight known as Raisin Monday in the Lower College Lawn behind St Salvator's Quadrangle following the Raisin Weekend PA wire Student news in pictures St Andrews University students take part in a foam fight known as Raisin Monday in the Lower College Lawn behind St Salvator's Quadrangle following the Raisin Weekend, an annual tradition where student 'parents' inflict tasks on the unfortunate first-years they have adopted as 'children' as part of a mentoring scheme PA wire Student news in pictures Students at the Cuba's National Ballet School (ENB) in Havana, Cuba Reuters Student news in pictures Students at the Cuba's National Ballet School (ENB) take part in a practice in Havana, Cuba Reuters Student news in pictures Students at the Cuba's National Ballet School (ENB) wait in line to enter a classroom in Havana, Cuba Reuters

Student members reported that UCLs student union (UCLU) had made the decision to no platform Mr Mazzig earlier this week, meaning he would not be allowed to speak.

But UCL management overruled the decision  leading some protesters to complain the judgement was anti-democratic and illegitimate.

Two hours before the event, those with tickets were sent an email by the Friends of Israel society stipulating a last-minute change of location in an attempt to avoid friction.

Around 60 protesters filled the new venue to oppose the talk, however, and police were called to the scene.

This was a terrible night for me, for the Jewish students and for free speech and democracy, said Mr Mazzig.

Serving in the IDF for five years as an openly gay commander, Mr Mazzig is a former lieutenant who worked as an intermediary between the IDF and the Palestinian Authority, United Nations and other groups in the West Bank.

Shortly after being taken out of the room at around 9pm, he tweeted: I had to be rushed out of the event at @ucl with security. The campus was the war zone and the streets are the safe place. I'm out. My god.

The clash follows a similar incident at King's College London (KCL) earlier this year, when a talk given by Ami Ayalon, former head of the Israeli secret service, was stormed by pro-Palestinian protesters.

Organisers reported that student group KCL Action Palestine threw chairs, smashed windows and set off fire alarms in objection of the talk.

Responding to Thursdays events, a spokesperson from the Union of Jewish Students said: There can be no excuses for the events that took place at UCL last night.

The fact that such violence and hostility took place only nine months after the incident at KCL, with police having to once again be called, is an absolute disgrace.

UCL Friends of Israel were simply trying to engage students in discussion on Israel, but instead were met with a wall of intolerance and intimidation aimed at shutting down free speech.

It is reassuring however that, despite the acts of the protesters, the event went ahead as planned with around 50 engaging in peaceful and positive discussion on Israel and Palestine It is imperative that UCL and UCLU take action following last night's events and we will be working with UCL Friends of Israel to ensure just that.

Whatever your position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, there is no place for intolerance and intimidation like was seen last night at UCL on university campuses.

A statement from the Metropolitan Police confirmed officers were called to the venue at Gower Street following reports of violence.

A spokesperson said: It was understood the demonstration related to a speaker attending a meeting within in the building.

Officers spoke to security at the university who were happy to let to demonstration go ahead on its grounds.

They provided a policing presence during the demonstration. Police remained at the venue until the meeting ended safely.

Following this, a woman made an allegation of common assault to officers and this is currently investigated by Camden police.

Responding to the incident, UCL said: UCL and UCLU do not condone acts of intimidation or violence under any circumstances and, as a university with a longstanding radical history, we fiercely support the right to exercise free speech within the law.

"The freedom to debate and challenge views is fundamental to the nature of a university. We also acknowledge the right to peaceful protest.

"On 27 October, we did all we could to ensure that the UCLU Friends of Israel Society event could go ahead at UCL, working with our Security team and the Metropolitan police.

"It was widely advertised and open to the public, and as result a small but noisy group of protesters attended and occupied the rooms where the event was originally meant to take place.

"We are aware that the Metropolitan police attended following accusations of assault and support them fully in their investigations."
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Werner Herzogs dramatic new documentary on volcanoes, Into The Inferno, travels to six different mountains of magma with volcanologist Clive Oppenheimer to capture their eruptions and lava flows as well as the communities that live around them. But visiting a volcano doesnt have to be all poisonous gases and life-threatening adventures. Here we look at how to visit volcanoes up close, from flying over craters to climbing inside dormant caves and boarding down their edges.

A view from above

Hawaii is home to three active volcanoes, one of which  Kilauea  has been erupting continuously since 1983. You can see this volcano and Maunaloa, which has been inactive since 1984, at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on Hawaii Island, where its possible to walk through a 500-year-old lava cave and drive down to the Kalpana viewing area to see Kilauea sending lava down into the sea.

Kilauea in Hawaii has been continuously erupting since 1983 (Getty Images)

Those who want a closer look can take a boat to sail close to the action or take a helicopter ride and fly straight over it. Lava boat tours with Hawaii Volcano Expeditions start at $189.99 (156) and helicopter tours start at $282 (230).

Discover new depths

Iceland is known for its high concentration of active volcanoes, thanks to its position over the mid-Atlantic Ridge, but it does also have a dormant one you can visit and climb inside. Thrihnukagigur, which translates as Three Peaks Crater, hasnt erupted for 4,000 years, which means you can get right down into the depths of the crater to explore its innards. After a hike to the top of Thrihnukagigur, a six-minute open elevator ride takes you 120 metres down into the crater to have half an hour walking around the ground of the volcano. Day trips last five to six hours with Inside The Volcano, and cost 42,000 Icelandic krona (302) per person during its open season, which runs from 15 May to 15 October.

Surf on rocks

Thrill-seekers can travel to the active volcano of Cerro Negro in Nicaragua  not simply to climb up it but surf down it, too. Those who are game can strap a wooden board to their back and take the hour-ish hike up the 728m volcano. From there it is simply a case of donning a pair of goggles, leather gloves, a protective jumpsuit, and leaping onto a board to surf back down the volcano on its loose black rocks. The volcano is a 50-minute drive from the city of Leon and surfing down it costs $28 (23) per person based on groups of at least three with Volcanoboard.com.

Mount Etna, the highest and most active volcano in Europe (Getty Images)

Go with the flow

Sicilys Mount Etna has been erupting in one form or another for thousands of years, with recordings of it dating back to 395 BCE. It is the highest and most active volcano in Europe, but that doesnt stop the flow of visitors to the Parco dellEtna, the national park providing access to the volcano  unless it has been closed due to some dangerous volcanic activity. Barring this change in conditions there are a number of tours available up the volcano. Etna Experience offers a range of excursions, starting at 139 (125) per adult.

You wont be able to get anywhere near Mt Etna when its erupting, as it did last December (Getty Images)

Below the surface

Its also possible to visit a volcano without a trek, and one of the places you can do it is New Zealands only active marine volcano, know as White Island (or Whakaari). Most of it sits beneath the sea, meaning that once you take a boat from North Island you can walk straight onto the crater complex and explore the sulphur-rich scenery, complete with pits of bubbling mud and a lake of steaming acid. White Island Tours arranges six-hour guided trips to the volcano starting from NZ$219 (128).
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Aer Lingus launched the route last October in competition against Ryanair, but the latter responded by cutting fares drastically  with thousands of seats on offer at as little as 9 each way, less than the 13 Air Passenger Duty the airline must hand over for each traveller carried.

The Irish flag-carrier will offer refunds to booked passengers, and Ryanair is offering a flat fare of 9.99 to all those with a cancelled Aer Lingus booking, if they buy before 3 November. The airlines spokesperson, Robin Kiely said: Customers should book quickly, as just like Aer Lingus service, theyll be gone soon.

More route news

A new domestic route has been launched between Cornwall and West Yorkshire, with Flybe connecting Newquay with Leeds Bradford. The first flight arrived 15 minutes early, covering the 275 miles between the two airports in just over an hour. The road journey takes around six hours. The link is subsidised by the government through the Regional Connectivity Fund, and The Independent understands that forward bookings are encouraging.

British Airways has announced it will go head-to-head with the low-cost airline Norwegian between Gatwick and Fort Lauderdale in Florida. From next July, it will operate up to four times weekly. The new link will also serve as a cut-price gateway to Miami, which is 25 miles south of Fort Lauderdale airport, with a reasonable train link. A test booking made for the first Saturday in August shows a fare of 835 return on the new service, compared with 1,250 between Heathrow and Miami.

Click here to view the latest travel offers, with Independent Holidays.
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Octobers end it may be, but the Isle of Wight has been basking in the kind of sunshine ordinarily associated with mid-summer. The weather has eased islanders and visitors out of their sofas and walkers are everywhere, as are cyclists, fell runners (or perhaps downs runners is more correct for this part of the country) and horse riders.

As I watch horse and rider plod up the bridleway towards Mottistone from the Military Road that crests the coast on the south side of the island, I wonder if the owner is aware of the distinguished hoof-steps in which she and her steed are following.

The fields and coast around the villages of Mottistone, Brook and the coast were once home to a real war horse, the presciently-named Warrior. Warrior was raised and trained on the Isle of Wight and later led into battle by General Jack Seely, a friend of Winston Churchill and who served in two Liberal governments before 1914.

A painting of General Jack Seely on Warrior (National Trust Images)

Warrior was dubbed the horse the Germans couldnt kill by the newspapers of his era, having survived some of the wars most famous conflicts including battles at Ypres (1915), the Somme (1916) and becoming stuck in the mud of Passchendaele in 1917. At the Battle of Moreuil Wood in 1918 Warrior became lame and Seely was gassed. While his owner was invalided home, Warrior saw the war out and they were reunited in 1918. Upon his return to the Isle of Wight, Warrior was something of a local hero.

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In War Horse, Michael Morpurgos better-known story, Joey is purchased to serve in World War One, surviving one extraordinary adventure after another. Morpurgo has said that his tale was inspired by stories gathered from veterans in his local pub; yet he  and we  might be forgiven for thinking Warriors ordeals were improbable, but his charmed life and narrow escapes are well documented. Its a remarkable tale of survival: eight million other horses and mules did not return from the front. In 2014, he was posthumously awarded the PDSA Dickin medal, recognised as the animals Victoria Cross.

Warriors derring-do provides a loose framework for this delightful walk  themed as the Warrior Trail  around a slice of Wight countryside. Im walking with David Howarth of the local Ramblers Association, who helped put the route together. As he points out, the walk is steeped in history but, that aside, it is a lovely excursion in its own right.

We strike out from the sleepy village of Mottistone through a sunken lane, heading uphill to emerge blinking into bright sunlight by the Long Stone, two huge blocks, one still standing 4 metres high, the other fallen; they dominate the surrounding downland and its thought they date back 5,000 years. As is the way with such things, they are aligned with the winter solstice so that the sunlight would run through the pencil-thin gap between the two.

Mottistone Common is a fine chalk landscape (National Trust Images/John Millar)

We contour across Mottistone Common and Brook Down, one of the finest chalk landscapes in England with sweeping views out to sea, the path occasionally bringing Tennyson Downs ski-jump contours into view. Here and there the path takes us through deep woodland and we lose count of the number of hovering kestrels we see; meanwhile Galloway cattle lazily graze on steep-side ridges.

Turning south we pass through the land of Dunsbury Farm, recently acquired by the National Trust, a move welcomed by campaigners as it will guarantee access in perpetuity to the adjacent beaches. The path takes us through the village of Brook where the young Warrior was reared and exercised in Sidling Paul fields. The church sits high above the field, its triangular west wall resembling a Swiss chalet. Inside the same wall is decorated by a long and sobering list of shipwrecks and rescuers; much of the restoration of the church used reclaimed wood from ill-fated ships.

Dunsbury Farm was recently acquired by the National Trust (National Trust Images/John Millar) (National Trust Images/John Miller)

Soon after, we spring ourselves on the sea above Brook Bay, where the disintegrating coast reveals more dinosaur fossils with every storm. This is also where Warrior first learned to brave the oncoming waves and was trained to confront the dangers of battle in the surf.

The views west take in the long chalky climb of Tennyson Down to the Needles; turning east the downland undulates its way up to the headland of St Catherines Point. This walk, I realise, has a bit of everything: downs, heathland, woods, quiet lanes, churches and coast; the Isle of Wight in a nutshell. The only geographical feature conspicuously absent is high mountains; were an unprecedented geological upheaval to suddenly take place then the island would have the box set.

We return to Mottistone via bridleways hemmed in with hedgerows: wrens, tree sparrows and thrushes are hollering as if it were spring. Chain mail - an unusual flourish  hangs over the porch of the village church of St Peter and St Paul where Seely is buried. A question pops into my head: the warrior trail, superb as it is, lacks one thing: the horses final resting place.

I ask David why this is. Given Warrior died in 1941, I suspect I already know the answer. David clears his throat. This is the bit where I warn the children on any walk Im doing, he admits. The country was well into the Second World War, food was short and Warrior was eating a large bucket of food a day. We had rations and people were going hungry. It couldnt be justified. He was 33 and had had a good life. After so many years of loyal service and sacrifice, Warrior was duly led off to the knackers yard. Morpurgo said the tale of Joey the war horse was a universal one; the same can be said of Warriors ending.

Start/finish: Mottistone Manor National trust car park

Distance 5.7 miles/ 8km

Time: Three hours

Route: Two similar versions of this walk can be found at iowramblers.com and visitisleofwight.co.uk

Travel essentials

Getting there

Cross from Lymington to Yarmouth with Wight Link (wightlink.co.uk)

Bus number 12 runs between Newport and Mottistone (islandbuses.info)

Staying there

Mark Rowe stayed at Nettlecombe Farm (nettlecombefarm.co.uk) which offers self-catering cottages from 340 this autumn
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Kenya has sent a strong message that it will no longer tolerate wildlife crime by convicting an ivory poaching king pin called Feisal Mohamed Ali.

Together with two other recent landmark rulings in north central Kenya, this conviction signifies a new era of the region cracking down on wildlife crime by bringing poachers and dealers to justice.

The other cases this month saw typical punitive action taken against wildlife criminals strengthened. A woman found to be in possession of 5kgs of ivory with a value of 0.5 million Kenyan shilling (approx 4400) was given a fine of 162,000 or face life imprisonment, while three men in another case had their bail set at KES 10 million (81,000) after being found in possession of 10 ivory tusks weighing 22kgs.

In light of plummeting elephant populations across the African continent, revealed by the results of the recent Great Elephant Census, these rulings are being praised by conservation charities for helping to send a strong message that wildlife crime is now taken seriously.

Both magistrates involved in the rulings had recently attended a training workshop in Laikipia County, Kenya, run by the charity Space for Giants.

The charity works with members of the judiciary, prosecutors and investigators across Africa to build capacity along the entire criminal trial process to ensure strong poaching cases are brought to court.

Maurice Schutgens, Programme Manager at Space for Giants, says; Transnational organised crime is a serious threat to Kenyas elephants and rhinos. Now that magistrates have a better understanding of the scale of the problem they are better equipped to deliver proportionate sentences, as show in the recent rulings.

Space for Giants worked in collaboration with the Judicial Training Institute (JTI) and The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) to host the workshop in early October, which was funded by DEFRA to target the illegal wildlife trade. A total of six high court judges and 12 magistrates attended this latest training and an additional 50 actors involved in the criminal trial process have been trained since July this year.

Judicial discretion in the sentencing of wildlife offenders means that rulings have been varied across time and space. but Justice John M. Mativo, Judge of the High Court of Kenya, who also attended the workshop, said: "The time has come for Kenyan courts to boldly declare that protection of wildlife is a fundamental value of our society.

As well as running workshops and developing training materials, Space for Giantss Legal Strategy Team has drafted key legal recommendations relating to all aspects of wildlife crime and worked closely with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, ODPP and Kenya Wildlife Service to agree on procedures for early prosecution engagement.

The charity, together with another local conservation organisation, WildlifeDirect, is also carrying out an intensive court monitoring study within the region (with a focus on all ivory and rhino horn cases) with the aim of developing model sentencing guidelines. A total of 30 cases are currently being monitored and Space for Giants is providing technical assistance to strengthen these cases.

Shamini Jayanathan, Director of Wildlife Protection at Space for Giants, says: Kenya has one of the strongest pieces of wildlife legislation anywhere on the continent and we are delighted with the progress that is being made. Kenya is a Giants Club member, and we are now working with other member states to replicate this successful model to create a robust legal response to support frontline protection rangers on the ground.

The other Giants Club states are Gabon, Botswana and Uganda. Together with Kenya, these countries are home to almost half remaining savannah elephants and some 70 per cent of the forest elephant.

Earlier this year the ICCF Group, Space for Giants and the Elephant Protection Initiatives implementation charity Stop Ivory agreed to work together with host governments to strengthen criminal justice systems in elephant-range states in order to crack down on the illegal wildlife trade.

The partnership follows the pledge to collaborate to stop poaching and wildlife trafficking through strengthened laws and their improved application made by Stop Ivory and the ICCF Group at the inaugural Giants Club summit in Kenya in May 2016.
The foreign ministers of the 'Normandy format' countries (Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine) may meet in late November to discuss a roadmap for the implementation of the Minsk agreements, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin has said.

"I believe we will discuss this issue at a ministerial meeting, which may take place in late November - early December. November 28, 29 and 30 are being discussed as the dates of the ministerial meeting and we will stick to this schedule. We shall see what differences we have then," he said during the Left Bank with Sonia Koshkina program aired by Channel 24.

The minister said at the same time he was not hopeful the roadmap would be fully coordinated on schedule. "We have been given approximately one month to elaborate it, and debates are actually ongoing," Klimkin said.

He said he expected the sides to continue active discussions of the document throughout the month.
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The return of The Master? Less science fiction than it sounds, Tony Blairs recent interventions suggest he is not content to sit back and allow everything he built to be dismantled by people who he harbours a bottomless contempt for.

He has spoken about a role for himself in British politics, and has called for the nation to keep its options open on Brexit. Pointedly, he has never ruled out a return to his old career, nor taken a peerage. Having been pushed out of the premiership rather earlier than he would have wished in 2007, he seems to have itchy fingers.

Almost a decade on, with his reputation trashed by the controversy over Iraq, he must wonder what has become of his legacy  something we were told he fretted a good deal about before his resignation. Plainly it is not in good shape.

In the Labour Party, which he delivered back into power after 18 years of opposition with a hat trick of general election triumphs, and on the great issue of our membership of the European Union, Mr Blair must have watched events in recent months with some despair. He finds it difficult, understandably, to be a spectator in these momentous times. Never unsure about his sense of destiny, Mr Blair is straining to get back on the pitch.

 Tony Blair says there must be a second vote on UK's membership of EU

That is easier said than done. He is committed to the Labour Party, and has said so repeatedly. They, however, are not so committed to him.

As he used to tell his own supporters, Mr Blair was not born into the Labour movement and came to it as no committed socialist. If there were a better vehicle for Mr Blairs brand of vaguely progressive politics he would surely take it, but as he well knows that alternative does not exist and is unlikely to do so for as long as the British electoral system is there to crush smaller parties. So Labour it is  even if led by Jeremy Corbyn and dominated by Blair-hating members of Momentum.

Even so, somewhere in the land there must be a constituency Labour Party in a safe seat that would be prepared to adopt him as a candidate. That, at least, would offer him some base in the party and the Commons (though a figure of Mr Blairs stature hardly needs it). One way or another, perhaps as the leader of some cross-party European movement, Mr Blair could place himself at the centre of debate once again, at least on the European question.

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Europe is certainly a project that is worthy of Mr Blairs talents and would benefit from his contribution. Once upon a time he was touted as a possible President of Europe. Although he played a modest role in the EU referendum campaign, the Remain group lacked charismatic figures to carry the message as forcefully as Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage did for the Leave side. Mr Corbyn claims to have worked very hard on the campaign, but if so he did not exactly break through to the floating voters.

Now there is the slim chance that Mr Blairs views on a second referendum could gather support. There is a parliamentary majority for that, in all likelihood (though once again Labour is equivocal), and as Mr Blair points out, almost half of the country who voted did opt to Remain in the EU.

As the evidence grows about the risks and the damage that a hard Brexit could entail, more minds may also be changed about the options. The tide of opinion could run Mr Blairs way and his undoubted skills in presentation and debate would help to push it along. As his political opponents have found frequently to their cost, he is not a man to be underestimated: David Cameron, Michael Gove and George Osborne revered him, with good reason, as The Master.

But a return to party politics? That is much more far-fetched. For good reasons and bad, there are too many members of the Labour Party who scorn him for Mr Blair to be capable of making any kind of comeback.

EU referendum - in pictures Show all 18 1 /18 EU referendum - in pictures EU referendum - in pictures A woman in a wheelchair with British and European Union flags shows her support for the United Kingdom to remain in the European Union on the day of the EU Referendum in Gibraltar Getty Images EU referendum - in pictures A polling station being used in the EU referendum at Batley Town Hall in the constituency Labour MP Jo Cox PA EU referendum - in pictures People arrive to vote in the EU Referendum at the Library where British MP Jo Cox was shot and fatally wounded last week in Birstall EPA EU referendum - in pictures A man arrives to vote at a polling station for the Referendum on the European Union in north London REUTERS EU referendum - in pictures Voters queue to enter a polling station at Trinity Church in Golders Green in London Getty Images EU referendum - in pictures British Prime Minister David Cameron and his wife Samantha Cameron leave after voting in the EU Referendum at Central Methodist Hall, Westminster Getty Images EU referendum - in pictures Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn cast his vote at a polling station at Pakeman Primary School in Islington Getty Images EU referendum - in pictures Chelsea pensioners arrive at a polling station near to the Royal Chelsea Hospital PA EU referendum - in pictures A woman wearing an "I'm In" t-shirt, promoting the official "Remain" campaign, leaves a polling station in London AFP/Getty Images EU referendum - in pictures People queuing outside a polling station on Amott Road in London PA EU referendum - in pictures Scotland's First Minister and Leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP), Nicola Sturgeon and her husband Peter Murrell, react as leave after casting their votes at a polling station at Broomhouse Community Hall in east Glasgow AFP/Getty Images EU referendum - in pictures A man wearing a European themed cycling jersey leaves after voting at a polling station for the Referendum on the European Union in north London REUTERS EU referendum - in pictures Ukip leader Nigel Farage arrives to cast his vote at Cudham Church of England Primary School in Biggin Hill, Kent PA EU referendum - in pictures Justice Secretary and prominent 'Vote Leave' campaigner Michael Gove poses with his wife Sarah Vine after voting in the European Union referendum at their local polling station in Kensington Getty EU referendum - in pictures Nuns leave a polling station after voting in the EU Referendum in London EPA EU referendum - in pictures People arrive to cast their ballots in the EU Referendum in Gibraltar. The United Kingdom and its dependant territories are going to the polls to decide whether or not the the United Kingdom will remain in the European Union Getty Images EU referendum - in pictures A man driving a van covered in stickers urging people to vote for the United Kingdom to remain in the European Union drives outside a polling station on the day of the EU Referendum in Gibraltar Getty Images EU referendum - in pictures A sign on a gable wall in Belfast's, Loyalist Tigers Bay urging voters to leave the EU using scripture from Revelation 18:4, as voters head to the polls across the UK in a historic referendum on whether the UK should remain a member of the European Union or leave PA

There is a school of thought on the social democratic wing of his party that argues that the best thing now would be for the left to go ahead and lose the next general election decisively. Mr Blair, one suspects, does not accept the logic of that; he is too much of a man of power, and too impatient of such complacency to make that something he could accept with equanimity. He cares too much about the people Labour is supposed to help to leave them under a Conservative one-party state for a decade or more.

Mr Blair is often regarded as being an extraordinarily unprincipled politician. Yet, at these times of near existential crisis for his party and country, he evidently cares about both of them sufficiently to speak out and offer his services  even for those who cannot forgive his conduct in the war in Iraq and its aftermath, and dislike the way he has made his fortune since leaving No10, he deserves to be listened to.

A still sprightly 63-year-old with undimmed enthusiasm and ambition, we have not heard the last of Anthony Charles Lynton Blair.
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Do you remember when Bernie Sanders gave Hillary Clinton, his only real rival for the Democratic nomination, a pass on her damn emails saying that the American public was sick and tired of hearing about them? Hard to believe, but that was on 13 October last year.

If she thought that with that one gift she would be rid of the controversy and could focus her campaign on the issues that she and Bernie agreed people really cared about - the economy, above all - it was later to become clear she was entirely mistaken.

But then in July, the FBI said it had concluded its investigation of why she had thought it OK to use a private server while Secretary of State during the first Obama administration. Sure, the FBI director, James Comey, was later to fault her for being extremely careless in her actions, but the message was clear and certain: there would no criminal charges filed in the case.

Even that, of course, didnt quiet the furore. Donald Trump led chants of lock her up at his partys convention in Cleveland later than month anyway and has since worked hard to fuel the suggestion that his rival for the White House only escaped prosecution because of a conspiracy by the Washington elite to protect their own from legal impugnment.

The theory has seemed ever more credible to Trump supporters, for whom the email affair became their last real hope of halting Ms Clintons seeming relentless march to the White House. (Mr Trump clearly wasnt being much help with his repeated gaffes and embarrassments, not least the tapes revealing his past behaviour towards women and the slow parade of now more than ten women claiming they have been abused by him in the past.)

They pointed to the revelation that on 27 June, Bill Clinton met privately with Loretta Lynch, the US Attorney General, in his plane on the tarmac at Phoenix Airport at the very time when her Justice Department was due to respond to the FBIs recommendation that no charges be laid against the Democratic candidate, his wife.

More recently, the bad smell that has always accompanied the email scandal has been wafted back into the campaign by Julian Assange and his Wikileaks worker bees. Did you have any idea of the depth of this story? John Podesta is caught asking someone in Ms Clintons inner circle when The New York Times first reported her use of the private server back in April 2015.

The man he was addressing was Robby Mook, now her chief strategist. He at the time was apparently clueless as to what the vastly more seasoned Mr Podesta was talking about. Nope, wrote back Mr Mook. We brought up the existence of emails in reserach [sic] this summer but were told that everything was taken care of.

But wind forward to Friday, when the story potentialy got a whole lot deeper than pehaps even Mr Podesta ever imagined. The FBI sent Congress a letter saying it had uncovered still more emails that may be pertinent to the case and was looking into them. Translation: just 11 days out from the election the FBI may be about to re-open the investigation.

Ms Clinton was aloft flying to Iowa when the news broke. The pressure in the cabin surely went up a few notches as she and her aides contemplated the storm that would greet them upon landing. Meanwhile in New Hampshire, Mr Trump appeared before supporters in gleeful mood.

A few deep breaths may be required. We cannot say if this an October bombshell or an October squib. For its part, the FBI wouldnt detail the precise nature of these emails or why it thinks they might have relevance to Ms Clinton's private server. They do not appear to have been emails exchanged on her server or discovered in connection with the ongoing dumps by WikiLeaks. Rather - a somewhat surreal new detail - they seem to have come to the FBI's attention in the course of the quite separate investigation into the sexting activities of former Congressman Anthony Weiner. His wife, from whom he is now separated, is Huma Abedin, Ms Clinton's closest confidante.

Most important, we as yet have no clue as towhat they might - or might not - reveal. It's possible, if the FBI takes it time, that will remain the case beyond the election.

But Ms Clinton will be surely in trouble if somehow they show fresh evidence of her having received and sent emails on her home-cooked server that were clearly marked as being classified. Ever more cataclysmic would be something in the new material offering evidence that any of them were hacked by foreign powers, say Russia. That would fairly much put the dagger into any assertion by her that using the private email was a mistake, but not a serious one.

While the polls speak of a landslide, this reporter has always been sceptical. You dont have to spend much time in the heartland to see the sheer breadth of distrust of Ms Clinton. That distrust seemed to find a new friend on Friday thanks to the FBI and Mr Comey.

But again, hold tight. The new storm could still prove to be a squall. The next installment from the FBI could be: false alarm, there is nothing there.

But if that happens, the Trumpistas wont believe a word of it. Their conspiracy talk with go into overdrive, and their willingness to accept defeat, if that comes, will be even more absent than before.
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The finding that the latest version of the injected male contraceptive is now very effective is fantastic news. In a trial of 320 men, researchers found that, over a one-year period, it was 96 per cent effective in preventing pregnancy. A spokesperson for the World Health Organisation said: The study found it is possible to have a hormonal contraceptive for men that reduces the risk of unplanned pregnancies in the partners of men who use it.

But the trial of the drug has already been halted  because just 20 of the men (out of 320, dont forget) found the side effects of the injection intolerable and it was decided that more research needed to be done to try and counteract them. Those side effects included depression, muscle pain, mood swings, acne and changes to the libido.

Do any of those side effects sound familiar? Oh yes, theyre the minor side effects of the combined pill, used by 48 per cent of women aged 16 to 19, 64 per cent of women aged between 20 and 24 and a majority (55 per cent) of those aged between 25 and 29.

How sad for these poor men  they couldnt handle the side effects that so many women have to deal with every day just to avoid an unwanted pregnancy. Women have had to bear the responsibility of contraception since the pill was first launched in 1962  and all of the side effects that go along with it.

When it comes to contraception, medicine is clearly biased towards men. Women can have such ailments as depression and acne thrust upon them for the greater good of preventing an unwanted pregnancy, but the same level of discomfort cannot be expected of men. Researchers are now going to spend millions trying to alter this medication so that its side effects are lessened.

Only 20 of the men surveyed said that they couldnt handle the side effects  more than 75 per cent said they would happily use the contraception. Because 20 men werent happy, the entire trial has been halted.

 Male Contraception - Sperm switch

Lets review this in context. One of the most dangerous risks to women of taking the combined pill is the increased risk of deep vein thrombosis (DVT), which can be fatal. It affects two in 10,000 women. Young womens lives have been cut short because they were taking the pill. The advice from the regulatory agency? The benefits outweigh the risks.

There is also an increased risk of breast cancer: one in eight women get breast cancer, and it is responsible for 31 deaths in Britain every day. Then theres the higher chance of getting cervical cancer or having a stroke, not to mention mood swings, cramps, sore breasts, headaches, migraines, weight gain, heavy and painful periods, no periods at all, bleeding every single day (known spotting)  do I need to go on?

Julie Houts on modern love - In pictures Show all 10 1 /10 Julie Houts on modern love - In pictures Julie Houts on modern love - In pictures Julie Houts Julie Houts on modern love - In pictures Julie Houts Julie Houts on modern love - In pictures Julie Houts Julie Houts on modern love - In pictures Julie Houts Julie Houts on modern love - In pictures Julie Houts on modern love - In pictures Julie Houts Julie Houts on modern love - In pictures Julie Houts Julie Houts on modern love - In pictures "When u on a #tinder date and he's pretending he knows a lot about wine." Julie Houts Julie Houts on modern love - In pictures "The one where i practiced balancing olives on my nose while he went outside for a 40 minute conference call. " Julie Houts Julie Houts on modern love - In pictures Julie Houts

The risks of the combined pill are numerous, and taking it is not a pleasant thing. But women have taken this burden on for more than 50 years to allow their relationships to develop without the risk of pregnancy. It is offensive and inconsiderate that researchers are halting a major trial of a male contraception because of a few minor  yes, they are minor, and if youre a woman complaining about them, thats what your GP will most certainly tell you  side effects.

I dont blame the men who dropped out of the trial for doing so. I blame the medical establishment for treating women like cattle who can deal with the risk of cancer and blood clots to avoid the world being populated by unwanted babies, yet arent willing to let men suffer even a slight headache to the same end.

For women, the alternatives to the combined pill are not much better. The mini pill doesnt provide as much of a risk, as it isnt jam-packed full of oestrogen, yet you can end up with irregular bleeding or no periods at all  unnerving for many, especially when youre trying to avoid an unplanned pregnancy. The depo injection is renowned for irregular bleeding  some people bleed every single day on it  and it cannot be reversed. If its side effects are intolerable, you have to sit it out for three months. The implant is also renowned for its disruption to the menstrual cycle  plus, you have to have a stick jammed in your arm. Lets not even start on the coil (a bit of copper shoved into your uterus through your vagina and cervix without any pain relief, anyone?).

Its enough to make you consider that remaining celibate  or even having a child  could be viable options.

 What if men had periods?

The halting of the male contraceptive trial is not justified. Unless the researchers produce evidence that this injection increases the risk of death, cancer  or any side effect with a disproportionately higher risk than the forms of contraception billions of women are already using  they are courting controversy.

Ive never been of the school of thought that science is biased against women. Usually, Im the one defending it. But this is taking the biscuit. Women make up half the population in this country, and half the partnership responsible for every unplanned child  and its time someone gave us a break when it comes to contraception.
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I visited Mosul on the day it fell to Kurdish Peshmerga fighters and a small detachment of US Special Forces on 11 April 2003. As we drove into the city, we passed lines of pick-up trucks piled high with loot returning to the Kurdish-controlled enclave in northern Iraq. US soldiers at a checkpoint, over which waved the Stars and Stripes, were shooting at a man in the distance who kept bobbing up from behind a wall and waving the Iraqi flag.

If there had ever been any sympathy between liberators and liberated in Mosul, it was disappearing fast. Inside the city, every government building, including the university, was being systematically looted by Kurds and Arabs alike. I saw one man who had stolen an enormous and very ugly red and gold sofa from the governors office dragging it slowly down the street. He would push one end of the sofa a few feet forward and then go to the other end and repeat the same process. The mosques were soon calling on the Sunni Arab majority to build barricades to defend their neighbourhoods from marauders.

We parked our vehicle near a medieval quarter of ancient stone buildings while we went to see a Christian ecclesiastic. When we got back, we found that our driver was very frightened and wanted to get out of Mosul as fast as possible. He explained that soon after we left a crowd had gathered, recognised our number plates as Kurdish and debated lynching him and setting fire to his car before being restrained by a local religious leader moments before they took action.

The oil city of Kirkuk was captured at about the same time by the Peshmerga, despite having promised the Americans and Turks that they would do no such thing. Again, there was looting everywhere and I saw two Peshmerga stand in the middle of the road to stop an enormous yellow bulldozer that was being driven off. Instead of slowing down, the driver put his foot on the accelerator so the Peshmerga had to jump aside to avoid being crushed.

In pictures: Mosul offensive Show all 40 1 /40 In pictures: Mosul offensive In pictures: Mosul offensive A doctor carries an Iraqi newborn baby at a hospital in Mosul, Iraq July 18, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi girls play at a yard of a school in Mosul, Iraq July 18, 2017alal Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A woman on crutches who is a relative of men accused of being Islamic State militants is seen at a camp in Bartella, east of Mosul, Iraq July 15, 2017. Picture taken July 15, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A displaced girl, who fled from home carries a doll at Hamam al-Alil camp south of Mosul, Iraq July 13, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi federal police members and civilians celebrate in the Old City of Mosul on 9 July 2017 after the government's announcement of the "liberation" of the embattled city. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's office said he was in "liberated" Mosul to congratulate "the heroic fighters and the Iraqi people on the achievement of the major victory" AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A picture taken on 9 July 2017, shows a general view of the destruction in Mosul's Old City. Iraq will announce imminently a final victory in the nearly nine-month offensive to retake Mosul from jihadists, a US general said Saturday, as celebrations broke out among police forces in the city. AFP In pictures: Mosul offensive Members of the Iraqi federal police raise the victory gesture as they ride on a humvee while advancing through the Old City of Mosul on 28 June 2017, as the offensive continues to retake the last district held by Islamic State (IS) group fighters. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Smoke billows as Iraqi forces advance through the Old City of Mosul on 26 June 2017, during the ongoing offensive to retake the last district held by the Islamic State (IS) group. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi man wearing the green scarf of the Shi'ite faith kisses an Iraqi Army soldier on safely reaching the Iraqi forces position as Iraqi civilians flee the Old City of west Mosul where heavy fighting continues on 23 June 2017. Iraqi forces continue to encounter stiff resistance with improvised explosive devices, car bombs, heavy mortar fire and snipers hampering their advance. Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A picture taken from the inside of an Iraqi forces armoured vehicle shows residents walking through a damaged street as troops advance towards Mosul's Old City on 18 June 2017, during the ongoing offensive to retake the last district still held by the Islamic State (IS) group. Military commanders told AFP the assault had begun at dawn after overnight air strikes by the US-led coalition backing Iraqi forces. They said the jihadists were putting up fierce resistance. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi Army soldiers advance in a destroyed street after an Iraqi forces airstrike targeted an Islamic State sniper position 17 June 2017 in al-Shifa, the last district of west Mosul under Islamic State control. IS snipers, as well as car and suicide bomb attacks continue to hinder the Iraqi forces efforts to retake the final district. A series of airstrikes by Iraqi helicopter gunships attempted to hit multiple Islamic State sniper positions in al-Shifa. Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier frisks a displaced Iraqi man at a temporary camp in the compound of the closed Nineveh International Hotel in Mosul on 16 June 2017 which was recovered by Iraqi troops from Islamic State group fighters earlier in the year. A screening centre set up in the compound's fairgrounds sees a constant stream of Iraqis fleeing the battle for Mosul, awaiting their turn to be checked by the Iraqi forces who are searching for suspected Islamic State (IS) group members. The small fairground lies at the end of a pontoon bridge across the Tigris recently opened to civilians that is the only physical link between the two banks of the river. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqis staying at the al-Khazir camp swim in a river near the camp for internally displaced people, located between Arbil and Mosul on 11 June 2017. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi government forces drive on a road leading to Tal Afar on 9 June 2017, during ongoing battles to retake the city from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi policeman carries a poster bearing an image of Mosul's iconic leaning minaret, known as the "Hadba" (Hunchback), on 22 June 2017. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqis stand in line to receive food aid in western Mosul's Zanjili neighbourhood on 7 June 2017, during ongoing battles as Iraqi forces try to retake the city from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. Living conditions in Mosul have again deteriorated since the start of the Iraqi government's offensive on the city in October in which they retook a large part of the west of the city. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Displaced Iraqis carry lightbulbs and sacks as they evacuate from western Mosul's Zanjili neighbourhood as government forces advance in the area during their ongoing battle against Islamic State (IS) group fighters on 13 May 2017 AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) flashes the victory gesture as he patrols in western Mosul's al-Islah al-Zaraye neighbourhood on 13 May 2017 AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi army soldiers from the 9th armoured division on a truck flash the sign of victory as they drive back from Mosul to the town of Qaraqosh (also known as Hamdaniya) Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Members of Iraqi forces flash the sign of victory on their vehicle as they advance towards Hammam al-Alil area south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi security forces gestures in Hammam al-Alil, south of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi children, one flashing the sign of victory, greet Iraqi army's soldiers from the 9th armoured division in the area of Ali Rash, adjacent to the eastern Al-Intissar neighbourhood of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Peshmerga forces look at a tunnel used by Islamic State militants near the town of Bashiqa, east of Mosul, during an operation to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier takes a photograph with his phone as his comrade stands next to a detained man, whom the Iraqi army soldiers accused of being an Islamic State fighter, who was fleeing with his family in the Intisar disrict of eastern Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iranian Kurdish female members of the Freedom Party of Kurdistan (PAK) hold a position in an area near the town of Bashiqa, some 25 kilometres north east of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi families, who fled their homes in Hamam al-Alil, gather on the outskirts of their town Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Displaced people walk past a checkpoint near Qayara, south of Mosul, Iraq AP In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi families who were displaced by the ongoing operation by Iraqi forces against jihadists of the Islamic State group to retake the city of Mosul, are seen gathering in an area near Qayyarah In pictures: Mosul offensive A boy who just fled Abu Jarbuah village is seen with his family at a Kurdish Peshmerga position between two front lines near Bashiqa, east of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi child eats a pomegranate upon the arrival of Iraqi forces in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive People who just fled Abu Jarbuah village sit as they eat at a Kurdish Peshmerga position between two front lines near Bashiqa, east of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A couple who just fled Abu Jarbuah village are escorted by Kurdish Peshmerga soldiers Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Women carry a boy over a wall as civilians flee their houses in the village of Tob Zawa, Iraq AP In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier and a civilian ride a motorbike as smoke rises behind them, on the road between Qayyarah and Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi forces, wearing a skull mask, waits at a checkpoint for people fleeing the main hub city of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier sits at a checkpoint in an area near Qayyarah Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi men prepare food portions for Iraqi forces deployed in areas south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi forces celebrate upon the arrival of vehicles bringing food to them Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi childen smoke cigarettes upon the arrival of Iraqi forces in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi forces distributes drinks to children in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty

Inside the newly established Peshmerga headquarters, I ran into Pavel Talabani, whose father Jalal Talabani headed the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, the political party whose militia now held the city. He stressed the temporary nature of the Kurdish occupation of the city. We came to control the situation, he said. We expect to withdraw some of our men in 45 minutes.

Some Peshmerga, but not all: 13 years later the Kurds still hold Kirkuk, whose population is Kurdish, Arab and Turkoman, and to which the Kurds claim an historic right saying they have only reversed anti-Kurdish ethnic cleansing by Saddam Hussein.

By now the rest of the world has forgotten that there was a time when the Kurds did not hold the city. The Kurdish leaders had understood that the US-led invasion and the fall of Saddam Hussein had created conditions of unprecedented political fluidity and it was an ideal moment to create facts on the map, which would become permanent whatever the protestations of other players.

The current multi-pronged offensive aimed at taking Mosul is producing a similar situation as different countries, parties and communities vie to fill the vacuum they expect to be created by the fall of Isis, just as in 2003 the vacuum was the result of the fall of Saddam Hussein.

Recommended Read more Compare the coverage of Mosul and East Aleppo and it reveals a lot

The different segments of the anti-Isis forces potentially involved in seizing Mosul  the Iraqi army, Kurds, Shia and Sunni paramilitaries, Turks  may be temporary allies, but they are also rivals. They all have their own very different and conflicting agendas. Presiding over this ramshackle and disputatious alliance is the US, which is orchestrating the Mosul offensive and without whose air power and Special Forces there would be no attack.

The Shia-dominated Iraqi government needs to take and hold Mosul, Iraqs main Sunni Arab city, if it is to be convincing as the national government of Iraq. To achieve this, Baghdads rule must be acceptable to the Sunni majority in the city in a way that was not true when Isis took it in 2014. It needs to establish its rule while it still has full military and political support from the US.

The Kurds, for their part, want to solidify their control of the so-called disputed territories claimed by both the central government and the Kurdish regional authorities. The Kurds opportunistically used the defeat of the Iraqi Army in northern Iraq by Isis two years ago to take these territories inhabited by both Kurds and Arabs, thereby expanding by 40 per cent the area of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). They know that once Isis is defeated, the Kurds will no longer get international and, above all, American backing to hold this expanded version of the KRG.

 Dramatic footage shows Elite Iraq forces battle on road to Bartella in fight for Mosul

These problems have only begun to surface because Mosul is still a long way from being besieged or even encircled.

The Shia militia forces are surprisingly calm about being excluded from a military role in the siege. They may calculate that the Iraqi army, if it gets sucked into street fighting, will not be able to take Mosul on its own and will have to look to them for support. The Shia paramilitaries are making up for their lack of participation in the battle for Mosul by sending reinforcements  some 5,000 men, according to reports  to join the Syrian Army in the siege of East Aleppo.

Turkey wants to be a player and, as a great Sunni power, the defender of the Sunnis of Mosul. To this end, it has soldiers based at Bashiqa, north east of Mosul, and claims to be taking part in the attack. But so far at least, Turkish ambitions and rhetoric in Iraq and Syria have exceeded its performance. Both interventions may be designed to impress a domestic audience which is deluged with exaggerated accounts of Turkish achievements in the government-controlled Turkish media.

These participants in the struggle for Mosul may be dividing the tigers skin before the tiger is properly dead. Isis showed that it still has sharp claws when it responded to the assault on Mosul with raids on Kirkuk and Rutbah on the main Iraq-Jordan road. It is fighting hard to slow down the anti-Isis advance towards Mosul with a mix of suicide bombers, IEDs, booby-traps, snipers and mortar teams. But it is unclear if it will make a last stand in Mosul where, at the end of the day, it must go down to defeat in the face of superior numbers backed by the massive firepower of the US-led air forces.

The likelihood is that Isis will fight for Mosul, the site of its first great victory, in order to prolong the battle, cause casualties and to let divisions emerge among its enemies. But its strategy over the last 12 months has been not to stage heroic but doomed last stands in any of the cities it has lost in Iraq and Syria.

At Ramadi, Fallujah, Sinjar, Palmyra and Manbij it has staged a fighting withdrawal at the last moment. The same may now happen in Mosul.
Northern Ireland's High Court has dismissed the UK's first legal challenge to Brexit.

Mr Justice Paul Maguire ruled that there was nothing in the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement to prevent the Government from triggering exit negotiations with the EU.

He said the implications for Northern Ireland were still uncertain.

A cross-party group of politicians had claimed the Stormont Assembly should have a say on whether to begin talks.

Raymond McCord, whose son was murdered by loyalist paramilitaries, had a separate Brexit challenge surrounding its impact on the peace process heard alongside that of the politicians at the Belfast court.

Mr Justice Maguire said: "While the wind of change may be about to blow, the precise direction in which it will blow cannot yet be determined so there is a level of uncertainty, as evidenced by the discussion about how the Northern Ireland land border with Ireland was affected by withdrawal from the EU."

The court did not consider the role of Parliament in the calling of talks - separate legal proceedings are taking place in England.

The Belfast case was heard earlier this month and concentrated on the impact on the Northern Ireland constitution of Prime Minister Theresa May's proposed action.

Mr Justice Maguire said he was not aware of any specific provision in the Good Friday Agreement or the 1998 Northern Ireland Act which established that UK withdrawal from the EU required the consent of the people of Northern Ireland.

He said if such a limitation existed it would be reasonable to have expected it to have been highlighted before the June referendum.

The judge said it was difficult to see how the court could overlook the fact that the UK Parliament had retained the ability to legislate for Northern Ireland without any special procedure.

He said the royal prerogative power of the Prime Minister's to launch negotiations was not one in which the court could intervene, adding: "Any suggestion that a legitimate expectation can overwhelm the structure of the legislative scheme is not viable."

The judge said: "It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that a decision ... following a national referendum is anything other than high policy.

"Accordingly, it seems to fit well into the area of prerogative powers which are unsuitable for judicial review."

Some 56% of Northern Irish voters backed Remain but some unionist-dominated areas supported Leave.

The largest party in Northern Ireland, the Democratic Unionists, campaigned for an exit.

A Downing Street spokesman said: "Obviously we welcome the court's judgment this morning.

"It agrees that we can proceed to trigger Article 50 as planned.

"But I think what's important to stress, one of the concerns that was raised during this court case is that there is no reason to think that the outcome of the referendum will do anything to undermine the rock-solid commitment that the Government has to the settlement that was set out in the Belfast Agreement and to the people of Northern Ireland."

Mr McCord said he was disappointed but vowed to take his case to the Supreme Court - the UK's highest court.

The politicians said they had a mandate from the majority in Northern Ireland who opposed Brexit to continue to oppose it.
"Tayto Park has fulfilled all requirements as outlined by the relevant authorities," management said

Bosses of a theme park have reopened a Halloween-themed event they were forced to shut a week ago when a staircase collapsed.

Tayto Park said its House of Horrors is taking in visitors six days after a section of stairs gave way injuring several people.

It said the event is sold out for both Friday and Saturday.

"Tayto Park has fulfilled all requirements as outlined by the relevant authorities," management said.

Nine people were treated in hospital after the staircase collapsed last Saturday night.

The Health and Safety Authority launched an investigation into the cause of the incident.

The park at Ashbourne, Co Meath, which is themed on the famous crisp brand Tayto, is the only one of its kind in Ireland. It opened in 2010.
The idea of appointing a 'Brexit Minister' has been firmly ruled out by Taoiseach Enda Kenny, who said he wants to oversee Ireland's strategy himself.

A variety of business leaders and Opposition parties have called on the Government to create a new ministry to deal specifically with the threat posed by Brexit, but Mr Kenny said: "We cannot give this any higher political status than the office of the Taoiseach.

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"Every single minister is a Brexit minister, as is every minister of state."

Mr Kenny argued that if he appointed a junior minister to the role he would be accused of "downgrading" its significance, and if he appointed a Cabinet minister people would say: "You need to take a greater interest in this yourself".

"I accept that I'm very busy and Brexit is going to take up a lot of time for everybody over the next period, but I've no qualms at all about saying this should be vested in the office of the Taoiseach and that's why I intend to lead it," he said.

Read more: 'We dont know yet what they are looking for' - Taoiseach says there is no Brexit border deal between Ireland and UK

The Government has set up a Cabinet sub-committee dedicated to the Brexit response.

"It's very important that you understand that the coordination impact of the office of the Taoiseach is far stronger, with respect to every department," Mr Kenny said.

"I chair these meetings and will continue to chair them, and call ministers as needs be.

"All of them are under a mandate to talk to their counterparts in Europe to explain the different circumstances here."

Mr Kenny noted that the Council of European Leaders will be making the key decision in relation to Brexit negotiations with the EU.

He also revealed that a meeting of the 27 member states who will remain inside the EU is to be held in December, with British Prime Minister Theresa May excluded.

"So this is far too serious a matter to have it hived off, either to a section of a department, or to a minister who has responsibilities in other places.

"I want to make that clear that this is a whole-of-government response.

"Everybody who has connections, either with Northern Ireland, the United Kingdom or Europe, can play their part in that. These preparations are going to intensify over the next few weeks," Mr Kenny told a briefing of reporters.

Mr Kenny said next week's Civic Forum on Brexit will be attended by over 300 people, including political and business leaders.

It will be the first in a series of meetings that will include sectoral gathering around the country and in Northern Ireland.

Mr Kenny is also to travel to the east and west coasts of the United States next month on a trade mission.

He will meet with financial houses and business leaders to ensure there is an awareness that Ireland will continue to be a member of the EU after the UK leaves .

"I expect that we will continue to be a very attractive location for investment," Mr Kenny said.
The issue of resolving the conflict in Donbas wont advance further without full control of the situation by the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM), the Foreign Minister of Ukraine Pavlo Klimkin has said.

"If the SMM doesnt control the situation one hundred percent or even more, we will not advance," he said on the "Left Bank with Sonia Koshkina" program aired by 24 TV channel.

According to Klimkin, the day-and-night presence of the OSCE SMM in Donbas is the main goal for Ukraine.

He also said that it is necessary to extend the mandate of the mission for its effective operation, which will help to control the entire territory of Donbas and the border around the clock, as well as provide all the necessary technical means for the SMM.

The minister also said that there are people who work for Russia in the personnel of OSCE SMM.

"The problem with the effectiveness of the mission is, of course, those who work for Russias sake, and we are well aware of it ... Of course, there are people who are trying to transmit the missions information further," Klimkin said.
Irish consumers could face fresh milk shortages this winter, with some dairy farmers calling for a 'strike' to highlight the lack of profitability in liquid milk production.

Some individual liquid milk farmers - those who produce milk for supermarket shelves - have called on the IFA Liquid Milk Committee to consider a widespread withdrawal of milk supplies over the coming months.

However, IFA Liquid chairman John Finn said the organisation would prefer not go to that extreme if it can help it.

"We want to go through the communication process first before we even think of that," he said.

One liquid milk supplier who spoke at the IFA Liquid Milk Conference said he left liquid milk production as it simply did not pay. Peter Farrell, who farms in Meath with his father, and milks 190 cows, said liquid milk farmers needed about 40c a litre (40c/l) annually to compensate for the extra expense and work involved.

However, Mr Finn said that while some farmers were calling for a 'strike', it was not the answer the IFA was looking for.

"Liquid milk can't be taken for granted. There are higher costs involved in producing this milk, as it's year-round production. Liquid suppliers are getting around 39-41c/l at the moment for the winter months and their annual milk price works out around 31-31c/l."

Liquid milk producers, he said, needed at least 40c/l for the year and the IFA was looking for them to receive 55c/l for the winter months to balance out the extra costs incurred.

"We just want a better price share. Coke costs about 120c/l and milk costs 92c/l," he said.

Competition

The National Milk Agency, which regulates the supply of fresh milk for liquid consumption in Ireland, says that competition between supermarkets has pushed down the price Irish dairy farmers are receiving for their milk in recent years.

It estimates the average litre of milk sells for 92c/l in shops, a drop of 1c/l on 2014 prices. Of that, liquid milk farmers received an average of 32c/l last year - down 16pc on 2014 prices.

Ireland has one of the highest per capita consumption rates of fresh drinking milk in the world; last year we drank 601 million litres of milk, the highest consumption level on record.

The fresh milk market in Ireland had an estimated retail value of 547m in 2015.
C&C said the sterling decline had hit reported first-half revenues to the tune of 24.4m, and operating profit by 2.8m.

The slump in sterling since the UK's June Brexit vote side-swiped Bulmers maker C&C, with its reported operating profit in the first half of its financial year tumbling 12pc to 55.1m. Its revenue fell 14.4pc to 307m, taking account of the currency swing.

But chief executive Stephen Glancey pointed to higher sale volumes of core brands, including Bulmers, Magners and Tennent's.

"The currency impact is a translational one, not transactional," he told the Irish Independent. "There's nothing we can do about it. Everybody who trades in the UK and takes earnings out of the UK has the same issue."

C&C said the sterling decline had hit reported first-half revenues to the tune of 24.4m, and operating profit by 2.8m. It also noted that there had been "some variability in consumer demand" in the period.

Mr Glancey said the group's focus on its core brands was the "right thing to do" for the long-term.

He added that C&C has a business that "is capable of weathering these challenges".

Bulmers volumes in Ireland were 6pc higher in the period, while Tennent's volumes rose 2pc in the Scottish independent free trade channel. Volume exports of Tennent's rose 50pc.

Mr Glancey said the "fizz is back" in Magners sales, with volumes rising 11pc and its market share growing by 1.4 percentage points.

"The Magners brand is very well regarded by UK consumers," he said. "There's been quite a lot of rationalisation this year by the UK supermarkets, so it's pretty much survival of the fittest. If you've got a good brand, you're there. If you don't, you're killed off."

He said the sales improvements in its main products had been underpinned by increased marketing spend, with the group having spent 3.6m more on core brand marketing in the period than a year ago.

The company has also invested 9m in a new bottling facility at its Clonmel plant in the period.

C&C chief financial officer Kenny Nieson said that the company has been "quite protective" of its balance sheet to date, and that while the it remains open to acquisitions, it "hasn't identified the right target as of yet".

"We'd rather be buying businesses and expanding C&C than returning capital to shareholders," he said.

But shares in the group fell 2.5pc as investors digested the results.

Davy Stockbrokers said foreign exchange headwinds will weigh on C&C's full-year results.
Dr. Nora Khaldi, Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Nuritas and Emmet Browne, CEO of Nuritas, at the announcement of EU funding of 3 million to support the final stage of Nuritas research and the commercialisation of a peptide in what would be a world-first development in diabetes prevention.

Irish biotech research and development firm Nuritas has secured funding for a product it says will prevent Type 2 diabetes.

The company has secured 3m in funding from the EU to support the final stage of development of a natural ingredient which the company says will prevent diabetes developing.

The funding will include Irish-based clinical trials which will take place over the next 18 months. If the trials are successful and the product gains approval, the new peptide could be used in food products across the EU by 2020.

Nuritas CEO, Emmet Browne, said: This is a hugely important validation for Nuritas and our use of cutting-edge artificial intelligence driven technology to transform the future of disease prevention and food around the globe. While we have a rich pipeline of similar breakthrough peptides, all found from natural sources with amazing scientific potential, diabetes prevention now becomes Nuritas first important area of focus, with many more to follow.

This peptide carries huge potential to bridge an enormous gap in medical science and act as a major weapon in the global battle against diabetes, now recognised as a full blown epidemic.
An Irish-based Apple executive has avoided a jail sentence in Italy after the tech giant agreed to pay a settlement of 45,000 for unpaid taxes in the country.

Michael O'Sullivan, who has worked for Apple for 25 years and oversees filing for some of the companys international tax returns, faced a potential six-month prison term in Italy as head of Apple's Irish-based unit, Apple Sales International.

The action was brought by Italian prosecutors following a probe which alleged that Apple had failed to pay 879m in taxes in the country.

However, Apple and Italian authorities came to a settlement whereby the six-month jail sentence for the executive has been converted into the payment of a 45,000 settlement.

In Italian law, a settlement agreement does not imply an admission of guilt. Milan prosecutors investigating the allegations have asked for the case against two managers from the Italian subsidiary of Apple to be dropped.

"Michael has agreed to settle this case on behalf of Apple in order to put the matter behind us, a spokesman for Apple told the Irish Independent. He has our full confidence and support and remains an important part of our management team in Europe.

The case was the first of its kind to be brought against any Apple employees in Europe relating to unpaid taxes. Italian prosecutors swooped on Apple's offices in 2013 and alleged that the company's scheme for redirecting revenues to Ireland was illegal under Italian law.

However, Apple says that it adhered to all Italian legal guidance from authorities.

"Apple has always complied with the instructions we received from the Italian tax authorities and during a tax audit in 2012 the authorities again confirmed we were filing our local tax returns correctly, said the Apple spokesman. In 2015 the tax authority contradicted its guidance and said they now believed Apple had not filed its returns from the correct entity. When the authorities changed their view we complied.

The Apple spokesman said that Michael OSullivan acted properly at all times.

"Michael OSullivan has worked for Apple for over 25 years and has always operated with the highest integrity, said the spokesman. He is a valued member of our finance team and his responsibilities include oversight of the team filing some of our international tax returns and other regulatory requirements since 1999.

Apple's tax arrangements were plunged into controversy earlier this year after the European Commission found that the company owed 13bn in back taxes to the Irish exchequer due to Ireland breaching state aid rules.
Permanent tsb has completed the "milestone" sale of its remaining loan book in the UK as the bank finishes its deleveraging programme.

The deal will allow the bank, in which the Government has a 75pc stake, to focus on the Irish retail and SME market. The deleveraging programme was a core condition of the bank's Restructuring Plan agreed for the group by the European Commission.

Ptsb is selling 2.29bn (2.56bn) worth of loans, which were held by its UK subsidiary Lansdowne 199, to an affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management.

Last year a Cerberus affiliate acquired around half of the CHL loan portfolio as well as the associated legal entity, Capital Home Loans Ltd.

The agreement comprises the total balance of the residual book of the bank's former UK subsidiary, Capital Home Loans.

The European Commission had set a deadline for the process to be completed in June, however it is understood the sales process was suspended due to Brexit. It is believed the bank informed the Commission that it would miss its deadline near the end of June.

After completing the deal for half the portfolio last year, the Cerberus affiliate was long-touted as the front runner to complete a deal for the remaining 50pc. Morgan Stanley advised on the deal, which is set to net Ptsb around 1.95bn in proceeds from the sale.

The bank said the profit from the sale will be used to reduce its debt.

Ptsb chief executive Jeremy Masding described the deal as a "milestone event" for the group. "Its completion in the coming weeks will conclude the very ambitious deleveraging programme of some 8.4bn which was set out for the group under the restructuring plan agreed with the European authorities," he said.

"Perhaps most importantly, it will complete our pivot to the Irish retail marketplace and allow us to focus exclusively on growing our commercial position in key segments of the market here.

"That is now our overriding priority, as Ireland's only pure domestic retail and SME bank," Mr Masding said.

The news comes after the bank announced it would acquire up to 100m of performing mortgages that originally came from GE Capital's old Irish portfolio of sub-prime loans. Ptsb chairman Alan Cook also announced he would be retiring from the board in March, bringing his six-year term at the bank to a close.
Here are the main business stories from this morning's papers:

Irish Independent

* The idea of appointing a 'Brexit Minister' has been firmly ruled out by Taoiseach Enda Kenny, who said he wants to oversee Ireland's strategy himself.

A variety of business leaders and Opposition parties have called on the Government to create a new ministry to deal specifically with the threat posed by Brexit, but Mr Kenny said: "We cannot give this any higher political status than the office of the Taoiseach.

* One of Eir's biggest shareholders is selling its near 10pc stake in the telecoms business in a move which will see its largest investor, Anchorage Capital, gain sole voting control at the former state-owned company.

US hedge fund York Capital owns 9.8pc of Eir, formerly Eircom, while Anchorage Capital owns just under 40pc.

* Packaging giant Ardagh will plough ahead with a stock market flotation next year, executive chairman Paul Coulson has confirmed to investors.

The much-anticipated debut - which will be subject to market conditions at the time - will be a seminal moment for the company, which has previously pulled other planned flotations of both the group and its metals division.

The Irish Times

* Eir's largest shareholder Anchorage Capital looks set to secure majority voting rights at the country's largest telco as the US hedge fund is eyeing up a further stake in the company.

Anchorage plans to make a move for part of York Capital's near-10pc stake in the company.

* Profits at luxury retailer Brown Thomas rose by more than 60pc last year as the firm enjoyed a successful 2015 in which sales increased by 11pc.

The company touted sales of 172.5m last year and a profit after tax of 15.6m.

* The DAA is seeking expressions of interest for the development and operation of a new 402-bedroom four-star hotel at Terminal 2.

The new hotel, which will be the country's fourth-largest, will provide employment for 250 people. Another 150 jobs will be created during construction.

Irish Examiner

* The IDA has received interest from over 100 multi national corporations that are looking to keep a European base following the Brexit vote.

It is understood around half of the companies that have expressed interest are in the financial sector.

* Bulmers-maker C&C is well-placed for acquisitions despite Brexit concerns and currency headwinds eating into its balance sheet, the company has said.

Assets from the sale of brewing giant SABMiller may be on the cards for C&C, however the firm said it hasn't seen anything of interest recently.

* Bank of Ireland chief executive Richie Boucher has said the bank won't cut its variable mortgage rates.

Mr Boucher said the bank's policy of promoting fixed-rate mortgages ahead of home loans will not change for the moment.
The militants have fired small arms and grenade launchers on the Maryinka checkpoint in the Donetsk region, the Ukrainian State Border Service said on Friday.

The attack on the Maryinka checkpoint lasted for more than three hours on Thursday, the service said. The fire started at about 8:30 p.m. after the checkpoint had closed for the night. "The fire was coming from a belt of trees on the outskirts of Oleksandrivka. They fired small arms at first and used AGS-17 and RPG grenade launchers later," the service said.

No Ukrainian servicemen were hurt, it said.

Two attacks were observed in the same area several days ago, the report says.
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) will wait till it completes a sale of its UK based Williams & Glyn unit before targeting Irish acquisitions, according to chief executive Ross McEwan.

The RBS chief revealed earlier this month that hes interested in looking at Irish deals in an exclusive interview with the Irish Independent. He confirmed to analysts today that the Ulster Bank parent will look at safe Irish add-on deals once a sale of Williams & Glyn is finalised.

Market speculation is or a potential merger with Permanent TSB or KBC Ireland. The British bank is under pressure to sell the unit to meet European competition rules.

The bank said today that it wont meet EU deadline of the end of 2017 to complete the sale of its Williams & Glyn division.

Financial results today show a slow decline in profits at Ulster Bank in the third quarter of the year to 68m (76m), down from 108m at the same time a year ago.
Google parent Alphabet surprised Silicon Valley with better than expected results for the last quarter, as advertiser spending on mobile ads catches up with users shift away from desktop computers to smartphones.

Google revenue grew by 21pc compared to the same quarter last year, reaching $18.3bn (16.8bn) net revenue compared to analyst expectations of $18bn.

Advertising revenue made up almost 90pc of the search giants income, and rose 18.1pc to $19.82bn in the third quarter. Meanwhile Google's other revenue, which includes the company's increasingly important cloud business, jumped 38.8pc.

Even though Googles cost-per-click, or the average amount advertisers pay Google, fell 11pc in the latest period after dropping 7pc in the second quarter revenues were buoyed by an increase in paid clicks, which an advertiser pays for only if a user clicks on them. Paid clicks rose 33pc, compared with a rise of 29pc in the second quarter.

Research firm eMarketer has estimated that Google will capture $52.88bn in search ad revenue in 2016, or 56.9pc of the global market.

Google's Other Revenue, which includes the company's increasingly important cloud business, jumped 38.8pc after rising 33pc in the second quarter. Alphabet's Other Bets generated revenue of $197m, but reported an operating loss of $865m. In the year earlier period, revenue was $141m and the loss was $980m.

Other Bets includes broadband business Google Fiber, home automation products Nest, self-driving cars as well as X, the company's research facility that works on "moon shot" ventures.

Up to Thursday's close of $817.35, Alphabet's shares had risen 5.1pc since the start of the year.

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
Belgium's Prime Minister Charles Michel addresses a statement at the end of a meeting on the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)

Belgium has reached a deal with the country's regional parliaments to approve a trade agreement between the European Union and Canada - ending the deadlock that has delayed the accord's signature.

Belgian prime minister Charles Michel said the EU-Canada deal can be approved by the nation's regions "by tomorrow at midnight".

The agreement is an "important step for EU and Canada", Mr Michel said yesterday.

The approval means the EU and Canada can now move ahead with one of the world's most ambitious and far-reaching trade pacts.

Belgium's federal government had been unable to persuade the Walloon regional parliament to sign up to the proposed pact.

The EU and Canada cancelled a summit planned for yesterday at which the two sides would have signed the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), which has taken seven years to negotiate. "I am glad for good news," EU President Donald Tusk said. "Only once all procedures are finalised for EU signing CETA will I contact Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau."

In holding up the deal, Wallonia, which accounts for less than 1pc of the EU's population, cited concerns about the impact on employment and consumer standards.

Wallonia's stance had tied the hands of the Belgian federal government, which had been in favour of the agreement but needed the endorsement of regional authorities.

The other 27 EU nations support the deal, the bloc's first commercial accord with a fellow member of the Group of Seven industrialised countries.

Justin Trudeau has warned that the EU needed to prove it was still viable by passing CETA. Failure would prompt questions about "how relevant the European Union continues to be as a political entity", he said this month. (Bloomberg)
Robbie Williams' is set to make a big announcement at a press conference in Dublin today

It looks like Robbie Williams is set to make a big announcement today.

The former Take That star has sent the rumour mill into overdrive on Friday morning ahead of his press conference in Dublin today.

It's speculated that the popstar is set to make a big announcement with many people expecting that he will confirm an Irish tour for 2017.

In 2006, Robbie famously promised Irish fans that he would return to play a "free gig" after he played a below-par performance in Croke Park.

"I don't feel I've done the best I can tonight. I haven't been very good," he told the 78,000-strong audience.

"So I'm going to come back and do it again... for free."

He returned in 2012 to play a charity gig at Dublin's 3Arena.

Independent.ie will be bring you all the details from the press conference later this afternoon.
John Mooney outside the Circuit Civil Court after the hearing yesterday. Pic: Collins Courts

Irish Rail has an "absolute requirement" to warn customers to mind gaps between trains and platforms when getting on and off trains, a Circuit Civil Court has said.

Mr Justice Raymond Groarke made the remark after hearing a legal action by fisherman John Mooney against Irish Rail.

Mr Mooney, of St Michael's Terrace, Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin, suffered a triple fracture of his right shoulder when he fell through the gap between the train entrance and the platform at Tara Street Station in Dublin on August 2, 2012.

Mr Mooney was travelling from Dun Laoghaire to Connolly Station, but he got off at Tara Street by mistake.

When he realised his mistake, he tried to re-board the train. He slipped and fell through the gap between the train and the platform.

Counsel for Mr Mooney said he managed to re-board the train and reported the incident to Irish Rail staff at Connolly Station.

Irish Rail denied liability, claiming Mr Mooney had been distracted. Judge Groarke said he was satisfied Irish Rail was negligent, but Mr Mooney was partially liable. He was awarded 25,000 in damages.
A jury has yet to reach a verdict in the trial of a man who claims he was acting in his sleep when he allegedly raped his friend.

The 29-year-old man has conceded he might have had sex with the woman but claims he was suffering from sexsomnia at the time, a rare condition that causes people to carry out sexual acts while asleep.

The man and woman had been at a nightclub that night and he had consumed several drinks and a naggin of whiskey before they returned to a friend's house to sleep. The prosecution say alcohol intake is a more likely factor than sexsomnia.

The accused, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has pleaded not guilty at the Central Criminal Court to one count of raping the woman at an apartment in Dublin in the early hours of September 28, 2008.

A jury of seven men and four women has spent five hours deliberating since Thursday afternoon. Today the foreman requested to see the skirt the woman was wearing during the alleged incident which she said had been pushed up by the accused.

Jurors also asked to rehear a portion of the evidence where the accused described looking up sexsomnia on the internet after the alleged rape.

The jury will resume its deliberations on Tuesday before Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy.
Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze has discussed deepening of cooperation to study and counter the Russian information war against Ukraine with the Chairman of the NATO Center of Strategic Communication in Riga Janis Sarts.

The Office of deputy prime minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration said on the official Facebook page on Thursday, that one of the main directions of the Research Center is Russian aggression against Ukraine, in particular, hybrid warfare and its information component.

"Therefore, the cooperation is especially important for our country, because it is important to understand what methods are used by the Kremlin, and how to counter them," the report says.

At the same time, it is noted that Ukraine already has some experience in this area, so the further deepening of the cooperation will be beneficial for NATO, too.

"I look forward to closer cooperation with the NATO's Center of Strategic Communication in Riga. Russian aggression must be fought by all means," Klimpush-Tsintsadze said during the meeting with Sarts.
Mr OBrien has claimed that utterances in the Dail had breached his rights. Photo: Bloomberg

Businessman Denis O'Brien wants to have evidence from a US constitutional law expert heard in his forthcoming High Court action alleging statements made by TDs in the Dail about his banking affairs are not absolutely privileged.

Mr O'Brien, who will give evidence in the case himself, claims there is no such absolute privilege on grounds including utterances in the house must not usurp the judicial domain and must be linked to the legislative process. If those claims are upheld, that has major implications for proceedings in the Oireachtas.

A pre-trial application to have the court admit into evidence a 60-page report from Professor Laurence Henry Tribe of Harvard Law School was made by Michael Cush SC, for Mr O'Brien.

Mr Cush said this was a "unique and important" case based on "stark" facts concerning Dail statements made by Social Democrats TD Catherine Murphy and Sinn Fein TD Pearse Doherty about his client's banking affairs.

Evidence as to US law was relevant to the issues raised, he argued.

It would be "appropriate and helpful" to look at authorities from other jurisdictions - the issue for examination was the interplay between the various pillars in a democracy.

Sara Moorhead SC, for the Dail Committee on Procedure and Privileges (CPP), and Maurice Collins SC, for the State, argued there was no provision under which the Irish courts could hear such evidence.

Professor Tribe's evidence has no relevance to Irish constitutional law, Mr Collins said. If US law was deemed to be relevant, then so too could precedent from several other countries. Mr O'Brien's case could turn into "a constitutional convention" if such evidence were admissible, he argued.

Mr Collins added that it seemed every case by Mr O'Brien was described as "unique and important".

The President of the High Court, Mr Justice Peter Kelly, said he would give his decision as to whether the evidence was admissible on a later date.

The judge previously refused an application by Mr Cush to have the action, fixed for November 29, heard by a three-judge high court.

Mr O'Brien has claimed utterances by Deputy Murphy and Deputy Doherty in the Dail, in May and June 2015 respectively, breached his rights.

The CPP, in response to complaints by Mr O'Brien, held neither Deputy had breached the standing orders governing debate in the Dail.
A Dublin pensioner who stole over 100,000 by using her sister's social welfare card has avoided jail. Stock Image

A Dublin pensioner who stole over 100,000 by using her sister's social welfare card to fraudulently claim benefits has avoided jail on condition she carries out 240 hours community service.

Marie McMahon (68), a former women's rights campaigner, told gardai that when her sister Katherine emigrated to America in 1992, her friend initially used the woman's social welfare card to pick up her benefits. When this woman went into hospital McMahon agreed to continue collecting the payments and they split the money between them.

This woman died in 2012 and McMahon continued to collect her sister's benefits until she was detected through facial recognition technology in July 2014.

She told officers that she believed if she stopped collecting the money, social welfare would have to start an investigation and she would be caught, so she decided to continue with the fraud.

McMahon of Aideen Avenue, Terenure, Dublin pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to 13 charges of stealing various amounts of social welfare payments from James's Street Post Office on dates between September 1, 2002 and June 11, 2014. She has one previous conviction for possession of drugs from 1979.

At the original sentence hearing in March, Lorcan Staines BL, defending, handed in a large volume of testimonials and said his client had been involved in a protest movement in relation to woman's rights for many years.

The case was adjourned to June when Mr Staines told the court that friends of McMahon had become aware of the case due to the media attention and had gathered 6,000 towards repayment of the money stolen. She was also paying 15 per week from her benefits.

Today Judge Melanie Greally noted that many people coming before the courts were now being detected through facial imaging systems.

Persons who think that they will get away with social welfare fraud need to wake up, she warned.

She said McMahon's fall from grace and loss of reputation had been considerable. She said she accepted McMahon did not use the money for her own needs and noted very impressive testimonials had been handed up on her behalf.

Judge Greally imposed a five year sentence which she suspended in full on condition McMahon carry out 240 hours community service and continue to pay 15 per week to the Department of Social Protection.

At the original sentence hearing Garda Richard Pender accepted that McMahon had one son, who she said was trouble as a child and that she was forced to pay out drug debts on his behalf on more than 20 occasions.

Mr Staines said McMahon's case had rightfully been widely reported in the media and asked the court to take into account the significant impact this has had on her.

He submitted that McMahon was a woman who posed no risk to society and had provided very significant assistance to society in her earlier life. He said she had expressed remorse and was at low risk of re-offending. He said her health difficulties did not disqualify her from community service.
A sister of man who died from shock while their home was being burgled by a gang pleaded with the intruders to help, but nobody came to their aid, a court heard.

Details of the heartbreaking evidence was heard at the sentencing hearing of cousins David and Michael Casey, at Limerick circuit court.

Both men pleaded guilty to breaking into John O'Donoghue's home on August 27, 2015.

The 62-year old bachelor collapsed and died of a heart attack as he watched the two defendants ransacking his cottage in Doon, Co Limerick.

David Casey was on bail for two robberies at the time, the court heard.

Shell-shocked at her brother's sudden death, Christina O'Donoghue told gardai: "I called on them to help but no one came to help. By then, I didn't care they were in the house...I just wanted somebody to help my John."

The defendants were part of a three-man gang that went around the country targeting isolated rural communities. Their "modus operandi was to hit cottages and older houses which had no visible signs of security systems", John O'Sullivan, prosecuting, told the court.

The two cousins pleaded guilty to a spate of burglaries in the South East Limerick and Tipperary border regions on the day. A third man, not before the court, who drove the gang's getaway car is still at large, the court was told.

Mr O'Donoghue and his sister Christina, had returned home around 2pm from a shopping errand in Tipperary Town when they interrupted the gang.

Sergeant Mike Reidy told the court: "They became suspicious someone was in the house. John approached a side door and saw it had been broken. His sister told him to be careful. At this stage the drive of the getaway car was sounding the horn and raving up and down outside trying to alert the other two men."

"John O'Donoghue got a shovel out of his shed as he was concerned for his safety. He stood near the house. His sister knew by him that he wasn't feeling great. He collapsed down in the yard."

"His sister tried her best to resuscitate him."

The driver of the getaway vehicle sped off while the two cousins who had been "ransacking the house" fled through fields at the rear of the cottage.

A number of local people alerted gardai after spotting the pair running along the road.

Local gardai Bill Collins and Elaine O'Donovan, who had arrived on scene and tried in vain to resuscitate Mr O'Donoghue, later apprehended the defendant's about 2km away on the side of the road.

A post mortem was carried out by State Pathologist, Professor Marie Cassidy, which revealed Mr O'Donoghue had "an enlarged heart and significant coronary disease". However, the autopsy concluded Mr O'Donoghue's death "cannot be separated from the circumstances that occurred". "The stress of the situation would have caused an increase in his heart rate and he would have been at greater risk," Prof Cassidy noted.

In a victim impact statement written on behalf of the O'Donoghue family, Angela Denning, a niece of the deceased, said: "Words cannot describe the impact of this break-in on our family. We lost a kind, clever, talented and very witty man. We miss him terribly. A very happy home is now missing something that, unlike stolen possessions, can never be replaced."

Judge Tom O'Donnell heard the two defendants had not intended anyone to be harmed and that they were deeply remorseful when told of Mr O'Donoghue's death.

Adjourning sentencing to December 15th, the judge expressed his sympathies to the O'Donoghue family: "I don't wish to unnecessarily prolong matters but I have a duty to consider everything I have heard."
A wheelchair-bound man has been given a five-year suspended sentence after starting a fire at his home with the intention of taking his own life.

Gerard Field (28) of Glin Road, Coolock, Dublin, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to three counts of arson at his own home and houses either side on April 11, 2015. His parents and sister were in the house at the time.

Noel Devitt, SC, prosecuting, told the court Field was born with spina bifida and was diagnosed with a hydrocephalic condition and mild cerebral palsy as a baby. He said Field used a wheelchair and had suffered from depression.

He said Field had been feeling down in the weeks prior to the offence and had contacted Beaumont Hospital looking for psychiatric help the day before it took place.

Field set fire to a bag of clothes in the back room of the downstairs of the house with the intention of taking his own life. He said petrol or other flammable materials were not used.

Garda Neil Plunkett said Field was most seriously injured in the arson attack.

He said Field lost consciousness and had to be dragged out by members of Dublin Fire Brigade. His parents were also brought to Beaumont Hospital, while his sister suffered minor injuries.

Gda Plunkett said the accused admitted to starting the fire when gardai went to Beaumont Hospital to take a witness statement.

Field later came to the garda station with a solicitor and made the same admissions. Gda Plunkett said Field accepted he endangered the lives of others and apologised to the emergency services for making a stupid mistake during the interview.

Gda Plunkett also said Field said he did not know if there was anyone in the house when he started the fire. He has no previous convictions.

He said that the three houses were damaged by smoke from the fire and water by the fire brigades efforts. He said that Dublin City Council paid almost 96,000 in repair costs.

Gda Plunkett said he viewed this as a tragic case and that it was a case of criminal damage but with no motivation other than to kill himself.

Blaise OCarroll SC, defending, told the court Field had had difficulty finding a home since the arson attack as Dublin City Council was not willing to house him. He required specific care because of the nature of his disabilities and spent time in St Marys Hospital in the Phoenix Park in Dublin after he was discharged from Beaumont Hospital.

He was now living in a residential centre for homeless adults with disabilities in Dublin City Centre and had a carer from the Salvation Army. The court heard Fields father had since died from a heart attack.

Judge Martin Nolan said it was not appropriate to impose a custodial sentence given the background of the case and Fields intention to hurt nobody but himself. Field was given a five-year suspended sentence and must engage with the probation services for two years.

Handing down the sentence, Judge Nolan told the man: This is a lenient sentence given your background and conditions. You suffered a lot of pain yourself, didnt you? Causing a fire is a very serious matter. You could have inflicted that pain on other people.
Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe did not agree with the terms offered to Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) chief Brian Kavanagh before his reappointment last month, new records show.

Internal correspondence at the Department of Public Expenditure, seen by the Irish Independent, shows Mr Donohoe voiced concerns about the unprecedented reappointment in June. The minister then performed a U-turn three weeks later and sanctioned Mr Kavanagh's appointment after seeking the views of Agriculture Minister Michael Creed.

It came after concerns were raised about Mr Kavanagh's pay and the length of time he had served as CEO. His 190,773 annual salary is more than 26,000 above the specified range for his position. He has served as CEO since 2001, despite government guidelines stating CEOs of commercial state bodies can only serve a single term of seven years.

Mr Donohoe was made aware of issues around Mr Kavanagh's contract when he got a letter from senior department officials, asking if eh wanted to sanction the reappointment.

"I do not agree with this," said Mr Donohoe in an internal email on June 1.

"I note the opinion of the SG (secretary general) of the Department of Agriculture is noted. What is the opinion of the Minister for Agriculture?"

Mr Donohoe sanctioned the reappointment despite correspondence between department officials expressing concern about the CEO's contract.

Read more: 'Like North Korea' - Brian Kavanagh gets 'unprecedented' 19 years in 191k job because contract details weren't finalised

They said a contract should be offered if concerns are addressed but Mr Kavanagh (below left) is still earning the same salary and will have served as CEO for 20 years by the time he steps down in 2021.

The Irish Independent asked the Department of Public Expenditure why Mr Donohoe initially disagreed with the reappointment.

A spokesman did not directly address this question or another on what changed Mr Donohoe's mind.

He said Mr Donohoe sent the initial submission regarding Mr Kavanagh's reappointment back to officials "for rework".

This included seeking the opinion of the Agriculture Minister on the proposal.

"Following this, the submission was re-submitted for further consideration by the minister [Mr Donohoe], who subsequently approved the proposal," added the spokesman.

It came as Independent TD Clare Daly called on Agriculture Minister Mr Creed to carry out an independent inquiry into corporate governance at HRI.

HRI said no-one was available for comment last night.
Young teachers Sadhbh McCann, Aoibhheann OHare and Rachel Ashfield, all from Dundalk, took part in the TUI and INTO rally about pay inequality outside the Dail last night. Photo: Tony Gavin

Some second-level schools are considering partial openings if secondary teachers go ahead with withdrawal from supervision and substitution duties on November 7.

In the face of looming widespread closures, schools have been looking at options, such as opening for half days or bringing in exam classes only.

Expand Close Aoife Ruddy, from Tallaght, with her daughter Emma (16 weeks) during the TUI/INTO rally. Photo: Gareth Chaney / Facebook

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Yesterday, a one-day strike by the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) closed 507 schools.

In the first leg of the union's planned industrial action over pay equality, ASTI pickets shut about 250,000 teenage students out of school for the day.

There are no signs of any move towards resolution, but the Education Department said it will re-establish contact with the ASTI today to arrange a series of meetings to discuss issues of concern next week.

The ASTI is seeking a commitment and timetable from Government on an end to austerity-era, unequal pay scales in teaching. Education Minister Richard Bruton, however, held the Government line yesterday, and refused to give explicit support for that.

Inequality

The Government's position is that any further progress on pay restoration has to be done in the context of discussions with all public service unions.

It has established a Public Pay commission to examine pay levels in the public service.

ASTI general secretary Kieran Christie said there were three pay scales in teaching, which was unacceptable, and asked "is it Government policy to embed this level of inequality?"

The focus in the ASTI dispute now switches to the threat to schools on the day they are supposed to be reopening after the mid-term break. If the row is not sorted out next week, about two-thirds of the country's 735 second-level schools are at serious risk of remaining shut for an indefinite period.

ASTI members in schools that close will be removed from the payroll.

Schools that were forced to shut yesterday are also the ones most likely to be affected by threatened closures after mid-term. The ASTI threat of withdrawal from supervision and substitution from November 7 raises issues about opening schools on health and safety grounds, because of lack cover, such as at break time or to replace an absent teacher.

It is up to an individual school to decide whether it can open, taking into account its duty of care to its pupils. Partial school opening would reduce the amount of cover needed.

School managers have been looking at all possibilities in the interests of keeping schools open and avoiding disruption to students after mid-term.

Read more: 'Im a professional educator, I am not a babysitter' - ASTI president

Read more: Strike is teaching our children one thing: That it's OK to hurt those relying on you if it means better wages

Partial openings would not be feasible for schools where the ASTI is the sole union representing teachers.

That would rule it out as an option for more than half of the country's second-level schools, the 380 in the voluntary secondary sector, which are under the control of the religious orders.

However, it could be an option in dual-union schools with a significant number of teachers who are not in the ASTI.

The Education Department and school management bodies have explored the possibility of bringing in external supervisors to replace ASTI members, with limited success.

The Joint Managerial Body (JMB), which represents the 380 schools in the voluntary secondary sector, believes that only a handful of its schools may open because they don't have the time to recruit the number of supervisors they would need.

There are about another 210 schools in the education and training boards (ETB) sector, where the Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI) is the sole representative of teachers, which should be unaffected by the ASTI action.

However, there are about 60 community colleges in the ETB sector and 97 community and comprehensive schools, which are dual union and less reliant on ASTI members for cover.

Any dual-union school considering its options will have to look at the balance between ASTI and TUI members, and the attitude of TUI members.

The Education Department said last night that it did not believe that partial school openings were likely to arise in the short term.

INTO and TUI stage protest after school

As ASTI members took strike action over pay equality for new entrants, the two other teachers' unions - the INTO and the TUI - staged a protest outside the Dail with the same aim.

Both the TUI and INTO have accepted the Lansdowne Road Agreement (LRA), as a consequence of which they secured a deal offering part-restoration of cuts to new teachers. They said their campaign will continue until full pay parity has been achieved.

INTO general secretary Sheila Nunan told the rally that Government must "signal an end to its campaign of austerity".

TUI president Joanne Irwin said "continuation of the discrimination against teachers appointed since 2011 is wrong and unconscionable".
A lawyer for former Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI) chief Pat Hickey has revealed that he needs to undergo a "delicate heart procedure".

The 71-year-old's solicitor Simone Kamenetz has told Independent.ie that he is "sick". She added that if Mr Hickey is not allowed to return to Ireland then he will not live long enough to see the end of the case.

Mr Hickey, who stood down as President of the OCI following his arrest on August 17 during the Rio Olympics, has been forced to remain in Brazil where he is facing ticket touting charges.

He and THG director Kevin Mallon are facing charges of ticket-touting, illicit marketing and money-laundering in Brazil. Both deny all allegations made against them in relation to ticketing at the event.

Expand Close Pat Hickey's lawyer Simone Kamenetz, Steve Humphreys pic / Facebook

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Earlier this month Mr Hickey's legal team applied to the courts to have his passport returned.

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Now Ms Kamenetz has revealed that there are humanitarian reasons for this request: "I can tell you that Mr Hickey is sick.

"He suffers from atrial fibrillation, and the cardiologist who saw him already twice, Dr Claudio Domenico, a well known and reputable physician, established that Mr Hickey's situation is preoccupying.

She explained: "Mr Hickey must undergo a delicate heart procedure and he should be allowed to do it with his doctors that have been following his health conditions already for years, with his family alongside with him.

"This is a humanitarian issue. Mr Hickey will not hide from the Brazilian justice, mostly because it is his desire to be totally cleared of all accusations. But if he is obliged to stay here for years, he will not be alive to see the end of this case."

Ms Kamenetz explained that the procedure is to revert the atrial fibrillation. "We applied for the authorisation for him to face the procedure from Ireland."

On Thursday night the board of the OCI met to discuss a report carried out into its governance. The Deloitte review was ordered in September and a draft report was given to the board this week.

In a statement following the meeting the OCI said: "The draft Deloitte report into governance arrangements under the OCIs current constitution, which was circulated to committee members for the first time this evening, will over the coming days be reviewed by committee members for factual accuracies. Deloitte will then finalise its report and the report will be published soon after. "

A separate independent Grant Thornton report into ticketing arrangements in Rio is ongoing and the spokesperson said that once complete it will be sealed and passed directly to Judge Carroll Moran to consider as part of his non statutory inquiry. "At no point has the OCI Executive Committee had sight of the report. It is expected that the completed report will be with Judge Moran by 15 November."

Earlier this week FAI chief John Delaney resigned from his position on the board of the OCI.

Read More

In a statement, he again insisted that he had no role or involvement in any ticketing arrangements for Rio. Sources said Mr Delaney will co-operate with any of the ongoing inquiries but will not attend any more board meetings.

Former OCI Chef de Mission Kevin Kilty, who was also interviewed by police as part of the same probe, also resigned from the OCI board this week.
Gardai have issued a warning over dangerous fireworks this Halloween saying you can lose more than your fingers.

Fireworks are not only dangerous, there are severe criminal penalties that apply, gardai said.

As Halloween is fast approaching, gardai are reminded people that fireworks can be very dangerous if misused.

An import licence is required for all fireworks, and it is an offence to possess unlicensed fireworks (other than low hazard fireworks, such as party poppers, sparklers), with intent to sell or supply and a fine of up to 10,000 can apply.

We had crews at Howth Summit for a number of hours at a gorse fire last night. We found fireworks & the remains of a BBQ. #DubSafeHalloween pic.twitter.com/btEddDQ6ru  Dublin Fire Brigade (@DubFireBrigade) October 28, 2016

It is an offence to throw or direct any ignited firework at a person or property and a fine of up to 10,000 can apply.

The warning comes after a man was injured after a "large firework rocket" was dropped through the doorway of fast food outlet on Alliance Avenue in north Belfast.

Read More

The man was taken to hospital for treatment to his injuries.

Detectives are appealing for information following an incident on Friday night at around 9.15pm.
ON the one year anniversary of the death of his twin brother, Patrick Mungovan is urging people not to binge drink.

Stephen Mungovan was only twenty years of age when he died in October 2015.

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His body was found by navy divers in the waters off Spanish Point, three days after he fell from a cliff in Co Clare.

Since his tragic death, Stephens family has been trying to warn people of the dangers posed by drinking excessively.

Patrick recently turned 21, and laments how he didn't get to celebrate it with his best friend and twin.

He wouldnt have usually drank that much. He had been drinking all day that Sunday with friends. He had two naggins later that night, and half an hour later, he was dead, Patrick told Independent.ie.

It is always the same, young people drinking too much. I have often done it myself. But there is no need to be so drunk that you dont know where you are going. People dont realise how dangerous it is until its too late.

Patrick says what happened to his brother has had a big impact on how he and his friends view alcohol.

Everything changed when Stephen died. Now I realise there is no need to drink jaeger bombs and shots, whats the point? We should be able to have a few drinks with friends and get home safe.

We were twins, we would always go out together and we always planned our way home, but that night he just had too much.

Stephens anniversary mass will take place in their hometown of Quilty in Clare tomorrow night.

His death was one which was mourned by everyone in the community, and Patrick says they have recently started a youth club in a nearby village to give young people a different option.

It is a place for young people to go on a Saturday night and hang out with friends where they dont have to drink. It was started a couple months ago; I think they have pool tables and stuff.

Patrick is one of six children. Stephen was the second brother he lost, after his older brother Michael was killed by a train while working on railway tracks in London in 2000.

An inquest jury in London in May 2002 returned a verdict that Mr Mungovan was unlawfully killed due to "systematic and avoidable" failures by the companies operating the train.

Losing one is hard enough, but two, is pretty tough. Its hard for my parents too. They would be texting me to make sure Im okay, asking who I am going out with and making sure I have a lift home.

In a Facebook post on Tuesday night, Patrick explained just what his brother meant to him, and wanted to highlight how dangerous alcohol can be:

Hard to believe it was one year ago tonight, since my brother Stephen left this earth so suddenly and so unexpectedly. Words can't describe how much we all miss you each day.

He was my twin brother, we grew up with mostly the same group of friends, and we knew everything about each other and told each other everything.

I know that going back is not possible, however, I do go forward with him in my heart and think about him every day. He is in every part of our house and soul. There isnt a memory that we have that doesnt include him in it.
North Dublin stood still as tragic hit-and-run victim, Lee Henry was given one final send off in front of what must have been the whole of Darndale.

Lee (13) was killed last week when he was struck by a car near Belcamp House.

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The teenager was given a guard of honour from classmates and friends all the way from his on Primrose Grove to Our Lady of the Immaculate Church - dozens of children wearing printed t-shirts of Lee with the words, 'Lee - Our Angel'.

Tributes for the talented young teen came from his principal, his brother and even his Liverpool hero, Steven Gerrard.

It's understood the former Liverpool captained signed a jersey this week for Lee.

Avid GAA fan Lee even had the Boys in Blue by his side.

A signed Dublin jersey from all the players was placed on his white coffin, while the Sam Maguire Cup was carried alongside him en route to the church.

In a heart warming tribute, his brother Daniel said one of the things he'll miss the most is Lee's knack for getting gossip on everybody - giving him a nickname after a Coronation Street character.

"Lee - aka Norris. If any of us wanted to know anyone's business, we would ask Lee," he said.

"He knew everyone's business. It was always gas until he was telling your business to someone else.

"He was everyone's friend, he had a heart full of love," he added.

As the mass came to a close, fittingly Lee was taken away to a rendition of You'll Never Walk Alone.

But not before Daniel got the whole church to stand and applaud his little brother.

"Night little bro, until we meet again."
Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman has discussed with Minister of Foreign Affairs of France Jean-Marc Ayrault the state of implementation of the Minsk Agreements, the situation in the east of the country and the preservation of the sanctions against the Russian Federation.

Groysman, who is on a visit to France, informed Ayrault about the situation in Donbas and in the occupied Crimea, the press service of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine reported.

Ukrainian Prime Minister said there is no alternative to the Minsk agreements, and Ukraine unswervingly adheres to its commitments.

"In this context, the prime minister said that the sanctions against the Russian Federation should be maintained until it is fully complied with its obligations under the Minsk agreements," the Cabinets statement says.

The sides also discussed the issue of the deployment of the OSCE armed police mission and mine lifting in Donbas territories.

Groysman thanked France for its assistance to Ukraine in countering Russian aggression.

"Separately, the head of government thanked for the initiative to create a "roadmap" for the implementation of the Minsk agreements and its proposals, as "Normandy Quartet" agreed in Berlin," the Cabinet said.

The interlocutors separately touched upon the issues of liberalization of the visa regime. "In this context, Groysman said that Ukraine has fulfilled all the requirements for the introduction of visa-free regime," the report says.

In addition, the premier met with the President of the French Senate Gerard Larcher, who was informed about the ongoing Ukrainian government reforms, in particular, the continuation of the decentralization of power, anti-corruption fight, civil service reform, deregulation, including in the energy sector and drug market.

In this context Groysman thanked the president of the French senate for his personal initiative and offered to assist Ukraine in the field of decentralization.

The prime minister also briefed on the situation in Donbas, and emphasized again the inadmissibility of lifting the sanctions on the Russian Federation before the fulfillment of its commitments in the framework of the Minsk Agreements obligations.

"Russia will continue to commit aggression, and there are only three issues: where, which country and which way it will use," Groysman said.

Larcher agreed with the head of the Ukrainian government on the need for implementation of the Minsk agreements and expressed his readiness to support Ukraine in this way, the Cabinets press service said.

In turn, Deputy Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Oksana Syroyid, who also took part at the meeting, said that Russia undermines the situation on the European continent too.

"Russia does not only undermine Ukraine, it also derails Europe," the MP said.

Syroyid said it is necessary to use the Minsk Agreements as a platform for further discussions.
An artist's impression of the new National Children's Hospital

The contractors who build the new national children's hospital on the campus of St James's Hospital are to be chosen in January, with a view to having it constructed at the end of 2020, the Oireachtas Health Committee has been told.

John Pollock of the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board said the two satellite urgent care centres, to be located at Connolly and Tallaght hospitals, should be ready by 2018.

The final cost of the hospital - expected to be much higher than the estimated 650m - would not be known until all of the construction bids due this week were analysed, he said.

"A masterplan for the development at St James's shows the Coombe maternity hospital can also be accommodated on the 50-acre site," he said.

However, the Connolly4kids group, made up of retired doctors and parents, warned the St James's location was a grave mistake and may cost lives.

They want it built at Connolly Hospital.

Parent Aisling McNiffe, whose son Jack attends Crumlin Hospital, spoke movingly of her fears of being caught up in traffic jams around St James's.

However, Mr Pollock said there was no ideal location, but St James's was the best site.

Dr Sharon Sheehan, master of the Coombe, said she supported the choice of St James's.
Poor levels of hygiene in a hospital caring for some of the countrys sickest children were of immediate high risk, a damning report revealed today.

Temple Street Childrens Hospital in Dublin had stained cot frames, bedside storage units and recliner chairs in St Patricks Ward after they had been cleaned.

Multiple surfaces within the wards inspected were dusty and these included bed undercarriages, chairs, examination couches, floors, over-bed lights, wall surfaces, radiators, ventilation grilles, staff workstations, a games table and horizontal ledges, the inspectors from the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) found.

They carried out their first unannounced inspection of St Patricks ward and St Brigids ward in the hospital, built in 1872, in July but had to re-visit in September to check if improvements were made.

They said other factors which contributed to poor environmental hygiene in the wards inspected included an outdated hospital infrastructure, poor maintenance and very limited space in patient care and ancillary areas.

There was a lack of storage space while the design and positioning of beds and cots and bedside storage units did not allow for effective cleaning.

The standard of patient equipment hygiene in St Patricks Ward was not in line with national best practice guidelines.

There was red staining on an integrated sharps container tray. Dust and/or stains were seen on blood pressure cuffs, bedside suction catheter holders and holders for thermometers.

It was also found on auroscope disposable covers, an observation monitoring trolley, humidifiers, a portable suction machine, a drip stand, syringe drivers and a stainless steel trolley.

The inspectors were told the ward did not consistently have the required number of staff necessary for such cleaning.

When the inspectors returned in September there were significant improvements made in relation to environmental hygiene in both St Patricks Ward and St Bridgets Ward.

Both ward environments were found to be clean. It was evident that enhanced cleaning had been performed in both areas.

Cleaning processes had been systematically revised and the hospital was trying to address findings identified within the constraints of the hospital infrastructure.

It was apparent that the hospital management team and staff had worked together to address the findings of the previous inspection, said the inspectors.

They said that Hiqa acknowledges that Temple Street hospital staff work in a compromised physical environment dealing with a high level of activity and complex cases. Notwithstanding infrastructural deficiencies, hospital environments should be kept clean and proactively maintained to facilitate effective cleaning.

Meanwhile, an unannounced inspection was carried out in The Rotunda maternity hospital on August 9.

The Hiqa inspectors found overall, patient equipment and the environment in the delivery suite were found to be generally clean with a few exceptions, and there was evidence of good local ownership and teamwork in relation to hygiene.

However, the infrastructure and design of the operating theatre in the delivery suite does not meet international best practice guidelines for operating theatre infrastructure and presents challenges for effective cleaning.

The hospital had improved the uptake of hand hygiene training among staff and has also implemented and embedded peripheral vascular care bundles across inpatient clinical areas in line with best practice guidelines.

Surveillance was performed in the hospital to monitor the incidence of wound infection following caesarean section.

This represents good practice and demonstrates a commitment to monitoring the quality of patient care, said the inspectors.
The incident occurred at approximately 11am on Friday morning at Smithfield in the city centre (Photo: Mark Condren)

The incident occurred at approximately 11am on Friday morning at Smithfield in the city centre (Photo: Mark Condren)

The incident occurred at approximately 11am on Friday morning at Smithfield in the city centre (Photo: Mark Condren)

The incident occurred at approximately 11am on Friday morning at Smithfield in the city centre (Photo: Mark Condren)

The incident occurred at approximately 11am on Friday morning at Smithfield in the city centre (Photo: Mark Condren)

The incident occurred at approximately 11am on Friday morning at Smithfield in the city centre (Photo: Mark Condren)

The incident occurred at approximately 11am on Friday morning at Smithfield in the city centre (Photo: Mark Condren)

Service has resumed on the LUAS Red line following an horrific crash with an open-top tour bus that sent at least eight people to hospital this morning.

The crash between the outbound tram and a Dublin Cityscape "hop-on hop-off " bus around 11am today in Smithfield brought service on the line to a halt after seven ambulances were dispatched to the scene to take the injured to hospital.

Service resumed at 12:40pm but delays continued for some time.

The collision occurred at the Smithfield stop near the Four Courts and Lincoln Lane, which is controlled by a traffic light.

LUAS: The Red Line has fully reopened after an incident at Smithfield. Delays in both directions for approx 1 hour. https://t.co/qvBPcgxUj8  AA Roadwatch (@aaroadwatch) October 28, 2016

The Luas involved was travelling in the direction of Tallaght.

It is understood that at least eight people were injured in the incident, four of whom were sent to hospital and four of whom have been described as "walking wounded".

Expand Close Passengers shown getting off the Luas after the incident (Photo: John Donnelly) / Facebook

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One of the injured who was rushed to hospital was a three-month-old baby girl.

None of the injuries are believed to be life-threatening.

Expand Close The incident occurred at approximately 11am on Friday morning at Smithfield in the city centre (Photo: Mark Condren) / Facebook

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The driver of the bus and the driver of the Luas were among those sent to hospital for observation as a precaution.

It is understood the bus collided with the driver's cabin of the Luas.

Expand Close The incident occurred at approximately 11am on Friday morning at Smithfield in the city centre (Photo: Mark Condren) / Facebook

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The Luas continued to move in the immediate moments after the collision, causing extensive damage to the side of the tram.

Three separate investigations are underway by gardai, the Commission for Railway Regulation and Transdev,which operates the LUAS.

Expand Close The incident occurred at approximately 11am on Friday morning at Smithfield in the city centre (Photo: Mark Condren) / Facebook

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Transdev chief Gerry Madden, who was at the scene, said: "The number one priority is making sure that we understand what happened and that the people who've been injured are okay."

"I saw the driver of the bus and he was obviously shaken. He's been taken off to local hospital. I don't know the mix (of the injured) but I think there was four or five people on the tram who have since gone off to hospital," he said.

Work crews were mopping up shattered glass that littered the road and footpaths while the bus remained at the scene.

The impact of the crash was evident from the state of the bus in which the driver's side of the windscreen was shattered and the section of windscreen near the front door sheared off. The front of the driver's cabin was completely mangled as was the front bumper of the bus.

Ramanathan Murugesu, who owns the Doughnut and Coffee kiosk at the LUAS stop said he heard a loud bang and the sound of shattering glass.

"There was a big loud bang and then you could see all the shattered glass. A few of the passengers had dropped to the floor of the tram. The other thing I noticed was the druggies trying to get into the situation and rob the injured," he said.

"This was a nightmare too," he said.

We've fire units & adv paramedics attending a #Luas vs tour bus RTC in #Smithfield. NAS also on scene. Pics  @gerrycurran @JohnXDonnelly pic.twitter.com/PKaYQcIgcu  Dublin Fire Brigade (@DubFireBrigade) October 28, 2016

Seen from Workday building: sightseeing bus crashed into one of Dublin's light rail trains #luas pic.twitter.com/ARURSJRBrw  Lindsey George (@lindsey_george) October 28, 2016

#luas wide view of emergency services sterling response to bus and Luas interaction. They deserve every cent of wages pic.twitter.com/v8B4hRe3p4  Gerry Curran (@gerrycurran) October 28, 2016

Fortunately no one looked seriously injured and there only appeared to be one woman sitting in the top of the open-air bus who didn't appear to be hurt, he said.

"I saw the lady (in top of bus) and the (bus) driver walking out fine although the driver looked a bit panicked all right," he said.

Eye-witness Una Kavanagh told Independent.ie: "I'm still a bit of a shock. I was just sitting when I heard a massive bang and crunching of glass, and then everyone just started helping people get off.

"The bus seemed to hit the Luas while it was still moving and then because it was moving all the side of the carriage, all the glass on the side shattered too.

"There were a lot of people in shock and a few people were being looked after at the very front where the driver is. Some couldn't stand up. There was glass everywhere.

"It was just very out the blue. I'm just hoping that people are ok because it looked like a lot of people were in shock."

Five Dublin Fire Brigade units attended the scene, as well as advanced paramedics and the National Ambulance Service.

The incident brings to 24 the number of collisions involving the LUAS so far this year.

There have been 20 collisions with vehicles, including today's accident, as well as two collisions with pedestrians and two with cyclists.

Dublin Bus are accepting Luas tickets for the duration of this line closure.
A MAN is in hospital after receiving multiple stab wounds in an attack in the capital last night.

The altercation took place on Church Street in Dublin 7, shortly after 11.30pm.

The man, in his 30s, is understood to have received a number of stab wounds.

He was rushed to the Mater hospital where he is said to be currently in a stable condition.

No arrests have been made as of yet.

Gardai are appealing for witnesses to the incident.
Motorists on the M50 are warned to expect delays due to collision

Motorists have been warned to expect delays throughout Dublin city centre after a number of collisions.

AA Roadwatch said a stop/go system is in place on Collinstown Lane (also known as the Old Airport Rd) following an earlier crash.

Meanwhile the M50 southbound is slow from the J4 Ballymun road to the J6 Blanchardstown road also due to a crash.

The earlier incident on the slip road from the N4 Lucan Rd inbound onto the M50 southbound has been cleared but motorists are warned to expect delays.

DUBLIN Slip road has reopened from M50 southbound onto Lucan Rd inbound following earlier crash which has cleared https://t.co/r19oH1u8F2  AA Roadwatch (@aaroadwatch) October 28, 2016

M50 Northbound traffic is moving well.

In the city centre inbound traffic on Amiens Street is also busy at Connolly Station.

Parkgate Street is heavy onto the North Quays which are slow from Wolfe Tone Quay through to Ellis Quay where the traffic lights are working again at James Joyce Bridge following an earlier crash.

Seville Place is also very busy onto Guild Street where delays continue through to Samuel Beckett Bridge.

AA Roadwatch said eastbound along the Grand Canal is slow intermittently from Clogher Rd to Leeson St Bridge.

Traffic is slow on Kimmage Road approaching the Sundrive Rd junction and further along from the Park through Harold's Cross Rd and up to Leonards Corner on Clanbrassil Street.

There is some good news for motorists as Swords Road is moving well now from Whitehall Church to Drumcondra but Dorset Street is busy from Belvedere Road jct to North Frederick Street juction.
In life he was the king of cardboard tubes  now hes going to be buried in one.

Today, Frederick (Fred) Norman Lee will become, it is believed, the first person ever to be buried in a cardboard cylinder coffin.

Mr Lee  a father-of-12, grandfather-of-33 and great-grandfather-of-17, passed away at the age of 97 during the week.

A member of the Royal Navy during World War II, Mr Lee was originally from Dublin city centre and became a self-made multi-millionaire.

Expand Close Frederick (Fred) Norman Lee pictured with his wife Pat on their Golden Jubilee / Facebook

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After the war he returned to Ireland where he set up a laundry business in Rathgar, washing nappies and sheets from childrens hospitals.

From there he was approached by pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson to package talcum powder for childrens hospitals in cardboard canisters and his business evolved to manufacturing general cardboard containers.

In the 1950s, he established the highly successful Industrial Packaging Limited, in Bray, Co Wicklow, which is now run by some of his sons.

It was his wish to be buried in a cardboard tube and his family have made the necessary arrangements to grant that wish.

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While there are eco companies which sell cardboard coffins, being buried in a cardboard tube is a different matter.

Dad always said why dont we use cardboard tubes to bury people?

You can use a boring drill to make the hole in the ground and bury people standing up, which is usual in some religions, his fifth son, Ken Lee, told the Herald.

You can bury them facing Rome, or Mecca or whatever way the want, he said. Its very practical.

The tube Mr Lee will be buried in has a diameter of 650mm and would usually be used for casting concrete columns.

His son explained that the cardboard can be more durable than wood.

It is 12 sheets, each covered in a layer of water-proof glue, he said. He was the king of the cardboard tubes and now hes going to be buried in one, he added.

Fred will go to meet his maker in one of his own tubes and may he rest in peace.

Mr Lees coffin tube has been engraved with how he was the loving husband of Patricia and proud father of his children.

While Mr Lee spoke about being buried vertically, he will be buried horizontally because, as he is being placed into the same grave as his late wife, it would have been logistically difficult to do it that way.

Having spoken to the undertaker, the family were told that there were no problems with the plan.

The other option Mr Lee had suggested for his burial was at sea.

After the war he remained a keen seaman and was a member of a number of yacht clubs.

But his family believed the cardboard tube would be a more fitting send off. He had spoken about his new idea for coffins over the last 35 years.

His family are so proud of the what he achieved in life.

Dad died a multi-millionaire, but when he came back from the Royal Navy, he had nothing, his son said.

Mr Lee lived the final years of his life in The Park, Cabinteely, in south Dublin.

His remains will be driven past his factory at 12.30pm today, before a funeral service in St Patricks Church, Greystones, Co Wicklow.
Fianna Fail stalwart Mary ORourke and Patricia Ryan (wife of late Brian Lenihan Jnr) with her daughter Claire at the removal of Ann Lenihan in Castleknock. Photo: Doug OConnor

Former senior government politicians and local people attended the removal yesterday of Ann Lenihan - wife of the late former Tanaiste Brian Lenihan Snr.

At the ceremony in Castleknock, Dublin, were former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, current Fianna Fail TDs Jack Chambers, Billy Kelleher and Robert Troy, and former ministers Rory O'Hanlon and Pat Carey. Others included former Green Party leader John Gormley, former superintendent at Leinster House Eamon O'Donoghue, and author Brian Murphy.

Earlier, Mrs Lenihan lay in repose at the Mater Private Hospital and a large attendance of mourners paid their respects, including friends and neighbours.

After mass in Our Lady Mother of the Church at noon today, Mrs Lenihan will be laid to rest in her native Athlone, Co Westmeath, alongside her late husband, Brian, and their son Mark, who died aged six.

Her son Brian Lenihan Jnr served as finance minister before his death in 2011.
Tina Barcoe admits she is sceptical about paranormal activity, but says sometimes there is just no other explanation.

Eight years ago, Shankill native Tina Barcoe decided to find out if its possible there is life after death.

Wondering how to go about it, she was recommended to enter the field of paranormal investigating.

Now, the mother-of-four is one of Irelands most renowned ghostbusters.

Expand Close Shankill native Tina Barcoe / Facebook

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A hairdresser in Wicklow town by day, investigator by night, all while trying to raise four kids, the 41-year-old probably deserves some sort of accolade, but she seems to enjoy it.

I just find it fascinating. Ive been to some of the same locations dozens of times but I still get excited each time, she says.

I am actually really sceptical. People dont understand how Im a sceptic in this business, but it just means I wont believe until there is hard evidence.

When things happen that you cant get your head around, you have to accept that there is something else out there, she added.

One of the members of Paranormal Researchers Ireland, the group travel around the country visiting some of Irelands most haunted locations.

Her most terrifying experience to date happened in the Hell Fire Club in the Dublin Mountains, which Tina says she will never forget.

It was the worst feeling ever. There were about seven or eight of us and it was around 1am. The building itself is a solid brick building, even the roof is brick. We were downstairs and it was like a boulder hit the house and it started vibrating.

When that happened, all our equipment started spiking - lights were going off, machines were going off and one of the guys started feeling really ill. He was bent over and started vomiting. Another guy saw a black shadow go across the room. One of the girls says something whispered in her ear to get out and then everything went dead, she says.

Just recently, Tina was in Loftus Hall in Wexford, where numerous paranormal incidents have been reported.

Some people believe it is just a marketing ploy, but she insists there is definitely something there.

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Its a darker energy in Loftus Hall. Sometimes you get quite a sad energy, but its different down there.

Ive been investigating Loftus Hall twice a month for the last two years. Last Saturday night, we were there with members of the public. There was another guy leading the group and I was observing.

Seven people out of the group saw an apparition. I didnt see it with my eyes, I didnt see what they were seeing. They got a fright and there was a bit of panic. It was a girl in the tapestry wearing a white gown, she says.

Private house investigations are the most common form of work the group carry out  free of charge, and she describes the different types of hauntings they experience.

There is one which is really common, it is a residual haunting, it is something that happened years ago that is caught in the fibre of the land, or the wall of the building, usually it was someone who died suddenly. You see them, but they dont see you.

Then there are demonic things. With those, you normally get in touch with the Catholic Church to come in and bless your house. Then lastly, there is usually loved ones, who havent moved to the after life yet.

Next week, Tina and her colleagues will be visiting a house which reportedly has a demonic presence.

Those ones are the scariest, because its just such a strange and terrifying feeling.

If there is something darker there, youre giving it an invitation to come into the room when investigating.
Hidden dangers: A simple monkey nut could prove deadly to a child with an allergy Photo: Depositphotos

While Halloween is a fun occasion, they are many tips that parents can follow to prevent any 'Halloween horror stories'.

Medical officials are calling on trick-or-treaters to take care and avoid accidents.

According to VHI, each year they see a sharp increase in the number of injuries on Halloween night.

Almost half of the patients in emergency departments on Halloween are children under the age of 18 and the most common causes of injuries were falls, burns, cuts requiring a stitch and injuries to limbs and eyes.

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Here are ten tips to stay safe this Halloween:

1. Make sure your childs costume is made of flame-resistant materials

A spark from even the most well-organised bonfire or childs sparkler can easily and quickly inflict a burn which could ultimately lead to a tragedy. Check whether they have the CE mark and the flame resistant label (EN-71-2) to show that the manufacturer is complying with safety standards.

2. Make it a family event and ensure that children are accompanied by an adult as they trick-or-treat

This can be tricky to manage as children get older however wed advise parents to keep a watchful eye, even from a distance, to ensure there are no unwanted scares! Routes should be planned before leaving the house so that everyone knows where they are going. Children should only visit homes they know and be reminded to never enter a strangers home.

3. Avoid costumes which might cause slips, trips and falls such as long capes, high heels, over-sized shoes or baggy trousers

It will be dark when most children trick or treat so poor visibility combined with hazardous costumes increases the likelihood of a nasty fall.

4. Using face paints can reduce issues caused by reduced visibility often found with wearing masks

However if you do use face paints, make sure you buy a reputable brand and do a patch test on your child to ensure they dont have an allergic reaction.

5. Dark evenings and strange costumes can be a recipe for disaster so make sure to light your way by bringing plenty of torches with you

Not only will this help light the way for trick-or-treaters but it will also increase their visibility to motorists.

6. Be traffic aware and make sure your child is too. Trick or treaters should stay on the footpath and obey all traffic signals

Where possible we would advise parents to add reflective tape to costumes or buckets to ensure visibility and to encourage your children to make eye contact with drivers before crossing out in front on them. Parents and children alike should put their mobile phones away when on the street to avoid distractions.

7. Make sure you check the sweets your child has collected before they are eaten

Choking is a very common hazard amongst children and they should be advised not to eat sweets on the move. We would recommend that parents remove sweets which arent wrapped in their original wrapper and that any marble sized sweets are not given to children. It is important as well that parents and carers know how to deal with a choking incident in the event that one should occur.

8. Be cautious of household pets when approaching houses and consider avoiding houses with dogs

Halloween is a traumatic time for most animals and the noise and excitement of fireworks combined with multiple, small callers to houses can be too much for many dogs. Dog bites are very sore and traumatic for children.

9. Do not under any circumstances buy fireworks for your children or attend any fireworks displays that are not officially organised

Fireworks are illegal in Ireland and every year hospital A&E departments treat patients with devastating injuries caused by fireworks. We would recommend complete avoidance this Halloween.

10. If driving on Halloween night, take extra care given the increased number of young pedestrians that will be out trick or treating

And... a list of steps should any accident occur:

Falls:

Stay calm and dont rush to get them to stand up.

If someone cannot feel their arms / legs, has hit their head or lost consciousness call an ambulance immediately.

If you have a severely broken bone i.e. a bone has broken through your skin you should go straight to your nearest Accident & Emergency Department.

If you suspect you have a broken bone or have a sprain then you can either visit your local urgent care centre or your local Accident & Emergency Unit.

In all instances where you suspect a sprain, strain or break you should remember to

PRICE: P = protect the injury, R = rest it , I = apply ice, C = compress and stop bleeding or swelling, E = elevate the injured limb.

Burns:

Immediately run cold water over the affected area for 15-20 minutes.

Cover the area with cling film or a clean cloth.

Do NOT use ice, ice water or creams.

All adults and children should be aware of the STOP, DROP and ROLL technique should the worst happen and their clothing catch fire. By stopping, dropping to the ground (lying flat covering eyes and mouth) and then rolling around will allow the ground to suffocate the flames rather than burning your hand.

If you are worried about the burn please seek medical attention from your GP, local urgent care clinic, or your local emergency department.

Eye Injuries:

Minor eye irritations can be treated by flushing the eye with sterile water.

If you are in any doubt as to the severity of the injury or irritation, err on the side of caution and seek medical attention immediately.

Serious / Deep Cuts:
President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko on Friday will hold telephone talks with leaders of the European Union on the situation with the Ukraine-EU Association Agreement and the visa-free regime for Ukrainian citizens.

"Today is a very important day, we are expecting very serious and difficult negotiations with our Dutch partners in connection with the political crisis that exists, and ratification of the Association Agreement," the president said, representing the new head of the Kyiv Regional State Administration on Friday.

In this regard, he said, in the near future a telephone conversation with President of the European Council Donald Tusk, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and President of the European Parliament Martin Schulz will be held.

According to Poroshenko, the issue on the prospects of visa-free regime for Ukrainians will be also discussed during the talks.
TALKS to avert four strikes by rank and file gardai from this day week are being referred to the states chief mediation bodies.

But garda sources said, as things stand, the industrial action is still going ahead from next Friday.

In a statement this afternoon, the Department of Justice said it and the Garda

Representative Association have agreed to use the services of the Workplace Relations Commission and the Labour Court on an ad hoc basis.

It said this was to augment the current negotiations in an attempt to avert the planned industrial action by members.

It is understood that talks at the Workplace Relations Commission could begin as early as this evening as the government races against time to halt the strikes.

Sources said the 10,500 rank and file members of the association will be balloted on any deal that is reached.

They were not balloted on the decision to go on strike on the four Fridays of next month.

The decision to withdraw labour was taken by delegates at a Special Delegate Conference in Tullamore.

If a deal is reached by the 'task force' that is heading negotiations with the Department of Justice, it will be put to its Central Executive Committee, followed by the associations members.
Delgany is one of those villages that seems 'out of the way' but, in fact, offers quick and easy access to the city via the much improved N11.

These properties at Thorndale are on the edge of the village and, despite seeing a lot of interest, nine four-bed semi-detached and two of the five-bed detached units remain.

Built by Kingscroft, the smaller house measures a still spacious 1,543 sq ft and is priced from 485,000, while the larger is 1,970 sq ft and comes in at 620,000. There are a range of styles in this mixed development, which will appeal to different family sizes.

With a BER of A3, there are solar roof panels, uPVC windows and other insulation measures to cut down on heating and water costs.

Kitchens are finished nicely with a vaulted ceiling and skylight as well as quartz counter-tops. The layout is otherwise traditional, with kitchen/dining room and separate living room downstairs, and four or five bedrooms on the upper floor.

Enquiries to: Sherry FitzGerald New Homes (01) 667 1888
Taoiseach Enda Kenny's feisty declaration that he has no intention of vacating the stage is timely. Persistent rumblings by cheerleaders of those eager to replace him as party leader do nothing to reassure citizens that matters are under control. This unusual minority administration has enough to be getting on with, keeping itself together on a weekly basis, without the distractions of a destabilising leadership heave.

This untrammelled pursuit of leadership is a male preoccupation. Currently, the frontrunners are viewed as Leo Varadkar and Simon Coveney, both high-profile and competent males. There is scant mention of Tanaiste and Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald, who by any measure is every bit as qualified to be leader should a vacancy arise.

The Taoiseach links his intentions to remain on with the challenges of Brexit for Ireland. These are growing ever gloomier as time passes and the dysfunction of British politics is exposed. When this period of British history is written, it will not be glorious. The folly of David Cameron initially being bounced into the Brexit referendum by the forces of ultra-nationalism within and outside his own Conservative party; the insanity of allowing some cabinet ministers to campaign against the government position to remain in the EU and ultimately the shocking loss of the referendum on the day is probably the biggest calamity in post-war British politics.

The chaotic Tory leadership contest and the sight of both main political parties equally in disarray has been alarming to witness. The Brexit referendum campaign had unleashed terrible and mean-spirited instincts; intolerance of migrants and refugees and a rejection of all the progressive values associated with EU membership.

Undoubtedly Ukip and the right-wing red-top media greatly influenced voter sentiment, piling on pressure on politicians to adopt populist and little Englander positions. In victory, that sentiment has hardened and even coarsened.

After such upheaval, small wonder that dealing with the substantive issue of Brexit has been neglected. Only now is the new prime minister viewing the full panorama of doom which faces her government in giving effect to the Brexit vote. Decoupling the United Kingdom from the institutional and legal frameworks of decades of European membership is a massive administrative task for government.

Theresa May must by now be realising that the simple yes/no question of Brexit or Remain is beset by the multi-layered complexity of a thousand options. Did the British electorate really mean to exit the single market completely when they voted to leave? One might assume so, but many business people are now seeing the dangers which that hard Brexit poses in terms of the probable loss of thousands of manufacturing and financial services jobs, banks hightailing it out of the City of London, relocating to other capitals and a tumbling currency, to cite just a few.

The clamour for a greater role for parliament in all of this is, in my view, essential. The prime minister would be wise to concede this demand. After all, she has shown convincing Brexit credentials so far. But it is certainly arguable that the manner, extent and detail of Brexit would benefit by having a comprehensive parliamentary scrutiny of the various pieces of legislation to ultimately give effect to it. Regrettably, the performance of some of her ministers charged with Brexit to date has been woeful and at times "shambolic", as Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin remarked last weekend. To date, there has been little serious regard by UK ministers to the fallout for Ireland - north and south - apart from blithe assurances that all will be well.

Our own Government needs to be more assertive in this regard rather than passively accepting blather about Ireland's "unique situation". The first prime ministerial meeting with the political leadership of the three devolved administrations of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales this week looked like a choreographed set-piece. It was only the start of a whole pile of trouble for the UK prime minister.

Martin McGuinness and Arlene Foster managed to present a superficially united front on the Border issue, but on wider economic issues they need to find common cause with the Irish Government in order to engage with Brexit minister David Davis. In fact, being offered a direct line to a Brexit minister seems underwhelming compared to the structures set up by the Good Friday Agreement, which carry more clout deriving from an international agreement.

The Border with Northern Ireland is only one issue of many. On Irish trade and agriculture, EU Commissioner Phil Hogan was forthright on the current state of affairs. Reiterating the severity of the UK's decision to leave the EU on Irish agriculture, he noted "53pc of Irish beef, 57pc of cheese and 78pc of live animals are exported to the UK these three sectors account for almost half of Irish agri-food exports to the UK, the full value of which is 5bn annually. Half of agri-food imports into Ireland worth 4.3bn come from the UK and 52pc of agri-food exports from Northern Ireland come to Ireland".

His conclusion was that we were in "no man's land" despite all the analysis and big talk since the vote.

The Taoiseach is right. With so much uncertainly and upheaval in Irish-Anglo and EU relations, imminent public service unrest, and regular skirmishes in the Dail intended to destabilise the already feeble Government, a "steady hand on the tiller" is needed. But he needs to up his Government's game on Brexit and be more ambitious for Ireland. No country is in greater peril.

Despite claims of Brexit-proofing the Budget, this amounted to no more than a rainy day fund based on aspirational growth rates which may not be realised.

Stock Exchange chief Deirdre Somers is critical of Government strategy thus far. She wants to see a "cohesive business strategy to win business" and fears that "we risk being beaten by European rivals to financial market opportunities arising from Brexit" because of political sensitivities.

The Taoiseach has experience and enjoys good standing in Europe; he also needs to demonstrate a greater sense of urgency and strategic self-interest in Ireland's official response as we navigate the economic mayhem presented by Brexit.
My father was the first Deputy Commissioner of An Garda Siochana and, as he died when I was 12, I do not remember very much about him. But one statement of his abides with me. He used to say that the setting-up of a trusted, unarmed, police force in the middle of the Civil War was the new state's finest achievement.

I think he was probably right. But I also think that if he could see the state of the force today he would turn in his grave.

I am not merely talking about the strike threats. Of course the young gardai's case is unanswerable and without breaching the Lansdowne Road Agreement, or whatever, some imaginative kicking of the can down the road could settle that issue.

If the old age pensioners could be told to wait until next year for their miserable 5, the young cops can wait a little for their rise also; and I hope when (not if) it comes that they will do considerably better than the pensioners.

But the state of the gardai calls for more than a pay rise. We need full-blown reorganisation and reform on the lines stemming from the Patten Commission in the Six Counties. To judge from the way gardai vanished from our streets in the wake of the financial crash, policing would appear to have depended not on pay, but overtime.

For me, there was an all too appropriate symbolism about the recent appearance of Commissioner Noirin O'Sullivan and a full entourage before a Dail committee. The team who accompanied Noirin looked big enough, and numerous enough, to take on the All Blacks.

But who in fact were they taking on? They were appearing before a Dail committee on justice and equality - legislators of this State, charged by us the people, with ensuring that the words justice and equality have a real meaning in the force.

Gardai and the committee should have a collegiate role in the maintenance of their respective functions, not the 'them and us' adversarial relationship so vividly conveyed by the Dail tableaux.

We all know, or think we know, how bad the crime situation is. We can see drug trading openly in the centre of Dublin. Throughout the country, old people living alone, live lives of fear. And, within my lifetime, since the year I began work with the 'Evening Press'(1954), murder rates have escalated from two a year to their present heights (or depths) in the gangland era.

We are told that these trends are a global phenomenon. But we have also seen some very Irish factors at work here - Moyross was allowed to get out of hand, and some of the most vicious gangs in Europe flourished before the crackdown came.

Currently, also in Limerick, we appear to have history repeating itself in Rathkeale. Here, many of the local population are being bought out. Across the sea, the Traveller network known as the 'Rathkeale Rovers' was recently sentenced in England for, amongst other things, a multi-million pound involvement in the selling of Rhinoceros horns.

Claims are made that, in certain categories, crime is actually down and we get reassuring PR campaigns such as having nice young gardai on the television explaining that the way to keep burglars out is to keep your front door locked.

However, bad as our crime scene obviously is, it is probably far worse than we think. The Central Statistics Office has recently come out with the chilling revelation that some 17pc of the crime figures are not registered at all.

And how could it be otherwise? Again thinking back to my father, I was reminded the other day of how I once stood alongside him on Killiney Hill, looking toward the Dublin mountains. I stood there with a great grandchild, conscious of the fact that behind me Dalkey Garda Station had closed and all the other garda stations between us and the Three Rock mountains were either closed or partially so.

Yet, since the time I stood on the hill with my father, the area has become hugely built-up. More people, but fewer gardai. Bad for the public, bad for the Garda, which also has to deal with poor equipment and a government retirement policy which has removed from the force some of its best and most experienced officers.

As Michael Collins used to say, the new men cannot step into the shoes of the departed and their knowledge.

Morale in the force is understandably at rock bottom. Again, how could it be otherwise?

We don't have to rehearse the phone-tapping and penalty-points scandals, we know what Judge Morris had to say about the appalling garda behaviour he found in Donegal, but neither can we be certain that this behaviour is confined to Donegal.

Where civilian control is concerned, we have the dismaying sight of virtual turf wars between gardai, the Inspectorate and GSOC.

All this has a historical backdrop.

The force, through no fault of its own, was affected by the Civil War.

The Free State looked to gardai and they to the Government, to safeguard each other.

Their opponents in the 1920s, led by de Valera, vilified the force. When de Valera came to power, Commissioners fell and de Valera sent signals such as, in Kerry, choosing to cross the road to shake hands with an IRA welcoming party while ignoring one uniformed garda.

Promotion continued to be very much a matter of party allegiance. Then in the early 60s, just as today, young gardai rebelled against government failure to give them a rise. They met in the Macushla ballroom in Dublin, while outside senior Garda officers noted their names.

Out of that meeting, and the subsequent sacking of 11 gardai, grew today's GRA and the steely camaraderie with which gardai now support each other and their demands.

They needed steel. People chuckled when they learned what Minister for Education Donogh O'Malley replied to Garda Travers, who had asked him did he not see the arrows before driving the wrong way up O'Connell Street?: "I'm so drunk I couldn't see the f***ing Indians."

But there was no chuckling when O'Malley's friend, the Minister for Justice Charles J Haughey, had Garda Travers hounded out of the force.

It is time now to learn from these incidents. The current Garda dispute should be settled around good lines and the Government should set up a commission with a Patten-like brief to re-constitute the force.

Tim Pat Coogan's 'The Twelve Apostles: Michael Collins, the Squad and Ireland's Fight for Freedom', has just been published by Head of Zeus
You have to hand it to Hillary Clinton. She's all about preparation. For years prior to entering the 2016 race, Mrs Clinton carefully prepared the political ground.

She prepared well for the recent presidential debates and came out on top. Now, as the clock runs out on the toughest and nastiest US election of recent times, Clinton is preparing to take over as president.

Her West Wing transition team is up and running. Lists of potential cabinet appointees are being scrutinised. Instead of responding to Donald Trump's daily claims, Clinton's campaign is diverting both time and money to elect more Democrats to Capitol Hill. To get anything done, a Democratic president needs a Democratic congress.

Barring a sudden collapse in support, Hillary Clinton will become the 45th president of the US. Poll after poll shows Hillary to already be just a handful of electoral votes shy of the required 270. That's not including swing states. If you count battleground states where polls show Clinton leading, her total increases to 333 Electoral College votes.

That number would not be as big as Barack Obama's 2008 landslide, when he won with 365 electoral votes, but it would be a very convincing win.

Of course, it's not over till it's over. So transition preparations are being kept low-key. Overconfidence can also backfire. As long as there are days left in the race, there's always potential for last-minute twists such as a terrorist incident or another secret tape. Many believe 2016 is capable of producing a second Brexit-like result. America's anti-establishment mood continues to rage, and voters have by no means fallen in love with Hillary. A Clinton victory would be as much a vote against Donald Trump as a vote for Hillary.

Trump, meanwhile, is out there stumping like crazy at rallies in one swing state after another, but it's as if his microphone and lights have been turned down. The media circus is rolling on, and the billionaire - once primetime gold - is finding it hard to cut through the noise of an approaching Clinton victory.

It's not that Trump's message about bringing back jobs to America, building walls and strengthening the military has lost its attraction. Rather, the bearer of that message has lost his own momentum and seems unable to regain it. In order to win, Trump will need to swing over one out of every 10 Clinton supporters in the next week. Even old election warriors, like Karl Rove, doubt it can be done. Yet, as Hillary Clinton prepares for the next phase, her challenges are huge. Thanks to Trump's claims of rigging, over 40pc of the electorate may view Clinton as an illegitimate president.

Ironically, Clinton's habit of meticulous preparation feeds into this. You don't have to rig the system in order to work it to your advantage. Does anyone truly believe that Hillary Clinton would have put herself through a second gruelling presidential election campaign without having studied every potential path to victory?

You can bet your life her team forensically examined every county in every swing state. Surely she registered thousands of new voters in battleground states and threw millions of dollars at getting out the vote. Now that the presidency is within her grasp, Clinton should skip preparations for a political honeymoon. Republican lawmakers won't give her an inch. As the GOP rebuilds, it cannot be seen cavorting with the enemy. Moreover, in the wake of Bernie Sanders's revolution, even the Democrats could split - leaving Hillary's centrists trying to control Bernie's liberals.

Clinton must also prepare for a chilly relationship with Vladimir Putin's Russia. After she accused Moscow of trying to influence the election in favour of Trump, Putin might not be the first world leader to send congratulations on November 9. Closer to home, Hillary should prepare for the inevitable return of familiar Clinton dramas, as Bill's role in any new Clinton administration will attract endless scrutiny. The former president gave his wife a West Wing office and the job of reforming healthcare in 1992. The assumption is that Hillary will assign Bill an equally weighty problem to solve, but may keep him well away from the West Wing.

On the upside, a big win would give her a mandate to restore civility to American public discourse. As the first female president, she would have a rare opportunity to act against the sexist attitude and language that hobbled Trump. No matter how unpopular Clinton remains, a steep loss for Trump would signal that voters reject his divisive rhetoric.

No one can prepare for everything. But Hillary Clinton always does her homework. While a president Trump would take months to get to grips with Washington, Clinton would be ready on day one.

Carole Coleman is a former RTE Washington Correspondent
The danger of industrial deadlock is that if you do not take an active hand in producing results, the results will produce themselves. That is why a small amount of give in both the Garda and teaching disputes could cause a dramatic shift. It is evident from both stand-offs that a more dynamic mechanism for social dialogue needs to be established.

Yesterday, it seemed that a little more reason and less rigidity was discernible. The ASTI appeared open to some compromise and there were indications that there might be some extra funding for gardai. Both sides are intent on making their point forcefully; but it is in the interests of all concerned that the impact is contained and does not do long-term damage.

If there was more focus on the overall outcome as opposed to locking on to obstacles, then dramatic progress could be made. Energies on all sides need to be concentrated on finding remedies as opposed to finding fault. Yesterday, Taoiseach Enda Kenny appealed to the gardai not to allow lines be blurred.

The cause of law and order must be served without compromise. Its legitimacy must not be distorted by posturing, no matter how frustrated rank and file members may be. But trust is a two-way street, and the Government must recognise that gardai need representation and grievances are real.

The ASTI's offer to temporarily suspend its planned withdrawal from supervision and substitution, which could lead to an indefinite closure of schools, speaks to a willingness to engage.

The picket line is not the best place to progress a cause. The reputation and respect which the gardai have forged over generations of service is something to be admired and not taken for granted. Sometimes it may seem to be easier to fight for one's principles than to live up to them. But burning bridges to the future out of resentment would be a retrograde step.

The founder of the police Robert Peel noted: "The police are the public and the public are the police; the police being only members of the public who are paid to give full-time attention to duties which are incumbent on every citizen in the interests of community welfare." With due regard for "community welfare", common ground - found through negotiation - is the only place where any seeds of compromise can take.

Insurance hikes seem to defy all known reason

Even Isaac Newton would be confounded by our gravity-defying insurance premiums which go up and up, yet never appear to come down.

The latest blow to motorists came yesterday, with the announcement that the average motor premium would increase by 130 by the middle of next year.

The bad news was delivered by credit rating agency Standards & Poors (S&P). In total, drivers are paying 900 a year for cover at the moment. There is worse to come before there is any respite as another hike of 10-15pc is on the cards by the middle of 2017.

They blame a Government move to let the Circuit Court handle higher-value claims for fuelling the hopes and expectations of claimants. Soaring legal costs and delays in settling personal injury claims also ratchet up costs.

Yet Conor OBrien of the Injuries Board is adamant that there has been no big rise in claims or awards that would justify rises of 70pc in the average premium in the last three years. Meanwhile, the States competition watchdog has said it is probing suspected cartel activity in the insurance industry. Whatever the causes are, we need to know, and know quickly. Open season on the driver can not continue indefinitely.
An aid worker from North Wicklow has described the horror of living through the devastating Hurricane Matthew which recently struck Haiti, leaving more than 1,000 people dead.

Damien Meaney, (37), who is originally from Vevay Road in Bray, but now lives in Kilanerin in Wexford, said that it was horrendous during the storm. 'I have never witnessed, and hope never to go through, anything like it again,' he said. 'I thought it was never going to stop.'

He has been working with the Haven Partnership in Haiti for over five-and-a-half years, on a small island called Ile a Vache, south of Haiti. Before the storm hit, the Irish organisation was working to support livelihoods, by providing agriculture training and home upgrades.

'The main focus is to help support existing programmes to become self-sustaining,' he said, explaining that much of his work centred on supporting local community projects such as building fishing boats so they can go to sea to catch fish.

'It is all about trying to up-skill and train local Haitians on how to practice better techniques to carry out their daily activities and livelihoods,' said Damien. 'My role has been helping the locals to co-ordinate these programmes.'

He said that the island was devastated during Hurricane Matthew. 'It has caused untold damage, destroying homes, businesses, schools, churches, agriculture and livestock,' he said. 'The destruction is unreal. It's sad to see that what everyone had worked for was wiped away in a couple of hours.'

'I had six families in my room that night as their houses were being torn away,' he continued. 'We were all huddled into a corner as the windows blew out.' He couldn't believe how strong the winds were and could feel the walls moving. The winds peaked at around 4 a.m.

'The rain was lashing into the room,' he said. 'The clothes, bed, everything, was destroyed.'

Eventually at around 9.30 a.m., they managed to prise the door open. 'The wind and rain were still blowing very strong,' recalled Damien. He saw that the roof of a neighbour's house was gone and a coconut tree had smashed through the house. The roof of his house was gone too, as were many of the contents from upstairs.

'It felt unreal, like a bad dream,' he said. 'It was hours before we were all able to talk, as the wind and rain lasted until early afternoon. All we could do was be thankful that everyone was still alive.'

He said that since the storm, his main activity has been surveying the damage done to the island and to other projects on the mainland, and seeing how the Haven Partnership can help. 'The key has been getting food and water to families,' he said. 'We have delivered a couple of thousand food kits now. We are in the process of getting tarps to try keep homes dry as the roofs are gone.'

Other priories include: getting wells fixed and cleaned to provide clean water for families; getting aqua tablets out for disinfecting the water; setting up a cholera area to help reduce the number of cases; and facilitating medical teams with logistics on getting aid to the island.

'The conditions are still very hard and getting aid in and distributed is a challenge,' he said. 'It's raining on and off, so movement is limited.'

'We are working to try get schools back open, the medical centre fixed, clean farms back growing seed, and trees planted,' he said. 'We are focusing as much as we can on helping people to try to get back to normal as quickly as possible.'
Equestrian orientated families will journey to Millstreet for the International Owners Pony and Young Riders Charity Show in the Green Glens Complex over the October Bank Holiday weekend.

This is the 30th Autumn Show within the spacious Millstreet venue with previous Pony and Young Rider Shows emerging as outstanding successes. It confirms the growing interest in equestrian sport as a recreation amongst children and teenagers - evident by close on 3,500 entries accepted for the three day hosting commencing on Friday and continuing through Saturday and Sunday.

Again, the Show has earned international status by the Federation for Equestrian Sports. Proceeds from the event goes towards a series of charities and amongst to benefit over the past number of years from more than 300k generated were the Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children in Crumlin, the Riders for the Disabled Organisation, Temple Street Hospital, Irish Cancer Society, ISPCA, Autism and Duhallow based groups

"This show really has something for everybody for it's the family show event on the Showjumping calendar and helped enormously by the Duggan family providing the venue free of charge," said an organising spokesperson.

"Many of our young riders will be able to jump for their country without having the expense of travelling overseas. We are extremely grateful to the Duggan Family who have never charged for the use of their excellent facilities at Green Glens".

The concept for the Pony Show originated in Cavan at the start of the early 90s and in 2000, it moved southwards and met an overwhelming response in Millstreet.

Though some of the entries are from Northern Ireland, the greater majority come from pony and horse owners in the southern half of the country.

From the Starter Stakes to the Sunday Grand Prix competitions, patrons will never be bored and the proceeds will help fund a number of worthy causes.

The Green Glens Complex report a brisk demand for families seeking accommodation and many will reside in their owner transport carriers yet boosting the coffers of local businesses.

The traditional highlight is a Fancy Dress on Sunday evening with retiring pony riders donning various disguises in a fitting finale to the hectic weekend programme.
One Ukrainian serviceman was killed in action (KIA) in the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO) zone, another six were wounded in action (WIA) in the past 24 hours, Ukrainian Defense Ministry speaker for ATO issues Andriy Lysenko has said.

"In the past 24 hours, one of our soldiers was killed, six were wounded," he said at a briefing in Kyiv on Friday.

According to Lysenko, the situation in the Luhansk sector was relatively calm: there were only three attacks on the Ukrainian positions, and all were mounted with the use of small arms.

In the Donetsk sector, under fire were Ukrainian positions near the town of Avdiyivka, Butivka coal mine and the village of Opyne.

"Militants tried to conceal their real intentions - to oust the ATO forces from the held positions in Avdiyivka. The command of the Russian occupation forces engaged several hundred fighters for this operation, along with several artillery batteries and a UAV. Having mounted an artillery attack with the use of 82mm mortars and 152mm guns, the occupiers attempted to take our positions by storm. Reinforce troops arrived at the forefront of our defense to counter the assault. The fight ended in our favor," Lysenko said.

Militants continued shelling ATO positions, using heavy weapons, they lobbed over 300 projectiles.

Lysenko also said that militants' heavy weapons also hit residential areas in the occupied town of Makiyivka.

"Fire was launched from the enemy's positions deployed near the villages of Mineralne and Yakovlivka, and the town of Yasynuvate," he said.

In total, 16 barrages were recorded in the Donetsk sector in the past 24 hours. Fourteen of these attacks were mounted with the use of heavy weapons.

The situation in the Mariupol sector also remains tense. Most of the militant attacks there focused on the town of Maryinka and the village of Shyrokyne, which is close the Ukrainian-controlled strategic port city of Mariupol. The adversary continues using heavy weapons, mortars remain most popular. Over 200 mortars were fired on Ukrainian troops on Thursday alone. Enemy cannon artillery systems, infantry fighting vehicles and snipers are engaged. Thirty-four attacks were reported in the Mariupol sector in the last day; half of them used heavy weapons.
The implications of Brexit on the Irish agricultural sector was high on the agenda at a recent meeting of the Freemount Fine Gale branch attended by when Agriculture Minister Michael Creed.

A large crowd of branch members, non-members and people from other constituency branches were present for the meeting at which a number of key issues were debated.

The meeting was opened by Sean Fitzpatrick who welcomed Minister Creed to Freemount, recalling the visit of his father Donal to the village in 1983 to officially opened what we then the newly constructed national school.

Addressing the assembled crowd the Minister acknowledged that 2016 had been by any measure a difficult years across the tillage, dairy and beef sectors. However, he did make reference to the additional 120 million allocated to the agricultural sector in the recent budget, saying that would greatly assist farming incomes.

He also pointed out that amendments had been made to the tax system to counteract volatile milk prices and that new entrants can now avail of previously inaccessible schemes.

Inevitably the Issue of Brexit took up a large portion of the evening, with the importance of growing markets emphasised with reference to continued efforts to develop Irish exports to Asia.

Minister Creed also stressed the importance of maintaining political stability in order to navigate through the uncharted waters of Brexit.

The meeting was followed by a question and answer session, which included a discussion on the need to improve farm safety.
A Killavullen native who cares for her husband and daughter has won the Cork Carer of the Year Award 2016.

The Red Cross Carer of the Year Awards publicly recognises and celebrates the thousands of carers throughout the country, acknowledging their dedication as voluntary carers in the home and the community and raising awareness of the extraordinary contribution they make to vulnerable people's lives.

This year's winner is Hilary O'Kelly, who cares for her husband, Tom, and daughter, Kate.

When Kate was seven years old she was diagnosed with Friedrich's Ataxia and has since developed type 1 diabetes, cardiomyopathy and scoliosis. The amazing care Hilary provides for Kate means that her daily battle is eased considerably.

Husband Tom was in an accident 12 years ago and uses a wheelchair as a result. Mary has coped with this extremely well and now cares for Tom also.

Hilary is very active in her local community where she started a quilting club in the community hall and where women meet regularly making patchwork quilts. She is also a member of the community council that keep the village of Kilavullen looking well.

People comment on how Hilary is always in good form and regularly offers advice to people in dealing with disabilities.

The trophy presented to Hilary is in remembrance of Leslie Bean de Barra, who was Chairperson of the Irish Red Cross from 1950 - 1973, and who received several prestigious awards for her outstanding work nationally and internationally.
A student charged with dangerous driving causing the death of a mother and daughter last Christmas will go on trial next month.

Susan Gleeson (21) was remanded for trial before Cork Circuit Criminal Court with a hearing date not to be scheduled before November 15. She did not speak during the brief hearing before Judge Sean O'Donnabhain.

Ms Gleeson of Kilworth, faces a single charge of dangerous driving causing the death of Cork mother, Geraldine Clancy (58), and her daughter, Louise Ann (22), on December 22 last.

Last July, Judge Brian Sheridan had granted free legal aid for Ms Gleeson on the application of defence solicitor John Brooks and allowed two counsels.

The young woman, who is a university student, was remanded on continuing bail in her own bond of 500.

A Cork Coroner's inquest last April heard that the mother and daughter both drowned after their car ploughed into a flooded ditch following a collision with another vehicle. The accident occurred near Ballyderown on the Fermoy-Kilworth-Ballyduff Road.

Coroner Dr Michael Kennedy agreed to adjourn the inquest after Gardai said the proceedings were ongoing.

Cork farmer Noel Clancy, who lost his wife and daughter in the tragedy, was one of the first people to attend the accident scene shortly after 11am on December 22. The accident occurred less than 1km from the Clancy family farm with the mother and daughter the only occupants of the family's Ford car.

Tragically, despite emergency services racing to the scene, both Geraldine and Louise Ann Clancy were pronounced dead before they could be rushed to hospital.

Assistant State Pathologist Dr Margaret Bolster conducted post mortem examinations on both at Cork University Hospital (CUH) on December 23. Dr Bolster confirmed to the inquest that both mother and daughter died from acute cardio-respiratory failure due to drowning.

Heavy rainfall and flooding of the River Blackwater had left the dyke beside the Kilworth-Fermoy road full of water to a depth of almost 120cm (4ft) last winter. Local fields were also heavily flooded.

Louise Ann, who had autism, had successfully defied her condition to study first at Loreto secondary school in Fermoy and then at University College Cork (UCC). She had only arrived home days before the tragedy from her Erasmus Scholarship placement at the University of Sussex in the UK to spend Christmas with her family.

Louise Ann was a prolific writer and published numerous blogs on living and working with autism. Special tributes were paid to Louise Ann earlier this year to mark World Autism Awareness Day.
A 29-year-old North Cork woman has been jailed for ten years after she pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of two of her friends when she set fire to their flat in Mallow during a binge drinking session.

Rachel Crawshaw, a native of Mallow but of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to the unlawful killing of John Palmer (37) and Greg Lonergan (36), at Granary Court, St Joseph's Road, Mallow and to committing arson at the same address between March 12 and March 13 2014.

This week at Cork Circuit Criminal Court, insp Michael Corbett told how Garda Liam Phillips and Garda Caitriona O'Sullivan arrived on the scene within two minutes of being alerted and braved the smoke to get to the top floor where they found Christopher Palmer (37) unconscious and Crawshaw drunk.

They got both casualties out before evacuating other occupants from the building and firefighters later recovered the bodies of both Mr Palmer's twin brother, John, and Mr Lonergan which were located in the living area of the top floor flat which the Palmer brothers were renting.

A garda forensic investigation established there were three separate seats to the fire in the Palmers's flat and gardai later arrested Crawshaw and quizzed her about the blaze but she had little recollection of the night as she and the two Palmers and Mr Lonergan had been on a drinking binge.

The court heard Victim Impact Statements from relatives of the deceased including, Mr Palmer's twin brother, Christopher who said that he and his brother had always been very close. "We were always there for each other from the day that we could walk," he said.

Meanwhile, several of Mr Lonergan's relatives also spoke of their loss including his sister, Caroline, who said there were no words to describe "the pain, anger and despair" the family felt on learning of Greg's death, and the realisation he was gone forever was "devastating and crushing.

Defence counsel Marjorie Farrelly SC pleaded for leniency saying that it would have been a difficult case to secure a prosecution without Crawshaw's plea of guilty and she pointed that while she had 29 previous convictions, none of them were for any crime of violence.

She also pointed out that Crawshaw had not used any accelerant and would not have committed the arson had she not been drinking. She said her recklessness extended to having no regard for her own safety, and she even attempted to go back into the building but had to be restrained by gardai.

Judge Sean O Donnabhain said that he would take her guilty plea into account but it remained an appalling crime in which two men had lost their lives. "The people she killed were friends of hers. Does that make it less heinous, does it not raise the recklessness? He asked.

He said the loss to the Palmer and Lonergan families was "huge and palpable" and while they had heard Crawshaw's expression of remorse, he wondered was it of any benefit to them. "This is one of the most serious and heinous of crimes," he said.

He noted the catastrophic life of Crawshaw even in the days prior to the fire but he noted that she had had 11 years of counselling and support but was now worse than when she started, and the latest probation report suggested that she was at a high risk of re-offending.

He sentenced her to 15 years in jail but suspended the final five years on foot of her guilty plea, her remorse and the fact that she had not used an accelerant in starting the fire, and he backdated the sentence until June 2015, when she first went into custody.
Those of us who were children of the sixties have dearly held and cherished memories of Fr Denis Lynch as when on holidays to Valentia Island he celebrated Mass with that distinctive and clear voice in fine summer mornings in the village of Chapeltown. On October 7, last, he celebrated his 90th birthday from his base at Pope's Quay in Cork

Born in 1926, Fr Denis comes originally from Ballymanach in Valentia.His formal education began at the Knightstown National School, where he was taught by John Mawe, Mrs.Edwards and Mrs. O'Driscoll. He attended St Brendan's College Killarney secondary school between 1940 and 1945. He recalls fellow and older students Fr Donal O'Sullivan of Cahirsiveen and Austin Ring of Valentia as taking him under their wing in his early days there. The late Fr Willie Murphy of Valentia was also in attendance with him.

Having left 'The Sem', Fr Denis joined the Dominican order of priests, doing his novitiate and first year studies at Popes Quay in Cork City. From here he went to the Dominican house of studies in Tallaght, Dublin, finishing off his studies here and being ordained in July 1952 by Archbishop John Charles McQuaid.

The next seven years from 1953-60 were spent as a Bursar in Newbridge College in County Kildare and following that he returned to Tallaght and also spent periods in Athy, Dorset Street in Dublin, as well as in Drogheda and Waterford.

The year 1976 saw him embark on his first foreign venture with his going to Argentina to spend ten years there, coming home every three years. Shortly after his arrival, the Government there fell to the military, which saw the well documented phase of the disappeared or 'desaparecidos', in which 10s of thousands of anti-government dissidents disappeared without trace. However, he was contented there, living in the city of Parana about seven hours North of Buenos Aires.

Having arrived home in the mid eighties, Fr Denis spent the next seven years as a curate in Tallaght, and from there went to Ballybeg in Waterford for two years. He was subsequently transferred to Tralee for seven years, affording him the opportunity to visit his late brother Paddy in Valencia, with whom he was close.

He arrived to his current abode, Popes Quay, 12 years ago. All good future wishes are extended to him. Go maire se an cead.
The passing of Joe Slattery, a giant figure in Kerry ploughing circles, made for a poignant start to the county season in his native Abbeydorney on Sunday - just a week after the meeting had to be postponed following his sad death.

Joe - who was chairman of the Kerry Ploughing Association from 1994 and chairman of the Abbeydorney Ploughing Association from 1984 until his death - was foremost in the minds of all as they decamped to Corridan's fields in beautiful winter weather.

"It was like he was looking down on us, giving us fine weather but it made for an emotional day for all of us on the committee," Abbeydorney Ploughing Association's Tom O'Mahony told The Kerryman.

A special plaque commissioned by the committee and on display on Sunday reminded all of Joe's incredible contribution to ploughing in Kerry. The Clounametig farmer joined his local association back in 1942, going on to represent Kerry at the All-Irelands - in Balbriggan in 1946 and at under-21 level in Maynooth in 1947.

"Joe was a great man for the community who got on well with young and old and is remembered very fondly by all of us," Tom added.

Indeed, the strength of the ploughing association as we know it today is in no small way down to Joe's dedication - its vibrancy demonstrated by the great turn out and competitive nature of Sunday's season opener.

Steady hands and straight eyes were in abundance. Joe McCarthy won the single furrow vintage class; Tommy McCarthy won the reversible category; Aeneas Horan took the two-furrow vintage; Martina Flynn won the Ladies; Michael Donegan won the under-28 class; Michael Burke won the under-21; Michael P Donegan took the senior tractor class; Richard O'Mahony won the Macra class; the Novice class was won by Tony Wharton; Colm Dineen took the three-furrow title and Donal Tydings emerged the victor in the Loy-digging class.

Meanwhile, the prizes for 'most appropriately-dressed lady and gentleman went to Dolores McElligott of Lixnaw and John Bosco McMahon of Ballybunion.

Now, all ploughing eyes are on Ballyheigue for Sunday next, with Ardfert, Causeway and Ballyduff to take place after the New Year - on February 5, 12 and 19 respectively.
One lucky Listowel girl has won the chance to visit the European Parliament later this year. Niamh Moloney, a Transition Year student at the Presentation Convent in the town, will embark on a three day trip to Brussels from the 8th to the 10th of December.

Having written an essay on, "Why the EU is important to me", Niamh - a daughter of Christina and Vincent Moloney of Knockane - sent it to Sean Kelly, MEP and was later invited on the trip along with nine other Transition Year students from across the country, as part of the Meet your MEP programme.

While in Belgium, Niamh will enjoy guided tours of the parliament and as the EU is a subject for which Niamh has a strong passion, she is looking forward to further enriching her knowledge on the subject during her time abroad. "I am delighted to get this opportunity and cannot wait to learn more about the EU", an excited Niamh said. In what is an added bonus, the trip also affords Niamh the opportunity to experience Brussels' famous Christmas market.

Presentation Secondary School principal, Eileen Kennelly said: "We are delighted for Niamh. Experiences like this are all about encouraging the girls to take all the opportunities that come their way."
Kate O'Leary, Chairperson of Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce also took part

Councillor Niall Kelleher and Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce President Kate O'Leary both swapped home comforts for sleeping bags on Friday night (October 21), as they participated in the Focus Ireland Shine a Light National Campaign - an experience they both described as 'surreal'.

The initiative saw public representatives and business people from the Cork and Kerry area sleeping under winter elements on the grounds of Cork City jail, in a bid to raise funds and awareness for the battle against homelessness.

Speaking to The Kerryman, Councillor Kelleher described the experience as 'eye opening.'

"We were blessed with the weather, there wasn't a drop of rain, yet we were still freezing," the Deputy Mayor of Killarney said.

"I woke up after getting a few hours of sleep, and was soaking wet from the dew - and that's what it was like on a good night.

"We had the four walls of the premises sheltering us to some extent, so it's frightening to think about what it would have been like without that cover." Cllr Kelleher added

Ms O'Leary's description of the experience was similar, and she explained the strange emotions that it stirred up.

"It wouldn't be right to say this was an authentic experience of homelessness; it wasn't," she told The Kerryman.

"I was prepared, and I had the comfort of knowing I was going back to my warm home and my family. People who're going through the real thing don't have that to cling on to.

"Being an organised event, we had security, which was an additional comfort. I'm glad I took part, but it's scary to think of what it would be like to go through that every night," she said.

Councillor Kelleher explained that the sleep-out was preceded by an uplifting talk from two people who'd experienced homelessness but found their feet with help from Focus Ireland. Thereafter, the High Hopes Choir - made up of people who were once homeless - belted out a song before the participants slipped into sleeping bags from midnight.

The Fianna Fail Councillor said he was delighted to have taken part in the sleep out, as well as other recent fundraisers for Focus Ireland.

"We've had other events like last Wednesday's table quiz in The Laurels in Killarney, which gathered 1,100, and we'll be running more initiatives from here out," he said

"It's an issue affecting many people right now, and it was a pleasure to help."
The headquarters of the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO) in Donbas has blamed the hostiles holding Makiyivka for the attack on residential areas in the town.

"Yesterday, on October 27, illegal armed units flagrantly violated the Minsk agreements and opened massive fire from heavy weapons on ATO positions between Avdiyivka and Yasynuvata. Seeking to conceal their aggression, the occupants committed another war crime with artillery fire on residential areas of Makiyivka, a town they control. The fire was coming from hostile positions near the villages of Mineralne, Yakovlivka and Yasynuvata," the staff's press center said on Facebook.

According to the ATO HQ, the hostiles opened fire "to discredit the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the eyes of the international community and the local population, to conceal violations of the Minsk agreements by the enemy, and to intimidate the population of the occupied territories."

"We formally announce that the Ukrainian Armed Forces strictly comply with the Minsk agreements and have never used weapons against the civilian population. The ATO forces do not use heavy armaments because they have been moved to designated distances. At the same time, the Ukrainian forces retain the right to a proportionate response in case the life of their personnel is in danger and hostile attacks need to be averted," the ATO HQ said.
Susan MacKenzie, Dr Carl Cater and Anouk Evans, Tralee, at the International Adventure Conference in Tralee's IT last week

Seventy of the world's leading academics in the area of adventure tourism were blown away by the county at a major conference last week and it is now hoped the event will help drive further investment in the sector.

Delegates from as far away as China and New Zealand were treated to three days of hands-on adventuring and illuminating lectures as part of the fifth-annual International Adventure Conference held at the IT Tralee and the Rose Hotel last week.

Champion Irish surfer Easkey Britton was the keynote speaker of the week, in a busy bill that included Irish explorer Dermot Somers and plenty of exciting excursions.

This was the first time the conference was held in Ireland, but likely not the last time many of the delegates will visit the Kingdom.

"Two thirds of delegates told us they would be coming back to Kerry in the near future," leader of the Adventure Tourism Management course at the IT and chief organiser Sophie Price said.

"They absolutely loved it and couldn't believe the diversity of adventure activities within such a short distance of the IT. We took them surfing in Banna, coasteering in Meenogahane among many other activities."

The conference put Kerry slap bang in the middle of the world adventure map - at least as it is understood by academics.

"It was the first time in Ireland for many and we were repeatedly told it was the best conference in the series yet, so Kerry is definitely on their map," Sophie said.

It's now hoped this might drive adventure tourism growth here as lecturers bring the message back with them.

"It was wonderful too that we were able to undertake so many activities with local operators," Sophie added.
Lonely Planet - the world's biggest travel publisher - has named the Skellig Ring Drive as one of its top ten global destinations for 2017.

The stunning route - which incorporates Ballinskelligs and Portmagee - features on the list alongside mouthwatering list of destinations including Perak in Malaysia and Taranaki in New Zealand.

The ring's inclusion in the prestigious Lonely Planet listing will give the area a further boost on the back of the massive publicity and surge in visitors it has enjoyed since Skellig Michael appeared in the last Star Wars film.

The Lonely Planet judges described the Skellig Ring as "Ireland's most charismatically wild and emerald stretch of coastline."

Ger Kennedy of The Moorings Bar in Portmagee said the accolade was tremendous news for the area.

"We only heard about it on Tuesday morning and obviously everyone's delighted. It's great news and its obviously going to be fantastic for the entire area," he said.

"We've always had plenty of visitors but the area's newfound fame from Star Wars along with the Wild Atlantic Way has made a huge difference in the last few seasons," said Mr Kennedy.

"This will mean jobs for the area and hopefully that might mean a few young of our people won't feel like they have to get on a plane for Australia," he said.

Mayor of Kerry Michael O'Shea welcomed the news which he said was testament to the local community's work.

"Coming after all the international attention on the south Kerry area following the filming of Star Wars on Skellig Michael, this is another wonderful accolade for the area and particularly the jewel that is the Skellig Ring," he said.
A letter written by John Lennon to the Queen explaining why he returned his MBE has been valued at 60,000, say auctioneers.

The note remains in royal archives but a version of the letter was brought along by a member of public to a memorabilia event in Liverpool on Wednesday.

The person, who wishes to remain anonymous, assumed it was a copy and said they found it tucked away inside the sleeve of a record contained in a collection of 45rpm singles they bought for 10 at a car boot sale 20 years ago.

Recently unearthed in the owner's attic, the letter has been described by as an "incredible find" by Darren Julien of Los Angeles-based Julien's Auctions who believes it may be the original letter.

Mr Julien has a theory that Lennon's letter was a draft version that he never sent to the Queen because the ink in the signature had been smudged.

He said: "If you're writing to the Queen, you want the letter to look pretty perfect, you don't want the ink to be smudged. This suggests that he wrote a second version of the letter, which was the one that was actually sent to the Queen.

"We'll be doing some further research but this could be the Beatles find of the year. There is no doubt that the handwriting is definitely that of John Lennon."

In his letter, Lennon wrote: "Your Majesty I am returning this MBE in protest against Britain's involvement in the Nigeria-Biafra thing, against our support of America in Vietnam and against Cold Turkey slipping down the chart.

"With love John Lennon

"John Lennon of Bag."

Video of the Day

The letter was one of a number of items belonging to members of the public that were valued during the memorabilia day at The Beatles Story exhibition at the city's Albert Dock.

Martin King, of The Beatles Story, said: "This is an absolute gem and we are thrilled to have seen a piece of memorabilia with such historical significance. Ironically, 26th October was the day that The Beatles received their MBEs from The Queen so it's quite fitting that the letter was brought into us on the exact same date many years later."
Lily Allen said she was turned away from a black cab

Lily Allen said she has had a "glimpse of what it feels like to be discriminated against" after being shunned by a taxi driver.

The London-born pop star said she was turned away from a black cab after being told to "find an immigrant" to give her and her daughters a ride.

The alleged interaction between Allen and the unknown taxi driver comes after she apologised "on behalf of my country" after seeing the squalid conditions refugees had lived in at the Calais camp known as the Jungle.

Allen, 31, wrote on Twitter: "Just tried to get in a black cab with my kids. The driver looked at me and said , 'find an immigrant to drive you you stupid tart'."

She added: "Having lived a life of privilege, that interaction has given me a tiny glimpse of what it feels like to be discriminated against.

"There is so much work to be done. But we can do it. Let's stamp out this stupid horrible ignorance together. #takeourcountryback."

She was then asked by another Twitter user to reveal the car's registration and plate number in order to prove it had happened.

The mother of two fired back: "I had both my hands full with children, couldn't get to my phone fast enough."

She responded to another person who said that it "definitely didn't happen", writing that they were "victim shaming" her.

Allen declined to comment when approached by the Press Association.

Video of the Day

She was criticised following her visit to the Jungle, during which she volunteered in a warehouse where donations came in before being distributed to the thousands of migrants and refugees living there.

In scenes that aired on the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme, she broke down in tears while meeting a 13-year-old boy from Afghanistan who said his father lives in Birmingham but who himself had camped at the Jungle for two months.

During their meeting, Allen told him: "It just seems that at three different intervals in this young boy's life, the English in particular have put you in danger.

"We've bombed your country, put you in the hands of the Taliban and now put you in danger of risking your life to get into our country.

"I apologise on behalf of my country. I'm sorry for what we have put you through."

Allen's experience came a week after Ugandan-born British journalist Yasmin Alibhai-Brown said she was refused a ride in a taxi.

She wrote on Twitter: "Last night, West Hampstead station, on my way to the Grunwick Strike event. Black cab driver doesn't let me in: 'Not taking foreigners today'."
Rachel McAdams will next be seen on the big screen as Dr Christine Palmer in Marvel film Doctor Strange opposite Benedict Cumberbatch

Mean Girls star Rachel McAdams has said her famous character Regina George would probably team up with presidential candidate Donald Trump.

The actress, who starred opposite Lindsay Lohan in the 2004 film, said the queen bee could probably get Trump quaking in his boots.

She told the Press Association: "She probably could. I don't know what she would say to him but they would probably team up."

McAdams has already said it would be exciting to reunite with the film's writer Tina Fey and cast members Amanda Seyfried and Lacey Chabert.

She added: "It's still out there. I recently found out there is a Mean Girls day now, October 3, which is interesting.

"It's amazing that these things have such legs. Tina Fey is a genius and it lives on."

McAdams will next be seen on the big screen as Dr Christine Palmer in Marvel film Doctor Strange opposite Benedict Cumberbatch.

However, she said delving into the comic book world was a new experience after star turns in Oscar-winning film Spotlight and cult romance The Notebook.

She said: " I didn't know of Doctor Strange when I started this process so I really had to educate myself.

"Fortunately I was playing an amalgamation of characters so there is more liberty you can take, and that is why I'm so happy for Benedict because he just nailed this beloved character when there is so much pressure to get it right."

Playing a human doctor meant she got to keep her feet on the ground, which came with advantages, according to the Canadian star.

"I was a little jealous of the cloak of levitation but it was nice to be comfortable in scrubs and running shoes.

Video of the Day

"When Benedict was hanging from wires with a cloak on and crazy jewellery and swearing buckets I was thinking 'I'm just a doctor', they are their own kind of superhero."

McAdams is not even sure if she will be back for another instalment, although most Marvel roles end up as recurring characters.

She said: " I'm pretty in the dark. I think Benedict is the only one who knows what the next step is, which make sense since he's Doctor Strange. We will see how the rest unfolds."

The actress has also played the part of Irene Adler in Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes films, which star Robert Downey Jr in the title role.

Cumberbatch shot to fame playing Holmes in the BBC's modern-day TV version but McAdams said the duo never swapped note about their different productions.

She said: "It never came up but they have both created such different Sherlocks. That is what is so extraordinary. How many Sherlocks have there been? But him and Robert Downey have created these brand new fresh takes."

:: Doctor Strange is in cinemas now.
Stephen Hawking with Eddie Redmayne at the premiere of The Theory Of Everything

Professor Stephen Hawking will have his career honoured at the Daily Mirror's Pride of Britain Awards.

The world-leading physicist and author has defied debilitating motor neurone disease to reveal the secrets of the universe over a career spanning more than half a century.

He will be presented with the lifetime achievement honour at Monday's awards.

Oscar-winning actor Eddie Redmayne, who played Prof Hawking in the film The Theory Of Everything, said: "Professor Stephen Hawking has inspired millions of people all over the world with his extraordinary refusal not to let his condition dictate the terms by which he lives his life.

"He lets nothing stand in his way and he does it all with his extraordinary, infectious passion and brilliant humour."

Fellow cosmologist and television presenter Brian Cox said: "With no doubt about it he is one of the best physicists of the 20th Century and now the 21st Century."

Prof Hawking was diagnosed with a rare form of motor neurone disease in 1964 at the age of 22 and he was given just a few years to live.

Yet against all odds he celebrated his 70th birthday nearly half a century later as one of the most brilliant and famous scientists of the modern age.

Despite being wheelchair-bound, almost completely paralysed and unable to speak except through his trademark voice synthesiser, he wrote a plethora of scientific papers that earned him comparisons with Albert Einstein and Sir Isaac Newton.

He will join the Prince of Wales, Prime Minister Theresa May, and other famous faces at the awards at London's Grosvenor House Hotel.

Video of the Day

:: The Pride of Britain Awards 2016, will be broadcast at 8pm on Tuesday on ITV
Antarctica's marine reserve will be the largest in the world (AP)

The world's largest marine reserve will be created in the ocean next to Antarctica, the countries that decide the fate of the frozen continent have decided.

The historic agreement comes after years of diplomatic wrangling and high-level talks between the US and Russia, which has rejected the idea in the past.

Supporters of the reserve say it sets a precedent for numerous countries working together to protect a large swath of ocean, which falls outside any single nation's jurisdiction.

The agreement covers an area about twice the size of Texas in the Ross Sea.

The deal was clinched after 24 countries and the European Union met in Hobart, Australia, this week. Decisions on Antarctica require a consensus among the 25 members, a hurdle which has confounded past efforts.

The US and New Zealand have been pushing for a marine reserve for years. They first submitted a joint proposal in 2012, but it was rejected five times before Friday's agreement.

Ukraine, China and Russia had expressed concerns in the past, with Russia becoming the final hold-out before the deal was made.

The marine protected area covers 617,000 square miles. There will be a blanket ban on commercial fishing across about three-quarters of that area. In the remaining ocean zones, some commercial fishing will be allowed.

A small amount of fishing for research purposes will be allowed throughout the protected area.

Several countries fish in the waters surrounding Antarctica for lucrative toothfish, which are often marketed in North America as Chilean sea bass.
Jessica Kumala Wongso, who is accused of murdering her friend by poisoning her coffee with cyanide, walks after talking with her lawyer during her trial at the Central Jakarta Court in Jakarta, Indonesia. Photo:REUTERS/Beawiharta

An Indonesian court jailed a woman for 20 years on Thursday for murdering her college friend by poisoning her coffee, ending a dramatic case that gripped the country for months.

Jessica Kumala Wongso (27) an Indonesian citizen and permanent resident of Australia, remained expressionless while hearing the verdict and sentence.

"The defendant has been proven guilty of premeditated murder," presiding judge Kisworo said to applause from a packed courtroom without suggesting a motive.

"...The murder was vile and sadistic because the defendant did it to her own friend."

Wongso told the three-judge panel she thought the verdict was "unfair and one-sided".

Defence lawyers said she would appeal.

The two women had been meeting at a cafe in a central Jakarta mall when victim Wayan Mirna Salihin took a sip of a cyanide-laced drink, collapsed on the floor and went into convulsions, according to prosecutors. She died by the time she arrived at hospital.

Dozens of police were positioned around the Central Jakarta courtroom as crowds scrambled to get in to hear the verdict. The trial had heard testimony from a string of forensic and psychological experts and the case has generated headlines since Wongso was arrested earlier this year.

President Joko Widodo's administration waded into the case, saying Wongso would not be executed if she got the death penalty, according to media. The deal was made with Australia in order for Australian police to assist in the investigation.

Australia does not have the death sentence and opposes its use in other countries.
Head of Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) Yuriy Lutsenko has said Ukraine intends to turn over its treason case against former President Viktor Yanukovych to court before the end of the year.

"State treason, Article 111 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, is when Yanukovych usurped power, denigrated Ukraine's' Armed Forces, SBU Security Service, harmed the nation's information and economic security  when he oppressed the opposition  ordered arrests and political persecution, beatings and murders," Lutsenko said on Friday during a meeting with representatives of relatives of the "Heavenly Hundred" heroes [the name given to dozens who died during three months of protests in Kyiv during late 2013 and early 2014]. The remarks were aired by 112.Ukraine TV Channel.

Ukraine's PGO also intends to accuse Yanukovych of siding with the enemy by calling for Russian military intervention in Ukraine. Lutsenko said this is the final proof of Yanukovych's treason.

"This case must go to court this year. I will insist on it, depending on how prepared we are legally [to go forward]. I will invite lawyers [for Yanukovych] to acquaint the suspect, or the accused, with the evidence against him," Lutsenko said.

Lutsenko asked representatives of "Heavenly Hundred" relatives to study the evidence of the case and appear in court as complaintants.

Ukraine's PGO added it is highly likely that Yanukovych will also be charged according to Article 255 of the Criminal Code (creation of a criminal organization).

Lutsenko said the latter charge is not related directly to events which occurred on Independence Square (Maidan). He said Yanukovych should first be charged with treason and then with other crimes relating to the organization of a criminal group. The latter includes alleged crimes relating to the takeover of the Sukholuch [Cedar] hunting club, privatization of Ukrtelekom, as well as other cases involving the theft of state funds and acts harmful to the nation's economic security.

"In this manner these and other [crimes]  and there are many  dozens, perhaps, economic crimes can be handed over to courts. I would like treason to be the first case adjudicated because it explains why Yanukovych seized power in our country and what it led to. Later, depending on how ready they are, alleged economic crimes can go to court," Lutsenko said.

The PGO head said it is necessary to consider sanctions of the European Union, which led to the arrest of assets of Yanukovych-era officials, cannot be extended indefinitely. He added banking information is usually stored for a period of five years.

"There is a threat materials from first year of Yanukovych's presidency could be destroyed. If we delay going forward with the case, this threat will only grow," Lutsenko said.
The girl was abused at the family's rural property in New South Wales

An Australian husband and wife have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms for sexually abusing, torturing and confining their daughter over 15 years.

The father used various sharp tools to rape and torture the girl, who was left tied up in a shed or in a plastic box for up to three days at a time on the family's rural property in northern New South Wales, the District Court in Sydney was told.

The 59-year-old was sentenced to 48 years in prison. He will be eligible for parole after serving 36 years.

The mother, 51, was sentenced to 16 years in prison and must serve at least 11 years.

The father began abusing the girl when she was five years old.

He had also held the girl's head under water in a stream, wrapped her in barbed wire, forced her to eat hot chillies and threatened her with a chainsaw.

The mother began teaching her daughter how to sexually arouse her father from the age of eight.

The father was convicted of 73 offences and his wife of 13 offences in June. They denied all charges.

Judge Sarah Huggett described the crimes as "atrocious in the extreme".

She also described the father as "selfish, depraved and sadistic".

The victim, now aged 24, first complained about her parents in 2011, while she was a patient in a psychiatric hospital ward.

Police arrested them in 2013.

AP
Charles "Tex" Watson pictured in 2014 - the right-hand man of Charles Manson has been denied parole (California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation/AP)

The right-hand man of murderous US cult leader Charles Manson must stay in prison, California parole officials have recommended.

They refused parole for Charles "Tex" Watson for the 17th time in the 47 years since he helped plan and carry out the killings of pregnant actress Sharon Tate and six other people.

The hearing was held at Mule Creek State Prison, near Sacramento. He can seek parole again in five years.

Watson, 70, is serving a life sentence for the murders of Tate and four others at her Beverly Hills, California, home on August 9, 1969. The next night, he helped kill grocer Leno LaBianca and his wife, Rosemary.

"These were some of the most horrific crimes in California history, and we believe he continues to exhibit a lack of remorse and remains a public safety risk," Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey said after the decision.

Watson was initially sentenced to death in the stabbing and shooting rampage, but that was later commuted to life when the California Supreme Court ruled in 1972 the death penalty was unconstitutional. He is currently in Mule Creek State Prison, near Sacramento.

Sharon Tate's sister, Debra Tate - the last surviving member of her immediate family - urged the panel of parole commissioners to reject freedom for the man she called "the most active, the most prolific killer in the Manson family".

"He's a sociopath, and sociopaths are incapable having insight or empathy for anything. It's all about him. He didn't have it then, and he doesn't have it now," she said after the hearing.

She said Watson still blames the murders on his drug use and lack of a clear goal in life rather than accepting full responsibility.

In July, Governor Jerry Brown reversed a Board of Parole Hearings recommendation that the state release Manson follower Leslie Van Houten, 67, who is serving a life sentence for the La Bianca killings.

In January, he blocked the release of Bruce Davis, 74, another Manson devotee who was convicted in the killings of musician Gary Hinman and stuntman Donald "Shorty" Shea.
A town mayor and nine other men have been killed in a clash with police in the deadliest operation of an anti-drug crackdown launched by Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte.

Police say more than 3,600 suspected drug dealers and users have been killed since Mr Duterte took office on June 30.

In August, Mr Duterte publicly read out the names of mayor Samsudin Dimaukom and more than 150 other officials he accused of involvement in drug trafficking in Datu Saudi Ampatuan township in southern Maguindanao province.

After his name was read out, Dimaukom turned himself in to police and denied involvement. He told the media he was fighting illegal drugs himself and supported Mr Duterte's crackdown.

Dimaukom and the nine others were killed at dawn on Friday after they opened fire on officers manning a checkpoint in Makilala town, North Cotabato province, police Superintendent Bernard Tayong said.

"Our men were forced to retaliate when the heavily armed suspects who were on board two vehicles began firing at them," said Senior Superintendent Albert Ignatius Ferro, who heads a police anti-drugs force.

Police found an M16 rifle, four pistols, a 12-gauge shotgun, ammunition and at least 13 small plastic packs of suspected methamphetamine, known locally as shabu, from the bullet-peppered vehicles of the suspects, Senior Superintendent Leonardo Suan said.

Police said they had received information that Dimaukom's group was planning to transport a "huge" amount of methamphetamine from Davao city, Mr Duterte's home town, to Datu Saudi Ampatuan.

The president's crackdown has drawn international concern over extra-judicial killings, but he has repeatedly dismissed criticism and vowed to keep his election promise to rid the country of illegal drugs. He originally said he would do so in six months, but extended that deadline by half a year, saying he was overwhelmed by the magnitude of the drug menace.

The extent of the crackdown is unprecedented in the country. Since he took office, police have arrested more than 31,600 suspects, and more than 750,000 people, mostly drug users, have surrendered to authorities, largely due to fears they could end up dead. Police have visited more than 2.6 million homes to urge suspected drug users and dealers to stop.

On Wednesday, police launched a new phase of the crackdown called Double Barrel, which they say will focus on "high-value targets" such as drug lords and those involved in large-scale production and trafficking.

Mr Duterte said he still has a long list of suspects including politicians, village officials, judges and policemen, showing a thick pile of documents. "This is the drug industry in the Philippines," he said. "I can't deal with this alone."

He appeared to issue another warning, saying that thousands more drug suspects may end up dead. He expressed disgust over criticism levelled against him while he battles a menace that he said has left many police dead.

"And to say that I should behave and keep on harping on that ... I'll tell you I will triple it," he said. "If my wishes aren't followed ... you can expect about 20,000 or 30,000 more."

"There is a war going on, I am losing two, three policemen a day. It's a war, how could it be ... genocide, killing a helpless person there, kneeling," he said. "There's none of that, we do not gather children and young men and shoot them."

AP
Harambe the gorilla, who was shot dead by zoo keepers

Thousands of people are expected to attend a candlelight vigil in honour of Harambe, the gorilla who was shot dead after a child fell into his enclosure.

The event will take place in London on Friday October 28 to commemorate the animal.

The 17-year-old male western lowland gorilla was shot after a three-year-old boy fell into his enclosure after climbing over a barrier that has since been heightened. Fearing for the boy's safety, zoo officials shot the gorilla.

Since the shooting of the gorilla in May 2016, Harambe has been the subject of numerous online campaigns, jokes and hashtags.

Expand Close A boy brings flowers to put beside a statue of a gorilla outside the shuttered Gorilla World exhibit at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, Monday, May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati / Facebook

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According to the New York Post one group of teenagers even managed to convince Google it had made a mistake with the name of a street in Ohio, persuading the search engine giant to change it to Harambe Drive.

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Describing the motive behind tomorrows event, host Paul Balaji wrote on Facebook: On this day 5 months ago Harambe was cruelly taken from us.

He was the best of us all, and taught us to reach out and help others, no matter the costs.

The gorilla-shaped hole His passing left in our hearts may never be healed.

But we can still honour His memory by coming together to raise a candle in sadness, yet also in celebration.

We will never forget. May our d**ks always be out.
Wiltshire Police said a Taser was discharged and the man subsequently died

A man has died after police fired a Taser at him during an incident at a property in Wiltshire.

Officers were called to an address in Warminster shortly before midnight on Wednesday to reports that a man had harmed himself and was threatening to hurt others.

Wiltshire Police said a Taser was discharged and the man subsequently died at the scene of the incident.

Paul Mills, assistant chief constable of Wiltshire Police, said: "Police officers attended an address in Warminster shortly before midnight on 26 October 2016 concerning a report of a man at the address who had caused himself significant harm and was threatening further serious harm to himself and others.

"Police officers intervened and Taser was discharged, however sadly, the man subsequently died at the scene.

"Our thoughts and condolences are with his family at this most tragic and difficult time, who are being supported by a specialist officer.

"In line with legislation, Wiltshire Police immediately referred the incident to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

"The IPCC are now conducting an independent investigation into the circumstances and it would therefore not be appropriate for us to make any further comment at this stage.

"It is important now to allow the IPCC time to conduct their independent investigation and not to speculate about what took place.

"The officers involved in the incident have been classified as witnesses by the IPCC at this time and are fully cooperating with the investigation.

"Local officers are meeting with members of the community and increased patrols in the area are ongoing to offer reassurance at this difficult time."
Two children have died after a house fire, police said.

The boy and girl were discovered at the home in the Hamstead area of Birmingham by emergency services in the early hours of Friday.

They were rushed to hospital from the property in Holland Road, but were later pronounced dead, West Midlands Police said.

Detectives have launched a criminal investigation, with a WMP spokesman saying the cause of their deaths was not yet known.

A woman was also treated at the scene but did not suffer a serious injury, he added.

The fire was discovered in the hallway of the house at around 3.40am, police said.

Detective Inspector Justin Spanner said: "The events of this morning remain unclear and we are still trying to piece together the circumstances leading up to what happened.

"This is a terrible incident and my thoughts are with everyone who has been affected.

"If there was anyone in the area in the early hours of this morning who thinks they may be able to help us with our investigation I would urge them to get in touch with my team."

The father of two children who died after a suspected arson attack on their home is critically ill in hospital, police said.

Detective Chief Inspector Martin Slevin, of West Midlands Police, said that their father was later found badly hurt with a burnt-out car in Newcastle-Under-Lyme, Staffordshire.

Speaking from where the children died in Holland Road, Hamstead, he said: "We believe these two incidents are connected and we are not looking for anyone else in connection with the fire here."
A bulldozer is used to remove debris as workmen tear down makeshift shelters during the dismantlement of the camp called the "Jungle" in Calais.

Bulldozers cleared mounds of debris and tore down makeshift shelters at the 'Jungle' migrant camp yesterday, and authorities said 6,000 people had been evacuated from the squalid site.

The Jungle, an overcrowded shanty town, came to symbolise Europe's difficulty in dealing with record inflows of migrants from impoverished and war-torn regions of Africa, the Middle East and Asia, many of them bent on crossing the sea from Calais to Britain.

French President Francois Hollande, facing an election six months from now, decided under local pressure to close the Jungle and relocate its inhabitants in towns and villages throughout the country pending examination of their cases.

"By next Monday, the camp will be no more. It is already gone but the [demolition] job will finished by Monday evening," local government prefect Fabienne Buccio said.

Police patrolled the camp and other parts of Calais, where dozens of migrants were wandering.

Ms Buccio said she wanted to make clear to any would-be new arrivals in the French port that the camp was shut for good and the rehousing exercise finished.

"It is not Calais' role to receive all the migrants of Europe," she said.

There were signs that some migrants might have fled from Calais to Paris to avoid taking part in a government programme to rehouse them and being roped into official processing of asylum requests.

Heloise Mary, working to help migrants at a smaller camp under a bridge in north Paris, said numbers there had suddenly shot up.

"We've gone from 2,000 to 3,000 in two days with the closure of Calais," she said.
People leave flowers at the scene in Byron Avenue in Campsall, South Yorkshire, where the body believed to be that of a 13-year-old boy has been found following a fire in a shed Credit: Anna Gowthorpe/PA Wire

People leave flowers at the scene in Byron Avenue in Campsall, South Yorkshire, where the body believed to be that of a 13-year-old boy has been found following a fire in a shed Credit: Anna Gowthorpe/PA Wire

A private ambulance at the scene in Byron Avenue in Campsall, South Yorkshire, where the body believed to be that of a 13-year-old boy has been found following a fire in a shed Credit: Anna Gowthorpe/PA Wire

A private ambulance at the scene in Byron Avenue in Campsall, South Yorkshire, where the body believed to be that of a 13-year-old boy has been found following a fire in a shed Credit: Anna Gowthorpe/PA Wire

A 13-year-old boy burnt to death in a shed after getting locked in while apparently tinkering around with a petrol engine.

The body of the schoolboy, named locally as Jack Sheldon, was discovered by crews after a blaze at Campsall, South Yorkshire, on Thursday evening.

His great-grandmother Irene Bennett said: "All I know is that he burnt to death in a shed."

Neighbours left flowers outside the property in Byron Avenue as investigators analysed the scene for clues as to how the fire broke out.

Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Flowers tributes at the scene in Byron Avenue in Campsall, South Yorkshire, where the body believed to be that of a 13-year-old boy has been found following a fire in a shed Credit: Anna Gowthorpe/PA Wire Flowers tributes at the scene in Byron Avenue in Campsall, South Yorkshire, where the body believed to be that of a 13-year-old boy has been found following a fire in a shed Credit: Anna Gowthorpe/PA Wire Flowers tributes at the scene in Byron Avenue in Campsall, South Yorkshire, where the body believed to be that of a 13-year-old boy has been found following a fire in a shed Credit: Anna Gowthorpe/PA Wire Flowers tributes at the scene in Byron Avenue in Campsall, South Yorkshire, where the body believed to be that of a 13-year-old boy has been found following a fire in a shed Credit: Anna Gowthorpe/PA Wire / Facebook

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Whatsapp Flowers tributes at the scene in Byron Avenue in Campsall, South Yorkshire, where the body believed to be that of a 13-year-old boy has been found following a fire in a shed Credit: Anna Gowthorpe/PA Wire

Among the tributes was one saying: "We all loved Jack, he was a great lad. We're going to miss him."

Another read: "RIP Jack, gone but not forgotten. Can't believe it was only yesterday that I saw you.

"It seems so unreal. You were taken far too soon but God only takes the best."

Others read: "We are all thinking of you, there are no words that can be spoken" and "Thinking of you at this sad time, you will be missed".

South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said neighbours were attempting to tackle the blaze as emergency calls were made at around 8.30pm.

Police said after the flames were extinguished a body was found, which they believed to be that of a teenage boy, at the property in the village seven miles (11km) from Doncaster.

Formal identification of the body has yet to take place.

Simon Dunker, from South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service, said the investigation was in its early days but would "cover every avenue".

He said: "On arrival we found a shed well alight and proceeded to extinguish the fire. At that time is when we discovered there had been a fatality within the shed.

"(The investigation) is a slow process.

"South Yorkshire Police are working extremely closely with the family. We would like to express our condolences to the family at this tragic event."

Former Labour leader and current MP for Doncaster North Ed Miliband tweeted: "Very saddened by the news from Campsall about the death of a young boy. All my thoughts with his family."

Doncaster Mayor Ros Jones said: "I am deeply saddened to hear of the death of a young boy in Campsall last night. My thoughts and prayers are with his family."
The tax would apply to property owners making more than 23,000 euros per year by renting properties in Paris and elsewhere in France

French lawmakers have backed a proposal to increase taxes on people renting their homes, cars and other goods on the internet when their earnings exceed a certain amount.

The measure would see people using Airbnb and similar websites become subject to the same tax as professional services like hotels and car rental companies.

It would apply on property owners making more than 23,000 euros (20,000) per year by renting their apartment or house, and on people making more than 7,720 euros (6,940) per year by renting their car or other items.

The measure would not apply to Uber drivers, who are already supposed to declare their earnings as professionals.

Lawmakers want to restore some "equity" between occasional renters and professional ones, who often suffer from the competition.

The measure, approved by the lower house of parliament, will be discussed by the Senate in coming weeks.
Hungary's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto says it is inadmissible that Ukraine has not yet been granted visa-free travel to the European Union.

"We consider it inadmissible that the European Union has not provided a visa-free regime for Ukraine yet," he said at a joint press conference with his Ukrainian counterpart Pavlo Klimkin in Kyiv on Friday.

Ukraine has fulfilled all conditions necessary for the visa waiver, and such a position taken by the European Union is "unsportsmanlike and non-European," he said.

He pledged Hungary would continue supporting Ukraine in European integration.

Klimkin in turn thanked his counterpart for this consistent support of Ukraine.
Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte has been compared to Donald Trump because of his brash language (AP)

The Philippine president, who once called the pope a "son of a bitch" and told Barack Obama to "go to hell", says he has promised to God he will not use expletives again.

President Rodrigo Duterte's profanities have become his trademark, especially when threatening to kill drug dealers as part of his war on illegal drugs that has left thousands dead since he took office at the end of June.

Mr Duterte made the pledge on arrival in his southern home town of Davao city from a trip to Japan.

While flying home, he said he was looking at the sky while everyone was asleep, some snoring, and he heard a voice that said "'if you don't stop epithets, I will bring this plane down now".

"And I said, 'Who is this?' So, of course, 'it's God'," he said.

"So, I promise God to ... not express slang, swear words and everything. So you guys hear me right always because (a) promise to God is a promise to the Filipino people."

Mr Duterte's vow was met with applause, but he cautioned: "Don't clap too much or else this may get derailed."

He shocked Roman Catholics last year when he fired off an expletive while expressing his disgust over a monstrous traffic jam that trapped him while Pope Francis was visiting Manila.

"I wanted to call. 'Pope, you son of a bitch, go home.' Don't visit here anymore," he told a mob of supporters, some of whom laughed.

He later apologised after Filipino bishops expressed shock and outrage.

It is not certain if the 71-year-old president, who has been compared to US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump because of his brash language, can keep his promise.

Mr Duterte made a similar pledge in June when it became evident that he had won the May 9 presidential elections overwhelmingly on a pledge to end crimes, especially illegal drugs, and corruption.

He said then that he was enjoying his last moments as a "rude person" because "when I become president, when I take my oath of office ... that will be a different story. There will be a metamorphosis".

It did not take long for Mr Duterte to break the promise.

He has repeatedly levelled tirades against Mr Obama, UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon, a few outspoken opposition politicians and human rights advocates, while heaping praise on Chinese and Russian leaders.

There were no expletives in his speech late on Thursday, but Mr Duterte still sounded mean towards critics.

When asked for his message for a Filipino beauty queen who won the recent Miss International pageant, Mr Duterte said he was proud.

"Many Filipinas are beautiful, but all of you there in the human rights commission are ugly," he added.

Asked if the days of his swearing at the US and the EU are over, Mr Duterte did not answer clearly.

"I do not want anybody reading my mind because I couldn't make a smart move anymore. But it's all calibrated, it's all about timing," Mr Duterte said.

AP
A man changed his name to secure an iPhone 7

A Ukrainian man has officially changed his name to iPhone 7 after an electronics store offered the latest Apple product to the first five people who do that.

The 20-year old iPhone Sim (Seven) got the coveted prize Friday. He said he might change it back to his original name, Olexander Turin, when he has children.

The price of phone starts at 850 US dollars (697) in Ukraine, while the name changes costs the equivalent of 2 dollars (1.60).

Sim's friends and family were shocked at first but eventually supported the idea.

His sister, Tetyana Panina, said "it was difficult to accept that and hard to believe it's true".

She added: "Each person in this world is looking for a way to express himself. Why not do that in this way?"

AP
A child holds a placard during a demonstration urging the British government to intervene in the bombing of Aleppo, outside Downing Street, London

The head of the UN's humanitarian office has launched a searing attack on Russia and Syria for the continued bombardment of Aleppo, telling the Security Council he was "incandescent with rage" about the diplomatic stalemate, and sparking one of the most stormy and confrontational UN meetings of recent times.

Stephen O'Brien, head of the Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), told the 15-member body that "the buck stops with you" - drawing parallels with Srebrenica, Cambodia and Rwanda. "Month after month, worse and worse, and nothing is actually happening to stop the war, stop the suffering," he said.

And he despaired at the Russian vetoing of a succession of resolutions, noting how "selfish, inhuman interests have trumped the moral and humanitarian imperative".

Blankets are in such short supply that people are huddling in body bags to keep warm, he said. In eastern Aleppo, 100,000 children cower in basements.

Since his last update a month ago, he said that 400 people have died in the bombings, and six tonnes of medical equipment has been prevented from entering the city. He added: "What happened to 'never again'? What happened to our commitment to protect the most vulnerable, those who face mass atrocities?

"It is in your hands today to take the right path, and avert this looming irreversible tragedy of our time."

He said that leaflets are being dropped on eastern Aleppo by Syrian and Russian aircraft, warning residents: "This is your last hope. Save yourselves. If you do not leave these areas urgently, you will be annihilated. You know that everyone has given up on you. They left you alone to face your doom and nobody will give you any help."

Mr O'Brien, who used the meeting to catalogue the misery and wretchedness of the thousands of trapped civilians, said Syria and Russia were determined to wipe out the population of Aleppo.

"It is clear that the aircraft which drop the bombs, the generals who give the orders, and the politicians who have designed the strategy intend to make good on that horrific promise," he added.

The Russian ambassador to the UN, Vitaly Churkin, reacted with fury to Mr O'Brien's statement, accusing him of arrogance and dishonesty. His comments, he said, were fabrication and should be "put in a novel", adding: "If we needed to be preached to, we would go to a church."

But the rest of the Security Council turned on Mr Churkin. Samantha Power, the US ambassador to the UN, supported Mr O'Brien, while the Ukrainian ambassador said Mr Churkin was "living in a parallel universe".

"Does Russia believe that all the children who are being killed in eastern Aleppo are themselves al-Qa'ida members?" asked Ms Power, who said she had not intended to speak, but was so enraged at Mr Churkin's remarks that she felt she had to.

"Is that what happens - you come out of the womb and you're an al-Qa'ida member right from the beginning? Of course Russia can't condemn the shelling and the bombardment of eastern Aleppo, because Russia's carrying out the systematic bombardment of eastern Aleppo."

Matthew Rycroft, the British ambassador, said: "The UK will support any effort to stop the bombing and any draft resolution." ( Daily Telegraph, London)

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
Smoke rises after an American Airlines jet (background) blew a tire, sparking a fire and prompting the pilot to abort takeoff before passengers were evacuated from the plane via emergency chute, at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., in this still image taken from video October 28, 2016. Courtesy of Robocast.com/Handout via REUTERS.

Soot covers the fuselage of an American Airlines jet that blew a tire, sparking a fire and prompting the pilot to abort takeoff before passengers were evacuated from the plane via emergency chute, at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, Illinois, U.S.October 28, 2016. REUTERS/Jim Young

Seven passengers and a flight attendant reported minor injuries after an American Airlines aircraft caught fire and passengers were evacuated onto the runway at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.

American Airlines spokeswoman Leslie Scott said the injured were taken to a hospital to be evaluated.

Ms Scott said Flight 383, a Boeing 767 bound for Miami, aborted a take-off due to an engine-related mechanical issue.

The 161 passengers and nine crew members were evacuated and buses took them to an airport terminal. Ms Scott said passengers will be placed on another flight to Miami tonight.

Television reports showed a large plume of black smoke coming from the airliner, which appeared to be damaged at its rear. Evacuation chutes extended from the plane with emergency vehicles surrounding the aircraft.

The Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement that while the Boeing 767 was taking off around 2.35pm, the pilots reported that the aircraft blew a tyre and they aborted the take-off.

National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Keith Holloway said the board will conduct an investigation into the incident, with investigators expected to arrive on the scene later tonight.
First lady Michelle Obama and U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton wave after a campaign rally in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S. October 27, 2016. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and first lady Michelle Obama hug during a campaign rally in Winston-Salem, N.C., Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, accompanied by first lady Michelle Obama, left, speaks at a rally at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C., Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, accompanied by first lady Michelle Obama, takes the stage at a rally at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C., Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks as first lady Michelle Obama listens during a campaign rally in Winston-Salem, N.C., Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, accompanied by first lady Michelle Obama, greet supporters during a campaign rally in Winston-Salem, N.C., Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton pose for a picture with supporters after a campaign rally in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, October 27, 2016. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, accompanied by first lady Michelle Obama, speaks during a campaign rally in Winston-Salem, N.C., Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

First lady Michelle Obama speaks during a campaign rally for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in Winston-Salem, N.C., Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, accompanied by first lady Michelle Obama, speaks at a rally at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C., Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

Supporters listen an speech by U.S. first lady Michelle Obama during a campaign rally in support of U.S. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S., October 27, 2016. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

Supporters touch U.S. first lady Michelle Obama hand after she delivers a speech during a campaign rally in support of U.S. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S., October 27, 2016. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is hugged by first lady Michelle Obama during a campaign rally in Winston-Salem, N.C., Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton reacts as she leaves a campaign rally accompanied by U.S. first lady Michelle Obama in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S., October 27, 2016. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton (L) arrives to a campaign rally accompanied by U.S. first lady Michelle Obama in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S., October 27, 2016. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, accompanied by First Lady Michelle Obama, left, speaks at a rally at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, left, and US first lady Michelle Obama, right, greet supporters during a campaign event at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images

Michelle Obama warned Democrats to turn out to vote in an election that could be decided "on a razor's edge", as she joined forces with Hillary Clinton on the campaign trail for the first time yesterday.

There are fears in the Clinton campaign that recent polls putting Mr Trump significantly behind could lead to complacency among Democrats, who may not turn out on election day.

It came as Mrs Clinton's campaign was dealt a blow by new revelations about her charitable foundation.

Speaking at an event in North Carolina, Mrs Obama, who has proved one of Mrs Clinton's most valuable assets in the last few weeks of her campaign, also warned against "protest votes" in what she said was an "unprecedented election". She reminded her audience that her husband had lost the state in 2012 by just a few votes.

"That's how presidential elections go, they are decided on a razor's edge, so each of you in this stadium could swing an entire precinct and win this election for Hillary just by getting yourselves, your friends and family out to vote," the First Lady said.

"If Hillary doesn't win this election, that will be on us."

Expand Close U.S. first lady Michelle Obama speaks during a campaign rally in support of U.S. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S., October 27, 2016. REUTERS/Carlos Barria / Facebook

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Whatsapp U.S. first lady Michelle Obama speaks during a campaign rally in support of U.S. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S., October 27, 2016. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

One poll this week put Mrs Clinton 14 points ahead of her rival Donald Trump, who has been dogged by sexual assault claims in the last few weeks of the campaign. Her lead is 5.7 points in an aggregate of recent polls from Real Clear Politics.

Yesterday Mrs Clinton faced new questions as it emerged her top aides had major concerns about how the handling of donations to the Clinton Foundation could affect her political career.

Newly released emails disclose that a senior executive at the charity secured tens of millions of dollars in speaking fees for Bill Clinton while simultaneously raising donations from the same groups.

Mrs Clinton's aides were concerned that the arrangement would prove controversial and harm her soon-to-be-launched presidential bid. "She created this mess and she knows it," Huma Abedin, an aide, wrote in January 2015.

A 2011 memo, attached to one of the thousands of emails stolen from John Podesta, Mrs Clinton's campaign chairman, and published by WikiLeaks, shows that an aide to Mr Clinton was working simultaneously to raise money for the foundation and arrange paid speeches for Mr Clinton.

Doug Band discussed in the memo his efforts to convince large corporations to donate to the foundation, and to hire Mr Clinton for paid speeches.

UBS, for example, donated $600,000 (550,000) and paid Mr Clinton $900,000 for speaking engagements, according to Mr Band's memo. The former president was paid $132m for speaking engagements between 2001 and 2015, pocketing an average of $207,255 per speech. Mr Band claims in the memo to have arranged $50m in past speeches and $66m more in potential future engagements.

There are no indications that anything illegal took place. However, Mr Clinton and his aides have been accused of failing to clearly delineate between his pro-bono work for the foundation and his for-profit activities.

Mr Trump criticised Mrs Clinton during a rally in Ohio yesterday. "If the Clintons were willing to play this fast and loose with their enterprise when they weren't in the White House, just imagine what they'll do if given the chance to once again control the Oval Office," he said.

Meanwhile, the Halloween festivities in the US have taken on a more political persuasion, with pumpkins featuring the face of Mr Trump, or 'Trumpkins', cropping up in windows, and shops selling out of Donald, Hillary and Bill costumes.

In the Eighties thousands of Americans dressed as the Reagans, while Mr Clinton - and his women - dominated the Nineties and may again this year.

The Washington Post has published a list of suggestions, including Trump's wall, Putin and his horse, a 'Nasty Woman' and Kanye 2020. ( Daily Telegraph London)

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The court has ruled to detain an employee of bank Finance and Credit (Kyiv) implicated in the illicit removal of over UAH 1 billion worth of the assets from the bank with an UAH 41.34 million bail option, Ukrainian Prosecutor General Yuriy Lutsenko has said.

He said on Facebook on Thursday that Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) jointly with the National Police and Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) revealed officials of bank Finance and Credit who using nonresidents, including an offshore company the ultimate beneficiary of which is the former assistant to a lawmaker, illegally removed over UAH 1 billion worth of the bank's assets.

"Today [on Thursday] one of the participants of the criminal group  O.Demchenko  was informed that he is suspected of committing a crime under Part 3 of Article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine [misappropriation, embezzlement or conversion of property by abuse of official post committed by a group of person upon their prior conspiracy]. These actions shall be punishable by restraint of liberty for a term of up to 12 years with confiscation of property," Lutsenko said.

The PGO's press service said that during the pretrial investigation it was established that officials of bank Finance and Credit colluded with other persons and signed a surety agreement with nonresidents (one banks was located in Austria). Some $53.7 million was sent to the bank's correspondent accounts, which were used as a guarantee by the Ukrainian bank guarantor to cover risky activities of the offshore company registered in Cyprus. The funds were lost after signing the fraudulent financial deals and reporting them. The bank and its depositors incurred significant losses as a result.

At present, an investigation is underway, the press service said.
Ms Bradshaw's home where she was found in the basement with defensive wounds and bite marks (Photo: Google Maps)

A 68-year-old woman is believed to have been mauled to death by her pet dogs in the US.

Daisie Bradshaw's body was found in her basement by her daughter, who called emergency services telling them a pair of German shepherds could have eaten her mother.

New York Police Department (NYPD) said officers responding to the call in Staten Island found Ms Bradshaw beaten, bruised and unresponsive. She was declared dead at the scene, reports Inside Edition.

Two dogs were found in the basement and her body shows defensive wounds and bite marks, NYPD confirms.

A Police Emergency Service Unit took the dogs away from the scene after sedating them.

The New York medical examiner is to determine the official cause of death while the investigation into the fatal incident is ongoing.

In August, a three-year-old boy from Halstead in Essex died after being bitten by a dog.

A few days earlier, a man in his fifties in West Yorkshire was attacked by a dog and died from his injuries.
Julian Assange is wanted for questioning over a rape allegation stemming from a 2010 visit to Sweden

Swedish authorities have turned down a request from Julian Assange to leave the Ecuadorean embassy in London without being detained to attend a funeral.

The Prosecution Authority said in a statement that nothing in Swedish legislation permits exceptions.

It is not clear which funeral the WikiLeaks founder wanted to attend.

The 45-year-old Australian computer hacker is wanted for questioning over a rape allegation stemming from a 2010 visit to Sweden.

He denies the accusation, and fears being extradited to the US to face espionage charges if he leaves the embassy, where he has been holed up for four years, to return to Sweden.

AP
The Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov on its way to reinforce the attack on the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo

Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov and Syrian counterpart Walid al-Moallem after their meeting in Moscow (AP)

Fierce fighting has broken out around the northern Syrian city of Aleppo after rebels launched a large-scale offensive to break the government's nearly two-month siege of opposition-held areas.

A reporter inside the city with Lebanon-based Al-Mayadeen TV reported attacks on "all sides" of the city, "from the furthest points north to furthest south".

Heavy gunfire, mortar fire and explosions were heard in the background of his broadcast, and dark smoke was seen rising above the city. Presumed government or Russian jets were also heard flying overhead.

The Syrian army said in a statement that troops had repelled rebel attacks on all fronts and inflicted human losses among the attackers.

The latest attack began with rebels detonating three vehicle-borne explosives at government positions to the city's south west and attacking with hundreds of rockets, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

It said at least one of the vehicles was driven by a suicide bomber from the al Qaida-linked Fatah al-Sham Front, which had announced the offensive.

The Observatory said at least 15 civilians were killed in the rebel bombardment, and more than 100 wounded .

Syrian state media said pro-government forces had repelled the rebel attack as well as a militant attack by the Islamic State group near the city.

The Sana news agency reported that the military and allied militias thwarted assaults on several fronts around government-controlled western districts of the city, while also repelling an IS assault on an air force academy to the east.

"The Syrian army and its allies are in control on the ground and armed groups were not able to change the map," the army statement said. "Fighting is still ongoing but the intensity dropped."

This is the second attempt by rebels to break the government's siege. They opened a corridor to the east in August after pro-government forces applied a blockade in July, but government forces reinstated the siege in early September.

Fatah-al-Sham claimed credit for two car bombs, saying in a statement that a "martyrdom-seeking fighter" from France drove a tank laden with explosives and parked it near government positions then detonated it from a distance.

A spokesman said the Frenchman then drove another tank into the same place and detonated himself .

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed that a Frenchman carried out a suicide attack.

Fatah-al-Sham said a suicide car bomb attack was also carried out west of Aleppo.

The Islamic Front rebel coalition announced on Twitter that the ultra-conservative Ahrar al-Sham group had targeted a military airport to the east of the city with Grad rockets and destroyed a government position to the west of the city.

Ammar Sakkar, military spokesman for the powerful Fastaqim faction inside the city, said "all the revolutionary factions, without exception, are participating in the battle".

He said hundreds of advance fighters were involved, adding that the total number of participants was "much higher".

Sana said seven civilians had been killed by rebel shelling on government-controlled areas, and 70 others injured.

The battle came as the Russian, Syrian and Iranian foreign ministers met in Moscow.

Iran and Russia are president Bashar Assad's main backers and have committed air power, ground forces and military advisers to the war.

The government has maintained a siege on the rebel-held eastern quarters of Aleppo since September, and the UN estimates 275,000 people are trapped inside with dwindling supplies of food and medicine.

Russia's Sergey Lavrov said the three countries had agreed to intensify the fight against terrorism in Syria after his meeting with Syrian counterpart Walid al-Moallem and Iran's Javad Zarif.

Mr Lavrov said at a news conference that the fight would come in parallel with efforts to improve humanitarian aid.

He also reiterated Russian denials that its planes were responsible for an attack on a school in Idlib province that the UN children's agency said killed 22 children and six teachers.

Mr al-Moallem said government forces could agree to another cessation of fighting around Aleppo, but only if it receives guarantees from rebel forces that civilians would be allowed to leave the city.

Meanwhile a spokesman for Vladimir Putin said the Russian president had rejected a military request for the resumption of air strikes on rebel positions in Aleppo.

Dmitry Peskov said Mr Putin considers it "inadvisable to resume air strikes" and wants to have humanitarian corridors out of Aleppo's rebel-held districts stay open both for rebels and civilians to leave the city.

Mr Peskov noted that the "humanitarian pause" will give Washington time to honour its pledge to separate moderate rebels from al Qaida-linked militants in eastern Aleppo.

AP
There are 480 cases of missing persons registered by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), persons missing both in areas of Donbas controlled by Ukraine and in areas not controlled by Kyiv. Under the ICRC auspices, more than 500 missing people have been found during the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

At a briefing in Kyiv on Wednesday, ICRC official speaker Sanela Bajrambasic said it had launched an information campaign in Ukraine to attract people's attention to the work of the organization to search for missing persons as a result of the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

According to her, the purpose of a sort of educational action is to tell people that they can contact the offices of the ICRC with information on a missing person.

Bajrambasic said the ICRC is not directly engaged in search. She said it is the sole responsibility of the authorities and law enforcement agencies. She also said that the ICRC is working with both parties of the conflict, performing exclusively a humanitarian mission and acting in conditions of confidentiality.

"In Ukraine, as you know, there is no a general list of missing people now. Our task is to make sure as many people as possible, whose relatives are missing, to contact us ... So that we can create a list of people who have disappeared as a result of the conflict in Donbas, and after that we will be able to solve this problem," she said.

In turn, the ICRC head on the search for missing persons project, Fabien Bourdieu said that the Committee receives requests from people, processes the data and generates a list of missing people. It then sends it to the authorities of the territory in which the people disappeared.

Also, he said, the ICRC is providing psychological and material assistance.

"Today we have 480 active cases. These cases are being processed. They do not concern people who have already been found, but those whom we continue to look for," he said.

"They include both military and civilian persons. Of these cases, 97% of people are men, 55% are civilians," he said.

The head of the ICRC project on missing persons said that ICRC representatives are working on both sides of the demarcation line. They communicate with representatives of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics.

"All the information that we collect is confidential," he said. "As of today, nearly a thousand cases have been registered. More than 500 cases have been closed. These are the cases when the persons have been found," he said.
The Rowan County Sheriffs Office arrested an employee with the N.C. Department of Corrections-Piedmont for involvement in a heroin trafficking operation.

On Thursday, Oct. 27, deputies arrested Tasha Renee Redmond, 35, for multiple drug charges connected to a search warrant served at her residence, 130 Vista Drive in Salisbury, on Thursday, Oct. 20.

Redmond, a 12-year employee and sergeant with the N.C. Department of Corrections-Piedmont Correctional, was charged with felonious maintaining a dwelling, possession of heroin and possession of marijuana.

During the search of the residence, investigators with the Rowan County Sheriffs Office, Salisbury Police Department and U.S. Department of Homeland Security discovered approximately 1 gram of suspected heroin, around 21 grams of dab (marijuana), three handguns, ammunition, $5,700 in United States currency and drug paraphernalia. Redmonds bond was set at $4,000 secured.

Prior to the execution of the search warrant at 130 Vista Drive, investigators had stopped Jarvis Lamont Pate, aka Star, 35, in a vehicle on Webb Road in Salisbury. Pate was found in possession of 12 grams of heroin and 21 grams of marijuana. Pate also lived at 130 Vista Drive with Redmond and had a lengthy criminal history, including four convictions for drugs, one for voluntary manslaughter and one for felony restraint.

Simultaneous with Pates traffic stop, investigators searched the residence of Kimberly Michelle Guske, 37, of 5110 Old Concord Road in Salisbury. During the search, investigators discovered 3 grams of methamphetamine ice, scales and other drug paraphernalia, including used and unused needles consistent with intravenous drug use.

Pate and Guske, who were already in the Rowan County Detention Center, were given additional charges related to the incident on Oct. 20. Pate was charged with one count of conspiracy to traffick heroin by possession and is awaiting service. Guske was charged with conspiracy to traffick heroin by possession and possession of methamphetamine. Guske was placed under an additional $50,000 bond.

The investigation is ongoing, and other charges are possible.
We keep hearing about a recession (and my 401K keeps dropping) but around Cabarrus County building keeps going and there doesnt appear to be 
Really? Was the media listening to the same presidential debate that I watched? After listening to Mr. Trump expound on the possibility of voter fraud and fixed elections, his response to the question of whether he would support the outcome of the election was totally appropriate for him.

Even Al Gore did not concede until after all of the hanging chads had been accounted for. And that was exactly what Mr. Trump said in his answer. The real problem here is how the media translated that response, completely out of context to the debate. Be careful what you take as fact from the media.
Suzlon Energy board approves allotment of 240 crore partly paid-up equity shares under rights issue Suzlon Energy Limited has informed that the Securities Issue Committee of the Board at its meeting held on October 31, 2022 has approved the allotment of 240,00,00,000 (Two Hundred Forty C... November 01, 2022 | 3:10 pm

Markets in green; Nifty 50 around 18,100 level; IT stocks outperform Domestic benchmark indices in the fast lane today led by IT and Metal stocks outperforming. Both the Sensex and Nifty benchmarks were marginally higher amid positive cues from Asian market. ... November 01, 2022 | 2:00 pm

SSWL achieves revenue growth of 11% yoy in October 2022 Steel Strips Wheels Ltd (SSWL) has achieved Net turnover of Rs334.42 crore in October 2022 Vs Rs300.58 crore in October 2021, recording a growth of 11% yoy and achieved Gross t... November 01, 2022 | 1:07 pm

ABB India unveils its first smart instrumentation factory in Bangalore; Stock zooms 3.5% ABB India has announced that ABB Measurement & Analytics recently opened its first smart instrumentation factory in Bangalore, India, to support the regions ambition of transforming... November 01, 2022 | 12:40 pm

MG Motor India October sales up y-o-y by 53% On Tuesday, MG Motor India reported a 53% increase in retail sales, totaling 4,367 units, for October 2022. According to a statement from MG Motor India, the business sold 2,863 vehicles during... November 01, 2022 | 12:36 pm
Head of Petro Poroshenko Bloc faction declares paintings, old books, $210,000 in cash

Head of Petro Poroshenko Bloc in Verkhovna Rada Ihor Hryniv has filed e-declaration and declared a house and four land parcels in Kyiv region and $210,000 in cash and UAH 300,000 in a bank.

According to his declaration, Hryniv owns a house of 577.8 square meters and four land parcels (3,950, 1,250, 2,690 and 2,500 square meters) in Tatsenky of Obukhiv district of Kyiv region. His wife owns an apartment in Kyiv with gross area of 145.5 square meters since 2014.

Hryniv has Lexus RX 400 car made in 2006. He rents Audi Q7 made in 2015 from a third person and LEXUS RX 330 made in 2004 was stolen. His wife owns BMW X1 made in 2010.

He also declared nine paintings and two old books: Apostle (1574, Lviv) and Bible (1581, Ostroh).

He has eight icons in joint ownership with his wife (50% to 50%).

The politician declared Vacheron Constantin Patrimony watch.

Hryniv had UAH 77,400 of lawmaker's salary in 2015, UAH 80,600 as financing of lawmakers' activities and UAH 500,000 was received from sale of movable property.

His wife has $30,000 in cash.
Films, literature and music have an interesting way of reflecting the culture of the time. Films, in particular those that have stood the test of time, seem to create a unique imprint on our collective consciousness.

In 1988, a young filmmaker named Shelton Jackson Spike Lee did just that with his second feature, School Daze.

School Daze follows the story of Mission College (an imaginary HBCU) students during a very eventful homecoming weekend. Half Pint, played by Lee, wants nothing more than to join the illustrious ranks of Gamma Phi Gamma, the most popular fraternity on campus. His membership intake process and the events surrounding it helped highlight several issues in the Black community such as colorism, elitism and misogyny.

The movie received a mixed reception.

Administrators at various Black institutions of higher learning were a little less than complimentary. Many of them felt the film depicted HBCUs in a negative light. In fact, during production, Lee and his film crew were kicked off the campuses of Morehouse, Spelman and Clark Atlanta.

Despite the drama, the late Roger Ebert said, There is no doubt in my mind that School Daze, in its own way, is one of the most honest and revealing movies Ive ever seen about modern middle-class black life in America.

Demarco Plays, a touring theater outfit founded by Antwan Demarco, is bringing all the action and drama to the stage in a theatrical presentation of the film titled School Daze: The Musical.

Tijideen TJ Rowley, the plays director, said the production has been in the works for quite a while. During an impromptu meeting, the idea was thrown around to create a stage adaptation of the film, and after seven to eight months of planning, the team got to work. I think it came at the perfect time, he said. I think it addresses a lot of pertinent things happening in our city, so its kind of a godsend. Rowley shared the tension between Greeks and those without fraternal associations depicted in the movie are similar to the intraracial violence we experience today. Whether its over a street, or colors  you have the same situation with G Phi G and Daps crew. All in all, theyre all Black, theyre all Black men who, in essence, want the same things.

The large cast of almost 60 actors, dancers and musicians includes Dutchez Duvall, who captivated audiences as Shug Avery in Joyce Licorishs production of The Color Purple, as Gamma Ray queen, Jane Toussaint (originally portrayed by Tisha Campbell) and newcomer Marcus Elliott in the role of Half Pint.

Elliott, who is a comedian by trade, shared that it was tough to take his self-professed smooth persona down a few notches for this role. Half Pint is trying to fit in. Its hard for him. For me, bringing this role to life had its challenges at first, he said. The more and more I got into it, it became easier.

The production will stay true to Spike Lees musical vision with lots of dance performances, singing and things to get the crowd involved as well.

Rowley said that the show will not disappoint. Its an awesome cast. I really think that it has layers of different messages that our community needs to hear. We always bring it with Demarco Plays and this, because of the weight it carries as a classic, has been one of our more challenging productions, he said. We always aim to entertain at the utmost  come out, be inspired and enjoy it.

Get your School Daze tickets

Demarco Plays Presents: School Daze: The Musical

WHEN: Oct. 2830

WHERE: Dr. Andrew J. Brown Academy, 3600 N. German Church Road

TICKETS: $25

Visit demarcoplays.com to purchase tickets and see showtimes.
Previous academic research has found that having greater control over your job can help you manage work-related stress. But its never suggested that it was a matter of life and death  until now.

New research from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business finds that those in high-stress jobs with little control over their workflow die younger or are less healthy than those who have more flexibility and discretion in their jobs and are able to set their own goals as part of their employment.

Using a longitudinal sample of 2,363 Wisconsin residents in their 60s over a seven-year period, they found that for individuals in low-control jobs, high job demands are associated with a 15.4 percent increase in the likelihood of death, compared to low job demands. For those in high-control jobs, high job demands are associated with a 34 percent decrease in the likelihood of death compared to low job demands.

We explored job demands, or the amount of work, time pressure and concentration demands of a job, and job control, or the amount of discretion one has over making decisions at work, as joint predictors of death, said Erik Gonzalez-Mule, assistant professor of organizational behavior and human resources at the Kelley School and the papers lead author.

These findings suggest that stressful jobs have clear negative consequences for employee health when paired with low freedom in decision-making, while stressful jobs can actually be beneficial to employee health if also paired with freedom in decision-making.

The paper, Worked to Death: The Relationships of Job Demands and Job Control With Mortality, has been accepted for publication in the journal Personnel Psychology. His co-author is Bethany Cockburn, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Iowas Tippie College of Business.

Studies exploring the work factors associated with death are largely absent from the organizational psychology and management literatures. The authors believe theirs is the first study in the management and applied psychology fields to examine the relationship between job characteristics and mortality.

Gonzalez-Mule said the papers results do not suggest that employers necessarily need to cut back on what is expected from employees. Rather, they demonstrate the value in restructuring some jobs to provide employees with more say about how the work gets done.

You can avoid the negative health consequences if you allow them to set their own goals, set their own schedules, prioritize their decision-making and the like, he said, also recommending that firms allow employees to have a voice in the goal-setting process, so when youre telling someone what theyre going to do  its more of a two-way conversation.

Thus, micro-managing employees can have a public health impact. Among people in the studys sample, the researchers also found that the same set of causal relationships applied to their body mass index. People in high-demand jobs with low control were heavier than those in high-demand jobs with high control.

When you dont have the necessary resources to deal with a demanding job, you do this other stuff, Gonzalez-Mule said. You might eat more, you might smoke, you might engage in some of these things to cope with it.

Cancer research studies have found a correlation between eating poorly and developing the disease; at 55 percent, cancer was the leading cause of death of those in the papers sample. Other leading causes of death were circulatory system ailments, 22 percent; and respiratory system ailments, 8 percent.

The paper provides more reasons for those in stressful, dead-end jobs to refresh their resumes and look for other employment. Twenty-six percent of deaths occurred in people in frontline service jobs, and 32 percent of deaths occurred in people with manufacturing jobs who also reported high job demands and low control.

What we found is that those people that are in entry-level service jobs and construction jobs have pretty high death rates, more so than people in professional jobs and office positions, he said. Interestingly, we found a really low rate of death among agricultural workers.

Gonzalez-Mule said the new study highlights the benefits of job crafting, a relatively new process that enables employees to mold and redesign their job to make it more meaningful. Other research suggests that workers who engage in job crafting are happier and are more productive than co-workers who dont.

In some settings, it will be difficult to do this. For a construction worker, its going to be really hard to allow them autonomy; theres usually just one right way to do things. In jobs like that, its more about just warning the employee of the risks that are here, he said. But with some blue-collar jobs, you can. Some people have experimented with this in factory settings, using things like flextime and paying people based on piece-rate  showing employees what the outcome is of their work.

Theres a lot research that shows that people who have a social connection with the beneficiaries of their work are much more satisfied and have less stress in their jobs, with no change in the job itself.

Their study also found that people with a higher degree of control over their work tend to find stress to be useful.

Stressful jobs cause you to find ways to problem-solve and work through ways to get the work done. Having higher control gives you the resources you need to do that, Gonzalez-Mule said. A stressful job then, instead of being something debilitating, can be something thats energizing. Youre able to set your own goals; youre able to prioritize work. You can go about deciding how youre going to get it done. That stress then becomes something you enjoy.

Data in the study was obtained from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study, which followed more than 10,000 people who graduated from Wisconsin high schools in 1957. They were interviewed at various time intervals over their lives, through 2011, to provide data on educational, occupational and emotional experiences. All participants in the study were employed but near the end of their careers.

Gonzalez-Mule and Cockburn only included those who were not retired in 2004 and who responded to questions about job demands and job control, and then followed up on their responses to questions in 2011. They employed rigorous controls for factors such as demographic characteristics, socioeconomic status and affect.

Gonzalez-Mule wonders if younger workers are better able to cope with demanding jobs, regardless of the level of control, than workers at the end of their careers. Future research could follow people at an earlier point in their careers to see if the Job Demands-Control Model accurately predicts strain over time.
In the African tradition, storytelling has been the medium through which much of our communal history has been preserved. In times when there was no physical documentation  due to lack of resource, in some cases, or intellectual oppression, in others  the spoken word was how we knew what happened before.

Next Saturday, Nov. 5, Riverside residents and others will gather at Ebenezer Baptist Church for Riverside Speaks! Past, Present and Future. The event, a part of the 2016 Spirit and Place Festival, will feature live dance performances, spoken word, a virtual tour of a recently rehabbed home (courtesy of Insight Development Corporation) and storytelling by people associated with the neighborhoods past and present. Some of the presenters will include members of Ebenezer Baptist Church; David Williams, author of Indianapolis Jazz: The Masters, Legends and Legacy of Indiana Avenue; Kisha Tandy, associate curator with the Indiana State Museum; and Thomas Ridley, lead docent of the Madame Walker Theatre Center.

Yvonne Hayes, a member of Ebenezer Baptist Church and longtime Riverside community member, has fond memories of the place she calls home. Her family moved to the area in 1959, when she was 9 years old, and lived at Herschell Avenue, right down the street from the then-segregated Riverside Park. When the park did finally open its doors to African-Americans, Hayes recalls it being a hangout spot for teens. When I had little boyfriends, when I was 18 or 19, we would meet over there and ride the little rickety roller coasters and Ferris wheel, she said. I just remember everybody knowing everybody. People kept up their property and had a lot of pride.

One driving force behind that pride, according to Hayes, was a Mrs. Helen Clay, who spearheaded a neighborhood cleanup initiative. She was no-nonsense, but she was a sweetheart. She led the Clean Up, Paint Up, Fix Up parade. We would clean the neighborhood and alleyways and each year a queen of the parade would be crowned. I think one year I was the queen, said Hayes.

We would ride all around the neighborhood. It was fun  we had teamwork, and it was just a bunch of us. It was a neighborhood thing. It was just nice. When Hayes wasnt performing her royal duties, she would play kickball with friends in the alley and visit Freijes Pharmacy, where her grandfather worked for a nickel soda and chips. Hayes first job, at Charms Cleaners, was right across the street.

In the early 1980s, Hayes left Indianapolis for nearly three decades with her job at AT&T. She moved back home afterwards to take care of her mother. The two still live in Riverside, though things have drastically changed.

Thats the main thing  pride. I dont know

what it is, but our pride has gone. My parents used to go outside and sweep the sidewalk; we didnt have any grass, but we took pride in it, she said.

Every week Im on Riverside with my little poke stick, and Im picking up trash over by the park and I get frustrated. People ask, Why are you doing this? and I say, Well this is my neighborhood. I dont want to turn the corner and theres trash on the curb. I keep going back, because if I dont do it, who will? I just pray that well do better.

Despite the blight, Hayes is hopeful that a change is on the horizon. Shes optimistic that events like Riverside Speaks will encourage pride in others, as well.

I do see some changes. I see a school (Herron High School) coming up, she said. Theres a difference, but I see where they are trying to make progress.

Wilma Moore, a current Riverside resident and senior archivist with Indiana Historical Society (an event partner), will be on hand to share her Riverside story also. Moore, her parents and seven siblings moved to the Riverside area in the early 1960s, when she was in middle school She describes the time as a very transitional period due to the fact that, for most of her life, her family lived at 14th and Missouri, near where Methodist Hospital is currently located.

I had a lot of expectations moving from there to 18th and Riverside. We were moving on up to a better neighborhood, she said. Moore and a few of her siblings attended school 44, and despite her penchant for embracing new people, she received a less-welcoming reception from her new classmates. I got quickly disappointed, but in retrospect, I realize that junior high was an interesting time for everyone. It was also during her time at 44 that she learned of Kings assassination  a memory that, although overwhelmingly heartbreaking, caused her to recall a happier time just five years prior. In August of 1963 when Martin Luther King Jr. gave his I Have a Dream speech, I remember sitting in the living room and watching it. I saw my dads reaction to it, how happy he was and how heartfelt it all was.

Moore mentioned more light-hearted recollections from the spring of 1968: Walking to school, helping her brother on his paper route and getting to know the lay of the land, the latter of which required a bit of trial and error.

One day, my older sister and I decided to walk to Ayr-Way, which is Target now, and it was in the Eagledale area. We walked down 18th Street thinking we would eventually get to it, without realizing the river would be there, she laughed. We eventually got to 30th Street by the grace of God. I just remember thinking about how cold it was and how we were lost and never going to be found. I was 12 years old. I just knew we were lost forever.

Moore stated that events like the one coming up on Nov. 5 are necessary to the future of that community. Folks so often now dont know their neighbors. If you think about your neighborhood now, you probably dont see your neighbors very often. I think when you know them and talk to them, you have a better sense of community, she said. Events like this help to build that.

Riverside Speaks! Past, Present and Future will be held on Nov. 5 from 9 a.m.4 p.m. at 1901 N. Harding St. For more information on Ebenezer Baptist Church and Riverside Speaks, visit ebenezerchurchindy.org or contact event coordinator Connie Barry at cb212be@gmail.com or (317) 631-5946.
In her 90 years, Mary Harrison has witnessed numerous historical moments in our nation. In her time, astronauts have landed on the moon and technology has continued to take us where no one has gone before. Shes seen firsthand the effects of segregation, the results of the civil rights movement and the election of this countrys first Black president  a point she considers quite monumental.

Harrison grew up on the south side of Indianapolis and due to the practices of the time, she and other Black youth attended the only high school in the city that would have them, Crispus Attucks. Harrison and her siblings didnt grow up with a lot; her father was absent and her hard-working mother relied very heavily on public assistance to feed and clothe them all. Our mother taught us that we needed to get out and work, to take of ourselves and be independent. She just taught us about life, Harrison said.

Though she was unable to give them all the material trappings of a more luxurious life, Harrisons mother instilled in them a desire to be civically engaged. When Harrison turned 18, her mother took her to their local precinct to cast her ballot.

She made sure we voted. We always went with her to the polls, and of course when we went, it was mostly Blacks in our precinct, she said. My mother reminded us that certain people didnt want (Blacks) there and at one point we didnt have a right to (vote). When we got that right, it was important that we kept going. Ive been voting ever since.

After retiring from her post at Naval Avionics where she was employed for 26 years, Harrison looked for something to fill her free time. She joined a community group in her neighborhood and befriended a visually impaired woman named Nancy. Harrison, while acting as Nancys pseudo-chauffeur, began attending meetings with the Lawrence Township Democrats and in 1996, she started serving as a poll worker.

Michael Saahir, the committee person over Harrisons precinct in Lawrence Township, said working with her has been an honor. He aligns her dedication with generational experience.

If she can do it at her age, surely there are young people that can do it, too  Im sure she has witnessed many of the prices paid by African-Americans and poor people to get to where we are now, Saahir said. Maybe thats what motivates her  knowing the sacrifices that were made for us to be able to even walk in there and vote.

Its been quite inspiring, because she has that spunk. At her age, even now, she has that energy and the excitement. She loves working with people. Saahir added that while Harrison brings lots of joy to the room, she brings food as well to keep everyone going on those long 12-hour days. The one dish I remember the most is her chili; it was very good, he reminisced.

For Harrison, her most memorable Election Day moment came the night Barack Obama was elected president.

It was important to me, because he was a Black man and that was the first time (a Black man was elected president). I really got out to help him win his race. I walked some, but not too much because of my arthritis, she said with a laugh. Ive had it all my life, but it didnt start hurting me until I got in my 80s!

In addition to canvassing, Harrison participated in a number of phone banking efforts. That morning in 2008 as she left her home to head to the polling site, Harrison said she knew Obama would win. She also knew that theyd have a large turnout.

I knew we were going to be busy, and we were. We still had lines clean around the building after closing, and we had to get all those people in. We wanted to make sure we got the votes out, she said, adding that this November will be her last election as a poll worker.

When asked what her predictions were for the presidential race, in a jovial yet cautious tone, she adamantly voiced her support in favor of the Democratic candidate.

Clinton, definitely. Trump? Oh, Lord. Were going to be in a world of trouble if Black folks dont get out there and vote!

The Indiana Election Division is looking for interested parties to serve as poll workers. Applicants must be at least 18 years of age and a registered voter and a resident of the county in which they wish to work. Opportunities for 16- and 17-year-olds are available through a program called Election Day Live. Depending on the county, workers can earn up to $150 for their service. For more information, contact your local party or the county election administrator.
Can you feel the energy in the air?

Im referring to the energy that ignites the closer we get to Election Day.

With less than two weeks before the Nov. 8 elections, the buzz has intensified greatly for local and national races. The political pundits are offering their commentary, the most updated local and national polls are being released and politicians are placing ads all over the place. In addition, most candidates for political office are making rounds chomping at the bit to get any media coverage they can in an effort to further expose themselves to voters.

However, there is one local candidate who is not so enthused about receiving media coverage  at least not from the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper.

The Republican candidate for governor has declined to be interviewed for our newspapers special political issue that hits newsstands Nov. 3. Thats right; Eric Holcomb refused to sit down one-on-one or even converse with the Recorder over the telephone.

Initially, Holcombs campaign staff didnt offer an explanation at all. Instead, in an email message to our Editor-in-Chief Ebony Chappel, they simply said, Unfortunately, Eric will not be able to do the interview.

Such a vague statement after weeks of waiting for a response was not acceptable to our newsroom staff, so Ebony pressed Holcombs staff further. After expressing her shock and confusion, Ebony asked Holcombs deputy political director/campaign scheduler if there was any particular reason why the Lt. Gov. has decided not to speak with the Recorder  the states premier Black news outlet  prior to the election. Ebonys question was especially valid, because Holcombs staff has known for months that the Recorder wanted a one-on-one interview with him  and that the most ideal time would be closer to Election Day, because his views and perspectives would be the most current and accurately reflect time-sensitive issues of concern for the community.

After following up with Holcombs staff, Ebony was informed that he was not available because of scheduling conflicts.

So, in the weeks and days leading up to Nov. 8, Holcomb could not find as little as 10 minutes to chat with the Recorder.

His lack of effort is extremely telling to our staff, and it should be telling to each of you reading this column.

At 121 years old, the Recorder is a staple in this community. We are also the premier voice of African-Americans. The Recorder has a solid history of representing the views of Blacks and also advocating for the rights and concerns of our people.

The fact that Holcomb and his staff dont see or understand the importance of being available to the minority community says that there is either a lack of respect or a total disregard for this publication and the tens of thousands of people who read it on a weekly basis.

The Recorder has always aimed to educate our community relative to politics. More than any other minority publication in the region, the Recorder provides detailed info on key races, and we make sure to represent all political parties. Our job is to educate readers about their options so they can make the best, most informed decisions based on their personal beliefs and value systems.

Holcomb has missed a tremendous opportunity to address the Black community and allow this community to hear directly from him. However, if I am honest, I must say that I am not surprised by Holcombs actions. While we were planning the unprecedented Recorder/Radio One gubernatorial forum, Holcombs team was incredibly dismissive about participating. Only after we continued to push them, only after we worked behind the scenes with Holcombs surrogates to stress the importance of his participation, and only after we were clear about our intention to let the community know he wasnt willing to participate, did Holcomb and his people finally concede and agree to be an active participant in the forum featuring him, Democratic candidate John Gregg and Libertarian Rex Bell.

Getting Holcomb to participate should not have taken so much effort on the Recorders part, nor should we have to continuously stress to him or any candidate the importance of communicating directly to the Black community.

If you are a politician with a sincere servants heart, you should want to reach out to the masses of people who reflect multiple backgrounds and ethnicities.

Refusing to do so simply underscores your true feelings toward that demographic and their vote.

Shame on Eric Holcomb for snubbing the minority community.
On Sunday, Oct. 9, Pope Francis announced that the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Indianapolis, Most Rev. Joseph Tobin, C.Ss.R., would be named a Cardinal in the Church. Many people not familiar with the Catholic Church may be asking what being a Cardinal is all about. This announcement provides a good opportunity for a review.

In the Catholic Church, there are three ordained ministries: deacon, priest and bishop. Each one of these orders carries with it certain obligations in ministering to the faithful throughout the Church. The entire Church is overseen by the Pope. Its important to know that the Pope is not another level of ordination. The Pope is seen as the head bishop of the Church, chosen by his peers to be the successor of Peter. Even with the added responsibility of overseeing the Church, by ordination he remains a bishop. Indeed, his official title is Bishop of Rome.

Over the years, the Pope would designate other bishops to be special advisors to him. As time went on, these advisors became known as Cardinals. These bishops were personally chosen by the Pope. At first, the Cardinals were bishops who were in close proximity to the Pope so he could call on them for their advice. But in more recent times, Popes have named Cardinals from throughout the world to reflect the diversity of the Catholic Church. Pope Francis has been even more mindful of this as he has named Cardinals from places that never had a Cardinal before.

So what will all this mean for Archbishop Tobin? First of all, for now, he will remain Archbishop of Indianapolis. Being named a Cardinal is not another level of ordination, so his functions and duties as a bishop remain the same. But Cardinals still play the role as special advisors to the Pope. From time to time, the Pope will want to consult the Church on various matters, and he will call a meeting of all the Cardinals of the Church. So, for one, this probably means more trips to Rome for Archbishop Tobin.

Then, one of the most important tasks for the Cardinals comes when it is time to choose a new Pope. After a Pope dies (or in the case of Pope Benedict XVI, resigns), the Cardinals of the world gather at Vatican City, and those who are under 80 years old meet, pray and dialogue with each other, and then vote on who the next Pope will be. Even though there is no rule about it, generally speaking the new Pope will come from the ranks of the Cardinals themselves.

This is not only a great honor for Archbishop Tobin, but it also reflects the kind of Church Pope Francis would like to see. In his time here in Indiana, Archbishop Tobin has been a very pastoral kind of leader. He is seen as one who has the well-being of the people at the heart of his ministry. His commitment to social justice is well known as seen in his efforts to provide a safe place for refugees from Syria and his support of diversity within the Church, including his support of Black, Latino and Asian Catholics. And he has been devoted to ecumenical relationships, regularly meeting with the leaders of other faiths in our area.

Archbishop Tobin will be traveling to Rome for a special ceremony on Nov. 19, which will officially bestow this new title upon him.

Fr. Kenneth Taylor is pastor of Holy Angels Catholic Church and St. Rita Catholic Church. He can be reached at fatherkt@mailhaven.com.
Authorities in riot gear forcibly evicted elders, women, youth and other Dakota Access Pipeline resisters in North Dakota on October 27, 2016. Photo by Jonathon Klett



Authorities in North Dakota arrested 141 people on Thursday in a violent crackdown at a #NoDAPL camp on treaty territory.

Law enforcement agencies from a handful of states joined Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier in forcibly clearing the site near Highway 1806. Resisters were sprayed with mace, harassed by police officers and some suffered injured in the largest confrontation to date.

"I went to the frontline in prayer for protection of the Missouri River and found myself in what I can only describe as a war zone," Kandi Mossett, a citizen of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation , said in an account provided by the Sacred Stone Camp

"I was sprayed in the face with pepper spray, the guy next to me was shot by something that didn't break the skin but appeared to have broken the ribs and another guy beside me was randomly snatched violently by police shoving me into the officers who held me off with batons then tried to grab me," Mossett continued.

"I'm still in shock and keep waiting to wake from what's surely a nightmare though this is my reality as a Native woman in 2016 trying to defend the sacred," she concluded.

Wake up all my American white friends! Be on the right side this time, if you're not informed about the past, read about... Posted by Adam Alexander Johansson on Thursday, October 27, 2016

Adam Alexander Johansson on Facebook: Stop Dakota Access Pipeline



Chairman Dave Archambault II of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe quickly condemned authorities for their "militarized" response to the situation. It took place as he and a delegation of youth were in New York City to raise more awareness of the #NoDAPL cause.

"We have repeatedly seen a disproportionate response from law enforcement to water protectors nonviolent exercise of their constitutional rights," Archambault said in a statement . "Today we have witnessed people praying in peace, yet attacked with pepper spray, rubber bullets, sound and concussion cannons. We urge state and federal government agencies to give this tense situation their immediate and close attention."

Chairman Harold Frazier of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe was equally forceful. He is calling for international intervention , arguing that the federal government hasn't done enough to address the growing law enforcement presence on treaty lands.

"The U.S. government promised to protect us through treaties, but they have failed us," Frazier said in a press release . "Thats why we are asking the United Nations to send troops to protect our people from the brutalities inflicted on our people by state police and the National Guard."

As police in ND seem poised to raid #NoDAPL camp, Standing Rock youth flood Clinton campaign HQ to demand she oppose Dakota Access pipeline pic.twitter.com/4ixgjiuGpk  Democracy Now! (@democracynow) October 27, 2016

The clash came as the two tribal leaders escalated efforts to stop the $3.8 billion Dakota Access Pipeline from crossing through their treaty territory. On Tuesday, Frazier sat down at a private roundtable with President Barack Obama and asked him to do more about complaints of police brutality and violations of civil rights of those who are resisting the controversial project.

During the meeting, which took place in Los Angeles, California, Frazier was assured by Obama that federal monitors are on the ground in North Dakota but he was told they are only there as observers.

And on Thursday, Archambault and 10 tribal youth marched to the headquarters of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and urged her to take a stand against the project due to impacts on sacred sites, burial grounds and water resources.

"As President Obama rejected the Keystone XL Pipeline, we urge the new President to be a leader and continue standing up for what is right by rejecting the Dakota Access Pipeline," the youth said in a statement after they peacefully occupied Clinton's headquarters in Brooklyn for a short period. "The First 100 Days is a significant time for you to set the stage  are you with us?"

"Now is the time to prove your commitment to both strong climate action and Indigenous sovereignty," the youth continued. "Silence is not acceptable, stand with us and oppose the Dakota Access Pipeline."

#NoDAPL resisters formed a prayer circle before being forcibly evicted from a camp in North Dakota. Photo courtesy Sacred Stone Camp



The passionate plea, which occurred almost at the same time as the crackdown began back in North Dakota, did not move the former Secretary of State and former U.S. Senator. She issued a non-committal statement on Thursday about an issue that would likely land on her desk if she wins the November 8 election.

"From the beginning of this campaign, Secretary Clinton has been clear that she thinks all voices should be heard and all views considered in federal infrastructure projects," the statement read.

"Now, all of the parties involvedincluding the federal government, the pipeline company and contractors, the state of North Dakota, and the tribesneed to find a path forward that serves the broadest public interest," it read. "As that happens, it's important that on the ground in North Dakota, everyone respects demonstrators' rights to protest peacefully, and workers' rights to do their jobs safely.

Sacred Stone Camp Video: Eviction of #NoDAPL Treaty Camp in North Dakota [Note: Explicit language in short clip]



The last comment about worker safety echoed the pained responses issued by Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-North Dakota), who also has failed to take a concrete stand on the controversy. Yet no pipeline workers have been injured, arrested or placed in serious danger -- a stark contrast to the treatment of hundreds of resisters who have been rounded up since early August, strip-searched and kept in jail on minor infractions.

Even Chairman Archambault was strip-searched after being arrested for allegedly interfering with construction of the pipeline. He told Democracy Now! that his hair was searched, ostensibly for weapons.

While Sheriff Kirchmeier has repeatedly accused resisters of being violent through numerous posts on Facebook, no weapons have ever been found among those fighting the pipeline. But just this week, his office confirmed to Democracy Now! that Dakota Access security guards who used mace and dogs in a September 3 clash were unlicensed to work in the state.

Join the Conversation
At a recent event Farhan Akhtar spoke about the ban of Pakistani artists issue, and threats that ADHM had to face and how MNS-KJo had to strike a deal to release ADHM smoothly.

(Also read: Pointing Out The Hypocrisy Behind Banning Pak Artists, Abhay Deol Made The Most Sensible Argument)

Talking about the Rs 5 crore as prayashchit (penance) to the Army welfare fund for casting Pakistani artists in Bollywood film, Farhan Akhtar said,

Pinterest

The only word, I think, that comes to mind is unfortunate, because it has set a terrible precedent."

Further talking to Indian Express, Farhan Akhtar made a valid point on how all the threats that were issued by MNS after their decision to cast Pakistani artists was rather an absurd one. He added,

Its not even the government telling you what you should be doing and not doing. So who are you listening to? You are listening to the people who are threatening you with violence. Now, when you have the threat of violence, its not only about you. You have kids at home, you have a family."

Further commenting on how film industry always ends up becoming a short target for such policing and threats, he added,

Thestatesman

By all means pass a law. If you pass a law, you are representing the voice of the people. Weve elected you to do it, so, by all means, pass a law. But dont hold that standard only for the film industry. Why only the film industry? Because we are easy targets. Why dont you stop business between India and Pakistan, this two billion dollars of business that happens every single year? Stop it, go the whole hog. This is like window dressing."

Defending KJo, Farhan added that KJo had cast Fawad when the situations were better and there were no major tensions between India and Pakistan. He added,

People were encouraging exchange, our Prime Minister travelled there. It was an air, an environment of optimism, an environment of wanting bridges to be made. Thats the environment you started functioning in. Now, if thats changed, you cannot hold this person by his throat and say that what you have done is wrong, and force you to say things and force you to pay money.
The New York post once described him as a Man Who Gave Us AIDS and well, thats true to some extent because, for almost 36 years, America believed in it.

theguardian

Gaetan Dugas, also known as Patient Zero was a globe trotter and a sexually insatiable French Canadian flight attendant. Hes been allegedly charged with bringing AIDS to America in the 1980s, either from Haiti or Africa.

Dugas was blamed for the entire American AIDS epidemic, which traumatised the nation in the 1980s.

It has since killed more than 500,000 Americans, some even before his death, in 1984.

time

A lot of people bought the argument, that Mr Dugas was the centre of this massive plague, but nearly 30 years after his death, it has been proved otherwise.

A series of genetic analysis of stored blood samples, bolstered by some intriguing historical detective work, scientists on Wednesday declared the man innocent.

The researchers concluded that America was HIV-stricken long before the concept of Patient Zero  was titled. It was carried from Zaire to Haiti around 1967, from there to New York around 1971, reaching San Francisco in 1976.

Nature

Dugas, who was hired by Air Canada in 1974 started visiting gay bars in America during that time, and his blood sample taken in 1983 contains the same virus that was already affecting a lot of men of that era.

This is incredible. Almost 30 years after he was called "THE MAN WHO GAVE US AIDS," Gaetan Dugas's dignity has been restored https://t.co/GlyyA0oHKn  David Mack (@davidmackau) October 26, 2016

Spin on #HIV & #PatientZero study implies we all bought GaetanDugas story in '80s: UNTRUE. Most of us rejected it then. Shilts beat the drum  Laurie Garrett (@Laurie_Garrett) October 27, 2016

30 years later researchers report Gaetan Dugas, known as Patient Zero, was not central carrier of HIV in the U.S.: https://t.co/tPbpQl8ehz  Bevan Dufty (@BevanDufty) October 27, 2016

The researchers also cleared the air about the patient zero  initially ,the man wasnt addressed with that titled. In fact, in an early epidemiological study of cases, he was designated Patient O, for outside Southern California. And as the papers circulated, this man was held responsible for a nation-wide epidemic.
The Border Security Force (BSF) has said that at least 15 Pakistan Rangers have been killed after the Indian troops retaliated heavy gunfire from across the border.

This comes as Pakistan has stepped up ceasefire violations along the LoC in the past couple of days.

BCCL/ Representative Image

"There are ceasefire violations repeatedly, we are giving a befitting reply. As far as our people have seen, what we have assessed is at least 15 rangers have been killed," said senior BSF officer Arun Kumar.

In just the past 24 hours alone there were incessant ceasefire violations by Pakistan, along in Rajouri, Samba, Abdullia, RS Pura and Suchetgarh in which a number of civilians were injured and a BSF personnel lost his life.

AP/ Representative Image

There are also reports of a civilian fatality in ceasefire violation by Pakistan in Pallanwala sector on Friday.

One civilian killed in #Pak firing in Khor belt of #Jammu district: District Collector (Jammu).  Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 28, 2016

Last week at least seven Pakistani Rangers were killed in a BSF response to the targeting of Indian posts.

The BSF also said that Pakistani forces are pushing militants into the Indian side under the cover of ceasefire violation.

This is a tried and tested method Pakistan has been using for years, to push the maximum number of terrorists into Kashmir before the himalayan winter sets in, making it difficult to infiltrate.
After schools, the Lashkar-e-Taiba has now threatened banks in the Kashmir valley. Lashkar posters which have appeared in parts of south Kashmir have said bank managers must shut their branches in keeping with the Hurriyat protest calendar and do business only after 5pm.

BCCL

Unidentified gunmen looted over Rs 2 lakh in cash from a Kulgam Jammu & Kashmir Bank branch on Wednesday, while one loaded ATM machine was taken away by gunmen from central Kashmir two days ago, police said.

Though a majority of J&K Bank branches across the valley are shut, a few function in Srinagar district from 7am till 11am.

BCCL

Reports said the LeT posters were seen on electric poles, walls and shops in various villages in South Kashmir's Kulgam district, including Tolinopora, Muhammadpora, Panew, Bogam, Koimoh, Kulgam market, Bogund, Katrosu, and Srindu.

The posters, which carry the seal and signature of the LeT district commander, have warned deputy commissioners of dire consequences if they force government employees to attend to their duties.

BCCL

The posters also state that "people who try to defy Hurriyat strike calls will not be spared. People can do their business only during relaxation hours called by the Hurriyat. We warn deputy commissioners that they should stop forcing employees to attend to duties, and we also warn bank managers not to open their branches during strike hours."

In another statement issued in Srinagar, the LeT said it will implement a new strategy to take the ongoing "freedom struggle in Kashmir" forward. "We will implement the new strategy to carry forward the freedom struggle. May Allah be our guide and helper of Mujahideen," it stated.

ALSO READ: Pakistani Spy Nabbed In Kashmir, SIMs, Maps Showing Troops Deployment Recovered

BCCL

A primary government school building was set ablaze by stone-pelters at Taapar in Pattan in North Kashmir on Thursday, police said. This was the 21st school set on fire by stone-pelters since the ongoing unrest began following the killing of Hizbul terrorist Burhan Wani on July 8.
Following the Indian government's decision to sent back the Pakistani diplomat, who was held for running an espionage racket, the focus has shifted to Pakistan's hidden intelligence circuit within India's boundaries.

In a statement made in the Rajya Sabha during the March session of Parliament this year, the Indian government had shared that 46 Pakistani spies had been arrested across India between the years 2013-16.

The latest charges have taken this number to 53.

AFP

In October 2016, a spy named Bodh Raj was arrested with SIMs, maps showing troops deployment in Kashmir. This along with several pigeons carrying spy messages from Pakistan into India and the latest official from the Pakistan High Commission getting caught along with two others.

In the year 2015, Mohd Aijaz alias Mohd Kalam was arrested in November from a spot near Meerut station by a team of STF.

Also in November, contract labourer 51-year-old Irshad Ansari, his son Asfaq Ansari and another relative, Mohammed Jahangir were arrested in Kolkata. They had been working as ISI agents for more than 10 years and had been trained by the ISI. Abdul Rasheed, who was posted as a head constable with the BSF was also arrested.

PTI

Here's a look at how the Pakistani spy network has been busted in India since 2015:

November 2015

Mohd Aijaz alias Mohd Kalam was arrested on Nov 27 from a spot near Meerut cantonment railway station by a team of STF after carefully scrutinising inputs.

Contract labourer 51-year-old Irshad Ansari, his son Asfaq Ansari and another relative, Mohammed Jahangir were arrested in Kolkata. According to police sources, both Irshad and Jahangir have relatives in Karachi and they were hired by the ISI during their visit to the neighbouring country. They have been working as ISI agents for more than 10 years and had been trained by the ISI.

Abdul Rasheed, Border Security Force (BSF) head constable, posted in the intelligence wing of the force in Rajouri district in Jammu and Kashmir was arrested.

Kafaitullah Khan alias Master Raja, a resident of Rajouri district in Jammu and Kashmir, was arrested. He worked as a library assistant in a senior secondary school in Rajouri district.

December 2015

STF of the Kolkata Police arrested another person on suspicion of carrying on espionage at the behest of Pakistan's ISI. According to the police, the accused Sheikh Badal is a resident of Karaya police station area in the city and was arrested near the Regional Passport Office at Brabourne Road in Kolkata.

Retired Army havildar Munawwar Ahmad Mir was arrested.

AFP

The Delhi Police arrested another person from Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir in connection with the alleged spying racket working on behalf of ISI.

An Indian Army rifleman was apprehended from West Bengal's Siliguri by Delhi Police crime branch team in a case of espionage linked to Pakistan's ISI. This is the fifth arrest made in the case between November 26 and December 6 from Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir and Siliguri. The rifleman was identified as Farid Khan.

Two suspected ISI spies were arrested by the CID in Rola village of Jodhpur, Rajasthan. They reportedly sent information related to military exercises in India to Pakistan.

An ex-Army man, identified as Gordhan Singh Rathore, a patwari in Khetolai, was arrested from a village closest to the Pokhran nuclear test site. A map detailing Pokhran field firing range had been recovered from his house.

An airman in the Indian Air Force, who allegedly shared secret documents with intelligence operatives backed by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), was arrested from Punjab by the crime branch of Delhi Police. The accused has been identified as Ranjith KK. He had joined the service in 2010 and was posted at Bhatinda Air Force Station.

February 2016

An airman in the Indian Air Force, who allegedly shared secret documents with intelligence operatives backed by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), was arrested from Punjab by the crime branch of Delhi Police. The accused has been identified as Ranjith KK. He had joined the service in 2010 and was posted at Bhatinda Air Force Station.

AFP

Four postal department officials based out of Pokhran and Balotra in Jaisalmer were arrested for allegedly spying for ISI. They are said to be passing on Army-related letters and other documents to a Pakistani agent.

An ISI (Inter Service Intelligence) agent was arrested from Bhopal region. The operation was a joint effort of NIA officials and Bhopal Crime Branch.

An Indian national by the name of Irshad was arrested in Pathankot by the Punjab Police based on a tip-off provided by India's intelligence agencies. Irshad was an ISI agent who had managed to find an undercover job inside Pathankot Cantonment.

August 2016

An alleged Pakistani spy was arrested by the Rajasthan police from Jaisalmer and items containing information on India's defence institutions seized from him. Nandlal, hailing from Sangad district in Pakistan, was arrested from a hotel in Jaisalmer.

October 2016

The Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) arrested two persons allegedly working as spies for Pakistan's intelligence agency ISI. Both of them were arrested from Kutch district, which shares border with Pakistan.
His belief in democracy is unshakable, perhaps. No matter how many times he has already lost the elections he is not in a mood to give up. 57-year-old K Padmarajan, popularly known as, 'Therthal Mannan' (Election King), for consistently filing nomination papers in the elections, has not spared the by-election to the Thiruparankundram assembly constituency.

AFP

Padmarajan, a native of Salem, filed his nomination paper with the returning officer of the constituency, R Jeeva, as an independent candidate, on Tuesday. With this, he has so far filed 177 nomination papers in the elections since 1988.

On October 17, the EC had announced the election to the Thiruparankundram assembly constituency on November 19, after the demise of the winning candidate of the constituency. S M Seenivel of the AIADMK won the seat in May but died on May 25, without assuming charge as MLA. It is the first by-election in the constituency's history.

BCCL

After the model code of conduct came into force, four teams including two flying squads have been constituted which have so far seized Rs5.6lakh in the constituency, the returning officer said.

"No independent candidate can win the election because money plays a major role. But I continue to file nomination papers to enter the Guinness Book of World Records. I will not campaign. My job is complete after filing the nomination," said Padmarajan.

According to him, his forefathers migrated from Kerala to Athur in Salem a century ago. He is engaged in tyre business in Mettur, Salem. He filed his first nomination to the Mettur assembly constituency in the 1986 assembly election. Since then, he has contested against key candidates across the state.

BCCL

He became popular after he was kidnapped after filing his nomination, contesting against the former prime minister P V Narasimha Rao in Nandyal, Andhra Pradesh in 1991.

Subsequently, he opposed the former prime minister A B Vajapayee in Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh. He has shared his name with the former and present chief ministers of Tamil Nadu, M Karuanidhi and J Jayalalithaa, in past elections.

His nominations in 5 Lok Sabha seats and 3 assembly seats - Mettur, Athur and Bargur, in the general elections to the Lok Sabha and the Tamil Nadu Assembly, 1996, necessitated a law which barred candidates from filing nominations in more than two constituencies.
Jail tourism is a growing fad around the world. Robben Island in South Africa where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned, the Alcatraz in San Francisco which reported only one successful jail break as long as it was used as a penitentiary, and the Cellular jail in the Andamans are among the most-visited by tourists. Now the trend is coming home.

BCCL

Maharashtra home department plans to throw open its jails to the common public keen on history. Officials in the department are working on a 'jail tourism policy' which will allow access to certain jails in the state by common people.

Officials said that they are in the process of formulating which jails and what part of the jail premise will they allow access under the scheme. They have also to keep in mind the security concerns while making this policy, said an official.

There are over 30 jails in Maharashtra, but not all will be opened up for visitors under the new policy. Jails that have some history will be opened up first after security arrangements have been carefully looked into.

Holidify

ALSO READ: 219-Year-Old Jail Becomes Museum-Cum-Hotel, Allows You To Spend A Night For INR 500

This will not be daily affair, some days in a week for a few hours. However, the fact that several historic figures and also serial killers, terrorists and celebrities have made jails across the state their home, people may be interested in visiting, say jail officials.

"Prisons like Yerawada will be hit with the public as leaders like Gandhi, Nehru, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Veer Sawarkar have been housed there during the freedom struggle. And most recently Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt too was imprisoned there. There are a lot of articles, letters written by there freedom fighters to their families that will be available in the jail records, which can be kept for display."

The architecture of the jails, which are made in such a way that from one point in the centre of the jail one can keep a watch on the entire jail also known as the panopticon design, can be a point of interest for visitors, officials said. Filmmakers too can use this opportunity to show the real interiors of the jails.

Travel.in

Officials said tourists would get the real feel of a prison and would also be told about the routine of a prisoner. "Arthur Road jail too can be a popular spot with people wanting to see where the Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab was kept," said an official.

States like Telangana have recently announced such a policy, while the cellular jails in Andaman have been a popular tourist destination for long.

PTI

Additional chief secretary Vijay Satbir Singh confirmed that the government was working on such a policy. "Finer details haven't been worked out as of now." Officials said that they are also planning a jail museum with articles from people who were housed in the jails so that the tourists can see. They are also planning to sell handmade things that the prisoners make inside the jails for these visitors to purchase as mementos.
The security agencies left no stone unturned while investigating the case of Pakistani diplomat, nabbed for allegedly running a espionage racket in the garb of representing Pakistan on Indian soil. The accused, Mehmood Akhtar  who was declared persona non grata - was on security agencies radar for the past 18 months after the arrest of 44-year-old Kafaitullah Khan alias Master Raja, a librarian in a higher secondary school in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir.

dailymail.co.uk

According to sources, he was intercepted and arrested from New Delhi railway station while he was going to attend an ijtema (a religious gathering) in Bhopal, where he was allegedly supposed to gather secret information and meet possible recruits.

Security agencies came to know about Akhtar during the Khans interrogation. Surveillance was mounted on the Pakistani High Commissions official to know who the people are in his contact. Khan and Akhtar were in touch for procuring classified documents pertaining to Indias national security, particularly deployment and movement of armed forces.

PTI

Soon after Khan was nabbed last year, five suspected ISI operative  including a Border Security Force (BSF) constable Abdur Rasheed  were held the same month on charges of providing confidential information to a Pakistan intelligence operative.

They were former Army Havildar Munawwar Ahmad Mir, a school teacher from Rajaori district Sabar and Fareed  code named Surgeon  who was posted in the J&K light infantry regiment. All of them are said to be relatives.

The suspicion, according to sources, about the possible involvement of a Pakistani diplomat had emerged in the last espionage operation in which the five suspects were arrested from different places.

PTI

Intelligence sources said the agency had started trailing the three suspects six months ago through technical surveillance.

The agency had crucial transcripts of more than a hundred hours of telephonic conversations. They also kept a watch on their movements. After getting inputs from intelligence agencies about the espionage ring, the Crime Branch men finally launched a 12-hour-long operation and spent six hours on the field.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Delhi Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung were informed and a go ahead was obtained.

A control room was set up at Delhi Police headquarters at around 1 pm and Joint Commissioner Ravindra Yadav was put in charge. After planning for around four hours, three teams were formed.

A team of select officers was formed. Around 4 am, ACP Sanjay Sehrawats team was sent to Delhi Zoo, where the suspects were supposed to meet up. The other team led by Inspector Sunil was sent to New Delhi railway station where two men  Maulana Ramzan (55) and Sohaib Nagaur (35)  were supposed to arrive from Rajasthan.

intoday.in

The third team relayed information to the other two from the control room.

Sehrawat took position at the zoo gate. The Zoo guard mistook him for a stalker trying to harass a couple sitting on a bench and asked the ACP to go away. The guard said the Zoo was closed and even warned him of bird flu. When he came after the ACP with a lathi, a sub-inspector was called to handle the situation.

The team's wait ended when Akhtar came in the Embassy vehicle and met the two men. The cops then nabbed the trio and took them to their Chanakyapuri office.

Vital information/documents related to deployment of army and para military forces in Rajasthan and Gujarat having serious implications on national security have allegedly been recovered from their possession.

Also Read: Spying Row: Pakistan High Commission Official Asked To Leave India, Two Others Held
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has lashed out at separatists alleging that they were not allowing schools in the Valley to function because they wanted a new generation of uneducated youths who can pelt stones and can be used as "cannon fodder".

She said the separatists were exploiting children from the poor families by instigating them to attack army camps, police stations and CRPF camps and were using them as shields, while their own children were safe.

BCCL

"If the youths gets education they won't pelt stones for them. The (separatist) leadership want a generation of uneducated youths who can pelt stones for them," Mehbooba said.

"Today I see that big leaders feel if schools open, poor children will get education and then they will not have time for stone pelting or might not be ready for that," she added.

BCCL

With the unrest in the Valley continuing for over a hundred days, she alleged that the separatists wanted that the children should get hurt to keep the "pot boiling".

"They feel that let the children of poor people die. What will happen if they get injured or die they are not rich kids. It is a big challenge for us because till now they have handed over the gun to poor children and now they are using them as shields," she added.

BCCL

"Among all those killed or injured, 99 per cent were small kids, not one from the rich family, not a single child of those leaders have been injured, only poor kids" Mehbooba said.

She said that first the separatists thought that the uneducated youths would pick guns for them, but the youths in the past 25 years has realised that gun will not solve any problem.
Kashmiri separatist leaders have been long accused of letting the youths and children of the valley suffer while their own children study or work abroad.

In yet another case of such double standards, it has now been reported that while the separatist party Hurriyat Conference forced all the schools in the valley to shut down ever since the killing of Hizbul terrorist Burhan Wani one school is not included in the 'bandh calendar'.

BCCL

According to The Indian Express, the Delhi Public School in Srinagar recently held internal exams for 573 students from Class 9 and 10. And one of the students who appeared for the exam was the granddaughter of Syed Ali Shah Geelani.

The class 10 student is the daughter of Geelanis eldest son Dr Nayeem Zafar Geelani.

Nayeem who is not a member of Hurriyat Conference, and lives with his family separately in Srinagar told The Indian Express that his daughter attend the exam.

AFP/ Representative Image

"Once the school decided to hold the internal exams, it was mandatory for my daughter, like other students, to appear as they carried a weightage of 70 per cent marks. If my daughter had skipped the exams, she wouldnt have been able to sit for the final exams scheduled for next March.

According to the report the exam was held between October 1-5 in an indoor stadium inside a high-security zone in the city with assistance from the J&K government.

AFP/ Representative Image

This also comes amid reports of an increase in 'Taliban-style' attacks on schools across the valley. Recently a number of government school buildings were set on fire by unidentified miscreants.
Dismissed Tata Sons chairman, Cyrus Mistry, took his gloves off in his widely leaked 2,100-word mail to the board targeting Ratan Tata and people close to him with a string of allegations of bad business bets and questionable deals.

On Thursday, Mistry was party to business decisions for over a decade, says Tata Sons in reply to Mistry's allegations that, at 700 words, was one-third as long as Mistry's mail and steered clear of specifics but made it amply clear that it wouldn't hesitate to bare its knuckles.

BCCL

Even while professing that it was "beneath the dignity of Tata Sons to engage in a public spat", it issued a thinly veiled threat that it was prepared to abandon strategic restraint and strike back at a time and place of its choosing: "The record, as and when made public, will prove things to the contrary."

Pointing out that Mistry had been on the board since 2006 and deputy chairman for a year till he formally replaced Ratan Tata in end-December 2012, it said, "It is unfortunate that it is only on his removal" that "malicious allegations" and "unsubstantiated claims" were being made about "business decisions that the former chairman was party to for over a decade in different capacities".

BCCL

Tata Sons sought to turn the tables on Mistry, who has claimed his dismissal was illegal and invalid, by stating that he "had overwhelmingly lost the confidence of the board...for a combination of several factors."

The directors, it said, had "repeatedly raised queries and concerns on certain business issues, and trustees of the Tata Trusts were increasingly getting concerned with the growing trust deficit with Mr Mistry, but these were not being addressed. The Tata Sons board, in its collective wisdom, took the decision to replace its chairman in the manner undertaken." Mistry's tenure, it added, "was marked by repeated departures from the culture and ethos of the group".

The company rejected Mistry's claim that his predecessor's interference, changes in the holding company's articles of association, and the creation of "alternative power centres" had reduced him to the "position of a lame-duck chairman". He had been "fully empowered" and enjoyed "complete autonomy" to manage the group, it said.

BCCL

It slammed Mistry for leaking "communication marked confidential...in an unseemly and undignified manner".

Then, with a touch of sarcasm, it said Mistry was now levelling "accusations against individuals and company boards ignoring corporate governance norms that were supposedly upheld by the former chairman while in office".

Also Read: Cyrus Mistry Tears Into Ratan Tatas Pet Project  Tata Nano
The Modi government has decided to declare Islamic Research Foundation (IRF), NGO of controversial tele-evangelist Zakir Naik, as an 'unlawful organisation' under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

A draft Cabinet note is being finalised by the home ministry, which cites Naik's "objectionable and subversive" speeches, the criminal cases filed against him and other members of IRF in Mumbai and Sindhudurg in Maharashtra and Kerala, as well as his "dubious" links with Peace TV that allegedly features "communal" and "pro-jihad" content as grounds for such a ban.

BCCL

An 'unlawful' association is different from a 'terrorist' organisation listed under UAPA. The law defines 'unlawful association' as any organisation "which has for its object any activity that is punishable under Section 153A or 153B of IPC" - provisions dealing with threat to social and communal harmony.

ALSO READ: Zakir Naiks Men Paid Rs. 50,000 Each To Get Hundreds To Convert To Islam, Says Anti-Terrorism Squad

According to sources in the home ministry, there is a solid case for proscribing IRF based on inputs and material shared by the Maharashtra government and the central intelligence agencies. There are FIRs against Naik and other IRF members under Section 153A and 153B of IPC in 2 police stations of Mumbai, 1 in Kerala and two in Sindhudurg.

There are several of Naik's speeches compiled by Intelligence Bureau (IB) including where he extolls Osama bin Laden, claiming that 80% of Indians had not been Hindus as Muslims could have converted them "if we wanted" by sword, justifies suicide bombings, claims Golden Temple may not be sacred as Mecca and makes objectionable comments against Hindu gods.

Most of these speeches form the content on Peace TV, a part of which was put together by Mumbai-based Harmony Media Pvt Ltd that once had Naik and his wife as directors. Large money transfers have been detected from UK-based charity IRF International, run by Naik to Harmony Media.

BCCL

The draft Cabinet note on action against IRF, which incorporates legal opinion favouring a ban on the NGO for disturbing communal harmony and attempting forced conversions, is likely to be put up for approval soon. It also says Naik has been promoting enmity between religious groups and inspiring Muslim youth in India and abroad to commit terrorist acts.

"Such divisive ideology is against India's pluralistic and secular social fabric and it may be viewed as causing disaffection against India and thereby making it an unlawful activity," states the draft Cabinet note. "If urgent steps are not taken (to ban IRF), there is every possibility of more youth being motivated and radicalised to commit terrorist acts," it warns.

"The Cabinet note is being given final touches. The home ministry is also examining the impact of IRF ban on Naik's other NGO --IRF Educational Trust, which manages the Islamic Research School in Mumbai and Chennai. Meanwhile, the process of revoking its foreign funds licence under the Foreign Contributions Registration Act (FCRA) has been set in motion. However, this won't be necessary after a UAPA ban is approved.

ALSO READ: Congress In A Soup After Zakir Naik's NGO Says It Gave Rs 50 Lakh To Rajiv Gandhi Foundation

NDTV

The NIA is also examining the option of slapping terror charges against Naik, based on testimonies of around 50 terror accused and convicts lodged in various jails, stating that they were motivated by his speeches to take up jihad.

Declaration of IRF as 'unlawful' under Section 3 of the UAPA will force closure of its offices and interests across the country. Sources indicated that the Maharashtra government may step in and take over the reins of Islamic International School in Mumbai or entrust its management to another organisation, so as not to adversely affect the education of students studying there.

A similar action may be undertaken for the Chennai branch of the school.
Indias armed forces have embarked on a shopping spree for modern assault rifles, body armour and helmets, providing a potential boost to global arms suppliers.

AFP

The 1.3 million-strong military is abandoning its two decade-old Indian made rifles and seeking to outfit its infantry with more up-to-date equipment, scouting for a new model on the global market for 185,000 assault rifles.

The ministry of defence also needs to buy hundreds of thousands of helmets and tens of thousands of bullet proof vests.

The moves are part of Prime Minister Narendra Modis $250 billion push to modernize Indias armed forces, as infantry continue to face the brunt of deadly attacks in disputed border areas such as Kashmir and the north-east.

AFP

Plans to buy new equipment from overseas, however, have been held back by bureaucratic delays and the militarys desire to balance the needs of troops against efforts to have equipment built domestically under Modis  Make in India program.

The army currently uses the INSAS, or Indian Small Arms System, rifle, introduced in the late 1990s and built by the state-owned Ordnance Factory. Yet the Indian and Nepalese soldiers issued with the guns complained the 5.56mm rifles were unreliable, prompting the ministry to go to the global market for their replacement.

AFP

To identify possible vendors, the ministry last month issued a request for information. It said it wants a larger, more deadly 7.62mm model that will shoot to kill.

India needs 65,000 rifles within 28 months of signing the contract and has asked global manufacturers to reply by 7 November, the ministry said. India plans to issue a tender for procuring rifles in April 2017.

This is Indias second attempt since 2011 to procure assault rifles for its infantry. The 2011 tenders were issued to Colts Manufacturing Company LLC, Italys Fabbrica dArmi Pietro Beretta S.p.A., Swiss Sig Sauer Inc., the Czech Republics Ceska zbrojovka and Israel Weapons Industry Ltd. But it was canceled in 2015 after the rifles offered up by the global manufacturers did not meet the multi-caliber requirements of the army.
As the battle between Tatas and former Chairman of Tata Sons, Cyrus Mistry continues, Ratan Tata is reportedly seeking a partner that could buy the stakes of Shapoorji Pallonji Group in the company.

BCCL

According to Bloomberg, the Tata family trusts have reached out to sovereign wealth funds and other long-term investors to gauge their interest in purchasing the Mistry familys stake if it became available.

The trusts held preliminary talks with potential buyers of the about 18 percent Tata Sons stake as they prepare for a number of possible scenarios. Mistrys family doesnt currently plan to sell its holdings, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private.

The family trusts wants to ensure that if Mistrys family later decides to sell its stake in the Tata Group holding company, the new investor will be a friendly party that shares their long-term vision, according to the people. Tata Sons owns more than $65 billion worth of listed company shares, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

"If the sale happens, a lot of the current uncertainty around Tata group companies will go away, Paras Bothra, vice president of equity research in Mumbai at Ashika Stock Broking, said.

Also Read: Tata Vs Mistry Gets Nasty As Tata Sons Vows To Prove That Cyrus Is Lying

BCCL

On Monday, Tata Groups holding company abruptly ousted Mistry as chairman and replaced him with his 78-year-old predecessor Ratan Tata, a scion of the founding family. The rift, which had been brewing for months, signals an end to Mistrys push to bring more fiscal prudence to the coffee-to-cars conglomerate after a string of global acquisitions.

The Tata trusts, which currently own about 66 per cent of Tata Sons, have also been drafting plans for how to raise funds if they were to make an offer for the Mistry family stake themselves.

Mistry is still considering his next steps and plans to make a decision on his response to the ouster in the next couple of weeks, another person said.

BCCL

Tata Sons owns major stakes in Tata Consultancy Services Ltd., Asias largest provider of software services, and Tata Motors Ltd., the producer of Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles. It also controls Indian Hotels Co., the luxury hospitality company that operates New Yorks Pierre hotel, as well as steel making operations, the Tetley tea brand and a power producer.

Also Read: Cyrus Mistry Tears Into Ratan Tatas Pet Project  Tata Nano

The holding company is examining at least two internal candidates to succeed Mistry, people familiar with the matter said.





Tata Consultancy Services Chief Executive Officer N. Chandrasekaran and Jaguar Land Rover head Ralf Speth are among those being considered. Trent Ltd. Chairman Noel Tata, a member of the founding family and Mistrys brother-in-law, is also being considered.

BCCL

Also Read: In Letter To Board, Cyrus Mistry Reveals How TATA Will Lose Without Him

Tata Group on Thursday said it ousted Mistry because of a growing trust deficit with its biggest shareholders after the former head accused directors of the conglomerate of wrongfully dismissing him in an e-mail Tuesday.

Mistry said he faced constant interference by his predecessor, Ratan Tata, to the point that he was pushed into becoming a "lame duck" chairman, according to the e-mail.
J Rama Chandra Sarath Babu aka Sarath Babu former clerk in Indian Railways is father to over 120 children. Doesn't it sound like a world record? Certainly it does, but Sarath isn't their biological father, instead he has given these children a life worth living and that's they call him Daddy. Sarath Babu has been running an ashram in Nellore district, Andhra Pradesh for the children who beg and steal on railway platforms since 1994. Sarath not only educates them to make their lives better, but some of his children so well that now they scientists , inspectors and teachers at various places.

How did he start?

Till a few years back, Sarth Babu was employed with Indian Railway as a clerk. His posting was at Nellore Railway station in Andhra Pradesh. He would see children begging, stealing, getting beaten by police if caught stealing. Sarath always wanted to do something for them, but couldn't not since he didn't have capital with him.

IndiaSamwad

But he wanted to do something for them, so first he decided to provide this children a place to eat, rest and sleep. Till 1994, he had spent 14 long years in service and had some saving. Therefore he decided to do something.

Next, Sarath Babu approached the elders of Gollapallem village in Allur Mandal of Nellore district in Andhra Pradesh, and requested them to a piece of land. The Panchayat gave the land and their consent on a temporary basis so he could go ahead with this challenging task. A hut, measuring 30 x 15 feet, was constructed with some material available in the village where he started bringing children begging at different platforms of the region.

Today most of his children are doing good jobs in different institutions, but Sarath Babu doesn't believe in taking credit. They are so intelligent already, I am nothing but a humble enabler," a humble Sarath Babu was quoted in Better India.

But was it that easy?

No. it wasn't and Babu knew it's never going to be easy. The process of rehabilitation was a daunting, but was determined enough to take up the challenge. He was lucky that he had friends who helped him in this cause. Battered and bitter, the only life many of them knew was of stealing and begging; anything different felt alien to them, hence they were suspicious of the change Sarath was trying to bring about by starting his ashram home.

Better India

Several instance of were such where Sarath being tied up to his cot and being left there by one of the children, or being constantly pick pocketed by another child. Stealing and violence were all that the children knew as a way of survival. But Sarath didn't give up as he knew later if not sooner, the change will come.

But got support from Villagers

Seeing efforts of Sarath and his team, villagers decided to support this cause. Thus, the panchayat denoted 4.5 acre of land to build the ashram. Sarath was so occupied with responsibilities of ashram that in 2011, he took VRS from Railways and committed him full time to his cause.

BetterIndia

Today, Child Asharam is one of the good schools in Nellore and children is this school are among the most successful across Nellore setting example for other children. Presently, a total of 153 children in Ashram. Sarath has been managing this for the last 22 years with help donation, his pension and help from the villagers.

Villagers are so fond of the children that in every big or small function like marriage, these children are invited first and served food before anybody else.

Sarath is devotee of Shirdi Sai Baba and wants his children to keep doing good work even after the leave Ashram.

"Nobody is orphan in this world. God is there to take care of everybody. I want these children to help other when they live their independent lives,"Sarath was quoted by IndiaSamwad.

The success stories

Though many children from this 22-year-old Child Ashram have become successfull people who can lead their lives with honesty and dignity, there are some who can an inspiration for many other who would come into ashram in years to come.

BetterIndia

Under Sarath's tender care one of the children whose father employed at Trirumala Tirupati Devastanam had committed suicide has now become a Junior Scientist at National Institute of Technology, Suratkal, Mangalore. He came in ashram after his father's death. Under Sarath's care he went on to pass Class 10 in the 1st division and completed M.Sc. in organic chemistry with distinction and now he is a Jr. Scientist.

A second child was hit hard by his fathers sudden death and mothers subsequent depression. Sarath Babu rescued him and now he has today completed a polytechnic course in civil engineering and is serving as a Work Inspector in the Panchayat Raj Department.

Another child, who used to beg for alms on railway platforms is today serving as a Sub-Inspector in the Andhra Pradesh Police. There are several other success stories and today as many as nine children from the ashram have done B.Tech.
In a report released by UN, the institute claims that ISIS slaughtered at least 232 people near Mosul last week. Mosul is a city in northern Iraq, which is being governed by Islamic State since 10 June 2014.

It is also the last remaining major city in Iraq under IS control.

Iraqi Forces Push Forward in Fight to Take Back Mosul From ISIS - The New York Times https://t.co/ewH4hKZX1w  melissa slaughter (@melissaslaught4) October 21, 2016

"Last Wednesday 232 civilians were reportedly shot to death. Of these, there were 190 former Iraqi Security Forces officers," rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva.

"These reports have been corroborated to the extent possible," she further added and confirmed that the number of people could be higher than this.

wsj

The executive-style killing happened as ISIS started forcing people towards Mosul.

According to sources, ISIS plans to use these people as human shields in all its future battles, especially the one with the US-backed elite Iraqi troops.

"ISIL has been forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes in some districts around Mosul," Shamdasani added.

The people who were killed either served government security services in the past or were the ones who denied relocation to Mosul.
The already dim prospects of any improvement in India-Pakistan relations were dealt another blow with Delhi Police busting an espionage ring whose 'kingpin' is a Pakistan high commission official.

ANI

The government declared Mehmood Akhtar persona non grata after he was nabbed buying classified documents from two men from Rajasthan at the Delhi zoo. Indian officials found that Akhtar enjoyed immunity even though he wasn't a diplomatic passport holderBesides Maulana Ramzan Khan and Subhash Jangid who were nabbed from the zoo, Akhtar was in touch with Shoaib from Rajasthan.

ANI

An FIR under Sections 3 and 5 of the Official Secrets Act has been registered against the accused, joint commissioner (crime) Ravindra Yadav said. A hunt for at least 10 people, including defence personnel who allegedly leaked the documents, is on.

PTI

Late in the evening, Pakistan retaliated by declaring a staffer in the Indian high commission in Islamabad, Surjit Singh, persona non grata. Pakistani foreign secretary Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry summoned Indian high commissioner Gautam Bambawale and asked him to ensure that Singh left Islamabad in 48 hours.

Pakistan accused Singh of espionage and said his activities violated the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and established diplomatic norms.

ALSO READ: Heres The Inside Story Of How Delhi Police Nabbed Pakistani Diplomat For Running Espionage Racket

BCCL

Following the police action, foreign secretary S Jaishankar summoned Pakistani high commissioner Abdul Basit and asked him to send Akhtar back within 48 hours. He also asked Basit to ensure that no high commission member behaved in a manner incompatible with his or her diplomatic status.

Basit, though, accused India of violating the 1961-Vienna Convention by "detaining and manhandling'' the high commission staffer. In a separate statement, the Pakistan foreign ministry accused India of trying to divert attention from "grave human rights violations'' by security forces in Jammu and Kashmir.

AFP

Akhtar worked as an assistant to the trade counsellor in the high commission since September 1993. According to the MEA, Akhtar revealed that he joined the Baloch regiment of Pakistan army in 1997 and went on deputation with the ISI in 2013.

He was posted to the Pakistan high commission in September 2013 where he was working as assistant to Farukh Habib, counsellor (trade)," the MEA said. Akhtar is accused of seeking information related to India's military installations and Army deployment.
Former ISIS sex slaves Nadia Murad and Lamiya Aji Bashar will be awarded the prestigious Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought by the European Parliament.

Courageous women Nadia Murad and Lamiya Aji Bashar honored with top E.U. humanitarian award: https://t.co/fIw1AIVRsg pic.twitter.com/wO9r3rwTYh  Women in the World (@WomenintheWorld) October 27, 2016

Nadia Murad, now a Yazidi human rights activist, was once ISISs sex slave. ISIS fighters came to her village in Northern Iraq, and she was one of the 5,200 Yezidis who were abducted. After escaping from ISIS clutches, Nadia testified in front of the UN Security Council about the plight of the Yezidi ethnic and religious minority under ISIS.

talkmedianews

Another woman, Lamiya Aji Bashar, was also abducted with Nadia, back in 2014. She too was forced into sex slavery. Bashar later confessed that during her stay, she was asked to make suicide vests.

During her escape in April 2016, she was severely injured by a landmine, which blinded her in one eye.

She was then taken to Germany for her treatment.

twitter

Nadia and Lamiya were among thousands of women who were abducted, tortured, and forced into sex slavery. Over the years, all these women underwent severe treatment by the ISIS institute and entertained several men who mocked their religious sentiments.

This is a very symbolic and significant decision to support these two survivors who came to Europe as refugees and found shelter in the European Union, said the European Parliament president Martin Schulz.

The parliament is not only offering them the award for their bravery and dignity but is forwarding a testament that they are with them in this fight.

With Great Honor Lamiya and I accept #SakharovPrize from the @Europarl_EN. pic.twitter.com/Rcg2ENmy45  Nadia Murad (@NadiaMuradBasee) October 27, 2016

Congratulations to @NadiaMuradBasee & Lamiya Aji Bashar on winning #SakharovPrize for their struggle for Yazidi people and womens dignity! pic.twitter.com/2Otmpw87ow  Alexis Tsipras (@tsipras_eu) October 27, 2016

Murad, now 23, is also a Nobel Peace Prize nominee and since September 2016 the first Goodwill Ambassador for the Dignity of Survivors of Human Trafficking of the United Nations.

Murad and Aji Bashar were selected by Schulz and political group leaders from a shortlist of two more political nominees.
For a July incident, where an Indian businessman had outraged an 18-year-old girl's modesty while flying from Qatar to Manchester, was sentenced to 20 weeks in prison today.

Suman Das had molested a British girl, while his wife sat next to him, unaware of her husband's behaviour.

Cavendish Press

Das, 46, was arrested at the Manchester Airport after the girl complained that he had touched her between the legs while she slept in her seat. Das has now been served jail time.

Das initially said that he was shifting his sitting position when he accidentally touched the girl. Later, however, he revised his comment and said that he could not have molested her as he was fast asleep.

Cavendish Press

The District Judge told Das,

"This was a sexual assault in circumstances where you took advantage of the victim. She was travelling on her own, and it took place next to your own wife in what was a brief but traumatic assault where you touched her extremely intimately."

Born in India, Das was a self-employed businessman who had also volunteered as an aid worker during the 2015 Nepal earthquake.

Wikipedia

In July, Das and his wife were on a "holiday of a lifetime" and were visiting the UK. The British girl, at the same time, was returning home from her two-month travel in Thailand.

While Das gave two conflicting versions of his story, the prosecutor said that touching a girl between her legs was "deliberate action" and could not have happened accidentally.

Amidst all this, Das's wife expressed full faith in her husband.

Once released from jail, Das will be required to spend a year in the UK under supervision.
Facing the threat of international isolation many in the Pakistani political scene had in the recent times openly and secretly admitted that their country had a problem when it comes to supporting terrorists.

This include an alleged meeting between the political and military leadership of the country where the Sharif government supposedly told the military to act against terrorists of face isolation. Close to the meeting an PML-N lawmaker had openly criticised the government for backing terrorists like Hafiz Saeed and Masood Azhar.

However these rhetorics had stopped short of an open admission from someone from the establishment.

Reuters

But now for the first time a top political figure has called a spade a spade. Former Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf has described Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar as a "terrorist", saying he has been involved in bomb blasts even in his country.

This is in sharp contrast with the previous stands he had taken while in power where he encouraged groups like LeT and JeM to carry out terror activities in India.

Even the Pakistan government has gone to any extends to protect its 'strategic assets' despite mounting international pressure.

Reuters

A proposal is pending before the UN Security Council for declaring Azhar as an international terrorist but China has been blocking it, claiming that there is not enough evidence to prove that he is a terrorist.
The lethal attack that killed as much as 22 innocent kids in Syria could be the deadliest strikes yet on a school in the nation's five-year war.

In the Wednesday attack that killed more than 35 people, a dozen more were injured. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights blamed the strikes on the Syrian regime and Russia, but it is generally difficult to distinguish between Syrian and Russian jets.

Read: 22 Children Were Bombed To Death Inside A School Complex As Massive Air Strikes Continue In Syria

Russia has been party to such air strikes since September 2015, and are held responsible for carrying such strikes in the rebel-held areas. Over the years, several schools, residential areas, and hospitals have been reduced to death.

The attack which rattled the entire world is just not keeping its fatalities to itself. The world is mourning the loss of those innocent kids who have died for no reason in particular.

Exclusive: Russia accused after airstrike kills 22 kids in attack on UK-funded Syrian schools https://t.co/q9nK7SsRS6 pic.twitter.com/gL7A7Hca7V  The Sun (@TheSun) October 28, 2016

A spokesperson from Whitehouse said, We know it was one of the two, targeting Syria and Russia.

But Russia has denied all such allegations.

"The Russian Federation has nothing to do with this terrible tragedy, with this attack," foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday.

The institute has cleared the air by saying that it is a lie.

The school campus that was hit repeatedly has become a worldwide agenda, promoting outrage everywhere.

"We don't know yet that it was the Assad regime or the Russians that carried out the air strike, but we know it was one of the two," said White House spokesman Josh Earnest.

Meanwhile, the eyewitnesses reveal the horror of being there. Many young and bright minds have been summoned by death. A lot of people in the city are still trying to regain their conscious about what has happened.
Were excited to announce that indmin.com is now part of fastmarkets.com.

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National Chairman of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, has said that President Muhammadu Buhari was God-sent to save Nigeria from collapse.

Mr. Odigie-Oyegun made the assertion in Sokoto on Friday when he declared open a three-day retreat organised by the Kano State Chapter of the party for its officials and stakeholders on political party management.

According to the APC chair, Buhari was God-sent at the most crucial time in Nigerias history. He inherited a comatose economy and he has been strenuously working to deliver on his campaign promises centered on the economy, security and fighting corruption.

Odigie-Oyegun, who has recently faced calls for his resignation as national chairman of the governing party, pointed out that insurgency in the North-East has been tamed while issues of militancy in the Niger Delta and other related security challenges, were receiving the diligent attention of President Buhari.

The APC chair also noted that the president was being so frugal with every kobo that accrued to the nation and expressed optimism that the economy would soon bounce back.

On the condemnation in some quarters over the APC-led Federal Governments anti-corruption campaign, Mr. Odigie-Oyegun said that no sane and patriotic Nigerian would be pessimistic about the way Buhari was uniquely tackling the menace.

According to him, Buhari is generally working tirelessly to make Nigeria a better place for all Nigerians.

Addressing participants at the retreat directly, the APC chief stressed the need for internal democracy as well as ensuring the supremacy of the party at all times.
The Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Alhaji Abbah Kyari, on Friday, denied reports in a section of the media that he was suspended.

The chief of staff clarified that he was only on leave and had resumed.

Kyari, who made the clarification as he emerged from the presidents office, told State House correspondents that Are you going to tweet that I am back?

According to reports, the chief of staff was suspended on the recommendations of a panel purportedly set up by President Buhari to investigate allegations that Mr. Kyari collected N500million bribe to facilitate a reduction in the fine the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, imposed on MTN Nigeria for flouting directives on SIM card registration.

When asked to respond to rumors of his suspension, the chief of staff fired back I dont go on leave?

Pressed further to speak on camera, he retorted, I dont talk to the press. You know my job doesnt hold me talking.
Chairwoman of China Disabled Persons' Federation Zhang Haidi was on Thursday officially inaugurated as the leader of the Rehabilitation International (RI).

She was sworn in at the closing ceremony of the three-day world congress of the RI, the world's leading network for the rights and inclusion of people with disabilities.

Addressing the ceremony, Zhang, 61, who lives with paraplegia and has been praised for her effective disability activism and thus dubbed "China's Helen Keller", pledged that she will help improve the livelihood of the world's 1 billion disabled people and provide them with the opportunity of recovery, education and employment as well as decent lives.

Elected as the new RI president in 2014 after gaining an overwhelming majority of votes, Zhang has been lauded for her work of enhancing the well-being of disabled people in China.

She told the congress that a large number of disabled people, especially those in the developing countries, are still living in plight.

"The international community should make more efforts to eliminate discrimination and prejudice against the disabled,"she said, adding that special attention should be given to the survival and development of the disabled women and children.

Zhang, who is also a translator and writer, vowed that the RI will support and encourage the world's leading academic institutes to carry out researches on recovery science and technologies.

She also promised to set aside a special fund for Africa and create permanent RI awards for those who contribute to the recovery of the disabled.

Jan Monsbakken, who stepped down as the RI president on Thursday, told Xinhua that Zhang's election was an important moment for the RI and also for the whole rehabilitation and disability community.

"It's very important that China is entering the formal structures of the international society (of the disability rehabilitation )," he said, adding that he hopes the new president could better mobilize resources and power to make the RI an even more successful organization.

Founded in 1922, the RI is a worldwide network of grassroots organizations, service providers, researchers, academics, professionals and government agencies with members in over 100 countries and regions. It is the only international disability NGO that is both cross-disability and cross-disciplinary.

The RI congress, held every four years, brings together government, business, academics and charity groups. Over 1,000 delegates from 60 countries and regions attended the major international event on disability.
A Federal High Court in Enugu on Thursday sentenced one woman that goes by the name Chika Amsy Charles to 90-years imprisonment for her involvement in N5.6 million fraud.

Charles who perpetrated the fraud with two other accomplices who are now at large was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission before Justice D.V Agishir.

She was sentenced to three years imprisonment on each of the thirty count charges filed against her by the anti-graft commission.

She was found guilty of swindling three Nigerians of N5,620,000.00 (Five million, Six Hundred and Twenty Thousand Naira only) under the pretense of helping them secure admission into Enugu State University of Science and Technology ESUTH, through her unregistered NGO called Bold and Dynamic Gender Initiative.

One of the charges in her Court documents read: That you Chika Amsy Charles, Simon Chidubem (at large) and Friday Ali(at large) on or about the 10th October, 2007 at Enugu, Enugu State within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court of Nigeria with intent to defraud obtained N330,000(Three Hundred and Thirty Thousand) from Okudoh Obinna by false pretense when you represented yourselves as capable of procuring admission for his wards into Enugu State University of Science and Technology which pretense you knew to be false and thereby committed an offense contrary to Section 1(1)(b) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act NO: 14 of 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.
An unidentified cruel mum in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, has come under fire for chaining her young daughter to a street lamp post for truancy.

The 30-year-old mum said chaining her young daughter was punishment for failing to attend Mandarin classes at school in the Malaysian capital.

Photos of the tearful eight-year-old girl with a metal chain padlocked around her right ankle and also padlocked to the lamp post, has sparked outrage.

The young girl, who was in her school uniform with her school bag and a water bottle on the ground next to the huge metal lamp post, was left at the spot in front of their house on Wednesday afternoon by her angry mum for over an hour before her cries attracted the attention of horrified onlookers at the nearby car park.

The onlookers tried to free her but the thick chain, which had been secured with two padlocks by the girls mum, proved difficult to break, forcing good Samaritans to call in the police.

The police, who arrived around ten minutes later, tracked down the unemployed mum and took her in for questioning.

She, however, was later released by the police while no formal charges were brought against her for what many have described as a cruel punishment against the poor child.
The President/CEO Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has faulted the power sector privatization by the Goodluck Jonathan administration and suggested that the process should be reversed.

The billionaire entrepreneur argued that the problems in the power sector have refused to go away despite privatization because the buyers lack understanding of the dynamics of the sector.

The Federal Government had on November 1, 2013 handed over five Generation companies (Gencos) and 11 Distribution companies (Discos) to private investors with 60 per cent stakes in the former PHCN utilities.

According to the Service Level Agreements (SLA) held with the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), the investors assured of metering electricity consumers and significantly reducing the collection and technical losses in the sector within five years.

However, speaking as a guest lecturer at the Senior Executive course 38 at the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, in Plateau State yesterday, Dangote said because of lack of understanding of the sector, the generating and distribution companies are now holding the country to ransom.

He said unless the federal government quickly decides on taking back the assets and giving them to people who have the capacity to inject money, the country may not be able to deliver on stable power supply.

Dangote spoke on Promotion of Local Manufacturing and Poverty Reduction in Nigeria: The Private Sector Experience and Policy Options.

According to him, What government did was to privatise but the privatisation was done wrongly. People who wanted to buy all these plants, both the generating and distribution companies, thought that this was another opportunity like mobile phones where we have moved from 500,000 lines in 2000 and in ten years we now have 120million lines.

Yes it would have been so but these guys, what they did when they bought these power plants was that they borrowed 90% of the money in foreign currency. You cannot go and borrow dollars when your base income is in naira, you will have an issue because your earnings are in naira you are taking a huge exchange risk and that is what happened today.

These are guys, with respect to them, when I say guys I dont mean 100% of them but the majority of them went in without even understanding what they are doing and the worst thing for any entrepreneur is to go into a business without understanding it.

He continued: If you dont understand a business no matter how much money they show you that you are going to make, how much profit, dont go into where somebody has to come and sit you down and start explaining because if he is doing something wrong, you dont have any way of challenging him.

If you wake me up in the middle of the night on any of the businesses we are doing today, even the new ones I will be able to explain it to you, I know my entry and I know my exit but unfortunately that is what these guys did and today they are holding the entire nation to ransom, it is very embarrassing for us.

Today, how can we say that we dont have 300,000 prepaid meters? things have changed you cannot go and charge a rate and then you have to follow people one by one to be scheming for them to pay but with a prepaid meter, once you buy for N10,000 after the N10,000 you have to remain in darkness so it is not an issue to start chasing people to pay. And it is also estimated that 30% of the overhead costs of businesses in the country go into the provision of alternative source of power. This affects their revenue and profitability.

We should be as open as we can if government doesnt intervene by taking back these assets and giving them to people who really have money that they can really inject, we will not be able to deliver on power.

We should ask, how many people, who and who are these guys that have actually gone into the power sector then you will know when you see the quality of people, are they really serious, because they went in to just make money; power business is not just about money, it is a huge business when you invest heavily you will reap at the end of the day.

My own advice is that government should sit down with them and negotiate the best way out because we need power, we are desperate for power and if there is no power no growth because if you look at the medium and small industries, most of their income goes into buying diesel or petrol to generate power and that shouldnt be the case.

I believe with enough power we will have tremendous growth we are not going to be in negative GDP growth, in fact it will be double digit growth, an inclusive one not the one that only the likes of MTN, DANGOTE and co will be making profit, everybody will feel it and that is the kind of GDP growth we are looking for.

If we generate power, majority of the States that are rushing to Abuja to collect monthly pay wont even go because they will be able to generate enough economic activities where you will be able to tax people and you can only tax somebody who is making money.

Mr. Dangote pointed out that apart from the epileptic power supply in the country, other constraints to entrepreneurs include inconsistency in government policies, taxes as well as poor road networks.

Nigeria has a plethora of raw materials that can provide inputs to various sectors particularly the agro-allied and extractive industries. Any business in which you will not use local materials is dangerous.
The corpse of a teenage boy suspected to have been killed by hoodlums has been recovered on Olabode Street, Ikotun, Lagos State.

PUNCH Metro learnt that there were bruises indicative of cutlass injuries on the body of the victim, whose name had yet to be ascertained.

It was gathered that the corpse was discovered by a resident, identified only as Salamatu, who woke up around 5.30am last Wednesday to perform Subuhi (early morning) prayer.

The woman was said to have screamed, drawing the attention of other residents who rushed to the scene.

Our correspondent was told that the case was reported to the police at the Ikotun division, who took the corpse to the Yaba General Hospital morgue.

An eyewitness, who gave his name as Wale Akinsanya, said he was performing the morning devotion in his room when he was alarmed by Salamatus scream.

He said, I rushed to the scene and saw the victim on the street with bruises all over his body. He should be around 18 years.

Another resident, Lere Famurewa, said he heard suspicious sounds earlier, but was afraid to go out to see what transpired.

I peeped from my window but I didnt see anybody; that was around 4am. The strange sounds continued for a while.

Around 6am, I learnt that a corpse was dumped on the street, he said.

A police source told PUNCH Metro that no suspect had been arrested in connection with the murder.

Nothing was found on the deceased to trace his residence and assailants, the source added.

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, in a text message, stated that investigation was ongoing on the incident.

Source: Punch
Nigerian newspaper headlines October 28, 2016.

National Mirror

Police Service Commission, PSC, has promoted four Deputy Commissioners to Commissioners of Police, 109 officers, dismissed six officers and suspended the promotion of 12 other officers.

Guardian

The scheduled trial of ex-Niger Delta militant leader, Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, stalled, yesterday, at the Federal High Court, Lagos, due to the absence of the prosecutor, Festus Keyamo.

Leadership

Nigerias oil sector has received a major boost as American oil major, ExxonMobil Corporation yesterday revealed discovery of significant oil with a potential recoverable resource of between 500 million and 1 billion barrels of oil on the Owowo field offshore Nigeria.

The Sun

Igbo leader and Board of Trustees (BoT) member of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), in Anambra State, Rommy Ezeonwuka said those planning to destabilise party and cause division within it should think of relocating to avoid being disgraced.

Vanguard

Worried by the State of the countrys economy, President of National Labour Congress, NLC, Mr. Ayuba Wabba, yesterday, urged President Munammadu Buhari not to jettison increment in minimum wages from N18, 000, saying this is the logic used by United State to address recession.

Punch

Worried by the continued attacks by suspected Fulani herdsmen in Southern Kaduna, the Deputy Governor of the state, Barnabas Yusuf-Bala, on Thursday met with the people of the southern part of the state.

Premium Times

The Independent National Electoral Commission has named businessman Jimoh Ibrahim as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party for the November 26 governorship election.

Thisday

The federal government under the watch of President Muhammadu Buhari plans a $10 billion infrastructure development fund for the oil-rich but restive Niger Delta, the Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, said yesterday in Abuja.
Governor of Ondo State, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, is currently in a closed-door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa in Abuja.

Governor Mimiko arrived the presidents office at about 11.00am.

The governors visit may not be unconnected with Thursdays declaration by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, of Jimoh Ibrahim as the Peoples Democratic Party candidate in the November 26 governorship election in Ondo State.

The INEC had removed the name of Eyitayo Jegede, who is purportedly the preferred choice of Mr. Mimiko, from the list of the candidates of the political parties that would participate in the upcoming guber polls and replaced it Jimoh Ibrahims.

Expectedly, the move has resulted in protests by aggrieved PDP members in the state, who have taken to the streets of Akure, the state capital, to condemn the electoral bodys decision.
Following the outbreak of violent protests in Akure and some other parts of Ondo State by aggrieved Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members, the State Police Command has assured residents of the state of their safety.

The aggrieved PDP faithful had in early hours of Friday, taken to the streets in protest against the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to replace the name of Eyitayo Jegede with Jimoh Ibrahim as the partys candidate for the November 26 governorship election.

The Ondo State Police Public Relations Officer, Femi Joseph, while confirming the development, assured residents of the polices commitment to protect their lives and property.

Mr. Joseph, an Assistant Superintendent of Police, ASP, enjoined the people to keep calm as normalcy would soon be restored.

According to him, the command had dispatched officers and men to the scene of protests on Oba Adesida Road.

We are aware and our men are on their way to the scene, I will speak with you more later as the incident develops, ASP Joseph told the News Agency of Nigeria.

We are trying to coordinate our men so that the incident will not escalate, he added.

It was learnt that taxis and buses had to drop off passengers and in some cases, take alternative routes to their destinations due to bonfires set up in major highways in Akure, the Ondo State capital by the protesters, who also blocked the streets.

It was further learnt that similar protests are holding on in Ondo City and Ore.

We had earlier reported here that Governor Olusegun Mimiko had rushed to Abuja where he is currently holding a closed-door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa over recent political events in Ondo.
The Osun State Police Command has arraigned a pastor of The Apostolic Church, Ikutanmoni Joseph, for allegedly defrauding one Dr. Adeyemi Gbadebo, of a sum of 900,000 Naira.

Pastor Ikutanmoni Joseph, Alakinde Kayode and Muritala Adewale were arraigned at Court 2 of the Osun State High Court, Osogbo for allegedly conspiring with others at large to defraud Dr Gbadebo with intention to sell two plots of land for him.

The charge sheet reads in part: That you Alakinde Kayode, Muritala Adewale, Pastor Ikutanmoni Joseph, and others still at large, sometimes in 2012 at Temidire Estate Osogbo, did conspire together to commit felony to with obtaining by false pretense and malicious damage.

On the same date and place in the Osogbo Magisterial District did fraudulently obtain the sum of N900,000 from Doctor Adeyemi Gbadebo under pretense of selling two plots of land to him, knowing same to be false.

That you Pastor Ikutanmoni Joseph and others still at large, sometimes in the month of April 2016 at Temidire Estate, Osogbo, did wilfully and unlawfully damaged a building belonging to one Dr Charles Olumokun.

According to the charge sheet, the alleged offenses were contrary to and punishable under Section 517, 419 (A) and 451 of the criminal law of Osun state.

The three accused persons, however, pleaded not guilty to the three count charges of conspiracy, fraud and malicious damage.

Their counsels, Barrister Sunday Atofarati and Abimbola Ige, urged the court to grant their clients bail in the most liberal terms.

Police prosecutor, Mireti Wilson, opposed the oral bail application made by the counsels, noting that Police have been finding it difficult to get the accused arrested.

But Magistrate Olusola Aluko, said that the essence of bail is to secure the attendance of the accused persons in court.

He granted each of the accused persons bail in the sum of N200,000 with two sureties in the like sum.

Magistrate Aluko then adjourned the case till January 17, 2017 for mention.

Source: Channels
Top Communist Party of China (CPC) and state leaders Xi Jinping (C), Li Keqiang (3rd R), Zhang Dejiang (3rd L), Yu Zhengsheng (2nd R), Liu Yunshan (2nd L), Wang Qishan (1st R) and Zhang Gaoli (1st L) attend the Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, in Beijing, capital of China. The meeting was held from Oct. 24 to 27 in Beijing. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

The Communist Party of China (CPC) has called on all its members to "closely unite around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core," a call to action that many observers believe will give the country the impetus to realize its two centenary goals.

The call was included in a communique released Thursday after the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, which was held from Monday to Thursday.

Party members were told to resolutely safeguard the authority of the CPC Central Committee and its central, unified leadership while pushing forward the comprehensive and strict governance of the Party.

That "the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core" was officially put forward at the meeting is "where the fundamental interests of the Party and state lie," said Liu Qibao, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and head of the CPC Central Committee's Publicity Department.

It is also a fundamental guarantee for the adherence to and strengthening of the CPC leadership, Liu said after the meeting.

The strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Xi as the core is vital to China's targets to build an "all-round moderately prosperous society" for the CPC's centennial in 2021, and for it to become a "modern socialist country" in time for the PRC's centennial in 2049, said Liu Dongchao, a professor with the Chinese Academy of Governance.

The meeting approved two documents on the discipline of the Party, including the norms of political life within the Party under the new situation and a regulation on intra-Party supervision.

Liu Dongchao called the two documents "a perfection of the CPC's governance system, which will result in a better intra-Party political life," adding that the communique is "an embodiment of the Party's strengthened awareness of its responsibilities."

UPHOLDING AUTHORITY

The CPC has called on all Party members to firmly uphold the authority of the CPC Central Committee.

A leading core is vital to a country and a political party, the communique said, adding the entire Party should consciously maintain a high degree of consistency with the CPC Central Committee in thoughts, politics and actions.

Ensuring the authority of the CPC Central Committee and the proper execution of orders of the Party are concerned with the destiny of the Party and the state, according to the communique.

They are also concerned with the fundamental interests of the people of all ethnic groups in China, and they are important purposes of strengthening and regulating intra-Party political life, the communique said.

An overhaul of intra-Party political life was a pressing task for the CPC, if it was to weather the storm of challenges -- the ruling status, reform and opening up, market economy and other external factors -- it had to address the dangers rocking the boat, including the slacking of officials, incompetence, isolation from the people and corruption, it noted.

It said the CPC needs to be empowered to successfully purify, perfect, reform and upgrade itself, resist corruption and withstand risks, thus, safeguarding the authority of the CPC Central Committee and the Party's unity, advancement and purity.

Party organizations at all levels and all Party members, especially senior cadres, should conform to the CPC Central Committee and CPC theory, path, principle and policy, as well as decisions made by the CPC Central Committee.

Party organizations at all levels and all Party members should firmly follow what the CPC Central Committee advocates, firmly implement what the CPC Central Committee decides, and must not do what the CPC Central Committee prohibits, according to the communique.

The document also urged Party discipline to be thoroughly enforced with no exceptions made for any organizations or members.

Every individual or organization is equal before Party discipline and none enjoys any prerogatives, it said.

CORRUPTION FREE

The CPC vowed to tackle corruption in its promotion system, putting an end to the buying and selling of official posts and vote rigging.

According to the communique, requesting an official post, honor or special treatment is not allowed under any circumstances.

The communique also underscored that bargaining with Party organizations or disobeying decisions made by Party organizations is forbidden.

"No one should be allowed to consider Party officials as their private property," the document said, adding there should be no "personal favors" within the Party.

There will no longer be any place for corrupt officials to hide in the CPC, the communique noted.

In efforts to clean up Party politics, leading officials are banned from using their positions to seek benefits for friends and family. Family members and friends of leading officials will be banned from interfering in the work of leading officials, including personnel arrangements, the communique said.

Stating that building clean politics and opposing corruption was an important task in strengthening and standardizing political life within the Party, the meeting called for the building of a system that ensures officials dare not, will not and cannot be corrupt.

In addition, leading officials at all levels have no right to seek personal privilege, it said, adding that they should take the lead in implementing socialist core values and acting with integrity and self-discipline.

The Party will stick to the policy of "no restricted zones, full coverage and zero tolerance" in its fight against corruption, it added.

STRONGER SUPERVISION

The communique stressed supervision as the fundamental guarantee for exercising power properly, as well as a crucial measure for strengthening and regulating political life within the Party.

Unrestricted power or unsupervised Party members are not allowed to exist within the CPC, it said. "No prohibited zone or exception will be allowed in intra-Party supervision."

Intra-Party supervision should be carried out in accordance with regulations and by observing the principles of democratic centralism, top-down organizational supervision, democratic supervision from the bottom to the top, and peer review or critique, said the communique.

The mission of intra-Party supervision is to ensure the Party Constitution, its regulations and code of conduct are enforced effectively; to maintain Party unity and solidarity; and, primarily, to resolve Party leadership enervation and slackness in Party building and governance as well as discipline slackening, it said.

Supervision will ensure Party organizations perform their due duties, that all members play vanguard and exemplary roles and leading officials are loyal, clean and accountable.

The main targets of supervision are the CPC's top organs and officials, particularly senior officials, according to the communique.

Intra-Party supervision should focus on Party members' observance of the Party Constitution and rules as well as the country's Constitution and laws, adherence to the centralized and unified leadership of the CPC Central Committee, official's integrity and self-discipline, and impartial exercise of official power.

19TH CPC NATIONAL CONGRESS

The 19th CPC National Congress, a major event in the political life of the Party and the state, will be held in Beijing in the second half of 2017, according to the communique.

The entire Party shall comprehensively implement the spirit of the 18th CPC National Congress, as well as the third, fourth, fifth and sixth plenary sessions of the 18th CPC Central Committee, the communique stressed.

In the lead-up to the 19th CPC National Congress, the Party shall rally and lead people of all ethnicities to forge ahead with firm confidence; perform various jobs of the Party and the state, particularly preparatory work for thought, theories and organization, economic and social development, as well as ideological work; and safeguard social harmony and stability, the communique said.

Two new members have been added to the CPC Central Committee to fill vacancies, who are Zhao Xiangeng and Xian Hui, formerly alternate members of the CPC Central Committee.

The meeting also endorsed prior decisions to expel four former senior officials from the Party, including former Party chief of Liaoning Province and senior national legislator Wang Min, former Beijing deputy Party chief Lyu Xiwen, and former senior military officials Fan Changmi and Niu Zhizhong.
Pioneer Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Nuhu Ribadu, has urged the National Judicial Council (NJC) give necessary support to the Department of State Service (DSS) and the anti-graft agency in the ongoing war against corrupt judges.

He said even if the judiciary was not comfortable with the method of the sting operation conducted by the DSS against the judges, it should at least appreciate that what is being done is needed.

Ribadu, who made his position known in his opening remarks at Radio Nigeria Annual Lecture in Abuja yesterday, said it was time for an all-out war against corruption with no sacred cows.

He said: Though there is consensus about the need to stop corruption, it is usually in fighting it that disagreements usually arise.

With fighting corruption often comes ripples and discomfort as we have seen recently with the probes in the judiciary. It is normal. But we have to withstand the pressure and move on. We have passed the same road before.

Recounting his experience at the helm of affairs of the EFCC, the one-time presidential candidate of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria, said at the time, some state governors felt the anti-graft agency was going beyond its brief.

They ganged up to stop us but we persevered. Some of them even went to court, but today that has been accepted as normal, he noted.

Mr. Ribadu further recalled that when the EFCC under his leadership went after then Senate President Adolphus Wabara and former Inspector General of Police, Tafa Balogun, not a few thought that the sky would fall, considering the pedigree of those the anti-graft agency was tackling for alleged corruption.

Here was I and my colleagues, middle level and junior police officers taking on the IGP. It was unimaginable! The day that arrest was made, it was like the sky would fall. But it came to pass.

It is similar situation we are having today. However, even if we disagree with the method, we have to appreciate the fact what is being done is needed. The judiciary should understand this and cooperate fully. We have to have this all-out war against corruption without sparing any sacred cow.

If there is one area we need national consensus now, it is in supporting this effort to tackle corruption. As most of you know, I belong to the law profession, I therefore share the concern of some of my colleagues.

However, we should all resolve to support the government and those doing the work to get us through this phase, he pleaded.

Ribadu said corruption is like termite, which can destroy the nations economic structure.

He added: The task today, therefore, is to find the nexus between the war against corruption and economic prosperity. Let me emphasize that fighting corruption is at the centre of whatever economic progress we desire as a nation.

Corruption is like termite that is capable of destroying our economic structure, no matter how well-built. Almost everything wrong with our politics and economy can be traced to the menace of corruption. This is why we have to fight it, the All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain stressed.
Troops of the Joint Task Force codenamed Operation Delta Safe (ODS) were greeted with shock and disbelief recently when they discovered 25 human skulls at various stages of decomposition and a full human skeletal remains at four shrines operated by suspected militants deep inside the creeks of Akpabuyo and Bakassi local government areas, Cross River State.

The discovery, it was learnt, raised concerns that the militants were engaged in human sacrifice.

The shrines, which were discovered at Ikot Ene Idam. Abakpa and Ikang creeks, belonged to the Bakassi Strike Force (BSF).

The troops, who raided the area, acted on a tip off.

Confirming the development Thursday, the Deputy Coordinator, Joint Media Campaign Centre (JMCC), Lieutenant Commander Thomas Otuji, said the operation was conducted by ODS Sector 4.

He said: During the cordon and search operations, the troops discovered 25 human skulls in various stages of decomposition, a complete human skeleton and several other human body parts.

The shrines were destroyed as troops continued to search for the perpetrators of these heinous acts against humanity.

Mr. Otuji added that with the clearance operation, the BSF has been effectively smoked out from its strongholds.

It should be noted that the senseless killing of humans for ritual purposes is sacrilegious and will not be tolerated in any form within the Joint Operation Area, he stated.

Otuji said that the troops arrested two suspects at Idebe Ifak Anam, Ikot Okon Edem and Abakpa in Bakassi.

He said upon interrogation, the suspects were discovered to be spies for BSF militants.

Meanwhile, troops of Sector 2 operating in Bayelsa State arrested 44 members of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) at a club along Mabinton Estate, Okaka, Yenagoa.

According to Otuji, those arrested were planning to establish a state chapter of the banned IPOB to disrupt the public peace.

They were duly arrested and handed over to relevant authorities for further investigations. The unity of Nigeria is not negotiable and sacrosanct.

Hence, any unlawful gathering that will cause mayhem, threaten the unity and sovereignty of the country will not be condone, he said.

Otuji noted that in Rivers State, troops of Sector 3 raided the den of cultists in Finima, Bonny following a distress call that the hoodlums were terrorizing the community with AK47 rifles.

He said the kingpin of the cultists identified as Eagle Face, on sighting the troops, dived into the water, adding that two days after his lifeless body was seen by the locals floating in the creeks.

He pointed out that the locals retrieved the body and buried it at Bonny River bank.

However, two of the suspected cult members were arrested with one locally made pistol, a machete and two handsets.
A United Kingdom-based Nigerian businessman, Mr. Yinusa Owolabi, has accused the Nigeria police of extorting money from him, as well as harassing him over an incident that occurred in the United Kingdom.

Owolabi, specifically accused the International Police Force (INTERPOL), Abuja, Nigeria, of a frame-up, saying the matter the Nigeria police were meddling in was already being handled by policemen at the Birmingham Police Station, UK, with the reference number, 205W158583E16.

Owolabis plight has been taken up by the Human Rights Monitoring Agenda (HURMA), a non-governmental organisation, which had sent a petition to the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris.

The petition, which was signed by one of HURMAs legal officers, Mr. Lekan Alabi, was also sent to the offices of the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, the Police Service Commission, the National Human Rights Commission and the Nigerian Bar Association, among others.

The NGO said the police resorted to this high-level rights abuse and illegality after a Nigeria-based businessman, Benjamin Olowodola, reported a transaction that occurred in the UK to the police in Nigeria.

HURMA explained that Olowodola had visited Birmingham in August 2016, to purchase generators valued at 42,000 from Eagle Generators Limited, a firm owned by a man identified simply as Nasir.

It said Olowodola consulted Owolabis company, Oshramon Ventures Limited, to provide a 40-foot container for the generators.

The petition read in part, On August 15, Owolabi accepted to cargo the generators at an agreed price and sent an empty 40ft container to the premises of Eagle Generator Limited in Birmingham for onward delivery to the seaport. But the Eagle Generator Limited failed to load the generators into the container between the hours of 11.30am and 1.30pm as agreed by the parties and this necessitated the driver of the truck to leave the empty container behind so that it could be loaded at the sellers convenient time and that the truck would return the following morning to take it to the port.

However, when the driver returned to the Eagle Generators Limited the following day, he found out the container was missing and informed his boss, Mr. Yinusa Owolabi, of the development. While Nasir reported the matter at Birmingham Police Station, Owolabi did same at Stratford Police Station, close to his office in the UK. He also took Olowodola to the Stratford Police Station to report, but the officer in charge of the matter noticed same had earlier been reported in Birmingham and transferred the information provided by the two complainants to the Birmingham station that was close to the scene of the incident.

HURMA said while the UK police were still on with their investigation, Owolabi visited Nigeria for his fathers burial in September and called Olowodola on the telephone to discuss the state of the matter as a concerned businessman.

But arriving at Olowodolas office at Tejuosho, Yaba, Lagos, on September 27, men from INTERPOL effected Owolabis arrest and detained him in their Lagos office for three days on phantom allegation of stealing, which the accused vehemently denied.

While in their custody, the police told Owolabi to pay 42,000, the value of the generators. His passport and UK Residence Permit were also seized from him. Having blatantly refused to pay the 42,000, your men extorted N192,000 from him before he was released on bail on September 30.

He was told that based on the fact of the matter, he could not be charged for stealing. However, for reasons best known to the command, after extorting money him, his passport and residence permit were not released to him.

HURMA said it was curious to know why the police had refused to release Owolabis documents, and why Nigeria INTERPOL refused to send the case to the appropriate jurisdiction where the alleged crime was committed, and why Owolabi was being accused of stealing when the generators were not stolen on the accuseds company premises, but that of Nasir.

The Commissioner of Police, INTERPOL Abuja, Olusola Subair, said the police were still investigating the case and would soon return Owolabis documents to him.

He said, The case was a business transaction which transpired in the UK. The suspect was to help someone ship some generators to Nigeria, but the generators disappeared. The suspect alleged that he had reported the case to the UK, but we need to find out if that is true.

The two men came to Nigeria and the case was reported to us in Abuja. This man was not detained and so, there is no ground for his allegation of extortion.

It is true that we have withheld his passport and the reason is that the complainant said the suspect did not report the matter properly.

We have written to the INTERPOL Manchester, which oversees England. We asked them to confirm to us if they are investigating the case at all.

All we need to know is if the case was truly reported at Birmingham and Stratford stations. Once INTERPOL Manchester replies in the affirmative, we will release his travel documents to him.

We have explained all these to the man. The amount involved is huge. Will he be happy if he reported such a case and the police refused to take proper action?

Speaking with PUNCH Metro, Olowodola said Owolabi should produce an evidence of the report he made at the police station in the UK.

He added that Owolabi was concerned about his returning to the UK, but was not bothered about his (Olowodola) business that had been jeopardised by the theft.

He said, I do not want to talk to the press about this. If he has spoken to you, go and publish the truth in what he said. You cannot teach the police how to conduct their investigation.

Let him produce an evidence that he reported the matter to the police in the UK. Let him bring a copy of the statement he wrote. He is concerned about his family and anxious to return to the UK, but he is not concerned about my own business which has been jeopardised for six months. Let God be the judge, but I will not teach the police how to do their work.

Olowodola added that Owolabi should allow the police to conduct proper investigation into the matter, instead of taking his case to the press.

How can you say generators worth 40,000 disappeared just like that? He should let the police do their work, and stop making a scene out of this.

Source: Punch
Databricks, corporate provider of support and development for the Apache Spark in-memory big data project, has spiced up its cloud-based implementation of Apache Spark with two additions that top IT's current hot list.

The new features -- GPU acceleration and integration with numerous deep learning libraries -- can in theory be implemented in any local Apache Spark installation. But Databricks says its versions are tuned to avoid the resource contentions that complicate the use of such features.

Apache Spark isn't configured out of the box to provide GPU acceleration, and to set up a system to support it, users must cobble together several pieces. To that end, Databricks offers to handle all the heavy lifting.

Databricks also claims that Spark's behaviors are tuned to get the most out of a GPU cluster by reducing the number of contentions across nodes. This seems similar to the strategy used by MIT's Milk library to accelerate parallel processing applications, wherein operations involving memory are batched to take maximum advantage of a system's cache line. Likewise, Databricks' setup tries to keep GPU operations from interrupting each other.

Another time-saving measure is adding direct access to popular machine learning libraries that can use Spark as a data source. Among them is Databricks' TensorFrames, which allows the TensorFlow library to work with Spark and is GPU-enabled.

Databricks has tweaked its infrastructure to get the most out of Spark. It created a free tier of service to attract customers still wary of deep commitment, providing them with a subset of the conveniences available in the full-blown product. InfoWorld's Martin Heller checked out the service earlier this year and liked what he saw, precisely because it was free to jump into and easy to get started.

But competition will be fierce, especially since Databricks faces brand-name juggernauts like Microsoft (via Azure Machine Learning), IBM, and Amazon. Thus, it has to find ways to both keep and expand an audience for a service as specific and focused as its own. The plan appears to involve not only adding features like machine learning and GPU acceleration to the mix, but ensuring they bring convenience, not complexity.
Oil giant Saudi Aramco has $42.4B profit in third quarter AP - 49 minutes ago Oil giant Saudi Aramco is reporting a $42.4 billion profit in the third quarter of this year, buoyed by higher global energy prices that have filled the kingdoms coffers but helped fuel inflation worldwide... $SPX : 3,871.98 (-0.75%) $DOWI : 32,732.95 (-0.39%) $IUXX : 11,405.57 (-1.22%)

How will Black Sea Situation Play Out Long Term? Banghart Properties - Mon Oct 31, 9:16PM CDT How high or low will the grain markets go from the Black Sea Situation?
Hundreds of rescued migrants and refugees were brought to Reggio Calabria port in southern Italy on Thursday, along with at least 11 of 29 bodies overall recovered in a latest mission, Italian officers said.

In an earlier incident, over 90 migrants would be missing after an inflatable boat sank off Libya on Wednesday, Italian media reported.

International aid group Doctors without Borders' (MSF) ship Bourbon Argos reached Reggio Calabria port in late morning, with over 240 people on board who had been rescued in various operations in the Mediterranean.

Along with survivors, MSF crews brought to land 11 bodies.

"They were among the 29 victims found yesterday on board of an inflatable dinghy," MSF Field Communication Manager Giorgia Girometti told Xinhua, adding "Save the Children's search and rescue ship has taken care of the other bodies."

Crews with German NGO Sea-Watch in the southern Mediterranean had been the first to assist the migrant craft in distress in the southern Mediterranean. The corpses were found lying on the dinghy's floor, which was flooded with an intoxicating mixture of seawater and fuel, according to MSF.

"The fumes from such mixture were the likely cause of their death, although we still do not have a scientific confirmation," Girometti said.

Some 107 migrants were rescued from the same craft, and were among those who reached Reggio Calabria in the morning, the MSF officer added.

Separately on Thursday, Ansa news agency reported the likely death of another 97 people, who would be missing after an overcrowded migrant boat capsized just off Libya on Wednesday.

"At least 97 people are believed missing after the shipwreck of an inflatable craft," Libyan coast guard spokesman Ayoub Kassem was quoted by Ansa.

"Some 126 people were reported on board, and we rescued 29 of them," the official added.
Update 9/20/18  Metro has begun construction on its facility in Westhampton Beach, N.Y. Once complete, itll be the companys fifth location in the state and the largest commercial structure in the village, according to a source.

Were excited to add another store in the New York market, said Martin Gallagher, president. This facility is in a great location in an exceptional community.

The project is being developed through Metros partnership with Fremont Realty Capital, the real estate merchant-banking arm of Fremont Group. The companies have completed several projects this year, including the conversion of a former lawn and garden shop in North Plainfield, N.J., and storage facilities in Addison and Naperville, Ill.

11/7/16 The Westhampton Beach Village Board unanimously voted on Nov. 3 to change the way the municipality calculates building fees for structures larger than 20,000 square feet. Trustee Brian Tymann was absent from the meeting, and no residents addressed the board prior to the vote.

With the modification, Metro Self Storage will now pay about $45,000 for its building permits, which is less than a quarter of what would have been charged under the old system, according to the source.

The purpose of the building permit is not to generate revenue for the village but to offset expenses, said village attorney Anthony Pasca during the public hearing. There was just no rationale behind charging so much.

Under the revised law, the village will charge $75 per square foot for buildings larger than 20,000 square feet, and $6 for every $1,000 of a buildings estimated cost, the source reported. The modification wont impact other future building applications in the village.

10/27/16 A proposed Metro Self Storage development in Westhampton Beach, N.Y., has village officials reconsidering its building-permit fees for large structures. Metro is seeking to build a three-story, 100,000-square foot facility on a 2.6-acre flag lot on the west side of Old Riverhead Road. Owned by Self Storage Westhampton LLC, the site is east of the Westhampton train station and near Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 5350. Metro paid $3.5 million in cash for the property.

Under the villages current fee formula, Metro would pay $210,000 for the required permits due to the size of the building, according to the source. Members of the Westhampton Beach Village Planning Board are considering a modification to the municipalitys fee schedule to make the project more feasible. Officials said they dont expect an application for a development project of this size to be filed again due to the lack of suitable sites in the village. The largest commercial building in the area is a 30,000-square-foot Best Yet supermarket on Sunset Avenue.

It is not normal for a building to go over 15,000 to 20,000 square feet, said Paul Houlihan, administrator for Westhampton Beach Building and Zoning. So our fee schedule wasnt geared for this large of a building.

Under the current code, a buildings estimated value is determined by multiplying the number of proposed square feet by $250 if it measures less than 5,000 square feet or $350 if its larger than 5,000 square feet, the source reported. A new ordinance would create separate fee schedules based on square footage. A charge of $75 per square foot would be issued for buildings larger than 20,000 square feet. The village would then tack on $6 for every $1,000 of a buildings estimated cost.

Metros proposed project has a valuation of $35 million under the existing code. The restructured permitting schedule would reduce the value to $7.5 million and require the company to pay about $45,000 in processing fees, the source reported.

With our fee schedule open-ended the way it is, with the mini-storage building going three stories high and 100,000 square feet [in size], it came up to a crazy amount of money. It does not accurately reflect what the cost of the building is, said Houlihan, adding the change wouldnt impact other buildings. Everything else is remaining the same.

The planning board will hold a public hearing on Nov. 3 to discuss the fee schedule. Board members will vote on the issue following the hearing.

Headquartered in Lake Forest, Ill., Metro Storage is a privately owned, fully integrated real estate operating company specializing in the acquisition, development and management of self-storage facilities nationwide. Its facilities comprise more than 8.1 million square feet of storage space.

Sources:

27East.com, Storage Facility on The Way in Westhampton Beach

27East.com, Westhampton Beach Village Signs Off On Building Permit Fee Schedule Modifications

27East.com, Application For New Storage Building Prompts Review Of Westhampton Beach's Permitting Fees

Long Island Business News, Storage Firm Buys Westhampton Beach Site
A group of British investors living in Brazil recently opened Moby Self Storage in Rio de Janeiro. The 13,000-square-foot facility in the historic neighborhood of Gamboa in Rios harbor district offers units ranging from 1 to 30 square meters. Built to emulate the American self-storage model, the asset is the first of three facilities the group intends to develop by the end of 2017, according to the source.

The Gamboa facility is targeting business and residential customers. It features modern security features as well as document and vehicle storage. We wanted to offer the residents of Rio de Janeiro the level of self-storage product that is common in the [United Kingdom] or the [United States] today, company principal Harry Taylor told the source. By that I mean having a purpose-built warehouse, with a 24-hour security entrance, a large private carpark, individually alarmed rooms, loading docks with industrial-sized elevators, and a clean, well-lit, pest-free environment in which to store your possessions safely.

As an early entrant to the emerging Brazilian self-storage market, Taylor believes the industry has plenty of upside once customers understand the benefits of the service. Without question, educating the market here that this product exists will be our biggest challenge, he said. We need to demonstrate how self-storage can help people here declutter their lives, and use Moby Self Storage like a spare bedroom for their apartment or as an extra storage room for their business.

To scale the business, Moby will emphasize its security features in its marketing messages. Security is such an important factor here in Brazil, and having the very best security system for self-storage, which includes every room or box having an individual alarm, was a big challenge to install here, Taylor told the source. Without a doubt, it sets us apart from other storage warehouses.

Taylors investment group intends to expand quickly, with plans to develop at least one more store in Rio next year as well as another location is Sao Paulo. We have a long-term plan for expansion here in Brazil over the next 10 years, Taylor said.
When David Renton was hired by Guys and St. Thomas Charity (GST Charity) in 2011 to be its finance and development director, the foundation  whose roots go back to the 12th century  was in need of modernization. Renton, who had worked for 15 years in corporate finance at boutique investment bank Hawkpoint Partners, was chosen to review the portfolio and devise an action plan. His background inspired the investment committee, formed just a few years before Renton was selected, to venture outside the usual endowment officer field in its search. I wasnt an accountant and hadnt managed portfolios, he explains.

With 700 million ($853 million) in gross assets, the charity funds the National Health Service Foundation Trust, which in turn funds health projects that are beyond what the National Health Service can provide. With the new investment committee and finance director in place, GST Charity was ready to formalize its investment policy with a spending rule (4 percent)  a mandated annual donation from the charitys investment fund  structure the portfolio, and change consultants.

Of particular interest was the private equity portfolio. As it stood, private equity accounted for 10 percent of the total portfolio, with diversified holdings of 30 to 40 managers that were approaching maturity.

Renton initiated an analysis of the private equity portfolio with investment consultant Mercer to determine if that asset class was earning its place, including whether it was getting a premium to justify costs that included leverage. His conclusion: lose the fund-of-funds approach and find another avenue into the asset class.

But how? As a midsize endowment with limited staff and resources, the charity would not be able to select managers on its own. Because most small to midsize institutions like GST Charity cannot access big-name private equity managers that raise multibillion-dollar funds, their investment committees often shun this asset class entirely. More generally, these trustees also often worry about liquidity and scale  specifically, the lack of both.

Such fears are unfounded, argues Stan Miranda, founder, CEO and CIO of Partners Capital in London. In fact, says Miranda  who launched the outsourced CIO (OCIO) firm in 2001  small institutions like GST Charity should be investing in private equity. The reason: Private equity has the highest long-term expected returns of any major asset class. Adding to his argument is the fact that smaller private funds often have outsized returns when compared to their larger brethren.

Private equity is the one asset class that can most fundamentally improve the long-term portfolio return potential, says Miranda, who previously co-founded eVolution Global Partners (a 2000 joint venture between Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Bain & Co., and Texas Pacific Group) and was a founding partner of Bain & Co.s private equity practice. Alpha for hedge fund strategies has dwindled, he adds. Everything has come down in terms of beta. The only place its most resilient is in private equity.

According to Cambridge Associates, over the ten years ending March 31, 2016, using a public market equivalent measure, private equity achieved a 10.7 percent return compared with 8.0 percent for the S&P 500 index. The investment consultant also found that institutions with more than 15 percent allocated to private investments produced higher investment performance over the long term.

Small endowments and charities still have some catching up to do, according to the latest data from Preqin. In 2015, those with under $500 million in assets had an average of 8.5 percent allocated to private equity, while those with over $500 million had 11.6 percent. Both Cambridge and Partners Capital recommend a minimum 15 percent allocation for investors of all sizes.

That might be a difficult target given current industry dynamics. Fund managers returned a record $443 billion to investors through 2015, according to Preqin, up from $424 billion the previous year. Moreover, private equity firms made fewer capital calls  that is, they asked for less new money to invest  so private equity investors received record net capital flows of $217 billion.

David Reid Scott also has strong opinions on private equity investing. As chairman of the Eton College Investment Committee, which he helped form in 2007, Scott helps direct investments for his alma maters endowment fund. With only 300 million ($370 million) to invest, Scott  based in Ireland and whose day job is chairman of Kazimir Partners, an emerging markets asset manager  has learned the advantages of investing with smaller managers. We dont support the Blackstones of the world, he explains. Once you get much over $500 million  and certainly at $3 billion to $5 billion  these arent places we want to be as investors.

Cambridge Associates U.K.-based investment director Nicolas Schellenberg agrees. The times are over where you need to be in top funds in venture. You can get value in nonbrand names, he believes. Its not about getting access but about finding these funds. Its the same for private equity. Schellenberg stresses that even private equity allocations below $20 million can have a meaningful impact on the investment performance of a smaller institution. He adds that between eight and 15 such investments can be enough for good diversification.

Yet despite the general euphoria over private equity, some industry experts urge caution. Elroy Dimson, professor of finance at Cambridge Universitys Judge Business School, says small investors need to weigh the benefits of costly asset management. He concedes that outsourcing CIO roles have been quite big because there are very few CIOs in European countries; the investment function at smaller institutions, he points out, is often part of the bursar, CFO, or trustee responsibilities. Dimson also espouses the increasingly popular notion that smaller investors who are unable to diversify as well as larger ones are probably best served by low-cost exposure to listed securities such as passive funds.

Dimsons caution is supported by Ludovic Phalippou, associate professor of finance at Said Business School at the University of Oxford. He has no quibble with engaging an OCIO but believes that potential clients should have a close look at fees. You might get good access, but how much are you paying for it?

Even private investment champion Miranda believes that most active managers fail to justify their fees, as Partners Capital chairman and partner Paul Dimitruk wrote in a letter to senior private equity professionals in 2013. Using a systematic look-through risk quantification process to separate market risks from manager skill, writes Dimitruk, the firm allocates capital to those managers who are most likely to generate a positive return after their fees.

Still, there is a plethora of reasons to invest in private equity, says Eli Talmor, founder of the Coller Institute of Private Equity at the London Business School. He points to the decline in the number of publicly traded companies, from 7,322 in 1996 to 3,700 at the end of 2015. At the same time, private equity assets have increased five times over the 12 years from 2003 to 2015, with little slowdown following the global financial crisis.

Schellenberg emphasizes the advantages to the smaller investor, particularly now when, he believes, the large and middle segments of the market are overvalued. The small allocators have an advantage, he explains. They dont need to go into these [the largest] funds. New managers are hungry and motivated, he adds, and smaller companies often have lower entry price multiples of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.

Back at GST Charity, Renton was crunching the numbers. After performing the private equity portfolio analysis, he and the trustees determined that the asset class did indeed belong in its portfolio  and that hiring an OCIO was the way to go. In 2013, after jettisoning their fund-of-funds arrangement, they signed on with Partners Capital. The allocation, which had previously been at 10 percent of the portfolio in the terminated fund-of-funds arrangement, was raised to a new target of 14 percent as recommended by the OCIO. It currently stands at 8 percent and is heading toward its goal. 

Follow Frances Denmark on Twitter at @francesdenmark.
A new bonding requirement for structured settlement factoring companies in Maryland took effect on October 1. The bonding requirement was introduced with the passing of Maryland Senate Bill 734 which specifies a number of new conditions for structured settlement transfers in the state.

The reason for its introduction was to ensure that transfers are fair and in the best of interests of payees, and in order to protect payees from deception on the side of buyers  i.e. factoring companies.

Maryland Structured Settlement Protection Act

According to the Bill, a structured settlement is an arrangement for periodic payment of damages for personal injury established by a settlement or judgment in resolution of a tort claim.

People who receive such payments (payees) are usually people who have had an accident, such as being exposed to chemicals, and have suffered a permanent cognitive or physical injury as a result. These payments are intended to offer long-term care and support.

Senate Bill 734 introduces new conditions and requirements for structured settlement factoring companies (called transferees in the Bill) in Maryland  people or companies who buy the rights to future payments under a structured settlement in exchange for cash given to payees.

This comes after Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh filed a lawsuit in May against Access Funding LLC because the company had purchased structured settlements from victims of lead poisoning but misled them about the cash payment they received in return. The payment provided by the company was only a fraction of the full amount of the structured settlements these individuals had to receive.

The Attorney deemed this a form of unfair and deceptive business practice and filed the suit to seek restitution.

Factoring companies are to be differentiated from structured settlement consultants and life companies who work with injury victims, provide support to them and protect their rights. Structured settlement consultants and life companies are not subject to the requirements of the new Bill.

Structured Settlement Protection Act Requirements

To ensure that such cases are avoided in the future and factoring companies are discouraged from engaging in deceptive and dishonest practices, the Bill includes strict provisions that regulate the transfer of structured settlements.

This includes:

A requirement for transferees to provide payees with a disclosure statement

A requirement for transfers of structured settlement rights to be filed in a court located in the county where the payee lives

A requirement for transferees to become registered with the Attorney General and prohibiting them from filing a petition for a transfer unless registered

The Bill also establishes registration requirements, such as a $2,000 registration fee  $1,500 of which are returned if the application for registration is denied.

A requirement for transferees to file a $100,000 surety bond with the Attorney General

A right of the Attorney General to suspend or revoke registrations of transferees as well as to impose penalties in certain cases

All of these provisions are intended to regulate transfers of structured settlements more clearly. The bill offers payees legal recourse if a factoring company attempts to obtain their structured settlement under the guise of independent professional advice, as was the case with Access Funding LLC. It also provides payees with the possibility to cancel a transfer without penalty until the moment the transfer is authorized by a court.

The Surety Bond Requirement

Similarly, the surety bond requirement for structured settlement factoring companies is also a form of protection for payees. Surety bonds are agreements made between three sides. In this case, the agreement is between the factoring company in Maryland (the bond principal), the Maryland Attorney General and payees (the bond obligees) and the surety bond company.

Under a bond agreement, if the bonded company engages in fraudulent or deceptive practices, obligees have the right to file a claim against the bond and receive compensation up to the full penal sum of the bond  $100,000. In return for extending compensation to obligees, the surety bond company has to be repaid by the bonded company for its financial backing.

If the company complies with the requirements of the Bill and of the Maryland Consumer Protection Act, the only cost related to the surety bond is that of obtaining it. Obtaining a surety bond usually costs only a fraction of the total amount of the bond. The exact rate at which companies can obtain the bond are determined by sureties when they apply for the bond. Typically, if applicants have a good credit score and are otherwise financially stable, they can expect to get a bond at a good rate.

Since bond claims can be quite costly and time consuming, it is considered that introducing a surety bond requirement will actively discourage companies from attempting to obtain structured settlements in illicit ways.

Vic Lance is the founder and president of Lance Surety Bond Associates. He is a surety bond expert who helps business owners get licensed and bonded. He graduated from Villanova University with a degree in Business Administration and holds a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Michigans Ross School of Business.

UPDATE: This article was updated to better distinguish between structured settlement consultants and life companies, and structured settlement factoring companies, also known as factoring companies. The bonding requirement introduced by Bill 734 applies only to the latter type of companies. An earlier version of this article did not explicitly specify that difference.

Topics Maryland
New Jersey Transit is hiring a former Metro-North president to help it meet federal rail safety requirements.

The agency will pay Peter Cannito $350 per hour to review Federal Railroad Administration violations uncovered in an audit and help with a positive train control system.

An Associated Press analysis after last months deadly Hoboken train crash found NJ Transit had more accidents than any other commuter railroad in the country in the past five years.

A state transportation official said NJ Transit has gotten more scrutiny because it counts all incidents and not just those required to be reported by federal guidelines.

NJ Transit will also hire a compliance officer.

The transit agencys board also voted to lease the final radio frequency it needs to install the positive train control system by a 2018 deadline.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Talent New Jersey
Bermuda-based RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. has announced several key leadership changes in its Finance function, effective Dec. 31, 2016.

James (Jamie) C. Fraser has been named SVP, chief accounting officer, responsible for oversight of forecasting, planning and analysis; controls, financial reporting and tax. He will report to Robert Qutub, chief financial officer.

Reporting to Fraser will be Helen L. James, who has been named SVP, global corporate Controller. She will be responsible for accounting policy and controls; management of the group-wide controllers function; and legal entity, regulatory and financial reporting.

Mark A. Wilcox, RenaissanceRes current SVP, chief accounting officer and corporate controller, announced he will be leaving the company at the end of the year to return to the U.S. to pursue an outside opportunity.

Fraser is a Certified Internal Auditor and Chartered Accountant who joined RenaissanceRe in 2009 and has served as head of Internal Audit since 2011. His industry experience includes leadership positions in finance and risk management at RenaissanceRe, XL Capital and Deloitte. Frasers appointment is subject to Bermuda Immigration Department approval.

James is a Chartered Accountant who joined RenaissanceRe in 2001. During her tenure with the company, she has held various positions of increasing responsibility, including most recently SVP and controller for the companys ventures unit since 2013.

The promotions of Jamie and Helen reflect the considerable breadth and depth of our bench of executive talent. Both are long-tenured employees, strong leaders and talented professionals, stated Kevin ODonnell, chief executive officer.

We are also grateful to Mark for his contributions to RenaissanceRes success over the past 13 years in his roles as chief accounting officer, corporate controller, and, previously, Internal Auditor. We wish him the best going forward, ODonnell added.

Source: RenaissanceRe
If you want to see the future of New York, Tokyo, or Mumbai, look no further than West Antarctica, where a warmer sea is turning ice into water that may be headed to your doorstep.

The bottom of the world has drawn increased scrutiny from scientists over the last few years, as West Antarctic ice loss in some places shows signs of becoming unstoppable. Theres enough water locked up in West Antarcticas Amundsen Sea region alone to raise the global average sea level by four feet, and its the fastest-melting spot on the continent.

The National Science Foundation and a U.K. counterpart last week announced that theyll fund up to $25 million in research that will help the scientific community better understand the timing and mechanics of a critical glacier, the Thwaites. Its basically the climate-science equivalent of an FBI Most Wanted poster.

A study issued on Tuesday in Nature Communications measures directly just how dramatically glaciers are being gnawed at from beneath. The research focuses on those that empty into a section of the Amundsen Sea just south of the Thwaites Glacier. A significant portion of Antarctica is now subject to intense unbalanced melting, the authors write.

Everyone has heard of global warming, and most understand that letting ice melt will eventually flood coastal cities. But many may not understand how these critical parts of the globe function. In West Antarctica, for example, glaciers flow (yes, they move, albeit slowly) off the continent, toward the sea, terminating at a final grounding line the extent of the ice thats lying on bedrock.

From there, a frozen sheet called an ice shelf extends into the sea. The problem, increasingly, is the sea encircling West Antarctica has warmed up and is flowing beneath those ice shelves, washing grounding lines back toward the continent. Its as if the foundation of your house were slowly being chipped away from below. It may be only a matter of time before the structure collapses.

The topography of the region isnt helping matters. The ground beneath the glaciers sinks the farther you move inland. So when grounding lines retreat, they also descend, leaving a deeper target for warming waters to flow into and carving away additional ice. The Smith Glaciers grounding line, for example, is now 2,100 meters below sea level, by far the deepest in its neighborhood. Its also much more susceptible to further melt because the temperature at which frozen seawater melts drops as you descend.

Scientists can see the ice retreat because of direct measurements taken in 2002, 2009, and 2014, when NASAs Operation IceBridge flew over the area with ice-penetrating radar. The program is expected to fly the same route again this season to produce a contemporary snapshot.

This NASA video provides a visual overview of West Antarcticas Amundsen Sea glaciers. It is narrated by Eric Rignot, a scientist at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory and University of California-Irvine and a co-author of the new paper. (YouTube Video: Runaway Glaciers in West Antarctica)

Always concerned that their instruments might not to be sensitive enough to detect the changes theyre studying, authors of the Nature Communications paper could at least put that out of their minds. The changes in the ice surpassed their instruments uncertainty by a factor of 10 or 100. Any change within a few meters probably would not have been easy to discern, said Ala Khazendar of NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the lead author, but here were talking about between 300 and 500 meters in seven years.

Copyright 2022 Bloomberg.

Topics Profit Loss
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte wrapped up his visit to Japan on Thursday, seeking economic support from Tokyo but still vexing its long-time ally of U.S. with his blistering remarks.

During Duterte's three-day visit, Japan and the Philippines have agreed to enhance cooperation, with Tokyo in an apparent effort to woo Manila back to "the U.S.-Japan camp."

The two sides signed a series of cooperation documents, including Japan offering yen loans to improve the Philippines's maritime safety capabilities and help it revitalize agriculture business.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who expressed his intention to deepen cooperation with Manila in fighting terrorism, said Japan would provide high-speed boats and other equipment to enhance the Philippines' anti-terrorism capabilities.

For his part, the Philippine leader pledged a peaceful solution to the South China Sea issue, upholding in general his stance expressed earlier during his visit to China.

Duterte has reached consensus with the Chinese leaders during his tour to Beijing, which is focused on cooperation and bringing the South China Sea issue back to the correct track of bilateral negotiation and consultation.

He said at the Philippine Economic Forum in Tokyo Wednesday that the Philippines would pursue an independent foreign policy.

"I want friendship of everybody," he said, adding that he looked to "be friends with China."

He also told a press conference after his meeting with Abe that he would seek peaceful settlement of maritime disputes including the South China Sea issue.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said at a press briefing in Beijing Thursday that Duterte's recent remarks during his visit to Japan accord with the consensus he reached with Chinese leaders during his China visit last week.

Besides the South China Sea issue, the outspoken Philippine leader also baffled Japan with his comments on the United States.

According to local reports, Japan had hoped to bring the Philippines back to "the U.S.-Japan camp" through direct communication with the president during his stay in Japan.

However, Duterte continued to voice his dissatisfaction with Washington. "I want to prove to everybody, the Philippines has a dignity," he said, reiterating that the United States treated his country like "a dog on a leash."

He also wanted all foreign military troops out of the Philippines "probably in the next two years."

Mentioning the U.S. colonial control of the Philippines over half a century, Duterte said he would pursue an independent foreign policy and the Philippines will "survive" without U.S. assistance.

Former Philippine president Benigno Aquino III signed an Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement with the U.S. in 2014, which allowed the return of U.S. troops to the Philippines after the country expelled U.S. soldiers in the 1990s.

Duterte, who took office in June, has reportedly talked about abrogating defense agreements with the U.S. over the past two months.

"For Japan, it would be wiser not to bring up too much the U.S.-Philippine relationship," said Lully Miura, a scholar on international relations at the University of Tokyo.

"Instead, it would be better to focus more on the Japan-Philippine relationship, as the relationships between the three countries are very complicated right now," she said.
Swiss Re has entered into an agreement as sole reinsurer to protect seven prefectures of Guangdong province, China, in partnership with local insurers, led by the Peoples Insurance Company of China (PICC) in 2016.

The pilot program offers insurance cover for a maximum value of US$350 million, and is expected to be adjusted and renewed annually. It uses rainfall and tropical cyclone wind speed indices to trigger policy claims, ensuring fast payout, Swiss Re said in a statement.

The pilot helps protect Chinas major economic hub against the financial impacts of natural disaster risk, Swiss Re said, explaining that Guangdong, which is highly exposed to natural disasters, is responsible for over US$1 trillion of Chinas GDP.

The first payout was already triggered after super Typhoon Haima made landfall in the city Shanwei on Oct. 21, 2016. The program will be rolled out in a total 10 prefectures by the end of this year.

Compared with traditional re/insurance, the speed of parametric insurance payouts will allow governments to access ready capital for managing emergencies at the times when it is most needed, Swiss Re added.

This is the second pilot program to protect the balance sheets of provincial governments in China against the economic impacts of major disasters. It complements a reinsurance protection scheme set up for Heilongjiang province, announced on 3 August 2016 this year, which focuses primarily on poor rural communities.

Swiss Re said it developed both programs in response to the Chinese Central Governments imperative to build a Disaster Insurance System. The schemes could serve as a model to insure other provinces in the country.

Martyn Parker, chairman of Swiss Re Global Partnerships, said: Guangdong is an important industrial production center and highly exposed to natural disasters, particularly typhoon and flood. A major disaster is not just devastating for the lives and livelihoods of local people, but is also likely to affect the longer-term economy of the region. Guangdongs move to put measures in place before disasters strike has already proven its worth, when super-typhoon Haima triggered a claim. The city of Shanwei has received a payout from the insurance company less than a week after the typhoon struck.

Source: Swiss Re

Topics China Swiss Re
An $80 million settlement has been reached in a class-action lawsuit over removal of asbestos during renovation of the Jackson County Courthouse in Kansas City.

The Kansas City Star reports $25 million will go toward attorneys fees and the cost of the litigation. The rest of the money will go to a medical monitoring fund to cover the costs of diagnostic tests for people exposed to the asbestos 30 years ago.

The case was scheduled to go to trial this week. Instead an agreement was reached between Jackson County and Kansas City-based U.S. Engineering, which removed the asbestos from 1983 to 1985. A judge is expected to finalize the agreement in late December.

About 7,500 people could be eligible for the medical screenings.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Missouri Kansas
Death awaits all of us, but how patiently? To unlock the mystery of when were going to die, start with an actuary.

Members of this 200-year-old profession who study risk and uncertainty pore over the data of death to estimate length of life. Putting aside the spiritual, thats crucial information for insurance companies and pension plans, and its also helpful for planning retirement, since we need our money to last as long we do.

The latest, best guesses for U.S. lifespans come from a study released this month by the Society of Actuaries: The average 65-year-old American man should die a few months short of his 86th birthday, while the average 65-year-old woman gets an additional two years, barely missing age 88.

This new data turns out to be a disappointment. Over the past several years, the health of Americans has deterioratedparticularly that of middle-aged non-Hispanic whites. Among the culprits are drug overdoses, suicide, alcohol poisoning, and liver disease, according to a Princeton University study issued in December.

Partly as a result, the life expectancy for 65-year-olds is now six months shorter than in last years actuarial study. Longevity for younger Americans was also affected: A 25-year-old woman last year had a 50/50 chance of reaching age 90. This year, she is projected to fall about six months short. (The average 25-year-old man is expected to live to 86 years and 11 months, down from 87 years and 8 months in last years estimates.) Baby boomers, Generation X, and yes, Millennials, are all doing worse.

Americans increasingly need an accurate sense of how long theyll be alive. Employer shifts from traditional pensionswhich sent a regular check for lifeto individual 401(k) accounts means workers must figure out retirement on their own. When you die becomes a crucial variable, helping to determine how much you need to save and how much you can afford to spend: Die at 95 and your retirement could be twice as expensive than if you die at 80. Information on mortality also helps set the price of annuities, insurance contracts that can pay buyers a set amount of money for the rest of their lives.

Misleading Estimates

Some of the most commonly cited estimates of longevity are misleading for anyone putting together a retirement plan. For example, the life expectancy for Americans at birth is 76 for men and 81 for women, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But if youve already survived to middle age, you have a good chance of living much longer. The Society of Actuaries website offers a longevity calculator that takes both your age and health into account.

Estimating longevity is as much an art as a science. The simplest way to calculate life expectancy is to look simply at how many people are dying at every age. If you want to know a 25-year-olds chances of hitting age 100, you just calculate her statistical chances of getting through the next 75 birthdays unscathed. Looking at current data, what are her chances of dying at 25, 26, 27, 28, and so on?

The problem with this simple calculation is that it assumes life expectancy wont improve over the next 75 years. Todays 25-year-olds could be kept alive by safety technologies and medical treatments that dont exist yet. At least, we hope.

So, baked in to the Society of Actuaries calculations is an assumption that longevity will keep improving. It looks at recent data to estimate near-term improvements.

The latest numbers, however, arent pretty: From 2000 to 2009, American death rates improved at 1.93 percent for men and 1.46 percent for women annually. From 2010 to 2014, that plunged to 0.6 percent for men and 0.42 percent.

This is bad news for almost everyone but pension fund managers. Still, its not time to panic yet.

Year-over-year changes in mortality are very volatile, said Dale Hall, managing director of research at the Society of Actuaries. Over time, death rates jump up and down a lot: All it takes is a bad flu season or the onset of a novel disease to make for a bad year, while new drug treatments for heart disease can produce several excellent years.

Slowed Longevity

Actuaries assume that eventually, longevity improvements will get back on their long-term track. Still, the bottom line is that longevitys rise has slowed way down. When they reach the traditional retirement age of 65, the average millennial should get just a few more years than the average baby boomer.

If Americans health continues to decline, these estimates could prove optimistic. Then again, the actuaries might be not be able to see huge improvements around the bend. The long-term historical record is encouraging: For two centuries, researchers have found life expectancy in the worlds healthiest countries to have risen at a more-or-less steady rate of an additional three months for every year that passes, or 2.5 years a decade. In the 1840s, Swedish women were living to an average age of 45. Today, Japanese women have a life expectancy of 87. If the U.S. somehow got back on this track, todays 25-year-olds should have an extra decade of life by the time theyre at retirement age.

That future may have already arrived for some Americansthe very wealthy. According to research earlier this year in the Journal of the American Medical Association, a 40-year-old man in the top 1 percent can expect to live 14 years longer than his counterpart in the bottom 1 percent. Education may also make a difference: A college-educated 25-year-old can expect to live a decade longer than a high school dropout of the same age, according to the Population Reference Bureau.

If youre trying to figure out how long youre likely to live, estimates of average life expectancy may not be that helpful. Thats getting worse in an age of rising inequality. Great medical care and good fortune may add decades to the lives of the wealthy and educated, while much of the rest of America is left behind.

Copyright 2022 Bloomberg.
A cancer-causing heavy metal found in water wells near coal ash pits and other industrial sites is much more widespread and naturally occurring than previously thought, university researchers said Wednesday.

The presence of hexavalent chromium is more related to volcanic rock found in North Carolina and nearby states than the pits used to store the waste left after burning coal, Duke University geochemistry professor Avner Vengosh said. Badly tainted groundwater was found in wells more than 18 miles from a coal ash storage basin in central North Carolinas Piedmont region, according to the study published in the American Chemical Societys publication Environmental Science & Technology Letters.

The most import thing is to make sure the industry, the coal ash issue, is not off the table, Vengosh said. Groundwaters near coal ash ponds are contaminated. We see evidence for that. But the issue with hexavalent chromium, were finding, is unrelated and much larger than we thought.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says hexavalent chromium is likely to be carcinogenic when ingested. The chemical was portrayed as poisoning residents in a California town in a Hollywood movie describing the work of former legal clerk and sleuth Erin Brockovich.

The findings mean its urgent that the EPA set uniform safety limits for hexavalent chromium in drinking water, said Vengosh, who studies coal ash contamination at Dukes Nicholas School of the Environment.

The EPAs current standard for all variations of chromium is 100 parts per billion, while Californias limit specifically for the more toxic hexavalent form is 10 parts per billion.

The heavy metal is at the center of concerns about whether massive coal ash basins are polluting nearby groundwater. North Carolina last year warned more than 300 neighbors of Duke Energy Corp. coal plants against drinking their well water. That was based on calculations by state scientists that ingesting water containing more than 0.07 parts per billion over the course of a lifetime created a one-in-a-million chance of causing cancer.

North Carolina officials reversed those warnings last spring as too strict, adding that if the same threshold were applied evenly statewide it would apply to about 900,000 wells and millions of people would be urged against drinking their groundwater.

Duke Energy, which is not related to the university, said the study bolstered its position that its coal ash pits are not responsible for groundwater pollution.

When combined with previous research, there is overwhelming evidence that coal ash basins are not impacting water quality in neighbor wells, said Harry Sideris, Duke Energys senior vice president of environmental, health and safety.

The countrys largest electric company is required by state law to close all 14 of its North Carolina coal-burning power plants. About half could be dried out, covered with earth and left in place, but the company must provide alternative water supplies to neighbors who now use well water. It is also excavating and moving coal ash from its South Carolina pits.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Pollution North Carolina
BrickStreet Mutual Insurance and Motorists Mutual Insurance Co. announced they have begun to formalize an affiliation agreement between the two companies.

If approved by state regulators and closed as anticipated in July 2017, the affiliation will include more than 1,600 employees, 10 offices writing in 29 states, premiums of nearly $1.2 billion, a surplus of nearly $1.55 billion and assets of $4.5 billion.

This insurers said the affiliation will create a new super regional carrier ranked in the top 20 mutual companies in the country.

The companies said they have been in discussion about the partnership for months.

Motorists Mutual Insurance, a member of Motorists Insurance Group, is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio and sells individual and commercial property/casualty insurance through 14,000 independent agents in 2,000 agencies in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

BrickStreet is a monoline workers compensation carrier headquartered in Charleston, West Virginia, with offices in North Carolina, Illinois and Pennsylvania.

BrickStreet and Motorists said their joint venture using an affiliation agreement will allow them to partner together financially and operationally while maintaining their individual brands. As mutual companies, both will continue to be owned by their policyholders and remain headquartered in West Virginia and Ohio, respectively.

BrickStreets agents and policyholders will have access to other lines of commercial insurance outside of workers compensation through the BrickStreet/Motorists partnership. Likewise, Motorists will be able to grow its commercial lines book of business by providing workers compensation coverage for added classes and sizes of accounts.

The joint venture using the affiliation model works best because it allows BrickStreet to expand its product offerings and services, while ensuring its headquarters remain in Charleston. We chose this framework of an affiliation very intentionally. This structure protects the BrickStreet brand, allows us to stay domiciled in West Virginia, and provides us with the opportunity to grow our company, said BrickStreet CEO Greg Burton.

According to Motorists President and CEO Dave Kaufman, both companies benefit from this arrangement by improving risk diversification, expanding agency distribution and providing economies of scale for purchasing power. The affiliation will benefit both companies policyholders, agents and associates  by working together, the companies will be much stronger, he said.

According to company officials, the affiliation will need approval from insurance commissioners in West Virginia and Ohio, as well as in Iowa, New Hampshire and Wisconsin since Motorists has companies located in those states. BrickStreet will need to secure approvals in Pennsylvania, due to BrickStreets acquisition of HM Casualty in July.

Since it is not a merger, policyholder approval is not necessary, officials said.

If the affiliation is approved, the executive management team will be as follows: Greg Burton, executive chairman; Dave Kaufman, CEO; T.J. Obrokta (BrickStreet president) will be president; Charles Stapleton (currently Motorists chief operating officer) will be executive vice president and chief operating officer; Chris Howat (BrickStreet chief financial officer) will be executive vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer; and Susan Haack (Motorists treasurer and CFO), will be executive vice president and corporate secretary.

Each of the respective boards will have six BrickStreet representatives and six Motorists Mutual representatives, led by an executive committee of John Bishop (CEO, Motorists Group), Tom Flaherty (chairman, BrickStreet), Bob Smith (Motorists independent board member) and Marty Becker (BrickStreet board member and QBE chairman).

Kaufman said policyholders will have increased surplus security, state-of-the-art loss control, expanded commercial coverages and an integrated multiline technology platform while agents will have additional commercial lines products and services.

The announcement said that employment levels in West Virginia could increase in the future because nearly $60 million of workers compensation business from Motorists will be managed by BrickStreet, taking the companys total workers compensation premium to $415 million. This, along with new specialty products, will be developed under the BrickStreet brand. These additional products will be marketed through Motorists group of companies.

Both carriers said their respective charitable foundations will remain active in their communities.

Motorists Mutual Insurance Co. was formed in Columbus, Ohio, in 1928 and sells individual and commercial property/casualty insurance in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Its is rated A (Excellent) by A.M. Best.

BrickStreet Insurance began as a state-backed insurer and then became West Virginias first private workers compensation carrier on Jan. 1, 2006. Since then, BrickStreet has expanded operations into other states. It is rated A- (Excellent) by A.M. Best.

Related:

Topics Mergers & Acquisitions Agencies Workers' Compensation Ohio Virginia Pennsylvania
Arkansas Supreme Court has disqualified a medical marijuana proposal from the November ballot less than two weeks before the election and with thousands of votes already cast, but voters will still be able to consider a competing plan.

In a 5-2 ruling, the court sided with opponents of the proposed initiated act  known as Issue 7  that would have allowed patients with certain medical conditions and a doctors recommendation to purchase marijuana from dispensaries. The proposal was one of two medical marijuana proposals on the ballot, and justices earlier this month rejected a challenge to a competing measure.

The ruling comes after nearly 142,000 people have already cast ballots through early voting, which began Monday in Arkansas for the general election.

Justices tossed out more than 12,000 signatures that were approved by election officials for the proposal, saying supporters didnt comply with laws regarding registration and reporting of paid canvassers. The decision left the group nearly 2,500 signatures shy of what was needed to qualify for the ballot.

The head of Arkansans for Compassionate Care, the group behind the measure, did not have an immediate comment on the decision.

Two justices disagreed with the opinion, noting that a retired judge assigned by the court to review the petitions had said more than enough valid signatures were submitted.

The people should be permitted to vote on the initiative on November 8, and their votes should be counted, Interim Chief Justice Howard Brill wrote in the dissenting opinion.

Both measures called for allowing patients with certain medical conditions to buy the drug, but they differed in their restrictions and regulations. For example, the proposal struck down Thursday would have allowed patients to grow their own marijuana if they didnt live near a dispensary. Arkansans United for Medical Marijuana last week began airing TV ads statewide in favor of its proposal, Issue 6.

Arkansas voters narrowly rejected a medical marijuana proposal four years ago despite national groups spending big in favor of legalization. National support for medical marijuana has grown since then, and half of U.S. states and the District of Columbia have legalized the drug in some fashion.

But the medical marijuana push faces more obstacles this year in Arkansas. Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who headed the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, has spoken out against the measures. A coalition of the states most powerful lobbying groups  including the state Chamber of Commerce and the Arkansas Farm Bureau  have been campaigning against them. A Republican lawmaker has said hell propose legislation next year legalizing a limited strain of the drug for some patients if voters reject legalizing medical marijuana next month.

State Surgeon General Greg Bledsoe, a spokesman for the anti-medical pot coalition, said the ruling doesnt change the groups strategy and that he was concerned about the court striking a ballot measure so close to the election. The court earlier rejected separate lawsuits by the coalition against both proposals, but those challenges focused on the proposals language and not its petitions.

Honestly, at this point in the stage, 12 days before the election, it sounds kind of strange, but I actually kind of wish it would have gone to the voters and let them vote it up or down at this point, Bledsoe said.

The state Democratic Partys platform includes general support for legalizing medical marijuana, but the platform is silent on the two ballot measures. The states Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate, former federal prosecutor Conner Eldridge, has said he supports developing a responsible medical marijuana program nationally and in Arkansas, though he isnt weighing in on the specific proposals.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics USA Legislation Cannabis Arkansas Drugs
Van Doremalen, who serves as international tax director, previously worked as director of international transaction tax (M&A) at EY in Dubai, preceded by spells at KPMG Meijburg and Loyens & Loeff.

He is experienced in international tax structuring and has worked in the Netherlands, Luxembourg, UK and the UAE. Many of his clients are Europeans, North Americans and Asians investing in the Middle East, and he also works with Gulf-based family offices, corporates, private equity and sovereign wealth funds on their outbound investments.

Dal Corso qualified as a tax lawyer in Italy, and has spent the last five years working in Luxembourg with EY, where his practice covered investment funds and financial services. At Withers, where he is an associate, his practice focuses on international tax, advising families and corporates on their investments in global assets and investment funds.
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The main hull and design of China's first locally made aircraft carrier has been completed, and now workers are installing equipment on the carrier.

The announcement was made by Wu Qian, spokesperson of the Ministry of National Defense at a regular media briefing in Beijing on Thursday.

Earlier reports suggested that the aircraft carrier is assembling in the northeastern city of Dalian and is expected to be launched sometime next year.

China's first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, was a refitted Russian-made carrier delivered to the Chinese Navy on Sept. 25, 2012.
One of the most important tasks for a financial advisor is assessing a clients risk tolerance. As we learned during the market collapse of 2008-2009, many investors overestimated their ability to stomach downside risk and rushed to sell their stocks at or near the markets bottom, suffering massive losses.

Risk can be defined in many ways, but if you were to ask your clients they would likely respond that they are, of course, averse to losing their hard-earned money. The question is how determined they are to avoid risk in return for potentially greater rewards.

It's the job of the financial advisor to design an investment strategy for clients that balances their need for growth while taking into account their true appetite for risk.

Key Takeaways As a responsible financial advisor, you should always put your clients in suitable investments that correspond with their willingness and ability to take on risk.

Objective measures of risk are factors such as the individual's time horizon, age, need for income, and family circumstances.

Subjective measures of risk include the client's personality, their reaction to real or potential losses, and their long-term goals and priorities.

How Does the Client Define Risk?

For some people, risk is defined simply as the potential for market losses. For others, it may involve the risk of losing a job, losing income, or losing insurance coverage. But others will frame risk in terms of opportunity costs. There's a risk of missing out on a good investment.

Asking pointed questions and using a risk-profiling questionnaire can help a financial advisor assess a client's risk tolerance. It's particularly useful to get the client to talk about their feelings about risk and particularly about losing money.

Clients who are retired or close to retirement are likely to be more risk-averse, especially if their retirement resources are limited.



Time Horizon and Financial Goals

In general, the longer a client can wait before dipping into invested assets, the riskier a portfolio can and should be. Higher-risk securities generally have a higher expected return, and over longer time horizons, the rough periods are often smoothed out.

In addition, clients with a longer time horizon can keep adding to their portfolios during market dips. This strategy of dollar-cost averaging allows them to accumulate more shares at better prices.

Typically, a time horizon of 10 years or longer indicates that a client can take a bit more risk. Less than 10 years would suggest taking a bit less risk, as there is less time for the client to recover from a downturn.

As a general rule, the portfolio of older clients who may be retiring soon should be weighted more to less risky assets like bonds, while younger workers can tolerate greater exposure to stocks.

Factoring in Emergencies

It's important to determine if clients have enough liquidity that they wont have to cash in investments to cover living expenses during the time horizon in which the money is to be invested.

If it's likely they will need to dip into funds that are being invested, it would be wise to invest less in long-term assets and leave some money on the side in low-risk accounts or cash.

Advisors generally recommend that around 5% of portfolio assets be allocated to cash or money market funds. These can easily be drawn upon for an unexpected expense. Too much cash will lower overall returns over time.

Investment Preferences

Does the client have any particular investment preferences that need to be considered when designing their portfolio?

Many have a particular industry or sector that they follow closely. Others have political or ethical concerns about some companies or industries.

Some may have inherited certain stocks that they are reluctant to sell. This is known as the endowment effect. It is objectively irrational to treat them as special, but emotional links should not be ignored.

Whatever these client preferences are they should be taken into account when suggesting an asset allocation so that their portfolios are not over or under-allocated to one or more areas based upon personal preferences.

Sources of Retirement Income

For clients closing in on retirement, a financial advisor must take a look at all sources of income in assessing appropriate risk levels. After retirement, the primary goal is not to grow assets but to generate income from accumulated assets.

For example, if a client has a pension as well as Social Security these should be viewed as fixed streams of income that allow the client to allocate a bit more to stocks than they might otherwise.

Factoring the Clients Work Situation

A job loss or layoff can happen to anyone but most people have a pretty good handle on their job security. If it's tenuous, a lower risk assessment is necessary. The client may need to rely on investment funds until a new job opportunity appears.

There are other questions to ask about the clients income. Is it a stable salary or a variable income that is dependent on commissions? The steadier the income, the more market risk a person can take on.

Weighing the Client's Family Situation

A client who is married and has children has responsibilities that must be addressed. Their short-term needs for cash and their long-term investing goals both are factors in their investing strategies.

If young children are in the picture, the risk profile must reflect that. Life insurance is necessary in case the worst happens. Some savings will need to go into a 529 account for their educational needs.

Reaction to Last Major Market Decline

The financial crisis of 2008-2009 and the resulting extreme decline in the stock market was the ultimate test of risk tolerance for investors. There were many stories of investors who just couldnt stomach their investment losses any longer and who sold out of stocks at or near the bottom of the market. Others, it must be said, held on and prospered handsomely.

Sadly, many of these investors realized massive losses and then missed out on all or much of the following historic bull market. They wished their money had been in AAA-rated bonds, and maybe it should have been.

Risk Tolerance Can Change Over Time

As clients grow older they typically become more risk-averse, and for good reason. Their life circumstances demand a more cautious approach to investing.

A worst-case example might be an unexpected layoff as a client nears retirement. Losing a few years of expected income and savings can have a devastating impact on retirement. The possibility causes some people to become more averse to losing money.

Couples With Differing Risk Tolerances

Just because a couple is happily married, it doesnt mean that they each have an identical tolerance for risk.

The key is to understand both viewpoints and help them reach their goals via an investment allocation that allows each of them to sleep at night.



What Factors Determine an Investor's Risk Tolerance? Risk tolerance is a mixture of circumstances and psychology. A person's circumstances include family makeup and other responsibilities as well as age, career stage, and long-term goals. Psychology is harder to determine. When stocks tank, some investors grit their teeth and wait for tomorrow. Others blame their financial advisors for getting them into bad choices.

What Is the Average Risk Tolerance in Investing? A person with a moderate risk tolerance might go for a 50/50 investment split between large-company mutual funds and very low-risk bonds. Such investors are not chasing the next Google. They're investing for the long term and have put half their money in funds with a reasonable chance of good growth. Even a person with a moderate risk tolerance may change strategies over time. As a person approaches retirement age, a more cautious approach is wise. There might not be time to recover from a financial setback.

What Is Low Risk Tolerance in Investing? People with a low risk tolerance might also be called conservative investors. They do not want to risk their principal. They want their nest eggs in highly-rated bonds and liquid investments like bank certificates of deposit (CDs) or Treasury securities.

What Is High Risk Tolerance in Investing? Those with a high risk tolerance go for the big bucks, regardless of the very real chance of big losses. They go for stocks with high growth potential, search out new and untested sectors, and may even double down on the risk by buying on margin.

The Bottom Line

Determining the clients risk tolerance is critical to designing an appropriate asset allocation for a client's portfolio. Risk tolerance is as much art as science. In order to assess it, a financial advisor must get to know and understand each client.
Foreigners who want to invest in Costa Rica can do so through stocks, with some difficulty. Or, they can invest in residential or commercial real estate, where there are many opportunities. But they might also consider establishing a business or a branch of a business there, with the help of welcoming and tax-friendly government policies.

Key Takeaways Costa Rica residential real estate has become a popular choice for snowbirds and retirees.

Several local firms cater to commercial real estate investors from abroad.

A number of geographic "free zones" with special tax breaks and other incentives are luring new job-creating businesses.

Costa Rica offers an attractive proposition for foreign direct investment, due to its establishment of several free zones. These are essentially duty-free geographic areas where some 400 businesses foreign and domestic now operate, tariff-free, sales tax-free, and, in some cases, income tax-free, in return for creating jobs for Costa Ricans.

In addition, the implementation of the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Act (CAFTA-DR) has helped promote stronger trade and stability between Costa Rica and El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic.

Investing in Costa Rican Stocks

This is actually the trickiest of the three options for investing in Costa Rica.

Costa Rica's stock exchange is called the Bolsa Nacional de Valores, or Bolsa for short. The exchange is extremely small with only about 60 companies listing stocks. A range of industries is represented, with a heavy emphasis on financials.

Foreign investors looking for exposure to Costa Rica through this stock market may have a tough time getting access, as there isnt much liquidity compared to bigger exchanges.

Many other countries offer easier access to foreign stock investors through the use of an American deposit receipt (ADR) or an exchange-traded fund (ETF). However, since Costa Rica has such a small stock market, there did not appear to be any ADRs or Costa Rican-specific ETFs available to the public as of late 2020.

Investing in Real Estate

The most popular way to invest in Costa Rica is through real estate, and there are good reasons for that. The country has become increasingly popular with the baby boomer generation for its choice of vacation and retirement homes. Along with beautiful year-round weather, Costa Rica offers a low cost of living, low taxes, a stable government, and affordable high-quality health care.

Costa Rica has an extremely low property tax rate of 0.25% of the registered property's value. The tax savings, combined with the low cost of living, is a great incentive for retirees who are seeking more value for their dollar.

The Costa Rican Investment Promotion Agency (CINDE) is an online resource for foreign businesses.

Considering that little Costa Rica takes up under 20,000 square miles of land, it offers extraordinarily varied geography. There are options for homebuyers on beaches, lakefronts, and mountainsides. But half the country's population of about 5 million live in and around the nation's capital of San Jose in the Central Valley.

Commercial Real Estate

Several real estate firms located in Costa Rica cater to foreign investors. Rental income properties, farms, hotels, bars, and restaurants all are available.

Land development projects have become popular with investors, with the possibility of purchasing rights that can be used for either residential or commercial construction.

Resources for Doing Business in Costa Rica

The Costa Rican Investment Promotion Agency (CINDE) is a great resource for investors who are looking into any of the growth sectors of Costa Rica.

The site offers information on opportunities in a number of sectors, including:

Services including back office, regional office, call center, human resource office, or digital technology office locations.

Advanced manufacturing in the metal, automotive, electronics manufacturing, electronic service, and aerospace fields.

The life sciences sector, for production of medical devices, biotechnologies, and pharmaceuticals.

A light manufacturing sector for companies in plastic, clothing, construction, textiles, and packing materials.

The food sector, from farming to processing and distribution.

The Costa Rican government has developed a number of incentives to attract businesses in these sectors. For example, it offers a 100% tax exemption on all import, interest income, withholding, stamp, and sales taxes. There's also a 10-year lock on property transfer taxes.

Investors in the services and manufacturing sectors get even more incentives. For the first eight-year period, these companies get a 100% income tax exemption, followed by a four-year period of a 50% income tax exemption.
BEIJING - Chinese sailor Guo Chuan went missing after being thrown into the water by high winds during his trans-Pacific sailing, Guo's support team said on Thursday.

The team said he was suspected to fall in the water between 15:15 and 15:30 Wednesday Beijing time.

The 51-year-old Chinese sailor set sail of his trimaran Qingdao China from San Francisco's iconic Golden Gate Bridge on Oct 18 for Shanghai hoping to set a new sailing world record for solo crossing.

The US Coast Guard said earlier it has suspended its search for him after a crew did not find him aboard his boat off the Hawaii islands.

In a statement, the Coast Guard says a crew from the USS Makin Island went aboard Guos trimaran about 620 miles northwest of Oahu and only found Guo's life jacket.

The Coast Guard used a helicopter to drop rescuers on Guo's trim ran floating on the Pacific Ocean.

Guo was last heard just after 15:00 Tuesday Beijing time when his boat sailed 900 nautical miles off the west of Hawaii. All attempts to contact the sailor had failed.

Wednesday Beijing time, Guo's vessel was found about 620 miles northwest of Hawaii's main island of Oahu. The airborne search team did not see Guo on deck, but the main lateen sail of the 97-foot trimaran was broken off in the water.

The voyage was planned to be about 7,000 nautical miles long and take about 20 days.

Tuesday afternoon Beijing time, one week after departure, Guo spoke on the phone with his support team telling them that all was good and he expected to arrive in Shanghai on Nov 5 or 6.

Shortly after the call, the GPS on Guo's boat reported a sudden loss of speed, Guo's support team reported.

"After that, we haven't gotten through to or heard from Guo via phone calls or internet messages," said a team member.

24 hours after the team lost contact with Guo, Maritime Rescue Coordination Center China, in cooperation with the Chinese consulate in Los Angeles, contacted the Coast Guard in Hawaii for help with search and rescue.

Guo is a professional sailor in China, and was reported to be in good health and confident about the voyage. He holds two world records for sailing  a solo non-stop circumnavigation world record set in 2013 and an Arctic Ocean Northeast Passage non-stop sailing world record set in 2015.

Discussing the non-stop trans-Pacific crossing with reporters he said, "Most of the pressure will come from the weather."

"When the wind is strong, you may make some small mistakes and then they may become larger and larger. So that's one of the things I need to be really careful about," Guo said prior to departure.

Were he to arrive in Shanghai, Guo would be the first ever to finish a solo non-stop trans-Pacific sail from San Francisco to Shanghai.
Press Release

Worlds MPs commit to tackling human rights challenges

Geneva, 27 October 2016

Record attendance of Speakers and Deputy Speakers of Parliament at 135th IPU Assembly. IPU/P. Albouy

Parliamentarians from across the globe declared their commitment to raising the alarm and taking action when serious human rights challenges emerge, particularly in conflict situations.

In a declaration on human rights abuses as precursors of conflict, adopted at the conclusion of the 135th IPU Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, IPU Members said that parliamentarians are the guardians of human rights and the rule of law, and if violations or challenges occur they are the early responders.

The declaration details specific actions parliaments can take to prevent human rights abuses and tackle them when they occur. Ensuring international human rights norms are part of national legislation, guaranteeing that law enforcement always acts with the necessary restraint, combating gender-based violence, and preventing the rise of violent extremism are a few of the concrete measures parliaments must take to protect their citizens human rights.

The declaration makes clear that MPs must speak out vigorously against violations and work tirelessly to find a remedy, whatever the violation, and wherever it occurs.

As people suffer dire consequences from conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and elsewhere, MPs must be part of the efforts to find peace, promote dialogue and end the violence and tragic loss of life. We need to use our strength as the eyes and ears of our citizens to prevent human rights abuses in conflicts and protect the people we represent, stated IPU President Saber Chowdhury.

Following a report released during the Assembly that highlights widespread sexism and violence against women MPs, the IPU Members adopted a resolution stressing the freedom of women to participate in political processes fully, safely and without interference.

The resolution calls upon parliaments and political parties to adopt policies on preventing sexual harassment, and creating effective complaints mechanisms and penalties for offenders. It also urges parliaments to set a deadline by which at least 30 per cent of MPs should be women.

IPU also welcomed Swaziland as the 171st Member of the Organization.

The Assembly marked the 40th anniversary of the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians, which works to protect or seek redress for MPs whose rights have been abused.

The anniversary was the opportunity to call on MPs to demonstrate greater parliamentary solidarity with those peers whose fundamental rights have been violated.

Over 680 MPs from 140 countries, including 101 Speakers and Deputy Speakers attended the IPU Assembly in Geneva.

Find out about the many other issues and events of the 135th Assembly by accessing the



Picture editors: Photos from the Assembly are available for free download and use at: http://www.ipu.org/135pics

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.
A strategically placed picture of Trump over the wheels of a bus has been spotted around Copenhagen.

.

This brilliant and, lets be honest, tad scary advert was commissioned by the Socialistisk Folkeparti (SF) party in a bid to encourage expat Americans to use their absentee vote.

via GIPHY

Its no secret that most of the time Get Out The Vote (GOTV) campaigns can be a little dry, with the usual leaflets and posters inundating potential voters with reasons to vote. While this powerful advert is all about one impeccably positioned image.

In an interview with broadcaster DR, the leader of the SF, Pia Olsen Dyhr, said: It is meant to be a bit funny. One cant be in doubt that it was done tongue in cheek. We want to tell American citizens: Remember to vote, it has consequences.

Like Trump being president.
A dashboard camera in a Mercedes being driven by an employee of DS Executive Services, a Belfast-based chauffeur service, is seen traveling up the A1 near the Rathfriland turn-off in Co Down earlier this week.

The result is a hefty smash which rendered both cars write-offs.
Agnieszka Spyra had gone to the High Court after a Circuit Court judge had dismissed her case.

Yesterday, Mr Justice Kevin Cross awarded Ms Spyra a total of 16,650, though he found she was 20% responsible for her accident as she checked in passengers to an early-morning Ryanair flight five years ago.

Ms Spyra, aged 36, of Ridgewood Close, Swords, Co Dublin had sued her employer, MK Human Resources Ltd of Glasnevin, Dublin, and Ryanair as a result of the accident on July 28, 2011 as she checked in passengers at 4.45am.

It was claimed her duties at the time included lifting the last bag for the flight from the conveyor belt and placing a sticker on it indicating the flight was closed before returning it to the conveyor belt.

It was claimed that there was a system of work that was allegedly unsafe and the check-in desk was unsuitable for manually lifting bags on to the conveyor belt by the check-in staff.

Mr Justice Kevin Cross said he found the defendants liable. He said he was not of the view that Ms Spyras training regarding the lifting of baggage was sufficient. He said it should have been site specific. However, he found there was 20% contributory negligence on her behalf and reduced the award from an original 20,800 to 16,650.

He also awarded the costs of both the High Court and Circuit Court to Ms Spyra.

He said there was contributory negligence because Ms Spyra knew what she ought to have done while handling a bag weighing between 7kg and 8kg. She should have turned her body and not twisted when lifting the luggage but did not.

In evidence, Ms Spyra said she stood up to lift the bag off the conveyor belt and twisted rather than turning her body to place it behind her chair.
Judge Patrick Durcan sounded the ultimatum to Jamie OConnor, aged 36, at Ennis District Court as the Ennis native appeared on yet another drunk and disorderly charge.

Judge Durcan told Mr OConnor: Go down to the cathedral and get a Pioneer pin and certificate from the priest. If you dont produce the pin and the cert for me in court next week, youll be packed off to prison.
NEW YORK, Oct. 27 -- China's ZTO Express (ZTO) started trading under the ticker symbol "ZTO" at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) Thursday, after raising over 1.4 billion U.S. dollars in its initial public offering (IPO) - the largest one in the U.S. so far this year.

ZTO announced Wednesday that it had priced its initial public offering of 72,100,000 American depositary shares (ADSs) at 19.50 dollars apiece for a total offering size of approximately 1.4 billion dollars, assuming the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option to purchase additional ADSs.

Each ADS represents one Class A ordinary share of ZTO. The Company has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to 10,815,000 additional ADSs.

Morgan Stanley & Co. International plc, Goldman Sachs (Asia) L.L.C., China Renaissance Securities (Hong Kong) Limited, Citigroup Global Markets Inc., Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC acted as joint bookrunners for the offering.

Shares of ZTO tumbled 15.03 percent to 16.57 dollars apiece at the closing Thursday.

"The short-term volatility of ZTO's stocks won't affect my confidence in our company's long-term run. We believe that our business will keep growing at a fast pace relying on China's huge and rapidly expanding express service market as well as e-commerce market," said Meisong Lai, the founder and chairman of ZTO.

ZTO, a Shanghai-based express delivery company, provides express delivery service as well as other value-added logistics services through its extensive and reliable nationwide network in China, which covers over 96 percent of China's cities and counties as of June 30, 2016.

According to the iResearch, ZTO is one of the largest express delivery companies globally, in terms of total parcel volume in 2015.

ZTO is both a key enabler and a direct beneficiary of China' s fast-growing e-commerce market, and has established itself as one of the largest express delivery service providers for millions of online merchants and consumers transacting on leading Chinese e-commerce platforms, such as Alibaba and JD.com.

"ZTO' s business model grants us a unique advantage in market competition, which allows ZTO to achieve strong operating leverage by minimizing fixed costs and capital requirements," Meisong Lai told Xinhua.

ZTO operates a highly scalable network partner model, which the firm believes is best suited to support the significant growth of e-commerce in China. ZTO leverages its network partners to provide pickup and last-mile delivery services, while controlling the mission-critical line-haul transportation and sorting network within the express delivery service value chain, said the ZTO profile.

ZTO's IPO surpasses the 1.1 billion dollars IPO of Japanese messaging company Line and makes it the biggest Chinese company IPO in the U.S. since Alibaba, which made history with its 25 billion dollars blockbuster IPO in 2014, according to the Forbes.
The authoritys compliance committee found that comments about a general election candidate on Kilkenny and Carlow-based radio station KCLR FM did not meet the requirements set for fairness, objectivity and impartiality in news and current affairs.

While the BAI noted there was a conflict in accounts between KCLR and candidate Noel G Walsh as to why he did not appear on the stations election coverage, the host of KCLR Live made personal and pointed remarks about Mr Walsh. The BAI said it considered further comments about Mr Walshs previous performance in elections amounted to a suggestion about his electability.
The Mary Robinson Centre, planned for Ballina, would be the home for her papers rather than in existing archive departments in universities  traditionally the papers have been donated to University College Dublin or Trinity College Dublin.

Last night, the RTE Prime Time programme reported that Ms Robinson had applied for tax relief for making the donation. According to Prime Time, that tax relief could be worth in the region of 2m.

It said NUI Galway was the academic partner for the Centre, the Department of Arts and Heritage had given a grant of 2m and Mayo County Council had committed 1.5m.

Prime Time also heard from Peader Toibin, the chairman of the Oireachtas Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural, and Gaeltacht Affairs committee.

At our next meeting, I will be putting it to the committee that this is a serious concern and I will be asking the committee for their backing to send a letter to those three groups so they will come before us and shed light on the process they are involved in, said Mr Toibin.

We just want to make sure that the money is spent properly. We simply want to make sure that the State is not on the hook for money into the future and we dont have a crisis like we had in the Picture Palace in Galway, and the only way to do that is to create transparency and that is the objective of the committee.

Mr Toibin also raised concerns over parish pump politics.

I think when a taoiseach is involved in a particular project in his own county, when a taoiseach gives his backing to a project before a decision is made within the Department, then there are major concerns, he said.
The chief executive of Cork County Council, Tim Lucey, outlined the urgent need for state support and investment to fully exploit the sites during a briefing at County Hall yesterday.

He told an audience, which included several major developers, that the council only has enough serviced land with planning to provide for housing delivery for another 18 months.

This is a more acute position than the Dublin region housing supply situation, said Mr Lucey.

He noted that the council has enough zoned land around the county to provide for house building for the next decade, but the land is unserviced.

He said it is critical that a strategic infrastructure investment fund is put in place to ensure the council can give certainty to house builders on the delivery of critical infrastructure such as roads, drainage, and recreational facilities around these key sites.

He said the council has in recent weeks submitted two significant funding proposals to Government under its local infrastructure housing activation fund in a bid to unlock the development potential of this zoned land.

The first proposal is for 30m, supported by some 10m of the councils own funding, which could be supplemented by loan facilities to deliver a massive 106m infrastructure fund to open up five key strategic sites in metropolitan Cork: At Ballincollig, Glanmire, Carrigtwohill, Midleton, and Carrigaline.

A further 66m is being sought to support the delivery of infrastructure at 14 other locations across the county  with seven of these in high-demand areas in metropolitan Cork.

Combined, the proposals would support the servicing of lands to deliver nearly 18,000 housing units, thus responding to the acute current situation that exists, said Mr Lucey.

He made his comments at the first of a series of breakfast briefings he plans to hold around the county over the coming months.

Despite co-operation between the county and city on various projects, including housing, regional marketing, tourism, and emergency management, no invitation was extended to City Hall to attend yesterdays briefing.

Lord Mayor Cllr Des Cahill said it was unfortunate members of Cork City Council were not invited to discuss future plans for metropolitan Cork: I believe that the exercise being initiated by the County Council is a very positive one.

The city and county have worked well together on many projects. I hope that beyond this preliminary meeting that both the city and county councils can adapt a mature, constructive, and collaborative approach to work together for the good of Cork.

Mr Cahill said: Many of our services overlap and to future-proof such services for future development, we need to work together.

My door and that of all the team in City Hall is certainly open to work in tandem with our fellow Corkonians in County Hall.

Mr Lucey said the briefing was for the county councils main stakeholders with whom they engage on an almost daily basis.

Meanwhile, Mr Lucey also confirmed that council officials are poised to serve notice to treat on landowners in relation to the compulsory purchase order to provide an access road to the proposed Cork Science and Innovation Park in Curraheen, on the western outskirts of the city.

County council CEO seeks State support and investment to secure more sites for housing
On reading a Sunday newspaper report that vigilantes from the area were responsible for the fire which happened on September 2, 2015, near Pallasgreen, he pressurised an addict who owed him a large drugs debt to carry out random arson attacks in the area.

Limerick Circuit Court was told that, in the attacks on three farms, sheds, out buildings and large quantities of hay and feed were destroyed. In one fire two bullocks were also lost.

The total cost to the victims amounted to 80,000.

John Ryan, aged 24, of Carraig Beg, Doon, Co Limerick was yesterday jailed for carrying out the three farm attacks.

The first arson was carried out by Ryan on September 28, 2015, in the Doon area.

A shed with hay and two bulloks were destroyed costing the owner 15,000. The second arson attack on October 5, 2015, also near Doon, cost the farmer 43,000, and the third attack on October 6, 2015, near Oola, resulted in a loss to the farmer amounting to 22,000.

When arrested, Ryan told gardai he owned one of the sulky horses which died as a restult of smoke injuries and was extremely annoyed.

He claimed he embarked on a mission of revenge on reading in a newspaper that vigilantes from the Doon area were responsible.

However when interviewed by a psychologist as part of a court order, Ryan said the attacks were sheer acts of stupidity.

Ryan further admitted he carried the arson attacks on the orders of a man he feared and who he owed 16,000 in drugs debts. This drugs dealer had beaten him up in the past. Ryan, the court was told, made no mention in theinterview with the psychologist about owning one of the sulky horses.

Judge Tom ODonnell said these premeditated acts of wanton destruction had cost some of the victims a lot of money as they did not have insurance.

He jailed Ryan for six years with the last 18 months suspended. Judge ODonnell back dated the sentence to October 15, 2015, since when Ryan has been in custody.
The new bill instructs that alcohol be separated from the rest of the premises by means of a physical barrier, through which alcohol products and advertising are not readily visible to the public.

It has caused considerable anger within Fine Gael, with junior health minister Marcella Corcoran-Kennedy under fire to drop the plan.
Circuit Court president Mr Justice Raymond Groarke made the remark after hearing a legal action by fisherman John Mooney against Irish Rail for a triple fracture he suffered on his right shoulder when he fell though the gap between the train entrance and the platform at Tara Street Station in Dublin.

Mr Mooney told the court that on August 2, 2012, he was travelling on a train from Dun Laoghaire with the intention of getting off at Connolly Station in Dublin. He dismounted at Tara St by mistake and when he realised his error, he tried to reboard. However, he slipped and fell through the gap. Conor Bowman SC, counsel for Mr Mooney, said his client suffered a triple fracture but hauled himself out of the gap and aboard the train. He reported the matter to Irish Rail staff when he got off at Connolly Station.
Unaligned Independent TD Maureen O Sullivan made the comment yesterday, saying the existing laws are failing to ensure casinos, slot machine halls, online sites and private members clubs are fully licensed and crime-free.

Speaking during the latest Dail leaders questions debate, the Dublin Central TD said despite the fact there has been anti-betting legislation and regulations in place since 1931 they are now outdated and do not take account of modern-day gambling.

She said there is no ensuring gambling is provided crime-free in Ireland and that immediate action is needed by the Government.

Ms OSullivan said 30% to 35% of players are problem gamblers, an issue which is leading to relationships breaking up, the loss of homes and depression, and that as much as 5bn is being lost by the public through betting every year.

Warning that the issue is of huge concern, she said there is evidence crime gangs are also using some parts of the sector to launder money, with gardai recently finding a betting slip worth more than 8m in the possession of a well-known gang.

Responding to the comments during the same debate, Tanaiste and Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald said she accepts the problems associated with gambling are of huge concern to her, saying addiction is part of it.

She said there is a need to introduce fresh regulations which have been under consideration by the Government for months, and that any involvement in the sector by criminal gangs conducting money-laundering must be tackled.
BEIJING, Oct. 27 -- The core leadership is of vital importance to a country and a political party.

A key meeting of the Communist Party of China (CPC) has called on all its members to "closely unite around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core."

That "the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core" was formally put forward at the meeting, reflects the common will of the entire Party, the military and people of all ethnic groups in China.

Since the 18th CPC National Congress, Xi, as the general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, has led the Party, the military and the people in breaking new grounds and making great achievements in the great cause of building socialism with Chinese characteristics and the Party.

In the new great practices, Xi has already become the core of the CPC Central Committee and the entire Party.

The CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi as the core is where the fundamental interests of the Party and state lie and a fundamental guarantee for the adherence to and strengthening of the CPC leadership.

It is also an urgent demand for the adherence to and the development of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

It will help ensure the authority of the CPC Central Committee, the Party's unity and unified leadership, and long-lasting stability and prosperity of the Party and state.

The call for Party unity around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core was included in a communique released after the sixth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, which was held from Monday to Thursday.

Party members were told to resolutely safeguard the authority of the CPC Central Committee and its central, unified leadership while pushing forward the comprehensive and strict governance of the Party.

To put the Party's key decisions into practice, all Party members should be more aware of the need to uphold political integrity, keep in mind the bigger picture, follow the CPC as the core of the Chinese leadership and act consistently with CPC Central Committee policy.

"Together we must build a clean and righteous political environment, and ensure that the Party unites and leads the people to continuously open up new prospects for socialism with Chinese characteristics," the communique said.

The CPC meeting also approved two documents on the discipline of the Party, including the norms of political life within the Party under the new situation and a regulation on intra-Party supervision, moves that showcased the CPC Central Committee's strong resolve and commitment in practicing comprehensive and strict governance of the Party.

Such efforts will also ensure that the Party is capable of resisting corruption and withstanding risks, thus, safeguarding the authority of the CPC Central Committee and the Party's unity, advancement and purity.

The comprehensive and strict governance of the Party and a strong core of leadership are the key to China's development and the cause of building socialism with Chinese characteristics.

With the unity of the CPC around the CPC Central Committee with Xi as the core, China will gain further impetus to realize its two centenary goals.
He was speaking after Ms Mitchell OConnor was savaged by her Fine Gael colleagues at a meeting of the parliamentary party and amid a barrage of negative media commentary about her performance.

At a briefing for political correspondents, Mr Kenny was asked on what basis she was selected to take on the economically sensitive portfolio of Jobs and Enterprise. He said he appointed her on the basis of her educational background and dealing with people, in addition to her activities in the Fine Gael party.

As Taoiseach, it falls to me to pick the members of Cabinet, he told the Irish Examiner. I chose Mary Mitchell OConnor because of her experience, because of the fact she was involved in the activities of the parliamentary party before that, and that is what is needed here. That is what she is working at, and working well.

Asked if he accepted that it was his slapdown of her proposal to give tax breaks to returning emigrants that gave rise to criticism of her, Mr Kenny said he did not.

No, I dont accept that assertion at all, he said. Mary Mitchell OConnor is working with the IDA and Enterprise Ireland, two strong world-class players in terms of what they do, and obviously the Action Plan for Jobs is there nationally and broken down to eight regions.

Her focus is to get 135,000 of the 200,000 new jobs into those regions and she is working very hard at that. Obviously as someone who comes from the education sector, she is well used to dealing with people and understanding their requirements and needs.

Mr Kenny was asked repeatedly about his leadership intentions and when he intends to stand down.

He made it clear he wants to see out the implementation of the 600 commitments contained in the Programme for Government, referencing the Supply and Confidence deal with Fianna Fail which lasts until 2018.

Mr Kenny was asked whether he would like to be leader if the Pope does come to Ireland in 2018.

He said: What Im concerned about is the fact that when the archbishop told me that the bishops have invited Pope Francis to come for the world meeting of families that it would be the responsibility of the Government to respond appropriately as head of the Vatican and head of the Catholic Church. And we will do that.

Asked would he like to see the Pope visit the North, Mr Kenny said he would.

Separately, a new RTE documentary entitled Enda to be broadcast next week will reveal details of Mr Kennys days as a young backbencher.

Former Fine Gael senator and distinguished academic Maurice Manning recounts how he and Mr Kenny would drink too much as they had the on their hands.

Leinster House was a very different place than it is today, says Dr Manning. It was much more casual and unstructured. You had a lot of spare time. Enda and myself would go up the town, drink too much and go to nightclubs.

Mr Kennys spokesman said he had no comment to make as to Dr Mannings claims in the programme, which will be broadcast next Monday and Tuesday.

The programme asserts that Mr Kenny never gave any indication of having ambitions of becoming taoiseach until he met and married Fionnuala OKelly, a Fianna Fail press officer.

It was she who steadied Enda up and convinced him that he could be leader, says Dr Manning.
The merger, which is expected to be ratified, will see UCC borrow 18m from AIB to pay for the IMIs campus in Sandyford, Co Dublin, and invest a further 2m in the facility at a time when third-level funding is in crisis.

The merger was originally to go ahead seven years ago but was postponed because the IMI got into severe financial difficulty as a result of the recession. However, as the institute has come back into profit in recent years, the merger is back on track.
Troubled Waters, which will shortly be launched at Waterstones, is the brainchild of part-time teacher Keith Kennedy.

He said that, long before the superheroes of the Marvel comics, saints were the heroes of the 6th century so he decided to tell the story of Finbarres legendary battle with the river dragon, Lua.

Keith, who lives in Kilmichael and teaches at St Johns College, said that, in the 6th century, the vast majority of people were illiterate and so stories at the time about the Cork saint would have been presented to the public in picture form.

I grew out of comics when I was young, he said. But I wanted a project to do and wanted to be creative. I read a lot of stories about the River Lee and then I started working on this historical/mythological story, giving it my own embellishments.

The result is 16 pages of action about St Finbarre (c560-620ad) set in beautiful Gougane Barra, the Inchigeela lakes and all along the River Lee.

Keith hopes it will be the first of many comics to come, in which he will feature illustrations of stories on the myth, legend, and history of different parts of the River Lee all the way from its source in Gougane Barra to Cork city.

Also included in the soon-to-be-released comic will be a four-page pullout story set in modern-day Cork called Rat in the Grain.

Its about a young woman and her bittersweet life in the city, said Keith. Niall Best, a writer who works on the Cork Horror Comic submitted the story to me and I did the art work.

Keith is now looking for more writers to submit short stories like this which he will illustrate and hopefully turn into more comic pullouts.

The comic will be available shortly in Waterstones, Vibes and Scribes, and some shops along the Lee Valley.
YOUR heart breaks when you find he spent play-time on his own. You overhear his classmates mums arranging play-dates but hes never invited. Birthday party invitations circulated recently  he wasnt included.

When a child isnt making friends at school, its a major worry for parents, says psychologist Jenny Ryan (www.mylifesolutions.ie).

It becomes the overarching worry about school. Theres a sense of no control or input that parents can take to assist in the issue.

In California, speech-language pathologist Michelle Garcia Winner is pioneering a new perspective on childrens playground social difficulties.

Just as some have trouble distinguishing between their letters, she believes less popular kids have a kind of social dyslexia  they struggle with reading social cues.

Her approach isnt just for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD)  its for any who are invariably out-of-sync with their peers social interaction.

Garcia Winner points out that only 25% of communication is language  the remainder is facial expression, body language and stance, volume and tone of voice.

Slowness at interpreting social cues  resulting in a child having trouble joining in with the right comment at the right moment  can put them seriously on the back foot.

In the 1990s, two psychologists based at Atlantas Emory University tested several thousand children and found 10% had one or more problems giving or understanding non-verbal communication.

They called this dyseemia  but their heartening take-home message was, no matter how complex the difficulty, children can be helped to communicate better on a non-verbal level.

Child psychotherapist and author of Cop On Colman Noctor believes most children negotiate the social politics of friendships without catastrophic difficulties.

But some struggle to master the skills and may need some social scaffolding to [help] overcome their awkwardness.

Childrens development has different trajectories  they develop socially, emotionally and intellectually at different rates. They may benefit with a leg-up in certain areas.

Clinical psychotherapist Joanna Fortune (www.solamh.com) agrees making friends is a natural process for most children but says some will struggle to socially integrate into large groups.

Some children do better with one or two friends rather than a group  theres nothing wrong with this.

2016 British research into young childrens friendships and how schools can support them found five categories of peer acceptance among five and six-year-olds:

 Popular: children selected most often because theyre most liked

 Controversial: theyre either liked or disliked depending on context and the specific group of children selecting them

 Rejected: Least liked by peers

 Neglected: often ignored or overlooked by peers

 Average: not in demand by peers as popular children are, nor are they as unpopular as rejected children can be.

So, points out psychologist Jenny Ryan, only one category really finds it easy to approach people and develop friendships. Most need some guidance and strategies.

The same study  conducted by Dr Caron Carter and Professor Cathy Nutbrown  highlighted the social minefield of childrens friendship.

They cited findings that children were sympathetic and responsive to peers if they were physically hurt but socially they insulted one another verbally: you cant play, dont sit by me, stop following us, I dont want you for a partner, go away.

Ryan says some children hold back because theyre worried about a groups dynamics.

More sensitive children will get a feeling off a very strong character and, out of safety, pull back. This changes their body language and can make them look passive  like targets for more powerful, social status-needy children.

She believes children need real nurturing in friendship development skills.

Friendships tricky to navigate. Its full of twists and turns and, depending on who we meet, can be easy or complicated. Kids need to understand when someones cruel or kind  they need to know what to do in these situations. We teach them what to do if they fall, what to do if they need the toilet.

We tend not to teach them what to do when someones mean  apart from the negative advice of give as good as they get, which never helps.

The 2016 British research reported that childrens friendships impact significantly on their academic achievement. Yet, says Ryan, teachers arent always comfortable dealing with friendship issues. Teachers need to be creative in finding ways to mix the group  rotating desks for example or giving passive children more sociable jobs.

So, whats the difference between children with ASD and those who dont get the tricky rules of friendship?

Children with ASD dont just struggle with friendships alone  its a more complex issue, explains Fortune. Noctor agrees: ASD affects a series of developmental challenges that arent just social.

Ryan warns against labelling children who struggle to make friends as having a diagnosable condition.

She suggests society has social dyslexia when theres failure to understand that children need nurturing in the skill of friendship-making. And, she says, children with ASD are very capable of making friends.

It just has to be the right one with empathy and understanding. This is the same for all of us. The right friend is hard to find. Maintaining the friendship is harder.

She also cautions against jumping to conclusions about childrens friendships based on our own childhood experience  for example, if we had difficulty making friends.

When she recently asked her son why he didnt play with anyone at break-time, he replied because they couldnt catch me. He was so excited to start school he raced around the playground.

Visit www.playworks.org for inclusive play ideas.

Social cues

Clinical psychologist Joanna Fortune:

Children learn to read social cues from parents. They learn about their own emotional world from how parents reflect back to them: I know youre angry because you dont want to share your toys but we dont throw toys in this house.

Use wondering to help them consider things from others perspectives: I wonder what youd do if you saw a child sitting alone in the playground?

Psychologist Jenny Ryan:

Remind children about alternative reasons for someones behaviour instead of always assuming the worst about themselves: Just because Amy seemed distracted when you were telling her something doesnt meant she doesnt like you  it just means she had a lot on her mind.

Encourage self-empathy. Teach positive ways to deal with emotions like anger, sadness, frustration: Its OK to be angry but what are we going to do about it? How about jumping on the trampoline?

Role-play effective body language, eye contact and conversation starters. Many children keep their heads down, avoiding eye contact. Even if eye contact is difficult, get them to look up, head up, shoulders back. Take photos/ video to show difference. If they do it and it feels good, theyll run with it.
A couple of years ago at a conference organised with the specific purpose of getting more women elected, the then junior minister Kathleen Lynch gave a rousing speech to conclude events.

Before I die, the former Cork Labour TD told the audience. I want to be able to vote for a mediocre woman.

On that same day in 2012, Nan Sloane, a wonderfully direct woman who was involved in training women in the UK for a political life, said it was well known in her professional circle that women needed to toughen up.

Women interested in politics had to be able to win or lose, to be able to take abuse and to take hard decisions that may haunt them for the rest of their lives. I agreed wholeheartedly at the time. Now Im not so sure. There is toughening up and then there is needing to order a custom-made suit of armour complete with noise-cancelling headphones.

This column recently addressed the abuse and double standards faced by Hillary Clinton in the US election. But also in this frame of reference is British Labour MP Jo Cox, shot and stabbed to death this summer in her constituency.

Hillary Clinton

The avalanche of criticism faced by our Minister for Jobs, Enterprise, and Innovation, Mary Mitchell OConnor, is clearly far further down the scale, but I bet it still feels fairly piercing. The boys havent just had the knives out for the recently elevated deputy, but the forks also, as they attempted to carve up her ministerial career before its even started.

Mary has been thrown to the wolves with an indecent haste by many of her colleagues who spoke (anonymously, of course) to The Irish Times last Saturday. That newspaper published a large article under the headline There really is something about Mary. The piece was written by a male journalist, the papers deputy political editor Pat Leahy, and I bet if you were to trace back its commissioning, youd find more male paw prints along the way.

The personalised criticisms of colleagues brought singling out to a whole new level. It is all the more remarkable when you consider Fine Gael recently published two reports into in the partys disastrous general election performance without managing to single out any one individual for blame. To do so was clearly deemed to be bad form, poor gamesmanship, as it were. But this new, blonde, female minister was seen as easy prey to be picked off from the herd.

Politicians can often be a gossipy, bitchy bunch but this article read as though Mitchell OConnors colleagues, and I use that term loosely, who were contacted, were primed for a smackdown, and needed absolutely no encouragement. It should also be pointed out that an interview the minister gave to this newspaper in September had the headline: Is Mary Mitchell OConnor up to the task of driving job growth?

Has Mary Mitchell OConnors ministerial career gotten off to a flying start? No. Is this normal? Yes. It was a surprise to see a new minister appointed to such a demanding brief and especially now Brexit is an issue. Taoiseach Enda Kenny was seen to have favourited her massively with the promotion and there was immediate jealousy.

Lets remember back to when Arts Minister Heather Humphreys was appointed in 2014. She was immediately engulfed in a cronyism controversy concerning a board appointment to the Irish Museum of Modern Art. It was all the making of her boss, Kenny. But when she stumbled on her first few public outings with a frenzied media demanding answers her competency was immediately questioned. As it happens over time she settled in, and did an admirable job with our 1916 Centenary events. But that quietly steady stewardship has largely gone unheralded.

Heather Humphreys

In the run-up to the budge,t a highly unusual thing happened, in that Kenny hung one of his own ministers utterly out to dry. Yes, that minister was Mary Mitchell OConnor, the woman he had championed by appointing her to Cabinet.

Her proposal to give tax breaks to skilled emigrants, needed to fill particular posts, hit the headlines. In the Dail, Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin described the proposal as unfair and discriminatory and the Taoiseach wasted no time in agreeing with him.

In the world of party loyalty, this was a vicious put-down of a minister. The tax idea was portrayed as one where a minister got a rush of blood to the head and spouted something utterly daft. It is quite extraordinary to think that her experienced predecessor, Richard Bruton, put forward the exact same idea for last years budget.

One only need think of the loyalty the Taoiseach displayed to James Reilly when he was Minister for Health. There was a man who lurched from crisis to crisis  remember the promise to transform the health service and abolish the HSE? Then there were those primary care centres proposed for his constituency. I could go on.

Subsequent to her Dail put-down, this newspaper had the details of how Ms Mitchell OConnor was savaged at a parliamentary party meeting to discuss the budget.

Apparently at this meeting Minister for Social Protection Leo Varadkar had a detailed Powerpoint presentation and Housing Minister Simon Coveney a detailed handout  or was it the other way around? Hardly matters, except that both men apparently blew their female colleague out of the water when it came to wowing their colleagues. Good for them. If I was running for the party leadership, thats exactly how I would be playing it as well. Truth be told, though, while Leo did a very good job at communicating as health minister he hardly left an enduring legacy there, and Simon is struggling to show actual results in the housing crisis.

Enda Kenny, Simon Coveney and Leo Varadkar.

But the lads at the meeting smelled blood from the way in which the Taoiseach had earlier thrown Ms Mitchell OConnor to the wolves in the Dail on her tax proposal, and the savaging began in earnest.

Without doubt, it was unwise to go into such a meeting on such an important week without being properly prepared. The minister is on a steep learning curve and could probably do with tightening up her language  and I dont mean bad language, just her method of communicating. But this is not a hanging offence.

The Government chief whip, Regina Doherty, summed it up well on Morning Ireland: I think I can say this as a woman, I dont think theres a single article that has ever been written about a male politician in the same vein, simple as that. She would not be getting half of the criticism shes currently getting if she was a man.

Only time will tell what sort of a minister Mary Mitchell OConnor turns out to be. It is too soon yet to say. There may well have been a case for some wise words of quiet advice to her from an experienced political hand. But, as Kathleen Lynch outlined, women still have to reach impossibly high standards. But if they need to toughen up to such an extent, that being in politics means they have to endure this sort of public flogging, youd have to wonder why they would bother opting for it as a career.
News Army Trucks Caught in Potentially Illegal Acid Shipment in Pyay

Authorities inspect military trucks carrying a restricted acid in Gandamar ward, Pyay, western Pegu Division. / Kaung Myat Min / The Irrawaddy

Authorities in Pyay have intervened after two military trucks carrying acid featured on the Ministry of Industrys list of prohibited and restricted chemicals entered a residential ward of the central Burmese town on Thursday.

Locals alerted police after the two trucks, belonging to the armys Mingaladon vehicle fleet in Rangoon, transported the acid in 144 five-gallon jerry cans to a battery-making workshop in Gandamar ward, where they were weighed.

The acid is listed among chemical substances that cannot be manufactured, imported, used or sold in the country without official permission from the Ministry of Industry.

We cant accept the acid being stored in our ward. It puts residents in significant danger. Therefore we informed [the police] and relevant authorities, said Ko Thet Khaing, a Gandamar ward administrator.

U Kyaw Win, owner of a licensed battery-manufacturing business called Green Power in western Pegu Region, where Pyay is situated, said that restricted chemical substances could not be transferred or sold to a third party.

Only with the approval [of authorities] at township, district and regional levels, and with the signature of the security and border affairs minister, can we use that acid for battery-making, said U Kyaw Win.

Supposing we bought acid from Rangoon, we would have to store it at a designated place. We would not even be allowed to move it next door to that place, he added.

The two trucks have been taken to the militarys Pyay Regional Operations Command headquarters in the town, where an investigation is underway, according to Lt Than Tun Aung of Pyay No. 2 Police Station.

We will only know what actions will be taken after the investigation is concluded. It does not appear that they [soldiers commanding the trucks] actually sold [the acid]. The serial numbers on the jerry cans match with those on the documents, the police officer said.

According to the Prevention from Danger of Chemical and Associated Materials Law, enacted in August 2013, producing, using, storing, distributing, selling, transporting, importing or exporting restricted chemicals is punishable by up to seven years in prison.
News Burma Reports First Zika Case

Dr. Soe Lwin Nyein, the director general of the public health department, talks to the media on Friday in Naypyidaw about the Zika virus. / Htet Naing Zaw / The Irrawaddy

The director general of the health ministrys department of public health has urged couples in Rangoon not to have babies in the next six months after a pregnant foreigner was found to be infected with the Zika virus in Naypyidaw.

Dr. Soe Lwin Nyein delivered the warning at a press conference about Zika at the Ministry of Health in Naypyidaw on Friday.

Couples, mainly in Rangoon, dont get pregnant in the next six months. If you want to get pregnant, consult with health personnel in advance. For those who are pregnant already, avoid mosquito bites, said the director general.

According to health officials, the mosquito-borne disease is mainly carried by the Aedes aegypti mosquito. Officials have vowed to step up campaigns to suppress this mosquito.

According to Dr. Soe Lwin Nyein, the infected foreigner will be kept under surveillance at her house for two weeks. Both she and her husband are cooperating with the health department.

This is the foreigners third pregnancy. She had two previous miscarriages. But they reported the Zika infection of their own accord and are cooperating with us to not transmit it to others. We, on behalf of our country, appreciate this, Dr. Soe Lwin Nyein said.

The husband is not infected with Zika. He requested not to disclose their citizenship in line with international health provisions regarding confidentiality.

The pregnant woman recently traveled to a country that is experiencing Zika cases, but many infected people dont exhibit symptoms, making it difficult to spot the virus during health checks upon arrival at the airports, said the director general.

The ministry has also issued health warnings in Irrawaddy Division townships that the pregnant woman has recently visited. The ministry confirmed the case on Wednesday evening and made an official press release on Thursday.

Dr. Soe Lwin Nyein told pregnant women not to worry too much about this isolated incident and urged members of the public to join in mosquito extermination efforts.

The symptoms of Zika are generally mild, although in pregnant women the virus can cause brain malformations and other defects to the unborn children. There are still no vaccines or specific treatments. The virus can be transmitted through mosquito bites, contact with the blood of infected persons and sexual intercourse.

The Ministry of Health has advised those who come back from abroad not to have babies within four to six months and to use condoms during sexual intercourse.

The virus has been known to occur largely in tropical regions of Africa and Asia. However, a widespread Zika epidemic began in Brazil early last year, spreading to other parts of North and South America and to some Pacific islands. It has since been found in Southeast Asia, Singapore and Thailand.

Burma has become the 73rd country to experience Zika cases and the Health Ministry has reportedly drawn up Zika response plans since its outbreak.
News Govt Invites International Aid Delegation to Maungdaw

Burmas Presidents Office spokesperson U Zaw Htay. (Photo:) / J Paing / The Irrawaddy

NAYPYIDAW  Burmas Presidents Office spokesperson told the media on Friday that the government will allow UN agencies and the World Food Programme (WFP) upcoming visits to Arakan States Maungdaw Township.

We have officially invited the UN representative here on Monday and as well as the WFP to provide humanitarian assistance there, U Zaw Htay said, admitting that the government had previously banned them from entering the area due to security issues.

He added that the government would provide necessary security during the aid groups tours of the region.

When they see what is happening there with their own eyes, they will know the true story, he said, before adding that diplomats from some Western countries had been invited as well.

On Thursday, UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Burma Yanghee Lee called for an investigation into reports of extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detention, and rape in conflict areas of Arakan State.

U Zaw Htay said that the statement made by Yanghee Lee was not complete as she had failed to mention the nine security personnel killed by the militants on a series of attacks on border guard outposts in Maungdaw on earlier this month.

She failed to say that we didnt ban the UN from going there, he said.
News Govt Urged to Open Access to Arakan Conflict Zone

Rohingya Muslim men stand at U Shey Kya village outside Maungdaw in Arakan State. (Photo: ) / Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters

Yanghee Lee, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Burma has called for complete access to areas undergoing conflict in northern Arakan State.

Referring to the growing reports of human rights violations in the area by members of the security forces on Muslim communities who self-identify as Rohingya, the Special Rapporteur on Thursday called for an impartial investigation and said the UN was currently in the dark.

Lee said that they had heard reports of extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detention, many cases of rape, and the killing of civilians.

These are unverified as of yet but we do have some credible sources that [add] support to these ongoing human rights violations, she said.

Access to the area for aid agencies and the media has been severely restricted since Oct. 9, after coordinated attacks on a series of border guard outposts were launched by groups the government believes has links to Islamists overseas.

The militants, who Reuters reported have identified themselves as the previously unknown Al-Yakin Mujahidin in videos posted online, are accused of killing nine police officers and five soldiers, and of stealing a cache of weapons.

In an interview with The Irrawaddy on Wednesday, Presidents Office spokesman U Zaw Htay said that false reports on alleged human rights abuses were being circulated by individuals and organizations that support terrorism. The information could confuse the UN, he said.

If they have strong evidence, they can submit it to the appropriate [branch of] the UN. We will take them seriously. One of our foreign policy principles is to cooperate with the UN, he said.

On Friday, Reuters reported that eight Rohingya women from U Shey Kya village in Arakan State described in detail how soldiers last week raided their homes, looted property and raped them at gun point.

Reuters interviewed three of the women in person and five by telephone, and spoke to human rights groups and community leaders. Not all the claims could be independently verified, Reuters said, including the total number of women assaulted.

A forty-year-old woman from U Shey Kya told Reuters that four soldiers raped her and assaulted her 15-year-old daughter, while stealing jewelry and cash from the family.

They took me inside the house. They tore my clothes and they took my head scarf off, the mother of seven told Reuters in an interview outside her home, a cramped bamboo hut. Two men held me, one holding each arm, and another one held me by my hair from the back and they raped me, she said.

U Zaw Htay, the government spokesman, denied the allegations.

Theres no logical way of committing rape in the middle of a big village of 800 homes, where insurgents are hiding, U Zaw Htay said.

U Zaw Htay telephoned a military commander in Maungdaw, whose name he did not disclose, during an interview with Reuters earlier this week. The commander said troops conducted a sweep of U Shey Kya village on Oct. 19, but left without committing abuses.

The military did not respond to an emailed request from Reuters for comment about the accusations in the area it has declared an operation zone.

U Shey Kya villages official administrator, Armah Harkim, said he was working to verify the latest accounts, adding most residents believed them to be true.

U Zaw Htay accused residents of fabricating the allegations as part of a disinformation campaign led by the insurgents, which he compared to the tactics of Islamist groups Islamic State and al-Qaeda.

Colonel Sein Lwin, the police chief for Arakan State, dismissed the claims as propaganda for Muslim groups.

Reuters reporters traveled to U Shey Kya village on Thursdaypassing nearby villages where dozens of houses were recently burned downand interviewed three women who said they were raped by soldiers.

Five other women from U Shey Kya also detailed in a series of telephone interviews with Reuters how Myanmar soldiers raped them. The accounts are backed up by at least three male residents of the village and a Rohingya community leader in Maungdaw who has gathered reports about the incident, according to the Reuters report.

The residents said some 150 soldiers arrived near U Shey Kya on Oct. 19.

Most male residents left the village as they believed they would be suspected as insurgents. The women said they stayed behind in the belief the military would burn down empty homes. Soldiers dismantled the fences around homes, residents said, removing possible hiding places as part of what authorities called a clearance operation.

A 30-year-old woman described being knocked off her feet by soldiers and repeatedly raped. The women said soldiers took gold, money and other property, and spoiled rice stores with sand.

We cant move to another village to find medical care, said a 32-year-old survivor. I dont have clothes now or food to eat. It was all destroyed. Im feeling ashamed and scared.

Meanwhile, according to local sources, the situation in Maungdaw Township has stabilized. Local government reported that 50 out of 402 schools had now reopened and government workers have returned to offices.

There were a total of 3,000 internally displaced Buddhist Arakanese in Maungdaw, Buthidaung, and Sittwe townships but many have now returned to their villages, according to the Arakan National Party.

Ultra-nationalist Buddhist monk group Ma Ba Tha visited the region this week to donate a total of 1,000 bags of rice to displaced persons. Senior monk Ashin Thaw Parka told The Irrawaddy, we encourage people to go back to their villages, if not, other people will take it [the villages].

The European Commission reported last week that an estimated 10,000 Rohingya remain displaced and that they are in desperate need of protection, food, shelter, and sanitation.

On Friday Human Rights Watch echoed the growing calls to the government to allow humanitarian agencies and international agencies into the area, and to launch an independent investigation into alleged abuses.
A volunteer takes away an illegal net that traps migratory birds. Photo: CFP

A volunteer frees a bird after cutting it from a net. Photo: CFP

Setting up illegal nets to trap migratory birds and selling them for meat or as pets is big in China. Every year during this season, volunteers rescue hundreds of thousands of birds. But now volunteers are afraid of setting the birds free again, in fear they might run into more illegal nets.

Among eight major global migration paths for birds, three pass through China. Every October, as hundreds of thousands of birds fly south, a season of hunting and killing also starts in China. From northeast China to Tianjin and then to the Beibu Gulf along the South China Sea, these lines have become a bloody journey plagued by poachers driven by profit and market demand.

This year is no exception. Around the just-passed national holiday, volunteers dedicated to protecting birds spotted over 5,000 birds trapped in two huge illegal bird-hunting areas in Tianjin and Tangshan, Hebei Province. They tore down kilometers of nets and saved 3,000 birds, including many endangered wild birds.

Bloody paths

It is a scene that most people would find too horrible to look at.

In early October, when volunteers found the illegal bird-hunting area in a remote marshy part of Tianjin, they also found many trapped birds dead or dying in nets, with the bodies of even more birds abandoned and decomposing on the ground. Occasionally the scream of birds pierced the deathly stillness.

From the end of September, the volunteers with several environmental-protection organizations, including the foundation Let Birds Fly, began travelling around the boundary area of Tianjin and Tangshan. Altogether they found and demolished bird nets that came to an astonishing total of over 20,000 meters long.

Knit together with black nylon wire, each net is about eight meters long and one meter tall, fixed to bamboo poles at either end, and they line up closely to form a dense trap. Birds that are trapped by the net, though they don't get hurt immediately, suffer as they hang on the nets for days on end.

Among the reeds were also scattered electric speakers that mimic the calls of birds to attract them into the nets. Some of the speakers use frequencies so high that humans cannot hear.

When the volunteers saved the trapped birds, many other birds were soon caught again in the net. They needed to clear every single net from the area to ensure the animals' safety, which became a main task.

Tian Zhiwei, a volunteer with the Wild Life Protection Association of Leting county, Tangshan, said bird hunters fall into three categories: local farmers who want to eat the birds, wealthy people who see bird-hunting as sport and professional bird hunters, or bird dealers.

Tian told the Procuratorial Daily that professional bird hunters are the most destructive to birds. They are equipped with more sophisticated equipment and track migrating birds over the long term. Behind these hunters is usually a big black market, which put the birds either on dining tables or in cages. He believes the nets in Tianjin were set up by these professionals.

As a matter of fact, the footprints of such bird hunters can be found far beyond Tianjin. As a nationwide survey conducted by Let Birds Fly shows, from September 25 to the middle of October, there were at least 30 cases in which wild birds were harmed and such nets were discovered.

Meeting market demand

In the follow-up investigation over illegal hunting, the volunteers and government officials found a large quantity of dead migratory birds and birds traps in a Tangshan village. More than 2,500 birds packaged in plastic bags, were stuffed in two big refrigerators.

According to law enforcement officials, the wild birds were fattened up and suffocated to death and were about to be sent to dinner tables of southern China.

Migrating birds are usually pretty thin. To get a good price, bird dealers feed these birds tons of medicine and antibiotics to help make them gain weight quickly and then kill them.

Some birds, whose meat is unfortunately regarded by Chinese people as having medicinal effects, have suffered from intense hunting in the past half century. The yellow-crested bunting, seen by some as the "ginseng of the sky," has gradually become an endangered species due to huge demand for their meat.

As Liu Yidan, a famous volunteer devoted to protecting wild birds, told Southern Weekend, the huge profits available is the biggest reason bird hunters set out to catch so many birds.

A volunteer from Hebei once revealed to media that while the farmers make only 1,000 yuan ($153) by planting rice every year, hunting birds in their rice fields for a season could earn them 20,000 yuan.

Bird-hunting is just the first link on the black profit chain of the migrating bird trade. It is a business that requires almost no capital to enter. A few dozen yuan can buy one electronic bird callers, nets and bamboo poles that can last them a whole season. At the end of the chain, a yellow-breasted bunting can be sold for six yuan each while some large wild birds can be sold for thousands or even tens of thousands of yuan.

The market for such birds is huge, whether as food or as caged pets. In many illegal markets for birds in Beijing, Tianjin and Tangshan, there are dealers publicly peddling migrating birds. Many fearless bird dealers even wait at the park gates and outside temples for customers, because Buddhists who like to free captive animals are their ideal customers.

A volunteer named Wang Jianmin told Procuratorial Daily that in several big bird markets in Tianjin, nearly 10,000 wild birds are traded every day. The birds on the market are mainly migrating birds that have recently passed through the city and some species are under special State protection.

Difficulties in protection

As the public grows more aware of animal protection in recent years, harming and selling wild birds is becoming less tolerated.

The law is also catching up in this respect. It has long stipulated in criminal law that those who illegally hunt, kill or sell endangered wild animals will be punished. China's Wild Animal Conservation Law that was revised this July prohibits hunting wild animals and the sale of certain hunting devices.

But problems remain in terms of enforcement. In addition, law enforcement departments with authority over wild animals are still passive in protection, and acting only after they receive reports from the public.

Buying and freeing animals already in captivity, which used to be the main way the public would help wild animals, has largely been abandoned as a technique as it simply spurs demand for the birds and therefore greater hunting.

Qi Yuting, a volunteer with Let Birds Fly who took part in the anti-net operation in Tianjin this month, told the Global Times that they are still facing many difficulties in rescuing birds.

"Our volunteers need to get up as early as 4 am and drive to rural areas for patrols, they have to listen for and identify those electronic callers, or look for suspicious people carrying long sticks walking nearby," Qi said.

With only simply detective devices like telescopes, it often takes them about one or two hours to find these traps. But demolishing nets means nothing to the hunters. They can set up new nets again very quickly later.

As soon as they find the nets, Qi said they call the police. Though the situation is getting better compared to several years ago, she still complains that many village police officers are not familiar with bird protection.

"Sometimes it takes quite a long time for the police to arrive, and they barely have any awareness of bird protection," said Qi. "The police once took our volunteers and the bird hunters to the police station together, but did not punish those hunters at all, even giving them back their hunting tools," she added.

It is also a dangerous job. The volunteers sometimes face violence from bird hunters. In spring 2015, while Liu Yidan was rescuing trapped birds on a net, she was attacked by three bird hunters.

Apart from rescuing birds, Qi's organization is also involved in promoting legislation to protect birds and offering help to other bird-loving groups all over China.

All in all, NGOs alone cannot solve this problem and there needs to be greater official effort to crack down on this illegal hunting.

Various government departments and NGOs should work together on transport, sales, and so on, so as to totally eliminate the profit chain that threatens the safety of wild birds, as noted by Lu Jun, director of the National Bird Tagging Center.
News NLD and USDP to Contest All Seats in By-Elections

A civil servant casts a ballot at a polling station in Naypyidaws Zabuthiri Township during the Nov. 8, 2015 election. / J Paing / The Irrawaddy

RANGOON  With the designated schedule for the April by-elections announced last week, Burmas two biggest political parties have said they will contest for all vacant parliamentary seats.

U Nyan Win, one of the secretaries of the ruling partythe National League for Democracy (NLD)told The Irrawaddy on Friday that the party will race for all 19 vacant seats in the Union and regional parliaments up for grabs in the by-elections, which will be held on April 1.

The Union Election Commission (UEC) has announced that the elections will be held to fill the seats in Rangoon, Sagaing and Pegu divisions, and Shan, Karenni, Mon, Chin and Arakan states.

The seats were left open due to ministerial appointments, which require selected lawmakers to vacate their seats, as well as three deaths. Elections for representatives in six constituencies in Kesi (Kyethi) and Mong Hsu townships of central Shan State were cancelled due to armed conflict during the 2015 election.

The Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD) is also contesting all vacant Shan State seats, including those in Kesi and Mong Hsu; the party won seats in many of the surrounding Shan State townships in 2015.

Our target is to win in all constituencies, the NLDs U Nyan Win said, adding that the party will soon form the campaign team and that the partys selection criteria for the candidates will be announced only after that.

Union Election Commission (UEC) has announced on October 19 that the names of the candidates will need to be submitted from Nov. 26 until Dec.7 and the nomination of the candidates from political parties will be scrutinized by the commission from Dec. 12 to Dec. 18.

The candidate list will be announced on Jan. 2.

U Khin Yi, the spokesperson of the countrys main opposition party and the former ruling partythe Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP)said that the party expects to compete in all seats.

He said that they are currently selecting the candidates for nomination.

The former minister of immigration and population said that the party will choose those who meet the candidates qualifications according to those laid out in the 2008 Constitution and election law, and also the partys policy.

We will mainly choose those who will get support from the public in the election, he said.

He said that during the meeting with the UEC and the political parties on Monday, the USDP submitted seven recommendations for some changes in polling procedure. These included suggestions to mark ballots by pencil rather than by using stamps, requiring voters to show national registration cards in polling stations and displaying names on the updated voter list in family groupings, rather than alphabetically, but the party has not yet receive reply from the commission.

In the 2015 election, the NLD won 886 out of 1,150 elected seats across the Union and regional parliaments. The USDP came second with 117 seats, followed by the Arakan National Party with 45 and the SNLD with 40.

The results of the 2017 by-elections will be announced on April 5.
News Rangoon Municipality to Designate Two More Townships Rabies-Free

A volunteer carries a stray dog for a rabies shot and neutering during a joint campaign between YCDC and Animal Lovers in Sanchaung Township in July. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy

RANGOON  Rangoon municipality will launch an anti-rabies campaign in two more townships after its first ever campaign to vaccinate and sterilize stray dogs concluded this month.

Sanchaung and Mingalar Taungnyunt townships will next be designated as rabies-free townships after the first campaign in Lanmadaw Township completed in October, according to the veterinary care and butchery department of the Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC).

The decision was reached at a workshop between personnel of YCDC, the US-based Humane Society International, the Thai-based Soi Dog Foundation, FAO and World Organization for Animal Health on Oct. 26-27.

YCDC officials and Ms. Min Mitchell, the wife former US ambassador to Burma Derek Mitchell, signed a MoU in March this year to designate Sanchaung and Mingalar Taungnyunt as rabies-free townships.

According to the MoU, foreign experts shared their theories and techniques at the workshop and we also informed them of our actions, assistant department head Dr. Hla May Oo of the Veterinary Care and Butchery Department.

In so doing, YCDC will apply CNVR, an international practice against rabies, which is the catching, neutering, vaccinating and returning of stray dogs. And foreign experts will also provide relevant training to YCDC officials on sterilizing stray dogs.

As of September 1, YCDC, under the MoU, stopped the feeding of poisoned food to stray dogs in Sanchaung and Mingala Taungnyunt townshipsa method long used to lower their numbers in Rangoon.

Brighter Future Myanmar Foundation, the social wing of Kanbawza Bank, will also provide necessary assistance in the fight against rabies in Rangoons municipal areas, said U Nyo Myint, a senior managing director with Kanbawza Bank.

YCDC launched the anti-rabies campaign in Lanmadaw Township on August 4 and completed the CNVR process on October 19. Red-colored tags were used to identify dogs that had already been operated on.

The Veterinary Care and Butchery Department started rabies prevention and neutering of stray dogs in 2014, and due to budget restraints, it could only sterilize 200 dogs a year; according to YCDC statistics, there are over 100,000 stray dogs in Rangoon.

Dr. Nan Khin May Pu, a volunteer helping with YCDCs sterilizing of dogs said: We need to educate members of the public that killing dogs cant eliminate rabies, but vaccinating can. And we also need to provide foreign training to vets. And we need big financial and technical assistance from the government as well as international NGOs.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko
News State Counselor Wants all to Sign NCA Before February Peace Conference

State Counselor attends a meeting of the Union Peace Dialogue Joint Committee in Naypyidaw on Friday. / Htet Naing Zaw / The Irrawaddy

RANGOON  State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has called for ethnic armed groups currently outside of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) to sign the accord before the next Panglong peace conference, scheduled for February.

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi was speaking during a meeting in Naypyidaw on Friday of the

Union Peace Dialogue Joint Committee (UPDJC), a body comprising of government, military and ethnic armed group representatives that, under the terms of the NCA, is charged with holding political dialogue over a federal restructuring of the state.

At the insistence of the military, signing the NCA is a prerequisite for ethnic armed groups taking part in the political dialoguea central component of Burmas peace process aimed at ending over 60 years of civil conflict in Burma.

The State Counselorwho chairs the UPDJCsaid that she wanted to accelerate the peace process and urged all respective ethnic armed groups not to stall or attempt to buy time.

Out of more than 20 ethnic armed groups in Burma, only eight signed the NCA in October of last year, the largest being the Karen National Union and the Restoration Council of Shan State.

According to sources in Naypyidaw, the state counselor also recommended that ethnic armed groups engage in more face-to-face trust building with each other.

The UPDJC conclave continues on Saturday in Naypyidaw, although without the participation of the state counselor.

Several of Burmas largest ethnic armed groups, such as the United Wa State Army and the Kachin Independence Organization have not signed the NCA. Other ethnic armed groups such as the Taang National Liberation Army, the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (Kokang) and the Arakan Armywho have engaged in fierce conflict with the Burma Army over the last two yearswere prevented from signing the NCA.

During a meeting in Rangoon earlier this month with the National Reconciliation Peace Center, the governments peace negotiation body, leaders of the United Nationalities Federal Councilan alliance comprised of groups that have not signed the NCArequested to take part in the political dialogue process without signing the accord. However, the governments peace body told them that this was contrary to the NCA.

Additional reporting from Htet Naing Zaw in Naypyidaw.
Fu Ying, chairperson of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National People's Congress, discusses with Professsor Thomas Fingar of the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Standford Unversity, at a seminar titled Rebuilding Trust: China-US Relations at the university in Palo Alto, California, on May 10. Provided to China Daily

The world order quo vadis? This is a question that has attracted diverse opinions. There is obviously no consensus yet on how the existing order should be adjusted. More importantly, there is a lack of trust among major countries.

In the history of international relations, trust has been a rare commodity, and the lack of trust remains an impediment to genuine partnerships in today's world.

Take Russia and the United States, for example, 25 years after the end of the Cold War, it is hard to say they have greater trust in each other now.

The relationship between China and the US is also often troubled by the lack of trust. In the 30-plus years of its reform and opening-up drive, China has established strong economic ties with the US. However, the South China Sea has brought our conflicting security interests into focus, reminding many in China that in spite of our inseparable interdependence, we are far from partners in the security field.

Am I right to say that the world order the US claims to lead is a power structure, founded on US values, rejecting other ideologies and supported by a military alignment, which does not take into consideration the security interests of others?

In the economic field, the power structure is not that distinct. While it seeks to maintain a global economic framework centered on the US dollar, it has also encouraged globalization which has led to the opening-up of the world economic structure. The UN institutions, G20 and many other organizations are also being encouraged to play growing roles in global economic governance.

China does not have a strategy to challenge the US-led world order, but when it ostracizes the Chinese political system and ignores China's security interests, it is hard for China to support it.

Is the US willing for the world order to be adjusted? I have discussed this with many US scholars and the answer they have given is no.

I remember when talking to Professor John Mearsheimer (professor of political science at the University of Chicago), he told me that "China should either submit or challenge" and that it is only natural that China would seek to replace the US hegemony and the US should counter it.

But is it really an either-or choice? Does it mean when the people in developing countries are lifted out of poverty and start pursuing their dreams of prosperity, there is no avoiding the Thucydides trap?

The Chinese people have their own view of the world order. It is one in which the international order centered on the UN. Chinese President Xi Jinping has said that China "firmly upholds the international order and system underpinned by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter" and together with other countries wants to "make the international order more just and equitable".

You may notice the term we use is "international order". China is among its founders, is a beneficiary, as well as its active supporter and reformer. This international order overlaps, to some extent, with the US-led world order, though each does not include the other in its entirety.

Today's world has long shifted its agenda from bloc politics to development and cooperation. Globalization has facilitated the flow of goods, capital, technology and resources, enabling countries such as China to achieve unprecedented growth.

According to the World Bank, from 1992 to 2014, the world economy more than tripled, growing from $24.7 trillion to $78 trillion, while the global trade volume more than quadrupled, growing from $5.1 trillion to $23.8 trillion. The contribution of emerging markets and developing countries to world growth has risen from 26.97 percent to 61.4 percent. Both the developed and developing world have benefited greatly from this growth.
How Developers Balance Speed and Quality

When I was working at Computerworld Hong Kong throughout the 1990s, one of the things that never ceased to amaze me was how ill-equipped U.S. hardware and software vendors were to sell their products in the Hong Kong market. There seemed to be a general obliviousness to how the needs of that market differed from those of users in the United States  if any thought at all was given to how their products needed to be localized for the Hong Kong market, it was an afterthought. Thats why I welcomed the opportunity last week to speak with Anna Schlegel.

Schlegel, senior director of globalization programs strategy at NetApp and author of the book, Truly Global: The Theory and Practice of Bringing Your Company to International Markets, is one of the worlds most widely respected experts in the localization field. In a career that has included stints with the likes of VMware, Verisign, Xerox, and Cisco Systems, Schlegel has driven the globalization and localization strategies of some of the biggest names in the technology industry.

I opened the conversation by asking Schlegel about the role the IT profession has to play in the realm of globalization and localization. She said IT pros can have a huge impact on the success of how companies go global:

Lets say youre a database administrator, or someone managing a CRM system, or youre building a tool. Anything that youre doing for your company can have an impact on IT and salespeople in other parts of the world. So if youre hard-coding things or preparing things in a way that isnt flexible for the various countries, or that wouldnt resonate with, say, a systems engineer in another country, youre already delaying the success of the companys globalization effort. In that sense, everybody plays a very important role in how companies go global. You need to understand that whatever you code or build or envision needs to be global-ready.

Schlegel pointed out that anyone who thinks localization is synonymous with translation needs to understand that theres a lot more to it than that:

There are a lot of hidden nuances, even down to what you name a product. Coding with respect to the way dates are presented differently in different parts of the world is very important. If youre a developer, and youre not aware that the strings within your code are going to have to be extracted and sent for translation, if a product manager cannot extract those strings because you hard-coded them, your product will never go global.

I mentioned to Schlegel that when I was at Computerworld Hong Kong, I editorialized fairly harshly against U.S. software and hardware companies, virtually all of which for a long time relied on local distributors to sell and support their products, rather than investing in a local direct presence where they could provide the same level of support customers in the U.S. were getting. I asked for her thoughts on that, and whether a channel strategy can be sufficient in lieu of a direct presence. Her response:

The companies that Ive worked with rely extremely heavily on the channel, to the point where sometimes its 100 percent. Where I have seen things work the best is where theres a mixed model  direct sales and channel. When its all channel, the people in the headquarters of the company need to understand that they have to create things that are channel-ready. If the company doesnt have this mentality, the channel strategy will be very difficult to execute. Youre giving things that arent ready to the channel to compete with other offerings, and the channel might just reject it.

Schlegel went to explain what startups and smaller companies can do to lay the groundwork for establishing a global presence:

Lets say youre creating a product here in the States. It would be very healthy for the product manager and the product engineer to pretend that somebody outside of the United States needs to buy this product. That will mean you have to envision a person from a different culture, with a different perspective, is using the product. What is this person going to need? This person may be using a keyboard to download your product that will not look like your keyboard  you need to code for things like that.

If you know how to code with internationalization in mind, the day your company wants to go global, its going to be so much faster and easier. Whats happening to companies here in the States is that many dont think about these things from the get-go. And the day they wake up and they have a potential deal in China or Japan or France, they cant close it. So if you can code with internationalization, with Unicode in mind, thats going to be very helpful.

The other thing startups can do is test their product in another country  have another country test the product so you can get that feedback. Instead of focusing on adding more features, make your product very strong from the base infrastructure.

Schlegel wrapped up the conversation by highlighting the importance of hiring the right talent that can help a company go global:

If you are an executive with a company, you are on the line to sell, and to make money. So the people you bring in to drive the company to success need to be people who are driven not just to be successful in one country, or two or three  they need to be driven to be successful in dozens of countries. You need to bring in people who can think outside of your headquarters, outside of your area, outside of your country. When I speak to HR people and hiring managers, I ask them if theyve had to deal with a major issue in another country, and how they resolved it. Have they hired a brand new team in Europe? How did that go? Have they ever established a process to include people from other countries who are needed to make the program successful?

A contributing writer on IT management and career topics with IT Business Edge since 2009, Don Tennant began his technology journalism career in 1990 in Hong Kong, where he served as editor of the Hong Kong edition of Computerworld. After returning to the U.S. in 2000, he became Editor in Chief of the U.S. edition of Computerworld, and later assumed the editorial directorship of Computerworld and InfoWorld. Don was presented with the 2007 Timothy White Award for Editorial Integrity by American Business Media, and he is a recipient of the Jesse H. Neal National Business Journalism Award for editorial excellence in news coverage. Follow him on Twitter @dontennant.

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How to Use the Cloud to Become a High-Velocity Business

The worlds telecommunications carriers are set on becoming cloud providers as well, and the enterprise is the prime customer.

With abstract networking technologies like SDN, NFV and OpenStack on the table, telcos are quickly building the kind of flexibility into their networks that support agile delivery of a wide range of cloud services. At the same time, they are partnering with service providers, software developers, infrastructure vendors and anyone else who can round out their offerings to provide full software-defined data center (SDDC) platforms at scale.

In the U.S., both Verizon and AT&T are vying to become the dominant figure in cloud networking services. Verizon recently inked a deal with Oracle to provide interconnect services to improve latency across distributed hybrid architectures. According to ZDnet, Verizon will link its Secure Cloud Interconnect with Oracles FastConnect platform to provide pre-provisioned resources on-demand and enable the kind of rapid connectivity required of highly dynamic data environments. The system will be overseen by Verizons Dynamic Network Manager that maintains connectivity between traditional IT resources and public clouds from AWS, Microsoft, Google and others.

For its part, AT&T is working with AWS, IBM and other giants with an eye toward advanced security, IoT and other scale-out applications. As telco analyst Patrick Donegan noted to Light Reading, the combination of web-scale service providers and carrier-class network services enables distributed data architectures to finally meet enterprise performance requirements in terms of speed, scale, agility and application diversity. AWS was already tied to AT&Ts NetBond cloud connection service, but the new agreement provides greater integration between cloud services and networking, providing for a more unified environment that can be easily provisioned and dynamically scaled.

Overseas, Japans NTT Communications has teamed up with Vantis and Microware to launch an Enterprise Cloud Marketplace in Hong Kong that enables a wide range of enterprise service options. The goal is to provide organizations with the ability to establish cloud-first deployment models for key functions such as ERP, CRM and Business Intelligence. The platform relies on NTTs global data center and network infrastructure to integrate hosted vSphere or Hyper-V private clouds with multitenant OpenStack cloud services, all running atop an SDN-based Layer-2 networking architecture. Vantis and Microware will provide consulting and management services to enable seamless continuity and support.

Telco-based cloud delivery is expected to be such a strong growth market that many IT vendors are starting to tailor their development and channel support efforts in that direction. HPE and Samsung recently joined forces to provide integrated virtual networking solutions through HPEs OpenNFV partner program. The pair will aim for ETSI-compliance carrier-grade application and service infrastructure solutions that should enable telcos around the world to speed up the transition from monolithic, proprietary infrastructure to agile, abstract networks. Samsungs role will center mostly on providing virtualized EPC, IMS and VNF management services for mobile networks, which will supplement HPEs management and orchestration expertise.

Networking has long been the limiting factor in establishing broadly distributed cloud environments, but now that carrier infrastructure is gaining the same software-defined flexibility that has infiltrated the data center those limitations should quickly diminish.

In fact, it isnt all that unreasonable to expect that, before too long, dialing up remote cloud services wont be much more difficult than making a long-distance telephone call.

Arthur Cole writes about infrastructure for IT Business Edge. Cole has been covering the high-tech media and computing industries for more than 20 years, having served as editor of TV Technology, Video Technology News, Internet News and Multimedia Weekly. His contributions have appeared in Communications Today and Enterprise Networking Planet and as web content for numerous high-tech clients like TwinStrata and Carpathia. Follow Art on Twitter @acole602.
Branded content will now be available to publish it on Facebook for every user with a verified profile, expanding the April policy that only allowed companies marketers or publishers to share their content on the big blue social network, and ban any kind of aggressive marketing tactics. Branded content could be defined as any post that includes videos, text, photos, Instant Articles or links, featuring a third party product or sponsor.

Just For Public Figures

Before this new policy extension, the little blue checkmark (just as Twitters verification) for pages and profile was almost exclusive for celebs and high profile companies, but now they are also available for public figures such as press members, bloggers, comedians, musicians or athletes. Of course, anyone can request Facebook to verify their personal profile to post branded content, but it has to be someone who can be considered as a public figure.

According to Variety, this could be a great business for the social media, because public figures could now make more money from branded content, under a framework that provides full transparency. Although Facebook doesn't get any revenue from branded content deals directly, advertisers or publishers could pay for broader promotion of the sponsored posts across its 1.7 billion monthly user base.

New Options, More Ads

To start doing all of this, a verified user must chose a sponsored post as branded content using the handshake icon, then the brand in question will receive a notification, and will be able to access the metrics for the post. As reported by Digital Trends, verified profiles cannot add pre-, mid-, or pot-roll ads to branded videos, and both images and videos cannot include banner ads. Also, verified profiles aren't allowed to feature third-party sponsors within their cover photo.

Recent examples of branded content with the new Facebooks rules include the U.S. Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps with "Call of Duty", Lady Gaga with Bud Light, or actor Josh Duhamel with Jepp. Does this mean that from now our Facebook wall will be filled with ads from celebs and popular personalities? Unfortunately, it will be exactly like this.
The International Data Corporation (IDC) has released a preliminary data that reveals Samsung is still the leader in the smartphone market. This is despite the infamous Note 7 fiasco and a drop in its market share compared to third quarter last year. However, Samsung can win back customers with a newly rumored possible optical fingerprint scanner in its upcoming Galaxy S8.

S8's Optical Fingerprint Scanner

There have quite a number of rumors about Samsung's Galaxy S8. With Xiaomi's Mi Mix almost bezel-less display and a similar design for Apple's iPhone 8, the Galaxy S8 is said to have an edge-to-edge display. According to Forbes, other speculations of possible S8 features include a digital on-screen Home button, a 4K resolution screen, 6GB of RAM, a dual lens camera, Exynos 8895 and Qualcomm Snapdragon 830 chipsets and a USB-C audio.

The latest one came from a source on Weibo. Apparently, the Galaxy S8 will be integrated with an optical fingerprint scanner. For comparison, Xiaomi has already used Qualcomm's ultrasonic Sense ID technology. Android Authority suggests that Samsung will use the more secure ultrasonic fingerprint recognition instead of the optical fingerprint sensor. This would make more sense since Galaxy S8 will be powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 830 chipsets.

However, Sam Mobile reports that the optical fingerprint sensor would be faster and more accurate. This will also further support the rumored digital Home button and edge-to-edge display in Galaxy S8.

This might also be a good move for Samsung since the Galaxy S8 could possibly be the first smartphone to use the optical fingerprint sensor technology. But Android Authority also has a point that it seems odd for Samsung to try advancing an old scanning technology.

It will take until February to confirm all the rumors around Galaxy S8. The Korean-based tech company is reported to unveil the said device during the Mobile World Congress event.

Samsung Is Still The Smartphone King

Based on the latest preliminary data released by global research firm IDC, Samsung is still the king of the smartphone market. There have been 72.5 million Samsung units shipped in the third quarter of 2016. This is actually lower compared to the 83.8 million units in the same period last year. Furthermore, Samsung's market share also dropped from 23.3 percent to 20.0 percent.

A big factor in Samsung's continued dominance despite the Note 7 issue is the success of Galaxy S7 and S7 edge. Other devices that also have contributed is Samsung's J-series.

On the other hand, Samsung's closest competition Apple has suffered a decline too. Apple's iPhone shipments went down from 48 million units to only 45.5 million. The difference is actually a lot better than Samsung. Apple's iPhone market share is now 12.5 percent from last year's 13.4 percent.
With the current condition of the planet, experts warn that Southern Spain will be transformed into a barren desert by the end of this century. Climate change in Europe has seen an alarming rate of warming, with the Mediterranean mostly taking the brunt of it as it is quite sensitive to altering temperatures. Scientists say that this transformation is going to be unprecedented and will likely cull the ecosystem in the region.

Expanding Deserts Will Be Seen On The Mediterranean Due To Climate Change In Europe

According to the Paris Agreement, governments will try to limit the increasing world surface temperature to two degrees Celsius or lower, with a preferred target of 1.5 Celsius. But even if that goal is somehow attained, only the 1.5 Celsius mark will ensure that the Mediterranean will remain its current condition, a state in which it has maintained in the past 10,000 years. The Med's sensitivity to global warming is due to the deviation of Atlantic Storms that often treads northwards leaving the region with less rain and more sun, the recent study stated.

If ongoing measures fail to considerably slow global warming, the worst case scenario is a surge of the surface temperature which can reach up to 5 Celsius worldwide by 2100. The climate change in Europe, in turn, will result in deserts expanding northward creeping its way across Spain and Sicily. The region would then experience a change beyond anything it has gone through during the Holocene, the Earth's current geological epoch which started some 11,000 or 12,000 years ago, the Independent reported.

Current Situation On Global Warming Could Be Worse Due To Other Human Factors

Unfortunately, the situation could be worse as the study did not account other human impacts that will affect this climate change in Europe. One such impact is the humans transforming forests to agriculture land as the rising temperature will likely affect staple foods in the region such as olives. Add the migration predicament into the mix and the complexity of the situation turns from a major headache to a full-blown migraine.

"The effect of the human is to deforest, to replace with agriculture and so on. You change the vegetation cover, the albedo, the humidity in the soil, and you will emphasize the drought when you do that," Joel Guiot said, lead author of the study. Scientists urge world leaders to act now so that positive results should be seen as soon as possible.

In a nutshell, the core of this finding is to start reducing carbon emissions now and not by 2020, The Guardian reported. Governments, businesses, and the general masses should work hand in hand in achieving the 1.5 Celsius goal of the Paris Agreement. Guiot said that by 2050, carbon emissions should have been decreased to zero in order to achieve the best result in this continuously worsening scenario felt by people across the globe.
Migration is one of birds' most observable behavior annually traveling from one continent to the next for months at a time. For years, scientists knew that there are species that is able to remain airborne for up to six months. New research revealed, however, that there are those that can constantly fly for up to 10 months, a feat achieved by the common swift bird.

Common Swift Bird Can Sleep During Extensive Flights

This avian species is ubiquitously found in U.K. and Europe. Ornithologists, people who study birds, have long suspected that the swift spends most of its life in the air although concrete proof hasn't been available until now. To collect evidence, researchers attached sensors and data loggers on 19 common swifts and observed them complete their annual migratory cycles from Europe to sub-Saharan Africa.

As they track their specimens the loggers indicated that among 19 of them, three have not touched the ground at all. While the others did land, researchers suspect that this was because of bad weather and if not for those the birds would be able to remain in flight until it reached their destination. Anders Hendenstrom, the lead researcher and biology professor at Lund University, expressed his astonishment after discovering the common swift's bird's "mind-boggling" behavior.

But what's even more remarkable is the fact that the birds don't need to land in order to sleep, which can only mean they take a shut-eye during their extended flights. This finding is backed by data collected that the bird would climb 10,000 feet in the air twice a day, usually during dawn and dusk. The altitude would allow the birds to make a slow descent giving them the opportunity of a half an hour worth of sleep, the Telegraph reported.

Other avian species that practice these constant flying behavior is the Alpine Swift, which was previously thought to be the longest bird to remain in the air with a six-month flight record. The frigate bird follows behind with a two-month flight time and could travel for 40 miles without a single wing-flap, the NPR reported. Scientists also noted that the common swift bird breaks a biological rule.

"Most of the time there is a trade-off between energy use and life: live hard and die young," said Hendenstrom. However, the common swift has been observed to live as long as 20 years. The biology professor said that the next step for them is to determine how long exactly do these birds sleep during their exhausting annual journey.
General Motors is now expanding its Maven car-sharing services. After launching in Ann Arbor earlier this year as part of a pilot project with the University of Michigan, they are now moving into their 10th city, which is Los Angeles. People from the city of angels will now get to experience the convenience that comes with the Maven car-sharing services, courtesy of General Motors.

Maven Car-Sharing Service; How It Works And Other Locations

A report from MLive explained that the Maven makes use of an application from smartphones to "locate, reserve and unlock" a Maven-offered vehicle. The smartphone app basically acts as a key as it also allows Maven users to start, pre-heat or cool the car as an added features. Before covering Los Angeles, the Maven car-sharing program already provides services in other key cities like Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, New York, Detroit, San Francisco, Washington D.C, New Jersey and Michigan.

Maven Car-Sharing Service; Areas Of Availability In Los Angeles

According to a report from Fortune, General Motor's Maven will initially be offering 60 vehicles in its car-sharing service in Los Angeles. These vehicles will be distributed in 24 different sites within the city. Among these are Little Tokyo, South Park neighborhoods and downtown Los Angeles in general. In addition, there will also be rental stations near universities.

Maven Car-Sharing Service; Pricing And Vehicle Options

The initial price will start at $8 per hour, including car insurance and fuel costs. Accordingly, the price also goes up depending on what type of vehicle Maven users will avail. As for what vehicle options the Maven car-sharing service will provide, the list includes Chevrolet Cruze, GMC Acadia and Yukon. Those looking for a more premium option may choose the plug-in hybrid Chevrolet Volt or luxury Cadillacs like the CTS, ATS, CT6, XTP and Escalade.
BRUSSELS, Oct. 27 -- An exhibition of contemporary Chinese glass art under the name of "A Chinese Liuli Flower" was held in Brussels on Thursday.

On display were 12 glass works made through the technique "Pate de verre", a kiln casting method to make glass. These "dream-liked" glass reflects inconstant character of life which is common in Chinese philosophy, according to an introduction to the works.

"Liuli flower could perfectly express the Chinese concept of 'flower and Buddhism'," Loretta H. Yang, creator of these glass art said.

The exhibition also showed a glass work of flower-de-luce.

A 83-year-old visitor named Susan said it was her first time to see the Chinese glass art, which is "fabulous and enlightening."

Loretta H. Yang was a household name in Taiwan in the 1970s as a result of her renowned acting career and won the Golden Horse Awards for best actress.

She, together with partner Chang Yi, devoted nearly three decades to the Chinese contemporary glass art. Their works have been collected in many renowned museums including the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and the Palace Museum in Beijing.
Apple today reworked its notebook line, boosting the touch-ability of the MacBook Pro line, not by letting users smudge the screen but with an adaptable bar above the top row of keys.

The expected replacement for the row of function keys got the name "Touch Bar," without the "Magic" moniker some thought would lead of the label.

But with the new hardware came new, higher prices: Apple raised the entry-level prices of the new 13- and 15-in MacBook Pros with the Touch Bar by $500 and $400, respectively, from their bar-less predecessors. The price hikes represented increases of 39% (13-in.) and 20% (15-in.).

"This is very much a redesign, not a refresh," said Ross Rubin, principal analyst at Reticule Research. Traditionally, Apple has kept prices stable, even lowered them, when it replaces a component or two with a faster or more capable successor. Rubin's argument was that the new models went far beyond that modest swap.

Carolina Milanesi, an analyst with Creative Strategies, had similar thoughts. "Apple is repositioning the product, reinventing the [MacBook Pro]," she contended, acknowledging that the hikes were unusual for Apple. "Normally they keep the price the same, but it's not just a refresh. They're trying to find a different place in the market for the MacBook Pro."

Today was the first live event since March 2015 where Apple focused on the Mac, and it followed months of rationalizing by analysts that the long stretch since the last hardware refresh had been the root cause of a four-quarter sales slump.

CEO Tim Cook promised to make up for the omission. "For 25 years we've been defining and redefining what a notebook is," Cook said, citing the October 1991 debut of Apple's first PowerBook, a clunky, brick-thick portable. "Today, we're going to do it again."

Cook ceded the stage to others, including head of marketing Philip Schiller and Craig Federighi, the top software engineering executive: The two unveiled the redesigned 13- and 15-in. MacBook Pro laptops, then demonstrated the models' most notable addition, the Touch Bar.

The laptops are slimmer, lighter versions of their predecessors, each model dropping about half a pound and losing between 14% and 17% of its thickness. "It is the gold standard in notebook computers," Schiller asserted. "This is the thinnest and lightest MacBook Pro we have ever made."

Both the 13- and 15-in. MacBook Pros sport a trackpad doubled the previous size, and a keyboard whose underlying technology was brought over from the 2015 MacBook.

But the star of the new laptops was clearly the Touch Bar, a mutable strip above the top row of keys, where traditional notebooks feature the F1 through F12 function keys. The strip responds to the Apple-esque multi-touch gestures, and adapts to the active application. With Safari, for example, the Touch Bar shows icons representing favorite sites.

Apple Craig Federighi, Apple's top software engineering executive, shows how the new Touch Bar can be customized.

Also imbedded in that bar is Touch ID. "We're bringing Touch ID to the Mac for the very first time," said Federighi. The integrated fingerprint scanner works just like the one on iPhones; users can log in -- dropping account password typing -- and validate online transactions using Apple Pay by pressing a finger or thumb to the bar.

The Touch Bar, Apple emphasized, kept the input area near the keyboard, where the hands were, implying that's more efficient than reaching out to a touch-enabled screen. The Cupertino, Calif. company has rejected touch screens on the Mac, and defended its decision to limit that to iOS. But it's impossible not to see the Touch Bar as a touch-is-input enhancement, an addition to the well-worn Touch Pad and its library of gestures.

Whether Apple moves beyond the strip, and to the screen itself, is unclear.

"I've learned never to say never about Apple," said Milanesi. "Right now, Apple is saying that not every screen needs to be touch-enabled. But over time, perhaps this is a stepping stone."

Although Apple's own applications will have a jump on third-party software in supporting the Touch Bar, outside developers will be able to access it as well. Microsoft is working on supporting Touch Bar in its Office suite, and Adobe is planning to add support to Photoshop by year's end.

"What will be important is how much developers are going to push [supporting the Touch Bar]," Milanesi added.

Like the MacBook, the new MacBook Pros have ditched the traditional USB ports for a quartet of ports that serve multiple duty, including USB-C, Thunderbolt and charging. For many, that will require new adapters to fit existing peripherals -- external keyboards, printers and displays, for instance -- after a MacBook Pro upgrade.

Apple also dropped the 11-in. MacBook Air, leaving only the $999 13-in. version, and adding a less expensive 13-in. MacBook Pro that features the traditional function keys -- no Touch Pad -- a slower processor and only a pair of ports. The Apple online store also continued to list the 2015 versions of the 13-in. MacBook Pro ($1,299) and 15-in. MacBook Pro ($1,999) for sale.

The 13- and 15-in. MacBook Pros with the Touch Bar start at $1,799 and $2,399 respectively. Customers can pre-order those notebooks beginning today, but the systems won't ship for approximately two to three weeks, Cook said. The new 13-in. MacBook Pro sans the Bar is available immediately at $1,499.
Today

Some clouds in the morning will give way to mainly sunny skies for the afternoon. High 86F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph.

Tonight

Mostly clear. Low 61F. Winds W at 10 to 20 mph.

Tomorrow

Mostly sunny skies. Becoming windy during the afternoon. High 74F. Winds W at 20 to 30 mph. Higher wind gusts possible.
On Oct. 27, a crop-cutting competition was held in Sanjiang Dong Autonomous County, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Over 100 Dong ethnic minority women participated in the harvest celebration. (Photo: Gong Pukang/China News Service)
Motorist calls for buses to stick to lanes

TUESDAY MAY 23. AN angry motorist says Harlow buses should be forced to use new bus lanes.

Commuter Reg Brown, of Orchard Croft, claims they will be a waste of money if they are under-used.

He said: 'It would have been better to build a dual carriageway'.

Mr Brown wants buses to be forced to use bus lanes to free up the flow of private traffic.

He said: 'If you drove a car in a bus lane you'd be stopped, but they can have the best of both worlds and drive in either lane.'

A Harlow Council spokeswoman said the council was getting a number of queries on the matter.

She said vehicles allowed to use the bus lanes included school buses, works buses, express carriages, any vehicle seating 12 or more, taxis and emergency services vehicles.

Selected buses have also been fitted with the latest electronics using satellite technology to switch traffic lights to speed the journey along the route.
As 2016 American presidential race approaches its final phase after one and half year of the razzmatazz of the political campaign, many Americans are increasingly disappointed. Apart from policy-related grievances, personal attacks between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton have added to the confusion of many Americans. Donald Trump has gone to such an extent in his strategy of demonizing and defaming Clinton, messing up the whole process with his false claims about election rigging, and denying his own wrongdoings outright that the election campaign has become more and more bizarre. There is hardly any discussion about policies. The US media for its part has only exacerbated these aspects given that it runs political campaign news literally 24/7.

The presidential election in America is a lengthy, costly and complicated process. Candidates have to raise funds, get more delegates/party representatives in their favor, do exceptionally well in debates, win primaries and caucuses (independent citizens and party representatives either vote for or are pursued to endorse a candidate), and clinch party nomination in national party conventions. Therefore, unlike elections in most party system countries, in the US it is bottom-up method system in which people choose candidates, not parties. This is exactly where a candidates charisma and policies come into play. But there is also the demerit that influential candidates become more successful than others, and even more importantly, it can be tactically used by the populist candidate as Trump did. He stoked up anti-establishment whim to advance his campaign further.

This election campaign also looks disappointing because candidates have not convincingly spoken about the challenges America is facing right now. Large sections of the US population - both liberals and conservatives - are dissatisfied with how things play out in Washington, especially its extreme partisan politics. For its part, the Republican Party is perceived as having been unable to adapt to the changing nature of American society. This relates, in turn, to a broader issue of minorities representation in various sectors- even President Obamas National Security Advisor argues that minority views are not adequately represented in its foreign policy. The international arena has become so complicated that there is no clear answer on the continuity of US foreign and security policy. Besides, the country is still recovering from the 2008 financial crisis.

In such context, thereal estate mogul Trump, who flirted with the idea of running for president for a long time, seizedthe moment and launched his populist campaign. Trump had gradually been making inroads into the Republican Party via donations and relationship building. Contrary to general expectations, he succeeded to get aheadof several other standard Republican candidates. His strategy of flaunting his wealth, announcing of spending his own money on the campaign which would presumably make him independent from any subsequent influence, criticizing the establishment, claiming to bring jobs back from the international market, and defaming other candidates, captured the imagination of those who were disenchanted with the system and got him the party nomination at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, despite of the fact that some republicans put up a frantic effort to stop him.

For its part, Democratic Party witnessed an unexpected campaign by Bernie Sanders with anti-Wall Street slogans, and free college education and inward looking policies, which put up a cut-throat competition with Clinton. Especially the liberal young voters and minorities felt that Sanders spoke to them. The major issue between Sanders supporters and Clinton is that for them she will most likely be the continuation of Washington policy that has gone increasingly away from peoples concerns, and they believe that the progressive (helping the marginalized) candidates have often lied to them.Besides, the fact that she is wife of Bill Clinton has been both her strength and weakness due to several reasons. And when some leaked emails bolstered Sanderscamps claims that the party had favored Clinton, itstoked up Sanders supportersgrudge against her.

Clinton with a long and accomplished political career and the prospect of becoming the first woman president of US was the best fit Democrat candidate to compete against Republicans. She has been so far the only candidate who is taking a balanced-approach on both domestic and foreign policy issues. But since the political campaign in America is so that the media dig out every little piece of information about a candidate, either personal or professional, her email controversy has undermined her campaign, and her populist competitors have built upon that to boost their own campaigns. Her opponents succeeded to the extent that young woman voters themselves turned against her.

However, as Clinton looks well ahead of Trump at this phase, he is getting grumpier. Now the onus lies on Trump that how magnanimous he can be in accepting the election outcome.

The author is a political scientist and columnist based in Washington DC.
Bloemfontein, Oct 27 (Peoples Daily Online) - Free State Premier Ace Magashule suggested that the province should hold China Day annually to learn more about Chinese culture and celebrate friendship with China, as he met with Chinese Consul General to Johannesburg Ruan Ping in Bloemfontein on Wednesday to discuss the stimulation of bilateral trade and economic development and further collaboration between South Africa and China.

The two counterparts met earlier in April when Ruan just took office. Ruan promised that he would pay a second visit leading a Chinese delegation to promote business opportunities and tourism resources that lie in the province.

Ruan said he would strive to deepen mutual understanding and friendship between the two peoples, facilitate mutual visits, and promote the ties and cooperation between China and the Free State province.

Magashule encouraged Chinese companies to invest in the province, with the convenient location, tax incentives, preferential electricity and water rates in the Special Economic Zone in Harrismith.

A fully functional China-South African Agricultural Technology Demonstration Centre has been set up in Gariep, the south part of the province in 2009. Emanating from the Fish Hatchery venture, six fish farms have been established in the neighbouring towns of Bethulie, Springfontein, Koffiefontein, Fouriesmith, Zastron and Petrusburg.

Meanwhile, more than 300 Free State students have been enrolled in various universities in China to pursue their studies in obtaining scarce skills needed to develop in SA, such as Clinical Medicine, Pharmacy, Engineering, Aeronautics and Urban Planning.
The Bloomberg School helps promote health equity at the American Public Health Association conference.

Dozens of Bloomberg School faculty and students will join 12,000 of their closest friends and colleagues in Denver starting this Saturday, October 29, for the purpose of Creating the Healthiest Nation: Ensuring the Right to Health.

Among those from the Bloomberg School contingent who will be sharing new research at the APHAs 144th Annual Meeting & Expo is Raimee Eck, MPA, MPH, a research fellow with the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth (CAMY). Eck is presenting a poster entitled Binge Drinking and Associated Health Risks Among Underage Youth which finds that U.S. high school students who reported binge drinking (consuming five or more drinks in a row in the past 30 days) had greater likelihoods of reporting that they have smoked marijuana, texted while driving, used cocaine or participated in other risky behaviors compared to non-drinkers.

Ecks research analyzes data from the CDCs 2015 Youth Risk Behavior Survey. While the percentage of high school students who drink has declined over the past 20 years, these findings suggest that more work needs to be done to address underage drinking. Binge drinking remains high, as do risky behaviors associated with it.

Beyond assessing the prevalence and intensity of binge drinking, Ecks analysis also shows the problems associated with binge drinking among high school students. Understanding how these young people are drinking, [and] how much theyre drinking is important in order to effectively reduce alcohol-related problems among high school students, she says.

Although policies are in place to reduce underage drinking, such as the age 21 minimum legal drinking age, the association between students who report binge drinking and report engaging in risky behaviors is strong. Evidence-based strategies may help in reducing underage drinking and associated risky behaviors.

Eck also is a co-author of a related studyViolence Prevention Potential of Reducing Alcohol Outlet Density in Baltimore, Marylandthat will be an oral presentation at the APHA meeting by Bloomberg School CAMY research fellow Pamela Trangenstein, MPH.

My work aims to bridge research and policy more closelyusing research to better inform policy decisions such as the number and concentration of places that sell alcohol in Baltimore, says Trangenstein.

Eck, who previously served three years on the APHA Governing Council, is looking forward to reconnecting with friends and expert colleagues from all over the country. After all, Eck relates, an email is never better than a face-to-face conversation.

Ecks poster presentation is scheduled for Sunday, October 30 from 2:30- 3:30 p.m. Trangensteins presentation with coauthor David H. Jernigan, PhD, an associate professor in Health, Behavior and Society, will be Tuesday, November 1 from 5:10-5:30 p.m.

Festivities also include an Alumni Reception on October 31 at the Clyfford Still Museum from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. For more information and to RSVP visit the alumni page.

David Holtgrave, PhD, Janice Bowie, PhD, Ellen MacKenzie, PhD, Kirsten Koehler, PhD, Keshia Pollack, PhD, Robert Lawrence, MD and Robert Blum, MD are among the presenters. For a full list of Bloomberg School participants, connect with JHSPH at APHA.
Almost everyone expects poets to be harmless, full of loving thoughts and delicate that put the rhythm and rhymes of life in paper. It will be hard to believe that some of the revered poets who graced literature with their passion and brilliance are known to be of lowliest brutes that walked the earth as crooks, killers, rakes, drunkards, and much more.

Here are five of these madmen:

1. Francois Villon -

This man is a superb poet and acclaimed as the finest in 15th century France. Villion was brought up by a fine gentleman who was a canon law professor in Paris. He ended up as murdering thief, a low-life involved in riots, exiles, and imprisonment.

What brought him to this brigand life is unclear as his life records can only be surmised from his prison records.

2. Sir Thomas Wyatt -

Sir Thomas Wyatt was one of the leading poets who introduced Italian poetry into English verse.

He was a royal scalawag who belonged to the royal court and became close to Henry VIII.

For competing with the king to win Anne Boleyn's attention, he fell out of the King's favor and was sent off to France and Italy. In later years, His support for the troubled Queen Anne led to his incarceration by the Holy Roman Empire.

3. Peter Bysshe Shelly was the son of an educated landowner and an idealist. His life as a revolutionary led to his reputation as the "Mad Shelly," a disturbing force in Britain during his time.

4. George Gordon, better known as Lord Byron, was a womanizer who destroyed his reputation by getting involved scandalous love affairs.

5. Alexander Pushkin was a drunkard a notorious hothead who was involved in many gun duels, mostly for insulted damsels in distress.

Those who want to become poets need not worry about their personal lives since it is only their literary work that can bring them the portals of glory.
LONDON OCT. 28 People's Daily Online The International Student Innovation Awards was set up to highlight the work of Londons international students and also to provide some financial help to assist students in taking their innovation to the next stage of development. Hundreds of entries, from 49 different countries and 17 London universities, have been received, and have now been whittled down to a final shortlist.

An event crowning 'London's most innovative international student', who will receive 10,000 to kick start their business, will be held on 2nd November at Central Saint Martins, Granary Square.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: The incredible range of talent on show in these awards celebrates the best of the capital and clearly demonstrates that London is open to talent and ideas from across the globe. We need to do all we can to ensure that London remains the best and most welcoming destination for international students.

A total of eight entrants from China have been shortlisted. Yin Fan Denis Huen has developed a smart sensing medical device which can be worn on your arm. It can detect, and then control, abnormal movements so that Parkinsons sufferers can do everyday things, like drink a cup of tea or hold a knife and fork. Mei Ran Abellona has developed a vaccine delivery system, which can be kept cool over an indefinite period of time, so that they are no longer compromised, or wasted when they reach their destination.

Another entry from China includes a device for children suffering with neuromuscular diseases. A daily-wearing orthotic device encourages users to complete movements, by compensating for weak muscles.

Shiyun Chen has designed a collection of beautiful, contemporary jewellery, which aims to encourage people to celebrate, not hide their skin diseases. The designs, made with a variety of precious and non-precious materials, imitates the colour and texture of certain skin diseases, such as lupus and shingles, giving a unique twist to its original theme.

Ideas and innovations submitted have been evaluated by a prestigious panel of judges.

Eileen Burbidge said: Londons world-leading universities are bursting with some of the brightest minds who are developing businesses which will revolutionise our lives. Students coming to London from all over the world bring fresh ideas and thinking, and their talent should be nurtured and encouraged as they seek to build the next generation of global companies.

Dr Eliot Forster, Chair of MedCity, added: These awards, which have unearthed a wealth of innovation in our universities, help cement Londons reputation for forward-thinking, problem-solving science and entrepreneurial spirit. By supporting the creative and entrepreneurial endeavour of students it will enable them to develop and take their ideas to market which could change lives for the better and improve the healthcare landscape.

London welcomes more international students with over 100,000 international students from over 200 different nations.
On Oct. 27, a man was shot dead in Dongguan, Gungdong province beside an armored cash transportation vehicle. Witnesses said the man had chased the vehicle and threw bricks at it, which resulted in his death.

According to a video recorded by a witness, the victim began to throw bricks at the armored vehicles window. The vehicle stopped after the man had chased it for hundreds of meters. The man continued to knock at the windows with bricks until the windows broke. The video didnt record what happened next - the fatal shooting.

Shop owners nearby verified the incident but said they knew nothing about the mans behavior. One bystander said that the man had quarreled with the driver after his motorbike was scratched by the armored vehicle. Police have not yet been able to verify this claim.

Regarding the larger significance of the incident, the question of whether the escort should have used a gun has attracted a wide variety of opinions online. According to existing law in China, armored vehicle escorts are allowed to carry firearms.

The armored car company claimed that the escort's safety was threatened by the mans attack, and the attacker was given plenty of warnings to stop. Nonetheless, the man continued attacking the vehicle. Following emergency procedures, the escort finally used a riot gun with a rubber bullet. The victim was shot, and died before an ambulance arrived.

The incident is still under investigation by police.
If my call is so important to them, why dont they answer it for 22 minutes?

How come when I want to, but something specific online is the only item out of stock.

When I get into a queue or lane going fast, the moment I get in, it becomes the slowest and refuses to budge.
A flat revenue performance for Old Dominion Freight Line Inc. proved enough to beat analysts earnings projections for the second consecutive quarter.

The Thomasville less-than-truckload company reported Thursday a 1.4 percent increase in net income in the third quarter,to $85.9 million.

Revenue was up 0.4 percent to $782.6 million, which put the company back on pace for its first $3 billion revenue year at $2.24 million through Sept. 30. It had a record $2.97 billion in revenue in fiscal 2015.

Old Dominions record performance continues to center on gaining market share through adding and expanding centers. As a less-than-truckload carrier, it ships products more quickly and attracts more customers because it does not depend on a full trailer to make a profit.

A top 10 trucking company, Old Dominion had at last count 869 employees at its headquarters in Thomasville, 670 at a service center in Greensboro and 17,587 full-time employees overall.

David Congdon, Old Dominions chief executive, said in a statement that he was encouraged by some economic trends during the quarter.

Although the economic environment continued to be weak during the quarter, the pricing environment remained stable, our less-than-truckload weight per shipment increased, and we exercised good control over our variable operating costs, Congdon said.

Baird analyst Benjamin Hartford said that Old Dominions core results were slightly better than expected given the upside on revenue trends during the quarter.

All told, a solid quarter, which we view to be reflected in the stock, Hartford said.

Old Dominions record annual performances of recent years have left it susceptible to investors and analystshigher earnings expectations. The Street.com rates the stock as a buy, saying Old Dominions strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures, impressive record of earnings per share growth, compelling growth in net income and notable return on equity.

We feel its strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had lackluster performance in the stock itself, the financial website said.

Old Dominion repurchased $34.3 million of its stock during the quarter, increasing the total that has been bought back to $119 million for fiscal 2016. The company said it has $211.3 million remaining in the share repurchase program that its board of directors authorized May 23.

A company typically buys back its shares from the marketplace to reduce the number of outstanding shares. Because there are fewer outstanding shares, those remaining can become more valuable. Companies also buy back shares when they believe the shares are undervalued.

The company spent $55.6 million on capital investments during the quarter. It projects spending $405 million for the full year: $170 million on real estate and service center expansions; $205 million on tractors and trailers; and $30 million on technology and other assets.

Analysts have credited Old Dominions willingness to reinvest in expansion and new equipment for much of its market share gains.
The two ongoing battles in the Middle East, namely Mosul offensive and Aleppo strike, actually share some common features, but driven by its intention to pursue self-interest, the West, represented by the US, has adopted double standard toward the two conflicts, the Peoples Daily said in a commentary published on Thursday under the byline of Zhongsheng.

The following is the translation of the article:

Two battles have erupted in the Middle East, namelyMosul offensive launched by the Iraqi government and Aleppo strike by Syrian government. Based on an analysis, it's easy to find similarities between the two wars.

The two cities are both second-largest in their countries with overonemillionpopulations. The Islamic State occupying Mosul and the Al-Nusra Front holding Aleppo have both been listed as terrorist organizations by the UN. In addition, bothbattles are military actions launched by governments to restore their lost territories with the support of big powers.

However, the Western world, represented by the US, holds completely different attitudes toward the two wars.

On one hand, it has sent troops to Mosul to fight against terrorism, and on the other, it is obstructing the strike on Aleppo and defends Al-Nusra Front. Whats worse, citing connection between Syrian opposition and the terrorist organizations as an excuse, it impeded the counter-terrorism efforts of Russia and Syria, and even accused the two countries of human rights violations.

Pushed by Western countriesin the name of human rights, the UN Human Rights Council has voted to start an independent special inquiry into the strikes on Aleppo, an attempt to prevent Russia and Syria from recovering the city.

Apparently, interests are the drivers of the US double standard toward two battles. The mess in todays Iraq, a leftover of the US invasion, is a hot potato for Uncle Sam in the Middle East. Given the huge involvement of the US government, the countrys credibility would be questioned both domestically and internationally if chaos in Iraq continues.

Therefore, the US places considerable emphasis on the Iraqi counter-terrorism campaign. Commentators pointed out that by supporting the Mosulattack of Iraqi government at this very time, Barack Obama can also solicit votes for the Democratic Party in the US elections

When it comes to the Syrian crisis, the US and itsWestern allies set the resignation of Bashar Assad as a precondition of settlement and even present his stepping down aspolitical correctness. But as a matter of fact, such requirement has impeded the effective resolution of the crisis.

In terms of the geopolitical game, as the US calculation in the Middle East was disrupted by Russiasaggressive intervention, the superpower would certainly make a counterbalance when devising its Syrian policy.

The current strategic deployment on the battleground of Mosul apparently is effective in wiping out the terrorists, but the latter may flee to Syria if the way to the west is not effectively blocked. Russia and Syria have already warned on this.

The Syrian crisis is more than a conflict between governments determination to maintain order and the publics demand for reforms, and involvesnational contradictions, religious conflicts, terrorism, and geopolitical game of big powers.

The Aleppo war, for example, is also a wrestle between Russia and the US, and Mosul battle cannot deny its relation with Syrian crisis. If major powers continue to play such games, it would be more difficult to seek a final settlement, and the innocent Syrian people will be the real victims of the endless tug of war.
A 25-year-old Virginia man was seriously injured Thursday night when he was caught between two vehicles during a domestic incident in King, authorities said.

John Payne, 37, of Mount Airy is accused of driving his vehicle into the passenger side doors of a vehicle operated by his ex-wife, police said. The injured man, whom police didn't identify, became pinned beneath the front tire of Payne's vehicle.

The victim was taken to Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center for treatment.

Payne was charged with assault with a deadly weapon, inflicting serious injury and driving while impaired, police said.

Two other people were charged at the scene, police said.

Cody Levi Dalton, 23, of King was served with outstanding warrants for failure to appear in court for charges of possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia, police said.

Tara Dawn March, 35, of King was charged with resisting an officer, police said. March was a passenger in Payne's vehicle during the incident.
A. Tab Williams Jr., the founder of the local company that became WilcoHess LLC., has died at the age of 88.

Williams died Tuesday of natural causes at his home in Winston-Salem, family members said.

He was a wonderful father, said Arthur Williams, one of his four children. He raised four children while he and my mom started a new business. He raised us to be independent and free thinkers and to follow our own paths.

Williams was the oldest of four children and grew up on his fathers farm in Pitt County. His father was a tenant farmer who grew tobacco and other crops such as cabbage, potatoes, corn and tomatoes.

We didnt have inside plumbing and we had to furnish most of the food we ate, Williams told the Winston-Salem Journal in June 2009. But it was there on that farm that I learned to work and to enjoy the work.

He graduated in 1950 from N.C. State University with a bachelors degree in agronomy and settled in Winston-Salem as an assistant farm agent for Forsyth County. He served two years in the Army during the Korean War.

He then returned to North Carolina and eventually became the sales supervisor for the Winston-Salem Tobacco Board of Trade in January 1955. Two years later, he joined Taylor Oil Co., a business owned by his father-in-law, Roby Taylor. He worked there six years. Williams said he learned sound business practices while at Taylor Oil.

Tab Williams and his wife, Elizabeth, founded the A.T. Williams Oil Co. in 1963, a business that began as six gas stations and grew to 365 stations and 51 restaurants in seven states by 2009. Williams started A.T. Williams Oil Co. by buying six stations from his father-in-laws company, Taylor Oil Co. He initially had three employees, including himself.

In fall of 2008, Williams was selected for his leadership qualities to be among 33 people highlighted in the book, Secrets of Success: North Carolina Values-Based Leadership. Retired Army Gen. H. Hugh Shelton, a native of Edgecombe County, led the effort to produce the coffee table book, which was released in May 2009.

Williams said he never dreamed his business would grow into WilcoHess LLC. The companys offices are on University Parkway.

By that time, Williams had turned over daily operations of WilcoHess to his son, Steve Williams, who served as president and its chief executive officer.

WilcoHess started in 2001 as a joint venture between A.T. Williams Oil Co., based in Winston-Salem, and Amerada Hess Corp., now Hess Corp. In September 2014, it, along with the rest of the Hess gas chain, was acquired by Speedway LLC in a $2.82 billion deal. More than 1,200 WilcoHess stores began converting to Speedway in October 2014.

Tab was a kind, humble and generous man, said Richard Gottlieb, the president and chief executive at the Senior Services Inc. of Winston-Salem. He meant the world to Senior Services and many other charities. He was a terrific leader and we will miss him.

The Elizabeth and Tab Williams Adult Day Care Center of Senior Services is named after Williams and his first wife, who died in 1998. The center provides activities, meals and socialization for adults who suffer from Alzheimers disease and dementia. That enabled us to help thousands of seniors with memory loss, Gottlieb said.

Williams was a major contributor to the agency in the late 1990s to help establish the center, Gottlieb said. Until his death, Williams was a life director at Senior Services.

Winston-Salem Mayor Allen Joines described Williams as a supporter of the citys efforts to rebuild the local economy by bringing new businesses to the city.

We lost a great community leader, Joines said of Williams. His work will be remembered for a long time here.
District attorneys offices in Rockingham and Caswell/Person counties are at the heart of a criminal investigation into whether there has been a theft oftaxpayer money, law enforcement and judicial officials confirmed this week.

The State Bureau of Investigation confirmed Wednesday that since July 25 agents have been investigating both district attorneys offices.

No charges have been filed. Agents from the SBIs Hickory office are investigating alleged theft of state funds from the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts, the SBI stated in its response to a public records request for details filed by the News & Record of Greensboro.

Iredell County Superior Court Judge Joe Crosswhite, at the request of the Administrative Office of the Courts, issued the order for agents to begin looking into the theft allegations.

I can confirm there is an ongoing investigation into the possible thefts of state funds, Crosswhite said Wednesday. Both counties are being investigated.

Kent Williamson, vice chairman of the Caswell County Board of Commissioners, confirmed in late September that he also knew about the criminal investigation into the Caswell County District Attorneys Office, but his details were limited.

The county manager told us there was an investigation going on in our district attorneys office, Williamson said. Actually, he had the county attorney call and tell each of us about the investigation on his behalf.

Neither Rockingham County District Attorney Craig Blitzer nor Caswell/Person County District Attorney Wallace Bradsher returned detailed requests for comment left Wednesday on their mobile and office telephones.

No one interviewed for this story would comment on the specifics of the investigation, and very few details are available to the public. There is no indication that either district attorney is under investigation.

More than 31 people make up the district attorney offices that stretch across three counties.

Bradsher, who became district attorney of both Caswell and Person counties on Jan. 1, 2011, leads a team of 14 .

Craig Blitzer took office on Jan. 1, 2015. He has a staff of 15.

Caswell County Manager Bryan Miller said he is not officially aware of an SBI investigation into the district attorneys office.

SBI criminal investigation records do not fall under public record laws in North Carolina, although the public is able to access limited information, including the time, date and nature of an apparent violation of law and the name of the complaining witness.

The SBI on Wednesday released information that revealed the alleged theft and the identity of the judge who initiated the order to investigate.

Judge Crosswhite said a Caswell County judge, whom he did not name, first was made aware of the allegations but that judge said he felt too close to the situation to oversee the case. That judge contacted the Administrative Office of the Courts, which asked Crosswhite to step in.

He ordered the investigation in late July and said Wednesday that he is awaiting a report from the SBI on its findings.

Crosswhite said he will not be the one to issue charges if they are warranted. Instead, he will review the file and tell the SBI if there is sufficient findings to go further with the investigation.

If the investigation does go forward, Crosswhite said he believes the case will be assigned to a district attorneys staff to be determined at that time.
RANDALL LENDERMAN, Clemmons

A hard worker

Gov. Pat McCrory has refocused the state to a positive path over the past four years: our pro-business ranking among states climbed dramatically; good job availability improved at the same time the high unemployment rate was reduced. Roy Cooper, on the other hand, largely abandoned his effectiveness as attorney general while self-promoting his aims for governorship.

Do we need a governor who places political aspirations ahead of service to the state; who lacks the ability to further state economic and job growth; who would solve pressing state problems by spending more money and raising taxes? He is a throwback to failed Democratic policies of the past: spend, spend, spend, tax, tax, tax. They did not work then; they will not work in the future.

When you vote, consider what Pat McCrory has done to bring in new jobs and new industries, a reduced unemployment rate, reduction in tax rates, increased teacher pay, increased state spending on education in general, the repeal of Common Core and improved use of technology in government. Contrast that with Roy Cooper; go ahead and make a list of Cooper accomplishments, if you can find them.

Hard-working Pat McCrory must be our next governor.

******

ANNE GRIFFIS WILSON, Winston-Salem

Love and appreciation

Nearly a year ago I became a member of the committee to elect John Larson to the Winston-Salem City Council. I have known John for years as a casual friend who was always responsive when I asked for help with an activity related to the South Ward. This last year working with him on his election committee has of course increased facts I know about him, such as his 40-year residency in the South Ward, his 37-year tenure at Old Salem, and his significant volunteer ventures. In addition, I learned to appreciate his high energy about matters of importance to him, his keen insights about issues related to the South Ward, his skill assessing and problem solving and his ability to listen to what others had to contribute.

In short, John Larson has enjoyed being a candidate, including the stimulation and challenges inherent in the role. During the long campaign he has knocked on over 4,000 doors in the South Ward, trying to get a clear picture of this very diverse part of our city. He has expressed his surprise and delight over that diversity.

Throughout the campaign, Johns love and appreciation for the South Ward, Winston-Salem, and Forsyth County was unmistakable. We are fortunate to have a candidate who, after his retirement from Old Salem in December, will without a doubt continue to be a creative, dedicated, enthusiastic and insightful advocate for the people of the South Ward as well as the entire city.

******

TOM JONES, Winston-Salem

A predicament

What a predicament the two major political parties have placed our nation in. We are faced with a choice between a serial liar and conniver and a buffoon.

I think the Nevada election committee has made a wise choice by adding a provision to its ballot that allows voters to choose none of the above as a voting option for president. This provision is polling about 5 percent support in recent polls of registered Nevada voters.

Hillary Clinton is a sad candidate running on a platform of its my turn and we need a female president. Based on the revelations from emails and past mistakes she would be losing to any candidate other than Donald Trump.

Trump is beyond belief. The only positive thing I have heard about him is from a friend who said he was voting for Trump because he will be easier to impeach than Clinton.

Now if Trump would stand up and say, I am running for one term and if elected I will seat a committee like the Simpson/Bowles committee and unlike President Obama I will pay attention to what they recommend and institute reasonable changes, I might vote for him. Likewise, if Clinton would say, I will suspend Clinton Foundation activities while president and appoint people other than the political hacks hanging on my coattails, I would consider her.

If neither of these happens, I am following the wise endorsement of the Journal and voting for Gov. Gary Johnson.

******

PATRICIA KLEINMAIER, Pfafftown

A dramatic improvement

After the most dramatic improvement in the State Business Tax Climate Indexs history  from 44th to 15th in one year  North Carolina has continued to improve its tax structure, and now imposes the lowest-rate corporate income tax in the country at 4 percent, down from 5 percent the previous year.

This rate cut improves the state from sixth to fourth on the corporate income tax component, the second-best ranking (after Utah) for any state that imposes a major corporate tax. (Six states forego corporate income taxes, but four of them impose economically distortive gross receipts taxes in their stead.) An individual income-tax reduction, from 5.75 to 5.499 percent, is scheduled for 2017.

At 11th overall, North Carolina trails only Indiana and Utah among states that do not forego any of the major tax types.

RANDALL STAFFORD, Kernersville

The great and powerful Oz

In the 2016 presidential election, should we pay no attention to that woman in the pantsuit or that man behind the curtain? I believe this time its who you vote against instead of who you vote for.

You make your choice. Thank God that we still have that right  for now.

******

RICHARD BENNETT, Winston-Salem

One of the best

I have known countless Superior Court judges throughout this state during the many years that I have practiced law and Judge Eric Morgan is unquestionably one of the best.

The really good Superior Court judges study and understand the law, listen and understand the arguments of both sides before ruling. They strive to be fair and impartial whatever the consequences, and treat everyone in the courtroom with respect. Those are the qualities of Judge Eric Morgan.

It is not an easy job. Judge Morgan has a strong education and experience foundation that prepared him to be an excellent Superior Court judge: Reynolds High School, Phi Beta Kappa at the University of Virginia, University of Texas Law School, with honors. He has practiced law in Forsyth County beginning in 1991 and has served as a judge since 2014.

Judges and judicial candidates in North Carolina are rated in a survey by the N.C. Bar Association. Judge Morgan had the highest rating in the state in the five contested Superior Court races.

It is sometimes difficult for voters who arent lawyers to know which judges to vote for, but this one is easy. It isnt even close. Judge Eric Morgan is one of the crown jewels of the North Carolina judicial system that we need to keep.

******

PETER WILBUR, Winston-Salem

Ready for the challenges

In this campaign season we have heard a lot of talk about jobs. The solutions to our problems start right here at home.

Many manufacturing jobs may be gone, but the ones that remain, or that are coming to Forsyth County, now require highly technical skills. Some of the jobs of tomorrow havent even been invented yet.

The bottom line is that a young person starting in the workforce today is at an enormous disadvantage without an education that prepares her for careers at the forefront of the new economy; jobs in biotech, for example.

This is why education and job training must be our top priorities in Forsyth County. We must attract and retain the best and brightest teachers and invest adequate resources into the needs of all students.

Beyond the need to educate tomorrows workers, our students need to be prepared to collaborate and to become thinkers and engaged citizens.

Bob Stitcher has put education and job training at the front and center of his campaign for Forsyth County commissioner. As a parent of young children and a small business owner, Bob knows intimately the importance of this issue and will work to make sure all our children and young adults are ready for the challenges the new economy will bring.

Please join me in voting for Bob Stitcher for Forsyth County commissioner on Nov. 8.

******

JAMIKA BURNETTE, Winston-Salem

Free Smith

According to the National Registry of Exonerations, out of 873 individual exonerations from January 1989 through February 2012, defendants (in America) collectively spent more than 10,000 years in prison for crimes they should have never been convicted of.

My question is, when will Kalvin Michael Smith be free?

While current debates reflect falsities regarding bogus assertions of exonerating the wrongfully accused, Kalvin Smiths reality consists of a recurring nightmare. Stuck in a continuum of agony, he wakes up every day as an innocent prisoner suspended within the restraints of a system that erroneously accused him of a crime he didnt commit  a situation that appointed officials can fix, but have simply failed to do so. At the end of the day, everyone opposite of those prison walls can live a liberated lifestyle, but Smith is void that opportunity.

For centuries, Americas done a fine job representing systemic oppression through the vices of European superiority and colonialism. These inherited concepts thrive as the paradigm of our justice system to this very day. Our injustice system is simply an allegory of unscrupulous, manipulative, evil behaviors and century-old trends that shows us first-hand that the system just cant be trusted. Caught in a web of socio-economic, cultural, and political factors, Kalvin Michael Smiths wrongful incarceration displays specifically how the African-American man is warehoused for consumerism, exploited and commercialized based on the features of the institutions he belongs to.

Its beyond time for justice. Free Kalvin Michael Smith!

Election Letters Deadline

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For more guidelines and advice on writing letters, go to journalnow.com/opinion/submit_a_letter.

The Journal welcomes original submissions for guest columns on local, regional and statewide topics. Essay length should not exceed 750 words. The writer should have some authority for writing about his or her subject. Our email address is: Letters@wsjournal.com. Essays may also be mailed to: The Readers Forum, P.O. Box 3159, Winston-Salem, NC 27102. Please include your name and address and a daytime telephone number.
The human nearly lost his life to drug and alcohol addiction. The dog, well, he nearly lost his life to humans.

A French mastiff named Hooch, rescued by Zach Skow in Tehachapi, Calif., is the 2016 American Humane organizations Hero Dog of the Year, bestowed in a Beverly Hills ceremony taped in September for broadcast at 8 tonight on the Hallmark Channel.

Hooch, among eight canine finalists, wore his best tuxedo collar, though he was reluctant to join Skow on stage.

Hosted by James Denton and Beth Stern, and featuring Dave Foley, Kym Johnson, Robert Herjavec, Marilu Henner and Greg Louganis, among other celebrities, this is the sixth year for the awards.

The finalists come in all shapes and sizes. Some protect the vulnerable and comfort the sick. Others assist police, military veterans and rescue the lost.

Hooch, on the other hand, was nominated for surviving  and he was No. 1.

He was the emerging hero dog, having been rescued about three years ago with the help of Skow, founder and operator of Marleys Mutts Dog Rescue in Tehachapi. Skow said the rescue goes the other way around as well.

Skow, who nearly died of liver failure, is a recovering addict. Hes been sober eight years. As part of his rehabilitation, he went into dog rescue.

Hooch has helped me stay in the moment  not only in the moment, but out of my head, Skow said. I need to be thinking about something other than me.

Skow received a call one day from a local animal control officer about an ailing French mastiff who was emaciated, had a broken tail and had recently had his ears badly cropped

The dog refused to eat, instead batting his bowls around wildly. A veterinarian discovered that his tongue had been maliciously cut off at the base, possibly to stop excessive barking or use him as bait to train fighting dogs.

Skow finally got Hooch to eat by softening dry food with hot water and putting it straight down Hoochs mouth. He slowly regained his health.

Now, Hooch spends some of his time with non-verbal autistic kids, calming them as they learn social skills. He exudes happiness, Skow said.
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The 2016 IKA Culinary Olympics, one of the most elite and competitive culinary events in the world, drew to a close in Germany on Oct. 26. China had 13 chefs participating in the competition to present the country's most authentic and high-end cuisine. Surprisingly, of those 13 chefs, nine came from Unilever, the British-Dutch multinational company.

In fact, Unilever, while best known for its consumer goods, also owns the worlds largest culinary research and consulting company, Food Solution. As part of its global campaign, Food Solution China has been operating for 22 years.

Food Solution China has established four research centers in Chinas biggest metropolises, Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu and Guangzhou. The company collects consumer feedback through restaurants and other channels, seeking out tasty ingredients and improving on or creating new recipes.

We aim to help chefs discover customers' flavor preferences and create new dishes, a Unilever report states. The company also tests out the standard cooking processes of various Chinese dishes, working to shorten the process to make it easier for less experienced chefs. This is of great help for fast food chains.

Its reach extends to millions of ordinary households too. Several of Unilever's products, including those for making soup base, sauces and other condiments, have proven a popular hit.

Unilever is just one instance of the impact foreign companies have had on Chinese cuisine. A report by Thepaper.cn said that foreign companies have gotten involved in creating the soup bases and other components at many Chinese fast food chains, including Haidilao Hot Pot, Real Kungfu and Xiabu Xiabu.

Nestle is extending its roots in China, too. Last month, it established its second food service consulting entity in China, to provide customized opinions for Chinese food service providers.

New Zealand dairy company Fonterra also launched its new brand, Anchor Food Professionals, in Shanghai earlier this year. The company provides Western restaurants, bakeries and casual dining eateries in China with different products ranging from cream cheese to butter, and the company can also help with product presentation, pricing and promotions.

Foreign companies are tapping into Chinas food service market for a reason: its development is mind-blowing. According to data compiled in April by Dianping Holdings, China's biggest online food service rating website, the size of the food services market in China for dairy goods alone has grown from 71.2 billion RMB ($10.92 billion) in 2012 to 187.2 billion RMB in 2016, and is expected to grow to 550.8 billion RMB by 2020.
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By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) |  

Masoud Barzani, the president of the Kurdistan Regional Government (a super-province of Iraq) said Thursday that the KRG paramilitary, the Peshmerga, will not enter Mosul.

He also remarked that last weeks Daesh attack on Kirkuk was an attempt to divert attention from the terrorist organizations failures in Mosul.

At a news conference in Ninewah Province with Ammar al-Hakim, leader of the National Coalition (and of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, a Shiite clerically led party), Barzani said, Peshmerga forces will not enter the city. The counter-terrorism brigades will be the ones who go in . . . He was referring to the Iraqi army special forces, 3 brigades under the Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service, which are crack troops who have been at the forefront of the liberation of Iraqi cities from Daesh (ISIS, ISIL).

Barzani presumably made this announcement to assuage fears of Iraqi Arabs that the KRG would take advantage of the campaign against Daesh to annex Mosul or parts of Mosul to Iraqi Kurdistan, as they annexed Kirkuk province in 2014. It is significant that he said this in the presence of al-Hakim, an important Shiite clerical and political leader who is supporting the government of prime minister Haydar al-Abadi. Barzani is underlining that the Mosul campaign is national and not ethno-sectarian.

Meanwhile, Central Command head, Gen. Joseph Vitel, estimated that in the week and a half of the Mosul campaign, some 900 Daesh fighters have already been killed. There were only an estimated 3500 to 5000 fighters in Mosul when the campaign began, with another 2000 in positions around the city. Presumably most of those killed belong to the latter group, meaning that the outskirts now have as few as 1100 fighters.

Vitel admitted that because the Iraqi army left the western gate of the city open and did not completely encircle Mosul, small bands of Daesh fighters were slipping out of the city in civilian clothing. Letting them escape, he suggested, was preferable to having to fight them all hand-to-hand in Mosuls back alleys. Moreover, civilians can escape by the same route, and some 10,000 have already fled.

Hundreds of thousands of civilians could be displaced by the campaign, in a city of about 1 million (half its size before it fell to Daesh in 2014).



Related video:

CCTV:  Operation to take Mosul back from ISIL disrupts Kurdistan Regions economy
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By Christopher Hill | (Project Syndicate) |  

DENVER  The Middle Easts tragic tale of two cities  Aleppo in Syria and Mosul in Iraq  speaks to a fundamental lack of consensus in the region and within the broader international community. The lack of order in the international order is greatly complicating the task of bringing these conflicts to an end.

When the bloody conflict finally ends in Syria, there will be no victory parades, no moment of national catharsis. More likely than not, what there will be is a political arrangement that leaves Syria within its current borders but with local autonomy that reflects the diversity and  at least for the time being  the mutual distrust of its various ethnic and religious groups. No one will be happy. The accoutrements of a civil state do not exist, and there are no institutions around which to build social consensus or the rule of law.

Until these broad principles can be articulated, the war will never be truly over. Ceasefires work best  and hold the longest  when the combatants finally understand that a set of principles agreed by the broader international community will be the basis for shaping the future of their country.

The Syrian war is not unprecedented in the region. The Lebanese Civil War was even longer: from 1975 to 1990, that war produced a similar number of casualties and refugees, and when all is said and done, probably a similar number of unsuccessful ceasefires. The Syrian civil war is not yet even half the length of that horrific struggle; but nor is there any sign that the various combatants are fatigued by it.

The international community will likely be affected by Syrias civil war more than it was by Lebanons, owing to its greater global impact. The refugee tide was at first contained within the neighborhood, especially in Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, and even Iraq. But soon refugees began to flow to Europe and elsewhere, causing political tensions in countries far removed from the conflict. The huddled masses of refugees crossing one European frontier after another soon became a metaphor for what angers so many Europeans in this globalized age.

The lack of international consensus on Syria, reflected in the failure of the United Nations Security Councils permanent players to agree on a way forward, has caused the situation on the ground to worsen. Fueled by continued support of the combatants by Middle Eastern states (which seem to have no confidence in the international system), and with Russias direct participation in the fighting, the crisis has deepened.

Russias intervention on behalf of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has also caused further deterioration in US-Russian relations, which could fuel danger elsewhere in the world. US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov have so far failed to find any workable way forward to end the fighting.

One longs for the day that Kerry and Lavrov emerge from a negotiating room to announce to the world that they have agreed on a set of principles that will guide Syrias future and will work to achieve consensus among other members of the international community and with the combatants themselves. Only when the combatants can envision the post-war future can a ceasefire work. Nobody wants to be the last person to die fighting when the future is already known.

In Mosul, the fighting is not a civil war. Unlike in Syria, where there must be tradeoffs among the combatants, in Mosul the struggle against the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) is a war of annihilation. And, in contrast to the Russian and Syrian offensive in Aleppo, the Iraqi Arabs and Kurds and their American advisers most likely worked for months to anticipate issues and to ensure success before the fighting began.

But it is already clear that there is far more at stake in the Mosul campaign than the eradication of ISIS. Depending on how it ends, we will know whether Iraq emerges as a multi-sectarian state or a set of sectarian and ethnic enclaves. Sunnis seem to want no part of the Shia-majority government in Baghdad, even though the Iraqi army (along with the Kurds) is playing the largest role in the fight against ISIS.

Christopher R. Hill, former US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia, was US Ambassador to Iraq, South Korea, Macedonia, and Poland, a US special envoy for Kosovo, a negotiator of the Dayton Peace Accords, and the chief US negotiator with North Korea from 2005-2009. He is currently Dean of the Korbel School of International Studies, University of Denver, and the author of Outpost.

Licensed from Project Syndicate



Related video added by Juan Cole:

CCTV: UN to press on with securing Aleppo evacuation operation
The Special Prosecution of the Republic of Kosovo [official website] filed an indictment Friday charging politician Fatmir Limaj with war crimes [press release]. The charges have been levied because of the murder of two civilians, Ramiz Hoxha and Selman Binishi, who were executed in October 1998 in the village Kravasari. Limaj was a member of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) [Britannica backgrounder] during 1998 and as commander of Brigade 121, would have been responsible to prevent or stop the murders.

In January a special court being was set up in The Hague to investigate and try alleged war crimes committed during 1998-99 [JURIST report]. In July 2015 11 Kosovo Albanian men were sentenced [JURIST report] to prison for war crimes. In February 2014 Serbias war crimes court convicted [JURIST report] nine former paramilitaries for their involvement in the genocide of ethnic Albanians in Kosovo in 1999. Two former Serbian secret service officials were arrested [JURIST report] under suspicion that they planned the 1999 killing of an anti-government journalist. In 2013 Amnesty International accused [JURIST report] the UN Mission in Kosovo of failing to adequately investigate war crimes committed during the conflict. Kosovo held its first local elections [JURIST report] in November 2013 since it seceded from Serbia in 2008. Serbia still does not recognize the secession.
A Michigan judge has ruled [opinion, PDF] that Flint residents can sue state officials over the recent water crisis. In a 50-page opinion dated Wednesday and made public Thursday, Judge Mark Boonstra of the Michigan Court of Appeals [official website], found [Detroit News report] that citizens had provided sufficient facts against the state that, if proven, would show actions by the state were so arbitrary in a constitutional sense, as to shock the conscience. In the action, Flint residents sued Governor Rick Snyder, Michigans Departments of Environmental Quality and Health and Human Services, and two former Flint emergency managers for their roles in the water crisis. Boonstra ultimately provided a mixed ruling where he dismissed some of the claims in the suit in favor of the state. In the lawsuit, Flint residents alleged [AP report] that state officials concealed data and made false statements about the crisis and that property values have dropped as a result of the water contamination. The state argued that the residents could not make a claim since it was filed later than six months after the crisis. However, the judge found this unpersuasive as the state itself did not admit the crisis until October 2015. Furthermore, the state argued that the Court of Claims lacked jurisdiction since the two emergency workers were not state officers. Boonstra found this to be incorrect as the workers acted in the capacity of state officers. The state has the option to appeal the decision.

Numerous lawsuits have been filed in response to the Flint water contamination crisis. In May the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People brought a lawsuit [JURIST report] against against Michigan officials for their action and inaction in Flint. A month prior a group of Flint residents filed an administrative complaint [JURIST report] against the Environmental Protection Agency for negligence in handling the Flint water crisis. David Leyton, a prosecutor in Genesee County, Michigan, announced in April that a Michigan judge would allow criminal charges [JURIST report] against three people involved in the water crisis in Flint, including the man who supervised the treatment plant as well as two state environmental officials. Earlier in April the city of Flint filed [JURIST report] an intent to sue letter with the state, claiming that the city lacks funds to defend itself against lawsuit filed during the water crisis. Hertz Schram PC, a southeastern Michigan firm, filed [JURIST report] a class action lawsuit in March on behalf of the children in Flint who were injured by exposure to the high levels of lead in the citys drinking water.
(Photo/Mtime.com)

Transformers are seemingly invincible, even in the latest sequel when Optimus Prime leads a lone army in the age of extinction. But the films production companies  U.S. studio Paramount Pictures and Chinese studio 1905  proved to be much more vulnerable when they lost a lawsuit and were fined 2 million RMB for a contract breach.

The 2 million RMB is to be paid to Wulong Scenic Area in southwestern Chinas Chongqing municipality as compensation for failing to feature the areas logo in the franchise's latest installment, "Transformer 4: Age of Extinction," which was released in 2014.

Representatives of the scenic spot argued that the movie was shot in both Hong Kong and Wulong, but while Hong Kong featured prominently in the story, Wulong was largely neglected. Some may even mistake the location of the scene where Dinobot leader Grimlock is tamed by Optimus Prime as Hong Kong, Chongqing Morning Post reported.

According to its contract, the movie was supposed to feature a placement with Chinese characters reading Wulong, China in that scene, but the movie was released in theaters absent such a shot.

The scenic spot therefore filed a lawsuit in 2014. During the first trial in April, representatives from Wulong stated that the misconduct has caused losses in tourism revenue, and demanded compensation of 18 million RMB.

The Chongqing No. 3 Intermediate People's Court ruled on Oct. 27 that the total compensation would include 1.8 million RMB for revenue loss and another 209,000 RMB for copyright fees, China National Radio reported.

The court rejected the production companies counterclaim requesting that the scenic spot hand over a final payment of 1.2 million RMB and another 11 million RMB in late fees. The companies argued that the problems occurred because Wulong Scenic Area delayed payment.
Four years on from its release, the V40 has come in for some styling changes and other revisions. Such has been the cars success in the C-premium segment, its hard to believe this model was derived from the low volume C30, itself a vehicle that used a lot of Ford technology from the 2000s.

Ive noticed this many times  Volvo has a knack of making its cars look their best right at the end of the lifecycle. Im a big fan of the XC90 but am I alone in thinking it doesnt look as attractive as the old one? All it would take would be the ditching of some of the rather bland alloy rim options, grey or black wheelarches instead of colour-coding, and revised headlights.

Thankfully, the new S90, V90 and V90 Cross Country have made big leaps compared to the S80, V70 and XC70 which they replace but they too have the scored T-shaped pattern in their headlights. Maybe its just that there is an official, silly name for this shape: Thors Hammer. This seems to appear in every review we all read of new Volvos. If a car is well proportioned, no-one needs to explain its features. At least Volvo executives tend not to use the dreaded i-word. Just as Britain is open for business seems to be all that any politician can utter lately (err, when were we closed?), seeing anything and everything referred to as iconic does become tiresome.

So then, to the updated V40, which has had some revisions for Volvos model year 2017. Yes, it gains those headlights and I am going to say that I do like them in this application. The revised grille and badge (updated and more visually striking Volvo Iron Mark says a press release) add to a more minimalist front end, and fresh tail lights jazz up the back end somewhat too.

What really sets the 2017 V40 apart from the cars which went before is a five-strong range of new exterior colours. Volvo has really nailed it here as the various shades, combined with the revised front and rear ends plus great new alloys make the car look as good as an A3 Sportback.

This V40/V40 CC is the brands best performer across European markets and the companys number two worldwide, behind the XC60. We shouldnt be surprised how well the XC90s little brother has been selling (111,937 YtD)  after it gained new engines and a terrific exterior refresh, suddenly it had the look and driving feel of a true premium product. The same now applies to the V40.

There are still some problems. No car should have as obvious a bit of money saving as a handbrake that hasnt been repositioned for RHD markets. In the V40, the driver has to lean awkwardly over the cupholders to release and apply it. Ergo, you will find yourself making terribly British apologies for touching the passenger seat occupants leg when parking, setting off or making a hill start. Sorry

The test car came with the 2.0-litre diesel which in higher output form is known as the D4. This engine hasnt been altered but the D2, which is the same basic unit but with less power and torque, now has a CO2 number of only 89g/km when paired to manual transmission.

Volvo makes things complicated when it comes to engine names but let me explain what the various Ds and Ts mean. In the V40, the D2, D3 and D4 are all versions of the same 1,969cc unit but outputs differ. These are, respectively, 88kW (120hp), 110kW (150hp) and 140kW (190hp). The last of these has two turbochargers and a lower compression ratio. Its maximum torque is 400Nm, while the D2s equivalent is 280Nm and 320Nm for the D3.

Let me now translate what T2, T3, T4 and T5 means for petrol engines. Here, it gets strange as there are two T2 engines. Basically, if you want automatic transmission you get a 1.5-litre three-cylinder engine but a manual gearbox means a 2.0-litre four-cylinder unit. Despite having different engine capacities, the outputs are the same: 90kW (122hp) and 220Nm of torque.

Guess what? The same thing happens with the T3. Outputs in these cases are 112kW (152hp) and 250Nm for the four-cylinder manual and three-cylinder automatic. Now, are you ready for this? The T4 manual and automatic are both linked to a 140kW (190hp) and 300Nm version of the 1,969cc Drive-e engine. The T5, however, comes only with an Aisin Warner auto gearbox. Its got more oomph than the T4: 180kW (245hp) and 350Nm. Despite those high numbers from the four-cylinder engine, drive is to the front axle only.

The 190hp 2.0-litre diesel in the press car was linked to a six-speed manual transmission and that was a great combination. Lively performance and that 400Nm is most welcome. Amazingly enough, it was rare that the front tyres were battling with torque steer so the engineers should be congratulated for having done a cracking job. The handling is better than I remember earlier V40s being but still not quite as agile as quattro versions of the latest Audi A3 Sportback.

Overall, the 2017 V40 came a pleasant surprise. Its never going to be the last word in handling finesse but its more than good enough for most buyers in this segment. As long as Volvo keeps the model year tweaks coming and doesnt make the car too expensive compared to its more advanced and younger German rivals, it should still be being churned out of the Ghent plant in Belgium not too far below the current 90,000 units/annum level.

V40 replacement & future CMA models

The replacement model, which is due in 2019, will have all-wheel drive capability and that should mean a Polestar variant  something which is not available in the current Y555 series V40. Well also see a plug-in hybrid as unlike the Focus-based platform of Y555, the new one will be Volvo and Geelys CMA, which is being developed for multiple powertrain applications.

A rival for the Audi A3 sedan is also expected and this should be built in China and, possibly, Belgium. An S40 Polestar seems like an obvious addition to the range  a car to take on the Audi S3 sedan. This might well be a PHEV, in which case it would logically be called S40 (T4? T5? T6?) Twin Engine.

The V40 Cross Country has been fairly successful (15,035 sold worldwide YtD + 56,755 V40s) and developing it wouldnt have been expensive so a direct replacement is probably on the cards. Above it in the 40-Cluster line-up will be the XC40, which would be aimed at the BMW X4. Sources believe it will be manufactured at both Ghent and Luqiao, a district of the eastern China city of Taizhou. The release date could be as soon as 2017. A couple of Geely Emgrand models as well as the Link & Co. range will also use Geely-VCCs Compact Modular Architecture.
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China's new stealth fighter J-20 will be unveiled at Airshow China 2016, to be held in Zhuhai, Guangdong province, said the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force spokesperson at a press conference on Oct. 28. According to the spokesperson, Shen Jinke, a demonstration flight will be carried out during the event, which will also constitute the fighter's public debut.

As a fifth-generation stealth fighter that was independently developed by China, the J-20 will further improve the PLA's fighting capabilities, Shen added. Along with the J-20, the large military transport aircraft Y-20 will be on display to the public for the first time at the air show. In addition, jet-bomber H-6K, airborne early-warning and control plane KJ-500 and the Z-10K attack helicopter will also be displayed, among other aircraft.
(File photo of Long March-5 carrier rocket)

BEIJING, Oct. 28 -- China's largest carrier rocket, the Long March-5, will make its first trip into space in early November this year.

The rocket, which arrived at the Wenchang launch center in south China's Hainan Province in September, was transported to the launch area on Friday morning, after finishing final assembly and tests, said the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence (SASTIND).

With the strongest carrying capacity in China, the rocket will receive functional examinations and further tests before launch.

According to the SASTIND, the Long March-5 integrates top space technologies, including non-toxic environmentally-friendly fuel and a highly stable controlling system, representing a landmark in the country's carrier rockets.
New York City, NY, 10/28/2016 /SubmitPressRelease123/

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recently announced it is undertaking efforts to urge pilots to seek help for mental health issues. The announcement came about one year after the tragic Germanwings plane crash that claimed 150 lives. Investigators believe the pilot in that crash intentionally downed the plane while experiencing a mental health crisis.

If you have been injured in an airline accident, or you have lost someone you love in an airline crash, speak to a New York City airline accident lawyer today.

FAA Focus on Pilot Self-Reporting

As reported by USA Today, the FAA stopped short of changing rules created after the September 11 attacks  rules that require pilots to lock the cockpit door, which some argue prevents crew members or passengers from accessing a pilot who is showing signs of a mental disturbance. The FAA also declined to make psychological testing mandatory for pilots.

According to FAA administrator Michael Huerta, the FAA would like to see a culture in which pilots self-report when they are experiencing mental health problems. Huerta also said that aviation medical examiners will receive additional training to allow them to spot possible signs of mental stress in pilots. Under current FAA rules, pilots must undergo a medical exam once a year, and pilots age 40 and older receive a medical exam every six months.

The FAAs deputy federal air surgeon dismissed specific psychological testing as a snapshot of a pilots mental health on the day of testing and said it wouldnt be effective. A FedEx pilot with 30 years experience and a representative of the Air Line Pilots Association agreed with the FAAs decision, saying that said pilots are checked regularly for signs of mental stress. He also commented that pilots are the most scrutinized profession in the world.

Although mental health-related crashes are rare, they attract a great deal of attention when they occur. In two other cases  a 1999 EgyptAir Flight in Massachusetts and a 1997 SilkAir Flight in Indonesia  crash investigators say there was evidence of the pilots fighting for control of the aircraft prior to the crash.

New York City Airline Accident Law Firm

If you have been injured in an airline accident, or you have lost a loved one in an airline crash, you probably have a lot of questions about your options and your legal rights. In these tragic cases, its important to work with a lawyer who regularly handles complex airline accident cases. In most cases, its important to act quickly. Dont wait to speak to a lawyer about your case.

Call New York City aviation accident lawyer, Jonathan C. Reiter, to get a free case evaluation today. You can reach us through our online contact form, or by calling 866-324-9211.

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Dallas, 10/28/2016 /SubmitPressRelease123/

Stop and frisk is a topic that has dominated headlines over the past few weeks. As a result, many people are wondering if the police are allowed to conduct these types of stops.

Any time the police stop you, there is a possibility that your rights have been compromised. In the heat of the moment, its easy for police officers to forget that you have important rights. If you believe the police violated your constitutional rights during a stop or any type of police encounter, dont wait to speak to a Texas criminal defense lawyer.

Your Fourth Amendment Rights

Stop and frisk is a complex area of law, and its a topic that has been the subject of much debate over the years.

Overall, stop and frisk searches are legal and have been upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court since they were first recognized as an exception to the Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures. The Court first discussed stop and frisk in Terry v. Ohio in 1968.

In Terry, the Court stated that police officers are in an inherently dangerous profession. To protect themselves, they must have the ability to determine if someone intends to harm them. Generally, if a police officer reasonably suspects that an individual has committed a crime or has a weapon, the officer can perform a stop and frisk search.

New York Citys Stop and Frisk Policies

On the other hand, these stops have generated controversy. In 2013, New York Citys police department came under fire when a federal judge ruled that the departments stop and frisk practices unfairly targeted minorities. The ruling did not state that the citys stop and frisk law was unconstitutional. However, the judge held that the departments practices violated the Supreme Courts ruling in Terry. The then-mayor initially filed an appeal, but his successor took office shortly after and decided not to pursue the appeal.

Stop and Frisk in Texas

The Texas Criminal Court of Appeals just upheld a stop and frisk case in Furr v. State in September 2016. In that case, the court ruled that the police were justified in conducting a stop and frisk search of an individual based on an anonymous tip they had received. They based their reasonable suspicion of a crime on the suspects behavior, which included looking back at a police officer repeatedly, acting anxious and nervous, refusing to respond when the police asked if he had a weapon, and acting erratically.

Discuss Your Case with a Texas Federal Criminal Defense Lawyer

At Broden & Mickelsen, we are Board Certified in Criminal Law and Criminal Appellate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Receive a free case evaluation from a Texas federal criminal defense lawyer today by calling 214-720-9552.

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A dog recently became a local celebrity within Wenzhou Medical University for its "hard work in the classroom.

On Oct. 25, the dog entered a classroom and sat down, staring attentively at the lecturer. A student in the class took a photo to record this moment, and then shared the photo on social media. Soon, other students in the university were talking about the dog.

Other students and lecturers professed to having met the dog before. It once wandered through a classroom during independent study time, according to some. Interestingly, in some classes, the dog sneaks away and plays in the corner after listening for a short while. Students joke that this phenomenon means the dog is not interested in the subject being taught.

An authority at a pet grooming and cosmetology school in Wenzhou explained that dogs have a strong ability to imitate behaviors they observe. Under special circumstance, dogs can even be influenced by and imitate human behavior.

A spokesperson for Wenzhou Medical University said the school plans to provide a residence and food for the "university's pet."
(Xinhua) 19:48, October 28, 2016

BEIJING, Oct. 28 -- The support team of Chinese sailor Guo Chuan on Friday announced the continuous need of support for the search and rescue of the missing Chinese sailor.

Guo started his challenge on Oct. 19 from San Francisco with his Super Trimaran "China Qingdao" heading for Shanghai, hoping to set a new cross-pacific sailing record.

The communication between the trimaran and his onshore support team ceased on Oct. 25.

U.S. Naval ships were sent after request to approach the drifting trimaran and found no one on board.

According to GuoChuan's team, it is still possible that Guo fell in the water with his life jacket on and the water temperature is over 25 degree Celsius, rescue work is still going on.

Guo's team told Xinhua that a company in Hawaii is willing to offer helicopters, however the distance between assumed location and the islands are far. The team is urgently need ships with helicopter platforms near the area for refueling and announced an email hot-line: [email protected]

Guo is the first Chinese offshore sailor who completed the VOLVO Ocean Race, and the first who participated in the Mini Transat sailing event.

Guo is also the first to complete solo non-stop circumnavigation in a 40ft yacht and created a new record, recognized by WSSRC and Guinness.

He also created a record of crossing Arctic Ocean's Northeast passage in 2015.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

By Seba Aghayeva  Trend:

Azerbaijan intends to strengthen partnership with the regions of Kazakhstan.

The Azerbaijani side will try to find common interests regarding the supply of certain goods and raw materials, boost the export of fruits and vegetables to the Kazakh market, including the Atyrau region, Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Kazakhstan Rashad Mammadov said.

He made the remarks Oct. 28 in a meeting with governor of the countrys Atyrau region Nurlan Nogayev.

Azerbaijani enterprises need raw materials and markets need consumer products manufactured in Kazakhstan, the ambassador said.

An Azerbaijani delegation is on a visit to Kazakhstans Atyrau region in order to strengthen cooperation and increase the trade turnover.

The ambassador noted that in accordance with the instruction of Azerbaijans leadership, the delegation is visiting the regions of Kazakhstan for the development of trade and economic ties between individuals and regions of Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan.

Trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Kazakhstans Atyrau region amounted to $9.4 million for the eight months of 2016. This region exports processed fish, ferrous metal scrap, pipes for gas pipelines, gas oil and fuel oil.

The day before the meeting in the Atyrau region, on Oct. 27, the Azerbaijani delegation visited the neighboring West Kazakhstan region, where a presentation of Azerbaijans export potential took place in a meeting with leadership of the region and local entrepreneurs.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @Asebaa
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

Trend:

Over the past 24 hours, Armenias armed forces have 16 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, said Azerbaijans Defense Ministry Oct. 28.

The Azerbaijani army positions located in the Kohnegishlag village of Azerbaijans Aghstafa district took fire from the Armenian army positions located in the Paravakar village of Armenias Ijevan district.

The Azerbaijani army positions also were shelled from the Armenian positions located near occupied Chilaburt, Goyarkh villages of Azerbaijans Tartar district, Shirvanli village of the Aghdam district, Horadiz, Ashagi Seyidahmadli villages of the Fuzuli district, as well as from the positions located on nameless heights of the Goranboy and Jabrayil districts.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

Trend:

Minsk fulfills its obligations of the peaceful platform for negotiations, said Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

He made the remarks during the meeting with Azerbaijans First Deputy Prime Minister Yagub Eyyubov, BelTA news agency reported Oct. 28.

At the beginning of the meeting, Lukashenko emphasized that the sides have something to talk about on this Belarusian-Azerbaijani platform.

Firstly, I want to congratulate you with the exam, which your power, successfully passed in Azerbaijan  the referendum. Its results are the best proof of the Azerbaijani peoples attitude towards the authorities in this difficult time, said the Belarusian president.

This is a big victory, and I know how it is seen in the world, he noted adding that Azerbaijans image has considerably improved.

He said also that the Azerbaijani and Belarusian presidents agreed to meet on Nov. 28-29.

Lukashenko believes that the meeting with Yagub Eyyubov will be the appropriate step to prepare for the upcoming negotiations at the highest level.

There are a number of problems that we will seriously discuss, he said.

He also drew attention to the fact that the Belarusian capital has become a broad platform of international meetings. In particular, Minsk hosted a meeting of the Eurasian Economic Community (EAEC) on Oct. 27.

Moreover, heads of governments of the CIS (the Commonwealth of Independent States) countries will meet in the Belarusian capital on Oct. 28.

Meanwhile, a large-scale international conference of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) is also being held in Minsk. The working group on Ukraine is also in session in the Belarusian capital on these days.

All this indicates that Minsk fulfills its obligations of the peaceful platform for negotiations, noted Alexander Lukashenko.

Yagub Eyyubov, for his part, said that Belarus and Alexander Lukashenko are the closest for Azerbaijan and the Azerbaijani people.
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Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

By Elchin Mehdiyev  Trend:

Members of the Azerbaijani parliament have voted and approved the Baku Declaration of the presidents of Azerbaijan, Iran and Russia at a plenary session on Oct. 28.

Baku hosted a trilateral summit of Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev, Russias President Vladimir Putin and Irans President Hassan Rouhani on Aug. 8.

The declaration signed as the summits final document received a positive evaluation of members of the Azerbaijani parliament.

It was noted that along with development of relations between the three countries, this declaration will contribute to maintaining stability in the region, and Azerbaijan continues to develop close friendly relations with its neighbors.
This photo released online on Friday, Oct. 28, 2016, by the website of the al-Qaida-linked Fatah al-Sham, an anti-government militant group, shows fighters from the al-Qaida-linked Fatah al-Sham Front, preparing for the offensive on government positions in the northern Syrian province of Aleppo. Fierce fighting broke out around the northern Syrian city of Aleppo Friday as rebels announced a large-scale offensive to break the government's nearly two-month siege of opposition-held areas. Arabic, bottom, reads: "Holy warriors getting ready for the battle to break the siege of Aleppo." (militant photo via AP)
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

Trend:

A limited format meeting of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Heads of Government Council has started in Minsk, the Belarusian agency BelTA reported.

There will also be an expanded meeting of CIS Heads of Government Council.

Over 20 cooperation documents are to be considered at the meeting.

Main attention will be paid to economic cooperation issues. Along with that, cooperation in mining and smelting industry, automobile industry, financial and economic sphere, phytosanitary control, formation and development of an intellectual property market, as well as building and developing an information society will be discussed at the meeting.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

By Anakhanum Hidayatova  Trend:

Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni will visit Azerbaijan on November 7-9, a diplomatic source told Trend October 28.

According to the source, Gentiloni will hold several bilateral meetings at the highest level.

Strengthening of political and economic ties will be discussed during the meetings, the source said.

According to the Azerbaijani State Statistics Committee, trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Italy amounted to $1.444 billion in January-September 2016.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @Anahanum
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

Trend:

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev congratulated Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim.

I am honored to extend my sincere congratulations to you and Turkish people on the occasion of the national holiday of fraternal Turkey - Republic Day, President Aliyev said in a congratulatory message. Turkey has gained great prestige in the world by its economic upturn and strengthening of positions on international arena.

Turkey courageously overcame the military coup attempt directed against its statehood, which once again clearly demonstrated Turkeys power as a country, as well as the unshakable unity of the country and Turkish people, the president said.

Azerbaijan and Turkey are bound by unbreakable ties of friendship and fraternity, common spiritual values and solidarity, the president said. I believe the unity and partnership between Azerbaijan and Turkey will continue to serve the welfare of our peoples, solving the set tasks and strengthening mutual support in international affairs.

On this remarkable occasion, I wish you robust health, success in your activity, and peace and prosperity to fraternal Turkish people, President Aliyev said.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

Trend:

Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev congratulated his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Turkeys Republic Day.

On behalf of the people of Azerbaijan and on my own behalf, I am honored to extend my sincere congratulations to you and through you to friendly people of Turkey on the occasion of the national holiday  Republic Day, President Aliyev said in a congratulatory message.

The Republic of Turkey courageously overcame a military coup attempt directed against its constitution, statehood and democracy on July 15, President Aliyev said. Turkey once again clearly demonstrated its commitment to the democratic path and added one of the most glorious pages to its history.

Azerbaijan, which is always close to Turkey, lived through all the pains of that terrible night and experienced the fraternal peoples victory along with you, President Aliyev said. I am confident that the constantly growing alliance and partnership between Azerbaijan and Turkey, our fraternal relations will continue to contribute to the progress of our countries and the welfare of our peoples, establishing peace and stability in our region.

On this remarkable occasion, I congratulate and wish you robust health, success in your activity, and peace and prosperity to fraternal Turkish people, the president said.
Laredo Border Patrol agents and the Mexican Fire Department work together to save the lives of five people.

On Wednesday morning, agents from the Marine Unit saw several people in distress due to strong water currents near the Mexican riverbank.

The Mexican Fire Department and agents were on the scene to rescue people stranded underneath the Lincoln-Juarez Bridge.

All five people were safely returned to Mexico by the Mexican Fire Department with no injuries.

To report suspicious activity such as drug or alien smuggling, you can contact the Laredo Border Patrol at 1-800-343-1994.
A member from the organization Moving Laredo Forward responds to the initiative by the Laredo Police and Firefighter Association urging people to vote against Proposition One through Four.

The 40,000 printed post cards have made their way into Laredoans' mailboxes.

In light of Thursday's comments from both the Police and Firefighters Association leaders, we reached out to a member of the organization who is spearheading the change in the charter.

"Everyone has their choice, their option," says Laredo Chamber of Commerce President Miguel Conchas. "My invitation to the public is simply go out and vote. Don't stay home. Vote your choice, voice your option. Participate in city and county government."

Conchas says he has also received one of those post cards.

However, the decision on what happens to the City Charter lies the the hands of the voters.
There are a number of rules when it comes to putting up political signs everything from getting a permit, to the size of your sign, to where they're placed, and with election season upon us locals are making sure to keep their eyes open to keep candidates on the up and up.

You can't avoid them, they're plastered all over town, the unmistakable sign that elections are here, but some of these signs may be violating city ordinance.

A concern resident says, Judd Gilpin, is "putting himself out there more than the others, she continues to say, Its not fair for other people trying to get elected."

Put up by UISD board candidate Judd Gilpin, this political is unlike others around town. The concerned resident says describes the candidate as hes flagrant, he's flagrant putting that up there. On Del Mar and McPherson you can see the Judd Gilpin sign placed on top of this storage unit, that's well above eight feet, which sis a clear violation of city ordinance.

But this isn't the only violation, the city's building development services department inspectors have removed over a 100 different signs city wide.

Where they run into problems is when the sign is on private property and doesn't follow city rules, they then have to follow a different process and advise property owners.

The woman says all candidates must follow rules so it's a fair election for everyone. She goes on to say this is not Gilpins first race and he should be well aware of the rules, "He should know better this is not his first rodeo and I guess he just decided not to follow the rules, its not fair for rest of ones trying to campaign own elections.

We reached out to Judd Gilpin about this particular sign but he has not returned our phone calls. According to the city, on a day to day basis there's at least four code enforcement officers keeping up with the political signs.
Every facility in the oil and gas industry is looking for young taIented specialists. Baku Higher Oil School (BHOS) is a leader among Azerbaijani higher schools preparing such specialists. Today we publish an interview with Mustafa Aghayev, a first-year student specializing in Process Automation Engineering who is a holder of the Presidential Scholarship.

- Mustafa, tell a little bit about yourself. Where were you born and where did you grow up?

- I was born in 1999  in the village of Garavelly of Agjabedi district. In 2005, I entered a lyceum school N70 located in the Nizami district in Baku. In 2007-2010, I studied in the city secondary school N64 and then entered school N250. In 2014, I had to return to my native village for family reasons, where I graduated from the school and received secondary school certificate. At the entrance examination to the Baku Higher School, I gained 699 points and was admitted to BHOS. Now I am a Presidential Scholar.

- Why have you chosen BHOS?

- I have chosen this higher school, because I was always interested in engineering. In addition, BHOS is one of the most prestigious higher education facilities in Azerbaijan, and many young people want to become its students. The teachers are highly qualified professionals who give us excellent education.

- The entrance exams are now in the past, and you started your student life. What were your feelings at the beginning?

- There is no doubts that every moment in the life is beautiful and unique! I keep pleasant memories about the time when I was applying to BHOS. As all other applicants, I was dreaming about becoming a student. Despite certain problems and obstacles, I managed to overcome them and enter one of the best higher schools in the country.

- What is your dearest dream? What do you strive for in your life?

- My dearest dream is to become a prominent Azerbaijani engineer and be of service to my country and my family. I am confident that I will accomplish my goals.

- What do you know about your future profession?

- I selected the Process Automation Engineering specialty and my profession will be connected to IT technologies. Every company or organization tries to find solutions for better management of their business in order to ramp up production and increase revenue while cutting down expenditures. These are exactly the issues, which Process Automation Engineer is dealing with.

- What do you do in your study-free time?

- I like learning new things, so I read a lot in my free time. It may be fiction or specialized literature. I also like crime stories very much. And when I would like to relax and watch TV, I prefer to watch comedies.
More than 120 businesswomen joined forces last week with the Local Enterprise Office Kilkenny to celebrate ten years of National Womens Enterprise Day with a major event in the Rivercourt Hotel, Kilkenny.

The Local Enterprise Office Kilkenny was amongst 31 LEOs in local authorities all over the country which participated in inspiring National Womens Enterprise Day gatherings which saw innovative female entrepreneurs share their road to success.

Guest speakers, including Miriam OCallaghan, Colette Byrne, Chief Executive Officer of Kilkenny County Council and successful female entrepreneurs from the South East and Mid-West regions revealed to a packed room their business success secrets, and gave inspired and motivational presentations on how women can make it in the business world. The Regional Ambassadors for National Womens Enterprise Day, enlisted by the Local Enterprise Offices, were Hannah Wrixon of Last Minute Minders in Limerick (Mid West Region) and Rachel Doyle of the Arboretum in Carlow and Wicklow (South East Region) also spoke at the event.

Last year, Local Enterprise Offices all over Ireland supported over 11,000 female entrepreneurs through training, mentoring, direct financial assistance and networking. They are trying to encourage even more local businesswomen to access enterprise supports available to them in 2016.

More than 800 entrepreneurs attended LEO-run National Womens Enterprise Day events all over the country this week. Fiona Deegan, Acting Head of Enterprise of the Local Enterprise Office Kilkenny said: We want local women entrepreneurs to truly believe in themselves and to succeed. We are here to encourage and to help businesswomen in the county along their entrepreneurial journey. The theme of this years National Womens Enterprise Day was road to success and at our event we heard inspiring stories from women who have achieved great success and who generously shared their stories.

Minister of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Mary Mitchell OConnor T.D., said it was heartening to see more women than ever seeking support from the LEOs.

I welcome the fact that more female entrepreneurs are seeking advice and support with starting their own business. Women have a huge amount to contribute to business in Ireland and are very important to our economy. Female entrepreneurs are creating jobs right across the country in every town and village across Ireland creating innovative enterprises that are focused on exports, growth and job creation. I want to encourage more women to set up businesses across our regions, with the help of their Local Enterprise Offices. This event today is a fantastic networking event which offers continued support to those female entrepreneurs thinking of starting a business and those developing and expanding their business.

The Minister for Training, Skills and Innovation, John Halligan T.D., who spoke at the Dublin Regional Event at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Dublin Airport, said the huge interest in this years National Womens Enterprise Day certainly is an encouraging sign that more women are considering entrepreneurship as a career.

I was delighted to support National Womens Enterprise Day. The events that took place around the country were a great platform for aspiring female entrepreneurs who learned from experienced businesswomen who shared their stories. They got support, advice and inspiration to guide them in setting up their own businesses. Encouraging more entrepreneurs to develop their business ideas is what we want to do so that jobs can be created across Ireland.

Looking ahead to the future, Fiona Deegan with Local Enterprise Office Kilkenny added: Our National Womens Enterprise Day event was a hugely important platform for aspiring female entrepreneurs. By learning from experienced businesswomen, they now hopefully feel encouraged to develop their own business ideas to start their road to success.

National Womens Enterprise Day is an annual initiative of the Local Enterprise Offices and is supported by Enterprise Ireland and the Local Authorities Network. Further information on the supports available to small businesses and start-ups is available through www.localenterprise.ie.
A student from Inistioge has been announced as one of the five finalists in the prestigious Making an Impact competition, organised by the Higher Education Authority.

Dayna Killian is a PhD student at the Department of Creative and Performing Arts in the School of Humanities at WIT. Her parents are Michael and Margaret, and she has two sisters, Megan and Isabel.

There were over 200 competition entries from higher education institutions across Ireland, and the finalists are charged with effectively communicating their research to a lay audience. Two awards of 2,500, sponsored by the Irish Independent, will be awarded to two individual winners.

Dayna is a recipient of the WIT PhD scholarship fund for her PhD entitled Performing Women, and herentry is titled 'Women Playwrights: Gender Equality for Irish Cultural Institutions'.

Her doctoral programme aims to both recoup the work of women playwrights whose plays were both produced, and rejected, by the Abbey Theatre throughout the 20th Century, and to inform and change the ways in which theatre researchers, practitioners and policy-makers engage with and foster new theatre practice by women, programme plays by women and document, archive and undertake theatre research.

Dayna is currently analysing the plays and material she found at the Abbey archives in NUI Galway and at the National Library and is focusing on the 1930s.

Some of the plays include works by Maura Molloy, Teresa Deevy and Mary Rynne, she said .

I am interested in the relationship between these playwrights and the Abbey Theatre and am currently comparing and contrasting their work.

The final of the 'Making An Impact' competition will place on November 16 atThe Helix in DCU, where Dayna will give a presentation and answer questions from an expert panel.
HANOI, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Here's a snapshot of Vietnamese dong exchange rates in the official market and indicative SJC gold prices in Hanoi at 0059 GMT.

Oct 28 Oct 27 USD/VND mid-point 22,045 22,032

USD/VND interbank 22,325/22,345 22,325/22,345 SJC gold (mln dong/tael) 35.55/35.80 35.53/35.78

NOTES: As of Jan. 4, 2016 the State Bank of Vietnam has begun setting the mid-point rate on daily basis, allowing dollar/dong transactions to move in a band of +/- 3 percent around the mid point. The dong's exchange rate against other currencies is not restricted by a band. Interbank quotes are indicative bid/ask prices.

One tael is equivalent to 37.5 grams or 1.21 troy ounces. SJC gold prices are quoted by state-owned Saigon Jewelry Co, the gold manufacturer.

Interbank offered rates are indicative, quoted from market sources.

For Vietnam market overview click on: Vietnam's bonds market auctions: Bonds auction results: (Compiled by Hanoi Newsroom)
SYDNEY, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Miner Anglo American has pleaded guilty in an Australian court to charges relating to the death of a worker who was sent to a poisonous site at an Australian coal mine.

Anglo American on Thursday entered a guilty plea to failing to meet its safety obligations and causing the death of 36-year-old electrician Paul McGuire at its Grasstree mine on May 6, 2014, the clerk of the Mackay Magistrates Court in Queensland state said.

A spokeswoman in Australia for London-based Anglo American said the plea was a matter of public record and declined further comment.

McGuire died almost instantly after breathing toxic fumes while preparing to work on a gas sensor in a part of the mine where coal had already been extracted and which was sealed off, the court was told.

Anglo American faces a maximum penalty of A$550,000 ($420,000) in relation to the charges, according to a local media report. Sentencing will take place in November.

($1 = 1.3163 Australian dollars)

(Reporting by James Regan; Editing by Richard Pullin)
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

By Anvar Mammadov  Trend:

Azerbaijan and Georgia will discuss prospects of expanding economic cooperation between the two countries, said Azerbaijans Economy Ministry in a message.

The two sides will hold discussions on Oct. 27-28 as part of Azerbaijani delegations visit to Georgia in line with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyevs instruction, said the message.

During the visit, the Azerbaijani delegation led by the countrys Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev will hold a number of meetings with Georgian officials and an exchange of views will be held on development of relations between Azerbaijan and Georgia.

Azerbaijan has invested almost $1.7 billion in Georgias economy since 2006, including $283 million since early 2016. In 2015, Azerbaijan invested $550 million in the neighboring countrys economy. This is highest indicator of Azerbaijani investments in Georgia.

Trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Georgia amounted to $244.58 million in January-September 2016, according to Azerbaijans State Customs Committee.

Georgia with $221.83 million (3.39 percent of the total volume of Azerbaijani export) ranks the ninth in the list of main importers from Azerbaijan.
By Sandhya Sampath

Oct 28 (Reuters) - Most Southeast Asian stock markets ended lower on Friday tracking broader Asia, led by the Philippines, which fell for the seventh consecutive session, erasing some of its earlier losses in the latter half of the day.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's ongoing rants against the United States have weighed on investor sentiment for more than a week, with the Philippine index posting a weekly loss of 3.2 percent.

Investors continue to be cautious about Duterte's foreign policy after weeks of verbal attacks on the United States, including threats to end military agreements, and his apparent overtures towards China. "The president has been going on a lot of business trips which is adding on to the investor confidence, but his negative comments against the U.S. adds to the political noise. Maybe that is also spurring net foreign selling in our market," said Victor Felix, an analyst with Manila-based AB Capital Securities.

Philippine shares fell as much as 1.7 percent earlier and closed 0.5 percent lower, dragged down by financials and consumer cyclicals, with conglomerates SM Prime Holdings Inc and SM Investments Corp losing 0.7 percent and 1.2 percent respectively.

Philippine stock markets will be closed on Monday and Tuesday for special non-working holidays.

"Lot of investors are closing positions ahead of the long weekend," Felix said.

The Singapore index lost 0.5 percent on the day and the week. DBS Group Holdings Ltd was the biggest decliner in the financial sector, just ahead of its third-quarter results, due next week.

Thai shares closed 0.3 percent lower, pulled down by the energy sector, with the country's top energy firm PTT PCL closing 0.6 percent lower, on weak oil prices. The index lost 0.5 percent this week. Indonesia closed 0.1 percent lower, but Vietnam ended with a gain of 0.8 percent.

For Asian Companies click; SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS

Change at 0957 GMT Market Current Previous Close Pct Move Singapore 2816.26 2828.94 -0.45 Bangkok 1494.44 1498.36 -0.26 Manila 7404.8 7445.14 -0.54 Jakarta 5410.269 5416.836 -0.12 Kuala Lumpur 1670.27 1669.03 0.07 Ho Chi Minh 682.25 676.9 0.79

Change on year Market Current End prev yr Pct Move Singapore 2816.26 2882.73 -2.31 Bangkok 1494.44 1288.02 16.03 Manila 7404.8 6952.08 6.51 Jakarta 5410.269 4593.008 17.79 Kuala Lumpur 1670.27 1692.51 -1.31 Ho Chi Minh 682.25 579.03 17.83 (Reporting by Sandhya Sampath in Bengaluru; Editing by Amrutha Gayathri)
By Sandhya Sampath

Oct 28 (Reuters) - Most Southeast Asian stock markets were lower on Friday, in line with broader Asia, led by Philippines which posted declines for the seventh session in a row as President Rodrigo Duterte's ongoing rants against the United States dampened sentiment.

Duterte said on Thursday that his country could join naval exercises with Japan, but repeated there would be no more war games with long-time ally United States, and again vented his anger against Washington. Investors continue to be cautious about Duterte's foreign policy after weeks of verbal attacks on the United States, including threats to end military agreements, and his apparent overtures towards China.

"The President has been going on a lot of business trips which is adding on to the investor confidence. But his negative comments against the U.S. adds to the political noise. Maybe that is also spurring net foreign selling in our market," said Victor Felix, an analyst with Manila-based AB Capital Securities.

Philippine shares declined as much as 1.4 percent, dragged down by financials and consumer staples, with conglomerates SM Investments Corp and JG Summit Holdings Inc losing as much as 1.3 percent and 3.4 percent respectively.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slid 0.3 percent.

"Most Asian markets have been slipping today. Oil prices have been losing momentum. There is no actionable news from OPEC on whether or not they will have a production cut," Felix added.

Oil prices, though steady, were on track for a weekly loss of more than 2 percent. The Singapore Index slipped as much as 0.6 percent to a near two-week low. DBS Group Holdings Ltd was the biggest decliner on the financial sector, just ahead of its third-quarter results, scheduled for next week.

Thai shares dipped as much as 0.3 percent, pulled down by the energy sector, with gas and petroleum company PTT PCL falling as much as 1.1 percent.

Indonesia lost as much as 0.2 percent. Bucking the trend, Vietnam posted a gain of 0.4 percent.

Philippines will be closed on Monday for a special non-working holiday.

For Asian Companies click; SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS

Change at 0514 GMT Market Current Previous Close Pct Move Singapore 2814.8 2867.21 -1.83 Bangkok 1496.99 1498.36 -0.09 Manila 7338.58 7445.14 -1.43 Jakarta 5412.858 5416.836 -0.07 Kuala Lumpur 1669.85 1669.03 0.05 Ho Chi Minh 679.3 676.9 0.35

Change so far this year Market Current End prev yr Pct Move Singapore 2814.8 2882.73 -2.36 Bangkok 1496.99 1288.02 16.22 Manila 7338.58 6952.08 5.56 Jakarta 5412.858 4593.008 17.85 Kuala Lumpur 1669.85 1692.51 -1.34 Ho Chi Minh 679.3 579.03 17.32 (Reporting by Sandhya Sampath in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
HANOI, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Here's a snapshot of Vietnamese dong exchange rates in the official and unofficial markets, indicative SJC gold prices in Hanoi and interbank offered rates at 0452 GMT.

Oct 28 Oct 27 USD/VND mid-point 22,045 22,032 USD/VND interbank 22,300/22,360 22,325/22,345 USD/VND unofficial 22,345/22,360 22,345/22,355 SJC gold (mln dong/tael) 35.58/35.83 35.53/35.78

Interbank offered rates Overnight 0.4-0.9 0.5-0.9

1 week 0.5-0.9 0.5-0.9

1 month 1.4-1.8 1.5-1.8

3 months 3.2-3.7 3.2-3.7

NOTES: As of Jan. 4, 2016 the State Bank of Vietnam has begun setting the mid-point rate on daily basis, allowing dollar/dong transactions to move in a band of +/- 3 percent around the mid point. The dong's exchange rate against other currencies is not restricted by a band. Interbank offered rates are the latest indicative bid/ask prices, quoted from market sources.

One tael is equivalent to 37.5 grams or 1.21 troy ounces. SJC gold prices are quoted by state-owned Saigon Jewelry Co.

For more interbank rate fixings released at 0400 GMT, click on .

For Vietnam market overview click on: Vietnam's bonds market auctions: Bonds auction results: (Compiled by Hanoi Newsroom)
COLOMBO, Oct 28 (Reuters) - The Sri Lankan rupee traded weaker on Thursday with the central bank raising the spot reference rate by 50 cents as higher importer dollar demand weighed on the currency, dealers said.

However, moral suasion by the central bank prevented a steeper fall, they added.

The central bank raised the spot reference rate to 147.40 per dollar from previous rate of 146.90.

Rupee forwards were active, with one-week forwards steady at 148.35/50 per dollar compared with previous day's close of 148.40/50, due to month end inward remittances amid central bank's moral suasion.

"Moral suasion kept the rupee forwards steady. Imports are higher and today we could see some inward remittances due to the month end," a currency dealer said, asking not to be named.

The spot rupee is usually managed by the central bank, and market participants use the forward market levels for guidance on the currency.

Officials from the central bank were not available for comment.

Dealers said foreign selling in government securities also put pressure on the currency.

Foreign investors sold 8.79 billion rupees ($59.84 million) worth of government securities in the week ended October 19, data from the central bank showed.

Dealers said the market was waiting for some direction from the national budget due on November 10.

Dealers also said the market had shrugged off a long-awaited economic statement by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinge, who on Thursday said the government will introduce a lower tax regime and concessions on investments in its next budget to boost faltering investment. Sri Lankan shares were weaker, with the benchmark Colombo stock index 0.21 percent weaker at 6,424.68 as of 0652 GMT. Turnover stood at 111.2 million rupees ($751,859.36).

($1 = 147.9000 Sri Lankan rupees)

(Reporting by Ranga Sirilal and Shihar Aneez; Editing by Vyas Mohan)
LONDON, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Sterling fell on Friday after the Northern Ireland High Court ruled that the law of the province did not restrict the British prime minister's ability to trigger an exit from the European Union. A similar case has been taken to the High Court in London, with campaigners arguing the government does not have the authority to trigger Article 50 without the explicit support of parliament. But the Northern Ireland High Court said its ruling related only to Northern Ireland law, and would not prejudice proceedings in the English case.

Sterling fell to a three-day low of $1.2123 on the news, down from $1.2172 beforehand, leaving it down 0.3 percent on the day. Against the euro, it hit an eight-day low of 89.94 pence .

"The UK case is quite different from the Northern Ireland case," said Mizuho's head of hedge fund FX sales, Neil Jones. "But right here, right now, the market reaction would be be to see that headline as a free pathway to trigger Article 50 and the reflex reaction would be to sell the pound."

(Reporting by Jemima Kelly; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
Editor's Note:Kitco News' Gold-Ocracy series first launched in April. Over the coming days, we will be reposting expert opinions on the U.S. election and its potential effects on the gold market. Dennis Gartman's comments were originally published on April 8, 2016.

Kitco News has launched a new series  Gold-Ocracy  that asks veteran industry experts how they think Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, Ted Cruz, John Kasich, and of course, Donald Trump could affect the global economy. Stay tuned every Friday as a new expert opinion is unveiled and as they share who they think would be best for gold and stock markets, as well as who they think the Federal Reserve fears most at the White House.

(Kitco News) - For week two of the series, Kitco News spoke with 25-year veteran commodities trader Vince Lanci, who says Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump could both benefit gold, although for different reasons.

He also gives a breakdown of three of the most talked-about candidates in the running.

You can also catchup on previous articles:

Week 1 of the series included comments from famed financial commentator Dennis Gartman.

of the series included comments from famed financial commentator Dennis Gartman. Week 3 included insights from famed libertarian and contrarian investor Doug Casey.

included insights from famed libertarian and contrarian investor Doug Casey. Week 4 had longtime trend forecaster Gerald Celente saying Wall Street would be delighted with Clinton in the White House

had longtime trend forecaster Gerald Celente saying Wall Street would be delighted with Clinton in the White House Week 5 shares insights from famed economist Mark Skousen, who says Clinton is the less likely candidate to rock the Fed's boat.

shares insights from famed economist Mark Skousen, who says Clinton is the less likely candidate to rock the Fed's boat. Week 6 check out market visionary Keith Fitz-Gerald comments on the U.S. presidential candidates and why he thinks the U.S. central bank may not be too happy about Trump's lead.

check out market visionary Keith Fitz-Gerald comments on the U.S. presidential candidates and why he thinks the U.S. central bank may not be too happy about Trump's lead. Week 7 read now to find out why veteran market watcher Rick Rule thinks Trump & Clinton would both help gold.

read now to find out why veteran market watcher Rick Rule thinks Trump & Clinton would both help gold. Week 8 read now to find out why Dundees chief economist Martin Murenbeeld thinks Trump would likely hurt the dollar, and thus gold.

Expert: Vince Lanci

Claim to Fame: Founder, Echobay Partners LLC

Which presidential candidate would be best for gold? Why? If I had to choose one candidate that would be best for gold, it would be Hillary, Lanci said. Her State Department left Ukraine, Libya, Iraq and Syria in complete chaos. We are just reaping it now. Instability and war drives up gold as faith evaporates in human institutions, which de facto back fiat paper currency. He added, however, that Donald Trump would be the better candidate for gold if he could win and if his Spend America Back To Greatness ideas were to ever pass Congress. Presidential Candidates: Trump vs. Clinton vs. Sanders

#TrumpTowerWhiteHouseCondos? He is a builder/contractor at his core and he will SPEND on infrastructure like a drunken sailor. He will try to pass a stimulus package that makes FDR look like a piker, Lanci said. Imagine handing the U.S. Treasury to a real estate developer? ... Sky (literally) is the limit. Global monetary policy via ZIRP (zero interest-rate policy) or negative rates have failed. It will continue to fail. Fiscal stimulus is needed. That's where Donald excels. What would a Hillary Presidency look like? Gridlock. Investigations. Fox vs. MSNBC. More ZIRP, more QE, no organic growth, more stagnation and deficits. More global money printing. Higher stock prices if she wins, Lanci predicted. Is Sen. Bernie Sanders Just Another Ron Paul? He supported recent Audit the Fed bills and at one time, actually introduced the original bill with Ron Paul. He's been very critical of Wall Street, Lanci said. Sanders affect on gold? Unsure. Higher spending for sure, but increases in taxes might undermine the velocity of money and hurt gold, Lanci noted.

As final remarks, Lanci focused on the two leading candidates in each political party: Clinton and Trump. Who would he prefer to see in the White House?

I'll take Hillary for what she has already done globally vs. Donald for what he might do domestically.

But.

"I'm tired of choosing the lesser of evils among candidates. I'd vote for a potted plant before any of them. Show me a person that exemplifies the greater good and I'd pick them," Lanci said.

By Sarah Benali of Kitco News; sbenali@kitco.com

Follow @SdBenali
(Adds futures, company news items)

Oct 28 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 index is seen opening 11 to 13 points lower, or down as much as 0.2 percent on Friday, according to financial bookmakers, with futures down 0.14 percent ahead of the cash market open.

* The UK blue chip index was up 0.4 percent at 6,986.57 at close on Thursday, buoyed by well-received results from Barclays , though mid-cap stocks fell as earnings updates led to double-digit slides for AMEC Foster Wheeler and Berendsen . * IAG: British Airways owner IAG posted a 4 percent fall in quarterly profit and said it expected 2016 profit to rise about 7 percent, lower than the low double digit percentage growth it forecast in July. * RBS: Royal Bank of Scotland swung to a third-quarter loss on Friday, hit by costs related to past misconduct and restructuring, casting fresh doubts on when the government might begin to recoup more of its 2008 emergency investment. * ANGLO AMERICAN: Miner Anglo American has pleaded guilty in an Australian court to charges relating to the death of a worker who was sent to a poisonous site at an Australian coal mine. Separately, Anglo American said on Thursday that it would make a fresh round of 140 job cuts in its Chilean copper operations, as weak copper prices continue to drag on the industry. * NATIONAL GRID: Hermes Investment Management has joined a consortium bidding to buy a controlling stake in the gas distribution division of National Grid , Sky News reported. * BARCLAYS: Barclays said on Thursday a report that it was trying to cap a penalty to settle a U.S investigation into its sale of mortgage securities at $2 billion was based on ill-informed speculation. * ASTRAZENECA: AstraZeneca's high hopes for cancer immunotherapy were dented on Thursday as the recruitment of new patients with head and neck cancer into two clinical studies was put on hold, following instances of bleeding. * TATA STEEL: Tata Steel Ltd's plans for its European steel business are unchanged and the debt-laden firm is still seeking a partner for a joint venture to run the assets, according to a source present at a closed-door analyst briefing on Thursday. * PREMIER FOODS: Activist hedge fund Oasis Management Co Ltd has raised its stake in Britain's Premier Foods Plc to 5.18 percent, a regulatory filing on Thursday showed. * UK CONSUMER CONFIDENCE: British consumers turned less optimistic this month as sterling's slump began to eat into their disposable income, according to two surveys on Friday which will raise concerns about the strength of future spending growth. * OIL: Oil prices were steady on Friday, but on track for a weekly loss of more than 2 percent on uncertainty over whether the OPEC would be able to coordinate a production cut big enough to curb a global glut that has dogged markets for two years. * METALS: London copper prices dipped on Friday following overnight gains, while Shanghai futures were firmer amid expectations that physical demand in China would pick up. * For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on: cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageId=livemarkets

TODAY'S UK PAPERS

> Financial Times > Other business headlines Multimedia versions of Reuters Top News are now available for: * 3000 Xtra : visit * For Top News : (Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru; Editing by Amrutha Gayathri)
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By Andrew Binion of the Kitsap Sun

BREMERTON  In August, when candidates for the state Supreme Court met in Port Orchard, Justice Charlie Wiggins and challenger Federal Way Municipal Court Judge Dave Larson stood out for the civility of their exchanges.

The two competitors sat next to each other at the candidate luncheon, and Larson emphasized he was not running against Wiggins, who lives on Bainbridge Island, but running for the position on the bench.

"There's too much confusion out there, and I want to hopefully reduce that," Larson told members of the Kitsap Bar Association when explaining his reasons for running, saying education issues were his main focus.

The tone took a turn recently, when two well-heeled political action committees raised nearly $1 million to begin running statewide TV ads to influence the race on behalf of Larson. One does not mention Larson but is sharply critical of Wiggins' majority vote on a criminal case that originated in Yakima County  and has Kitsap County roots  and the other ad praises Larson but does not mention Wiggins.

The critical ad drew a rebuke from a group of noteworthy criminal law attorneys, including former Kitsap County Prosecutor Russ Hauge, who requested the ad be discontinued and called it improper and dishonest.

Larson did not return two messages left over two days at his campaign phone number, but Wiggins told the Kitsap Sun he does not believe his opponent was involved in the new business-related PAC ads. State law requires that if there were coordination between a candidate and a PAC that the spending has to be reported as a contribution to the candidate.

"He's told me he hasn't had anything with to do with it, and I'm inclined to believe him," Wiggins said of Larson.

One of the committees is Citizens for Working Courts, affiliated with business group Enterprise Washington. The PAC reported $550,000 in contributions, mostly from wealthy donors with Microsoft pedigrees, including Bill Gates and Paul Allen's Vulcan Inc., which account for $500,000 of the PAC's contributions, according to state Public Disclosure Commission reports. This group paid for the pro-Larson ad.

"There are many decisions and issues that have led us to this conclusion that, first and foremost, Dave Larson is the strongest candidate," said Michael Davis, president of Enterprise Washington. "The candidate he is opposing is somebody we would rather not have on the bench anymore."

Davis said the two PACs "have made each other aware" of their ads and when they would be broadcast.

The other PAC, running the ad critical of Wiggins, Judicial Integrity, also has deep pockets to the tune of $453,100 and includes $350,000 from billionaire Ken Fisher, of Camas, according to Public Disclosure Commission reports.

Former state Sen. Rodney Tom, of Medina, who alternated between the Republican and Democratic parties while in elected office, is listed as the contact for the Judicial Integrity PAC and defended the ad as a part of a hard-fought campaign.

The ad hits Wiggins for voting in June with a 5-4 majority and drafting the opinion upholding a lower court decision to overturn the conviction of an Ellensburg man, Michael Budd, convicted of possessing child pornography. The court found investigators had not followed proper procedure in searching through Budd's home without a warrant. However, Budd was then arrested in October as part of an online sting operation where he was alleged to have arranged a meeting for sex with an undercover detective posing as a 14-year-old girl, the Yakima Herald-Republic reported.

The ad characterizes Wiggins letting Budd go free on a "technicality" only to have Budd accused of another sex crime.

Tom said the group has taken exception to "lots" of cases in which it believes Wiggins did not show good judgment, mentioning charter schools and a case related to SeaTac's $15-an-hour minimum wage. However, Tom said the Budd case worked well with the television medium, which is why it was selected.

"There's lots of cases, this is one you can explain in a 30-second TV ad, but there are a whole host, in my opinion," Tom said.

In addition to Hauge, the letter condemning the ad also includes signatures from former state Supreme Court Chief Justice Gerry Alexander, former U.S. Attorney John McKay as well as David Boerner, a Seattle University Law School professor acknowledged as helping to draft the state's criminal sentencing framework.

"The (Budd) decision was rooted in upholding the constitutional right to privacy under Washington's search and seizure laws," the letter reads. "To attempt to scare voters into thinking otherwise is grossly unfair  to Justice Wiggins and voters."

Coincidently, underlying the Budd decision is a 1998 state Supreme Court ruling that originated from a Bremerton police investigation of a marijuana grow and that Hauge's office fought all the way to the high court and lost. Alexander wrote the majority decision, which resulted in what are known as the "Ferrier warnings," from the defendant, Debra Ferrier, whose son had tipped off investigators that his mother was growing marijuana in her Bremerton house.

The warnings, which the court ruled must be given before police enter a house without a warrant, require that police inform residents they can refuse to allow police to search the home, can limit the search and can withdraw consent after the search begins.

Wiggins, in defending the court's decision, noted that it was a close decision but said he did not consider it a "technicality."

"I think it's an important protection of our right to privacy in our homes, and the right to not have our homes searched without a warrant," Wiggins said. "Those warnings weren't given until they got into the house, that's the problem. Once you are in the house, you are searching."

He said during the first five years on the bench that he signed 220 case opinions and that in 60 percent of them sided with prosecutors.

"One can criticize me, and I think it's fair to criticize a case, but I don't think it's fair to base an opinion about a judge based on one case," Wiggins said.
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Hannelore Christel Roy

of Bremerton

March 26, 1926

to Oct. 24, 2016

Hannelore (Harlow) Roy entered eternal life peacefully at home on October 24th at the age of 90. She was born March 26, 1926 in Biebrich (Rhein) Germany to General and Mrs. Johannes Friedrich Block. She attended schools in North Eastern Germany. After World War II, Harlow immigrated to Alberta, Canada and then to Trail, BC where she met her husband, William A. Roy of Bremerton. They married in Spokane, made their home in Bremerton, and enjoyed horseback riding in the Cascades and traveling to Europe. Bill preceded her in death in 1989.

Harlow was employed by Puget Power for almost 30 years. In 1986, she was honored by the Washington Utilities Council for Distinguished Service. After retiring, she became an avid walker; her favorite place to walk was Scenic Beach in Seabeck. She was a generous supporter of the park as well as many other organizations.

She is survived by many nephews and nieces, cousins in Germany and her sister-in-law, Dolores Roy Heuvel.

At Harlow's request no service will be held. Donations in her memory can be made to Franciscan Hospice, 1149 Market Street, Tacoma, Washington 98402.
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Pity the fool who agrees to be a student-newspaper adviser. That was my reaction when I read in the October 19 issue of "Inside Higher Ed" that Liberty University recently blocked its student paper from publishing an article critical of Donald Trump. Liberty's president himself, Jerry Falwell Jr., has taken responsibility for pulling the article. In a tweet reprinted in that October 19 report, Falwell wrote, "If I see redundant columns, I cut one. Why repeat the same thoughts twice at school expense?"

As I could have told Falwell, censoring a student newspaper is a no-win situation  even for a private university entitled to restrict freedom of expression. "Censorship" is an ugly word in America, and any student journalist worthy of the title knows that he or she can seek the intercession of the Student Press Law Center. Their lawyers love to hold university administrators up to public ridicule and disgrace. And that is precisely what has happened. As the executive director of the SPLC has pointed out, the column has now gotten much more attention than it would have gotten had Falwell just let it pass.

Anyone interested in weighing the pros and cons of the issue can call up the report online. For my part, I can attest to the need to place a student newspaper under the guidance of an experienced, professional journalist blessed with superior powers of persuasion. I learned that the hard way.

Back in the 1990s, when I was a department chair and professor at a campus within the West Virginia State College System, the vice president for administration moved the school paper from public affairs to my department. It seemed like a good idea at the time. We had a journalism minor and were looking to line up student internships with area newspapers.

West Virginia, I should explain, has more colleges and universities than its population and budget can adequately support, and the concern was that our small campus  located in central West Virginia  was ripe for closure. Hence, our politically savvy president was always looking for ways to curry favor with the powers-that-be.

Enter Gov. Gaston Caperton and West Virginia first lady Rachel Worby, who also happened to be the musical director and conductor of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra. Our president decided to bring Worby and her orchestra to campus twice a year.

For those of us on the faculty and in the administration, as well as the community, it was a real boon. Worby brought world-class orchestra performances and celebrity soloists to us in the heart of the heart of the country. The only problem was that our president used student fees  without consulting the students  to pay for said performances.

It just so happened that one concert coincided with the college's drive to raise money in support of a matching grant, and Worby was eager to help. She stopped the performance halfway through and walked up and down the aisle, personally putting the bite on community leaders she knew to be well-heeled.

Would that our student newspaper staff had not been there that night! Would that a member of the staff had not been a talented cartoonist!

This cartoonist drew an inspired cartoon of Worby dressed only in  and stuffing dollar bills into  a G-string. A professional editorial cartoonist could not have done any better. There was no mistaking the person and occasion being satirized.

Just to make matters worse, the editor decided to run the cartoon full-page on the front page. And lest some didn't get it, there was an explanatory editorial on page 3.

Truth be told, the editor showed me the layout before going to press, and I did try to talk him out of it. Even I knew that editorial cartoons generally don't run on the front page. But he was hell-bent to make a statement about the president's high-handed appropriation of student fees.

There is an old Marine Corps term for the position I soon found myself in. "Rug dancing" it's called. Said "rug," of course, was the one in front of the president's desk. Considering discretion to be the better part of honesty, I didn't tell the president that I knew the cartoon was coming. I reminded him it was only a cartoon and ventured the opinion that Worby would probably laugh it off. Not so, I was told. Worby had seen the cartoon and had failed to see humor in it. She felt ill-repaid for trying to help us.

"You don't understand how much damage this has done," the president said, summarily waving me out of his office.

That was true. All I still know is that the symphony never came to our college again while Worby was its conductor. Some people just can't take a joke.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

By Azad Hasanli  Trend:

Azerbaijans Azertexnolayn LLC supplied 47 million manats worth of pipes to Turkmenistan (1.6381 AZN/USD on Oct. 28) since early 2016, Nazim Talibov, director of the Sumgayit Chemical Industrial Park, said.

Talibov made remarks at a meeting with Azerbaijani MPs in Baku.

Azertexnolayn, a resident of the Sumgayit Chemical Industrial Park, signed a contract for the supply of pile pipes to Turkmenistan in January 2016 for construction of the Turkmenbashi sea port. The cost of the contract is $40 million.

Another contract worth $20 million envisages the supply of pipes for the replacement of water pipes.

The company also exports its products to Georgia and Russia, Talibov added. Seven cars carrying pipes will be sent to Kazakhstan in the near future.

Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan have already agreed on a price, but first, the Kazakh side wants to check the quality of the pipes, he said. We hope this agreement will be successful."

Talibov added that currently, Azertexnolayns three enterprises operate in the territory of the Sumgayit Chemical Industrial Park, namely, a plant for production of steel pipes, a plant for production of polyethylene items and a plant for production of hydraulic equipment.

The Sumgayit Chemical Industrial Park was established in 2011. Currently, nine residents operate in the park. The total amount of investments to be made in the park by the residents will reach $1.1 billion.

Residents of industrial parks in Azerbaijan have a number of preferences, including exemption from income tax, land tax and property tax for seven years.

The equipment imported by the residents is not subject to value added tax and customs duties.
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By Kitsap Sun editorial board

Our editorial board interviewed candidates for most state elected offices this fall. You may watch a video of our interview with each candidate for secretary of state on www.kitsapsun.com. This column is our reaction to how our questions were answered in interviews with each candidate, and other commentary on each discussion.

During an election season when the integrity of voting in our country has been publicly questioned by one presidential candidate, there's perhaps added weight to ensuring our state's top elections official can be trusted. Running elections is not the only job of the secretary of state, but it may be the most vital.

Incumbent Secretary of State Kim Wyman, angling for her second term, is the latest in a line of Republicans to hold the office. It's one of the few state offices the party has had a stranglehold on recently in our purple state, which is no surprise given the way predecessors like Sam Reed and Ralph Munro upheld the office with dignity and credibility.

Wyman has followed their lead during her first term, and the former Thurston County Auditor's deep background in elections has been a positive. She's pushed for changes that could improve our state's relevance  like moving up our presidential primary day  or increase voter accessibility, like an effort to ensure Americans with Disabilities Act compliance at our few polling places, offer translation services in 17 languages for voters who are not native English speakers, and increase military and overseas voting rates.

A criticism of voter turnout during her tenure is one Wyman must deal with, a decrease she has blamed on nonpresidential years. It looks like she may be right that a bounce back is coming with the White House on the line  as of Wednesday, early returns from counties are estimating a turnout of around 80 percent for Nov. 8.

Contrary to the opinion of the national politician mentioned above, ballot counts in our state can be trusted, and Wyman's steady hand has ensured the office's integrity. She's a professional, not a politician, which is important in that office.

Her opponent, Tina Podlodowski, is also a professional  but one from the business sector trying to bring that approach to the office. Podlodowski knows public service and the political realm as well, having served on the Seattle City Council and two years ago having led the Washington Alliance for Gun Responsibility's effort to pass a state initiative on background checks for gun purchases.

Podlodowski's background as a Microsoft executive means she emphasizes technology in contrasting her approach to how the office runs now. She'd seek out private sector solutions to looming issues we'll have to face, like upgrading voting systems, digitizing state archives or creating new portals for business and nonprofits to register, which falls under the Secretary of State's office.

She's aggressive in her initiatives to increase voter registration and turnout. But some are by law left to county auditors rather than state control, like whether to increase the number of ballot drop boxes in rural areas, and Podlodowski would need to be cautious of unfunded mandates from Olympia. Other ideas, like allowing same-day registration, are tinged with politics but may have just as much to do with logistics. Podlodowski's opinion is the lack of such a service means disenfranchisement for some, while Wyman warned that local offices could be overwhelmed by election-day registration. (Though Wyman did acknowledge the state could do better at allowing registration closer to election day in a more understandable way than we currently use.)

We're fortunate to have an elections process with competency in Washington, not to mention the other meaningful tasks the Secretary of State's office provides for the public. We're also heartened that both candidates want to push the Democratic Party to abandon its caucus system for a primary that would allocate delegates in presidential races. And we can't wait until Washington voters participate in a presidential primary that matters on the national stage.

The choice now is whether to continue on an established path with a lifetime elections official or look to an outsider that would likely look at things from a lens made up of private, public and activist experience. Appropriately for this office, the voters will decide.

Our View columns are the consensus opinion of the Kitsap Sun editorial board.
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Mr. Trump 

If I'd had the opportunity to vote in all the presidential elections in our nation's history, I would have voted for many Republicans, starting with Lincoln. I would have supported Garfield, Theodore Roosevelt and Eisenhower. Since becoming eligible to vote, I have supported Nixon, Ford and the first Bush, but none since.

Traditional Republicans like George Will have disowned you; they don't know what you are, nor do I, only that you're giving off a bad odor.

Your campaign strategy has certainly attracted the angry and the disaffected but not those asking for specific solutions to contemporary problems.

You hired a writer to write a book for you, then denied him credit and claimed to have written it yourself.

What's much more troubling is your failure to explain how your experience in business  a very mixed experience  can transfer to success in leading a liberal democracy. It seems better suited to Russia, or even more so to the Philippines, where the new president has ordered the police to murder alleged drug dealers without bothering with arrests and trials.

Your numerous bankruptcies raise pretty troublesome questions about your expertise in finance and budgets, unless as you said they were calculated to evade taxes for many years, in which case your tax-avoidance scheme and your refusing to pay many of your employees, are unflattering revelations about your personal ethics and your commitment to the common good.

You have said to the public that you believe in God, that you're a Christian, that you think the Bible is certainly "THE book," and that you've had a good relationship with the church over the years. You've also said, "[I go to church] as much as I can. Always on Christmas. Always on Easter. Always when there's a major occasion. And Sundays. I'm a Sunday church person. I'll go when I can."

If you're sincere about all that, when did you last attend church services? Do you take part in Communion? What is most rewarding to you about going to church? Do you support your church financially?

How would you describe your personal relationship with God and Jesus? Do you believe God has chosen you for the work you do and has guided you toward your success? Are your business practices in keeping with your religion? Do you agree that the meek shall inherit the earth, as Jesus said?

There is such an unfathomable discrepancy between your professed beliefs and your actions, particularly your comments about women and your behavior with some of them, that it's impossible to see you as anything but a fraud, utterly lacking self examination and self awareness.

You have given the public no evidence of having read and digested any of the world's great books and thought about the subjects they raise  about Man's obligation to his fellow man, about what we should learn from American history, about political philosophy, the place of the arts and religion in society, and the necessity of both the liberal and the conservative elements in a democracy. It appears that you're far from the contemplative man our president should be, that you have given no thought to serious matters but have given great thought to how you can make more money at others' expense.

A long time friend of mine, a psychiatrist, declined my request to give his assessment of your mental condition; his professional ethics wouldn't allow it.

But my ophthalmologist told me about a friend of his who went to prep school with you. He said that in all his life  prep school, college, medical school, the Navy, and in his medical career  he had met an awful lot of jerks, but that you have stood out as the biggest one of all.

Most of us know you only through your televised appearances and your public statements as a candidate, and what we see is disturbingly unattractive. We see no sense of humor, no warmth, no compassion, and no evidence of deep thought about the limitations on presidential authority and about the place of government in our lives.

What we do see is a shallow man who wants our country's highest office not for what it would enable him to do for his fellow citizens but for what it would do for his own sense of self.

Despite your claim of great wealth and your personal bulk, you are a very small man, a hollow man, thin-skinned and angry. The White House is no place for you.
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Kelly Bridgeforth and her husband Kevin, both Air Force retirees, are waiting anxiously for Congress to reconvene after Election Day and finish work on a fiscal 2017 defense authorization bill already four weeks late.

More delay might not worry lawmakers. But the Bridgeforths know that how fast the bill gets negotiated, passed and signed will determine whether their six-year-old daughter, Livia, sees her therapy treatments for severe autism altered or interrupted, possibly for months.

Language in both the House and Senate versions of the defense bill orders the Department of Defense to restore TRICARE reimbursement rates for applied behavior analysis (ABA) therapy for children with autism spectrum disorder to the higher levels paid until last April.

The rate cuts were significant enough that some groups of ABA providers stopped caring for military children, telling affected families they can't properly pay staff or sustain their businesses with such low fees.

The company providing Livia's therapy, Trumpet Behavioral Health headquartered in Lakewood, Colo., decided it would be unethical to end her sessions abruptly because her autism includes self-injurious behaviors when she feels overwhelmed or frustrated, her mother Kelly explained.

"She doesn't have the language to tell us sometimes what she needs, so her communication is to hit herself [in] the temples pretty hard. And if you block that, she will go to a wall or floor." Therapists "have been working on that with us pretty much for the last two years," she said.

While Trumpet stopped therapy for most TRICARE clients soon after the new rates took hold last April, turned away new TRICARE beneficiaries, the company said it would continue thrice weekly sessions for Livia through December, a concession her mom applauded.

Despite the nine-month reprieve, and assurances from TRICARE that ABA provider networks remain robust, the Bridgeforths are having difficulty finding replacement therapy. Their first autism case manager at UnitedHealth, the TRICARE regional contractor for Arizona, stopped taking Kelly's calls or responding to voice mail, she said. A second was equally unresponsive. A supervisor finally provided a list of local ABA providers.

Five of them told Kelly they had no hours available. One had only morning appointments which conflict with school hours. The seventh company has afternoon and evening hours open but practices an older therapy technique that Kelly knows would frustrate her daughter and likely lead to more episodes of self-injury. But it's the only therapy option available to the Bridgeforths, unless Congress restores higher ABA fees by Jan. 1 so that Trumpet will become a TRICARE network provider again.

Karen Driscoll, mother of a child with autism who works for a coalition of ABA providers, said the Defense Health Agency doesn't have to wait for a final defense bill to restore ABA rates. A policy change lowered them; a policy change can raise them, she said. But TRICARE leaders defend the new rates, which leaves families like the Bridgeforths in a bind.

Kelly said aggravating the fee issue is another fresh TRICARE requirement that ABA therapy technicians be trained and certified. It's a quality check most commercial insurers don't yet require, and it gives providers one more reason not to accept TRICARE children.

Current ABA technicians must be certified by Jan. 1 to continue to provide therapy under TRICARE. The certification requirement for new hires has been in effect since October last year.

Lisa Capra, mother of an 11-year-old with autism, said the lower TRICARE fees atop the certification requirement have made it impossible to find an ABA provider for her son in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Lisa is married to an Army major who is currently deployed.

Kelly Bridgeforth said it's important to understand what therapy delays can mean to a family. At age three, she said, Livia had a vocabulary of 25 words, most of which only her parents could understand. After six months of therapy, Livia used 180 words anyone could understand.

"That is not a therapy you can take lightly and say it's no big deal for this child to be sitting home for six months on a waiting list," she said.

Last week, managers of TRICARE autism care held their third "roundtable discussion" this year with ABA providers and regional contractors to discuss current operations and changes ahead.

Navy Capt. Edward Simmer, deputy director of the TRICARE Health Plan, hosted that meeting. He and Richard Hart, senior health policy analyst for autism, agreed to a phone interview Tuesday to discuss what providers were told and the current state of TRICARE autism coverage.

TRICARE will restore old reimbursement rates immediately if and when Congress orders it. But Simmer said current rates continue to sustain robust networks of ABA providers for beneficiaries.

TRICARE fees typically are set to match those paid by Medicare. Because Medicare has no rates for ABA therapy, TRICARE decided to use local Medicaid rates plus 28 percent, which is the average difference between Medicaid and Medicare rates for other common mental health therapies.

With the new rates TRICARE reimbursements fell sharply, but TRICARE capped the cut to no more than 15 percent the first year. Complaints from families and providers spurred the armed services committees to insert rollback language to their defense bills but then delayed final passage.

Despite the complaints, Simmer said TRICARE has more than 28,000 ABA providers in its networks, more than two for every one of 13,000 military children receiving or seeking autism therapy.

"We've actually added providers under the new rates," he said. "And everywhere we did have a provider drop because of the rates, we were able to place those patients with other very well qualified providers  So by and large we don't believe the rates have had any significant impact on access."

Driscoll said she the provider lists TRICARE touts are unreliable. She said she queried two clients, both of them large, multistate ABA providers, to compare employee lists to what TRICARE posted. The results showed only 17 percent of providers listed for one company and 28 percent for the other were serving TRICARE beneficiaries.

Simmer said TRICARE is meeting its access standard for autism care "almost everywhere." In some areas with long wait lists, the problem appears to be too few ABA providers to meet demand, which hiking fees is unlikely to solve. Driscoll disagreed.

"Not only is access being affected but [military] assignments," Driscoll said, citing military leaders channeling their own complaints. "There's a big disparity in what TRICARE is saying and what the families are experiencing."

Simmer said TRICARE hasn't seen a rise of complaints from families or providers. He encouraged families with access issues to contact ABA-trained representatives for TRICARE regional contractors. Here's the phone list:

Humana/ValueOptions (South Region): ABA Customer Service 1-866-323-7155

HealthNet (North Region): (ask for their Autism specialists) 1-877-874-2273

UnitedHealthcare (West Region) ECHO/Autism Line 1-855-874-6800

Also see: www.tricare.mil/Plans/SpecialPrograms/ACD
sStuff reports:

Police have admitted they used a breath-testing checkpoint to target people who had attended an Exit International euthanasia meeting. The move has been criticised as an unlawful checkpoint to interrogate pensioners by one lawyer, while another said it was probably a breach of police powers. A complaint has already been laid with the Independent Police Conduct Authority about the officers actions in Lower Hutt earlier this month, and at least one other is likely to be laid in coming days. Police said on Wednesday evening that they had also notified the IPCA themselves.

It is significant that the Police have dobbed themselves into the IPCA. This suggests they may well now realise they overstepped the mark.

The Police are given powers for various reasons. Some powers can be used in any situation, while some can only be sued for the reason granted in statute.

The Police were given the power to require vehicles to stop and drivers identify themselves for the purposes of road safety. Not for the purposes of finding out if they were attending a legal meeting down the road.

Information gathered through the checkpoint has enabled police to provide support and information to those people who we had reason to believe may be contemplating suicide.

Again the power to pull over cars randomly is for road safety purposes. And it is not illegal to contemplate or commit suicide in New Zealand. It is only illegal to assist.

ACT leader David Seymour said people had the right to meet and discuss issues without fear of police harassment. The admission that the police used a drink-driving checkpoint to obtain the identities of people attending a meeting is deeply un-Kiwi, he said. The police minister needs to explain why peaceful New Zealanders are being interrogated under false pretences.

Now it has been referred to the IPCA, the Police Minister probably cant comment. But once the IPCA reports, then the Police Minister should strongly advise the Police that this is a bad look.

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Murray McCully announced:

Foreign Minister Murray McCully today hailed a breakthrough agreement that will create the worlds largest Marine Protected Area in the Ross Sea region of the Antarctic. At its annual meeting in Hobart this week, the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) unanimously agreed to a New Zealand-United States proposal to establish a marine protected area in the Ross Sea, Mr McCully says. New Zealand has played a leading role in reaching this agreement which makes a significant contribution to global marine protection. The new Marine Protected Area will cover roughly 1.55 million square kilometres, of which 1.12 million square kilometres will be a no fishing zone. The proposal required some changes in order to gain the unanimous support of all 25 CCAMLR members and the final agreement balances marine protection, sustainable fishing and science interests. The boundaries of the MPA, however, remain unchanged.

This is a huge win for NZ and the US, but more importantly for science.

Previous proposals had been vetoed by China and Russia but over many rounds of negotiations, a compromise was found which got them on board.

Just as Antarctica is protected for scientific research, so also is most of the ocean around it.

Stuff reports:

Antarcticas Ross Sea region, often referred to as the Serengeti of Antarctica, is home to penguins, all manner of seals, whales, fish and sea birds. The Ross Sea makes up only 2 per cent of the geographic area of the Southern Ocean, but hosts 50 per cent of Ross Sea killer whales, 40 per cent of the worlds Adelie penguins, 30 per cent of Antarctic petrels, a quarter of the worlds emperor penguins and about 6 per cent of the worlds population of Antarctic minke whales.

It helps conservation, but also science:

Antarctic Ecologist Dr David Ainley said the importance of the protection in the Ross Sea could not be underestimated. The data collected from this living laboratory is better known than any other stretch of water in the Southern Ocean, and helps us understand the significant changes taking place on Earth right now, Ainley said. It is one of the most pristine marine ecosystems left on the planet and is home to many species found nowhere else on earth.

The value is indeed the untouched ecosystem.

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

By Orkhan Quluzade  Trend:

Turkish businessmen intend to increase investments in Azerbaijans economy, new Turkish Ambassador to Azerbaijan Erkan Ozoral said in an exclusive interview with Trend.

Ozoral noted that the Azerbaijan-Turkey economic ties are relations built not only in the transportation and energy projects, but at the same time, in mutual investments.

"Indeed, Azerbaijani investments in Turkey and Turkish investments in Azerbaijan are an important basis ensuring mutual development, mutual support, and bringing together our countries," said the ambassador.

He also noted that currently, about 2,600 Turkish companies operate in Azerbaijan.

Turkish companies operate almost in all spheres of the economy: in the telecommunications, banking, insurance, transportation, food, textile sectors and in the field of construction equipment and furniture manufacturing, said Ozoral.

On the other hand, Azerbaijan is also taking serious steps, becoming the biggest foreign investor in Turkey, added the envoy.

It is expected that investments of Azerbaijans state oil company SOCAR in Turkeys energy and infrastructure sphere will reach $17-20 billion in the near future, he said.

Ozoral added that the volume of Azerbaijani investments in Turkish economy has already exceeded $4 billion.

The diplomat noted that $5.5 billion will be invested in the Star refinery, which is being built in Izmir.

These figures show the level reached by economic ties between the two countries since Azerbaijans gaining independence, according to him.

"Indeed, these figures are a very high indicator for 25 years, and we intend to further increase it," said the diplomat.

The ambassador said that nearly 25,000 people are currently employed by Turkish companies operating in Azerbaijan.

At the same time, Turkish construction companies have invested $11 billion in 350 projects implemented in Azerbaijan since 2003, he noted.

"However, this figure doesnt meet the existing potential, new investments are needed," he said. "We encourage Turkish businessmen in every possible way to increase investments in sectors of the Azerbaijani economy, where attracting funds is in peculiar demand."

Important reforms to improve the investment climate of Azerbaijan recently held in the country also contribute to attracting foreign investments, Ozoral said.

The ambassador added that the Turkish businessmen are closely watching these processes in Azerbaijan.

"Before proceeding to my duties in Baku, I met in Istanbul with representatives of Turkish companies operating in Azerbaijan and the members of the Turkey-Azerbaijan Business Council of Turkeys Foreign Economic Relations Board," said Ozoral. "All of them agreed that the reform process in Azerbaijan should continue, and this contributes to the growth of the volume of Turkish investments," he noted.

The diplomat said that Turkish businessmen, as before, will play the role of the leading investors in the further process of capitalization of Azerbaijans economy.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @o_quluzade
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28



By Anvar Mammadov  Trend:



Criteria for placement of merchandise storage racks under the Made in Azerbaijan brand have been approved by the Ministry of Economy in Azerbaijan.



According to the criteria, in identifying the retail shops where the racks will be placed, including duty free shops, economic and trade ties between Azerbaijan and the countries, in which the racks will be installed, will be taken into account.



Also, the export potential and saleability of these goods in the countries with such shops will be considered.



The shop selection in a particular country will be based on the size of its retail chain. When it comes to duty free shops, the passenger flow of the airport where it is located will be taken into account.
AMERICAN PICKERS to film in Tennessee







American Pickers team. Image courtesy of American Pickerst.

Mike Wolfe, Frank Fritz, and their team are returning to Tennessee. They plan to film episodes of the hit series AMERICAN PICKERS throughout the region this November and December.



AMERICAN PICKERS is a documentary series that explores the fascinating world of antique picking on History. The hit show follows Mike and Frank, two of the most skilled pickers in the business, as they hunt for Americas most valuable antiques. They are always excited to find sizeable, unique collections and learn the interesting stories behind them. As they hit the back roads from coast to coast, Mike and Frank are on a mission to recycle and rescue forgotten relics. Along the way, the Pickers want to meet characters with remarkable and exceptional items. The pair hopes to give historically significant objects a new lease on life, while learning a thing or two about Americas past along the way.



Mike and Frank have seen a lot of rusty gold over the years and are always looking to discover something theyve never seen before. They are ready to find extraordinary items and hear fascinating tales about them. AMERICAN PICKERS is looking for leads and would love to explore your hidden treasure. If you or someone you know has a large, private collection or accumulation of antiques that the Pickers can spend the better part of the day looking through, send us your name, phone number, location and description of the collection with photos to: americanpickers@cineflix.com or call 855-old-rust. Published October 28, 2016










Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

By Maksim Tsurkov  Trend:

Djibouti intends to send its pilots and engineers for trainings in Azerbaijan, Aboubaker Omar Hadi, chairman of Djibouti Ports and Free Zone Authority (DGZ), said in an interview with Trend October 28.

He said Djibouti intends to develop relations with Azerbaijan in the field of transport and establish cooperation between Air Djibouti and Azerbaijan Airlines CJSC (AZAL).

A meeting was held with AZAL management in the Baku Heydar Aliyev International Airport, he added. We intend to send our pilots and engineers to train and attend various courses in the Azerbaijani Aviation Academy. Azerbaijan has a very good Aviation Academy, training the world-class specialists.

He added that Azerbaijan and Djibouti have also agreed to develop other areas of cooperation.

Our cooperation is very multifaceted, however, it is too early to talk about opening of a direct flight, he said.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @MaksimTsurkov
By Lee Hyo-sik

State affairs have come to a virtual halt following a recent bombshell revelation that Choi Soon-sil, a confidant of President Park Geun-hye, meddled in personnel management and other key policy issues.

Bureaucrats have begun postponing decisions on the fate of the debt-ridden Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) and other crucial matters as Cheong Wa Dae, which struggles to contain the fallout of the Choi scandal, no longer acts as a control tower.

The National Assembly has also been all but paralyzed as ruling and opposition party lawmakers wrangle over the unprecedented controversy to seize the upper hand ahead of the 2017 presidential election, while neglecting to deal with labor market reforms, the 2017 budget bill and other issues that significantly affect people's lives.

On Thursday, the government held a meeting of economy-related ministers, presided over by Strategy and Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho, and decided to keep DSME afloat until 2018. This means that the Park administration is shifting the responsibility to the next administration, which will be inaugurated in February 2018, for the handling of the cash-strapped shipbuilder.












Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Gov. Zhin Woong-seob speaks during a breakfast meeting with heads of 13 foreign insurance companies at the Conrad Seoul hotel on Yeouido, Friday. Right of Zhin is Francois Lecomte, CEO of AXA General Insurance Korea. / Courtesy of FSS



By Nam Hyun-woo

Foreign insurance firms are given greater autonomy and they should be more responsible with it, Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Gov. Zhin Woong-seob stressed Friday.

"The method of regulations has been changed recently and has increased the autonomy of insurance firms in developing products and determining insurance premiums," Zhin said during a breakfast meeting with heads of 13 foreign insurance companies operating in Korea held at the Conrad Seoul hotel on Yeouido. "In this circumstance where greater autonomy is allowed, it is very important for insurance companies to recognize the true meaning of autonomy."

The watchdog announced its Roadmap for Insurance Business Reform last October. The reforms package prohibited financial authorities from intervening in the decision-making of insurance firms in setting up premiums and commissions.

Also, the package allowed insurers to report after developing new products. Previously, rules required insurers to report before starting product development.

The FSS chief said the reforms package is helping insurance firms stimulate innovation and competition between peers by easing regulations, but at the same time underscored insurers to refrain from raising premiums excessively.

"Recovering previous losses through premium hikes is not a desirable management strategy," Zhin said, adding that insurers should give more efforts in delivering benefits to claimers more quickly and precisely.

Zhin also noted that the implementation of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) 4 Phase II will have a huge impact on the local industry.

The IFRS 4 Phase II is a new rule, which the government seeks to introduce to Korea by 2020. It will assess insurers' liabilities based on market value, rather than book value. This allows a much "fairer" assessment of insurers' ability to withstand stress, but also forces them to build reserves worth 50 trillion won to cover losses expected down the road.

"If necessary, foreign insurers should cooperate with their headquarters, taking preemptive measures such as capital base expansion," Zhin said.

The meeting was attended by the heads of AIA Korea, Chubb Korea, MetLife, Tongyang Life, Prudential Life, Asia Capital Re, AIG Korea, AXA Direct, BNP Paribas Cardif General Insurance, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Korea, Munich Re Korea and SCOR Korea.
Yuktang Choe Nam-son







Cover of "Yuktang Choe Nam-son and Korean Modernity" written by Choi Hak-joo

By Choi Yearn-hong

Dr. Choi Hak-joo wrote about his famous grandfather, Choe Nam-son, in the book "Yuktang Choe Nam-son and Korean Modernity." The book is one of a few Choe Nam-son biographies. His grandfather became the first Korean modern freestyle verse poet at the turn of the 20th century and also published magazines for young people to educate and enlighten his fellow people during the Japanese colonial rule. He wrote the Declaration of Independence on March 1, 1919, which had a typo, and typeset the Declaration in a great hurry all by himself.

I knew Choe Nam-son as the nation's first modern poet and thinker, a scholar who tried to create the Korean identity, for the sake of the nation's independence, dignity and sovereignty while under the colonial rule. His Declaration of Independence was comparable to that of Thomas Jefferson. This book offers much more information about Yuktang and his writings. In addition to writing the Declaration, he was one of the main architects of the March First Mansei Movement and a scholar of ancient Korean history from Tangun onward. He was disenchanted with the Korean factional politicking that was in front of the urgency of the nation-building and the fight for independence from the Japanese yoke. But more than anything, he wanted to be remembered as a historian who tried to establish the Tangun myth as the starting point of the Pulham civilization of the Northeast Asian nations.

This book has three parts. The first part reveals three generations of the Choe family. In the family history, I found out about the many famous Korean people whom Yuktang met and with whom he worked. I met some of them in my young life. I met Inchon Kim Song-su, who founded the Choong-ang Middle and High Schools, Korea University, Donga Ilbo and Kyungsung Textile Co. and served as a vice president. When I first visited Kim at his house when I first came to Seoul for middle school at Choong-ang, I bowed to him. I was introduced to him by my father, and that was the reason I came to Seoul and attended Choong-ang Middle School. After a year, he passed away, and at the national funeral ceremony, I was one of the people who carried the coffin to Korea University from Choong-ang on foot. As the high school newspaper editor, I met Choe Doo-son, Yuktang's younger brother and former Choong-ang School principal was and then the president of Donga Ilbo, in his office. Around that time, I also met famed painter and former Choong-ang School art teacher KoHui-dong . I visited his home and received an art work of his for free for my school literary magazine.

Remembering those famous people brought me back to my adolescent days. Although I have not yet met the author of this book, we share many precious memories with those people. We were born in the same year, 1941, which means that as ten-year-old boys, we witnessed the unspeakable tragedies of the Korean War. Yuktang lost one of his sons when he left for North Korea along with his priceless 170,000 books and papers, which were national treasures. Yuktang became bedridden after a stroke. He passed away in 1957.

The second part of the book discloses Yuktang's lifelong efforts to enlighten his fellow country men and women. He decided to publish a magazine for young people and created Sinmunkwan, New Culture Hall, and later Kwangmunhoe, Enlightening Culture Group. He also organized an elite intellectual group that could help promote Chonsun's dignity and sovereignty as a cultured nation. A patriot at heart, he launched the March First Mansei Movement in 1919 with his close friends, Song Jin-u, Hyun Sang-yun and Choe Rin, and with financing from Kim Song-su. They assembled 33 Chosun representatives from all regions and social and religious backgrounds. The young planners were all imprisoned for a lengthy period after the movement. Choe Nam-son served three years in prison.

Choe discovered and rediscovered the Chosun classic works in humanities and social sciences. His intellectual horizon was broader than anyone could imagine. He published 35 titles (59 volumes), 24 of which were ancient classics, such as "Tongkuk Byunggam," "Tongguksesiki," "Tongguk Tonggam," "YolhaIlgi," "Taekliji" and "Samguksagi," among others. He also published popular novels for all people's reading in a few dimes, such as "Chunhyang-jun," "Simchong-jun," "Hungbu-Nolbu-jun" and "Changwha-Hongryun-jun." His main concern was establishing the Korean identity from the Japanese colonial rule from language, history, and ultimately, starting the independence movement. I can clearly understand what went on in Yuktang's mind during that dark age. He was the pioneering scholar who established Korean studies with Tangun during the Japanese colonial rule. He coined the word "hangul" for the Korean alphabet and "Minjok" and "nationalism" for the independence movement. He was the first person who attempted to publish a Korean dictionary. The first Korean dictionary was published by Eulyu Publishing Co. much later, in the 1950s. We should be grateful to Yuktang for his works for his country and the generations to come.

After he was out of the publisher's role of the SidaeIlbo, he became a scholar and writer who devoted his life to exploring Chosun's own cultural history to establish the Chosun identity from the Japanese cultural annexation attempts. He was a special writer-at-large for Donga Ilbo, a major daily that was founded by his close friend Kim Song-su and published by another close friend, Song Chin-u. His scholarly articles aimed to cultivate the Chosun spirit for the cultural independence movement, if not necessarily the political movement. In the mid-1920s to mid-1930s, he traveled across the homeland from Mount Paekdu down to Mount Chiri and sailed to Cheju Island, expressing his love to all the mountains and rivers and composing Sijo poems for Donga Ilbo along with his travelogues. He also compiled all Hyangga, Gasa and Sijo poems from the Three Kingdoms to Koyro and down to the Chosun Dynasties. His patriotism motivated his literary adventure and voyage. He extended his travel to Manchuria in order to breathe in the Kogyryo and Palhae Kingdoms, and ultimately for his Korean studies. Of course, he was a gifted poet and writer all his life. His poem "From the Sea to the Boy," which appeared in his first children's magazine, opened modern Korean literature. He was just a teenage boy himself when he published the magazine.

However, Yuktang wants to be remembered as a historian who tried to unify the nation with one Minjok and truth. Truth was first advocated by DosanAn Chang-ho and Sonyun, the first magazine he published as a teenager. The concept of truth that they were referring to here is very close or identical to that in "the Truth sets you free" in the Scripture.

The third part is his grandson's vision of Yuktang studies, which will complete Yuktang's lifelong dream and passion for Minjok's unification. First of all, Yuktang should be free from the unfair criticism of being a "pro-Japan collaborator" and the restoration of the Kwangmunhoe Building for historical preservation at Chonggechon in Seoul. Compiling Yuktang's writings should be done by the present and future generations. It cannot be done by one individual or group. Yuktang wrote constantly for his fellow people to see Korean culture, that is, the origin of the Pulham Civilization.

I totally agree with his vision. Minjok is a word of forgiving and tolerating, embracing all, not of dividing people into black and white. Life under the long Japanese colonial rule was not as simple as black and white. It should be a force to move history together for the future. The Declaration of Independence should be preserved as the No. 1 treasure in the Korean Independence Hall. In the book's appendix, the Declaration was translated into English by the author's wife , who also translated her husband's memoir, "Yuktang."

Just one little anecdote at the end. When I worked for the Society of Ieodo Research, I discovered that President Syngman Rhee asked his ambassador to the United States on the occasion of the San Francisco Treaty between the United States and Japan to protect Dokdo in the East Sea and Ieodo in the South Sea in 1953. I was curious of Rhee's knowledge on Ieodo. Later, I came to know that Rhee consulted Choe Nam-son when he became the first president in 1948. Choe was the best known geographer on the Korean territory with its history.

Dr. Choi is a poet and writer based in the Washington D.C. area.
As more Korean men in their 40s and 50s look to style up, shops like Majesty Barbershop in Hyundai Department Store in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province, have customers coming in as soon as the doors open before 11 a.m. on Wednesday. / Korea Times photo by Kim Ji-soo







Top, actor Cho Jin-woong, and left, actor Hwang Jeong-min, who are increasingly identified "ajae fatale." / Korea Time file

By Kim Ji-soo



The Korean word "ajeossi," which means middle-aged men, like its counterpart "ajumma," which means middle-aged women, has more than just a literal meaning.

"Ajeossi" has been most synonymous with middle-aged men who like to nitpick about the younger generation, or the silent men, the generation of fathers who work hard to bring home the bacon. But middle-aged men are finding themselves in a friendlier light, now addressed with the more avuncular "ajae," a dialect version of "ajeossi," and even as "ajae fatales," a play on "homme fatale." The term is used to refer to men, usually in their 40s and 50s, with relatively fat wallets that enable them to invest in their own grooming.

Some well-known "ajae fatales" are actors Cho Jin-woong, Lee Jeong-jae and Hwang Jeong-min, but there are many stylish middle-aged men among the public as well, and retail outlets are catering to their desires.

For such men, the sixth floor of Hyundai Department Store in Pangyo,Gyeonggi Province, may well be a dream. Bicycles, electronic gadgets and hip clothes mingle with a trendy barber shop on the same floor. At the Majesty barbershop, a haircut starts at 40,000 won and a perm at 120,000 won, but despite these relatively higher prices, the customers continue to stroll in, the barbershop employees said.

"I would estimate that around 10 to 15 customers per day visit during the weekdays," said Lee Jun-seok, 26. Asked if he has heard of the term "ajae fatale," he said he has and it is positive.

"It's good that these men with social status and stable jobs are grooming themselves  good for them personally, and for us, businesswise, too."

For some, the coined term is more than about fashion and style. Jay Paik, 60, says he likes grooming and styling himself. The CEO of the advertising company Diamond Ogilvy Group has been featured in magazines as a fashion and fitness enthusiast. For Paik, he said being an "ajae fatale" is a state of mind, not necessarily about the size of your personal budget. "It is your state of mind, how you want to express yourselves, your life," Paik told The Korea Times over the phone. Born into a very fashion-oriented family and educated in the United States, Paik said he noticed that Korean men have been catching up fast on grooming in the past 15 years or so.

He had the luxury of paying more attention to his personal style two decades ago, "when I reached the executive level," he said. That's the point when middle-aged Korean men, particularly those of Paik's generation, are usually able to afford time and leisure for themselves.

"But now I see the young Korean men are more fashionable (unlike in our time), most probably because their priorities have changed too," Paik said. "In the past, men's top priority was to save up for 20 years or so to be able to buy a house and send their children to school, but the young generation is now more self-centric," buying a car or going on a trip before buying a house. But domestic retailers do need to be aware that even male style leaders like Paik prefer to shop overseas, where the prices of clothes, accessories and other style-related items are reasonable.

Maurice Jun, 43, executive director of CMC Worldwide, a copyright and intellectual property management company in Seoul, thinks the term "ajae fatale" means recognition of a generation of men who are making decisions about their lifestyles themselves, including their personal styles. It means a life based on one's decisions, rather than based on the preferences or orientations of, first, one's parents, and later, of spouses. Jun, in person, is fashionable from head to toe, and likes to shop at H&M or Uniqlo and mix items from such stores with those from upscale or luxury stores to create his own style. Jun admitted that he learned to determine his personal style during his decade studying in the United States and in Europe.

He said it is the fashion beginners in his age group at that time who bought luxury or high-end goods because they hadn't found their own style yet.

"I think the times have changed, certainly (in Korea)," he said. "Even among friends, there is a certain trend of imitating the fashions considered smart. And if men of previous generations wore the same suits with the same fit, now, you can definitely feel that the younger men, those in their 20s or 30s, look upon smartly groomed men as role models of success."

Being single also enables him to invest in himself, Jun, said, acknowledging that his peers with family and children are too financially burdened to pay attention to themselves.

Just like a 48-year-old ad executive surnamed Suh in Seoul, who would like to be identified as an "ajae fatale" or rather "homme fatale." Suh said that honestly he still thinks of himself as a young man but finds the new attention towards men in their 40s and 50s a democratic relish in that society recognizes him as a sexy, in-his-right being. For the moment, "I'm too busy at work and taking care of my son, so it's kind of impossible."
Seoul will provide a free job class for migrant housewives who are interested in translation and interpretation. / Courtesy of Yeongdeungpo-gu Multicultural Family Support Center



By Lee Jin-a

Seoul will offer a program to teach migrant housewives who are interested in translating and interpreting.

The free class will be held from 1 to 5 p.m. on Nov. 4 at the Seoul Global Center in Jongno-gu, central Seoul.

Participants will be given an overview of the profession and how to get jobs in the field. Experts specializing in law, medical tourism, business and more will also give lectures.

Interested people can download an application form from the official website of Seoul Hanultari (www.mcfamily.or.kr) and submit it via email (job9197@hanmail.net), or visit Yeongdeungpo-gu Multicultural Family Support Center (24-5, Yeongdeungpo-ro 84-gil) by Oct. 30 to register.

College students who study social welfare as a major or officials from organizations that support multicultural families can also attend the class.

For more information, contact 02-845-5433.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

Trend:

The Chairman of the Azerbaijani State Committee on Property Issues Kerem Hasanov participated in the event organized by the American Chamber of Commerce in Azerbaijan (AmCham) and delivered a speech on the current stage of privatization process in the Republic and its future prospective.

Such kind of events in luncheon format are organized monthly by the Chamber with participation of ministers of the Azerbaijan Republic, chairmen of Committees, members of the Azerbaijani Parliament, directors of various governmental institutions and other people holding high positions.

Invited guests and speakers deliver presentations and insights on issues actual for Azerbaijani society and business and Chamber members, answer questions and exchange opinions.

In the frame of the official part of the meeting dedicated to privatization of state property, Hasanov made a presentation on economic reforms in the country, progress in privatization process, innovations and online services in management and registration of real estate, as well as future prospects.

History of privatization process in Azerbaijan, difference in specifications of local legislative acts from the programs in other countries, the role of the nationwide leader of the Azerbaijan Republic Heydar Aliyev in the commencement and sustainability of privatization process, key achievements, current problems and future perspectives were presented in details.

Moreover, Hasanov provided comprehensive information on the decrees of President of Azerbaijan Republic Ilham Aliyev on commencement of new strategical stage of privatization, new fields and enterprises opened for privatization, involvement of foreign investors, supporting of non-oil sector by this way, as well as cooperation opportunities with consulting companies.

Participants demonstrated great interest to the presentation of Hasanov and answered questions on legal procedures of participation of foreign investors in privatization, guarantee for investments, concessions and privileges applied for foreign investors, and the role of influential consulting companies. Meetings of this kind with local and international businessmen are planned to be organized continuously.

Following the speech of Hasanov, the Chairman of AmCham Ilqar Veliyev expressed his gratitude to him for participating in business luncheon and in-depth comprehensive presentation on privatization issues. He also noted that implementation of the current projects and events has been planned for the near future by the State Committee on Property Issues and will always be in attention of AmCham members. At the end, Valiyev again thanked the Chairman of Committee for effective cooperation.
About 350 students of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies were evacuated from their dormitory after a report of a possible bomb on Friday morning. / Courtesy of the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies Journal's Facebook



By Lee Jin-a

Hankuk University of Foreign Studies students were evacuated from their dormitory after a bomb scare Friday morning.

Seoul Dongdaemun police received a report at 10:20 a.m. of a possible bomb in a bag in a hallway on the fourth floor of Globeedorm at the Seoul campus of HUFS.

Police evacuated about 350 students, and nine fire trucks, 35 firefighters, 20 police and the army's bomb disposal unit attended.

But police found that there was nothing but trash in the suspicious bag and no bomb was discovered in the building.

After an hour's searching, police cleared the scene and allowed students and staff back into the building around noon.
A former schizophrenia patient poured urine around the grave of President Roh Moo-hyun, inbox, in Bongha Village in Gimhae and scuffled with security guards. / Korea Times file



By Ko Dong-hwan

A former schizophrenia patient poured urine around the grave of President Roh Moo-hyun and scuffled with security guards, a court has heard.

Changwon District Court on Thursday sentenced the man, surnamed Choi, 41, to eight months' jail, suspended for two years, on charges of property damage and obstruction of justice, according to media reports.

On Oct. 21, around 12:30 p.m., Choi poured 500 milliliters of urine from two bottles onto a decorative stone at the graveyard of the president in Bongha Village, in the city of Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province. He shouted before pouring the urine, "What good did the president ever do?"

Choi also hit a security guard on the neck with the bottle as officers attempted to apprehend him. He shouted for the officers' company commander as he scuffled with them.

Choi argued in court that he did not have a normal sense of discerning objects at the time of the crime because he had stopped taking his medication. The court considered his health condition but judged that it "was not serious enough for him to commit such a crime."

"Choi earned a suspension on account of his promise that he will not commit the crime again, and his record of serving a long prison term has been taken into account," the court said.
By Jun Ji-hye

The Choi Soon-sil scandal is stoking concerns that it may derail the planned deployment of a U.S. anti-missile battery here and other key security and diplomatic policies led by the Park Geun-hye administration.

Washington and Tokyo appear to have paid keen attention to mounting anger among South Koreans over the scandal with some even calling for Park to be impeached, apparently mindful that if the Park administration were to be put into a vegetative state, ongoing diplomatic talks could be suspended.

Citing allegations that Choi, Park's long-time confidant with no official standing, had access to classified material related to national security and foreign affairs and has intervened in Park's management of state affairs, experts say the people seem to have lost trust in Park, which could considerably dilute her power as a top decision maker.

Pending issues in progress between Seoul and Washington include the deployment of a U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system on the Korean Peninsula.

The issue has been much debated since the two nations announced in July that the advanced anti-missile system will be deployed in Seongju, North Gyeongsang Province, by the end of next year, to better deter North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile threats.

Many opposition lawmakers have called into question the government's bungled management of the deployment decision-making process as well as its official announcement, which caused severe criticism from local residents living in the area selected as the location for THAAD.

Bae Jong-chan, the chief director of political pollster Research and Research, said one of the most important aspects in the government's negotiations with other countries is the people's support, which Park has lost recently.

"A number of people now think that the government's negotiations have been led not by the President's principle, but by personal opinions of her unofficial confidant," he said. "Now, people are even making a caricature of Park. This would exert influence on the THAAD deployment, given that the decision on the location was not made smoothly."












President Park Geun-hye attends a ceremony to receive credentials from newly appointed ambassadors at Cheong Wa Dae on Friday. Since her public apology on Tuesday, in which she admitted her longtime confidant Choi Soon-sil edited presidential speeches before their delivery dates, Park has kept mum on other allegations surrounding the scandal.

/ Yonhap

President orders all senior secretaries to resign



By Kim Hyo-jin

President Park Geun-hye has let down the people over the scandal involving her confidant Choi Soon-sil. Even her most stalwart supporters are turning their backs on her.

She admitted Tuesday to having sought advice from her longtime friend and apologized for causing public concern.

But that is far from enough  tens of thousands will take to the streets to protest the scandal this weekend. More would join the protest unless Park tells the whole truth behind the shameful influence-peddling scandal.

After owning up to what has happened exactly, analysts said, Park should conduct a full-scale reshuffle of her senior secretaries and Cabinet. The President late Friday evening ordered all her senior secretaries to tender their resignations. A presidential spokesman said that she is expected to carry out the reshuffle soon.

"The public has virtually impeached her from the nation's chief executive post in their minds," said Lee Nae-young, a professor of political science at Korea University.

"She should come clean and move onto action to show her sincerity in dealing with the situation, otherwise she will inevitably face public protests getting out of control."

Kim Sung-soo, a professor of political science at Hanyang University, echoed Lee's view.

"Park must get the public system back on track through a personnel reshuffle," Kim said. "It is the basic and foremost solution in this state of crisis caused by the abuse of power by Park's private connections."

The calls came as Cheong Wa Dae had remained silent on any solutions so far, despite intensifying criticism over the scandal that the President allowed Choi to use their relationship to meddle in state affairs.

"The President is pondering multiple directions over how to address public anxieties and unwaveringly manage state affairs," a presidential official told reporters earlier in the day.

Park canceled a scheduled luncheon with civic members of the presidential committee for unification preparation to focus on considering potential solutions, the official said.












Main opposition Democratic Party of Korea Chairwoman Choo Mi-ae, left, announces in a party meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul, Friday, that the discussion on carrying out a special investigation into the Choi Soon-sil scandal will temporarily be suspended. / Korea Times photo by Oh Dae-geun



By Kim Hyo-jin



Main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) announced Friday that it will temporarily suspend partisan negotiations for a special prosecutor to investigate the influence-peddling scandal revolving around President Park Geun-hye's confidant Choi Soon-sil.



Rep. Choo Mi-ae, the party's chairwoman, claimed that the ruling bloc is being idle in taking responsibility for the situation, presenting three preconditions for resuming negotiations.



"Saenuri Party must first apologize to the people. There must be the resignation of Woo Byung-woo, the senior presidential secretary for civil affairs. And all those who supported Choi must step down," she said during a party meeting.



"We can only cooperate with the ruling party in normalizing state affairs after Cheong Wa Dae and the ruling party prove their sincerity to do so."



It came as the rival parties have been at loggerheads with how to proceed with the investigation by an independent counsel.













Deputy floor leaders of rival parties started discussions on Thursday about initiating an independent counsel to look into the allegations that Park's longtime confidant Choi, who holds no official post, exercised influence on state affairs, along with other illegal acts, including raising funds for public foundations.



The Saenuri Party argued that they opted for the standing special prosecution system introduced in 2014 as a pledge by President Park Geun-hye.



It allows the National Assembly speaker to form a seven-member committee including the vice justice minister, the deputy head of the Office of Court Administration, the chairman of the Korea Bar Association and four more recommended by rival parties.



Then the committee will recommend two experienced prosecutors within five days of its formation and the President will designate one as the prosecutor in charge within three days.



Rep. Park Wan-joo, DPK's deputy floor leader, claimed that the President's involvement in the appointment of the prosecutor will hardly be able to clear suspicions that the public harbors toward her.



"It is suspicious if the ruling party is willing to dig up the scandal," he told reporters.

DPK and the minor opposition People's Party, instead, backed the option of passing a special law to launch an independent counsel.



If the law is enacted, the President will have to appoint a single candidate recommended by rival parties.



"The opposition party is just seeking to drag the scandal out for a long time to manipulate the situation with political intentions," a Saenuri lawmaker said, adding that the parties will be unlikely to reach an agreement in a short period of time.
The founder of Naver Corp. said Monday the nation's biggest Internet portal will accelerate its investment in high-tech startups, signaling the need to increase spending on artificial intelligence.

Lee Hae-jin, who is also the chairman of the board at Naver, made the remarks at a conference with developers.

"From now on, a fight for technology is the key" as computing technologies, including artificial intelligence and data analysis, are on the verge of being applied to people's real lives, Lee said.

The remarks by Lee hinted that Naver may focus on investing in artificial intelligence startups at home and abroad, joining the race with global technology titans, such as Google and Facebook, in fielding artificial intelligence-powered products.

During the conference, Naver unveiled its new digital assistant service named AMICA.

Naver's chief technology officer, Song Chang-hyun, said the personal assistant service eventually aims to "understand the intention" of users, interacting with them everywhere, including in the bedroom and out in the streets.

Song said the service is being installed in a package of mobile chips produced by Samsung Electronics Co. for the Internet of Things.

AMICA is being developed for a number of smartphone apps for food delivery and accommodation, Song said.

Naver also plans to launch an independent company tasked with developing self-driving, robots and artificial intelligence, company officials said.

Headed by Song, the new company will be established early next year.

On Sept. 30, Naver and its mobile messaging affiliate, Line Corp., announced a plan to invest 100 million euros ($108.6 million) in a French venture fund set up by France's former South Korean-born minister, Fleur Pellerin.

The fund will invest in European technology startups in the fields of artificial intelligence, big data and online services, Naver said. (Yonhap)
By Alexander Gonzalez Chavarria

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos Calderon was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2016. This came as an unexpected decision from the Nobel committee. A few days before the announcement, President Santos had lost a plebiscite consultation with the Colombian electorate in deciding whether or not to implement the Peace Agreement with the guerrilla of FARC (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia), signed in Cartagena, Colombia on September 26, 2016. The "No" votes had won the majority only by a 0.4 percentage point margin (50.2 percent vs. 49.8 percent) with a huge abstention of over 60 percent of the total electoral census at 34 million people.

Why award a Nobel Prize at such an awkward political juncture? Colombia's internal armed conflict is one of the longest and "intractable" conflicts in the Western hemisphere. The beginning of the conflict dates to the year 1964 after a period of brutal political violence known as the "Violencia." The conflict has left at least 220,000 people dead and almost 8 million people internally displaced. Since the formation of the Marxist FARC in 1964, the domestic armed conflict has undergone various phases including the early framing of the conflict as part of the regional Cold War strategy led by the U.S. (the LASO plan); the convergence with illegal crops and drug trafficking during the late 1970s and '80s; the process of creation of a new generation of ultra-rightwing paramilitary groups in the 1980s; the military build-up and victories of FARC over the Colombian army and the nation-wide expansion of the paramilitary groups in the 90s; the security strategy backed by the U.S. known as the "Plan Colombia" from the late 90s to 2002; the continuation of the Plan Colombia under the Uribe administration known as the Democratic Security Policy (DSP) from 2002 to 2010; and the continuation of the DSP and the beginning of the Peace process under the Santos administration from 2010 until now.

In between, various peace processes were attempted with different rebel groups that were formed during the 52-year period, including a former peace process with FARC in 1982 which led to the creation of the FARC's political party known as the "Union Patriotica" (UP; Patriotic Union). This was a major effort that failed to end the armed conflict between FARC and the Colombian state, with the annihilation of the UP with the participation of the States security forces.

A second major peace negotiation with the FARC was undertaken by the Pastrana administration in 1998, but it failed again leading to the 2002 election of President Uribe with a promise to defeat the FARC. The military success of the DSP contributed to Santos' successful presidential election in 2010. Santos, however, chose not to focus on the use of the military in his dealings with FARC. Instead, he began contact with FARC that yielded the formal establishment of the Peace Process in 2012. This strategy was taken as an act of betrayal by the former President Uribe resulting in a harsh opposition to the peace process. Santos stood firm in his negotiation proposal. And, the Peace Agreement was finally signed after 4 years of negotiations in Havana, Cuba.

The Nobel Peace Prize signals the international community's support to President Santos for his commitment to end the violent conflict with the FARC. The Nobel Prize gives Santos a very substantial amount of political capital to negotiate his way to implement the Agreement. This, at the same time, poses a typical dilemma: how to implement the Agreement, while respecting the will of the "No" electorate linked in part to Uribe's opposition sector.

The writer teaches at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogota, Colombia. Write to alexandergonzalezch@gmail.com.
By Tom Plate



Any history of the US impact on the Philippines would greatly suffer from rendition in short form; but the relationship has had its ups and downs, and now we have a serious downer period in that bumpy history. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's anti-American tantrum may seem Trumpian in its primitivism but, even so, the clear winner in this round of Asia's geopolitical "dating game" is China.



We should not be surprised. The central global political fact of our times is the gravitational pull of growing China, all but destined to become the Asian superpower. It will not be easily resisted. Wake up, Americans. It's the 21st century, not the 20th.



And so now you have the Philippines. With the finesse of a dump truck, one day Duterte decides to drop Uncle Sam in order to embrace the inheritors of Mao's China  now profiting from a quasi-market system that more and more seems to resemble that of the political one-party Taiwan of the 1990s. Visiting China, Duterte declaims for all the world to hear: "America has lost now". "I've realigned myself in your ideological flow," he told his Chinese hosts.



The mainland's success with state-guided marketisation provides the goodies for the likes of Duterte's Philippines. From his perspective, China can offer his country more than the US. Let's face it: Uncle Sam no longer has the wherewithal to be Santa Claus to everyone, all the time  as in the grand old days of goodies for all.



Is there risk for Duterte? The obvious would be that were China to invade the Philippines tomorrow, Washington might look the other way  but China doesn't need to invade anyone. Its inherent size and growing presence will ineluctably pull its neighbors closer to it, one degree of reduced separation after another. Osmosis rather than offensiveness will suffice.



America is otherwise engaged. From the Obamas on down, the White House is in what we term "Outbox" mentality. They are focused in on the margin of Hillary Clinton's victory, not on the magnitude of Manila's perfidy. Duterte's timing might be thought sly: the White House at this moment is distracted and on the campaign trail  and even thinking about how soon it will be packing its bags.



To be sure, the permanent national security government entity that includes the Defense and State departments, not to mention the CIA and the overall national security apparatus, are watching, however. This is the permanent locus of America's geopolitical wariness and obsessions; and it is one US elephant that usually doesn't forget. As long as countries in Asia, such as Laos, Cambodia and now, perhaps, the Philippines play proactive binary geopolitics  that is, either Beijing or Washington, one or the other; the new Asian dating game  the now ongoing regional reorientation  will prove bumpy and sometimes brutal.



My only advice to the nations rotating around the land of the rising Chinese sun is to avoid lurching and aim for suavity in diplomacy. Under the Philippines' prior president, the well-intentioned but ineffective Benigno Aquino, Manila's foreign policy tilted dramatically towards the US; but then the successor government in Manila starts leaning like a drunken sailor in the other direction. Neither extreme can be said to be in the country's national interest.



The Asian planets revolving around the China sun are best advised to organize their diplomatic reorientation with more subtlety and care.



Beijing played off against Washington; Washington against Beijing. This new Asian diplomacy aims to "yin-yang" the two superpowers with insincere tenderness so as to milk each cow for whatever each one is worth. Something of this mentality may well have arrived in Vietnam and Malaysia and, perhaps before long, Indonesia. Asian nations will enjoy many opportunities to benefit from the dating game. Even now, Japan, the US surrogate in the region, is expected to proffer a new US$48 million loan package to the Philippines.



It may all end in sadness. The wooing of Duterte was no casual afterthought on Beijing's part. Months ago, a Chinese government diplomat tipped me off about what was going on. Behind the scenes, Beijing was working hard on a deal with Manila well before the issuance of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague's negative ruling on China's entitlement claims in the South China Sea.



Any way you figure it, the Philippines pivot is a tactical triumph for Chinese diplomacy. But I wonder about its sustainability: the Filipino people probably have more fundamental affection for the Americans than the Chinese, whose sudden bonhomie may feel suspiciously  er  fishy. The US State Department, assuming the January inauguration of Clinton, can be expected to make another serious run at East Asia. As the presumed 45th president of the United States put it to a Wall Street audience a few years ago: "We liberated it. We defended it."



As of now, however, the reconfiguration of the diplomatic orbits of the nations of Asia  with the Chinese sun rising ever higher  proceeds apace. Almost no one in America is psychologically prepared for this new reality. Maybe Aquino swung too far one way, Duterte the other. But now the Chinese pull feels more and more ineluctable.



The better approach to geopolitical order in Asia and peace in general would be for Beijing and Washington to work together, hand-in-glove, like adults. This is not happening.



This bodes ill: I doubt that Clinton will ignore what is happening, and Beijing won't back down. So a measure of some sort of future conflict surely looms.



Columnist and Loyola Marymount professor Tom Plate is founder of Asia Media International and vice-president of the Pacific Century Institute in Los Angeles.




By Otaviano Canuto

WASHINGTON  Prospects for growth in global trade in 2016 and 2017 have been downgraded again. The World Trade Organization (WTO) now expects that trade this year will increase at its slowest pace since the post-2008 global recession. What is going on?

This is not purely a function of an anemic global economic recovery. After all, trade growth has typically outpaced GDP growth; in the years before the 2008 global financial crisis, the average increase was double that of output. But the ratio of trade growth to GDP growth has been falling since 2012, a trend that will culminate this year, with GDP growth outpacing trade growth for the first time in 15 years.

This reversal is driven partly by structural factors , including a plateau in the expansion of global value chains and a turning point in the process of structural transformation in China and other growth frontiers. The rising share of services in countries' GDP likely implies further downward pressure on trade flows, given services' lower trade propensity relative to manufactured goods.

But not all of the forces undermining trade are so long-term. Crisis-related, temporary, and potentially reversible factors have also had an impact. For example, the economic hardship faced since 2008 by many eurozone countries, which have traditionally accounted for a substantial share of global trade, has discouraged consumption, hiring, and much more. The weak recovery of fixed investment in advanced economies has also undermined trade, because investment goods involve more cross-border exchange than consumer goods do.

Perhaps most risky, however, is the growing political backlash against free trade, reflected in a lack of progress in recent rounds of trade liberalization and the implementation of protectionist non-tariff trade barriers. Though such creeping protectionism has not yet had a significant quantitative impact on trade, its emergence has become a major source of concern amid rising anti-globalization sentiment in the advanced economies.

Today's trade bashing is what happens when economic concerns  including stagnating median incomes and, in some countries, high unemployment rates  turn political. Viewing economic dissatisfaction as an opportunity to win support some shrewd politicians, particularly in the advanced economies, have been pointing the finger at the nebulous, threatening forces of "globalization." Immigration and trade, they claim, are the cause of citizens' economic insecurity.

Exhibit A is the current presidential campaign in the United States, which has placed more emphasis on trade than any such campaign in the country's recent history. In a difficult political environment, both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are proposing trade policies that depart from America's long tradition of liberalization  with potentially dire economic implications.

Clinton, the Democratic candidate, now opposes the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a trade agreement that President Barack Obama's administration negotiated with 11 other Pacific Rim countries and that is now awaiting ratification by the US Congress. She has also opposed conceding "market-economy status" to China, because it would make it harder to bring anti-dumping cases against the country. And she has advocated imposing countervailing duties on goods from countries that qualify as exchange-rate manipulators.

Trump, who has been among those leading the protectionist charge, takes these ideas much further. Like Clinton, he opposes the TPP and supports countervailing duties for currency manipulators. But he has also been particularly disparaging about Mexico and China, and is already calling for punitive US tariffs on both. Moreover, he promises to renegotiate and perhaps even abrogate existing trade agreements, alluding to the possibility of a US withdrawal from the WTO.

Clinton's proposed measures would cause the US to lose out on some gains from trade, with consequences for the world economy. But the damage hardly compares to that which would be wrought by Trump's proposals. After all, protectionist measures from the US would almost certainly spark reciprocal actions by its trade partners, potentially even spurring a trade war that compounds the economic pain for all.

As the Peterson Institute of International Economics highlighted last month, the negative impact would be felt most strongly by low-skill, low-income workers  precisely the people who are most convinced that less trade is a good thing. Worryingly, the report also shows that the US president has substantial leeway to adopt trade-curbing measures, without effective checks by Congress or the courts.

Obviously, there is a need to address the concerns that have fueled anti-globalization sentiment, politicians in the US and elsewhere should devise policies that will actually help their most vulnerable citizens. But demonizing trade is not the way to do it. On the contrary, as the experience in the 1930s showed, the easiest way to derail an already-feeble global economic recovery is to unleash a protectionist trade war.

The views expressed here are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the World Bank or any of the governments he represents.

Otaviano Canuto is an executive director at the World Bank.
The transition at the top of Samsung Group has been completed all but in name as Lee Jae-yong, vice chairman of Samsung Electronics, became a registered director of the company's board Thursday.



Since his father Lee Kun-hee collapsed in May 2014 and became incapacitated, the junior Lee has led Korea's largest chaebol, clustered around the world's top tech firm, in a reorganization effort, highlighted by the sale of noncore subsidiaries and an attempt to soften its rigid military-like command structure.



Taking his seat on the nine-member board means Lee can take credit for things well done but be held responsible for those things done poorly.



The 48-year-old has a hard act to follow: his father turned Samsung into the world's corporate leader through his "new management" principle calling on employees to "change everything except for your wife and children." Under the Samsung founder, Lee Byung-chull, his father, the company focused on light industries, being far from the global powerhouse of smartphone and semiconductor.



The younger Lee is never short of challenges to prove he can indeed fill the shoes of his father and take the conglomerate to the next level.



He has to deal with the aftermath of the Note 7 debacle.



Samsung yanked its latest ambitious smartphone off the markets after explosions in the phone and decided to terminate production after it failed to find out the causes. This smacked its brand image, leaving a gaping hole on the bottom line and cast serious doubt about the firm's future in an extremely competitive industry where giants like Nokia and Blackberry went out of existence virtually overnight.



Samsung has to go the next year without any new models on the market, the company's absence being taken advantage of by Apple and Google.



The reconfiguration of Samsung Electronics is no easy task as his control depends on a relatively small stake of the company's shares, making it susceptible to an outside challenge. Already, Samsung is now entertaining U.S. hedge fund Elliott's proposed way out through the split of the firm and reorganization of it around a holding company.



These are two of many tests he should pass to rebut disclaimers that he only has his bloodline to owe to his ascension to the throne of the Samsung business empire and silence internal and external dissension, typical at any juncture in the change of power.




Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

By Maksim Tsurkov  Trend:

Creation of a free trade zone (FTZ) in Azerbaijan around the Baku International Sea Trade Port in Alat settlement is a project with a great future, Aboubaker Omar Hadi, chairman of Djibouti Ports and Free Zone Authority (DGZ), said Oct. 28 in an exclusive interview with Trend in Baku.

He said the creation of an FTZ is a very important factor for attracting cargo traffic and investments to Azerbaijan.

Djibouti has an extensive experience in the FTZ creation, Hadi said, adding the first FTZ was established back in 1954, more than 60 years ago.

The FTZ will create economic revival in the port and attract business operations to Azerbaijan, he added.

Products are received, processed, re-exported in this zone, and it is very comfortable and good for the parties involved, Hadi noted.

Many countries integrate the work of their customs services into the FTZs, he said.

In Djibouti, the FTZ covers not only a port, but also an airport, which greatly facilitates the work, Hadi noted.

He thinks that at least the sea port and the FTZ should be under a single management.

He added that a delegation from Djibouti arrived in Azerbaijan to share its experience and gave some recommendations for the establishment of the FTZ.

Hadi said the delegation told about the mistakes Djibouti made when creating the FTZ, so that Azerbaijan would not repeat them.

He believes that the most important part of creating an FTZ is the development of a legal framework, adding that it must necessarily exist.

Some countries that didnt have free market traditions, free trade zones, cannot understand why they have to change the laws, he noted. But if the state wants to create an FTZ, it must begin with the legal framework in order to attract businessmen and large companies, simplify the customs procedures, Hadi added.

He said Djibouti issues visas and work permits directly at the port in the FTZ.

It is a common practice, he added. Visas are issued only for the businessmen working in the FTZ, Hadi said, adding that this is a very important point, and everything works on the principle of a single window.

This is something that Djibouti recommends Azerbaijan to create in Baku, he noted.

A specific law on the FTZ is also needed, he said.

The concept is very simple, Hadi said, explaining that the FTZ territory shouldnt be considered as a territory of Azerbaijan.

All this is needed in order to attract companies, and that will create jobs for local youth, he added.

In addition, these companies shouldnt pay taxes, Hadi said.

They will bring profit through their investments, he noted.

Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree March 17, 2016, on measures to create a free trade zone type special economic area in the Alat township of Bakus Garadagh district.

A draft law on the free trade zone will be discussed during the fall session of the countrys parliament.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @MaksimTsurkov
'W: Two worlds' leading man, Lee Jong Suk, melted the hearts of fans in Taiwan on October 22. The South Korean celebrity known for his role as Kang Chul, reenacted some of the most memorable scenes in the drama.

W: Two Worlds has captured the hearts of Asia with its originality and added creativity by incorporating Webtoon fantasy with reality. The plot of the story is "A romance takes place between Kang Chul (Lee Jong-Suk), who is super rich and exist in the webtoon "W," and Oh Yeon-Joo (Han Hyo-Joo) who is a surgeon in the real world."

The actor wanted to thank his Taiwanese fans for supporting the MBC drama and making it a success. Lee Jong Suk has begun shooting his latest film 'VIP' which due to come out 2017.

You can see the full video on the event captured by fans below:
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28



By Leman Zeynalova  Trend:



A refusal by Iraq to cut or at least freeze its oil production would be a major stumbling block, Emma Richards, oil and gas analyst with BMI Research told Trend Oct.28.



Earlier, Iraq's Oil Minister Jabar Ali al-Luaibi said his country should be exempted from OPECs oil output restrictions as it was fighting a war with Islamic State (IS, aka ISIS, ISIL or Daesh) terrorist group.



Strong growth in production in Libya and Nigeria is also causing complications, as it requires a greater cut from other members to meet the target of 32.5-33 million barrels per day, said Richards. It is likely that they will need to raise the target, given the jump in production over September and October.



However, the analyst doesnt think that Iraqs refusal to cut the oil output will have a domino effect.



It appears that Iran, Libya and Nigeria will all be offered some form of exemption from the cut, she said. Venezuela could argue its case for an exemption on economic grounds, but its output is anyway in decline. It has also been the strongest proponent for a cut and is unlikely to want to risk the deal breaking down.



As for the possibility of setting a mandatory system for oil output by OPEC, Richards said that for a cut to be effective, individual quotas will need to be assigned.



However, the history of compliance with quotas is very poor and OPEC has no means of enforcing them, according to the analyst.



In my view, the impact on the global balance of supply and demand of any agreed OPEC cut will be relatively muted, she added.



In September, OPEC producers agreed during the informal meeting in Algiers to cut down the oil output to 32.5 million barrels per day (bpd) from current production of 33.24 million bpd.



How much each country will produce is to be decided at the next formal meeting of OPEC in November.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28



By Leman Zeynalova  Trend:



The volume of petroleum import from OPEC countries averaged at 3.422 million barrels per day in the first seven months of 2016, as compared to averagely 2.826 million barrels per day in the same period in 2015, according to the Monthly Energy Review of the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).



The average volume of petroleum import from OPEC stood at 3.431 million barrels per day in the first seven months of 2014, said the report.



The highest volume of petroleum import from OPEC countries in the first seven months of 2016 was recorded in July (3.803 million barrels per day), while the lowest level was observed in January (3.052 million barrels per day), according to the EIA.



This figure averaged at 2.894 million barrels per day in 2015, as compared to 3.237 million barrels per day in 2014.



World oil demand for 2016 is projected to increase by 1.2 million barrels per day (1.3 percent) to an average of 96.3 million barrels per day, the World Bank said in its Commodity Markets Outlook.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

Trend:

Officially presenting iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus mobile devices in Azerbaijan the Mobile operator Azercell Telecom also offers new beneficial proposal for its subscribers. In fact, the subscribers wishing to get iPhone 7 under extremely beneficial conditions will be able to realize it by paying only 89 manat a month and benefit from this modern smartphone and 30 GB Hedsiz Internet pack.

Customers who pre-order iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus beginning from October, 28 get 50 percent discount for the 1st month payment. Subscribers are advised to pre-order the device from October 28 to November 4 via Azercell website (www.azercell.com) and visit Azercells Customer Service Centers located in Tagiyev, 18, Besti Bagirova 2 and 28 May, 33A between November, 4-6.

The number of devices is limited.

The devises are the most advanced iPhone ever, featuring new advanced camera systems, the best battery life ever on an iPhone and water and dust resistance.

Azercell will continue to please its subscribers with new attractive services and campaigns further on.

The leader of the mobile communication industry of Azerbaijan and the biggest investor in the non-oil sector Azercell Telecom LLC was founded in 1996. With 48% share of Azerbaijans mobile market Azercells network covers 80% of the territory and 99,8% of population of the country. Currently, 4,5 million subscribers choose Azercell services.

Azercell has pioneered an important number of innovations in Azerbaijan, including GSM technology, advance payment system, 24/7 Customer Care, online customer services, GPRS/EDGE, M2M, MobilBank, one-stop- shop service offices Azercell Express, mobile e-service ASAN signature, etc. Azercell deployed first 4G  LTE services in Azerbaijan in 2012. According to the results of mobile network quality surveys of Global Wireless Solutions company and international systems specialized in wireless coverage mapping such as Opensignal and Testmy.net, Azercells network demonstrated the best results among the mobile operators of Azerbaijan.
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Oct. 28

By Huseyn Hasanov  Trend:

Governor of Russias Astrakhan region Alexander Zhilkin expressed interest in launching direct air traffic between Ashgabat and Astrakhan during his meeting with Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, the Neutral Turkmenistan newspaper reported.

The sides exchanged views on topical issues of cooperation in the trade and economic, transportation and communication spheres.

Turkmenistans projects on creating transnational transport-transit corridors in the directions of Iran, Afghanistan and India open prospects of expanding ties, said Zhilkin.

The sides also expressed interest in opening a wholesale and logistics center for promotion of Turkmen goods on the Russian market was expressed during the meeting.

The governor noted that all this will intensify the trade and economic relations of the two countries business circles, the development of tourist services, taking into account the Avaza national tourist zone, being formed on the coast of the Caspian Sea.

Turkmen president also noted that the development of direct effective contacts with regions and leading industrial, educational and cultural centers of Russia is one of the key aspects of the intergovernmental dialogue. About 190 companies with Russian capital operate in Turkmenistan.
Stephen Carufel, 55, of Eureka Springs, was sentenced on Thursday to 78 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release on each count of Money Laundering and Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine. The sentences are to run concurrent with each other for a total of 78 months imprisonment.

According to an investigator's affidavit, Eureka Springs police officers found 52 grams of methamphetamine on Jeffrey Vanroy after arresting him on an outstanding warrant. Vanroy said the methamphetamine had been sent by FedEx to the home of his uncle, Stephen Carufel, where Vanroy was living, and that he took the package when it was delivered knowing that it was meth. Officers were able to recover the FedEx shipping packaging from a trashcan in downtown Eureka Springs. It was addressed to Stephen Carufel in Eureka Springs, and the sender was an individual living in California.

Law Enforcement in California was notified, and they were able to identify the sender as being a resident there. Investigators learned that, between January 2015 and September 2015, at least 12 packages of methamphetamine had been sent from the source of supply in California to Carufel.

Agents obtained a search warrant for the senders residence and found more than one pound of meth and a receipt for one of the packages he had sent. They also obtained text messages between the source of supply and Carufel discussing the delivery and payment of the methamphetamine.

A search warrant was then obtained for Carufels residence in Eureka Springs, where agents found cancelled personal checks made out to the source of supply in California. From money gram receipts and Carufels bank records, they determined that he had sent more than $20,000 to his source of supply between April 2014 and June 2015.

After he was arrested and waived his Miranda rights, he told agents that he received approximately two ounces of methamphetamine at a time from the source in California. He stated that he had been receiving the shipments for about two years and had paid $900 per ounce using MoneyGram and personal checks.

Carufel and Vanroy were both indicted by a federal grand jury in March 2016 and both pleaded guilty in June 2016. Vanroy pleaded guilty to one count of Possession Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine and will be sentenced at a later date.

This case was investigated by the Homeland Security Investigations and the Eureka Springs Police Department.
A former Guinea-Bissau navy chief who was convicted in the US of drug trafficking has asked the president if he can resume his military career, reports the AFP news agency.

I have returned from a trip which took me away from the country for three years. Its normal that on my return that I come and see the armed forces commander in chief, Jose Americo Bubo Na Tchuto told reporters.

He was captured off the West African coast by US agents in 2013.

The indictment against him said he and two others were middlemen in a huge drug-smuggling operation which transported cocaine by vessel from South America to Guinea-Bissau, and then to store the cocaine in Guinea-Bissau before its shipment to other locations, including the United States.



Na Tchuto pleaded guilty at his trial in May 2014 and was detained in the US until his sentencing on 4 October.

He was sentenced to four years in jail by a New York federal court this month but was released for time already served and has returned home, the agency adds.

Follow Us on Facebook  @LadunLiadi; Instagram  @LadunLiadi; Twitter  @LadunLiadi; Youtube  @LadunLiadiTV for updates
Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Oct. 28

By Demir Azizov Trend:

The Airbus A321 flying from Moscow to Namangan (Uzbekistan) landed at Kazan airport late Friday due to a sick passenger on board.

The airbus departed from Kazan at 03:54 (UTC/GMT +3 hours) and successfully landed at the destination point, Uzbekistan Airways representative told Trend.

Airbus A321 made an emergency landing at Kazan International Airport due to the fact that one of the passengers who was a citizen of Uzbekistan was having throat bleeding, the source said.

The man was hospitalized.
After facing the threat of closure most of last year, and a brief period when it was officially closed, the UC San Diego Art Gallery (UAG) in Mandeville Center has re-opened its doors on campus.

A warm and appreciative crowd gathered at the gallery Oct. 7, for a photography show of past and present faculty and alumni works that will remain on display through Dec. 9. The show signals that the gallery is back on track, and marks the start of a full year of programming, which will feature six exhibitions plus numerous speakers and guests.

Extensions of Photography: A Visual Arts Faculty, Emeritus Faculty and Alumni Exhibition, was inspired by a larger exhibition currently on view at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego (MCASD), 700 Prospect St. in La Jolla, called Uses of Photography.

Both shows explore the influential experiments of the UCSD-affiliated artists and alumni whose explorations with photography lead to the transformation of the medium beginning in the 1960s. Uses of Photography focuses on 1960 to 1985, while Extensions of Photography starts at 1986 and brings the exhibitions to the current period.

Collectively, theyre meant to kick off the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the UCSD Visual Arts Department. The anniversary has the theme Art into Life, derived from founding faculty member Allen Kaprow (famous for his Happenings) who said that, The artist should blur the line between life and art. The artists in the current exhibitions make reference to the use of themes from everyday life, while incorporating humor and questioning photographys hidden conventions, and making explicit the politics involved in photographic representation.

The idea for a UCSD-based retrospective photography exhibit came from Jill Dawsey, MCASD gallery director who curated the show at her facility. She attended the UAG opening and spoke at length about her project.

Tatiana Sizonenko, who earned her Ph.D. from UCSD Visual Arts in 2013, curated the UAG show. In addition, shes been busy teaching at Cal State Long Beach, Cal State San Marcos, Grossmont Junior College, UCSD Extension, and the Design Institute of San Diego.

Sizonenko said she first received submissions from the artists by e-mail, and then had the ones she selected shipped to the gallery  some from quite far away  and began hanging and installing the works in July.

Professor Jack Greenstein, a Renaissance art specialist who is the current chair of the Visual Arts Department, opened the evening with thank yous to all who contributed to the show. He then put things into perspective, This show opens our celebration of the 50th anniversary of the department. This show looks back. Next year we will look forward.

On hand for the opening was Gerry McAllister, who was UAG director for over 20 years. McAllister earned both her BA and MFA from the UCSD Visual Arts Department and stepped into the role of gallery chief after graduation.

Also present was former MFA alumni and department art instructor Peter Phillips, known for the giant M&M candies his students made and placed around Mandeville Auditorium during the undergraduate art shows. One of Phillips popular performance-art pieces was to drive a Chevy van converted into a military tank into the Price Center Plaza from which a horde of Hawaiian hula dancers emerged, followed by Phillips in a brass band uniform tooting on a trombone.

Another popular show built and directed by Phillips was The Ark, a huge wooden Noahs Ark-like structure filled with art objects and surrounded by large paper-mache animals, which was installed on Sun God lawn.

The exhibit led one faculty member to point out that back in the day, when the entire departments innovations in photography were taking place, the faculty wasnt thinking about shifting the conventions of photography, but simply trying to make art. All the shifts in convention occurred as an afterthought or an unplanned development!

Master works on display

Some of the most striking pieces in the UAG show include a long-frame photo of the backsides of a line of male and female Japanese full-body tattoo recipients by alumnus Kip Fulbeck, who now teaches at UC Santa Barbara. Then there are some of Eleanor Antins hyper-real staged photographs of people dressed in attire from the days of the Roman Empire, and a saucy black-and-white vaudeville film, depicting her fictional personality, Eleanor Antinova, the African-American ballerina.

Kim MacConnel has lent giant photographs from his travels in Egypt that are quite complex, and Jean Lowe shares a huge photograph of what looks like a bookshelf full of books that might be found in the library at the House at Pooh Corner.

Coming next to UAG

The winter quarter show will be, Harold Cohen, Creating Computational Creativity, honoring the memory of Professor Cohen, a pioneer in computing and the arts. The spring quarter exhibition is titled, Making Communities: Art and The Border, a multi-media exhibition of art practices related to the border. The school year finale will feature the undergraduate art show and another titled, Now Again: A Survey of UAG Artists.

IF YOU GO: University Art Gallery is open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday in Mandeville Center. Admission is free. A related exhibit, Artists and Language, is on display at UCSDs Geisel Library through Jan. 8. It covers the print publications of faculty and graduate students associated with the Visual Arts Department. For more information, visit uag.ucsd.edu
The SLFP does not condone the continuation of the Emergency Regulations (The Public Security Ordinance) more than a day necessary

Read more
Tehran, Iran, Oct. 28

By Mehdi Sepahvand  Trend:

Tehran has said it will turn on the flow of natural gas to Turkey by October 31 after an explosion in the Turkish territory halted the supplies on October 27 evening.

Necessary coordination is being carried out with the Turkish Botas company to resume Irans exports, Director of Gas Exports Measurement Facilities at Iran-Turkey Border Sadeq Akbarpour told the YJC October 28.

Turkey-Iran gas pipeline was blown up in Agri province of Turkey in what Iranian sources called an act of opposition groups.

Akbarpour underlined that Tehran is ready to supply Turkey with its required gas whenever it voices its readiness.

Iran is Turkeys second supplier of gas after Russia, providing one-fifth of the countrys consumption. The current volume of natural gas that Iran is piping to its northwestern neighbor is 30 million cubic meters per day.
PRESS RELEASE

Trump Puts Glass-Steagall in the Thick of the Election Campaign

Oct. 27, 2016 (EIRNS)About halfway through his campaign speech yesterday in Charlotte, North Carolinatouted on his website as his policy for "urban renewal for Americas inner cities" Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said:

"I will also pursue financial reforms to make it easier for young African-Americans to get credit to pursue their dreams in business and create jobs in their communities. Dodd-Frank has been a disaster, making it harder for small businesses to get the credit they need. The policies of the Clintons brought us the financial recessionthrough lifting Glass-Steagall, pushing subprime lending, and blocking reforms to Fannie and Freddie. Its time for a 21st-century Glass Steagall and, as part of that, a priority on helping African-American businesses get the credit they need."

A few paragraphs later, Trump added: "Equal justice also means the same rules for Wall Street. The Obama Administration never held Wall Street accountable."

Later in the speech, Trump also warned that Hillary Clintons policies could lead to World War III. After ripping into her and President Obamas failures in Libya, Iraq, Egypt, Syria, the Russian Reset, the Asia Pivot, etc., Trump stated: "Now, Hillary Clinton wants to confront nuclear-armed Russia with a shooting war in Syria that could lead us into World War III." In an earlier speech in Florida, Trump had also warned that the US could "end up in World War III if you listen to Hillary Clinton."

Trumps call for Glass-Steagall is getting some coverage in the U.S. media. For example, Reuters headlined its wire: "Trump calls for 21st century Glass-Steagall banking law," and notes that the Republican Party has that in its platform (but fails to mention that it is also in the Democratic Party platform). The article reports that Glass-Steagall was repealed under Bill Clinton.

Lyndon LaRouche commented today that what Trump said is a credible idea, but is it true? Hillary is a foul ball and has to be politically wiped out, but that doesnt make the other side geniuses, necessarily. Theres a question as to Trumps seriousness. We dont know at this point, but we have to find out whats behind this. But the issue is on the table, so people cant duck it.
PRESS RELEASE

Unasur Leader: Bioceanic Railroad Will Integrate All of South America

Oct. 27, 2016 (EIRNS)In a press conference in La Paz today, following his meeting with Bolivian President Evo Morales, Ernesto Samper Pizano, Secretary General of the Union of South American Nations (Unasur), underscored the importance of the proposed bioceanic railroad as a continental integration project, which will provide needed economic benefits to the nations involved.

Samper emphasized that while the train will be "the backbone of the Bolivian economy," the project is a multinational one, which will involve countries such as Brazil, Argentina, Peru, and now, most likely Paraguay, whose government has proposed joining the project by building a rail line to connect the bioceanic route with the Parana-Paraguay Waterway.

"This is a project we support," he said, and reported that President Morales has given him the green light to pursue Chinese financing for the project, possibly through credits China has offered to the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (Celac) and Unasur for regional projects, the daily La Razon reported. Samper said that Unasur will explore with China the possibility of building "regional trains" as well, to unite all nations of the region.

The Unasur leader particularly praised Evo Morales for his leadership in promoting regional integration through the proposed railroad at a moment of "certain desperation about the regional economic crisis," Sputnik reported. Samper invited the nations of the region to join the project, and to seek integration "instead of disintegration." This is a project "of integration, of union," he affirmed.

Its estimated that by 2021, the 3,700-kilometer railroad will carry 7 million passengers and almost 10 million tons of cargo, a figure that would increase to 24 million tons by 2055. The estimated cost of the project is $10 billion.
PRESS RELEASE

Warnings of Obama-Clinton Drive for World War III

Oct. 27, 2016 (EIRNS)A senior Russian official speaking at the Valdai Forum ripped a hole in the wide-spread media hype that Russian President Vladimir Putin is a provocateur who is itching for a confrontation with the United States. According to an Oct. 26 Bloomberg wire, a senior Russian official "who spoke on Valdais traditional condition of anonymity," spoke about a Cabinet meeting where Putin reported on a "high risk" incident a number of months ago in which Russian planes had buzzed U.S. ships in the Black Sea, and that some people at the table cheered with phrases such as "they deserve it." Putin, the senior official said, shut them down, saying, "Are you crazy?"

The Bloomberg article then cited Sergei Karaganov (a Columbia University political science professor) saying that "the current situation is just like that in the 1960s, when the world was on the brink of war," and that we are "sleepwalking" in that direction. Fyodor Lukyanov, of Russias Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, and also research director of the Valdai Club, said that the recent collapse of cease-fire attempts in Syria was a "watershed" for Russia, convincing them that nothing would come of that track.

The Guardian on Oct. 25 ran an article attacking Hillary Clintons call for a no-fly zone in Syria, saying it "could provoke U.S.-Russia conflict." It began by taking note that Trump had warned that the proposal would "lead to World War Three," and then quoted a number of U.S. intelligence and military officials attacking the idea. John Kuehn, a retired navy office who flew no-fly zone missions over Bosnia and Iraq, said of Hillary: "If she is not politically posturing, its going to be a disaster. I hope its political posturing." David Deptula, a retired air force Lt. Gen., said: "Until a strategy that defines the desired end-state is clearly laid out in a comprehensive way, its difficult to advocate for a no-fly zone. Right now, the way its being discussed, its a solution in search of a strategy ... a no-fly zone is a non-starter." Kuehn added that an escalation could occur by accident under a no-fly zone, and that "I see almost nothing positive that can come from implementing [a no-fly zone] at the current time over Syria. Conversely, the potential to make a bad situation worse is very, very high."
One of the decisions series fiction writers must make is whether to let their characters age or keep them anchored to a specific time period. There is no right or wrong choice, as the success of Sue Grafton can attest  her heroine, Kinsey Milhone, has aged less than 10 years over 24 novels. Conversely, Michael Connellys seminal hero, Hieronymus Harry Bosch, first appeared in his early forties, when he served on the LAPD Hollywood Divisions Homicide unit (1992s The Black Echo), followed by stints in the departments storied Robbery-Homicide Division, early retirement and forays into private investigation work, before returning to the LAPD, where he worked in RHDs Open-Unsolved Unit until being forced into retirement in his mid-sixties.

The Wrong Side of Goodbye finds Bosch, like many baby boomers, working a couple of jobs to keep himself busy and contributing to the private-college education of his daughter. Boschs PI work pays the bills while he undertakes volunteer work investigating cold cases at the San Fernando Police Department, a small municipal force recently decimated by cutbacks, keeping him close to his mission of getting justice for crime victims.



For the record: This article misspells the name of Sue Graftons literary heroine as Kinsey Milhone. The fictional characters surname is Millhone.

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Boschs latest private client comes to him through John Creighton, a former LAPD deputy chief and now a well-heeled executive at Trident Security, providing high-level security for those who can afford it. One of Tridents clients, Whitney Vance, is the wealthy and powerful chairman of Advance Engineering, a company that supplies helicopters and stealth technologies to the U.S. military. Vance has personally requested Bosch for an assignment he will only reveal to the detective. The request for a meeting with Vance  accompanied by a $10,000 check for his trouble  sends Bosch to the reclusive billionaires Pasadena mansion, where he learns that Vance wants Bosch to locate a possible child and heir, born around 1950 when the then-USC engineering student fell in love and fathered a child with a 16-year-old Mexican immigrant named Vibiana Duarte. Vances father forbade the relationship and presumably sent Duarte away, perhaps back to Mexico. Now 85 and near the end of his life, Vance wants Bosch to secretly find Duarte and their now middle-aged child so he can make amends.

Bosch sneaks in database searches during his hours as volunteer reservist with the San Fernando PD. He must tread carefully in his search for Duarte and her child  not only would Advance Engineerings Board of Directors and Tridents security minions do anything to thwart his efforts of find an heir to the Vance fortune and company, but accessing law enforcement databases on non-police business is both a firing offense and a violation of California law.

The cold case hes working on is the search for a masked rapist whos been using screen cutters to enter the homes of Latinas in San Fernando over the past four years and assaulting them  most disconcertingly, while they were ovulating.

Bosch calls on Megan Hill, a friend and retired FBI profiler, to give him some insights into the Screen Cutters motives and psychology, which he and partner Bella Lourdes, a young detective in the department, use to redouble their efforts to find associated cases in other jurisdictions or to consider going public with their theories on the suspect, an approach which Bosch rejects. Predators didnt stop, he knows. They just adapted and continued, moving like sharks to the next victim. Bosch didnt want to move the threat to another community. He felt a moral obligation to chase the suspect down here where he was active.

Michaell Connelly with Matthew McConaughey, who played Mickey Haller in The Lincoln Lawyer, based on Connellys book (Jay Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

When hes not working the Screen Cutter case, Bosch search for Vances former lover leads him to a home for pregnant teens that operated in the 50s, finding a now-elderly woman who worked there and remembers what happened to Duarte and her infant. Connelly toggles smoothly between the two cases, at times a meditative journey through Boschs remembrances of the Vietnam War, where he was transported in Advance Engineerings helicopters, but which also includes a tribute to Dodgers announcer Vin Scully; name-checks jazz artists and great L.A. eateries; and the ever-changing landscape of Southern California.

In the process, readers will appreciate Harry Bosch not only as an intrepid investigator but a man whose identification with and allegiance to societys underdogs make him acutely aware of prejudice against Latinos and homosexuals and the unconscious white privilege asserted by Vance and his associates, as well as his own half-brother Mickey Haller, who makes a brief, crucial appearance.

While The Wrong Side of Goodbye may not stand shoulder-to-shoulder with some of the stronger entries in the Bosch oeuvre  or boast the high-octane, blood-spattered crimes  it is immensely satisfying to see Boschs sustained and deepened passion for his mission Everybody counts or nobody counts  undiminished by age or circumstance, even as a younger generation of detectives of all colors and orientations share the stage to carry on the work that has given Bosch, and this series, such an enduring appeal. Harry Bosch and his law enforcement heirs are still fighting the good fight, luckily, for us all.

Woods is a member of the National Book Critics Circle, an editor and author of the Charlotte Justice mystery series.

Coming up:

What: Michael Connelly signs The Wrong Side of Goodbye and gets a star on the Vromans Bookstore Walk of Fame

Where: Vromans Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena

When: 5 p.m. Nov. 4

Tickets: Free

The Wrong Side of Goodbye

By Michael Connelly

Little, Brown: 400 pp., $29.00
Imagine all the different ways people smoke. Theres the cinematic post-coital smoke, the break-up-the-work-day smoke, the pack-a-day smoke, the one-a-day smoke, the-I-only-smoke-at-parties smoke, the hiding-it-from-everyone smoke, and the long-slow-deep-drag-of-cool-Didionesque-contemplation smoke, to name a very few.

There are dozens of descriptions of smoking in Nell Zinks fourth book, Nicotine, but if the book is a metaphorical cigarette break, it is a lesser known variant: the cigarette as smoked by Rob, one of Zinks characters who is so addicted to nicotine that he cant get an erection and claims asexuality instead. Rob tears apart his cigarettes, pulls out the tobacco and eats it and spits  his habit is frenzied and furious and ravenous, and so is the pace and taste of the novel.

Tobacco-chewer Rob is one of several activist squatters occupying a house theyve nicknamed Nicotine in Jersey City, N.J. Its a part of a collective of activist-occupied abodes in the neighborhood. But the common cause that binds Robs housemates together isnt AIDS or Occupy or Black Lives Matter ... its that they are all smokers. As smokers they are outliers in their radical community of protesters, they are looked down on and ostracized for smoking during marches  they are fringe within the fringe.

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Bravo to Zink for realizing the full comedic potential of Americas rather rapid move away from its nicotine addiction, particularly during a time when everything feels so at stake, so nerve wracked and so helplessly rigged. (This novel is effortlessly current, by the way, so on target that Trumps campaign is mentioned.) Zink expertly demonstrates how addled, anxious and alone Americans are and how in need of a drag of something they are to calm the collective nerves.

They wouldnt even let me smoke at a NORML smoke-in, a Nicotine house resident called Sorry explains. They said nicotine is a nerve poison, and they were drinking ... beer. And so the smokers have made a safe space for themselves. Yet they bicker. Robs roommate,Jazz, who describes her own habit as a suicide method (the slowest, most decadent method I know. Slower than slitting my wrists) cant help but criticize Robs way of ingesting nicotine. [A]t least Ill have lung cancer that spirits me away quickly, she says to him, while you get tumors right in your  face. How you can eat cigarettes, Ill never understand.

The dwellers of the smoking Shangri-la are discovered squatting by Penny, Nicotines protagonist, a recent college grad and grieving young daughter of the homes rightful owner, Norm Baker. Norm ran a robust business as a self-appointed Shamanistic healer of sorts and had a healthy old-school hippie following but, despite his near-guru status and supposed expertise in how to live life, when he dies he leaves his family in a dissociative state and his estate in shambles. Penny is almost completely alone in tending to her ailing father in the weeks of his decline. His wife doesnt visit him much, son Mark visits only once, son Patrick not at all.

Pennys mother and brothers task her with investigating the condition of her dads neglected childhood home. She decides that she should fix it up and, perhaps, make a home for herself, but when she arrives she discovers the squatters  Rob in particular catches her ey  and instead of chasing them out she keeps her identity secret and begins to make room for herself in their community as a way of coping with her grief and her own fractured family.

Jobless, aimless and nearly homeless, it would be too easy to describe Penny as lost. Her two older brothers are both wealthy and secure in jobs. Her mother, a first-generation immigrant escaping despairing poverty in Colombia, is a powerhouse of wild achievement. But only Penny is able to be present for the reality of Norms death, and they treat her as the black sheep for it. As a result, Penny finds herself receiving more comfort from near strangers than she does from her family.

It would also be too easy to label Nicotine as a satire of activist and Occupy culture. Its more than that, and Zink is too fond of her marginalized characters to betray them that way. What Zink is getting at is something about all people at all levels of society, insiders and outsiders, TTIP promoters and TTIP protesters  we cant but help divide and place each other in boxes, in a way were all smokers criticizing the tobacco chewers. We are terrible at working together and unifying. In Nicotine, everyone is like-minded but labeled as something else: gay, straight, cis, femme, tomboy, babe, monster, rapist. Throughout the novel Penny is on the receiving end of naive and uninformed perceptions about her Colombian heritage. If Zinks young enlightened activists cant stop but pigeonholing each other, what hope is there for the rest of humanity?

Pennys entry into the land of Nicotine is just one aspect of this wild and nervy novel. Zink is a master of rapid character development, shifting perspectives, sex scenes and plot twists. Her descriptions of Brooklyn and Jersey City gentrification are spot-on, as is her depiction of the off-the-grid activist lifestyle. Everything happens so fast. Theres not a lot of time for reflection before something goes up in smoke. Reading it I felt nearly breathless at times, and caught myself both holding my breath and gulping for air.

Despite this asthmatic feeling, and my I hatred of smoking, Nicotine was so addictive it made me want to reach for a cigarette when I was done.

Devers, a writer and critic, is a contributing editor at Longreads.com and A Public Space. She lives in London.

Nicotine

By Nell Zink

Ecco: 304 pp., $26.99
South Korean automakers Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. are to pay $41.2 million to California, 32 other states and the District of Columbia to settle an investigation into their fuel economy ratings.

California gets the largest share of the settlement money: $3 million, according to state Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris office.

The fine is the latest in the ongoing fallout from misstated mileage numbers on more than 1.2 million vehicles in the United States.

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In 2012, Hyundai and Kia restated the mileage on one-quarter of their 2011-2013 model year vehicles after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency questioned their mileage numbers. The companies deny they violated the law, and instead cite lack of clarity in EPA test procedures.

According to the EPA, the automakers had overstated the fuel economy by one to six miles per gallon, depending on the vehicle.

Even with our adjusted ratings, we are encouraged that Hyundai continues to lead the automotive industry in fuel efficiency and environmental performance, David Zuchowski, president and chief executive of Hyundai Motor America, said in a statement this week.

Hyundai and Kia  sibling companies whose U.S. headquarters are in Fountain Valley and Irvine, respectively  paid $300 million in penalties to the U.S. government in 2014. They say they have also reimbursed about 75% of customers.

California consumers deserve reliable and accurate information regarding the environmental impacts of the cars they buy, Harris said in a statement. Kia and Hyundai misrepresented the fuel economy of its vehicles, misled consumers and contributed to more greenhouse gas emissions.

A class-action lawsuit remains subject to an ongoing appeal.

Times staff writer Lauren Raab contributed to this report.

ALSO

Surprise: Tesla turns a profit for the first time in three years

Ubers self-driving truck makes its first commercial delivery: beer

Is electric car start-up Faraday Future already running out of cash?
By Emil Ilgar  Trend:

Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct.28

The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps major General Gholamreza Samaei was killed in Syria, Mizan news agency, the official website of Irans Judiciary System reported.

Gen.Samaei was killed on Oct.26, the report said without giving further information about the place and details.

The report said that he was in Syria, to provide consultancy to the Syrian army.

Before, another IRGCs high ranking official Gen. Ahmad Gholami was killed in fighting with the Islamic State (IS, ISIS,ISIL) terrorist group near Aleppo in northern Syria on Aug. 30, Irans ISNA news agency reported.

Both Samaei and Gholami were the IRGC commanders during the Iran-Iraq war (1980-1988).

Over the past few years and since the crisis broke out in Syria and Iraq, several commanders of the IRGC have been reportedly killed in clashes with "terrorists".

Iranian officials have constantly denied that their servicemen have boots on ground in Syria and Iraq, saying the officers of the Islamic Republic are in Syria and Iraq as advisers at official request from both countries' governments.
Paula Schwartz of West Los Angeles says Obamacare has helped her afford medical coverage while she cares for her aging mother. But next year, her payments will jump $92 a month, or 57%.

Schwartz, 56, said her new monthly cost of $254 is still about half of what she was paying for coverage before Obamacare. But she worries that those premiums will only continue to rise. Already, she said, the bill has doubled in the programs first three years.

Unless there are price controls, we will be back where we were before the law took effect, Schwartz said.

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California has been lauded for creating its own online insurance market, which experts say helped to sharply reduce the share of people without coverage and kept rate hikes lower than elsewhere for the vast majority of policyholders.

Almost 90% of Californians getting insurance from the exchange receive taxpayer-provided assistance to help them afford the premiums.

But as Californians receive their premium rates for next year, some  including those who make too much to qualify for those government subsidies  are learning that their hikes will be far higher than the average statewide increase of 13.2% announced by the state insurance exchange in July.

Open enrollment on the Covered California exchange begins Nov. 1.

Woodland Hills resident Barry Levine, 55, opened a letter from Anthem BlueCross to find that he would be paying 26% more for a policy that provides less coverage. Levine said he is semiretired and living off investment earnings. He doesnt have access to employer-provided insurance.

His monthly premium is rising from $410 to $517, while the deductibles and co-pays for doctors visits are increasing. On top of that, Anthem has changed the plans design to a so-called exclusive provider organization, or EPO  which means that it no longer pays even a portion of care received outside the insurers network.

Do I need to wear a necklace that says, Please take me to a BlueCross hospital if I happen to pass out? Levine asked. Every year they cut out things they reimburse for. The value of the benefits is going away.

Cases of premium sticker shock are happening across the country. This week federal officials said the premium for a mid-level plan on the federal-run exchange used by 39 states will rise an average of 25% next year  nearly double Californias increase.

In the Oct. 24 report, Obama officials said that insurers had underestimated the costs of extending coverage to people with pre-existing conditions  who could be excluded from insurance before the presidents health law passed.

The administration said that even with the large jump in 2017 rates, premiums will still be roughly in line with initial projections by the Congressional Budget Office before the laws passage.

One reason that rates are moderated in California is that more insurers are participating in the states exchange, increasing competition and giving consumers more plans to choose from.

State officials say by shopping on the exchange, and switching to a lower-priced plan, most California consumers could pay an increase of just 5% or less this year.

Yet in switching to another plan, many people may have to change doctors and hospitals. They also may get less coverage.

There will be a time of adjustment, said Lizelda Lopez, a spokeswoman for Covered California. All of this will take a lot of time, as a country, to fix.

Neither Schwartz nor Levine blame their increased costs on President Obamas law, officially known as the Affordable Care Act. They point out that healthcare costs were soaring even before the law  and that trend has not changed.

Before Obamacare, Schwartz said she was paying premiums of about $500 month and had a much bigger deductible. But she said she worries that her fast-rising payments will soon return to that level.

Levine said before the law was passed, he had many more choices of coverage levels. Now the plans have designs that mirror each other, he said, and his deductible is far higher.

The cost was already increasing before the law was passed, Levine said. Its very difficult to say whether you are in a better place.

Gerald Kominski, director of the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, tied 2017s higher rates to the phase-out of federal payments that insurers received in the first three years under the law. The payments had helped lower costs for those insurers with the highest medical expenses.

Thats creating this shock, Kominski said. It was anticipated but it doesnt make it any easier.

Kominski said that some people may be finding big percentage increases in what they pay monthly because taxpayer-provided subsidies that help them afford their premiums are not going up as fast as some insurers costs.

Schwartzs monthly premium from Blue Shield of California is $696, but subsidies cut her payment to $254. Thats $92 a month more than last year.

On her limited budget, she says the increase will force her to cut back on other expenses.

State officials said anyone concerned about their new rates should go to the online exchange at www.coveredca.com to look at the costs of other plans or talk to a counselor.

But many policyholders are reluctant to change plans because, like Schwartz, they want to keep their doctors.

I will stay with this plan, Schwartz said, and cut back on things like going out to eat.

This year, Anthem and Blue Shield hiked their rates more dramatically than the states other insurers. Blue Shields premiums jumped an average of just under 20% statewide, while Anthems increased more than 16%.

Insurers raising their premiums have blamed rising overall health costs as well as having too many sick patients compared with those who are healthier and use less medical care.

Stephen Shivinsky, a Blue Shield spokesman, noted that the law also allows insurers to increase rates as a person ages. He encouraged those concerned about increases to call Blue Shield to find out about other options.

Anthem spokesman Darrel Ng said the insurer had to increase rates as it learned more about medical expenses of those enrolled in its Obamacare plans.

Factors such as increased use of medical services and added costs of drugs and medical therapies put upward pressure on rates, Ng said, and underscore the additional work that needs to be done to moderate the growth in healthcare costs.

Levine has a Bronze plan, which has a $6,800 deductible, up from $6,500 last year. This year, Anthem has ended out-of-network coverage in its Bronze plans, turning them into EPOs, throughout much of the state.

That means Levine will be paying $517 month for a policy he says he may not even use.

It has turned into a catastrophic policy, he said, referring to plans intended to only cover large unexpected medical bills.

Ng at Anthem noted that the state requires EPO plans to continue to cover emergency care at any hospital.

In July, Obama administration officials said that national health spending is expected to average more than $10,000 a person this year for the first time in history. By 2025, the administration said, healthcare will represent more than 20% of the economy, up from 17.5% in 2014.

Despite the rising costs, Covered California has worked successfully to greatly reduce the number of uninsured people. Between 2013 and 2015, the share of working-age adults in California without coverage fell from 23.7% to 11.1%, according to federal data. Only three states saw larger declines over the same period.

Were proud of what weve been able to do in California, Lopez said.

Melody.petersen@latimes.com

Follow @melodypetersen on Twitter

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This article was originally published at 6 a.m. Oct. 28.
Amid this years dark and divisive presidential election, the 2012 campaign can feel like a distant memory. But four years ago this month, a flurry of stories focused on corporate chief executives who were ominously telling their workers what might happen if President Obama won a second term. And Mitt Romney himself encouraged business owners to make it very clear to your employees what you believe is in the best interest of your enterprise and therefore their job and their future in the upcoming elections.

Although the 2016 campaign hasnt brought the same kind of headlines, its not because the law has really changed. It is still legal for corporations to advocate for specific candidates when communicating with their rank-and-file employees. Private employers can distribute materials that tell all their workers the companys positions on political issues. And if your boss were to send an email urging you to attend a rally for Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton this weekend, because electing his favorite candidate is essential for the future of the company, legal experts say hed be within his rights.

Many workers may never hear a political pitch from their boss, but it can still be surprising to hear what workers and their employers can and cant do when it comes to mixing politics and work. Six years after the Supreme Courts Citizens United decision gave employers greater ability to express their political views and engage in unlimited independent political spending, experts say some legal questions remain unresolved.

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In a private company, employees are often surprised to hear they dont have the 1st Amendment rights they do outside the workplace, says Lindsay Burke, vice chair of the employment law practice at Covington & Burling in Washington. Companies cant prohibit workers from talking about labor issues and working conditions during workplace breaks, so a cafeteria debate over Trumps position on the minimum wage or water cooler chatter over Clintons parental leave policies should be protected. But employers can ban staffers from soliciting donations from their co-workers for political candidates. And technically, companies could ban other political speech in the workplace, even if few of them try to police it.

One type of campaign banter that should get more scrutiny, however, is anything that creates a harassing or discriminatory workplace, Burke says. In an election thats lurched from controversial statements about one protected class after another, shes gotten complaints from clients about workers making distasteful jokes about building walls.

Employers, meanwhile, have seen their rights grow when it comes to political speech, especially since the Citizens United decision expanded the 1st Amendment rights of corporations and unions. Corporations can now encourage rank-and-file employees to make contributions to candidates. The decision has also made corporations more comfortable with giving all employees voter guides that make their political positions clear, says Ken Gross, who leads the political law practice at Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom in Washington.

When it comes to employment law, some states, such as California and Louisiana, offer workers protection from discrimination regarding their political views. But at the federal level, such protections are weak, says Debra Katz, a Washington labor lawyer who represents employees, meaning its possible workers could be terminated for objecting to the companys political activities. Other than in certain states, there is a failure of the law to provide any type of protection for political affiliation discrimination or refusal to engage in political activity that your employer asks you to engage in, Katz says. That is clear as a bell.

Many point to high-profile decisions by the Federal Election Commission to close two complaints involving Murray Energy. The complaints alleged the Ohio coal mining company mandated that workers attend a Mitt Romney rally in 2012  images of miners standing behind the shirt-sleeved GOP nominee were later used in Romney advertisements  as well as that the company pressured workers to make donations to the companys political action committee, reimbursing them with bonuses.

In both cases, the commissioners deadlocked along party lines, closing the complaints without taking any action. (In a company statement emailed by a spokesperson, Murray Energy said it was pleased the FEC ruled there were no issues. The company and its CEO consider these matters closed, and will continue to vigorously exercise their rights to participate in the political process as the law allows.)

A 2015 survey of about 1,000 U.S. employees conducted by a Harvard researcher found that 25% said they experienced some kind of political message from their employer, ranging from simple voter registration efforts at work to messages about political candidates. Seven percent of the respondents said they felt these messages were somewhat coercive and another 7% said strongly coercive.

Yet others say the risk of behavior like the kind described in the Murray complaints is quite low. Gross, whose practice counsels a few hundred large publicly traded companies on election issues, says he doesnt see clients testing those gray areas. I have to say the Citizens United impact has been minimal, he says, noting clients are not that adventuresome.

It just doesnt go over well in the workplace, to really be pushing hard for one candidate or the other, he says. It can backfire and it can be bad business.

Jena McGregor writes about leadership in the news for the Washington Posts On Leadership section.
Bay Area resident Joseph Dougherty landed a new job in Los Angeles and needed an apartment fast. A small company out of West Covina called Prime Source Solutions said it had him covered.

For $200, Dougherty said the rental agency promised him a sweet deal: It would act like a broker, giving him lists of apartments for rent and then setting up appointments to view them.

If he didnt find a home through Prime, Dougherty said the company vowed to refund most of the money. If he did, that amount would go toward his security deposit.

Wow, this is a great deal, the 24-year-old recalled thinking when he signed up in January. They basically do all the work for you.

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It didnt work out that way. Dougherty said he visited the handful of apartments he was told he could view the day he signed up, but nobody ever showed to let him in.

The Amtrak worker said he ended up finding a place on his own, and Prime Source denied his refund  despite its previous promise.

Its a big hit for me, he said. Im living paycheck to paycheck.

Prime Sources manager denied the refund was owed and insisted that many customers have used the company successfully to find a home.

But in a region where apartments are in short supply and have never been more expensive, stories such as Doughertys are on the rise as desperate renters look for any help they can to secure housing.

This is just preying on people in a tight market, where people are being displaced left and right.  Larry Gross, executive director of the Coalition for Economic Survival, a tenantsa rights organization

While agencies with known track records like Westside Rentals do exist, authorities and consumer groups say a growing number of listing services are fly-by-night operators offering help that often never materializes or is marginal at best.

This is just preying on people in a tight market, where people are being displaced left and right, said Larry Gross, executive director of the Coalition for Economic Survival, a tenants rights organization.

Among other problems are fake landlords who persuade consumers to apply for a credit check, only to steal their personal information, said Steve McFarland, president of the Better Business Bureau of Los Angeles County and Silicon Valley.

People are desperate, said McFarland, who cautioned consumers to be wary of ads where rent seems too good to be true.

Prepaid rental listing services, in particular, have drawn complaints for decades, spurring action from the state Legislature and repeated investigations and sanctions by the California Bureau of Real Estate. Problems continue in part because bad actors rarely face significant criminal or civil penalties.

If someone would get prosecuted, if someone finally got arrested and did the perp walk and [went] to court, it might send a message to the others to knock it off, said Phillip Ihde, a deputy commissioner for the California Bureau of Real Estate, an agency that polices such schemes but has limited powers.

Consumers hire the services with the hope of quickly finding an apartment  usually a time-consuming, unwieldy process when scouring free online ads. The services typically charge $200 for a list of apartments that consumers often believe are exclusive.

In reality, the apartments do not exist or were not for rent in the first place, Ihde said. In other cases, listings are simply pulled from free-online websites and the companies dont follow through on promises to set up showings or put a portion of the fee toward a security deposit. When consumers dont find a home through the services, they often are denied refunds even though California law requires one.

The real estate bureau is investigating about a dozen such cases in Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties. But after it takes action to revoke a license or stop a service from operating without one, it cant do much more.

In 2013, Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill that boosted protections for consumers using rental listing services and made enforcement easier for the bureau. But Ihde said dubious rental services are on the rise because of the drum-tight rental market and lack of action from agencies other than his own.

They just keep coming, he said.

With little fear of reprisals, the people behind the schemes find ways of doing business.

For years, a company called Platinum Consulting has operated out of a Rosemead strip mall, racking up consumer complaints that repeatedly have drawn the attention of the states real estate bureau.

In 2010, the agency ordered Platinum to stop operating without a license.

In August 2014, after The Times published a story highlighting tenant complaints about the company, the agency accused Platinum Consulting  then operating under the license of real estate broker Carlos Martinez  of not giving requested refunds, even though apartments for which they provided lists did not exist or were not for rent.

Martinez denied those charges.

In the end, an administrative law judge found the bureau did not prove that Platinum improperly denied refunds or that it gave listings for apartments that did not exist or were not for rent.

The judge, however, ruled that Platinums refund policy did not comply with the law. Thats because it mandated that clients collect a certain number of listings for the entire 90-day contract and then turn them in  a practice that would require clients to keep using the business even after finding a place on their own or deciding not to move.

Martinezs license was revoked, but he was allowed to apply for a restricted one, which would allow him to continue operating the company. He received it late last year.

The complaints, meanwhile, continue.

In July, Alexander Houston sued Platinum for $195 alleging false advertisement. In an interview, Houston said he was living at the Midnight Mission on skid row when the company promised to find him a place before his Section 8 voucher, which provides a monthly rent subsidy, expired.

I only had like two weeks, he said. I was really desperate.

Houston said Platinum gave him a handful of listings in February and then promised that the landlords would call him soon to set up appointments. None did, Houston said.

I got screwed, he said. It was like throwing away $200. I cant give away $200. I need it. I am broke.

Houston was denied a refund. In a letter, Platinum explained that he had failed to collect twice-weekly rental listings for his entire 90-day contract and then turn the listings in  the same refund requirements that the administrative judge previously ruled did not comply with the law.

Martinez did not return calls seeking comment. Shortly before Houston and Platinum were scheduled to appear in court, Houston said he got a refund check in the mail for $135. He eventually found a rental in South Los Angeles on his own.

Sometimes the services change their names and pop up in different locations, Ihde said.

In 2014, the bureau ordered Valley to Valley Rentals to stop operating without a license. The agency said the Covina company acted in bad faith when it denied a client a refund after giving the person listings that failed to meet certain criteria, including the availability of the property.

Among those who ran the company was Frank Bennett, who was listed as a manager in a 2013 filing with the California secretary of state.

A year after the bureau first took action against the company, complaints begun appearing on Yelp for a firm just down the road called Prime Source Solutions  also managed by Bennett.

Six customers told The Times about a host of problems, including the inability to reach Prime to get more listings or set up appointments, promised viewings where no one showed up and landlords who had never heard of Prime and were offering their units at a different rent than what Prime had advertised.

Only two customers  after complaints to the Better Business Bureau, multiple follow-up calls and initial pushback  said they got a refund. All said the services they paid for were useless.

Jezreel Escobar, who was denied a refund, said the listings were sometimes a complete joke.

The last time they sent me a listing, they sent a senior center, the 27-year-old said.

In late September, the real estate bureau ordered Bennett and two other individuals, Julio Segovia and Henry Chen, to stop operating Prime Source without a licensee. The agency said that all three also had run Valley to Valley and that Prime failed to provide clients with listings or appointments and then didnt give requested refunds.

Every company is going to have unsatisfied clients, Bennett said in an interview before the complaint was filed.

Bennett said the two companies were unrelated. He said he came across a Craigslist ad for the Prime Source management job after Valley to Valley went out of business.

He declined to name the owners of either company.

Chen, who is listed as Primes owner on its business license, could not be reached for comment.

Segovia, a real estate agent, disputed allegations that he was involved. He said he tried to partner with Bennett at both Valley to Valley and Prime Source to offer property management services, but the deal never went through.

I got sucked into this, Segovia said. I urged them to shut down.

Bennett did not return multiple requests for comment after the complaint was filed.

In Doughertys and Escobars cases, Bennett had earlier said the customers failed to provide sufficient proof that they didnt find an apartment with Primes help. Bennett also said that Dougherty didnt turn in his listings when asking for a refund and that if no one showed up to apartments that Dougherty went to, it was probably because he didnt confirm appointments.

Under state law, prepaid rental listing services may keep only $50 if renters do not find an apartment through the company, according to the real estate bureau. The remainder must be refunded if requested within 10 days of the contracts expiration.

Consumers also must provide reasonable documentation that they found an apartment on their own or never moved  or sign a statement, under the penalty of perjury, that those circumstances are true.

Bennett argued that Prime Source didnt need a prepaid rental listing license because it was a credit check agency and that its listings are complimentary  a stance Ihde said companies often take to argue that they arent bound by state rules for listing services.

Still, Bennett insisted that many Prime clients come away pleased. He passed along contacts for three people he identified as happy customers who had a great time with our service and were satisfied with the outcome.

One did not return a call seeking comment. Ming Ye, a 40-year-old software engineer, described his experience this way: It is what it is. Its OK. He said he didnt ask Prime Source to set up any appointments for listings it gave him because he didnt like the apartments and is a very laid-back person.

He said Prime did set up an appointment for an Alhambra apartment that he found on his own.

The third individual, Jhoana Horta, said the $200 she paid Prime seemed like a waste of money.

The 32-year-old said Prime promised to give her exclusive listings and set up appointments to view apartments. But Horta said Prime was hard to reach and never could schedule an appointment. She said she found the apartments she was referred to advertised on free rental websites.

She eventually found an apartment in the Inland Empire on her own and applied for a refund. Horta said Prime told her one would be coming, but only after her contract expired in late August.

By the end of September, no money had come. Instead, Horta said she got a letter that explained Prime would need additional documents from her before it approved a refund.

I hope I get it back, she said.

Bennett did not respond to multiple requests to comment on Hortas experience.

On a recent weekday, shortly after the real estate bureau ordered Prime to stop operating without a license, the companys second-floor home in a drab West Covina office park was locked. A note in the window said Prime was down for maintenance issues.

In the meantime, Prime urged clients to call or email so the company could help find them a home. We still have appointments that can be sent, and listings that can be emailed.

Times staff writer Natalie Kitroeff contributed to this report.

andrew.khouri@latimes.com

Follow me @khouriandrew on Twitter

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Hollywood talent manager Jordan Feldstein, whose clients include such musical heavyweights as Maroon 5 and Robin Thicke, has put his home in the Trousdale area of Beverly Hills for sale at $12.995 million.

The Midcentury home, designed in International Style by Robert Skinner in 1962, is visually dramatic with clean lines, steel-framed casement windows and walls of glass. Vaulted ceilings, skylights and an open-concept layout create a sense of light and unbridled room flow.

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A two-story great room with a wall fireplace, a dining room, a lofted den/office, a home theater and a chefs kitchen are within more than 6,300 square feet of living space. Five bedrooms and six bathrooms include a master suite with a sitting room and a walk-in closet.

Living areas open to a sunken terrace with a fire pit and swimming pool. Lush landscaping, palms and privacy hedges surround the nearly one-acre property.

The home last changed hands a year ago for $11 million, records show.

Rona Passman of Hilton & Hyland, an affiliate of Christies International Realty, holds the listing.

Feldstein, the older brother of actor Jonah Hills, is the founder and chief executive of Career Artist Management. In addition to Maroon 5 and Thicke, his artist roster includes Big Boi and A$AP Rocky.

neal.leitereg@latimes.com

Twitter: @NJLeitereg

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Ubers claim that its drivers are contractors  and not employees entitled to vacations  was rejected Friday by a British tribunal in a ruling that may have implications for a range of companies that rely on self-employed workers.

The employment tribunal ruled that the two drivers who brought the action were employees of the ride-hailing service and so were entitled to paid time off and a guaranteed minimum wage. Uber plans to appeal.

While the ruling may eventually affect as many as 30,000 Uber drivers, it also has implications for more than 100,000 independent contractors in Britains so-called gig economy, where people work job-to-job with little security and few employment rights. Such employment, often for app-based services for everything from food delivery to healthcare, has surged as the Internet cuts the link between jobs and the traditional workplace.

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The Uber ruling will demystify much rhetoric on the gig economy being inherently liberating, said Guglielmo Meardi, director of the Industrial Relations Research Unit at Warwick Business School. He said it will drive debate on how to regulate new forms of contracting work.

The ruling could also encourage Uber drivers in other countries to seek recognition as employees. Uber has fought those efforts as the change would raise its operating expenses significantly and go against its business model and identity. The ability to provide cheaper rides has been integral to its success and appeal.

Based in San Francisco, Uber describes itself as a technology company that links self-employed drivers with people who need rides.

Jo Bertram, Ubers regional general manager, argued that thousands of drivers want to be self-employed and their own bosses. The company in June released a survey showing that 68% of Uber drivers dont drive a set number of hours each week and 41% set their hours based on what else they have going on in their lives.

The overwhelming majority of drivers who use the Uber app want to keep the freedom and flexibility of being able to drive when and where they want, Bertram said in a statement.

Uber said the ruling applies only to the two people who brought the action, though experts say that, if upheld, it could help shape future regulation of the company and industries that rely heavily on self-employed workers. Leigh Day, the law firm that brought the action, said other Uber drivers could use the action to press their claims that they are also employees.

Attorney Nigel Mackay, who is representing the drivers, said he was pleased the tribunal recognized that his clients were entitled to basic workers rights.

Uber drivers often work very long hours just to earn enough to cover their basic living costs, he said. It is the work carried out by these drivers that has allowed Uber to become the multi-billion-dollar global corporation it is.

A separate effort to identify Uber drivers as employees has fallen short in the U.S. In August, a federal judge rejected Ubers attempt to settle claims by drivers that the company had been exploiting them by treating them as independent contractors instead of employees. The settlement would have given $100 million to about 380,000 drivers.

While companies argue that the gig economys system of self-employment provides lifestyle benefits for people who choose where to work, set their own hours and take time off when they want, they also avoid many expenses associated with hiring full-time employees.

Sean Nesbitt, a partner in the employment team at the international law firm Taylor Wessing, estimated that the British ruling could cost Uber millions a year in holiday pay and pension contributions. It would cost even more to guarantee a minimum wage or back pay, said Nesbitt, whose firm is not involved in the case.

The Uber tribunal judgment announced today is not the end  it is the end of the beginning, Nesbitt said. It will form a vital part of the debate on the gig economy and almost certainly be appealed, for three reasons: its economically significant, it affects over 100,000 U.K. workers in related industries, and policy makers are interested in the gig economy.

Prime Minister Theresa May has ordered a study on the implications of the gig economy, and tax authorities are beefing up their enforcement unit.

Matthew Taylor, who is conducting the inquiry at Mays behest, wrote in the Guardian this month that one in five British workers are in involved in what he called non-standard working arrangements.

There is, for example, a particular problem with job security, he wrote. While 92% of people consider it to be important, only 6% of people think their job is secure, and 15% think it is insecure  thats around 5 million people wondering if they will be able to pay the bills each month, or what will happen to the mortgage if theyre suddenly out of work.

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Playwright Jon Robin Baitz looked happy but tired. Rehearsals had just started for his new play, Vicuna, at the Kirk Douglas Theatre, and he had been going back and forth between the rehearsal hall and an office across town where hes working on a TV project. After 30 years in New York, one of Los Angeles favorite sons was home again, at least for a while.

Baitz was in his 20s when his first play, Mizlansky/Zilinsky, was produced in Los Angeles. A tough but affectionate look at life on the fringes of moviemaking, Mizlansky/Zilinsky drew on his job as a gofer for two Hollywood wannabes, much as his play, The Film Society, drew on his childhood years in South Africa. His last produced play, Other Desert Cities, was a 2012 finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, a best play nominee at the Tony Awards and among the countrys 10 most produced plays in 2012-2013.

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In Vicuna, Baitzs fourth world premiere for Center Theatre Group, the 54-year-old playwright channels his anger about the election into the tale of an unlikable businessman-turned-presidential candidate, a tailor and a talismanic vicuna suit. With opening night set for Sunday, Baitz spoke with The Times about his new play.

Tell me about Vicuna.

On the face of it, Vicuna is about an unlikely man running for the highest office in the country who decides that for his last debate he needs a magical, bespoke suit made for him by a great tailor who has made suits for presidents. The underlying life of the play is about a climate of fear and rage that has engulfed America. I tried to bring that climate into the atelier, so that the outside world, with all its current dangers and threats to freedom and peoples rights, is conjured up within the fittings for this perfect suit.

What led you to write it?

I felt a need to make some sort of response to the madness of the presidential election. I wondered if there was such a thing as political theater that isnt a lecture and isnt preaching to the choir. Could the theater be a place that actually has a response to what were living in this exact moment, and could it be immediate, electric and contemporary without being a screed? I thought to myself, If you cant write about the now right now, if everything has to be done from a distance of time and contemplation, youre not using all the faculties you have as a playwright.

Audiences can guess who inspired Kurt Seaman, the presidential candidate. Did you have an inspiration for Anselm Kassar, the tailor?

There was in fact this great character named Georges de Paris, who died last year. He was a Washington, D.C., fixture, a Greek immigrant who at one time slept on a park bench, then remade himself as Georges de Paris and built suits for nearly every president from Lyndon Johnson through Barack Obama. I had kept a file on him in my mental file cabinet, and I always wanted to use him in some way.

Did you ever meet Georges de Paris?

I never met him. There are some similarities, but Anselm Kassar is not Georges de Paris. By the same token, Kurt Seaman is not Donald Trump. The more I worked on the play, the more it departed from the facts on the ground.

So what happened when you put these two people in the same room?

As in many of my plays, the tailor comes face to face with his own convictions. He has to confront what it means to make a suit for a man that he finds repellent and make him more presentable and attractive. What does it mean to be in service to the powerful? What if you abhor them and what they represent, and yet you love the proximity to power and reflected glory? The tailor also has a young Muslim apprentice, Amir Masoud, and Seamans world view collides profoundly with this young mans vision of justice and America.

Enter the campaign manager, Seamans daughter, Srilanka, who you explain got her name from the place where she was conceived.

Srilanka has to confront the gulf between her father the businessman and the presidential candidate, and that becomes harder and harder for her. She chafes under the strain, particularly when seriously questioned by the tailors apprentice, who has a hypnotic and compelling interrogative effect on her  and then bad stuff happens.

Bad stuff frequently happens to a character or two in your plays.

I feel like there was an anarchic spirit in me when I was writing my early plays, and that anarchic spirit, that bone-deep cynicism, now tempered because Im about to be 55, has come back, and its somewhat liberating to me. Its sort of nice to be a disciplined writer who still has access to the chaos that is really funny and dangerous and destabilizing. Of all my plays, this one is the most funny serious play Ive ever written. It looks like a comedy, but its very serious.

You offer up ex-wives named Ephemera and Cornucopia, not to mention the Brotherhood of Republican Conservative Hebrew Teachers (BORCHT). You must have had so much fun writing this.

I did have so much fun. Youre supposed to have fun sometimes. I wanted to go to a place where its not torture all the time. Its also hard to be a playwright who has access to theaters and not to have a play. You want to take advantage of the blessing youve been afforded. I was feeling it had been a few years since Other Desert Cities, and I wanted to put something up about the now. I also thought how wonderful it would be if I could write a political play that could be done during this season.

So you went to Center Theatre Group, which already has done six of your plays?

Michael Ritchie [CTGs artistic director], God bless him, I gave him 20 pages last March. I said, Id like to do it before the election. Is there any way you could fit it in? I wanted to do it, preferably, for the Douglas. I thought the more intimate the theater, the better. So based on those 20 pages, he committed to doing the play. It may not have a shelf life, but it talks about some serious stuff thats actually going on and isnt going away Nov. 9, no matter what happens.

Is it good to be back in Los Angeles?

I love being back here. My dad died, and my mother is 86. I was only seeing her a few times a year and I was starting to feel the fragility of time  people that we love getting older. You come to cherish what there is. So I really wanted to be closer.

Will you be staying here for a while?

The writer/producer/director Ryan Murphy asked me to come out here as a consulting producer to help write a miniseries about Hurricane Katrina that was a follow up to his mini-series, The People v. O.J. Simpson. I came out the end of March thinking I would just stay for a few months, but Ive had a great time working with him. Hes so smart and in many ways visionary about storytelling and television itself. Im going to stay and work with him for the next some years when not being a playwright. Im very happy about it.

Youve also written films and created the TV series Brothers & Sisters. How do you see your writing life going forward?

Im slowly typing a novel commissioned by Farrar, Straus & Giroux, and I have made peace with television. I had to take stock of my own culpability in having to leave Brothers & Sisters; it was very hard to go from being a playwright to having a hit network show that had 23 episodes in a season. Then last year I wrote a mini-series called The Slap, and it was a wonderful experience. It didnt all have to be contentious. I found my way back to being able to balance life as a playwright with working in television, much in the manner of a British playwright who occasionally works in television. Thats sort of the ideal model for me.

Follow The Times arts team @culturemonster.
In a blue-collar bar in Reading, Pa., a onetime factory worker contemplates the news that management has locked out his former union colleagues.

One day life is good, the next youre treading water, he says. Thats not supposed to happen to folks like us.

Solid job, dependable middle-class life  thats all being pulled from the grasp of the workers depicted in Sweat, a play that Lynn Nottage wrote after 2 years of interviewing Reading residents in the early 2010s.

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Its what I call the de-industrial revolution, Nottage, a Pulitzer winner and onetime MacArthur grant recipient, says of whats been taking place in towns like Reading, shifting from a manufacturing base to a more service-oriented, white-collar workforce. All of those people invested in those manufacturing jobs found themselves completely upended.

When you rip that out from under the country, how do we redefine ourselves?

A hard-hitting drama that unfolds like a mystery-thriller, Sweat opens Nov. 3 at the Public Theater in New York after presentations by its commissioning companies, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland last summer and Arena Stage in Washington, D.C., early this year.

The play has already won a Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, an international award given annually to a female playwright. Now, with the additional media and theater-world attention that come with a New York production, Sweat is poised to speak more forcefully in the national conversation.

We have got so few three-dimensional representations of the contemporary American working class in any of our media, says the Publics artistic director, Oskar Eustis. Its a story we desperately need to hear right now.

Bill Rauch, Oregon Shakespeares artistic director, marvels at the plays evocation of so much of the anger and pain and fear that weve seen in this election cycle.  I really feel its prophetic.

We have got so few three-dimensional representations of the contemporary American working class in any of our media.  Oskar Eustis, artistic director, Public Theater

Reading became known as Americas poorest city when census data from 2010 revealed its population of 88,000 to have the largest percentage living in poverty: 41.3%. In that city of textile mills and auto-related industries, dependable employment evaporated as factories thinned production, moved to other countries or to right-to-work states, or closed. Then came the 2008 financial crisis.

During periodic visits there in 2012-14, Nottage interviewed about 100 people with teams of two to five assistants.

Talking by phone from her home in Brooklyn, N.Y., Nottage recalls: What I heard repeatedly, regardless of race or class, was that people felt a sense of being trapped and isolated. The city had lost its tax base, and they could feel the city decaying and crumbling around them.

With white people, I heard a lot of nostalgia in their voices. ... People always spoke of their city in past tense, never in present or future tense. Thats the thing that made me sit up and pay attention, because people who cant imagine their city in present tense are already in trouble.

Director Kate Whoriskey, who sometimes visited Reading with Nottages team, said: It felt like there were ghosts everywhere.

Wherever you went, there was a sign of something that once was alive and functioning and then collapsed.

Nottage, 52, says her goal as a writer is to shine light on spaces that are under-illuminated. Her drama Ruined, which emerged from interviews with Congolese female survivors of wartime rape, won the 2009 Pulitzer Prize, and 2003s Intimate Apparel, inspired by her great-grandmothers life as a seamstress, remains one of the most-produced plays in America.

Playwright Lynn Nottage is a Pulitzer Prtize winner and former recipient of a MacArthur grant. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times )

The inspiration for Sweat, she says, came in 2011. I got an email from a friend who lives a couple of doors down from me essentially saying that she was broke and hadnt told anyone ... but she was hurting inside and could no longer withhold that information from her nearest and dearest.

It broke my heart.

It also got her thinking about living so close to poverty on a day-to-day basis without recognizing it. The nascent Occupy Wall Street movement reinforced her realization that this was a widespread issue. I felt I needed to have a greater understanding of what was happening.

A New York Times story alerted Nottage to Reading, which, like the email, located Americas poverty spiral much closer to her than shed realized.

She and her team talked to everyone who would speak with us: workers, business people, schoolteachers, social workers, parole officers, the homeless.

While listening to members of Readings historically white labor population, Nottage, who is African American, heard something almost eerily familiar. The language they were using sounded very familiar to me, language that for 100 years or more African Americans have been using to describe our circumstances. We feel marginalized, We feel unheard. We feel disenfranchised. Its something I hadnt anticipated hearing, ever, from middle-aged white men, Nottage says. I felt for the first time we all shared a narrative.

The play that resulted is not documentary, but fiction. I like to go into a space, listen, absorb and then interpret, Nottage says.

The first scene eavesdrops on probation check-ins by two young men, one white, impenetrable and bearing white-power tattoos, the other African American, introspective and restlessly intelligent. Its clear right away that the men were involved in some terrible event, but what happened to so thoroughly knock their lives off-course wont be revealed until the tension has been ratcheted many more notches.

Its something I hadnt anticipated hearing, ever, from middle-aged white men. I felt for the first time we all shared a narrative.  Lynn Nottage

From the first moments, which take place in 2008, the story reverts to 2000 and a neighborhood bar where three female factory workers, including the young mens mothers, regularly retreat to blow off steam and gripe about the plant.

Over time, the plant rumors turn alarming. Then, one weekend, half the machines are surreptitiously removed. Management presses for pay cuts and benefits concessions. When these are rejected, the plants union workers are locked out and nonunion replacements brought in at lower wages.

These developments echo a situation that Nottage happened upon in Reading: A maker of steel tubing had locked out its union workers.

Dean Showers worked at that plant and still serves as president of the United Steelworkers, Local 6996. Nottage interviewed him and some of his colleagues, and he saw the finished play in D.C.

He says that Sweat mirrors a lot of what the locked-out workers are going through, so its a pretty mixed-emotion bag for me.

I walked out of high school without a real plan, and I could have went anywhere to work, the 62-year-old says. I applied at three really good places to work, where the workers made really good money, all manufacturing facilities, and I was offered employment at all three.

Its much different today.  Capital is global; corporations chase capital around the world.

After more than 5 years, Showers and his union colleagues at the plant are still locked out.

If Id allow myself, I could get angry, Showers says, but I dont. I get up every day and I just see flashes of light that people are starting to get it.

In Sweat, though, Nottage acknowledges anger. An African American factory worker describes a heated exchange in which hes been accused of taking jobs from white people. Shortly after, the bars busboy, whos of Colombian heritage, is warned away from a factory.

When youre fighting for an increasingly smaller portion of the pie, Nottage says, you turn against each other, you create reasons to hate each other.

And that leads to the terrible event at the crux of the story. Theres no one in that play who isnt somehow responsible, Nottage says. Everyone is complicit.

Patricia C. Giles, executive vice president and chief impact officer for United Way of Berks County, Pa., feels Sweat quite accurately captures Reading, but: I cant say I walked out of the performance feeling upbeat. Intentionally, it leaves the story without an ending and causes you to reflect on what happens in the future to those characters.

In Reading too, its still an unanswered question, says Giles, but this is a community that in general has an optimistic perspective. The poverty rate has improved a bit: Its down to 38.8% in the most recent census statistics.

Nottage is at work on another play about Reading, with, at this point, just one character that overlaps.

Meanwhile, shes watching Sweat head off into the world for what she hopes will be an active life.

I would love for the play to travel around the country; I would love to have conversations with people afterward.

Where do we go from here? All of us are in pain. All of us feel a certain level of trauma. Are we going to remain divided? Or are we going to try to come together and heal?

daryl.miller@latimes.com

Twitter: @darylhmiller

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The Los Angeles debut of the provocative Chicago collective Ensemble Dal Niente on Thursday night came courtesy of a new music curatorial dream team, composer Ted Hearne and violinist Anna Bulbrook, who have begun a pop-up series called Poolhouse.

Hearne is the composer of the Chelsea Manning opera, The Source, recently mounted by Los Angeles Opera, as well as half of the pop duo R We Who R We. The classically trained Bulbrook is a rock star, a member of the popular and literate rock band the Airborne Toxic Event.

New music in L.A. is already hopping, open-minded and in no need of defining. Still, Poolhouse looks to be a uniquely hip yet brainy building of new bridges. It popped up Dal Niente, appropriately enough, at USCs Brain and Creativity Institute. The institutes intimate, cave-like Cammilleri Hall gave the impression of the inside of a brain. It had good acoustics and seemed a perfect fit for Dal Niente.

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Dal Niente, which is part of a lively new music scene in Chicago unjustly lacking the national attention given Brooklyn and L.A., takes its intellectual inspiration from the post-World War II European avant-garde that went out of fashion in the U.S. with the advent of Minimalism and now the pop-infused post-Minimalism hallmark of the Brooklyn sound. The ensemble has further earned its European avant-gardist stripes by being featured at ground zero of the movement, the International Summer Courses in Darmstadt, Germany, where Pierre Boulez and Karlheinz Stockhausen held forth in the 1950s. Dal Niente is the name of a clarinet piece by the current German dean of the movement, Helmut Lachenmann.

Dal Nientes contribution is to bring this kind of hard-core Modernism up to date, with contemporary and even pop culture invited to the table, as long as the results are structurally rigorous and original. In the first piece, Natacha Diels Ellipsis, that meant musical mayhem being partially tamed, while on a screen behind the ensemble were occasional projections of cutouts from fashion magazines. A recurring image was a woman with a hammer, presumably a feminist rejoinder to Boulezs most famous score, Le Marteau sans Maitre (The Hammer Without a Master).

In remarks to the audience, Dal Niente conductor Michael Lewanski said Diels, who teaches at UC San Diego, instructed him not to tell us what the piece is about. That wont stop me. It was about irrational outbursts of sound from two sopranos, players sitting at tables hitting all kinds of everyday objects, engineers operating electronic equipment and more outbursts from saxophone, horn, proper percussion and cello. By the end everyone finds a rhythm they can agree upon. The neuroscientists upstairs surely would have more to say about what this means.

What made this seem less sophomoric than its sounds (or sounded) or than Diels pretentious mysteriousness was the precision of the playing and Lewanskis sophisticated rhythmic management, lending strong implication of method to the madness.

Greg Sauniers Deerhoof Chamber Variations suggested the opposite attitude. The composer is the drummer in Deerhoof (quoted in the program as being The Band in the World by Pitchfork, as if the Airborne Toxic Event is chopped liver). Saunier takes phrases from Deerhoof songs and arranges them intriguingly  bass for instance, doing something in the style of a Bach solo cello suite. There is a hint of nostalgia in the instrumental style, but also just enough unpredictability to create a sense of freshness.

Piano Hero #1 by Belgian composer and media artist Stefan Prins is a one trick mind-bending pony. The ensembles pianist Mabel Kwan sat at an electronic keyboard in the right brain area of the Cammilleri stage, where she proceeded to mess with our spacial and musical processing functions. As she hit the keys, the sounds produced were those of attacking the strings inside piano with the pianos hammers, and that was what was being projected on the screen above her.

The last piece was a study in sonic saturation by French composer Raphael Cendo, who is obsessed with excess in his over-the-top-scores. The 10 players forced more sound out of their instruments than appeared comfortable for them (everyone looked quite worried). Still, Lewanski, who is an excellent conductor, maintained a level of structural expertise that once more gave a listener faith in the music. I was glad when it was over, but I would like to hear what the institutes neuroscientists have to say about overloading our brains with musical stimulation.

Dal Niente will give a concert with a different program at Scripps College in Claremont on Saturday. Now will someone please present the Chicago post-Cagean collective, a.pe.ri.od.ic?

------------

Ensemble Dal Niente

Where: Garrison Theatre, Scripps College, 241 E. 10th St., Claremont

When: 8 p.m. Saturday

Admission: Free but tickets required

Information: (909) 607-8505 or www.scrippscollege.edu

mark.swed@latimes.com
Theatre 68 has taken on an ambitious enterprise with Rupert Holmes stage adaptation of John Grishams 1989 novel A Time to Kill, the groups inaugural production in its handsomely refurbished North Hollywood space.

In a clever and keenly paced staging, director Ronnie Marmo valiantly copes with a cast of nearly 20 performers, copious scene changes and a dizzying plethora of plot points packed into a leisurely two-hour-plus running time.

Holmes adaptation, which played Broadway in 2015, is a strikingly old-school courtroom drama with obvious parallels to To Kill a Mockingbird. If you are fond of theatrical experimentation, you might find Kill a bit of a retread. However, if you regularly tune in to Turner Classic Movies, this well executed blast from the past could be your ticket.

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When a 10-year-old African American girl is raped by two rednecks and left struggling for life, her father, Carl Lee Hailey (Bechir Sylvain), shoots the attackers at the Mississippi courthouse where they are being arraigned. Carl Lees only hope of escaping the death penalty resides in homegrown lawyer Jake Brigance (Ian Robert Peterson), whose apparently hopeless defense soon makes him the target of death threats  and worse  by the local Klan.

A virtuosic design team addresses the productions exacting technical requirements. Standouts in the solid cast include Sylvain (whose role will be played by Dayo Ade for the remainder of the run), Hansford Prince as the humorously pragmatic town sheriff, Paul Thomas Arnold as Jakes drunken former mentor, and Mercedes Manning as the Yankee law student who embraces Jakes cause (and later, Jake himself, a gratuitous story point we could have done without).

Peterson could use a dab more emotional restraint in his performance, especially in Jakes final summation, which is oddly accompanied by swelling music that underscores its intrinsic sentimentality.

------------

A Time to Kill

Where: Theatre 68, 5112 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood

When: 7:30 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays, 3 p.m. Sundays. Ends Nov. 19.

Tickets: $30

Information: www.Theatre68.com

Running time: 2 hours, 20 minutes

Follow The Times arts team @culturemonster.

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Netflixs Stranger Things reminds us not to visit Murkwood in Halloween teaser

Its Halloween and it seems like Netflix wanted to take the occasion to remind us about their hit show Stranger Things.

The video above dropped today and features a fictional 1980s newscast, Minute By Minute with Brenda Wood, covering the ongoing search for a missing teen named Barbara Barb Holland (Shannon Purser).

SPOILERS AHEAD! Those who watch the series know that Barb was grabbed by a creature while waiting for her friend Nancy Wheeler (Natalia Dyer) by the pool. Her fate? Well, we wont spoil everything for the latecomers.

Also mentioned in the newscast is a search for a little girl  well know her later as Eleven (Millie Brown) -- who robbed the Bradleys Big Buy market, making off with a load of Eggo waffles.

Season 2 of Stranger Things will return with a few new cast members in 2017.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

Trend:

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif will discuss the situation in Syria during their talks in Moscow, RIA Novosti reported citing Lavrov.

The parties together with Syrias Foreign Minister Walid Muallem will also focus on humanitarian issues and starting a negotiation process on Syrian conflicts settlement during a trilateral meeting, Lavrov added.

Today, we will pay special attention to the situation in and around Syria. Recent developments once again prove that it is necessary to fight terrorism without any compromise, consistently, not yielding to increasing provocations, the Russian FM said.

He added that the ministers will have the opportunity to discuss all aspects of the situation in Syria in details, including counter-terrorism tasks, solving humanitarian issues and launching a negotiation process during today's meeting with our friend, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Syria Walid Muallem.
Ron Howard has been in show business for almost 60 years, starting as a child star on such TV series as Dennis the Menace, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis and The Andy Griffith Show, the latter of which turned him into the kind of omnipresent icon that usually happens once in a lifetime. Except that for Howard, it happened twice: His Richie Cunningham on Happy Days would become affixed in American hearts and minds as the quintessential, squeaky-clean television teenager.

That image would dog Howard for years  he got his break directing only because he agreed to star in a film for Roger Corman. The shadow Howard needed to escape to forge a new path was his own.

But escape he did and over the course of 23 feature films  which have brought in more than $3.6 billion worldwide  Howard has evolved into a director and producer who seems focused on telling the stories of those whose achievements have too long gone unheralded  including astronauts, mathematicians, journalists, boxers and parents. His diverse interests  science fiction and comedy, fantasy and historical epics  have branded him the kind of journeyman director whom Hollywood used to churn out but rarely does anymore.

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MORE: Inferno off to a slow start at the box office 

When he falters as a filmmaker, its not for lack of skill, its when we the audience sense that he doesnt quite empathize with his characters. When he doesnt feel for them, neither do we.

So when looking back at Howards filmography as his latest, Inferno, hits theaters, and attempting to rank something so inherently subjective as art, that was the lens we chose. Heres our take on the work of Ron Howard from best to worst.

1. A Beautiful Mind (2001)

If a film could be described as ruthlessly tender, its this, the true story of John Nash (Russell Crowe), a mathematician whose prodigious gifts carry with them a delusional burden in which Howard deftly makes the viewer complicit. Howard won his only directing Oscar for A Beautiful Mind, which also took best picture.

2. Apollo 13 (1995)

A disaster movie that does what all disaster movies should, but so rarely do: explore that disaster through the eyes of everyone it touches. So the story of Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks) and the crew of the doomed Apollo 13 is told through the eyes of the astronauts themselves, the NASA crew on the ground (led by Oscar nominee Ed Harris) and the families bracing for disaster.

3. Frost/Nixon (2008)

Who knew that the machinations that led to a mere conversation between two men, and that event itself, would be so captivating? But Howard treats the interviews between David Frost (Michael Sheen) and Richard Nixon (Frank Langella) like a cat-and-mouse thriller where words are like bullets.

4. Parenthood (1989)

By revealing the lives of a family across generations, Howard delivered a film that could be all things to all people: funny, sad, triumphant, romantic, depending entirely on who was watching.

5. Splash (1984)

While this film didnt age quite as well as one might hope  Daryl Hannahs Madison the mermaid does have agency of her own, but the attitudes of the men around her, save Hanks Allen, are mired in chauvinism -- it still remains a sweet little romance. And its always good to watch two stars emerge in front of you.

6. Night Shift (1982)

Howards second film was also his randiest. It is, after all, a comedy about two friends (Michael Keaton and Henry Winkler) who decide to transform a morgue into a whorehouse. As far as 80 sex comedies go, its positively puritanical  but it is also entirely effective.

7. Cinderella Man (2005)

Even though weve seen this narrative before  gutter upstart takes to the ring to prove his worth against an opponent he has no chance to beat  Howards film succeeds through savvy casting (Crowe and Renee Zellweger) and sheer earnestness.

8. Rush (2013)

Formula One racing was never a sport Americans cared much about, but Howard took all the technical savvy hed accumulated over the decades and funneled it into placing viewers inside those adrenaline rockets and helping us understand why men risked death over and over.

9. The Da Vinci Code (2006)

Hanks is as reliable a star as exists and Dan Browns book was a global sensation  its no wonder Howard wanted to adapt the religiously themed puzzle-box thriller. It would be a hit no matter what. That he made it a more than competent genre exercise  which is, really, all it had to be -- is a testament to his skill.

10. EdTV (1999)

This prescient look at what reality TV  and our cultures pervasive obsession with fame  could do to a normal guy (Matthew McConaughey, at his most normal guy) is an amiable little confection. Not deep, but it wasnt aiming for depth.

11. Cocoon (1985)

You can see the joy on the screen Howard mustve felt at getting a host of classic Hollywood actors (such as Don Ameche, Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy) together to make this sci-fi tale of aliens who give the residents of a rest home new leases on life. Its a gossamer-thin tale, but sometimes, theres nothing wrong with a little gossamer.

12. The Missing (2003)

Its laudable that when Howard made his western  as so many filmmakers seem driven to do  he made one that honored the Native Americans who are so often ignored in films like these. But theres a grimness here thats required for the subject matter  a fractured family further torn apart by a kidnapping  that doesnt sit well.

13. The Paper (1994)

This day-in-the-life of a newspaper staff suffers for the things that its not. While it is light on its feet, with a somewhat sardonic edge, when compared with other pictures about journalists it neither has the teeth of an All the Presidents Men or the heart of Broadcast News.

14. In the Heart of the Sea (2015)

Its unclear whether todays audiences care about Moby-Dick, let alone the real story behind Moby-Dick, even with Thor playing the obsessed sailor. And for as competent a film as it is, In the Heart of the Sea never catches the wind.

15. Angels & Demons (2009)

Another Dan Brown thriller as source material, another go with Hanks as puzzlemeister Robert Langdon, same as the first, only a little less for not being new.

16. Ransom (1996)

Its not fair to say that there are certain things we want from artists and certain things we dont. But that doesnt change the fact that the kind of heart-rending angst at the center of this Mel Gibson movie, about the kidnapping of a child, didnt gel with Howards sensibilities.

17. Grand Theft Auto (1977)

First movies rarely set the tone and the tenor for a career, and Howards first is no different. It is just a ramshackle romp of a road movie, one that he agreed to star in only if he could direct.

18. Backdraft (1991)

More of a technical showcase than a storytelling one  the ingenuity put forth to make the fires in this firefighter movie feel like actual characters overshadows the actual firefighter characters themselves.

19. Willow (1988)

Some people love this fantasy on which Howard collaborated with George Lucas, with Warwick Davis as a small hero who does big things and Val Kilmer as the rogue who aids him. Others see it as a blandish Star Wars knockoff thats not nearly as endearing as The Princess Bride, which came out a year earlier.

20. Gung Ho (1986)

A weird pseudo-comedy that attempts to play on the xenophobic fears engendered by the Japanese push into corporate America, but finds none of the nuance.

21. Far and Away (1992)

Howards desire to tell the story of the Irish immigrant experience in America is a laudable one, and parts of this Tom Cruise-Nicole Kidman romantic epic are lush and fully realized. But so too are parts cliched and just hinting at a depth never felt.

22. The Dilemma (2011)

If the dilemma was How to make a romantic comedy about infidelity that feels neither romantic nor funny, then Im afraid the dilemma remains unsolved.

23. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)

Occasionally, the planets align, the gods smile and all the elements are assembled in a perfect harmony to produce a film that will live in the hearts and minds of a civilization for eons to come. This, however, is the polar opposite of that.

@marcbernardin

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Josef Leimberg, Celestial Visions (World Galaxy/Alpha Pup). Few could have imagined a decade ago that Los Angeles would drive a jazz renaissance that fluidly mixes free jazz, post-bop, hip-hop and spiritual jazz. Yet the arrival and influence of artists including Flying Lotus, Kendrick Lamar, Kamasi Washington and Terrace Martin has breathed new life into Americas music.

The composer-producer-trumpeter Josef Leimberg has found success as one half of the production pair LoveDragon. Along with collaborator Martin, the team co-wrote and produced two tracks on Lamars Grammy-winning To Pimp a Butterfly.

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On his solo debut, Astral Progressions, Leimberg blasts into a decidedly cosmic realm, one that recalls Sun Ras transfixing work with the Mini-Moog synthesizer in the 1970s, except channeled through contemporary beat-based Los Angeles and filled with generational vigor.

Its a trippy record, thick with reverb, echo, layers of voices and a free-floating spirit that celebrates sonic spontaneity. The track Celestial Visions is particularly thrilling, a work dotted with chimes, synthesizers, bells and pianos. Leimberg mixes these flourishes into a composition that suggests smoky cocktail jazz of the 1960s or the opening theme to a movie about a Leimert Park love affair.

Sudan Archives, Queen Kunta (Stones Throw). The Cincinnati artist known as Sudan Archives recently relocated to Los Angeles, and her take on Kendrick Lamars King Kunta suggests an artist poised to capitalize on the new environment. Shes signed to Highland Park imprint Stones Throw, and is readying release of her self-titled debut as Sudan Archives for the label.

The classically trained violinist, whose real name is Brittney Denise Parks, is still in her early 20s, and on her Facebook page she acknowledges inspiration from the various fiddle styles of Africa and aspires to lead an all female orchestra. (Warning: The below video contains cussing.)

With her skills at looping voice and instruments, she may not need one. For Queen Kunta, all she requires are vocal microphone, violin and loop pedal to transform Lamars explosive track into something all her own. Such inventiveness confirms an artist with confidence and chops. Get in on the ground floor when she performs at the Stones Throw Superfest in Highland Park on Nov. 5.

Symmetry, The Magician (Italians Do It Better). The composer and Chromatics kingpin Johnny Jewel relocated from Portland, Ore.,n to northeast L.A. a few years ago, and has been easing his way into the film scoring business while working on the highly anticipated new Chromatics album.

The latest fruit of his efforts is the score of the Belgian film Home, which features new work by Jewel, Chromatics and Symmetry, the artists synth-based duo. The stickiest track is Symmetrys The Magician, which is deep with vintage synth tones that lurch and rumble.

Sounding like an instrumental Gary Numan track with extra low-end vibrations, Symmetry exploits the circuitry, conjuring forgotten tones, bringing into the present a host of buried frequencies that vibrate anew.

Theres a lot of terrible music out there. For tips on the stuff thats not, follow Randall Roberts on Twitter: @liledit
heres no rest for the weary, even when your last name is Hadid (and your boyfriend is former One Directioner, Zayn Malik). Such is the case for jet-setting model and budding designer Gigi Hadid, whos slated to walk in her second-ever Victorias Secret Fashion Show in Paris next month. The eldest Hadid daughter was in New York on Wednesday night to celebrate yet another one of her many endeavors: a collaboration with Stuart Weitzman.

The Insta-model was game to talk shoes, personal style and the new James Franco-directed film to promote the collaboration  in which she boxes wearing the mid-heeled booties for 12 hours. But she really lit up when the conversation topic moved on to pies. Yes, pies  as in baked goods.

After the Victorias Secret show, which takes place in Nov. 6 in Paris, Gigi and her sister Bella (who, it was revealed Wednesday, will be taking her first turn on the Victorias Secret runway this year), will head back home for a Hadid family Thanksgiving.

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And they dont kid around when it comes to the holiday eats.

Im just really excited for Thanksgiving, said Hadid, who was wearing an oversized button-down shirt with a fitted corset on top. I always make pies for Thanksgiving. Im the pie girl. I love rhubarb pie, I love apple pie and pumpkin pie and blackberry pie  but sometimes that mixes with the rhubarb into one [pie].

Thats a lot of pie.

Well, we have a big family and theyre very picky, so I do lots of choices of pie, Hadid said.

As for the rest of the Hadid clan, they all have jobs assigned for the holidayexcept brother Anwar, a splashy model in his own right.

My dad does really good stuffing and all of the meat, and my mom is the best for buttered carrots and cranberry Jell-O, or whatever you call it. Bella does dessert. Anwar just eats and I do pie, she added.

So models do eat.
If youre a fan of weekend brunch, here are 23 restaurants on Jonathan Golds new 101 Best Restaurants list that will serve you a weekend menu of bacon and egg pizzas or avocado toast (of course), chilaquiles or bowls of shakshuka, even foie gras terrines.

Taco Maria

(Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times )

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The aguachile, fine fat shrimp cured in a sharp broth of citrus and kombu seaweed, could pass for a course at Providence were it not for the chile heat; a scallop in its shell, briefly broiled under a sprinkling of buttery bread crumbs saturated in squid ink, is lovely. You dont quite realize that a dish of seared jack mackerel with crisp bread crumbs, braised romaine lettuce and a runny 65-degree egg is a clever play on a Caesar salad until the flavors come together in your mouth.

Mozzaplex

(Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times )

The pizzeria has a newish subspecialty of whole roasted vegetables  if you see eggplant with tahini on the menu, dont hesitate. Osteria Mozza goes from strength to strength, from the mostly Emilia-Romagna-style fresh pastas to rabbit with sausage, from the deep all-Italian wine list to Dahlia Narvaezs suave desserts. Chi Spacca is an Italian meat restaurant, famous for mammoth steaks, slow-grilled tomahawk pork chops massaged with fennel pollen, and house-cured salumi.

Animal

(Mariah Tauger / For The Times )

Animal is often the first place where the food tribe stops when they come into town  nobody understands a chefs particular appetites like Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo, who swamp tables with platters of veal brains with vadouvan, poutine with oxtail gravy, rabbit tonkatsu curry rice and rabbit larb as if with nearly murderous intent. Animal may have been ground zero for the bacon-on-everything thing, and although the craze may have subsided, they do still sell an awful lot of bacon chocolate crunch bars here.

Republique

(Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times )

Is it possible to have a bad time at Republique? By the time you have worked your way past the oysters and the cheeses on the way to the hostess stand and settled in at one of the long wooden tables, it is as if you have worked your way into a party just at the point where it is getting good. There are some bubbles  a pet-nat if you swing one way, Champagne if you swing another  a crisp bite of Margarita Manzkes baguette with Normandie butter or the outrageously good toast with uni and soft-scrambled eggs, and maybe some tempura-fried green beans and okra tucked into a napkin.

Otium

(Christina House / For The Times )

In an L.A. dining scene that has caught the food worlds attention for its funky spaces and the erasure of boundaries between street food and fine dining, Otium is the most ambitious new restaurant in years. The grand glass-and-steel building was designed from the ground up by Osvaldo Maiozzi. It occupies an important promontory next to the Broad museum. And Timothy Hollingsworth, who comes to Otium from a dozen years at the French Laundry, is trying to do no less than reinvent the American restaurant  less as a center of avant-garde European cooking or the idealized regional cuisines cataloged by Edna Lewis and James Beard, but of American cooking as it is experienced in 2016: falafel and shawarma, ravioli and sashimi, tostadas and banana cream pie, executed with the care and precision you would expect from a superbly trained technician of haute cuisine.

Salts Cure

(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times )

When Salts Cure announced its move from a cramped West Hollywood storefront to larger quarters up on Highland Avenue, a lot of the regulars werent quite sure what to think. The restaurant was democratic yet mysterious, with a level of cooking that could be called deeply sophisticated if you didnt want one of the other regulars to punch you, but in important ways it felt more like a butchers counter than a restaurant. Chris Phelps and Zak Walters find superb meat and cook it plainly, putting up their own bacon and charcuterie, often seasoning with no more than salt, pepper, vinegar and herbs.

Alma

(Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times )

It was surprising that Alma was such a natural hit at West Hollywoods Standard hotel, fun where the previous restaurant had been severe, loud instead of restrained, and a place to eat instead of a temple of cuisine. The seaweed-tofu beignets go down like sliders, raw cabbage with avocado and smoked almonds takes the place of Cobb salad, and blackened carrots with dandelion pesto are as popular as fries.

Salazar

(Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times )

Esdras Ochoas marinated pork al pastor is sweet, slightly charred, with a bit of burnt pineapple. You can supplement the tacos with a cocktail of cold, wild-caught shrimp from the Gulf of Mexico, an anchovy-forward Caesar salad, or a gooey potato puree. Or treat Salazar as a steakhouse that leans toward strong flavors and organic, sustainable meat. Either way, you are going to want to try a Paloma cocktail, the Mexico City standard made with grapefruit and usually tequila but here with mezcal, which is keen and unusually refreshing.

Odys + Penelope

(Michael Robinson Chavez / Los Angeles Times )

Did Los Angeles need a modern churrascaria, streamlined, grilled versions of Brazilian-style meat? It turned out that it did  ember-roasted sirloin cap with a crisp tangle of sugar-dusted fried onions, tri-tip with Bearnaise sauce, and skirt steak with pureed carrots. Quinn Hatfield dry-ages his meat for a length of time almost unthinkable in Brazil, where freshness is prized over tenderness and developed flavor, but the complex tartness of the meat here is profound.

Redbird

(Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times )

Neal Fraser has been cooking in Los Angeles for more than 20 years now, and his followers have seen him glide through almost every genre of California cooking there is, from fusion to neo-Mediterranean to hot dogs. Redbird, built into the rectory of the deconsecrated St. Vibiana Cathedral, is a substantial place with solid farmers-market-driven cooking, world-cuisine touches that range from the Hong Kong XO sauce he serves with the aged duck to the Catalan romesco with the rib-eye, from lobster tostadas to soft-shell crab with Thai curry to jerk-spiced grilled lamb belly, to a truly delicious dish of barbecued tofu.

Connie & Teds

(Bret Hartman / For The Times )

Do you even need to look at the menu at Connie and Teds by this point? Because even before you find a seat in Michael Cimarustis massive New England-style seafood complex, you already know that youre going to be looking at chilled oysters, littlenecks and cold boiled shrimp; a cup of clam chowder  I suggest the clear, salty Rhode Island version; and salty, irresistibly fluffy Parker House rolls baked in a cast-iron pan.

The Tasting Kitchen

(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times )

You may have noticed a distinct restaurant style in Venice over the last several years, with an emphasis on toasted bread and barely altered seasonal vegetables, charcuterie and roasted meats, extremely regional Italian preparations and the bittersweet smack of char. And the chef responsible is probably the Tasting Kitchens Casey Lane, whose restaurant after eight years still seems like an art collective that just happens to serve insanely detailed cocktails and light, clear, herb-smacked northern Italian food.

A.O.C.

(Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times )

Weve all come to terms with the small-plates thing now, and with dusty eastern Mediterranean flavors, food-friendly wines, and the fact that a dinner out need not include giant slabs of animal. The first A.O.C. may have been slightly baffling when it opened, but if weve lived through a battle for L.A.s restaurant soul, Suzanne Goin has won. It is hard even to remember a time when bacon-wrapped dates or fish with chermoula seemed odd.

Manhattan Beach Post

(Christina House / For The Times )

Im going to MB Post, reads an email I seem to get a couple of times a month. I know about the bacon cheddar biscuit, but what else shouldnt I miss? And sometimes it does seem as if, after a Michelin star, three restaurants and a solid five years as king of the South Bay restaurant scene, David LeFevre may still be best known for a dish he learned from his mom when he was in junior high. But it really is a good biscuit.

Sqirl

(Mariah Tauger / For the Times )

If you find yourself braising chickpeas for your breakfast bowl, you can thank Sqirl. If you find yourself charring the bread for your avocado toast, you can thank Sqirl. If you have paid $12 for a jar of jam that indicated not just the variety of apricot but the name of the farmer and his irrigation practices, you can also thank Sqirl, which at times seems to function almost less as a breakfast-lunch restaurant than it does as a laboratory for the peculiar culinary practices that at the moment define L.A.  what you eat at Sqirl has a habit of leaking onto menus from coast to coast.

Post & Beam

(Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times )

The handsome, modernist restaurant in the Baldwin Hills Plaza may be the most ambitious restaurant ever to open in the Crenshaw District. If you want to understand the power structure of South Los Angeles, you could do worse than to eavesdrop over smoked-salmon hash and a Bloody Mary after church on a Sunday afternoon.

Gjelina

(Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times )

Gjelina is a perfected idea of a certain Los Angeles, complete with relaxed outdoor seating around a fire pit, impossibly good-looking waiters, and an entire farmers market worth of perfect vegetables snatched smoking from the grill.

Leona

(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times )

At Leona, Nyesha Arringtons Venice bistro, I was once thunderstruck by a simple roasted squash. It had been presented in a manner that could have come out of a 17th century Dutch still life: upright, striped squashes stout as barrels, sprinkled with seeds and crinkly leaves. But Arrington left the skin on, which was surprisingly edible, and played up the stringy, seedy part that most of us scrape out by lacing it with tapioca and milky burrata cheese.

Bellwether

(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times )

Bellwether is a small, buzzy new-American bistro in a neighborhood that loves it. It is also, as the marketing people say, on trend. When you see the charred carrots, avocado hummus with fresh zaatar, charred octopus with preserved lemon, and meatballs baked with tomato and ricotta on the menu, you know that things like squid with romesco, hot-chicken sandwiches and tempura cauliflower with fish sauce vinaigrette will not be far behind.

Gjusta

(Christina House / For The Times )

Is Gjusta a bakery? Kind of. The charred, crunchy baguettes and best-in-city sourdough loaves dominate one end of the enormous marble counter, along with tarts, flatbreads, quiches and butter-saturated croissants. Is it a deli? Also yes: A few yards farther down are house-cured pastramis, pickles and hams, all manner of vegetable preparations, and an extensive array of house-smoked fish and their condiments. Someone will eventually notice your helplessness and assemble your lunch, acting more as a personal shopper than a traditional counterperson.

Lincoln

(Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times )

How long is the line outside Lincoln on weekend mornings? Long enough that you are tempted to try all the things, the kouign-amann, the gravlax toast and the flower-strewn tartines, because you have seen them stream by you in such profusion that you end up getting two cortados because you know that youre going to finish one by the time your creamy Parmesan eggs get to the table, and hell, maybe a ribbon-tied bag of buttery sea-salt caramels for the road. Lincoln is sort of the local center of Things in a Bowl, which include a breakfast bowl that has all the ingredients of an English fry-up under its thicket of baby kale leaves.
Sixty-four bottles of tequila. Forty bottles of triple sec. Sixty-four bottles of lemon juice. A vat of pineapple juice adds sweetness and multiple pitchers of Sprite lend just the right amount of fizz. El Coyote employee Angel Martinez stands over a massive stock pot, slowly stirring another batch of of the restaurants famous house margaritas. Its one of a number of margaritas the restaurant will be offering to customers this Halloween, one of the restaurants busiest days.

Its so much, says Marge Christoffersen, of the ingredients used to make each batch of the margaritas. We sell several hundred margaritas each day. (The restaurant averages 1,000 customers every day.) Only three people, including Martinez, know the secret recipe.

Christoffersen is one of the owners of historic El Coyote Cafe, one of Los Angeles oldest Mexican restaurants. Originally opened by Christoffersens aunt and uncle, Blanche and George March, in 1931, the restaurant is celebrating its 85th anniversary this year.

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El Coyote has hosted its share of Hollywood and actual royalty, including actors John Wayne, Shirley Temple and Ricardo Montalban, the late television personality Huell Howser, director Quentin Tarantino and the late Prince Rainier III and Princess Grace of Monaco. After its strong margaritas and unique take on Mexican food, the restaurant is famous for its kitschy decor, colored glass windows and colorfully dressed waitresses.

I grew up here, says Christoffersen looking around the restaurant, and Ill never forget the servers. I idolized them when I was younger.

In addition to its other margarita offerings, this year the restaurant will be serving a vuelve a la vida margarita on Oct. 31, which loosely translates to return to life. The cocktail combines silver tequila with agave nectar, jalapeno slices and lime juice served in a glass with a chile lime-salted rim. Its sweet and salty, with a nice kick from the spice.

Recipe: Vuelve a la vida margarita 

El Coyotes Dia de los Muertos special, Vuelve a la Vida (Return to Life), is made with silver tequila, agave nectar, lime juice and jalapeo slices, served in a chile-lime-salt-rimmed glass. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times )

Of course, El Coyote is also known for its elaborate holiday decorations that cover almost every inch of the restaurant, particularly for Dia de los Muertos and Halloween, as well as Christmas.

The employees really get into it. They love it  everyone gets involved. says Christoffersen. A number of decorations are handmade, including large flowers made by a waiter and a number of decorations made over the years by Christoffersens aunt as she ran the restaurant.

El Coyote begins decorating for Dia de los Muertos at the end of September, and many of the decorations are brought in by longtime employees from home. The elaborate holiday display in the lobby window has been decorated by one of the managers for over 30 years using collectible village and figurine sets shes acquired over the years. The employees decorate after-hours, and the restaurant orders pizza. Storage is a bit of a problem, admits Christoffersen.

One year, we had the whole place decorated as a cave, you know, with crumpled brown paper, says manager Billy Schoeppner. It was amazing. Well, until someone called the fire department. Worried about a potential fire hazard, the fire department forced the restaurant to take the decorations down.

People have said they felt the spirit of my aunt  Marge Christoffersen

People love to come all dressed up in costumes, says Shoeppner. On Oct. 31, the restaurant has a drawing for customers who dress up, where they can win gift cards. Its also a big time for employees to dress up, he says. They have their own contest. It gets very elaborate.

The restaurant has also had its brushes with famous fatalities. Known as the place that hosted actress Sharon Tate the day she was later murdered, the restaurant is busy every year on Aug. 9, the anniversary of her death, with fans who want to sit in the same booth where she ate her last meal. But El Coyote also has its own hauntings.

I never used to believe in ghosts. I was never afraid before, says Schoeppner. One night he closed the restaurant, shutting down all the lights. All of a sudden, a door started swinging erratically in the womens bathroom. When I opened it, I saw someone, he says. The ghost has made a number of appearances to employees and guests. Witnesses say it is benevolent, perhaps the spirit of a former female waitress killed by her husband (yes, that actually happened), or maybe the spirit of the original owner.

People have said they felt the spirit of my aunt, says Christoffersen of the original owner. This place was her whole life. the atmosphere, The food, the customers.

noelle.carter@latimes.com

Twitter: @noellecarter
In less than two weeks, Los Angeles voters will decide the fate of a bond measure to help build low-cost housing for those now living on the streets.

Statistics show Southern Californias homeless problem has gotten worse in recent years, which has helped push homelessness to the top of L.A.s civic agenda.

But the city has struggled with homelessness for decades.

Leaders first considered the scope of the problem in the 1980s, when L.A.s homeless population began to swell  particularly around downtown. Despite some temporary measures, the city struggled to address what it acknowledged was a major problem.

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Here is a guide to that period, taken from the pages of The Times:

1982: Living under the freeway

With wry humor, they call themselves the Troll Family, after the mysterious, cranky creatures of Scandinavian legend that haunted out-of-the-way places.

They are part of the growing tribe of homeless men and women who dwell in the concrete caves formed by the thousand or so bridges [over] the freeways of Los Angeles. Others camp out in the  shrubbery along the freeway landscape.

No one knows for certain how many of them there may be  freeway trolls come and go without signing registers.

But Norm Brinkmayer, California Department of Transportation maintenance chief for freeways in Los Angeles and Ventura counties, estimates that they may number in the hundreds. California Highway Patrol Capt. Dick Kerri says there is a Ho Chi Minh Trail of camps stretching from Ventura to Los Angeles.

1984: Tent City highlights growing problem

In December 1984, advocates for the homeless opened a temporary shelter downtown at 1st and Spring streets, in the shadow of Los Angeles City Hall.

Nicknamed Tent City,  it looks like a battlefield hospital. Cots are lined up, one next to the other, and sleeping bodies squirm under thin blankets. When it rains, drops fall from unseen leaks and deep puddles and mud cover the plastic spread over the grass for flooring.

Inside, about 250 men and women with no address huddle together for the holidays, preferring not to think about eviction scheduled for the day after Christmas. The city eventually let them stay until early January.

1985: A homeless movement forms

In the spring of 1985, a homeless encampment known as Justiceville sprang up in a childrens playground at 6th Street and Gladys Avenue  a ragtag compilation of plywood, cardboard, tattered blankets, old tires, discarded drapes and about 60 homeless people.

Ted Hayes, who organized the place and gave it its name, said the makeshift dwellings in downtown Los Angeles allow homeless people to take care of themselves, and he has challenged government officials to work with him to come up with a better plan.

But living conditions at the site have become so abysmal that even some advocates for the homeless question whether officials should allow it to exist.

LAPD officers issued eviction orders. Most residents left, but 12, including Hayes, were arrested.

In the early 1990s, Hayes helped form a small urban community of 18 fiberglass domes for the down-and-out.

1987: An unprecedented, symbolic move

Spurred by the deaths of four street people from exposure to near-freezing temperatures, the Los Angeles City Council opened City Hall to serve as temporary housing.

Authorities had come under harsh criticism for failing to provide shelter for homeless residents during the cold spell, which  reached its low point when the temperature at the Civic Center dipped to 36 degrees.

1987: An urban campground rises

As the homeless situation got more dire, the city took some dramatic action.

As police continued to force people off skid rows streets and sidewalks, officials signed an emergency agreement for a temporary urban campground for 600 transients on 12 acres of vacant land near the Los Angeles River.

It ended up serving many more homeless people before closing months later.

It was ugly to begin with, a flat stretch of land flanking the river, fenced and then filled up with trailers, canopies, hundreds of cots and tents. Then came the people, 2,600 in all, who said they had no other place to go.

It is still ugly as it ends, a grim, dusty refuge for 236 people who say they still will have no other place to go when the camp is shut down.

The city of Los Angeles urban campground for the homeless has been, as Maj. William Mulch of the Salvation Army put it, a desperate attempt to help very desperate people.

No one calls the attempt a success  not the city, the Salvation Army or advocates for the homeless.

1991: A changing homeless population

At some agencies, especially at the Weingart Center, the homeless population divides into thirds. The categories seem callous to some, realistic to others.

 Have-Nots are the upper third  without jobs, without homes, but without other problems. They can be helped quickly.

 Cannots are disabled by drugs, alcohol or mental illness. They can respond to treatment and may benefit from help.

 Will Nots are the bottom third, the sidewalk campers who will not work, the derelicts and deranged who will not seek shelter. They, say some, cannot be helped.

Sociologists, educators, economists and psychologists know that yesterdays homeless were down-and-outs, beggars and vagrants, lazy bums and the romantic hobos. The vast majority were white, elderly, ill-educated, alcoholic males.

Todays homeless are a full slice of society and include college graduates, single-parent families with children, Vietnam veterans, professionals, businessmen, former politicians, ex-crack cocaine addicts and teenage runaways.
A much-anticipated rainstorm is set to move into Southern California on Thursday evening and move out by Friday afternoon.

According to the National Weather Service, the rain will be heaviest late tonight and will continue into the Friday morning commute.

A flash flood watch has been issued for burn areas in Los Angeles and Ventura counties.

The storm has already hit Central California, prompting some evacuations in areas that were burned by the Sherpa Fire earlier this year.

Officials expect less than a half-inch of rain in Los Angeles but more to the north, including 2 inches in San Luis Obispo.

https://twitter.com/shelbygrad/status/791783606855147520

Despite this storm, the region continues to face an unprecedented lack of precipitation, recording only 60% of average rainfall this month. By contrast, communities from the Bay Area north to the Oregon border have recorded 200% to 300% of the average this month, according to the National Weather Service. More rain is expected in the north this weekend.

Its a pattern that Californians saw last winter, when the much-hyped El Nino phenomenon was expected to soak Southern California but instead steered north, blanketing the northern Sierra Nevada in snow and leaving Angelenos and their neighbors in the dust.

Rain and snow in Northern California are considered essential to easing the drought because the states major networks of dams and reservoirs are located there, providing water to many other parts of the state. While rain in Southern California is also important, much of it flows into storm drains and into the ocean.

https://twitter.com/NWSLosAngeles/status/791445762013925376

Since Oct. 1, the start of the water year  which forecasters use to measure annual precipitation  cities and mountain communities from the Bay Area to the Oregon border have been drenched by an atmospheric river of tropical moisture. Its rained more than 18 inches this month in Gasquet, a rural community in Del Norte County, and 12 inches in Crescent City, Kennedy said.

The rainfall was enough that the U.S. Drought Monitor considered the northwest corner of California, or about 7% of the state, to be in normal condition instead of abnormally dry or worse. That much of California has not been considered normal since March 2013.
Polls tightening, race shifting, unexpected revelation: The presidential race has hit the point at which no development seems too small for a blare of trumpeting headlines.

Both campaigns  one to avoid complacency, the other to keep from depressing turnout  as well as much of the news media, share an interest in portraying volatility and uncertainty in the presidential race.

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The data tell a different story: This is a campaign in which it would be a major surprise to see any big, last-minute shift, even from a splashy headline like todays news of the FBI looking at newly discovered Clinton emails. Why? Read on.

Good afternoon, Im David Lauter, Washington bureau chief. Welcome to the Friday edition of our Essential Politics newsletter, in which we look at the events of the week in the presidential campaign and highlight some particularly insightful stories.

THE STEADY STATE CAMPAIGN

Polls disagree about where, exactly the race stands. At one end of the spectrum, a few surveys, like our USC/L.A. Times Daybreak tracking poll, have shown Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump in or near a tie. At the other end, some recent polls have shown Clinton as much as 13 or 14 points ahead.

Thats the sort of variability one should expect from polls, which is why its good to watch the averages. They show Clinton with a lead of five to seven points. Surveys in key states have been consistent with a national margin of that size.

And with the exception of a few short periods  around the conventions and the week in mid-September that was dominated by stories about Clintons bout with pneumonia  the gap between the two has stood at roughly that level week after week, ever since Trump won his partys nomination.

Because the Daybreak tracking poll uses a panel of roughly 3,200 respondents who are repeatedly surveyed, it provides particularly helpful data on trends in the race. Thats regardless of the question of whether the poll tilts toward Trump, as many critics say. Any shifts in the poll represent actual people changing their minds, rather than a change in who responds to a survey from week to week.

Since the end of the second debate on Oct. 9, the Daybreak poll has shown little movement, with a small uptick for Trump in the last several days that is well within the polls margin of error.

The stability of the race appears in other measures too.

Today, roughly 60% of Americans have an unfavorable view of Trump, and about 35% view him favorably. Thats been true since February.

Almost all year, the share of Americans with an unfavorable view of Clinton has held at 52%-55%. The share with a favorable view has grown a few points since early July, mostly as more Democrats have warmed to her, and now stands at around 45%.

Why so little change? The answer lies in plain sight: This race features two candidates about whom most Americans had firm views long before the campaign began. Clinton has been prominent on the national political stage for a generation. Trump has been a major part of the countrys celebrity culture for even longer; his book The Art of the Deal dates to 1987.

Indeed, one would have to go back decades  perhaps to the 1980 campaign between President Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan, then the former governor of California, to find a race between two people who were so well known on the day they declared their candidacies.

Add to that the rising level of partisanship in the country, which leads most voters to choose a candidate months before the election, and the result is a recipe for stasis despite all the frantic activity of a campaign.

Trump occasionally has picked up ground for short periods, but he has always fallen back. His deep unpopularity with blacks, Latinos and majorities of women and college-educated white voters puts a hard, and fairly low, ceiling on his support.

Clinton has sometimes seemed on the verge of building the sort of massive lead that could deliver a landslide, but she has never quite gotten there. She has consolidated Democratic support and has carved off a slice of mostly college-educated Republicans and independents, but the dislike for her that many other Republicans have nurtured for decades makes further progress very hard.

The steady drip of stolen emails released by WikiLeaks probably reinforces resistance to Clinton among at least some Republicans. Joe Tanfani had this look at one of the most interesting of the recent emails, disclosing the tension between Chelsea Clinton and her fathers longtime aide, Doug Band.

THE ELECTION IS ALREADY UNDERWAY

If the stability of the race were not enough to make a last-minute shift unlikely, theres this: Millions of people already have voted.

As of Friday morning, the count had reached more than 17 million votes cast, according to statistics compiled by University of Florida professor Michael McDonald, who is one of the countrys leading experts on voter turnout.

Thats well over 10% of the expected total turnout this year (in 2012, just short of 127 million people voted), and early voting is likely to pick up significantly this weekend.

And while were on that topic, another of Tanfanis stories bears mention: Theres no evidence to back up the idea that voting by illegal residents is widespread.

As Melanie Mason wrote, reviewing the early vote so far, the data indicate a strong turnout for Democrats in a number of key states, including Florida and Colorado. Republicans could take cheer from good numbers for their side in Iowa and Ohio.

DONT FORGET THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE

The early vote reinforces the pattern that polling already has indicated:

Trump has a shot at picking up some states in the Midwest that President Obama carried in 2008 and 2012, with Iowa currently the most likely to flip.

But in states across the South, from North Carolina to Florida and on west to Texas and Arizona, the antipathy Trump has stirred among minority voters, combined with weak support among college-educated whites, puts the GOP candidate at risk.

As our interactive electoral map shows, Clinton currently leads in more than enough states to secure the White House. While some of those are closer than others, the ones Clinton truly needs appear pretty well locked down. Pennsylvania, for example, has been the subject of more than 40 polls since June; Trump led in just one, released in the second week of July.

One state thats an unexpected toss-up: Utah, where a third-party candidate, Evan McMullin, may be able to inch past Trump and Clinton. Melanie Mason profiles the man who could be the first third-party candidate to win a state since George Wallace in 1968.

Winning requires 270 electoral votes. How to get there? Weve updated the map with our best estimates. Check it out, play political strategist and try out as many scenarios as you like.

THE CLINTON COALITION

The prospect that Clinton would become the nations first female president has not seemed to stir voters the same way that Obamas quest to become the first African American chief executive did. But as Cathy Decker wrote, Clinton has begun to tap into another source of energy: womens anger at Trump.

The Democrats dominance among women this year has expanded to include not only unmarried women, but married ones as well  the first time since 1996 that a majority of wives appears likely to vote for a Democratic presidential nominee. For some couples, thats a source of tension and even deception, Evan Halper wrote.

Minority voters are the other big part of the Clinton equation. Boosting turnout, particularly among younger black voters, was central to her swing through North Carolina this week, Chris Megerian wrote.

The man in charge of making sure that election day turnout plans work is the campaigns highest-ranking black official. Mike Memoli profiled Marlon Marshall.

One key to making the Democratic election plan work is the unprecedented level of help that Clinton has gotten from the current occupants of the White House. Christi Parsons has this look at Obama as he campaigns for Clinton and his legacy.

THE FIGHT FOR CONGRESS

With Trumps chances growing slimmer by the day, attention  and money  have shifted to the fight for control of Congress, particularly the Senate, as Lisa Mascaro explained.

Decker had this look at one of the closest Senate fights  the one in Pennsylvania, where the incumbent Republican, Sen. Pat Toomey, resolutely refuses to say if hell vote for Trump.

FOLLOW OUR TRACKING POLL

The USC Dornsife/L.A. Times tracking poll has been tracing Trumps and Clintons trajectories since early summer. The poll has consistently shown a better result for Trump than most other surveys. Why is it different? Here are several of the reasons.

QUESTIONS ABOUT TRUMP, CLINTON? WEVE GOT ANSWERS

Where they stand on issues, what theyve done in their lives, their successes, their failures, what their presidencies might look like: Weve been writing about Clinton and Trump for years, and weve pulled the best of that content together to make finding what you want to know easier. So check out All Things Trump and All Things Clinton.

LOGISTICS

If you like this newsletter, tell your friends to sign up.

That wraps up this week. My colleague Christina Bellantoni will be back Monday with the weekday edition of Essential Politics. Until then, keep track of all the developments in the 2016 campaign with our Trail Guide, at our Politics page and on Twitter @latimespolitics.

Send your comments, suggestions and news tips to politics@latimes.com.
The families of two people killed when a tour bus crashed Sunday as it headed back from a casino near the Salton Sea filed a wrongful-death lawsuit this week against the bus company and the estate of the deceased bus driver.

The suit, filed Thursday in Los Angeles Superior Court against bus company USA Holiday and the estate of driver Teodulo Vides, claims Vides failed to travel at a safe speed and failed to brake to avoid the crash. It also claims that the bus was not properly maintained.

Thirteen people were killed and 31 injured when the bus collided with a big rig on Interstate 10 near Palm Springs early Sunday morning after leaving the Red Earth Casino in Thermal.

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The suit was filed on behalf of the estates of and the children of Gustavo Garcia Green and Tony Mai.

Family members of Vides did not return calls seeking comment. Vides owned USA Holiday, which he operated out of his home.

The crash was the deadliest in the state in several decades.

David E. Harris, who is one of two attorneys representing the families of Green and Mai in the lawsuit, said the mens relatives are devastated and want answers about the crash.

Its nothing you would expect getting on the bus to go visit a casino, he said.

The National Transportation Safety Board this week said the bus did not comply with vehicle safety standards because two of its eight tires lacked sufficient tread.

As a federal probe into the crash continues, the families attorneys are simultaneously conducting an independent investigation and have talked to witnesses.

Harris said the mens families want to push for increased safety.

Its really an industry that I think is poorly regulated, he said. Everything we have seen here appears its not. Its scary to think  people go and buy a bus ticket and think everything is going to be OK.

Green, 62, was a mechanic from Guatemala, said his son, Lester Garcia. The father of 10 enjoyed going to casinos to gamble.

Mai, from La Habra, was also a mechanic. His love of gambling brought him and his girlfriend, Francisca Escobar, together.

Escobar said she tried to go with him to the casino, but he asked her to stay home

I was so upset with him, Escobar told The Times. I cant imagine now. We both would have died.

veronica.rocha@latimes

paloma.esquivel@latimes.com

Times staff writer Esmeralda Bermudez contributed to this report.

ALSO

13 dead, 31 others injured in tour bus crash near Palm Springs. Everyone, dead and alive, was covered with blood

Survivors recount terrifying moments after fatal bus crash

Surgeons, chaplains and social workers swing into action to help crash victims
Citing concerns about the potential for increased aircraft noise and pollution, Newport Beach officials sued the Federal Aviation Administration on Thursday, alleging that the agencys plan to reroute flights across the region was completed without adequate environmental review. Culver City officials said they expect to file an almost identical suit on Friday.

The federal lawsuits target the FAAs Metroplex project, which intends to replace aging air traffic control systems, redesign Southern Californias busy airspace and change the arrival and departure procedures for 21 local airports, including Los Angeles International and John Wayne in Orange County.

FAA officials say they will phase in the new procedures from November through April. In that time, the agency will also conduct outreach to inform the public about the changes.

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As the procedures are implemented, people will see and hear aircraft where they previously did not fly because of route changes and more concentrated flight paths.

We applaud Culver City in its action to protect its citizens.  Mark Herscovitz, Culver City for Quiet Skies

The cities are challenging the environmental impact analysis, which concluded the project would not cause significant new problems.

Municipal officials contend that changes in flight paths and the new procedures will make many Southern California communities, including Culver City and Newport Beach, louder and more polluted.

The city believes there are significant errors in the Southern California Metroplex environmental analysis, Culver City Mayor Jim Clarke said. Our hope is the FAA will work with us and other communities to mitigate the serious impact on our residents quality of life from these flight path changes.

Newport Beachs lawsuit was filed with the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which handles cases against federal agencies. The suit alleges violations of the National Environmental Policy Act.

Both cities seek court orders to set aside project approvals and unsupported findings in the environmental analysis. In addition, they request that the project be halted until the FAA fully complies with the environmental policy act.

Culver City officials noted that over the past several years, residents have contacted the council repeatedly about jet noise and filed more than 1,000 complaints with the FAA and LAX.

More recently, about 300 residents signed a petition requesting that the City Council take action against the FAA to protect them from further impacts that could be caused by Metroplex procedures that will bring aircraft more directly over the city.

We applaud Culver City in its action to protect its citizens, said Mark Herscovitz, a founder of Culver City for Quiet Skies. These new FAA changes are going to create a concentrated freeway directly over Culver City and communities to our east and allow more planes to fly even more often and closer together at the expense of the citizens below.

Ian Gregor, a spokesman for the FAA in Los Angeles, said the agency does not comment on pending litigation as a matter of policy. He added, however, that the FAA stands by its environmental analysis.

Gregor has said the agency worked hard in the past to balance the need to modernize air traffic control procedures with the concerns of local communities. He also said Metroplex will lay the foundation for future air safety and the efficient use of the regions airspace and airports.

The FAA made changes, including raising the altitude for planes flying over Culver City, based on public comment, according to earlier statements by the agency. Municipal officials dispute this, saying there is potential for aircraft to fly below the required 6,000 feet.

The Metroplex project  one of 14 in the nation  is the local application of procedures and technology from the FAAs sweeping NextGen program. In Southern California, the new system includes 99 new departure, arrival and approach procedures that use GPS and sophisticated computers to guide aircraft until they are very close to their destination airports.

The system, which officials call state-of-the-art, is designed to track aircraft more precisely than current radar-based technology, potentially freeing up congested corridors and allowing pilots to make shorter, safer flights to their destinations. For passengers, the anticipated benefits include less time in the air, reduced taxiing times and the elimination of long delays on the tarmac or at terminals.

The Culver City and Newport Beach lawsuits are part of a growing number of legal challenges around the country that dispute the findings of the environmental review for Metroplex. Similar cases are pending in Boston, New York, Phoenix and the Bay Area.

dan.weikel@latimes.com
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

Trend:

Iran and Russia have tangible progress in all spheres of bilateral relations and in international affairs, said Irans Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Zarif made the remarks Oct. 28 during the negotiations with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, RIA Novosti reported.

We have tangible progress in all spheres of our bilateral relations, in political and economic spheres, as well as in regional and international affairs, said the Iranian minister.

Iran and Russia have a common position on combating terrorism, he noted adding that it is very noticeable and it will be so in the future.
The city of Los Angeles now knows how many parking lots, parks, orange groves  even how much of Palmdale  it owns.

A database released by the controllers office Thursday shows the city owns nearly 9,000 parcels in Los Angeles County  more than previously listed by the Department of General Services, whose real estate division is responsible for tracking the citys parcels and buildings.

Its the citys most comprehensive listing in at least a decade. Officials hope the database is a first step toward identifying land that could be sold, leased or better utilized for things like condominiums, affordable housing complexes, parks, swimming pools or libraries.

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In reviewing property information from General Services, Controller Ron Galperin said his office found it to be incomplete, inadequate, outdated, and in some cases incorrect.

Its a call to action for the city to really undertake an organized, strategic, professional, centralized approach to its real estate assets, Galperin said.

The city previously had an asset management system but it failed in 2005 and the company behind the software was unable to repair it. Since then, General Services has relied on various, and often outdated, Excel spreadsheets, city records show.

Its crazy for a city the size of Maywood, or for any city not to know what it has, said Lowell Goodman, spokesman for the controllers office. Thats vital.

The controller called on city leaders to appoint a chief asset manager from the private sector to oversee the portfolio and market the properties to potential buyers.

Officials at General Services said they have real estate agents on staff who came from the private sector and help with leasing and property acquisitions.

Keeping track of its real estate holdings has long been a problem for the city.

In 2003, then-Controller Laura Chick found General Services lacked an overarching vision or strategy for managing city properties. A follow-up audit in 2008 noted that a citywide database of real estate holdings did not exist. A 2014 study commissioned by city leaders recommended that L.A. acquire a new property tracking system.

General Services officials said budget cuts following the recession made creating a property database difficult.

There has been a recognition that the city needs to do better in this area, said Valerie Melloff, assistant general manager at General Services.

The controllers database shows all the parks, airports and government buildings most Angelenos would recognize as city property, but it also revealed some unusual holdings.

Beginning in 1969, the city purchased vacant desert lots in Palmdale to build an airport that never came to pass. There are 121 city parcels  17,500 acres  listed in Palmdale, the database shows.

The controllers office also found that the city owns the Franklin Canyon Orange Grove, which is surrounded by multimillion-dollar homes.

I dont know why the city is in the orange-growing business, but apparently we are, said Juan Lopez, deputy for technology and innovation at controllers office.

The controllers new system comes at the same time General Services is working with the mayors Operations Innovation Team to create a similar, $2.5-million database called Assetworks.

The system  a preliminary version of which shows that the city owns 9,900 parcels in the state  will include more detailed information that developers may need, including zoning, parking, energy usage and in some cases estimated property value, according to a report from General Services.

A preliminary version of Assetworks is expected to be publicly available in about a month.

The mayors office has been consulting with industry leaders on strategies to best utilize the citys real estate portfolio, and will issue a proposal this fiscal year. We appreciate the controllers current interest in this matter, said Connie Llanos, a spokeswoman for the mayors office.

To build the new database  called PropertyPanel.LA  staff from the controllers office cross-referenced records from General Services with L.A. county assessor data. An interactive map posted on the controllers website enables users to search for properties and save results. The database cost $20,000 to build, Galperin said.

Mayor Eric Garcetti and the Los Angeles City Council are working on a plan to turn a dozen city-owned sites into housing that would benefit the homeless.

So far, those locations include parking lots in Lincoln Heights, a former animal shelter on the Westside and unused fire stations in Westchester and San Pedro. The new database could help identify additional sites for housing, the controller said.

alice.walton@latimes.com

Twitter: @TheCityMaven

ben.poston@latimes.com

Twitter: @bposton
The Riverside County Sheriffs Department is fighting to keep a former deputy from returning to the force after he successfully appealed his firing, according to court filings.

Mark Franks was fired last year after an administrative hearing concluded he was negligent in his duties when he watched an ailing man crawl to his apartment in Palm Desert and allegedly threatened to arrest him. The man was found dead in his living room five days later.

The legal battle, first reported by the Desert Sun, is centered on an arbiters decision in April to reinstate Franks and to give him back pay and benefits dating to his July 20, 2015 firing, according to court documents.

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Attorneys for the Sheriffs Department argue that the arbiters decision was premature and that he exceeded his authority.

According to court filings, which include Franks own report on the incident, the deputy found Curtis Nelson disoriented next to a shopping cart behind a Dollar Tree store in September 2014.

Per a store employees request, Franks asked Nelson to leave the property. Though Nelson indicated he would comply, he repeatedly stopped and sat down, documents say.

Franks report states that Nelson said he was out of shape and just needed a few minutes before moving on. He declined medical attention, Franks reported.

Eventually the deputy put Nelson in the back of his car and drove him to an apartment complex across the street where Nelson lived, the report states.

Nelson got out and crawled to the gate of his apartment. I told Nelson to get up and walk but he said his legs hurt and he was out of shape. I stood by while Nelson crawled very slowly towards his apartment, Franks wrote. After about 30-40 minutes of Nelson continuing to lie on the ground and then crawl to his apartment, he finally made it to the door.

But a witness gave an account that put the deputys actions in a much harsher light, court filings show.

A woman who lived in the same complex said Nelson took about an hour to drag himself the 50 feet to his front door on his hands and arms. All the while, the report says, Franks repeatedly stated that if [Nelson] did not get into his apartment he would arrest him.

Five days later, neighbors saw Nelson through a window lying still in his apartment and called 911. An autopsy determined that he died of natural causes, including hypertensive cardiovascular disease, kidney failure and chronic alcoholism.

Nelsons death prompted the investigation into Franks contact with him, according to court documents. In justifying Franks firing, the department noted that he had been disciplined for failing to perform his duties once before, when he failed to investigate and document a reported assault with a deadly weapon.

Another agency ultimately investigated that case and identified a suspect, court documents say.

A judge has yet to decide whether to overturn the arbiters decision to reinstate Franks. A court hearing is scheduled for Dec. 12. The Sheriffs Department, its attorney and Franks attorney did not return requests for comment.

Joseph.serna@latimes.com

For breaking California news, follow @JosephSerna on Twitter.
For the last three years, retired California National Guard Master Sgt. Bill McLains wife, Terese, has repaid a bit of his enlistment bonuses to the Pentagon with a caustic note.

Each month, she writes blood money on the $100 check  the token amount the McLains pay on the $30,000 debt they deny owing  that she sends to the Pentagon. Shame on you. Extortion, she writes on the envelope.

The Pentagon cashes each check.

Facing a groundswell of public outrage, the Pentagon scrambled this week to temporarily suspend its demands for thousands of California Guard soldiers to repay enlistment bonuses and other incentives they were given to go to war.

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But McLain and other soldiers who were wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan may still be required to repay their bonuses, one of several apparent exceptions in the proposed Pentagon solution.

Two weeks before McLain left to fight in Afghanistan in early 2013  his fourth combat tour in a decade  the National Guard garnished his entire $3,496 monthly paycheck for the enlistment bonuses it claimed he was improperly given five years earlier.

I had nothing, the 55-year-old retired special forces soldier recalled Thursday about leaving his wife and two stepdaughters without his salary while he went back to war. They took every nickel.

McLain managed to get the wage garnishment lifted, but his troubles were just beginning.

Carbon copies of checks written to DFAS from Ret. Master Sgt. William McLain. (Isaac Brekken / For The Times )

The Pentagon has hounded him ever since to repay the bonuses, even after he was diagnosed as 90% disabled on account of head and back injuries sustained in combat, including a 2008 attack in Iraq when a roadside bomb nearly destroyed his jaw.

McLain is one of about 9,800 current and former California Guard soldiers who were ordered to repay enlistment bonuses, tuition assistance or other payments that officials said were improperly awarded when the Defense Department was frantically trying to fill its ranks for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

A Los Angeles Times story last weekend that revealed the Pentagon repayment demands sparked a public furor about what many viewed as an injustice. Members of Congress and both major party presidential candidates expressed outrage and demanded action.

Under pressure to respond, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter interrupted his trip in Europe on Wednesday to announce a temporary suspension of the claw-backs. He pledged that a special review panel would consider each soldiers case over the next eight months.

Carter said the Pentagon would grant debt waivers to soldiers who took the enlistment incentives and other payments without realizing they were ineligible. Some soldiers were given as much as $60,000, officials said.

But given the criteria Carter and other Pentagon officials laid out Wednesday, its far from certain that McLain and other wounded combat veterans will qualify for that debt relief.

Neither Carter nor his deputy, Peter Levine, the acting assistant secretary of Defense who will lead the review, indicated that they will make a blanket exception for soldiers who were wounded in battle.

Federal law already allows the Pentagon to waive certain debts for Purple Heart recipients. But officials havent granted that exemption to McLain and other Purple Heart recipients contacted by The Times.

Defense officials also said they dont plan to waive repayment from soldiers who were ineligible for the enlistment bonuses because they already had served 20 years and thus were entitled to military pensions.

Former soldiers tell stories of bonus repayments to Pentagon  On Now Anatomy of a story | Behind the National Guard enlistment bonus investigation On Now 'I felt like the wind got knocked out of me' | Ex-California Army National Guard captain recounts her student loan repayment nightmare 2:10 On Now After he fought for the country, the U.S. is asking him to give back his enlistment bonus On Now Video: Susan Haley, a former Army master sergeant who served in Afghanistan On Now Video: Retired California National Guard Master Sgt. Bill McLain On Now Video: Christopher Van Meter, former California Army Reserve captain and Iraq veteran

McLain joined the Army in 1979, later ending up in the California Guard. He retired in 2014 and resumed his job as a police officer with the Las Vegas school system.

McLain was born on a U.S. Army base in Germany. His father fought in Vietnam, his grandfather in World War II. He is proud of his military service in Iraq and Afghanistan.

But he and his wife are embittered and angry about the Pentagon demands for repayment of the incentives they gave him to go to war.

Until we get a letter to us saying legally they cant take us to [debt] collection or turn us over to the IRS, I wont be satisfied, he said Thursday.

Like many California Guard members, McLains bonus problems began in 2006, when he was serving in the 19th Special Forces Group, a National Guard unit based in Los Alamitos.

He had gone to Afghanistan in 2002 shortly after the U.S.-led invasion that ousted the Taliban from power.

Until we get a letter to us saying legally they cant take us to [debt] collection or turn us over to the IRS, I wont be satisfied  Bill McLain, retired California Guard soldier

Four years later, when his enlistment contract was expiring, he volunteered to go to Iraq as the Sunni Muslim insurgency against the U.S.-led occupation was reaching its most violent phase.

Instead of signing a new six-year enlistment, McLain opted to extend his old contract for the year he would deploy in Iraq, receiving no bonus.

He was assigned to a regular Army special forces team at an outpost near Hit, an Iraqi insurgent hotbed where U.S. troops were engaged in fierce daily combat.

McLain says that the units senior noncommissioned officer told him that if he signed up for another six-year contract while in a war zone, he was entitled to a $30,000 reenlistment bonus since he was on active duty.

McLain says he was skeptical. He believed that as a California Guard member, he only qualified for $15,000, the usual bonus at the time.

But he signed the contract and within weeks received two extra payments of $7,500 in his paycheck. When the other money didnt appear, he says he assumed he only qualified for $15,000 and thought no more about it.

His year in Hit, a sand-blown walled town on the Euphrates River northwest of Ramadi, involved near daily combat.

Our job was to train the Iraqi police, and we went on a bunch of operations aimed at capturing insurgents, he said. Militants ambushed U.S. convoys and regularly bombarded his units small outpost with mortar fire, he said.

By the end of that deployment I had been struck numerous times by IEDs and had been diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury, McLain wrote in August 2015 in his bonus repayment appeal to the Pentagon, using a military abbreviation for improvised explosive device.

His injuries werent severe enough to require hospitalization.

A year after McLain returned to the U.S., in 2007, another payment of $7,500 appeared in his Army paycheck without explanation. Then another $7,500 arrived, for a total of $30,000 in bonuses.

It just showed up on my paycheck, and I thought, Great, he was right, McLain said, referring to the senior sergeant in Iraq who had told him that he qualified for $30,000.

McLain returned to Iraq in 2008 and fought in a major battle in the southern city of Basra, where U.S. and Iraqi troops had been sent to quell an insurgent uprising.

As he rode through the city one day, a powerful roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle. A small piece of shrapnel tore through the armor plating and hit the headset radio microphone that McLain used to communicate with other soldiers.

The impact drove his jaw back, bloodied his mouth and left most of his teeth loose. After he returned to Las Vegas in 2009, a Veterans Affairs doctor found his lower jaw was infected. He removed McLains teeth and performed a bone graft to reconstruct his lower jaw.

In January 2013, McLain received a letter from the California Guard telling him that he did not qualify for the $30,000 in bonuses he had received after reenlisting seven years earlier.

Since he had enlisted in 1979, the letter claimed, he had served more than 20 years in the Army when he reenlisted, and Pentagon rules barred giving bonuses to soldiers who had passed the two-decade mark.

Even if he had been eligible, as a member of the California Guard, he would have only received $15,000, the letter stated.

The bottom line: He had to pay back the entire $30,000.

McLain refused to pay, arguing that he had served only 17 years, because, after leaving active duty, he was inactive from 1988 to 1993 before joining the National Guard.

A week before he left for Afghanistan, the Pentagon sent him a salary statement for $0.00.

He has been fighting the debt ever since.

In 2015, when the Pentagon offered to give him a long-term repayment agreement, he crossed out a section that required him to admit he owed the debt, and started sending $100 checks.

The Defense Finance and Accounting Service, the Pentagon agency that handles repayment of debts, responded with a letter that said because he had altered the repayment agreement, he was required to immediately repay the entire $27,112.82 it said he still owed.

We have determined that we cannot suspend your  debt any longer, said the letter. It was signed by an unnamed customer care representative.

david.cloud@latimes.com

@davidcloudLAT
After a night of chaotic clashes with police on the front lines in a months-long protest, Native American activists complained about the force wielded to drive protesters from the path of a pipeline they contend will desecrate tribal lands and put their lone source of drinking water at risk.

Protesters said that those arrested in the confrontation had numbers written on their arms and were housed in what appeared to be dog kennels, without bedding or furniture. Others said advancing officers sprayed mace and pelted them with rubber bullets.



For the record: An earlier version of this article stated that the New Mexico National Guard helped clear the protesters. It was the North Dakota National Guard that was deployed.

It goes back to concentration camp days, said Mekasi Camp-Horinek, a protest coordinator who said authorities wrote a number on his arm when he was housed in one of the mesh enclosures with his mother, Casey.

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At least 141 people were arrested Thursday after hundreds of police officers in riot gear, flanked by military vehicles releasing high-pitched sound cannon blasts, moved slowly forward, firing clouds of pepper spray at activists who refused to move.

Authorities claimed some protesters turned violent during the confrontation, setting fires, tossing Molotov cocktails and, in one instance, pulling out a gun and firing on officers.

Some of the activists claimed Friday that police had opened fire with rubber bullets on protesters and horses. One horse was euthanized after being shot in the leg, said Robby Romero, a Native American activist.

They were shooting their rubber bullets at our horses, he said. We had to put one horse down, he said.

Camp-Horinek said authorities entered the teepees that activists had erected in the path of the pipeline, a four-state, 1,200-mile conduit to carry oil from western North Dakota to Illinois.

It looked like a scene from the 1800s, with the cavalry coming up to the doors of the teepees, and flipping open the canvas doors with automatic weapons, he said.

Standing Rock Tribal Chairman David Archambault II called for a Justice Department investigation into the police tactics. Amnesty International announced Friday it was sending a human rights delegation to investigate and Sen. Bernie Sanders asked the White House to order the Army Corps of Engineers to temporarily halt construction of the pipeline.

Mekasi Camp-Horinek displays number he says authorities wrote on his arm (Sandy Tolan/For the Los Angeles Times )

DOJ can no longer ignore our requests, Archambault said in a statement. If harm comes to any who come here to stand in solidarity with us, it is on their watch.

Authorities have said all along that they have used restraint in the ongoing dispute and had pleaded for activists to retreat from the path of the pipeline and return to the camp where they have been gathered for months.

Most of those arrested were expected to be charged with criminal trespassing, engaging in a riot and conspiracy to endanger by fire, according to the sheriffs department. Several fires broke out during the confrontation, and sheriffs officials said seven protesters used sleeping dragon devices to attach themselves to vehicles or other heavy objects. The maneuver typically involves protesters handcuffing themselves together through PVC pipe, making it difficult for authorities to remove them using bolt cutters to break the handcuffs.

The protest in the rugged lands along the Cannonball River has lasted months as activists  sometimes hundreds, sometimes thousands  have assembled to decry the pipeline project.

The burned-out husks of heavy trucks sit on Highway 1806 near Cannon Ball, N.D. (James MacPherson / AP )

But on Friday, with protesters cleared from the path of the pipeline, work was expected to resume on the $3.78-billion Dakota Access Pipeline, operated by the Fortune 500 company Energy Transfer Partners.

When I left the bus in handcuffs, DAPL [Dakota Access Pipeline] trucks were lined up down the highway with construction equipment and materials waiting to come in and begin work, said Camp-Horinek.

State and county police, the North Dakota National Guard and an oil company private security team cleared protesters, along with the teepees and tents they had erect in the path of the pipeline, and on Friday, authorities removed the final roadblocks that protesters had erected along the highway.

For the most part, protesters remained peaceful during Thursdays confrontation, though at one point, an activist set fire to a heap of tires that were part of a blockade set up to impede the progress of advancing officers.

Sheriffs officials said that one woman, while being arrested, pulled out a weapon and fired three rounds in the direction of the police lines. No one was hit, authorities said.

Activists denied that the woman fired the shots and claimed that sheriffs officials previously had made erroneous reports about protesters actions, including passing along rumors of pipe bombs in the activists camp.

The only gunshots that were fired would have come from them, said Romero, one of the Native American activists. They are armed. We are unarmed. They are trying to spin the narrative. They are using an increasingly vast military operation to respond to our spiritual resistance.

They are fast-tracking the pipeline.

With unimpeded access, pipeline crews could reach the Missouri River in a matter of days. The Obama administration has withheld final approval for the pipeline to cross under the river, on lands controlled by the Army Corps of Engineers.

Meanwhile, the Sheriffs office said late Friday that Highway 1806 remained closed after intense interactions overnight, including what it called multiple fires on a bridge south of the now-vacated Treaty Stronghhold Camp.

Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kerchmeier said he was coordinating with Standing Rock officials to assist protesters in recovering teepees and other belongings, calling it a a great example of communication, collaboration and cooperation. He added: I am very proud of our officers who responded with patience and professionalism and showed continuous restraint throughout the entire event.

Despite the loss of their Treaty Stronghold Camp, which activists erected in recent days saying they were reclaiming land ceded to the Great Sioux Nation in the 1951 Fort Laramie treaty, activists vowed to fight on.

Tolan is a special correspondent.

ALSO

Even the Rev. Jesse Jackson on horseback cant end pipeline showdown

Dakota Access oil pipeline protesters cleared from camp, sheriff says; more than 140 arrested

Clashes, arrests and fears  North Dakota pipeline protest at a boiling point

UPDATES:

2:37 p.m.: This articles was updated with details and quotes from the Morton County Sheriffs office.

12:25 p.m.: This article was updated with details and quotes from a Native American protest coordinator.

This article was originally published at 11:45 a.m.
What happened at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge earlier this year was no whodunit.

Many of the men and women in the 41-day protest in rural Oregon were filmed and photographed taking over and occupying the facility. Some were even captured there. Some had guns.

At trial in federal court in Portland -- where seven defendants stood accused of weapons charges and conspiracy to intimidate federal workers -- some presented legal theories that experts called wrongheaded and laughable.

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All this, in a federal legal system in which the overwhelming majority of defendants charged with a crime are convicted.

Yet if there is a single sentence that sums up the disastrous loss that federal prosecutors experienced in Oregon on Thursday  when all seven defendants were found not guilty  its the story of Kenneth Medenbach, who was also charged with stealing government property:

My client was arrested in a government truck, and he was acquitted of taking that truck, said defense attorney Matthew Schindler, who still sounded in disbelief Friday morning.

Thursdays acquittal brought celebration among the occupations right-wing supporters and sent shock waves through the legal profession. Three of the seven defendants chose to represent themselves, and the governments six-week trial had largely been viewed as an easily winnable case.

Bundys attorney, Morgan Philpot, said if his client and fellow protesters believed they were pursuing a legal process, they couldnt have been criminally intending to intimidate federal workers.

When a television reporter first informed Lewis & Clark criminal law professor Tung Yin of the not-guilty verdict, Yin responded, Wait  what?

Look at the indictment and the list of charges, Yin told the Los Angeles Times on Friday, noting that the governments evidence included video footage and social-media posts from occupiers about their armed takeover of the refuge.

Youve got these yahoos taking videos of themselves with their guns probably, and theyre clearly on a federal facility by their own admission, so that seemed like proof beyond any doubt of their factual guilt, Yin said. Thats why it seemed to me it would be a slam-dunk case.

Duane Ehmer rides his horse Hellboy at the occupied Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. (Rob Kerr/AFP/Getty Images )

Yet the governments case was more challenging than it seemed. Defense attorneys in the case say that prosecutors became overconfident, electing not to file lesser charges that would have resulted in easier convictions  and likely little, if any, jail time.

The occupation began in January as a protest against the imprisonment of two Oregon ranchers who had been convicted of setting fire to federal lands.

The leaders, which included brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy, are far-right land-rights advocates who believe in arcane legal theories that the federal government doesnt have the constitutional authority to own federal wildlands.

The weeks-long occupation, which was covered widely in the national media and drew protesters from across the U.S., ended after state and federal law enforcement arrested the occupations leaders on a nearby highway. One leader, LaVoy Finicum, sped away in a truck, and police shot and killed him after he got out of the vehicle and reached for his gun, officials said.

After the occupation was abandoned, dozens of guns and thousands of rounds of ammunition were found at the refuge. Charges against many of the occupiers soon followed, with almost a dozen people pleading guilty to related charges before trial.

The most significant of the charges against the occupations leaders was a count of felony conspiracy to intentionally intimidate government workers and prevent them from doing their jobs.

The conspiracy count was actually a double-whammy: If the defendants could persuade the jury that no criminal conspiracy had occurred, then they could not be convicted of the accompanying weapons charge  which requires the government to prove the guns had been brought on federal property to commit a crime.

The defendants said they were not trying to intimidate or hurt anyone by occupying the refuge. Ammon Bundy claimed that he was trying to take ownership of the land by way of adverse possession  a legal process of gaining ownership of something by occupying it.

Thats an unusual legal argument, and one that prosecutors disputed at trial. But ultimately, the jury agreed that the government was unable to prove the intent required to establish criminal conspiracy.

All 12 jurors felt that this verdict was a statement regarding the various failures of the prosecution to prove conspiracy in the count itself  and not any form of affirmation of the defenses various beliefs, actions or aspirations,' Juror 4 wrote in an email to the Oregonian.

Juror 4 also scolded prosecutors for being overconfident and exuding an air of triumphalism and denied critics claims that jurors were supporting the defendants actions.

Dont they know that not guilty does not mean innocent?' the juror wrote to the Oregonian. It was not lost on us that our verdict(s) might inspire future actions that are regrettable, but that sort of thinking was not permitted when considering the charges before us.'

The U.S. attorneys office in Oregon did not respond to interview requests Friday.

Medenbachs attorney, Schindler, was stunned by the verdict. His own client had been arrested while driving around in a U.S. Fish and Wildlife truck. Medenbach, a right-wing activist who had been convicted previously for other protests, had even planned on being found guilty.

His point in this case was to be convicted. His point was to go to the Court of Appeals and make legal arguments about the United States ability to own land, Schindler said. The notion of being acquitted never entered his mind. I told Ken over and over and over, Youre going to be convicted. 

Yet Medenbach was found not guilty, along with his six co-defendants.

Its extraordinary, completely unprecedented, without a doubt the biggest loss for the federal government in the District of Oregon, ever, Schindler said.

Ammon and Ryan Bundy still face similar charges in Nevada for a 2014 armed standoff with U.S. Bureau of Land Management agents near their father Cliven Bundys ranch. But Thursdays verdict was seen as a ray of sunshine for Ammon Bundys Las Vegas attorney.

When the jury down here hears the full story of what the BLM put the Bundys through, said Dan Hill, I expect the same result.

matt.pearce@latimes.com

Twitter: @mattdpearce

ALSO

Leaders of Oregon wildlife refuge standoff are acquitted of federal charges

Opinion: Was the Malheur occupation legal, or did the feds botch the Bundy case?

Opinion: In acquitting the Oregon militants, a white jury determines that the law doesnt apply to white protesters
In his 29 years in prison, David Bonner has mopped floors, cooked hot dogs in the cafeteria and, most recently, cut sheets of aluminum into Alabama license plates.

The last job paid $2 a day  enough to buy a bar of soap at the commissary or make a short phone call.

This is slavery, said Bonner, who is 51 and serving a life sentence for murder. Were forced to work these jobs and we get barely anything.

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He was speaking on a mobile phone smuggled into his 8-by-12 foot cell in Alabamas Holman Correctional Facility, where he and dozens of other inmates were on strike.

Theyre among a growing national movement of prisoners who have staged work stoppages or hunger strikes this fall to protest dismal wages, abusive guards, overcrowding and poor healthcare, among other grievances.

Prisoners rights activists say the coordinated effort is one of the largest prison protests in modern history, drawing in at least 20,000 inmates in at least 24 prisons in 23 states.

State officials have confirmed inmate protests in Michigan, South Carolina and Florida since early September. In California, at least 300 inmates have been involved in hunger strikes at jails in Santa Clara and Merced counties.

In several states, including Virginia, Ohio and Texas, officials have denied claims by activists that strikes have occurred.

Alabama officials acknowledged the protest at the Holman prison, 52 miles northeast of Mobile, though they said it was limited to a one-day strike by 60 inmates who worked in the kitchen and license plate plant  far less extensive than the 10-plus days in September and October that activists described.

I know there are inmates who are saying there is this big, wide work stoppage but that is just not the case, said Alabama Dept. of Corrections spokesman Bob Horton.

Horton denied inmate reports that the prison had been on lockdown in response to strikes, which he described as peaceful. But he also said he understood some of prisoners complaints about living conditions. Holman is overcrowded and understaffed, Horton said, adding that state officials were working to fix the problem.

Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley, who visited Holman earlier this year, has described the state corrections system as being in crisis and has pushed for funding to build additional prisons.

Known by inmates as the slaughterhouse for its death row, the maximum-security Holman prison is considered one of the most violent facilities in the South.

Nearly 1,000 inmates occupy a space built for half that many. Tensions have been escalating throughout this year.

In March, riots broke out. In September, a prisoner stabbed a corrections officer to death. In October, after an inmate committed suicide, prisoners said guards had ignored their screams to come and help the man.

Amid the protests, the U.S. Department of Justice announced this month that it was launching a civil rights investigation into prisons across Alabama to determine whether prisoners are adequately protected from physical harm and sexual abuse at the hands of other prisoners and from use of excessive force and staff sexual abuse by correctional officers.

Activists celebrated. Ive been doing this work for four years, and weve never gotten this kind of attention to prisoners rights, said Azzurra Crispino, an activist based in Austin, Texas. Theres a momentum.

Crispino is a spokesperson for the Incarcerated Workers Organizing Committee, a group that is part of the Industrial Workers of the World union and has played a key role in coordinating the protests. It has connected prisoners to one another and outside activists, and rallied activists to flood prisons with letters and phone calls on behalf of inmates.

Most states have a prisoner-rights organization headquartered at one of its major prisons. The Free Alabama Movement, for example, is based at the Holman facility.

Leaders in each prison have used contraband smartphones to coordinate work stoppages and broadcast their complaints and demands through Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and blogs. Some inmates have reported being transferred to other prisons or confined in cells as retaliation for organizing.

All of us realize this is a long and protracted struggle. From our perspective, the fact that a strike occurred at all is a win.  Azzurra Crispino, an activist with the Incarcerated Workers Organizing Committee

Organizers said that although the labor strikes have included only a sliver of the nations 2.2 million prisoners, they stand the best chance of spurring change.

Putting prisoners to work is standard practice, but many states dont pay them, pointing out that although the 13th Amendment of the Constitution outlaws involuntary servitude, it makes an exception for work done as a punishment for crime.

Correction officials say prison labor gives inmates job skills and a sense of independence, a view supported by some studies. Many prisoners say they wouldnt mind working but want more pay and protections on par with jobs outside prisons.

The work goes far beyond maintaining the prisons or producing goods for the government. Prison labor often benefits private enterprises.

According to prisoners, the strikes this fall included inmates at the Perry Correctional Institution in South Carolina who work without pay for a furniture company that operates a factory there. In an interview, Bryan Stirling, who heads the state department of corrections, denied there was a strike.

Until it bowed to pressure from prisoner-rights activists last year, the grocery store chain Whole Foods bought tilapia and goat cheese from a supplier that raised its animals using inmate labor in Colorado.

The Florida Department of Corrections website says that inmates working in jobs serving various state agencies saved residents $45 million in taxes in 2014. Inmates performed almost 5.4 million hours of work in our communities, valued at more than $76 million, the site reads.

By some estimates, prison workers save individual states and U.S. companies billions a year in wages.

The prison system right now is just a big old business, said Carlos Sanders, a 53-year-old death row inmate who goes by the name Siddique Abdullah Hasan and helps lead the Free Ohio Movement from the Ohio State Penitentiary in Youngstown.

Weve tried hunger strikes and filing grievances with courts, said Sanders, who entered prison for robbery and was subsequently convicted of helping plan the murder of a corrections officer during a 1993 uprising. But since super-economic exploitation is what keeps these prisons alive, we decided a labor strike is the way to go.

The strikes began on Sept. 9, timed to the 45th anniversary of the deadliest prison uprising in modern American history  a five-day standoff over living conditions at the Attica Correctional Facility in upstate New York that left 33 prisoners and 10 guards dead.

The issue of prisoner rights has periodically garnered public attention over the years, fueled most recently by debates over race and justice that have gripped the country.

A 2010 work stoppage involving thousands of prisoners in Georgia was quickly followed by similar strikes in North Carolina, Washington, Illinois and Virginia. Three years later, 30,000 California inmates refused food  some of them for close to two months  protest the states use of long-term solitary confinement.

But the strikes this fall have a breadth that has seldom been seen. That can only translate to increased awareness for a cause that has rarely enjoyed much sympathy from the public.

All of us realize this is a long and protracted struggle, said Crispino. From our perspective, the fact that a strike occurred at all is a win.

One recent question for activists inside and outside prisons is where prison guards stand on the push for reforms. They spend more time with the inmates than anyone else and have a close-up view of prison conditions. They also naturally have a strong interest in maintaining peace at their workplaces.

Last month at the Holman prison when nine guards didnt show up for a work shift, inmates took it as support for their strike.

A glimpse into the world of a Freedom Fighter... FREE ALABAMA! pic.twitter.com/0fzOFUet4H  FREEDOM FOR KINETIK (@for_kinetic) September 25, 2016

They tired of the Administration playing games with their lives, tweeted Robert Earl Council, a 42-year-old death row inmate and Free Alabama Movement co-founder who goes by the name Kinetik Justice.

But the guards have yet to make their stance public, and corrections officials said their lack of attendance didnt mean they were joining striking prisoners.

This week, according to prison officials, an inmate used an unidentified homemade weapon to attack a guard, who was slashed across the head. He is expected to recover.

They support us, Council said. But they also are afraid of being hurt themselves.

jaweed.kaleem@latimes.com

Jaweed Kaleem is The Times national race and justice correspondent. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

ALSO

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Leaders of Oregon wildlife refuge standoff are acquitted of federal charges

He was adopted and brought to the U.S. 37 years ago. Now this South Korean man is about to be deported

UPDATES:

5:15 p.m.: This article was updated to include a comment from a South Carolina corrections official to deny that a strike took place at the Perry Correctional Institution.

This article was originally published at 3:00 a.m.
The Supreme Court agreed Friday to tackle transgender rights for the first time, taking a case that will determine whether schools nationwide may force students to use restrooms that match the gender on their birth certificates.

The case, stemming from a Virginia dispute involving a transgender boy, will be heard early next year, either by the current eight-member court or with a new ninth justice chosen at the behest of the winner of the presidential election.

The justices will hear an appeal from the Gloucester County School Board, which had adopted a rule requiring students to use the restrooms that correspond to their biological genders.

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UPDATE: Supreme Court puts off ruling on rights of transgender students 

Gavin Grimm, a transgender boy, sued the school district, alleging that this policy amounted to illegal sex discrimination. He received the support of the U.S. Education Department and won a 2-1 ruling from the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals based in Richmond, Va.

The justices now will decide whether to uphold the Obama administrations interpretation of an existing sex-discrimination statute or instead rule the agency has no authority to set rules for how schools and colleges should treat transgender students.

Grimm, the 17-year old plaintiff, said he did not expect that his request to use the boys restroom would end up in the Supreme Court.

I never thought that my restroom use would ever turn into any kind of national debate. The only thing I ever asked for was the right to be treated like everyone else, he said in a statement released by the American Civil Liberties Union, which is representing him.

Court disputes over voting laws often divide justices along party lines 

While Im disappointed that I will have to spend my final school year being singled out and treated differently from every other guy, I will do everything I can to make sure that other transgender students dont have to go through the same experience, he said.

While the 4th Circuit ruled in his favor, the Supreme Court in August voted 5 to 3 to put that decision on hold while the justices review the case.

The courts three most liberal justices  Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan  dissented. Justice Stephen G. Breyer said he voted with the courts conservatives as a courtesy so the full court would have an opportunity to decide the issue.

The legal question before the court involves whether judges should defer to agencies that reinterpret their own regulations.

In 1972, Congress passed the Title IX amendment, which said schools and colleges may not discriminate against students on the basis of sex. The law is usually cited as a landmark in the history of womens sports.

The regulations do not prevent schools from providing separate toilet, locker room and shower facilities for girls and boys, or for that matter, having separate womens and mens teams.

But last year, an Education Department lawyer issued an opinion letter in Grimms case declaring that denying him the use of the boys restrooms was illegal sex discrimination in violation of Title IX. It marked the first time the regulation had been used in such a manner to protect transgender students.

In May, the Education Department issued a national guidance letter advising all schools and colleges that, under federal law, they must allow transgender students access to restrooms, locker rooms and dormitories that fit their gender identity.

Lawyers for the Gloucester County School Board called the guidance an extreme and unwarranted change in the law. They argued that schools had traditionally provided separate restrooms for students based on their biological gender. And they said the Obama administration officials did not have the authority to change the law without the approval of Congress.

The 4th Circuit Court disagreed, deciding it should defer to the agency officials who were in charge of enforcing the Title IX law.

Shortly after that decision, a federal judge in Texas ruled in favor of Texas and more than 20 other conservative states that sued to challenge the Education Departments policy. The judge issued a nationwide order blocking its enforcement.

That decision may have helped persuade the justices that they needed to clarify the law.

But Grimms lawsuit is limited. He sought only use of the boys restroom. He did not raise the issue of locker rooms or showers. And the school district in response offered him the use of a separate unisex restroom.

Following the courts normal schedule, arguments in the case  Gloucester County School Board vs. G.G.  would be heard in late February or March.

If the Senate moves quickly after the election, it could vote to confirm Judge Merrick Garland, President Obamas nominee, and he could be seated in time to participate in the transgender rights case.

But it is also possible the ninth seat may remain vacant in the spring, creating the prospect the justices could split 4 to 4 and be unable to rule.

david.savage@latimes.com

On Twitter: DavidGSavage

UPDATES:

2:45 p.m.: This article was updated with more reaction and background.

This article was originally published at 1:15 p.m.
Trump lets off fireworks in Iowa and slams Clinton over emails

Donald Trump closed out a busy news day Friday with a fireworks display at a rally in battleground Iowa as he hardened his attack on Hillary Clinton amid renewed investigation of her emails.

Trump suggested there was criminal wrongdoing in Clintons handling of classified information, even though the FBI has given no such indication of the scope or extent of its scrutiny of newly found emails.

The FBI would have never reopened the case at this time unless it was the most egregious criminal offense, Trump said.

He also said Clinton was wrong in saying that federal investigators had notified only Republicans in Congress of their new review. (His claim that Democrats had also been told could not be immediately verified.)

Trump acknowledged that he has been critical of the FBIs handling of the case, but now, he said, he gives them great credit.

The rally was Trumps final one of the night and drew thousands, including a protester with a sign against racism. Trump did not slow down his speech as she was escorted out of the venue.

After his short speech came the fireworks.
Trump falls far short of his boast of putting $100 million into his own campaign

Donald Trump campaigns in Geneva, Ohio. (Dustin Franz / AFP-Getty Images)

Donald Trump has repeated it so much its almost part of his stump speech: Hes going to put $100 million of his own money into his campaign before election day. But new filings show hes got a long way to go if hes going to hit that mark.

The Republican presidential nominee has given a mere $33,000 to his campaign this month. That means he needs to pony up another $44 million to fulfill the boast thats become a familiar refrain in interviews and rallies over the last several days.

I will have more than $100 million in the campaign, Trump told CNN on Wednesday. And I am prepared to go much more than that.

Over the course of his presidential bid, the New York businessman who says he is worth $10 billion has given about $56 million of his own money. The majority of that spending occurred in the GOP primary. During the general election, his campaign gifts slowed to about $2 million each month.

Neither Trump campaign spokeswoman Hope Hicks nor spokesman Jason Miller responded to emailed questions late Thursday inquiring whether Trump still planned to contribute as much as he has said he would.

Trump gave about $31,000 through the first 19 days of October  the period covered in the filing released Thursday all of which went to cover rent and payroll. Trump also gave an additional $2,600 on Oct. 20, other filings show.

Trumps overall monetary contribution to his presidential bid shrinks when accounting for about $9 million in campaign cash that has been returned to his family and businesses. That money has largely gone to the holding company of his private jet, but the campaign also paid for rent at Trump Tower, catering at his restaurants and even the Trump Ice bottled water thats popped up at his events.

Trumps October contribution was revealed in the same reports that showed his campaign had only about $16 million left in the bank as of last week after raising about $30 million in the first 19 days of October. Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton raised about $53 million for her campaign, leaving her with $62 million in available cash.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

By Emil Ilgar  Trend:

Iran has never had any dealings with Israeli companies, Arash Kordi, director of Iran Power Generation and Transmission Company (TAVANIR), told IRNA responding to claims over the links between Turkeys Zorlu Energy and Israeli government.

Iran has never negotiated with this company (Zorlu Energy), which was accused of being in relations with Israeli officials, he said on Oct. 28.

In September, Omer Yungul, chief executive officer of Zorlu Holding, said Zorlu Energy is in talks with Iranian authorities for a project and a concrete plan may be announced this year.

Anadolu Agency also reported in October citing the holdings Director General Sinan Ak that Zorlu Enerji will build a 100 megawatt (MW) solar power plant in Iran.

We are also in active talks to create a 50 MW wind farm, Ak said.

Earlier, the Deputy Energy Minister Houshang Falahatian said Iran hasnt reached any deal with Zorlu Energy and in case if a link between the company and Israel is revealed, Iran can cancel the talks with the company.

Zorlu Energy didnt respond to Trends questions until publication of this report. All of the shareholders of the company and its top officials are Turkish citizens and mostly from the Zorlu family.

Zorlu Energy has several big projects in Israel. According to its official website, it is the largest private investor in Israel.

Zorlu Energy acquired a 25-percent share in Dorad in 2003 to undertake investment, contracting, operation and maintenance services for the 840MW combined cycle natural gas power plant project in Ashkelon, Israel.

The power plant is the largest ever built by a private investor in Israel.
Although Jewish Americans represent just 2% of the population, politicians  and would-be politicians  have long considered the Jewish vote a prize worth pursuing. Thats actually not irrational. Jews contribute a disproportionate amount of money to political candidates and causes; many Jews live in the swing states of Florida (846,700 of 19.9 million), Pennsylvania (324,700 of 12.8 million), Ohio (173,700 of 11.6 million), and Michigan (105,200 of 9.9 million); and Jews tout a stellar turnout record of 80%, according to multiple sources.

It sometimes feels, nonetheless, like many campaigns are stuck in a time warp, or rather an alternate universe. Theyre spending thousands of dollars  and in some cases millions  to sway Jewish voters chiefly based on the false notion that Israel is terribly important to a majority of Jewish Americans.

Israel was the most important voting issue for a mere 4% of respondents in the Public Religion Research Institutes 2012 Jewish Values survey. Israel was one of two top voting issue priorities for just 10% in a J Street poll conducted around the same time. More recently, U.S.-Israel relations was the most important issue for only 7.2% in the American Jewish Committees 2015 study of Jewish American opinion, ranking fifth behind economy (41.7%), national security (12.3%), healthcare (12%), and income inequality (11.6%). It was the second and the third-most important issue for only 7.6% and 11.1%, respectively.

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Israel was the most important voting issue for a mere 4% of respondents in the Public Religion Research Institutes 2012 Jewish Values survey.

The relevance of Israel to mainstream Jewish Americans will further diminish due to various secularizing factors. Recent years have seen profound assimilation and a high rate of marriage outside the faith among non-Orthodox Jews. (Since 2000, the rate has been more than 70%.) Additionally, the donor generations of Jewish Americans, those who remember the existential crises of the 1967 Six-Day War and the 1973 Yom Kippur War and who chiefly fund Zionist institutions, are growing old. They were the last Jewish Americans raised when Israel was widely viewed as a David, a valiant democratic-socialist experiment, rather than a Goliath, a repressive neo-imperialist undertaking.

Indeed, the Pew Research Centers landmark 2013 survey A Portrait of Jewish Americans found that caring about Israel was an essential part of being Jewish for 53% of Jews 65 and older. By comparison, only 32% of Jews 18 to 29 expressed that same sentiment. Its also estimated that Jews constitute at least 20% of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Movement. And take what you will from this: American Jewry was effectively split down the middle over the Iran nuclear deal, which made the communitys support for the deal 20 percentage points higher than for Americans overall.

If not Israel, what does fire up Jewish Americans? In short, the Jewish precept of tikkun olam (repairing the world), construed by modern mainstream denominations to mean social justice.

When Pew broadly asked, Whats essential to your Jewish identity?, caring about Israel (43%) was rather handily beat out by leading ethical/moral life (69%) and working for justice/equality (56%). Mainstream Jews are, therefore, less concerned with the details of the U.S. latest military aid package than, for instance, candidates positions on abortion access and gay marriage.

Ive emphasized the term mainstream because non-Orthodox Jews (i.e., Jews who arent Torah observant) currently make up 90% of American Jewry. Orthodox Jews, conversely, trend politically conservative, leaning 57% Republican to 36% Democratic in the Pew survey. (The writer Armin Rosen recently predicted that GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump is likely to gather the bulk of the Orthodox Jewish vote.)

Pragmatically, then, pundits and pollsters who want to understand American Jewry ought seriously to consider the following: The political behavior of the preponderance of Jewish Americans is in no way substantively different than that of secular liberals of any other religious background. Reform Judaism has been called the Democratic party platform with holidays thrown in, and the services in a Reform temple have been described as the Democratic Party at prayer.

Nor is the association between Jews and the Democratic Party a new phenomenon. Since exit polling began in 1972, Democratic presidential candidates have received on average 70% of the Jewish vote. In fact, according to several scholars, the 1920 presidential election was the last contest for the White House in which the Republican candidate bested the Democratic candidate among Jewish voters. And that was because the Socialist candidate, Eugene V. Debs, siphoned support from the Democratic candidate, Ohio Gov. James M. Cox, capturing 38% of the Jewish electorate.

Personally, Ive grown accustomed to Reform and even Conservative rabbis using  and arguably exploiting  the pulpit, especially during the High Holidays, to advocate for public policies virtually unilaterally endorsed by the Democratic Party (e.g., universal healthcare and gun control). Still, I was taken aback this year when a rabbi in my hometown used her sermon to preach the benefits and necessity of electing Americas first female president. Im no constitutional scholar, but that action would seem to be a violation of her institutions 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit status.

The Jewish vote matters, but most Jewish Americans dont vote as Jews; they vote as liberals.

Jonathan Bronitsky (@jbronitsky) is a political historian writing a biography of Irving Kristol, to be published by Oxford University Press. This piece was adapted from the Manhattan Institutes City Journal.

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook
Over the last five years, President Obama has placed a big bet on Moscow and Tehran. He tacked away from the United States historic allies in the Middle East  Israel, Saudi Arabia and Turkey  to create a space for the Russians and the Iranians in the regional security architecture. Again and again, that wager has come up craps.

The Iranian nuclear deal was supposed to usher in a new era in U.S.-Iranian relations. Instead, it has spawned a Russian-Iranian alliance. The most powerful ground troops working with the Russian air force to save Syrian President Bashar Assad are under the direct control of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards  who also wield inordinate influence, directly and through proxies, over the forces besieging Mosul. In consequence, the Russian-Iranian alliance is well on its way to building a corridor of subservient states stretching from Tehran to Beirut.

Obama has turned a blind eye to the long-term risks of this corridor, because he hopes that Tehran and Moscow will work with him to build a concert system in the Middle East: a club of nations that, united in their enmity to Al Qaeda and Islamic State, will cooperate to contain the worst pathologies of the region.

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Eisenhower came to realize that Israel was the United States truest friend in the Middle East and that courting adversaries is a very risky business.

As the president suggested immediately after signing the Iranian nuclear deal, the club was even supposed to help with challenges beyond Islamic State. [B]uilding on this deal, he said, we can continue to have conversations with Iran that incentivize them to behave differently in the region, to be less aggressive, less hostile, more cooperative ... in resolving issues like Syria or whats happening in Iraq, to stop encouraging Houthis in Yemen.

But Tehran has not moderated  and now the Houthis, with Iranian missiles and no doubt with Iranian encouragement, are launching missiles at U.S. ships in the Red Sea.

Obama is not the first American president to make such a gamble on a longstanding adversary. In 1953, when President Eisenhower assumed office, he, too, sought to stabilize the Middle East by coopting the leading anti-Western power of the day  Gamal Abdel Nassers Egypt. Eisenhower believed that making Egypt a partner in regional security would soften Nassers behavior and entice him to organize the Arabs behind the West in the Cold War.

Believing that the association of the United States with Zionism and British imperialism was poisoning American relations with Middle Eastern Muslims, Eisenhower worked to prove to Nasser that the U.S. would help him achieve his nationalist goals, even if those came at the expense of British and Israeli interests. Thus, for example, Eisenhower brought enormous pressure on the British to withdraw their troops from Egypt, where they had enjoyed a continuous presence for many decades.

This policy came to its logical conclusion 60 years ago this week, when, at the climax of the Suez Crisis, Britain, France and Israel launched coordinated attacks against Egypt. Eisenhowers opposition to his allies was extreme. Working in parallel with the Soviet Union, he brought the British economy to the brink of destruction and demanded that the invaders stop in their tracks and evacuate Egypt immediately. The United States allies buckled under the pressure.

Eisenhowers policy handed Nasser the victory of his life, and the Egyptian leaders reputation in Arab politics skyrocketed to mythic heights. How did he repay the American president for his support? By becoming more radical, more anti-Western and more pro-Soviet.

Nassers rise, like that of Russia and Iran today, had a profoundly destabilizing effect on the Middle East, leading, among other results, to regime change in Syria and Iraq, and the deep penetration of the region by Soviet power.

Richard Nixon, Ikes vice president, recounted in the 1980s that about a year before his death Eisenhower admitted that his support for Egypt was his major foreign-policy mistake. [S]aving Nasser at Suez didnt help as far as the Middle East was concerned. Nasser became even more anti-West and anti-U.S., Eisenhower said. He also affirmed, Nixon wrote, that the worst fallout from Suez was that it weakened the will of our best allies, Britain and France, to play a major role in the Middle East or in other areas outside Europe.

Eisenhower came to realize that Israel was the United States truest friend in the Middle East and that courting adversaries is a very risky business. It is too late for Obama to learn that lesson, but not for his successor, who will have two examples not to live by.

Michael Doran, a former White House advisor on the Middle East, is a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and author of Ikes Gamble: Americas Rise to Dominance in the Middle East.

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook
In mid-September, my 6-year-old daughter ran into our living room and literally started jumping for joy. Baba, its a miracle! she told her father with delight. Peg + Cat has an Eid Mubarak show. Theyre talking about Eid Mubarak on TV!

My husband texted my daughters reaction to family members and Muslim friends. When I got the message at work, I felt a moment of happiness and just as quickly a moment of sadness that such a simple event was a novelty for her, and that, at 6, she understood its rarity.

That evening our friends came over and we all watched Peg + Cat together  thirty- and fortysomethings riveted by a PBS kids show about a girl named Peg who tackles math problems with the help of a sarcastic, self-deprecating cat.

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Such a moment of complete cultural acceptance is something Muslims dont experience too often these days.

As a parent, Ive always loved the show. The way it teaches math  story-driven and creative. The way its drawn  on graph paper, with whimsical, bright colors. How funny the cat is. But, most of all, I love that the main character is a girl. Shes not the sidekick; shes the one who identifies the problem and solves it.

This episode was called The Eid al-Adha Adventure, and Peg was doing a great job portraying this holiday, which marks the end of the annual hajj pilgrimage. Peg and Cat sang Eid Mubarak, or Happy Holiday in Arabic, as they explained how Eid al-Adha is about giving to those in need. They figured out how to divide different sized meatballs into equal portions, and then they took the meatballs to a soup kitchen.

But the shows message went even deeper. Eid al-Adha is a festival of sacrifice, and Cat, at first, didnt want to give up any of those meatballs. On top of that, charity is intentional. When Peg and Cat discovered that a soup kitchen patron, Mac, had missed his lunch, they took an extra step and sought him out. So say Eid Mubarak on each and every day, Peg, Cat and Mac sang, Youll never solve a problem if you look the other way.

The adults were as gratified by Peg and Cats adventure as my daughter was. One friend was almost in tears. I couldnt stop smiling. It was a sweet, simple expression of what Eid al-Adha means to us, on kids TV, as a matter of course. Such a moment of complete cultural acceptance is something Muslims dont experience too often these days.

And it was short-lived. That evening, a bomb was detonated in New York City. The next day, police captured a man with a Muslim name. And, once again, we felt a heavy, familiar mixture of frustration, anger and fear.

This years election has been something of a referendum on our faith, on my people. I am the daughter of Syrian immigrants, though, unlike the many refugees who are leaving Syria now, my parents came on much more pleasant terms.

Still, I learned to carry the weight of world affairs when I was growing up. My generation of American-born Muslims defined ourselves in the shadow of the Iranian hostage crisis (I was 5). Then came the downing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Scotland, the fatwa issued by the Ayatollah Khomeini against Salman Rushdie for his book The Satanic Verses, and the bombing of Marine barracks in Lebanon. I was keenly aware of all of these events. I knew that the word Islam was being used to describe them.

Now my daughters generation has an even more difficult path ahead. Many Americans want a diverse, multiethnic, multireligious country. But others are threatened by the countrys changing demographics. The level of anti-Muslim rhetoric and violence today is unprecedented. A 2015 YouGov/Huffington Post poll found that 55% of Americans hold an unfavorable view of Muslims.

I grew up attending the Islamic Center of Southern California, a mosque in Los Angeles that was unapologetically Muslim and American. Surrounding mosques called us sellouts because we didnt believe in segregating the sexes. Our leaders promoted a distinctly American Muslim identity. We were taught that we had the best of many worlds at our disposal, and we were raised to stand up for justice, help the needy, build understanding and make our country  the United States  as great as it could be.

This is the Islam and the America I believe in. This is the Islam and the America that Peg + Cat modeled. And this is what I try to pass on to my daughter.

Its not easy. How do I explain to her that just this week police arrested a man for stockpiling weapons and threatening the very same mosque that I grew up in? I know its only a matter of time before hard truths shatter her innocence. And yet its my job to make sure my daughter sees a bright future for herself.

For now, Im just happy that Peg + Cat is helping out.

Rhonda Roumani is a contributing fellow at USCs Center for Religion and Civic Culture.

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In a sane world that wasnt 11 days away from a presidential election, one might be able to defend the letter that FBI Director James Comey sent Friday to several congressional committees. In the letter, Comey said that the agency had recently learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to its previous investigation of Hillary Clintons use of a private email server.

The letter doesnt mean that the FBI will reverse its earlier recommendation that no criminal charges be filed against the former secretary of state and current Democratic presidential nominee. Its not even clear that the criminal investigation of Clinton will be reactivated.

Comey certainly held out that possibility, but only if an examination of the newly discovered emails  which emerged in connection with another case  turned out to contain classified information and were shown to have some relationship to the Clinton probe. He noted in the letter that the FBI cannot yet assess whether or not this material may be significant and said he couldnt predict how long it would take for the agency to complete this additional work.

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All in all, a careful, lawyerly statement. The problem, of course, is that this letter wasnt sent in a vacuum. As soon as it was released, Republicans from Donald Trump on down jumped to the conclusion that it augured disaster for Clinton.

At a rally in New Hampshire, Trump told supporters who were shouting Lock her up! that This is bigger than Watergate! Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) shamelessly chimed in by renewing his call for the director of national intelligence to suspend all classified briefings for Clinton until this matter is fully resolved. Republican National Chairman Reince Priebus said: The FBIs decision to reopen their criminal investigation into Hillary Clintons secret email server just 11 days before the election shows how serious this discovery must be.

Comey is a lawyer, not a politician, but he arguably made a political calculation in going public this summer with his recommendation to the Justice Department that no criminal charges be filed against Clinton in connection with her use of a private email server. But when Republicans in Congress reacted apoplectically, he went before Congress to defend his decision and  fatefully  promised his interrogators that he would provide them with further information. He redeemed this pledge by turning over to Congress documents related to interviews with Clinton and other witnesses, an unusual though not unprecedented step.

Now he is updating Congress with a terse letter about new and potentially relevant information that Republicans predictably are hyping as the smoking gun that Comey failed to deliver to them earlier. Comey is wise enough in the ways of Washington to know how his words would be twisted.

Having raised new doubts about Clinton so close to an election, Comey has an obligation a moral obligation if not a legal one  to do everything he can to expedite the additional work required to determine whether this new information does, in fact, cast doubt on his earlier conclusion that Clinton wasnt criminally culpable.

michael.mcgough@latimes.com

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Remember that group of militants that staged an armed standoff in Oregon last winter? You know, the one where they occupied the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge for six weeks, vowing that if the government were to raid the occupation it would risk a conflagration so great, it cannot be stopped, leading to a bloody, brutal civil war?

Well, those folks were just found not guilty of conspiring to impede federal workers from doing their job at the refuge.

The Malheur occupation was complicated; heres a topline refresh of what happened.

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In 2012, two ranchers, Dwight Lincoln Hammond Jr. and his son Steven Dwight Hammond, were convicted of setting fire to more than 139 acres of land owned by a federal agency, the Bureau of Land Management, after illegally hunting deer on it. What punishment did the trial court give them? Three months in prison for Dwight, and one year and one day in prison for Steven Hammond. What was the problem with that? Theres a mandatory minimum sentence of five years for committing arson on federal land, so the U.S. Court of Appeals had to overrule the judges lenient sentencing and bump it up.

Then a group of anti-federalist protestors showed up at Malheur to demonstrate their fury at the Hammonds sentencing. They brought dozens of guns, 15,000 rounds of ammunition, and occupied the offices of federal workers for 41 days. Ammon and Ryan Bundy, the groups leaders, are extremist Mormons with messiah complexes; one refers to himself as Captain Moroni, an anti-government leader associated with the title of liberty in the Book of Mormon. (The Mormon Church at large wants nothing to do with the Bundys; they strongly condemned the action, saying, This armed occupation can in no way be justified on a scriptural basis.) Ammon Bundys lawyer has said he believed it was their right to recover land wrongfully taken by the U.S. government. However, Bundy doesnt consider himself an anarchist; hes part of the disaffected hard-right movement that connects to Trump, the candidate his father, Cliven Bundy, has publicly endorsed.

A number of Republicans have been leading voices in the movement to address over-incarceration. But there are vocal elements within the party that cling to this notion that mandatory minimums improve public safety, even though the United States Sentencing Commission documented that mandatory minimum sentences are applied disparately, and the available data strongly suggest that a mandatory minimum is applicable appears to be related to the race of the defendant, where whites are more likely than non-whites to be sentenced below the applicable mandatory minimum. That research was released in 1991  25 years ago  and has been reinforced by innumerable studies since.

And yet, heres what the 2016 Republican party platform says on the subject:

In the past, judicial discretion about sentences led to serious mistakes concerning dangerous criminals. Mandatory minimum sentencing became an important tool for keeping them off the streets.

In line with the Republican party platforms hard stances on immigration and criminal justice, Trump said that on his first day in office hed put a law before Congress to ensure that criminal aliens convicted of illegal reentry receive strong mandatory minimum sentences. The co-chair of Trump for President Veterans Coalition, Gerald DeLemus, participated in the Malheur standoff.

So the issue, it seems, in the eyes of these hard-right protestors isnt the legal application of mandatory minimums, but those rare instances when those mandatory minimums punish the wrong people, rather than the communities of color they were designed to impact. Damnit! Feels like stepping into a bear trap you personally set, am I right?

When people of color are locked up for minor crimes  X time in jail for carrying Y amount of weed, for instance  thats the application of law and order. But when white people are locked up for substantive crimes  setting fire to 100 acres of land owned by the government, for instance  thats an infringement of rights they believe they should have.

Look, I get it: I cant understand why I, a white person, cant just go around setting fire to 100 acres of your land, so long as I believe it should actually be my land. And if, for God knows what reason, I received the minimum punishment under the law for burning all your stuff down, I sure as hell hope that dozens of my friends would show up with guns and stage an illegal occupation for six weeks. And if my friends got brought to court for staging that occupation, I sure as hell would hope they get off with no convictions, as the six protestors charged did last night. Freedom, baby. Well, freedom for us. Law and order for them.

Can you hear how entitled, how insane, how racist that is?

In the course of this election season, a number of commentators and analysts have made the point that when youre accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression. When white men got in trouble for setting government property on fire, it was their oppression. When those white mens white supporters set their base in the office of one of the refuges only female employees, it was their right. And when the white leaders of this illegal armed occupation movement were found not guilty by an all-white jury last night, it was our confirmation that privileged treatment in the eyes of the law is white Americas enduring inheritance.

Melissa Batchelor Warnke is a contributing writer to Opinion. Follow her on Twitter @velvetmelvis.

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook
To the editor: Saree Makdisi, an Enligh professor, must be aware of the use of irony in fiction. So I wonder if he is aware of the irony in his impassioned defense of freedom of speech. (Keeping campuses safe for free speech, Opinion, Oct. 25)

For years, Makdisis articles attacking Israel have appeared in The Times. And during these same years there have been dozens of anti-Israel and anti-Semitic incidents on numerous college campuses. Many of these incidents were specifically designed to foil attempts by guest speakers to present the Israeli side in debates.

Now, because of one recent counter-incident, he is aghast. Has he, as a champion of academic freedom, ever cautioned the anti-Israel students about their disrespect for freedom of speech for those who differ in opinion? Perhaps now, when the shoe is on the other foot, he might speak out for civil obedience for all.

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William Landau, Los Angeles

..

To the editor: Thanks to The Times for running Makdisis timely op-ed article.

It appears that Canary Mission, a group that blacklists critics of Israel in academia, is a radical operation designed to cut off all meaningful political discussion at our universities. This particular species of intellectual terrorism is simply an attempt to establish conformity on campus.

Goose stepping of whatever kind has no place in America.

Paul L. DuNard Jr., Cypress

..

To the editor: Makdisi claims he is not advocating a hatred of an entire ethnic group and that counter-opinions are really ad hominem character assassination. Makdisi is the proverbial pot calling the kettle black. His rhetoric seeks the evisceration of the Jewish state.

His call to expose students to the whole universe of ideas rings hollow. He advocates the boycott of Israeli professors, inventors, corporations and products through his adoption of the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement, the very thing (a campaign that singles out individuals) of which he complains.

The canceled UC Berkeley course he references, Palestine and settler colonialism, underscores Makdisis hypocrisy. Where is the academic balance to a course that intends to teach students that the existence of the state of Israel is illegitimate? This is not merely an upsetting encounter with course materials  it is anti-Semitism.

Rena Kreitenberg, Los Angeles

..

To the editor: Makdisi claims that there is a difference between criticizing a country (Israel) and being anti-Semitic. He is right.

But when a person criticizes Israel while not criticizing the much worse crimes of its neighbors, makes false accusations and calls for its destruction as a Jewish state, that crosses the line.

Rodney Brooks, Silver Spring, Md.

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Former L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa endorses marijuana legalization initiative By Patrick McGreevy Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on Monday endorsed a marijuana legalization initiative. ((Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) ) Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on Monday became the latest high-profile politician to endorse an initiative on next weeks ballot that would legalize the recreational use of marijuana in California. Villaraigosa is considering whether to run for governor in 2018 amid a field that already includes Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, a leading proponent of Proposition 64. I took my time on this measure because I wanted to make sure it included protections for children and public safety, Villaraigosa said in a statement. In evaluating the measure in its entirety, I am convinced there are enough safeguards to make it a workable proposition. The Proposition 64 campaign welcomed Villaraigosas endorsement at a time when one recent poll indicated slightly fewer than half of Latino voters support the measure. Were glad to have it, said Jason Kinney, a spokesman for the campaign. Facebook

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Conservative group spends $3.5 million on Central Valley race once considered safe By Sarah D. Wire The Congressional Leadership Fund is pouring another $1.5 million into the race between Rep. Jeff Denham and Democrat farmer Michael Eggman. The group, which is endorsed by House Republican leaders, and works with the American Action Network, has now spent $3.5 million in the race. The race was initially viewed as an easy win for Denham (R-Turlock), but has become increasingly uncertain in recent weeks. The district is being closely watched as an indicator of how Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump might affect down-ballot candidates. Democrats have spent more than $6 million in the district. The Congressional Leadership Fund and American Action Network have spent $45 million in 32 districts nationwide so far and have aired ads in other California House races, including in the nearby 21st District race between Rep. David Valadao (R-Hanford) and attorney Emilio Huerta and the 7th District race between Rep. Ami Bera (D-Elk Grove) and Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones. The groups newest ad in the 10th District race begins running on television Tuesday. It calls Eggman, an almond and bee farmer, an extreme liberal and a rubber stamp for House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) because he supports the Affordable Care Act. It previously ran an ad against Eggman that used news footage from the 2015 San Bernardino terrorist attack. ------------ FOR THE RECORD 2:14 p.m.: An earlier version of this article incorrectly referred to the Congressional Leadership Fund as the Conservative Leadership Fund. ------------ Facebook

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The Rev. Al Sharpton and civil rights leaders hold rally in support of Proposition 61 By Christine Mai-Duc The Rev. Al Sharpton kicks off a rally and march in support of Proposition 61, the California ballot measure that seeks to lower the price state agencies pay for prescription drugs. The Rev. Al Sharpton and other civil rights leaders gathered at a rally Monday morning to support Proposition 61, the ballot measure that seeks to lower the price state agencies pay for prescription drugs. Sharpton appeared alongside black community leaders, including Marc Morial, former New Orleans mayor and head of the National Urban League, and Kevin Sauls, pastor of a South L.A. church. This issue is very simple, Sharpton said to a crowd of about 40 supporters. Its about the right of people to afford what they need, and they need to have accessibility that is affordable with prescription drugs. He likened the issue of prescription drug affordability to a civil right, and recycled the well-known Yes We Can slogan from President Obamas 2008 election to urge voters to pass Proposition 61. Sharptons appearance came a day after he and Morial stumped for the measure at seven different churches in South Los Angeles and the Bay Area. The significance of bringing in people of color is that we are the ones who disproportionately are impacted by the prices and impacted by the need for healthcare, Sharpton said in an interview afterward. I think its a civil right for people to be able to afford healthcare in the wealthiest nation in the world. Appearance of Sharpton, New Orleans mayor Marc Morial and LA pastor follows Sharpton's visits to two South LA churches Sunday for Yes on 61 pic.twitter.com/redBvU8WWZ  Christine Mai-Duc (@cmaiduc) October 31, 2016 In a statement, No on Proposition 61 spokeswoman Kathy Fairbanks pointed to support for the opposition campaign from groups like the California NAACP, and the California League of Latin American Citizens. Higher drug prices resulting from Prop. 61 will decrease access to care, Fairbanks said. Thats a policy step in the wrong direction. The Rev. Al Sharpton at a Yes on Proposition 61 rally in downtown Los Angeles. (Christine Mai-Duc / Los Angeles Times) Facebook

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Voters are being asked whether they want to cast more votes in future elections on big public works projects By John Myers (Russel A. Daniels / Associated Press) Voters casting a ballot for Proposition 53 on election day are, in effect, choosing more voting on more propositions in future elections. The ballot measure, bankrolled by a wealthy Stockton agribusiness owner, seeks to force voter approval of a particular type of borrowing for large public works projects. Its most likely impact, in the near future, would be ballot measures on a landmark water project and on Californias high-speed rail effort. The propositions backer, Dean Cortopassi, argues its all about more transparency when it comes to government debt. His critics suggest theres more to it than that. Read More Facebook

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This congressional race could be one of the Republicans worst nightmares By Sarah D. Wire Rep. Jeff Denham represents the Modesto area in Congress and is up against Democratic beekeeper Michael Eggman, the same man he beat just two years ago by 12 points. Denham first won his seat in 2012 even as a majority of his constituents voted for President Obama. When Denham (R-Turlock) started this latest campaign, most observers thought he would probably win. But some now wonder if Denhams 10th District race will be an example of what Republicans fear across the country. Will conservatives expected to win actually lose because voters arent excited about Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump? Read More Facebook

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Rep. Loretta Sanchezs day on the campaign trail: Two ribbons cut, one candle lit, and jabs made at her Senate rival By Phil Willon U.S. Senate candidate Loretta Sanchez shows Clifford Young, president of the West Valley Water District, where to cut the ribbon for the grand opening on a new water treatment plant Saturday. (Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times) With less than two weeks to go before election day, U.S. Senate candidate Loretta Sanchez bounced from the Inland Empire to Monterey Park on Saturday as she tries to drum up support for her uphill Senate bid. Sanchez, the U.S. representative from Orange, started her day with a gaggle of other Inland Empire politicians at the grand opening of a $23-million water treatment system in Rialto, using the occasion to lay out her record on water issues during her 20 years in Congress. Sanchez told the crowd of about 60 that shortly after she was elected to Congress, two members of a local water board approached her about a way to deal with Californias serious drought. They said, we need to convince people that were going to take toilet water and were going to clean it up enough for people to drink it, Sanchez said. They said, we cant get anyone to champion this for us. Well, no wonder. Sanchez said they won her over, and she helped deliver federal funding for Orange Countys Groundwater Replenishment System to do just that. The system uses treated waste water to recharge the local groundwater basin and provides enough water for nearly 850,000 residents. After the event, Sanchez accused her rival in the Senate race, state Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris, of having little grasp of the complexities of Californias drought and water crisis. One of the biggest differences between my opponent and myself is that I actually talk about issues, I actually meet with people, I actually try to figure out whats going on, Sanchez said. Ive not seen anything about her. Ive not seen any policy. All I see is commercials on TV. U.S. Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Orange) officially opens the childrens Diwali celebration at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu temple in Chino Hills on Saturday. (Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times) A few hours later, Sanchez raced over to Chino Hills to open the Kids Diwali Celebration at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu temple, a family-friendly event filled with carnival rides, booths and food. She thanked festivalgoers, saying they were setting a good example for the rest of the country at a time when the presidential election is filled with such meanness. This is a time where through tradition and through culture you can show Americans the better part of people, Sanchez said. You give the rest of us hope. After listening to Sanchez speak, Kay Mistry, a volunteer at the festival, said he still wasnt sure who he will vote for in the Senate race. He said he was aware that Harris, whose mother emigrated from India, went to a Hindu temple as a child. Im not sure that matters to me, said Mistry, 48, of Chino Hills. Im pretty conservative. Sanchez attends her second ribbon cutting of the day, this time for Halloween in the Park in Monterey Park. (Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times) The Orange County congresswomans final stop of the day was in Monterey Park, where she helped cut the ribbon to open citys Halloween in the Park festival. After the ceremony, Sanchez mingled with the crowd, handing out campaign fliers. Arnold Jeung, 62, stuck the flier in his back pocket. He said he didnt know much about Sanchez or Harris. Im not sure what Im going to do, said Jeung, a Republican. I might not even vote. Facebook

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California Politics Podcast: The lowdown on the states big down-ticket races By John Myers Perhaps more than any other recent election season, races for seats in the California Legislature and U.S. Congress are being reshaped by the broad, national discussion. In short, its the Trump effect. On this weeks episode of the California Politics Podcast, we take an overview of some of states most closely watched down-ticket races. Theres new polling data in the U.S. Senate race that suggests a sizable number of voters will skip casting a ballot. Meanwhile, President Obama had endorsed candidates all the way down to the state Assembly level. Im joined by Marisa Lagos of KQED News and Anthony York, author of the Grizzly Bear Project website. Facebook

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California, your official presidential write-in options include Bernie Sanders and Evan McMullin By Christine Mai-Duc Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders is one of five officially certified write-in candidates for president in California. (Christopher Dolan / Associated Press) California Secretary of State Alex Padilla released the names of the five officially qualified write-in candidates for the presidential race in California, along with their vice presidential running mates. Contrary to popular belief, votes for write-in candidates only count when the candidate is officially certified. (That means votes for Mickey Mouse, Giant Meteor, or Chuck Norris will not be counted.) The officially qualified write-in candidates are: Laurence Kotlikoff for president and Edward Leamer for vice president

Mike Maturen for president and Juan Munoz for vice president

Evan McMullin for president and Nathan Johnson for vice president

Bernard Bernie Sanders for president and Tulsi Gabbard for vice president

Jerry White for president and Niles Niemuth for vice president Now, that doesnt mean that Sanders and the other candidates wanted to be recognized as official write-ins. California law only requires that 55 electors sign on to declare a person a write-in candidate, not that the person consent, according to a statement from the Secretary of States Office.

A full list of each candidates electors can be seen here. Write-in votes for these candidates will not be reported until the counties send their final vote certifications after the post-election canvass period, meaning a write-in vote will take longer to count. You might be wondering: Does spelling count? The Secretary of State says election officials will accept a reasonable facsimile of the spelling of a candidates name. For example, Joe Smith and Joseph Smith would both be accepted. Facebook

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Dueling ads aim to persuade Latinos on proposition to legalize marijuana in California By Patrick McGreevy With a poll indicating Latino voters lag in their support for a ballot proposition that would legalize recreation marijuana in California, the campaigns for and against the measure are launching dueling ads aimed at that large demographic. A poll Wednesday by the Public Policy Institute of California found that Proposition 64 is favored by a majority of likely voters in California, including a majority of all ethnic groups, except Latinos. Latinos support is just under half at 47%. The campaign against the ballot measure will launch its second ad on Spanish language television, titled Asusta or Scary on Halloween. The ad warns if approved, Proposition 64 could eventually lead to radio and television ads for marijuana candy. Federal law prohibits such ads on broadcast stations, and the initiative prohibits television advertising aimed at minors if federal law ever changes. The campaign in favor of the ballot measure said Friday it has launched new counter TV ads targeted to the Los Angeles area, where there is a large Latino audience. One ad, for Spanish language television, labels as falso, or false, the claims that there will be television commercials for marijuana candy. A second ad, in English, features a mother of teenagers saying she appreciates that Proposition 64 has important safeguards for families, like strict product labeling and child-proof packaging of all marijuana products and banning edibles that would appeal to a child. The two sides each claimed Friday that the polls are favorable to their cause. The polls highlight the lack of support by the Latino community because they know their neighborhoods will have to face the problems that recreational marijuana creates, said Andrew Acosta, a spokesman for the opposition campaign. Not true, said Jason Kinney, a spokesman for the Proposition 64 campaign. Polls show that Latino support for Proposition 64 and marijuana decriminalization has been increasing as they learn how communities of color are being disproportionately targeted for marijuana arrest and prosecution, he said. Facebook

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House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi endorses ballot measure to repeal the death penalty in California By Jazmine Ulloa (Win McNamee / Getty Images) House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) on Friday announced her support for a proposition that would repeal the death penalty in California, calling the practice cruel and unusual punishment under the 8th Amendment to the Constitution. Even the most heinous of crimes can be punished without killing, she said. As Pope Francis said in his address to Congress, where he reaffirmed his advocacy for the global abolition of the death penalty: every human person is endowed with an unalienable dignity, and society can only benefit from the rehabilitation of those convicted of crimes. Pelosi is among a string of top political leaders, Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and celebrities to come out in support of Proposition 62, which would replace the punishment with life in prison without parole and apply life sentences retroactively to death row inmates. The initiative is one of two competing death penalty measures on the Nov. 8 ballot. She also is among fewer political leaders to denounce the death penalty itself on moral grounds. I oppose the death penalty because too many defendants have not had access to appropriate legal counsel; because poor people  especially in communities of color  have been disproportionately charged with capital crimes and sentenced to death, compared with more affluent defendants; and, so many people have been exonerated with DNA evidence. It is time for us to take a moral stand. Read More Facebook

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Obama endorses Emilio Huerta in his Central Valley race against Rep. David Valadao By Sarah D. Wire (Sarah D. Wire / Los Angeles Times) President Obama on Friday endorsed 21st District congressional candidate Emilio Huerta, the Democrats campaign announced. I am proud to endorse Emilio Huerta for the United States House of Representatives, Obama said in a statement released by the campaign. In Congress, Emilio will be a fighter for Central Valley working families. Emilio isnt afraid to take on tough challenges, and hell fight for more and better access to clean water, good jobs with fair wages, and an education system that works for every child. Emilio is the kind of smart leader who will build on what weve accomplished and move our country forward, and thats why I know Californians can count on Emilio Huerta. Huerta, an attorney and son of labor rights icon Dolores Huerta, is challenging Rep. David Valadao in the Central Valley district. Obama had already endorsed six California Democrats. House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) was in the district Thursday to campaign for Valadao. Hes in the middle of a swing through California to support vulnerable House Republicans. David Valadao is exactly the type of representative Central Valley families and those involved in the agriculture industry need. He understands the issues impacting the area, because thats been his life. David was born in the Central Valley, he grew up there, he went to school there -- and he even met his wife there. In Congress, he has led the fight on water, veterans issues, and education, Ryan said in a statement. Facebook

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Comedian Kathy Griffin pokes fun at tobacco company ads By Liam Dillon The tobacco industry-funded television advertisements against the Proposition 56 tobacco tax increase are ubiquitous. They all generally have the same message: The money from the tax hike would go to Medi-Cal, the states low-income healthcare program, and therefore benefit the doctors and insurance groups that are helping finance the measure. Comedian Kathy Griffin decided to spoof the advertisements follow-the-money message in a video she released on Twitter Tuesday. Hey @YesOn56...I had to get involved! #YesOn56 https://t.co/ZXURPBZYZP  Kathy Griffin (@kathygriffin) October 27, 2016 Griffin highlighted that tobacco companies had funded the advertisement, which is clear when you read the fine print at the end. So in general just be careful of these opposite ads, Griffin said, dressed in a similar gardening outfit as the actress in the No on 56 ad. Or in general white ladies gardening. You can watch Griffins full spoof here: Facebook

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Los Angeles County Bar says expediting the death penalty system will compromise justice By Jazmine Ulloa The Los Angeles County Bar Assn. has joined opponents of a Nov. 8 ballot measure that intends to expedite executions in California, saying it would likely compromise access to justice at all levels of the court system. In a letter released late Wednesday, the organization, which comprises more than 20,000 members, said Proposition 66 would require appellate courts to hear initial death penalty appeals, without providing the roughly $100 million needed to fund additional judges, staff and resources. LACBA opposes Proposition 66 based entirely on its damaging effect on the operation of an already over-taxed judicial system, and most importantly, the resulting lack of access to justice for California citizens, states the letter signed by Margaret Stevens, the associations president. The association said it took no position on the death penalty itself, its effectiveness, morality or social merits. But its opposition to the ballot measure comes as top Los Angeles County officials, including Sheriff Jim McDonnell and Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey, have announced their support. Proposition 66 has drawn wide support and funding from law enforcement officials and organizations that argue Californias death penalty must be preserved and reformed. Facebook

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Gov. Jerry Brown launches TV ad against Prop. 53s change to state revenue bonds By John Myers Its a nuanced pitch from Gov. Jerry Brown, asking California voters to oppose an effort that would give them a vote on future big infrastructure projects. But Brown has more than $15 million in campaign cash to make his case against Proposition 53, in a TV ad that began on Thursday. Proposition 53 asks voters to add revenue bonds of $2 billion or more to the list of government borrowing that requires statewide voter approval. Unlike general obligation bonds, which are paid back by taxpayer dollars through the states general fund, revenue bonds are paid back with fees charged to users of projects like bridges, dams and buildings. Brown takes aim in the ad at the fact that 53 is paid for by one millionaire, Central Valley agribusiness owner Dean Cortopassi. In an interview this week, Cortopassi called revenue bonds a blank check to sell debt forward into the future. Proposition 53 could force statewide votes on two high-profile infrastructure projects: Californias plan for a high-speed train system and the construction of twin underground tunnels to divert water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to Southern California. Facebook

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New citizens can still register to vote Nov. 8 even though the California deadline has passed By Sophia Bollag Thomas Macariola, center, fills out a voter registration form after a naturalization ceremony on Oct. 26 in Sacramento, where a cardboard cut-out of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton was among the witnesses. (Sophia Bollag / Los Angeles Times) Alex De Leon, a 30-year-old immigrant from Guatemala, was among more than 400 people who became U.S. citizens at a ceremony in Sacramento on Wednesday. After the program concluded, he walked outside and filled out his voter registration papers. The registration deadline to vote in the Nov. 8 election for most Californians was Monday. But a 2012 state law allows people like De Leon, who became citizens after the deadline, to register late. To vote, they must bring proof of citizenship and California residency to show to an official at a county election office. As a precaution against voter fraud, theyre not allowed to vote at a neighborhood polling place or with an absentee ballot. Read More Facebook

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A new poll shows Californians remain ready to legalize the recreational use of pot By Patrick McGreevy (David Zalubowski / Associated Press) A majority of Californias likely voters continue to favor legalizing the recreational use of marijuana, but the level of support has dipped from a reported 60% a month ago to 55% this month, according to a statewide poll released Wednesday night. The latest poll by the Public Policy Institute of California found 38% of those surveyed oppose Proposition 64 and 6% are undecided. But the basic finding is that the initiative would still pass with a majority vote if the election were held today, according to Mark Baldassare, the institutes pollster and president. The numbers have been favorable, consistent, and exactly where we expected and wanted to be at this point, said Jason Kinney, a spokesman for the Proposition 64 campaign. The poll was conducted Oct. 14-23 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.4% at a 95% confidence level. Proposition 64 is supported by 66% of Democratic likely voters and 56% of independents, but 60% of Republicans are opposed. Just under half of Latino likely voters (47%) would vote yes, while majorities of other racial/ethnic groups (65%) and whites (55%) would do so, the poll report said. Support is highest, at 78%, among those age 18 to 34. The opposition campaign said the campaign for Proposition 64 has turned voters away from the measure. It is clear that voters are realizing that Prop 64 is a 62-page mess that helps the marijuana industry tap into the California market, said Andrew Acosta, a spokesman for the campaign against the initiative. Those polled were also asked whether they have ever tried marijuana and, if so, if they used it in the last year: 18% said they have tried marijuana and used it in the last year, while 25% said they have tried it, but not in the last year. Updated at 9:30 am to include comments by the campaigns. Facebook

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New poll shows Kamala Harris leading Californias U.S. Senate race by a 2-to-1 margin By Phil Willon U.S. Senate candidates Kamala Harris, left, points a finger toward rival Loretta Sanchez during their debate at Cal State L.A. on Wednesday, Oct. 5. (Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times) With ballots already being cast, State Atty. General Kamala Harris leads by a more than a two-to-one margin over her rival in Californias U.S. Senate race, according to a new poll by the Public Policy Institute of California. The survey showed that 42% of likely voters supported Harris, compared to 20% who favored her opponent, Orange County Rep. Loretta Sanchez. Among the remainder, 20% of voters were undecided and 18% said they will not vote for either candidate by election day on Nov. 8. The results are dramatically different that those in a PPIC released on Sept. 21, when Harris had just a 7-point lead over Sanchez. But the new poll numbers are closely aligned with results in the June 7 primary, when Harris received 40% of the vote and Sanchez came in second with 19% in a race with 34 candidates on the ballot. In a PPIC poll in July, Harris also had 38% support among likely voters and Sanchez 20%. From the start this has been a race in which Harris, who did very well in the primary, has had a large advantage, said PPIC President Mark Baldassare. Loretta Sanchez hasnt been able to, in any of our polls, get above 25% Unlike the PPICs surveys in July and September, the new poll included the ballot designations for the two Senate candidates, listing Harris as Attorney General of California and Sanchez as a United States Congresswoman. Both Harris and Sanchez are Democrats. There also have been a few major developments in the Senate campaign since Sept. 21, including the Oct. 5 Senate debate at Cal State Los Angeles where Sanchez caused a stir by dabbing as her finale. The following day, U.S. Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein endorsed Harris. Both Harris and Sanchez are trying to succeed Boxer, who is retiring after serving four terms in the Senate. According to the new PPIC poll, Harris is favored over Sanchez across all general income and education levels of voters, as well as among both men and women. Harris also leads in these major regions of the state: Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay area, Orange and San Diego counties, and the Inland Empire. Latinos are the only major cross-section of likely voters who favor Sanchez over Harris, by a margin of 41% to 33%, the poll shows. Harris also gained support from Republicans and independents over the past month, mostly likely from voters who previously said they would not vote. Still, more than a third of likely Republican voters said they would not vote for Sanchez or Harris, and 16% of independent voters also plan to take a pass. The two Democrats are facing off in the highest-profile contest between two members of the same party since California adopted a top-two primary election system. Facebook

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Will the Defense Department fix the National Guard bonus repayment problem? California congressional reps are skeptical By Sarah D. Wire (Paul Sakuma / Associated Press) Some members of Californias congressional delegation arent satisfied with a Defense Department plan to verify whether thousands of California National Guard members fairly received bonuses for enlisting during the height of the Iraq war or must repay the money. They said Wednesday that they want a detailed plan by the time Congress returns in mid-November. Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) organized a call so that Californias 53 House members could question the Defense Department about how it plans to fix the problem, which was first reported Sunday by The Times. Members werent sure exactly how many of their colleagues were on the call. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter on Wednesday ordered the Pentagon to pause efforts to claw back the enlistment bonuses. He said the suspension would continue until he was satisfied that our process is working effectively. Congressional members told The Times that Defense officials said they plan to increase the number of employees reviewing the cases and expect all of them will be examined by July. After the call, Rep. Julia Brownley (D-Westlake Village) said she was still outraged and wants a more detailed plan from the Defense Department. There was definitely a level of skepticism that they would move forward on this in a very fair and evenhanded way, Brownley said. Department officials told the delegation there are 13,800 questionable bonus cases in California. Of those, 4,000 have been cleared as properly eligible and 1,200 cases identified as possible fraud, meaning the guard member was not eligible or did not complete the contract. The department still must review the remaining 8,600 cases. (The case numbers relayed to members of Congress on Wednesday differ slightly from those provided to The Times by the department.) Rep. Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park) said the Defense Department told members its plan is to clear up to 100 cases a day. They will give everybody a chance to go through the panels and make their case, she said, even the 1,200 identified as possible fraud. Brownleys staff said some Guard members were told to pay back more than $60,000. Many of the bonuses were at least $15,000. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) said that in many cases, Guard members werent spending money they knew they werent supposed to receive, and that the Pentagon should have the burden of proving the soldier knowingly took a bonus they werent supposed to get. In the vast majority of cases, soldiers accepted these bonuses in good faith, Schiff said. You dont call them up years later and say, We shouldnt have offered that and try to collect. The department will give the California members another briefing when Congress returns Nov. 14. Brownley said several members told the department they would go ahead with legislation to forgive the bonus debt for at least some Guard members if a detailed plan was not ready by then. Facebook

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Latinos in California are motivated to vote against Donald Trump, and that could affect a lot of other races By Sophia Bollag Voters make their way in and out of a polling place at the House of Mercy in Los Angeles in November 2012. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) Latinos make up the largest ethnic group in California, but are often underrepresented at the polls. This year, however, experts say they expect good Latino turnout in November, thanks largely to the heated presidential election that is motivating many Latinos to vote against presidential candidate Donald Trump and his anti-immigration rhetoric. They stand to have considerable impact on many down-ballot races in California, as well as on the outcome of many statewide propositions. Read More Facebook

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Tom Steyer is now the biggest donor in the effort to raise the tobacco tax By Liam Dillon Billionaire Tom Steyer is now the largest donor in the effort to raise the states cigarette tax by $2 a pack. With a $3.5-million donation to the Yes on Proposition 56 campaign Tuesday, Steyers total spending on the race has reached $11.3 million. Thats more than a third of the $31 million the primary Yes on 56 committee has raised and more than all the money raised during a similar, but failed, effort to increase the tobacco tax four years ago. Steyer, who is a major donor to state and national liberal causes, is the focus in two Yes on 56 television advertisements. Hes said hes motivated to spend to limit youth smoking and the memory of his mother, a smoker who died of lung cancer. Steyer also is frequently mentioned as a potential Democratic candidate for governor in 2018. The No on 56 campaign, which is almost entirely funded by tobacco companies, has raised $71 million. Facebook

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California congressional reps say they didnt know so many Guard members were being forced to repay enlistment bonuses By Sarah D. Wire Some of Californias members of Congress say Californias National Guard did not explain in 2014 how many guard members were being forced to repay enlistment bonuses. On Wednesday, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter ordered the Pentagon to suspend all efforts to collect reimbursement from the nearly 10,000 California National Guard members who were improperly given bonuses as an incentive to reenlist at the height of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Earlier in the week, a senior California National Guard official said it told the states members of Congress two years ago the Pentagon was trying to claw back reenlistment bonuses from thousands of soldiers, and even offered a proposal to mitigate the problem, but Congress took no action. After The Times first reported the problem Sunday, most of Californias 55 members of Congress signed onto letters to Carter, or House and Senate leaders, asking for an immediate fix. On Wednesday, they praised the Defense Department for halting the clawbacks and said Congress needs to stop the process entirely and refund the Guard members who already have repaid money. Still, some members took issue with the California Guards characterization of what it told the California delegation two years ago. Staff in members offices said the Guard broadly mentioned the clawbacks in a 2014 letter detailing its policy goals for the year, but officials didnt meet with members of Congress in person or by phone, and didnt otherwise tell them about the scale of the issue. Such letters are fairly common from groups working with Congress. If they would have come and said, Youre going to have thousands of combat veterans having their wages garnished and tax liens being put on them, we would have been all over this, said Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Alpine). That was never communicated to us. Rep. Tony Cardenas (D-Los Angeles) said neither the Pentagon nor California Guard officials told him about the large number of soldiers ordered to repay bonuses, though his office had received complaints from individual soldiers. I have no record of receiving any formal notice of this widespread issue from any department  federal or state. The only record I have is of individual cases of service members who approached my office to get help, and we are working with these individuals who have served our country to make sure they are treated fairly, he said. Several high-ranking members of the delegation said this week they first heard of the scope of the problem from The Times reporting. The California Guard also sent members of Congress a suggested provision that would have allowed debt waivers for the affected soldiers in the 2015 defense authorization bill. Reps. Paul Cook (R-Yucca Valley) and Jeff Denham (R-Turlock) initially pushed for the provision but later abandoned the effort, and it didnt appear in the final bill. Cook and Denham said they dropped the effort after being told the Pentagon already had the power to waive the debts. Guard officials said they were told the provision was discarded because waiving the debt would have cost the Pentagon money, requiring the estimated costs to be offset with cuts elsewhere in the defense budget. For the record: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Denham declined to discuss why he dropped the provision to waive the debt. He dropped the effort after being told the Pentagon already had the power to waive the debt. Facebook

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Ted Cruzs old gang called into action to help California GOP By Phil Willon Ron Nehring, a former aide in Sen. Ted Cruzs presidential bid, chats with visitors at the California State Fair in Sacramento during his 2014 campaign for lieutenant governor. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) Texas Sen. Ted Cruzs presidential bid may be history, but his supporters in California are banding together to help GOP candidates locked in tight down-ballot races. Ron Nehring, the former state GOP chairman who was a top Cruz booster, said the focus will be turning out Republican voters and recruiting volunteers to work on a list of hotly contested congressional and legislative races selected by the California Republican Party. Among those pinpointed are Vista Rep. Darrell Issa, who faces his toughest challenge since being elected to Congress in 2000, and Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones, who is trying to unseat Democratic Rep. Ami Bera of Elk Grove. It is 100% exclusively boots on the ground, Nehring said. Michael Schroeder, who was co-chairman of Cruzs campaign in California and also served as the state GOP chairman, said Republican turnout in the Golden State is expected to be down because of the controversies surrounding GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump. Having Trump at the top of the November ballot also will motivate more Democrats to vote, and that could endanger GOP candidates in close races throughout the state, he said. Trumps campaign is a lost cause in California at this point, Schroeder said. Trump said he was going to drive Hispanic turnout, and I think hes right -- but not in the way hes hoping for. Californias Cruz alumni have a website and on Monday night held a conference call with 75 former Cruz organizers asking them to activate their local political networks to help with the effort, Nehring said. Other Republicans theyll work to protect or elect: Reps. Jeff Denham of Turlock, David Valadao of Hanford and Steve Knight of Palmdale.

Assembly members Catharine Baker of San Ramon, David Hadley of Manhattan Beach, Tom Lackey of Palmdale and Young Kim of Fullerton.

State Senate candidates Mike Antonovich of Glendale, Scott Wilk of Santa Clarita and Ling Ling Chang of Diamond Bar. Facebook

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Central Valley congressional race shifts to a toss-up By Sarah D. Wire (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images) The 10th Congressional District race between Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock) and Democrat Michael Eggman is now a toss-up, the nonpartisan analysts at the Cook Political Report announced Tuesday. The contest in the heavily Latino Central Valley district had been rated lean Republican, meaning the analysts thought Eggman had a chance, but they expected the third-term Republican to be reelected.The Cook Political Report now lists several California House districts held by Republicans as toss-ups, including Rep. Darrell Issas seat in the 49th District and Rep. Steve Knight in the 25th District. This is the second matchup for Denham and Eggman. Denham won their 2014 encounter with 56% of the vote, but this year, there is the added unknown of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trumps effect on other races and whether his unpopularity will drag down other candidates. For the record: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Rep. David Valadaos race in the 21st District is listed as a toss-up. It is listed as leaning Republican. Facebook

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U.S. Rep. Ami Bera: Soldiers who served our country should not be penalized for the mistakes of others By Sophia Bollag Urging @DeptofDefense today to immediately stop ordering @theCAGuard members to pay back their enlistment benefits. pic.twitter.com/Ti6bzWJias  Ami Bera, M.D. (@RepBera) October 24, 2016 U.S. Rep. Ami Bera (D-Elk Grove) wrote to top Department of Defense officials Monday urging them to stop asking veterans to repay enlistment bonuses. The Pentagon has ordered nearly 10,000 California Guard soldiers to repay bonuses that were improperly awarded to them, The Times reported Saturday. With his letter, Bera joined the chorus of lawmakers who have condemned the action, calling on the Pentagon to waive the soldiers debts. Soldiers who served our country should not be penalized for the mistakes of others, wrote Bera, who faces a tough reelection battle in his Northern California district. I urge the Department to halt the collection of these bonuses at this time to prevent placing more service members in financial hardship. Facebook

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Crime victims oppose the death penalty in Yes on Prop. 62 ads By Jazmine Ulloa In new online ads released Tuesday by proponents of Proposition 62, which seeks to repeal the death penalty in California, crime victims urge voters to end the system and bring peace to grieving families. Proposition 62 would replace the ultimate punishment for murder with a sentence of life in prison without parole, ending a lengthy appeals process that some victims say has interfered with their healing. It is one of two competing death penalty measures on the Nov. 8 ballot. In one of two videos, which campaign officials say are geared toward swing voters, Beth Webb tells viewers she has had to face the death row inmate who killed her sister and seven others in a hair salon almost 50 times in court. Him sitting there, soaking up all of the attention, loving it, its disgusting, she says. The commercials come as proponents of the opposing measure on the ballot, Proposition 66, have released their own ads over the last few days, urging voters to reform the system, not end it. In one of those videos, a murder victims mother says no punishment other than the death penalty is appropriate for the twice-convicted sex offender who abducted her child. Read More Facebook

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Common, Russell Simmons, Shailene Woodley among celebrities pushing to legalize weed in California By Patrick McGreevy Common at the 2015 Academy Awards (Kevin Winter / Getty Images) Top celebrities including Common, Tim Robbins and the author of the Orange is the New Black memoir are joining forces in what they are calling Artists for 64"  the effort to legalize recreational use of marijuana in California. A show of force announced Tuesday includes rapper and actor Common; music producer Russell Simmons; Ty Dolla $ign; actors Danny Glover, Olivia Wilde, Tim Robbins, Sarah Silverman, Shailene Woodley of The Divergent series, Jesse Williams of Greys Anatomy and Michael K. Williams of the HBO series The Wire; and Piper Kerman, author of Orange is the New Black: My Year in a Womens Prison. Jay Z, who last week put out a video calling the war on drugs an epic fail, also signed on to the effort. In California, the question on whether to legalize marijuana for adult use is a policy change that will have a lasting impact on historically marginalized communities, Glover, the star of films including the Lethal Weapon series, said in a statement posted on Artists for 64. Marijuana laws have been used as a tool by law enforcement to racially profile, harass, intimidate and criminalize mostly young African American and Latino men for decades. I am shocked and saddened by the harm that marijuana criminalization brings, especially for communities of color, Wilde said in a statement. The campaign against Proposition 64 said Hollywood celebrities are not the most credible endorsers, charging they are out of touch with the reality of drug abuse in many communities in the state. Today the No on Prop 64 campaign did a press event in Fresno with faith and community leaders who know that the problems that recreational marijuana creates will impact these communities and neighborhoods across California not Hollywood, said Andrew Acosta, a spokesman for the opposition campaign. In a video produced by Dream Hampton and included on the website, former Golden State Warrior Al Harrington talks about how marijuana helped him overcome pain and inflammation during a staph infection and helped his grandmother with her glaucoma. Im a California voter and Im voting `yes for Prop. 64, he says. Williams spoke from personal experience. Im in recovery and dont use marijuana, and my Christian faith is my rock when it comes to staying sober, he said in a statement. But I dont believe people should be arrested for marijuana anymore. California can lead the country by voting yes on Prop 64. Drug Policy Action, an advocacy group backing Proposition 64 to legalize the drug for recreational use, paid for the site. Facebook

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Californias Congress members knew the Pentagon was trying to get back bonuses from soldiers, official says By David S. Cloud The California National Guard told the states members of Congress two years ago that the Pentagon was trying to claw back reenlistment bonuses from thousands of soldiers, and even offered a proposal to mitigate the problem, but Congress took no action, according to a senior National Guard official. What form that communication took and whether the members of Congress understood the scope of the problem at the time is unclear. On Monday, House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi sent a letter to Speaker Paul D. Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell saying that Congress should pass legislation to halt the Pentagon debt recovery as soon as we gavel back into session after the Nov. 8 election. Other California congressional members, including Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, also sent letters to Defense Secretary Ashton Carter about the matter. Read More Facebook

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Proposition 56 and the great vape tax debate By Liam Dillon (Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP/Getty Images) Turn on any TV in California and you know that all the talk surrounding the Proposition 56 tobacco tax has been about cigarettes. But if the initiative passes next month, e-cigarettes will also be taxed like traditional cigarettes for the first time  a huge tax increase that could boost the price of a typical 30-milliliter bottle of e-liquid by $10. Read More Facebook

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State ethics watchdog asks court to force assemblymans campaign to turn over documents for investigation By Christine Mai-Duc Assemblyman David Hadley (R-Manhattan Beach) greets people after participating in a candidates forum in Torrance. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) The campaign of Assemblyman David Hadley (R-Manhattan Beach) has delayed turning over documents related to an official investigation into his campaign practices, according to court documents filed by the state Fair Political Practices Commission. The investigation grew out of a complaint from Hadleys opponent, Democrat Al Muratsuchi, that claims Hadleys campaign was illegally coordinating with an independent expenditure committee that also supported Hadley. In a letter to the FPPC, Muratsuchi claimed Hadleys campaign and Spirit of Democracy, a group funded mostly by Republican donor Charles Munger, Jr., shared consultant Steven Presson during at least part of the primary campaign for Assembly District 66. In court documents filed Oct. 13, FPPC special investigator Garrett Micheels said he initially emailed Hadley Aug. 4, asking him to voluntarily provide certain records to the commissions enforcement division. The records requested included emails, letters and text messages between Jan. 1 and June 7 between Presson and the Hadley campaign, or any other individuals or groups concerning the Hadley race. The next day, Presson responded that the campaign would require a subpoena to avoid possible public exposure to sensitive emails within the Hadley campaign regarding our strategy. After a subpoena was issued on Aug. 12, Micheels said in court documents, Hadley retained attorney Steve Churchwell, who asked for extensions to produce the documents at least three times, but never provided the records. On Sept. 27, Hadley produced some of the documents, court filings say, but wrote to explain that he was withholding his communications with Presson because there are hundreds or thousands of such correspondences that contained sensitive/confidential campaign communications that he said he had not had the time to review. As of Friday, the FPPC says, they have not received the rest of the documents requested. There is only one reason Hadley would conceal documents, and that is because he is guilty and is trying to hide the evidence, said Mike Shimpock, a consultant for the Muratsuchi campaign. A Hadley campaign spokesman declined to comment and Churchwell did not return a request for comment. Oral arguments in the case are scheduled for 2 p.m. Friday in the Sacramento County Superior Court. Facebook

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New ads urge California voters not to repeal the last defense against killers By Jazmine Ulloa In two new television ads, police officers and prosecutors urge California voters not to repeal the death penalty on Nov. 8, calling it the last defense against killers. The commercials, released late Monday by the California Correctional Peace Officers Assn., are part of the No on Prop. 62, Yes on Prop. 66 campaign. The effort aims to defeat Proposition 62, which would replace the ultimate punishment for murder with life in prison without parole, and to support Proposition 66, which would change and limit how and how often death row inmates can appeal. The pro-death penalty campaign has drawn broad support and funding from law enforcement organizations across the state. The Correctional Peace Officers Assn. alone has donated nearly $600,000 since last September. Ive seen what the worst among us can do, killings so brutal families never recover, Sgt. Dan Cabral of the Sacramento County Deputy Sheriffs Assn. tells viewers in one ad. Its why we have a death penalty. The second ad features the case of serial killer Charles Ng, who has spent 17 years on death row for the rape, torture and slayings of at least 11 victims. This is cruel punishment for the families, Sharon Sellitto, one victims sister, says in the video. Read More Facebook

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GOP Rep. Darrell Issa returns fire after President Obama rips his campaign mailer By Phil Willon Vista Republican Rep. Darrell Issa said Monday he was disappointed but not surprised by President Obamas criticism of him for using the presidents photo in a campaign mailer. At a fundraiser in La Jolla on Sunday night, Obama said Issas primary contribution to Congress has been to obstruct and to waste taxpayer dollars on trumped-up investigations that have led nowhere. The president called Issa shameless for using his image in his reelection campaign. Im disappointed but not surprised that the president, in a political speech, continues to deny accountability for the serious scandals that happened under his watch where Americans died overseas and veterans have died here at home, Issa said in a statement released by his congressional campaign Monday. Youd be hard-pressed to find anyone who thinks Ive done too much to hold Washington accountable. Ive worked with the administration on good legislation where it was possible, called out wrongdoing wherever I saw it and will continue to do so. Issa is running his toughest congressional campaign to date, an increasingly nasty race that has been declared a toss-up by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report. Issas Democratic challenger in the 49th Congressional District, retired Marine Col. Doug Applegate, has criticized the congressman as a Washington insider and supporter of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. In the political mailer sent out by the Issa campaign, the congressman said he was pleased with the president for signing legislation he co-sponsored that provides victims of sexual assault legal protections in the federal criminal justice system. At the Sunday night fundraiser, Obama ripped Issa as a guy who, because poll numbers are bad, has sent out brochures with my picture on them touting his cooperation on issues with me. Now that is the definition of chutzpah, Obama said. Issa once called Obama one of the most corrupt presidents in modern times. While chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, he led investigations into the Benghazi attack, the Internal Revenue Service scandal, the botched Fast and Furious gun sting and other actions by the Obama administration. Facebook

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California Democrats remember Tom Hayden for pursuits close to home By Michael Finnegan (Lori Shepler / Los Angeles Times) Top California Democrats remembered Tom Hayden on Monday as an influential activist whose pursuit of liberal causes extended far beyond his best-known work leading protests against the Vietnam War. Tom took up causes that others avoided, Gov. Jerry Brown said. He had a real sense of the underdog and was willing to do battle no matter what the odds. Hayden died Sunday in Santa Monica after a long illness. He was 76. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti recalled Haydens work negotiating a gang truce in Venice, along with his contributions to an anti-sweatshop ordinance to prevent worker exploitation. Tom Hayden was a giant who never stopped pushing for peace and justice, and inspired a generation of change agents to bring new voices and overlooked perspectives to the decision-making process, Garcetti said. Hayden, classified by the FBI as a rabble rouser in the 1960s, was prosecuted by President Nixons Justice Department in the raucous Chicago 7 trial after violent clashes with police at the 1968 Democratic National Convention. His conviction was dismissed on appeal. He went on to serve in the state Assembly and Senate for a total of 18 years. John Burton, chairman of the California Democratic Party, recalled two measures that Hayden got passed. One allocated $250,000 to buy tattoo removal machines for imprisoned youth so they could cut their gang ties. The other set up a program for parents to use tax-free accounts for savings dedicated to their childrens college education. These bills didnt get a lot of attention at the time, but they have had a far-reaching impact on young peoples futures, said Burton, who led the state Senate when Hayden was a member. The Senates current leader, Kevin de Leon of Los Angeles, said Hayden was well ahead of the curve on issues involving the environment, social justice, gang intervention and urban peace, access to higher education, domestic violence and much more. Hayden, he said, distinguished himself as a paragon of political integrity and a great intellect. Facebook

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Secretary of States office holds voter registration drive at the Capitol on the last day to register in California By Sophia Bollag .@CASOSvote staff are outside the Capitol today to register new voters. Today is the deadline to register in CA. pic.twitter.com/vNovU1jNla  Sophia Bollag (@SophiaBollag) October 24, 2016 The Secretary of States office is holding a voter registration drive outside the Capitol today, the last day to register in California before the November election. The offices staff registered about 20 people in the first couple of hours, said Milena Paez, who works in the offices elections division. Many people had also stopped by the booth to ask where their polling place is or check their voter registration status, she said. LaRhonda Sayles-Willis, who recently moved to the Sacramento area, said she saw the booth as she walked down the street and stopped by to see where she was registered. She ended up re-registering to vote to be on the safe side and said shes particularly motivated to vote for Hillary Clinton. I really oppose her opponent. I just dont like the guy, the 56-year-old said. I just dont think hes a good representation of the United States. Ada Avelar, 21, said she decided to register because she recently moved to the United States from Mexico City to attend Sacramento State University. Avelar is an American citizen. She said she saw the booth on her way back from having lunch with a friend and decided to register right there. I was like, its a sign, she said. I have to do it. Facebook

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Assemblywoman Patty Lopez vows not to give up on reelection despite lack of party support By Christine Mai-Duc Patty Lopez watches as ballots are counted in her 2014 race against then-incumbent Raul Bocanegra, who she bested by fewer than 500 votes. ( (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)) On a recent weekend, with just three weeks to go until the November election, Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon made a whirlwind tour of five of the most hotly contested races in the state, stumping for Democratic candidates. Assemblywoman Patty Lopez (D-San Fernando), who faces a stiff challenge from former Assemblyman Raul Bocanegra, was not one of them. Instead, she spent part of her Saturday walking through a community street festival, handing out fliers with a handful of volunteers. Ive been blocked from my party, but my district knows who is Patty Lopez, she said. Sometimes I feel disappointed, but thats not stopping me from doing what I need to do. In 2014, Lopez shocked many when she eked out a win against Bocanegra by a margin of less than 500 votes. With six Democrats on the ballot in this years primary, Lopez received just 27.2% of the vote, a distant second to Bocanegras 44.4%. Despite this, and the fact that the California Democratic Party has endorsed her challenger, Lopez says she is a woman of faith who believes 100 percent that shell be reelected. Read More Facebook

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Obama says Darrell Issa is shameless for praising him in campaign mailer that is the definition of chutzpah By Sarah D. Wire At a California fundraiser Sunday night, President Obama called Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista) shameless for using the presidents photo on a recent mailer and praising him after years of criticizing the Obama administration. Issa is facing an unexpectedly tough race this year as the eight-term Republican squares off against political novice former Marine Col. Doug Applegate. Issas primary contribution to the United States Congress has been to obstruct and to waste taxpayer dollars on trumped-up investigations that have led nowhere. And this is now a guy who, because poll numbers are bad, has sent out brochures with my picture on them touting his cooperation on issues with me, Obama told the crowd, according to a transcript, at a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee fundraiser in the La Jolla home of donor Christine Forester. Now that is the definition of chutzpah. The Vista Republican has been a frequent critic of Obama and has called him one of the most corrupt presidents in modern times. The campaign mailer said Issa was pleased with the president for signing legislation he co-sponsored into law. Issa was one of 40 House members who co-sponsored the legislation, which provides some sexual assault victims legal protections in the federal criminal justice system. The president is in Los Angeles today and Tuesday for a taping of Jimmy Kimmel Live and two fundraisers, including a $100,000-per-ticket fundraiser at DreamWorks Chief Executive Jeffrey Katzenbergs home tonight that is completely closed to the press. Facebook

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The district where water is more important than all other campaign issues By Sarah D. Wire (Sarah D. Wire/ Los Angeles Times) In Californias Central Valley, the nations most productive agricultural region, the drought drives everything. And the ongoing fight over how much water flows could be the reason Democrats havent been able to win in the 21st Congressional District with a national race even though 47% of registered voters there are Democrats. Heres a look at the role of water in the race between Rep. David Valadao, and attorney Emilio Huerta. Read More Facebook

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What happens if both death penalty measures are approved by voters on Nov. 8? By Jazmine Ulloa (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press) California voters are weighing dueling death penalty propositions on the Nov. 8 ballot, one that seeks to repeal the system and another that aims to speed it up. If both pass with a majority, the initiative with the most yes votes would supersede the other. If both fail to garner the votes, then the status quo remains, a frustrating prospect for many as advocates on both sides of the issue say the system is broken. California has more than 740 inmates awaiting execution, the largest death row population in the country. Their appeals go directly to the state Supreme Court and take 25 years to process. Both capital punishment measures would require current prisoners to work and pay restitution to victims. But Proposition 62 would repeal the death penalty in California for first-degree murder and replace the sentence with life in prison without the possibility of parole. It also would apply retroactively to offenders already sentenced to death. Proposition 66 would designate lower trial courts to take on initial challenges to convictions and limit successive appeals to within five years of a death sentence. It also would require court-appointed lawyers who dont take capital appeals to represent death row inmates. Facebook

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California Politics Podcast: Propositions, polling and parole By John Myers The fact that there are 17 propositions on the statewide ballot has not only made things hard on voters, its been almost impossible for pollsters to sample opinion on so many issues. But one new poll looks at some of the least talked about measures, and its our first topic on this weeks California Politics Podcast. The poll suggests a lot of voters remain undecided about several of these low-profile proposals. We also take a detailed look at one of the most contentious ballot fights, the effort by Gov. Jerry Brown to revamp state prison parole rules through Proposition 57. Im joined on this weeks episode by Marisa Lagos of KQED News. Facebook

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In No on 62, Yes on 66 campaign ad, murder victims mother urges California voters to keep the death penalty By Jazmine Ulloa In three online ads released Friday, Sandra Friend tells California voters they should fix the states death penalty system, not end it. The 43-year-old mother has been a crime victims advocate since Robert Boyd Rhoades sexually abused and killed her 8-year-old son, Michael Lyons, two decades ago. She is now serving as one of the main voices behind a campaign that is working to defeat Proposition 62, which would repeal the death penalty, and in favor of Proposition 66, which seeks to speed up executions. Voters will weigh the dueling capital punishment initiatives on the Nov. 8 ballot. Both would require current death row inmates to work and pay restitution to victims, but would take opposing approaches to what the measures both call a broken system. Rhoades, who abducted Lyons on his way home from school in Yuba City, is one of 740 death row inmates in California. Executions have been on hold since 2006, when the states lethal injection protocol was challenged in court. Friend tells viewers it has been difficult coming to terms with the fact that her son was murdered by a twice-convicted sex offender. I am living a parents worst nightmare, she says. Facebook

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Former state Sen. Ronald Calderon sentenced to 42 months in prison on corruption charge By Joel Rubin Former state Sen. Ronald S. Calderon was sentenced in Los Angeles on Friday to 42 months in prison after he pleaded guilty in a federal corruption case. The Montebello Democrat, who served in the state Senate for eight years ending in 2014, admitted in a plea deal in June that he accepted tens of thousands of dollars in bribes from undercover FBI agents and a hospital executive in return for official favors. Federal prosecutors had asked for a five-year sentence for a charge where the maximum possible penalty was 20 years. U.S. District Judge Christina Snyder, who handed down the sentence to Calderon, said five years was too severe but that a significant prison sentence was needed to punish Calderon and send a message to other elected officials that corruption will not be tolerated. The crime is significant, she said during the court hearing. This is a true public corruption case. Striking a defiant tone throughout, Calderon refused to admit any wrong-doing or to apologize during the court hearing. My goal was always to do the right thing for California, he said. At no point did I intend to break the law. He said he ultimately decided to plead guilty in order to spare his family the ordeal of a trial, but persisted in his innocence, saying he never agreed to any quid pro quo to benefit himself or his family. Unemployed and tens of thousands of dollars in debt, Calderon said professional relationships had been ruined as had his relationship with his brother. My reputation is destroyed, Calderon said. Snyder was unmoved. I did not really hear Senator Calderon accept responsibility or apologize, she said. It was really about himself. Calderon, 59, had pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud as part of a plea in which he admitted to accepting trips to Las Vegas, jobs for a son and daughter, and cash for him and his brother, former Assemblyman Tom Calderon. Tom Calderon was sentenced last month to one year in federal custody for laundering bribes taken by his brother. The Calderon family was politically powerful for decades in California. A third brother, former Assemblyman Charles Calderon, was not implicated in the corruption scandal. Ronald Calderons nephew, Ian Calderon, is a state assemblyman, the last family member in state elected office. He was not alleged to have any part in the corruption scheme. Assistant U.S. Atty. Mack E. Jenkins wrote a blistering brief opposing Calderons request to serve time with home detention or be released for the brief time he already spent in jail. Here, defendants trafficking in his legislative votes (for, by contrast, over $150,000 in benefits) caused a reverberation of negative effects throughout California and put a stain not just on his career, but on the reputation of the state legislature, Jenkins wrote. Read More Facebook

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Accusations fly in the congressional race for this Northern California swing district By Sophia Bollag Democratic U.S. Rep. Ami Bera, left, shakes hands with his Republican challenger, Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones, after their debate Tuesday in the race for the 7th Congressional District seat. (Jose Luis Villegas / Associated Press) Questions about character have been dominating the congressional race between Rep. Ami Bera (D-Elk Grove) and Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones. Both candidates have been plagued by allegations of wrongdoing. Beras father was recently sentenced to jail for illegally funneling money to two of his sons past campaigns. Jones faces allegations he sexually harassed a subordinate at the Sheriffs Department more than a decade ago, which he denies. Theyre competing in a divided district that leans Democratic, but not by much. In 2014, Bera beat his Republican challenger by less than a percentage point. This race is always one of the closest races in the country, he said. Read More Facebook

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Loretta Sanchez says she got death threats after she voted against the Iraq war By Phil Willon Rep. Loretta Sanchez, after her speech Thursday. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) U.S. Senate candidate Loretta Sanchez on Thursday urged ROTC cadets at UCLA to have the courage to challenge politicians who call for ill conceived uses of military force such as the 2003 invasion of Iraq. We need military leaders that understand the limits of our military power, said Sanchez, who has served in Congress for two decades and sits on the House Armed Services Committee. Why is it that every generation and every president has to learn that all over again? The Orange County congresswoman made the comments during an address to ROTC cadets at UCLAs Pauley Pavilion. Sanchez said her experience on the House Armed Services Committee made her question the long-term implications of the Iraq invasion, and whether the U.S. might find itself bogged down in a war in the Middle East. In 2002, Sanchez was among the 133 House members who voted against the authorization of military force against Iraq. It was a lonely time, Sanchez told the cadets. [When] I came back to Orange County, I was spit on. I received death threats. The congresswoman told the cadets the military is just one part of a national security strategy that includes intelligence gathering, diplomacy and the use of the countrys economic strength. Because so much is at stake, the use of our military should always be a last resort, Sanchez said. Sanchez is running against fellow Democrat and state Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris for Californias U.S. Senate seat. She says her expertise on national defense and terrorism are among the reasons shes the most qualified candidate. Facebook

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Tobacco companies claim proponents of cigarette tax will use the new revenue to enrich their top executives By Liam Dillon Tobacco companies have unveiled a new claim in their campaign against the $2-per-pack increase in cigarette taxes on the November ballot. In a television advertisement that debuted over the weekend, the No on Proposition 56 campaign contends that the doctors and health insurance groups financing the initiative wrote it to avoid external oversight over the money going to low-income patient care. They even exempted themselves from the new audit requirements, the ad states. They can use the new revenue to enrich their top executives, and theres no requirement to treat even one more patient. The claim rests on a part of the Proposition 56 initiative that creates new auditing rules to govern where the new tax money would go. But it ignores the litany of state and federal auditing requirements to which Medi-Cal, the states low-income health program, already is subject. First, heres a little background about how the money from Proposition 56 would get spent. Assuming fewer people use tobacco because of the tax increase, the tax would raise about $1.27 billion next year, according to an estimate from the Legislative Analysts Office. Of that amount, $710 million  about 56%  would go to Medi-Cal, primarily to increase the payment doctors and other healthcare providers receive when they treat patients. The remaining dollars go to back-filling current state and local sales taxes and other programs because fewer people will buy cigarettes, doctor and dentist training and anti-tobacco efforts. The initiative kicks in $400,000 a year to audit the agencies receiving the money. Beth Miller, spokeswoman for the No on 56 campaign, said that opponents like that state and local agencies will be audited if the measure passes. The criticism is that the provisions dont go far enough. It would have been nice to have those audit requirements also apply to those end users, so to speak: the hospitals, the insurance companies and the doctors, Miller said. Medi-Cal providers, however, get audited all the time. The states Department of Health Care Services does internal audits and investigations through an entire department of about 700 employees and a $50-million budget dedicated to reviewing the programs under its jurisdiction, including looking at the financial records of Medi-Cal providers. Beyond that, the California State Auditor has issued at least two wide-ranging audits involving Medi-Cal providers in the last five years on the states oversight of managed-care plans. And the federal Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General also audits programs and providers that receive federal dollars for low-income patients. One recent federal audit of California that examined pediatric dental providers happened last May. Miller contended that the audits required under Proposition 56 are more transparent than the existing state and federal programs. Mike Roth, spokesman for the Yes on 56 campaign, said the initiative has plenty of safeguards to ensure the tax money is spent wisely, including the auditing provisions. This is another desperate and deceitful red herring from tobacco companies, and it takes the cake as far as their flagrant lies about Proposition 56, Roth said. Heres the full ad: UPDATES: 3:03 p.m.: This post was updated to include the full video of the advertisement. This article was originally published at 2:00 p.m. Facebook

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Central Valley congressional race that once leaned Republican is now a toss-up, report says By Sarah D. Wire Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock) (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images) The nonpartisan analysts at the Cook Political Report now say its a toss-up whether Republican Rep. Jeff Denham or Democrat beekeeper Michael Eggman will win the 10th Congressional District race. The race had been rated leans Republican since last fall, indicating that the analysts expected Denham to keep the seat, but felt Democrats had a chance. This is the second matchup for Denham and Eggman. Denham won in 2014 with 56.4% of the vote. Democrats have worked for months to tie vulnerable House Republicans to the rhetoric of their presidential nominee, Donald Trump, and this race is one where Trumps effect down the ballot could be most visible. Denham has said he disagrees with Trumps rhetoric, but hasnt backed off supporting him, a move that could prove unpopular in the Central Valley district where at least 40% of the population is Latino. Three Republican-held seats in California are now considered toss-ups. The other two are representing the 25th Congressional District, held by Rep. Steve Knight (R-Palmdale), and the 49th Congressional District, held by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista). Facebook

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California Senate leader endorses gun control initiative despite differences with its author, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom By Patrick McGreevy California Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, left, and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, right, applaud at Gov. Jerry Browns State of the State speech in January. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) Despite political differences with its author, state Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles) on Thursday endorsed Proposition 63, which would expand Californias already tough gun control laws. Proposition 63 was proposed by Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and would outlaw large-capacity ammunition magazines, require background checks for those buying bullets, require lost or stolen guns to be reported quickly, make stealing a firearm a felony and provide a process for newly convicted felons to relinquish their guns. De Leon and Newsom have both been working on gun control issues for years and both have aspirations for higher office. Newsom is running for governor in 2018. Some in the De Leon camp thought when the initiative was proposed last year that it was being used to try to take over an issue on which the senator has been a leader. The two disagreed earlier this year on the best way to achieve gun control aims, with De Leon publicly calling on Newsom to drop his initiative and allow the Legislature to act, and Newsom refusing, charging that the Legislatures proposals were not extensive enough. In the end, the Legislature approved several bills, including one by De Leon that requires background checks for ammunition purchasers, even though a similar proposal is included in the Newsom initiative. The Legislature also mandated that its background-check plan would supersede the one in Proposition 63. On Thursday, De Leon made no mention of the differences. Earlier this year, our Legislature passed the most sweeping and important package of gun safety laws in the nation, increasing nationwide momentum and grass-roots outcries for common-sense safeguards against gun violence, De Leon said in a statement. I endorse Proposition 63 because we must send a powerful and united message to the national Gun Lobby that California will not capitulate to political bullying or compromise the public safety, he added. The differences between the two politicians were highlighted noted by Richard Grenell, co-chairman of the Coalition for Civil Liberties, which is campaigning against the initiative. This is a prime example of why people should trust law enforcement on this question before self-interested politicians, Grenell said. Just a few months ago, de Leon asked Newsom to repeal Prop 63. De Leons statement was released a day after Newsom ruffled some feathers in the De Leon camp when he told the Sacramento Press Club that his initiative accomplishes things that state officials could not. Newsom noted that 11 other states have enacted the requirement that stolen guns be reported. There have been legislative attempts and they have failed multiple times here in the Capitol, Newsom said. The Legislature did approve such a bill this year, but it was vetoed by Gov. Jerry Brown in July. The political dispute between the two leading Democrats surfaced last year when De Leon acted to slash a third of Newsoms staff, notifying him that two Senate employees who had been on loan to the lieutenant governors office were being reassigned. UPDATED at 1:10 pm to include comment from opponent of initiative. Facebook

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No fight from the business community over the proposed tobacco and income tax hikes By Liam Dillon (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images) Business groups often make up a triumvirate with Republicans and taxpayer advocates against tax increases. But on the two tax hikes on the 2016 California ballot, major business leaders are mostly staying away from the fight. They tend to dislike the income tax extensions promised by Proposition 55, but arent campaigning against them. And some are even backing Proposition 56s cigarette tax increases. Read More Facebook

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Almost half a million Californians have already voted by mail, with a surge in some hotly contested races By John Myers (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) Early data compiled from local elections officials shows a surge of ballots being returned in the mail, especially in some of the most closely watched races this election season. A report compiled by Political Data Inc. shows almost 408,000 ballots cast in just the first eight days of voting, with more than half of those ballots arriving in local election offices Wednesday. As weve reported before, election day in California is now more like an election month. A majority of the states voters cast their ballots away from traditional polling places, and political professionals can closely monitor which voters in any given race have turned those ballots back in. The report also shows strong early voting in some of Californias most talked about congressional races. In the hotly contested reelection race of Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista), more than four times as many ballots have been returned so far compared to the 2014 general election. And even though Republicans have an eight-point registration advantage in Issas district, the ballots cast so far have skewed more Democratic. In early voting, the two major parties are almost even in the number of votes cast. Issa, facing a tough race against Democrat Douglas Applegate, recently sent out a campaign mailer trying to appeal to local voters who support President Obama. Compared to the first few days of the 2014 general election, substantially more ballots have also been cast in the Central Valley races featuring Reps. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock) and David Valadao (R-Hanford). In both districts, Democratic voters are outpacing GOP voters in early ballot returns. While none of the data offers information on how those ballots were cast -- these are only totals received by county officials -- the early numbers may offer a glimpse at how energized some parts of the electorate are in this contentious campaign season. Facebook

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What will Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom focus on in his run for governor? Aging infrastructure among issues By Patrick McGreevy California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at an event in Los Angeles in April. (Nick Ut / Associated Press) Signaling that his gubernatorial campaign will shift into higher gear after next months election, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that he is working on a plan to double spending on roads and other infrastructure since the Legislature failed to act this year. This is going to be something you will be hearing a lot more from me on over the course of the next number of months, a very aggressive infrastructure proposal, Newsom said in a speech to the Sacramento Press Club. The former San Francisco mayor is running for governor in 2018. He noted that the governor and Legislature did not reach an agreement on a transportation funding program in the face of a $130-billion backlog in state and local road repairs. Legislative Democrats proposed a $7.4-billion plan earlier this year that would raise the gas tax by 17 cents a gallon. Thats about twice the size of an earlier plan by Gov. Jerry Brown. Weve got to more than double our investment in infrastructure in this state, Newsom said, adding the problem has reached code red in California. Plans by the governor to use proceeds from sale of cap-and-trade credits have merits, he said. Separately, Newsom said he continues to support the vision of a high speed rail system for California but said I remain concerned about the finances. He said the private sector must step up to provide more of the money as the project cost has close to doubled from its original $33 billion price tag. Newsom acknowledged that he has work to do to introduce himself to voters outside his home base. I think a lot of the state really doesnt know me yet, he said, adding he sees it as a great opportunity to tell his story. He declined to comment on the gubernatorial candidacy of state Treasurer John Chiang and possible runs by former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and billionaire environmental activist Tom Steyer. Im not focused on those others, he said. Im focused on what we have before us. Facebook

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L.A. activist is building his AIDS organization into a political powerhouse with two November ballot measures By Christine Mai-Duc (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times) When Michael Weinstein launched his AIDS Healthcare Foundation in the late 1980s, he had a coffee can for donations and a $50,000 budget to provide end-of-life care to those dying of the disease. Today, hes grown the nonprofit into a $1.2-billion operation that manages hundreds of clinics and pharmacies globally, and has quickly become a major political player in California, and, he hopes, nationally. AHF, as it is known, is sponsoring two initiatives on Californias November ballot: Proposition 60, which would require adult film actors to use condoms during sex scenes, and Proposition 61, which would bar state agencies from entering contracts to purchase drugs where the price is higher than that paid by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Thats quite a feat in a state as expensive as California, and in a political year as crowded as 2016. Were doing things on a scale that we havent before, Weinstein said in a recent interview from his office in a Hollywood high-rise. Read More Facebook

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These janitors are giving up sleep to knock on doors for Hillary Clinton By Sarah D. Wire Yamilex Rustrian, left, of North Hollywood, and Leticia Soto of Los Angeles check Las Vegas addresses to visit to encourage voters to support Hillary Clinton. (Sarah D. Wire / Los Angeles Times) Early Saturday morning, Yamilex Rustrian sat with her mother and other janitors assembled at long tables in the old mortuary that is home to the SEIU United Service Workers West. They ate ham, cheese and bean sandwiches as they waited for the final workers to get off the late shift. At least one came still dressed in her blue smock. The group of janitors and their children made a quick trip to Las Vegas over the weekend to knock on doors for Hillary Clinton, and got home Sunday just in time for the late shift. Each had their reasons to join the more than 150 union members who made the trip. Read More Facebook

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Federal prosector seeks 5 years for former California Sen. Ron Calderon in corruption case By Patrick McGreevy A federal prosecutor has recommended that former state Sen. Ron Calderon be sentenced to five years in prison as part of a federal corruption case that rocked the California state Capitol. Assistant U.S. Atty. Mack E. Jenkins wrote a blistering brief urging the federal judge to not show leniency to Calderon, who in June entered a plea deal in which he pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud. Here, defendants trafficking in his legislative votes (for, by contrast, over $150,000 in benefits) caused a reverberation of negative effects throughout California and put a stain not just on his career, but on the reputation of the state legislature, Jenkins wrote ahead of Fridays sentencing date. The prosecutor noted that only one fellow politician wrote a letter of support for Calderon, a Montebello Democrat. In defendants plea agreement, he admitted to participating in two substantial and complex bribery schemes that entailed multiple forms of bribes, concealment and sophisticated money laundering, the prosecutor wrote. Here, defendant sold his vote not just to help pay for the expenses of living beyond his means, but for the more banal and predictable aims of corruption  fancy luxuries, fancy parties and fancy people. An attorney for Calderon has asked the judge to sentence the former lawmaker to time already served in jail during his booking or home detention. Jenkins proposed that Calderon be sentenced to five years in custody, one year of supervised release, a $7,500 fine and 250 hours of community service. Facebook

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A new Jay Z video says pot should be legal in California and calls the war on drugs an epic fail By Patrick McGreevy Rapper Jay Z has weighed in to support Proposition 64, which would legalize the recreational use of marijuana in California, calling the war on drugs an epic fail, in a YouTube video, which also describes how the effort filled prisons with young African American and Latino men. Young men like me who hustle became the sole villain, Jay Z says as the video depicts the deterioration of a neighborhood drawn by artist Molly Crabapple. The one-minute video was produced by the group Drug Policy Action from a longer animated video that addressed the general issue of drug prohibition, said Jason Kinney, a spokesman for the campaign. The shortened video, titled The War on Drugs from Prohibition to Gold Rush, ends with a new, written message urging people to vote for Proposition 64, adding, We can stop the harm on Nov. 8. Jay Z agreed to have the video tailored to the Proposition 64 campaign, Kinney said. Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, who helped qualify the initiative, praised the rapper on Twitter, writing Thank you, Jay Z, for your strong voice for social justice & co-creating this new @Yeson64 video! Facebook

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Bay Area congressman Eric Swalwell got married over the weekend By Sarah D. Wire View Instagram post Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Dublin) and Brittany Watts, a sales director at the Ritz-Carlton in Half Moon Bay, got married on Friday. They were married at the Rene C. Davidson Courthouse in Oakland. Before being elected to Congress, Swalwell worked in the courthouse as a prosecutor with the Alameda County district attorneys office. Here is the couples wedding announcement. The congressman also posted an image of the couple cutting their wedding cake on Instagram. Facebook

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Los Angeles top elections officer talks about voter fraud and polling place intimidation in Reddit chat By John Myers The questions posed by Reddit users on Monday to the top elections officer in Los Angeles ranged from small problems over where to cast an early ballot to broader concerns about election security. Dean Logan, Los Angeles Countys registrar of voters, attempted to answer almost all of them during the hourlong online conversation. Asked about intimidation of voters at the polls, possibly inspired by criticisms over comments by GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump, Logan said the question has been popping up a lot in his office. We, of course, encourage people to observe all elements of the process, but any disruption of voters or intimidation of voters is unacceptable, he wrote. Another Reddit user asked whether all ballots mailed or dropped off at a polling place are counted. Any valid and timely received vote by mail ballot will be counted and included in the certified election results, Logan wrote. I am always surprised by this question. Logan said that officials mailed some 1.8 million ballots last week to Los Angeles Countys permanent absentee voters, with one-time requests for ballots by mail being sent out this week. Asked by one Reddit user about a potential way to commit voter fraud with absentee ballots, Logan said it is important to note that the voter doing so would be signing an oath under penalty of perjury. He also agreed with one questioners concern that voter turnout was too low, and suggested that a new state laws significant expansion of voting by mail may help. I think the model of voting we use is somewhat outdated and unfamiliar to new voters, Logan said. Facebook

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Kamala Harris and her husband made $1.17 million in 2015, according to report on their tax returns By Phil Willon Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris files to run for the U.S. Senate in February at the Los Angeles County Registrar with her husband, Douglas Emhoff. (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times) The 2015 tax returns filed by U.S. Senate candidate Kamala Harris and her husband, Los Angeles attorney Douglas Emhoff, show that the couple earned $1.17 million that year, according to reports. Harris tax returns, which were viewed and first reported by the Sacramento Bee, also showed that the California attorney general and her husband paid $450,000 in state and federal income taxes. Harris campaign spokesman Nathan Click said journalists are being allowed to view the tax returns by appointment only. Harris rival in the Senate race, Orange County Rep. Loretta Sanchez, provided her 2015 tax return to the Orange County Register and will not make those tax records available to other journalists until after that news organization publishes its story, said Sanchez campaign spokesman Luis Vizcaino. Harris and Sanchez have net worths that likely run in the millions, according to federal and state financial disclosures. Facebook

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Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum reopens  and his daughter and grandson get a tour By Christine Mai-Duc Christopher Cox, grandson of Richard Nixon, talks to reporters during a tour of the newly renovated Nixon Presidential Library and Museum. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times) The Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum reopened Saturday, after a 10-month renovation that sought to reframe the narrative of the 37th presidents life and legacy. The $15-million remake brings to a close a more than decade-long effort to bring greater legitimacy to a library that historian and Nixon scholar Stanley Kutler once called just another Southern California theme park whose reality level was slightly better than Disneyland. We wrote about the librarys new exhibits a couple of months ago, and the challenge of building an unflinching portrait of a complicated man. In attendance were Henry Kissinger, Nixons former secretary of State, former California Gov. Pete Wilson and Nixons daughter and grandson, Tricia Nixon Cox and Christopher Nixon Cox. Times photographer Mark Boster attende
Hillary Clinton wanted to share her birthday with a special someone this week in Florida.

One of the best gifts you can give yourselves would be sending Patrick Murphy to the United States Senate! she told a crowd of supporters here in a college gymnasium.

While Clinton has taken care to mention fellow Democrats on the campaign trail  she usually starts her rallies by rattling off names of local officials, stealing glances at a list to make sure she doesnt miss anyone  she recently started fusing her stump speeches with full-throated pitches for her partys Senate candidates.

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The decision represents a new facet of Clintons push for the White House as she tries to boost candidates like Murphy, who is attempting to unseat Republican Sen. Marco Rubio. She appears to be looking for ways to plow past the obstructionism that has plagued President Obama, starting with a return to Democratic control of the Senate, and shoring up a base of support on Capitol Hill by helping Democrats get elected.

Republicans have controlled both chambers of Congress since 2015, giving them the power to block Obamas nomination of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court and stall his choices for other federal judgeships. For years, the GOP has frustrated Obamas efforts at policymaking, including comprehensive immigration reform.

There are signs they may keep the same tactics if Clinton is elected. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas suggested that the Supreme Court could continue operating with one fewer than its full slate of nine justices.

Assuming Clinton wins, having a Democratic Senate is of paramount importance for her policy agenda, said Allan J. Lichtman, a history professor at American University.

Democrats need to flip four seats to take control of the Senate if Clinton wins, giving them 50 total. Clintons running mate, Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, would be able to cast tie-breaking votes as vice president.

Clintons efforts on behalf of Democratic Senate hopefuls are also notable for the contrast with Trump, who never mentions his partys Senate candidates at his rallies, where he functions more as a one-man show than a top-of-the-ticket nominee.

In turn, down-ballot Republicans have been forced into pretzel-like political contortions to avoid defending his most controversial comments while also maintaining the loyalty of Republican voters. After facing a barrage of questions about Trumps insults of women, Latinos and other groups, many Republicans welcomed Fridays revelation that the FBI was taking a new look at emails related to Hillary Clintons private server.

Some senators have chosen to stay away from Trump even if they plan to vote for him; Rubio, for example, didnt join Trump at any of his events in six cities over three days in Florida this week.

Clinton has homed in on that dilemma.

In Pennsylvania on Saturday, she sharply criticized Republican Sen. Pat Toomey, who has refused to say whether he will vote for Trump.

If he doesnt have the courage to stand up to Donald Trump after all this, can you be sure he will have the courage to stand up for you? she said, urging voters to back Katie McGinty, a former state environmental official and adviser in Bill Clintons administration.

Its rare for Clinton to directly criticize a Republican senator, but she never veers far from her anti-Trump message in stumping for other Democrats. In North Carolina, she said that Deborah Ross, a lawyer and former state lawmaker running for Senate there, knows that people of courage and principles need to come together to reject his dangerous and divisive agenda.

The primary super PAC supporting Clinton, Priorities USA, also is jumping into the fight for the Senate. Last week, it began running television advertisements against both Toomey and Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire.

Ayotte, trying to fend off a challenge from the states Democratic Gov. Maggie Hassan, supported Trump, then abandoned him when a recording of Trump bragging about groping women was leaked, creating a muddied message that pleased few voters.

Theyre in this terrible Catch-22, where they either make a blatantly political decision to break with him, or continue to stand by him, said Justin Barasky, a spokesman for Priorities USA.

Even the National Republican Senatorial Committee effectively conceded that the presidential campaign isnt a plus for their candidates.

Democrats have relied on political gravity from the presidential race to carry them across the finish line, said Andrea Bozek, the committees communications director, while still arguing that Republicans have better Senate candidates.

Some Republicans are poised to escape the potential fallout from Trumps candidacy. Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio, for example, who is operating a campaign that exists largely separately from Trump, is running well ahead of Democratic challenger Ted Strickland, a former governor.

But Trumps visit to Nevada on Sunday could pose more trouble for his party.

In the battle for the Senate seat there being vacated by Minority Leader Harry Reid, Republican Rep. Joe Heck has come under fire for refusing to say how hell vote for president, insisting the ballot is a private affair.

He pulled his endorsement after Trumps comments about groping women were revealed, a decision that has led to ridicule from Trump supporters.

His Democratic opponent in the race, Catherine Cortez Masto, has no intention of letting Heck distance himself from his partys unpopular candidate.

Withdrawing his support isnt leadership, she posted on Facebook. Its Joe Heck trying to save his political career.

Twitter: @chrismegerian, @lisamascaro

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In the closing stretch of the presidential race, Hillary Clinton is trying to harness womens anger over Donald Trumps behavior into a surge of support for her and other female candidates.

Its an effort that harks back to Democratic victories that stemmed from similar controversy a quarter-century ago, in an election that became known as the Year of the Woman.

On Thursday, First Lady Michelle Obama, the most popular figure on the national stage, campaigned alongside Clinton in North Carolina. Two days earlier, Sen. Elizabeth Warren campaigned with Clinton in New Hampshire. Each delivered a hear me roar message prodding female voters to help Clinton defeat Trump.

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We know the influence our president has on our children, Obama told thousands of supporters in Winston-Salem. They are taking it all in. What kind of president do we want for them?

Clinton, introducing Obama, cast Nov. 8 as a referendum on Trumps words and actions.

I wish I didnt have to say this, but, indeed, dignity and respect for women and girls is also on the ballot this election, the candidate said.

Polls show female voters siding with Clinton by near-record levels in many key states, as support for her and antipathy toward Trump merge to give her leads in most of the battleground states that the Republican nominee needs to win.

The move by female voters toward Clinton in the final weeks of the campaign offsets a similar hardening of support for Trump by his key audience, blue-collar white men.

In a campaign featuring the first female presidential nominee of a major party, gender was inevitably going to play a role.

The surprise is that what has super-charged genders role is not Clintons historic quest, but the nature of her opponent  specifically, Trumps vulgar comments about women on a 2005 video and subsequent allegations of sexual assault made against him.

The gender focus has expanded from there in unpredictable ways. Trumps criticism of Clinton in their third debate as a nasty woman has been embraced by the candidate and her supporters, prompting Nasty woman T-shirts and leading Warren to issue a swaggering promise that on election day, we nasty women will defeat him.

The aftershocks have not been limited to campaign events, nor to Democrats. Prominent Republican women have expressed anger at Trump and at their party for backing him.

On Wednesday, in an extraordinary several minutes on Fox News, former GOP House Speaker Newt Gingrich angrily accused Megyn Kelly, one of the most prominent women in television news, of being fascinated by sex for asking about the allegations against Trump.

You know what, Mr. Speaker? I am not fascinated by sex, Kelly said. But I am fascinated by the protection of women and understanding what were getting in the Oval Office.

Their dispute ended with Kelly suggesting that Gingrich take [his] anger issues elsewhere.

Trump, who earlier in the campaign had used loaded gender references against Kelly as well as Clinton and others, went out of his way Wednesday to congratulate Gingrich during an event in Washington.

That was an amazing interview. We dont play games, Newt. We dont play games, Trump said.

The swirl of gender issues in this campaign and the tone taken as election day nears echo the 1992 campaign. The success of female candidates that year was powered in large part by women mobilized by court decisions threatening abortion rights and the emotional fallout from the 1991 accusations of harassment leveled by law professor Anita Hill against then-Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas.

Thomas secured his seat on the court after a national uproar, but the sentiments unleashed as senators interrogated Hill on television helped propel a record number of women into U.S. Senate seats one year later. Strong support from women also helped Clintons husband, Bill Clinton, win his first term as president.

Clinton and her campaign are trying to funnel similar outrage over Trumps words and alleged deeds into votes for her and female Senate candidates. So far, however, the benefit seems limited to Clinton herself, with few signs as yet of a top-to-bottom ballot wave.

Debbie Walsh, director of Rutgers Universitys Center for American Women and Politics, said Clinton was embracing the latest turn of events in the same way she had earlier turned Trumps complaint that she was playing the womans card into a stump speech chant to deal me in.

Its really tapping into something deep for women, Walsh said.

The fact that Trumps behavior prompted some Republicans to turn their backs on him after sticking with him through his comments about Muslims, Latinos, African Americans, the disabled and other groups underscores the heft of the group Clinton is now trying to direct, Walsh said.

What you see here is the power of the womens vote, she said.

In North Carolina, a traditionally Republican state where Clinton holds a narrow lead over Trump, messages to women dominate both sides campaign ads.

In one Clinton ad, an Army veteran and life-long Republican with three daughters talks about his anger at Trumps comments. I want my girls to grow up proud and strong, he says. Donald Trumps America is not the country I fought for.

Another Clinton ad, replete with images of mothers and children, features a girl asking Clinton how to prevent bullying. We need more love and kindness, Clinton says.

Try our interactive electoral college map 

Her opponents, too, have women voters in their sights. One ad paid for by a pro-Trump super PAC hits Clinton for donations her family foundation received from countries that, among other things, dont allow women to drive and punish rape victims.

How can we trust the Clintons to fight for us when theyve sold out millions of women already? the narrator in the ad asks.

Yet its clear Trump has the bigger problem among women. In a poll released Thursday from the nonpartisan Pew Research Center, only 38% of voters said Trump had even a fair amount of respect for women. And more than 4 in 10 women said he had no respect for them.

The Trump campaign hasnt directly tried to allay the concerns of women, apart from Trumps steadfast denials that he forcibly kissed women and grabbed their genitals, as he boasted on the 2005 tape of being able to do.

He has cast his accusers as liars and vowed to sue them after the election.

They dont understand who the people are that theyre losing, said Katie Packer, a veteran Republican strategist and Trump opponent. Its not about the sex; its about the crime and the indignity and the accountability of somebody who has bragged about this. To be constantly treating this as no big deal  thats the insult.

There are some signs of a rejection of Trump by GOP women. In North Carolina, Monmouth University pollster Patrick Murray found 6% of Republican women surveyed siding with Clinton, twice the percentage that backed President Obama in 2012, according to exit polls.

In New Hampshire, another swing state, an NBC/Wall Street Journal/Marist College poll published Wednesday found Clinton with a 25-point lead among women overall, up from 14 points a month earlier. Among men, Trump led by 8 points  slightly down from his 12-point margin in September.

In early voting in North Carolina, women have cast 7% more ballots than they had at this point in 2012, according to figures compiled by Catawba College professor J. Michael Bitzer. That presumably, but not certainly, aids Clinton.

One of those Clinton supporters is Angela Middleton, who sat outside the Wake Forest University arena after Clintons and Obamas speeches, smiling as a light rain began to fall.

I look at the record, what she stands for: equality, Middleton said of Clinton. Shes a female. She understands the struggle, the fight. I may not agree with all of her policies, but I believe in her ability.

cathleen.decker@latimes.com

Twitter: @cathleendecker

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Tehran, Iran, Oct. 28

By Mehdi Sepahvand  Trend:

Over half a million Iranians have signed up for the Arbaeen pilgrimage to Karbala, Iraq, according to Said Owhadi, head of Irans Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization, ISNA news agency reported October 28.

In 2015 Arbaeen gathered some 20 million people in the Iraqi city to be named the biggest human gathering in history. Looking beyond the religious content, it is going to turn into a major economic feature for Iraq and the neighboring Iran as a large-scale tour.

The annual pilgrimage to Karbala gradually turned into a major event in the Shia Iranian culture after former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was taken down. Hussein used to bar Iranians from going to Karbala, only to provide limited permits in the few years to the end of his rule.

The Arbaeen pilgrimage grew in recent years as a not-so-well organized event, as Iranians used to venture into the loosely policed post-war Iraqi territory within self-organized groups without a visa.

But this year Tehran has stressed that no entry into Iraq would be possible for Iranians without a visa.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Owhadi announced that next week the first standard hotel in Karbala will be opened, adding, The construction of the biggest hotel in Najaf has also made 70 percent progress so far.

Besides religious bonds, Iranians have many cultural and even ethnic bonds with the Iraqis, which provides good grounds for them as businessmen for trade between the two countries.

Since the general reconstruction of Iraq began after the US invasion of the 2000s, Iranian businessmen found a new market for their goods and services.

In the transportation sphere, Iranian authorities recently announced that the bus fare for one way trips to the border with Iraq will be doubled during the Arbaeen pilgrimage.

Last week, Atrian, an official with a special Arbaeen transport logistics workgroup, said that this year 120,000 buses will operate to take Iranian pilgrims to the Iraqi border.

Governmental and non-governmental bodies in Iran are also providing incentives to make the pilgrims tour more attractive, which can boost their number over the following years.

Akbar Kazemi, deputy director of the center for reconstruction of holy shrines in Iraq, last week said that facilities will be provided to 800,000 Iranian pilgrims inside Iraq each day during the Arbaeen.
In the 1950s, California wildlife authorities used to fly over remote lakes and creeks in Yosemite National Park and deliver precious cargo: hatchery-raised trout.

The policy was great for fishing enthusiasts. But for the yellow-legged frogs that shared those waters, the arrival of hungry trout was a disaster.

These days, wildlife officials are using helicopters to transport the fist-sized frogs to some of the very same waters, which are now being rid of non-native trout.

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Its part of a strategy that has helped the frog population grow at a rate of 11% a year since 1991, according to a report this month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

If we give frogs some room to thrive, they will, said Vance Vredenburg, a biologist at San Francisco State University who worked on the study.

Non-native trout are only part of the problem facing Rana sierrae, a reddish-brown frog with yellow undersides.

The amphibians also have been contending with the deadly chytrid fungus. It causes their skin to thicken, interfering with their ability to absorb water and regulate respiration.

The fungus first swept through the Sierra Nevada range in the 1970s, triggering rapid, massive die-offs. It is now ubiquitous in the region. In 2014, yellow-legged frogs were added to the federal endangered species list.

But now the frogs are rebounding, and scientists believe the animals have developed some type of natural defense against the fungus, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis.

Their optimism is based in part on laboratory experiments conducted at San Francisco State University.

Researchers collected wild frogs from three populations that long had been exposed to the fungus, along with frogs from three other populations that hadnt encountered the fungus. The scientists paired frogs from exposed groups with those from unexposed groups and infected each pair with a strain of the fungus collected in the wild.

The frogs that never had encountered the fungus wound up with fungal loads that were five times higher, on average, than those from the exposed populations. This trend held up for all four strains of the fungus that were tested, according to the study.

Its not yet clear why some of the frogs were less vulnerable to the fungus than others. Perhaps they had evolved some natural defense or immune response against it, which spread through the group via natural selection, the study authors wrote.

More research is needed to solve this mystery, Vredenburg said.

Despite these unanswered questions, researchers say they have clear evidence of a frog recovery in Yosemite based on 7,678 frog population surveys conducted between 1993 and 2012 in 2,154 separate bodies of water.

Our research in the Sierra Nevada shows that some amphibian species are remarkably resilient, said study co-author Roland A. Knapp, a biologist at the University of Californias Sierra Nevada Aquatic Research Laboratory near Mammoth Lakes, Calif. It also suggests that, in some cases, amphibian declines may be at least partially reversible on a global scale with appropriate management.

Full recovery of the yellow-legged frogs will require continued efforts to remove non-native trout from the region, Knapp said. Wildlife management officials use gill nets, machines that stun fish with electric fields and other tools to clear out the trout.

Biologists also will have to continue transporting frogs to areas where they had been wiped out. These days, they are bringing the frogs back to Dog Lake in Yosemites Tuolumne Meadows, which for decades was stocked with trout raised in hatcheries. (After that practice was halted, the trout disappeared because they had no place to spawn.)

Members of the 483 yellow-legged frog populations known to exist in Yosemite rapidly recolonize their ancestral habitats after they have reverted to their original, trout-free state.

Conservationists hope the pattern will repeat in other parts of the state. In August, the National Park Service approved a 30-year plan to remove nonnative fish from yellow-legged frog habitats in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park, about 130 miles south of Yosemite.

That plan calls for gill nets, electrofishing devices and rotenone, a natural poison derived from peas that kills animals with gills, breaks down rapidly and poses no threat to water supplies. Fish removal is already underway.

Its been a good year for Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frogs, Vredenburg said.

louis.sahagun@latimes.com

Follow me on Twitter @LouisSahagun and like Los Angeles Times Science & Health on Facebook.

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Perhaps lawns and trees dying from the drought are spooky enough for some Burbankers, but for 50 residents and business owners, the Halloween season called for added frights. Thats the number of home and business entries in the Civic Pride Committees first-ever Halloween Decorating Contest.

Robert Taylors family turned the front of their house in the 1800 block of North Lima Street into a haunt complete with a homemade crypt full of animatronic specters, a mad scientists lab with a homemade Jacobs Ladder  in this case, that crackle of electricity climbing a pair of antennae  and a dancing skeleton jazz band.

The key part of it is scene-setting, said Robert Taylor, who credits his brother Richard with much of the artistic work. We try to create a little story.

Winners in three categories  residential, youth under 16 and commercial  were announced Friday, along with a special recognition for Preston and Diane Meyers annual haunted house at 907 N. California St., now in its 25th year.

The Taylors, who call their display Taylor Terror Estates, placed first in the residential category, despite the fact that Robert Taylor wasnt even going to enter, fearing he couldnt compete with the studio people in the city. However, his two daughters convinced him.

Even before the awards, my dad was really proud of all of his work, said Alyson Taylor, his eldest daughter. He should be proud.

The commercial category winner was Samuels Florist at 921 W. Olive Ave., where a display window is decked out with a creepy, cobweb-covered sitting-room scene from a mystery book. First place in the youth category was the Wyatt home at 841 N. Frederic St., where 10-year-old George decorated with an inflatable dragon, lights and more.

I feel good, George, a student at Thomas Edison Elementary, said of his win. I feel great.

The Taylors went overboard this year, Robert Taylor said, partly to welcome their eldest daughter home. Alyson Taylors birthday is in October and she recently returned to Burbank after graduating from Emory University in Atlanta. She used to get homesick around Halloween, missing the familys celebrations and decorations.

She said her sister, Sara, 15, is basically as obsessed with the Halloween house as I am. They were tempted to go and check out their competition last night, she said, but chose ignorance in advance of the judging so they wouldnt get disheartened. Theyll go out now that its over, she added.

Robert Taylor said the display is his grand finale this year, likely to be followed by a grand Halloween yard sale next October, where hell sell off much of the homemade props, animatronics and other items collected over the past 15 to 20 years.

There were a total of 37 entries in the contests residential category, seven in the youth under 16 category and six in the commercial category. Thats compared to fewer than 20 entries total in the Civic Pride Committees 32nd annual Holiday Decorating Contest last December. The winter contest will be put on hiatus, said Robert Vincent, committee chairman.

He said he felt Burbank residents needed something new to get excited about, and Halloweens more universal than the December holidays. The results far exceeded his goal of 20 entries for this year and kept the judging panel out touring the displays for more than three hours Thursday night, he said.

Winners will be recognized with certificates at a City Council meeting on Monday.

Vincent said committee members expect excitement for the contest to grow.

I think that, for a first time, we hit a really good number, he said. I think as time goes on, its going to be a bigger event  thats our hopes.

The city of Burbank put out a suggested route for viewing the decorations available online here.

--

Chad Garland, chad.garland@latimes.com

Twitter: @chadgarland
Re: Burbank City Council endorses statewide ban on plastic bags, Oct. 21. I applaud the leadership of our three council members who voted to endorse Prop. 67, the state ballot measure that allows the statewide ban on plastic bags to take effect.

Since our city agreed to wait for a state ban to be in place, rather than follow the lead of every community that surrounds Burbank and all of Los Angeles County, I think it is more than appropriate that the city tell voters about this important measure.

There are 151 different local measures, and having this statewide law will provide some consistency. Our state passed this law more than two years ago, but four out-of-state plastic companies spent $6 million to try to block the law from taking place by putting it on the ballot.

Join the conversation on Facebook >>

The people of California  and Burbank  have spoken. This ban will save our city a lot of money in cleanup costs and machinery repairs based on real-world experience of other cities with bans ($1 million/year in San Jose.) We can use that money for things like senior transportation, parks and other important services.

Dont be tricked by the giant out-of-state plastic companies who also placed another measure on the ballot to try to confuse voters further. Vote Yes on 67 and No on 65.

Wendy James

Burbank

..

Mourning the Leaders size

I am in favor of many things slimming down. Me, for instance. The amount of clutter in my hall closets. My water and power bill.

But not the Burbank Leader.

Over time, our local newspaper has slimmed down to almost nothing. Whatever happened to the restaurant reviews? Movie critiques? Regular columns? Even the darn In Theory page seems to be missing in action.

I miss the old, weightier Burbank Leader. I know the opposition will say newspapers are a dying art form. Everyone is reading their news online. But in truth, many of us still like (and I mean, really like) the feel of an actual newspaper in our hands and enjoy breaking our fasts reading the paper.

So, please, fatten up. Dont forget your loyal readers. Ill bet Handy Market doesnt want you to, either!

Susan Hodgson

Burbank

..

Optimists to host Halloween fun

The Optimist Club of Burbank is hosting a wonderful Halloween Carnival at Vickroy Park, 2300 Monterey Place on Oct. 31(Halloween) and we would love to have Burbank parents and their kids to come and enjoy. There will be free games, prizes, candy and ghoulish fun!

From 6 to 8 p.m. we will play games, give out light stick bracelets and candy, and have a great time.

If you are a teen who needs service-learning hours, call us at (818) 216-9377 or email jrdiel@aol.com to arrange times. Come and help set up, run games, and tear down and earn five hours of credit. Its easy and fun, too, and you can wear a costume.

Parents, remember this is a safe and fun way to take your youngsters out for the evening. See you at the park!

Janet Diel

Wayne Mathis

Editors Note: The writers are both past presidents of the Optimist Club of Burbank.
Most employees in the restaurant and hospitality industry remember their first entry-level job  washing dishes, hosting, busing and waiting on tables or working the register.

Three out of four Americans got their first job in a restaurant. In California, the industry employs over 1.6 million people, which is roughly 10% of the states total workforce, according to the California Restaurant Association (CRA). That number is expected to increase at least 9.1% over the next decade.

Over 2,800 high school students at 44 participating schools in California recently took part in a day of hands-on job training and leadership building.

The CRA hosted the Force in Training (FIT) Day on Tuesday, bringing together leading professionals in the food and hospitality industry to speak to high school students who are interested in being part of the food and hospitality industry.

Maeve Campas, 16, a culinary arts student at Northwood High School, asks a question of David Kreitlow, director of training and human resources for Wienerschnitzel, during the Force in Training Day on Oct. 25. (Scott Smeltzer / Daily Pilot)

With chapters in Orange County, Los Angeles, and Fresno, the CRA Foundation  a philanthropic arm of the California Restaurant Assn.  is celebrating 35 years building futures through programs and scholarships, said its executive director Alysha Harshfield.

What were bringing to them through FIT are the soft skills that will help make them successful when they get that most important first job, and set them onto positive paths for careers in our industry or any industry they choose, Harshfield said in a press release.

By providing frequently updated, resume-ready classroom and online curriculum to students in the program, the organization hopes to build job readiness training in the early years of finding their first jobs, at no cost to the schools.

Students are also given a complimentary online test following the course that mirrors the FIT Day workshop, where upon completion they receive a FIT certificate that can be added to their resumes.

Wienerschnitzel representatives David Kreitlow, left, Matthew Steele and Rusty Bills talk to culinary arts students at Northwood High School on Oct. 25. (Scott Smeltzer / Daily Pilot)

25 culinary arts and business administration students at Northwood High School in Irvine participated in the mornings event, which featured leaders from local Orange County businesses, including Vine Restaurant in San Clemente, Ironwood in Laguna Hills, Mendocino Farms, and hot dog chain Wienerschnitzel.

Getting to hear from industry professionals about their personal stories and experiences is really great, said Kristin Motooka, a culinary arts teacher at Northwood High, who helped organize the schools FIT Day. The students get to see what its really like to be interviewed and work with these people.

CRA Foundation also supports ProStart, a two-year, culinary arts and hospitality management career-exploration program for high school students. A CRA workforce-ready certificate is also available to students who pass the ProStart program, and for those who have achieved the California food handler certification.

On FIT Day, students are introduced to the different aspects of a career in the food service and hospitality industry, with fundamentals such as building teamwork and communication, gaining experience and training certifications, and learning practical skills like how to build a resume.

Noah Kim, 17, a culinary arts student at Northwood High School, laughs at a joke from Rusty Bills, the senior director of operations for Wienerschnitzel, during the Force in Training Day on Oct. 25. (Scott Smeltzer / Daily Pilot)

Its awesome that so many local Orange County businesses and industry professionals are donating their time to make this happen, Motooka added. Were also able to build relationships with these partners through the foundation.

Steve Mintzer, chief operating officer of Mendocino Farms, talked to the students about building skills in order to be a good employee.

Positive attitude, communication, and the openness to improve, Mintzer shared. You go out there and you bring it, or you learn on your own  and if we can help, then lets do it.

Wienerschnitzel executives Rusty Bills, David Kreitlow and Matthew Steele talked about the attributes of being a leader and standing out in the workplace.

The restaurant business is a good stepping stone, and it also gives you the flexibility to grow, said Steele, who shared his story of working up from busboy to server to being recruited for a management position. Taking initiative to solve problems, having an influence, being confident, and leading by example  these are all skills that can help you get promoted.

What other job gives you free food, and you get paid for it? Bills said with a laugh.

Students in the classroom expressed excitement at the opportunity for job training.

I think the training gave me more confidence to start applying for jobs to build experience and how to apply these skills I learned even before my first day, said Nila Hamidian, 16, of Irvine.

I thought [FIT Day] would be a good experience to get another view on a different career path, said senior Jacob Shapiro, 17, who shared that confidence was his takeaway from the program.

I tend to second guess myself a lot, like how I come off to everyone else, Jacob said. You can have confidence, but applying what youve learned and showing it is another thing. The application of learning is essential.
Trial is underway for a Costa Mesa man accused of stealing a neighbors gun and shooting to death his live-in girlfriend, who also was his business partner, while he was drunk and on prescription pills.

The trial of Thomas Michael Wilhelm, 52, began last week and is scheduled to continue Friday in Orange County Superior Court in Santa Ana. Wilhelm is charged with murder and could face a maximum of 50 years to life in state prison if convicted, according to the Orange County district attorneys office.

The defense has argued that Wilhelm had mental-health issues and was extremely emotional as the couples personal and business relationship soured.

Wilhelms attorney, Douglas Myers, did not return calls seeking comment this week.

According to a transcript of Wilhelms grand jury indictment, he allegedly was under the influence of cherry vodka and prescription pills on July 8, 2012, as he listened at home to the Guns N Roses song Used to Love Her, which features the lyrics I used to love her, but I had to kill her.

The district attorneys office alleges he then walked to a neighbors home in the 2900 block of Redwood Avenue and stole a gun, returned to his home and fired six times through a bathroom door at his girlfriend and business partner, Christine Murray.

Murray, 45, was hit in the chest, neck, arm and thigh.

Police said they believe Wilhelm may have tried to shoot himself with a shotgun, but it misfired.

Murray, the mother of a then-8-year-old son, was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Authorities said Wilhelm and Murrays three-year relationship had faltered during the two years before her killing after he brought her in as a partner in his business, Wilhelm Sprinkler Co.

According to the grand jury indictment, Wilhelm had a history of drug and alcohol abuse and Murray had begun to question his abilities as a business owner.

benjamin.brazil@latimes.com

Twitter: @benbrazilpilot
In last weeks column, I suggested that voters need to be their own investigative reporters, examine campaign disclosure forms for candidates, independent expenditure (IEs) and political action committees (PACs) in order to uncover the sources of mystery money that fund these entities.

But Newport resident Dick Weaver, treasurer for council candidate Jeff Herdman, apparently was already doing this.

Alleging inconsistencies in campaign disclosure forms of Herdmans opponent, District 5 Newport council candidate Lee Lowrey, Weavers attorney, Mark S. Rosen, sent a letter Oct. 20 to Newports city attorney, Aaron Harp, and Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas.

Weaver requested of the attorneys that action be taken or a special prosecutor be appointed because of Mr. Lowreys violation of the Newport Beach campaign contribution law.

In a nutshell, Lowreys June 30 campaign report shows he received a contribution from an entity listed as SCCBT, the Southern California Coalition of Business and Taxpayers, in the amount of $250.

On Sept. 13, Lowrey received another contribution from SCCBT for $1,000, which totals $1,250, an amount over the $1,100 legal contribution limit.

Rosen alleges that Lowrey tried to cover up this amount on the Sept. 13 contribution by listing a cumulative total of $1,000, ignoring the first contribution of $250. He also spelled out SCCBTs full name in the Sept. 13 contribution but only identified it by its initials in the June 30 contribution.

The candidate, however, called the episode an attempt by his opponents to do political harm to him right before the election.

Im not worried about it at all, Lowrey told the Daily Pilot. They wanted to make a big deal out of this, but its not. I understand people are grasping at straws toward the end of the campaign season.

I reached out to Lowrey for additional comment but didnt hear back.

Lowrey, however, in his interview with the Daily Pilot, said this contribution was an error by his treasurer, Lysa Ray, and once discovered she refunded the excess amount about two weeks ago. That would have been the beginning of October, but Lowreys report campaign finance report filed this week shows the refund check was written Oct. 20  the same day Weaver filed his complaint.

Now, throwing Ray under the bus was probably Lowreys only political move here, but Rays a seasoned campaign treasurer. This isnt her first rodeo working for veteran political consultant Dave Ellis clients this campaign season, or last, so Im not buying that shes sloppy one here. (Ray did not return a request for comment from a Daily Pilot reporter earlier in the week.)

Lowreys also the founder and chairman of the powerful Atlas PAC, so hes certainly hip to campaign contribution laws.

That being said, in 2012, two former mayors from Huntington Beach and Fountain Valley filed complaints with the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) alleging that Atlas PAC failed to disclose funding sources when sending out an attack ad against council candidate Jill Hardy, according to the Hungtington Beach Independent.

In that case, Atlas treasurer David Bauer chalked it up to human error, saying he would correct it.

Sound familiar?

Lowreys background is in real estate finance. A business partner of Costa Mesa Mayor Pro Tem Jim Righeimer, he co-founded Newports Arbor Capital Partners, which focuses on real estate investment and development in Southern California, according to his campaign website.

In a city like Newport, which is grappling with the issue of high-density development, Lowrey may not be a popular choice with some voters, noting his background.

News spread quickly this week about the complaint against Lowrey. Emails I received raised interesting concerns, like one from resident Dr. Donald W. Wise.

Wise emailed friends questioning Harps role in the Lowrey campaign finance issue.

City Attorney Aaron Harps hands might be tied from taking any action, Wise wrote. Harp reports directly to a City Council that is controlled by Team Newport constituents, some of whom have donated money to ... Lowreys campaign.

Ellis saw the email and wrote back just three words to Wise: Be VERY careful.

I and several other people were copied on this exchange, so I called Ellis and he said he wasnt able to talk at the moment.

Nevertheless, Wise is a former Marine and not easily rattled. And I do believe Harps hands are tied because Lowrey is not a sitting councilman, at least not yet.

I thought this would all be discussed at Tuesdays City Council meeting but nothing came up, at least in open session, so I assume the council will just let this issue die of inattention.

But voters may not.

BARBARA VENEZIA lives in Newport Beach. She can be reached at bvontv1@gmail.com.
Family Promise of the Verdugos introduced its new executive director, launched a new donor program and announced receiving a major $25,000 donation during a reception on Oct. 7 at Portos Bakery and Cafe in Burbank.

The organizations vision is to assist homeless children and their families by providing up to 90 days of food, shelter, counseling and job training for those who have become homeless for the first time through no fault of their own, said Albert Hernandez, who was named executive director just three months ago.

Case workers help families through a partnership with local faith-based congregations and other community resources.

Family Promise graduate Stephany Washington told her own story of success. She completed the program on Sept. 2 and has a new job and new home for herself, her son, Nathan Harris, and granddaughter, Lenise Williams.

I got my sense of direction back. I got my stability and employment and never felt so safe, staying with the churches. It helped give me a spiritual connection again, she said.

The event was the launch of the 365 Club, whose premise is to encourages donors to give $1 a day to help children and their families get back into a safe and stable living environment.

Several additional fundraisers and a community workshop are also planned.

A restaurant fundraiser will be from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Thursday Oct. 22, at Barragans Mexican Restaurant, 730 N. Victory Blvd., Burbank. Mentioning you are there to support Family Promise will earn the charity 20% of your bill.

Another fundraiser called Houses for Change has a double meaning. Businesses can display the cardboard mini-homes, and the publics donations of change into them will help homeless families change their lives.

The major fundraising event for the organization will be its second annual gala on March 19 at the Dodger Stadium Club. The event will include dinner, silent auction and VIP tour. For more information, call (818) 847-1547.

Family Promise is also offering a Job Readiness workshop to the community from 7 to 8 p.m. tonight on Wednesday, Oct. 21, at the Catalina Activity Center, 2321 N. Catalina St., Burbank. Reservations are necessary and can be made by calling (818) 599-4090 or sending an email to executivedirector@familypromiseverdugos.org.

Sandy Thompson, board president, welcomed the more than 40 people attending at the event earlier this month.

The supporters who are here tonight help us do what we do and because of those supporters a mother, her son and 4-year-old granddaughter tonight are sleeping in their own beds, she said.

Michael Cusumano, of the Cusumano Real Estate Group, gave the organization a boost by donating $25,000 from the Cusumano Family Foundation.

Any of us can find ourselves in this situation, Cusumano said. Family Promise provides a safe place and brings the family together while the parents can concentrate on getting a new job. Family Promise has a vision, and leaders are making a difference in the community. Lets make sure this organization has the tools to accomplish its vision.

Glendale Mayor Ara Najarian and Glendale City Council member Laura Friedman presented a commendation to Family Promise, thanking Family Promise for its efforts to help homeless families.

Hostess with the mostest, Betty Porto, made sure everyone tried the newest potato ball filled with melted cheese and diced jalapeno chili peppers.

YWCA plans a candlelight vigil

With October designated as Domestic Violence Awareness Month, Glendale YWCA officials will commemorate this observance by having an their annual candlelight vigil. This years event will be held is from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday Oct. 22, at the Glendale YWCA, 735 E. Lexington Drive.

This event will honor victims of domestic violence and their families, celebrate the successes of survivors and strengthen the communitys commitment to ending domestic violence, said Michelle Roberts, executive director at the YWCA of Glendale.

We hope the Glendale community will join us on this day to honor victims of domestic violence and to thank those who work to serve and protect victims of domestic violence, she said.

Readings of victims and survivors own stories will be performed by actors from the Theatre of NOTE.

Patrons Club raising scholarship funds

Monday is the deadline to purchase tickets for the annual luncheon and fashion show planned by the Patrons Club of Glendale Community College/GC Foundation Inc.

The event will begin at 11:30 a.m. on Nov. 6 at the Castaway restaurant in Burbank. Proceeds will go to scholarships and grants-in-aid. The Patrons awarded more than $22,000 to students last year.

Fashions will be from Holiday Hats and Gowns of Montrose. There will be a drawing for $1,000 as well as and live and silent auctions.

Tickets are $55, and reservations can be made by calling Judy Gorham at (818) 243-3590.

--

JOYCE RUDOLPH can be reached at rudolphjoyce10@gmail.com.
During a public hearing Wednesday evening that lasted more than three hours and completely filled the La Canada Unified School District boardroom with stakeholders, 27 people spoke in favor of transferring La Canadas Sagebrush territory out of Glendale Unifieds jurisdiction and into LCUSD.

Residents on both sides of transferring the 385-acre area were allowed 90 seconds to state their case to the Los Angeles County Office of Education Committee on School District Organization.

Many of the supporters of the transfer who addressed the committee were Sagebrush residents. Of the 11 people who spoke against the transfer, five were either Glendale school board members or employees; three were current or former Crescenta Valley Town Council members and the remaining three were parents of GUSD students.

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The Sagebrush area of La Canada has historically been served by Glendale Unified, and La Canada citizens past attempts to transfer it into La Canada Unified, beginning with the citys incorporation in 1976, were unsuccessful.

A recent petition by the citizens group Unite LCF!, signed by more than 700 Sagebrush residents this year, kick-started the committees process for considering to approve or deny the request.

La Canada School Board member Ellen Multari referred to the ongoing dilemma as a 50-year-old civic challenge but one that she and fellow La Canada school and city officials are prepared to see through.

Of the roughly 200 to 300 students who live in the Sagebrush area, 117 currently attend La Canada schools by permit, Multari said.

La Canada Unified Supt. Wendy Sinnette said school officials are prepared for an influx of Sagebrush students into La Canada schools.

Excluding Sagebrush [residents] from our schools excludes them from an essential part of our community, Sinnette told the committee. We believe we can resolve this disparity responsibly.

Proponents say aligning the city and school district boundaries would create a more cohesive La Canada community.

The school district is such an integral part of the city, said Ian McFeat, La Canada High School principal.

Opponents of the transfer, including Glendale Unified Supt. Winfred Roberson Jr., said losing Sagebrush would result in a loss of precious instructional dollars, which would total nearly $3 million per year.

In addition, the 1,000 Sagebrush homes also represent about 2% of Glendale Unifieds tax base, according to reports previously released by the district.

For some supporters, the transfer is appealing because La Canada schools maintain lower class sizes than Glendales, often with several fewer students per class.

Scott Tracy, a former La Canada Unified School Board president, also said La Canada schools have not offered any split classes in at least a decade while there are three split classes  where one instructor teaches two grades at the same time  at Mountain Avenue Elementary alone this year.

For Sagebrush resident Stephanie Hosford, her support for a transfer came down to a feeling that was similarly expressed by fellow supporters, one of inclusiveness in her own city.

We feel that we are in a no mans land, and its unfortunate to feel you dont belong anywhere, and I do think feelings should count, she said.

Conflict potential raised

At least one opponent, Glendale parent James Bodnar, told the committee he took issue with one member of the county committee, Joel Peterson, being allowed to weigh in on the transfer.

Peterson is a former La Canada School Board president who recused himself from voting on a 2013 resolution supporting the transfer so he could vote on the matter if it went to the county committee.

I have confirmed that I can vote on it and there is no conflict of interest, Peterson said as he left Wednesdays meeting.

Childrens ties a concern

Glendales Supt. Roberson asked the committee to deny the transfer.

The class sizes are larger, Roberson said. But still our students perform as well as districts with smaller class sizes, which is a testament to the care and concern our teachers give to each and every student. I think thats something to be acknowledged.

Later, in his closing remarks, Roberson added: There is no educational reason that I see for this transfer, but I do see harm coming to the students ... our students in the Sagebrush area. The facts are very clear when you take 5-year-olds, 6-year-olds, 7-year-olds that have formed relationships ... and you rip them away from their friends ... thats problematic, and that doesnt sound like a good educational reason for this transfer.

--

Kelly Corrigan, kelly.corrigan@latimes.com

Twitter: @kellymcorrigan
The email caught my eye as we drove home from Death Valley months ago: Fall Petroglyph Tour dates, now available from the Maturango Museum in Ridgecrest! The promise was a chance to see the richest known concentration of petroglyphs in the western hemisphere. OK, sign us up.

But wait, access is strictly limited because the protected petroglyphs are located within the Naval Air Weapons Station at China Lake. Theres an application to fill out and a checklist of required information; better get moving on this.

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Fnally, in late October, here we are standing in a high-desert canyon in Californias western Mojave Desert, tucked away on an active military base, staring at ancient images etched into basalt rock walls.

It feels incongruous to find this outdoor cathedral here, with its messages from another time: Were the unknown Paleo-Indian artists beckoning the bighorn sheep in a sort of hunting magic? Were shamans summoning supernatural powers, or perhaps telling stories? Maybe the images are about boundary markers, ethnic identifiers or vision quests? Anthropologists arent sure, and the dating of the designs is not agreed on either.

But its a magical sight.

The Coso Rock Art National Historic Landmark extends over tens of thousands of mostly off-limits acreage with an estimated tens of thousands of hand-hewn images. During a day of awe, we absorb the sight of some of these designs abraded, pecked or scratched thousands of years ago into the basalt rocks desert varnish surface.

And the U.S. Navy, stewards of this patch of desert, is tasked with counting and cataloguing each one.

For our group of eight, plus two Navy-approved guide-escorts, the hike into Renegade Canyon (or Little Petroglyph Canyon) proceeds at a crawl, as we mostly stop, point, gasp and click (or sketch) every few steps. Look at that sheep!  Did you see this little pattern over here? What does that one mean, do you think?

The images are often abstract  patterns, dots, circles, lines  but also frequently recognizable as the once-abundant big-horn sheep, along with representations of hunters bearing either stylized atlatls (dart or spear thrower) or later, bows and arrows. Plus birds, deer and canines. (There are more recent markings too, probably created since ranching and mining took place in the area beginning in the 1860s, and the Navy began control in the 1940s.)

On this visit, the concern isnt the usual high-desert temperatures but rain, which will stop a tour. We get a few scattered drops but manage to scramble a good distance down canyon  there are a few steepish drops in the narrow section  viewing the petroglyphs all along the rock walls and (occasionally) on ground-level boulders.

More incongruity: We eat our brown bag lunches near the remnants of a more modern sheep corral with the ancient images all around.

Our day had started at 6:30 am  ready for the militarys inspection with our closed-toe boots, IDs and fueled-up SUVs  and then the 45-mile escorted drive across the base to the 5,000-foot-elevation canyon we are permitted to view. No photos are allowed during transit, sadly, even ones of the lush forest of impressively large Joshua trees near the canyon.

Want to go? Check the Maturango museum website for more information about the remaining tour dates this fall (Nov. 19-20 and Dec. 3-4) and the application process. Cost is $55 for non-museum members. We applied in August for one of three October tour dates; our confirmation came by mail in about 10 days.

Or check with the public affairs office at the Navys China Lake base to arrange a private tour. Call (760) 939-1683 or email margo.allen@navy.mil.

Also, coming up Nov. 5-6 will be the Ridgecrest Petroglyph Festival, which honors Native American history in the area.

There will be two days of activities centered at nearby Petroglyph Park (which features a short walking trail with replica exhibits), talks on local history, craft booths and more.

During the festival, there are a few short group tours of the canyon, booked in advance.

The great stone galleries of the Coso Range are windows into the past, windows that reveal far more than can be dug from the ground, explains researcher Campbell Grant in the book Rock Drawings of the Coso Range. (Its available in the museum gift shop.)

Its definitely worth a look.

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Moscow resident Irina Karmanina thinks she and millions of Russians may be annihilated by a U.S. nuclear attack if the tension between Moscow and Washington escalates much more.

The 54-year-old pediatrician also expects her death would be avenged within minutes by thousands of Russian nuclear missiles she expects the nation would launch immediately.

Well hit back, and the U.S. will turn into radioactive ashes, the petite, gray-eyed woman said recently near a grocery store in western Moscow. America is so much smaller than Russia, so many of us will survive in Siberia.

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For tens of millions of Russians who rely on Kremlin-controlled television networks and newspapers for information, a Cold War-like threat has evoked thoughts of a nuclear disaster that seems eerily possible. A massive government campaign has stoked fears of a world war started by a U.S. strike.

Recent Russian civil defense drills were on a level not seen since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, and involved 40 million people. In Moscow, officials reportedly studied underground spaces as part of a plan to shelter the citys estimated 12 million people.

In addition, world events have illustrated divisions between Russia and the U.S. The two countries have not been in agreement on their involvement in the Syrian civil war and a September cease-fire brokered by the two rivals quickly collapsed.

In early October, Russian President Vladimir Putin withdrew from a key nuclear security pact with the U.S., citing an alleged threat to strategic stability as a result of USAs unfriendly acts toward Russia. He said Moscow would resume its participation in the agreement only if the U.S. fulfilled a long list of demands such as lifting all sanctions on Russia and providing compensation for losses.

Putin on Thursday dismissed U.S. accusations that Russia was coordinating the computer hacking of Hillary Clintons campaign emails to influence the presidential election, saying some people in the U.S. were trying to divert attention from the countrys problems.

In this Oct. 5, 2016, photo provided by Russia Emergency Situations Ministry press service, the ministry servicemen wearing anti-chemical hazard suits unload firefighters equipment at an undisclosed location in Russia. (Ministry of Emergency Situations press service/Associated Press )

Anti-Western and U.S.-bashing never fully died out in Russia after the Soviet collapse  and a resurgence has occurred after Putins return for a third presidency in 2012.

Dmitri Kiselyov, a television anchor on the national Rossiya channel, glorifies Putin, his political course and its fierce anti-Americanism.

Americas insolence toward Russia should be countered with a nuclear aspect, Kiselyov said in a low, menacing voice during a show in early October.

In another show, he promised that Russian forces would shoot down U.S. planes if they dared attack Syrian President Bashar Assads troops. Russia has been a key Assad supporter during Syrias more than five-year-old civil war, while the U.S. has helped moderate rebel groups and called for Assad to step down.

Kiselyov also heads Russia Today, a mammoth state-run information agency that publishes and broadcasts pro-Kremlin news in 45 languages and receives hundreds of millions of dollars annually from the Kremlin despite Russias deepening economic crisis. A substantial share of its news reports lambast U.S. foreign policies in the best traditions of Soviet propaganda.

The Kremlin has repeatedly accused the West of expanding its North Atlantic Treaty Organization presence in Eastern Europe with such steps as the installation of a ground-based missile defense system and deployment of 4,000 NATO troops, the biggest military build-up since the Cold War.

In recent weeks, Russian officials, lawmakers, analysts and military leaders have talked about the possibility of a new war with the West  and tried to reassure average Russians that their lives were not in danger.

The Kremlins three days of civil defense drills were supposed to determine how well cities were prepared for chemical and biological attacks.

The Kremlin also tested a new system of administering provinces that involves momentary transfer of all powers to the military  as well as temporary confiscation of privately owned cars, car repair workshops and bakeries for wartime needs.

The Defense Ministry reported several test launches of new missiles, air defense systems and the deployment of advanced nuclear-capable Iskander cruise missiles to the Kaliningrad region, Russias westernmost toehold in Europe located between Poland and Lithuania. The Kremlin says the deployment is a response to the expansion of NATO facilities in Eastern Europe.

National Intelligence Director James Clapper said recently that Putin appears driven by his vision of Russia as a great power.

Its extremely important to him that Russia be treated and respected as a global power on a par with the United States, Clapper told CBS in late October. And I think that has a lot to do with impelling his behavior.

The last Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, has warned about the dangers of US-Russian friction.

I think the world has reached a dangerous point, the ailing 85-year-old who remains a deeply unpopular figure in Russia, told the RIA Novosti news agency in mid-October. This needs to stop. We need to renew dialogue.

Russian officials insist fighting would begin only if the US strikes first.

I hope [Americans] will have enough common sense not to strike, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said in televised remarks. But to make sure there is enough of this common sense, we have to be fit, strong and self-confident. We must have enough military might and a parity [with the US], including the nuclear field.

Some Russians said they found the tense conditions deeply disturbing.

The new Cold War is already on, its not a threat, its a fact, Irina Tsareva, a retired schoolteacher in Kaliningrad said in an interview. But a hot war wont happen, because its suicide.

Vyacheslav Tropilin, a 34-year-old graphic designer from Moscow, said the Kremlin uses belligerent rhetoric to divert the attention of average Russians from domestic issues such as a faltering economy, budget cuts and ubiquitous corruption.

Defense analyst Alexander Goltz said he expects the heightened tension to last long-term and that the Kremlin wants Russians to tighten their belts ahead of years of Western sanctions, little or no economic growth and falling living standards.

Were facing a long period of Cold War with the West, Goltz said in an interview. The war hysteria is an attempt of to mobilize the population.

Some observers dismiss the war chatter as tried-and-tested propaganda.

A couple of years ago, Russian politicians and Kremlin-controlled media fumed about the fascist junta in Ukraine that planned a genocide of the Russian-speaking population in Eastern Ukraine and Crimea. The Black Sea peninsulas 2014 annexation and Moscows political support for pro-Russian separatists in the Donetsk and Luhansk region became a justified way to counter the junta.

In 2015, stories about Eastern Ukraine nearly disappeared from national television to give way to Russian air strikes in Syria. They were advertised as a response to Western plans to topple Assads democratically-elected government, and even weather reports mentioned best conditions for bombing.

The image of Russia as a besieged fortress is the Kremlins favorite, Andrey Kolesnikov, a political expert with Moscow Carnegie Center, a think tank, said in an interview.

These are the conflicts to ride on until the 2018 [presidential] election, Kolesnikov said.

For a real war, Putin has neither military nor economic resources  even [his] political resource is not sufficient to justify, for example, a ground operation in Syria, Kolesnikov said. He is leaving bridges to communicate with the West.

Mirovalev is a special correspondent.

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

Trend:

A school bus and a Metrobus collided Oct. 27 afternoon in Northeast Washington, leaving 42 children and one adult with minor injuries, according to the D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department, the Washington Post reported.

The incident occurred shortly before 4:30 p.m. at Eastern Avenue and Randolph Street NE, steps from the District-Maryland border. Firefighters and rescue personnel from Prince Georges County were assisting D.C. officials.

Authorities had initially put the casualty count at 25, but increased it to 43 a short time later. At around 6:30 p.m., the D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department tweeted that 42 chidren and one adult were transported to the hospital, and four adults were evaluated at the scene and refused further treatment.
U.S. and Russian aircraft have flown dangerously close several times in the skies over northwest Syria, according to U.S. officials, as the air war has intensified in recent weeks.

Lt. Gen. Jeffrey L. Harrigian, the U.S. Air Force commander in the Middle East, said Friday that warplanes had unintended close calls as they headed to or from bombing targets near the Turkish border.

Its a compressed environment for us all to operate in, Harrigian told reporters. You have to be out there with your head on a swivel.

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On Oct. 17, Harrigian said, a Russian fighter jet and a U.S. warplane on night operations passed each other less than half a mile apart.

It was close enough that the American pilot felt the jet wash, or turbulence, from the unintentional flyby, he said.

Russian officials later told the U.S. military air operations center in Qatar that their pilot did not see the American plane on his radar, Harrigian said.

The mid-air incidents come as tensions between Washington and Moscow have escalated sharply over Syria.

The two nations traded bitter accusations this week after airstrikes repeatedly hit a school in the rebel-held village of Hass in Idlib province, killing 20 children.

Idlib is regularly targeted by Syrian and Russian airstrikes. The Obama administration, France and international monitors said Syrian or Russian planes carried out Wednesdays attack, but Moscow denied conducting air operations in the area.

If deliberate, this attack may amount to a war crime, the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said in a statement.

Secretary of State John F. Kerry has called for an appropriate investigation of whether Russia and Syria have committed war crimes for bombing civilians and medical facilities in the besieged city of Aleppo.

Russia and Syria claim to be honoring a humanitarian pause in Aleppo and other parts of western Syria to allow evacuation of the wounded and to deliver medical and food aid.

But Samantha Power, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., was sharply critical of the Russian effort.

You dont get congratulations and get credit for not committing war crimes for a day or a week, she said Wednesday at the U.N.

On Tuesday, National Intelligence Director James Clapper warned that Russia could shoot down a U.S. warplane with the ground-to-air defense system it has built in Syria.

I wouldnt put it past them to shoot down an American aircraft if they felt that was threatening to their forces on the ground, Clapper said at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.

Gen. Joseph Votel, commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East, indicated on a visit to the region this week that he is willing to increase military-to-military talks with Russia to prevent a mid-air collision or a potential shoot-down.

The Pentagon and Russian military established a communications hot line after Russia entered the war in 2015. The two sides speak three times a week on the so-called deconfliction calls, officials said.

There was hope of additional communications when the U.S. and Russian diplomats announced a temporary Syrian ceasefire agreement last month.

But the truce effort quickly collapsed, and both sides accused the other of bad faith, after a U.N. aid convoy was bombed and a U.S. airstrike hit a Syrian army base.

U.S. officials denied they had deliberately targeted Syrian troops. They said the pilots believed they were bombing Islamic State.

Wire services contributed to this story.
The investigation of a nurse accused this week of murdering eight elderly patients began last month after she allegedly shared information about the deaths with staff members at a Toronto mental health facility where she was receiving treatment, according to Canadian news reports.

Elizabeth Wettlaufer, a 49-year-old nurse, was arrested Monday and charged with eight counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of three men and five women at two Ontario nursing homes between 2007 and 2014.

Their ages ranged between 75 and 96, according to police, who said Wettlaufer administered a drug to kill them. Several reportedly suffered from dementia.

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Those were some of the details that have been reported in what could end up being one of Canadas worst serial killings.

Workers at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, where Wettlaufer was being treated for addiction issues, notified Toronto police on Sept. 29 that she was responsible for several killings.

After interviewing Wettlaufer, Toronto police referred the case to Ontario Provincial Police and municipal police in Woodstock and London, the Ontario cities where the deaths occurred.

Police have not said what drug Wettlaufer allegedly used, but court documents cited in media reports hint that it could be insulin, which in certain doses is known to be lethal.

On Oct. 6, Wettlaufer was placed under a peace bond, a legal mechanism similar to a restraining order, in which she agreed not to possess insulin or other medication not for personal use.

In the last two years, Wettlaufer had not worked at either of the nursing homes where the deaths occurred. But she reportedly was employed by two home-care agencies as recently as this summer.

She registered as a nurse with Ontarios College of Nurses in 1995, but resigned the day after the police investigation began.

She goes by the name Bethe Wettlaufer on Facebook, where she posted photographs of her family and her cats, along with recipes and musings about growing old.

Wade Messenger, her neighbor in a Woodstock apartment building, told the The Globe and Mail newspaper that Wettlaufer was addicted to opioids and that in September she admitted to being fired from one nursing job for stealing drugs and another for being under the influence and giving a patient the wrong medication.

On the AllPoetry.com website, she posted poems under the name bettyweston and described herself as having an active and full life and a love of the English language.

In a poem that she posted five years ago, Wettlaufer described a gory scene in which a woman uses a knife to slice up a man. Its title is Inevitable.

If convicted on all eight counts of first-degree, premeditated murder, Wettlaufer could spend the rest of her life behind bars.

In Canada, first-degree murder carries a minimum 25-year prison sentence before a convict is eligible for parole. A judge could order her to serve multiple terms consecutively.

Guly is a special correspondent.

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Two months ago, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte publicly read out the names of a town mayor and more than 150 other officials he accused of involvement in drug trafficking.

On Friday, the mayor and nine of his men were killed in a clash with police in the deadliest operation in Dutertes anti-drug crackdown.

Police estimate that more than 3,600 suspected drug dealers and users have been killed since Duterte took office June 30.

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After his name was read out in August, Mayor Samsudin Dimaukom of Datu Saudi Ampatuan township in southern Maguindanao province turned himself in to police and denied involvement. He told the media he was fighting illegal drugs himself and supported Dutertes crackdown.

Dimaukom and the nine others were killed at dawn Friday after they opened fire from a van and an SUV on officers staffing a checkpoint in Makilala town in North Cotabato province, police Supt. Bernard Tayong said.

Our men were forced to retaliate when the heavily armed suspects who were on board two vehicles began firing at them, said Senior Supt. Albert Ignatius Ferro, who heads a police anti-illegal drugs force.

Police found an M16 rifle, four pistols, a 12-gauge shotgun, ammunition and at least 13 small plastic packs of suspected methamphetamine, a stimulant drug locally known as shabu, from the bullet-peppered vehicles of the suspects, police deputy regional chief Senior Supt. Leonardo Suan said.

Police said they had received information that Dimaukoms group was planning to transport a huge amount of methamphetamine from Davao city, Dutertes hometown, to Datu Saudi Ampatuan town.

Dutertes crackdown has drawn international concern over extrajudicial killings, but he has repeatedly dismissed criticisms and vowed to keep his election promise to rid the country of illegal drugs. He originally said he would do so in six months, but extended that deadline by half a year, saying he was overwhelmed by the magnitude of the drug menace.

The extent of Dutertes crackdown is unprecedented in the country. Since he took office, police have arrested more than 31,600 drug suspects, and more than 750,000 people, mostly drug users, have surrendered to authorities, largely because of fears they could end up dead. Police have visited more than 2.6 million homes to urge suspected drug users and dealers to stop their illicit activities.

On Wednesday, police launched a new phase of the crackdown called Double Barrel, which they say will focus on high-value targets such as drug lords and those involved in large-scale drug production and trafficking.

Duterte said late Thursday he still has a long list of drug suspects, including politicians, village officials, judges and police officers, showing a thick pile of documents. This is the drug industry in the Philippines, Duterte said. I cant deal with this alone, he said, appealing to the public for help.

He appeared to issue another warning, saying that thousands more drug suspects may end up dead. He expressed disgust over criticism leveled against him while he battles a drug menace that he said has left many officers dead.

And to say that I should behave and keep on harping on that, Ill tell you, I will triple it, Duterte said. If my wishes arent followed, you can expect about 20,000 or 30,000 more.

There is a war going on. I am losing two, three policemen a day. Its a war. How could it be genocide, killing a helpless person there, kneeling? he said. Theres none of that. We do not gather children and young men and shoot them.

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Syrian rebels launched a broad offensive for Aleppo on Friday as the Russian, Syrian and Iranian foreign ministers vowed to intensify their fight against terrorism in the country.

The battlefield allies met in Moscow as the Syrian government is looking to cement its authority over the divided northern city and the contested suburbs of the capital, Damascus.

Fighting for Aleppo appeared to have calmed by the afternoon after rebels assaulted the citys government-controlled western side with three vehicle bombs and at least 150 rockets in the morning. The Syrian military said the rockets were Russian-made Grad missiles.

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At least 15 civilians were killed in the volley, according to pro-government TV stations. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group also said that 15 civilians were killed, and over 100 injured.

Rebels said they seized a factory and pushed into government-held neighborhoods in southwestern Aleppo, but the Syrian military said through the official Syrian Arab News Agency, or SANA, that it had repelled the offensive from all fronts, with support from allied militias.

The Syrian army and its allies are in control on the ground and armed groups were not able to change the map, the military statement said. Fighting is still ongoing but the intensity has dropped.

This is the second attempt by rebels to break the governments siege of Aleppos opposition-held eastern districts, where the U.N. estimates 275,000 people are trapped. U.N. special envoy Staffan De Mistura has estimated 8,000 of them are rebel fighters, and no more than 900 of them affiliated with the Al Qaeda-linked Fatah al-Sham Front.

The area has been subjected to a ferocious campaign of aerial attacks by Russian and Syrian government warplanes, and hundreds of people have been killed in recent weeks, according to opposition activists and trapped residents.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in a news conference with his Syrian and Iranian counterparts that the intensified fight would come in parallel with efforts to improve humanitarian aid access.
Retired Army Gen. David H. Petraeus has no doubt that the forces bearing down on Mosul will drive out the Islamic State extremists who for two years have controlled what was once Iraqs second-largest city. The question, he says, is what happens next.

The northern province of Nineveh, of which Mosul is the capital, is one of Iraqs most diverse regions. Sunni Arabs, who dominated under Saddam Hussein, make up the majority. But there are numerous other ethnic and sectarian groups, many of which are nursing long-standing grievances against one another.

Petraeus warns that a failure to set up governing structures that reflect the regions diversity and to resolve disputes that are bound to arise could lead to what he has termed Islamic State 3.0.

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As commander of U.S.-led forces in Iraq, Petraeus led a troop surge in 2007 and 2008 that restored government control in areas that had fallen to the groups predecessor, Al Qaeda in Iraq.

Rebellious Sunni Muslim tribesmen played a key role in that campaign. But when Islamic State fighters stormed into Mosul in 2014, they encountered little resistance. Some residents even welcomed the militants because they felt alienated and abused by the Shiite Arab-led government in Baghdad.

Petraeus went on to serve as the top general for U.S. Central Command and as director of the CIA. He spoke to the Los Angeles Times about the challenges that will be faced in Mosul, a city he first sought to pacify as commander of the 101st Airborne Division in 2003.

Here are excerpts from the conversation.

We are nearly two weeks into the Mosul campaign. How do you think it is going?

I think its unfolding in quite a methodical way, frankly. I think this is a textbook example of how you clear the surrounding areas around this very large city that is probably four times the size of any of those that the Iraqi security forces have cleared so far.

Mosul is a city that you know well. What do you expect the fight there to look like?

Theyve had a couple of years to prepare for this, so they have built very fortified positions inside buildings.

They have the trench filled with oil that theyve lit on fire to obscure the optics on our various manned and unmanned intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance assets that are overhead.

Theyre using suicide bombers in armored vehicles that are made of makeshift armor, so theyre very difficult to stop, although the vast majority of them are being stopped short of their objective.

There are tunnel systems that enable them to move around without being detected and pop up in one area then another. And they have certainly several thousand, apparently, fighters that are still in the city, although there have been deserters and a number of them, dozens of them, have been publicly executed.

So it will be traditional urban combat where every house, every structure, every neighborhood has to be painstakingly cleared.

I remember it took us a month to clear the city of Ramadi in February-March of 2007, in the early months of the surge, with great American forces, great assets, overwhelming firepower and everything else.

But there is no question that this battle will be won by the Iraqi security forces. The question is, how long does it take? How much damage is done? How many civilians tragically will be killed?

During the last presidential debate, Donald Trump criticized the countrys leaders for announcing the operation ahead of time. Why would military commanders and the Iraqi government forfeit the element of surprise?

Well I think the prime minister [Haider Abadi] did this because he wanted to indicate to the people continued momentum. This is the Islamic State capital in Iraq, and so it has not only physical significance, as a huge stronghold of the Islamic State, it also has a great deal of symbolic value.

Youre not going to hide the movement of a minimum of 30,000  Ive seen numbers that run as high as 70,000  that are engaged in this overall effort. They have to advance across open desert.

What they did try to achieve, though, is tactical surprise, in other words, when the actual operation began, where it began, which different locations. And theyve done that in successive days as well.

One of the questions is can they close the back door, which goes out to the west and will be the route that some of the Islamic State leaders undoubtedly will take [to Syria].

Theres a question about whether the leader of the Islamic State, [Abu Bakr] Baghdadi, may or may not be in the city with one of his talented explosives experts.

The Iraqi security forces [are] this mix of Iraqi army, Iraqi police, Kurdish peshmerga, the Iraqi counter-terrorism service, the Iraqi air force, popular mobilization units  some Shia Arab from the south, some Sunni Arab from the tribes of Nineveh province. And the challenge is going to be, first of all, to keep all of them pulling in the same direction.

But the real issue, the real battle, of course, is the battle after the battle for Mosul, and that is the struggle for power and resources in one of the biggest and most complex provinces in all of Iraq.

As we used to say when I was privileged to be the commander there, Nineveh province has the most diverse human terrain in all of Iraq  Sunni Arab majority to be sure, but also Shia Arabs, numerous Kurdish communities, and they are broken out into several different political parties.

There are Yazidis. There are Shabak. There are Christians. And there are Turkmen Shias, as well as Turkmen Sunnis, and this explains why President [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan of Turkey has been so vocal about the fact that the Turkish forces needed to be on the outskirts of Mosul and should take some part in this effort.

So the challenge is going to be how can you achieve a government that is representative of all the diverse elements of this population and then be responsive. Because there are going to be big arguments over who gets humanitarian assistance first, who gets the reconstruction money and the contracts, who gets basic services restored, which markets are reestablished, when do schools reopen.

There will also be significant disputes over territory. The Kurds have basically taken all of what used to be disputed territory between Iraq proper and the Kurdish regional government.

The Iraqi government obviously has a good bit of sway, but all of these different militias, and all of these different elements, theyre not all responding to that central government, and the tug of war that is going to ensue, or the tugs of war because there will be multiple of them, are going to be very challenging.

Since Saddam Husseins fall, the Iraqi government has struggled to exert authority outside the capital. If Kurdish forces want to make a land grab, if Shiite militiamen want to take revenge on Sunnis, if the Turkish government wants to send troops into Mosul over the objections of the Iraqi government, what is to stop them?

Well, there have been Iraqi army and police units reconstituted that are fighting effectively. The Iraqi special operations command is really fairly sizable and is very competent. So you have those elements.

I should note as well that the prime minister, who very much believes in inclusive governance, realizes that the element of the surge that was most important  in addition to obviously securing the people  was the reconciliation component that brought the Sunni Arabs back into the fabric of Iraqi society.

This has to be done again, and he is intent on doing that. And he has that major resource, that major centripetal force, the distribution of oil revenues that can help enormously.

Islamic States predecessor was driven from the cities that it controlled, yet the militants came back stronger than ever. What does destroying Islamic States self-declared caliphate achieve?

Well, obviously it allows life to resume for the Iraqi citizens who were under this extraordinarily oppressive, brutal, violent, extremist control that was the Islamic State.

Once the Islamic State as an army is defeated, there will have to be a refocusing of the Iraqi security force assets on the terror cells that are still present in some of the cities and what will undoubtedly be the transition for some of the fighters from being essentially an organized force, an army, to being fighters among the people  insurgents, guerrillas, what have you.

And this is a very, very intensive intelligence effort. Theres even discussion of actually taking some of the Iraqi units off line, retraining them to focus on what will now have to be a counter-insurgency campaign rather than what is right now really a fairly straightforward conventional military operation to defeat an army.

The Islamic State still has its capital, Raqqah, in Syria. Thats even more complex terrain. Do you feel that the U.S. is pursuing the right strategy there?

This has been slow; at times it has been frustratingly difficult, almost torturous. But my sense is that we have developed a fair amount of momentum, found forces with whom we can partner. So again, we will ultimately defeat the Islamic State there as well.

The fate of the rest of Syria, an entirely different issue and one for another interview. But my sense is that it may not be possible to put Humpty Dumpty back together again. What may emerge are several different statelets, if you will  the one that Bashar al-Assad and his murderous regime forces control, others that are controlled by various of the opposition entities.

So what does victory against Islamic State look like?

That is an interesting question because I dont think these are traditional battles where you take the hill, plant the flag and go home to a victory parade. Ive actually noted, in fact, that were engaged in what is likely to be a generational struggle.

We can put a stake through the heart of Islamic State as an army. We can put a stake through the heart of its leaders. You can take away its territory. But you cant put a stake through the heart of the ideas, of the ideology, that sadly, tragically, still has some attraction for some small numbers in the Islamic faith.

And in fact that highlights the need to counter, to actually ensure that we are fighting in cyberspace too.

Im heartened that for the first time were seeing some of the Internet service providers and the social media sites taking action against the Islamic State. Thats the kind of initiative that can very, very much augment on an industrial scale what the government is trying to do.

If you can harness all of these together with volunteers that are out there that are, for example, identifying to Twitter these extremist sites, then I think you start to get the kind of campaign that is necessary.

alexandra.zavis@latimes.com

Twitter: @alexzavis

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Nearly a year after a dam at Samarco collapsed and unleashed a torrent of sludge that washed away villages, the two companies are still trying to figure out how to restart their joint venture
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday Turkey would not allow Sinjar to be the new Qandil for the PKK terrorist organization, Anadolu reported.

Speaking at a ceremony for relatives of martyrs and army veterans in Ankara, Erdogan said Turkey would not allow a PKK presence in the northern Iraqi region of Sinjar.

"We will go on this [Operation Euphrates Shield] campaign in Syria and Iraq, and now in Kirkuk, Mosul, Tal Afar and Sinjar. Why? Sinjar is about to be the new Qandil [for PKK]. Thus, we cannot allow it to happen in Sinjar, because there is PKK there."

Qandil Mountain has served as a headquarters for the PKK in northern Iraq.

Erdogan also warned that a Shia-Turkmen division had started in Tal Afar and added:

"We don't want this. I call on Tal Afar: Leave this sectarian conflict aside, Islam is above all sects. Come together in Islam."

"We will never allow any development in Syria and Iraq which will pose a threat for our future," Erdogan went on to say.

Erdogan proceeded to draw the new route of Operation Euphrates Shield in Syria and said the Free Syrian Army, with the support of Turkey, had retaken Jarabulus, Al-Rai and Dabiq.

"There are almost 30,000 people in Jarabulus now; they moved back to their hometown. We constructed their hospitals, schools and roads so that Jarabulus people can start a decent life there," Erdogan added.

"Now we are on the way to Al-Bab because Al-Bab is an important headquarters for [Daesh]. They will leave Al-Bab and the campaign will go on. We will head to Manbij and Raqqa."

Turkey's Operation Euphrates Shield was launched in late August to clear Syria's northern border area of terrorists. It is now in its 65th day.

Operation Euphrates Shield has seen both Daesh and the PKK/PYD terrorist groups targeted by the opposition Free Syrian Army plus Turkish tanks, artillery and aircraft.

Erdogan confirmed he had a phone call with U.S. President Barrack Obama on Wednesday night and said he had shared these steps with him.

"We don't need PYD-YPG terror organizations. The PYD and PKK are all the same in Raqqa," he said. "We said: 'Let's clear Daesh from Raqqa with you. We can deal with it together.' We have this power."

The PKK and its Syrian offshoot the PYD are both listed as terrorist groups by Turkey although the U.S. and EU only view the PKK as a terrorist organization.

Speaking about the July 15 coup attempt, Erdogan said it had shown the owners of the country were the Turkish people.

"In my opinion, one of the most important messages of July 15 is this: We have been such a country for 200 years that has searched for answers to these questions: 'Who is the owner of this country?' [...]. We found the answers on July 15. The owners of the country are the people," he said.

Erdogan said there would be no pity for those who were involved in or supported, directly or indirectly, the coup attempt.
How does vaping help fight obesity problems? Here's what experts say

More and more people are using e-cigarettes these days. Although it had been questioned on its effect on the user's health, a new study suggests that vaping could be used as a way to fight against obesity.

Researchers are saying that vaping is the latest weapon in the battle of the bulge. They claim that the use of e-cigarettes could stave off food cravings, which could reduce a person's appetite. A Massey University research suggests that former smokers gain at least 4.7 kilograms 12 months after they quit smoking.

"Vaping's use of e-liquids with food flavors, along with the mouth-feel and aroma of the vapor, could play a role in helping people to eat less," Associate Professor Marewa Glover from Massey's School of Public Health.

"If there is a chance that flavored vaping could help even a small proportion of people reduce diabetes, cardiovascular and cancer risks associated with excess weight, the population health gains would be significant," he added.

According to Stuff, although nicotine replacement therapies (NRT) can help to control weight gain and help smokers to quit, researchers found that nicotine-containing e-cigarettes might be a better option.

"People can change their nicotine content, so to quit smoking they might start off on a higher strength e-liquid and then they can taper down really quite gradually in a much more sophisticated way than they can with NRT, which is probably good for weight maintenance and for weight loss," said co-author Linda Bauld. Blaud is a professor of health policy at the University of Stirling and deputy director of the UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies.

The huge range of e-liquids available, she adds, could also help prevent snacking particularly, given the number of sweet and fruit flavors on offer. The authors observed that a decrease in the prevalence of smoking is one of the factors that have been associated with increased rate of obesity. This simply means the new ways to manage weight gain can come in handy.

Published in the journal Nicotine and Tobacco Research by scientists from New Zealand and Stirling, the paper studied a range of studies about the effect of nicotine on the body and the relationships between aroma, taste and flavor and the feeling of fullness. It shows that e-cigarettes have potential in managing weight gain among smokers trying to kick the habit, reported The Guardian.

The authors claim that e-cigarettes, with their countless flavors, could potentially help curb cravings for certain foods. What's more, the study suggests that the physical processes involved in filling an e-cigarette could reduce the urge to eat.

"You are re-filling the e-liquids, you might be mixing your own liquids, you are trying different flavors, you are doing things with your hands that take up time which means maybe you are not reaching for the bowl of M&Ms," said Bauld.

Despite noting concerns raised by some around the safety of long-term e-cigarette use, Bauld says the research points to the benefits of using nicotine-containing products for smokers planning to quit.

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Study: Asian immigrant women to US giving birth at increasing rates

staff@latinoshealth.com By Elaine C Oct 28, 2016 11:44 AM EDT

In the data released by the Pew Research Center on Wednesday, it shows that Asian immigrant women to U.S. give births at higher rates by about 22 percent of U.S. births, up from 16 percent in 2010. On the other hand, fewer Latin American immigrant women to U.S. are having babies.

The study also indicates the share of births from foreign-born mothers from Latin America declined from 64 percent of foreign mothers in 2008 to 54 percent in 2014. There is about seven percent of all births in the U.S. are from immigrants requiring legal status.

In the previous Pew study, the Asian-American population grows. On the other hand, the Hispanic population has declined, according to CBS News.

Many Asians migrate in the U.S.like to experience living there. They seek help to acquire permanent residency and then become the American citizens. They work and raise their families in the U.S.

"I'm planning on raising and living and working here. We now own a house," said Trish La Chica from the Philippines, who migrated to the United States six years ago, according to Fox News. She chose Hawaii as a perfect place to raise a family.

The report also shows that the number of American women who gave birth in 2014 has declined by 11 percent since 1970. On the other hand, immigrant women have tripled the number of births.

The demographers said that immigrants are key to growth in the U.S. William Frey, a senior fellow in the Metropolitan Policy program at the Brookings Institution said that the United States have been and are going to be dependent on immigrants and the children of immigrants in the progress of population.

He further said that the immigrant population of women is helping move that along. He added that if it weren't for immigrants, the birth rate of the U.S. would be much lower, which could lead to future problems as the current population ages.

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Samsung's Galaxy Note series has long been considered as the king of the phablet market. However, fresh controversies arising from the Note 7's explosion-inducing battery problems have led the South Korean tech giant's reputation to plummet. Now, many other smartphone makers are trying to seize the opportunity to fill in the gap the doomed Note 7 left.

Huawei has come up with a pretty solid "Note 7 killer" with the Mate 9, which is loaded with a plethora of cutting-edge features. In order to generate further anticipation towards the model, the Chinese smartphone maker has released a teaser that feautres the latest version of its Mate series.

The Huawei flagship phone is going to be launch on November 3. The teaser provides further insights on the model's design as well as several of its other features.

Reports suggest that Huawei will launch two separate models of the Mate 9 - the standard "Manhattan"/Mate 9 model for international markets and premium "Long Island"/Mate 9 Pro model for the Chinese market.

If rumors are to be believed, the Mate 9 may sport a 20-megapixel and 12-megapixel rear camera with f/2.0 aperture and 4K optical zoom. The primary focus of the phone is the dual-camera setup on the back with sensors supplied by German camera maker Leica.

According to Fab Newz, the Mate 9 Pro will have a 5.9-inch QHD curved display, while the Mate 9 will have an FHD display. Both thvariants will be powered with 64-bit octa-core HiSilicon Kirim 960 processors with up to 6GB RAM and 256 GB internal storage. Both smartphones have Android Nougat installed and 4000 mAh-capacity batteries.

As far as looks are concerned, the device looks gorgeous with its slim design. The curved-edge Mate 9 Pro, despite being touted as a China-only model for now, has an opportunity to shine after the Note 7 recall. In many ways, both Mate 9 variants - apart from the screens of course, seems to have many similarities. The device might also offer USB Type-C for connectivity.

The price of the device is expected to be around USD 1300, according to the Deccan Chronicle.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 28

By Orkhan Quluzade  Trend:

Some 153 gendarmerie officers and 112 coast guards were dismissed in Turkey as part of fight against the Fethullah Gulen movement, accused of involvement with a failed coup attempt, Turkish newspaper Haber 7 reported Oct. 28.

Around 13,000 Turkeys Interior Ministry officers were fired in operations against Gulen movement in Turkey, according to the latest statistics.

On July 15 evening, Turkish authorities said a military coup attempt took place in the country. Meanwhile, a group of servicemen announced about transition of power to them. However, the rebelling servicemen started to surrender July 16 and Turkish authorities said the coup attempt failed.

Previously Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had said the death toll as a result of the military coup attempt stood at 246 people, excluding the coup plotters, and over 2,000 people were wounded.

He also declared a three-month state of emergency in Turkey on July 20. It was decided to prolong the state of emergency for 90 more days Oct.3.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @o_quluzade
Revolving Door Rescue (Photo : CCTV+/YouTube)

Chinese firefighters freed on Sunday a four-year-old girl whose foot got stuck in a hotels revolving door in Fuyang City, Anhui Province. She was playing in the revolving door when she fell on the floor and her foot was stuck underneath the automatic door, according to the childs grandmother.



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Automatic revolving doors just got added to the list of entrance, exit and passageways in buildings where people, especially young children, get trapped in freak accidents which could be fatal or cause grave injury.



To free the frightened girl, firefighters lifted the revolving door. Letting her foot loose was not a very difficult task for the rescuers who had freed more delicate body parts from being trapped in other tight objects such as a penis inside a ring and testicles between two powerful magnets, Shanghaiist reported.



The rescue of the mans testicles occurred on Oct. 7 in Zhongshan City when 10 firefighters responded to the cry for help of a 45-year-old man who was practicing magnetic therapy. The brought the man in extreme pain but the firefighters and medic had difficult what method to use because of the danger involved.



When they realized the magnets were not solid, the firefighters broke it up using the hydraulic cutter into smaller pieces to lose its powerful pull. The mans scrotum did not suffer any permanent damage because of the accident.



In late September, firemen used large pliers to free the penis of a Chinese man in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region trapped in a metal ring



After the girls foot was freed, she was brought to a hospital where she was treated for minor bruises. The video, posted by CCTV News, has become viral with more than 40,000 hits.






The webcams were used by hackers to disrupt operations of major websites such as PayPal and Twitter. (Photo : Getty Images)

Up to 10,000 webcams are to be recalled in the wake of a cyberattack that restricted access last week to some of the world's biggest websites, Chinese manufacturer Hangzhou Xiongmai Technology Co told Reuters on Tuesday.



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The recall comes after a member of the U.S. Senate Intelligence committee requested three federal agencies for steps the government can take to prevent criminals from compromising electronic devices.



In a new type of attack last Friday, hackers used hundreds of thousands of webcams and other connected devices to conduct a denial of service attack against U.S.-based Internet infrastructure provider Dyn, crippling major websites such as PayPal, Spotify, and Twitter.



Hangzhou Xiongmai said it would recall some surveillance cameras sold in the United States after it was revealed they have been involved in the attack.



Liu Yuexin, Xiongmai's marketing director, said an fewer than 10,000 compromised devices are expected to be recalled. He said the company will recall the first few batches of surveillance cameras made in 2014 for personal, rather than industrial, use.



Xiongmai has now fixed loopholes in earlier products, prompting users to change default passwords and block access, Liu told Reuters.



The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said it had discussed the attacks with 18 major communications service providers and is working on developing a new set of "strategic principles" for securing Internet-connected devices.



Authorities have yet to identify suspects in the attack, but U.S. National Intelligence Director James Clapper told the press on Tuesday that an early analysis did not point to a foreign government.



"The evidence that we have strongly suggests it is amateur, attention-motivated hackers," Allison Nixon, director of security research at cyber intelligence firm Flashpoint, told Reuters.



Nixon said a similar infrastructure was used on Friday in an unsuccessful attempt to disrupt Internet access to a major video game manufacturer, which she declined to identify.



"Nation states generally don't attack gaming companies," she said.



U.S. Senate intelligence committee member Senator Mark Warner, sent letters on Tuesday asking DHS, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Federal Trade Commission if they have adequate tools to combat the threat posed by "bot net" armies of infected electronic devices.



"Manufacturers today are flooding the market with cheap, insecure devices, with few market incentives to design the products with security in mind, or to provide ongoing support," Warner said.



He asked FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler if telecom providers have authority to deny Internet access to devices they deem insecure.



Xiongmai devices are unlikely to suffer similar attacks in China and other countries, as they are typically used in more secure industrial networks, Liu said.



The company also eyes additional steps to improve security by migrating to safer operating and adding further encryption, Liu said.


China's entertainment robots are gaining ground, but robots used in the medical field are just catching up. (Photo : Getty Images)

China will have to double its efforts in automation if it were to surpass Germany, Japan and other countries with advanced robot industries, according to an article by CBS News.



As China is faced with rising labor costs and a dwindling workforce as a result of the "one-child" policy era and the aging population, developing automation is considered crucial for its industries, the report said. In addition, the country's extensive plans to upgrade its factories and production depend on building advanced robots and making use of them.



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At a five-day exhibition in Beijing, the country showcased its growing robot industry, part of the country's efforts to promote the use of more advanced technologies in factories and redefine "Made in China" by creating better products.



China also displayed its robots at the World Robot Conference, which included Canbot, a robot that can say its name, respond to commands and dance to Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean." The other robots also showed their capabilities such as play badminton, sand cellphone cases and sort computer chips, among others.



Canbot U-Partner is being promoted by Shanghai-based Infinities International Group as a service robot in shopping malls, banks and restaurants. It was modeled after Japan's SoftBank robot, Pepper.



Ares, a human-sized robot designed by 24-year-old college students Peng Zhihui and Luo Binyi, can perform various tasks and has a range of potential use.



"Many robots aren't very useful right now, but will show their true value when they are used in homes in the future," Peng said.



China is not only the world's top consumer of industrial robots but it will soon have the highest number of commercial robots in operation in any country.



Thousands of factories in industrial centers in southern China are now also using robots, the report said. About 40,000 robots are installed in factories of Foxconn, the firm based in Taiwan that assembles Apple's iPhones in China.



In the recent "Made in China 2025" plan, China plans to produce 100,000 industrial robots a year and to reach the robot density of 150 robots for every 10,000 employees by 2020.



In terms of robot density, China is now 28th in the world, behind Portugal and Indonesia. Last year, about 20,000 robots were sold by Chinese suppliers to local companies.



"There has never been such a dynamic rise in such a short period of time in any other market," according to the International Federation of Robotics in its analysis of China's robot industry published earlier this year.



Recently, Chinese appliance maker Midea Group announced the purchase of German industrial robot manufacturer Kuka.



According to Wing Chu, a senior economist at the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, this is part of China's efforts to advance its robotics industry and transform its economy.



"In the longer term, China wants to upgrade all its industries," Wing said.


Dieruff high school building

Dieruff High School in Allentown.

( )

UPDATE: 12 charged so far in Dieruff High mob attack, DA says

Two 18-year-olds caught on video punching a Dieruff High School student during an after-school melee have been charged as adults in the attack that left the victims hospitalized.

Allentown police said they have cellphone video and a photo from the Tuesday afternoon assault involving about 20 students assaulting two 16-year-olds at North Kearney and East Washington streets.

Isaiah Alarcon, of the 1700 block of Cambridge Street in Allentown, and Brian Pearsall, of the 500 block of Sixth Street in Whitehall Township, were both arraigned Thursday night on charges of aggravated assault, conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, simple assault and inciting a riot.

Both teens were sent to Lehigh County Jail in lieu of $25,000 bail; Pearsall was free after posting bail Friday.

They join Joushten Rodriguez, who turned 18 on Saturday. Rodriguez was arraigned Wednesday on charges of conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, simple assault and harassment.

He was sent to Lehigh County Jail in lieu of $100,000 bail.

Other Dieruff students under the age of 18 have been arrested and charged, but their cases are being handled in the juvenile court system, police previously said.

One victim reported being punched in the head and body by the mob, pistol-whipped with a gun, and kicked in the head and face after falling to the ground, according to police. This victim had a front tooth knocked out and lost consciousness during the assault, and was taken to St. Luke's Hospital in Fountain Hill by ambulance for treatment, police said.

The second victim said he was also pistol-whipped on the neck, and his next memory was waking up in the hospital, according to investigators.

Police said seven students were arrested soon after the assaults, after being stopped in the 800 block of East Dent Street. One boy was identified as using a gun during the assault and a loaded .380-caliber handgun was found in his backpack, according to police.

A loaded .22-caliber handgun was found in the pants of a second boy. Prosecutors have not identified either juvenile.

Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahCassi. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
Chinese iPhone users style their smartphones to look like the latest Apple's flagship product. (Photo : Getty Images)

Keeping up with the latest in Apple's flagship smartphone could be a bit expensive for many, especially with the upgrades coming on an annual basis. And a change-up south of $600 (4,065 yuan) is something that would make consumers think twice.



With the recent release of iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, many were quick to observe that the design was not much of an upgrade from last year's iPhone 6 models, unlike the transition from the iPhone 5 series.



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This year's models are almost the same as its most recent predecessors in terms of aesthetics, with only the absence of headphone jack and revamped speaker and camera setup as the only external differences.



The overall look and feel are almost the same, although some experts say Apple still has its innovative ideas up under its sleeves, saving them for its flagship product's 10th-anniversary release in 2017.



With these, online shops have found a way to save its customers from upgrading and spending hundreds of bucks on a new iPhone. Makeover kits such as false cameras can be bought to imitate the look of the iPhone 7. Dust plugs to cover the headphone jack in the subtlest way are also available. From temporary makeover, some iPhone users go as far as having the rear casing engraved, or even replaced with shells resembling the iPhone 7.



This rather odd way of keeping up with the fast-paced iPhone transition could have a negative impact on Apple's sales.



The California-based tech giant has been looking to other countries such as China to provide them boost in sales, but the company's once second-largest market has slipped a notch, with its revenues falling 30 percent this year compared to last year's 17 percent growth.



The leveling off of the smartphone market in China has also contributed to the U.S. firm's sales figures, with local smartphone manufacturers such as Huawei, Oppo and Vivo gaining traction in the smartphone industry.


The dormant 585-space Polk Street parking garage may have new life thanks to a $1 million state grant.

This 7-story, 557-spot parking garage, including first-floor stores and second-floor offices, is planned at East Third and Polk streets in Bethehem.

The almost $13 million parking deck proposed at East Third and Polk streets in South Bethlehem would provide parking for the redevelopment of surrounding former Bethlehem Steel Co. land. Design plans have called for a mix of retail and office space on the Third Street side of the garage.

State Sen. Lisa Boscola announced Friday that the Polk Street project has been awarded a $1 million state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grant.

There's been little movement on the project in recent months as the Bethlehem Parking Authority has focused on the development of its new garage at New Street and Graham Place. Design of the Polk Street project was guided by the Bethlehem Redevelopment Authority and then handed off to the parking authority.

Bethlehem Mayor Bob Donchez made it clear that the grant request was Bethlehem's No. 1 priority, Boscola said in a news release.

"This garage will propel other construction projects in the area and be an enormous benefit to Northampton Community College," Boscola said.

NCC's adjacent Fowler Family Southside Center is already committed to using about 225 spaces in the proposed garage and it recently lost most of its parking on Third Street when construction of Greenway Commons began.

Bethlehem has come a long way in revitalizing the former Steel lands and this is an important boost, Donchez said.

"Constructing the Polk Street garage will unlock another round of development in around the old Bethlehem Steel plant along the Third Street corridor, which is important for Bethlehem's future," he said.

In April, Bethlehem Parking Authority Executive Director Kevin Livingston said the garage plans were on hold awaiting negotiation for the proposed site, which is owned by Sands BethWorks Retail LLC.

On Friday, Livingston said there was no agreement in place to use the land and the authority has taken no action on the project recently.

"This is the beginning of the process, we received RACP today and have to look at everything," Livingston said.

The garage would be the linchpin of the continued redevelopment of the Third Street corridor. The under-construction Greenway Commons apartment, retail and office complex relies on it for parking.

The first phase of Greenway Commons displaced NCC's parking to Second Street, forcing the school to compete with SteelStacks events at times.

"It is an incredible inconvenience not having the parking across the street," said Paul Pierpoint, dean of the South Bethlehem campus. "In the long run, without this parking garage I don't know how anything else happens down here."

For a long time, NCC was only surrounded by shuttered Bethlehem Steel buildings. Now, Social Still and the National Museum of Industrial History have joined the college on Third Street.

The college wants to see the continued reinvention of Third Street around it, but there is not sufficient parking, Pierpoint said.

The garage was also pitched as parking for the Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts and restaurants proposed across the street.

Plans approved by the city planning commission in December 2014 called for a seven-story garage with 30 surface parking spaces behind it. The approved plans called for 18,000 square feet of retail and office space.

Sara K. Satullo may be reached at ssatullo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @sarasatullo and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
A man a dollar store clerk thought was just a rude customer put her in fear for her life.

Clerk Jennifer Altenbach testified Friday in a pre-trial hearing for Jonny Sanders, who was ordered to stand trial in December for robbing the Family Dollar store in Downtown Easton.

Altenbach said Sanders used foul language when she was stocking shelves in the store around 10 p.m. Jan. 8.

"He said 'Can I get some f---ing service?'" Altenbach testified before Northampton County Judge Michael Koury.

She said Sanders, 45, demanded some gum. She told him he had to pick out which gum he wanted before she could ring him up. So he picked out a multi-pack and threw it on the counter.

"When I got to the register, he pulled out a gun," she said, later adding, "He said that he wanted the money, the f---ing money in the register."

Then he pulled out a second gun and pointed both of them at Altenbach as she stood there with her hands in the air.

"I told him I had kids," said an upset Altenbach. "He just kept saying he wanted the money and he was going to shoot us."

Sanders left with $486 in a plastic store merchandise bag. He was with his son, Rachyeeh David Hollenbach, of York, Pennsylvania, but charges were dismissed against Hollenbach because police couldn't prove he was in on the crime, authorities have said.

Patrolman Ben Mastrofilippo said Hollenbach is prepared to testify against his father at trial.

Mastrofilippo said Sanders ran and hid under a trailer for more than an hour, dropping the guns along the way. His DNA was found on one of the guns, police said.

It took as many as eight officers to arrest Sanders, Mastrofilippo said.

"He had to be Tasered multiple times," testified officer Corey Lollis. "He was fighting violently with the officers. It was very difficult to get him under control."

Koury ordered Sanders to stand trial in December for robbery, six counts of aggravated assault and related charges. The judge reviewed a surveillance video of the robbery during the hearing. The judge said a plea deal once offered has now been revoked.

Assistant District Attorney John Obrecht had no comment after the hearing.

Public defender Tony Rybak confirmed Sanders turned down a plea deal because he maintains his innocence.

Rudy Miller may be reached at rmiller@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @RudyMillerLV. Find Easton area news on Facebook.
Halloween Pub Crawls

Crawl-o-Ween will take over South Bethlehem on Friday night. The trek includes six stops, from Social Still to Tally Ho, and features adult trick-or-treating, a costume contest and themed cocktails. Friday, 8 p.m. to 2 a.m.

On Saturday, the Downtown Allentown Monster Crawl will lead costumed drinkers to eight spots in the heart of Allentown. Seven categories in the costume contest give you plenty of chances to win gift certificates to downtown restaurants and businesses. The event steps off from Queen City BBQ and culminates with a party at The Hamilton Kitchen & Bar. Saturday, 6:45 p.m.

Screams on Screen

The Civic Theatre of Allentown's Halloween Series spans the decades with a diverse lineup of eerie flicks. They'll screen "Carrie" Friday at 10 p.m., "The Ring" Saturday at 10 p.m. and "The Birds" Sunday at 8 p.m. Tickets: $10 regular, $8 student & senior.

For a reanimated throwback, check out SteelStacks' double feature of "Frankenstein" and "The Bride of Frankenstein" Saturday at 10 p.m. Tickets: $10 regular, $8 student & senior.

And if you're really committed to the horror movie experience, head to Mahoning Drive-In as it closes its season with a Halloween Campout Weekend. The festivities start out Friday at 6 p.m. with a Stephen King double feature of "The Shining" and "Misery." As a special bonus, they're premiering "Demon Stone," a "throwback 80s-style horror-comedy" made by the drive-in's own team. On Saturday at 6 p.m., the second night's lineup includes "Critters," "The Gate" and "The Gate 2: Trespassers." You can also camp on the grounds overnight to enjoy bonfires, secret screenings and more. Tickets: $10 for screening, additional $10 to camp.

Lehigh Valley Zombies

Ever wanted to fight back at a haunted house? Lehigh Valley Zombies in Orefield gives you the chance to do just that with its haunted paintball hayride. The 50-acre course includes infected military camps, construction zones, toxic waste dumps and more. Ticket booth open 6 to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday and Sunday. Tickets: $12-45.

Late Night Haunting

For the last weekend of October only, Historic Haunts of Bethlehem will host special midnight editions of its ghost tour. The hourlong tour kicks off at 11:45 p.m. and midnight. If that's too spooky for you, regular ghost tours will still be held starting at 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Reservations required, call 610-866-5481.

Halloween Board Games

All day Saturday, Portal Comics and Gaming in Bethlehem will be opening their cabinet of terror-inducing tabletop games for demos. Try learning a new game, or bring one of your own favorites to the party. "Halloween Tabletop Day" will also include sales, contests and snacks, and the shop will be running a Halloween Comicfest at the same time. Saturday, 9 a.m to 9 p.m.

Get Creepy and Crafty

Make your own sugar skull as you sample wine and food at Easton Public Market's "Pop-up Painting Party" with Tolino Vineyards and Bottle & Bottega. The ticket price includes supplies, instruction, apron use, your first glass of wine or wine slushie and a sampler from Olive with a Twist. Friday, 6 to 9 p.m. Tickets: $40.

Halloween Parties & Costume Contests

Tons of bars, clubs and restaurants -- too many to list here -- will throw Halloween parties this weekend with costume contests for cash prizes, DJs and more. To name just a few: Porter's Pub, Clubhouse Grille, Riverside Barr & Grille, Pints & Pies Neighborhood Pub, and Strange Brew Tavern. Check in with your favorite neighborhood haunt to see if something spooky will go down.

Family and Community Events

Easton Public Market has announced a Halloween Family Fun Night with spooky stories and trick-or-treating at the market's vendors. Friday, 4 to 6 p.m.

Be sure to check out what's going on in your own town. Many communities will hold parades and other family events over the weekend. Plus, don't forget to double check when trick-or-treating is in your community.

Escape the scares with Larry Holmes Kids' Day

If you feel stifled by horror, head to Scott Park in Easton Saturday afternoon for a cheerier event: the return of Larry Holmes Kids' Day. The event offers a chance to meet the former heavyweight champion by the statue depicting him. Holmes wants to encourage kids to follow their ambitions. Saturday, 1 to 4 p.m. at Scott Park.

Andrew Doerfler may be reached at adoerfler@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @adoerfler or on Facebook.
An Upper Macungie apartment complex fire that displaced 16 families earlier this month was caused by careless smoking, an official said.

Township Fire Commissioner Grant Grim said a cigarette on a second-floor porch caused the Oct. 9 fire in a 14-unit building at Parkland View Apartments, 1055 Cetronia Road.

The fire traveled up to the attic, where there were no sprinklers, and then the roofline, Grim said. It took crews at least two hours to bring the blaze under control.

The blaze was ruled an accident, Grim said. No one was killed or injured.

A total of 22 people were displaced by the fire, Red Cross spokeswoman Loa Esquilin-Garcia said on Friday. Six families went to hotels after the fire, while the rest were able to stay with family or friends.

The Red Cross is still assisting the affected residents and is in contact with all 16 families, Esquilin-Garcia said.

Grim did not have a cost estimate of the damage.

Grim said while the fire was one of the larger ones in the township, he commended the more than 75 firefighters and 15 agencies involved in fighting the blaze.

"They did an excellent job," he said.

KRE Group owns the 27-building complex, and regional manager David Perlmutter said the fire departments and Red Cross have been fantastic in handling the fire and its aftermath.

Perlmutter said the company is grateful no one was hurt in the blaze. About 95 percent of the 14-unit building was destroyed, and the company plans to rebuild the unit.

KRE is waiting for the final report from fire inspectors, as well as for the insurance company to tally the damage costs, but "it's a long process," Perlmutter said.

Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahCassi. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
WASHINGTON -- Hillary Clinton is ahead or tied with Donald Trump among likely voters in swing states crucial to the Republican's chance of winning the White House, according to a series of recent polls.

Clinton and Trump were tied in Georgia and Nevada, and in a virtual dead heat in Iowa, according to surveys released Thursday by Quinnipiac University and NBC News/Wall Street Journal/Marist College.

She led Trump by eight points in New Hampshire, six points in North Carolina and 13 points in Virginia.

And Clinton was up seven points in Pennsylvania, according to a New York Times-Siena College poll.

"Time is running out and Donald Trump has lost his leads and now is tied with Hillary Clinton in Iowa and Georgia," said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac poll. "North Carolina appears to be moving in her direction also."

Even if Trump were to capture Iowa and Nevada, both of which backed President Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012, he still would be far short of the 270 electoral votes needed to become president even if he held onto every state won by 2012 GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney.

But if he lost Georgia or North Carolina, Trump's route to 270 would become almost non-existent even if he won Florida and Ohio.

Nate Silver's FiveThirtyEight gave Clinton an 82 percent chance of winning the presidency. A national Fox News poll put her ahead, 49 percent to 44 percent and the Real Clear Politics poll average gave her a lead of 5.7 percentage points. Obama defeated Romney by 3.9 percentage points four years ago.

Here's where the two candidates stood in the swing states.

GEORGIA

Trump and Clinton were tied at 46 percent in a state that last supported the Democratic nominee just once in the last eight presidential elections. Trump led, 50 percent to 44 percent, last month.

"While Hillary Clinton has a slight lead among early voters, this race looks like it will come down to the wire," said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac poll.

Trump led by 2.5 percentage points in the Real Clear Politics poll average, while FiveThirtyEight gave him a 70 percent chance of winning the Peach State.

IOWA

Trump had a statistically insignificant lead, 47 percent to 46 percent, according to Quinnipiac. He was ahead last month, 50 percent to 44 percent.

The Real Clear Politics poll average put him up by an average of 1.7 percentage points though FiveThirtyEight said Clinton had a 53 percent chance of victory.

NEVADA

The two candidates were tied here as well at 45 percent in the NBC/Journal survey. Clinton had a 2.9-percentage point advantage, according to Real Clear Politics, and a 67 percent chance of carrying the state, according to FiveThirtyEight.

NEW HAMPSHIRE

The NBC/Journal poll put Clinton ahead, 47 percent to 39 percent. She led Trump last month, 42 percent to 41 percent.

A Monmouth University poll had the race tighter in a four-way race, giving Clinton a 46 percent to 42 percent advantage with 8 percent going to the third-party candidates. Clinton led Trump, 47 percent to to 38 percent, last month.

"Trump's support among his base voters has ticked up, but not enough to erase Clinton's overall advantage," said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth polling institute.

Clinton's advantage in the Real Clear Politics poll average was 6.2 percentage points and she was given an 84 percent chance of winning by FiveThirtyEight.

NORTH CAROLINA

In a state where Obama's 2008 victory was only Democratic win in the last nine elections, Clinton held a 50 percent to 44 percent advantage over Trump in the Quinnipiac survey. That was double her 49 percent to 46 percent lead earlier in the month.

Monmouth also had this race closer, giving Clinton a statistically insignificant 47 percent to 46 percent in a three-way race.

Her lead in the Real Clear Politics poll average was 3 percentage points and her chances of winning the state were set at 65 percent, according to FiveThirtyEight.

PENNSYLVANIA

The New York Times-Siena poll showed Clinton ahead in a four-way race with 46 percent. Trump had 39 percent. The survey of 824 likely Pennsylvania voters was conducted Oct. 23-25 and had a margin of error of 3.4 percentage points.

Meanwhile, the Real Clear Politics poll average put Clinton in the lead by 5 points and FiveThirtyEight gave her an 86 percent chance of winning the Keystone State.

VIRGINIA

Clinton had a 13-point lead 53 percent to 40 percent in the Quinnipiac poll. She led by 10 points in the Real Clear Politics poll average and FiveThirtyEight said her chances of winning the commonwealth were 93 percent.

"Virginia, which 12 years ago was a solidly Republican state, is now 'true blue' in its presidential ballot and one of the most Democratic states south of the Mason-Dixon line," Brown said. "One number tells you all you need to know about why Donald Trump is doing so poorly in the Old Dominion: Only 83 percent of Republicans say they are going to vote for him, their own party nominee."

Quinnipiac's surveys were taken Oct. 20-26. There was a margin of error of 3.7 percentage points for 707 Georgia likely voters in Georgia and 702 likely voters in North Carolina, a margin of error of 3.6 percentage points for 749 likely voters in Virginia, and a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points for 791 likely voters in Iowa.

The NBC/Journal polls were taken Oct. 20-24. The margins of error were 3.7 percentage points for 707 likely voters in Nevada and 3.5 percentage points for 768 likely voters in New Hampshire.

The Monmouth poll of 401 likely New Hampshire voters was conducted Oct. 22-25 and had a margin of error of 4.9 percentage points. Its survey of 402 likely North Carolina voters also had a margin of error of 4.9 percentage points.

The Fox poll was conducted Oct. 22-25 and had a margin of error of 2.5 percentage points for its survey of 1,221 likely voters.

Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.
NoMoRobo helps stop robo calls

Robocalls have increased 22 percent in the past year. (John Munson | NJ Advance Media)

(John Munson)

An early look at 2016 data on consumer complaints shows that New Jersey is being plagued by a sharp increase in the number robocalls.

Complaints about the automated marketing phone calls increased 22 percent in the state from 2015 to 2016, according to the Federal Communications Commission, which started publishing data in late 2014.

The total number of unwanted marketing calls, including live telemarketing, has increased more modestly by 6 percent, from 3,414 to 3,619 complaints. It's probable that the actual number of calls is far higher, since only a small percent of residents are likely to complain about calls.

Since 2016 is an election year, part of the increase can be attributed to campaign-related calls and surveys. The previous cycle in 2012 also had an increase in consumer complaints on a national level. However, the increase is also part of a larger rise in telemarketing complaints that indicates a broader trend of more annoying phone calls.

The FCC's Do Not Call Registry covers robocalling as well as live telemarketing calls, but enforcement can be difficult because of the many technologies scammers use to go around limits.

One of the most reported numbers in the data is the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities -- but not because the agency has been spamming residents. Rather, scammers "spoof" the number, pretending to be calling from a completely different phone number than they are.

Enforcement difficulties may translate to the state level, too. Despite New Jersey's October 2015 law banning unsolicited text messages, there have been 79 complaints so far this year concerning text messages, only a slight drop -- 16 percent -- from the same time last year.

If you have been besieged by telemarketers recently, you can file a complaint with the FCC here.

Erin Petenko may be reached at epetenko@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @EPetenko. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
No one was hurt but a mobile home was destroyed by fire early Friday in Lower Mount Bethel Township.

The residents were home and discovered the fire about 12:15 a.m., township fire Chief Jeff Larrison said.

A resident found the bathroom exhaust fan on the floor and the ceiling was burning, the chief added, pointing to an electrical cause for the blaze.

The residents and their pets then safely got out of the home in the 4400 block of Miller Road, Larrison said.

Wilmer Miller owns the home but rents it out, Larrison said. The names of the residents weren't immediately available.

Fire crews wrapped up just after 4:30 a.m. and a rekindle call just before 8 a.m. was canceled, Larrison said.

The American Red Cross of Eastern Pennsylvania assisted two adults and two children, the agency said.

Fire crews from Washington Township (Northampton County), Portland, Mount Bethel, North Bangor and Belvidere assisted the township volunteer company, Larrison said.

Water was drawn from a nearby pond, he said. There were no hydrants at the site.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
Man dies after fight Jan. 19, 2016, in White Township

John Ranallo, 39, was picking up his daughter from an apartment at 94 Route 46 in White Township when a fight ensued, authorities say. Ranallo reportedly collapsed afterward and never regained consciousness. (Steve Novak | For lehighvalleylive.com)

The man who tried to flee to Canada after a deadly brawl in Warren County will be staying behind bars in New Jersey for five years, according to the county prosecutor.

Steven Segarra, of Mansfield Township, was charged with aggravated manslaughter in the death of John Ranallo in a fight Jan. 19, 2016, outside a White Township home. (Courtesy photo)

Steven Segarra, 38, of Mansfield Township, was sentenced Friday for the death of 39-year-old John Ranallo in a fight early this year outside a White Township home.

Ranallo, a White Township resident and father of two, on Jan. 19 had gone to the home at 94 Route 46, near the eastern edge of the township, to pick up his daughter when Segarra called him outside and a fight ensued, according to the prosecutor's office.

Ranallo was knocked to the ground and hit repeatedly, authorities said. He was reportedly able to get up and go back inside, where he collapsed and never regained consciousness. Ranallo died on the way to the hospital, investigators said. New Jersey State Police said Segarra's punches caused the fatal injuries.

After the fight, a woman allegedly drove Segarra to the Canadian border near Niagara Falls, where they were taken into custody. The status of the case against the woman, Charity Bucey, was not immediately clear Friday.

Segarra pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter last month. He had initially been charged with first-degree aggravated manslaughter, which carried a potential sentence of up to 30 years in prison.

In addition to his five-year sentence, county Prosecutor Richard Burke said Segarra will be subject to three years of parole supervision.

Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
Nanjing Police Crack Down On Trafficking of Women (Photo : Getty Images)

By using detective sleuthing and with the help from security cameras, Kunming police tracked where a gang, responsible for 8 days of crime in the Chinese city, and conducted an early-morning raid on Oct. 14.



The raid resulted in the arrest of 12 gang members, although five members were not arrested. Most of the gang members were minors, and even the leader was only 16 years old, Shanghaiist reported.



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To discourage the young residents of Kunming from imitating the behavior of the juvenile criminals as well as assure residents they could safely walk again on city streets since the culprits have been arrested, the police paraded the 13 gang members, although since most of them are minors, they wore masks.



The first wave of crime attributed to the teens was on Oct. 7 at around 22:47 a.m. when five masked men with knives jumped out of the bushes from the road side and stopped a male rider of an electric scooter with two female passengers. The five held them up, took their mobile phones and cash totaling 2,900 yuan.



Besides the holdup, seven other late-night robbery incidents occurred in Kunming between Oct. 5 and 13, prompting city authorities to create a special police task force to hunt for the gang.



Because of Chinas long history of shaming criminals by parading them in the streets, laws established on the practice banned it but occasionally there are still stone lion thieves and sex trade workers paraded in Chinese cities.



According to Trip Advisor, visitors to Kunming  although it is a fairly safe place to visit  are cautioned from walking alone at night. It said street crimes, burglaries and petty theft are not major concerns in the city, some crimes still take place occasionally.






New Lib Dem Edinburgh Western MSP Alex Cole-Hamilton won the One to watch award at the Scottish Politician of the Year Awards, presented at a glittering awards ceremony in Edinburgh.

He was also praised by his predecessor, Margaret Smith:

From The Herald:

With one third of MSPs new to Holyrood this year, the largest field was in the One to Watch category, sponsored by ScottishPower Renewables, with the judges impressed by the breadth and depth of talent being attracted to the Parliament as its powers increase.

Its not difficult to see why he won when you see the quality of his debut speech on the European Union

The text follows at the end of the article.

The lifetime achievement award went to former Liberal Democrat Leader and North East Fife MP Lord Campbell of Pittenweem. Again, from the Herald:

I receive this wonderful award really as a first installment, and Ill tell you why. Jeremy Thorpe famously described the House of Lords as proof that theres life after death. Well, theres plenty of life left in this old dog, I can tell you.

I suppose the Tories had to get some baubles given their move forward in the Holyrood elections but I really have to question what the judges were thinking when they gave the Best Scot at Westminster award to (at best) mediocre Scottish Secretary David Mundell. Id have given it to the SNPs Alison Thewliss for her energetic and persistent campaign against the Governments controversial, demeaning and unjustifiable rape clause whereby any woman wanting to claim tax credits for a third will have to prove in an as yet unspecified way, that she has been raped.

Ruth Davidson won Politician of the Year, which was expected given her very good performance on the Remain side in the EU Referendum  although her party is now hurtling towards the hardest of Brexits and shes not doing much to stop them.

Here is the full text of Alex Cole Hamiltons speech:

As I rise to deliver my first speech in the Scottish Parliament, I feel the sense of awe that I have seen on the faces of my fellow newcomers to this place; they have given excellent speeches, both yesterday and this morning.

My journey to this chamber has been a long one, and I am grateful for the kindness of parliamentary staff, journalists and indeed members of all parties for the good will that they have shown me in these first weeks. It has been good will tinged with surprise, I might add, at my appearance here, but that surprise was eclipsed by my own when I was plucked from the ranks of new Liberal Democrat MSPs and immediately promoted to the front bench. That was something of a shock. [Laughter.]

Before I address the substance of the debate, I pay tribute to my immediate predecessor, Colin Keir. He is a kind and generous man and I wish him every success in his future. I also pay tribute to the previous Liberal parliamentarian to represent Edinburgh Western, Margaret Smith. Margaret served in this Parliament for 12 years and delivered many of the changes that brought about free personal care for the elderly. All of us can attest to the honour that it is to represent the great communities of Edinburgh Western. The constituency is steeped in history that goes back to Roman times and it flanks the beautiful fringes of the Forth estuary. It is in the shadow of our own world heritage site: the Forth rail bridge. I am sorry to say that, following my election, the area is no longer available to the SNP for parliamentary group photographs. I am sorry about that.

My first act as a parliamentarian for Edinburgh Western is to make the case that my constituentsand yours, Presiding Officerare demonstrably better off as part of the European Union. One hundred years ago almost to the day, my great grand-uncle, a private in the 1st Canadian Mounted Rifles out of Saskatchewan, at the age of 23, was killed along with 80 per cent of his battalion on the first day of the battle of Mont Sorrel on the Ypres salient. His name was Alexander Bennett and I am named for him. Just a generation later, his sacrifice was met by that of two of my grandfathers four siblings, who were killed on active service, this time in world war two.

It is a measure of the success of the European project that I am only the second generation in the recorded history of my entire family to never have to contemplate taking up arms against our nearest European neighbours. It is a comfort that I would extend to my three children, Finn, Kit and Darcy, and to theirs to come. It is from the shared desire for a continued and lasting peace that the originating treaties of the European Union emerged. First, there was the European Coal and Steel Community in 1951, so that no country could ever again build a war machine, and then there was the treaty of Rome, which led to a single market in which the free movement of goods, people, capital and services has come to represent the most important charter for freedom that the world has ever seen. It is a solidarity of nations that has become a family.

The Brexiteers such as Margaret Mitchell and her colleagues paint a very nice picture of what it would be to reclaim all our sovereignty, but it is a doctrine of isolationism, pure and simple. I put it to you, Presiding Officer, that in this increasingly globalised world, human traffickers will never recognise that isolation. Climate change will not recognise it, and neither will terrorists. If we were to leave, we would be a tiny archipelago of islands adrift in a sea of economic uncertainty. That is why those on the Liberal Democrat benches are so proudly and full-throatedly backing the remain campaign.

I am delighted, and heartily glad, that my first speech is on an issue on which there is such consensus, and that I find myself on common ground not just with those in other Opposition parties but with those on the Government benches. I hope that there are many days like this to come in my parliamentary service because, with consensus, this place can move mountains and it has done so. When I worked in the childrens sector, from outside the chamber I helped to broker a consensus that led to a change in the age of leaving care and that will change lives as a result. However, there will be days of discord, and that is good and right because, as John F Kennedy said, without criticism and debate no Administration can succeed and no republic can survive. It is incumbent on Opposition parties, particularly in a minority Government situation, to challenge and scrutinise, so I will offer that debate and scrutiny. It will at times be fierce, but it will always be reasoned and it will always be Liberal.

However, today, let us put aside those differences and embrace that common ground on which we find ourselves. A sense of real optimism is currently sweeping the Liberal Democrats, and I know that it is sweeping other parties as well, because we have so much to gain by remaining as members of the European Union, so we must gather together to vigorously campaign for a remain vote on 23 June. Thank you.
The departure of Jenny Tonge from the party will not come as a surprise to many nor, if I am honest, will there be many tears shed over it. She has, at best, been semi-detached for some time after resigning the Party Whip in the House of Lords.

However, her departure has made me think about the best way forward for the Liberal Democrats to support a peaceful resolution of the Palestine/Israel conflict.

As I have written before, the curse of the land between the Sea and the River is that it has two people who both have a good and just claim to the land and both have behaved terribly to the other. What is also clear is that the solution to the conflict is two states with borders based on the 1949 Armistice lines with some adjustments (Read Gershon Baskins latest column in the Jerusalem Post for a longer exposition on this plan). What is also clear is that any attempt by either side to impose a one state solution can only be done through yet more violence & bloodshed and will create a yet another humanitarian disaster in a part of the world that has seen too many.

So, what can we do here in the UK to support those on both sides who are working to find a way forward that ends the violence rather perpetuates it? Surely we as Lib Dems should be helping find a way forward that helps bring peace to both Palestine & Israel?

To be honest, I dont know. What I do know though is that the two existing groups in the lib Dems (Liberal Democrat Friends of Israel & Liberal Democrat Friend of Palestine) are too partisan for their side to be of any help finding a way forward so I have decided to set up a new group, initially just on Facebook, to see if we can find a way forward to support groups like One Voice and Solutions Not Sides who work with people on both sides to encourage dialogue and discussion.

The Group is called Liberal Democrats for Peace in the Middle East and anyone interested in working with me in helping the Liberal Democrats make a constructive contribution to the work of finding a just solution that gives both sides peace & security is welcome to join. If we get enough people, I would like to arrange a Fringe meeting (either at York in the Spring or more likely at Bournemouth next September) on the theme of alternatives to war. Hopefully, in time we can get enough supports to form a formal AO in the Party.

I look forward to hearing back from those who reject the partisanship (from both sides) any discussions of the subject have been blighted with in the past and want to find a constructive way forward.

Photo by Delayed Gratification

* Leon Duveen is Chair of Liberal Democrats for Peace in the Middle East, a new group of Lib Dems working to support those trying to a solution to the Palestine/ Israel conflict and to providing information about these peacemakers.
Yesterday Merlene Toh Emerson and Jen Yockney went to the Palace to collect their MBEs. Marlene was awarded for her public and political service and Jen for services to the bisexual community.

Here they are together with some great colour co-ordination:

This is what we said at the time their awards were announced.
Alibaba founder and chairman Jack Ma and actor Daniel Craig attend the gala of Tmall shopping festival in Beijing last year. (Photo : Getty Images)

China and Europe may make possible the creation of an electronic world trade platform (eWTP) which is expected to boost international e-commerce, Luigi Gambardella, president of ChinaEU, wrote in an article published in euractiv.com.



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ChinaEU is an organization that seeks to strengthen trade relations between China and Belgium.



Gambardella said that the plan may soon materialize as AliExpress, Alibaba's global marketplace, is urging EU to re-evaluate geoblocking, which is currently being used by EU's e-commerce sector, where consumers can be "forced" to shop on the national websites, by redirecting them to the sites based on their IP address.



In addition, consumers face other problems which include restrictions on online payment, price differences in delivery fees, and complicated return policies, among others. In contrast, Chinese consumers may also face similar problems when buying products overseas, Gambardella said.



Hence, Jack Ma proposed the creation of the electronic world trade platform at the B20 and G20 meetings in Hangzhou, according to Gambardella.



Through eWTP, consumers will have better access to goods via a transparent and fair platform, which will also include SMEs. The platform would allow online transactions to flow freely and enable people to trade with anyone from across the world.



To ensure success, the platform must develop a set of rules and strategy taken from experienced players in the industry, the article said.



Gambardella said that the EU Digital Single Market Strategy can offer many things, adding that the current online barriers not only deny goods and services European citizens but also restrict the visions of Internet companies and startups. Hence, the European Commission introduced the Strategy to tear down these regulatory barriers and merge the 28 national markets into a single one.



It is expected that about 415 billion per year will be added to the European economy and more new jobs will be created once the platform succeeds.



Gambardella said that the ChinaEU business organization has identified three courses of action that will be favorable to cross-border e-commerce. These include ending online discrimination based on nationality or place of residence, prohibit e-commerce sites from re-routing consumers to country websites, or asking for payment using debit or credit card from a certain country, and making the cross-border delivery of parcels more efficient and cheaper.



He said that the ultimate goal of "e-commerce without borders" is to give consumers freedom to shop online without restrictions.



Gambardella said that China may get some insights from the Digital Single Market to enhance its cross-border e-commerce policy and to implement the eWTP proposal. He added that if EU succeeds in merging the 28 markets, it will give China a huge online market with only one set of rules to follow.


How to Get Narcan for Free

The prescription drug naloxone can reverse an overdose and save lives  but access can be difficult for the uninsured. Heres how to find this life-saving drug.
MICHAEL Harding is after hopping off the Luas in Dublin, following two interviews earlier that day, when he takes a pause to chat to the Limerick Leader.

Even chance encounters and overheard snippets of conversation on the capitals public transport system affords him the opportunity to glean new material for his weekly columns in The Irish Times, begetting another book, and another tour of the country, reading from his work about ordinary life that isnt always so ordinary.

It feels like I'm writing a a big, slow chronicle of ordinary life, he tells the Leader, so there's no huge dramatic plot.

There doesnt have to be  the subtle nuances of ordinary life, told in an extraordinarily special way, is what makes his work stand out and differ from the norm.

The chronicle of ordinary life, and ordinary people and what they do is endless, he continues.

Every book has led to another book. I'll continue on like this for a while, because I find it satisfies me as a storyteller. Why make up a pretend story when you could tell the real story?

This week, his third book, Talking to Strangers, was shortlisted amongst six in the Popular Nonfiction Book of the Year category, under the Bord Gais Energy book of the year awards. It also continues to ride high in the weekly bestseller lists.

Im delighted, he says, having an audience is really what you want as a writer and story-teller. That's really a great joy.

Limerick has yet to feature in any firm way in his weekly columns, offering snapshots and insights of local life around the country, but predominantly in the Midlands, where he lives.

In one recent column, he recalled a kiss he shared with a woman on a couch in Ennis years ago  and the memory still lingers.

I suppose you cant marry everyone you like, he wrote, so the older I get the more memories I gather of women I lost, or to be more accurate, women who let me go. Or to be completely truthful  women who escaped. And I often remember women who opted for someone else; dear friends that I longed for and never quite succeeded in bringing into a close embrace. I suppose love is always a feeling of incompleteness.

He doesnt find it hard, he says, to fill the weekly column as there's always seven days between the two.

I don't try to think of ideas. I just take a note of something that happened. There's always something happening. You hear people's narratives and stories, if you keep your ears open. The column is about stories, rather than ideas; just write them down. Chance encounters can be lovely.

Friday nights slot in the Lime Tree theatre in Limerick will be his third rendezvous with local audiences in recent years. What can they expect?

I kind of read from the book, stop and just talk. I'm telling the story of the book; it's just talking really, just a bit of craic. It's very hard to know what to expect in one sense because I just make it up as a go along, he says in his endearing Cavan lilt.

The column, the book and being on stage - it's all the one thing in a sense, it's just storytelling, says the 63 year-old.

He often asks the audience to send him an email after the show  something funny in two sentences.

I was in Donegal two weeks ago, and I got a message from someone afterwards, and he said I enjoyed the show so much that I hadnt time to eat me Emeralds. But I ate them on the way home. Now, thats a piece of nonsense  but thats the stuff that I make columns out of, he laughs.

Michael Harding will be in the Lime Tree this Friday night. Tickets, priced from 16 to 18, are available to buy on www.limetreetheatre.ie.
OVER 5,000 has been raised for Pieta House Mid-West thanks to the support of those who took part in UL Hospitals Group annual charity 5k run/walk.

Over 200 people completed the course around Dooradoyle/Raheen in August, the majority of them hospital staff.

Another 25 health workers completed a 5k in Nenagh to help raise funds for Pieta House, which offers counselling and other suicide and self-harm supports to people around the country.

Speaking after presenting a cheque for over 5,000 to Pieta House, UL Hospitals CEO Colette Cowan said: Our annual 5k is part of our Healthy Ireland strategy at UL Hospitals.

Two of the pillars of this strategy are looking after your mental health and promoting physical activity for people of all abilities.

We were delighted to be able to again support the great work that is being done locally by Pieta House for people in Limerick, Clare and Tipperary who are going through a mental health crisis.

"Those of us working in the health services know first-hand of the incredibly important work Pieta House does and how much they are appreciated in the community.
A NEW plan is proposing to spend 12m over five years on culture in Limerick, creating a new cultural division within the local authority in the process.

The draft briefing document - Limerick, Culture Capacity and the Way Forward - has been presented to councillors in recent days.

Seen by the Limerick Leader, it proposes maintaining a commitment to funding, similar to that within the (Limerick 2020) bid budget, for a total of 4m, spread over the next five years. It also seeks an allocation of 600,000 in the councils 2017 budget to enable cultural capacity building

Another 4m would be sought from commercial sponsorship and philanthropy, matched by funds from central Government and national agency funding, making a total of 12m to be spent up to 2021.

The document, prepared by Mike Fitzpatrick and Sheila Deegan and also presented to a number of key figures in the artistic community in Limerick late last week, outlines a five point plan of strategic priorities over the five year period.

A number of cultural highlights are promised for delivery, including elements of the 2020 bid - Lifting the Siege, a beefed up Eva International, a Royal de Luxe show, the Fleadh Cheoil in 2020 and 2021 and the HearSay International Audio arts festival in Kilfinane.

The document proposes to build on current successes to deliver a cultural programme of international significance and attractiveness and make Limerick a hub, the development of a capacity building programme for the creative and cultural sectors, developing cultural tourism, an ambitious and integrated cultural agenda within social regeneration projects and the establishment of a cultural division within the council.

This proposed division would take responsibility for all aspects of the arts and culture portfolio including the arts office, the culture and property portfolio, LCGA, civic festivals and other related policy areas.

Appropriate appointment processes would be followed in filling the staffing complement, including open competition at division head and internal appointments and transfers.

Councillors will be asked to sign off the plan as part of the budgetary process, with another meeting scheduled to take place in the coming days.

Asked for an official response to the draft plan, a council spokesperson said: As part of the 2017 budgetary process, a draft proposal has been prepared in relation to developing and resourcing Limerick's cultural capacity, based on the success of 2014, the needs analysis of the sector gained through the Limerick 2020 bid process and the potential for growth of cultural tourism in Limerick city and county.

Subject to the approval of Council as part of the budget, this provision would proceed for implementation in 2017 and would continue to enhance Limericks arts and cultural offering.

Fianna Fail councillor James Collins, said: We are all in favour of providing more money towards the arts and culture in Limerick and promoting it, and even some of our discretionary money has been allocated towards it by local councillors.

But what we want to make sure is that the money is spent in the right way. We want a clearly defined programme of events that will take place. And if there is to be a proposed change of structure, that it is agreed in advance with the councillors. If we are going to provide extra funding, we want to make sure that it is spent in the best possible way.

Some concern about the draft plan was expressed by members of PLAN  the Professional Limerick Artists Network  and LACE  Limerick Arts and Culture Exchange  who said the detail in the document had not been officially relayed to either organisation.

Monica Spencer, a member of both groups, said: Everybody would absolutely love for the budget to be increased, but we would also like to have some kind of public forum and discussion as to how and where that extra increase would be invested.

Naturally there would be disagreements between people about that, but I think it would be very healthy to bring that into the public sphere and let not just the arts community, but the public know about it.

Louise Donlon of the Lime Tree Theatre, said the draft plan had the potential to be a lightbulb moment for the council.

It is one that has been coming on for a while, because they have seen the great benefits that 2014 brought and they see the feel good factor that arts and culture can bring to a city, she said.

This proposal, that is coming from the local authority, is to be hugely welcomed, if the councillors agree to it.

I think it is game changer for the arts and culture in Limerick and it really will make a very significant difference to artists in the city and county.
SCORES of people got to achieve the impossible dream in Foynes last Sunday night, when they were photographed holding aloft an Oscar.

The Oscar statuette, more beautiful in reality than it appears on screen and surprisingly heavy, was that won by Maureen OHara, awarded to her for her Lifetime Achievement in motion pictures in 200.

It was just one of a large number of awards and other memorabilia donated to the Foynes Flying Boat and Maritime Museum following Ms OHaras death last year.

But the Oscar was not the only piece of Hollywoods magic dust to be felt in Foynes, where Maureen OHaras life and work were being celebrated on the first anniversary of her death.

Hollywood glamour swept up the audience as gowns, dresses and coats, designed for Ms OHara and worn by her in her various films or at public events, were seen on an Irish catwalk for the very first time.

But the stunning garments, beautifully designed and made from the most resplendent fabrics, were only a small part of Ms OHaras legacy generously donated to the museum by her grandson.

According to museum director, Margaret OShaughnessy, what people were seeing was only a small part of one container and three containers in all will make their way to Foynes where the plan is to open a new wing to exhibit them.

Minister for State for Tourism, Patrick ODonovan, said such an exhibition would add substantially to the tourist product, not just in West Limerick but throughout the region.

Tonight is a new journey for this museum, a new venture, he said, officially launching Sundays commemorative event which began with Mass and was followed by the fashion show which also included film clips starring Maureen OHara and live music and songs associated with her films.

Margaret has organised many ventures, the minister quipped, but it is the first time she has asked me to open a fashion show.

Minister ODonovan also revealed that the new Maureen OHara wing was just one part of a big extension plan for the museum which would ultimately also cater for every type of transport, including sea, air, rail, bus and car.

And he paid tribute to Maureen OHara, an icon for millions, who graced the screen and stage for many years but who never forgot her Irish roots, and where she came from.

Ms OShaughnessy, in her tribute, recalled her very first telephone call to Maureen OHara in 1988, asking for her help to set up a flying boat museum. I was terrified. I rang her and her response was. Dont think, Do it. She agreed to come on board and to do everything possible to help and she did that.

Maureen OHara became a patron of the museum and visited Foynes almost every year between 1989 and her death last year.

Ms OShaughnessy also paid tribute to the generosity of Maureen OHaras grandson, Conor Beau. He knows we genuinely love her and we will do everything possible to make sure she isnt forgotten, she ended.

Mr Beaus generosity is all the more telling given that auctioneers Bonhams will conduct a sale of items from Ms OHaras estate on November 29 in New York, with many lots involving gowns, jewellery, gloves and handbags owned by her. The lots range in price from $200 to over $100,000 with $120,000 the guide price on the trap used in The Quiet Man.

RTE regional correspondent Cathy OHalloran, in her tribute, recalled Maureens melodic voice and her consummate professionalism in front of any camera while it fell to MC Seamus Hennessy to knit together seamlessly the different elements of the evening before a capacity audience.
A NIECE of a man who collapsed and died after he confronted intruders at his home in County Limerick last year has spoken of her family's grief

Angela Denning made her comments this afternoon during the sentencing hearing of two cousins who have admitted breaking into the home of John ODonoghue at Toomaline, Doon, on August 27, 2015.

David Casey, aged 23, who has an address at Carragh Park, Coolock, Dublin 17, and Michael Casey, aged 33, of Clonlong Halting Site, Southill have been in custody since they were arrested a number of hours after the burglary.

During a sentencing hearing, Sergeant Michael Reidy said the defendants and another man had targeted several houses in East Limerick  including that of Mr ODonoghue  on the same day in what he described as an organised operation.

Limerick Circuit Court was told Mr ODonoghue and his sister, Christina who also lived at the house, returned home from a days shopping shortly before 2pm.

Sgt Reidy said on arrival they noticed a black Renault Laguna parked across the road and then realised there were intruders inside their home when the occupant began honking the horn repeatedly.

Mr ODonoghue who located a shovel in a shed collapsed a short time later as he approached the house.

John OSullivan BL, prosecuting, said attempts to resuscitate the 62-year-old were unsuccessful and that he was pronounced dead at the scene.

While a post mortem showed Mr ODonoghue suffered from heart disease, State Pathologist, Prof Marie Cassidy said the stress of what happened could not be a ruled out as a contributory factor in his death.

The defendants, the court heard, were apprehended by gardai a short time later and both expressed remorse and regret when informed that Mr ODonoghue had died.

Gardai believe the third man - Mr X - has fled the jurisdiction.

In a victim impact statement, Ms Denning said words cannot describe the impact her uncles death has had on her family.

While understandable, she said the media coverage in the immediate aftermath of his death was unbearable and that she no longer watches the news as she cannot stand seeing gardai crime scene tape or men in white forensic suits.

She said her aunt had to move out of her home following the incident as it was a crime scene and that she now worries about something similar happening to her relatives.

She told the court the less obvious things are the hardest to cope with adding that she and her family have lost a kind, clever, talented and very witty man.

Judge ODonnell will impose sentence in December.
USS Ronald Reagan, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier of the U.S., docks at the Yokosuka U.S. Naval Base in southern Tokyo. (Photo : Getty Images)

Some foreign government personnel who visited a U.S. aircraft carrier the day before the international court ruling on the South China Sea was released were reportedly targeted by Chinese hackers, a U.S. cybersecurity company said.



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The Financial Times reported that an infected document, posing as an official message, was sent by a China-based group to officials who visited the USS Ronald Reagan, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier that patrolled the South China Sea in July.



According to the report, the date in the document was July 11, which was the day before the Hague tribunal ruled against China's claims in the region. The foreign delegates were also scheduled to visit the aircraft carrier that day.



Fireye, the U.S. cybersecurity firm said that the suspicious document contained the Enfal malware, which can be used to obtain information from the infected computer or download other viruses.



The malware was allegedly designed by the China-based group in previous attacks against U.S. and Vietnamese national defense computer networks.



The cybersecurity company said that the hackers made it appear that the spear-phishing attack was sent as an email by someone known to the recipient. It was designed to collect information such military manoeuvres, command and control systems and policy issues.



The report said that there was no direct evidence to link the Chinese government to the failed hacking attempt.



The hackers were identified by FireEye's iSight unit through the command and control system, which used an IP address with a domain previously used by the China-based group. FireEye first identified the system in June but the document surfaced only last month.



The file, which has been distributed via email, contains details of the visit to the aircraft carrier on July 11.



A FireEye expert said that cyberespionage heightened in the region astensions over the South China Sea escalated.



"Many governments and militaries in Southeast Asia lack cybersecurity controls that can effectively match these elevated threats," Bryce Boland, the group's Asia-Pacific chief technology officer, said.



"For example, personal webmail and unmanaged devices aren't unusual, and many organisations lack the technology to detect unique attacks which haven't been seen before," the expert added.



The U.S. aircraft carrier and its escort ships conducted 53 days of operations in the western Pacific and the South China Sea, this year, which were intended "to maintain the seas open for all to use," according to a U.S. Navy statement.



"As a matter of policy and for reasons of operations security, we won't comment on alleged vulnerabilities in networks or our efforts to mitigate them. We have full confidence in the integrity of the Navy's networks on which we conduct critical operations," Commander Clay Doss, a spokesman for the U.S. Pacific Fleet, said.



A U.S. Navy official said that the aircraft carrier's classified information systems were not affected, as well as the ships operation in the South China Sea.


USPS focuses on parcel delivery, U.S. stamp popular in China: Weeks Most Read

Oct 28, 2016, 5 AM

The week's top post on Linns.com focused on the United States Postal Service's parcel delivery being the one segment of the mail that has grown substantially in recent years.

Its time to catch up on the week that was in stamp-collecting insights and news.

Linns Stamp News is looking back at its five most-read stories of the week.

Click the links to read the stories.

5. Monday Morning Brief | United States Nativity stamp: Chad Snee discusses the Nativity stamp to be issued Nov. 3 by the United States Postal Service and also reports on Irelands dog license revenue stamps.

4. Highly regarded dealers collection, including Jenny Invert, offered by Siegel: Irwin Weinberg died May 2 at age 88. He is known for his stint as part owner and guardian of the world's most valuable stamp.

3. A simple explanation of stamp-collecting terminology: What makes a stamp or cover or other philatelic item postal history? Sometimes it can be confusing, so let's quickly clear it up.

2. The U.S. stamp thats in demand by Chinese collectors: For the second straight week, our experts tip off philatelists to a U.S. stamp which is popular due to its demand in China.

1. Parcel delivery could be the future of the U.S. Postal Service: Parcel delivery is the one segment of the mail that has grown dramatically, while first-class letters continue to decline.

Connect with Linns Stamp News:

Sign up for our newsletter

Like us on Facebook

Follow us on Twitter
Chinese Officials in Hot Water for Stuffing Cotton Gauze into Air Monitoring Equipment to Falsify Results

A Chinese woman looks at her phone as Chinese Paramilitary police wear masks to protect against pollution as they stand guard in heavy smog in Tiananmen Square on Dec. 9, 2015 in Beijing, China. (Photo : Getty Images)

Chinese authorities have arrested five local officials after they reportedly stuffed cotton gauze into sensors used to monitor pollution in an attempt to improve air quality readings.



The environmental officials also allegedly tampered with monitoring equipment to alter the results of pollution readings in the northern city of Xian, according to local media reports.



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China has vowed to wage a "war on pollution," with Beijing setting targets for local governments to curb smog levels.



The collated emissions data is also being used to identify and punish high-polluting business, although ensuring the information is reliable has proved to be a challenge.



An official from the Environment Protection Bureau in Xian's Chang'an District told the U.K.-based newspaper The Telegraph that local police had detained a group of officials in an investigation into tampered air quality data.



According to the state-owned Global Times newspaper, officials in charge of environmental protection blocked the sampling equipment in an attempt to make the data "look better" and avoid penalties for high pollution in their area of responsibility.



Readings of PM 2.5, which are toxic microscopic particles that penetrate deep into the lungs, have been reported to decrease by 30 percent to 50 percent if cotton is used to cover the air monitoring equipment, an expert cited by the Beijing News as saying.



"Data fraud severely impacts the public's right to know, and air quality data is an important measuring index used by environmental protection bureaus to make decisions," Ma Jun, a Chinese environmental activist, told The Telegraph.



China's Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) has promised to crack down on false air quality readings, but cases of falsified date have been reported in the past.



In 2015, local Chinese media reported officials in the northern city of Hanzhong had been altering PM 2.5 readings by spraying the sampling equipment with water from a fire hose.



Pollution has been a major issue in China, with Party leaders repeatedly saying they are making efforts to deal with the toxic haze affecting large swathes of the country.



Approximately 1.6 million people are estimated to have died each year in China as a result of pollution.



"Citizens have a right to know about the quality of the air they breathe, in order to protect their and their family's health. Reliable data is the very starting point of China's 'war on pollution,'" said Dong Liansai, a climate and energy activist with Greenpeace East Asia.


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Guo Chuan (Photo : Twitter)

The search for a Chinese sailor who was reported missing in the Pacific earlier this week while trying to set a world record has been suspended, the U.S. Coast Guard said.



Go Chuan was attempting to sail non-stop across the Pacific Ocean within 20 days. The current world trans-Pacific record is 21 days, set by crews on board the Italian Maserati.



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The U.S. Coast Guard was searching waters of Hawaii, where his boat was found without him aboard.



Rescue personnel boarded his drifting yacht and confirmed he was not there but found his life jacket, according to the BBC.



"Our deepest condolences go out not only to his family and friends but also to his racing team and the sailing community," Coast Guard Captain Robert Hendrickson said in a statement to the press.



Guo "was a professional mariner with a deep passion for sailing," he said.



A professional sailor for over 10 years, Guo gained fame in China after becoming the first Chinese to circumnavigate the globe alone in 2013. He also holds the world record for sailing across the Arctic Ocean Northeast Passage non-stop in 2015.



Guo set sail from San Francisco on Oct. 18 in his 97ft (26.5m) trimaran to travel an estimated 7,000 nautical miles to Shanghai. His support team lost contact with him on Tuesday.



A search and rescue aircraft was sent shortly afterward to his last coordinates, about 600 miles (1,000 km) off the Hawaiian island of Oahu. His boat, the Qingdao China, was spotted with its mainsail snapped off and in the water.



Guo's team posted on his official website that the "crew of USS Mankin Island has visited the boat but did not find Guo" and have collected all of Guo's belongings aboard for his family.


Round Island burrowing boa, extinct in 1975 (Photo : National Geographic)

It's an impossibly cruel figure but it's true: humans have been the main cause of the loss of more than half of all the living species on Earth since the 1970s. If allowed to continue, a Sixth Mass Extinction might become possible and some scientists are saying this event has already begun.



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The numbers of mammals, birds and fish plunged an average of 58 percent between 1970 and 2012, reported the World Wildlife Federation (WWF) and the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) in The Living Planet report published Oct. 25.



Wildlife populations could decline by 67 percent compared to 1970 by the end of the decade if nothing is done, the report said.



An assessment of 14,152 populations of 3,706 species of mammals, birds, fish, amphibians and reptiles from around the world reveals a 58 percent plunge between 1970 and 2012 -- with no sign the average two percent drop in numbers each year will slow.



Overall terrestrial species, which are found in habitats ranging from grasslands to forests, have seen populations plummet by two-fifths since 1970.



Freshwater species are faring far worse, with declines of four-fifths between 1970 and 2012.



These figures prompted experts to warn nature was facing a global "mass extinction" for the first time since the destruction of the dinosaurs.



Human behavior continues to drive the decline, especially in freshwater habitats, said Ken Norris, director of science at ZSL. Human activities such as poaching, farming, fishing, wildlife trafficking, mining and pollution are pushing wildlife "to the edge," with these anthropogenic reasons being worsened by climate change.



"Importantly, however, these are declines -- they are not yet extinctions -- and this should be a wake-up call to marshal efforts to promote the recovery of these populations," said Norris.



For decades scientists have been warning that human actions are pushing life toward a Sixth Mass Extinction. Evidence in this year's Living Planet Report supports this, said Marco Lambertini, WWF director general.



"We are feeling the impact of a sick planet -- from social, economic and climate stability to energy, food and water security -- all increasingly suffering from environmental degradation.



Moving toward a more resilient planet, however, will require a huge shift toward more sustainable, renewable energy, and for people in rich nations to eat less animal protein and reduce waste, said the report.



Lambertini said there is evidence things are beginning to change, noting global carbon dioxide emissions have stabilized over the past two years. More needs to be done, however.



"Without action, the Earth will become much less hospitable for all of us," the report said.


'Spider-Man: Homecoming' rumors: Green Goblin, Venom to appear in the film likely; Tom Holland teases new 'Spidey' sequel soon!

Tom Holland as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in the "Captain America: Civil War and the new "Spider-Man" 2017 film. (Photo : Facebook/Marvel)

New details and possible spoilers of "Spider-Man: Homecoming" will feature two villains in the film and more sequels coming soon.



Several rumors are making rounds regarding two villains from the Spider-Man mythos appearing in "Spider-Man: Homecoming" as a report from Schmoes Know that this character will have a huge impact on Peter Parker/Spider-Man's (Tom Holland) life in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.



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These two villains are teased to be Norman Osborn/Green Goblin and Eddie Brock/Venom. They are considered as Spider-Man's greatest foes as Green Goblin was responsible for killing Gwen Stacy, Peter's first love and failure in the comics, while Venom has deadly vendetta against him for abandoning the symbiote and for destroying Brock's career as a journalist.



In addition, there is also a non-powered character who is dating Peter's aunt, May Parker (Marisa Tomei) and he is played by Logan Marshall-Green. The two will likely butt-heads due to the fact that Green tries to connect to Peter, while the latter does not approve of him trying to be a father like figure.



Three villains will appear in "Spider-Man: Homecoming" and they are Adrian Toomes/The Vulture (Michael Keaton), Shocker (Bookem Woodbine) and The Tinkerer (Michael Chernus).



Meanwhile, Holland teased that a Spider-Man film sequel after homecoming as he told WWD that the second movie could in the works along with a new villain.



Although there are no announcement yet regarding "Spider-Man: Homecoming's" teaser trailer, Sony and Marvel are already pleased with what they made and Holland's portrayal of the web-slinger in "Captain America: Civil War" had been reinvigorated with interest by old and young movie goers and Marvel fans.



Holland added that Spider-Man's appearance in "Avengers: Infinity War" is as he stated in an interview that it is still "up in the air" and negotiations are being made.



Previous reports revealed that Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) will join the Avengers during the events of "Infinity War" along with the Guardians of the Galaxy to fight Thanos (Josh Brolin). It is safe to say that Holland's will likely reprise his role as Spider-Man in "Avengers Infinity War" or in the next Avengers film considering that "Ant-Man" star Evangeline Lilly teased that Hope Van Dyne/Wasp appearance in the next instalment.



"Spider-Man: Homecoming" will be release on July 7, 2017.


Actors Wagner Moura and Boyd Holbrook attend the Premiere of Netflix's 'Narcos' Season 2 at ArcLight Cinemas on August 24, 2016 in Hollywood, California. (Photo : Getty Images/ Frazer Harrison)

It was last September when the hit Netflix series, "Narcos," ended its second installment with the farewell of its former lead character, Pablo Escobar (Wagner Moura). With the third season already confirmed, recent reports say that Pedro Pascal is returning to reprise his role as DEA Agent Javier Pena.



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According to iTechPost, the show's official twitter page posted a picture of agent Pena standing on a podium and he seems to be addressing reporters relating to the death of Pablo Escobar. It can be remembered that Pena was the agent assigned to look into Escobar's drug trade, but he was pulled off the case prior to the arrest of the drug King Pin.



The same publication cited the statement of the real agent Pena, saying that he was not involved in the Cali Cartel case. It was already confirmed that "Narcos" Season 3 is going to showcase the Cali Cartel. With that said, the executive producer of the series, Eric Newman, said in an interview that he still needs to connect things regarding agent Pena and his possible role in taking down the Cali Cartel. Newman added that he loves working with Pedro Pascal, and that it would be great to be back working with the said actor again.



In addition, the same report noted that agent Steve Murphy, played by Boyd Holbrook, might not have a chance to return in "Narcos" Season 3. Sources say that Murphy left Colombia after Escobar's death.



On the other note, News Everyday cited several sources claiming that the Cali Cartel is way bigger than Pablo Escobar's drug trade. It was said that the Cali Cartel is a complex organization with various members, and it was operating about 90 percent of the drug industry in the United States. It was also cited that the said cartel rose on top of the drug chain right after the fall of the Medellin Cartel.



As of the moment, there is no official confirmation relating to the premiere of "Narcos" Season 3, but reports claim that it would most likely be next fall.


Holy Site

(Image credit: Uriel Sinai / Stringer)

Candles lit by sacred fire light up the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem in April 2011. The church is said to be built over the original burial place of Jesus Christ. The structure in the middle of the dome is the Holy Edicule, which is built directly over the tomb. Marble slabs have covered the original bedrock of the tomb since at least A.D. 1555.

Conserving the Christ's tomb

(Image credit: ODED BALILTY / NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC)

The Holy Edicule, the shrine that surrounds the rock tomb traditionally believed to belong to Jesus Christ, sits within the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. Here, a conservation team led by the National Technical University of Athens works on a long-awaited restoration project of the structure. The three church sects that control the site agreed on the need for restoration in 1958, but it took nearly half a century to agree on a proposal and secure funding. National Geographic was a partner in the project, which was led by the National Technical University of Athens.

Pilgrimage site

(Image credit: Spencer Platt / Staff)

A woman crosses herself in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in November 2014. The site was identified as a holy shrine by Helena, mother of the first Christian Roman emperor Constantine, in A.D. 326. The Edicule structure was built over the remains of the burial cave, allowing pilgrims to peer down at the rock slab where Jesus' body was said to have rested. The modern-day Edicule is only about 200 years old, having been rebuilt between 1808 and 1810 after a fire.

Tomb of Jesus

(Image credit: DUSAN VRANIC/NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC)

Workers remove a marble slab covering the original stone "burial bed" where Jesus Christ is said to have been laid to rest after being crucified. The marble slabs were placed to protect the rock from graffiti and vandalism by souvenir-seekers, Robert Cargill, an archaeologist and author of "The Cities that Built the Bible" (HarperOne, 2016), told Live Science.

The conservation efforts of October 2016 are the first time in recorded history all of these slabs have been removed.

A layer of loose fill material is seen beneath. Scientists were surprised at how much of the original cave structure remained, said National Geographic archaeologist-in-residence Fredrik Hiebert. National Geographic, a partner in the excavations, was the first to report (opens in new tab) the opening of the tomb.

Historical Jerusalem

(Image credit: Hulton Archive / Stringer)

A photograph taken around 1900 shows the dome of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City of Jerusalem. The Pool of Hezekiah, drained, is seen in the foreground.

Church altar

(Image credit: Three Lions/Getty Images)

Another photograph of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre taken around 1950 shows the altar, which is referred to in St. Luke's Gospel as the site of Jesus' resurrection. The building is constructed over what is traditionally believed to be the burial place of Jesus as well as the spot where he was crucified. Archaeologically speaking, there is no direct evidence that Jesus died or was buried here, Cargill told Live Science, but the site is an important one for the cultural tradition of Christians.

Worshipers of many sects

(Image credit: Uriel Sinai / Stringer)

Uriel Sinai / Stringer

Stone of the Anointing

(Image credit: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

A pilgrim runs her hand across the Stone of Anointing in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in 2014. This stone is traditionally held to be the spot where Jesus Christ's body was prepared for burial after crucifixion. Pilgrims have been coming to the church since the fourth century A.D.

Around the Edicule

(Image credit: Lior Mizrahi/Getty Images)

A view of the Edicule built over the stone slab said to be the tomb of Jesus Christ. This structure dates back to 1810, but as conservationists worked to stabilize it in October 2016, they found marble from the 1810 reconstruction over marble from the 1400s and 1100s. These slabs will be stabilized with mortar to preserve the structure permanently.

Here, Christian priests watch workers clean the floor on May 23, 2014 in preparation for the visit of Pope Francis, who visited both the West Bank and Israel.

Restoration project

(Image credit: ODED BALILTY / NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC)

A restorer brushes loose dirt and dust from the original limestone surface of what is said to be the tomb of Jesus Christ. A team from the National Technical University of Athens exposed this surface for the first time in centuries on Friday during a project to shore up the Holy Edicule, the shrine around the tomb in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.

Cross engraving

(Image credit: ODED BALILTY / NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC)

An unobscured view of the limestone bedrock of the tomb said to belong to Jesus Christ. This bedrock has been covered with protective marble slabs since at least 1555. The marble slab engraved with a cross seen here may date back to the Crusader era, between the 1000s and the 1500s.
KickassTorrents (commonly abbreviated KAT) was a website that provided a directory for torrent files and magnet links to facilitate peer-to-peer file sharing using the BitTorrent protocol. (Photo : YouTube/BNO News)

The top torrent websites in the world, such as The Pirate Bay, Kickass Torrents and Torrentz, have unfortunately been shut down due to numerous legal issues. Hence, the torrent users are forced to look for new torrent alternatives for them, wherein the leading contenders are Zooqle, DxTorrent, 123Movies and Vertor.



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The debacle of the torrent websites started with the arrest of Kickass Torrents founder Artem Paulim in Poland. As a result, the website was forced offline. Numerous mirror sites cropped up trying to latch on the brand name of Kickass Torrents, but they could not continue for long.



However, the most popular Kickass Torrents mirror is Kat.cr, which has the same look and feel as the parent website. It also has the same database and users who are familiar with Kickass Torrents are happy that they are able to access their old torrents easily.



After Kickass Torrents, another torrent website crashed and it was none other than Torrentz. The owners of Torrentz were issued legal notices for copyright infringement and they had to close down the website.



As the number one torrent website in the world Kickass Torrents had closed so the traffic shifted to other functional torrent sites. As a result, The Pirate Bay become the "King of Torrents" once again, according to Torrent Freak. Extra Torrent also gained millions of followers and they occupied the second position in the torrent world.



However, the victory for The Pirate Bay was short-lived as its service provider CloudFlare was issued legal notices and was forced offline, according to the same publication. This closure had a direct effect on The Pirate Bay as it was also forced offline in a matter of a few weeks.



Due to the closure of The Pirate Bay, Torrentz and Kickass Torrents, torrent lovers were forced to hunt for some new alternatives to download their torrents. Torrent sites such as Zooqle, Vertor and DxTorrent are good sources to get the latest torrents for Hollywood releases and for other domains such as books and music. 123Movies is currently one of the best sources for movie torrents as it has the latest collection of the films.



Watch the video to know more about the Kickass Torrent alternatives here:






Europe's ExoMars lander gauged out a crater 1.6 feet (0.5 meters) deep and nearly 8 feet (2.4 m) wide when it crashed into the Red Planet's surface last week, a new photo by a NASA Mars orbiter reveals.

The lander, known as Schiaparelli, apparently deployed its parachute prematurely and didn't fire its thrusters nearly long enough to pull off a soft landing as planned on Oct. 19, European Space Agency (ESA) officials have said.

The new image, which was captured by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) on Tuesday (Oct. 25), shows the aftermath of Schiaparelli's violent impact. [In Photos: Europe's Schiaparelli Mars Landing Day]

This Oct. 25, 2016, image from the HiRISE camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows the area where Europe's Schiaparelli lander struck Mars. The inset at center shows where the main lander hit; at bottom is Schiaparellis parachute and back heat shield, while the inset at upper right shows the front heat shield. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona)

First of all, there's the main crater, which the lander blasted out when it hit the surface at a speed of about 180 mph (300 km/h). The fuzzy dark smudges around the central crater are difficult to interpret at the moment, ESA officials said: These markings are asymmetrical, which suggests that the impactor was traveling at a low angle to the ground, but Schiaparelli should have been descending pretty much perpendicular to the surface when it hit.

"It is possible the hydrazine propellant tanks in the module exploded preferentially in one direction upon impact, throwing debris from the planets surface in the direction of the blast, but more analysis is needed to explore this idea further," ESA officials wrote in an update today (Oct. 27).

"An additional long, dark arc is seen to the upper right of the dark patch but is currently unexplained," they added. "It may also be linked to the impact and possible explosion."

About 0.9 miles (1.4 kilometers) south of this crater is a bright feature above a smaller gray disk, which are almost certainly Schiaparelli's 39-foot-wide (12 m) parachute and its attached rear heat shield, respectively, ESA officials said.

Another bright feature 0.9 miles (1.4 km) east of the Schiaparelli crater is probably the lander's front heat shield, they added.

"The mottled bright and dark appearance of this feature is interpreted as reflections from the multilayered thermal insulation that covers the inside of the front heatshield. Further imaging from different angles should be able to confirm this interpretation," ESA officials wrote in the update. "The dark features around the front heatshield are likely from surface dust disturbed during impact."

Schiaparelli launched in March 2016 along with the Trace Gas Orbiter. Together, the two spacecraft make up the ExoMars 2016 mission  the first part of the two-phase ExoMars program, which ESA leads with assistance from its chief partner, the Russian federal space agency Roscosmos.

The second phase of ExoMars aims to land a life-hunting rover on the Red Planet's surface in 2021. Schiaparelli's main goal was to test out the technologies needed to get this rover down safely, and the data gathered during the lander's Oct. 19 descent should be helpful in this regard, ESA officials have said.

The ExoMars team expects to wrap up its investigation into what exactly happened during Schiaparelli's descent by mid-November, ESA officials added.

The landing site of ExoMars Schiaparelli lander within the predicted landing ellipse (top), along with zoomed-in, before-and-after views (bottom left and bottom right, respectively) showing evidence of the landers crash on Oct. 19, 2016. (Image credit: Main image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS, Arizona State University; inserts: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS)

TGO, for its part, aced a crucial orbit-insertion burn on Oct. 19 and is in good shape as it loops around Mars on a highly elliptical, four-day-long orbit, mission team members said. Early next year, the spacecraft will begin moving into its final science orbit, a circular path with an altitude of 250 miles (400 km).

TGO should reach that orbit by March 2018, at which point the spacecraft will begin hunting for buried water ice and sniffing the Martian atmosphere for methane and other gases that could be signs of life. This science mission will last for about two years. TGO will also serve as a communications relay for the ExoMars rover and other surface craft before ending operations in 2022.

MRO took the new photo with its supersharp High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera. The Schiaparelli crash site was first identified last week in images captured by MRO's lower-resolution CTX camera.

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.
Woolly mammoths were closely related to today's Asian elephants. They looked a lot like their modern cousins, except for one major difference. They were covered in a thick coat of brown hair to keep them warm in their home on the frigid Arctic plains. They even had fur-lined ears.

Their large, curved tusks may have been used for fighting. They also may have been used as a digging tool for foraging meals of shrubs, grasses, roots and other small plants from under the snow.

CT scans have revealed that an exquisitely well-preserved baby mammoth from Siberia (named Lyuba and shown here) died after choking on mud more than 40,000 years ago. (Image credit: University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology)

Though woolly mammoths went extinct around 10,000 years ago, humans know quite a bit about them because of where they lived. The permafrost of the Arctic preserved many woolly mammoth bodies almost intact. When the ground around riverbanks and streams erodes, it often reveals the corpse of a long-dead mammoth that looks much like it did when it died.

For example, in 2007 in Siberia, a pair of mummified baby mammoths were found. The bodies were so well preserved that CT scans found the mammoths died from choking on mud 40,000 years ago. The mud was like a "really thick batter that they got clogged in their trachea and they were unable to dislodge by coughing," said study co-author Daniel Fisher, the director of the University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology. "It basically prevented them from taking them another breath." [Last Terrifying Moments of Baby Mammoths Revealed]

Botanist Mikhail Ivanovich Adams recovered the first Siberian woolly mammoth fossils in 1806. Over a dozen soft-tissue specimens have been found since then.

Size

Woolly mammoths were around 13 feet (4 meters) tall and weighed around 6 tons (5.44 metric tons), according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature(IUCN). Some of the hairs on woolly mammoths could reach up to 3 feet (1 m) long, according to National Geographic (opens in new tab).

The mummified carcass of the 39,000-year-old woolly mammoth nicknamed Yuka. (Image credit: Courtesy of Anastasia Kharlamova)

Habitat

Though woolly mammoths are known for living in the frigid planes of the Arctic, mammoths actually arrived there from a much warmer home. Research by a team from the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada, found that the ancestors of both the mammoth and Asian elephant originated in Africa 6.7 million to 7 million years ago. They seemed to have stayed there for about 4 million years before moving up into Southern Europe.

Scientists are developing a theoretical process for resurrecting the extinct animals by genetically engineering elephants. [ See full infographic (Image credit: by Karl Tate, Infographics Artist)

Then, about a million years later, they spread out even further to the area that is now called Siberia and the northern plains of Canada. During this time, "a cataclysmic event occurred on Earth  the Ice Ages," said Kevin Campbell of the University of Manitoba research team. [Related: How Woolly Mammoths Survived Arctic Cold]

The woolly mammoths survival in much colder climates is credited by the research team to small genetic mutations that may have changed the way oxygen was delivered by its blood that could have kept them warmer.

Can the woolly mammoth be brought back?

Because many mammoth corpses are so well preserved, scientist have been able to extract DNA from the animals. One particularly good specimen was a female mammoth in her 50s, nicknamed Buttercup, that lived about 40,000 years ago.

In theory, this DNA could be used to clone woolly mammoths, bringing them back from extinction. In fact, there is a project called The Woolly Mammoth Revival that is working toward making this idea a reality.

This concept is highly contested in the scientific world. Some objections are that the mammoths habitat isnt what it was when the creature roamed the Earth, so where would it live? Others contest that a habitat could be created for the creatures if they were brought back.

Another concern is how microbes have changed in the 10,000 years since woolly mammoths have roamed the Earth. Animals rely on microbes to help digest food. If the mammoths microbes went extinct, the animal may suffer if brought back. "In many cases, the overall phenotypes [physical appearance] of organisms and their ability to digest food is directly tied to the microorganisms in them," said Susan Perkins, a curator at the American Museum of Natural History. [Related: Woolly Mammoth Comeback? 5 Ethical Challenges]

So far, Harvard geneticist George Church and colleagues (opens in new tab) have used a gene-editing technique to insert mammoth genes into the DNA of elephant skin cells. This is far from cloning mammoths, but it is a first step to manipulating the DNA found in mammoth corpses.

Additional resources
With "elimination communication," parents start to potty train at birth and follow their baby's cues.

This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.

It can often be pretty difficult to convince a determined 2-year-old to quit nappies.

To avoid this conflict, many families are adopting a different approach to toilet training, one that is more commonly used in other parts of the world, including China, parts of Africa, India, and South and Central America.

This method, called Elimination Communication (EC or assisted infant toilet training), is becoming increasingly popular in the West.

It involves starting toilet training from birth by following the childs cues.

Toilet training from birth

Instead of using nappies, children learn to go in an appropriate receptacle from two weeks old. Babies are placed on the toilet or some other suitable place (such as a cup, a potty, a bucket or even the ground) after a meal or when they show signs of wanting to eliminate. If the baby does this right, it is rewarded with food or affection.

As far back as 1977, researchers suggested,

sociocultural factors are more important determinants of toilet training readiness than is currently thought.

Research shows this process can help babies quickly learn to eliminate in a convenient place.

It works through two way communication between the caregiver and the infant. Caregivers follow the infants cues and can also signal to the baby to eliminate.

How effective is it?

Some argue, based on this cultural difference, that babies are aware of their need to eliminate from birth. Others suggest that infants prefer to be dry and would rather not be left in a dirty nappy. It is this preference that makes elimination communication easy.

One study found that children who used this method (from 33 days) were toilet trained by five months of age.

In this study, the parents noted the childs signal to eliminate and held the infants back to the caregivers chest while sitting over a toilet.

While the baby eliminated, the caregiver used vocal signals to reinforce the behaviour.

Usually these signals are a psss sound for urine and a different sound for faeces (were trialling this method and using a plop sound).

Cultural and social differences around nappy use

Parents in western countries generally use nappies to manage babies and young childrens waste.

Some parents prefer disposable nappies, which are said to reduce nappy rash  a red and inflamed rash around the nappy area, caused principally by wetness and bacteria or yeast  and other skin conditions including eczema.

For others, environmental concerns (opens in new tab) mean reusable nappies are preferred. Reusable nappies are usually made of cotton.

There are two types: two-part nappies that often have an insert and an outer, waterproof, layer; and all-in-one nappies that combine the inner absorbent layer with the waterproof outer layer. Parents also need nappy liners. But cloth might not be as environmentally responsible as many parents believe.

There is evidence of major environmental issues including the water and pesticides used in cotton farming, the principal ingredient in reusable nappies.

The need for cleaning products, hot water and constant washing may also be environmentally damaging. Cloth nappies generally soak through more quickly than disposables and need to be changed more often.

Whats more, the care-givers labour is not cost neutral and may not be factored into the evaluation of cost and benefits of reusables.

Western families increasing age of toilet training

Toilet readiness is usually considered a developmental milestone, where bladder and bowel control is linked to maturation.

For toilet training to be successful, children must be able to walk to the toilet after recognising the need to eliminate, manage clothing, eliminate fully, clean, manage clothing again and flush.

Over the last 80 years, Western families have been increasing the age at which they toilet train, from less than 18 months 40 years ago, to between 21 and 36 months today.

Starting toilet training at 18 months may be related to medical advice.

Thinking about when to start toilet training has shifted since the early 20th century.

In the 1920s, for instance, 12 months was considered suitable. By the 1960s, the advice was later than 18 months. Researchers suggest changes may be due to parents work schedules, convenient disposables and a more liberal approach to parenting.

Children with special needs may take longer learning to use the toilet.

The relationship between caregivers and babies is complex. It may be that, with careful observation of infants cues, parents can learn to understand their childs needs.

We are certainly hoping so in our family to avoid buying nappies for three more years and cleaning up after inevitable misses.

Rebecca English, Lecturer in Education, Queensland University of Technology

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
The Ross Sea is home to 26 percent of the world's emperor penguins, according to the Pew Charitable Trust.

The world's largest marine reserve, nearly twice the size of Texas, has been established off the coast of Antarctica this week.

The isolated but wildlife-rich Ross Sea in the Southern Ocean is already thought to be one of the least-altered marine environments (opens in new tab) on the planet. The new agreement means that an area covering 598,000 square miles (1.55 million square kilometers) of this sea will be further protected from human activities like fishing.

The reserve was unanimously approved today (Oct. 28) by all 25 members of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) at their meeting in Hobart, Australia. The agreement will come into force in December 2017. [Images: Strange Life on the Antarctic Seafloor]

New Zealand and the United States put forth the proposal to create this marine protected area, or MPA, in 2011. The original proposal would have covered a much bigger area of 875,000 square miles (2.3 million square km). But previous negotiations had failed because of opposition raised by some countries, most notably Russia.

Map shows notable features and facts about Antarctica. (Image credit: by Karl Tate, Infographics Artist)

Under the agreement, 72 percent of the reserve will be a "no-take" zone, where all fishing will be prohibited; some fishing for scientific research will still be allowed in the remaining 28 percent of the reserve, according to the CCAMLR.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said the agreement is "further proof that the world is finally beginning to understand the urgency of the threats facing our planet."

"The Ross Sea Region MPA will safeguard one of the last unspoiled ocean wilderness areas on the planet home to unparalleled marine biodiversity and thriving communities of penguins, seals, whales, seabirds and fish," Kerry said in a statement.

In size, the new MPA surpasses the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument off the coast of Hawaii, which President Barack Obama expanded to cover more than 582,000 square miles (1.5 million square km) earlier this year.

Environmental advocates hailed the newly established reserve off Antarctica.

"This landmark decision represents the first time that nations have agreed to protect a huge area of the ocean that lies beyond the jurisdiction of any individual country and shows that CCAMLR takes its role as protector of Antarctic waters seriously," Andrea Kavanagh, director of Antarctic and Southern Ocean work for The Pew Charitable Trusts, said in a statement.

"This would not have been possible without Russia joining with other countries to pass the proposal," she added.

But some were concerned that the new MPA didn't go far enough to ensure protection. Officials with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) noted that the agreement will expire in 35 years, and said they would push to make the MPA permanent.

"According to the World Conservation Union (IUCN) guidelines, marine protected areas must be permanent," Chris Johnson, WWF-Australia Ocean Science Manager, said in a statement. "WWF has concerns that the Ross Sea agreement does not meet this standard."

Original article on Live Science.
This micrograph shows a sample of brain tissue from a a case of cysticercosis, which is an infection due to the ingestion of eggs of a the parasite Taenia solium.

NEW ORLEANS  Brain infections from a parasite called Taenia solium are more common on Long Island, New York, than experts previously thought, a new study finds.

T. solium is found in raw or undercooked pork. If a person eats undercooked pork that contains this parasite in its larval stage, when it has partially developed, a tapeworm can grow in his or her intestine.

For a person's brain to become infected, an additional step is required: The tapeworm in the intestine must lay eggs, which are excreted from the body in a person's feces. People can get an infection called cysticercosis if even tiny amounts of these eggs somehow wind up in their food or water. (This method of transmission called the oral-fecal route, and is common in the spread of parasites and other pathogens.)

These ingested eggs penetrate though the intestinal wall, and then from there they go on to infect the brain, muscle or other tissues in the body, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). [The 10 Most Diabolical Parasites]

Therefore, people who live in the same house as someone with an intestinal tapeworm have a higher risk of getting cysticercosis than people who don't live with someone with a tapeworm, the CDC says.

People can go years without knowing that they have the infection, said Dr. Amy Spallone, a resident in internal medicine at Stony Brook University Hospital in New York and the lead author of the study.

The parasite may go undetected until the infected person has a seizure, or needs a brain scan for an unrelated issue, Spallone told Live Science.

After doctors at Stony Brook noticed an increase in the number of patients with this type of brain infection, they decided to investigate how common it was on Long Island, she said.

In the study, the researchers looked at all of the cases of T. solium infections over a 10-year period at their hospital. They found 44 cases between 2005 and 2015, with slightly more cases in males than in females, according to the study, which was presented here Thursday (Oct. 27), at IDWeek 2016, a meeting of several organizations focused on infectious diseases.

The researchers noted that they found that brain infections from T. solium were most common in people living in predominantly Hispanic communities, compared with in other communities. Moreover, the majority of the patients had come to the U.S. after living in Central American countries, where the parasite is found in the environment.

It's not entirely clear how the parasite gets into the brain, Spallone said. Indeed, if a person ingests the parasitic eggs, the infection can turn up anywhere in the body, she said.

When it ends up in the brain, however, the consequences are more severe, Spallone said.

Exactly where the parasite goes in the brain affects how a person responds to the infection, Spallone said. In the majority of the cases that Spallone and her co-authors looked at, the infections were in the brain tissue. In certain locations, the infection may cause seizures, for example. The infection can be deadly in some cases. [7 Devastating Infectious Diseases]

However, in some instances, the parasites were found in the tissue just below the brain, near the brain stem, Spallone said. In these cases, patients can develop severe swelling in their brain, because the parasite can block the circulation of the cerebrospinal fluid, she said. This can lead to a condition called hydrocephalus, which requires surgery.

Anti-parasitic drugs are available to treat the infection, Spallone said. However, diagnosing the disease can sometimes be difficult, she said. For example, many people are diagnosed through a brain scan, but it isn't practical to give brain scans to every patient, she said. And although blood tests are available, they don't always pick up signs of the infection, she said. In some cases, doctors will see a lesion on a brain scan but the blood test will come back negative, she said.

Spallone noted that she was surprised by how prevalent the infection was on Long Island. In the rest of the United States, the prevalence of the disease is not well understood, she said.

The findings have not been published in a peer-reviewed journal.

Originally published on Live Science.
Voters in nine states will have the chance this year to decide whether they want to legalize the recreational or medical use of marijuana.

Marijuana is still classified as a Schedule I drug by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), meaning the national agency views it as a substance with high potential for abuse and psychological or physical dependence. As such, cannabis is illegal under federal law.

But that hasn't stopped states from legalizing marijuana within their borders. In 2013, the Department of Justice issued a memo in response to the increasing state-level trend toward legalization stating that the federal government reserves the right to police marijuana when state legalization interferes with the government's priorities, such as keeping pot out of the hands of minors or preventing the drug from crossing state lines. However, the memo made clear that if states strictly regulated their marijuana markets to prevent problems, the DOJ would not step in.

But what exactly does a vote for, or against, the legalization of marijuana mean? And what impact might this legislation have? Here is an at-a-glance guide at the states voting and the issues on the table.

Which states are voting on marijuana?

Five states are voting on whether to legalize marijuana for recreational use by adults. They are:

Arizona: Proposition 205 would allow adults 21 or older to possess up to an ounce of marijuana and grow up to six marijuana plants for personal use. The proposition would create a regulatory body to oversee commercial sellers and allow marijuana retail stores capped at 10 percent the number of liquor-store licenses in the state. A 15 percent excise tax on marijuana sales would fund enforcement of regulations, and additional tax revenue would go to school facilities, kindergarten funding and anti-drug education. Marijuana could not be consumed in public.

California: Proposition 64 would legalize limited marijuana possession and consumption for adults 21 or older and allow personal cultivation of up to six plants. The proposition would establish a Bureau of Marijuana Control to regulate the commercial marketplace for pot. Tax revenue from marijuana sales would go toward funding this bureau. Any remaining funds would be used for public health campaigns aimed at preventing youth drug use, environmental remediation of public lands used for illegal marijuana cultivation, and training of law officers to enforce the new law. Public consumption would remain illegal.

Maine: Question 1 would legalize up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana for adults ages 21 or over and allow for personal cultivation of up to six flowering plants. Public consumption would remain illegal. A 10 percent tax on sales would fund the regulation and enforcement of the commercial market, with leftover funds returned to the state legislature to use in the general budget.

Massachusetts: Question 4 would allow the possession of up to an ounce of marijuana by adults ages 21 or over and the cultivation of up to six plants for personal use. Public consumption would remain illegal. A 3.75 percent excise tax would be added to the 6.25 percent Massachusetts sales tax, and cities could choose to add up to an additional 2 percent tax on marijuana sales in their jurisdiction. Tax revenue would go into a Marijuana Regulation Fund for implementation and enforcement of the new law, and any leftover funds would go into the state's general coffers at the end of the fiscal year.

Nevada: Question 2 would legalize the possession of up to 1 ounce of marijuana or one-eighth of an ounce of marijuana concentrate for adults 21 or older. Cultivation of up to six plants would be allowed for people who do not live within 25 miles of a retail marijuana store. A 15 percent excise tax would fund enforcement and regulation of the market, with leftover money to go to public K-12 education. As in all the states voting this year, public consumption would remain illegal.

Four states are voting on medical marijuana initiatives in 2016. They are:

Arkansas: Issue 6 and Issue 7 deal with the establishment of a medical marijuana system in the state. Issue 6 would make medical marijuana legal for certain medical conditions but require local city and county votes to approve dispensaries and cultivation facilities. Issue 7 would provide a framework for this market, including 39 nonprofit medical cannabis dispensaries and limited home cultivation for people who qualify for medical marijuana but live more than 20 miles from a dispensing center.

Florida: Amendment 2 would legalize medical marijuana for specific medical conditions. The state currently allows some patients to access non-smokable marijuana low in tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the drug's psychoactive ingredient. Amendment 2 would expand this limited system and task the state's Department of Health with overseeing the medical marijuana market.

Montana: Issue 182 likewise expands a currently limited medical marijuana system. The state approved a medical marijuana program in 2004, but state legislators repealed that initiative in favor of a program that allows a physician to prescribe medical marijuana to no more than three patients at a time. Issue 182 would reverse this limitation as well as other limitations of the current law.

North Dakota: Measure 5 would legalize medical marijuana and establish a regulatory system under the Department of Health for regulating and monitoring the market. Patients could receive up to 3 ounces of marijuana, and those who live more than 40 miles from a dispensary would be allowed to cultivate a limited number of plants.

Which states have already legalized marijuana?

Any states that legalize recreational marijuana this year would join Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Colorado and Washington, D.C., in allowing adults to use the drug.

The legal use of marijuana for medical reasons is more widespread, with the following states allowing it: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and West Virginia.

Arguments for marijuana legalization

Keeping marijuana illegal is costly: Proponents for the legalization of marijuana generally argue that prohibition of the drug is more harmful than a legal, regulated marketplace. The advocacy organization NORML cites the high number of Americans who have been arrested for marijuana-related offenses since 1985 as evidence that criminalization harms citizens while doing little to reduce the availability of marijuana. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, 52 percent of all drug arrests nationwide in 2010 were for marijuana; between 2001 and 2010, 8.2 million people were arrested on marijuana-related charges, with 88 percent of those arrests for simple possession (a legal term that means having a small amount of marijuana). The ACLU also found that blacks and whites use marijuana with equal frequency, but blacks are nearly four times more likely than whites to be arrested on marijuana charges.

Legalization doesn't start a wave a teenage use: Advocates also argue that legalization does not make teenagers more likely to use marijuana, which is often given as a reason against legalization. One study that looked at this question found that teenage use of marijuana in Colorado did not change significantly before and after the state legalized the drug. In 2009, the study found, 43 percent of teens said they'd tried marijuana at least once, and 25 percent said they'd used it in the past 30 days. In 2015, after legalization, 38 percent of teens said they'd ever tried marijuana and 21 percent said they had used it within the last 30 days. On average, 21.2 percent of Colorado teens said they were current pot users, compared with 21.7 percent nationally. There has been a shift in Colorado teens toward seeing marijuana use as less risky, from 54 percent who saw it as risky in 2013 to 28 percent in 2015, the researchers noted.

"Just from a logical standpoint, right now marijuana is very easy for kids to get because it's not regulated," said Morgan Fox, a spokesperson for the Marijuana Policy Project, an advocacy organization that promotes marijuana legalization. People who sell Illegal drugs are incentivized not only to sell to kids, Fox said, but to recruit them to sell marijuana, too. In contrast, regulated marijuana retailers are at risk of losing their license and livelihood if they fail to check IDs.

Arguments against marijuana legalization

The drug may affect people's brains: Opponents of marijuana legalization argue that marijuana is, in fact, dangerous. Opponents commonly cite a 1996 study from the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) that compared 65 college students who smoked marijuana nearly every day to 64 who smoked only a few days a month and those who did not smoke at all. Heavy users were more impaired than light users a day after smoking on tasks that required attention and executive function. The finding persisted even after controlling for estimated levels of pre-pot cognitive functioning, the researchers reported, though it was not clear whether the impairment was due to residual effects of marijuana, withdrawal from the drug or neurotoxicity.

Driving while high: Opponents also cite the dangers of driving while high as reason not to legalize marijuana. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, marijuana intoxication does impair driving ability, and marijuana is the substance most frequently found in the blood of drivers who have had accidents. It is not always clear what role marijuana plays in accidents, in part because users often mix it with alcohol. However, the combination of the two appears riskier than either substance alone.

What medical groups say

The American Association of Pediatrics opposes legalization of marijuana for both recreational or medical use, but supports the decriminalization of marijuana to reduce the penalties for marijuana offenses.

"We know marijuana can be very harmful to adolescent health and development," Dr. Seth D. Ammerman, a member of the AAP Committee on Substance Abuse and an author of organization's 2015 policy statement, said in a news release. "Making it more available to adults  even if restrictions are in place  will increase the access for teens. Just the campaigns to legalize marijuana can have the effect of persuading adolescents that marijuana is not dangerous, which can have a devastating impact on their lifelong health and development."

The American Medical Association reaffirmed its opposition to marijuana legalization in 2013, but amended its policy statement to emphasize "public-health-based strategies" instead of punitive approaches like incarceration for reducing use. The organization also reaffirmed its opposition to legalizing marijuana for medical use in 2013, but called for further study of marijuana and cannabinoid compounds as pharmaceuticals.

Some influential physicians do support marijuana legalization. The California Medical Association announced support for the legalization of marijuana in 2011, in part to improve access for physicians who wanted to research the medicinal effects of the drug. (As a Schedule I drug, cannabis is available only on a limited basis for research purposes.) In addition, the group Doctors for Cannabis Regulation formed this year, breaking with official AMA policy. Its founders include former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Joycelyn Elders and Dr. H. Westley Clark, past director of the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

What do we really know about marijuana's health effects?

Research on the health effects of marijuana makes clear why proponents and opponents of legalization often seem to be talking about a different drug. Individual studies differ on fundamental results, like whether heavy marijuana use shrinks the teen brain, meaning that it's easy for both sides to cherry-pick results.

For example: A 2014 study in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences concluded that the drug reduced volumes of gray matter in the orbitofrontal cortex, but a 2015 study that compared siblings and twins who used pot with those who didn't use the drug and found that the brain effects seemed more linked to pre-existing conditions than to the pot itself. Heavy pot users had smaller volumes than nonusers in the amygdala, a brain region associated with fear and reward, and the right ventral striatum, another reward-related region. But their siblings, who shared their genes and environment, also showed smaller volumes in those regions, researchers reported in the journal JAMA Psychiatry. Other research suggests that marijuana interacts with different brains, well  differently. And it's hard to know who is at risk.

"Because of diversity in genotype and environment, one person's sugar may be another's poison," Dr. David Goldman, a neurogeneticist, wrote in an editorial accompanying the 2015 study.

Very few high-quality studies have been done to examine the effect of marijuana on intelligence. The drug clearly affects memory, learning and attention in the short term, but long-term studies have returned conflicting results. A 2012 study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences followed 1,037 New Zealanders from birth to age 38 and found that the participants' IQs dropped, on average, about 6 points after they started using marijuana. Another study, published in 2016, followed marijuana users and nonusers into middle age and found that the only effect of marijuana use over time was worsened verbal memory. Meanwhile, another study in 2016 compared twin users and nonusers and found, like the 2015 sibling study, that intelligence declines were explained by shared environment and genes, not pot use.

Regular marijuana smoking damages lung tissue and can cause chronic bronchitis, according to a 2013 review in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society. Heavy use may increase cancer risk or other lung diseases, but the risks appear less serious than those caused by tobacco smoking.

Cannabis seems to suppress the immune system in mice, according to a 2010 study.

More information on marijuana:

Statistics, trends and latest research at the National Institute on Drug Abuse

Marijuana Fact Sheet at the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Medical Marijuana page at the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health.

Legalities and policy at the Office of National Drug Control Policy

LiveScience's Election 2016 Coverage

Election Day 2016: A Guide to the When, Why, What and How

Democratic Party Platform: We Fact-Checked the Science

Republican Party Platform: We Fact-Checked the Science

Editor's note: This article was updated on Nov. 9 to include Alaska among the states where the recreational use of marijuana is already legal.

Original article on Live Science.
The, entire skeleton of <i>Tetrapodophis</i> with its head ending in a curly-q on the left.

SALT LAKE CITY  A critter heralded as the first four-legged fossil snake on record may actually not be a snake, according to new research. Instead, the 120-million-year-old creature is likely a dolichosaurid, an extinct four-legged marine lizard with an elongated, snake-like body, a new analysis of the specimen finds.

"Tetrapodophis doesn't show any of those features that you would expect to see in a snake," said Michael Caldwell, a professor and chair of biological sciences at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada, who is leading the new investigation into the enigmatic fossil.

For instance, Tetrapodophis amplectus doesn't have hooked teeth like a snake does, nor does it have a snake-like skull and skeleton, Caldwell said. Other anatomical details that have been found in ancient and modern snakes are also missing, including the subdental ridge in the mouth and zygosphenes, which are special joints that are found between snake vertebrae, he said. [See Photos of the Four-Legged, Snakelike Creature]

Rather, the creature is likely a dolichosaurid, which falls under the squamate (scaly reptile) umbrella, he said. It's unclear exactly how dolichosaurids are related to snakes, but some evidence suggests they are a sister group to the slithery reptiles, Caldwell said.

Paleontologist Michael Caldwell took a selfie with his finger next to Tetrapodophis amplectus to illustrate the specimen's small size. (Image credit: Michael Caldwell)

He even pointed to the bones of prey that were preserved in the specimen's gut  the animal's last meal before it died. These are likely fish bones  a theory that fits the dolichosaurid interpretation, because dolichosaurids lived in the water, Caldwell said.

Brazilian fossil

T. amplectus made a big splash last year when a study published in the journal Science in July 2015 announced that the fossil was the so-called missing link, which showed that snakes evolved from four-legged lizards. The researchers reported that the 7.8-inch-long (20 centimeters) specimen probably descended from terrestrial burrowers (rather than marine animals), and that it likely used its tiny limbs for grasping prey for hunting and holding mates while reproducing.

David Martill, a co-researcher of the 2015 study and a professor of paleobiology at the University of Portsmouth in England, came across the fossil while he was on a field trip with his students at the Solnhofen Museum (formerly known as the Burgermeister-Muller-Museum) in Germany.

The exhibit featured fossils from the Crato Formation in northeastern Brazil, and one specimen, titled "Unknown fossil," caught Martill's eye. It looked like a snake, but it had four exquisitely small limbs  a feature that had never before been seen in a snake. Martill asked the museum if he could study it, and eventually he and his colleagues named it Tetrapodophis amplectus (which means, literally, four-legged snake).

Brewing controversy

Within two months of the 2015 study's publication, Caldwell and his colleague Robert Reisz, a paleontologist at the University of Toronto, traveled to Germany to see the specimen for themselves. [7 Shocking Snake Stories]

They brought two microscopes with them  a digital and a dissecting microscope  so that they could take photos of the small critter at 200 times the magnification of the naked eye, Caldwell said.

The specimen comprises a part and counterpart  which are basically the sides of the two rocks that held the creature. When the rock was split in two, the "part" retained some pieces of the skull and most of the creature's body, and the "counterpart" retained the other part of the skull. When they were studied together, there were myriad clues that the animal was not a snake, Caldwell said.

However, Caldwell and Reisz may be the last scientists to examine the specimen in person. The fossil is privately owned, and it has since been removed from the museum, meaning other paleontologists can't study it, Caldwell said.

An image taken at 200x magnification showing the teeth of Tetrapodophis amplectus. A new analysis suggests that the teeth were not recumbent (pointing backward) like a snake's, but were simply displaced after the animal died. In contrast, the original analysis describes the teeth as recumbent. (Image credit: Michael Caldwell)

Moreover, the specimen doesn't have a reported provenance, so it's unknown when and where it was found, as well as who sold and bought it, he said. In Brazil, it has been illegal since 1942 to remove holotype fossils (holotypes are the first described specimen of a newfound species) from the country, and there's also a ban on removing paratypes (subsequently found specimens of a known species) without a permit. It's unclear whether T. amplectus was discovered before or after that law went into effect, Caldwell and his colleagues said. However, if it was discovered after 1942, it was likely smuggled out of the country, Caldwell said.

Tiago Simoes, a doctoral candidate of vertebrate paleontology at the University of Alberta, who is working with Caldwell, noted that the fossil is from a region containing limestone that was quarried in the 1960s and 1970s for commercial purposes. Some fossils were found before then, but the vast majority were discovered after the 1942 ruling, said Simoes, who is from Brazil.

"It's highly likely that the material was collected after the 1960s and 1970s," Simoes told Live Science. [6 Strange Species Discovered in Museums]

When placed together, the part and counterpart fossils (top two) form an entire skull (bottom) that is not snakelike, the authors of the new research said. (Image credit: Michael Caldwell)

Given its mysterious past and current out-of-reach status, it might be best to "strike Tetrapodophis from the record of snake evolution until more specimens can be found or that specimen comes back [from the private collector] and can be put in the public trust," said Jason Head, a lecturer in zoology and curator of vertebrate paleontology at the University Museum of Zoology at the University of Cambridge in England, who was not involved with either the 2015 study or the new research.

"[In] the original description, the analysis was not very convincing to begin with," Head said. "It was a very problematic study. Certainly the work that Dr. Caldwell presented today illustrates a lot of the ambiguities of the animal."

But, whether the specimen is a snake remains a mystery.

"We're never going to know whether or not the original analysis was right or wrong, or whether or not Dr. Caldwell's work was right or wrong, because we can't replicate either observation," Head said.

Supersnake

The authors of the original study are defending their work, and said that it's clear that T. amplectus is a four-legged snake.

"I don't think Caldwell has made a case for Tetrapodophis not being a snake," Martill told Live Science in an email. "Some of his observations, such as saying that the teeth are not recumbent [pointing backward], are plain wrong."

He added that, "Tetrapodophis has a single row of belly scales; Tetrapodophis has snake vertebral articulations (although a couple of lizard groups do have these). There are many more snake features, too, based on skull anatomy."

Martill's colleague and co-author Nicholas Longrich, a senior lecturer in evolutionary biology at the University of Bath, in England, said, "I would happily bet a million dollars its a snake." Longrich contested the assessment that the specimen didn't have a subdental ridge or visible zygosphenes, as well as myriad other features that Caldwell and his colleagues listed as missing. Moreover, the prey in the animal's gut likely aren't fish bones, unless it's a Tiktaalik (a fish with limbs), "because the bones in the gut include leg bones," Longrich said.

"Im as confident of Tetrapodophis being a snake as I have ever been of anything in my scientific career," Longrich wrote in an email to Live Science.

Questions about snake limbs remain a popular subject among scientists. Two studies published last week found that snakes likely sported limbs up until about 150 million years ago, when genetic mutations caused them to lose the ability to develop arms and legs. But, if T. amplectus loses its snake status, there will be zero fossil evidence that snakes once had four limbs, "which is a real bummer," Caldwell said.

The research, which has yet to be published in a peer-reviewed journal, was presented Wednesday (Oct. 26) at the 2016 Society of Vertebrate Paleontology meeting.

Original article on Live Science.
Changes in the ice surface of the Amery Ice Shelf in Antarctica reveal the rapid draining of a lake deep below in 2019.

Scientists have discovered two new lakes buried deep beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet.

These hidden gems of frigid water are part of a vast network of ever-changing lakes hidden beneath 1.2 to 2.5 miles (2 to 4 kilometers) of ice on the southernmost continent. These lakes fill and drain over and over again in largely mysterious cycles that may influence how fast the ice sheet moves and how and where meltwater reaches the Southern Ocean. This flow, in turn, can change the currents in the Southern Ocean and potentially affect ocean circulation worldwide.

"It's not just the ice sheet we're talking about," study leader Matthew Siegfried, a geophysicist at the Colorado School of Mines, said in a statement . "We're really talking about a water system that is connected to the whole Earth system."

Related: Photos of Antarctica: The ice-covered bottom of the world

Hidden water

The lakes sit at the bottom of the ice sheet, where the ice meets the rocky Antarctic continent. Unlike in Greenland , where meltwater flows from the ice surface through crevasses and holes called moulins, Antarctica's lakes form from beneath the ice, probably as a result of pressure, friction and perhaps geothermal heat.

This water system was largely invisible until the advent of NASA's ICESat mission in 2003. The ICESat satellite used lasers to precisely measure the elevation of Antarctic ice. In 2007, Scripps Institution of Oceanography glaciologist Helen Amanda Fricker connected the elevation changes measured by ICESat to the dynamics of the lakes deep beneath the ice surface. As the lakes drain and fill, the ice above rises and falls, offering hints as to what's happening below.

Fricker's breakthrough opened up the possibility of tracking the lake system over time. ICESat, however, collected data for only six years. Its European Space Agency equivalent, CryoSat-2, collected similar data starting in 2010 but over a broader area and with less precision. In September 2018, NASA launched a new satellite, ICESat-2, which collects the highest-precision data yet.

"ICESat-2 is like putting on your glasses after using ICESat: The data are such high precision that we can really start to map out the lake boundaries on the surface," Siegfried said.

A dynamic system

In the new study, Siegfried and Fricker combined data from ICESat, CryoSat-2 and ICESat-2 to trace changes in the subglacial lake system from October 2003 to July 2020. They focused on three areas with good satellite coverage and known active lakes: the boundary between the Mercer and Whillans ice streams in West Antarctica; the lower MacAyeal Ice Stream, also in West Antarctica; and the upper Academy Glacier in East Antarctica.

At the Mercer and Whillans boundary, the researchers found two new lakes, which they dubbed the Lower Conway Subglacial Lake and the Lower Mercer Subglacial Lake. They also found that what was thought to be one lake under the MacAyeal ice stream was actually two.

Over time, these lakes experienced major change. The lakes beneath the Mercer and Whillans ice stream boundary are currently undergoing their third period of drainage in 17 years. Meanwhile, all of the lakes beneath the MacAyeal ice stream have followed their own patterns of draining and filling. The lowermost lake went through four fill-drain events during the study period, each taking only about a year to complete. The second lake drained between 2014 and 2015 and is currently filling up again, while the third lake drained just slightly between 2016 and 2017. Meanwhile, the lakes beneath Academy Glacier drained between 2009 and 2018.

All of these changes are puzzle pieces in scientists' understanding of the speed and direction of Antarctica's ice sheet flow. Already, researchers are finding the links between the under-ice lakes and the ocean: In January, a study co-authored by Fricker found that the drainage of one lake on the Amery Ice Shelf in East Antarctica flushed as much as 198 billion gallons (750 billion liters) into the ocean in only three days, Live Science reported at the time.

The new study was published July 7 in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

Originally published on Live Science
Widely considered the greatest genius of all time, Albert Einstein revolutionized our understanding of the cosmos with his general theory of relativity and helped lead us into the atomic age. Yet in the final decades of his life, he was ignored by most working scientists, and his ideas were opposed by even his closest friends. How did this happen? Einstein's imagination and self-confidence served him well when he was young. But when it came to the new field of quantum mechanics, the same traits undermined him. An intimate biography touching on the romances and rivalries of the celebrated physicist, as much as on his scientific goals, "Einstein's Greatest Mistake" reveals what we owe Einstein today  and how much more he might have achieved if not for his all-too-human flaws. Below is an excerpt from "Einstein's Greatest Mistake: A Biography" (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016).

Einstein should have been happy. Revered worldwide since Eddington's confirmation of his theory in 1919, he was awarded the Nobel Prize of 1921 for his work in theoretical physics. Movie stars and royalty wanted to be near him; the mobbed appearances continued. But amidst that acclaim, amidst that fame, Einstein began to worry about one consequence of his celebrated theoryand his professional angst was also compounded by growing stress in his personal life.

His divorce from Mileva Maric (which had finally come through in 1919) had given him freedom, but it had distanced him from his two beloved sons. He tried writing them long chatty letters, but they were in no mood to accept their father's overtures. When he got them to visit him in Berlin, he purchased a telescope and put it on his balcony for them to use, but this didnt help either. When Einstein did travel to Switzerland to take them on the sort of walking holidays they had liked before, everything was mannered, stilted. Once, in exasperation, he wrote to the elder boy, Hans Albert, from Berlin, taking him to task for being so cold. But Hans Albert was just as angry: his father was abandoning them, so how could he expect any kindness in return? Hans Albert later remembered that he felt as if a "gloomy veil" had come over what was left of their family life.

Einstein raged at Maric for poisoning his children's minds against him, but he must have known that he was partly responsibleand for what? Life with Elsa Lowenthal hadnt worked out as he had hoped. He had intended to keep the liaison strictly on his terms, having written to Besso in 1915 that it was "[an] excellent and truly enjoyable relationship . . . ; its stability will be guaranteed by the avoidance of marriage." Lowenthal, however, had a different view, and in June 1919while Eddington was still on the tropical island of Principethey had married. Almost immediately after the wedding, something changed. Maric may have been resentful of the way she was left out of his scientific discussions, but at least she had understood the main lines of his work. Yet although Lowenthals lack of scientific education had been fine when Einstein was on the rebound, now he was discovering that behind her natural ebullience lay an intellect that left much to be desired. "She is no mental brainstorm," he later remarked.

During their courtship, Lowenthal had agreed with Einstein about the pleasures of an informal life and had enjoyed his mocking of wealthy, established Berliners. But once they moved into her seven-room apartment in a building with a grand lobby and a uniformed doorman, he felt trapped among her Persian carpets, heavy furniture, and display cabinets filled with fine porcelain. Some of her friends were thoughtful, but the majority, he was coming to see, were just chattering socialites. Worst of all, she began babying him. "I recall," her daughter wrote, "that my mother often said during lunch, 'Albert, eat: don't dream!'" It was all very far from romantic.

Soon Einstein began to have affairs. His mere presence, an architect who knew him well remembered, "acted upon women as a magnet acts on iron filings." Some of these women were younger than Elsa, some richer, and some both. What they saw was one of the most famous men on the planet, yet one who was unlike the stereotype of the desiccated intellectual. He was still fit and broad-shouldered (as friends who saw him take off his shirt noted); he loved telling wry Jewish jokes, and he had a direct, Swabian use of language. Actresses such as the renowned Luise Rainer soon wished to be seen with him. He spent evenings with a wealthy widow at her villa in Berlin and accompanied another woman, a fashionable entrepreneur, to concerts or the theater, riding with her in her chauffeured limousine.

The contrast between these other women and Elsa, with her chatter and her increasingly baffled disappointment, was painful for everyone. Einstein liked to go sailing, and when he did manage to find free time would head to their country house near a lake not far from Berlin, where he kept his sailboat Tummler (German for "porpoise"). He would go out alone in the boat for hours, dreamingly adjusting the tiller as the winds skidded him here and there. His housekeeper described one regular visitor to the summer house when Elsa was away. "The Austrian woman was younger than Frau Professor," the maid recalled, "and was very attractive, lively, and liked to laugh a lot, just like the Professor." On one memorable occasion, Elsa found another woman's "article of clothing" still on the boat, and they had an argument that, in its cold fury, continued for weeks. Men and women were not designed to be monogamous, he insisted. Elsa confided to a few close friends that living with a genius was not easynot easy at all.

This was not the marriage either of them had wished for. In the letter Einstein wrote to Bessos adult children, consoling them after their father's death, he concluded: "What I admired most in him as a person was the fact that he managed for many years to live with his wife not only in peace but in continuing harmonysomething in which I have rather shamefully failed twice."

If this were Einstein's only failure, it might have been bearable. But he was confronting an even worse problem. Even as early as 1917, at what should have been the peak of his accomplishment, Einstein had discovered what seemed to be a catastrophic flaw in his great G=T equation, and it had been preying on him ever more as the 1920s went on.

Excerpted from "Einstein's Greatest Mistake: A Biography" by David Bodanis. Copyright  2016 by David Bodanis. Used by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Killer Clowns 2016 (Photo : Twitter / UK_Pranksiege)

U.S.citizens are terrified by the rumors of spotting mysterious clowns in different parts of the cities in the country. People are making various plans to celebrate the Halloween festival that falls on October 31. However, on the other hand, rumors indicate that Killer clowns have planned their own purge night to attack the Lehigh Valley and other parts of the US cities on Oct. 30, a day before the Halloween festival.



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Police officials have not yet confirmed the news of existence of such killer clowns in any of the suspected cities. However, the residents have been advised to stay alert.



Whether purge night is going to happen or not on Oct. 30, people are requested to close their doors and windows. They have been also advised to report any suspicious activities that happen in their locality.



Killer Clowns 2016 Purge Map, Locations



According to the rumors apart from Lehigh Valley city, purge night might take place in the cities like: Colorado, Maryland, Virginia, Louisiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee, Ohio, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Florida, Mississippi, Texas, Georgia, and New York .



Not only in the U.S., but also in the U.K., people reported of killer clowns wandering on the streets and interacting with people. The cops have warned those people not to dress as clowns and perform pranks as people are scared by the widespread Killer clown rumors. Even civilians are been warned and told them to be alert while being entertained by the clowns on the street.



Chief Inspector, Paul Staniforth said that Gwent police will deal strictly if anybody is harmed by this kind of act and further he will have criminal record which will impact his future, including any job opportunities, The Guardian reported.



In the U.K, women are being provided free course on how to protect themselves from killer clown attacks. Black belt Odelle Walker, who leads the Aegis Mixed Martial Arts Academy in Beverley is also providing free course on self defense to teenaged girls, Express UK reported.



Here is a compilation video of killer clowns 2016:






The Library of Congress unveiled today a new curated web presentationFood for Thought: Presidents, Prime Ministers, and other National Press Club Luncheon Speakers, 1954-1989that features speeches by 25 of the worlds most important newsmakers, including presidents, international leaders and other political and cultural icons of the period.

Most of these select speeches from the Librarys National Press Club Collection have not been heard in their entirety since they were initially delivered. The online presentation spans 35 years and accompanying essays put relevant historical context around the topics discussed by the speakers.

In recognition of the historical importance of the luncheon talks, the Library of Congress has undertaken to digitize the complete National Press Club collection of recordings, said Eugene DeAnna, head of the Librarys Recorded Sound Section, part of the Librarys Packard Campus for Audio Visual Conservation.

Researchers visiting our Recorded Sound Research Center can listen to any of the hundreds of speeches, but we have selected talks by 25 of the most distinguished speakers. This enlightening online presentation has great potential for use in the classroom because audio has the ability to convey experience and ideas more powerfully than the written word. It can grab a students attention due to its power to establish an experiential connection between listener and speaker, he said.

The selections to the online presentation are part of a trove of nearly 2,000 historic sound recordings in the National Press Club Collection. The 25 selected speakers include:

Muhammad Ali and Ken Norton, Aug. 27, 1976

James Baldwin, Dec. 10, 1986

Menachem Begin, March 23, 1978

Leonard Bernstein, Oct. 13, 1959

James H. Billington, Jan. 12, 1989

George H.W. Bush, March 20, 1981

Jimmy Carter, Oct. 14, 1980

Fidel Castro, April 20, 1959

Charles de Gaulle, April 23, 1960

Dwight D. Eisenhower, Jan. 14, 1959

Gerald R. Ford, June 6, 1988

Audrey Hepburn, April 7, 1989

Alfred Hitchcock, March 14, 1963

Herbert Hoover, March 10, 1954

Bob Hope, July 8, 1980

Nikita Khrushchev, Sept. 16, 1959

Edward R. Murrow, May 24, 1961

Richard M. Nixon, May 21, 1958

A. Philip Randolph, Aug. 26, 1963

Ronald Reagan, June 16, 1966

Anwar Sadat, Feb. 6, 1978

Jonas Salk, April 12, 1965

Adlai E. Stevenson, June 26, 1961

Margaret Thatcher, Sept. 19, 1975

Harry S. Truman, May 10, 1954, April 12, 1958, Dec. 8, 1958, Nov. 2, 1961

Since 1932, the National Press Club (www.press.org) has hosted luncheon gatherings that have allowed presidents, visiting world leaders and other public figures to address the press and answer questions about important current affairs. In 1969, the club donated its collection of audiotapes, which it began recording in 1952.

Some of the prominent newsmakers in Food for Thought used the luncheon speaker series as a forum to make statements they knew would be reported in the next days news. Many talks focused on Cold War topics, such as the Berlin Crisis, the Bay of Pigs incident, Latin American relations and cultural diplomacy activities. Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin both used the Press Club forum to explain their positions to the press and public during strained talks that eventually led to a peace treaty.

A number of the speeches dealt with struggles for civil rights. A. Philip Randolph, national director of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, spoke at the club two days before the march. Edward R. Murrow, who chose the National Press Club for his first speech since his appointment by President Kennedy as the director of the United States Information Agency, emphasized that the U.S. image abroad had been badly impaired by news stories of racial discrimination at home. James Baldwins talk marked one of his last attempts to discuss the meaning and impact of race in American life, insight he had developed over a career that began in the 1940s.

The National Press Club served to introduce international speakers to Washington insiders. Margaret Thatcher made an appearance some four years before she became the first female prime minister in Britains history. Her visit impressed members of the Washington establishment and elevated her credentials as an international leader. Fidel Castro arrived just three months after the overthrow of Cubas Batista regime at a time when most North Americans had yet to form fixed opinions about him or his revolution. Nikita Khrushchev delivered a talk at the National Press Club the day after he arrived in Washington, D.C., the first visit by a Soviet leader to this country.

Some speakers appeared just before a major eventMuhammad Ali and Ken Norton engaged in a verbal sparring match before an upcoming bout. Alfred Hitchcock regaled his Press Club audience with tongue-in-cheek humor during a publicity tour prior to the premiere of The Birds. As goodwill ambassador for UNICEF, Audrey Hepburn spoke at a luncheon a few days before journeying to Sudan, where she publicized the organizations attempt to distribute food, medicine and supplies to more than 2 million people in the southern portion of that war-torn country before the rainy season made conditions impossible for relief efforts to operate.

Some talks took place following historic events. Vice President Richard Nixon spoke a week after he returned from a goodwill trip to South America that ended in a violent demonstration of anti-Americanism that threatened his life. Ronald Reagan came to the National Press Club the week after he secured his first triumph in a campaign for public office, a stunning two-to-one victory in the Republican primary for governor of California. The New York Times viewed Reagans speech as the Washington debut of a potential Presidential candidate.

The Library of Congress Packard Campus for Audio Visual Conservation is a state-of-the-art facility funded as a gift to the nation by the Packard Humanities Institute. The Packard Campus is the site where the nations library acquires, preserves and provides access to the worlds largest and most comprehensive collection of motion pictures, television programs, radio broadcasts and sound recordings (loc.gov/avconservation/). The Packard Campus is home to more than 7 million collection items. It provides staff support for the Library of Congress National Film Preservation Board (loc.gov/film/), the National Recording Preservation Board (loc.gov/rr/record/nrpb/) and the national registries for film and recorded sound.

The Library of Congress is the worlds largest library, offering access to the creative record of the United Statesand extensive materials from around the worldboth on site and online. It is the main research arm of the U.S. Congress and the home of the U.S. Copyright Office. Explore collections, reference services and other programs and plan a visit at loc.gov, access the official site for U.S. federal legislative information at congress.gov, and register creative works of authorship at copyright.gov.
Chris Hemsworth arrives at the Los Angeles Premiere of 'Thor' at the El Capitan Theater on May 2, 2011 in Hollywood, California. (Photo : Gregg DeGuire/FilmMagic)

Being in the spotlight isn't always pretty for celebrities like Chris Hemsworth. Oftentimes, their personal lives become the subject of public attention. In Hemsworth's case, he and his wife, Elsa Pataky, have to deal with divorce rumors that go out of control. The "Thor: Ragnarok" star addressed the reports about his marriage earlier this week in a rather witty manner.



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"Looking for a new wife according to (magazines) and other misleading outlets! Honey you still love me right?!" the 33-year-old captioned a photo of him and Pataky on Instagram. According to news.com.au, divorce rumors began to swirl after a news outlet claimed that Pataky's recent solo trip to Spain was a sign of marital woes in the Hemsworth-Pataky household.



The news outlet further claimed that Hemsworth and Pataky have been living separately, quoting a source, "They've decided they need space, and they've been taking a little break from each other."



Pataky also chimed in, and shared another happy couple photo on Instagram, which she captioned "Ahora y siempre! Always and forever!!"



Hemsworth and Pataky married in 2010 just after a few months of dating. Gushing about his marriage, Hemsworth said, "It just felt right."



"It made sense. There was no great plan to any of it to be honest, we were on holiday and we said, 'Why don't we get married, too?' And then the next minute...There probably should have been some planning, but it all worked out," E! News quoted Hemsworth. "Honestly, we had both our families on holiday at the same time, just randomly, and we said, 'This is a good opportunity with everyone together.' So, we just did it."



In another interview, Hemsworth described Pataky as outgoing and fun, and has a "passionate attitude toward life."



The couple have three children-daughter India Rose and sons Tristan and Sasha. Hemsworth called fatherhood his greatest achievement, and said his kids are "hilarious and insane and crazy. It's good."



In the meantime, Hemsworth is filming "Thor: Ragnarok" in Brisbane and the Gold Coast. "Thor: Ragnarok" is slated for theatrical release on Oct. 25, 2017. Hemsworth was recently seen in the 2016 remake of "Ghostbusters."


This Friday, October 28, AGSI (Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors) members will refuse to undertake any administrative duties such as detailing members for duty.

Approximately 10,500 rank-and-file gardai and 2,000 garda sergeants and inspectors plan to go on strike on the four Fridays in November - leaving between 300 and 400 Superintendents and higher-ranking Gardai to uphold law and order.

Meanwhile, secondary school teachers have announced that they will strike on seven days between October 27 and December 7 next.

The Association of Secondary Teachers in Ireland (ASTI) said it would also be withdrawing supervision and substitution from Monday, November 7.

Other dates earmarked for action include Wednesday, November 16; Thursday, November 24; Tuesday, November 29; Tuesday, December 6 and Wednesday, December 7.

In a statement, the ASTI said that its members had voted by an overwhelming majority to withdraw from supervision and substitution duties.

Discussions are still taking place in relation to action being taken this Thursday.

Withdrawal from supervision and substitution duties, a spokesperson added, takes effect from Monday, November 7.

ASTI President Ed Byrne said that recently qualified teachers spent five to six years training, including obtaining the required Master's qualification for teaching at second-level.

They are then expected to teach alongside colleagues who have completely different pay arrangements for their entire careers, he added.

The sense of injustice amongst all teachers is palpable and ASTI members are committed to achieving equal pay for equal work for all teachers.

78% of ASTI members voted in favour of withdrawal from supervision and substitution over the worsening of members terms and conditions following the ASTIs rejection of the Lansdowne Road Agreement.

The Minister for Education has again described the strike action as unnecessary.

Minister Richard Bruton said his department have been making efforts to resolve the dispute.

I think this is a dispute that is unnecessary; we have a very substantial deal on offer particularly for young teachers, said Minister Bruton.

For example a young teacher who was recruited last September will, under this agreement, get a 22% pay increase so there is a very substantial pay increase available.
The Government's decision to approve almost 230,000 for rural recreation projects in Co Longford is largely down to the continued upturn in Ireland's economic fortunes.

That's according to Longford-Westmeath Senator Gabrielle McFadden, who, this afternoon, rowed in behind the announcement.

Minister of State for Regional Economic Development, Micheal Ring, rubber-stamped the news by allocating 190,000 for the development of a pedestrian bridge in Longford town.

The remaining 37,936, has been allocated to Coillte for the maintenance of forest trails.

Ms McFadden, who is Fine Gael's Defence spokesperson in the Seanad, said the announcement was in keeping with the country's ongoing economic recovery.

"As a Government Senator for Longford/Westmeath I am working hard to ensure that the Government delivers for County Longford," she said.

"We are using the recent economic success to make peoples lives a little better, and funding allocations like this one are very much part of that.

It is hugely important for the health of the nation that we support and encourage people to keep fit and healthy and enjoy the great outdoors. That is why the Government funds and supports 118 projects nationwide under the Rural Recreation Scheme.

For more on this story, see next week's Longford Leader.
Local News, Community, Charity & Cause, Arts & Culture, Press Releases

By Long Island News & PR Published: October 28 2016

The Village of Hempstead recently celebrated the Miss El Salvador and Miss Chiquitita Pageant.

Hempstead, NY - October 26, 2016 - The Village of Hempstead recently celebrated the Miss El Salvador and Miss Chiquitita Pageant, hosted by the Comite Civico Saalvadoreno, Inc., an event which honors the Hispanic American community in the Village. Members of the community recently came together in the pageant to celebrate their heritage and El Salvadorian independence.



Contestants of the Miss El Salvador and Miss Chiquitita Pageant join pageant judges and esteemed members of the Village of Hempstead Civic Committee for a group photo. They were participating in the Pageant to celebrate Hispanic culture and heritage during Hispanic Heritage Month. During the ceremony Deputy Mayor Luis Figueroa thanked the contestants for positively contributing to the Hispanic community in the Village of Hempstead.

This years Miss El Salvador and Miss Chiquitita were each presented with a citation from the Village in acknowledgement of the event and Hispanic Heritage Month. During the ceremony Deputy Mayor Luis Figueroa thanked all the contestants for positively contributing to the Hispanic community in the Village of Hempstead.
Local News, Community, Charity & Cause, Home & Garden, Press Releases

By Long Island News & PR Published: October 28 2016

Governor Andrew Cuomo today announced the grand opening of the $24.8 million Liberty Landing apartments in Ronkonkoma, Suffolk County.

Ronkonkoma, NY - October 26, 2016 - Governor Andrew Cuomo today announced the grand opening of the $24.8 million Liberty Landing apartments in Ronkonkoma, Suffolk County. The 59-unit supportive housing project, operated by Concern for Independent Living, offers residential based support services to formerly homeless veterans, in addition to affordable housing for low income Long Island families.



Every New Yorker deserves access to affordable housing is and our administration is committed to ensuring that every resident has the opportunity for a safe and decent place to call home, Governor Cuomo said. This project brings us another step closer toward helping vulnerable New Yorkers live with dignity and independence and building a more sustainable Long Island for all.



The grand opening of Liberty Landing builds on the $21.6 million the Governor recently announced to create 265 supportive homes for homeless Veterans and their families. This is part of a $10 billion commitment to build affordable housing and combat homelessness.





Photo By: NYS Office of Mental Health, via Flickr.

Located at 55 Portion Road, between the central business district and Lake Ronkonkoma, Liberty Landing will provide 30 formerly homeless veterans with apartments and offer 28 affordable apartments to low income Long Island families who meet specific income thresholds, ranging from 30 percent to 51 percent of area median income. The development also includes a community building which features an exercise room, a computer room and a room for community gatherings.



Liberty Landing offers 40 one-bedroom apartments, 15 two-bedroom apartments, and 3 three-bedroom apartments, as well as one unit for the superintendent of the development. On-site programming will be offered by Concern for Independent Living to help residents live healthy and productive lives. Residents will find assistance with the behavioral health, medical, vocational, and social services they need to live successful lives in the community.



To support this project, the New York State Office of Mental Health provided a $252,960 program development grant, and $7,500,000 in interest-free construction financing and debt service, New York State Homes and Community Renewal contributed $13,257,878 in Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, and the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance allocated $2,762,865 via the Homeless Housing Assistance Program. Liberty Landing also received $750,000 from Suffolk County and $312,135 in funding from the Concern for Independent Living.



New York State Office of Mental Health Commissioner Dr. Ann Sullivan said, Supporting those who served our country is both our duty and our privilege. As part of Governor Cuomos unprecedented expansion of supportive and affordable housing, Liberty Landing will serve as a resource for New York States Veterans and provide them with the assistance they need to find health, success and recovery. I wish all of Liberty Landings future tenants the best and I thank our partners for helping to make this day a reality!



New York State Homes and Community Renewal Commissioner James Rubin said, Too many Veteranswhose valor and sacrifice have resulted in the freedom we all enjoystruggle with homelessness and instability. As we approach Veterans Day, it is fitting we take this opportunity to provide access to apartments and support services for Veterans in need. This development will allow people to live safely, independently, and affordably in their community. Liberty Landing is an example of Governor Cuomos continued commitment to addressing the root causes of homelessness and leading the effort to meet the housing needs of all New Yorkers.



New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance Commissioner Samuel D. Roberts said, This is another example of Governor Cuomos commitment to providing opportunities to low-income families and veterans to whom we owe so much. We know that the housing and services the tenants receive as a result of projects like this will have a long-term, positive impact on their lives.



Dormitory Authority of the State of New York President and CEO Gerrard Bushell said, DASNY is proud to have monitored every phase of construction on this project. We know it is not just what you build, but who you build it for, and this development provides our heroes a place worthy of being called their home .



Congressman Lee Zeldin said, Supporting our veterans must always be one of our highest priorities. These brave men and women, who willingly and selflessly put their lives on the line while defending our country, deserve nothing but the highest quality of life and care once they return home. This includes access to affordable housing, especially here on Long Island, where the cost of living is so high.



Senator Thomas D. Croci, Chairman of the Veterans, Homeland Security, and Military Affairs Committee said, It has been a pleasure to work with Concern for Independent Living and other advocacy agencies to address homelessness in our region, which is much more serious than many realize. It is especially fitting that the Liberty Landing project will offer Long Islands homeless veterans, and their families, safe and affordable housing, as well as access to the social services they may need.



Assemblyman Al Graf said, It is important to give our veterans a hand up in times of trouble. These men and women who selflessly volunteered to protect the freedoms we hold dear, sometimes return with both physical and non-visible scars from their deployments. This project is a step in the right direction in honoring a commitment to our returning veterans.



Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said, Liberty Landing represents yet another successful collaboration between governmental agencies and the not-for-profit sector. The creation of affordable housing for veterans and low-income families is needed within our region and the additional on-site resources to serve formally homeless veterans is truly an added benefit to those who are in need of the services. I thank Governor Cuomo and all of the partnering organizations for making this project a reality.



Concern for Independent Living Executive Director Ralph Fasano said, We have been very fortunate to have the support of Governor Cuomo and the three state agencies that helped make Liberty Landing a reality. Together with Suffolk County, NEF, Bank of America and The Community Preservation Corporation we have created housing that matches the pride that we have for the Veterans who have served our country.



Liberty Landing is an example of housing solutions which will continue to be created to combat homelessness and expand access to affordable housing in New York State. Last month, Governor Cuomo directed New York State Division of the Budget Director Robert Mujica to execute a memorandum of understanding to release $2 billion in funding to advance the creation of more than 100,000 units of affordable and supportive housing over the next five years. The executed agreement is now before the New York State Senate and Assembly for action.
Local News, Community, Charity & Cause, Press Releases

By Long Island News & PR Published: October 28 2016

During the event local residents celebrated the end of summer with food, music, games and live music.

Village of Hempstead Deputy Mayor Luis Figueroa welcomes attendees at the County Club Estates Civic Associations end of summer BBQ and thanks them for their active engagement and positive contributions in the Village community.

Hempstead, NY - October 26, 2016 - The Village of Hempstead officials recently joined the Country Club Estates Civil Association (CCECA) to celebrate the Hempstead community with their recent fourth annual barbeque block party. During the event local residents celebrated the end of summer with food, music, games and live music.



Village of Hempstead Deputy Mayor Luis Figueroa joins members of the community and the County Club Estates Civic Association at their end of summer BBQ and celebration. The Village was celebrating the end of summer and thanking local residents for their positive contributions to the community.

Village of Hempstead Deputy Mayor Luis Figueroa thanked attendees for their active engagement and positive contributions in the Village community.
Local News, Community, Charity & Cause, Press Releases

By Long Island News & PR Published: October 28 2016

The Village of Hempstead officials unveiled statute in honor of the late Brigadier General George A. Jones at the Roosevelt Post Office.

Brigadier General George A. Jones at the unveiling of a statue in his honor located in front of the Roosevelt Post Office. The Village of Hempstead recently welcomed residents, local war veterans and community leaders to participate in the unveiling to honor Brigadier General Jones, a veteran of WWII, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.

Hempstead, NY - October 26, 2016 - The Village of Hempstead officials recently welcomed residents, local war veterans and community leaders to the Roosevelt Post Office for the unveiling of a statute in honor of the late Brigadier General George A. Jones, veteran of WWII, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.

Brig. Gen. Jones was 16 when he first enlisted in the New York National Guard in 1939, later going on to join the U.S. Army. While in retirement in 1970, he was promoted by the New York Guard to brigadier general. In addition, Jones served as a New York City firefighter for 20 years and served as the director for equal opportunity employment in Nassau County for 30 years.



The recently unveiled statue of Brigadier General George A. Jones, a veteran of WWII, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. The Village of Hempstead recently welcomed residents, local war veterans and community leaders to participate in the unveiling as part of its dedication to honoring our veterans.

Jones was in attendance at the unveiling, but passed away shortly after at the age of 93. He was laid to rest at Calverton National Cemetery with full military honors.
Local News, Community, Charity & Cause, Press Releases, Seasonal & Current Events

By Long Island News & PR Published: October 28 2016

The AHRC Walk, Nassau Countys largest event for those with I/DD and their families, will again set the pace for fundraising and advocacy on Sunday, Oct. 30, in Eisenhower Park.

East Meadow, NY - October 28, 2016 - The AHRC Walk, Nassau Countys largest event for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) and their families, will again set the pace for fundraising and advocacy on Sunday, Oct. 30, in Eisenhower Park.



As the leading event for the AHRC Foundation, the AHRC Walk will offer a three-mile course and engaging post-walk activities to raise funds for the over 2,200 people with I/DD supported through affiliate organizations, including AHRC Nassau, Brookville Center for Childrens Services and Citizens Options Unlimited.



We need to create greater awareness that people with I/DD are living, working and actively contributing to Long Islands quality of life, said Mary McNamara, AHRC Foundation Director. At the AHRC Walk, we celebrate how far weve come and look to where we must we go to fulfill the promise of greater equality and inclusion.





Photo by: AHRC Foundation.

The AHRC Walk starts and finishes under the banner of moving ahead, leaving no one behind, and offers an opportunity for self-advocates, like Coleen Mackin, to come together and show their support.



Mackin, who is also Nassau County Representative for the Self-Advocacy Association of New York State said, I walk to share my story. I am proud, and want people to understand what is possible and what needs to happen next.



Over the past 40 years, significant advances have been made for those with I/DD, however several issues remain front of mind for the walkers  in particular the New York State mandate that all sheltered workshops must close by 2020.



AHRC Nassau is transforming its vocational workshop through its AHRC Workforce Division and creating diverse business lines that will offer inclusive employment for people with developmental disabilities.



However, greater support is needed for longer-term, sustainable employment, said Roz Goldmacher, AHRC Foundation Board Member and President of the Long Island Development Corporation.



The lack of inclusion of those with I/DD in the workforce remains a call to action, said Goldmacher.



Hiring people with I/DD offers a pathway for highly motivated people to become employed while promoting an inclusive culture within the business community.



If you would like to make a donation or register for the AHRC Walk, please visit www.ahrcwalk.org.

About the AHRC Foundation

The Nassau County AHRC Foundation is a non-profit organization whose purpose is to publicly solicit and receive funds for the benefit of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Thousands of children and adults benefit from the Foundations support to organizations such as AHRC Nassau, Brookville Center for Childrens Services, and Citizens Options Unlimited, which includes Camp Loyaltown as well as other community-based organizations serving people with special needs.
Family & Parenting, Local News, Press Releases

By Long Island News & PR Published: October 28 2016

A North Bellmore couple ends up with baby girl delivered on the Southern State Parkway on 10/28/16 at about 6:45 AM.

North Bellmore, NY - October 28, 2016 - A North Bellmore couple were traveling westbound on the Southern State Parkway on 10/28/16 at about 6:45 AM, attempting to go to North Shore Long Island Jewish Hospital for the birth of their child. The driver, Judd Jaworoski, was forced to pull over because the mother, Jessica Brooks, was having contractions and appeared to be close to giving birth.

Mr. Jaworoski stopped near the Meadowbrook Road exit, and a short time after, helped deliver his own baby. Mr. Jaworowski then called 911 and advised the State Police of the situation.

When troopers arrived on the scene, mother and newborn daughter were doing fine. The family was transported to North Shore LIJ by ambulance.
Crime, Press Releases

By Long Island News & PR Published: October 28 2016

A Suffolk County jury today convicted a former Suffolk man, Glenn Terry of Attempted Kidnapping and five counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon.

Pictured Glenn Terry, convicted by Suffolk County jury for the attempted kidnapping of attorney Frank Tinari and criminal possession of weapons. Sentencing is schedule for December 14, 2016.

Suffolk County, Ny - October 27, 2016 - A Suffolk County jury today convicted a former Suffolk man, Glenn Terry of Attempted Kidnapping and five counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon.

Terry, 48, who was upset at the result of a settlement amount in a personal injury action drove to Long Island from Florida with the intent to kidnap his attorney, Frank Tinari. After checking into a local motel the armed defendant arrived at the victims law office and waited for Mr. Tinari in the parking lot.

Fortunately unbeknownst to the defendant Mr. Tinari had already arrived at work, said DA Spota, Luckily for Mr. Tinari the defendant left the parking lot and during a routine traffic stop a police officer noticed a Taser cartridge in Terrys vehicle and the defendant essentially volunteered his kidnap plan to the officers.

After 10 hours of deliberation, the jury convicted the defendant of Attempted Kidnapping in the Second degree a class C violent felony, two counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second degree, class C armed violent felonies and three additional Criminal Possession of a Weapon charges. The maximum sentence Terry faces is 34 and 2/3 years incarceration.
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
[MAD] Opening Tokyo Ghoul - Cosplay Epic. (Photo : YouTube /I.D)

"Tokyo Ghoul" season 3 release is one of the highly anticipated anime follow-ups by avid anime fans. There have been speculations and rumors in the recent months, but nothing conclusive has been registered online. Though the lack of definite information may sound frustrating for some individual, still this should be interpreted positively as hints to the precise arrival and development of "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3.



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There have been many rumors about the potential termination of the said anime. However, as most reports surfacing online would point out, "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 is already under development. And the said reports somehow points to the direction of the anime's writer's, previous statement highlighting a darker sketch and stretch of the upcoming "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3.



"This is perhaps the most disillusioning, psychological and darkest plot line that we will attempt to adapt," the anime's writer Bob told Anime Maru. "We hope to remain as faithful as possible to the source material, although we cannot guarantee that more gory scenes such as Touka's standardized exam test-taking will not be censored."

Apart from the given statement somehow assuring the arrival of "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 in the coming months, some reports also pointed out to the sale status of the manga. It is a known fact in the anime and manga industry that if manga sales are stable or much more increasing, definitely an anime release is to be expected or the other way around.



As per Anime News Network September report, "Tokyo Ghoul" remain the number one on 'Japanese Comin Ranking.' Thus giving anime fans an expression and hope that "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 is in progress; the statement and rating in such a way is an implicit confirmation of the coming of "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3.

As of now those are the most relevant and significant details which somehow confirms the upcoming release of "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3. Though there is still no confirmation, there are also other details pointing to the arrival of "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 in the coming months.



One of the most prominent concepts being presented online is the plot that the anime would likely follow. According to unverified reports, "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 might simply be a sequel series of "Tokyo Ghoul:re," set two years after the conclusion of the original series. And since most of the updates, spoilers, and rumors are pointing to the release of "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3, it would likely best to wait for further notice of its exact release date.



Watch here below "Tokyo Ghoul" Season 3 alleged trailer leaked and re-uploaded:






Torrential rain caused floods and traffic accidents in towns in central and southern Egypt

Fifteen people have been killed and 47 others injured as a result of torrential rain and flooding in Egypt since Thursday, health officials have said.

Seven people were killed and 23 others injured after heavy rain hit the town of Ras Gharib in the Red Sea governorate, MENA agency reported the provincial health department as saying. Schools in the coastal town, which is around 150 km north of Hurghada, have been indefinitely suspended due to the flooding.

Six people were also killed and 24 others wounded early on Friday when two buses and three other vehicles overturned in floods on a highway in the governorate of Sohag, which lies some 500 km south of Cairo, the health ministry said.

Authorities closed off the road in both directions after many vehicles became trapped in the floods, a provincial official told Al-Ahram Arabic news website.

Twenty-six ambulances were rushed to the scene of the accident, Ahmed El-Ansary, the head of the ambulance authority, told the website.

Two people were also killed by electric shocks resulting from thunder in Fayed, in the Suez Canal governorate of Ismailiya.

Heavy rains caused flooding in several towns in Upper Egypt and along the Red Sea coast on Wednesday and Thursday. Impoverished areas with poor infrastructure have been worse hit.

The capital Cairo has been spared the unstable weather conditions.



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An American M1 Abrams tank shown in the Hezbollah Brigades convoy

Hezbollah Brigades (also known as Kataib Hezbollah), an Iranian-backed Shiite militia in Iraq, is transporting forces, including troops and artillery, to participate in the operation to retake Mosul from the Islamic State. Hezbollah Brigades is a US-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization that is one of several Iranian-backed militias that operates in Iraq.

The convoy, which was seen in a video released by Hezbollah Brigades propaganda wings, was shown to include dozens of vehicles. At least 11 rocket launchers, four howitzers (including two US-made M198 howitzers), one American-made M1 Abrams, and one US M88 Recovery Vehicle were spotted. Several other vehicles transporting troops to Mosul can also be seen.

The Shiite militias, which are part of the Popular Mobilization Forces, are expected to fight the Islamic State in areas west of Mosul. A spokesman for the PMF said that the militias are moving towards Tal Afar and would launch an offensive against Islamic State forces entrenched there in a few days or hours, Reuters reported today.

The Popular Mobilization Forces was established in June 2014 after the Iraqi military and police forces were overwhelmed by the Islamic State in northern, central, and western Iraq. Clerics put out the call for Iraq to support the collapsing security forces. Established militias that are supported by Iran and have openly fought US and British troops during the occupation answered the call and dominate the PMF. They were organized under the aegis of the Popular Mobilization Forces, which is commanded by Abu Mahdi al Muhandi, who was listed by the US government as a specially designated global terrorist in July 2009 and was described as an advisor to Qods Force commander Qassem Soleimani.

Hezbollah Brigades has been involved in most major operations to push back the Islamic State or to recapture Islamic State-held cities. For instance, last April, a month before the Islamic State took over the provincial capital of Ramadi, it sent its troops to take part in operations near the city. One video showed Hezbollah Brigade artillery units launching rockets against Islamic State forces in the Sijariyah district in eastern Ramadi. The city fell to the Islamic State last May and was recaptured in late December.

Hezbollah Brigades fighters were also involved in operations near the town of Karmah, just east of Baghdad, and in operations to recapture the town of Amerli in Salahaddin in Sept. 2014. [See LWJ reports, Hezbollah Brigades deploys fighters to Ramadi, US aided Hezbollah Brigades in breaking Islamic State siege of Iraqi town and Threat Matrix report, Hezbollah Brigades flaunts US equipment in Anbar operation.]

The militia has long been known to operate American M1 Abrams tanks. Last January, the militia showcased several US-made vehicles in a large convoy somewhere in Iraq. Some pictures of M1s being in the hands of Hezbollah Brigades existed prior to the video, but these photos and videos have become much more prevalent since. The tanks and artillery were likely given to HB by the Iraqi military, or taken from the Islamic State during operations.

Screenshots from the video:

Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of The Long War Journal. Caleb Weiss is a research analyst at FDD's Long War Journal and a senior analyst at the Bridgeway Foundation, where he focuses on the spread of the Islamic State in Central Africa.

Are you a dedicated reader of FDD's Long War Journal? Has our research benefitted you or your team over the years? Support our independent reporting and analysis today by considering a one-time or monthly donation. Thanks for reading! You can make a tax-deductible donation here.
A passerby was killed and another injured when an IED exploded on a road in Greater Cairo's Ain Shams district on Friday, Al-Ahrams Arabic website reported.

A security official told Al-Ahram that the device was targeting a passing security convoy but instead hit two civilians.

Attacks against security forces have become common in recent years but are concentrated in North Sinai, where Egypt's army and police are battling an entrenched Islamist insurgency.

Last week, a brigadier general was shot dead in front of his house in Obour City, on the outskirts of Cairo. Adel Rajaaie had previously been deployed in North Sinai.

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The Jaysh al Fath and Fath Halab coalitions and their allies launched an anticipated major offensive today west of Aleppo in another bid to break the siege of rebel-held eastern Aleppo, according to Reuters. In early September forces allied with the Syrian government backed by Russian air power repelled the oppositions first attempt to break the siege following a month-long battle. Pro-regime forces attempted to build upon their momentum and launched major offensives in late September to tighten their grip on Aleppo. They have made slow but steady gains on the city blocks of eastern Aleppo, and have attempted to push their gains in western and southwestern Aleppo to prevent the opposition from breaking the siege again.

The pro-government coalition includes the Syrian Arab Army (SAA), the Shiite expeditionary forces led by Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), as well as Lebanese Hezbollah, Iraqi Harakat al Nujaba, Afghan Fatemiyoun Division and the Pakistani Zeynabiyoun. Furthermore, the Palestinian Quds Brigade, which has effectively become Russias proxy, has made gains in the northern Aleppo sector alongside the SAA.

The Russian defense minister has reportedly asked President Vladimir Putin to resume airstrikes today in Aleppo following a 10-day hiatus, citing an upsurge in opposition activities, but Putin has said that airstrikes are unnecessary for now, according to Reuters citing Interfax News Agency. The IRGC provides intelligence to Russia for airstrikes in Syria.

A high-ranking former IRGC commander was killed in Syria on Oct. 26 during an advisory mission in Aleppo. according to Iranian media. He was buried in Mashhad, Iran, today along with two Afghan Fatemiyoun Division combatants killed in Syria this past week. The IRGC Qods Force deputy commander Brigadier General Esmail Ghaani, who delivered remarks at the deceased commanders funeral, said the blood of martyrs strengthen the foundation of the Islamic Republic system.

Qolam-Reza Samai was a retired commander with the rank of Brigadier General or Brigadier General Second Class who had volunteered to fight Syria, and will be buried in his home province of Khorasan. A veteran of the Iran-Iraq War (19801988), Samai held several command posts in artillery, intelligence, and operations capacities in several provincial Ground Forces units.

The IRGC has tapped into its retired and active duty Ground Forces, and special forces officer corps to augment the efforts led by the Qods Force in Syria and Iraq. The deployment pattern of Ground Forces commanders depends on the mission need and crisis at hand. For example, there was a surge of commanders in Iraq following the incursion of the Islamic State in mid-2014, and most were called back when the IRGC-backed Shiite militias were able to better manage the situation.

The IRGC Ground Forces have been present in Syria since as early as 2011. Their numbers have increased as the war deteriorated, peaking in Oct. 2015 as Iran deployed significant numbers of its regular forces in coordination with Russias military intervention, before spiking again in Feb. 2016 during a major offensive north of Aleppo. More than a dozen senior Guard commanders were killed in Syria during the past year, with the overwhelming majority in Aleppo. Fatalities and causalities of high-ranking officers have continued as the Guard has reduced regular Iranian forces since May and has relied more on Shiite proxies. Contrary to the insistence of the IRGC, commanders are engaged in more than just advising: they design and lead operations for the Iranian-led Shiite expeditionary forces.

The high fatality rate of Iranian commanders is explained by the tactically risk-tolerant and egalitarian culture of the Guard, which values martyrdom in battle as the highest honor and takes pride in fighting on the frontline. Whereas the IRGC is tactically risk-tolerant, it is strategically risk-averse and prefers to limit Iranian exposure, as discussed in depth by Ali Alfoneh and Michael Eisenstadt in The Washington Institute.

While employing foreign fighters minimizes domestic political backlash in Iran, it also serves a long-term strategic objective to develop capable Shiite proxies. A retired IRGC commander who has deployed to Syria recently claimed the formation of a Shiite liberation army, and IRGC commanders have openly discussed a global Basij paramilitary taking shape in the laboratory of Syria, with talks of laying the groundwork for the apocalypse and the Mahdis arrival in more intimate quarters. The IRGC, however, has not hesitated to inject regular Iranian soldiers and mid-ranked officers during major offensives and whenever the situation has demanded it, such as the offensive in southern Aleppo in October 2015 and the assault north of Aleppo in February 2016.

Amir Toumaj is a independent analyst and contributor to FDD's Long War Journal.

Are you a dedicated reader of FDD's Long War Journal? Has our research benefitted you or your team over the years? Support our independent reporting and analysis today by considering a one-time or monthly donation. Thanks for reading! You can make a tax-deductible donation here.
Islamic State fighter raising its flag over Qandala on Oct. 26, 2016

Forces loyal to the Islamic State withdrew from the northeastern Somalian town of Qandala yesterday, just one day after capturing it. The town, which is in the autonomous Puntland Region, fell on Oct. 26 after a brief firefight with the jihadists and local Puntland forces left the city.

The BBC reported yesterday that residents told a local news outlet that the militants have left the town. Puntland forces also reportedly launched a counter-attack against the group, but it is unclear if that is why the jihadists withdrew. The leader of the Islamic State branch in Somalia, Abdulqadir Mumin, was seen in the city and held talks with local elders.

On Wednesday, Amaq News Agency, the Islamic States news outlet, claimed control over the town in a short statement released online. A local official from Puntland, said in an audio statement that the town had indeed fallen after the Puntland troops were forced to retreat. The capture of Qandala marked the first time the small Islamic State branch captured any meaningful territory in Somalia. [See LWJ report, Islamic State in Somalia claims capture of port town.]

To provide visual evidence of this claim, Amaq also released a short video clip from Qandala, showing the jihadist forces moving into the city and raising their flags in different areas of the town. Only a few fighters were seen in the video, however, it is possible that more were involved in the earlier fighting but not shown on camera.

Compared to Shabaab, the official al Qaeda branch and its main rival in the country, the Islamic States branch in Somalia is known to be relatively small. The Wall Street Journal estimated yesterday that the Islamic State in Somalia only has a few hundred fighters in its ranks. When it first formed one year ago, it was initially reported that only 20 of the 300 Shabaab fighters based in Puntland joined. But, in the US State Departments designation of Abdulqadir Mumin as a global terrorist, State noted that Mumin expanded his cell of Islamic State supporters by kidnapping young boys aged 10 to 15, indoctrinating them, and forcing them to take up militant activity. [See LWJ report, US adds Islamic State commander in Somalia to list of global terrorists.]

With its capture of Qandala yesterday, the fledgling Islamic State branch demonstrated that it has the capabilities to even capture territory, however temporary. It also gained significant media attention, which fits into and helps the overall Islamic State messaging to deflect the attention away from losses and preserve the idea of its expansion and global territorial control. This is especially true in the face of defeats near Mosul, its largest remaining stronghold in Iraq.

Screenshots from the Amaq video:

Caleb Weiss is a research analyst at FDD's Long War Journal and a senior analyst at the Bridgeway Foundation, where he focuses on the spread of the Islamic State in Central Africa.

Are you a dedicated reader of FDD's Long War Journal? Has our research benefitted you or your team over the years? Support our independent reporting and analysis today by considering a one-time or monthly donation. Thanks for reading! You can make a tax-deductible donation here.
Major General Qassem Soleimani, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Qods Force (IRGC-QF), was spotted in Tehran today visiting the families of Iranians killed during fighting in Syria. Previously, on Oct. 23, Soleimani was in Iraqi Kurdistan and was photographed visiting the family of a Peshmerga commander who was killed last year. Some Iranian media outlets claim that Soleimani was near Mosul on Oct. 17, when the siege of Mosul was launched, but that cannot be confirmed at this time.

Soleimani visited the households of Iranians who lost members to the war in Syria, and met with an IRGC member paralyzed from combat wounds (photo 2).

The senior Iranian commander met with the family of the first Army fatality in Syria who was killed in April (photo 1): a Second Lieutenant in the Army 65th Airborne Special Forces Brigade who has been posthumously promoted to Captain.

Soleimani furthermore visited the family of Mostafa Sadrzadeh (AKA Abu Ebrahim), who was killed near Aleppo, Syria, last year (Photo 3). Sadrzadeh was an Iranian commander in the all-Afghan Fatemiyoun Division, which is unusual as the unit is prohibited from accepting Iranians. Sadrzadeh disguised himself as an Afghan national in order to fight in Syria, according to Iranian media. The IRGC-QF established the Fatemiyoun as a brigade in 2013, though Afghan fighters were in Syria as early as 2011. The Fatemiyoun was upgraded last year to a division, but the actual figure is believed to be less than the 10,000 that normally constitutes a division.

Qassem Soleimani has also met with the family of an IRGC member killed in Khan Touman in southern Aleppo countryside in January. His body was returned to Iran in June.

Combatants mobilized by the Islamic Republic to fight in Syria are called defenders of the shrine. Waging holy war to defend the shrine of Sayyida Zaynab in Damascus and Shiite shrines in Iraq following the incursion of the Islamic State have served as rallying cries for Shiite jihadists.

Although defending the shrines in Syria and Iraq are very important, the pillars of Tehrans strategies in the heartland of the Middle East as executed by Soleimani are comprised of more secular objectives.

In Syria, Tehran has intervened to maintain a supply route to Lebanese Hezbollah, prevent the fall of the Baathist government of Bashar al Assad, and should Assad fall, create the conditions for an Alawite-led statelet allied with Iran.

In Iraq, the Iranian government seeks to prevent the country from devolving into a completely failed state, strengthen influence over the states levers of power, consolidate the formation of an Iraqi version of the IRGC, and facilitate the strengthening of entities that are amenable to Tehrans interests, such as IRGC-backed Shiite militias and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), in order to ensure that Iran asserts a dominant position in Iraq post-Islamic State.

The Islamic Republics activities are components of a broader strategy to transform into the dominant power in the Middle East.

Amir Toumaj is a independent analyst and contributor to FDD's Long War Journal.

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Bill Gates visited the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine on Tuesday 25 October, meeting with leading researchers in areas including malaria, neonatal health and vaccine development, as well as hearing presentations about some of the School's cutting-edge work.

Professor Peter Piot, Director of the School, welcomed Mr Gates and gave an overview of the School. He explained how colleagues are working with partners and funders, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, to address urgent global health issues.

Professor Chris Drakeley, Professor David Conway and Professor David Baker presented some recent highlights of the School's work on malaria, including research that has identified new drug targets, work on molecular epidemiology of parasites within human populations, and transmission and diagnosis of malaria at low levels of infection.

Professor Brendan Wren and Assistant Professor Jon Cuccui showed how their group's innovative work on glycoengineering offers the possibility of a new generation of inexpensive vaccines, which could reduce infections in humans and animals and reduce the prevalence of antibiotics in the food chain.

Professor Joy Lawn and Dr Tanya Marchant presented the School's work on neonatal health and stillbirths, including The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation funded IDEAS project which aims to improve maternal and child health in Africa and India.

The Foundation has funded a variety of research at the School, including the first study to demonstrate unequivocally the effectiveness of a mass vaccination campaign with a new meningitis serogroup A vaccine, PsA-TT, in sub-Saharan Africa. Current Foundation funded projects include PopART, a project that is testing an innovative combination of strategies to prevent HIV in African countries.

Although Mr Gates has visited various School and partner projects, including malaria vector control trials sites in Tanzania, this is the first time he has had the opportunity to come to the School's Keppel Street site in London.

Professor Piot said: "We are delighted that Bill Gates has been able to visit us and taken the time to hear about some of our work. His leadership has been transformational for global health. The Foundation is a very important funder and in many ways helps to drive the global health agenda. They are tackling some of the main health challenges in the poorest parts of the world - a mission that we share."
Experts from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine researching the Zika virus have received over 2m to conduct vital new studies on the disease, including the risks it poses to newborn babies, routes of transmission, its potential global spread and ways to stop it.

The funding comes from the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme, which aims to help combat the outbreak of the Zika virus and other emerging infections transmitted by mosquitoes.

As a member of ZikaPLAN (Zika Preparedness Latin American Network) and ZIKAlliance, two of three consortiums awarded funding, the School will conduct a broad spectrum of research, from developing novel ways to protect people against mosquito bites, to discovering the long-term effects on children born with microcephaly.

The School has been awarded 2m through ZikaPLAN, a global initiative led by the University of UmeA, Sweden. It was formed to address the many research and public health challenges the virus poses and takes a comprehensive approach to tackle the Zika threat by:

addressing the knowledge gaps and needs in the current Zika outbreak to better understand the disease, prevent its spread and educate the affected populations

building a sustainable response capacity in Latin America for Zika and other emerging infectious diseases

The School is one of the largest partners among the 25 leading research and public health organisations from Latin America, North America, Africa, Asia, and Europe, which gathered in Recife, Brazil, for the launch of ZikaPLAN.

Dr James Logan, who led the School's application for funding through ZikaPLAN, said: "While in Brazil I witnessed the devastating consequences Zika infection can have on newborn children. It's crucial that we fill the knowledge gaps about the virus - ZikaPLAN research will play a pivotal role in that. The School's multidisciplinary team will collaborate with partners across the world to answer some of the most urgent questions relating to the virus.

"School researchers will develop and test new diagnostic tools and evaluate methods for controlling the mosquito vector. We also aim to further our understanding about the virus itself, determine what symptoms are associated with the disease in infants, and shed light on the costs and social impact on families who have a baby Zika-related symptoms. Building networks and capacity in countries likely to be affected is another important aspect. This will tackle Zika in the short-term, but also help ensure the world is better prepared for Zika and other future disease outbreaks."

The School has been awarded 380,625 through ZikAlliance, a multinational and multi-disciplinary research consortium consisting of 52 partners from 18 countries, led by Aix-Marseille University in France.

ZikAlliance will explore the impact of Zika during pregnancy, and the short and medium-term effects that it has on newborn babies, but also on the natural history of the disease and its potential for transmission by non vector routes. With a strong emphasis on both basic and social sciences, consortium partners aim to characterise the virus, the mechanisms of the disease, and identify drugs that can control the viral infection.

Professor Philippe Mayaud led the School's application for ZikAlliance funding. He said: "Zika took the world by surprise. We still know very little about the virus and its long-term effects on newborns, but also on the health of women and men affected by the disease. Our research will estimate the clinical, disability and economic burdens of the disease on individuals, families and health services, as well as the costs of interventions needed to support those affected by the virus.

"The team will also develop mathematical models to help predict the chances of Zika epidemics and generate maps to determine the risk Zikavirus poses to the world - both during the current outbreak and over the longer-term. We will evaluate the threat Europe and other non-endemic countries face from Zika through mosquito and sexual transmission, and investigate other possible routes of transmission such as saliva or breastfeeding."

ZIKAlliance and ZikaPLAN are funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under Grant Agreement no. 734548 and 734584, respectively. Both will work closely with ZIKAction, the third consortium to receive funding.

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Culture / Art Republik

Oct 28, 2016 | By Madelaine Angelina

A state in which opposing forces or influences are balanced, equilibrium, both in the sense of the word and the title of Miaja Gallerys latest group exhibition, ongoing till December 2, 2016, calls forth the energetic works of four artists to explore the intricate nuances of kinetic art  Christel Sadde, Penelope, Thomas Maurer and Xylobee. From delicate hanging mobiles, fabricated from precious woods and metals, to rotating totems that connect story-telling imagery when aligned, Equilibrium showcases a collection of works which come together as the apotheosis of balance in motion, notes Gallery Director Naomi Stahl.

Christel Sadde is an independent Parisian artist who creates mobile sculptures and moving art objects called Volabiles  a combination of mobile and volatile. Her work resembles kinetic art, likened to the works of the great Alexander Calder but inspired by different shapes and forms. Her mobiles are not only suspended objects but also meticulous and complex exercises in balance. They come to life in the light and the wind, becoming living things which are fed by the air. Supported by delicate rods, Sadde chooses aluminium as her material because of its lightness, the ease with which it could be cut and the quality of the deep and lasting colours that could be obtained by impregnating the material with the dye.

Penelope was born in Paris, her father was a graphic designer and her mother a stylist. Since then she has never stopped drawing or being creative. After graduating at the National School of Arts Appliques et Metiers dArt in Paris, Penelope has been an Art Director at TBWA Advertising for eight years. She is the author of dozens of books and has had over fifty exhibitions across Paris, Bordeaux, Lille, Rennes, Lorient, Montpellier, and Toulouse. When she is not busy drawing or creating, she frequents flea markets, hunting for antiques, or roams the streets of Venise.

Thomas Maurer is a German-born Australian with a degree from Berlin School of Contemporary Art. He is an artist who works with two-dimensional sheets of flat aluminum to create three-dimensional optical illusions. He creates these illusions using nothing but the material itself and an angle grinder, producing a strong effect of motion, seductively enhanced by lighting. Maurers art is inspired by lifes constant changes, light and movement, and can be described as a dialogue between the two dimensional art pieces and the lighting required to create three-dimensional images. These pieces are powerful as they play with the viewers mind and make them question their perception.

Aureline Dupuy (aka Xylobee) was born in Lyon, France. Her design and art studio Xylobee was created in 2009 as way for Dupuy to dedicate herself thoroughly to her one and only love: Wood. This primordial material is used in all of its forms in her work. From raw tree trunks to sawdust, always warm and sensual, wood is an essential formal link between man and earth. Among the first creations to come out of the studios atelier were Xylodolls, hand-turned wooden anthropomorphic toy-like sculptures. Occupying a space between art and design, Dupuys collaboration with renowned Singapore-based interior designer Isabelle Miaja spawned Rototems, wooden pillar-like geometric man-high sculptures made of five stacked rotating cubes. Three Rototems are currently standing in the Novotel Mumbai Hotel lobby.

*For more information, please visit www.miajagallery.com

This article was first published in Art Republik.
Saudi Arabia said on Friday that Shia rebels in Yemen had fired a missile towards Mecca

Egypt has condemned a missile attack fired by Yemeni rebels that Saudi Arabia claimed targeted the city of Mecca, calling it an "unacceptable precedent" and a "disregard to the sanctity of Muslim holy sites that should not pass in silence."

Saudi Arabia said on Friday that Houthi rebels had fired a missile towards Islams holiest city overnight, before the missile was intercepted and destroyed by coalition forces.

According to AP, rebel media in Yemen said the missile was targeting an international airport in Jeddah.

Mecca is home to the Kaaba shrine, towards which Muslims must face when they pray, and at which millions gather annually to perform pilgrimage.

An Egyptian foreign ministry statement on Friday announced Egypt's "full solidarity" with Saudi Arabia and stressed its support of the internationally recognised government in Yemen, which is backed by the Saudis.

Civil war broke out in September 2014 when Houthi rebels, who are Shia, took over the capital Sanaa and overthrew the country's government.

In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition of Arab countries, including Egypt, began a military attack against the Houthi forces.

Another Houthi missile was fired earlier this month targeting Taif, also near Mecca.

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The families of those killed and injured in floods after two days of heavy rain in Red Sea governorate will be compensated, the governor, Ahmed Abdalla, said on Friday.

The families of those killed in the heavy rains will receive EGP 50,000 and the families of those injured will receive EGP10,000, the Al-Ahram Arabic website reported.

The damages will be assessed and those displaced by the flooding will be offered an alternative place to stay.

Seven people were killed and 23 others injured in the town of Ras Gharib in the governorate.

A total of fifteen people have been killed and 47 others injured as a result of torrential rain and flooding in Egypt since Thursday.

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Our Back Pages

Issue 99

Issue Date: Summer 1992

Editor: Constance Rooke

Pages: 114

Number of contributors: 17

Buy Issue 99: Print Edition

Two very well-known authors in the Canadian literary scene made contributions to this issueP.K. Page sat on the editorial board, and Michael Ondaatje provided the cover photo. Readers will also find two poems by John Pass, winner of last years Open Season Award for poetry. These unusual and enigmatic poems are likely to stick in your head and make you wonder whats at the bottom of them.

There are no reviews in this issue, which means that all 114 pages are devoted to poetry, fiction, and four glossy photographs by Robert Teteruck. The photographs capture the moods of individuals set against a backdrop of urban life. Notable prose pieces include Gayla Reids short story To be there with you which is also the title story of her collection that won the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize in 1995, and Greg Hollingsheads Small Death. Reids is a powerful and moving story about a journalist living in Vietnam during the war who has an affair with a married soldier, and is haunted by the things left unsaid between them. Hollingsheads story also deals with an extramarital affair, between two professors who meet at a conference, one of whom is wracked with guilt and the fear of contracting AIDS. Hollingshead won the 1995 Governor Generals Award for English language fiction for his collection The Roaring Girl.

This issue contains an amusing poem by David Donnell about University of Toronto graduate students who communicate with one another in unnaturally literary language, for example referring to a cigarette as a Walter Raleigh. Readers will find a poem by current Malahat editor, John Barton, titled Artificial Intelligence, a reflection on what it means to be human in a digital age and the gap between our total experience and what is quantifiable.

James Kendrick

About Our Back Pages
Marti, who was appointed by President Obama in 2014 and confirmed in March of last year, announced that IPEC will soon release its newly-developed strategic plan for securing IP rights internationally.

Though Marti did not go into the details of this strategy, he did inform attendees that it consists of two foundational components: the development of a "modern governmental framework" and "enhanced collaboration and cooperation between the private and public sectors."

"Strategies that have served the country well in the past may be ill-suited to addressing new [intellectual property rights] challenges," Marti said. He stressed that employing these same old tactics against contemporary infringers, counterfeiters and pirates  the growth of which is "fueled in large part by sophisticated crime syndicates"  would be to the country's detriment.

Marti explained that this is particularly dangerous considering that IP-intensive industries contribute 45 million jobs and 38% of the US GDP. Alarmingly, he said between 1.9% and 2.0% of all of world trade is made up of counterfeit goods.

"Today, everything that can be faked, is being faked," said Marti. He said these challenges to IP rights are not just private but public concerns, and that to address them they must be examined at the micro level as well as the macro; in joint efforts between public and private entities, across borders.
Now more than ever, the relationship between in-house and outside counsel is dynamic and complicated. "Looking for new firms now is sometimes a challenge, because everyone is either representing us in a case or suing us in a case," said Google's Jim Sherwood.

But, the ever-quickening pace of innovation does mean that companies like Google keep one eye on outside practitioners. "Two of the biggest drivers for looking for new outside teams are experience in a particular tech product area and experience in a new forum," he added.

Danielle Johnston Holmes, associate general counsel for Microsoft, said that her company's commitment to diversity extends to its outside counsel hires as well. "We expect them to be at least as diverse as we are," she says. According to Holmes, Microsoft even pays monetary bonuses for diversity in its outside legal team.

The draw of diversity isn't pure principle though, says Sherwood. Among the considerations in choosing the right outside counsel for a given forum, "it's important to us that our team should reflect the jury pool that we're before," he said.

The panel's moderator, Frank Gerratana, a partner at Fish & Richardson, mused that diversity seems to be a trending factor in the search for outside counsel. However, more traditional factors are still at play, but shifting.

Price, for example, is obviously still a very important consideration. Especially now "there's a lot of pricing pressure on IP," said Clearing House's Sean Riley. Outside counsel just can't expect to be able to charge the same hourly rates that they used to, as a fixed fee structure becomes increasingly common.

The pool of outside counsel candidates shrinks as conflicts  whether legal, business, technological, or regulatory  become more common, which means that upfront and early conversations about these potential conflicts are essential.

Sherwood said he was surprised by how much time he spent dealing with [conflict] issues. "To some extent it's a good thing. Firms we work with really do make an effort to raise issues before things go too far."

For Riley  as in-house counsel for a financial services association  business or even technological conflicts are of greater importance. "There's a lot more loyalty when you can bring a larger book over to a firm," he said.

Riley said, although companies have moved away from using law firms for data analytics of their IP portfolios, if a firm's technology is not up to muster it simply can't be trusted. "And, when it comes right down to it, the attorney client relationship is about trust," concluded Holmes.
Howard Hao Howard Hao is a patent attorney and the manager of the patent department. Mr Hao provides consultation services on a wide range of patent issues, including inventions, utility models and industrial designs. Mr Hao specializes in patent prosecution in China. He has filed over 600 patent applications and responded to over 500 office actions relating to medical equipment, engines, automotive technology, machine tools, metal materials and mechanical and electrical control systems. He also provides broad IP legal services on a strategic scale. Chenyan Wu Chenyan Wu is licensed to practice patent work in China, has passed the US Patent Bar Exam and is a licensed Judicial IP Appraiser. Ms Wu has more than 12 years of work experience in the field of intellectual property including one-and-a-half years working at a US patent law firm and a two-month internship at a multinational corporation based in the US. She has a bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering and received her Master's degree in Intellectual Property at University of New Hampshire School of Law (formerly Franklin Pierce Law Center). Ms Wu is specialized in formulating patent prosecution strategy and has handled numerous cases for leading Chinese companies including Levono and ZTE. She is an active participant of INTA, AIPLA, AIPPI and ABA and have hosted a dozen of seminars at AIPLA and ABA.

What are the latest trends in patent filings before the Chinese patent office (SIPO)?

1) Patent-eligible subject matter

Howard Hao: SIPO used to issue a lot of subject matter rejections under Article 2 of the Chinese Patent Law, asserting that the claims relate to non-technical subject matters and thus are not patentable. This kind of rejection related to not only computer-implemented methods, but also some apparatus claims, and typically was very difficult to overcome, no matter how we illustrated the technical essence of the invention. This practice is somewhat similar to the current practice at the USPTO.

Chenyan Wu: This practice was changed by the Re-examination Board by revoking the rejections made by the examiners and remanding the applications back for further prosecution. Now the SIPO rarely issues this kind of rejection. Instead, the SIPO now focuses more on the merits, such as whether the invention is new and has inventive step (which is similar to the Section 103 requirement in the US). Taking a business method-related patent application as an example, if the technical problem solved by the distinguishing features is not "technical" compared with the closest prior art, there is no technical contribution to the prior art. Thus, the claim lacks inventive step.

2) Design protection for graphical user interfaces

Howard Hao: Since May 2014, the SIPO started to accept design applications for Graphical User Interface ("GUI") designs. Since then, a huge number of GUI design applications have been filed by both domestic and foreign applicants. As the competition between software companies gets more and more heated, the GUI design patents are also being used as a weapon by software companies to attack competitors. For example, Qihu (a Chinese software company) has brought civil litigation against Jiangmin (another Chinese software company), claiming infringement on its GUI design patent and asking for a compensation of RMB15,000,000 (about USD2.23 million). GUIs are very important for software companies because they engage with users directly. Now with this development in SIPO's practice, an applicant can seek to protect its unique GUI by filing design applications. However, different from other jurisdictions, SIPO only allows GUI designs if the drawings show the GUI along with the hardware. In other words, the design application needs to show not only the GUI itself but also the hardware.

3) Quality initiatives at the Chinese patent office (SIPO)

Chenyan Wu: In 2015, SIPO received approximately 2.8 million patent applications, which included about 1.1 million invention patent applications (similar to utility patent applications in the US), 1.1 million utility model patent applications and 600,000 design patent applications. The filing numbers in 2016 continue to grow. So SIPO now is working on improving the quality of the granted patents. What we as practitioners are feeling now is that the examination practice is more stringent than before. Now the examiners even cite new prior art references in the fourth or fifth Office Actions to reject cases based on novelty or inventive step, and very often, rely on "common knowledge," asserting that the claimed inventions lack inventive step. This requires patent practitioners to deal with more prosecution challenges.

Are there any practice changes that SIPO has implemented that affect patent applicants?

Graphical user interface design protection

Howard Hao: As stated above, SIPO only accepts a GUI design application if it includes a portrayal of physical hardware. This practice is different from many other jurisdictions. For example, the US generally allows a US GUI design application to only show the pure GUI design without including specific hardware devices, which means a broken line may be used to illustrate the border of the GUI to indicate the border of an electronic device.

Chenyan Wu: This difference in practice may create some problems. Assume that a Chinese design application claims priority to a US design application. When the applicant files a design application in China based on the US application, the drawings from the US application would not work since pure GUI design is not patentable by itself and SIPO requires a GUI design to be applied to hardware.

In this situation, the applicant would need to illustrate the hardware, such as an iPhone, tablet, Android phone, or smart watch, in order to meet SIPO's standards. This may also be problematic if SIPO rejects the priority claim based on the drawings in the Chinese application being different from the drawings in the US application. If the Chinese application cannot claim a priority to the US application, the patentability of the granted Chinese design patent may be easily challenged because the granted US patent, and any public disclosure (including use) of the design between the US filing date and the Chinese filing date, will become prior art against the Chinese design patent.

Howard Hao: In order to deal with this situation, we suggest that applicants who are filing in the US or other countries incorporate drawings showing the hardware on which the GUI can be applied. These drawings may just be reference drawings, but will offer significant convenience when filing a Chinese application with a priority claim.

For example, in a US application, in addition to the drawings of the pure GUI, the applicant may include several drawings showing iPhone, tablet, Smart Phone, GPS, and other electronic devices with GUI applied. When filing a design application in China, the applicant may select which hardware it intends to protect, or just combine several hardware with identical or similar GUI designs in one application and file divisional applications later.

How will the proposed amendments to the Patent Law affect patent protection?

Chenyan Wu: The Chinese Patent law is under its fourth amendment. The main proposed amendments include the following:

One proposed amendment would extend the term of Chinese design patents to 15 years, compared to the current 10-year term. The industrial designs of products are becoming more and more important in the competition for market share. Design patents are the most effective way to protect industrial designs in China. A proposed amendment will permit China to join the Hague agreement, the filing system for international design protection. Partial designs may be allowed by SIPO. This would be a significant breakthrough since in the past 30 years SIPO never allowed a partial design for an inseparable part of a product. Partial designs can better protect fine design details. We look forward to seeing this change in the finalized Patent Law. If this proposed amendment gets approved, the GUI issue mentioned above will be resolved. The compensation for patent infringement may be increased. The court may find "willfulness" in the defendant's infringement and then double or even triple the compensation awarded to the plaintiff. This can be deterrent to bad-faith repeat infringers. Statutory damages for patent infringement may be increased from an amount of between RMB10,000 (about USD 1,486) and RMB 1 million (about USD 148,587) to between RMB 100,000 (about USD 14,860) and RMB 5 million (about USD 742,936). Considering the huge number of patents/patent applications, it is a big problem of how to promote the commercialization of those patented technology. In the draft amendments to the Patent Law, there are the provisions for indications of licensing availability. For example, the patentee, after the patent is granted, may submit a declaration before SIPO, stating that it is willing to license the patent to anyone or any entities at the proposed royalty rate. This information will be published by SIPO.

Are there any recent cases/decisions that applicants should be aware of when filing patents?

Howard Hao: Applicants in the computer and software industry should be aware of the patent infringement litigation which took place between Nokia and Huaqin in 2015. Expressions like modules configured to perform some functions are commonly used in software applications and SIPO does not have serious problems with this kind of claim language. However, the patentee after receiving the granted patent may become frustrated when trying to assert the patent rights against competitors because the court may have a different interpretation of this claim language. In the case mentioned above, Shanghai High Court confirmed that the claim language "terminal configured to" should be construed as a means-plus-function feature because it defines a component by the function it performs, rather than by its structure. So the judges need to refer to the embodiments in the specification to determine the scope of the means-plus-function feature. However, in this case the specification did not define any specific structure of the hardware, nor did it give a detailed description of how the function is performed. So finally, the court decided that the claims were unclear and thus there could not be a finding of infringement as to the unclear claims.

This case has caused a great shock among practitioners because this kind of language has until now been quite commonly used when drafting software inventions. But since the case was confirmed by one of the most sophisticated courts in China, patent practitioners are compelled to pay more attention to this aspect of application drafting. We note that this decision actually is in alignment with the treatment of means-plus-function language in the US.

Chenyan Wu: Our suggestion is to avoid means-plus-function language if possible and to use structure claiming instead. If means-plus-function language must be used in claims, the specification should give more details about the hardware and provide figures showing the physical hardware. In case the hardware only involves generic computers or components, the specification should describe how the functions of the modules are achieved, for example by flowchart. Given the current state of the law, merely describing the function performed by a module may not be sufficient.

Are there any recent initiatives in China benefitng international applicants?

Chenyan Wu: The Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) is a great tool to accelerate the prosecution of Chinese applications and possibly reduce the number of Office Actions per case, which in turn reduces overall prosecution costs. SIPO now has PPH agreements with about 20 countries including the US, Japan, Germany, Britain, and Canada. In recent times, PPH practice in the Chinese patent office has become more and more flexible and friendly.

In the Chinese patent office, with PPH, the first Office Action will be issued very often within about two months of the grant of the PPH request. In Chinese practice, the PPH request needs to be filed at the time when filing a request for substantive examination if the case is published or after the application enters into substantive examination, and in any event needs to be filed before the first Office Action is issued.

Are any other developments expected in the near future?

Howard Hao: We see a steady increase in patent litigation in many jurisdictions including Beijing and Shanghai. The judges hearing patent litigations cases are also becoming more and more sophisticated. As a policy embraced by the central government, IP protection is being enhanced. Some current trends may reflect this policy. For example, some judges are willing, upon request, to help the plaintiff to collect evidence from the defendant by evidence preservation. Some judges are willing to award a high compensation to the plaintiff even though the plaintiff may not be able to establish a complete chain of evidence showing the damages. We litigated an anti-unfair competition case for a US client early this year and won four-million CNY (about USD600, 000) for the client. The compensation was relatively high because the judges took the defendant's bad faith into consideration.
Kate ORourke used her inaugural speech as ITMA President to outline her priorities, one of which was to see IP Pro Bono service come to fruition. In an interview with Managing IP she revealed that ITMAs application to the Privy Council for a Royal Charter included a commitment to pro bono work.

The service has now been launched, and so far over 15 firms including Bird & Bird, Baker & McKenzie, Wood IP and Hogan Lovells have pledged their support. But it didnt happen overnight, according to ORourke. It took a few years of discussions between members of various IP professional associations. The idea has been around for a long time but the chat was formalised two years ago and a Working Group was set up, she said.

Why it was set up

Action had to be taken because there wasnt an appropriate structure which would allow more IP practitioners to do contentious IP work on a pro bono basis. It was all completely ad hoc. Everyone tried to help. So for example if a call came to ITMA office the president at the time got the call, ORourke explained, adding that the UK IPO, a supporter of the service, do get enquiries too.

She continued: There is already a scheme for people who need IP advice such as searching and filing, but if it comes down to a battle on the contentious side then a lot of the small businesses or individuals dont know where to start and cant necessarily afford a solicitor.

This situation is unlike other areas such as housing and family law which existing pro bono services tend to prioritise. As we reported last week, the risk is that keen IP practitioners may well be missing out on opportunities to help people who cannot afford IP advice and representation.

We thought there was a space to do something very similar to LawWorks, said ORourke, who describes IP Pro Bono as a clearing house. Weve been in touch with them as well as the Bar Pro Bono Unit and everyone is really supportive.

What volunteers and users should expect

The service is run by volunteers, comprising firms and individual IP practitioners, acting as case officers and advisers. CIPA manages its administration.

ORourke explains that volunteers wont feel overwhelmed: This is more structured. It shares the burden because the case officers and advisers will rotate. For example as a case officer you wont be on call all the time. Apart from filtering the enquiries, the case officer will also monitor the workload to know how many people can be helped at a given time.

More importantly, the quality of advice will be the same. The adviser takes on the matter as a normal file in his or her firm. Were not treating these clients as different. The client care obligations will be the same and they will get the same level of expertise and quality of service as if they were paying clients. Everyone is committed to that, says ORourke.

The service is of course free but clients will be responsible for any disbursements such as court fees. Its important to set out to the client what youre going to provide. Weve prepared terms of engagement for attorneys who need it.

Overcoming challenges

During the planning stage, professional insurance was a concern. We had to make sure their [volunteers] professional liability insurance covered the pro bono work. Were now happy its not an issue, ORourke said. In her view, workload and awareness are the main likely challenges.

She is optimistic but yet cautious about uptake of the service, from a user and volunteer perspective. What we dont know is what the demand would be, whether we will be inundated with work or have nothing to do. Its just impossible to tell even though we know there is a need. We want to get it out and start work, ORourke said, adding: The right people need to find out about the scheme. She expects some targeted promotional work to be done and hinted that the service may evolve depending on findings after about a year or so.

ORourke also confirmed that IP Pro Bono will take on the workload of own-it, the IP information project, which has now discontinued its advisory service. When asked about the prospects of getting more volunteers from across country, she said: IP Pro Bono is a national programme so I dont think there will be a problem having firms from around the country join the scheme.

Furthermore, her hope is that there wont be just one person in a volunteer firm willing to support. Some of the firms that are involved are large firms so there may be someone else or others at the firm who can help which means the firm can take on another matter.

At the end of the interview I asked why she is passionate about pro bono. She replied: The whole basis is about access to justice, which is one of the key cornerstones of British society.

A judges perspective

Judicial concern

Judge Richard Hacon Judge Richard Hacon

ORourke mentioned that Hacon, who was a member of the Working Group, was worried about justice being done and the rise in litigants-in-person in the IPEC  something that he spoke about during his speech at the launch event. This was why he called on IP practitioners to set up the service as soon as possible. In an interview with Managing IP the judge spoke about his experience and views on the service.

Most weeks Im dealing with applications on paper from litigants-in-person and in court I see one every two months or so, Hacon said. The former is more difficult to deal with. With written applications sometimes it can take a huge amount of time to work out what they want or what the case is all about. District Judge Janet Lambert, one of the judges of IPECs small claims track, also shared a similar experience during my brief chat with her at the launch event.

Hacon said copyright and designs are the top two areas in which he sees litigants-in-person the most, but there are the occasional trade mark or passing off disputes.

Where a litigant-in-person is on one side and a represented party on the other, it is not uncommon to see a judge stepping in to provide guidance to ensure justice is done. This often takes up the courts time and resources  an issue the judiciary in England and Wales have flagged up. Mr Justice Colin Birss identified this when he was in charge of the Patents County Court (now IPEC).

Hacon expressed a similar experience: Its their right to appear in court unrepresented and part of my job is to deal with that. That said, inevitably, they take up more time than parties with professional representation. This is why he urged practitioners to assist the court by taking up pro bono in contentious IP matters.

Be ready to explain

Litigants-in-person in the IPEC should not be surprised if the judges ask whether professional advice had been obtained. It seems to me there really would be no excuse for any litigant to come to court without professional advice, though its still their entitlement not to, but I would certainly want to know why they were refusing to take advice when its been offered for free, says Hacon.

I hope theyll spontaneously find out about this pro bono scheme or if they dont know Ill certainly direct them towards it. Im hoping that would hardly ever happen, he added.

Nothing to fear

No doubt there will be some firms or IP practitioners who are in two minds whether or not to volunteer; the IP STARS survey this year revealed a myriad of reasons for this. Nonetheless, the key finding from the survey was that the majority of IP practitioners would do pro bono work if presented with the opportunity.

I asked Hacon whether he had received any concerns from practitioners about the service. No. The concerns Ive received were about how things worked until now where the adviser becomes unhappy because theyre doing a lot of unbillable hours work and find it very difficult to move on.

Hacon said the service is designed to get around this concern. He also highlighted the flexibility of the service which could see those clients who have some means to pay directed to an affordable service or only assisted up to a certain stage.

This is perhaps why Hacon does not believe the service would result in loss of work. I doubt that very much, he said in an assured manner. I think the overall effect is that it would not to change the amount of work that professionals will get, the judge added, and then explained: For the most part of this kind of work its either the litigant-in-person goes ahead and does it themselves or the litigation will fizzle out which means legal professionals wont be getting that work anyway.

What advice would you give those firms or individuals thinking of joining? I asked Hacon. He simply said: "Sign up."
The United States said Thursday up to 900 Islamic State (IS) militantshave been killed in the offensive to retake Iraq's Mosul, as camps around the city filled with fleeing civilians.

Iraqis who fled their homes expressed joy at escaping IS's brutal rule as they were given shelter and assistance, in some cases reuniting with relatives they had not seen in more than two years.

The offensive, launched on October 17, is seeing tens of thousands of Iraqi fighters advancing on Mosul from the south, east and north in a bid to retake the last major Iraqi city under IS control.

Backed with air and ground support from a US-led coalition, federal forces allied with Kurdish peshmerga fighters have taken a string of towns and villages in a cautious but steady advance.

General Joseph Votel, who heads the US military's Central Command, told AFP the offensive was inflicting a heavy toll on the Islamist militants.

"Just in the operations over the last week and a half associated with Mosul, we estimate they've probably killed about 800-900 Islamic State fighters," Votel said in an interview.

There are between 3,500 and 5,000 IS militants in Mosul and up to another 2,000 in the broader area, according to US estimates.

Votel also said he had spoken with Iraqi military leaders late Tuesday who told him that as of that time, 57 members of the Iraqi security forces had been killed and another 255 or so wounded.

For the Kurdish regional peshmerga forces, numbers were lower, with about 30 killed and between 70 and 100 wounded.

The offensive has so far been concentrated in towns and villages around Mosul, with Iraqi forces later expected to breach city limits and engage the Islamist militants in street-to-street fighting.

Aid workers have warned of a major humanitarian crisis when fighting begins in earnest for Mosul, which is home to more than a million people, but thousands have already been fleeing surrounding areas.

The International Organisation for Migration said Thursday that 15,804 people have been displaced since the operation began, the vast majority from Nineveh province, of which Mosul is the capital.

"There's been quite a dramatic upturn in the last few days. As the Iraqi troops get closer to Mosul, more people are getting displaced, there are more populated areas," said Karl Schembri, regional media adviser for the Norwegian Refugee Council.

At a camp in Khazir, about mid-way between Mosul and the Iraqi Kurdish capital Arbil, Massud Ismail Hassan peered through a chainlink fence, looking for family members as peshmerga fighters registered the displaced.

"Once all these procedures are finished we will be able to give them food and drink and blankets we brought with us," he said.

Other families had already found each other, and tearful relatives clutched hands through the links of the fence.

Saddam Dahham, who lived under IS control in a village near Mosul for more than two years, fled to Khazir with his wife and their three children.

"We were not allowed to smoke, to use phones, not allowed to watch TV and we had to let our beards grow long," the 36-year-old said.

One of the first things he did after arriving at the camp was joyfully shave the "heavy thing dangling from my chin," Dahham said.

"I'm finally going to resume a normal life," the former truck driver said.

Schembri said the Norwegian Refugee Council, other aid agencies and the United Nations were planning for 200,000 people to be displaced in the next few days, though it may not reach that figure.

If anything close to 200,000 people are displaced in the immediate future, there would be a major shortage of places in camps.

"In terms of... camp facilities, there are only spaces available for 60,000" people, Schembri said.

After seizing control of large parts of Iraq and neighbouring Syria in mid-2014, IS declared a cross-border "caliphate", imposed its harsh interpretation of Islamic law and committed widespread atrocities.

Its rule was especially harsh for religious minorities.

On Thursday two Yazidi women activists who survived a nightmare ordeal at the hands of IS won the European Parliament's prestigious Sakharov human rights prize.

Nadia Murad and Lamia Haji Bashar have become figureheads for the effort to protect the Yazidis, against whom IS pursued a brutal campaign of massacres as well as enslavement and rape.

Murad hailed the prize as a "profound message to the (IS) terrorist group that their criminal inhumanity is condemned and their victims are honoured by the free world".

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Srinagar: One jawan was killed and another injured when the Army foiled a terrorist infiltration attempt along the LoC on Thursday. According to army report a Pakistani ranger was also killed in the heavy shell attack.



The incident occurred in the Tangdar sector in Kashmir after two ceasefire violations by Pakistan, one in RS Pura and the other in KG sector.

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New York: Democratic presidential candidate Hilary Clinton was mocked and trolled on Twitter on Wednesday after she wished herself a 'happy birthday' on the social networking site. People who took twitter to wish Hilary Clinton on her 69th birthday got shocked by a tweet posted by Hilary which reads as 'Happy birthday to the future president', along with Hilary's childhood photo.

The tweet was likely to be posted by her campaign staffs, but that doesn't prevent the netizens from trolling her. The reaction on the social media was quick by posting many memes and mocking tweets in Twitter.

Some people called her 'weirdo' for wishing herself and some people even asked that if she buy herself a present and a cake too. However, one of her followers claimed that Hilary fired the campaign's social media manager for such a tweet.
Jammu : BSF today said it had killed 15 Pakistani paramilitary personnel while retaliating to cross- border shelling and firing in which two Indian civilians were killed and two injured in Jammu region. Firing mortar shells and using automatic weapons, Pakistani troops targeted civilian areas and forward security posts along the International Border and Line of Control in Jammu, Kathua, Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu and Kashmir. BSF said that as per the ammunition used in firing and shelling, it appeared that Pakistani Army is supporting its paramilitary Rangers along the IB.In retaliatory firing, 15 Pakistani rangers have been killed so far, BSF said.

"At 1720 hour yesterday, Pakistan Rangers started unprovoked heavy firing and shelling in Kathua Sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba. It continued till 0500 hours today in the area of 24 BSF posts," a senior BSF officer said. BSF Additional Director General Arun Kumar told reporters here that a befitting reply was being given to the Pakistani shelling and firing. "Fifteen Pakistani soliders have been killed in retaliatory firing and shelling by BSF. We have destroyed their OP (outposts) and damaged a few," Kumar said.

As per the ammunition (120 mm mortars) used, it appears that Pakistani army is supporting the Rangers, he said after laying wreath at the mortal remains of BSF martyr Jitendra Kumar. "In the Pakistani shelling, one civilian died in Khour belt of Pallanwala sector today," Jammu Deputy Commissioner Simrandeep Singh said, adding another civilian was injured in R S Pura sector.

PTI
Syrian rebels fired dozens of rockets at government forces in Aleppo and Latakia province on Friday, in preparation for a bid to break the siege of Aleppo city, a monitor said.

The rocket fire was accompanied by fierce clashes on the outskirts of the government-controlled west of Aleppo, with two suicide car bombings targeting a checkpoint in the Dahiyet al-Assad neighbourhood, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

"The rebels have begun a prelude to their operation to break the siege of Aleppo," Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said.

The Britain-based monitor also reported rebels had fired dozens of rockets at the Nairab military airport and Aleppo international airport, both east of Aleppo city and under government control.

And, simultaneously, rebels fired rockets from Idlib province into the government stronghold of Latakia, killing one person and wounding six.

The rocket fire hit near the Hmeimim military airport, which is used by government ally Russia, as well as near Qardaha, the ancestral village of President Bashar al-Assad, the monitor said.

Abdel Rahman said the operation involved a range of rebel groups, including the powerful Islamist Ahrar al-Sham and former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front, previously known as Al-Nusra Front.

Ahrar al-Sham said on Twitter: "The prelude has begun with different types of weapons (targeting) the positions of the sectarian militias in Dahiyet al-Assad and surrounding areas in western Aleppo."

It also claimed the targeting of Nairab military airport with Grad rockets.

The Observatory said regime forces were returning rocket fire and also carrying out air strikes on the southern and western outskirts of Aleppo.

The city has been divided since mid-2012, and the eastern rebel-held neighbourhoods have been under regime siege near-continuously since July 17.

Rebels successfully broke the siege in early August, opening up a new route into the city from the south, but government forces quickly closed the route, and no aid has entered the east since July.

Damascus launched a Russian-backed assault on eastern Aleppo in late September that has killed hundreds of people and destroyed key infrastructure, including schools.

The assault and siege have prompted international condemnation, with UN aid chief Stephen O'Brien earlier this week describing Aleppo as a "kill zone."

Last week, Russia announced a unilateral "humanitarian pause" intended to allow civilians and surrendering rebels to leave, but only a handful of people left and the UN was unable to evacuate dozens of seriously wounded people.

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Chandaria Group was established in 1964, and today it is one of the largest and most diversified privately owned groups in East and Central Africa with operations in tissue, paper, hygiene products, packaging, real estate, automobile, mining, energy, etc. The Group's flagship company is Chandaria Industries, the largest tissue and hygiene products manufacturer in the region.

Interview with Darshan Chandaria, Group CEO and Director of Chandaria Industries

Chandaria Group was established in 1964. Today it is one of the largest and most diversified privately owned groups in East and Central Africa with operations in tissue, paper, hygiene products, packaging, real estate, automobile, mining, energy, etc. Could you give us an overview of the companys history and main operations?

Our primary business is tissue paper and hygiene products manufacturing. We are also involved with paper manufacturing. We have operations in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, India, and Dubai. Our second largest sector is real estate. We also have a joint venture in the insurance sector, in cooperation with Barclays Africa. We own the largest gold mine in Uganda. We are also entering into venture capitalism and private equity. We will soon launch Chandaria Capital, which will focus on SMEs, specifically angel investing and feed capital. We have branched into the automotive manufacturing sector with Mobius Motors. We have also entered into solar energy and flexible packaging.

Currently, we manufacture in Kenya and Tanzania. In Kenya, we operate as Chandaria Industries, Ltd., and in Tanzania we operate as Tanpak Tissues, Ltd. We export our products to twelve African countries. We are the largest integrated tissue paper and hygiene products manufacturer in not only Kenya, but East and Central Africa as well. We have recently announced a 50 million dollar expansion plan. We plan not only to significantly increase our market share in Kenya, but throughout the entire region. We are very proud of being the largest recyclers of paper waste. It makes our business very green and very environmentally sustainable. We look forward to increasing our positive impact in the coming years.

Our brands are market leaders in every segment that we operate in. Velvex is our premium flagship brand, which is very well known across Kenya and East Africa. Our product portfolio includes such brands as Nice & Soft, Toilex, Rosy, and Dawn. We have a rich offering for every segment of the market. Our product portfolio is also quite diverse. In addition to tissue products, we manufacture aluminum foil, cling film, egg trays, and we are the largest manufacturers of hospital-quality cotton wool in East and Central Africa. We have a variety of liquid based products, including liquid hand wash and detergents. In the next few months, we are coming into some very new and exciting categories.

What are some of Chandaria Groups most significant success stories?

We plan to come out with new products to increase our portfolio. We are working hard to drive this strategy. We want to become a very interesting consumer products base for Kenya and East Africa.

Over the years, we have had quite a few recognitions. We have won Company of the Year in Kenya. Most recently, we were awarded Business of the Year by the Oshwal Community, ahead of quite a few large businesses, which was very exciting for us. Our greatest achievement came last year when we were nominated by the African Business Forum for Company of the Year, alongside groups such as Dangote. For us, it is not about the awards and recognition. It is about transforming lives and being able to give our customers a competitive advantage, day in and day out. We want to ensure that we provide a place where our team and our employees can not only grow financially, but professionally, as well.

Are you involved in CSR?

We are doing a lot of things from a CSR perspective. We do not make a lot of noise about it, but if you follow us, you will see all the activities we are involved in. Healthcare and education are the two most important pillars in everyones life. We support over 35 medical and educational institutions across Kenya. Just opposite of our head office is a school that we fund. Over 1500 primary school students go there every day. We built the school and we support it fully in terms of teachers, salaries, fees, and educational materials. Entrepreneurship and SMEs are very close to my heart. I try to give as much of my time as I can to mentorships and talking to SMEs. I am one of the lions on the KCB show Lions Den, similar to Dragons Den or Shark Tank in the US. I am very passionate about seeing entrepreneurs and SMEs being successful, effective and becoming the next big businesses.

The group has operations spread throughout Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, India and Dubai. How would you define your strategy in terms of expansion plans?

Strategically, Kenya and Tanzania make sense for us. Kenya is part of COMESA and the EAC. From Kenya, we can look after those markets. Tanzania is a member of SADC, which is another trading block. We have just announced a 50 million dollar expansion plan. We will be putting in a brand new, state-of-the-art, world-class tissue paper manufacturing facility. We have plans to expand the production capacity of various other products within our portfolio, as well. We also plan to come out with new products to increase our portfolio. We are working hard to drive this strategy. We want to become a very interesting consumer products base for Kenya and East Africa. Our portfolio will initially aim to capture everything around the washroom. Our primary vision is to be the number one player in Africa for all washroom products and solutions. We also have expansion plans in the real estate sector and the insurance sector with our joint venture with Barclays. We are very optimistic. We are already present in East Africa, Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. There is a lot happening for the Group. It is a very exciting time for everyone involved with us.

What challenges does the company face on a daily basis?

We are in an emerging market, so even though we have a growing middle class, growing population, and growing demand, there will always be challenges. The first challenge is infrastructure. Traffic in Nairobi is a bit wild. Our government is putting in place numerous initiatives to develop our road network. Our standard gauge railway is also underway. There are many infrastructure projects planned, it is just a matter of timely execution. Energy requirements in terms of capacity, consistency, and cost are also issues being addressed. Another challenge we have begun to face is unfair competition from Chinese companies. The Kenyan economy needs foreign direct investment. Chinese companies and the Chinese government are supporting us in a big way with long term credit lines that are fairly affordable. But the government needs to monitor these businesses in a way that is sustainable for the economy. Many of these companies are coming in and taking over entire sectors. It is not a level playing field. We are constantly faced with sub-standard products as competition, counterfeiting, and these Chinese companies do not always pay the various taxes, levies, and license fees that we do. That is something that needs to be streamlined. Overall, we are very positive. There is so much happening in Kenya. Every week, we host a delegation from overseas. I am fortunate to be able to be a part of these delegations and interact with these people. It is just a matter of the private sector, the government, and every institution coordinating their efforts towards a common vision. We will definitely create an amazing economy.

How would you describe Chandaria Groups philosophy and what makes you different from the competition?

We have a long established and successful history. We have been in operation since 1964, more than 52 years of existence. People understand that we are a very established business. We are sustainable. We are growing. Working with us has many benefits. We are the only company in Kenya that manufactures our products 100 percent in Kenya. We are the only fully integrated operation, from paper waste to the distribution of our finished products. We have focused on building brands and on our national development. We are very proud to be one of the largest private sector employers in the country and the region. We want to continue to further our competitive advantage, dominate the market, and maintain our leadership position. This does not happen by only looking at our net profit and our profitability, though. We always work around the concept of the triple bottom line. Being a successful corporate leader means that we have to make sure that every stakeholder, customer, supplier, the community, and the country at large benefit from what we are doing and that we take care of them. My family has done that very well. We are very proud of that. We want to continue that legacy of supporting our community and our country.

What is your vision for the Group and for Kenya in the next five years?

Kenya is a very strategically located country and economy. Anybody who wants to be involved in East and Central Africa will find it very hard to exclude Kenya from their strategic and business plans. We need to understand and capture this situation correctly. We need to make sure that we position ourselves as a responsible economy, as a big brother to East and Central Africa. Our government has many initiatives in place to ensure that this happens, from infrastructure, SME development, access to capital, access to funding, technological advancements and the engagement of the international community. We are very fortunate that in the last 18 months, we have had visits by President Obama, the Israeli Prime Minister, and the Prime Minister of India. This is very historical for Kenya in such a short period. The spotlight is definitely on our country. We also need to create better ways of integrating, communicating, and collaborating between the private sector, the government, and the various other institutions that are involved. Private sector players should not keep relying on the government to create development. We need to play our part and continue investing and continue giving international investors confidence. Our Group is in a very unique position in terms of the number of sectors we play in. We also have operations outside of Africa in India and Dubai. Through this, we have the opportunity to see development, modernization, and what the market and the country will look like in the years to come. We are very focused on becoming the number one player in Africa for tissue and hygiene products. We are committed every day to that vision. We are building strong teams and capacity. We are trying to improve our technological adoption and technological advancement. We are continually working to be at the forefront of world-class processes and systems. We will also continue to expand our operations in real estate, insurance, venture capitalism, solar energy, and mining. And we look forward to venturing into a few new sectors, if the opportunity arises. But we will stay committed as Chandaria Group and Chandaria Industries to make sure that we will transform lives in every way we can. Especially through Chandaria Industries, we are very fortunate that we touch the lives of hundreds of millions of people across Africa, every day. We are working hard to make sure our processes are as efficient as possible. In doing this, we can lower the price of commodities and necessities, such as toilet tissue, which will make something as simple as basic hygiene more affordable to Kenyans and Africans in the near future.
Infinity pools. No matter how many of them you might have dipped your toes into and marveled at their breathtaking views, their novelty never really wears off.

The appeal of these genius pools lay in how they majestically blur the line between the man-made and the natural, and seem to majestically and infinitely stretch into the horizon. From elephant-spotting from your pool deck in Tanzania to marveling over the acres of forest high up in your villas private oasis in Bali, head up to our gallery to check out 10 of the worlds most beautiful infinity pools you will definitely want to visit. And no, these pictures have not been Photoshopped. Theyre that good.

Sarah Khan

Read More:

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Luxury Dip: 10 Best hotel swimming pools in Singapore
Top 5 Machine Intelligence Mega-Trend Stocks to Invest In

My recent video on the unfolding exponential machine intelligence mega-trend has generated much reader feedback, the foremost question being asked is which stocks to invest in to capitalise on the mega-trend. Firstly, if you have not already done so then do watch my video on the unfolding exponential machine intelligence mega-trend so that you gain an underlying understanding of why everything is about to change!

Do take note that the following are my long standing list of stocks in advance of more in-depth analysis on a whole host of machine intelligence sub sectors, as my current focus is the countdown to the US Presidential Elections, one that could provide huge profit opportunities for those who bet against the consensus view that Hillary Clinton has already won the election. For if you follow my analysis of the past few months then you will know that I consider a Trump election win as being far more probable coupled with great odds for betting on a Trump win!

And here is long standing forecast forecast as of 26th September -

25 Sep 2016 - US Presidential Election Forecast 2016 - Trump Riding BrExit Wave into the White House

And lastly here's my last video analysis of 12th of October.

Top 5 Machine Intelligence Stocks

Nevertheless, here are my top 5 stocks to invest in for the machine intelligence mega-trend. Yes, you will recognise most if not all of the names on this list, where my objective is to invest and forget, for certainty in delivering a decent return over gambling i.e. I much rather prefer to get a steady 20% or so gain per year then gamble on a doubling that could just as easily result in an halving.

Google - $796 Apple - $109 Amazon - $776 Microsoft - $57 INTEL - $32

More risky stocks?

Graphics cards (GPU) maker NVIDIA comes to mind (current price $70)

Disclaimer - I am invested in all 5 of the top 5 stocks mentioned above.

Ensure you are subscribed to our youtube channel for future videos in this mega-trend investing series and subscribed to our always FREE newsletter.

By Nadeem Walayat

http://www.marketoracle.co.uk

Copyright  2005-2016 Marketoracle.co.uk (Market Oracle Ltd). All rights reserved.

Nadeem Walayat has over 25 years experience of trading derivatives, portfolio management and analysing the financial markets, including one of few who both anticipated and Beat the 1987 Crash. Nadeem's forward looking analysis focuses on UK inflation, economy, interest rates and housing market. He is the author of five ebook's in the The Inflation Mega-Trend and Stocks Stealth Bull Market series that can be downloaded for Free.

Nadeem is the Editor of The Market Oracle, a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication that presents in-depth analysis from over 1000 experienced analysts on a range of views of the probable direction of the financial markets, thus enabling our readers to arrive at an informed opinion on future market direction. http://www.marketoracle.co.uk

Disclaimer: The above is a matter of opinion provided for general information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice. Information and analysis above are derived from sources and utilising methods believed to be reliable, but we cannot accept responsibility for any trading losses you may incur as a result of this analysis. Individuals should consult with their personal financial advisors before engaging in any trading activities.

Nadeem Walayat Archive

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




Aiken Summit Wesleyan Church, 4980 Axton Road, will have a concert from the Hard Times Band at 6 p.m. Sunday.

Antioch Christian Church (DOC), 555 Spencer-Preston Road, Martinsville, will observe the anniversary of its male chorus at 5 p.m. Saturday. Various groups will sing.

Bassett Church of the Brethren will host a meeting of Morning Glories, a community fellowship group, from 9:30-11 a.m. Wednesday in the fellowship hall. Rick Randall, pastor of New Hope Church of the Brethren, will speak. Bring food and recipes to share. Prizes will be awarded for the original and most colorful. Drinks will be provided.

Christ Episcopal Churchs women will host a retreat from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. The program, Our One Word, will be presented by Martha Bourlakas in the undercroft of the church, located at 321 E. Church St., Martinsville. In 2014, Bourlakas created a spiritual community for women called Our One Word, a hospitable, thinking, feeling spiritual community free of guilt and expectation. By focusing on one significant word, the programs description reads, women effectively can face what is disarming and confusing and instead figure what is meaningful and hopeful. Tickets ($15) include the program and lunch. They may be purchased by calling the church office at 632-2896 or emailing office@christchurchmvl.org.

Christian View Missionary Baptist Church will have Missionary Day on Sunday. At the 11:15 a.m. service, Minister Travis Burgess, associate minister of Mayo Missionary Baptist Church, will preach, and the Men of Christian View will sing.

Crosspoint Church will have a craft fair and yard sale from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. There will be food, vendors and crafts. Admission will be by donation. All proceeds will support the youth group attending a conference in Tennessee at Christmas. Crosspoint is near the speedway.

Deliverance Faith Temple will host guest Zeb Talley at 3 p.m. Sunday.

First Baptist Church East Martinsville will have Family and Friends Day at 11 a.m. Sunday. Lunch will be served afterward.

First Presbyterian Church, Kings Mountain Road, Collinsville, will have a breakfast at 9:30 a.m. in the fellowship hall. Dress will be casual. Worship will follow there at 11 a.m. The Rev. Dwight Christenbury will be the guest speaker.

Galilean House of Worship will have Family and Friends day at 10:30 a.m. Sunday. Dress will be casual.

Grace Presbyterian Church, 218 Fayette St., Martinsville, will host a Living Stones session, Couples in Ministry  Undivided in Devotion  Differing Gifts from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Nov. 5, at the church. It will be presented by Ronald and the Rev. Dr. Linda McRae, co-pastors of Little Salem Christian Church in Reidsville, North Carolina. Register on gracechurchmartinsville.org or by calling 632-5783.

Greater Lilly of the Valley Holiness Church, Bassett, will have guest speaker Elder Richard Spencer and the Community Pentecostal Holiness Church Choir of Ridgeway at 3 p.m. Sunday. The service is for young people.

Greater Refuge Temple Center of Deliverance, 718 Stoney Mountain Road, Martinsville, will host a benefit service for Bishop Albert L. Hairston at 1 p.m. Saturday. Various singing groups, including Perkins and Envision and The Perkins Brothers, will perform.

Greater Vision Assembly Holiness Church, 3201 Virginia Ave., Collinsville, will have a Jubilee at 3 p.m. Sunday. The guest speaker will be Bishop Earl Settlers of Greater Power Holiness Church in Eden, North Carolina.

Meadow View A.M.E. Church will have Elder Terrel F. Johnson of Garment of Praise International Deliverance Mnistries of Richmond at 6 p.m. Saturday. He will be accompanied by Music Minister Ellis Smith and Company. The service is sponsored by the Sunday school department. The church is located at 1201 Summit Road, Martinsville.

Mt. Olive East Christian Church (DOC), 3611 Spencer-Preston Road, Maritnsville, will have guest speaker Minister Franketta Tatum of Refuge Temple at 11 a.m. Sunday. VOICES of Mt. Olive East will render music. The Disciples Womens Fellowship is in charge of the service.

Mt. Olive Holiness Church, Cabell Street, Martinsville, will have guests Dr. J. Roland Cohen and the congregation and choir of Judah House of Worship in Eden, North Carolina, at 3 p.m. Sunday.

Mt. Sinai Church will observe the anniversary of its Helps Ministry at 3 p.m. Sunday. The guest will be Pastor Cynthia Carter of Christ Miracle Temple in Danville. Helps stands for Having Enough Loving People Serving. Mt. Sinai is located at 7 Peters St., Martinsville.

Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, 2700 Soapstone Road, Ridgeway, will have a missionary worship service at 11 a.m. Sunday.

Mountain Valley Missionary Baptist Church, 8893 Mountain Valley Road, Axton, will have Family and Friends Day at 3 p.m. Sunday.

Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church, Fieldale, will have Old Fashions Day at 11 a.m. Sunday.

St. Paul Pentecostal Holiness Church will hold revival at 7:30 nightly Tuesday through Friday. The guest speaker will be Dr. Darrell Hunter of St. Thomas Chapel in Summerfield, North Carolina. The church is located on Sunset Drive, Bassett.

Samaria Holiness Church will have a service at 5 p.m. Saturday. Minister Tarma Lewis will speak, there will be singing. The church is located off Va. 8 in Patrick County.

Spirit of Christ Worship Center, 4250 Chatham Road, Martinsville, will have guest speaker Minister Daryl Hairston of Noahs Ark Full Gospel Baptist Church at 11 a.m. Sunday.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is hosting the foreign ministers of Syria and Iran in Moscow as the Syrian army's siege of the rebel-held districts of the city of Aleppo continues.

Lavrov said in televised remarks on Friday at the start of the talks that Russia will keep supporting the Syrian government while the West is considering news sanctions to put pressure on both countries to halt an offense against rebel-held parts of Aleppo, which had drawn international outrage.

Lavrov will talk with with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem and Iran's Mohammad Javad Zarif separately before the three of them sit down for three-way talks later Friday. Iran is another key backer of Syrian President Bashar Assad

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RICHMOND  Economic globalization is likely to continue despite a political backlash against it in some countries, three panelists said this week at a Virginia Commonwealth University forum on international trade.

The forum focused on whether a nearly 30-year shift toward globalization might be ending, given recent events such as the so-called Brexit  the surprising vote in the United Kingdom this year to exit the European Union  and populist political movements on both the right and left in the United States and other countries that reject certain aspects of unfettered global trade and immigration.

Globalization is the super story of our time, said Van Wood, a professor of marketing and director of the VCU Center for International Business Advancement, who moderated the 22nd annual international trade forum hosted by the VCU School of Business on Wednesday.

We have less than 5 percent of the worlds population here in the United States, he said. If we dont engage with the rest of the world as we move through the 21st century, I think our standard of living and our leadership in the world will indeed decrease.

Three speakers who have studied globalization from the perspectives of business, public policy and history argued that globalization will continue to advance because the benefits outweigh the costs.

However, economic dislocations resulting from more cross-border trade and immigration will make the path a rocky one.

Globalization is likely to continue because we have set up institutional structures, relationships and interdependencies that are a net positive for most societies, said Ted Piccone, a senior fellow in foreign policy at The Brookings Institution.

It is hard to argue against many of the benefits of globalization, said Mark Johnson, a global business consultant and former executive with companies including MeadWestvaco Corp. and PepsiCo. Those benefits include reductions in poverty, increasing trade, GDPs going up, and lower consumer pricing in a lot of countries, he said.

These positive factors and connectivity suggest to me that unwinding or turning the clock back on globalization in a big way is going to be almost impossible to do, Johnson said. Will there be change, hiccups and disruption? Yes. But to think that we are going to go back to a period when there will be no globalization seems far-fetched.

Yet the wave of political resistance stemming from the negatives of global trade is likely to continue for some time, the speakers said.

Many people dont trust supranational organizations such as the EU and feel they are not democratic.

Those concerns are valid, but international institutions are needed to ensure that trade is fair, said Chris Bischof, an assistant professor of history at the University of Richmond who spent time in the United Kingdom this summer studying the social dynamics behind the Brexit vote.
RICHMOND  South Korean automakers Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. will pay Virginia $1.182 million as part of a multistate settlement over an investigation into their fuel economy ratings.

The automakers will pay a total of $41.2 million to 33 states and the District of Columbia to settle the investigation.

The fine is the latest in the ongoing fallout from misstated mileage numbers on more than 1.2 million vehicles in the U.S.

In 2012, Hyundai and Kia restated the mileage on one-quarter of their 2011-2013 model year vehicles after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency questioned their mileage numbers. The companies deny they violated the law, and instead cite lack of clarity in EPA test procedures.

In addition to the $1.182 million payment to Virginia, Hyundai has paid or committed to pay 11,256 Virginia customers a total of $2 million through its reimbursement program and an additional $888,000 to 2,588 customers through class-action settlement claims, Attorney General Mark Herring said.

Kia has paid or committed to pay 8,378 Virginia customers a total of $1.4 million through its reimbursement program and an additional $668,000 to 1,825 Virginia customers through class-action settlement claims.

In Virginia, we expect automakers and other retailers to be honest with consumers about the characteristics, uses and benefits of the products they sell. When they are not, they must be held accountable, Herring said in a statement.

The automakers paid $300 million in penalties to the U.S. government in 2014. They say they have also reimbursed around 75 percent of customers.

A class action lawsuit remains subject to an ongoing appeal.
MARTINSVILLE A man who pleaded guilty to two arson charges in Henry County and six arson charges in Martinsville was sentenced Thursday in Martinsville Circuit Court to 80 years in prison, with 78 years of that suspended and two years active.

Judge G. Carter Greer said that 28-year-old Derek Eugene Boone was sexually abused as a child and was threatened with a pistol. Greer said the trauma had impacted the Glade Spring resident's life  that he developed serious substance abuse problems and it affected his marriage.

Greer said he was surprised that Boone had such a light criminal record (two traffic matters) before the arsons.

Boone was able to keep things bottled up inside for many years until a switch went off and he just, as I said, went berserk, Greer said, referring to the arsons on June 29, 2015.

Boone was charged in the city of Martinsville with arsons involving several vehicles and a building.

In Henry County, Boone was charged with setting fire to or burning, by an explosive device or substance, a 2003 Nissan Maxima belonging to Lisa Divinie of 442 Shamrock Drive, Eden, North Carolina, and a tractor-trailer belonging to Ronald Eggan of Lake Forest, California.

A summary of the commonwealths evidence for Henry County alleged the following:

On June 29, 2015, Zachary Mize was working at Mize Automotive at 141B Dye Plant Road, near the River Hill Bridge, getting ready to stop working for the evening, when he heard something outside that sounded like a bomb. He went out back to investigate. He noticed a 2003 Nissan Maxima parked there at the business that had recently been worked on, that was in flames. Mize attempted to deploy a fire extinguisher on the vehicle but was unable to and called 911, Lisa Divinie owned the Nissan, which was a total loss.

Next to the Nissan was another vehicle owned by Sylvia Donovant. That vehicle received a fair amount of damage but was repairable.

Not long after Mize called 911, the local 911 center received multiple calls about different vehicle fires, two of which were in Martinsville. A fourth fire was called in -- at the Walmart parking lot.

In the Walmart parking lot was a tractor-trailer. The trailer portion is a car hauler that was hauling multiple vehicles. Eggan (the owner of the tractor-trailer) had an appointment to meet a man in Henry County to take delivery of a Cadillac that was shipped from California to Henry County.

The occupants who were asleep in the sleeper section of the tractor-trailer were awakened by someone knocking on the tractor door, letting them know that at least one of the vehicles on the trailer was on fire. After they got out, fire was observed coming from the Cadillac and spreading to two or more other vehicles on the trailer.

At all four fire scenes, fire departments were called in, the fires were suppressed, and ultimately the city and county fire marshals offices were called to investigate.

The city fire marshals office obtained a surveillance video on Memorial Boulevard that showed an individual setting one of the fires. A BOL (be on the lookout) was put out for a Ford Mustang that was believed to have been involved in each of the four fires. Also, at the Walmart parking lot, witnesses Isaiah Hairfield and Dustin Wallace noticed the Mustang driving through the parking lot and could place it at the scene at about the same time the fires were started on Eggans tractor-trailer. Surveillance video from the Walmart security system would show this Mustang in the parking lot at that time.

The city and county fire marshals offices did a joint investigation.

Officers were led to a hotel in the Collinsville area. The Ford Mustang was located there and deputies began to knock on doors, trying to find the owner of the Mustang. Deputies located Derek Eugene Boone. Boone granted Ted Anderson (then city fire marshal but now city fire chief) permission to enter his room and had a consensual conversation that led to Anderson being permitted to search the clothing bags and other luggage of Boone. Anderson also asked to search the Ford Mustang, Boone agreed, and Anderson searched the vehicle. Inside, there were noticeable parts that did not belong to the Ford Mustang, including pieces that belonged to an Infiniti automobile and what appeared to be swaths of cloth for automobile upholstery.

Later Boone was interviewed at the Martinsville Police Department.

During the interview, Mr. Boone ultimately confessed to setting all four fires in both Henry County and Martinsville. He confessed to setting the fire on Dye Plant Road as well as setting the fire to the Cadillac on the car hauler trailer of Mr. Eggans. Mr. Boone was charged in Henry County with two counts of arson of personal property valued at more than $200. At the conclusion of the interview, warrants were taken out for Mr. Boone for his arson in both the county and the city , the commonwealths summary of evidence alleged.

On Thursday in Martinsville Circuit Court, Henry County Commonwealths Attorney Andrew Nester and Martinsville Deputy Commonwealths Attorney Andy Hall appeared as prosecutors before Judge Greer on the Boone cases.

Greer sentenced Boone to 10 years in prison on each of the eight arson cases, suspended all 10 years in six of the cases, suspended nine of the 10 years in two of the cases  for a total of two years active and 78 years suspended. In each of the eight cases, time suspended was on condition of five years of supervised probation, 30 years of good behavior, and that Boone receive a substance abuse assessment and participate in any recommended services. Greer also ordered Boone to pay a total of $18,903.47 restitution for the two arson cases in Henry County.

The amount of restitution owed in the Martinsville arson cases has not been completely determined. Greer scheduled a restitution hearing for Dec. 15 at 2 p.m. in case one is needed.

Paul Collins reports for the Martinsville Bulletin and can be reached at paul.collins@martinsvillebulletin.com.
MARTINSVILLE-Just because there's a plan on the table with Longwood University, that doesn't mean the negotiations are over for the New College Institute. That point was made repeatedly during NCI's board of directors meeting Thursday.

No votes were taken and no final decisions reached. In fact, NCI administration said they're open to talking with other universities as well, not just Longwood.

The institute wants to leave room to negotiate with other universities if they come forward with proposals, said Acting Executive Director/Chief Academic Officer Leanna Blevins.

NCI offers various bachelors and masters degree programs through partnerships with Virginia universities plus training and professional development programs aimed to be responsive to needs of area businesses and industries.

Longwood has been one of NCIs partners since the state-supported institute opened in 2006. Currently, the university is offering bachelors degree programs in education and social work as well as a reading specialist endorsement certificate program at the institute.

State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) Executive Director Peter Blake on Thursday presented NCIs board a concept for Longwood to take on a more prominent role at the institute. His concept is a blending of options examined by NCI in terms of the structure of how higher education institutions traditionally operate and provide educational programs.

The board took no action on the concept. Blake suggested that board members take time to consider it and, in the meantime, NCI administrators work with Longwood officials to develop a formal proposal.

However, we have to do it in a timely manner so we dont get hung up over NCIs future direction, said state Sen. Emmett Hanger, R-Mount Solon, who is on the institutes board.

SCHEV is the states coordinating body for higher education programs. One of its duties, its website shows, is to help higher education institutions collaborate on projects that enhance the quality of educational programs as well as create operational efficiencies.

Blakes concept calls for Longwood to do due diligence to establish an affiliate location in Martinsville utilizing the assets of the New College Institute and for the institute to seek a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the university on the parameters of an affiliation.

The concept calls for Longwood to assume control of NCIs assets. Leanna Blevins, the institutes acting executive director and chief academic officer, said that remains to be determined.

Blevins said that for eight months, she has been talking with Longwood officials about what the structure of a stronger relationship between the university and NCI might look like but there is nothing on paper yet.

Under Blakes concept, Longwood would maintain or establish for NCI strategic partnerships with other public and private higher education institutions, especially Patrick Henry Community College and Danville Community College. The university would work with the community colleges to establish a process to develop educational pathways and articulation agreements documenting student transfer policies for specific programs.

The colleges are providing excellence workforce development services for the regions they serve, Blake said.

No exclusive deals

If an MOU between the institute and Longwood is developed, Id recommend that we put nothing exclusive in it limiting the Martinsville school to providing only programs that the university now offers at its Farmville campus, said NCI board member Del. Danny Marshall, R-Danville.

Marshall said he believes that if Longwood takes charge of developing an MOU, theyre going to develop it for themselves.

In that case, we could change it, said another NCI board member, Del. Charles Poindexter, R-Franklin County.

But we want to be in the drivers seat, said Weldon Hill, an associate professor of music at Virginia State University who is chairman of the NCI boards academic affairs committee.

Blevins said that if Longwood was to simply propose to copy and paste its main campus educational offerings in Martinsville, she would be opposed.

To attract students interested in attending the university to Martinsville instead of Farmville, we need a really unique, innovative, different program, she said, referring to courses of study.

Based on her conversations with students at the University of Virginias College at Wise, where she used to work, Blevins said she believes a Martinsville affiliate of Longwood would attract students wanting a unique experience during their college years.

The four-year liberal arts college, in a town of about 3,000 people in southwestern Virginia, has 2,067 students, its website shows.

We want to make sure were not only providing educational opportunities but also filling our classrooms, said state Sen. Bill Stanley, R-Franklin County and an NCI board member.

Thats why you want to take a little bit of time, Blake said, to consider his concept.

NCIs board would be abolished, with Longwoods board taking oversight of the Martinsville school, under Blakes concept. Yet the institute could try to get some Martinsville-Henry County residents appointed to the universitys board to represent the areas interests, he said.

At any rate, some type of strong (local) advisory board would be necessary for Longwoods board, he added.

Blake estimated that the process of NCI becoming a Longwood affiliate would go on for 18 to 20 months, over two General Assembly sessions.

His concept shows that in the legislative session that will start in January, Gov. Terry McAuliffe and lawmakers would approve legislation or a budget amendment expressing intent to establish the educational assets of the New College Institute as part of Longwood.

Then in 2018, McAuliffe and the General Assembly would affirm agreements made by NCI and Longwood and adopt legislation to abolish the institutes board, the concept shows.

There would be about a year for all the details (of the agreements) to be worked out, Blake said.

This is not concrete, he continued, but its a timeline I think will move this community in the right direction.

Blake and Blevins agreed that NCI must develop a stronger connection with a university  either Longwood or another one  to give the institute a brand name that will help it attract students and convince lawmakers that it is needed in some form.

Although NCI is 10 years old now, in some peoples eyes, Blevins said, the perception is that because we dont have a brand yet, were not really succeeding  (and) something is wrong.

What is a branch campus?

Strengthening its affiliation with Longwood University  or any other four-year higher education institution, for that matter  would not necessarily mean that NCI would become a branch campus of the institution.

But it could become something very similar.

According to Sarah Armstrong, director of substantive change for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) Commission on Colleges, an accrediting body, the U.S. Department of Education has a specific definition of branch campus that takes into account several factors.

The definition states that a branch campus is a location of a higher education institution that is geographically apart from, and independent of, the institutions main campus. A location is considered to be independent of the main campus if it is:

@ Permanent in nature.

@ Offers courses in educational programs leading to a degree, certificate or other recognized educational credential.

@ Has its own faculty and administrative or supervisory organization, and

@ Has its own budgetary and hiring authority.

A true branch campus is fairly autonomous, Armstrong said.

Often, she said, a peer review committee will visit a branch campus and come away recommending that it become separately accredited as its own institution because it seems so independent of the parent campus.

Frequently, higher education institutions have other kinds of off-campus locations where classes are taught, and some may provide entire academic programs at those locations, Armstrong said. Yet they are not considered to be autonomous because their parent institutions administrations retain budgetary and hiring/firing authority, she said.

Mickey Powell reports for the Martinsville Bulletin. He can be reached at mickey.powell@martinsvillebulletin.com.
After a three-way meeting in Moscow, the foreign ministers of Russia, Syria and Iran say their countries have agreed to intensify the fight against terrorism in Syria.

Russia's Sergey Lavrov made the statement on Friday after meeting with Syrian counterpart Walid al-Moallem and Iran's Javad Zarif.

Lavrov said at a news conference that the fight would come in parallel with efforts to improve humanitarian aid.

He also reiterated Russian denials that its warplanes were responsible for an attack on a school in Idlib province that the U.N. children's agency says killed 22 children and six teachers.

The Russian military on Thursday dismissed reports of the airstrike as a sham, citing images in the media showing desks standing intact next to a wall blown out allegedly by that very airstrike, while such an attack would have caused more extensive damage.

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An Iraqi aircraft is believed to have carried out a strike on a Shiite place of worship last week that killed 15 people and wounded dozens, a lawmaker said Friday.

The air raid in Daquq, a town in Kirkuk province of northern Iraq, sparked outrage among residents, who have demanded answers on who was behind the deadly October 21 strike.

"It is believed that it was an Iraqi aircraft," said Hakim al-Zamili, a lawmaker and member of the committee investigating the strike, citing preliminary results.

Some say the bombing was due to a technical problem while others believe it was intentional, Zamili said at a news conference in Daquq, promising to find out the cause.

The strike hit a Shiite place of worship that is known as a husseiniyah in Daquq on the afternoon of October 21.

On Thursday, Daquq residents had demanded answers on the strike, criticising the lack of information released so far.

Yaljan Mahdi Sadiq, a leading figure in the Daquq community, said families of the victims had refused compensation from the Iraqi government.

"They don't want money, they want to know who committed this horrible crime against them," Sadiq said.

The US-led coalition carrying out air strikes against the Islamic State group in Iraq had previously said it had "definitively" determined it did not carry out the Daquq strike.

Russia had pointed an accusing finger at the coalition a day after the attack.

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SPRINGFIELD -- Chinese engineers and technicians wrapped up a week-long tour of Western Massachusetts on Friday with a visit to the engineering laboratories and classrooms at Western New England University.

The 20 visitors represent the largest state-owned enterprises in China and were here on a trip organised by the Global Corporate College and the Massachusetts Community Colleges.

At Western New England's Sleith Hall, they took turns on the flight simulators, watched students in an electrical engineering and antenna laboratory and in a biomedical engineering classrooms all with an eye toward forging a closer relationship.

Western New England University and its College of Engineering already cooperates with CRRC MA USA, the Chinese company building a $95-million plant in East Springfield to build subway cars for the MBTA Red and Orange lines. Western New England professors already study rail cars and railway design, and the hope is CRRC will hire the engineers it needs from Western New England.

"It shows the Chinese visitors what Western New England has to offer and what we can do for them," said Kenneth Lee, chairman of the civil and environmental engineering department. "I think we are always looking for more investment, more growth here in Western Massachusetts."

Lee was eager to show off Western New England's student-designed solar house now operating off-grid on the campus while drawing all its power from the sun. Next year, the college's solar team will compete at another Solar Decathlon with teams from all over the world at China's Xi'an Jiatong University.

Steven R. Sullivan, director of grants and workforce development for Massachusetts Community Colleges, said the visitors were chosen to make the trip based on their hard work and achievement. They spent a week in Boston and a week in Western Massachusetts and go from here to New York City to wrap up their trip.

Besides Western New England University, they visited with Holyoke Community College, Springfield Technical Community College, Roger L. Putnam Vocational Technical Academy in Springfield and the CRRC site now under construction, Sullivan said.

"What I would like to do is set up an exchange program where we have delegations of students going back and forth, learning the technology over there and bringing it back here," Sullivan said.

With this group, Sullivan said, welding instructors have been emphasizing the health and safety protections American workers are taught to use.

Massachusetts Community Colleges is a consortium of all the state's community colleges.

Through a translator, the visitors marveled at the high tech equipment at the university and at the technical training available to rank-and-file employees.

The said they work in a number of industries including heavy construction on skyscrapers and auto production.
kia

The former Kia dealership on King Street in Northampton.

(Republican file photo)

Automakers have agreed to a seven-figure settlement with Massachusetts after being accused of misleading consumers.

The office of Attorney General Maura Healey alleges Hyundai and Kia displayed inaccurate mileage and fuel economy ratings on the window stickers of hundreds of thousands of cars for sale in Massachusetts and other parts of the country. The mileage estimates were also featured in advertisements, in violation of the Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act, attorney general's office said.

"We allege that these major automakers falsely advertised that their vehicles were more fuel efficient than they actually were at a time when gas prices were particularly high in Massachusetts and across the nation," Healey said. "Companies cannot use false claims and deceptive practices to persuade consumers to purchase their products or to gain an unfair advantage over competitors."

Hyundai and Kia have agreed to pay more than a million dollars to the state to resolve such claims, as apart of a $41.2 million multistate settlement.

Separate settlements will offer compensation to Hyundai and Kia car owners. Those with questions about the settlement are asked to call the Attorney General's Consumer Advocacy and Response Division at (617) 727-8400.
City lights 12.jpg

Neon on Tower Square glows brightly in downtown Springfield. (Don Treeger / The Republican

(Don Treeger/ The Republican File)

SPRINGFIELD -- MassMutual Financial Group has merged four of its investment management arms into one brand name, Barings LLC, and it is apparently poised for growth in Charlotte, North Carolina, and in London.

In Charlotte, Barings is poised to move into about a third of a new estimated $136 million office tower partly owned by MassMutual's Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers. Cornerstone is one of the four entities it rolled into the Barings brand.

But Barings has no plans to downsize its operations in downtown Springfield's Tower Square, said spokesman Brian Whelan, head of corporate communications for Barings. The Barings offices, formerly Babson Capital Management, in the MassMutual-owned Tower Square, have about 300 employees, he said.

Tower Square houses the company's trading desk and several top executives including the head of structured credit, who trades collateralized loan obligations or pooled business loans, as well as the chief administrative officer, the co-chief counsel and the global head of human resources.

"There are certainly no plans to rearrange things," Whelan said.

The home office of MassMutual is right up the road on State Street.

Whelan was noncommittal when asked about the future growth. "I think there will be expansion where it makes sense," he said.

Barings does seem prepped to grow. The North Carolina office -- the company's U.S. headquarters -- is set to move into 200,000 square feet of a new 25-floor office tower at South Tryon and Third streets in uptown Charlotte this summer. The building has 630,000 square feet of leasable space and is adjacent to a hotel, according to coverage in the Charlotte Business Journal, a sister publication to The Republcian.

Whelan said it has space to expand, something Barings' current offices in the financial hub don't have.

Tom Finke, chairman and CEO of Barings, was asked by the Charlotte Business Journal why it might be important for an international business like Barings to be headquartered there. He responded:

"Charlotte is a much more international city than people perceive it to be. There's a large number of European and Asian businesses with operations in Charlotte. To be part of that fabric and be a company that is really a local company headquartered here, hopefully that sends that message more distinctly that yes, we are an international city. We have a great international airport. We have businesses coming here not just to do business here but to put operations here. We grew from a big banking center to what I really think is an international center and hopefully we will continue develop in that mode."

Also, Barings is reportedly searching for more office space in London, site of its global headquarters, according to Bloomberg news.

In September, MassMutual announced that it had combined Babson Capital Management, Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers, Wood Creek Capital Management and Barings Asset Management Ltd. into one entity under the name Barings LLC.

The combined Barings has more than $275 billion in client assets under management and more than 1,700 employees in 41 offices in 17 countries.

Besides Springfield, it has offices in Hartford, New Haven and Glastonbury, Connecticut, and in Boston.

Barings' history goes back to 1762 when it was founded in London. The company collapsed in 1995 due to fraudulent trading by broker Nick Leeson. Dutch lender ING Groep NV rescued the Barings brand. It sold Barings Asset Management Ltd. to MassMutual in 2005.
SOUTHWICK  Everyone knows that senior citizens are renowned for showing up at the polls on Election Day, and the southwestern Hampden County town of Southwick is no different.

But on Thursday Nov. 3, super senior Florence E. Warriner, a 104-year-old Southwick woman and the town's oldest living resident, will be casting her ballot during early voting at Town Hall, according to Southwick Town Clerk Michelle L. Hill.

Warriner is expected to arrive at Town Hall around 12:15 p.m., and she will be assisted by Cindy Sullivan, the town's Council on Aging director.

Warriner will be the town's second centenarian to take advantage of early voting in Massachusetts, made possible by a new law that allows commonwealth voters to weigh in on races and ballot questions from Oct. 24 to Nov. 4. The general election is Nov. 8.

On Oct. 24, the first day of early voting, Southwick's second-oldest citizen, a 103-year-old resident stopped by Town Hall to vote. Early voting is no-excuse voting, according to Hill, who complimented the centenarians for flexing their democratic muscles.

"I strongly feel these two coming to vote set that example," Hill said.

The public is invited to meet Warriner when she shows up to vote at Town Hall on Nov. 3. "I have been told she is excited to vote and welcomes the attention," Hill said.

Since 1986, Americans 65 and older have voted at higher rates than all other age groups, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In 2014, for example, the voting rate for the 65-plus group was almost 60 percent, about 10 percentage points above the next-highest age group, census data show.

The 65-plus group is also the only U.S. demographic group whose voting rate has not dropped since 1978, data show.

Southwick Town Hall is located at 454 College Highway. Hill, who is also the town's treasurer and collector, may be reached at 413-569-5504.
Editor's Note: This is the latest in a series of photo essays exploring abandoned places in New England and the greater Northeast U.S.

By Matt Hester, Freelance Photographer

WATERFORD, Conn.-- Throughout my years of exploring abandoned places, I have seen a lot of unique things.

None, however, were a more pleasant trip than my visit to the Seaside Sanatorium. This architectural gem lays along the beach facing the Long Island Sound and much like the surrounding area, it is a lovely site to be seen.

Seaside Sanatorium opened in the 1930s with its design coming from one of the greatest architects in the United States at the time, Cass Gilbert, whose accomplishments include designing the U.S Supreme Court building.

With the idea that fresh air and sunshine would be beneficial in the treatment for Tuberculosis, the design and location were a perfect match.But over time, the structure went on to serve other purposes.

In the late 1950s it served as an establishment to house the elderly and in the 1970s, it was used to treat and house the mentally ill. In general, the facility didn't have the reports of widespread problems that plagued similar facilities in New England and across the U.S., the Seaside Sanatorium did have its hiccups, with reports of abuse through the 1970s and into the 1990s before it eventually closed in 1996.

My trip to Seaside Sanatorium started with a long but scenic drive through the lovely state of Connecticut. Much like any other trips to abandoned relics, its not a good idea to just park and announce that you are here. So I wound up parking in the Harkness State Park, which ended up being a nice treat seeing that it was a warm day with a nice breeze.

So it made for a great walk on the beach to get there. It is always nice to see families on the beach and enjoying time with each other; and it made me think back to growing up and my times as a kid.

As I approached from a distance this now abandoned property looked more like a mansion ready to be owned. It wasn't until I got closer that I was able to spot your typical signs of abandonment. Even then though, you can tell that a lot of care went into the creation of this establishment.

The first thing that stood out to me was that the inside of the place did not reek of urine and trash. This was partly due to the fact that the building resides on the ocean front. In fact, the place seemed pretty well preserved given how many people have broken into it since its closing in the 1990s. The decay that was present seemed mainly due to the conditions caused from the sea more than anything else. As clearly visible from the fast decay of the paint on the walls. The machinery, sinks, and the various furniture all seemed to be in decent shape.

Unlike my many other explorations, I did not get any creepy vibes from the place. I particularly enjoyed seeing the various artwork, toys, and pictures that remained. It was a reminder that this was once a nice haven for children who had serious health conditions.

My trip to the second building was far less productive. Despite my efforts, I found no access to get into what I assumed was the housing for the patients. I have a strict no breaking or prying anything open policy so as not to cause any damage whatsoever.

So unfortunately, I was not able to get to see the wonders that may have laid inside there.

With that said, the surrounding areas were a very pleasurable treat to see. The old fountain and chess board in particular fascinated me.

It was also kind of neat to see an old traffic light left to decay. Along with a lovely beach side view, this made for an overall nice trip out. Last I heard, the state is trying to push to have the buildings demolished and have condos put up.

While it bothers me that they would choose to tear down such a great piece of architecture, I understand. So if places like this strike your fancy, I would recommend getting out there and checking it out before its lost to modern development.
WILBRAHAM -- Is the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District headed for divorce?

It depends on whom you ask.

Discussions about deregionalizing the regional school district are already taking place, including on Wilbraham Selectman Bob Boilard's Facebook page, which has become a public clearinghouse for various views on a controversial middle school merger plan that died a quick death earlier this week.

The so-called unification plan was intended to unite students from Hampden's Thornton W. Burgess Middle School with students from Wilbraham Middle School, but in reality it seems to have divided the towns into us-and-them camps

Moving Hampden students to Wilbraham Middle School for a five-year period starting next fall would have given Hampden-Wilbraham school officials time to work out a long-term plan to address the district's middle school problem: decreasing enrollment, aging facilities, and declining test scores.

A costly divorce seems unlikely considering the strong historic ties between the two communities, which have shared a school district for almost a quarter century. That said, Hampden separated from Wilbraham in 1878, breaking away to become its own incorporated town.

One thing is clear: Hampden and Wilbraham's 23-year educational marriage is rocky at best. The failed middle school plan has exposed deep divisions and dredged up old resentments. Some people say the towns should just call the whole thing off, even if separation is expensive and less than amicable.

Combining the schools on the Wilbraham campus would have saved money and allowed for a more robust middle school education, according to district officials, who are now considering various cost-cutting measures to justify the expense of operating two middle schools.

Hampden voters roundly rejected the merger plan at a special town meeting Monday night, while their next-door neighbors in Wilbraham overwhelmingly embraced the plan at their meeting. Both communities had to sign off on the measure for merger to happen.

Now, half of TWB's full-time teachers are expected to become part-time teachers, a portion of the building may be shut down, and certain classes will have to be tweaked, reduced or eliminated. For example, TWB won't have enough students to offer a standalone Algebra I class, according to Hampden-Wilbraham School Superintendent Al Ganem Jr., who said some TWB students may have to wait until high school to take Algebra.

Wilbraham residents, frustrated with what they see as Hampden's merger myopia, continue to point out that the best way forward was combining the middle schools under one roof -- a plan supported by Ganem, the rest of the district's administration, a majority of teachers, the school board, and a special task force formed to study the consolidation issue.

Unification supporter Dave Sanders, chairman of the Wilbraham Republican Town Committee, said parting ways with Hampden should be seriously discussed. "My path is split," he said, sharing his opinion on Boilard's public Facebook page shortly after Hampden rejected the unification plan Monday night.

"We need to move forward," Sanders said, adding that "undoing the regional system would be the best thing."

Walter H. Damon, another unification supporter, also chimed in on Boilard's page.

"Dave, I'm not against undoing the agreement, but whatever we do, I really would hope it includes an accommodation for the Hampden parents who wish to send their children to WMS for a better educational opportunity," Damon said.

Wilbraham resident John Broderick, a tax preparer and outspoken unification supporter, soon added his two cents to the conversation, saying the cost of dismantling the regional school district would be exorbitant.

"You do realize that taxes would skyrocket, right?" Broderick said, addressing his question to Sanders. "Wibraham would have to essentially buyout Hampden from MRHS (Minnechaug Regional High School). That alone would be huge. Not just picking up their debt, but paying them some value for their investment. ... This will never happen and would cost us big time," he said.

Sanders was unfazed by Broderick's analysis.

"I know it would cost to split," he said. "It might be cheaper than having to build a new middle school. I also know it wouldn't be easy. But now that both schools of students will be diminished in their educational opportunities, I don't see the situation being better."

While only a minority of Hampden residents supported unification, some have made their views known on various social media sites dedicated to the issue. Hampden resident Anthony Penna, a member of this vocal minority, predicted a bumpy road ahead.

"Not sure how the towns can work together on anything with the amount of hatred and distrust talked about last night," he said on Boilard's page Tuesday morning, referring to Monday night's vote in Hampden.

Wilbraham's discussion of the unification issue was relatively brief and followed by a quick, decisive vote in favor of the plan.

Hampden's session was hot, tense, and testy, with the large crowd expressing its collective displeasure over the possibility of sending TWB students to WMS.

"You can't go from claiming dishonesty, bullying, 'takeover' to let's work together to help us now," Penna said. "Years and years of hatred came out last night and kicked the current students in the teeth, but that's the beauty of democracy in this country. ... But you can't now expect those same people to reach out a hand to help."

The "takeover" line was a reference to Mary Ellen Glover's comments at the Hampden meeting. Glover, a Hampden resident and School Committee member when the town fully entered into a regional school district agreement with Wilbraham in 1993, said the "unification" plan was really a "takeover" plan. Her remark received thunderous applause from the anti-merger crowd.

Glover claims too many promises have already been broken in the regional school agreement, which is why she didn't support amending the document to allow Hampden middle-schoolers to cross town lines to attend school in Wilbraham.

Under the regional agreement, only high school-age students from Hamdpen are allowed to cross town lines to attend Minnechaug Regional High School in Wilbraham.

Hampden resident Jeannine Cervera Shumway, a Bronx native and one of the town's more outspoken anti-merger activists, asked pro- and anti-merger camps to come together and brainstorm about ways to increase funding and improve academics at both middle schools.

She made the entreaty on Boilard's Facebook page, but that and her other comments were met with derision.

"This lady, Jeannine Cervera Shumway, is a joke. She should go back to NY," Broderick said.

"Hahahahaha," Celia Ferreira Hickson wrote. "YOU will do whatever it takes to help WILBRAHAM?" she said, directing her remarks at Shumway.

"Do you really think Wilbraham needs Hampden more than Hampden needs Wilbraham? As someone said earlier, you are delusional," Hickson said. "Our schools are better united, but let's not forget that wilbraham has 3 times the population and money. Who do you think would fare better on their own?"

Maintaining the current two-school model isn't feasible, according to district officials, who promoted unification as the only viable option, both academically and financially.

Now that Hampden voters have rejected the plan, fifth-graders at TWB -- a fifth- through eighth-grade school -- will instead go to Green Meadows Elementary School next fall. Green Meadows is Hampden's pre-K through grade four school.

"It's the right thing to do," Hampden-Wilbraham School Superintendent Al Ganem Jr. told parents at a public meeting several days before Monday's vote.

"Our fifth grade should be in the elementary school. ... So we're going to move those fifth-graders back to the elementary. It's the right educational thing to do."

By sending fifth-graders to Green Meadows, only around 159 sixth- through eighth-graders will be roaming the corridors of TWB, a school that can handle about twice as many students. "We wouldn't be using the entire building," Ganem said.

Other cost-saving measures include cutting eight of TWB's 16 teachers to part-time status and possibly reducing support staff at the school.

"It's not a really pretty picture at all," the superintendent said.

Boilard, the Wilbraham selectman, offered his own thoughts on the fate of TWB, claiming that many Hampden parents are now asking to send their kids to WMS -- a claim backed up by Ganem, who said he fielded such questions after Monday's meeting.

Declining enrollment at TWB, coupled with Hampden parents wanting to send kids to WMS even though the merger plan failed, means that "TWB will be even more unsustainable than it is now," Boilard said on his Facebook page.

"At that point TWB will be closed, without a vote, and those middle-schoolers left will be moved into Green Meadows. ... So in essence, all this vote did was postpone the inevitable," Boilard said.
Iraqi forces are halting their advance on the Islamic State (IS) militants' last urban stronghold of Mosul in order to consolidate gains before striking the fighters, a US military official said Friday.

"They are pausing and repositioning, refitting and doing some back clearing," Colonel John Dorrian, a spokesman for the US-led coalition, told Pentagon reporters via videoconference.

"We think it will just be a couple of days and then we are back on the march toward Mosul. That's their game plan and we believe they will stick to it."

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Syrian rebels launched a major assault Friday aimed at breaking a months-long siege of opposition-held districts of Aleppo, as regime ally Russia held off on renewed air strikes.

Rebel groups including the powerful Ahrar al-Sham faction and former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front fired waves of rockets into government-held western Aleppo, killing at least 15 civilians, a monitor said.

The rebels also targeted government positions east of Aleppo city and in the coastal province of Latakia, including the Hmeimim military base used by Russian forces allied with the regime.

Moscow says it has not bombed Aleppo since October 18, but senior Russian military official Sergei Rudskoi told a briefing Friday that the military had asked President Vladimir Putin for authorisation to resume its air strikes.

"We have appealed to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation with a request to resume air strikes," Rudskoi said.

But the Kremlin said Putin did not agree.

"The Russian president considers it inappropriate at the current moment to resume strikes on Aleppo," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding that Putin thought it was necessary to "continue the humanitarian pause" in the war-ravaged city.

"The Russian side retains the right in case of extreme necessity to use all the troops and facilities it has to carry out support of the Syrian armed forces at the necessary level," he added.

Friday's rebel assault comes more than three months into a government siege of eastern Aleppo, where more than 250,000 people live, and several weeks after the army began an operation to retake the rebel east.

Rebel groups "announce the start of the battle to break the siege of Aleppo", said Abu Yusef Muhajir, a military commander and spokesman for Ahrar al-Sham.

The assault "will end the regime occupation of western Aleppo and break the siege on the people trapped inside", he told AFP.

"The breaking of the siege is inevitable," said Yasser al-Yusef, a member of the political office of the Nureddine al-Zinki rebel group.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said at least 15 civilians, including a woman and two children, had been killed, and more than 100 wounded in rebel fire on western Aleppo.

The monitor reported fierce clashes on multiple fronts on the western and southern outskirts of west Aleppo, with three suicide car bombs targeting a checkpoint in the Dahiyet al-Assad neighbourhood.

Fighting was continuing in the area near a military academy, it said, but had no immediate toll.

An AFP correspondent in east Aleppo said the assault had boosted morale in rebel-held districts, with mosques broadcasting "God is greatest" from loudspeakers.

He said residents burned tyres to create smoke and provide cover against air attack.

Heavy rain put the fires out but also hampered Syrian air operations, creating what one rebel dubbed "a divine no-fly zone".

The Observatory said rebels had also fired dozens of rockets at the Nairab military airport and Aleppo international airport, both east of the city and government-controlled.

Rebels also fired rockets from Idlib province into the government stronghold of Latakia, killing one person and wounding six.

Rockets struck close to the Hmeimim military airport, as well as near President Bashar al-Assad's ancestral village Qardaha, the monitor said.

State television said "the army has foiled an attempt by terrorists to attack Aleppo city from several axes with suicide bomb attacks and has inflicted losses on them".

State news agency SANA said government planes were carrying out air strikes south and west of Aleppo.

Once Syria's economic powerhouse, Aleppo has been ravaged by the conflict that began in March 2011 with anti-government protests and has since killed more than 300,000 people.

Aleppo has been divided between government control in the west and rebel control in the east since mid-2012, and in September the army announced an operation to recapture the whole city.

The UN's aid chief Stephen O'Brien this week said Aleppo had become "a kill zone", adding that "nothing is actually happening to stop the war, stop the suffering".

Last week, Russia implemented a three-day "humanitarian truce" intended to allow civilians and surrendering rebels to leave the east.

But few did so, and a UN plan to evacuate the wounded failed because security could not be guaranteed.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused UN agencies Friday of "not being professional enough" over Aleppo.

Speaking in Moscow after meeting the Syrian and Iranian foreign ministers, he said: "Their inaction allowed the medical evacuation to be sabotaged."

UN chief Ban Ki-moon, meanwhile, condemned an attack on a school in government-held west Aleppo on Thursday that killed at killed at least six children, according to state media.

"Such attacks, if deliberate, may amount to war crimes," he said in a statement.

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Superintendent of Public Instruction Denise Juneau announced today that nine Montana schools will work with NASA on scientific research projects.

Students in Frenchtown, Centerville, Big Fork, Hot Springs, Alberton, Boulder, Huntley, Rocky Boy and Conrad will work with NASA scientists to develop parachutes for Mars and pressure suits for astronauts. The research opportunity is part of the Montana 21st Century Community Learning Center program.

"These students will get a first-hand look at how science, technology, engineering and math can create real solutions for space exploration," Superintendent Juneau said. "Getting students excited about the STEM fields is how well continue to be a worldwide leader in research and discovery."

NASA scientists will visit the nine Montana communities and provide remote instruction over Skype. Plus, students in Hot Springs will travel to the Langly Research Center in Virginia for additional hands-on learning.

Montana is one of just 15 states chosen to work with NASA.
The Obama administration on Tuesday called on U.S. states to ban agreements prohibiting many workers from moving to their employers rivals, saying it would lead to a more competitive labor market and faster wage growth.

The administration said so-called non-compete agreements interfere with worker mobility and states should consider barring companies from requiring low-wage workers and other employees who are not privy to trade secrets or other special circumstances to sign them.

By Daniel Wiessner

Full Story: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-noncompetes-idUSKCN12P2YP
Mark Herrema, Newlight Technologies http://newlight.com/ CEO has figured out how to make plastic out of destructive carbon emissions that would otherwise heat the atmosphere, rather than with fossil fuels such as oil. Most importantly, he figured out a way to do it cheaper. Its something he has been working on for 11 years since he started the company with his friend Kenton Kimmel in his parents garage.

Full Story: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/company-unlocks-secret-to-making-plastic-out-of-air/

Many thanks to Ben T. for sharing
The European Union's diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini will visit Iran and Saudi Arabia this weekend for talks on the Syrian conflict, an EU statement said on Friday.

Mogherini will visit Tehran on Saturday and Riyadh on Sunday for "senior level talks", continuing the EU's "outreach to key actors in the region on the Syrian crisis", the statement said.

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Hands up if you enjoy parking.

No takers? Thought not. Fortunately, technology is here to help. When it comes to storing cars efficiently, robots rule.

West Hollywood, California says it saved over a million dollars with the West Coasts first municipal robot garage, which ditches the idea of driving into the garage, circling up and down ramps until you find an open spot, squeezing your way in, then wandering your way out again.

Jack Stewart

Full Story: https://www.wired.com/2016/10/step-garage-robots-parking/
The Harlem United F-1 Team http://bit.ly/1WEP2iS recently brought home the Chief Judges Award at the World Finals, making them the only team in the United States to have won an award at the world competition.

The 6-member squad is also the first Native American team to ever go to the wold finals, according to their advisor, Craig Todd.

F-1 teams race miniature compressed-air-powered balsa wood Formula 1 cars.

By: Julianne Dellorso  MTN News

Full Story: http://www.krtv.com/story/33498325/harlem-united-f-1-team-wins-world-award

Many thanks to Patricia A. Schneider

Consultant

RMAI / SAE International AWIM

248.561.4683

[email protected]

for sharing.
Africa has been losing from 5 to 15% of its GDP per capita growth because of climate change and its related impacts, but needs about $1.6 trillion between 2022 and 2030 to meet its nationally determination contributions, says African Development Bank Group Acting Chief Economist and Vice President Kevin Urama.

Speaking at a panel discussiontitled African Countries Ownership in Determining Climate Agenda on the side-lines of the Egypt International Cooperation Forum in Cairo on Wednesday, Urama urged developed nations to bridge the climate financing gap.

Several senior officials represented the bank at the event, notably its vice president for power, energy, climate and green growth, Dr Kevin Kariuki, and its vice president for private sector, infrastructure and industrialization, Mr. Solomon Quaynor.

Collectively, African countries received only $18.3 billion in climate finance between 2016 and 2019 Urama said. This results in a climate finance gap of up $1288.2 billion annually from 2020 to 2030.

The chief economist added: These sums reflect how the crisis is. Climate change affects Africa severely, while the continent contributes to only 3% of global emissions. The global community must meet its $100 billion commitment to help the developing countries and African economies to mitigate the impacts of the climate change and to adapt to it. Investing in climate adaptation in the context of sustainable development is the best way to cope with the climate change impacts, adding that gas must remain included in the continents plan for the gradual transition to clean energy.

Urama highlighted that since the 1850s, countries have managed to transition away from coal, and used gas as a transition to cleaner energy. He also affirmed that Africa had great potential in terms of green investment opportunities that private sector, including banks, could tap into.

Egyptian Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad highlighted Egypts National Strategy for Alignment for both climate mitigation and adaptation. She said it had five key pillars.

Fouad explained: The first pillar focuses on how we can adopt a low greenhouse path, which centers on the sectors around renewable transport, gas, industry and waste. The second one relates to adaptation and how best to make the communities more resilient. The third and fourth ones are focused on how to protect coastal zones and have more accessibility and availability of water. The last one is about the need for developing more smart and integrated concoctions and thats the stereotype of a strategy on climate.

Fouad added: To fight climate change, you cannot rely on the government alone, nor the private sector alone but its an integration between the government, civil society and the private sector.

Ghada Wally, Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and Director-General of the United Nations Office in Vienna said: Women and young people, are among Africas best assets and stressed the importance of exploring avenues to tap into this significant asset for the sake of the continents sustainable development.

[1] Nationally determined contributions or NDCs are submitted by countries under the Paris Agreement of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. They represent climate action pledges that aim to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees C, to 1.5 degrees C, over pre-industrial levels.

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Hungary will sue the European Commission and resist mandatory migrant resettlement quotas if Brussels does not take them off the agenda, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Friday.

Orban said his government would use a recent referendum in Hungary, in which the overwhelming majority of those who voted rejected the EU quotas, to challenge Brussels. Turnout for the vote was too low to make it legally binding.

He said there was a stalemate on the issue right now; Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who holds the rotating EU presidency, is to propose a solution by the next EU summit in December.

Orban told state radio that if the European Commission did not give up the idea of quotas, "then we will resist ... we will not carry out (the EU decision), we will sue the Commission".

"There will be a serious legal debate on whether a foreign population can be imposed on the people of an EU member state against its will," he added. "This will be a big battle, and for this we need the (amended) constitution."

Orban says deciding whether to accept migrants is a matter of national sovereignty, and wants to amend Hungary's constitution next month to ban the settlement of migrants there.

Orban responded to the influx of migrants last year by sealing Hungary's southern borders with a razor-wire fence and thousands of army and police. He says Hungary, with its Christian roots, does not want to take in Muslims in large numbers, and that they pose a security risk.

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The FBI dealt Hillary Clinton's seemingly unstoppable White House campaign a stunning blow Friday by reopening a probe into her use of a private email server while secretary of state.

With just 11 days to go until America votes, Clinton's rival Donald Trump seized triumphantly on the shock decision, declaring her unfit for office in front of a crowd chanting: "Lock her up!"

Clinton was on a flight when the news broke and ignored reporters' shouted questions about the probe as she landed -- smiling and waving -- in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for campaign events of her own.

Clinton's vice-presidential running mate Tim Kaine, appearing in Tallahassee, Florida, appeared to be caught off guard by the decision, telling reporters: "I've got to read more. I've got to read a little more."

FBI director James Comey dropped the bombshell in a letter to congressional committees investigating allegations that Clinton put US secrets at risk during her time as secretary of state.

Comey had previously told lawmakers the FBI probe into Clinton's unusual decision to use a private server instead of a government email while in office had concluded without finding wrongdoing.

But, writing to "supplement" this assessment, he said that "in connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation."

The FBI will thus take "appropriate investigative steps" to decide whether a new batch of mails contains classified information "as well as to assess their importance to the investigation."

The 70-year-old Trump, trailing in opinion polls both nationally and in the key swing states he must win to secure the White House, seized triumphantly on the news.

"We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office," he told cheering crowds at a campaign rally in Manchester, New Hampshire.

"I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the Department of Justice are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made," he added.

The news took the shine off what should have been a good day for Clinton, with President Barack Obama's Democratic administration announcing stronger than expected economic growth numbers.

While the 69-year-old former first lady holds an overall poll lead and remains on course to become America's first female president, a handful of states -- including Iowa -- could be close-fought.

Both candidates were to be in the battleground of Iowa within hours of each other as they vie to drum up support across the rolling plains of the Midwest.

From there, Clinton was to head to the state capital Des Moines to rally voters.

Trump kicked off the day in New Hampshire, jetting to Maine and was to wrap up with a rally for 5,000 people in an open-air amphitheater in Cedar Rapids.

While Trump draws the biggest crowds, he is failing to pull in donations to match: contributions to his campaign slumped in October.

Both camps filed their campaign accounts Thursday night for the period leading up to October 19. These confirmed the Democrats' overpowering lead in the money game, even though the total sums raised fall short of the records set in 2012.

For the home stretch, Clinton has at her disposal a party war chest almost four times that of her rival: $62 million against $16 million.

When secondary sources of funding are taken into account, the Clinton treasury rises to $172 million against $73 million for the Republican, making it an exceptionally unbalanced race in financial terms, according to Politico.

What does this mean in practice? That American television screens will be awash in Democratic ads in the days leading up to November 8.

The other surprise from the figures reported to the Federal Election Commission: the billionaire Republican donated a measly $31,000 to his own campaign this month -- despite promises to contribute $100 million by Election Day.

The Manhattan real estate mogul -- who claims to be worth $10 billion -- has forked out $56 million of his own money since launching his maverick White House bid last year -- but so far no sign of the other $44 million he pledged to spend.

Trump's White House bid was sent into a tailspin this month by the release of a 2005 video capturing him bragging about the ability to grope women with impunity, followed by a string of accusations of sexual misconduct -- which he denies.

As his campaign faltered, the nominee piled on the defiant rhetoric, claiming the allegations were part of a plot to rig the election, and threatening not to recognize the outcome if he loses.

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The US embassy in Mauritania said Friday it had received information about "near-term" attacks targeting Americans in the capital Nouakchott, urging its nationals to remain alert.

The warning came in the wake of appeals by the Islamic State (IS) group for its followers to carry out attacks across the world, the statement said, urging Americans to be vigilant especially when "frequenting locales associated with Westerners".

"The US government has received information that terrorist groups are planning to carry out near-term attacks against places where US citizens congregate in Nouakchott," said a statement on the embassy's Facebook page.

"When going out, avoid being part of large, highly visible groups of Westerners and avoid sitting in areas that are easily visible from the street. Be particularly alert when frequenting locales associated with Westerners," it advised Americans.

Contacted by AFP, a Malian security source said: "Even if nowhere has zero risk, one should not worry excessively about the current security situation in the country.

"We believe we are in control of the situation, both on our borders and within the country, where dangerous groups are closely monitored," added the source, requesting anonymity.

In September the government denied that a suspected Islamist militant cell uncovered by the authorities had pledged allegiance to IS, describing the group as "amateurs".

Several Islamist militant with links to IS have been convicted in the Islamic republic, in the Maghreb region of western north Africa, which suffered repeated attacks in the 2000s, including deadly kidnappings.

Mauritania jailed three men for between five and 10 years for links with IS in June 2015, with the court shown a video in which all three pledged allegiance.

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The former antiquities minister will send letters to UNESCO and other international organisations in an attempt to have sanctions put on the museum

The board of Egypt's National Committee for Antiquities Repatriation (NCAR) assigned former antiquities minister Zahi Hawass to take restricted action against Toledo Museum of Art which put on sale 68 artefacts from its collection.

The objects are from Cyprus, Rome and Egypt.

In a telephone interview, Hawass told Ahram Online the he will send letters to UNESCO, the International Committee Of Museums (ICOM) and the US Congress as well as all international institutions to remove Toledo Museum from the ICOM, because it has offended the reputation of all museums by selling the world heritage.

Hawass asserted that he would also send another letter to the Toledo museum threatening to prohibit children from visiting it because it is selling the heritage.

Hawass will also send these letters on Sunday to Minister of Antiquities Khaled El-Enany for discussion before sending them to the concerned international authorities and institutions.

Early this month, Toledo Museum of Art in Ohaio put on sale a collection of 68 artefacts at Christies auction hall.

The antiquities ministry had taken the required legal procedures in collaboration with Egypts Embassy in New York to stop any transaction of these objects but the museum has put them on sale for $1.2 million.

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(Beijing)  Central and local governments are setting up investment funds that are expected to take part in the debt restructuring of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) by making equity investments, buying debts and participating in debt-to-equity swaps, among other activities.

In February, the State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) selected China Chengtong Holdings Group Ltd. and China Reform Holdings Corp. for a pilot program in which will carry out acquisitions, mergers, recapitalizations, restructurings and other capital operations to promote debt reforms for SOEs.

As a principal founding shareholder, China Chengtong in September initiated a 350 billion yuan ($51.6 billion) SOEs Structure Adjustment Fund to help finance and speed up restructurings. China Chengtong put up 30 billion yuan, and the rest of the fund came from Postal Savings Bank of China, China Merchants Group, Sinopec Group and other SOEs. The fund will engage in investment strategies that include equity purchases in listed and non-listed companies and investments in debt and other instruments.

China Reform led the creation of a similar 200-billion-yuan fund to support innovation and industrial upgrades.

Local governments have also set up their own capital operation vehicles to fund SOE restructuring and assist in deleveraging efforts. In January, the Shandong provincial SASAC set up the 6 billion yuan Guohui Reform and Development Fund, with investments from 10 provincial government-owned companies. The fund plans to set up several subsidiary funds leveraging capital from private investors to expand its total size to 20 billion yuan and invest in debt restructuring projects.

The State Council, China's cabinet, on Oct. 10 issued guidelines for addressing the country's corporate debt crisis. They include encouraging social capital, such as insurance, pension and wealth management funds, and other institutional investors to take part in debt-to-equity swaps, equity investments and other debt-relief programs. The State Council required that such measures apply only to companies with good prospects for recovery after their debt burden is eased.

The eastern coastal province of Shandong is home to a number of large, debt-laden SOEs, including Yunkuang Group, Shandong Energy Group and Shandong Iron & Steel Group. Each company "has more than 100 billion yuan in debts," said a staffer at a local bank.

A source close to the Shandong SASAC said subsidiary funds of the Guohui Fund will invite social investors to jointly invest in equities of indebted companies to advance their restructuring.

Another knowledgeable source said Guohui Fund has partnered with capital from bank wealth management funds to participate in the debt restructuring of Shandong Energy Feicheng Mining Group. The Shandong government has issued a five-year guarantee against default for the wealth management fund.

The northern city of Tianjin is considering a similar approach to deal with more than 800 billion yuan in debts owed by local SOEs.

A source close to the Tianjin government said the city is considering setting up a fund to partner with bank wealth-management funds to help Bohai Steel restructure its debt through a debt-to-equity swap. Bohai Steel owes more than 192 billion yuan to 105 Chinese and foreign banks and other financial institutions. A local financial regulator said in September that the plan is still under discussion.

But some experts said the government fund-led debt restructuring is actually leveraging money from the private sector to rescue debt-ridden SOEs with implicit government guarantee. It is more like loans rather than carrying out a truly market-oriented resolution of the debt crisis.

Contact reporter Han Wei (weihan@caixin.com)

Part1: China Confronts Danger of Large Debts With Broad Restructuring

Part2: China's Debt-to-Equity Push Triggers Concern

Part3: Public-Private Partnerships May Have Added to Debt Overhang

Part5: Bankruptcy Becomes Option in Addressing Debt Crisis

Part6: Closer Look: China's Debt Crisis Has Similarities to 1998 Situation
by Thom Forbes , Featured Columnist @tforbes, October 27, 2016

Facebook may get more than 40% of social media visits nowadays, but that doesnt mean there isnt room for upstarts who offer a focused  and nurturing  alternative. Take mom.life, which started as a pregnancy tracker called Preggie in the Czech Republic two years ago and has recently relaunched to include moms raising kids from birth to about kindergarten age.

It has had more than 700,000 downloads worldwide serving moms speaking 10 distinct languages, including about 70,000 users in the U.S., according to Dee Anna McPherson, a veteran of Hootsuite, Yammer, Edelman and Ogilvy, among others. She recently joined mom.life as its San Francisco-based president, CMO and co-founder.

You regularly face that constant scrutiny when youre sharing in social media," says McPherson. When youre a new mom especially, youre always feeling compelled to share about your child. And when you do it on Facebook, or when you do it on Instagram, a) people kind of get sick of it and b) youre often opening yourself up to even well-meaning criticism. Oh, I see youre bottle-feeding your child. Dont you know its better to breast-feed?

advertisement advertisement

Not that mom.life members dont talk about such subjects. Heart-to-heart conversations on sometimes touchy or gritty subjects such as natural parenting, postpartum depression or getting back into shape are, in fact, its soul. Its all just done in a safe and civil  which means moderated  manner.

Its a place where you can be very real and very authentic, and you dont have to just share your highlight reel, McPherson says, pointing out that the conversations can be very raw. But there are strict community guidelines that say you cant criticize, shame, give unwanted negative feedback, McPherson says. And if that happens, someone can just tap on it and a community manager will review it and can remove it.

As a result, the moms feel very comfortable about getting into very intimate, real, personal struggles because of the nature of the group and the agreement that everybody is there to support each other, McPherson says.

On the other end of that spectrum, shaming is a major issue in the real world, according to a mom.life survey of mostly Millennial moms in the U.S. between the ages of 18-32 released this week. It found that nearly 80% of respondents had been mom shamed or bullied for their parenting choices. Seventy percent of that shaming was done by other moms. It was mostly face-to-face, with only 39% saying it had happened online. Forty-five percent revealed theyd been shamed by perfect strangers; dads, at 7%, were the least likely group to point a finger. Nearly 38% of those shamed said they tried to explain themselves to the bully; 29% just ignored them.

Mom.life is asking moms to share their personal stories on social media using #StopMomShaming.

Brands Can Create Mini Apps

McPherson says that Mom.life recently began selling advertising in Europe and has plans for marketing partnerships in the U.S. that will enable brands to connect with the famously ad-blind Millennial mom.

We are going to let brands create their own mini apps for our moms that provide actual utility, she says. An example is Med Kit, a mini app put together with GlaxoSmithKline in Europe that answers questions like, is it okay to take this medication when Im nursing?

Its also working on a mini app in which moms can track their childs developmental milestones  first word, teething, walking  just as they could in those blue or pink cloth-covered volumes out of another century. In the end, theyll be able to create a custom infographic, with a photo of the child from all the data that has been input. And given the ready accessibility of the app, parents may be more inclined than their parents were to fill out more than the date of the first observed smile.

I think theres a big trend right now toward vertical social networks, McPherson says, but her vision is much broader than just providing a safe place to converse.

Our ultimate goal is to be the WeChat for moms, she reveals, referring to the Chinese mobile messaging app that has a number of functions layered within it, including payment.

Think of all the services that would be helpful to a new mom, whether its childcare or grocery delivery, she says. Yes, they are already out there but mom.life wants to make them all accessible in one place, so that this is your go-to app as a mom where you are nurturing relations, youre asking questions, youre getting advice, youre reading content and youre ordering all the services that you need.

If only it could change a diaper.
(Beijing)  Allegations that some Chinese authors copied each other's medical research papers do not surprise ghostwriter Shen Nan.

Editors of a U.S.-based anti-plagiarism blog, Plagiarism Watch, made the allegations last month.

Shen, who works under a pseudonym, claims that falsification and plagiarism in academic-paper writing in China  particularly in the field of medicine  is rampant, and that he had personally penned more than 30 papers for Chinese academics that have appeared in international journals.

"Chinese companies providing ghostwriting services are likely behind the questionable articles exposed by Plagiarism Watch because it is so common for them to use plagiarized and falsified materials to write academic papers on behalf of Chinese authors," Shen said.

Plagiarism Watch said in a Sept. 20 post that the papers in question came to light after an anonymous commentator first blew the whistle on one Chinese-authored paper published in May in the Brazilian journal Genetics and Molecular Research. After Plagiarism Watch editors screened the paper with the anti-plagiarism software iPlagiarism, they discovered that the paper shared a substantial similarity to a number of other Chinese-authored papers published in several other international journals.

The paper, Decreased miR-452 Expression in Human Colorectal Cancer and its Tumor Suppressive Function, was presented by a group of authors at the China-Japan Friendship Hospital in Beijing, according to Lindsey Wayne, an editor at Plagiarism Watch. Further investigations by the blog's editors found that the first Chinese-authored paper  and many subsequent papers presented by other Chinese authors and published in the same issue of the Brazilian publication  shared similar diagrams, indicating possible plagiarism.

The agency cited at least 11 questionable papers from Chinese authors from eight top Chinese hospitals, including the China-Japan Friendship Hospital in Beijing, and another affiliated with the elite Shandong University in the eastern city of Jinan.

Two-thirds of the 2,500-plus papers published in the Brazilian journal included in the Science Citation Index (SCI) last year were presented by Chinese authors, despite the fact the publication had an "impact factor" as low as 0.764, PW said. This has led PW editors to believe that the journal has been involved in predatory publishing practices.

"Can we conclude, then, that this journal or publisher is predatory in targeting Chinese authors? Your answer must be 'yes,'" Wayne wrote in the blog.

The impact factor is a gauge of credibility of a publication based on calculating the frequency a work is cited in academic research over a given period of time. The higher a journal's impact factor is, the more credible and authoritative it is rated. Those with an impact factor of 3 and above are widely accepted as credible publications around the world.

Shen believes some international journals are able to take advantage of Chinese authors because of the authors' desire to gain international exposure as they try to advance their careers.

Dingxiangyuan, a Chinese online portal providing medical information, surveyed more than 1,900 doctors in 2015 and found that more than 80% of those who applied for head physician or surgeon positions were required to have published two to five papers in international journals indexed in the SCI, which is compiled by Thomson Reuters.

In some cases, medical experts were required to have published articles in medical journals with an "impact factor" of at least 3, the survey found.

The study found that 6.6% of respondents said they had hired ghostwriters to draft their papers, and 9.7% said that they managed to have their names published on papers to which they had made no contribution in order to gain a promotion.

Another 38.5% of respondents said they had not resorted to such practices in the past, but would consider doing so in the future.

One doctor who asked not to be named told Caixin: "Everyone has to work hard, and we have little time to access resources such as laboratories to do research. How can we possibly come up with papers of our own in a journal with an impact-factor rating of 1, let alone 3?"

A doctor at the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences' Fuwai Hospital in Beijing told Caixin that a highly revered senior surgeon failed to be promoted to head surgeon simply because he hadn't had any academic papers published in international journals.

In fact, so many medical personnel have sought help from ghostwriters that it has helped spawn a multibillion-yuan industry in underground academic writing, according to Shen, who holds a doctorate in biology.

Three types of companies operate in this gray market for ghostwriting in China, he said.

Some firms operate as "paper mills" that hire ghostwriters to churn out academic papers for a fee. Plagiarized materials are widely used in these. Some, like the one Shen works for, even have in-house laboratories and R&D departments to support their writers.

Another group of companies specialize in offering translation and editing services, and will approach potential publishers on behalf of their authors.

Other firms serve as intermediaries between medical professionals and ghostwriters, or companies providing ghostwriting services, Shen said.

An employee handling customer services at Nanjing Dehengwen Biotechnology, a biotech firm that also offers ghostwriting services, told Caixin that the company charges at least 110,000 yuan ($16,200) for an academic paper it helps write and get published in an international journal with an impact-factor rating of at least 3. A paper that it ghostwrites and appears in a journal with an impact-factor rating of 2 to 3 costs 80,000 yuan.

This fee includes expenses for laboratory tests and payments to ghostwriters, as well as a written guarantee that a paper will be published within a year, Shen said. Authors also then need to pay a fee of 2,000 to 8,000 yuan to the publisher.

Colorado University associate professor Jeffrey Beall, who has been studying academic misconduct since 2009, told Caixin that many predatory journals that do not run peer reviews on papers they publish  but instead fake the process to reach out to more authors  have turned their publications into cash cows.

In a recent blog entry, professor Xu Peiyang at the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences' Institute of Medical Information, wrote that the journal Genetics and Molecular Research had published 3,646 Chinese-authored papers, accounting for 55% of all the papers it had produced since its launch in 2002.

Most of the papers from Chinese authors were published after 2007, he added.

The publishers of the Brazilian journal said in a statement in its October edition that it had retracted seven Chinese-authored papers it published in 2015 and 2016, including two that Plagiarism Watch accused of plagiarism and falsification of peer reviews. However, the publication did not comment on whether it was involved in any predatory practices.

A spokesperson for Thomson Reuters, which owns the SCI and Impact Factor systems, told the official Xinhua News Agency that it is looking into the allegations, and journals that condoned plagiarism and falsification will be barred from the company's system.

In 2014, China ranked second in the world with 31,040 papers on clinical research published in journals cited in the SCI, and sixth in the world with 11,597 papers published on medical science, according to a 2015 report from the Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China based in Beijing.

However, research papers from Chinese authors have been under intense scrutiny after a series of mass retractions over accusations of plagiarism and falsification in recent years.

BioMed Central, which publishes more than 200 academic journal titles in the U.K., retracted 43 papers, including 41 Chinese-authored pieces, in March 2015 for using falsified peer reviews.

German publisher Springer announced in August 2015 it had pulled 64 academic papers, including 61 presented by authors from China, over the same allegations.

Xu from the Institute of Medical Information said that irregularities in the writing of research papers and publications implicating Chinese authors could do substantial damage to the process of academic documentation.

"Misconduct in academic paper presentation (in China) could tarnish China's reputation in the global science community and will make Chinese authors involved in decent research work less trustworthy," Xu wrote.

In an online post, Plagiarism Watch urged the Chinese government, institutions and researchers to all be "more responsible and serious, in order to prevent and remove plagiarism in scientific papers going forward."

Amid the negative publicity surrounding medical research papers from China, the National Health and Family Planning Commission said earlier this month it will reduce the importance of research papers in the appraisal process for doctors working in clinical medicine.

"Even in the basic science of medicine research, there should be an appraisal system which values quality more than quantity, such as the number of citations," the commission said in an Oct. 12 document promoting medical innovation.

Translated by Li Rongde (rongdeli@caixin.com); editor Calum Gordon (calum@caixin.com)
by Laurie Sullivan @lauriesullivan, October 27, 2016

Google's latest product announcements have been all about hardware and machine-learning technology, but Alphabet's core company still has its financial teeth tightly locked onto search engine advertising.

Alphabet on Thursday reported a record $22.4 billion in sales for the third quarter of 2016 ended September 30, with $19.8 billion of the revenue coming from advertising -- up 18% from the year-ago quarter.

In the quarter, aggregate paid clicks rose 9%, paid clicks on Google Web sites, 11%, and paid clicks on Google Network member sites, 1%.

The aggregate cost per click fell 5% in the quarter, CPCs on Google Web sites fell 6%; and CPCs on Google network member sites fell 6%.

"Mobile search and video are powering our core advertising business and were excited about the progress of newer businesses in Google and Other Bets," said Ruth Porat, CFO of Alphabet, in a prepared statement.

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Data has been a key element of Google's success. In September, Google announced it would allow marketers to retarget consumers across devices, using deterministic data, according to Jon Schulz, CMO of Viant.

"With deterministic data, Google doesnt need to rely on cookies for targeting, allowing it to pinpoint consumers with a much higher level of accuracy on mobile," Schulz said. "Google hopes this approach will help it to compete more aggressively against Facebook on mobile, as marketers increasingly invest in the channel. It is a smart move."
by Laurie Sullivan @lauriesullivan, October 28, 2016

Google's Allo messaging app will send people on a "Stranger Things' scavenger hunt inspired by the fiction-horror Web television series on Netflix created by the Duffer Brothers.

Through Google's artificial intelligence-assisted messaging app, users can search Friday to locate Barb, a show character who mysteriously disappeared.

It's all part of a campaign to get in the Halloween spirit and promote a sticker pack now available for download on both Android and iOS that features artwork inspired by the show.

Those in New York on Friday who want to participate in the scavenger hunt need to ask Google Assistant "Where is Barb?" according to Engadget. The question reveals the first location of the hunt, which will take players through the city.

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The scavenger hunt also capitalizes on Google's push to support local mobile search and advertising, which became the primary driver in helping the company hit $22.5 billion in revenue during the third quarter of 2016, according to Alphabet CFO Ruth Porat during Google parent company's recent earnings call with analysts and investors.

"The shift to mobile in Q3 remained the largest driver of the increase in Sites [traffic acquisition costs] as a percentage of revenue," she said.

Perhaps the messaging app can inspire players to search for a last-minute costume. Consumers will each spend about $82.93 this year on Halloween, up from $74.34 last year, according to the National Findings from the Retail Federation survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics.

In total, the NRF estimates consumers will spend about $8.4 billion on a variety of Halloween-related items, such as $2.5 billion is spent on Halloween candy and $2.4 billion is spent on decorations.
by Laurie Sullivan @lauriesullivan, October 28, 2016

Christopher Keenan, EVP of content production at Mattel, wants to create a different type of short-form content for brands like American Girl, Barbie, and Hot Wheels. "I want to break new ground," he told Search Marketing Daily. "Everyone at Tongal loves a challenge and I have lots to bring them."

Breaking new ground took center stage during the first discussion with Tongal creative executives since inking a multiyear agreement to produce short-form content for Mattel Creation, which the toy manufacturer formed to bring content production under one umbrella.

Ironically, the move comes during a time when the company said it would conduct a media agency review.

Mattel produces a ton of content from long-form to directto-consumer movies, but the company chose to partner with Tongal for its enormous talent pool. "They're an aggregator of talent, a trusted resource, and help us to expand on our talent pool to increase efficiencies, so we can invest more in content," Keenan said.

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Keenan estimates that Mattel's production roster has likely increased by 50% from 2015, in that the company will take some of its key brands into episodic series. About six properties will benefit from the relationship in the first year.

Mattel will soon launch Barbie Dreamhouse Adventures -- about twenty-six 22-minute episodes; and Dreamtopia, fifty-two 11-minute episodes. Historically, Mattel has done about one to two direct-to-consumer movies annually. This increase in episodic content represents a "huge leap" for the company, he said. That doesn't include the new series for Polly Pocket, and new content for American Girl.

Tongal will help to bring all this in line with short-form video, mostly digital, "but you never know," he said. "We may find a way to broadcast the content as well."

When asked how Keenan plans to measure success, he said the key performance indicators vary by platform. Historically, it was easy to track success through broadcast ratings. Now it become increasingly challenging as audience continue to splinter, especially when it comes to children. He said Mattel will look at downloads and purchases, but also social media and extract data from different sources through chatter and buzz. Online reviews and comments will also play a role.

Tongal pioneered a model for creating content, powered by a global network of 120,000 professional creatives and a proprietary development platform. The first project produced under the partnership will become a behind-the-scenes special to complement the Amazon Original Special An American Girl StoryMelody 1963: Love Has to Win. The behind-the-scenes special will premiere on Amazon Prime Video in November.
Cutting exposure to common environmental synthetic chemicals by 25 per cent might ward off more than 150,000 cases of diabetes in Europe and save 4.5 billion every year, suggest estimates published online in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.

A mounting body of evidence suggests that environmental 'pollutants,' such as phthalates (plasticisers), pesticides, and polychlorinated biphenyls or PCBs for short (used in coolant fluids in fridges and other electrical apparatus) contribute to metabolic disorders - particularly obesity and diabetes - by disrupting the production and regulation of hormones in the body.

In a bid to quantify the potential contribution of these 'endocrine disruptors' to new cases of type 2 diabetes in Europe and the associated costs, the researchers used data from the Swedish Prospective Investigation of the Vasculature in Uppsala Seniors Study (PIVUS).

This study examined the exposure of more than a thousand 70-75 year olds living in the city of Uppsala to phthalates; dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (pesticide); PCBs; and perfluoroalkyl substances (used in a wide range of consumer products from textiles and carpets to cleaning agents and paper baking moulds/liners) in blood samples.

The researchers estimated the number of cases of diabetes among this age group using European prevalence data and relevant Swedish population data and calculated annual treatment costs (2010 figures) aggregated over a period of 10 years.

They then estimated the impact of a 25% reduction in exposure to four compounds (PCB 153; monoethylphthalate, diclorophenyldichloroethylene, and perfluorononanoic acid), taking account of other potentially influential factors: sex, weight (BMI), physical activity levels, daily calorie and alcohol intake. They used all this information to come up with a population attributable fraction (PAF) - an estimate of the theoretical effects of a risk factor at a population, rather than an individual, level - for a 25% reduction in exposure to all four compounds and in BMI.

Their calculations showed that if BMI were to fall by 25% this would translate into a 40% reduction in the prevalence of diabetes among this age group in Europe, representing 469,172 fewer cases and annual savings of 13.9 billion.

Although much smaller, a 25% reduction in exposure to each of the four synthetic chemicals would nevertheless be associated with a 13% fall in prevalent diabetes among 70-75 year olds, the calculations show. And it could potentially mean 152,481 fewer annual cases of diabetes with associated savings of 4.51 billion every year.

The researchers admit that some might question the application of relatively limited data to estimate such figures, but emphasise that several other groups of researchers have linked certain chemicals to a heightened risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

"Our findings also speak to the need for a strong regulatory framework that proactively identifies chemical hazards before they are widely used, and the use of safer alternatives," they write..."In the absence of such a framework, newly developed synthetic chemicals may emerge as diabetogenic exposures, replacing banned or substituted hazards as contributors."

Article: Population attributable risks and costs of diabetogenic chemical exposures in the elderly, Leonardo Trasande, Erik Lampa, Lars Lind, P Monica Lind, Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, doi: 10.1136/jech-2016-208006, published online 27 October 2016.
Discovery offers hope for potential new treatments for high blood pressure and heart failure.

Scientists funded by the British Heart Foundation have discovered that oxidants, which have historically been blamed for heart disease, have a vital role ensuring the heart pumps blood around the body effectively. The discovery, by researchers working collaboratively in Manchester and London, opens up the potential for new treatments.

The researchers now hope to develop drugs based on their discovery that could lower blood pressure and treat conditions caused by the heart not pumping properly, including certain forms of heart failure.

The study, published in Nature Communications, found that when the heart relaxes oxidants are released which activate an enzyme called Protein Kinase G (PKG), in a process called oxidation. The oxidation of PKG helps to ensure the amount of blood entering the heart is the same as the amount pumped out. This is vital in the functioning of a healthy heart.

However, when the researchers looked at the hearts of mice with a form of PKG that cannot be oxidised, they found that their hearts did not fill with blood properly and that their heart function was compromised.

The findings in the heart were complemented by BHF-funded research on arteries published recently in Science Signaling. The BHF researchers found activation of PKG by oxidants is also critical for the way arteries sense high blood pressure and then relax.

The researchers, led by BHF Research Fellow Dr Adam Greenstein from The University of Manchester, found that when arteries sense high blood pressure inside them they generate oxidants which activate PKG. The activation of PKG in response to pressure then relaxes the arteries. In mice with PKG that cannot be oxidised, the arteries constricted more strongly and this caused high blood pressure.

The scientists believe that dysregulation of the activation of PKG may occur in several cardiovascular diseases. They now hope to develop drugs which can mimic the oxidant-induced relaxation of the heart and arteries, to treat patients with problems in the way their hearts fill and pump blood around the body. This may also be valuable in lowering blood pressure.

"Our research supports the really exciting concept that oxidants, traditionally viewed as 'the bad guys of the cardiovascular system,' are increasingly appreciated as integral to normal heart and arterial function," said Dr Adam Greenstein of The University of Manchester, who is an author on both papers. "This ties in with lots of misinformation about commercially available antioxidants and heart disease which takes focus off the real risk factors, such as weight, cholesterol, blood pressure and smoking."

"These new papers demonstrate just how important PKG is in the regulation of the heart and blood vessels," said Professor Jeremy Pearson, Associate Medical Director at the British Heart Foundation, which funded the research. "The studies provide strong evidence that new drugs which target PKG activation are likely to be useful in patients suffering with heart failure or with high blood pressure."

You can find out more about the BHF's fight against heart disease at bhf.org.uk/research.

Articles: Disulfide-activated protein kinase G I regulates cardiac diastolic relaxation and fine-tunes the Frank-Starling response , Jenna Scotcher, Oleksandra Prysyazhna, Andrii Boguslavskyi, Kornel Kistamas, Natasha Hadgraft, Eva D. Martin, Jenny Worthington, Olena Rudyk, Pedro Rodriguez Cutillas, Friederike Cuello, Michael J. Shattock, Michael S. Marber, Maria R. Conte, Adam Greenstein, David J. Greensmith, Luigi Venetucci, John F. Timms & Philip Eaton, Nature Communications, doi:10.1038/ncomms13187, published online 26 October 2016.
Whole brain radiotherapy (WBRT) adds no value to length or quality of survival in patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), according to a new study.Researchers at Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom), University College London (UCL, United Kingdom), and other institutions recruited 538 NSCLC adult patients with brain metastases between March 2007 and August 2014. Study participants were randomly assigned to receive best supportive care and dexamethasone, or best supportive care, dexamethasone, and WBRT (20 Gy in five daily fractions).Benefits of treatment were measured in terms of quality adjusted life years (QALYS), which combines length and quality of life (evaluated during weekly telephone assessments). By October 2015, 536 patients had died (267 in the WBRT group and 269 in the best supportive care alone group); patients in both groups lived a similar length of time after randomization (about two months). The difference between the groups in terms of average QALYs was just 4.7 days.Hardly any differences in steroid use or serious adverse events were reported in either group, although more episodes of drowsiness, hair loss, nausea and dry/itchy scalp were reported by WBRT patients. The researchers concluded that while WBRT may be beneficial in patients who are younger than 60 years old, it should no longer be considered standard treatment for the majority of patients with NSCLC that has spread to the brain. The study was presented at the annual European Respiratory Society meeting, held during September 2016 in London (United Kingdom).Whole brain radiotherapy was widely adopted into clinical practice based on the assumption it improves tumor control in patients with brain metastases. But in our lung cancer clinics, we were not seeing the improvements we had hoped for in our patients, said lead author consultant clinical oncologist Paula Mulvenna, MD. Survival times are poor and have hardly changed since the 1980s. What's more, the technique's toxicity can be substantial and it can damage cognitive function.Whole brain radiotherapy cannot be considered as the standard treatment for all patients with brain metastases because it does not extend survival, improve quality of life, or reduce steroid use, said senior author Professor Ruth Langley, PhD, of UCL. In the future, potential new treatments (whether using drugs or stereotactic radiotherapy techniques) should be assessed in addition to best supportive care rather than in addition to, or in place of, whole brain radiotherapy.
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Dr Mario Festin, from the World Health Organisation in Geneva, Switzerland, said: "The study found it is possible to have a hormonal contraceptive for men that reduces the risk of unplanned pregnancies in the partners of men who use it.However, researchers said more work was needed to address the treatment's reported side effects, which included depression and other mood disorders, muscle pain and acne. However it did also increase libido.Prof Allan Pacey at the University of Sheffield said: "There is certainly an unmet need for an effective reversible contraceptive for men, along the lines of the hormonal contraceptive for women." However, none of the preparations that have been developed and tested to date have managed to become a commercial reality for one reason or another."In this latest study, the authors used a combination of hormones (progesterone and testosterone) to try and take the science forward. Using long-acting injectable forms of these hormones they were able to suppress the production of sperm to a remarkable degree. As such, this contraceptive was extremely effective and therefore certainly has promise."However, the fact that so many side effects were observed in the men who were taking part in the trial is of concern. For a male contraceptive to be accepted by men (or women) then it has to be well tolerated and not cause further problems."Source: Medindia
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Infection movement was strongly skewed to a small number of 'high-traffic' routes, with malaria cases originating from West Africa accounting for 56 percent (13,947) of all cases detected in non-endemic countries.Andrew Tatem, Director of WorldPop and University of Southampton professor of geography, comments: "This is the first worldwide assessment of imported malaria cases in 20 years and mapping this data is hugely valuable in helping us understand how we can mitigate against the effects of the global movements of the disease."Imported malaria can be expensive to treat, contribute to drug resistance, sometimes cause secondary local transmission and threaten the long-term goal of eradication. This study forms part of wider efforts to understand patterns of human and malaria parasite movement to help guide elimination strategies."The research, supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, constructed and analysed a database of publically available nationally reported statistics on imported malaria covering more than 50,000 individual cases over ten years.Although most incidents of malaria in non-endemic countries originated in West Africa, the study showed 20 percent were from India (4,988), 13 percent from East Africa (3,242) and three percent from Papua New Guinea (748). While the West Africa to France and UK routes showed the strongest imported malaria link, other high traffic routes included USA / India (149 cases on average per year), Australia / Papua New Guinea (97), UK / Pakistan (69) and USA / Haiti (52).By mapping this complex network of malaria movements across continents the researchers highlighted that a number of factors, beyond geographic ones, influenced the strength of importation levels. For example, historical, economic, language and cultural ties all play a part - population movements with former colonies had particular influence; such as Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya with the UK, and Mali, Niger and Chad with France.The researchers hope to conduct further studies to examine which factors are the drivers behind the patterns of malaria spread between endemic and non-endemic countries.Source: Eurekalert


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(Beijing)  The head of a gang in Beijing that made millions of yuan selling residence-permit documents to dozens of migrant workers was sentenced to three years in prison, Beijing Morning Post reported Friday, citing court documents.

The man  who was only identified by his surname, Tian  and 15 of his associates pocketed over 3 million yuan ($440,000) from 2010 to 2014 by illegally selling documents needed to get a household registration, or hukou, in Beijing, Haidian District People's Court said. Their main targets were recent graduates, some from the country's top colleges such as Peking University and Tsinghua University, the court said.

Tian's alleged accomplices have not yet been tried, and it is unclear when they will be.

Tian and the 15 other gang members were all working for large state-owned enterprises or private high-tech firms that are allocated a certain number of permits to attract top talent from other provinces, the state-run People's Daily reported after their arrests in August 2014. They had sold documents to over 40 graduates who were not in the payroll of the gang members' companies.

Prosecutors have charged Tian's alleged accomplices with illegally selling government documents, and at least one was accused of abusing power.

City dwellers without local household registration have restricted access to public services such as schools and hospitals. Some major cities do not allow them to buy a second home, and they have to wait longer to register their vehicle license plates.

But since last year, the Beijing city government has made deep cuts to residence permit quotas allocated to companies as it tries to rein in population growth in the capital.

For example, Aviation Industry Corp. of China, controlled by the central government, said in an online notice on Feb. 9, 2015, that the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security had ordered it to cut the number of migrant workers it hired that year by 17%.

The district court said local police first got wind of Tian and his gang after Xinhua News Agency published an article in July 2014 about a group selling hukou documents on the internet for as much as 300,000 yuan.

Contact reporter Li Rongde (rongdeli@caixin.com)editor Poornima Weerasekara (poornima@caixin.com)
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In order to elucidate the significance of early epigenetic modifications on the development of neural cells during embryogenesis in the mouse, Gotz and her colleagues specifically inactivated the gene Uhrf1. This gene is known to control a number of epigenetic functions, including DNA methylation, and is active from very early stages of neurogenesis. The methylation of specific nucleotide bases in DNA often serves to switch genes off.Conditional knockout of Uhrf1, in a region of the forebrain, led to the activation of endogenous retroviral elements (ERV) in the genome, which are otherwise silenced by methylation. Further investigation revealed that members of the Tet family of enzymes are largely mediating the demethylation of the ERVs, thus appearing be functionally activated in the absence of Uhrf1.Moreover, these ERVs remained active not only in later stages of embryogenesis but also into postnatal stages, suggesting that their activation is non-reversible. The aberrant and ongoing activation of ERVs caused an accumulation of retroviral proteins in the affected cells and deregulation of genes and pathways. This in turn led to the progressive disruption of vital cellular processes and ultimately precipitated a massive wave of cell death."Our results reveal that certain key factors - such as the gene Uhrf1 - that are transiently activated only in early neurogenesis can have a crucial impact on cell fate, which may only manifest weeks later," says Gotz. "Our model system provides us with fascinating insights into these mechanisms, which are also of great interest in the context of neurodegenerative diseases."Source: Eurekalert
On October 31, 2016, the Lebanese parliament will convene and is expected to vote in Free Patriotic Movement leader and Hizbullah ally Michel Aoun as president of Lebanon; he is Hizbullah's sole candidate. The move follows a deal struck between Aoun and former Lebanese prime minister Sa'd Al-Hariri, leader of the Sunni Al-Mustaqbal stream, under which Aoun, if elected, will assign Al-Hariri the task of forming the next government.

This move by Al-Hariri has significant implications for the intra-Lebanese political arena and for the regional power balance. Therefore it has encountered criticism both within and outside Lebanon. This move represents a surrender by the March 14 Forces, headed by Al-Mustaqbal, to Hizbullah's will, and reinforces the position of Hizbullah's patron Iran at the expense of Saudi Arabia.

The following report reviews Al-Hariri's decision, the reactions it has encountered, and what it means for Lebanon and the region.

Hizbullah Ally Aoun Expected To Be Chosen President

On October 31, 2016, the Lebanese parliament will hold its 46th presidential selection session since Michel Suleiman's term ended two-and-a-half years ago. That session is expected to choose Free Patriotic Movement founder Michel Aoun, who is an ally of Hizbullah, as president. Aoun's selection will end a two-and-a-half-year presidential vacuum that resulted from disagreement over Suleiman's successor from among the country's opposing streams - primarily Al-Mustaqbal, led by Sa'd Al-Hariri, and Hizbullah, which together with Aoun stymied the formation of the quorum that is necessary to elect a president. The breakthrough in the talks over the selection of a president came when Al-Hariri and Aoun reached an agreement under which Al-Hariri would support Aoun's presidential candidacy and in return Aoun would task Al-Hariri with forming the new government, which would be a national unity government as stipulated in the agreement.[1] This constitutes an Al-Hariri surrender to Hizbullah, which sought an Aoun presidency. It should be mentioned that Al-Hariri's support for an overt Hizbullah ally is not unprecedented; a year ago, Al-Hariri announced his support for another ally of Hizbullah, and of Syrian president Bashar Al-Assad, Suleiman Frangieh, for the post of Lebanese president.[2]

Al-Hariri announced his support for Aoun in an October 20, 2016 speech, saying that by supporting him he was aiming to save Lebanon from dangerous leadership and economic crises which could, in turn, lead to a new civil war.[3]

Two days later, on October 22, Hizbullah secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah announced that his party's MPs, who had been boycotting presidential selection sessions, as had MPs from other parties including Aoun's own Change and Reform bloc, would be attending the October 31 session and would be choosing Aoun. Nasrallah added that Hizbullah had no objections to Al-Hariri's serving as prime minister in the new government.

These statements by Al-Hariri and Nasrallah pave Aoun's path to the presidential palace, even though obstacles and uncertainty remain, both in Lebanon and in the region, in this matter.

Various Lebanese Elements Oppose Aoun's Appointment As President

The opposition to Aoun's appointment comes mainly from Lebanese parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri, and from Suleiman Frangieh, who is running against Aoun in the presidential race. Both Berri and Frangieh are March 8 Forces members and open Hizbullah allies. Berri even announced that he would not be part of the government that would be established under the Al-Hariri-Aoun deal, and questioned the deal's future, saying that it had been arrived at by two sides only, without taking into account the country's main political elements, himself among them. Druze leader and centrist bloc member Walid Jumblatt, who is another major Lebanese political figure, has not yet expressed a position on this matter, but it is thought that he will back Aoun.

On the other side as well, some in Al-Hariri's Al-Mustaqbal party and in the March 14 Forces in general oppose this deal. Immediately after Al-Hariri's October 20 announcement of support for Aoun, another former prime minister, Fouad Al-Siniora, the head of the Al-Mustaqbal party, (a component of Al-Hariri's broader Al-Mustaqbal stream) announced that he would not join Al-Hariri in backing Aoun for president. Al-Siniora was joined by other party members, including parliamentary vice president Farid Makari, MPs Ahmad Fatfat and Ammar Houri, Telecommunications Minister Boutros Harb of the March 14 Forces, and March 14 Forces secretary-general Fares Souaid.

Along with the opposition to an Aoun presidency within the Al-Mustaqbal party, other Sunni public figures also objected to the deal, among them Justice Minister Ashraf Rifi, former director-general of the Lebanese Internal Security Forces and a former Al-Hariri supporter. Last year, Rifi harshly attacked Al-Hariri for his support for Hizbullah and Syrian regime ally Suleiman Frangieh. On October 22, 2016, two days after Al-Hariri's announcement of his support for Aoun as president, Rifi organized an anti-Aoun protest in Tripoli called "Proud Tripoli Rejects the Candidate of Iranian Patronage." The next day, October 23, a convoy of vehicles from Akkar in the north of the country made its way to Rifi's home in Tripoli bearing posters of him and expressing support for his position on this matter. It should be mentioned that in the past year, Rifi has gradually chipped away at overall Lebanese Sunni support for Al-Hariri, as evidenced by his party's landslide victory over Al-Hariri's party in the mayoral elections in Tripoli, the city with the largest Sunni concentration in the country.

Many in the Al-Mustaqbal party, the March 14 Forces, and the Sunni public who oppose the Al-Hariri-Aoun deal see Al-Hariri's support for Aoun as yet another concession to Hizbullah and the pro-Iran axis that backs it, and to Hizbullah as an armed state within a state.[4] They accuse Al-Hariri, inter alia, of seeking to become prime minister by selling out Sunni interests and the political legacy of his father Rafiq Al-Hariri, whose 2005 assassination, when Syria was the real power in Lebanon, is thought to have been carried out by five senior Hizbullah officials.

Addressing critics of his deal, Al-Hariri explained his support for Aoun as well as his previous support for Frangieh: "I am willing to take the risks a thousand times over, just as I am willing to risk myself, my people, and my political future, to defend Lebanon and its people."[5]

Al-Hariri's Choice Of Aoun Is A Political Victory For Hizbullah

Al-Hariri's move to support the Hizbullah candidate and ally Aoun has major implication for the internal Lebanese political arena. It constitutes another successful attempt by Hizbullah to impose its wishes there and a further weakening of the country's main Sunni force, the Al-Mustaqbal party. This triumph for Hizbullah comes at a time when it is mostly preoccupied outside of Lebanon's borders, primarily with fighting alongside the Assad regime in Syria, as well as elsewhere in the Arab world as a proxy of Iran. The organization has fortified its position within Lebanon by virtue of its network of political alliances in the country, as well as by virtue of the quantity of weapons in its possession.

Ibrahim Al-Amin, head of the board of directors of the Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar and a known Hizbullah supporter, argued that the March 14 Forces, including the Al-Mustaqbal stream, show "the symptoms of card-game addicts," who delude themselves that they can win and are "unwilling to give up" even when it is clear that it is Hizbullah who is actually directing events on the ground.[6]

At the same time, Hizbullah's success in pushing its own candidate through is also a result of the political weakness of its rivals, particularly the Hariri-led Al-Mustaqbal stream, who wants the premiership at nearly any cost in order to strengthen his own political status in the country and perhaps his economic status as well.

An Aoun presidency does not mean that the issues contributing to the vast schism between the sides in Lebanon will be resolved, among them the disarming of Hizbullah as demanded by the March 14 Forces - Aoun opposes the organization's disarmament.[7] As president, Hizbullah ally Aoun would be in charge of a number of security and military portfolios, aggravating the tension between the sides and jeopardizing the army's independence .

Additionally, the Al-Hariri-Aoun deal does not guarantee that Al-Hariri will actually succeed in forming a government, because of the opposition he faces both inside and outside Lebanon. The deal with Aoun could also harm Al-Hariri's status among his traditional Sunni support base, thus weakening him in the upcoming spring 2017 parliamentary elections.

An Aoun Presidency: Ramifications For The Regional Power Balance - Down With Saudi Arabia, Up With Iran

Since Lebanon's future depends on the regional political balance, with Iran, Syria, and Saudi Arabia the patrons of various local Lebanese political players, Al-Hariri's move has regional ramifications. His surrender to Hizbullah's wishes reflects the strengthening of Iran, which has exploited the Syrian civil war to deepen its penetration of the region and of Lebanon in particular. Electing the Hizbullah presidential candidate Aoun will definitely serve future pro-Iran interests in Lebanon at the expense of Sunni interests in Lebanon, and also at the expense of Saudi Arabia, which views itself as the protector of these interests.

Saudi Arabia has previously backed Al-Hariri's past substantial political moves even if these moves haven't always served Saudi political interests in Lebanon or elsewhere. It is still unclear whether his deal with Aoun has Saudi support, and the Lebanese press has published conflicting reports on the matter. As yet, there has been no official Saudi comment on this, but recent articles in the Saudi press indicate a lack of support for Al-Hariri's deal with Aoun. However, following a lengthy Saudi silence, Saudi Gulf Affairs Minister Thamer Sabhan, who visited Beirut on October 27 said that his country would not intervene in the selection of Lebanon's president and would support the president chosen by the Lebanese.[8]

There were also reports in the Lebanese press noting that Al-Hariri's political status in Lebanon is declining, and that the Saudis no longer consider him the sole representative of the Sunnis in Lebanon, but only one such representative.

It should be noted that in previous years, Saudi Arabia, as the leader of the Sunni world, played a key role in the selection of Lebanese presidents, as did Syria, which together with Hizbullah's patron Iran represented the resistance axis. Al-Hariri's choosing Aoun for president without full Saudi backing reflects a decline in Saudi influence in Lebanon, and in Saudi Arabia's regional status in general. In this context, a report in the Lebanese daily Al-Safir, a known supporter of the resistance axis, claims that Egypt was involved in promoting Aoun's prospects for the presidency.[9] A possible inference from this report is that Egypt is attempting to step into Saudi Arabia's shoes in Lebanon in an attempt to restore its status in the Arab world, and particularly in the Sunni world.

Articles in the daily Al-Akhbar, known for its pro-Hizbullah line, addressed the regional implications of Al-Hariri's gambit and gloated that the move reflected Saudi Arabian weakness. Al-Akhbar columnist Ghassan Saoud wrote that an Aoun presidency would be a manifestation of "Hizbullah's ability to break the international will, and the Saudi will."[10]

However, Al-Akhbar board chairman Ibrahim Al-Amin wrote in an editorial that wars in the Arab region created a reality that was forcing the March 14 Forces to see the choice of Lebanese president differently, and that they needed to realize that the Saudis can no longer help them. As he usually does, he concluded his piece with implied threats, stating: "Anyone who does not want anarchy in Lebanon has no alternative but to choose Aoun for president."[11]

Endntoes:
Introduction

On October 31, 2016, the Lebanese parliament will convene and is expected to vote in Free Patriotic Movement leader and Hizbullah ally Michel Aoun as president of Lebanon; he is Hizbullah's sole candidate. The move follows a deal struck between Aoun and former Lebanese prime minister Sa'd Al-Hariri, leader of the Sunni Al-Mustaqbal stream, under which Aoun, if elected, will assign Al-Hariri the task of forming the next government.

This move by Al-Hariri has significant implications for the intra-Lebanese political arena and for the regional power balance. Therefore it has encountered criticism both within and outside Lebanon. This move represents a surrender by the March 14 Forces, headed by Al-Mustaqbal, to Hizbullah's will, and reinforces the position of Hizbullah's patron Iran at the expense of Saudi Arabia.

The following report reviews Al-Hariri's decision, the reactions it has encountered, and what it means for Lebanon and the region.

Hizbullah Ally Aoun Expected To Be Chosen President

On October 31, 2016, the Lebanese parliament will hold its 46th presidential selection session since Michel Suleiman's term ended two-and-a-half years ago. That session is expected to choose Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun, who is an ally of Hizbullah, as president. Aoun's selection will end a two-and-a-half-year presidential vacuum that resulted from disagreement over Suleiman's successor from among the country's opposing streams - primarily Al-Mustaqbal, led by Sa'd Al-Hariri, and Hizbullah, which together with Aoun stymied the formation of the quorum that is necessary to elect a president. The breakthrough in the talks over the selection of a president came when Al-Hariri and Aoun reached an agreement under which Al-Hariri would support Aoun's presidential candidacy and in return Aoun would task Al-Hariri with forming the new government, which would be a national unity government as stipulated in the agreement.[1] This constitutes an Al-Hariri surrender to Hizbullah, which sought an Aoun presidency. It should be mentioned that Al-Hariri's support for an overt Hizbullah ally is not unprecedented; a year ago, Al-Hariri announced his support for another ally of Hizbullah, and of Syrian president Bashar Al-Assad, Suleiman Frangieh, for the post of Lebanese president.[2]

Al-Hariri announced his support for Aoun in an October 20, 2016 speech, saying that by supporting him he was aiming to save Lebanon from dangerous leadership and economic crises which could, in turn, lead to a new civil war.[3]

Two days later, on October 22, Hizbullah secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah announced that his party's MPs, who had been boycotting presidential selection sessions, as had MPs from other parties including Aoun's own Change and Reform bloc, would be attending the October 31 session and would be choosing Aoun. Nasrallah added that Hizbullah had no objections to Al-Hariri's serving as prime minister in the new government.

These statements by Al-Hariri and Nasrallah pave Aoun's path to the presidential palace, even though obstacles and uncertainty remain, both in Lebanon and in the region, in this matter.

Various Lebanese Elements Oppose Aoun's Appointment As President

The opposition to Aoun's appointment comes mainly from Lebanese parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri, and from Suleiman Frangieh, who is running against Aoun in the presidential race. Both Berri and Frangieh are March 8 Forces members and open Hizbullah allies. Berri even announced that he would not be part of the government that would be established under the Al-Hariri-Aoun deal, and questioned the deal's future, saying that it had been arrived at by two sides only, without taking into account the country's main political elements, himself among them. Druze leader and centrist bloc member Walid Jumblatt, who is another major Lebanese political figure, has not yet expressed a position on this matter, but it is thought that he will back Aoun.

On the other side as well, some in Al-Hariri's Al-Mustaqbal party and in the March 14 Forces in general oppose this deal. Immediately after Al-Hariri's October 20 announcement of support for Aoun, another former prime minister, Fouad Al-Siniora, the head of the Al-Mustaqbal party, (a component of Al-Hariri's broader Al-Mustaqbal stream) announced that he would not join Al-Hariri in backing Aoun for president. Al-Siniora was joined by other party members, including parliamentary vice president Farid Makari, MPs Ahmad Fatfat and Ammar Houri, Telecommunications Minister Boutros Harb of the March 14 Forces, and March 14 Forces secretary-general Fares Souaid.

Along with the opposition to an Aoun presidency within the Al-Mustaqbal party, other Sunni public figures also objected to the deal, among them Justice Minister Ashraf Rifi, former director-general of the Lebanese Internal Security Forces and a former Al-Hariri supporter. Last year, Rifi harshly attacked Al-Hariri for his support for Hizbullah and Syrian regime ally Suleiman Frangieh. On October 22, 2016, two days after Al-Hariri's announcement of his support for Aoun as president, Rifi organized an anti-Aoun protest in Tripoli called "Proud Tripoli Rejects the Candidate of Iranian Patronage." The next day, October 23, a convoy of vehicles from Akkar in the north of the country made its way to Rifi's home in Tripoli bearing posters of him and expressing support for his position on this matter. It should be mentioned that in the past year, Rifi has gradually chipped away at overall Lebanese Sunni support for Al-Hariri, as evidenced by his party's landslide victory over Al-Hariri's party in the mayoral elections in Tripoli, the city with the largest Sunni concentration in the country.

Many in the Al-Mustaqbal party, the March 14 Forces, and the Sunni public who oppose the Al-Hariri-Aoun deal see Al-Hariri's support for Aoun as yet another concession to Hizbullah and the pro-Iran axis that backs it, and to Hizbullah as an armed state within a state.[4] They accuse Al-Hariri, inter alia, of seeking to become prime minister by selling out Sunni interests and the political legacy of his father Rafiq Al-Hariri, whose 2005 assassination, when Syria was the real power in Lebanon, is thought to have been carried out by five senior Hizbullah officials.

Addressing critics of his deal, Al-Hariri explained his support for Aoun as well as his previous support for Frangieh: "I am willing to take the risks a thousand times over, just as I am willing to risk myself, my people, and my political future, to defend Lebanon and its people."[5]

Al-Hariri's Choice Of Aoun Is A Political Victory For Hizbullah

Al-Hariri's move to support the Hizbullah candidate and ally Aoun has major implication for the internal Lebanese political arena. It constitutes another successful attempt by Hizbullah to impose its wishes there and a further weakening of the country's main Sunni force, the Al-Mustaqbal party. This triumph for Hizbullah comes at a time when it is mostly preoccupied outside of Lebanon's borders, primarily with fighting alongside the Assad regime in Syria, as well as elsewhere in the Arab world as a proxy of Iran. The organization has fortified its position within Lebanon by virtue of its network of political alliances in the country, as well as by virtue of the quantity of weapons in its possession.

Ibrahim Al-Amin, head of the board of directors of the Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar and a known Hizbullah supporter, argued that the March 14 Forces, including the Al-Mustaqbal stream, show "the symptoms of card-game addicts," who delude themselves that they can win and are "unwilling to give up" even when it is clear that it is Hizbullah who is actually directing events on the ground.[6]

At the same time, Hizbullah's success in pushing its own candidate through is also a result of the political weakness of its rivals, particularly the Hariri-led Al-Mustaqbal stream, who wants the premiership at nearly any cost in order to strengthen his own political status in the country and perhaps his economic status as well.

An Aoun presidency does not mean that the issues contributing to the vast schism between the sides in Lebanon will be resolved, among them the disarming of Hizbullah as demanded by the March 14 Forces - Aoun opposes the organization's disarmament.[7] As president, Hizbullah ally Aoun would be in charge of a number of security and military portfolios, aggravating the tension between the sides and jeopardizing the army's independence .

Additionally, the Al-Hariri-Aoun deal does not guarantee that Al-Hariri will actually succeed in forming a government, because of the opposition he faces both inside and outside Lebanon. The deal with Aoun could also harm Al-Hariri's status among his traditional Sunni support base, thus weakening him in the upcoming spring 2017 parliamentary elections.

An Aoun Presidency: Ramifications For The Regional Power Balance - Down With Saudi Arabia, Up With Iran

Since Lebanon's future depends on the regional political balance, with Iran, Syria, and Saudi Arabia the patrons of various local Lebanese political players, Al-Hariri's move has regional ramifications. His surrender to Hizbullah's wishes reflects the strengthening of Iran, which has exploited the Syrian civil war to deepen its penetration of the region and of Lebanon in particular. Electing the Hizbullah presidential candidate Aoun will definitely serve future pro-Iran interests in Lebanon at the expense of Sunni interests in Lebanon, and also at the expense of Saudi Arabia, which views itself as the protector of these interests.

Saudi Arabia has previously backed Al-Hariri's past substantial political moves even if these moves haven't always served Saudi political interests in Lebanon or elsewhere. It is still unclear whether his deal with Aoun has Saudi support, and the Lebanese press has published conflicting reports on the matter. As yet, there has been no official Saudi comment on this, but recent articles in the Saudi press indicate a lack of support for Al-Hariri's deal with Aoun. However, following a lengthy Saudi silence, Saudi Gulf Affairs Minister Thamer Sabhan, who visited Beirut on October 27 said that his country would not intervene in the selection of Lebanon's president and would support the president chosen by the Lebanese.[8]

There were also reports in the Lebanese press noting that Al-Hariri's political status in Lebanon is declining, and that the Saudis no longer consider him the sole representative of the Sunnis in Lebanon, but only one such representative.

It should be noted that in previous years, Saudi Arabia, as the leader of the Sunni world, played a key role in the selection of Lebanese presidents, as did Syria, which together with Hizbullah's patron Iran represented the resistance axis. Al-Hariri's choosing Aoun for president without full Saudi backing reflects a decline in Saudi influence in Lebanon, and in Saudi Arabia's regional status in general. In this context, a report in the Lebanese daily Al-Safir, a known supporter of the resistance axis, claims that Egypt was involved in promoting Aoun's prospects for the presidency.[9] A possible inference from this report is that Egypt is attempting to step into Saudi Arabia's shoes in Lebanon in an attempt to restore its status in the Arab world, and particularly in the Sunni world.

Articles in the daily Al-Akhbar, known for its pro-Hizbullah line, addressed the regional implications of Al-Hariri's gambit and gloated that the move reflected Saudi Arabian weakness. Al-Akhbar columnist Ghassan Saoud wrote that an Aoun presidency would be a manifestation of "Hizbullah's ability to break the international will, and the Saudi will."[10]

However, Ibrahim Al-Amin wrote in an Al-Akbar editorial that wars in the Arab region created a reality that was forcing the March 14 Forces to see the choice of Lebanese president differently, and that they needed to realize that the Saudis can no longer help them. As he usually does, he concluded his piece with implied threats, stating: "Anyone who does not want anarchy in Lebanon has no alternative but to choose Aoun for president."[11]

*E. B. Picali is a research fellow at MEMRI; Y. Yehoshua is Vice President for Research And Director of MEMRI Israel

Endntoes:
The following are some of this week's reports from the MEMRI Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM) Project, which translates and analyzes content from sources monitored around the clock, among them the most important jihadi websites and blogs. (To view these reports in full, you must be a paying member of the JTTM; for membership information, send an email to [email protected] with "Membership" in the subject line.)

Note to media and government: For a full copy of these reports, send an email with the title of the report in the subject line to [email protected]. Please include your name, title, and organization in your email.

EXCLUSIVE: AQAP Commander Khaled Batarfi Warns Of Western-Iranian Plan To Occupy All Muslim Countries, Urges Scholars, Tribes, Youth To Support Jihad

On October 27, Al-Malahem, the media arm of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), released an audio recording in which senior commander Khaled Batarfi warns that the West and Iran are planning to occupy all Muslim countries and urges scholars, tribesmen, and Muslim youth to join the mujahideen and support jihad.

EXCLUSIVE: Pro-ISIS Telegram Channel Calls For Lone Wolves to Target Americans In Saudi Arabia, Saudi Intelligence And Security Personnel

On October 23, 2016, the Pro-Islamic State Telegram channel posted a message calling on supporters to carry out attacks on Americans who are in Saudi Arabia, as well as members of Saudi state security and investigation apparatus using guns, poison and knives.

EXCLUSIVE: ISIS Releases Video Of One Of The Perpetrators Of The Attack In The Russian City Of Nizhny Novgorod

On October 27, 2016, the ISIS news agency A'maq released a video of one of the men who carried out an attack in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia. ISIS had claimed responsibility for the October 23 attack, which, it said, was carried out by two of its soldiers against a military base in the city.

Official Islamic State Radio Broadcasts Series Of Religious Lectures In French

On October 8, 2016, ISIS Telegram channels released a recording of a lecture in French which was broadcast on ISIS's official radio network Al-Bayan. The lecture is the first in a series titled "A Series of Exhortations Taken from the Life of the Prophet and his Companions."

ISIS Claims Responsibility For Torching Islamic Center In Sweden, Promises More Attacks In 'Land of Unbelief'

On October 20, 2016, Al-Naba', the Islamic State weekly newspaper, claimed that an Islamic center in Malmo, Sweden had been torched by "a soldier of the Islamic State."

ISIS Claims Responsibility For Knife Attack In Indonesia

On October 20, 2016, the Islamic State (ISIS) claimed responsibility, via its news agency A'maq, for that day's knifing of several Indonesian police in Tangerang, Banten, Indonesia.

Bahasa-Language ISIS Video Features Dozens Of Indonesian Fighters, Children In Iraq

On October 20, 2016, the Islamic State's Furat Media released a Bahasa-language video documenting the lives of Indonesian fighters who have joined ISIS and how they have been welcomed by the locals in Iraq, comparing it to the hospitality of the people of Madinah who welcomed the Prophet Muhammad and his Companions when they immigrated there from Makkah.

Images From Libya Show ISIS Targeting The 'Chinese Buildings' Area In Western Benghazi

In the last week, ISIS has released pictorial reports documenting the group's ongoing battles in western Benghazi, Libya.

Pro-ISIS Hacking Group Praises Former Member's Efforts In Wake Of Arrest, Warns Of Perils Of Cyber Jihad

On October 23, 2016, the pro-Islamic State (ISIS) hacking group United Cyber Caliphate (UCC) released a PDF document on their Telegram channel focusing on the recent arrest of one of the group's members. The group uploaded three versions of the document in Arabic, English and French. The document reveals that the hacker who was arrested is a 26- year old Kuwaiti citizen. The letter also briefly mentions that three other hackers have been arrested, but their real identities and their fates are still unknown.

International Pro-ISIS WhatsApp Group Chat Infiltrated By Jabhat Fath Al-Sham (JFS) Supporters

A WhatsApp group chat, which has 159 participants, was hijacked by a number of Jabhat Fath Al-Sham (JFS) supporters.

Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) Releases Music Video Glorifying Dead Fighters And Self-Sacrifice In Jihad

On October 27, 2016, the Syrian branch of the Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) released a video for a nasheed (Islamic song) in the Uyghur language titled "The Martyr," which honors TIP fighters killed in action and praises death for the sake of Allah.

Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) Video Documents Group's Role In Breaking Siege On Aleppo

On October 18, 2016, the Syrian branch of the Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) released a video documenting the group's role in breaking the siege on the city of Aleppo. The city is still besieged by the Russia-backed Syrian military, and over 200,000 residents are trapped in its eastern areas.
The Special Forces of the Indian Military rank amongst some of the most elite and most feared soldiers in the world. The way they are groomed mentally and physically, pushes the boundaries of human behavior and the threshold of pain tolerance. They can survive the harshest wilderness. They can eat almost anything that moves. They arent really the same kind of humans that we are. They are bred to kill. One such band of brothers who protect us while we sleep is the Special Forces Para Commandos, one of the worlds most elite covert operations units.

 YouTube

Groomed by the Parachute Regiment of the Indian Army, these are the same commandos who recently tore through the terrorists camps in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, in a surgical strike. To the world and more formally, they are known as the Para Commandos. Those who fear them, call them the Glass Eaters. All that hellish and brutal training gives the Parachute Commandos an edge over regular forces not only physically but also, mentally. And this glass eating tradition is one such ritual that fosters their sense of absolute fearlessness and superiority.

 YouTube

A blog post, named Tales From The Army, brings forth this rarely talked about and unknown tradition. The blog is written by a retired Ex- Special Forces Para Commando himself. The officer recalls the time when he was asked to eat glass and how he did it. In short, heres how the tradition goes- upon successfully completing the hellish training, soldiers are inducted as a Maroon Beret but before they are handed the badge, they have to down a Patiala peg of rum, bite off and chew the rim of the glass. Yes, bite it, chew it and swallow it. While it was hard for me to believe like it would be for most who read this, a program on Discovery channel called Earning The Badge settled my doubts forever. The Paras DO eat glass upon induction in the unit.

While it seems humanly impossible to eat glass but once chewed enough, its pulverized into nothing but sand. Glass is sand. But while only the thought of chewing glass makes our stomach bleed, these men of steel continue to follow this tough-as-nails tradition.
(Beijing)  U.S. technology giant Microsoft Corp.'s joint venture to provide a customized version of its latest operating system to Chinese government agencies will hamper efforts to reduce the country's reliance on foreign technology and put national security at risk, a top academic warned.

"Opening up doesn't mean opening up without conditions," said Ni Guangnan, a scholar at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, at a technology summit in Beijing on Thursday. "Some industries can never be made available" to foreign companies, he added.

Chinese companies will never be able to master the core technology needed to develop an operating system under a partnership with Microsoft, Ni said.

Ni has a track record of being an advocate for a China-made operating system and central processing units. In 2014, he headed a government-backed team to develop a homegrown operating system, according to People's Post and Telecommunications News, a paper affiliated with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. But it is not clear whether this software was ever rolled out.

Ni's latest warning came a month after Microsoft agreed to cooperate with China Electronics Technology Group Corp., a state-owned enterprise (SOE), to develop a customized version of Microsoft's Windows 10 operating system for government institutions and SOEs.

The U.S. tech giant won the deal two years after China banned the use of Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system on government computers after the company stopped providing security updates and technical support for its then-13-year-old Windows XP operating system. At the time, the official Xinhua News Agency said the ban was to ensure computer security.

Ni, a computer engineer who is credited with developing an input system for Chinese characters and is a co-founder of the precursor to Lenovo Group Ltd., said in 2014 that the antivirus software incorporated into the Windows 8 operating system could be used to scan content and monitor users' activities, the state-run China Daily newspaper reported at the time.

The decision to ban the use of Microsoft products also came at a time when academics and senior government officials, including President Xi Jinping, were advocating companies to develop "autonomous and controllable" technologies.

"We should be self-assured to promote the 'autonomous and controllable' campaign," said Ni, referring to the movement started since 2013, adding that the internet and telecommunication industries in the U.S. are dominated by American companies.

"The plan to replace foreign businesses is not only for security reasons. It is also valid from the perspective of dismantling the market monopoly and reducing costs," he said.

In recent years, the government has pushed for the development of homegrown IT products to reduce the country's dependence on foreign technology. These efforts intensified after former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden revealed in 2013 that the U.S. government had a technological "back door" that allowed them access to the databases of at least nine major U.S. internet companies.

While Chinese companies have managed to develop several Linux-based operating-system alternatives in the past few years, none of them has managed to grab a significant share in the market. Zhongke Hongqi, the developer of the Hongqi, or "Red Flag," operating system, filed for bankruptcy in 2014. Last year, Dell reportedly preloaded more than 40% of its commercial PCs in China with an operating system called NeoKylin, which was co-developed by several Chinese companies and the government. But a salesperson at Dell told Caixin that the company has stopped selling those computers. The reason behind Dell's decision to stop installing NeoKylin on its computers or when this decision was made is unclear.

Microsoft's Windows series controlled nearly 95% of the Chinese operating system market in 2015, according to industry watcher StatCounter. Some government agencies such as the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the country's top prosecutor's office, still uses the outdated Windows XP software, an employee at the agency told Caixin. Other government institutions  for example, the State Administration of Taxation's provincial bureau in Fujian province  provide employees with computers installed with Windows 7, which is also outdated, an employee said.

Contact reporter Chen Na (nachen@caixin.com); editor Poornima Weerasekara (poornima@caixin.com)
So on one level, when Amnesty International reported last week that Australias system of offshore detention  in which asylum seekers heading to Australia by boat are intercepted and sent to camps in Nauru or Papua New Guinea indefinitely  essentially amounts to torture, the Australian governments response was entirely predictable.

I personally find that to be offensive, said the head of the immigration department, Michael Pezzullo.

I reject that claim totally, declared Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. It is absolutely false.

But thats largely where the defense ended. Mr. Turnbull wasnt about to engage in a legal argument on Amnestys claim. There was no need because he knows that ultimately not all that many Australians care all that much.

Thats been true for at least 15 years, when former Prime Minister John Howard prospered so handsomely from his asylum-seeker policies, from which the current program is derived. Repeated polling since 2013 shows that whatever those policies seem to be, somewhere between 20 and 30 percent of Australians think they should be even more severe. Around another 35 to 40 percent think the policy is about right. The view that our policy is too harsh tops out at around 27 percent.

These figures scarcely change, no matter how many reports come out from Human Rights Watch, the United Nations or Australias own Human Rights Commission.

You see, weve stopped the boats. That quote doesnt come from anyone in particular. Its everyones. Mr. Turnbulls predecessor, Tony Abbott, most relentlessly repeated it, but its on high rotation in every government officials playlist. Whatever the scandal, whatever the latest account of refugee children attempting suicide or detainees setting themselves on fire, its all anyone need say.

Every weekday, get thought-provoking commentary from Op-Ed columnists, the Times editorial board and contributing writers from around the world.

This is the great sedative of Australian politics: dulling our attention, rendering all else some indecipherable white noise we only vaguely register before we fall asleep. Then we can snooze through any bombshell. Even Amnestys language isnt arresting anymore. Merely a year and a half ago a United Nations special rapporteur found systematic violations of the Convention Against Torture. None of it registers because as long as boats carrying asylum seekers arent making it to Australia, all is justified.

So Australias detention regime becomes virtuous, brutality repackaged as compassion. Those languishing in detention centers, even the people who die there thanks to violence or woefully inadequate medical care for simple afflictions, theyre just a warning to others who might be tempted onto a boat. Its true the journey is deadly, but its also true that Australia is using the more than 1,200 other people stuck in limbo in Nauru and Papua New Guinea as a deterrent. These are the starkly utilitarian terms of the policy: We sacrifice the lives of innocent people to dissuade others from risking theirs.

This rhetoric masks an enormous problem. While Australia was adamant that anyone arriving by boat would be turned away forever, it has never had any idea where these people would ultimately go. Paying other countries to detain them could be only a stopgap measure. Eventually their refugee claims would be processed, and eventually they would need to be resettled somewhere.

And while we were sleeping, that moment arrived. Papua New Guineas highest court in April found the detention center there to be illegal, meaning the detainees must be sent elsewhere. Australia has paid Cambodia $42 million to resettle refugees  only two have been successfully resettled. Otherwise, Australia resorts to persuading people to return home to the lands theyre fleeing  war-torn countries like Iraq and Afghanistan, among other menacing places.

We have traded a boat problem for a resettlement one. And in the meantime, lives are still being destroyed, just slowly.

Its here we confront Amnestys most arresting finding: Australias policy is a kind of contagion, lowering global standards on refugee policy, shifting the boundaries of what nations now find acceptable.

The most direct example is Indonesia, which, partly at Australias urging, has sharply increased its own use of detention centers, criminalized the act of providing accommodations for anyone without a visa, and attempted to return boats headed for Indonesia back to the countries they had left.

But were also seeing a procession of European far-right nationalist parties  the U.K. Independence Party in Britain, the National Democratic Party of Germany and the Danish Peoples Party  expressly hold Australia up as an inspiration. There are even individual voices of support from within mainstream conservative parties, like Britains Tories. Its clear that Australia would like its policy to be adopted more broadly.

Successive prime ministers  most recently Mr. Turnbull in his September address to the United Nations  have encouraged the world to follow Australias lead. Its the kind of thing you can say when youre an island nation far removed from the theaters of human misery producing the current refugee crisis. But its not the kind of thing to which the world can afford to listen.

The human displacement is too deep, the numbers too large. And with a global problem this urgent, the very worst you could do right now is reach for a sedative.
CASS CITY  The village of Cass City increased in size Thursday.

Tuscola County Commissioners unanimously approved the villages request to annex some land into the village from Elkland Township.

Annexed was 4.2 acres of land at 4365 S. Seeger Street, which is at the corner of Doerr Road and Shell Street, that Clarence Schneeberger sold to the village.

The vacant land created a nine-acre parcel that is contiguous to the industrial park.

The annexation is for the mutual advantage and benefit of the people of the village of Cass City to promote industrial development, to attract business and industry, and to create and improve the general economic condition of the village, explained village Manager Peter Cristiano.

The village paid $20,000 for the land as well as a $2,000 commission to Kelly & Company Realty for the sale. Plus, there were legal fees and the cost of a survey for about $2,000 more.

The funds for the purchase came from the Cass City Economic Development Commission budget from the former sale of other property.

The annexation is necessary to promote the business and economic development of the village, according to the annexation request.

The petition for the annexation was made by Cass City Village President Carl Palmateer and village Clerk Nanette Walsh.

Besides being entered in local records that the commissioners approved changing the villages boundaries, information on the change will be forwarded to the Michigan Secretary of State.

In other property matters, the village also recently received a donation of property. James Lee Doerr, Michael John Doerr and Brenda Kay Doerr donated the property at 6720 Third St. to the village. The brothers donated the land in memory of their father and mother, Jack and Irene Doerr. The property is the location of the family home.

According to Cristiano, the conditions of the gift are the land can be used for recreation or sold; and if sold, the money would be used to further develop the village park, and that there will be a plaque in the park in memory of Jack and Irene Doerr.
ELKTON  The Elkton Prayer Fellowship will meet at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 9, at the Elkton Missionary Church, 220 N. Main St.

Helen Smith, of Gaylord, will be sharing a topic titled, The Power of Agreement. Smith was born and raised on a dairy farm in the Cass City area. She married her husband, Cliff, and lived in the Cass City-Unionville area for many years, where they farmed.

She was part of the Elkton Prayer Fellowship, area retreats and Christian Parenting Day. She and Cliff moved to Gaylord on Thanksgiving Day of 2000, where she now works summers with her husband at their Pines of Paradise Resort, being hostess and doing house keeping.

Smith has taken several mission trips to Russia and two to Israel as part of the worship team and prayer ministry for Catch the Fire Conferences. While she was there, she saw first hand the power of the Lord, Jesus, and, His Holy Spirit, transforming people, setting them free in Christ, Jesus.

Smith worked 10 years for Otsego County Commission On Aging. Ministering to the elderly was a job that she loved.

She also partners with Pastor Nancy and Rodney Wood at Agape Ministries of Faith, doing Holy Spirit Conferences in the spring and fall.

It is so exciting seeing the transforming power of Jesus and His Holy Spirit working in men and women in Northern Michigan, Smith said.

Smith has been married to her husband, Cliff, for 50 years, and has two adult children, seven grandchildren and one great-grandson.

Our time together includes praise, prayer and, this month, the fellowship of a shared Thanksgiving meal afterwards.
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The name of this stunning museum is a bit of a misnomer for, if anything, it is not national but international in its scope  a fact that is certainly appropriate for the subject matter. Located on a beautiful slope in the heart of Kansas City, Missouri, this amazing structure, with its 217 -tall memorial tower and large galleries, was dedicated in 1921 and opened to the public in 1926, before what was at the time the largest crowd a US President had ever addressed in the United States.

Walking down a long, broad ramp and entering through huge brass doors, the visitor then passes over a large, plate-glass floor beneath which a field of poppies commemorates the fallen of the Great War. There are 9,000 poppies in this field, with each flower representing 1,000 dead.

The galleries are beautifully designed and full of memorabilia relating to what many at the time believed naively to be the war to end all wars. It was sadly not to be so.

EYEDEEP IN HELL

There is an unparalleled collection of uniforms, weapons, equipment, paraphernalia, and images of all of the nations engaged in that titanic struggle. Here you can see up close the Pickelhaube of the German soldier and the full coat of a Cossack cavalryman. Huge glass cases display every sort of small arm from the Mauser broomhandle and the Webley revolver to Enfields, Remingtons, and many others.

Several cases contain bright, beautifully tailored uniforms; gleaming, spiked, and plumed helmets; sparkling aiguillettes; and the lances and sabres that many cavalrymen carried into the initial phases of the war.

These were quickly rendered obsolete by the ubiquitous Maxim and Spandau machine-guns, and by the heavy guns that shattered flesh and bone and churned the fields into a muddy moonscape. Thus the 19th centurys Romantic vision of combat was quickly replaced with a 20th-century reality that placed the average soldier, in the words of Ezra Pound, eye-deep in Hell.

Nor does the collection merely display uniforms and side arms; here too are dozens of artillery pieces of all calibres and manufacture, as well as a complete Renault FT-17 tank, its left side still carrying the scar of a direct hit by German artillery.

Now this might seem enough to keep ones interest, but really it is just the tip of the iceberg, for the World War I Museum holds a treasure trove of material, some of which is truly unique, including, for example, a complete nurses uniform from Imperial Russia.

The museum also holds a pair of disparate uniforms worn by a single soldier, in their own way quite unusual. The soldier was a Dane dra ed into the German forces. He deserted, ed to America, and then joined the American Expeditionary Force to return to France as a doughboy. His German uniform tunic and cap are displayed alongside his American uniform and overseas cap.

FULLSCALE DIORAMAS

Things the experienced museum visitor will appreciate are the full and accurate explanations of each display item  a nicety too often absent from collections. Detailed full-scale dioramas recreate the environment and conditions of sections of trench for German and Allied forces, each duplicated with painstaking care for accuracy, and replete with original uniforms and equipment.

In another section of the museum, the large semicircular Horizon Theatre displays a continuous film of various aspects of the war for visitors in a viewing gallery. Between the screen and the viewers, in the vast space below, is recreated a full tableau of a section of a battlefield.

Throughout the museum are displayed original posters, war art, flags, pennants, and thousands of photographs. Of great value to students and scholars of the conflict is the exceptional Edward Jones Research Centre, which contains thousands of records and abundant research materials.

All too often overlooked are the personal papers of soldiers, sailors, airmen, and nurses of the war, but here too the museum excels, displaying a great many of these artefacts, with thousands more available to researchers.

Nor are the smaller, personal items overlooked  along with backpacks and entrenching tools are the religious medallions, good-luck charms, harmonicas, banjos, shaving kits, writing equipment, and even the rudimentary box-cameras that the soldiers carried with them into war; a sharp contrast to the daggers, trench knives, pistols, grenades, gas masks, and brass knuckles that are displayed alongside.

FROM WAR TO PEACE

Another intriguing relic is the original logbook of the RMS Lusitania (on loan from the Harry S Truman Library) whose sinking spurred the United States entry into the conflict. Close at hand are original examples of a naval mine and of the type of torpedo used to sink the Lusitania.

Evidencing the technological scope of the war are artefacts that range from carrier-pigeon baskets to field telephones, and from horse-drawn wagons, carts, and gun limbers to automobiles and aircraft. (The latter include a Fokker D.VII, a SPAD, and a Nieuport).

A remarkably large and ornately constructed complex, the museum even has two gigantic stone Sphinxes, representing Memory and the Future, on the Liberty Memorial Deck. The north lawn of the facility features a huge stone frieze, 148 long and 18 high  one of the largest such carvings in the world  illustrating the journey from war to peace.

The complex also features numerous classrooms, conference rooms, and an auditorium, all for educational use. Furthering the educational mission of the museum, there is an expanse of interactive audiovisual tables that provide a wealth of information on the conflict and its personalities.

Located just steps away are separate audiovisual booths where one can listen to recordings of period music, poetry, and reminiscences by participants in the Great War.

This is also the site for a gathering of serving officers from the nearby US Armys Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth. Officers from Australia and New Zealand met here in 2015 for Anzac Day  a centennial commemoration of the disastrous campaign for Gallipoli. In a moving tribute to the fallen, the Turkish and German officers attending the staff college joined them.

This is a facility that is far too large and extensive to be viewed and appreciated in a single visit, so the visitors entry-ticket is good for two successive days. For a good overview of the museum and listings of its special exhibits, visit the museum website: there one can also see the schedule for upcoming symposia and special events.

Frederick Chiaventone

100 West 26th Street Kansas City, Missouri 64108, USA

www.theworldwar.org

+1 816 888 8100

This review appeared in issue 74 of Military History Monthly.
Turkey rejected Thursday a tentative plan for an offensive against the Islamic State's Syrian stronghold in Raqqa outlined a day earlier by Army Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he told President Barack Obama that Turkey's military was ready to move against Raqqa but he would not accept involvement in the operation by the U.S.-backed Kurdish YPG (People's Protection Units), which has often been called the most effective anti-ISIS force in northeastern Syria.

Turkey has branded the YPG and its political wing, the PYD (Democratic Union Party) as terrorist organizations. Turkey also views the YPG and the PYD as allied with the PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party), which has been labeled a terrorist organization by the U.S.

Addressing Turkish veterans Thursday, Erdogan said "I had a long conversation with Mr. Obama last night and I told him that we'll take these steps" to continue clearing border areas while preparing for an eventual move against Raqqa, Turkey's Hurriyet newspaper reported.

"I also told him (Obama) this: We don't need terror organizations like the PYD and the YPG in Raqqa. The PYD and the PKK are the same," Erdogan said. "Let's together oust Daesh (an Arabic acronym for ISIS) from Raqqa," he added.

"We have this power. What are they? They're a simple terror organization," Erdogan said in describing his phone call with Obama.

In its readout of the Obama-Erdogan phone call, the White House said Obama recognized the contributions of NATO-ally Turkey in supporting local Syrian forces in clearing the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria from border areas. The White House said Obama also stressed the need for close coordination between Turkey and the U.S. to keep pressure on ISIS.

The Obama-Erdogan phone call came shortly after Lt. Gen. Townsend, commander of Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, said the U.S. was pushing ahead with a plan for a Raqqa offensive even as the Iraqi Security Forces and Kurdish Peshmerga fighters continued to press forward on the outskirts of Mosul with the support of U.S. airstrikes and advisers.

In a video briefing from Baghdad to the Pentagon, Townsend said it was urgent for the U.S. to rally often feuding local forces in northeastern Syria, including the YPG, for an offensive on Raqqa to disrupt ISIS plots for terror attacks against the U.S. and Europe turned up by U.S. intelligence.

Townsend acknowledged that "It's going to be a tough -- very tough political environment and a security environment, I think, for our effort there" against Raqqa, the self-proclaimed capital of the ISIS "caliphate."

Townsend said the U.S. would be relying mainly on the Syrian Democratic Forces, the U.S.-backed rebel group that he said has about 30,000 fighters in northeastern Syria. "They have an Arab wing which we refer to as the Syrian Arab Corps," Townsend said of the SDF, "and a good portion of them are Kurdish forces."

"So how are we going to thread that needle with, with the SDF and our NATO allies --Turkey? Turkey doesn't want to see us operating with the SDF anywhere, particularly in Raqqa," Townsend said.

"So, the facts are these: The only force that is capable on any near frame -- near-term timeline is -- are the Syrian Democratic Forces, of which the YPG are a significant portion. So, we're negotiating, we're planning, we're having talks with Turkey and we're going to take this in steps," Townsend said.

According to Townsend's plan, the SDF would move out soon to isolate Raqqa and agreements with Turkey on a role for the YPG would be worked out later.

"We will go to Raqqa soon with that force. And I think that the Syrian Democratic Forces, to include the Kurdish YPG and the Arab -- Syrian Arab Corps, will all be part of that force to go and place isolation at Raqqa," Townsend said.

"What happens after that is still to be determined between our government, our local partners and the Turkish government. And I don't know how that will work out," Townsend said.

He said that the Raqqa offensive, once the makeup of the attacking force is decided, would probably take longer than it will to liberate Mosul, where the ISF was running up against increasing resistance as the advance moves closer to the city limits.

On the 11th day of the Mosul offensive, Army Gen. Joseph Votel, commander of U.S. Central Command, said the Iraqi Security Forces attacking the city from the south and the Kurdish Peshmerga fighters advancing from the east have inflicted heavy losses on ISIS since the offensive began on Oct. 17.

"Just in the operations over the last week and a half associated with Mosul, we estimate they've probably killed about 800-900 ISIS fighters," Votel told Agence France Presse.

Votel spoke before landing aboard a C-130 Hercules at the Qayyarah West airfield about 40 miles southeast of Mosul, which is the logistics hub for the Mosul operation.

The C-130 was one of the first aircraft to land at the airstrip called "Q-West" by the Americans.

U.S. military engineers had worked for weeks to prepare the airfield after it was heavily damaged by ISIS fighters withdrawing from the area.

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.
Despite Flipping in Surf 4 Times in a Year, Marines Say New ACV Is the Future of Amphibious Warfare

Some Marine veterans familiar with the vehicle and its operations have worried about the reliability of the ACV.
Before the Obama family's annual two-week vacation last December in Kailua, Hawaii, the Secret Service put in place a series of standard security measures, including a temporary regional flight restriction affecting Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 463, stationed less than five miles away at Kaneohe Bay.

But unlike past years, this year found HMH-463 in crisis.

The unit, the only squadron of CH-53E Super Stallion choppers based in Hawaii, was in a desperate struggle to claw back readiness after failing a maintenance inspection in September and contending with dwindling numbers of flight-worthy aircraft for pilots and aircrew to rack up badly needed flight hours.

A weapons and tactics instructor assigned to the squadron tried to negotiate with the Secret Service, asking for permission to conduct functional check flights, brief flights needed to conduct routine maintenance. The request, he said, was denied.

Ten days after the Obamas departed Hawaii on Jan. 4 and the temporary flight restriction, known in military parlance as TRF, was lifted, two Super Stallions from HMH-463 collided during a routine night flight off the coast of Oahu, creating a fireball in the sky and killing all 12 Marines aboard the aircraft on impact. The tragic crash represented the greatest loss of Marines in an aviation mishap since Jan. 26, 2005, when a Super Stallion carrying 31 troops crashed during a sandstorm in Iraq, resulting in the deaths of all 31 aboard.

A command investigation into the crash released this week determined that the cause of the crash was pilot error, with a variety of factors contributing to depleted proficiency and crew exhaustion, resulting in key mistakes with horrific consequences.

But the question lingers: Did the president's visit contribute to the sequence of events that left the Marines unprepared to fly? At least two Marines interviewed by investigators say that it did because the restriction limited the ability of crews to get much-needed training time on a dwindling number of aircraft available, making them less ready for missions.

The Secret Service is looking into whether the Marines did in fact request an exception and, if so, why that request was denied.

Marine officials acknowledged that the flight restriction may have had a detrimental impact on unit readiness just ahead of the crash, but made clear they do not believe it was directly to blame for the tragedy.

"The temporary flight restriction was not a direct cause of this mishap," Maj. Christian Devine, a Marine Corps spokesman, told Military.com.

'Real Impact'

In an interview with investigators, the weapons and tactics instructor, whose name is redacted, said the restriction did indeed have a negative effect on the squadron.

"I tried to explain to the Secret Service that functional flight checks [quick maintenance flights] were necessary for all routine maintenance. They refused to allow any flights," the instructor testified, according to documents reviewed by Military.com. "This had a very real impact on HMH-463's ability to improve [ready basic aircraft] numbers." Ready basic aircraft, or RBA, refers to the number of planes a squadron has ready and available for missions.

The observation is corroborated by another, unnamed squadron crew member who had been scheduled to fly on the night of the tragedy, but had opted to give up the precious opportunity for flight hours so that another member of the unit could bring his own flight hours up.

"Our flight hours as a unit took a hit during the [temporary flight restriction] period that was created as a result of the President's vacation in Kailua," the Marine told investigators. "We considered other options to get out of the TFR during that time period, like moving the birds to Kona or Honolulu, but ultimately we left the birds at [Marine Corps Base Hawaii]. We decided to use that time period to rest, refit, and get our RBA above 50 percent."

Ultimately, the squadron did send two aircraft to the island of Kauai to the west to get some limited training in while the Obamas remained in town. But RBA, a measure of how many aircraft were available for flight and training operations, would remain flat across the month of December, and at one point it would dip to zero.

In response to a Military.com query to the White House, a source familiar with operations said the Secret Service had been tasked with looking into the Marines claim that the requested exception for functional check flights was denied. Under standard Secret Service procedure, community impact assessments are made each time a temporary flight restriction is imposed. Exceptions are common, the source said.

Devine, the Marine Corps spokesman, would not speculate on whether Secret Service restrictions had indirectly contributed to the tragic crash.

"A thorough and detailed command investigation into the circumstances surrounding this mishap identified numerous factors, including the temporary flight restriction, which collectively may have had adverse impacts on unit readiness and training," he said.

Devine said the annual, pre-planned restriction on flights was consistent with standard Secret Service operating procedures, and units typically mitigate the impact of the restrictions by using alternative training routes or venues.

A Unit in Crisis

The mishap, the investigation shows, had myriad indirect causes. The entire Marine Corps CH-53E fleet was in the midst of reset as wear and tear left few aircraft available to fly and flight hours in decline, but HMH-463, also known as Pegasus, was worse than most.

The number of ready basic aircraft held at two or fewer for much of 2015, far below the standard of 50 percent, or six aircraft. Morale suffered and fatigue grew as squadron members saw "no end in sight" to a constant struggle to rebuild unit readiness.

After the unit failed a high-stakes maintenance inspection in September, the unit resorted to extreme measures to meet goals. A senior officer, whose name is redacted, directed the unit to begin a grueling "12 hours on, 12 hours off" work schedule if the unit could not report at least six ready basic aircraft before Thanksgiving. The deadline came without meeting the goal, and the unit began its exhausting work schedule.

Meanwhile, pilots were frustrated at the lack of adequate training time. In December, co-pilots complained they were lucky to log 10 of the 16 flight hours they were supposed to accrue each month and claimed they felt left behind as the unit sought to prioritize time for weapons and tactics instructors and night system instructors, according to the investigation.

"During the latter half of 2015, monthly and weekly flight training plans were created and approved with the knowledge that the plans were highly unlikely to be executed as planned due to an inadequate number of RBA," the investigation states. "Because these 'unrealistic' schedules often led to cancelled flights, HMH-463 aviators considered the flight scheduled to be a 'running joke.' "

By January, the end of the first fiscal quarter of the year, the squadron was already 600 flight hours behind the number that had been scheduled, according to the investigation.

Three days before the tragic Jan. 14 collision, the commander of 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, then-Brig. Gen. Russell Sanborn, relieved HMH-463 commander Lt. Col. Edward Pavelka of his post, citing a loss of confidence in his abilities stemming from inadequate improvement in aircraft readiness rates between the failed September inspection and the first days of the new year.

Questions Remain

The evening of the ill-fated training flight started out as an ordinary training mission. The flight itself was identified as low-risk, aircrew fatigue was ranked low, and all pilots and co-pilots were deemed current on their instruments.

But the officer assigned to brief the flight to the pilots seemed distracted, and there were several errors in the "smartpack" of information about the flight. The names of two landing zones and two waypoints were switched, investigators found, and alternate landing zones were not clearly identified.

The investigation also shows that the units aviation safety officer had engaged in a heated discussion with another squadron officer the day before the planned flight, arguing that the precaution of flying with weapons and tactics instructors in each aircraft was not enough to offset the lack of night flight training hours accrued by the pilots.

And just before the flight, the crew had to make a last-minute aircraft switch when one of the two Super Stallions set to go on the training mission failed a "ground turn" evaluation of recent maintenance.

Then, little of note is reported until the explosion lit up the sky.

Nine months after the tragedy, questions remain about what led to the in-flight miscalculations that resulted in the deadly collision. Officially, the investigation found that low-light conditions made it difficult for the choppers to keep adequate separation from each other in the air. And documents make clear that this was a unit with systemic problems, overworked and reeling from the recent loss of its commander.

But there is evidence that the Secret Service-imposed flight restrictions during those crucial weeks in December, just before the crash, made the work of readiness recovery even more difficult.

"Without the ability to perform [functional check flights], HMH-463 was challenged to improve RBA numbers during the [temporary flight restriction]," the investigation states.

In late December, the unit briefly fell to zero ready basic aircraft, to the consternation of officials at 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.

"Like many, [Gen. Sanborn] is not happy with [the squadron's] lack of movement toward RBA aircraft," an unnamed Marine aviation official wrote in a Dec. 28 email reviewed by Military.com.

Following the crash, however, the squadron has been able to rebuild readiness rates. In a brief interview Wednesday, Marine Corps Deputy Commandant of Aviation Lt. Gen. Jon Davis said flight hours have more than doubled for squadron members since the beginning of the year, though he still wants to see the number increase.

"Even though the whole '53 fleet was suffering, [HMH-463 was] suffering more than others," Davis said. "There shouldn't have been a mishap."

-- Hope Hodge Seck can be reached at hope.seck@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @HopeSeck.
On the first day of the Mosul offensive in Iraq, a Russian fighter came close to colliding with a U.S. warplane in a "near miss" over northeastern Syria, U.S. military officials said Friday.

Air Force Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Harrigian, commander of U.S. Air Force Central Command, told NBC News that the nighttime incident Oct. 17 was a "near miss" but said he tended to believe the Russians' explanation that their pilot simply did not see the U.S. aircraft in the dark.

However, Harrigian said similar close calls between Russian and U.S. aircraft over Syria have increased in the past six weeks amid rising tensions between Moscow and Washington over Syria's civil war and now occur about every 10 days.

In a later statement on the incident, Air Force Central Command said that the Russian fighter was escorting a Russian surveillance aircraft and inadvertently flew across the nose of the U.S. aircraft.

The close call was the result of a "mistake" by the Russians and the U.S. believed that it was "fully unintentional," the statement said.

"The Russians cooperated by looking into the incident, calling back, and explaining themselves and their pilots actions as an error," it said.

In a separate briefing to the Pentagon, Air Force Col. John Dorrian, a spokesman for Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, said the Russian fighter came within a half-mile of the U.S. aircraft, but "we don't believe there was any nefarious intent" on the part of the Russians.

Dorrian did not name the types of aircraft involved, saying only that the Russian aircraft was a fighter and the U.S. plane was a "larger aircraft." He said the Russian fighter "passed close enough that the jet wash from that flight was felt within the larger aircraft," but "no one declared an in-flight emergency or anything of that nature."

Immediately after the incident, the Russians were contacted over the "deconfliction" hotline set up by the Russian and U.S. militaries to avoid close calls by aircraft on missions in the region.

Harrigian, speaking from a U.S. base in the Mideast, said that, in some cases, U.S. and Russian aircraft flying in close proximity are "not a big deal," but added, "I think it's important to recognize this one got our attention."

"We called the Russians about it and made sure they knew we were concerned," Harrigian said. "They didn't have the situational awareness to know how close some of our airplanes were."

When asked why the Oct. 17 incident wasn't disclosed until Oct. 28, Dorrian said, "There wasn't anybody playing 'I've got a secret.' "

He said Army Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, the task force commander, was immediately informed of the close call but did not feel that it merited being disclosed as a "breaking news event."

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.

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A two-star general who was found dead at an Army base this summer died by suicide, the service said.

Maj. Gen. John Rossi, 55, a native of Long Island, New York, and the incoming commander of Redstone Arsenal in Alabama, was found dead July 31 on the installation. The official cause of death was suicide, according to a statement Friday from an Army spokesman.

"This is a tremendous loss for the Rossi family and, indeed, our entire Army family," the spokesman said. "Maj. Gen. Rossi was a respected leader, valiant warrior and trusted friend who gave more than 33 years of service to this nation."

The death is also "a painful reminder of the tragedy of suicide as we continue to better understand its causes and warning signs," the spokesman said.

"While we have focused our attention on young people -- who make up the bulk of our force, and for whom suicide is the second leading cause of death nationwide -- the most recent data shows middle-aged Americans are the fastest-growing, at-risk population," the spokesman said. "Suicide knows no common race or age, gender or position."

The statement continues, "We will continue to work with and teach our leaders to create an environment where it's okay to ask for help no matter your position or rank, and reinforce in all Soldiers and leaders that it is their duty to lend a helping hand."

A total of 265 active-duty troops died by suicide in 2015, according to a Defense Department report from May. The Army had a suicide rate of nearly 30 suicides per 100,000. By comparison, the national rate in 2014 was about 13 per 100,000 citizens, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Rossi was scheduled to take over as commander of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command and Army Forces Strategic Command, the Associated Press reported. Rossi previously commanded the U.S. Army Fires Center of Excellence and Fort Sill, Oklahoma, it reported.

-- Brendan McGarry can be reached at brendan.mcgarry@military.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Brendan_McGarry.
Former Rockies catcher Wilin Rosario hopes to return to the majors after spending 2016 in Korea, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag reports on Twitter. He signed there when significant MLB interest failed to materialize after Colorado designated him for assignment last fall.

It seems questionable whether Rosario will return to suiting up behind the dish at this stage  hes never been a well-regarded defender  though perhaps that cant be ruled out. Regardless, he ought to draw some interest for his power bat.

Still just 27, Rosario ran up an impressive .321/.367/.593 batting line with 33 home runs in his 532 plate appearances for the Hanwha Eagles. While that output took place in the extremely hitter-friendly KBO, it still serves as a reminder that he has legitimate pop.

Over 2012-13, his first two full major league seasons, Rosario swatted 49 home runs in just 892 plate appearances and posted a .282/.314/.507 slash. Even with Coors Field boosting the line, that was good for a 107 OPS+.

Rosario fell off thereafter, of course. And while even his best offensive seasons in the majors were impressive for a catcher, they werent exactly jaw-dropping for a player who could be limited to first base or DH.
YPSILANTI, MI - A $10,000 reward is being offered for information in a recent bank robbery in Ypsilanti.

Police were called at 10:48 a.m. Oct. 18 to the FirstMerit Bank, 755 S. Grove St., for the bank robbery in which two suspects dressed in all black and wearing masks robbed the bank with handguns. Police said the two fled with cash in a red Oldsmobile.

No one was injured in the incident and police recovered the Oldsmobile a short distance away from the bank. Officials believe the suspects may have left the vehicle and stolen a newer-model, silver Dodge Charger.

The suspects, shown in recently released surveillance images, are described as two black men, about 5-feet, 6-inches to 5-feet, 8-inches tall and weighing 160 to 170 pounds.

Huntington Bancshares Inc., which owns FirstMerit Bank, is offering the reward for information leading to a conviction in the heist, police said in a release Thursday, Oct. 27.

Anyone with information on the robbery is asked to contact Ypsilanti police Lt. Deric Gress at 734-482-9643/734-482-9847 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAKUP (773-2587).

The incident is one of a number of bank robberies across the county since Sept. 30.

A man was taken into custody earlier this month for his believed involvement in a spree of crimes involving a clown mask across Southeast Michigan, including a Sept. 30 robbery at the Chase Bank at 5436 Whittaker Road in Ypsilanti Township and a Oct. 3. robbery of the KeyBank at 5300 Willis Road in Augusta Township.

Police also arrested a suspect Monday, Oct. 24 after a robbery earlier that day at the PNC Bank at 5490 Jackson Road in Scio Township.
SUPERIOR TOWNSHIP, MI - Police are investigating an armed robbery reported at the Dixboro Village Pharmacy on the afternoon of Thursday, Oct. 27.

Police were called about 4:45 p.m. to 5770 Plymouth Road in Superior Township for the incident, said Derrick Jackson of the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office.

Further details on the incident were not immediately available.
YPSILANTI, MI - Chin Azzaro will close its downtown studio as the art, design and consulting firm continues to refocus its mission on Ypsilanti Community Schools.

It's new goal - establish a student run photography service for the district.

The first step in that process is to shift Chin Azzaro's photo studio component, now called The Learning Studio, to a space at Ypsilanti High School. That will be run by Nick Azzaro, while Yen Azzaro continues in her role as YCS's communication director.

"As of last year, we both started working for the schools, so we had one foot in school and one foot in a commercial business, and it was tough to juggle," Nick Azzaro said. "This is a great opportunity to give kids this new chance. We kind of hit two birds with one stone. We were able to be be commercially successful locally, and gives kids this opportunity."

Students work in The Learning Studio under the tutelage of Nick Azzaro, a commercial photographer whose clients have included Intelligensia Coffee, Sears, the National Geographic catalog and more. Last year, YCS hired Azzaro to be the district's photographer and he also teaches photography at the school for the Bright Futures program.

Nick Azzaro set up The Learning Studio in a high school classroom. There, he teaches the logistics of a photo shoot, including equipment handling, lighting technique, table top product and portrait practices. Students visit the class after school, on weekends, or during elective hours.

Kids also have the opportunity to earn some money. Nick Azzaro trusts students who stick with the program to shoot community events like high school dances and extracurricular activities. On Wednesday, for example, the students photographed a group visiting from the University of Michigan that teaches salsa dancing. The program is, in essence, a paid internship that's built into the district.

Nick Azzaro said The Learning Studio charges a much lower price than standard studios because it's students who are shooting. The price varies depending on the size of the job.

Part of the project's goal, he added, is to change kids' self-image. He wants to help them see their potential and how much opportunity is possible "if they're willing to create it."

"If I can flood social and local media with positive imagery of themselves in successful situations, perhaps the kids will start to believe it too, and it will resonate outside of school. I call it positive self-reflection," he said. "I want to create a safe space for them to have a voice, but produce challenging photos in a way that will make outsiders look and reconsider what they think they know about our kids."

The Azzaros opened their studio/gallery, Chin-Azzaro, at 9 S. Washington St. around two years ago. Prior to moving to Ypsilanti, Yen Azzaro worked as an art dealer specializing in American impressionism, and curated at Chicago's Madron Gallery.

The business has evolved over the last two years to focus on Ypsilanti's kids.

"We want to expose kids with photography to something creative that they might not have otherwise considered," Nick Azzaro said. "I don't know what it will lead to ... but I do know what will happen if we don't offer opportunities, which is the same thing that has already happened."



Find more Ypsilanti stories here.
ANN ARBOR, MI - Though the state's exposure criteria for dioxane is changing, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality officials still aren't willing to say they're going to fight for a better cleanup of the Gelman plume.

Local residents who were hoping to hear the DEQ offer such assurances at a town hall meeting in Ann Arbor on Thursday night, Oct. 27, left disappointed.

While the city and county are considering their own legal options, the DEQ isn't making any promises the state will push the company responsible for the decades-old pollution to more aggressively clean up its mess.

"It's a question right now we can't answer because it's about data," said Bob Wagner, the DEQ's program deputy director. "We need to collect more data ... before we could actually make a recommendation, go to the court, and say, 'This is what is necessary.' But that option certainly exists with regard to a more aggressive cleanup; we just don't know if it's warranted."

DEQ officials said the state has been in confidential settlement negotiations with Gelman Sciences, the company responsible for the pollution, regarding amending the Circuit Court consent judgment that essentially governs the cleanup plan, which at this point allows high concentrations of dioxane to spread through the city as long as the risk of human exposure is being managed.

"We're pushing for basically better definition of the groundwater contamination and the risks associated with it," Wagner said of what the DEQ is pushing for right now. "That will tell us then whether more cleanup needs to get done."

Ahead of the meeting, the DEQ issued emergency rules lowering the state's limit for dioxane in residential drinking water from 85 parts per billion to 7.2 ppb, while establishing a vapor-intrusion screening level of 29 ppb.

Changes to the consent judgment are necessary to hold Gelman Sciences to the new rules, which the DEQ acknowledges won't necessarily mean better cleanup.

When the exposure criteria is exceeded -- such as if a private well in Scio Township is contaminated with dioxane above 7.2 ppb -- the remedy can be that the home is simply supplied with bottled water or hooked up to municipal water, while the pollution stays in the ground.

That was how the state handled a family's contaminated well on Jackson Road earlier this year, applying the 7.2 ppb limit for the first time. Wagner indicated Thursday night it could continue to be a remedy going forward.

Gelman Sciences was acquired in 1997 by Pall Corp., which was acquired last year by Danaher Corp., a multibillion-dollar corporation that some local officials and residents argue has the financial resources to do a better cleanup.

The pace of pump-and-treat remediation has slowed in recent years and some want the DEQ to actively push the polluter to do more.

The company is permitted to extract and treat 1,300 gallons per minute, and at one time it was approaching that. The average monthly pumping rate for active extraction wells was 1,115 gallons per minute in April 2011, but it was down to 487 gallons per minute as of earlier this year.

DEQ officials said their strategy at this point includes doing more monitoring and testing to better understand the extent of the contamination, which was first discovered in the 1980s, and further investigating areas where there might be dioxane in shallow groundwater that could pose a risk of toxic vapors intruding into homes. But the DEQ isn't sure there's a need to increase the rate of pumping and treating to remove the pollution from the ground at a faster rate.

"There's more investigation that will be necessary to define the extent of the groundwater contamination at a 7.2 standard, rather than 85," Wagner said. "And that's going to take some time. It's also going to take some time to do more shallow groundwater testing throughout the city to make sure folks are protected with respect to any risks that these contaminants may represent."

Residents packed the auditorium at Eberwhite Elementary School for the meeting organized by City Council Member Chuck Warpehoski, D-5th Ward.

Several state and local officials, including nearly the entire City Council, were in attendance. The frustration in the room was palpable at times as residents interjected and voiced concerns that not enough is being done to contain the plume and minimize the threat it poses to public health.

At least one person made a reference to the Flint water crisis, which prompted U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Dearborn, to stand up and say that government failed the people of Flint and she understands why there's distrust.

Dingell said she wants the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to work with the DEQ to ensure there is no danger to public health.

"And I make this commitment to you that I'm going to stay on top of it every single day," she told the crowd. "I'm going to continue to work with the leadership of your communities to do everything I can to make sure that we are doing what we can to increase the speedup of the cleanup if we can."

Dingell said she will support the local communities in whatever decisions they make, including seeking Superfund designation for the plume. That's a route that Ann Arbor Township and Scio Township are planning to go next month.

"I'm a nasty woman and I'm your nasty woman," Dingell told the crowd, drawing both laughs and applause.

Mayor Christopher Taylor and Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners Chairwoman Felicia Brabec made it clear the city and county want a seat at the table if there are negotiations about amending the consent judgment.

Warpehoski said he understands the DEQ already has been in conversations with Pall/Gelman about how to apply the new exposure criteria. He wanted to know how affected jurisdictions could be assured they're going to get a seat at the table and become part of the process before any deals are made.

Mitch Adelman, the DEQ's district supervisor, responded to that, though he said he couldn't say much.

"It's true that the state has been in confidential settlement negotiations with Gelman, the liable party, in anticipation of the state promulgating a new lower number," he said. "And because they're confidential settlement negotiations, I can't divulge what's going on in the room and where we are with that."

Adelman said the DEQ has been operating on a timeframe assuming new exposure criteria would be effective at the end of this year, but now they're effective immediately under emergency action by the DEQ on Thursday.

"I can't speculate on when and how a consent judgment might be proposed to be amended," Adelman said. "Even if the parties were to reach a mutual agreement, we'd still have to get the court to sanction whatever amendment that is."

Adelman said DEQ officials have been meeting with city and county officials to understand their concerns and they're taking those into account.

Taylor made it clear the city is planning to take action to intervene in the case in Washtenaw County Circuit Court.

"We need to be at the table so that we can ensure that any revised consent judgment provides for better cleanup and more monitoring," he said.

Ann Arbor resident Stephen Lange Ranzini, president and CEO of University Bank, asked DEQ officials whether it's the DEQ's intent to contain the dioxane plume, clean it up, or allow the dioxane to travel through the city and vent into the Huron River while only preventing human exposure.

"It's the intent of the DEQ to protect public health using the authorities and laws that it has, and in this case working with the Washtenaw County Circuit Court," Wagner responded, noting Michigan law allows exposure to contaminants to be mitigated through exposure controls and barriers.

"That's the authority that has been given to the department through the legislative process, so that's the bounds in which we work," Wagner said. "We do work on sites where cleanup occurs. It doesn't mean that cleanup occurs to the point where every single drop, molecule and atom of the contaminant is gone.

"If exposure can be managed, that is also a lawful outcome and protects public health," Wagner continued. "And we have situations where we have contaminated groundwater in the state and the exposure is managed through supplying municipal water that is not from that groundwater that is contaminated, so clean municipal water is provided and that manages the exposure."

Wagner argues Michigan is unique in terms of its commitment to providing people with alternate clean water if their water is contaminated.

"The state of Michigan provides bottled water. The state of Michigan hooks them up to a safe source of water, whether that's a brand-new well located in a deeper aquifer or whether that's hooking them up to municipal, and you will not find that in any other state," Wagner said.

"So when we talk about exposure in Michigan, once we are aware of contamination above a threshold, in this case 7.2 in a water well, you get bottled water within a few weeks, and you eventually get hooked up to a source of water."

Wagner said he has worked for the DEQ more than 30 years, and in that time the state has hooked up water and provided bottled water to 10,000 sites.

"If you were in Indiana, if you were in Wisconsin, if you were in Ohio, you'd have to go sue whoever was responsible for contamination of your well if you knew that, if you could prove it," he said. "But not in Michigan."

Wagner made that point in defense of the state's exposure assumptions for the new 7.2 ppb standard, which assumes an exposure period of 32 years, whereas the EPA's screening level of 3.5 ppb assumes a 70-year exposure.

"You're not going to realize a 70-year exposure unless no one knows about it," he said. "But if we know about it, the state of Michigan will take care of you."

Ranzini followed up and asked how the DEQ would supply clean water to the entire city if Ann Arbor's main water intake source at Barton Pond were to become contaminated. Wagner said there are options, including treating the water to remove dioxane before distributing it to city water customers.

DEQ officials discussed the recent shallow groundwater tests that found trace amounts of dioxane and other contaminants on Ann Arbor's west side, including at Waterworks Park. They said it requires followup investigation.

"We're going to work with the company to see if we can get them to install additional wells," Adelman said, noting the state also has allocated an extra $700,000 for efforts related to the Gelman plume this year.

"We're going to consider using some of that money to do additional shallow groundwater investigation," he said, though he said the state needs to be strategic about using any taxpayer money.

Adelman and other state officials on hand, including representatives from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, emphasized there are no immediate risks to public health known at this time.

For those concerned about vapor intrusion, they noted radon -- a naturally occurring, radioactive gas -- also can get into people's homes.

Washtenaw County is a known radon hotspot and public health experts advise residents to test the radon levels in their homes. The county has information about how to get a radon test kit on its website.

Michelle Bruneau, a health educator with MDHHS, said there's not a lot to worry about at this time with the levels of dioxane found in shallow groundwater, and she suggested people still could grow vegetables, which was one of the questions asked. She said MDHHS is working with Washtenaw County Public Health and the DEQ and they would speak up if there were any concerns.

State Rep. Jeff Irwin, D-Ann Arbor, said he's been working closely on the Gelman plume issue for years and he's now in the process of handing things off to Yousef Rabhi, who is expected to take over his seat in January.

"This community has been on the receiving end of a pitiful, disgraceful cleanup, and people are frustrated," Irwin said, drawing applause.

Irwin said it's concerning that the state's dioxane standards have bounced around so much over the years.

"And when you've got a standard of 85 ppb, when the state is out there telling people water is safe at 85 ppb, and then we find out with the flip of a switch that number is down to 7.2, and everywhere else around the country it's 3.5, that is what breeds uncertainty and concern," Irwin said.

Kevin Lund, a DEQ geologist, gave a presentation Thursday night, starting by noting he lives on Ann Arbor's west side in the plume area. He offered a review of the volume of work that's been done to investigate the Gelman plume over the course of many years and the complexity of the geology.

"There are 271 wells that have been drilled in the Ann Arbor area," he said, adding they're screening for dioxane anywhere from five feet below surface to 300 feet below surface. "We're looking at a very complex geological environment with intermixing sands and gravels and clays."

Lund said the dioxane in the groundwater is moving through layers of sand and gravel deep below ground in some areas. The groundwater is closer to the surface in other areas, including at Waterworks Park and West Park.

Lund said it was a bit of a surprise to find dioxane in the shallow groundwater at Waterworks Park. The DEQ is planning to further investigate to determine the source of the shallow contamination and if it's attributable to Gelman Sciences.

Lund said monitoring wells are spaced up to 500 feet apart, so assumptions have to be made about what's between, which makes it difficult.

Ann Arbor resident Vince Caruso, a member of the Allen's Creek Watershed Group and the local Coalition for Action on Remediation of Dioxane, encouraged residents to go online and sign a petition to get the EPA to do a Superfund cleanup, arguing that's the community's best option at this point.


Christopher_Taylor_102716_RJS_01.jpg

Ann Arbor Mayor Christopher Taylor speaks at a town hall meeting on the Gelman dioxane plume at Eberwhite Elementary School on Oct. 27, 2016.

(Ryan Stanton | The Ann Arbor News)

ANN ARBOR, MI - Now that the state of Michigan has established stricter exposure criteria for the toxic chemical 1,4-dioxane, Ann Arbor Mayor Christopher Taylor says the city intends to go to court.

Taylor made the announcement before a large crowd at a town hall meeting Thursday night, Oct. 27, at Eberwhite Elementary School.

Residents and a mix of state and local officials gathered to discuss the latest concerns and next steps for addressing the toxic plume spreading through the area's groundwater from the former Gelman Sciences site on Wagner Road.

Taylor noted the city is not presently a party to the previously settled litigation between the state and the polluter that essentially governs the cleanup, but he believes the new dioxane standards enable the city to take important steps.

"It is, in my view, absolutely fundamentally important that the city does become part of that lawsuit," said Taylor, an attorney.

"It's important, obviously, because the city residents demand that their water be protected, but it's also fundamentally important because city infrastructure is going to be part of any reasonable solution associated with protecting ... neighboring jurisdictions that may require tapping into city water if they presently are having dioxane trouble. These are some of the reasons why it's very important that we as a city enter into this lawsuit."

Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners Chairwoman Felicia Brabec called the state's new exposure criteria for dioxane a great first step. "But again, it's just a first step," she said. "And we have to get back into court."

Taylor said it's the city's fundamental priority that the drinking water remains safe, and that homes, parks and schools remain safe.

Brian Negele, an assistant state attorney general assigned to the Gelman case, was in attendance and taking notes as Taylor spoke.

"The mechanism by which we enter this lawsuit is called an intervention, meaning to apply to the court and seek intervention. That is something that we are now able to do, I believe, more effectively because of these changed circumstances," Taylor said, mentioning the recent discovery of dioxane in shallow groundwater near Waterworks Park and the new exposure criteria established Thursday through emergency rules approved by the DEQ director and Gov. Rick Snyder.

Taylor said he expects the City Council to act quickly to support bringing a motion to intervene in court.

"I hope then that we will be able to get the full support of the state," he said, adding he has spoken with DEQ Director Heidi Grether and she indicated her personal support for the city's intervention.

"I believe also the attorney general will support our intervention. Once we are able to intervene in the case, the city will be at the table when the DEQ and the polluter are discussing what it is that needs to be done," he said.

"And we will be there, and we will be vigilant, because it is existential that our water be protected, it is existential that our homes be protected, that our parks be protected, and that our schools be protected. That is fundamentally the bottom line, and that is fundamentally what we are going to do."

Gelman Sciences, which caused the pollution spreading from its Wagner Road property, was acquired in 1997 by Pall Corp., which was acquired last year by Danaher Corp., a multibillion-dollar corporation that some local officials and residents argue has the financial resources to do a better cleanup.

Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners Chairwoman Felicia Brabec called the state's new exposure criteria for dioxane a great first step.

"But again, it's just a first step," she said. "And we have to get back into court. We must get back into court, and we must learn more and have the consent judgment changed to incorporate other parties."

Brabec said if the state is meeting with the polluter's attorneys, then the county needs a seat at the table, and she's going to request that.

"We have not been part of that, and so we need to be part of that," she said, drawing applause from the crowd of residents.

Brabec said the county has commissioned an environmental attorney to look into the matter and an opinion is coming soon.

"We have a meeting this Wednesday and we are hoping that we will be briefed on that, so that we can then make some decisions at the county level about how we want to move forward," she said, mentioning different legal options the county is considering, including petitioning the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for a Superfund cleanup or trying to go to court to amend the consent judgment.

"My colleagues and I are looking forward to having that conversation, because ... the frustration level is at a fever pitch," Brabec said.

"We hear from residents. We ourselves are frustrated, and we're ready to actually move and to do something to be able to protect all of us. And particularly, it's so troubling to hear about the plume expanding to Slauson, being at a school where kids are playing, so we need to do something about this for all of us."
President Park Geun-hye's approval ratings have slipped back down below 40 percent range amid corruption allegations and the anniversary of last year's ferry disaster.

An opinion poll by Realmeter released Monday showed 39.7 percent approval for Park, dropping from the 40-percent range in five weeks.

Approval ratings for the ruling Saenuri Party also dropped to slightly over 33 percent, while support for the opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy rose by about two percentage points to nearly 30 percent.
Actor Yu Hae-jin has recently moved into a new home in Gugi-dong, Seoul due to its proximity to Mt. Bukhan.

Yu is an ardent climber and the first thing he does whenever he is working away from home is to look for a nearby mountain.

He says that climbing allows him to focus better on the details of the roles he plays. But come 6 p.m., he climbs down to listen to a radio show hosted by Bae Chul-soo, which he describes as "the happiest moment" of his day.

The show features mostly contemporary American and British pop.

He relieves stress with music and by smoking, though he is now trying to quit. He has been smoking electric cigarettes for four months now and regrets that he ever took up the habit.

"I started acting in high school. I found it interesting and experienced catharsis," he recalls. "Stage actors are usually different from the average person in one way or another. For me, the stage was where I was able to relieve stress."

In the past, he used to play only supporting roles but now his efforts seem to finally pay off. He played leading parts in three recently released movies -- "The Classified File," "The Unfair" and "Veteran."

But he says he will continue to be satisfied with what life has given him.
At the time, South Korean and U.S. military authorities said they "presume" the missiles, which exploded in mid-air, were of a medium-range type usually called "Musudan," which can fly an estimated 3,500 km to reach the U.S. base in Guam in the western Pacific.

North Korea may have been testing an intercontinental ballistic missile on Oct. 15 and 20, rather than a medium-range missile as U.S. and South Korean authorities have assumed, American pundits speculate.

But the pundits disagree. "We think it is important that people consider the possibility that this was a KN-08 [ICBM] test," the Washington Post quoted Jeffrey Lewis, at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey in California, as saying.

"Lewis and his colleagues found burn scars after each missile firing, showing where the hot exhaust scorched the pavement and grass," the daily said Wednesday. "These big burn scars are much bigger than what had been seen after Musudan tests, and the fact that they happened on the other side of the country added to suspicions about the kind of missile being tested."

"The possibility of a KN-08 cannot be ruled out," John Schilling, an aerospace engineer who frequently writes about the Norths missiles, told the daily.

The U.S. Strategic Command "twice misidentified three missiles that North Korea launched in September," Lewis said. "We still think people are being too quick to jump to the conclusion that this was a Musudan. Even if it's only 50:50, being shocked half of the time is still bad."

U.S. officials first presumed three missiles the North fired on Sept. 5 to be short-range Rodong missiles but later concluded they were mid-range Musudan missiles.


South Korean and U.S. special forces have staged a joint infiltration exercise to strike North Korea's nuclear and missile facilities.

"Troops of South Korean Air Force's combat control team, an infiltration commando unit, and the U.S. Air Force's 353rd Special Operations Group staged a joint exercise at Gunsan Air Base recently," a military spokesman here said on Thursday.

The exercise, dubbed "Teak Knife," saw military transport aircraft of the two countries focused on flying low to practice infiltrating the North. The exercise has been carried out regularly since the 1990s but rarely announced publicly.

The purpose was to transport a group of Army special forces who are tasked with destroying the North's nuclear and missile facilities, as well as munitions, to a target region with pinpoint accuracy.

The 353rd Special Operations Group headquartered at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan, has missions to send commandos into enemy territory and supply them with munitions. The group consists of about 800 personnel.

"The latest Teak Knife exercise focused on infiltrating an inland area in the North to destroy key facilities," the spokesman added. "It's different from a decapitation strike operation targeting the North Korean leadership."

Meanwhile, during the "Red Flag-Alaska" exercise, a multinational aerial combat exercise conducted in Alaska on Oct. 10-21, South Korean Air Force's transport aircraft practiced airlifting U.S. Army special forces troops.

There have been some calls in the U.S. recently for a preemptive strike in case North Korea's nuclear and missile programs get out of hand.
The woman at the center of a corruption scandal engulfing President Park Geun-hye has denied meddling in government or enriching herself by trading on her influence.

Tracked down in Germany by the Segye Ilbo newspaper, Choi Soon-sil would only admit that she edited some of Park's speeches and seemed to make veiled threats to the press.

"As I know well what is in Park's mind and heart, I helped her find the right words to express herself," Choi told the daily. "I did not know the materials were confidential."

Choi vehemently denied that she influenced the appointment of key government officials, or solicited donations from conglomerates for the Mir and K-Sports foundations, which prosecutors suspect were mere vehicles for the enrichment of her family.

Asked about testimony that she received daily reports from the presidential office and reviewed them, Choi said she had "no recollections" of having done so and is "no longer sure what is true or not."

Choi also denied having ties to Cheong Wa Dae officials in whose appointment she and her former husband Chung Yun-hoi were said to have had a hand. "I have lived an isolated life," she said. "Why are you trying to associate me with them?"

Choi claimed she was in no physical condition to travel and face the music in Korea. "I am suffering from a nervous breakdown and I have been diagnosed with heart issues," she said. "If I recover, I will ask for forgiveness, and will accept punishment if I did anything wrong."

Besides the ongoing corruption probe that saw prosecutors raid the foundations early this week and cart off huge amounts of documents, Choi could face charges of leaking confidential information and impeding the execution of official duties.

Choi's admission closely echoes a brief apology Park made on Tuesday, in which she only admitted that Choi edited "some materials," suggesting that the two women are coordinating their line of defense.

The fact that Choi spoke exclusively to the Segye Ilbo, which is owned by the powerful Unification Church better known as the Moonies, suggests fresh layers of entanglement.

Denying any involvement by the Moonies in interviewing her, the reporter said, "I was able to reach Choi through an acquaintance from my days when I was studying in Germany."

The Segye Ilbo editors also issued a statement defending the interview, which they said was conducted in "tense circumstances following many attempts." The daily said it decided to tell her side of the story, since it is the duty of the news media to satisfy the public's right to a balanced perspective.
[October 27, 2016] Senseonics submits Eversense Continuous Glucose Monitoring system PMA to FDA

Senseonics Holdings, Inc. (NYSE-MKT:SENS), a medical technology company focused on the development and commercialization of a long-term, implantable continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system for people with diabetes, today announced that it has submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) a Premarket Approval (PMA) application for its Eversense CGM system. "The submission of our PMA marks a significant milestone toward meeting our goal of bringing an accurate, reliable and long-lasting CGM system to people with diabetes in the United States," said Tim Goodnow, PhD., CEO and President of Senseonics. "We look forward to working with the FDA to receive approval as quickly as possible." As previously reported, the PRECISE II U.S. pivotal trial enrolled 90 adults with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes at eight clinical centers. The objective of the study was to demonstrate the safety and effectiveness of the Eversense CGM system over 90 days of continuous glucose sensor wear. Participants in the study used the system's smart transmitter and mobile app at home for the next 90 days. Calibration was performed twice a day, and Sensor glucose readings were calculated prospectively, but real-time glucose readings and trends were not made available to participants. Clinic visits were scheduled at approximately 30-day intervals in order to obtain lab reference glucose values for comparison with the sensor values and to evaluate hyperglycemic and hypoglycemic challenges in a controlled setting. Results of the PRECISE II study will be presented at this year's Diabetes Technology Meeting in Bethesda, Maryland on November 10, 2016. Upon receiving FDA regulatory approval, Senseonics plans to initiate sales in the United States. The company received its CE mark in May 2016 and is currently marketing the Eversense CGM System in select European countries. Eversese CGM System is an Investigational Device and is limited by United States law to investigational use.



About Senseonics Senseonics Holdings, Inc. is a medical technology company focused on the design, development and commercialization of glucose monitoring products designed to help people with diabetes confidently live their lives with ease. Senseonics' first generation continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system, Eversense, includes a small sensor, smart transmitter and mobile application. Based on fluorescence sensing technology, the sensor is designed to be inserted subcutaneously and communicate with the smart transmitter to wirelessly transmit glucose levels to a mobile device. After insertion, the sensor is designed to continually and accurately measure glucose levels. For more information on Senseonics, please visit www.senseonics.com.

SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT Certain statements contained in this press release, other than statements of fact that are independently verifiable at the date hereof, may constitute "forward-looking statements." These forward-looking statements reflect Senseonics' current views about its plans, intentions, expectations, strategies and prospects, including statements concerning the FDA review, and potential approval, of the PMA, and the United States commercial launch of Eversense, which are based on the information currently available to Senseonics and on assumptions Senseonics has made. Although Senseonics believes that its plans, intentions, expectations, strategies and prospects as reflected in or suggested by those forward-looking statements are reasonable, Senseonics can give no assurance that the plans, intentions, expectations or strategies will be attained or achieved. Furthermore, actual results may differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements and will be affected by a variety of risks and factors that are beyond Senseonics' control, including those risks and uncertainties more fully described in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in Senseonics' Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC (News - Alert)) on February 19, 2016, the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on August 9, 2016 and its other SEC filings. Existing and prospective investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. The statements made in this press release speak only as of the date stated herein, and subsequent events and developments may cause Senseonics' expectations and beliefs to change. While Senseonics may elect to update these forward-looking statements publicly at some point in the future, Senseonics specifically disclaims any obligation to do so, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161027006909/en/

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[October 27, 2016] Major Industry Associations and Top Innovators Join Forces with ad:tech New York to Deliver Innovation Agenda at November Show

ad:tech New York 2016, the original industry authority for advertising, marketing and media technology, today shared its plans to spotlight a select group of the most engaged, innovative industry associations in a special content focus at its November show. Marking ad:tech's 20th anniversary, the signature November 2-3 show at Javits Center in New York City will highlight those organizations and groups embracing and driving the new innovation agenda within their memberships and own programming. "As we head into this new era of innovation, we called upon and assembled those groups actively curating innovation in their own right," said John Durham, General Manager for ad:tech New York. "As we bring them into the mix at the new ad:tech, we are spotlighting these vibrant communities within the community. They are in many ways the beating heart of it all, especially in New York City." Please join the conversation at the following special sessions: A Session with 212NYC: Media Buyers - Why Their Media Consumption Habits Matter and the Questions You Are Afraid to Ask During this session with the industry's rising media planners and buyers we will explore the media platforms and channels that are popular with today's up and coming generations, including those working in the media industry. Moderated by ad:tech's own John Durham, the group will delve into how the usage of these particular platforms and channels informs the approach to media planning and buying that our panel participants execute on behalf of their brands. A Session with The Advertising Club of New York: Creating Diversity How do you reinvent the approach to creating diversity in the marketing and advertising industries, so that everyone involved thrives? You raise awareness of the benefits and rally professionals in a shared movement. Imagine the possibilities for innovation an ideation inside your company and within your culture, when diversity is the imperative.



Hear from executives and participants of the AdClub's I'mPart program as they share the successes of plugging into an initiative that focuses on attracting, training, retaining and promoting diverse talent in the ad industry. A Session with SheKnows Media:

Branded Content and Native Advertising, the Miracle Mix

Explore the marriage of content and native advertising with the leading women's lifestyle digital media company. SheKnows Media has revolutionized the publishing industry with seamless integration of users, editors and content creators on a single platform designed to empower the female gender to discover, share and create. The award-winning team at SheKnows creates authentic and on-trend content for a wide variety of audiences. A Session with the Internet of Things Consortium:

IoT and the Marketing Revolution (News - Alert) In a recent study by the Economist Intelligence Unit, more than half of marketing executives reported that the IoT movement would revolutionize marketing by the year 2020. Amazon's Echo device has already seen spectacular success since it was launched a year ago. Join the Internet of Things Consortium (IoTC) and special guests to discuss how marketers and technology companies are already planning for this revolution. Learn what's real and what's pure science fiction in the IoT era. In addition, members of the Producers Guild of America, New Media Council East and friends of ad:tech will assemble for a special session curated for ad:tech 2016: Ad Tech and Content Collide - Producing in the Programmatic World The explosion of new technology platforms for advertising creates expansive opportunities for new media producers, from new ways to entertain audiences and build influencers to new subscription models and payment solutions. Join members of the Producers Guild of America New Media Council East for a discussion on breakthroughs in ad tech for producers-including the latest in data science, artificial intelligence (AI), addressable advertising, mobile real-time semantic buying, in-app purchases, and videogame ad solutions. "These are some of the most timely sessions within the agenda," continued Durham. "We're so appreciative of their passionate involvement and support. AdMonsters and 614 Group have also been incredibly supportive. AdMonsters' own and industry original Gavin Dunaway will be hosting one of our Podiums for the day. The 614 Group has also been spreading the word with their community, which we so appreciate. We look forward to a full house!" It's your last chance to book your tickets. Use promo code: 50SPEAKERNY16 for a special discount! About ad:tech ad:tech is the original industry authority for marketing and media technology, where marketing, technology and media communities assemble to share new ways of thinking, build strong partnerships, and define new strategies to compete in an ever-changing marketplace. Several annual events around the world deliver immersive education through keynote speakers, timely topic-driven panels and hands-on workshops as well as showcase the latest products and solutions to help deepen understanding and create new ideas that will drive innovation. Attendees leave ad:tech inspired by what's new and what's next, armed with the tools and techniques they need to shift and re-imagine their own businesses. For more information, visit www.ad-tech.com. Follow @adtech on Twitter (News - Alert) About Comexposium The COMEXPOSIUM Group, one of the world's leading event organizers, is involved in more than 170 B2C and B2B events across 11 different sectors, including IT, security, digital, high-tech, food, agriculture, fashion, construction, optics and transport. Comexposium hosts more than 3 million visitors and 45,000 exhibitors around the world. Comexposium operates across 30+ global economic growth zones, such as: Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Korea, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, UAE, UK, USA. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161027006972/en/

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Lee Young-ryeol, the chief of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office tapped to head the team, said he will decide later whether to search the presidential office, but critics say that gives Cheong Wa Dae all the time in the world to shred crucial evidence.

The Supreme Prosecutors' Office said Thursday that a special task force will look into the scandal involving Choi Soon-sil, President Park Geun-hye's confidante at the center of a corruption scandal.

There are two key areas of suspicion involving Choi's alleged ties to the presidential office. One is whether Cheong Wa Dae played a role in pushing big businesses to donate money to Choi's dubious Mir and K-Sports foundations, and the other how classified documents from the presidential office came to be handed to Choi, who holds no official post.

Three presidential aides have been linked to the allegations and prosecutors would have to get their hands on their computers to search for evidence. Another problem is that Woo Byung-woo, the senior presidential secretary who is in charge of auditing Cheong Wa Dae officials, is also under investigation by prosecutors.

One lawyer said, "All of the key evidence is in Cheong Wa Dae and is probably being shredded as we speak."

Yet top Cheong Wa Dae officials are rumored to be hoping to sit out the latest scandal and let Choi take the fall alone. Already some presidential officials have briefed reporters off the record that Park is a victim of Choi's lies.

Meanwhile, a growing number of academics and university students are calling for the president to resign. The latest polls show Park's approval rating at a record-low of 17.5 percent, and this weekend a massive candlelight rally is scheduled in downtown Seoul calling for Park's resignation.
business Open to buy Hind Zinc, Balco stakes if govt sells: Anil Agarwal When the government is ready to sell Hindustan Zinc and Balco stakes, Vedanta Group will want to buy it, says Chairman Anil Agarwal in a candid Diwali special interview to CNBC-TV18.
business Cyrus Mistry may be replaced as Co-chairman of UK-India forum Cyrus Mistry who is the Co-Chairman of the UK-India CEO forum is likely to be replaced, reports CNBC-TV18. The top contender for the replacement is Sunil Bharti Mittal. However, the final call has not been taken and it will be taken by the PMO.
business IRDA gives second-level clearance to 5 foreign insurance cos Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) has given second-level approval to five foreign insurance companies to start operations in India, according to people privy to the details of a meeting the insurance regulator held last week.
business Vedanta Q2 profit up 12% at Rs 1252 cr, margin expands to 27.8% London Stock Exchange listed Vedanta Resources' associate company Vedanta said consolidated profit during July-September quarter grew by 11.9 percent year-on-year to Rs 1,252 crore. Bottomline was supported by operational performance but growth limited due to weak revenue.
Ballerina Yoon Hye-jin, actor Uhm Tae-woong's wife, recently suffered a miscarriage, Uhm's agency said Thursday.

She had been in poor health since the early stage of pregnancy and is now focusing on recovering her health, it added.

In August, when Yoon was entering her fifth week of pregnancy, the actor was accused of sexual assault by an employee at a massage parlor. He has been cleared of the rape but police have charged him with soliciting prostitution.
Phil Anderson has a strong opinion on pretty much everything.

For one, he has no patience for stupidity.

He also has no respect for the mainstream media.

And he DETESTS so-called elites who think they know better than the market.

To him, political correctness is killing the world today, because it stops people from speaking the truth.

Well, for better or worse, Phil certainly doesnt suffer from that problem! That was unequivocally clear when he took the stage at the jam-packed Glade Pavilion:

There are only two places left in the world where my audience is predominantly white and old Country regions of England, where most of the Brexit voters came fromand other parts of Australia. If I talk in London, US and Asiamy audiences are filled with younger folks, with Asians, Africans and Latinos. And their view of the world is NOT what you heard yesterday.

For the last day and a half weve heard how Australia and the world at large are heading for a debt-fuelled crash. A deflationary spiral that could decimate stock and property prices.

Yesterday Jim Rogers described it as the end of the world as we know it.

Vern Gowdie said the whole thing was a miragean illusion with no truth or substance.

And today Jim Rickards warned of the coming collapse of the monetary system.

I absolutely and fundamentally do not believe this, exclaimed Phil. And I dont want to stand up here and give you another set of opinionsI want to teach you how to understand the structure of the economy.

Its his knowledge of this structure that led him to make what was undoubtedly the most controversial prediction of the entire conference:

Far from a collapseI will show you why the world is on the verge of a super and massive boom in the next 10 years.

Now if you dont know Phil, heres a brief background

For over 25 years hes studied economics and markets. And what hes discovered is that Western economies exhibit an 18-year real estate cycle.

Its this cycle that underpins financial markets. As Phil says

Generally this cycles out as 14 years up and four years down. A study of US history, for example, reveals a very clear (average) 18 cycle in US real estate prices, measured from trough to trough or peak to peak. The actual cycle has never been shorter than 17 years, never longer than 21. According to my research, the Australian market follows the US. The good news is that once you understand the real estate cycle, you can forecast it. History, I assure you, does repeat. And if you can forecast correctly, you can make money.

According to Phil, understanding this real estate cycle is the absolute key to becoming and staying wealthy.

Once you see it, youll have an incredible advantage few other investors ever see or understand. Youll also rarely need to worry about the barrage of conflicting data we all receive every day.

Every 18 Years

So what does Phil mean by a real estate cycle?

Its how the economy will move  and why  over time. Youll have a guide as to when to buy real estate and when to stay out of the market. Youll understand much more about the stock market too. Not only has the real estate cycle been historically consistent at about 18 years in duration, each cycle has unfolded in a highly regular and consistent manner.

In 2005 Phil created a clock that gives us a visual diagram of how the repeat plays out, based on his research of US real estate (land) beginning from 1800.



Source: Cycles, Trends and Forecasts

Click to enlarge

Now take a look at how Phil used this clock to his advantage

He predicted the US housing market would bottom between 20082010, and begin recovering in 2011. He was correct.

In 2009, he took on infamous Aussie property bear Steve Keen and told him he was wrong and prices would not crash in Australia. He was correct.

He predicted US stocks would hit all-time highs even on worse economic news. He was correct.

What is the property clock telling you today?

This was his main message for those in the audience at The Great Repression

If you think stocks and property are going to crash, YOURE DEAD WRONG.

Once you make the paradigm shift, then you know you have to plan for a real estate cycleit becomes a lot easier to forecast the economy in which we all live.

No fear

Phils talk was a real break from overwhelmingly fearful message of most of the other presenters.

And fear, said Phil, is the biggest obstacle to successful investing.

It paralyses you into inaction. And you do not want to be an investor with fear. What we all trying to do is maximise our earnings. Once you know that there must be a real estate cycle, you can start planning.

So where are we now in the cycle?

Expect a huge boom over the next 10 years

Phil says:

We are now at 9-o-clock in the United States. After a bust, the rent of established buildings it goes up. Then makes it cheaper build more. Then more credit follows. This is where we are at now. If history is to repeat, the clock says we have another 10 years to buildand what will follow the biggest boom you have ever seen.

Later today Phil, along with Callum Newman and Terence Duffy, are hosting a breakout session. In it, theyll cover strategies on how to trade and potentially profit from this hidden structure of the worlds economy.

To claim your 20% discounted virtual seat at this must-see session, click here.

Just remember, this deal closes tonight at midnight.

Cheers,

James Woodburn,

Contributing Editor, Money Morning

PS: As part of Port Phillip Publishings Great Repression conference taking place this week, were giving three lucky people the chance to win a genuine 1oz Silver Coin. To find out more, click here.

From the Port Phillip Publishing Library

Special Report: Is anyone out there topping Australian Small-Cap Investigators amazing track record right now? The average return across the entire buy list is 75.69%. Thats inclusive of winners and losers. Imagine having a 75.69% average gain running across every stock in your share portfolio! Whats the surprising (and strange) secret behind this figure? And what are ASIs four marquee stock picks for 2017? Click here for more

Money Morning: Why OPECs Oil Price Manipulation Is Showing Cracks

Money Morning: Golf and Investing: Bigger Isnt Always Better
The chronicle of a life split between urban Manhattan and rural Montana.
Fifth graders from San Martin/Gwinn Environmental Science Academy witnessed firsthand the legal proceedings conducted at the South County Courthouse during an Oct. 26 class trip led by Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney Johnny Gogo.

Students got the full experience of a courtroom visit, entering through metal detectors with deputies seeing them through, waiting in the jury sequestering room for instructions from Gogo and then sitting in the audience of the two functioning courtrooms at the South County Courthouse, which is located at 301 Diana Avenue just outside downtown Morgan Hill..

They even got some special treatment from Judge Le Jacqueline Duong, who allowed the students to sit in the jury stand, at the defense and prosecution tables, at the witness stand and even at the judges seat. A second group was welcomed into Judge Edward Lees courtroom upstairs.

It was all part of the D.A.s Law Related Education (LRE) program, which is designed to give fifth graders a positive and interactive experience with the justice system.

The LRE program involves sending attorneys to visit fifth grade classrooms to help students learn about the concepts of justice, authority and responsibility. Gogo visited fifth graders in San Martin earlier this month to do just that. Following the school site visit, students go on a field trip to the local courthouses where they get to meet judges and attorneys that represent the judiciary and executive branches of American government.

Our LRE program not only provides the students an opportunity to understand our justice system and see how it works first hand, but it also provides an opportunity for our Deputy District Attorneys to provide positive mentorship for our youth and to help build bridges with our community, according to the LREs description.

The LRE program has been offered for more than 20 years and Gogo has participated over the last 15 years.

As the Community Prosecutor assigned to South County, it was one of my goals to bring our LRE program to Morgan Hill and the fifth graders at San Martin/Gwinn Elementary will be the first group from MHUSD to officially take part, Gogo said.
First Baptist Church of Morganton invites children of all ages to celebrate Halloween at its annual Great Pumpkin Party on Monday from 5:30-7:30 p.m.

For many years, First Baptist has offered a safe, welcoming environment for children and families to come on Halloween night, said the Rev. Dr. Tom Bland, senior minister at FBC. The Great Pumpkin Party is a wonderful alternative to some other types of observances on Halloween.

The event will feature both indoor and outdoor activities. Outside on the churchs front lawn, children will be able to bounce in inflatables and navigate an obstacle course. A machine will crank out fresh popcorn for visitors to enjoy.

Inside, children will have the opportunity to play games such as fishing, putt-putt and limbo. Church youth will operate a photo booth and decorate helium balloons to give out. Parents will be allowed to take pictures with their own cameras at the photo booth, according to the Rev. Tyler Roach, minister of youth and family life at the church.

All the activities at the party are free with the exception of a cake-walk, which costs $1 per person to participate. Church members bake a variety of cakes, pies, cookies and other treats for visitors to win. New this year to the cake walk will be a giveaway of a couple hundred vouchers donated by Pizza Hut for free personal pan pizzas.

Were very thankful to Pizza Hut for providing free (vouchers for) personal pan pizzas, Roach said.

The church also will give away two door prizes at the party. Roach said visitors may sign up to draw a prize for free, but must be present to win.

Loads of candy will be given away during the event. A Spooky Cafe provided by the churchs food service ministry will offer hot dogs, French fries, cookies and beverages for purchase.

Roach said the theme for this years party will be Childrens Story-Books, an idea he found close to home.

We always try to have a kid-friendly theme, because this is a family event, and we are a church, so we try to set a good example, Roach said. Having two small kids myself (ages 5 and 1), Ive been reading a lot of kids books lately, and they can inspire all ages.

The theme will be reflected in the decorations and the party organizers costumes.

The church has offered the party every year going back decades, according to the Rev. Fred Schuszler, the churchs minister of Christian education and spiritual formation. Roach estimated that several hundred people have attended each party since hes worked at the church.

Schuszler shared his thoughts on churches celebrating what can be considered a spooky holiday.

I have objected to those who consider Halloween a holiday to be discouraged by churches, Schuszler said. It has a rich Christian heritage as the sacred evening before All Saints Day, and for Protestant churches, it has added significance of being when Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses on the Wittenberg church door, an event attributed to be the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. That Halloween is no longer an especially religious holiday is too bad, but that should not diminish all the positive, creative fun it has acquired in our uniquely American celebration of childhood.

He described what he enjoys most about the Great Pumpkin Party.

Weve had a lot of fun with it over the years, Schuszler said. I like how our different youth ministers have improved and expanded our carnival-like approach, and it is a beautiful thing to see teenagers leading it who, a few years previously, were enjoying it as children. The Great Pumpkin Party is even enjoyed by many senior adults, who come to the Spooky Cafe for dinner and enjoy watching the children, interacting with parents and participating in the cake walk. The GPP is certainly an intergenerational gala.

Bland said visitors to the party will have an opportunity to learn more about First Baptist Church.

Everyone who attends will receive material about the church and about coming to know Jesus as Lord and Savior, Bland said.

Once again, the church will hire two off-duty police officers to provide security at the party.

We want to continue being a safe place for families to bring their children on Halloween, Roach said. First Baptist is glad for the opportunity to do that. We appreciate our community, and this is a way we can give back to our community. In some small way, we hope people can find hope, love, peace and joy through our offering this event.

Tammie Gercken can be reached at tgercken@morganton.com.
I read recently that a man named Robert Allman of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, was able to cross one more thing off his bucket list just one day after turning 100 years old. He parachuted out of an airplane for the first time in his life.

This was something that he had put on his bucket list, which, according to www.merriam-webster.com, means making a list of things that one has not done before but wants to do before dying.

Jumping out of an airplane wouldnt be on my bucket list but, according to the article, parachuting was something Allman had wanted to do for nearly 20 years ever since he saw President George Bush make his jump. His rationale for taking the plunge tied in to Bushs jump: If he could do it, I could do better, he was quoted as saying. No grass was going to grow under his feet!

After the jump, Allman, whose jump was tandem with an instructor, said matter-of-factly, It wasnt scary. Nothing you could do. If youre going to jump out, youre going to fall, live or die.

My husband insists that the only time that he would consider jumping out of a plane is if it was on fire, but youve got to admire determination in people like Allman.

Research revealed that there are dozens of websites and clubs for people who make up and cross off items on their bucket lists. One site listed the top 100, but Ill just touch on the top 10 and see if you or I hit any.

No. 1 was see the Northern Lights. Okay, I admit that I had to Google Northern Lights to read up on whats also called Aurora Borealis and, with a little help from my husband, learned that the lights were electrically charged particles from the sun that enter the earth's atmosphere that produces an amazing light show. The best places to watch the lights in North America are in the northwestern parts of Canada and Alaska. They look amazing, but just a little bit too cold for me.

No. 2 was ride in a hot air balloon. Ill pass on this one, too, as even though they are colorful and pretty, and probably a thrill, visions of George C. Scott in the Hindenburg movie keep popping into my brain.

No. 3 was to see the Grand Canyon. The most Ive seen of the Grand Canyon is the five-second shot of Chevy Chase and his family in front of it on their way to Wally World, so Im going to have to pass.

No. 4 was swim with the dolphins. Id have to pass until I learned how to swim well enough to keep up with dolphins. Ditto on any entry of scuba diving, although I did unsuccessfully attempt to learn many years ago.

No. 5 was go on a safari and I was happy to report that I had done this one sort of. My four years in West Africa did take me into the bush a couple of times, but I was always safely in a Land Rover.

No. 6 was go on a helicopter ride. Ill have to pass on this one, at least for now.

No. 7 was sleep under the stars. Now this one I have done many, many times while camping with the kids some thirty-five years ago and they were wonderful memories. However, these days I tend to be a Hilton gal.

No. 8 was go on a road trip. Not sure how many miles a road trip is but from here to Raleigh is usually the longest I can sit in a car without having to stop at a rest area.

No. 9 was travel to the seven continents. Anyone who can name the seven continents has probably traveled to at least two. I made it to Africa and Europe so I have three under my belt.

No. 10 was make a difference in someones life. I like this one the best, so I think if you hit No. 10, youve got reason to celebrate. But thats just me.

If you want to check out the other ninety, find the site at www.themasterbucketlist.com and see how many you have done or plan to do.

Peg DeMarco can be reached at pegdemarco@earthlink.net.
A reader of this column asked me this week about Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK), where the shares have slumped from 26.72 at the start of August, slipping below 18 this week despite heavy buying by company directors.

Apparently there have been postings on message boards suggesting that there has been heavy short selling, and also a tale of an individual spread better selling heavily while the spread betting firm has been taking opposing positions.

I do not normally follow Hikma, although it is a FTSE 100 firm with good prospects. I have GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) in my portfolio and do not want another big pharmaceutical company. I dont read message boards because, although they often have useful information, it is impossible to tell genuine postings from self-serving rumour spreaders. I dont spread bet because it is gambling, not investing.

However, it is possible to look at Hikma coldly as an investment. A re-read of the most recent results at end of August does suggest to me that the shares may have raced ahead a bit too far before the latest fall.

Although guidance for the full year was reiterated, profits and earnings per share did slip in the first half and the PE rating was quite high, while the yield was OK but not particularly tempting. I think the short sellers have cottoned onto this.

In the shorter term, short sellers may continue to drive the price down for as long as it has momentum in that direction but the time always comes when they close their positions and the coiled spring sends the shares sharply higher  probably too high again before they settle somewhere in the middle.

If you are a short-term trader  but longer than a day trader  it probably is worth buying now or fairly soon. I personally think that short selling is a perfectly legitimate trading tactic despite the attempts of various exchanges to stamp it out.

I'm not one for conspiracy theories. Some people are betting on a further fall, others think the fall has already gone too far. That to me is the normal operation of the markets. If a broker or spread betting firm takes the opposite view to a client, then that is OK as long as the client's wishes are carried out to the letter.

Above all, serious investors should remember that wild swings can present great buying opportunities. Im still not tempted to buy into Hikma and those who are should read the last results before taking a decision. Good luck if you decide to take the plunge.

Infrastructure Spend Promised: But Not For All

Who do you feel most sorry for, those in Northern England and beyond who desperately need better transport or those on the Heathrow flightpath doomed to more noise and congestion? Transport upgrades  Heathrow, Crossrail, HS2  always seem to benefit the South East.

We do need a boost to construction; the most disappointing section of an economy that saw third quarter growth of 0.5%. Overall this was better than expected and matched forecasts made when it was assumed we would vote to remain in the European Union.

With Nissan deciding this week to step up car production in Sunderland, at least manufacturing is getting a bit of a boost.

No doubt the flood of Europeans snapping up cheaper goods in UK shops was one reason for the surprisingly strong GDP figure but it is clear that for now at least, the UK economy is managing quite nicely and is doing better than most if not all of Europe. I remain fully invested.

However, the fall in the pound is adding yet another burden to our EU contributions, which are set in euros and will rise even further if the economy continues to grow. If Brexit means Brexit, we need soon to mean the sooner the better. The uncertainty caused by delay is not helping.

Rodney Hobson is a long-term investor commenting on his own portfolio; his comments are for informational purposes only and should not be construed as investment advice.
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Spooky sites Fall is the season of holiday spectacle in Moorpark. In December, of course, Pinedale Road transforms into Candy Cane Lane and dazzles visitors with Santa splendor. But for those who...

Local hula group inspires global connections When the pandemic ushered everyone indoors, Moorpark resident and longtime dancer Lisa Rauschenberger decided to get people back outsidesocially distanced, of course. She began to hold weekly hula lessons at...

Teens face high stakes in the Oval Office A press room befitting Americas commander in chief was set up inside the Reagan Library in Simi Valley. Journalists and others gathered inside. Ladies and gentlemen, I need you all...
4 killed after car overturns near airport

From:Shanghai Daily | 2016-10-28 01:46

THREE Chinese tourists and their hotel shuttle car driver were killed when their vehicle overturned on an elevated road near Pudong International Airport sometime after 4am yesterday, police said.

Two were killed after falling out the car, and two were pronounced dead at the hospital. Three others were injured.

Pudong New Area Peoples Hospital told Shanghai Daily that the three injured passengers, two women and one man, were not critically hurt, but they had suffered leg, arm and back injuries. They were devastated because all of them had lost a relative or close friend in the accident.

The party had been picked up at the airport at about 4am, to be transported to a nearby Jinjiang Inn hotel when the accident took place.

The driver, a 36-year-old man surnamed Shi who was employed at the hotel, which has not been identified, was killed in the accident.

The accident took place on the S1 Expressway near its off-ramp to Huazhou Road, according to the police.
For the mortgage companies looking to grow your business, non-prime may just be the answer said Will Fisher, senior vice president of loan production with Citadel Servicing, a non-prime wholesale lender.



There is a lot of money on Wall Street that is sitting on the sidelines. They were taking a wait and see approach to see how [non-prime] underwriting performs and how the loans perform, said Fisher. They are looking at different performance areas such as how long do these loans take to pay off, do they pay off quickly, etc. Investors dont want a loan that pays off too quickly, they want it to perform and they want a great ROI. That is what they are looking for and that is what we are delivering at the end of the day. Every day were seeing more investors looking to come into this space.



After the financial crisis, subprime loans earned a bad reputation that has been difficult to shake off. But now, borrowers who have been stuck with little options in a Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac-world now have reliable and quality options when looking to purchase a home. Fisher pointed out that all types of borrowers now have options under non-prime. For example, Citadel recently launched a new loan program, Maggi Plus, which offers $3 million loan amounts just 24-months following a short sale, foreclosure or bankruptcy  furthering the companys commitment to providing options for all types of borrowers. Weve built a product that is fantastic and there is a lot of room in this space to grow. There are not many of us in this space and there are a lot of compliance hurdles to get through as a lender. But if you can navigate those hurdles, especially ATR and TRID, correctly, then you could do really well in this market, he said.



With non-prime loans gradually making their comeback onto the mortgage stage, Citadel is taking proper steps to ensure that loans underwritten today do not fall into the same trap loans did years ago leading up to the crisis. By adhering to their ability-to-repay notion in each loan they originate, purchase and service, Citadel is able to ensure that a high percentage of loans will pay over time and also evaluate the loans that dont to find ways to restructure the product for success.



As Citadel prepares to increase their wholesale operation, recently adding Nevada and Vermont to their roster, the company is aiming at reaching $100 million in funding monthly by early next year while building a retail arm. Our next big initiative is our retail operation, said Fisher. We are buying leads and experimenting with different sources and putting the products right out there direct to the public. So you will see Citadel make a real push into retail within the next few months. That push deeper into the market is a testament to the opportunities open in non-prime. Take a deep look at non-prime. If you want an edge on your competition, you want to be in a space where no one really is yet. No one is taking care of these borrowers  non-prime and non-QM is where to be.


20 taxi and bus drivers are named and shamed

From:Shanghai Daily | 2016-10-28 01:46

TEN bus drivers and 10 taxi drivers with the most traffic offenses in the past seven months were named and shamed by police yesterday.

Furthermore, police said they would make monthly announcements of the top bus and taxi driving offenders from now on.

Their plates and the companies they work for will be publicized along with the number of their offenses.

This is part of a continuing crackdown on traffic offenses that started toward the end of March.

The bus driver highest on the list, who works for Shanghai Jinshan Automobile Transportation Co, had 13 offenses, while the worst offending taxi driver is employed by Shanghai Wenhuixinmin Automobile Service Co and had 41 offenses.

Wei Kairen, vice chief of Shanghai traffic police, said all 20 named and shamed had paid their fines.

Wei added that at least seven of the 10 bus drivers on the list worked in rural districts, and their most common offenses were illegal lane changing and illegal use of emergency lanes on expressways.

In the urban districts, a large number of offenses from bus drivers are about illegal honking and picking up and letting off passengers where they are not supposed to, Wei said.

Li Jun, a deputy general manager of Dazhong Group, one of whose taxi drivers was on the list, told Shanghai Daily that the driver would be penalized.

In the past seven months, police said they had issued fines for 9,700 offenses around the city by bus drivers and 390,000 by taxi drivers.
A team led by a physicist from Michigan Technological University has discovered a new mineral, named for the region in Tanzania where it comes from.

John Jaszczak, a professor of physics, knew that something was very unusual about the mineral specimen he was examining under the microscope of a Raman spectrometer in the basement of Fisher Hall at Michigan Tech.

On a hunch, Jaszczak decided to look into it further. The diagnostic studies with Raman spectrometry and scanning electron microscopy showed a layered structure rich in molybdenum, lead and sulfur that may be a new mineral. Now, Jaszczak and the team he pulled together can confirm that gut feeling: The tiny, silvery, cylindrical whiskers are indeed a new mineralmerelaniite. The journal Minerals (DOI:10.3390/min6040115) published the team's findings this week.

The tiny whiskers, which look to the naked eye like very fine hairs on other larger crystals, have probably been regularly cleaned off their host rocks.

All in the Family: Cylindrite

Detailed chemical and physical analyses of merelaniitea member of the cylindrite grouprevealed a neatly stacked layered structure with sheets rolled in scrolls like tobacco in a cigar. These tiny whiskers, which to the naked eye look like very fine hairs on other larger crystals, have probably been regularly cleaned off their host rocks containing other more recognizable minerals that occur at the famous gem mines near Merelani, Tanzania.

"Minerals have a natural wow factor, and while we use many of them daily without thinking twice, some specimens are truly art," Jaszczak says, adding that minerals like the gems tanzanite (a blue/purple variety of zoisite) and tsavorite (a green variety of grossular garnet), which come from the same mines as merelaniite, can be more eye-catching. But it doesn't negate the value of less showy minerals.

Minerals also have an internal beauty in their crystal structures and in the way that influences their properties, he explains. Learning about minerals with unique crystal structures grants insight into the nature of matter, and sometimes leads to new human-made materials, their inspiration comes from natural sources."

"Serendipity is tied to dedication . . . science is about taking pleasure in finding things out." John Jaszczak

To Name a Mineral

In the age of fast-paced global communication, it's no wonder that teasing apart the anatomy of merelaniite took a team from around the world. Most mineral discoveries start with boots on the groundor, rather, below the ground. The Merelani mining district is a well-known locale. Not only for prized tanzanite and tsavorite used in jewelry, but also for hosting a suite of other minerals increasingly prized by mineral collectors. Jaszczak has written numerous articles on the subject including a study on sulfides from the region.

"The Merelani district has been famous since the late 1960s for the blue gem variety of zoisite known as tanzanite, but this is really a mineral collector's paradise and an exciting place to look for new minerals," says Jaszczak, who has co-authored three other papers on the districts minerals. "The importance of the area is the reason we wanted to give tribute to the miners and name merelaniite for the district."

There are 5,179 minerals listed by the International Mineralogical Association, and their Commission on New Minerals, Nomenclature and Classification (CNMNC) receives more than 80 proposals each year for new ones. Many turn out to be variations of existing minerals. To discern the new from the variable, mineralogists and physicists put samples through a battery of rigorous tests, particularly to discern their chemistry and crystal structure.

It is one thing to find a mineral that is probably new; it is quite another thing to be able to perform all of the required analyses to satisfy the CNMNC for approval of its status and a new name, Jaszczak says.

Although Raman spectroscopy gave Jaszczak the first hard evidence that the mineral may be new, more work needed to be done. Because merelaniite is composed of two different kinds of layers at the atomic scale, and because they curve to form cylinders with a scroll-like structure, it was particularly difficult to determine the fundamental crystallographic parameters. The chemistry of the new mineral was also a challenge to determine with precision. For both of these challenges, Jaszczak needed additional help.

Atomic Details

Jaszczak teamed up with Mike Rumsey and John Spratt at the Natural History Museum in London to determine the chemical composition of the new mineral with precision. To help with understanding the crystal structure, Steve Hackney, professor of materials science at Michigan Tech, was able to provide crucial high-resolution images and diffraction patterns using transmission electron microscopy on ultrathin samples prepared with a diamond knife by Owen Mills, director of Michigan Techs Applied Chemical & Morphological Analysis Laboratory.

The growing team then sought the help of Luca Bindi, a professor at the Universita? di Firenze in Italy and an expert in solving complicated crystals structures. He helped run x-ray diffraction studies to put all of the pieces together. The results revealed a complex structure made up of layers of molybdenum disulfide alternating at the atomic scale with layers of lead sulfide, along with other elements, including vanadium, antimony, bismuth and selenium.

Although it is not a showcase gem, merelaniite is attractive, and as the analyses show, it has an intricate, microscopic internal beauty as well. A better understanding of the crystal chemistry of these exotic materials may eventually find useful applications.

Echoing physicist Richard Feynman, Jaszczak notes, "Science is about taking pleasure in finding things out and were delighted to have uncovered and described this beautiful new mineral.

High-resolution images reveal merelaniite's complex structure, which form a scroll-like cylinder made of neatly stacked sulfides.

Serendipity is About Dedication Jaszczak, whose specialty is computational materials physics, has been a lifelong mineral collector and is also an adjunct curator at Michigan Techs A. E. Seamen Mineral Museum. This particular sample, shipped to him by Michael Wise from the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History, had the silvery color of molybdenitewidely used mineral in industrial processesbut had a very unusual cylindrical shape. Wise conducted initial studies of these samples in collaboration with a student, Jessica Simonoff, whose father Robert first noticed them on a larger mineral sample from the famous tanzanite gem mines in northern Tanzania.

Michigan Technological University is a public research university founded in 1885 in Houghton, Michigan, and is home to more than 7,000 students from 55 countries around the world. Consistently ranked among the best universities in the country for return on investment, Michigans flagship technological university offers more than 120 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science and technology, engineering, computing, forestry, business and economics, health professions, humanities, mathematics, social sciences, and the arts. The rural campus is situated just miles from Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, offering year-round opportunities for outdoor adventure.
Boy still missing after leaving school early

From:Shanghai Daily | 2016-10-28 01:46

A 13-year-old boy, who went missing on Tuesday, has not yet been found.

Li Ziren has not been seen in person since leaving school on his bicycle. Earlier in the day he had been in trouble for not doing his homework.

Police said the boy had been spotted on a surveillance camera on a bus in Taichang City, Jiangsu Province, on Wednesday morning.

Police said officers were continuing to search for him.

His father told Shanghai Daily yesterday that he and his wife were called to Shanghai Yucai Junior High School on Tuesday afternoon because his son had repeatedly forgotten to do his Chinese homework.

His teacher asked them to take the boy home early before school lessons were over.

He might feel humiliated as it was the first time for us to be called by his teacher to go to the school for a face-to-face talk and he was taken out of class to return home with us, the boys father said.

He has been good at academic study and we did not scold him fiercely that day. His son did not show any strong emotion at the days events, he added.

Li Ziren didnt go back in his parents car as he had cycled to school. He set off on his bicycle at about 4:15pm. His home is about a 15-20 minute ride from the school.

We have to find him as soon as possible, said his father.

He has some money to live without starving for about one week to 10 days, but its rainy and cold, and we cannot imagine other potential risks.

The boy was wearing his school uniform, dark blue with a white collar, and a white T-shirt when he went missing.

Anyone with information is asked to call 13917574801 or 13917696514.
Four killed, three injured in expressway crash near Pudong airport

From:Shanghai Daily | 2016-10-28 01:46

FOUR were killed and three others injured in a single-car crash early this morning on an expressway near Pudong International Airport, police said.

The car overturned on the S1 Expressway near the airport and police were alarmed at 4:24am.

Two people in the car flew out and fell down the elevated highway. They were pronounced dead on the scene by paramedics. Five others were pulled out of the wreckage by rescuers and rushed to hospital but two of them were fatally injured and later pronounced dead at hospital.

The other injured victims mostly suffer bone fractures and are now in stable condition, the Pudong New District People's Hospital told Shanghai Daily.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation, police said.

The city has been having lingering rains for days.
Akufo-Addo should have apologised over hardship  ...
Belt and Road Initiative can help defuse regional tension

From:Xinhua | 2016-10-26 12:10

Picture shows the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, collectively known as the Belt and Road initiative. (Xinhua)

BEIJING, Oct. 25 (Xinhua) -- Development driven by China's Belt and Road Initiative will help the reconciliation of ethnic divisions and the calming in regional conflicts of countries involved in the initiative, observers have said.

"The role that the Belt and Road Initiative has played in promoting regional peace is likely to be a brand new one and is contrary to the palliative approach that the West has traditionally proposed," said Ding Yifan, a researcher with the Development Research Center of the State Council.

RESULT EXCEEDS EXPECTATION

The initiative, comprising the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013, has brought together over 100 countries and international organizations in Asia, Europe and Africa, via land and maritime networks.

The move is also part of China's efforts to provide public goods and honor international responsibilities that are commensurate with its status as a global power.

"Although the Belt and Road Initiative was not a political initiative, promoting close economic and trade cooperation among the (participating) countries will definitely help enhance mutual political trust," said Chen Xiaochen, a researcher with the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies, Renmin University.

The initiative's results have exceeded expectations as over 30 countries have since 2013 inked agreements with China to jointly build the Belt and Road Initiative and more than 20 countries along the routes have conducted industrial cooperation with China.

However, threats posed by conflicts and upheavals remain, and hinder global peace and economic sustainable development. Some 50 million people worldwide have been displaced due to rising regional conflicts in recent years. Among the participating countries, there are still considerable political and military confrontations.

Since the end of the Cold War, the international security situation has become more complex amid mounting hotspot issues, and traditional security threats have intertwined with non-traditional threats in East and West Asia.

"Under the Belt and Road Initiative, it is possible to change the state of conflicts through economic means in the background of economic globalization," said Xue Li, a researcher with the Institute of World Economics and Politics at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

DEVELOPMENT KEY TO PEACE

China is committed to building a new type of international relations featuring mutually beneficial cooperation. In June 2014, President Xi proposed the "Silk Road Spirit" featuring "peace and cooperation, openness and inclusiveness, mutual learning and mutual benefit" at the sixth Ministerial Conference of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum.

"The initiative has not only provided an opportunity to address regional tensions, but also can help gather organizations that love peace," said Tao Jian, president of the Beijing-based University of International Relations.

Aside from religious reasons, the concentration of poverty and high unemployment among youth have led to growing calls for national secession, as well as increasing religious extremism and violent terrorism in countries along the routes, Ding said.

As the world's second biggest economy, China has played an important role in global trade, investment and development, moreover, it plays an increasingly significant role in foreign aid, regional security and international relations.

As China develops, boosting economic development will be a priority of the initiative, which should help alleviate poverty and eradicate the fertile soil that breeds extremism and terrorism.

A communique, issued at a G20 summit held in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou last month, noted that the benefits of economic growth should be shared equally. The communique also pledged to eradicate poverty, solve inequality of economic development and make sure no country falls behind.

"As a long-term plan, the Belt and Road Initiative will be a promising way to help promote regional reconciliation gradually by boosting development," Chen added.
The State Council issued a plan on Oct 27 to promote the development of the rehabilitation and assistive products industry, aimed at meeting the growing demand of rehabilitation services in China and strengthening its competitiveness.

The cabinet made the goal that the output of the industry will surpass 700 billion yuan ($103.3 billion), a number of world-class Chinese brands and related industrial clusters will emerge and its share in high-end market will see a significant increase by 2020, according to the document.

The plan put forward four major tasks, concerning innovation capability, industry upgrade, effective market supply and a favorable market environment, to enhance industry development.

Enterprises, research institutions and universities are encouraged to integrate their resources, conducting relevant sci-tech innovation and basic technology research. Efforts are also needed to promote the online and offline trading of such innovative achievements and more policies are urged to nurture and absorb the best minds, according to the plan.

Some industrial parks, research centers and corporation headquarters will be constructed to optimize its industry layout and develop a rehabilitation and assistive products industry with high added value and low resource consumption.

Meanwhile, smart manufacturing technologies  such as industrial internet, cloud computing and big data  are expected to be applied to product research and design, production, business management, and sales and service, to upgrade the rehabilitation and assistive products industry.

Productive services, including financing, e-commerce, outsourcing and branding, should be strengthened to optimize the industry chain and accelerate efficient flow of industry elements, said the document.

Corporations in the industry are also encouraged to carry out international cooperation in trade, technology, and investment and production capability.

According to the plan, innovative products are expected to be developed for an effective market supply.

Products concerning assistance in the daily life, education and employment of the disabled, rehabilitation of disabled children and medical care of elders and the wounded are the priority.

Cutting-edge technologies, including artificial intelligence, VR and brain  computer interfaces, are encouraged to be used in the products.

In addition, rehabilitation and assistive devices that are integrated with traditional Chinese medical care are also encouraged.

The plan also called for a sound market environment through establishing an internationally recognized certification system for rehabilitation and assistive products. Efforts should also be made to improve the standard for rehabilitation products and impose punishments on fake products with poor quality, said the document.

It also called for favorable financial policies set for related enterprises, including tax benefits. And the government should support the bonds and securities or other financial derivatives issued by any eligible rehabilitation product enterprises.

Local governments are encouraged to incorporate therapeutic rehabilitation products in basic health care insurance in the near future. And rehabilitation related knowledge should be included in professional medical education to strengthen the personnel pool and training in the field.

In addition, a sound supervision, monitoring and analysis system should be established for the rehabilitation and assistive products industry, the circular added.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Premier Li Keqiang will pay official visits to Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, and Russia, from Nov 2 to 9, at the invitation of prime ministers representing those countries.

During the visits, the Premier will also attend the 15th Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) prime ministers meeting in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan; the Fifth Summit of China and Central and Eastern European Countries in Riga, Latvia; and regular prime minister meetings in Astana, Kazakhstan and St Petersburg, Russia.

The ministry will hold a news briefing on the morning of Oct 31 to answer questions from domestic and overseas journalists.
Thirty plus years of being treated for various forms of cancer has left Twain Harte resident Mark Nouillan the third most radiated man on the face of the earth.

Nouillan was Fridays KVML Newsmaker of the Day.

The Scottish born Nouillan was told by one doctor that, based on the amount of radiation treatment received, Nouillan is the third most radiated man on the face of the earth.

When looking at Nouillan, one would probably not think that he could hold such a claim. Nouillan appears to be fit, healthy and happy.

It has been a battle to get to this point, said Nouillan. Some people say that I look really good, therefore I cant possibly relate to their own hardships. They have no idea how difficult my treatment has been. I was sent home as a teenager to die. Today, I can relate with almost anything that people who have been diagnosed with cancer are facing and encourage them.

Nouillan continues, Its my personal belief that when we are faced with illness that is so serious, that we do not know if we will survive it, that one of the most important things we can do is to focus on what we are going to do in the future and create special goals that compel us to succeed in our battle.

Because of this belief, Nouillan moved from Glasgow, Scotland to Twain Harte, CA to be in an area that offers everything he loves. This includes Yosemite National Park, the Sierra Nevada and a sense of a supportive community like Nouillan has never experienced before.

I have made many close friends at Sonora Regional Medicals Cancer Care Center, said Nouillan. This area has some of the greatest support that anyone, anywhere could ever want.

Nouillan has written a book that is being sold at the Cancer Care Center, as well as at Mountains Books in Sonora. It is called Cancer Bravehearts.

Locally, Nouillan has been asked to speak at various functions and events, including last Aprils Relay for Life in Sonora.

According to Nouillan, Based on my own experience of dealing with Leukemia and Breast Cancer, I chose to write this book to let others know that their life is far from over. The reality is quite different. Youve now been giving the chance to truly focus on your intentions and you can decide to take control. If you have ever heard that you have cancer, then my book is for you.

More information can also be found at www.cancerbravehearts.com

The Newsmaker of the Day is heard every weekday morning on AM 1450 and FM 102.7 KVML at 6:45, 7:45 and 8:45 AM.
In only the second time a sitting president has visited UCF, President Barack Obama spoke at the university on Friday and urged supporters to get out the vote for Democrats and Hillary Clinton in November.

Obama stepped up to the podium at CFE Arena right at 6 p.m.

"I've got one more campaign left in me. Michelle and I have more to do," Obama said, encouraging the crowd to vote for Clinton.

"I've seen the heart and soul of the American people, and it is good and strong and resilient."

Obama also encouraged the room filled with millennials to vote Democrat, down-ballot, too.

You know who's also a hard worker? Patrick Murphy, said Obama, pointing to the U.S. Congressman in the crowd. Murphy is running against Marco Rubio for his Senate seat, in a contest which could tip the balance of power in Congress.

Obama finished speaking at about 6:41 p.m.

Doors opened at 3 p.m. at the arena, which holds 10,000 people.



Just after 4:30 p.m., UCF Police said on Twitter that the arena was near capacity, and "there will not be room inside for everyone in line." After the arena filled to capacity, many others were left outside to watch Obama's speech on screens.



@POTUS in Orlando! Air Force One just landed. The President will be heading to UCF for a Clinton rally. @MyNews13 pic.twitter.com/eEYR9TVqPU  Jeff Allen (@News13JeffAllen) October 28, 2016

Former UCF student Anthony Kees was the first person in line this morning, arriving before the sun came up. He said he wanted to make sure he didn't miss another chance to see Obama.

"I'm a huge fan of Barack Obama. I actually tried to see him before he was president back in 2008, but I showed up a little bit late," Kees said. "I think 40,000 people showed up to see him. I was really late, so I wanted to get here early and not miss my chance this time around."

The line eventually stretched around the block. The lucky ones, such as Sarah Wolfe, got a blue ticket, which meant they would sit near the stage.

Im 72 years old. And I dont know if Ill get another chance to be this close to a president. I didnt know I had a bucket list, but this was on it, said Sarah Wolfe, a Clinton campaign volunteer.

I cant wait to see Barack Obama, said Sumaytah Haque, standing with her grandfather. I came to see Barack Obama and get his autograph, if I can.

Tipping her red, white and blue shades, the 9-year-old said she came decked out in an America theme.



Im wearing an American flag outfit and a bracelet, because the Presidents coming, she said. Since Im not allowed to vote, I just support them.

The first sitting president to visit the University of Central Florida was Richard Nixon, who paid a visit in 1973 for a commencement speech.

LIVE UPDATES: Obama campaigns for Clinton at UCF
With Halloween right around the corner, orange jack-o-lanterns are popping up on porches across Texas.

But did you know some pumpkins naturally grow pink, blue, green, white or red?

Youll find all different sizes, shapes, and colors harvested in Floydada each year  a town of 3,000 near Lubbock that has claimed the title Pumpkin Capital, USA.

Rumor has it the name stems from the first time Europeans stepped foot in current-day Floydada. The Santa Fe expedition passing through scared the natives, who immediately scattered, leaving behind only a pile of ripe pumpkins and allowing the explorers to discover the sweet taste of the gourd.

The first pumpkin seeds were planted in Floydada more than a century later by B.A. Uncle Slim Robertson. Uncle Slim sold his crop to his neighbors after each fall harvest, and responding to rising demand, soon began shipping his gourds all the way to Dallas. Other Floydada families followed suit and traded out their cotton fields for pumpkin patches.

Sixty years later, the name has likely stuck because Floyd County, with its population of just over 6,000, produces more than 1 million pumpkins each year.

Pumpkin growing there is truly a labor of love. Because most of Floydadas gourds are grown for fall decoration and not the cannery, each one must be hand-picked to avoid getting scratched. When you consider that some of the Big Mac variety pumpkins top 100 pounds, September harvest becomes that much more impressive. Even the more common Jack-O-Lantern variety weigh in between 12 and 25 pounds each. All in all, farmers in Floyd County hand-pick 10 million to 15 million pounds of pumpkins each fall.

Even beyond the physical demand, a fruitful pumpkin harvest is no easy feat.

This year, an unusual weather pattern led Assiter Punkin Ranch owner Tim Assiter to worry about the quality of his crop. Heavy rain in late spring drowned the fields at peak planting time. Then, an especially dry heat in July threatened to inhibit pollination. Later, another set of downpours right at harvest prevented farmers from picking the gourds for 12 full days past the ideal time.

Luckily, despite a tough growing season, Pumpkin Capital, USA didnt disappoint this year.

The annual Floydada Punkin Days Festival falls on the second Saturday of October each year and coincides with the day the harvest is loaded on trucks to be shipped across Texas  and to customers in 17 other states. The festival, centered around  you guessed it  pumpkins, offers pumpkin bowling, carving contests, and pie-eating and seed-spitting competitions. This year visitors from all over the country found a crop as plump, colorful and decorative as ever.

My recommendation is to put the Floydada Punkin Days Festival on your calendar for next year  and show up hungry.
ConocoPhillips, a leading independent oil exploration and production company, plans to add two drilling rigs to its Eagle Ford operations as it pivots investment away from deepwater projects toward onshore shale fields, company executives said Thursday.

The announcement came during the Houston-based companys third-quarter earnings call. The rig count, the number of active drilling rigs, in the Eagle Ford peaked at 210 in mid-July 2014 and have since plummeted to less than 40. ConocoPhillips is currently running two drilling rigs there.
Michael Macor/The Chronicle

A San Francisco man suffered life-threatening injuries after another city resident stabbed him during a fight in United Nations Plaza Thursday afternoon, police said.

The attacker, a San Francisco man in his 50s, was yelling and got into a fight with the victim, a man in his 20's, according to Sgt. Michael Andraychak, a police spokesman.
Imbolo Mbue couldnt help but notice the dichotomy outside the midtown Manhattan offices of Lehman Brothers.

In the shade of its gleaming towers, chauffeurs, many of them African immigrants like her, were lined up and waiting for wealthy investment bankers to emerge and be whisked off to important meetings.

The image stayed with her as the firm collapsed under the weight of the subprime mortgage crisis, leading to the largest U.S. economic decline since the Great Depression.

Mbue was among the displaced workers who ran for cover.

From that setback came Behold the Dreamers, a debut novel whose characters hold tight to their American dreams.

Mbue didnt start out wanting to write about that pursuit. She was on her way to her own dream: a Ph.D. and a university post. She had been accepted into a doctoral program, but like so many dreams, hers was redirected.

Her storytelling has been described as unflinching and empathetic, and Behold as a sad indictment of the American dream.

Its about the price we pay for our dreams, she said.

Like her, the immigrants in Behold come from her hometown, Limbe, Cameroon, a coastal tourist town on the Atlantic Ocean. Its beauty belies its lack of opportunity.

More Information Behold the Dreamers By Imbolo Mbue Random House, $28 See More Collapse

The story centers on executive Clark Edwards and his wife Cindy, clinging to a spot among the 1 percent, and driver Jende Jonga, who lives in an apartment in Harlem with his wife Neni, an ambitious immigrant with so much hope to succeed.

She wasnt meant to be a main character, Mbue said.

But Neni, a composite of women in Limbe and the African women in New York, drives the novels drama.

Mbue is currently writing essays, including one about voting in her first U.S. election. Every so often, she travels back to the village that gave her such a unique perspective on America.

eayala@express-news.net
San Antonio's TV news personalities may look fairly buttoned up on-air, but when Halloween rolls around, some have been known to get wild, wicked or all-out wacky.

We're talking costumes, folks -- get-ups that turn them into vamps, goblins, skeletons, maybe even a "Top Gun" or two.
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Cigarette packs, sandals and dead rodents are just a few unsanitary sights found in kitchens around San Antonio during random health inspections this week.

From the far West Side to downtown, 41 establishments, including local staples, meat markets and an intermediate school, made this week's dirty list.

To make the Express-News' list of dirtiest restaurants, an establishment must earn a score of 89 or below  or anything less than an "A"  during a random city inspection.

La Madeleine at 18030 US 281 N. was cited when an inspector observed a package of cigarettes stored with dishware and issues of cross contamination.

Near Leon Valley, Pavani Express Vegetarian Cafe at 5755 Evers Road received demerits when a food handler wore sandals in the kitchen, and on the West Side, Pik Nik at 127 Old Hwy 90 W. was cited for dead rodents/flies/roaches in the store.

Prominent restaurants include Green Vegetarian, Bill Miller BBQ, Taco Cabana. Dickey's and Earl Abels at 1201 Austin Hwy., which was cited for mold in the ice machine, damaged equipment and dirty shelves in the walk-in cooler.

Get all the highlights from this week's dirtiest restaurant list in the slideshow above.

RELATED: San Antonio restaurant inspections: The worst reports from last week

The San Antonio Express-News examines hundreds of restaurant inspections each week conducted by the San Antonio Food and Environmental Health Services division to bring you the eateries with scores of 89 or below.

Restaurants are graded on a 100-point system, where "100" is a perfect score, and demerits are based upon the number of violations found during a regular food establishment inspection. There are three categories of demerits and each are assigned a demerit score of 3, 2 or 1 points, according to the health division.

Scores and demerits listed are only representative of the state of the restaurant at the time of inspection and are surveyed at random.

rsalinas@mysa.com

Twitter: @RebeccaLSalinas
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GREENWICH  Dita Bhargava didnt take Columbus Day off. She hit the pavement on Rockwood Lane, adding to her tally of 3,000 doors knocked since she earned a nomination to the state House of Representatives in May.

On Rockwood, most who answered were noncommittal, at best, toward the presence of a politician  a Democratic one at that  on their doorstep. But Bhargava moved from door to door with a cheerful resilience and a seemingly endless stamina.

Two women walking down the street brought a welcome break for the candidate, a newcomer to the Greenwich political scene whose biggest challenge has been to make herself and her plans known to voters.

One had met Bhargava at an event and was impressed, she said. She convinced her companion to take a flier and provided Bhargava with the most promising opportunity of the afternoon.

The candidate launched into her message: that the state spends taxpayers money too freely and unwisely, and the Republican representatives from Greenwich are being overlooked by the Democratic leadership in the General Assembly.

The state is having a tough time balancing its budgets, and the forecast is looking like it is only going to be more difficult and challenging over the years, Bhargava said in an interview later. Really, the reason Im running is that we need a different type of voice in Hartford, one like mine that has 20 years of experience in the finance sector.

By the end of the conversation, Bhargava appeared to have earned one more voter.

Thats how the campaign has gone so far for Bhargava, with dogged perseverance and changing minds one by one in a town where almost every Democratic vote has to be earned.

Its made me all the more passionate to effect change, she said.

Bhargava, candidate for the state Houses 151st District, is hoping her extensive private-sector experience will give her a better shot at unseating Republican incumbent Fred Camillo than the other Democrats that have fallen before her.

Born and raised in Canada, Bhargava came to the United States in 1995 and has been working in finance between New York City and Stamford for 21 years  as a senior trader and portfolio manager at various firms, including RBS, Credit Suisse, Citibank and Citadel.

Now shes hoping to be the first Democrat in more than a century to win the seat representing an area comprising parts of Cos Cob, Old Greenwich and central Greenwich.

To me, one of the biggest issues facing our district and really the entire state is fiscally based, said Bhargava, who has lived in Greenwich with her husband and two children for nine years.

What has surprised her, she said, is the vast spectrum of people in the 151st District.

The 151st is very socioeconomically diverse, Bhargava said. Ive heard some very sad stories. People are discontented. Many folks have told me they are planning to leave.

Balancing the state budget is at the top of her platform list, along with incentives to keep college graduates in Connecticut and improving public transportation. She is also passionate about battling the opioid epidemic in the state.

Bhargava describes herself as socially liberal but fiscally conservative. Her rhetoric on the campaign trail has focused more on the latter.

She has said she generally does not believe in too many layers of government, and thinks the Democrats in Hartford have been raising taxes to solve problems for too long.

Raising taxes is going to be doing exactly what has been done. We have to stop this cycle, Bhargava said. Im not voting for any more tax increases from the citizens of the town.

Instead, she wants to examine the ways different agencies can use the taxes they collect more efficiently.

She understands that Camillos platform is similar, but said the Democratic leaders who control the General Assembly would be more likely to incorporate her opinions because she comes from the same party.

She reminds, or educates people when knocking that the district hasnt sent a Democrat to Hartford in more than a century.

Unfortunately, even if Republicans have good ideas, their voice is lost in Hartford because we are dealing with a Democratic majority, Bhargava said.

Greenwich provides a disproportionate amount of taxes to the state of Connecticut, she tells anyone on the trail who will listen, and has little say in how those dollars are spent.

Camillo, who is seeking a fifth two-year term, has been in office a long time, Bhargava said, and the world has changed around him.

Bhargava hopes to solve the problems with the state budget by making changes to the tax code to lure businesses and individuals that have left back to the state, she said. She thinks too many people in the 18-to-25 age bracket are leaving, which doesnt bode well for the states future tax base.

Really, my pitch is the same, and its that we need change, Bhargava said. Hartford is broke.

pfrissell@hearstmediact.com; @PeregrineFriss
THE REV. JOHN BASSETT

Background: Born in the Tyngsborough, Mass., near the New Hampshire border, he grew up on the grounds of a convent of the Sisters of Notre Dame where his father worked. He graduated from Lowell State College (now UMass Lowell) and has a master's degree in deaf-blind/multihandicapped education from Boston College and a master of divinity from Andover Newton Theological School. He taught special education for 30 years, first in Massachusetts and, after he moved to New York in 1987, in the Washington, Saratoga, Warren, Hamilton and Essex County BOCES program in Saratoga and Warren counties. He now does substitute teaching local public schools. He and his wife, Terry, live in Middle Grove.

On Sunday, he will be installed as the priest-in-charge of St. Thomas of Canterbury Church in Halfmoon.

Where has your spiritual journey taken you?

I was raised Roman Catholic and was educated by the Sisters of Notre Dame and by the Brothers of the Sacred Heart in high school. In college I studied the history of the Renaissance and the Reformation. I was exposed for the first time to Protestant doctrine, to the ideas of Luther and Zwingli and Calvin. I realized my basic beliefs were more Protestant than Catholic. In the 1970s, as the Catholic church was changing, I became interested in Anglocatholicism, and its "smells and bells" and rich symbolism. My parents had died around that time and I was feeling alone. In a real and profound way, I came to discover the grace and peace of a loving God. I realized I really believe a loving God who has his servant's life and cares ever before him. From that moment on, my life has been centered in Christ and his church.

In 1977 I was received into the Episcopal Church in Boston. I was at the Church of the Advent and later attended the Church of the Good Shepherd in Newtown. where I became parish historian and served on the vestry committee to find a new priest. Over time I felt more and more that I was called to preach, and less to teach, which led me to Andover Newtown, which is was a United Church of Christ and American Baptist seminary.

In 1997 I discovered I was in love with a widow with three children. We were attending Bethesda, a high Anglocatholic Episcopal church in Saratoga Springs. We were married, and six months later a letter arrived from the newly elected Episcopal bishop of Albany, Daniel Herzog, inquiring if I was still interested in being ordained. I talked about it and thought I had it out of my system, but my wife said I should go. In a large meeting at the cathedral in Albany when the bishop spoke, I felt he was speaking directly to me.

More Information This is what the Rev. John Bassett will pray on Sunday at his Service of Institution on Sunday at St. Thomas of Canterbury Church in Halfmoon. The words are from the 1928 Book of Common Prayer. O Lord my God, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof; yet thou hast honoured thy servant with appointing him to stand in thy House, and to serve at thy holy Altar. To thee and to thy service I devote myself, body, soul, and spirit, with all their powers and faculties. Fill my memory with the words of thy Law; enlighten my understanding with the illumination of the Holy Ghost; and may all the wishes and desires of my will centre in what thou hast commanded. And, to make me instrumental in promoting the salvation of the people now committed to my charge, grant that I may faithfully administer thy holy Sacraments, and by my life and doctrine set forth thy true and lively Word. Be ever with me in the performance of all the duties of my ministry: in prayer, to quicken my devotion; in praises, to heighten my love and gratitude; and in preaching, to give a readiness of thought and expression suitable to the clearness and excellency of thy holy Word. Grant this for the sake of Jesus Christ thy Son our Saviour. See More Collapse

My call to the priesthood was reawakened as he spoke about rebuilding the Church and calling it back to biblical beliefs. I was ordained a deacon in the Episcopal Diocese of Albany in 2001 at Camp of the Woods in Speculator by Bishop Herzog. I served at Christ Church in Ballston Spa, which is a healthy evangelical parish, and I fell in love with that side of Anglicanism.

I was ordained to the priesthood there in 2002, and later I was assigned by Bishop Herzog to be the vicar at the All Saints Church in Round Lake. I later served St. Mark's in Hoosick Falls and St. Boniface in Guilderland as their interim pastor through transitional periods. Most recently I served wonderful people as rector to St. Augustine's Church in Ilion,

Last year I decided the Episcopal church had simply gone too far from biblical truth in revising their canons, which govern the Church. I sought biblically grounded Anglicanism and was received by Bishop Julian Dobbs into the Congregation of Anglicans in North America where I remain canonically resident.

What's the history of St. Thomas of Canterbury Church?

The church dates to 1987. Its founders were people who loved traditional Anglicanism. They were members of a local chapter of the Prayer Book Society and met for five years in the Holiday Inn in Latham. In 1997 the congregation bought a single-family home in Halfmoon and held the first formal worship there. Renovations and expansions were made. In 2002 a steeple was erected giving the church the look of a small country church. The Episcopal Church was revising their Book of Common Prayer and the people of St. Thomas wanted to keep the traditional Anglican liturgy. Praying shapes believing, and so changing the prayers risks changing church doctrine. We believe Anglican doctrine is best expressed in The Book of Common Prayer that was basically written by Thomas Cranmer, the archbishop of Canterbury in the 1500s.

The combination of Holy Scripture, (the Bible) and Holy Sacraments, (Baptism, Holy Communion) is the hallmark of Anglicanism. Always has been and always will be. Anglicans' form of worship guides our personal and corporate relationships with God, The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. Anglicanism is as meaningful today as ever, and I believe offers the 21st Century what we hunger for. By studying and using what the Bible teaches, and loving one another in community, St. Thomas becomes a center for personal growth, healing, and service to the greater community of Halfmoon and Clifton Park. Eventually we will engage in mission farther afield, but first things first. We're a great church for beginners and more seasoned Christians who are looking to expand their faith in Jesus Christ.

What are the tenets of your church?

We believe the historical creeds: the Apostles' Creed, Nicene Creed, and Athanasius Creed. These provide the basic, non-negotiable doctrine of the Christian church: God is the creator, human nature is fallen, God intervened in history and sent his son, Jesus who died on the cross, triumphed over sin and death, rose from the dead and ascended into heaven and still exists at God's right hand in human form, and sent down the Holy Spirit to guide us, and Christ will return to reign over his peaceable kingdom.

We worship as Anglicans. We hold firm our beliefs, and welcome all. We are committed to personal spiritual growth and will offer a variety of programs and studies to help people. Visitors to St. Thomas are always welcome to receive Holy Communion if they are baptized, and all may receive God's blessing at the altar rail. God loves everyone.

We are connected to other Anglicans around the world; we're affiliated with the Anglican Church in America. Anglicanism is messy right now due to the fact that the Church in the United States and Canada has done things that have alienated a lot of Anglicans, especially those in Africa, Asia, and South America who are strongly biblical. We are wise to bind together with Anglicans from around the globe to follow Christ.

In August I had the pleasure of meeting and briefly talking with the Most Reverend Nicholas Okoh, who is the Primate of All Nigeria. He had come to the United States to meet the clergy of CANA, which one of his predecessors had helped to organize. It was a deeply moving time for me, to meet a dedicated, Bible believing bishop who strongly believes in preaching the Gospel to a world in need. Bishop Okoh talked of his own conversion and coming to faith in the middle of the Nigerian Civil War, and of realizing that he had survived that war only by the grace of God. He became so dedicated to the church that he sought to work for it, being told that the only position open was that of church janitor. He happily took that position, keeping the church open for people to hear the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus Christ. That is the type of Anglican that we at St. Thomas want to be in communion with, that is, to be working closely with, under God.

Who was St. Thomas of Canterbury?

He is most likely known to Americans from the movie, "Becket," and the play, "Murder in the Cathedral." Thomas was a Norman Englishman who was chancellor to King Henry II of England and essentially his best friend. When Henry wanted to take more control over the Church, which was Roman Catholic, the king had the pope name Thomas Becket archbishop of Canterbury. On June 2, 1162, Thomas was ordained a priest, and on June 3, he was consecrated bishop, and his life changed. He became dedicated to God and the Church. Rather than supporting King Henry II, he supported the Church. He so aggravated the king that around Christmas 1170, Henry II supposedly said, "Who will rid me of this troublesome priest?" Several of Henry's lords rode to Canterbury and murdered Thomas in the cathedral. Thomas was canonized a saint and his tomb in Canterbury Cathedral became a site of pilgrimage for the people. In "The Canterbury Tales," the pilgrims were on the way to Thomas' tomb.

What will take place Sunday?

We will have a Service of Institution led by Bishop Brian Marsh of the Diocese of the Northeast of the Anglican Church in America. I will be presented with keys of the church as a symbol of authority to keep this place open for people to hear the Gospel. I will receive the Holy Bible and the Book of Common Prayer, and a copy of the Canons  laws and regulations  of the Anglican Church in America along with instruction that I am to teach and preach. I will pray an absolutely wonderful prayer that is in the Book of Common Prayer that truly explains my spiritual role, one that I take most seriously.

 Rob Brill
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Albany

James Edwards looked around the vast warehouse filled with used furniture and household items and made a beeline for a brown leather sofa.

"I really like that. It's mahogany," he said. And so the sofa was his.

He also picked out a floor lamp, mattress and box spring set, sheets and blankets, dishes, silverware and pots and pans.

Edwards, 39, who receives assistance from Rehabilitation Support Services for mental health issues, is moving into an unfurnished studio apartment on South Pearl Street after a hospitalization and other turmoil that left him without a place to live.

Browsing for an hour through the recently opened Capital Region Furniture Bank, a program created through the Homeless and Travelers Aid Society of Albany, Edwards found almost everything he needed for his new place. It didn't cost him a dime.

"They have a lot of really good stuff here and it feels great that they helped me out," Edwards said.

The Capital Region Furniture Bank held its grand opening Oct. 18 after four months of preparing rented warehouse space and picking up used furniture donations.

It's the brainchild of Pete Newkirk, a longtime HATAS board member. He retired nearly three years ago after selling a family business, Newkirk Products of Albany, which produced printed materials for the health care and financial industries. It had about 300 employees and $50 million in annual sales.

He volunteered to drive the Homeless Action Committee outreach van, which delivers sandwiches, blankets and clothing to people on the streets.

More Information How to donate The Capital Region Furniture Bank is located at 5 Anderson Drive in Albany. To make a donation of furniture or household items in good condition, contact Jack Beckett at 518-612-2265 or jbeckett@hatas.org. See More Collapse

"You get a different perspective from the street level," Newkirk said. He was moved by heartbreaking scenes of watching homeless people carrying clothing in plastic garbage bags into an empty apartment. "There wasn't a stick of furniture inside these places and that made me feel terrible," said Newkirk, an Albany native who still lives in the city.

In retirement, Newkirk used his business acumen to begin removing obstacles that homeless people face.

There was a gap in Albany after a Catholic Charities free furniture program shut down three years ago. Schenectady Home Furnishings, formed by Church Women United in 1968, offers a similar service in Schenectady.

"You'd be amazed by how much good furniture would get thrown into the landfill if we didn't pick it up," said the Furniture Bank's program director, Jack Beckett, a retired insurance agent who ran the Catholic Charities program. He recruited several former Catholic Charities volunteers. He's picked up furniture from college campus housing undergoing renovation and from mattress manufacturers looking to get rid of unwanted inventory. They've also begun partnering with large chain stores that donate returned or outdated inventory.

"It's nice to be part of something that helps give people a fresh start," said Noreen Thomas of Delmar, who volunteers with her husband, John.

"Seeing the smiles on people's faces when they find what they need in the warehouse makes it all worthwhile," said volunteer Fred Pigeon, a retired high school teacher from Rensselaer.

Warehouse coordinator Taurus Whitehead is a HATAS success story. The 49-year-old Brooklynite took college courses while in prison from Liz Hitt, HATAS executive director. He was released last spring, spent a few months in a halfway house, and now has his own apartment in Albany, works full-time and is completing an associate degree in business administration at Hudson Valley Community College.

"You have to want to change," said Whitehead, who overcame drug and alcohol addiction that led to a burglary conviction that landed him in prison. "It's about avoiding the old lifestyle and discovering the drive and ambition to succeed. I'm proud that I'm now giving back to society that I once took from."

pgrondahl@timesunion.com  518-454-5623  @PaulGrondahl
Schenectady

Maya Lin, the architect known for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., and the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Ala., was the featured speaker Thursday at Union College.

Lin spoke at the second annual Feigenbaum Forum on Innovation and Creativity in the Nott Memorial.

In 1981, Lin was a 21-year-old senior majoring in architecture at Yale University when she submitted the winning design in a national competition for a memorial honoring Vietnam veterans to be built in Washington. Her concept featured a wall for the names of more than 58,000 servicemen and women who died in the war.

Named to the American Institute of Architects' list of America's Favorite Architecture, the wall is visited by more than 4 million people annually.
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DERBY  Adam Pacheco foresees a day when he lives in a desirable neighborhood abuzz with thriving businesses and restaurants.

Pacheco, 32, lives in dilapidated downtown Derby, long in need of revitalization, but even after several failed attempts in recent decades, he envisions a transformation from eyesore to eye-catching.

The current effort, Downtown Now! Derbys Blueprint for Progress, gives Pacheco hope that this time the area  particularly nearly 14 acres of public and private land on the south side of Main Street  will get a major overhaul.

Obviously, this is preliminary, but theres promise. Given the history of this citys attempts to redevelop the downtown, this attempt seems to have the best opportunity, he said.

Its gone farther than the others, said Pacheco, one of about 65 people who attended Thursdays Community Choices Workshop at The Ballroom. It was a follow-up to last months Community Voices Workshop, an effort by an outside, comprehensive design team to include the public in the design process.

Information gathered from residents, business leaders, politicians and other stakeholders at the first workshop was used to shape questions the team posed at the latest gathering.

Participants used electronic keypads to answer questions about the direction a revitalized downtown should take, and the results were posted immediately on a projection screen. Gianni Longo, president of New York-based GLA, a strategic plan and urban design corporation, asked the 58 keypad users to select the letter that best described their goals for the site, what kinds of businesses would make Derbys downtown a regional destination, whether they want to attract independent companies or national chains, if they want a mix of housing and retail, and what age group they most want to attract to downtown.

Respondents said they prefer independent businesses, mixed use; they want to appeal to millennials and they want the redevelopment to protect downtowns historic character.

Food was clearly on their minds. They overwhelmingly voted to have restaurants on the site; good news to Joseph LaPaglia, a former Derby businessman who now lives in Rhode Island. He wants to return and reopen Derby Pizza House and perhaps a food market downtown.

Thats our dream. Nostalgically, I love this place, LaPaglia said.

Now they know at least what a portion of the population would like to see downtown, said Rosalie Cota, 64, a lifelong Derby resident. I really like that theyre approaching the people and giving them a say in our town.

Longo said the public would have additional opportunity at a five-day meeting of stakeholders, from Nov. 14 to 18, to provide input that would help the design team create a master plan.

We havent designed anything yet. We havent put pen to paper, said Michael Weich, a project manager with DPZ Partners, an international urban design firm that Derby officials hired with a state grant to oversee the process. The actual designing would begin with the five-day gathering, he said.

We dont just draw pretty pictures, Weich said. Realistic plans are to be derived by measuring the communitys ideas against land use, economic, environmental and infrastructure conditions.

We have to make this a reality. ... You have a jewel of a site here that we hope doesnt go to waste, Weich said.

Its as transparent a process as we can do, Longo said.

The five-day gathering will be at The Ballroom and the schedule is available at derbyct.gov. Results of the keypad survey are also posted on the website.
After a year on the campaign trail, Jodey Arrington is still campaigning hard with the General Election less than two weeks away. At the same time, hes looking ahead in hopes of getting a jump on other members of the freshman class in U.S. Congress.

Arrington of Lubbock is the Republican nominee to represent the Texas 19th U.S. Congressional District. He faces Libertarian Troy Bonar and Green Party candidate Mark Lawson in the November election.

Am excited for a chance to go to work for you in Washington, he told a large crowd Thursday morning at a Town Hall meeting at the Plainview Chamber of Commerce/EDC building. A Plainview native, he pointed out that this community is the third largest city in the district when considering the number of registered votes. And I have to thank all of you for supporting our campaign in the primary. Im really proud to stay that I carried my hometown with 72 percent of the vote.

Arrington has been on the campaign trail for a year now, traveling throughout the 29 counties in the district. Hes received the endorsement of 12 mayors.

I want to assure you that the Bulldog Nation is alive and well throughout the district. It is fun to see all the paw prints of Plainview Bulldogs in District 19.

He admitted that one of the key driving forces behind is campaign is the recognition that West Texas is truly a special place filled with special people. West Texas and Rural America have lost much of our influence to urban areas because of their voting power, and we need to work hard to regain some of that influence. I cant think of a more important region in the national than the 19th Congressional District of Texas. The people out here produce much of the nations food, fuel and fiber.

As a result, he already has been pressing the point to congressional leaders that the nations continued agricultural independence is just as important as the nation being energy independent. Its not just 24 million jobs related to agriculture and the $100 billion economic impact just in Texas, we as a nation cant rely on Russia for our wheat and China for our cotton. We understand that in Plainview, but we also have to make them understand the importance of it in Plano and Boston. When you ask people there were food comes from, too many answer the grocery store. 

Arrington pledged to be a champion and cheerleader of agriculture, not just because its important for West Texas, but because it is important for the nation. We need to help them understand that fact.

Saying the heartbeat of America is right here, Arrington noted that West Texas is not only the breadbasket of the nation, it is the cultural backbone of America. We also need to point out the fact that we produce more wind energy in this district than all of California.

One of the most pressing issues facing the nation at this time in history, he notes, is the national debt. Our national leaders have been kicking it down the road for the past two decades.

While the window is still open to address the national governments inability to control spending, particularly in the area of entitlements, the window is closing quickly. We need to turn the tide quickly or risk becoming like those European Union governments with big government making an even greater intrusion into our lives.

Quizzed about his lack of support for the DREAM act which would grant conditional residency and eventual permanent residency for undocumented minors, Arrington said its important for the national to first secure its borders and to remove the multiple incentives that are drawing undocumented immigrants to the nation. I dont believe a wall is the answer. It would be a waste of money. Instead, we need to get rid of the incentives that are bringing them here, he said. The safety of the American people comes first, and thats something that the national government is failing to do. Texans are being doubly taxes because of that.

Arrington noted that while just 26 percent of Hispanic voters identify with the Republican Party, many of them share the same values as those championed by the GOP  strong religious faith, strong families and pro-life. Their cultural values align closely with Republican values. We need to use those factors to help us open doors and to open a dialogue.

If elected, Arrington said he would be the only freshman congressman from Texas which has a delegation of 36, including 25 Republicans.

Calling Obamacare a failure, Arrington termed it the biggest driver in the national debt. It already has become the third largest drain on the state debut as well, he said.

Rural America needs a voice, he concluded, and I want to be that voice.
HURON COUNTY  Halloween is just around the corner, but its not too late for procrastinators to scoop up a slick costume or piece together a sure contest winner at many local stores. And at generous discounts.

Halloween is one of our bigger seasonal shopping times for customers, said Sue Langley of Thumb Industries.

Langley said Thumb Industries gets a lot of full costumes donated, along with a lot of Halloween-themed merchandise, which has already been marked down by 50 percent  and plenty are still available.

Same goes for Goodwill Industries, where Gina Cantrell listed lots of Halloween stuff still on the shelves, including full costumes as well as accessories. Cantrell said those things will be marked 50 percent off beginning Friday, followed by a store-wide half off sale on Sunday.

At Walmart, co-manager Pat Miller warned that things are quickly running out in his store.

He said Walmart sees a small boost in sales due to Halloween costumes, parties and trick or treating purchases. These things will be discounted by 50 percent the day after Halloween, for those looking to get a head start on next years festivities.

With stuff readily available, it shouldnt be too difficult to come up with some quick ideas.

According to Frightgeist, a Halloween-themed Google Trends platform, be prepared to see many versions of Harley Quinn costumes this year. Costume ideas for the Suicide Squad movie character are the top searched across the country right now.

Surprisingly, neither Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton made the top 50 on the list.

To get those ideas flowing, here are the top Top 10 most searched Halloween costumes:

No. 1  Harley Quinn

No. 2  Joker

No. 3  Superhero

No. 4  Pirate

No. 5  Wonder Woman

No. 6  Witch

No. 7  Batman

No. 8  Star Wars

No. 9  Clown

No. 10  Dinosaur

Check out the entire list at www.frightgeist.withgoogle.com.

You may have noticed, coming in at No. 9 on the list, were clowns.

In recent months, clowns have gotten a bad rap in our area, thanks to a clown scare in Huron County, Ohio, that was mistaken by some to be in Huron County, Michigan. The potential fear came from reports from other states where people dressing as clowns were attempting to lure children into the woods with candy or money in an attempt to abduct them.

According to Huron County Sheriff Kelly J. Hanson, he has not heard of any problems regarding the issue in our area.

Nobody has made me aware of anything, Hanson said. That is something Im sure they would have gotten a hold of me on.

While some communities across the country are putting bans on wearing clown costumes this Halloween, that will not be the case in our area  at least not at the county level.

Hanson is hoping for another dull Halloween this year from a law enforcement standpoint, much like they have experienced in the past several. There was a time, Hanson remembers, when the sheriffs office would have a helicopter on patrol on Halloween night and the nights surrounding it because of the mayhem that would ensue.

Abandoned structure fires, dumpster fires, egging and toilet papering and the opening of fire hydrants were quite common in that time. Now its quite tame, and thats the way he likes it.

There was a lot of mischief like that, Hanson said. Now, there are a couple of mischievous type complaints that will come in, but nothing of any magnitude, knock on wood.
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UBLY  Just a little bit of physics and engineering.

That's what a group of Ubly students used when they were challenged by a local business to build something out of the ordinary.

Together the crafty students created, Beatrice  a medieval-like trebuchet.

A trebuchet is a combination of small machines powered by the force of gravity. When it's fired, the weight box falls and the force of gravity causes acceleration of the attached throwing arm around the axle.

Ubly juniors Alex Grifka, Evan Franzel and Andrew Gilbert, along with 2016 graduates Blake Schumacher and Nathan Gilbert, spent their summer putting in more than 100 hours working on the designs and building the trebuchet.

"In physics class, we do a small-scale trebuchet," said Jeremy Warner. "I know of them and how they operate, but I've never built one this size."

Warner, science teacher at Ubly High School, assisted his students throughout their five months of labor constructing the roughly 30-foot high trebuchet. The piece of machinery is currently able to launch a pumpkin 150 feet through the air.

"We started in June and have been building on the weekends," Warner said. "We just finished about a month ago."

Gemini Group, an Ubly-based plastics and metal company, challenged the students to use what they have learned in class and create a trebuchet, Renee Morell, a Gemini representative, said. When the high school "engineers" finished the project, it was presented to the engineering staff at Gemini.

"We think it's amazing," Morell said. "They've gone above and beyond what we expected."

The trebuchet will be available for public viewing in Gemini Plastics' parking lot, Morell said. Next year, Gemini plans to put the machinery in Ubly's parade as well as a community event  The 2017 Pumpkin Chuckin.'

At the end of the day, Warner said he was proud of his students  who were also able to gain some working experiences themselves.

"I learned a lot using physics and trying to find an equation with mass throwing," Franzel said.

"We developed people skills too," Grifka echoed.

"I gained a lot of building experience," Gilbert explained. "We were able to see physics at work."
Herald Editor Doug McDonough and former News Editor Homer Marquez were recognized for excellence in reporting school news and presented with the 2016 Texas Association of School Boards (TASB) Media Honor Roll Award during the Oct. 27 meeting of the Plainview ISD Board of Trustees.

According to the TASB website, the award recognizes an individual within a media organization who makes an effort to become familiar with the goals of the district, ensures the accurate and balanced reporting of school news, gives a high-profile position to positive school news, and works to maintain a working relationship with school administration.
A woman was arrested Oct. 24 after drunkenly beating her husband and attempted to drive off with their 3-year-old child.

A deputy responded to a family violence call in the 12300 block of FM 2432 near Willis. Upon arrival, the deputy observed a vehicle driving in circles in the front yard of the residence. The deputy made contact with the female driver who had a strong odor of alcoholic beverage emitting from her breath. The deputy spoke to the man on location who advised he had been assaulted by his wife in front of their 11- and 13-year-old children.

After the assault, she then took their 3-year-old child and attempted to leave the residence but he had closed the gate so she could not leave. The 3-year-old child was found sleeping on the back seat of the vehicle.

District 1  North County

A man was arrested Oct. 17 for assaulting his girlfriend. A deputy responded to a family violence call in the 10000 block of Crystal Springs near Willis. While in route, the deputy observed a Panorama Village police officer had conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle fitting the description of the actor's vehicle. The deputy conducted field sobriety test on the man, who was not able to complete the tests. The deputy took the man into custody and returned to the scene of the assault. While on scene, the deputy determined that the male had assaulted his girlfriend.

A man was arrested Oct. 21 for driving while intoxicated. A deputy responded to an attempt to locate call in the south bound lanes of Interstate 45. A male witness observed the vehicle swerving from lane to lane and failing to control his speeds, all the way from the Huntsville area. Once the deputy located and stopped the vehicle, he found the male driver to be intoxicated. Due to a language barrier, an officer with Willis Police Department assisted the deputy in translating. The man was unable to perform field sobriety testing and was arrested on driving while intoxicated and transported to Montgomery County jail.

A woman was arrested Oct. 22 for evading arrest and driving with an invalid license. A deputy attempted to conduct a traffic stop on a vehicle with and expired registration. The vehicle continued to travel on I-45 for approximately three miles after deputy activated his emergency lights and siren. Once the vehicle stopped, the deputy made contact with the female driver who could not give a reason for not stopping. The female did not have a valid driver license.

A teenager was arrested Oct. 22 after he punched a wall. A deputy was dispatched to a child discipline call in the 10300 block of S. Williams Road near Conroe. Upon arrival, the deputy spoke to the female victim who said a teenager male who lives on location had punched the wall causing damage.

A woman was arrested Oct. 22 for being publically intoxicated. A deputy was dispatched to the 9800 block of Arbor Oak in reference to a welfare concern. The deputy met with a woman who advised she and her husband had been in a verbal argument. Due to the woman being a danger to herself and others, due to her intoxicated state, she was placed in custody for public intoxication and transported to Montgomery County Jail.

Two women were arrested Oct. 23 after a traffic stop. A deputy assisted a senior sergeant with a traffic stop. The senior sergeant could smell a strong odor of what he believed to be marijuana coming from the vehicle. The female driver was unable to pass field sobriety tests and was arrested on driving while intoxicated, possession of controlled substance and possession of marijuana. A female passenger was arrested for possession of marijuana.

A man was arrested Oct. 24 for driving while intoxicated. A deputy assisted a senior sergeant with a traffic stop on a vehicle that was speeding and unable to maintain a single lane. The senior sergeant could detect a faint odor of alcohol on the male driver's breath.

District 3  East County

A 65-year-old man was arrested Oct. 18 for being publically intoxicated after a deputy was dispatched to the area of Ford Road at Needham Road.

A 43-year-old man was arrested Oct. 18 for driving while intoxicated and possessing marijuana after a deputy was dispatched to the area of U.S. 59 and Northpark in regards to a reckless driver.

A 37-year-old man was arrested Oct. 18 for strangling a family member after a deputy was dispatched to the 26800 block of Manor Falls Drive in regards to a family violence call.

A 19-year-old woman was arrested Oct. 21 for driving a stolen vehicle after a deputy was dispatched to the 21500 block of Alexa Forest Drive in regards to a theft of a motor vehicle.

A 27-year-old man and a 28-year-old woman were arrested Oct. 23 for stealing metal after a deputy was dispatched to the 21300 block of West Knox in regards to a suspicious person call.
A Woodlands man is in the Montgomery County Jail after multiple victims came forward alleging he inappropriately touched them when they were younger, and police are asking the public's help to find more possible victims.

Rodney Smith, 48, was arrested at his home Oct. 11 mere thousands of feet from McCullough Junior High after investigators say he touched a then-8-year-old friend of his daughter's back in January 2012. The young girl told investigators she was over at his house in the 25000 block of Broken Bough for a sleepover when Smith allegedly groped her late that night.

The girl said she knew it was Smith despite the low-light conditions because he was wearing a white Houston Texans jersey. She then told Smith's daughter what had happened and called her mom to come get her from the sleepover.

Detectives did not know about the case until July 2016 when the young girl told her father.

Detectives with the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office met with Smith in September to ask him about the allegations. Smith told detectives he was walking through the house that night when he noticed his front door was open, so he went to go check on the sleeping girls.

As he walked in the room, he tripped and dropped his cigarettes, he said, before he began patting down the girls in the bed to make sure they were still there, according to court records. He said he touched the young girl's "stomach area" when he was patting them on the bed, but said if he touched the girl inappropriately, he did not mean to.

Montgomery County Precinct 3 Constable detectives said in a statement there have been other victims who have come forward from incidents that were alleged to have occurred as far back as 2000, and they believe there could be more.

Smith is currently housed in the Montgomery County Jail on a $150,000 bond. No attorney was listed for Smith on the District Clerk's Website as of press time. He will be back in Judge Kathleen Hamilton's 359th state District Court on Monday for an information hearing at 9 a.m.

If convicted on the one second-degree felony indecency with a child charge, he could face up to 20 years in prison and face a possible fine up to $10,000.

Representatives with the constable's office declined to comment further. Anyone with information about any allegations against Smith is urged to contact detectives at 936-538-3414.
Velma G. Solorzano of Plainview passed away on Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016. Family and friends gatjered to recite The Holy Rosary on Friday, Oct. 28, 2016, at 7 p.m. at Lake Ridge Chapel and Memorial Designers with visitation to follow. Funeral mass for Velma was to be held Saturday, Oct. 29, 2016 at 11 a.m. at Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Lubbock. A tribute of Velmas life may be found at www.memorialdesigners.net, where you may leave memories and expressions of sympathy for her family.

Velma was born on Sept. 1, 1963, in Loving, N.M. Velma the owner of Solorzano Law Firm was the daughter of migrant workers and worked in the cotton, soybean, onion and sugar cane fields of Texas as a young girl. Dreaming of a better life, she returned to college as an adult and earned her bachelors degree in business from Wayland Baptist University in 2001, and her MA in Business Administration in 2003. She started Solorzano Business Services in 1993 and was presently still operating her business in Plainview offering bookkeeping and federal and state tax preparation for individuals and small businesses. After completing her masters degree from Wayland, she decided to further her education at Texas Tech University, earning her Doctorate of Jurisprudence from the School of Law. She was a practicing attorney in Texas, focusing her practice on tax and immigration law, including representation before the Federal IRS Courts and Federal Immigration Courts. Mrs. Solorzano also served her community in criminal and family law issues as a proud member of her local bar association boasting of her colleagues compassion and professionalism. Velmas warrior spirit was surpassed only by her passion for serving those less fortunate, specifically those struggling to attain higher education. She and husband Joel established a scholarship for students who are undergoing hardships and facing obstacles in reaching their educational goals. The Solorzano Scholarship Opportunities for Latinos is the familys way of helping create a brighter future for others.
The rise of the freelancer: some estimates are that over 54 million Americans are now taking contractual gigs rather than steady employment. After the recession, some temporary gigs were necessary -- but the experiments in Mechanical Turk and Uber driving gigs that sprouted up seemingly over night took hold. Contractors and freelancers are the norm, now.

But perhaps not for long -- freelancers may turn out to be temps, after all, if technology keeps moving at the blistering pace weve seen. Thats just the beginning of the changes we can foresee in the next five to 10 years as technological innovation and social expectation change the world dramatically; even more than the gig economy has changed things thus far. Heres what to expect:

1. Artificial intelligence.

On-demand marketplaces have proven to be fabulously rich -- demonstrating to investors that in what capacity they can be replaced, replacing gigs with AI or technology is a worthwhile endeavor. The technology has caught up to the need and desire for AI, and the next logical step is automation, eliminating the millions of dollars spent on flesh and blood workers.

Related: Addressing the Backlash: What's an Accurate Picture of the Gig Economy?

Though some recent doomsday studies estimate employment at about half of todays rates by the time AI matures in 2025, in reality AI will replace much less than that. Though routine jobs and unskilled manual labor will drop off steeply, the same studies estimate that creative, visionary and human-intelligence-based jobs will grow, offsetting some unemployment. Artists, leaders, entrepreneurs and customer service relations will see an increase in job availability due to the inability to automate these sectors.

Though the impetus will be to fight these changes, the sustainable answer is to get educated. For example, taxi drivers who are fighting the influx of Uber and Lyft are wasting their time: Uber drivers are all going to be replaced shortly with AI. Every driver will need to be educated in something new, and the same will be true of many jobs in the next few years.

2. Education must become faster and cheaper.

With the growth of AI will come a rapid pace of changes in the employment market, requiring an ever-faster pace of education, decidedly so in technical fields. Gone are the days where one could learn a technological skill and bank on it as a life-long career. Job seekers will need to become super-skilled in subjects for a shorter period of time -- there will be no such thing as a Master of One.

Related: Is the Gig Economy Sustainable?

This kind of education can only be done with cheap, faster, more flexible learning.

The return on a $200,000 four-year degree will no longer be there. In four years, the job will be gone anyway. Employee retention will entirely depend on the flex-learning ability of the employee and the employers willingness to provide knowledge-on-demand, tutors, classes and other in-house trainings to educate their employees on the latest skill.

3. Rise of entrepreneurship.

At the intersection of AI and continuing tech education is the entrepreneur. As more and more jobs are automated, employment rates fluctuate, and skilled labor jobs disappear, the people in demand will be those that can provide singularly human traits of vision, leadership, imagination, values and wisdom. Those things that cannot be provided by technology will be in demand as the planet looks to solve global water, energy and population crises.

Technology itself will be both the catalyst and the tool used to create entrepreneurial vision, as the influx of apps and machine intelligence has and will continue to allow entrepreneurs easy entry into building thriving businesses with a large customer base. Though the problem solving may focus on other sectors, it will continue to be easier than ever to be an entrepreneur.

4. Personal finance will change.

First, because current mortgages, loans, retirement plans and insurance plans are set up for the full-time long-term employee, all of that will have to change as the economy shifts to one largely made up of entrepreneurs and freelancers.

Related: How the Gig Economy Is Changing Work for Women

The fintech market will (and has) changed to reflect the economy as robo-advisors and automated investing brings services previously limited only to the wealthy to the masses, allowing more control over personal finances than ever before. Big banks are facing unbelievable pressure as fintech gains strength -- over $9 billion was invested in fintech in 2016.

Millennials make up 25 percent of the U.S. population and the younger generation, toting larger college debts and lower credit scores than ever before, will need new innovations if they are to participate in financial markets. New platforms are emerging that are changing markets long since stagnant, like life insurance. Peer-to-peer lending, crowd funding and dynamic risk assessments rather than traditional credit scores will replace old models of finance.

Related:

This Is What's Next Now That the Gig Economy Has Changed Everything

How the Gig Economy Is Changing Work for Women

These 3 Million Dollar Apps Were Built By Non-Coders



Copyright 2016 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
Back in the day  the early 1830s  there was a kerfuffle over what to name the new town being carved out of already-existing Norwalk, Fairfield and Weston. The early favorite was Saugatuck. But a local politician thought it sounded too much like succotash, so Westport won. Which is why nearly 200 years later, ABC-TV did not name a new comedy show The Second Fattest Housewife in Succotash. I mean, Saugatuck.

It may be a very popular ice cream shop, but I cant think of a poorer name than Sunny Daes. Supposedly a pun on sundaes, it does not exactly melt on your mouth.

On the other hand, youve got to love Le Rouge by Aarti. Thats the shop featuring handmade chocolates and cakes, tucked below what used to be Sallys Place on Main Street just past Avery Place. The black (chocolate) and red (rouge) theme works wonderfully. And Aarti  who has a very interesting back story  is truly an artist.

Another place worth visiting is Indulge by Mersene. Its the kind of store Westport used to have tons of, but has now vanished from just about every town in America. Eclectic, funky and fun does not do Mersenes merchandise justice. Her Railroad Place space is crammed with gifts and goodies, and she knows exactly what you need before you even open her door.

Around the corner, theres a different scene. If I had never been to Westport in my life and got off Interstate 95 Exit 17 northbound, Id sure wonder what all the hype was about. The condition of the old Arrow restaurant  in later years, Jasmine and Blu Parrot  is truly embarrassing. Nothing says Unwelcome to Westport more than underbrush, overgrown grass and a cracked parking lot.

Ive asked this before, but I havent gotten a definitive answer: Greens Farms or Greens Farms? The answer depends on how many Green families were talking about, and that has been lost in the swirls of history. There should be little dispute though about Hillspoint Road (which of course runs directly through Greens/Greens Farms Road). The land originally belonged to a Mr. Hill , so the correct (but never used) punctuation is actually Hills Point Road.

What about Parker Harding Plaza? Westport s municipal lot  the one built on landfill behind Main Street stores, and which (if you think about it) has prevented generations of folks from enjoying riverfront breezes and views  is named for town officials Emerson Parker and Evan Harding, who built the thing in the go-go 1950s. Unfortunately for them, their names have been twisted into the ironic (but true) nickname Harder Parking.

Which brings us to the downtown Starbucks (no apostrophe). A while back, they renovated the place. Finally, I thought, theyll fix the ridiculous design error that relegated the tables all the way back, in a dark area with an unappetizing view of the Post Road. At last, I figured, Starbucks will capture the river views they should have highlighted in the first place. No such luck! Its still as poorly laid out as any coffee shop Ive ever seen.

Meanwhile, a few miles east, the other Starbucks is getting ready to move across the street. It will take over Arbys, which, among other amenities, includes a drive-through window and a parking lot that will actually be big enough for all their customers. Should be cause for rejoicing, yes? No. Morning regulars worry with all the Post Road traffic and no light, theyll never be able to make a left turn out of the lot to go downtown. Like many of the items I mention here, thats a first-world problem for sure.

Continuing east, theres continuing confusion about two restaurants in the same plaza. Bravo was here first, taking over the former Munsons Chocolatiers. Then came Rio Bravo  a Mexican restaurant (part of a small chain), with absolutely no connection to the first Bravo. Im no marketing guru, but wouldnt you think that would lead to unwanted confusion for both places? Breaking news: It has.

I thought I knew a lot about Westport street names. But only recently did I hear the history behind two roads near Compo Beach. Roosevelt Road is named for Theodore, and adjacent Quentin Road is named for TRs son, killed in battle during World War II.

Thats cool. But neither holds a candle to my favorite street name in all of Westport: Dr. Gillette Circle. No one remembers Saugatucks favorite doctor, but he endures. Title and all.

Dan Woog is a Westport writer, and his Woogs World appears each Friday. He can be reached at dwoog@optonline.net. His personal blog is www.danwoog06880.com
A Houston pimp was sentenced to 35 years in prison Friday after being convicted earlier this week of forcing a teenage girl into prostitution.

Wearing an orange jail uniform, Mark Anthony Inestroza was stoic as Visiting Judge Frank Price handed down the sentence after a half-day of testimony in the punishment phase of the 23-year-old's trial. Jurors found him guilty of compelling prostitution of a minor.
Six teams of Justice Department officials will be dispatched to observe Election Day voting at 75 polling locations in Harris County as part of an investigation into allegations that the county failed to provide reasonable access to mobility-impaired voters.

Harris County will field its own teams on Election Day as part of an arrangement approved Thursday by U.S. District Judge Alfred H. Bennett.
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Alpine police are deploying drones to search for a missing West Texas woman as investigators named her boyfriend a suspect in her disappearance, according to media reports and police.

Alpine Police said Wednesday Robert Fabian, 25, is being considered a suspect in Zuzu Renee Verks disappearance, CBS 7 reported.

Fabian, according to search warrants obtained by CBS 7, called Chris Estrada, his friend, twice the morning of Oct. 12, when Verk disappeared, and later borrowed his Ford Mustang. Initial reports from CBS 7 state Fabian is refusing to cooperate with authorities.

Neighbors told the station they heard arguing in Fabians apartment the night before Verks disappearance.

RELATED: 'Extensive search' on for Texas college student last seen on date

That night, we heard arguing, said John Franco, who lives in the apartment underneath Fabians. I can hear him pacing back and forth, in the kitchen, living room, all around all around.

Going down the stairs, we heard a loud thump. This is around four in the morning. I only wish we had done something, he said.

Josh Cobos, who works at a local auto shop, told the station Estrada came in to have his car cleaned three times after Verk disappeared. A forensics team is now analyzing Estrada's car, WFAA reported.

RELATED: Reward for missing Sul Ross State University reaches $100K

Something in my gut says I think he knows something, Cobos told CBS 7.

Verks family said they were frustrated with Fabian, because he was refusing to help police in the investigation.

Verk's father, Glenn, told WFAA that Alpine police have not been successful in getting information out of Fabian.

RELATED: Family of missing Texas student begs boyfriend to cooperate with police

"Police are saying there's a lot of missing information they can get from him," Glenn Verk said.

Fabian and Zuzu Verk are not friends on Facebook, despite their relationship. According to Fabian's Facebook, he is a chemistry student at Sul Ross State University.

An update from the Alpine Police Department states drones are being used to search areas of interest. West Texas Ranch Realty and Texas Aerial Photography are also assisting in the search.

There is a $100,000 reward for those with information on Verks disappearance.

Those with information can call Alpine police at: 432-837-3486.

Staff writer Tyler White contributed to this report.

kbradshaw@express-news.net

Twitter: @kbrad5
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KERRVILLE  A judge here sentenced a local Republic of Texas official to a year in jail Friday for refusing to comply with the terms of her probation on three misdemeanors from her role in issuing phony court documents.

Susan R. Cammack, who claimed to be Bexar Countys representative in the independence groups government, didn't take the stand or call witnesses at Fridays probation revocation hearing before Kerr County Court at Law Judge Susan Harris, but said she shouldnt be jailed because her 12-year-old boy needed her.

I dont think its right that my beliefs are on trial, Cammack, 55, said in closing remarks that were muffled by a surgical mask she was required to wear due to her refusal to submit to testing for tuberculosis while in jail awaiting the hearing. I respect everybodys beliefs. Thats how I was taught.

Assistant Attorney General Lance Kutnick said Cammack had left the court little choice by her refusal to pay a $500 fine and accede to two years probation, the sentence jurors recommend after convicting her last year on three counts of simulating legal process.

She doesnt feel that she is subject to this court and, apparently, a host of other laws that Texas citizens must follow, Kutnick told the judge.

The Texas Attorney Generals Office prosecuted Cammack and David J. Kroupa of Houston after Kroupa sent court orders to a state district judge and a Kerrville lawyer involved in a foreclosure suit against Cammack.

Kroupa had billed himself as the Republic of Texas chief justice in Harris County and ordered the judge and lawyer to appear at the groups international common law court in Bryan to explain their actions against Cammack. Local, state and federal officers raided the meeting on Feb. 14, 2015, and seized computers, phones and documents from group members.

Only Cammack and Kroupa were charged. Kroupa, 60, pleaded guilty in August 2015 to one count of simulating legal process under a plea deal that dropped two other similar charges. He was sentenced to 50 hours of community service, a $500 fine and 15 months deferred adjudication probation. He also agreed to testify at Cammacks trial in October 2015.

The state had already sought to revoke Cammacks probation earlier this year, but dropped that effort because of a technicality after she spent two months in jail. Cammack said she didnt consider herself a U.S. citizen and declined to question the states only witness at those proceedings, saying, Not my circus. Not my monkey.

The revocation was initially triggered by a traffic citation that Cammack refused to sign until told it would require her arrest, when she signed it with an x, according to testimony Friday.

zeke@express-news.net
While the Rev. John Hagee leads his Cornerstone Church in A Night to Honor Israel, expected to draw 6,000 people Sunday evening, two small San Antonio groups plan to gather outside for A Night to Honor Palestinian Rights.

In its 35th year, the Cornerstone event will feature remarks from Hagee, its pastor, who founded Christians United for israel, and John Bolton, who served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under President George W. Bush.

Two pro-Palestinian groups expect several dozen activists at their protest, members of San Antonio for Justice in Palestine, affiliated with the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights, and the San Antonio chapter of the national Jewish Voice for Peace, which seeks an end to Israeli occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem and its external control of the Gaza Strip.

The local groups support human rights for Palestinians and Israelis but oppose what they describe as the eradication of a Palestinian presence in the region.

Were not competing in the sense of numbers, said Harry Gunkel, a retired pediatrician in San Antonio who helped found both groups and questioned the Christian Zionist movements unwavering support for Israel based on Scriptural interpretation.

Were not there for confrontation, he said. Its for public awareness and offering a different perspective and approach to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. This is an issue that doesnt have a lot of visibility in San Antonio.

Palestinians became refugees or have lived under military rule since the capture of territory held by Arab populations in the 1967 Six-Day War, he said.

Every aspect of their lives, literally everything  is controlled by military forces of the state of Israel, he said. Its a desperate, miserable way to live.

The two pro-Palestinian groups say they hope to raise awareness about issues not well reflected in mainstream media and will hold a press conference Sunday night. They each have 20 to 30 members who are Christian, Muslim and Jewish, leaders said.

In 35 years, Cornerstone Church has helped raise more than $98 million for Jewish and Israeli humanitarian and educational charities, said Ari Morgenstern, spokesman for John Hagee Ministries.

That there will be 6,000 individuals supporting Israel inside Cornerstone Church and a few dozen outside the church condemning the Jewish state is reflective of the fact that the vast majority of Texans and Americans stand with Israel, he said.

If those protesting outside the church were really interested in advancing Palestinian rights, they might protest the Palestinian leadership, which has enriched itself while turning down every Israeli offer of peace and inciting its own population to terrorism against Israeli Jews, Christians and Muslims, he said.

eayala@express-news.net

Twitter: @ElaineAyala
A San Antonio man was one of 98 people whose criminal sentence was commuted Thursday by U.S. President Barack Obama.

Juan Antonio Duenas, who is serving time for possession with intent to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine, has had his sentence reduced to October 27, 2018, according to a press release from the Office of the Press Secretary.
The following list includes recent reports from the Midland County Sheriffs Office and the Midland Police Department.

Thursday, Oct. 27

12:32 a.m.  Police made an arrest for marijuana possession at East Lyon Road and Lincoln Street.

Wednesday, Oct. 26

8:18 a.m.  Officers investigated a case of fraud in the 700 block of East Lyon Road.

11:52 a.m.  A deputy was sent to a car fire on U.S. 10 in Jerome Township. Firefighters extinguished the flames. A Gladwin County woman, 18, was cited for no insurance.

12:24 p.m.  A Larkin Township man, 48, reported his identity was stolen. The case is being investigated.

12:35 p.m.  Officers were called to the 1100 block of East Patrick Road to investigate a case of fraud.

1:26 p.m.  A deputy was sent to a car fire on East Laporte Road. Richland Township firefighters extinguished the fire. The vehicle was a complete loss.

2:35 p.m.  Property was stolen from the 2200 block of Jefferson Avenue.

3:03 p.m.  A sheriffs office detective was assigned to a Mission Team investigation through the Michigan Sheriffs Association.

3:39 p.m.  A vehicle failed to stop for a school bus in Jerome Township. Deputies located the vehicle and warned the driver.

3:45 p.m.  Officers investigated a case of fraud in the 2000 block of Isabella Street.

4:24 p.m.  Police investigated a case of fraud in the 5100 block of Nakoma Drive.

5:27 p.m.  Property was stolen from the 4900 block of Sturgeon Creek Parkway.

10:01 p.m.  Police were called to the 800 block of Cinema Boulevard for an argument and disorderly person.

11:56 p.m.  A motorist was arrested at East Lyon Road and Lincoln Street for driving without a license.
Attending the wonderful Westport Country Theater production of Camelot the other night, I was struck by parallels between the Arthurian Round Table legend and todays political climate.

In the play, King Arthur and Queen Guenevere hatch the idea of resolving conflicts by discussion at a round table where every knight has an equally important seat, there being no head of the table. (Rather like the U.S. political system, I thought, where every citizen has an equal vote.) If there is wrongdoing in the kingdom, it is to be judged in a court of law through principles of justice that apply to all. Just how seriously the laws apply to all is demonstrated when Queen Guenevere is convicted of treason for her adulterous liaison with Sir Lancelot.
Theres a lot of talk about rigging elections these days.

Well, if I were worried about an election being rigged here in San Antonio, I know where Id look first: the South San Independent School District. South San is historically the petri dish for voter fraud in Bexar County.

And Im not talking ancient history.

Back in 2004, the San Antonio Express-News published a lengthy article on the most common form of election fraud, as practiced in South San. Its a form of mail fraud called ballot chasing.

Campaign workers known as coyotes aggressively push citizens older than 65 to sign papers requesting mail-in ballots. Some cant read. Some suffer from dementia or simple senility and dont know what they are signing.

Express-News reporters interviewed citizens who showed up at the polls only to learn they had already voted. Others learned they had voted when the reporters told them so.

That is impossible! Petra Alvarez said upon learning she and her husband Daniel had voted by mail. Who did we vote for? She was astonished to learn her mother, an Alzheimers patient, had also requested a mail-in ballot and was listed as voting.

One of those accused of gathering mail-in applications was Edgar Lopez, a failed school board candidate and the brother of a board member who shows up later in our story. Edgar Lopez, who was not charged with criminal activity related to the allegations, said he was only trying to be helpful when he went door to door with applications.

Another man, Barney Perez, pleaded guilty in connection with ballot chasing. A campaign worker for a candidate Perez was working against photographed him following a mailman and swiping an envelope from a mailbox, according to court records.

But the district attorneys office said it was very difficult to prosecute election coyotes because their victims rarely remembered their names or even what they looked like.

Two precincts appeared to be particularly fertile ground. While other precincts averaged a dozen requests from mail-in ballots, South Sans precincts 1040 and 1041 averaged about eight times that many.

South San also has a history of in-person voter fraud  the only kind voter IDs are designed to prevent. Some were documented in a lawsuit brought in 1997 by Manuel Lopez, a San Antonio police officer who had lost an election to incumbent Susana Garza.

Both have ties to the controversies Ive already described. Edgar Lopez is Manuel Lopezs brother. And Barney Perez was accused of ballot chasing on behalf of Susana Garzas daughter-in-law.

In the lawsuit, Manuel Lopez accused Susana Garza of winning by 24 votes with illegal ballots. After four days of testimony, a visiting judge found 32 ballots to be illegal. Some were mail votes, but they also included four convicted felons who were permitted to vote in person and several others who did not live in the district. A few were not citizens, and one man voted twice.

Lopez was the hero in uncovering the voter fraud, but his armor tarnished quickly when he took office.

Virtually his first official action was to convince a bare majority of the board to hire the lawyer who handled his lawsuit as the attorney for the district. Despite the fact that this lawyer was only a few years out of law school and had no school law experience, he was given a five-year contract that paid 50 percent more than the previous law firm. The contract also provided that if he was fired for any reason, he was to be paid within 48 hours for the remainder of the five years.

The new lawyer didnt last long, but after the State Bar began an inquiry into his extraordinary contract, he did not press for his severance pay. So there is such a thing as voter fraud, and even in-person voter fraud.

But there are two important factors to stress. First, the fraud could be effective because the election drew only about 1,200 votes. Second, the election was run by the corrupt school board itself, not by the countys nonpartisan election office.

In other words, rigging an election in South San was much easier than rigging a presidential election.

This column appeared as a commentary on Texas Week with Rick Casey, which airs Fridays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 1 p.m. on KLRN.
I dont know for sure, but Im hearing things. I mean, you know, people are saying things. People are saying a lot of things. So maybe we should, like, look into some of them, all right?

In todays heated political climate, words are flying and streaking faster than a roadrunner on Ritalin. Regardless of your affiliation, perhaps you have been blitzed by verbal bombs from supporters of the other side. And perhaps after receiving a particular zinger, you are momentarily flummoxed as to how to reply. Then the moment turns into minutes, hours or maybe the next day when suddenly (bing!) the perfect reply presents itself, albeit much too late.

You, my friend, have just suffered the condition known as esprit de lescalier, which translates as staircase wit. Call it your Dan Quayle moment. Weve all been there, speechless and helpless to reply. Unless one possesses prodigious mental skills, theres little hope of avoiding this condition.

Maybe you are wondering what this has to do with a staircase. The term is attributed to the 18th century French philosopher and writer Denis Diderot. He remarked on an occasion at a dinner party, given by a French statesman, of being stunned into silence by a comment directed toward him, only to realize the reply at the bottom of the staircase. This, of course, meant he had left the gathering. In upper-class houses of the day, the ground floor was for servants, kitchens, receiving goods, etc. Grand staircases both inside and out led to the main salons and reception rooms. Even today what the Europeans call the first floor, we call the second floor.

These lapses are by no means limited to political discourse. To illustrate further, let me recount a personal experience from the murky past.

At a small social gathering over libations, a law student spouse of one of my colleagues expressed dismay and disdain at my lack of knowledge of a certain silent, foreign film. I had nothing but a few feeble comments about the nature of the film being discussed. Predictably, the next day my retort presented itself. It was of this nature, Youve not graduated from law school, so you are not yet a lawyer, much less a judge. Why then are you judging me about my knowledge of your arcane film?

Most of us like to think of ourselves as rational, compassionate beings. But invariably and repeatedly we seek to respond to insults, perceived insults and any threats to our sense of ego.

Well, its been a tremendous time here, a really great time, and remember, I know you are  so what am I?

John Eubanks is author of the book Life Support of Another Sort and a former teacher and actor who lives in Converse.
With early voting already underway for the November general election, much of the focus is centered at the top of the ballot, but we must not forget the down-ballot issues that dont carry party labels.

There is always voter drop-off on a long electronic ballot, and that could be detrimental for school districts that have elections this cycle.

The San Antonio Independent School District is asking for voter approval of a 13-cent tax rate hike. Passage of the measure would set the districts tax rate at $1.17 per $100 valuation.

The inner-city school district, which serves 54,000 students, also is seeking support for a $450 million bond to renovate and upgrade existing schools.

If state lawmakers had adequately addressed the public school finance issue plaguing the state, there would be no need for the tax rate increase. Instead of addressing the festering problem, state officials have stalled for years, waiting for the outcome of a lawsuit filed for the districts.

Earlier this year, the states highest court found the public school finance system flawed but constitutional. The ruling has eased some of the pressure on the state to address the issue, but it did not resolve the problems.

An estimated 25 percent of the states more than 1,000 school districts are expected to ask voters for permission to increase their tax rate. Several school districts in our community already have done that.

It is not the best possible solution to the public school finance problem, but for the SAISD it is the only viable option when those elected to state office fail to do their job.

The tax ratification election translates to about a $7.59 per month tax increase for the owner of a home valued at $70,000. The bulk of that tax burden will be borne by business owners, who foot 63 percent of the taxes in the district.

Elderly taxpayers who have filed tax exemptions with the Bexar County Appraisal District would not be affected by passage of the tax increase.

The funds will add to the districts academic offerings and opportunities for students.

The bond proposal will provide some desperately needed work at some of the districts aging schools.

Bond funds are earmarked for renovations at 13 schools, many of which had their last air-conditioner upgrades with funds from a 1968 bond. The upgrades would improve science labs and expand classroom space to meet recommended state guidelines. Renovations to buildings that are more than 4 decades old will include new front entries to main buildings for improved security.

Participation in the TRE and bond election is limited to registered voters who reside in the San Antonio Independent School District, but the outcome affects everyone in the community.

The two proposals merit public support.
Re: Re-elect Hurd to Congress in District 23, Editorial, Oct. 20:

Regarding the race between Will Hurd and Pete Gallego in Congressional District 23, Im really disappointed in this newspapers mindless endorsement of the incumbent.

The 23rd, which covers 29 counties, is a study in contrasts: urban/rural, rich/poor, business/industrial/agrarian and white collar/blue collar/no collar, not to mention Republican/Democrat. The simple fact that he hasnt been arrested doesnt make Will Hurd right for this gigantic district.

As I have said at countless doors while block walking, if youre a straight-ticket Republican, Hurds your man. Although he makes a great show of listening to constituents, his voting record in the House is solid knee-jerk red.

On the other hand, during Gallegos time in Congress, instead of just blindly following party leaders, he was much more independent in representing the interests of this vast and varied district. It seems he really does listen to constituents.

The key word in the job title is representative. We need someone with a proven record of representing all of us.

Julie Love, Rio Medina

Unbearables

Re: Time to vote: Our choices this election, Editorial, Monday:

I thank the Express-News Editorial Page for its recommendations. Starting with the top slot, it provides us unbearables, a comprehensive list of those to vote AGAINST.

Bill Kriz

Standing together

Re: Polling monitor sign-ups in Texas soaring, front page, Oct. 22:

My heart was so heavy for our nation as I read this article. The headline sounds terrific! Caring citizens volunteering in droves for public service! Then I read the text and saw more fear and alienation as the article described Texas citizens who seem to be signing up for polling jobs because of fear of rigged elections. It also described people concerned the poll monitors could incite voter intimidation. Tragic!

However, I was encouraged when I turned to the Opinion page. Thanks for running the Rick Casey column on Mayor Ivy Taylor (Not all news about police officers has been negative). How refreshing to hear the voice of sanity. Taylor is a brave, hardworking, caring mayor who stands by her principles. Our officers are brave, hardworking men and women who broke protocol in wearing Trump campaign gear, a pretty simple situation which two sane sides can handle rationally and peacefully in our city.

Ivy Taylor, our police and the residents are all on the same team. San Antonio is capable of rationally handling this matter and moving forward in strong support of our wonderful police and mayor  without hatred and hype.

Thank you, Express-News and Rick Casey, for reason in the midst of negative, hate-filled hype. And thank you to Ivy Taylor and our police for serving us every day. San Antonians do not buy into the hatred and hype. We stand together.

Tara Gibbs
Fiat Chrysler is issuing a recall on more than 224,000 Jeep Wrangler vehicles because of an airbag problem.

About the Fiat Chrysler Jeep Wrangler Recall

According to several media outlets, the recall is due to the airbags in certain Jeep Wrangler models not deploying during a crash.

Fiat Chrysler says a wire to an airbag sensor could come loose, preventing the seat belt pretensioners and airbags from working correctly during a wreck.

Although no issue has been reported, Fiat Chrysler discovered the problem in the recalled vehicles during crash tests. When the recall begins, dealers will be able to fix the wiring issue free of charge. Owners will be notified by Fiat Chrysler when the recall begins and repairs are ready to take place.

Description of the Recalled Jeep Wrangler Vehicles

The recall includes certain model year 2016 and 2017 Jeep Wranglers. Fiat Chrysler says the 2017 models have yet to be sold to the public.

Contact an Experienced Auto Recall Attorney

Thomas J. Henry Injury Attorneys are leaders in the area of product liability litigation. Our Defective Drug and Products Division has extensive knowledge and resources in order to represent our clients efficiently and aggressively. We represent a multitude of people who are battling against manufacturers of defective vehicles and auto parts.

Your choice does matter. If you or a loved one has suffered serious injuries because of a recalled vehicle or defective auto part, call Thomas J. Henry Injury Attorneys immediately. We represent clients/victims all over the country. We are available 24/7, nights and weekends.

Editors Note: This content is made possible by Thomas J. Henry Personal Injury Law. 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.
According to KSAT, pedestrian-related traffic fatalities are up 57 percent in 2016 compared to the same time period last year in San Antonio.

Shortcuts Can Kill, says SAPD

So far this year, there have been 44 pedestrian fatalities. At this time last year, there were 28 deaths.

In all of 2015, 46 pedestrians died in traffic-related accidents.

City officials introduced Vision Zero last year, which hopes to eliminate traffic deaths on city streets completely. Although deaths are up over last year, a spokeswoman for Transportation and Capital Improvements told KSAT that they have made progress. Engineering studies and improvements to dangerous roadways and intersections are in the crosshairs for 2017, as the city has budgeted $1 million to tackle these issues.

San Antonio Police told KSAT that many of these fatalities occur at night and outside of designated crosswalks. Pedestrians should take caution when crossing streets, to use crosswalks, and cross where it is well lit.

Pedestrian Accident Statistics

The following information is provided by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

In 2014, 4,884 pedestrians died in traffic crashes. An estimated 65,000 pedestrians were injured in traffic crashes in 2014.

More than two-thirds of the pedestrians killed in traffic crashes were males in 2014.

Pedestrian fatalities in 2014 were highest in California (697), followed by Florida (588) and Texas (476).

Contact an Experienced Auto Accident Attorney

Thomas J. Henry Injury Attorneys is a personal injury law firm with offices in Corpus Christi, Texas, San Antonio, Texas and Houston, Texas representing accident victims nationwide. Our attorneys are available to respond to auto accidents at any hour, day or night. Our lawyers understand that the immediate acquisition, or acquiring, of evidence is paramount to understanding how the accident occurred. Remember, your choice does matter. Contact our offices  we are available 24/7, nights and weekends.

Editors Note: This content is made possible by Thomas J. Henry Personal Injury Law. 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.
According to KPRC2, a passenger bus heading to Mexico from Houston crashed into an 18-wheeler truck on Highway 59 near FM 360 on Tuesday, causing several injuries.

Citations Could be Possibility, says State Trooper

Passengers say the wreck occurred when the bus tried to pass the 18-wheeler. Police say the bus driver noticed something strange with the bus and lost control, slamming into the rear of the semi.

KPRC2 reports that seven people were hospitalized following the crash, but the worst of the injuries were broken bones. The force of the crash mangled the passenger bus, smashing the front end and forcing passengers to evacuate out emergency windows.

The Houston-based bus was on a 750-mile trip to San Luis Potosi, Mexico, before the accident occurred.

Trucking Accident Statistics

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 3,903 people were killed in crashes involving large trucks in 2014. Here is some additional information on 18-wheeler accidents:

An estimated 111,000 people were injured in crashes involving large trucks in 2014.

o74 percent of those injured were occupants of other vehicles.

oFrom 2013 to 2014, there was a 19-percent increase in the number of injured occupants of other vehicles involved in crashes with large trucks.

Seventy-nine percent of fatal crashes involving large trucks occurred on weekdays.

Trucks were struck in the rear in twenty-one percent of fatal two-vehicle crashes in 2014.

Sixty-one percent of the fatal crashes involving large trucks occurred in rural areas.

Contact an Experienced Trucking Accident Attorney

Thomas J. Henry Injury Attorneys have handled a multitude of 18-wheeler accidents over the past two decades and continue to handle many of the largest 18-wheeler accident cases throughout the United States. Whether the company is small or large, our success is not an accident; it is because we understand how trucking companies operate. We represent clients/victims all over the country.

Thomas J. Henry Injury Attorneys are available to respond to trucking accidents at any hour, day or night. Our lawyers understand that the immediate acquisition, or acquiring, of evidence is paramount to understanding how the accident occurred. Remember, your choice does matter. Contact our offices - we are available 24/7, nights and weekends.

Editors Note: This content is made possible by Thomas J. Henry Personal Injury Law. 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.
Prison is never among the best places to be. When you are convicted and jailed, you might think it is the end of the...
Yves here. Its hardly a secret that the Clintons are deeply loyal to Wall Street. Bob Rubin and his numerous well-heeled followers are a powerful, arguably dominant, faction in the Democratic party, and they are tightly aligned with the Clintons.

Nomi Prins gives a useful overview of how Hillary has attempted to blame the financial crisis on everything but the deregulation that her husband supported and the reckless behavior that resulted and how her anti-bank noises, like her criticism of Wells Fargo, is tepid and late in coming.

However, I quibble with some of her article. Its surprising to see her single out Gary Gensler, former head of the CFTC, as a bank crony. Gensler is widely seen as pushing for much tougher oversight and enforcement despite being in the disadvantaged position of being at a secondary regulator. Recall that he was up against Bernanke and Geithner, a weak Mary Shapiro at the SEC, and an indifferent-to-captured Obama at the helm.

Its also surprising to see Prins fail to mention the cronies rumored to be Clintons top picks for Treasury Secretary: Larry Fink of BlackRock and Tony James of Blackstone. Both firms would profit ginormously if the Wall Street looting plan that Hillary supports and James is promoting, that of having all workers pay 3% of their pay into mandatory retirement accounts, were to become law.

As weve indicated, the cost of this fix is greater than any of the ideas proposed to shore up Social Security (as opposed to cut it by stealth). I hate to say it, but I believe Prins failure to flag this risk is due to her still hewing to orthodox financial views and thus believing that Federal deficits are a problem, as opposed to desirable, most of the time, and regarding senior members of the asset management heavyweights as less dangerous than executives of TBTF banks. Since even the modest re-regulation that has taken place since the crisis has increased shadow banking, and firms like Blackrock and Blackstone are major players, it would be naive to depict them as problem-free and disinterested.

By Nomi Prins, a former Wall Street executive and the author of six books of which the most recent is All the Presidents Bankers: The Hidden Alliances That Drive American Power (Nation Books). Originally published at TomDispatch

As this endless election limps toward its last days, while spiraling into a bizarre duel over vote-rigging accusations, a deep sigh is undoubtedly in order. The entire process has been an emotionally draining, frustration-inducing, rage-inflaming spectacle of repellent form over shallow substance. For many, the third debate evoked fatigue. More worrying, there was again no discussion of how to prevent another financial crisis, an ominous possibility in the next presidency, whether Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton enters the Oval Office  given that nothing fundamental has been altered when it comes to Wall Streets practices and predation.

At the heart of American political consciousness right now lies a soul-crushing reality for millions of distraught Americans: the choices for president couldnt be feebler or more disappointing. On the one hand, we have a petulant, vocabulary-challenged man-boar of a billionaire, who hasnt paid his taxes, has regularly left those supporting him holding the bag, and seems like a ludicrous composite of every bad trait in every bad date any woman has ever had. On the other hand, were offered a walking photo-op for and well-paid speechmaker to Wall-Street CEOs, a one-woman money-raising machine from the 1% of the 1%, who, despite a folksiness that couldnt look more rehearsed, has methodically outplayed her opponent.

With less than two weeks to go before E-day  despite the Trumptilian upheaval of the last year  the high probability of a Clinton win means the establishment remains intact. When we awaken on November 9th, it will undoubtedly be dawn in Hillary Clintons America and that potentially means four years of an economic dystopia that will (as would Donald Trumps version of the same) leave many Americans rightfully anxious about their economic futures.

None of the three presidential debates suggested that either candidate would have the ability (or desire) to confront Wall Street from the Oval Office. In the second and third debates, in case you missed them, Hillary didnt even mention the Glass-Steagall Act, too big to fail, or Wall Street. While in the first debate, the subject of Wall Street only came up after she disparaged the tax policies of Trumped-up, trickle down economics (or, as I like to call it, the Trumpledown economics of giving tax and financial benefits to the rich and to corporations).

In this election, Hillary has crafted her talking points regarding the causes of the last financial crisis as weapons against Trump, but they hardly begin to tell the real story of what happened to the American economy. The meltdown of 2007-2008 was not mainly due to tax policies that slashed taxes on the wealthy or a failure to invest in the middle class, two subjects she has repeatedly highlighted to slam the Republicans and their candidate. It was a byproduct of the destruction of the regulations that opened the way for a too-big-to-fail framework to thrive. Under the presidency of Bill Clinton, Glass-Steagall, the Depression-era act that once separated peoples bank deposits and loans from any kind of risky bets or other similar actions in which banks might engage, was repealed under the Financial Modernization Act of 1999. In addition, the Commodity Futures Modernization Act was passed, which allowed Wall Street to concoct devastating unregulated side bets on what became the subprime crisis.

Given that the people involved with those choices are still around and some are still advising (or in the case of one former president living with) Hillary Clinton, its reasonable to imagine that, in January 2017, shell launch the third term of Bill Clinton when it comes to financial policy, banks, and the economy. Only now, the stakes are even higher, the banks larger, and their impunity still remarkably unchallenged.

Consider President Obamas current treasury secretary, Jack Lew. It was Hillary who hit the Clinton Rolodex to bring him back to Washington. Lew first entered Bill Clintons White House in 1993 as special assistant to the president. Between his stints working for Clinton and Obama, he made his way into the private sector and eventually to Wall Street  as so many of his predecessors had done and successors would do. He scored a leadership role with Citigroup during the time that Bill Clintons former Treasury Secretary (and former Goldman Sachs co-Chairman) Robert Rubin was on its board of directors. In 2009, Hillary selected him to be her deputy secretary of state.

Lew is hardly the only example of the busy revolving door to power that led from the Clinton administration to the Obama administration via Wall Street (or activities connected to it). Bill Clintons Treasury Under Secretary for International Affairs, Timothy Geithner worked with Robert Rubin, later championed Wall Street as president and CEO of the New York Federal Reserve while Hillary was senator from New York (representing Wall Street), and then became Obamas first treasury secretary while Hillary was secretary of state.

One possible contender for treasury secretary in a new Clinton administration would be Bill Clintons Under Secretary of Domestic Finance and Obamas Commodity Futures Trading Commission chairman, Gary Gensler (who was  Im sure you wont be shocked  a Goldman Sachs partner before entering public service). These, then, are typical inhabitants of the Clinton inner circle and of the political-financial corridors of power. Their thinking, like Hillarys, meshes well with support for the status quo in the banking system, even if, like her, they are willing on occasion to admonish it for its mistakes.

This thru-line of personnel in and out of Clinton World is dangerous for most of the rest of us, because behind all the talking heads and genuinely amusing Saturday Night Live skits about this bizarre election lie certain crucial issues that will have to be dealt with: decisions about climate change, foreign wars, student-loan unaffordability, rising income inequality, declining social mobility, and, yes, the threat of another financial crisis. And keep in mind that such a future economic meltdown isnt an absurdly long-shot possibility. Earlier this year, the Federal Reserve, the nations main bank regulator, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the government entity that insures our bank deposits, collectively noted that seven of our biggest eight banks  Citigroup was the exception  still have inadequate emergency plans in the event of another financial crisis.

Exploring a Two-Faced World

Politicians regularly act one way publicly and another privately, as Hillary was outed for doing by WikiLeaks via its document dump from Clinton campaign manager John Podestas hacked email account. Such realities should be treated as neither shockers nor smoking guns. Everybody postures. Everybody lies. Everybodys two-faced in certain aspects of their lives. Politicians just make a career out of it.

Whats problematic about Hillarys public and private positions in the economic sphere, at least, isnt their two-facedness but how of a piece they are. Yes, she warned the bankers to cut it out! Quit foreclosing on homes! Quit engaging in these kinds of speculative behaviors!  but that was no demonstration of strength in relation to the big banks. Her comments revealed no real understanding of their precise role in exacerbating a fixable subprime loan calamity and global financial crisis, nor did her finger-wagging mean anything to Wall Street.

Keep in mind that, during the build-up to that crisis, as banks took advantage of looser regulations, she collected more than $7 million from the securities and investment industry for her New York Senate runs ($18 million during her career). In her first Senate campaign, Citigroup was her top contributor. The four Wall-Street-based banks (JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley) all feature among her top 10 career contributors. As a senator, she didnt introduce any bills aimed at reforming or regulating Wall Street. During the lead-up to the financial crisis of 2007-2008, she did introduce five (out of 140) bills relating to the housing crisis, but they all died before making it through a Senate committee. So did a bill she sponsored to curtail corporate executive compensation. Though she has publicly called for a reduction in hedge-fund tax breaks (known as closing the carried interest loophole), including at the second debate, she never signed on to the bill that would have done so (one that Obama co-sponsored in 2007). Perhaps her most important gesture of support for Wall Street was her vote in favor of the $700 billion 2008 bank bailout bill. (Bernie Sanders opposed it.)

After her secretary of state stint, she returned to the scene of banking crimes. Many times. As we know, she was also paid exceedingly well for it. Friendship with the Clintons doesnt come cheap. As she said in October 2013, while speaking at a Goldman Sachs AIMS Alternative Investments Symposium, running for office in our country takes a lot of money, and candidates have to go out and raise it. New York is probably the leading site for contributions for fundraising for candidates on both sides of the aisle.

Between 2013 and 2015, she gave 12 speeches to Wall Street banks, private equity firms, and other financial corporations, reaping a whopping $2,935,000 for them. In her 2016 presidential run, the securities and investment sector (aka Wall Street) has contributed the most of any industry to PACs supporting Hillary: $56.4 million.

Yes, everybody needs to make a buck or a few million of them. This is America after all, but Hillary was a political figure paid by the same banks routinely getting slapped with criminal settlements by the Department of Justice. In addition, the Clinton Foundation counted as generous donors all four of the major Wall Street-based mega-banks. She was voracious when it came to such money and tone-deaf when it came to the irony of it all.

Glass-Steagall and Bernie Sanders

One of the more illuminating aspects of the Podesta emails was a series of communications that took place in the fall of 2015. Thats when Bernie Sanders was gaining traction for, among other things, his calls to break up the big banks and resurrect the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933. The Clinton administrations dismantling of that act in 1999 had freed the big banks to use their depositors money as collateral for risky bets in the real estate market and elsewhere, and so allowed them to become ever more engorged with questionable securities.

On December 7, 2015, with her campaign well underway and worried about the Sanders challenge, the Clinton camp debuted a key Hillary op-ed, How Id Rein in Wall Street, in the New York Times. This followed two months of emails and internal debate within her campaign over whether supporting the return of Glass-Steagall was politically palatable for her and whether not supporting it would antagonize Senator Elizabeth Warren. In the end, though Glass-Steagall was mentioned in passing in her op-ed, she chose not to endorse its return.

She explained her decision not to do so this way (and her advisers and media apostles have stuck with this explanation ever since):

Some have urged the return of a Depression-era rule called Glass-Steagall, which separated traditional banking from investment banking. But many of the firms that contributed to the crash in 2008, like A.I.G. and Lehman Brothers, werent traditional banks, so Glass-Steagall wouldnt have limited their reckless behavior. Nor would restoring Glass-Steagall help contain other parts of the shadow banking sector, including certain activities of hedge funds, investment banks, and other non-bank institutions.

Her entire characterization of how the 2007-2008 banking crisis unfolded was  well  wrong. Heres how traditional banks (like JPMorgan Chase) operated: they lent money to investment banks like Lehman Brothers so that they could buy more financial waste products stuffed with subprime mortgages that these traditional banks were, in turn, trying to sell. They then backed up those toxic financial products through insurance companies like AIG, which came close to collapse when what it was insuring became too toxically overwhelming to afford. AIG then got a $182 billion government bailout that also had the effect of bailing out those traditional banks (including Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, which became traditional during the crisis). In this way, the whole vicious cycle started with the traditional banks that hold your deposits and at the same time could produce and sell those waste products thanks to the repeal of Glass-Steagall. So yes, the loss of that act caused the crisis and, in its wake, every big traditional bank was fined for crisis-related crimes.

Hillary wont push to bring back Glass-Steagall. Doing so would dismantle her husbands legacy and that of the men he and she appointed to public office. Whatever cosmetic alterations may be in store, count on that act remaining an artifact of the past, since its resurrection would dismay the bankers who, over the past three decades, made the Clintons what they are.

No wonder many diehard Sanders supporters remain disillusioned and skeptical  not to speak of the fact that their candidate featured dead last (39th) on a list of recommended vice presidential candidates in the Podesta emails. Thats unfortunately how much his agenda is likely to matter to her in the Oval Office.

Go Regulate Yourselves!

Before he resigned with his nine-figure golden parachute, Wells Fargo CEO and Chairman John Stumpf addressed Congress over disclosures that 5,300 of his employees had created two million fake accounts, scamming $2.4 million from existing customers. The bank was fined $185 million for that (out of a total $10 billion in fines for a range of other crimes committed before and during the financial crisis).

In response, Hillary wrote a letter to Wells Fargos customers. In it, she didnt actually mention Stumpf by name, as she has not mentioned any Wall Street CEO by name in the context of criminal activity. Instead, she simply spoke of he. As she put it, He owes all of you a clear explanation as to how this happened under his watch. She added, Executives should be held individually accountable when rampant illegal activity happens on their watch.

She does have a plan to fine banks for being too big, but theyve already been fined repeatedly for being crooked and it hasnt made them any smaller or less threatening. As their top officials evidently view the matter, paying up for breaking the law is just another cost of doing business.

Hillary also wrote, If any bank cant be managed effectively, it should be broken up. But the question is: Why doesnt ongoing criminal activity that threatens the rest of us correlate with ineffective management  or put another way, when was the last time you saw a major bank broken up? And dont hold your breath for that to happen in a new Clinton administration either.

In her public letter, she added, Ill appoint regulators who will stand with taxpayers and consumers, not with big banks and their friends in Congress. On the other hand, at that same Goldman Sachs symposium, while in fundraising mode, she gave bankers a pass relative to regulators and commented: Well, I represented all of you for eight years. I had great relations and worked so close together after 9/11 to rebuild downtown, and [I have] a lot of respect for the work you do and the people who do it.

She has steadfastly worked to craft explanations for the financial crisis and the Great Recession that dont endanger the banks as we presently know them. In addition, she has supported the idea of appointing insider regulators, insisting that the people that know the industry better than anybody are the people who work in the industry. (Lets not forget that former Goldman Sachs CEO and Chairman Hank Paulson ran the Treasury Department while the crisis brewed.)

Among the emails sent to John Podesta that were posted by WikiLeaks is an article I wrote for TomDispatch on the Clintons relationships with bankers. She will not point fingers at her friends, I said in that piece in May 2015. She will not chastise the people who pay her hundreds of thousands of dollars a pop to speak or the ones who have long shared the social circles in which she and her husband move. I also suggested that she wouldnt call out any CEO by name. To this day she hasnt. I said that she would never be an advocate for Glass-Steagall. And she hasnt been. What was true then will be no less true once shes in the White House and no longer has to make gestures toward the platform on which Bernie ran and so can once again more openly embrace the bankers way of conducting business.

Theres a reason Wall Street has a crush on her and its monarchs like Goldman Sachs CEO and Chairman Lloyd Blankfein pay her such stunning sums to offer anodyne remarks to their employees and others. Blankfein has been coy about an official Clinton endorsement simply because he doesnt want to rock her campaign boat, but make no mistake, this Wall Street kingpins silence is tantamount to an endorsement.

To date, $10 trillion worth of assets sits on the books of the Big Six banks. Since 2008, these same banks have copped to more than $150 billion in fines for pre-crisis behavior that ranged on the spectrum of criminality from manipulating multiple public markets to outright fraud. Hillary Clinton has arguably taken money that would not have been so available if it werent for the ill-gotten gains those banks secured. In her usual measured way, albeit with some light admonishments, she has told them what they want to hear: that if they behave  something that in her dictionary of definitions involves little in the way of personalized pain or punishment  so will she.

So lets recap Hillarys America, past, present, and future. Its a land lacking in meaningful structural reform of the financial system, a place where the big banks have been, and will continue to be, coddled by the government. No CEO will be jailed, no matter how large the fines his bank is saddled with or how widespread the crimes it committed. Instead, hes likely to be invited to the inaugural ball in January. Because its practices have not been adequately controlled or curtailed, the inherent risk that Wall Street poses for Main Street will only grow as bankers continue to use our money to make their bets. (The 2010 Dodd-Frank Act was supposed to help on this score, but has yet to make the big banks any smaller.)

And heres an obvious corollary to all this: the next bank-instigated economic catastrophe will not be dealt with until it has once again crushed the financial stability of millions of Americans.

The banks have voted with their dollars on all of this in multiple ways. Hillary wont do anything to upset that applecart. We should have no illusions about what her presidency would mean from a Wall Street vs. Main Street perspective. Certainly, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon doesnt. He effectively endorsed Hillary before a crowd of financial industry players, saying, I hope the next president, she reaches across the aisle.

For Wall Street, of course, that aisle is essentially illusory, since its players operate so easily and effectively on both sides of it. In Hillarys America, Wall Street will still own Main Street.
The search for the bottle of the ayurvedic medicine will be held later.
Carrick-on-Suir's Comeragh College students welcomed their French penpals for a visit filled with fun, conversation and culture this month.

Students from College St-Viateur in Amplepuis near Lyon in France took time out of their Irish school tour to visit the newly-opened Comeragh College campus at Tinvane.

The visitors received a rousing reception with "Irelands Call" and the French national anthem "La Marseillaise" being sung by both sets of students.

The schools exchanged gifts representing their localities and both Irish and French students were delighted to finally meet up with each other in person after a year-long exchange of letters, voice messages and emails.

The project, coordinated by French teacher Ms Crimmins in Comeragh College and Mme Catto in College St-Viateur, was formed through the e-Twinning initiative, which brings together language students from Europe to facilitate exchanges.

Both sets of students will sit the Irish Junior Certificate and French Brevet state exams at the end of the school year. But this day was a great opportunity to relax and share their love of sport, music, art and language to build on all their study.

The students from Amplepuis proved naturals at Gaelic Games and enjoyed the state-of-the-art facilities at Comeragh College. The visit passed quickly and it was with great regret that all too soon the French friends had to continue on their journey, which included a day tour of Dublin.

Comeragh College said it looked forward to strengthening its links with its French exchange partner in the future.
(NaturalHealth365) The CDC Director Thomas Frieden has just sent a letter blocking Dr. William Thompson, a CDC whistleblower, from testifying. The Tennessee court case in question involves a 16-year old boy with autism who claims his illness was caused by vaccines.

The autistic boys lawyers Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Bryan Smith of the law firm Morgan & Morgan wanted Dr. Thompson to testify in the case in order to explain that he believed the CDC manipulated MMR vaccine data in a series of studies. These studies were falsely said to find no link between MMR and autism.

CDC scientific fraud, data manipulation and destruction of evidence is out of control

Dr. Thompson has stated publicly to the Congressman William Posey and numerous others that himself and colleagues in the CDC Vaccine Safety Branch were ordered in a number of cases to commit scientific fraud. They were also compelled to manipulate data and destroy evidence to help hide the link between MMR and autism.

Tennessee State Circuit Judge William Acree ordered the trial extended in length so that Dr. Thompson could be subpoenaed in order to testify. However, in a letter to the court, Dr. Frieden denied this request that wouldve allowed Dr. Thompson to testify. The reason he gave was that Dr. Thompsons testimony in a deposition would not likely promote HHS or CDC objectives substantially.

The autistic boys lawyer Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. strongly disagrees due to the fact that Dr. Thompson has co-authored four important CDC studies. These studies exonerate vaccines containing a mercury-based preservative called thimerosal from causing autism.

The scientific link has been established between autism symptoms and vaccines

Dr. William Thompson has been working at the CDC for 19 years. He was formerly employed at their Immunology Safety Office as a senior vaccine safety scientist. Back in August of 2014, Dr. Thompson received Federal whistleblower protection. He then revealed that MMR vaccine safety studies in question showed a causal link between autism symptoms and vaccines, despite CDC claims to the contrary.

Attorney Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. says the testimony of Dr. Thompson is crucial to this matter. The autistic child and many thousands of others lost their cases in the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. Kennedy believes that it is due to the Justice Department and CDC submitting fraudulent science that the MMR and autism link was denied.

Up to $1 trillion in compensation lost to victims

Attorney Bryan Smith explained that while he wasnt surprised by Friedens denial, he was still disappointed. Dr. Thompsons allegation and testimony would imply that the agency deliberately altered the science and facts to undermine autism cases. These cases would have been potentially worth $1 trillion in compensation from Congress.

The autistic boys lawyers Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Bryan Smith pledge to immediately appeal this denial by the CDC in Federal court.

References:

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cdc-blocks-testimony-of-vaccine-whistleblower-says-world-mercury-project-300347376.html
(NaturalNews) Who doesn't love a good horror flick, right? There may actually be some health benefits to be found in watching scary movies, too. Experts say that when you watch something frightening, it engages your fight or flight response. This in turn raises the amount of adrenaline pumping through your veins, which can be pretty good for your body.Psychologist Mark Griffiths, a professor of behavioral addiction at Nottingham Trent University, says that there are a number of reasons why people typically seek out fear-inducing films. While the desire to experience something unusual isn't totally health related, Griffiths also commented on the potential healthy release some people may experience. "Watching such films 'may also be cathartic, providing an emotional release for pent-up frustrations,'" he told the UK'sBut there could be more to it than just that, at least according to some new research. Evidence indicates that the fear you experience while watching a scary movie could help to temporarily bolster your immune system Scientists from Coventry University took blood samples from a group of test subjects before, during and after they either watched a scary movie or spent time in a quiet room. Their findings, which were published in the journal, revealed that white blood cell counts were increased in those who saw the horror film . Normally, white blood cells respond in this way when there is a sign of infection.According to Natalie Riddell, an immunologist at University College London, this is all part of our evolutionary process, which has been "geared to promote the survival of the individual." Getting scared can engage the "fight or flight" response, which in turn, causes the release of adrenaline.The surge of adrenaline then launches the immune system into action  leading to an increased white blood cell count.That's not all adrenaline can do, either. The survival hormone also elevates your heart rate and boosts your metabolic rate  the speed at which your body burns calories. You may think that the number of calories you could burn by watching horror movies is negligible, but studies have shown that you can actually burn a surprising amount of energy just by being scared. That's right, watching horror movies could help support your weight loss efforts.In 2012, researchers from the University of Westminster conducted an experiment to see how many calories volunteers could burn off while watching 10 classic scary films. On average, each film scared the participants into torching about 113 calories  which is equivalent to walking for about 30 minutes. The researchers found that the best horror movie for burning calories was none other than a classic Steven King film. That's right, when people watcheddirected by Stanley Kubrick, they burned away a whopping 184 calories.The classic filmsandcame in second and third place, respectively, for total calorie burning. Dr. Richard Mackenzie, senior lecturer and specialist in cell metabolism and physiology at the university commented that each of the 10 films sent hearts beating and pulses racing. He explained, "As the pulse quickens and blood pumps around the body faster, the body experiences a surge in adrenaline. It is this release of fast-acting adrenaline, produced during short bursts of intense stress (or in this case, brought on by fear), which is known to lower the appetite, increase the basal metabolic rate and ultimately burn a higher level of calories."Overall, calorie burning increased by about one-third while the study participants watched the films. Of course, this doesn't mean that you should watch a movie instead of exercising or eating healthfully . But the next time you sit down to watch a movie, you might want to pick one from the horror genre.
(NaturalNews)We may pause to remark that Republicans should have been much more prepared for this in 2016, but we should also look back to 2012 because it was used in 2012, regardless of how absurd it was to suggest Mitt Romney was leading a "War on Women."(Article written by John Howard, republished from Breitbart.com Even some liberals are recognizing the absurdity, given the emergence of "Strange New Respect" for Romney this year. Of course this new respect is pure political opportunism  and don't be surprised to hear liberals complaining in future election that the conservative Republican presidential candidate isn't as candid and relaxed about social issues as Donald Trump was in the good old days of 2016.We should practice a little political opportunism of our own, and put the Left's revised opinion of Romney to good use. What they said about him was absurd in almost every respect. They've wholeheartedly embraced his position on the geopolitical threat of Russia, which means they're tacitly admitting Barack Obama didn't know what the hell he was talking about. They razz Trump about not paying enough taxes, but they didn't care a whit that Romney paid stupendous amounts of tax, plus vast charitable contributions.Most pertinently, they turned Mitt Romney into a misogynist clod, and his wife Ann Romney into an out-of-touch Stepford Wife, on the thinnest of pretexts. Lefty polemicists today are acting like they were possessed by political demons when they spent the final weeks of the 2012 campaign shrieking about "binders full of women ," and now they can't quite remember what they were going on about.As for Mrs. Romney, she was unceremoniously stripped of her feminine identity by liberals and treated like a space alien because she dared to endorse stay-at-home motherhood. When a mild backlash ensued, the White House memorably denied one of its slander ninja by claiming to know several different people with the same name. [1, 2]In the Democrat imagination and campaign ads, Republicans are constantly targeting American woman. You can draw a straight line from Anita Hill's hit on Clarence Thomas in the Nineties, to "journalist" George Stephanopoulos ambushing the Republican presidential field with a bizarre question about contraceptives in the 2012 primary.It's all pure opportunism, not principle. Romney was a choirboy, so they claimed his policies revealed his secret inner misogynist beast. Trump's policies include a family-leave plan, a culture-war cease-fire declared by Peter Thiel at the GOP convention, and an unease with late-term abortion that tracks with the majority of the country. There's precious little that could be twisted into a War on Women narrative, even by the people who used Sandra Fluke to portray spending ten bucks on contraceptives as the equivalent of female slavery. Therefore, the Left ignores Trump's policies and hits his character, while Bill Freakin' Clinton gets ready to move back into the White House.In the Nineties, Democrats argued that Clinton's sexual abuses had nothing to do with how he governed, so discussing them was a silly distraction we all needed to MoveOn.org from, even when he was in the dock for perjury. Liberals of that election cycle laughed out loud at the notion Bill Clinton's libido had any effect whatsoever on national policy. He was good for the abortion industry, so his treatment of actual women was irrelevant.Partisan feminism is at a strange crossroads, as the core feminist message of independence clashes with victim politics. Women are supposed to simultaneously feel strong, capable... and be utterly helpless before systemic male chauvinism. They can only achieve personal "independence" through total dependence on the Big Government, which is staffed and managed by the only men in America who supposedly aren't looking to exploit them. (You're not to think about the bureaucrats who keep getting caught surfing for pornography on government computers.) [3]The great left-wing project to rewire society in defiance of biology has saddled America with devastating social problems, but that's not a problem for the social engineers. Indeed, it's more of a feature than a bug.Everything from illegitimacy, to crime, to the enormous difficulty of raising children as a single mom becomes another opportunity for them to push increased government power on a fearful, atomized population, which is rapidly losing its ability to form non-government voluntary structures of enduring social value, such as thriving small businesses and stable marriages.The dirty little secret known to the Left all along, but denied vociferously by them until their plans were fully up and running, is that most of these societal changes hit women harder, due to everything from their voluntary career choices, to the realities of child-rearing.So in the world liberals have made, single women become more anxious than ever, about everything from campus rape to the "implicit bias" of a systematically misogynist workplace, and they rush to government for protection from the harms caused by that abusive government.Read more at: Breitbart.com Sources:[1] MichelleMalkin.com [2] RealClearPolitics.com [3] WashingtonExaminer.com
South American doctors confirm that glyphosate spraying is causing infertility, cancer

(NaturalNews) The popular herbicide glyphosate, also known as Roundup, is far more toxic to humans than the chemical industry claims it is, a new report has found. The Pesticide Action Network (PAN) in a 96-page document entitled, reveals how people all around the world are being systemically poisoned by glyphosate, and many of them are even dying.Aerial sprayings of the chemical across crop fields are said to be safe for humans, because the so-called "shikimate" pathway upon which the herbicide acts exists only in plants, and not in animals or humans. But the report highlights the fact that, regardless of the supposed nonexistence of this pathway in humans, glyphosate is sill wreaking havoc on human health Some of the acute health effects of glyphosate exposure include gastrointestinal and skin infections, headaches, blistering on the skin, rapid heartbeat, elevated blood pressure, dizziness, numbness, insomnia, blurred vision, abdominal pain, chest pains, problems breathing, respiratory problems, sore throat and strange tastes in the mouth.Other lesser-reported symptoms include problems staying balanced, cognitive abnormalities, impaired senses, muscle paralysis, peripheral neuropathy, decreased motor skills, chronic fatigue and abnormal body temperature. And none of this even touches on the long-term health effects of glyphosate exposure, which are significantly more problematic.According to the report, glyphosate directly interferes with "numerous mammalian organs and biochemical pathways, including inhibition of numerous enzymes, metabolic disturbances and oxidative stress leading to excessive membrane lipid peroxidation, and cell and tissue damage." Furthermore, the report highlights "genotoxicity and endocrine disruption" that lead to "chronic health and developmental effects."Though U.S. doctors and health experts appear reluctant to report on their observances with glyphosate, their counterparts in South America have a lot to say on the subject. Doctors in Argentina, for instance, are reporting what's being described as a "dramatic upsurge" in long-term health effects where glyphosate is being sprayed on genetically-modified soybean crops.Included in the list of effects are infertility, pregnancy problems, birth defects, respiratory disease and various forms of cancer. Epidemiological studies have established a link between glyphosate exposure and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, hairy cell leukemia, multiple myeloma and DNA damage. Even at very low concentrations, glyphosate has been shown to damage vital organs like the liver and kidney, as well as skin cells.Not only is glyphosate sprayed all over food crops during the growing season to kill weeds, but it's also used as a pre-harvest desiccant to speed up the growing and harvesting process. According to the report, this process is used on wheat, cotton, various cereal grains, peas, and beans, as well as other crops.It's bad for the people who end up eating these food crops, but great for farmers and the chemical companies like Monsanto that they support when they purchase all that extra glyphosate. And the repercussions are startling. Glyphosate residues are now being found in women's breast milk, as well as in blood and urine. Even vaccines are starting to turn up as glyphosate-contaminated, which means developing babies are now being injected with this lethal poison."The PAN Report is extremely comprehensive and really needs to be mainstreamed so that food growers, in particular, can understand the harm they are doing to crops, the soil, the environment, wildlife, pollinators, water resources and humans," writes Catherine J. Frompovich for"However, it will be up to consumers and farmers ... to make their concerns and priorities known about saving the planet and humankind from toxic chemicals in food, water and the air, if we are to survive toxic chemicals and their currently unavoidable poisonings."The full PAN report is available for free online here
(NaturalNews) There have been countless stories across the web that have documented those struggling to fight against the Dakota Access Pipeline. Native Americans, farmers, ranchers, landowners and environmental activists have joined together to oppose the pipeline and bring the project to a grinding halt.Just recently, 127 Native American activists were arrested at a construction site near the Standing Rock Sioux reservation in North Dakota. Despite the corporate media's attempts to suppress information surrounding the controversial pipeline, concerns about the Dakota Access project have become increasingly visible.However, one issue has remained in the dark: the government's abuse of eminent domain.Eminent domain is what gives the government the right to seize private, law-abiding citizens' properties for public use. Normally this means a road, a school or another public structure that will be used by the citizens of a town or which in some way serves them. However, the government can also seize private land if they can prove that it will provide some sort of "public good." This loophole  and yes, it is a loophole  has allowed our government to steal land from taxpayers for years, and then give it to a private citizen or company. Such is the case with the Dakota Access Pipeline.This pipeline is not a public project; it is being conducted by a private company that will profit off their endeavors. And yet, in spite of all the land that will be destroyed and the people whose lives will be disrupted by this project, the government has still seen fit to steal land and give it to the pipeline's creators under the guise of "public good."In Iowa, a major conflict between farmers and the government has broken out. You see, the state government is trying to take their land, and consequently, their livelihoods, to make way for the pipeline The state's decision to hand over land owned by farmers to the Dakota Access LLC has been met with quite a lot of opposition  as it should have. Just last week, Calhoun County farmer Cyndy Coppola wasfor protesting the government's usurpation ofApparently, they expected farmers to idly sit back and watch them steal what they worked so hard for.Cyndy Coppola's arrest has been ignored by the mainstream media, probably because it doesn't align with their narrative that Big Government knows best. An injurious move at best, her arrest highlights everything wrong with the way our government is being run.The theft of privately owned land simply cannot be ignored any longer  it is unconstitutional for the government to give a tax-paying citizen's land to a multi-billion dollar energy company so that they can make even more money. And it won't just be the oil and gas companies that profit off this disgusting display of government; dozens of big banks and investment firms will also be taking home a piece of the pie.reported in September than 17 financial institutions loaned Dakota Access LLC a whopping $2.5 billion to launch their project. They noted that banks have also given a substantial number of resources to the Energy Transfer Family of companies, such as billion-dollar credit lines and revolving credits. In total, a staggering 38 banks have given this corporation over $10 billion in loans and credits.How many of those banks do you think have ties to our government? Goldman Sachs is on the list, as are several other infamous industry names.If you think the pipeline is being constructed to better our country, you're wrong. It's being constructed to make money for a group of elitist corporations  and they plan on taking down anyone and anything that stands in their way.
(NaturalNews) Is there some sort of race to see which country can eliminate the rights of its people first? It is certainly beginning to feel like there must be something going on, since government overreach looks like it is reaching an all-time high across the world.While countries like Australia demonize other nations for their lack of progressiveness, recent developments suggest that its government is taking away people's freedom to think for themselves, slowly but surely chipping away at those who have dissenting opinions. The evidence? The newly released vaccination standards provided by The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia in response to what the organization described as, "a small number of nurses and midwives promoting anti-vaccination via social media."In their statement, they wrote that the board was merely taking the time to make its expectations in regards to vaccination and vaccination advice very clear to registered nurses, enrolled nurses and midwives. "The board expects all registered nurses, enrolled nurses and midwives to use the best available evidence in making practice decisions."This sentiment might have been acceptable, if it wasn't coupled with the organization also prompting people to tattle on each other. You see, the board is also urging members of the public to come forward and report nurses and midwives who may be expounding anti-vaccination beliefs. Surely anyone who goes against the grain deserves to be punished?If the medical industry was as strictly regulated as it purports itself to be, perhaps so many people wouldn't be dying each year from medical errors. An estimated 18,000 to 54,000 people in Australia lose their lives to medical mistakes each year  but the industry continues to insist that its those pesky thoughts that are really putting people in jeopardy. How dare anyone want to help people and think for themselves at the same time?In their statement, the board noted that any reports will not be taken lightly. "The board will consider whether the nurse or midwife has breached their professional obligations and will treat these matters seriously."To make matters worse, not only will these brave nurses and midwives be reported by people who may once have been their friends or colleagues, but the promotion of what the government deems "misleading or deceptive information" is a serious offense.And boy, will they take it seriously. Under national law, the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency is able to prosecute anyone who commits such an act. While we all know that the true deception lies in the promotion of vaccines as a public health necessity, we also know that mainstream medicine will do anything to protect their precious immunizations.Dr. Hannah Dahlen, a professor of midwifery at the University of Western Sydney and the spokeswoman for the Australian College of Midwives, toldthat nurses and midwives are respected individuals who play an important role in society, and that she believes that people take their advice quite seriously. She went on to say, "I agree that they have a very serious obligation to provide the best available evidence, and it is of course concerning that some are taking to social media in order to express a position not backed by science."But are concerns about what's in vaccines really not backed by science? Many people might say that continuing to ignore the evidence that there are horrible toxins like glyphosate and mercury in vaccines is what goes against science In a rather ironic statement, Dahlen declared, "The worry is the confirmation bias that can occur, because people might say: 'There you go, this is proof that you can't even have an alternative opinion.' It might in fact just give people more fuel for their belief systems."Legislating dissenting opinions into extinction, and persecuting those who are raising awareness about a very real problemproof that alternative opinions are not allowed. That's really all there is to it; it's biased, unjust and frankly, more befitting of the very governments Australia speaks out against.
Lieutenant Harry Colebourn, a young veterinary officer on his way to train as part of the Canadian Expeditionary Force at Valcartier during World War I, couldn't have predicted that a stopover on Aug. 24, 1914 at White River, Ontario, would make him the owner of a seven-month-old bear cub.

The 27-year-old Colebourn was surprised by the sight of a black bear cub on a leash held by a trapper who was looking for a buyer. The trapper had killed the cub's mother but couldn't stomach killing the now-orphaned bear. Colebourn had loved animals ever since his childhood and had studied veterinary surgery in Canada at the age of 18 before settling in Winnipeg, a prairie boomtown. As a tribute, Colebourn named his new companion "Winnipeg."

"Winnie," the bear cub climbed tent poles, slept under Colebourn's cot, and sniffed after him like a puppy. Extremely fond of apples and condensed milk with corn syrup, Winnie was easily trained and amiably posed for photographs as the mascot of Colebourn's regiment on Salisbury Plain.

But Winnie couldn't travel with him to the trenches of France in the Western Front. London Zoo had just created a new bear habitat that looked like a mountain landscape, and Colebourn decided that Winnie could call this home for a few months. His original plan was to bring Winnie back to Canada at the end of World War I.

Each leave from military duty was spent visiting Winnie in the London Zoo. Even if she was no longer a small cub, Winnie was still the same gentle-natured bear Colebourn had left. Children were allowed to ride on Winnie's back and feed her by hand. Ernest Sceales, a zookeeper in the London Zoo, told a newspaper in 1933 that Winnie was "quite the tamest and best-behaved bear we have ever had at the zoo."

Colebourn barely lived through the war as he performed the very crucial service of healing horses from bullet and shrapnel wounds. But when he went back to the London Zoo for Winnie, he found she had become a dear member of the London community. He couldn't bear to take her away from a place where she was dearly loved. He bid Winnie farewell and returned to Winnipeg to work for the Department of Agriculture while operating a small animal hospital behind his house.

Author A.A. Milne was inspired to write about London Zoo's gentle bear that had delighted his young son, Christopher Robin. Like Colebourn, Christopher Robin fed condensed milk to the friendly black bear, happily hugging Winnie. He even changed his teddy bear's name from "Edward" to "Winnie the Pooh." The rest is literary history.

London Zoo and Winnipeg's Assiniboine Park Zoo both unveiled statues of Colebourn holding the hands of Winnie as she stands on her hind legs. These statues commemorate a Canadian soldier and his black bear cub and the children's classic their bond had inspired.
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has detected a "heart" beating with rhythmic precision at the center of the supernova remnant Crab Nebula.

The heart, which is called a neutron star, is the crushed core of the exploded star. Located near the center of the supernova remnant, the heart is about same mass as the sun. It is squeezed into an ultra-dense sphere that is 100 billion times stronger and spans a few miles across.

In a press release, NASA noted that the beating heart of the Crab Nebula spins 30 times a second, producing a deadly magnetic field that can generate up to one trillion volts. Due to this, wisp-like waves that form and expanding ring can be observed coming from the beating heart.

The hot gas glowing from the nebula glows in radiation across electromagnetic spectrum, from radio to x-rays. The observation made by Hubble was taken using the Advanced Camera for Surveys between January and September 2012. It was taken in visible light as black-and0white exposures.

According to NASA, the Crab Nebula is one of the most historic and intensively studied supernova remnants. The first recorded observation of the Crab Nebula can be traced back to 1054 A.D. Chinese astronomers recorded seeing the nebula and considered it a "guest star" appeared in daytime for 23 days. The same star, which appeared to be six times brighter than Venus, was also observed by stargazers living in different countries, including Japan, Middle East and America.

French astronomer Charles Messier discovered the hazy nebula near the location of long vanished supernova in 1758. The discovery was made when the Messier was searching for comets. Thus, he added the nebula to his celestial catalog as "Messier 1," marking it as a "fake comet."

The sketch of the nebula came nearly a century later thanks to the work of British astronomer William Parsons. The nebula is peculiarly resembles the crustacean, resulting to its present name Crab Nebula. The Crab Nebula was first associated to the guest star seen by the Chinese in 1928 by the astronomer Edwin Hubble.


A new study revealed that the warming temperatures in the Arctic could disrupt the flow of the global nitrogen cycle, altering the natural balance between nitrogen sources and nitrogen removal.

The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, showed that sensitive areas in the Arctic plays a larger role in the global nitrogen cycle as previously thought. Despite accounting to only one percent of the world's continental shelf, Arctic accounts for about five percent of the global ocean nitrogen removal.

"The role of this region is critically important to understand as humans put more nitrogen into the ocean via fertilizers, sewage and other sources," explained Amber Hardison, an assistant professor of marine science at The University of Texas at Austin and co-author of the study, in a statement. "The Arctic is also undergoing dramatic changes linked to climate change, including a rapid decline in sea ice. As sea ice shrinks, it disrupts the natural functioning of the ecosystem, including potentially limiting the vital nitrogen removal process."

For the study, the researchers measured different processes that can remove nitrogen in the Chukchi Sea, a part of the Arctic Ocean adjacent to the Pacific Ocean and Alaska. The researchers found that the shrinking sea ice in the Arctic could negatively influence bacteria involved in the denitrification process.

The depleting sea ice could alter several marine ecosystems, including animals living in and on the seafloor, in not yet known ways. These animals, such as worms and clams, make tubes and burrows in the seabed, creating a prefect space for bacteria to engage in denitrification.

The global nitrogen cycle has been well maintained by the oceans in the past. However, increase human activities, causing fertilizer and sewage runoff into the oceans, have tilted the balance. Nitrogen is essential for the survival of all living things. But excessive nitrogen can harm both marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Large concentration of nitrogen could promote the growth of algae that are harmful to marine life.


There was a barrage of spacewalk 'live feeds' from Facebook yesterday, Oct. 27, to the surprise of many. A lot of people have seen the footage streamed live on Facebook by social media pages such as Unilad. Apparently, the NASA "spacewalk Facebook" live is fake.

Although there are comments saying that it could be a studio set-up or a setting for a virtual reality video game, those speculations are also false. The 'live' part may not be true but it is an actual spacewalk video from space, it was just not 'LIVE' as some pages claim it to be.

The video shows astronauts performing their duties outside the International Space Station (ISS) with the Earth as their background. Those familiar with NASA live feeds can tell the authenticity of the video if they are familiar with how the video looks, how the sounds from the astronaut's oxygen systems were captured and how the Earth appeared on the videos.

The questionable part is that there is no scheduled spacewalk as confirmed by NASA and other space agencies worldwide, so how come there was a 'LIVE' spacewalk video being streamed on Facebook Live? Reports say about 26 million viewed the video from Viral USA's page while Unilad's video garnered about 17 million views.

Apparently, the video, a real spacewalk, was taken in 2013 when Russian astronauts Oleg Kotov & Sergei Ryazanski performed their duty outside the International Space Station (ISS). Despite the confusion caused by the Facebook LIVE claim, a NASA official told BBC that the agency was surprised by the interest that the public has shown towards space science specifically with astronauts performing a spacewalk.

The agency also said that for photos, videos and other interesting multimedia stuff, anyone can visit NASA TV and their social media handles (they have a lot) to learn more about space science. Facebook, however, already established that the Internet connectivity from Earth to the ISS and back is feasible. Earlier this year, Facebook CEO himself Mark Zuckerberg facilitated a 'Q and A' with an astronaut aboard the ISS using Facebook LIVE.

So the next time anyone is eager for some cinematic view from outer space, seek the help of NASA TV for some timely and genuinely captivating videos streamed live from the outer space.
For the first time, renewable power has surpassed coal, a new report said. According to the International Energy Agency's (IEA) Medium-Term Renewable Market Report, renewables have become the largest source of installed power capacity in the world in 2015, exceeding coal power.

The achievement is due in part to new installations of solar and wind power projects. According to the report, about half a million solar panels were being installed every day in 2015, and about two new wind turbines were being put up every hour in countries such as China.

"We are witnessing a transformation of global power markets led by renewables," Dr. Faith Birol, IEA's executive director, said in a statement. "And, as is the case with other fields, the center of gravity for renewable growth is moving to emerging markets."

Last year had been a banner year for renewable energy, having reached a record 153 Gigawatts (GW), which is 15 percent more than that of 2014's record. The growth is enough to surpass the world's coal power and become the largest source of new capacity. Wind power accounted for 66 GW of these additions, with photovoltaics additions at 49 GW. The other segments were comprised of other renewable sources, such as geothermal power and hydroelectric power.

The report identifies other factors behind the achievement, which includes increased competition, enhanced policy support in key markets, and technological improvements. IEA predicts renewables to remain the fastest-growing source of electricity generation over the next five years, from 23 percent in 2015 to 28 percent in 2021. According to the report, by 2021, renewables is expected to generate electricity equivalent to the total demand of the U.S. and Europe.

However, more time and effort are needed to strengthen policies and cost of financing is consistently a challenge in many developing nations. Moreover, renewable growth in the heat and transport sectors remains slow.

"I am pleased to see that last year was one of the records for renewables and that our projections for growth over the next five years are more optimistic," Birol said. "However, even these higher expectations remain modest compared with the huge untapped potential of renewables. The IEA will be working with governments around the world to maximize the deployment of renewables in coming years."
A new startup company will photograph the Earth every day and share images to the public to promote global change transparency.

After two years in the business, the satellite-imaging startup Planet is now capturing images of over 50 million square kilometers of the Earth every day, which is about one-tenth of the whole world's surface area or more than a third of its 149 square kilometers of land, Quartz reports. In September 2016 alone, the company has already photographed 91 percent of the planet's landmass.

During an address to the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit on Sept. 27, 2015, Will Marshall, co-founder and CEO of the startup, said that they aim to make global change visible, accessible, and actionable for everyone.

Using its network of tiny, inexpensive satellites hovering 400 or 500 kilometers above the Earth. Planet captures images of the Earth. The company makes these images available to the public by offering the basic access for free, while premium accounts are for data of higher quantity and quality.

"We miniaturized these little satellites, and we put them up [in space] in large fleets in order to image the planet, with their little cameras going around the Earth," Marshall said during the Bloomberg Technology Conference. "We've put up 133 of these satellites. It's the largest fleet of satellites doing Earth imaging in history, and the goal is to image every single point on the Earth's surface every day."

The satellites are about the size of a loaf of bread, which could capture about 9.8 feet of resolution per pixel and can be refined to as precise as tracking every tree on the planet, Live Science reports. Collectively, they move around the Earth like the head of a scanner, capturing images of the planet as it rotates.

Planet has already shared its data with organizations: Amnesty International used the imagery to track refugee camps in Syria, Descartes Lab uses the data to develop machine-learning technology to be used to forecast land-use trends for farmers, the Monitoring of the Andean Amazon Project also found illegal mining and deforestation in Peru through the imagery, and Orbital Insight used the data to provide an analysis of seaports to their investors.

Just recently, the company signed a deal with the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency - the federal government's source of geospatial intelligence.
The myth behind Patient Zero, the Canadian man named Gaetan Dugas, who was the person who allegedly brought HIV to the U.S., gets his named cleared 30 years after his death. Scientists now reveal that Dugas was not to blame on the arrival of AIDS in the country.

According to the study published in the journal Nature, a team of scientists has determined, through analysis and testing of Dugas' genes, that he was not the first AIDS patient in the US.

The researchers used a blood serum of Dugas before his death as well as blood serum samples from men in New York the 1970s. As it tuns out, the HIV virus arrived in the counrty in 1971, two years before Dugas, a former flight attendant, became sexually active in underground gay bars, Smithsonian notes. The HIV virus was said to have originated from the Caribbean and landed in New York. Scientists found out that the blood samoles from the New York men have already developed antibodies from HIV even before Patient Zero was diagnosed.

Even though Dugas passed away from then AIDS in 1984, his name has been forever associated with the deadly disease. Medical records never released his name and masked him behind the monicker Patient Zero. But Randy Shilt's book titled "And the Band Played" taints Dugas' name, portraying him as someone amoral who intended to spread the disease through intercourse.

There really is no question about the geographical direction of movement, said study leader Michael Worobey, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Arizona in Tucsonvia LA Times.It took a mixture of patience and insanity, but these old sequences are as good as a time machine."
At a time when the world is geared toward safeguarding attractive endangered animals like pandas and tigers, these ugly looking animals, whose faces are loved only by Mother Nature, need to be saved at all costs. The number of animals in the wild has gone down by 58 percent since 1970, according to a new report from the Zoological Society of London. It's surprising to note that the ugly-looking Titicaca water frog faces the same risk as its cosmetically attractive relations. However, to a handful of good souls, looks aren't everything, and these horrid-looking creatures have their own admirers.

In order to campaign for these less-blessed animals, an organization called the Ugly Animals Preservation Society was set up by Simon Watt, a noted biologist, a couple of years back. He's apprehensive of the fact that endangered species may totally disappear since they do not get the same help as the cuddlier members in the animal kingdom.

Some of these animals include the Titicaca water frog, the large-nosed Proboscis monkey, blobfish, aye-aye, kaluga aturgeon, the Antsingy leaf chameleon, the Vietnamese giant snail, the red-headed vulture, salamanders, the peacock tarantula, and the mole rat, to name a few. The vast chunk of life out there is ugly and dull, said Simon. If people want to save tigers, snow leopards, and pandas, things must be going wrong, he added. At least 50 of these species are becoming extinct every single day, which is why the organization was set up.

Simon wrote a book titled The Ugly Animals: We Can't All be Pandas in 2015 that lists some of the ugliest creatures on this planet. He said that people are drawn to animals with a teddy bear look and added that it's now time to safeguard their habitats rapidly. If not done, the world will turn out to be boring, pain and dull, he explained.
Early concepts for the design of the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art have been released for two competing locations in San Francisco and Los Angeles, and the exterior of the building in both looks like something straight out of a George Lucas "Star Wars" movie.

A site on Treasure Island already has been approved for development and designated for cultural use. It has received broad support from San Francisco officials, including Mayor Ed Lee and Supervisor Aaron Peskin.

The spaceship-like design, which captures the essence of Lucas' fame as the creator of the iconic "Star Wars" franchise, was conceived by Chinese architect Ma Yansong, of MAD Architects.

The design calls for about 270,000 square feet of interior space, with about 100,000 square feet devoted to galleries, according to the museum website. The building would be located on the west side of the island, facing the San Francisco skyline and near a proposed ferry terminal.

Lucas, 72, had previously targeted a site near Crissy Field for his museum, but that plan was squashed by the Presidio Trust in 2010.

A proposal to build the museum in Chicago was pulled by Lucas in June after a nonprofit filed a lawsuit to block the project.

The San Francisco deal is competing directly with a proposal in Los Angeles, and Lucas likely will choose the location for the museum early next year, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The Treasure Island museum deal would need to be approved by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and the Treasure Island Development Authority.
A man was arrested on the San Jose State campus Thursday after driving a truck recklessly through Campus Village, university police said.

The vehicle was seen swerving near housing units off Ninth and San Salvador streets. He was stopped almost immediately and did not present an ongoing threat to the campus community, police said.

San Jose police Units also responded to the scene, which was near City Hall.

The suspect was booked into county jail for reckless driving and hit-and-run.
The developer of the embattled Millennium Tower in San Francisco has been given 90 days to fix two disabled access ramps deemed too steep under city code, according to city officials.

One of the ramps is in the rear of the building, and the other is in the fifth floor lobby linking the tower to the low-rise Millennium structure. City inspectors also noticed a potentially hazardous gap at the base of a rail on the latter ramp, likely caused by the towers sinking issue.

San Francisco's Department of Building Inspection issued the warnings Thursday, just one day after getting a complaint from someone in the building. But documents obtained by NBC Bay Area show city building inspectors discovered the problems back in July, when top officials quietly toured the tower before it was revealed that it had sunk 16 inches and was tilting at least 2 inches.

If the developer does not fix the ramp problems, the city could revoke the towers occupancy permit.

The city also cited Millennium for not getting proper permits before repairing water damage in the concrete basement.

Supervisor Aaron Peskin said the city should have acted sooner.

"While I'm very pleased that the city is finally issuing notices of violation on a number of different items, this does not get to the fundamental issue of how we're going to stabilize the building moving forward and what we knew when we knew it and who did what when," Peskin said.
Capitalizing on the frenzy surrounding Californias Prop 64, supporters for marijuana legalization will debut a musical rendition of "Reefer Madness" at the Campbell Theater in Martinez on Friday.

The production will run until Nov. 19. Company members told NBC Bay Area that they hope it will bring some levity to what has been a rather rancorous election season.

We want people to come in and really just have a good time, explained Helen Means, a founding member of the Campbell Theater.

"Reefer Madness" is a parody of the 1930s film that tried to discourage marijuana use by grossly exaggerating its side effects. The film, also titled Reefer Madness, shows pot use driving average teens to commit rape, murder and other atrocities, all due to a few puffs of the wacky tobaccy. Once shown in classrooms and churches, it has since become a shining example of PSA-style videos gone hilariously wrong. It lives on in embarrassing infamy thanks to sites like YouTube.

Unlike its film counterpart, the stage adaptations humor is entirely intentional. Penned by famed playwright Kevin Murphy in the 1980s, its been a favorite across theater houses nationwide for its bawdy and provocative satire. Means said it will be one of the few shows in their lineup that isnt suitable for younger kids.

As it happens, Means was assigned to see the propaganda film as a student in the 1950s. She remembers her entire class finding the film hysterical for its extreme melodrama.

The whole thing was just so stupid, Means, who grew up in rural Susanville, said. I mean, at the time, I thought that marijuana was just something people used in big cities...but even then we still didnt take it seriously. We laughed.

Means and the crew say the decision to insert the more risky parody into their season was directly inspired by the controversial ballot initiative, which could pave the way for recreational pot use across the state. Although several senior members of the company say they do not smoke, all told NBC Bay Area that they supported the decriminalization of the plant.

Thats why we timed it. We thought it would make a good fit, explained Randall Knott, the director and designer of the play. It definitely is inspired because of Prop 64but were just trying to make it a fun time. Were not making a political statement with it.

As a substitute for marijuana, the cast will be toking on mint tea rolled up to look like joints. Although the stage design is still under construction, the crew has painted a window overlooking a grow operation and placed a giant hookah in the middle of the set for effect.

Jennifer Peabody, the plays principal actress and a longtime company member, said putting on a show like "Reefer Madness" is an opportunity to branch out and try something different. After Campbells moved to Martinez from its decades-long home in Pleasant Hill two years ago, expanding and meeting new faces in the community has been a priority.

"We're like a close-knit family here...but we're always looking for new people to come in, and hopefully this helps with that."

Gillian Edevane covers Contra Costa County. Contact her at Gillian.Edevane@NBCuni.com.
A Sunnyvale police officer on Monday came to the aid of a distraught special needs boy, who was kicking and screaming, in the throes of a breakdown.

Corinne Oestreich took to Facebook to express her gratitude for the policeman, identified only as Officer Ben, who helped her son, Hunter, who struggles with Tourette syndrome, anxiety and obsessivecompulsive disorder. According to the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety, the officer's name is Benjamin Holt.

The 5-year-old boy was very upset because his grandmother had just taken a flight back home to Minnesota, Oestreich said. The Sunnyvale residents were at a Lucky supermarket when Hunter experienced the worst breakdown his mother had ever seen him go through in his life so far.

I held him, I consoled him, Oestreich wrote. I firmly and kindly stayed calm, yet inside I was terrified of the looks from other shoppers, or rather from their averted eyes as my son threw himself on the floor of Luckys.

While Oestreich attempted in vain to get Hunter into her car, he simply continued to strike himself in the face, she said.

Thats when Holt arrived on scene, and turned the day around.

As Oestreich battled tears, the officer guided Hunter from hysterical crying to quiet interest.

He very calmly was able to distract my Hunter, let him see the inside of the patrol car and even took time to demonstrate to Hunter how to look for finger prints! Oestrich wrote.

She continued: Officer Ben was understanding, wanted to make sure that I knew he was not in any haste to go anywhere and that Hunter and I were his focus. He kept a distance from Hunter and I could tell he was gauging how much Hunter would allow him to be near him.

The grateful mother gave a shout-out to the Sunnyvale Police Department for their amazing officer.

Not only did Holt help Hunter, but gave her some reinforcements.

Thank you thank you thank you, Oestreich said, concluding with a heart emoji.

Holt declined to speak with NBC Bay Area, but department spokesman Capt. Shawn Ahearn said that he was "proud" to have been able to use techniques  on interacting with special needs children and adults  that officers had been trained in earlier this year.

Holt was "really just happy that everything worked out OK," Ahearn said.
What to Know Republican vice presidential candidate Mike Pence's campaign plane slid off the runway at LaGuardia Airport Thursday evening

Officials say it overshot the runway and made a hard landing

No injuries were reported, and Pence tweeted that everyone on the plane is safe

Vice presidential candidate Mike Pence's campaign plane slid off the runway after landing at LaGuardia Airport Thursday evening, tearing up two tracks of concrete before coming to rest on a patch of grass.

The governor was checked to make sure he was OK, but no injuries were reported, according to an NBC campaign embed on the scene. Port Authority emergency responders were on the scene within seconds, and LaGuardia Airport was closed for over an hour while authorities investigated.

The Boeing 737 plane, which was coming from Fort Dodge, Iowa -- about a three-hour flight from New York -- overshot a runway and made a rough impact when it landed shortly after 7:30 p.m., according to officials. The pilot slammed on the brakes and travelers could smell burning rubber.

"We can see mud on the front windows," a calm Pence said in the press cabin about a minute after the plane came to rest. He said he felt fine.

NBC campaign embed Vaughn Hillyard said on MSNBC later that the Pence plane has often had hard landings, "but in this one we hit hard, bounced for a couple seconds, then took a hard swerve to the right.

"We didn't realize fully what was happening up until the point that the campaign plane came to a complete stop, and you can see the road is 100 yards away from where the plane was -- we're off the tarmac," he continued."

"Because we were at a complete standstill and we're with the vice presidential canddiate -- we felt we're all right. And everyone was fine," said Hillyard. "The governor came quickly to see if everyone was OK. Everyone was fine."

Passengers, including Pence, exited through the back of the plane. Pence was seen shaking hands with firefighters and emergency responders on the ground before getting into a car and leaving the tarmac.

None of the 37 passengers and 11 crews on board the charter plane were hurt, according to Port Authority officials. Arrestor beds -- crushable concrete material that are installed at the end of runways and designed to slow down an aircraft overrun with no human injury and minimal damage -- "did its job" and stopped the plane, Port Authority officials said at a news briefing.

Campaign spokesman Marc Loetter told reporters that Pence had missed his fundraiser in New York City and was headed to his hotel for the night.

Pence tweeted shortly afterward, "So thankful everyone on our plane is safe. Grateful for our first responders & the concern & prayers of so many. Back on the trail tomorrow!"

Pence was scheduled to appear on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" Friday morning.

In Geneva, Ohio, GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump told his supporters that Pence had come "pretty close to grave, grave danger." But, he added: "I just spoke to Mike Pence and he's fine. Everybody's fine."

After closing the airport for about an hour after the incident, the Port Authority reopened one of the two runways at the airport. The other runway will remain closed indefinitely pending clearing of the aircraft. The FAA and the NTSB are investigating.

In March 2015, a passenger jet carrying 127 passengers skidded off a runway at LaGuardia Airport and crashed into a fence as it tried to land amid a blinding wintry mix. Pilot error was blamed in that skid, with federal investigators finding the pilot used too much reverse thrust and lost control of the plane's direction.

Earlier this week, a study by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics found that LaGuardia was the worst performing airport in the country. It is currently undergoing a multi-billion dollar renovation.
An incident involving an American Airlines plane prompted a major emergency response at O'Hare International Airport, authorities said.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, American Airlines Flight 383 was departing from O'Hare and was headed to Miami when it experienced "a problem during takeoff." American Airlines said the plane had an engine malfunction.

Gary Schiavone, of Demott, Ind., said he was sitting in the middle of the plane, travelling with his wife to visit their daughter in Miami.

We started to take off, we didnt get in the air, it seemed like the right side engine blewbig ball of fire, Schiavone said, adding that window on the plane then cracked.

The pilots aborted the takeoff and passengers exited via a chute as flames were reported, authorities said.

The airline said in a statement that seven passengers and one crew member reported injuries and were transported to area hospitals for evaluation, but fire officials said during a later press conference that as many as 20 people were transported to area hospitals.

Most of those transported suffered minor injuries and were listed in stable condition, according to District Chief Juan Hernandez.

There were 161 passengers and nine crew members on the plane, the airline said.

An incident involving an American Airlines plane prompted a major emergency response at OHare International Airport, authorities said. Trina Orlando reports.

Advocate Lutheran General Hospital said it was treating four people from the scene. Presence Resurrection Medical Center reported three patients from the scene in unknown condition.

The FAA reported that a runway was closed at the airport due to a "disabled aircraft." The FAA initially reported a ground stop at O'Hare after the incident, but the Chicago Department of Aviation said as of 3:30 p.m. three runways were closed at the airport. Ongoing delays were expected, airport officials said.

Chicago fire officials reported an emergency at the scene, saying "aircraft down at O'Hare."

We were 30 seconds into the safety video, about do not grab your luggage in an emergency, Schiavone said, noting that several passengers attempted to get their bags during the emergency evacuation. It could have caused a big problemdont get your luggage in a situation like that.

The incident prompted an extra-alarm response.

https://twitter.com/CFDMedia/status/792088812784611329

The Chicago Department of Aviation said fire officials responded to an aircraft on fire.

[[399091251 , C]]

Smoke and fire could be seen at the airport just after 2:30 p.m.

The National Transportation Safety Board said three investigators were being dispatched to Chicago following the fire.

"This could have been absolutely devastating if it happened later, if it happened farther, there's about a thousand variables," said Assistant Deputy Fire Commissioner of Airport Operations Timothy Sampey.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation.

Check back for details on this developing story.

New recordings from the air traffic control tower show a conversation between the cockpit and the tower the moment pilots knew they had a problem.
The U.S. military said Iraqi forces have retaken 40 villages from the Islamic State group near Mosul since a massive operation to drive the militants from the city began last week.

U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Matthew C. Isler said Friday that Iraqi troops are consolidating gains made east and south of the city earlier this week, but insisted "momentum" was still on their side.

The fight to retake Mosul, which fell to ISIS in a matter of days in the summer of 2014, is the largest military operation undertaken in Iraq since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.

Isler said the U.S.-led coalition has stepped up airstrikes against the militants, and is carrying out three times as many as it did during previous campaigns to drive IS from other Iraqi cities.

Meanwhile, the U.N. human rights office said Friday ISIS appears to be using tens of thousands of people as "human shields" in and around Mosul.

It has received reports of more than 200 people being killed for refusing to comply with IS orders or previously belonging to Iraqi security forces. It said "credible reports" suggest IS has been forcing tens of thousands from their homes in districts around Mosul.

"ISIL's depraved, cowardly strategy is to attempt to use the presence of civilian hostages to render certain points, areas or military forces immune from military operations, effectively using tens of thousands of women, men and children as human shields," spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said in Geneva.

She said 232 people, mostly former officers, were reportedly shot Wednesday, and 24 on Tuesday.

The Associated Press reported earlier this week that IS militants were going door to door in villages south of Mosul, ordering hundreds of civilians at gunpoint on a forced march north into the city, apparently using them as human shields.

The U.N. and rights groups have expressed fear that more than 200,000 civilians could be displaced in the opening weeks of the offensive. Mosul is still home to more than a million people.

ISIS has built up elaborate defenses on the outskirts of the city, including an extensive tunnel network, and has planted large numbers of explosive booby traps to slow the troops' progress.
Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton defended Rep. Tammy Duckworth in a tweet Friday, slamming Sen. Mark Kirk for making a racially-charged comment about the congresswomans family during a debate Thursday.

Thankful for @TammyforILs  and her familys  service to this country, Clinton, who endorsed Duckworths candidacy in March, tweeted Friday morning. Its really not that hard to grasp, @MarkKirk.

At Thursdays debate, which was hosted at the University of Illinois Springfields Sangamon Auditorium, Kirk mocked Duckworths family history of military service after the congresswoman said her family has served this nation in uniform going back to the Revolution.

I had forgotten your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington, Kirk responded.

Duckworth, who lost both legs piloting a Black Hawk helicopter over Iraq IN 2004, was born in Bangkok to a Thai mother of Chinese descent. Her father was a U.S. Army veteran.

Kirks comment was met with silence in the auditorium and thunderous condemnation on social media. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trumps campaign also roasted Kirk on Twitter Thursday night.

Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway retweeted a Deadspin tweet about the incident with a goading message aimed at Kirk. The senator has disavowed Trump and taken out ads distancing himself from the divisive billionaire.

The same Mark Kirk that unendorsed his partys presidential candidate and called him out in paid ads, Conway tweeted Thursday night. Gotcha. Good Luck."

Kirk personally apologized for the comment Friday on Twitter.

"Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service," the senator tweeted.

Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service. #ilsen  Mark Kirk (@MarkKirk) October 28, 2016

His campaign also issued a statement Friday.

"Senator Kirk has consistently called Rep. Duckworth a war hero and honors her family's service to this country," Kirk spokeswoman Eleni Demertzis said in statement. "But that's not what this debate was about. Rep. Duckworth lied about her legal troubles, was unable to defend her failures at the VA and then falsely attacked Senator Kirk over his record on supporting gay rights."
Sen. Mark Kirk apologized to his opponent Rep. Tammy Duckworth Friday after making a racially charged comment about her parents during a debate.

Kirk tweeted the apology, writing "Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service. #ilsen."

His campaign also issued a statement about the comment that sparked backlash at Thursday's debate.

Senator Kirk has consistently called Rep. Duckworth a war hero and honors her familys service to this country, Kirk spokeswoman Eleni Demertzis said in a statement. But thats not what this debate was about. Rep. Duckworth lied about her legal troubles, was unable to defend her failures at the VA and then falsely attacked Senator Kirk over his record on supporting gay rights.

Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service. #ilsen  Mark Kirk (@MarkKirk) October 28, 2016

At Thursdays debate, which was hosted at the University of Illinois Springfields Sangamon Auditorium, Kirk mocked Duckworths family history of military service after the congresswoman said her family has served this nation in uniform going back to the Revolution.

I had forgotten your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington, Kirk responded.

Duckworth, who lost both legs piloting a Black Hawk helicopter over Iraq in 2004, was born in Bangkok to a Thai mother of Chinese descent. Her father was a U.S. Army veteran.

Kirks comment was met with silence in the auditorium and thunderous condemnation on social media.

That remark made by [Mark Kirk] about [Tammy Duckworth's] ancestry is about the lowest thing Ive seen in a debate, Capitol Faxs Rich Miller said in a tweet.

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's campaign manager Kellyanne Conway also took the opportunity to slam Kirk, who has disavowed Trump and taken out ads distancing himself from the divisive billionaire.

"The same Mark Kirk that unendorsed his party's presidential candidate and called him out in paid ads," Conway tweeted Thursday. "Gotcha. Good luck."
Illinois Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk apologized Friday after he mocked his Democratic rival's family history of military service by saying he had forgotten the Asian-American congresswoman's "parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington."

The comment came Thursday evening during the first televised debate between Kirk and U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth, at the University of Illinois in Springfield. The Illinois Senate contest is one of a handful of races that could determine which party controls the chamber next year.

[NATL] Highlights From the 2016 Campaign Trail

Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran who lost both legs when the Black Hawk she was piloting was shot down in 2004, was born in Bangkok. Her mother is Thai and she has said her father first went to Southeast Asia while serving with the Marines in Vietnam.

The congresswoman said her family has "served this nation in uniform going back to the Revolution."

Kirk responded: "I had forgotten your parents came all of the way from Thailand to serve George Washington."

The remark was greeted mostly by silence in the auditorium, and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee immediately called the comment offensive and said Kirk should apologize.

Tammy Duckworth is a vet who lost both legs in Iraq. Her family has served since the Revolutionary War. And yet... pic.twitter.com/DHd3kWrUsN  Anthony Breznican (@Breznican) October 28, 2016

Kirk's campaign said on Twitter Friday, "Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service."

The apology followed an earlier statement by the campaign that said the senator had "consistently called Rep. Duckworth a war hero and honors her familys service to this country." But that statement also went on to attack Duckworth on other issues.

Duckworth, the first Asian-American congresswoman from Illinois, later tweeted a photo of herself with her parents, including her father in uniform displaying his medals. Her tweet says: "My mom is an immigrant and my dad and his family have served this nation in uniform since the Revolution."

My mom is an immigrant and my dad and his family have served this nation in uniform since the Revolution #ILSEN pic.twitter.com/ehEBHswFMs  Tammy Duckworth (@TammyforIL) October 28, 2016

Kirk, who suffered a stroke in 2012 and returned to work one year later, has been criticized before for controversial statements. In August, he said President Barack Obama was acting like the "drug dealer in chief" when the U.S. made a $400 million payment to Iran contingent on the return of U.S. prisoners.

He apologized in 2015 after referring to South Carolina U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, who's unmarried, as a "bro with no ho."

Kirk's latest comments drew heavy scorn across social media. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton posted on Twitter that she is thankful for Duckworth's and her family's service, adding "It's really not that hard to grasp, Mark Kirk."

The campaign manager for GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump also took the opportunity to jab at Kirk, who earlier this year withdrew his support for Trump and has been a vocal critic.

"The same Mark Kirk that unendorsed his party's presidential nominee and called him out in paid ads? Gotcha. Good luck," Kellyanne Conway posted on Twitter late Thursday.

Kirk, a first-term senator from Highland Park, is seen as one of the Senate's most vulnerable Republican incumbents, and Democrats consider Duckworth's success on Election Day one of the keys to reclaiming a majority in the chamber. Duckworth has a comfortable lead in the most recent polls, but Kirk says the race is closer than people think.
During an interview with WBEZ Wednesday, Sen. Mark Kirk wouldnt confirm if he still plans to write in former CIA Director David Petraeus for president.

Kirk said he was pretty frustrated with the countrys choices for president, criticizing Republican nominee Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton while praising Petraeus and his military record.

A man who has such a good military record would be able to inspire many of us, Kirk said of Petraeus. Trump does not inspire me about anything at all. Neither does Hillary. Im in one of those neither one categories.

However, Kirk stopped short of endorsing the four-star Army general or backing him as a write-in candidate Wednesday.

Petraeus resigned from his post as the CIAs director in 2012 following a scandal stemming from an extramarital affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell. He pleaded guilty in federal court last year to a charge of unauthorized removal and retention of classified information. As a result, Petraeus doesnt have the proper security clearance to become president.

Over the past year, Kirk has backed a variety of candidates. In March, he told NBC 5 he would back Donald Trump if he became the Republican nominee. He pulled his endorsement of Trump in June after the billionaire made a series of inflammatory statements about the heritage of a Hispanic judge presiding over civil fraud lawsuits against his beleaguered Trump University.

Later that month, the senator said he would write-in Petraeus. After facing criticism, Kirk changed course in July and started backing former Secretary of State Colin Powell, another four-star Army general who would also be a write-in candidate. Kirk later pulled his support of Powell because the former of Secretary of State backed the Iran nuclear deal, something the senator staunchly opposes.

During an August interview with the State Journal-Register editorial board, Kirk admitted he has been all over the map with regard to who he would back for president and reverted back to supporting Petraeus. However, it's unclear who Kirk will back for president, if anyone.

The Democratic Party of Illinois criticized Kirks judgment and indecisiveness Wednesday.

Kirk supported Donald Trump for months despite Trumps many disqualifying statements, backed Colin Powell because he mistakenly thought Powell opposed the Iran nuclear agreement, and encouraged voters to write-in a disgraced former CIA director who had his security clearance revoked after he lied about intentionally leaking classified material to his mistress, DPI spokesman Sean Savett said in a statement. After all of this, how can anyone take Mark Kirk seriously?"

The Kirk campaign did not respond to Ward Rooms request for comment.
Sen. Mark Kirk has invited four whistleblowers that have been critical of his opponent, Rep. Tammy Duckworth, to Thursdays U.S. Senate debate in Springfield.

The whistleblowers have accused Duckworth of ignoring or retaliating against them after they reported abuse and mismanagement during her time as director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs. The whistleblowers will serve as Kirks guests at Thursdays debate after meeting with the senator.

Attacks against Duckworths work at the state and national VA offices have become a cornerstone of Kirks campaign. In September, two of the whistleblowers, Denise Goins and Christine Butler, appeared in a campaign ad for Kirk, criticizing Duckworth and incarcerated former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who appointed the congresswoman director of the IDVA.

Director Tammy Duckworth was trying to protect Governor Blagojevich, Butler says in the ad. I believe she put her personal aspirations ahead of the veterans care. The veteran was not Tammy Duckworths top priority."

Goins and Butler filed a workplace retaliation lawsuit against Duckworth that was settled in late June, just over a month before it was scheduled to go to trial in mid-August. The settlement has not been finalized because Goins and Butler have not agreed to the terms of the agreement.

The other two VA whistleblowers, Dr. Lisa Nee and Germaine Clarno, also appeared in a Kirk ad in October. According to their allegations, Duckworth was largely unresponsive to evidence related to veteran mistreatment and inadequate investigations conducted by the VAs inspector general.

Duckworth campaign spokesman Matt McGrath called the move "pathetic" in a tweet Thursday, linking to a Capitol Fax story that accuses Kirk of taking a page from Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's "debate playbook."

Trump invited women who accused former President Bill Clinton of sexual abuse to the Oct. 9 presidential debate as a way to rattle his wife, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, NBC News reported. He also invited President Barack Obama's half-brother to the final presidential debate earlier this month, according to NBC News. Obama's half-brother, Malik Obama, supports Trump's candidacy.

Thursdays debate is being held at the University of Illinois Springfield's Sangamon Auditorium and is sponsored by the State Journal-Register, WMAY 970-AM and WICS-TV.
Three teen girls have been charged in a series of robberies involving women in downtown Chicago.

Police say two 15-year-old girls and a 13-year-old girl were each charged with one felony count of robbery. The 13-year-old also faces a misdemeanor count of battery.

Police said the girls turned themselves into police after surveillance images were released during a police investigation into the robberies.

The girls are accused of robbing women walking alone in downtown Chicago on at least three occassions. During the robberies, the girls allegedly battered the lone victims and fled with their personal belongings, police said.

The group of suspects were said to have taken cellphones and backpacks that contained computer tablets and ran away, police said.

Two of the robberies were reported between 9 and 9:15 p.m. Oct. 16 in the 100 block of North Michigan Avenue and the 200 block of East Randolph Street, police said. The most recent robbery was reported about 10 p.m. Oct. 19 in the first block of East Van Buren Street.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Area Central detectives at (312) 747-8384.
This coming winter had a chilling effect on today's City Council budget hearing.

Streets and Sanitation Commissioner Charles William said during the meeting the department is preparing for 16 inches of snow that could start falling as soon as Thanksgiving, the Chicago Sun-Times is reporting.

William also reportedly told the council temperatures will be lower than normal in January and February.

Its going to be a bad winter, the newspaper reported Williams as saying.

This year's El Nino is one of the strongest on record and it could have a big impact on winter weather across the nation, according to the latest forecast models.

Despite predictions that the Chicago area will see another frigid winter this year, it appears El Nino could bring warmer than usual temperatures to the area during the winter months.

El Nino is characterized by unusually warm sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean along the equator. The shift in temperatures could cause a change in weather patterns thousands of miles away  including in Chicago.

Forecasts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predict the weather phenomenon will continue in the Northern Hemisphere through the winter, peaking in the late fall-early winter months. The event will likely weaken by spring of 2016, forecasters said.

The National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center reported Illinois has an increased chance for above-average temperatures and below-average precipitation for the months of December, January and February.

That doesnt mean area residents wont need their winter coats and snow shovels, however.

According to the state climatologist, other factors come into play when determining the winter weather and even a mild winter can contain short periods of intense cold and heavy snow.

"While temperature and precipitation impacts associated with El Nino are favored, El Nino is not the only player," Mike Halpert, deputy director of NOAA's Climate Prediction Center, said in a statement. "Cold-air outbreaks and snow storms will likely occur at times this winter. However, the frequency, number and intensity of these events cannot be predicted on a seasonal timescale."

Last month, the Old Farmers Almanac predicted frigid weather in the Midwest this winter season.
A man has been charged with reckless homicide after crashing his vehicle into an Uber car last weekend in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, killing three Chicago women inside it, authorities said.

Jasen Randhawa, 23, turned himself in a day after the crash, according to Milwaukee police.

About 3:50 a.m. Sunday, a 2015 Lexus R350 was going south on North 2nd Street when it went through a red light and struck a 2013 Ford Fusion heading west on West Clybourn Avenue about 2:50 a.m., police said.

The driver of the Ford, a 41-year-old man working as an Uber driver, was taken to a hospital in critical condition, police said.

His three passengers  Ashley L. Sawatzke, 30; Amy C. Taylor, 32; and Lindsey B. Cohen, 35  were killed in the crash, police said. They were friends who met while working at the Chicago advertising agency Energy BBDO.

Our hearts are broken, the company said on its Facebook page. Their absence is deeply felt by everyone at Energy BBDO and well beyond.

Randhawa and a passenger ran away from the Lexus after the crash, but he turned himself in Monday, authorities allege.

The Mequon, Wisconsin, resident was charged Thursday with three counts of second-degree reckless homicide, one count of second-degree reckless injury, three counts of hit-and-run involving death and one count of hit-and-run involving great bodily harm, according to Milwaukee County Circuit Court records.

He also faces four additional felonies for driving with a license that had been revoked following a previous DUI conviction, records show.

Randhawa was jailed on a $1 million bond, according to the Milwaukee County sheriffs office. His next court date is Nov. 7.
A man was shot and critically wounded while driving on Lake Shore Drive early Friday near Grant Park.

At 1:26 a.m., officers responded to a call of a person shot in the northbound lanes near Grand and found the 41-year-old in the driver seat of a white conversion van, according to Chicago Police.

He had been shot in the face near Monroe, police said. He was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in critical condition, police said.
Chicago Cubs slugger Kyle Schwarber had two excellent games at the plate for the team in the opening days of the World Series, but will he be able to play in the field when the series shifts to Wrigley on Friday?

On Thursday afternoon, Cubs President Theo Epstein provided an update on Schwarber's condition, and it's not news that Cubs fans will want to hear.

According to Epstein, Schwarber still has not been medically cleared to play the field, and because of that he will only be available as a pinch hitter for the Cubs during the next three games of the World Series.

The news is a bit of a blow to a Cubs offense that enjoyed having Schwarber back in the mix, as he drove in a pair of runs and scored a run in the team's Game 2 win over the Cleveland Indians.

Schwarber's return to the lineup in any capacity was a big surprise, as he suffered a torn ACL in early April in a game in Arizona. After a lengthy rehab, Schwarber was able to fill the designated hitter role in the first two games of the World Series, with numerous base hits and two RBI to his credit in those contests.
What one suburban woman didnt know about her living room furniture nearly cost her $2,500  and she wasnt alone.

Batavia mother Kelly Lotriet bought two bonded leather couches and a chair from Ashley Furniture, and said her salesperson never told her the couches werent real leather. Her first clue: the day they started peeling. Had she known, Lotriet said she may have made a different choice

"If they were to inform me ahead of time that it wasn't leather or if it was a different material, then I would think twice about purchasing it, she said.

Her story echoes what hundreds of consumers from across the Chicago area told us: theyd never heard the term bonded leather before ending up with it in their homes. The furniture covering is made up of only a small percentage of leather, mixed with fibers and plastic.

Back in June, The Leather Industries of America told NBC 5 Responds retailers often dont share with consumers that bonded leather isnt real leather. But federal guidelines say that information is supposed to be stamped on or attached by label. So we went shopping to find out if stores are following that rule and if the customer experience has changed since our reports first aired.

We took our cameras to the retailers NBC 5 Responds viewers shared the most complaints about: The RoomPlace, Ashley Furniture, Value City and Darvin. In total, 11 undercover trips were made.

Heres what we found:

Entering the RoomPlace, large signs explaining the different types of leather scattered throughout the store.

All four retailers also had disclosure labels or tags attached to bonded leather furniture.

When asked about the product and whether it peels, most salespersons answered the question head on. Only one salesperson at Ashley downplayed the likelihood, saying if you dont put it in direct sunlight, next to a fireplace, or right under a heat vent, it should be ok. When asked if Ashley Furniture stood behind that statement, a spokesperson said while the salesperson was providing their common sense advice, our warranty does exclude damages from exposure to sunlight and humidity, which can be affected by heat sources such as fireplaces and heat vents.

One RoomPlace sales rep offered up an interesting prevention technique.

So just once in a while, put lotion (on it) and thats it. And get the warranty and youre good, the salesperson said.

The RoomPlace didnt answer NBC5 Responds question regarding that advice.

Warranties were a major sore spot for some customers. When asked if peeling furniture is covered, Darvin and Value City said yes, but The RoomPlace and Ashley said no.

Since NBC 5 Responds first report aired in April, viewers sent in more than 700 peeling furniture complaints. Since then, nearly $200,000 have been recovered for those viewers, including Lotriet.

After NBC 5 Responds called Ashley Furniture, the Lotriets received two new replacement couches, valued at about $2,500.

"So if it wasn't for them, NBC 5 Responds, we would have been stuck with the peeling couches," Lotriet said.

Below are the statements the four retailers sent to NBC5 Responds in response to our findings:

The RoomPlace statement:

One of our primary focuses has been to re-educate our Sales team and Customers on the differentiators of genuine vs. faux leather products and the care and maintenance of all our furniture. We know buying any piece of furniture is a big commitment: one The RoomPlace and our customers want to feel good about. This is why we are determined to provide our Customers with important information prior to making a purchasing decision. In addition to talking with our customers about the differences between genuine leather and faux-leather alternatives, we have signage in all our stores that distinctly identifies the differences and all of our merchandise is clearly tagged.

The RoomPlaces one (1) year manufacturers warranty covers defects resulting from material and or workmanship which includes cracking and peeling. We also offer optional extended protection plans (Accidental and Structural) on our furniture, which is not inclusive of the cracking and peeling. We encourage our customers to review the warranty coverage and optional protection plans available online or in our stores and welcome any questions prior to making a decision as to what furniture and protection plans best meets with their specific budget and needs.

Darvin statement:

Thank you for contacting us prior to airing your follow up segment on peeling furniture. As you know, we have been working hard to reach out to each and every customer who has contacted us concerning the quality of their pieces. This email should clarify what is covered. Please see the attached link that states what is covered under the scope of our Darvin Limited Warranty - http://www.darvin.com/current/warranty_info.aspx We offer either a 6 month or 1 year warranty.

The peeling leather story you have been covering is a manufacturers defect issue and not a protection plan issue.

We do offer each customer the option of purchasing a 5 year Protection Plan at the time of original purchase. This protection plan covers cracking and peeling in isolated areas. Peeling that has accumulated over time would not be covered. It covers any accidental damages including the following for A&P Leather or Vinyl, which includes bonded leather.

On A&P Leather or Vinyl

Household Food and Beverage Stains

Stains from Human and Pet Saliva, Urine, Stomach Fluid, or Blood

Accidental Burn or Singe Marks Caused by Brief Contact with Flame or Heat, from a single incident

Accidental BallPoint Pen Ink, Wax Crayon, Facial Cosmetics or Nail Polish from a single incident

Color Transfer from Denim Jeans or Newspaper

Cracking or Peeling of Top Grain Leather in Seating Areas

Cracking or Peeling of All Leather and Vinyl in Non-Seating Areas

Accidental puncture, cut, tear or rip from a single incident

Value City statement:

Confirming the response you received from Value City Furniture/American Signature Inc's salespeople, VCF/ASI -- based on the Company's commitment to provide its customers with a well-furnished life -- does provide its customers with an opportunity to select new furniture, on a sliding scale, if they experience cracking and peeling on their bonded and/or polyurethane furniture.

Ashley Furniture statement:

While the salesperson was providing their common sense advice, our warranty does exclude damages from exposure to sunlight and humidity, which can be affected by heat sources such as fireplaces and heat vents. We encourage any customers who are experiencing problems with our products to work with the store where they purchased the product or to contact Ashleys customer care team (consumeraffairs@ashleyfurniture.com). They will work closely with the customer to better understand the problem they are experiencing, and where appropriate, explore possible solutions.
New emails related to Hillary Clinton that FBI Director James Comey said prompted further investigation were found as part of an ongoing investigation into former U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner, NBC News and the Associated Press reported.

Law enforcement agencies have been examining online communications between Weiner, the estranged husband of Clinton aide Huma Abedin, and a 15-year-old girl.

NBC News and the AP reported the link to the Weiner case citing unnamed officials.

The emails were found on a laptop that Weiner allegedly used to send inappropriate text messages and pictures to an underage girl, sources told NBC News.

Investigators also discovered Abedin had used the same laptop to send emails to Clinton and now they are checking those messages to see if there was any classified information on them, the sources said.

Asked at a Friday news conference about the email probe's link to Weiner, Clinton said: "You know, we've heard these rumors, we don't know what to believe."

The FBI informed Congress on Friday it is investigating whether there is classified information in new emails that have emerged in its probe of Clinton's private server. The FBI said in July its investigation was finished.

The disclosure, in a letter from Comey, came just 11 days before the presidential election and thrust a political liability back into the headlines that Clinton's campaign thought had been resolved and begun to recede from the minds of voters. The FBI couldn't guarantee its investigation would be finished before Election Day.

Comey said the new emails prompted investigators to take another look at whether classified information had been mishandled, which had been the focus of its criminal investigation into Clinton's use of a private email server.

Donald Trump on Friday seized on the FBI's decision to investigate new messages connected to Hillary Clinton's emails.

Trump opened his rally in Maine by saying he has "great respect for the FBI for righting this wrong."

He said the "the American people fully understand her corruption" and he hopes "justice will finally be served."

Trump, however, did not immediately mention Weiner.

Federal authorities began investigating the former New York congressman in late September after an online news outlet, DailyMail.com, published an interview with a 15-year-old North Carolina girl who said she had exchanged sexually explicit messages with him over several months.

Among other things, the girl said that during a Skype chat, Weiner had asked her to undress and touch herself.

Weiner released a statement acknowledging that he'd corresponded with the girl. In it, he apologized, saying he had "repeatedly demonstrated terrible judgment about the people I have communicated with online."

But he also said he had "likely been the subject of a hoax" and provided an email, written by the girl to a teacher, in which she recanted her story.

Federal prosecutors in both North Carolina and New York were initially involved in the investigation, but agents in New York subsequently took the lead, according to a spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.

Weiner resigned from Congress in 2011 after it was revealed he had been exchanging sexually explicit messages with multiple women. Abedin announced their separation in August following new sexting revelations.
A FedEx cargo plane's landing gear collapsed shortly after landing at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood Airport Friday, sparking a fire, according to the Federal Aviation Authority.

FedEx 910, a DC-10 aircraft, was rolling on Runway 10 Left when one of the plane's landing gears collapsed and it's left wing caught fire, a Fort Lauderdale airport spokesman said.

Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue officials said the two pilots on board escaped using a rope ladder on the side of the plane.

FedEx officials said the two pilots are safe after the incident. The plane had just arrived from Memphis.

Video footage from witnesses posted on social media showed an explosion followed by smoke billowing from the plane, which appeared to be tilted on its side.

"We turned and saw smoke billowing out and we took video and pics and we were walking back to our car and heard this huge explosion, we assumed it was the engine," witness John Anderson said. "It was crazy, we just hoped everyone was safe."

Aerial footage showed crews working to put out the fire. The plane's charred left wing, and surrounding runway and grass was immersed in foam.

Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue responded to the scene and officials said the flames were quickly extinguished.

Fire Rescue officials said units were on the scene in two minutes and found a trail of fire down the runway.

"There was a trail of fire, it was like a fireball, a running fuel fire down the runway leading to the jet," Fire Rescue spokesman Mike Jachles said. "So this fire started wherever contact was made with the wing, engine and the tarmac."

A ground stop was issued at the airport and delays were reported as the airport closed just before 6 p.m. The south runway re-opened at 7 p.m. but the north runway remained closed while the incident was investigated.

A total of 29 flights were diverted during the closure, airport officials said.

Officials said there were 40,000 pounds of fuel on the plane when it landed. It was also carrying US mail but officials said it appeared that the damage was confined to the outer part of the plane.

The FAA and NTSB will investigate the incident.

"We have to let the NTSB do their investigation, then we have to go in and get the plane out of there and then do the repairs to the runway," airport spokesman Greg Meyer said.
In his latest attempt to cast doubt on the election process, GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump raised suspicions Thursday about the voting machines in reliably Republican Texas despite producing no evidence of an actual problem.

"A lot of call-ins about vote flipping at the voting booths in Texas. People are not happy. BIG lines. What is going on?" Trump said in a message to his followers on Twitter.

An email sent to his campaign to determine where the candidate got his information was not immediately returned.

Texas Secretary of State Carlos Cascos, a Republican, responded to the speculation circulating on social media, writing on Facebook that there was no evidence of vote-flipping, a term generally used to describe a correctable technical glitch on older electronic voting machines.

"Our office has received reports concerning rumors that some voting machines may be changing candidate selections when voters cast straight party ballots," Cascos said in his statement, which was posted a day before Trump sent his Twitter message. "We are actively monitoring the situation, and have yet to receive any verified reports of machines changing votes."

Cascos' spokeswoman added that the reports the office has received have not come from voters who personally experienced a problem. Local election officials have said the machines are not malfunctioning and some voters may be inadvertently making errors.

"The machines work exactly as intended. There was no vote-flipping," said Shannon Lackey, the elections administrator of Randall County, in the Texas Panhandle.

Vote-flipping generally describes a circumstance in which a voter claims an electronic voting machine  usually of the touchscreen variety  changed the selection from one candidate to another. Election officials say those claims usually are traced to user error.

When they do occur, it is typically during a process called straight-ticket voting that is used to select all candidates from one party. Voters might press the button next to a candidate a second time to affirm their choice, but instead wind up de-selecting the candidate.

If voters notice a wrong selection, they can correct it before submitting their ballot.

In Georgia, a voter this week reported trying to cast an early ballot for Clinton but said Trump's name kept showing up instead. A spokesman for Secretary of State Brian Kemp said it appeared the county improperly tested the machine but said its office was confident machines were not flipping votes.

Trump has claimed over the final weeks of the presidential campaign that the election is rigged against him and suggested the possibility of widespread voter fraud. The billionaire has provided no evidence supporting those claims.

In the meantime, voting rights groups in Texas said there is actual evidence of misinformation at some polling places over a newly weakened voter ID law.

Voters who do not have one of seven previously required forms of photo ID can cast a ballot this year by signing an affidavit, but some polling locations put up outdated signs listing the old rules.

A hotline set up by voting rights watchdogs has received about 300 calls since early voting started in Texas on Monday, said Zenen Jaimes Perez, a spokesman for the Texas Civil Rights Project. He said some callers said they were mistakenly turned away because they didn't have a photo ID.

Perez said the problems do not seem to be an overt attempt to suppress the vote.

"I don't think we've seen a trend of intentionally trying to get people out" of line, he said.

The stricter ID law was passed in 2011 by the Republican-led state Legislature and was found by a federal appeals court this summer to disproportionately affect minorities and poorer people, who tend to vote Democratic. Texas had enforced the full law in previous elections but was under court order to let voters without a photo ID cast a ballot this time.

Trump's suggestion of problems in Texas is all the more unusual because the state is so reliably Republican. While polls show a tighter than normal presidential race, Texas has not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since Jimmy Carter in 1976 and Hillary Clinton is not campaigning there.
Hillary Clinton called on the FBI on Friday to release more information about its review of emails that may be related to its investigation into her private server.

"It's imperative that the bureau explain this issue in question, whatever it is, without any delay," she said, adding that she was confident whatever the emails are "will not change the conclusion reached in July."

The Democratic presidential candidate said the American people deserve to have as much information as possible before they vote on Nov. 8. Asked if she feared the news would put a dent in support for her at the polls, Clinton said, "I think people made up their minds about the emails a long time ago."

She spoke Friday evening following a campaign rally in Iowa, hours after the FBI told Congress it is investigating whether new emails that may contain classified information have emerged in its probe of Hillary Clinton's private server, an unexpected announcement that surfaced less than two weeks before the presidential election.

In a letter sent to congressional leaders, FBI Director James Comey said that new emails have come to light recently that have prompted investigators to take another look at the sensitive government information that flowed through the private email sever Clinton used while serving as secretary of state.

"In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation," Comey wrote. "I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation."

Comey stressed in his letter that the FBI could not yet assess "whether or not this material may be significant," or how long it might take to run down the new investigative leads.

There is no indication, according to a senior law enforcement official, that Clinton, her campaign or the State Department was withholding information.

The official told NBC News that Comey's letter was sent to the Hill "out of an abundance of caution" and to be extra-thorough, noting there it was unknown what the significance of these letters is.

It was not clear from Comey's letter where the new emails came from or who sent or received them. Sources told NBC News the emails came from electronic devices belonging to Clinton aide Huma Abedin in a separate sexting probe of her husband former congressman Anthony Weiner.

Clinton called the reports "rumors" and told reports Friday she couldn't confirm whether the emails came from devices belonging to Abedin or Weiner.

"That's why it is incumbent upon the FBI to tell us what they're talking about. Because right now your guess is as good as mine, and I don't think that's good enough," she said.

Clinton's campaign manager John Podesta called for Comey to "immediately" release the full details of new emails, and blasted Trump and Republicans for pressing the FBI to revisit their decision to not charge Clinton "in a desperate attempt to harm [her] presidential campaign."

"FBI Director Comey should immediately provide the American public more information than is contained in the letter he sent to eight Republican committee chairmen. Already, we have seen characterizations that the FBI is 'reopening' an investigation but Comey's words do not match that characterization," Podesta said in a statement.

He added: "It is extraordinary that we would see something like this just 11 days out from a presidential election."

Asked to respond to the news from Comey and what its about, a top Clinton campaign spokesperson told NBC News, No idea.

Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine said earlier Friday that he's "got to read a little more" when asked by a reporter about the news while stopping by an early voting site in Tallahassee.

State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the department learned about the FBI letter from news reports and did not get any notification from the FBI. Toner pledged the department would "cooperate to the full extent that we can."

The White House, through a spokesman, also declined to immediately comment.

Speaking at a rally in New Hampshire, Donald Trump praised the FBI's announcement and said Clinton's "illegal conduct" threatens the security of the U.S.

"Hillary Clinton's corruption is on a scale we've never seen before," Trump said. "We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office."

The crowed cheered and erupted in chants of "Lock her up!"

Trump added that he has "great respect for the fact that the FBI and the DOJ are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made. This was a grave miscarriage of justice that the American people fully understand. It is everybodys hope that it is about to be corrected."

Trump's campaign manager Kellyanne Conway tweeted earlier: "A great day in our campaign just got even better. FBI reviewing new emails in Clinton probe."

House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) issued a statement on the FBI's announcement, saying Yet again, Hillary Clinton has nobody but herself to blame.

"She was entrusted with some of our nations most important secrets, and she betrayed that trust by carelessly mishandling highly classified information. This decision, long overdue, is the result of her reckless use of a private email server, and her refusal to be forthcoming with federal investigators. I renew my call for the Director of National Intelligence to suspend all classified briefings for Secretary Clinton until this matter is fully resolved.

Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, said the FBI's decision reinforces the committee's view that the more that is learned about the server, "the clearer it becomes that she and her associates committed wrongdoing and jeopardized national security."

A yearlong investigation by the FBI focused on whether Clinton sent or received classified information using the private server located in the basement of her New York home, which was not authorized to handle such messages.

Comey said in July that his agents didn't find evidence to support any criminal charges or direct evidence that Clinton's private server was hacked. He suggested that hackers working for a foreign government may have been so sophisticated they wouldn't have left behind any evidence of a break-in.
First Lady Michelle Obama said she was "beyond proud" to be part of the commissioning ceremony for the US Navy attack submarine named for her home state of Illinois.

The First Lady is serving as the sponsor of the future USS Illinois (SSN 786), the Navys newest fast attack submarine, and she attended the ceremony at the Naval Submarine Base in Groton Saturday to give the order to "man our ship and bring her to life!"

"USS Illinois is one of the most technologically advanced platforms in the world," Ray Mabus, secretary of the Navy, said in a news release. "This submarine represents not only the Navy's lasting connection to the state of Illinois but also the American innovation and manufacturing skill that have given us such a powerful advantage, making us the most powerful expeditionary fighting force the world has ever known."

The submarine officially became the USS Illinois and began active service at Saturday's ceremony.

The first lady has made supporting military families a priority. As the ship sponsor, she will be involved in the lives of its sailors and families.

It took thousands of shipyard employees in Connecticut, Rhode Island and Virginia to build the $2.7 billion submarine.

The USS Illinois is the 13th member of the Virginia class.

The previous Illinois (BB 7) was a battleship that Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company started building in 1897.

In January 1941, the ship was renamed Prairie State (IX-15) and served through World War II as a midshipmen's training school.
Six of Connecticuts eight counties are in a drought watch, Gov. Dannel Malloy said during a news conference on Friday afternoon, and residents of the affected counties are being asked to cut water usage by 15 percent.

A statement from the governor's office says this is the first time the state has ever declared a Drought Watch and it's in effect for Hartford, Litchfield, Middlesex, New Haven, Tolland and Fairfield counties. Residents of the six counties are being asked to reduce water usage by 15 percent.

Windham and New London counties are in a drought advisory and residents are asked to cut water usage by 10 percent.

"While we cannot control the weather, we can control our own personal usage of water," Malloy said during a news conference in New Britain. "This situation calls for all of us to employ a common-sense approach to preserving water."

A drought watch is the second of four stages of drought and the advisory comes after a decision by the Connecticut Interagency Drought Workgroup.

The state previously issued drought advisories in 2002, 2007, 2010 and earlier this year.

The governor is asking residents to check in with their water provider to see what recommendations are in place and to take steps in the home to cut water usage, like not leaving water running while brushing teeth.

"Which is one of the biggest wastes of water in America," Malloy said.

He is also encouraging people to take shorter showers.

"I would ask anyone who isn't taking it seriously to talk to people in Danbury, or Waterbury or Darien, or Greenwich, or New Canaan, or my home jurisdiction of Stamford," Malloy said.

Palmer Drought Severity Index shows the state as having severe or even extreme drought, state officials said, and the governor has directed the Connecticut Department of Administrative Services to review and implement areas where water usage among state government facilities can be reduced when possible.

The drought watch declaration comes after three public water systems in Connecticut that are approaching critically low levels received an emergency declaration from the state in the last two months.

In all, 20 water companies have already asked for voluntary conservation or imposed mandatory restrictions, according to the governor's office.

After emergencies were declared for Aquarion Water Company's southwestern region, Waterbury and Danbury, representatives from the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the state Department of Public Health, the Office of Policy and Management and State of Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority met to come up with a comprehensive plan aimed at balancing the needs of water for personal use, economic development, recreation and ecological health.

Mandatory Conservation:

Aquarion Water  Greenwich, Mystic and Stamford systems, issued Sept. 23

Bristol Water Department, issued Oct. 19

Norwalk Electric & Water, issued Oct. 6

South Norwalk Electric & Water, issued Oct. 6

UCONN, Stage IV Water Supply Emergency, issued Sept. 7

Voluntary Conservation:
What happens when your fitness tracker can't keep up with you?

A Mystic man turned to NBC Connecticut Responds.

Jeff Howard bought his Fitbit Surge in October 2015.

"It was supposed to be the top of the line. It tracked everything, exercise, GPS," he said.

After about three months, Howard says the watch band started to show signs of wear on the underside of the tracker where the screen meets the band.

"It just gets to the point that it has no stability anymore. It just doesn't stay together," he said.

Because the Surge is all one piece, Howard couldnt just replace the band; he needed to replace the entire device. The Surge came with a one year warranty and Fitbit sent Howard a new one right away. But a few months later, Howard noticed the same thing happening again.

After having his Surge replaced three times, Howard asked if the company would send him a different model. Fitbit told Howard it could only send him another Surge and offered him 25 percent off his next purchase. With his warranty about to expire, Howard asked NBC Connecticut responds to help.

"You get things done. So I reached out to you by email and you responded pretty quick," he said.

We contacted the company with Howard's concerns. A few days later, he got a call.

"They offered to send me this new Fitbit, totally different. This is now their top of the line Fitbit. It's called the Blaze, he said.

Howard believes his new Fitbit will be a better fit for him.

In response to our inquiry, a Fitbit spokesperson sent us this statement:

"The quality of Fitbit products and the health and safety of our customers are our top priorities. The experiences reported are not typical for the tens of millions of users around the world who enjoy our products every day. We conduct extensive testing and consult with top industry experts to develop stringent standards so that users can wear and enjoy our products.

We also are committed to delivering a superior customer experience. As with Mr. Howard, we respond quickly when customers report issues and strive to work closely with them through our customer service channels to ensure their satisfaction. If consumers have any questions or concerns, they can contact us at help.fitbit.com.

Fitbit trackers are water-resistant but to best preserve your band, we recommend that customers rinse the band with water but do not use soap, hand sanitizers, cleaning wipes or household cleaners to clean it, and that they also try to avoid exposure to any chemicals like sunscreen, alcohol, etc. For more wear and care tips, users can visit the webiste."
Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez's jailhouse phone calls were tapped while he sat in prison awaiting his murder trial.

The Boston Herald reports that the calls were tapped by an "unknown person" and neither Hernandez's lawyers nor prosecutors were ever told about it. His calls were the only ones accessed.

The security issue has apparently since been resolved, and the Suffolk County House of Correction continues to use the same telephone company.

Hernandez was convicted of first-degree murder in the 2013 killing of Odin Lloyd. He is scheduled to go to trial next year in connection with a separate double-murder in Boston's South End.
Epilepsy affects three million people every day.

For many of them, its something that can be treated, but not cured.

Now a new FDA-approved device, called Neuropace, is changing the lives of some people living with epilepsy.

Krystle Thrasher is a young mom with a great outlook, but the past few years havent been easy. Four years ago, she was diagnosed with epilepsy, having up to 20 seizures a month.

What would happen when I would have the seizures, I would get really tired and need to lie down, Thrasher described.

After countless doctors and medications, Thrasher was losing hope. Then, she met Tarek Zakaria, M.D., a neurologist at Memorial Healthcare System in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The Neuropace is like a pacemaker, but for your brain.

Through the device, were able to monitor the brain activity," said Zakaria.

"Were able to screen this activity, detect any changes in the brain waves, and be able to respond to any changes right there to terminate or stop the seizure before it progresses into a full-blown seizure.

As if stopping a seizure before it happens isnt enough, the technology gets even better.

Thrasher can record her brainwave activity and send it to Zakaria anytime.

Months after having the Neuropace implanted, Thrasher has been seizure free.

One of the best things is I have my son and we didnt know if wed ever be able to have a child because of it,said Thrasher. "I did not see a light at the end of tunnel for a very long time, but I see it and its there.

While this worked for Thrasher, not everyone with epilepsy is a candidate for Neuropace.

Only a handful of Comprehensive Epilepsy Centers in North Texas offer Neuropace.
The Dallas Independent School District school board approved $52 million in repairs for South Oak Cliff High School Thursday evening.

Parents and community members supporting the school showed up in force at a Dallas ISD board meeting Thursday night to fight for funding.

The school is in desperate need of repair, with suspected gas leaks and leaking roofs among the many problems.

Many people have been demanding a new school, but because that's not likely to happen any time soon, community leaders and others threw their support behind a plan to spend $52 million to completely renovate the current building.

That's $12 million more than what was last proposed, as part of the $1.6 billion bond package approved by voters last year.

"Our children had to exit South Oak Cliff High School because of a gas leak," the Rev. Frederick Haynes, of Friendship West Baptist Church, told Dallas ISD board members. "I'm going to squeak as long as our children attend schools with asbestos and black mold. I'm going to squeak."

The Dallas Independent School District school board is considering how to pay for much-needed repairs at South Oak Cliff High School.

The plan drew some opposition from people representing other Dallas schools who argue South Oak Cliff is getting more than its fair share.

"Other schools are going to go without what they need. And they've been ranked that they have more need than South Oak Cliff," said Ken Barth, a graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School. "So you're taking away from one to appease another."
Police are investigating after a man was shot in a southwest Dallas neighborhood Friday afternoon.[[399065161,C]]

The victim was shot in the the 7000 block of Sorcey Road at about 1 p.m., police say.

He was airlifted to Methodist Charlton Medical Center. His condition is unknown.

No word on who shot the man.

Check back and refresh this page for the latest update. As this story is developing, elements may change.
Stealing campaign signs as a form of protest?

NBC 5 reported on Thursday that a man was arrested for swiping signs in Keller.

One day later that man, Walter Brown, is speaking out and he says this is not about politics.

Brown considers campaign signs outside the polls to be political litter. He thinks they have no place outside a polling location, potentially influencing people in the final moments before they vote.

Brown says he hadn't planned on this when he came to vote at Keller Town Hall Thursday, but snatching up the signs became a spontaneous protest.

It's part of the political landscape every election, dedicated folks with campaign signs and a few words as you head in to vote.

"Just double check before you cast your vote," Cynthia Fanning told passersby outside Keller Town Hall.

But this year, it just felt wrong to Brown.

"Sometimes things hit you square in the face," said Brown. "The politics should stop somewhere. Especially at a polling station. You shouldn't be seeing signs and being stopped by people as you go in."

Though he admits how he handled it was wrong too.

"I didn't care who's names was on it, didn't matter to me, said Brown. I just started picking up signs and grabbed them, put them in the car."

He swiped eight of them before two ladies confronted him, and asked for them back. When he refused, they called the police and Brown took off.

"Whats the difference between that and just a normal piece of paper, except politics is tacked onto it? To me trash is trash, said Brown. I thought about it and said no maybe not. I went to the police station and asked them am I right or wrong here? I'll take them back. Time out, sorry!"

Brown was arrested and booked on the spot for misdemeanor theft. Its his first run-in with the law in his 59 years.

"I really feel bad, I really feel bad about what happened. Especially if I upset the ladies because I had no intent in doing that."

Brown is an Independent and, he says, a true independent."

He's also a retired Army Chief Warrant Officer 4 and American Airlines pilot.

"I defended our right for freedom for 21 years and now I feel I should defend our right for political justice," said Brown.

And speaking of rights.

"Until they change the rules we have a right to be here," Fanning said.

Opinions clash and Democracy marches on.

The rule is any political signs or language have to be 100 feet away from the entrance to a polling location.

Brown wants to change that to ban them from the whole polling site. He's starting a Facebook page called Neutral Polling Locations and plans to reach out to lawmakers.

Visit the Facebook page here.
The Wings of War Air show at Dallas Executive Airport this weekend includes a recreation of the attack on Pearl Harbor 75 years ago.

It is a noisy display of vintage aircraft over the house where neighbor Ben Giersch works from home, just blocks from the airport.

I cant work with this noise, Giersch said, interrupted by the roaring planes overhead. I actually had to hang up on a couple calls today.

The first day Friday of the three day show by the Commemorative Air Force was education day, with 1,500 kids attending for free.

Our mission is education such that Americans understand the value that military aviation had on their freedoms, CAF President Stephan Brown said.

When the CAF was first recruited to a new base at Dallas Executive Airport from Odessa two years ago, Mayor Mike Rawlings was confronted with complaints about noise.

The mayor, in his Grow South program to improve the quality of life in south Dallas, this is his idea of how hes going to improve our quality of life? Giersch said. How is this driving economic development for this community? If I was looking at a house in this community today, I would high-tail it and run.

Neighbor Darryl Baker serves on two committees related to Dallas Executive Airport improvement plans. Baker said airport officials have improved communication with neighbors and a noise complaint process.

Thats working a lot better than it used to. Way better than it was a year ago. They put up signs asking pilots to be mindful that there are residents around, said Baker.

Now, Baker hopes city goals of developing airport property with new businesses will bring job-creating options that are not related to noisy aviation.

Were not against development. We want the kind of development that recognizes us here, Baker said.

Airport improvements over the past year also included runway expansion that will better serve the noisy old war planes, too.

Theres a little bit of noise during the daylight hours of the show, but mostly its the noise of excitement, said Brown.

Gates open at the airport on Hampton Road at 9am Saturday and Sunday with shows from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. both days.
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani has been hard at work on the campaign trail for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

Giuliani was in Dallas for an event Thursday and talked exclusively with NBC 5.

We asked him about recent polls that show Texas closer than many would have expected.

"We are certainly going to win Texas. We are probably going to win by five, six, seven, eight (percent), and when you consider electoral votes it doesn't matter, right?" Giuliani said.

Giuliani said Trump will give a major policy address soon, and will be talking policy during the final days of the campaign. He said Trump will contrast what he can do for the country, with what Hillary Clinton can do for America.

Giuliani said distractions have kept Trump from speaking much about policy in the past. Asked whether he thinks some of the distractions have been brought upon Trump himself, Giuliani said, "Some yes, and some have been exaggerated tremendously by the media."

Trump currently trails Clinton nationally by about five points in an average of recent polls, according to Real Clear Politics. As the election gets into the final days, there are still questions as to whether Trump will accept the results. He has said he will decide at the time.

"He will accept the results of the election if they are clear. Like Al Gore, if they are not, he is not a stupid man. If it is a clear, decisive victory, either one of them should accept it. If it is close, either one of them is going to contest it," Giuliani said.

Clinton has not said she would contest the results.
For the first time, were seeing video of the daring and emotional rescue of two children from a house fire in Mount Hope. The fire was so intense the children suffered critical burns and their older brother perished.

Video captured by a GoPro on one firefighters helmet shows just what fire crews were up against that early Monday morning last November.

It was just after midnight when flames roared to life inside the home on J Street.

Engine 12 rolled into the Mount Hope neighborhood within minutes of the 911 call.

When firefighters got to the house, they say it appeared that flames were shooting out of every window.

Immediately, a woman can be heard yelling to Firefighter Dallas Higgins, There's three kids still in the house!"

NBC 7s Catherine Garcia spoke with local firefighters that received the Medal of Valor this year, after saving two children from a blazing house fire in Mount Hope.

The kids were in a room with a ladder sticking out of the window and they werent coming out.

Firefighter Joe Zakar was close behind.

"I came around the corner and I just see Dallas taking off in between the two houses, he recalled.

"I just ran straight for the window, you know time, time is our enemy," Higgins said.

Thats when Higgins jumped through the window and entered the bedroom.

At this point in the video, the image is black. The room is so thick with smoke, the firefighter couldnt see his hands.

Within seconds, he felt his way to a top bunk bed.

"Deep in that bunk I was able to find Nano, who was the oldest brother, Higgins said. It was too hot and too much time had elapsed for him.

NBC 7

Then, Higgins heard moaning from the bunk below. He had found 5-year-old Luis Junior.

"At that point he was so close to me and I'm holding him and I remember he was wearing a little blue shirt and grey shorts and he was sitting right next to me and breathing and I could make out his face and mouth and I could hear him breathing," Higgins said.

Zakar remembers the moment he learned there was one survivor.

"Within I would say about 20 seconds of Dallas being inside I heard him go, Hey I got one, Zakar said.

Zakar carried Junior to the street so he could be treated.

"I still can feel how warm Junior was, in my hands, Zakar said. That's the one thing that has stuck with me."

NBC 7

Higgins was still inside the room, looking in the dark for a third child.

"You know you're burning but you know you have a job to do so you just keep trying I kept trying to spend more time in there, spend more time looking for her," Higgins said.

The extreme heat was burning right through his protective gear so Higgins asked for help.

Zakar took over the search from there. Thanks to other crews fighting the fire, the smoke began to lift, just a bit.

"I'm leaning in the window my light goes down, his light comes back and you just sort of see a flash of pink," Higgins said.

It was 3-year-old Esmerelda. Zakar scooped her up and passed her through the window to his partner.

Watch the full video of the rescue here.

Heartbroken parents soon learned Nano did not make it out of the fire alive.

Esme and Junior were placed in medically-induced comas. She suffered burns over 60 percent of her tiny body. Junior was burned over 90 percent of his.

Almost a year later they children are still healing but they are not alone.

Images: Mount Hope Deadly House Fire

The family has allowed Higgins and Zakar to be a part of the healing process because not only are they healing, the firefighters are healing as well.

Little Esme has visited the fire station twice. They say they just let her take over the place. She's now well enough to go to preschool.

Her brother, Junior is at a hospital in Northern California. He needs more specialized care but he's walking now, even riding a tricycle.

The children's survival, their bravery is what these firefighters focus on.

"Seeing them where they were and to see them today just gives us that validation of you know what we did our job and we were at our best," said Zakar.

Higgins and Zakar have since been promoted to engineers and now, they're using that helmet camera video to help train other firefighters.

Firefighters Dallas Higgins and Joe Zakar talk about the rescue of two children from a Mount Hope fire and how crews met standards each step of the way.

They received this years Medal of Valor from the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department.

The Fire Rescue Foundation handed out the awards Friday at the annual Service Award Honoree Luncheon. NBC 7s Catherine Garcia emceed the event which recognizes firefighters, paramedics, lifeguards and ordinary citizens who have done extraordinary things to help others in their time of need.

Higgins and Zakar also wanted to make sure we reported that the rescue was the effort of many very dedicated first responders that night.

As for the cause of the fire  it was an accident. An old heating unit malfunctioned and set a mattress on fire.
After searching seven days through the charred debris of a Mount Washington mansion destroyed in a fire, firefighters said Thursday they presume the owner of the home is dead even though they have found no human remains.

The Los Angeles Fire Department ended its search Thursday for Robert Tieger, the registered owner of the 9,100-square-foot, three-story hillside home in the 4000 block of Sea View Avenue.

"Unfortunately, despite a diligent and meticulous search, no victim or remains were located," Peter Sanders, a Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman, said in a news release.

The mansion burned Oct. 20. At least three tenants escaped. A 74-year-old woman was hospitalized for smoke inhalation, officials said. A 32-year-old resident got out through a window with her dog.

She was not injured. The cause of the fire was not known. Numerous people had been renting rooms in the house. Firefighters believe the owner did not make it out, Sanders said.

The fire was one of the most challenging that some veteran chiefs had encountered in their careers. The structure was so badly damaged that its walls were cracked and bowing outward, hampering the search, Sanders said.

Crews had to use cadaver dogs to sniff through the wreckage.

Searchers went into rooms of the home over the weekend, but they limited the time they spent inside.

An excavator and two cranes have been dismantling the home since the weekend.

"We have no reason to believe he wasn't there," Sanders said. "We have no evidence that he was and we have no evidence that he wasn't. It's pretty unusual to not find a body that we think is there."

The home was turned over to the bank, which owns it. The home was in foreclosure, Sanders said. If any remains are found during further demolition, the Coroner's Office would respond, he added.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect the proper spelling for Tieger.
A California city will pay $100,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging police harassment during a raid on a marijuana dispensary.

The city of Santa Ana will also drop misdemeanor charges against a dozen people accused of unlawfully operating Sky High Holistic, the Orange County Register reported Wednesday.

Attorney Matthew Pappas said the money will go to two Sky High volunteers and an unrelated doctor whose nearby office was affected by last year's raid.



The suit was filed after surveillance video showed police playing darts and an officer making demeaning comments about a woman in a wheelchair. Another officer can be seen eating what appears to be a pot-laced edible, according to the lawyer.



Santa Ana Deputy City Manager Roberto Cortez declined to discuss the settlement, the newspaper said.



The suit alleged that Mayor Miguel Pulido and other city employees favored certain dispensaries. It said the city put up a ballot proposal, Measure BB, for the November 2014 election, soliciting payments from collectives with the promise of winning a spot in an eventual marijuana permit lottery.



Sky High Holistic did not win a spot in the lottery and its patients allege that because Pulido and other city employees had financial ties with competing dispensaries, they used their positions to close down the competition.



Pulido denied the allegations and said the city hired a firm to conduct the lottery.



Earlier this year, three police officers were charged with misdemeanor petty theft and one with vandalism for allegedly stealing snacks and damaging surveillance cameras. They are no longer employed by the city's police department.
The coyote that bit a 6-year-old boy in Irvine has been trapped and euthanized, authorities said Thursday.

The child was bitten on Oct. 9 in Springbrook Park, according to the Irvine Police Department.

California Department of Fish and Wildlife personnel identified the animal using "scientific evidence," police said.

A dozen coyotes have been trapped since the boy was bitten.

"Trapping efforts have ceased, however the Irvine Police Department Animal Services Division will continue to patrol the area," according to a police statement.

The 6-year-old and his father were walking through Springbrook Park about 6:30 p.m. when the coyote sprung out from behind a play house in a sand box of the park and bit the boy on the left arm, according to Andrew Hughan of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

"The coyote dragged the boy three or four feet, but fortunately the father was able to scare the coyote away," Hughan said.

The boy was taken to a hospital, where he was given rabies shots as a precaution, Hughan said.

It's unclear what scientific evidence was used to identify the coyote.

Hughan had said following the attack that officials were not able to obtain enough DNA to determine which animal bit the boy.
Heather Meadows, Christina Thompson, Tola Warren St. Clair, Maribel Cardona, Idell Frazier, Maria Shortfall, Lidvian Zelaya.

These are the women who have died of a fat embolism after undergoing the popular cosmetic procedure called the Brazilian Butt Lift. All died at the hands of different plastic surgeons and clinics in South Florida since 2010.

But there are more.

A new survey just released found that more women are dying or getting hurt from the BBL cosmetic procedure than any other cosmetic surgery performed around the world.

The risk is up to 20 times greater, according to the survey conducted by The Aesthetic Surgery Education and Research Foundation.

The NBC 6 Investigators coverage on the deaths and injuries of women at South Floridas cosmetic surgery clinics sparked interest from a San Diego-based surgeon.

Dr. Mark Mofid and ASERF created a task force to investigate the risk surrounding butt augmentation or BBL, one of the most popular cosmetic procedures performed in the U.S and the world.

"Surgeons need to be aware, first off, that this problem exists," Mofid said.

Dubbed Brazilian Butt Lift, it involves fat grafting or injection.

The patient undergoes liposuction on the stomach or back and is later injected into the backside, leaving the appearance of a larger, firmer behind.

The American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons estimates that approximately 100,000 BBL surgeries have been performed in the United States since 2011.

Mofids task force looked into how often and why women are dying. Though the survey was voluntary, a total of 612 surgeons reported that over their careers they performed 198,857 BBL procedures, reporting 32 deaths and 103 non-fatal embolisms cases.

To my knowledge its the highest mortality rate that has ever been published associated with any aesthetic procedure, Mofid said.

Mofid combined survey results with other data and found more women have died after a BBL than any other cosmetic surgery.

In the survey, Mofid discovered that patients have died from a fat embolism, which takes place when fat is injected  often too deeply  into the body hitting blood vessels with surgical instruments.

Once the fat gets into the bloodstream, it can cause the patient to stop breathing.

Thats how each of the seven women in South Florida died.

Even a single death is a tragic death and its something we want to avoid, the California doctor said.

Mofid said the risk of death decreases if the fat is injected closer to the skin.

There is a way to do this operation safely, the surgeon said. Its just a matter of making sure the surgeon performing this surgery is familiar with the findings of this study.

The surgeon is presenting the task force findings to surgeons from all over the world in Japan this week.

Mofid said he hopes that other surgeons performing this type of surgery become familiar with the findings.

The effort here was to try to make this operation as safe, if not safer, than the other procedures that we offer, he said.

The task force stresses the analysis has not been independently validated and is based only upon the answers provided by those who responded. The survey results will soon be reviewed by the Aesthetic Surgery Journal.

The Aesthetic Surgery Education and Research Foundation says further research into this issue is "crucial."
Two South Florida women were arrested Friday morning after allegedly committing election fraud, according to the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office.

Gladys Coego, 74, and Tomika Curgil, 33, were arrested in unrelated incidents in Miami-Dade, authorities said.

Coego faces two counts of marking or designating on the ballot of another, while Curgil faces five counts of submitting false voter registration information.

Coego was booked into the Miami-Dade jail where she was being held on $10,000 bond Friday, records showed. Curgil was being held on $125,000 bond. It's unknown if they've hired attorneys.

"Our law enforcement effort against these election law violators was swift and resulted in an immediate arrest of the wrongdoers," Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle. "Anyone who attempts to undermine the democratic process should recognize that there is an enforcement partnership...in place to thwart such efforts and arrest those involved."

According to the state attorney's office, Coego had been hired by the Miami-Dade Elections Department Monday as a temporary election support specialist.

A staff member and a supervisor later caught her unlawfully marking some absentee ballots, officials said.

Election support specialists are prohibited from bringing pens or pencils into the ballot sorting room but Coego had concealed a pen in her purse, officials said.

She later admitted she had marked a number of absentee ballots involving the Miami-Dade mayoral race that had been left blank, marking each for Raquel Regalado.

Regalado is battling incumbent Carlos Gimenez for the position.

Coego didn't give any explanation for her actions and investigators were unable to directly connect her to any of the campaigns, officials said.

Curgil was arrested in an unrelated incident after the Miami-Dade Elections Department uncovered discrepancies in a number of new voter applications submitted to them by People United for Medical Marijuana, officials said.

Curgil, who was hired as a canvasser to register voters for People United for Medical Marijuana, allegedly submitted voter registrations to the elections department for people who couldn't be verified as qualified voters.

Police discovered Coego didn't leave her home during a day of work and then submitted completed and falsified voter registration forms, officials said.

Among the discrepancies in the forms were that Coego had registered people who were deceased, officials said.

"The person in question was an hourly subcontractor to a vendor hired by the campaign to register Florida voters. Despite having protocols in place for training, quality control and pre-verifications of collected registrations, the registrations submitted by the person in question seem to have slipped through the cracks," United for Care said in a statement. "The campaign is cooperating fully with the State's Attorney's investigation."
Hollywood police have arrested two dozen suspects in a massive operation targeting prostitution at massage parlors in the city, officials said Thursday.

"Operation Red Light" was a five-month investigation that targeted prostitution and human trafficking at 20 different locations, police said.

Undercover officers from Hollywood Police and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcements Homeland Security Investigations found evidence that women were performing sexual acts on customers at the massage parlors.

Investigators also found beds, clothing and food that showed some of the women were living in the parlors, and some of the women admitted they were living there, police said.

"These women face charges of solicitation of prostitution, operating without a license, misrepresenting themselves as licensed massage therapists," Hollywood Police spokeswoman Miranda Grossman said.

Two of the women who are owners of massage parlors also face bribery charges. Giselle Guo, owner of Lucky Spa at 7060 Taft Street, and Yan Zheng, owner of Hollywood Unisex at 2126 Hollywood Boulevard, told an undercover detective they would pay him to provide protection from police and agreed to pay him $400 a month to keep officers away from the businesses, police said.

The parlors busted are:

Bonita Spa, 5450 S. SR 7 Ste 4, Hollywood FL

Lucky Spa, 1637 S. 21st St., Hollywood, FL

Best Asian Massage, 6700 Taft St., Hollywood, FL

Ting Ting Spa, 6151 Washington St., Hollywood, FL

Fantasy Spa, 2106 Tyler St., Hollywood, FL

Asian Massage, 1943 Pembroke Rd., Hollywood, FL

Casino Spa, 5408 S. SR 7, Hollywood, FL

Hollywood Asian Spa, 4622 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood, FL

Sunshine Oriental Massage, 4211 N. SR 7, Hollywood, FL

Relax Spa, 5892 Stirling Rd., Hollywood, FL

Asian Hollywood Spa, 2814 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood, FL

Hollywood Unisex, 2126 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood, FL

Spa Latinas, 5104 S. SR 7, Hollywood, FL

Spa Latinas, 5102 S. SR 7, Hollywood, FL

Xhale Spas, 5808 Johnson St., Hollywood, FL

New Life Massage, 5450 S. SR 7 Ste 5, Hollywood, FL
An image of a sign at a CVS pharmacy calling for the release of a 19-year-old South Florida rapper is populating social media.

The CVS sign reads "FREE KODAK BLACK," but it is not clear where the CVS is located.

Kodak Black, whose given name is Dieuson Octave, is a rising South Florida hip-hop artist who has worked with many big names in the industry. But his success has been stalled due to recent legal troubles when he found himself behind bars in late April and again at the end of summer.

Despite his troubles, fans on social media continue calling for the young rapper's release.
A federal judge wants to know why nearly 25,000 people who've applied to vote haven't been registered in Florida.

U.S. District Judge Mark Walker has asked state election officials to tell him during a Friday hearing about their efforts to verify voter registration applications.

Walker extended the voter registration deadline from Oct. 11 to Oct. 18 following the disruption caused by Hurricane Matthew. Democrats asked for the extension after Gov. Rick Scott turned down requests to move back the deadline.

During the extended period nearly 103,000 Floridians have been added to the voter rolls. But Walker noted Thursday that the number of applications processed has ``slowed dramatically.''

State officials acknowledge that they have nearly 25,000 applications still pending. But they say most of them have insufficient information or incorrect addresses.
Vern Lewis is looking for love. His desire to find a connection led him to sign up at a popular dating website.

"I got a connection with this person online that said they had lived here but now they were living back in their country," Lewis said.

The woman, who said her name was Abi, told Lewis she was living in Ghana. The two started communicating, Lewis says, sending text messages and even having live video conversations. Each interaction caused the relationship to grow deeper. Then a few months in, Abi started asking for money.

"A few hundred the first time," Lewis said. "That was to put towards a visa."

The requests for money kept coming and soon the retired law enforcement officer had sent thousands of dollars to the woman he says he loved.

"You dont count it unless you really want to have a heart attack," Lewis says. He believes he sent Abi "probably over $5,000."

The woman even sent Lewis an apparent visa and a boarding pass as proof that she was serious about coming to Miami to meet him.

"Its just everything looked like it was a scam," says Mayra Joli, an immigration attorney.

Joli says she heard about Lewis and decided to try to help. It didnt take long for her to spot problems with the visa.

"If it was a B1B2 visa, its a visitors visa," says Joli. But the visa the woman sent Lewis said it was an "H1B" visa, which is an employment  not a visitors visa  according to Joli.

Another red flag  the language used on the documents.

"The visa also states that this is a permanent resident for 3 months," Joli says. How are you going to get a permanent resident from overseas to come here permanently for three months?"

When Joli reached out to the airline noted on the boarding pass, she says she was told the ticket didnt exist.

But it wasnt just Abi. Lewis also sent thousands of dollars to another woman named Margaret, who he says sent him provocative pictures. And it wasnt only pictures. Lewis says he also had live video conversations with her.

Her job is to get naked from time to time and play in the camera, Joli says. It was difficult for me to compete with a woman who had my clients heart and is telling him things that are contrary to what Im telling him is the reality.

According to the FBI, romance fraud cost victims the United States more than $203 million in 2015. FBI Special Agent Jason Manar says being able to video chat with a person has helped scammers develop strong emotional connections with their victims.

What we see is people preying on the best parts of peoples trust, Manar says. We see by the numbers elderly, divorced are typically more susceptible.

The FBI says its very unlikely victims of online dating scams will be able to recover their money because by the time the crime is reported, the case is so old the money is long gone. But they still want to hear from potential victims because they do keep track of possible scamming groups overseas.

If you or a loved one have fallen victim to an online dating scam, you can file a complaint with the FBI here.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving say the scariest part about Halloween isn't the spooky costumes or haunted houses, but that too many people don't plan for a safe ride before drinking alcohol.

With the Halloween weekend upon South Florida, MADD and the Miami Beach Police Department are teaming up curb drunk driving. The activists are encouraging party goers to use Uber, the ride-sharing app that allows you to request transportation, as a safe way to get home from their parties.

Plan a safe way home before the fun begins, encourages Miami Beach Police Spokesperson Ernesto Rodriguez. With the variety of ride-share options available, there is no excuse to drink and drive.

Uber says their app helps millions avoid drunk driving. According to the National Highway Safety Administration, in 2012 almost half of all fatal car accidents on Halloween night involved a drunk driver.

In order to facilitate the use of shared-ride services, Miami Beach will have four dedicated drop off and pick up locations on October 31 near Lincoln Road.
The Miami Herald and El Nuevo Herald are going their separate ways when it comes to endorsing a candidate for Florida's hotly-contested Senate race.

After previously supporting incumbent Sen. Marco Rubio, the Miami Herald is recommending Democrat Patrick Murphy for U.S. Senate. The paper said Rubio has been a disappointment, blocking any consideration of the president's nominee for the Supreme Court vacancy, and his opposition of Obamacare.

Meanwhile, El Nuevo Herald chose Sen. Rubio because of his "passion for human rights and his expertise in foreign affairs, especially in Latin America and the Middle East."

They said both newspapers look at the top priority of their audience and then make a decision.

"So this is not new to us. They kind of understand where we come from and we understand where they come from," El Nuevo Herald executive editor Myriam Marquez said.

"We have to respect each others' audiences and their issues and priorities and concerns and that's just how we work together," Miami Herald editorial page editor Nancy Ancrum said.

Both editorial boards said while they've had a difference of opinion when it comes to major candidates or races, they have agreed to recommend Democrat Hillary Clinton for president.
Miami-Dade mayoral candidate Raquel Regalado filed a lawsuit Thursday seeking to have incumbent Carlos Gimenez tossed from the race over a qualifying check that was dated incorrectly.

Regalado's suit, filed against Gimenez and Miami-Dade Supervisor of Elections Christina White, is seeking to disqualify Gimenez and void any votes for him in the Nov. 8 election.

According to a press release from Regalado, the complaint claims Gimenez submitted a check to the Miami-Dade Elections Department with the wrong date then submitted a second check the day before the qualifying deadline.

The suit claims Gimenez didn't comply with a Florida statute that calls for the qualification fee to be paid with a cashier's check if the candidate's check is rejected by a bank.

Gimenez's campaign said the check with the wrong date was never sent to the bank.

"While we have not seen the actual lawsuit yet, the allegations in Ms. Regalado's press release are without merit and frankly, bizarre," Gimenez's campaign said in a statement. "A valid qualifying check was presented to the elections department before the end of the qualifying period and was cleared by the bank for payment. Nothing else is required by law. Mayor Gimenez, as the first place finisher in the primary election, is obviously a properly qualified candidate in this run-off. Ms. Regalados desperate campaign is once again resorting to frivolous tactics to try and thwart the will of the voters of Miami-Dade County."

At a news conference Thursday, Regalado questioned Gimenez's influence over the elections department.

"We have many unanswered questions and concerns about how the process has been tampered with and the amount of influence that the mayor has had as the strong mayor of Miami-Dade County," Regalado said.
Sabrina Dillon is always busy, whether its school work, or one of many student activity clubs, or sorting donated goods for Haiti relief. Her passion rubs off on her friends, too.

I think whats made me most proud is being able to involve my whole community, my school, my neighborhood, my friends and family in my service project for Haiti, Sabrina said.

In four years at Michael Krop High School in northeast Miami-Dade County, Sabrina has raised more than $10,000 for an orphanage in Haiti.

Its very difficult because you look at all the kids here in Miami then you look at the kids there and you think, what a stark contrast, Sabrina explained.

Through her church, Sabrina has volunteered at the orphanage, located in a remote area of northwest Haiti, three times. At Krop High, shes leading the effort to raise money and goods for Hurricane Matthew victims.

I think the most astounding thing about her is she just does what she does for no recognition, but at the same time, shes done amazing things, said Michelle Russell, the schools activities director.

Russell says Sabrinas work, inside and outside of school, inspires her classmates, and they agree.

Whenever you see her, you wanna follow her, you know, like whenever you see what shes doing, you look at her and say 'wow, I wanna do the same thing,'" said classmate Carlos Solis.

Everything she does is just to help other people, really, so selfless, which is like so amazing, said Alexis Fried, another one of Sabrinas friends. She is so humble, which I love about her, and she doesnt make a big deal out of her achievements.

Sabrina is also a straight-A, AP Capstone student, in the top three percent of her senior class. Shes hitting the books with an eye on a future directly influenced by the indelible experiences she has had in Haiti.

Its mind-blowing, and I show people the pictures and the videos of the children and theyre like, how do they live like that? And I actually want to study to be a pediatrician so I can go back to places just like Haiti and help children just like them, Sabrina said.

In the meantime, shes acting locally and thinking globally.
Police have arrested a woman in the killing of a Kendall woman who was found murdered outside her home over the weekend, the same day another suspect in the murder was shot during a confrontation with officers.

Liz Corcho, 33, was arrested Thursday and charged with the murder of 65-year-old Vicki Feeley on October 22 in the area of Southwest 128th Court and 112th Terrace, Miami-Dade Police said Friday.

Corcho was taken into custody in Homestead after she tried to cash a check belonging to Feeley at a bank, police said.

Investigators said Corcho and 27-year-old Carlos Mojica were driving a pickup truck around the shopping center looking for a victim to rob, when they saw Feeley enter a store. Corcho and Mojica parked their vehicle, waited for Feeley to exit the store, and followed her home. As Feeley was unloading her vehicle, Mojica and Corcho pulled up to the driveway.

Mojica exited the vehicle and grabbed Feeley's purse, demanding that she let it go. While struggling for her purse, Mojica dragged the her back to his truck and Mojica jumped into the passenger seat. Corcho, who was driving, accelerated to flee while the Feeley held on to the purse. She was dragged several feet before falling underneath the vehicle and was ran over.

Feeley was transported to a nearby hospital where she later died.

Corcho is charged with first degree murder with a deadly weapon. Charges are pending at this time for Carlos Mojica. It's not known whether they have hired lawyers.

Mojica was injured in a police-involved shooting in Florida City Thursday after he allegedly tried to run over officers in a stolen truck.

Officers opened fire, hitting Mojica and sending him to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the shooting.
Donald Trump is the one boasting about the personal money he's putting into his presidential bid, but in the early weeks of October, it was Hillary Clinton chipping in more of her own resources.

New Federal Election Commission reports show Clinton herself offset $87,000 worth of campaign expenses in the first 19 days of the month. Trump, meanwhile, covered about $33,000 of his political costs.

Faced with a striking cash disadvantage, the Republican nominee is taking steps to infuse his campaign with new money. Spokeswoman Jessica Ditto said Friday that Trump wired an additional $10 million to his campaign.

Trump has repeatedly said during rallies and media interviews that he would spend $100 million of his own money, and maybe "much more." Counting the new gift, he is about $34 million short of his oft-repeated promise.

"He will continue to make investments into his campaign, including in these last 11 days," Trump's campaign manager Kellyanne Conway said Friday morning on Fox News. "He has said publicly many times he is in for $100 million, and he is happy to invest in his campaign."

The FEC reports filed Thursday show he could use the cash: As of last week, Clinton and her Democratic partners had $153 million in the bank, more than double the resources on the Trump side.

Trump, a New York businessman who says he is worth billions of dollars, invested heavily throughout his GOP primary race. Then, during the general election, he slowed his personal cash infusion to about $2 million per month.

In all, he has put in about $56 million of his own money. The latest donation, which is not yet noted in public documents, would bring that to $66 million.

His contribution shrinks when accounting for about $9 million in campaign cash that has returned to his family and businesses. That money has largely gone to the holding company of his private jet, but the campaign also paid for rent at Trump Tower, catering at his restaurants and even the Trump Ice bottled water that has popped up at his events.

Trump gave about $31,000 through the first 19 days of October, the period covered in the filing released Thursday, all of which went to cover rent and payroll. Trump also gave an additional $2,600 on Oct. 20, other filings show.
Walk through the Queens community of Broad Channel with the head of New Yorks Build it Back program, and every aspect of the embattled program is crystal clear: there are signs of construction everywhere, but homes are still in limbo.

While walking through the Broad Channel neighborhood with Amy Peterson, a resident shouted out at her, "Look at these peoples houses, look what theyre up against."

Peterson acknowledged "people are frustrated, and thats what we are here to answer.

From Sandy-ravaged neighborhoods to City Council hearings, Peterson has heard it all since taking over the program in 2014.

When Built It Back missed Mayor Bill de Blasios self-imposed deadline for rebuilding the Sandy-damaged homes, they blamed a tangle of bureaucracy for slow progress in rebuilding.

The program has been facing plenty of complaints, from home renovations that are way past their projected completion dates to homes that have yet to be lifted to homes that have yet to be built.

Peterson says it has been tough to be contractors amid a construction boom.

Other factors slowing progress are the rules and standards the program must adhere to because they are accepting federal funds.

"They told me eight months ago to move out and that we would be back in August," said Anthony LaPorta of Broad Channel. "But they didnt even start working on our house till September."

Build it Back is lifting LaPortas home for an estimated $845,000.

"I told them, knock it down," said LaPorta. "Knock it down, and rebuild it and they said thats not how the program works."

Peterson says it's a complex decision to decide when to lift and when to rebuild.

"In the end, the costs are related to the foundation, explained Peterson, so the costs are related to the helical piles, the concrete and that exists on an elevation or a rebuild."

In Broad Channel, Peterson says they need approvals from several agencies, including the Department of Environmental Conservation, before they can move forward.

After the next major storm, Peterson says the city will build it back, but not in the same way thats been attempted, in which the city manages everything.

"Part of the next storm, it should be about what a homeowner wants and how you get that benefit to them so they can control their own destiny," said Peterson.
What to Know In July, FBI Director James Comey said "no charges are appropriate in" the Hillary Clinton email case

The development of new emails, unearthed in the course of a separate investigation, comes less than two weeks before the election

Major stock markets immediately reversed to trade lower on the news

The FBI is investigating whether there is classified information in new emails uncovered during the sexting investigation of disgraced former congressman Anthony Weiner, the estranged husband of one of Hillary Clinton's closest aides.

FBI Director James Comey told Congress in a letter that the emails prompted investigators to take another look at whether classified information had been mishandled, which had been the focus of its recently closed, criminal probe into Clinton's use of a private email server. Comey couldn't guarantee that the latest focus of the investigation would be finished before Election Day.

Clinton said Friday that "the American people deserve to get the full and complete facts immediately. She urged the FBI to "explain this issue in question, whatever it is, without any delay."

"Let's get it out," she said.

Comey did not provide details about the emails, but officials tell NBC News that the emails emerged through the FBI's separate sexting probe of Weiner, who is separated from Clinton confidant Huma Abedin. She served as deputy chief of staff at the State Department and is still a key player in Clinton's presidential campaign. The two separated earlier this year after Weiner was caught in 2011, 2013 and again in 2016 sending sexually explicit text messages and photographs of himself undressed to numerous women.

Federal authorities in New York and North Carolina are investigating online communications between Weiner and a 15-year-old girl. The U.S. official was familiar with the investigation but was not authorized to discuss the matter by name and spoke on condition of anonymity.

FBI Director Comey, in letter to members of Congress, says FBI is investigating additional emails in Clinton private server case pic.twitter.com/Ue0qlhqT5w  Bradd Jaffy (@BraddJaffy) October 28, 2016

The disclosure came less than two weeks before the presidential election and thrust a political liability for Clinton back into the headlines that her campaign thought had been resolved and had begun to recede from the minds of voters. The FBI said in July its investigation of Hillary Clinton's private email server was finished.

Comey stressed in his letter that the FBI could not yet assess "whether or not this material may be significant," or how long it might take to run down the new investigative leads.

"In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation," Comey wrote. "I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation."

Clinton, in a brief statement to reporters Friday evening, noted: "The director himself has said he doesn't know whether the emails referenced in his letter are significant or not. I'm confident whatever they are will not change the conclusion reached in July."

It was unclear what the emails contained, who sent them, or what connection they might have to the yearlong investigation the FBI closed in July without recommending criminal charges. The FBI probe focused on whether Clinton sent or received classified information using a server in the basement of her New York home, which was not authorized to handle such messages. Abedin was interviewed by the FBI as part of its investigation.

Comey said in July that his agents didn't find evidence to support a criminal prosecution or direct evidence that Clinton's private server was hacked.

Matthew Miller, a former chief spokesman for the Justice Department, was dismayed by the timing of Comey's letter.

"Longstanding DOJ and FBI practice is you don't say anything publicly close to an election that can possibly influence that election," Miller said.

Comey, who has talked often about the FBI's need to be accountable to the public, promised extraordinary transparency about the investigation and during intervening months has authorized the release of investigative files from the case, which are normally kept confidential.

That stance also left Comey, a career federal prosecutor who has served under both Republican and Democratic administrations, open to criticism from leaders in both parties that he was trying to influence the outcome of the presidential race.

Clinton campaign supporters were already suggesting the FBI director was putting a thumb on the scale. Had he waited until after Nov. 8 to announce the discovery of the new emails, however, Comey would surely have faced criticism for sitting on major news until after the new president had been selected.

In an internal email to FBI employees, Comey wrote: "Of course, we don't ordinarily tell Congress about ongoing investigations, but here I feel an obligation to do so given that I testified repeatedly in recent months that our investigation was completed. I also think it would be misleading to the American people were we not to supplement the record." The Associated Press acquired the email Friday night.

State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the department learned about the FBI letter from news reports and did not get any notification from the FBI. Toner pledged the department would "cooperate to the full extent that we can."

Speaking at a Clinton rally in Florida, President Barack Obama also steered clear of the issue. White House spokesman Eric Schultz declined comment beyond reiterating Obama's continuing support for Clinton.

The ranking Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, said Comey's letter was particularly troubling because it left so many questions unanswered.

"Without knowing how many emails are involved, who wrote them, when they were written or their subject matter, it's impossible to make any informed judgment on this development," said Feinstein, D-Calif. "The FBI has a history of extreme caution near Election Day so as not to influence the results. Today's break from that tradition is appalling."

Republicans immediately pounced on the news, hoping to shake up a presidential race where most polls appear to show Republican nominee Donald Trump lagging well behind Clinton.

House Speaker Paul Ryan said Clinton has "nobody but herself to blame."

"She was entrusted with some of our nation's most important secrets, and she betrayed that trust by carelessly mishandling highly classified information," Ryan, R-Wis., said in a statement. "This decision, long overdue, is the result of her reckless use of a private email server, and her refusal to be forthcoming with federal investigators. I renew my call for the Director of National Intelligence to suspend all classified briefings for Secretary Clinton until this matter is fully resolved."

Speaking to cheering supporters at a rally in New Hampshire, Trump used Comey's new letter to attack Clinton.

"We must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office," said Trump, who has pledged to "lock up" his political rival if elected. "Perhaps finally justice will be done."

Prior to seeking public office as a Republican, Trump was a supporter of Clinton's past campaigns for president and senator. Records show the New York billionaire also contributed at least $4,300 to former Rep. Weiner's Democratic campaigns.
What to Know Erica Garner blasted the Clinton campaign in a series of tweets for the way they discussed her dad's death in emails released by WikiLeaks

She accused campaign staffers of "exploiting" her father's death to boost Clinton's stance on gun control

Garner endorsed Bernie Sanders for president in a video released in February

Erica Garner slammed Hillary Clinton's campaign in a series of tweets Thursday after new emails released by WikiLeaks showed how the Democratic presidential nominee's staff mentioned the death of her father while discussing language for a newspaper editorial on gun violence this spring.

"I'm troubled by the revelation that you and this campaign actually discussed 'using' Eric Garner ... why would you want to 'use' my dad?" she tweeted. "These people will co opt anything to push their agenda. Police violence is not the same as gun violence."

"I'm very interested to know exactly what @CoreyCiorciari meant when he said 'I know we have an Erica Garner problem' in the #PodestaEmails19," she added.

I'm troubled by the revelation that you and this campaign actually discussed "using" Eric Garner ... Why would you want to "use" my dad?  officialERICA GARNER (@es_snipes) October 27, 2016

These people will co opt anything to push their agenda. Police violence is not the same as gun violence.  officialERICA GARNER (@es_snipes) October 27, 2016

She included links to the emails released by WikiLeaks and accused campaign staffers of exploiting her father's death to bolster Clinton's stance on gun control. The hacked emails show internal communications between campaign staffers discussing the language of an editorial piece on gun violence that ran in the Daily News on March 27.

https://t.co/jzfUl0FbXF In this #PodestaEmails leak @CoreyCiorciari n @NickMerrill plot to use police violence victims to push gun control  officialERICA GARNER (@es_snipes) October 27, 2016

399046331

"I know we have Erica Garner issues but we don't want to mention Eric at all? I can see her coming after us for leaving him out of the piece," Clinton's traveling press secretary Nick Merrill wrote in a March 17 email.

Senior Political Adviser Maya Harris corrected Merrill in a reply: "Eric Garner not included because not killed by gun violence."

"I'm glad you had Maya on your team to explain why you wont (sic) be USING my dad in you (sic) f-----g gun violence piece ... Black woman saved your a--," Garner tweeted.

your sister Maya saved the clinton campaign a lot of embarrassment https://t.co/UOQLaKz7Sn  officialERICA GARNER (@es_snipes) October 28, 2016

"Your sister Maya saved the Clinton campaign a lot of embarrassment," she added in a retweet to Kamala Harris, the sister of Clinton's political adviser.

A spokesperson for the Clinton campaign did not respond to questions regarding the recent tweets.

Garner's father was killed in July 2014 after he was stopped by police for selling loose, untaxed cigarettes and was placed in a chokehold by officer Daniel Pantaleo. A New York grand jury opted not to indict Pantaleo on criminal charges. He has been on modified duty pending the results of a federal probe into whether civil rights charges should be filed in the case.

[NATL] Photos: Protests Across the Nation Against Police Violence
Several warehouses in Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens were raided by police and federal agents on Thursday as authorities tried to sniff out counterfeit designer goods, officials said.

NYPD officers and Homeland Security Investigations agents expected to recover knockoff goods valued in the millions during Thursday's raids. Authorities said that most of the items were imported from China.

Among the locations was a handbag store on West 30th Street in midtown, where agents hauled out dozens of boxes of items.

It's not clear if any arrests have been made in Thursday's police action.

The raids come months after federal agents seized cases upon cases of knockoff designer perfume in March. The faux fragrances contained ingredients linked to cancer and organ damage.

More than 3 million counterfeit items have been seized in New York City over the last three years. In total, the real versions of those fake products could fetch $94 million at stores.
The U.S. Coast Guard seized more than 5,600 pounds of cocaine and arrested five suspected drug smugglers in the Pacific Ocean off the Central American coast. That brings the total of coke seized by the Coast Guard this fiscal year to more than 416,000 pounds, according to Lt. Donnie Brzuska.

In the most recent bust, the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Waesche from Alameda, California, working with the Joint Interagency Task Force South patrol aircraft from the U.S. Navy, intercepted a suspected drug smuggling vessel, carrying more than $73-million worth of cocaine on Sept. 6, Brzuska said.

The ships have been out at sea until recently, which is why the Coast Guard announced the arrest on Thursday, more than a month later.

Court records from Southern District of Florida, where the case is being prosecuted, identify the defendants as Arley Olaya Cuero, Norman Garcia, Jose Fernando Ayala, Gabriel Estrada, Jose Rodriguez. Each was arrested in late September on several counts of conspiracy to possess intent to distribute cocaine. Each listed Spanish as their primary language in court records.

NBC Bay Area

After waiving their Miranda rights, all five admitted to knowing they were involved in drug trafficking, according to an affidavit signed by DEA Special Agent Jamey R. Gavalier.

All five have pleaded not guilty, records show, and are being held on $250,000 bond. If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of life in prison.

Law enforcement found the men by boat and armed helicopter and took them off the self-propelled, semi-submersible they were riding in, even though they tried to fill the vessel up with water to try and swamp it, Bruzuska said. But their plans didn't work. Two Alameda-based Coast Guard crew members were able to thwart that attempt and took more than 5,600 pounds of cocaine  nearly three tons  into custody, Brzuska said.

Our Coast Guardsmen face significant risks posed by dangerous criminal organizations, Capt. James Passarelli, commanding officer of the Coast Guard Cutter Waesche said in a statement. Our crew preserved valuable evidence and kept millions of dollars of illicit narcotics off Americas streets.

This year alone, the Coast Guard has stopped six similar vessels, which authorities say are specifically constructed for illicit trafficking with a mostly submerged hull; a cockpit and exhaust pipe are visible just above the water. These types of vessels are extremely difficult to detect and interdict because of their low profile, Brzuska said.

In 2015 and 2016, the Coast Guard removed more than 416,600 pounds of cocaine.

The September bust marks nearly 86,000 pounds of cocaine, worth more than $1.5 billion, that have been intercepted by Alameda-based Coast Guardsmen this year.
Authorities had arrested 141 people who were protesting a controversial North Dakota oil pipeline early on Friday, NBC News reported.

The arrests came after a more than six-hour standoff over the stretch of private land lying in pipeline's path, the Morton County Sheriff's Department said in a statement.

Demonstrators blockaded roads and bridges by setting fire to bales of hay and construction equipment. The sheriff's department said at least seven protesters used "sleeping dragon" devices, which typically involve PVC or other pipe, to physically latch themselves onto vehicles and large concrete. According to police, some protesters threw rocks and improvised fire bombs as law enforcement officers closed in.

Police forces responded by using pepper spray and firing bean bags on protesters.
The lieutenant governor came out Thursday against a measure Republican Gov. Chris Christie supports to ask voters to approve dedicating gas tax proceeds exclusively to transportation projects.

Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, in a rare public disagreement with Christie that follows testimony that she had been "frozen out" by the governor, said on New Jersey 101.5FM that she opposes the ballot question.

"You cannot vote for the question," said Guadagno, a Republican twice elected with Christie.

Christie spokesman Brian Murray said there must be a "misunderstanding."

"The governor finds it hard to believe that the lieutenant governor supports giving an unguarded pot of money to the Democrat-controlled Legislature rather than on needed infrastructure projects," Murray said.

The disagreement comes as Christie enters his final year in office, with his approval ratings at record lows. Guadagno is considered a top prospect in the 2017 gubernatorial contest.

It also underscores an important point about the ballot question: It asks voters to constitutionally dedicate gas tax funds but does not specifically mention the borrowing will reach $12 billion. When voters required lawmakers and the governor to seek voter approval for borrowing in 2008, they also approved an exception for constitutionally dedicated funds, which is what the question seeks to do.

At issue is a ballot question before voters on Nov. 8 that asks whether every cent of the state's gasoline tax  which is being raised from 14.5 cents per gallon to 37.5 cents per gallon Tuesday  should be dedicated exclusively to transportation.

Guadagno said the problem is that the legislation, which establishes an eight-year, $16 billion transportation trust fund, also requires $12 billion in borrowing. The trust fund measure says the borrowing is contingent on voter approval of the question, but the question doesn't explicitly seek voter approval for the borrowing.

Borrowing must be approved by voters, according to a 2008 constitutional amendment, but the trust fund was reauthorized in 2012 without voter approval for more borrowing because the debt was required to be paid from a dedicated source.

"What we need to do is ask every single legislator to go back ... and review it in light of that gas tax legislation," Guadagno said.

Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto, a Democrat, also said Thursday that the lieutenant governor must have a "complete and total misunderstanding" of it.

Christie picked Guadagno as his running mate in the 2009 election, and they were re-elected in 2013. She is the state's first lieutenant governor, a position that had been filled previously by the Senate president. She also serves as the secretary of state, putting her in charge of elections.

Guadagno has never flouted Christie on such a high-profile policy issue before. The two have disagreed over Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, though, with Christie backing him and Guadagno saying she won't vote for him.

Christie and Guadagno's relationship has long been thought to be tense and has come up in the federal trial of two former aides to the governor who are charged with closing lanes to the George Washington Bridge as part of a political retribution scheme. David Wildstein, who has pleaded guilty, testified that the governor and lieutenant have had conflicts.

"I remember being told at least once that she was frozen out," Wildstein said.

Bridget Kelly, the governor's former deputy chief of staff who has pleaded not guilty in the scheme, testified that the relationship was "stressful."

"There were times where she was kind of put in a box (by Christie) and wasn't permitted to do a whole lot," Kelly said. "She wasn't allowed to see his schedule."




Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney took to Twitter on Thursday night wondering about a potential swing demographic in this election -- the Oompa Loompas.

Kenney used Willy Wonka's employees and their appearance to take a shot at Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. The Democratic mayor cracked wise as he wondered about "the Oompa Loompa vote and where it may be leaning this late in the race."

I'm wondering about the Oompa Loompa vote and where it may be leaning this late in the race. pic.twitter.com/TowhwqumFi  Jim Kenney (@JimFKenney) October 28, 2016

The mayor is familiar with @realDonaldTrump. Kenney and Trump have clashed before on social media. After Trump ripped "the Philadelphia mayor" for doing a terrible job in September, Kenney shot back that Trump is "a total nincompoop."

Kenney has been particularly active on his personal Twitter account the last week.

A total nincompoop!  Jim Kenney (@JimFKenney) October 20, 2016

"Bye Donald. Here's your hat and don't let the door hit you on the way out." Kenney added.

Bye Donald. Here's your hat and don't let the door hit you on the way out!  Jim Kenney (@JimFKenney) October 20, 2016

He had more words for Trump, calling him pathetic after he publicly interviewed current employees. Kenney also extended his views to Trump's family.

Let me get this right; @realDonaldTrump is right now publicly interviewing CURRENT employees who are ALL saying he's a great boss. Pathetic!  Jim Kenney (@JimFKenney) October 25, 2016

Would anyone really be happy with this new potential "Dynasty"? Does anyone think that this fellow understands work? pic.twitter.com/mWPOC3mNDR  Jim Kenney (@JimFKenney) October 17, 2016

Donald Jr. crazier? Woohoo!  Jim Kenney (@JimFKenney) October 20, 2016

We'll have to see if Kenney will raise any other concerns before the election on Nov. 8.
Two trains collided head-on on a stretch of track south of Philadelphia around 8:25 a.m. Friday, leaving four people injured, according to officials.

Two people were taken to Crozer Chester Hospital after the crash on a track interlocking Kerlin Street and Concord Road in Chester, Pennsylvania. Conditions of the victims are not yet available, but emergency responders described their injuries as minor.

Two freight trains owned by CSX Transportation were involved in the crash, according to Rob Doolittle, the transportation company's director of communications and media relations.

Both trains were moving at the time of the accident. One was traveling from Richmond, Virginia to Pavonia, New Jersey with three locomotives and 64 empty freight cars and the other was traveling from Quebec, Canada to Atlanta Georgia with one locomotive and eight intermodal cars carrying consumer goods and food products, Doolittle said.

CSX is cooperating with law enforcement to investigate the crash and understand the circumstances that caused it.

It was not immediately clear what caused the trains to be on the same track.
U.S. & World

Stories that affect your life across the U.S. and around the world.
A U.S. fugitive wanted by the FBI for the Valentine's Day 2008 killing of a woman in Southern California was deported from Guatemala on Tuesday, a day after he was captured in the Central American nation.

Guatemalan police spokesman Jorge Aguilar said 38-year-old Edward Lee LeBlanc was taken to Guatemala City's international airport for expulsion on a commercial flight and handed over to FBI custody.

The FBI also confirmed his deportation and said the plane had left Guatemala City with an expected arrival in the United States later in the day.

LeBlanc, whose name is also given as Leblanc in various FBI documents, is charged with murder in Riverside County, California.

According to the bureau's website, U.S. authorities allege he stabbed Kristin Miner multiple times in the stomach and torso after they argued in the Palm Springs area. He allegedly then drove her body into the desert and burned and buried it in a shallow grave. The body was found about six months later.

Guatemalan police said LeBlanc entered the country a little over six months ago and was living there illegally, doing security work for farms.

He was arrested Monday in the town of Cuyotenango, about 100 miles (170 kilometers) west of Guatemala City.

Laura Eimiller, a spokeswoman for the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office, said the detention came after the FBI received a tip about his whereabouts.

She said via email that the Riverside County Sheriff's Department and District Attorney's Office have the murder case.

An FBI statement said LeBlanc was to arrive in Miami and was expected to be booked there on the murder charge. It added that the U.S. government was expected to dismiss a federal warrant against him for alleged unlawful flight to avoid prosecution and he would be extradited to California for prosecution for murder.
Californians voted on 17 ballot propositions at the polls Tuesday, making decisions on a wide range of issues including legalization of recreational marijuana, the death penalty and gun laws.

Use this guide for a quick explanation of each ballot measure. You'll also find arguments for an against each issue and estimated financial impacts.

Results will be updated as they become available.

Proposition 51: Bonds for School Facilities

Proposition 51 allows California to borrow $9 billion in bonds. The money would go to K-12 public schools and community colleges to help fund construction projects.

Cost: $17.6 billion, paid over 35 years in yearly amounts of about $500 million, less than half of one percent of the current General Fund budget.

Pro

Many schools need repairs to make them safer and meet health standards.

Proposition 51 will improve education overall.

Proposition 51 will expand community colleges and allow more students to attend.

Con

Proposition 51 would add to the state's debt.

Bond measures should be under local community control, not state.

Larger, wealthier districts would receive more funding because they have resources to quickly apply for it.

Proposition 52: Private Hospital Fees for Medi-Cal

Medi-Cal provides health care services to low-income Californians. Private hospitals are required to pay to help cover the cost of Medi-Cal. Proposition 52 would make the fee that private hospitals pay permanent and more difficult to change.

Pro

It guarantees funding for Medi-Cal, helping low-income families.

Proposition 52 stops state lawmakers from using this money for something else.

Con

Proposition 52 gives money to hospitals without guaranteeing that it will go toward helping patients.

It gives more money to hospital corporations rather than low-income Californians.

Proposition 53: Public Vote on Revenue Bonds

Revenue bonds are often used to pay for major construction projects: the state pays back the bonds by using money gained from the completed project. Proposition 53 would require revenue bonds for a state project greater than $2 billion to be approved by voters.

Pro

States should have voter approval on expensive projects.

Proposition 53 gives voters more of a voice and demands accountability from the state.

Proposition 53 will discourage spending that adds to state debt.

Con

Waiting for a statewide vote could make it harder to respond to emergencies.

Statewide voters should not make decisions about projects that affect a specific community.

Proposition 53 could prevent or delay fixing pressing infrastructure issues.

Proposition 54: Changes to the Legislative Process

Proposition 54 would require the state Legislature to post bills online three days before a vote. The governor could declare an emergency to make a bill exempt from this requirement. Public meetings of the Legislature would also be recorded and posted online within a day, and anyone will be allowed to record public meetings. Recorded videos could be used in political campaigns.

Pro

This makes it easier for Californians to see what lawmakers are doing  more transparency.

Proposition 54 would give the public time to read new laws before they are passed.

Con

Proposition 54 would make passing bills harder because even small changes to a bill would mean lawmakers have to wait before voting.

Groups in positions of power would have more time to block or change a bill.

Proposition 55: Extend Tax on High Income

This initiative would extend income tax rates on income above $250,000 a year through 2030. Money from these taxes would go toward schools and community colleges as well as the Medi-Cal program. The income tax rate is right now set to expire in 2018 (under Proposition 30, approved in 2012).

Pro

It would only affect those who can afford to pay higher taxes.

Proposition 55 would provide billions to schools and community colleges.

Proposition 55 has accountability requirements that will make sure money reaches schools.

Con

Supporters of Proposition 30 in 2012 were promised temporary increases, not permanent.

Proposition 55 will hurt small businesses and kill jobs.

It will take hard-earned money away from people.

Proposition 56: Tobacco Tax

Proposition 56 would raise taxes on cigarettes by $2 a pack. It would also raise taxes on other tobacco products and e-cigarettes containing nicotine. Revenue from the tax would go toward healthcare and tobacco education programs.

Pro

Raising tobacco taxes will prevent people from smoking.

Proposition 56 would provide millions for healthcare programs.

Tobacco users will help offset tobacco-related healthcare costs that taxpayers pay for.

Con

Only 13 percent of new tobacco tax money will go toward treating smokers or preventing smoking.

Proposition 56 would spend too much money enforcing the tax.

It diverts more money to health insurance companies for treating the same patients.

Proposition 57: Parole, Sentencing and Court Procedures

Under Proposition 57, inmates convicted of nonviolent felonies could be granted parole after serving time for their main crime. They also would have more chances to reduce their sentences through good behavior and educational activities. Finally, this initiative would require a juvenile court judge to decide whether youth ages 14 to 17 could be tried in adult court.

Pro

This would make prisons less crowded and save money.

Proposition 57 would encourage rehabilitation and education of inmates.

Con

Proposition 57 would release more convicted felons and weaken crime laws.

Proposition 57 does not define what classifies as a nonviolent felony. The vague language could be used to apply it to crimes that most people would consider violent.

Proposition 58: English Language Education

Current state law limits the use of bilingual education programs, requiring schools to teach mostly in English. Proposition 58 would remove that requirement and allow schools to use bilingual programs. School districts and county offices of education would make the final decision.

Pro

This gives parents and school districts more control over education and more flexibility.

English learners should be taught in ways that best meet their needs.

Con

Test scores have improved since the state required teaching in English.

Being surrounded by English leads to learning English faster. Proposition 58 could create classrooms primarily taught in Spanish, which could hinder learning English.

Proposition 59: Political Spending Advisory Question

Proposition 59 asks voters whether Californias officials should Propositionose and ratify an amendment to the U.S. constitution overturning the Citizens United decision. The 2010 U.S. Supreme Court decision ruled that political spending by corporations and unions could not be completely limited. This initiative does not guarantee that lawmakers will try to amend the Constitution.

Pro

This would send the message that California opposes the Citizens United decision.

Corporations should not be able to spend unlimited money on political campaigns.

Con

Proposition 59 is a waste of time because it will not change the law.

Proposition 59 does not reduce campaign spending or inform people about political donations.

Proposition 60: Condoms in Adult Films

Proposition 60 would require adult film producers to make sure condoms are used while filming sex. This requirement would apply to film studios as well as individual performers or couples. Californians would also be allowed to sue producers for violating the requirement.

Pro

The current law requiring condoms is not being followed.

This would protect performers from sexually transmitted diseases.

Proposition 60 is supported by medical and public health organizations.

Con

Married couples who film in their home could be sued.

Proposition 60 allows any California resident to directly sue film producers and distributors.

Proposition 60 is opposed by civil rights and public health organizations and business leaders.

Proposition 61: Prescription Drug Costs

This initiative limits how much the state can pay for prescription drugs. State agencies could not pay more than the Department of Veterans Affairs for any medication. Californias managed care system, covering 75 percent of people on Medi-Cal, is exempt.

Pro

Proposition 61 would prevent price gouging and high prices for prescription drugs.

Proposition 61 would save money in healthcare costs.

Con

Proposition 61 would not apply to 88 percent of residents.

This would remove discounts on prescription drugs that California currently receives, which would increase prescription costs.

Proposition 62: Repealing the Death Penalty

Proposition 62 would repeal the death penalty. Existing death row sentences would change to life imprisonment without parole.

Pro

Repealing the death penalty would save the state $150 million a year.

Removing the death penalty would make sure innocent people are not executed.

Victims families will get closure because the long process of death penalty trials and appeals will end.

Con

The most serious crimes deserve the strongest possible punishment.

The money that inmates would put toward victims families cannot make up for the families loss.

Proposition 62 threatens public safety and denies justice for victims families.

Proposition 63: Gun and Ammunition Sales

Proposition 63 would ban gun magazines that hold a large number of bullets. It would also require background checks for buying ammunition and impose new felony charges for gun theft. Proposition 63 would set up a new court process to keep guns away from felons and other people disqualified from owning firearms.

Pro

This makes sure violent criminals and the mentally ill cannot have guns.

It strengthens gun laws and stops dangerous people from buying ammunition.

Con

This makes it harder for law-abiding citizens to buy ammunition.

The costs of Proposition 63 could be better spent on law enforcement.

Proposition 64: Legalizing Recreational Marijuana

This initiative would legalize growing, possessing or using non-medical marijuana for adults, ages 21 and over. Taxes would be set for retail and on growers. Revenue from these taxes would go toward law enforcement and other programs like drug education.

Pro

Proposition 64 sets up a safe system of marijuana use.

Proposition 64 would bring in more than $1 billion in revenue and lower law enforcement costs.

Con

Proposition 64 would increase driving accidents because it has no DUI standard for marijuana.

Marijuana would be allowed to be grown near schools.

Proposition 64 would allow felons with meth and heroin convictions to sell marijuana.

Proposition 65: Money From Carry-Out Bags

The initiative would redirect money charged by stores for paper carry-out bags. Instead of keeping the money, stores would put it into a state account to be used for environmental projects.

Pro

Stores should not be allowed to profit from the sale of reusable bags.

Proposition 65 ensures that the money will go to helping the environment.

Con

Proposition 65 will not make much money for the state.

Proposition 65 distracts from the real issue, getting rid of plastic bags completely.

Proposition 66: Death Penalty Court Procedures

This initiative would speed up the death penalty legal process by setting a five-year time limit on challenging death sentences. It would also limit successive appeals. Death row inmates would work and pay victim restitution.

Pro

Speeding up the process could save tens of millions of dollars a year.

The appeals process should be quicker and less complicated.

Con

Proposition 66 would cost millions of dollars in legal and lawyer fees.

Shortening the appeals process increases the risk of executing innocent people.

Proposition 67: Plastic Bag Ban

Proposition 67 would uphold a 2014 law that prohibits stores from selling plastic and paper bags across the state. Stores can sell recycled paper or reusable bags.

Pro

Voting Yes would reduce litter and protect wildlife and the environment.

Many communities have already banned plastic bags.

Cons

A plastic bag ban would reduce manufacturing jobs.

Consumers would have to pay for reusable bags and grocery stores could keep the money.

Source: Voter's Edge

[LA GALLERY] Election Day Images Around California
Homicide detectives are investigating a possible suspicious death in the Bay Park neighborhood of San Diego after a woman's body was found Thursday afternoon.

San Diego Police (SDPD) received a call around 1 p.m. of an unresponsive person in the east alley of the 1900 block of Morena Boulevard. When officers arrived on scene, the woman was pronounced dead.

Thursday night, detectives had towed away what they believe may be a key piece of evidence in the investigationa camper.

Chrissy Holt, who lives in the apartment behind which the body was discovered, told NBC 7 she did not hear anything suspicious.

"I hear a lot out in the alley and I heard some scuffling and mumbling, but I didn't hear, really didn't sound like any screaming or fighting," Holt said.

Police are now questioning that man in connection to the woman's death. Those who know the man said he does odds at businesses in the area and lives in the camper.

"He let me come in during the rain and stuff, fed me, got me back when I get sick and stuff," said Charlene Roan, a friend of man.

Holt told NBC 7 that while the death does make her feel uneasy, she hopes the suspect is arrested soon.

"It's always tragic no matter how someone loses their life," she said. "It's always tragic."

Police believe the woman, described to be in her 30s or 40s, may be homeless.

Anyone with information is asked to call SDPD or Crime Stoppers at (888)580-8477.
City flags at the City of Coronado municipal buildings are being flown at half staff in honor of Jason Finan, the fallen Coronado-based sailor killed in Iraq.

Chief Petty Officer Jason C. Finan, 34, died last week from injuries suffered by an "improvised explosive device," or roadside bomb, officials said.

Finan was from Anaheim, California, and was serving in Iraq with Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit 3 in an advisory capacity, according to the Pentagon.

The City of Coronado said they will leave the city flags at half staff until Tuesday, Nov. 1 in honor of Finan.

On Tuesday, the day of interment. the U.S. and state flags will also be lowered, the city said.

Finan was the first U.S. service member to die in combat since the launch of a massive operation to retake the Islamic State-held city of Mosul last week.

More than 100 U.S. special operations forces are embedded with Iraqi units, and hundreds more are playing a supporting role in staging bases.

Three other service members have died in Iraq since the U.S.-led coalition began launching airstrikes against IS in August 2014.
Firefighters were responding to a fire that sparked inside a two-story home in Shelltown Friday night.

The fire started at approximately 9:49 p.m. on the 4000 block of Nordica Avenue near S 40th Street, according to the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department (SDFD).

When firefighters arrived on scene, they found smoke coming out of the home. The residents had safely self-evacuated, SDFD said.

No other information was immediately available.
There's a new effort to toughen up controversial short-term rentals in San Diego.

In San Diego, thousands of rentals around the city are available through sites like AirBnB.com. City Council President Sherry Lightner wants to toughen up rules that could eventually ban rental stays for less than 30 days.

City officials and local community leaders will gather Friday to announce a proposal to address short-term vacation rentals in San Diego, particularily in single-family neighborhoods.

Depending on who you ask, the city municipal code does not clearly define a short term rental.

Lightner says current Municipal Code states the zones were where visitor accomodations - a type of commercial use - are permitted and not permitted.

The proposal set to be put forward would recommend minor edits to the code to better clarify what exactly a visitor accommodation means - and add short-term vacation rentals to the description, Lightner and city leaders claim. Such changes would help with enforcement, city officials claim.

"I think drawing attention to it in this matter shows that it's enforceable now, and it should be enforced, and it will increase the pressure on the city departments to actually enforce this," Lightner said.

Lightner's plan would fine violators a maximum $250,000 per parcel of land. It will be up for debate during the City Council meeting next week.

Pacific Beach homeowner Ronan Gray, who leads the Save San Diego Neighborhood group, says current laws are not being enforced.

He lives right next door to a home that has been rented out for 16 months. The property owner lives out of state.

Gray has video and pictures of loud parties and the aftermath, and says enough is enough - there needs to be a change.

"People are buying homes in our residential zones purely to run them as mini hotels and commercial business. They never live there, never intend to live there," Gray said.

But Rancho Bernardo homeowner Susan Adams has rented out her townhome since 2013. She says renting to 'responsible' tenants helps supplement her income and any changes would destroy her financially.

"We're not those bad guys at the beach that are creating havoc, having parties because my guests, for the most part, are families coming in to see families here in town," says Adams.

John Anderson, who rents out his property in North Park says the extra income helps his family make ends meet.

"Meaningful money that goes to my children's education, to family vacations, to paying the mortgage--would go awa," Anderson said.

Both sides are passionate about the issue and plan to sound off at a City Council meeting next Tuesday at 10 a.m. in Golden Hall.
A student studying in San Diego who was raped at knife point in Pacific Beach pocket dialed her father in Germany during the assault, who heard part of the assault as his daughter pleaded for her life, a police officer testified in court Thursday.

Suspect Jacob Skorniak, 49, has pleaded not guilty to charges of forcible rape and kidnap for rape, with allegations that he used a knife during the rape and moved the victim to a place of increased harm.

According to Deputy District Attorney Marisa DiTillio, the 21-year-old victim, who is from Germany, told officials she had spent New Years Eve with friends and was returning to the Pacific Beach home where she was staying when she encountered Skorniak.

She got out of her taxi, and the next thing she remembers is riding in Skorniaks truck as he held her at knife point.

"She said one of the first things she recalled was seeing a person with a knife in his hand holding the steering wheel," testified San Diego Police Department Sargent Rich Forsey.

DiTillio said the suspect pulled down a dark street, parked and used the knife to tear off some of the victims clothes.

He then forcibly raped her as she begged him not to hurt her, according to the prosecutor. As the assault was happening, the victim pocket dialed her father, in Germany, who heard a portion of the assault on the live phone line.

He said he heard (the victim) say something to the effect of, take what you want, leave me alive," Forsey testified. "She said it a couple of times, she was distressed. He heard a lot of sounds like she was being assaulted."

That family member called police while Skorniak drove to a gas station, where he was seen on surveillance video paying for gas inside, prosecutors allege.

DiTillio said the victim was too scared to run, but she motioned to someone at the gas station, indicating that she was in danger.

The bystander wrote down the trucks license plate number, which was registered to Skorniaks father. The prosecution confirmed the truck was in Skorniaks possession at the time, according to DiTillio.

The suspect then drove the victim back to the area of her home, but soon saw police surrounding the house, investigating the relatives call. Skorniak allegedly continued to drive away with the victim still in the truck.

The victim was finally able to convince the suspect to release her, and he dropped her off several blocks from her home. Her clothing ripped - allegedly from the knife Skorniak used to cut them - she ran to police.

After getting the victim's description of the suspect and his truck, investigators identified the rape suspect as Skorniak. A statewide manhunt ensued, and Skorniak was arrested on Jan. 22, 2015 in Santa Barbara, with the same truck in his possession.

Forsey testified that at the time of his arrest, memory cards were found inside Skorniaks truck. On one there were travel shots, and pictures of girls in bikinis on San Diego beaches. On another, there was a short video. Forsey says it shows a woman being sexually assaulted.

Then the image panned up and showed the female was not wearing any upper clothing her breasts were exposed, Forsey said. It appeared to be (the victim)She seemed like she was pretty much passed out. She was moaning, but pretty much passed out.

Investigating Officer Forsey testified the victim identified Skorniak in a photo line up.

According to police, Skorniak, a Colorado resident, has served two decades in prison for robbing a bank in Colorado and was on federal parole at the time of the alleged rape. DiTillio said his criminal history dates back to the 1980s, including burglary with an escape and a robbery in 1995.

A judge ruled the case will go to trail.

Skorniak faces 65 years to life if convicted.
The U.S. Navy will commission a research ship Friday named after late astronaut Sally Ride, who also worked as a professor and scientist in San Diego, and lived in La Jolla until her death in 2012.

Owned by the Navy and operated by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the 238-foot R/V Sally Ride is a state-of-the-art research vessel  a Neil Armstrong-class auxiliary general oceanographic research, or AGOR ship, first announced by U.S. Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus in 2013.Traditionally, AGORs are named for nationally recognized leaders in exploration and science.

The R/V Sally Ride is designed to investigate the workings of the Earths oceans, and will host researchers pursuing solutions to the planets environmental challenges.

Once the ship is commissioned Friday at the Broadway Pier along San Diegos Embarcadero, the ship will be open to the public for free, all-ages, self-guided tours from noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday.

The tours will allow visitors to see some of the stations and laboratories where the scientists aboard the vessel collect their data, plus the ships main work deck and living spaces. Visitors will also get to meet some of the ships crew and leaders with Scripps Oceanography. To get more details on those tours offered this Sunday, click here.

Ride, who lived in La Jolla until her death in July 2012, was the first American woman in space as part of NASAs Space Shuttle Challenger crew. She was also a member of UC San Diegos physics faculty, and worked as professor, scientist and innovator at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

The RV/Sally Ride is the first academic research ship to be named in honor of a woman. Its first scientific mission is slated for Nov. 4.

The commissioning of the vessel coincides with the opening of a pair of new exhibits at the Birch Aquarium at UC San Diego dedicated to the ship and sea research, Expedition at Sea: R/V Sally Ride Gallery and A Crab's Eye View: Micro-Expedition Across a Coral Head.

Expedition at Sea is all about the R/V Sally Ride and its role in the research fleet at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. It gives visitors a glimpse at the sights and sounds of life and work aboard a research vessel at sea via a virtual tour of R/V Sally Ride.

Meanwhile, A Crab's Eye View: Micro-Expedition Across a Coral Head, explores research on coral bleaching using Scripps Oceanographys latest underwater camera technology. Both exhibits are included in Birch Aquarium admission.
The explosion lit up the Loudoun County correctional office into a "bright orange ball of fire."

Started with a homemade firebomb made from a glass bottle, explosive liquid and a white t-shirt, the 2015 blast caused more than $300,000 in damage.

No one was hurt. But Loudoun County Fire Marshal investigators said the bomber, Jonathan Godoy of Frederick, Maryland, was specifically targeting law enforcement.

And, they said, the materials for his bomb cost only $20 and could be bought at a corner store.

"The device lit up the room real well, with a bright orange ball of fire," said Chris Doyle, an investigator with the Loudoun County, Virginia Fire Marshal's office. Godoy pleaded guilty to the attack and has been sentenced to nearly 16 years in prison.

That was one of at least 600 threats or uses of homemade bombs and incendiary devices that Washington, D.C.-area police have investigated since 2014, according to an investigation by the News4 I-Team.

The incidents include other plots to attack local law enforcement and police buildings or homes.

And law enforcement officials said some of the seized devices show homemade explosives and incendiary devices are easy and inexpensive to manufacture.

A Dundalk, Maryland man faces trial in November for an alleged plot to detonate explosives at a Pennsylvania State Police barracks. Howard Cofflin has pleaded not guilty to charges or making bomb threats and assault.

Investigators said Cofflin had stockpiled ammunition and materials to produce a bomb. They said he was plotting to level the police barracks in Loganville, Pennsylvania.

His defense attorney did not return requests for comment.

Also among the cases: That of a Stafford County, Virginia man who was convicted of tossing homemade explosives at police in Montana. The police were pursuing Laurence Stewart after he was suspected of bombing homes in Stafford County, including those of law enforcement.

U.S. Justice Department records show at least 90 incidents in which law enforcement have been targeted by homemade explosives over a recent four-year period.

Anne Arundel County fire investigator Robert Howarth said such devices are increasingly easy to manufacture. "They're easy to get," Howarth said. "Theyre fairly inexpensive, because the chemicals themselves arent illegal. There are other uses for them."

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said it offers training to law enforcement officers nationwide to better to detect and track homemade explosive devices before they are deployed.
A charter bus carrying elementary school students collided with a Metrobus in northeast D.C., fire officials say.

Fire and rescue workers are at the scene of the crash that happened near Eastern Avenue and Randolph Street NE about 4:30 p.m. The 4000 block of Eastern Ave. to Randolph St. is blocked both ways, according to police.

Medics evaluated 42 students and one adult on the charter bus and some have been treated for minor injuries, according to a spokesperson for the fire department.

One child who has a previous medical condition was taken to a hospital. Four adults refused treatment after they had been evaluated, fire officials said. No one was seriously injured.

The fire department dispatched several units along with Prince George's County Fire and Rescue to assist. A hazmat crew was also called to the scene for a fuel spill.

The Metrobus involved was traveling on the G-8 route from Farragut North and Avondale.

On Saturday, police said the driver of the Metrobus has received a notice of infraction for failure to yield a right of way and failure to pay full time and attention.

Stay with News4 and NBCWashington.com as we continue to get more information on this developing story.
The conspiracy theories surrounding the mysterious and sudden death of a former Russian presidential aide have finally been debunked after investigators determined he died from an injury he suffered after days of excessive drinking.

Mikhail Lesin, a former aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin, was found dead on the floor of his room in the Dupont Circle Hotel the morning of Nov. 5, 2015.

Police say Lesin, 57, entered his hotel room for the final time Nov. 4, after days of excessive drinking. While in the room, Lesin fell multiple times and suffered "blunt-force injuries of the neck, torso, upper extremities and lower extremities," a statement from police said.

His body was found the next morning. Acute ethanol intoxication was also listed as a contributing cause to his death.

The investigation into Lesin's death is now closed.

In addition to being a former aide to Putin, Lesin helped found the English-language news service Russia Today, later renamed RT. He served as Russian press minister from 1999 to 2004 and presidential media adviser from 2004 to 2009, RT said.

He then became a senior executive at Gazprom-Media, Russia's largest media holding company.
Two days after electric, gas and water service was cut off to a Maryland apartment building -- forcing 77 families to move out suddenly, some in the dark -- a judge has ruled that families can move back in.

A judge filed an emergency order that lifted the eviction at Lynnhill Condominiums late Thursday.

State officials had joined the condominiums' new homeowners association in going to court to ask for the order. The condos were condemned Tuesday after the utilities were turned off; after that, residents were given three days to move out.

Lynnhill owes the utilities about $1.2 million in back bills. The condo association has alleged that a past management company was misusing residents' condo fees and failing to pay utility bills.

Though the complex is made up of condominiums, many of them have been rented out. Many of the residents have low incomes or are elderly and didn't know where they would go.

"We are frustrated, desperate -- we just need help," said Barbara Taha, a Lynnhill resident.

Residents had converged on the county office building earlier in the day, hoping for help from elected officials.

"We need some action. The lights are still out, it's cold the gas is off," Taha said.

The order doesn't mean that the utilities will come back on; the utility companies were not in court Thursday. That matter could be taken up by the court next week.

Meanwhile, community organizations and local businesses are trying to help the families affected.

Two moving companies donated their services. An apartment management company appeared Wednesday and waived application fees for apartments elsewhere in the county.

"We had to do what we could to make a difference," said Terry Epps, owner of Mess Movers.

To help the Lynnhill residents, click here and go to "Neighbors in Need."
A former resident of Alexandria, Virginia, faces up to 40 years in prison after he allegedly used fake names to fill out voter registration applications.

Vafalay Massaquoi, 30, was charged with four felonies related to allegations of voter registration fraud, the Commonwealth's Attorney's Office said. Each charge carries a maximum of 10 years in prison.

In spring 2016, Massaquoi was registering new voters as an employee of the New Virginia Majority, an advocacy group aligned with the Democratic party. According to the Commonwealth's Attorney, Massaquoi fabricated applications and used fake names to fill out the registration forms.

The New Virginia Majority said Massaquoi was fired in June.

"Protecting the integrity of our elections so they remain free, fair, and accessible remains New Virginia Majoritys top priority," the New Virginia Majority said in a statement Friday.

The fake applications were filed with the Alexandria Office of the General Registrar, who reported the issue to Commonwealth's Attorney Bryan Porter.

Porter said while the false applications were filed, no illegal votes were cast in this case.

"Since the fraudulent applications involved fictitious people, had the fraud not been uncovered the risk of actual fraudulent votes being cast was low," Porter said.

An arrest warrant was filed for Massaquoi in July, but he had already moved out of the area. After a search, Massaquoi was arrested near Philadelphia and extradited to Alexandria Oct. 27.

Massaquoi appeared in court Friday morning and was being held without bond.
The workers making critical repairs to the Metrorail system say management is bullying, threatening and forcing them to sidestep safety rules, putting both workers and the public in danger.

Employees who spoke at a Metro board meeting on Thursday said they worry about making a fatal mistake because they are being rushed to get work done fast.

"WMATA is terrified of angering the public, but I'm more concerned with making sure they don't die. The public will get over being mad, but they will not come back to life," Metro employee Antonio Ross said.

The workers also said they are worried about themselves, Raymond Jackson of Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 689 said.

"Do you feel like you are safe when you are working out there?" News4's Adam Tuss asked.

"Not all the time. No. I can honestly say not all the time," Jackson replied.

Metro disputed the workers' claims and said that safety trumps service. Officials pointed to a spike in the number of cases in which tracks were taken out of service and trains were slowed because safety fixes were being made.

"Whereas I think historically they would have said, 'Well, OK, we're going to do that later,' we're saying, 'No, we're going to deal with it now,'" Metro General Manager Paul Wiedefeld said.

Many workers said that did not reassure them.

"If there are work rules being broken to get this work done, it has to stop," Jackson said.
Montgomery County police are searching for a 25-year-old Bethesda man who hasn't been heard from in two days.

Daniel McNeil Hogan was last seen at his Westridge Road home at 6 p.m. Monday, but a friend spoke with him by text message early Wednesday morning.

Police say his family is concerned for his emotional and physical welfare.

Hogan is 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighs 158 pounds. He has brown hair, green eyes and may be driving a black, 2005 Infiniti G35 with Maryland tags 7CK4081.

Anyone with information that can help police is asked to call 301-279-8000.
An Uber driver picked up a drunken woman at a D.C. bar and took her to a hotel in College Park, Maryland, instead of driving her home to Virginia, police say.

Westagne Pierre, 29, was charged with assault, kidnapping and fraudulent use of a credit card after Prince George's County police said he picked up a woman the night of Oct. 18.

An Uber user used the ride-hailing app to send the friend home to Northern Virginia after the friend blacked out from drinking, police said.

Pierre picked up the woman and drove her to a Budget Inn, police said. Surveillance video footage showed him lift the motionless woman out of the car, officials said.

Pierre is accused of then leaving the hotel, driving to a 7-Eleven and charging $14 to the victim's credit card. Those charges appeared on her credit card statement, police said.

The victim told police she never gave Pierre permission to take her to the hotel room or use her credit card.

Additional charges against Pierre are pending after consultations with the state's attorney's office.

"This is deeply upsetting. The driver has been banned from the app, and we are working closely with police to support their investigation," a spokesperson for Uber told News4.

Anyone with information on the case is asked to call 301-772-4908, send a text message with PGPD to CRIMES or visit www.pgcrimesolvers.com. To leave a tip anonymously, call 1-866-411-TIPS.
A 19-year-old Virginia woman accused of sending child pornography to an undercover FBI agent was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security a year ago for allegedly sending porn.

Pamela Wilson, of Woodbridge, was arrested and charged with distribution of child pornography on Wednesday, police said.

Wilson, a student at Northern Virginia Community College, used to work at a daycare before the Department of Homeland Security started investigating her for porn she allegedly sent to Arizona, prosecutors said. She was not charged in that investigation, but was warned to quit her job.

According to an affidavit obtained by News4, an undercover FBI agent said Wilson messaged him that she was interested in performing sexual acts with his 9-year-old daughter.

Wilson told the undercover agent she was uncomfortable sending him pornography, but she uploaded files to her Dropbox and sent him the link and her password, the affidavit said. The agent said he found more than 100 videos of adults abusing young children in the Dropbox.

Prosecutors said the Dropbox is probable cause to charge Wilson with distribution of child pornography, however, Wilson's attorney has argued there was no distribution because that requires a transfer of possession. The defender said there also has to be an intent to transfer possession.

U.S. Magistrate Judge G. Michael Harvey said he is concerned if the pornography was distributed from Virginia to D.C. Harvey said he has never seen a case like this before.

Police ask anyone with information regarding this case to call 202-7272-9099 or text the tip line at 50411.
An energy company lawyer said Thursday that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas touched her inappropriately at a 1999 dinner in suburban Washington. Thomas denied the allegation.

Lawyer Moira Smith said in a statement that she was 23 when "Justice Thomas touched me inappropriately and without my consent." Smith, now vice president and general counsel of Enstar Natural Gas in Anchorage, Alaska, was then a recent graduate of Georgetown University who was spending the year as a Truman Foundation scholar in Washington.

Two of Smith's roommates back then confirmed to The Associated Press that Smith told them what happened just after the dinner. Smith didn't go public until this month.

Thomas said the claim is "preposterous" and "it never happened."

Smith's story and Thomas' denial were first published by Law.com.

Thomas' high court confirmation in 1991 was nearly derailed by Anita Hill's claims that Thomas sexually harassed her.

Smith first described the incident publicly on her Facebook page, saying "he groped me while I was setting the table" at a dinner hosted by her boss. Smith said she has since deactivated her Facebook page, but law.com reprinted the posting with its story.

Smith said she was moved to share her experience after hearing that Donald Trump had been caught on tape making crude comments about women and then seeing an Internet meme that made light of the situation. Smith said on Facebook that she also had been the victim of date rape and was later groped by an acquaintance in a bar.

"As the mother of a young daughter and son, I am coming forward to show that it is important to stand up for yourself and tell the truth. When powerful men commit sexual assault, they count on their victims keeping it a secret," she said in the statement.

When Smith returned home from the dinner in June 1999, she recounted what happened to her three roommates, said one of the women, Carrie Farmer.

"I can't recall if it was that night or the next morning, but she told us that she went to this dinner and then this awful thing happened," said Farmer, a health policy expert with the Rand Corporation in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. "I don't recall our reaction to it, except I guess we were young and we didn't know what to do with that kind of information."

Another roommate, Laura Fink of San Diego, would only say that the account published in law.com was accurate. Fink is a Democratic consultant who made similar claims against former San Diego Mayor Bob Filner, for whom she worked when he was running for Congress. In 2013, Filner resigned as mayor amid sexual harassment allegations and eventually was sentenced to 90 days of home confinement on charges related to the claims.

Smith's account became public just as Thomas and his supporters were marking his 25th anniversary on the court. The commemorations included an event at the Heritage Foundation Wednesday night, where Thomas was asked whether there is hope for the Supreme Court confirmation process.

Carrie Severino, a former Thomas clerk, said the justice treated his clerks with "the utmost respect" and allowed her to defer her clerkship for a year because she was pregnant.

"The alleged conduct bears no resemblance to the man I worked closely with, whom I still count a friend after nearly ten years," Severino wrote in a blog post on National Review.com that the justice's defenders circulated Thursday.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said Friday that he is "very proud" that the FBI is willing to investigate new emails linked to Hillary Clinton's private email server.

"The news this morning, this is bigger than Watergate," Trump said at a campaign stop in Manchester, New Hampshire. "Hillary deleted 30,000 emails after receiving a congressional subpoena.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said Friday that he is very proud that the FBI was willing to reopen its investigation into Hillary Clintons email server.

"I have great respect that the FBI now has the courage to right the horrible mistake they made. This was a grave miscarriage of justice that the American people fully understood and everyone's hope is that it is about to be corrected."

He added that "Hillary Clinton's corruption is on a scale we have never seen before. We must not let her take her criminal's scheme into the oval office."

The FBI told Congress Friday it is investigating whether new emails that may contain classified information have emerged in its probe of Clinton's private server, an unexpected announcement that surfaced less than two weeks before the presidential election. The FBI said in July its investigation was finished.

Donald Trump rallied in Maine after learning the FBI investigation into Hillary Clintons emails had been reopened.

From Manchester, Trump headed to Lisbon, Maine, where he rallied in front of a modest but enthusiastic crowd.

"We hope justice will finally be served," Trump told about 1,300 people in a school gym, speaking of Clinton.

The Republican nominee has held five rallies in Maine this campaign, giving the state an unusual amount of attention. Trump stands to win at least one electoral college vote if the northern half of the state votes Republican.

Maine is one of just two states with a "split" electoral vote, instead of the usual winner-take-all allocation.

"We are going to win Maine, and we're going to win the White House," he said.

Trump is scheduled to speak in Lisbon, Maine, later on Friday as he seeks to win at least one of the state's four electoral votes. Maine is one of two states that split their electoral votes.

Donald Trump addressed supporters at a rally in Manchester, New Hampshire, on Friday morning and discussed the FBIs decision to re-open the investigation into Hillary Clintons email server.
The Boston real estate market continues to be white hot.

A new report found condominium prices in Boston soared more than 40 percent this year.

"It has happened overnight," Deb Blair, of LINK Listing Information Network, who authored the report.

One big reason for the 43 percent increase, Millennium Tower, the Downtown Crossing high-rise with more than 440 high-priced units.

"This home is certainly the premier residence," Patrick Cutter, with Millennium Partners, said Thursday. "We have sold over 420 condo units."

Units here started at around $1 million. The penthouse sold for more than $30 million.

"This certainly exceeded our expectations," Cutter said. "Gone are the days that people would just come into Boston, go to school here, and then leave 1933 they are staying."

Even when removing Millennium Tower from the equation, LINK found the condo market grew 12 percent.

"You are really starting to see all these market forces and market demographics coming together," Cutter said.

At the Metropolitan Boston Housing Partnership there is a different kind of demand.

MBHP works with approximately 25,000 lower income residents looking for affordable housing in the city.

"There is more production, but we need more production for specifically families on the lowest income levels," Steve Farrell with MBHP said.

"It is very good for the economy overall, but it is leaving folks behind, it is leaving folks who have tower two or three jobs to make rent, it is leaving them without any housing options at all."

Back at Millennium Tower, proof the demand to live in Boston comes at all price points.

"We are going to sell this whole building out without running one print ad," Cutter said.
T20 World Cup: 'He Was Superb in Warm Up Match, Lot of You Weren't There'-Rahul Defends Rahul

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Hurt Prithvi Shaw Posts Emotional Insta Story After Snub from Team India; 3 Other Players Follow Suit
Alan Fincke has been renting out two rooms in his Cambridge, Massachusetts, home for the last three years, using the website Airbnb to do it.

He's semi-retired and uses the extra money to help pay the bills, and he's enjoyed the company.

"It's really opened up our two little rooms to the world travelers," said Fincke.

But with the popularity of Airbnb and other websites that are used to share homes, there are growing concerns. In both Cambridge and Boston, city officials are looking at new regulations.

"We have people looking at Airbnb as an investment opportunity," said Cambridge City Councilor Craig Kelley. "And they're not connected physically to that particular unit."

Kelley says Fincke is not someone officials worry about because he's renting out rooms in his own home. But they are concerned about investors buying up properties and turning them into permanent short-term rentals, which can lead to a decrease in the housing stock and an increase in rent for local residents because of the tightened demand.

"We have a lot of Airbnbs and in a market as tight as Cambridge I think it's reasonable to think that there is some negative impact on availability of market-rate long-term housing," said Kelley.

In Boston, City Councilor Sal LaMattina tells necn there are hundreds of housing units being used as what he calls virtual hotels, making it difficult for residents to find affordable homes. Landlords are turning it into a full-fledged business.

A spokesperson for Airbnb tells necn the problem is not systemic, and in Boston for example, only about 5 percent of the listings are being used for commercial purposes.

"We believe focusing on a certain and minute number of listings unfairly represents how the average and the large majority of our Massachusetts hosts use the platform -- which is typically less than 40 days per year," said Crystal Davis in a statement from the company. "The typical Boston and Cambridge family is using home sharing to pay their bills, save for retirement or reinvest in their homes. Wherever we work with lawmakers, we rely on lessons learned in cities where Airbnb is a good neighbor. In Massachusetts, we've had a number of collaborative conversations about sensible regulation, fair taxation and we will continue on that path."

The Boston City Council is planning a meeting next month to discuss new regulations. Cambridge had a meeting Wednesday night about the same issue. But new rules for Airbnb are not imminent.

"I just hope that when regulations come out, that they're not going to have a dampening effect on Airbnb hosts in the city," said Fincke.
A detail officer in Boston foiled a bank robbery attempt when she refused to surrender her firearm to the would-be robber.

Just before 4 p.m., police say a masked man walked in and tried to rob the City of Boston Credit Union in West Roxbury.

When the officer, hired by the bank, confronted the suspect to remove his mask, police say he demanded she surrender her firearm.

The officer then grabbed the suspect and his shopping bag, fearing a weapon could be inside, and chased him out of the credit union.

The suspect was apprehended in front of a nearby restaurant in a red sedan.

Boston Police are also crediting a Boston Police captain who was on his way into work. He heard radio broadcasts by the detail officer, noticed her nearby and picked her up.

Both Officers removed the suspect from his car.

Police say the suspect, 51-year-old Richard Cassano of Dorchester, has a lengthy criminal record with 192 entries, many of which are bank robberies. His getaway car was allegedly stolen, and police say he's out on parole right now for another bank robbery.

Cassano will be arraigned in West Roxbury District Court on charges of attempt to commit a crime, attempted robbery, receiving stolen property and operating without a license. It was not immediately clear if he had an attorney.
A former police officer in New Hampshire is suing her former supervisor for sexual harassment, claiming that he ranked women in his community based on their "rapability."

"It was just absolutely disbelief," said Tony Soltani who represents 24-year-old Nashua resident Alex Drake.

According to a 40-page federal lawsuit, Drake alleges that during field training in 2013 as a New Boston Police Officer, her supervisor, Lt. Michael Masella created a so-called "rapability" scale.

"He's talking about rapability of motorists and, 'maybe we should take a person out to the woods and rape her instead of just giving her a ticket,'" Soltani said.

Drake is suing the New Boston Police Department, Lt. Masella, Chief James Brace, and others for gender discrimination and sexual harassment. Drake claims that when she voiced her concerns, she was fired. She's also suing for wrongful termination.

But according to court documents, the town terminated Drake because she admitted to falsifying a police report.

Soltani says Drake was just following orders.

"They did not do anything about who issued the order," Soltani claimed. "He just happens to have the right genitalia for that police department and thats wrong."

Nobody within the New Boston Police Department would talk to necn, instead referring us to Town Attorney Donald L. Smith.

In a statement, Smith wrote, "As a policy, the Town of New Boston does not comment on pending litigation. The Town is in the process of preparing a response to the allegations brought forth by Ms. Drake. The Town's response will include that a formal Internal Investigation was conducted by the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office at the request of Chief Brace in 2015 when the information was brought to his attention. The Town further asserts the complaint contains inaccurate information which will be addressed as part of the ongoing legal process."

Drake says she tried to get a job at the Manchester Police Department but couldnt because Chief Brace put her on a statewide list of officers with credibility issues.

"We can't do this to people, it's wrong," Soltani said.

Drake says she just wants her name cleared so she can get back into police work, preferably in Manchester.
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh is suggesting a temporary MBTA tax to help pay for improvements to the infrastructure.

According to the Boston Herald, Walsh said that the money would be for a 10-15 year program that would end once all of the upgrades were complete.

The suggestion comes following evacuation of a train on the MBTA's Orange Line in Boston Wednesday due to a smoke issue.

Panicking passengers climbed out windows and tried to pry open doors.

He added that he thinks people would be supportive of the idea knowing it would lead to a better transit system.

Walsh also spoke out against privatization of the system, something Governor Charlie Bakers administration is starting to move forward with.
An ethics committee has cleared a Maine Senator who was accused of stealing money from taxpayers.

Republican Ron Collins was accused of double dipping by using campaign or PAC money to pay for expenses, then getting taxpayer money for those expenses.

Democratic Senator Justin Alfond accused Collins of getting money for hotel bills that were paid with unused money from his election fund, according to WCSH.

The Maine Senate Committee on Conduct and Ethics voted 4-1 in favor of Colins.
The Uber driver who crashed into a Boston home Wednesday has a long driving history with more than a dozen moving violations, necn Investigates has learned.

The list of violations includes speeding, suspensions and a number of other crashes.

Jean Caillot, 58, was at the wheel with a passenger in the back seat when police say his Toyota SUV crashed into a brick home on Pinckney street in Back Bay. He was in a minor crash moments earlier and apparently lost control before crashing into the brownstone.

The passenger, Jessica Vivar, was stuck in the back seat of the SUV until firefighters pulled her rout. She was taking an Uber to a business meeting in Beacon Hill when a car clipped theirs, sending it out of control.

"I saw this car come out of nowhere and hit us," she said. "When I told him to slow down, he said 'I can't.'"

Boston Police have not issued any citations for this crash and believe it was a simple accident. That said, the Uber driver's history is significant. His driving record dates back to 1986 and includes eight speeding citations, four citations for failure to stop and seven surchargeable accidents. His license has been suspended at least a half dozen times.

We've reached out to Uber to get their reaction. According to their website, a driver must have a "clean driving record" to drive for Uber in Boston, but it doesn't define what "clean" is. Uber responded and said the driver did meet the qualifications, allowing no more than three minor violations in the past three years and no major violations, such as OUI or evading police, in seven years.

Moreover, the new state ride sharing law, passed earlier this year, would stop drivers with more than four traffic violations or one major violation in the last three years from becoming drivers, but Caillot had two incidents in the last three years  a crash in Watertown and an improper turn.
A police officer's wife is accused of staging a burglary at their Massachusetts home.

Millbury Police say Maria Daly will be issued a summons for her to appear in court soon after she allegedly confessed to staging the burglary.

From the start, Chief Donald Desorey had a hunch. He wondered why someone would break into one of his officer's house, while the officer, and his K-9, were asleep inside.

"I felt that there was more to the story then basically met to the naked eye," Chief Desorey said Friday.

On Oct. 17, an officer called 911 to report his home had been burglarized and someone had spray painted "BLM"  in apparent reference to the Black Lives Matter movement  on the back of the house.

"I did not draw any conclusions to what that would making reference to," Desorey said. "That was investigated to through this whole process."

According to the chief, Daly reported nearly $10,000 in jewelry and other items were stolen.

The chief says through that process it became clear Daly was fabricating the story, and that she eventually confessed.

"I felt sorry for the family, because I know something like this is devastating of the family," Desorey said. "This was probably motivated by some financial difficulties, that is about as far as I will go as part of this investigation."

Desorey says its also clear that his officer had nothing to do with this.

"I stress Officer Daly has been exonerated at this time," he said. "I've seen no evidence indicating he had any knowledge of what was happening."

Mara Daly, meanwhile, is charged with filing a false report.

"She has it coming if that is what really happened," said Gusty Sauber, who lives across the street. "The wife of a police officer, you would think she would know better."

"I have empathy for the family and the defendant as well  I'm very familiar with her, and it is unfortunate set of circumstances that has taken place," Desorey said.

Officers had the option to arrest Daly, but instead decided to issue a summons for her to appear in court. Chief Desorey was adamant on Friday that Daly was not receiving preferential treatment.

"It happened to one of our own," Desorey said. "It is not going to be swept under the rug, that is not going to happen."

It's unclear if Daly has an attorney.
Police say a man at a Hampton, New Hampshire, motel fired at officers before taking his own life during a burglary investigation Thursday night.

Seabrook Police say they were with Hampton Police and responded around 8:30 p.m. to the Mari-Anne Motel on Ocean Boulevard for a follow-up crime investigation in Seabrook. A Special Weapons and Tactics unit also came to the scene.

"I thought it was pretty wild to see the SWAT team there walking down the road with machine guns," said Hampton resident Dave Georgeoplous.

When officers arrived, a group of people exited a hotel room and spoke with officers. Officers entered the room afterwards and learned Brayton Burnham 38, was still inside.

Burnham, who was in the bathroom area, pointed a gun in an officer's direction and fired one round. Officers retreated from the room and the motel was evacuated.

"They told us to get the hell out, go anywhere, get out, get out, get out," said Hampton resident Doug Storen.

Police say they attempted to negotiate with Burnham. After a robot with a camera with deployed it was determined Burnham took his own life.\

"The subject inside is a 38-year-old man," Hampton Police Chief David Hobbs said. "He was found deceased. We believe that to be a suicide. There were no officers injured at the scene."

People who live along Hampton, New Hampshire's Ocean Boulevard shaken and stunned Friday morning after a long night.

"It was scary seeing the SWAT team over there," Hampton resident Christine Callan said.

Residents say this type of police activity is unusual in Hampton.

No officers fired their weapons or were injured during the incident.
For the first time schools in Belmont will close on Election Day, citing concerns about parking and school security due to the fact that some schools are used as polling places.

"It's for safety and clarity," Town Clerk Ellen O'Brien Cushman said. "Students need to park, parents need to park and children need to be safe."

Town officials say the decision was made long before the candidates were determined, but some parents say they appreciate it given the growing tension this election.

"It's an interesting election year and back when they decided things were a little crazy so I can see some concern," parent Julie Crockett said.

However, parents like Crockett also say they are not pleased kids are losing time in the classroom.

A USA Today/Suffolk University Poll showed 51% of likely voters are somewhat concerned about violence on Election Day. 20% are very concerned.

The concern has several schools across the country canceling class in light of the heated campaigning.

While many parents do not think the violence will happen in Belmont, town officials say they have to be prepared for whatever happens at the polls.

"On Election Day we might see a different tenor. I'm not sure if that's going to happen, but we're certainly working with local law enforcement to make sure we're aware," O'Brien Cushman said.
Ex-Brighton vicar, Rev Phil Moon, will offer tips on how to keep going in ministry to the Transforming Norwich leaders lunch on Wednesday November 16.

Ex-Brighton vicar, Rev Phil Moon, will offer tips on how to keep going in ministry to the Transforming Norwich leaders lunch on Wednesday November 16.

Quiet Waters in Bungay offers healing retreat Quiet Waters Christian Retreat in Bungay is holding a gentle day retreat exploring healing in the Kingdom of God. Read more

Latest Norfolk Christian community events Events of interest to the Norwich and Norfolk Christian community happening over the next few weeks are listed. Read more

Norfolk ministry coaching duo are guest speakers Former church leaders and now freelance ministry coaches, Jonathan and Paige Squirrell, are the guest speakers at the next dinner of Norwich FGB on Monday, November 21. Read more

Bringing light to Halloween Anna Price encourages Christians to engage positively with Halloween rather than hide away, on what many see as the darkest night of the year. Read more

First service takes place at Norwich church site SOUL Church hosted around 400 people for a special service on the site of their new building on Heartsease Lane. Read more

Dereham draws up list of warm places for winter As rising energy prices make it harder to heat homes, churches in Dereham are leading the way in creating warm spaces where people can go. Read more

South Norfolk church scoops national award A medieval Anglican church in a tiny hamlet in South Norfolk has won a national award and a 10,000 boost. Read more

Dereham churches help people to help themselves A group of churches in Dereham have launched an ambitious project which aims to meet needs in the town, including the provision of food and skills training. Read more

Executive assistant and nursery manager jobs SOUL Church is a vibrant, welcoming and growing church in Norwich. They are seeking an organised and versatile Executive Assistant to provide key support to the churchs Senior Pastors, as well as a qualified Nursery Manager to head up SOUL Nursery. Read more

Halloween light in Gorleston church On Halloween this year, St Mary Magdalene Church in Gorleston will be preparing to welcome around 200 families to experience their Light on a Dark Night event. Read more

An opportunity for Norwich to pray for the nation Rev Nigel Fox, who has served as a Methodist Minister for 15 years in Norwich, shares an open invitation to pray for the nation at a crucial moment. Read more

Norwich church seeks musicians Kingdom Ambassadors International Church is appealing for instrumentlists, keyboardists and guitarists to be part of their worship experience. Read more

Please keep Rishi in your prayers Andy Bryant urges us to pray for our political leaders, especially the new Prime Minister, and avoid unhelpful judgementalism. Read more

Emilys art boosts growing Yarmouth foodbank A pupil at a primary school in Bradwell has been selling her pictures in order to raise money for the Yarmouth and Magdalen Foodbank, which is expanding its capacity and is seeking more volunteers. Read more

Patrick Regan helps Norwich to bounce forwards On Saturday St Stephens in Norwich hosted Bouncing Forwards as part of a national tour by the mental health charity Kintsugi Hope. Read more

Painting and biblical feasting in Overstrand There will be opportunities to improve your painting skills and indulge in some biblical feasting next month at the Pleasaunce in Overstrand in North Norfolk. Read more

National award for Dereham Christian bookshop The Green Pastures Christian bookshop in Dereham has won a national award for providing boxes of Christian books to 21 local schools. Read more
The American public has become so inured to data breaches that its difficult to remember them all. Infamous breaches like the ones at Target and Sony become almost forgettable when confronted with the recently disclosed half-billion accounts compromised at Yahoo in 2014.

The numbers are simply staggering. It is estimated over 900,000,000 records of personally identifiable information (PII) have been stolen in the U.S. over the past few years. Keeping a memory of all the hacks and when they happened may require the use of complex data visualization.

But while the public memory of these events may be fuzzy, the cost for the organizations involved is not. When a data breach happens, executives lose their jobs and billion-dollar mergers are put in jeopardy. And the underlying reason these drastic steps occur is because data breaches cost organizations enormous sums of money to fix.

Whats the cost of a data breach?

Given the large numbers involved, it can seem a challenge to attempt to calculate the total price tag of a widespread data breach. It is, however, possible to review the data and establish some benchmarks, as has been done in the 2016 Data Breach Study by the Ponemon Institute and IBM.

According to the report, the total average cost for a breach is $7 million. Only in 2011 was there a higher average cost, $7.24 million. Unfortunately, this year saw the highest average cost per record, costing companies an average of $221 per compromised record.

Looking at that number more closely yields an important piece of informationcompanies spend more on the indirect costs than direct costs of a data breach.

In this case, direct costs refer to the amount spent to minimize the consequences of a data breach and to assist victims. Indirect costs are defined as the amount spent on existing internal resources to deal with the data breach.

Using that measure, only $76 per record represents the direct cost to the organization, including items such as legal fees and technological investments. The far greater portion, $145, reflects the indirect costs of a data breach, including the damage to an organizations reputation and increased customer churn rate.

Certain industries are more vulnerable to churn and, consequently, have higher data breach costs. Financial, healthcare, technology, life sciences and service companies all experience higher churn rates after a breach. Heavily regulated industries such as insurance also suffer higher costs than average. Knowing this helps explain why these industries put so much investment in securing their information.

Its clear customers value their personal data and hesitate to do business with an organization that cannot keep it secure. With this in mind, the first order of business for an organization that suffers a data breach is to move to retain and regain their customers trust.

Data breaches are more common than you think

While big hacks like the ones at Yahoo, Sony, and Target grab the headlines and public attention, data breaches have become so commonplace that many never reach a wider public audience.

Thats because 500 million accounts hacked at Yahoo in 2014 easily overshadows the 2016 average data breach size of 29,611 records. The number of breach records per typical incident in this year range from 5,125 to 101,520 records.

Knowing these numbers gives one a sense of how to measure their relative size. Because when it comes to measuring the cost of a data breach, size matters. Its intuitive and truethe more records lost, the higher the cost.

According to the same Ponemon study, the average cost of a data breach involving fewer than 10,000 records was nearly $5 million, while a breach of more than 50,000 records had an average cost of $13 million.

Reviewing the numbers, its clear data breaches are a real and growing financial threat to businesses. The good news is it is a cost that can be avoided with a proactive investment in cybersecurity measures. Knowing the potential and average cost also gives business owners an idea of how much to budget to secure their information.

The opinions expressed in this Blog are those of Michelle Drolet and do not necessarily represent those of the IDG Communications, Inc., its parent, subsidiary or affiliated companies.
When a criminal robs a store, the police visit the scene, conduct an investigation and try to bring the perpetrator to justice. What happens when a criminal breaches that same stores server and makes off with its customers credit-card numbers? Id argue that the response to the physical crime would be much greater and effective than how the cyber crime would be handled, although cyber attacks have the potential to cause more damage than robberies.

Blame cyber criminals, not nation-states, for attacks

While nation-states are typically blamed for breaches, the culprits are usually cyber criminals who are using nation-state techniques and procedures. Companies likely claim infiltration by nation-state attackers because it provides them with some cover from lawsuits and preserves business deals and partnerships. (Yahoo is using this tactic with little success.) The reasoning could look like this: how could our organization protect itself from attackers who have the support and resources of a major government? Were simply outgunned.

That logic is sound. Companies are outmatched. Theyre facing adversaries who were trained by nation-state actors and use similar tools. But this logic is also a cop out: Businesses are responsible for protecting their data.

The questions Ive been asking lately are how governments, and particularly the U.S. government, can provide the private sector with better protection and help businesses fight cyber crime. The answer lies in a two-pronged approach with companies handling the bulk of the defensive efforts, while the government occasionally lends a hand in areas such as threat intelligence and post-breach forensics.

I realize that the U.S. government isnt regarded as being at the forefront of information security or for working efficiently. Indeed, governments may lack current technology and move slowly, but that doesnt mean there isnt a role for the public sector in protecting private companies.

And judging by a survey Cybereason conducted (pdf) on how information security factors into Novembers election, Im not the only one who feels this way. Of the 515 registered voters we polled, 75 percent said dealing with cyber risk requires a partnership between the public and private sectors.

Move beyond protecting infrastructure

The U.S. government is already moving somewhat in this direction, judging by the creation of the Cyber Mission Force. Viewed as the U.S. first troops dedicated to protecting military computer networks from attacks and initiating offensive operations, this group, which reached operational capacity in September and will eventually include 5,000 members, will also help protect the countrys critical infrastructure.

Defending critical infrastructure such as power grids, nuclear power plants and utility providers seems obvious. Damaging infrastructure, which often has poor security, could have a massive and devastating impact on thousands of people, if not more. If people dont have electricity, water or natural gas, they cant live.

Apply a broader definition to critical networks

This same logic should be applied to the computer networks of banks, credit-card companies, internet service providers and healthcare organizations. People panicked last week when a DDoS attack prevented them from using sites such as Twitter and Netflix. Imagine the hysteria that would ensue if an even larger DDoS attack prevented them from accessing the SaaS applications they use to complete their jobs. In other words, many businesses provide services that could be classified as critical. Unfortunately, the Cyber Mission Force lacks a team that focuses on protecting the private sector from attacks, at least for now.

The private sector cant do it alone

Companies need help if theyre going to face adversaries who use nation-state attack techniques. And both the public and private sectors would benefit greatly from collaborating on information security. The government would learn about the unique issues the private sector faces, such as dealing with a remote workforce that doesnt necessarily follow corporate security policies or the shortage of security talent. The private sector gains access to detailed threat information and help figuring out how to harden their networks.

Adversaries arent going to decrease the intensity of their attacks or become less ambitious with whom and what they target. In the past few months, weve seen two of the largest DDoS attacks to date, as well as hacks targeting a U.S. presidential candidate. With the U.S. governments help, companies could have the edge they need to fend off the next round of attacks.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet on Thursday gave in-principle approval for strategic sale in over a dozen public sector undertakings (PSUs) including those that are making profits. But each sale would be examined case by case and no blanket decision would be taken.



Clarifiying that Niti Aayogs proposal has been accepted in principle, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that names of PSUs up for strategic stake sale would be made public once examined by the Department of Disinvestment and concerned ministries. The Government will not sell PSU stakes to meet the calendar deadline. Jaitley also clarified that no decision was taken for closure and a strategic sale will involve a management control transfer as the shareholding of the government would come down to below 50 per cent.



Some of these are important units and therefore since each unit would be considered in its own merit, the timing of that would be decided by the government accordingly, he said.



The government has set a target of `20,500 crore to generate strategic stake sale targets for current fiscal. At the moment we are at the mid-point of the year and this year we have already made a significant headway, said Jaitley. The government has raised over `8,000 crore through PSU share buybacks and OFS (offer for sale). Meanwhile, It intends to raise `36,000 crore in the entire fiscal through minority stake sale in PSUs.



The Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) will work out the methodology, price fixation and base price for each of PSU. Niti Aayog has also prepared a list of PSUs where the government can sell its majority stake to private companies to bring in greater efficiency and professionalism.



The Union Cabinet also approved closure of the loss-making tractor division of HMT at Pinjore, while sanctioning `718.72 crore for payment of outstanding salaries and other dues at the public sector entity. It has approved the transfer of select small parcels of HMT land at Bengaluru and Kochi to different government entities for use in larger public interest.



HMT was established at Bengaluru in 1953 to produce machine tools required for building a national industrial edifice. It played a key role in the evolution of engineering and manufacturing capabilities in the country.

NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet on Thursday gave in-principle approval for strategic sale in over a dozen public sector undertakings (PSUs) including those that are making profits. But each sale would be examined case by case and no blanket decision would be taken. Clarifiying that Niti Aayogs proposal has been accepted in principle, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that names of PSUs up for strategic stake sale would be made public once examined by the Department of Disinvestment and concerned ministries. The Government will not sell PSU stakes to meet the calendar deadline. Jaitley also clarified that no decision was taken for closure and a strategic sale will involve a management control transfer as the shareholding of the government would come down to below 50 per cent. Some of these are important units and therefore since each unit would be considered in its own merit, the timing of that would be decided by the government accordingly, he said. The government has set a target of `20,500 crore to generate strategic stake sale targets for current fiscal. At the moment we are at the mid-point of the year and this year we have already made a significant headway, said Jaitley. The government has raised over `8,000 crore through PSU share buybacks and OFS (offer for sale). Meanwhile, It intends to raise `36,000 crore in the entire fiscal through minority stake sale in PSUs. The Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) will work out the methodology, price fixation and base price for each of PSU. Niti Aayog has also prepared a list of PSUs where the government can sell its majority stake to private companies to bring in greater efficiency and professionalism. The Union Cabinet also approved closure of the loss-making tractor division of HMT at Pinjore, while sanctioning `718.72 crore for payment of outstanding salaries and other dues at the public sector entity. It has approved the transfer of select small parcels of HMT land at Bengaluru and Kochi to different government entities for use in larger public interest. HMT was established at Bengaluru in 1953 to produce machine tools required for building a national industrial edifice. It played a key role in the evolution of engineering and manufacturing capabilities in the country.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Telecom Minister Manoj Sinha will meet CEOs of telecom companies on November 1 to review the call drop issue and chalk out a road map for future.



"The minister will meet CEOs on call drop issue...we have held one meeting already and this (upcoming) meeting will be for stocktaking and road map for the future," Telecom Secretary JS Deepak said.



He said that according to TRAI, there has been an improvement in the call drop situation.



Earlier this year, telcos had submitted a 100 day action plan on strategy to address call drop issue. They had committed to set up 60,000 base stations as part of this action plan.



"We will review the plan," Deepak added.

NEW DELHI: Telecom Minister Manoj Sinha will meet CEOs of telecom companies on November 1 to review the call drop issue and chalk out a road map for future. "The minister will meet CEOs on call drop issue...we have held one meeting already and this (upcoming) meeting will be for stocktaking and road map for the future," Telecom Secretary JS Deepak said. He said that according to TRAI, there has been an improvement in the call drop situation. Earlier this year, telcos had submitted a 100 day action plan on strategy to address call drop issue. They had committed to set up 60,000 base stations as part of this action plan. "We will review the plan," Deepak added.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Tata Steel Minerals Canada today said it has signed agreements with Quebec government entities to conclude investments of Canadian dollar 175 million (nearly Rs 875 crore) to set up mining operations in Quebec Newfoundland and Labrador peninsula in Canada.



"Tata Steel Minerals Canada together with its parent companies signed definitive agreements for concluding investments of Canadian dollar 125 million as equity and Canadian dollar 50 million as debt with the government of Quebec's investment entities, Resources Quebec (RQ) and Investment Quebec, (IQ) respectively, totaling Canadian Dollar 175 million," Tata Steel said in a BSE filing.



It further said: "The investment will result in an 18 per cent equity stake for Resources Quebec in Tata Steel Minerals Canada in line with the carrying value of the investment in Canadian iron ore assets for Tata Steel. Consequently, the shareholdings of Tata Steel and New Millennium Iron will be adjusted to 77.68 per cent and 4.32 per cent, respectively".



Tata Steel Minerals Canada is a joint venture established in October 2010 by the Indian firm and New Millennium Iron Corp, with the former owning 94 per cent.



Tata Steel said it has invested in Eastern Canada to set up mining operations across several deposits straddled across the Quebec-Newfoundland and Labrador peninsula and multiple processing facilities, including a state-of-the-art beneficiation plant.



"The project has consequently enabled the development of infrastructure facilities, including rail, roads, telecommunications and port, that has had significant positive impact on the socio-economic landscape in Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador," it added.



Tata Steel Group Executive Director (Finance and Corporate) Koushik Chatterjee said: "This investment signals the Government of Quebec's co-operation in supporting sustainable development in line with the objectives of its Plan Nord Initiative.."



The company is confident that the Quebec government's investment will facilitate implementation of Tata Steel Mineral Canada's future plans of ramping up production, improving cost competitiveness and the development of the mineral deposits in Quebec.



The stock of Tata Steel was trading 1.44 per cent higher at Rs 402.80 on BSE.



NEW DELHI: Tata Steel Minerals Canada today said it has signed agreements with Quebec government entities to conclude investments of Canadian dollar 175 million (nearly Rs 875 crore) to set up mining operations in Quebec Newfoundland and Labrador peninsula in Canada. "Tata Steel Minerals Canada together with its parent companies signed definitive agreements for concluding investments of Canadian dollar 125 million as equity and Canadian dollar 50 million as debt with the government of Quebec's investment entities, Resources Quebec (RQ) and Investment Quebec, (IQ) respectively, totaling Canadian Dollar 175 million," Tata Steel said in a BSE filing. It further said: "The investment will result in an 18 per cent equity stake for Resources Quebec in Tata Steel Minerals Canada in line with the carrying value of the investment in Canadian iron ore assets for Tata Steel. Consequently, the shareholdings of Tata Steel and New Millennium Iron will be adjusted to 77.68 per cent and 4.32 per cent, respectively". Tata Steel Minerals Canada is a joint venture established in October 2010 by the Indian firm and New Millennium Iron Corp, with the former owning 94 per cent. Tata Steel said it has invested in Eastern Canada to set up mining operations across several deposits straddled across the Quebec-Newfoundland and Labrador peninsula and multiple processing facilities, including a state-of-the-art beneficiation plant. "The project has consequently enabled the development of infrastructure facilities, including rail, roads, telecommunications and port, that has had significant positive impact on the socio-economic landscape in Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador," it added. Tata Steel Group Executive Director (Finance and Corporate) Koushik Chatterjee said: "This investment signals the Government of Quebec's co-operation in supporting sustainable development in line with the objectives of its Plan Nord Initiative.." The company is confident that the Quebec government's investment will facilitate implementation of Tata Steel Mineral Canada's future plans of ramping up production, improving cost competitiveness and the development of the mineral deposits in Quebec. The stock of Tata Steel was trading 1.44 per cent higher at Rs 402.80 on BSE.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: The southern bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has granted interim stay against contentious steel flyover project in Bengaluru for four weeks and notices were issued to Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) and Karnataka State Pollution Control Board.

The bench, comprising Justice MS Nambiar and expert member PS Rao, has ordered the interim petition on environmental grounds following a case filed by Citizen Action Forum, which is reportedly backed by BJP MP from Karnataka Rajeev Chandrasekhar. The petitioner counsel alleged that the project demands cutting of over 800 trees.

It is a Rs 1,791 crore project proposed by the BDA to construct a 6.72 km long, 6-lane steel flyover between Basaveshwara Circle and Hebbal to ease traffic along a route leading to the international airport.

Vijayan Menon of CAF told Express that the petition had challenged the stance of the State government regarding the project. The State had maintained that environmental clearance was not required for the

project. The Tribunal however, has now directed the State to approach State Environment Impact Assessment Authority, and have an environmental impact assessment report done, he said.

Activist Prakash Belavadi welcomed the decision made by the Tribunal. He said that pressure from civic groups should be sustained against the project.

"We should not be complacent. The movement should continue until the project is cancelled by the State government," he added.

MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar said,Deepavali represents triumph of good over evil and NGT has given Bengaluru its Deepavali gift.

N S Mukunda, the founder president of CAF welcomed NGT's move of granting interim injunction over the flyover project. "This is a great victory for the Bengalureans resolve to protect and nurture our city," he added.

It can be recalled that the project has been opposed by some groups, while other groups have come out in favour of the project. Both sides- Steel Flyover Beku and Steel Flyover Beda - have held demonstrations regarding the project over the last couple of weeks.

Recently, the State government even issued a work order for the project.

CHENNAI: The southern bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has granted interim stay against contentious steel flyover project in Bengaluru for four weeks and notices were issued to Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) and Karnataka State Pollution Control Board. The bench, comprising Justice MS Nambiar and expert member PS Rao, has ordered the interim petition on environmental grounds following a case filed by Citizen Action Forum, which is reportedly backed by BJP MP from Karnataka Rajeev Chandrasekhar. The petitioner counsel alleged that the project demands cutting of over 800 trees. It is a Rs 1,791 crore project proposed by the BDA to construct a 6.72 km long, 6-lane steel flyover between Basaveshwara Circle and Hebbal to ease traffic along a route leading to the international airport. Vijayan Menon of CAF told Express that the petition had challenged the stance of the State government regarding the project. The State had maintained that environmental clearance was not required for the project. The Tribunal however, has now directed the State to approach State Environment Impact Assessment Authority, and have an environmental impact assessment report done, he said. Activist Prakash Belavadi welcomed the decision made by the Tribunal. He said that pressure from civic groups should be sustained against the project. "We should not be complacent. The movement should continue until the project is cancelled by the State government," he added. MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar said,Deepavali represents triumph of good over evil and NGT has given Bengaluru its Deepavali gift. N S Mukunda, the founder president of CAF welcomed NGT's move of granting interim injunction over the flyover project. "This is a great victory for the Bengalureans resolve to protect and nurture our city," he added. It can be recalled that the project has been opposed by some groups, while other groups have come out in favour of the project. Both sides- Steel Flyover Beku and Steel Flyover Beda - have held demonstrations regarding the project over the last couple of weeks. Recently, the State government even issued a work order for the project.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Animal activists saved 16 cats, suspected to be kept for slaughter, from a Narikorava camp in Pallavaram in the city early on Friday. While activists claimed that these were to be slaughtered for meat for small eateries in the neighbourhood, police, however, did not confirm it.

The cats were in a dehydrated and tormented state when we found them, said Sagar Seth, of People for Animals (PFA). Shiranee Pereira, co-founder of PFA, four volunteers and a local police personnel conducted the searches at 5 am this morning following surveillance.

Some of those involved in the trade make up to `20,000 a month, Shiranee added.



The raid was organised after two volunteers conducted a surveillance of the camp earlier this week. "We saw them cutting the meat pieces," said Meenakshi Sundaram, one of the rescuers. Aravind Kannan, another rescuer claimed that the members of the community told them that they used to sell the meat for `100-150 a kilo.

Police have not registered an FIR against the community members in the absence of evidence of slaughter or sales. But the volunteers claim to have video-taped a man chopping the meat.

CHENNAI: Animal activists saved 16 cats, suspected to be kept for slaughter, from a Narikorava camp in Pallavaram in the city early on Friday. While activists claimed that these were to be slaughtered for meat for small eateries in the neighbourhood, police, however, did not confirm it. The cats were in a dehydrated and tormented state when we found them, said Sagar Seth, of People for Animals (PFA). Shiranee Pereira, co-founder of PFA, four volunteers and a local police personnel conducted the searches at 5 am this morning following surveillance. Some of those involved in the trade make up to `20,000 a month, Shiranee added. The raid was organised after two volunteers conducted a surveillance of the camp earlier this week. "We saw them cutting the meat pieces," said Meenakshi Sundaram, one of the rescuers. Aravind Kannan, another rescuer claimed that the members of the community told them that they used to sell the meat for `100-150 a kilo. Police have not registered an FIR against the community members in the absence of evidence of slaughter or sales. But the volunteers claim to have video-taped a man chopping the meat.
C Shivakumar By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: Tapping of solar energy from the rooftops of high-rise buildings in the city still remains a distant dream. Even eight months after the state government issued an order making solar panels mandatory for at least one-third of terraces in high rises, Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) is yet to implement the directive.



According to reliable sources, the delay was because the authority was yet to notify the guidelines for the mandatory installation of solar energy systems in the buildings. The announcement aimed at promoting clean energy was made by the Chief Minister in the Assembly in February.



The GO to enable implementation of the decision was also promptly issued the same month by the Housing and Urban Development department. The order mandated solar panels to cover at least one-third of the terrace area of the special buildings, group developments and multi-storied buildings. The power so generated was to be connected to the grid.



While CMDA officials refused to comment on what was delaying implementation of the GO, city-based builders feel that the order on solar panels was a welcome one suggesting that steps should be taken to implement the same.



Stating that the order is yet to be executed, the national chairman of Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India (Best Practices), T Chitty Babu, said that the move, although welcome, will impact the terrace space, which is predominantly used for get-togethers or drying clothes by the residents.



As per the regulations stipulated by the government order, electricity generated would be used for common electricity requirements in multi-ownership buildings like staircase lights, setback lights, lifts, pumps and non-floor space index areas.



The CMDA and local planning authorities have to give completion certificate only after erection of solar photo- voltaic panels. As per norms, Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation Ltd. (TANGEDCO) should provide service connection of net metering only after such completion certificate.

CHENNAI: Tapping of solar energy from the rooftops of high-rise buildings in the city still remains a distant dream. Even eight months after the state government issued an order making solar panels mandatory for at least one-third of terraces in high rises, Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) is yet to implement the directive. According to reliable sources, the delay was because the authority was yet to notify the guidelines for the mandatory installation of solar energy systems in the buildings. The announcement aimed at promoting clean energy was made by the Chief Minister in the Assembly in February. The GO to enable implementation of the decision was also promptly issued the same month by the Housing and Urban Development department. The order mandated solar panels to cover at least one-third of the terrace area of the special buildings, group developments and multi-storied buildings. The power so generated was to be connected to the grid. While CMDA officials refused to comment on what was delaying implementation of the GO, city-based builders feel that the order on solar panels was a welcome one suggesting that steps should be taken to implement the same. Stating that the order is yet to be executed, the national chairman of Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India (Best Practices), T Chitty Babu, said that the move, although welcome, will impact the terrace space, which is predominantly used for get-togethers or drying clothes by the residents. As per the regulations stipulated by the government order, electricity generated would be used for common electricity requirements in multi-ownership buildings like staircase lights, setback lights, lifts, pumps and non-floor space index areas. The CMDA and local planning authorities have to give completion certificate only after erection of solar photo- voltaic panels. As per norms, Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation Ltd. (TANGEDCO) should provide service connection of net metering only after such completion certificate.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: In the wake of Supreme Court judge Chelameswars refusal to attend the collegium meetings, the Madras Bar Association, one of the two oldest bar associations in the State, has said that the collegium must include the next seniormost judge and carry out the business to avoid delay in selection of judges.



In its letter to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel Public Grievances, Law and Justice, the association, among other suggestions, said that if a judge of the collegium was unable to attend three consecutive meetings, the next seniormost judge must be included. The association was responding to a letter from the committee inviting suggestions on selection process.



Another key suggestion by the bar association was setting of a time frame for every stage of judge selection process. The memorandum said the selection process should be started by the High Court at least nine months in advance of the expected vacancy caused by retirement. Name should be recommended seven months in advance. The vacancy should be earmarked respectively for the Bar and Service, taking into consideration the existing strength of judges representing the Bar and Service so that the proportion of 3:1 could be maintained.



It urged that a 60-day deadline must be set for the states to convey their views on the candidates and the Supreme Court must forward the same to the Centre within 60 days. The Centre must also send its recommendations to the President within 60 days from the receipt of the communication from the SC. The practice of returning the list under consideration due to change in Chief Justice or Chief Minister must be discontinued, the association said. Senior advocate Vijay Narayan and advocate S Manuraj would represent the association before the committee in New Delhi on November 2.

CHENNAI: In the wake of Supreme Court judge Chelameswars refusal to attend the collegium meetings, the Madras Bar Association, one of the two oldest bar associations in the State, has said that the collegium must include the next seniormost judge and carry out the business to avoid delay in selection of judges. In its letter to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel Public Grievances, Law and Justice, the association, among other suggestions, said that if a judge of the collegium was unable to attend three consecutive meetings, the next seniormost judge must be included. The association was responding to a letter from the committee inviting suggestions on selection process. Another key suggestion by the bar association was setting of a time frame for every stage of judge selection process. The memorandum said the selection process should be started by the High Court at least nine months in advance of the expected vacancy caused by retirement. Name should be recommended seven months in advance. The vacancy should be earmarked respectively for the Bar and Service, taking into consideration the existing strength of judges representing the Bar and Service so that the proportion of 3:1 could be maintained. It urged that a 60-day deadline must be set for the states to convey their views on the candidates and the Supreme Court must forward the same to the Centre within 60 days. The Centre must also send its recommendations to the President within 60 days from the receipt of the communication from the SC. The practice of returning the list under consideration due to change in Chief Justice or Chief Minister must be discontinued, the association said. Senior advocate Vijay Narayan and advocate S Manuraj would represent the association before the committee in New Delhi on November 2.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: While the monsoon is expected to arrive on Sunday, water experts and environmentalists are not quite convinced over the citys preparedness to face its fury. They laid down medium and long-term needs to improve Chennais disaster resilience.



Decoding the Chennai urban and peri-urban hydrology and ecosystem, Prof S Janakarajan of the Madras Institute of Developmental Studies (MIDS) has brought out a document, which was released the event Restore Chennai organised at SBIOA School, which talks about key areas of concern and what needs to be done to help Chennai beat extreme weather event like the 2015 floods, which claimed 571 lives and caused losses to the tune ` 20,000 crore.



The period immediately following extreme events is often one of total disorder and panic-driven. As the monsoon approaches, I can see people in many locations already under the grip of severe fear. In the name of development agenda, there has been a mindless urban expansion shrinking the natural habitats like wetlands, lakes and other ecological sensitive area. This has also resulted in massive migration from rural to urban areas and created a lot of slums. For example in Chennai, 35 per cent of the total population lives in slums and they are the ones who get affected the most in case of extreme events, Janakarajan said.

He said that Chennai cant per se be flooded because it is geographically very uniquely placed. The city has three waterways (rivers) that run through the city, something which no other city in the country can boast of.



We have Kosasthalaiyar river running through the northern part of Chennai, the Cooum river takes care of central Chennai land the Adyar caters to the southern Chennai and further south, Chennai is blessed with the Palar river. And there is the Buckingham canal which cuts across all four rivers in close proximity to the sea, but unfortunately these major drainage systems are badly maintained and the original bed widths of the rivers have been reduced by two-thirds besides losing their gravity and velocity due to silt, he said.



Janakarajan highlighted that waterbodies in Chennai and its suburbs have a capacity to store 80 tmcft of water, if maintained properly and the citys annual water demand is 11 tmcft. Last monsoon, the run-off into sea was a whopping 300 tmcft of water.



Jayaraman of Arappor Iyakkam said his organisation had formed six citizen charters in worst affected areas which are monitoring and assisting the works being carried out by the government and also giving them feedback. Around 150 local residents and volunteers have participated in the social audit of specific high flooded areas, he said

CHENNAI: While the monsoon is expected to arrive on Sunday, water experts and environmentalists are not quite convinced over the citys preparedness to face its fury. They laid down medium and long-term needs to improve Chennais disaster resilience. Decoding the Chennai urban and peri-urban hydrology and ecosystem, Prof S Janakarajan of the Madras Institute of Developmental Studies (MIDS) has brought out a document, which was released the event Restore Chennai organised at SBIOA School, which talks about key areas of concern and what needs to be done to help Chennai beat extreme weather event like the 2015 floods, which claimed 571 lives and caused losses to the tune ` 20,000 crore. The period immediately following extreme events is often one of total disorder and panic-driven. As the monsoon approaches, I can see people in many locations already under the grip of severe fear. In the name of development agenda, there has been a mindless urban expansion shrinking the natural habitats like wetlands, lakes and other ecological sensitive area. This has also resulted in massive migration from rural to urban areas and created a lot of slums. For example in Chennai, 35 per cent of the total population lives in slums and they are the ones who get affected the most in case of extreme events, Janakarajan said. He said that Chennai cant per se be flooded because it is geographically very uniquely placed. The city has three waterways (rivers) that run through the city, something which no other city in the country can boast of. We have Kosasthalaiyar river running through the northern part of Chennai, the Cooum river takes care of central Chennai land the Adyar caters to the southern Chennai and further south, Chennai is blessed with the Palar river. And there is the Buckingham canal which cuts across all four rivers in close proximity to the sea, but unfortunately these major drainage systems are badly maintained and the original bed widths of the rivers have been reduced by two-thirds besides losing their gravity and velocity due to silt, he said. Janakarajan highlighted that waterbodies in Chennai and its suburbs have a capacity to store 80 tmcft of water, if maintained properly and the citys annual water demand is 11 tmcft. Last monsoon, the run-off into sea was a whopping 300 tmcft of water. Jayaraman of Arappor Iyakkam said his organisation had formed six citizen charters in worst affected areas which are monitoring and assisting the works being carried out by the government and also giving them feedback. Around 150 local residents and volunteers have participated in the social audit of specific high flooded areas, he said
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Based on a specific tip off, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) sleuths seized antique objects, including nine idols and Tanjore paintings, from the houses of a grandson of Deenadayalan (85), an alleged idol smuggling mastermind, and a dental professor in the city on Tuesday.

The antique idols seized from Deenadayalans grandsons and a dental professors

residences in Chennai on Tuesday | Express



The arrested have been identified as T M Balaji (35) of T Nagar, who works as a professor in a city dental college and Srikanth Omkaram (40) of Valasaravakkam, grandson of Deenadayalan.



The arrests come five months after Deenadayalan was arrested from his residence at Alwarpet on charges of smuggling antique objects. Investigations revealed that the duo worked under Deenadayalans directions.



The two were arrested on charges of illegally concealing artifacts and statues in their residences and exporting them. The seized items included broken stone statues in different shapes, stone statue of Buddha, Mahavishnu, Brahmi, Nandi, stone pillar carvings, and documents.



During interrogation, the duo confessed they were smuggling the items to foreign countries, using fake ASI certificates. They also pointed out that one Udit Jain, from New Delhi helped them produce fake documents under the direction of Deenadayalan, who was arrested in June in the same case.

Also Udit, who is said to have acted as a middle man and suspected to have arranged for registration of stolen antiques at New Delhi, was intercepted in Mumbai. All three have been remanded to judicial custody and further investigation is on.

CHENNAI: Based on a specific tip off, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) sleuths seized antique objects, including nine idols and Tanjore paintings, from the houses of a grandson of Deenadayalan (85), an alleged idol smuggling mastermind, and a dental professor in the city on Tuesday. The antique idols seized from Deenadayalans grandsons and a dental professors residences in Chennai on Tuesday | Express The arrested have been identified as T M Balaji (35) of T Nagar, who works as a professor in a city dental college and Srikanth Omkaram (40) of Valasaravakkam, grandson of Deenadayalan. The arrests come five months after Deenadayalan was arrested from his residence at Alwarpet on charges of smuggling antique objects. Investigations revealed that the duo worked under Deenadayalans directions. The two were arrested on charges of illegally concealing artifacts and statues in their residences and exporting them. The seized items included broken stone statues in different shapes, stone statue of Buddha, Mahavishnu, Brahmi, Nandi, stone pillar carvings, and documents. During interrogation, the duo confessed they were smuggling the items to foreign countries, using fake ASI certificates. They also pointed out that one Udit Jain, from New Delhi helped them produce fake documents under the direction of Deenadayalan, who was arrested in June in the same case. Also Udit, who is said to have acted as a middle man and suspected to have arranged for registration of stolen antiques at New Delhi, was intercepted in Mumbai. All three have been remanded to judicial custody and further investigation is on.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: To battle the dengue, the Health Department has taken the smart route of an Android app to spread awareness about the preventive measures.



Health Minister C Vijaya Baskar launched the mobile app on Tuesday in the presence of senior health department officials at the Government Multi Super-Specialty Hospital at the Omandurar estate.



Heath officials hope that through this new app, information will reach far and wide and prevent any unnecessary panic among the citizens. According to the minister, the app gives information on not only regular medicines but also on alternate medication like Siddha also.

The app mainly has six functions: information on the different kinds of mosquitoes and what diseases they cause, details on regular medication and Siddha, an audio of instructions as well as a series of short videos involving celebrities and actors explaining how necessary it is to go for immediate treatment and also the importance of not panicking.

Finally the app also has a button that can immediately call either the 104 or 108 helpline, besides providing information on other control room helpline numbers. It also has a section on frequently asked questions for users and it can be downloaded from Google Play Store.



At the launch, the government also issued an appeal to private hospitals, practitioners and laboratories to report cases of notifiable diseases to the local public health authorities.

CHENNAI: To battle the dengue, the Health Department has taken the smart route of an Android app to spread awareness about the preventive measures. Health Minister C Vijaya Baskar launched the mobile app on Tuesday in the presence of senior health department officials at the Government Multi Super-Specialty Hospital at the Omandurar estate. Heath officials hope that through this new app, information will reach far and wide and prevent any unnecessary panic among the citizens. According to the minister, the app gives information on not only regular medicines but also on alternate medication like Siddha also. The app mainly has six functions: information on the different kinds of mosquitoes and what diseases they cause, details on regular medication and Siddha, an audio of instructions as well as a series of short videos involving celebrities and actors explaining how necessary it is to go for immediate treatment and also the importance of not panicking. Finally the app also has a button that can immediately call either the 104 or 108 helpline, besides providing information on other control room helpline numbers. It also has a section on frequently asked questions for users and it can be downloaded from Google Play Store. At the launch, the government also issued an appeal to private hospitals, practitioners and laboratories to report cases of notifiable diseases to the local public health authorities.
T Muruganandham By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: For a State that celebrates all things Tamil with pride and gusto, the lack of enthusiasm surrounding the Tamil Nadu formation day on November 1 is conspicuous. The story is the same this year as well, ahead of the diamond jubilee of the State formation. At a time when neighbouring Kerala and Karnataka are celebrating the day with pomp, why is it a muted affair in the State?



Tamil scholars opine that the re-organisation of the states is considered as a step taken by the Central government to recognise the plurality of India and hence, the formation day of the State is fit for celebration.

Amit Bandre



Dravidian leaders demanded Dravida Nadu comprising the entire south India, but their dream never came true. People speaking Malayalam, Kannada and Telugu had their own states on the basis of linguistic aspirations. Since this went against their basic demand, the Dravidian parties did not show any interest in celebrating the TN formation day, reasoned pro-Tamil activist Pazha Nedumaran, president of Tamilar Desiya Munnani.



According to the veteran leader, the seeds of the forming States on linguistic line were sown by Mahatma Gandhi himself way back in 1921 when he mooted reorganisation of the Provincial Congress Committees on linguistic basis so that they would be organised using the local languages.



Those who led the Dravidian movement were under the illusion of forming Dravida Nadu, without visualising future after independence and the possibility of formation of states on linguistic basis, he charged.



Though the Tamil culture and history have a hoary and legendary antiquity, the formation of the State has a special context which should be acknowledged and celebrated, he opined.



From the period of Chera, Chozha and Pandya Kings, TN remained as different kingdoms. During the British regime, it was caught within the Madras Presidency, comprising parts of Andhra, Karnataka and Kerala. We lost many places during the reorganisation. But it was only after the reorganisation that TN became a single entity, Nedumaran said, urging all to celebrate the day grandly as the neighbours do.



On the other hand, DMK spokesperson KS Radhakrishnan has a critical view about the formation day and associated history. According to him, the story of reorganisation is also one about the frontier struggles led by many leaders in inter-state border areas. Some were successful in retaining some key areas of Tamils with Tamil Nadu, though a number of other places had to be ceded to the neighbours.

A sad aspect of the reorganisation is that loss of certain areas during the process remains as the root cause of inter-State water disputes faced by Tamil Nadu till date.



Radhakrishnan recalled that on the northern frontier, Tamil scholar Ma Po Sivagnanam led the struggle to retain Tiruttani and Tirupati, Kalahasthi, Pallavaneri, Chittoor, Gangunthikuppam and many other areas with Tamil Nadu, but with limited success.



Though much of it is forgotten, the period of reorganisation was anything but smooth.

The State capital Madras was one of the hotly-contested areas. While Telugu leaders launched the slogan Madras manade (Madras is ours), leaders in Tamil Nadu including C Rajagopalachari, the then Chief Minister of Madras Province, opposed its stoutly.



Sivagnanam launched a counter slogan, thalai koduthenum thalai nagarai kaapom; venkathai vidamattom (We will have Madras as capital even by sacrificing our lives; We will not give up Tirupati). At that time, Rajaji categorically told Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru that he would step down as Chief Minister if Chennai was given to Andhra Pradesh.



Later, at a special meeting of the Chennai Corporation, the then Mayor T Chengalvarayan moved a resolution urging Centre not to bifurcate Chennai or to make it interim capital of Andhra Pradesh. At the end, Nehru had to bow to the demand of Tamil leaders and made an announcement on March 25,1953 in Parliament that the capital of Andhra Pradesh would be located within Andhra Pradesh.



On the southern front, PS Mani, Marshal A Nesamony and Kunjan Nadar led the struggle to merge Kanniyakumari, Sengottai and some other places with Tamil Nadu. On the other border, there were protests to merge Devikulam, Peermedu and some other parts (now in Kerala) with TN.



The government should honour those people who have made sacrifices during the frontier struggles just like honouring those engaged in Independence struggle, Radhakrishnan added.

CHENNAI: For a State that celebrates all things Tamil with pride and gusto, the lack of enthusiasm surrounding the Tamil Nadu formation day on November 1 is conspicuous. The story is the same this year as well, ahead of the diamond jubilee of the State formation. At a time when neighbouring Kerala and Karnataka are celebrating the day with pomp, why is it a muted affair in the State? Tamil scholars opine that the re-organisation of the states is considered as a step taken by the Central government to recognise the plurality of India and hence, the formation day of the State is fit for celebration. Amit Bandre Dravidian leaders demanded Dravida Nadu comprising the entire south India, but their dream never came true. People speaking Malayalam, Kannada and Telugu had their own states on the basis of linguistic aspirations. Since this went against their basic demand, the Dravidian parties did not show any interest in celebrating the TN formation day, reasoned pro-Tamil activist Pazha Nedumaran, president of Tamilar Desiya Munnani. According to the veteran leader, the seeds of the forming States on linguistic line were sown by Mahatma Gandhi himself way back in 1921 when he mooted reorganisation of the Provincial Congress Committees on linguistic basis so that they would be organised using the local languages. Those who led the Dravidian movement were under the illusion of forming Dravida Nadu, without visualising future after independence and the possibility of formation of states on linguistic basis, he charged. Though the Tamil culture and history have a hoary and legendary antiquity, the formation of the State has a special context which should be acknowledged and celebrated, he opined. From the period of Chera, Chozha and Pandya Kings, TN remained as different kingdoms. During the British regime, it was caught within the Madras Presidency, comprising parts of Andhra, Karnataka and Kerala. We lost many places during the reorganisation. But it was only after the reorganisation that TN became a single entity, Nedumaran said, urging all to celebrate the day grandly as the neighbours do. On the other hand, DMK spokesperson KS Radhakrishnan has a critical view about the formation day and associated history. According to him, the story of reorganisation is also one about the frontier struggles led by many leaders in inter-state border areas. Some were successful in retaining some key areas of Tamils with Tamil Nadu, though a number of other places had to be ceded to the neighbours. A sad aspect of the reorganisation is that loss of certain areas during the process remains as the root cause of inter-State water disputes faced by Tamil Nadu till date. Radhakrishnan recalled that on the northern frontier, Tamil scholar Ma Po Sivagnanam led the struggle to retain Tiruttani and Tirupati, Kalahasthi, Pallavaneri, Chittoor, Gangunthikuppam and many other areas with Tamil Nadu, but with limited success. Though much of it is forgotten, the period of reorganisation was anything but smooth. The State capital Madras was one of the hotly-contested areas. While Telugu leaders launched the slogan Madras manade (Madras is ours), leaders in Tamil Nadu including C Rajagopalachari, the then Chief Minister of Madras Province, opposed its stoutly. Sivagnanam launched a counter slogan, thalai koduthenum thalai nagarai kaapom; venkathai vidamattom (We will have Madras as capital even by sacrificing our lives; We will not give up Tirupati). At that time, Rajaji categorically told Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru that he would step down as Chief Minister if Chennai was given to Andhra Pradesh. Later, at a special meeting of the Chennai Corporation, the then Mayor T Chengalvarayan moved a resolution urging Centre not to bifurcate Chennai or to make it interim capital of Andhra Pradesh. At the end, Nehru had to bow to the demand of Tamil leaders and made an announcement on March 25,1953 in Parliament that the capital of Andhra Pradesh would be located within Andhra Pradesh. On the southern front, PS Mani, Marshal A Nesamony and Kunjan Nadar led the struggle to merge Kanniyakumari, Sengottai and some other places with Tamil Nadu. On the other border, there were protests to merge Devikulam, Peermedu and some other parts (now in Kerala) with TN. The government should honour those people who have made sacrifices during the frontier struggles just like honouring those engaged in Independence struggle, Radhakrishnan added.
By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: Representatives of all minority communities gathered on Thursday opposing the Central governments decision to implement a Uniform Civil Code across the country. Representatives of various communities pointed that it is not just Muslims who will be affected, but all minority communities, including Jains, Buddhists, Christians, Dalits and even women.

This is to protest against the Central governments wish to convert personal laws into a uniform civil code. The government cannot decide something for the people in a democracy. There has to be a consensus. We are protesting this, said Mohammed Abdul Majeed, from the Jamaat e Islami Hind.

He added that India is a secular democracy and once this code defies the very nature of it.

Ours is the largest democracy in the world. Diversity is its uniqueness. We have people of all faiths. A particular group of people are uncomfortable with the Muslim Personal Law and whenever there is an issue with talaq, it is turned into a debate on uniform civil code. The Modi government mixed this issue with the polygamy, as per the agenda of Sangh Parivar, and submitted an affidavit in the Supreme Court favouring the implementation of uniform civil code, thereby trying to give an impression that the issue of polygamy is limited to Muslims alone, Majeed further added and pointed that the protest is against this attitude. Members of other communities also agreed with Majeed pointing that this code affects all cultures of minority communities.

HYDERABAD: Representatives of all minority communities gathered on Thursday opposing the Central governments decision to implement a Uniform Civil Code across the country. Representatives of various communities pointed that it is not just Muslims who will be affected, but all minority communities, including Jains, Buddhists, Christians, Dalits and even women. This is to protest against the Central governments wish to convert personal laws into a uniform civil code. The government cannot decide something for the people in a democracy. There has to be a consensus. We are protesting this, said Mohammed Abdul Majeed, from the Jamaat e Islami Hind. He added that India is a secular democracy and once this code defies the very nature of it. Ours is the largest democracy in the world. Diversity is its uniqueness. We have people of all faiths. A particular group of people are uncomfortable with the Muslim Personal Law and whenever there is an issue with talaq, it is turned into a debate on uniform civil code. The Modi government mixed this issue with the polygamy, as per the agenda of Sangh Parivar, and submitted an affidavit in the Supreme Court favouring the implementation of uniform civil code, thereby trying to give an impression that the issue of polygamy is limited to Muslims alone, Majeed further added and pointed that the protest is against this attitude. Members of other communities also agreed with Majeed pointing that this code affects all cultures of minority communities.
By Associated Press

LONDON: The world's most famous fictional spy, James Bond, would never have been hired by Britain's security services in the real world due to his 'morally dubious character', the boss of MI6 has said.

In a rare interview with Black History Month website, Alex Younger said: "We know that if we undermine British values, even in the name of defending them, then we have failed. Our staff are not from another planet. They are ordinary men and women operating in the face of complex moral, ethical and physical challenges, often in the most forbidding environments on earth.

Bond's 'morally dubious character' would rule him out as a real-life MI6 spy despite his tenacity and patriotism, he added.

Younger said: "In contrast to JamesBond, MI6 officers are not for taking moral shortcuts. In fact, a strong ethical core is one of the first qualities we look for in our staff.

"It's safe to say that JamesBondwouldn't get through our recruitment process and, whilst we share his qualities of patriotism, energy and tenacity, an intelligence officer in the real MI6 has a high degree of emotional intelligence, values teamwork and always has respect for the law... Unlike MrBond."

The chief of the UK's Secret Intelligence Service, which is referred to as MI6, also used the interview to appeal to the youth to join the ranks.

"My ultimate goal is for more people to consider a career in MI6 and to get rid of the myth that it's all about having studied at Oxford or Cambridge or having advanced hand-to-hand combat skills. That stereotype really couldn't be further from the truth," he said.

"What is true is that our work at MI6 is exciting, intellectually challenging and it matters. We are Britain's secret frontline, operating upstream in the shadows to keep our friends, families and fellow countrymen and women safe," Younger added.

Bond's character, created by Ian Fleming, has proved the most enduring image of British spies around the world. However, it seems the promiscuous vodka martini enthusiast made famous in a series of film adaptations has very little to do with the real world.

LONDON: The world's most famous fictional spy, James Bond, would never have been hired by Britain's security services in the real world due to his 'morally dubious character', the boss of MI6 has said. In a rare interview with Black History Month website, Alex Younger said: "We know that if we undermine British values, even in the name of defending them, then we have failed. Our staff are not from another planet. They are ordinary men and women operating in the face of complex moral, ethical and physical challenges, often in the most forbidding environments on earth. Bond's 'morally dubious character' would rule him out as a real-life MI6 spy despite his tenacity and patriotism, he added. Younger said: "In contrast to JamesBond, MI6 officers are not for taking moral shortcuts. In fact, a strong ethical core is one of the first qualities we look for in our staff. "It's safe to say that JamesBondwouldn't get through our recruitment process and, whilst we share his qualities of patriotism, energy and tenacity, an intelligence officer in the real MI6 has a high degree of emotional intelligence, values teamwork and always has respect for the law... Unlike MrBond." The chief of the UK's Secret Intelligence Service, which is referred to as MI6, also used the interview to appeal to the youth to join the ranks. "My ultimate goal is for more people to consider a career in MI6 and to get rid of the myth that it's all about having studied at Oxford or Cambridge or having advanced hand-to-hand combat skills. That stereotype really couldn't be further from the truth," he said. "What is true is that our work at MI6 is exciting, intellectually challenging and it matters. We are Britain's secret frontline, operating upstream in the shadows to keep our friends, families and fellow countrymen and women safe," Younger added. Bond's character, created by Ian Fleming, has proved the most enduring image of British spies around the world. However, it seems the promiscuous vodka martini enthusiast made famous in a series of film adaptations has very little to do with the real world.
By PTI

MUMBAI: Deepika Padukone said Diwali has always been special to her and she is heading to Bengaluru to celebrate the festival this year with her parents and sister.

The 30-year-old star, who will next be seen in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's "Padmavati" alongside Ranveer Singh, decided to spend some quality time with her family before the film's shooting schedule starts.

"Diwali is the festival of lights, joy and happiness and has always been a very special festival for all of us. So I decided to spend quality time with my family before I immerse myself in 'Padmavati'," Deepika said in a statement.

Deepika is also looking forward to the release of her Hollywood debut "xXx: Return of Xander Cage", which also stars actor Vin Diesel in the lead role.

MUMBAI: Deepika Padukone said Diwali has always been special to her and she is heading to Bengaluru to celebrate the festival this year with her parents and sister. The 30-year-old star, who will next be seen in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's "Padmavati" alongside Ranveer Singh, decided to spend some quality time with her family before the film's shooting schedule starts. "Diwali is the festival of lights, joy and happiness and has always been a very special festival for all of us. So I decided to spend quality time with my family before I immerse myself in 'Padmavati'," Deepika said in a statement. Deepika is also looking forward to the release of her Hollywood debut "xXx: Return of Xander Cage", which also stars actor Vin Diesel in the lead role.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Sidharth Malhotra says the controversy surrounding Karan Johar's directorial venture "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil," which features his "Kapoor & Sons" co-star Fawad Khan, was "unfortunate".

"Ae Dil Hai Mushkil," starring Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Fawad was caught in storm after Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) threatened to stall the release of movies with Pakistani actors.

However, after the intervention of the state government, MNS agreed to let the film release peacefully with the condition that they don't hire any talent from across the border in future.

"It is unfortunate how our industry is getting involved in bigger national issues, which I feel films were never a part of. I feel film industry has always stood against terrorism and we do not promote it.

"The filmmaker (Johar) had made the film in different climate. It takes at least one year to complete a film and that actor (Fawad) had a release with me which people have loved and liked," Sidharth told PTI.

The 31-year-old actor, who made his Bollywood debut with Johar's "Student of the Year", is happy that the movie is finally releasing as per the schedule.

"We all are really excited that the film is releasing, otherwise, it would have been very unfortunate. We are happy that it is being released in a very peaceful manner."

Sidharth says his grandfather was in army and he feels soldiers don't give any importance to the films being released and are only concerned about the safety of the nation.

"My grandfather was in army. Soldiers are not concerned what film is coming in the theatres. They are concerned about their country and what is happening to the people. I think we are not looking at the bigger picture, this is a very small part of it."

The Producers Guild have decided to ban Pakistani artistes but the actor believes the call taken by the guild is not a permanent solution.

"We do respect what the Producers Guild have decided but that being said I don't think this is the solution and I hope our authorities do something to resolve the issue. I hope in future things will be peaceful and happy again. We keep making good content and releasing films without offending anybody culturally or creatively."

Sidharth has already seen "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" and the actor can't stop praising the cast and the filmmaker's interpretation of unrequited love.

"I have seen the film. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I think Karan's take on one sided love has a very bitter-sweet feeling. You feel like crying but you are smiling. Ranbir has done a fabulous job. Anushka has given an exceptional performance. And even Aishwarya and Fawad are amazing.

NEW DELHI: Sidharth Malhotra says the controversy surrounding Karan Johar's directorial venture "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil," which features his "Kapoor & Sons" co-star Fawad Khan, was "unfortunate". "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil," starring Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Fawad was caught in storm after Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) threatened to stall the release of movies with Pakistani actors. However, after the intervention of the state government, MNS agreed to let the film release peacefully with the condition that they don't hire any talent from across the border in future. "It is unfortunate how our industry is getting involved in bigger national issues, which I feel films were never a part of. I feel film industry has always stood against terrorism and we do not promote it. "The filmmaker (Johar) had made the film in different climate. It takes at least one year to complete a film and that actor (Fawad) had a release with me which people have loved and liked," Sidharth told PTI. The 31-year-old actor, who made his Bollywood debut with Johar's "Student of the Year", is happy that the movie is finally releasing as per the schedule. "We all are really excited that the film is releasing, otherwise, it would have been very unfortunate. We are happy that it is being released in a very peaceful manner." Sidharth says his grandfather was in army and he feels soldiers don't give any importance to the films being released and are only concerned about the safety of the nation. "My grandfather was in army. Soldiers are not concerned what film is coming in the theatres. They are concerned about their country and what is happening to the people. I think we are not looking at the bigger picture, this is a very small part of it." The Producers Guild have decided to ban Pakistani artistes but the actor believes the call taken by the guild is not a permanent solution. "We do respect what the Producers Guild have decided but that being said I don't think this is the solution and I hope our authorities do something to resolve the issue. I hope in future things will be peaceful and happy again. We keep making good content and releasing films without offending anybody culturally or creatively." Sidharth has already seen "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" and the actor can't stop praising the cast and the filmmaker's interpretation of unrequited love. "I have seen the film. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I think Karan's take on one sided love has a very bitter-sweet feeling. You feel like crying but you are smiling. Ranbir has done a fabulous job. Anushka has given an exceptional performance. And even Aishwarya and Fawad are amazing.
By IANS

KOLKATA/BHOPAL: Activists of Bajrang Dal staged a demonstration outside a cinema hall in West Bengal's Purulia district and Hindu groups held demonstrations against the movie in many cities of Madhya Pradesh on Friday, protesting against the screening of Karan Johar-directed Hindi film "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" that also features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan.

However, theatres continued to show the movie which released on the occasion of 'Dhanteras'.



The members of Bajrang Dal's Purulia district wing gathered in large numbers outside a Purulia-based multiplex right in the morning to protest against the screening of the film.



The protestors carried banners and flags of the Bajrang Dal as well as the national flag and shouted slogans condemning the casting of Fawad in an Indian film at a time of high tension between the neighbouring nations.



"The cinema management responded positively to our protest and decided to stop the first show of the movie," Banjrag Dal-Kolkata said in a social media website, claiming their demonstration "a huge success".



"About a hundred Bajrang Dal supporters gathered in front of the multiplex at around 9 a.m. today and held a protest for an hour. However, police were alert to avert any untoward incident," a senior officer of Purulia Police Control Room said.

The Shiv Sena workers held a demonstration outside a cineplex at Tatya Tope Nagar in Bopal. But their attempt to storm the theatre was foiled by police.



A Hindu group stopped the screening of the film in a multiplex for some time at Samdareeya Mall in Jabalpur and held similar demonstrations in Gwalior also.



Police said the issue was resolved without much hassle and the film could be screened thereafter.



"No one was detained during the incident," police said.



Hindu right-wing groups led by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) had given a call for banning Pakistani artistes working in Bollywood following a terrorist attack on an army camp in Uri sector of Jammu and Kahsmir in September.



Since the Karan Johar directorial features Fawad Khan, calls were made to ban "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" also. However, the movie was okayed for release by MNS after Karan Johar made an appeal to the people to not stall the release of the film and also agreed to donate Rs 5 crore to an army welfare fund.



KOLKATA/BHOPAL: Activists of Bajrang Dal staged a demonstration outside a cinema hall in West Bengal's Purulia district and Hindu groups held demonstrations against the movie in many cities of Madhya Pradesh on Friday, protesting against the screening of Karan Johar-directed Hindi film "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" that also features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. However, theatres continued to show the movie which released on the occasion of 'Dhanteras'. The members of Bajrang Dal's Purulia district wing gathered in large numbers outside a Purulia-based multiplex right in the morning to protest against the screening of the film. The protestors carried banners and flags of the Bajrang Dal as well as the national flag and shouted slogans condemning the casting of Fawad in an Indian film at a time of high tension between the neighbouring nations. "The cinema management responded positively to our protest and decided to stop the first show of the movie," Banjrag Dal-Kolkata said in a social media website, claiming their demonstration "a huge success". "About a hundred Bajrang Dal supporters gathered in front of the multiplex at around 9 a.m. today and held a protest for an hour. However, police were alert to avert any untoward incident," a senior officer of Purulia Police Control Room said. The Shiv Sena workers held a demonstration outside a cineplex at Tatya Tope Nagar in Bopal. But their attempt to storm the theatre was foiled by police. A Hindu group stopped the screening of the film in a multiplex for some time at Samdareeya Mall in Jabalpur and held similar demonstrations in Gwalior also. Police said the issue was resolved without much hassle and the film could be screened thereafter. "No one was detained during the incident," police said. Hindu right-wing groups led by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) had given a call for banning Pakistani artistes working in Bollywood following a terrorist attack on an army camp in Uri sector of Jammu and Kahsmir in September. Since the Karan Johar directorial features Fawad Khan, calls were made to ban "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" also. However, the movie was okayed for release by MNS after Karan Johar made an appeal to the people to not stall the release of the film and also agreed to donate Rs 5 crore to an army welfare fund.
By PTI

JAMMU: BSF today said it had killed 15 Pakistani paramilitary personnel while retaliating to cross- border shelling and firing in which two Indian civilians were killed and two injured in Jammu region.

Firing mortar shells and using automatic weapons, Pakistani troops targeted civilian areas and forward security posts along the International Border and Line of Control in Jammu, Kathua, Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu and Kashmir.

BSF said that as per the ammunition used in firing and shelling, it appeared that Pakistani Army is supporting its paramilitary Rangers along the IB.

In retaliatory firing, 15 Pakistani rangers have been killed so far, BSF said.

"At 1720 hour yesterday, Pakistan Rangers started unprovoked heavy firing and shelling in Kathua Sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba. It continued till 0500 hours today in the area of 24 BSF posts," a senior BSF officer said.

BSF Additional Director General Arun Kumar told reporters here that a befitting reply was being given to the Pakistani shelling and firing.

"Fifteen Pakistani soliders have been killed in retaliatory firing and shelling by BSF. We have destroyed their OP (outposts) and damaged a few," Kumar said.

As per the ammunition (120 mm mortars) used, it appears that Pakistani army is supporting the Rangers, he said after laying wreath at the mortal remains of BSF martyr Jitendra Kumar.

"In the Pakistani shelling, one civilian died in Khour belt of Pallanwala sector today," Jammu Deputy Commissioner Simrandeep Singh said, adding another civilian was injured in R S Pura sector.

Similarly, one woman Usma Bi, aged 50 years, was killed in shelling by Pakistan on Gohlad village in Mendhar tehsil of Poonch district today, Defence spokesman said.

Another civilian was injured in area, the reports said.

JAMMU: BSF today said it had killed 15 Pakistani paramilitary personnel while retaliating to cross- border shelling and firing in which two Indian civilians were killed and two injured in Jammu region. Firing mortar shells and using automatic weapons, Pakistani troops targeted civilian areas and forward security posts along the International Border and Line of Control in Jammu, Kathua, Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu and Kashmir. BSF said that as per the ammunition used in firing and shelling, it appeared that Pakistani Army is supporting its paramilitary Rangers along the IB. In retaliatory firing, 15 Pakistani rangers have been killed so far, BSF said. "At 1720 hour yesterday, Pakistan Rangers started unprovoked heavy firing and shelling in Kathua Sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba. It continued till 0500 hours today in the area of 24 BSF posts," a senior BSF officer said. BSF Additional Director General Arun Kumar told reporters here that a befitting reply was being given to the Pakistani shelling and firing. "Fifteen Pakistani soliders have been killed in retaliatory firing and shelling by BSF. We have destroyed their OP (outposts) and damaged a few," Kumar said. As per the ammunition (120 mm mortars) used, it appears that Pakistani army is supporting the Rangers, he said after laying wreath at the mortal remains of BSF martyr Jitendra Kumar. "In the Pakistani shelling, one civilian died in Khour belt of Pallanwala sector today," Jammu Deputy Commissioner Simrandeep Singh said, adding another civilian was injured in R S Pura sector. Similarly, one woman Usma Bi, aged 50 years, was killed in shelling by Pakistan on Gohlad village in Mendhar tehsil of Poonch district today, Defence spokesman said. Another civilian was injured in area, the reports said.
By IANS

JAMMU: Pakistani troops continued the ceasefire violations today with firing and mortar shelling on Indian posts and civilian areas along the LoC and international border in Jammu, Kathua and Rajouri districts, leaving a girl injured.



BSF and Army have responded "appropriately and befittingly" a defence spokesman said.



"There was unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan Army in Sunderbani, Pallanwala and Nowshera sectors of Rajouri and Jammu districts today," the spokesman said.



They used small arms, automatics, 82 mm mortars and 120 mm mortars in the firing and shelling, he said.

"They are being responded appropriately and befittingly. No casualties to our troops have been reported," he said.





Kathua (J&K): Close shave for a family as mortar hits a house in Hiranagar sector but does not explode. pic.twitter.com/ga2LGQ0VrH  ANI (@ANI_news) October 28, 2016

Firing and shelling continued overnight along the international border. "At 1720 hour yesterday, Pakistan Rangers started unprovoked heavy firing and helling in Katgus Sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba."It continued till 0500 hours till today in area of 24 BSF posts," a senior BSF officer said, adding the BSF responded strongly after which the firing stopped.

"Some Pakistani posts and villages have suffered heavy damage, he said.



On the Indian side, a girl was injured in the ceasefire violation, the officer said. Yesterday, a Pakistani Ranger was killed and another injured in the retaliatory firing by BSF, as Pakistani troops heavily shelled five sectors along LoC and IB in J&K in which one BSF jawan died and 13 other civilians were injured.

While Pakistani troops pounded BoPs and hamlets along IB in Kathua, Hiranagar sectors (Kathua), R S Pura and Arnia sectors (Jammu) and Samba sector, they also targeted forward Indian posts and villages along LOC in Krishnagati, Balakote and Mankote sectors (Poonch) and Sunderbani sector (Rajouri) yesterday.



Since surgical strikes by army on terror launch pads in PoK on September 28-29, five Indians, including four security personnel, have been killed and 34 injured in ceasefire violations.



On October 21, BSF killed seven Pak rangers and a terrorist opposite to Hiranagar sector along In in Kathua, in which one BSF jawan was injured.

On October 25, at least 2-3 Pakistani armymen are believed to have been killed in retaliatory firing by Indian troops in the Noushera sector of Rajouri district.

JAMMU: Pakistani troops continued the ceasefire violations today with firing and mortar shelling on Indian posts and civilian areas along the LoC and international border in Jammu, Kathua and Rajouri districts, leaving a girl injured. BSF and Army have responded "appropriately and befittingly" a defence spokesman said. "There was unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan Army in Sunderbani, Pallanwala and Nowshera sectors of Rajouri and Jammu districts today," the spokesman said. They used small arms, automatics, 82 mm mortars and 120 mm mortars in the firing and shelling, he said. "They are being responded appropriately and befittingly. No casualties to our troops have been reported," he said. Kathua (J&K): Close shave for a family as mortar hits a house in Hiranagar sector but does not explode. pic.twitter.com/ga2LGQ0VrH ANI (@ANI_news) October 28, 2016 Firing and shelling continued overnight along the international border. "At 1720 hour yesterday, Pakistan Rangers started unprovoked heavy firing and helling in Katgus Sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba. "It continued till 0500 hours till today in area of 24 BSF posts," a senior BSF officer said, adding the BSF responded strongly after which the firing stopped. "Some Pakistani posts and villages have suffered heavy damage, he said. On the Indian side, a girl was injured in the ceasefire violation, the officer said. Yesterday, a Pakistani Ranger was killed and another injured in the retaliatory firing by BSF, as Pakistani troops heavily shelled five sectors along LoC and IB in J&K in which one BSF jawan died and 13 other civilians were injured. While Pakistani troops pounded BoPs and hamlets along IB in Kathua, Hiranagar sectors (Kathua), R S Pura and Arnia sectors (Jammu) and Samba sector, they also targeted forward Indian posts and villages along LOC in Krishnagati, Balakote and Mankote sectors (Poonch) and Sunderbani sector (Rajouri) yesterday. Since surgical strikes by army on terror launch pads in PoK on September 28-29, five Indians, including four security personnel, have been killed and 34 injured in ceasefire violations. On October 21, BSF killed seven Pak rangers and a terrorist opposite to Hiranagar sector along In in Kathua, in which one BSF jawan was injured. On October 25, at least 2-3 Pakistani armymen are believed to have been killed in retaliatory firing by Indian troops in the Noushera sector of Rajouri district.
By PTI

PANAJI: A day after Goa Crime Branch charge-sheeted former Chief Minister Digambar Kamat in the Louis Berger bribery scam, the veteran Congress leader today denied any involvement in the case and alleged that he was being targeted due to political vendetta.

"From day one I have been saying that I have no connection in this matter of Louis Berger (bribery scam). This is a political vendetta against me," Kamat said.

Crime Branch had named him as the "prime conspirator" in the 1000-page charge-sheet filed before a special court here yesterday.



The US-based firm was a consultant for water augmentation and sewerage pipeline laying project in Goa and Guwahati funded by Japan International Cooperation Agency. The scam allegedly took place in 2010 when Kamat was the Goa chief minister.



The Crime Branch has claimed that they tracked the trail of the money that was allegedly paid to Kamat, Alemao and others.



"Any charges can be put against anyone but they have to prove it in the court," Kamat said. "Citizens of Goa are watching this political vendetta against me and Madgaonkars (people from Margao constituency) will answer to it in the 2017 assembly elections," he said.



Kamat is a Congress legislator from South Goa's Margao constituency.



"I have full trust and faith in the Almighty and in the judiciary. I leave it to both of them," he commented...



Apart from Kamat, Crime Branch has also charged Louis Berger official James McClung, former India Vice President of the company Satyakam Mohanty, head of JICA-aided project in Goa Anand Wachasunder, Hawala dealer Raychand Soni, former Margao municipal council chairperson Arthur D'Silva and former Goa Public Works Department Minister Churchill Alemao in the case.



The accused have been charged under section 201 of IPC (causing disappearance of evidence of offence, or giving false information to screen offender), 120B of the IPC (criminal conspiracy) and sections 7,8 and 13 of the Prevention of Corruption Act.



The Crime Branch had filed an FIR against unknown ministers from the 2010 Goa government on July 21, 2015.

The alleged bribery had come to light when Louis Berger company admitted to the violations under US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and agreed to pay a penalty of USD 17.1 million to resolve the charge that it had bribed foreign officials.



PANAJI: A day after Goa Crime Branch charge-sheeted former Chief Minister Digambar Kamat in the Louis Berger bribery scam, the veteran Congress leader today denied any involvement in the case and alleged that he was being targeted due to political vendetta. "From day one I have been saying that I have no connection in this matter of Louis Berger (bribery scam). This is a political vendetta against me," Kamat said. Crime Branch had named him as the "prime conspirator" in the 1000-page charge-sheet filed before a special court here yesterday. The US-based firm was a consultant for water augmentation and sewerage pipeline laying project in Goa and Guwahati funded by Japan International Cooperation Agency. The scam allegedly took place in 2010 when Kamat was the Goa chief minister. The Crime Branch has claimed that they tracked the trail of the money that was allegedly paid to Kamat, Alemao and others. "Any charges can be put against anyone but they have to prove it in the court," Kamat said. "Citizens of Goa are watching this political vendetta against me and Madgaonkars (people from Margao constituency) will answer to it in the 2017 assembly elections," he said. Kamat is a Congress legislator from South Goa's Margao constituency. "I have full trust and faith in the Almighty and in the judiciary. I leave it to both of them," he commented... Apart from Kamat, Crime Branch has also charged Louis Berger official James McClung, former India Vice President of the company Satyakam Mohanty, head of JICA-aided project in Goa Anand Wachasunder, Hawala dealer Raychand Soni, former Margao municipal council chairperson Arthur D'Silva and former Goa Public Works Department Minister Churchill Alemao in the case. The accused have been charged under section 201 of IPC (causing disappearance of evidence of offence, or giving false information to screen offender), 120B of the IPC (criminal conspiracy) and sections 7,8 and 13 of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The Crime Branch had filed an FIR against unknown ministers from the 2010 Goa government on July 21, 2015. The alleged bribery had come to light when Louis Berger company admitted to the violations under US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and agreed to pay a penalty of USD 17.1 million to resolve the charge that it had bribed foreign officials.
By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: The special teams of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) arrested a 50-year-old Hyderabadi based in Texas for his alleged role in the call centre scam in which hundreds of Americans were duped and intimidated into paying money to the racket kingpins who posed as tax men.

The agency arrested Narsimha Bhogavalli, 50, settled in Texas, who had earlier worked as software professional in IBM. Later, he floated an IT consultancy firm named 'Tekdynamics' that has offices in Texas and various places in India.

Sources said Narsimha is key suspect in the recently surfaced call centre scam operated from India. He was produced before the local magistrate judge on Thursday. The latest hearing was held on Friday, details of which is not clear yet.

Posing as Internal Revenue Service and Department of Homeland Security officers, the call centre employees from India made calls to unsuspecting American citizens. The script that they followed was similar: the Americans were told that owed dues to the US government, and threatened that their arrests were imminent. Then, they were asked to pay up immediately, which the fraudsters collected in their account. This money would then be transferred to the accounts of Tekdynamics in India.

"The preliminary probe by FBI has revealed that the American citizens, who don't have knowledge on tax payments, were scared after call centre staff posing as government officials demanded immediate payment. To

avoid arrest and prosecution, the victims deposited amount to the accounts that are being maintained by Narsimha. Minutes after the transaction is made, Narsimha would withdraw a part of it, which is later transferred to the Indian companies that are registered in his name," sources said.

Narsimha managed to steal data of American citizens such as their names, bank accounts and their phone numbers, based on which the call centres' staff in India, who can speak in American accent, selected and called these victims.

Sources said Narsimha maintained an account in Citibank in the name of Touchstone Commodities where the victims had deposited their amount. He also has two other accounts in Bank of America - in the names of Tekdynamics and Touchstone Commodities.

HYDERABAD: The special teams of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) arrested a 50-year-old Hyderabadi based in Texas for his alleged role in the call centre scam in which hundreds of Americans were duped and intimidated into paying money to the racket kingpins who posed as tax men. The agency arrested Narsimha Bhogavalli, 50, settled in Texas, who had earlier worked as software professional in IBM. Later, he floated an IT consultancy firm named 'Tekdynamics' that has offices in Texas and various places in India. Sources said Narsimha is key suspect in the recently surfaced call centre scam operated from India. He was produced before the local magistrate judge on Thursday. The latest hearing was held on Friday, details of which is not clear yet. Posing as Internal Revenue Service and Department of Homeland Security officers, the call centre employees from India made calls to unsuspecting American citizens. The script that they followed was similar: the Americans were told that owed dues to the US government, and threatened that their arrests were imminent. Then, they were asked to pay up immediately, which the fraudsters collected in their account. This money would then be transferred to the accounts of Tekdynamics in India. "The preliminary probe by FBI has revealed that the American citizens, who don't have knowledge on tax payments, were scared after call centre staff posing as government officials demanded immediate payment. To avoid arrest and prosecution, the victims deposited amount to the accounts that are being maintained by Narsimha. Minutes after the transaction is made, Narsimha would withdraw a part of it, which is later transferred to the Indian companies that are registered in his name," sources said. Narsimha managed to steal data of American citizens such as their names, bank accounts and their phone numbers, based on which the call centres' staff in India, who can speak in American accent, selected and called these victims. Sources said Narsimha maintained an account in Citibank in the name of Touchstone Commodities where the victims had deposited their amount. He also has two other accounts in Bank of America - in the names of Tekdynamics and Touchstone Commodities.
Prasanta Mazumdar By

Express News Service

GUWAHATI: Union Minister Maneka Gandhi wants the Centre to end the illegal trade and consumption of dog meat in the Northeast, particularly Nagaland and Mizoram. But in a region where it is a delicacy, concerns expressed against cruelty to animals may not only be misplaced but may also go unheard.

In a letter to the Ministry for Development of North Eastern Region Jitendra Singh, Gandhi cited the Food Safety and Standards Regulation, 2011 which does not allow dogs, cats and other animals to be slaughtered for food.

But the Nagas say they cannot and will not stop eating something which they have been eating for centuries. The Indian laws, whether they are related to religion or food habits, cannot be imposed in Nagaland. Nobody can stop us from eating dog meat. We have been eating it since the time of our forefathers. We view it as medicine, Chuba Ozukum, president of Nagalands apex social organisation Naga Hoho, said. Enforcing a ban on its sale and consumption will not be possible. We will oppose it. The entire Naga population will oppose it, he warned.

Dogs have been a part of traditional Naga therapy. The Nagas believe that dog meat cures tuberculosis and gives strength to people who eat it. The Nagaland government too feels that enforcing a ban will be difficult. I personally feel that even if there is a ban on its sale and consumption, enforcement will be very difficult, Nagaland Additional Chief Secretary R B Thong told Express.

The states health department said it was looking into the aspect of cruelty. As regards butchering, instructions have been already passed on to the traders on the process to be followed. They have also been told how they should treat dogs and other animals, Health department Commissioner-Secretary Abhijit Sinha, said.

But he was quick to add that the people in Nagaland had been eating the meat of dog for centuries.

In March, after a legal notice, the Nagaland government had asked officials to look at the feasibility of banning the sale and consumption of dog meat.

GUWAHATI: Union Minister Maneka Gandhi wants the Centre to end the illegal trade and consumption of dog meat in the Northeast, particularly Nagaland and Mizoram. But in a region where it is a delicacy, concerns expressed against cruelty to animals may not only be misplaced but may also go unheard. In a letter to the Ministry for Development of North Eastern Region Jitendra Singh, Gandhi cited the Food Safety and Standards Regulation, 2011 which does not allow dogs, cats and other animals to be slaughtered for food. But the Nagas say they cannot and will not stop eating something which they have been eating for centuries. The Indian laws, whether they are related to religion or food habits, cannot be imposed in Nagaland. Nobody can stop us from eating dog meat. We have been eating it since the time of our forefathers. We view it as medicine, Chuba Ozukum, president of Nagalands apex social organisation Naga Hoho, said. Enforcing a ban on its sale and consumption will not be possible. We will oppose it. The entire Naga population will oppose it, he warned. Dogs have been a part of traditional Naga therapy. The Nagas believe that dog meat cures tuberculosis and gives strength to people who eat it. The Nagaland government too feels that enforcing a ban will be difficult. I personally feel that even if there is a ban on its sale and consumption, enforcement will be very difficult, Nagaland Additional Chief Secretary R B Thong told Express. The states health department said it was looking into the aspect of cruelty. As regards butchering, instructions have been already passed on to the traders on the process to be followed. They have also been told how they should treat dogs and other animals, Health department Commissioner-Secretary Abhijit Sinha, said. But he was quick to add that the people in Nagaland had been eating the meat of dog for centuries. In March, after a legal notice, the Nagaland government had asked officials to look at the feasibility of banning the sale and consumption of dog meat.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Police has arrested a Jodhpur-based passport and visa agent allegedly involved in the espionage ring run by a Pakistani High Commission official.

After getting a tip-off, police had on Wednesday nabbed Pakistan High Commission official Mehmood Akhtar along with two Indians identified as Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir at Delhi Zoo while the visa agent Shoaib had managed to escape.



Shoaib was detained near Jodhpur last evening and after being brought here, he was arrested, a senior police officer said today.



Jodhpur-based passport and visa agent Shoaib who was allegedly involved in the espionage ring run by a Pakistani High Commission official | Shekhar Yadav (EPS)

While Akhtar was yesterday declared persona non grata, Subhash and Maulana has been arrested on charges of sharing of sensitive information and defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border.

They were sent to 12-day police custody. It was found that Shoaib was responsible for recruiting Subhash and Maulana in the module.



Shoaib had come in contact with Maulana around one-and-a-half years back and lured him into activities of collecting vital information about the installations of army and paramilitary forces in Gujarat and Rajasthan, the officer said.



"We had sent a request to Jodhpur Police about detaining Shoaib and yesterday evening he was detained," said the officer.



Shoaib's questioning is likely to reveal information about other spies in the racket.

Shoaib visited Pakistan at least six times, his mother and other relatives stay in Pakistan, he has contacts across the border: Delhi Police pic.twitter.com/DzWX9vLgKA  ANI (@ANI_news) October 28, 2016

NEW DELHI: Police has arrested a Jodhpur-based passport and visa agent allegedly involved in the espionage ring run by a Pakistani High Commission official. After getting a tip-off, police had on Wednesday nabbed Pakistan High Commission official Mehmood Akhtar along with two Indians identified as Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir at Delhi Zoo while the visa agent Shoaib had managed to escape. Shoaib was detained near Jodhpur last evening and after being brought here, he was arrested, a senior police officer said today. Jodhpur-based passport and visa agent Shoaib who was allegedly involved in the espionage ring run by a Pakistani High Commission official | Shekhar Yadav (EPS)While Akhtar was yesterday declared persona non grata, Subhash and Maulana has been arrested on charges of sharing of sensitive information and defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border. They were sent to 12-day police custody. It was found that Shoaib was responsible for recruiting Subhash and Maulana in the module. Shoaib had come in contact with Maulana around one-and-a-half years back and lured him into activities of collecting vital information about the installations of army and paramilitary forces in Gujarat and Rajasthan, the officer said. "We had sent a request to Jodhpur Police about detaining Shoaib and yesterday evening he was detained," said the officer. Shoaib's questioning is likely to reveal information about other spies in the racket. Shoaib visited Pakistan at least six times, his mother and other relatives stay in Pakistan, he has contacts across the border: Delhi Police pic.twitter.com/DzWX9vLgKA  ANI (@ANI_news) October 28, 2016
Fayaz Wani By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: The tension along the borders in Jammu and Kashmir has escalated after Pakistani troops fired from heavy weapons and resorted to mortar shelling on security forces posts and civilian areas along Line of Control (LoC) and International Border (IB) in Jammu province on Friday, killing two civilians including a woman.

The BSF said the border guards have killed 15 Pakistani Rangers personnel in the retaliatory firing.

A BSF spokesman said the Pakistan Rangers resorted to unprovoked heavy firing and shelling on at least 25 BSF border posts and civilian areas in many sectors along the IB in Hira Nagar, Kathua and Samba from 5.20 pm yesterday till 5 am today.

He said the Pakistani troops fired from heavy weapons and also fired 80 mm and 120 mm mortar shells to target the BSF posts and civilian areas. Some of the mortar shells fired landed in the civilian areas.

The BSF men gave befitting reply to the Pakistani troops. They targeted the posts of Pakistani troops and some of them suffered extensive damage in our firing, the BSF official said.

Defence sources said the Pakistani troops also resorted to unprovoked firing and shelling in Sunderbani, Pallanwala, Naushera, Mendhar, Balakote sectors along the LoC in Jammu province.

The Pakistani troops fired from small arms and automatic weapons. They also fired 82 mm and 120 mm mortar shells towards our positions and civilian areas, they said.

According to them, army also effectively returned the fire and shelling from similar caliber weapons.

The cross-border firing and shelling was going on in Mendhar and Balakote sectors when reports last poured in, they said.

According to official, a young boy identified as Ajay son of Rattan Chand was killed in Pakistani troops shelling in Gigiryal, Khour belt of Palanwala sector in Jammu district.

They said the boy was sitting near close to the window of his house when a mortar shell fired by Pakistani troops hit his house, causing his death.

The official said a 50-year-old woman Isma Begum was killed in Pakistani troops firing in Gohlad village in Mendhar sector of Poonch district.

He said another civilian was injured in Pakistani troops firing in R S Pura sector. The injured boy has been hospitalized.

BSF Additional Director General Arun Kumar told reporters in Jammu that troops were giving befitting reply to the Pakistani shelling and firing.

"At least 15 Pakistani soldiers have been killed in retaliatory firing and shelling by BSF. We have destroyed many of their outposts and damage to these posts is visible," he said.

Pakistani troops have been resorting to near daily firing and shelling on security forces posts and civilian areas along the IB and LoC after armys surgical strikes on militant launch pads across the LoC.

Deputy Commissioner Jammu Simrandeep Singh told Express that there is no pattern to the Pakistan shelling and firing.

They (Pakistani troops) are firing and shelling at random. Entire IB and LoC in Jammu district is involved in shelling. At some places, it takes in the evening and in some other areas, it is taking place in the morning and day, he said.

Singh said people, who are stuck in their homes, have been advised people to stay indoors.

There is no safe time. Today, the boy who was killed was in open. He was in a house. He was in a vulnerable place and near the window. We have told people to follow the advisory, he said adding they have been advised to take shelter in a safer area under the hard roof and away from opening including windows, doors, verandas.

Asked whether the government has evacuated border residents, Singh said, Only in most difficult circumstances, we are evacuating people and, that too after using some kind of specialized vehicles, which can withstand the shelling. It is used when people are caught in heavy shelling.

He said people of some border areas have moved on their own to safer places. They are taking refuge at their relatives places.

The government has not evacuated any people so far, Singh said adding they have set up many camps for people, who are leaving their places.

He said 15 camps are functional but people mostly prefer to stay with their relatives.

Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said war is no solution to the problem and that Pakistan should initiate dialogue for peace.

Jung kisi masley ka hal nahin hai, ultimately humein dosti kar leni chahiye (War is no solution, ultimately we have to form a friendly relationship). Pakistan should initiate dialogue instead of indulging in cross border firing, she said while addressing a function in Udhampur.

Mehbooba said India and Pakistan need to sit together like civilised nations and talk. I think there is a need for Pakistan to take the initiative.

It is not for first time that cross border firing is taking place. We have seen many wars with Pakistan from 1947 to 1999 Kargil war. But wars, cross fire and cease violations dont remain forever. Ultimately, we have to live in peace with each other, she said.

NEW DELHI: The tension along the borders in Jammu and Kashmir has escalated after Pakistani troops fired from heavy weapons and resorted to mortar shelling on security forces posts and civilian areas along Line of Control (LoC) and International Border (IB) in Jammu province on Friday, killing two civilians including a woman. The BSF said the border guards have killed 15 Pakistani Rangers personnel in the retaliatory firing. A BSF spokesman said the Pakistan Rangers resorted to unprovoked heavy firing and shelling on at least 25 BSF border posts and civilian areas in many sectors along the IB in Hira Nagar, Kathua and Samba from 5.20 pm yesterday till 5 am today. He said the Pakistani troops fired from heavy weapons and also fired 80 mm and 120 mm mortar shells to target the BSF posts and civilian areas. Some of the mortar shells fired landed in the civilian areas. The BSF men gave befitting reply to the Pakistani troops. They targeted the posts of Pakistani troops and some of them suffered extensive damage in our firing, the BSF official said. Defence sources said the Pakistani troops also resorted to unprovoked firing and shelling in Sunderbani, Pallanwala, Naushera, Mendhar, Balakote sectors along the LoC in Jammu province. The Pakistani troops fired from small arms and automatic weapons. They also fired 82 mm and 120 mm mortar shells towards our positions and civilian areas, they said. According to them, army also effectively returned the fire and shelling from similar caliber weapons. The cross-border firing and shelling was going on in Mendhar and Balakote sectors when reports last poured in, they said. According to official, a young boy identified as Ajay son of Rattan Chand was killed in Pakistani troops shelling in Gigiryal, Khour belt of Palanwala sector in Jammu district. They said the boy was sitting near close to the window of his house when a mortar shell fired by Pakistani troops hit his house, causing his death. The official said a 50-year-old woman Isma Begum was killed in Pakistani troops firing in Gohlad village in Mendhar sector of Poonch district. He said another civilian was injured in Pakistani troops firing in R S Pura sector. The injured boy has been hospitalized. BSF Additional Director General Arun Kumar told reporters in Jammu that troops were giving befitting reply to the Pakistani shelling and firing. "At least 15 Pakistani soldiers have been killed in retaliatory firing and shelling by BSF. We have destroyed many of their outposts and damage to these posts is visible," he said. Pakistani troops have been resorting to near daily firing and shelling on security forces posts and civilian areas along the IB and LoC after armys surgical strikes on militant launch pads across the LoC. Deputy Commissioner Jammu Simrandeep Singh told Express that there is no pattern to the Pakistan shelling and firing. They (Pakistani troops) are firing and shelling at random. Entire IB and LoC in Jammu district is involved in shelling. At some places, it takes in the evening and in some other areas, it is taking place in the morning and day, he said. Singh said people, who are stuck in their homes, have been advised people to stay indoors. There is no safe time. Today, the boy who was killed was in open. He was in a house. He was in a vulnerable place and near the window. We have told people to follow the advisory, he said adding they have been advised to take shelter in a safer area under the hard roof and away from opening including windows, doors, verandas. Asked whether the government has evacuated border residents, Singh said, Only in most difficult circumstances, we are evacuating people and, that too after using some kind of specialized vehicles, which can withstand the shelling. It is used when people are caught in heavy shelling. He said people of some border areas have moved on their own to safer places. They are taking refuge at their relatives places. The government has not evacuated any people so far, Singh said adding they have set up many camps for people, who are leaving their places. He said 15 camps are functional but people mostly prefer to stay with their relatives. Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said war is no solution to the problem and that Pakistan should initiate dialogue for peace. Jung kisi masley ka hal nahin hai, ultimately humein dosti kar leni chahiye (War is no solution, ultimately we have to form a friendly relationship). Pakistan should initiate dialogue instead of indulging in cross border firing, she said while addressing a function in Udhampur. Mehbooba said India and Pakistan need to sit together like civilised nations and talk. I think there is a need for Pakistan to take the initiative. It is not for first time that cross border firing is taking place. We have seen many wars with Pakistan from 1947 to 1999 Kargil war. But wars, cross fire and cease violations dont remain forever. Ultimately, we have to live in peace with each other, she said.
Ritu Sharma By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be heading to Japan next week, his second visit in two years. Both countries would be bolstering defence ties to balance China and a civil nuclear agreement will be also be on the agenda.

Prime Minister Modi will be in Japan on 11-12 November and will have an audience with Emperor of Japan and hold the Annual Summit meeting with his Japanese counterpart Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The civil nuclear agreement that has been hanging fire owing to technical and legal issues is likely to be inked during the visit.

Sources have indicated that since the last visit of Prime Minister Modi the nuclear deal negotiations have progressed well and the agreement was in final stages. This would be a breakthrough agreement as Japan, following the nuclear tests by India in 1998 and New Delhis reluctance to sign the Nuclear Proliferation Treaty (NPT), had refrained from carrying out nuclear trade with India.

The Indo-US nuclear agreement paved way for more such agreements with other countries. The Indo-Japan civil nuclear deal, if inked will be first of its sort for the Island Country that has never signed a nuclear deal with a non-NPT signatory country.

During Prime Minister Modis visit to Japan in 2014 the two countries had elevated their ties to a Special Strategic and Global Partnership and had signed two key security agreements  Japan-India Agreement on Defence equipment and technology transfer and the Agreement Concerning the Security Measures for the Protection of Classified Military Information.

Building up on these pacts the two countries are likely to strengthen their defence ties especially maritime cooperation. The visit comes in the backdrop of India-China relations strained from New Delhis worsening ties with its neighbor in the West. Chinas unstinted support for Pakistan has been a challenge to India and Beijings aggressive posturing in East China Sea and South China Sea has been disconcerting for Tokyo.

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be heading to Japan next week, his second visit in two years. Both countries would be bolstering defence ties to balance China and a civil nuclear agreement will be also be on the agenda. Prime Minister Modi will be in Japan on 11-12 November and will have an audience with Emperor of Japan and hold the Annual Summit meeting with his Japanese counterpart Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The civil nuclear agreement that has been hanging fire owing to technical and legal issues is likely to be inked during the visit. Sources have indicated that since the last visit of Prime Minister Modi the nuclear deal negotiations have progressed well and the agreement was in final stages. This would be a breakthrough agreement as Japan, following the nuclear tests by India in 1998 and New Delhis reluctance to sign the Nuclear Proliferation Treaty (NPT), had refrained from carrying out nuclear trade with India. The Indo-US nuclear agreement paved way for more such agreements with other countries. The Indo-Japan civil nuclear deal, if inked will be first of its sort for the Island Country that has never signed a nuclear deal with a non-NPT signatory country. During Prime Minister Modis visit to Japan in 2014 the two countries had elevated their ties to a Special Strategic and Global Partnership and had signed two key security agreements  Japan-India Agreement on Defence equipment and technology transfer and the Agreement Concerning the Security Measures for the Protection of Classified Military Information. Building up on these pacts the two countries are likely to strengthen their defence ties especially maritime cooperation. The visit comes in the backdrop of India-China relations strained from New Delhis worsening ties with its neighbor in the West. Chinas unstinted support for Pakistan has been a challenge to India and Beijings aggressive posturing in East China Sea and South China Sea has been disconcerting for Tokyo.
By Express News Service

VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday welcomed industrialists from South Korea to set up port-based industries in the State. Interacting with a delegation of South Korea-based industrialists, who called on him at his residence here, Naidu said South Korea was a role model in transforming coastal areas into a major source of income.

He was effusive in his praise of South Koreas expertise and excellence in developing port-related industries and pointed out that the small country had organised the prestigious Olympic Games without a hitch.

He explained to the Korean delegation that Andhra Pradesh has 974-km long coastline and that his government was giving top priority for development of ports to promote expeditious industrial development in the State. The Chief Minister welcomed the Korean industrialists to establish industries at Krishnapatnam, Bhavanpadu and Visakha ports. Most of the electronic goods used by people in the State are manufactured in South Korea. Our ports could be used to boost trading operations, he said.

He also informed the Koreans about the fiber grid project being taken up by the State government as also other facilities available like infrastructure for real-time mangement, round-the-clock power supply, sanction of approvals to industries through the single-window scheme and others. He also requested the Consul General of South Korea Kyungsoo Kim, who led the delegation, to set up a South Korean Consulate in Amaravati. On his part, Kyungsoo Kim said his country will study the possibility of setting up a Consulate in Amaravati and added that South Korean industrialists were keen on investing in Andhra Pradesh and will take a decision after studying the feasibility of the same.

VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday welcomed industrialists from South Korea to set up port-based industries in the State. Interacting with a delegation of South Korea-based industrialists, who called on him at his residence here, Naidu said South Korea was a role model in transforming coastal areas into a major source of income. He was effusive in his praise of South Koreas expertise and excellence in developing port-related industries and pointed out that the small country had organised the prestigious Olympic Games without a hitch. He explained to the Korean delegation that Andhra Pradesh has 974-km long coastline and that his government was giving top priority for development of ports to promote expeditious industrial development in the State. The Chief Minister welcomed the Korean industrialists to establish industries at Krishnapatnam, Bhavanpadu and Visakha ports. Most of the electronic goods used by people in the State are manufactured in South Korea. Our ports could be used to boost trading operations, he said. He also informed the Koreans about the fiber grid project being taken up by the State government as also other facilities available like infrastructure for real-time mangement, round-the-clock power supply, sanction of approvals to industries through the single-window scheme and others. He also requested the Consul General of South Korea Kyungsoo Kim, who led the delegation, to set up a South Korean Consulate in Amaravati. On his part, Kyungsoo Kim said his country will study the possibility of setting up a Consulate in Amaravati and added that South Korean industrialists were keen on investing in Andhra Pradesh and will take a decision after studying the feasibility of the same.
By Express News Service

VISAKHAPATNAM: Solar powered fish dryers would be given to the four cooperative societies of fisherwomen each whose members eke out their living by drying fish, announced collector Pravin Kumar here on Thursday.

At a special meeting held to discuss the issues pertaining to the livelihood of fisherwomen here, the collector said that as many as 80 fisherwomen would be benefited from the move.

VPT chairman MT Krishna Babu and Visakhapatnam South MLA V Ganesh Kumar also took part in the meeting.

The collector said the fishing harbour was being developed at estimated `2.77 crore in which the TATA group would be a party. Ganesh Kumar said several proposals to the tune of `40 crore had been sent to the government for the development of the harbour. On the pending issues, he said the government had taken an acre of land of the harbour for which it would pay `3.77 crore. If the government releases the funds, an exclusive office campus would also be built for the benefit of fisher women.

During the meeting, the officials and the MLA requested the fishermen association leaders to allow the APTDC to operate tourist boats from the fishing harbour to which the association leaders agreed. Earlier, the fishermen association objected the proposal of operating the boats from the fishing harbour.

VISAKHAPATNAM: Solar powered fish dryers would be given to the four cooperative societies of fisherwomen each whose members eke out their living by drying fish, announced collector Pravin Kumar here on Thursday. At a special meeting held to discuss the issues pertaining to the livelihood of fisherwomen here, the collector said that as many as 80 fisherwomen would be benefited from the move. VPT chairman MT Krishna Babu and Visakhapatnam South MLA V Ganesh Kumar also took part in the meeting. The collector said the fishing harbour was being developed at estimated `2.77 crore in which the TATA group would be a party. Ganesh Kumar said several proposals to the tune of `40 crore had been sent to the government for the development of the harbour. On the pending issues, he said the government had taken an acre of land of the harbour for which it would pay `3.77 crore. If the government releases the funds, an exclusive office campus would also be built for the benefit of fisher women. During the meeting, the officials and the MLA requested the fishermen association leaders to allow the APTDC to operate tourist boats from the fishing harbour to which the association leaders agreed. Earlier, the fishermen association objected the proposal of operating the boats from the fishing harbour.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: A day after state BJP president B S Yeddyurappa was acquitted in a corruption case, state Congress leaders, including Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and KPCC president G Parameshwara, intensified their attack on the former chief minister.

Speaking at a programme organised to felicitate Parameshwara on completing six years as the KPCC chief, Siddaramaiah said Yeddyurappa was day-dreaming about BJPs mission-150. Previously too, BJP dreamt of coming to power in 2013, but they hardly won 40 seats. Their dream of ruling the state for 10 years did not happen. Now they are living in an illusion again, he said.

Siddaramaiah said money was credited to Yeddyurappas account through cheque. There were documents to prove it. But at the court, he was acquitted. It does not mean he is innocent. A lie cannot become truth. People have not forgotten BSYs corruption, nor will they forgive him. There is no chance of him coming back to power and become a chief minister again, he said.

Swarajya was Mahatma Gandhis dream. BJP which assassinated Gandhi cannot make Gandhis dream a reality, he said.

State BJP leaders are planning to face the next election by showcasing the Central government and PM Narendra Modis works. But in reality, Modis achievement is zero and they are dreaming to win the election with Modis zero score, he said.

Parameshwara said, Yeddyurappa might have got a legal reprieve, but there is a peoples court which decides the fate of leaders in an election. BSY will not get a victory there.

Parameshwara urged party workers to start working hard towards the 2018 Assembly election. There are hardly 500 days left and each day is important. Do not say or express uncertainty of the Congress coming back to power in the State, he said.

Marigowda eyes plum post

As CM Siddaramaiah gets busy trying to accommodate disgruntled partymen who could not get a berth in the ministry, suspended partyman Marigowda also tried to make a pitch for a plum post on Thursday. The CMs aide, who had allegedly verbally abused former Mysuru deputy commissioner C Shikha, had kept a low profile after being suspended from the party.

He arrived with a posse of supporters at Siddaramaiahs residence on Thursday to seek withdrawal of his suspension. He also requested that he be given a post on any board of corporation in view of his service to the party.

CM returns silver crown, mace

City Congress MLAs Byrathi Basavaraj, Muniratna and others felicitated Siddaramaiah, Parameshwara and senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh with a silver crown and a mace. However, Siddaramaiah returned them to the KPCC office. One of my friends, a doctor from Dubai, gifted a Hublot watch which became a controversy. After that, I am scared to receive any gifts. So I am giving this gift to the KPCC office and henceforth, it will be KPCC property, he said.

Dont ignore loyal members

AICC General Secretary B K Hariprasad said, In 2013 Assembly polls, Parameshwara ignored some loyal Congressmen, that resulted him losing. If it continues, he and the party will lose.

Digvijaya applauds CM

Digvijaya Singh applauded the CM and his cabinet on handling the Cauvery issue. The water problem worsened due to less rain. The state handled it well, he said.

MLA Venkatesh may head BDA

Bengaluru: The state government has started the process of appointing heads to various boards and corporations. Appointment letters are being sent directly to appointees. The coveted post of Chairman of Bangalore Development Authority(BDA) has gone to Periyapatna MLA Venkatesh.

According to sources, appointment letters were being sent to about 20 MLAs and as many party workers. Apart from Venkatesh, legislators who have got prominent posts include RV Devaraj, KSRTC Chairman, Malikaiah Guttedar, Karnataka Housing Board, Muniratna, Karnataka Slum Development Board, Rajashekara Patil, Karnataka Land Army, Nasir Ahmed, Minorities Development Corporation, and BR Yavagal, Border Areas Development Corporation.

BENGALURU: A day after state BJP president B S Yeddyurappa was acquitted in a corruption case, state Congress leaders, including Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and KPCC president G Parameshwara, intensified their attack on the former chief minister. Speaking at a programme organised to felicitate Parameshwara on completing six years as the KPCC chief, Siddaramaiah said Yeddyurappa was day-dreaming about BJPs mission-150. Previously too, BJP dreamt of coming to power in 2013, but they hardly won 40 seats. Their dream of ruling the state for 10 years did not happen. Now they are living in an illusion again, he said. Siddaramaiah said money was credited to Yeddyurappas account through cheque. There were documents to prove it. But at the court, he was acquitted. It does not mean he is innocent. A lie cannot become truth. People have not forgotten BSYs corruption, nor will they forgive him. There is no chance of him coming back to power and become a chief minister again, he said. Swarajya was Mahatma Gandhis dream. BJP which assassinated Gandhi cannot make Gandhis dream a reality, he said. State BJP leaders are planning to face the next election by showcasing the Central government and PM Narendra Modis works. But in reality, Modis achievement is zero and they are dreaming to win the election with Modis zero score, he said. Parameshwara said, Yeddyurappa might have got a legal reprieve, but there is a peoples court which decides the fate of leaders in an election. BSY will not get a victory there. Parameshwara urged party workers to start working hard towards the 2018 Assembly election. There are hardly 500 days left and each day is important. Do not say or express uncertainty of the Congress coming back to power in the State, he said. Marigowda eyes plum post As CM Siddaramaiah gets busy trying to accommodate disgruntled partymen who could not get a berth in the ministry, suspended partyman Marigowda also tried to make a pitch for a plum post on Thursday. The CMs aide, who had allegedly verbally abused former Mysuru deputy commissioner C Shikha, had kept a low profile after being suspended from the party. He arrived with a posse of supporters at Siddaramaiahs residence on Thursday to seek withdrawal of his suspension. He also requested that he be given a post on any board of corporation in view of his service to the party. CM returns silver crown, mace City Congress MLAs Byrathi Basavaraj, Muniratna and others felicitated Siddaramaiah, Parameshwara and senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh with a silver crown and a mace. However, Siddaramaiah returned them to the KPCC office. One of my friends, a doctor from Dubai, gifted a Hublot watch which became a controversy. After that, I am scared to receive any gifts. So I am giving this gift to the KPCC office and henceforth, it will be KPCC property, he said. Dont ignore loyal members AICC General Secretary B K Hariprasad said, In 2013 Assembly polls, Parameshwara ignored some loyal Congressmen, that resulted him losing. If it continues, he and the party will lose. Digvijaya applauds CM Digvijaya Singh applauded the CM and his cabinet on handling the Cauvery issue. The water problem worsened due to less rain. The state handled it well, he said. MLA Venkatesh may head BDA Bengaluru: The state government has started the process of appointing heads to various boards and corporations. Appointment letters are being sent directly to appointees. The coveted post of Chairman of Bangalore Development Authority(BDA) has gone to Periyapatna MLA Venkatesh. According to sources, appointment letters were being sent to about 20 MLAs and as many party workers. Apart from Venkatesh, legislators who have got prominent posts include RV Devaraj, KSRTC Chairman, Malikaiah Guttedar, Karnataka Housing Board, Muniratna, Karnataka Slum Development Board, Rajashekara Patil, Karnataka Land Army, Nasir Ahmed, Minorities Development Corporation, and BR Yavagal, Border Areas Development Corporation.
By Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: SUM Hospitals principal promoter Manoj Ranjan Nayak was granted bail by the Court of Additional District Judge (ADJ) - II, Khurda on Saturday. Medical superintendent of SUM Hospital Dr Pushparaj Samantsinghar was also granted bail by the ADJ - II today.

They secured bail with a surety bond of Rs 1 lakh and two guarantors. The court has asked Nayak and Dr Samantsinghar to cooperate with the investigating officer probing into the fire tragedy which occurred on October 17, sources said.

The verdict on Nayaks bail was reserved after the hearing of his plea ended on Thursday. Nayak is currently under judicial custody after his two-day remand ended on October 24. He is likely to be released from the Special Jail at Jharpada in the city today evening.

Samantsinghar complained of feeling ill and was admitted to SCB Medical College, Cuttack within a few hours of his arrest. He was discharged from the hospital a day later and taken into judicial custody.

BHUBANESWAR: SUM Hospitals principal promoter Manoj Ranjan Nayak was granted bail by the Court of Additional District Judge (ADJ) - II, Khurda on Saturday. Medical superintendent of SUM Hospital Dr Pushparaj Samantsinghar was also granted bail by the ADJ - II today. They secured bail with a surety bond of Rs 1 lakh and two guarantors. The court has asked Nayak and Dr Samantsinghar to cooperate with the investigating officer probing into the fire tragedy which occurred on October 17, sources said. The verdict on Nayaks bail was reserved after the hearing of his plea ended on Thursday. Nayak is currently under judicial custody after his two-day remand ended on October 24. He is likely to be released from the Special Jail at Jharpada in the city today evening. Samantsinghar complained of feeling ill and was admitted to SCB Medical College, Cuttack within a few hours of his arrest. He was discharged from the hospital a day later and taken into judicial custody.
By Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Thursday announced its decision to intensify agitation over Mahanadi river water dispute with Chhattisgarh even as the State Government has already decided to approach the Supreme Court for a settlement of the issue.



Announcing the decision at a media conference here, BJD spokespersons Prasanna Acharya, Surya Narayan Patro and Pratap Keshari Deb said signatures from 87 lakh families, affected by the projects constructed by Chhattisgarh on Mahanadi, will be collected and submitted to President Pranab Mukherjee at a date to be fixed later.

Besides a human chain will also be formed from Hirakud to Paradip to protest against the construction activities of Chhattisgarh Government on the upstream of Mahanadi river.

The BJD leaders said a preparatory meeting to be presided over by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, will be held on November 7 here for smooth conduct of the programmes. All party MPs, MLAs, State office-bearers and district presidents will attend the meeting.

Mounting a scathing attack on the Centre for supporting the Chhattisgarh Government on the issue, the BJD leaders alleged that there was no response to the letter written by the CM to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting his intervention to resolve the dispute.

The BJD leaders said the CM had proposed at the tripartite meeting convened by Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti at New Delhi on September 17 that Chhattisgarh should be asked to stop all construction work till the dispute is resolved. He had said that a committee of experts should be set up which would submit its report within a month. However, the Chhattisgarh Government had rejected the proposal.

The BJP, on the other hand, alleged that the BJD is trying to politicise the issue keeping an eye on the panchayat polls. "The BJD is trying to make Mahanadi an issue ahead of the Panchayat polls," senior BJP leader Sajjan Sharma said.

BHUBANESWAR: The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Thursday announced its decision to intensify agitation over Mahanadi river water dispute with Chhattisgarh even as the State Government has already decided to approach the Supreme Court for a settlement of the issue. Announcing the decision at a media conference here, BJD spokespersons Prasanna Acharya, Surya Narayan Patro and Pratap Keshari Deb said signatures from 87 lakh families, affected by the projects constructed by Chhattisgarh on Mahanadi, will be collected and submitted to President Pranab Mukherjee at a date to be fixed later. Besides a human chain will also be formed from Hirakud to Paradip to protest against the construction activities of Chhattisgarh Government on the upstream of Mahanadi river. The BJD leaders said a preparatory meeting to be presided over by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, will be held on November 7 here for smooth conduct of the programmes. All party MPs, MLAs, State office-bearers and district presidents will attend the meeting. Mounting a scathing attack on the Centre for supporting the Chhattisgarh Government on the issue, the BJD leaders alleged that there was no response to the letter written by the CM to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting his intervention to resolve the dispute. The BJD leaders said the CM had proposed at the tripartite meeting convened by Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti at New Delhi on September 17 that Chhattisgarh should be asked to stop all construction work till the dispute is resolved. He had said that a committee of experts should be set up which would submit its report within a month. However, the Chhattisgarh Government had rejected the proposal. The BJP, on the other hand, alleged that the BJD is trying to politicise the issue keeping an eye on the panchayat polls. "The BJD is trying to make Mahanadi an issue ahead of the Panchayat polls," senior BJP leader Sajjan Sharma said.
By Express News Service

KORAPUT: There seems to be no respite from Japanese Encephalitis (JE) for people of Koraput district. Four more children suffering from JE, were admitted to the District Headquarters Hospital (DHH) on Thursday. All of them belong to Boipariguda.



They are Hemant Durua of Gupteswar, Prasanta Khila of Padapadar village and two school children from Balipadar Sevashram of Boipariguda - Purni Kirsani and Moti Sisa. Additional District Medical Officer (Medical), PK Panda said blood samples of the children have tested positive for JE.

An emergency meeting was organised on Thursday by district level health and veterinary officials in which Chief District Medical Officer (CDMO), L Kabi claimed that the JE virus seemed to have been carried to Koraput by birds that migrated here from Kondagaon near Kotpad in Chitrakonda block of Malkangiri. So far, 24 children have been diagnosed with brain fever and of them, four were tested positive for JE. Of these 24 children, 19 are from Koraput, four from Malkangiri and one from Nabarangpur.

Fogging in the affected areas under Boipariguda and Kotpad blocks will begin from Friday. District administration is sensitising people on reasons behind JE outbreak.



The CDMO said there is no immediate plan of vaccination by the Health Department and asked locals to abstain from purchasing fake JE vaccines from any private sources.

Mobile veterinary units have been deployed in six vulnerable blocks of Jeypore, Borigumma, Kotpad, Kundra, Boipariguda and Lamtaput. However, pigs are yet to be isolated.

Two weeks back, the veterinary department had collected 28 blood samples from pigs in Kotpad, Boipariguda, Jeypore, Lamtaput, Boriguma and Kundra blocks and sent them to a laboratory in Bareli of Uttar Pradesh for testing. Out of the 28, blood samples of eight pigs tested positive. These samples were collected from Jaynagar, Kotpad and Boipariguda blocks.

CM to visit Malkangiri on Nov 10



Malkangiri: health Minister, Pradip Amat visited JE-affected Kursibeda and Panarguda villages in Malkangiri district on Thursday. He said the Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik will visit the district on November 10 and he may take a call on the compensation to the families, who lost their children to the disease. Amat said the JE situation in many tribal-dominated areas has improved to a large extent. Amat, who was accompanied by the Health Secretary Arti Ahuja and Collector K Sudarshan Chakravathy, interacted with the villagers on the various preventive measures being undertaken by the administration. JE has so far claimed 62 lives in the district and four affected persons are currently undergoing treatment in the ICU of District Headquarters Hospital (DHH). The Minister also visited the DHH and interacted with family members of children undergoing treatment.

KORAPUT: There seems to be no respite from Japanese Encephalitis (JE) for people of Koraput district. Four more children suffering from JE, were admitted to the District Headquarters Hospital (DHH) on Thursday. All of them belong to Boipariguda. They are Hemant Durua of Gupteswar, Prasanta Khila of Padapadar village and two school children from Balipadar Sevashram of Boipariguda - Purni Kirsani and Moti Sisa. Additional District Medical Officer (Medical), PK Panda said blood samples of the children have tested positive for JE. An emergency meeting was organised on Thursday by district level health and veterinary officials in which Chief District Medical Officer (CDMO), L Kabi claimed that the JE virus seemed to have been carried to Koraput by birds that migrated here from Kondagaon near Kotpad in Chitrakonda block of Malkangiri. So far, 24 children have been diagnosed with brain fever and of them, four were tested positive for JE. Of these 24 children, 19 are from Koraput, four from Malkangiri and one from Nabarangpur. Fogging in the affected areas under Boipariguda and Kotpad blocks will begin from Friday. District administration is sensitising people on reasons behind JE outbreak. The CDMO said there is no immediate plan of vaccination by the Health Department and asked locals to abstain from purchasing fake JE vaccines from any private sources. Mobile veterinary units have been deployed in six vulnerable blocks of Jeypore, Borigumma, Kotpad, Kundra, Boipariguda and Lamtaput. However, pigs are yet to be isolated. Two weeks back, the veterinary department had collected 28 blood samples from pigs in Kotpad, Boipariguda, Jeypore, Lamtaput, Boriguma and Kundra blocks and sent them to a laboratory in Bareli of Uttar Pradesh for testing. Out of the 28, blood samples of eight pigs tested positive. These samples were collected from Jaynagar, Kotpad and Boipariguda blocks. CM to visit Malkangiri on Nov 10 Malkangiri: health Minister, Pradip Amat visited JE-affected Kursibeda and Panarguda villages in Malkangiri district on Thursday. He said the Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik will visit the district on November 10 and he may take a call on the compensation to the families, who lost their children to the disease. Amat said the JE situation in many tribal-dominated areas has improved to a large extent. Amat, who was accompanied by the Health Secretary Arti Ahuja and Collector K Sudarshan Chakravathy, interacted with the villagers on the various preventive measures being undertaken by the administration. JE has so far claimed 62 lives in the district and four affected persons are currently undergoing treatment in the ICU of District Headquarters Hospital (DHH). The Minister also visited the DHH and interacted with family members of children undergoing treatment.
Mithun MK By

Express News Service

HYDERABAD: Arda Ulutas, the Consul General of Turkey in Hyderabad, on the occasion of Turkeys 93rd National Day celebrations, spoke with The New Indian Express of relations between Turkey and India, the attempted coup, ISIS and the Syrian refugee crisis. Excerpts.

Q: How is Turkey trying to improve its existing relationship with India?

A: We are trying to build relations with India... We currently have direct flights from Mumbai and New Delhi, but its difficult for people from Hyderabad to go directly to Turkey. That is why its important for there to be a better Turkish alliance so this will improve tourism between Turkey and Hyderabad.

Q: How is Turkey coping after the July coup attempt by the military?

A: Everything is under control. This was staged by a terrorist organisation headed by Fathullah Gulen living in the USA. Thanks to our people who stood against the tanks and soldiers... This shows how the Turkish people are attached to their democracy and republic and government.

Q: How has the attempt adversely affected Turkish economy and investments?

A: In the first month it affected but now things are okay. Investments are moving on. The markets are now stable. Things are now under control.

Q: There has been a clampdown on the press and journalists after the attempt, what are your views on it?

A: Its a state of emergency, we had to control the situation immediately...it has nothing to do with the basic freedom of the press.

Q: There has been criticism that Turkey has been used as a gateway by those aspiring to join ISIS. How is Turkey trying to solve that problem?

A: This is false. From the beginning, we are in the coalition, fighting against ISIS... We are cooperating with the European countries. Every time they give us names of militants, we try to stop them. However, the control should also be in the origin countries... We cannot do the policing for every country.

Q: How is Turkey handling the influx of refugees from Syria?

A: We are hosting nearly 3 million refugees from Syria. We have an open border policy for refugees.

Q: What about the possibility of ISIS infiltration into Turkey through refugees?

A: This is possible. We cannot stop every refugee at the border, that would be inhuman.

HYDERABAD: Arda Ulutas, the Consul General of Turkey in Hyderabad, on the occasion of Turkeys 93rd National Day celebrations, spoke with The New Indian Express of relations between Turkey and India, the attempted coup, ISIS and the Syrian refugee crisis. Excerpts. Q: How is Turkey trying to improve its existing relationship with India? A: We are trying to build relations with India... We currently have direct flights from Mumbai and New Delhi, but its difficult for people from Hyderabad to go directly to Turkey. That is why its important for there to be a better Turkish alliance so this will improve tourism between Turkey and Hyderabad. Q: How is Turkey coping after the July coup attempt by the military? A: Everything is under control. This was staged by a terrorist organisation headed by Fathullah Gulen living in the USA. Thanks to our people who stood against the tanks and soldiers... This shows how the Turkish people are attached to their democracy and republic and government. Q: How has the attempt adversely affected Turkish economy and investments? A: In the first month it affected but now things are okay. Investments are moving on. The markets are now stable. Things are now under control. Q: There has been a clampdown on the press and journalists after the attempt, what are your views on it? A: Its a state of emergency, we had to control the situation immediately...it has nothing to do with the basic freedom of the press. Q: There has been criticism that Turkey has been used as a gateway by those aspiring to join ISIS. How is Turkey trying to solve that problem? A: This is false. From the beginning, we are in the coalition, fighting against ISIS... We are cooperating with the European countries. Every time they give us names of militants, we try to stop them. However, the control should also be in the origin countries... We cannot do the policing for every country. Q: How is Turkey handling the influx of refugees from Syria? A: We are hosting nearly 3 million refugees from Syria. We have an open border policy for refugees. Q: What about the possibility of ISIS infiltration into Turkey through refugees? A: This is possible. We cannot stop every refugee at the border, that would be inhuman.
By PTI

UNITED NATIONS: Cuba, China, Egypt and Saudi Arabia were among 14 members elected today by the UN General Assembly to the world body's human rights council, but Russia failed to garner enough votes to win the re-election amid rights groups campaign against its role in the war in Syria.

The 193-member General Assembly voted here to elect Brazil, China, Croatia, Cuba, Egypt, Hungary, Iraq, Japan, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Tunisia, UK and the US to the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council. The elected members will serve in the 47-member Council for a three year term beginning January 1, 2017.

India is a member of the human rights body and its term will expire in 2017. China, Cuba, South Africa, Saudi Arabia and the UK were seeking re-election to the Council as their terms were set to expire in December. Russia too was seeking re-election but did not garner enough votes to win. The Council members are elected directly and individually by secret ballot by the majority of the members of the UNGA.

The Council membership is based on equitable geographical distribution, and seats are distributed among regional groups of Africa, Asia-Pacific, Eastern Europe, Latin American and Caribbean, Group of Western Europe and other states. The members of the Council serve a period of three years and are not be eligible for immediate re-election after two consecutive terms. Rights body Human Rights Watch had strongly opposed candidacies of Saudi Arabia and Russia for the Human Rights Council, criticising the two nations for "their widespread unlawful attacks" on civilians in Yemen and Syria.

Human Rights Watch had said accepting Saudi Arabia and Russia's bids for membership would be contrary to the basic standards for which the Human Rights Council was created 10 years ago, and risk undermining the credibility of the UNs top human rights body and its ability to hold abusers accountable. Human Rights Watch had also expressed serious concerns about the "poor human rights records" of China and Egypt running for three-year council terms.

"The UN Human Rights Council's ability to successfully expose and hold violators to account is under threat because a number of countries use it to thwart attempts to expose their own crimes and abuses," UN director at Human Rights Watch Louis Charbonneau had said. "Electing council members that are truly committed to improving human rights is the responsibility of each and every UN member country, and Saudi Arabia and Russia don't honour the ideals that underpin the UN Human Rights Council."

UNITED NATIONS: Cuba, China, Egypt and Saudi Arabia were among 14 members elected today by the UN General Assembly to the world body's human rights council, but Russia failed to garner enough votes to win the re-election amid rights groups campaign against its role in the war in Syria. The 193-member General Assembly voted here to elect Brazil, China, Croatia, Cuba, Egypt, Hungary, Iraq, Japan, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Tunisia, UK and the US to the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council. The elected members will serve in the 47-member Council for a three year term beginning January 1, 2017. India is a member of the human rights body and its term will expire in 2017. China, Cuba, South Africa, Saudi Arabia and the UK were seeking re-election to the Council as their terms were set to expire in December. Russia too was seeking re-election but did not garner enough votes to win. The Council members are elected directly and individually by secret ballot by the majority of the members of the UNGA. The Council membership is based on equitable geographical distribution, and seats are distributed among regional groups of Africa, Asia-Pacific, Eastern Europe, Latin American and Caribbean, Group of Western Europe and other states. The members of the Council serve a period of three years and are not be eligible for immediate re-election after two consecutive terms. Rights body Human Rights Watch had strongly opposed candidacies of Saudi Arabia and Russia for the Human Rights Council, criticising the two nations for "their widespread unlawful attacks" on civilians in Yemen and Syria. Human Rights Watch had said accepting Saudi Arabia and Russia's bids for membership would be contrary to the basic standards for which the Human Rights Council was created 10 years ago, and risk undermining the credibility of the UNs top human rights body and its ability to hold abusers accountable. Human Rights Watch had also expressed serious concerns about the "poor human rights records" of China and Egypt running for three-year council terms. "The UN Human Rights Council's ability to successfully expose and hold violators to account is under threat because a number of countries use it to thwart attempts to expose their own crimes and abuses," UN director at Human Rights Watch Louis Charbonneau had said. "Electing council members that are truly committed to improving human rights is the responsibility of each and every UN member country, and Saudi Arabia and Russia don't honour the ideals that underpin the UN Human Rights Council."
By Associated Press

SYDNEY: Relatives of some of the people killed at a theme park when their ride malfunctioned are pleading for answers into their loved ones' deaths.

Shayne Goodchild is the father of two of the four adults killed earlier this week at Dreamworld on Queensland state's Gold Coast. On Friday, he read an emotional statement on behalf of the families of the victims, who died when their raft overturned on the Thunder River Rapids ride on Tuesday.

Goodchild said the families want to know what went wrong with the 30-year-old Thunder River Rapids ride and why their loved ones were killed in such horrific circumstances.

Dreamworld will remain closed as a crime scene at least until Monday as police try and piece together what went wrong with the ride.

SYDNEY: Relatives of some of the people killed at a theme park when their ride malfunctioned are pleading for answers into their loved ones' deaths. Shayne Goodchild is the father of two of the four adults killed earlier this week at Dreamworld on Queensland state's Gold Coast. On Friday, he read an emotional statement on behalf of the families of the victims, who died when their raft overturned on the Thunder River Rapids ride on Tuesday. Goodchild said the families want to know what went wrong with the 30-year-old Thunder River Rapids ride and why their loved ones were killed in such horrific circumstances. Dreamworld will remain closed as a crime scene at least until Monday as police try and piece together what went wrong with the ride.
By PTI

WASHINGTON: The FBI today said it has reopened investigations into Hillary Clinton's use of private email server when she was secretary of state due to likelihood of new information coming to light, immediately drawing praise from the White House frontrunner's Republican rival Donald Trump. FBI Director James Comey, in a communication to the Congressional leadership, said the FBI has learned of new "emails that appear to be pertinent" to their investigation.

"In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to this investigation," Comey wrote in the letter. "I am writing to inform you that the investigative team briefed me on this yesterday, and I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation," Comey said.

The FBI's decision to reopen the investigation was welcomed by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump as a "big day" soon after the announcement. The controversial billionaire from New York departed from his prepared speech as he landed for his rally in Manchester in New Hampshire. "I have a breaking news for you," he told his cheering supporters, who waited for him for hours today. "FBI has just sent a letter to the Congress that they have found new emails pertaining to the former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's email investigation. And they are reopening the case into her illegal and criminal conduct that threatened the national security of the United States," he said.

"I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the Department of Justice are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made," Trump said and hoped that "perhaps finally justice would be done." "This is a big day," he said alleging that the email scandal is bigger than Watergate. " Hillary Clinton's corruption is on a scale that we have never seen before." Other Republican leaders also welcomed the decision. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte said the move shows Clinton and her team "committed wrongdoing and jeopardised national security." House of Representative Speaker Paul Ryan said Clinton has nobody but herself to blame.

"She was entrusted with some of our nation's most important secrets, and she betrayed that trust by carelessly mishandling highly classified information," he said. "This decision, long overdue, is the result of her reckless use of a private email server, and her refusal to be forthcoming with federal investigators. I renew my call for the Director of National Intelligence to suspend all classified briefings for Secretary Clinton until this matter is fully resolved," Ryan said. Trump's campaign manager Kellyanne Conway called this a great news. "A great day in our campaign just got even better. FBI reviewing new emails in Clinton probe," she tweeted.

WASHINGTON: The FBI today said it has reopened investigations into Hillary Clinton's use of private email server when she was secretary of state due to likelihood of new information coming to light, immediately drawing praise from the White House frontrunner's Republican rival Donald Trump. FBI Director James Comey, in a communication to the Congressional leadership, said the FBI has learned of new "emails that appear to be pertinent" to their investigation. "In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to this investigation," Comey wrote in the letter. "I am writing to inform you that the investigative team briefed me on this yesterday, and I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation," Comey said. The FBI's decision to reopen the investigation was welcomed by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump as a "big day" soon after the announcement. The controversial billionaire from New York departed from his prepared speech as he landed for his rally in Manchester in New Hampshire. "I have a breaking news for you," he told his cheering supporters, who waited for him for hours today. "FBI has just sent a letter to the Congress that they have found new emails pertaining to the former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's email investigation. And they are reopening the case into her illegal and criminal conduct that threatened the national security of the United States," he said. "I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the Department of Justice are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made," Trump said and hoped that "perhaps finally justice would be done." "This is a big day," he said alleging that the email scandal is bigger than Watergate. " Hillary Clinton's corruption is on a scale that we have never seen before." Other Republican leaders also welcomed the decision. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte said the move shows Clinton and her team "committed wrongdoing and jeopardised national security." House of Representative Speaker Paul Ryan said Clinton has nobody but herself to blame. "She was entrusted with some of our nation's most important secrets, and she betrayed that trust by carelessly mishandling highly classified information," he said. "This decision, long overdue, is the result of her reckless use of a private email server, and her refusal to be forthcoming with federal investigators. I renew my call for the Director of National Intelligence to suspend all classified briefings for Secretary Clinton until this matter is fully resolved," Ryan said. Trump's campaign manager Kellyanne Conway called this a great news. "A great day in our campaign just got even better. FBI reviewing new emails in Clinton probe," she tweeted.
By AFP

PHILLIPINES: Philippine police say a town mayor and nine of his men have been killed in a gunbattle with anti-narcotics officers in one of the deadliest operations since President Rodrigo Duterte launched a crackdown on illegal drugs.

Police say Mayor Samsudin Dimaukom of southern of Datu Saudi Ampatuan town and nine others were killed before dawn Friday when they opened fire from three cars on officers at a checkpoint in Makilala town in North Cotabato province.

According to Superintendent Bernard Tayong, Dimaukom has been named by Duterte as among many politicians suspected to be involved in illegal drugs.

Police estimate more than 3,600 suspected drug dealers and addicts have been killed since Duterte took office on June 30. The crackdown has drawn international concern over extrajudicial killings.

PHILLIPINES: Philippine police say a town mayor and nine of his men have been killed in a gunbattle with anti-narcotics officers in one of the deadliest operations since President Rodrigo Duterte launched a crackdown on illegal drugs. Police say Mayor Samsudin Dimaukom of southern of Datu Saudi Ampatuan town and nine others were killed before dawn Friday when they opened fire from three cars on officers at a checkpoint in Makilala town in North Cotabato province. According to Superintendent Bernard Tayong, Dimaukom has been named by Duterte as among many politicians suspected to be involved in illegal drugs. Police estimate more than 3,600 suspected drug dealers and addicts have been killed since Duterte took office on June 30. The crackdown has drawn international concern over extrajudicial killings.
By IANS

WASHINGTON: With just over 10 days left to the November 8 US presidential election, here is a look at how the head of one of the most powerful nations is chosen:



- An election for president of the US occurs every four years on Election Day, held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. The 2016 Presidential election will be held on November 8, the last possible date (November 2 is the earliest).



- The President and Vice-President are elected every four years. They must be at least 35 years of age, they must be native-born citizens of the US, and they must have been residents of the US for at least 14 years. Also, a person can be elected as President to only two terms.



- During the election, Americans from each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia head to the polls to cast their vote for President. But the tally of those votes -- the popular vote -- does not determine the winner. Instead, presidential elections use the Electoral College -- a process by which the President and the Vice President is chosen by "electors". To win the election, a candidate must receive a majority of electoral votes.



- The number of electors each state gets is equivalent to the number of members of Congress (House and Senate, together) from the states plus three from District of Columbia. There are, thus, a total of 538 electors. Each state's political parties choose their own slate of potential electors.



- After the ballot is cast, the vote goes to a state-wide tally. In 48 states and Washington, D.C., the winner gets all of the electoral votes for that state -- which means his or her party's electors in that state will vote in the Electoral College for the winning candidate.



- But for two states (Maine and Nebraska) the issue is a bit more complicated. The two states

select one elector within each congressional district by popular vote and the remaining two by a statewide popular vote.



- A candidate needs the vote of at least 270 electors -- 50 per cent plus one -- to win the presidential election.



- Although the actual vote of the Electoral College takes place in each state between mid-November and mid-December, in most cases, a projected winner is announced on election night.



- If none of the candidate can secure the 270-majority, the decision would go to the House of Representatives, which would vote to elect the new President. A similar process would take place in the Senate to elect the Vice President from among the top two top candidates.



- Once the results are out, next is the Inauguration Day. Inauguration Day occurs every four years on January 20 (or January 21 if January 20 falls on a Sunday) at the US Capitol building in Washington, DC. On this federal holiday, the President-elect and Vice-President-elect are sworn-in and take office.



- The Vice-President-elect is sworn in first, and repeats the same oath of office, in use since 1884, as Senators, Representatives, and other federal employees.



- Around noon, the President-elect takes his oath.



- The inauguration is planned by the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies. Nine common activities typically occur: morning service; procession to the Capitol; Vice President's swearing-in ceremony; President's swearing-in ceremony; inaugural address; departure of the outgoing President; inaugural luncheon followed by a parade and a ball. Only one activity is mandated by the Constitution -- the oath. Rest are all traditional activities.



WASHINGTON: With just over 10 days left to the November 8 US presidential election, here is a look at how the head of one of the most powerful nations is chosen: - An election for president of the US occurs every four years on Election Day, held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. The 2016 Presidential election will be held on November 8, the last possible date (November 2 is the earliest). - The President and Vice-President are elected every four years. They must be at least 35 years of age, they must be native-born citizens of the US, and they must have been residents of the US for at least 14 years. Also, a person can be elected as President to only two terms. - During the election, Americans from each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia head to the polls to cast their vote for President. But the tally of those votes -- the popular vote -- does not determine the winner. Instead, presidential elections use the Electoral College -- a process by which the President and the Vice President is chosen by "electors". To win the election, a candidate must receive a majority of electoral votes. - The number of electors each state gets is equivalent to the number of members of Congress (House and Senate, together) from the states plus three from District of Columbia. There are, thus, a total of 538 electors. Each state's political parties choose their own slate of potential electors. - After the ballot is cast, the vote goes to a state-wide tally. In 48 states and Washington, D.C., the winner gets all of the electoral votes for that state -- which means his or her party's electors in that state will vote in the Electoral College for the winning candidate. - But for two states (Maine and Nebraska) the issue is a bit more complicated. The two states select one elector within each congressional district by popular vote and the remaining two by a statewide popular vote. - A candidate needs the vote of at least 270 electors -- 50 per cent plus one -- to win the presidential election. - Although the actual vote of the Electoral College takes place in each state between mid-November and mid-December, in most cases, a projected winner is announced on election night. - If none of the candidate can secure the 270-majority, the decision would go to the House of Representatives, which would vote to elect the new President. A similar process would take place in the Senate to elect the Vice President from among the top two top candidates. - Once the results are out, next is the Inauguration Day. Inauguration Day occurs every four years on January 20 (or January 21 if January 20 falls on a Sunday) at the US Capitol building in Washington, DC. On this federal holiday, the President-elect and Vice-President-elect are sworn-in and take office. - The Vice-President-elect is sworn in first, and repeats the same oath of office, in use since 1884, as Senators, Representatives, and other federal employees. - Around noon, the President-elect takes his oath. - The inauguration is planned by the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies. Nine common activities typically occur: morning service; procession to the Capitol; Vice President's swearing-in ceremony; President's swearing-in ceremony; inaugural address; departure of the outgoing President; inaugural luncheon followed by a parade and a ball. Only one activity is mandated by the Constitution -- the oath. Rest are all traditional activities.
By PTI

LONDON: An Indian-origin businessman has been found guilty of sexually assaulting a teenage girl during a flight to the UK and jailed for 20 weeks by a UK court. Suman Das, from Qatar, had been arrested at Manchester Airport after the 18-year old victim claimed he touched her between her legs during a flight from Doha to Manchester as she was dozing in her seat in July.

The 46-year-old had denied the charges but was found guilty at Manchester Magistrates' Court last week and was sentenced yesterday. District Judge Sam Goozee said, "This is a sexual assault in circumstances that you took advantage of her. It was a brief but traumatic assault touching her incredibly intimately". A pre-sentence report stated community service was not an option for Das, who grew up in India and is now based in Qatar, as he is not a UK resident.

He will also have a post sentence supervision order for one year after his release, which means he must stay in the UK until that expires. Das was also ordered to pay a 115-pound victim surcharge. The victim had told the hearing, "He knew exactly what he was doing and he wasn't sleeping. He was looking at me, I saw he was looking at me. He must have been looking at me to see if I was awake." "He did move very quickly once he saw that I was awake," the victim said.

The court heard how Das' wife, Sonia, was sitting next to him on the Qatar Airways when the incident took place, five hours into the flight. During the hearing Sonia, his wife of 23 years, said, "I have had no concern. Until today I have faith in my husband and still today I have total faith in my husband." The accused initially claimed he must have touched her by accident while fidgeting in his seat and offered to apologise -- but he later said he could not have carried out an assault as he was asleep.

Das and his wife were visiting the UK for what was described as a "holiday of a lifetime" whilst the unnamed girl was returning to Britain after spending two months travelling in Thailand. The girl alerted a member of cabin crew and went crying to the back of the plane. In a statement, Das said later, "I may have touched accidentally -- but I didn't touch her intentionally.

LONDON: An Indian-origin businessman has been found guilty of sexually assaulting a teenage girl during a flight to the UK and jailed for 20 weeks by a UK court. Suman Das, from Qatar, had been arrested at Manchester Airport after the 18-year old victim claimed he touched her between her legs during a flight from Doha to Manchester as she was dozing in her seat in July. The 46-year-old had denied the charges but was found guilty at Manchester Magistrates' Court last week and was sentenced yesterday. District Judge Sam Goozee said, "This is a sexual assault in circumstances that you took advantage of her. It was a brief but traumatic assault touching her incredibly intimately". A pre-sentence report stated community service was not an option for Das, who grew up in India and is now based in Qatar, as he is not a UK resident. He will also have a post sentence supervision order for one year after his release, which means he must stay in the UK until that expires. Das was also ordered to pay a 115-pound victim surcharge. The victim had told the hearing, "He knew exactly what he was doing and he wasn't sleeping. He was looking at me, I saw he was looking at me. He must have been looking at me to see if I was awake." "He did move very quickly once he saw that I was awake," the victim said. The court heard how Das' wife, Sonia, was sitting next to him on the Qatar Airways when the incident took place, five hours into the flight. During the hearing Sonia, his wife of 23 years, said, "I have had no concern. Until today I have faith in my husband and still today I have total faith in my husband." The accused initially claimed he must have touched her by accident while fidgeting in his seat and offered to apologise -- but he later said he could not have carried out an assault as he was asleep. Das and his wife were visiting the UK for what was described as a "holiday of a lifetime" whilst the unnamed girl was returning to Britain after spending two months travelling in Thailand. The girl alerted a member of cabin crew and went crying to the back of the plane. In a statement, Das said later, "I may have touched accidentally -- but I didn't touch her intentionally.
By IANS

ISLAMABAD: Islamabad Police stormed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) youth convention here and arrested over 200 party workers for protesting against the government.



Following the crackdown on Thursday, PTI Chairman Imran Khan gave a call for countrywide protests against the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government, Pakistan Today online reported.



He said PTI had already announced that the government would have to bear the consequences if it initiates violence.



"We told the government that we would remain peaceful if they had remained peaceful. Now the movement will take a different direction," Dawn online quoted the PTI chairman as saying.



He reiterated the call for countrywide protests on Friday and said the police can arrest him if they want "under Section 144".



PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi condemned the incident and stated that the police have tortured peaceful members, including women, of the party.



He said he and PTI leader Asad Umar had organised the function to mobilise youth.



He said a clear divide was visible between autocratic and democratic thought in the country.



He demanded that the police should release the arrested PTI workers immediately, else they would be responsible for the consequences.



Earlier `in the day, Imran Khan vowed to go ahead with scheduled "lockdown" of Islamabad on November 2 at any cost.



Talking to reporters in Islamabad, he said protest is their "legal and constitutional" right.



"No power or deception can stop us from holding a sit-in in Islamabad," Dawn online quoted him as saying.



His remarks came after the Pakistan government banned political rallies in the capital for two months.



The administration in the capital imposed section 144, which prohibits the gathering of five or more people at a location, Radio Pakistan reported.



Meanwhile, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) also ordered the capital administration not to place any containers or block roads during the PTI's November 2 protests.



Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui, while hearing the case, directed the capital city administration to ensure the smooth running of daily business in Islamabad on the day.



The administration should ensure that hospital, schools, and markets remain open on the day and no containers are placed to block roads, the court said.



"We will not let rights of citizens be violated," Dawn online quoted Justice Siddiqui as saying.



The PTI is protesting alleged money laundering by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his family in the wake of the Panama Papers leak and is demanding his resignation.



ISLAMABAD: Islamabad Police stormed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) youth convention here and arrested over 200 party workers for protesting against the government. Following the crackdown on Thursday, PTI Chairman Imran Khan gave a call for countrywide protests against the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government, Pakistan Today online reported. He said PTI had already announced that the government would have to bear the consequences if it initiates violence. "We told the government that we would remain peaceful if they had remained peaceful. Now the movement will take a different direction," Dawn online quoted the PTI chairman as saying. He reiterated the call for countrywide protests on Friday and said the police can arrest him if they want "under Section 144". PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi condemned the incident and stated that the police have tortured peaceful members, including women, of the party. He said he and PTI leader Asad Umar had organised the function to mobilise youth. He said a clear divide was visible between autocratic and democratic thought in the country. He demanded that the police should release the arrested PTI workers immediately, else they would be responsible for the consequences. Earlier `in the day, Imran Khan vowed to go ahead with scheduled "lockdown" of Islamabad on November 2 at any cost. Talking to reporters in Islamabad, he said protest is their "legal and constitutional" right. "No power or deception can stop us from holding a sit-in in Islamabad," Dawn online quoted him as saying. His remarks came after the Pakistan government banned political rallies in the capital for two months. The administration in the capital imposed section 144, which prohibits the gathering of five or more people at a location, Radio Pakistan reported. Meanwhile, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) also ordered the capital administration not to place any containers or block roads during the PTI's November 2 protests. Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui, while hearing the case, directed the capital city administration to ensure the smooth running of daily business in Islamabad on the day. The administration should ensure that hospital, schools, and markets remain open on the day and no containers are placed to block roads, the court said. "We will not let rights of citizens be violated," Dawn online quoted Justice Siddiqui as saying. The PTI is protesting alleged money laundering by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his family in the wake of the Panama Papers leak and is demanding his resignation.
By AFP

RUSSIA: Russia, on Thursday, denied any involvement in deadly air strikes on a Syrian school and rejected a UN-led investigation showing its ally Damascus had carried out chemical attacks, as Moscow's relations with the West took another hit.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon demanded an immediate probe into Wednesday's attack on the school in rebel-held Idlib province that he termed "a war crime".

The tensions mounted a day after the United States and Britain said they expected an assault in the next few weeks to drive the Islamic State jihadist group out of Raqa, its de facto capital in Syria.

Syria's conflict broke out in March 2011 with peaceful protests against President Bashar al-Assad's government but has evolved into a complex war involving regional and international powers that had killed more than 300,000 people.

One complication has been the involvement of Turkey, whose President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced his country's military operation supporting Syrian rebels will also target Raqa.

Russia, whose military intervened in Syria in September 2015, denied having any role in air strikes on the school that the UN children's agency UNICEF said killed 22 students and six teachers.

"The Russian Federation has nothing to do with this terrible tragedy, with this attack," foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

Zakharova said claims Russian and Syrian warplanes had conducted the strikes were "a lie".

Russia's defence ministry also denied any involvement.

"On Wednesday, October 26, not one Russian warplane entered that area," spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.

He said photographs taken by a Russian drone showed that the roof of the school reportedly hit in the strikes showed no damage and that there were no craters attributable to bombs in the area.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor, "warplanes -- either Russian or Syrian -- had carried out six strikes" in the Idlib provincial village of Hass, including on the school complex.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault was not convinced by the Russian denials.

"Who is responsible? In any case, it is not the (Syrian) opposition, as to bomb you must have planes. It is either the Syrians, the regime of Bashar al-Assad, or the Russians," Ayrault said in Paris.

RUSSIA: Russia, on Thursday, denied any involvement in deadly air strikes on a Syrian school and rejected a UN-led investigation showing its ally Damascus had carried out chemical attacks, as Moscow's relations with the West took another hit. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon demanded an immediate probe into Wednesday's attack on the school in rebel-held Idlib province that he termed "a war crime". The tensions mounted a day after the United States and Britain said they expected an assault in the next few weeks to drive the Islamic State jihadist group out of Raqa, its de facto capital in Syria. Syria's conflict broke out in March 2011 with peaceful protests against President Bashar al-Assad's government but has evolved into a complex war involving regional and international powers that had killed more than 300,000 people. One complication has been the involvement of Turkey, whose President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced his country's military operation supporting Syrian rebels will also target Raqa. Russia, whose military intervened in Syria in September 2015, denied having any role in air strikes on the school that the UN children's agency UNICEF said killed 22 students and six teachers. "The Russian Federation has nothing to do with this terrible tragedy, with this attack," foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said. Zakharova said claims Russian and Syrian warplanes had conducted the strikes were "a lie". Russia's defence ministry also denied any involvement. "On Wednesday, October 26, not one Russian warplane entered that area," spokesman Igor Konashenkov said. He said photographs taken by a Russian drone showed that the roof of the school reportedly hit in the strikes showed no damage and that there were no craters attributable to bombs in the area. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor, "warplanes -- either Russian or Syrian -- had carried out six strikes" in the Idlib provincial village of Hass, including on the school complex. French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault was not convinced by the Russian denials. "Who is responsible? In any case, it is not the (Syrian) opposition, as to bomb you must have planes. It is either the Syrians, the regime of Bashar al-Assad, or the Russians," Ayrault said in Paris.
By Associated Press

DUBAI: Shiite rebels in Yemen fired a ballistic missile toward the holy Muslim city of Mecca overnight, making it the insurgents' deepest strike yet into the kingdom amid the country's stalemate civil war.

Rebel media in Yemen said that the missile targeted an international airport in Jiddah, though Saudi Arabia said it was "intercepted and destroyed" 65 kilometers (40 miles) from Mecca, which is home to the cube-shaped Kaaba that the world's Muslims pray toward five times a day.

The missile launch shows the capability of Yemen's Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, and their allies to continue to strike Saudi Arabia. It also drew the immediate anger of Saudi citizens, as the protection of Mecca is a key pillar of the Saudi royal family's prestige and the country's national identity.

The Saudi military said that the missile, fired Thursday night from Yemen's northwestern Saada province bordering the kingdom, caused no damage. The Saudi military has a supply of U.S.-made, surface-to-air Patriot missile batteries it previously has fired at Houthi-launched missiles.

The military said in a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency that it immediately targeted the area where the missile was launched in airstrikes.

The Houthis and their allies, including forces loyal to former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, have a stockpile of Soviet-era Scud missiles and locally designed variants. The Houthi-controlled satellite news channel Al-Masirah published a bulletin saying its forces had fired a Volcano-1 variant missile at Jiddah's King Abdulaziz International Airport, without mentioning Mecca. That airport is 75 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Mecca.

The Houthi-controlled SABA news agency said the missile "directly hit" the airport and caused massive destruction. There were no immediate delays or diversions affecting the airport Friday.

A Houthi ballistic missile fired earlier this month targeted Taif, home to Saudi Arabia's King Fahd Air Base, which also is near Mecca.

Yemen, on the southern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, has been in the midst of a civil war since September 2014 when the Iranian-backed Houthis swept into the capital of Sanaa and overthrew the country's internationally recognized government. In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition of Arab countries began a military campaign against the Houthi forces, saying its mission served in part as a counterbalance to Iran's influence following its nuclear deal with world powers.

The Saudi-led campaign initially had the logistical and intelligence support of the U.S., but mounting civilian casualties from its airstrikes led to America pulling back, especially after a Saudi strike earlier this month on a funeral in Sanaa killed some 140 people and wounded over 600. The U.S. also fired Tomahawk missiles at mobile Houthi radar sites after reporting its warships came under fire in the Red Sea near the crucial Bab al-Mandeb strait.

In recent days, two commercial ships reportedly have come under fire in the same area.

DUBAI: Shiite rebels in Yemen fired a ballistic missile toward the holy Muslim city of Mecca overnight, making it the insurgents' deepest strike yet into the kingdom amid the country's stalemate civil war. Rebel media in Yemen said that the missile targeted an international airport in Jiddah, though Saudi Arabia said it was "intercepted and destroyed" 65 kilometers (40 miles) from Mecca, which is home to the cube-shaped Kaaba that the world's Muslims pray toward five times a day. The missile launch shows the capability of Yemen's Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, and their allies to continue to strike Saudi Arabia. It also drew the immediate anger of Saudi citizens, as the protection of Mecca is a key pillar of the Saudi royal family's prestige and the country's national identity. The Saudi military said that the missile, fired Thursday night from Yemen's northwestern Saada province bordering the kingdom, caused no damage. The Saudi military has a supply of U.S.-made, surface-to-air Patriot missile batteries it previously has fired at Houthi-launched missiles. The military said in a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency that it immediately targeted the area where the missile was launched in airstrikes. The Houthis and their allies, including forces loyal to former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, have a stockpile of Soviet-era Scud missiles and locally designed variants. The Houthi-controlled satellite news channel Al-Masirah published a bulletin saying its forces had fired a Volcano-1 variant missile at Jiddah's King Abdulaziz International Airport, without mentioning Mecca. That airport is 75 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Mecca. The Houthi-controlled SABA news agency said the missile "directly hit" the airport and caused massive destruction. There were no immediate delays or diversions affecting the airport Friday. A Houthi ballistic missile fired earlier this month targeted Taif, home to Saudi Arabia's King Fahd Air Base, which also is near Mecca. Yemen, on the southern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, has been in the midst of a civil war since September 2014 when the Iranian-backed Houthis swept into the capital of Sanaa and overthrew the country's internationally recognized government. In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition of Arab countries began a military campaign against the Houthi forces, saying its mission served in part as a counterbalance to Iran's influence following its nuclear deal with world powers. The Saudi-led campaign initially had the logistical and intelligence support of the U.S., but mounting civilian casualties from its airstrikes led to America pulling back, especially after a Saudi strike earlier this month on a funeral in Sanaa killed some 140 people and wounded over 600. The U.S. also fired Tomahawk missiles at mobile Houthi radar sites after reporting its warships came under fire in the Red Sea near the crucial Bab al-Mandeb strait. In recent days, two commercial ships reportedly have come under fire in the same area.
By AFP

UNITED NATIONS: United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday condemned an attack on a school in government-held west Aleppo that killed a number of Syrian children.

"Such attacks, if deliberate, may amount to war crimes," Ban said in a statement.

Syrian state media reported that rebel rocket fire had hit a school in west Aleppo. The city has been divided since mid-2012, when rebels seized its eastern half.

"Three children were killed and 14 students were injured in a terrorist rocket attack onthe national school in the Shahba neighbourhood of Aleppo," state news agency SANA reported from Damascus.

The UN chief renewed his call to the Security Council to ask the International Criminal Court to investigate allegations of war crimes in Syria.

"Those responsible for these acts must be brought to justice," he said.

Regime forces backed by ally Russia have waged an aerial and ground assault since late September to recapture eastern Aleppo, killing hundreds of civilians and destroying infrastructure including hospitals.

On Wednesday, the UN children's agency UNICEF said 22 children had been killed along with six teachers in air strikes on a school in rebel-held Idlib province.

Ban said he was appalled by that attack and demanded an immediate investigation after warning that the assault on the school could amount to a war crime.

The UN chief has repeatedly urged the Security Council to formally request that the ICC begin war crimes investigations in Syria.

Such a request was blocked in 2014 by Russia and China, which have veto powers.

The 15-member council has the authority to refer a country to the Hague-based ICC for war crimes investigations as it has done for Libya and Sudan's troubled Darfur region.

More than 300,000 people have been killed in Syria and over half of the country's population displaced since the conflict began in March 2011 with anti-government protests.

UNITED NATIONS: United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday condemned an attack on a school in government-held west Aleppo that killed a number of Syrian children. "Such attacks, if deliberate, may amount to war crimes," Ban said in a statement. Syrian state media reported that rebel rocket fire had hit a school in west Aleppo. The city has been divided since mid-2012, when rebels seized its eastern half. "Three children were killed and 14 students were injured in a terrorist rocket attack onthe national school in the Shahba neighbourhood of Aleppo," state news agency SANA reported from Damascus. The UN chief renewed his call to the Security Council to ask the International Criminal Court to investigate allegations of war crimes in Syria. "Those responsible for these acts must be brought to justice," he said. Regime forces backed by ally Russia have waged an aerial and ground assault since late September to recapture eastern Aleppo, killing hundreds of civilians and destroying infrastructure including hospitals. On Wednesday, the UN children's agency UNICEF said 22 children had been killed along with six teachers in air strikes on a school in rebel-held Idlib province. Ban said he was appalled by that attack and demanded an immediate investigation after warning that the assault on the school could amount to a war crime. The UN chief has repeatedly urged the Security Council to formally request that the ICC begin war crimes investigations in Syria. Such a request was blocked in 2014 by Russia and China, which have veto powers. The 15-member council has the authority to refer a country to the Hague-based ICC for war crimes investigations as it has done for Libya and Sudan's troubled Darfur region. More than 300,000 people have been killed in Syria and over half of the country's population displaced since the conflict began in March 2011 with anti-government protests.
By AFP

IRAQ: Islamic State group fighters slaughtered at least 232 people in and around Mosul this week as Iraqi troops advanced on the city, the UN rights office said Friday.

"Last Wednesday 232 civilians were reportedly shot to death. Of these there were 190 former Iraqi Security Forces officers," rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva.

"These reports have been corroborated to the extent possible," she added, stressing that the number of people killed in recent days could be higher.

Shamdasani said the execution-style killings came as IS was pushing forward with its strategy of forcing people living near the northern Iraqi city into Mosul, the group's last bastion in Iraq.

The rights office has said the jihadists aim to use these people as "human shields" in the ensuing battle for Mosul against US-backed elite Iraqi troops.

"ISIL has been forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes in some districts around Mosul," Shamdasani said.

Those being executed have included civilians who have refused to comply with the relocation orders and those who previously worked for the government security services.

IRAQ: Islamic State group fighters slaughtered at least 232 people in and around Mosul this week as Iraqi troops advanced on the city, the UN rights office said Friday. "Last Wednesday 232 civilians were reportedly shot to death. Of these there were 190 former Iraqi Security Forces officers," rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva. "These reports have been corroborated to the extent possible," she added, stressing that the number of people killed in recent days could be higher. Shamdasani said the execution-style killings came as IS was pushing forward with its strategy of forcing people living near the northern Iraqi city into Mosul, the group's last bastion in Iraq. The rights office has said the jihadists aim to use these people as "human shields" in the ensuing battle for Mosul against US-backed elite Iraqi troops. "ISIL has been forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes in some districts around Mosul," Shamdasani said. Those being executed have included civilians who have refused to comply with the relocation orders and those who previously worked for the government security services.
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Columnist

Tom Kacich is a columnist and the author of Tom's Mailbag at The News-Gazette. His column appears Sundays. His email is tkacich@news-gazette.com, and you can follow him on Twitter (@tkacich).
Champaign, IL (61820)

Today

Areas of patchy fog early. Some clouds this morning will give way to generally sunny skies for the afternoon. High 66F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Mainly clear skies. Low 46F. Winds light and variable.
Scientists at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) have identified a factor in liver cells that is responsible for turning a relatively benign liver condition, present in 30 percent of U.S. adults, into a serious disease that can lead to liver failure.

The study was published online today in Cell Metabolism.

With the rise of obesity in the U.S., the incidence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)in which excess fat fills the liverhas risen to epidemic levels. The extra liver fat is generally benign, but in one in five people, NAFLD evolves into a more serious condition, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).

In NASH, the liver becomes inflamed and criss-crossed by fibrous scar tissue, and liver cells start dying. Patients with NASH are at risk of liver failure and liver cancer, but there are no drugs on the market that can slow or stop the disease.

Because the amount of fibrosis in the liver is associated with a greater risk of death from NASH, Xiaobo Wang, PhD, associate research scientist in the Department of Medicine at CUMC working in the lab of Ira Tabas, MD, PhD, looked for ways to stop fibrosis in a mouse model of NASH.

He found that in liver cells, TAZ, a previously unknown factor in NASH, plays a critical role in initiating fibrosis, and that fibrosis stops in mice with NASH when TAZ is inactivated in liver cells. With TAZ shut down, existing fibers in the liver also dissolved, essentially reversing the disease. Two other critical features of NASH, inflammation and cell death, were also reduced when TAZ was turned off. Fat accumulation in the liver was unaffected.

Based on their examination of liver biopsies from NAFLD and NASH patients, Drs. Wang and Tabas believe that TAZ works in the same way in people.

"We think that by stopping fibrosis through TAZ and its partners, we may be able to prevent the serious consequences of NASH, including liver failure and liver cancer," said Ira Tabas, Richard J. Stock Professor and vice-chair of research in the Department of Medicine and professor of pathology & cell biology (in physiology and cellular biophysics) at CUMC.

Source: Columbia University Medical Center
A new genetic analysis has shown that the French-Canadian flight attendant Gaetan Dugas who was posthumously blamed for spreading HIV across North America, was not the Patient Zero of the epidemic.

(c) Spectal-Design / Shutterstock.com

Dugas became notorious as the person responsible for the US AIDS crisis after he slept with men in California and New York during the early 1980s.

The evidence from this latest study in fact shows that HIV probably arrived in the U.S around 1971 and that Dugas was simply one of many thousands who had been infected years before the HIV epidemic was even recognized in the 80s.

Genetics & Genomics eBook Compilation of the top interviews, articles, and news in the last year. Download a copy today

The research, which was led by Dr Michael Worobey (University of Arizona) compared Dugas's blood sample with samples taken from men in the late 1970s in New York and San Francisco.

Worobey and team managed to isolate HIV in eight of those samples. They then sequenced the HIV genomes and assessed how the virus had mutated over time. The eight samples analysed were then compared to HIV samples from the Caribbean and Africa.

As reported in Nature, the researchers found that the viral genome from Dugas closely resembled later HIV samples and viral genomes from the east coast resembled much more closely the early California virus than they did the viral genome from Dugas. Their molecular clockwork showed that there was striking genetic diversity of the virus in the US by the late 1970s. HIV had already been circulating and mutating in US hosts a decade before Dugas arrived in the country. The results even suggest that the US strain arrived in the Caribbean from Africa in the late 1960s, then arrived in New York by around 1971 and eventually reached San Francisco in the mid-70s.

Beatrice Hahn, HIV expert from the University of Pennsylvania, says the finding:

puts to rest this silly Patient Zero story. Its pretty clear that the 1978 and 1979 samples definitely predated the description of the disease in the 1980s and there wasnt just one person infected at that time  people were infected in NYC and San Francisco.

The study clears Dugas from having brought the virus into the US and helping it hop from one side of the country to the other.

While he did link AIDS cases in New York and Los Angeles through sexual contact, our results refute the widespread misinterpretation that he also infected them with HIV-1, write Worobey and team.

Hahn adds: The point was those people were already infected and no one knew about it because they werent symptomatic and there was no way of finding they had a virus that no one knew existed.
BMW board member Oliver Zipse said there is no need to decide yet whether the Brexit vote is a reason to shift manufacturing of its Mini brand away from Oxford to other locations in Europe.



Britain's vote in June to leave the European Union has raised doubts on whether it can keep tariff-free access to the European common market, prompting various carmakers with factories in the United Kingdom to review their production plans.



BMW Group, which manufactures the Mini in the Netherlands, Austria and the United Kingdom, is not currently under pressure to make any changes or decide about further investments in its assembly line in Oxford, Zipse said.



"The Mini has been launched not too long ago, now is not the time to make this decision," Zipse, BMW Group's board member responsible for manufacturing, told Reuters on the sidelines of an event held in Landshut, Germany.



"When the time comes when we have to do the next bigger investment, we will have to look at the situation," Zipse said.



Asked whether BMW could shift more production of the Mini to the Netherlands, Zipse said, "We have possibilities, but currently we don't have to."



Earlier on Thursday, Reuters reported that Japanese carmaker Nissan will continue to build two new models at Britain's largest car plant, despite the vote to quit the EU.
Immediately after the Tata Sons board removed Cyrus Mistry as chairman on Monday evening, newly-appointed interim chairman Ratan Tata send a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi appraising him of the developments. As per latest reports, Mistry too has sought an appointment with the PM, which the Prime Ministers Office (PMO) hasnt yet confirmed or denied. So just why is PM being aggressively kept in the loop in what essentially is a corporate war?



News18 spoke to legal analysts to find out what could be the possible reasons. The clues, they said, lie in the corporate structure of the Tata group firms.



Although Mistry has been removed as the Chairman of Tata Sons, the holding company for the Tata group, he still remains on its board. More significantly, he is the Chairman of various Tata group entities like Tata Power (Chairman), Tata Global Beverages (Non-Executive Chairman), Tata Steel Ltd (Chairman), Tata Motors (Non-Executive Chairman), Indian Hotels Company Ltd (Non-Executive Chairman), Tata Chemicals Ltd (Chairman), Tata Consultancy Services (Non Independent, Non-Executive Chairman), Jaguar Land Rover Automotive Plc (Chairman).



The Tata trusts hold a majority of the shareholding  close to 66% -- in the closely-held Tata Sons. However, their shareholding in their other listed firms is much less.



News18 parsed through publicly available documents of some Tata firms for a closer look at the shareholding pattern:



 Tata Steel: 32% controlled by promoter and promoter groups (Tata trusts and Tata companies), 9% by Unit Trust of India, 13% by Life Insurance Corporation.



 Tata Motors: Promoters control 33% while UTI has 4.36%.



 Tata Chemicals: Promoters control 30%, UTI has 14% and LIC has 3%



Now, if it comes down to a boardroom battle at each of these companies, the promoters, i.e. Tata, will need the cooperation of other shareholders. Getting the government to lend a sympathetic ear to its cause could be an essential part of the strategy if either group wants the support of the state-run shareholders like UTI or LIC.



The Tatas will have to struggle to remove Mistry because they will have to go to the boards of each of these companies and force a vote, Mohan Guruswamy, head of the Centre for Policy Alternatives, said.



Guruswamy said that apart from LIC and UTI, public sector banks like State Bank of India are also shareholders in Tata firms.



The PSU firms will vote the way the government tells them because I dont expect our public institutions to act independently, Dr. Anil Gor, senior professor at NL Dalmia Institute of Management Studies and Research, Mumbai said.



Dr Gor added that if instructions are given by the government to PSU shareholders to vote in a certain way they will be of a verbal nature.



The other reason for meeting the Prime Minister, according to Dr. Gor, would be to preclude untoward action against the Tata firms at this point of time.



There has been a loss of wealth and consequently shareholder value has been eroded, Dr. Gor said. Markets regulator SEBI or the Corporate Affairs Ministry may try and initiate proceedings, especially given the allegations in Mistrys email, he added.



Each side will want to make sure all its bases are covered in what is shaping up to be a high profile corporate battle.
New Delhi: Tata group stocks on Friday bounced back after three days of continuous decline, closing the day with up to 6 per cent gains on buying at lower levels.



Shares of Tata Motors rose by 2.68 per cent and Tata Steel went up by 1.85 per cent on BSE.



Tata Metaliks soared 5.86 per cent, Tata Elxsi surged 4.20 per cent, Tata Teleservices (3.93 pc), Tata Coffee (2.02 pc), Tata Communications (1.35 pc), Tata Investment Corporation (1.32 pc), Tata Global Beverages (1.20 pc) and Tata Chemicals (0.87 pc).



Tata Power Company and TCS however ended in the red down 1.38 per cent and 0.58 per cent, respectively.



"The auspicious festival season coupled with value-buying in Tata group stocks, persuaded the market to make a small comeback after a slew of corrections," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services Ltd.



The group stocks saw total market value erosion to over Rs 26,000 crore in the past three days amid concerns over sudden ouster of Cyrus Mistry as chairman of Tata Sons, the main holding firm for the group companies.



These stocks had also lost ground on worries about the purported disclosure made by Mistry about huge write-down risks at some firms.



Tata Steel and Indian Hotels yesterday said they have always made all relevant disclosures and have no further comments to offer following the comments made by Mistry that Tata group firms could face a potential USD 18 billion write-down.



The Sensex ended at 27,941.51, up 25.61 points.




You are so much fun @chelseashow. Thank you for having me. Can't wait for you to experience India...you're going to love it. Big hug! https://t.co/KKfbMVy9q5  PRIYANKA (@priyankachopra) October 26, 2016

She is slowly becoming the darling of international media. And why not, because Priyanka Chopra is not only talented and charming but is the true ambassador of the country who is breaking myths that American seem to have about us and our country. After revealing on The Ellen Show about Indians and their drinking habits, Chopra recently clarified to chat show host Chelsea Handler on her show that a lot of Indians can indeed speak in English.During the show Handler asked Chopra is she knew how to speak in English when she first came to America at the age of 12 as a school student. To which Priyanka replied, " Yes. 10 % of India speaks English which is 1.3 million people which is more than most nations. When you go to India you will encounter most people speaking in English."Well she got the part about Indians being fluent in English correct but perhaps the numbers were not accurate enough. What Chopra meant was that 10% of the population which is 130 million and not 1.3 million people speak English in India.Chopra also spoke about how she is ok working round the clock as most Indians only get a 'Sunday off and schools work half day on Saturdays.'
In a world trying to aim for equality, making a difference in the LGBTQ cause can come in myriad ways. Lesbian novelist and filmmaker Shamim Sarif has chosen the pen and the camera to make these voices heard.Sarif, a British-Indian Muslim, dons a lot of hats with ease. She started with writing prose, short stories, moved to writing books (The World Unseen, I Cant Think Straight and Despite the Falling Snow) and finally, adapted them into three power packed films, becoming a director in the process. The most interesting part? All her stories have lesbian leads, telling stories the way they see the world.But Sarif had never set out to make womens films or lesbian films. Personally I dont go to the movies and say that was a great heterosexual story and so I didnt expect the reverse to happen - but in fact our films did become quite niched in terms of audience. Whats been amazing about that is the incredible, ongoing feedback and support - an outpouring that made it clear to us that there was a huge desire for stories like this to be told. That was very empowering and exciting, says the 47 year old.As Sarif readies to speak at the Hampstead Arts Festival in November, she shares how she initially thought being a woman or a lesbian wont matter while trying to tell important stories. Turns out, it mattered greatly. There is an inherent lack of female perspective in storytelling and in the film industry. When fewer than 5% of directors are women, thats a huge imbalance that must be systemic. It is also much harder to raise finance for movies with female leads, and even harder when they are lesbian leads. So, to me, the Hampstead Arts Festival provides a valuable forum to discuss these questions and suggest a way forward.Even as an Indian origin Muslim woman living in the UK, her life wasnt exactly easy. I was aware of my preferences from my early teens but I didnt come out until I met Hanan. I was quite introverted and didnt go out much so it wasnt as if I felt I needed to make an issue of it with my family. But when I met Hanan and knew that this was the person I wanted to be with, I came out within a couple of weeks. I didnt then see the point of hiding it and that felt wrong. It was definitely easier to be living in the UK and to have something of a more western sensibility but it was still 20 years ago and a big source of shame for my mother in particular, the writer, whose book I Cant Think Straight is semi-autobiographical, shares.But Sarif's work has helped women tremendously. Since making I Cant Think Straight and The World Unseen, she has met the most amazing women from India and other places and heard their stories about being inspired to be true to themselves. "Its the path I would always recommend because life is so precious, it doesnt feel right to live it on someone elses terms. However, some of the women I met have had immense challenges to their safety and livelihood, so I would never push anyone to come out."Urmi Dutta Roy, one of the organizers of the festival whose theme this year is 'overcoming challenges', says, "Sarif is married to film producer Hanan Katan, a Jordanian born Palestinian and they are parents to two young boys. Together, they tick every minority box possible and their whole set up challenges the status quo but proves that love conquers all in the end."For all those who are doing their bit in changing the world, Sarif feels one must constantly try to challenge the reality and be open as human beings. And she does it through her stories. "Some cultures, in India and elsewhere, live within a very prescribed set of rules and expectations and these need to be challenged. The World Unseen re-imagined my grandmothers life if she had been able to glimpse the possibility of questioning her husband, or her family, or the rules of apartheid. Questioning is key to growth and in my stories, it is often falling in love thats the catalyst for characters to become more open to another perspective and then change their own lives."Well, here's hoping to love breaking more shackles then.
Bhubaneswar: SUM Hospital owner Manoj Ranjan Nayak, who was arrested in connection with the October 17 hospital fire which claimed 29 lives, was granted conditional bail by a local court here on Friday.



The court accepted Manoj's bail application on submission of a surety of Rs 1 lakh and two bailers. "Manoj Nayak has no links in the fire tragedy and he is not at all responsible for what happened on that fateful night," said defence counsel SN Das.



The court also granted bail to Medical Superintendent of SUM Hospital Pusparaj Samantasinghar.







The court laid down conditions for Nayak to appear at the police station whenever called for questioning and cooperate with the investigating officers in the probe process.



Basing on a complaint filed by a fire officer, the Commissionerate Police had arrested Pushparaj Samantsinghar and three others in the SUM Hospital fire case.



On October 20, Nayak had surrendered before Khandagiri police following a lookout notice served by police.



(With IANS inputs)


New Delhi/Srinagar: At least 15 Pakistan Rangers have been killed in retaliatory firing since October 21 while two civilians on the Indian side were killed on Friday in cross-border shelling and firing, the Border Security Force (BSF) said.



RS Pura, Akhnoor, Poonch, Sunderbani and Noushera sectors in Jammu and Kashmir have come under heavy shelling and firing by Pakistani troops side, BSF sources said.



BSF said that as per the ammunition used in firing and shelling, it appeared that Pakistani Army is supporting its paramilitary Rangers along the International Border.



"As far as the number of casualties on other side is concerned, which our men have seen through our eyes and instruments, 15 Pakistani soldiers have been killed after the sniping incident of Constable Gurnam Singh", BSF Additional Director General Arun Kumar told reporters on Friday. He said the BSF was giving a befitting reply to the Pakistani shelling and firing.



"At 1720 hours (5:20pm) yesterday, Pakistan Rangers started unprovoked heavy firing and shelling in Kathua Sector of Jammu which further spread to Hiranagar and Samba. It continued till 0500 hours (5:00am) today in the area of 24 BSF posts," a senior BSF officer said.



"In the Pakistani shelling, one civilian died in Khour belt of Pallanwala sector today," Jammu Deputy Commissioner Simrandeep Singh said, adding another civilian was injured in RS Pura sector.







Similarly, one woman Usma Bi, aged 50, was killed in shelling by Pakistan on Gohlad village in Mendhar tehsil of Poonch district, a defence spokesman said. Another civilian was injured in area, the reports said.



Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh lauded the force for the prompt action. "The BSF is doing their job on the border with a lot of courage. We are proud of our jawans," he said.



Pakistan Rangers, however, denied any casualties on its side.



(With PTI inputs)
Yesterday, then again today morning ceasefire violations are happening from Pak side. Indian side responding befittingly: Defence PRO pic.twitter.com/aMELFUy3xA  ANI (@ANI_news) October 28, 2016

In picture: Arms and ammunition recovered from the Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists arrested in Baramulla (J&K) last night. pic.twitter.com/IaDDLCHB5m  ANI (@ANI_news) October 28, 2016

A minor girl received multiple injuries in mortar shelling reported from the Pakistani side on Friday morning along the Line-of-Control (LoC) in Sunderbani and Noushera in Jammu and Kashmir."One girl is injured in overnight ceasefire violation by Pakistani troops along International Border in Kathua and Jammu districts," BSF sources said."There are reports that few posts of Pakistani forces were badly damaged. None of our jawans were killed or injured. Security has been beefed up in the entire bordering areas," he said.Sunderbani and Noushera sectors came under heavy firing since morning and jawans gave a befitting reply to the Pakistani rangers.Similar, unprovoked heavy firing and shelling of 120 mm and 82 mm mortars were also reported in Hiranagar and Samba sectors on Thursday evening and continued till Friday morning.The Pakistani rangers also targeted RS Pura, Akhnoor and Poonch sectors.Manish Mehta, Defence PRO, said, "We are hitting back hard. We do not have any casualties on our side and none of our troops have been injured."Meanwhile, two suspected Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists were arrested on Thursday in Baramulla district.They were arrested in a joint search operation by 46 Rashtriya Rifles and Special Operations Group (SOG).An AK-47, a pistol with ammunition, Under Barrel Grenade Launcher, UBGL grenades, pouches, were seized from them.
New Delhi: Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah on Friday called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss the situation in the Kashmir Valley which continues to witness unrest for over 100 days.



During the meeting, Abdullah stressed for an early dialogue with all the stakeholders who were willing to come to the table for negotiation so that the stalemate can end in the Valley.



The former Chief Minister, who has been touring the entire state, said that the Prime Minister listened patiently to him and was receptive to the suggestions he made.



"I am sure that the Prime Minister will urgently address all the issues that have been flagged by me and others from the state," Abdullah told PTI after the meeting.



The former Chief Minister said that National Conference has played the role of a constructive opposition party and would continue to do so.



"We are willing to do anything for the people of the state who have been victims of unrest for over three months now.



"The education sector has suffered. Tourism industry, which is the mainstay of the economy, has been hit badly. The people living along the Line of Control and International Border are suffering. I have requested to take into consideration all these factors and make attempts to bring some relief to the people in the state," he said.



Abdullah, however, refused to share other details about the meeting.



"The meeting took place in the most cordial atmosphere and the Prime Minister was equally concerned about the

situation in the state," the NC leader said.



As many as 85 people, including two policemen, have been killed and thousands of others injured in the unrest in the Valley triggered by the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani in July. Around 5,000 security forces personnel have also been injured in the clashes.
New Delhi: Labour Ministry has decided to fix the minimum wage at Rs 350 per day for unskilled agricultural labour in C-class towns in central sphere to be effective from November 1, 2016.



At present, agriculture workers in the central sphere are paid as per the rates prescribed under the national floor level minimum wage, which is Rs 160 per day.



"The ministry will notify minimum wages on November 1 to enhance minimum wages," Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya told reporters here.



The minister informed that the new minimum wages notified will enhance wages of unskilled agricultural labour in C-class towns to Rs 350 per day in the central sphere. As of now the national floor level minimum wage is Rs 160 (per day), he added.



On benchmark minimum wage across the country, he said, "We are going to get amendment in Minimum Wages Act, which will be called universal minimum wage. Once it is amended then it will become satutory..then all the state governments would have to apply the same standards (of wages)."



At present, the states are free to fix wages for various category of workers as there is no benchmark minimum wage which is applicable across the country.



After the amendment, the states will have to maintain a benchmark minimum wage fixed by the Centre.



The minister further said, "The tripartite meeting on 'Code on Wages' is over. Now it is going for the Cabinet approval. After that it will be come in Parliament in next session."



The Winter Session of Parliament is beginning next month.



On labour reforms, he said that these two key codes on wages and industrial relations will come in Parliament in the coming winter session.



"The tripartite consultations on Code on Industrial Relations are over and it will go for Cabinet approval. It will be introduced in Parliament in Winter Session."



The ministerial panel on labour chaired by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has set up a committee of secretaries to come up with a report on social security for anganwadi workers, asha workers and mid-day meal workers following which the government will finalise its social security cover for them, Dattatreya added.
For nine months, you have been sitting over the names. We would not let you scuttle the system. You cannot scuttle the working of the institution like this. Are you waiting for some revolutionary changes in the system? the court said.

The Attorney General, who had the difficult task of defending the government, informed the court that the government was working on clearing names but was facing difficulty in the absence of a Memorandum of Procedure (MoP).

However, this argument cut no ice with the court which said, Just tell us where are the proposals languishing? If there are any inconsistency, you send the file back, we would certainly look into it... it seems nothing is happening, we will not allow it.

The court added: In Karnataka High Court, an entire floor of courts is locked because there are no judges. Once we had a situation where we had judges but no courtrooms. But now, there are courtrooms but no judges. You should very well have the whole institution justice locked out.

The standoff between the government and the Supreme Court over judicial appointments came to a head on Friday with the SC threatening to summon officials from the Prime Ministers Office and the Justice secretary if the process is not fast-tracked.Hearing a petition on judicial appointments, the top court expressed anguish over the delay in appointment of judges.It is not adversarial. It is not about ego of individuals. We dont want to pass judicial orders in such matters. But this cannot go on like this. We dont want to create a very bad situation where one institution has to clash with another institution. Please dont compel us.In December last, the Supreme Court had struck down a law that introduced the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) that would give government a say in appointment of judges.Dismissing the NJAC proposal, the court had said that the government will come out with a MoP for new appointments.But in the last few months, the government and the judiciary have not been able to agree on the guidelines to be incorporated in the MoP, resulting in the government using the opportunity to scuttle appointments.The Attorney General also informed the court that it was the MoP hat had resulted in the impediment in judges appointment.At this point, the judges even threatened to call PMO officials to explain this.Sensing an adverse order coming from the court, the AG displayed courtroom craft by taking a soft stand on the issue and sought more time till November 11 to get clarity on the issue. The case will now be heard on November 11.
Bhopal: The Shivraj Singh Chouhan government sought to deflect blame after stationary kits labelled SC/ST Scheme were handed to students from the said SC/ST communities at a government college in Madhya Pradeshs Mandsaur district, inviting allegations of caste profiling.



Nearly 250 students from SC/ST communities were given the labelled bags at the Rajiv Gandhi Government PG College, making them vulnerable to caste-based discrimination.



The students welcomed the initiative but were upset over the labelling of the bags.



Suggesting that the decision to label the bags may have been taken at the regional level, the states higher education minister Jaibhan Singh Pawaiya said: "When the matter came to light, the officials were ordered to issue notice and investigate the matter. Such incidents disturb the unity of students," said Pawaiya.



The government has also issued a warning to the college, which in turn said the bags were distributed under the SC/ST welfare scheme of the state government. "We worked as per the instructions of the government," said Sushil Tanwar, distribution officer of the college.



The college principal, however, declined to address the media. He earlier said he would ensure the labelling was removed from bags that were yet to be distributed.



The opposition Congress was quick to criticise the BJP government in the state and gave a memorandum to Mandsaur SDM NS Rajawat on Friday.
Our grounds were simply that no environmental clearance has been taken for this project until now. The BDA had taken a superlative view that since it is a road, a highway, it does not need environmental clearance. Now that is for them (NGT) to decide, said a Senior Advocate, who has been advising petitioner-activists N S Mukunda and V Balasubramanian.



This Diwali, truth has stopped evil... Its a temporary injuction on the BDA, and stops its rush to award contract till a proper environmental scrutiny (sic), tweeted Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Chandrashekar, who has been campaigning against the project.

More the delay, more the cost of the project... so it will be a bigger burden then for the people, Rao said.

Indias Mars mission cost was Rs 450 crore for 78,00,00,000 kilometres. Bengalurus steal bridge is Rs 1,850 crore for 6.7 km.Just as Bangaloreans were getting over the joke on social media ever since the contract for the highly-controversial steel flyover project was announced, the National Green Tribunal decided that it was no joking matter.The NGT Chennai bench on Friday gave an ad-interim stay to ensure the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) doesnt go ahead with the execution of the project for the next four weeks, while asking the State to file its response within the next three weeks.Just two days ago, the BDA had officially awarded the contract to construction major Larsen and Toubro.The stay comes amid reports that work orders have been given, and civil works on the project could start as early as November 1.Along with the state of Karnataka, the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests is a co-respondent. As is the BDA, the State Forests Department, the Pollution Control Board, the State Environmental Impact Assessment Authority and L&T, the contractors.The flyover was expected to ease traffic between the Bengaluru international airport and central Bengaluru. Over the last few weeks, however, it has been heavily criticised for being planned in a hasty and opaque manner, with no clarity on its alignment. At over Rs 260 crore per kilometre, the contract has been given away but the actual map on what the reaches of the flyover will be, is still being readied.The government further claims it will extend the reach, and this may cost about Rs 300 to 500 crore more  again, no clarity on exactly how much of the tax-payers moolah is going towards this. In fact, there isnt even clarity on how many trees will face the axe.Refusing to call it a setback for the government, Congress working president Dinesh Gundu Rao, however, said it was a setback for the people of Bengaluru.Petitioner Balasubramanian says their main contention is that despite a large number of trees (an estimated 800-plus) being brought down, the flyover wont solve the traffic problem in the region.It is also well-known that speeding vehicles will create more pollution and that would be inevitable here.. the flyover will only lead to accumulation of vehicles at the end of the flyover, it wont bring down the jam. We want the government to look at alternatives, that will give a thrust to public transport, he said.
A traffic jam forced Paytm CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma to visit us in a cycle rickshaw. Lucknow Metro will help solve the traffic jams in city. pic.twitter.com/SDzZy0mjMX  Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) October 27, 2016

Paytm CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma took a cycle rickshaw ride on Thursday to meet Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav after his car stuck in a traffic jam in Lucknow.Vijay Shekhar went to Lucknow to receive 'Yash Bharti' Award but in the morning he preferred to take a cycle rickshaw ride because he was getting late and his car was stuck in traffic.Security officers at Akhilesh's 5 Kalidas Marg residence allowed Paytm chief and the rickshaw-puller Maniram to enter only after proper verification, sources in the police department said.Akhilesh liked the gesture and after inquiring about the rickshaw-puller Maniram handed him Rs 6,000 as diwali gift. He also assured him a house, e-rickshaw and Samajwadi Pension scheme for his wife.The chief minister also shared his picture on twitter. "A traffic jam forced Paytm CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma to visit us in a cycle rickshaw. Lucknow Metro will help solve the traffic jams in city," his tweet reads.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to spend Diwali on Sunday with jawans from the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) at the Mana Post along the border near Badrinath Temple.



Preparation were in full swing for the PMs visit with Director General of the force, Krishna Chowdhary, leaving for Dehradun. He is scheduled to reach Mana on Saturday while the Prime Minister was expected to fly to the post on Sunday afternoon.



The visit is in line with Modis tradition of spending Diwali with the armed forces. His first Diwali after taking over as PM in 2014 was with soldiers at Siachen, the worlds highest battlefield.



The PM had recently appealed to Indians to send in their Diwali wishes for the armed forces. I sent my #Sandesh2Soldiers. You could also do the same. Your wishes will certainly make our forces very happy. This Diwali, let us remember our courageous armed forces who constantly protect our nation. Jai Hind. When 125 crore people stand with soldiers, their power increases by 125 crore," the PM had tweeted.



As tensions rise along the border with Pakistan with repeated ceasefire violations by the neighbour, the PMs message from the heights of Badrinath will be closely watched on Sunday.



Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju will be celebrating the festival in Manipur with soldiers from the Assam Rifles while MoS in the Prime Ministers Office Jitendra Singh will be in Hiranagar area of Jammu and Kashmir close to the Line of Control on the eve of Diwali.




In a barbaric incident, terrorists, aided by the cover fire by Pakistani Army, on Friday night crossed the Line of Control and killed an Indian army jawan and mutilated his body in Machil sector of Kupwara district in north Kashmir.One militant was also killed in the gunbattle, army said here on Friday night."In an encounter close to the Line of Control this evening, one solider was martyred and one terrorist was killed. The terrorists mutilated the body of the jawan before fleeing back into Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir under the cover of firing by Pakistan Army," an army spokesman said.He said the incident reflected the barbarism pervading in official and unofficial organisations in Pakistan."The incident will be responded to appropriately," he added.The despicable attack occurred hours after the Border Security Force said two Indian civilians were killed in cross-border shelling and firing by Pakistani forces. The BSF also said at least 15 Pakistan Rangers were killed in retaliatory firing since October 21.RS Pura, Akhnoor, Poonch, Sunderbani and Noushera sectors in Jammu and Kashmir have come under heavy shelling and firing by Pakistani troops in the last few days.Earlier on Friday, suspected militants gunned down a woman inside her house in south Kashmir's Pulwama district. Beeba, wife of Mohammad Yousuf Matto, was rushed to a hospital but she succumbed on the way.(With PTI inputs)
Washington: The US on Thursday commended India for helping it in unearthing a multi-million dollars transnational scam originating from India-based call centres that cheated thousands of American citizens into paying fictitious debts.



"We want to commend the Indians for having done that because we think it's important that they come in addition to our enforcement efforts, that they engage in enforcement efforts and they have the people there in India and we have do to the extradition process," Assistant Attorney General Leslie R Caldwell told reporters.



Caldwell accompanied by a battery of enforcement officials and prosecutors announced indictment of 61 individuals and entities, including 31 from India.



Twenty of these individuals were arrested in the US, while 31 of these individuals and five call centres were charged for their alleged involvement in the scam. An additional US-based defendant is in the custody of immigration authorities.



However, these arrested and indictment are not part of the 70 arrests made by India from call centers in Mumbai recently, Caldwell said as she praised the Indian authorities for prompt and effective actions in this regard.



"That's a different scheme. This is a different one," she said when asked about the recent arrests in Mumbai. The US government is approaching India for their arrest and finally extradition, she said.



"These crimes took place in the US and under our laws, we have jurisdiction over fraud that occurs in the US, whether the perpetrators are inside or outside the US. These people are calling the US, taking money from people in the US, engaged in various financial transactions in the US to get that money back to the scammers. All that happens in India is the calls in the bulk of the activity is in the US," she argued.



John Roth, Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security, said while the call centre schemes are extensive, many of them target the US, but not all of them.



"Because of the arrests in India a few weeks ago, and I think because of the publicity, we have seen a drop off in the success rate of these scams. It is important to know the US is looking and watching them and they could, if they are going to engage in that activity, they could sit in jail in the United States," Roth warned.



According to US officials, the money scammed unlikely went out of the US, but those behind this gained access to the money through "hawala" racket.



"The money in this case did not leave the US," a US official said.
New Delhi: River rafting in Rishikesh was one adventure that Sidharth Malhotra had experienced before he took the plunge for a SkyWalk, a deep sea dive, a skydive and more in New Zealand last year. Now geared up for yet another trip to the picturesque country next month, the actor says he was fearless about taking the risks because of the safety norms and professionals who are involved in it.



As the Indian ambassador of Tourism New Zealand, the Bollywood star had made his maiden debut to the country last year and indulged in myriad adventure activities. Now on his second trip, on which he will embark on next month, he hopes to explore more.



"I have grown up in Delhi, and for us, adventure meant going to Rishikesh. There weren't much adventure options. When I went to New Zealand, I jumped off a plane 15,000 ft in the air. It offers a great view and their safety norms are very much in place. My skydive was with a person who had an experience of 30,000 dives. So, I felt safe with professionals," Sidharth said at an event here on Thursday.



Was he afraid?



"Well, the fear was never about safety there. The only thing I wasn't too sure of was the Skywalk as I didn't know what it would be like. I still knew what the skydive was about. But walking on the edge of the SkyTower in Auckland was interesting," he said and added that the variety of adventures that the country offers is something one will "sadly" not get to experience in India.



He said he found it fascinating how within an hour or so, a person can go from being on a glacier to underwater diving.



The adventures apart, the "Baar Baar Dekho" actor recounted his culinary experiences in New Zealand, and said he was particularly impressed by an oyster farm which was located below a property that he stayed in.



Sidharth shared the dais at the event on Thursday with New Zealand Prime Minister John Key.




After much controversy and protests, Ae Dil Hai Mushkil finally releases on its scheduled Diwali weekend date. After being threatened for weeks by MNS workers, the Mumbai Police has assured security to every multiplex in the city.



The film ran into controversy after Uri Attacks, when MNS issued a leave- ultimatum of 48 hours to every Pakistani artists. As the film stars Pakistani actor Fawad Khan, it became the first one to be attacked by the party. However, with the support of the Producers guild and the government, the makers were successful in getting their scheduled release post meeting MNS chief Raj Thackeray.







The industry openly supported Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, after news of its peaceful release came out.



Directed by Karan Johar, the film stars Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai in key roles with a cameo appearance of Fawad Khan and Shah Rukh Khan.






New Delhi: In a major political development, Samajwadi Party president Shivpal Yadav met Congress poll strategist Prashant Kishor at senior Janata Dal (United) leader KC Tyagi's residence in Delhi on Wednesday.



The meeting has triggered strong speculation about a possible grand alliance of Samajwadi Party with Congress ahead of the crucial Uttar Pradesh elections in 2017.



Speaking to the CNN-News 18, Tyagi rubbished speculation that the meeting held to discuss poll strategies in UP.



He said, "Kishor ji is a good friend of mine and he often come to my residence. It is coincidental that Shivpal ji also came when Kishor ji was present. The meeting was confined to 25th silver jubilee celebration of the Samajwadi Party on November 5 and he came with an invitation."



"We did not discuss any poll strategy. We are a small party and you are free to make any conclusion," he stressed.



On the context of whether Congress leaders will also be invited in the silver jubilee celebration or not, he said, "Only Lohiyawadi and Charan Singh Wadis will be invited."



When asked about the alliance, he said, "Mulayam Singh ji is the SP supremo and he has to take the call."



Speaking to the reporters, Shivpal Yadav said, "I don't recognize him (Prashant Kishor). We want to keep BJP out of Uttar Pradesh and ready to form a secular alliance."







On Thursday, Congress general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad met JD (U) leader Sharad Yadav and there was rumour that Congress and JD (U) are make grounds for an alliance with the SP in Uttar Pradesh.



However, Azad said that the meeting was held to discuss issues ahead of the parliament session and nothing to do with the grand alliance.
Washington: Hillary Clinton's policies on Syria and Russia could lead to World War III, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has said as he criticised his Democratic rival for being too tough on Russian President Vladimir Putin.



"Now Hillary wants to start a shooting war in Syria, conflict with a nuclear power - Russia - which could very well lead to World War III," Trump told his cheering supporters in Springfield, Ohio.



"The way she talks about (Russian President, Vladimir) Putin. She's always said she has no idea, but she's always saying -- WikiLeak, it's Russia, and Donald Trump -- I have nothing to do with Russia. She said may be Donald Trump is involved in projects with the Russians. The answer's no," he said.



"Look, look, she speaks so badly of Putin, nuclear country, she speaks so badly, and she uses it to keep trying to get votes. I said to myself you know, how do you speak so badly of somebody, I mean how are they going to ever get along? Wouldn't it be great if we actually got along with Russia and other countries?" he told his supporters amidst applause.



"We together went after ISIS and knocked the hell out of them? Wouldn't that be a good thing?" he said indicating that he would collaborate with Russia to defeat ISIS.



A Trump Administration, he said will change America's foreign policy.



"Hillary Clinton's policies in Iraq, Syria, Libya threw the Middle East into total turmoil. We're spending USD 6 trillion on wars in the Middle East while our own country falls into total disrepair," he said.



Trump said as part of his plan to bring back American jobs he will lower taxes on businesses from 35 per cent down to 15 per cent.
St Louis: A St Louis jury has awarded a California woman more than USD 70 million in her lawsuit alleging that years of using Johnson & Johnson's baby powder caused her cancer, the latest case raising concerns about the health ramifications of extended talcum powder use.



The jury ruling ended the trial that began September 26 in the case brought by Deborah Giannecchini of Modesto, California. She was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2012.



The suit accused Johnson & Johnson of "negligent conduct" in making and marketing its baby powder.



"We are pleased the jury did the right thing," said Jim Onder, an attorney for the plaintiff. "They once again reaffirmed the need for Johnson & Johnson to warn the public of the ovarian cancer risk associated with its product."



Carol Goodrich, a spokeswoman with Johnson & Johnson, could not immediately be reached for comment.



In a statement provided to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, she said: "We deeply sympathize with the women and families impacted by ovarian cancer. We will appeal today's (Friday) verdict because we are guided by the science, which supports the safety of Johnson's Baby Powder."



Earlier this year, two other lawsuits in St Louis ended in jury verdicts worth a combined USD 127 million. But two others in New Jersey were thrown out by a judge who said there wasn't reliable evidence that talc leads to ovarian cancer, an often fatal but relatively rare form of cancer.



Ovarian cancer accounts for about 22,000 of the 1.7 million new cases of cancer expected to be diagnosed in the US this year.



About 2,000 women have filed similar suits, and lawyers are reviewing thousands of other potential cases, most generated by ads touting the two big verdicts out of St Louis a USD 72 million award in February to relatives of an Alabama woman who died of ovarian cancer, and a USD 55 million award in May to a South Dakota survivor of the disease.



Much research has found no link or a weak one between ovarian cancer and using baby powder for feminine hygiene, and most major health groups have declared talc harmless. Johnson & Johnson, whose baby powder dominates the market, maintains it's perfectly safe.



But Onder of the Onder Law Firm in suburban St Louis, which represented plaintiffs in all three St Louis cases, cited other research that began connecting talcum powder to ovarian cancer in the 1970s.



He said case studies have indicated that women who regularly use talc on their genital area face up to a 40 per cent higher risk of developing ovarian cancer.


Chisinau, Moldova: Moldovans will vote for a president on Sunday for the first time in 20 years, an election that could move the former Soviet republic closer to Europe or rekindle the nation's old ties with Moscow.



Both Russia and the West seek greater influence over the strategically placed, but impoverished agricultural country of 3.5 million. Polls show voters in Moldova, located between EU member Romania and Ukraine, are divided about which alliance offers them a better future.



The country signed an association agreement with the European Union in 2014 that some Moldovans hope could lead to eventual membership. Russia opposes Moldova joining the EU and has placed an embargo on its fruit, vegetables and wine.



Beyond geopolitics, there is widespread public anger about high-level corruption in one of Europe's poorest states. The average monthly salary is 220 euros ($240) and some 800,000 Moldovans work abroad and send remittances home.



The election is giving citizens a chance to express both their anger and their views on the country's direction. In March, the constitutional court ruled that Moldova's president should be elected by popular vote for the first time since 1996, replacing the system that had Parliament picking the nation's leader.



The president sets out foreign policy and appoints judges, but needs parliamentary approval for major decisions. However, the change in the way the president is elected is expected to bring the post more influence and authority.



Nine candidates are seeking the presidency, with only two standing a real chance. If no candidate wins an outright majority in the first round, there will be a runoff on Nov. 13.



The favorite to win is Igor Dodon, an avuncular, pro-Moscow figure who has tapped into popular anger, appealing to those who are nostalgic for the Soviet Union. He says his first foreign visit will be to Russia, if he is elected.



Dodon, 41, leader of the Socialists' Party, has posed for the media standing in icy waters and also wearing fatigues holding a rifle, while a campaign poster has him dressed in a traditional peasant's smock in one of Moldova's fabled vineyards.



A former Communist Party member, he has pledged to "restore broad and friendly ties with Russia" a message that has resonated with voters fed up with the corruption under the pro-European government that came to power in 2009.



Dodon also has vowed to federalize Moldova to include the breakaway region of Trans-Dniester in eastern Moldova, which gets military and economic support from Russia. But analysts say there is unlikely to be major shifts in foreign policy, even if Dodon wins.



"His camp is strong on rhetoric, but in the past has shown little willingness to follow through with its professed goals," Nicolae Reutoi, a senior analyst at Alaco, a London-based intelligence consultancy, told The Associated Press.



For voters who see their future in Europe, Maia Sandu, who heads the opposition Action and Solidarity Party, is the most viable option. The ex-World Bank economist demanded a thorough inquiry into the $1 billion that was looted from Moldovan banks just before 2014 parliamentary elections.



Sandu, who became education minister in 2012, was praised for reforming the education system by reducing the number of schools, modernizing the curriculum and saving money. However, her uncompromising approach to corruption cost her the nomination to be prime minister in July 2015 because not all parties could agree on her demands.



Moldova only has recently emerged from a period of political instability that intensified after the $1 billion  an amount equal to one-eighth of the country's gross domestic product  went missing. There were weeks of protests, and six prime ministers held office in one year.



Since Prime Minister Pavel Filip came to office in January, Parliament has passed anti-corruption laws, obliging public officials to disclose their assets and making the misuse of EU funds a criminal offense. But the stability is potentially fragile.



Analysts say the election's potential geopolitical importance has been exaggerated and the race is more about politicians clinging to power and its privileges.



Dan Brett, a Moldova expert and associate professor at the Open University said the ruling class "would move (their allegiances) from Moscow to Washington tomorrow and back again the day after if they thought it would keep them in office longer," he said.
The Bedford Area Resource Council believes the best way to get things done is to be present and available for the people it serves.

Instead of expecting the community to come knocking, it shows up to places like Raintree Village, a low-income housing apartment complex in the town of Bedford, to give information on the resources it provides, like connecting people at job fairs or hosting anger management or substance abuse support groups and health fairs.

The council, better known by its acronym BARC, helps bring together different agencies and churches from across the county so they can work together to help the meet the various needs of the community.

On Thursday, the council staged a Community Day in the parking lot of the complex to provide information to residents on various resources.

Representatives from the Bedford County Sheriffs Office, the town of Bedford Police Department, Bedford Centra, the YMCA, the Bedford Pregnancy Center, Simple Solutions and Bedford Community Health Center  many of whom are active members of BARC  were in attendance.

The Christmas Station donated Halloween costumes to the event for children to pick from after they came home after school.

The organizations come together to help the community, said Maisie Tilley, property manager. This is our second year, and last year, we all had a meeting talking about the services that everyone provides, and we decided instead of trying to go out and find the people, we would go to the people.

All of the organizations provide some sort of service residents can benefit from in some way, shape or form, she said.

Between Raintree Village and Liberty Manor Apartments in the town, there are more than 300 residents.

Tilley said the event has grown substantially during the past year, gaining more interest from residents.

Its definitely much bigger. I hope and anticipate it to grow every year and do this annually, she said. Im so appreciative of everyone who comes together to put this together and doing this for the residents. They really enjoy it.

Andy Crawford, director of social services in Bedford, said the council is made up of about 50 organizations that work together to figure out how to serve people in the community better.

The idea is to hold an event and meet people where they are, he said. Its nice to have people come out and see each other. Residents were inspired to see people knew each other and liked each other, and we could all collaborate.

Kenya Ingram, a fourth-year resident at Raintree, was volunteering at the event and said it feels good to help with the community and show the kids at the complex the area isnt a bad place or unsafe.

Its good to see the resources we have around here and have the community come together and get to know your neighbors, she said.

Ingram said he personally has benefited from the council and its job search services.

Bedford County Public Schools representatives also were present, giving residents information about GED and preschool programs, as well as giving away free school supplies.

Cathey Burks, Title I coordinator for Bedford County Public Schools, said some families dont have the best experience with the schools; she wants them to feel comfortable asking for information.

Why not come out to our neighbors and come share information we have and supplies? she said. Building relationships is what this is really about, loving our families.

She also wanted residents to know the importance of literacy and reading with their children.

We want to make ourselves available to our families, she said. Its not just us and them. Were together. Were a community.
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Lovely exhibition by Beckett

What is striking is how very local and colourful the paintings are, coming from a British-born woman, but one who has spent most of her adult life in this country.

Also, the background music, songs of early Sparrow (Slinger Francisco) and Kitchener (Aldwyn Roberts) lend support to the paintings.

Among paintings on display are Gods Syntax, Variation in Pink, The Dreamer, Orpheus (The Guitarist), Down by the River, From Lethes Depths, Sa Sa Yea, The Green Psalms of Earth, Tortuga Tango II, Persephone, Tortuga Tango I, Saga Girls and Glory Glory.

The painting are also accompanied by poems, also done by Beckett such as Like Cavafy, From Cloud Country, Sa Sa Yea, Better than a Letter, Vespers, For a While, Lheure Bleu, I Never Knew You, Ode to Two Cows in Tobago, Against Thanatos, Going Blanchisseuse, Fragments of Delight (After the Rain, Making Music, After Swimming at Dawn) and How to be an Artist - reminder to myself. Beckett was influenced by local artists Pat Chu Foon and also James Boodhoo who she described as a wonderful artist; as well as Sonnylal Ramkissoon who did etching; another great artist but terribly unrecognised she said, describing him as a fantastic draughtsman and very generous.

I was just 20-years-old when I came to Trinidad (from England) and these were already fine established painters and they really took me under their wing and taught me a lot. It was wonderful, said Beckett.

Of the exhibition she said: This exhibition grew out of work that Ive done before because one exhibition doesnt suddenly appear by itself.

I have been painting for over 50 years. And there are elements in that show that actually reflect back to previous exhibitions which I treated in a certain kind of way then and have reworked them. She explained: A lot of what happens is that you do the thinking and you do the hard work and preparations etc and when you actually start working, every painting seems to have an idea of what it is going to be inside itself, which sounds peculiar and that is where the struggle is. That you block out something and you have to change things around and think. And this is why working in oils is very demanding. Beckett said an artist also has to learn patience to let the paint dry so that they could do the next layer of painting etc she said: You cant just knock it off in a day. It takes weeks, and weeks, and weeks and a lot of it is thinking.

We need the time from ourselves to be able to see the work, possibly with more objectivity.

And, working on that scale is like you are inside the painting so you really need to be able to stand away. It took Beckett seven weeks to get the exhibition paintings done but said she had been thinking about drawing, and was in preparation for the show for over a year. She said painting is just a product for what has gone before.

Asked how she felt about the exhibition she said: I think it works but the proof of the pudding is if the people who come, and they get it, and they come away and say: oh wow! That really lightened me up or that really cheer up my spirit that will make my heart glow. Beckett has done a number of one-woman exhibitions in the past dating back to 1970.

The exhibition
Drug bust in Tobago

Lieutenant Manswell told Newsday that 14 packets of cocaine weighing 13 kilos and 11 packets of marijuana weighing 16 kilos were seized by Coast Guard officials in the fishing pirogue to Tobago from Toco.

He said that the men, who are from Trinidad were brought to the Coastguard base at the Scarborough Port and subsequently handed over to officers of the Tobago- branch of the Police Services Organised Crime, Narcotics and Firearms Interdiction Bureau. The street value of the cocaine is said to be $5.2 million while the marijuana is set at $280,000.

The men were expected to be charged with possession of cocaine and marijuana for the purpose of trafficking and will appear in the Scarborough Magistrates Court.

Investigations are continuing.

MEN SHOT In other crime news, two men are now nursing gunshot wounds after being shot in separate incidents yesterday afternoon. In the first incident, a businessman was shot during a robbery along Boundary Road, San Juan. According to police, Vishado Joseph was conducting business at an establishment off Boundary Road, when he was approached by a gunman who announced a hold-up. Joseph attempted to defend himself and a scuffle ensued.

During the fracas, the bandit shot Joseph in the abdomen. The shot man, police said, fell to the ground and pretended to be dead.

The bandit grabbed a quantity of items from the store and ran off.

Joseph later contacted the police and he was taken to Hospital where he remains warded in stable condition.

The bullet entered his stomach and exited through the back. In the second incident, officers of Central Division responded to a report of a person being shot at about 2.30 pm in Longdenville. The man, Newsday understands, is an employee of the Longdenville Health Centre.

Police officers came across men fitting the description of the attackers near a roti shop. Police approached the men and were met with gunfire.

The officers returned fire and the gunmen attempted to flee in a vehicle.

Police officers gave chase and the suspects car crashed and they alighted from the vehicle and escaped in nearby bushes. In the car, police recovered a Mac-11 sub-machine gun and a pistol modified to accommodate a cylindrical ammunition magazine. A manhunt was underway yesterday for the suspects.
PoSGH Intern offered counselling

Agard added that she could not provide any more information as the matter was a private one.

The NWRHA has called for a full report into the matter. Chief executive officer at the NWRHA,Sheldon Cyrus said after the aspiring doctor claimed she was under stress, it was thought wise that counselling be provided. She is not on duty, but a counsellor has been offered to sort her out to find out what the problem is, Cyrus said.

It was as yet undetermined what disciplinary action would be taken against the young woman, however, Cyrus had said earlier this week that this was a matter that had to be dealt with by the Health Ministry as the NWRHA was not responsible for the interns.
Bring in the police

Lecturer at the Humanities Faculty of the St Augustine Campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI) Rhoda Bharath went public on the issue a few weeks ago and she has now reinforced her position with British Queens Counsel advice that a probe into the matter can be justified. Bharath called a media briefing at the at the Hilton Trinidad, St Anns yesterday along with her attorney, Justin Phelps, to reveal the action she is taking in this regard.

By a letter dated October 26, Bharath said, I caused my attorney to write the Commissioner of Police enclosing the advice of Queens Counsel (QC) and requesting than an investigation into the President, the relevant CPO (Chief Personnel Officer) and the relevant AO (administrative officer) be undertaken. Bharath revealed she had received a legal opinion from Cathryn Mc Gahey QC that a probe can be justified into the award of a housing allowance to the President.

She had questioned the alleged payment of housing allowance between July 2013 to May 2015 whilst the President was in occupation of housing at the States expense.

She gave reporters copies of a purported letter dated July 9, 2013, from the Office of CPO to the Office of President that said a housing allowance is not paid to an office- holder in a fully-furnished and fully-staffed official residence, but that $15,450 would be paid for the period of occupation of temporary accommodation at Flagstaff Hill.

Bharath said despite her airing of the issue, no probe had been done by key watchdogs, namely the Office of the Auditor-General, Office of the Solicitor General, and two line Ministries.

Asked if a new constitutional set-up is now needed, Phelps said many persons have advocated for constitutional reform, but his key concern was over whether key office- holders were doing their jobs to act as checks and balances on the power of the Office of President.

He said many watchdog posts such as the Salaries Review Commission and the Integrity Commission are appointed by the President.

Bharath said her call for the police to investigate the President is unprecedented but is in the best interest of citizens.

She agreed the issue is that certain senior public officials allegedly have not been doing what they are meant to do.

We have checks and balances on paper, but are the checks and balances actually working? she asked.

Asked if she was motivated by not being appointed an Independent Senator by Carmona, she replied that one does not lobby for such a post. She related that in 2013 the Presidents Office sought a pool of persons to serve on various public bodies including the Senate. She said historian, Gerry Besson, had recommended her in response to the Presidents Office requesting nominees and she had attended an interview for unstated positions, but not specifically to be a Senator.
Resolution reached in Chaguaramas land issue

While he declined to give specifics at the post-Cabinet news conference at the Office of the Prime Minister in St Clair, Imbert said the discussion involved tenants in the area around Pier Two and a water park project. He said these discussions took place after Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley raised concerns that the public was alienated from the Chaguaramas waterfront. Chaguaramas falls within the Diego Martin West constituency which is represented in Parliament by Rowley.

Imbert said Government does not want the Chaguaramas Development Authority (CDA) to be a drain on the public purse and there is a shortfall between the amount of rent the CDA collects and its monthly expenditure.

He described the situation as untenable and said Government will be, moving the CDA to break even first and then into profitability. Imbert also said the CDA is discovering more liabilities incurred by its previous board, which included debts owed to contractors, that are suddenly surfacing which they have to take the bounce for. Minister in the Ministry of the Attorney General and Legal Affairs, Stuart Young, said a legal team has been engaged to examine leases granted by the CDA on the eve of last Septembers general election.

Imbert also said a poverty report done by the former Peoples Partnership (PP) government is currently before the Cabinets Finance and General Purposes Committee which he chairs. He said Government has concerns about the methodology of the report, which was done in 2014.
Carmona: Ramleela was an emphatic warning

Addressing Ramleela celebrations at Brothers Road Hindu Mandir, Torrib Tabaquite Road, on Wednesday night, Carmona said the festival had the potential to build in all of us a national and international consciousness in the supremacy of a belief that good will always conquer evil and that light will always triumph over darkness. Carmona noted that Ravan began as a good, kind and God-loving ruler whose devotion earned him great powers but ego and lust got the better of him and Lord Rama had to step in when he made that final error and kidnapped Sita, the wife of Lord Rama. Just as Lord Rama conquered the evil King Ravan after he kidnapped Mother Sita, so too as individuals and a society we can overcome and rise beyond trials and afflictions that may come our way, Carmona observed. Carmona said Ramleela was one of the oldest manifestations of open air street theatre in the Americas saying the message of Divali has been immortalised annually through some 27 Ramleela celebrations all around the country. I am in the presence of street theatre magic, where villagers and community leaders take on the role as actors and actresses, craftsmen, choreographers and costume designers, an elaborate cast playing princes, princesses and deities and young children playing the role of sacred animal and birds, finally cascading in the burning of the Ravan effigy in that symbolic triumph of good over evil, he said.

The President observed that he had attended similar Ramleela celebrations at Mathilda Village, Princes Town last week and was experiencing in Brothers Road, Tabaquite the same love, cohesion, togetherness and sense of community among everyone here as I experienced in Mathilda Village. Afterwards, Carmona, together with Mrs Reema Carmona, shot lit arrows at the towering Rawan effigy as the large crowd of spectators cheered.
Culture loses veterans in Mas, kaiso and pan

In 1964 he was elected General Secretary of the Blue Stars Steel Band (now Power Stars), a position he held until 1971. Similarly, he served as Treasurer to the Humming Birds Steel Orchestra from 2000 - 2002. In more recent times though, Lewis got involved in Mas, through the 1st St James Mas Makers in 2002. NCDF Chairman Mahindra Satram-Maharaj stated: He was committed to seeing Mas transformed into a sustainable industry which was synonymous with the NCDF ideals and objectives and from which time he remained active in the management and leadership of the organisation. He added: He was a family man, Mas practitioner and a community oriented individual in the truest sense of the word. He served on the Western Division Regional Council of the St James Community Police and worked for many years at Telecommunications Service of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT) where he served as Supervisor of Lines and Installation. The NCDF expressed its condolences to Lewis three children Vanessa, Rhonda and Arlene, his wider family, friends, and colleagues, as it saluted his life and immense contributions to the art form. Satram- Maharaj said: Today is a sad day as the Mas Fraternity has lost a dear friend and advocate. Cedric will be truly missed. Lord Smiley passed away on Monday after ailing for sometime. He was known for his on stage antics and powerful messages to the Afro-Trinidadian man.

Among some of the ditties Smiley gave over the years were What is Wrong with the Negro Man, Boldface Calypsonians, Ah Man is Ah Man, Snake is a Creature and Long Time Jam. The Trinbago Unified Calypsonians Organisation (TUCO) stated that Lord Smileys contribution will always be remembered. Panman Mayers passed away last week Saturday was the leader of the Red Army Steelband in the late forties and together with Rudy Two Left Smith, started the Merry Makers Steel band.

He was also among the first to perform on cruise ships.

Pan Trinbago President Keith Diaz told Newsday, My fond memories of Mr Alfred Sacks Mayers, was very cordial. I met Sacks in the early 70s when we played pan together in Merrymakers as young men on weekends at the Chacacabana Hotel for about five years, he played the triple seconds, while I played the double seconds.

We remained close friends when he migrated to Switzerland then to Sweden. He played on the Cruise Liner - Love Boat, promoting pan as a true ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago. I will remember him fondly. Diaz ended saying: On behalf of my family and I, I wish to bid him farewell as he leaves this earth and on to the Pearly Gates of the Great Beyond. May his soul Rest in Peace!
UWI St Augustine cops 4 excellence awards

The awardees of the St Augustine campus were Dr Farid Youssef, Department of Pre-Clinical Sciences for Excellence Award for Teaching; Professor Jayaraj Jayaraman, Department of Life Sciences, Excellence Award for Research Accomplishments; Jessel Murray, Department of Creative and Festival Arts, All-round Excellence in University Service and Public Service, and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering for the Departmental Award for Excellence.

The other awardees were Professor Jennifer Knight-Madden, Caribbean Institute for Health Research (formerly Tropical Medicine Research Institute), Regional Headquarters, Excellence Award for Research Accomplishments; Floyd Reifer, The Academy of Sport, Cave Hill Campus, Excellence Award for Outstanding Service to the University Community; Professor Verene Shepherd, Institute for Gender and Development Studies, Regional Coordinating Unit, Excellence Award for Contribution to Public Service.

The awards were presented to the recipients at the St Augustine Campus last Wednesday. Professor Brian Copeland, who had his first duty as host of the awards ceremony, congratulated the seven recipients, and said he was extremely proud of the four awardees from The St Augustine Campus calling them the Fantastic Four. St Augustine Campus copped four of the seven awards. In his address, Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir Hilary Beckles said that although the university was short of cash, it was rich in intellect and it has a responsibility to sustain excellence in the Caribbean.

Calling for a concerted effort to sustain excellence in the region, he said, the university has to ensure that excellence was sustained and the awardees have the role to be the carriers and the sustainers of excellence in the university community and the region.
No One Has Done This Before

in Billboard's History
(Newser)  Among things all females learn early on is that you guzzle cranberry juice to prevent a urinary tract infection, which one in five women will eventually get. The reason: cranberries contain proanthocyanidins, or PACs, which can keep bacteria from sticking to the bladder and urinary tract. That's why a JAMA study published Thursday is so shocking: Leaving the "world rocked," per the New York Daily News, researchers say the idea is nothing more than an old wives' tale. After analyzing 147 older women in nursing homeswhere UTIs are the most commonly diagnosed infection, per CNNthey found no variance in the number of UTIs among patients given 72 milligrams of PAC daily in cranberry capsules (the equivalent of 20 ounces of juice) and those given placebos, reports Science Alert.

There was also no difference in terms of bacteria found in urine. "Although our study was only in nursing home women, many other studies have been done in other populations, which have not shown a benefit," says lead author Manisha Juthani-Mehta. For example, a 2012 review of 24 studies on cranberry juice, which is still touted by the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, determined it "cannot be recommended for the prevention of UTIs." Paying for cranberry capsules with "limited potential benefit" for preventing UTIs, therefore, "does not seem worthwhile," says Juthani-Mehta. Another option: "For postmenopausal women, topical estrogen in the vagina has [been] shown to decrease the risk of UTI," a scientist says. (There is science behind this old wives' tale.)
(Newser)  Mike Pence's campaign plane slid off a runway during a rainstorm at New York's LaGuardia Airport Thursday, tearing up two tracks of concrete before coming to rest on a patch of grass. Pence told reporters that no one had been injured, reports the AP. "We can see mud on the front windows," a calm Pence said in the press cabin about a minute after the plane came to rest. He said he felt fine. Later, the Indiana governor tweeted: "So thankful everyone on our plane is safe. Grateful for our first responders & the concern & prayers of so many. Back on the trail tomorrow!"

In Geneva, Ohio, Donald Trump told his supporters that Pence had come "pretty close to grave, grave danger." But, he added: "I just spoke to Mike Pence and he's fine. Everybody's fine." After a bumpy approach, the Boeing 737 Eastern Airlines charter landed roughly, making first contact with the runway concrete. The pilot slammed on the brakes and passengers could smell burning rubber. The roughly 40 passengers and crew, including Pence, were evacuated through the back of the plane. The Port Authority shut down the runway following the incident, but later reopened it. In a statement, the agency confirmed that the plane had "overshot" the runway and that there were no injuries. (Read more Mike Pence stories.)
(Newser)  Bill Cosby is blind and has no hope of recognizing the women who are accusing him of sexual assault, his lawyers argued in a court document filed Thursday. The lawyers, who have repeatedly raised the issue of Cosby's eyesight, say he has now registered with a state commission for the blind in Massachusetts, NBC News reports. "No 79-year-old blind man could possibly defend himself against a claim that he sexually assaulted someone he supposedly met once, half a century ago," they wrote in a document filed in Pennsylvania ahead of a pretrial hearing next week. After he was charged with sexual assault late last year, Cosby attorney Monique Pressley told reporters that Cosby is legally blind and walks with a cane.

The lawyers say that at the Nov. 1 pretrial hearing, they will provide a doctor's note to prove that Cosby is legally blind. He's accused of drugging and assaulting Andrea Constand at his home in 2004. His trial is scheduled for next June, though his attorneys are trying to get his case thrown out first. The hearing next week will deal with issues including whether 13 other women who accuse him of assault will be allowed to testify. Cosby, who is free on $1 million bail, "is an individual who has used his fame and fortune for decades to conceal his crimes and hide his true nature," DA Kevin Steele wrote in a filing last week, per the AP. (The Cosby case prompted California to end its statute of limitations for rape.)
(Newser)  California's French Laundry may have three Michelin stars, but it also has a discrimination lawsuit on its hands. The restaurant is accused of firing a server because she was pregnant, reports the Napa Valley Register. The suit also names chef Thomas Keller; the Thomas Keller Restaurant Group; and Keller's New York restaurant, Per Se. Server Vanessa Scott-Allen says she worked at Per Se for five years before she moved across the country to accept a gig at The French Laundry. But the job disappeared before she actually started, and Scott-Allen says that happened after a manager began asking her questions about how long she planned to be out on maternity leave.

Scott-Allen is now seeking $5 million in damages for a slew of allegations, including fraud and deceit, and violation of the pregnancy disability leave law, according to her lawsuit filed last month in Napa County Superior Court. A rep for the Keller Restaurant Group says it doesn't comment on pending lawsuits. The suit comes at a rough time for Keller, notes Eater, given that a New York Times food critic delivered a scathing review of Per Se earlier this year. Bloomberg, meanwhile, notes that he's branching into fancy hot dogs in London. (Thieves once stole $300,000 in wine from The French Laundry.)
(Newser)  Andrew Henderson knew he didn't have long to live due to his lymphoblastic lymphoma, which doctors told him was incurable. And so he held a "living funeral" last weekend, per the CBC, and the "Taking It to the Grave" event was a testament to the "ebullient performance-art lover," as the Toronto Star puts it. What made the pre-death memorial service for the Manitoba native especially unique: Henderson listened to complete strangers spill their deepest secrets, then had those secrets tattooed onto his body in the form of specially designated symbols. Henderson died Wednesday at the age of 28, just a few days after he was inked up with everyone's revelations. Per the Star, the show was to include a giant champagne bottle for Henderson to sit in, as well as a manicure bar and "cuddle spaces" so that visitors could "rest in peace."

But the draw of the combination macabre/motivational happening was the ability to whisper one's secrets to Henderson, who then had a Toronto tattoo artist translate those secrets to symbols on his skin. A friend says Henderson had been studying up on death rituals and says she was glad to be able to help him use his performance art to prepare for the end of his life. "I've never personally seen someone engage with their own mortality in this way," Henderson's production manager adds. And all of those secrets (Henderson had planned to allow up to 100 of them on his body) now that he's gone? "I'm going to die, and my body's going to rot, and that's where those secrets will lie," he told the Metro earlier this month. (The reverse of a living funeral: posing the deceased like they're still living.)
(Newser)  Donald Trump got a huge cheer from a crowd in Toledo on Thursday when he made an unusual proposal: "I'm just thinking to myself right now: We should just cancel the election and just give it to Trump," he said, per the Los Angeles Times. "What are we even having it for? Her policies are so bad," said Trump, who had been criticizing Clinton's trade policies. The comment about canceling the election was apparently lighthearted, though it comes after weeks of warning from Trump that the election is "rigged," CNN notes. In other election coverage:

The Guardian reports that a former Miss Finland is the 12th women to accuse Trump of sexual misconduct. Ninni Laaksonen ,who competed in the Miss Universe competition when it was owned by Trump, told a Finnish newspaper that she was standing next to him for a photograph before a 2006 appearance on the Late Show With David Letterman when "suddenly he squeezed my butt. He really grabbed my butt."

The New York Times looks at Thursday's campaign finance filings, and finds that big Republican donors turned away from Trump in the first few weeks of October to concentrate on down-ballot races. Trump himself is among the donors who have cut off the cash: He donated no money and just $31,000 in rent and staff to his campaign in the first three weeks of the month.

The Hill reports that at a Thursday night rally in Geneva, Ohio, Trump said he "dreams" of fighting Joe Biden, who would "fall right over." Earlier in the week, Biden said he wished they were still in high school so he could take Trump "behind the gym."

Trump also attacked both Hillary and Bill Clinton over emails recently released by WikiLeaks that detail how their personal business interests overlapped with those of the Clinton Foundation, the AP reports. "If the Clintons were willing to play this fast and loose with their enterprise when they weren't in the White House, just imagine what they'll do in the Oval Office," he said.

More than two-thirds of Politico's caucus of insiders of 11 swing states believe Trump is doing a lot better than polls suggest because of voters too shy to tell pollsters the truth. "I personally know many Republicans that won't admit that they are voting for Trump," a Virginia Republican says. "I don't like admitting it myself. It won't matter if Hillary is up more than 5 points, but we might be in for a surprise if Hillary's lead is less than 5 points on Election Day."

(Read more Donald Trump stories.)
(Newser)  When God calls, it's probably wise to answerand for Rodrigo Duterte, that means to stop swearing like a sailor. Per the BBC, the Philippines president says he was flying home to Davao from Japan when something happened to make him reconsider his infamous potty mouth. "I heard a voice telling me to stop swearing or the plane will crash in midair, and so I promised to stop," he told reporters at the airport, the Philippine Daily Inquirer reports.

"I will bring this plane down now," he says the voice warned, per the Wall Street Journal, noting that he plans to keep his word, as "a promise to God is a promise to the Filipino people." He noted, however, there may be caveats to this vow when he's talking about the US or the EU, in which his cussing would "depend on timing," the BBC notes. Per the Journal, he joked with the reporters that if they applauded "too much" about his decision, he might change his mind. (If you really mean it, Rodrigo, that means no more calling President Obama a "son of a b----.")
(Newser)  Police found Yonatan Daniel Aguilar dead in the bedroom closet of his family's Los Angeles home in Augustand authorities say the malnourished boy, who was 11 years old but weighed just 34 pounds, had been hidden away in locked closets for three years. He was last seen publicly in 2012, at which time teachers reported that he had come to school with a black eye and seemed hungry. After that, his 39-year-old mother, Veronica Aguilar, told almost everyone, including Yonatan's stepfather, that she had sent the boy to an institution in Mexico, the Los Angeles Times reports. Yonatan was reportedly autistic and had issues with soiling himself. Authorities say that only his three siblings knew Aguilar was keeping him sedated with sleeping aids and locked in closets, some of them so small he couldn't stretch out his feet, per Fox 59.

In the years prior to his vanishing from public life, Yonatan's family had been reported to DCFS six times for possible abuse or neglect; Yonatan's risk of abuse at home was gauged as "high" four times in the three years before he disappeared. But social workers never opened a case, and Aguilar, who volunteered at her kids' school, apparently convinced everyone nothing was amiss, CBS LA reports. "We talked to the school nurse, the school doctors, school counselors, the teachers, everyone, including the LAPD investigators, who all said everything was OK," says the DCFS director, who adds that social workers are "distraught" at Yonatan's death. The boy's mother has pleaded not guilty to his murder. Police say his stepfather had no idea Yonatan was hidden in the family home, and he alerted police when his wife brought him to the boy's body. (Read more child death stories.)
(Newser)  Sen. Mark Kirk has apologized for a comment he made Thursday during a debate with challenger Tammy Duckworth that was met with "thunderous condemnation" around the country, NBC Chicago reports. "I forgot that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington," the Hill quotes the Illinois Republican as saying during the debate. The congresswoman's mother immigrated from Thailand, but her fatheran American WWII veterantraces his family's military service back to the Revolutionary War. Duckworth herself lost both legs while serving in Iraq. "Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family's service," Kirk tweeted Friday. His campaign also issued a statement: "Sen. Kirk has consistently called Rep. Duckworth a war hero and honors her familys service to this country." (Read more Mark Kirk stories.)
The Philippines takes home the Miss International crown

Kylie Versoza was crowned as the new Miss International last Thursday, October 27 in Tokyo, Japan. An early favorite from the competition, Versoza strut her way to the top 15 where she delivered her speech on why she should be Miss International 2016. With the advocacy of cultural, educational, and international understanding, no wonder she bagged home the Miss International crown. The other contestants that did well on their stint are Miss Australia who bagged first runner-up, Miss Indonesia, second, Miss Nicaragua, third, and Miss USA, fourth.

"Three things come to mind when I think of Miss International - culture, education and international understanding. These three work together to make the brand of the Miss International Beauty Pageant relevant to the global community and to our time. If I become Miss International 2016, I will devote myself to cultural understanding because I believe that it is with developing in each of our sensitivity to other cultures that we expand our horizons, tolerate difference, and appreciate diversity. All these enable us to achieve international understanding. And I believe I'm prepared to take on this responsibility," she said.

Her speech paves a way to promoting Cultural and International understanding. Versoza believes that she is ready to take on the responsibility of being Miss International 2016.

Versoza's win comes after Philippines first runner-up win in the Miss Grand International 2016, where Nicole Cordoves received some speculation after choosing Donald Trump to help stop war and violence.

This year marks a possibility of topping the best performance of the Filipina Beauty Queens last year. With the upcoming Ms. Universe Pageant, citizens got their fingers crossed that the Philippines will again take home the Ms. Universe crown.

Versoza is the 6th Miss International winner following the footsteps of Bea Rose Santiago who won last 2013. She was crowned by last year's Miss International Edymar Martinez of Venezuela.
Xiaomi Mi Mix is a revolutionary ceramic smartphone that is practically bezel-less. The phone is going on sale in China next month for over $500.

Xiaomi Mi Mix is a smartphone that looks like it's been taken out of a sci-fi movie. The Android phablet's screen to body ratio is 91.3 per cent, meaning it looks almost bezel-less in any of the top sides. The 6.4 inch smartphone will be released this November 4 in China for 3,499 or $516. The spec is pretty 'spec'-tacular. It has a 17x9 display with curved corners of the screen. The front facing camera is at the bottom of the bezel. With its almost bezel-less design, Xiaomi Mi Mix experience is immersive.

The guts of Xiaomi Mi Mix features the latest Snapdragon 821 chip used by Google Pixels as well. The smartphone has 4GB or 6GB of RAM and 128GB or 256GB storage. It has 192Hz or 24-bit DAC chip for better audio. The higher end variant looks pretty much the same other than its 18-karat gold lining the camera and the fingerprint sensor. It also has 4,400mAh battery, 16 megapixels back-facing camera with phase-detect auto-focus.

The Chinese company collaborated with Philippe Starck in designing this revolutionary phone. The french designer was heavily involved in conceptualising the device's look and feel. The Infrared proximity sensor was replaced by ultrasound sensor, which was removed from the top to make space for the bezel-less display. The earpiece, on the other hand, was switched to a cantilevered piezoelectric actuator which vibrates to produce audible sound.

To sum it all up, Xiaomi Mi Mix is a smartphone dream come to life. The smartphone trend today is creating something that is familiar, something that is similar, something that should work because it worked for others. But, Xiaomi wants to be different.
Fairbanks, AK (99707)

Today

Mostly cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy in the afternoon. High 8F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies during the evening will give way to cloudy skies overnight. Low -1F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph.
New Delhi:

The Yadav family feud which has engulfed the Samajwadi Party saw senior party leader Shivpal Yadav being sacked from the Uttar Pradesh Cabinet on Thursday.

The outsed party leader said he never nurtured an ambition to become the chief minister and will always remain a "disciplined soldier" of his brother Mulayam Singh Yadav.

Talking to reporters, en route to Saharanpur, he said, "I never wanted to become chief minister. Had I wanted,I could have been in 2003 but I supported Mulayam Singh Yadavand he became the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh".

Shivpal said that he may or may not be the SP state president but will always remain a "disciplined soldier of Netaji (Mulayam)". He said SP will form a 'Maha Gathbandhan', as was in Bihar polls, with secular parties to check BJP from wresting power in Uttar Pradesh.



Also Read: Shivpal invites JD (U) leaders on partys anniversary celebrations on Nov 5

Also Watch: Yadav family feud - Akhilesh should respect his father and keep him happy, says Shivpal Yadav





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United Nations:

Russia dismissed as unconvincing the findings of a UN-led investigation showing that Syrian forces had carried out three chemical attacks, and said no sanctions should be imposed.

We believe that the proof is not there for any punitive action to be taken. Its simply not there, Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told reporters following a closed-door Security Council meeting yesterday.

A joint United Nations-Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) panel concluded that government forces carried out three chlorine gas attacks on villages in 2014 and 2015.

It was the first time an international probe blamed President Bashar al-Assads forces after years of denial from Damascus.

But Churkin told the council that the findings were not strong enough to trigger sanctions.

The conclusions in most cases... are not substantiated by sufficient testimonial basis, first of all material proof, they are full of contradictions and therefore unconvincing, he said, according of a text of his remarks.

The findings are not definitive, have no legally binding force and cannot serve as accusatory conclusions for taking legal decisions, he added.

Britain and France pressed demands for sanctions, arguing that UN resolutions provided for such action in response to the use of chemical weapons.

Those responsible for using chemical weapons must be sanctioned. There is no other way, French Ambassador Francois Delattre told reporters.

There should be accountability for every single person involved in any use of chemical weapons in Syria or indeed anywhere else, British Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said.

Government helicopters flying from two regime-controlled air bases dropped chlorine barrel-bombs on the villages of Qmenas, Talmenes and Sarmin, in rebel-held Idlib province, the panels latest report said.

Chlorine use as a weapon is banned under the Chemical Weapons Convention, which Syria joined in 2013 under pressure from Russia, Assads ally.

Although previous OPCW reports concluded that toxic gases were used as weapons in Syrias five-year war, they stopped short of identifying the perpetrators.

The panel identified the 253 and 255 squadrons of the 63rd helicopter brigade, which flew from the Hama and Humaymim air bases, and the 628 squadron based in Humaymim as the perpetrators.

The UN-OPCW panel also found that the Islamic State group used mustard gas as a weapon in August 2015.

We stand firmly behind the report and its conclusions, Virginia Gamba, who led the investigative panel, told reporters.

Russia also rejected a US proposal to extend the panels mandate - which ends on Monday - for a year, arguing that more time is needed to discuss the experts future work.

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New Delhi:

The Ministry of AYUSH will observe National Ayurveda Day on Friday and the theme this year will be 'Ayurveda for Prevention and Control of Diabetes.The event will be inaugurated by Minister of State PMO, DoNER, DOPT, Dr Jitender Singh. Minister of AYUSH Shri Shripad Yesso Naik will preside over the programme.

The AYUSH Ministry will also launch 'Mission Madhumeha through Ayurveda', which will be a protocol for treating diabetes through Ayurveda.

According to health experts, the incidence of diabetes mellitus is likely to increase 79.4 million in India, a 15% increase from the current 31.7 million. Diabetes mellitus is a group of metabolic diseases in which there are high blood sugar levels over a prolonged period.

There are 69.1 million people with diabetes in India, the second-highest number in the world after China, which has 109 million people with diabetes.

Also, deaths due to diabetes increased 50% in India between 2005 and 2015 as per a data published by the Global Burden of Disease (GBD).

As per a report by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), about 123 million Indians aged between 20 and 79 will have diabetes by 2040.

In order to raise public awareness about diabetes and encourage people to make healthy lifestyle, the Ministry of AYUSH is observing National Ayurveda Day on October 28 thoughout the country.

The theme of this years is Ayurveda for the prevention and control of diabetes, taking into account the fact that Ayurveda can play a major role in prevention and control of diabetes.

If poorly managed it can result to long-term complications including - cardiovascular disease, nerve damage, kidney damage, eye damage, foot damage, hearing impairment, Alzheimer's disease, etc.

Diabetes treated successfully by controlling blood glucose through better nutrition, regular exercise.

With PTI input
Chennai:

The Madras high court has directed the Tamil Nadu government to pay Rs 10 lakh compensation to legal heirs of a 27-year-old plumber, who died due to electrocution in 2010.

The court passed the order while allowing a petition by deceased named Victor's father R Kumar. The petitioner submitted that Victor came in contact with a snapped live wire in a vacant plot opposite his house on September 27, 2010, resulting in his instant death. Kumar then moved the court, claiming a compensation of Rs 15 lakh.

"The state government and Tamil Nadu Electricity Board, who are liable for the negligence and lack of maintenance of the live-wire, which caused the death of the petitioner's son, are directed to pay a sum of Rs 10 lakh to the legal heirs of the deceased Victor, (the petitioner), within eight weeks," the court said on Thursday in its order.

TNEB submitted that the low tension line had snapped due to heavy winds and rain which was an 'act of god'. There was no negligence on its part and the accident was beyond its control, the board said.

To this, the court said precautions should have been taken to ensure that electric wires prone to come in contact with the public if it snaps in heavy rain and winds are installed with utmost durability and endeavour to withstand such unforeseen calamities.

The court said rigorous periodical inspection needs to be done to such installations to avoid any such incidents. Absence of the precaution would amount to negligence, it said.

In the present case, the live wire had snapped either due to a poorly installed electric pole or lack of proper and periodical maintenance of the same, the court said and noted that authorities did not seem to have taken any precaution to cut power supply, when heavy rains and winds were anticipated.

The court said it did not find any reasoning put forth by TNEB that the accident was due to an 'act of god'. The unfortunate incident was due to negligence on the part of TNEB, the court said and directed the state government to pay Rs 10 lakh compensation to the father of the deceased.

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Washington:

US First Lady Michelle Obama praised Hillary Clinton while claiming that she is "absolutely ready" to be the US' commander-in-chief on day one as the Democratic presidential nominee and former secretary of state has more experience and exposure than any candidate "in our lifetime".

During a rare joint appearance with Clinton at a North Carolina election rally on October 27, Michelle contrasted Clinton's vision of a "powerful, vibrant and strong" nation with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's vision of "hopelessness and despair".

"I am out here first and foremost because we have never had a more qualified and prepared candidate for president than our friend Hillary Clinton. Never before in our lifetime. I say this everywhere I go," she said.

"I admire and respect Hillary. She has been a lawyer, a law professor, First Lady of Arkansas, First Lady of the US, a US Senator, secretary of state. She has more experience and exposure to the presidency than any candidate in our lifetime.Yes, more than Barack (Obama). More than Bill (Clinton). So she is absolutely ready to be commander-in-chief on day one.And yes, she happens to be a woman," Michelle said on October 27.

In the past few weeks, Michelle, 52, has emerged as a strong advocate of Clinton, 69, and has made several impressive speeches in some of the key battle ground states.

"It takes a level of generosity of spirit to do what Hillary has done in her career, in her life, for our family, for this nation. If people wonder, yes, Hillary Clinton is my friend. She has been a friend to mine and Barack, Malia, Sasha and Bill and Chelsea have been embracing and supportive from the very day my husband took the oath of office," she said.

The First Lady called this election unprecedented. "I do not think we have ever had two candidates with such dramatically different visions of who we are and how we move forward as a nation."

One candidate has a vision that is grounded in hopelessness and despair, a vision of a country that is weak and divided, where our communities are in chaos, our fellow citizens a threat. This candidate calls on us to turn against each other, to build walls, to be afraid," Michelle said without mentioning Trump, 70."

And then there is Hillary's vision for this country that you just heard, a vision of a nation that is powerful and vibrant and strong, big enough to have a place for all of us, a nation where we each have something very special to contribute and where we are always stronger together.

"That is the choice we face between those who divide this country into us versus them and those who tell us to embrace our better angels and choose hope over fear," she said.

Michelle said the 2016 election is not about Republicans versus Democrats, but about something much bigger.

"We know the influence our president has on our children, how they turn on the TV and they see the most powerful role model in the world, someone who shows them how to treat others, how to deal with disappointment, whether to tell the truth," Michelle added.

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New Delhi:

The world's largest marine reserve aimed at protecting the pristine wilderness of Antarctica will be created after a "momentous" agreement was finally reached on Friday.

The deal, sealed by the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) at an annual meeting in Hobart after years of negotiations, will see a massive US and New Zealand-backed marine protected area established in the Ross Sea.



It will cover more than 600,000 square miles, of which three-quarters will be a no fishing zone, Murray McCully, New Zealand's Foreign Minister, announced.

"The proposal required some changes in order to gain the unanimous support of all 25 CCAMLR members and the final agreement balances marine protection, sustainable fishing and science interests," New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully said.



"The boundaries of the MPA, however, remain unchanged."

Moscow was the last government opposing the move, due to concerns over fishing rights, after China offered its support last year.

Both reserve proposals have been on the table since 2012 with CCAMLR - a treaty tasked with overseeing conservation and sustainable exploitation of the Antarctic Ocean, also known as the Southern Ocean.

Consensus is needed from all 24 member countries and the European Union.

"For the first time, countries have put aside their differences to protect a large area of the Southern Ocean and international waters," said Mike Walker, project director of the Antarctic Ocean Alliance.

The Ross Sea is one of the last intact marine ecosystems in the world, home to penguins, seals, Antarctic toothfish, and whales.

Chris Johnson, WWF-Australia Ocean Science Manager, described the Ross Sea as "one of the most pristine wilderness areas left on Earth".

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Islamabad:

A human rights committee in Pakistan's upper house of parliament has asked the countrys government to halt execution of a man suffering from schizophrenia that's due next week.

Lawmaker Farhatullah Babar says the committee will seek a pardon from President Mamnoon Hussain for 50-year-old Imdad Ali, a convict who was diagnosed in 2008.

Thursdays development comes days after Pakistan's highest court rejected Ali's final appeal, claiming his disease does not qualify as a mental disorder.

Ali has been on death row since he was convicted in 2001 of murdering a religious scholar.

Babar says the committee was taking action because two Pakistani brothers were "wrongfully hanged" last year while their appeals were still pending.

Pakistan has hanged over 400 convicts since a moratorium on executions was lifted in 2014.

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New Delhi:

Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday to discuss the situation in the Kashmir Valley which continues to witness unrest for over 100 days.

During the meeting, Abdullah stressed for an early dialogue with all the stakeholders who were willing to come to the table for negotiation so that the stalemate can end in the Valley.

Abdullah, who has been touring the entire state, said that the Prime Minister listened patiently to him and was receptive to the suggestions he made.

"I am sure that the Prime Minister will urgently address all the issues that have been flagged by me and others from the state," Abdullah said after the meeting.

The former chief minister said that National Conference has played the role of a constructive opposition party and would continue to do so.

"We are willing to do anything for the people of the state who have been victims of unrest for over three months now. "The education sector has suffered. Tourism industry, which is the mainstay of the economy, has been hit badly. The people living along the Line of Control and International Border are suffering. I have requested to take into consideration all these factors and make attempts to bring some relief to the people in the state," he said.

Abdullah, however, refused to share other details about the meeting.

"The meeting took place in the most cordial atmosphere and the Prime Minister was equally concerned about the situation in the state," the NC leader said.

More than 80 people, including two policemen, have been killed and thousands of others injured in the unrest in the Valley triggered by the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani in July. Around 5,000 security forces personnel have also been injured in the clashes.

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New Delhi:

Reacting strongly, India on Friday condemned Pakistan's decision to expel its High Commission staffer in Islamabad, saying the action further confirms that Pakistan continues to be in denial of its anti-India activities, including cross-border terrorism.

External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said no justification has been provided by Pakistan except for the "completely baseless and unsubstantiated" allegation that his activities were not in keeping with diplomatic norms.

"Government notes with regret the Government of Pakistan's decision to declare Surjeet Singh, Assistant Personnel and Welfare Officer in the High Commission of India in Islamabad, persona non grata and expel him and his family members.... The Government condemns Pakistan's step."It is obvious that the step is an afterthought following yesterday's apprehension of Pakistan High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar in Delhi while indulging in anti-India activities.

Pakistan's action further confirms that it continues to be in denial of its anti-India activities, including cross-border terrorism," Swarup said.Within hours of India expelling Akhtar yesterday, Pakistan, in a tit-for-tat action, declared Singh as persona non-grata and asked him to leave the country within 48 hours.

The Pakistan Foreign Secretary, who had summoned Indian High Commissioner Gautam Bambawale to convey the decision, "expressed deep concern over the activities of the Indian official that were in violation of the Vienna Convention and the established diplomatic norms", the Pakistan Foreign Office said in a statement.

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New Delhi:

Sayesha Saigal said she is lucky to start her career alongside Ajay Devgn as it is not easy for everyone to get a good start in Bollywood.

The 19-year-old star was initially nervous about the project but says Ajay made her feel comfortable on the set of the film, which released on Friday.

I just want people to really love my work. I havent seen the film myself. So, Im eagerly waiting for how it looks. Its a blessing for me because its not easy to get a good debut in the industry, Sayesha told PTI.

And when you get it with a big star like Ajay Devgn, its a really huge thing for any debutant. Also, he is directing the film which doesnt happen very often and it was something that made me feel really secure about my debut.

Polish actress Erika Kaar is also making her Bollywood debut with Shivaay, but Sayesha, also the grandniece of veteran star Saira Banu, is not worried about any competition.

Shivaay is not a romantic drama, had it been that, I would have probably felt the pressure, but its an emotional drama with lot of action and every character in the film has an important part.

So, whether its Erika or anybody in the film, we all have very different kind of roles. Im not at all scared.

Sayesha comes from a family, which has a long history in films but she says she has never been too filmy.

Im very simple girl at home. I have never been an ultra-filmy person and I still am not. Films happened to me because I love the creative side of it like dance, music and acting.

When asked if she got any compliment from Banu for her role, Sayesha said, She is very happy that Im making my debut with a good film. She really liked the trailer and even complimented me for my looks. She hasnt yet watched the film but she told me that Im looking pretty.

Sayesha is looking forward to the release of her first film, she said it is extremely important for her to get an approval from the audience as without their support she will not be able to move ahead in her career.

I have expectations that the audience might like my work. Im nervous because its my first film.

I want acceptance from them in a way that they go in theatres and say that we like this girl and she looks really good on screen and she is a good actress. I want people to go and feel that because if they will feel that then it will take me forward.

For all the Latest Entertainment News, Bollywood News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi:

Every time the eponymous protagonist of Shivaay swings into action, a Shiva anthem on the soundtrack eggs him on to keep going. Its a war cry that sounds peppy enough but, like the rest of the turgid film, it makes very little sense.

Ajay Devgns second film as director is a super-ambitious actioner shot in the Balkan Mountains and featuring an international cast led by the star himself. But the result that it yields is way, way short of riveting.

A film that revolves around a father fighting violently to rescue his deaf-mute daughter from the Russian mafia in a foreign land should have reduced the audience to emotional pulp. What it does instead is leave us completely cold.

Shivaay strings together some stunning visuals and a few electrifying action and chase sequences, but the film, for all the technical and material resources that have been showered on it, fails to kick into top gear.

The films hero (Devgn) is an infallible mountaineer who falls in love with a Bulgarian damsel Olga (Erika Kaar) and fathers a baby girl out of wedlock.

The young mother returns to her country, leaving Shivaay the job of raising the child. Eight years later, the daughter, Gaura, (Abigail Eames), who can hear but cannot speak, stumbles upon the truth behind her birth.

So, Shivaay and Gaura fly to Sofia so that the girl can see her mother for the first time. But no sooner does the duo land in the alien country than a major crisis erupts.

Gaura is kidnapped by child traffickers and an hopping mad Shivaay finds himself at odds with the Bulgarian law.

In his dangerous mission to rescue his abducted daughter, Shivaay receives help from an Indian embassy girl, Anushka (Sayyeshaa Saigal), who flips for the harried father-turned-mean machine.

Shivaay is crammed with perilous high-altitude sequences and high-energy action scenes, captured with panache by DoP Aseem Bajaj. Where the film is found wanting is in its patchy screenplay (Sandeep Shrivastava).

The characters seem to act on unexplained whims and the situations that their actions spark are, therefore, marked by randomness. The emotional bond between Shivaay and his daughter is suggested in many different ways but it does not leave a deep enough impression on the mind and heart for the audience to really care for the characters.

That apart, the vicious antagonists that Shivaay encounters in Bulgaria are so shadowy that they never come into their own. So when the hero takes them on, the audience isnt fully invested in the confrontation.

Technically sparkling, Shivaay the film does not scale the heights that Shivaay the man does without breaking a sweat. If only the film had realized even half its ambition, it would have been a cut well above the rest. It isnt because Shivaay is so overly in awe of its visible, physical trappings that it neglects putting some effort into imparting depth to its narrative under-wiring.
New Delhi:

In a response to a News Nations interview of Pakistans former president and former Army Chief General Pervez Musharraf, where he accepted Masood Azhar as terrorist, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup on Friday said that Pakistan should ban terrorist Masood Azhar.

Swarup said that when Jaish-e-Mohammed can be banned then why can't Pakistan impose ban on Masood Azhar as well. Masood Azhar is the chief of terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed.

During the interview, Musharraf had called Masood Azhar a 'terrorist' and said that he has been involved in blasts even in Pakistan. However, he refused to give a clear reply as to why Pakistan has not been asking China to get Masood declared as an International terrorist.

When asked how many terror camps are there in PoK, he said I don't know ", however, he sarcastically added, "I will let you know only once I get the count of these camps which you are talking about".

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi:

India ranks third among world nations most inflicted with terrorism and insurgency related deaths, after the areas ridden with violence by ISIS and Nigeria's Boko Haram, the Supreme Court was told on Friday.

Making this submission, the Chhattisgarh government also claimed in the apex court that more people were being killed in this Naxal-affected state than terror-hit Jammu and Kashmir and the involvement of extreme left-wing activists in the area was adding fuel to the fire.

"Today more security personnel are deployed in Chhattisgarh than in Jammu and Kashmir. Several policemen are being killed in Naxal violence in these areas. We are taking steps to contain the Naxal problems. We are carrying out lot of infrastructural work over there. We are passing through a phase," Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told a bench of Justices M B Lokur and Adarsh Kumar Goel.

"India ranks third in the world among the countries which are impacted by terrorism and inflicted with terror related deaths after the violence affected areas under ISIS and Boko Haram," Mehta said.

He also urged the court to pass some directions for keeping social activists like Nandini Sundar out of the area alleging that "they just want the flame to keep burning".

To this, the court said, "this can't be a solution. They (activist) would want you (state) to be kept out of the area".

Mehta, who appeared along with Chhattisgarh government standing counsel Atul Jha, said "we can't go out of the area.

It is a state and government will have to look after the people. We have responsibilities towards the people".

"Keeping the flame burning is not a solution. There is a CD which shows them shouting 'Lal Salaam' slogans and sloganeering against the state. This will make the problem to continue. Everyone wants peace," the ASG said.

When the bench asked the Chhattisgarh government about the security of political activist Manish Kunjam, Mehta said he was already under security cover.

Maintaining that he had initially said he does not need guards carrying rifles but those with smaller weapons, he said "now he again wanted rifle guards. We can provide that. If he wants central forces security cover that can also be provided.

We are ready to provide central security cover to even petitioner Nandini Sundar."

The suggestion of security cover to Sundar was rejected by senior advocate Ashok Desai and the counsel appearing for Sunder and others, alleging "they wanted to keep an eye on her in the garb of security cover. This is the behaviour of the government".

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Kolkata:

Bajrang Dal activists in their protest against the the release of Karan Johar's latest movie "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil", which features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan, demonstrated outside a movie hall in Purulia town in Purulia district on Friday.



Purulia SP Rupesh Kumar told that the agitation went on for roughly 20 minutes.

"Around 9.30 AM, 80-100 activists of the Bajrang Dal demonstrated outside the City Life mall where the film was scheduled to be released raising 'patriotic' slogans," the SP said.

However, the film was released as scheduled, Kumar said.

In the aftermath of the deadly Uri terror attack last month, film distributors decided not to release the film "AeDil Hai Mushkil" also starring Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.

For all the Latest Entertainment News, Bollywood News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi:

In an effort to recognize and celebrate the self-less duties of Indian army personnel on the festive occasion of Diwali, master blaster Sachin Tendulkar has wished them Happy Diwali. Sachin has put out a video message for all the army men.

He told that he want to wish both the families of army men. First family is their army and others are those who are at their homes. Sachin said that he prays to god for their welfare and well-being and also wish that god will bring a lot of happiness to them.

"Snow-capped mountains, blazing deserts, dense forests & a lot more couldn't stop them. Let us send our love &A #Sandesh2SoldiersA this Diwali," wrote Sachin on Twitter.A

This Diwali, there are wishes galore for army personnel who are actually battling it out with Pakistan forces and terrorists while the country is going into festive mood. People are recognizing and appreciating their efforts.
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Srinagar:

An army jawan was on Friday killed in an encounter with terrorists who later mutilated his body near the Line of Control (LoC) in Macchil sector of Kupwara district of Kashmir.

One militant was also killed in the gunbattle, army said here on Friday night.

"In an encounter close to the Line of Control this evening, one solider was martyred and one terrorist was killed. The terrorists mutilated the body of the jawan before fleeing back into Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir under the cover of firing by Pakistan Army," an army spokesman said.

He said the incident reflected the barbarism pervading in official and unofficial organisations in Pakistan.

"The incident will be responded to appropriately," he added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval were also informed about the incident by the Army.

Also read: Army pays rich tributes to jawan Rifleman Sandeep Singh Rawat killed during anti-infiltration

In an encounter close to the Line of Control in Machhil Sector, in the evening of 28th October 2016, one soldier has been martyred and one terrorist killed. In a despicable act, the terrorist mutilated the body of the Indian Army Soldier before fleeing into PoK, supported by covering fire from Pakistan Army posts. This barbarism is a true reflection which pervades official and non-official organisation across the border. This act will invite an appropriate response, wrote Northern Command on Twitter.

Earlier on the day, Pakistani troops continued the ceasefire violations with firing and mortar shelling on Indian posts and civilian areas along the LoC and international border in Jammu, Kathua and Rajouri districts, leaving a girl injured. BSF and Army have responded "appropriately and befittingly" a defence spokesman said on Friday morning.

Also read: 15 Pak Rangers killed in BSF's retaliatory firing after unprovoked ceasefire violations by Pak army along International Border

"There was unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan Army in Sunderbani, Pallanwala and Nowshera sectors of Rajouri and Jammu districts today," the spokesman said.

Also read: Security forces arrest 5 suspected militants, policeman in Jammu and Kashmir

They used small arms, automatics, 82 mm mortars and 120 mm mortars in the firing and shelling, he said. "They are being responded appropriately and befittingly. No casualties to our troops have been reported," he said.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi:

Facing attack, the government on Friday said it is making all out efforts to see that vacant posts of judges are filled up even as it insisted that there has been no abnormal increase in the vacancies in the High Courts under NDA rule as compared to the previous UPA regime.

The average annual rate of appointment of judges in the High Courts has not declined during the last 2 years, though no new appointments were made during April-December, 2015 due to hearing of the NJAC matter, sources said.

"Government of India has utmost respect for the judiciary and its independence," a source said, against the backdrop of strong statement by Chief Justice of India T S Thakur over the vacancies not being filled up.

The sources said the government is concerned about the increasing pendency in the judicial courts and "Hence, Government has been making all out efforts to see that the vacant posts are filled up."

The sources said that it is being presented in the media that the number of vacancies of judges in the High Court has increased abnormally in recent times. "However, an analysis of data for the last 10 years indicates that there is no such abnormal increase," the source said.

Giving details, the sources said that during the last 10 years, the number of vacancies has varied from 265 to 280.

Similarly, working strength of judges in the High Courts has remained almost the same, around 600.

The current working strength in High Courts is 620, they said against the backdrop of attack by the Chief Justice and opposition parties, including Congress.

"Further, 173 new posts of judges were created in last 2 years. This has added to the vacancies in the High Courts," the source said.

During the period 2009-2014, only 20 new posts of High Courts judges had been created whereas during 2015 and 2016, 173 new posts were created.

"If we exclude that period, the average annual rate of appointment of High Courts Judges has increased by 63 per cent (from 74 to 121 per year)," the source added.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Bernie Sanders stands to fight against Big Pharmas rising drug prices

Bernie Sanders held a rally last Friday in Hollywood to explain the importance of California Prop 61. He is fighting to reduce the skyrocketing prices of pharmaceuticals. The pharmaceutical industry has become a major health hazard to the American people. This is the most significant proposition in the country today to end pharmaceutical greed. Prop 61 entails an element in reforming drug-purchasing to stop price-gouging by Big Pharma. If passed most Californians wont see much difference, however State Agencies would pay the same amount that the Department of Veterans Affairs pays for drugs. The VA gets the best prices in the nation at 76 percent of average wholesale price or lower. Polls show the prop to be widely supported although the opposition campaign might impact that with its $100 million in funding from big pharma.

The savings are hard to gauge because there is no public disclosure of how much the VA pays for medications. The VA might get additional discounts beyond federal, however it is unknown what they pay for each specific drug. On a sour note prop 61 will have no effect on drugs the VA doesnt purchase. Most major veterans groups oppose prop 61 because they fear drug companies will raise public prices which would increase VA prices. That effect might not be seen though since only 2-3 percent of pharmaceutical sales go to the VA. Television advertisements for the no campaign are featuring men in full military uniform misleading veterans groups paid for by big pharma.

Bernie Sanders shows big support for Prop 61 because government will have the power to lower prescription drug prices. Its the standard across most industrialized nations except the US which has let big pharma run wild thus far. Recent pharmaceutical scandals have shed a new light on our current system. This is the first step to re-integrating the purchasing pool. Sanders believes other states will quickly follow a California win. Under federal law all state Medicaid programs may receive the same price for prescription drugs. That would allow other states to effortlessly follow.

As reported by New Republic Sanders recognizes that, when the status quo leaves Americans exposed, change can only come from the bottom up. In this case, one ballot measure could transform what we pay for drugs in America. The entire nation is looking at California. Sanders says Lets go forward together.' Its great to see that Bernie Sanders is devoted to helping the American people  President or not.

Sources:

NewRepublic.com

CommonDreams.org

Submit a correction >>
STAMFORD  A political newcomer from the Republican Party is challenging a first-term state representative in Stamfords heavily Democratic 146th District on Nov. 8.

Taking his first foray into politics, Arkadiusz Jakubowski  known to friends as Arek  is hoping to unseat seven-term city Board of Representatives veteran and state Democratic incumbent Terry Adams for the district, which includes the South End, Shippan and much of downtown as far up as the Ridgeway Shopping Center.

Jakubowski, 29, who moved to Stamford almost three years ago from West Haven, said he has always been interested in politics, but after learning about Stamford and meeting Steve Kolenberg, who is challenging Caroline Simmons for her seat in the neighboring 144th District, he decided to get involved.

Im a young guy looking to start a family at some point in the next five years, and I want to make sure the living environment here in Connecticut is suitable for young adults to start a family, instead of looking for opportunities outside the state, said Jakubowski, who works in logistics for Statoil, an international oil and gas company.

Jakubowski is the son of a West Haven police officer who, at the age of 28, fled communism in Poland with $200 in his pocket. After years working a warehouse job, Jakubowskis dad got his badge at age 45.

Jakubowski says he has seen firsthand about how hard someone has to work to succeeds in America and at the top of his to-do list is making downtown Stamford safer for pedestrians.

More Information Terry Adams Incumbent - Yes Political party - Democrat Age - 59 Highest educational level - Some college Occupation - Manufacturing Employer - Pitney Bowes Marital status and family - Single What makes you the right choice for this seat? - "Terry will work for our community to create jobs and increase economic development, provide property tax relief, support our schools, invest in early education and champion after-school programs and support seniors by improving resources they rely on." Arkadiusz Jakubowski Incumbent - No Political party - Republican Age - 29 Highest educational level - Graduate or professional degree Occupation - Natural gas scheduler Employer - Statoil Marital status and family - Single What makes you the right choice for this seat? - "It's a very exciting time to be a resident of the 146th District. The growing appeal of the area is enticing many to choose this part of their state as their home. As someone who has been able to experience this district for the last six years, I believe I have an understanding of what the residents want and need." See More Collapse

I walk around Stamford all the time and I get an idea where trouble spots are, but there are probably other trouble spots that dont come up, he said.

Jakubowski said he would like to put a Wiki map up of the city and let people talk about where they see problems with pedestrians and cars. Id like to use the internet to crowd source ideas, he said, as well as creating a venue for people to talk about the Stamford railroad station.

Pedestrian safety

Adams already has a legislative record for pedestrian safety. During his first term he walked his bill through the legislature that increased the $82 traffic fine for striking someone in a crosswalk to $500. Another bill of his that became law takes into account the rent someone was paying before a low-income senior apartment was renovated and allow them to pay the same amount even though the renovation upgraded the residence to mid-income.

Adams said he would like to make the streets even safer and is contemplating creation of a bill that would give pedestrians the right of way on all city streets. In Stamford, statistics show more people are killed in accidents on the street than by guns, something that Adams says is unacceptable.

Over the past legislative term, Adams, 59, who is giving up his board of reps seat with this election, said he was a big supporter of Gov. Dannel Malloys Second Chance justice reforms, even though many people thought it was soft on crime.

When you are putting kids in jail for two years for having one joint of marijuana within 1,500 feet of a school and costing taxpayers $53,000 per year, I say give the $200 ticket and keep the $53,000 in the bank. Lets give our taxpayers a break, he said.

Adams said that he believes city residents appreciate the work the legislative team from Stamford has done to bring state and federal money back, such as $61.8 million to open up the New School on Strawberry Hill Avenue, $4.9 million to expand enrollment at Wright Tech, $10 million for school repairs and upgrades as well as $3.9 million to offset residential and commercial property taxes.

He said its not easy to get people in Hartford to see that Stamford is a multidimensional and diverse city.

Believe it or not, people up there (in Hartford) think this is the golden part of Connecticut and we all walk in our backyard and pick money off the tree. ... Im like, it aint like that. ... They have no idea.

jnickerson@scni.com
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Niche has released their annual rankings of colleges around the nation and, perhaps as expected, one Connecticut university was ranked among the top in the county.

Yale University, in New Haven, came in as the best college in Connecticut and third best in the nation. The university was also recently ranked by U.S. News and World Report as the third best in the nation as well.

Check out the gallery for a look at how Connecticut's colleges ranked in the state and nationally. To read Niche's full report on the best colleges for 2017, click here.

Wesleyan University, in Middletown, was ranked as the second best college in the state, followed by the University of Connecticut, in Storrs.

The report compiles "millions" of surveys from student and alumni over the past year and more than 2,500 schools were ranked across academics, value, professor's, and student satisfactionamong many other factors.

So what makes Yale University the gold standard in Connecticut and the nation? According to one student review on Niche, community plays just as important a role as education.

"I am entering my third year in the fall and couldn't imagine being anywhere else. What drew me to Yale was the close knit community and the welcoming and inclusive social space," a Yale junior wrote. "I have friends from all walks of life and love to interact with people form all different backgrounds. I truly feel that I have grown as an individual as I have become equipped with the vocabulary to express eloquently just who I am and where I stand on certain issues to my peers."

Related: Southwest Connecticut schools among 'best places to teach'

A couple of our region's universities were able to break into the top ten, with Fairfield University ranking seventh in the state and UConn's Stamford campus ranking eighth.

When it came to Fairfield University, one sophomore noted while the campus was great, diversity could be an issue.

"The school can do better in terms of diversity. It can get really clique-y really fast, however I also think it helps build a sense of independence," the student wrote. "It's hard when you come from the inner city than suddenly you are surrounded by rich, upper class people who wear name brands. I am actually enjoying the school, and I was able to break the classicist barrier with SOME people and make amazing friends."

Fairfield University came under fire last March after a "ghetto-themed" party was hosted by campus students at an off-campus location.

Sacred Heart University and University of Bridgeport placed 15th and 19th, respectively. Western Connecticut State University in Danbury ranked 20th.

Even while WCSU ranked toward the bottom of in-state choices, one student said the transition offered between high school and college was appreciated.

"I was a commuting part time student at WCSU last year. I didn't go here because it was my first choice and I loved it, but because I didn't feel I was ready to fully jump into a 4 year college situation," the freshman wrote. "In this way, being part time at WCSU offered me a good transition from high school. I was able to take a few classes and see what college was like while still being comfortable and close to home. I found it easy to meet people and find things to do."

Heading up the bottom of the list in Connecticut were Mitchell College, in New London, University of Saint Joseph, in West Hartford, and Central Connecticut State University, in New Britain.
Endorsement week begins Sunday for Hearst Connecticut Media newspapers with our choice for the next president to lead the United States.

We believe a newspaper has the responsibility to speak up and endorse  after careful research and thorough discussion  candidates for national and state political office. After all, we cant urge you to vote if we dont vote as well.

Endorsements do not mean we are telling you who to vote for. That is solely your choice. Our intention is to lead discussion in the community and to provide insight that comes from our close examination of the issues and direct access to most candidates from Connecticut.

Heres how the endorsement process works: We invite the candidates to come to an interview with the editorial board; they have the opportunity to explain why voters should choose them and then answer our questions. This year our interviews with candidates for federal office, the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, were taped by CT-N and will be broadcast on their website as well as ours. It is like having a ring-side seat to the editorial board and the chance to hear for yourself how the candidates responded to questioning.

The editorial boards of our local daily newspapers in Bridgeport, Danbury, Stamford, Greenwich and Norwalk also have conducted numerous interviews with candidates in many races for the Connecticut General Assembly  the state Senate and House of Representatives.

A question we hear occasionally is how can you be impartial in your coverage, as newspapers should be, and yet have an opinion that endorses one candidate over another? This division of news-gathering and opinion-making actually is a part of the paper every day. On the editorial page, you will see opinion written by the editorial page editors, as well as op-eds and letters from readers. On the news pages, you will see balanced coverage.

This year the presidential campaigns have been too unusual for us to sit silently. Much is at stake for this country.

Along with our endorsement for president on Sunday will be endorsements for the U.S. Senate and House districts in southwestern and western Connecticut. During the week endorsements for state offices will run and the Sunday before the election a recap of the recommendations will be on our editorial pages and websites.

With conviction, we will take a stand in the time-honored tradition of American newspapers. The choice is yours, and we urge you to exercise your hard-fought Constitutional right to vote on Nov. 8.
In predictable fashion, much of Americas legacy media has piled onto Donald Trump for his assertion that the upcoming election is rigged. Moving past his heavy-handed delivery, Mr. Trump is correctly pointing out that voter fraud has been and still remains a very real problem.

The hot news not being widely reported comes from a yearlong project from James OKeefes Project Veritas Action project, which does the work that the fourth estate has shunned.

Recently they taped NYC Democratic Commissioner of the Board of Elections Alan Schulkin admitting that voter fraud is a problem that voter ID laws could help solve.

Schulkin stated, Yeah, they should ask for your ID. I think there is a lot of voter fraud. He followed up by saying You know, I dont think its too much to ask somebody to show some kind of an IDLike I say, people dont realize, certain neighborhoods in particular they bus people around to vote.

On Oct. 18 OKeefe followed that up with footage of Scott Foval, now-former national field director of Americans United for Change, and Bob Creamer of Democracy Partners and now-former Clinton campaign operative.

Mr. Foval affirmed Mr. Schulkins assertion on camera saying Weve been busing people in to deal with you expletives (Republicans) for 50 years and were not going to stop now. Were just going to find a better way to do it.

He described the intentions of he and his fellow travelers saying, So, what you do is implement the plan on a much larger scale. You implement a massive change in state legislatures and in Congress. So you aim for higher goals and you implement it across every Republican-held state.

Weak-kneed down-ballot Republicans quick to denounce Mr. Trumps protestations should be aware that these institutional fraudsters are intent on dining on the carcasses of their careers as well as The Donalds.

OKeefes operatives also met multiple times with Bob Creamer to discuss ideas for committing large-scale voter fraud as well. Between Nov. 21, 2011 and June 24, 2016, Creamer visited the White House 342 times, actually meeting with President Obama 47 times in the process. Wonder what they talked about during all those visits?

Mr. Foval laid out the chain of command and money trail for the operations thusly. The Clinton campaign pays the DNC (Democratic National Committee), the DNC pays this outfit called Democracy Partners, Democracy Partners pays the Foval Group, the Foval Group goes out and executes the expletive on the ground. The expletive in question includes fomenting violence at Trump rallies so as to cast Trump supporters as uncivilized goons.

Of course, the institutional left in America loves to tell us that voter fraud is virtually non-existent here. Although it is nearly impossible to prosecute voter fraud here, the Heritage Foundation maintains a database containing over 460 voter fraud convictions handed down since 2000.

On April 9, 2012 one of Mr. OKeefes operatives showed how easy it is to steal a voters ballot when there are no voter ID laws in place.

After reviewing the checklist of Washington, D.C., voter rolls to find U.S. Attorney General Eric Holders name and validating the information on the D.C. Board of Elections website, Project Veritas operative Jon Buckley secretly filmed the poll worker who was prepared to give him the Attorney Generals ballot for the Democratic primary.

In recalling this event, Mr. OKeefe quipped, Overlooking the fact that Jon was a half a foot shorter, several shades paler, a generation younger and almost criminally less groomed, one could easily confuse him for the attorney general.

On the editorial page of this paper on Oct. 16, readers were soberly advised Be informed. Be involved in democracy. Do not squander your right to vote this Nov. 8.

However, without voter ID laws and enforcement, voters of every race, ethnicity or gender can either have their ballot stolen or nullified by fraudsters like Scott Foval or some not so merry prankster.

If Hearst Connecticut would use some ink to actually call for every state to pass mandatory voter ID laws, preferably a photo ID, I might be able to take these bromides a bit more seriously.

Todd Peterson is a resident of Washington Depot.
WASHINTON - State Police have shut down Route 109 ner the Morris line due to a tractor trailer truck that slammed into a tree along the side of the roadway.

Police said the driver of the truck, whose name was not immediatley released, was sent to Waterbury Hosptial with non life threatening injuries. The truck was the only vehicle involved in the accident.
South Korean party voices against intelligence sharing with Japan

South Korea,Defence/Security, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

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Seoul, Oct 28 (IANS) South Korea's main opposition Minjoo Party on Friday expressed its strong objection to the resumption of talks with Japan on sharing military intelligence on North Korea.

Woo Sang-ho, floor leader of the party in parliament, said at a Supreme Council meeting that it can never be accepted to militarily join hands with Japan which has yet to sincerely repent over its past atrocities during the World War II and its colonisation of the Korean peninsula from 1910 to 1945, Xinhua news agency reported.

He said the adoption of the military intelligence-sharing accord between Seoul and Tokyo will prop up Japan's militaristic ambition, and urged the South Korean government to stop the talks which will enrage people again.

Seoul will reportedly resume talks with Japan to ink the deal soon, called General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA), to share intelligence on North Korea's nuclear and missile programmes.

Former President Lee Myung-back was pushed to seal a hush-hush military deal with Japan in 2012, but it was scrapped at the last minute on public outcry over the closed-door attempt to endorse the intelligence-sharing agreement.

Under the deal, South Korea and Japan would directly exchange military intelligence on North Korea's nuclear and missile programmes. Under the trilateral military pact signed in late 2014 with the US, Seoul and Tokyo have shared intelligence in an indirect way.

Park Jie-won, floor leader of the minor opposition People's Party, also told a party meeting that the Seoul-Tokyo intelligence sharing pact will only boost Japan's ambition toward militarism, and said the countries have shared intelligence through the US with the trilateral military deal.

Wondering why the government is pushing for the deal that will enrage people, Park said it will only speed up a new Cold War in the region that will further separate South Korea from China and Russia.

Public oppositions here to the military accord with Japan are expected as Japanese politicians have yet to show their sincerity and repentance over past atrocities in the early 1900s.

Victims of Korean women who were forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military during the Second World War, euphemistically called "comfort women", still call on the Japanese government to make a sincere apology and compensate for brutalities they suffered under Japan's 1910-1945 colonial rule.

--IANS

sm/ksk/vt

null
Action favoured against ex-bank governor in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka,Indo-Pak/Pakistan,Politics, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

Colombo, Oct 28 (IANS) A Sri Lankan parliamentary committee on Friday recommended legal action against former Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran and officials involved in controversial bond deals.

Sunil Handunetti, Chairman of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) said evidence brought before it had raised reasonable doubt that Mahendran should be held directly responsible over the bond transaction amounting to millions of dollars, Xinhua news agency reported.

Presenting the COPE report to Parliament, Handunetti said legal action should be taken against Mahendran and other responsible individuals.

He said Perpetual Treasuries, a firm connected to Mahendran's son-in-law, made enormous profits from the deals.

The committee recommended that action should be taken to examine and recover any losses to the state and central bank.

The Central Bank should also conduct its own probe and come up with procedures to make auctions transparent, the Committee said.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the government will respect the report and proposed that it be sent to the Attorney General for further action.

The joint opposition, stanch supporters of former President Mahinda Rajapakse, has called for a debate in Parliament on the contents of the report.

Mahendran was appointed as Sri Lanka's Central Bank Governor by President Maithripala Sirisena in January 2015.

The Central Bank announced he would not seek an extension of his term which ended on June 30.

--IANS

mr/
Naples mafia fugitive held in Spain

Spain,Crime/Disaster/Accident, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

Palma di Majorca (Spain), Oct 28 (IANS/AKI) Naples mafia fugitive Andrea Ricci was detained on the Spanish island of Majorca after Italian authorities issued an international warrant for his arrest, police said on Friday.

Ricci was arrested at a popular restaurant in the island's capital, Palma di Majorca late on Tuesday after two years on the run.

Anti-mafia investigators accuse Ricci and two Italian inland revenue officials of defrauding the European Union of more than eight million euros of unpaid VAT on luxury cars imported from Germany to Italy.

Ricci is the trusted henchman of Ciro Smiraglia, nephew of late Camorra boss Michele Zaza, a business partner in the scam, investigators claim.

Police impounded from Ricci three hotels and a restaurant in Rome, several companies and a fleet of new cars worth eight million euros as restitution for the tax scam.

Ricci had been living on Majorca where he developed property and ran a holiday letting business. Several relations had recently joined him there to help out, according to police.

--IANS/AKI

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Prince Harry helps relocate 500 elephants in Malawi

United Kingdom,Environment/Wildlife, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

London, Oct 29 (IANS) Newly released photos and video show Prince Harry taking part in one of the worlds biggest conversation projects this summer-helping to herd elephants in Africa.

The prince spent three weeks in Malawi over the summer where he worked alongside volunteers, vets and experts on the frontline of one of the largest and most significant elephant translocations, Daily Mail reported.

Up to 500 elephants are being moved over 350 km across Malawi from Liwonde National Park and Majete Wildlife Reserve to Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve, where the elephants will be able to thrive.

In a statement Harry said: 'Elephants simply can't roam freely like they used to, without coming into conflict with communities, or being threatened by poaching and persecution.

Harry, who has often spoken of how he would like to shun his royal duties and live in Africa to work on such projects permanently, assisted with translocating other animals too such as a male rhino, antelopes, buffaloes and zebras.

He also facilitated in re-collaring three lions in Majete with GPS collars to monitor and protect them.

--IANS

vgu/
Duterte promises not to swear after 'warning from God'

Philippines,Politics, Fri, 28 Oct 2016 IANS

Manila, Oct 28 (IANS) Philippines' President Rodrigo Duterte has promised to stop using abusive words in his speeches after a perceived "warning from God", local media reporters on Friday.

"I was looking at the skies...A voice said that you know 'If you don't stop, I will bring this plane down now'," Duterte told reporters after returning from a three-day official visit to Japan.

"And I said, who is this? Of course, it's God. Oh, OK. So, I promised God not to use slang, cuss words," he said.

"A promise to God is a promise to the Filipino people," Duterte added according to reports.

Duterte, who took office on June 30 after his overwhelming victory in the presidential elections, is known for constantly swearing during his speeches and press conferences, Efe news reported.

He is especially partial to "putang ina", which translates as "son of a bitch" and which he used against US President Barack Obama, US Ambassador in Manila Philip Goldberg and Pope Francis.

Moreover, Duterte has also often asked the US to "go to hell" among other things, for criticising his violent anti-drug campaign in the Philippines, which killed more than 4,700 in four months.

He also bad-mouthed the European Union, as well as the UN just before a meeting with its Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon in September in Laos.

Despite criticism from the international community for his attitude, Duterte is hugely popular in the Philippines.

According to latest surveys, 76 per cent of Filipinos approves of the president's controversial management of affairs, while only 11 per cent expressed dissatisfaction and 13 per cent were indecisive.

--IANS

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BURLINGTON, ON, Oct. 28, 2016 /CNW/ - EcoSynthetix Inc. (TSX: ECO) ("EcoSynthetix" or the "Company"), today announced that it will release its 2016 third quarter results on Tuesday, November 8, 2016, after 5:00 pm ET. The Company will subsequently hold a conference call on Wednesday, November 9, 2016, at 8:30 AM Eastern Time hosted by Mr. Jeff MacDonald, Chief Executive Officer, and Mr. Rob Haire, Chief Financial Officer. A question and answer session will follow the corporate update.

CONFERENCE CALL DETAILS

DATE: Wednesday, November 9, 2016 TIME: 8:30 AM Eastern Time DIAL IN NUMBER: (647) 427-7450 or (888) 231-8191 TAPED REPLAY: (416) 849-0833 or (855) 859-2056 REFERENCE NUMBER: 10397617

A link to the live audio webcast of the conference call will be available on the Investor Relations Events page on the Company's website at www.ecosynthetix.com as well as at www.newswire.ca. The presentation will be accompanied by slides, which will be available on the webcast and via the Company's website. Please connect at least 15 minutes prior to the conference call to ensure adequate time for any software download that may be required to hear the webcast.

About EcoSynthetix Inc. (www.ecosynthetix.com)

EcoSynthetix offers a range of engineered biopolymers that replace non-renewable chemicals used to manufacture many products, such as paper and packaging, and wood composites. The Company's flagship products, EcoSphere biolatex and DuraBind biopolymers, provide customers with a sustainable alternative that reduces the use of hazardous chemicals, improves performance and delivers economic benefits. The Company is publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (T:ECO).

SOURCE EcoSynthetix Inc.

For further information: EcoSynthetix Inc.: Steve Snyder, Phone: (289) 245-4017, E-mail: [email protected]; Investor Relations: Ross Marshall, Phone: (416) 526-1563, E-mail: [email protected]
MONTREAL, Oct. 28, 2016 /CNW/ -- Industry and government safety professionals are invited to the Linde Canada Limited safety products display at the Le Grand Rendez-Vous sante et securite au travail (Grand Meeting for Occupational Health and Safety), a tradeshow that focuses on health and safety in the workplace. The show will be held in Montreal on November 1-2, 2016, at Palais des Congres de Montreal.

Linde Canada is a member of The Linde Group, a world leading gases and engineering company.

Linde safety specialists will be on hand at booth #s 301-303 and 400-402 to discuss the benefits of Linde's exclusive line of safety products, including hazardous gas detection instruments and calibration gases, as well as its popular line of high visibility clothing, breathing equipment, safety glasses, protective work gloves, traffic vests and welding vests. Linde will also introduce its new line of cut-resistant gloves and disposable dust masks.

"At Linde Canada, our goal is to provide workers with a wide range of personal protective equipment and clothing to protect workers from head to toe with our high quality Linde branded product line," said Marc-Andre Rioux, Safety Sales Manager for Eastern Canada. "I think visitors to our booths will be impressed with the wide range of safety products that Linde offers. This makes it simpler for our customers to get their safety, welding and gases supply needs met all from one source."

In the 2015 financial year, The Linde Group generated revenue of CAD 26.3 bn (EUR 17.944 bn), making it one of the leading gases and engineering companies in the world, with approximately 65,000 employees working in more than 100 countries worldwide. The strategy of The Linde Group is geared towards long-term profitable growth and focuses on the expansion of its international business with forward-looking products and services. Linde acts responsibly towards its shareholders, business partners, employees, society and the environment in every one of its business areas, regions and locations across the globe. The company is committed to technologies and products that unite the goals of customer value and sustainable development.

For more information, see The Linde Group online at www.linde.com

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130530/NY23246LOGO-b

SOURCE Linde Canada

For further information: Suzan Doucet, Communications Lead, Responsable des communications, Linde Canada Ltd. / Ltee, 5860 Chedworth Way, Mississauga, Ontario L5R 0A2, Tel (905) 501 3730, [email protected], http://www.linde.com
China and the Philippines were planning to build four artificial islands.

The four new artificial islands appear to be planned around Davao. They will be developed for mixed-use, business and residential purposes along the coastline under a P39-billion reclamation project that city government plans to undertake with a major private developer.

The joint venture agreement was signed by the city government and Mega Harbour Port and Development Inc. last month.

There will be no relocation because President Duterte does not want to remove the people in the area, said Councilor Danilo Dayanghirang, chair of the city councils committee on finance and ways and means.

A Chinese state-owned company said to have been involved in Beijings island-building in the South China Sea signed a deal to construct islands in a mega project in Davao.

CCCC Dredging will create four artificial islands totalling 208 hectares of reclaimed land in Davao, the port city on the southern island of Mindanao where Duterte was mayor

Beijings South China Sea land reclamation work has reportedly resulted in 2,900 acres of land reclaimed over a period of roughly 20 months, from early 2014 to August 2015. Here, perspective is important: of the other countries to reclaim land in the South China Sea, Vietnam has reclaimed 80 acres, Malaysia has reclaimed 70, the Philippines has reclaimed 14 and Taiwan has reclaimed approximately eight over various length of time. China has managed to create more than 17 times more land in 20 months than all of the other claimants combined over the past 40 years, accounting for 95 percent of all artificial land in the Spratlys.

The main driving force of Chinas reclamation has been a fleet of new dredgers, including the technologically advanced self-propelled cutter-suction dredger (CSD) Tianjing, which is capable of dredging and reclaiming land at a rate of 4,500 cubic meters an hour. These dredgers simply did not exist 15 years ago, yet now China can deploy dozens of them simultaneously in the South China Sea.

Once again, Chinas rapid development has enabled it to muster a level of effort that smaller neighbors simply cannot match, even collectively, permanently altering geography in the Spratlys.

directed investments into the Chinese dredging industry that have seen Chinas dredging capacity more than triple in the past 15 years and given China a valuable new tool for building not only islands in the South China Sea, but also much of the port infrastructure needed for its Maritime Silk Road.

Investment in new dredging technologies greatly increased as China sought to close the technological gap with leading dredging countries. The first result of this investment was the import of three foreign TSHDs: Xin Hailong, Tongtan and Wanqingsha, all with 12,888 m3 hoppers.

Xin Hailong

Within several years, China had already increased its domestic TSHD-building technology and capacity considerably, and in 2010 completed construction on the 18,343 m3 Tongcheng, which is also capable of dredging in up to 85 meters of water. Largely based on Tongchengs design, Chinas Tongtu launched in 2012, bringing Chinas domestic TSHD size record to 20,000 cubic meters. Between 2005 and 2012, China produced at least 20 TSHDs with hopper sizes of 9,000 m3 or more.

A significant technological gap still remains between Chinese dredgers, which tend to be heavier and therefore less efficient; and leading foreign dredgers, which have continually expanded to include a 46,000 m3 TSHD developed by Jan de Nul.

Chinas largest accomplishment in dredge-building came in 2010, with the launching of Tianjing, Chinas first self-propelled CSD, and also Asias largest self-propelled CSD and the worlds third largest.

This 120-meter-long ship can dredge up to 4,500 m3/h, more than 100,000 m3 of material a day, at a maximum depth of 30 meters, and travel at speeds of up to 12 knots. Tianjing also boasts a total installed power of 25,760 kilowatts. However, while the large CSD certainly represents a Chinese technological breakthrough, it was not solely the product of Chinese design, but rather the cooperative efforts of SJTU and Vosta LMG, a German company that also built the Ursa, a 115 meter-long self-propelled CSD

The growth of Chinas dredging industry so far has been impressive, more than tripling capacity and going from fifth to first globally (in aggregate capacity) in 10 years (200010).

Davao island Development plan

The islands will have a total area of 214 hectares of land, according to Ivan Cortez, head of the Davao City Investment and Promotion Center.

On one of them, with an area of 75 hectares of land between Agdao and Sta. Ana, a 5-hectare government center and a port will be built. On another (39.24 ha), a central business district and a shopping center will rise.

The third island (59.47 ha) will be used for tourist centers and residential resorts, while the fourth (40.89 ha) has a township development plan.

3- to 4-yr project

According to Dayanghirang, Mega Harbour wants to complete the project within three to four years from start of construction. Originally, it set a 2019 deadline, but the documents required by law are still being processed, he said.

Both the city government and the developer are currently awaiting consent from the Philippine Reclamation Authority and an environmental clearance certificate from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

Impact on environment

Mary Ann Fuertes, executive director of Interface Development Interventions, an environmental group, has expressed concern about the projects impact on the environment and the communities surrounding the area.

Transparency should be observed to ensure that the ecosystem, as well as rights and safety of communities, are protected, Fuertes said.

SOURCE -Inquirer.net, National Interest
Aquarius Engines integrated power system is composed of a revolutionary combustion engine and a dedicated electricity generator with an exceptionally high power-to-weight / size ratio.

Aquarius Engines unique patented one-cylinder design has only one moving part  as opposed to conventional engines  simplifying manufacturing processes and production costs.

The invention from Israeli-based Aquarius Engines is currently being discussed by Frances Peugeot, the firm said. Aquarius says the cost of the engine will be as low as $100 (92 euros).

According to the firm, the engine can allow cars to travel more than 1,600 kilometers (990 miles) on a single tank of fuel, more than double current distances.

Such efficiency is vital as countries seek to reduce carbon dioxide emissions  a main cause of climate change. Car engines are a major source of CO2 emissions. Aquariuss technology works by stripping back the traditional engine under the bonnet.

It replaces the combustion engine with its multiple pistons thrusting up and down with a single piston that goes side-to-side. It has fewer than 20 parts and a single action, the company said. In tests by the German engineering company FEV, the Aquarius engines efficiency was more than double that of traditional engines.

The engine would work best as part of a plug-in hybrid system, with manufacturers looking at the idea of putting a smaller, inexpensive, range extender alongside a battery and motor.

But he said Aquariuss radical design, and the changes it would require to manufacturing lines, might make companies in a risk-averse industry hesitant.

The technology can also be used to make more efficient back-up generators and other products, the company says. Aquarius is currently seeking its third round of funding and is aiming for $40-50 million.

Franco Gonzalez, senior technology analyst at the IDTechEx analysis firm, said Aquarius was entering the competition late and playing catch up.

Automotive companies take seven to 10 years to implement a new technology, he said.

So Peugeot would need to accelerate their implementation very, very fast to at least catch up to what Tesla, BYD, Nissan and other companies supporting the electric car model are achieving.

Nextbigfuture notes that there are many other substantial niches for a super-efficient, light, simple and cheap engine.

SOURCES- Aquarius Engines, India Times
By Olivier Ferret 29 October 2016 - 00:40





Carlos Sainz

Id say its been an interesting Friday. In particular, with the supersoft tyre being introduced here this year and the fact that the track temperatures have been super low today, I think its been a very challenging day  not only for us but for the whole grid. Hopefully this will create some opportunities for us on Sunday. At the moment weve performed well  inside the top ten  but we cant forget that its only Friday, we know that things can change quickly on Saturdays. The good thing is that weve started the weekend positively and we will remain calm, work hard, extract the maximum out of the car and see where we end up!

Daniil Kvyat

I think it was a good day. Weve ticked most of the boxes on our programme and Im happy with how both practice sessions went  my race engineer Pierre is happy too, so thats good! We now have to analyse all the data collected and get ready for the rest of the weekend. Im feeling good in the car, even if the conditions out there today were a bit tricky because its very cold  therefore, like all the other teams, we will also need to find a good approach for this kind of conditions. We will work hard tonight and tomorrow we will see whos done the best job.

Jody Egginton (Head of Vehicle Performance)

I think we can be pleased with the work we have done on both sides of the garage today. Both cars had a reasonable baseline balance out of the box, which meant we could directly focus on the run programme whilst also giving consideration to the fact that the low track and ambient temperatures in FP1 were having a notable effect on tyre performance, especially with the higher working range soft compound. We achieved our FP1 objectives in terms of ensuring that the various systems were performing as expected in this challenging environment. We also gathered tyre data which, even if it was effected by the running conditions, it was in line with expectations. Changes ahead of FP2 were limited to small adjustments and changes in line with increased track and ambient temperatures. The FP2 run programme was completed with short run performance being okay, although we still have to work hard optimising the parts of our package we can influence, to try and compensate for areas of the package which are more fixed. As expected, the long run with the supersoft compound was challenging, but this was also the case in Austin so we are confident we can find some more performance on this compound. The soft and medium tyre performed as expected, so overall we are happy. One of the key points for the remainder of the weekend will be to keep an eye on the track and ambient temperature change, together with further set up optimisation and, if we manage this as well as we did in Austin, then we should be in good shape.
President Muhammadu Buharis wife, Aisha, today made a u-turn following her controversial BBC interview w here she expressed her diss...

controversial BBC interview

w

here she expressed her dissatisfaction about the APC led government, she even went as far as saying she will not support her husband in 2019. However Mrs Buhari on Thursday

In her first public comment since the furore ignited by her criticism of her husbands administration in an interview she granted the BBC Hausa Service, Mrs. Buhari said she was relieved that the administration had started to fulfill some of the promises the president made during the electioneering campaigns.Mrs. Buhari spoke when she paid a visit to Benisheik, one of the liberated towns of Borno State, to flag off the distribution of relief items to displaced rural women. She made the gesture under the Get Involved initiative, a sub-component of her pet project, Future Assured.The initiative seeks to harness donations from individuals and organisations for the support of victims of violence.The presidents wife told the gathering that she was committed to seeing her husband succeed as president of Nigeria.In the BBC interview, Mrs. Buhari had criticised her husband for allegedly sidelining his long-term loyalists and political associates.She also vowed not to support his bid for reelection unless he quickly corrected the perceived anomaly.The presidents public response suggesting his wife had no business expressing views on his government, and that she belonged in the kitchen, further stoked the controversy.But Mrs. Buhari appeared to have put the controversy behind her on Thursday as she flew into the North-east state, worst affected by the Boko Haram insurgency.Mrs. Buhari, who arrived the Maiduguri International Airport at about noon in the company of wives of service chiefs and political party women leaders, was received by the wife of Borno State governor, Nana Shettima.From the airport she and her team were flown in a Nigerian Airforce Agusta-105 combat chopper to Kaga, headquarters of Kaga local government area of the state.Awaiting her in the town was a delegation of Borno State government officials led by Governor Kashim Shettima.Addressing the gathering in Kaga, Mrs. Buhari said she was happy that her husbands government had begun to fulfill campaign promises to Nigerians, and especially to the distressed people of Borno state.She said: On our campaign promises to Nigerians, especially to the people of Borno State, we thank Almighty Allah for giving us the opportunity of beginning to fulfill these promises.That is the essence of being a good leader; when you promise, you try to fulfill your promises.That is what we are all after. And what I am after in particular is the success of my husbands administration. And we cant do it alone, except with the help of the governors, their wives and members of our progressive party and all Nigerians.Mrs. Buhari said the distribution of relief items was part of her Get Involved project, which she hopes to carry on in the state through a committee led by the wife of the state governor.As you are all aware, some weeks ago, I had launched a component of my programme, Future Assured, known as Get Involved, which is aimed at bringing all Nigerians together; and it has integrated and united the people of Nigeria.The launching of Future Assured has consolidated and united the people of Nigeria. The relief items you are seeing today were received from well-meaning Nigerians who sent their regards and congratulatory messages.It is on that note that I am here today to flag off the distribution of the food items donated by well-meaning Nigerians from across the country. I thank all Nigerians for this support for the people of Borno State.Earlier, the Borno state governor and his wife commended Mrs. Buhari for making regular visits to Borno State. Mrs. Shettima noted that Thursdays visit was the third since her husband assumed the presidency of Nigeria in May 2015.Governor Shettima said Kaga town was totally destroyed and sacked by Boko Haram insurgents, until it was liberated with the coming of the administration of President Buhari.Two years ago it would have been impossible for us to hold this kind of high-level occasion here; our security forces would never have allowed us for fear of the unknown, the governor said.But today we are here under an atmosphere of peace and tranquility, and this is the situation that is prevailing in most parts of Borno state.We want to thank our mother, Hajiya Aisha Buhari, who has shown so much love and affection to Borno State. This is not her first time of coming to Borno. And this time she even ventured to visit the hinterland to see how our people are faring and to show empathy and support to the people of Kaga local government.We are mightily proud of her; we are eternally indebted to her and insha Allah (by Gods grace), in the fullness of time when the history of this epoch is going to be written, her name will be written in gold.You are indeed a proud daughter of the North-east and you have played a pivotal role in the passage of the bill establishing the North-east Development Commission. And it is pertinent to mention that you are of Borno by extraction.We want to thank you and all members of your delegation, especially eminent persons like Dame Pauline Tallen, former deputy governor of Plateau State, who has been with Her Excellency, wife of the president, each time she visits Borno and other places in Nigeria.
Scientists have managed to reconstruct the route by which HIV/Aids arrived in the US  exonerating once and for all the man long blamed fo...





Scientists have managed to reconstruct the route by which HIV/Aids arrived in the US  exonerating once and for all the man long blamed for the ensuing pandemic in the west.Using sophisticated genetic techniques, an international team of researchers have revealed that the virus emerged from a pre-existing epidemic in the Caribbean, arrived in New York by the early 1970s and then spread westwards across the US.The research also confirms that Gaetan Dugas, a French-Canadian flight attendant, was not the first person in the US to be infected, despite being dubbed Patient zero in a study of gay men with Aids in 1984. Based on that study, author Randy Shilts named Dugas in 1987 and wrote that theres no doubt that Gaetan played a key role in spreading the new virus from one end of the United States to the other.Characterised by Shilts as promiscuous and irresponsible, Dugas  who died of Aids in 1984 after assisting with studies into whether it was caused by a sexually transmitted agent  was widely vilified.However, analysis of Dugass HIV genome from a blood sample shows that it was typical of strains of the virus within the US at the time and was not the root from which the virus diversified in North America.The findings, the authors say, tie in with a large body of evidence that shows that Dugas was not the source of the pandemic in North America, and that the mistake may have been the result of a typing error in the original study that referred to Dugas as Patient 0  a term now widely used to mean the first case of an outbreak  instead of Patient O, the capital letter, which merely indicated that he lived outside California.The current study provides further evidence that patient 57, the individual identified both by the letter O and the number 0, was not patient zero of the North American epidemic, said Richard McKay, historian and co-author of the study from the University of Cambridge, adding that the authors of the original study had already pointed out he was unlikely to be the source. He said a trail of error and hype had led to Dugas being branded with the Patient Zero title.Gaetan Dugas is one of the most demonised patients in history, and one of a long line of individuals and groups vilified in the belief that they somehow fuelled epidemics with malicious intent, said McKay.In many ways the historical evidence has been pointing to the fallacy of this particular notion of patient zero for decades, said McKay. This individual was simply one of thousands infected before HIV/Aids was recognised.Writing in the journal Nature, researchers from the US, UK and Belgium describe how they developed a new technique to unpick the history of HIV-1 group M subgroup B, the subtype of HIV that is most prevalent in the western world.Called RNA jackhammering, the technique tackles the problem that the genetic material of HIV, which exists in the form of a single-stranded molecule known as RNA, breaks down rapidly over time, making it difficult to extract and piece together. RNA jackhammering allows scientists to selectively copy tiny fragments of the viruss RNA and stitch them together.AdvertisementUsing the new approach, a technique the team say took around four years to develop, the scientists turned to serum samples that had been collected in 1978 and 1979 from men who had sex with men in New York and San Francisco - samples collected before what became known as Aids was first reported in 1981.That they were able to painstakingly assemble the complete HIV genome from eight of the oldest-known samples, allowed the team to place them on a sort of family tree of the virus. Even though the number of genomes is small, the team say the eight samples not only enabled them to explore the genetic diversity of the virus in North America in the late 1970s but also chart its history, revealing the importance of New York City in the chain of events.The level of genetic diversity, they say, shows that the virus was circulating in the US for a decade before what eventually became known as Aids was recognised.According to the teams reconstruction, based on the new findings as well as previous data, after jumping from non-human primates to humans in Africa, HIV spread to Caribbean countries by around 1967, with the subtype arriving in New York by 1971 and reaching San Francisco by 1976. The conclusions, they add, are also supported by the prevalence of the HIV virus among the collection of serum samples and the spread and timing of later patient cases.New York City looks geographically like the key turning point for the emergence of this subtype, and New York City acts as this hub from which the virus moves to the west coast somewhat later and eventually to western Europe and Australia and Japan and South America and all sorts of other places, said Michael Worobey, co-author of the research from the University of Arizona.The results back up previous work by the Worobey and others, who have spent years using a variety of approaches to trace the route of the HIV/Aids epidemic and emphasises that the virus travelled from the Caribbean to the US, not vice versa. But Worobey is quick to point out that the idea of culpability is misplaced.No-one should be blamed for the spread of a virus that no-one even knew about, he said. How the virus moved from the Caribbean to the US and New York City in the 1970s is an open question - it could have been a person of any nationality, it could have even been blood products.The mistaken emphasis placed on Dugas that saw him placed as a key link between the spread of HIV/Aids between the east and west coasts of the US in the 1984 study, he said, was likely down to Dugass efforts to help researchers.Probably what happened here was a case of a guy who was unusually helpful to investigators providing lots and lots of names of sexual contacts, said Worobey. Hes just one of many people who is highly sexual active and in this network of people who are popping up as early Aids cases but he ended up looking up as this central character almost certainly just because of how helpful he was.The case, adds McKay, also highlights the problems with trying to pinpoint the first person to be infected in an epidemic. One of the dangers of focus on a single patient zero when discussing the early stages of an epidemic is that we risk obscuring important structural factors that might contribute to its development - poverty, legal and cultural inequalities, barriers to healthcare and education, he said.As well as donating blood plasma for analysis for the original study, Dugas had provided researchers with the names of 72 of the roughly 750 partners he had had a sexual relationship with in the previous three years.The fact that Dugas provided the most names, and had a more memorable name himself, likely contributed to his perceived centrality in this sexual network, Dr McKay added.Gkikas Magiorkinis, a clinical and evolutionary virologist at the University of Oxford, said that the research highlights the power of such genetic techniques in shedding light on how a virus spreads among a population. They managed to get full sequences of viruses from old samples, and that has been very difficult up until now, he said. That, he adds, could prove valuable for probing the history of many other viruses, including hepatitis C, and for designing better interventions. If we want to know how we are going to stop an epidemic we need to know who infected who and how this happened, so it will have important applications with respect to controlling epidemics, he said.(The UK Guardian)
Prof. Akintunde Akinwande has dismissed social media report that he turned down the offer of appointment as Chairman of Nigerian Electrici...

Prof. Akintunde Akinwande has dismissed social media report that he turned down the offer of appointment as Chairman of Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission.Akinwande was nominated for the Chairmanship of NERC by President Muhammadu Buhari, but failed to appear before the National Assembly for screening on October 25.His failure to appear for the screening was wrongly interpreted by a section of the social media.Prof. Akinwande, in a letter dated October 26 and sent to the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Power, Steel Development and Metallurgy, Sen. Enyinnaya Abaribe, however, said he would soon honour the invitation for screening by the Senate.He said he would appear before the Senate after clearing with his current employer, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, United States.A statement issued in Abuja on Thursday by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to President Muhammadu Buhari, Mr. Femi Adesina, confirmed this development.Adesina said that Akinwande sent the letter acknowledging his readiness to appear for screening at the Senate through the Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters, Sen. Ita Enang.Akinwande, a professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, said he did not turn down the offer by Buhari.He said, News reports in Nigeria that I have rejected President Buharis nomination to be Chairman of Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission have been brought to my attention.I have the greatest respect for President Buhari. I am fully behind the change he has brought and is bringing to the way government business is conducted in Nigeria.I am deeply honoured that Mr. President and his team thought me worthy for this important national assignment and sought me out for it.I am a tenured professor of electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.As such I am contractually constrained to seek formally the consent of the university for a leave of absence before presenting myself to the Senate for screening and if confirmed take on the assignment.Akinwande apologised to the Senate Committee for not showing up for the screening process scheduled for Oct. 25, noting that it was not out of disrespect for the institution.
The National President of the Bus Conductors Association of Nigeria, BCAN, Comrade Israel Ade Adeshola through the Lagos State ministry ...

The National President of the Bus Conductors Association of Nigeria, BCAN, Comrade Israel Ade Adeshola through the Lagos State ministry of transportation said it would employ 1000 graduates from different Universities as Bus Conductors.Comrade Adeshola in an interview with newsmen also disclosed that the new policy of the Lagos state government under the leadership of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode is collaborating with the association to give Bus Conducting profession a new look. According to him, presently Lagos state government through the Lagos State Drivers Institute, LASDRI is training and accrediting conductors in the state, adding that after the training the graduands would be employed as Bus Conductors and would be on the payroll of the government with a salary worth of N50,000 per month.The objective is to make the job of bus conducting attractive, respected and dignified as obtainable globally, he said.Adeshola explained that there is a project in the pipeline by the state government to change the face of transportation system to enhance security and also provide employment opportunity in the state. Speaking on the vision of the association, he said, since the establishment in 2008, it has been working relentlessly with the federal government through the national assembly as well as some state governments to establish its presence.
Pandemonium, panic and general unrest engulfed Isale-Oyo Community High School, Oyo Town, after some pupils of the school reportedly set ...

gathered that the aggrieved students stormed the school premises on Thursday morning, chanting solidarity songs.They were said to have become unruly afterwards, setting fire to blocks of classrooms, after which they fled the premises.It was also gathered that the school authorities alerted men of the Oyo State Fire Service, who responded swiftly and put out the fire.Blocks of classrooms were set ablaze in Oyo on Thursday, marking the worst phase of secondary school students unrest that began days ago over mass failure in exams.The school compound was deserted as teachers and other pupils reportedly fled for fear of being harmedIt was also learnt that there had been lingering crises since Monday in some secondary schools in the state following mass failure in the last promotion examinations.The Oyo State Government had set a new promotion policy which states that only students with 50 per cent in Mathematics and English language would transit to the next class.Students of Anglican Secondary School in Oyo reportedly unleashed mayhem on their teachers and destroyed billboards bearing Governor Abiola Ajimobis photographs.
The Independent National Electoral Commission INEC has declared Jimoh Ibrahim the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party PDY in the ...

The Independent National Electoral Commission INEC has declared Jimoh Ibrahim the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party PDY in the forthcoming governorship election in Ondo state.Ibrahim who belongs to the Modu Sheriff faction of the PDP replaces Eyitayo Jegede who was the candidate of the Ahmed Makarfi-led faction of the party.In the final list released Thursday night, INEC also. Announced Chief Olusola Oke as the candidate of the Alliance for Democracy AD. Signed by the commissions Secretary, Augusta Ogakwu, the list also showed that Rotimi Odunayo Akeredolu remains the candidate of the All Progressives Congress APC.
Powerlist, a publication which selects 100 of the most powerful people of African and African Caribbean heritage, has unveiled Tom Ilube, ...

Powerlist, a publication which selects 100 of the most powerful people of African and African Caribbean heritage, has unveiled Tom Ilube, a British citizen, whose father is a Nigerian, as the most powerful black person in the United Kingdom.Ilube was announced after an independent panel of judges led by Dame Linda Dobbs, a former high court judge, and Michael Eboda, a publisher, recommended him.According to Powerlist, entrants were judged on their ability to change lives and alter events, as demonstrated over a protracted period of time and in a positive manner.Born in Isleworth, west London, Ilube bagged his first degree from the University of Benin. He studied Physics. He later obtained an MBA at Cass Business School in London.His journey to the top was not smooth, as he encountered obstacles that should have ordinarily made him quit. He was rejected for a graduate trainee scheme at McDonalds for not being good enough. But determined, he sent applications to every company starting with the letter A and was turned down again and again, so he started working through the Bs and ended up working for British Airways as a programmer.From there, he headed to the London Stock Exchange in the 1980s, where he was one of few black professionals. He was able to work his way to the top.ody, lube is celebrated for his outstanding work in education. He founded Hammersmith Academy, which opened in September 2011 and has gone on to become one of the UKs most innovative technology schools.The 53-year-old philanthropist set up African Gifted Foundation, to help transform the lives of hundreds of children on the continent.Earlier this year, he opened the African Science Academy (ASA), Africas first girls-only science and technology school, based in Ghana with young women scientists attending from Ghana, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Cameroon, Sierra Leone and Uganda.ASA is a fee-paying school but there are scholarships for students with financial needs. It aims to admit over 200 students a year. The academy is driving Africas development by inspiring and unleashing the next generation of gifted scientists and engineers.Commenting on the institution, he said: I am convinced that we have brilliant young women in African who have the potential to be tomorrows world class scientists and engineers.Launching the African Science Academy is the highlight of all my work in education over the past decade. I am convinced that we have brilliant young women in African who have the potential to be tomorrows world class scientists and engineers.Ilube, who has established several successful technology companies, has a vast experience. He served as the chief executive officer of Crossword Cybersecurity Plc and served as its chairman of the board until September 1, 2016.He was the managing director at Callcredit Limited and Consumer Markets at Callcredit Information Group Limited. He also founded Garlik Ltd. and served as its chief executive officer. Ilube co-founded Lost Wax in 1996 and served as its chief executive officer, where he took an active role in the business development. He served as chief information officer of Egg plc. Ilube has over 25 years of commercial systems delivery experience with a range of blue chip organizations, including Goldman Sachs, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, London Stock Exchange, British Airways and Cap Gemini. He served as Overall programme manager for the initial launch of Egg financial services. He is a highly regarded board level adviser and inspirational speaker on e-commerce issues and technology trends. He currently serves as a director of Crossword Cybersecurity Plc and Callcredit Limited.This is what he has to say on his latest recognition: Im incredibly proud of all of our Powerlistees this year and over the past 10 years in which weve published the magazine. Tom isnt a household name, but quietly behind the scenes, he has had an incredible effect on the lives of so many people across the world.Not much is known of his private life.
Olusegun Mimiko, governor of Ondo state, says the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise Jimoh Ibra...

Olusegun Mimiko, governor of Ondo state, says the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise Jimoh Ibrahim as candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the November 26 poll is capable of setting the state on fire.Addressing state house correspondents after a private meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari, Mimiko said there was no basis for INECs action.He vowed that everything possible would be done for the commission to reverse the decision, which he described as shocking.I am shocked. In logic, in law, in politics, there is no basis for this decision whatsoever, he said.This action potentially can cause a breach of peace. We see this action as potentially dangerous. It can cause conflagration in the state and that is why as the chief security officer of the state, I have come to alert Mr. President of the potential danger of this injustice so that we can nip it in the bud.In the last seven and half years, we have done everything possible to put good governance on the table and promote peace.Mimiko said while the primary which produced Eyitayo Jegede, candidate of the Ahmed Makarfi faction held in Akure, the state capital, and was monitored by security agents and electoral officials, the exercise which threw up Ibrahim held in the neighbouring state of Oyo.He argued that the court order which the INEC based its decision upon was about zonal and state executives of the PDP, and not about the 2016 election.Mimiko said the Makarfi faction got two court orders restraining INEC from substituting Jegede, but the commission chose to disregard the orders.Only around 7 or 8 pm on Thursday did we get to know that INEC for no justifiable reason had substituted the name of Jegede and replaced it with that of Ibrahim, he said.The question to ask is on whose order has INEC done that?Apart from the fact that we have two restraining orders on INEC, the commission knows fully well that Jimoh Ibrahims primary was in Ibadan.There was no report by security agencies that the security situation in Ondo state warranted the movement of the primary to Ibadan or anywhere outside the state for that matter.Under INEC guidelines, the time for substitution of candidates has even elapsed.
A Court in Enugu on Thursday sentenced a woman to 90 years in jail for university admission fraud.

A Court in Enugu on Thursday sentenced a woman to 90 years in jail for university admission fraud.The woman, Chika Amsy Charles, was prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and was sentenced to three years imprisonment on each of the 30-count charge brought against her.The sentences are to run concurrently from the date of her conviction.Ms. Charles was found guilty of swindling three young Nigerians to the tune of N5.6 million under the guise of helping them secure admission into Enugu State University of Science and Technology, through her unregistered NGO called Bold and Dynamic Gender Initiative.But Ms. Charles ran out of luck in 2007 when one of her victims whom she defrauded petitioned the EFCC, on her fraudulent activities.One of the Counts on which she was convicted and sentenced reads: That you Chika Amsy Charles, Simon Chidubem (at large) and Friday Ali(at large) on or about the 10th October, 2007 at Enugu, Enugu State within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court of Nigeria with intent to defraud obtained N330,000(Three Hundred and Thirty Thousand) from Okudoh Obinna by false pretense when you represented yourselves as capable of procuring admission for his wards into Enugu State University of Science and Technology which pretense you knew to be false and thereby committed an offense contrary to Section 1(1)(b) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act NO: 14 of 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.Meanwhile, a Federal High Court in Kaduna on Thursday convicted Aminu Yau, a former cashier of Giwa Local Government Area, Kaduna State for money laundering.The court found the accused guilty on two counts of money laundering and sentenced to him to five years imprisonment on each count.However, following the plea for mercy by his counsel, D.G. Laah and submissions of the prosecution counsel M. S. Abubakar that the court should be guided by the recently enacted sentencing guidelines, the judge, Evelyn Anyadike, directed that the effective date of the sentence should be July 2012 when the convict was first arraigned before the court.Ms. Ya u was accused of running private business enterprise in the name and style of Yuzafa Global Link through which he executed contracts in the LGA and deployed the proceeds for the acquisition of choice properties in Zaria, Kaduna state and establishment of a bakery, block industry and sachet water factory, among others.
PLEASANTVILLE -- Less than two months after being charged in connection with a fatal shootout on the Atlantic City Expressway, a Pleasantville man has been arrested again.

Wilbert Demosthenes

Wilbert Demosthenes, 25, was taken into custody after police said they executed a search warrant on the 100 block of Willard Avenue and found 47 grams of cocaine and heroin in a car.

Demosthenes was charged with possession with intent to distribute as well as possession with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of a school, Capt. Matthew Hartman said in a news release.

He was held on $150,000 bail with no 10 percent option at the Atlantic County jail.

In late August, Demosthenes was arrested after investigators found his blood inside a pickup truck, one of three vehicles involved in the rolling shootout.

Demosthenes was the sixth person arrested following that incident. He was charged with unlawful possession of a weapon, possession of a weapon for unlawful purpose and certain persons not to possess a firearm. Demosthenes was free on $250,000 bail prior to Wednesday's arrest.

Police were called around 3 p.m. on Aug. 29 to the Atlantic City Expressway, near Exit 12, for an exchange of gunfire between a silver Nissan Maxima, a white Ford Expedition and a black Dodge Ram.

A passenger in the Maxima, Rosemond Octavius, 22, of Egg Harbor Township, was found dead in the car from gunshot wounds. The Ford Expedition was found in a Wawa parking lot on Delilah Road, at the traffic circle near Atlantic City Airport.

The four people in the car were charged with weapons offenses. The driver of the Maxima was also arrested.

Shortly after the shooting, police also received calls about a white Ford Expedition pulling into a parking lot at the Egg Harbor Township Wawa on Delilah Road. The Expedition had been struck by gunfire 21 times and was missing a rear tire when it pulled into the parking lot.

The Dodge Ram got off the Expressway in the Pleasantville area and was found two days later in Pleasantville. Investigators found blood in the truck from Demosthene, who took himself to a hospital in Philadelphia after the shooting for a gunshot wound to his arm.

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
gwb33.jpg

Port Authority police Friday morning received a report of a person climbing a tower on the GWB. (File photo)

( )

UPDATE: 2 eastbound lanes reopened after climber taken into custody

FORT LEE - A report of a man climbing a tower on the New Jersey side of the George Washington Bridge Friday morning led to closure of several lanes of traffic and a walkway, authorities said.

"Reportedly, there is an individual climbing the New Jersey tower, south side," Port Authority Police Spokesman Joe Pentangelo said shortly after the incident began at 8:30 a.m.

About a half hour later, Pentangelo announced the man was in custody.

511nj.org reported that all upper lanes were closed and traffic was diverted to the lower level.

7online.com reported the man was wearing jeans and no shirt.

Around 9 a.m., police began to allow upper level traffic headed into New Jersey. Pentangelo said two eastbound lanes were open after the man was taken into custody and that the lower level remained open.

All lanes reopened shortly before 10 a.m., Pentangelo said.

UPDATE: Shirtless #GWB climber in custody after second traffic nightmare on the bridge this week. https://t.co/56fD4dUDvQ pic.twitter.com/bbXL3ApzXA  NBC New York (@NBCNewYork) October 28, 2016

And thanks to a man climbing #GWB tower we're all going to be late for work pic.twitter.com/kxBk2IaPjP  David Borghard (@dbdoinwork) October 28, 2016

Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
CAMDEN -- A federal court judge has ruled a federal civil rights lawsuit brought by the Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Tribe against New Jersey's Office of the Attorney General can proceed.

The tribe alleges the state's decision to arbitrarily withdraw official recognition of the Lenni-Lenape was motivated by "racial prejudice and political gamesmanship," according to Greg Werkheiser attorney for the tribe.

U.S. District Court Judge Renee Marie Bumb on Thursday denied the state's request to have the suit dismissed. The ruling clears the way for the case to go to trial. The 3,000-member tribe, whose members live throughout the Northeast, is headquartered in Fairfield Township in Cumberland County.

The Lenni-Lenape have argued that New Jersey's withdrawal of prior recognition of the tribe has resulted in great financial consequences and loss of "tribal identity and prestige."

"We are relieved, grateful, and prayerful about the court's carefully considered decision," said tribal co-Chief Mark Gould. "We are indebted to the citizens of New Jersey for their support through this ordeal. We look forward to prevailing in the trial and beginning to rebuild our relationship with the government of New Jersey."

Leland Moore, a spokesman for the Attorney General's office, said the decision is being reviewed and declined further comment.

Beginning in 1982, the state recognized three American Indian tribes, including the Lenni-Lenape, but that changed in 2012, according to tribal representatives.

They argued in court papers that the Attorney General's Office, on behalf of the Christie administration, took the position that New Jersey has no recognized American Indian tribes.

In its federal suit, the tribe alleged that the decision was driven by the state's fear that the Lenni-Lenape would seek federal gaming rights.

Werkheiser said the Lenni-Lenape have never sought such rights and that state recognition would play no role in helping the tribe secure gaming rights. The Attorney General's action is a violation of the U.S. Constitution's due process and equal protection guarantees, Werkheiser said.

Werkheiser said with state recognition, the Lenni-Lenape had access to federal services including health care for poverty-level senior citizens, women and children along with college scholarships, jobs and the right to sell traditional crafts labeled as American-Indian made.

"Judge Bumb's decision reminds us that in our American system, the courts can still ensure a level playing field for the politically powerless against the whims of even the most politically powerful," said Werkheiser.

"This isn't about money or about asking for something more in the future than what the tribe has had in the past," Werkheiser said Friday. "We are seeking for the tribe to be returned to their status as a state-recognized tribe which they had for 34 years."

"We just want the Attorney General to stop hurting the tribe by denying their existence."

In March, a Superior Court just tossed out a similar suit by the Lenni-Lenape alleging the state was violating the rights of the tribe by not recognizing it. That ruling is being appealed.

Bill Gallo Jr. may be reached at bgallo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow Bill Gallo Jr. on Twitter @bgallojr. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Rowan Halloween costume .jpeg

Rowan University sent this flyer to students warning them to consider whether their Halloween costume is offensive.

GLASSBORO -- Is your Halloween costume offensive?

Is it disrespectful to the religious or spiritual beliefs of others? Does it mock the sexuality or gender of other people?

If the answer to any of these question is yes, Rowan University has another question for you: "Why would (you) want to be someone who treats other people that way?"

That's the message students received from the university via email Friday after a rash of controversial Halloween costumes at colleges nationwide in recent years.

"We have had incidents in the past where students have dressed inappropriately and this is a way to make students think," university spokesman Jose Cardona said, adding that Rowan is trying to be proactive rather than reactive.

Cardona declined to say what costumes caused problems at the university, but campuses nationwide have dealt with controversy stemming from students wearing black face or other costumes that offended other students.

Even college presidents have found themselves in hot water. James R. Ramsey, president of Louisville University, apologized after wearing a stereotypical Mexican costume to a staff Halloween party last year.

Rowan's warning to students prior to Halloween is in line with efforts colleges across the country are making to stop students from making potentially offensive costume choices.

The University of Texas released a lengthy list of offensive costumes, ranging from gypsies and geishas to trailer trash and rednecks. And the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse hosted a seminar called "Is Your Costume Racist?" according a report form to Inside Higher Ed.

At Rowan, at least one student took issue with the university's warning, using "colorful language" to tell the school its email was ridiculous, Cardona said. But another student sent a message saying it appreciated how progressive the university is, he said.

Considering the diversity of the campus, the university thinks the warning was warranted, he said.

"What (costumes) may have worked in their closed community growing up may not work in a community that is so diverse," Cardona said.

Adam Clark may be reached at adam_clark@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on twitter at @realAdamClark. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has issued a subpoena to Donald Trump. The nine-member panel sent a letter to the former president's lawyers on Friday, demanding his testimony under oath by mid-November and outlining a series of corresponding documents. The decision by lawmakers to exercise their subpoena power comes a week after the committee made its final case against the former president, who they say is the "central cause" of the multi-part effort to overturn the results of the 2020 election. It remains unclear how Trump and his legal team will respond to the subpoena, if at all.
Today

Some sun in the morning with increasing clouds during the afternoon. High 77F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph.

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. Low 64F. Winds light and variable.

Tomorrow

A few clouds from time to time. High 77F. Winds light and variable.
Today

Partly to mostly cloudy. High around 75F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph.

Tonight

Some clouds. Low 64F. Winds light and variable.

Tomorrow

A few passing clouds, otherwise generally sunny. High 77F. Winds light and variable.
Earlier this week, a federal judge approved the largest auto-scandal settlement in U.S. history, giving nearly a half-million Volkswagen owners and leaseholders the choice between selling their cars back or having them repaired so they dont cheat on emissions tests and spew excess pollution.

The German automaker acknowledged last year that about 475,000 Volkswagens and Audis with 2-liter, four-cylinder diesel engines were programmed to cheat on emissions tests.

The scandal erupted when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Volkswagen had fitted many of its cars with software to fool emissions tests. The software recognized when the cars were being tested on a treadmill and turned on pollution controls. The controls were turned off when the cars returned to the road. The EPA alleged the scheme let the cars spew up to 40 times the allowable limit of nitrogen oxide, which can cause respiratory problems in humans.

Car owners and the U.S. Department of Justice sued.

U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer said the nearly $15 billion settlement adequately and fairly compensates consumers and gets the polluting vehicles off the road as soon as possible.

Under the agreement, owners can choose to have Volkswagen buy back their vehicle regardless of its condition for the full trade-in price on Sept. 18, 2015, when the scandal broke, or pay for repairs. Either way, Volkswagen also will pay owners $5,100 to $10,000, depending on the age of the car and whether the owner had it prior to Sept. 18 of last year.

Volkswagen has agreed to spend up to $10 billion compensating consumers and could start buying back the cars as early as next month.

Regulators have not approved any fixes.

The settlement also includes $2.7 billion for unspecified environmental mitigation and $2 billion to promote zero-emissions vehicles.

While some owners feel they should receive a refund equal to their full purchase price because of VWs fraud, Breyer concluded that affected car owners were not entitled to a full refund because many had received a great deal of use out of their vehicles.

The settlement represents just the tip of the iceberg. Through September, VW Groups sales in the U.S. are down nearly 7 percent from 2015 figures. The VW Group includes the Audi, VW, Bentley and Lamborghini brands. The Volkswagen brand fared worse, with sales down 12.5 percent. The cost to repair the companys image is incalculable.

We agree with Breyer that the settlement fairly compensates consumers and punishes the company for its fraudulent activity.
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.
Nebraska is turning 150 in 2017, and a public art project is aiming to mark the occasion with the help of artists from across the state.

Nebraska by Heart will feature 6-foot heart-shaped sculptures by Nebraska artists that represent our state and why they are proud to call it home.

The designs may also incorporate elements related to the two organizations that sponsorship helps fund  the Hope College Center and the Sadie Dog Fund.

Several west central Nebraska artists designs are among 176 proposals that were accepted for the public art project. Sponsorships are being sought for the designs.

Because Nebraska has 93 counties, our herculean goal is to have 93 artists proposals sponsored, said Liz Shea-McCoy, director of the Nebraska by Heart project.

Susan Hanson of Elsie already has a sponsor for her design, Corgis Cabin. Pinnacle Bank in Ogallala provided the $3,000 sponsorship.

Hansons design includes a quilting pattern known as the log cabin pattern, which covers one side of the heart. The opposite side features a quilted mosaic of Roxy, a corgi owned by Hansons sister. It is meant to represent the joy and contentment that comes from being a part of a loving, supportive home.

This is my first public art project and I have certainly stepped out of my comfort zone to do this, Hanson said. I am truly beyond excited to participate in this project to celebrate the sesquicentennial birthday in this wonderful state of Nebraska.

In North Platte, Sandra Meyer has submitted a proposal as well.

I finally came up with what a Sandhills crane might see when flying over Nebraska and looking for a place to land, she said. I thought of what he might encounter along the way.

Meyers design is broken into pieces by painted rivers, separating scenes of corn growing, rain falling, sunflowers and snow.

If the heart is completed, Meyer said, Id love to have it at the Prairie Arts Center. I thought, maybe this will be my legacy.

Meyer said she is anxious to get started, but she hasnt been sponsored yet.

Brady artist Patsy Smith also lacks a sponsor but has begun planning. She has submitted two designs, and hopes to reach out to sponsors who are interested in the subject matter. For example, the Best Friends proposal features children and puppies, a nod to the Sadie Dog Fund. Smith said she might approach veterinarians or other organizations that work with animals about sponsorship.

Her second design, Precious Aquifer, is near and dear to my heart, she said.

Ive always felt lucky that we sit on a wonderful body of water here in Nebraska  our precious Aquifer.

Smith was involved in the J. Doe public art project in Omaha several years ago, and because these projects are so large, she hasnt done one since.

In the meantime, Ive been really busy with commissions and a book that wants to publish one of my paintings, she said.

Janelle McKain is a Gretna artist, but is also a graduate of North Platte High School.

McKain was also involved in a previous project, the Enchanted Arboretum in Nebraska City. Her sculpture, a tree with many faces carved into its branches, is still on display there. So when she received an email about Nebraska by Heart, she said, she thought, I had fun doing that one, I think Ill try this one too.

Her design for the heart is similar, featuring faces connected by long, colorful threads. Its called Spirits of the Heartland, and has not been sponsored yet.

McKain said the project is great, partly because it invites any artist to participate.

There are proposals by kids, students, artists  all kinds of people, she said.

The $3,000 sponsorship also provides $500 to the artists for materials, which McKain appreciates, as a 6-foot sculpture can easily use up that amount.

Meyer also praised the stipend, because in previous projects, artists had to come up with their own funds.

As soon as I get sponsored, theyll bring it to my studio and I can start working on it, McKain said.

For more information on the Nebraska by Heart project or sponsorship of a design, visit nebraskabyheart.org.
The North Platte Public Library is hosting a free Brown Bag program at noon on Nov. 3. Pink and Blue: Telling the Boys from the Girls in America will be presented by author and professor Jo Paoletti, who is visiting the North Platte area from Maryland.

When did we start dressing girls in pink and boys in blue? To uncover the answer, Paoletti looks at advertising, catalogs, dolls, baby books, mommy blogs and discussion forums, and other popular media to examine the surprising shifts in attitudes toward color as a mark of gender in American childrens clothing. She chronicles the decline of the white dress for both boys and girls, the introduction of rompers in the early 20th century, the gendering of pink and blue, the resurgence of unisex fashions and the origins of todays highly gender-specific baby and toddler clothing.

Paoletti is Professor of American Studies at the University of Maryland, where she teaches courses about fashion and consumer culture. Her 2012 book, Pink and Blue: Telling the Boys from the Girls in America, explored gender differences in baby and toddler clothing from the late 19th century to the present. In Sex and Unisex: Fashion, Feminism and the Sexual Revolution (2015), she examined the fashions of the 1960s and 70s as a response to changing social and cultural forces. She is currently working on Age Appropriate, which will be about older women and their clothing.

This is a special homecoming for Paoletti. A native of Fremont, she and her brother were regular patrons of the North Platte Public Library as children. In early October 1957, the family drove away from their white stucco bungalow on Willow Street and headed east to a new life in New Jersey. Since then, she has dreamed of coming back to North Platte, but was only able to stop for a couple of days more than 20 years ago. This time she will be here for three weeks, hoping to reconnect with old friends and maybe make new ones.

All Brown Bag Programs are free to the public. Reservations are requested by calling 308-535-8036, ext. 3310. Bring a lunch, and coffee or water will be provided.
Well, I attended a meeting. Thats a remarkably unremarkable event for me. But this meeting was the second time that the Pastoral Councils of St. Victor and Our Lady of Knock parishes have met jointly.

For two years these two Calumet City parishes have been meeting with an eye to a greater linkage and eventual consolidation of staffs, programs, and activities, while both worship sites continue to be used.

This is precipitated primarily by the lack of priests available to pastor parishes. Noticeably more priests are retiring and dying than are being ordained.

The way the Archdiocese of Chicago evolved into many parishes, often created by and for particular ethnic groups, has caused some problems for the reality of the Church today.

An interesting comparison. There are more parishes in the Archdiocese of Chicago (346) for fewer Catholics (2.23 million) than for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles which has 228 parishes for 4.48 million Catholics.

The Archdiocese of Chicago is well aware of this and is making strategic plans to better use the resources available. This could mean many things including the kind of linkage that St. Victor and Our Lady of Knock have been working on.

Fr. David Pavlik is the pastor of both St. Victor and Our Lady of Knock. Besides this there are a number of ways the two parishes have been moving closer together.

A new Mass in Spanish has been instituted at Our Lady of Knock (St. Victor has had two masses in Spanish for a number of years).

A business manager has been hired for the two parishes.

The two parishes have consolidated their religious education for youth programs.

A joint picture directory is in the works.

Volunteers from OLK were in evidence at St. Victors VictorFest.

Fr. Lyons Hall at OLK has been used by St. Victor and for joint endeavors.

There was a joint retreat last Lent.

The large and heavily attended Novena to Our Lady of Guadalupe will be shared between the two parishes.

Both our Vicar, Bishop Perry, and the Archbishop, Cardinal Cupic, have lauded the two parishes for their work. The Cardinal did say that the other Catholic Church in Cal City, St. Andrew, should be involved.

Representatives from St. Andrew have been at three meetings recently.

Things are happening. Thanks for reading.
MONEE, Illinois  The sign at the entrance to Bult Field, the small general aviation airport situated among the farm fields of southeast Will County, welcomes visitors to The Future Site of the South Suburban Airport.

While that statement might seem to have missed the apparent dormancy into which that project, along with other major transportation projects in Illinois, has fallen, state transportation officials insist the airport is moving forward.

At the Chicago Southland Economic Development Corp.s quarterly meeting at Bult Field on Friday, the Illinois Department of Transportation Division of Aviations interim director told a gathering of about 100 local officials and business people that the airport project is still alive. Its still a project.

Steven Young said the state has acquired 145 parcels, covering about 4,400 acres, including Bult Field itself.

This shows you our commitment, Young said. We have three parcels left to fill out our nonrural land acquisition area.

Many of the now state-owned properties are being leased, including 35 residential properties and more than 4,000 acres of farmland.

Young also said the state is working with the Federal Aviation Administration on a master plan, several components of which have recently been finalized.

According to the airport project website, southsuburbanairport.com, a Financial Implementation Plan, Financial Feasibility Plan, Airport Layout Plan and Airport Plans Report have all been submitted to the FAA for review.

The four reports describe the phasing of airport development, the financial options available to build and operate the airport, the geographic boundaries of it and the nature of airport facilities and structures necessary for the airport.

The South Suburban Airport, commonly referred to as Peotone airport, would be built as a public-private partnership, Young said.

The controversial airport project has found opposition among many residents of the rural area. Others question whether it would generate the aviation business its proponents suggest, including commercial passenger service. A South Suburban Airport would also compete with the Gary/Chicago International Airport for the mantle of Chicagos third airport.

Young said the states freeze of major transportation projects, which also put the proposed Illiana Expressway under moratorium, has impacted the airport project, but, we havent stopped. Were moving along with the portions we can.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, Quebecs $9 billion maritime strategy, and other transportation topics will be on tap at the 2016 Indiana Logistics Summit, which will take place Nov. 16-17 at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis.

The Ports of Indiana, Conexus Indiana and Purdue University are hosting the three-day event, which will feature more than 20 speakers.

Globalization is no longer just a buzzword in U.S. economic and logistics discussions, Ports of Indiana CEO Rich Cooper said. Companies are coming to full realization that their marketplace and their competitors are not necessarily in the same city, state or country where they once were. The U.S. home field advantage has yielded to a very complex global economy.

Breakout sessions will cover topics like the Interstate 69 extension, maritime shipping, and the future of drones. Engineers and supply chain professionals can earn certification credits to maintain certifications and licenses.

Registration is $300 and includes breakfast and lunch. To register or for more information, visit www.indianalogistics.com.
Twenty young professionals were honored during The Times Media Companys annual 20 Under 40 awards banquet at Blue Chip Casino on Thursday night. The award winners, all under age 40, have shown leadership in business, education, government and social services.

The annual 20 Under 40 awards program, sponsored by The Times Media Co. and IN Business magazine, is one of the signature events on the Regions business calendar.

To date, more than 200 young business leaders have been honored since this recognition program began. It is now in its 12th year.

This years 20 honorees were culled from nominations received during the summer and were announced in the October issue of IN Business magazine.

For full profiles and photos of each of the honorees listed below go to nwi.com/digital/graphics.

Jeff Zielinski, business development coordinator for Prompt Ambulance Service, enjoys a challenge. Whether it is helping others during Hurricane Sandy, Region residents through his work with Prompt or starting a nonprofit to revitalize Region skateparks.

Simonne Benoit considers herself a facilitator in her role as environmental engineer for ArcelorMittal. By all accounts, she also is an innovator: She was instrumental in developing a zero-discharge water system at ArcelorMittals Indiana Harbor facility in East Chicago. Less water in, less pollutants out.

Kevin Matthew Pazour, executive director of the Porter County Museum in Valparaiso, loves anything to do with Porter County history  a passion he developed during his high school days at Washington Township High School. I absolutely became fascinated with people who lived here, he says.

Cloteal LaBrois adaptability and resourcefulness has been much needed at Garys Public Works Department, where she has overcome limitations without complaint, says Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson, adding, A lot of people have the ability, but not everybody is willing.

A lifelong resident of Porter County, JoElla DePra is all about connecting people to build a better community. A trust officer with 1st Source Bank, she says, I grew up here, and I want to make it a better place. My passion is trying to bring people together to get things accomplished. Were going to grow old together in this community.

In Northwest Indiana we have great health care, says Stephen Lunn, the 37-year-old CEO of Porter Health Care System. People really dont need to go to Chicago. Lunn sees the day coming soon when health care in the Region emerges from the shadow of Chicago.

Bitten by the journalism bug while in high school, Summer Moore says her goal now is to help the craft make the leap into the digital age. And thats just what shes doing today as The Times Media Co. digital and audience engagement editor.

Melissa Huffmans experience growing up surrounded by great-grandparents and grandparents helps her as director of sales and marketing at Residences at Deer Creek in Schererville. She says, I just loved being with them. Today, she wants to pass on that perspective to those who must make what often is a heart-wrenching decision to place loved ones in long-term care facilities.

Megan Applegate knew as a preschooler she wanted to work at her fathers firm, Applegate & Co., as a CPA. As an adult, she is doing that just. Among her responsibilities is working with nonprofits. She provides financial savvy for these groups, and, in turn, is gaining greater appreciation for community involvement.

Vincent Flaska is determined to carry on the legacy of his father, Marty Flaska, president and CEO of Hoist Liftruck. Ive been around the business my whole life, says the younger Flaska, who now is president of Hoist and co-founder of Xpress Steel LLC. I want to build the foundation into an empire.

Brothers Milap and Sangeet Shah have taken their strong business acumen, compassionate viewpoints and support from a friend to build a chain of urgent care and non-emergency health facilities, Midwest Express Clinics.

From remote villages to the bustling Region, Kris Parker seeks positive change. Today, the frontier where she seeks to make a difference is the sprawling melting pot of Northwest Indiana. While the scenery has changed, Parker takes the knowledge she has learned in her past travels and applies it to serve the Region.

When Tiffany Bley was looking to move into the private sector, she knew it needed to be with a company that valued doing good and giving back to the community. She found that with Fronius USA LLC as assistant to the CEO. There she has initiated a Fronius Help group that coordinates volunteer workers from within the company to complete service projects.

Kevin Comerford, director of professional development at Construction Advancement Foundation, is widely regarded in the Northwest Indiana construction industry as an authority on best practices for construction management and supervision, says CAF Executive Director Dewey Pearman.

Nichole DeMario, director of communications and professional development for Greater Northwest Indiana Association of Realtors, is making the most of being in the right place at the right time.

Pete Dragojevic is a member of the Lake County FOP Kris Anton Lodge No. 125, Crown Point FOP Lodge No. 176 and Lake County Police Merit Board. He is one of few non-law enforcement officers inducted into these organizations, but says, Thats what I breathe, its what I know and its what I back  my brothers and sisters in blue.

Kaitlyn Hendricks basic job description: tasting craft brews for quality control. Technically the title is sensory analyst and quality control. But she does much more than taste beer at 3 Floyds Brewing Co. Among other hats she wears is educator, sitting on the board of directors of the Brewers of Indiana Guild, teaching and promoting sensory analysis in the industry.

Dimitri Olympidis, vice president of central enterprises and marketing liaison to operations for the Family Express Corp., spearheaded two company initiatives: the Better For You section and the newly launched Free Fruit for Kids.

Dana Rifai, an associate attorney with Merrillville-based Burke Costanza & Carberry LLP, is credited with initiating the law firms immigration practice, where she focuses on employment, family and business matters.

Benjamin Bochnowski took an offer he couldnt refuse when he got a call from a community bank trying to navigate the Great Recessions fiscal gloom. It was Peoples Bank and a homecoming for Bochnowski where three generations of his family have been in charge. Today, he is president and chief executive officer.
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VALPARAISO  A 39-year-old Chesterton man was found not guilty late Thursday night on three counts of child molesting.

The jury deliberated for more than six hours before returning after 10 p.m. to clear David Lazaro of the offenses.

He had been accused of molesting a young girl over a period of five years.

The young girl, who is now 17, told jurors Wednesday that Lazaro began molesting her when she was in second grade.

The girl testified the abuse became more violent over the years and even left her with bruises.

She said it occurred at homes in Lake Station and Chesterton and came to an end only when she revealed the information to a friend, who convinced her to share the news with her family and authorities.

The girls testimony quickly came under attack from defense attorney Susan Severtson, who questioned that the girl came forward with the claim at a time when Lazaro was attempting to thwart her plans to remain with the friend she was visiting.

Severtson told jurors the accusations are a journey from impossible to implausible.

The girl is claiming Lazaro carried out the abuse in households full of people, Severtson said.

Lazaro turned down a proposed plea agreement last week that would have reduced one of the C felony molestation counts to D felony sexual battery.

The other two counts would have been dismissed.
HAMMOND  A Crown Point man pleaded guilty early Friday in federal court to attempting to commit a terrorist act.

Federal authorities announced Marlonn Hicks, 30, of Crown Point, is admitting he sent bomb-making instructions online last June to a government informant with the intent that an attack be carried out in the name of ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria), a terrorist organization that rules parts of Iraq and Syria in the Mideast.

U.S. Attorney David Capp, Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Mary B. McCord and Special FBI Agent in Charge W. Jay Abbott announced the charges Friday.

Hicks appeared before U.S. Magistrate Andrew Rodovich and pleaded guilty to a charge of distribution of information pertaining to the manufacture or use of a destructive device with intent to commit a violent act. The crime carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

The U.S. Attorneys office said an investigation by the FBI and the Indianapolis Joint Terrorism Task Force found that Hicks had been communicating online this spring with a government informant posing as an ISIS supporter.

A federal court document states Hicks told the informant he wanted to travel to territory under the control of ISIS.

It states he expressed a new plan to carry out an attack in the U.S. two days after the June 12 attack on a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, by Omar Mateen, who killed 49 people and wounded 53 others before Orlando police fatally shot Mateen.

The document states Hicks told the informant, ... I stated that after recent events, it was mostly likely that I would die here. ... I meant to convey my willingness to commit a similar attack in the United States.

Hicks allegedly explained, I stressed this point by indicting that I was not trying to clean only a couple kuffar and wanted to do something major without being caught. I used the Arabic term kuffar to mean non-believer.

The government said Hicks later told another government informant posing as a ISIS supporter, I discussed plans to get busy with this individual, meaning to conduct an attack within the United States. He said he sent that informant detailed instructions online of how to make explosives.

Ryan Holmes, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorneys office, said Hicks is in federal custody at one of the several jails in Northwest Indiana or the Chicago area.

Capp said his office and the National Security Divisions Counterterrorism Section filed charges Oct. 19 against Hicks that were sealed from public view until Fridays guilty plea hearing.

Hicks signed an plea bargain Tuesday agreeing to plead guilty and cooperate with federal authorities in return for the U.S. Attorney not pressing any other charges against him and to recommend he receive a reduced sentence.

Federal Defender Roxanne Mendez Johnson represented Hicks at Fridays plea. She declined to comment.

Rodovich recommended U.S. District Court Judge Joseph S. Van Bokkelen accept the agreement. No sentencing date has been set.
HAMMOND  A federal grand jury has indicted a 34-year-old Hammond woman on charges of aggravated identify theft, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Northern District of Indiana.

Alexis Young is accused of stealing an individuals personal information in October and committing an offense while on release and awaiting sentencing for a prior conviction.

According to federal court records, Young pleaded guilty in April 2015 to one count alleging conspiracy to commit identity theft but faced trial on the ID theft counts. She was convicted of three counts of aggravated identity theft after a trial in January.

As part of that case, Young allegedly provided information her half-sister stole from an unnamed Illinois medical facility to other people. Those people opened credit card accounts in victims names and used existing accounts to make purchases and obtain services without the victims knowledge, court records show.

Youngs bond was revoked on Oct. 20 and she was ordered to be held without bond pending sentencing, according to court records.
CROWN POINT  Lake County Juvenile Judge Thomas Stefaniak was injured in a crash involving his county-owned vehicle Thursday morning, police said.

Crown Point police responded about 11:20 a.m. Thursday to the area of 93rd Avenue and Main Street for a report of a two-vehicle crash, according to Lake County sheriffs spokesman Mark Back. The Sheriff Department's Crash Reconstruction Unit responded to the scene a short time later to assist at the request of Crown Point.

Stefaniak was transported to Franciscan Health Crown Point with injuries that were not life-threatening. The other driver was not injured and refused medical treatment at the scene, he said.

Back said Stefaniak and another driver were traveling east on 93rd Avenue near Main Street  a two-lane road with a third center turn lane  when the crash occurred.

After speaking with the involved parties and several witnesses, police determined Stefaniak was traveling in the center turn lane when the other driver turned in front of his vehicle, causing Stefaniak to strike his vehicle.

The other driver had initially reported he was in the center turn lane attempting to turn left into the Luke gas station when he was struck by Stefaniaks vehicle, Back said. The name of the other driver was not immediately available Thursday night.

The Lake County Crash Reconstruction Unit was on scene for several hours investigating the crash, he said.

Police have yet to determine who is at fault and its unclear if any citations will be issued, Back said.

The investigation is still in the initial stages," Back said, noting Lake County is leading the investigation. This is a unique situation. This is Crown Points jurisdiction. Ordinarily with personal injury accidents, agencies like Crown Point will request assistance from Lake County because officers in the (Crash Reconstruction Unit) have special training, Back said.
GARY  The Lake County coroner's office has identified a body found in the woods Friday morning as that of a missing Gary man, Michael J. Washington.

Washington, 28, was last seen Sept. 30.

A tree trimming crew made the grisly discovery Friday morning while working to shape up trees on a dead-end street on the city's West Side.

Foul play is suspected. The body was found about 9:24 a.m. in the woods to the south side of the 5000 block of West 20th Place, Gary police spokeswoman Lt. Dawn Westerfield said.

Washington was last seen getting into a vehicle in the area of the Oak Knoll Apartments. Earlier this month, police requested the public's help in finding Washington, saying they had exhausted all leads at the time.

Jerry Fields and Norman McGhee, employees of Lakeside Properties, said they were moving trimmed vegetation when another man on their crew ran out of a grassy area at the edge of the woods.

Fields ran into the woods and saw the head and arm of what appeared to be a dead body in the tall grass.

"It looked like he'd been there for a while," Fields said.

Police, Fire Department personnel, Lake County sheriff's crime scene investigators and Lake County coroner's officials conferred at the edge of the woods before retrieving the body.

Detectives from the Lake County/Gary Metro Homicide Unit questioned onlookers, including the Lakeside Properties crew, neighbors and residents of the nearby Concord Commons apartment complex. Police threatened a man with arrest after he attempted to step over the crime scene tape and argued with officers who told him to walk around the crime scene.

Fields and McGhee said this is the second time this year that their crew has found a dead body in the city. Lakeside Properties operates as a contractor for the Gary Housing Authority, he said.

Fields said the workers moved their equipment out of the way and planned to wait for police to clear the scene before resuming work.

Lisa Reese, who walked over from Concord Apartments, pointed out police cameras at either end of the block. She said trees in the area are so overgrown, the cameras probably aren't of much use.

Reese said she moved into a house across from where the body was found when she was 6 years old and lived there for nearly 30 years. She said the woods across the street have not been trimmed back in many years and create a safety concern.

"You can't see anything," she said. "There's no lights.

"We used to play out here at night in front of our house," she said. "You can't do none of that no more."

Washington was pronounced dead at 10:20 a.m., according to the Lake County coroner's office. He sustained multiple gunshot wounds. The manner of death remains pending, according to the coroner's office.

Anyone with information is asked to call the homicide unit at (219) 755-3855. To remain anonymous, call (866) CRIME-GP.

Times staff writer Lauren Cross contributed to this report.
EAST CHICAGO  Former Mayor Robert A. Pastrick is being remembered as a friend to governors, senators and a father figure to city residents.

"I am deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Mayor Pastrick," said U.S. Rep. Pete Visclosky, D-Merrillville. "He was a consummate gentleman and my thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Ruth Ann, and his family during this difficult time."

He was a very good boss and leader, City Councilwoman Myrna Maldonado said Friday afternoon, following word of his death, two weeks short of his 89th birthday.

Robert Cantrell, former city Republican chairman, recalled, Everybody liked and hated Pastrick. They spent a fortune trying to beat Bob Pastrick. He was very resilient.

Steve Segura, spokesman for East Chicago, said flags across the city will be flown at half staff. He sent a statement that said:

The city of East Chicago was saddened today by the news of the passing of the Honorable Robert A. Pastrick. The longest-serving mayor in the history of the city of East Chicago; Mayor Bob Pastrick served for 33 years, from Jan. 1, 1972, to Dec. 31, 2004.

Mayor Pastrick served as Lake County Democratic chairman for 25 years, city controller from 1964 to 1971, and before that as the citys 4th District councilman.

Mayor Pastrick is survived by his loving wife, Ruth Ann, and their seven children. The city of East Chicago extends its deepest condolences to the Pastrick family.

My father, the mayor, and my family knew his family since we were kids, Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. said. Mayor Bob was nothing but a gentleman to me and our family. He was a great mayor and a great person.

People of the Region have mixed opinions of him, said Jesse Gomez, East Chicago School Board member. He was certainly a legend in our community. I know he was a very religious man and went to church around the block from me regularly. He touched a lot of lives.

Democratic Party Chairman John Zody said, Mayor Pastrick was a legend in Indiana politics through his service to his city, his county, and his state  and of course in our Democratic family. We will miss the mayor.

Ive lost a very dear friend, said Lake County Sheriff John Buncich, the Lake County Democratic chairman. He had more friends than enemies.

Former Lake County Sheriff Roy Dominguez, who served as a city attorney, said, He hired me as corporation counsel. He was a dedicated family man. A very charismatic individual. Very likeable. He put people at ease.

Robert Pastrick will be remembered by Republicans and dissident Democrats as the political boss who buried opponents with patronage, acres of concrete and phony absentee ballots.

He was known as Hollywood Bob for a smooth public style that gave luster he lent to his political machine.

But for many politicians who knew him, the charm was no act, but a real empathy developed over decades as a funeral home director and public official who still attended funerals of as many residents as possible.

One son, David Pastrick, served as a county coroner and has followed in his fathers footsteps as a funeral home director.

Pastrick majored in political science and business administration at the University of Notre Dame and St. Joseph College, and then became a licensed embalmer at the Indiana School of Mortuary Science in 1952. His first successful political race was in 1954, when he was elected 4th District city councilman.

Two months into his third council term, Pastrick resigned to become city controller, a job he held until he was elected mayor in 1971.

Pastricks administration was hit with the harsh realities of the downsizing of the American steel industry as is painfully obvious to any visitor to the citys once-bustling Harbor retail and business section.

The citys population shrank and became more impoverished. Pastricks administration responded to the unemployment crisis by taking many onto the city payroll.

Pastricks connections with state officials paid off in the late 1990s and helped transform a barren industrial strip of Lake Michigan shoreline into a thriving marina and casino complex that pumps millions of dollars into city coffers that helped fund improvements of the citys infrastructure projects.

His detractors complained the casino also enriched a number of Pastricks pals who lined up as original investors, and city work contracts for political allies and contributors.

Pastricks connections also played a pivotal role in local government, advancing some careers, stymieing others. Pastrick made the late Stephen R. Bob Stiglich his police chief and then beat back three Stiglich attempts to unseat him as mayor in ways that drew federal and state prosecutors attention.

In the 1999 spring mayoral primary, the Pastrick administration spent more than $24 million to pour new concrete sidewalks, driveways and patios, and trim trees on private and public property to curry favor with voters.

Federal authorities later convicted three East Chicago city councilmen, a city controller, a parks superintendent and a city engineer among others for being part of a scheme to buy votes with the concrete giveaway.

Pastrick also raised up George Pabey as his police chief and had to fend him off in a 2003 Democratic mayoral primary in a campaign stained by such prodigious vote fraud the Indiana Supreme Court ordered a new primary that Pabey won the following year.

Former Mayor Pastrick never faced criminal charges, but a federal judge did brand Pastricks administration as corrupt and ordered Pastrick and former political allies to pay $108 million in damages in 2011. Pastrick filed for bankruptcy later that year.
PORTAGE  The city's longstanding police station on Irving Street will come down this fall. But it will be given a sending away party first.

The Redevelopment Commission on Thursday awarded a contract to KLF Enterprises of Markham, Illinois, to demolish the building at a cost of $192,702.

Mayor James Snyder said before the real demolition work begins, the city will have a demolition ceremony and invite former police officers and others to take a whack or two at the decades-old building with sledge hammers.

A date has not yet been set for the ceremony. The police are nearly finished in the process of moving from the Irving Street facility into the former University Center on Central Avenue. Police are operating from the new facility.
EAST CHICAGO  The U.S. EPA said Friday it has agreed to re-evaluate cleanup alternatives at the site of a public housing complex slated for demolition, including an option the city favored in 2012 calling for excavation down to native sand.

The new feasibility study will be conducted much like a previous study released in 2012, according to a statement. As part of the study, the Environmental Protection Agency will possibly look at new cleanup alternatives for the West Calumet Housing Complex in zone 1, the agency said.

The EPA will reconsider an option to excavate all soil down to native sand, regardless of contamination levels, but is waiting on the city to signal whether redevelopment of the area will be for industrial or residential use.

City officials pushed for excavation down to native sand in 2012, after the EPA released the previous feasibility study and signaled it planned to choose a cheaper option that called for excavation to a depth determined to be safe for residential use.

The citys favored option would have cost about $43.8 million, according to a 2012 EPA fact sheet. The option the EPA ultimately chose was estimated to cost $28.9 million.

The EPA found contamination in zone 1 of the Superfund site, which includes the West Calumet Housing Complex and Carrie Gosch Elementary School, to be more widespread and greater in magnitude than previously estimated, the agency said.

The city received full testing results in May and, after asking the EPA to relocate residents, ordered more than 1,000 people living in the housing complex to relocate.

The relocation process has been rocky, and the city and attorneys at a poverty law center are continuing to negotiate a fair housing complaint.

The new feasibility study could take at least six months to finish, but delays in determining the future land use could affect the completion date, the EPA said.

East Chicago City Attorney Carla Morgan said the city pushed for the new feasibility study so officials could make an informed decision about future land use.

EPA has been asking us about future land use, she said. Our response is, We cant give you a definite answer when we dont know what the possibilities are, and we dont have a real commitment of adequate demolition funds. 

The EPA has maintained it could have cleaned up zone 1 without relocating the housing complex residents.

Morgan said the level of contamination at the complex  which was built in the footprint of the demolished Anaconda Lead Products factory, possibly without any environmental remediation  is too high for residents to safely remain during cleanup.

Children exposed to lead can suffer permanent neurological damage, she said, and the city wants to stop any harm and give kids the best possible chance at life.
WHITING  Mayor Joe Stahura rolled out conceptual plans for a restaurant and boutique hotel at Whiting Lakefront Park during a public forum Wednesday night.

There is still much work to do before plans are finalized, Stahura said, and a public vote on the matter is expected to be taken some time months down the road.

The city originally planned to rehab or expand an old gun club on the lakeshore and turn it into a small cafe, Stahura said, but that proved too costly. A Halloween storm in 2014 led to the revelation the structure stood 2 feet below the flood plain.

The city then considered a city-owned lakefront restaurant, Stahura said, but shifted its plans to a privately owned structure for which the city would maintain land ownership and realize a savings of about $3 million.

A request for proposals to build the restaurant went out and the Jonathan Byrd Hospitality and Restaurant Group out of Greenwood, Indiana, was selected for the project.

Stahura said the group expressed interest in not only building a restaurant but investing in what he called a hospitality solution that would include a banquet facility, catering operation and hotel.

Stahura said the total investment by the Jonathan Byrd Hospitality and Restaurant Group would be in the $15 million to $18 million range and the project would significantly increase the citys annual tax revenues.

He said it would also bring people to the city and have a huge impact on the business district.

Itll create at least 100 jobs, Stahura said.

A 3-D model was displayed on a table at the forum so the estimated gathering of 90 people could see how the restaurant and hotel would sit on the site where the old gun club was razed.

Stahura said a study conducted indicated a hotel would be profitable in the Whiting-Robertsdale area due to factors such as the many special events held in the city, the nearby Horseshoe Casino and the number of business people that visit the BP refinery.

Were looking for a boutique hotel that fits the Whiting landscape, Stahura said.

He said parking requirements for a hotel eliminate the potential of most sites on 119th Street and Indianapolis Boulevard and workable sites there would require the use of eminent domain.

Stahura said the option considered that would involve the smallest footprint is to locate the hotel with the restaurant but he said he realizes that idea is controversial.

He told the forum attendees that views of the lake would remain open even with a hotel in the park.

It only blocks the industrial sight lines of the steel mills and the refinery, Stahura said.

Stahura took questions from the audience after his presentation and one woman asked if the project would go against the Marquette Plan.

That is a plan initiated by U.S. Rep. Pete Visclosky, D-Merrillville, that supports the revitalization of the Lake Michigan shoreline in Northwest Indiana and calls for development to be set back a certain number of feet from the water.

Stahura said the intent of the Marquette Plan was to attract people to the lakeshore.

Nothing in the Marquette Plan says that all of the land for 150 feet from the water line should be vacant and green space, Stahura said.
VALPARAISO  State environmental officials said Friday a report is expected within a week on their investigation into odor complaints in the area of the Pratt Industries plant just south of U.S. 30 along the east side of Ind. 49.

IDEM did send two inspectors to the facility yesterday where a process odor was observed by one of the inspectors, Courtney Arango, communications director with the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, said Friday.

Arango said the agency was informed Thursday by company representatives that some new equipment is scheduled to be installed in the spring.

Michael ORegan, director of media affairs for Pratt, could not be reached Friday afternoon for comment.

The odor investigation comes in the wake of complaints from nearby residents.

Morgan Township resident Craig Kenworthy said Friday he can smell the odor at his home two miles southeast of the plant.

Its a sulfur smell, he said.

He said the odor was not as bad when the plant first opened, but seemed to pick up in intensity three or four months ago. It was real noticeable during the county fair this past summer when the wind shifted out of the north from the direction of the nearby Pratt plant, he said.

We used to ride our bikes by there, Kenworthy said of the plant, and my wife wont do that anymore.

Porter County Councilman Jim Biggs, R-1st, who got the ball rolling by contacting the county health department, said he has been hearing complaints since the start of the year about the odors.

That its just a very noxious smell and it seems to be getting worse, he said.

IDEM Public Information Officer Barry Sneed said Thursday no one at the state level has jurisdiction over odor issues. But an odor could indicate a related problem that does fall under IDEMs control, he said.

Pratt unveiled its new $250 million recycle paper factory at the site in March, which was billed as the worlds most modern, environmentally friendly paper mill. It was built next to the companys corrugated box factory.
Voters are set to decide Nov. 8 who will fill two of Lake County governments top three executive seats.

The Lake County Board of Commissioners 2nd District race pits longtime incumbent Gerry Scheub, a Democrat with some conservative values, against Republican Jerry Tippy, who wants to leave his seat on the Schererville Town Council to represent the largely south Lake County district.

The 3rd District race pits incumbent Commissioner Mike Repay, a Democrat, against Mark Leyva, a perennial GOP candidate who runs against entrenched Region Democrats for various offices.

2nd District

Both Scheub and Tippy espouse some of the same fiscally conservative qualities, including a desire to put more county contracts out to public bid.

Both men also see the merits in South Shore Line commuter rail expansion and its promise of economic and population development.

We also believe both men have nobly listened to and served in the best interests of their constituents.

One category, in which we believe Scheub tops Tippy, is an important one.

The state-mandated consolidation of Lake Countys E-911 emergency police, fire and ambulance dispatch has been incredibly rocky and divisive.

Most of the county consolidated under one dispatch service, while a faction, led in part by Tippy, consolidated under the joint auspices of Schererville and Cedar Lake. The process has led to lawsuits and squabbles, with fault on both sides.

But now Tippy seeks to help lead county government  on the same board that helps oversee the consolidated county E-911 dispatch.We believe Scheub is more apt to cooperate and reach across political aisles to ensure a sharing of communications between these two vital consolidated dispatches. Our public safety counts on a resolution to differences, and we believe Scheub most embodies this ability.

Scheub gets our endorsement, though Tippy continues to be a strong leader for his Schererville constituents.

3rd District

Repay is clearly the better candidate in the 3rd District race.

Leyva, while doing so with good intentions, makes a career out of being a token Republican candidate in highly Democratic Lake County while never really identifying any real issues. Leyva tells us plenty about what hes against, including just about any tax, but he doesnt clearly say what he is for, other than smaller government.

Repay has made some unpopular decisions during his first term in office, including being a key no veto vote on Lake Countys adoption of its first-ever local option income tax.

Repay had campaigned on a promise to oppose any income tax, which was being compelled by state government. However, he became the key to the taxs implementation  by not vetoing it  after he became more familiar with county finances and the need for revenue.

We dont always agree with Repay, including his stance on the apportionment of county road money that left south Lake County  with the most county roads  short on funding this year.

But we believe Repay is the most responsible and reasonable candidate in this district race.
Porter County voters are fortunate to have two gentlemen running for 3rd District county commissioner, a position serving the northern tier of the county.

Republican Jim Biggs and Democrat Jeff Chidester are running their campaigns the right way, by promoting their own virtues and not by tarring their opponent.

Both candidates would serve ably and without a steep learning curve.

Biggs is no stranger to Porter County government. He is in his sixth year on the Porter County Council, and he served two four-year terms as commissioner in the past. He kept his promise then to serve only two consecutive terms, and hes making the same promise this time.

Chidester is no stranger to politics, having served as a precinct committeeman in Lake County before moving to Porter County about a dozen years ago. He is now Porter Countys Democratic chairman. As a union treasurer, he has handled big budgets, big projects and big contracts.

Porter County is unusual in Indiana in that cash flow isnt really a problem. The last time the county sold bonds for a construction project was for the 1999 jail construction, Biggs said. But now the buildings need work, and the county will have to determine what the most pressing needs are and how to address them.

Chidester suggested the courtyard at the Porter County Administration Building could be eliminated to add storage and office space. That could give a permanent, secure place to store voting machines and a permanent space for early voting, he said. Offices now in leased space could be consolidated in the expanded building, and the monthly rent could be applied to the construction cost instead, Chidester contends.

Biggs is waiting for results of a study of building conditions before making a decision.

When he was commissioner, he reviewed a jail conditions study that was inconclusive and set up a blue ribbon panel, which ultimately recommended a new jail with specifics on type, suggested location and size.

The north Porter County government center in Portage is going to need to be addressed. The county has a lot of land there. Is it wiser to remain at the current site or to move to downtown Portage, as Mayor James Snyder hopes? Thats a decision the commissioners will have to consider during the next four years.

Both Biggs and Chidester are undecided. Chidester said he wouldnt recommend moving unless a buyer is found for the existing site first.

Drainage is a big concern in Porter County, as it is everywhere else. Biggs, who was instrumental in the creation of the Twin Creeks Conservancy District, wants the county to take over drainage issues in South Haven and Salt Creek Commons. Fixing drainage there must be done before road beds are rebuilt, he said, and hes right.

As we reviewed both candidates, we decided Porter County citizens would be well served either way. Biggs experience, however, gives him an edge over Chidester. Biggs already has a proven track record of getting things done. He would be a good fit as a county commissioner with Democrat Laura Shurr Blaney, who is unopposed in District 1 (South), and Republican Jeff Good, who has two more years in his term.

We endorse Biggs.
An 8-month-old child was fatally struck by a vehicle late Friday morning in Queens, and police have charged the driver of the car that hit him. NY1's Ruschell Boone filed the following report.

Relatives of 8-month-old Navraj Raju could not contain their grief as they told spoke about the toddler's death with family members in New York and India.

The toddler was killed when a white van backed out of a driveway on Astoria Boulevard near 93rd Street and hit his stroller.

The infant's great-aunt says it was another blow to Navraj's mother, who was already dealing with the loss of her brother.

Great-aunt: The baby's mom, her brother last year this month died also.

Q: This is just extremely hard?

Great-aunt: Very hard.

Investigators watched surveillance video of the incident from inside a deli. The recording shows a 35-year-old woman pushing the 8-month-old in a stroller after leaving the store.

Two witnesses told NY1 the woman stopped at the driveway and was bent over when 44-year-old Armando Rodriguez slowly backed out and struck the carriage. The child was pronounced dead at Elmhurst Hospital.

Rodriguez remained at the scene, but he was arrested for driving without a license.

His friends were also stunned by the news, calling it a freakish accident. One man said the driver could not see the woman or her child because of where they were positioned behind the vehicle.

"He's a good guy. The driver is a very good guy," the man said. "He's very careful all the time, you know."

The investigation into the crash is still ongoing.
NEW YORK - Manhattan residents attended a community meeting Thursday to discuss the transformation of Mount Sinai Beth Israel.

This comes weeks after the hospital unveiled the first phase of its $500 million restructuring plan.

Under the plan, the hospital's East Side facility will be closed and a new hospital network dubbed "Mount Sinai Downtown" will be created. That includes a new main hospital just two blocks away from the current building, and an upgraded Eye and Ear Infirmary.

The main building will hold just 70 inpatient beds, compared to the current building's 825.

Neighborhood residents say they are wary about the changes, but the network's president says the new plan contains more services than what's currently available.

"We don't know enough information, so we're here to get more information for the community," said one person who attended the meeting.

"So people will say, you know, 'Can I still see my doctor?' Of course," said Jeremy Boal, president of Mount Sinai Downtown. "When it's all said and done, we're going to have even more doctors in the Downtown community than we have now, and right now, we have about 600 physicians in the Mount Sinai system that are below 34th Street, vast ambulatory services."

Construction on the main building is slated to start by 2018 and be completed by 2020.
NEW YORK - Air traffic is moving again at LaGuardia after a plane carrying Republican vice presidential candidate Mike Pence skidded off the runway Thursday night.

The airport's two runways reopened Friday morning.

Passengers were still being advised to contact their airlines for the latest status of their flights and any residual delays before heading to the airport.

The plane was also removed from Runway 22 early Friday morning.

It slid off that runway after landing shortly before 8 p.m. Thursday.

The plane tore up about 80 arrestor beds - a crushable concrete which is installed to slow a plane if it overshoots a runway.

Once the plane came to a stop in the grass, rescue crews safely removed all 48 passengers and crew.

No one was hurt.

GOV. PENCE AIRCRAFT AT RUNWAY 22 LGA ARRESTOR BED AND SAFETY AREA. ANY FURTHER AND IT IS IN TRAFFIC ON THE GRAND CENTRAL PARKWAY. #PAPD pic.twitter.com/hphwYlJjiI  PAPBA (@PAPBA911) October 28, 2016

"They came in very quickly. A lot sooner than a lot of people expected. They were on right at it, and they were able to get Governor Mike Pence and everybody else off that plane quickly and safely," said one LaGuardia worker.

"I think Governor Pence's comment about the relief in seeing red flashing lights on Port Authority police vehicles within 10 seconds speaks for itself," said Port Authority Executive Director Patrick Foye.



Pence was later seen thanking police and firefighters before he left the airport.

Soon after he tweeted, "So thankful everyone on our plane is safe. Grateful for our first responders and the concern and prayers of so many. Back on the trail tomorrow."

It's still not clear what caused the accident.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.

Donald Trump addressed Pence's rough landing during a campaign rally in Ohio Thursday night.

Trump told supporters that he had spoken with his running mate, and assured the crowd that Pence was okay.

"The plane skidded off the runway and was pretty close to grave, grave danger, but I just spoke to Mike Pence and he's fine. Got out, everybody's fine," Trump said.

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton also tweeted about the accident.

She said, "Glad to hear Mike Pence, his staff, secret service, and the crew are all safe."
There's yet another curveball that could upend the race for the White House, and this one is tied to former Rep. Anthony Weiner. Josh Robin filed the following report.

Anthony Weiner's behavior is imperiling his marriage. Now, it could do the same to Hillary Clinton's presidential bid.

After calling Clinton's email extremely careless but not criminal, FBI Director James Comey says agents need to take another look.

"The FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation...I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation."

Those emails? Found as authorities look into explicit messages Weiner reportedly exchanged with a 15-year old in North Caroina.

One official says they're not from Clinton's private server.

Weiner's estranged wife is a top Clinton aide.

At a hastily called news conference, Clinton says the brief FBI statement is woefully inadequate with an election about a week and a half away.

"So we don't know the facts, which is why we're calling the FBI to release all the information that it has," Clinton said. "Even Director Comey noted that this new information may not be significant. So let's get it out."

Clinton adds she's not been contacted by the FBI

The news breathed new life into Donald Trump's campaign.

"Hillary Clinton's corruption is on a scale we haven't seen before," he said.

His praise of federal authorities was a reversal of earlier statements suggesting they were part of a rigged system.

"The FBI and the Department of Justice are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made," Trump said.

Weiner did not return a request for comment.

It is unclear if the FBI will say anything more. That means the public will have to trust Clinton, trust Trump or, perhaps, trust neither.
Less than two weeks away from Election Day, a dividing issue between Democrats and Republicans is making headlines again: the Affordable Care Act also known as Obamacare. But what happens with the controversial law after the presidential election? Washington bureau reporter Alberto Pimienta filed the following report.

With just days to make their case about who would be the better president, Donald Trump is pouncing on Hillary Clinton for her support of the Affordable Care Act.

"It is the stupidity of our politicians who rammed this monster down our throats," Trump said. "And I'll tell you, from the beginning, I was against it. I said it wasn't going to work and it didn't work. It's going to get worse."

This after the Obama administration confirmed this week some Americans would see double-digit hikes in their premiums.

"The costs have gone up too much. So we're going to really tackle that," Clinton said Tuesday. "We're going to get copays and premiums and deductibles down."

So what happens after Election Day?

A Clinton win means the law stays. Shei s against repealing Obamacare.

For his part, Trump says he would get rid of the legislation.

However, that is not the only part of the equation. Insert Congress.

Democrats are trying to flip the majority in the Senate. If that happens, Obamacare is safe because the Democrats would never move forward with repealing it.

If Republicans keep their control in both the House and the Senate but Clinton is president, she is certainly to veto any attempt. Capitol Hill conservatives have already tried more than 60 times in the last six years to repeal the law.

But a Trump White House and a Republican Congress would put one of Obama's legacies in jeopardy.

"Remember, three years ago, with the roll out of the healthcare.gov website, that was a disaster. It has been a disaster since day one. There is no fixing it," said North Carolina Rep. Renee Ellmers.

And while Obamacare is back to the forefront this week, it's not likely it would swing the election. A poll released Thursday shows health care is not a top issue for the American voter. Only 9 percent of Democrats and 5 percent of Republicans said it is a priority.
A listing of discussions, film screenings, cultural activities and walking tours in New York City.

Information on events for possible inclusion in Spare Times should be sent to weekend@nytimes.com by Friday at 5 p.m. for publication the following week. Longer versions of Around Town and For Children listings are in a searchable guide at nytimes.com/events.

Museums and Sites

AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY: DARK UNIVERSE (continuing) With the return of the Hayden Planetarium, which had closed in August for renovations, comes the latest space show, Dark Universe. Narrated by Neil deGrasse Tyson, the film explores mysterious dark matter and dark energy, and the ways scientists are working to improve their understanding of these phenomena. Every half-hour from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays, to 5 p.m. on weekends, Central Park West and 79th Street, 212-769-5200, amnh.org.

BROOKLYN HISTORICAL SOCIETY: TRUMAN CAPOTES BROOKLYN: THE LOST PHOTOGRAPHS OF DAVID ATTIE (continuing) Behind this new exhibition  40 photographs of Capote and Brooklyn Heights taken by David Attie in 1958  is the story of a sons rediscovery of his fathers long-lost work. Mr. Attie died in 1982, when his sons were very young. One of them, the television writer Eli Attie, has spent the last few years exploring his fathers archive for the first time; in the process he found photos his father had taken to accompany the Truman Capote essay A House on the Heights, which appeared in Holiday magazine in February 1959. Few of the photos were published, and the magazine included none of the Capote portraits. Now they are on view in an intimate show that feels like both a celebration of and an elegy for an unrefined Brooklyn that once earned the provocative opening line in Capotes essay: I live in Brooklyn. By choice. 128 Pierrepont Street, near Clinton Street, Brooklyn Heights, 718-222-4111, brooklynhistory.org.

INTREPID SEA, AIR & SPACE MUSEUM: ON THE LINE: INTREPID AND THE VIETNAM WAR (through Oct. 2, 2017) Visitors familiar with this museum are likely to be well aware of its flight deck, perhaps even some of its wartime history. During the Vietnam War, the Intrepid served three tours overseas between 1966 and 1969. Now, in an exhibition set in the space where crew members lived and worked, the museum tells their stories with artifacts, film clips and photographs. Pier 86, 46th Street and 12th Avenue, Clinton, 877-957-7447, intrepidmuseum.org.
ROME  Sitting on a wonky chair inside the dim, deconsecrated church of SantAndrea de Scaphis in Romes Trastevere neighborhood last month, the artist Jannis Kounellis pondered eight of his newest works and agreed that they were the product of an extremist.

Si! he said with conviction, and perhaps a hint of amusement that at 80 years old, he still tries to express the same idiosyncratic spirit as his first works six decades ago.

Certainly, the pieces  which were created for the solo exhibition Dodecafonia, on view in the church until Nov. 30  feature many elements familiar to Mr. Kounelliss art, like burlap, rope, wood and steel. The Greek-born, naturalized Italian artist has also been positioning mounds of coal in his installations since the 1960s, when he bypassed painting and began using common materials to become one of the leading figures in the Arte Povera movement. Seasoned furniture  chairs, tables or the clothes closets used here  have also been recurrent props.

But in the context of the former church, where they are hung like compact altarpieces defining makeshift chapels, the artworks had an intrinsic spirituality, supported by Mr. Kounelliss musings on the human condition and mortality.
Starting where Mad Men left off, Good Girls Revolt brings feminism to the foreground as some magazine workers decide they arent going to take it anymore. Bill Murray accepts the Mark Twain Prize with a little help from his friends. And Tracey Ullman brings her best impersonations to HBO.

Whats Streaming

GOOD GIRLS REVOLT on Amazon. Nearly half a century before the election cycle of the nasty woman, a group of female employees at the News of the Week magazine have had enough. They fetch coffee and do reporting legwork. The men get the bylines and earn three times the salary. And when one bold researcher (Grace Gummer) tries to take credit for her own writing, an editor (Jim Belushi) warns her: Your name is all you have in journalism. So good luck, Nora Ephron! This new series is based on The Good Girls Revolt by Lynn Povich, about a landmark gender-discrimination case at Newsweek, and some real-life figures are incorporated. But its mostly about the evolving enlightenment of Patti (Genevieve Angelson), a wild child; Jane (Anna Camp), a strait-laced blue blood; and Cindy (Erin Drake), an aspiring novelist in a confining marriage. In the current climate of gender politics, that serendipity makes Good Girls Revolt a little like a newsmagazine cover story  well-timed, well-meaning, with a few smart takes, James Poniewozik wrote in The New York Times.

Whats on TV

AMERICAN HUMANE HERO DOG AWARDS 2016 8 p.m. on Hallmark. Because its hard to resist a good dog.
1. The F.B.I. said that while investigating Anthony Weiners sexting it discovered new emails related to Hillary Clintons use of a private email server.

The F.B.I. had seized at least one device from a top Clinton aide, Huma Abedin, and her estranged husband, Mr. Weiner. The bureau is investigating illicit text messages he sent to a 15-year-old girl in North Carolina.
Prominent public pension funds have turned their backs on hedge funds, and so have a few big insurance companies. Now, one of the worlds biggest private equity firms, the Carlyle Group, is walking away, too.

Carlyle told investors this week that it was pivoting away from its hedge fund investments, once worth $15 billion. Speaking to investors, the Carlyle co-founder William E. Conway Jr. said the firms performance in hedge funds did not meet the expectations of its investors. And when our performance falls short, it is critical for both our fund investors and for the firm that we deal with the consequences, Mr. Conway said.

Six years ago, with its coffers swelling, Carlyle turned to hedge funds as part of a move to diversify from the core business of buying companies and taking them private. It took stakes in hedge fund firms that invested in corporate bonds, commodities like natural gas and coal, and emerging markets, taking a cut of the fees investors paid to the fund firms.

But that experiment soured, and for the last two years Carlyles hedge fund investments have weighed down its bottom line. After a strategic review, Carlyle, which manages $169 billion, decided to close its hedge fund chapter and focus more on direct lending. It joins a growing list of investors who are reducing their exposure to hedge funds or getting out completely, faced with high fees and weak performance or even losses.
Gavin MacFadyen, an American investigative journalist who became an early mentor and defender of the founder of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, died on Saturday in London, where he lived and spent much of his professional life. He was 76.

The cause was lung cancer, his wife, Susan Benn, said.

Since the 1970s, Mr. MacFadyen produced and directed scores of television documentaries on a wide range of subjects, including neo-Nazi violence, child labor, nuclear proliferation and industrial accidents. Sometimes he worked in disguise.

He also co-founded the nonprofit Center for Investigative Journalism in London in 2003, a training program in skeptical reporting, and WhistleblowersUK, a support group for tipsters. He was a director of WikiLeaks and, with his wife and another journalist, John Pilger, formed the Julian Assange Legal Defense Committee.

Mr. Assange, an Australian computer programmer, founded WikiLeaks in 2006 and published millions of secret documents, many supplied by Chelsea Manning, a United States Army intelligence analyst. Mr. Assange has been under investigation by the American government and is wanted for questioning about rape allegations in Sweden. He has found refuge in the Ecuadorean Embassy in London to avoid extradition.
FRIDAY PUZZLE  You dont have to be a fan of the Harry Potter series of novels to know how terrifying He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is, and crossing LORD VOLDEMORT with ALL HALLOWS EVE is a perfect way to not only start our solving weekend, but to also prepare for Halloween, as we call it here in the United States.

Mary Lou Guizzo and Jeff Chen return to scare us with an entertaining 68-word themeless puzzle that is nicely balanced with gimmes and entries that will require you to think hard before you enter them. They offer us six unique entries: LIFE HACK, LORD VOLDEMORT, LE FIGARO, I WONT DO IT, E-READERS and ALL HALLOWS EVE.

Tricky Clues

 1A: Its Friday, so more general knowledge will be required. Tala is SAMOAN currency. You might not be up on your SAMOAN currency, but you probably know that 1D is SHANIA, right? Piece those crossings together until you can take a good guess at something you dont know.

 7A: Isnt Axilla a much nicer word than ARMPIT?

 25A: I was able to picture this weapon in my mind, but could not recall that it is called a BOLA.
Here is an excerpt from one entry, about Zac, the boy pictured above:

Zac, 18, has been raised by a single mother on disability insurance in a poor part of Topeka. He transferred from his neighborhoods sports-oriented high school to Topeka High in search of a better education. He sings, composes music and makes his own puppets for puppet shows. He plays so many instruments that when people ask him which ones, he just says, All of them.

By all rights, Zac should be a find for an artsy college like Bard or Bennington.

Everyone has known someone like him in high school: the exceptionally smart, glib kid destined for great things despite a troubled background. But in time, that trouble seems to catch up, and the dreams to turn to dust.

Zac may be at that pressure point.

His teachers say that he has chosen easy courses he can glide through with minimal effort, and that he is often late or absent. Zac admits he stays up late at night, composing and recording music, and then has power struggles with his mother over getting to school. He has no license or car, so she has to drive him.

He took the ACT college admissions test without practice and got a 27, about the 86th percentile, a high score for having taken it cold. But he knows that to really stand out, he has to nudge up his score. Im panicking, Zac said this fall, a few weeks before he was supposed to take the ACT for the second time.

The truancy began junior year, when he decided he needed an after-school job to make money to buy musical equipment.
The Lambert Houses survived. Then as now, the complex had 14 separate addresses, but because the buildings are connected, there are actually three residential superblocks. The largest superblock has seven interconnected apartment buildings.

If the Lambert Houses once seemed futuristic  the design was a response to the architecture of Brutalism and tall towers popular in the 1960s  the complex is coping with outdated building methods and problems like a sewer system that backs up, sending backwash into first-floor hallways. And the redevelopment will increase housing opportunities in a borough that people want to live in again. Mr. Weinstein described it as undoing the downzoning of the 60s and 70s.

To repopulate a borough that got emptied out, he said, you have to.

No tenants at the Lambert Houses will be permanently displaced as the buildings are emptied, one by one. Instead, they will be relocated to temporary apartments and moved back once their homes have been rebuilt.

The buildings to be demolished have spiky facades constructed with custom-made bricks the color of burnt-sienna crayons. Mr. Weinstein said the changes would break the uniformity  some call it monotony. He also said the redevelopment would reduce access, making it more difficult for thieves to enter and escape. Phipps Houses said there were more than 40 ways in and out of the present complex.

Ive never met a property so structurally conducive to crime as Lambert Houses, Mr. Torres said. I think the layout was designed in an ivory tower with no thought of safety or street life. Its to risk yourself in a maze. If youre navigating it for the first time, you can never be sure where you are or what floor you are on.

Mr. Torres said he had learned that firsthand when he ran for the City Council three years ago. I was campaigning at night, he said, and I found it frightening.
The New York City Council voted unanimously on Thursday to give freelance workers a set of protections against wage theft that are believed to be the first of their kind in the country.

Known as the Freelance Isnt Free Act, the measure requires anyone hiring a freelance worker to agree in writing to a timetable and procedure for payment, and increases the potential awards to freelancers bringing legal complaints against those who have failed to pay them promptly.

The bill represents one of the earliest policy efforts to grapple directly with the growth in the so-called gig economy  a term that typically refers to the likes of temporary workers, contract workers, independent contractors and freelance workers. According to one estimate by the economists Lawrence Katz and Alan Krueger, this group grew to almost 16 percent of the work force in late 2015 from roughly 10 percent in early 2005.

New York is in some ways at the center of the gig economy, of the evolution of the economy to more independent and contingent work, Brad Lander, the councilman who introduced the legislation, said.
At least one of my siblings, and some of my friends from high school, will be among the 50 million or so Americans waking up on Nov. 9 after giving their vote to a man who thinks very little of them, and even less of the country he wants to lead.

Allow me one last attempt to help you avoid a hangover that will stay with you the rest of your life.

If you ignored every blast of hatred from Donald Trump, every attempt to defraud people or stiff those who worked for him, every bellow from the bully, consider his low view of humanity in general. For the most part you cant respect people, he has said, because most people arent worthy of respect.

This is the credo of a loveless man in a friendless world. He also says he has no heroes  not a Lincoln or Mandela, a Jackie Robinson or a Capt. Chesley Sullenberger.
Ms. Hassan, 58, entered politics in 1999 to fight for affordable education for disabled people like her son, Ben, who has cerebral palsy. She was elected governor in 2012 and re-elected in 2014, when Democrats were shellacked across the nation. She would have been tough competition even without the Trump millstone around her rivals neck.

Ms. Ayotte glided into office in 2010 as a tough-minded former state attorney general, billed as one of her partys rising Young Turks. In the Senate she made impressive independent stands in favor of immigration reform, limits on power-plant emissions and other efforts to combat climate change, and extending expiring unemployment benefits.

But many of her other positions are less appealing. While she stood up to Senator Ted Cruzs efforts to shut down the government in the battle over Obamacare, she voted repeatedly to repeal the law. She voted to defund Planned Parenthood and ban abortions after 20 weeks. She opposes increasing the federal minimum wage. She joined in the recklessly partisan move to block consideration of Merrick Garland for the Supreme Court. In 2013, in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook shooting, she voted against strengthening background checks for gun buyers.

Ms. Hassan says shes running to protect the gains New Hampshire has made during her governorship. In a state with no personal income tax or sales tax, she helped to lower the cost of community college and contain state university tuition, expand Medicaid, cut business taxes and achieve a 3 percent jobless rate. She takes a far harder line on immigration than liberals in her party. She would have supported immigration reform legislation, as Ms. Ayotte did, and like Ms. Ayotte, she opposes President Obamas plan to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay. She stands with her party in supporting Obamacare, abortion rights and efforts to mitigate climate change. On gun safety, she says strengthening background checks and preventing people on the government no-fly list from buying guns is the very least we should be doing.

Campaigning at a breakfast forum in her hometown, Nashua, last Sunday, Ms. Ayotte described her Senate record as finding common ground. Some in the crowd called it a betrayal. It seems like every day a child is killed by guns, and yet she hasnt taken a stand against them, one woman said. How do you vote for someone who breaks your heart?
There are, however, signs that Mr. Duterte really has no clear idea of what he wants. His recent pronouncements about the United States have been threatening one moment, conciliatory the next. Last week, for instance, he announced his intended separation from Washington while currying favor with Chinese leaders. Once back in his hometown, Davao, he softened, insisting he did not want to cut economic and military ties with America.

Last month, he asserted that he would seek open alliances with China and Russia, implying some kind of security arrangement. He later explained he was talking only about economic cooperation. Adding to the confusion, Filipino officials have followed up Mr. Dutertes aggressive statements about the United States with reassurances that while there may be some adjustments in the relationship, the bilateral alliance remains intact.

It is not unusual for national leaders to want to set their own paths; Mr. Dutertes views reflect resentments among some Filipinos that America has not always treated their country with respect. Still, his approach is counterproductive. He may believe that by criticizing the United States he will inspire China to invest more heavily in his countrys struggling economy. But that posture generates deep concern in Washington and among Asian leaders who believe close ties with the United States are necessary to deter China from exerting hegemony over the South China Sea and its disputed islands, fishing beds and deposits of oil and gas.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan is among those leaders. He reportedly warned Mr. Duterte that whatever his disagreements with the United States, China is no substitute ally. Hes right: The only Philippine security treaty is with the United States, the two militaries are deeply entwined and millions of Filipino-Americans live in the United States.

Mr. Abe no doubt also pointed out that both Japan and the Philippines are involved in maritime disputes with China and both have a lot to lose if China ignores a ruling in July by an international court in The Hague that overruled its claims in the South China Sea. To press the point, Mr. Abe gave Mr. Duterte two coast guard ships to help protect its territorial interests.
I feel very lucky to have entered the conservative movement when I did, back in the 1980s and 1990s. I was working at National Review, The Washington Times, The Wall Street Journals editorial page. The role models in front of us were people like Bill Buckley, Irving Kristol, James Q. Wilson, Russell Kirk and Midge Decter.

These people wrote about politics, but they also wrote about a lot of other things: history, literature, sociology, theology and life in general. There was a sharp distinction then between being conservative, which was admired, and being a Republican, which was considered sort of cheesy.

These writers often lived in cities among liberals while being suspicious of liberal thought and liberal parochialism. People like Buckley had friends of every ideological stripe and were sharper for being in hostile waters. They were sort of inside and outside the establishment and could speak both languages.
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.  Remember Tom Lehrers quip after Robert F. Kennedy moved to New York and won election to the United States Senate  that Massachusetts was special because it was the only state with three senators? Well, nowadays Massachusetts might be the only state with a senator in the Oval Office.

I refer of course to Elizabeth Warren, our senior senator and, as it were, the nations unelected regulatory czar. Ms. Warrens latest provocation was to send a letter to President Obama this month demanding the removal of Mary Jo White, chairwoman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Ms. White, she said, had demonstrated her unsuitability for the role by failing to have the S.E.C. draft rules requiring corporations to disclose details of their political spending.

Last time I checked, the S.E.C. was a regulatory agency of the executive branch, in which Ms. Warren is not, in fact, employed. President Obama was quick to retort that Ms. White was right for the position. You could imagine him protesting, sotto voce, Hey, firing agency heads is my job.
SAN FRANCISCO  Google turned 18 years old in September and there are signs that as it gets older it is learning to be responsible with its money.

A year ago, Google reorganized to create Alphabet, a holding company housing the search giant and a growing list of fledgling businesses, ranging from Nest, a home electronics maker, to a life sciences outfit called Verily.

By making Google one of Alphabets subsidiaries  albeit the one responsible for most of its revenue  it put pressure on the companys other bets to prove that they can stand on their own financial feet.

On Thursday, Alphabet reported third-quarter results that provided evidence of that new interest in watching where the money goes. Alphabet said quarterly revenue from other bets rose 40 percent to $197 million, while operating losses narrowed to $865 million from $980 million a year ago.
Theres hardly a moment in the exhilarating, devastating revival of the musical Falsettos that doesnt approach, or even achieve, perfection. This singular show, about an unorthodox family grappling with the complexities of, well, just being a family  unorthodox or otherwise  has been restored to life, some 25 years after it was first produced, with such vitality that it feels as fresh and startling as it did back in 1992.

The achievement seems almost miraculous, because in the intervening years, America has gone through cultural changes that might, in theory, have made the show, with its sweet-and-sour score by William Finn, and its economical book by Mr. Finn and James Lapine, seem a relic.

The musical, which opened on Thursday at the Walter Kerr Theater in a Lincoln Center Theater production, once again directed by Mr. Lapine  whose work is so sharp its as if he were seeing the show with a new pair of eyes  follows the topsy-turvy fortunes of a family of four, which eventually grows to five and maybe more.

At its center is the confused heart of Marvin (Christian Borle), a gay man in 1979 who introduces us in an early sequence to his lover, Whizzer (Andrew Rannells), and his ex-wife, Trina (Stephanie J. Block), along with Marvin and Trinas precociously smart son, the 10-year-old Jason (Anthony Rosenthal). Although no one seems wholly at ease  rarely does anyone in this hilariously neurosis-infused musical  they have continued to maintain an equilibrium, to the point of still sharing meals together.
The arrest sent shock waves through the university, where administrators recently expanded programs to educate students about sexual consent. In The Badger Herald, a student newspaper, Yusra Murad lauded the cases as highlighting progress. It seems as though, at long last, we are beginning to hold men accountable for rape culture rather than hemlines, blood alcohol content and lipstick, she wrote.

But the accounts by the women, as recorded in the criminal complaint, show that the accusers themselves were riddled with doubts about how to characterize what they had experienced.

According to the complaint, several women described the attacks as following a similar pattern: an innocent introduction at a party, at a bar or during a class, followed by the exchange of texts or Facebook messages. The women said they eventually accompanied Mr. Cook to his apartment, where they said sexual encounters began as consensual but escalated to assault. According to one woman, Mr. Cook drugged her with a liquid that made her feel disoriented; another woman said he had choked her with both hands and slapped her roughly on her back and legs.

After the suspected attacks, women told the police about their hesitations over pressing charges, or even identifying what had happened as assault. One woman, who did not come forward immediately, told the police that she wanted to just forget about what had happened and just feel normal again, the complaint said.

Another woman texted her brother in the immediate aftermath of her encounter with Mr. Cook, telling him that Mr. Cook had held her in a death grip and repeatedly yanked her backward as she tried to walk away. I dont feel like I was assaultedI dont think, she wrote. But I feel very weird.

One woman said she had continued to see Mr. Cook around campus and feared him, crossing the street to avoid running into him. She expressed regret for not coming forward earlier, the complaint said.

Mr. Cook, a native of Edina, Minn., a suburb of the Twin Cities, is a student in the universitys business school, majoring in real estate and land economics, and a member of a club rugby team, a spokesman for the University of Wisconsin said. He wrote in his senior biography from high school that he liked skateboards and planned to attend Wisconsin and, later, Yale University to become an astronaut.
Photographic Lunar Atlas appeared in 1960, followed by three supplements that Mr. Whitaker, Dr. Kuiper and others produced at the new Lunar and Planetary Laboratory at the University of Arizona: Orthographic Atlas of the Moon (1960 and 1961), Rectified Lunar Atlas (1963) and Consolidated Lunar Atlas (1967).

As the space program accelerated, Mr. Whitaker worked with NASA to select the landing sites for the Ranger and Surveyor spacecraft being sent to the moon to perform photographic reconnaissance. To accomplish this, he came up with a way to combine ultraviolet and infrared images of the lunar surface to make the first compositional maps of lava flows on the moon. In time, he developed what were, essentially, navigational charts for lunar exploration.

His work on the Apollo 12 landing was an astronomical tour de force. Studying digital surface images sent back by Surveyor 3, which had landed on the Ocean of Storms in 1967, he identified two distinctive rocks in the crater where the spacecraft had come to rest. He then pored over photographs of 1,000 similar craters in the area that had been taken from space by the Lunar Orbiter and came up with a match.

This would be the landing site for Apollo 12 in November 1969. Mr. Whitaker predicted that the astronauts Charles Conrad Jr. and Alan L. Bean would have to walk only a few hundred feet from their spacecraft to reach Surveyor 3, whose television camera was a key objective of their mission.
Donald J. Trumps campaign set off a wave of concern about its tactics on Thursday after a senior campaign official was quoted describing a sophisticated voter suppression effort, a term that usually connotes aggressive attempts to keep people from polling places.

The anxiety among Republicans outside the Trump campaign was set off by a report in Businessweek in which the unidentified official used the term to describe the teams approach to three core groups of Hillary Clintons supporters.

The report came after weeks of diatribes from Mr. Trump questioning the basic integrity of the election. At a rally on Thursday afternoon, he joked that the election should be called off and he should be crowned the winner.

We have three major voter suppression operations underway, says a senior official, the Businessweek report said. Theyre aimed at three groups Clinton needs to win overwhelmingly: idealistic white liberals, young women, and African-Americans.
WASHINGTON  An Alaska lawyer has accused Justice Clarence Thomas of groping her at a dinner party in 1999, a claim that Justice Thomas called preposterous.

The lawyer, Moira Smith, who was a 23-year-old Truman Foundation scholar at the time, told The National Law Journal that Justice Thomas had sort of cupped his hand around my butt and pulled me pretty close to him as she was making final preparations for the party, in a Washington suburb.

Justice Thomas, continuing to squeeze her buttocks, urged her to sit next to him at the dinner, Ms. Smith said. She declined. He asked if she was sure, Ms. Smith recalled. I said yes, and that was the end of it, she said.

Through a court spokeswoman, Justice Thomas told The National Law Journal that the episode never happened. The spokeswoman, Kathleen L. Arberg, said she had nothing to add to that statement.
With Donald J. Trump facing a potential rout at the hands of Hillary Clinton, a river of cash from some of the Republican Partys biggest donors has begun to flow down to Senate and House races in the final days of the 2016 campaign.

Disclosures filed with the Federal Election Commission on Thursday revealed tens of millions of dollars in late donations and transfers to Republican super PACs focused on down-ballot races, suggesting a significant last-ditch effort to protect Senate and House candidates against Mrs. Clintons surge. Relatively little new money has come into outside groups supporting Mr. Trump.

And Mr. Trump appears to have lost the support of his biggest donor: himself.

Mr. Trump contributed no cash and just $31,000 worth of rent and staff salaries to his campaign in the first three weeks of October, a fraction of the $2-million-a-month self-funding pace he had set since winning the Republican presidential nomination.

As of mid-October, according to the disclosure, Mrs. Clinton was raising $2.8 million each day and had $62 million in her campaign account, four times as much as Mr. Trump.
 Six Hours, and I Love Dark Murder Shows

The Fall, Saturday, Netflix (Six New Episodes)

Watch if you love Gillian Anderson, Jamie Dornan and people staring at each other very intensely.

The Fall made a splash a few years ago for standing out as a particularly bleak and torture-heavy serial-killer show, even in a field loaded with depravity. Gillian Anderson stars as Stella Gibson, a British detective sent to Belfast to help investigate a murder, and Jamie Dornan stars as Paul, the family man whos actually a murderer. Season 3 only makes sense if youve seen the previous two seasons, but theyre only five and six episodes each  not a major endeavor.

While Season 1 of The Fall had its gruesome thrills, Season 2 struggled to find meaningful interactions between the characters. Stella and Paul dont play off each other as well as the show thinks they do, which resulted in a denouement devoid of logic. Season 3 doubles down on that, unfortunately, with a soap-opera twist that feels utterly out of place in what seemed like a slick crime thriller.

Alongside the frustrating elements, though, The Fall still has those glimmers of what made it so engrossing in the first place. Its long, disturbing monologues remain long and disturbing, and all of the actors irises shimmer as they stare right into the camera. The characters are very frank. Thats not enough to sustain a season, alas.
Part of it is the size, but the significance of this is that most of the marine protected area is a no-take area, and that involved 25 countries and complex, long-term environmental negotiations. It is one of the biggest steps for the international community, Mr. Bloom, a director of the State Departments Office of Oceans and Polar Affairs, said in a telephone interview from Hobart.

Protecting the Ross Sea, in the Southern Ocean, had been on the commissions agenda for around six years, and conservationists had been arguing for a no-fishing zone there for a decade, said Andrea Kavanagh, a director of the Southern Oceans Sanctuaries Campaign at the Pew Charitable Trusts in Washington.

Delegates from the United States and New Zealand first proposed the reserve, but the plan could not go forward without the approval of Russia, which was secured on Friday.

Russia had blocked the creation of a reserve, which required unanimous consent, at last years meeting. But developments since then  including Moscows appointment of a government adviser on the environment and the expansion of a Russian national park in the Arctic to include the worlds northernmost island chain  had raised hopes that this year would be different, Ms. Kavanagh said.

With Russia, there were signs that things were moving ahead, she said from Hobart.

Although the commission did not reduce the total tonnage of fish that can be taken from the Ross Sea, vessels have been pushed into areas further out to sea and away from ecologically significant sites that include breeding and feeding grounds for whales, large fish, penguins and other sea birds.
Hamas, considered a terrorist group by the United States, Israel and other nations, won the last parliamentary elections held in both Gaza and the West Bank, in 2006. A year later, it seized control in Gaza, forcing Fatah to retreat to the West Bank. As a result, while the international community treats Mr. Abbas as the leader of the Palestinian people, he does not represent the nearly 2 million people who live in Gaza.

A settlement between Fatah and Hamas could further muddy the prospects of a peace process with Israel that long ago stalled. When the two Palestinian factions agreed to resolve their differences two years ago, in a deal that was never fulfilled, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu suspended peace negotiations rather than work with what he called a terrorist organization.

Thursdays meeting comes at a time of tension for Mr. Abbas, whose leadership has been questioned at home and abroad. Municipal elections set by Mr. Abbas have been put off, but he has called for leadership elections within Fatah by the end of the year in an effort to head off internal rivals.

It also comes at a time of transition for Hamas. Mr. Meshal, who lives in Qatar, has announced that he will not run for another term in elections expected to be held next year. Mr. Haniyeh is considered a front-runner to succeed him.

In a public meeting in Doha, Qatar, last month, Mr. Meshal expressed regret about the takeover of Gaza in 2007. Hamas made a mistake when it thought it was easy for it to rule the Gaza Strip alone, he was quoted saying. It thought that ruling Gaza would be easy, but discovered that it was hard.
Russia on Thursday rejected the findings of a chemical weapons investigation led by the United Nations that found Syrian forces had used chlorine bombs at least three times in the past two years.

During a Security Council meeting, Russia called the investigators findings inconclusive and no basis for punitive action. The response intensified the bitter rift between Western nations and Russia over the Syria war.

It came three years after Syria renounced the use of chemical weapons, signed an international treaty banning them and agreed to destroy its stockpile under a Security Council resolution supported by Russia and the United States.

Ambassador Vitaly I. Churkin of Russia said the investigation, carried out by a joint panel of the United Nations and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, which monitors treaty compliance, was full of contradictions and therefore, unconvincing, according to a text of his remarks to fellow council members.
Its taken some serious glad-handing, and the intervention of two national governments, to reconvene works last seen together before the Russian Revolution. The cost of presenting so many inestimable paintings outside Russia is undisclosed but astronomical. Insurance and shipping alone would be beyond the reach of Pariss public museums; it fell to Bernard Arnault, the richest man in France and the president of the Fondation Louis Vuitton, to foot the bill.

The capstone was meant to be an inaugural visit from Vladimir V. Putin, alongside his French counterpart, Francois Hollande. (Mr. Putin was also to dedicate an ostentatious new Russian Orthodox cathedral, hard by the Eiffel Tower, which Parisian wags have nicknamed St. Vladimirs.) But this month, after Russia vetoed a French-drafted resolution at the United Nations Security Council that sought to end the bombing of Aleppo, Syria, Mr. Hollande characterized the Russian-backed strikes as war crimes. A few days later, Mr. Putins visit was called off, though both presidents have written introductions for this shows cinder block of a catalog.

Over more than a dozen uncluttered galleries on four floors, Ms. Baldassari plots Shchukins acquisitions as Europe tips into war, though she ruptures the timeline with some thematic presentations, like a gallery of portraits and self-portraits that opens the show. Cezanne broods. Gauguin flashes his teeth. Amid them are two portraits of Shchukin, done by the lesser-known Norwegian expressionist Xan Krohn, that translate him into blocky zones of color. In the full-length portrait, he appears in a gray morning coat, hands clasped before his waist; he stoops, he appears shy. The bold background of orange and white rhombuses only hints at his avant-garde sensibilities.

Indeed, Shchukins first purchases were creditable but benign, including a whiff of Romanticism: a lakeside enchanted castle by the Scottish painter James Paterson. Landscape, though, an early passion, led him to Claude Monet. He acquired a preparatory version of Monets Luncheon on the Grass of 1866  the uptight, unfinished cousin of Manets painting of the same title, in which a dozen Parisians practice the new bourgeois art of doing nothing. (Where Manets women got naked, Monets clung to their petticoats.) Luncheon on the Grass foreshadows a clutch of major Impressionist Monets, including an 1886 portrayal of the Normandy coast as a milky field of periwinkle squiggles, and one of the finest of his London impressions, done in 1904, featuring the Houses of Parliament festooned with calligraphic sea gulls.

In many cases he bought, despite his reservations  and would waver in the face of his own uncertain taste. After Dance and Music netted Matisse terrible reviews at the 1910 Salon dAutomne, Shchukin backed out of acquiring them; then, via telegram, he changed his mind again and renewed his purchase. (After they arrived in Moscow, he wrote to Matisse, I hope to come to like them one day.) He was plotting out, first for himself, and later for the Russian public, how form would become paramount in Modern painting, and how illusionism would give way to a new artistic autonomy. It was a didactic approach, at odds with our stereotypes of private collectors as pleasure seekers or investors.
PARIS  One evening this month, a small group of visitors stood before a poetic spray-painted canvas of an old man sending a book flying into the air. They nodded as an amateur guide, Cristalle Issa, 22, provided them with background information on the artist, named Dran.

The group started snapping pictures and speaking in enthusiastic whispers, although it was hard to say whether they kept their voices low out of respect for the art, or for the dozens of students giving them bemused looks, hunched over seemingly endless rows of Mac computers.

In its latest disruptive move, Ecole 42, a tuition-free, unconventional computer academy founded by the telecom mogul Xavier Niel in 2013, twice a week becomes Art 42, Frances first museum devoted to street art, featuring 150 works from 50 artists, including Banksy, Shephard Fairey and JR.

Nicolas Laugero-Lasserre, 41, a longtime street art collector and the head of ICART, an art management school in Paris, reached out to the academys founders soon after it opened and offered his collection to be displayed (for free) throughout the schools three floors. He estimates the art to be worth hundreds of thousands of euros.
HOUSTON  Exxon Mobil, in a concession to market and regulatory pressures, said Friday that it might be forced to write down the value of some of its oil and gas assets in Canada and elsewhere if energy prices remain low through the end of the year.

The announcement, which accompanied the companys release of another quarter of lackluster earnings, was an apparent reversal of Exxon Mobils stance in recent years.

The company has long insisted that it has been adequately accounting for the value of its oil and gas reserves  even as many other petroleum companies have taken big write-offs to reflect a two-year price slump.

On Friday, though, the company acknowledged that it faced what could be the biggest accounting revision of reserves in its history. Exxon Mobil might have to concede that 3.6 billion barrels of oil-sand reserves and one billion barrels of other North American reserves are currently not profitable to produce.
SYDNEY  Gina Rinehart, a mining magnate, is very rich  and very Australian.

Her ancestors immigrated to the countrys hardscrabble western reaches in the 1830s. A mountain range there is named after her family. In public, she sometimes adopts a characteristically Australian distaste for pretension  what one historian called the countrys democracy of manners  such as the time she climbed onto the back of a flatbed truck with a bullhorn to excoriate a mining tax.

On Friday, Ms. Rinehart added further to her local bona fides as she became the sole remaining bidder for iconic Australian grazing land bigger than Portugal. But her apparent victory will probably add to unease among some Australian leaders over a major foreign buyer: Her partners in the bid are from China.

Australia already depends heavily on Chinas vast appetite for its rocks, milk and meat. Now it is soaking up billions of dollars worth of investment from China; the total reached $11.1 billion last year, according to KPG, the consulting firm. That has led to worries among members of the public that Chinese investors are buying up significant parts of the Australian economy and driving up already hefty home prices.

While critics of that stance say fears of China buying crucial Australian assets are largely unfounded, some Australian leaders have begun to act.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.  In a defiant defense of the magazine he founded and owns, Jann S. Wenner said Rolling Stone was wrong to fully retract a discredited 2014 article about allegations of a gang rape at the University of Virginia, asserting in videotaped testimony shown on Friday that much of the material in the article was correct.

We did everything reasonable, appropriate up to the highest standards of journalism to check on this thing, Mr. Wenner said in a libel trial in federal court here. The one thing we didnt do was confront Jackies accusers  the rapists.

As he has previously, Mr. Wenner assigned much of the blame to the woman at the center of the article, identified as Jackie, whose account of being raped began to fall apart shortly after the article was published two years ago. Mr. Wenner said there was nothing a journalist could do if someone is really determined to commit a fraud.

He said that while the magazine rightly retracted the Jackie stuff, he disagreed with the decision to retract the entire article in the wake of a damning report on it in April 2015 by The Columbia Journalism Review. He said the bulk of the article detailed ways that the University of Virginia could improve its treatment of victims of sexual assault.
COLUMBIA, S.C.  Last month, Akia Gayle gave birth to her third child. Sixteen hours later, while she was still in her hospital bed, a doctor implanted a matchstick-size plastic rod in her left arm because she did not want to have a fourth.

To have it done right then and there  thats good, Ms. Gayle said. I dont want more kids.

Ms. Gayle is one of thousands of women in South Carolinas Medicaid program who have gotten long-acting contraception at an unusual moment  right after they give birth. The novel policy, which has since been adopted by at least 19 other states, covers long-acting contraception right after birth for women on Medicaid, the government health insurance for low-income Americans. It is intended to help answer one of the most vexing questions in public health: how to reduce unplanned pregnancy in the United States.

Nearly half of all pregnancies in the country are unplanned, and in a majority of those cases, the woman already has a child. Rates are at least twice as high for poor women. Yet contraceptive methods have never been better: Tiny implants and new, modern IUDs last for up to five years and are far more effective than condoms and the pill. The problem is that they are expensive and usually require several trips to the doctor, insurmountable hurdles for many low-income women.

The idea behind the policy is to seize the day when a woman is sure to be interacting with the health care system  at the birth of a child. It is also the moment she is most likely to be insured: Pregnant women who are poor and do not have insurance are put on Medicaid temporarily. Birth control is usually discussed in a checkup about six weeks after delivery, but a majority of women on Medicaid, which covers 57 percent of births in South Carolina, do not return, officials said. Nearly half of all births in the United States are covered by Medicaid.
The first child in Puerto Rico with Zika-related microcephaly has been born, the territorys secretary of health announced Friday.

The fetuss abnormally small head was not detected until the mother was nearly eight months pregnant, according to The Associated Press, even though the mother was probably infected in her second month.

The mother did not get regular prenatal checkups, the AP quoted the health secretary, Dr. Ana Rius, as saying.
LONDON  The sleepy English town of Kettering is expecting Lindsay Lohan for Christmas.

And a local politician is making a public call for her R.S.V.P.

Philip Hollobone, a member of Parliament who represents Kettering and is on the town council, this week called for Ms. Lohan to follow through on a message in which she said that she would attend Ketterings Christmas tree lighting ceremony in November.

Ms. Lohan agreed to attend the ceremony on the eve of Brexit, after posting a less than flattering message about the town, which is about 80 miles north of London.

Sorry, #KETTERING where are you, Ms. Lohan wrote on Twitter as Brexit results poured in and Ketterings majority leave vote was revealed. (In a flurry of tweets about the referendum that she later deleted, Ms. Lohan made clear her support for Britains staying in the European Union.)
And he called the reports that he had opposed gay candidates ridiculous.

I support anyones right to run for public office, he said. I support my fellow Republican candidates.

He faulted Mr. Gottheimer for raising the issue, saying it distracted from other topics important to voters, including job creation, the economy and security issues.

This is something that came up over a year ago and my opponent has used it just to lie, Mr. Garrett said. This lie and other lies and they just continue to be spread, whether he advertises on TV or billboards or hires an airplane to spread his lies. Its really outrageous.

Mr. Gottheimer said that his opponents votes and positions are fair game.

The Tea Party extremism does not reflect the values of our district, Mr. Gottheimer said. If you want to get things done weve got to get rid of the obstructionists.

Mr. Gottheimer has benefited from hefty spending by super PACs, fueled partly by reaction to Mr. Garretts conservative positions. They include the Democratic Party-aligned House Majority PAC and the National Association of Realtors Political Action Committee. Mr. Garrett has pushed to end the federal governments role in supporting the mortgage market through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the mortgage finance giants, a stand opposed by the Realtors group.

Voters have been bombarded by ads, mailings and campaign phone calls.

At least 50 percent of the time my phone rings its something related to the election. Gottheimer. Garrett. And I get Trump calls all the time, said Karen Abraham, who was watching her two children play in a school playground in this suburb. Most of the television ads were negative, Ms. Abraham said, adding, It makes you glaze over after a while.

The harshest salvo has come from Mr. Garrett, in a television ad that resurrects a 2007 lawsuit, filed by a woman in Washington, who claimed she was mistreated in the condominium building where she lived, and where Mr. Gottheimer was on the board.
To the Editor:

Re Experts Dispute Trump in Mosul Attack Critique (news article, Oct. 21):

Donald Trumps criticism that planning for the recently commenced military operations to retake Mosul, Iraq, was stupid shows his unfitness to serve as commander in chief. He does not understand or seem to care about how the nature of war has changed since World War II.

Mr. Trump would endanger the lives of American soldiers and the United States security through his clear willingness to cavalierly dismiss the judgment, experience, advice and conclusions of our uniformed military leaders. It is these career military officers who in our defense system plan and execute such military operations.

Anyone who cares about the security of our country and its leadership role in the world should be deeply alarmed. A president  particularly one with zero military or foreign policy experience  who picks the tactics and tells the generals how to fight the war is doomed to failure.

LOUIS CALDERA

Washington

The writer, a professor of leadership at George Washington University, was secretary of the Army from 1998 to 2001.
SYDNEY, Australia  Down the hill from my house, there is an old building with a saw-toothed roof that once warehoused trams, back when the bay was heavy with industrial waste and working-class people could afford to buy a home this close to the city and harbor of Sydney.

Now that building has been revived and repurposed as a dining destination for our perfect little inner-city neighborhood at Glebe Point. The graffiti that marked its derelict years have been retained  except for offensive words, which have been scrubbed out. A bakery mills its flour right there before you. A restaurant serves produce from farmers known to the chef. It is local and authentic, the kind of local and authentic that deserves scare quotes because it is just as likely to be found in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, or the Shoreditch neighborhood in London.

The work of the urban theorist and activist Jane Jacobs is the subject of public discussion again, with the recent publication of a biography about her, Eyes on the Street. Ms. Jacobs is credited with helping save her New York neighborhood, Greenwich Village, from the threat of an expressway. Through her books, such as the seminal 1961 work The Death and Life of Great American Cities, she championed the diverse and dynamic urban neighborhood  sidewalks busy with foot traffic rather than automobiles and ripe for chance interactions; the friendly chaos of old and new, home and work, all within the same few blocks  seeding ideas that have been taken up in other cities around the world.

Yet for all its worth and triumph, at some point in the last 20 years, this dream died and became something else. Those urban villages, once diverse melting pots, became shiny, wealthy and inward-looking. The big ideas became small and hard and sparkling as diamonds.
We slept in a shutdown work camp, reopened for refugees like us. The next morning we left early, desperate to go south. Ian slept as we drove though the town, past the fires and smoke. Abasand, the suburb on the hill, was smoldering. Waterways, the historic old town in between the Hangingstone and Clearwater Rivers, had all but disappeared. Everywhere smelled like burned garbage. Ians favorite burger joint at the top of the hill was destroyed. He slept on, and I was grateful. He never even noticed the smell. By the time he woke up it was all 100 miles behind. Im hungry, he said.

We had relatives who took us in and made their home ours. Indeed the whole community of Devon, Alberta (population: 6,500), adopted us. They found us a furnished home. Ian went to the local school with his cousins and was a minor celebrity, as all evacuees were for a while. People stopped us in shopping malls, pressing money into our hands (feeling guilty, we passed it along to the Red Cross). The Lego store in Edmonton gave Ian a bag of toys, one of several occasions my wife cried, overwhelmed at the many little kindnesses. Starbucks offered free coffee to anyone from Fort McMurray. Caffeine heaven.

We returned home a month later, for a two-day visit to assess the damage and contemplate our future. We knew by then that our house had survived. The cable company told us our hookup was still working, and my wifes cousin, a volunteer firefighter from Vermilion, Alberta (population: 3,900), sent us a photo.

When we drove back, we were silent the last 40 miles. We saw the burned forests, broken, bare trees. Trucks melted down to paneled shells, houses to ash and dust. The smell of burned refuse was gone, but the colors were different. Black and gray, with the hope of new green foliage fighting through. Beige chemical spray had been used on all the fire spots, and it dominated the town.

We saw some people on the streets. No one had time to stop and chat. The parks were empty, the walkways and trails destroyed to break the fire. And there were no children. Parents came back first to check if it was safe. The Canadian community with the highest national birthrate did not trust itself yet.
To the Editor:

Is James Comey, the F.B.I. director, making mischief that may affect the results of the presidential election? Of course he is.

His letter to Congress on the reopened email investigation (nytimes.com, Oct. 28) drips with innuendo that again casts doubt on Hillary Clintons veracity and innocence. Yet Mr. Comey admits in his letter that the F.B.I. cannot yet assess whether or not this material may be significant, and I cannot predict how long it will take us to complete this additional work.

If thats the case, Mr. Comey, why not remain silent until you know the facts, as any responsible investigator would? Well, we do have one essential fact: that by releasing his letter 11 days before the election, the F.B.I. director is meddling in politics at Hooveresque levels.

PHILIP KIPPER

San Francisco

To the Editor:

So heres what it comes down to: Do we want a tight-lipped competent woman who made an uncharacteristic mistake using an email account, or do we want a loose-lipped incompetent man who characteristically tweets out venom without any thought of the consequences?
So which is it?

The truth, of course, is that is that the plot against America and the plot by America are both imaginary. Such vast political conspiracies tell us more about the conspiracy theorists than about the real world they claim to describe.

For one thing, all conspiracy theorists send a message that flatters their audience: We make no mistakes, we are responsible for no failures. Instead, all of our problems are orchestrated by evil forces that want to harm us. Conspiracy theories help deflect self-criticism and place blame  in fact, hatred  onto others for our problems. They also keep problems from being solved, because the only people who can solve them  us  are relieved of responsibility.

Conspiracy theories also flatter the theorists themselves: They are exceptional because they can perceive what everyone else is either too blind to see or too afraid to admit. Their ability to decipher clandestine schemes testifies to their genius. The fact that they fearlessly call out and challenge the schemers testifies to their courage.

Mr. Trump seems to be taking full advantage of all these messages. By blaming shadowy figures like global financial powers, the establishment and the news media, he is telling his supporters that all their problems come from the outside. All they need to do is to rally behind a savior, himself. He is also entertaining an additional conspiracy theory that will cover him if he loses the election, which seems increasingly likely. By declaring the vote rigged against him, he recasts his possible defeat as a victory. This was a real hero, people will say, who challenged both global and national cabals  no wonder conspirators lined up to ensure he was defeated.

It is no accident that Mr. Trumps affinity for conspiracy theories goes hand in hand with his authoritarian instincts. As Karl Popper, the great liberal thinker of the past century, pointed out, conspiracy theories are hallmarks of authoritarianism. Fascists were obsessed with conspiracies, as are Communists and political Islamists. In Russia, Vladimir V. Putins propaganda machine, too, is busy inventing endless plots against the motherland.
In coming weeks, activists will respond to calls from the leaders at Standing Rock by gathering at the offices of banks funding the pipeline, and at the offices of the Army Corps of Engineers, for protest and civil disobedience. Two dozen big banks have lent money to the pipeline project, even though many of them have also adopted elaborate environmental codes. As for the Corps, thats the agency that helped expedite the approval of the pipeline  and must still grant the final few permits.

The vast movement of people across the country who mobilized to block fossil-fuel projects like the Keystone pipeline and Shells plans to drill in the Arctic need to gather once more. This time, their message must be broader still.

There are at least two grounds for demanding a full environmental review of this pipeline, instead of the fast-track approvals it has received so far. The first is the obvious environmental racism of the whole project.

Originally, the pipeline was supposed to cross the Missouri just north of Bismarck, until people pointed out that a leak there would threaten the drinking water supply for North Dakotas second biggest city. The solution, in keeping with American history, was obvious: make the crossing instead just above the Standing Rock reservation, where the poverty rate is nearly three times the national average. This has been like watching the start of another Flint, Mich., except with a chance to stop it.

The second is that this is precisely the kind of project that climate science tells us can no longer be tolerated. In midsummer, the Obama administration promised that henceforth there would be a climate test for new projects before they could be approved. That promise was codified in the Democratic platform approved by Hillary Clintons campaign, which says there will be no federal approval for any project that significantly exacerbates global warming.
ATLANTA  Were coming up on Halloween, the most frightening time of the year  for college administrators. The debate over what costumes are too offensive to be worn on campus prompts some outsize emotions. Yale last year lost valuable faculty members because of a letter one of them wrote questioning prohibitions on Halloween costumes. The ensuing dispute was a national embarrassment, and it set Yale back $50 million in new diversity initiatives.

Universities took note. The University of Florida cautions that some costumes perpetuate negative stereotypes causing harm and offense to groups of people, and will maintain a round-the-clock counseling service for students who are upset by a costume. The dean of student affairs at Tufts University encourages students who spot an offensive costume to report it, and promises vigorous investigations that could result in disciplinary sanctions. Wesleyan University may have led the way last year in devising a cultural sensitivity checklist so potential offenders would realize their error before committing it, but the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, S.C.R.E.A.M. evaluator  or Simple Costume Racism Evaluation and Assessment Meter  takes determining the threat level of Halloween garb to a new level.

Its undeniable that administrators are under a lot of pressure from angry students, whose hurt and humiliation stem from defensible expectations. And it isnt easy for college officials to tell a 19-year-old minority student who was recruited with pledges of warm inclusiveness, or a freshman paying $50,000 a year in tuition, to toughen up and get back to work.

In fact, college officials cant say much of anything that smacks of moral guidance to students, and perhaps thats the real source of this hypersensitivity and censorship. Self-imposed Halloween restrictions are ridiculously overdone for a specific reason: When students go to college, they enter a culture of moral, emotional and social chaos, and they no longer have family and old friends nearby to tell them how to proceed. Naturally, many students set their own boundaries, establish norms for personal deportment and express their dismay when those are breached.
For The Times, struggling with declining advertising in both print and digital, affiliate links offer a promising model for tapping new revenue. The company has purchased not merely a successful website but also a path into the product recommendation business. And soon, it will be spreading the concept all over The Timess site, from areas like cooking to personal technology. The Times already has a handful of such affiliate links on its site  on the books best-seller list, for example, and on theater reviews. But theyre minimal compared with whats coming.

We want The Times to be viewed as indispensable in this type of service journalism, said Ben French, vice president of products at The Times and head of an area called Beta. Its a great service to our readers.

This is a significant change from the trifecta that has sustained journalism for centuries: the news organization, the reader and the advertiser. Traditionally, newsrooms focused on journalism and mostly stayed away from recommending consumer goods. Advertisers did the product recommending, by purchasing ads adjacent to the news. The readers, meanwhile, either found the ads useful or accepted them as part of the price for getting quality news.

With the old financial model crumbling, its understandable why The Times needs to search for new revenue. But if its going to start giving the thumbs-up to the best toaster oven  while making money off the sale  it had better be sure readers fully understand how the arrangement works and are ready to embrace it. Readers have a deep understanding of the current revenue model, a comfort level gained over a lifetime. The new one may take some getting used to, judging by the emails to my inbox this week.

Paul Landaw of Bellerose Terrace, New York, says he fears The Times is moving away from hard-hitting objective journalism and toward lifestyle and service journalism, and he is distrustful. We are supposed to believe that the Times/Wirecutter recommendations are objective and disinterested when the Times stands to earn a commission if readers click through to buy on Amazon, he writes. Sorry, but this screeches conflict of interest to me in a loud voice. Will The Times only recommend items that can be bought through affiliate sites and disparage those that cant? Can The Times prove that this will not be a conflict of interest?
There is no shortage of comedians weighing in on the current election, but it often seems like the tools of satire are insufficient to comment on this absurd and exhausting campaign. Perhaps we need to look to a darker corner of the culture, where the punch lines end with bruises.

The Pumpkin Pie Show: Stump Speeches, the delightfully perverse, political-themed installment of the annual macabre merriment led by the writer and performer Clay McLeod Chapman, provides strong evidence that the bloody tools of Lovecraftian horror are effective this political season. This series of vignettes, organized around a fictional election between the sex-scandal-ridden Senator Pendleton (Mr. Chapman) and the hungrily ambitious Senator Templeton (Kristen Vaughan), begins with the normal  campaign speeches, debates, political commentary  then spins off into the supernatural, sinister and strange.

What makes Mr. Chapman  a screenwriter for the 2015 indie horror movie The Boy  such a skilled craftsman is he does not choose between subtle and heavy-handed or teasing suspense and gruesome shocks. He knows that in the best horror, the vulgar dances with the refined.

His play is not dogmatic (there are bits in here to appeal to haters of both Hillary Clinton and Donald J. Trump) but oblique. He tiptoes around direct references to specific politicians or famous scary stories, but hints at both. To make our nation great, everyones gotta make sacrifices, his senator announces in a debate, before an ominous pause. Ancient sacrifices.
Its a type of ad that the Clinton campaign has made more than once.

John G. Geer at Vanderbilt University and I have been gauging the effectiveness of this and other political ads by asking randomly assigned groups of people to react to and evaluate them all year. (The project is called SpotCheck, and you can watch all the ads weve tested and see how people rated them here.)

Weve tested dozens of campaign ads aired by or on behalf of the two major party candidates since June. The viva voce ads stand out in a few ways. More people (57 percent) say these ads are memorable compared with Mrs. Clintons positive promotional ads (only 45 percent). Similarly, 54 percent of those randomly assigned to see ads like Mirrors and Role Model view them as truthful, while only 37 percent believe this about the promotional ads.

Fewer people say the ads using the candidates voices make them feel happy (21 percent vs. 49 percent) and hopeful (30 vs. 54) when compared with the promotional ads, and more say they make them feel angry and worried. Almost 75 percent of the people who saw an ad with Mr. Trumps own words said the ad made them feel angry. Only 43 percent of those who saw one of Mrs. Clintons promotional ads felt this way.

Despite this recent use of the genre, ads that use only an opponents recorded audio for voice-overs are rare. The Clinton campaign has used Mr. Trumps own words against him several times. A similar voice-over ad called Role Models ran during the conventions and showed images of children watching television as Mr. Trump is heard saying: I love the old days. You know what they did to guys like that when they were in a place like this? Theyd be carried out on a stretcher, folks.
In one case, the officers said, they used a Taser gun after a protester threw pepper in officers faces. One woman who was being arrested, the authorities said, had pulled a gun out and fired at a police line. No one was hit by those shots, they said, though two officers had minor injuries after being hit by debris.

It was peaceful, but its not now, Randez Bailey, a resident of Standing Rock, said of the protest. We are the ones who have to live here. You all get to go back home.

The confrontation has been brewing for months as Energy Transfer Partners tries to finish construction of the Dakota Access pipeline, which is to carry oil 1,170 miles from North Dakota to Illinois. Company officials contend that the pipeline will be a safer way to transfer oil. But Native Americans and environmental activists, many of whom have gathered here, say the $3.7 billion pipeline threatens the regions water supply and would harm sacred cultural lands and tribal burial grounds.

Even as crews here were continuing construction of the pipeline along private lands, all sides were awaiting a review by the Army Corps of Engineers on a crucial stretch of the proposed path, through Army Corps land and under the Missouri River.
LANSING, Mich.  As Flint continues to suffer from a water crisis, one question percolates here in Michigans capital: Who will be charged next?

So far, nine low-level or midlevel government officials have been criminally charged as part of the state investigation into the waters contamination, which has been tied to lead poisoning in children and the deaths of 12 people from Legionnaires disease.

In recent weeks, however, there have been growing indications that investigators are focusing on bigger targets, and they seem to be looking more intently at the states failure to respond to the Legionnaires cases.

Twelve people died, said Bill Schuette, Michigans attorney general, who is leading the investigation. That is certainly a high priority for us.
WASHINGTON  The mysterious death here of a prominent Russian businessman and former government minister last year was an accident caused by a drunken fall inside his hotel room, the prosecutors office announced on Friday as investigators officially closed the case.

The death of Mikhail Y. Lesin, who once played an influential role in President Vladimir V. Putins control of the news media in Russia, generated significant attention because of the proximity he had to the Kremlin and the unexpected loss of favor before his self-imposed exile in the United States.

For months, speculation swirled that Mr. Lesin was murdered, perhaps by a commercial rival or, more ominously, as a warning to those who betrayed the Kremlin. While no evidence ever emerged supporting either theory, speculation intensified when the citys medical examiner in March attributed his death to blunt trauma to his head, neck, limbs and torso.

Now, nearly a year later, the authorities have settled on a more prosaic tale, determining that he died from injuries sustained after a bout of drinking. He was 57.
An embattled first-term United States senator, Mark S. Kirk of Illinois, faced sharp criticism after seeming to mock his Democratic challengers ethnicity and her familys history of military service at a debate on Thursday night.

Hillary Clinton and other Democrats on Friday condemned Mr. Kirk, a Republican, and urged him to apologize to his opponent, Representative Tammy Duckworth, a veteran who lost her legs in the Iraq war, after his retort at the debate in Springfield, Ill.

A little after noon on Friday, he offered his sincere apologies to Ms. Duckworth on Twitter.

The moment came after Ms. Duckworth spoke about the human costs of war. My family has served this nation in uniform, going back to the Revolution. Im a daughter of the American Revolution. Ive bled for this nation, she said.



But I still want to be there in the Senate when the drums of war sound, she added. Families like mine are the ones that bleed first. But lets make sure the American people understand what we are engaging in, and lets hold our allies accountable, because we cant do it all.
Mr. Grimm, the brief said, avoids drinking liquids and tries not to urinate during the school day and has, as a consequence, developed painful urinary tract infections and felt distracted and uncomfortable in class.

In a statement issued on Friday, Mr. Grimm said: I never thought that my restroom use would ever turn into any kind of national debate. The only thing I ever asked for was the right to be treated like everyone else.

He continued: While Im disappointed that I will have to spend my final school year being singled out and treated differently from every other guy, I will do everything I can to make sure that other transgender students dont have to go through the same experience.

Speaking of the Supreme Courts decision, Shannon Minter, the legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, said: This is one of the most important days in the history of the transgender movement. The outcome of this case is likely to shape the future of that movement in ways that will resonate for a very long time.

Gary McCaleb, a lawyer with Alliance Defending Freedom, which filed a brief supporting the school board in Virginia, said, Schools have a duty to protect the privacy and safety of all students.

In light of the right to bodily privacy, federal law should not be twisted to require that a male be given access to the girls facilities, or a female to the boys facilities, he said.

After Mr. Grimm challenged the school boards bathroom policy in court last year, a divided panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, in Richmond, Va., ruled the policy unlawful. A trial judge then ordered school officials to let Mr. Grimm use the boys bathroom.
CARACAS, Venezuela  Much of Caracas and other cities slowed to a Sunday crawl on Friday as many Venezuelans heeded the oppositions call for a general strike, a step in its campaign to force a referendum to remove President Nicolas Maduro.

Some stores were closed, traffic was light and students stayed away from private schools and universities. But the strike was a considerably weaker show of strength than the opposition had succeeded in mobilizing on Wednesday, when protesters poured into the streets here in the capital, and other major cities.

Both sides took to social media to try to influence the publics impression of the 12-hour strikes effectiveness. Opposition leaders began the day by posting Twitter messages with photographs and video of empty streets and unfilled seats on rush-hour subway trains. Empty streets like the stomachs of Venezuelans, Luis Florido, an opposition legislator, said in a message.

The government, for its part, sent out images suggesting a busy workday: scenes of a bicycle factory, a glass plant, children playing chess at school and office workers holding up signs declaring, I work for the homeland.
Hu Ping is the editor of the pro-democracy journal Beijing Spring, based in New York. But in 1975, he was 28 and living in the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu, a recently returned educated youth who had been sent down to labor in the countryside during the Cultural Revolution.

While waiting to be assigned to a new workplace, he wrote an essay that would become a classic of modern Chinese liberalism. The essay, On Freedom of Speech, could at first be circulated only through handwritten posters on the citys streets. In 1979 it appeared in the underground magazine Fertile Soil, and it went on to influence a generation of democracy advocates.

Mr. Hu was admitted to Peking University in 1978 and in 1980 was elected as a delegate to the local peoples congress. In 1987, he began doctoral studies at Harvard, then moved to New York a year later to serve as chairman of an organization supporting Chinas burgeoning democracy movement. The Chinese government canceled his passport, consigning him to exile.

In his new book  Why Did Mao Zedong Launch the Cultural Revolution?, published in Taiwan by Asian Culture  Mr. Hu argues that contemporary Chinese concepts of democracy and freedom are not imports from the West, but a response to political oppression at home and a growing appreciation of the need for restraints on state power. In an interview, Mr. Hu discussed how the Cultural Revolution shaped his thinking, the unexpected course of President Xi Jinpings career and why he rejects assertions that democracy is a foreign concept and therefore inappropriate for China.
The scheme was simple: Stuff cotton into air-monitoring equipment so that the air being read would be filtered and seem cleaner.

The people doing this to produce better  but false  air-quality readings in Xian, the provincial capital of Shaanxi, got away with it for months, until inspectors noticed irregularities in the data.

An investigation resulted in the head of the air-monitoring station in the citys Changan district and several members of his staff being caught, according to a report by Chinese Business View, a newspaper in Shaanxi. Five people have been detained, including He Limin, chief of the Changan branch of the Xian Environmental Protection Bureau.

The report was widely reprinted online and discussed by internet users this week in China, and it raised questions about the accuracy of air-quality data gathered in scores of cities across the country. In January 2013, China began releasing real-time air-quality data from 74 cities and 496 air-monitoring stations. Since then, many more cities have been added to the system, overseen by the Ministry of Environmental Protection.
MANILA  After President Rodrigo Duterte publicly named him as a drug suspect last summer, the mayor of a small Philippine town said he was not worried.

If you are not guilty, why should you be afraid? the mayor, Samsudin Dimaukom, told The New York Times in August.

On Friday, he and nine other men were shot dead at a highway police checkpoint, in what the police described as an antidrug operation.

Mr. Dimaukom and his companions are among about 2,000 people who have been killed in Mr. Dutertes campaign against drugs since he took office on June 30.
President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines, who told President Obama in October he can go to hell and has unleashed epithets at the pope, said on Thursday that the voice of God told him to stop cursing.

He promised to obey the word of the Almighty.

Mr. Duterte told reporters after a flight home from Japan on Thursday that he had heard a voice commanding him to ease up on the cuss words, or else the plane would crash.

Faced with a choice between cleaning up his language and killing everyone onboard with an unplanned dive into the Philippine Sea, he said, he chose to stay alive.

Mr. Duterte, who has waged a bloody and ruthless antidrug campaign that has killed about 2,000 people in his country  including the mayor of a small town and nine others on Friday  said he heard the voice as everyone else was asleep and snoring: If you dont stop, I will bring this plane down now.
MANILA  Chinese vessels have quietly abandoned the contested Scarborough Shoal, the Philippine government said Friday, apparently a concession by Beijing after a visit to China by President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines.

Ernesto Abella, the presidents spokesman, told reporters at the presidential palace in Manila that there had been no sign of Chinese Coast Guard vessels in that part of the South China Sea since Tuesday. Filipino fishermen, who had been chased away from their traditional fishing grounds at the shoal after the Chinese arrived in 2012, can fish there once again, he said.

For the past three days, it has been observed that there are no longer any Chinese Coast Guard vessels and that Filipino fishing boats are no longer being intercepted and that they are now able to fish in the area without being intercepted, he said.

The apparent departure by the Chinese ships signals a further warming of relations between China and the Philippines since Mr. Duterte, a former mayor with a strong anti-American streak, took office on June 30.
It almost seems to be destruction for the sake of destruction, said Radha Kumar, a policy analyst who served as a government-appointed interlocutor in Kashmir during prolonged protests in 2010. That anyone should see this as a legitimate display of anger and frustration, it seems to be absolutely tragic. Its a tragic display.

She said she could not remember any schools being burned like this in the past 20 years of conflict in Kashmir.

The territory is claimed by India as part of the state of Jammu and Kashmir, but has a large separatist movement that India says is stoked by Pakistan-supported militants. Many Kashmiri residents complain of abuse by the Indian security forces. Pakistan maintains that a referendum should be held so Kashmiri residents can decide whether to go their own way.

The reopening of schools at the end of a wave of protests has been a flash point in the past because government officials projected it as a sign of normalcy, Ms. Kumar said. Most of Kashmirs educational institutions were closed as part of curfews starting July 9, when security forces killed a charismatic militant leader, setting off protests that spread throughout the region. The separatist leaders strike instructions, which Hurriyat issues on a weekly basis as part of the protests, require all educational institutions to be closed.

In a statement released Thursday, the leader of the Hurriyat Conference, Syed Ali Geelani, refused to change those instructions, saying the governments push to reopen schools was nothing but mockery and imperialistic designs to strengthen this unwanted occupation.

Ms. Kumar said officials had been trying to reopen schools since August, but that this years protests had proven longer and more aggressive than in years past. Beginning in September, some schools in calmer areas began quietly reopening, said Inderjeet Sharma, the chief education officer in the Budgam district.

In interviews, educators in south Kashmir said they encountered anger  and sometimes explicit threats  from neighbors and acquaintances when they announced they were reopening their schools. Bashir Ahamad Dar, the headmaster of high school in the village of Aripathen, which was damaged in a fire on Sunday, said the governments decision to resume classes clearly angered local elders, who threatened to burn the building.
MANILA  A Thai man will serve a maximum of five years in prison after pleading guilty to obscene behavior and causing serious injury to a New York tourist, who fell off a cliff in southern Thailand as she fled his initial attack, the authorities said on Friday.

The man, Apai Ruangwong, 28, was sentenced this month to 10 years in prison in the province of Krabi for the attack on the tourist, Hannah Gavios, after offering to guide her to her hotel, but the punishment was cut in half because he pleaded guilty.

Ms. Gavios, 23, broke her spine in the fall. Although she can now move her legs, she still has no feeling in her ankles, feet and backside, said her mother, Gwen Gavios.

She remains hospitalized in New York and is learning to walk using crutches and custom leg braces. Doctors said her condition may improve as the nerves regenerate.
PARIS  The living dead have long haunted French politics. Some resurrect themselves after near-death experiences in politics, while others continue to appear politically alive even when they have actually died.

Frances current president, Francois Hollande, falls into the second category. Mr. Hollande still occupies the magnificent gilded Elysee Palace, still gives speeches attended by important people and still attends ribbon-cuttings.

Yet his popularity ratings have hovered in the low teens and below for months, and polls show he would easily be eliminated early in presidential voting next year.

Virtually no commentator expects him to win a second term, few in the public or his Socialist Party seem to want him to run again, even though he has yet to indicate that he wont, inspiring both dread and paralysis. Next years presidential election is seen as the rights to lose.
BEIRUT, Lebanon  A coalition of Syrian insurgent groups said it had begun a major offensive on Friday to break the monthslong siege of eastern parts of Aleppo by government and Russian forces, and at least 15 people were reportedly killed in fighting in government-controlled parts of the city.

Observers reported heavy gunfire, mortar fire, car bombs and other explosions. Black smoke from burning tires rose above the city, evidently in an attempt to obscure the view of pilots flying Russian warplanes overhead.

The new offensive was a strong sign that rebel groups vetted by the United States were continuing their tactical alliances with groups linked to Al Qaeda, rather than distancing themselves as Russia has demanded and the Americans have urged.

Russia has reserved the right to attack anyone working with the Qaeda-linked groups, saying there is little distinction between them. The rebels argue that they cannot afford to shun any potential allies while they are under fire, including well-armed and motivated jihadists, without more robust aid from their international backers.
GENEVA  Islamic State fighters have killed scores of people and are using tens of thousands more as human shields as government and Kurdish forces battle to reclaim Mosul, United Nations human rights investigators reported on Friday.

After killing a group of 25 former servicemen on Tuesday, the militants shot to death at least 190 former members of the Iraqi security forces at a military base in Mosul on Wednesday, Ravina Shamdasani, a spokeswoman for the United Nations human rights office, told reporters in Geneva.

Islamic State members had rounded up the former servicemen and their families a day earlier. After transporting them to al-Ghazlani base, they separated the men from the women and children and shot them dead, Ms. Shamdasani said.

The militants also killed 42 civilians on Friday at a military base outside the city by shooting them in the head, she said, after they refused to join the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL.
TULKARM, West Bank

She knew that once she put on the explosive belt, there would be no turning back. She knew it would rip her limb from limb, reducing her to a bloody pulp. She knew it would leave her only daughter an orphan.

But she also knew this: It would kill Israelis. With luck, a lot of them. And that was reason enough to do it.

Shifa al-Qudsi was a suicide bomber, or at least tried to be. A Palestinian hairdresser driven to anger, despair and hopelessness, she volunteered to carry out an attack on Israelis that would strike a blow, she thought, for her beleaguered people. I wanted to seek revenge, she said.

But she was arrested before she could act and today, after six years in an Israeli prison, Ms. Qudsi has transformed herself from a would-be deliverer of death into a messenger of peace. Now working with a group that brings Palestinians and Israelis together to advocate an end to the conflict between their peoples, she tries to channel the rage that took her to the brink into a nonviolent movement for change.

Ms. Qudsi offers a window into the world of terrorism amid a fresh wave of attacks by Palestinians. Mainly wielding knives rather than bombs, this new generation of attackers are nonetheless also committing suicide for their cause, since they know they are likely to be shot by Israeli soldiers.

Ms. Qudsi understands the kind of thinking that makes sacrificing oneself seem like a rational response to deep feelings of grievance.

They occupy your home, your land, they kill your relatives and your people  of course youre upset, she said. You have no other option but to seek revenge.

Now 40, she smoked as she reflected on her life in this corner of the West Bank occupied by Israeli forces for nearly 50 years. Looking back, she still embraces the resentment if not the methodology.

I dont feel bad that I made that decision, she said of her brush with death. But now I reject suicide attacks. God decides when we will live and when we will die. Now my jihad is to send out a message to the world. The world must know the Palestinians land is occupied. We are people who want peace, just peace.

She has come to know Israelis who share her views as part of Combatants for Peace, an organization of former Israeli soldiers and Palestinian fighters reaching across lines that separate them. I want to stop the bloodshed, Ms. Qudsi said.

The group is featured in a new documentary, Disturbing the Peace. But old suspicions die hard, and Ms. Qudsi was not permitted by the Israeli authorities to attend the Jerusalem premiere in July, nor allowed to travel to the United States Consulate in Jerusalem to obtain a visa to attend a showing early this month at the Hamptons International Film Festival on Long Island. The movie will debut in New York City on Nov. 11, and she still hopes to attend.

AN ISRAELI official said that Ms. Qudsis application was not filed by a deadline and that future ones would be considered. But the potential security risk would be a factor, said the official, who declined to be identified discussing an individual case.

If viewed warily by the Israeli authorities, Ms. Qudsi is not accepted by everyone at home either. Palestinian attackers are celebrated in the West Bank as martyrs, and their families receive compensation from the Palestinian Authority. Cooperation with Israelis, even like-minded ones, is often deemed betrayal.

The Palestinian people have lost hope and dont believe that peace with the Israelis will ever be achieved, said Mahmoud Mubarak, president of the Jalazoun refugee camp council. Many Palestinians consider the participation in joint projects with Israelis as normalization.

Normalization refers to making the current situation better rather than seeking to overturn it altogether. Omar Barghouti, a founder of the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement, called B.D.S., which targets Israel internationally, said the ostensible neutrality of groups like Combatants for Peace actually cemented the occupation.

Joining normalization groups like Combatants for Peace is certainly not the answer; it aggravates the problem, he added. Normalizing Israeli apartheid only entrenches it.

In an interview in a cafe one morning this fall, Ms. Qudsi denied enabling the occupation. Im against normalization. We are all against normalization, even this group, she said. Theres a huge difference.

Ms. Qudsi was one of 10 children in her family who grew up in Tulkarm, in the northern section of the West Bank. Her father, who managed a coffee shop, ran a conservative household, and when she was 15, she was married to a cousin. They had a daughter but divorced when Ms. Qudsi was 17.

She worked in a hair salon and had little interest in politics. I wasnt really paying attention to what was going on around me, she said. I would only open the newspaper to look at the horoscope.

But after the second intifada, or uprising, began in 2000, the conflict found her. Two cousins were shot. The sound of explosions gave her daughter nightmares. The mother of her daughters friend was killed. Her brother, Mahmoud Adnan al-Qudsi, tried to mount a suicide attack, only to be arrested.

Finally, at age 25, Ms. Qudsi said she could take it no more. She approached militants and offered to conduct an attack. She would pretend to be pregnant, wearing a suicide belt underneath a maternity dress. Another bomber paired with her would set off his explosives after she detonated hers.

Ms. Qudsi insisted on targeting soldiers, not civilians. But she acknowledged no qualms about killing other people, no sense that she would continue the cycle of violence without resolving anything. Her main misgiving was leaving her 6-year-old daughter, Diana.

I told my daughter Im going to go out and carry out a suicide attack so you can survive, she recalled. It was very, very difficult for a mother to tell her only daughter, Im going to die. But because my daughter had seen her friends mother die, she asked me one question: Will we then live in peace? Will we live in freedom? Will this end? 

Diana pleaded with her mother. She said, Mama, please dont leave me. I only have you,  Ms. Qudsi said. But the desire I had took over  to take revenge for everything that was happening around me.

The night before her attack in April 2002, though, Israeli security forces, tipped to the plan, burst into her house. According to the Israeli authorities, Ms. Qudsi was interrogated for three days before being charged and convicted of conspiracy to commit premeditated killing and possession of explosives. She said she was beaten in prison.

WHILE locked up, Ms. Qudsi rethought her course. Although still angry at Israelis, she began reading the writings of Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela. She met a female Israeli prison guard who treated her with respect.

Thats what made me feel that not every Israeli is the same, she said. Theres a difference between Israelis who want to carry a gun and shoot us.

Released in 2008, she joined Combatants for Peace. Among those she met was Chen Alon, an Israeli military officer who spent time in jail after refusing to serve in the occupied territories.

Mr. Alon was shocked by her story. I could identify with everything except the decision  the terror, the hopelessness, the idea that this was the only thing that could provide a future for her daughter, said Mr. Alon, now a theater director and lecturer at Tel Aviv University. I dont accept it, but I can understand it.

I told her that a suicide attack is a crazy attack, he continued. And she told me right in front of the group, Youre saying that because you have tanks and helicopters. You think this because you can bomb us from the air. But when you dont have anything in hand to protect yourself, these belts are the only weapon we have.

That, he added, made me think, Wow, I didnt think about it this way. 

For Ms. Qudsi, that is the challenge. To make others think like a suicide bomber. And to make herself not think like one. I was only looking at the situation from one side, she said. Now, Im looking at it from both.
UNITED NATIONS  Russia narrowly lost its seat on the main United Nations body devoted to human rights on Friday, signaling international dismay over the military powers conduct in Syria.

The vote was to select countries to represent Eastern Europe on the United Nations Human Rights Council. Russia lost by two votes to Croatia and by 32 votes to Hungary. All 193 members of the United Nations General Assembly voted, and when the results were announced, there was a small intake of air in the large hall, said the New Zealand envoy, Gerard van Bohemen.

He said he believed that Russias conduct in the war in Syria, including the aerial bombardment of Aleppo, must have played a part.

The Russian ambassador, Vitaly I. Churkin, declined to answer a reporters question about whether Syria had anything to do with the vote. We need a break, he said.
PHILADELPHIA  The ghost of Dr. Albert C. Barnes, the visionary collector and undisputed eccentric who once replied Nuts to T. S. Eliots request for a visit to his renowned holdings, still hovers here at the Barnes Foundation, even in the new building by the architects Tod Williams and Billie Tsien, which opened in 2012.

Certainly his presence is felt in the unparalleled trove of masterpieces on the walls, including works by Cezanne, van Gogh and Matisse, and in the famously quirky arrangement that originated in his own home and is preserved even now by the legal requirements of his trust. African sculptural masterpieces by anonymous craftsmen mingle with Manets, and shining pieces of 18th- and 19th-century metalwork are thrown in for good measure.

Would Dr. Barnes, who died in 1951, be surprised to learn that this fall, the foundations executive director and president, Thomas Collins, taught a course on the gay subculture, as represented by artists in the collection like Charles Demuth and Marsden Hartley?

Thats a good question, Mr. Collins, who is known as Thom, said recently with a laugh.

A museum veteran who has worked at the Museum of Modern Art and came to the Barnes after running the Perez Art Museum Miami, Mr. Collins is already charting a new course for the foundation in his first 18 months on the job. And its a direction that he said springs directly from the founders mission  updated to reflect the huge changes in how we view, interact with and live with art today.
Americans may know the basics of how Martin Luther was said to have nailed his 95 theses to a church door in Wittenberg, Germany, in 1517, condemning the Roman Catholic Churchs sale of indulgences, but they probably dont realize how Luther strategically used the media of his time: books, paintings, prints and music.

This monk in a town at the edge of Germany took on the Holy Roman emperor and the pope  then the most powerful men in Europe  500 years ago, and won, dividing the church, setting in play one of the most successful media campaigns in history and altering Western society and culture, said John T. McQuillen, assistant curator of printed books and bindings at the Morgan Library & Museum in New York.

That message and its resonance are being celebrated at three institutions in honor of the coming 500th anniversary of Martin Luthers action and the beginning of the Reformation. Each of the shows  in Manhattan, Atlanta and Minneapolis  is unique. Featured among them are hundreds of objects: liturgical vestments; illuminated manuscripts; satirical woodcuts; one of six existing single-sheet printed copies of the 95 theses; the pulpit where Luther last preached; personal belongings, like Luthers traveling spoon and beer stein; and items from recent archaeological excavations in Germany, including household goods and toys linked to Luthers childhood.

Many items, like some Bibles translated into German, have never been shown outside Germany before, and most will be on view in the United States for the first time. The shows primary theme is to demonstrate how Luther made extremely good use of the new media at his disposal to disseminate his teachings, said Tomoko Emmerling, project manager for Here I Stand  Luther Exhibitions USA 2016, a United States-German partnership presenting the shows. (The title refers to words Luther is thought to have said, underscoring his convictions: Here I stand, I can do no other.)
How did you come to People of Earth?

Ive had a production company, Conaco, for a number of years for projects that I really am passionate about  kind of a TV equivalent of Trump University. Its a tax dodge, and were really bilking the public. A lot of times we read a script, and it feels like homework. But this was an absolute delight. The other key piece of the puzzle, aside from TBS, was Greg Daniels [an executive producer of The Office], who has a genius for very subtle comedy thats based on personality.

Do you believe in aliens?

I do think alien life exists. But I think when we do encounter life on other planets its going to be extremely disappointing. I just dont think its going to be the spaceship and these creatures with giant heads and huge eyes. Its going to be some sort of three-celled organism that grows on a rock and is really into pornography.

Whats it like to work with Wyatt Cenac?

Hes brilliant, and has incredible integrity. A fantastic added delight is getting to know Wyatt, who Id admired from afar, and I mean that in a creepy way.

Why Conan at the Apollo?

This is a bucket-list thing. Just stepping up on that stage and walking around, a chill goes up your spine. I was there a week ago, shooting pieces in Harlem and going on adventures. When 30 women pull you into their salon and say, Were going to weave your hair, you say yes.

Is there anything left in this presidential campaign to mine for humor?

Theres been a lot of good comedy about Trump, but he also presents a real challenge. Hes a very hard person to satirize, because hes so outrageous to begin with. Myself, Im eager for this election to be over. It got to a certain point where sadness started to creep in.
Skal has been chasing Dracula for more than a quarter-century, since his 1990 debut, Hollywood Gothic, a chronicle of the villains evolution from an animalistic literary monster to a debonair screen star. Hes written a biography of Tod Browning, director of the original movie, and co-edited an annotated version of the novel. His command of the material combined with his gifts as a storyteller manage to make this an authoritative book without a dull moment, its wandering narrative always returning to the shadowy corners of Victorian sexuality.

Skal suggests that Stoker was a masochist with a strongly transgender perspective muffled by the conventions of his age. Stoker was given to hero worship, and his life was filled with intense friendships with charismatic men, including Walt Whitman. Skal lingers for pages on a fan note Stoker wrote to the poet, which reads like a bizarrely emotional OK Cupid profile. His most important relationship was with Henry Irving, the 19th-century star actor. As a drama critic, Stoker raved about his performances before going to work as his business manager. Henry Irving was the master he had been searching for all his life, Skal writes. Irving would make him whole. And Stokers devotion to the man would be the exquisite ecstasy of a martyr.

Dracula was born in the theater. The evil demon kings of English pantomimes fired Stokers imagination as a child, as Irving did later with his melodramatic turns. The famous crucifix held aloft to stop evil had its origins in Irvings production of Faust. And Shakespeare, Skal persuasively argues, was a major influence, particularly the bloody tragedy Macbeth.

Skal devotes considerable attention to speculating about the influence of Oscar Wilde, often with labored comparisons to Dracula. Wilde and Stoker did have similar backgrounds: Both were Irish-born graduates of Trinity College who moved to London and became involved in theater around the same time. But the record of their interaction is thin, which somehow, in this book, draws them closer together. It was as if Oscar represented a part of his own life and psyche Stoker simply chose not to recognize or validate, Skal writes.

Skal uses Wildes flamboyance to illuminate his subject the same way Tom Stoppard did in his portrait of A.E. Housman, The Invention of Love. But that was a play. And while the brouhaha around Wildes trial may illustrate the explosiveness of certain taboo sexual pleasures that Dracula also tapped into, straining to make the point reveals a shortcoming of the books focus on sex.
His first literary worship was of the marvelous boy  the phrase is from Wordsworths poem Resolution and Independence  Thomas Chatterton, the forger of antique poetry, who ate a lethal dose of arsenic and opium at 17, rather than face adulthood and obloquy.

It was in his later teens that De Quincey discovered his God: Wordsworth. Human nature, he believed, had changed with the publication of Lyrical Ballads in 1798. He wrote Wordsworth an unsolicited letter  his first masterpiece, Wilson calls it. It would take another four years, however, in response to a frigidly cordial reply from the great man, for him to bring himself to travel to the Lake District and have his Damascene moment.

Though the experience was epochal for De Quincey, he was, initially, serviceable to Wordsworth. Particularly in the matter of punctuation. Wordsworth, incidentally, comes across as an utter prig as Frances Wilson portrays him.

De Quincey appointed himself a courtier to the Lakeland coterie of Wordsworth, Coleridge and Southey. He entertained them royally. His money, while it lasted, proved useful  particularly to Coleridge, always ready to cadge a pound or two. His conversation was remarkable although it was noted (in later life) it could be rather slurred by the afternoon.

Having disgraced himself by marrying a house servant, De Quincey was not, the Wordsworths told him, to expect to take tea with them thereafter. Having borne eight living children, his wife, Margaret, died early, exhausted with the burdens of being Mrs. De Quincey. Worse still, Wordsworth cast him off.

After 20 years intimacy with the Wordsworth circle, De Quincey left, as Wilson puts it, the University of the Lakes for the Athens of the North, trailing a woebegone brood of motherless children behind him. In Edinburgh he installed himself in a vibrant literary world, dominated by Walter Scott, James Hogg and Blackwoods Magazine. He hacked out a stream of brilliant articles, the pittance they yielded never quite keeping the wolf from the door or providing adequately for his offspring. His intake of opium in these years was heroic: up to 10,000 drops of laudanum a day.

There have been many excellent biographies of De Quincey. Wilsons is original by virtue of being primarily an investigation into the extraordinary palimpsest of his mind. But De Quinceys best biographer, Wilson reminds us, will always be De Quincey himself. He pioneered self-reflection (autobiography, as it was beginning to be called) as a literary form, from Confessions to his bleak summa, Suspiria de Profundis.
Seven new paperbacks to check out this week.

KILLING A KING: The Assassination of Yitzhak Rabin and the Remaking of Israel, by Dan Ephron. (Norton, $16.95.) The 1995 murder of Rabin, the Israeli prime minister, also dealt a fatal blow to the Israeli-Palestinian peace process with which he was identified. Ephron, a former Jerusalem bureau chief for Newsweek, details the violent episode and its lasting influence on the moribund prospects for peace today.

THIRTEEN WAYS OF LOOKING: A Novella and Three Stories, by Colum McCann. (Random House, $16.) The stories in this collection often unfold in agonizing scenarios, with glimmers of empathy throughout. The title novella centers on an elderly New York judge before he is fatally assaulted; the police investigation of his death raises questions about the limits of surveillance and perspective in unearthing the truth.

THE GAY REVOLUTION: The Story of the Struggle, by Lillian Faderman. (Simon & Schuster, $20.) The author, a noted scholar of lesbian history, offers a balanced biography of the gay rights movement from the 1950s through the present day: protests in the 1960s; the declassification of homosexuality as a mental illness; the AIDS epidemic; and the push for marriage equality.
But the sense of sharing and the passion soon die down, as though Tremain was interrupting her own argument with a dead writer. She shows the wreckage of Manns humanist mountaintop, starts echoes of the death camps that helped ruin it, the ovens and the bones. Then she returns to her music, which is inevitably more abstract.

Gustav fancies himself as a minor-key Aschenbach, the genius whose orderly intellectual being is shattered by a lovely boy in Manns Death in Venice; he thinks he has the same kind of stifled passion for Anton and it will inevitably end in death. Yet he refused to see himself as Aschenbach, were told soon afterward, and how could he?

He isnt a lover so much as a carer, the one who brings soup to the sick, who is required to stop bad things from happening. He does get to share a room with the person I love most in the world and even receives a bit of rough urgency, but only after a half-century of waiting. In the meantime, he hardly has an emotional or a sensual life. Tremain is so good on passion  Gustavs mother insists that he learn to master himself, but she is deliriously lost when she first meets his wrestler father  that this is puzzling. Men who love men, it seems, are meant to wait.

Tremain is one of those few writers you trust completely when she goes to any unfamiliar territory, historical or emotional. She can make you feel how much Gustav doesnt want his mother to die before she has learned to love him and how much he tries to understand her. Tremain knows how to show all the terrible bleak things that can happen between mothers and sons. But her sense of Gustavs passion for Anton is curiously muffled, as though she is evading the very theme of her sonata.

This muffling affects the way she uses historical facts, although reality does sometimes need to be toned down before anyone can believe it. Gustavs policeman father is invented, but he has a real-life analogue: Paul Grueninger, police commander of the Swiss border canton of St. Gallen in 1938, the time of Kristallnacht and the Nazi Anschluss into Austria. When the Swiss closed their borders, the Jewish refugees kept coming. Grueninger chose to help 3,600 of them by falsifying papers to make them seem like legal arrivals. He ruined his own career  and his life  on principle.

Gustavs father is a reduced version of Grueninger. He helps only a few and only for a short while, and mostly out of compassion for one desperate father; nothing systematic. He is caught, and were asked to wonder who betrayed him. In the real world, dutiful German bureaucrats told dutiful Swiss bureaucrats about problems in the paperwork, and that was enough: The machine ruined Grueninger.

Even his sufferings are toned down. Gustavs father dies of a heart attack on his way to a reunion with his lover, cleared away early so he wont take over the book. Grueninger waited two years for a trial, survived long years in poverty, and died only in 1972. It was 1995 before the Swiss could bring themselves to undo his conviction.

Tremain must know all this, so its no accident she raises such haunting doubts. How can you take away a whole political context from a personal story when the weight of that story depends on the political context? This most unconventional book offers no easy answer, which makes it as disturbing and electric as any high-wire act.
We know many chilling names by heart  Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, Charles Manson  but will they be familiar a century from now? Jack the Ripper has managed only to grow in name recognition since he committed his crimes in the late 1880s. It is reasonable to ask why this remains true after more than a century and a quarter, Otto Penzler writes in his introduction to The Big Book of Jack the Ripper. Topping 800 pages, the book collects nonfiction and fiction about the killer, including original stories by Jeffery Deaver, Lyndsay Faye, Anne Perry and others. (Penzler, the editor of many crime and mystery anthologies, answers our By the Book questions this week.)

One reason for Jacks thriving legacy is his nickname  far more haunting than Jack the Killer or Jack the Stabber, Penzler rightly points out. But perhaps more important, he was never caught. The void where his identity should be continually calls out to our imagination.

In January, Patricia Cornwell will reissue her 2002 book Ripper: The Secret Life of Walter Sickert, in which she surmises that Sickert, a British Impressionist painter, was the villain. These Ripper people are understandably very angry, Cornwell told The New York Times in 2002 about her conclusion. They dont want somebody else to find out the suspect. It ruins their party. Controversy aside, Cornwells book  now packed with illustrations, including a few gruesome photos  is, like any story, essay or book about Jack, not for the squeamish.
Is AT&Ts $85 billion bid for Time Warner the triumph of hope over experience?

It is certainly true that the last two mega-mergers involving Time Warner fell far short of their promise. After the 1989 marriage of Time Inc. and Warner Communications, for instance, it took seven years for investors to see any real gains in the combined companies stock.

But even that painful deal paled in comparison to the 2001 merger of AOL and Time Warner. That was the worst combination in corporate history, at least until 2008, when Bank of America bought Countrywide Financial, the toxic mortgage lender.

This time its different, contends Randall L. Stephenson, AT&Ts chairman and chief executive. He called the merger a perfect match of two companies with complementary strengths who can bring a fresh approach to how the media and communications industry works for customers, content creators, distributors and advertisers.

Theres something for all investors in this corporate marriage, AT&T says: Those seeking earnings growth will benefit as well as investors on the hunt for income. For one thing, the company expects the combination to begin adding to earnings the year after it closes  a quick turnaround by traditional standards. And it also says the takeover will improve its so-called dividend coverage. Thats the measure of how much excess cash AT&T has to cover its 5.3 percent dividend.
If Genevieve DeBose were something other than a seventh- and eighth-grade English teacher, she might have been less dismissive of the all-too-brief message she received from Tosin Akinnagbe via OkCupid in September 2015.

In her job at the Bronx Studio School for Writers and Artists, she sometimes has to coax students struggling with writers block to jot down more than the bare minimum in their assignments.

Perhaps Mr. Akinnagbe needed such a teacher, too, for here is the entirety of his OkCupid message (not counting emoji of a smiley face and a shooting star): There is just so damn much I appreciate and smiled about while reading your profile.

Shakespeare he isnt, and Ms. DeBose, 39, of Harlem, was thoroughly unimpressed.

The way I perceived it, he didnt try very hard, she said.
Last March, I had to move out of the apartment on Oktyabrskaya Street in Moscow where I lived for 10 years. In a big city with lots of available places, I did not expect it to be hard to find a new room, and I made my first pick shortly after going online. There was one thing that I more or less ignored: Like many of the listings, the description of the rental contained the phrase Slavs only.

In Moscow, many believe that migrant laborers from the Caucasus region and Central Asia rent accommodations in order to convert them into so-called rubber apartments, cramming 10 or more people into them. Foreign workers, or gastarbeiters, who come here ready to work all sorts of jobs, are usually identifiable by thick southern accents. But that was not me.

As an Armenian raised and educated in Moscow, I have always considered myself a Muscovite, part of Russian society. Although I am not Slavic, I think and speak in Russian, and my Armenian is limited. I dont condone the racial stereotyping, but the Slavs only notices in the real estate listings did not make me raise an eyebrow.

When I dialed the number for the place I liked, the agent was very polite. He liked that I was local and worked for a good firm near the Belorusskaya metro station downtown. We were preparing to set up a meeting, but then he asked for my name.
A couple of Halloweens ago, I decided to switch out my lazy, customary Frida Kahlo costume (thrown together in five minutes with an embroidered Mexican dress, a few dollar-store roses and an eyebrow pencil) and instead become Frida of the Damned, so I added stage blood and fangs to my usual get-up. I really tried to be scary.

I also happened to be tending bar that night. But as soon as I asked a customer, through my plastic fangs, what he wanted to drink, I got laughter in response.

Stung by my failure to frighten, I consoled myself after my shift with what seemed like an appropriate choice for the occasion: a bloody mary. But despite its viscous ruddiness, it just didnt feel like the right drink. I wanted something just as bloody-minded, stronger in impact but lighter on the palate, something more unapologetically a cocktail, less a meal in a glass.

The bloody mary and its many variants arent the only drinks with blood in their names  or that somehow suggest it. (The first and most obvious choice would be red wine.) I might have turned to a Captains Blood cocktail: a rum-based drink similar to a daiquiri, except that its made with dark rum instead of white and a small but essential measure of falernum (a syrup flavored with spices, often nuts, sometimes lime, sometimes alcoholic and sometimes not, and popular in Caribbean rum drinks). I prefer it on the tart side: just adjust the amount of sugar to make it as sweet or as sharp as you like.
Within a few decades of founding New Amsterdam, the Dutch built a wall, first to keep out the Indians, then the British. But because the Dutch came to the New World to make money  rather than to proselytize or escape religious persecution  they let in just about everybody else.

Call it tolerance or indifference, that reception distinguished New York. Coupled with the wall, though, it also symbolized the citys enduring ambivalence about immigration.

Tyler Anbinders City of Dreams: The 400-Year Epic History of Immigrant New York (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $35) reviews this legacy and the continuing tale of the citys unique demographic upheaval. Its a welcome addition in a campaign season when, it seems, many Americans need reminding of how most of us got here.

The author admittedly gives short shrift to some earlier immigrant groups (Greeks and Indians) and to newcomers (as a historian he prizes the perspective of hindsight). But while Dr. Anbinder, who teaches history at George Washington University, offers no sweeping revelations or revolutionary doctrine, his exhaustive narrative provides a timely overview richly flecked with fascinating nuggets and enlightening profiles.
Its hard to pinpoint when exactly David Deblingers Lucky Penny was born, since he has been collecting the stories in his one-man show over many years, like loose change found on the sidewalk.

But the pivotal moment came two summers ago when Ben Snyder, the shows director, told Mr. Deblinger he was going to start running in Prospect Park to get back in shape. Mr. Deblingers wife was after him to exercise more, he said, so he started running with Mr. Snyder, a friend and theater colleague.

A lot was going on with him at the time, his father was sick, so while we were running, he would tell me stories, Mr. Snyder recalled. I dont think its a conscious thing, but when David tells a story and theres a character, he becomes that character. And then while he was telling me one of the stories, he just started crying.

Mr. Snyder, who met Mr. Deblinger in 1999 and had seen much of his solo work, suggested he turn the Prospect Park stories into a show. It was just so profound and beautiful. I said you have to do something with this. But I think he was kind of burned out on the solo show thing. Hed given it his all years ago.
In this, Mr. MacKenzie had a number of supporters, including the bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany and a state judge, who this year began to fine the parole board for what she believed was its unwillingness to evaluate Mr. MacKenzies rehabilitation. This case begs the question: If parole isnt granted to this petitioner, when and under what circumstances would it be granted? Justice Maria G. Rosa of State Supreme Court wrote in May.

The possibility of rehabilitation is a central premise underpinning New York States penal system, where open-ended sentences like the one Mr. MacKenzie received  25 years to life  are typical. Such sentences suggest the possibility of release but leave the decision to the parole board. One recent state-by-state survey found that the parole board in New York has the power to leave more inmates  9,262 as of January of this year  in prison until their dying breath than any state but California.

Mr. MacKenzie became eligible for release in 2000, after 25 years in prison. When he appeared before the parole board, he said that he wished he had been the one to die, and not Officer Giglio. I wish that night it was me, he said the first of many times that he would appear before the board.

But when pressed to explain his crime, a question he would be asked at every parole hearing, Mr. MacKenzie struggled. He said that he could not actually remember shooting Officer Giglio. He was in the middle of a blackout  he used the term automatism  which he attributed to the pills he was then taking. There were a lot  Darvon, Norgesic Forte, Valium and others.

It had taken years, in fact, for him to even accept that he had shot Officer Giglio. While reading thousands of pages of testimony from his trial, as he prepared for his appeals, little bits and pieces started coming and I realize I did this, he later told a parole board.

Image Officer Giglio died on Dec. 16, 1975. Credit... Nassau County Police Benevolent Association

John MacKenzie had been a small-time thief and fence until 2:30 a.m. on Oct. 7, 1975. At that moment, he was stealing 240 blouses from a womens clothing store in West Hempstead, tossing them out a window into the trunk of a car, when the police drove by. They saw an idling car, strewed clothing, an open window  and called for backup.
When the path becomes paved, its a signal that the secluded woodland mansion site, smelling of clean, damp earth, was once inhabited by people, not just white-tailed deer, Eastern coyotes, chipmunks, bald eagles and screech owls. Roofless stone walls, brick chimneys that look ready to topple, vine-covered remnants of outbuildings and a gravity-fed swimming pool indicate that the long-dead inhabitants had been wealthy.

The country retreat was built in the early 1900s for Sigmund Stern, a diamond dealer. He mostly stayed out of the newspapers, except for accusing his butler of stealing the silverware in 1905, the same year he was sued for damages by a man who alleged, according to The New York Times, that Mr. Stern beat him on or about the head with his fist and did with drawn knife assault said plaintiff and did chase him across lands of defendant.
Id like to go to college, said Emanuel, who earns As and Bs in school. Id be the first in my family. I want to be a police officer, or a fireman or a judge. But, he acknowledged, there isnt a single book in the house.

Emanuels ambition is commendable, but children of poverty face treacherous obstacles to success.

Emanuel has already been caught shoplifting  Im not doing that anymore, he said firmly with what sounded like contrite embarrassment  and his mom, Christina Laster, worries about him. Gangs begin to recruit boys at about 14, and his friends carry knives.

Every year I hold a contest to choose a university student to travel with me on a reporting trip, typically to write about poverty, disease and hunger in Africa or Asia. This year, partly because Americas presidential candidates are ignoring domestic poverty, I led my win-a-trip tour right here in America. My contest winner, Cassidy McDonald of Wisconsin, a journalism student at the University of Notre Dame, traveled with me along a wrenching journey through this Other America, starting here in Pine Bluff.

What many Americans dont understand about poverty is that its perhaps less about a lack of money than about not seeing any path out. More than 80 percent of American households living below the poverty line have air-conditioning, so in material terms theyre incomparably better off than poor families in India or Congo. In other ways their lives can be worse.
The Obama administration has reached a point of acute exasperation. The Israeli announcement this month of a new West Bank settlement was the final straw, coming just weeks after the United States concluded a $38 billion, 10-year military aid deal. Israels explanation that the settlement was a satellite of another did not wash; its actions were viewed as egregious. Seldom has Moshe Dayans old dictum  Our American friends offer us money, arms and advice. We take the money, we take the arms, and we decline the advice  been more vividly illustrated. Yet its uncertain if the United States is prepared to calibrate its ironclad support in order to pressure Israel into change.

Within Israel, where Netanyahu has now amassed more than a decade in power, the political and cultural drift is toward ever more assertive and intolerant nationalism. Criticism is increasingly equated with treason. Groups like BTselem, which focuses on allegations of human rights violations against Palestinians in Israeli-occupied territories, are under withering attack. The Messianic religious Zionism that holds all the West Bank to be Israels by biblical decree is ascendant. The left is in feeble disarray.

It is sobering to note that Netanyahu probably represents the more moderate wing of his government. The most credible challenge to him may eventually come from his own spot on the political spectrum, the center-right, in the form of the telegenic Yair Lapid, who told me that Netanyahu wont merit even a page in Israeli history books. Lapid believes he can conjure up some two-state magic, but he began his first political campaign in the large settlement of Ariel, and the notion that he can reverse the settler movement seems far-fetched.

I drove down to Ramallah, through a clogged checkpoint, always a startling transition from the efficient developed-world hum of Israel to the dust and haphazardness of the West Bank. On the way, I stopped to see Walid Batrawi, the director of BBC Media Action, a charity that mentors journalists and promotes an independent press. He was despondent, describing a lack of confidence and faith in anything. Palestinian statehood was more distant than ever. Abbas was distracted, he suggested, embroiled in the conflicts of his Fatah party, worried about Hamas, providing no direction. Something has been lost, he said. A special feeling of patriotism, of belonging, is vanishing.

In Ramallah, I heard similar sentiments, talk of a more individualistic Palestinian society, with less sense of community, where people were focused on taking care of themselves and doing the best they could with the current situation. Two states had become a bad joke. Young people had more faith in nonviolent resistance leading eventually to equal rights within a single state than in yet another aborted international peace initiative or aborted uprising.
For decades, East Houston Street was more a place to cross  and quickly, to avoid speeding cars  than a destination. Residential developers, too, seemed to shun it, wary of its commercial character and odd-shaped scraps of lots.

That was then. In the last few years, a spate of rental and condominium projects have appeared up and down the once-ignored street, which runs for about two dozen blocks between Broadway and the East River, and divides the Lower East Side and the East Village.

Its not something I would have ever envisioned happening, said Henry Hershkowitz, an associate broker with Core who went to school at nearby New York University in the late 1980s and lives in the East Village today. I just always thought of it as just a thoroughfare.

The latest major project to be unveiled is 287 East Houston Street, an 11-story, 28-unit condominium planned for a site near Clinton Street that is being jointly developed by Hogg Holdings and Vinci Partners USA, a firm with a Brazilian parent company that is undertaking its first American project. The developers bought the building site, a narrow midblock lot, in November 2014 for $15.2 million.
Nearby was a broker from Corcoran, taking what may be a last whack at trying to sell the Koeppels apartment. How was that going, a reporter asked. Slow, said the broker, who did not wish to be identified.

There is increasing data to suggest that potential homeowners may be wary about buying in properties carrying the Trump name. Over the last two years, the amount of available inventory from Trump-branded residential buildings in Manhattan has stayed relatively constant, according to listings pulled from StreetEasy.com.

For the 12 months ending October 2015, there were 159 apartments sold at 10 Trump condominiums, including a $21.38 million penthouse at Trump Park Avenue that was sold by Mr. Trump shortly after announcing his candidacy. That number on StreetEasy fell to 117 sales for the period between November 2015 and October 2016, a drop of more than 26 percent. The decrease is especially notable when compared with the performance of the overall Manhattan resale condo market, which showed an increase of 3.8 percent.

To Michael Vargas, a principal of the Manhattan-based Vanderbilt Appraisal Company, the data had clear indications. Absorption rates are a pretty good way to look at this, he said. There has been a reassessment of that brand, on the part of property owners. Where that brand used to enhance value, it is now being perceived as a detraction to value. Its a slowdown in the real estate market combined with a negative view of the brand.

At Trump Park Avenue, the 30-plus-story former hotel that Mr. Trump purchased in 2002 and converted into condos, 10 apartments sold last year while eight were delisted. This year, six apartments sold and 18 units were listed but later taken off the market, according to StreetEasy.

The condominium buildings on Riverside Boulevard told a similar story, with the number of listings taken off the market rising to 82 from 67, even as available units inched downward. This was also the case at Trump International, the 44-story condominium tower at the northern tip of Columbus Circle, where six of 14 units sold this year, compared with 14 of 20 last year.
So surely the G.O.P. learned its lesson by 2012?

As far as memes go, 2012 was an even bigger nightmare for the Republicans. Obama had a comfortable lead for most of the way, and Occupy Wall Street was a grass-roots movement that really saturated social media and aligned sentiment against rich guys in general.

A lot of memes ended up portraying Mitt Romney as the Sith Lord of America. The binders full of women line from the town hall debate was a prime example. Within 24 hours, that gaffe turned into a full-blown meme, mostly in the form of captioned image parodies.

Whats new this year?

From what weve observed so far, memes are no longer treated as nuisances, although they still can be. Weve seen memes play a vital role in crafting a powerful cult of personalities for Bernie Sanders and Donald J. Trump.

Sanders seemed to come out of nowhere this year. Were memes a factor?

If I had to pick one thing that was the most unique this year, it was the idolization of Bernie Sanders through meme caricatures.

Two of the most popular ones were Barnie Sandlers and Bernie Sanders Dank Meme Stash, two Facebook pages that operated on the same joke, that Bernie was running on a pro-meme platform. People would cut and paste text onto promotional materials, like official Sanders fliers, so it would seem as if Bernie was making insightful comments on the state of memes, as opposed to the state of politics.
Visitors can pay for access to seven, 12 or all 27 waterfalls; we decided to do the whole thing, and each forked over $12. Plan to be gone most of the day, and bring food and water. If you want, lunch can be provided for you, which adds $7 to the price of your waterfall adventure.

Our dutiful guides outfitted us with helmets and life jackets, and we began a long, uphill trek that took about an hour. We stopped periodically to catch our breath, our guides forging ahead and encouraging us by happily shouting, Only five more minutes  Dominican time! After five minutes had passed, then 10, we soon learned the meaning of Dominican time  whenever you get there, you get there.

But even the most out-of-shape of us got there, and thats when the fun began. One by one, we slid, jumped or otherwise traversed down more than two dozen waterfalls of varying length and ferocity. Some were just trickles into a deep pool, others were mammoth 20-foot plunges off a rocky cliff. For some of the scarier jumps, those who didnt wish to plunge were able to glide down the smooth rock, as if on a waterslide. Access to the different falls depends on precipitation, one of the guides explained; if there hasnt been enough rain, some of the pools will be too shallow to jump into.

A few words of advice: Wear a swimsuit, one that you dont mind getting slightly damaged. Also, wear sneakers. Theyll be drenched, but its far better to have the support when youre hiking on the sharp rocks; those who rented the parks thin water shoes ended up with very sore feet. Last, leave your phone in your car  its going to get soaked. (You can hire an additional guide to follow you the whole day and take photos.)

By the time wed completed the last waterfall, we were tired and famished. After tipping our guides (everyone chipped in a few bucks) we piled into our van and headed back to the ship. It was a full, exhausting day  the duty-free shopping and $4 cappuccinos of Amber Cove were almost a welcome sight. That evening, thanks to the all-you-can-eat dining aboard the cruise ship, I had two entrees and two desserts.
Home to a major university and the Zingermans Delicatessen empire, Ann Arbor isnt exactly a dining wasteland. But until recently, it wasnt the kind of town where youd walk into a restaurant and find dill flowers in your cherry soup or fennel pollen in your semolina cookies.

At Spencer, the tiny wine-and-cheese bar and restaurant that Abby Olitzky and Steve Hall opened downtown last October, youll find just those sorts of dishes, part of a rotating menu of small plates bearing the kind of pretty, hyper-local, seasonal food thats still relatively uncommon here. We get customers who come in and say, This food feels San Franciscan  I hope thats not weird,  Ms. Olitzky said.

Given Spencers DNA, its not weird at all: Ms. Olitzky, a pastry chef, met Mr. Hall, a cheesemonger, when the two were working at neighboring restaurants in San Francisco, Ms. Olitzkys hometown. I courted her with a loaf of Zingermans rye, said Mr. Hall, an Ann Arbor native (and Zingermans alum). The pair came to Michigan with the idea of doing something in Detroit, but quickly became enamored of Ann Arbor. They designed Spencer as a neighborhood hangout replete with coffee, pastries to go, and whitewashed walls, trimming the restaurant only with fresh flowers and two 19th-century oil portraits.

Like its decor, Spencers food is an Instagram fantasia: at a dinner in early August, that bowl of chilled cherry soup, its crimson surface streaked with creme fraiche and dotted with pale-green ground cherries, was greeted by a chorus of iPhone cameras. But its also food of substance: A salad of arugula, Tongue of Fire shelling beans, pickled red onion and fried bread crumbs boasted flavors as robust as they were balanced.
Rates



From $300.

Basics

The infamous past lives on.

Following a $150 million, extensive renovation, the Watergate Hotel reopened in June in Washingtons Foggy Bottom neighborhood. Who hasnt heard  even a bit  about the propertys scandalous history? In June 1972, five men used rooms 214 and 314 as a base to break into the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee on the sixth floor of the Watergate office complex. The burglary, ordered by officials in the administration of President Richard M. Nixon, led to his 1974 resignation. Though the hotel made its place in history, wear and tear took a toll, and the Watergate closed in 2007. But in 2010, a real estate developer, Euro Capital Properties, bought the 336-room hotel for $45 million with a plan to turn it into a luxury urban retreat.

The Israeli designer Ron Arad, a disciple of the buildings original architect, Luigi Moretti, is behind the midcentury modern, sleek interiors, which include steel twisted columns and bronze curved walls in the lobby and sculptural furniture in red and orange tones throughout.
Public colleges, which are governed by states and elected boards, provide the cornerstone of postsecondary education in the United States. The federal government has trodden lightly in this decentralized universe, providing funding for students but for the most part staying out of governance and regulation. This hands-off approach has left open the door to fraud, abuse and poor performance in the for-profit industry.

There is a long history of scandal in for-profit schools. After World War II, many veterans complained that for-profits happily took their G.I. benefits without providing a quality education. What has changed is the scale of the problem. When there were only a few hundred thousand students at for-profits, their troubles were muted in larger debates around higher education. With millions enrolled in for-profits today, students concerns are front and center.

Whats more, students are increasingly responsible for the cost of their educations. When the federal government pays for a substandard education directly, its a waste of public money, but the risks are spread across millions of taxpayers. When individual students take out loans to pay for that education, they take on much of the risk themselves and overwhelmingly bear the consequences. Millions of students have left for-profit colleges with few skills but major debts, their financial lives ruined.

Whats the solution? There are a few straightforward fixes, and many more difficult ones.

Congress should revisit the 90-10 rule, a provision of the Higher Education Act that mandates that colleges earn no more than 90 percent of their revenue from federal student aid. The idea is that at least some students demonstrate with their own money that they consider a schools education to be worth paying for.

For-profit colleges have creatively eluded the 90-10 rule. They aggressively recruit veterans, whose education benefits from the federal Department of Veterans Affairs do not count as student aid under the 90-10 rule. Congress should close this loophole.

And the 90-10 rule should apply not just to revenue but to enrollments. The rule has little bite if 100 percent of a colleges students have 90 percent of their costs covered by government funds. A more effective test would be that at least 10 percent of students pay out of pocket, demonstrating with their dollars their confidence in the quality of the education they are buying. Fifteen percent would be even better  85-15 was the formulation when the rule was established in 1992.

Fixing the broken accreditation system is also critical. To receive federal aid, a school must be inspected and deemed to meet a set of minimal requirements. But the accreditors are themselves lightly regulated and have not served as aggressive gatekeepers.
Hunger has become central to how Syrians experience the countrys five-year civil war. People in government and rebel territories showed how they find enough to eat.

In opposition-held areas, government forces have imposed sieges as a weapon of war, leading to shortages of food and medicine.

All of our markets are empty because of the siege. Modar Shekho, 28, a nurse in rebel-held eastern Aleppo. All of our markets are empty because of the siege. Modar Shekho, 28, a nurse in rebel-held eastern Aleppo. Mr. Shekho stocked up on supplies as best he could before the last rebel supply road into eastern Aleppo was cut off this summer. He and his wife survive on simple meals of ramen noodles, beans or vegetables. We just hope to get some vegetables, some fruits, he said.

Hunger is an assassin. I feel death approaching me. Hala Abdulwahab, 24, a schoolteacher in besieged Madaya. Hunger is an assassin. I feel death approaching me. Hala Abdulwahab, 24, a schoolteacher in besieged Madaya. Ms. Abdulwahab eats one meal a day of lentils, rice, bulgur or grains, usually around 2 to 3 p.m. The meals are too heavy, she said. After I eat, in 15 minutes or 20 minutes, I throw up the food. Fuel for cooking is hard to find. There are people cooking with books and notebooks, Ms. Abdulwahab said. The sight breaks your heart.

Now its a dream to find a chicken. Farida, 37, a doctor at a hospital in opposition-held Aleppo. Now its a dream to find a chicken. Farida, 37, a doctor at a hospital in opposition-held Aleppo. We were eating meat two times a week, chickens one time a week, long before her neighborhood was besieged by government forces, Farida said. Now its a dream to find a chicken, and if you find it you dont have any vegetables, like potatoes, to eat with chicken. She cooks simple meals, mainly rice and macaroni, for her daughter and husband. One of the few obstetrician-gynecologists still working in Aleppo, she said she has dedicated her life to her job, despite increasingly challenging circumstances. Work is my breath, Farida said. I love it.

We depend on how much we stored before the siege. If it is finished, we will have nothing to eat. Fatemah, 26, a mother of three in eastern Aleppo. We depend on how much we stored before the siege. If it is finished, we will have nothing to eat. Fatemah, 26, a mother of three in eastern Aleppo. Fatemah ran out of gas for her stove a few weeks ago. She now cooks over an open fire using any material that will burn, such as wood or recycled plastic. Sometimes I make pasta for breakfast, lunch and dinner, because we dont have bread, she said. Every few days, she buys six pieces of bread for her family of five, but it doesnt last. Last month, she created a Twitter account for her 7-year-old daughter, Bana, and uses it to post regular updates and advocate an end to the attacks.

In most government-held areas, life has retained a greater sense of normalcy, but food prices have soared.

Food is very, very expensive since the war here in Syria. Moayad, 19, a worker at a clothing store in government-held central Damascus. Food is very, very expensive since the war here in Syria. Moayad, 19, a worker at a clothing store in government-held central Damascus. Food prices are nearly 10 times higher than before the war started, Moayad said. But life has retained a greater sense of normalcy in government-held Damascus. He often stops at a shawarma restaurant on his way home from work at a clothing store. This part of the capital escapes daily attacks, unlike neighborhoods only a few miles away.
The Culture Issue

It was a gray and drizzly afternoon when Yoko Tawada and I crossed under a green-and-gold paifang to meet with mammals much larger than ourselves. Tawada had brought me to the Berlin Zoo because she had visited its famous polar bear, Knut, regularly while working on her 2014 novel, Memoirs of a Polar Bear, which will be published in English in November. The tale of the real-life Knut is at once moving and outlandish: His mother, Tosca, a retired performer from the German Democratic Republic circus, rejected Knut at birth, so he was raised instead by a male zookeeper mother. When an animal rights activist commented in a German newspaper that the zoos ethical responsibility was to let Knut die, children protested and the world fell in love with the poor animal. He became a celebrity, photographed by Annie Leibovitz for a cover of Vanity Fair, and lines to visit Knut formed daily for his scheduled appearances. But by the time I knew him, Tawada said, it was later in his life, when people complained that he was less cute.

Memoirs is actually three memoirs: the first narrated by Knuts circus-performing Russian grandmother, the second by Knuts mother and the final by Knut. Tawada wrote Memoirs in Japanese, then translated it into German on her own. The novels matriarch polar bear also begins her book in a language other then German. When the bear tells her publisher that she wants to begin writing in German herself, rather than having it translated from Russian, she is told that part of the appeal of her work is that its written in her mother tongue. She doesnt like that. Ive never spoken with my mother, she protests. Her publisher counters that a mother is a mother, even if you never speak with her. I dont think my mother spoke Russian, the polar bear says. The publisher is unpersuaded; she is discouraged. When, in another scene, a stranger presses the polar bear similarly about her language and origins, the stranger finally concludes: Oh, I see, youre a member of an ethnic minority, is that it? ... Minorities are fabulous!

There were no polar bears out when we arrived at their enclosure. Instead there was just a sign noting that one of them didnt like noise. They used to say it was unfair that Knut had to live with three old ladies, Tawada said. They said the ladies bullied him. The last time Tawada saw Knut was two days before he died unexpectedly, of an undiagnosed encephalitis. One thing that interested me was that Knuts mother had been a performer, but Knut didnt have to perform  and yet he still performed. He really played to the crowds.

I asked her if maybe that was the origin of her idea to write something from Knuts perspective. She said: I had memories of myself as a child, of how much I loved to use words to make not only my parents but also other adults smile. I dont think of that as performing though. But its also the case that I wondered, as a child, and still: Was it also different for the animals, under communism and under capitalism? She laughed. I really did!

As we walked the grounds, Tawada said, You see most of these animals were born here in the zoo, even though their labels still describe other countries. We came upon a large dark bird with a yellow face labeled Schmutzgeier, or Dirty Vulture. Poor guy! Tawada said with a giggle. They didnt give him a very nice name. We wandered past a sun bear, who in the book teases Knut for referring to himself in the third person, although this day the sun bear was sleeping. Farther along, we passed Ruppells glossy starlings and Luzon bleeding-hearts. In the hazy light, the birds seemed touchingly overdressed. Nearby was the enclosure of the magnificent polar wolves, two dead birds visible within. In Memoirs, one of the wolves harasses Knut for not having a proper family. I do not like these wolves, Tawada said. I do not like them at all. Somehow these relatively mild words sounded like swearing.

How can you not like wolves? I asked.

Theyre beautiful, I know. But theyre fascists. Only the best woman is allowed to make children  no one else.

Tawada and I looked together at the informational sign, which described the loyalty and family values of the wolves. In the novel, Knut notes: The wolf was proud of the fact that the members of his family looked as alike as photocopies. But I revere Matthias [his human mother] for having suckled and cared for a creature like me who was not at all similar to him.

It struck me that you can be offended by an animal only if you take it seriously, as you would a human. Tawada has written most often about foreigners and outsiders, but also about people who metamorphose into animals (The Bath) or have intimate relations with people suspected to be animals (The Bridegroom Was a Dog). An elementary-school teacher who tells her students to wipe with used Kleenex feels, in Tawadas portrayal of her, as familiar and alien as a household pet. In Memoirs, when a polar bear walks into a bookstore or a grocery store, there are no troubles stemming from a lack of opposable thumbs. As with Kafkas animal characters, we are freed to dislike them in the special way we usually reserve only for ourselves.

All immigrants are artists, Edwidge Danticat has said. Under pressure to make themselves legible, immigrants have no choice but to invent new ways of speaking. And in their reading of the world around them, immigrants uncover the alien that always abides in what seems, for the natives, most familiar. But some people are foreign regardless of geography; they are naturally nonnative, immigrant or not. Tawada is one of these. Sometimes I think maybe Im a little bit Jewish, she joked, after telling me that the writers that mean the most to her are Walter Benjamin for his essays, Kafka for his fiction and Paul Celan for his poetry. This kindred feeling makes sense. Benjamin, Kafka and Celan all worked, like Tawada, in a German language that was in some ways hostile to them  and this hostility is an essential aspect of their thought.

The varied characters in Tawadas work  from different countries, of different sexes and species  are united by the quality that Benjamin describes as crepuscular: None has a firm place in the world, or firm, inalienable outlines. There is not one that is not either rising or falling, none that is not trading its qualities with its enemy or neighbor; none that has not completed its period of time and yet is unripe.

One of Tawadas earliest pieces, The Talisman, published in the early 1990s, begins:

In this city there are a great many women who wear bits of metal on their ears. They have holes put in their earlobes especially for this purpose. Almost as soon as I got here, I wanted to ask what these bits of metal on peoples ears meant. But I didnt know if I could speak of this openly. My guidebook, for instance, says that in Europe you should never ask people you dont yet know very well anything related to their bodies or religion.

Another of her short pieces, Canned Foreign, also among her earliest stories, opens with: In any city one finds a surprisingly large number of people who cannot read. Some of them are still too young, others simply refuse to learn the letters of the alphabet.

Each opening is an accurate description that is nevertheless unsettling. In Memoirs, Tawada plays with this same effect through the simple drama of having her polar-bear narrator attending a conference  how uninteresting the conference had been yet again  and finding herself tripped into thoughts of her childhood by the topic of the days discussion: The Significance of Bicycles in the National Economy. (Tawada is very often very funny.) Here as elsewhere, Tawada is reminiscent of Nikolai Gogol, for whom the natural situation for a ghost story was a minor government employee saving up to buy a fancy coat, the natural destiny of a nose to haunt its owner as an overbearing nobleman.

Tawadas biography most likely amplifies her estrangements. Born in Tokyo in 1960, she moved to Hamburg in 1982 and has lived in Germany ever since. Her father worked as a translator of nonfiction books and eventually opened a bookstore specializing in academic books from abroad. Even today, she writes drafts sometimes in German, sometimes in Japanese and sometimes in alternating languages within the same novel. She reads in at least five languages. She has a different relationship than most of the rest of us do to words, to nations and even to taxonomy. One of her translators, Susan Bernofsky, remembers that Tawada asked her American press, New Directions, to work from the German version of Memoirs, not the Japanese one, because she said shed already translated it into a Western language.

Tawada has been awarded the most prestigious literary prizes in Germany and Japan, including the Goethe Medal and the Kleist and Akutagawa Prizes. In those countries, shes heralded. In the United States, she has been a visiting writer at prestigious universities, as well as the subject of several dissertations, but she is notably less well known, even though New Directions has been steadily publishing her fiction since 2007. Memoirs is in certain ways distinct from Tawadas work to date in English: It is longer, and much more eventful. Circus managers are vetted by the secret police; Soviet polar bears go on strike over working conditions in a circus; a mother polar bear gives up her child to be raised by another animal; the Berlin Wall falls. But as in all of Tawadas work, language is itself a character. When the matriarch polar bear finds herself aboard a train to leave East Germany, she thinks: A fly bumped against my forehead, or wait, not a fly, a sentence: I am going into exile.  So even as Memoirs reads like a goofy comedy, it also reads as a profound meditation on alterity, labor conditions, language and love. Which is to say: It reads like classic Tawada.

You could argue that its always a historical moment of hating (and not seeing) the other, but the sentiment seems now at a particularly precarious crescendo. Memoirs offers its own version of seeing the other. It does this not so much by compelling us to see the humanity in polar bears; polar bears are easy to love. But Knuts mother, Tosca, devotes most of her memoir to imagining the inner life of her animal trainer, Barbara. The empathic ask there is to look with love and understanding at humans  even as they are implicated in the structures of brutality and dominance, moved most by their own small-minded fears and dreams and, of course, are hastening the melting of the poles. Even we deserve understanding and love.

Tawada and I walked to Berlins Museum fur Naturkunde, a predecessor of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. After the unexpected death of Knut in 2011, a sculpture of him was made, and it is now housed at the Berlin museum. When Memoirs came out in Germany, Tawada gave a reading in front of the glass-cased Knut. (It was a little spooky, she told me.) We were the only adults unaccompanied by children. We made our way past dinosaur bones, past gemstones. We stopped at an oversize Araneus diadematus specimen from 1951. Nearby, a catalog was open to the section for ordering glass mammal eyes. I love these, she said, calling my attention to the pages.

Then, abruptly, there was the famous Knut. He stood in the glass case next to a gorilla named Bobby. Bobby was also famous in his day; he died in the Berlin Zoo of appendicitis in 1935. Bobby and Knut, side by side, seemed like a stage duo playing for contrast. Somehow its easier to imagine what Knut is thinking than to imagine what Bobby is thinking, Tawada said. Bobby looks too much like us.

I didnt know Knut would look so skinny.

He was just an adolescent, Tawada said. I know, its very sad to see him. But its just a sculpture of his body, modeled by hand, and then with his real fur on it. It was important to people that Knut not be taxidermied. Its a modern version of a stuffed animal.

The first time I met Tawada was at a very crowded reading she gave at the Deutsches Haus of New York University. She read from fragments of prose-poetry written on a white glove she wore on her hand; she then took off the glove, turned it inside out and read what was written on the other side of the fingers. Barbara Epler, the publisher of New Directions, told me a story about seeing Tawada perform at the Goethe-Institut in New York with the avant-garde jazz pianist Aki Takase; Tawadas role involved grating stale bread and throwing Ping-Pong balls onto the piano strings.

But the Tawada I spent the day with in Berlin was quite shy, and too gently considerate to be at all strange. Her performance self seems constructed to prevent her from having to pretend to be at ease  a way of exaggerating the unnaturalness of a performance, so as to avoid the lie of naturalness.

Tawada never particularly intended to move to Germany. I was in university, she said. I loved the work of Dostoyevsky, of Bulgakov, also of Bruno Schulz, and so I wanted to go and study in the Soviet Union, or maybe Poland. But it was 1982 and not an easy time to go there. With her fathers help, she found an internship in Hamburg with a business that was an intermediary between publishers and booksellers. Tawada already had some familiarity with German because she had studied it, along with English, in school. Because of the 1968 student movement, there had been pressure on schools to offer more than just English, she said. The idea was, for example, if you wanted to learn about nuclear power and you were only reading in English, you were going to learn something very different than if you were reading in German.

In Hamburg at the time, it was common for students to attend classes at the university without officially enrolling. Living in Germany in the 80s and 90s was so, so cheap, she said. Some of us studied 10 or 20 years! Just working part-time jobs as typists or assistants. She enrolled officially in the mid-1980s and met her German publisher, Konkursbuch, a small, brainy press that is otherwise known for publishing thrillers and high-end lesbian erotica. Konkursbuch published her first work, in a bilingual edition, in 1987, and she has stayed with that press ever since. Her first publication in Japan wasnt until four years later.

Finally moving past the sad sculpture of Knut, Tawada and I made it over to a hippopotamus whose mouth was wide open; at the hippos side was a much smaller hippopotamus. Tawada said there was a famous German hippo, but she couldnt remember if it was one of these: The children know her from a book. She was saved from the zoo during the war. Only 91 of at least 3,700 Berlin Zoo animals were rescued. Its very upsetting for children to learn that the wild animals, freed from the zoo, were shot, she said. We have a book in Japan about the Tokyo Zoo during the war. Maybe in a story about humans, it will always seem like the humans are at least somewhat guilty. But for the animals, the children can feel pure sadness.

Like all animals, we eventually grew hungry. Tawada suggested that we eat at the cafe associated with the LiteraturHaus, in Wintergarten. As we headed there, we passed statues of two white bears. Then a blue bear. Then a multicolored bear. They are the symbol of the city, she said. Its funny, because they became popular again as a symbol at a time when there were no more bears in Germany. Just like the teddy bears became popular as real bear populations were falling, she said, her voice trailing off. But some wild animals have come back to Germany! After the Berlin Wall fell, some wolves started coming in from the formerly communist states. As if they understood what a border was. Though they didnt need visas.

Is it possible for a great work of literature to be strongly reminiscent of Don Freemans Corduroy, that old childrens story of the bear in a department store, searching for a button? Corduroy sees the escalator as a mountain, the furniture floor as a palace. Memoirs makes as much use of the naivete of its bears as of their insight. When the matriarch bear arrives in the West  in our world  she describes the opaque (to her) phenomenon of window shopping: The boredom of the passers-by was apparently considerable, since they scrutinized every product in the shop windows. When shopping for smoked salmon in the supermarket, she makes the beautiful and precise observation that it is found where the coldest goods were displayed in the brightest light. And in another scene, in a department store selling records, she observes: A gramophone stood on a pedestal, and right beside it, a life-size, black-spotted white dog made of plastic. You could see his image on each of the phonograph records, which I found pathologically excessive.

Many books written for children are of no particular interest once youre an adult, but the great works for children have the density of poetry and the depth of parable; very little in adult literature rivals it. The greatest animal characters come from kids books, and Kafka. Together they seem to suggest an alternative citizenship, that of the majorly minor, the brutally gentle. In that sense, Tawadas work does seem to me to be fittingly that of and by and for a child.

So maybe I shouldnt have been surprised when Tawada told me that she was in the middle of writing essays on 10 childrens books. A publisher in Japan invited her to write them after reading a piece Tawada wrote about a hike she took in Switzerland passing through the village of a famous childrens-book author. When I was young, I wrote to a writer I loved, a childrens writer, K.M. Peyton, Tawada told me. I remember this well, because this was the first letter I ever wrote in a foreign language, in English.

Did she write you back? I asked.

She said she was very happy to get a letter from the end of the world! I thought Japan was the center of the world.

For her essays, she wrote about Curious George, who sees the city from up above rather than from down below, and she wrote about the Russian fable The Snow Daughter, in which the main character disappears by jumping over a fire. She wrote about The Hundred Dresses, which describes a Polish girl in Connecticut being picked on for always wearing the same dress, and about Bedtime for Frances, a sweet story about a badger who doesnt want to go to sleep. And she also wrote about Oley the Sea Monster, an almost unbearably sad tale about a harbor seal taken from his mother and mistaken for a monster before a benevolent aquarium keeper disobeys orders to kill Oley and instead returns him to the harbor. Each of the childrens books was, in a sense, a story of alternative perspective, and of vulnerability. The happy endings felt heavy with sadness, the sad seemed to promise light.

I wanted to say something to Tawada about how this reminded me of her work, but I felt as though English had turned into a language that was not my native one. Instead I asked Tawada if she had gone to the circus as a child. I remember going once, she said. Her parents took her to see a traveling Soviet circus when it visited Tokyo. I remember there was a bear who rode a tricycle, she said. And that amazed me. And I knew even then that what was exciting was just that he was doing something normal, something even I could do.

A few of the childrens books Tawada had mentioned I didnt know. When I got home, I ordered the ones I could find in English. Jeanne-Marie Counts Her Sheep, by Francoise Seignobosc, was a numbers book about a little girl dreaming of how many lambs her sheep, Patapon, will have, and what Jeanne-Marie will be able to buy with the money she makes from the lambs wool. Jeanne-Marie imagines many lambs and many purchases. But it turns out there is just one lamb. Jeanne-Marie (who in the illustrations is now an old, hunched woman) is able to knit only one pair of socks. But Jeanne-Marie tried to look very happy, anyway, for she did not want Patapon to feel sad. Patapon was so pleased with her one little Lamb!

Was it a sad ending? Or a happy one?

I wrote to Tawada to ask what about the book had held her attention across so many years. She wrote that she loved its use of repetition, because as a small child, the world won its shape repeating the same words and similar sentences. But she also liked the ending. The sheep is happy with only one child, that is not capital for her, but love.

Rivka Galchen is the author of three books, most recently Little Labors. She last wrote for the magazine about the transformative power of lullabies.
Dennis Wade Bledsoe 1963-2016 Dennis Wade Bledsoe of Lanett, Alabama was born in the Lee County Hospital on October 15, 1963 to the late Thornton and Joyce Knowles Bledsoe and passed away at East Alabama Medical Center on October 24, 2016 at 11:14 p.m. CDT. He was 53 years old. Dennis was a loving father and husband with a compassionate heart. He was an avid outdoorsman, as well as an Alabama fan, who loved his pets. He was preceded in death by his brother Mike Bledsoe. He is survived by his wife Cathy Fleming; daughter Meghan Bledsoe; sisters Gail Edwards (Doug), and Rita Bledsoe; brother Chris Bell (Donna), as well as numerous nieces, nephews, and other family members. Visitation will be held in the Parlor at Frederick-Dean Funeral Home Sunday, October 30, 2016 from 12:30 until 2:15 p.m. CDT. Funeral Service will be held Sunday, October 30, 2016 in the Chapel at Frederick-Dean Funeral Home at 2:30 p.m. CDT with Pastor Bogey Cotney officiating. Following the Funeral Service, a Graveside Service will be held at Oakwood Cemetery in Lanett, Alabama at 3:45 p.m. CDT. Frederick-Dean Funeral Home is directing. www.FrederickDean.com Funerals & Cremations Since 1900
Laguna Beach has a long tradition of artists drawing their inspiration from nature, especially the beach. For the past few years, Laguna Art Museum has capitalized on that history with a fall program that combines museum exhibits, a large-scale art installation, events and lectures.

This is the fourth Art & Nature program the museum has produced. Three museum shows focus on the theme, complemented by other exhibits around town and even on the beach itself.

The main show at Laguna Art Museum is about Anna Althea Hills, an early 20th-century artist and a key part of the museums history. Two other exhibits highlight contemporary artists: Phillip K. Smith III and Kristin Leachman. Lectures on Renaissance artist and inventor Leonardo Da Vinci, a discussion with Light and Space artist Helen Pashgian, and Smiths large-scale installation coming to Main Beach are all part of the four-day program.

Here are the highlights; you can find full details at lagunaartmuseum.org/artandnature.

AT THE MUSEUM

Miss Hills of Laguna Beach and two other exhibits run through Jan. 17. After studying art in Chicago and New York, Hills settled in Laguna Beach in the early 1900s. She painted bright, impressionistic landscapes of the area and other California locales, such as Palm Springs. Hills leadership of the Laguna Beach Art Association helped lay the groundwork for the Laguna Art Museum. With an exhibit of about 60 paintings, letters and photographs, the museum spotlights this artist who played a role in its formation.

Kristin Leachman: Xylem Rays Nature, weaving and other domestic crafts inspired the large-scale paintings of Leachmans Xylem series. The works look like tangles or roots or wood fibers. I grew up in rural Virginia, near the Blue Ridge Mountains, so the woods were always a place where we played, Leachman said. Now when she goes for walks in the San Gabriel Mountains or the Los Padres National Forest, shes often the only one on the trail. Weve kind of gotten away from that, she said. So Im happy to bring it in and hopefully give the viewer the feeling you have when you walk out into nature.

Phillip K. Smith III: Bent Parallel is simple in design and set up in its own dark room at the museum to give a fully immersive experience. Two 9-foot-tall panels of light are joined at a 120-degree angle. Each morphs slowly through various colors, and the angle creates a third plane, reflected between the two and a light mixture of the two colors. Red and green make yellow. Theres this kind of immersive reality that happens when you stand up close, Smith said. Hell discuss his works at 7 p.m. Friday at the museum. Included with admission price, but reservations are recommended. Call 949-494-8971, ext. 203, or visit lagunaartmuseum.org.

Helen Pashgian uses resin, fiberglass and plastic to make translucent sculptures that play with the perception of color and light. She was part of the Light and Space movement that developed in Los Angeles in the 1960s and included artists like James Turrell. Pashgian will talk about her work at 2 p.m. Saturday with Peter Blake. Starting the same day, Blakes gallery at 435 Ocean Ave. will highlight the artist in Helen Pashgian: Light Invisible. Tickets for the discussion are included with museum admission, but reservations are recommended. Call 949-494-8971, ext. 203, or visit lagunaartmuseum.org.

OTHER VENUES

1/4 Mile Arc Each Art & Nature features a large-scale installation artwork. Last year, artist Laddie John Dill created Electric Light Blanket with projected laser lights and music on Main Beach. This year, the museum has commissioned Smith, who will install 1/4 Mile Arc on Main Beach. The arc of 250 steel posts, polished to a mirror finish, will be planted in the sand. Walking toward the ocean, youll see the hills of Laguna reflected behind you and the water in front of you. The view changes depending on your approach. (Its) using Laguna, the environment itself, as material  this kind of questioning of where you are, but no matter where you are, its Laguna, Smith said. You can see it on Main Beach, for free, Friday through Nov. 6.

Da Vinci lectures Art historian and Brit Martin Kemp is considered one of the worlds top experts on the art of Leonardo Da Vinci. Kemp will give two lectures in Orange County. The first, at UC Irvine at 6 p.m. Thursday, will be more on the theoretical side. In Structural Intuitions: Seeing Shapes in Art and Science, Kemp will talk about common themes in art and science, specifically how both make use of pattern recognition and intuitive knowledge. Free, but RSVP through the Art & Nature site. Of course, Kemp also will talk about Da Vincis, and perhaps the worlds, most famous painting, the Mona Lisa. That will be at 7 p.m. Saturday at Laguna Art Museum. Reception at 6 p.m. Tickets $5 and $10. Call 949-494-8971, ext. 203, for tickets.

Art galleries around Laguna Beach are hosting nature-themed art shows during the museums event. Check out Bold Beginnings: Lagunas Art & Nature Roots, starting Thursday at the Redfern Gallery (1540 South Coast Highway.). It will feature paintings by the founding artists of the Laguna Art Colony a century ago.

Contact the writer: aboessenkool@ocregister.com
Thirty years ago, on November 4, 1986, California voters ousted Rose Bird, chief justice of the California Supreme Court, by a margin of 67 to 33 percent. This landslide vote confirmed that, contrary to current rhetoric, a bipartisan ruling class out of touch with the people is not a new development.

Bird had been the first female public defender in Santa Clara County before serving as campaign chauffeur for Jerry Brown during his run for governor in 1974. Brown, son of former Gov. Edmund G. Pat Brown, won the election and appointed Bird secretary of agriculture, the states first woman cabinet member.

In 1977 Bird was only 40 years old and without judicial experience. Even so, Gov. Brown, a Democrat, appointed his former chauffeur chief justice of the California Supreme Court. A key confirmation vote came from Evelle Younger, the states Republican attorney general.

Bird was the first female justice of Californias high court and thus the first female chief justice. She seemed to view the appointment as a promotion to aristocratic status, demanding that associate justices make appointments if they wanted to see her. Bird also proved that, like men, women are fully capable of elevating their own ideology above the law.

In 10 years as Californias chief justice, Bird heard 64 capital cases and never voted to uphold a death sentence. Even for staunch death-penalty opponents, including those on the court, it defied belief to think that every case was unfounded. The cases included that of Theodore Frank, duly convicted of kidnaping, torturing, raping, murdering and mutilating two-year-old Amy Sue Seitz in 1978.

Bird had also been an enemy of big farmers and property-tax reformers, but as Patrick K. Brown wrote in The Rise and Fall of Rose Bird, the voters cared only that she did not care about victims of crime. She also had struck down a law, endorsed by Jerry Brown, requiring a prison term in any crime committed with a gun.

On November 4, 1986, as one headline put it, voters flipped the Bird by a two-to-one margin. The first woman to serve on the state Supreme Court became the only chief justice in state history to be removed by a vote of the people, who did not stop there.

California voters also ousted Justices Cruz Reynoso and Joseph Grodin, both Jerry Brown appointees, who sided with Bird on the death-penalty cases. Justice Stanley Mosk remained on the court because, as he explained, I took an oath to support the law as it is and not as I might prefer it to be.

For all but the willfully blind the lessons here should be obvious. The people care about victims of crime, and the people dislike judges who elevate their social vision above the law. Judges who do that are out of touch with the people, and so are the politicians who appoint and confirm them.

In November 2016 the bipartisan ruling class is more out of touch than ever, and justices of the U.S. Supreme Court are appointed for life. They remain on the court even if they elevate their own social vision above the law, in the manner of Bird, Reynoso and Grodin.

Assigning justices of the U.S. Supreme Court a fixed term and giving the people a say in reconfirmation are reforms worth considering. As Californias 1986 vote confirms, when the people wield reconfirmation power they can achieve the meaningful change that politicians fail to deliver.

K. Lloyd Billingsley is a Policy Fellow at the Independent Institute in Oakland, California.
If there has been one silver lining to the mud pit this presidential election has become, its that the national backlash against what Donald Trump so dismissively called locker room talk has given a voice to countless women who have been sexually assaulted or harassed.

Orange County Register reporter Marla Jo Fishers columns these past two weeks have provided a glimpse into the national catharsis that is taking place for so many women who have quietly endured inappropriate behavior, questioned themselves and worried that speaking out wouldnt matter.

Now their stories are part of conversations at home, at work and in schools  sending an unequivocal message that sexual assault is wrong, that harassing women is not something you can do because youre rich or in charge, and that if we stand up collectively against this type of behavior, others will have our backs.

Unfortunately, this moment came too late for too many women, including those who worked at the county of Orange when former Santa Ana City Councilman Carlos Bustamante was their boss.

Bustamante was a rising star in local Republican Party politics when several women who worked for him came forward and accused him of sexual assault. In the locker room culture that pervaded the county offices at the time, he was protected. The allegations were buried and internal investigations botched out of deference to Bustamantes powerful position.

Ultimately, thanks to the courage and persistence of strong women, the district attorney brought charges of 12 felony sex crimes involving seven women against the former elected official. Bustamante eventually pleaded guilty to felony counts of stalking, attempted sexual battery by restraint and grand theft by false pretense, as well as misdemeanor counts of false imprisonment, assault and attempted sexual battery involving five of the women.

By pleading guilty, Bustamante admitted that he committed those crimes. That is, until earlier this month, when he appeared before the trustees of the Orange County Employees Retirement System to try to convince them that he should be allowed to keep his entire pension despite his felony convictions.

A California law passed in 2013 requires public workers who were convicted of felonies related to their jobs to forfeit retirement benefits accrued during the time they were committing the crimes.

Bustamantes lawyer spoke first during the hearing, arguing a technicality in timing should exempt his client from the law.

Bustamante could have left it at that. But like so many men who commit these types of crimes, he was determined to have the last word. So Bustamante told the retirement system trustees that he only pleaded guilty because it was the best he could do at the time financially and for other reasons, and that his record would be expunged in the future. He told them other public officials had done worse and were permitted to keep their pensions. He downplayed and minimized his crimes, and didnt even acknowledge the impact his crimes had on his victims.

It was all about him. It was all about what he wanted for himself. But his plan didnt work. Board members, elected officials and workers spoke out against Bustamantes request, and the trustees then voted unanimously to uphold the law and reduce his pension.

For the handful of us in the room that day, the hearing and the action by the trustees was deeply personal, an indication that the good old boy network in county government is finally beginning to crack. It provided hope that principled men and women standing together will ensure that those who prey on our community face the consequences of their criminal acts, no matter how powerful or well-connected they may be.

The women who stood up to Donald Trump and Carlos Bustamante are role models for us all. We owe them our gratitude for exposing the perpetrators of the wrongful acts committed against them. We also owe them our commitment to follow their example, and make certain their bravery results in a safer and more just community.

Jennifer Muir Beuthin is general manager of the Orange County Employees Association.
Raul Rodriguez, Rancho Santiago Community College Districts chancellor, was recently named one of 25 top education leaders by The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine.

The magazine honored college and university leaders from around the nation as Hispanic leaders and role models in higher education.

Since 2010, Rodriguez has overseen one of the states largest community college districts. Between nine educational sites  including Santa Ana College and Santiago Canyon College  the district boasts annual enrollment of more than 100,000 students.

During his 28 years as an educator, Rodriguez has served as superintendent/president of San Joaquin Delta College and Los Medanos College.

Rodriguez currently serves on the board of the Santa Ana Chamber of Commerce, on the National Community College Hispanic Council and for the International Consortium for Educational and Economic Development.

As previously reported, Cal State Fullerton President Mildred Garcia was also recognized by the publication.
The owner of a water-propelled jetpack company announced this week that strict regulations have forced him to shut down his Newport Beach location.

Dean OMalley, president of Jetpack America, said restrictive conditions, such as not being able to expand operating hours past 5 p.m., limits of one jetpack allowed on Newport Harbor and increased insurance coverage had effectively prevented the company from turning a profit.

Its a very expense-heavy business to begin with, but when you dont have the ability to maximize your revenue, youre going to be in the red consistently  and thats what we saw, OMalley said.

The companys last day of operation will be Nov. 13, he said. Locations in San Diego and Las Vegas will not be affected.

The move comes after the company fought for almost a year to secure a permit to continue doing business in the city. It has operated in Newport Harbor for the past five years.

The City Council in 2014 agreed to a six-month temporary ban on permits for jetpack businesses while the Harbor Commission discussed the issue after boaters and homeowners in the area complained of noise and congestion. The commission eventually recommended banning the jetpacks.

In May 2015, the council approved an ordinance allowing one commercial operator in the harbor and a two-year revocable permit.

Out of three companies that applied, Jetpack America was selected to receive the permit, which included the conditions that company officials deemed too restrictive.

Weve been regulated out of town and out of business here in Newport Beach, company spokesman Eric Longabardi said.

In past years, the company flew two or three jetpacks at once to keep up with customer demand. Since 2011, more than 10,000 customers have been served, OMalley said.

He said he had hoped he could renegotiate the permit conditions when it expires in November but found that the city was not receptive. Harbor Resources Manager Chris Miller said his staff were following the rules passed by the council. There are no plans to put out a request for proposal for a new jetpack company, he said.

The jetpack is strapped to the rider like a backpack while attached to a boat through a long hose. Water is then used to lift the rider into the air.

Contact the writer: 714-796-2478 or lcasiano@scng.com
Tempo Urban Kitchen, launched by restaurant veteran Jorge Cueva nearly two years ago, has tapped Cody Storts as its new executive chef.

Storts, formerly of Grits Fullerton and Hopscotch, left Grits last week. He replaces Chris Tzorin, who is now working at Cafe Tu Tu Tango.

When Tempo first opened in late 2014 the menu leaned heavily on dazzling gastronomic-focused dishes. Tempo, which opened a second restaurant in Anaheim Hills last month, has since evolved 180 degrees.

Now its not molecular; its more modern America with a Latin twist, said Cueva, president of Lascaris Restaurant Group and Cibo Fresh Catering.

Since changing the menu, Cueva said Tempo has attracted a lot more customers.

Cueva said Storts will take the kitchen to the next level.

Storts said he plans to build on Tempos globally influenced cuisine. We have a heavy Mexican influence, but also influences from Asian countries, Italy and Modern New American, he said.  Im excited to further explore Latin and Gulf Coast food and bring my style of cooking to Tempo.

He will lead a kitchen whose sous chefs have worked for well-regarded Tijuana chef Javier Plascencia and Ferran Adria of the world-renowned restaurant El Bulli in Spain.

Cueva, who earned his operations chops at Daphnes Greek Cafe (now called Daphnes California Greek) and Sharkys Woodfired Mexican Grill, calls Tempo his passion project. He plans to open a third Tempo next year in downtown Las Vegas, followed by another opening in May in Baja California wine country near Ensenada. Hes also scouting locations in Newport Beach, Los Angeles, Universal CityWalk and Tokyo.

Were going to grow this concept, Cueva said.

The new Anaheim restaurant is at 731 S. Weir Canyon, Anaheim Hills. The flagship Brea location is at 1060 E. Imperial Hwy., Brea.

Contact the writer: nluna@scng.com
They call her Ghana Mama.

Ellen DeYoung of Laguna Niguel has become the lifeline for many of the African asylum seekers who are detained in local jails waiting for court hearings. She is one of about 50 volunteers from the Mission Viejo humanitarian group Friends of Orange County Detainees, whose members each year make more than 1,200 visits to detainees at James A. Musick Facility in Irvine, the Santa Ana Jail in Santa Ana and the Theo Lacy Facility in Orange.

When you hear their stories and what they have been through to get here, it makes your own problems feel pretty insignificant in the big picture, said DeYoung, who helped launch the group in 2012 through a Social Action Group at the Tapestry Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Mission Viejo. The group is also supported through Irvine Unified Congregational Church.

Currently nearly 1,000 individuals are in custody in the three facilities in Orange County used to house immigration detainees, said Virginia Kice, spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

The demand is booming and despite the many volunteers, DeYoung and others are only able to visit about 25 percent of the detainees who have signed up for a meeting, they said.

If I can bring a smile or a few moments of mental relief to someone who is locked up in a foreign country with an uncertain outcome, then I feel I am doing some good, said volunteer Julia Rampone of Mission Viejo.

Volunteer Karen Nichols of Laguna Hills has given her time to visit more than 70 detainees in the last four years.

Im likely the first American outside of the legal system that they have met, she said. I visit and for 30 minutes to an hour I try my best to let them know that they are valued and that they are seen. I try to make them laugh, its kind of my thing.

Like many other volunteers, she also sends them cards in the mail, stamps so they can write letters and reach outside their jail cells, and she contacts their families abroad to give them updates.

I let mothers in Ghana know that I am visiting their sons and daughters and relay messages back and forth, she said.

Recently, she received a hand-drawn picture of hummingbirds and hearts that a detainee sent to her to get to his daughter for her fourth birthday. He hadnt seen her in over two years.

She is too young to know that he left to protect her, her mother and her brother as people were trying to kill him for his religious beliefs, Nichols said. I took a picture of his birthday drawing and send it via text to his wife in Ghana to show the child on her special day so she knew her father was thinking of her.

Many of the volunteers say the detainees are very appreciative of the little things the volunteers are able to do for them, including for someone on the other side to understand their struggles and tragedy.

No one wants to leave their country, all they have known, their homes, all their loves ones and friends, Nichols said. These people are fleeing, they are running for their lives, they are traveling through jungles and boats that barely float. Their bodies show the scars of their past. They have seen so much, most of them in the 20s.

The Friends of Orange County Detainees is a nondenominational organization with volunteers of all faiths helping people of different faiths and nationalities, said Lake Forest resident Bev Huff, who serves on the board of the charity.

We put a face on the issue of immigration and deportation, she said. It is no longer a political issue.

Rampone agreed.

We cant help with the realities of their situation, but we can talk and listen and let them know they arent alone, she said. Its good work.

Some of the volunteers foster friendships with the detainees, which continue once their fate is decided by the authorities. After months, or sometimes years, detainees are either released into society to start their journey in their new country. Others are deported, sometimes to a grim future or situation.

The biggest challenge is dealing with the deportation of someone that you know personally and reminding oneself that you cant solve all the problems, but you can make life a little easier while people are being detained, Huff said.

Nichols said she is still in touch with about a dozen detainees she used to visit.

We connect via emails, phone calls, text or Facebook, she said. I try to help them with any questions and needs they come up against, especially at first as it is very confusing once they are released, navigating the immigration rules and courts is not easy.

Some volunteers also help asylum seekers when they are released to get to their new home, sometimes as far away as the East Coast. They help them with transportation, making travel and temporary shelter arrangements and offering clothes and supplies for the trip.

The whole immigration picture is too big, too depressing in lots of ways so for me, so I focus on this little piece of the puzzle and hopefully, if only for a moment I can ease someones day, Nichols said. I can make a difference. I know that.

Contact the writer: marieek@hotmail.com
KHAZER, Iraq  Iraqi forces explored a network of tunnels and uncovered a bomb-making facility Thursday in a village near Mosul that was recently retaken from Islamic State, offering a glimpse of the challenge they will face as they move closer to the city.

Ten days into the offensive, the special forces are still at least 4 miles east of the city and have faced stiff resistance, with Islamic State firing mortars and machine guns and sending armored suicide truck bombs trundling across the arid plains.

Iraqi forces approaching Mosul from the south, meanwhile, are still 20 miles from the city, and the special forces to the east said they will not push ahead until the other forces are able to tighten the noose.

During cleanup operations in the area of Tob Zawa, Special forces Brig. Gen. Haider Fadhil said his men found a tire shop that had been converted into a factory for making roadside bombs and attaching armor to vehicles.

They also found a tunnel equipped with fans and lights that ran from beneath a mosque out to a road. Iraqi forces have found extensive tunneling networks in areas retaken from Islamic State, which the militants used to elude U.S.-led coalition warplanes.

Many fear Islamic State may resort to more brutal tactics as the forces converge on the city, which still is home to more than a million people.

The U.N.s public health agency says it has trained 90 Iraqi medics in mass casualty management with a special focus on chemical attacks. The extremist group is believed to have crude chemical weapons capabilities, and Iraqi forces say they are prepared to encounter them on the battlefield.

The World Health Organization said that of the 700,000 people expected to flee Mosul, some 200,000 will require emergency health services.

The International Organization for Migration says around 9,000 people have fled so far.

The Mosul offensive is the largest Iraqi military operation since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion and involves more than 25,000 Iraqi soldiers, federal police, Kurdish forces, Sunni tribal fighters and state-sanctioned Shiite militias.
SAN FRANCISCO  Fraternity and sorority parties are back on this weekend at the University of California, Berkeley, after a one-week suspension, but with new guidelines aimed at keeping fraternity row free of sexual violence.

Berkeleys Greek system imposed a voluntary ban on parties a week ago, after two women reported being sexually assaulted at off-campus fraternity houses.

Panhellenic Council president, Divya Thomas, said Thursday that guests will be greeted at the front door with consent talks, as part of the guidelines drawn up last weekend in a meeting with the Interfraternity Council, which represents the schools fraternities.

Thomas said the brief talk will focus on what consent means, and will encourage bystander intervention, meaning: If you see something, say something.

Also, at least three sober monitors will be required at every party.
SACRAMENTO  My office is located in a part of downtown Sacramento that the Sacramento Bee recently referred to as a blighted and foreboding stretch of K Street. Its not that the buildings are so decrepit. In fact, with the citys new arena, theres a concentrated building boom going on around these parts. The problem is it is overrun with poor and bedraggled people sleeping in doorways and carting around their sacks of belongings.

Its really depressing, and at times dangerous. Not long ago, I absent-mindedly wandered into the middle of a fight while staring at my cellphone. A guy covered in heavy chains  like a scene from Beetlejuice  recently limped down the street yelling at his demons. The neighborhood is reminiscent of an open-air insane asylum. People beg. They scream. Some are desperately hungry.

In Orange County, the Santa Ana Civic Center is ground zero for a similar problem. Fortunately, county officials are taking the issue seriously. Im no fan of government intervention in general, but theres a legitimate governmental role in dealing with this intractable social problem. Unfortunately, a traditional government approach is unlikely to do more than chip away at the edges of the problem.

The county of Orange recently hired a homeless czar, Susan Price. She just released An Assessment of Homeless Services in Orange County, which offers a roadmap of current services. Theres nothing particularly wrong with its assessment or recommendations, as it calls for a more collective, regional approach to the problem. But theres nothing particularly right about it, either.

The report calls for hiring a manager to enhance the Continuum of Care system. It wants to improve regional coordination by formalizing protocols for responding to homeless encampments. It wants to develop a systemic navigation of services by diversifying the portfolio of services and calls for more funding for shelters and housing assistance. Its self-congratulatory at times.

Homeless activists focused on the funding part of it. A recent report by the ACLU estimates that it would take $13 million a year to permanently house the chronically homeless population, and a total of $55 million a year to house the entire homeless population, according to a report in the Voice of OC.

Over the years, Ive heard myriad boasts from government agencies that if they only had more money, they could eliminate some long-running problem. The extra money ends up building bureaucracies and boosting salaries for those who administer the programs. Without irony, the assessment report refers to Orange Countys broad-based working group that was charged with developing the Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness.

The plan started in 2008 and was adopted in 2010. Its now 2016. Who believes the county is 60 percent along in its goal to end homelessness? Many say the problem is worse than ever. Sure, money would always help  but there will always be a demand for more services than can ever be provided. Cities that have been most generous toward the homeless  think San Francisco  have become magnets.

There are a variety of unfixable pathologies that lead some people to become homeless, including mental illness, drug addiction and domestic abuse. Many non-profit agencies have had the most success in dealing with these matters. But there will be homeless people as long as there are people. Its silly to talk about ending homelessness. Its useful to better coordinate governmental services, but its more sensible to think creatively about the problem.

Price touts the idea of turning old motels into shelters for the homeless and at projects that use shipping containers to house people. Ironically, some O.C. cities have over the years chased poor people out of old motels by passing laws that limit occupancy to 30 days. One of the most obvious fixes costs nothing: repealing land-use rules and regulations that make it tough to accommodate the homeless and poor.

Some cities are creating tiny-house villages in old industrial areas where people pay small amounts of rent  but have a roof over their head and a community bathroom and kitchen to take care of lifes basic functions. Are there more places to consider this idea?

Overall, the countys  and states  high cost of housing makes it particularly hard for people at the bottom. With developable land so expensive, homes are costly to build and buy. Rents are soaring. High housing costs trickle down the entire housing ladder, making it cost-prohibitive to create low-rent facilities that could keep people off the streets. In other words, we need to think more broadly about housing markets and regulations.

The issue is not about shooing people away so we dont have to see them. Its about creating a humane solution to a disturbing problem. Good for the county for making homelessness a priority, but it needs to break out of the box of bureaucratic thinking.

Steven Greenhut is Western region director for the R Street Institute. He was a Register editorial writer from 1998 to 2009. Write to him at sgreenhut@rstreet.org.
In the throes of a contentious multimillion-dollar battle to win reelection, Congressman Darrell Issa is showing voters a less familiar side.

The Republicans attack-dog reputation was built while chairman of the House Oversight Committee, when he launched high-profile investigations into President Barack Obamas Administration and regularly criticized the White House.

But with Democrat Doug Applegate, a retired Marine colonel, mounting a formidable challenge, Issa is trumpeting his bipartisan accomplishments. Thats included sending out campaign mailers praising Obama for signing a victims rights bill the congressman supported.

Hes trying to come off as more moderate, said Jodi Balma, a political scientist at Fullerton College who called Issa one of the most partisan members of Congress. For voters who havent been following him or only know the caricature, this could get them to take a second look.

Thy Vos graphic bio of Issa

Its the first time Issa has had a serious reelection fight in the district, which straddles the Orange-San Diego County line and includes the Camp Pendleton Marine Corps base. In his seven previous reelection bids, he had at least a 30-percentage point advantage over the next highest finisher in the primary and at least 16 points in the general.

The primary results this year?

Issa got 51 percent, Applegate got 46 percent. The Cook Political Report and at least two other handicappers are calling the general election a toss up, and the unexpectedly close race is attracting national attention.

Buoying Applegates primary showing was a strong turnout by Democratic voters in a district that is shifting from red to purple. The GOP edge is 8 percent, down from 11 percent at the beginning of the year, with 25 percent of voters unaffiliated with any party.

In a normal election, those voter registration numbers would still be enough for the Republican incumbent to have a clear path to reelection, according to Paul Mitchell of Political Data Inc., which analyzes voter registration, demographics and turnout.

But Donald Trump is turning convention on its ear.

It could be competitive this year given the dynamic of the election, Mitchell said.

In one scenario, anti-Trump sentiment would spur more Democrats and independents to turn out and vote for Hillary Clinton. And Republicans unhappy with the controversial GOP nominee would sit out the presidential race  a possibility Democrats across the country are trying to leverage.

Applegate is among those betting on that disenchantment with Trump. His campaign is making sure voters in the district know about Issas endorsement of Trump and Issas appointment to Trumps national security advisory committee.

Issa, meanwhile, is gambling that Applegates progressive political agenda wont go over big with the districts voters. The incumbents campaign is attacking Applegate  who voted for Bernie Sanders in the primary  for supporting a carbon tax, a federal minimum wage hike to $15 an hour and what has been dubbed a Robin Hood tax that would levy a 0.5 percent tax on the sale of stocks.

The two candidates endorsements also distinguish them. Issa is backed by the National Rifle Association and the California Pro-Life Council while Applegate is supported by Obama and Planned Parenthood.

Political novice

Applegate, 62, was born in Dayton, Ohio to a mother who ran a convenience store and a father who was a security officer at a GM plant.

While a college junior, he joined the Marine Corps. He went on to get a B.S. in economics and a law degree at Arizona State, and served active duty in the Marines from 1974 to 1984. After launching a private practice focusing on personal injury and consumer law, he served as a Marine reserve  including a stint in Iraq  before retiring as a colonel in 2006.

The political novice says he decided to run for office because his military experience provides particular insight into national defense, veterans issues and armed intervention abroad.

I thought I had a unique skill set, he said, noting that there are few Congress members with extensive military experience. He said some of Issas policy positions  and Issas Washington insider status  also contributed to his decision to throw his hat in the ring.

Applegates own positions run well left of center. The San Clemente resident supports Medicare for all, repealing the presidents authorization to use force against the Islamic State and breaking up financial institutions deemed too big to fail during the last financial crisis.

He supports all 32 bills and resolutions advocated by Progressive Democrats of America in their candidate questionnaire, closely mirroring Bernie Sanders agenda.

These have always been my principles, said the lifelong Democrat, adding that he is unafraid to stray from the more moderate Democratic platform. I would defend these core values as putting country ahead of party.

Issa campaign mailers have taken aim at Applegate for a host of issues, including two restraining orders and an order to surrender his firearms, the result of his then-wife accusing him of threatening her in the early 2000s.

Applegate said the accusations came in the heat of a complicated divorce.

The court process played out very quickly, he said. Those orders were lifted and we went on to raise two great kids even though we were no longer married.

Applegates ex-wife, Priscilla Greco, issued a statement calling the Issa mailer disrespectful and uninformed, and saying she is supporting Applegates congressional bid.

Veteran politician

Issa, 62, was born in Cleveland, where his father sold GM trucks. He dropped out of high school to join the Army at 17, served two years, earned a GED and then a B.A. in business from Siena Heights University in Michigan. He attended college on an ROTC scholarship where he served 4 years as an officer. He then 10 years in the reserves, attaining the rank of captain.

In 1972 and again in 1980, he was arrested for auto theft, with charges dropped both times. In 1972, he was also charged with having a concealed weapon in his car. He pleaded guilty to having an unregistered gun.

After leaving the Army, he invested in an electronics company and eventually took control of an affiliated car alarm manufacturer.

The car alarm manufacturer, Steal Stopper, and Issas subsequent car alarm business, Directed Electronics, laid the foundation of his fortune. The Capitol Hill publication Roll Call ranks him as the wealthiest member of Congress, worth $255 million. His campaign says he sold the last of those businesses in 1999.

The Vista residents first bid at elected office was a 1998 run for U.S. Senate, in which he spent $10 million of his own money but lost in the Republican primary to state Treasurer Matt Fong, who spent $3 million.

He fared better in his 2000 bid to replace retiring Rep. Ron Packard, R-Carlsbad, winning the primary by 11 percentage points and the general election by 33 points.

In 2003, Issa spent nearly $2 million for the signature-gathering to qualify the recall of Gov. Gray Davis for the ballot. Issa had planned to run for the seat but changed his mind after Arnold Schwarzenegger entered the race.

Asked what work on Capitol Hill he was most proud of, Issa cited three bipartisan bills he had a leadership role on. One was a pilot program to increase the expertise of judges in patent litigation. Another streamlined the Freedom of Information Act procedures to make information more readily available. The third, the DATA Act, is intended to make information on federal spending more accessible.

Issa was the second most effective Republican in the House in the 2013-2014 session, according to an academic study published on the Washington Posts Monkey Cage blog. It based the rankings on success in moving bills and how substantial those bills were.

Issa served as chairman of the House Oversight Committee from 2011 to 2015, and said 23 bills from the committee were signed into law by Obama.

But he was best known for his scrutiny of the Obama Administration, including investigations into the IRS, the Benghazi attack and the Fast and Furious federal gunrunning sting. During his term as chairman, he was regularly criticized by Democrats, who accused him of wasting time and money on partisan attacks.

Issa says there was no partisanship involved, but did acknowledge that Obama attracted particular attention.

He has not been the open and transparent president he said hed be, Issa said.

Obama weighs in

The candidates part ways on immigration, with Applegate favoring a pathway to citizenship for those in the country illegally and supporting Obamas executive orders granting temporary legal status to many of those without documents.

Issa has opposed most of those executive orders and would prefer to deal with people in the country illegally by tightening sanctions on employers and establishing a guest-worker program for those jobs that are primarily filled by immigrants.

But Issa also differs with Trump on the issue, saying tighter border security is not enough to stem the flow of people in the country without documents. Issa cites statistics that 40 percent of those immigrants are here on expired visas and would be in the country regardless of border security.

There are other flaws with the border security approach, even if theres a massive wall, Issa said.

Any wall is like the hull of a ship, he said. I dont know any ship that doesnt have a bilge pump.

He said thats just one instance where he differs with Trump. He campaigned for Sen. Marco Rubio in the GOP primary and said Trump wasnt his second or third choice either, but was preferable to Clinton. He has condemned Trumps lewd open mic comments as having no place in American politics.

Meanwhile, Issas effort to publicize common ground he shares with Obama got messy fast.

Within days of mailing the flier praising the presidents support for the victims rights bill, Obama mocked Issa and called the tactic shameless.

As far as I can tell  Issas primary contribution to the United States Congress has been to obstruct and to waste taxpayer dollars on trumped-up investigations that have led nowhere, he said at a La Jolla fundraiser Oct. 23. And this is now a guy who, because poll numbers are bad, has sent out brochures with my picture on them touting his cooperation on issues with me.

And Issa kicked back, issuing a statement that said, Im disappointed but not surprised that the president, in a political speech, continues to deny accountability for the serious scandals that happened under his watch

Issa, Applegate and their allies had combined to spend $3.9 million on the race through September, with Capitol Hill Democrats helping to compensate for Issas fundraising advantage. But if the stars  and campaign strategies  align to carry Applegate to victory, it could be a short stint in office, according to Mitchell, the Political Data analyst.

He said the district is probably a decade away from Democrats becoming an equal force, and that more typical election dynamics are likely to prevail when the congressional seat is on the ballot in 2018.

If Applegate does win, he could be the most vulnerable member of Congress, Mitchell said.

Contact the writer: mwisckol@ocregister.com
Members of the Pacific Symphony have voted unanimously to reject the most recent contract offer presented by the orchestras management and reaffirm the strike authorization they previously had granted, the union for the musicians announced Thursday.

The two sides met for the last time on Oct. 18, said Pacific Symphony violist Adam Neeley, who serves as bargaining committee chairman for the musicians union.

The main sticking points remain, Neeley said. They concern our desire to have a predictable schedule, a contract that gives us more employment and a guaranteed annual wage.

He added that among 11 peer orchestras of similar size, the Pacific Symphony ranks at the bottom in the percentage of its budget allotted to musicians pay and benefits. The orchestras website lists 84 musicians among its members.

Well perform on Sunday with Pacific Chorale, Neeley said.

We have a longstanding relationship with them and will respect that.

But he warned that the Home Alone pops concerts scheduled for Nov. 11-12 could be affected.

Pacific Symphony management officials were unavailable for comment Thursday. The unions announcement was issued shortly after the orchestras administrative offices had closed for the day.

Pacific Symphony president John Forsyte, who is out of town, sent a statement via email on Friday morning:

Since its contract with the musicians union expired on Aug. 31, Pacific Symphony has continued to act in good faith to negotiate a new contract. Our offers have been designed to address union concerns about predictability of work and annual wages. The board maintains its commitment to a contract that provides stable and meaningful work for musicians while ensuring the long-term sustainability of the organization. For now, all programs will continue as scheduled.

The terms proposed by the orchestras management are punitive, Neeley argued. To play the minimum number of guaranteed services in their contract, symphony musicians are required to turn down other jobs when they are on call for some services, Neeley said. In other words, they might not be used for certain events but must keep those dates open nonetheless.

Musicians who expect to earn $34,807 in the 2016-17 season could only do so by sacrificing other work in order to keep their schedules clear, and would have no way of predicting when they would be called to work, the orchestra committee said in an email released Thursday.

Pacific Symphony is unique among Americas 33 largest orchestras in its use of a per-service contract. All others guarantee their musicians an annual salary based on a weekly wage multiplied by an agreed-upon number of weeks of work.

Contact the writer: 714-796-7979 or phodgins@scng.com
IRVINE  Police are asking for the publics help in finding two women suspected of stealing jewelry in February valued at approximately $4,260 from the Brighton store at the Irvine Spectrum.

The first suspect, Linda Lorraine Ferguson, 38, was described as African American, 5-feet-7 and approximately 160 pounds. She may be driving a 2013 four-door black Nissan with California license plate 6ZIF430, said Kim Mohr, a police spokeswoman.

Police suspect Ferguson of being involved in similar heists across Southern California and Arizona, Mohr said.

Watch the video here.

The second suspect is an unidentified African American. She was described as 25 to 30 years old, and 180 pounds with long, dark curly hair.

Anyone with information was asked to contact Detective Matt Ricci at 949-724-7189 or at mricci@cityofirvine.org.

Contact the writer: 714-796-7802 or jsudock@scng.com
CAMERINO, Italy  The red brick Amatrice city hall resisted the devastating Aug. 24 quake that collapsed buildings all around it, only to crumble under the one-two punch of lesser jolts Wednesday night. They also brought down a centuries-old church tower in Camerino that had withstood both a quake in 1997 and the one in August.

The twin aftershocks Wednesday may have exacted a lesser human toll than the August quake that preceded them, with no one killed under rubble and no reports of serious injuries. But they revealed structural weakness in the mountainous quake-prone zone straddling the Marche and Umbria regions, and added more psychological stress to already traumatized inhabitants.

Premier Matteo Renzi visited the picturesque hill-top university town of Camerino on Thursday, which is pledging to rebuild under the slogan: The future doesnt collapse. His government has earmarked 40 million euros ($43.6 million) to help house those displaced by the most recent quakes, and he promised to get to work on reconstruction soon and in a serious way.

The earthquake is putting us to the test, but Italy is here and we will not leave citizens alone. We are stronger and we will make it, Renzi said.

The first quake at 7:10 p.m., with a magnitude of 5.4, sent residents into the streets under heavy rain  which authorities said likely saved lives by getting people outside ahead of the second, much more powerful quake.

That jolt, two hours later and eight times stronger, brought down weakened buildings, like the bell tower in Camerino, and rendered unsafe countless homes, on top of those damaged in August. With no time to come up with adequate emergency shelter, thousands slept in their cars.

Authorities on Thursday were scrambling to find housing so that no one would have to spend a second night in their vehicles.

In the town of Ussita, Mayor Marco Rinaldi said his town had been devastated, with up to 80 percent of the houses no longer inhabitable.

In Visso, the mayor estimated that two-thirds of the towns 1,500 houses had sustained some damage while the remaining residents preferred not to return home until checks were made to ensure safety. Tonight, we are not leaving anyone in the streets, Mayor Giuliano Passaglini told residents, laying out options for accommodations.

Camerino Mayor Gianluca Pasqui said the towns historic bell tower of the Santa Maria in Via church, dating from the Crusades, had collapsed, but emphasized that reconstruction work after a 6.1 -magnitude quake in 1997, including on the church and tower, appeared to have contributed to the absence of serious injury.

I can say that the city didnt have victims. That means that even if there is a lot of damage probably the reconstruction in the historic center was done in a correct and adequate manner. Because otherwise, we would be speaking of something else, Pasqui told Sky TG24.

The town is home to 7,500 residents and 10,000 students at the Camerino University, one of Italys oldest founded in 1336.

The president of Umbria region, Catiuscia Marini, told RAI state television that officials were mindful that with winter approaching and temperatures dropping, tents couldnt be deployed as they were after the August quake. The concern for the predominantly elderly population of the remote mountain region was repeated by other officials.

Marini said that after the quakes many people will be fearful of staying even in hotels deemed safe, and that solutions like campers were being considered.

We dont have injured, we have people who are very afraid, who have anxiety, especially the elderly, she said.
The Lake Forest City Council race is made even more intriguing than usual by the frequent infighting, which has oftentimes gotten personal, on the council. This year, incumbents Dwight Robinson and Adam Nick face three challengers to keep their seats.

Nick has a compelling life story  imprisoned for a year and tortured during the political uprising in Iran in the late 1970s, he made his way to the U.S. under asylum and lived the American dream, becoming a successful accountant and businessman. During his four years in office, he has pursued some worthy goals, such as fighting for a sunshine ordinance to bring greater transparency to the council, but many times his passion has crossed the line to incivility, and he has been known to berate his colleagues, or even a citizen during public comment, and we believe that he lacks the temperament to work productively on the council to get things done.

We endorse Dwight Robinson for his conservative fiscal stewardship and commitment to maintain Lake Forests friendly business climate. It is difficult enough to do business in California, he told us, and I dont want to provide any additional regulatory barriers. While he has concerns about super high-density housing, he also sees the need to allow a variety of residential options, including those that will be affordable to younger people, who will help build the community for the next generation.

We were also impressed with Francisco Barajas, who serves on the Parks and Recreation Commission and previously worked with the Orange County Taxpayers Association. Barajas said that his mission is to see that government stays small and does not interfere with the private sector.

The Editorial Board recommends votes for Dwight Robinson and Francisco Barajas on Nov. 8.
Lake Forest-based Del Taco continues to add more fast casual style upgrades to its menu.

On Thursday, the Mexican fast-food chain debuted Platos, plated entree dishes ranging in price from $6.49 to $7.49. The four new plated dishes, a first of its kind for the fast food chain, comes with a side of lime rice, pinto beans and chips. Black beans can be substitued at no extra charge.

The four platos options include: two new wet burritos (chicken verde or carne asada topped with green or red sauce); two beer-battered fish tacos; and two street tacos. The entrees are permanent menu additions.

All entrees are available a la carte.

The new menu items come as Del Taco pushes a fresh food strategy. Remodeled stores emphasize slow-cooked beans, and freshly chopped ingredients. At a contemporary prototype store in Irvine, tubs of pico de gallo and other fresh produce are displayed in a cooler with glass doors behind the cash register.

In recent years, restaurants have added turkey tacos, fresh avocado and made-to-order salads, as well a line of Epic burritos stuffed with the same premium ingredients similarly found at Chipotle.

Were trying to elevate the experience of the brand. We want to raise our game, John Cappasola, Del Tacos chief brand officer, told the Register in an interview earlier this year.

Still, fast, inexpensive food is at the core of the brand. The companys The Del Taco, a larger version of the standard beef taco has been a huge success. The chain has sold 11 million since debuting the item in late June. It is the best-selling product in the brands history. The previous No. 1 product launch was the Grilled Chicken Rollers, introduced on the value menu in early 2016, Del Taco said.

Contact the writer: nluna@scng.com
The global conspiracy Donald Trump says is trying to rig the election against him has been explained in some detail by a UC Irvine economics professor, although I heard a little chortling when I talked to other experts about it.

Peter Navarro, a senior economic adviser to the Trump campaign, posted his 300-word treatise on the Trump website, linking global financial interests to U.S. press coverage of the campaign.

The very corporations that have gained from shipping Americas factories and jobs offshore are the very same conglomerates now pushing Hillary Clintons agenda, Navarro writes. She is the official candidate of the multinational ruling elite.

The solution?

Donald Trump will break up the new media conglomerate oligopolies 

Jack Pitney, a political scientist at Claremont McKenna College, said there are legitimate concerns about the consolidation of media ownership. That includes the proposed purchase of Time Warner by AT&T, which has critics on both sides of the aisle.

But Trump wants to use this to shut down his accusers, Pitney said. Trump is not a big fan of the First Amendment. He wants to use libel laws against his victims and use antitrust against his media critics.

Navarro offers several examples of media outlets being linked to corporations with overseas interests:

 NBC, and its Clinton megaphone MSNBC, were once owned by General Electric, a leader in offshoring factories to China. Now NBC has been bought by Comcast, which is specifically targeting the Chinese market.

 Amazon, which controls the Washington Post, profits from the flow of illegally subsidized foreign products through its distribution channels.

 The New York Times strings are being pulled by Mexicos Carlos Slim, a billionaire who benefits from NAFTA and supports Hillary Clintons open border policies.

Pitney pointed out that Slim is not a majority shareholder of the Times.

Its kind of hard to say that Carlos Slim is the puppet master of the New York Times, he said.

And the rest?

Trump loved the media a year ago when he was riding high, Pitney said. He likes conspiracy theories when theyre convenient to him.

While we were at it, I asked Pitney  once a Republican staffer on Capitol Hill  about the perception of a liberal bias in the media.

Reporters are more likely to be liberal than to be conservative, he said. The question is how much that spills over to the news pages. Thats harder to prove.

Woman talk

Elsewhere at UC Irvine, political psychology Ph.D. candidate Jennifer Jones compiled statistics on the speech of 35 candidates over the past 12 years and found that Trump had the most feminine speaking style of the group.

Many have impressions of Trump as being especially masculine  in the words of Trump supporter Lupe Moreno of Santa Ana, Hes a mans man. He reminds me of John Wayne.

But linguist Julie Sedivy, who uses Jones statistics as the basis for a Politico essay, writes that Trumps style has qualities that go beyond mere blustery aggression.

Research has shown that the more feminine a speakers style, the more likable and trustworthy he seems. For Trump, who has been derided for his multiple contradictions and outright lies, that advantage might well have persuaded his supporters to listen to him and not the chorus of media fact checkers.

Sedivy explains that women are more likely to use tentative language  words like maybe and seems  and emotion-laden words  like beautiful and despise. She goes on to detail other differences in language used for the analysis, including use of pronouns, verbs and prepositions.

Hillary Clinton ranked 10th most feminine of the 35, more masculine than Trump, Barack Obama and Chris Christie. A related study by Jones found that Clintons speech became increasingly more masculine from 1993 to 2003.

Baugh speaks

Last week in this column, which looked at congressional fundraising, I mentioned that former Orange County GOP Chairman Scott Baugh had collected $566,000 toward a possible 2018 run for the seat now held by Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Costa Mesa.

Because of Rohrabachers staunch defense of Trump in the wake of the lewd open mic comments and the possibility of a showdown between Rohrabacher and Baugh, I wanted to catch up with Baugh for his thoughts on the GOP nominee. I finally did.

Every Republican nominee on my ballot is better than every Democratic nominee, he said, without mentioning Trumps name.

And the open mic comments?

There is no circumstance under which those comments could ever be considered appropriate, he said.

Contact the writer: mwisckol@scng.com
After falling victim to no less than seven break-ins last summer, the owner of a second hand auto parts business in Montserrat, Spain, has replaced his guard dogs with a pair of toro bravos, a Spanish breed of bull used in bullfighting, to roam the property and deter potential intruders.

Emilio Cervero told Spanish reporters that his troubles began earlier this year, when local authorities in the Valencian town of Montserrat built new roundabout next to his junkyard. He was expropriated of part of his property, and the provincial government sealed off his downsized land with a flimsy wire fence to replace the original concrete wall which featured barbed wire protection. Since then, he claims thieves have broken in seven times, by snipping a hole in the wall, luring the guard dogs out of the compound, and simply walking in to take what they needed.

Senor Cervero claims that the financial cost of the break-ins wasnt considerable, as it turns out that most of the thieves were young people looking to steal a rear-view mirror or a tire for their cars, but the frequency with which the intrusions occurred had become an inconvenience. The fence had to be fixed every time, not to mention that the alarms were set off, bothering his neighbors. And since guard dogs were proving ineffective, he decided it was time for something more extreme.

Photo: video screengrab

After asking permission to build a tougher wall in the problematic section of his junkyard, he was told that he was free to do so, as long as the new fence was located at least 25 meters from the new boundary fence. As his property had already been downsized, Cervero couldnt afford to lose any more space, so he came up with an interesting alternative  replacing guard dogs with a couple of fighting bulls.

Now the two bulls constantly roam the premises, and Cervero says hes interested to see if thieves will be willing to risk a confrontation with the bulls for a cheap second hand hub cap or a worn tire. The bulls can roam around freely in the yard and lets hope they do their job, he told Spanish television news La Sexta. All I am trying to do is protect my property.

Photo: video screengrab

One thing is for sure, if anyone does decide the junkyard is worth breaking into, theyll get a lot more than they bargained for, none of it particularly pleasant.





Sources: The Local, ABC Spain via Nothing to Do with Arbroath
Provided you can find your way to it after a wild night of alcohol-fueled partying, the worlds first hangover bar, in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, promises to make that nasty next-day hangover a lot easier to deal with.

Only open from Friday to Sunday, between 10am and 6pm, Amsterdams Hangover Bar is decorated as a green oasis in the middle of the urban jungle, and offers a variety of ways to deal with hangovers. But in order to experience any of them, you first have to prove that your blood alcohol content is well above functional levels, by taking a breathalizer test. Failing one of these is usually a bad thing, but at the Hangover Bar its actually your ticket in.

Once inside, you are guided to your very own comfortable bed, where you get to relax by rolling up in a blanket and watching a wide variety of on-demand movies, or socializing with other recovering revelers. You can also order vitamin-rich smoothies and something to eat from a special food menu created by foodora. There is even an oxygen bar to help your body recover faster.

Most people share the opinion that the day after a night out is somewhat less successful. To overcome a hangover there are a few things you need: a good mattress, good food, fun and lots of vitamins, said Joep Verbunt, one of the brains behind the unique bar. In the Hangover Bar all these elements are brought together for the first time.

Even though the founders of the Hangover Bar apparently dont believe in the old saying fight fire with fire, and thus serve no alcohol, the place has proven a hit over the four weekends since it opened, in September. So even though it was conceived as a one-time pop-up experience, Verbunt and his team are now preparing to launch another pop-up event in the near future.

Photo: The Hangover Bar/Facebook

via The Culture Trip
R onn Torossian

Edward Bernays would have been 125 years old on October 23. If you werent aware, hes considered the father of PR. The nephew of renowned psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, some of Bernays well-known clients included Thomas Edison, Enrico Caruso, Eleanor Roosevelt and U.S. Presidents Eisenhower, Truman, Roosevelt, Hoover, Wilson and Coolidge. Clients Bernays turned down include Adolf Hitler, former Nicaraguan dictator Anastasio Somoza and General Francisco Franco.

Bernays jokingly said Hitler wanted me to create a campaign for the German train system. Apparently, he did not know that Im Jewish. Though Bernays is considered the father of PR, many of his beliefs and the ideas he used in representing clients came from the application of theories espoused by his famous uncle.

Dr. Otto Lerbinger, chairman of the school of public relations at Boston University, said Bernays always came up with a different angle. Those different angles kept clients coming to him, not always because of what he could do for them, but to keep him away from helping their competitors.

Bernays was hired by the War Department to work the campaign to fund the war through the purchase of War Bonds. He initiated many of the governments military recruitment efforts and created some of the eras most famous propaganda posters.

In 1928, during the days of silent movies, he created a PR campaign for Dodge allowing the public to hear what both Charlie Chaplin and Gloria Swanson really sounded like as they did a radio commercial. Bernays said, No one had ever heard Chaplins voice before. But they did during the Dodge Hour on radio.

Though he was born in Vienna, he immigrated to the U.S. where he soon met and married Doris Fleischman. Though she kept her maiden name, they formed a PR company together and lived and worked as partners until her death in 1980. From there, the industry grew. Their firm remained one of the top firms for years, and Bernays lived to see the industry hed jumpstarted become a multi-billion-dollar field.

Public opinion was barely a theory when Bernays began his efforts. He referred to the concept as the American tribal consciousness, and much of what he did after that came about because he believed that tribal consciousness could be molded and focused.

Bernays had a hand in many successful campaigns, but there was at least one he later regretted: challenging the societal taboo against public smoking by women. Hired by cigarette companies to reach a female audience and break barriers related to women smoking, he focused the PR campaign on womens rights, calling it Torches for Freedom. In 1929 he convinced debutantes, models and actresses across the country to march at an appointed time in places like Boston, New York and San Francisco, lighting their torches.

Bernays died in 1995. Always mindful of the generation gap, in his last years he famously stated: When you consider that by the year 2040, up to 40 percent of the nations population will be over 65, thats a problem.



***

Ronn Torossian is CEO of one of Americas leading PR Firms, 5W Public Relations.
The U.K.s Digital Economy Bill, close to being adopted, has alarmed radiation health advocates who say it will unleash dangerous 5G microwave spectra without adequate testing.

Lynn Wycherley

Ecologist Lynn Wycherley says Evidence is emerging that the health hazards associated with wireless microwaves are at least comparable to, if not worse, than those associated with cigarette smoking.

Her extensively documented article blasting the Digital Economy Bill, including criticism of FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler for proposing unbridled massive deployment of the new and more powerful 5G transmitters, was published yesterday by The Ecologist.

Writes Wycherley: Anticipating tens of billions of dollars of economic growth, with US telecoms first out of the gate, Wheeler warned: Stay out of the way of technological development! Turning innovation loose is far preferable to expecting  regulators to define the future.

She charges that the July 14, 2016 adoption of 5G technology by the FCC made no mention of health-testing, carbon costs, or corporate responsibility. The Wycherley article has links to 14 scientific studies and papers on EMF.

The FCC voted unanimously to go ahead by releasing swathes of untested high frequencies for private sector exploitation  so setting a trend, she said. She asked, How will our communities be affected by addiction to 5G multi-stream videos? How will it impact our spiritual communion with Nature?

Tom Wheeler

Many American health activists, and cautioning scientists, are aghast, said Wycherley, noting that Joel Moskowitz, Ph.D., director of community health studies at the University of California, warns precaution is warranted before 5G is unleashed on the world.

Drowning in Microwaves

She quotes geneticist Dr. Mae-Wah Ho whose paper Drowning in a Sea of Microwaves called pollution from wireless technologies as a pressing issue of our times.

Anthropogenic radiation has sky-rocketed with the advent of radar, cellphones and dense Wi-Fi networks, says Wycherley.

Although it is non-ionising and does not destabilize molecules directly, , evidence of other harm has been growing since the 1950's studies on radar workers.

But wireless-product marketing has a loud voice. Few of us realize that genetic effects and free radical damageboth disease risks over timeare the most common, cautionary findings. Device-crowded spaces, such as our peak commuter trains and all-wireless classrooms, may be creating a subtly toxic environment.

The Digital Economy Bill has sensible proposals for increasing country-wide access to fibre broadband, a technology that does not, in itself stoke microwave pollution though wireless add-ons do so, she said. But probe beyond the bill to the Office of Communications 5G consultations, and new EMF exposures emerge: part of a global trend.

An illustrated version of the Wycherley essay was published by Global Research, Canada.

Moskowitz Adds Links

Moskowitz has added links to eight studies in commenting on Wycherleys essay.

Included is a study on cellphones and radiation health threats and one on an increase in brain cancers link to an increase in cellphone use.
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This month, Omaha-born author Ron Hansen finished a Western outlaw trilogy nearly 40 years in the making.

It started with his first novel, Desperadoes (published in 1979), a historical fiction about the rise and fall of the Dalton Gang. He followed it up with The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, the 1983 novel that was adapted into the acclaimed film starring Brad Pitt and Casey Affleck.

After I finished that, Hansen said, somebody asked me what I was going to do next. And off the top of my head, I said, Billy the Kid. 

But at the time, more than 30 years ago, hed become wary of being pigeonholed as a Western writer. He decided to explore other terrain. Subsequent books included Mariette in Ecstasy, in which a Catholic nun bears the stigmata, and the National Book Award finalist Atticus, a literary thriller in which a Colorado rancher seeks his sons murderer.

Finally, about two years ago, I was looking for a project, Hansen said, and somebody reminded me that I once said I was going to write about Billy the Kid. And I thought, Wouldnt it be a great conclusion to a trilogy? 

Fears of being pigeonholed as a Western writer had long since passed for Hansen, who now teaches at Santa Clara University in Northern California. (He got his bachelors degree from Creighton University.)

Now Im kind of at the age where you do a retrospective of your career, said Hansen, 68. And I concluded of all the Western people Id written about, I think I liked Billy the best.

Hansens historical novel, The Kid, tries to find the person behind the legend. The book starts with the outlaws childhood and ends with his death at 21. Hansen examines all that came between: the deaths of Billys parents, his struggles to survive, his many affairs, his famous exploits  all from the gunslingers perspective.

Hansens aim is to complicate the image of Billy as a ruthless criminal.

I think it was important to examine him, Hansen said. Not exactly to deconstruct him, but to plant where the legend came from.

As with all his fact-based fictions, Hansen tried to be as historically accurate as possible. As usual, he found that theres not a lot of information out there about these real-life mythical figures.

In his research, he found that Billy was a funny, charming and amorous character, one who could sing and dance and speak fluent Spanish. He lacked the character flaws of Jesse James (psychopath) or Robert Ford (needy).

Billy was certainly not much like the movie portrayals: Kris Kristofferson was too old in Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid; Emilio Estevez was just off in the Young Guns movies.

Hansen was thrilled with the screen version of The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, which he said retained so much of the material you dont normally see in a Hollywood adaptation.

When Hansen was writing the book back in the early 80s, hed always pictured Warren Beatty in the James role. But by 2007, Pitt was a perfect James.

Its probably the best performance hes ever done, Hansen said. He was just a wonderful guy. He thought that Warner Bros. would want to change the title because its so long, but he had it written into his contract that they couldnt change it. I appreciated him for that.

When asked who could play Billy if there were ever an adaptation of The Kid, Hansen wasnt so sure.

No, I dont know, he said, starting to laugh. I just was reading something about Justin Bieber today. Hes the right age and looks about right, but I dont know if he could act.
Years ago, Tim Guthrie and his wife Beth went to see Trip Shakespeare.

The beloved indie rock band was coming to town, and Tim had made a special request: He wrote a letter and asked them to play Will You Be Found.

Beths sister Jean had died tragically, and the song mentions a woman named Jean. The song had special meaning to them.

The fellas in Trip Shakespeare obliged and played the song even though it was one they rarely performed on stage. It was a special night for Tim and Beth.

The guys in the band remember it, too.

Their family was so touched and there were some tears. It meant so much to us because we were having that effect on people that you hope for, Matt Wilson told me.

Tim and Beth remained fans, but sadly, Beth died last year.

Since then, Tim has dedicated himself to remembering her and their relationship.

He has traveled the world to places they visited together. He has painstakingly photographed old photos of Beth re-framed in the exact places they were originally taken. Theyre amazing, like a memory placed back in its original location.

And amid his projects remembering her, Tim sat down with with Wilson and helped create a song honoring Beth.

The Twilight Hours, a band with Trip Shakespeares Wilson and John Munson, hosted a PledgeMusic campaign to fund their latest album, Black Beauty, and one of the rewards was to write a song with the band.

The idea was that someone would bring their song that they were working on and I'd help them take it to the finish line or maybe help them turn some poetry into the song, Wilson said.

Tim took another approach.

Could he explain his relationship with Beth, his feelings after her passing, his passion for his wife and Matt could turn it into a song?

Wilson was game. Tim went out to Minnesota and spent a weekend with Wilson.

When Tim showed up, I just liked him so much and we had such a good time, Wilson said. It was just so gratifying to be with Tim.

Hes something special, he added. Hes a good ally. Hes an energy force.

Called I Cant Return, the song details Tim and Beths relationship from Tims perspective.

Tonight, Twilight Hours will play a private show at HiFi House, the members-only vinyl listening room, and Wilson promised theyd play the song.

I Cant Return repeatedly hits on how a person comes into your life and changes everything. Youll never be the same.

As we talked about it, the logic in my brain kept going, How can Tim get back to this excited person that he was before he knew Beth? Is that even possible to find your way back to that? Wilson said. Maybe the answer is no, you can't just go back to that and start over. You're always gonna be this guy who was married to Beth. That's how you are now and you cant just pick up on that track. You have to suffer through this and can't just shortcut back to where you were.

Wilson called Tims story as an unbelievable experience I couldnt imagine, and he told me it helped open up his songwriting.

Writing and recording their latest album was a long process, and he had stopped writing songs while completing it. Writing I Cant Return turned on a spigot that he hasnt been able to shut off yet, Wilson said, and he already has a run of songs perhaps for another album.

It widened my scope personally as a songwriter. I had never been forced into someone elses perspective, Wilson said.

Listen to Guthrie's live recording of "I Can't Return:"

I Cant Return lyrics

can you remind me of those days

before we were two

What was I, what was I thinking

What did I do

We came together in a way

Two into one

We were fine, why am I sinking

what have you done

who was I

shadow man, troubled man, travel plans

a mouthy child, unkind at night

through the dark into the light

theres one thing that Ive had a chance to learn

I cant return

I see the signs, the words I cant discern

I cant return

it seems like my mind got rearranged

two into one

who was I, what was i dreaming

where did I run

a funny boy, a shadow man, mixed up in a moving van

sunny smile, unkind at night

too much darkness, too much light

theres something that Ive had my chance to learn

I cant return.

the streets are gone, the trees are blowing and burn

i cant return

I cant return

I cant return

I cant return

I cant return

I cant return

I cant return

I cant return, return, return, return, return
Certain music from the 60s and 70s endures, and thats because of the Vietnam War.

Soldiers in Vietnam and those at home connected to songs by The Doors, Jimi Hendrix, Aretha Franklin, The Animals and many, many others.

Music had a huge impact on the war by connecting soldiers to their lives back home, helping units stay together, helping soldiers makes sense of the experience and, perhaps most importantly, helping them heal, according to a pair of scholars who spoke Thursday afternoon at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Craig Werner and Doug Bradley, authors of We Gotta Get Out of This Place: The Soundtrack of the Vietnam War, spoke at UNOs symposium, The Vietnam War: Lessons and Legacies.

The talk was attended by dozens of veterans, who sang along to songs such as The Animals Weve Gotta Get Out of This Place and Country Joe and the Fishs I Feel Like Im Fixin to Die Rag, which Bradley and Werner played for the audience.

Songs like those became anthems for soldiers, Bradley said, and he recalled singing The Animals with passion during his own deployment.

Vietnamese and Filipino bands that came to entertain soldiers would be booed off the stage if they didnt know that song, Bradley said.

Their presentation and their book focused on soldiers relating their stories of how music connected veterans to other soldiers and to those back home.

It also affected artists.

For their book, they spoke to Eric Burdon of The Animals and War, Country Joe McDonald and members of Creedence Clearwater Revival, among others.

Its still at the core of who they are, Bradley told The World-Herald after the talk. Its an important thing for them: a song, the experience, the fact that it resonated with vets. It meant something.

Werner and Bradley shared lots of stories, mentioning how certain songs took on different meanings for those at home and those in Vietnam.

To those at home, Hendrixs Purple Haze was titled after a certain type of LSD, but soldiers remembered purple smoke grenades theyd use to mark landing zones. And Hendrix, a soldier before he was a famous musician, certainly knew that.

His music sounded like Vietnam, Werner said.

After sharing stories from veterans theyve met and reading a powerful passage from their book about Marvin Gayes Whats Goin On, they turned to the audience for questions and to tell their own tales.

A few asked about follow-up books discussing post-war songs and those local cover bands. One man spoke about country music by performers such as Johnny Cash and George Jones, and another relayed a story of two Tennessee soldiers taking early morning guard duty because thats when the Armed Forces Network played country.

Over and over, Werner and Bradley came back to one topic: music and its healing power.

While writing their book, they spoke to veterans who they say never opened up until the pair broached the subject by talking about music.

Music will get to parts of the story you have trouble reaching, Werner said. It reached an emotional truth.

Theres something safe about music that gets us talking more openly and honestly, Bradley added.

The symposium continues through Friday with speakers including former Sens. Bob Kerrey and Chuck Hagel and former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage.
The insurance industry is ripe for disruption and must innovate to thrive, despite more than a century of tradition and experience, the head of a Lincoln life insurance company said Wednesday.

Tom Henning, chairman and CEO of Assurity Life Insurance Co., said a case in point is NerdWallet, an online clearinghouse for financial products, including life insurance.

Within a minute of opening NerdWallets website, a potential customer sees the monthly rates for more than a dozen life insurance policies from different companies and can start filling out an application to buy coverage.

Compare that with the traditional method of buying life insurance: A salesman comes to your home, makes a pitch to explain how much insurance you need and then starts the paperwork, leaving you without much chance to shop for other products.

Digital shopping gives customers almost perfect transparency to compare products and prices, Henning told about 100 people at a meeting of the Association for Corporate Growth, held at the Scott Conference Center.

One study found 535 insurance technology startup companies with $4.6 billion in financing, some of which will survive and prosper.

Theyre going to disrupt our industry, Henning said. Napster moments are happening all around us, he said, referring to the online music company that changed the music distribution business.

Henning said its easy for insurance companies, which can trace their histories back generations, to think like Blockbuster, the video rental company that once had more than 9,000 stores where people went to rent videos.

Video by mail and online video sharing pushed out Blockbuster, which failed to adapt to new technology.

Digital technology moves at warp speed and disrupts market after market, he said.

The need to innovate in the insurance industry is especially important for Omaha and Lincoln, he said, which have the fourth-largest concentration of insurance companies in America behind New York City; Hartford, Connecticut; and Des Moines.

The industry grew here because companies in the East thought it was too risky to sell insurance in the Midwest during the days of the pioneers, Henning said. Entrepreneurs in Omaha and Lincoln started their own companies.

Assurity traces its origins to 1890, but thats no guarantee of future growth, he said. As a result, the company has a division that finds investments in promising startup companies and has diversified into real estate development and human resources management.

Its important for insurance companies to adopt a culture that makes people willing to try new ventures and accept failure as a step toward success, Henning said.

Experts predict that life insurances share of individual financial assets will drop from 16 percent today to 12 percent by 2020, Henning said. About 30 percent of households have no life insurance, a 50-year low.

Americans today are more concerned about having money for a comfortable retirement than the traditional reasons for life insurance, he said: protecting loved ones from a premature death, covering burial expenses or leaving an inheritance.

Companies with a long history are particularly vulnerable to disruptive change, he said, because they may decide to rely on past practices and miss emerging technologies that new companies can adopt.

Insurance companies tend to be risk-averse, Henning said, but these days, operating in a disruptive environment is normal. Doing nothing is no longer safe. Its the riskiest thing you can do.
**********

In the time it took Yatonda Lewis to grab her babies formula and bottles from the trunk of her car, the infants were snatched away in a carjacking at a north Omaha grocery store Thursday evening.

After a nearly two-hour frantic search, the twin 8-month-old girls, Sophia and Alexandria, were found safe a little more than a mile from the store.

The carjacker was not found.

The ordeal began just after 8 p.m., as Lewis was preparing to leave the Bakers store at 7312 N. 30th St. She had put her infants in the back seat and loaded the groceries into the car when she realized that she needed to get the bottles out of the trunk.

She got out of the car and opened the trunk  and the car just takes off, she told police.

As the carjacker swerved out of the parking lot, Lewis screamed after him, my babies are in that car!

Across the street, from inside his home, Ernesto Marquez, 36, heard Lewis.

You could hear the agony in her screams, Marquez said, as he and his family gathered outside to help look for the babies.

Law enforcement officers swarmed the area in the search, aided from above by a police helicopter. An Amber Alert was issued, and news of the abduction spread as people across the area began looking for a newer model, white four-door Volkswagen sedan.

Lewis family formed a prayer circle in the parking lot and turned to God for the safe recovery of the girls.

When Sophia and Alex were found, family members credited that prayer and thanked the police and volunteers who helped in the search, and the many people who took to social media to help out.

Community, we need everybodys help, everybodys help, because this can happen to anybody, family members told the media as they waited anxiously for news. Please, just bring them back.

There were no cellphones or GPS systems in the stolen car that authorities could use to track it down.

In the end, it was a member of Lewis own large family, a cousin, who found the girls inside the car near 33rd Street and Hartman Avenue about 9:45 p.m. No worse for wear, either  they were reported to be sleeping.

Eddie Redick said he decided to search in areas that were notorious and known for gang activity. He was apprehensive when he approached the car  he wasnt sure if the thief was in it or nearby. But when he got closer, he saw that the man wasnt there and the girls were fine.

It was a huge relief, he said. He had been talking with his wife on his cellphone as he came upon the vehicle, and she listened as he peered into the car and saw the girls.

She was screaming and running  everybody was happy, he recounted.

Police released a surveillance photo of a man they have described as a person of interest in the abduction.

The mother said the car took off so quickly that she didnt get a look at the driver, according to Officer Phillip Anson, an Omaha police spokesman.

Capt. Scott Gray of the northeast precinct said hes confident that police will be able to locate the man theyre seeking. Tips started coming in as soon as the mans image was posted on social media, he said, though he added that many of them will be ruled out.

Im pretty confident that were going to be able to develop a suspect out of this, he said.

The important thing, he said, is that the babies and mother were able to go home together Thursday night.

Thats the great news out of this.
On Saturday, the more than 7,000 miles separating Omaha and a rural, all-girls school outside of Kabul, Afghanistan, will feel a little less vast.

The founder of that school, humanitarian Razia Jan, will be at Creighton University to host the local premiere of What Tomorrow Brings, a documentary that tells the stories of the girls and teachers at the Zabuli Education Center.

Jan was born in Afghanistan and came to the United States in 1970. For years, she ran a small tailoring business outside Boston and volunteered with the local Rotary club there. Then came Sept. 11, 2001.

She decided she needed to help both Americans and Afghans and wanted to bridge the gap between the cultures. So she sent more than 400 homemade blankets to Ground Zero rescue workers and mailed care packages to U.S. troops stationed in her homeland, according to her website. She helped send more than 30,000 shoes to Afghan children.

In 2008, she moved to Kabul. On the site of a former boys school, she opened the Zabuli Education Center for more than 100 girls. The school now has 550 students.

Ed Walsh, a member of the Suburban Rotary Club of Omaha, said hes excited to see the film and see the students the club hears so much about.

Its been incredible to watch the school grow and the girls grow up, he said.

In 2013, through a Rotary International matching grant, the Suburban Rotary Club of Omaha supported a full year of expenses for 54 girls studying at the school. That grant was for $16,200. This year, the Omaha club also received a $38,500 grant to buy science equipment for the school.

We wanted a global project and just kind of stumbled across this incredible school and program, Walsh said. Now we want the community to see this work and see why it was so important for us to support it. This is just one more indicator that Omahans are making a difference globally.

The Saturday screening will be at the Harper Center from 7 to 9 p.m.

Jan will take questions after the film. Tickets are $20. Tickets for a VIP reception before the screening are $250. They can be purchased at http://bit.ly/RRH_Omaha. The proceeds will go to the Zabuli Education Center for Girls.

The event is sponsored by the Suburban Rotary Club of Omaha, the Omaha Schools Foundation, the Creighton University Intercultural Center and the University of Nebraska at Omahas Center for Afghanistan Studies.
It was a rough morning for Hook, a wild goose that spends time at Halleck Park in Papillion.

While other metro-area geese were presumably enjoying Fridays warm weather, Hook was grappling with fishing line wrapped around his leg and a hook that had impaled his wing.

The Nebraska Humane Society got a call about the birds plight, and officers captured him to help. He is being affectionately called Hook.

Hook was the fourth goose spotted this year injured by hooks and fishing line, said Animal Control Officer Kelli Browne.

Humane Society spokeswoman Pam Wiese said the incident should serve as a heads-up to people who fish around the area.

Something as innocent as a line and hook left behind can cause real pain to wildlife, she said.

When Hook was found, he was trying to get the hook out of his wing using his beak, which could have caused more problems for him if hed been successful and then swallowed it, Wiese said.

The fishing line also was embedded under the gooses skin, and hell likely need more medical treatment under anesthesia to remove it, she said.

But Hooks tale has a happy ending: He didnt swallow any fishing hooks, and hes headed to Wildlife Rehab Inc. for more treatment before hes released.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The FBI is telling Congress it is investigating whether new emails that may contain classified information have emerged in its probe of Hillary Clintons private server.

The FBI said in July that its investigation was finished.

The disclosure raises the possibility of the FBI reopening the criminal investigation involving the Democratic presidential nominee just days before the election.

Clintons campaign didnt immediately respond to the report.

In a letter sent Friday to congressional leaders, FBI Director James Comey said that new emails that had come to light recently have prompted investigators to take another look at the sensitive government information that flowed through the private email sever Clinton used while serving as secretary of state.

It was not clear from Comeys letter where the new emails came from or who sent or received them.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump praised the FBI's decision to investigate the new emails.

The Republican nominee said Friday that "perhaps finally justice will be served." He was addressing a roaring crowd in Manchester, New Hampshire, shortly after news broke of the FBI decision.

Trump said that "Clinton's corruption is on a scale we have never seen before," and he added that "we must not let her take her criminal scheme into the Oval Office."

Trump said he had "great respect" for the FBI's decision. He had previously been highly critical of the FBI and Department of Justice for the earlier decision not to bring charges against the Democratic nominee.

Copyright 2016, the Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
LINCOLN  Nebraska beef claims a growing share of United States beef exports, thanks to a decade of state marketing efforts.

Gov. Pete Ricketts and State Agriculture Director Greg Ibach highlighted the accomplishment Thursday, while reporting on the states latest trade mission to Europe.

Last week, Ibach led a delegation that met with leaders from a number of European companies and signed six letters of intent formalizing commitments to purchase and promote Nebraska beef.

Growth in demand for Nebraska beef in Europe is helping grow our market share and grow Nebraska, Ricketts said.

He noted that Nebraska beef accounted for 5 percent of the $36.3 million worth of U.S. beef exports to the European Union in 2005. That was the year the State Agriculture Department started working with the Nebraska Beef Council on promotional efforts.

By last year, Nebraska beef accounted for 42.5 percent of the $315.4 million worth of exports to Europe and, for the first half of this year, Nebraskas share hit 50 percent.

In the global market, Nebraskas share of beef exports increased from 3.67 percent in 2005 to 18.2 percent in the first six months of the year.

Nebraska has long been a leader and innovator in beef production, raising some of the best cattle and beef in the world, Ibach said. By promoting the Nebraska brand of excellence and quality we will continue to increase our exports of beef.

He attributed the increase to the joint promotional efforts, in which state officials, industry representatives and individual farmers and ranchers have worked to tell the story of Nebraska beef.

He said they personalize the story, touting the grasslands, where families raise their herds to produce calves that fill the feedlots across Nebraska, and those cattle eat locally grown corn, distillers grains and roughages.

They also talk about how the finished cattle are processed in plants that pay special attention to consumer expectations and food safety.

Weve kind of debunked the story in the international marketplace that U.S. agriculture is corporate agriculture, Ibach said. Weve made sure they understand that Nebraska agriculture is families raising food for families all over the world.

He said the quality of Nebraska beef also has been key to increasing the states exports.

During last weeks trade mission to Europe, Ibach was joined by Chris Calkins, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln animal science professor; Myron Danner, a rancher and member of the Nebraska Beef Council; Jerry Wiggs, with the Greater Omaha Packing Company; and Stan Garbacz, from the State Agriculture Department.

The delegation made stops in London; Dusseldorf, Germany; Paris; and Valencia, Spain. They met with representatives from import companies and restaurant chains doing business in England, Germany, Italy, Sweden and the Netherlands.

Ibach said the hope is to do similar promotional efforts for Nebraska pork products during an upcoming trade mission to China. Ricketts is slated to lead that trip next month.

Ibach said he expects the trip will include discussion about reopening the Chinese market to Nebraska beef.

On a related topic, the governor and Ibach said that the state is making progress toward launching a program through which beef can be certified and marketed as being from Nebraska.
Updates from Friday: Protests at Dakota Access pipeline site draw to a peaceful close after day of clashes]

****

CANNON BALL, N.D. (AP)  Law enforcement officers dressed in riot gear and firing bean bags and pepper spray evicted protesters Thursday from private land in the path of the Dakota Access oil pipeline, dramatically escalating a months-long dispute over Native American rights and the projects environmental impact.

In an operation that took nearly six hours, hundreds of armed state and local police and National Guard troops  some on foot and others in trucks, military Humvees and buses  pushed past burning barricades to slowly envelop the camp.

No serious injuries were reported, though one man whose leg was hurt received treatment from a medic.

Donnell Hushka, a spokeswoman for the Morton County Sheriffs Office, said 117 protesters had been arrested.

Among them was a woman who pulled out a .38-caliber pistol and fired three times at officers, narrowly missing a sheriffs deputy, according to State Emergency Services spokeswoman Cecily Fong. Officers did not return fire, she said. Protesters insisted that they were unarmed.

Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier said the camp had been cleared by nightfall although police were still dealing with protesters on the perimeter. Though officials earlier said they planned to turn the site over to private security, Kirchmeier said police would stay for now.

Were not leaving the area, he said. We are just going to make sure that we maintain a presence in the area so the roadway stays open, and to keep individuals from camping on private land.

Opponents of the pipeline over the weekend set up camp on private land owned by Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners, which is working to complete the 1,200-mile pipeline to carry oil from western North Dakota to Illinois. The route skirts the Standing Rock Reservation, and the tribe says it could endanger water supplies and disturb cultural sites. The State of North Dakota says no sensitive cultural sites have been found in the area.

The tribe has gone to court to challenge the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers decision granting permits at more than 200 water crossings. A federal judge in September denied their request to block construction, but three federal agencies stepped in to order construction to halt on Corps-owned land around Lake Oahe, a wide spot of the Missouri River, while the Corps reviewed its decision-making.

Construction was allowed to continue on private land owned by the developer, with a goal of completion by the end of the year.

Thursdays operation to push out the protesters began a day after they had refused to leave voluntarily. Law enforcement officers repeatedly asked protesters to retreat, at one point using a high-pitched whistle that they said was intended to control and disperse protesters.

The camp cleared on Thursday is just to the north of a more permanent and larger encampment on federally owned land that has been the main staging area for hundreds of protesters, including Native Americans from across North America, environmentalists and some celebrities.

Many protesters openly defied the officers, while others took part in prayer circles and burned sage.

Protesters erected a barricade on a bridge on County Road 134 north of Cannon Ball. After setting fire to the barricade they moved to Highway 1806, where hundreds of law enforcement officers from multiple departments appeared with armored vehicles to move them south on the highway to their main camp.

There were tense moments when the gunshots were heard and officers piled onto a person.

The protesters eventually made their way back to their main camp. Just north of the camp there were several vehicles on fire, but it was unclear whom they belonged to or who started the fire.

Cody Hall, a spokesman for the protesters, vowed that a new camp would be built elsewhere in the pipelines path, but on federal land.

Its going to take a lot to move them (protesters) from there, he said.

Authorities said protesters set fire to four large pieces of construction equipment.

Aaron Johnson, 50, a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux in South Dakota, said he and other protesters werent happy with the days outcome. I came here for peace and prayer, he said. When somebody sets something on fire, thats not peace and prayer.

World-Herald staff writer Chris Machian contributed to this report.
LINCOLN  Hopes for tax cuts from the Nebraska Legislature got nearly $1 billion harder on Friday.

Thats the size of the state budget gap after the Nebraska Economic Forecasting Advisory Board met to update the official forecast of state tax revenues through June 30, 2019.

Board members reduced the previous revenue estimates based on the gloomy agricultural economy and on lower-than-expected tax receipts this year.

The new forecast projects that tax revenues will fall $910 million below estimated expenses from now through the end of the next budget period.

Right now were not in a very fun place, said Michael Calvert, the legislative fiscal analyst.

The board projected that revenues would be $9.3 billion in the next two-year budget period. The tax revenue predictions are critical because lawmakers and the governor use them in crafting the budget.

Calvert said he expects the state can make it through the current fiscal year, thanks to the 3 percent cushion built into the current state budget, if expenses do not rise.

But it means Gov. Pete Ricketts and state lawmakers will have some tough decisions to make about the two-year budget period that starts July 1.

In particular, it means it will be more difficult to make any tax cuts, as the governor and many lawmakers have said they hope to do.

On Friday, Ricketts did not mention taxes. He said the new forecast affirms the need for budget cuts. He said he will continue working with state agencies on belt-tightening measures, while crafting a budget proposal for next year that includes cuts.

State Sen. John Stinner of Gering, a member of the Legislatures Appropriations Committee, expressed both determination and hope.

It is what it is. Thats what well have to work with, he said. I think its a challenge for us, but with a challenge always comes opportunities, and those opportunities are really taking a good hard look at what were spending money on and reprioritizing things.

Stinner said he believes tax reform is still possible, as long as officials can find a way to pay for it. But the first order of business will have to be adjusting the current budget, he said.

He said the committee will look at the governors budget proposal and requests from state agencies before starting the process.

He expects the discussions will involve whether to dip into the states cash reserve, commonly known as the rainy day fund. A downturn in revenues due to the agriculture economy is different from episodic events like the housing crisis, he said.

The shortfall equals 6.6 percent of budgeted and projected state spending from now through June 30, 2019.

Others offered mixed reactions to the updated forecast.

Renee Fry, executive director of the OpenSky Policy Institute, a Lincoln-based think tank, said Nebraskas economic uncertainty highlights the need to prioritize economic investment and opportunity  not tax cuts.

Talk of income tax cuts and reducing revenue further is a distraction from the real challenges and issues that our state faces, she said.

The Rebuild Nebraska coalition and the Center for Rural Affairs, a coalition member, called the budget shortfall unsettling and said it could hurt the states ability to invest in critical areas such as education, health care and corrections.

State leaders should focus on evidence-based policies that will spur economic growth  not tax relief disguised as a way to benefit the wealthiest Nebraskans, the two groups said.

But Jim Vokal, CEO of the Platte Institute for Economic Research, an Omaha-based think tank, called such warnings scare tactics and argued that tax cuts would help to stimulate the economy.

Tax increases dont help a sluggish economy, he said. The way to grow the economy is through tax relief so that families, farmers and ranchers, and small-businesses owners can reinvest more of their hard-earned money into our economy.

The states fiscal picture will change several times before lawmakers sign off on a new state budget in May.

Next up is a November meeting of legislative leaders and the state tax commissioner, at which the group will get updated estimates of state spending needs. The update will include new calculations of state school aid, along with the budget requests submitted by state agencies.

The forecasting board will meet again in late February and in April to review and possibly revise its revenue estimates.

On Friday, board members described a state economy in which agriculture is beset by unbelievably distressed commodity prices but urban areas have several signs of positive economic activity.

Tom Henning of Kearney said the banking community believes the current conditions in agriculture dont rise to the level of those of the 1980s farm crisis because farmers have kept strong balance sheets and working capital.

Still, he said, you can see and you can feel a little bit of the stress thats being felt in agriculture.

David Ochsner of Nelson, Nebraska, said time will tell whether Nebraskas economy is diversified enough to withstand the conditions of the agricultural sector.
Voters have a lot on their minds this year, but they should make a little time for the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District.

The actions of an NRD help keep homes and businesses safe from flooding, safeguard water quality, protect more farms from soil erosion and provide public recreation.

The Papio-Missouri NRD has pursued a series of major projects in recent years.

It has issued more than $70 million in bonds for large, flood-protection projects that are nearing completion. Some offer recreational opportunities, but more importantly, they protect lives and property.

Officials with the NRD have worked with other local governments, the Legislature and Nebraskas congressional delegation to secure funding for new levees to protect Offutt Air Force Base, a key regional asset.

The districts governing board recently approved a long-range plan that will cut spending nearly in half over the next five years, as it should, since the NRDs state-granted bonding authority is lapsing. The board has some difficult budget decisions to make.

But theres a plan in place to continue building dams and flood-fighting structures as needed, which is the districts most important job.

There are six competitive races for NRD seats this year, all involving incumbents. We find the incumbents to be capable individuals deserving support.

Our recommendations:

>> In Subdistrict 1, which covers Dakota County, most of Thurston County, part of Burt County, Washington County and north-central Douglas County, Bill Rhea Jr. demonstrates impressive abilities in a short stint on the board. Hes a no-nonsense cattleman who ran to unseat the controversial Scott Japp on the premise that he could be a more effective representative for the NRDs only rural district. After Japp died in a farm accident, the NRD board appointed Rhea to the post in August. Early reviews of his work are promising. Hes asking questions, studying hard and speaking up when he has something to add.

>> In Subdistrict 3, which encompasses much of northeastern Douglas County, Curt Frost is the choice. Frost is willing to speak out against spending by the district when he thinks it strays too far from its core missions of flood control, water quality and fighting soil erosion. His approach helps the board think through individual projects.

>> In Subdistrict 5, which spans western Douglas County and a sliver of northwest Omaha, Rich Tesar is the pick because of his experience. He represents the board on the state organization for all of Nebraskas NRDs. He has been an effective board member. Hes still focused on flood control and water quality, with a dash of recreation, a solid mix of priorities.

>> In Subdistrict 7 in central Omaha, Patrick Leahy is the choice. Leahy, whose grandfather Gene Leahy is a former Omaha mayor, served in the Army and Army Reserve. He has pushed hard to restrain new dam building, sticking to the districts plans and not straying beyond them. And Leahy appears to have a keen eye for NRD budget discipline.

>> In Subdistrict 9, covering southwest Douglas County and northwest Sarpy County, the pick is Patrick Bonnett. This board member is following through on seeing the completion of Dam Site 15A. The 220-acre flood-control lake, surrounded by 475 acres of parkland, lies northwest of 168th and Fort Streets. His next mission: rethinking the budget after bonding authority sunsets.

>> In Subdistrict 11 in eastern Sarpy County, the choice is Ron Woodle. He has owned a hardware business, a western store, a laundromat, a moving business and stables. He knows numbers. But hes proudest of helping with the Offutt Air Force Base levees. Woodles goal for what he says would be his final term in office is worthy: limiting flooding potential as the rest of Sarpy County develops.

Each of these races has a solid incumbent. The board is headed in a sound direction.

We recommend that Papio-Missouri NRD voters in Subdistrict 1 select Bill Rhea Jr. in Subdistrict 1; Curt Frost in Subdistrict 3; Rich Tesar in Subdistrict 5; Patrick Leahy in Subdistrict 7; Patrick Bonnett in Subdistrict 9; and Ron Woodle in Subdistrict 11.
Ah, to attend a cartooning festival in Europe during the waning days of the most divisive presidential campaign in U.S. history.

I recently did just that. I was one of six American cartoonists invited to the 35th International Salon of Caricature and Humor, which is held three hours south of Paris in Saint Just le Martel. The town is nestled among pastoral hills in the Limousin region, known for its breed of cattle.

At least 150 cartoonists from across the globe and dozens of local dignitaries mingled with members of the public, including busload after busload of visiting students. I was honored to represent the United States and The World-Herald.

A cartooning festival wouldnt normally conjure up sobering images. And yet, reminders of recent tragic events were everywhere.

On the exterior of the main building where the festival was held were oversized portraits of the five cartoonists killed in the 2015 Charlie Hebdo attacks. Stationed below those portraits and at checkpoints surrounding the festival buildings were heavily armed soldiers and police.

Inside, the Paris studio of one of the murdered cartoonists from Charlie Hebdo had been meticulously recreated, right down to the pens and ink and paper, a memorial behind glass.

But there were also plenty of lighter touches. Cows, for example, because the salon is held in cattle country.

Two massive rooms were filled with cartoons (including some of mine). They featured themes from this years exhibit: the Statue of Liberty, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.

The festival poster included a cartoon cow biting off the beard of an angry terrorist. And then there was the oversized, green cow sculpture fashioned like the Statue of Liberty, the one everyone wanted a photo with.

A second cow sculpture was adorned with golden Trump- esque hair and a leather jacket. (I never quite figured out the purpose of the leather jacket.)

In France, editorial cartoonists are treated a little like rock stars. Fans wanted sketches and autographs. Journalists asked questions and took photographs.

People were friendly and grateful to have visiting American cartoonists. But no one asked about Lady Liberty or Clinton  either the cartoon versions or the real thing. The conversation was all about Trump.

I was asked time and again, What about Trump? Do you think hell win? If he wins, what will happen to the United States?

Caricatures of Trump were popping up everywhere, too. In sketchbooks, on bar napkins and even on tablecloths in between bottles of wine and slices of baguette. And, yes, I was responsible for a few of those drawings.

Adding to the obsession with Trump was the video that had just been released of his vulgar open-mic comments about women. Even the French were offended.

During the salon, participants heard terrible stories of how some cartoonists live under threat from their governments. Cartoonists and other journalists are persecuted in many countries for telling it like it is.

That created a poignant dichotomy: tales of oppression against the backdrop of funny pictures.

But in funny pictures, there is hope. Laughter is medicine, as they say. And another reminder how blessed I am to live and work in a country where freedom of expression is a cherished principle.

Each year the organizers roll a long carpet from the entrance of the main building into the exhibit area and trot out a cow, a living trophy of sorts, to honor one outstanding cartoonists contribution to cartooning. This year, the festival made an exception and celebrated two cartoonists, both of whom have championed freedom of expression.

One is an Israeli cartoonist, and the other is a cartoonist from Morocco who continues his work in spite of death threats.

As the cow was escorted in, the two cartoonists hugged among the cheering crowd, glasses of champagne hoisted in their honor.

I tend to get emotional at such poignant and symbolic moments, so I stepped outside, past our security detail, and gazed out across the French countryside.

I took in a deep breath and counted my blessings. Freedom, no matter where you are in the world, always smells pretty great.
40 down and counting: Forces on the verge of wiping out Pakistani terrorists in Valley

1990s are back in J&K as terrorists go on rampage targeting schools

News

oi-Vicky

Schools and banks in Jammu and Kashmir have become the favourite targets for terrorist groups. The Lashkar-e-Tayiba has been claiming that it is attacking schools and colleges as the authorities are not adhering the Hurriyat Conference's calendar of protests.

Banks are to do business only after 5 PM when there is relaxation as suggested by the Hurriyat posters by the Lashkar-e-Tayiba read.

The last time Kashmir witnessed such a scenario was in 1990s when militancy was at its peak. A breakdown of the number of schools targeted during the unrest which began on July 9 will give a clear indication of how bad the scenario is today.

23 schools burnt since July 2016:

Over past three-and-a-half months, at least one school in each of Kashmir Valley's 10 districts have either been burnt or suffered damages in fires.

Five schools were burnt in the last five days alone.

17 Govt middle, high & higher secondary schools have been burnt mysteriously during the unrest: Officials of the directorate of school education.

Two prominent private schools were also been damaged in fires as Kashmir.

In Anantnag, a high school & historic Hanfia School run by Wakf Board were gutted last month.

CM Mehbooba Mufti, her father the late Mufti Muhammad Sayeed & NC Mirza Afzal Beg have been some of the alumni of the wakf-run institution.

Of these, seven were reduced to ashes while 10 were damaged partially in the fire.

Kulgam in South Kashmir has been the worst affected with five schools either completely burnt or partially damaged in fires.

Three schools have been burnt in central Kashmir's Budgam district.

The police have registered cases in all incidents but no one has been arrested so far.

Have the 1990s come back to haunt Kashmir?

In then 1990s nearly 5,000 schools were destroyed by militants. It had become impossible for children to reach schools. In several cases, children and teachers were forced out of the schools before the buildings were burnt.

It did take years to rebuild these schools. However all that hard work appears to have gone down the drain with a similar scenario being witnessed in the Valley today.

May 10, 1989- Lal Chowk, Srinagar, An explosive device planted at Bisco Memorial School causes extensive damage to the building.

March 17, 1990-Sonawar, Srinagar, An attempt is made to set ablaze Burn Halt School, affiliated to the local Catholic mission.

May 23, 1990-Lal Chowk, Srinagar, An explosive device is hurled into the compound of Bisco Memorial School. Unidentified terrorists also ask school authorities to impart Arabic/Islamic education to students.

November 11, 1990- Lal Chowk, Srinagar, Another explosion at Bisco Memorial School premises forces closure of Christian missions/schools.

February 23, 1991 -Lal Chowk, Srinagar, An explosion occurs near Miss Melanson Girls School.

July 5, 1992,-Lal Chowk, Srinagar, An explosion occurs at Bisco Memorial School.

July 24, 1993-Lal Chowk, Srinagar, Terrorists set fire to Bisco Memorial School hostel.

OneIndia News
Espionage case: Man, whose Aadhar detail was stolen, shocked

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Oct 27: The man, whose address was mentioned in the forged Aadhar card of a Pakistan High Commission staffer detained for his involvement in an espionage ring, was "shocked", saying he got to know about the case only after his house had a beeline of journalists.

The Pakistan High Commission staffer, Mehmood Akhtar, was picked up along with his two accomplices from Delhi Zoo by the police yesterday for their involvement in the espionage ring.

Their activities involved sharing of sensitive defence documents and deployment details of BSF along the Indo-Pak border with the Pakistani spy agency ISI.

Akhtar claimed to be a resident of Chandani Chowk and produced a forged Aadhar card bearing the house address 2350, Gali Near Madari, Rodgran Mohalla.

However, Mohd Asif, who owns the house, said, "I don't know how and why my address was there in the card. We only got to know about it after mediapersons came to my house to ask me about how my address was there in that person's Aadhar card.

It's shocking for us." Asif said he and his family have been living in the area for the last 40 years and that the house is a part of their family legacy. "Our forefather lived here and now my family is staying here and it will pass on to my kids.

I don't know this person who has my address on his card," he stressed. He also said if the police questions him, he will tell them the truth. "Police haven't questioned us till now. We have nothing to hide. Whatever is the truth, we will tell them," said Asif,who has a business of selling electric water motors.

PTI
Farooq Abdullah meets PM, presses for dialogue in Kashmir

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Oct 28: Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah today called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss the situation in the Kashmir Valley which continues to witness unrest for over 100 days.

During the meeting, Abdullah stressed for an early dialogue with all the stakeholders who were willing to come to the table for negotiation so that the stalemate can end in the Valley.

The former Chief Minister, who has been touring the entire state, said that the Prime Minister listened patiently to him and was receptive to the suggestions he made. "I am sure that the Prime Minister will urgently address all the issues that have been flagged by me and others from the state," Abdullah told PTI after the meeting.

The former Chief Minister said that National Conference has played the role of a constructive opposition party and would continue to do so. "We are willing to do anything for the people of the state who have been victims of unrest for over three months now.

"The education sector has suffered. Tourism industry, which is the mainstay of the economy, has been hit badly. The people living along the Line of Control and International Border are suffering. I have requested to take into consideration all these factors and make attempts to bring some relief to the people in the state," he said.

Resolving Kashmir will end terrorism: Farooq Abdullah

Abdullah, however, refused to share other details about the meeting. "The meeting took place in the most cordial atmosphere and the Prime Minister was equally concerned about the situation in the state," the NC leader said.

As many as 85 people, including two policemen, have been killed and thousands of others injured in the unrest in the Valley triggered by the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani in July. Around 5,000 security forces personnel have also been injured in the clashes.

PTI
Growing menace of fake Aadhar cards and how the Pakistanis are benefitting

News

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

New Delhi, Oct 28: In the small lanes of Chandini Chown in Delhi lies a major network of touts who steal identities. This group of touts will get you an identification at a small price. Money speaks here and if you are on the look out for a fake identification then money is all that it takes to get the job done.

This network of touts came under the scanner of Mehmood Akthar, the staffer in the Pakistan High Commission at New Delhi. He was detained, released due to diplomatic immunity on Thursday. Akthar who was running a spying ring was declared persona non grata.

When the Delhi police reached his door step following a six month long investigation along with the Intelligence Bureau, Akthar flashed his Aadhar card. He said his name was Mehboob Rajput. The address on his card read, 2350, Gali Near Madari, Rodgran Mohalla, Chandni Chowk, New Delhi 110006.

(https://www.oneindia.com/india/from-jaish-terrorists-pak-mission-officers-how-do-they-get-aadhar-card-2246056.html)

However the Delhi police was already aware that this was the man they were looking for. Minutes after the details of the Aadhar card were made known, media and police personnel were at the address. They were received by a set of very surprised and shocked set of persons.

Investigations have shown that Akthar was in touch with one of the touts. He had sought an Aadhar card which was given to him in a few hours time. Touts have a data base and they randomnly issue cards by using these addresses. They charge anything between Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 per card.

A similar network operates in Jammu and Kashmir as well. Recently five terrorists of the Jaish-e-Mohammad were arrested. They too flashed Aadhar Cards and investigations showed that these cards were fake.

OneIndia News
IRCTC update: 115 trains cancelled on Nov 01; here is the complete list

IGNOU Admissions 2022: Last date for registration extended again

JNU students protest outside Delhi Police headquarters

India

oi-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, Oct 28: Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students on Friday rallied outside the Delhi Police headquarters at ITO here to protest alleged inaction in case of the disappearance of JNU student Najeeb Ahmed.

The students demanded that the status of the probe by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) be made public and asked why the police had not yet examined records and closed-circuit television footage of vehicles entering the JNU campus on the day Ahmed went missing.

They also wondered why the police have not yet questioned the "goons" who beat up Ahmed.

Around 200 to 250 JNU students took part in the protest which started at 4.30 p.m. The police declared the protest illegal and warned the students to disperse.

The police barricaded the road outside the headquarters, causing a massive traffic jam.

Students made attempts to remove the barricades, but relented after JNUSU President Mohit Pandey pleaded with them not to resort to such actions and protest peacefully.

Another student body, Students Islamic Organisation (SIO), was part of the protest along with members of other student bodies.

Ahmed went missing on October 14 night after he was beaten up by some alleged activists of the Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

Also read: PhD student from northeast found dead in JNU hostel

A police complaint was filed and a Proctorial inquiry was initiated by the university. The police later formed an SIT to trace Ahmed.

The protesters also denounced the findings of the JNU administration's inquiry, saying it failed to take cognisance of the facts as mentioned by the Warden of Mahi-Mandvi Hostel, where the assault took place.

The Warden, present when the attack occurred, had said it was a "brutal assault" on Ahmed in his October 16 report submitted to the varsity Proctor.

A student delegation, led by JNU Students Union (JNUSU) President Mohit Pandey, later went into the headquarters to hold talks on their demands with police officials.

The delegation included JNUSU office-bearers, namely Vice-President Amal, General Secretary Satarupa, and Joint Secretary Tabrez.

The delegation submitted a memorandum to R.P. Upadhyay, Joint Commissioner, South Range, demanding a through search of the forested area in the JNU, and examination of video recordings of nearby metro stations.

IANS
Madras Bar Association suggests timeframe for judges selection

India

oi-PTI

Chennai, Oct 27 The Madras Bar Association has suggested setting a time frame for every stage of selection of judges, saying the process should be started at high courts at least nine months in advance of the expected vacancy caused by retirement.

The names should be recommended seven months in advance, it said. stated its views in a memorandum to be submitted by two senior lawyers who would appear on its behalf before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personal, Public Grievances, Law and Justice, New Delhi on November 2.

It submitted the memorandum while referring to the 'inordinate delay' in filling up vacancies in high courts and the Supreme Court.

It said vacancies should be earmarked respectively for the Bar and Service, taking into consideration the existing strength of judges representing the Bar and Service, so that the proportion of 3:1 from the Bar and Service is maintained.

Any fraction of percentage should be counted in favour of service, lest eligible district judges may either retire or may not have a two-year minimum service as high court judge.

The association suggested that the practice of returning the list of judges under consideration due to change of Chief Minister or Chief Justice should be discontinued.

It also suggested that if an acting CJ holds office for 60 days and more, he should be permitted to commence the selection process and make recommendations of names for appointment as high court judges.

Steps should be taken to cut off delay in appointment of judges for high courts and the Supreme Court.

For this purpose, the Constitution should be amended by fixing a time limit to fill vacancy of judges, the association said.

In this regard, the memorandum pointed out that in the case of the President, Article 62(1) says election to fill the vacancy caused by expiration of the term of office of the President shall be completed before expiration of the term.

A similar time limit is in place for the Vice President, state legislatures and the local bodies. It noted that Chief Justices of high courts are always from other states, as a policy.

Due to their transfers on some occasions, other judges in the Collegium too sometimes are from outside the state.

In such a scenario, judges constituting the Collegium do not have clear personal knowledge of members of the Bar for being considered for elevation.

So it was desirable if the second and third seniormost judges of a High Court Collegium are from outside the state, two senior most judges from the state are elevated from the Bar and subordinate judiciary be co-opted on the HC Collegium.

PTI
Congress will bring back old pension scheme in Gujarat, if voted to power: Rahul Gandhi

Modi regime 'systematically' discriminating against armed forces: Congress

India

oi-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, Oct 27: The Congress on Thursday accused the Narendra Modi government of systematically discriminating against the armed forces, raising the purported change of armed forces officers' rank parity with respect to their civilian counterparts.

"The Narendra Modi government has systematically discriminated against the armed forces," said Congress spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala.

The Defence Ministry had on October 18 issued a circular on rank equivalence between defence officers and civil service officers, which lowered the parity of the former.

As the issue created a row, the ministry clarified on Thursday that there has been no change in the rank structure or the status of Armed Forces personnel with respect to their civilian counterparts and termed media reports in this regard as "erroneous".

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had on Tuesday assured that the ministry would check if ranks of armed forces personnel have changed vis-a-vis their civilian counterparts, and any discrepancies would be rectified in a week.

No change in rank parity of armed forces personnel: Defence Ministry

However, Surjewala attacked Parrikar, charging him with "lying".

"The Defence Minister is lying once again. How can he say that he does not know of this downgrade in ranks when the last line of the order says it has been done with the permission of the Defence Minister," he asked, also adding that "within hours of the cross-border surgical strikes, the government proceeded to reduce the soldiers' disability pension".

"OROP (One Rank, One Pension) has been made to mean one rank many pensions. There are many anomalies in the Seventh Pay Commission which are not being addressed despite repeated requests from the retired officers.

"The soldiers feel cheated," Surjewala said.

IANS
Shouldn't worry about 2024, instead think of 2029 polls: Javadekar's advice to Opposition

Opposition needs to understand that right to religion is not a right to convert

Opposition has outsourced the contract of creating ruckus and abusing me: PM Modi

National-level opposition alliance a necessity: Nitish Kumar

India

oi-IANS

By Ians English

Patna, Oct 28: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday mooted the idea of an opposition grand alliance at the national level to take on the BJP-led NDA government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 2019 general polls.

"There is a possibility of a grand alliance and it's a necessity in the country," Nitish Kumar told media persons here reacting to Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav's fresh move for an alliance of like-minded parties.

He said it is a welcome step if Mulayam Singh has initiated a move to form a grand alliance of secular parties.

Nitish Kumar said the opposition parties have to be united in the country to fight against the BJP. "All non-BJP parties have to unite. It is the need of the time."

He recalled that last year, ahead of the Bihar Assembly polls, an attempt was made to form a grand alliance led by Mulayam Singh but it could not take shape. "But, it does not mean that a fresh bid for formation of a grand alliance should not made," he said.

The Samajwadi Party had walked out of the RJD-JD(U) alliance in Bihar last year, straining relations between Nitish Kumar and Mulayam Singh.

Responding to whether he will attend the silver jubilee ceremony of Uttar Pradesh's ruling Samajwadi Party in November, he said: "I have not received any such invitation so far."

Nitish Kumar has vowed to contest the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls early next year.

RJD chief Lalu Prasad is, however, expected to attend the celebrations.

IANS


Pakistan spy ring- Third spy Shoaib was well connected in high commission says Delhi police

News

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia

The Delhi police said that Shoaib who was working for Mehmood Akthar, the staffer in the Pakistan high commission was operating since the past 3 to 4 years. Ravinder Yadav, the Joint Commissioner of Delhi Police said that he was well connected.

On Thursday after the police cornered, Akthar in connection with a spying case, three arrests were made. While Maulana Ramzan and Subhash Jangir were arrested from Rajasthan, the police later arrested Shoaib from Delhi.

Yadav said that he was operating smoothly since the past 3 to 4 years. He also said he had connections in the High Commission of Pakistan as well. The three spies arrested had a well oiled network, the officer also said.

Further he said that Shoaib was a visa agent and he is currently being interrogated. He had visited Pakistan several times. In fact he visited Pakistan six times. His mother and other relatives stay in Pakistan, Yadav said while also adding that he had contacts across the border.

The officer said that when Shoaib was about to be arrested, he tried destroying evidence. He said that he had on him a phablet and secret documents. However he was not successful in damaging the evidence, the officer also said while adding that his police custody for interrogation is being sought.
UP elections 2014 & 2017: Looking at vote-shares of BJP and its opponents

Speculation rife after SP's Shivpal meets Congress poll strategist

India

oi-Vicky

New Delhi, Oct 28: The meeting between Samajwadi Party leader, Shivpal Yadav and Congress poll strategist, Prashant Kishor at the residence of a Janata Dal (U) leader has created a lot of speculation.

There is already a lot of speculation about the formation of a Grand Alliance ahead of the Uttar Pradesh elections.

The meeting between Shivpal and Kishor took place at the residence of JD(U) leader, K C Tyagi on Wednesday. Following the meeting, there has been speculation rife about the possibility of talks with the Congress for the formation of a grand alliance.

Are these parties part of Samajwadi Party's Grand Alliance?

The rumours of a grand alliance were however rubbished by all. Tyagi in fact told CNN-News 18 that the meeting was just co-incidental. He also said Shivpal visited his home at a time when Kishore was present. He had only come with an invitation for the Silver Jubilee celebrations of the SP, Tyagi also said.

Shivpal who indicated a few days back about the formation of a grand alliance. On whether the Congress would be part of the grand alliance, he said that the call would be taken by Netaji (Mulayam Singh Yadav).

Oneindia News
Ten Groups of Secretaries to analyse various governance issues

India

oi-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, Oct 28 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday formed 10 new Groups of Secretaries to study various governance issues, and asked them to submit their reports on by the end of November, an official statement said.

As compared to the earlier groups, which worked on specific themes, the focus of the groups this time will be on sectors, such as agriculture, energy, transport etc, it said.

The Prime Minister met all the secretaries to the Union government. Cabinet Ministers and Ministers of State with independent charges were also present at the meeting.

"The Prime Minister urged the Secretaries to undertake a critical review of the work done by the Union government in the respective sectors that they will be studying. He also asked them to engage young officers to research related issues," the statement aid.

Speaking of demographic dividend, the Prime Minister said all groups must prioritize harnessing the strengths of the 800 million youth of India as part of their recommendations.

He said that the team of Secretaries has the "collective wisdom and experience to create policies to fulfil the hopes and aspirations of India's people" and exhorted them to put their best foot forward to the task ahead.

The Cabinet Secretary made a brief presentation on the work done so far, as a follow up to the reports presented by the eight Groups of Secretaries to the Prime Minister in January this year.

IANS
The Maulana who sold India's secrets for Rs 50,000 a month

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

Maulana Ramzan Khan was a teacher at a mosque in Nagaur, Rajasthan. He would teach 40 children at the mosque and was being paid Rs 2,000. He was paid an additional Rs 3,000 for looking after the Mosque. He lived close to the border and was very familiar with the topography.

Mehmood Akthar, the staffer in the Pakistan mission at New Delhi kept a close watch on him. He scanned his activities and while doing so found that Khan was visited by several retired officials of the army.

A year ago, Akthar paid Khan a visit and made him an offer. "Rs 50,000 will be paid to you if you get me information on Defence," Akthar said. Khan bit the bait.

On Thursday, the Delhi police detained Akthar on spying charges. As he enjoyed diplomatic immunity, he was released and later asked to leave India for Pakistan, along with his family.

Selling India's secrets for Rs 50,000:

Ramzan Khan was the perfect catch for Akthar. Khan had a clean image in public and he would not have been suspected by anyone at all. The investigators, however, did not spell out clearly how he managed to get hold of heaps of Defence documents. The role of an insider in the defence system is something that is not being ruled out.

After Khan bit the bait, he needed a partner. The target was a failing businessman called Subhash Jahangir. He was struggling to make ends meet. Khan called on Jahangir and spoke to him about this operation. He assured Jahangir that he could clear off his debts very easily, only if he gathered information about Defence and passed it on. Jahangir too fell prey for this offer.

With the first rung of the spying network now busted, the police are now trying to ascertain the role of insiders. Scanning of bank accounts will be the key for investigations now. Whether money was passed on to some insiders in the BSF or not is what the next round of probe will focus on.

OneIndia News
Devout Hindu Rishi Sunak shares Diwali wishes from NO 10: Says our children will light Diyas

When is Dev Diwali 2022? November 7th or November 8th? Know timings, significance and more

Widows break taboo by celebrating Diwali inside temple

India

oi-IANS

By Ians English

Vrindavan, Oct 28 Breaking an age-old taboo, about 700 widows celebrated Diwali for the first time in the ancient Gopinath Temple here on Thursday.

The initiative to let widows of Vrindavan light up their lives was spearheaded by Sulabh Movement leader and social activist Bindeshwar Pathak, who was also present for the celebrations. Widows from six of Vrindavan's ashram took part in the celebration.

Widows from Varanasi joined widows living in the Hindu holy city of Vrindavan to enter into the Gopinath temple with an aim to break cultural taboos, which restricts them from taking part in any festivals, among others, after the death of their husbands.

This was the fourth time that widows took part in any festival through the Pathak-led movement.

Earlier, Diwali was celebrated by the widows of Vrindavan but not inside any temple. They were also able to celebrate Holi from last year as a result of the initiative.

The celebration inside the temple started with Pathak lighting up the candles and 'diyas' placed circularly. He was then joined by the widows who lit 'fuljhari' and 'anaar', before they showered Pathak with flowers.

"With an aim to bring a ray of happiness at their twilight years, we have come up with this unique idea to organise the festival of lights, especially for the widows," he said.

Sulabh International looks after half a dozen widow ashrams in Vrindavan, including Pagal Baba, Ketan Vihar, and Maa Dhaam ashram, among others.

"We have been celebrating Diwali, Holi, and Durga Puja since 2012. Pathak ji has done a lot for us. He gave us ambulance, TV, fridge, medicines," 85-year-old Mona Ghosh whose been living in Pagal Baba Ashram for last 30 years told IANS.

IANS
US strikes in Syria kill top 'IS' leaders

Canadian gets 20 years in US jail for aiding Islamic State

Basit Kalam Siddiqui arrested from Varanasi in Islamic State Voice of Hind case

Citizen journalists covering Islamic State win courage prize

International

oi-PTI

New York, Oct 27 A citizen journalist group that reports secretly from the Islamic State stronghold of Raqqa is being honored with a USD 50,000 prize for courage.

The New York-based Train Foundation announced today that this year's Civil Courage Prize will go to the group Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently.

The group was formed in 2014 after Islamic State militants took over the Syrian city of Raqqa and declared it to be their capital.

The citizen journalists work anonymously to publicise lashings, beheadings and other abuses by the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS or ISIL.

Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently says its members have been abducted, tortured and killed in retaliation for their work.

The Civil Courage Prize was founded in 2000 and recognizes "resistance to evil at great personal risk."

AP
Dalai Lama's Arunachal visit will damage ties with India: China

International

oi-PTI

Beijing, Oct 28: China today objected to Dalai Lama's scheduled visit to Arunachal Pradesh, saying the invitation to the Tibetan spiritual leader "will only damage peace and stability of the border areas" as well as its ties with India.

The invitation to the "Dalai Lama for activity in the disputed areas between China and India will only damage peace stability of the border areas as well as the bilateral relationship between China and India", Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang.

His comments were in response to Dalai Lama's scheduled visit to Arunachal Pradesh early next year at the invitation of the state's Chief Minister Pema Khandu.

The visit is understood to have been cleared by the Centre. China claims Arunachal Pradesh to be a part of southern Tibet and routinely protests visits by Indian leaders, foreign officials as well as the Dalai Lama to the area.

Curtail use of fossil fuel to fight global warming: Dalai Lama

Last week, Beijing reacted strongly to American envoy Richard Verma's October 22 tour to Tawang, saying the Ambassador visited a "disputed region". The Dalai Lama is likely to visit Tawang, the seat of a Buddhist monastery.

PTI
UN chief condemns attack on Aleppo school

International

oi-PTI

United Nations, Oct 29: United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday condemned an attack on a school in government-held west Aleppo that killed a number of Syrian children.

"Such attacks, if deliberate, may amount to war crimes," Ban said in a statement. Syrian state media reported that rebel rocket fire had hit a school in west Aleppo.

The city has been divided since mid-2012, when rebels seized its eastern half.

"Three children were killed and 14 students were injured in a terrorist rocket attack on the national school in the Shahba neighbourhood of Aleppo," state news agency SANA reported from Damascus.

The UN chief renewed his call to the Security Council to ask the International Criminal Court to investigate allegations of war crimes in Syria. "Those responsible for these acts must be brought to justice," he said.

Regime forces backed by ally Russia have waged an aerial and ground assault since late September to recapture eastern Aleppo, killing hundreds of civilians and destroying infrastructure including hospitals.

On Wednesday, the UN children's agency UNICEF said 22 children had been killed along with six teachers in air strikes on a school in rebel-held Idlib province.

Ban said he was appalled by that attack and demanded an immediate investigation after warning that the assault on the school could amount to a war crime.

The UN chief has repeatedly urged the Security Council to formally request that the ICC begin war crimes investigations in Syria. Such a request was blocked in 2014 by Russia and China, which have veto powers.

The 15-member council has the authority to refer a country to the Hague-based ICC for war crimes investigations as it has done for Libya and Sudan's troubled Darfur region.

More than 300,000 people have been killed in Syria and over half of the country's population displaced since the conflict began in March 2011 with anti-government protests.

PTI
Blacklisting Mahmood blocked by China: The man who raised funds under garb of religion in India

UN votes to launch talks on nuclear weapons ban

International

oi-PTI

United Nations, Oct 28: A UN General Assembly committee has voted to launch negotiations on a new treaty banning nuclear weapons, despite fierce opposition from the world's nuclear powers.

A resolution presented by Austria, Ireland, Mexico, Nigeria, South Africa and Brazil was yesterday adopted by a vote of 123 to 38, with 16 abstentions, following weeks of lobbying by the nuclear powers for 'no' votes.

The non-binding resolution provides for negotiations to begin in March next year on the new treaty, citing deep concern over the "catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons.

Four of the five UN Security Council nuclear powers -- Britain, France, Russia and the United States -- voted against the resolution while China abstained, as did India and Pakistan. Japan, which has long campaigned against the use of nuclear weapons, voted against it, as did South Korea, which is facing a nuclear threat from North Korea. Opponents argued that nuclear disarmament should be addressed within negotiations on the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

Beatrice Fihn, executive director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, described the vote as a "historic moment" in the decades-long drive for a nuclear-free world.

"This treaty won't eliminate nuclear weapons overnight. But it will establish a powerful, new international legal standard, stigmatising nuclear weapons and compelling nations to take urgent action on disarmament."

The measure is expected to go to the full General Assembly for a vote in late November or early December.

AFP
US-based Kerala Centre to honour five Indian Americans

International

oi-PTI

Washington, Oct 28: The Indian American Kerala Cultural and Civic Centre will honour five Indian-American Malayalees for their outstanding achievements and service to the society.

"Kerala Centre has been honouring outstanding achievers since 1991 and every year we invite nominations and the committee has to make a unanimous choice for a candidate in a category to be selected to receive the award and this year is no different from previous years in terms of their achievements," said Kerala Centre board member and trustee Thomas Abraham.

The honorees will be honoured at the Kerala Centre's 23rd Annual Awards Banquet on November 5 in New York. The honorees include Department of Commerce Assistant Secretary for Global Markets and Director General of the US and Foreign Commercial Service Arun M Kumar, who leads the trade and investment promotion efforts of the US Government and Ram Menon, a Partner at KPMG for corporate leadership.

Other honorees include Jay Radhakrishnan, professor of Medicine at Columbia University and Clinical Chief of the Nephrology Division at the New York Presbyterian Hospital in Medicine, T V Rajan Babu, Professor and Kimberly Chair in Chemistry at Ohio State University in Applied Sciences and Manohar Thomas, a Malayalam writer and community activist who has been very active for over 30 years in promoting Malayalam language and literature of Kerala in US for Promoting Literary Work and Community Service.

Kerala Centre president Thambi Thalappillil said the Centre had recognised 131 achievers in the last 23 years who have continued to become bigger achievers and contributors to the society.

PTI
A drunk woman in Delhi created ruckus inside the police station in Civil lines area. Despite a heavy police presence she refused to give up her antics. At the end she was taken to a police station where another drama unfolds.
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New Wells Fargo chief to employees: 'We're sorry' Updated: 2016-10-28 09:28 (China Daily)

Newly-appointed Wells Fargo CEO Tim Sloan told employees Tuesday that he is "sorry for the pain" that the bank's employees have suffered as a result of the company's sales practices scandal.

Sloan's company-wide speech, given Tuesday in Charlotte, North Carolina, is the latest effort by Wells Far-go's executives to atone for the fact that the bank's employees, pushed to the limit by impossible sales goals, opened as many as 2 million bank and credit card accounts without customers' authorization.

In the speech, Sloan acknowledged that the bank did not respond to the problems in its branches soon enough and that upper management dodged responsibility for the bad behavior and wrongly placed blame on branch employees.

Wells fired roughly 5,300 employees as a result of the scandal, the vast majority of them lower-level workers.

"Many felt we blamed our team members. That one still hurts, and I am committed to rectifying it," Sloan said.

Wells Fargo is enveloped in the biggest scandal in its 164-year history, which earlier this month forced the abrupt retirement of its CEO, John Stumpf.

The bank faces several class-action lawsuits, as well as criminal investigations by the Department of Justice and the California Attorney General's Office. Even in this bitterly divided election season, members of Congress have found bipartisan unity in their disdain for Wells Far-go and its sales practices.

There are also signs that customers are leaving the bank, or at least paring back their business with Wells.

In its quarterly earnings report released this month, Wells reported double-digit percentage drops in bank account openings, as well as declines in bank branch traffic.

While Wells Fargo has been apologetic to the media, its customers and livid politicians, the bank had done little to make amends with its roughly 260,000 employees. While the sales scandal made headlines, the outrage grew after Stumpf did media interviews in which he appeared tone-deaf and seemed to blame employees, who often earn less than $15 an hour, for what happened.

It took Stumpf being summoned before Congress to publicly apologize for the bank's behavior.

Then came reports from Wells Fargo employees that they were retaliated against for trying to raise awareness of the sales practices through the bank's internal ethics hotline.

Employees also told of developing stress-related health problems. In the speech, Sloan called the reports of retaliation "disturbing."

Along with his early departure, Stumpf was forced to give up $41 million in stock awards as punishment for the bank's behavior.

He is still, however, walking away with tens of millions of dollars in salary he earned as CEO.

Acknowledging that Wells' troubles are far from over, Sloan warned employees more difficult days could be ahead.

"You also should expect more tough headlines, as additional accountability actions occur, and other investigations and reviews are completed. Some of that is going to be very painful for us," Sloan said.

The speech comes as Wells Fargo launched a new television advertising campaign this week to address the scandal. The ads, which began Monday, are being rolled out nationally on major network evening newscasts as well as the Sunday talk shows.

Wells is also buying ads on the major Spanish language networks Telemundo and Univision, said Wells Fargo spokesman Mark Folk.

"My primary objective is to restore trust in Wells Fargo restore pride in our company and mission. That may seem like a longways off today, but I promise you we will," Sloan said.

Associated Press
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Tom Horn Gaming Granted Class 4 Malta License

Published October 28, 2016 by Ivan P

Class 4 B2B license from the Malta Gaming Authority will enable Tom Horn to significantly expand their presence in the European market.

One of the leading providers of the casino software solutions, Tom Horn Gaming has been granted a Class 4 Malta Remote Gaming License. This will allow the company to offer their extensive portfolio of games to casinos regulated by the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA).

Gateway to Europe

In the press release following the license approval, the CEO of Tom Horn Ondrej Lapides described Malta as a "gateway to Europe." This island state has become one of the biggest gambling hubs in Europe and the country's efforts in the field of remote gaming legislation are second to none.

Gambling licenses issued by Malta are highly respected in Europe and around the globe. This is crucial for Tom Horn, as the company has set its sight on expansion and the license will allow them to offer their games in a number of brand new markets.

What's Next for Tom Horn?

The timing of the license couldn't have been better, as the company is getting ready to participate in the SiGMA expo - arguably the largest iGaming show in existence. As Lapides pointed out, the Class 4 Malta license in an important milestone for the company as it allows them to continue growing without any obstacles. Earlier this year, Tom Horn managed to enter the Lithuanian market and now they have their eyes set on the bigger picture.

Gaming operators seated in Malta will now have access to many popular Tom Horn's games, like Dragon Egg, Shaolin Tiger, and Geisha's Fan. The CEO and the rest of the team behind the company understand fully well that this license will open doors to many new opportunities.

Issuing the Class 4 B2B license, the Malta Gaming Authority has sent out a clear message that they regard Tom Horn as a renowned casino games supplier, capable of providing high quality games that meet all preset standards.
Congress Switchboard: 202-224-3121

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" We like nonfiction, and we live in fictitious times. We live in the time where we have fictitious election results that elects a fictitious President.

We live in a time where we have a man sending us to war for fictitious reasons. Whether it's the fiction of duct tape or the fictitious orange alerts, we are against this war, Mr. Bush."

--Michael Moore Oscar acceptance speech, moments before his mic was cut off.

This year may mark a turning point, where the moral bankruptcy was laid bare for all. I'm speaking of the Bernie Sanders flip-flop for Hillary Clinton, the predictable bait-and-switch, which Democrats never seem to imagine in real time. The rest of us have seen it so often that the ruse has become routine Standard Operating Procedure.

A particularly notable case is Sarah Silverman, the filthy-mouthed comedienne, who originally championed Bernie. But she quickly fell into lockstep for Hillary. Silverman had a soul empty enough to go and scold the United States to support a candidate whom she had just been fighting against , and who actually stole the nomination from her own candidate through back-room deals at the DNC and through apparent voting-machine hacking . The thief was rewarded instead of jailed for some reason, which Hollywood has had absolutely zero interest in, as if it didn't happen. They moved on instantly to lambast us all about Donald Trump 24/7. Orwell couldn't have written it better.

Hollywood has a highly complex understanding of political philosophy and particularly of this presidential race:

1. Trump Bad

2. Hillary Woman

3. So-called "Lesser Evil"

We should acknowledge, those who are literate, that Hillary Clinton's repeated threats to escalate World War 3 over Syria leave her as potentially the greater evil, not the lesser at all. The jury is very much out.

" Goldwater Girl" Hillary Rodham Clinton has a lengthy record of supporting every US aggressive war and opposing none. She may have played a part in the killings of over 2 million human beings so far, merely tallying those casualties from the three countries of Iraq, Syria and Libya. One may opt to also add another half-million Iraqi children who died as a result of her husband's eight years of sanctions.

I noticed Hollywood's widespread mindless support for Democrats back in 2000, when I kicked that shockingly corrupt party to the curb and joyfully cast a vote for Ralph Nader, an actual American hero whose efforts have saved lives. Die-hard whiners of the Democratic rank-and-file still falsely claim that big bad Ralph gave the election to Dubya Bush, when anyone with the ability to read can see that it was the Supreme Court which stopped the legitimate counting of Florida ballots. Add Bush's brother Jeb purging nearly two-hundred thousand minority voters from rolls. But the mindless strategy of attacking third parties and attempting to delegitimize democracy itself persists among the ignorant (a majority of Democrats perhaps). This is by design; this is who they are. They do not believe in democracy, because the billionaires who fund them do not believe in any democracy they cannot control.

George W. Bush's theft of the presidency did help expose the moral bankruptcy of Democrats as well as Republicans. When Bush lied about Iraq, Hillary Clinton was right there with him embellishing and freestyling! She claimed Iraq's non-existent "weapons of mass destruction" to be "undisputed." Her lies helped sell the war to Congress, a war of aggression: what the Nazis did and were hung for at Nuremberg. Her role in aggressive war and in destroying International Law as a restraint against belligerence are profound crimes, grievous war crimes: "the supreme international crime" in the words of U.S. Judge Robert Jackson.

When a handful of Democrats attempted to impeach the Bush junta for crimes relating to those wars, as well as to torture and cover-up, it was Democrat Nancy Pelosi who announced "Impeachment is off the table." Criminal collusion, allowing the crimes to stand without recourse, that is what they did. The US federal government has served as a protection racket for international war crimes. The damage that Democrats inflicted upon the rule of law is equal to that of the Republicans. The former had a moral and legal responsibility to defend the Constitution, their oaths of office, but voluntarily opted not to.

The Internet helped flood the world with information to pass around, both good and bad, but the crimes of both parties became difficult for them to wash away now that Google made all web searchers equal.

Today, things have accelerated into realms of the absurd. CNN recently cut off a congressman in mid-sentence for uttering the word "Wikileaks." This Soviet-style clampdown on dissent remains a shocker even in a society that's pretty much seen it all.

The media, distrusted by most , is only one aspect of the problem though. Americans get their views from joking heads as much as from stodgy teleprompter readers. Talk shows and comedy skits propagandize viewers every bit as much as do the Washington Post or New York Times . Celebrity endorsements matter.

A casual glance at those programs would reveal that democracy is non-existent in Hollywood today. All voices are not represented. Minority candidates cannot get air time, will not be interviewed, and will only be mocked in absentia as per John Oliver's recent disgraceful hit piece on Green Party candidate Jill Stein , a cowardly move John. Shameful.

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Michael Moore has made some terrific movies in the past, and Where to Invade Next may be the best of them, but I expected Trumpland to be (1) about Trump, (2) funny, (3) honest, (4) at least relatively free of jokes glorifying mass murder. I was wrong on all counts and would like my $4.99 back, Michael.

Moore's new movie is a film of him doing a stand-up comedy show about how wonderfully awesome Hillary Clinton is -- except that he mentions Trump a bit at the beginning and he's dead serious about Clinton being wonderfully awesome.

This film is a text book illustration of why rational arguments for lesser evilist voting do not work. Lesser evilists become self-delusionists. They identify with their lesser evil candidate and delude themselves into adoring the person. Moore is not pushing the "Elect her and then hold her accountable" stuff. He says we have a responsibility to "support her" and "get behind her," and that if after two years -- yes, TWO YEARS -- she hasn't lived up to a platform he's fantasized for her, well then, never fear, because he, Michael Moore, will run a joke presidential campaign against her for the next two years (this from a guy who backed restricting the length of election campaigns in one of his better works).

Moore maintains that virtually all criticism of Hillary Clinton is nonsense. What do we think, he asks, that she asks how many millions of dollars you've put into the Clinton Foundation and then she agrees to bomb Yemen for you? Bwahahaha! Pretty funny. Except that Saudi Arabia put over $10 million into the Clinton Foundation, and while she was Secretary of State Boeing put in another $900,000, upon which Hillary Clinton reportedly made it her mission to get the planes sold to Saudi Arabia, despite legal restrictions -- the planes now dropping U.S.-made bombs on Yemen with U.S. guidance, U.S. refueling mid-air, U.S. protection at the United Nations, and U.S. cover in the form of pop-culture distraction and deception from entertainers like Michael Moore.

Standing before a giant Air Force missile and enormous photos of Hillary Clinton, Michael Moore claims that substantive criticism of Clinton can consist of only two things, which he dismisses in a flash: her vote for a war on Iraq and her coziness with Wall Street. He says nothing more about what that "coziness" consists of, and he claims that she's more or less apologized and learned her lesson on Iraq.

What? It wasn't one vote. It was numerous votes to start the war, fund it, and escalate it. It was the lies to get it going and keep it going. It's all the other wars before and since.

She says President Obama was wrong not to launch missile strikes on Syria in 2013.

She pushed hard for the overthrow of Qadaffi in 2011.

She supported the coup government in Honduras in 2009.

She has backed escalation and prolongation of war in Afghanistan.

She skillfully promoted the White House justification for the war on Iraq.

She does not hesitate to back the use of drones for targeted killing.

She has consistently backed the military initiatives of Israel.

She was not ashamed to laugh at the killing of Qadaffi.

She has not hesitated to warn that she could obliterate Iran.

She is eager to antagonize Russia.

She helped facilitate a military coup in Ukraine.

She has the financial support of the arms makers and many of their foreign customers.

She waived restrictions at the State Department on selling weapons to Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Qatar, all states wise enough to donate to the Clinton Foundation.

She supported President Bill Clinton's wars and the power of the president to make war without Congress.

She has advocated for arming fighters in Syria and for a "No Fly" zone.

She supported a surge in Iraq even before President Bush did.

That's just her war problem. What about her banking problem, prison problem, fracking problem, corporate trade problem, corporate healthcare problem, climate change problem, labor problem, Social Security problem, etc.?

Moore parts company from substantive critique in order to lament unproven rightwing claims that Hillary Clinton has murdered various people. "I hope she did," screams Moore. "That's who I want as Commander in Chief!" Hee hee hee.

Then Moore shamelessly pushes the myth that Hillary tried to create single-payer, or at least "universal" healthcare (whatever that is) in the 1990s. In fact, as I heard Paul Wellstone tell it, single-payer easily won the support of Clinton's focus group, but she buried it for her corporate pals and produced the phonebook-size monstrosity that was dead on arrival but reborn in another form years later as Obamacare. She killed single-payer then, has not supported it since, and does not propose it now. (Well, she does admit in private that it's the only thing that works, as her husband essentially blurts out in public.) But Moore claims that because we didn't create "universal" healthcare in the 1990s we all have the blood of millions on our hands, millions whom Hillary would have saved had we let her.

Moore openly fantasizes: what would it be like if Hillary Clinton is secretly progressive? Remember that Moore and many others did the exact same thing with Obama eight years ago. To prove Clinton's progressiveness Moore plays an audio clip of her giving a speech at age 22 in which she does not hint at any position on any issue whatsoever.

Mostly, however, Moore informs us that Hillary Clinton is female. He anticipates "that glorious moment when the other gender has a chance to run this world and kick some righteous ass." Now tell me please, dear world, if your ass is kicked by killers working for a female president will you feel better about it? How do you like Moore's inclusive comments throughout his performance: "We're all Americans, right?"

Moore's fantasy is that Clinton will dash off a giant pile of executive orders, just writing Congress out of the government -- executive orders doing things like releasing all nonviolent drug offenders from prison immediately (something the real Hillary Clinton would oppose in every way she could).

But when he runs for president, Moore says, he'll give everybody free drugs.

I'll tell you the Clinton ad I'd like to see. She's standing over a stove holding an egg. "This is your brain," she says solemnly, cracking it into the pan with a sizzle. "This is your brain on partisanship."
A vivid example of benefits from decriminalization of possessing small amounts of marijuana occurred at the Philadelphia airport recently, a few days after the release of a report from two prominent organizations that called for the national decriminalization of personal use/possession of marijuana and other illicit drugs.

This example, interestingly, occurred on the day of the second anniversary of Philadelphia's implementation of decriminalization, the enforcement practice that replaces possession arrests with issuance of traffic-ticket like citations. That enforcement change has saved the City of Philadelphia at least $9-million in costs related to arrests and adjudications for marijuana possession, analysts calculate.

However, a few days after that decriminalization anniversary in Philadelphia, a news media report detailed the ordeal experienced by a Philadelphia resident arrested in a suburban county adjacent to Philadelphia for a small amount of marijuana. That chance arrest ultimately led to weeks of needless incarceration in New Jersey, the state where Republican Chris Christie, an avowed opponent of decriminalization, serves as governor.



Philly pot arrests drop after decriminalization.

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The Philadelphia airport discovery of a small amount of marijuana in the luggage of three-time Philadelphia GOP mayoral candidate Sam Katz resulted in embarrassment for Katz but not his arrest and subsequent court proceedings.

At the airport, Philadelphia police issued a $25 citation to Katz. Receipt of that citation allowed Katz, a nationally respected municipal finance expert turned award winning documentary filmmaker, to continue to Florida for a planned fishing trip instead of a trip to jail.

The 2015 discovery of a similar small amount of marijuana at the then suburban Philadelphia home of Ivan Haynes produced a chain of events dramatically different from what happened to Katz.

Police in the suburban Philadelphia community of Bensalem, Bucks County found a few grams of marijuana when serving a warrant on Haynes for a minor offense. Haynes missed court dates for that marijuana possession arrest because Bucks County authorities sent court date notices to the wrong address. Bucks County authorities issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Haynes when he did not appear in court despite his lack of awareness of those court proceedings.

In July 2016, when Haynes was in an automobile that had a minor accident on the New Jersey turnpike, State Police detained him on that bench warrant. That detention led to Haynes' imprisonment in NJ for 41-days before his extradition to Bucks County.

Upon return to Pennsylvania Haynes was quickly released by Bucks County authorities and subsequently sentenced to time served (in NJ) for that 2015 marijuana possession arrest. That NJ incarceration robbed the self-employed Haynes of jobs and cost him good-will of some clients.

In 2015, Bucks County registered the third highest number of marijuana possession arrests in Pennsylvania at 1,010.

Bucks County, Pa -- like the entire state of New Jersey -- has not decriminalized possession of small amounts of marijuana. Over half of the nearly 25,000 marijuana possession arrests in New Jersey during 2014 were for amounts of 50-grams or less. Marijuana prohibition has cost NJ taxpayers between $150-200-million since 2010 when Christie took office, experts estimate.

Before Philadelphia became the largest city in America to implement decriminalization of simple possession of marijuana on October 20, 2014 thousands endured arrest annually. Those arrests produced the stain of a criminal record and often incarceration.

During the years 2012-2013 before decriminalization in Philadelpia police arrested 8,580 adults and juveniles. Philadelphia possession arrest figures for 2015 and part of 2016 after implementation of decriminalization, around 1,500 Philadelphians experienced arrest for marijuana possession -- a marked decrease.

"Decriminalization has been a resounding success for the municipal government and for cannabis consumers in Philadelphia," PhillyNORML official Chris Goldstein said. Goldstein, an expert on cannabis policy, writes a weekly column on cannabis issue for philly.com, the news website for Philadelphia's two daily newspapers.

Days before the decriminalization of marijuana possession anniversary in Philadelphia a report issued jointly by Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union called on federal and state authorities to decriminalize personal use and possession of drugs due to the documented failures of the War on Drugs. The two organizations recommended a shift from shift enforcement to prevention and harm reductions.

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A new poll from an unlikely source suggests that the U.S. public and the U.S. media have very little in common when it comes to matters of war and peace.

This poll was commissioned by that notorious leftwing hotbed of peaceniks, the Charles Koch Institute, along with the Center for the National Interest (previously the Nixon Center, and before that the humorously named Nixon Center for Peace and Freedom). The poll was conducted by Survey Sampling International.

They polled 1,000 registered voters from across the U.S. and across the political spectrum but slanted slightly toward older age groups. They asked:

"Over the last 15 years, do you think U.S. foreign policy has made Americans more or less safe?"

What, dear reader, do you say?

If you say less safe, you not only agree with dozens of top U.S. officials the week after they retire, but you agree with 52.5% of the people polled. Those who said "more safe" add up to 14%, while 25.2% said "about the same" and 8.3% just didn't know.

Well, at least all these humanitarian wars to spread democracy and eliminate weapons and destroy terror have benefited the rest of the world, right?

Not according to the statistics that show terrorism on the rise during the war on terrorism, and not according to 50.5% of poll respondents who said U.S. foreign policy has made the world less safe. Meanwhile 12.6% said "more safe" while 24.1% said it was about the same and 12.8% didn't know.

Asked about four wars in particular, registered U.S. voters said each of them had made the U.S. less secure, by a margin of 49.6% to 20.9% on Iraq, 42.2% to 18.9% on Libya, 42.2% to 24.3% on Afghanistan, and 40.8% to 32.1% on bombing ISIS in Syria.

These answers should not immediately be taken to prove that the U.S. public is universally wise and well informed, and (not coincidentally) at odds with U.S. media. Not only is that margin pretty slim on ISIS, but 43.3% of those polled said ISIS was the greatest threat the United States faces. Meanwhile 14.1% named Russia, 8.5% North Korea, 8.1% the national debt, 7.9% domestic terrorists, and bringing up the rear with the correct answer of global warming as the greatest threat were a grand total of 4.6% of those polled.

A survey of U.S. news reports would certainly suggest a point of agreement here between the public and the media. But here is where it gets interesting. Although the public believes the hype about danger emanating from these foreign forces, it does not favor the solution it is endlessly offered by the media and the U.S. government. When asked if, compared to last 15 years, the next president should use the U.S. military abroad less, 51.1% agreed, while 24.2% said it should be used more. And 80.0% said that any president should be required to get congressional authorization before committing the U.S. to military action, while 10.2% rejected that radical idea that's been in the U.S. Constitution since day 1.

The U.S. public may look quite depressingly ignorant in a quick survey of Youtube videos, but check this out: Asked if the U.S. government should deploy U.S. troops on the ground in Syria 51.1% said no, compared to 23.5% who said yes. Only 10% said yes on Yemen, while 22.8% said no -- however, 40.7% said the U.S. government should keep "supporting" Saudi Arabia in that war.

Good majorities also oppose Japan acquiring nuclear weapons, Germany acquiring nuclear weapons, or the U.S. defending Taiwan against a Chinese attack. (Who invents these scenarios?)

This moderately encouraging survey of public sentiment stands in stark contrast to U.S. media coverage of wars in general and Syria in particular. The New York Times' Nicholas Kristof is ready for a bigger war as are columnists in the Washington Post and USA Today, as well as, of course Chuck Todd and other televised talking head. Meanwhile Hillary Clinton's comment to Goldman Sachs that a "no fly zone" would require "killing a lot of Syrians" has received dramatically less press than her brave calls for creating a humanitarian no fly zone, and the steady depiction of that proposal as "doing something" -- in contrast to the only other option: "doing nothing."

The public, however, rejects the only "something" that's on offer and just might leap at the opportunity to try something else, if anyone ever proposed anything else.
TPG Capital said to exit race for $2b McDonald's China rights Updated: 2016-10-28 09:29 (China Daily)

Children have a birthday party at McDonald's restaurant in Beijing. The US fast-food chain is seeking to sell 20-year mass franchise rights for the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong. [Photo/China Daily]

TPG Capital has exited the race for the McDonald's Corp China operations, leaving two other foreign buyout firms to compete with local bidders in a sale that could fetch as much as $2 billion, sources with knowledge of the process said.

Bain Capital has partnered with Chinese hotelier Green-Tree Hospitality for its offer, while Carlyle Group teamed with Beijing-based conglomerate CITIC Group Corp, the sources said. TPG's erstwhile partner, grocery operator Wumart Stores Inc, is said to be bidding on its own.

They are competing with dairy producer Beijing San-yuan Foods Co, which has also been negotiating terms of a potential deal with McDonald's, according to sources. McDonald's, which is selling 20-year mass franchise rights for the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, plans to pick a winner by mid-November, they added.

The world's biggest restaurant chain is seeking to streamline its sprawling global operations and return to growth by revamping the ownership structure in markets such as China, South Korea and Southeast Asia. Chief Executive Officer Steve Easterbrook, who took the reins last year, is pursuing a turnaround plan to revive the company amid a sales slow-down in the United States.

"The group of potential suitors is so diverse, because Chinese companies are aggressively trying to diversify their holdings," Ben Cavender, an analyst at China Market Research Group, said on Thursday. "There is a dearth of good deals available inside the Chinese mainland."

Shares of McDonald's fell 0.5 percent to $112.11 at the close on Wednesday in New York, extending this year's decline to 5.1 percent.

Bloomberg
From Our Future



Warmongers

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The following was originally published in The Nation

The "Blob" -- the epithet Obama speechwriter Ben Rhodes used to scorn Washington's inbred, vainglorious, bipartisan foreign-policy elite -- is striking back. In a series of foreign policy reports designed to influence the incoming administration, Greg Jaffe of The Washington Post reveals, the Blob will publicly criticize Obama's "reluctance" to exercise America's military prowess and call for a more "muscular," "interventionist," assertive policy, from the South China Sea to the Russian border, but particularly in the Middle East. They are pumping for more war.

The names are familiar -- former secretary of state Madeline Albright and former Bush national security adviser Stephen Hadley lead the Atlantic Council task force. Former Bill Clinton NSC adviser Brian Katulis and former Bush deputy secretary of defense Rudy deLeon are senior fellows at the Center for American Progress. The inescapable Martin Indyk heads a Brookings group of former top officials from Obama, Bush, and Clinton administrations.

These are the apostles of American exceptionalism, from the neoconservatives who promoted the invasion of Iraq to the "indispensable nation" liberal interventionists who championed regime change in Libya. Virtually without exception, all supported Bush's invasion of Iraq, the most catastrophic foreign policy debacle since Vietnam. Virtually without exception, none were held accountable for that folly.

The reports -- and the Blob -- share two conclusions. They censure Obama for excessive timidity. "There's a widespread perception that not being active enough or recognizing the limits of American power has costs," the Post quotes Philip Gordon, a senior foreign-policy adviser to Obama until 2015. "So the normal swing is to be more interventionist."

And all favor ramping up US military activity -- on the Russian borders, in the South China Sea, and particularly in the Middle East, promoting no-fly and safe zones in Syria, more special forces, more aggressive use of air power, more military aid, and a more integrated security partnership. The objective is not only to defeat ISIS and Al Qaeda and its offshoots militarily, but to create order in war torn Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Libya, and Somalia, as well as to counter Iran and Russia in the region.

The Obama years demonstrate the dangers of "restraint"? Say what? The Obama administration is currently fighting wars in five countries and bombing seven. It toppled Gaddafi in Libya and left the country in chaos. Its regime change campaign in Syria ended in a brutal civil war. It backs the Saudi ravaging of Yemen. It helped spark a street coup in Ukraine, and moved military forces to the Russian border, reviving a new Cold War. It has bolstered US naval forces in the South China Sea as part of containing China. US Special Forces were active in more than 100 countries last year. Obama has signed off on more weapons sales and transfers than Bush. None of this has worked out very well, but neither did George W. Bush's "damn the torpedoes" policy. If Obama represents excessive restraint, may the gods save us from what comes next.

The Blob still believes that America has the writ and the power to decide. We are "indispensable," bearers of law and democracy at the end of a cruise missile. Our insurgents are by definition "moderates." Our clients -- Israel, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, from military dictatorship to desert sheikdom -- have, in the words of the CAP Report, "internal cohesion" and domestic "political legitimacy." Despite conflicting interests, they are allies against terror (even though some like Saudi Arabia provide significant funding for both the terrorists and the religious zealots that inspire them.)

For the Blob, caution comes not in objective but in strategy. Only the most unhinged call for putting "boots on the ground." This leads to a disconnect. They limit the military strategy -- to drones, air power, advisers, intelligence cooperation, military aid, training -- without trimming the objectives. It is hard to see this as anything other than a demented recipe for endless wars without victory.

In this age of bitter partisanship, characterized by unrelenting Republican obstructionism in Congress and now Trump's stoking America's rancors, much attention has been paid to the dangers of division. But the utter failure of the center and the bipartisan elite has been neglected. In the Middle East and elsewhere, the Blob has driven us into one folly after another. Yet they still fill the highest offices and the most lavishly appointed think tanks. And they are still calling for more.

America's civilizing movements -- civil rights, women's, LGBT, the DREAMers -- have transformed this country. An emerging populist movement -- Occupy Wall Street, Bernie Sanders, the Fight for 15, fair-trade and financial-reform campaigns and more -- is on the march. Now we desperately need new thinking and a revived peace movement to take on the Blob and its endless wars.
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Global Automotive Coatings Market is Considered as One of the Rapidly Growing Dynamic Market by 2021

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The global automotive coatings market is being driven by the increasing vehicle population, which in turn is resultant of the rising per capita income. The per capita passenger car ownership has been increasing globally and they are becoming one of the common modes of personal conveyance. Increasing industrialization, on the other hand, is boosting the commercial vehicles market. Vehicle manufacturers are now focusing more on improving the appearance of vehicles to maintain their competitive edge in the market. This, on the whole, has been benefitting the automotive coatings market.Request for Sample Report:Over 80% of the materials used in passenger cars are metallic. Most of these metals are coated to protect them from rust and degradation. The emergence of ultraviolet curing coating is presenting growth opportunities to the global automotive coatings market. Based on application, the automotive coatings market can be segmented into two broad categories: Original Equipment Manufacturing (OEM) and aftermarket or refinish. The major end-users of the automotive refinish market are collision repair centers and automotive body shops. Based on product segments, the global automotive coatings market can be divided into four categories: electro-coats, primer coats, basecoats, and clear-coats. Based on formulation, this market can be classified into four categories: water-based, solvent-based, powder-based, and UV-based coatings.Brazil, Russia, India, and China (BRIC countries) are expected to be the major countries contributing to the growth of the automotive industry. Improving economies, advancements in the road infrastructure, and increasing inclination of individuals towards personal conveyance are the key factors augmenting the growth of the automotive industry. According to the Organization Internationale des Constructeurs dAutomobiles (OICA), the global motor vehicle production increased from 77.6 million in 2010 to 87.3 million in 2013. The increasing raw material prices are emerging as a major challenge for the automotive coatings market as the profit margins of the coatings manufacturers are reducing. Leading producers of titanium dioxide (one of the common pigments used in the manufacturing of coatings), such as Kronos, Inc., Tronox Limited, and E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, announced a price increase of USD 300/tons, USD 400/tons, and USD 500/tons respectively in 2011 in Asia Pacific. Their American and European counterparts also announced the increase in prices from the same year.North America was the third-largest vehicle producer globally in 2013, after Asia Pacific and Europe, and it is in the process of bypassing Europe to become the second-largest vehicle producer in the world by 2020. The automotive coatings market in Europe has suffered due to the Euro zone crisis which impacted the automotive industry heavily. The market for eco-friendly coatings, such as waterborne and powder coating, are growing at a high rate owing to the growing government and public concern regarding the environmental hazards posed by solvent-borne coatings. Several environmental agencies and governmental institutions have formulated regulations and issued guidelines to minimize the use of high Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) automotive coatings. The Asia Pacific automotive coatings market is dominated by China and India due to the large fleet of vehicles in the countries.Request for Table of content:The key automotive coatings players include BASF, AkzoNobel, PPG Industries, Axalta Coating Systems, Bayer, Sherwin-Williams, Beckers, Royal DSM, and Eastman Chemical. Most of the key players in the automotive coatings industry are U.S.- and Germany-based.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Flexible Glass Market: Explores New Growth Opportunities By 2021

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Glass is an amorphous (non-crystalline) solid material which exhibits a glass transition. Glass can also take reversible transition in amorphous materials from a hard and relatively brittle material state to a molten or plastic state. Glasses are basically brittle in state and are optically transparent in nature. Most commonly known glass type is soda-lime glass (made up of 75% silicon dioxide (SiO2), sodium oxide (Na2O), lime (CaO) and various minor additives materials). Flexible glass is an ultra-thin glass having the properties of a rigid glass material. Properties such as strength, temperature stability and durability in a flexible nature are associated with flexible glasses. Additionally, flexible glass can also attain the property of plastics such as scratch resistance and rigidity. Flexible glass is majorly used to increase the strength and flexibility of the finished product, in turn increases the life of the products. Additionally, flexible glass also helps the electronic gadgets to reduce their weight, increases its attractiveness, making it handy and better or high quality products.Request for Sample Report:Owing to the unique flexibility property of the glass, the flexible glass market can by bifurcated according to the end-user markets such as display market, OLED (organic light-emitting diode) market and Other gadgets markets (which are rollable, flexible and wearable in nature). Display market is expected to dominate the demand of flexible glass in the forecasted period owing to development of next generation gadgets. Other applications of the flexible glass are in the manufacturing of displays of cellphones and tablets.North America has the largest market for flexible glass, followed by Europe and Asia Pacific. The U.S. and China are the largest consumers of flexible glass and are expected to dominate the market in coming years. North America is expected to maintain its dominance in the forecasted period; Europe is expected to shoe marginal growth. However, Asia Pacific region is expected to witness highest growth in the forecasted period owing to the increasing domestic demand of cellphones and tablets in the emerging markets of India and china.Increasing demand of consumer electronics paired with advancement in the display technology is expected to increase demand for products such as smartphones, laptops, tablets and TVs. This is expected to increase the demand for flexible glass materials, driving the overall flexible glass market. Additionally, increasing demand for slim and scratch-resistant displays in the electronics products is expected to drive the flexible glass market to some extent. Also, with increasing disposable income consumers are demanding better quality electronic products such as smartphones, smartwatches, cellphones and other products; this is further increasing the demand for flexible glass, especially in the developing markets such as India, China and Brazil. According to the National Bureau of Statistics China, annual per capita disposable income of urban households in China increased from USD 2,271.0 in 2008 to USD 3408.5 in 2012. The overall annual disposable income in India medium household income increased from USD 1,366.2 billion in 2010 to USD 1,587.6 billion in 2013.Request for Table of content:Some of the major companies operating in the global flexible glass market are Corning Inc., Nippon Electric Glass Co. Ltd., Asahi Glass Co. Ltd., Schott AG, Abrisa Technologies, Tokyo Electron, Dupont Display, Universal Display Corporation, Materion Corporation, Kent Displays, Inc., LG Display Co. Ltd., Sony Corporation and LiSEC Group.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Global Chlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride Market: Facts, Figures and Analytical Insights 2014 to 2020

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/11230

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/11230

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com

Global Chlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride (CPVC) Market: OverviewChlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride, commonly known as CPVC, is obtained by post production chlorination of poly vinyl chloride. Polyvinyl Chloride is chlorinated via free radical chlorination process wherein, the chlorine content varies from manufacturer to manufacturer. It is a thermoplastic polymer and has excellent corrosion resistance property. It also exhibits relatively good resistance to heat and can resist up to 90oC temperature. It exhibits relatively high resistance to acids and alkalis. Chlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride has excellent thermo-mechanicals performance and can be cut, machined, fabricated and welded. CPVC exhibits several properties that are identical to PVC. One of the major areas of application for CPVC is in manufacture of pipes & fittings.Request for Sample Report:Global Chlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride (CPVC) Market: Drivers and RestraintsCPVC resins are primarily used in manufacture of heat resistant pipes. As CPVC replaces copper based pipes. Thus, growing use of CPVC in several applications across diverse industries is expected to drive the growth of global Chlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride (CPVC) market during the forecast period. One of the major applications of CPVC is that it is used in fire sprinklers. Increasing safety regulations and increasing use of fire sprinklers across the globe are expected to drive the growth of global chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC) market during the forecast period. Also, CPVC pipes are relatively less expensive as compared to metal pipes. Thus, there is a shift towards the use of relatively cheaper yet effective and durable CPVC pipes & fittings. However, brittle nature of the pipes manufactured using CPVC and relatively higher cost of repairs associated with leak damages in case of CPVC pipes are expected to result in increasing demand for alternative materials.Request for Table of content:Global Chlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride (CPVC) Market: Regional OutlookThe global chlorinated polyvinyl chloride market is segmented into seven key regions such as North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asia-Pacific excluding Japan and Japan. Among the aforementioned regions North America accounts for major share in global chlorinated polyvinyl chloride market value. However developing countries in Asia-Pacific region are expected to drive the CPVC market growth during the forecast period. Increasing constructions and manufacturing units in these developing countries are expected to n turn result in increasing demand for chlorinated polyvinyl chloride products in these regions during the forecast period. Asia-Pacific market is followed by Europe and Latin America CPVC markets during the forecast period..About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Global Alpha Methyl Styrene Market is Expected to Witness a Steady Growth by 2026

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/11344

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/11344

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com

Alpha Methyl Styrene (CAS No:98-83-9) is an organic compound with a molecular formula C6H5C(CH3)CH2. It is also referred to as Isopropenyl benzene. This clear colourless organic compound is characterized by a sharp odour. The chemical is obtained by partial oxidation of cumene, it is a by-product of cumene-phenol process wherein phenol and acetone are synthesized from benzene. The global capacity for production of alpha methyl styrene is closely ties to the overall global phenol manufacturing capacity. Alpha methyl styrene finds a variety of applications across a diverse set of industries including plastics, adhesives, and chemicals among others. In plastics industry, alpha methyl styrene is used in manufacture of resins such as ABS  Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene. Alpha methyl styrene, when used in manufacture of ABS resin, imparts a relatively higher heat stability so also relatively higher impact strength to the resin as compared to that obtained by use of styrene. Moreover, alpha methyl styrene also finds application as a plastic additive. Besides, alpha methyl styrene also finds application in lubricating oils, perfumes, plasticizers manufacture among the othersRequest for Sample Report:Alpha Methyl Styrene Market: Drivers & RestraintsGlobal Alpha Methyl Styrene market is expected to witness a steady single digit growth during the forecast period. Growth in consumption of Alpha Methyl Styrene is expected to be driven, especially, by increasing demand from developing economies such as China, India. Alpha methyl styrene is predominantly used in manufacture of ABS resin, as such increasing demand for the same from end use industries is expected to in turn drive the growth of global alpha methyl styrene market during the forecast period. Also, the growing demand from chemicals industry, where alpha methyl styrene is used as an intermediate, is expected to drive the growth of global Alpha Methyl Styrene market during the forecast period. However, relatively weaker economic growth in major markets across the globe during forecast period is likely to impede the growth of global Alpha Methyl Styrene market in the same period.Request for Table of content:Alpha Methyl Styrene Market: Region-wise OutlookOn the basis of geographic regions, the global Alpha Methyl Styrene market is segmented into seven key market segments namely North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Asia Pacific, Japan, and Middle East & Africa. Among these, Asia Pacific region accounted for a major share in overall global Alpha Methyl Styrene consumption in 2014. APAC region is expected to witness a steady growth in its consumption during the forecast period.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Neuromyelitis Optica (Devics Syndrome) - Pipeline Review, H2 2016

http://goo.gl/y9mwfO

http://www.researchmoz.us

http://bit.ly/2b1Ayn6

The report provides comprehensive information on the therapeutics under development for Neuromyelitis Optica (Devics Syndrome), complete with analysis by stage of development, drug target, mechanism of action (MoA), route of administration (RoA) and molecule type. The report also covers the descriptive pharmacological action of the therapeutics, its complete research and development history and latest news and press releases. Additionally, the report provides an overview of key players involved in therapeutic development for Neuromyelitis Optica (Devics Syndrome) and features dormant and discontinued projects.Provides an overview of the Neuromyelitis Optica (Devics Syndrome) pipeline landscape.Get Sample Report With TOC @Scope- The report provides a snapshot of the global therapeutic landscape of Neuromyelitis Optica (Devics Syndrome)- The report reviews pipeline therapeutics for Neuromyelitis Optica (Devics Syndrome) by companies and universities/research institutes based on information derived from company and industry-specific sources- The report covers pipeline products based on various stages of development ranging from pre-registration till discovery and undisclosed stages- The report features descriptive drug profiles for the pipeline products which includes, product description, descriptive MoA, R&D brief, licensing and collaboration details & other developmental activitiesResearchMoz is the worlds 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. ResearchMozs 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.ResearchMoz Global Pvt. Ltd.90 State Street,Albany, NY 12207,United StatesBlog -866-997-4948 (Us-Canada Toll Free),+1-518-621-2074,Email to: sales@researchmoz.us,
Static and Rotating Equipment (Oil and Gas) Market Worth US$ 35,500.00 Million By 2022

Static and Rotating Equipment (Oil and Gas) Market

http://www.marketresearchengine.com/reportdetails/static-and-rotating-equipment-market

http://www.marketresearchengine.com/requestsample/static-and-rotating-equipment-market

http://www.marketresearchengine.com/

New York, October 27: Market Research Engine has published a new report titled as Static and Rotating Equipment (Oil and Gas) Market by Static Equipment (Valves, Boilers, Furnaces, and Heat Exchangers [Shell and Tube, Air Cooled]) and Rotating Equipment (Compressors, Turbines, and Pumps) - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecast 2014  2022The static and rotating equipment (Oil and Gas) market is expected to exceed more than US$ 35500 million by 2022 growing at a CAGR of more than 3.5% in the given forecast period 2014 to 2022.Browse Full Report:Static and rotating equipment will structured or form an important and necessary component such as oil and gas static and rotating equipment infrastructure. Based on quality, consistency and reliability of this static and rotating equipment depends various activity such as downstream, midstream and upstream activity. Due to falling oil price in recent year and expenditure on exploration & production action will decrease the demand of oil and gas equipment in future. The key actions in the oil and gas production depend on the reliability and quality of static and rotating equipment. So these static and rotating equipment machines form a key element of oil and gas infrastructure.The major driving factors of static and rotating equipment (Oil and Gas) market are as follows: Quick infrastructure growth in oil and gas mid stream sector Development in construction Creation of new plant and growth of presented servicesThe restraints factors of static and rotating equipment (Oil and Gas) market are as follows: Fall in basic price can reduce the investigation and production spending by oil and gas keysDownload Free Sample Report:The static and rotating equipment (Oil and Gas) market is segmented on the lines of its classification and types. Based on classification market is segmented into oil and gas static equipment and oil and gas rotating equipment. Under type the oil and gas static equipment is segmented into valves, boilers, furnaces and heat exchangers. The oil and gas rotating equipment market is segmented on the line of its type like comprise, turbines, pumps and compressors. The static and rotating equipment market is geographic segmentation covers various regions such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa. Each geography market is further segmented to provide market revenue for select countries such as the U.S., Canada, U.K. Germany, China, Japan, India, Brazil, and GCC countries.This report provides:1) An overview of the global market for static and rotating equipment (Oil and Gas) and related technologies.2) Analyses of global market trends, with data from 2013, estimates for 2014 and 2015, and projections of compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) through 2022.3) Identifications of new market opportunities and targeted promotional plans for static and rotating equipment (Oil and Gas)4) Discussion of research and development, and the demand for new products and new applications.5) Comprehensive company profiles of major players in the industry.REPORT SCOPE:The scope of the report includes a detailed study of global and regional markets for various types of coatings with the reasons given for variations in the growth of the industry in certain regions.The report covers detailed competitive outlook including the market share and company profiles of the key participants operating in the global market. Key players profiled in the report include Alfa Laval AB, Atlas Copco AB, Pentair plc, General Electric Company, Metso Oyj, Siemens AG, Tenaris SA, Sulzer Limited, FMC Technologies Inc., OAO TMK, Technip SA, Flowserve Corporation, Doosan Group, Wartsila, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. Company profile includes assign such as company summary, financial summary,business strategy and planning, SWOT analysis and current developments.The Top Companies Report is intended to provide our buyers with a snapshot of the industrys most influential players.The Static and Rotating Equipment (Oil and Gas) Market has been segmented as below:By Classification AnalysisOil and gas static equipmentOil and gas rotating equipmentBy Oil and Gas Static Equipment Type AnalysisValvesBoilersFurnacesHeat exchangersBy Oil and Gas Rotating Equipment Type AnalysisCompriseTurbinesPumpsCompressorsby Regional AnalysisNorth AmericaEuropeAsia-PacificRest of the WorldAbout MarketResearchEngine.comMarket Research Engine is a global market research and consulting organization. We provide market intelligence in emerging, niche technologies and markets. Our market analysis powered by rigorous methodology and quality metrics provide information and forecasts across emerging markets, emerging technologies and emerging business models. Our deep focus on industry verticals and country reports help our clients to identify opportunities and develop business strategies.Media ContactCompany Name: Market Research EngineContact Person: John BayEmail: john@marketresearchengine.comPhone: +1-855-984-1862, +91-860-565-7204Country: United StatesWebsite:Address: 3422 SW 15 Street, Suite #8942, Deerfield Beach, FL 33442, United States
YouScience Names Rich Thompson as Vice President of Business Development

www.YouScience.com

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Oct. 27, 2016)  YouScience, developers of a next-generation career guidance platform, announced that Rich Thompson joined the organization as its Vice President of Business Development. Thompson will be responsible for establishing local, regional and national sponsor relationships with educational and youth support services across governmental and private sectors on behalf of YouScience."Rich is a longtime champion for expanded educational opportunity, we are excited to have him join the YouScience team, said Philip Hardin, CEO of YouScience. He has already had a great significance in reforming education policies across the nation. We cant wait to see what contributions he will add to YouScience as we grow nation wide.Prior to YouScience, Thompson served as chief engagement officer of Ameripublic Partners, LLC, where he led a purpose-driven, strategic consulting and policy firm. He has also founded 100Dads, which promotes responsible fatherhood through civic engagement in education reform policy, and was executive director of the Georgia Parent Teacher Organization, a statewide membership organization working to promote parental engagement and support effective educational options for every child in Georgia.Ive dedicated my career to helping others and making a difference in my community, said Thompson. YouScience allows me to impact students across the country by fulfilling their vision and dreams earlier in life.Thompson is a University of Georgia graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Economics. He currently serves as board vice-chair of Georgia Connections Academy, a statewide virtual public charter school, board trustee of the Georgia 4-H Foundation and immediate past chair of the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Advisory Council. He is married with two daughters and resides in Atlanta, GA.The YouScience Profile is an engaging, online experience that is revolutionizing the way students and young adults make decisions about their education and career. By combining natural abilities, interests and career opportunities, YouScience is able to expand students vision of their future and provide positive insight into their personal strengths. For more information, please visit us ator call 1-844-YOUSCIENCE.500 Bishop St B2, Atlanta, GA 30318
BatchOutput for Microsoft Word Now Supports macOS Sierra

http://www.zevrix.com/BatchOutputOffice.php

http://www.zevrix.com

http://www.zevrix.com

Toronto (ON), Canada -- Zevrix Solutions announces the release of BatchOutput DOC 2.4.7, a compatibility update to its output automation solution for Microsoft Word on macOS (). The software provides advanced solutions for demanding enterprise and office publishing environments through automation of printing and professional PDF output. For example, users can leave BatchOutput to print hundreds of Word files overnight, and then pick up the completed job next morning.The new version makes BatchOutput DOC compatible with the recently released macOS 10.12 Sierra and is offered as a free update to the licensed users.With BatchOutput DOC, users only need to select the Word files they wish to output and set up processing options. The software will do the rest automatically saving the time and hassle of opening and exporting each file by hand. In addition to batch printing, BatchOutput DOC allows to carry out professional PDF production directly from Word, bringing advanced PDF creation options right to the user's fingertips:-Print and export multiple Word documents to PDF with a single click.-Split Word files into single page PDFs.-Variable output file names.-Reduce PDF file size and optimize documents for web, print and mobile devices.-Encrypt and password-protect PDF documents.-Change PDF color tone, brightness and other qualities.BatchOutput DOC is a part of the Zevrix BatchOutput family of products which also includes output automation solutions for Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Adobe InDesign and PDF workflows.Pricing and Availability:BatchOutput DOC can be purchased for US$39.95 from the Zevrix Solutions website as well as from authorized resellers and Mac App Store. Trial is also available for download. The update is free for users of version 2 and $20 from version 1. BatchOutput DOC requires Mac OS X 10.6-10.12 and Microsoft Word 2008, 2011 or 2016.About Zevrix SolutionsLocated in Toronto, Canada, Zevrix Solutions provides productivity solutions for Adobe Creative Suite software, PDF and graphic file diagnostics, file delivery and Microsoft Office on Mac OS. Zevrix Solutions makes it easier for professionals to achieve more while doing less by automating their everyday tasks, producing error-free documents, saving disk space and cutting down on production costs. For more info, visitContact:Leo RevzinOwnerZevrix Solutions105 McCAUL St, Suite 301Toronto Ontario M5T 2X4 Canada858-206-0607media@zevrix.com
Unasur to talk to China on Trans-Oceanic Railway financing Updated: 2016-10-28 16:54 (Xinhua)

LA PAZ - The Union of South American Nations (Unasur) has received the go-ahead from Bolivian President Evo Morales to discuss with China the financing of a railroad which will connect the Atlantic to the Pacific.

"We have received authorization from President Morales to take the first financing steps with the Chinese government," Ernesto Samper, Unasur's secretary-general, told a press conference on Thursday.

He added that Unasur fully supported the trans-continental railway as it is good for Bolivia's growth, and also a tool for regional integration.

"It is worth clarifying that this is not a project for a Bolivian train but a multi-national project involving ... Brazil, Argentina and Peru, as well as certainly being relevant for Paraguay," said Samper.

According to Unasur, by 2021, the completed railway should transport 7 million passengers and 10 million tons of cargo.

The railway, which links the Atlantic and the Pacific, will begin at Puerto Santos in Brazil, cross Bolivia at Puerto Suarez, pass the municipalities of Santa Cruz, Montero and Bulo Bulo before entering Peru and ending at Puerto de Ilo.

The coast-to-coast railway was one of the main cooperation projects between China and Latin America promoted by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang during his four-nation tour of South America in May 2015, which included Peru and Brazil.

Bolivia is currently carrying out pre-investment studies to outline the commercial and logistical prospects, the strategic nature of the transport corridor along which the train would run, an environmental impact assessment, a preliminary design and the construction cost calculation.
Huntington Beach Real Estate Agent Launches Luxury Home Buying Experience

Malakai Sparks Group

The Malakai Sparks Group, a Huntington Beach, California-based realty agency spearheaded by president and real estate expert Malakai Sparks, announced the launch of its Huntington Beach Home Buying Experience service, which encompasses curated experiences from the entire Malakai Sparks Group team. Designed for the purpose of allowing prospective buyers to take in all Huntington Beach has to offer prior to purchasing a home  while making sure the area is the right fit for them  the Home Buying Experience includes aerial tours via helicopter, exquisite accommodations, private jet or flight booking handled by Malakai Sparks Group representatives, local food and beverage forays and optional Porsche or Lamborghini rental for the duration of the experience.Whether clients are on a strict deadline for personal or professional reasons or are simply eager to move to the next phase of their lives in Huntington Beach, were here to support each and every decision while also providing practical advice and guidance along the way, adds Sparks.As a premier Huntington Beach real estate marketing entity, The Malakai Sparks Group also works with clients looking to sell their home to construct a tailored marketing plan, pairing traditional selling techniques with new and proven methods to get a property sold quickly and for the best price. As Sparks himself puts it, No one markets properties like The Malakai Sparks Group is marketing them today. Once a client chooses to list with us, we have a professional videographer come to his or her home and video the entire property, making it look like it belongs on MTV Cribs or Million Dollar Listing. We then air that video on every major search website around the world  and best of all, this service is completely free to clients.Its just what sets our agency apart from all the others.The Malakai Sparks Group boasts a team of expert realty professionals that are on call 24/7 to serve local clients in addition to an international client base. The team also possesses first-hand knowledge of all areas along the coastal cities of L.A. and Orange Counties in the luxury and ultra-luxury real estate markets.Since its inception, The Malakai Sparks Group has had a vision for changing the face of the real estate industry, explains Malakai Sparks. The mission statement of our company defines what it means to provide the greatest real estate experience one could ever have; to this end, we offer the Huntington Beach Home Buying Experience service, guaranteeing prospective buyers that well always offer honest opinions, be 100-percent transparent and help them achieve their goals  all while providing excellent customer service and an overall satisfying experience. In an industry where focus is placed solely on the end result of closing deals and the unspoken motto of say or do whatever it takes to close the deal, The Malakai Sparks Group chooses to do business quite differentlyand were confident our Home Buying Experience showcases that.2100 Main Street, Suite 300Huntington Beach, CA 92648
Glint and Glare Assessment in 3D

Glint and Glare Assessment

http://www.solarglare.org

A new method of calculating reflective glint and glare allows the minute-fine simulation of reflections of solar power plants and glass facades in 3D and the creation of images and videos.Solar Glare Assessments are needed for solar power plants, when drivers or pilots of cars, planes or the railroad are in danger to be dazzled be reflections. Neighbors too, have a right to be protected from unreasonable glint and glare.New software for Solar Glare Assessment now allow a detailed simulation in three-dimensional space. For the first time not only the mirror image of the sun is taken into account when computing the glaring hazard, but also scattered rays of lights. PV-panels and solar thermal panels often have a rough, structured surface in order to absorb more light. This prolongs the duration of reflections from the sun passing by over the sky. In addition, it makes the reflection of the sun appear larger.The new algorithm for reflection calculation guarantees a higher, minute-fine resolution during the day and a daily resolution over the whole year. Now that the point in time and the duration of a glare from simulation correspond exactly with the measurements in nature, better evidence is provided for the assessment of the reasonableness of a glaring hazard. The line of visions to the glaring surface is also calculated exactly, which is especially relevant in glare assessments for road traffic. Finally, the complete representation of all scattered sunrays allows for a precise 3D-rendering, so that the simulated images and videos of the planned installation provide a realistic impression of the structure and its glaring surfaces even before construction.Video Link: youtu.be/8qkRMRJ9C6UZehndorfer Engineering Consulting focuses on planning, construction and the technical assessment of photovoltaic power plants. Additionally, the company executes electrical and light engineering surveys and commissioning. Jakob Zehndorfer is advisor to the Austrian court of law and has more than 10 years of experience in the area of photovoltaics and semiconductors. As THE specialist for Glint and Glare Assessment he has executed numerous studies, reports and surveys for PV plants, solar-thermal plants and glass facades in Europe and the Middle East. Please contact us at office@solarglare.orgZehndorfer Engineering Consulting e.U.Jakob ZehndorferBachstrasse 209161 Maria RainAustriaTel: +43 (680) 244 3310jakob.zehndorfer@zehndorfer.at
PROLIM releases Diaspora 3.0 PLM Data Migration Platform

www.prolim.com

PROLIM Global Corporation a global leader in PLM Software, IT and Engineering Services releases its Diaspora 3.0  The PLM Data Migration Platform an Integrated solution for DATA Quality and DATA Discovery at Siemens PLM World Detroit RUG Event at Troy, Michigan. With the new capability of DIASPOARA 3.0 can be leveraged to automate Data Quality and Discovery along with the Data Migrations.With PROLIM DIASPORA 3.0, Data Migration, Data Quality will become easier and reliable than ever. PROLIM E2E Data Migration Platform, the DIASPOARA is now enhanced with the capabilities of data quality and data discovery. Data is in our DNA. We should leverage PLM to speed up the product development by implementing a PLM Data Migration Platform that enables smooth product development process, said Prabhu Patil, President and CEO of PROLIM.PROLIM Diaspora 3.0 Data migration software helps to Auto Generate Data profiling, Validations & its 100% reliable migration process of data to PLM in order to create your own validation rules and this platform Identifies Failures upfront and also generates fallout reports before loading data to Target systems.Benefits of Diaspora 3.0  The PLM Data Migration are as follows* Platform for PLM Data Quality Management and PLM Data MigrationsDIASPORA 3.0 addresses the end to end needs of data management starting from Analysis, Quality, and Transformations to Reconciliations and MIS Reporting* New enhanced PLM Data Quality features of DIASPORA 3.0* Data Discovery* Data Profiling* Data Audit* Data Enrichment* De Duplication* Match and Merge* Root Cause AnalysisAbout PROLIMPROLIM is a leading provider of PLM Solutions to industries such as the Automotive, Aerospace, Manufacturing, Medical Devices and High Tech sectors. Our IT services have helped the clients to enhance their operational efficiency and drive top-line growth. As one of the fastest growing private companies in the United States of America and recognized by Inc500, PROLIM believes in being customer focused rather than product focused. PROLIM envisages reaching customers beyond borders to deliver effective services in the west and east coasts of the United States of America, Canada, Europe, and Asia. Please visitfor more knowledge.Media ContactRich SoltiPROLIM Corporation248-522-6044rich.solti@prolim.com30445 Northwestern HwySuite 380Farmington Hills, MI 48334
World Voice over Long Term Evolution (VoLTE) market is likely to generate revenue of $34.8 billion by 2022, growing at a CAGR of 50.1% from 2016 to 2022

World Voice Over LTE (VoLTE) Market 2022

http://www.marketintelreports.com/report/allied0029/world-voice-over-lte-volte-market--opportunities-and-forecasts-20152022

http://www.marketintelreports.com/pdfdownload.php?id=allied0029

www.marketintelreports.com

The decline in revenue of voice calls and SMS necessitated the adoption of a standardized and viable scheme for the provision of faster and uninterrupted voice and SMS services. As the mobile network operators continue with the full-fledged implementation of 4G long-term evolution (LTE) network, the development of voice over LTE (VoLTE) is providing a platform of choice for voice call delivery by network operators. The scheme of VoLTE was devised owing to the need of a standardized system for voice or data traffic transfer over LTE. The 4G LTE network is the mainstream foundation for the emergence of VoLTE. 4G LTE provides around 20 times faster speed than 3G broadband technology. Moreover, it reduces battery drain rate more efficiently than 3G technology. Despite the deployment of 4G LTE network for data, many service providers still prefer 3G CDMA and GSM platforms for voice calls. The Voice over Long Term Evolution (VoLTE) market is likely to generate revenue of $34.8 billion by 2022, growing at a CAGR of 50.1% from 2016 to 2022.Check Complete Report @VoLTE is a long-term solution for voice calls as it is designed for replacement of conventional mobile voice platforms by easy integration of voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) services, including landline networks. Technologies such as FDD and TDD would open new avenues for the VoLTE sector. Besides this devices including smart phones, dongles and routers would create growth opportunities. The VoLTE market is emerging with trends such as VoLTE and VoWi-Fi integration. The growing popularity of VoLTE services for video conferencing and file sharing have increased the rate of adoption of VoLTE in enterprises. The data and voice capacity of VoLTE is six times more than 2G GSM and up to three times more than 3G UMTS. Moreover, the bandwidth utilization rate in VoLTE is less owing to the smaller packet headers. The VoLTE market is segmented on the basis of technology, end user, and geography. The technologies of VoLTE include voice over IP multimedia subsystem (VoIMS), circuit-switched fall back (CSFB), dual radio/simultaneous voice and LTE (SVLTE), voice over LTE via generic access network (VOLGA), and single radio voice call continuity (SRVCC).Geographically, the market is divided across the four regions namely North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and LAMEA, with their further bifurcation into the key countries. The market comprises key manufacturers such as Alcatel-Lucent S.A., AT&T Inc., KT Corporation, LG Uplus Corp., SK Telecom Co. Ltd., T-Mobile US Inc., Metropcs, Nokia Solutions and Networks, Verizon Wireless, Ericsson, and Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd among others.Get Sample Brochure of the Report @POTENTIAL BENEFITS FOR STAKEHOLDERS: This study comprises analytical depiction of the world VoLTE market with the current trends and future scenario to depict the investment pockets in the market. The report provides information regarding key drivers, restraints, and opportunities with a detailed impact analysis. The current market is quantitatively analyzed and forecasted for the years 20162022 to highlight the financial competency of the market. Porters Five Forces analysis of the industry illustrates the potency of the buyers and suppliers. Value chain analysis provides a clear role of the different stakeholders involved.VOICE OVER LTE (VoLTE) MARKET SEGMENTATION: The market is segmented on the basis of technology and geography.MARKET BY TECHNOLOGY Voice Over IP Multimedia Subsystem (VoIMS)Circuit-Switched Fall Back (CSFB)Dual Radio/Simultaneous Voice and LTE (SVLTE)Voice Over LTE Via Generic Access Network (VOLGA)Single Radio Voice Call Continuity (SRVCC)MARKETBY GEOGRAPHY : North AmericaU.S.CanadaMexicoEuropeUKGermanyFranceRussiaRest of EuropeAsia-PacificChinaJapanSouth KoreaAustraliaRest of Asia-PacificLAMEALatin AmericaMiddle EastAfricaKEY PLAYERSAlcatel-Lucent S.A.AT&T Inc.KT CorporationLG Uplus Corp.SK Telecom Co. Ltd.T-Mobile US. Inc.EricssonHuawei Investment & Holding Co., LtdCisco Systems Inc.D2 TechnologiesAbout us:MarketIntelReports (MIR) aim to empower our clients to successfully manage and outperform in their business decisions, we do this by providing Premium Market Intelligence, Strategic Insights and Databases from a range of Global Publishers.A group of industry veterans who are well experienced in reputed international consulting firms after identifying the sourcing needs of MNCs for market intelligence, have together started this business savior MarketIntelReports.MIR intends to be a one-stop shop with an intuitive design, exhaustive database, expert assistance, secure cart checkout and data privacy integrated. It curates the list of reports, publishers and studies to ensure that the database is constantly updated to dynamically meet the targeted, specific needs of our clients.MarketIntelReports currently has more than 10,000 plus titles and 35+ publishers on our platform and growing consistently to fill the Global Intelligence Demand  Supply Gap. We cover more than 15 industry verticals being: Automotive, Electronics, Manufacturing, Pharmaceuticals, Healthcare, Chemicals, Building & Construction, Agriculture, Food & Beverages, Banking & Finance, Media and Government, Public Sector Studies.Contact us:Mayur SSales Manager2711 Centerville Road, Suite 400,Wilmington,Delaware,19808United Statessales@marketintelreports.comTelephone: 1-302-261-5343
Global Magnetic Separator Market: increase in use of overband magnetic separator in mining industry

2016 Magnetic Separator Global Market Report

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The magnetic separation is necessary in the mineral processing industries. It is very difficult to remove the magnetic particles during the process and thus, magnetic drum is used. The electromagnetic separator performs magnetic separation process effectively without any hassle and mix of magnetic substances. There is high scope for the Magnetic Separator Market in various regions across the globe in the upcoming period.Check Complete Report @Scope and Regional Forecast of the Magnetic Separator Market:In the Magnetic Separator Market, there is rise in demand for magnetic coolant separator and magnetic pulley in manufacturing, metal and other industries across the globe. Companies invest high capital for improving performance of this equipment.North America and Europe has high demand and use of these devices in the Magnetic Separator Market. The US and Germany are the major markets for this industry in these regions respectively in the upcoming term. Brazil is the major region for the South American region with growing industrial activities.Asia Pacific is the largest region in the Magnetic Separator Market. China is the main manufacturer of this equipment in this region and end user as well. China and India are the major markets for the growth of this industry in the upcoming years. Rise in production of metals and mining activities is driving the demand for this market in future.The Magnetic Separator Market is a growing market with high use of metal separator or wet drum magnetic separator in metal processing and in any other industries dealing with metals in various regions across the globe. This market is expected to witness high growth owing to the increasing investment for magnetic tube drum separator, growing production of magnetic head pulley for industrial use in China and other parts across the globe in the upcoming years.Get Sample Brochure of the Report @Segmentation and Key Players of the Magnetic Separator Market:The Magnetic Separator Market is segmented into various categories by application and by geography as follows: By application: industrial, manufacturing, processing and others By geography: North America, South America, Europe, Asia Pacific and ROWThe key players in the Magnetic Separator Market are as follows: Excel Magnetics Star Trace Ltd. Eriez Bunting Magnetics Zibo Hemei Magnetic Materials Co., Ltd.There is high demand for overband magnetic separator in industrial applications in the global as well as Chinese markets in the upcoming years.Order a copy of Global Magnetic Separator Market Report now @About us:MarketIntelReports (MIR) aim to empower our clients to successfully manage and outperform in their business decisions, we do this by providing Premium Market Intelligence, Strategic Insights and Databases from a range of Global Publishers.A group of industry veterans who are well experienced in reputed international consulting firms after identifying the sourcing needs of MNCs for market intelligence, have together started this business savior MarketIntelReports.MIR intends to be a one-stop shop with an intuitive design, exhaustive database, expert assistance, secure cart checkout and data privacy integrated. It curates the list of reports, publishers and studies to ensure that the database is constantly updated to dynamically meet the targeted, specific needs of our clients.MarketIntelReports currently has more than 10,000 plus titles and 35+ publishers on our platform and growing consistently to fill the Global Intelligence Demand  Supply Gap. We cover more than 15 industry verticals being: Automotive, Electronics, Manufacturing, Pharmaceuticals, Healthcare, Chemicals, Building & Construction, Agriculture, Food & Beverages, Banking & Finance, Media and Government, Public Sector Studies.Contact us:Mayur SSales Manager2711 Centerville Road, Suite 400,Wilmington,Delaware,19808United Statessales@marketintelreports.comTelephone: 1-302-261-5343
BUILD Magazine Announces The 2016 Construction and Engineering Awards Winners

321 Main Street in Longmont, CO

BUILD Magazine has announced winners of the 2016 Construction and Engineering Awards. MW GOLDEN CONSTRUCTORS was named General Contractor of the Year 2016 - Colorado & Best Historic Renovation Project: 321 Main Street, Longmont.The 2016 Construction & Engineering Awards have been designed to reward and recognize the hard work, often undertaken over many months and years, by the myriad of professionals in this industry. From managers to subcontractors, supply chain professionals to finance experts, BUILD awards turn the spotlight on everyone involved at every stage in the construction process.Steven Simpson, Awards Coordinator, is proud to be able to recognize the exceptional work involved in the Construction and Engineering industry: I am honored to be able to pay tribute to those companies which truly go above and beyond in this industry. These awards highlight the fantastic work undertaken by our winners, and reward their incredible dedication, of which I am incredibly proud. I wish them all the best in the future.About BUILDPublished monthly, Build endeavors to bring you the latest need-to-know content and updates from across the global construction and property industries. Keeping pace with a vast array of ever-changing sectors thanks to regular contributions from some of the world's foremost construction, design and real estate experts and firms, Build is home to the very best news, features and comment from the people and institutions in the know. Taking in everything from the latest products and techniques, to up-to-the-minute design trends and industry-molding regulations, Build should be the first port of call for any construction or property professional looking to remain on the cutting edge when it comes to their or related industries.MW GOLDEN CONSTRUCTORS is an award-winning firm that has been providing professional construction services throughout Colorados Front Range and mountain towns for more than thirty years. We take pride in building some of the states most recognizable schools, fire stations, libraries and other local and regional landmarks, as well as a wide range of commercial and industrial buildings, each project expertly designed and built to establish a sense of place in its respective community.1700 North Park StreetCastle Rock, CO 80109
NSW Infrastructure Plan Facilitates a Growing Sydney

http://www.nswconference.com.au

www.expotradeglobal.com

As part of the NSW governments commitment towards infrastructure development as the bedrock of a growing Sydney, the government has committed over $73.3 billion into infrastructure works over four years. Infrastructure projects currently in the pipeline are expected to expand and upgrade a wide range of crucial roads, rails, supply chain infrastructure as well as schools and hospitals in Sydney and throughout the state.With economic and financial capacity directed to infrastructure projects across the state, the government has allocated substantial funds for various major projects.$338 million has been set aside for road upgrades to support the new Western Sydney Airport in Badgerys Creek. Stimulating major economic activity, it is estimated that by 2063 the new airport will create 60,000 jobs, generating billions of dollars in economic activity for the state as a whole.Sydneys WestConnex will receive $2.9 billion in funding. The project aims to keep Sydney moving by creating jobs, easing congestion and connecting communities.With Sydneys population expected to grow by 1.6 million over the next two decades, $1.6 billion has been allocated towards the CBD and South East Light Rail Project. The modern, efficient transport system will transform the city by offering a high capacity, reliable and a sustainable mode of public transport. Other rail projects in the works for the state include the $64 million Parramatta Light Rail system and a suburban rail network.As part of wider discussions on the latest and most significant transport projects taking place across the state, the 8th Annual NSW Major Projects Conference 2016 will be taking place at Dolton House, Hyde Park, Sydney.Attracting over 200 delegates each year, the conference will include presentations from more than 25 keynote speakers on topics such as the development of road infrastructure, high-rise construction and sustainable initiatives.The NSW Major Projects Conference will see updates on the $3 billion dollar NorthConnex project and the $16.8 billion WestConnex project. NorthConnex will link Sydneys north to the orbital network and remove up to 5000 trucks a day from Pennant Hills Rd. The WestConnex project aims to keep Sydney moving by creating jobs, easing congestion and connecting communities.With many high-rise and skyscraper construction projects looming for NSW, Senior Lecturer Dr Philip Oldfield from the UNSW Built Environment will address the future of skyscraper construction in the country. The presentation will consider different factors in high-rise planning in Australian cities, reflecting on whether skyscrapers could be the answer to the affordability crisis in cities.The Australian and NSW governments are funding the 10 year, $3.6 billion Western Sydney Infrastructure Plan (WSIP) to improve road reliability, capacity and connectivity ahead of future traffic demand. General Manager  Western Sydney Program Office, Dr. Kevin Doherty from the NSW Roads and Maritime Services will discuss the development of the new Western Sydney Airport as well as the new employment, priority growth and priority land release areas.Sustainable and green initiatives form a crucial part of the agenda. The conference will examine green initiatives currently underway. NSWs largest 175 megawatt wind farm consisting of 119 turbines will supply power to more than 75000 homes and help NSW meet its Renewal Energy Targets. The essential ingredients for the construction of smart cities will also be examined as the conference looks at developing NSWs future cities.The conference is an opportunity for industry leaders and government officials to share common ideas on major projects across the state and learn about the latest infrastructure projects taking shape in NSW from expert speakers.The 8th Annual NSW Major Projects Conference 2016 will be held on the 15th and 16th of November at Dolton House, Hyde Park in Sydney.More information at:About ExpotradeExpotrade is a global conference and event organizer with its head office based in Melbourne, Australia. Expotrade has delivered some of the largest, most successful B2B industry conferences and events in the areas of infrastructure, major projects, sustainability, technology & architecture. For almost 10 years, our unique blend of knowledge, experience and flexibility has accomplished an array of consistently top quality events. Today, Expotrade events enjoy such a distinctive edge, they are amongst the best patronised in the calendar.For more information, visitSuite 1, Level 1, 2 Brandon Park DriveWheelers Hill VIC 3150 Australia
Menopausal Hot Flashes Therapy Market USD 4.7 Billion by 2020

https://www.ihealthcareanalyst.com/report/menopausal-hot-flashes-therapy-market/

https://www.ihealthcareanalyst.com

Menopausal Hot Flashes Therapy Market 2013-2020 report estimates the global menopausal hot flashes therapy market to reach nearly USD 4.7 Billion in 2020, at a CAGR of 3.8% from 2016 to 2020 - iHealthcareAnalyst, Inc.Visit the Menopausal Hot Flashes Therapy Market 2013-2020 reportHot flushes are a common symptom of the menopause experienced by most of the menopausal women as a sudden feeling of warmth or heat in the body, which are usually most intense over the face, neck and chest. Hot flushes may occur on their own but are often accompanied by night sweats or excessive sweating during the day.The global menopausal hot flashes therapy market segmentation is based on therapy (hormonal therapy, estrogen, progestin, combination therapy, non-hormonal therapy).The global menopausal hot flashes therapy market report provides market size (Revenue USD Million 2013 to 2020), market share, market trends and forecasts growth trends (CAGR%, 2016 to 2020). The global menopausal hot flashes therapy market research report is divided by geography (regional and country based) into North America (U.S., Canada), Latin America (Brazil, Mexico, Rest of LA), Europe (U.K., Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Rest of EU), Asia Pacific (Japan, China, India, Rest of APAC), and Rest of the World.1. Therapy Type1.1 Hormonal Therapy1.1.1 Estrogen1.1.2 Progestin1.1.3 Combination Therapy1.2 Non-hormonal Therapy2. Geography (Region, Country)2.1 North America (U.S., Canada)2.2 Latin America (Brazil, Mexico, Rest of LA)2.3 Europe (U.K., Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Rest of EU)2.4 Asia Pacific (Japan, China, India, Rest of APAC)2.5 Rest of the World3. Company Profiles3.1 Allergan plc3.2 Bayer AG3.3 Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical Co., Inc.3.4 Merck & Co., Inc.3.5 Novartis International AG3.6 Novo Nordisk3.7 Pfizer, Inc.3.8 Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.iHealthcareAnalyst, Inc. is a global health care market research and consulting company providing market analysis, and competitive intelligence services to global clients. The Company publishes syndicate, custom and consulting grade healthcare reports covering animal healthcare, biotechnology, clinical diagnostics, healthcare informatics, healthcare services, medical devices, medical equipment, and pharmaceuticals.iHealthcareAnalyst, Inc. provides industry participants and stakeholders with strategically analyzed, unbiased view of market dynamics and business opportunities within its coverage areas.Ana AitawaiHealthcareAnalyst, Inc.2109, Mckelvey Hill Drive,Maryland Heights, MO 63043United StatesPhone: (314) 736-9294.Email: sales@ihealthcareanalyst.com
Southeast Asia Pet Care Market to Grow at a CAGR of 6.8% by 2020

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Future Market Insights (FMI) delivers incisive insights into emerging regions in its latest report titled, Southeast Asia Pet Care Market Analysis and Opportunity Assessment, 2014 - 2020. The report states that the SEA pet care market is mainly driven by the burgeoning trends of pet humanization and increasing adoption of private label brands in countries such as Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia.FMI analyst P.S. Neha sheds light on why the SEA pet care market will become one of the major markets in the region in the near future: Growth of the pet care market across Southeast Asia is driven by increasing adoption and humanization of pets. Pet owners are now more inclined towards more nutritious, healthy and organic foods for their pets.By type, the overall SEA pet care market is segmented into dog food, cat food, pet products and others. Dog food is the major segment in this region, accounting for a 51.6% share of the market in 2014; however, this is expected to decrease by 30 BPS by 2020.Request Free Report Sample@This report also covers the pet care market by category and by channel. On the basis of channel, the market is segmented into supermarket, pet shop, veterinary clinic and others. The supermarket segment is the leading distribution channel in the SEA pet care market. However, veterinary clinics are anticipated to exhibit the fastest CAGR at 7.1%, followed by supermarket at a 6.8% CAGR during the forecast period. This growth is attributed to a shift in consumer buying habits and an increasing inclination of pet owners to purchase health and wellness products from reliable sources such as veterinary clinics.Furthermore, by category, the market includes economy-priced, mid-priced and premium-priced products.Improving consumer lifestyles and increasing disposable income in Southeast Asian countries has resulted in a growing acceptance for pets, not only among the high-income group, but also the middle-income group. In 2014, Thailand was the dominant country in the overall Southeast Asia pet care market with a 43.62% share, followed by Malaysia and Indonesia, accounting for 21.74% and 15.47% respectively.Send An Enquiry@The pet care market in the Philippines is expected to register a significant CAGR of 8.4%. This is expected to be followed by Vietnam at a CAGR of 8.0% during the forecast period.Innovation remains the key to gaining a competitive edge in the SEA pet care market, especially in the pet food category. Companies such as Nestle Purina, Zoetis, Mars, Inc. and Merck & Co., account for over 50% of the overall market share and constantly focus on mergers and acquisitions to expand their geographical presence and customer base.ABOUT US:Future Market Insights (FMI) is a leading market intelligence and consulting firm. We deliver syndicated research reports, custom research reports and consulting services, which are personalized in nature. FMI delivers a complete packaged solution, which combines current market intelligence, statistical anecdotes, technology inputs, valuable growth insights, an aerial view of the competitive framework, and future market trends.CONTACT:616 Corporate Way, Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage, NY 10989,United StatesT: +1-347-918-3531F: +1-845-579-5705Email: sales@futuremarketinsights.comPress@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite:
Real estate developer uses Armani to charm brand-conscious buyers Updated: 2016-10-28 08:20 By Sun Yuanqing(China Daily)

From fashion to branded apartments, the Chinese appetite for luxury seems to have no limits.

The Art of Living exhibition by Giorgio Armani opened at the Ullens Center for Con-temporary Art in Beijing on Oct 22 together with a preview of the Capital Residence housing project by Armani/Casa.

The residential project has been developed by the Hong Kong-based real estate company Smart Hero Group. Armani/Casa handled the design of the luxury apartments and the public space.

Founded in 2000, Armani/Casa, which is "Armani home" in Italian, is the luxury furnishing arm of the fashion house.

Armani/Casa has previously done projects in Mumbai, Dubai, Miami and Istanbul.

Located in Beijing's central business district, the plaza was chosen as one of the 10 most representative pieces of architecture in China by the Architecture and Culture Society of China and Peking University in 2014. The plaza was designed by Ma Yansong, a renowned Chinese architect who also designed the famed Absolute Towers in Mississauga in Canada.

Zhang Hui, president of Smart Hero, says the upcoming Capital Residence project combines Oriental aesthetics with Western design.

"We wanted to do a one-of-a-kind project and that is why we chose Armani," he says.

"Their attention to detail and execution is extreme. But it is in line with our pursuit of excellence. And they are respectful of Chinese culture and aesthetics," he says.

As for the Art of Living exhibition in Beijing, this is the first time it is being staged outside Milan.

Beijing is a natural choice for Armani/Casa since it is one of the most vibrant cities in the world, says Fabrice Gouffran, managing director of the home and hotels division of Giorgio Armani.

Giving details of the housing project, the Chinese real estate developer says the apartments - 56 in total - are being sold at between 120,000 yuan ($17,724) and 180,000 per square meter, and more than half of them have already been sold.

Speaking about the turbulent real estate market in China, Zhang says the value of good projects will continue to rise, especially in first-tier cities like Beijing.

"Moreover, Armani is very choosy about its partners because they cherish their brand. And value also comes from rarity," he adds.

Zhang says the company is willing to collaborate with Armani/Casa in other Chinese cities too.

The exhibition ends on Friday.

Armani/Casa is involved in the Smart HeroCentral Park Plaza project in Beijing. Provided To China Daily

(China Daily 10/28/2016 page18)
X-Band Radar Market Valued to Reach Nearly US$ 7 Bn by 2026

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According to a new market report published by Future Market Insights titled X-Band Radar Market - Global Industry Analysis and Opportunity Assessment, 2016 - 2026, the global X-band radar market was valued at US$ 4.6 Bn in 2015 and is expected to register a CAGR of 3.8% from 2016 to 2026 to reach US$ 6.9 Bn by 2026. Growth of the global X-band radar market is primarily driven by increasing need of advanced security and surveillance systems across the world.Increasing significance of weather and climate predictions, and aviation safety is propelling the demand for X-band radar market globally. X-band radars help improve aviation safety and increase the operational efficiency of the entire air transport industry. Besides, they also provide alerts on floods through continuous monitoring of rainfall. Vendors such as Saab Group and Northrop Grumman Corporation recently introduced weather monitoring radar.Inability to adjust quickly to track a stream of separate missiles is one of the factors restraining the growth of the market. Sea-based X-band radar can be supported by a land-based early warning radar in case of an event of an attack. These radars could help X-band radars by identifying a definite location for Sea-based X-band Radar (SBX) to focus on. However, aiming and re-aiming the giant radars beam is a clumsy process. This inhibits X-band radars ability to bend swiftly enough to track a range of different missiles.Request Free Report Sample@On the basis of type, the global X-band radar market is segmented as mobile X-band radar and sea based-X-band radar. The mobile X-band radar segment was valued US$ 3.1 Bn in 2015 and is anticipated to register a CAGR of 4.1% during the forecast period 20162026. The sea-based X-band radar segment was valued US$ 1.5 Bn in 2015.X-Band Radar Market: Region-wise SegmentationNorth America, the largest market for X-Band radar, was valued US$ 1.5 Bn in 2015and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.1% during the forecast period of 2016-2026. In North America region, ARL-E long range radars developed by Northrop Grumman Corporation have witnessed traction in their adoption by the U.S. government. These radars have enhanced the U.S. Armys C4ISR capabilities.Western Europe region is expected be the second largest market of global X-band radar, followed by Eastern Europe. Ground Master 400 radar, developed by the Raytheon Company is very popular in this region.Send An Enquiry@Key Players in X-Band Radar MarketKey players of the global X-band radar market include Northrop Grumman Corporation, Raytheon Company, Saab Group, Japan Radio Company Limited, Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd, Furuno Electric Co.,Ltd, Terma A/S, Detect, Inc., Reutech Radar Systems, and ProSensing, Inc.Leading players in the global x-band radar market are focusing on the development of end-to-end products and services such as logistics, infrastructure and maintenance, and providing support to their clients. Companies such as Saab Group, Raytheon Corporation, DeTect, Inc. serve both domestic and international government customers as a prime contractor and subcontractor of defence and related programmes.ABOUT US:Future Market Insights (FMI) is a leading market intelligence and consulting firm. We deliver syndicated research reports, custom research reports and consulting services, which are personalized in nature. FMI delivers a complete packaged solution, which combines current market intelligence, statistical anecdotes, technology inputs, valuable growth insights, an aerial view of the competitive framework, and future market trends.CONTACT:616 Corporate Way, Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage, NY 10989,United StatesT: +1-347-918-3531F: +1-845-579-5705Email: sales@futuremarketinsights.comPress@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite:
Mexico Takes the Lead in Global Beer Supply Replacing the Netherlands

http://www.indexbox.co.uk/store/world-beer-market-report-analysis-and-forecast-to-2020/

http://www.indexbox.co.uk/news/mexico-takes-the-lead-in-global-beer-supply-replacing-the-netherlands/

www.indexbox.co.uk

According to recently published IndexBox research World: Beer - Market Report. Analysis and Forecast to 2020 (), the global beer trade amounted to 12,850 million USD in 2015, fluctuating slightly over the period under review. A slight drop in 2009 was followed by recovery over the next five years, until exports decreased again. Overall, there was an annual increase of 2.8% from 2007 to 2015.Mexico emerged as the global leader in beer exports in 2010, overtaking an industry previously dominated by the Netherlands. In 2015, Mexico's beer exports totaled 2,542 million USD, which accounted for a 20% share in terms of global exports. The Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and the UK were the other key global suppliers of beer in 2015, with a 41% combined share of global exports.Belgium (+4.6% per year) and Mexico (+4.5% per year) were the fastest growing exporters from 2007 to 2015. Mexico strengthened its position in the global export structure, growing its share from 17% in 2007 to 20% in 2015, which made it the dominant exporter.On the other hand, USA (34.8%, based on value terms), France (4.8%), the UK (4.5%), Italy (4.4%), and China (4.2%) were the leading destinations of beer imports in 2015. Imports to China grew at a rapid pace of +46.3% per year from 2007 to 2015. By contrast, the UK slightly contracted its imports of beer over the same period. China's share of global imports increased significantly by +4 percentage points, while the share of the UK illustrated negative dynamics (-3 percentage points).Source and figures:IndexBox is a leading market research publisher in the world. We conduct market research and publish reports. You can find more than 25,000 research reports in our web store, which cover global industries and regional markets. All the worldwide marketing data you need is at your fingertips.Company Name: IndexBoxContact Person: Kirill BezverhiEmail: kirill.bezverhi@indexbox.co.ukPhone: +44 20 3239 3063Adress: United Kingdom, LondonWebsite:
Lubricants - Friction Theories, Applications and a Global Scenario

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http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com

The surfaces of rolling or moving parts in all kinds of machines rub against each other. The mutual rubbing of various parts of a machine imparts resistance their movement. This resistive force is called friction.Friction causes a significant wear and tear to the surfaces of moving parts of machines. To reduce this force of resistance, some substances are introduced between the moving surfaces. These are called lubricants. The main purpose of lubricants is to keep the moving surfaces away from each other, so the friction and the resulting damage to the moving parts can be reduced.The process of reducing the force of resistance or friction between moving surfaces of machines by the introduction of a lubricant is called lubrication.Interpret a Competitive outlook Analysis Report with PDF Brochure :What causes friction?There are many theories that explain why friction occurs between moving parts of machines.The welding theory suggests that all metal surfaces, irrespective of how finely they are finished, have a series of troughs and crests. So, when such surfaces are rubbed against one another, only the crests from both surfaces come in actual contact. When the surfaces are rubbed under load, the local pressure at the crests is sufficient to deform the peaks and create welding junctions between them.The electrostatic attraction theory suggests that the stick-slip phenomenon between the moving parts results in the flow of electrons, which produce charges of opposite polarities at the interface. These charges keep holding the surfaces with each other by virtue of electrostatic attraction.Another theory, the mechanical interlocking theory, states that when the moving surfaces come in contact with each other, the crests and troughs of both surfaces interlock with each other, thus restricting the movement of one surface over the other.How Lubricants work?Some lubricants are applied as thick fluid films between the moving surfaces. These films separate the moving surfaces from each other, avoiding the direct contact between surfaces which consequently results in reduced friction.In cases where a continuous film of lubricants cannot persist between moving machine parts, a material is applied that can get adsorbed on both surfaces by virtue of either physical or chemical forces. This thin film of adsorbed substances help the moving surfaces remain away from each other, at least upto the height where crests are present on the surfaces.In some cases characterized by very high pressure and speed between moving machine parts, either a thick or a thin film fails to stick to the surfaces. This happens as the high local temperature attained at the surfaces decomposes or even vaporizes the lubricant films. To meet these conditions, special additives are added to commonly used lubricants, making them more durable.Global Scenario:Lubricants are as necessary as the machines themselves in any industrial segment. If it was not for the use and introduction of lubricants, of a variety of forms in a variety of products, industrial machines would have to be either repaired or replaced within few years of their use.The wide range of applications of lubricants in a variety of industrial segments has made this industry a billion dollar global market. This industry has huge scope of growth in the coming years as well, owing to the growth of industries such as automotives.The automotives industry has huge growth prospects in the Asia pacific region, a region where every industry seems to flourish in the current market scenario due to rapid economic development, abundant raw materials and cheap labor. This indirectly would lead to the growth of the lubricants industry in the coming times.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants, use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.Each TMR syndicated research report covers a different sector - such as pharmaceuticals, chemicals, energy, food & beverages, semiconductors, med-devices, consumer goods and technology. These reports provide in-depth analysis and deep segmentation to possible micro levels. With wider scope and stratified research methodology, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.90 Sate Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207
Chinese musical ready for grand presentation at Beijing festival Updated: 2016-10-28 10:03 By Chen Nan(China Daily)

Baritone Shen Yang (left) rehearses for the musical The Fugitive as part of the ongoing Beijing Music Festival. [Photo by Jiang Dong/China Daily]

Suitcases, snow, a red sofa, wooden stairs and a raven come together in The Fugitive, a multimedia musical production. This is a world where the late Austrian composer Franz Schubert's famous piece Winter Journeyabout a poet pining for his lost love in the cold and gradually dyingmixes with images based on German poet Wilhelm Mueller's words.

As part of the ongoing Beijing Music Festival, which was launched in 1998 as a major celebration of classical music, the show will be staged on Friday at an art house in the city.

"It has inspired artists of different generations and from different fields to create, to celebrate its legacy. That's why we want to interpret Winter Journey in our own production," says the director Zou Shuang, who developed the idea of The Fugitive over a cup of coffee with Chinese baritone Shen Yang.

As they talked about the production, they realized that the central role of the man, who mourns for his lost love, connects with them, Zou says.
Busby & Associates Provide Topnotch Representation for Child Support and Divorce

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Busby & Associates is a renowned law firm based in Houston, Texas. The law firm has been praised many times because of its exceptional representation to their clients at affordable prices. The law firm offers legal assistance in cases pertaining divorce and child support. They also do cases related to consumer bankruptcy and family law. They have the top family lawyers in Houston, Texas who do advise their clients on how to calculate child support payments based on increased social security and federal income deductions and higher caps.While speaking about the costs of their services, one of their directors said, Child support funds should be used to help children living with their custodial parents. Individuals who receive child support services shouldn't expect automatic increases in the amount and need to file a petition with the family court for them to have this changed. Such approvals can only be done if it has been more than three years since the last modification, and the payers income has since changed.Busby & Associates offers free consultation to review divorce, marital agreement case, and child support or child custody. One may obtain this consultation in person or by telephone. Those asking about the legal effects of a specific document need to visit them to review the document. For one to file a case, a retainer fee would be required. Clients are assured that at any given time, they will find an attorney to attend to them.Giving an elaborate submission on their divorce support services, one of the attorneys had this to say, Ending your marital relationship will be a challenging and painful decision. We will guide you through this procedure such that your rights are protected. Similarly, your health and financial situation will also be discussed and considered in any counsel given. Please review our website for information on temporary orders, child custody, and just and right division of the marital estate.They carefully go through the finest of details related to their client's case so that they can be able to understand the type and scope of representation. Those looking for divorce attorneys in Houston () need to check on them since they even review a workbook that their clients fill out and ask questions about the relationship they had with their partners. The court procedure will be explained, and a strategy will be developed to accomplish the client's objectives as efficiently as possible.Busby & Associates is a top-notch legal firm that offers services in the areas of Family Law and Consumer Bankruptcy. The law firm offers discounted attorney fees and high quality professional legal services. Busby & Associates helps their clients know about wage garnishment Texas and other legal matters. They appeal to those looking for child support in Houston, TX () to count on them as they will represent them accordingly.Michael G. Busby Jr., attyPrincipal Office:Busby & Associates,Attorneys and Counselors at law2909 Hillcroft Suite 350,Houston, Texas 77057Phone: (713) 974-1151 1-800-DIVORCEFax: (713) 974-1181E-mail: consumerlaw@busby-lee.comWebsite: busby-lee.com
Global Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Market Key Challenges, Collaborations, Advanced Technologies and Developments 2016

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This report is a comprehensive inquiry into the scenario of the global Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) market. The research report presents an in depth analysis of the historical growth trajectory, current scenario, and future growth prospects of the global Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) market. It further evaluates the key strategies, product portfolio, and shares of the leading companies operating in the market.The study provides a framework of the global market for Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) in terms of applications, products, and key market areas. It projects the growth of the global Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) market in terms of volume and value during the forecast period of 2021. The report also highlights the key regions of the global Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) market and provides information on their current and historical shares in the market. The study further puts focus on the dynamics that are expected to drive or inhibit the growth of the global market for Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid). The global Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) market has been evaluated with regard to its respective forecast period and market segments. Each respective year within the desired timeline has been thoroughly assessed with regard to the market value of the products and regions. Both primary and secondary tools have been used to accomplish the aim of the study.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @The report presents a clear picture of the global Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) market by analyzing the competitive landscape of the market utilizing Porteras five forces analysis and the value chain analysis. An evaluation of the various research and development projects along with potential future investments has also been presented in the report. Statistics related to the growth of the various segments and regions in terms of revenue and expansion have also been provided in the study along with their position in the global market.Browse Complete Report with TOC @Table of ContentsChapter One Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Industry Overview1.1 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Definition1.1.1 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Product Pictures & Product Specifications1.2 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Classification & ApplicationChapter Two Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis2.1 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Raw Material & Equipments Supplier and Price Analysis2.2 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Labor & Other Cost Analysis2.3 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis2.4 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Manufacturing Process AnalysisChapter Three Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Technical Data and Manufacturing Plants Analysis3.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Capacity and Commercial Production Date3.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Manufacturing Plants Distribution3.3 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) R&D Status and Technology Sources3.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Raw Materials Sources AnalysisChapter Four Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Production by Regions, Technology and Applications4.1 2010-2016 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Production by Regions(such as US, EU, China and Japan etc)4.2 2010-2016 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Production by Product Type & Application4.3 2010-2016 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Price by key Manufacturers4.4 2010-2016 US & China Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Capacity Production Price Cost Production Value Analysis4.5 2010-2016 Europe and Japan Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Capacity Production Price Cost Production Value Analysis4.6 2010-2016 US and China Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Supply Import Export Consumption4.7 2010-2016 Europe and Japan Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Supply Import Export ConsumptionChapter Five Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Sales and Sales Revenue by Regions5.1 2010-2016 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Sales by Regions (such as US, EU, China & Japan etc)5.2 2010-2016 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Sales Revenue by Regions (such as US EU China Japan etc)5.3 2010-2016 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Sales Price by Regions (such as US EU China Japan etc)5.4 2010-2016 Thioctic Acid (Alpha Lipoic Acid) Demand by ApplicationsRead More @QYResearchReports.com is an unimpeachable source of market research data for clients that comprise acclaimed SMEs, Chinese companies, private equity firms, and MNCs. We provide market research reports on various categories such as Energy, Chemicals, Alternative and Green Energy, Manufacturing, Machinery, Pharmaceuticals and Materials, and Glass.QYResearchreportsContact Us1820 AvenueM Suite #1047Brooklyn, NY 11230United States+1-518-621-2074866-997-4948USA-Canada Toll freesales@qyresearchreports.com
Wireless Communication Technologies in Healthcare Market : Opportunities and Forecasts, 2016  2022

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Wireless communication is the transformation of information over a distance without the aid of wires, cables or any other form of electrical conductors. The distance of transmission can range from few meters to thousands of kilometers. In the healthcare industry, wireless communication is playing a vital role in the transformation of information; however, the technology is still at the nascent and is expected to have massive adoption in the foreseeable future. There is increasing demand in the healthcare industry to retrieve, store, share, and send data in a various format to various devices across a particular healthcare institution. Various consideration is required to be made while implementing wireless communication within a healthcare institutions such as systems capacity for transmitting voice, data, and video information as well as its reliability and coverage. Few of the wireless devices used across the healthcare institutions include laptops, tablets, personal digital assistants, and healthcare smart clothes that monitor heart rate and blood pressureRequest for Sample Copy of Report @Applications of Wireless Technologies in Healthcare IndustryHomecare and TelemedicineInventory ControlPharmaceutical Sales Force ManagementMedical and Diagnostic LaboratoryPatient MonitoringAn increasing number of the ageing population who requires continuous health monitoring is one of the factors which have triggered the concept of wireless technology driven human body and is the primary factor driving the adoption of wireless communication technologies in the healthcare industry. Examination of a human body can be achieved using a network of intelligent wireless medical devices sensors which may be attached to the body surface or integrated into the tissues. It enables doctors or nurses to predict and diagnose adverse events in advance. However, compatibility and interoperability issues across various healthcare device working on different communication technology are hampering the growth of the wireless communication technologies market.Type of wireless communication technology:Bluetooth:Bluetooth is the wireless technology used for exchanging data over the short distance using the UHF radio waves. This technology was invented by telecom equipment vendor Ericsson.Radio Frequency Identification (RFID):RFID is a wireless communication technology used for data transfer and identification of objects using electromagnetic waves. Healthcare industry is using RFID technology to adopt leaner supply chain practices associated with manufacturing to pare down cost and improve safety.Ultra Wide Band (UWB)UWB is a radio technology that uses very low energy level for short range and high bandwidth communication over a large portion of the radio spectrum. Healthcare systems can be significantly improved with the lower coast and higher quality of services by using ultra wideband technology.WLAN and WWAN:WLAN and WWAN are two types of wireless area networks that provide connectivity on the go. WLAN stands for wireless local area network, and it typically covers all small areas such as clinics. On the other hand, WWAN stands for wireless wide area networks that covers much larger area that is outside the limits of WLANWi-Fi and Li-FiWi-Fi is a communication technology which is leveraged in a variety of healthcare applications such as infusion pumps, oxygen monitoring devices, and smart beds. In the foreseeable future, Li-Fi might replace Wi-Fi in the healthcare applications as Wi-Fi technology always possess a threat of overlapping of two radio waves with different frequencies which may lead to an improper diagnosis of the patient.North America region represent largest market opportunity for wireless communication technologies in the healthcare market. The U.S. and Canada are spending a huge amount of money in healthcare IT to address chronic diseases. Smartphone and customized wireless healthcare solutions are acting as a catalyst for healthcare institutions to improve patient care in these countries.Request for Table of content @In Asia-Pacific region, healthcare providers are more focused on safe, quality, and equitable healthcare services in a cost-effective manner. In order to provide healthcare services to increasing chronic aging population, healthcare organizations are improving their infrastructure by deploying various wireless communication technology based infrastructure.The IT spending in healthcare on the rise in the European region. Hospitals are increasingly adopting wireless infrastructure to co-ordinate day-to-day activities, reduce human errors, limit operational costs, and stay ahead in terms of offering customer centric quality service. In healthcare IT technology providers increasingly expanding their business in these regions. Growing private healthcare infrastructure and increasing government investments is driving the adoption of wireless infrastructure in the healthcare sector of Latin America and the Middle East and Africa regions.Allscripts Healthcare Solutions, Inc., Extreme Networks Inc., Cerner Corporation, Cisco Systems, Inc., and GE Healthcare are some of the leading player dealing with global wireless communication technologies in the healthcare industry.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.Each PMR Syndicated Research report covers a different sector - such as pharmaceuticals, chemical, energy, food & beverages, semiconductors, med-devices, consumer goods and technology. These reports provide in-depth analysis and deep segmentation to possible micro levels. With a wider scope and stratified research methodology, our syndicated reports strive to serve clients and satisfy their overall research requirement.For information regarding permissions, contact:Persistence Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700 Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Global Glycinates Market: Global Trends, Analysis and Forecast 2026

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Glycinates, also known as glycine chelates, are chemicals with good skin compatibility and foaming properties.These minerals are prepared with the help of amino acid and other high-quality chemicals in order to ensure the best quality of glycinates. Demand for glycinates is high among consumers due to their accurate composition, health benefits, and effectiveness. Glycinates are used in farming and agriculture industries to feed chicken and cattle in order to provide important nutrients for their growth. There are several types of glycinates formed after different chemical treatments such as protein digest-mineral glycinates, zinc glycinates, manganese glycinates, magnesium glycinates, copper glycinates, calcium glycinates, boron glycinates, cobalt glycinates, selenium glycinates, chromium glycinates, iodine glycinates, and molybdenum glycinates.Request for Sample Report:Some of the major properties of glycinates that are useful in its use as feed additives include improvement in growth and feed conversion, improvement in less fat meat, and enhancement in muscle and tissue growth and fertility.Consumption of the selenium glycinate may increase the level of vitamin E in the body.Selenium deficiency may lead to white muscle disease. Chromium glycinate is a mineral used to improve growth rate and immune response in stressed cattle. Molybdenum glycinate is a nutritional animal feed supplement used to treat molybdenum deficiency in animals. Glycinates are sometimes used in the production of wine, as they not only contain yeast but also provide desired nutrients.Glycinate supply animal with a trace element and environment benefits from less excreted trace elements due to their high bioavailability. Moreover, some of their properties including high flow ability, miscibility, and water solubility drive the market for glycinates. In addition, they are odorless and user-friendly, as the particles do not raise dust. Glycinatesare gaining popularity due to their high efficiency. Due to their ability to improve mildness and sensor properties in a body wash, it is used in various cosmetics, thus increasing demand for glycinates.Other properties such as relatively-high availability of micronutrients and higher yield of crops compared to common synthetic chelates are driving growth of the glycinates market. However, the current legislations have lowered the use of inorganic minerals in nutritional needs, thus restraining growth of this market. Moreover, most of the metal glycinates available in the market are not in their original forms but are mixtures of metal glycine sulphates containing a high concentration of SO4.Europe leads the global glycinates market in terms of production and it has developed its own range of highly-pure and consistent metal bis-glycinate, which is a type of glycinates. Due to rise in per-capita income and population in countries such as India and China, Asia Pacific is leading the market for glycinates, followed by Europe. Increasing use of glycinates in cosmetics products has increased its demand in Europe and North America.Request for Table of content:Some of the key players operating in the glycinates market includeBASF SE, Shanghai Greenearth Chemicals Co.,Ltd., Pinnacle Bioceuticals LLP and Glenmark Generics, Ltd.,PerfectIn PTFE Solution CO., LTD., China Skyrun Industrial CO., LTD., Guangzhou Quanto Chemical Co.,Ltd. and BALAJIAMINES, LTD.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Bright future for Africa Updated: 2016-10-28 07:25 By Andrew Moody in Guangzhou(China Daily Europe)

China and World Bank unite in their commitment to helping continent thrive in years ahead

A somewhat rainy Guangzhou, a city with historic trading ties to Africa, was the venue for a major conference on investment in the emerging continent.

Leaders and representatives from 38 African countries, including South African President Jacob Zuma, Chinese Vice-Premier Ma Kai, World Bank executives and academics, descended on the city's White Swan Hotel for the 2nd Investing in Africa Forum.

The two-day meeting - as with the first forum in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, last year - was seen by many as another key staging post in the evolution of China's relationship with Africa.

The 2nd Investing in Africa Forum opens in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, on Sept 7. More than 300 leaders and representatives from 38 African countries, including South African President Jacob Zuma, Chinese Vice-Premier Ma Kai, World Bank executives and academics, took part. Liang Xu / Xinhua

As China's trade with the continent has increased from $10 billion in 2000, on course for $400 billion by 2020, when its investment stock is also predicted to be $100 billion, the world's second-largest economy has been seen by some as a challenge to the old order.

This was seen as the Washington Consensus, under which institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, had imposed their prescriptive recipe of encouraging more private sector development on the continent since the 1990s.

The forum - organized by the Guangdong government, China Development Bank and the World Bank Group - was a marker of the closer cooperation between China and the Washington international financial institution on African development issues.

Haleh Bridi, director of partnerships and external communications for the Africa Region at the World Bank, said at the conclusion of the forum that it was important now for China and the World Bank to work together.

"China is one of the biggest trading partners and one of the biggest investors in Africa, as well as a major aid provider. Similarly we, through our International Finance Corporation arm, are also a large investor, as well as a major aid provider and source of guidance to African countries. Given that, it is surely natural we would want to work together and organize a triangular partnership with African countries."

The forum, which will hold its next meeting in Dhaka, Senegal, next year, shared some of the agenda of the Forum on China Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), which held its second summit in Johannesburg in December.

It was there that Chinese President Xi Jinping announced a tripling of aid to the continent to $60 billion, which many saw as the world's second-largest economy reaffirming its commitment to the continent.

Liang Huijiang, director-general of the international finance department at China Development Bank, the China policy bank with a major role in Africa, says it is important to work with the World Bank in three key areas.

These are producing a joint development plan for upgrading the African economy, fostering industrialization and providing financial support and expertise.

The new cooperation will be combined with a doubling of the resources available to the CDB's China Africa Development Fund to $10 billion and increasing loans to African small and medium-sized enterprises from $1 billion to $6 billion.

"We are going to work closely with the World Bank to support the industrialization of Africa," he says.

Okechukwu Enelamah, Nigeria's minister of industry, trade and investment and a speaker at the forum, says he welcomes the cooperation of all parties in African development.

He believes China has played a crucial role on the continent, particularly over the past 15 years.

"What it has done has been more important than any other country. It has been very committed to working with us, particularly in the infrastructure space, and if you look at a lot of the high-profile infrastructure projects we are doing, quite a lot of them have Chinese content, if not entirely financed by Chinese partners."

Guang Zhe Chen, senior director of Water Global Practice at World Bank Group, also believes it is important for his institution and China to work together.

He says China's relationship with the continent has often been unfairly criticized, particularly in the Western media.

He believes this was particularly the case in relation to Chinese companies importing Chinese labor to work on infrastructure projects and being reluctant to recruit and train local Africans.

"I think this was a misconception. Chinese private enterprises and state-owned enterprises all operate on a commercial basis. If they could find skilled or semi-skilled workers in the local environment they would, since the local workers would be a seventh or an eighth the equivalent cost here," he says.

"Where Chinese enterprises have been working in Africa for a long time, like one state-owned enterprise I know which has been operating in Ethiopia for 25 years, they train local workers."

"Some of the media were exaggerating this. Yes, it was happening, but it is not for profit reasons. The Chinese companies were doing it simply out of necessity."

One of the key issues at the forum was what development model Africa should pursue.

Some have argued that it should skip the manufacturing stage and move directly from primary industries like agriculture and mining straight to services, which would suit its young and increasingly educated demographic.

This would be completely contrary to China becoming the workshop of the world in the 1990s after first reforming its agricultural base.

Vera Songwe, regional director for western and central Africa for International Finance Corp, the World Bank Group's investment arm, insists it has to develop both manufacturing and services.

"Africa is 1.1 billion people, and the idea you can put 1.1 billion people to work without mass manufacturing is not credible. I think right now people talk about services because that is what is happening faster. The service sector is a much larger part of GDP in most countries than manufacturing."

Enelamah, the Nigerian industry minister, believes that manufacturing is also vital.

"I think the argument we can go straight to services is flawed. Manufacturing is key because it provides jobs, brings in foreign exchange and is a way of copying and transferring knowledge. You don't have to be inventive, and a large part of our population does not have the high level of skills needed for services."

He says he argues this despite Nigeria being home to Nollywood, the third-largest film industry in the world after Hollywood and Bollywood.

"We supply movies to the whole of Africa and the black diaspora, and it's an example of why services are also important. Our service sector provided balance to the economy when we were hit by the commodity price recession."

One of the focuses of the forum was whether Africa could copy China's model of building industrial parks and enterprises like the Special Economic Zones along China's southern and eastern coasts that kickstarted development in the 1980s.

There is one major example of it being replicated in Africa: China's Eastern Industrial Park development just outside Addis Ababa, which is home to Huajian, the shoe manufacturer, one of the most successful examples of Chinese manufacturing on the continent.

Abdoulaye Magassouba, minister of mining in Guinea, believes this is easier said than done.

"It is not about copying, per se. It is about learning about what they have done and applying it to our circumstances. It is no good just setting up something and calling it an industrial zone. This will not bring success. You need a comprehensive approach to make sure the park has all the right infrastructure, not just power but the right management as well."

He believes there is no reason why Africa could not be a major manufacturing center within a matter of decades.

"Asia did it in about 30 or 40 years. There is no reason why Africa should not be able to do it. We have a lot of potential, with all this human capital, much of it young and dynamic, and all these natural resources as well."

The forum also focused on the role of vocational training in developing the skilled workforce necessary for manufacturing.

Richard Jabo, executive director of the Uganda Free Zones Authority, based in Kampala, believes it is vital.

"Vocational training is key to providing proper quality and sustainable jobs. You need skilled workers to transform society in the longer term," he says.

He argues that industrial parks also have a role to play in delivering vocational training.

"You are close to the manufacturing unit, and you can do it on-site and you have this advantage of being closer to industry," he says.

Chen at the World Bank dismisses those who argue that Africans do not have the same work ethic as Asians and cannot adapt easily to manufacturing jobs.

"The first 20 to 30 years of the industrialization process in Guangdong was about turning a lot of rural migrants into workers. Typically, they had just a primary school background and you had to give them skills," he says.

"We now have a problem with vocational training in China. With the one-child policy, people don't want their kid to be a blue-collar worker. So, as a result, China's economy is having to become more service-sector orientated."

Where both Chinese investment and the World Bank have been playing a major role in the continent has been in building infrastructure.

Africa has a huge deficit in all aspects of infrastructure, from power capacity, with some of the most expensive electricity in the world, to a lack of highways, with trade between neighboring countries and region sometimes almost impossible.

Many places remain in desperate need of modern ports, airports and basic facilities.

It is estimated by the World Bank that lack of infrastructure wipes up to 4 percent off the continent's GDP.

Tony Oteng-Gyasi, managing director of Tropical Cable and Conductor, based in Tema, Ghana, believes Africa can go nowhere without proper infrastructure.

"Infrastructure is critical. Without it there can be virtually no development," he says.

He believes the Chinese have been far more effective in delivering infrastructure projects than the World Bank and other institutions.

Sino Hydro built Bui Dam, a 400-megawatt hydroelectric project that began operating in 2013, and took just four years to do it.

"It was completed in record time with Chinese money. It had been on the drawing board since the 1950s, but the Chinese came here and within months the project was off the ground," he says

"The Chinese have a much faster decision-making process and I think that is a major difference (between them and the World Bank)."

"Their projects always come with finance and contractors, and fewer people are involved in the final decision as to whether a project goes ahead."

Joseph Onjala, senior research fellow at the University of Nairobi, agrees that the Chinese have had an impact on infrastructure, particularly on new roads easing congestion in the often gridlocked city where he is based.

"The problem is that a lot of it is grand and nice looking but when you go back five or 10 years later you find it not very well maintained," he says.

"Some the roads are not well designed, even those funded by the World Bank and other agencies. They are meant as bypasses, but eventually the traffic finds its way back into the city center."

A number of other initiatives were launched at the forum, including the Investing in Africa Think Tank Alliance aimed at fostering the intellectual resources of the CDB's Research Academy and the World Bank.

"Knowledge is a very important part of this partnership, taking it beyond just investment," adds Bridi from the World Bank.

"I hope it will underpin some of the investments with research, so hopefully making these investments better. We would also like to use the knowledge and experience of the Chinese academic think tank to strengthen the research of African universities in this area."

Jiang Haiyan, deputy secretary-general of the Guangdong government, said at the final news briefing that the forum provided the opportunity to link with the World Bank and coordinate with wider initiatives such as China's Belt and Road Initiative and the development agenda set by both FOCAC and the G20 summit in Hangzhou in September.

"A new consensus has been reached for cooperation. Through experience sharing and we must take advantage also of the momentum created by these other major initiatives," she says.

andrewmoody@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 10/28/2016 page1)
Global Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Industry Summary and Development Trends 2016

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Global Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Industry 2016 Market Overview, Size, Share, Trends, Analysis, Technology, Applications, Growth, Market Status, Demands, Insights, Development, Research and Forecast 2016-2020.The research report on the global Buprenorphine Hydrochloride market provides an in-depth analysis of the industry, taking into consideration the historical development trajectory and its current and projected size. The future projections of the global Buprenorphine Hydrochloride market are provided for the period from Buprenorphine Hydrochloride to Buprenorphine Hydrochloride. Furthermore, the report analyzes factors that drive and restrain the growth of the Buprenorphine Hydrochloride market. The report also discusses prevailing market trends, prospective growth opportunities, and key strategies resulting in the growing demand for Buprenorphine Hydrochloride.The research methodology used includes primary and secondary research. While the primary research comprises the bulk of research efforts by analysts, secondary research includes referring to company websites, annual and financial reports, industry trade journals and other technical journals, statistical databases, and news specific to companies operating in the market.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @The report studies the effect of Porters five forces on the growth of the market. This includes, bargaining power of suppliers, bargaining power of buyers, threat of new entrants, threat from substitutes, and degree of competition. The report assesses the impact of various regulations on the market. Tables, charts, figures, and statistics have been used wherever required.The study provides the market estimates and forecasts for all the segments covered. In addition to this, it gives the market positioning of key players in the global Buprenorphine Hydrochloride market. Competitive strategies adopted by leading players are included so as to give enterprises a clear idea on how to expand their business and earn profits. The business and financial overview of each of the companies profiled in the report are included. Additionally, the recent developments by key players are also included. The report also gives information regarding collaborations, mergers, and partnerships between companies.Browse Complete Report with TOC @Table of ContentsChapter One Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Industry Overview1.1 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Definition1.1.1 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Product Pictures & Product Specifications1.2 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Classification & ApplicationChapter Two Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis2.1 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Raw Material & Equipments Supplier and Price Analysis2.2 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Labor & Other Cost Analysis2.3 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis2.4 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Manufacturing Process AnalysisChapter Three Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Technical Data and Manufacturing Plants Analysis3.1 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Capacity and Commercial Production Date3.2 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Manufacturing Plants Distribution3.3 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Buprenorphine Hydrochloride R&D Status and Technology Sources3.4 2016 Global Key Manufacturers Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Raw Materials Sources AnalysisChapter Four Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Production by Regions, Technology and Applications4.1 2010-2016 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Production by Regions(such as US, EU, China and Japan etc)4.2 2010-2016 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Production by Product Type & Application4.3 2010-2016 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Price by key Manufacturers4.4 2010-2016 US & China Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Capacity Production Price Cost Production Value Analysis4.5 2010-2016 Europe and Japan Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Capacity Production Price Cost Production Value Analysis4.6 2010-2016 US and China Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Supply Import Export Consumption4.7 2010-2016 Europe and Japan Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Supply Import Export ConsumptionChapter Five Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Sales and Sales Revenue by Regions5.1 2010-2016 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Sales by Regions (such as US, EU, China & Japan etc)5.2 2010-2016 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Sales Revenue by Regions (such as US EU China Japan etc)5.3 2010-2016 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Sales Price by Regions (such as US EU China Japan etc)5.4 2010-2016 Buprenorphine Hydrochloride Demand by ApplicationsRead More @About UsQYReseachReports.com delivers the latest strategic market intelligence to build a successful business footprint in China. Our syndicated and customized research reports provide companies with vital background information of the market and in-depth analysis on the Chinese trade and investment framework, which directly affects their business operations. Reports from QYReseachReports.com feature valuable recommendations on how to navigate in the extremely unpredictable yet highly attractive Chinese market.Contact Us1820 AvenueM Suite #1047Brooklyn, NY 11230United StatesToll Free: 866-997-4948 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Web:Email: sales@qyresearchreports.com
Global Paraxylene (PX) Market: Information, Figures and Analytical Insights by 2021

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http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/3889

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Paraxylene, also known as PX or P-Xylene, is an aromatic hydrocarbon compound, derived particularly from benzene. Paraxylene is a colorless, toxic, sweet-smelling, and highly flammable chemical at room temperature . It is found naturally in petroleum and coal tar. Paraxylene or P-Xylene is an isomer of xylene compound, derived from benzene. Some of the other isomers of xylene include O-xylene and M-xylene. Paraxylene finds its largest application in large-scale manufacturing of terephthalic acid for polyester; also known as parylene. The production process of paraxylene is one of the most complicated among all the chemicals; simple crystallization of the xylene normally led to complex purification process owing to the formation of eutectic mixtures . It is manufactured by catalytic reforming of naptha, a petroleum derivative, and separated in a series of adsorption or crystallization, distillation, and reaction processes from ethyl benzene, o-xylene, and m-xylene. The melting point of Paraxylene is highest among other isomers of xylene.Request for Sample Report:Based on end-user application, the global paraxylene market can be broadly categorized as dimethyl terephthalate (DMT), purified terephthalic acid (PTA), dibutyl phathalate xylene (Di-PX), and others. PTA accounted for the largest share in the paraxylene market in 2013 owing to their increased use in the polyester chain. On the other hand, DMT was the fasted-growing segment in 2013.In recent years, the demand-supply gap in the paraxylene market broadened owing to increasing application of paraxylene in various other nontraditional applications such as PET bottles. However, the production remains tight with limited number of manufacturers; owing to complicated manufacturing process associated with the paraxylene . Increasing use of PTA in polyester manufacturing is the most-dominant driver of the global paraxylene market. More than two-third of the total Paraxylene production was used in manufacturing pollster in 2013. Moreover, the rising demand for PET bottle resin due to increasing use of PET in soft drink and mineral water bottles is further boosting the paraxylene market.Increasing use of bio-based paraxylene in bioplastics PET bottles (Bio-PET) and other bioplastics applications such as catering utensils is creating new opportunities for the Paraxylene market.Asia Pacific is the largest market for Paraxylene followed by Europe and North America. Asia Pacific and RoW (including Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa) are two of the fasted-growing Paraxylene markets, which witnessed an above-average growth in recent years. Country wise , China, the U.S., and India are some of the largest regional markets for paraxylene. China held the largest market share in 2013 in terms of regional consumption of paraxylene. The size of the peracetic acid market is relatively low in the RoW region. However, it is expected to witness healthy growth throughout the forecasted period, especially in petroleum-rich countries of the Middle East.Request for Table of content:Some of the major companies operating in the global Paraxylene (Px) market include British Petroleum (BP), JX Nippon Oil & Energy, Reliance Industries, ExxonMobil, BASF, Braskem, Chevron Phillips Chemical, Dragon Aromatics, Fujian Refining & Petrochemical, Toray Industries, Pemex, Kuwait Paraxylene Production, and Samsung Total Petrochemicals.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Elder Care Services Market Would Register a Healthy Growth Rate During the Forecast 2020

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Elder care service, also known as elderly care service, is the fulfillment of the special needs and requirements that are unique for older people. Major services assisted to older people include home care services, institutional care, adult day care, nursing home services, long term care and hospice care.Request Sample Report @The global elder care services market is categorized based on various types of services. The market has been segmented into adult day care, home care and institutional care. Adult day care is a planned program of activities designed to promote elder care though social and health-related services. It provides services through adult day care centers. Home care services are provided by close family members. Family members may include children, spouse, grandchildren and relatives. Institutional care is a type of treatment provided by institutes which includes hospitals and government social care centers.In terms of geographic, North America and Europe dominates the global elder care services market. This is due to rising aging population and high adoption rates of elder care services in these regions. The U.S. represents the largest market for elder care services followed by Canada in North America. In Europe, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the U.K. holds major share of elder care services market. However, Asia is expected to show high growth rates in the next five years in global elder care services. China and India are expected to be the fastest growing elder care services markets in Asia.In recent time, rising number of geriatric people is key driver for the global elder care services market. In addition, chronic illnesses among aged people and increased life expectancy have also fueled the growth of global elder care services market. Moreover, numerous advantages of these services have increased the adoption rates of elder care services. For instance, adult day care services offer numerous advantages, such as living at home and skilled nursing care. These types of advantages are also contributing in growth of the global elder care services market. However, cost affordability and cultural traditions are some of the major challenges for the global elder care services market.Request Table of content (TOC) @Some of the major companies operating in the global elder care services market are Extendicare, Inc., Brookdale Senior Living, Inc., Genesis HealthCare Corp., GGNSC Holdings, Gentiva Health Services, Inc., Kindred Healthcare, Inc., Home Instead Senior Care, Inc., Skilled Healthcare Group, Inc. and Senior Care Centers of America.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Intelligent Energy Storage Systems Market is Expected to Generate Huge Profits by 2021

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Power industry experts around the world are now realizing the increasing importance of intelligent energy storage systems. With the advancement in technology, innovation in manufacturing techniques and various financial models launched such as Power Efficiency Agreement (PEA) are proving to be very cost effective and also reducing greenhouse gas emissions and environmental degradation.Request for Sample Copy of Report @An intelligent energy storage system allows a consumer to optimize the usage of their energy storage units. The intelligent energy storage system accepts inputs from various devices and the users can control and synchronize all the units as one large storage system. Also, allowing each energy unit to perform its own task so that multiple value streams are generated for the customers.Fall in the batteries and other component price are the key factors allowing the intelligent energy storage system to become an economic alternative for power storage to the traditional practices. Distributed energy storage systems are making a significant impact on the market due to flexibility in their models. New regulations in US such as Californias landmark AB 2514 which highlights the lower emissions with greater efficiency of today's intelligent energy storage solutions. Also state government incentives in the developing economies along with rising Peak power demand charges are some key factors driving the intelligent energy storage system market.Intelligent energy storage systems market is broadly classified on the basis of application as:Commercial StorageResidential StorageIndustrial storageGrid ScaleIntelligent energy storage systems market is broadly classified on the basis of technology as:Flow BatteriesLithium IonAdvanced Lead Acid BatteriesRequest for Table of content @With rapid technological advancement and wide acceptance of new power industry regulations, intelligent energy storage systems market is expected to increase its market share in North America followed by Europe and APAC, during the forecast period. In US the market for intelligent energy storage systems is expected to grow tenfold by 2020 thereby creating a significant opportunity for this market. Some of the key market players in global bariatric surgery devices market are ABB, Alevo, Ampard, Azeti Networks, Beacon Power, CODA Energy, Green Charge Networks, NEC Energy Solutions.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.Each PMR Syndicated Research report covers a different sector - such as pharmaceuticals, chemical, energy, food & beverages, semiconductors, med-devices, consumer goods and technology. These reports provide in-depth analysis and deep segmentation to possible micro levels. With a wider scope and stratified research methodology, our syndicated reports strive to serve clients and satisfy their overall research requirement.For information regarding permissions, contact:Persistence Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700 Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Maritime Security Market is Considered as One of the Rapidly Growing Dynamic Markets

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Security is one of the major concerns for the national and state governments globally. Maritime security is one of the majorly used security system involved in the prevention from intentional damage through sabotage, subversion or terrorism. Maritime security system is essential for the protection of nations security. Recently, is has become much important for every country to defend against increasing maritime threats such as terrorist threats, environmental destruction, illegal seaborne immigration and transnational criminal and piracy threats. Crime against ship is one of the biggest concerns for the maritime security professional operating the system.Request for Sample Copy of Report @Global maritime security market can be bifurcated into port and critical infrastructure security, vessel security, and coastal surveillance. Some of the technologies used in the maritime security are surveillance and tracking, weather monitoring, access control, screening and scanning, geographic information system (GIS) and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA). Surveillance and tracking technology (underwater surveillance, video surveillance, automatic identification system (AIS)) has the largest market share for maritime security system.In 2013, North America has the largest market share for maritime security system, followed by Europe and Asia-Pacific. However, Asia Pacific region is expected to become the largest market for maritime security system by 2020. Asia Pacific market is expected to witness highest growth rate in coming future. Emerging markets of Asia Pacific such as China and India are expected to boost the Asian maritime security market.Increasing global sea trade is driving the global maritime security market. Additionally, increasing number of terrorist threats, rising awareness regarding the need for better security system, regulations in favor of necessitating security standards is expected to drive the maritime security market especially in the coastal region. Pirates and terrorists use innovative technology which can cause serious damage to the ships, as well as a nations security. Technological advancement and development of integrated security solutions is expected to provide growth opportunity for the global players to establish themselves in the emerging markets of Asian region.Request for Table of content @Global maritime security market is dominated by multinational companies. However, there are some small manufacturers of gas masks operation in the market, but at regional level. Some of the major companies operating at the global maritime security market are SAAB Group, Thales Group, Sonardyne International Ltd., Bae Systems Inc., Elbit Systems Ltd., Northrop Grumman Corporation, Telecommunication Systems, Inc., Westminster Group, Honeywell International Inc. and Harris Corporation.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.Each PMR Syndicated Research report covers a different sector - such as pharmaceuticals, chemical, energy, food & beverages, semiconductors, med-devices, consumer goods and technology. These reports provide in-depth analysis and deep segmentation to possible micro levels. With a wider scope and stratified research methodology, our syndicated reports strive to serve clients and satisfy their overall research requirement.For information regarding permissions, contact:Persistence Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700 Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Specialty Actives in Personal Care Market Explores New Growth Opportunities By 2020

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Personal care products are composed of specialty ingredients. Specialty ingredients are classified into inactive ingredients and active ingredients. Inactive ingredients include preservatives, surfactants, polymers and colorants. Active ingredients comprise conditioning agents, UV ingredients and anti-aging materials.Request Sample Report @The global specialty actives in personal care market is segmented into biotechnology products, botanicals, marine ingredients, enzymes and co-enzymes and proteins and peptides. The biotechnology product segment includes hyaluronic acid and ceramides. The botanical segment is further sub-segmented into unsubstantiated extract and substantiated actives. Marine ingredients comprise algae extracts and chitosan. The protein and peptide segment is segmented into botanical, biological and synthetic peptides.Based on application, the global specialty actives in personal care market is categorized into anti-aging, anti-acne, anti-inflammatory, slimming, sun protection and skin whitening ingredients.In terms of geographic, North America and Europe dominates the global specialty actives in personal care market. The U.S. represents the largest market for specialty actives in personal care followed by Canada in North America. In Europe, France, Germany, Spain, Italy and the U.K. holds major share of specialty actives in personal care market. However, Asia is expected to show high growth rates in the next five years in global specialty actives in personal care market due to rapid urbanization in the region. In addition, availability of international personal care brands has also fueled the growth of specialty actives in personal care market in Asia. Japan, China and India are expected to be the fastest growing specialty actives in personal care markets in Asia.In recent time, rising disposable income to spend on personal care and increasing number of skin specialists are some of the major drivers for the global specialty actives in personal care market. In addition, improving life styles and growing society pressures of modern living are also contributing in the growth of global specialty actives in personal care market. However, complications associated with the usage of personal care products and regulatory hurdles are some of the major restraints for the global specialty actives in personal care market. In addition, high R&D investment in manufacturing of active ingredients is also hampering the growth of global specialty active ingredients in personal care market.Request Table of content (TOC) @Some of the major companies operating in the global specialty actives in personal care market are Johnson & Johnson, Samsung, Pfizer and P&G.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Multilayer Ceramic Capacitor (MLCC) Market Expand Their Businesses With New Investments by 2021

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Ceramic capacitor is endowed with the alternate layers of ceramic and metal. The ceramic material acts as a dielectric. Demand for these ceramic capacitor is rising owning to increasing usage in approximately all the electronics devices. The growth of new designs of MLCCs with improved bypassing, higher capacitances, decoupling and filtering capabilities is estimated to increase ceramic usage. MLCC designs results are ensuring ever thinner layers: even less than one micron thick. With this technological advancement, MLCCs are not only smaller in size, but have better charge capacity owning to the increased number of layers. The industry trend in the direction of finer layers is creating the role of filtration more critical for MLCC manufacture.Request for Sample Copy of Report @MLCC are used in several applications such as AC-AC and DC-DC converters and for EMI suppression. Ceramic capacitors of particular styles and shapes are used for RFI/EMI suppression and as power capacitors in larger dimensions for transmitters. The multilayer ceramic capacitor market is expected to show the double digit growth at a CAGR during forecast period.The major key factor that contributes to growth of this market is the increasing demand for multilayer ceramic capacitor in the electronics industry. The demand for MLCC is rising in the electronics industry with continuous increase in requirement of high-specification electronic gadgets. The demand for MLCC is majorly created by computers, televisions, mobile phones and other consumer electronics. The companies of high-end electronic devices and equipment have increased the use of MLCCs in electronic device. The multilayer ceramic capacitor has also been witnessing a constant decline in prices. However, the inherent drawback of ceramic capacitor is MLCC has ceramic as dielectric material that is flat to physical damage and may easily get cracked.The MLCCs should be handled with utmost care; otherwise the lifetime of MLCCs would get shorten. The different geographical regions for this market include North America, Europe, Asia-pacific and Rest of the World. The APAC region is the key manufacturing land for electronic device manufacturers. The constant demand for MLCCs in Asia Pacific has led to the appearance of manufacturers from several Asian countries such as South Korea, Taiwan and China. Manufacturers from Asian countries are increasing the production with the improved technologies for production of MLCCs. Moreover, these Asian companies offer MLCCs at comparatively low cost than the companies from other countries. Development and Market size trends of main MLCC application fields in China include computers, mobile phones and TV.Request for Table of content @Some of the major vendors for multilayer ceramic capacitor are Murata Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Taiyo Yuden Co. Ltd., Fenghua Advanced Technology, Murata, Kyocera, YAGEO, Walsin Technology Corp., Chaozhou Three-Circle and Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co. Ltd. Samsung Electro-Mechanics and Murata stress the Chinese market than other markets. Samsung Electro-Mechanics set up four MLCC production plants in Tianjin, Suzhou and Dongguan to generate almost all the types of products. Murata has already established plants in Wuxi and Beijing and its product portfolio covers a wide range.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.Each PMR Syndicated Research report covers a different sector - such as pharmaceuticals, chemical, energy, food & beverages, semiconductors, med-devices, consumer goods and technology. These reports provide in-depth analysis and deep segmentation to possible micro levels. With a wider scope and stratified research methodology, our syndicated reports strive to serve clients and satisfy their overall research requirement.For information regarding permissions, contact:Persistence Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700 Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Protection Films for Medical Devices Market: Dynamics, Segments, Size and Demand to 2015 to 2021

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A medical device refers to an instrument, equipment, implant, or apparatus used to diagnose, prevent, or treat diseases through a physical process. A protection film helps prevent external influences from entering medical devices and adversely affecting them. Protection films, such as thermoplastic polyurethane, offer strong resistance towards water, fungus, and abrasion. Traditionally, the healthcare industry used metal and glass packaging components to protect medical devices from the outside environment. Currently, the industry relies on high-barrier plastic films, which are composed of single polymers, laminations, metalized films, and various specialized coatings for better product protection. Over the last decade, paper was the most commonly used material for medical device packaging. Currently, the use of plastic films has increased significantly.Request for Sample Report:Protection films for medical devices can be segmented by type into: single films, laminations, and coextrusions films. On the basis of material of construction, protection films are classified as PVC, low-density polyethylene, polyethylene-cellophane, thermoplastic polyurethane, and others. On the basis of application, protection films for medical devices are classified as:surgical and medical instruments, ophthalmic devices, dental devices, and others.North America is the largest market for protection films for medical devices, followed by Europe and Asia-Pacific. In terms of volume, Asia-Pacific is expected to be the fastest growing market. China and India hold the key for future market trends in protection films for the medical devices market owing to large population base and growing health care industry in these countries.Some of the major drivers of protection films for the medical device market include stellar growth of healthcare industry, adherence to regulatory standards, and increased technology adoption in protection films. Globally, governments are spending more money to provide better healthcare services. For instance, the U.S. has the highest per capita healthcare spending in the world. In 2011, the U.S. per capita healthcare spending was 17.9% of its GDP or USD 8,362. Overall, healthcare spending in the U.S is growing at a rapid rate. Overall healthcare spending stood at USD 3 trillion in 2012, which rose to USD3.8 trillion in 2014. Similarly, other developed countries such as France, Germany, and Japan are also increasing spending on healthcare. Healthcare spending is also rising among developing countries such as India and China, which are focusing on providing better healthcare services to their large population bases. This may led to an increase in the medical devices market, which, in turn, is expected to drive the market for protection films for medical devices.Request for Table of content:Some of the major companies operating in this market include DUNMORE Corporation, UFP Technologies, Inc., Argotec LLC, Specialty Coating Systems, Inc., The 3M Company, Berry Plastics Corporation, E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corporation, Chesapeake Limited, Klockner Pentaplast Group, Clondalkin Group Holdings B.V., Sigma Medical Supplies Corp., SteriPack Group, Oliver Products Company, and Amcor Limited.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Respiratory Care Devices Market : Impact of Existing and Emerging Market 2015 - 2021

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http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/3683

Respiratory care devices are the branch of medical devices focused on the treatment, management, control, diagnostic evaluation, and care of patients with abnormality in cardiopulmonary system. The devices are used in chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD), a degenerative lung diseases which primarily includes chronic bronchitis, and emphysema. The market is witnessing decent growth as COPD is one of the leading causes of death globally. By 2020, COPD is expected to be the fifth leading cause of death globally.Request Sample Report @The global respiratory care devices market is segmented on the basis of products and end users. Respiratory care devices products further segmented into diagnostic devices, therapeutic devices, and monitoring devices. Respiratory care diagnostic devices subcategorized into spirometers, polysomnography devices for sleep studies, and peak flow meters. The therapeutic devices segment is further divided into humidifiers, positive airway pressure (PAP) devices, nebulizers, and oxygen concentrators, inhalers, reusable resuscitators, ventilators, nitric oxide delivery units, masks, and oxygen hoods. The monitoring devices segment is categorized into pulse oximeters, gas analyzers, and capnographs. Based on end users, global respiratory care devices market further segmented into hospitals and home care. Geographically, the market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, Middle East, and Africa, and Rest of the World. In product segment, respiratory therapeutic devices market accounted for largest share globally in 2014. Major driving factors for therapeutic devices market was increasing adoption to the various devices such as humidifiers, nebulizers, and oxygen concentrators due to increasing prevalence of respiratory diseases, and rising geriatric population. Hospitals respiratory care device market was major market as compared to home care due to financial capabilities of hospitals to purchase high cost devices is more. North America accounted the largest share of the market followed by Europe due to highly developed health care infrastructure, large pool of respiratory disease patients due to lifestyle such as smoking and tobacco habits, and availability of trained personnel to operate the advanced respiratory devices. However, Asia Pacific is expected to grow at the highest rate owing to increasing per capita income, and gradually developing health care infrastructure.Major driving factors for the global respiratory care devices market are rise in number of chronic pulmonary obstructive diseased patients, and continuous surge in numbers due to changing life style and environment such as increasing pollution level and smokers, rising geriatric population, new launching of the product coupled with strong pipeline of the product. In addition to that rise in demand for home care respiratory devices. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 16 million population in America were living with a diseases caused by smoking such as lung diseases, COPD, heart diseases, and cancer in 2014. Additionally, rising geriatric population is a major cause of driving the market. According to World Health Organization (WHO), more than 2 billion population will be aged 60 and older by 2050. However, lack of awareness in developing region, and some of the harmful effects of respiratory devices on neonates can restraint the market growth. Additionally, excise tax on devices by some countries would expect to impact the market negatively.Request Table of content (TOC) @Key players in the global respiratory care devices market are Philips Healthcare (Netherlands), Masimo Corporation (U.S.), Fisher and Paykel Healthcare Limited (New Zealand), ResMed, Inc. (U.S.), Covidien plc (Ireland), and CareFusion Corporation (U.S.).About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Adiponitrile Market: Outlook Continues to Remain Positive by 2015 to 2021

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Adiponitrile or hexanedinitrile is a colorless organic liquid compound. It finds its major application as a precursor for polymer nylon 6-6 which is known for its high mechanical strength and hence finds an array of applications including conveyor belts, carpet fibers, and electro-insulating elements amongst others. Adiponitrile also finds its application, though to a much smaller extent as an intermediate for synthesis of corrosion inhibitors and rubber accelerators. The major market for adiponitrile is governed by its application in Nylon6-6 whose demand continues to sore across North America and Europe primarily due to automotive applications. Also the market for adiponitrile finds upward trend in Asia pacific countries like China, Malaysia and other south-east Asian countries chiefly due to availability of cheaper production facilities.Request for Sample Report:Adiponitrile is largely prepared by most common industrial route which was revealed by Dupont involving nickel-catalyzed hydrocyanation of butadiene. This process involves series of sub-products to finally produce adiponitrile as the outcome. Adiponitrile is then hydrogenated to produce hexamethylenediamine which is a vital component of Nylon6-6. Nylon 6-6 is prime substitute for Nylon 6 which finds applications requiring fittings in automotive applications, strings for musical instruments, ropes and tire cords. However Nylon 6-6 has better properties in high temperature applications and hence makes in suitable over nylon 6 in various applications. The major applications which necessitate high temperature and strength include that of carpet manufacturing, hosiery and knitted garments (textile sector), tire ropes, gear wheels, plug parts, hydraulic brake lines and radiator housings for automotive industry. As Nylon 6-6 is light in weight and waterproof in nature it makes it appropriate for swim-wear. Adiponitrile is also used in production of adipic acid which is used in polyurethane applications like auto seating, footwear, thermal insulation amongst others. However adipic acid can be cheaply manufactured by other ways making adiponitrile a weaker option for this segment.Almost all the adiponitrile goes into production of Nylon 6-6 fiber and hence requirement of Nylon 6-6 drives the market. As Nylon 6-6 finds wide array of applications in manufacturing and automotive sector, growth of these sectors would fuel the need of adiponitrile. The requirement in this sector is largely dominated by the U.S., followed by developing countries like China and Malaysia. The requirement of Nylon 6-6 resin grows wider across Europe and the U.S. as a major engineering resin; this would enhance market for adiponitrile. The tyre-cord requirement would continue to grow as the automotive segment seems to grow at steady pace across Asia-pacific countries and developed countries. This makes the market for adiponitrile even more lucrative. Application for carpets, rugs and clothing fibers which belong to textile sector are likely to continue the growth owing to strengthening in textile industry. This will certainly act as a major driver in the requirement for adiponitrile in near future. However this market faces a stiff price competition due to cut-throat price rivalry and hence the major players in this segment are shifting their production sites to Asia-pacific countries. This has propelled to a large extent demand in China which would even advance further with tyre-cord requirement.Request for Table of content:Some of the key participants in the adiponitrile market include Dupont, Solvay, Rhodia group, Invista,BASF, Lyondellbasell Industries, LG Chem, Ineos, China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation, Braskem, Evonik Industries, The dow chemical company, JSR Corporation, Royal Dutch Shell and Saudi Basic Industries Corporation amongst others.About Us:Persistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact Us:Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.commedia@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
China rivals? No, partners! Updated: 2016-10-28 07:25 By Andrew Moody in Guangzhou(China Daily Europe)

Senior adviser at World Bank says teamwork is vital to ensure a brighter future for Africa

Jamal Saghir insists the World Bank and China are not rivals in Africa but partners.

The senior regional adviser at the Washington-based international financial institution says the view that they represent competing interests on the continent is wrong.

"This perception gives us trouble because it is unfair. China is quite clearly now open to a real partnership not only with us but also with Africa," he says.

Jamal Saghir, senior regional adviser at the World Bank, says China shows a willingness to work with different partners. Provided to China Daily

"What we are witnessing is China showing a willingness to work with different partners. Many Chinese companies work on World Bank projects so this is not about competition."

Saghir, a 59-year-old Lebanese Canadian, was speaking after giving a presentation on infrastructure development at the 2nd Investing in Africa Forum in Guangzhou.

He says China showed its commitment to Africa when President Xi Jinping announced at the Forum on China Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Johannesburg that it was tripling aid to the continent to $60 billion.

"That is a lot of money, some $20 billion of investment in each of the next three years. The total World Bank lending is about $25 billion," he says.

"They have a very good model of actually operating. They just go in and build a road by deadline and it is completed. For many reasons, China is now an important partner for Africa. That is the reality. It has changed the rules for everyone."

Saghir says it would be wrong to conclude that somehow China, despite the scale of its investment, can do it all by itself.

According to World Bank estimates, Africa needs to spend $90 billion a year on infrastructure for the next 10 years for it to reach a minimum effective standard, which is double the $45 billion it is currently spending.

"Two-thirds of what is being spent is funded domestically by the African taxpayer, by the private sector and the World Bank. So we are missing around $45 billion. If all China's new money was to be spent on infrastructure we would still be $25 billion short. That is the scale of the problem," he says.

The senior researcher says the poor state of infrastructure in Sub-Saharan Africa - in its electricity, water, roads and information and communications technology - deprives its economy of between 2 and 4 percent of growth it would otherwise have. Business productivity is reduced by as much as 40 percent.

He says electricity generation is a crucial weakness, with 70 percent of the population and 10 million small and medium-sized enterprises having no access to electricity.

"The state of the power sector, in particular, has a huge negative impact on growth because many enterprises don't have access to electricity and can't therefore produce. The total generation capacity of Africa is only 65 gigawatts, just the equivalent of either Spain or Argentina," he says.

"This is one of the major constraints in dealing with poverty reduction."

He says Africans also pay a high price for their electricity - around 20 cents a kilowatt on average and as much as 35 cents in countries such as Burkino Faso and Liberia - compared with just 10 cents in the United States.

"So you have this mismatch between cost and distribution. People are paying high prices but don't have full access to electricity."

Saghir says another major infrastructure problem is the lack of roads, with the whole continent having just 50,000 kilometers of highways, half of them in poor condition.

"African economies find it difficult to develop since it is difficult to carry out intra-national and regional trade because the roads are not maintained and in many places don't exist," he says.

"Flying is no better. Sometimes if you want to go from one country to another, say Cote d'Ivoire to Chad, you have to stop at at least two or three airports to get there. It can take you 8 hours. Sometimes you have to go to Europe to get back to Africa."

Saghir also cites other major problems affecting the continent. Only 15 percent of households receive piped water; broadband penetration reaches only 5 percent of the population; high-speed internet is the most expensive in the world; and agriculture yields lag behind the rest of the world, with Thailand exporting more food that the whole of Sub-Saharan Africa.

"I think China has a lot to offer in dealing with many of these issues. This is particularly the case with the transmission of power, building roads, ports, airports and other facilities," he says.

The adviser says China is a particularly good role model for Africa, with it moving from some 37 percent of the rural population having no access to electricity in 1978 to almost 100 percent access now for everyone.

"They started at a provincial level with homes connected to a hydropower source and did not put in a national grid until later. If you go to countries like Nigeria and Ethiopia, it will take at least 30 years to build a national grid. They need to connect people locally," he says.

Saghir, based in Washington and a professor of practice at McGill University in Montreal, was born in Beirut, but emigrated to Canada when he was 17.

He studied economics at Laval University in Quebec, where he received his doctorate in 1984.

One of his early jobs was as resident adviser to the prime minister of Tunisia in the late 1980s.

He joined the World Bank in 1990 with responsibility for privatizations in Central and Eastern Europe, among other roles.

He has held his current role, focusing on energy, infrastructure and water resources, since 2014. He has specific responsibilities for Africa.

He says one of the perceived problems of investing in Africa is always the security risk.

"We looked recently again at private sector perception of risks of investing in Sub-Saharan Africa and the broad consensus was that, while risks exist, perception is often out of sync with reality," he says.

"I believe we must identify real and perceived risks, disaggregate them into categories such as political, implementation, financial and demand-and-supply type risks. We can then tackle them through appropriate means."

One of the perceptions that have grown up over the past decade is that China is an easier partner for the Africa than the World Bank since the deals that it does come with fewer strings attached.

"I think it depends how you look at it," says Saghir. "People will perceive this, but you have to remember that our bank is using public money, taxpayers' money, and we have to go through a process of procurement and assessment. We have our own corporate responsibility. I don't think it is easier to deal with China, it is just different."

He says it is important to remember that the World Bank has been financing projects since the bullet train in Japan in the 1960s, which was financed with an $80 billion loan from the World Bank.

"The World Bank has developed. I have been with the bank a quarter of a century and we have a lot of expertise and know-how from working on all continents. We were there when the economies of Eastern Europe collapsed when the Soviets pulled out.We were there when Latin America was reconstructing itself," he says.

"We bring to this not only the good lessons but the bad lessons. My job is sometimes to say to a minister what he should not do and not what he should do."

Saghir welcomes new institutions such as the BRICS's New Development Bank, which is based in Shanghai, and China's Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank, which has more development capital than the World Bank at its disposal.

"It is sometimes easy to find the money, but what we have is the software and the hardware and the knowledge that we have built up over decades. This has involved listening and learning. We will be working, however, with the BRICS bank on World Bank projects. This is part of the discussion we are having right now."

He says the Guangzhou forum - which was organized by the World Bank Group, the Guangdong provincial government and the China Development Bank, one of China's two policy banks that play a key role in funding African projects - was an example of the new cooperation.

"The forum has been crucial. It is a way to learn from China and to show what it has to offer Africa, especially for our clients," he says.

andrewmoody@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 10/28/2016 page8)
Therapeutic Vaccines Market Demand is Increasing Rapidly in Recent Years, 2015 - 2021

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A vaccine is a biological medical product designed to stimulate antibodies inside human body. Vaccine helps in providing immunity against various infectious diseases. Some of the common types of vaccine include inactivated vaccines, subunit vaccines, DNA vaccines and recombinant vector vaccines. Vaccines may be prophylactic and therapeutic. Therapeutic vaccine is a biological combination designed to develop immunity against a diseased cell or tissues. Therapeutic vaccines are developed to treat ailments from various cancers, HIV and Alzheimers disease. Therapeutic vaccine is used for cure and prevention of cancer whereas prophylactic vaccines are only used for prevention of cancer. Therapeutic vaccines are specially designed for HIV positive people who have healthy immune system. HIV virus damages human immune system, which results into weaker immune system and thus leading to less ability to fight with microorganisms. Therapeutic vaccines spur the immune system to attack targeted tissue. A therapeutic HIV vaccine is also known as treatment vaccines. Some of the drugs used for HIV treatment include atripla, epzicom, prezista, truvada, kaletra, isentress, reyataz and viread. In addition, there are large numbers of therapeutic vaccines which are under clinical developments. Therapeutic vaccines are also used to treat cancer as they provide greater bioavailability and specificity with minimal side effects. Some of the side effects associated with therapeutic vaccines are swelling, redness, soreness and pain at the site of injection. In addition, mild-flu like symptom is another side effect for therapeutic vaccines.Request Sample Report @North America followed by Europe is dominating the global therapeutic vaccines market due to increasing accessibility and affordability of highly expensive tests for HIV and cancer. Rising technological support for the development of new vaccines is also fuelling the growth of the North American therapeutic vaccines market. Asia is expected to be the fastest growing market in coming five years due to rising prevalence of various infectious diseases and aging population.In recent time there is increased use of therapeutic vaccines due to rising incidence of diseases such as cancer and HIV. Technological advancements in HIV diagnosis and rising number of clinical trials for HIV and cancer vaccines are some of the key factors driving the growth of the global therapeutic vaccines market. In addition, increasing awareness among people for severe diseases and increasing R&D investments for therapeutic vaccines are also fuelling the growth of the therapeutic vaccines market. However, higher cost of vaccines and less availability of therapeutic drugs are some of the key factor restraining the global therapeutic vaccines market. In addition, stringent regulation for the approval of therapeutic vaccines is also inhibiting the global therapeutic vaccines market.Request Table of content (TOC) @Human papillomavirus mediated malignancies could develop an opportunity for the growth of the global therapeutic vaccines market. Adverse side effects of therapeutic vaccination could lead a challenge for the growth of the global therapeutic vaccines market. Some of the trends for the growth of the global therapeutic vaccines market are rising number of product innovation and rising number of mergers and acquisitions. Some of the major companies operating in the global therapeutic vaccines market are Agenus, Inc., GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis AG, Pfizer, Argos Therapeutic Inc., Merck & Co., Celldex Therapeutic Inc., Cytos Biotechnology AG and Dendreon Corp.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Pneumatic Tyres Market is Expected to Witness Exponential Growth in Near Future 2020

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In the past, rubber tyres were solid not pneumatic. In the recent scenario, majority of tyres are pneumatic inflatable structures and comprising a doughnut-shaped body of cords and wires encased in rubber and usually filled with compressed air to form an inflatable cushion. Pneumatic tyres production needs various raw materials such as synthetic rubber, natural rubber, fabric and wire, along with other chemicals. Different types of rubber are used for production of pneumatic tyres, the most common being styrene-butadiene copolymer. Pneumatic tyres consist of a tread and a body. The tread provides traction while the body provides containment for a quantity of compressed air. Pneumatic tyres provide grip to the vehicle, resist abrasion and carry and transport loads. Thus pneumatic tyres provide safety and performance to the vehicle. On the basis of vehicle type pneumatic tyres market can be classified as bicycle, bus and lorry, car, motorcycle and aircraft. The use of tyres are not limited in new vehicles only, it can also be used in old vehicles due to wear and tear and for replacement purpose, which is also a major market for tyres. Airplane tyres are a niche market, but is a high revenue contributor to the pneumatic tyres market.Request for Sample Copy of Report @North America is the largest market for pneumatic tyres, followed by Europe and Asia Pacific. Asia Pacific is expected to be the fastest growing market. China and India hold the key for future market trends in pneumatic tyres market owing to large population, rising disposable income and high growth rate of automotive industry in these regions. Germany, France and Italy are hub for some of the major automobile manufacturers in Europe where as the U.S. is the largest market in North America.The market of pneumatic tyres is expected to witness a double digit growth rate in the coming years. Some of the major drivers contributing the overall market growth of pneumatic tyres include increased in the production of vehicles globally, rising disposable income and ever-increasing population. Increasing price of raw materials and rise in fuel prices can act as restraints for pneumatic tyres market.Request for Table of content @The major companies operating in the pneumatic tyres market include Dunlop, Michelin, Bridgestone Corporation, MRF, Goodyear and Maxxis International.Key points covered in the reportReport segments the market on the basis of types, application, products, technology, etc (as applicable)The report covers geographic segmentationoNorth AmericaoEuropeoAsiaoRoWThe report provides the market size and forecast for the different segments and geographies for the period of 2010 to 2020The report provides company profiles of some of the leading companies operating in the marketThe report also provides porters five forces analysis of the market.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.Each PMR Syndicated Research report covers a different sector - such as pharmaceuticals, chemical, energy, food & beverages, semiconductors, med-devices, consumer goods and technology. These reports provide in-depth analysis and deep segmentation to possible micro levels. With a wider scope and stratified research methodology, our syndicated reports strive to serve clients and satisfy their overall research requirement.For information regarding permissions, contact:Persistence Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700 Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Type 1 Diabetes Market is Expected to Witness a Steady Growth by 2021

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Diabetes refers to a group of metabolic disease characterized by high blood sugar level. Diabetes occurs due to inadequate secretion of insulin inside the pancreas. Some of the common symptoms for diabetes are frequent urination, excessive thirst, increased hunger, weight loss and tiredness. Type 1, type 2 and gestational diabetes are three types of diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease occurred due to high blood glucose level whereas, type 2 diabetes is a lifelong chronic diseases caused due to excess secretion of insulin inside the body. In type 1 diabetes, the immune system is activated against self-insulin producing cells. This results into low production of insulin and also disrupts blood glucose homeostasis. In type 1 diabetes, exposure to viral infection such as mumps and coxsackie viruses results into pancreas damage which results into low insulin secretion. Type 1 diabetes is highly prevalent in young people and children whereas type 2 diabetes is common type of diabetes. Some of the common symptoms for type 2 diabetes are overweight, high blood pressure and high triglycerides. Diabetes is treated with the help of insulin delivery devices and drugs. Diabetes diagnostic devices includes analog blood meter, test strips, lancets and lancing devices whereas, insulin delivery devices includes insulin syringe, insulin pump, insulin pen and insulin jet injectors. Severe problems such as blindness, kidney failure, coronary heart disease and strokes may result due to lack of proper treatment.Request Sample Report @North America is dominating the global type 1 diabetes market due to rising prevalence of diabetes. The U.S. is dominating the North American diabetes market. Asia Pacific region is expected to show high growth rate due to rising aging population in coming five years.In recent time there is increased use of insulin delivery devices due to rising number of chronic diseases associated with diabetes. Rising awareness among people and technological advancement in insulin delivery devices are some of the key factors driving the growth of the global type 1 diabetes market. In addition, increasing government initiatives for diabetes control is also fuelling the growth of the global type 1 diabetes market. However, high cost of diagnosis and treatment is restraining the growth of the global type 1 diabetes market. In addition, unfavorable reimbursement policies are also inhibiting the growth of the global type 1 diabetes market.Request Table of content (TOC) @Side effects associated with diabetes therapies could lead a challenge for the global type 1 diabetes market. Strong pipeline and development of molecules from newer class of diabetes drugs would be an opportunity for the growth of the global type 1 diabetes market. In addition, development of non-invasive diabetes diagnostics and drug delivery devices would also develop an opportunity for the growth of the global type 1 diabetes market. Increasing demand for artificial pancreas and home infusion therapy for diabetes treatment are some of the trend for the growth of the global type 1 diabetes market. Some of the major companies operating in the global type 1 diabetes market are Eli Lilly and Company, Astrazeneca Plc., B.Braun Melsungen AG, Novo Nordisk A/S, Sanofi-Aventis US, LLC, DiaVacs, Inc., XOMA Corp., Biodel, Inc. and Macrogenics, Inc.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
TD-LTE Ecosystem Market to Record an Impressive Growth Rate During the Forecast 2021

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Driven by the technologys lower deployment costs and spectrum availability, TD-LTE refers to Time-division Long-Term Evolution. It is a 4G telecommunications technology and standard created by coalition of international companies. TD-LTE offers higher downlink and uplink rate as compared with LTE-FDD.Request for Sample Copy of Report @The telecommunication industry experienced multiple key TD-LTE network deployments over the past three years namely Sprint in the US, Bharti Airtel in India and SoftBank in Japan. Softbank network is the most complex commercial TD-LTE network in the world at present. Through its commercial network deployment, TD-LTE networks have been effectively authenticated within all network settings for commercial launch. In Tokyo, Japan, in spite of the urban overcrowding and complex networking scenario, TD-LTE vendors have came-up with a micro-cellular solution, having station distance of 100-200 meters. It has effectively resolved the problems associated with coverage in a dense urban space and complex networking environment. Over 60 operators are dedicated to deploy TD-LTE networks across the world such as Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd., ZTE and Nokia Networks B.V. among others. Additionally, all prominent device OEMs, counting smartphone leaders Apple Inc. and Samsung group, have launched TD-LTE compatible devices commercially. Major number of these devices supports both TDD and FDD modes of operation over broad frequency spectrum. Additionally, the recent launch of TD-LTE network by China Mobile Communications Corporation (CMCC) is expected to allow the TD-LTE ecosystem to reach a significant level of economy of scale by boosting device and infrastructure investments in TD-LTE technology. Additionally, this TD-LTE network by CMCC is expected to be comprised of 500,000 base stations in operation till the end of 2014.Key driving forces for TD-LTE ecosystem market growth comprises of flexible uplink and downlink capacity associated with TD-LTE, interoperability with LTE-FDD, cheaper hardware cost and smooth transition from TD-SCDMA and WiMax. Major challenges restraining the TD-LTE ecosystem market growth include lower coverage as compared with LTE-FDD, use of guard periods and discontinuous reception.The market is segmented by TD-LTE devices, application sectors and services. TD-LTE devices include embedded cards, personal computers, consumer gadgets, USB dongles, notebooks, routers, smartphones and tablets. Application sectors include large and small enterprises, healthcare, retail, personal and education. Services include downlink biased services, uplink biased services and specific scenario services. Downlink biased services include video on demand, video sharing, music and sound streaming, location services, mobile advertisement and broadband services. Uplink biased services include security video surveillance, broadcaster reporting system, live traffic monitoring, medical monitoring, logistics tracking, and device positioning system. Specific scenario services comprises of enterprise access network, radio backhaul transmission replacement, household fixed broadband replacement and other broadband access services in resorts and festivals.Request for Table of content @Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. dominates the TD-LTE infrastructure market share at present. Although, Telefonaktiebolaget L. M. Ericsson is anticipated to take benefit of forthcoming deployments opportunities in Europe and Asia-Pacific. Other leading players in the market include Alcatel-Lucent S.A., Datang Telecom Technology & Industry Group, Fiberhome Networks Co. Ltd., Nokia Networks B.V., Potevio Company, Samsung Group, ZTE Corporation, MediaTek, Inc., Sony Mobile Communications AB, Ingenic Semiconductor Co., Ltd., Innofidei Inc., Marvell Technology Group Ltd., ChongQing City Communication Technologies Co. Ltd, Qualcomm Inc., Spreadtrum Communications Inc., Broadcom Corporation, Leadcore National technology, Wavesat Telecommunications Ltd., Altair Engineering Inc., Renesas Electronics Corporation and Runcom Technologies Ltd. among others.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. We have an experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, who use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.Each PMR Syndicated Research report covers a different sector - such as pharmaceuticals, chemical, energy, food & beverages, semiconductors, med-devices, consumer goods and technology. These reports provide in-depth analysis and deep segmentation to possible micro levels. With a wider scope and stratified research methodology, our syndicated reports strive to serve clients and satisfy their overall research requirement.For information regarding permissions, contact:Persistence Market Research90 Sate Street, Suite 700 Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Global Biometrics Market in Retail Sector is Projected to Grow at Remarkable Rate of above 21.30% by 2020

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Global Biometrics Market in Retail Sector 2016-2020 Size and Share Published in 2016-01-13 Available for US$ 2500 at Researchmoz.usDescriptionTo Access the Full Report, Please Visit :Biometrics has emerged as a suitable security and monitoring solution to meet this need and is based on the behavioral and physiological characteristics of an individual, which are difficult to replicate. Biometrics in the retail sector is seen as the most accurate and reliable system because it eliminates manual input, identity card exchange, and time theft.Biometrics include the authentication of an individual by evaluating one or more unique biological traits, such as voice recognition, hand geometry, fingerprint identification, facial recognition, iris recognition, and vein recognition.Technavios analysts forecast the global biometrics market in the retail sector to grow at a CAGR of 21.30% during the period 2016-2020.Covered in this reportThe report covers the present scenario and the growth prospects of the global biometrics market in the retail sector for 2016-2020. The report also presents the vendor landscape and a corresponding detailed analysis of the top six vendors operating in the market.The market is divided into the following segments based on technology:Fingerprint identificationFacial recognitionHand geometryVein recognitionTechnavio's report, Global Biometrics Market in Retail Sector 2016-2020, has been prepared based on an in-depth market analysis with inputs from industry experts. The report covers the market landscape and its growth prospects over the coming years. The report also includes a discussion of the key vendors operating in this market.Key vendorsCrossmatch TechnologiesHoneywell SecurityM2SYS TechnologyNECSafranSupremaGet a Sample Copy of the Report:Other prominent vendorsAllegionAyonixBIO-keyBiometric Time Clock SystemsCognitec SystemseSSL SecurityePortIDFingerCheckFUJITSUHerta SecurityTimeLabsTrac-TechTyco.Market driverEmergence of contactless biometricsFor a full, detailed list, view our reportMarket challengeSecurity concernsFor a full, detailed list, view our reportMarket trendIncorporation of biometric workforce management systems at retail storesFor a full, detailed list, view our reportKey questions answered in this reportWhat will the market size be in 2020 and what will the growth rate be?What are the key market trends?What is driving this market?What are the challenges to market growth?Who are the key vendors in this market space?What are the market opportunities and threats faced by the key vendors?What are the strengths and weaknesses of the key vendors?You can request one free hour of our analysts time when you purchase this market report. Details are provided within the report.Inquiry on this report:Table of ContentPART 01: Executive summaryHighlightsPART 02: Scope of the reportMarket overviewPART 03: Market research methodologyResearch methodologyEconomic indicatorsPART 04: IntroductionKey market highlightsPART 05: Market descriptionWorking of biometricsBiometric technologies used in retail sectorApplications of biometrics in retail sectorAdvantages and disadvantages of biometrics in retail sectorPART 06: Market landscapeMarket overviewProduct life cycle of biometric technologies in retail sectorShare of retail sector in the global biometrics marketGlobal biometrics market in retail sectorFive forces analysisResearchMoz is the worlds 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.Mr. NachiketState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesWebsite @Tel: 866-997-4948 (Us-Canada Toll Free)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Follow us on LinkedIn @ bit.ly/1TBmnVG
Global Big Data Market in the Oil and Gas Sector 2016-2020, Industry Overview and Key Vendors are HP, IBM, Oracle & Teradata

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Global Big Data Market in the Oil and Gas Sector 2016-2020 Size and Share Published in 2016-01-13 Available for US$ 2500 at Researchmoz.usDescriptionTo Access the Full Report, Please Visit :Big data solutions are the wide range of solutions required for processing and analyzing enterprise data, which are too large for traditional data processing tools to manage. The oil and gas sector generates various types of structured and unstructured data.The type of data ranges from terabytes (10^12 bytes) to zettabytes (10^21 bytes) in size. Big data solutions are used in the oil and gas sector to provide a fast consolidated view of organization-wide information. Big data solutions also help organizations to improve their operational performance and maximize profitability.Technavios analysts forecast the global big data market in the oil and gas sector to grow at a CAGR of 30.67% during the period 2016-2020.Covered in this reportThe report covers the present scenario and the growth prospects of the global big data market in the oil and gas sector for the period 20162020. To calculate the market size, the report considers the revenue generated from the sales of big data solutions in the oil and gas sector from the following:Software licenses and subscriptionsSoftware implementation costsTechnical support and maintenance costsTechnavio's report, Global Big Data in Oil and Gas sector 2016-2020, has been prepared based on an in-depth market analysis with inputs from industry experts. The report covers the market landscape and its growth prospects over the coming years. The report also includes a discussion of the key vendors operating in this market.Key vendorsHPIBMOracleTeradataGet a Sample Copy of the Report:Other prominent vendorsActianAlteryxBashoClouderaDatameerDigital ReasoningDataStaxGuavusKognitioMapROpera SolutionsSplunk.Market driverHuge amounts of dataFor a full, detailed list, view our reportMarket challengeLack of awarenessFor a full, detailed list, view our reportMarket trendAdoption of user-friendly predictive modelingFor a full, detailed list, view our reportKey questions answered in this reportWhat will the market size be in 2020 and what will the growth rate be?What are the key market trends?What is driving this market?What are the challenges to market growth?Who are the key vendors in this market space?What are the market opportunities and threats faced by the key vendors?What are the strengths and weaknesses of the key vendors?You can request one free hour of our analysts time when you purchase this market report. Details are provided within the report.Inquiry on this report:Table of ContentPART 01: Executive summaryHighlightsPART 02: Scope of the reportMarket overviewTop-vendor offeringsPART 03: Market research methodologyResearch methodologyEconomic indicatorsPART 04: IntroductionKey market highlightsPART 05: Big data overviewDefinition of Big dataBig Data in oil and gas sectorIndustry dynamicsPART 06: Market landscapeMarket overviewMarket size and forecastBig data in oil and gas sector as segment of big data in all sectorsFive forces analysisResearchMoz is the worlds 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.Mr. NachiketState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesWebsite @Tel: 866-997-4948 (Us-Canada Toll Free)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Follow us on LinkedIn @ bit.ly/1TBmnVG
Corrugated Packaging Market to grow at a CAGR of 4.0% during 2014 to 2020

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According to a new market report published by Persistence Market Research Global Market Study on Corrugated Packaging: Glassware and ceramics application to witness highest growth by 2020, the global corrugated packaging market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.0% during 2014 to 2020, to reach an estimated USD 173.6 million by 2020.For More Information Request TOC (desk of content material), Figures and Tables of the report @The corrugated packaging market is thriving mainly due to growing end-user industries, including food, medicine, consumer durables, rubber, and petroleum. Benefits associated with corrugated packaging such as sustainability and low cost makes it one of the preferred modes of packaging across various industries. Emerging markets offer tremendous growth opportunities for the corrugated packaging market due to increasing population and growing demand for consumer products in these regions. The e-commerce industry has emerged as one of the key drivers for the global corrugated packaging market. This is primarily because corrugated packaging is the most reliable form of packaging products in this industry.However, certain restraints such as low endurance of corrugated packaging and stalled growth across certain end-user industries are affecting market growth. The market, in terms of competitive structure, is consolidated through large numbers of mergers and acquisitions. This indicates tough sustainability in this market.Increasing population coupled with rising per capita income is encouraging industrial production worldwide, which, consequently, is increasing the number of shipments. Owing to low costs and easy handling, corrugated packaging is considered as ideal for shipments across several industries. Based on the application, corrugated packaging is used in different shapes such as sheets, liner board, boxes, and containerboards. Based on dimensions of the packaging medium, corrugated packaging is classified as A-flute, B-flute, C-flute, E-flute, and F-flute.The various application industries that use corrugated packaging include processed food, fresh food and produce, beverages, personal and household care, chemicals, paper products, electrical and electronic goods, glassware and ceramics, and tobacco.Rising population and growing demand for food, medicine, and consumer durable goods in developing countries are driving the demand for packaging products in these regions. Low costs and high benefits of corrugated packaging have made them one of the most preferred packaging solutions across an array of industries in these regions. Food and healthcare are among the fastest growing industries in China that use corrugated packaging. The processed food sector in China is growing at a rate of over 10%. Electrical equipment and machinery (a key end-user for the corrugated packaging market) market in China is growing at over 11%. Indonesia is another emerging economy with a large number of food processing companies. This, in turn, is driving the corrugated packaging market.China, Japan, India, and Indonesia are the major corrugated packaging material producers in Asia Pacific. The U.S. leads the corrugated packaging material production in North America while the European market is dominated by Italy, France, Germany, Spain, the U.K., and Poland. Brazil and Turkey feature among the leading corrugated packaging material producers in Rest of the World (RoW).Download Report Sample @Major companies in the corrugated packaging market include International Paper Company, Nine Dragons Paper (Holdings) Limited, Rock-Tenn Company, Smurfit Kappa Group, Lee & Man Paper Manufacturing Ltd., Georgia-Pacific Equity Holdings LLC, Oji Holdings Corporation, Mondi Group, Packaging Corporation of America, and DS Smith Plc.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA  Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Global Bismuth Market Driven by Implementation of Regulations Dissuading Use of Lead across Various Industries

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Global demand for bismuth is expected to grow at a Y-o-Y growth rate of 4.9% by 2016 end. China is a major consumer, producer, and exporter of bismuth and is anticipated to maintain its dominance in the global market in the near future. The country is estimated to account for 27.0% share of overall bismuth sales by the end of 2016. The increasing use of bismuth oxide in growing manufacturing industries is anticipated to drive consumption in the region. The rapid growth of the automobile end-use industry is expected to drive further market growth.For More Information Request TOC (desk of content material), Figures and Tables of the report @Increasing environmental regulations regarding lead usage in various end-use industries would drive demand for bismuth and bismuth derived compounds. Stringent regulations and initiatives by leading manufacturers in end-use industries to phase out lead production is expected to spur bismuth market growth. Major paints & coatings manufacturers such as BASF SE and PPG Inc. are actively offering bismuth-based products replacing their lead based portfolio, in order to provide environmentally-friendly product offerings.The bismuth market in APAC is anticipated to witness higher growth rates due to increasing manufacturing activities in China and India. Demand in Europe is also anticipated to be above average due to stringent lead restricting directives in the region, while demand in North America, Latin America, and MEA is expected to be moderate. Declining lead production due to regulations and declining consumption of lead-acid batteries is anticipated to be a major restricting factor for the global market. The increasing use of bismuth alternatives in pharmaceuticals and alloys is also a major obstacle to market growth.Download Report Sample @Hunan Jinwang Bismuth Industry Co. Ltd., Hunan Bismuth Co. Ltd., and Nui Phao Mining Company Limited are some of the top producers of bismuth, with a cumulative annual production capacity of 11,000 metric tons.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA  Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Breakfast Cereals Market to grow at a CAGR of 4.1% by 2019

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According to a new market report published by Persistence Market Research Global Market Study on Breakfast Cereals: Hot Cereals to Witness Highest Growth by 2019, the global breakfast cereals market was valued at USD 32.5 billion in 2012 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.1% from 2013 to 2019, to reach an estimated value of USD 43.2 billion in 2019.The need for convenience and busy schedules of people has been propelling the processed food industry, which includes breakfast cereals. Developed nations already have breakfast cereals as part of their regular course of meals. Increasing per capita income in developing countries is further giving the breakfast cereal industry a new dimension to look for.For More Information Request TOC (desk of content material), Figures and Tables of the report @The market in the US is declining which is compelling the companies in this industry to increase their markets in the emerging economies. These companies have been increasing their advertising spends in the emerging markets in Asia Pacific region to make consumers aware about the breakfast cereals and the health benefits associated with them. Companies have also developed some brands according to the regional preferences, such as inclusion of saffron and raisin flavored cereals in India.Special emphasis on healthy living has prompted market players to introduce new products, which suit all age groups and lifestyles. International players are also focusing on reformulating their products by replacing harmful hydrogenated fat and oils with healthier ingredients such as fiber and fruits. Demand for gluten-free cereals has increased in the market, especially in North America and Europe. There also has been an increase in demand for whole-grain cereals worldwide.Breakfast cereals are broadly marketed under two segments: RTE cereals and Hot cereals. The market for RTE cereals is much bigger as compared to that of Hot breakfast cereals. The Ready-to-eat (RTE) cereal had the larger share in the breakfast cereal market and was valued at USD 27.8 billion in 2012. However, the Hot cereals is growing at more than double the CAGR of RTE cereals due to its increasing consumption in the Asian markets.Download Sample Report @Geographically, North America, led by sales from the US, accounted for the largest share in the breakfast cereals market and was valued at USD 13.9 billion in 2012. Though China does not have a large market, but the market in the country is growing at a brisk pace, therefore showing opportunities for the companies to increase investments in this region. Major companies operating in the market are Kelloggs, Cereal Partners Worldwide and PepsiCo.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA  Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Membrane Separation Market Expected to Touch value USD 39.2 Billion in 2019

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Persistence Market Research Released New Market Report on Global Market Study on Membrane Separation: Water & Waste Water Segment to Witness Highest Growth by 2019, the global membrane separation market was valued at USD 19.0 billion in 2012 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.8% from 2013 to 2019, to reach an estimated value of USD 39.2 billion in 2019.For More Information Request TOC (desk of content material), Figures and Tables of the report @Mandatory government regulation and increasing demand for clean processed drinking water is propelling the water processing industry to provide the public with clean processed drinking water free of impurity. Providing growth opportunity for water treatment industry among which, Membrane separation technology is one of the most popular methods used for cleaning water. Mandatory adherence of certain environmental standards by the national government such as the Clean Water Act especially in areas with water scarcity have influenced the demand for better water treatment technology, including membrane separation technology. Shifting from chemical to physical treatments of water is also a major driver as chemical treatments are perceived as an environmentally unclean technology with associated disposal costs. Additional awareness of water scarcity has influenced the demand for water reuse in water stressed areas.Governments and municipal authorities are increasingly waking up to the effects of environmental degradation on the economy. Worldwide industrial expansion and growing population are propelling the demand for better water treatment technology, providing growth opportunity for the global market of membrane separation technology. Additionally, the oil and petroleum industry is well established in the gulf and European countries such as Italy and Germany which involve membrane separation technology for liquid separation. Expansion of such industry is expected to increase the overall demand for membrane separation technology. Membrane separation technology is bifurcated into four major processes, microfiltration, ultrafiltration, nanofiltration and reverse osmosis. Microfiltration dominates the market with more than 35% global market share in 2012. Whereas water & wastewater dominates the end-user market with 36% global market shares in 2012. The global membrane separation market grew from USD 19.0 billion in 2010 to USD 21.2 billion in 2013.Download Report Sample @European membrane market (largest in 2013) is expected to reach USD 13.8 billion in 2019, growing at a CAGR of 9.6%. In 2012 water & wastewater sector was the major end-user of membrane separation technology and is expected to increase at a CAGR of 11.1% during 2013-19. The membrane separation market is fragmented with several players in the market supplying membrane separation products to the end-users (water and wastewater, industrial and healthcare) in the market. Most of the companies produce different types of membrane products such as microfiltration, nanofiltration, ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis and sell them globally. Major companies operating globally and manufacturing all four products are Evoqua Water Technologies, Pall Corporation, Koch Membrane Systems Inc., Merck Millipore, Degremont SA, Dow Chemical Company, GEA Filtration, 3M Company, Nitto Denko Corporation and Veolia Environnement.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA  Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Invest in continent, Zuma tells forum Updated: 2016-10-28 07:25 By Andrew Moody in Guangzhou(China Daily Europe)

South African President Jacob Zuma is calling for more Chinese investment in Africa.

Speaking at the 2nd Investing in Africa Forum in Guangzhou, he told delegates that China's companies should prioritize investment on the continent.

"We encourage the Chinese business community to further explore opportunities in South Africa and Africa," he said.

"All African countries have in their own way put up plans to attract investment, and I urge all investors gathered here today to look at all African countries for their next investments."

South African President Jacob Zuma says at the 2nd Investing in Africa Forum in Guangzhou that Africa is a willing business partner for China . Photos Provided to China Daily

He also told the forum, where $2.5 billion of deals were agreed between China and African concerns, that Africa was a willing business partner.

"Our message is clear. Africa is open for business. Africa is open for partnerships with China in a big way. A lot of economic interaction is already taking place between China and Africa with good results."

Chinese Vice-Premier Ma Kai told the forum, which was also attended by representatives from 38 African countries, including Benin President Patrice Talon, that the government still wants Chinese companies to reach out to Africa.

"We will continue to encourage Chinese enterprises to expand their investments in Africa, following the principles of mutually beneficial cooperation, as well as green and sustainable development," he said.

"Chinese investment aims to help African countries increase job opportunities, protect the environment and improve people's livelihoods."

Zuma praised President Xi Jinping for reaffirming China's commitment to the continent by announcing a tripling of aid to $60 billion at December's 2nd Forum on China Africa Cooperation in Johannesburg.

He said the FOCAC ministerial meeting in Beijing in July was an opportunity to take stock of how this money would be spent.

He said one of such projects is likely to be the Moloto Rail Development Corridor linking Gauteng and Mpumalanga provinces in South Africa.

"We are pleased that some of the projects are getting off the ground in South Africa and other countries on the continent," he said.

Zuma said that, despite the commodities recession, many African economies were remaining resilient. He reported that South Africa's GDP had grown 3.3 percent in the first half of the year, ahead of the 2.7 percent forecast by economists.

"It is clear that our economy is resilient and has the potential to grow even more despite the significant domestic and global headwinds it faces," he said.

He added that the development of manufacturing on the continent, which was one of the themes of the forum, was the key to its economic future.

He said South Africa was setting up special economic zones that were pioneered by China in the 1980s, where companies would be given tax allowances, employment incentives and a customs-controlled area.

"As we re-ignite our economy further, we are putting our efforts on industrialization," he said.

andrewmoody@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 10/28/2016 page7)
Automotive Interior Ambient Lighting Systems Market Forecast By End-use Industry 2016-2026

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Automotive interior ambient lighting systems primarily consists of the lighting that are incorporated inside a vehicle to aid visibility during specific time and period, particularly during night travel. In addition to the functional benefits, automotive interior ambient lighting systems gives the interior of a vehicle enhanced aesthetic look and imparts a sense of spacious in-cabin feeling.Ambient interior lighting systems also ensures safety of the driver and the passengers as it aids in the effective visibility of control panel and instruments for drivers during instances of low visibility. Nowadays, majority of the interior ambient lighting systems are directly controlled by the infotainment system. The market for automotive interior ambient lighting systems is expected to grow at a healthy rate over the forecast period.Global Automotive Interior Ambient Lighting Systems Market DynamicsThe automotive interior ambient lighting systems market is driven by increasing vehicle production, technological advancements, and the stringent regulations pertaining to the drivers safety. Moreover, the rising demand for comfort, particularly from the developing economies, is expected to drive the market growth. Factors such as product Innovation and new technology advancement to offer lucrative growth opportunities to players in the global automotive interior ambient lighting systems market.Request Free Report Sample@Global Automotive Interior Ambient Lighting Systems Market SegmentationThe global automotive interior ambient lighting systems market is segmented on the basis of technology, application, vehicle type, and region.The global automotive interior ambient lighting systems market is segmented on the basis of technology as: Halogen and LEDLED is expected to be the fastest growing technology in the global automotive interior ambient lighting systems market owing to the fact that LEDs are energy efficient, lightweight and takes lesser space. These attributes are responsible for the fast growth of this technology over the forecast period. Halogen technology is expected to dominate the global automotive interior ambient lighting systems market owing to its low cost.On the basis of application, the global automotive interior ambient lighting systems market is segmented into: instrument panel, center stack, console, door panels, speakers, and cup holders, etc.On the basis of vehicle type, the global automotive interior ambient lighting systems market is segmented into: passenger vehicles, light commercial vehicles, and heavy commercial vehicles.The global automotive interior ambient lighting systems market is segmented on the basis of region as: North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Asia Pacific exc. Japan (APEJ), Japan, and Middle East & Africa (MEA)Visit For TOC@Global Automotive Interior Ambient Lighting Systems Market: Regional OutlookGeographically, the Global automotive interior ambient lighting systems market can be divided by major regions which include North America, Latin America, Western and Eastern Europe, Asia-Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ), Japan, and Middle East & Africa. APEJ is the largest consumer of automotive interior ambient lighting systems and is forecast to maintain its dominance over the forecast period. Followed by it, Europe is the second largest consumer in the global automotive interior ambient lighting systems market.Global Automotive Interior Ambient Lighting Systems Market PlayersThe major players identified across the value chain of global automotive interior ambient lighting systems market include HELLA KGaA Hueck & Co., HUECK GmbH & Co. KG, Koito Manufacturing, Magneti Marelli S.p.A, Valeo, Ichikoh Industries, Stanley Electric, ZIZALA Lichtsysteme and others. The companies are emphasizing on research and development and new product development in order to maintain the competitive advantage in the global automotive interior ambient lighting systems market during the forecast period. The companies are also focusing on different strategies in order to maintain the market share in the global automotive interior ambient lighting systems market.Speak To Analyst@About Us:Future Market Insights is the premier provider of market intelligence and consulting services, serving clients in over 150 countries. FMI is headquartered in London, the global financial capital, and has delivery centres in the U.S. and India.Contact Us:Future Market Insights616 Corporate Way,Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage,New York 10989,United StatesTel: +1-347-918-3531Fax: +1-845-579-5705Email: sales@futuremarketinsights.comPress: press@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite:
Market Forecast Report on Life Science Multichannel Campaign Management 2016-2026

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Life science multichannel campaign management system helps companies to orchestrate, define and communicate their product offers to customers through social, mobile, call centres, direct mails and websites. Digital marketing is an integral part of multichannel campaign management that includes addressable advertising/branding, transactional marketing and contextual marketing. In short multichannel campaign management is a marketing process that extends through channels like video, web, mobile, kiosks, terminals of point of sales, digital signage and social applications. Global companies have urged for advanced version multichannel campaign management solutions to get the valuable information from the customers and plan for new ways for customer retention and acquisition of new customers. The traditional marketing practices have reformed due to the implementation of such kind of multichannel campaign management solutions implementations. The global life science multichannel campaign management market is expected to expand at a modest CAGR in the forecast period.Global Life Science Multichannel Campaign Management Market: Drivers and RestrainsThe major drivers for global multichannel campaign management market are trending digital marketing, technological advancements, advanced mobility solutions such as tablets, smartphones, and other kind of hand held devices. Also the ease of marketing through these multichannel campaign management solution and better service to the customer through these solutions are propelling the growth of this market.However, the restrains for this market can be the factors like rapid technological advancements, due to which the companies needs to keep pace with the upcoming technology and their costly implementation can hamper the global life science multichannel campaign management market. Also most of the customers are still not accessible to the technologies needed to avail the benefits of these kind of multichannel campaign management solutions, this can again act as a barrier in the growth of global life science multichannel campaign management market.Request Free Report Sample@Global Life Science Multichannel Campaign Management Market: SegmentationOn the basis of Services, the global life science multichannel campaign management market can be segmented as follows:System implementationSystem integrationTraining & supportConsultingOn the basis of applications, the global life science multichannel campaign management market can be segmented as follows:AdvertisingBrandingPromotionSellingOn the basis of end-use industry, the global life science multichannel campaign management market can be segmented as follows:PharmaceuticalsRetailHealthcareTransportationTelecommunicationsInformation technologyTourismVisit For TOC@Global Life Science Multichannel Campaign Management Market: Region Wise OutlookThe global life science multichannel campaign management market can be divided into seven regions, namely North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Asia Pacific, Japan and Middle East and Africa. Asia Pacific is the leader in the global life science multichannel campaign management market due to the upcoming retail, transportation and tourism industry in this region. China and India are the major contributors in this region for the growth of the market. North America is following Asia Pacific in term of the market share in global life science multichannel campaign management market owing to its ever increasing pharmaceuticals industry and the existing information technology sector. Europe is the next major contributor in the market due to its significant automobile sector and the other retail industry flourishing in this region due to the automobile sector. Latin America and Middle East and Africa are at a nascent stage in global life science multichannel campaign management market but are expected to expand at a significant growth in the forecast period.Global Life Science Multichannel Campaign Management Market: Key PlayersSome of the key players in the global life science multichannel campaign management market are:TeradataAdobe Systems IncorporatedMarketo, Inc.IBM CorporationSAP AGInforSalesforce.comSAS Institute Inc.Speak To Analyst@About Us:Future Market Insights is the premier provider of market intelligence and consulting services, serving clients in over 150 countries. FMI is headquartered in London, the global financial capital, and has delivery centres in the U.S. and India.Contact Us:Future Market Insights616 Corporate Way,Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage,New York 10989,United StatesTel: +1-347-918-3531Fax: +1-845-579-5705Email: sales@futuremarketinsights.comPress: press@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite:
Smart Fabrics Market Analysis, Trends, Forecast, 2016-2026

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Smart fabrics, also known as smart textiles, E-textiles or electronic textiles, are the fabrics that has electronics and digital components embedded in them. These are the fabrics that can sense stimuli from environment and adapt and react to those stimuli in a predetermined manner. Smart fabrics can incorporate actuators/sensors, communication and processing for applications in automotive sector, consumer products and health monitoring. The basic elements of smart fabrics are semi conductive and conductive yarns and threads, Nano electronics applied to yarns, fibres or woven elements. Smart fabrics are even chemically treated to provide distinct and special features. Smart fabrics are traditional fabrics with integrated functionalities, which could include storage or power generation, sensing devices, human interface elements, assistive technology or radio frequency functionality. Smart fabrics are distinct from wearable fabrics in a way that wearable devices are only carried and contained by clothing, whereas smart fabrics has wearable devices integrated into the fabrics. Nowadays, smart fabric technology is developing in the fields of sport, medical, artistic communities, fashion etc. The global smart fabrics market is expected to expand at a healthy CAGR in the forecast period.Global smart fabrics market  Drivers and RestrainsThe ever increasing use of electronics devices in day to day life is driving the smart fabrics market due to major application of smart fabrics as an electronics device. The ease of use of smart fabrics and the integration of electronic devices in it, makes it an integrated device for normal use as a simple fabric, which further contributes in the flourishing global smart fabrics market. The rising awareness and multiple applications of smart fabrics such as energy harvesting, sensing, and thermo-electricity is anticipated to bolster the global smart fabrics market.However, the smart fabrics devices require a portable power supply that need to be removed during washing and needs to be charged frequently. Thus this is a factor that can slowdown the growth of global smart fabrics market. Also the initial high cost and the expertise required to manufacture these fabrics can be a hurdle in the path of global smart fabrics market.Request Free Report Sample@Global smart fabrics market  SegmentationOn the basis of the product type, the global smart fabrics market can be segmented as follows:Ultra-smart fabricsActive smart fabricsPassive smart fabricsOn the basis of the functionality, the global smart fabrics market can be segmented as follows:Thermo-electricityEnergy harvestingSensingLuminanceOn the basis of the end use industry, the global smart fabrics market can be segmented as follows:HealthcareAutomobilesElectrical & ElectronicsArtichetureConstructionVisit For TOC@Global smart fabrics market  Region wise OutlookThe global smart fabrics market can be divided into seven regions, namely North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Asia Pacific, Japan and Middle East and Africa. North America is a leading player in the global smart fabrics market due to the ever increasing electronics market in this region and the booming information technology sector. Asia Pacific is the next upcoming region in the global smart fabrics market owing to the flourishing healthcare industry and construction industry. India and China are the leading countries in this region contributing in the growth of global smart fabrics market. The ever increasing automobiles market in Europe is a driving factor for the growth of smart fabrics in this region, thus witnessing a healthy CAGR in the forecast period. Latin America and Middle East and Africa are at a nascent stage in the global smart fabrics market but are projected to have a significant CAGR in the future.Global smart fabrics market  Key PlayersSome of the key players in the global smart fabrics market are:adidas GroupTextronics, IncOutlast Technologies LLCMilliken & CompanyKCWWInternational Fashion MachinesInteractivewearFibertronicEleksen Group PlcSpeak To Analyst@About Us:Future Market Insights is the premier provider of market intelligence and consulting services, serving clients in over 150 countries. FMI is headquartered in London, the global financial capital, and has delivery centres in the U.S. and India.Contact Us:Future Market Insights616 Corporate Way,Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage,New York 10989,United StatesTel: +1-347-918-3531Fax: +1-845-579-5705Email: sales@futuremarketinsights.comPress: press@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite:
Refugee 'jungle' has gone but problem remains Updated: 2016-10-28 07:26 By Harvey Morris(China Daily Europe)

French demolition crews recently began dismantling the so-called "jungle" at Calais, a squalid home to more than 7,000 migrants and a symbol of Europe's often confused response to an influx of people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and beyond.

Inhabitants of the makeshift camp are being relocated around France but the overall problem of how to cope with the immigrant and refugee crisis will not end there.

European nations set great store by their past record of welcoming those escaping violence and repression in their own countries. But sympathy has been wearing thin in recent years, with populist right-wing parties stoking fears that incomers from the Muslim world might pose a security threat.

That is set alongside other familiar arguments: "We don't have room. They'll take our jobs. They're only coming so they can claim social benefits."

This inward-looking and defensive response to the migrant crisis, which seemed at its most challenging a year ago as boatloads of people washed up on the shores of Greece, was an acknowledged factor for at least some British voters who opted to quit the European Union in June's referendum.

The irony there is that, while Britain is obliged to allow automatic access to citizens of its fellow EU states, it is free to bar the door to others. Although there is passport-free movement within Europe's 26-member Schengen Zone, Britain is not a member. The UK border effectively begins at Calais.

That is why refugees and economic migrants from Syria, Iraq, Somalia and beyond have gathered there to make their way to Britain, either legally or by smuggling themselves aboard UK-bound trucks.

Many favor Britain as a destination because they speak English, already have family there or just think it will be easier to find a job.

Although populist politicians may have raised the specter of hordes of Middle East migrants flooding into Britain, the reality is that very few of those fleeing war in the region have got through. Those from Syria number in the hundreds, although there is a plan to accept 20,000 by 2020.

The government only reluctantly agreed to allow in vulnerable, unaccompanied children when a campaign led by Alf Dubs, a Labour member of the House of Lords, forced a U-turn.

Lord Dubs is one of the countless refugees who are acknowledged as having enriched their adopted country. He arrived in Britain in 1939 as a six-year-old refugee from Nazi Germany, part of the so-called Kindertransport operation organized by volunteers to rescue Jewish children.

In the postwar era, Britain also welcomed refugees from the Hungarian uprising of 1956, a time when the country was much less prosperous than now. Schoolchildren were urged to collect clothes and toys for the newcomers.

In the 1970s, Britain also took in more than 25,000 Asians expelled from Idi Amin's Uganda. Arriving penniless, many established themselves as among the country's most successful businesspeople.

The European tradition of taking in exiles dates back centuries. It includes Protestants fleeing to England to escape religious persecution in France in the 17th century and Polish political exiles fleeing to France and elsewhere in the 19th.

The phenomenon is not uniquely European, of course. The United States is a country created by immigrants, although the current presidential election campaign has exposed a strain of intolerance against outsiders. Few Syrian exiles from the current war have made it there.

China took in 300,000 Vietnamese, predominantly ethnic Chinese, during and after the brief 1979 border war that followed Vietnam's invasion of Cambodia. A decade ago, during a visit to China, Antonio Guterres, the UN official responsible for refugees and the next secretary-general of the world body, described the transfer as "one of the most successful integration programs in the world".

The challenge for European states is that an open door to those fleeing violence and oppression has been part of their liberal perception of themselves. Building hostility to refugees risks tarnishing that image.

The writer is a senior editorial consultant for China Daily UK.

(China Daily European Weekly 10/28/2016 page13)
BUNDY3.JPG

Outside the federal courthouse in Portland on Thursday, Jon Boyette (right) shows to Bundy supporters his disdain for the not guilty verdict with a sign reading: "So long rule of law. It was fun while it lasted."

(Stephanie Yao Long/Staff)

The unlawful spectacle of the armed takeover and 41-day occupation of a federal facility in Harney County this year was, as if to test credulity, outdone when all defendants were declared not to be guilty.

The verdict was unequivocal, however, and in answer to the federal government's leading charge of conspiracy. The prosecution's failure to prove the occupiers intended to impede federal workers at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge meant the jury, instructed by the judge to narrowly insist on proof that substantiated the charge, had no choice but to say: not guilty.

The man we had called the only true patriot in the protracted mess - Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward - was understated late Thursday in saying he stood by the judicial system as sound and having done its job. We agree. But the verdict is beyond unsatisfying: It signals to any knucklehead in America that trespassing on government property, and trashing publicly owned facilities and equipment, is an action that can be beat.

Sympathizers of Ammon and Ryan Bundy and associates, meanwhile, were busy conflating an armed, threatening presence with American-as-apple-pie civil disobedience. Dimmest of the homilies came from Lisa Ludwig, standby counsel for Ryan Bundy: "Maybe this is a lesson that that's not the way to engage with (the occupiers), who want nothing more than just to be heard, just to have a forum to talk about the injustices like the case of the Hammonds and the treatment of ranchers."

Problem: The Bundys and their cohorts had made clear that they wanted more than to be heard. Their mobilizing cause of protecting Harney County ranchers Dwight Hammond Jr. and son Steven against excessive jail time had engendered public debate - a good thing. But during the takeover they asked for the conveyance of federally owned lands to ranchers, and on Jan. 3 Ammon Bundy brokered a strained patience from law officers by - wink wink - telling them he and his associates had no intention of violence unless the government acted against them. Read: Dave Ward, go home. Oregon State Police, beware. Federal Bureau of Investigation, stay back.

Such coercive behavior is common thuggery prettied up in a cowboy outfit from a guy waving a copy of the U.S. Constitution. That the occupiers would, among other things, disturb sacred Native American sites by digging trenches for their waste, only makes the judicial outcome truly repellant.

Juror No. 4 declined to name himself in email to Maxine Bernstein of The Oregonian/OregonLive. But his message lends context: "Don't they know that 'not guilty' does not mean innocent? It was not lost on us that our verdict(s) might inspire future actions that are regrettable, but that sort of thinking was not permitted when considering the charges before us."

It seems clear the federal government wanted to convict Bundy and associates of crimes that would ensure jail time and, perhaps, set an example to others for whom lawlessness is a consideration. But even the simple possession of firearms at the federal refuge couldn't stick without first proving conspiracy - this despite the recovery of dozens of weapons and hundreds of shell casings by the FBI. A simpler charge of criminal trespass against the Bundy crowd might have been easier to prove but bring lesser punishments.

Oregonian editorials

reflect the collective opinion of The Oregonian editorial board, which operates independently of the newsroom.

are Laura Gunderson, Helen Jung, Mark Katches, John Maher and Len Reed.

To respond to this editorial:

Post your comment below, submit a

,

or write a

.

If you have questions about

the opinion section,

contact Laura Gunderson,

editorial and commentary editor,

at lgunderson@oregonian.com

or 503-221-8378.

Second-guessing the prosecution is fruitless other than to note that Juror No. 4 was put off by the government's manner at trial: "The air of triumphalism that the prosecution brought was not lost on any of us, nor was it warranted given their burden of proof." Ouch.

It will be some time before the circus in Harney County will fade and join other history-making verdicts, among them O.J. Simpson's acquittal. But it will be very soon that the Bundys face separate charges in Nevada, where their rancher father started it all by resisting the federal government's management of grazing lands.

The lesson throughout, however, is plain: Civil disobedience carries with it the willingness to scale protest actions against applicable laws, face criminal prosecution for violating them and to accept consequences. The Bundy crew got very lucky in Oregon. May they not in Nevada. And may those whom they inspire nationwide consult the Constitution that was so misapplied in Harney County.

Debate is good and guaranteed. So, too, is the right to bear arms. But staging an armed takeover of a federal facility is not and should, on a better day in court, be punishable by law.

-The Oregonian/OregonLive Editorial Board
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A woman assists her mother filling out her ballot in a church polling place on Election Day 2014 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

(Matt Rourke/Associated Press)

WHY NOT ENDORSE PIERCE?: Regarding "After fits and starts, it's Kate Brown for governor," (Oct. 16): The editorial board clearly lays out that Brown has put forth no vision for where she would take the state, cannot seem to reach timely decisions if at all, shows no interest in tackling the big issues like PERS and finally came down late on the wrong side -- supporting monster tax Measure 97. The board made clear she has shown no propensity to lead.

So why not endorse Bud Pierce, who has laid out a path forward for the state, is going to tackle the big issues of PERS and spending and has significant management experience? Pierce's only big difference from Brown is he is not a wishy-washy politician, as the board has described Brown. The state has big financial problems; Pierce is the only candidate who seems willing to confront them and solve them.

Richard Leonetti, Southwest Portland

*

'NO' ON MEASURE 97: Regarding "Kitzhaber issues anti-Measure 97 manifesto," (Oct. 23): The closing statement in the article about John Kitzhaber being against Measure 97 says it all: "(V)eteran legislator Peter Buckley, D-Ashland, said Kitzhaber was wrong. 'We've had 25 years as a state to come up with options, and M97 is the first proposal I've seen that provides a viable choice for progress.'" That's the problem, the Oregon Legislature has had 25 years to develop a tax revenue program that meets the state's desperate needs of today -- 25 years! -- and they haven't come up with anything that works. Measure 97 did not come out of the Legislature; it is another ill-designed citizen-written measure.

Voters should vote "No" on Measure 97 and force the Legislature to look at a well-thought-out solution, such as a general sales tax.

David Gemma, Gresham

*

PERS AND MEASURE 97: The description for Measure 97 should read "tax to continue funding Public Employee Retirement System (PERS) at current levels." As recent articles in The Oregonian/OregonLive have pointed out, the overhead to pay for PERS and its $22 billion unfunded liability is a huge drain on our schools and public services, and the system as currently structured is unsustainable. Measure 97 funding would enable state lawmakers to avoid making tough decisions on PERS reform and kick the can down the road for yet a few more years. If for no other reason, voters should reject it. Reigning in PERS costs should be the No. 1 priority for the governor and Legislature. Removing themselves from the program to avoid conflicts of interest would be a good place to start.

Bill Keenan, Lake Oswego

*

REALITY OF MEASURE 97: I'm voting "Yes" on Measure 97 because I want to finally see the state invest billions of dollars into public education, health care and senior services just by making sure that big companies pay their fair share in taxes. The opposition, which has put about $20 million into TV ads about Measure 97, wants you to think that this measure is very complicated and that catastrophe will befall when we pass this measure. But in reality, Measure 97 is very simple. It's just a few lines in the tax code. All it does is increase the minimum corporate tax for large and out-of-state corporations. Under Measure 97, the tax will be 2.5 percent for sales amounts over $25 million. That's it. The text of the measure very clearly dedicates the estimated $3 billion a year to our schools, seniors and health care. These are companies like Comcast, Wells Fargo and Walmart who are simply not paying their fair share as our current tax code is set up. And what that means is that Oregon has one of the lowest graduation rates. We have more and more seniors retiring into poverty. And we have thousands of Oregonians who still don't have health insurance. It's time that we trust the thousands of teachers, parents, small businesses and economists who have endorsed Measure 97, and not the big corporations funding the opposition campaign. Please vote "Yes" on Measure 97.

Chelsea Place, North Portland

*

MEASURE 97 TARGETS: I have watched with great interest the deluge of adds paid for primarily by the major corporations targeted by Measure 97's increased minimum tax. The ads focus on a prevailing theme: the fact that the Legislature will not spend the additional revenue on the program's identified in the measure -- namely education, health care and senior social services. The facts suggest otherwise. Those three parts of the Oregon budget over the last dozen bienniums have consumed about 75 percent of total expenditures. Actually, in 2015-16, it was 78 percent ("Oregon Blue Book: Government Finance"). To think the 2017-18 Legislature would find other areas in the budget to dedicate this new source of revenue defies logic based on a nearly 30 years' history of empirical evidence.

Don Zehrung, Woodburn

*

TRUMP: ANTI-AMERICAN SPOILSPORT: Our system of selecting candidates for elected offices was once one of intelligent debate, centered on using reason to tease out the leader with the best vision and the best means to achieve that vision for a prosperous nation. It is unfortunate that negative campaigning and personal attacks have so clouded this system that more attention is given to the loudest and most vainly repeated voice in an attempt to win votes. That vainly repeating voice has, time and again, proven to be unthinking and irresponsible for comments made in the moment they were made.

I'm not making this up, I'm basing this on what that voice already said as matter of factual current events. The would-be emperor we have in Donald Trump has no clothes, has no one but himself to blame for it, let alone the wounds he's received because of it. Inciting United States citizens to outright sedition, or threatening the same, against the electoral system and the government proper should he fail to be elected is proof of a spoilsport, anti-democratic, and anti-American outlook towards selecting our elected officials.

The point was to elect substance and best qualifications, not belligerent style.

Michael D. Beams, Tualatin

*

REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS: Regarding "Oregon House Democrats pull abortion ad, say it 'was not factually supported,'" (Oct. 19): I'm writing to refute Oregon House candidate Juanita Lint's outrageous claim that reproductive rights "aren't issues we'll have to deal with at the state legislative level." She's either wildly misinformed or she's wildly misleading voters.

In the 2015 legislative session alone, right-wing politicians introduced five measures to restrict access to safe, legal abortion -- including one bill that could have shut down all but one abortion provider in Oregon. Thankfully, the Oregon Legislature reflects the general population of our great state -- which solidly supports women's health and rights -- so these attacks never made it to the floor for a vote.

I'm supporting leaders who actually understand what's at stake in Salem. Incumbent Rep. Susan McLain shares my values that politicians shouldn't come between a woman and her doctor. Just last year, she voted in favor of landmark legislation to protect patient privacy and expand access to birth control. McLain has earned my vote because she trusts women to make their own personal health care decisions. Juanita Lint just doesn't get it.

Bobbi Wolf, Hillsboro
Moments after the Oregon standoff defendants' acquittals were announced in court Thursday, Ammon Bundy's lawyer Marcus Mumford stood before the judge, and argued that his client should be released from custody immediately and allowed to walk out of the courtroom a free man.

Ammon Bundy, who chose to wear blue jails scrubs throughout the trial, was dressed in a gray suit Thursday.

U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown told him that there was a U.S. Marshal's hold on him from a pending federal indictment in Nevada.

"No, he's released on these charges. He's acquitted. Nevada doesn't have jurisdiction,'' Mumford yelled, standing before the judge. "If there's a detainer, show me.''

"Mr. Mumford, you really need to never yell at me now or never again,'' the judge responded.

Brown told Mumford that she's releasing Bundy on all federal holds in the Oregon case, but he'll have to take up any questions about the federal holds from the Nevada case with the U.S. Marshals Service.

"If they want him, they know where to find him,'' Mumford told the judge. "I don't see any paper proving their authority to hold him.''

Suddenly, a group of about six to seven U.S. Marshals, who had been either standing or seated around the perimeter of the courtroom, slowly moved in and surrounded Mumford at his defense table. The judge directed them to move back but moments later, the marshals grabbed onto him.

"What are you doing?'' Mumford yelled, as he struggled and was taken down to the floor.

As deputy marshals yelled, "Stop resisting,'' the judge demanded, "Everybody out of the courtroom now!''

Mumford was taken into custody by the Federal Protective Services.

He was cited for failure to comply with a federal lawful order and disturbance and released with a Jan. 6 date to return to federal court, said Eric Wahlstrom, supervising deputy of the U.S. Marshals Service.

According to Wahlstrom, Mumford was shocked with a stun gun in what's called a dry-stun mode, meaning no probes were fired into his body but a Taser was placed up against his body.

Wahlstrom, who was not in the courtroom, said the actions were taken because Mumford was resisting and preventing marshals from taking Ammon Bundy out of the courtroom and back into custody.

Wahlstrom said the stun gun was used because deputy U.S. marshals "attempted to handcuff him and he continued to resist.''

But observers who were close to the arrest decried the use of force against a lawyer in court.

"What happened at the end is symbolic of the improper use of force by the federal government,'' Mumford's co-counsel J. Morgan Philpot said. Philpot explained that Mumford was attempting to point out that since the judge previously had said in court that she had no authority over detention orders made by the court in Nevada, she couldn't now maintain the right to order his client held.

"I grew up on a dairy farm, so am I used to some rough treatment, sure?'' Mumford told reporters, after his release. But he said the actions of the U.S. marshals were uncalled for.

"All I was asking for was papers. Just show me you have the authority to take Mr. Bundy into custody,'' Mumford said.

Defense lawyer Per C. Olson, who represented co-defendant David Fry, called the physical confrontation "a complete overreaction. Utterly disgusting.''

Olson said Mumford was getting animated, but he did nothing physical. He didn't charge the bench, or block marshals from his client. "He raised his arm as if to say, what the hell...And they grabbed him, Tased him and took him down. It was just shocking. It was completely inappropriate,''Olson said.

Defense lawyer Matthew Schindler, standby counsel for defendant Kenneth Medenbach, said he was disappointed by Mumford's challenge to his client's return to custody, considering he faces more serious federal charges in Nevada.

Schindler said Mumford was exhausted, having "put out everything he had,'' during the past six weeks of the case.

"Unfortunately he let his passion and desire and belief in his client overcome his good judgement,'' Schindler said.

Margaret "Margie" Paris, a University of Oregon law professor and former dean, said she couldn't believe what occurred when she learned of the confrontation.

"It just blows my mind,'' Paris said. "To have a lawyer who's making an argument in court physically restrained and taken down is extraordinary. He's entitled to make these arguments. If he was repeating himself over and over, the more typical response is to hold him in contempt. But to physically accost him is just shocking.''

Oregonian Staff Writer Jeff Manning contributed to this story.

-- Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com

503-221-8212

@maxoregonian
Curt Nickens told fellow jurors Wednesday, the fourth day of deliberations in the Oregon standoff trial, that he felt he had been the target of a "personal attack'' and wasn't comfortable with that.

The day before, Nickens had been summoned to U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown's chambers and asked to sit at a table with a court reporter, a prosecutor and two defense lawyers. He was asked whether anything had changed since he told the court that his prior work for the U.S. Bureau of Land Management would not impair his ability to be a fair and impartial juror. Nickens told them no.

But as he returned to the jury room, he surmised that Juror 4, with whom he had been "butting heads'' during deliberations, had sent some type of note to the court that targeted him, and led to the judge's questioning of him. The day before Nickens had seen Juror 4 tear a piece of paper from his notepad and hand it to the presiding juror.

Nickens didn't share the matter with other jurors until Wednesday morning when debate over the conspiracy charges got heated.

"That's when I told them I received a personal attack, and I wasn't too comfortable with that happening. Apparently nobody else knew about it , and they were surprised,' 'Nickens told The Oregonian/OregonLive. "Juror 4 just admitted to it, and I looked over and said, 'I knew it was you.' ''

About an hour later, the judge's deputy told the jury to halt deliberations. The full jury was led into Courtroom 9A. There, Judge Brown told everyone that Nickens was being dismissed from the jury. She said a matter came up that necessitated it, but it wasn't anything "untoward'' that Nickens had done. He would be replaced by an alternate juror.

Nickens said he was expecting to be dismissed after his Tuesday meeting with the judge, and wondered why it didn't occur that night.

"But I was thinking if they remove me, they should also remove Juror 4 for his ulterior motives,'' Nickens told The Oregonian/OregonLive.

Only after he was dismissed, did Nickens grab his cell phone. For the first time in five weeks, he said he was able to check the news coverage of the trial.

He did so immediately. That's when he saw a photo of Juror 4's note, questioning Nicken's ability to be impartial, contending he had said at the start of deliberations, "I am very biased.''

he question that Juror 4 posed to the court about Juror 11 on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2016, on the third day of the initial jury's deliberations in the federal conspiracy trial.

"It was more of a 'WTF' kind of moment. That was completely out of context,'' Nickens said. "I was livid. I still consider it a personal attack with underlying ulterior motives.''

At the outset of deliberations, Nickens said he stayed quiet for about 20 to 30 minutes as jurors started to talk about the trial and the evidence they saw and heard.

"When somebody asked me what I thought, I did say, 'hey look, I see we're all in here from different backgrounds, different characteristics, different lifestyles. I told them from my experience with the Department of Corrections, I can see where my opinion would be seen as very biased. That they would assume the worst of me.''

He said he didn't remember actually citing his past employment with the federal land management agency at that point, but he didn't keep his federal BLM firefighting work a secret either. It came up several times in small talk, Nickens said.

"I was very critical of some of the defense's evidence, and I saw certain things that others did not see, regarding the conspiracy charges,'' Nickens said. "We were knocking heads, three or four of us in that jury room.''

Nickens said he was most struck by a prosecutor's argument that the defense case - partly resting on the contention defendants were at the refuge in an effort to stake claim to it under an adverse possession principle - actually proved the government's case.

"Adverse possession basically tells you government employees were not allowed in the refuge by its own meaning,'' Nickens said. "I took that more to heart than anyone else.''

Nickens said he believes the fact that Juror 4 sent the judge a note about him, days after allegedly hearing him make any such remarks, made him suspect he did so purposely to do "a little end-run around me, and the rest was history.''

Juror 4, who also talked to The Oregonian/OregonLive but did not want his name used, said he waited to send the note to the court, because he wanted to give Juror 11 time to show he wasn't biased.

Some of the other jurors had asked Nickens if he thought he could be impartial because of his prior work experience. During deliberations, Nickens said he attempted to show the jury panel how he was clearly not biased, because he was significantly ticked off by defendant Jeff Banta's demeanor and testimony on the witness stand.

"My correction officer instincts in me really boiled,'' he said. "The next break, I had to walk up and down the halls to calm down. He was very confrontational, seemed to be exchanging looks with his lawyer.''

Yet Nickens said he could not find Banta guilty of the federal conspiracy trial. "If I was going to be biased, he'd be the one person I'd find guilty, but I couldn't based on the evidence,'' he said.

When the judge in court announced to the full jury that she had to dismiss Juror 11, Nickens said it took all his energy to resist reacting.

"You don't know how much I wanted to turn around and give somebody a good, hard glare,'' Nickens said. Juror 4 was seated in the row behind him, to his right in the jury box.

But he said he didn't out of his tremendous respect for Judge Brown, "you know how she keeps things very controlled.''

"In a world of Trumps and Clintons, I say 'Judge Brown for President,'' Nickens added.

Usually a jeans and T-shirt type of guy, Nickens said he wore ties most days to court.

"I was honored to be there,'' he noted.

Juror 4 had also alleged in an email to The Oregonian/OregonLive that Juror 11 discussed evidence in the jury room that was never presented at trial.

Nickens said jurors were discussing the video of the police shooting of occupation spokesman Robert "LaVoy'' Finicum's white truck on Jan. 26. Defendants Shawna Cox and Ryan Bundy were seated in the back seat, and Cox took a video.

"When people were talking about the Shawna Cox video, I had to stop them and ask them have you seen the aerial footage associated with that,'' Nickens said. The aerial footage was never entered into evidence in the case. "I didn't tell them what had happened. I told them when this was all over, that's one thing you need to do, is watch that video.''

Before he was dismissed fully, he met one-on-one with the judge in her chambers. Nickens asked if she could relay to Ammon Bundy's defense lawyer, Marcus Mumford, his admiration.

"I tell you if I had speech impediment like he did, I don't know if I could do the job he did,'' Nickens said, remarking about Mumford's stuttering. "I asked Judge Brown to shake his hand for me. I admire him for what he's dealing with and how he handles it.''

Nickens said few goodbyes and left the courthouse quickly Wednesday.

"I was so anxious to get the hell out of there,'' he said. He didn't even give in his parking voucher. "Don't worry about it I'll send it in the mail,'' he told a court official.

Nickens realized it was his last day in Portland, a 41/2 hour drive from his home in Baker City.

He's worked as a corrections officer for the Powder River Correctional Institution in Baker City for more than 20 years. During summers in college, he worked for the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, as a range tech and firefighter in the Vale District. He earned a bachelor of arts degree from Eastern Oregon University, where he majored in architecture, with a minor in range land management. He's divorced with two boys, ages 19 and 15, and a daughter, age 16.

Before heading home, he stopped at Willamette National Cemetery to place American flags around his father's headstone. The next morning, he drove home, and went to work at the prison by late afternoon.

Once Nickens learned of the verdict Thursday afternoon from the reconfigured jury, he was surprised that the across-the-board acquittals were returned after only about five hours of discussions.

"I was hoping people would grind the evidence a little longer, at least wait until Monday,'' he said.

Later Thursday, Nickens said he posted on his Facebook page: "Well-played Juror 4. Well-played.''

-- Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com

503-221-8212

@maxoregonian
The acquittal of people who occupied Oregon's Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in January sets back efforts "to stem the tide of militant extremism on public lands," a Colorado-based environmental advocacy group said Friday.

The Center for Western Priorities said the verdict will embolden militants.

"The militant occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge is but one of many instances of militia groups threatening the safety of public land managers," the center said in a news release.

A jury on Thursday, October 27, acquitted Ammon Bundy and six other defendants on charges of conspiring to keep federal employees from their jobs.

The center also released a report based on public records requests, filed with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, concerning militia activity from 2012 through 2015 and threatening behavior or vandalism at wildlife refuges in 2016.

The center, based on its records requests, said it documented 26 "incidents" at 16 national wildlife refuges the two-week period from Jan. 31 through Feb. 14. That was the period just after the main contingent of Malheur occupiers departed on Jan. 26.

Documents that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service provided were heavily redacted. They sometimes provide little more evidence than describing people in camouflage attending "abonormal" gatherings.

Below is the Center for Western Priorities entire statement, including links to the documents.

DENVER--An Oregon jury returned a surprise verdict yesterday, finding Ammon Bundy, Ryan Bundy, and five other militants not guilty of conspiring to impede employees at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. The trial is a setback for the U.S. government working to stem the tide of militant extremism on public lands; the trial's outcome may also embolden militia groups in states across the Western United States.

The militant occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge is but one of many instances of militia groups threatening the safety of public land managers. And while the Bundy family and their devotees fall far outside mainstream public opinion on Western public lands, militants remain committed to using public lands and government employees to express their anti-government sentiments.

Documents obtained by the Center for Western Priorities via a Freedom of Information Act Request to the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service highlights the dangerous reality for land managers and scientists working on America's public lands.

The records reveal four key findings:

Government employees are regularly threatened by militia and sovereign citizens on public lands.

Civil servants receive threats against their life.

Militia groups routinely use public lands for training.

The occupation at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge emboldened militants.

Records Request 1

Bureau of Land Management

The Center for Western Priorities obtained documents through a Freedom of Information Request to the Bureau of Land Management for reports and complaints involving militia activity in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, New Mexico, and Nevada between January 1, 2012 and August 21, 2015. The request asked for information concerning the discharge of firearms or other weapons, militia activities, or incidents involving the Oath Keepers, the Three Percenters, the Militia of Montana, the Council of Conservative Citizens, or sovereign citizens.

Full documents and analysis

Bureau of Land Management law enforcement officers reported 26 incidents related to militia or sovereign citizen activity on public lands in the seven states between 2012 and 2015.

Ten incidents involving sovereign citizens or militia groups were reported in Arizona, nine of which occurred in the Sonoran Desert National Monument.

Bureau of Land Management employees received multiple death threats from anonymous callers during the Bundy Ranch standoff.

Law enforcement officers in the Sonoran Desert National Monument stopped two militia members who were on the Federal Bureau of Investigation's domestic terrorist watch list.

The Ada County Lightfoot Militia attempted to close off portions of public lands for shooting without a permit.

A Bureau of Land Management officer was harassed by a sovereign citizen during a property rights investigation.

A Sovereign citizen accused of domestic assault refused to recognize the authority of a Bureau of Land Management officer attempting to arrest him on public lands.

Records Request 2

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

The Center for Western Priorities obtained documents from a Freedom of Information Request concerning incidents of threatening behavior, vandalism and other acts at U.S. wildlife refuges in the West as armed militants held the Malheur Wildlife Refuge.

Full documents and analysis

While many of the records received were redacted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under various FOIA exemptions, the unredacted information reveals emboldened militias willing to take aggressive action on American public lands. According to the documents, between January 31, 2016 and February 14, 2016, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recorded 26 different incidents. These occurred at 16 different wildlife refuges across the West. That includes four incidents at the Pahranagat National Wildlife Refuge in Nevada and five at the Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge in Washington.

While this week's verdict could embolden anti-public land militants, it is also important to remember that the leaders of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupation--Ammon Bundy and Ryan Bundy--are not walking free. Both will stand trial next year, alongside their father Cliven Bundy, on charges pending in Nevada for their role in the dangerous 2014 armed standoff at the Bundy Ranch.

Ensuring the Bundys are held accountable for their illegal activities in Nevada will send a signal to militant extremists that they are not above American laws.
UPDATED Oct. 28, 2016: This post has been updated since a jury acquitted seven defendants in federal court.

The 154-year-old law under which Ammon Bundy and others were charged was created to deal with a nation torn apart by war.

Historians interviewed in January, when the charges were filed, said it made sense for the armed occupiers who holed up at Oregon's Malheur National Wildlife Refuge to be accused under the Civil-War era statute.

The academic experts said the occupiers, like the Confederates, rejected federal power.

The armed protesters demanded that the refuge and other federal lands be handed over to local control. On Jan. 26, or 24 days after taking over the refuge, Bundy and others were arrested and charged with conspiring to prevent federal officers from doing their jobs using threats or intimidation.

The defendants, prosecutors alleged, worked together to prevent employees of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and/or U.S. Bureau of Land Management from carrying out their work through intimidation, threat or fear. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service manages the refuge.

Jurors ultimately disagreed. One specifically said the occupation had the effect of keeping federal employees from work, but that the government failed to prove the occupiers conspired with that intent.

While used in the last few decades mostly against radical activists like Bundy, the charge originated at a time when entire states rejected federal power.

Fractured union

As state after state seceded from the Union in late 1860 and early 1861, the federal government needed a way to go after Confederate sympathizers living on Union territory, said William Blair, a Penn State University Civil War expert who wrote a book about treason and loyalty in the Union.

The Confederacy began seizing federal buildings as states seceded, Blair said. States and armed groups took over federal courthouses, naval yards, forts, customs houses and post offices.

Soon after the fall of Fort Sumter in Charleston in April 1861, President Abraham Lincoln dispatched troops to protect Washington D.C., said another Civil War historian, Yale University professor David Blight.

The soldiers were to go through Maryland, but were stopped by a mob in Baltimore sympathetic to the Confederate cause.

"That was a dire crisis," said Blight. "The capital needed to be defended, and they needed some statute under which to arrest people."

The trouble, for fans of the Union: There did not exist any federal laws prohibiting people from plotting to overthrow the government or impeding the work of federal officers. The only charge available was treason, and its successful prosecution required an actual act of war, a charge with a very high burden of proof, Blair said.

In July 1861, three months after the war began, Congress took up legislation that would make anti-government conspiracies illegal.

The 1861 bill that laid out the crime of conspiracy to impede a federal officer, which prosecutors ares citing in the 2016 Oregon wildlife refuge occupation.

House Resolution 45 made it a crime to try to destroy the United States government, to impede the execution of any U.S. law or to take U.S. property by force.

The bill included broad protections for federal officers who would enforce those prohibitions, forbidding people from impeding their work.

"When you make that kind of law you've got to make sure that people who go in there and enforce it are protected," Blair said.

The new anti-conspiracy law also explicitly barred people from taking control of federal property, which state forces and armed groups in the seceded states had done.

Then-Senator Lyman Trumbull said the bill's purpose was to allow the U.S. to charge people with crimes against the government that fell short of treason, Congressional records show.

In a discussion on the Senate floor, Trumbull cited a postman being stopped in Missouri as an example of what the bill would make illegal, congressional records show. A group of people threatened and intimidated the postman, Trumbull said, and prevented him from carrying out his duties.

"I think that those persons ought to be punished," Trumbull said. "But I do not suppose it was treason on their part."

President Abraham Lincoln signed the bill into law July 31, 1861.

Oddly enough, nobody could identify any Civil-War era indictments under the law, wrote historian Catherine Tarrant in a 1971 academic article about conspiracy laws leading up to and during the war.

The law also has rarely been invoked in the modern era. A search of Westlaw showed fewer than 30 prosecutions over the last 50 years, said former Assistant U.S. Attorney Anders Folk.

But in those rare cases when prosecutors have invoked the conspiracy statute, it's often been against people fighting for a cause. People prosecuted under it include environmental activists disobeying government orders and anti-war activists protesting in military recruitment centers.

Now, add to that list 11 men and women who opposed the federal land management policies in the rural West as overly restrictive. More arrests may follow as the occupation winds down.

The Malheur refuge case

The beliefs and actions that led to the arrest of Bundy and his alleged co-conspirators parallel those of the era that gave the law life, Blight said.

"Bundy and that crowd are sort of latter-day secessionists," he said, because they've demanded federal land be handed over to local control.

The original law has been been amended since 1861, with the current form not including a prohibition on trying to overthrow the government.

The charge seems to make sense for what the occupiers did, said Anders Folk, a former Assistant U.S. Prosecutor who successfully prosecuted a group of sovereign citizens that had plotted to arrest a federal judge.

"It's a clean fit for the activities that these guys are engaging in," he said.

Ammon Bundy was arrested on Jan. 26 after a felony high-risk vehicle stop between Burns and John Day along with his brother Ryan Bundy, Ryan Payne, Brian Cavalier and Shawna Cox. State police shot and killed occupier Robert "LaVoy" Finicum after he evaded officers, crashed into a snowbank, got out of his truck and reached at least three times inside his jacket, where he had a loaded 9mm handgun, police said.

The maximum sentence for the charge is six years in prison, plus fines.

Lynne Palombo contributed to this report.

-- Fedor Zarkhin

503-294-7674; @fedorzarkhin
keyplayers.jpg

The seven defendants on trial were Ammon Bundy (clockwise from left), Ryan Bundy, Shawna Cox, Jeff Wayne Banta, Neil Wampler, David Lee Fry and Kenneth Medenbach. (Multnomah County Sheriff's Office)

Over five weeks, the seven Oregon standoff defendants trooped into the ninth-floor courtroom with their lawyers in tow, stacks of boxes filled with file folders and various family members watching from the gallery.

The days took on a routine - starting at 8 a.m. or 8:30 a.m. sharp, a lunch break lasting a half-hour to an hour, then back at it until 5 p.m. or sometimes slightly after. Usually, the judge allowed Fridays off or tweaked the schedule to accommodate holidays.

But the action inside the courtroom was never routine.

The jury of nine women and three men returned not guilty verdicts after five hours of deliberations on Thursday in the high-profile case that riveted the state and drew national and international attention to the federal bird sanctuary in rural eastern Oregon.

In a case that had its share of the unconventional - five defendants who took the stand, three defendants who represented themselves but had help from attorneys and one juror who was dismissed "for good cause'' and replaced by an alternate - some things stood out:

RYAN BUNDY HOLDS HIS OWN

Defendant Ryan Bundy, who raises cattle and melons in Bunkerville, Nevada, has no education beyond high school and no legal education at all, but held his ground representing himself in a complex case, earning praise from the judge at one point.

Bundy provided a marked contrast to his brother Ammon Bundy's private defense lawyer, Marcus Mumford -- who along with co-counsel J. Morgan Philpot, were the only attorneys not appointed by the court. In the lineup of defense teams, Mumford would go first and Ryan Bundy second.

While prosecutors successfully objected to many of Mumford's questions, Ryan Bundy fared better. He would ask pointed questions that hadn't been asked before, elicited interesting testimony and often won the judge's agreement when he raised objections to prosecution questions.

A paralegal and a standby counsel would whisper advice to him at the defense table, but it was Bundy who stood alone during opening statements and closing arguments, questioned witnesses and argued legal points.

He used his own style, greeting witnesses with a "How ya doing today?'' or "Nice to see you again'' to a defense witness who had spent time on the Malheur National Wildlife refuge. He occasionally called the judge "madam.''

Sometimes he'd voice disagreement with a witness's testimony -- which was clearly out of turn. Bundy asked Harney County commissioner Steve Grasty, for instance, if he believed it violated the First Amendment to prevent a local group with ties to Ammon Bundy from using a county building.

"I do not,'' Grasty testified.

"I dare to disagree with you,'' Ryan Bundy told him, "but there's no time'' to argue that point now. The judge instructed jurors to disregard Bundy's remarks.

Bundy also mumbled in disagreement when the judge refused to let him hand out pocket Constitutions to jurors during his opening statement and flatly expressed his dismay when he couldn't quote from the Constitution in his closing argument.

JUDGE KEEPS TRIAL ON TRACK

U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown made it clear nearly every day that she didn't want to waste the jurors' time.

She continually pressed attorneys to make sure they had people lined up to testify. If they didn't, they'd feel her wrath. "We need a witness," she demanded one day. "You put up evidence or you rest." That sent a member of Ammon Bundy's defense team scurrying out of the courtroom yelling, "We need a witness! Where's Jason Patrick?'' referring to a co-defendant scheduled for trial in February.

She had little patience for lawyers who were late to court in the morning -- and Mumford, her frequent sparring partner among the defense lawyers, was tardy more than once. He blamed traffic one morning and then a long line getting past metal detectors and security at the courthouse entrance another time.

"We're waiting on you a lot Mr. Mumford,'' the judge told him one morning

Brown also worked to limit repetitive testimony that she didn't think would add anything new to the case. She restricted prosecutors from calling a government lawyer or U.S. Bureau of Land Management agent to counter occupation leader Ammon Bundy's account of the 2014 standoff at his father Cliven Bundy's ranch near Bunkerville, Nevada. She also limited a host of potential defense witnesses who she expected would reiterate that the refuge was kept clean and orderly and was peaceful during the occupation.

At times, she took issue with Mumford's frequent challenges and disregard of her rulings. Early in the trial out of the juror's presence, she threatened to hold him in contempt of court. Later, she told him: "Stop with the theatrics!' when he stood silently before her shaking his hands in the air in frustration over her denial to show a video of Ammon Bundy speaking to two visiting ranchers at the refuge.

Toward the end of the case, she told him: "I have never seen a case where I have repeatedly had to restate rulings. I'm not going to put up with this any longer.''

Told one day that Mumford wasn't in the courtroom because he was talking to someone in the witness room, an exasperated Brown remarked, "I don't really care at this point.''

There were occasions when she threw in some sarcastic remarks.

At the end of a long day of testimony and out of the jury's presence, Brown told the lawyers to enjoy their day off from the trial on Columbus Day. Defense lawyer Matthew Schindler murmured something audibly about what he really thinks of that holiday.

"Excuse me?'' the judge asked. "You must've been a real pill in sixth grade." Another time, she told Schindler, a tall, imposing figure who often stood up at his defense desk in the back of the room to stretch, "Sit down, you're scaring me.''

After telling the parties to the case that the juror verdict forms would have an area to mark whether they find a defendant guilty or not guilty, Mumford quipped, "Mr. Bundy would like to request a verdict form that only says not guilty.''

The judge shot back: "And I'd like to be tall, thin and blonde.''

ICONIC PHOTO OF SHERIFF WITH AMMON BUNDY

The Jan. 7 photo showing Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward shaking Ammon Bundy's hand on the side of a snow-covered road was presented at least five times to jurors.

Defense and prosecutors characterized the symbolism of that meeting differently.

Prosecutors said it showed that the sheriff was trying to be accommodating to Bundy while clearly asking him to leave the refuge and offering to escort him out of town and that Bundy snubbed the offer.

In contrast, Schindler, who represented Kenneth Medenbach, argued that the sheriff provided Bundy with a nice "photo op." It showed the laid-back law enforcement approach to the refuge occupation that reinforced the idea among the occupiers that the takeover and protest were legitimate, he and other defense attorneys said.

They noted that occupiers traveled to and from the federal bird sanctuary, ate Chinese food or grabbed a hair cut in Burns without any consequences for weeks.

FIREARMS OR FABIO?

While the federal government's parade of firearms into the courtroom was certainly dramatic, the most intriguing moment in the case came when defense lawyer Tiffany Harris rose and said she was about to call a man to testify who she strongly suspected was an FBI informant at the refuge, even though the man had steadfastly denied it and prosecutors declined to confirm he worked for the government.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Barrow said he had no obligation to identify a government informant, but if the government knew that information presented in court was false, it likely would have the responsibility to say so.

Judge Brown called the scenario "a very unusual situation'' and ordered defense lawyers to arrange to have a court-appointed defense attorney meet with the man known as "John Killman'' before he took the stand. That lawyer talked to the man and then asked to talk to the judge in her chambers. When they emerged less than 10 minutes later, Brown said the lawyer suggested that the man may not have any information useful to the defense.

Regardless, Harris called "Mr. Killman'' to the stand. With black-rimmed glasses resting on the bridge of his nose and dressed in a blue polo shirt and rust-colored pants, the mystery man with the French or South African accent revealed his true name: Fabio Minoggio.

Minoggio admitted that he provided information freely to the FBI, was at the refuge from Jan. 23 through Jan. 26, offered firearms training and was asked to oversee the shooting range at the refuge. The FBI reimbursed him for his expenses, including the cost of a ballistics vest he bought when his truck broke down because he presumed he'd be in "harm's way.'' Minoggio didn't say where or when his truck broke down.

In closing arguments, defense lawyers tried to hammer the government for not disclosing that a man they sent into the refuge was supervising a shooting range for occupiers.

"Why didn't the government just tell the truth about Fabulous Fabio?'' one of them asked jurors.

Mumford, Ammon Bundy's attorney, chuckled about the "Killman" alias that he said he presumed the FBI gave Minoggio. "Of course, that's what the government thinks of the occupiers,'' he said.

Schindler called it a "catastrophic mistake'' for prosecutors not to identify what their informants did and who they were. He asked jurors: "How can you trust a federal government who placed a dozen informants into the conspiracy then doesn't'' tell you who or what they did.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig Gabriel tried to put the concerns to rest in his rebuttal. The government is allowed to use informants in investigating crimes, he said.

"We're not relying on the informants in this case to prove'' the conspiracy charge, Gabriel told jurors, but relying on the evidence presented at trial.

BEFORE FINICUM SHOOTING, AFTER FINICUM SHOOTING

Jeff Banta's defense lawyer, Robert Salisbury, suggested that the last two weeks of the refuge occupation be called "Survivor.'' That would separate the time from the "Occupation'' -- the initial weeks of the takeover leading up to the Jan. 26 arrests of its leaders and fatal shooting of occupation spokesman Robert "LaVoy" Finicum.

"Everything changed that night of Jan. 26,'' Salisbury argued, saying his client from then on stayed at the refuge's west embankment "out of fear of being killed.''

Salisbury said he wondered as he sat through the trial if prosecutors were going to drop the conspiracy to impede federal employees charge against Banta because the only people Banta impeded were FBI agents in the last two weeks.

COWBOY HAT WITH A MESSAGE

Defense witness Duane Schrock, a Crane rancher who was part of the Ammon Bundy-backed Committee of Safety in Harney County and visited the refuge several times, removed his white cowboy hat as he took the stand to testify one afternoon.

When he was done, he walked past Ammon Bundy's defense table and put his hat down, then headed toward the courtroom doors to leave.

Inside the hat read his personal message to Bundy, "I love you.'' Before Schrock made it to the courtroom's doors, a deputy U.S. marshal had picked up the hat and handed it back to him.

Later, Schrock told The Oregonian/OregonLive that he wasn't sure if marshals would stop him or possibly even tackle him as he walked toward Bundy -- and was surprised when they didn't.

Clearly a supporter of Bundy, Schrock had testified moments earlier, "I thank him for what he was doing and putting his life on the line for us.''

LIGHTHEARTED MOMENTS

-- Ryan Bundy asked co-defendant David Fry on the witness stand, "How are you today?''

"I've been better,'' Fry responded.

-- When Ryan Bundy pointed out that the judge's jury instructions included at least three references to a verdict requiring a "unanimous decision,'' the judge responded, "You're the only person accused of a crime who asked me to underemphasize the unanimous requirement.''

-- During Ryan Bundy's closing argument, he said he wasn't guilty of stealing FBI surveillance cameras removed from a utility pole because he and others told the FBI that agents could come and get them.

He offered this analogy to jurors: If you park a car in front of someone's house and left the keys inside and the person who lives there hops in the car and moves it a half-block away and hands back the keys, "Does that sound like theft to you?''

-- Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com

503-221-8212

@maxoregonian
The judge, prosecutors and defense lawyers haggled for hours over how to word instructions to the jury about interpreting the law to guide their verdict in the Oregon standoff trial.

The instructions explain how the law defines a conspiracy, for instance, and what kind of behavior might amount to intimidation.

Document: Judge's Jury Instructions

The jury of nine women and three men returned not guilty verdicts after five hours of deliberations on Thursday in the high-profile case that riveted the state and drew national and international attention to the federal bird sanctuary in rural eastern Oregon.

Here are some of the key issues covered in more than 30 pages of instructions that U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown read to jurors and what they used to reach their decision.

CONSPIRACY CHARGE

"A conspiracy is a kind of criminal partnership - an agreement of two or more persons to engage in illegal conduct.''

"It is not enough that they simply met, discussed matters of common interest, acted in similar ways or perhaps helped one another."

CONSPIRACY TO IMPEDE OFFICERS OF THE UNITED STATES

-- The government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that there was an agreement between two or more persons to prevent officers of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and/or U.S. Bureau of Land Management from discharging the duties of their office by force, intimidation or threat.

-- The government must also prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a particular defendant became a member of such conspiracy "knowing of its illegal object'' and "specifically intending'' to help accomplish that illegal object, regardless whether the defendant or other individuals may have also had other, lawful reasons for their conduct.

A person can become a member of a conspiracy by "willfully participating'' in the unlawful plan with the "specific intent to advance or further some unlawful object or purpose of the conspiracy,'' even though the person doesn't have full knowledge of all the details of the conspiracy.

One who willfully joins an existing conspiracy "is as responsible for it as the originators,'' the judge told jurors.

On the other hand, "one who has knowledge of a conspiracy, but happens to act in a way which furthers some object or purpose of the conspiracy, does not thereby become a conspirator.'' Similarly, someone doesn't become a conspirator "merely by associating'' with one or more people who are conspirators, nor merely "by knowing that a conspiracy exists.''

To prove someone became a member of the alleged conspiracy and did so "knowing'' the object was to impede federal employees, the government must prove the defendant was aware of the objective and "did not act through ignorance, mistake or accident.''

To prove a defendant became a member of the alleged conspiracy and did so "specifically intending'' to help accomplish its objective, the government must prove the defendant "had a purpose or conscious desire to do so.''

In order for speech or expressive conduct to qualify as "intimidation'' or a "threat,'' the defendant must intend his or her words or conduct to intimidate or be a threat, and those words or conduct must be such that a "reasonable person observing them would foresee that they would be interpreted as a serious expression of intent to harm or assault.''

INFORMANTS

To investigate crimes, law enforcement may engage in "stealth and deception, such as using informants who may assume the roles of members in an alleged conspiracy.''

"The acts and statements of an informant, however, cannot form the basis of an illegal conspiracy or be attributed to any defendant who you find was a member of the conspiracy,'' the judge told jurors. "An informant may not be considered a co-conspirator.''

FIRST AMENDMENT

Defendants' political beliefs aren't on trial. Although speech and assembly are generally protected by the First Amendment, that protection isn't absolute. For example, "threats'' and "intimidation,'' as defined in the instructions, aren't protected.

On the other hand, a person's speech "that merely encourages others to commit a crime'' is protected by the First Amendment, "unless that defendant intended the speech and conduct to incite an imminent lawless action that was likely to occur.''

SECOND AMENDMENT

The Second Amendment isn't on trial in this case, the judge told jurors. The amendment gives a person the right "to keep and bear arms,'' to own, possess and to carry firearms, including when lawfully exercising First Amendment rights. But Second Amendment rights aren't absolute.

For example, the use of unlawful "threats'' or "intimidation,'' as defined in the instructions isn't protected by the Second Amendment.

POSSESSION OF FIREARMS AND DANGEROUS WEAPONS IN FEDERAL FACILITIES

-- The defendant possessed or caused to be present a firearm or dangerous weapon.

-- The defendant acted knowingly.

-- The defendant - or someone the defendant intentionally aided and abetted - acted with the intent that the firearm or other dangerous weapon be used in the commission of a crime, in this case the conspiracy charged.

Someone may be found guilty of possession of firearms in federal facilities even if the person didn't commit the act, but aided and abetted another in its commission.

THEFT OF GOVERNMENT PROPERTY

The government must prove either Ryan Bundy or Kenneth Medenbach "knowingly stole or converted'' to use FBI surveillance cameras or a U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service truck, respectively, and that the property belonged to the United States and its value was more than $1,000.

-- Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com

503-221-8212

@maxoregonian
The jurors all came to the same conclusion in the Oregon standoff trial: not guilty. In Harney County, which was thrust into the national spotlight when Ammon Bundy and a self-styled militia took over the Malheur National Wildlife refuge, the verdict merely deepened the divide.

Some residents are incredulous that Bundy and his six co-defendants were acquitted of conspiracy and weapons charges stemming from the 41-day occupation of a federal wildlife refuge earlier this year. Others say the defendants are heroes in the fight to wrest control of those lands from the government.

Melissa Alfstad, one of the occupation's most outspoken critics, told The Oregonian/OregonLive that she had been sure Ammon Bundy, his brother Ryan Bundy and five other occupiers would be found guilty.

"It's absolutely devastating. It's awful," she said. "We're just disgusted with the verdict."

Alfsta said her friends and neighbors in Burns were shocked by the verdict announced Thursday in a federal courtroom in Portland. The occupation 31 miles south of their community made life "awful, horrible," she said

"My pride is hurt -- but my pride is nothing compared to what the town went through," she said. "But we're also stronger now. We'll survive. We'll get through it."

Harney County Commissioner Pete Runnels said folks with whom he's spoken were nervous after hearing news of the verdict. Residents in Burns were taken by surprise when Ammon Bundy and his supporters used a protest at the county courthouse as a cover to take over the wildlife refuge.

Now, some are on the lookout for anyone planning a repeat of January's occupation.

"You never really thought about that ever," Runnels said. "It's been a new part of life for us. This (the verdict) could just continue to put people on edge."

Melodi Molt, a local businesswoman and rancher, was also surprised by the verdict. There was a hint of giddiness in her voice when she spoke with a reporter Thursday evening. "Welp. I'm in a very good mood thanks to the great news I just heard."

"Never in 100 years did I think they (Ammon Bundy and his co-defendants) would have pulled that off with the federal government," she said.

Molt is also a member of the Harney County Committee of Safety, a group sympathetic to the refuge occupiers. She praised Ammon Bundy and his co-defendants as "gentlemen [who] have given so much of their lives to get this government back under control.

"We need to continue getting back in control and not having 40 percent of our county under public employment," she said.

Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward issued a statement Thursday evening, saying that although "I am disappointed in the outcome, I believe our form of government and justice system to be the best in the world."

"These folks were tried in a court of law and found not guilty by a jury of their peers," he said in the release. "This is our system, and I stand by it."

That same faith in the judicial system was evident at the county courthouse, as well.

"The judicial system has run its course, and we have a decision," Harney County Judge Steven Grasty said. "I've seen things going back to normal. I go to church and I see life going on. I see us moving back as a normal community."

Grasty chairs the three-person county commission and performs limited judicial duties in a nonpartisan role. His third term ends in January.

Life will also go on for all but two of the defendants in the refuge trial. Ammon and Ryan Bundy are due in a Nevada court Feb. 6 for a trial stemming from their father Cliven Bundy's standoff with the federal government in Bunkerville.

"At the very least, I feel like I got a little bit of enjoyment out of that," Alfstad, the Bundy critic, said.

--Eder Campuzano

503.221.4344

@edercampuzano

ecampuzano@oregonian.com
Juror 4 vigorously defends the across-the-board acquittals of Ammon Bundy and his six co-defendants, calling the rulings a "statement'' about the prosecution's failure to prove the fundamental elements of a conspiracy charge.

The full-time Marylhurst University business administration student was the juror who had sent a note to the judge on the fourth day of the initial jury's deliberations in the case, questioning the impartiality of a fellow juror, No. 11, who the judge bounced from the jury a day later.

"It should be known that all 12 jurors felt that this verdict was a statement regarding the various failures of the prosecution to prove 'conspiracy' in the count itself - and not any form of affirmation of the defense's various beliefs, actions or aspirations,'' Juror 4 wrote Friday in a lengthy email to The Oregonian/OregonLive.

He expressed relief that he can now speak out freely, but he wasn't ready as of Friday morning to drop his anonymity. He said his studies have suffered since the trial started, and he's not ready for the attention revealing his identity would bring but felt it was important to defend the verdict. The judge withheld jurors' names during the jury selection process and trial, instead referring to each by number.

The jury closely followed U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown's instructions on how to apply the law to the evidence and testimony heard during the five-week trial, he said.

The jury returned unanimous verdicts of "not guilty'' to conspiracy charges against all seven defendants. Each was accused of conspiring to prevent employees of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Bureau of Land Management from carrying out their official work through intimidation, threat or force during the 41-day occupation.

Juror 4 noted the panel couldn't simply rely on the defendants' "defining actions'' to convict.

"All 12 agreed that impeding existed, even if as an effect of the occupation,'' he wrote.

"But we were not asked to judge on bullets and hurt feelings, rather to decide if any agreement was made with an illegal object in mind,'' the Marylhurst student wrote. "It seemed this basic, high standard of proof was lost upon the prosecution throughout.''

Prosecutors had argued that the case, at its core, was about the illegal taking of another's property. The heavily armed guards that manned the front gate and watchtower during the 41-day takeover, in and of itself, was "intimidating,'' and prevented officers from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Bureau of Land Management from carrying out their work, they said.

They argued that the alleged conspiracy began Nov. 5, when Ammon Bundy and ally Ryan Payne met with Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward and promised there would be extreme civil unrest in the community if he didn't step in and block Harney County ranchers Dwight Hammond Jr. and Steven Hammond from being arrested. The Hammonds were slated to return to federal prison on Jan. 4 and serve out a mandatory minimum five-year sentence for arson on federal land.

Defense lawyers urged jurors in closing arguments not to mix-up the "effect'' of the occupation - which undoubtedly kept federal employees from doing their jobs - from the "intent'' of the occupiers.

Five of the seven defendants, including Ammon Bundy, testified. Many said that they were there to protest in support of the Hammonds and federal government overreach because they received absolutely no response from state or local government officials to their previous efforts to spur change.

The defense lawyers' arguments, coupled with the jury instructions on how to apply the law to the evidence, resonated with jurors, Juror 4 noted.

"Inference, while possibly compelling, proved to be insulting or inadequate to 12 diversely situated people as a means to convict,'' the juror wrote. "The air of triumphalism that the prosecution brought was not lost on any of us, nor was it warranted given their burden of proof.''

Juror 4 plainly stated that fellow Juror 11, during the initial round of deliberations, "had zero business being on this jury in the first place.''

Juror 11 had worked for the U.S. Bureau of Land Management as a ranch tech and firefighter "more than 20 years ago,'' he had said during jury selection. Asked by the judge during voir dire if that experience would impede his ability to be a fair and impartial judge of the facts, he said, "Not really.''

Juror 4 explained why he didn't alert the court immediately after he had heard Juror 11, on day one of deliberations reportedly say, "I am very biased.''

It wasn't until the fourth day into deliberations that Juror 4 sent a note to the court, asking if a juror who had worked previously for the federal land management agency and outright told the panel he was "very biased'' could be an impartial judge. The court, flummoxed by the development, a day later dismissed Juror 11 for "good cause,'' after the prosecution and defense teams agreed to the dismissal. At the time, parties to the case weren't sure which way Juror 11's alleged bias fell.

Juror 4 said he "resisted the impulse'' to send the question sooner in an effort to give his fellow juror a chance to explain himself.

In his email to The Oregonian/OregonLive, Juror 4, for the first time, also contended that Juror 11 "violated'' the judge's explicit orders "by hearkening to 'evidence' that was never admitted in this case, refused to consider the defendant's state of mind and used imaginative theories to explain key actions.'"

Juror 4 said, though, he wishes that he "had sent the letter on day one, since it would have alleviated much stress for all of us.''

The Marylhurst business student said he is "baffled'' by what he described as observers' "flippant sentiments'' in the wake of the jury's acquittals.

"Don't they know that 'not guilty' does not mean innocent?'' he wrote. "It was not lost on us that our verdict(s) might inspire future actions that are regrettable, but that sort of thinking was not permitted when considering the charges before us.''

The jury, he said, met with Judge Brown after the verdicts were announced and after the U.S. Marshals' physical confrontation and arrest of Bundy lawyer Marcus Mumford.

He said many of the jurors questioned the judge about why the federal government chose the "conspiracy charge.'' He said he learned that a potential alternate charge, such as criminal trespass, wouldn't have brought as significant a penalty.

The charge of conspiring to impede federal employees from carrying out their official work through intimidation, threat or force brings a maximum sentence of six years in prison.

"We all queried about alternative charges that could stick and were amazed that this 'conspiracy' charge seemed the best possible option,'' Juror 4 said.

-- Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com

503-221-8212

@maxoregonian
The promise of biotech for China, UK Updated: 2016-10-28 07:26 By Peter K. Crane and Thomas Bray(China Daily Europe)

Natural mutual benefits emerge for Chinese investors in Britain's early-stage life-science companies

Recently, China has shifted its strategic investment toward high-technology assets. Why does it matter to the UK? Will the UK biotech startup scene benefit?

In April, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang spoke at the Great Hall of the People on the importance of biotechnology as a key pillar that would reposition China as an innovation powerhouse. It was a key moment in the growth of a new industry and an exciting moment for Western entrepreneurs looking for opportunities to access lucrative new markets.

China has already shown the world how its vast technological capacity can rearrange global markets to its favor in areas of lower-value added technology.

Identified as a key strategic industry in 2009, China began the concerted development of a domestic photovoltaics industry. The exponential growth that ensued, along with favorable global market conditions positioned China by 2016 as a world leader in photovoltaic capacity, with estimates that it will have the capacity to produce 51 GW of solar power next year, more than double the 2010 global production.

Now, as the return on traditional drivers of economic growth begin to shrink, the Chinese central government is looking for new growth areas to boost economic development as it transforms the country into an R&D-intensive innovation economy. Investment in biotechnology, a traditionally high-risk but high-value-added industry, will play a crucial role in the repositioning.

Biotechnology, however, is intrinsically different from photovoltaics. Solar power is fundamentally dependant on the production of pure silicon - a technological discovery that took place almost 70 years ago - and profits based on the incorporation of silicon, as photovoltaic wafers into cells relies on both a manufacturing value chain and a photovoltaic plant size, both of which may be scaled with sufficient investment at low-risk.

The biotechnology industry makes new technological discoveries based on interactions that take place inside living organisms. These interactions are inherently complex and poorly understood. As a result, investment in therapeutics, diagnostics and medical devices are considered high risk. Some technologies are easily scaled (prosthetic hips, DNA swab tests), whereas many are not (gene therapy, immunotherapy).

As a result, despite being designated a strategic industry, the Chinese biotech industry will not experience the growth rates seen in the solar industry, and internal investment yields will be relatively less predictable. This has been well understood in China for some time, so preparation for the transition to an R&D-intensive economy capable of generating high-value-added technologies have been taking place since the early 1980's. Massive infrastructure projects have yielded the creation of thousands of R&D industry parks across the country. More than 400 of them have recently been designated exclusively as biotechnology parks.

Central efforts have stimulated Chinese investors to look abroad with unprecedented appetite for access to early-stage biotechnology. As the call for strategic, government backed foreign investment in high-value-added technologies brings investors to the UK, new investment opportunities await early-stage companies. This is chiefly because Chinese investors view the UK as an attractive location for investment, some of the reasons for which are outlined below:

The UK has world-leading academic institutions (Cambridge-Oxford-London) in close proximity. If pressed, one could have a breakfast meeting in Oxford, attend a lunch seminar series at the Cambridge Science Park and attend a dinner function in central London. Known collectively as the "golden triangle", these locations, together with other nearby startup ecosystems, function as focal points for successful company creation.

University affiliated technology transfer offices ensure that fledgling startups are provided with IP protection, capital and advice to help them securely and effectively launch an innovative science businesses. Protection of IP remains the predominant concern for early-stage ventures in the UK.

The UK has a highly educated diaspora of Chinese STEM graduates. Upon graduation, these people are encouraged to return to China and establish independent companies or academic labs by highly successful provincial and national-level government-facilitated programs.

An established record of successful investor exits and profitable companies has attracted perpetual "evergreen" funding sources and innovative financing models for early-stage companies. These funds have trickled down into the startup community, such that access to funding is now considerably better than five years ago. This results in more companies being at a stage to raise more post-seed funds from international investors. In addition, a devaluation in the pound sterling since the Brexit vote has made the UK an even more attractive opportunity for overseas investors looking to acquire world-class technologies.

A mature start-up ecosystem ensures that young and inexperienced companies are able to access critical skills, knowledge and investor networks for at entry level costs. Young research organizations and those led by entrepreneurs, such as the Innovation Forum, provide training, accelerator competitions and mentorship to teams of young entrepreneurs to speed up their development. These organizations are optimally geared to engage with high-risk, early-stage projects, and provide startups alternative modes for development not necessarily gated by whether or not capital has been raised.

It would appear then, that there is a natural mutual benefit for Chinese investors and UK early-stage life-science companies.

Why, then, are early-stage UK biotech companies not engaging more with Chinese partners? And why have we not yet seen a large scale purchase of early-stage technology assets in Chinese firms?

We have observed firsthand the following three issues repeated during initial meetings between early-stage UK biotech entrepreneurs and Chinese investors. Alone or in combination, they preclude otherwise natural, mutually beneficial partnerships:

Discussions break down at the language barrier. Early-stage companies without a Chinese-speaking executive are restricted during initial engagement meetings with investors. Professional third-party translators capable of discussing novel technologies are expensive enough to preclude continued reliance on their services. Startups must also ensure that any translation service signs nondisclosure agreements before a formal meeting, further reducing this as an attractive option. All formal bilingual documents must further be approved by a qualified interpreter before signing, as contractual agreements often state that the original language of the contract will take precedence if and when discrepancies emerge.

UK companies do not understand how their technology will be protected. A well-protected intellectual property portfolio plays a central role in the evaluation of any biotechnology company. In the UK, bio-entrepreneurs avoid sharing confidential information until an enforceable NDA is structured and agreed upon. The enforceability of an NDA signed with a Chinese partner is poorly understood by bio-entrepreneurs in the UK. Cautious startups may not divulge information, frustrating investors and preventing further discussion.

Conditional relocation to China as part of a funding round stops partnering. Early-stage companies are often embedded in the local ecosystems from which their technology has been spun out, with a developed a network of advisers, business contacts and often access to local facilities. International relocation at an early stage is not an option for young companies looking to mitigate risk.

In conclusion, mutual understanding is essential if fruitful collaborations are to be developed, which in turn may require both parties to deviate from their typical domestic partnering strategy.

Many UK-based early-stage startups are beginning to engage with Chinese investors. Engagement should be necessitated by validation of the Chinese partner, using knowledgeable UK and international support organizations (such as ChinaBio, CBBC, Dynasty Bio and others). Further validation is asserted if the investor has a physical presence and permanent staff in the UK.

Chinese investors must move beyond the chief incentive of up-front payment in exchange for relocation, ownership or a majority equity stake in a company. Other benefits, such as preferential regulatory environments, free use of expensive lab equipment and facilities and access to vast data sets or human tissue banks are all lucrative opportunities very much sought after by UK based startups. These opportunities must be clearly articulated in an open and transparent way.

Most important, both parties must focus on the core elements of trust and friendship, and exercise patience and understanding when manageable differences appear. Only then will the facile transfer of high-value-added UK biotechnologies be set on the path of Chinese market entry.

Peter K. Crane and Thomas Bray are directors for global biotechnology accelerator The Innovation Forum. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

( China Daily European Weekly 10/28/2016 page12)
Two women exited Portland's federal courthouse late Thursday afternoon, hands clasped together, and broke the news to a few assembled Oregon standoff supporters: "Not guilty."

The group gathered for an emotional hug, kicking off a celebration that swelled as attorneys, occupation supporters and others came out the doors of the courthouse. The crowd rejoiced amid media scrums as information about the verdict and courtroom drama reached the masses.

In short: Ammon Bundy, his brother and five co-defendants were found not guilty of conspiring to prevent federal employees from doing their jobs through intimidation, threat or force during the 41-day occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. And in the latest of stunning turns in the case, Ammon Bundy's lawyer, who argued his client should be allowed to leave court a free man, was taken to the ground by U.S. Marshals, tasered, taken into custody and released.

Most outside the courthouse lauded the verdict. Supporters chanted and cheered, embracing one another and recounting the courtroom action and their opinions of it to reporters. Some -- including a man on a horse -- took off for at least one trip around the courthouse. Pocket Constitutions weren't in short supply.

Neil Wampler, a defendant who joined those assembled, called the verdict a "stunning victory for rural America."

Shawna Cox, another defendant, said she thinks the verdict "is a major, major breakthrough in America for the freedoms of the people."

John Lamb, a Montana farmer who was among the crew outside the courthouse, called his wife immediately when the verdict was announced. He had tears in his eyes as he shared the news.

"This is what I have been waiting for for 47 days," he said, in reference to how long he's been supporting the defendants in Oregon. "It's a big move that shows the federal government that we the people do count and we want this land for our children."

Jeff Roberts, a Grants Pass resident in Portland for work, came to the courthouse to show his support for the occupiers. He was next door buying snacks with his brother when he saw the not-guilty verdict on social media.

Immediately, he said, both men burst into tears.

Roberts said the cause is important to him because he owns land in Grants Pass and has done controlled burns on it. He believes the occupiers were standing up for landowners' rights.

"It gives me hope that our Constitution still stands and this nation has some justice and liberty."

At some point after the courthouse doors had been locked for the day, about a dozen supporters kneeled in a prayer circle, in which a woman invoked the name of Robert "LaVoy" Finicum -- the occupation spokesman who was fatally shot by Oregon State Police.

Marcus Mumford, Ammon Bundy's lawyer, emerged near the courthouse not long after, saying he had been put in a holding cell after being taken into custody.

Mumford was cited by Federal Protective Services for failure to follow a lawful order and creating a disturbance.

He said, "it's very gratifying to get the kind of verdict" returned Thursday.

Defense lawyer Matthew Schindler, standby counsel to defendant Kenneth Medenbach, called the case "remarkable."

"I feel very honored to have come to know the people that came here in support," he said. "People from Burns and people from all over the Northwest who want the world to understand that their way of life is going away. And unless all of us here in the cities care about that, that's exactly what's going to happen."

About 30 people remained outside the courthouse around 8:30 p.m., waving flags and listening to religious music blaring from a Jeep parked nearby.

Maureen Valdez, among those still celebrating, said she fell to the courthouse floor in tears when another woman informed her of the verdict.

"I said a prayer thanking the Lord because it was all him and the people," she said. "Bless these jurors that they could see through to the truth."

-- Jim Ryan and Samantha Matsumoto

jryan@oregonian.com; smatsumoto@oregonian.com

Maxine Bernstein of The Oregonian/OregonLive staff contributed to this report
"Disappointment" was the common word used by Oregon's governor, top federal prosecutor, head federal agent and other authorities in statements released Thursday after a federal jury found the leaders of an armed group not guilty of firearms and conspiracy charges after they seized the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge for 41 days in January.

Gov. Kate Brown said in a statement released about a half hour after the verdict was announced that she respected the jury's verdict, even if she didn't agree. She also said she supports Burns, a town near the refuge that acted as ground zero as hundreds of people descended on the area earlier this year, as well as the communities of Harney County. She said she appreciated the work of federal authorities on the case.

"The occupation of the Malheur refuge by outsiders did not reflect the Oregon way of respectfully working together to resolve differences," she said.

Billy J. Williams, Oregon's U.S. Attorney, said the case needed to be brought to court, publicly tried and decided by a jury.

"While we had hoped for a different outcome, we respect the verdict of the jury and thank them for their dedicated service during this long and difficult trial," Williams said in a statement.

Ammon Bundy, his brother Ryan Bundy and five co-defendants were found not guilty of conspiring to prevent federal employees from doing their jobs through intimidation, threat or force during the occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge throughout January and into February. The Bundy brothers and occupiers Jeff Banta and David Fry also were found not guilty of having guns in a federal facility. Kenneth Medenbach was acquitted of stealing government property, and the jury was deadlocked on Ryan Bundy's charge of theft of FBI surveillance cameras.

Greg Bretzing, special agent in charge of the FBI in Oregon, said hundreds of law enforcement officers worked around the clock for weeks to resolve the armed occupation peacefully. He said he was "extremely disappointed" with the verdict.

"We believe now -- as we did then -- that protecting and defending this nation through rigorous obedience to the U.S. Constitution is our most important responsibility," Bretzing said.

Harney County Sheriff David Ward said despite not agreeing with the verdict, he believes the U.S. government and justice system are the best in the world.

"These folks were tried in a court of law and found not guilty by a jury of their peers," he said. "This is our system, and I stand by it."

People gather outside the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse after defendants were found not guilty. Beth Nakamura/Staff

Dan Ashe, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service director, said the agency is eager to move forward.

"The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is committed to the security, healing and comfort of our Malheur National Wildlife Refuge employees and the Harney County communities they serve, and to continue strengthening the collaborations and positive relationships cited throughout this trial," he said.

Not all sentiments were of disappointment. Michele Fiore, a Nevada assemblywoman played a key role in the negotiations of the final holdouts in the refuge in February expressed joy on Twitter soon after the verdict was announced.

"Not guilty!!! Yes yes yes our cowboys "the Bundys" in Oregon not not guilty not guilty!!!" she tweeted. "Verdict in... Yes yes yes we win!!!"

-- Everton Bailey Jr.

ebailey@oregonian.com

503-221-8343; @EvertonBailey
A jury Thursday delivered a stunning across-the-board acquittal to the leaders and participants in the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupation and a remarkable blow to the federal government as it tries to tamp down a national movement led by a Nevada family to open public lands to ranchers, miners and loggers.

The verdicts finding Ammon Bundy, older brother Ryan Bundy and five others not guilty of a federal conspiracy drew elation from defense attorneys who spent five weeks arguing that the armed takeover amounted to a time-honored tradition of First Amendment protest and civil disobedience.

"Maybe this is a lesson that that's not the way to engage with these people, who want nothing more than just to be heard, just to have a forum to talk about the injustices like the case of the Hammonds and the treatment of ranchers," said Lisa Ludwig, standby counsel for Ryan Bundy.

The high-profile case riveted the state and drew national and international attention to the isolated bird sanctuary in rural eastern Oregon. The jury's decision proved no less dramatic and sets up a showdown in the next stage of the land-rights movement.

The Bundy brothers still face prosecution in Nevada with their father, Cliven Bundy, all accused in the 2014 standoff at the patriarch's ranch over unpaid grazing fees that pitted the family and their supporters against federal Bureau of Land Management agents.

The Oregon prosecutors sat silently in front of their boss, U.S Attorney Billy Williams, and the head of the FBI in Oregon, Greg Bretzing, as the judge announced the "not guilty'' pleas one by one.

Williams later thanked the jury in a written statement. "While we had hoped for a different outcome, we respect the verdict of the jury and thank them for their dedicated service during this long and difficult trial,'' Williams said. "We strongly believed that this case needed to be brought before a Court, publicly tried and decided by a jury.''

Bretzing, whose agents led the response to the Jan. 2 refuge seizure, offered a slightly different take. "We believe now -- as we did then - that protecting and defending this nation through rigorous obedience to the U.S. Constitution is our most important responsibility.''

Each defendant stood separately, facing the jury, as the judge read the verdicts. Ammon Bundy, his hands clasped behind his back, nodded as the "not guilty'' came for him first. As he sat, he smiled and rubbed the shoulder of his lawyer, Marcus Mumford.

Ryan Bundy nodded his head and mouthed to jurors, "Thank you."

"I had a very peaceful feeling but I didn't know we'd all be found not guilty," said defendant Shawna Cox. "... I'm so grateful to the jury.''

Defendant Neil Wampler hugged his defense lawyer and gave her a kiss.

But the trial fireworks weren't quite over. A brawl broke out at the very end, when six to seven U.S. marshals surrounded Ammon Bundy's lawyer as he stood before the judge, arguing and shouting for his client to walk out the door a free man. They tackled him and stunned him with a Taser gun. As Mumford yelled, "What are you doing?,'' U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown ordered, "Everybody out of the courtroom!''

"All I was asking for was papers,'' Mumford said after emerging from federal custody nearly two hours later. "Just show me you have the authority to take Mr. Bundy into custody.''

Mumford was cited by Federal Protective Services for failure to follow a lawful order and creating a disturbance. He said the marshals overreacted. Several fellow defense lawyers echoed his sentiments, though one questioned Mumford's judgment.

As for the verdict, Mumford said, "Very pleased, very gratified. This jury was dedicated. They listened to our case.''

Prosecutors had argued the case was simple: The refuge occupiers took control of a wildlife refuge that wasn't theirs. The heavily armed guards that manned the front gate and watchtower during the 41-day takeover, in an of itself, was "intimidating,'' and prevented officers from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Bureau of Land Management from carrying out their work.

But defense lawyers said they believe the jury held true to the judge's instructions, and couldn't find beyond a reasonable doubt that their "intent'' was to prevent the federal employees from going to work.

Five of the seven defendants took the stand and said they were protesting the return to prison of Harney County ranchers Dwight Hammond Jr. and Steven Hammond, who faced a minimum mandatory five-year sentence for arson to federal land. Steven Hammond was convicted partially of setting fire to refuge property. They also said they were protesting federal government overreach, and didn't give much thought at all to the federal employees whose desks and offices they used throughout the refuge takeover.

While it may be easier to show that defendants charged in a drug trafficking conspiracy shared a common goal, in this case there was "no obvious underlying self-interest,'' said Matthew Schindler, who represented Kenneth Medenbach.

Schindler also said he believed the judge's decision to allow defendants to explain their "state of mind,'' at the time of the occupation boosted the defense case. The pull of jurors from across the state, not just Portland, also helped defendants, particularly regarding the weapons charges, Schindler said.

Of the verdicts, Schindler said, "Unbelievable, truly astonishing.''

The jury saw that the occupiers cared about the Hammonds and didn't like how the federal government was treating them, said David Fry's lawyer Per C. Olson.

"I think the jury saw through this that they were well-meaning, well-intentioned individuals,'' Olson said. "It was the right verdict.''

Lisa Maxfield, who represented Wampler, came out of the courthouse, holding up her fists. She said she has never seen "anything like this happen,'' where multiple defendants in a federal trial were all acquitted. It was one of the most significant cases in her career, she said.

"It's a tremendous victory for rural America,'' Wampler said outside the courthouse as supporter and fellow refuge occupier Brand Nu Thornton blew his shofar and another man rode his horse back and forth, hoisting an American flag.

But others, like Jennifer Rokala, executive director of the Center for Western Priorities, worried the verdicts would spur other similar armed standoffs against the government's control of public lands that involve the militia.

"We are deeply disappointed in today's verdict, which puts our park rangers and scientists at further risk just for doing their jobs. The outcome of today's trial will undoubtedly embolden extremist groups,'' Rokala said. " It's imperative that local, state, and federal law enforcement ensure the safety of our land managers.''

Oregonian Staff Writers Aimee Green and Jim Ryan contributed to this story.

-- Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com

503-221-8212

@maxoregonian
Little Belgium packs a big punch Updated: 2016-10-28 07:27 By Fu Jing in Brussels(China Daily Europe)

Chinese ambassador lauds 45 years of diplomatic relations, and highlights business investment in small European nation

The word "but" is probably the one most frequently on the lips of Qu Xing , China's ambassador to Belgium, when describing the achievements of this small country in Western Europe.

Qu, who took up his diplomatic role in late 2014, has been impressed with the strengths of Belgium, a country with only half the population of Beijing.

"It is a small country, but it has tremendous global influence," Qu says.

Ambassador Qu Xing says Belgium is not big, but it has tremendous global influence. Fu Jing / China Daily

Sitting in the guest room of the newly-refurnished Chinese embassy, on an avenue lined with dense trees on the outskirts of Brussels, Qu notes that the country is home to the European Union headquarters, NATO, think tanks and major media, along with lobbying and commercial organizations by the thousands. Behind him hang the flags of China and Belgium, typical of an embassy setting.

"After Washington, Brussels should be the second symbol when we talk about the West," Qu says, referring to the wealth of soft power that makes Belgium different from other European countries.

After setting the scene, Qu, a professor-turned-ambassador, goes into detail about Belgium's advantages in the fields of research and development, foreign trade, education and logistics. The list would be impressive, even for a large nation.

Because China has been in the process of restructuring its economy and boosting outward investment, Qu has been busy exploring cooperative opportunities for Chinese and Belgian businesses, putting as many on-site visits as possible on his daily agenda. Neatly dressed in a grey suit, he has just returned from a visit to the headquarters of Agfa, a leader in color printing and healthcare solutions, located half an hour from Brussels.

"I was impressed by its cutting-edge research capacity," he says.

Agfa is among the global top three in color printing, along with Kodak in the United States and Fuji in Japan.

He has also visited companies in fields such as pharmacy, civilian nuclear technology and the microelectronics sector. He's been impressed at every turn.

Belgium is not a big market - "but", he emphasizes, "it has a strong hold on research and development".

By using the country's geographic location in the heart of the European Union as a gateway, Belgians are inclined to develop international trade and explore markets that value the country's competitiveness in research. In addition, Belgium boasts convenient transportation hubs that can easily connect with Paris, Luxembourg, Amsterdam, Frankfurt and other European cities by water, land or air.

Qu notes that Belgium has several universities in the world's top 200.

All of these factors contribute to its vitality in trade and investment.

Qu has spent a lot of time in Europe. He lived in Paris from 1986 to 1992 while earning a master's degree and a doctorate in political science at the Paris Institute of Political Studies. Between 2006 and 2009, he worked as minister, deputy chief of mission, at the Chinese embassy in France.

Qu says Belgium, which is nestled between the powers of France, Germany, UK and the Netherlands and is a convergence point for Latin and Germanic cultures, "is genetically inclusive, tolerant and open".

It was also among the earliest countries to become industrialized.

Qu says he now has the great responsibility of helping to deepen the bilateral relationship between Belgium and China in several areas.

A renowned professor who was assistant president and vice-president at China Foreign Affairs University from 1995 to 2006 and president of the China Institute of International Studies from 2009 to 2014, he is adept at listing data and forming new narratives in describing the bilateral relationship.

He says businesspeople in China and Belgium today handle trade flows every seven hours equal to an entire year of trade 45 years ago, when the two nations forged diplomatic ties.

The fact is, among the many factors cited by Qu that illustrate the closeness of the partnership the nations have forged over the past few years, bilateral trade may be the most impressive. In 2015 it reached $23.2 billion.

"That's 1,150 times the trading volume at the beginning of our diplomatic relations," he says proudly, adding that the annual growth rate over the past five years has been 16 percent.

He says companies from both nations are more interactive than ever and are investing in each other's enterprises.

For example, Volvo's Ghent plant has been booming since China's Geely took over, Qu says. Every minute the 5,300 local employees produce one automobile, a production rate that yielded a record high 250,000 automobiles annually. With such high performance, the company has fared well in a relatively sluggish global automobile market.

Since October 1971, when the two nations established diplomatic ties, the partnership has made big strides, he added.

"One of the indicators of our close relationship is the high frequency of high-level exchanges," Qu says.

In 2014 and 2015, the heads of state of Belgium and China exchanged visits, promising to deepen the comprehensive friendly and cooperative partnership. Last year, Premier Li Keqiang visited Belgium and, together with Prime Minister Charles Michel, witnessed the signing of 12 cooperation agreements worth more than $20 billion.

This year, the two countries will hold a series of events to celebrate the 45th anniversary of their diplomatic relations. The Chinese New Year parade in Brussels was the first.

The China and Belgium Cooperation Forum on the Belt and Road Initiative was jointly hosted in Brussels on Oct 21.

Terrorism's impact

In March, Brussels was attacked by terrorists who set off explosions at the airport and in subway stations after the earlier attacks in Paris.

Qu says the incidents have had a "negative" impact on tourism in Belgium, with some agencies and individuals canceling their plans. The number of tourists has been decreasing overall because of safety concerns.

"But," Qu says, "Belgium is still attracting a lot of Chinese investors because of its lasting advantages."

"We can see the trend is still on the rise because the investors, generally, have a longer-term view when making strategic decisions," he says.

He notes that, in fast-changing surroundings, it is hard to predict the danger of a terrorist attack, and every country should bear the brunt of such risk.

"But," he says, "continuing with normal life in society is another way to fight terrorism."

"It is not Belgium alone," he says. "In this sense, terrorism attacks will not discourage investors."

Yao Yueyang contributed to the story.

fujing@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 10/28/2016 page15)
Defense attorneys who worked with defendants in the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupation trial said Thursday's victory for the defendants should send a sobering message to the federal government.

Change your strategy.

Listen to rural Americans.

And stop trying to make them out to be violent zealots and bully them with the heavy hand of the law.

"I think that (the government) may learn from this -- that ignoring a protest movement isn't effective," said Lisa Ludwig, who served as standby counsel for defendant Ryan Bundy. "Like just attributing a lot of violence to them and dismissing them doesn't stop it and doesn't work."

"Maybe this is a lesson that that's not the way to engage with these people, who want nothing more than just to be heard, just to have a forum to talk about the injustices like the case of the Hammonds and the treatment of ranchers," Ludwig said.

Dwight Hammond Jr. and Steven Hammond are a father and son who were convicted of lighting public land on fire next to their Harney County ranch lands. They were twice sentenced to prison time, after appellate judges determined they weren't properly sentenced the first time.

Defense attorney Tiffany Harris, who was a standby lawyer for Shawna Cox, said the defendants had important messages to be heard, such as their concerns about threats to their way of life.

"I hope the government listens," Harris said. "I hope everyone listens."

During trial, federal prosecutors contended that the occupiers weren't just peaceful protesters: They trashed refuge offices, used government computers as their own, disturbed Native American sacred sites by using heavy equipment to dig latrines for their human waste and trained with hand-to-hand combat and firing squads. Authorities recovered more than 1,000 shell casings from the site, as well as a load of firearms.

Although the defendants were well-armed, the takeover of the refuge wasn't about violence, said Matt Schindler, who was standby counsel for defendant Kenneth Medenbach.

"Guns in a culture outside the city of Portland, it means something very different," said Medenbach. "For these defendants and for these people having a firearm has nothing to do with a threat or anything else. It's as much a statement of their rural culture as a cowboy hat or a pair of jeans."

"If they just stood out there with signs no one would have cared," Schindler continued. "But by going onto a piece of federal land and exercising their First Amendment rights and their Second Amendment rights, contemporaneously they had the power to be heard. People from all over the world came and heard them and listened to them."

Thursday afternoon, as the occupiers' supporters rushed out of the federal courthouse and breathlessly waved their arms in the air and hugged each other, it became clear that the verdict also might embolden protesters.

"I think it's good for everybody's right to protest -- from hanging off of a bridge to sitting in a tree to occupying a park in Portland to occupying a refuge," said Ludwig, the defense attorney. "It's an affirmation of every citizen's right to use civil disobedience to make their voice heard when they feel like nothing else is working."

But Schindler, the defense attorney, said anyone who protests in a similar fashion to the refuge occupiers should be prepared to be arrested, spend time in jail and possibly be convicted of a crime.

"If your idea of civil disobedience is breaking the law, then you have to be prepared there are consequences for that," Schindler said.

Schnidler said his client, Medenbach was unlike many other clients who, upon arrest, immediately want to get out of jail.

"I think one of the extraordinary things about Ken Medenbach was that ...he sat in county jail for six months when he could have pled guilty and walked out the door of the jail," Schindler said. "'If I have to sit in jail for two years' -- he said to me -- 'I'm willing to do that.'"

-- Aimee Green

503-294-5119
Sunday marks the two-year anniversary of a Northeast Portland double homicide, and a reward continues for information leading to an arrest.

Jerry Ephrem and his wife Helen Ephrem, both 65, died from gunshots Oct. 30, 2014 at their home at the 600 block of Northeast 114th Avenue. Helen Ephrem was shot in the back and died after the bullet traveled into her chest, and her husband died from a gunshot to the head, The Oregonian/OregonLive has reported.

Police have no suspect information nor any known reasons why anyone would want the couple dead, according to a Crime Stoppers of Oregon announcement Friday morning. The organization offers a $2,500 reward for information that would help detectives find the shooter.

The couple had lived in their home for about three decades, and they were well-known by neighbors and local businesses.

Jerry Ephrem was remembered by some in Portland as the "Rose Guy,'' who would wander from restaurants and businesses holding a bucket of roses to sell for $6 a flower. He'd be dressed in a black jacket, black slacks and a white shirt. His wife often accompanied him, but stayed in the car as he'd make his circuit.

Around the time of the shooting, a neighbor had heard what she thought were gunshots between 3:30 a.m. and 5 a.m.

Leave a Crime Stoppers tip online, text CRIMES (274637) and in the subject line put 823HELP, followed by the tip, or call (503) 823-HELP (4357) and leave the tip information.

-- Tony Hernandez

thernandez@oregonian.com

503-294-5928

@tonyhreports

The Oregonian/OregonLive reporter Maxine Bernstein contributed to this post.
obamacare.jpg

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama has now ordered more prisoners released early from federal penitentiaries in a single year than any of his predecessors, after commuting the sentences of 98 people on Thursday.

The announcement of the release of mostly nonviolent drug offenders brings to 872 the number of people whose sentences Obama has shortened, with clemency granted to 688 people this year alone. That's more than the past 11 presidents combined.

"While there has been much attention paid to the number of commutations issued by the President, at the core, we must remember that there are personal stories behind these numbers,"

. "These are individuals -- many of whom made mistakes at a young age -- who have diligently worked to rehabilitate themselves while incarcerated."

Thursday's commutations include 42 prisoners who were facing life sentences for their crimes. Not all will be released immediately; some will not see their sentences expire until late 2018 and will be required to enter residential drug treatment programs.

Obama has sought in the final years of his presidency to reverse decades of drug-war punishments through commutations, after Congress gridlocked on legislation to overhaul criminal justice laws and reduce sentences for nonviolent crimes. Obama and his aides have decried criminal codes mandating yearslong sentences for relatively minor drug crimes as unfair and racially biased. Congressional Republicans have raised limited objections to the mass commutations.

"It sounds like the pace is picking up, which is quite welcome," said Mary Price, the general counsel for Families Against Mandatory Minimums, a nonprofit organization that has championed clemency petitions.

The administration began a program in 2014 to identify prisoners jailed for nonviolent offenses who had served at least a decade in prison and would receive lower sentences if convicted today. Last year, the Justice Department announced new rules to ensure that low-level, nonviolent drug offenders would no longer be charged with federal crimes that impose strict mandatory minimum sentences. During his first term, the president signed legislation that reduced the disparity in sentences for possession of powder cocaine and crack cocaine.

Still, some Republicans say Obama is putting violent felons and drug traffickers back on the street. Rep. Bob Goodlatte, the Virginia Republican who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, sent a letter to the president in September asking him to halt the commutation program.

Goodlatte wrote that an "alarming number" of people who received commutations had been convicted of possessing a firearm during the commission of a felony. He also said some people released had "significant connections to organized crime or gangs."

Critics on the left say Obama could do more.

Clemency Project 2014, a joint effort between FAMM, the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Bar Association and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, has submitted clemency petitions on behalf of more than 2,100 prisoners to the Justice Department.

"Of course we'd love to see more grants, more often," said Cynthia Roseberry, the project manager for the joint organization.

The former pardon attorney for the Justice Department, Deborah Leff, resigned in January after complaining that her department was not provided enough resources and had been denied access to key officials at the White House. Prisoner advocates say that by providing commutations -- rather than full pardons -- people who are freed can still be subject to court supervision, may not see voting or other rights restored, and still possess criminal records, which complicate job searches.

Obama said in an August news conference that he expected the number of pardons he issued to increase toward the end of his presidency. He acknowledged that the administration had "focused more on commutations than we have on pardons," to that point.

The best solution, he said, would be an overhaul of the criminal justice system by Congress.

--Bloomberg News

Interactive chart by Lynne Palombo | The Oregonian/Oregonlive
China's Mindray pins its UK future on quality, innovation Updated: 2016-10-28 07:28 By Cecily Liu in London(China Daily Europe)

Go-ahead medical manufacturer's ambition is to take over as one of the nation's market leaders

After just a decade in the United Kingdom, Chinese medical manufacturer Mindray has risen to become the third-largest supplier of patient monitoring equipment in the country, supplying more than half the UK's estimated 700 public hospitals.

Yet the Chinese company retains its towering ambitions. It wants to rival the two market leaders, GE and Philips, to become No 2 in the UK in next three years.

"Our strategy is to maintain product quality, constantly innovate through research and development and strengthen our brand image," says Su Lei, general manager of Mindray UK Ltd.

Visitors look at Mindray's equipment at China International Medical Equipment Fair in Shenzhen, Guangdong province. Yu Ge / For China Daily

Su, who joined the company in 2007, witnessed the challenging but rewarding journey of Mindray in the UK.He remembers an early time when he visited UK hospital procurement teams and no one knew the name of the company.

Its reputation was boosted in 2008 when the UK's National Health Service accepted it into its official procurement system, and now it is highly regarded as a provider of quality equipment to the UK's medical industry - a significant achievement considering the medical industry is generally a conservative one, and hard for newcomers to break into.

"It was challenging to enter a market for the first time, but we're proud of our achievement," Su says.

Looking back, Su sees that Mindray's hard work in the UK paid off because the UK is a market too large to ignore and because carving out a foothold there built a reputation the company could used to expand internationally.

When asked what made Mindray so successful, Su says the key is a commitment to research and development.

Every year 10 percent of sales revenue is reinvested in R&D, and the company encourages overseas sales staff to directly communicate with engineers in Shenzhen, so that market needs can be quickly turned into new products or improvements.

With R&D high on the company's group-level agenda, it often incorporates trends it sees over the next 5 to 10 years into the process.

For example, it has modified its equipment in recent years in response to the National Health Service emphasis on data and information integration. This new focus means patient monitoring machines need to update themselves to automatically transfer data to patients' records. Traditionally, a medical staff member would need to read out the data and transcribe it into patient records, which is more costly and prone to error.

But R&D is not just about major innovation: Even slight changes to a product can make a big difference in the user experience, Su says. He gives the example of a contact screen on patient monitoring machines, where Mindray's machines can help clients to more easily navigate the menu screen and make the desired selections easily.

Mindray was founded in Shenzhen in 1991 as a trade company selling medical equipment produced by foreign companies in China.

But co-founders Xu Hang and Li Xiting, who were engineers at a State-owned maker of medical instruments in the 1980s, had loftier ambitions. They wanted the company to one day produce its own medical equipment.

Mindray invested heavily in research and development and successfully came up with China's first patient monitoring device in 1992.

In the late '90s Mindray realized that China's medical equipment market was limited compared with advanced economies such as Europe and the United States.

To prepare for international expansion, Mindray began making products to international regulatory standards. Most of its products have the CE mark - the French "Conformite Europeenne" - that is mandatory for health, safety and environmental protection products sold in the European Union. Some of its products have received US Food and Drug Administration clearance.

From the early 2000s, Mindray started selling products in the UK through distributors, and manufacturing for other brands as an original equipment manufacturer, or OEM, supplier. But it soon decided to establish subsidiaries overseas and focus on branding its own products.

"We realized that to build a brand with proper recognition, we need to have a local presence," Su says.

In 2004 Mindray established an office in the US, and two years later opened in the UK. Its European network has since expanded to cover the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, France, Spain and Poland. Its products are all made in China and shipped to the company's European logistics center in the Netherlands before distribution to each individual country.

Mindray was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2006, raising $311 million, the largest initial offering in the global healthcare industry over the previous two years. The publicity provided an international boost to Mindray's brand.

In March this year, Mindray delisted from the American exchange after completing a $1.9 billion privatization deal. It can now be listed in China's domestic stock exchanges with the aim of achieving higher valuation.

Another milestone for Mindray's overseas expansion was its $200 million acquisition of New Jersey-based Datascope's patient monitoring business in 2008, which turned the company into the third-largest player in the global monitoring device industry.

Datascope's R&D center in Stockholm, Sweden, became a valuable asset for Mindray. The deal also gave it a direct sales force in Europe and North America, whereas before the acquisition it was selling through distributors.

Despite the company's tremendous growth in the UK already, Su says it still has challenging days ahead to rival Philips and GE, because both of those firms have decades of history in the UK. Three to four generations of doctors and nurses trained using their machines, meaning that when it's time to choose, they pick what they are familiar with.

To plant a good image in young medical professionals' minds, Mindray is keen to sell to many more teaching hospitals in the UK. Already it is supplying Royal Edinburgh Hospital, Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals, King's College Hospital and Bradford Teaching Hospitals.

Su, who came to the UK originally in 2002 for PhD studies at the University of Surrey, saw the team expand to about 40 employees after he joined the company. And he watched the UK subsidiary's functions expand to include sales, marketing and after-sales support.

"I feel lucky to be a part of this rapidly expanding team," he says.

cecily.liu@mail.chinadailyuk.com

( China Daily European Weekly 10/28/2016 page29)
Friday 28 October 2016 11:03am

The 9th annual conference of the Otago Global Health Institute will take place at the Dunedin Public Art Gallery 2-3 November 2016.



Hosted by the University of Otagos Centre for International Health, the Otago Global Health Institute (OGHI) conference brings together people within and beyond the University once a year to foster collaboration and inter-disciplinary work on the developing worlds most pressing health problems.



This years meeting is being held in conjunction with the Australasian Society for Infectious Diseases (ASID) New Zealand Annual Scientific Meeting at the same venue 3-5 November 2016. The ASID meeting convenes New Zealands community of infectious diseases physicians, medical microbiologists, and antimicrobial pharmacists.



The two conferences will be bridged by the 2016 McKinlay Oration entitled Towards the global elimination of rabies: evidence, interventions, and impact, presented by world authority on rabies, Professor Sarah Cleaveland from the University of Glasgow. This public lecture will take place 7pm-8pm at the Dunedin Public Art Gallery on Thursday 3 November 2016.

Professor Paul Newton, Director of the Lao-Oxford-Mahosot Hospital-Wellcome Trust Research Unit in Vientiane, Laos, an expert on fever in the tropics and poor quality medicines in low-resource countries, and Associate Professor Scott Beatson, University of Queensland, an expert on the spread of antimicrobial resistance genes, are the invited international keynote speakers at the ASID conference.



This is the first time that New Zealands major global health and infectious diseases conferences have been held back-to-back, says Professor Crump, organiser of this years OGHI conference.



We have designed the programmes to stimulate cross-talk between infectious diseases and global health experts, says Dr James Ussher, who is organising the ASID conference. In an interconnected world progress in infectious diseases requires collaboration across disciplines and between countries. We are delighted to be welcoming our close collaborators from Myanmar, Indonesia, Laos, The Gambia, Australia, and elsewhere to these meetings.



Between the two conferences there are around 150 delegates expected to attend.

For more information, contact:

Otago Global Health Institute (OGHI) conference

Professor John Crump

Centre for International Health

University of Otago

Email john.crump@otago.ac.nz



Conference website

Australasian Society for Infectious Diseases (ASID) New Zealand Annual Scientific Meeting

Dr James Ussher

Department of Microbiology and Immunology

University of Otago

Email james.ussher@otago.ac.nz



Conference website
Malaysian PM to visit China next week Updated: 2016-10-27 17:44 By Wang Qingyun(chinadaily.com.cn)

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak will visit China next week, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang announced on Thursday.

During his week-long visit, starting on Monday, Najib will meet President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang and the Chairman of the Standing Committee of the NPC.

Leaders of the two countries will have in-depth exchanges over China-Malaysia ties and issues of common concern, and will attend the signing ceremony of bilateral cooperation documents, according to Lu.

Malaysia is an important cooperative partner and neighbor, and bilateral ties have been developing in a healthy, stable and rapid way, Lu said, adding that bilateral cooperation in trade,

investment and the financial sector has achieved spectacular progress.

This will be Najib's third visit to China since he became Malaysia's prime minister.

"We believe the visit will further enhance mutual trust and deepen the friendliness between the two countries," Lu said.
Elementary teachers from Midland Public Schools are introducing Bedtime Math to families during parent-teacher conferences this fall, reaching over 3,000 students. It is part of a new partnership to expand the reach of Bedtime Maths family engagement app.

Bedtime Math was recognized at the White House Early STEM Symposium in April for committing to expand this model to at least five school districts, tapping into the power of parent-teacher conferences to coax math-shy parents to enjoy number play with their kids. Nineteen school districts in six regions across the country are participating in the initiative this fall, reaching hundreds of thousands of children. The Great Lakes Bay Region is one of the six regions, with Midland Public Schools, Bay City Public Schools, Birch Run Area Schools, Carrollton Public Schools and Mount Pleasant Public Schools participating.
To the editor:

My thoughts on Hillary Clinton. Lets start with the Whitewater episode. It happened years ago. A bank president went to prison for his part in a robbery. He was to be brought out to testify when the Clintons came to trial for their part in the robbery. The bank president had a bad heart and required medicines to stay alive. He was placed in solitary and his medicines were taken away. He died before the trial came up. So the Clintons went free.

Next comes the Russians. When Hillary was in control of the uranium stock, her brother was put in charge of it. He sold 20 percent of our supply to the Russians; they were to pay $1 billion to the Clinton fund.

A side comment to this is the fact that the Russians have built a lot more atomic warheads than us lately, so you can see where they got the uranium.

Have you noticed that President Obama makes his laws at will? This is against the law, but he does what he wishes and no one stops him. This is important because if Hillary is elected, our next U.S. Supreme Court judge probably will be Obama. And there goes our Constitution.

Have you heard of sanctuary cites? I have not. They are cities where aliens who commit crimes will not be jailed. We have 300 such cities at present. Where did this come from?

The other thing Hillary is pushing is Black Lives Matter. Anyone who knows me knows I consider all people equal. But Hillary wants us to fight each other. Is she trying to create trouble or peace in our nation? And Hillary said deep-seated religious beliefs have to be changed.

I am not totally happy with the second choice, but he is better than her.

JOHN WILT

Midland
Whether its sports, entertainment and the arts, or business and industry  women have excelled in all spheres of life, and it is unfair to treat them as any lesser than their male counterparts. The whole reason why the talk of empowering women has come into focus, is because of...
Elements of Task Force Raider from the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, performed a rare boarding, here, of a C-17 Globemaster III to fly to the island of Hawaii, Oct. 24, 2016.



Normally, Soldiers would board a C-17 from the 535th Airlift Squadron, 15th Wing, at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, instead of flying out of here to reach the Pohakuloa Training Area, or PTA.



TF Raider, which is comprised of units from 3rd Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment; 2nd Battalion, 35th Inf. Regt.; and 29th Bde. Engineer Bn., represent select elements participating in this annual exercise.



"Task Force Raider is deploying to PTA in support of Lightning Forge 17, and a certain amount of passengers and equipment is loading the C-17 to take a flight over," said 1st Lt. Michael Wilhelm, unit movement officer, Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 3-4th Cav. Regt. "Roughly 200 Soldiers are heading to PTA."



Wilhelm stated TF Raider was going to act as the opposition force to test the 2nd BCT, 25th ID's capabilities as it transitions from a Stryker brigade to a light infantry brigade.



"I think it is good training as far as deploying rapidly for a Contingency Response Force (CRF) mission," he said.



He further stated with the airfield being in close proximity to Schofield Barracks, where the task force is stationed, it was far easier and faster to deploy Soldiers and equipment out of Wheeler instead of Hickam.



Transporting RQ-7B Shadow unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) from Company D, 29th BEB, by air instead of by sea aboard a logistics support vessel (LSV) proved to be its own set of unique challenges.



"For air load, the restrictions of what you can and can't bring are much more stringent than an LSV," said 1st Lt. Sara M. Downing, Tactical Unmanned Aircraft System (TUAS) Platoon leader, Co. D, 29th BEB. "So, we adhere to all those regulations and have all the requisite paperwork."



Downing explained the movement of the TAUS Platoon; it allows testing of the rapid deployability of the UAVs while the unit is on a CRF mission.



"Once we're actually there on ground, we'll be doing a lot of variety of reconnaissance tasks for the exercise," she said, "whether that's target acquisition or area security or screening zone reconnaissance. I'll also be training call for fire missions as well."



The movement of troops and equipment wasn't just a benefit for the Army, but for the Air Force as well.



"Joint training with the Army and Air Force in support of Lightning Forge 17 allows both Soldiers and Airmen a great training opportunity," said Warrant Officer 1 Miguel Flores, mobility officer, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd BCT. "It is important for the Air Force to stay proficient at flying in and out of Wheeler Army Airfield. The challenging airfield gives the Air Force great training value and allows 3rd BCT to stay ready for contingency operations."



Flores worked with Air Force personnel to overcome obstacles to make the mission a success.



"Meeting the Air Force standards to move Soldiers and equipment is always a challenge," he said. "The more we conduct joint training in Oahu, the less complicated it will be for everyone."



Overall, the movement proved a success as TF Raider made it to PTA safely, with the Army and Air Force looking forward to future training missions out of Wheeler.



"They are always looking for valuable training opportunities with the Army," he added. "The more complex the air load plans, the better the training is for everyone."
Here's the Racist, Jaw-Dropping Moment that Ended Republican Sen. Mark Kirk's Chances at Reelection

By Dustin Rowles | Politics | October 28, 2016 |

I probably wouldnt even know who Republican Senator Mark Kirk was were it not for the fact that he was the first major Republican politician to refuse to endorse Donald Trump. Kirk is facing a tough re-election campaign in Illinois, where the most recent poll has put Tammy Duckworth up by a whopping 14 points.

I can only assume thats why Mark Kirk stooped to one of the lowest moments in politics this year by questioning his opponents American heritage during their debate last night. Heres the awful, ugly and awkward moment:

Senator Mark Kirk mocks disabled Iraq war vet Tammy Duckworth in debate for her mixed-race heritage: https://t.co/3Znpd2Uvfq pic.twitter.com/cpWYBKri4l  Deadspin (@Deadspin) October 28, 2016

I had forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington, he said.

This is a repugnant comment on its own, for the simple fact that Mark Kirk is attempting to define his opponent not by who she is but by how he wants white people to see her. Its even more heinous when you consider the context: Tammy Duckworth was born in Bangkok to a mother of Chinese descent and an American father who was a marine and who could trace his roots in America to back before the Civil War. Oh, and Tammy Duckworth was the first female double amputee of the Iraq War. She lost her legs from injuries sustained when the Black Hawk helicopter she was co-piloting was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade fired by Iraqi insurgents. Duckworth was awarded the Purple Heart.

And Mark Kirk who once lied in a speech on the House floor about his plane being shot at in Iraq  questioned her Americanness.

You know its bad when even Kellyanne Conway  the campaign manager for Donald Trump  is trying to take the high road.

The same Mark Kirk that unendorsed his party's presidential nominee and called him out in paid ads? Gotcha. Good luck. https://t.co/IV7miL317s  Kellyanne Conway (@KellyannePolls) October 28, 2016





Dustin is the founder and co-owner of Pajiba. You may email him here, follow him on Twitter, or listen to his weekly TV podcast, Podjiba.
Updated : Mar 10, 2020 in Culture

Some Things You Need to Know About Pakistani Culture - In the previous article I discussed the history, the system of government and its economy,
METAMORA  When a doctor told Stephanie Jones that her daughter, Ava, had arthritis, Stephanie said "'Huh? She is 3, not 90.'"

"I was scared. I saw old people crippled with arthritis. Would my daughter be able to play?"

Ava already had lost vision in her right eye and was in pain because of a swollen left knee. Now, her mother knew why.

Ava, now 8, has juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, also known as juvenile idiopathic arthritis. She also has uveitis, an eye disease that is a complication of juvenile arthritis (JA). Uveitis caused blindness in her right eye and may affect vision in her left eye.

"I see nothing in my right eye," Ava said matter-of-factly in her Metamora home after school on Oct. 17.

"Sometimes, it's hard for me to see. I bump into things," she said with a smile, reflecting her upbeat personality.

"It's hard for me to walk and jump when my back and my knee are bothering me," Ava said. "When it's hard for me to do stuff, my family helps me."

"In the morning, my knees hurt," said Ava, still smiling. "I get tired at 7 (p.m.). When I can't do it, I encourage myself and try harder."

Then she went outside to jump on a trampoline for a few minutes with her sisters  Noelle, 9, and Cassidy, 4. Later, the second-grader took a homework break by playing catch with herself.

Stephanie smiled slightly. "She'll pay for that later," referring to pain that follows Ava's physical exertion.

"I have arthritis, but I'm not your grandma," Ava said with a laugh.

While Ava has moderate-to-severe JA, she is not alone.

More than 50 million Americans have arthritis, including 300,000 children with JA, said Lucy Mardis, Central Illinois development manager for the Arthritis Foundation.

In Illinois, 2.3 million people have been diagnosed with arthritis, including 13,100 children, Mardis said.

"Arthritis affects everyone," Mardis said. "You don't have to be old and it doesn't just affect your joints."

Ava is the youth honoree for the 29th annual Jingle Bell Run on Nov. 13 at Heartland Community College in Normal. The Arthritis Foundation-sponsored event is designed to raise awareness and money for research to find a cure and for programs and services.

Arthritis refers to more than 100 different diseases that affect the joints and tissues, causing mild to severe inflammation and pain. The cause isn't known but there is a genetic predisposition.

There is no cure but medications and therapy can relieve inflammation, control pain and improve quality of life.

Osteoarthritis is the most prevalent type of arthritis and is the result of the breakdown of cartilage in one or more joints.

Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune type of arthritis, affecting not just the joints but other body systems.

Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis or juvenile idiopathic arthritis is an autoimmune disease in which white blood cells can't tell the difference between the body's healthy cells and germs. So the immune system releases chemicals that damage healthy tissues, causing inflammation and pain.

The same inflammation that causes swollen, painful joints can strike a child's eyes. Uveitis is when inflammation happens in the eyes, according to the Arthritis Foundation.

Ava was 2 years old when her right eye turned from blue to green, Stephanie recalled. In addition, Ava wasn't walking but would scoot on her bottom or army-crawl on her stomach.

"She was trying to avoid putting pressure on her joints, but we didn't know that yet," her mother said.

As Ava underwent tests to determine the cause, her left knee began to swell and hurt. By this time, she was 3 and was walking but in pain. She had lost vision in her right eye.

That's when she was diagnosed with JA.

Stephanie took Ava to a rheumatologist in Peoria, who told Stephanie that Ava would be better served by a pediatric rheumatologist. The closest was in Chicago. Ava sees a pediatric rheumatologist at Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago.

"It's hard for her to get moving in the morning," Stephanie said of Ava. "She's stiff and sore. Her left knee is the primary joint affected but she has minor involvement over the rest of her body."

"She tries to be normal at school," Stephanie said of the second-grader. Even though Ava has a school-approved plan allowing her to limit physical activity, "she pushes herself," her mother said.

She likes playing and being physically active with her family, but "by the time she gets home from school and gets her homework done, she wants to lie down."

"She doesn't complain. I think it's because she knows no different."

Over the years, Ava has been on a variety of arthritis medicines. Because those medicines have helped minimally  and because "the disease has quieted down recently"  Ava is taking only non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, such as extra-strength ibuprofen, her mother said.

Twice a month, Ava sees Saundi Pugh, a pediatric physical therapist with Children's Hospital of Illinois, at a satellite clinic in Washington. Pugh works with Ava on strengthening her entire body and on balance, while trying to not put too much strain on her joints.

"For her therapy, I slow everything down to control movement, which is difficult for her," Pugh said. "I am trying to teach her control and modification of activity."

The goal is to strengthen Ava's muscles to minimize damage to her joints, maintaining her quality of life.

"She is learning to use her body to protect her joints to keep herself healthy," Pugh said. "We're also getting her orthotics for her shoes to help with foot alignment."

"She's doing well," Pugh said. "She's so much fun to work with because she's playful and wants to do everything. I have to slow her down."

"Ava thinks that if she says 'no' to activities, it's like letting the arthritis win," Pugh explained. "I tell her, 'you have to pick and choose your activities or, later tonight, you will be in pain.'"

Attending an Arthritis Foundation national conference for children with JA and their families last summer in Phoenix helped. "I realized I wasn't the only kid with JA," Ava said.

"This is something she will be dealing with for the rest of her life, unless someone finds a cure," Pugh said.

Stephanie said "Some people with arthritis do great for years and then, suddenly, they're in a wheelchair. She will never regain vision in her right eye. The other eye? We don't know."

"Arthritis is such a rollercoaster," Stephanie said. "I can't imagine being on that rollercoaster at age 8."
BLOOMINGTON  A Bloomington man serving 15 years for severely injuring his infant son is now charged with murder  more than four years after the child's death.

Ryan S. Howard, 24, pleaded guilty in January 2012 to aggravated battery of the child, who is identified in court records as B.M.

According to the murder charges filed in McLean County Circuit Court, the infant suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of being shaken by Howard on April 3, 2011.

The child died in a Peoria hospital on Jan. 20, 2012  14 days after Howard pleaded guilty and was sentenced on aggravated battery charges.

McLean County State's Attorney Jason Chambers said Friday that he was approached about the case in 2015 by a person close to the victim's family after he became state's attorney. Former state's attorney Ron Dozier handled the initial case against Howard.

The new charges do not amount to double jeopardy against Howard because at the time his original case was resolved, the child was still alive, said Chambers.

The state has been working on the murder investigation for about a year, said Chambers.

In a statement given to a judge to support a warrant on murder charges, Assistant State's Attorney Jacob Harlow said Howard admitted to police he shook the baby because he was angry with the child's mother who asked him to watch the child while she went to a friend's house overnight.

Text messages from Howard to the mother that were found by police showed escalating frustration by Howard and threats to leave the baby outside, said the statement.

After feeding the infant in the morning, Howard "takes out his anger toward BM's mother on BM," violently shaking the infant as he laid on a futon, said the statement.

During a search of Howard's residence, police reportedly found a broken frame containing the child's photo.

The child was taken to the hospital by rescue workers who responded to a call for an infant who had stopped breathing.

An autopsy determined that the baby died from sepsis and bronchopneumonia caused by the brain injuries, according to Harlow's statement.

Bond has been set at $1 million for Howard who is incarcerated in Danville Correctional Center. He is scheduled to be released on parole in 2024 on the aggravated battery charge.

If convicted on the murder charge, he faces 20 to 60 years in prison.
CHICAGO  A settlement in a federal lawsuit will mean major changes in the state's parole revocation process, including the appointment of lawyers for many of more than 8,000 former inmates sent back to prison each year for violating their parole.

The preliminary agreement reached Thursday in the 2013 lawsuit filed in the in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois will give inmates a chance to explain their side of the violation at a preliminary hearing. Eligible parolees will have an attorney with them at hearings and receive written findings at each stage of the process.

Alan Mills, executive director of Chicago's Uptown People's Law Center and one of the lawyers for the inmates, said "most people think that if you are facing prison in this country, you are entitled to a lawyer. That has not been true Illinois, where thousands of people every year are returned from parole to prison without a lawyer, or a proper hearing."

Parolees' constitutional rights have been violated by the system, added Alexa Van Brunt, an assistant law professor at the Northwestern School of Law and an attorney with the Roderick and Solange MacArthur Justice Center, also in Chicago.

"The vast majority lost their freedom in phony hearings that lasted only minutes and stripped them of their constitutional right to due process," said Van Brunt.

IDOC spokeswoman Nicole Wilson said the agency will work with the Prisoner Review Board "to ensure that the parole revocation process is conducted in a fair and impartial manner, and that alleged parole violators have access to an attorney throughout the hearing process."

The number of parole violators held in IDOC has dropped from more than 8,000 in 2014 to 5,626 currently, according to IDOC. The average length of stay for violators is four to six months, said Wilson.

The agreement is one of several developments in the past year toward improving conditions for inmates and parolees, said Mills.

An agreement reached in federal court in January laid out a plan to overhaul mental health treatment in all Illinois prisons, including the opening of four residential treatment centers for seriously mentally ill inmates. An estimated 11,000 of the state's 46,000 inmates experience some form of mental illness, according to data disclosed in the lawsuit.

The state's plan to close the notoriously tough Stateville F House in Joliet, the last circular prison in the country, combined with recommended changes in segregation rules that will give prisoners held in solitary confinement more time outside their cells and better access to mental health care also are positive trends, Mills observed.

"There's more that needs to be done, but these things represent a good start," he said.

Mills, who represents inmates in a number of lawsuits against the state related to prison conditions, noted the state's budget constraints have limited the changes IDOC director John Baldwin is willing to make to address prison issues.

The union that represents prison workers has voiced concerns on some of the proposed changes. A recent incident at Pontiac Correctional Center between inmates and staff left several officers injured. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees attributed the violence to changes in the release of some inmates from solitary confinement before their behavior had improved.

A Jan. 25 fairness hearing is scheduled in Chicago to hear objections to the settlement involving parolee rights.
NORMAL  A pickup truck knocked out a gas meter at The Flats student apartment building in Normal Thursday afternoon, forcing residents to evacuate and tying up traffic southwest of the Illinois State University campus.

A two-vehicle crash at the intersection of Kingsley and Osage streets reported at 12:57 p.m., according to Normal Police, caused the leak, said Matt Swaney, public information officer for the Normal Fire Department.

Authorities said neither driver was seriously injured, and no one was hurt because of the leak. Traffic on Kingsley resumed around 5 p.m.

ISU sophomore Allie Petrick, who was in the building at 611 Osage St. at the time of crash, described the area as "quite a movie scene."

"I was here and actually didn't hear them knocking for like 20 minutes," she said of police officers and firefighters going door to door to alert residents. "When I got out, they already had the yellow tape and everything up."

Dealing with gas leaks is a relatively routine procedure, said NFD Battalion Chief Ed Collins, but this case was more time-consuming because the truck blocked access to the gas service, and the leak affected a building with many residents.

"There was a huge potential for problems here, so we had to take it very slow," he said. "That's why it became such a big event."

Nicor Gas workers used shovels to get to the underground line and then brought in an excavator, Swaney said.

After the gas line was shut off, firefighters used fans to ventilate the building. Residents were allowed to return by 6 p.m., but the odor of natural gas still lingered, firefighters said.

A pet hedgehog was rescued from the fourth floor.

Normal police said the final report with details of the accident should be available Friday. Authorities were checking to see whether cameras recorded the crash.
Universities in the United States are gearing up for Halloweeb but instead of preparing their costumes, they are preparing for something bigger. Several universities have already taken the stand where they would fight against gender discrimination, racism and other offensive Halloween costumes as they call out for respect and diversity.

The University of Florida made headlines as they joined other universities in fighting racism and gender biases. A memo was released by the university urging their students to avoid Halloween costumes that may impose stereotypes.

Costumes inflicting gender, cultural and religious discrimination was said to be prohibited. The reminder, which was published in the Gator Times, highlighted the importance of diversity within the college campus and the community.

"Some Halloween costumes reinforce stereotypes of particular races, genders, cultures, or religions," the memo wrote. "Regardless of intent, these costumes can perpetuate negative stereotypes, causing harm and offense to groups of people."

Halloween originally started with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off roaming ghosts, as mentioned in History. It was then noted that they will honor the martyrs every first of November. It is the time of the year where children and adults would dress up as their favorite character and other scary figures. Over time, however, the essence of Halloween already diminished as people started to dress up in a way that they're subtly promoting gender biases, racism and discrimination in religion.

The University of Massachusetts also expressed their stand in fighting against racism in terms of the students' costume. MEdia-ITE mentioned that one student from the university dressed up as a "sexy Pocahontas," which gathered backlash for "hypersexualized racism." As parents, it is important to educate the children about other culture and teach them to be sensitive when it comes to respecting the culture, beliefs and religion.

As a parent, what's you take on letting your children dress up for Halloween? Do you have Halloween costume idea for kids that are gender neutral and unbiased? We would love to hear from you. Send in your thoughts through the comment section below.
Following the numerous instances of Samsung Galaxy Note 7 catching fire, the Apple's iPhone 7 is now the latest phone to be in the news for an explosion due to overheating. An Australian surfer who owns an iPhone 7 claims that his Apple iPhone 7 burnt and destroyed the interiors of his car after he conducted surfing lessons.

According to a report by International Business Times, surf instructor Mat Jones had left his Apple's iPhone 7 under a pile of clothes before heading out for his surf sessions. After completing his sessions, he returned to the car and was shocked to find the vehicle filled with smoke. He suspects that the iPhone 7 overheated, unable to endure the beach heat. The car's interiors along with the clothes were completely burnt due to the explosion of iPhone 7.

Jones said, "As I looked into my car, I could not see the inside of the car. All the windows were completely blackened. On opening the car, I noticed that ash was coming from just inside the pants. Upon unwrapping the pants, I found my iPhone 7 melting inside it."

Surprisingly, Mat Jones had purchased the Apple's iPhone 7 just a week ago and also claimed that he had never dropped the iPhone even once. Also, he did not use any third party charger for his iPhone 7. He alleged that the cause of the fire was definitely the iPhone 7's battery, which exploded due to overheating.

Reports by Tech First Post indicate that Apple is aware of the debacle that has occurred and has promised to look into the issue. Apple's iPhones, which have been the undisputed king in the world of smartphones, exploding comes as a shock to people all over. With Samsung Galaxy Note 7 already garnering widespread criticism due to several instances of explosion and burns, will Apple be the next big name to join the bandwagon?
A first grade teacher from the Pepperhill Elementary School in South Carolina is planning to make Christmas memorable for 650 students. Katie Blomquist has set up a fundraiser that will allow her to buy bicycles to give to the students, citing that every child deserves to own a bike.

Katie Blomquist's fundraiser for bicycles for Christmas was set up at GoFundMe. She mentions that many of the children at her elementary school belongs to low income, high poverty communities. Thus, their families are unable to afford a bike.

The teacher related that she was inspired by the idea of setting up the bicycles for Christmas fund after having a student who didn't get much support from home to pour into his school work. "I took it as a goal to myself from day one that I really wanted to get him motivated," Katie Blomquist said and decided to give him a bicycle for his birthday, CBS News reports.

From there, she thought of her other students in a similar situation. "All the kids in the school [who] could really benefit from having a bike," she told the news outlet. After carefully assessing the situation, the teacher realized that some of the kids in school have actually never ridden bicycles before and that has robbed them of so many experiences to explore.

The fundraiser for bicycles for Christmas is aiming to reach $65,000 and as of press time, it is almost halfway towards its goal. Katie Blomquist hopes that this will be completed by December. The teacher's initiative was lauded by the Charleston County School District.

Bike Citizens enumerates the many benefits to bike riding. Studies have shown that the activity helps to clear the mind and improve cognition. It allows the children to be more attentive and interested in school work.

What do you think of Katie Blomquist's bicycle for Christmas fundraiser for her students? Let us know you thoughts in the comments!
Awareness of mental health is a huge issue in America and there are states that hardly make an effort in educating and helping their locals when it comes to this matter. A new study showed some of these places in the United States that deliver poor management in handling mental health.

In an article published by The Huffington Post, Nevada is among the states that don't give out the right provision when it comes to the mental health of their locals. This is based on a report that the publication gathered from the organization, Mental Health America. Included in the report is a record that shows adults are the ones struggling to have their needs met in this department. More than half of this demographic in America are not getting treatment nor proper awareness on how to handle their mental health issue.

The CEO of Mental Health America, Paul Gionfriddo, went on details with their report stating that their records show how some of the states are doing on this subject. Unfortunately, there are some that don't really invest in this issue, which later on becomes an even bigger problem in their place. He suggested that state leaders should think of putting money and effort into projects that promote the awareness of mental health issues before it is too late.

Meanwhile, WLFI.com also gathered that Indiana is another state that has the worst mental health care in America. Their report is also based on Mental Health America's details. It is alarming to know that there over 40 million Americans do have issues on their mental health. Reports are also showing that the struggle in Indiana to provide proper mental health care for their residents is due to the cost and the non-availability to sit down and talk about this issue. Everybody seems just to be a workaholic in that state, which is also another problem that contributes to their mental health.

What do you think could be a good solution to address this mental health issue? Type in your opinion below.
Authorities are keeping watch and warning the public about a church that sells a "miracle" cure for autism. Prosecutors of the federal court initiated an investigation into the Genesis II Church of Health and Healing, which has been offering the Master Mineral Solution (MMS) to families of children with autism.

Claiming that the cure works, it is alleged that the solution is actually industrial bleach, otherwise known as Clorox to consumers, and its ingestion could lead to serious health problems in children. The church could be liable for prosecution, especially if authorities can prove that the church has been lying to members about the cure's healing powers.

Daily Mail reports that the church is headed by Jim Humble, who used to be a gold prospector in Nevada. Now, he's claiming to be a being from a different galaxy and that his miracle cure works on children with autism.

The church supposedly told those who have bought MMS that their children might suffer side effects like nausea or diarrhea after drinking MMS. The church says that this is an indication that the cure is working.

Price for the cure varies depending on the size. One bottle at four ounces sells for $12.95, while a set of 12 sells for $96, New York Daily News reports.

This so-called "miracle" cure for autism is actually a form of industrial bleach. https://t.co/IJJTNy3KXj pic.twitter.com/nUFgNuNI1l  Newsy (@NewsyVideos) October 26, 2016

The group Autism Speaks is aware of Humble, his church and MMS. They have warned the public, especially parents who want to "heal" their children, to not be swayed by these claims.

"It really scares me that people would give this to their kids, because it is a poison," Dr. Paul Wang of Autism Speaks told ABC in an interview. "You thrive on this illusion that you're going to somehow fix your kid or that one day you're going to 'unautismize' your child," he added.

The FDA has already issued a statement on their site about products claiming to cure autism when experts affirm that the condition cannot be cured. Autism is managed by therapies depending on the spectrum and the symptoms exhibited by the child.
Tom Cruise has finally seen his daughter Suri Cruise after several years of not being in contact with her. It was in 2012 when 'TomKat' was officially ended by Katie Homes filing a divorce against her husband of six years. And sources say Tom Cruise has not seen Suri since.

Suri Cruise, now 10 years old, has been in the custody of Katie Holmes since the divorce. Katie has not done a lot of acting and devoted most of her time to raising her and Tom Cruise's daughter. Rumors abound that one of the main reason that Cruise cannot see his daughter is because of Scientology, which the actor is a staunch supporter of.

It was already reported that Katie Holmes divorced from Cruise because she doesn't want to be a Scientologist anymore, and when they separated, Homes and Suri also left the Church of Scientology. According to Access Hollywood, one of the rules in Scientology says that they cannot be in contact with members who have left the religion, which may be the reason that Cruise has backed off from having a relationship with his daughter Suri.

But just this July, in a report by Daily Mail, Tom Cruise and Suri were reunited when Tom brought Suri to England to celebrate his birthday with him. The actor, who has been nominated for an Academy Award for his roles in "Jerry Maguire" and "Magnolia", brought Suri to Bourton-On-The-Water and London for five days. The trip was very secret and discreet, insiders say.

In another news, Tom Cruise has found love. According to The Sun, the actor has been in a secret relationship with a non-celebrity. No name has been given on who has finally caught Tom's eye, but sources say she was very beautiful and resides in Britain. Tom Cruise even brought the woman to the same town where Suri Cruise was taken.

What do you think of the reunion between Tom Cruise and Suri Cruise? Share your comments below.
A man found guilty of manslaughter and cruelty to a child by majority verdicts due to killing his own 3-year old son by drowning him in food is now in jail. He reportedly let his son eat by force a mixture of bread and cereal that the little boy ended up choking to death.

The little boy was made to lie across his father's lap and then had been poured down with the porridge-like mixture into his mouth from a cup. The food was a mixture of bread, milk, Weetabix, oats, rice pudding and spaghetti according to a report by Daily Mail.

The 32-year-old father from northwest London, not named due to legal reasons, was slapping his son or sending him to bed on occasions when he vomited during feeding, as per Prosecutor Simon Denison QC during the trial that the defendant.

"There was a very large amount of vomit that looked like a porridge substance on his face and his chest and not the floor." The Guardian quoted Denison saying. "It was very difficult to clear his airway because of the amount of porridge-like substance that was in his throat. When CPR was attempted, more of the substance came out." The prosecutor added.

From the postmortem examination, it was revealed that virtually all sections of his lungs were stuffed with recognizable food material. The cruelty of the father led to having a large amount of porridge-like mix inhaled and aspirated in his respiratory system, causing the little boy to get drowned.

The father of the toddler has been in custody for the final verdict by Mr. Justice Singh at the Old Bailey Today. Two members of the jury which convicted him see him today being sentenced to nine years. Mr. Singh said that the defendant expressed no remorse for what he did to his son.
A Maryland nanny was arrested and charged over the death of an eight-month-old baby girl. According to reports, the child woke up her nanny, the latter got mad and the nanny force-fed the child until she died from choking.

Toronto Sun reported that the nanny was identified as 66-year-old Oluremi Oyindasola. She was arrested Tuesday this week and as per a surveillance video, her acts were caught on tape. The baby was identified as Enita Salubi. The video showed the nanny taking a nap on the couch then the crying infant walked over to her while on a walker.

The nanny got woken up and seemingly got mad. Col. Harry Bond of Prince George's County Police said that the nanny first tried to feed the child while she was still in the walker but was unsuccessful. She then pulled the child from the walker, held the baby around the child's chest, removed the nipple from one of the feeding bottles and forcefully poured the liquid, possibly milk, down the baby's mouth.

The baby could be seen squirming in the video for around 25 seconds but Oyindasola continued to pour the large amount of liquid into the baby's mouth. After the first bottle was empty, the nanny forced the second bottle into the mouth of the child, The Washington Post reported.

The child became unresponsive at around 4:10 p.m. and Oyindasola called the father of the baby. The father rushed home and called 911. The baby was rushed to the hospital but was pronounced death. It was determined that the eight-month-old baby girl died of asphyxiation.

Police officials have charged Oyindasola of Glenarden, Maryland with second-degree murder, first-degree murder child abuse resulting in death and more charges related to the incident. She is now at the Prince George's County Department of Corrections.

Neighbors said they heard the baby crying a lot before the crime and were concerned about her welfare. Christina Cotterman, a spokeswoman for Prince George's County Police, said that babies are defenseless and what happened to Salubi is tragic and heartbreaking. The family of Salubi has not released any statement yet.
A former Rutgers University student pleaded guilty to attempted invasion of privacy in the infamous webcam spying case. The former student captured his roommate, Tyler Clementi, on webcam kissing another man, which led to the latter's suicide.

The former Rutgers University was identified as 24-year-old Dharun Ravi, a resident of Plainsboro and the guilty plea came after an appeals court last month gave a 15-count conviction against him in the 2010 death of Clementi. The agreement that came with the guilty plea was that there should be no additional penalties and the case against Ravi will officially be ended.

Ravi live-streamed Clementi and another man having sexual acts. Clementi killed himself on Sept.22, 2010 and his death sparked debate over the treatment of young gays, USA Today reported.

NBC News also reported that Ravi was sentenced to probation and 30 days in jail. He will not be serving additional time. Middlesex County Prosecutor Andrew Carey said that the plea agreement was a reasonable way to resolve the case.

The parents of Clementi, Joe and Jane, released a statement saying, "We have learned that our legislators need to make constitutionally valid and clear laws. And we have learned that witnesses or bystanders need to become upstanders for those in our society like Tyler, who cannot stand up for themselves." They then urged young people and parents to think about their behavior to people like Clementi and should report or interrupt any kind of harassment or humiliation.

Ravi has not been charged in the death of Clementi. He also invited other people to spy on his roommate after he believed that Clementi and another man were going to have a sexual activity. In the past, Ravi was sentenced to 30 days and was placed on probation for three years.

He was also ordered to serve 300 hours of community service and participate in cyberbullying counseling. He also paid $10,000 in fines. However, change in the state law took place and another trial was made. As per the law, he cannot be punished with a harsher punishment, thus the same sentence was imposed.
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In an interview this week talking about the new MacBook Pro, Phil Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of worldwide marketing, and Craig Federighi, senior vice president of software engineering, said the long wait for the MacBook Pro (four years, four months and 16 days to be exact) had to do with making sure the revamp wasn't just a "speed bump" with faster chips and memory. They were after a "big, big step forward." Still, many think that was a ridiculous amount of time to deliver an update and the rest of the Mac line-up is still late.

C/Net's Dan Ackerman talking about the new 'Touch Bar' stated that "By default, the Touch Bar displays a command strip view with brightness, volume and other system control functions. When another Apple app is launched, including Photos, Mail or Safari, the command buttons roll up to the far right side of the strip, leaving the rest of the space free for app-specific commands, which can take the form of buttons, sliders or dials.

a jog wheel for rotating photos in Apple's Photos app, suggested words and corrected spellings in Mail, and a tiny display of open tabs in Safari.

The Messages app naturally gives you a menu of emojis. Other programs, including Adobe's Photoshop, will support Touch Bar, which seems especially relevant for design and creativity apps.

Future support from third-party apps and websites will make or break the Touch Bar. I'm eager to see what it can do when teamed with apps like Netflix or Spotify, which could hypothetically let you fast-forward through a movie or song with the slide of a finger.

Federighi says the Touch Bar will make it easier to find and use features often buried in rarely accessed software submenus. "Some of these apps have a lot of power that is often hidden behind menus and things, that they can surface contextually on the Touch Bar, which is so powerful."

Of course, ditching that function key row claimed another casualty: the escape key. But the good news is that at least one of the customized Touch Bar designs already had a "soft" escape key right where we still expected it." You could read Dan Ackerman's full positive report about the new MacBook Pro here.

In a second and more in-depth report, C/Net notes that "A Touch Bar instead of a full-on touchscreen means disappointment for anyone hoping for iPads and MacBooks to merge into some new mobile gadget. According to the Schiller, Federighi and Ive, 'That's just not happening. It's not because Apple can't make a touchscreen Mac. It's because Apple decided a touchscreen on a Mac wasn't particularly useful.' And on the MacBook Pro, which keeps getting thinner and lighter, it could be "a burden'" added Ive.

Ive continued by saying that "Doing something that's different is actually relatively easy and relatively fast, and that's tempting." Apple decided against touchscreens for the Mac "many, many" years ago. You can become fairly comfortable that you have a design direction that's compelling. But if you can't work out how you can refine that without compromising the final product, you can still undermine a big idea."

C/Net's report went on to say that "Even so, Apple realizes it's hard to know whether to opt for a laptop or tablet, particularly when you compare, say, the 12-inch MacBook and comparably equipped 12.9-inch iPad Pro (with a detachable keyboard and stylus). They cost about the same at nearly $1,300."

That's why the Microsoft Surface Book is beginning to gain some ground. With a few important and needed software updates to work out initial problems and a new hardware update this week, the Surface Book is very appealing to many as a notebook and tablet combination. While Windows 8 was a nightmare, Windows 10 now works well as a desktop and tablet OS. And with the Surface Book option of adding an Nvidia graphics card, many artists are being tempted to going back to a Windows notebook.

C/Net's report supported that by noting that "Apple does have to worry about losing its most ardent user base  creative types  to PCs and tablets running Microsoft's Windows software. "Apple has definitely left their customers behind in the last four years in not having updated over that period," says Brian Hall, corporate vice president of marketing for Microsoft devices. "They're just following right now."

That's just what you'd expect Microsoft to say. But some creatives told C/Net that Apple's slow pace of upgrades convinced them to abandon Macs. Dawnrunner, a San Francisco video production company, previously used MacBook Pros and Mac Pro desktops. It ditched them six years ago for Dell PCs. "We need nimble machines that are as powerful as they can be," CEO James Fox says. For Dawnrunner, "the Mac fell short for processing production-quality video, fast."

The war between Apple and Microsoft notebooks is just beginning to heat up. While the MacBook still wins against the Surface Book in tough reviews while admitting that the Surface Book offers great value, Microsoft has decided to tempt MacBook users to make the switch to Surface Book by offering huge trade-in discounts.

Microsoft said yesterday that "If you have a Mac but want to experience the ultimate laptop with on-screen touch, Surface and Microsoft Store are here for you.Starting today, anyone in the US can trade in their MacBook Pro or MacBook Air at a Microsoft Store or online for up to $650 off a Surface Book or Surface Pro."





Microsoft also launched a new switchers webpage dedicated to those wanting to make the switch from a MacBook to a Surface Book with tips for Mac users and an insurance that Surface works with iPhone and favorite apps including iTunes and iCloud.

In the end, Apple continues to go against the grain of implementing a touch display on Macs and most Apple fans have gone along with that philosophy. Over at MacDailyNews, the reactions of die-hard Apple fans could be read in their report titled "Apple does touch right and, as usual, Microsoft does it wrong." Even though fingerprint smears are all over an iPad Pro every day when using it, this oddly becomes a huge issue with Apple fans when criticizing fingerprints on a Surface Book or Surface Studio.

Over at The Verge, that is somewhat neutral on Apple, they did a survey this morning with the question: Which device does touch better  MacBook Pro or Surface Studio PC? The results as of 8 a.m. PST are clocked in and readers voted that the Surface Studio PC wins hands down. That's completely opposite to what's found in MacDailyNews report. So it really all depends on what camp you're in or listen to.





After using an iPad for years, I find myself at times reaching out to my iMac display to touch it only to laugh. I do the same on my PC that doesn't have a touch display. I don't see the crime in adding touch to a Mac's display but Apple says no so I live with it, but it doesn't necessarily "make it right." I'm not an engineer or a comic book creator or an artist who love what Microsoft's Surface Studio brings to the table. You have to see them working with it to realize, there is a niche of users where the Surface Studio will meet their needs more than a Mac. If it weren't so expensive I'd be tempted to buy one, but it's just out of my desktop budget. But it's a budget thing, not a philosophical issue.

Whereas with the MacBook Pro vs. Surface Book, it's a tougher choice. Do I buy a MacBook Pro and iPad Pro or just buy one Surface Book? At the end of the day it's like the U.S. elections. You have die-hard Democrats and die-hard Republicans. But in the end, it's the Independents that both parties have to convince in order to win the race. I know what Apple fans generally think and the same with PC fans. But for someone who has simple computer needs and is able to run macOS, iOS and Windows 10, things aren't always so black and white.

In the end, as an independent, I'll always choose what's right for me and couldn't care less what Apple's philosophy is. Apple makes business decisions that are good for them, not necessarily what's right for their customers. Independents will always go with what tools work best for them and their business. Unfortunately both sides are making it difficult to make a choice. Both sides make convincing arguments. But at the moment, I think there's a little more 'wow' out of a detachable display on a notebook than an added 'Touch Bar.' And remember, this was an Apple idea first. But understandably, the new MacBook Pro with it's Touch Bar is going to win over most Apple fans, especially those who value productivity. It's a real winner, but again, it's not for everyone.

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I traveled to Rwanda in July 2016 with Catholic Relief Services as part of a delegation. What I saw and heard from the people I met there renewed my faith in the power of forgiveness and reconciliation to create peace between people, between nations, and in oneself.

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Justine lost her brother in 1996 when Rwandan and Burundian refugees mercilessly murdered him. His lifeless body was tied to a truck and dragged, leaving the young mans remains unrecognizable. Justine and her family were not only heartbroken but also outraged at the senseless act of violence performed by the refugees. Questioning her faith, for six years Justine stopped going to church, and also for six years, she did not dare enter the county of Rwanda. These people killed my brother, she stated the day I heard her recount the story. I did not want to see them.

Two years ago, Justine was invited by her pastor to attend a workshop hosted in part by her Diocese of Bukavu in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The workshop would be a gathering of 60 women from three countries and four dioceses to initiate a pilot program named COSOPAX, which from French translates into Trader Women in Solidarity for Peace. The initiative, which is run by the Dioceses of Cyangugu (Rwanda), Bujumbura (Burundi), Bukavu (DRC), and Uvira (DRC), is a cross-border project primarily funded by Catholic Relief Services (CRS) with a two-fold purpose: lay the groundwork for peace to take hold and strengthen economic opportunities. COSOPAX has brought together women from Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo, three countries with deeply damaged relations due to the prolonged suffering of their people caused by animosity, war and prejudice.

The four participating dioceses identified women who each day crossed the national boundaries of these three countries to buy and sell goods such as rice, flour, fruits, clothes, and fish. They were to become bridges between the three often hostile societies. As part of COSOPAX, the participating women go through a series of workshops focused on conflict resolution, overcoming prejudice, becoming advocates in their communities, and developing leadership skills to help influence and mobilize others. The women also benefit by learning better business skills and from the creation of a common fund for personal savings and the ability to take out loans.

Ida, one of the COSOPAX women, shared that she still finds it hard to believe that women can play an essential role in peace building. It is not just the job of the police, army, and politicians, she now believes. Women like Ida have been empowered to positively impact their communities. I had hatred towards my brothers and sisters in Rwanda, confessed Hortense. I was defiant, choleric, my face was stressed. The day she asked God despairing, why is my life like this? is the day Hortense received an invitation to be part of COSOPAX. She truly believes that God answered her prayer that day.

The program identified women as participants since they were already the ones crossing national borders to conduct trade, coming into contact with a variety of people. Also, since women are the ones who shape the thoughts and hearts of children, all transformation brought about in them will be passed on to the next generation. One of the Congolese teams of four women had a total of 26 children! Francoise explained that, the hatred is already in the hearts of our children. Working closely with these women breaks cycles of prejudice and hatred. COSOPAX is bringing about institutional change in families and society by working closely with a diverse group of women. Sofia, another participant, observed that to experience peace we need the inclusion of people from different categories: Congolese, Burundians, Rwandans, Catholics, Protestants, Muslims. You cannot experience peace if you live alone. It is natural that a program designed to bring people together not only unites women from different countries, but also includes Catholics, Protestants and one Muslim. The good fruit that has come and continues to come from COSOPAX is benefiting many already as these women encounter thousands in their daily work.

The sixteen women I heard speak in Cyangugu, Rwanda experienced healing and encouragement through COSOPAX. Not only did they learn how to discontinue prejudices, but they also gained business skills that have benefited them financially. They now keep accounting books, save money, and help each other. One participant proudly announced that she was able to save enough money to buy a chicken and a pair of glasses for her son. The women also take part in works of charity together, visiting the sick and providing for the needy. Most of them expressed a desire that COSOPAX continue and be expanded. For now this will only be possible through the continued partnership of Catholic Relief Services and the four participating dioceses. The program is funded and assisted by CRS, so your donations to CRS directly allow for this life changing program to continue and to expand.

Justine was first attracted to COSOPAX by its business element alone. She was uneasy about gathering Rwandan, Burundian, and Congolese women, but she attended hoping to learn new business skills. With a wonderful, joyful smile, she now admits to her fear during the first workshop since she did not want to be in the same room with women from the neighboring countries. She was afraid one of them would kill her. As the workshop progressed, she realized the extent of the vision of COSOPAX and chose to remain. She understood that all these women with diverse backgrounds were her sisters in Christ. In regards to her brothers death, COSOPAX facilitated a profound epiphany in her mind and heart, I understood that fault is individual. Not all Rwandans and Burundians killed my brother. It is not right to attribute fault to them all. This realization allowed her to begin healing a very deep wound.

The work of CRS in Rwanda and throughout the world continues to transform lives as profound institutional change is facilitated. CRS provides expertise and funding to its partners so they develop and run programs suited to meet the needs of their communities. COSOPAX is one of many programs made possible through the continued generosity of benefactors. The goodness of these generous hearts is transforming lives and communities as the Gospel is made incarnate through the continuous outreach of CRS made in the name of Christ and his Church. Just as the Rwandan participant Beatrice stated, we have seen that the Congolese are our friends, we must see every person as a friend in need, urging us not to remain indifferent but to respond concretely with prayer and action.

All pictures are mine, all rights reserved.
A Review Series of Anonymous Tip, by Michael Farris

Pp. 413-416

To start out, we have a very short section covering a phone conversation between Peter and David Humphrey of Heart of America. Peter breaks the news that they lost the case in the Ninth Circuit and that theyre appealing to the Supreme Court. David is glad Peter lost the casethough he doesnt let him know thatbecause it means more money for Heart of America. After all, they can send out a new mailing, and what with the case going to the Supreme Court, David figures it will bring in even more money than the previous mailings $300,000.

Peter and David start talking about how much this will cost. Peter says that our out-of-pocket costs will be about fifteen thousand dollars but that it would be nice to get some money for our attorneys fees. David is noncommittal on that front, but lets Peter know that for sure we can cover the fifteen grand. The rest of the money, presumably, will go into Davids pockets.

Farris tells us that Peter is working on the cert petition from 5 to 7 every evening. While doing research, Peter finds a case he hadnt seen beforeits Hill v. City of New York, decided in 1993. In it, the Second Circuit held that while judicial immunity for social workers certainly applies to everything that happens during a trail; social workers were not immune from filing the initial papers if they contained information they knew to be false at the time of filing. That is criminal semicolon use. That aside, you can see where Farris is going with this. Donna knew her initial papers included false information when she filed them.

Peter calls Professor French to ask about this case. (I use scare quotes because its interesting to note those who get honorariums and those who dontso far I think only French and Peters pastor do.)

Ah, yes, French said. I was wondering when you were going to find that case.

WTF? Least helpful law professor ever! French should have asked Peter whether hed read Hill v. City of New York during their first conversation! If I were Peter, Id be pissed! What, was French just going to let it go unmentioned if Peter didnt find it on his own? Oh wait, French answers that question:

I was going to tell you about it in a week or so, but Im glad you found it. You know how important this case is, dont you?

Do you, sir, know how important Peters case is? Too important for games like this! Or at least, too important to Peter and Gwen for games like this. Im less invested.

Sure, Peter replied. It gives us a high-level case which announces a rule of law which is a lot more favorable to us. Thats true, the professor said. But its a lot more important than that. One of the best ways to get the Supreme court to take your case is to argue that your case will solve what they call a split between the circuits.'

And this is why French should have led with this last week. Anyway, French explains what a split between the circuits meansif the Ninth Circuit has granted social workers full immunity and the Second Circuit has only given them limited immunity, it would behoove the Supreme Court to step in and sort it out. That French feels the need to explain all this to Peter is weird, because I knew this and Ive never been to law school, but then I probably keep up with the Supreme Court more than most and I get that the point of this section is exposition for the reader, not for Peterwait.

Wow. Why didnt they teach us this stuff in law school? Peter asked.

I could make some deprecating joke about Gonzaga, Peters alma mater, but then I think Farris would write it this way even if Peter had gone to Yale.

They probably did. But most wannabe lawyers never pay that much attention because it is well known that there is not much money in constitutional law. They were sure right about that. Peter, theres one other argument that I think you have been missing in this whole case. Yikes. Whats that? Lets see if you can figure it out. Ill ask you some questions, OK? Sure, Im game. I never claimed to be a constitutional lawyer.

And that is why you should have passed this case on to an actual constitutional lawyer, Peter!

At what point in the process did they falsify the computer records? Peter thought for a moment. Uh . . . It was after the state case was all over. It was after we had filed the federal civil rights suit. Do you get my Oh, my goodness! Im an idiot! I take it that you understand my point, the professor said. Yeah, they have immunity for perjury done during the trial. When the state trial is over, the immunity is over. We should have been able to clean their clocks for document tampering they did during the federal trial. You got it.

And, this is why Peter should have passed the case on to someone who actually knew what they were doing.

Well, at least I learned it now. We just tell that to the Supreme Court and that will take care of it, right? Not exactly. Youve got a little problem. What kind of problem? You can only bring up issues in the Supreme Court if you previously raised some of those issues in the district court at the trial level, and in the circuit court at the appellate level. Does that mean I cant make this argument at all because I didnt say it until now?

Why is he asking these questions, and why didnt he know that you cant make an argument before the Supreme Court that you havent made already as you worked your way up through the courts? Once again, I knew this. I have never been to law school. Peter is in so far over his head right now that this should be a wakeup call to go find a constitutional lawyer to turn the case over to. But you know it wont be.

French says that Peter may be able to make these new arguments if he makes it clear that theyre extensions of the same issues hes been arguing the entire time. He says that this make make his case less likely to be taken, though, as the law clerks who look at his cert petition may feel that the case would have been resolved at an earlier level if hed just raised these arguments then. And if they were to decide that, theyd probably be correct. But French didnt say that. I did.

I feel really bad. Have I committed malpractice? No way. And besides, I dont think your fiance is likely to sue you for it anyway.

A pox on you and your entire old boys network!

Seriously, though, this is why his behavior toward Gwen has been a problem since the very beginning.

When do you think youll have your draft of the cert petition done? Next Tuesday. Thats three days before the deadline you gave me.

What was the point of that last line? Im serious. The point is probably to let the reader know that Peter is a Really Good Lawyer Who Always Works Ahead, despite all evidence to the contrary, but as it is, it reads as if its Peter trying to show off to French. But you know what? If Peter has it done and submitted before Frenchs deadline, French will know that whether or not Peter reminds him that its before deadline. Peters remindingness comes off as him trying to prove something.

Poor Gwen.

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One night earlier this month at Lhodrak Karchu Monastery in Jakar, in the Bumthang district of Bhutan (the photo on the left is of monks there practicing debate), I set out for dinner at the cafeteria where the 80 or so mostly Western conference participants received meals. The cafeteria was four blocks from my dorm, down a winding road where I knew I was likely to pass a dozen or so friendly (or, at least, neutral) stray dogs who roamed the country, including the grounds of the monastery and sometimes the hallway of the dorm. During my jaunt to lunch, in addition to stray dogs, I had also met a handful of Jersey cows, moseying along, checking me out, and then returning to munching whatever they could find.

This evening, as I passed from the lighted area of the buildings into the darkness of the barely visible road, I encountered two young monks clad in characteristic maroon robes. I paused and greeted them, and they paused to exchange my greeting.

By their size and voices, I guessed that one was about 18, the other a bit younger, but in the dark, I couldnt see their faces to get a reliable read. One had been in the monastery for three years, the other for two.

I asked why they became monks and how long they planned to stay. The junior monk said, To live a peaceful life.

The senior said, We never want to leave the monastery.

The photo, left, is one morning view from Karchu.

The seniors English was a bit better than that of the junior monk, so he did some translating. I noticed that they spoke with each other with soft, tender voices, like intimates.

As we chatted, I asked them if they had phones. Almost everyone in Bhutan (and planet earth), including monks, has one and its common to see monks, especially younger ones, walking along, engrossed in their phones, just like people everywhere. In fact, that morning as Id left my room before 7am to go to mediation in the prayer hall, a monk about their age had come stumbling up the stairs, much more into his phone than his stair climbing, so I had expected that they would have phones as well.

No, we dont have phones, said the senior monk, its against the rules.

But, I mildly countered, Ive seen many monks with phones.

Yes, but they have to hide them in their robes (see photo below of monk with phone in hand). And after a pause said, Phones are trouble.

The senior then asked if they could escort me to dinner. We turned and walked slowly together, shoulders almost touching, down the mountain.

As we walked, the junior asked me about my family and I asked about theirs. When the conversation quieted, I asked about their favorite sutra, and the senior adroitly handled the question, saying, The sutra were studying now.

Me too, I said.

As we approached the dining hall, feeling fatherly, I said, You know, in my home country, people are interested in lay practice, but there are not many monks. I hope you remain monks and help keep the Bhutanese monastic tradition alive  this is very important.

Then they were silent and we reached the seam of light and shadow near the dining hall. Please come in, I said, and meet my friends.

But they motioned that they could not and so we exchanged bows and went on with our journeys.

Id come to Bhutan to make some presentations at a retreat, Cultivating Dharma in Relationships, Caring for the Planet, Altruism and Intention, at Lhodrak Karchu Monastery, in the Bumtang region, as one of several Western dharma teachers (along with Matthieu Ricard, Lama Thupten Rinpoche, Judy Lief in that order, left to right, in the photo below). The tour and conference was organized by Two Truths Travel and the indefatigably hopeful Marla and Charles. The talks will be used for an online course offered by Tricycle, available early in 2017.

The Bumthang area and people are steeped in the narrative of the buddhadharma and the area is rich in sacred sites complete with fabulous tales of the visits of many great lamas, including the highest saint in Bhutanese Buddhism, the 8th century figure, Padmasambhava, or Guru Rinpoche, who seems to be what Dogen is for Soto Zen, times ten or so.

After the conference, a group of us visited the monastery that was built up around the cave that Guru Rinpoche is reputed to have sat in for three months. He left an impression of his hand or back print in the rock. I say hand or back because I heard different accounts and asked quite a few people about this but got equal responses for both body parts. In any case, Guru Rinpoche is reputed to have then transmogrified into a giant Garuda and subdued a local deity who had transmogrified into a giant serpent.

In present times, Guru Rinpoches cave, one of many in Bhutan and Tibet, is surrounded by a beautiful monastery, inside a hall with dark wooden floors and hundreds of figures of past lamas and celestial bodhisattvas. On the left is the door to the area, but, sorry, no photos are allowed inside. As we gazed into the cave, we could only see a golden figure of Guru Rinpoche, blocking the view of reputed body-part impression. Then as we wandered around the hall, gazing at the various figures, a young monk slid along behind us, a wiping cloth under each foot, keeping the floor perpetually free from dust.

What are my key take aways from the trip?

First, the kindness and generosity of my traveling companions and our Bhutanese hosts was outstanding and inspiring. The tour guides worked so diligently to assure our well-being and accommodate the many wishes of our group. Yeshi, one of our most enthusiastic guides is pictured below in the male version of Bhutanese formal attire, worn almost all the time, giving directions for crossing a suspension bridge.

Second, I learned a lot about Tibetan Buddhism from Matthieu, Judy, and Thupten Rinpoche, as well as from our Bhutanese presenter, Dr. Karma Phuntsho (pictured with me below), especially their approach and compassion practices. I think Zen in the West could do more to offer as clear a practice path for opening the heart of compassion.

Third, I gained a fresh appreciation for what Zen has to offer as we move into the 21st century and a global dharma culture. Namely, a simple and direct path of realizing and practicing nonduality, only lighted weighted with medieval cultural aspects.

And so I return to Omaha and my work with the Nebraska Zen Center, ready to settle into life on the Great Plains, eager to offer what I can offer, and determined to walk along together with the group of students that gathers here, up the proverbial mountain and back down, again and again.
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Will Hillary Clinton Resist Her Inner Hawk?

10/28/16

By Barbara Slavin, VOA



Hillary Clinton on cover of Iranian magazine Seda



The Washington foreign policy establishment is salivating at the thought of a Hillary Clinton presidency, which promises to be more interventionist than Barack Obama's administration and more open to elite views than a Donald Trump White House would be.

Think tanks are churning out papers on a variety of topics and pushing them under the noses of Clintonistas who are considered likely to land important positions assuming most polls are correct and Clinton beats Trump on November 8.

Many of the studies presume Clinton will be a hawk relative to Obama and carry out campaign promises to set up a safe zone in northern Syria for displaced Syrians, for example.

A recent paper from the Center for American Progress (CAP), a think tank closely associated with the Democratic Party, also advocates new outreach to traditional Middle East partners such as Saudi Arabia and Israel and a tougher line against Iran.

But Clinton may have more freedom of maneuver than the armchair hawks assume.

Running against Trump instead of a neoconservative like Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Clinton has only had to occupy a sensible middle ground that demonstrated her superior knowledge of world affairs. Indeed, neoconservatives such as Max Boot and Robert Kagan have endorsed Clinton and run in horror from Trump's neo-isolationism, as have many mainstream Republican foreign policy experts who served in prior GOP administrations.

Trump's criticism of Clinton for voting in favor of the Iraq war authorization fell flat after audio was produced of him supporting the Iraq invasion. Trump's attack on Clinton for backing intervention in Libya might have had more traction if the New York real estate magnate had not already advocated for intervention in Libya, embraced Russian leader Vladimir Putin and expressed xenophobic and bigoted opinions about ethnic and racial minorities. Trump's assertion that he knows "more than the generals" about the group that calls itself the Islamic State (ISIS) has become a punch line in Clinton campaign speeches.

Clinton's first priorities are likely to be domestic - immigration reform, increasing infrastructure spending and correcting considerable flaws in the Affordable Care Act - as well as nominating senior staff who need to be confirmed by the Senate.

Like previous administrations, a Clinton White House will likely also order up reviews of past foreign policies - especially on complex issues such as Syria - before implementing new ones.

Some actions that might have made sense not long ago may be overtaken by events by January 20, 2017, for example, if Russia, Syria and Iran succeed in flattening eastern Aleppo and crushing rebel forces there. Clinton will also likely want to consult with allies, especially fellow members of NATO, before undertaking steps that would directly impact their security as well as the interests of the United States.

In deference to her running mate, Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, who has advocated a new authorization for military force for the war against ISIS, Clinton may be reluctant to significantly increase the U.S. troop presence abroad without such legislation. This may be particularly the case if Mosul has been recaptured from ISIS by the time she takes office and the terrorist group is on the run in Syria.

Clinton's policy toward Iran has also been the subject of much intellectual ferment in Washington.

The CAP study urges the next president to "proactively counter Iran's negative influence" in the region and "conduct intensified diplomatic outreach with long-standing regional partners, with the goal of organizing a regional conference [excluding Iran] by early 2018 on a shared long-term vision for the Middle East." It would more closely embrace the Saudis and other long-time Arab partners of the United States and seek to create an Arab intervention force based in Egypt to deal with regional crises.

In contrast, a new report for the Atlantic Council to which this analyst contributed, would advise the next president to be more open to opportunities to build on the landmark nuclear agreement achieved with Iran last year.

The report, authored by Ellen Laipson, a distinguished former vice chair of the National Intelligence Council and former president of the Stimson Center (yet another Washington think tank), says that the next administration "will be able to use the newly established connections to some of Iran's key decision-makers to address areas of disagreement before they become disputes or deep misunderstandings." Laipson also supports enhanced people-to-people ties on areas of shared concern such as the environment and public health.

In formulating policy toward Iran, Clinton must be mindful of the views of European allies whose agreement to impose sanctions on Iran - under pressure from then Secretary of State Clinton - were instrumental in the election of an Iranian government more willing and able to negotiate a nuclear accord.

Once the U.S. presidential elections are over, European banks and other businesses may conclude deals with Iran that have been in limbo while the U.S. election campaign has been in progress. Europeans - and the Russians and Chinese - will also likely oppose new sanctions on Iran absent some egregious violation of the nuclear agreement by Tehran.

As a former Secretary of State, Clinton appreciates the value of diplomacy and has promised to use force only as a last resort. Apart from the Washington foreign policy elite, she will be under little pressure to intervene militarily abroad from an American electorate weary of war after more than a decade of fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Barbara Slavin is Acting Director of the Future of Iran Initiative at the Atlantic Council in Washington. Follow her on Twitter @barbaraslavin1





Note by Voice of America:

"VOA will present the policies of the United States clearly and effectively, and will also present responsible discussion and opinion on these policies." - VOA Charter
Russia Hosts Syrian, Iranian Ministers As Aleppo Fighting Intensifies

10/28/16

Source: RFE/RL

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has been hosting talks in Moscow with his counterparts from Syria and Iran to discuss the security situation in Syria.



Russian and Iranian FMs Sergei Lavrov (R) and Mohammad Javad Zarif

(photo by Islamic Republic News Agency)



Lavrov said the October 28 meeting with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif is an effort of "like-minded people" to "hammer out a constructive solution" to the Syrian crisis.



He accused Western countries of "trying to distort the meaning of UN Security Council decisions" and encouraging "extremists in their unwillingness to stop their criminal acts."



Muallem asked Lavrov to convey to Russian President Vladimir Putin the gratitude of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for Russia's "effective assistance in the fight against terrorism."



In the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo, antigovernment forces have launched an offensive to break out of an encirclement by government troops.



The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on October 28 that 15 people had been killed and more than 100 injured by a rebel rocket attack on government-held areas of western Aleppo. The attack involved "hundreds of shells and rockets," the NGO said.



Based on reporting by AFP, Reuters, AP, and TASS

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
TechRadar 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.
A Pennsylvania man was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison on charges of hacking the Google and Apple email accounts of over 100 people including celebrities, and getting access to nude videos and photographs of some people.

The sentencing against Ryan Collins, 36, of Lancaster is the offshoot of a Department of Justice investigation into the online leaks of photographs of numerous female celebrities in September 2014, widely referred to as Celebgate.

But DOJ has not found any evidence linking Collins to the actual leaks or the sharing and uploading of the content.

Between November 2012 and early September 2014, Collins is said to have sent emails to victims that appeared to be from Apple or Google and asked them to provide their usernames and passwords. Having gained access to the email accounts, he got hold of personal information including nude photographs and videos, and in some cases used a software program to download the entire contents of the victims Apple iCloud backups, according to DOJ.

Some victims were also tricked into providing nude snaps for a modeling scam, DOJ said.

Collins case is akin to that of Edward Majerczyk, 28, a resident of Chicago and Orland Park, Illinois, who authorities said has admitted in a plea agreement entered in July in a U.S. federal court in Los Angeles that between Nov. 23, 2013 through August 2014, he had obtained usernames and passwords from his victims through a phishing scheme. Majerczyk got access to personal information including sensitive and private photographs and videos from his victims, the DOJ said at the time.

Majerczyk is also charged only with illegal access to email accounts and not the actual leaks of the nude photographs. While announcing his guilty plea in July, the DOJ did not make any reference that suggests that he and Collins worked together.

Collins accessed at least 50 iCloud accounts and 72 Gmail accounts, many of which belonged to female celebrities, while Majerczyk accessed at least 300 Apple iCloud and Gmail accounts, and at least 30 accounts belonging to celebrities, according to officials.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has begun construction on an $11 million, 22,000-square-foot expansion of its command center at March Air Reserve Base.

The Air and Marine Operation Center, a clearing house for radar and intelligence information that works with a host of security and law enforcement agencies, has been at the base since 1988.

Personnel at the center track suspicious aviation and non-commercial maritime activity in the Western Hemisphere, focusing on drug trafficking, human trafficking, smuggling of counterfeit products and terrorist activities. It can track as many as 50,000 aircraft at a moment and direct a response to suspicious aviation and maritime targets.

The expansion will allow the center to upgrade technology and increase staff, Tony Crowder, acting deputy executive assistant commissioner of air and marine operations, stated in a news release.

AMOCs mission to secure America is much more complex than ever given the dynamic threats we confront, he said. We continuously expand our thinking and tool kit in order to mitigate our adversarys ill intentions towards Americans.

The project will take a year to construct. The added space will include information technology equipment, administrative offices, conference and break-out rooms and secures storage. It will also provide additional space to law enforcement liaisons.

March Field Air Museum board president Jamil Dada was part of a delegation of Riverside, Perris and Moreno Valley officials who traveled to Washington, D.C., to lobby Congress to fund the project. He said it will protect the bases status as vital for homeland security while providing local, high-skilled jobs.

The center has 250 employees and the expansion will result in an additional 100 jobs, Dada said.

Thats a great asset, Dada said. Thats the only one of its kind in the United States.

Contact the writer: 951-368-9558 or ighori@scng.com@ImranGhori1
A 2011 confidential memo written by a longtime Bill Clinton aide during Hillary Clintons State Department tenure describes overlap between the former presidents business ventures and fundraising for the familys charities.

In the memo made public Thursday, the latest in the daily barrage of WikiLeaks hacked emails from the private account of Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, the former aide also described free travel and vacations arranged for the Clintons by corporations, rekindling ethics concerns about the Democratic presidential nominee.

Clinton made no mention of the revelations Thursday as she campaigned alongside first lady Michelle Obama. But GOP nominee Donald Trump was quick to denounce both Hillary and Bill Clinton as creatures of a corrupt political system who would use another pass at the Oval Office to enrich themselves at the expense of American families.

The 13-page leaked memo, by Doug Band, detailed the former presidents management of Bill Clinton Inc. Band described the unorthodox nature of how he dealt with Bill Clintons dual interests in seeking out speech and consulting ventures around the world while he raised funds for the Clinton Foundation.

The hacked emails, as well as recent news of an Obamacare premium hike, appeared to hand Trump a pair of potent gifts in the campaigns final fortnight.

Seeking to lash Clinton to her husbands sprawling post-presidential empire, Trump accused the couple of turning to corruption to enrich themselves while in public service.

Mr. Band called the arrangement unorthodox. The rest of us call it outright corrupt, said Trump at a rally in Ohio. If the Clintons were willing to play this fast and loose with their enterprise when they werent in the White House, just imagine what theyll do in the Oval Office.

Band wrote the 2011 memo to defend his firm, Teneo, describing how he encouraged his clients to contribute to the foundation and get consulting and speaking gigs for Bill Clinton. Some of his work included obtaining in-kind services for the president and his family  for personal travel, hospitality, vacation and the like.

I think weve had enough of the Clintons, in all fairness, Trump said. Dont you think?

Band called the business, Bill Clinton Inc.  a term Trump referenced to paint the family as using their public profiles for personal gain, a line of attack Republicans have long engaged in.

Meanwhile, in North Carolina, Michelle Obama passionately touted Clintons experience and branded Trump as too divisive and thin-skinned for the White House.

We want someone who is a unifying force in this country, someone who sees our differences not as a threat but as a blessing, said the first lady, one of Clintons most powerful surrogates.

Addressing an enthusiastic, 11,000-person crowd, she also accused Trumps campaign of trying to depress voter turnout and panned his provocative assertion that the results of the Nov. 8 contest may be rigged.

A new Associated Press-GfK poll released Wednesday indicated Trump has some ground to make up on his Democratic foe. The survey found Clinton leading Trump nationally by 14 percentage points among likely voters, 51-37. That margin is the largest national lead for Clinton among recent surveys. But other polls generally have shown her ahead of Trump for several weeks.

Leading the race for weeks, Clintons campaign is concerned that her advantage could prompt some of her backers to stay home on Election Day or cast protest votes for a third-party candidate. Nearly all of her recent events have been in states where early voting is already underway. She aimed at using the rallies to prompt supporters to bank their votes now.
A Latino political-advocacy group sent a letter to the Department of Justice this week asking it to assign federal poll monitors in areas that may be vulnerable to harassment or violence.

Some worry that Republican Donald Trumps supporters could heed his claims that the election is rigged and interfere with voters at polling places.

Go to your place and vote, and then go pick some other place, and go sit there with your friends and make sure its on the up-and-up, Trump said at a Michigan rally in September.

That concerns NALEO, a nonpartisan organization with an office in Los Angeles. The group includes Latino officials from all levels of government, including Republicans and Democrats.

RELATED: Trump prompts rush to citizenship

We are particularly troubled because if individuals act upon calls to perpetrate vigilantism, we expect that Latino and other historically underrepresented groups of Americans will become the primary targets of improper behavior which could unfairly interfere with their participation in our electoral process, Arturo Vargas, executive director for the NALEO Educational Fund, said in an Oct. 24 letter.

Vargas said intimidation and threats may occur in cities that have undergone demographic changes, such as Murrieta, where in 2014 demonstrators chanting Go back home blocked buses carrying Central American migrant children from entering the Border Patrol station for processing.

Allegations that ineligible voters will cast ballots in large numbers are concerning because they often come with calls for private citizens to respond proactively by inhibiting other voters, Vargas said.

Murrieta City Manager Rick Dudley said its unfair to link his city with that kind of behavior when many of the 2014 protesters were not Murrieta residents.

He also noted that nearly 30 percent of Murrieta residents are Latino.

It happened in Murrieta because theres a Border Patrol station (in the city), Dudley said. That has nothing to do with our community. Our community is actually a fairly diverse community and its very well integrated.

An Oct. 25 Department of Justice statement said its Civil Rights Division will monitor polling places around the country. However, officials wont say where theyll be until closer to Election Day.

NALEO isnt the only organization concerned about federal poll monitoring.

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights urged state election officials in an Oct. 24 letter to create plans to prevent voting discrimination in advance of the first presidential election in 50 years without a fully operable Voting Rights Act.

The letter was signed by more than 80 organizations representing communities of color, such as the Black Womens Roundtable and Asian Americans Advancing Justice.

California Secretary of State Alex Padilla said he believes county election officials and thousands of volunteer poll workers will ensure the process runs smoothly.

I expect Californians will go to the polls on November 8 and cast their ballots free from intimidation  our voters, poll workers, and democracy deserve no less, Padilla said in a statement.

In recent months, Trump has repeatedly asked his supporters to be wary of a rigged election.

So important that you get out and vote. So important that you watch other communities, because we dont want this election stolen from us, he told a crowd Oct. 10 in Pennsylvania.

At the third and last debate, Trump refused to say whether he would accept the results of the presidential election. He later said hed accept the results if he won.

Trumps website also asks volunteers to sign up as Trump election observers to stop Crooked Hillary from rigging the election.

Padilla said poll observers must comply with the law.

This means not interfering with the important work poll workers are engaged in and, just as importantly, not harassing or intimidating any voter exercising their right to cast a ballot, he said.

Padilla said an advisory has been sent to county elections officials outlining polling place observer rules and responsibilities.

Riverside County Registrar of Voters Rebecca Spencer said poll workers have been trained on the rules.

The No. 1 rule is that the observer cannot interfere or interrupt the election process, she said. Our poll workers are trained to call their range inspector, our office, or law enforcement if they have any issues with an election observer.

In Los Angeles County, Registrar-Recorder Dean Logan said his office works closely with advocacy groups and political parties and encourages poll observation. However, observers are asked to go through an orientation.

Some Southern California election officials are taking extra precautions.

In a first for Orange County, the Registrar of Voters office is joining with the District Attorneys Office to ensure voters are not intimidated.

Neal Kelley, Orange Countys Registrar of Voters, said DA investigators will be on the field to respond to any criminal complaints.

I reached out (to the District Attorneys Office) because I felt it was important to ensure we have smooth operations on Election Day, Kelley said. Its not that Im anticipating issues, its just that given the attention on the elections and the interest on both sides, we want to make sure we have peaceful operations.

Contact the writer: 951-368-9462, amolina@scng.com, or on Twitter @alemolina
Luke Jackson was brought into the construction phase of Mind & Mill, a new marketing and co-work office business in downtown Riverside, to provide design and artistic vision. He explains that when he walked through the front door, it took about 30 seconds for him to realize that it needed to be an art gallery.

I told them, Dont decorate  curate,  says the 36 year-old lifelong Riverside resident. I felt that it was a great opportunity to highlight local artists and bring art to Riverside from all over the world.

The founders of Mind & Mill, Lukes older brother Tim Jackson and Josh Mauldin, thought that it was a great idea and told Jackson to take the lead. Their place of business now contains the Toil Gallery.

I believe its a beautiful model to have a place where successful, creative entrepreneurs are constantly rotating through the gallery, says Jackson. Theyre the ones who buy art. Having an in-house marketing agency doesnt hurt either.

Jackson explains that Mind & Mill, at 3615 Main St., Suite 103, in downtown Riverside, is a full service digital marketing agency designed to help businesses brand themselves and grow. The co-work business model works well in large urban cities, Jackson said.

Tim and Josh felt that the rapid expansion of new business in town required a place where people could independently work and collaborate with each other, as well, he says.

The co-work office model involves a shared space that is designed to provide office amenities, including meeting space, as well as social interaction for those who have home offices or who travel frequently. Individuals who use the space are not necessarily employed by the same organization.

Jackson attended the Musicians Institute in Hollywood, where he studied sound engineering. In addition to curating the Toil Gallery and providing liaison duties for events at Mind & Mill, he operates his own recording studio, The Frequency Factory, in Riverside.

I loved film and theater as a child, says Jackson. As I got older I embraced music because I wanted more creative control then acting allowed me. I love these things and have built a career in music, but tangible visual art is my therapy. I cant escape it. I didnt even realize until I was in my 20s. I came across a picture of my childhood bedroom and realized I had been making collages most of my life.

Jackson says that he enjoys working with alternative media and analogue collage, and that most of the materials he uses come from his personal life.

Im an organized hoarder, he says. Ill save random items without knowing their later purpose. Then when the time is right they teach me what they want to be.

Jacksons own creative energies help to fuel the curatorial vision of the Toil Gallery. He finds himself constantly meeting new people with what he calls impressive talent. His plans for the time being are to simply work with those in the local art community, and he believes that finding artists will never be difficult.

I dont want to simply have a gallery that operates from within Mind & Mill, but rather to embrace the entire idea that creativity comes in all forms, says Jackson. Art and commerce are not mutually exclusive. They need each other.

For more information, visit mindandmill.com.

Patrick Brien is executive director of the Riverside Arts Council. Contact the council at 951-680-1345 or riversideartscouncil.com

Contact the writer: community@pressenterprise.com
Proposition 64, on its surface, poses a simple question: Should people be free to smoke pot in California?

But the 62-page initiative on the Nov. 8 ballot asks voters to determine much more than that.

It asks them to decide how much cannabis Californians should be allowed to carry, whether they should be able to grow it in their homes and what, if any, penalties consumers should face going forward.

It also asks them to weigh the future of a multibillion-dollar industry, including everything from how marijuana businesses should be taxed to what warning labels should appear on edible products.

Depending on who you ask, either the devil or the redemption is in those details.

Supporters call Prop. 64 the gold standard of marijuana legalization, touting strict safeguards that build on lessons learned by the four states that already allow recreational pot.

Some opponents say the measure doesnt go far enough to keep kids and roadways safe, while detractors on the other end of the spectrum say the measure includes too many regulations to be true legalization.

With the vote nearly a week away, heres a closer look at what Prop. 64 means for California.

PERSONAL RIGHTS

Prop. 64 would allow California residents and visitors 21 and older to buy, carry and give away up to an ounce of marijuana. Thats enough to roll perhaps 40 average-sized joints.

They also could possess up to 8 grams of concentrated cannabis, such as waxes or oils that can be vaporized or mixed into foods.

Under the measure, residents could grow as many as six pot plants at home and keep what they harvest. But the plants couldnt be visible to the public. And local governments could regulate how theyre grown, including requiring that it be done indoors.

No one could consume recreational pot in public. Consumption would be allowed only on private property or in cannabis cafes licensed strictly for marijuana use.

The initiative would uphold laws against driving while impaired or having an open container of marijuana in a car. But it wouldnt establish a threshold, as Colorado and Washington did, for how much THC (the compound in pot that makes users high) drivers could legally have in their blood.

Prop. 64 backers say thats because blood alcohol content isnt a good measure for marijuana impairment, since pot stays in the system long after its mind-altering effects have worn off. So the initiative would direct tax revenue to law enforcement and researchers to develop better tests for drugged driving.

The measure would protect employer rather than employee rights, allowing companies to hire and fire based on drug tests.

But the penalties for most marijuana-related crimes, which studies show disproportionately affect minorities, would be lower if the measure passes. Adults convicted of possession with intent to sell would get six months in jail rather than two years in prison, for example, while teens caught with the drug would get counseling and community service instead of criminal records. And those changes would be retroactive, meaning marijuana offenders could be released from jail or have their records expunged if the measure passes.

Prop. 64 also would uphold existing rights for medical marijuana patients, allowing them to still grow more pot than recreational consumers and access medical marijuana at 18 years old. They would face some additional taxes, though theyd also gain privacy and child custody protections.

If the measure is approved, all of these personal rights would take effect the day after the election, on Nov. 9.

BUSINESS PLAN

It would take a bit longer for the taxed and regulated recreational marijuana industry promised by Prop. 64 to take shape.

Shops would start to open on or before Jan. 1, 2018.

Thats the date California officials expect to start issuing licenses to all medical marijuana growers, manufacturers and sellers under industry regulations signed into law in 2015.

Prop. 64 would largely extend the same regulatory framework to recreational marijuana production, with requirements for licensing, testing, child-resistant packaging, limited advertising and tracking pot from seed to sale.

The initiative would establish a 15 percent sales tax, plus a tax by weight for growers. That would be on top of taxes local governments tack on and regular state sales tax, though medical marijuana users would be exempt from the latter.

Small- and medium-sized businesses would get an edge coming out of the gate, since Prop. 64 bans large-scale cultivation for the first five years. But after Jan. 1, 2023, there would be no state cap on the size of marijuana farms.

Cities and counties would still have authority to regulate, tax or ban marijuana-related businesses in their borders. Many have already started passing laws in anticipation of Prop. 64, with 62 local measures related to marijuana on the ballot Nov. 8.

THE OUTLOOK

Nearly every poll on Prop. 64 suggests it will pass  though perhaps narrowly. Recent polls have ranged from 51 percent to 71 percent support, with many averaging around 60 percent.

But advertising to defeat Prop. 64 is being aired. And in California the popularity of measures often shifts in the final days before an election.

If the measure becomes law, industry experts predict that Californias legal weed market will reach $6.5 billion by 2020 and potentially spur legalization throughout the country.

The Legislative Analysts Office anticipates that tax revenue from the measure could top $1 billion annually, with the justice system potentially saving tens of millions more on enforcement costs.

The revenue wont go to state or local general funds. Instead, it will be set aside to fund youth prevention programs, marijuana research, better drugged driving tests, environmental remediation and grants to impacted communities.

The impact legal marijuana has on highway safety, teen use and crime isnt yet clear. There are conflicting reports coming out of states such as Colorado and Washington, which approved legal pot in 2012. And experts say they need more years of reliable data before they have definitive answers.

More research is also needed on how recreational marijuana use ultimately affects health and achievement, with particular concern over todays increasingly potent pot. But studies increasingly suggest that, while marijuana consumption may pose some risks for young people and the mentally ill, responsible use appears to have little impact on healthy adults.

With valid concerns on both sides of the issue, Dr. Igor Grant, who heads up the Center for Medical Cannabis Research at UC San Diego, said itll be up to voters to weigh the impacts of prohibition against potential impacts of legalization.

Theres a cost-benefit analysis that voters have to make, he said.

Contact the writer: 714-796-7963 or bstaggs@ocregister.comTwitter: @JournoBrooke
Four months after a fatal shooting in Riverside, a 32-year-old former Perris resident has been arrested in Mexico and extradited to stand trial for murder, investigators say.

Andrew Steve Molina is scheduled to be arraigned Friday, Oct. 28, in Riverside Superior Court on charges of murder, attempted murder, and being an ex-felon in possession of a shotgun.

Already awaiting trial on murder and attempted murder charges is Riverside resident Jacob Gamboa III, court records show.

Both are accused of the 2:30 a.m. June 26 slaying of 28-year-old Anthony Daniel Razo and the attempted murder of Alex Arzate outside Razos home on the 10300 block of Stover Avenue.

Gamboa was arrested the same day as the violence. Riverside police learned that Molina was in Puerta Vallarta, Mexico, where he was arrested Tuesday and extradited Wednesday.

The killing apparently resulted from a dispute over an incident involving Gamboas girlfriend, according to an affidavit in support of Molinas arrest warrant.

On the fatal night, Gamboa was armed with a handgun and Molina was carrying a shotgun when they walked up Razos driveway and opened fire on the victim, Detective Rick Wheeler said in a written affidavit in support of Molinas arrest warrant.

Then the gunmen turned their fire on Razos friend, Azarte, but missed, the document says.

Razo died about three hours later at Riverside Community Hospital.
Both Murrietas city manager and mayor on Thursday, July 3, said protesters blockade of buses carrying undocumented immigrants from Central America  most of them women and children  did not reflect the compassionate and caring nature of the city.

City Manager Rick Dudley wrote in a statement posted on the citys website that Murrieta has been both celebrated and vilified locally and in the national press and has been given a black eye.

Tens of thousands of migrants and thousands of unaccompanied minors have arrived in Texas in recent months, overwhelming federal immigration authorities there. So, plans were made to process some of them  140 arriving every 72 hours  at the Border Patrol station in Murrieta before being released throughout the Southern California.

Those who are released will be instructed to report to the nearest Immigration and Customs Enforcement office within 15 days of arriving at their final U.S. destination, an ICE statement said.

On Monday, Mayor Alan Long encouraged residents to protest the plan to their federal lawmakers.

Sadly, too many people took this as encouragement to protest the arrival of buses carrying the women and children to the Border Patrol station in Murrieta, wrote Dudley, who defended their right to protest.

On Tuesday, chanting protesters carrying signs stood in the way of three busloads of migrants, preventing the buses from reaching the station. They were rerouted to Chula Vista to the south.

Three buses were turned around and the protesters claimed victory, Dudley continued. This was not victory. It was a loss for the city of Murrieta, for the community that we live in and love. It made this extremely compassionate community look heartless and uncaring. That is not the Murrieta that we all know and love.

Long expressed the same sentiment in a letter Thursday to President Barack Obama in which Long offered to meet with the president and members of Congress to offer solutions to the immigration puzzle.

The unfortunate acts at Tuesdays protest  were not representative of our community, Long wrote. Ours is a very compassionate and caring community. We should note, however, that there are many people in the southland who share the sentiments of the protestors.

MURRIETA: Mayors letter to President Barack Obama over immigration

Long encouraged the president and Congress to discuss the issue further.

I have many ideas on things that can be done to address this situation, Long wrote.

The Murrieta Police Department also weighed in Thursday, posting a list of frequently asked questions about the local situation and their answers on the department website. Police explained that the city has no control over federal immigration actions and that it was waiting for backup to help disperse the crowd Tuesday before the buses left.

Contact the writer: brokos@pressenterprise.com or 951-368-9569
A woman who was shot in a downtown neighborhood in August has died, police said.

This is being investigated as a homicide because there is a direct correlation between the complications suffered as a result of that shooting, San Bernardino police Lt. Mike Madden said.

Ellen Candy Wimbish, 56, was among three people shot Aug. 27 in the 900 block of N. G Street, officials said.

 Related Story: Man shot, killed in San Bernardino identified; 2 suspects remain at large

Harold Hook Cook, 49, of San Bernardino was pronounced dead at the scene and his girlfriend, Dawn Chocolate Sutton, 36, was reportedly in critical condition, according to Cooks children. Her current condition is not known. Wimbish was shot in the leg and was expected to survive.

Wimbish had several surgeries and had not been able to walk since the shooting, according to a police news release.

On Tuesday, she was rushed to Community Hospital of San Bernardino where she died shortly after 11:30 p.m.

An autopsy will determine the actual cause of death, officials said.

 Related Story: Family, friends honor Harold Hook Cook, killed in San Bernardino

Wimbishs death is the second time this year a person has died months after being shot in the city.

Ryan Rampenthal, 29 of San Bernardino died in August from complications as a result of being shot on May 23 between the 1200 and 1400 blocks of N. D Street, according to news release from the San Bernardino Police Department.

Police say the G Street shooting appears to be gang-related however Wimbish had no criminal history. They also believe she wasnt the intended target.

No arrests have been made in this case.

Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call Detective Joshua Cunningham at 909-384-5745 or Sgt. Emil Kokesh at 909-384-5613.
Little Jayce Sorto-Foranda excitedly looked up as four law enforcement helicopters flew over Loma Linda University Childrens Hospital, the place hes called home for nearly a month.

The 2-year-old Perris boy, his mother and his nurse sat in front of the hospital steps late Tuesday morning and watched each massive helicopter deftly land on the campus lawn.

Then the blare of dozens of police motorcycles, SWAT vehicles and BearCat sirens could be heard as the vehicles streamed onto the hospitals lawn.

The arrival of the police and sheriffs vehicles highlighted the 17th annual Cops for Kids Fly-In, which delivers toys to patients at the childrens hospital.

Still hooked up to medical monitors and intravenous fluids and medications, Jayces serious look immediately transformed into a large toothy grin when his grandmother, Maya Sorto, pulled out her cellphone for a picture of the small boy sitting in the cockpit of the Ontario Police Departments helicopter.

This is so wonderful, said Jayces mother, Jasmine Sorto. This is his first time outside since hes been here. He was even excited to go into the elevator.

For children like Jayce, the Fly-In is an opportunity to interact with law enforcement officers from agencies throughout Southern California, including Los Angeles, Redlands, Riverside and Ontario police, California Highway Patrol and San Bernardino County and Riverside County sheriffs departments, as well as a welcome break from the daily reminders of being sick and in the hospital.

It lets us breathe fresh air, said 6-year-old Chasity Martinez. The Perris girl has received cancer treatment at the hospital three times since her diagnosis last year.

Chasitys mother said she was grateful to the law enforcement agencies and the hospital staff for putting on the event.

Its wonderful for these kids to see this and to experience these things when they are going through rough times, Natalie Ramirez said.

One by one, the children filed into the police vehicles and were given toys and stickers by the officers.

It was a great day, said Paul Shaffer, part of the Ontario flight crew, who participated in the Fly-In for the first time.

The Fly-In began in 1999, when Megan Colley, who was then 9, was receiving treatment at the hospital and wanted to help some of the other children in the oncology ward, said Don Miskulin, a retired Riverside police pilot who helped establish the annual event.

Colley, now 27 and preparing for her wedding, was on hand Tuesday to watch as nearly 100 officers, deputies and Marines met with more than 700 children.

A lot of times as an officer, you get called out when bad things happen, San Bernardino police Sgt. Jeff Harvey said after handing Chasity a pink shoulder patch. Doing something like this makes you feel good and really puts things into perspective. Its a great thing to be a part of.

Contact the writer: bvalenzuela@scng.comTwitter: @BeatrizVNews on Twitter
Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is typically celebrated Nov. 2 as a time for remembering and honoring family members who have died by constructing altars that reflect their lives.

A UC Riverside professor and her students are marking the holiday by creating an altar for sex workers who have been killed in the United States and across the globe. Sex workers are people paid to engage in sexual activities.

Amalia Cabezas, a professor of gender and sexuality studies, said her students create an altar for the holiday every year.

This is only the second time the students altar has been dedicated to a specific group of people. About 10 years ago, she said, an altar was built in honor of those who had died of AIDS.

I had a friend who died who was a trans woman, Cabezas said of the inspiration for this years altar. She died at a very young age. I admired her courage. I thought this was a way to honor her life.

The altar was built on two tables in the Tomas Rivera Library on Thursday and will be on display through Nov. 5. Some of the 45 students from Cabezas Gender and the Sex Trade class will be interviewed by UCR music professor Xochiltl Chavez, as part of his live-streamed program of the Smithsonian Latino Virtual Museum.

Cabezas said the altar was constructed with objects contributed by the students.

They brought in items and photographs, primarily looking at the violence, Cabezas said. Each student researched the life and murder of a sex worker and constructed a biography that is part of the display.

She said the students were committed to the project.

Many of our students are involved in (fighting) social injustices, she said. This resonated with them really well. In the past few years, weve had a heightened awareness of the violence that some trans workers suffer. This is about celebrating life and celebrating humanity and about unconditional love.

Her late friend, she said, would have appreciated the display.

She was a very courageous person, Cabezas said. I think it takes a certain amount of boldness to enact this at the library. She taught me a lot about being yourself and honoring your reality.

MORE STEM DEGREES

All of the STEM promotion in the past decade or so seems to be paying off. Maybe.

For years, education experts, business leaders and politicians have been pushing for more students to go in to science, technology, engineering and math. The push was in response to a perceived shortfall in the number of students graduating in such fields versus the demand from industry.

It appears that the various campaigns pushing such programs, combined with the impact of the recent recession, have bumped up the numbers of those earning degrees in STEM fields, particularly in the fields of computer science and engineering.

Figures released by the U.S. Department of Education show that between 2009 and 2015, the number of students earning everything from post-secondary certificates to doctoral degrees in computer science rose 54 percent. Such credentials in engineering were up 28 percent.

Change the Equation, a Washington, D.C., advocacy group that promotes STEM literacy, said the numbers show American students are getting the message. It attributes much of the rise to people who were thrown out of work after 2008s financial collapse, going back to school and targeting degrees that lead to higher paying jobs.

Amidst worsening unemployment and anxiety about an uncertain economic future, a credential in fields such as computer science and engineering promised stability and prosperity, the agency said in a news release. Analysis of the education departments data, it said, shows that Americans may have embraced this promise.

Perhaps the most important aspect of the figures is that bachelors and advanced degrees appear to be taking up a larger portion of the total number of certificates. In 2001, such degrees accounted for less than half of the total, just 46 percent. The number had risen to 52 percent by 2015. The corresponding numbers in engineering were even better, going from 55 percent in 2001 to 66 percent in 2015.

Those earning such degrees were in a better position not only to earn more, but to more easily find a job, the report said. At the time it was written, the national unemployment rate was 4.8 percent. For this with degrees in computer science or math degrees, the rate was 3.0 percent. Those with degrees in engineering and architecture faced just a 1.9 percent unemployment rate.

Contact the writer: mmuckenfuss@scng.com or 951-368-9595
Last week I stated that the interdiction of St Augustines Headmaster was arbitrary, and in a manner that lacked due process. I have received a few reactions from some of my readers who think that it is because the interdiction has to do with St Augustines College, that is why people are screaming, that if it was a lesser known school, some of us would not have screamed as loud as we are doing presently.



Well I will like to place on record that I do not support the action of St Augustines Headmaster. And I will like to say that I am not an old student of St Augustines. I went to Winneba Secondary School. I only did the story because I believed, and still believe that Mr. Connel is only one of many heads of schools who are charging unauthorized fees, and that the action of the Deputy Minister is not sustainable as it does not seem to have been grounded in a known procedure.



In Ghana we turn to confuse the working of institutions with the blatant show of power. In a properly conducted institution, it is the rules and regulations of that institution, properly, fairly, predictably and universally applied that makes the institution independent. It is not when the Director feels the rule should apply, it is not when the appointing authority feels the rules must apply, it is when the rules says it must apply, and it applies, and it applies procedurally at all times, that is when we can say the system is working.



So for instance in the political parties law, the political parties are supposed to file their financial statements with the Electoral Commission six months after the general elections. That is the law. If any political party does not comply with this rule the sanctions must apply.



At the moment we know that the two big political parties, the NDC and the NPP did not comply with that provision in the law. So it is expected that the Electoral Commission, as per the rules, would have gone to court to enforce compliance, and if they fail to comply, the Commission would have cancelled their registration, and they would have ceased to exist as political parties, and it shall be said that the system has worked.



Of course Mrs Charlotte Osei could not have, on her own accord, cancelled the licenses of those non compliant political parties without going through due process. In order words, the independence of the commission is grounded in rules, and the law prescribes what processes that need to be followed in order for any action to be taken.



In my line of work, my organizations have encountered several instances, of strong men who tries to display their powers, some have deliberately put us through very difficult situations, just to show us how powerful they think they are, but I have always faced up to them.



Leaders of our institutions get away with wrong actions because our citizens do not feel empowered to challenge their actions. So those leaders arrogate to themselves powers they do not have, and they act in the name of the institutions in wrong and unfair ways. The leaders fail to recognize that the institutions they work for are also the establishment of laws, and they are also governed by laws.



And because of the ignorance of the ordinary citizens, the institutions themselves become the embodiment of corruption, discriminatory application of the rules, abuse of office, and arbitrariness. The institutions that are supposed to ensure the protection of the rights of the ordinary citizens, rather become the centers of abuse, oppression and capriciousness.



One of the areas I am going to focus on in the next few months in this column, after the election, is the performance of our District Assemblies. In my view the District Assemblies have become convenient centers, not institutions, for large scale corruption, and sometimes I wonder why our society is always focused on Police corruption, and political corruption, when in fact the most corrupt public institutions are the District Assemblies.



I will return to this subject in later publications, but for the purposes of this article let me give you just one specific example, and in order to avoid being wrongly accused, I will give you an example from my own district assembly, the Effutu Municipal Assembly.



There is this illiterate woman who has lived in my village in her house, with her husband and children, for decades. She purchased her land from the traditional authorities in 1982, and built her house several years before the Town and Country Planning Department zoned that location. The house used to be a mud structure, and she gradually turned it into the current block structures, with permits (permit receipt numbers 913378, 0494719 and 0000612) from the Assembly. I was a very small boy when I knew this woman lived where she lives now.



In June 2015, an officer of Town and Country Planning unit of the Effutu Municipal Assembly, under the guise of the Municipal Assembly, and with financial support from a private person, and with a police protection provided without any official processes from the Ghana Police Service, came to pull down a major part of this womans house, to pave way for this private person who wanted access road to his house. The Assembly came with no court order, and without notice.



Unfortunately this action resulted in the woman suffering a major stroke relapse, and has since not recovered. She has lost a major part of her house, including what would have served as a toilet facility, and as a stroke patient, she currently struggles with toilet and bathroom issues.



I have in the last one year supported this woman to seek redress. In my view, although the action was taken by a leader of the Assembly, you can clearly see that this is not an institutional action. It is strongmen at work. A Town and Country Planning officer who acted without following due process, but thought that because the woman was illiterate and ignorant of the law, could just, by presenting himself as a government agent, the woman will be afraid, and indeed the woman was afraid, to ask questions. And so this woman looked on helplessly and in tears as her house went down in rubbles.



In a proper institutional framework, and in order not to allow arbitrary use of power, such a decision would have been grounded on a procedure, and informed by recommendations arising out of an objective report, in accordance with law, and possibly a court order since this is a complete house with families living in it, and since the woman holds a permit, she would have been compensated before the demolition took place.



One person could not have just decided that someone (someone whose house was built only a couple of years ago) needs access to his house, and therefore a house built several decades ago with permits should be pulled down, without notice, and without compensation. This is impunity at work, this is power display, and this is an official misconduct, and it feels as though it might have been tainted with corruption.



But of course these are some of the things that happen when you have a poorly run Municipal Assembly. How else do you expect things to happen correctly when you have an assembly where throughout the year the Statutory Planning Committee which is supposed to meet four times a year, to approve building permits, has never met, yet you have several new buildings springing up, and you have permits being granted to developers who need them?



That is what happens when you have one person high-jacking the entire permitting process, doubling as the Municipal Planning Officer, and at the same time acting Regional Director, and he hoards application for building permits, and finds his own ways and means of having them signed without recourse to the appropriate statutory processes.



So the only victims of such dysfunctional Municipal Assembly are people like myself who they know has a lot of information regarding wrong practices, people like us who will refuse to keep quiet over their mishandling of the assembly, we are those who will suffer under such official paralysis.



So yes, the system needs to be allowed to work, and this is one of the things I have been advocating for in the last several years. But the working of the system within the institutions has nothing to do with the whims and caprices of the officers within the institutions. It has everything to do with the procedures, and the processes which are grounded in rules and regulations governing the institution, and the fair, equal and predictable applications of those rules.

Source: James Kofi Annan









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Traditional leaders at the Manhyia Palace could not hide their excitement on Thursday after they were showered with what has been described as the most unprecedented gift to the Palace by the wife of the NPP Presidential Candidate, Mrs. Rebecca Akufo-Addo.



Mrs. Akufo-Addo glittered the Palace with gifts ranging from clothes,expensive foreign wine, food items and a fat sheep when she and her entourage paid a courtesy call on the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II on Thursday.



Carried by over 22 beautiful young ladies, Mrs. Akufo-Addo did not only spoil Chiefs and elders of the Asanteman Council, but also ensured that every division under the Kingdom had something to laugh about as custom and tradition demand.



The applause and cheers from the elders when the Chief Linguist of the King, Baffour Kantankrankyie asked Nananom to cheer on the entourage, were enough attestation of their approval of their gifts.



Some of the royals openly confessed that in their lifetime, they have never seen such a gift in the Palace before.



However, the rationale behind the beautiful gift, according to the NPP Planning Committee, was for Mrs. Akufo-Addo to show appreciation and recognition for the traditional leadership in the Asante Kingdom.



The Committee Members include Mrs. Adjei Barwuah, wife of former Ambassador to Japan, Dr. Adjei Barwuah, Mad. Ama Dokuaah, an entrepreneur and owner of Beauty Queen Hotel as well as Andy Owusu, Special Aide to the NPP Ashanti Regional Chairman, Mr. Bernard Antwi Boasiako popularly known as 'Chairman Wontumi'.



Mrs. Akufo-Addo is in the Ashanti Region for a five day tour to some selected constituencies.



She would be interacting with Queenmothers to brief them on her husband's vision and programmes for the country and to court their support ahead of the elections.

Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/Peacefmonline.com/ Twitter: @Washman5/ Instagram: Washman007









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Justice Paul Uuter Dery, a High Court judge involved in the judicial scandal, has filed a fresh suit at the Supreme Court challenging the authority of Chief Justice Georgina Wood to charge any superior court justice with a criminal offence under the Criminal Offences Act.



Other plaintiffs involved in the suit are Justice Mustapha Habib Logoh and Justice Gilbert Ayisi Addo, all High Court judges who were also caught in the bribery scandal.



Anas Aremeyaw Anas, who conducted the investigation, which exposed the judges, has been named as the first defendant while the Chief Justice and the Attorney General are the second and third defendants, respectively.



The three plaintiffs were part of 34 judges exposed in a bribery scandal by Anas.



The exposed judges include 22 magistrates and 12 High Court judges. Anas two-year investigative work captured them on video taking bribe to pervert justice.



About 20 of them have been sacked in connection with the expose.



However, the plaintiffs, in an earlier writ, requested the Supreme Court to strike out the petition of Anas to the Chief Justice and the president of Ghana to have them removed over their involvement in the scandal.



But the Supreme Court ruled on Thursday, October 27 that the petition held. The court further established that Anas was the petitioner.



The plaintiffs are now back in court, having established Anas as the petitioner, to seek other reliefs.



The nature of the reliefs sought by counsel for the plaintiffs, Nii Kpakpo Samoa Addo, in a writ dated October 27, 2016, are as follows:



1. A declaration that upon a true and proper interpretation of Articles 19(1); 125(3) & (5); 126(1); and 146(3), (4) & (5) of the 1992 Constitution, the 2nd Defendant, in exercise of her functions under Article 146(3) & (4) of the Constitution, lacks jurisdiction to enquire into a petition that alleges the commission of criminal offences under the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29), or any penal statute for that matter.



2. A declaration that upon a true and proper interpretation of Articles 88 (3) & (4) and 146 (3), (4) & (5) of the 1992 Constitution, the 2nd Defendant, in exercise of her functions under Article 146(3) & (4) of the Constitution, lacks jurisdiction to charge any Superior Court Justice with any criminal offence under the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) or any penal statute for that matter.



3. A declaration that the Committee provided for under Article 146(4) of the Constitution to enquire into petitions pursuant to Article 146(5) of the Constitution, lacks jurisdiction in so far as the petition alleges the commission of criminal offences under the Criminal Offences Act, 1960(Act 29) or any penal statute for that matter.



4. A declaration that the 2nd Defendant, in exercise of her administrative functions under Article 146(3) & (4) of the 1992 Constitution, violated Articles 19(1); 23; 88(3) & (4); 125(3) & (5); 126(1); and 296 of the Constitution.



5. A declaration that the purported ruling of the 2nd Defendant in the purported exercise of her functions under Article 146(3) and (4) of the 1992 Constitution is null and void as same is inconsistent with or in contravention of Articles 19(1); 23; 88(3) & (4); 125(3) & (5); 126(1); and 296 of the Constitution, 1992.



6. Any other order(s) or direction(s) as the Court deems appropriate to make to give effect to the declarations made herein, pursuant to Article 2(2) of the 1992 Constitution.

Source: classfmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia, says the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) have created a noose around their own necks after comparing the outcome of Nigerias 2015 elections to what would happen in Ghana. He says the situation is like staking of a wrong bet, by the opposition party.

Mr Asiedu Nketia explained his metaphor by saying the NPP rode very high on the loss of Goodluck Ebele Jonathan in the 2015 Nigeria elections and compared the victory by General Muhammadu Buhari as a good omen for flagbearer Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. Addressing supporters and sympathizers of the NDC at Adentan during the campaign launch of parliamentary candidate Mohammed Ramadan on Sunday, Mr Asiedu Nketia said the NPP compared the power crisis in Ghana to Nigerias Boko Haram, perceived as reason for Jonathans loss.

He continued that the NPP were of the firm belief that Ghanaians will vote out the NDC and President John Mahama if dumsor persisted. Where is the dumsor now? he asked. Why are they even campaigning since they made dumsor their main campaign weapon? Speaking in Twi, the chairman of NDCs 2016 campaign committee said even Gen. Buhari that they compared Nana Akufo-Addo to has his government in deep straits.

If someone knows Mrs Rebecca Akufo-Addo, go and tell her to go to Buharis wife for advice. He said by now Mrs Akufo-Addo should be advising her husband out of politics because now he is weak and cannot govern like President John Mahama. Mr Asiedu Nketias assertion derives from the recent rant between President Buhari and his wife, Aisha, over his presidency. Did you hear what happened recently? Asiedu Nketia, popularly known as General Mosquito, asked the crowd. His wife says it was a mistake for him to run for president in the first place. The former Member of Parliament said Adentan constituents, and by extension Ghanaians, will be better off giving NDC a four-year extension. According to him, the NDC is the only party that cannot fail the test of tribalism. NDC is the only national party giving opportunity to every Ghanaian no matter where you come from.

Source: 3news.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia believes that Rebecca Akufo-Addo, wife of Nana Akufo-Addo, will soon call him for directions on how to reach wife of Nigerias President, Mrs. Buhari for advice.



Asiedu Nketia had earlier called on Mrs. Akufo-Addo to seek President Buharis wife for advice on an assertion derived from the recent rant between President Buhari and his wife, Aisha, over his presidency.



Did you hear what happened recently? Asiedu Nketia, otherwise known as General Mosquito, asked a crowd when he was addressing a campaign rally at Adenta on Sunday, adding that his wife says it was a mistake for him to run for president in the first place.



According to him, since the NPP rode very high on the loss of Goodluck Ebele Jonathan in the 2015 Nigeria elections and compared the victory by General Muhammadu Buhari as a good omen for flagbearer Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo because of the age, by now Mrs. Akufo-Addo should be advising her husband out of politics because now he is weak and cannot govern like President John Mahama.



Speaking on ekosii sen on Asempa FM on Monday, General Mosquito told the host that he believes Mrs. Akufo-Addo, will call him by the end of the week for the direction to get to Mrs. Buhari for an insightful advice on her observations.



Asiedu Nketia, then noted that Adentan constituents, and by extension Ghanaians, will be better off giving NDC a four-year extension.



To him, the NDC is the only party that cannot fail the test of tribalism.



NDC is the only national party giving opportunity to every Ghanaian no matter where you come from, he added.

Source: myradio360.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Deputy National Research Director of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) has warned activists of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to desist from vile propaganda or face the wrath of God.



According to Peter Otokunor, God is likely to penalize the biggest opposition party in this country for their untruthfulness and deceit.



"God will assess the lies of the NPP and curse them so they can't come close to the Flagstaff House. They lie about everything just because they want to win the upcoming elections," he said of UTV's Adekye Nsoroma.



The Deputy NDC Director of Research made this comment in reaction to an allegation by his co-panelist, Joe Donkor, the 1st Vice NPP Chairman in the Central Regional, that the ruling NDC has run down all viable state institutions including the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).



Joe Donkor was of the view that the NPP would have a lot of work to do by creatively and innovatively revamping all state establishment, including the NHIS, to get them up and running.



"..we will have to work hard after we (NPP) win the 2016 general elections to restore the NHIS since the ruling NDC has collapsed it."



However, Peter Otokunor could not understand why the NPP, especially Members of Parliament, boast of registering large numbers of their constituents onto the health scheme secretly but condemn it in the media.



"They go around claiming NHIS has collapsed but their Parliamentary Candidates go around bragging of paying for huge numbers to be registered of their constituents for free...so the question is, why would you want to put your people on a scheme that has collapsed? He quizzed.

Source: Prince Obimpeh/ Peacefmonline.com/ Email: [email protected]









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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A charge on residents of the Volta Region of Ghana to vote for the opposition NPP on 'September 7' has set social media ablaze.



Flagbearer of the NPP Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is alleged to have called on the people of the Volta Region to vote massively for the party on September 7.



It's unclear which part of the Region the NPP flagbearer was speaking.



Nana Akufo-Addo is on a five-day tour of the Volta Region, the stronghold of the governing National Democratic Congress with less than two months to the general elections.







Source: Ghanaweb.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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President John Mahama will not hand over power to anyone but himself, Montie FMs Pampaso host Salifu Maase, alias Mugabe, has said, and referred to the flag bearer of the main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akufo-Addo, as an abomination not worth being president of Ghana.



President Mahama is a humble man, a merciful and compassionate leader, the radio host said, adding:  He doesnt go begging Ghanaians to make him president. Should we go and bring that dictator as president? he asked, saying: Ill keep fighting for JM.



 JM will never hand over power to anyone in this country. Hes going to hand over power to himself. To whom are we handing over power? The person (Nana Akufo-Addo) who wants to take over from Mr Mahama does not even know the date for the elections. He said elections will be held on 7 September.



We will not go for an abomination of a person to come and lead us in this country, he said on his programme on Thursday, 27 October, in reference to Mr Akufo-Addo, who recently suffered a slip of tongue when he said this years polls would be held on 7 September instead of 7 December.



Mugabe, who was sentenced to a four-month jail term along with two other sympathisers of President John Mahama and the NDC, also took on journalists at TV3, describing them as useless and irresponsible for reporting that he had called for change in this years elections.

Source: classfmonline









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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An Accra High Court judge has told the Electoral Commission (EC) of Ghana to make way for the Presidential Candidate of the Progressive Peoples Party to correct anomalies cited on his nomination form.



The court said the EC breached the law of natural justice in disqualifying Dr Nduom from the race, and, therefore, asked the election management body to allow him to make the necessary corrections on his nomination forms.



Dr Nduom, according to the EC, was disqualified because the number of subscribers to his forms did not meet the requirements of Regulation 7 (2) (b) of CI 94".



The PPP then filed a lawsuit seeking to restrain the EC from proceeding with the balloting for positions of presidential candidates.



But on Friday, His Lordship Kyei Baffuor sitting at the Commercial Court 7, made it clear that the EC should have given Dr Nduom an opportunity to correct anomalies on his nomination form before disqualifying him.



"I will proceed after quashing the decision of the Respondents disqualifying the Applicant as a candidate and order that the Respondents afford opportunity to the Applicant to make the necessary alteration or amendment to its nomination paper for it to receive same and then proceed to determine whether the Applicant had met all the criteria laid down by the laws of the Republic, in line with its duty laid down by C.I. 94. EC has no basis to complain that nomination period has closed when they did not set one. They only set nomination day under regulation 7 but not nomination period under regulation 9(2) as I have already found. The time frame to afford the Applicant is entirely within the discretion of the Respondents being mindful of the limited time available for the elections on December 7, 2016," Justice Eric K. Baffour, Esq ruled.





Details Of Dr Nduom's Disqualification:



- One subscriber Richard Aseda (Asida on the Voters Register), with Voter ID no 7812003957) endorsed the forms in two different districts (pages 21 and 39).



The subscriber was found to be on the Voters Register in one district thereby disqualifying his second subscription and reducing the total number of subscribers to below the minimum required by the Law.



The same subscriber (Richard Aseda (Asida) endorsed the form with different signatures in both portions of the nomination form. This raises questions as to the legitimacy of one or both signatures.



We will refer the matter of the possible forgery of the signature(s) to the Ghana Police Service and the Attorney



General for investigation and prosecution in line with the following sections of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29):



Section 211: Perjury



Section 248: making false declaration etc. for office or voting;



Section 251: Deceiving a public officer



Section 256: Corruption, Intimidation and impersonation in respect of election.



The PPP took the case to court seeking an order directed against the 1st respondent in her capacity as returning officer for presidential elections to grant the applicant the opportunity to amend and alter the one anomaly found in his nomination papers as well as accept his nomination papers as amended or altered to enable him contest as a presidential candidate for the 7th December 2016 elections.



The court, on October 28th, ruled that the EC did not give the PPP fair opportunity to amend mistakes on their nomination forms.

Meanwhile, the town of Elmina, the home of Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom in the Central Region, went into a frenzy after the ruling.



After the court ruling, scores of residents and supporters in the area took to the streets amidst chanting of victory songs and hoisting of PPP flags and paraphernalia in joyous mood.



Most of the residents were heard chanting Adwuma Wura, Adwuma Wura to wit, provider of jobs  Dr Nduoms moniker. They were optimistic that Dr Nduom will win the elections to become the next president of Ghana.

Source: Chris Joe Quaicoe/ email: [email protected]









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Minister of Minister for Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Mrs Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare yesterday, October 26 announced the passage of the Film Bill by Parliament.



The process to get the Film Bill passed into law started in 2013 when the then Ministry of Information and Media Relations submitted the reviewed cinematography act to cabinet to seek its approval to provide the machinery to streamline the film industry in Ghana.



Mrs Elizabeth Ofusu-Adjare said the new bill called for the establishment of new structures to help streamline the affairs of the movie industry in the country.



Some of these include the National Film Authority and its governing board, the Film Development Fund as well as committees such as the Film Classification Committee to perform certain functions, she said.



She said with these structures in place together with the appropriate regulations, Ghanaians would once again take control of the film industry.



We will also regulate the industry to ensure quality films are produced and our actors and actresses will once again be respected and not be subject to abuse by some unscrupulous foreign film producers, she added.



Veteran film producer, Kwaw Ansah and one of the resource people behind the bill expressed his joy at the passage of the bill. I think it is a very important bill considering that film is a very important tool for development. For the past 25 years, numerous governments have failed to pass this bill but it is finally here, he said.



To me this is one of my happiest moments and I hope practitioners of the industry do not just go out there and do things that are not relevant. Their actions or inactions can led to either the progress or stagnation of our development, he said.

Source: Graphic.com.gh









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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MOBO award-winner, Samini has done loads of collaborations here in GH.



Samini can even top the most collaborated act list here in Ghana and one surprising thing is that almost all his collaboration songs are hit songs.



He wont be on your song, and the song wont blow up big, no then thats not Samini on the joint. Those days, when you want to feature an act on your song, everyone would tell you to go straight to Samini.



Well, he was on Adom FM and when asked to mention his 4 best collaboration songs he has done.



He said,  I think this question would be really difficult for me to answer because Ive really done lots of collaborations, it would be difficult for me, Papa Billz.



When quizzed to mention just 4 of those songs, he said, Well, I think Odwo, that was with Ofori Amponsah, Adult Muzik- Kwabena Kwabena, Madfish- Yahooya, Obour-Konkotiba



Samini also disclosed that this years Saminifest will be on the 3rd of December

Source: Thebigtriceonline.com









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Australian permanent resident Jessica Wongso has copped a 20 year jail sentence in Indonesia for the murder of her friend Mirna Salihin, who she poisoned in a Jakarta cafe by lacing her coffee with cyanide.

It was alleged that Wongso had poisoned her friends iced coffee as they dined with another friend in January. CCTV footage captured what police allege was the moment Wongso slipped the cyanide into the beverage. The judge actually dismissed that footage and said that it did not show any tampering.

The motive, according to police, was a relationship spat  Wongso was angry that Sailihin had asked her to break up with her boyfriend. The defence ridiculed this as a ridiculous reason for a murder, but the judge accepted it.

Three Australian toxicology and forensic experts testified during the case that there was no proof cyanide was the cause of death, but the presence of cyanide in the cup among other pieces of evidence was eventually judged to be a compelling reason for the conviction.

Jessica Kumala Wongso has been legally and convincingly proven guilty of committing premeditated murder, said presiding judge Kisworo, as he read a 377-page verdict over four hours.

Wongso implied to the court that she will likely lodge an appeal, and reports suggest her lawyers have called it the death of law in Indonesia.

Source: ABC News.

Photo: 60 Minutes.
Notoriously awful cartoonist Bill Leak has found himself another defender in his battle to draw all the racist cartoons he likes: Malcolm Turnbull.

The Prime Minister was asked on 3AW radio today if Leak was racist.

Of course not, Turnbull laughed. Hes Australian.



Were only very slightly paraphrasing here.

What he actually said was: Of course not. No, look, hes an Australian, hes a cartoonist, he is a controversialist, thats what he does. He is a very colourful, passionate Australian of enourmous artistic ability. Bill is a very engaging guy. He writes as colourfully and powerfully as he paints.



So an Australian cant be racist?

Ugh.

Leak and The Australian are currently being investigated by the Human Rights Commission for breaching 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act, the same section that Turnbull is softening his stance of total opposition to a possible repeal.

In the same interview with 3AW, Turnbull said he had no plans to amend section 18C but did not argue with former Nationals deputy prime minister John Anderson who said it threatened the most basic right in democratic Australia to speak freely.

Nobody is suggesting that we should have any tolerance for hate speech or language that promotes racial hatred or anything of that kind, he said. We are the most successful multicultural society in the world and that is built on a foundation of mutual respect and thats something we cherish.



Dunno where the mutual respect was here, but okay:

Section 18C makes it unlawful to offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate someone because of their race or ethnicity. It already exempts artistic works, scientific and academic inquiry, and fair comment on matters of public interest provided they are done reasonably and in good faith.

Its the same section that Andrew Bolt found himself in breach of in 2009, when he wrote two articles claiming light-skinned Aboriginal people were not genuinely Aboriginal people and were merely pretending to be in order to access benefits.

Race Discrimination Commissioner Tim Soutphommasane has found himself at the savage end of Leaks pen for his part in addressing wide-spread complaints about the original cartoon.

Last week Leak depicted Soutphommasane as dictator Kim Jong-Un; today, hes a Nazi, alongside president of the HRC Gillian Triggs, also a Nazi..

last week Bill Leak compared race discrimination commissioner Tim Soutphommasane to Kim Jong-Un today, hes a Nazi, apparently pic.twitter.com/tooej2grlU  Josh BOOoOoOtler (@JoshButler) October 27, 2016

Big solid congrats to Leak for managing to compare the extreme censorship of Nazi Germany to an independent body investigating whether his extremely offence and racially stereotyping cartoon was, in fact, racist. Good on ya, mate. Fucking cheers.

Photo: The Australian.
Just over a fortnight before the anniversary of a horrific terror attack that left 90 concertgoers dead, Paris Bataclan concert hall has finally unveiled its vibrant new facade.

The venue has been closed since ISIS-affiliated gunmen attacked attendees of an Eagles Of Death Metal gig on November 13 last year, and its entrance has been covered from that point.

A photo posted by @pan.miroslav on Oct 17, 2016 at 2:37pm PDT

The facelift is part of Bataclans efforts to get back to just being a concert hall.

A photo posted by Stephanie (@trendyworkingmum) on Oct 27, 2016 at 12:54am PDT

In a move that could very well be taken as defiance, Pete Doherty is scheduled to kick off proceedings with a gig on November 16. A regular cavalcade of stellar acts is set to take to the stage in the weeks after, including Meshuggah, Nada Surf, and The Flaming Lips.

Aussie metalcore juggernauts Parkway Drive will even be on deck in early April.

The facades unveiling coincides with survivors of the attacks revisiting the venue for the first time. Survivor Maureen, who didnt provide a surname, said I went back there  I didnt have to, but it feels like a sort of victory over what we lived through that day.

Victim advocate Caroline Langlade said its just a room with walls where something tragic happened.

Its not the building itself which is tragic.

A photo posted by Denis Allard (@denisallard) on Oct 27, 2016 at 6:38am PDT

Source: ABC News / Daily Mail.

Photo: @gaetangabriele / Instagram.
The Red Cross Blood Service has issued an apology after sensitive details regarding as many as 550,000 donors were found on an unprotected IT system, in what could constitute the largest locally-based data leak ever recorded.

According to cyber security expert Troy Hunt, information including the full names, genders, physical addresses, email addresses and phone numbers of Australians who donated between 2010 and 2016 was uncovered earlier this week.

Hunt confirmed the legitimacy of the data by saying he found his own personal details in the leak.

Perhaps most worryingly, Hunt says sensitive information regarding donors sexual activity and possible recreational drug use was also left unsecured.

In response to the leak, Red Cross Blood Service chief Shelly Park apologised to donors, saying we are deeply disappointed this could happen.



We take full responsibility and I assure the public we are doing everything in our power to not only right this but to prevent it from happening again.

The information was uploaded to a database backup on an unsecured site, run by a third party contracted by the Blood Service.

Hunt, who runs an online security breach notification service, was alerted to the breach by the very person who claims to have found the unsecured details. He says the individual agreed to delete their copy of the 1.74GB file, and Hunt claims to have done the same.

As such, the Blood Service says to our knowledge all known copies of the data have been deleted and that theres a low chance of the information being misused in the future, but theyre still looking into the issue.

While Hunt seriously questioned the integrity of Red Cross Blood Services IT security protocols, he praised the Blood Service for their response after the leak came to light, and has encouraged would-be donors not to be dissuaded from donating to the legitimately vital service.

He says its going to cost them money, its bad publicity and theres a real chance that people may actually feel less inclined to give blood, but hes booked a donation appointment for Monday regardless.

I dont like that my data was exposed in this way but let us not lose focus on lifes bigger issues.

If youre concerned that your information may have been included in the leak, the Blood Service has set up a hotline at 13 95 96.

Source: Sydney Morning Herald / Red Cross Blood Service / Troy Hunt.

Photo: @aitokirai / Instagram.
A man facing court in Sydney for the abuse, rape, torture and imprisonment of his young daughter over a period of 13 years has been sentenced to at least 36 years jail. His wife, who was complicit in the abuse, was sentenced to a minumum of 12 years for her role.

The 59-year-old man, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was found guilty on 73 charges related to the longterm sexual abuse of his daughter. He was reported to have imprisoned his daughter in a converted shed on his property in northern NSW, where she would be kept for days at a time. The Daily Telegraph reports that the man was an elite athlete who had qualified for the Olympics, and the ABC says that he has connections to elite sport.

The abuse began when the girl was 5 and continued until she was nineteen. Her mother, who was long considered a pillar of the community, was also involved in the sexual abuse of the child.

Judge Sarah Huggett elaborated before a court on the severity of both the offences and the psychological impact on the daughter:

I have no doubt at all that for many years of her life the victim was confused, helpless and terrified by what occurred outside of the public eye and in the privacy of her home. Looking carefully at all circumstances pertaining to the father I have no doubt at all that all his conduct was deliberate, determined and premeditated. He deliberately conditioned his daughter using psychological, emotional and psychological means to the point she would have come to expect he would abuse her as and when he wished.

Huggett added she had to suspend her natural feelings as a human being when preparing sentences for the father and mother.

The man will first be eligible for parole in 2049, with Judge Huggett suggesting that it is very likely he will die behind bars. His wife will first be eligible for parole in 2027.

Source: ABC News.

Photo: Getty Images.
Its officially HALLOWEEN this Monday, so theres a fair chance youll be celebrating this weekend.

Perhaps youll go trick-or-treating. Maybe youll carve a lantern out of a pumpkin. We here at PEDESTRIAN.TV are actually throwing a big fuck-off party, so we might even see you there.

Halloween is a fantastic opportunity to shake off your 9-to-5 persona and dress the hell up. Its an opportunity to get your cans out without being judged. A chance to let your freak flag fly. For the unhinged among us, its a nice time to exercise those homicidal urges in a just joking way.

The most spooky thing about this candy-fuelled American holiday, though, isnt ghosts and ghouls.

Its contact lenses.

Yep, if youre a die-hard dress up fan, you may very well have used a pair of decorative contact lenses in your life.

According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), many lenses bought online may not be approved by the Food and Drug Administration (and while the FDA is a US governing health body, weve got the same things for eyes Down Under so it applied to us, too).

A recent study pubbed in the aptly-named Eye & Contact Lens journal outlined that non-prescription contact lenses can contain chlorine and iron, among other things, which are used as a tint and colour of the crazy lenses. You know, the kind of things you want absolutely nowhere near your precious eyeballs.

Scientists found that one pair they tested seeped chlorine after a routine rinse; another pair had uneven texture that could easily scratch the surface of the wearers delicate eyes.

A photo posted by ??Halloween Contact Lenses?? (@camoeyes) on Oct 5, 2015 at 11:00am PDT

Halloween contact lenses can really enhance the effect of a great Halloween costume, and they can be a lot of fun, Jeffrey J. Walline, O.D., Ph.D., the associate dean for research at The Ohio State University College of Optometry, told American publication SELF.

However, even Halloween contact lenses that do not correct your vision are medical devices and must be fit by an eye care practitioner.

Lets be honest  theres a slim chance youre gonna take your shoddy $20 lenses to Specsavers the day before the party.

Whats worse, if youre celebrating with some happy juice this weekend, theres a fair chance youll cark it on the couch with the lenses still in your eyes. Waking up with last nights costume swimming around in your dry eye sockets isnt optimal.

Most costume lenses are marketed at one-size-fits-all too, which can lead to issues as everyone has different sizes eyes. If contact lenses do not fit properly, they can lead to irritated eyes at best and an eye infection at worst, Walline says.

Of course, not every wearer will experience problems. You may be fine. Its worth keeping in mind that you should treat this integral part of your costume as you could prescribed contact lenses  store them in the correct solution, rinse em after use and dont sleep in them.

Good luck and happy halloween, freaks!

Source: SELF.

Photo: X-Men.
Government abandons level crossing project

The State Government has abandoned the Rawson Rd level crossing replacement project.

Minister for Roads, Maritime and Freight, Mr Duncan Gay, announced the decision in answer a question from Mr Walt Secord in the Legislative Council on October 20.

According to Mr Gay, the overpass project would now cost the NSW Government a total of between $80 million and $115 million.

The NSW Government originally promised $30 million towards the replacement of the crossing in 2011 as a major component of Mr Chris Holstein's campaign to be elected as the Liberal Member for Gosford.

Since then, the cost of replacing the level crossing has been revised upward on several occasions.

The level crossing replacement project has been at a standstill since the completion of the pedestrian underpass in 2015.

"At the opening of the new pedestrian underpass, I committed an extra $7 million towards the council's proposed upgrade of the level crossing.

"This increased the overall commitment of the New South Wales Government at this location to $52 million because a total of $45 million had been committed towards a pedestrian and road solution at the level crossing.

"Unsurprisingly, the cost estimate to achieve a solution at the level crossing increased from $52 million, which increased from the original $30 million, to be between $80 million and $115 million.

"Following the cost estimate increase, I wrote to the council and advised that no further funding would be available for the proposal, which the council admitted it could not possibly afford itself.

"Taxpayers should not be forced to foot an even larger bill."

Mr Gay said the Government had no responsibility for the roads involved.

"Woy Woy Rd and Rawson Rd are regional roads under the care and control of the Central Coast Council, previously the Gosford Council.

"In other words, they are not state-owned or managed roads," he said.

"Since 2011, the New South Wales Government has committed more than $36 million in grant funding to Gosford City Council for the upgrade and repair of council owned and managed roads.

"This is equal to a 27 per cent increase in the grant funding compared to what Labor spent in its last term of Government.

"The New South Wales Government also spent $178 million upgrading the West Gosford interchange to address traffic demand on the Central Coast Highway and Brisbane Water Drive.

"The latter is the key State road connection to the northern end of Woy Woy and this upgrade was open to traffic in 2015," Mr Gay said.
Daveion Perry, left, and defense attorney Charles Swanson, right, listen during a hearing where Perry was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole on Friday, Oct. 28, 2016, at the Cuyahoga County Justice Center in Cleveland. Perry was sentenced just two weeks after shooting Sunny Ravi Patel to death as Sunny helped his family at a Mr. Hero shop in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, and just two days after pleading guilty Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016, to aggravated murder and other charges in a plea deal to avoid a death sentence. (AP Photo/Mark Gillispie)
FILE - In this April 19, 2010, file photo, Johnson's baby powder is squeezed from its container in Philadelphia. On Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016, Johnson & Johnson was hit with a multimillion-dollar jury verdict in the massive litigation over whether the talc in its iconic baby powder causes ovarian cancer when applied regularly for feminine hygiene. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)
Turkey prices face inflation, avian flu ahead of Thanksgiving

While writing guest-lists and determining just how many cans of cranberry jelly will hold over the entire family, Michiganders may have to prepare for another challenge this Thanksgiving: a shortage 
PDVSA crisis deepends in caos and PetroCaribe partners turn away



Crisis at Venezuela deepens as PDVSA Caribbean debts pile up

HOUSTON

Petroleumworld.com 10 28 2016

Unpaid debts and broken promises are making Venezuelan oil giant PDVSA an outcast in several Caribbean countries where it had been a guest of honor.

The state-run company's crumbling finances are causing operational disruptions across one of its most essential regions, according to internal company documents, six sources with knowledge of its operations, and Thomson Reuters vessel-tracking data.

Business partners in the island nations of Curacao, Bonaire, Jamaica and the Bahamas are turning away from the firm as debts pile up to tugboat operators, ship brokers, maritime agencies and terminal owners, the sources and documents show.

The company's problems include blocked loading operations in the Bahamas and threats from the governments of Curacao and Jamaica to replace PDVSA as a partner of refineries in both places. Many vessels are also anchored offshore, blocked from discharging cargoes at ports because PDVSA has not paid suppliers and business partners.

The mounting Caribbean problems are adding to a broader crisis for PDVSA, which is already reeling from declining production, low crude prices and an unprecedented economic downturn at home. The company saw operating cash flow plummet by 63 percent, to $2.1 billion, in the first quarter compared to the same period a year earlier, according to its most recent financial report.

PDVSA's Caribbean operations represent a quarter of its global refining capacity and serve as a loading hub for a third of its exports of crude and fuel oil.

For a graphic on PDVSA's facilities in the Caribbean, see: tmsnrt.rs/2dEYaRb

"PDVSA has absolutely lost ground in the Caribbean," said Lisa Viscidi, director of Energy, Climate Change and Extractive Industries at the Inter-American Dialogue in Washington, noting falling oil sales in the region for the past two years.

PDVSA did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

In the latest mishap, a PDVSA fuel-oil cargo bound for Asia has been trapped in the Caribbean sea for more than a month after a court ordered the detention of the tanker "Hero" in Curacao, according to sources with direct knowledge of the situation and Thomson Reuters vessel-tracking data.

Curacao's port authority barred the ship from leaving on Sept. 18 after a unit of Core Laboratories won the court order to force payment of delinquent debts, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter. PDVSA had allegedly failed to pay the unit, Saybolt, several million dollars for months of oil testing services.

Mark Elvig, general counsel for Core Laboratories, declined to comment.

REVERSAL OF FORTUNE

The problems reflect a stark reversal for a company that has been a trusted partner of governments in the Caribbean.

About a decade ago, Caribbean countries laid out red carpets for PDVSA executives, who came offering cheap oil under the Petrocaribe program that leftist President Hugo Chavez launched to win allies as a bulwark against Washington.

Petrocaribe worked well for years, as poor islands curbed the impacts of rising global oil prices and Venezuela bartered oil for everything from medical services to black beans.

PDVSA had used Caribbean facilities to offset frequent outages and incidents plaguing its storage, refining and port networks in Venezuela. The region offers vast storage capacity, ample refineries and crude blending facilities, and deep water docks to load Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC) for trips to Asia.

But the relationships of the past are now increasingly strained as suppliers and service providers go unpaid.

"PDVSA's cash flow problems are impacting routine operations," a trader at a private company that has worked with PDVSA in the Caribbean told Reuters on condition of anonymity. "You only accumulate several million dollars in debt for port services by not paying for months or even years."

The company has slashed its operating budget to $45 million monthly from $145 million monthly in 2015, the PDVSA trading team source said. That budget pays for all trade activities in Venezuela and overseas, the source said, including tanker cleaning, routine inspections, storage, brokerage, freight costs, port services and oil imports.

REFINERIES AT RISK

The tanker detention came days after Curacao's government signed a memorandum of understanding with Guangdong Zhenrong Energy, indicating the Chinese firm could soon replace PDVSA as the operator of the Isla refinery in 2019.

Officials in Curacao have said the move follows years of frustrated efforts to persuade PDVSA to invest $1.5 billion to upgrade Isla.

"We have decided not to wait any more and look for alternatives," said Ben Whiteman, the island's Prime Minister, in a broadcasted speech in September.

The island's government declined a Reuters request for comment, and the Chinese firm did not respond.

PDVSA said in a September news release that the renewal of its lease is not up for negotiation yet.

Isla is strategically important because its lease contract includes the Bullenbay terminal, with 17.75 million barrels of storage and blending capacity. Bullenbay is where PDVSA receives the imported light oil it mixes with its own extra heavy crude to create an exportable blend.

Also in September, Winston Watson, general manager of Petrojam - Jamaica's state company that owns the Kingston refinery - said he was fed up with PDVSA's foot-dragging on upgrading the plant.

"If they say no, then I guess we would have to go to the market and seek another investor," he said of PDVSA to lawmakers in parliament, according to a transcript.

Petrojam and the Jamaican government did not respond to requests for comment.

LATE RENT, STRANDED SHIPS

Another setback came in the Bahamas. For about a month starting in mid-September, PDVSA was blocked from loading cargoes at the massive BORCO terminal because of late rent payments for storage tanks, according to one of the PDVSA sources and a ship broker.

The BORCO standoff contributed to an ongoing decline in PDVSA's exports - and its ability to generate cash - just as payment delays snarled its imports.

In September, PDVSA's crude exports suffered an annual decline of 12 percent to 1.55 million barrels per day, according to Thomson Reuters Trade Flows data.

U.S.-based Buckeye Partners, which operates the terminal, did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Near other Caribbean and Venezuelan ports, about a dozen tankers carrying around 2.5 million barrels of light crude and products - including two cargoes supplied by BP - have been stuck at sea for weeks at a time, waiting for payment from PDVSA before discharging, according to traders from private firms and vessel tracking data.

In May, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro made an official visit to Jamaica and sought to reassure Caribbean dignitaries of PDVSA's long-term health.

"Be confident," he said. "Venezuela has faced situations even more difficult than the one we are passing through."








* Hungarian bond yields off record lows ahead of auction * 3- and 5-year bonds seen drawing good demand - trader * Slovenia sells 2040-expiry bonds By Sandor Peto BUDAPEST, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Hungarian government bonds retreated on Thursday ahead of bond auctions which are expected to draw good demand after yields increased across Central Europe in the past few days, tracking a rise in euro zone markets.

The exception was the Czech Republic where demand is fuelled by expectations for a surge of the crown next year once the central bank abandons its cap on its currency, which keeps it weaker than 27 per euro.

The yield on 5-year Czech bonds fell 6 basis points to -0.18 percent by 0818 GMT. The corresponding Bund yield rose one basis point to -0.43 percent.

Hungarian 3-year bonds traded at 1.29 percent, up 5 basis points. Romania's corresponding bonds were bid at 1.48 percent, up 3 basis points.

The Hungarian yield has risen 16 basis points in the past two days, rebounding from record lows.

"I expect a good auction of 3- and 5-year bonds, while demand for the 10-year papers at the auction is more questionable," one Budapest-based fixed income trader said.

The Hungarian central bank has launched a bunch of measures in the past two weeks to boost forint liquidity in markets to help borrowing costs fall and boost demand for government debt.

The central bank provided commercial banks with 400 billion forints ($1.41 billion) through swap auctions, cut its short-term lending rates and commercial banks reserve rate on Tuesday and reduced its offer at its monthly 3-month deposit auction on Wednesday.

That will increase forint liquidity in the next month while also helping banks bridge a temporary liquidity shortage this week. The measures have weakened the forint.

It traded 309.46 against the euro at 0828 GMT, flat from Wednesday but well off 17-month highs hit early this month at 303.40, and it will probably test the 310 line soon.

A larger fall in the forint is unlikely as Hungary's big current account surplus and improved credit ratings provide support for the currency, analysts said.

Story continues

Neighbouring euro zone member Slovenia, whose credit ratings are also improving, drew good demand for an offer of 2040-expiry bonds on Wednesday.

The country's 10-year bond yield was bid at 0.744 percent, flat from Wednesday, but up from record lows set two weeks ago at 0.547 percent.

"Slovenia remains an improving credit story with ongoing fiscal consolidation, privatisation targets including restructured banks and strengthening growth perspectives," Raiffeisen analyst Gintaras Shlizhyus said in a note.
Tomorrow, at precisely one minute before midnight, Eastern Daylight Time, three crew members will be back on Earth from the International Space Station. Their Soyuz capsule will plop down in Kazakhstan, where it will be mid-morning. NASA's Kate Rubins, Anatoly Ivanishin of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, and Takuya Onishi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency will take their first breath of fresh air in 115 days.

Back in August, Rubins, who is formally Dr. Rubins, the holder of a Ph.D. in cancer biology from Stanford University, became the first person ever to sequence DNA in space. She has been an astronaut since 2009, but didn't necessarily set out with that job in mindinstead, she has simply followed her scientific interests, building an impressive resume along the way.

"I have not particularly tried to go in any direction in my career," she said from orbit recently, speaking with Francis Collins, the director of the National Institutes of Health. "I actually applied to become an astronaut while procrastinating a little bit on writing an R01 grant application."

Given her background in molecular biology, NASA tasked Rubins with handling the DNA sequencing experiment. The agency believes the technology has a variety of applications, but the first step was just seeing if it would be possible at all.

"We did not know if it was going to work," Rubins said. "Like every lab experiment, you put your pipettor down, and give it a try."
James Ashby (Photo: Otero County Jail)

A little more than two years after authorities say former Rocky Ford, CO, police Officer James Ashby fatally shot a man, he was sentenced on Thursday to 16 years in prison, reports the Denver Post.

Ashby, 32, was also ordered to serve five years of parole upon his release and pay a fine of $10,000, according to the Colorado Judicial Department. Restitution in the case can be determined within the next 90 days.

Ashby, convicted in June of second-degree murder in the October 2014 on-duty fatal shooting, was awarded 133 days of credit to his prison sentence, which represents the time he has spent in jail since being found guilty. He faced up to 48 years in prison.

Investigators say Ashby followed Jack Jacquez, 27, into the home of Jacquezs mother in the early-morning hours of Oct. 12, 2014, and shot him in the back. Ashby told investigators he thought Jacquez was a burglar, court records show.
As cities nationwide grapple with fatal police shootings, Pennsylvania's legislature on Thursday passed and sent to Gov. Wolf a bill that would block public officials from immediately releasing the names of officers involved in such incidents, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer.

The measure, sponsored by Republican state Rep. Martina White of Philadelphia and approved by the GOP-controlled legislature, stoked sharp opinions and drew votes largely along partisan lines.

Supporters say the bill, supported by several local police unions, is necessary to protect police officers and their families after such incidents.

"We are the protectors of our protectors," said one proponent, Rep. Dominic Costa, a Pittsburgh Democrat.

Opponents said the bill flies in the face of transparency, which they believe is even more critical in tragic circumstances involving police shootings.

"Do not undermine the bridges that have been built between law enforcement and communities of color," said Rep. Margo Davidson (D., Delaware) during a floor debate. "This legislation will do nothing but breed suspicion."

Wolf has not said if he will sign or veto the bill.
Charles "Tex" Watson was again denied parole. (Photo: California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation)

A California review board denied parole Thursday to Charles "Tex" Watson, the self-described right-hand man of Charles Manson and a key figure in the Manson family's 1969 killing spree in the Los Angeles area, reports the Los Angeles Times.

Watson, 70, was initially sentenced to die in San Quentin's gas chamber for his part in the murder of pregnant actress Sharon Tate and six others. In 1973, his sentence was commuted to life in prison after the state Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was unconstitutional.

The panel's decision, reached late Thursday, marks the 17th time that Watson has been denied parole, according to Luis Patino, a spokesman for the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. He'll be eligible for parole in five years.
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At least eight national polls were released on Thursday, according to RealClearPolitics, and a grand total of zero show Donald Trump beating Hillary Clinton.

Thats right  not a single one shows Trump ahead in this race.

Heres a quick rundown of the polls released today:

CNBC: Clinton +9

ABC News: Clinton +6

Pew: Clinton +6

Economist/YouGov: Clinton +5

IBD/TIPP: Clinton +2

Rasmussen: Clinton +1

Gravis: Clinton +1

LA Times: Tied

Overall, the Democratic nominee is beating Trump by an average of 5.4 points with just 12 days to go  and as millions of Americans have already cast their ballots.

On the Electoral College front, RealClearPolitics shows that Clinton is ahead in states that total 333 electoral votes. One of the states she leads in is Arizona  a red state before Republicans nominated Trump.

To put things in perspective, Barack Obama was leading Mitt Romney by just a single percentage point on this day in 2012. That is what you call a close presidential contest, and Obama still went on to easily win.

Yet, as I write, CNN and other cable news networks continue to plaster the close race chyron all over their networks, claiming Donald Trump is making it a race again.

Heres the thing: the contest between Clinton and Trump may be naturally tightening in a few polls, but that doesnt mean its becoming a close race. Its clear that, despite any one poll showing Trump gaining ground, Clinton still has a pretty durable lead.

|@FiveThirtyEight tackles question everyone is asking: Is the Presidential race tightening? (Answer: Not by much.) https://t.co/XoMxzleajd pic.twitter.com/Gq5O47rNsv  Jim Roberts (@nycjim) October 26, 2016

While the media looks silly for trying to make the Clinton-Trump race seem like a nail-biter for the ages, there is also some good that can come of it  besides high TV ratings.

Clinton supporters who may have previously assumed the race was in the bag for their candidate and were becoming complacent now may recognize, at least if they watch cable news, that the race is becoming close again.

This should provide a last-minute boost of energy among voters who fear a Trump presidency.
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Donald Trump is hemorrhaging Evangelical women voters. Their support for him stood at 58 percent in mid-October. Barely above half. Romney had 77 percent in 2012. As noted here yesterday, Romney had a lot of support Trump lacks. And Romney lost.

There have been rumblings among prominent Evangelical women, like Beth Moore of Living Proof Ministries:

Try to absorb how acceptable the disesteem and objectifying of women has been when some Christian leaders don't think it's that big a deal.  Beth Moore (@BethMooreLPM) October 9, 2016

Politico asked earlier this month how long Evangelical women can remain behind Trump.

That answer is in, according to the Wall Street Journal, which says they are turning away, that the Republican nominee faces vocal backlash from evangelical women over lewd comments and sexual-misconduct allegations.

While some are willing to overlook any number of deplorable remarks from Trump just to see Clinton defeated, others have had enough:

"Conservative Christian Women Turn Away From Donald Trump"https://t.co/YH0ZFOzJRN pic.twitter.com/572wTqMTEm  Sopan Deb (@SopanDeb) October 27, 2016

Kimberly Ross wrote at Red State earlier this month that,

I dont believe that I, as an American woman, am oppressed. However, it is beyond disappointing that men who not only claim faith, but are in leadership roles, are so willing to dismiss a predator among them. Maybe Trump has promised them some future role? I dont know. Regardless, they are lured away from doing their duty and instead join in with someone whose hobby is casting females aside.



Im disgusted by Trump and his male cheerleaders. You should be, too. Thankfully, women like Beth Moore and Rev. Lisa Sharon Harper wont stay quiet on the sidelines as some Evangelical men have always wished they would.

She is hardly alone, and more and more Evangelical women are joining the ranks of those who have heard enough misogyny from Trump. The reaction of Evangelical women, as Laurie Goodstein noted at The New York Times earlier this month, be a rift that shapes politics for years.

It isnt as if Trump hasnt been saying these things all along. As David French protested at the National Review back in June, Trump subverts all of our most cherished values. The question is, what took them so long?

Trump has already had an effect on the Religious Right, an unrepentant sinner who represents everything they claim to oppose. He has 70 percent support from Evangelical men, but while Evangelical women seem to support him despite his misogyny, there are good reasons to suspect the men support him because of his negative attitude towards women.

If Trump wants to further shrink his already deflated tent by shutting out another demographic, hes going about it the right way.
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A retired four-star general called out Donald Trump as unfit to be president because he has failed to support US troops.

In a conference call with reporters, Gen. John Allen (Ret.) said:



Trumps remarks are not only uninformedbut it also directly undercuts the courage and the commitment of our troops. And I took great exception to this. However he feels personally about this operation, he should be encouraging our efforts publicly, rather than disparaging them.

.

While [Trump] appears not to understand basic military activities, its not clear to me that hes interested in learning them, either. Because there are a number of experts, who I thinkwould advise him otherwise. But he seems to be confident in his knowledge. And that knowledge, I think, reveals a lot about what he doesnt know.

.

This kind of rhetoric; this kind of disrespect for our military leadership; this absence of support for our troops who are actually in combat and support for our allies who are fighting and dying every day  it means to me that this individual is not qualified to be Commander-in-Chief.

Military experts, like Gen. Allen, feel compelled to criticize the Republican nominee days before a presidential election because they feel like he is not supporting the troops and would be a danger to national security as commander in chief.

Thanks to Donald Trump, the Republican Party has become the party that doesnt support the troops.

Republicans have gone from real America to un-American in record time.

If a presidential nominee doesnt respect the men and women who risk their lives for the country, then he definitely wont respect the needs of hard working Americans.

With each word that comes out of his mouth, Trump continues to show America the real face of the Republican Party.
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In an interview with Bill OReilly on Thursday, Donald Trump was again asked about the Access Hollywood tape in which the Republican nominee was caught bragging about sexually assaulting women. This time, though, he put up a new defense strategy, at least when it comes to this particular issue  blame the microphone.

When asked by OReilly if he thinks he would be winning the election if not for the release of the video, Trump once again repeated that it was only locker room talk, and then started complaining that a microphone shouldnt have been allowed to capture his comments.

Shockingly, he did not express any regrets for his language.

Video:

Trump latest Access Hollywood defense: Microphone shouldnt have been on! pic.twitter.com/ylV4sxfCom  Sean Colarossi (@SeanColarossi) October 28, 2016

It was locker room talk. The microphone was not supposed to be on  it was an illegal act that was NBC. It was not supposed to be on  that was a private dressing room.

Its amazing how often a microphone can be the root of a presidential candidates troubles.

It should also be noted that Trumps complaint about his dressing room privacy being breached is particularly rich given his history of storming into the dressing rooms of teenage pageant contestants, some as young as 15 years old.

When asked by OReilly if he would take legal action against NBCs role in uncovering and releasing the tape, Trump said, Youll see.

All of this comes after Trump recently promised to sue the growing number of women who have come forward saying that they were sexually assaulted by him.

Trump also spent an absurd amount of time in the interview complaining that the media is rigged (not true), voter fraud is widespread (false), and the polls are dirty (theyre not).

Even in the right-wing safe haven that is Fox News, Donald Trump still managed to prove himself as dangerously unfit to be president.
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It was a standard day in the life of Donald Trumps presidential campaign, as the Republican nominee spent much of his time on the campaign trail Thursday making outrageous and insulting comments.

This was on clear display at a rally in Toledo, Ohio, when Trump proposed one of his most ridiculous ideas yet: Cancel the election and just anoint him president.

Video:

Trump jokes: We should just cancel the election and just give it to Trump, right? What are we even having it for? Her policies are so bad! pic.twitter.com/Stz46iDbpf  Bradd Jaffy (@BraddJaffy) October 27, 2016

Im just thinking to myself right now, we should just cancel the election and just give it to Trump, right? Trump asked the crowd. What are we even having it for?  Her policies are so bad.

Despite Trumps plea to cancel the election as he continues to struggle in the polls, it will be the voters who decide which candidate has the better policies  thankfully.

The remark also aligns closely with other recent comments in which Trump claimed the process is rigged against him, and he will only accept the outcome of the election if its favorable for him.

But Trump wasnt done at his Buckeye State rally. He also made sure to take a dig at minority communities.

Video:

Help me out there. Did Trump just say were going to work on our ghettos before mentioning inner cities, violence and African Americans? pic.twitter.com/v9KqZSLbh6  Bradd Jaffy (@BraddJaffy) October 27, 2016

Trumps comments:

Were gonna work on our ghettos  take a look at whats going on where you have pockets of, areas of land, where you have the inner cities, and you have so many things, so many problems, so many horrible, horrible problems  the violence, the death, the lack of education, no jobs. Were gonna work with the African-American community and were going to solve the problem of the inner city  You cant walk out the street. You buy a loaf of bread and you end up getting shot.

The Republican nominees ghetto comment is the newest addition to what is the standard Trump narrative that black communities are hellscapes. This particular set of remarks comes a day after he visited North Carolina for a rally and told supporters  mostly white  that he would enact a new deal for black America.

In the closing days of this election, Donald Trump is once again showing that there is no better version of who he is. The man who built a campaign on racial resentment is doubling down on it as this election season comes to a conclusion.
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It is a cruel reality of American electoral politics that the losers of presidential campaigns get banished from national discourse, and that process has already begun for Donald Trump.

Despite the fact that Trump has been claiming that the presidential election is going to be rigged, stolen, or unfair, his cries are beginning to fall on deaf ears. The latest Washington Post tracking poll found that confidence that votes will be counted correctly grew by 12 points from 31%-43%. The number of respondents who believed that voter fraud occurs somewhat often has dropped from 47%-37%, and those expressing concerns that all votes will be counted accurately dropped from 34% to 28%. Even Trump supporters are split 50%-49% on whether or not votes will be counted accurately.

Part of the shift is likely due to the effective job that President Obama did in addressing these concerns, but it is most likely that voters are treating Trump like the candidate who is going to lose the election.

One of the best indicators of a presidential elections outcome as election day draws near is the question of who voters think will win.

Hillary Clinton is dominant on the question of who voters believe will win the election, which is a hint of the way that people are voting.

The process of tuning out the losing candidate has a long history in the US two party system. Losing candidates who refuse to go away, like Sarah Palin, are viewed as annoying relics who refuse to acknowledge that their time is up.

Trumps fifteen minutes of fame on the national stage appear to be coming to an end. His words can still poison and damage our country at a cultural level, which is why he still needs to be discussed, but as far as changing minds and winning an election, it looks voters are in the process of banishing Trump from the political island.
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Democrats are closer to sending Sen. Marco Rubio to the unemployment line as a poll of Florida shows Rubio tied with his Democratic challenger Rep. Patrick Murphy.

A PPP poll of Florida found:

Candidates who have been vocal in their support for gun violence prevention perform well in Florida. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton leads Republican Donald Trump by four points (48/44), and Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Patrick Murphy is tied with Republican incumbent Sen. Marco Rubio, 46/46. By an almost two to-one

margin, 51/26, Florida voters would be more likely to vote for a candidate for U.S. Senate who supports strengthening gun laws, suggesting ample room for growth for gun safety candidates before the election next month.

The poll was conducted by PPP the Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC, and it illustrates the dilemma that the Florida Senate race has created for Democrats. Democratic leadership is divided on spending more money on expensive Florida media, but there are polls that suggest that Sen. Marco Rubios Democratic challenger, Rep. Patrick Murphy, has a chance of winning the seat.

If Rep. Murphy can beat Sen. Rubio, the defeat would likely put an end to Rubios national political career or at least force the Florida Republican to put the brakes on his plan to run for president in 2020, and instead focus on a run for governor.

Democrats have a real chance to send Marco Rubio to the unemployment line.

Rubio has been a disinterested Senator, who just like Ted Cruz, seems only interest in his Senate seat as a platform from which to launch his presidential ambitions. Rubio has provided poor service to his constituents, and doesnt deserve to return to the US Senate.

Sen. Rubio has refused to commit to serving his full Senate term, which should tell voters all they need to know about his commitment to them.

Democrats have a chance to solidify their potential Senate majority by sending Marco Rubio home. With cash to spend and less than two weeks left in the campaign, theyd be foolish not to take it.
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During a debate between Rep. Tammy Duckworth and Sen. Mark Kirk (R-IL) for his U.S. Senate seat in Springfield, Illinois, Kirk mocked Duckworths ancestry, saying in rebuttal of her comments on the true cost of war,

I had forgotten that your parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington.

His remark came in response to her statement that, My family has served this nation in uniform going back to the Revolution. I am a Daughter of the American Revolution.

Watch courtesy of Deadspin:

Senator Mark Kirk mocks disabled Iraq war vet Tammy Duckworth in debate for her mixed-race heritage: https://t.co/3Znpd2Uvfq pic.twitter.com/cpWYBKri4l  Deadspin (@Deadspin) October 28, 2016

Kirk, of course, has claimed to receive military honors he did not, in fact, receive. For him to attack Duckworth is not only the height of hypocrisy but mocking her ancestry is appalling.

The Republican position, as restated here by Kirk, is that its okay to come from another country as long as youre white. Neither Kirk nor his campaign has apologized. Kirk has said Trump should quit over his misogynist comments; apparently, its okay to make racist comments.

When Duckworth said her family had served since the American Revolution, she wasnt joking, and she set Kirk straight in a tweet:

My mom is an immigrant and my dad and his family have served this nation in uniform since the Revolution #ILSEN pic.twitter.com/ehEBHswFMs  Tammy Duckworth (@TammyforIL) October 28, 2016

The Illinois senator has unendorsed Donald Trump, one malignant clown calling another a malignant clown, and this latest move has given Kellyanne Conway a rare opportunity to gloat, tweeting,

The same Mark Kirk that unendorsed his party's presidential nominee and called him out in paid ads? Gotcha. Good luck. https://t.co/IV7miL317s  Kellyanne Conway (@KellyannePolls) October 28, 2016

With a single sentence, Mark Kirk proved you dont have to support Donald Trump to be a deplorable.

Photo: Screen Capture
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Pizza has been a constant in Brian Kesslers life, from the time he got a job in a pizzeria as a teenager until the day he met his wife in a pizza joint. Read moreIggy's Pizza Shop is now open in Mount Pleasant
The newly released results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, commonly known as the nations report card, showed South Carolina performed in line with the national average in most major academic benchmarks. Read moreOn national report card, SC holds steady while other states fall
EL Education CEO says a hotel employee recorded audio of an employee for the nonprofit that works in several SC school districts, mentioning both Lexington County and critical race theory, but someone spliced together the audio in a deceptive way to create a false political controversy. Read moreFox News used 'false and crudely edited' audio to target SC schools, nonprofit CEO says
This month will mark the 83rd anniversary of the Soviet Union's attack on Finland in November 1939, when the Soviet Goliath pounced on the neighboring David. It started a conflict that became one of the most intensely brutal engagements of the Second World War, much of it in temperatures 30  Read moreCommentary: Are Russian leaders headed for another winter war?
RICHMOND, Va.  Altria, the maker of Marlboro cigarettes, said Thursday that it will close manufacturing facilities in Pennsylvania and Illinois by early 2018, affecting about 580 workers.

The company said about 200 jobs in different states will be available for those workers, if they choose to transfer. Altria did not say how many workers it expects to lay off. Full-time workers that do not transfer will be given a minimum of six months of severance, in addition to benefits and free job training, a spokesman said.

One of the closing facilities, in Limerick, Pennsylvania, has 280 workers and makes Black & Mild cigars, Middleton's Cherry Blend pipe tobacco and other products. The other facility in Franklin Park, Illinois, has 300 workers and makes Copenhagen, Skoal and other smokeless tobacco products. Operations at those facilities will be moved to manufacturing sites in Richmond, Virginia, where Altria is headquartered, or another facility in Nashville, Tennessee.

Workers were told about the closures Thursday morning, an Altria spokesman said.

The closures are expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2018 and would save Altria about $50 million by the end of that year.

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The announcement came as Altria, which also makes Virginia Slims and Parliament cigarettes, reported a 29 percent drop in profit for its most recent quarter, but its adjusted earnings still beat expectations. It reported net income of $1.09 billion, or 56 cents per share, in the three months ending Sept. 30, compared with $1.53 billion, or 78 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.
WINONA  A former social worker for Winona County will make her initial appearance court appearance Thursday, accused of sexually assaulting a boy under the age of 16.

Annette Marie Vieth, 47, was charged last month with eight felony counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct. According to the charging document, she held a position of authority over the victim as defined by Minnesota law.

The Olmsted County Attorney's office is handling the case because of Vieth's former relationship with Winona County.

The investigation began in March, when the victim reported to a therapist that he and Vieth had had sexual contact from fall 2015 until late December or early January, the complaint says.

Though the first contact occurred in Wisconsin, the other incidents took place in the boy's home in Winona County, court documents say.

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Investigators reviewed a recorded conversation between Vieth and the boy. During the recordings, Vieth allegedly confirms every incident of sexual assault, including the approximate dates, times, locations and circumstances.

Each count is punishable by up to 30 years in prison, a $40,000 fine, or both. Vieth remains free on her own recognizance.
A couple arrested Tuesday afternoon after running from police both made a first appearance Thursday in Olmsted County District Court.

Tyler Benjamin Batson, 31, has been charged with two counts of second-degree controlled substance sale, three counts of third-degree controlled substance crime and one count of fourth-degree controlled substance sale, all felonies.

He remains in custody in lieu of $200,000 unconditional bond and is due back in court Nov. 8.

Delsie Delight Medrano, 24, faces one count each of fleeing a peace officer in a motor vehicle, aiding an offender to evade arrest, third-degree controlled substance possession and ffith-degree controlled substance possession. All are felonies.

Medrano is in custody in lieu of $2,500 conditional bail and is due in court Nov. 9.

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The incident began about 4 p.m. Tuesday, when members of the Rochester Police Street Crimes Unit spotted Batson riding in a vehicle near Park Lane and Marion Road Southeast.

They knew he was wanted on a parole violation, said Capt. John Sherwin, and attempted to block in the vehicle. Medrano, who was driving, drove around the officers' cars and fled down Park Lane, the report says.

Authorities lost sight of the vehicle, Sherwin said, but Medrano apparently hit the curb at Marion Road, which flattened a tire and caused the airbags to deploy.

Batson ran from the scene, and was caught near the Homestead Motel. A search of Batson and the car he was riding in allegedly turned up more than 10 grams of methamphetamine; he was also carrying $1,400 in cash.

Batson was sentenced March 18 in Goodhue County District Court to 24 months in prison for felony fifth-degree drug possession. He was given credit for 166 days already served. It's unclear when he was released.
A Red Wing man accused of assaulting a woman in a Rochester home has been sentenced to a year of probation.

Robert Norman Adler, 68, was charged in Olmsted County District Court with one count of felony second-degree assault and gross misdemeanor counts of domestic assault and violation of a domestic abuse-no contact order.

He pleaded guilty Thursday to the violation of the order; in exchange, the two other charges were dismissed.

Adler was immediately sentenced to probation and ordered to undergo a domestic abuse evaluation, but was given no jail time.

The case began Sept. 10, when Rochester police officers were sent to a report of a domestic assault; when they arrived, people at the residence directed the officers to the basement. As they approached, they heard a female say, "I want to go upstairs" and "don't hit me again," the complaint says.

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Adler was standing at the bottom of the stairs, blocking the exit. He told officers he and the woman had been arguing, and he reportedly admitted there was a no-contact order in effect.

The woman said Adler was preventing her from going upstairs; he hadn't hit her, she said, but did display a knife during the argument.

Two witnesses in the home corroborated the victim's story, court documents say, one of them adding that he'd seen Adler kick the woman and the other reporting she saw Adler with his hands around the victim's neck.

Adler has another domestic assault case pending in Goodhue County; he was charged with a gross misdemeanor in that court on Aug. 23.

In addition to the two active cases, Adler's criminal history reflects a July conviction for misdemeanor fifth-degree assault.
RED WING  An area man convicted of sexually assaulting a young girl was sentenced last week to two years in jail, but he'll likely be out in May.

An 11-year prison term for Dana Lee Barnett, 30, of Red Wing, was stayed for 25 years.

He was charged in January with four counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct, two counts of possession of child pornography and one count of domestic assault, all felonies, as well as one count each of misdemeanor domestic assault and providing liquor to someone under 21, a gross misdemeanor.

Barnett pleaded guilty Oct. 21 to one of the criminal sexual conduct charges, one of the pornography charges and the felony domestic assault charge. The sexual conduct and domestic assault sentences  365 days and 180 days in jail, respectively, will be served concurrently, with credit for 278 days already served.

The 365-day jail term for the pornography conviction will run consecutively.

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Offenders in Minnesota are required to complete two-thirds of their sentence, effectively rendering the concurrent term complete, leaving Barnett to serve about 240 days in jail. In addition to the jail time and stayed prison term, he was ordered to complete a psychological-sexual evaluation, chemical dependency evaluation/treatment, a domestic abuse evaluation, have no contact with minors and register as a predatory offender.

The investigation began in January, when the victim told friends at school that Barnett had sexually assaulted her while she was drunk the night before, the complaint says. The friends told school officials, who spoke to the girl; she said only that she'd been pushed into a wall during a fight the night before.

They noted the victim had red marks on her neck, despite her story. When questioned further, the girl became "extremely upset, yelling, stating that nothing happened, that everyone needed to leave her alone," court documents say.

A female relative told investigators that she'd arrived at the girl's home about 9:30 the night before and found the victim "pretty intoxicated," crying in her bedroom. Barnett was in the bedroom with the girl, who was fully clothed but disheveled, and kept repeating, "I don't know what's going on."

The woman said Barnett was also drunk and admitted that he'd provided the girl with "shots" of rum. Eventually, the victim told officers, "I was choked," and Barnett made her drink shots of alcohol. A physical exam noted bruising on her neck and along her upper jaw line. A sexual assault exam was also performed at Children's Hospital in St. Paul.

When Barnett learned the girl had reported the assault, he disappeared for several days. About a week later, he spoke with detectives at the Goodhue County Law Enforcement Center.

He said the night of the assault, the girl had taken drinks of his rum without his knowledge, but admitted he'd caused the marks on her neck. Barnett claimed he grabbed her by the back of her neck, then put his hands around her neck to control her because she'd been acting "spastic" and "eccentric," and had threatened him.

Barnett then told a long, disjointed story about the night's events. He claimed the girl had wet her pants during their struggle, so he took off her jeans and dressed her in a pair of sweatpants. The victim, he said, "was scared. She was drunk. She didn't know what was going on."

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Barnett denied having sex with her, then said he's an alcoholic and the girl had bribed him in the past, threatening to tell people he drinks unless he gave her money. That night, he claimed, the victim threatened to tell people at school that he rapes and molests her, and that's when he grabbed her neck and choked her.

Confronted about being in the girl's bedroom, Barnett said he'd given her "a bare bottom spanking," but didn't want other children in the home to see him do it.

When asked if his DNA would be on the child's clothing, Barnett admitted he has a sexual fetish for underwear, including those of young girls. A woman who lived with Barnett said she'd caught him masturbating with underwear several times.

When he went on the run after the sexual assault, he took a duffel bag with his clothing, a laptop and a plastic bag of panties, including 11 that belonged to the victim and one belonging to an 8-year-old girl.

A forensic analysis of the laptop revealed several thousand images of minors in engaging in sexual acts.

The results of the victim's sexual assault kit found Barnett's seminal fluid in and on the child's genitals.
The House District 28A race features a rematch between longtime DFL Rep. Gene Pelowski and Republican Adam Pace.

The two candidates faced off the first time in 2012. Pelowski defeated Pace, winning 67 percent of the vote.

Pelowski, of Winona, first was elected to the Minnesota House in 1986. The retired educator said he wants to return to St. Paul because he believes strongly in the importance of public service.

"I taught American government for 37 years; I am an adviser to the Winona Model Legislature," he said. "One of the things we teach is public service, participation, making sure we put something back. If I'm going to teach the students that for four decades, I think I should also practice that."

Pace did not respond to a Post Bulletin request for an interview.

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If re-elected, Pelowski said the Legislature's first order of business should be passing the tax bill and $1 billion public works bill that had broad bipartisan support. He said the tax bill had several good provisions in it, including one that would provide property tax relief to farmers that live in school districts with construction levies.

"I think that would have solved a lot of problems across greater Minnesota when school districts are trying to pass referendums," he said.

The Winona Democrat also is passionate about reforming the legislative process. In 2007 and 2008, when he was chairman of the House Government Operations and Reform Committee, he held a series of hearings on reforming the process. Those hearings led to a report with several recommendations.

Some of those recommendations include prohibiting legislative committee hearings and floor sessions from going past midnight. Another idea would be to require budget targets be released as early as possible to committees tasked with putting together budget bills so they can get to work right away. Pelowski also would like to see these budget committees focus their hearings on understanding the budgets instead of hearing lawmakers' bills.

Also of concern to Pelowski is the sheer number of bills being introduced. He said he is open to the idea of limiting the number of bills lawmakers can introduce.

"We had over 4,000 bills put in in 2015-16. We had members who were putting over 100 bills in," he said. "You then turn the fiscal committees into some perverse version of Groundhog Day where we're hearing the same bill but there's a different author."

House District 28A: Gene Pelowski

House District 28A: Adam Pace
In the Senate District 28 race, Sen. Jeremy Miller touts his experience and willingness to work across the aisle, while rival Jon Pieper contends the incumbent hasn't been the engaged senator the region deserves.

Miller first was elected to the Minnesota Senate in 2010. The Winona Republican said during his six years in office, he has proven he can get things done. That includes working on legislation at the Capitol to fight deadly synthetic drugs and helping to establish a state veterans cemetery in Preston.

"Any legislator can introduce a bill, but it takes a majority of legislators to pass a bill and a governor's signature in order for a bill to become law. So it's very much a team effort. You have to be willing to work together," he said.

Pieper said he originally was planning to run for the Minnesota House but changed his mind and decided to run against Miller when he found out the senator missed 28 percent of the Senate's roll-call votes in 2015.

"That was probably the main reason I decided to run for the Senate instead of the House was to get a full-time senator instead of a part-time senator," the Lanesboro Democrat said.

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Rising health insurance costs

While both Miller and Pieper agree that rising health insurance costs in Minnesota's individual market are a problem, they offer different approaches to trying to fix it. Miller said he would support passing tax credits to help ease the burden consumers face. He backs the idea of creating co-ops where farmers could purchase insurance. He also wants lawmakers to seek a waiver from the federal government to reduce the number of geographic rating areas in the state. Right now, the state is carved into nine areas, and Southeast Minnesota has the highest insurance rates.

"If we could expand that region and make it bigger, we could help lower the costs in Southeast Minnesota," he said.

While some fellow Republicans are arguing the state should scrap the state's health insurance exchange, MNsure, and move to the federal exchange, Miller is hesitant. He said all ideas should be on the table, but he doesn't think axing MNsure "is the best solution."

As a small business owner, Pieper said he is among the 5 percent of Minnesotans who have to buy health insurance in the costly individual market. To try to help provide relief, he said there needs to be a pool created for those consumers to help bring down costs. He also supports the idea of expanding eligibility for MinnesotaCare, which helps provide health insurance to low-income Minnesotans. He doesn't see the benefit of getting rid of MNsure because it will not do anything to address rising health insurance costs.

"It doesn't fix the problem," he said.

Funding transportation

Miller and Pieper also agree it is critical state lawmakers pass a long-term transportation funding plan. Miller said he supports the idea of redirecting existing sales taxes on auto-related items to help fund road upgrades. He also likes the idea of using surplus dollars and bonding to fund transportation. He is not a fan of raising the gas tax because he said it is becoming a less reliable source of funding as vehicles become more fuel efficient.

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"After speaking with constituents here in southeastern Minnesota, the gas tax does not have a lot of support because it's not a long-term, sustainable funding solution," Miller said.

Pieper also opposes increasing the gas tax, arguing it is regressive and especially hurts people who live in rural areas who often have to drive longer distances. He supports raising license tab fees and redirected sales tax on auto-related items to transportation. He opposes earmarking bonding dollars for specific transportation projects. Instead, he said lawmakers should rely on the experts at the Minnesota Department of Transportation to prioritize needed projects.

He added, "I don't think legislators are structural engineers  at least I'm not. I don't know what bridges should be replaced first."

Senate District 28: Jeremy Miller

Senate District 28: Jon Pieper
AUSTIN  Mayo Clinic Health System is "working to balance services" on its Austin and Albert Lea campuses, a Mayo spokeswoman confirmed today amid reports of changes underway.

Mayo spokeswoman Tami Yokiel responded to a Post-Bulletin request for information on reports of a major announcement at the facilities today.

"Mayo Clinic Health System in Albert Lea and Austin is a single practice with two campuses," Yokiel said by email. "MCHS leaders in Albert Lea and Austin are working to balance services on both campuses to ensure patients can continue to receive care close to home. We are not closing either campus." No other information was provided. Other Mayo officials contacted by the Post Bulletin also had no information on the reports.

Austin City Council member Steve King told the Post Bulletin today he's heard of no changes at Mayo's Austin medical center, nor had Austin Chamber of Commerce President Sandy Forstner. Mayor Tom Stiehm did not immediately respond to phone calls.
Minnesota Senate District 27 has grown since Sen. Dan Sparks took office in 2003, setting up the challenge from Hayfield Republican Gene Dornink.

Prior to redistricting in 2012, the district was composed of Mower and Freeborn counties.

Changes spurred by population shifts gave Sparks added portions of Faribault, Steele and Dodge counties, including Hayfield, offering more ground to cover.

Dornink says he's running to unseat the Austin DFLer because he hasn't been covering that ground effectively and has lost touch with the district. "He seems to favor the metro over the district," he said.

For his part, Sparks acknowledges taking a wider view of his job as a state senator. He strives to consider needs throughout the state, whether rural or urban. "If you start to pit certain areas against each other, I think it's a dangerous road to go down," he said.

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The two candidates differ in many areas. Where Dornink says he plans to limit his service to three terms because too much time in office limits connection to the district, Sparks notes his experience will put him among the 10 most-senior DFL senators and on par with some leading Republicans.

Issues

On taxes, both candidates acknowledge the merits of the unsigned tax bill, but Dornink said he's unable to define how he'd like to see the state's tax structure changed. "I'm not going to be able to answer all these questions and say I'm going to do this, that and the other," he said, noting he needs time to review some issues. "I'm a learner."

He said the bigger issue is ensuring taxes are spent efficiently.

Sparks, a new member on the Senate Tax Committee, said he plans to fix and pass the current tax bill, while seeking fairness and balance in taxes collected. "The toughest things we do is ask people to pay more," he said.

Asked about Local Government Aid, Dornink said small communities need it, but he added he needs more time to determine if it's being split properly between small cities and the metro region.

Sparks said he'd seek no changes beyond raising funds to near-2002 levels, which was part of the failed tax bill.

The candidates are equally divided on whether the state should create a driver's license for undocumented immigrants. Dornink said such an action would simply be rewarding illegal border crossing, while Sparks said the state needs to ensure drivers and the public are safe.

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Sparks' answer on the driver's license question highlights a concern we had about Dornink throughout our time with him. Sparks noted he talked about the issue with local law enforcements and court officials, in coming up with his answers.

Dornink, while repeatedly telling us he was a listener, struggled to tell us what he had been hearing. Too often, he simply said he'd need to hear more on the topic, such as the state's mental health crisis, MNsure and Local Government Aid. These are issues that have been in the headlines in recent years. We don't expect candidates to have all the answers, but we do hope they have something to say on key subjects as they campaign.

Backgrounds

We have no doubt that Dornink is well-voiced in issues connected to his experiences. Growing up on a dairy farm offers insight into farm concerns, and working as a union carpenter and owning his own business, Gene Dornink Carpentry, allows insight to some business and labor concerns.

Sparks offers a similarly diverse background. While a generation removed from his grandfather's farm, he said childhood visits have influenced him. After college, he worked for Hormel in Austin before transitioning to real estate and eventually banking, providing contact with small-business owners.

Since Dornink says he's running for the Senate to be a public servant, it's impossible to ignore the fact that he lacks experience in local public service. He cites working two jobs and raising 12 children as a barrier to community involvement beyond being a former chairman of the Dodge County Republicans and a 2012 national party delegate.

However, many issues on the state level stem from the local level, and local issues are affected by state decisions. That makes local involvement an important factor for a state legislator, who needs to build bridges.

Sparks has been a proven voice for consensus building. A member of the I-90 Coalition and the Purple Caucus, he has worked to find common ground on regional and state issues. As he rises to a level of leadership in the Senate and his caucus, we expect he will be able to influence change by pushing for more transparency in the legislative process.

ADVERTISEMENT

That is why the Post Bulletin Editorial Board endorses Dan Sparks in Senate District 27.



Learn more

The Post Bulletin Editorial Board endorsements are offered to provide one view of candidates for local and regional offices.

We encourage you to do your own research as you get ready to vote.

To find out more about the candidates in Minnesota Senate District 27, visit their websites:

 Dan Sparks

www.dansparksforsenate.com

 Gene Dornink

dorninkforsenate.com

For information on polling places and sample ballots, visit the Minnesota Secretary of State website at www.sos.state.mn.us.

Upcoming endorsements:

Saturday

Minnesota House, District 28B

Greg Davids vs. Thomas Trehus

Minnesota Senate, District 28

Jeremy Miller vs. John Pieper

Monday

U.S. House, First District

Tim Walz vs. Jim Hagedorn

U.S. House, Second District

Angie Craig vs. Jason Lewis

Endorsements published:

Oct. 10: Olmsted County Board, District 3

Oct. 11: Olmsted County Board, District 7

Oct. 12: Rochester City Council, Ward 2

Oct. 13: Rochester City Council, Ward 4

Oct. 14; Rochester City Council, Ward 6

Oct. 15: Rochester City Council president

Oct. 17: Rochester School Board, Seat 1

Oct. 18: Rochester School Board, Seat 3

Oct. 19: Rochester School Board, Seat 7

Oct. 20: Minnesota House, districts 21A and 21B

Oct. 21: Minnesota Senate, District 21

Oct. 22: Minnesota House, districts 25A and 25B

Oct. 24: Minnesota Senate, District 25

Oct. 25: Minnesota House, districts 26A and 26B

Oct. 26: Minnesota Senate, District 26

Oct. 27: Minnesota House, districts 27A and 27B

Past endorsements are online at postbulletin.com/opinion
It seems to be a closely guarded secret, but preparations for war are going on in Europe. A Russian fleet that includes that countrys only aircraft carrier made a point of sailing through the English Channel and along the European coast en route to Syria. Nuclear-capable Russian ships are making a demonstration in the Baltic Sea, and Russian troops, reportedly equipped with nuclear weapons, have moved near Russias borders with Poland and Lithuania. In response, NATO countries are hurrying troops and ships into the potential war zone.

Traditionally, this would have been considered important news. But dont try to tell that to the New York Times. This is what the Times had above the fold today; its all Trump, all the time:

The Times is 100% focused on the real enemy, Republicans. The plebeian Daily Mail, on the other hand, is all over the European crisis:

Russias military escalation on Europes border has triggered the Wests biggest show of force in the region since the Cold War as Nato continues to square up to Vladimir Putin. Britain is to deploy troops, tanks and jets to Estonia to deter Russian aggression while UK and Romanian forces will also join a US battalion in Poland. As part of the biggest military build-up in Eastern Europe since the Cold War, RAF planes are also being dispatched to patrol Romanian airspace for the first time. The moves are designed to stop Moscow taking over or undermining its former Eastern European satellites as it has with Crimea and Ukraine. The US is hoping for European nations to fill four battle groups of some 4,000 troops as part of Natos response to Russia. More troops will be sent to the Baltic states and eastern Poland early next year. They will be backed by Natos 40,000-strong rapid reaction force. France, Denmark, Italy and other allies are expected to join the four battle groups led by the United States, Germany, Britain and Canada to go to Poland, Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia, with forces ranging from armoured infantry to drones. It comes after Russia unveiled pictures of its largest ever nuclear missile  Satan 2  which is capable of obliterating the UK.

The Daily Mail adds this helpful illustration. Click to enlarge:

The background to the current crisis is NATOs expansion into Eastern Europe, including the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. This expansion was carried out while NATOs military capabilities were declining, creating the potential for dangerous miscalculation. Russia views NATOs expansion as an aggressive poke in the eye, while at the same time being acutely aware of the relative weakness of Western Europe.

Barack Obama has drawn a red line in the region, assuring Vladimir Putin that the U.S. will fulfill its commitments under Article 5 of the NATO treaty and fight for the Baltic states:

I say to the people of Estonia and the people of the Baltics, today we are bound by our treaty alliance. We have a solemn duty to each other. Article 5 is crystal clear: An attack on one is an attack on all. So if, in such a moment, you ever ask again, who will come to help, youll know the answer  the NATO alliance, including the Armed Forces of the United States of America, right here, [at] present, now! (Applause.) Well be here for Estonia. We will be here for Latvia. We will be here for Lithuania. You lost your independence once before. With NATO, you will never lose it again.

You know, and I know, that Obama didnt mean a word of it. He wouldnt fight for Chicago, let alone Vilnius. But if Putin calls his bluff and invades the Baltic countries, killing some British, American and other NATO troops in the process, we could be looking at World War III.

Do I think it will happen? No, probably not. On the other hand, can I rule out the possibility that Putin might decide to take advantage of the last months of an incredibly inept U.S. president by making a decisive move in Europe? No, I cant.

The American news industry is a disgrace. Instead of serious coverage of the growing crisis in Europe (and, also, in Syriawhere Russia now has an aircraft carrier poised for actionand elsewhere) we get absurd daily updates on women to whom Donald Trump allegedly made a rude remark 15 years ago. The incompetence of our news media parallels the incompetence of the Obama administrationno surprise, since we are basically talking about the same people.

Glenn Reynolds made a similar point in his most recent USA Today column. Glenn notes the many important issues that are getting little attention in the press, which, determined to elect Hillary Clinton at all costs, obsesses on Donald Trumps sex life:

ObamaCare is imploding because the original concept was unworkable, as many critics argued at the time it was adopted. Now, several years later, insurers are abandoning the project and Americans premiums are facing double-digit increases. Given that this was President Obamas signature legislative achievement, and given that Clinton is running, essentially, on the promise of a third Obama term, youd think this would be a top story in the news, getting the full-bore coverage every day that, say, a groping allegation against Donald Trump receives. But youd be wrong. As Twitter humorist Jim Treacher says, Modern journalism is all about deciding which facts the public shouldnt know because they might reflect badly on Democrats.

***

Corruption, unaffordable healthcare, a burgeoning national debt: These are all things that will have serious consequences for Americans for decades, to come. In a healthier society, our election would turn on these issues. But we do not live in such a society. And that suits politicians, and their supporters in the press, just fine.

Important events are occurring that have nothing to do with smearing Donald Trump. But dont count on your newspaper or on network television to report on them.
PR-Inside.com: 2016-10-28 08:09:01

Tikkurila Oyj

Stock Exchange Release

October 28, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. (CET+1)

Tikkurila's Business Review for January-September 2016

Tikkurila's revenue for the third quarter decreased by 5.9 percent to EUR 158.0 million (7-9/2015: EUR 168.0 million). Adjusted operating profit totaled EUR 23.7 (26.0) million, i.e. 15.0 (15.5) percent of revenue.

"The third quarter was disappointing after the strong second quarter. Sales volumes decreased in Russia and Finland during the third quarter. In Russia, the markets were weighed down by low purchasing power among consumers, while the wet summer reduced demand for paint in Finland. In addition, unfavorable changes in the exchange rates and divestments had a negative impact on revenue. Profitability was weakened throughout the Group by the decline in revenue and by higher sales and marketing investments in SBU West. In SBU East, profitability improved compared to the comparison period due to the more favorable development of the ruble.

Our goal is to increase our presence in the new building market and industrial coatings business. We will adjust costs to reflect the market conditions. However, we will continue our strong efforts in sales and marketing activities, and also boost product development," says Erkki Jarvinen, President and CEO.

Revenue for January-September decreased by 2.7 percent to EUR 467.8 million (1-9/2015: EUR 480.7 million). Adjusted operating profit totaled EUR 64.6 (70.0) million, i.e. 13.8 (14.6) percent of revenue.

Key figures (EUR million) 7-9/2016 7-9/2015 Change % 1-9/2016 1-9/2015 Change % Group data Revenue 158.0 168.0 -5.9% 467.8 480.7 -2.7% Adjusted operating profit 23.7 26.0 -9.1% 64.6 70.0 -7.7% Adjusted operating profit margin, % 15.0% 15.5% 13.8% 14.6% EPS, EUR 0.43 0.37 16.3% 1.19 1.19 0.3% Net Interest-bearing liabilities

(at period-end)



64.1



46.8



37.0% 64.1 46.8 37.0% Total equity (at period-end) 211.5 208.3 1.5% 211.5 208.3 1.5% Total assets (at period-end) 451.0 452.5 -0.3% 451.0 452.5 -0.3% Segment data SBU West revenue 104.9 108.7 -3.5% 328.0 327.2 0.2% SBU West adjusted operating profit 18.5 21.8 -15.2% 55.0 59.0 -6.8% SBU East revenue 53.2 59.3 -10.3% 139.8 153.5 -8.9% SBU East adjusted operating profit 6.1 5.0 21.3% 13.1 14.9 -12.7% Revenue by country Sweden 39.4 41.5 -5.0% 124.2 123.5 0.6% Russia 37.5 40.6 -7.6% 94.6 105.5 -10.4% Finland 23.2 25.3 -8.4% 85.3 86.0 -0.7% Poland 20.8 20.1 3.7% 57.1 56.0 1.9%

Financial development in July-September 2016

Tikkurila Group's revenue decreased in the third quarter of 2016 due to divestments, weak foreign exchange rates and lower sales volumes. Lower sales volumes decreased revenue by 2 percent. Sales price increases that were conducted in Russia at the beginning of the year had a positive effect on revenue.

Profitability was weakened by the decrease in revenue and higher sales and marketing expenses in the west.

A reduction in net financial expenses, due to realized and unrealized exchange rate differences, improved the result for the period. The most significant improvement was related to the ruble denominated items.

Financial development in January-September 2016

Tikkurila Group's revenue decreased in January-September 2016 due to weak foreign exchange rates and divestments. Higher sales volumes increased revenue by one percent. Sales price increases had a positive effect on revenue.

Profitability was weakened by the decrease in revenue, raw material costs that were higher in Russia due to the weak ruble, as well as sales and marketing expenses that were higher than in the comparison period.

Guidance for 2016 intact

Tikkurila expects its revenue for the financial year 2016, with exchange rates as of the publication date of the financial statement release, to be at the same level as in 2015. Adjusted operating profit is expected to stay at 2015 level.



Tikkurila Oyj

Erkki Jarvinen, President and CEO



For further information, please contact:

Erkki Jarvinen, President and CEO

Mobile +358 400 455 913, erkki.jarvinen@tikkurila.com

Jukka Havia, CFO

Mobile +358 50 355 3757, jukka.havia@tikkurila.com

Minna Avellan, Director, Investor Relations and Brand Concept Development

Mobile +358 40 533 7932, minna.avellan@tikkurila.com



Tikkurila is the leading paints and coatings professional in the Nordic region and Russia. With our roots in Finland, we now operate in 16 countries. Our high-quality products and extensive services ensure the best possible user experience in the market. Sustainable beauty since 1862.

www.tikkurilagroup.com





This announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf of Nasdaq 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: Tikkurila Oyj via Globenewswire


The federal government said on Friday it has so far spent about N3.577 trillion, or 58.7 per cent of the N6.06 trillion budget approved in the 2016 Appropriation Act.

The Minister for Budget & National Planning, Udoma Udoma, said in addition to a total of N2.44 trillion so far released for capital, non-debt recurrent and service-wide vote expenditures, about N1.14 trillion, or 46.7 per cent, has been paid out to service domestic and foreign debts.

Mr. Udoma said through his spokesperson, Akpandem James, that the total N3.557 trillion released has been cash-backed.

He said this translated to a 79 per cent performance, in terms of the pro-rated budget for the three quarters up to September 30, 2016.

He explained the total expenditure included about N44billion transferred to the Sinking Fund to retire maturing obligations on bonds issued to contractors handling various projects across the country.

To date, budgeted personnel cost and debt service obligations have been fully met on schedule, Mr. Udoma said.

He said governments attention was focused on infrastructure, agriculture and other areas with high job creation potentials.

Additionally, government has done reasonably well in the challenging circumstances with respect to capital expenditures. It is noteworthy that the total amount of N753.6 billion already released for capital expenditure in 2016 is the highest in the nations recent history, even in the era of high oil prices.

Indeed, the capital releases to date exceed the aggregate capital expenditure budget for 2015 of N700billion, inclusive of capital expenditure in Statutory transfers.

The minister told members of the Senate Committee on Appropriation during an interactive session in Abuja on Thursday, that in spite the shortfall in revenue expectations, government was committed to its debt obligations.

Consequently, he said efforts were also made to fund critical sectors of the economy to ensure government functioned smoothly, while seeking lasting solutions to revenue shortfalls.

Although the 2016 budget was well conceived, with reasonably conservative benchmarks in terms of revenue expectations from crude oil, he explained that the country recorded unanticipated revenue shortfalls along the line, due to militant attacks on oil facilities in the oil-producing Niger Delta region.

The development, he pointed out, seriously hampered the budgeted production levels for the fiscal year.

Following the series of attacks, oil production was drastically cut from an average of 2.1 million barrels per day to about 1.1 million barrels.

The minister said government adopted a targeted approach with respect to capital expenditure to ensure releases were consistently made to finance operations in those sectors whose activities had the capacity to drive economic growth and foster job creation.
The nine Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) implementing countries in the Anglophone and Lusophone region of Africa are meeting on Abuja on Monday to plan for the implementation of beneficial ownership disclosures in oil and gas industry.

The nine English and Portuguese speaking countries in Africa include Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Mozambique, Zambia, Malawi, Ethiopia, Sao Tome en Principe and the host nation, Nigeria.

Senior government officials, oil companies, civil society, legislature and development partners are also expected to participate in the meeting.

Sponsored by the Natural Resources Governance Institute (NRGI) and the Department for International Development (DFID), the workshop is scheduled for October 31 to November 3.

NEITI spokesperson, Ogbonnaya Orji, said on Thursday the workshop would help develop strategies and a workable plan to guide member countries in their implementation of beneficial ownership disclosures.

Effective January 1, 2017, the new global EITI guidelines require all EITI-implementing countries to publish a roadmap for disclosing the beneficial owners of companies doing businesses in their extractive sectors.

The mandatory disclosure of beneficial owners of companies in implementing countries reports is a new requirement introduced by the global EITI to push the boundaries of transparency and accountability in the management of oil, gas and mining revenues to reduce poverty and support national development in member countries, Mr. Orji said.

The Executive Secretary of NEITI, Waziri Adio, said the choice of Nigeria as host confirms her huge interest to embrace the new policy.

Mr. Adio said President Muhammadu Buhari joined other world leaders to endorse the London agreement on anti-corruption requiring governments to open public registers of beneficial owners of corporate companies bidding for, operating or investing in extractive assets.

The EITI expects implementing countries to fully comply with beneficial ownership disclosures by the year 2020.
The United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, says the announcement by three African countries of their intent to withdraw from the International Criminal Court, ICC, sends a wrong message to the world.

Mr. Ki-moon was quoted as saying this in a message twitted by the United Nations radio on its official twitter account @UN-Radio on Friday.

The UN chief said that pulling out of the court undermined the commitment to justice on the part of South Africa, Gambia, and Burundi.

He said that the world had made enormous strides in the international justice system, with the ICC as its centrepiece, which had secured ground-breaking convictions.

He acknowledged that not all countries accepted its jurisdiction, and that, so far, only Africans had been convicted, in spite of evidence of crimes of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity elsewhere.

But withdrawal by the three countries would be a mistake.

I regret these steps, which could send a wrong message on these countries commitment to justice.

These challenges are best addressed not by diminishing support for the court, but by strengthening it from within, he said.

He added that deterring genocide and defending the rules of war, were too important to risk a retreat from the age of accountability that leaving the court would signify.

(NAN)
The Independent National Electoral Commission has named businessman Jimoh Ibrahim as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party for the November 26 governorship election.

Mr. Ibrahims name was posted on an INEC notice board in Akure as well as on the commissions website.

This implies that until a superior court gives a contrary judgment, Eyitayo Jegede, the candidate of the Ahmed Makarfi-led faction of the PDP will not be accepted as the partys candidate.

A court order from an the Ondo State High Court on Wednesday restrained INEC from recognizing Mr. Ibrahim as the candidate of the PDP pending the determination of the substantive suit before the court.

The Ondo State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Olusegun Agbaje, however, told PREMIUM TIMES on Thursday night that Mr. Ibrahim was approved as candidate based on an order from the Federal High Court in Abuja presided over by Justice Okon Abang.

Mr. Abang had on October 14 declared Mr. Ibrahim the true candidate of the PDP. On Thursday, Mr. Abang rejected a plea by Mr. Jegede seeking to be allowed to appeal the October 14 court judgement.

It is based on these two court rulings that INEC approved Mr. Ibrahim as the PDP candidate.

We received a court order from the High Court in Akure and that was yesterday(Wednesday), but there was a subsisting one by Justice Abang today(Thursday), that is what happened, Mr. Agbaje said.

Asked if another court order can upturn the situation, Mr. Agbaje said INEC would have no choice but to drop Mr. Ibrahim if another superior order comes in favour of Mr. Jegede.

That is why we put in front of the name court order, to show that the name was picked as a result of an order of the court, he said.

The situation will continue that way until the matter is decided by the Supreme Court if the parties choose to proceed to the apex court.

The commissioner said the politicians had brought themselves into a tight corner, noting that instead of going to the Court of Appeal, they were jumping from one high court to the other.

Now they have to go on appeal at a higher court, he said. They are the ones undoing themselves and like I said, we do not have any candidate. We will only abide by the laws guiding the process.
A day after the electoral commission, INEC, made a decision unfavourable to him and his supporters, Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State rushed to Abuja to discuss the consequence of that decision with President Muhammadu Buhari.

Mr. Mimiko expressed concern that INECs decision to drop Eyitayo Jegede for Jimoh Ibrahim as candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has the potential of endangering the peace of the state.

The governor met with Mr. Buhari at about midday on Friday to protest INECs decision which has already set the state boiling as hundreds of protesters blocked roads in Akure, the Ondo State capital.

Shortly after meeting with the President, the governor told journalists that he was shocked by the electoral commissions decision in Ondo.

INEC, acting on the order of the Federal High Court Abuja, dropped Mr. Jegede as PDP candidate and replaced him with Mr. Ibrahim as it published the final list of candidates for the election last night.

I am shocked, an angry Mr. Mimiko said. In logic, in law, in politics, there is no basis for it

whatsoever.

He questioned the order by Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja, saying the suit was about zonal and state executives of PDP.

He argued that neither Mr. Ibrahim nor Mr. Jegede was a party to the suit.

Giving details of the crisis, Mr. Mimiko said INEC took a right decision when it rejected Mr. Ibrahims name after the governorship primary organised by the Ali Sheriff faction of the PDP. Messrs Mimiko and Jegede are members of the Ahmed Makarfi-led PDP. INEC had rejected Mr. Ibrahims name as the primary, held in Ibadan, was not monitored by the electoral commission and security agencies.

There is nothing about 2016 election in that judgement. So, on the basis of this, INEC refused and discountenanced the name of Jimoh Ibrahim as a candidate, he said.

Then they went ahead and filed form 48 and from the blues, the same Justice Abang mandated INEC to replace the name of Eyitayo Jegede who emerged through a primary process that was supervised by INEC, security agencies on live television with all delegates that were supposed to participate, then Abang ordered that Jimoh Ibrahim should replace Eyitayo Jegede.

According to Mr. Mimiko, his group had gone to appeal the judgment, filed all necessary papers which should serve as a stay of execution.

We didnt want to take chances because somebody in INEC told us that they obey the last order in the commission.

Some went to court and obtained two different orders mandating INEC not to substitute Eyitayo Jegede. We served one on INEC around 10 a.m. yesterday (Thursday), and we served INEC with the other one at the close of business around 3 p.m.

Only around 7 or 8 pm, we got to know that INEC for no justifiable reason had substituted the name of Jegede and replaced it with that of Ibrahim.

The governor argued that the commission had no basis for accepting Mr. Ibrahim given the circumstances under which he emerged and in the face of two retraining orders.

He said the time for substitution of candidates had elapsed going by the electoral time table.

Mr. Mimiko said INECs action could potentially cause a breach of peace.

In Ondo State in the last seven and half years, we have done everything possible to put good governance on the table, said Mr. Mimiko. We see this action as potentially dangerous.

It can cause conflagration in the state and that is why as the chief security officer of the state, I have come to alert Mr. President of the potential danger of this injustice so that we can nip it in the bud.

He said he was assured by the President that the matter would be looked into. He said Mr. Buhari promised to address any injustice.

The whole day from 5a.m., I have been on phone with stakeholders to ensure they keep the peace in the state, he said while speaking on the Friday protests by residents

The extent of the protest you have seen has been reduced by our intervention to ensure that there is no breach of peace. For the people of the state, it is just from the blues.

I have assured them that this injustice will not stay. We will continue to explore all avenues to make INEC see reasons why this impunity must not stand.

Asked if he still had confidence in INEC to conduct credible elections, Mr. Mimiko replied: If INEC finds it difficult to obey court order, a credible election starts with a process like this.
Nigerias minister of health, Isaac Adewole, speaks on various efforts by his ministry to improve health care delivery. He was interviewed by NAN editor-in-chief, Lawal Ado.

On free surgeries

Minister: We are providing free 10, 000 surgeries for poor and indigent Nigerians all over the federation and of these we will also do repair of fistula. In fact I have interviewed one of them in Maiduguri and asked him to show appreciation to Mr. President who provided the resources for the program. The one in Maiduguri is hernia and the one in national hospital is VVF.

We have a large number of VVF patients nationwide. We have close to 150, 000 cases. It is a lot. We are working with our international partners to help the victims.

Fortunately government in the past had set up three VVF hospitals. We want to add two more and when we add two more that means we can be able to do more.

I have also directed all CMDs to take up more staff specifically to do the VVF repair so that we can clear the backlog.



Q: Where will the two centres be located?

Minister: One will be located in Ibadan. We are looking at either Ilorin or Port Harcourt for the fifth centre. At the moment, there is one in Ningi, Bauchi State, Babanruga in Katsina and there is one in Abakaliki.

That is not to say those are the only places where it can be done. Any of our teaching hospitals does VVF, once there is a gynaecologist.

Q: Recently cancer, especially breast and cervical, has been ravaging Nigerians. What is the government doing on this problem?

Due to my interest in cancer, the cancer burden is of concern to me. The first thing we want to do is to revise the National Cancer Plan. We are also setting up a steering committee, which I will also chair.

I agree cancer is a major problem and it is increasing. As people grow older, more people will have cancer, because those cell divisions that take place in our system grow abnormal.

What is important for us to do is to increase awareness. Thats why we are working with the media. If we increase awareness many of those things that are indicative of early cancer will make people to go to hospital and get treatment.

Most cancers can be treated if presented early. But people dont come for treatment early. Someone close to me has breast cancer. She said she does not want the breast to be removed and I told her that when the breast cancer starts smelling you will hate yourself.

On cervical cancer; fortunately we now know what causes it.

There is a vaccine now that prevents the disease and we are working to make the vaccine available. We are training more people for the detection of the cancer of the cervix. Much more important also in our 2017 budget we want to upgrade seven more centres for the treatment of cancer.

As we are talking today, there is no public hospital in Nigeria that has cancer treatment machine that is working.

Ideally we need one machine per one million people. Going by that, Nigeria should have about 200 cancer treatment machines. We have seven but none of the seven machines is working today.

But in the 2017 budget, we will ensure that each of the seven centres has two machines which means one will be a backup.

We will upgrade Maiduguri, Zaria, Ilorin, the National Hospital, Abuja, Ibadan, Benin and Enugu in the first phase.

We are likely to get a private sector organisation to help with the National Hospital; in fact we may sign the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) this month.

If we take National Hospital out, we will go to Sokoto. Gombe is waiting. Jos will be in the second round.

I got a grant some years back to set up six centres of excellence. I put one in Jos, and I can tell you that Jos is one of the best. They have done better than Ibadan.

The government is committed to making sure that we have the facilities to handle cancer cases.

Q: Is the theory that cancer is connected with the genetically modified food correct?

Minister: We do not have accurate knowledge as to what causes cancer. Let me give you simple analogy, if you have ten people who fall from a building, not all of them will die. One will break his leg, some may have scratches etc. That is the same thing with cancer.

When you expose everybody to the same problem, not everybody will develop cancer. So, the body immunity also matters.

Cervical cancer is also caused by virus. By the age of 20 years to 25 years almost all women who have had sex before will have cervical cancer virus.

When you give them another three to four years, the virus will disappear, the immunity would have cleared it. But you have some women, less than five per cent, who would not be able to clear the virus because of the body system.

Its these few people who are unable to clear the virus in their system that develop cancer in future. We should be careful with the way we handle GMO because GMO is an attempt to address the problem of hunger, better variety of food. And whether we like it or not, we need better variety.

Q: What is the link of sugar consumption to the problem of cancer?

Minister: None.

Q: Research says sugar worsens cancer cases, is it true?

Minister: Too much of sugar on cancer is just like too much of carbohydrate. When one is predisposed, it leads to diabetes. But then if one exercises well, it will go.

There are some people no matter what they take, they would not grow fat and some will take little and yet they grow fat. So it is not sugar alone, it is carbohydrate, because whether you take garri, pounded yam or amala, they end up to be sugar in the body.

Q: The country is losing a lot in foreign exchange on medical tourism. What is the government doing on the issue?

Minister: Every day we get between two and five requests for foreign medical treatment. Initially they were asking for permission. But because I will say no, let them go to this or that hospital, they are now asking for refund, after they have gone and come back. Each case is about 10 to 11 million Naira.

The solution is for us to upgrade our facilities , which we are working on. Those seven facilities which will be upgraded are not for cancer alone. We will ensure that they function well.

I am also talking to Central Bank and the Sovereign Wealth Investment Authority on the need to save foreign exchange. The cost is not just for the sick person. When they go to India, India will insist that the person must have treatment partner; somebody else is also going and that person will stay in the hotel, eat, fly and pay transport. The burden is very huge on us.

The solution is for us to upgrade our facilities. When we upgrade them, we will stop many people. But we also need to sanitize some elements of corruption.

Some doctors are eager to refer. There was one I sent to UCH. UCH did it. Its cerebral aneurysm. So many cases can be done here. That is the truth.

Q: Recently there was transplant of bone-marrow in Benin. Is it only Benin that has the facilities?

Minister: It is only Benin that is a step ahead and we want to encourage many more to be able to do marrow transplant. But it is Benin that has taken the lead and we are encouraging as many of them that want to come into this area because it can lead to the cure of so many ailments including sickle cell. The way it is, is that you can harvest the marrow. When you harvest it, you are killing the cancer cells. So when the cancer is gone you take back the marrow. We are also doing open heart surgery in our country.

Q: Where ?

Minister: Many of our facilities are doing it now. It is a question of the facility and people around. Even as we are speaking , there are Nigerians going for cancer treatment in Ghana. But the machine broke down last week.

But we are upgrading our facilities and training some people. Our population is big, that is why if Ghana should have one machine, you can imagine how many we need to have.

Q: Any message for Nigerians on polio now?

Minister: Mr. President actually is like a prophet. He said we should expect challenges, on polio when I met him. He said he knew polio will come, because these are children. Many of them have no access to medical treatment.

But we are committed to what we are doing. With the partners we have, Nigeria will be polio free in 2017.
President Muhammadu Buhari has congratulated senior lawyer, educationist and philanthropist, Afe Babalola, as he turns 85 on October 30, 2016.

President Buhari joined members of Aare Babalolas family, close associates, professional colleagues and the academia in celebrating Mr. Babalolas achievements.

The president reaffirms that the legal luminarys lifestyle exemplifies discipline, diligence, honesty and wisdom, virtues he employed from childhood to succeed against the vicissitudes of poverty and deprivation, and climbed steadily to reach the pinnacle of his career as Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), a statement by presidential spokesperson, Femi Adesina, said.

As he marks his 85th birthday, President Buhari believes Aare Babalola can look back with pride at his achievements, which include the God-fearing act of always catering for the poor and under privileged, and mentoring of lawyers from his Emmanuel Chambers that have turned Senior Advocates of Nigeria and Attorneys-General and Ministers of Justice.

The President also extols the patriotism and commitment of Aare Babalola to nation building through regular counseling of leaders, representation of the Federal Government and founding of one of the best universities in Africa.
A Surulere Magistrates Court in Lagos on Friday granted N100,000 bail each to two men, who allegedly snatched a phone worth N37,000 from a man on a motorcycle.

Magistrate Ipaye Nwachukwu granted bail to Abdulrasaki Alao, 30, and Abdulkareem Ojulari, 32, who allegedly snatched a Techno phone from Daniel Emmanuel in front the University of Lagos Teaching Hospital, Idi-Araba.

The accused had pleaded not guilty to a two-count charge of conspiracy and stealing.

According to the prosecutor, Anthonia Osayande, the accused and others still at large snatched the phone at 8.30 p.m. on October 24.

Ms. Osayande, a police sergeant, said that the accused were standing at the hospital gate along with Emmanuel, when he boarded the motorcycle.

The prosecutor said that the accused removed the phone from the complainants front pocket immediately he climbed the motorcycle.

She said that the accused then crossed to the other side of the road and sped off on another motorcycle which had been on stand-by for them.

But the bike of the complainant gave them a chase, and they were apprehended, but the phone was not recovered from them, she said.

Ms. Osayande submitted that the offences contravened Sections 285(1) and 409 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2011.



The case has been adjourned the case till November 24 for mention.

(NAN)
A South Africa-based Nigerian don, Christopher Isike, has been elected as the first black Vice President of the South African Association of Political Studies, SAAPS.

Mr. Isike, the Head of Department, Politics and International Studies, University of Zululand, Kwazulu-Natal Province of South Africa, is also the first black African to be elected into the International Political Science Association Executive Council in the last 20 years.

He told the News Agency of Nigeria at Empengeni, Kwazulu-Natal Province of South Africa on Friday, that the awards would serve as a stimulus to further rebrand the Nigerian image.

The don said that the awards were a welcome development at a time some countries often focus on the negative image of Nigeria.

The awards have shown that Nigerian academics are contributing positively in South Africa and a huge value for us in terms of rebranding the Nigerian image, he said.

Mr. Isike, a Professor of African Politics and Development, said it was an honour that those who did the nominations did not know him and only rewarded him based on merit and hard work.

The don, who is also the Chairman of Nigeria Union, Empangeni Ward, urged Nigerian scholars not to give up as hard work pays.

My message to Nigerian scholars is that they should not give up. Hard work pays. The awards are just the beginning for me.

What it tells me is that if you persevere , just keep doing the little things you are doing in the right way, it will pay-off at the end of the day, he said.

Mr. Isikes teaching and research interests revolve around the quality of womens political representation in Africa, women and peace-building on the continent as well as immigration to South Africa by Africans.

His interests also revolve around human security, human factor development in Africa as well as soft power politics and development dynamics on the continent.

(NAN)
The Court of Appeal on Friday in Abuja reserved ruling on a motion seeking to commence action against affirmation of Ali Modu Sheriff as Acting National Chairman of PDP.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Ahmed Makarfi and Ben Obi are seeking leave to appeal the June 29 decision of the Federal High Court that affirmed Mr. Sheriff as chairman.

Justice Hanatu Sanke deferred the ruling after counsel to parties adopted their written addresses.

The two applicants, who are chairman and secretary of the caretaker committee of the party respectively, had sought for leave to be allowed to appeal against the decision of the lower court.

They are also seeking for an extension of time to file the appeal against the decision of Justice Abang Okon.

The respondents are Mr. Sheriff, INEC, PDP, among others.

Dayo Akinlaja, counsel to the applicants, argued that the Ondo State officials of the party had rode on the judgment to conduct governorship primary ahead of the November 26 governorship election.

We are contending the fallout of this misappropriation of rules that brought in Jimoh Ibrahim as the governorship candidate of the party in Ondo State, he said.

He said the judgment of the lower court erroneously bestowed power on Mr. Sheriff to constitute the committee that conducted the Ondo State governorship primary.

On why the applicants waited for three months before signifying interests to challenge the judgment, Mr. Akinlaja said it was immaterial, adding that Mr. Sheriff was at that point not viewed as the chairman of the party.

According to him, the applicants have reasonable interests to commence the action being officials of the party.

Alex Izinyon, counsel to Mr. Sheriff, urged the court to discountenance the motion, adding that the action was an afterthought.

He argued that the applicants were not desirable parties and therefore could not be instituting the action.

Mr. Izinyon further said the applicants had not shown course why their prayers should be granted, adding that they had approached the court as members and not officials of the party.

My lords, this is firmly captured by the way they have asked to be joined after three months of delivery of a judgment.

The question is what is their interests and what do they stand to lose if the motion is struck out.

PDP had accepted the judgment in good fate as they did not also appeal against it. I am urging the court to dismiss this motion for want of merit, Mr. Izinyon said.

The court granted applications for withdrawal of two motions filed by counsel to the applicants.

Mr. Akinlaja said he was compelled to ask for the withdrawal of a motion seeking order to restrain INEC from recognising Mr. Ibrahim as governorship candidate due to commissions pre-emptive action.

He said the commission on October 27 gave the acclaimed candidate the Certificate of Return during the pendency of the suit.

Mr. Izinyon was, however, quick to interject on this submission, adding that Mr. Akinlaja was yet to be accepted as an interested party in the matter.

He said INEC only went ahead to carry out the October 27 judgment of the Federal High Court that upheld Jimoh Ibrahim as the governorship candidate of the party.

Appearance of Olagoke Fakunle and Robert Erakpo to hold PDPs brief forced the court to adjourn a motion filed by the party.

(NAN)
The federal government is planning to launch a $10 billion infrastructural investment programme in the Niger Delta.

President Muhammadu Buhari made this known on Thursday in Abuja during the unveiling of the Seven Big Wins roadmap, a short to medium term strategy framework to grow countrys oil and gas sector.

The president said he would be holding a crucial meeting with leaders from the

region next week Tuesday to dialogue on a number issues as part of efforts to end the agitations from the oil-rich region.

The region has been a hotbed of crises for some time, particularly from armed groups led by the Niger Delta Avengers pushing for more share of the oil resources from the area.

Attacks spear-headed by the groups have been noted as one of the most troubling factor behind the countrys dire economic crisis.

Although the massive drop in global crude oil prices plays a significant role in the crisis, attacks on oil facilities by militant groups have worsened the situation, resulting in cut by almost half of the countrys crude oil output and exports.

From an average of over 2.1 million barrels production capacity a few years ago, oil production has since been run down to less than 1.1 million barrels, with the critical export facilities, including the Forcados export terminal constantly shut down due to incessant sabotage.

The president said the government was fed up with the situation and was committed to reverse the trend, by ensuring security in the region.

He said this was the only way to reassure not only the people of the region, but also oil companies, prospective investors, individuals ready to invest in the infrastructural development of the region.

Niger Delta security is key to our development priorities, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu, said at the unveiling.

On Tuesday, the president we will be meeting with the Niger Delta stakeholders of oil producing areas. It is important we continue to sustain the institutional engagement and negotiations that are key to do this work.

Our target is zero militancy by middle of 2017, and an incident reduction in the region by 90 percent by 2018.

Whatever shutdown experienced by middle of next year, we expect it to be production stoppages and not militancy issues. We must resolve current militancy problems ad bring back oil production to 2.2 million barrels per day.

The Seven Big Wins is a roadmap for short to medium-term priority programmes by government to drive the growth of the countrys oil and gas Industry.

Although the minister said the country actually has the capacity to produce over 3 million barrels of crude oil per day, the country was limited due to inadequate funding.

We are working with the oil sector players to begin to find solutions to our cash call problems. We need to create stability incentive schemes, jobs and investment opportunities in the Niger Delta zone, the minister said.

To foster transparency in cash calls, Mr. Kachikwu said the government was introducing a joint account with oil companies to ensure inflows were clearly understood by all.

We are targeting 30 per cent cost savings, which we can link to transparency he said.

On the planned $10 billion infrastructural rebirth investment initiative, he said it would not be tied to the budget, as the government would look at cross border investments to strengthen the region.

What is most important is not the amount of the fund; its the conceptualization of that funding. Governors will have to come together as a regional

block to look at cross-state investments in roads, railways, town facilities or specialist hospitals.

We are going to pool in energy and ensure we look at cross border investments to strengthen the region he said.

He said government was also looking at the amnesty programme, which is winding up in about one year, particularly in the areas of coastal patrol, Niger Delta paramilitary type organizations, to absorb some of the trained hands from the programme as well as funding for those who want to start up their own businesses.

To ensure business and investment drive, he said government was seeking to raise more funds through leveraging on assets private sector exploration of the Lake Chad basin.

My vision is to encourage private sector to go into Lake Chad basin and find oil. We are targeting to raise over $5billion in short term funds for this, and over $20 billion in medium to long term funds.

We need to cut contractual times for average of two years to average of three

to six months. We need to reduce government stronghold on the oil sector, so that the private sector can flourish grow in leaps and bounds he said.
The Nigerian Army has inaugurated internet protocol desktop telephones at the 8 Task Force Division in Northern Borno to enable troops communicate with their families with ease.

Onyema Nwachukwu, a Colonel and Deputy Director, Army Public Relations Department, said this on Friday in Maiduguri.

Mr. Nwachukwu said in a statement that the facility was inaugurated by Abu Nani, Brig.-Gen. and the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Division in Monguno.

The Nigerian Army has inaugurated the first set of internet protocol desktop telephone in some locations of the 8 Task Force Division in Northern Borno, he said.

The essence is to alleviate the sufferings of troops who spend two to three hours travelling to Maiduguri to communicate with their families on phone.

The telephone system, which comprises of a very small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) and a Grand Stream handset, were installed at the headquarters of the taskforce in Monguno, in 7 Brigade Baga and 153 Task Force Battalion in Marte.

Each of the call centres provides five terminal points for officers and soldiers to communicate with their families from the front lines, he said.

Mr. Nwachukwu said the provision of the facility had resolved the nightmare of troops being cut off from their families and friends.

It has mitigated the rigour of travelling several hours by troops to Maiduguri to access telecommunication facility to communicate with their loved ones, he said. (NAN)
The Chief of Staff to the President, Abbah Kyari, on Friday resumed work after about two weeks short vacation.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Mr. Kyari, who was rumoured by a section of the social media to have been sent on compulsory leave, resumed his official duty, dismissing reports that he was suspended.

Kyari jokingly asked State House correspondents: Are you going to tweet that I am back? Cant I go on leave?

When accosted for interview, the Chief of Staff declined, saying: I dont talk to the press. You know my job doesnt allow me talking.

(NAN)
Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and Culture, has debunked report in the social media that N3.4 billion was budgeted for the national reorientation campaign Change Begins With Me.

The minister spoke on Friday in Asaba at the opening of the National Council on Information.

He said that the report was a ruse and a good example of challenges posed by democratisation of the technology of information dissemination.

He clarified that the imaginary N3.4 billion was more than the overall annual budget of the ministry, which he said was less than N2 billion.

Anyone can wake up and decide to become an online newspaper publisher, an online television station owner, an online radio station operator, a purveyor of news, photographs and videos.

They use the numerous social media platforms like Facebook, Whatsapp, Skype, Twitter and Instagram just to mention a few.

They spread whatever information that catches their fancy without engaging in the rigours of accuracy, fact-checking and fairness imposed by the traditional media.

But there is another problem: They have their own public, and this public believes whatever information they put out, he said.

The minister said the matter is worsened by the traditional media and seasoned writers who regurgitate the falsehood without cross checking the facts.

The minister also faulted the falsehood being peddled in the social media on dropping and swapping of ministers by the President.

Ministers are daily being dropped on the social media.

Many of us now wake up to read that we will be dropped as ministers or have our portfolios changed.

Even our families and friends believe what they read or hear in the social media than what we tell them, he did.

The minister urged government media managers not to despair by the development, but up their game by keying into the same evolving new information and digital technology.

He urged them to train their personnel on new technology and acquire state-of-the art technology as well as deploying uncommon commitment and passion to what they do.

The minister noted that ministers or commissioners in charge of information, and all other stakeholders in the business of government information management, are the true agents of change.

He said that as agents of change they must understand and sustain the concept through the Change Begins With Me campaign, aimed at bringing back those time-tested values that once defined us as a people..

The minister thanked Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta, members of his Executive Council and the people of the state for the hosting of the meeting.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the 46th meeting of the National Council on Information has the theme `Leveraging on Information and Digital Technology to Sustain the Change Agenda of Government.

It is being attended by commissioners of information from the 36 states and the FCT and critical stakeholders in the government information circle, including heads of federal and state government media organisations.

(NAN)
Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) on Friday said it could write down billions of barrels of reserves, marking a change of course as the company faces federal investigations into how it values those reserves.

During the third quarter, The Wall Street Journalreported that the Securities and Exchange Commission and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's office launched probes to determine if Exxon should have written down the value of its reserves based on drop in global oil prices that began about two years ago. Unlike peers such as BP (London Stock Exchange: BP.-GB) and Chevron (NYSE: CVX), Exxon has resisted reducing its assessment of how much its reserves may be worth.

In its third-quarter results, reported Friday, Exxon said it could write down as much as 4.6 billion barrels of oil equivalent if the average price of oil for the first nine months of 2016 holds through year end. Low oil prices decrease the value of a company's crude reserves that remain locked underground, but Exxon has argued that it is conservative in the way it books reserves to begin with, so write-downs have not been necessary.

Writing down assets essentially moves them off a company's balance sheet, reducing the potential value they could reap in the future, thereby potentially making the company itself less attractive to investors.

Exxon now says that 3.6 billion barrels of bitumen in its Kearl oil sands project in Canada, and about 1 billion barrels of oil equivalent in North American operations, may not qualify as proved reserves under SEC rules.

Prior to starting the Kearl oil sands project in 2013, Exxon said it "will produce one of the largest and highest quality oil sands deposits in Canada." But Canada's oil sands have been some of the hardest hit energy assets over the last two years, due to the high cost of extracting oil in that part of the world.

Jeff Woodbury, Exxon's vice president of investor relations, noted in a conference call on Friday that the company had conducted a comprehensive evaluation of its reserves in 2015 in light of the oil price downturn. He said cash flow at the time fully covered the costs of carrying those assets on Exxon's books.

Story continues

However, Exxon "thought it was appropriate to signal the potential impact" of low prices on the assets on an SEC pricing basis. He did not elaborate on the specific mechanisms Exxon uses to evaluate the value of reserves.

"Rest assured we're in full compliance with the rules and standards of the SEC and the Financial Accounting Standard Bureau," he said.

The SEC is also seeking to determine whether Exxon adequately accounts for how climate change could affect its business, after an earlier investigation that Schneiderman launched into that matter.









More From CNBC


A former member of the House of Representatives, Bitrus Kaze, has said that prominent members were leaving the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Plateau State for the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, in protest against alleged injustice in the state branch of the party.

Mr. Kaze, who represented Jos south/east federal constituency in the Seventh National Assembly on the platform of the PDP, was reacting to the defection on Tuesday of the deputy speaker of the state House of Assembly, Yusuf Gagdi, to the APC.

Speaking on Thursday with journalists at Jos Polo Field, venue of the Jos Trade Fair, Mr. Kaze cited the emergence of a former minister of Sports, Damishi Sango, as the partys chairman in the state as one of the factors behind the exodus of prominent members.

Mr. Gagdi, who was elected on the platform of the PDP to represent Kantana constituency, defected to the APC alongside his Mikang constituency counterpart, Naanlong Daniel.

Earlier this month, Joshua Dariye, a senator and former two-term governor of the state, had also left the PDP for APC.

It is an unfortunate development. It is indeed painful that we (PDP) are losing party stalwarts to APC. I foresaw this, and I publicly said it when I contested (for the) chairmanship of the party in the recently concluded state congress.

I make bold to say that the injustice being meted on party members has resulted to what is happening today in Plateau PDP. Peoples opinions no longer count; a few individuals have hijacked PDP in Plateau State and dictate what happen, even when the majority kick against such.

Mr. Kaze however vowed to stay put in the party. He appealed to members to remain in the party to correct the wrongs rather than quit.

Meanwhile, the state executive of the PDP has not commented on Tuesdays defection of the state legislators from the party.

The state publicity secretary, John Akams, said party leaders were still consulting on the development.

After the earlier defection of Mr. Dariye, the state PDP chairman, Mr. Sango, set up a reconciliation committee to appease aggrieved members and woo back those who had turned their back on the party.
The substantive governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the upcoming election in Ondo State, Jimoh Ibrahim, on Friday said the incumbent governor, Segun Mimiko, was responsible for the mayhem across the state.

A protest ensued in the state on Friday morning, following overnight reports that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, chose Mr. Ibrahim over Eyitayo Jegede, the preferred candidate of Mr. Mimiko.

Until late Thursday, Mr. Jegede was presumed as the candidate of the PDP, but a lingering court battle switched in favour of Mr. Ibrahim, setting ripples through the state.

Mr. Mimiko on Friday afternoonhastily met with President Muhammadu Buhari at the State House for discussion on the matter, during which he suggested that Mr. Ibrahims candidature could prove devastating for the states peace and security.

This action of INEC is potentially dangerous, Mr. Mimiko said shortly after meeting with Mr. Buhari Friday.

But Mr. Ibrahim, in a late Friday statement, said Mr. Mimiko was toeing a well-worn path of scaremongering, which he said would fail this time around.

My attention has been drawn to the ongoing burning of tyres under the pretence of disruption of activities orchestrated by Governor Segun Mimiko.

In 2009 Governor Mimiko forged security reports of the SSS and the Police to deceive the court and tribunal of Justice Nabaruma that there were security issues in the state, leading to a cancellation of results in 8 out of 18 Local Governments of the State, Mr. Ibrahim said.

Mr. Ibrahim, therefore, urged Mr. Mimiko to desist from further fomenting violence in the state and sued for peace.

Regrettably, this tyre burning for sympathy will not work as Ondo State remains peaceful, Mr. Ibrahim said.

Messrs. Mimiko, Jegede and Ibrahim are of the Peoples Democratic Party.

But the party had been mired in crisis for several months, which left it factionalised into two camps.

While Messrs. Mimiko and Jegede belong to the Ahmed Makarfi  led faction, Mr. Ibrahim aligns with the Ali Sheriff group.

Several contradictory judgments have been delivered on the matter while even more are pending.

INEC said it accepted Mr. Ibrahim for the final compilation of the candidates for the election, which comes up next month, based on a federal court ruling by Justice Okon Abang.

We received a court order from the High Court in Akure and that was yesterday (Wednesday), but there was a subsisting one by Justice Abang today (Thursday) ,that is what happened, INECs resident electoral commissioner in the state, Segun Agbaje told PREMIUM TIMES.

Mr. Agbaje said in a statement that Mr. Ibrahims candidature is tentative, adding that the body would comply with any pronouncement from a superior court that Mr. Ibrahim should be substituted.

That is why we put in front of the name court order, to show that the name was picked as a result of an order of the court.

Meanwhile, the Makarfi faction of the PDP has described the decision of INEC to publish the name of Mr. Ibrahim as the candidate of the party as not only shocking but also surprising to say the least.

The group said INEC monitored the primary election conducted in Akure, Ondo State by its faction, which produced Eyitayo Jegede, and did not monitor the one held in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital that produced Mr. Ibrahim.

The group, in a statement by its spokesperson, Dayo Adeyeye, on Friday also said INEC sighted the order from Justice Okon Abang of the Abuja division of the Federal High Court as the reason for publishing Mr. Ibrahims name as PDP candidate but ignored another order from the Ondo State High Court, which, it said, is a court of coordinate jurisdiction.

It said the Ondo court compelled INEC to maintain to Mr. Jegedes name as the candidate of the PDP.

The least INEC could have done in the circumstance was to maintain status quo and stick to its own earlier decision pending a superior order or judgment from a superior court. But that did not happen in this case.

This singular decision of INEC has generated sporadic reactions from the electorates in Ondo State leading to violent protest and damages. This could have been avoided if INEC had adhered strictly to the letters and characters of the Electoral Laws and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, PDP said.

The party also warned that external forces should not sit in Abuja and set Ondo State ablaze.

Whatever authority in Abuja, whether its the Executive that is using the Judiciary or vise versa, must realize that they cannot for selfish political reasons toil with the fate of millions of people in Ondo State. Who emerges governor of the state should be the decision of the electorates themselves through the ballot and not from any organ of the federal government in Abuja, the party said.

The party also issued a subtle threat saying any attempt to truncate the will of the people will be resisted vehemently.

It said references should be made to the 1965/66 and 1983 political violence in western Nigeria that brought about the collapse of the 1st and the 2nd Republic.

We should therefore be careful not to repeat history, it said.

The party called on the people of Ondo State to eschew violence and remain calm.

We believe in the rule of law and the matter is already in the Appeal Court, and we are certain that the PDP shall get justice on this issue and Hon. Eyitayo Jegede will be returned to contest under the platform of our great Party, the PDP, the party said.
Late October is traditionally the beginning of noreaster season along the East Coast, as the last few days of this month mark the anniversary of some historic and memorable storms. The most recent was Sandy in 2012. Saturday marks the fourth anniversary of her South Jersey landfall.

The year before that, there was Snowtober just before Halloween, with more than 2 feet of snow and 3 million customers without power across parts of the Northeast Corridor. While it was mostly a cold, windswept rain for us, a few snowflakes did mix with the rain at times.

Were also upon the 25th anniversary of the perfect storm, a destructive and long-lived noreaster the last few days of October 1991.

Thankfully, October 2016 is coastal-storm free and should end on a mainly dry and tranquil note.

That equates to good news for most of your outdoor weekend plans and for South Jersey trick-or-treaters Monday.

There probably will be some extra clouds and perhaps a few passing showers late Sunday afternoon or evening, but otherwise, were looking at a dry transition from October to November this year.

After a gloomy Thursday, a brighter and drier albeit breezy Friday is on the way to wrap up our week.

Brisk northwest winds will reinforce the cool air that has been lodged firmly in place all week, but then a quick surge of milder air will time its advantageous arrival to coincide with the weekend.

While it wont be the weeklong Indian summer warmth we enjoyed earlier this month, temperatures should make a run at 70 degrees for at least one of the two weekend days.

Despite some late-day clouds or the chance of a few raindrops Sunday, most of the day and most of the weekend should remain mild and dry.

With no spooky storms or creepy coastal lows to worry about this year, Halloween should be a weather treat, with cool sunshine by day and clear and crisp weather to trick-or-treat to by night. That treat should extend into the start of November.
ATLANTIC CITY  The Atlantic City Police Foundation honored a local hero Friday afternoon during its first Atlantic City Heroes luncheon in the city.

Cathy Burke, dubbed the lady of the hour and greeted by a standing ovation, was honored with the inaugural Hero Award at The Palm restaurant for her contributions and ongoing support for the foundation and Police Department.

Its a really special honor for me to receive this award, Burke said. What the foundation does is the best example of police-community performance.

Burke, a co-owner of the Irish Pub on St. James Place, grew up and has lived in Atlantic City for years and is known in the community for her support for police.

Police know firsthand from our citizens what is necessary in our neighborhood, Burke said. That concept is so necessary today, especially today.

The 11:30 a.m. event drew more than 200 people to honor her and raise money and awareness for the department.

Police Capt. James Sarkos, the foundations vice chairman, said Burke has been an ongoing supporter in the community and thanked her.

Had it not been for her, we wouldnt have been able to start the police foundation, he said Friday. Were very fortunate to have her.

The restaurant also honored Burke with a cartoon image of her placed on the wall of the dining room in the restaurant.

Money raised from the luncheon is going toward non-budgeted Atlantic City police programs, such as protective vests, training and community outreach.
The Atlantic City Police Foundation will honor a local icon during its inaugural Atlantic City Heroes luncheon Friday.

The luncheon, which will begin at 11:30 a.m. at the Palm Restaurant on Pacific Avenue in Atlantic City, will honor Cathy Burke for her contributions to and support of the Police Foundation and Police Department over several years, according to a statement from the foundation.

Burke grew up in Atlantic City and is a co-owner of the Irish Pub on St. James Place. She has been involved in several charitable events throughout the city, including the Tour De Shore bike ride, and was grand marshal of the annual St. Patricks Day Parade in 2011.

This touches a very personal chord, Burke said. Our Police Department has always been there for us. Thats a fact.

Burke said she has seen up-close what the foundation does for the community and for the Police Department.

Burke was an easy choice for the foundation because of all the support she has given the charity and the community, Vice Chairman Capt. James Sarkos said.

She has been extremely generous with us, he said. She always goes above and beyond, so it really was a no-brainer.

Sarkos said money raised from the luncheon will go toward new protective vests for officers and various outreach events throughout the city, including the upcoming trunk-or-treat.
Thomas Jefferson once wrote, Rightful liberty is unobstructed action according to our will within limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others.

It is easy to understand how our rights and liberties must also take into account the rights and liberties of others; however, it should remain absolutely obvious that our rights supersede the perceived rights of the federal government.

Not long after Jefferson wrote those words, his contemporaries were busy drafting the Constitution and they used language that in fact limited the federal government to four simple things  establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense and promote the general welfare.

Yet government continues to stretch that language and redefine it to make life miserable for the 320 million of us who are not involved in the direct operation of government.

The Libertarian way is a people-centered, caring approach to politics. We believe each individual is unique and we want a system which respects the individual and encourages us to discover the best within ourselves and develop our full potential.

Libertarians believe that being free and independent is a great way to live. We want a system that encourages all people to choose what they want from life; that lets them live, love, marry, work, play and dream their own way.

The Libertarian way is a logically consistent approach to politics based on the moral principle of self-ownership. Each individual has the right to control his or her own body, action, speech and property, with governments only role being to help individuals defend themselves from force and fraud.

I believe the residents of the 2nd Congressional District deserve a real choice Nov. 8, one that offers them the ability to live free knowing that Ive got their back and I will not fall for the sweet sounding rhetoric that precedes a loss of freedom.

Moreover, I could mention Jesse Ventura, Angus King, Joe Lieberman, Lisa Murkowski and of course Bernie Sanders  all people who won as third party, independent or write-in options. I will instead point out that their presence in government has made the country better by being able to hold the major parties accountable.

So what would a John Ordille in Washington mean for South Jersey, New Jersey and the country?

It means that you would have someone in Washington who actually will be focused on expanding your personal freedoms while limiting the federal governments reach in our lives.

Someone who would cut government back to those four pillars that Jefferson mentioned, someone who would then be able to work to cut government spending and balance the budget. Someone who will not burden the American taxpayer with additional taxes that do nothing but support pork barrel projects. Someone who would actually address the national debt, which is at $19.7 trillion dollars as I write this.

Someone who will address common sense immigration reforms while still securing all of the borders, both land and sea. Someone who will sensibly work to plan our exit from military operations in other countries where we should not be. Someone who will encourage a robust defensive based military where U.S. fighting men and women will be the best trained, best equipped and best cared for with no one falling through the cracks.

Someone who will work for criminal justice reform that will end the drug war on users and focus on dealers. Someone who will take a serious look at all those in prisons for victimless, minor crimes.

Someone who will push for a six-term limit for House members and a two-term limit for United States Senators, where they receive the same pay rate from year one in each subsequent year. And most importantly, someone who will respect the Constitution as a whole and secure its blessings for all posterity.

It is without a doubt that I believe that I am the best choice this November and the choice that will break the two party duopoly that has crippled the countrys individual freedoms and liberties as well as its economic viability in the years to come.

It is only a matter of time before the American people once again get out the proverbial pitchforks and torches as they did during the Boston Tea Party; only the pitchforks and torches this time around are the voting booth and the Libertarian Party.

Help me to become the first Libertarian elected to Congress. Eventually someone will break the barrier and fight to restore Jeffersons rightful liberty; let it be now rather than later.

John Ordille, of Northfield, is the Libertarian Party candidate for Congress in New Jerseys 2nd District.
The Gov. Chris Christie bridge lane closing scandal is a fine mess thats still growing. Next month hell appear in a Bergen County court to answer a charge of official misconduct  unless an appeal delays or overturns that.

This expenditure of money and time began three years ago when Christie appointees  exactly who is being decided by a bigger ongoing trial  closed George Washington Bridge access lanes to punish the Democratic mayor of Fort Lee for not endorsing the governors re-election.

Christie clearly is responsible for this dirty trick, since hes responsible for the actions of the people he appoints. Three investigations, one by Democratic legislators, didnt find evidence that he authorized or knew about the lane closings.

Christie foes still hope the continuing trial of his former allies over their roles in the closings will link him more closely to the action.

The federal prosecutor in that case last month said he believes the governor knew while the closings were happening, based on his star witness, another former Christie ally who has pleaded guilty. But the prosecutor didnt bring any charges against the governor.

That trial is expected to last weeks longer, but already another path has been found to keep the political legal scrum going well into its fourth year at least.

This month an unsuccessful Democratic Assembly candidate and former Teaneck firefighter, who got $800,000 in settlement of a harassment lawsuit against that town, alleged official misconduct. He convinced a Bergen County municipal court judge there is probable cause  the lowest hurdle  that Christie knew about the lane closings and didnt stop them.

The three investigations didnt find that, and the current trial hasnt found that yet. A Bergen County prosecutor  appointed by Christie  now will decide whether to bring a case. Or he could kick the decision up to the state attorney general, also appointed by the governor.

The actions of state Democrats are reminiscent of the efforts by congressional Republicans to investigate Hillary Clinton as many times as it takes to achieve their desired political end. We would be inclined to say partisan zealots are well employed attacking each other if they didnt spend so much taxpayer money doing so and demand so much more attention than their objectives seem to deserve.

We and nearly everyone in the state already hold Christie responsible for the bridge lane closings, a key factor in his utterly dismal approval ratings. His political power is already diminished, and hes lamer than most ducks at this point in his final term.

In any legal proceedings, we firmly believe in due process and patiently waiting for the judgment of the courts. But partisans should bear in mind that in political cases, even when the target bears some original responsibility, there could be political costs for wasteful spending of money and time.
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.




LONDON, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Leading education company The Medic Portal successfully launched a series of inspiring events for future doctors last week, addressing 400 students and parents. The 'TMP Aspire' events took place on October 22nd and 25th in London and Manchester respectively - the first two of six events to be held across the UK.

Tickets were priced at just 10 in order to reach a wide audience from a variety of different backgrounds - aligning the event with the government's recent commitment to provide 25% more places at UK medical schools.

Alongside Dr Ricardo Tavares and Dr Chris Nordstrom of The Medic Portal, London's Aspire event featured Dr Sarah Bennett (UCL), Mr Grant Smith (Dundee), Dr Natasha Robinson, Dr Harman Singh and Mr Ash Dawotal (Buckingham). In Manchester, The Medic Portal welcomed Liverpool FC's club doctor, Dr Andrew Massey, Dr Gordon Dent (Keele) and Dr Bethan Page to provide students with valuable insights into Medicine.

Attendees in both cities learned firsthand about all stages on the journey to becoming a doctor - from medical specialties to working on a hospital ward. The conferences featured talks on a range of topics, including personal statements, MMIs and clinical placements. Students left the day excited about the prospect of becoming a doctor, and inspired to get the necessary grades to get into medical school.

Event coordinator Richard Harper provided the following assessment of the day: 'At The Medic Portal, we aim to provide both the knowledge and the inspiration to allow more students to become doctors. We have realised both these aims today, combining fantastic speakers with our own knowledge and experience, gained from years of helping students into medical school. We received highly positive feedback from attendees leaving the event, and look forward to taking these events into other cities across the UK.'

More widening access into Medicine events will be held across the UK in the coming months - you can book your place at The Medic Portal's events in Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh and Eton College here.

The Medic Portal is officially partnered with the Royal Society of Medicine. It is the UK's leading resource for aspiring medics. Engaging with over 250,000 students each year, it offers an abundance of free information, including free medical school interview questions, as well as bespoke services including Medical School Interview Courses, Medicine MMI Circuits and Medical School Interview Tutoring.

SOURCE The Medic Portal
AMSTERDAM, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Constellium N.V. (NYSE and Euronext: CSTM) today announced the appointment of Peter R. Matt as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Peter will join Constellium on November 1, 2016, as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Designate. He will officially become Constellium's Chief Financial Officer on January 1, 2017. Until this time, Corinne Fornara, currently serving as Interim Chief Financial Officer, will be responsible for the function and will thereafter return to her position as Constellium's Group Controller.

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130624/NY37453LOGO

"We are delighted to have Peter join our executive leadership team," commented Jean-Marc Germain, Constellium's Chief Executive Officer. Peter's breadth of financial expertise, longstanding experience with the financial community and extensive knowledge of the metal market will be critical to seizing the short term and long term opportunities to optimize our balance sheet, implement our strategic plan and unlock shareholder value," Jean-Marc Germain added.

As Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Peter will be responsible for the Company's Finance, IT and Procurement functions. He will be based in the US and will report directly to Jean-Marc Germain.

Peter spent 30 years in investment banking at First Boston/Credit Suisse where he built leading Metals and Diversified Industrials coverage practices and, in his last position at the firm, was the Managing Director and Group Head responsible for managing the firm's Global Industrials business in the Americas. Throughout his career, Peter worked closely with management teams across a broad range of competencies including business strategy, capital structure, capital allocation, investor communications, treasury and mergers and acquisitions. He is a US citizen and a graduate of Amherst College.

About Constellium

Constellium (NYSE and Euronext: CSTM) is a global sector leader that develops innovative, value added aluminium products for a broad scope of markets and applications, including aerospace, automotive and packaging. Constellium generated 5.2 billion of revenue in 2015.

www.constellium.com

Related Links

http://www.constellium.com



SOURCE Constellium N.V.
SALEM, Oregon, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Teach Every Nation (TEN) has announced a major partnership with Corban University to extend 100 scholarships to Christian young people in Africa interested in obtaining a degree from Corban. global.corban.edu/africa

With programs in the United States and Indonesia, Corban is continuing its global outreach with its strong commitment to promote Christian higher education in the Global South. The University is exploring other opportunities in Asia and Africa with its mission: "To educate Christians who will make a difference in the world for Jesus Christ."

Corban will start accepting applications this week and allow students from Africa to start their studies as early as January 2017. The scholarship offer will extend to both online and residential studies on campus in Salem, Oregon. The initial 100 scholarships will be for all four years of undergraduate study and cover between $7,500 to $15,000 a year in tuition, depending on whether the student chooses to study online or become a residential student in Salem, Oregon.

"Our goal was to make Christian higher education attainable for highly motivated young people at a price point comparable to what families were already investing into their children's university education," said Janine Allen, Associate Provost for Global Engagement at Corban.

Dr. Matt Lucas, Provost of Corban, is "excited about this opportunity to work with TEN to further the gospel in Africa and prepare the next generation of leaders to bring positive change to their churches, communities, and countries."

Martin Deacon, Chief Growth Officer of TEN, stated, "The partnership has been in development for the last several months. Senior administration and faculty from Corban introduced the vision for the Corban online degree program to more than 100 church leaders from 20 African countries in September at the TEN campus in Africa. Responding to their enthusiasm, we decided to introduce a bold scholarship program to attract high potential young people with a calling to serve God in the sphere of ministry, education, business, medicine, science or psychology."

TEN founder Dr. Bruce Wilkinson commented, "Corban is a top-notch educational institution sharing our values and passion for global Christian education that is personally transformational and professionally competent, going far beyond traditional college outcomes. The TEN scholarship program is a game-changer for African students and makes a stable, quality education viable with an unprecedented scholarship program."

About Teach Every Nation (TEN)

Teach Every Nation is a global ministry providing courses to train and equip leaders and teachers in the Global South. Founded by Dr. Bruce Wilkinson in 2013, TEN has over 30,000 students in over 30 countries in Africa and beyond.

http://www.teacheverynation.org

About Corban University

Corban University is one of the top private Christian universities in the Pacific Northwest. Corban is a fully accredited, private, non-denominational university offering bachelor's, master's, and doctorate programs in Salem, Oregon and online. Corban is a gospel-driven community of scholars and leaders who seek to bring a biblical perspective to all areas of study and practice. For more than 80 years Corban has offered deep scriptural rooting to students while training them for any of a wide variety of professionsfrom education to business and from counseling to political science. Why? Because we believe the best way to make a difference in the world for Jesus Christ is sending biblically- and theologically-grounded graduates into a wide variety of fields. http://www.corban.edu

Related Links

http://www.corban.edu



SOURCE Corban University
PUNE, India, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The report "Electric Vehicle Plastics Market by Material (PP, PE, ABS, PU, PVC, PA, PC, PVB & Other Engineering Resins), Application (Interior, Exterior, Lighting/Electric Wiring & Under the hood), & Region and ICE Passenger Cars by Material - Global Forecast to 2021", The Electric Vehicle Plastics Market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 27.82%, to reach a market size of USD 1.49 Billion by 2021.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160303/792302 )



Browse 103 market data tables and 58 figures spread through 196 pages and in-depth TOC on "Electric Vehicle Plastics Market"

http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/electric-vehicle-plastic-market-219387183.html

Early buyers will receive 10% customization on this report.

The market is driven by factors such as stringent emission regulations leading to light weighting of passenger cars, and government policies encouraging the adoption for electric vehicles.

"Polyurethanes to be the largest material segment used in electric vehicles"

Polyurethanes is expected to dominate the Electric Vehicle Plastics Market. The growth of this market can be attributed to the advantages offered by polyurethanes, such as high strength, flexibility, and resistance to temperature, weather, and radiation. The key applications of polyurethanes are seating, electric wiring, and hard plastic parts. The average percentage of polyurethanes employed in a passenger car is around 15%-20%, according to MarketsandMarkets analysis. Many automotive plastic manufacturers, such as BASF SE (Germany) and The Dow Chemical Company (U.S.), have a wide range of polyurethane products for the automotive industry.

"Battery electric vehicles to be the fastest growing segment in the Electric Vehicle Plastics Market"

The Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) segment is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The primary difference in the plastics employed in a BEV compared to a Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) is the under hood components. The growth of this market is driven by factors such as increasing innovation, environmental concerns, and stringent emission regulations. To promote the growth of BEVs, governments are introducing various tax and non-tax incentives for electric vehicle owners. This in turn supplements the growth of the plastics employed in these BEVs.

Make an Inquiry: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_Buying.asp?id=219387183

"Asia-Oceania to be the largest market for Electric Vehicle Plastics Market"

Asia-Oceania is estimated to dominate the Electric Vehicle Plastics Market, and is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The region has emerged as a hub for electric vehicles in recent years, with China and Japan as the frontrunners. Governments in Asia-Oceania are also trying to provide incentives to support the demand for electric vehicles. For instance, in Japan, electric vehicles are exempted from acquisition tax and tonnage tax, and have a 50% exemption from automobile tax.

The Electric Vehicle Plastics Market is dominated by a few global players, and comprises several regional players. Some of the key manufacturers operating in the market are BASF SE (Germany), The Dow Chemical Company (U.S.), INEOS Capital Limited (Switzerland), SABIC (Saudi Arabia), and Lyondellbasell Industries Holdings B.V. (The Netherlands).

Browse related reports:

Automotive Lightweight Materials Market by Material Type (Metals, Composites, & Plastics), Application (Structural, Powertrain, Interior, Exterior, & Others), Manufacturing Process, Vehicle Type, and by Region - Global Trends and Forecast to 2019

http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/automotive-lightweight-materials-market-23937731.html

Composite Materials Market for Automotive by Material Type (PMC, MMC, & CMC), Application & their Sub-Components (Structural, Powertrain, Interior, Exterior, & Others), Vehicle Type (PC, LCV, HCV, & Rolling Stock), & by Region-Global Forecast to 2020

http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/automotive-composite-materials-market-6114278.html

About MarketsandMarkets

MarketsandMarkets is the largest market research firm worldwide in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to a multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors.

M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers.

We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository.

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SOURCE MarketsandMarkets
HONG KONG, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Finnish publishing company Dramaforum Oy today signed an agreement with 24Reader, a magazine subscription company to bring digital children's magazine "Petra's Planet Magazine" to customers in China.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433547 )



Ms. Eevamaria Halttunen, founder of Dramaforum, said 24Reader's well-established reach would be a great asset to the launch of "Petra's Planet Magazine".

"24Reader has more than one million magazine subscribers and we are thrilled to be working in partnership to bring Petra's Planet Magazine to children across Hong Kong, China," said Ms. Halttunen.

"Thanks to its digital format, Petra's Planet Magazine is highly interactive and mobile. We're looking forward to bringing it to the Chinese Market," said Kaya Lam, Senior Editor and Project Manager at 24Reader Ltd.

Petra's Planet Magazine is an innovative, digital magazine that is delivered directly to devices each month. In every issue, kids travel to an exciting new country and learn about countries, cultures, wildlife, the environment and friendship. The magazine comes with interactive puzzles, quizzes, and downloadable activities.



Dramaforum Oy Ltd is an independent Finnish transmedia company specializing in children's products. Established in 2003 by Ms. Halttunen, Dramaforum has offices in Finland, UK and Canada, employing a team of experienced learning and digital media experts.

"Our goal is to inspire children to stay curious and discover the wonders of the world. Through Petra's Planet, children learn about the richness and diversity of our planet and are empowered to become global citizens," said Ms. Halttunen.

Find out more at http://www.24Reader.com and http://www.petrasplanetmagazine.com

SOURCE Dramaforum and 24Reader
KPMG lists Macedonia as key region for investment and growth

LONDON, Oct. 29, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Former Macedonian Prime Minister and current ruling VMRO-DPMNE party leader Nikola Gruevski met with key KPMG executives today to discuss the country's strong economic climate and future growth opportunities for private and public investment. The meeting hosted by Vice Chairman, Financial Services, David Sayer was a tie-in to KPMG's 2016 Invest in Macedonia report, which promotes the country as a key region for global investment.

The meeting came on the heels of the World Bank's "Doing Business 2017" report, which investigates the regulations that enhance business activity. The report ranked Macedonia at #10 in the world, and #5 in Europe for ease of doing business.

Sayer, who also Chairs KPMG's High Growth Markets Practice says:

"The turnaround in Macedonia's ratings has been quite remarkable and I fully expect more global enterprises to take advantage of the county's attractive investment climate in the future."



Macedonia has swiftly turned around its once sluggish economy, providing competitive tax incentives and a prime workforce for companies who do business there. Gruevski noted his administration's future plans for attracting more global private investment, specifically in manufacturing industries.

"Macedonia is home to many manufacturing facilities from all around the world including the United States, the United Kingdom, Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany," said former Prime Minister Gruevki. "We have shown incredible results, especially in the field of auto parts manufacturing. Macedonia is now ready for a full assembly line facility."

SOURCE VMRO-DPMNE party
BROOKLYN, New York, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

QYReseachReports.com has recently announced the addition of a new market research study to its comprehensive collection of research reports. The 126-page research study is titled "Global Cloud-based Virtual Learning Platform Market 2016 Industry, Analysis, Research, Share, Growth, Sales, Trends, Supply, Forecast to 2021."

The study provides an in-depth analysis of the market, emphasizing on the potential growth opportunities for various product segments across key regional markets. It further analyzes the primary factors, positive and negative, that are expected to influence the growth of the global could-based virtual learning platform market in the next few years.

The reduction in operating cost, the rising focus on providing continuous support to consumers, and performance improvement of users are some of the key factors estimated to encourage the growth of the global cloud-based virtual learning platform market over the forecast period. Furthermore, key players in the market are making efforts to offer innovations in cloud computing, thus augmenting the growth of the overall market. However, factors such as poor digital literacy rate, data security issues, and integration concerns are estimated to curtail the growth of the cloud-based virtual learning platform market globally in the next few years.

Get Free PDF Brochure for more Professional and Technical industry insights at http://www.qyresearchreports.com/sample/sample.php?rep_id=736831&type=E

Nevertheless, trends such as the rising demand for distance learning and the increasing penetration of cloud-based learning analytics across distant corners of the globe are projected to generate several new growth opportunities for the market in the near future. Additionally, the availability of user-friendly web conferencing and cloud-based lecture recording solutions are anticipated to stimulate the growth of the overall market in the coming few years. This segment is expected to remain in the topmost position in the next few years.

The global market for cloud-based virtual learning platforms has been categorized on the basis of end-use into K-12 schools and higher education institutions. Among these, the segment of higher education institutions is projected to grow at a fast pace in the next few years, chiefly owing to the presence of a large number of universities providing certification and post-graduate courses online. The market share and size of the segments have been given in detail in the research report, along with the expected growth rate over the forecast period.

Browse Complete "Cloud-based Virtual Learning Platform Market" with TOC at http://www.qyresearchreports.com/report/global-cloud-based-virtual-learning-platform-industry-2016-market-research-report.htm

The global cloud-based virtual learning platform market is expected to witness robust growth in the coming few years owing to the rising number of players participating in the market. The key players in the market are focusing on research and development activities in order to introduce innovative industry-specific software for consumers. Some of the leading players listed in the research study are Moodle, Skytaps, BizLibrary, Blackboard, Calten Softlabs, WizIQ, Degreed, and BIS training.

Detailed profiles of these players have been mentioned in the research study, focusing on their financial overview, product portfolio, SWOT analysis, and recent developments, if any. The key strategies and policies adopted by the leading players have also been included in the study to guide new players in making appropriate decisions in the next few years.

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A part of Research Moz Global, QYResearchReports.com is the trusted source of market research reports among clients that include prestigious Chinese companies, multinational companies, SMEs, and private equity firms. Our market research reports focus on categories including but not limited to: Chemicals, Energy, Alternative and Green Energy, Machinery, Manufacturing, Glass, Pharmaceuticals and Materials READ MORE.

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DUBLIN, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Endoscopy Systems - Global Strategic Business Report" report to their offering.

This report analyzes the worldwide markets for Endoscopy Systems in US$ Thousand by the following Product Segments: Endoscopes, and Visualization Equipment. The report provides separate comprehensive analytics for the US, Canada, Japan, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and Rest of World.



Annual estimates and forecasts are provided for the period 2015 through 2022. Also, a six-year historic analysis is provided for these markets. Market data and analytics are derived from primary and secondary research.



The report profiles 95 companies including many key and niche players such as



Boston Scientific Corporation (US)

EndoChoice, Inc. (US)

Conmed Corporation (US)

Cook Medical, Inc. (US)

Ethicon Endo-Surgery (US)

Fujifilm Corporation ( Japan )

) HOYA CORPORATION ( Japan )

) KARL STORZ GmbH & Co. KG ( Germany )

) Medtronic Plc. ( Ireland )

) Olympus Corporation ( Japan )

) Richard Wolf Medical Instruments Corporation ( Germany )

) Stryker Corporation (US)

Key Topics Covered:



1. Industry Overview



2. Market Trends & Drivers



3. Competitive Landscape



4. Select Recent Technological Breakthroughs



5. Product Overview



6. Product Introductions/Innovations



7. Recent Industry Activity



8. Focus On Select Players



9. Global Market Perspective



Total Companies Profiled: 95 (including Divisions/Subsidiaries - 111)



The United States (39)

(39) Canada (3)

(3) Japan (12)

(12) Europe (44)

(44) - France (1)

(1) - Germany (33)

(33) - The United Kingdom (6)

(6) - Italy (1)

(1) - Spain (2)

(2) - Rest of Europe (1)

(1) Asia-Pacific (Excluding Japan) (9)

(Excluding Japan) (9) Middle East (4)

For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/kt34cq/endoscopy_systems

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BROOKLYN, New York, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

QYResearchReports.com has added a new research report to its database on the global industries of electronics and semiconductors. The report, titled "Global Software Testing Services Market Research Report 2016," highlights the key factors that will continue to drive this market in the coming years. The report pays more attention to the current factors and how they are affecting the global software testing services market today. The report thus enlightens its users with the various points of entry and points of avoidance in the global software testing services market.

The global software testing services market has become an integral part of the IT world today, as many players are offering comprehensive services that allow a company of any size measure out its focused aspects. The global software testing services market can span across several segments, including specialized testing, performance testing, automation solutions, functional solutions, and consulting.

The report moves on into the manufacturers within the global software testing services market and the strategies that they employ. This helps understand the competitive index a lot more clearly and gives the report's users a better idea on the various parameters that key manufacturers are rated by. This includes the product types, the current scenario in the market competition, current trends and their future outlook, and mergers and acquisitions. The report also provides a detailed report on the import and export rates in the global software testing services market along with the overall supply and consumption rates across the world

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The global software testing services market is explained in a brief manner within the report's overview segment. Here, the global software testing services market is tracked in terms of its various segments on the basis of software testing types, applications, and regions.

The report provides a geographically segmented analysis of the global software testing services market, wherein lies a valuable tool for regional players in the market. They can use this segmented guideline to create a better position for themselves in their own region, or look to another region for better opportunities. The report draws special attention towards the regions North America, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, China, and Europe. For each region, the report tallies the overall factors that influence their software testing services markets and then provides an overall global outlook from 2011 to 2021.

Browse Complete "Global Software Testing Services Market Research Report 2016" with TOC http://www.qyresearchreports.com/report/global-software-testing-services-market-research-report-2016.htm

The report provides a highly data-rich description of each of the key players in the global software testing services market. Each player is distinguished using frameworks that include details on these players. The list of top compares includes Accenture, CapGemini, IBM, and Wipro. For each player, the report provides a detailed view on their core area of expertise along with up to date information on their current manufacturing base, their products and services as accessible in majority of the regions.

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SOURCE Research Moz Global
DONGGUAN, China, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Olive oil from Italy, fruits from Thailand, seafood from Brunei, crafts from India...

On October 27, over 1,000 enterprises from 52 countries and regions presented their hit products in Guangdong 21st Century Maritime Silk Road International Expo held in Dongguan of Guangdong in seeking of business opportunities and expansion of cooperation.

As an important platform of the Belt and Road Initiative (B&R) debuted in 2014, Guangdong 21st Century Maritime Silk Road International Expo promotes the all-round cooperation between China, especially Guangdong, and nations and regions along the Maritime Silk Road.

It is reported that this year the Expo has attracted an increased number of participants along the Maritime Silk Road. According to the Organizing Committee, over 1,000 enterprises from 52 countries and regions have signed up for the Expo, among which 39 countries and regions including Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia own independent national (regional) pavilions.

Besides traditional goods along the Maritime Silk Road namely tea, silk and ceramics, the Expo also gathers exhibits with local characteristics, such as diamonds, gold and jewelries from South Africa, wine and olive oil from Italy, white coffee and cocoa from Malaysia, deep sea fish oil and abalone from Australia and rum and honey from Mauritius.

"This is my third time at the Expo. Here I find not only long-term business partners but also a good channel to better introduce Turkish culture in exchanges with the locals. Hence no matter how busy my schedule is, every October I always save time for the Expo," said Gokhan Bukmus, a businessman from Turkey.

Besides, this year the Expo also arranges an engineering machinery exhibition area, which serves as ideal platform for the matching of considerable infrastructure projects along B&R that provides opportunities for production capacity cooperation between China and countries along B&R.

This year the Expo has attracted about 25,000 buyers, a 20% increase than last year. The Organizing Committee expects the total trading volume of the Expo to exceed 200 billion yuan.

SOURCE The Organizing Committee of Guangdong 21st Century Maritime Silk Road International Expo
TSX: JAG

TORONTO, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Jaguar Mining Inc. ("Jaguar" or the "Company") (TSX: JAG) is pleased to announce that it has commenced an expanded and accelerated growth exploration initiative at its operating underground gold mines Turmalina, Pilar and Roca Grande located in the Iron Quadrangle, Minas Gerais, Brazil. This initiative will be focused on brownfield exploration targets to expand and discover new mineral resources located in and around existing mine infrastructure that have a strong potential to further grow sustainable production, lower unit costs, increase cash flows and extend expected mine life. The Company's current ongoing exploration programs will continue to focus on increasing resources at its core assets through the upgrading of current Measured and Indicated Mineral ("M&I") Resources to Mineral Reserves.

Over the next 12 months, the Company expects to invest up to US$8 million in exploration and growth initiatives. Approximately 75% of the investment will be on underground work at the Company's core operating mines for drilling of step-out and down-dip extensions and targets. The remaining growth exploration investment is expected to be on the high priority targets Pacheca and Cubas located near Pilar Gold Mine.

Rodney Lamond, President and Chief Executive Officer of Jaguar, stated: "Considering our sizable footprint in the prolific greenstone belt of the Iron Quadrangle in Brazil, and the significant exploration potential across all of our operating mines, this accelerated growth exploration initiative is an exciting step towards assisting us in increasing our resources and extending our operating mine life. This program will also allow for the potential discovery of new resources to support our goal of growing our sustainable production profile. To date, we have made excellent progress with our infill resource drilling programs, however we now have the immediate means, to accelerate our resource growth objectives and to execute exploration programs on the numerous target areas that could potentially add significant new resources to the current mineral base."

Growth Exploration Highlights

Major growth capital investment primarily focused on increasing mineral resources at its core assets, and discovery of new resources near existing infrastructure at its operating mines.

Expanded growth exploration program includes approximately 31,000 metres ("m") of diamond drilling, including approximately 15,000 m deep down-plunge continuities of the ore bodies A and C at Turmalina and BFII and BF at the Pilar Gold Mine.

8,500 m of surface diamond drilling will be dedicated to test the high priority Pacheca and Cubas targets in the vicinities of the Pilar Gold Mine and other advanced targets.

Exploration targets generated, as a result of extensive compilation work from previous exploration campaigns, in and around the current mine sites will be followed up by geophysical surveys and diamond drilling. Subject to the results, an additional 7,750 m of surface drilling will be dedicated to test those targets.

Geophysics, soil geochemistry, trenching, plus prospecting and mapping will also be conducted to advance additional target areas for future drilling. Field work has already commenced at the Pacheca and Cubas targets, located near Pilar Gold Mine.

Turmalina Gold Mine

An underground drilling campaign of approximately 9,600 m will be dedicated to the test the down-plunge extension and continuity of ore bodies A and C.

Ore Body A

Deep diamond drilling of ore body A will be performed after the development of a new exploration horizon is positioned in the hanging wall of the mine. The proposed drilling is intended to reach the 12, 13 and 14 levels, up to 240 vertical m below current development and 160 m below the current inferred resources.

Ore Body C

Down-dip extension drilling of the South Eastern portion of Ore Body C is expected to generate new mineral resources that are near surface and to contribute in the near term to the Turmalina throughput profile.

IP Geophysics will test the hanging wall of Orebody C and eastern continuity of Orebody A. Following the IP work, an estimated 6,000 m surface diamond drilling program is expected to take place.

Pilar Gold Mine

An underground drilling campaign of approximately 5,100 m will be dedicated to test the down-plunge extension and continuity of ore bodies BFII, BF and BA.

Deep diamond drilling will be performed after the development of a new exploration horizon is positioned in the hanging wall of the mine. The proposed drilling is intended to reach the 12, 13 and 14 levels, up to 250 vertical metres below current development and 200 metres below the current inferred resources.

Approximately 3,500 m of surface diamond drilling on the Pacheca Target is planned. The Pacheca target is located three km NE of the Pilar mine and is characterized by a series of extensive open pit excavations made by Portuguese explorers during the 18th century. Similarly hosted in the Banded Iron Formation (BIF) encompassing most of the Iron Quadrangle, the Pacheca target is strongly delineated by soil Au geochemistry.

Surface diamond drilling on the Cubas Target of approximately 2,500 m is planned. The Cubas Target is identified by a number of deep IP anomalies situated on the southern continuity of the shear zone, which hosts the main Pilar ore bodies.

Roca Grande (RG) Gold Mine

During 2016, the Company undertook a compilation program of the available surface information. In light of the revised geological model, a review of the diamond drill-hole information will be carried out to consolidate the geological model. Soil geochemistry and a total of 1,750 m of drilling follow-up is expected to test the ore bodies' open continuities.

The Iron Quadrangle

The Iron Quadrangle has been an area of mineral exploration for centuries, dating back to the 16th century. The discovery in 1699-1701 of black gold contaminated with iron and platinum-group metals in the southeastern corner of the Iron Quadrangle gave rise to the name of the town Ouro Preto (Black Gold). The Iron Quadrangle contains world-class multi-million ounce gold deposits such as Morro Velho, Cuiaba and Sao Bento. Jaguar holds the second largest gold land position in the Iron Quadrangle with just over 25,000 hectares.

About Jaguar Mining Inc.

Jaguar Mining Inc. is a Canadian-listed junior gold mining, development, and exploration company operating in Brazil with three gold mining complexes, and a large land package with significant upside exploration potential from mineral claims covering an area of approximately 191,000 hectares. The Company's principal operating assets are located in the Iron Quadrangle, a prolific greenstone belt in the state of Minas Gerais and include the Turmalina Gold Mine Complex ("Mineracao Turmalina Ltda" or "MTL") and Caete Gold Mine Complex ("Mineracao Serras do OesteLtda" or "MSOL") which combined produce more than 90,000 ounces of gold annually. The Company also owns the Paciencia Gold Mine Complex, which has been on care and maintenance since 2012. Additional information is available on the Company's website at www.jaguarmining.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this news release constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information contained in forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "are expected", "is forecast", "is targeted", "approximately", "plans", "anticipates" "projects", "anticipates", "continue", "estimate", "believe" or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might", or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. The Company has made numerous assumptions with respect to forward-looking information contained herein, including, among other things, assumptions about the development and production activities and the intended use and allocation of capital on its growth exploration initiatives; the assumptions on which the reserve and resource estimates are based; the receipt of necessary permits; ongoing relations with employees and impacted communities; and general business and economic conditions. Forward-looking information involve a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including among others the uncertainties with respect to the price of gold, labor disruptions, mechanical failures, increase in costs, environmental compliance and change in environmental legislation and regulation, procurement and delivery of parts and supplies to the operations, uncertainties inherent to capital markets in general and other risks inherent to the gold exploration, development and production industry, which, if incorrect, may cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by the Company and described herein. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

For additional information with respect to these and other factors and assumptions underlying the forward-looking information made in this news release, see the Company's most recent annual information form and management's discussion and analysis, as well as other public disclosure documents that can be accessed under the issuer profile of "Jaguar Mining Inc." on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. The forward-looking information set forth herein reflects the Company's reasonable expectations as at the date of this news release and is subject to change after such date. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law. The forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

For further information: Rodney Lamond, President & Chief Executive Officer, rodney.lamond@jaguarmining.com, 416-628-9601; Joanne C. Jobin, Vice President, Investor Relations, joanne.jobin@jaguarmining.com, 416-628-9601

Related Links

http://www.jaguarmining.com



SOURCE Jaguar Mining Inc.
NEW YORK, October 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

NorthStar Realty Europe Corp. (NYSE: NRE) will host a conference call to discuss third quarter 2016 financial results on Thursday, November 10, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. EST (14:00 GMT). Hosting the call will be Mahbod Nia, Chief Executive Officer, Scott Berry, Chief Financial Officer and Trevor Ross, General Counsel.

The third quarter 2016 financial results press release will be issued before market open on November 10, 2016.

Conference call details:

1-866-966-5335 (U.S. Toll Free)

+44 (0) 20 3003 2666 (International)

0808 109 0700 (UK Toll Free)

Passcode: NorthStar

The call will also be audiocast live via NorthStar Realty Europe's website at http://www.nrecorp.com.

Call replay details: (available approximately two hours after the call until November 25, 2016)

1-866-583-1035 (U.S. Toll Free)

+44 (0) 20 8196 1998 (International)

0800 633 8453 (UK Toll Free)

Passcode: 9467020#

About NorthStar Realty Europe Corp.

NorthStar Realty Europe Corp. (NYSE: NRE) is a European-focused commercial real estate company with predominantly prime office properties within key cities in Germany, the United Kingdom and France, organized as a REIT and managed by an affiliate of NorthStar Asset Management Group Inc. (NYSE: NSAM), a global asset management firm. For more information about NorthStar Realty Europe Corp., please visit http://www.nrecorp.com.

Investor Relations: Gordon Simpson, Finsbury, +1-855-527-8539 or +44(0)20-7251-3801

SOURCE NorthStar Realty Europe
VALLEY COTTAGE, New York, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Future Market Insights provides a detailed analysis of the global ophthalmic lasers market in a new report titled "Ophthalmic Lasers Market: Global Industry Analysis and Opportunity Assessment, 2016-2026". The global ophthalmic lasers market was valued at US$ 421.5 Mn in 2015 and is estimated to reach US$ 437.2 Mn by 2016 end, with a Y-o-Y growth rate of 3.7%.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161020/430874LOGO )



Market dynamics

Factors such as rising prevalence of ophthalmic diseases leading to laser ophthalmic procedures and a growing elderly population susceptible to ophthalmic diseases such as cataract and glaucoma is anticipated to fuel the revenue growth of the global ophthalmic lasers market over the forecast period. Factors such as growing ophthalmic care expenditure, rising government provision in developed economies, constructive reimbursement policies, and increasing disposable income per capita are anticipated to enhance the growth of the global ophthalmic lasers market over the forecast period. However, high costs associated with ophthalmic lasers and replacement of current ophthalmic laser technology with advanced technologies might hinder the growth of the global ophthalmic lasers market over the forecast period.

Request a Sample Report with Table of Contents and Figures: http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-1529

Segmentation highlights

The global ophthalmic lasers market is segmented on the basis of Product Type (Photo-coagulation Lasers, Photo-disruption Lasers, Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty); Disease Type (Diabetic Retinopathy, Glaucoma Surgery, Cataract Surgery, Others); and End User (Hospitals, Ambulatory Surgical Centres, Ophthalmic Clinics).

The Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty product type segment is estimated to reflect a Y-o-Y growth rate of 4.3%. The Photo-coagulation Lasers segment is anticipated to register a CAGR of 4.6% over the forecast period.

The Glaucoma Surgery disease type segment is estimated to account for the highest market revenue share of the global ophthalmic lasers market by 2016 end. The Diabetic Retinopathy segment is estimated to account for the second highest market share of the global ophthalmic lasers market by 2016.

The Ophthalmic Clinics end user segment is anticipated to account for the highest market share of 45.1% of the global ophthalmic lasers market by 2016 end and register a CAGR of 5.6% over the forecast period. The Ambulatory Surgical Centres segment is estimated to reflect a Y-o-Y growth of 3.9% in 2016 over 2015.

Preview Analysis on Global Ophthalmic Lasers Market Segmentation By Product Type - Photo-coagulation Lasers, Photo-disruption Lasers, Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty; By Disease Type - Diabetic Retinopathy, Glaucoma Surgery, Cataract Surgery; By End User - Hospitals, Ambulatory Surgical Centres, Ophthalmic Clinics: http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/ophthalmic-lasers-therapeutic-market

Regional forecast

The global ophthalmic lasers market is segmented into the seven key regions of North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, APEJ, Japan, and MEA. North America is expected to dominate the global ophthalmic lasers market in terms of revenue and is estimated to be valued at US$ 242.4 Mn by the end of 2026. North America is anticipated to account for the highest market share of 31.8% of the global ophthalmic lasers market by the end of 2016 while Western Europe is estimated to hold the second highest market share of 33.9% of the global ophthalmic lasers market by the end of 2016. The North America, Western Europe, and APEJ markets represent the highest growth opportunities in the global ophthalmic lasers market owing to a large patient population and more demand for laser technologies in diabetic retinopathy and glaucoma surgeries.

Speak with Analyst for any Report Related Queries: http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/askus/rep-gb-1529

Vendor insights

The global ophthalmic lasers market report profiles some of the top companies operating in the global ophthalmic lasers market. Leading market players featured in the report are Ellex Medical PTY Ltd., Lumenis Ltd., IRIDEX Corporation, ZEISS International, NIDEK CO. LTD., Novartis AG, Topcon Corporation, and Quantel SA. These companies are focussing on developing new technologies to aid in seamless ophthalmic surgeries and are looking to penetrate new and emerging markets through strategic acquisitions.

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Future Market Insights (FMI) is a leading market intelligence and consulting firm. We deliver syndicated research reports, custom research reports and consulting services which are personalized in nature. FMI delivers a complete packaged solution, which combines current market intelligence, statistical anecdotes, technology inputs, valuable growth insights and an aerial view of the competitive framework and future market trends.

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SOURCE Future Market Insights
Raytheon will optimise the design, modification, configuration management and support aspects of Sentinel at RAF Waddington and at Raytheon's facility in Broughton, Wales.

"The Sentinel fleet is well-recognised for the outstanding contribution it has made to military and surveillance operations around the globe over the last nine years," said Richard Daniel, chief executive officer of Raytheon U.K. "As well as creating new jobs in Broughton, the extension of the Sentinel fleet will support several hundred highly skilled jobs within Raytheon and its supply chain, while maintaining world leading expertise in the customer community."

Raytheon U.K., supported by the Welsh Government, has invested in a new hangar at Broughton to ensure that its Airborne ISR, for Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance, continues to provide end-to-end, design-to-flight-trials capability for improved operational availability. The new investment will allow Raytheon U.K. to undertake export work as well as to optimise Sentinel support, resulting in considerably reduced time and cost of 8C deep maintenance checks.

The full range of Raytheon's technical support for the Sentinel fleet includes fleet management, maintenance planning, maintenance service, technical and engineering services, obsolescence management, air vehicle integrity, supply and procurement service, training, design service and overarching service management.

About Raytheon U.K.

Raytheon U.K. is a subsidiary of Raytheon Company. It is a prime contractor and major supplier to the U.K. Ministry of Defence and has developed strong capabilities in mission systems integration in defence, national security and commercial markets. Raytheon U.K. also designs, develops and manufactures a range of high-technology electronic systems and software at facilities in Harlow, Glenrothes, Waddington and Broughton.

About Raytheon

Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN), with 2015 sales of $23 billion and 61,000 employees, is a technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, civil government and cybersecurity solutions. With a history of innovation spanning 94 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration, C5I products and services, sensing, effects, and mission support for customers in more than 80 countries. Raytheon is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts. Follow us on Twitter @Raytheon.

This document does not contain technology or technical data controlled under either the U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations or the U.S. Export Administration Regulations. E16-VRXN.

www.raytheon.com

Media Contact

Nick West

+44 207 872 5602

nick.west@raytheon.co.uk

Related Links

http://www.raytheon.com



SOURCE Raytheon Company
HONG KONG, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Rio Tinto Diamonds and Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group continue to lead the JNA Awards for the sixth consecutive year as Headline Partners of the highly anticipated event in the jewellery and gemstone industry. The signing ceremony took place during the Awards ceremony and gala dinner on 14 September attended by over 500 industry luminaries.

Experience the interactive Multimedia News Release here: http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7965151-jna-awards-2017/

Also returning as Honoured Partners are Shanghai Diamond Exchange, Guangdong Gems & Jade Exchange and Guangdong Land Holdings Limited. The JNA Awards recognises and honours companies and individuals that have demonstrated excellence, leadership and innovation, with a special focus on Asia.

"The support shown to us by these industry leaders is nothing short of remarkable. Their resounding commitment and support drives us to continue to elevate the jewellery trade and to bring this event to where it is today," commented Wolfram Diener, Senior Vice President of UBM Asia.

Letitia Chow, Founder of JNA and Director of Business Development  Jewellery Group at UBM Asia, said, "We have been very privileged to be able to work closely with our Partners who share our vision and core values and help make this a highly regarded and meaningful event for the trade. It is also extremely encouraging to see the continuous support from both our Headline and Honoured Partners, especially Rio Tinto Diamonds, Chow Tai Fook Jewellery, and Shanghai Diamond Exchange who have joined us in this journey since the very beginning."

Rita Maltez, Director of Rio Tinto Diamonds Greater China Representative Office, added, "Rio Tinto is very proud to have been a founding Headline Partner to support the Awards. We are delighted to see how, over the past five years, the JNA Awards have blossomed into an important platform that brings value to the gem and jewellery industry. We look forward to continuing our partnership with the JNA Awards and investing together to grow our industry."

Kent Wong, Managing Director of Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group, remarked, "The annual JNA Awards encourages innovation and best practices, which makes on-going advancement to the industry amid a fast-changing environment. Chow Tai Fook is thrilled to be a committed Headline Partner of this highly acclaimed event for the sixth year in a row. Coupling with the collaboration among our fellow partners, we will continue to foster a sustainable development for the jewellery industry."

JNA Awards Marketing

UBM Asia (Hong Kong)

+852 2516 2184

marketing@jnaawards.com

SOURCE JNA
Rosegal is making payment easier and more secure for customers

SHENZHEN, China, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Rosegal is a well-respected name in the fashion ecommerce niche by customers and competitors alike. Rosegal takes its customers shopping online seriously and are now putting together measures to ensure they feel safe making payments online. Today Rosegal engineers discuss the latest in payments and what Rosegal is doing to keep customers secure.

PayPal is one of the most secure ways for both Rosegal and customers to make payments. PayPal is trusted by most online shoppers as it is one of the most secure ways of making payments online in the world. Most customers even consider it as the safest way to shop online. In addition to that, PayPal users can choose to pay with PayPal credit and even pay with installations.

Customers who do not want to open a PayPal account have the option of paying directly with credit card. Rosegal has created a secure payment system that ensures customers are confident that their data is safe. Some cards that are accepted for direct payment at the moment include MasterCard, Visa, American Express, Discover, JCB and Dinasclub. Rosegal will look to import more credit card types as soon as they are made available.

People from certain countries usually make local payment. This form of payment often has lower fees for users and they are mostly loyal to their own countries. Brazilian customers for example can pay using Boleto Bancario, which often leads to reduced fees with credit cart due to Brazil's high import and export rates for businesses outside the country. Rosegal currently uses this as its only form of local payment, but it is just a start because Rosegal will begin carrying more local payment types with increasing demand. It is expected that in the near future, Rosegal will accept payments from the following local payment companies: Cashu, which is accepted for customers from the Middle East and North America. Webmoney or Qiwi for customers from Russia, Ideal for Netherlands and softbanking for Europe.

Finally customers without cards or are scared to make payments online can pay using Western Union or wire transfer. Rosegal will ensure customers paying with this method receive their money to the right accounts during the process of the transaction. You can visit SammyDress and Zaful to learn more about these sites.

Website: http://www.rosegal.com/



Related Links

http://www.rosegal.com



SOURCE Rosegal
The first implantation of the Venibri Valve in a patient was performed by Prof. Mao Chen, Prof. Yuan Feng from the West China Hospital, Sichuan University, China and Dr. Jorge Baccaro from Institute of Cardiology of Corrientes in Argentina on October 26. The 82-year-old female patient suffered from severe aortic stenosis. Upon confirming the appropriate valve size for the patient, a 29mm Venibri Valve system incorporating the pre-crimped, pre-loaded, pre-packaged "dry" heart valve was removed from the package and the guidewire lumen and flush port were injected with saline to purge the system of air. The Venibri Valve delivery system was then inserted into the femoral artery over the guidewire. The valve insertion, advancement, and deployment was smooth and stable. Upon 2/3 deployment, blood pressure recovered to a normal range indicating the leaflets were immediately functioning. The post deployment angiogram demonstrated the Venibri heart valve leaflets functioned immediately. Total time from opening the ready-for-use Venibri THV system to valve deployment was approximately 15 minutes. With success of the first valve, on October 27, a 26mm Venibri Valve was implanted in another patient, an 81-year-old female patient with severe aortic stenosis. Total implantation from opening the package took approximately 16 minutes.

The operators were quite impressed with the clinical performance of the Venibri Valve. Prof. Chen commented, "The Venibri THV system is very easy to use and helpful in saving precious time for patients. It provides the opportunity to treat emergent, severe and critical aortic stenosis patients easily and effectively."

Prof. Horst Sievert, director of the CardioVascular Center Frankfurt, highly praised the technology, "Dry tissue technology has become another important milestone since the first ever TAVR case in 2002. These advantages of the Venibri THV system turned a complex TAVR procedure into a relatively easy one, like a PCI procedure. I believe physicians and patients will broadly benefit from this new technology."

"The advancement of the Venibri THV system is further validation for the Colibri "dry" tissue technology and compliments the previous FIH experience demonstrated with the Colibri pre-packaged, ready-for-use, balloon expandable THV system," stated Dr. R. David Fish one of the co-founders of Colibri Heart Valve. Dr. David Paniagua, co-founder of Colibri Heart Valve also stated, "This successful first-in-human implantation of the Venibri THV system is a significant milestone demonstrating the value of the Colibri "dry" tissue technology and will be a meaningful advancement for the treatment of severe aortic valve stenosis."

"The JVE will offer both a self-expanding and balloon-expandable pre-packaged, ready-for-use, THV system to address the large and growing aortic stenosis in the Chinese and emerging Asian markets." Stated Eric Zi, president and CEO of Venus Medtech Hangzhou. "The convenience and benefits offered by the Venibri Valve will allow the JVE to successfully penetrate the significant aortic stenosis market in China and emerging Asian markets."

The JVE, through the combination of the Colibri Heart Valve and Venus Medtech technologies, will develop and commercialize both self-expanding and balloon-expandable pre-packaged, ready-for-use transcatheter heart valve (THV) systems in China and emerging Asian markets. Colibri Heart Valve will have the rights to the JVE products for the North American, European, Japanese, Australian, and New Zealand markets.

"The recent successful first-in-human implantation of the Venibri Valve system is a testament to the technology benefits formed by the combination of the Colibri and Venus technologies," stated Joseph B. Horn, president and CEO of Colibri Heart Valve. "We look forward to further clinical and commercial advancement of the Colibri and Venus Medtech technologies through the JVE to provide a breakthrough in advancement of patient treatment of severe aortic stenosis."

For more information, please visit www.colibrihv.com and http://en.venusmedtech.com.

SOURCE Venus Medtech (Hangzhou) Inc.
Sirion powers UCLH's initiative aimed at driving improved financial value, performance and compliance in its large procurement and client contracts.

LONDON, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- SirionLabs, the G-Cloud listed provider of technology solutions for effective management of strategic services contracts, today announced that University College London Hospital (UCLH), one of the largest NHS trusts in the UK, has expanded the scope of its Sirion deployment to cover all of its large, strategic services contracts. Eight of UCLH's largest contracts including IT services, PFI, medical services (ambulatory transport and pharmacy), and client services contracts will be managed using Sirion's cutting-edge post-signature contract management capabilities.

Sirion's deployment is part of UCLH's aim at driving improved efficiencies and savings in its commercial arrangements through an effective combination of processes and technology. This initiative assumes significance in light of the recent studies, including the National Audit Office (NAO) study and the Carter review, highlighting the need for the public sector to address critical gaps in their management of complex services contracts.

As part of this program, UCLH commenced a proof of concept engagement with SirionLabs in early 2016 with the deployment of a large client services contract (for delivering a range of technology, medical and facilities management services to a large patient care services company) for management on Sirion. This was quickly followed by a large procurement contract for IT and BPO services.With the objective of sharing UCLH's learnings and experience from this program for the benefit of the broader healthcare sector in the UK, SirionLabs and UCLH are jointly organising a seminar around the theme Haemorrhaging Value: Removing waste through effective management of contracts in the health sector to be held on 31st October in London. This exclusive, by-invitation event will be attended by senior leaders from UK's public healthcare sector with speakers from UCLH, the Cabinet Office, PCS and CGI.

"Like most NHS organisations, UCLH is continuously looking for ways to reduce avoidable expenditure and improve revenue, and do this while maintaining high standards of care for our patients. We recently commenced an initiative at UCLH to drive improved financial value and performance in our large procurement and client contracts. We chose Sirion to power this initiative due to its advanced capabilities for managing complex services contracts in the post-award phase," said Tim Jaggard, Finance Director, UCLH, further adding "We are pleased with the results of the pilot engagement with Sirion  material reduction in wasted expenditure, increased revenue, and improved relationships with our suppliers and customers."

"UCLH is one of the UK's leading NHS Trusts with a rich history of innovation and excellence. This program adds to UCLH's reputation as a pioneer in the healthcare sector," said Evangelos Apostolou, President, EMEA for SirionLabs. "We are pleased with Sirion's contribution to the initial success of this initiative. With the expanded scope of Sirion's deployment, we look forward to making a bigger impact by enabling UCLH to drive higher value realisation in all of its key commercial engagements."

About UCLH

UCLH (University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust), situated in the West End of London, is one of the largest NHS trusts in the United Kingdom and provides first-class acute and specialist services. The state-of-the-art University College Hospital which opened in 2005, is the focal point of UCLH alongside four cutting-edge specialist hospitals. UCLH is committed to research and development and forms part of UCL Partners which in March 2009 was officially designated as one of the UK's first academic health science centres by the Department of Health. UCLH works closely with UCL, translating research into treatments for patients. Visit our website www.uclh.nhs.uk, we are also on Facebook (UCLHNHS), Twitter (@UCLH) and Youtube (UCLHvideo).

About SirionLabs

SirionLabs is transforming the way buyers and suppliers of complex services engage with each other using our flagship enterprise platform - Sirion.

Sirion radically simplifies the delivery and consumption of complex services. It bridges the gap in existing supplier governance (for buyers) and revenue assurance (for suppliers) solutions by tightly integrating all key disciplines  contracts, performance, financial, risk, and relationship management. Leveraging automation and advanced analytics, Sirion helps buyers and suppliers to create higher value and stronger relationships, while enabling effective management of cost and risk in complex services engagements.

You can visit us at www.sirionlabs.com, and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Jenna Mukuno

Senior Account Executive

VSC on behalf of SirionLabs

4156779125

jenna@vscconsulting.com

This release was issued through WebWire(R). For more information visit http://www.webwire.com.

Related Links

http://www.sirionlabs.com



SOURCE SirionLabs
BEVERLY, Mass., Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Altova (http://www.altova.com) announced the release of Version 2017 of its MissionKit desktop developer tools and server software products. This release delivers powerful new tools for development and data integration, including support for Apache Avro big data files, additional databases and drivers, two new XBRL specifications, a new way to build and process fillable PDF forms, and more.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161026/432874

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161026/432873LOGO

"Along with ever-changing Big Data and data integration trends, developers' jobs are evolving  and our tools are keeping pace," said Alexander Falk, CEO and President of Altova. "The new tools in Version 2017 ensure that they have access to rich functionality for working with the latest standards, whether those are XML, JSON, XBRL, Avro, EDI, and so on  all in a single toolset. With new support for Apache Avro, as well as support for additional databases and XBRL specifications across the Version 2017 product line, Altova developers are armed with all the tools they need to build today's cutting edge, data-centric applications."

Here are a few highlights of the newly released features:

Modernized XML find/replace dialog: In XMLSpy the new, modeless dialog stays open as you work, highlighting all instances of a search term immediately, as you type, allowing you to identify and navigate to each instance much more quickly than before.



Apache Avro support: There has long been an unfilled need for working with binary Avro data in a user-friendly way  until now. Avro support includes: Avro View for visualizing and searching Avro binaries in XMLSpy Intelligent Avro schema editing in XMLSpy High performance Avro validation and processing on RaptorXML Server



Enhanced database connectivity across the product line includes new support for: ADO.NET database drivers Native support for PostgreSQL Progress OpenEdge databases SQL Server 2016



New features for data integration in MapForce and MapForce Server include: Dynamic mapping of the names of nodes Executing Database Table Actions as SQL merge for improved performance Support for new EDIFACT versions and the VERMAS message



Fillable PDF forms: StyleVision, well known for generating attractive, multi-channel reports in PDF and other formats just got important new functionality for designers building fillable PDF forms. All of StyleVision's user-friendly design tools are now available for PDF Forms, making it easy to build these functional tools for capturing user data. Then, StyleVision Server can be utilized to process user-entered data to save it, generate reports, and more.



Enhanced XBRL support: Altova's XBRL-enabled products now provide additional support for working with XBRL Taxonomy Packages and Inline XBRL.

These and many additional features are available in Version 2017 of MissionKit desktop developer tools and server software products. For a complete list of new features, supported standards, and trial downloads please visit: (http://www.altova.com/whatsnew.html)

About Altova

Altova is a software company specializing in tools that assist developers with data management, software and application development, mobile development, and data integration. The creator of XMLSpy and other award-winning products, Altova is a key player in the software tools industry and the leader in XML solution development tools. The company offers a complete line of desktop developer software for XML, SQL, and UML; high-performance workflow automation server products; and a cross-platform mobile development platform. Altova focuses on its customers' needs by offering a product line that fulfills a broad spectrum of requirements for software development teams. With over 5 million users worldwide, including 91% of Fortune 500 organizations, Altova is honored to serve clients from one-person shops to the world's largest organizations. Altova is committed to delivering standards-based, platform-independent solutions that are powerful, affordable and easy-to-use. Founded in 1992, Altova is headquartered in Beverly, Massachusetts and Vienna, Austria.

Altova, MobileTogether, MissionKit, XMLSpy, MapForce, FlowForce, RaptorXML, StyleVision, UModel, DatabaseSpy, DiffDog, SchemaAgent, and Authentic are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Altova GmbH in the United States and other countries. The names of and references to other companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Sales Information:

[email protected]

USA: 978-816-1600

EU: +43 (1) 545 5155 -0

Media relations contact:

Cynthia L Neely

PR & Marketing Communications Manager

[email protected]

978-816-1567

SOURCE Altova

Related Links

http://www.altova.com


NEW YORK, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Arizona Mesothelioma Victims Center is now offering incredibly vital tips for hiring a lawyer to assist with a mesothelioma compensation claim for a US Navy Veteran or a person in Arizona with mesothelioma. If a diagnosed person or their family hires the wrong lawyer-they may not receive the full compensation they deserve. The Center believes most people diagnosed with mesothelioma in the United States and Arizona get shortchanged on financial compensation because they had no way to distinguish between the nation's most qualified mesothelioma attorneys and local car accident attorneys. This is especially true for US Navy Veterans in Arizona.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433378

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433380



Unfortunately, being impulsive when it comes to selecting a lawyer to represent a person in Arizona who has been diagnosed with mesothelioma can end very badly for the person with mesothelioma or their family members. The Center is literally talking about the diagnosed person or their family losing out on hundreds of thousands of dollars or more. To prevent getting shortchanged from happening a person diagnosed with mesothelioma in Arizona, or their family members are urged to contact the Arizona Mesothelioma Victims Center anytime at 800-714-0303.

http://Arizona.MesotheliomaVictimsCenter.Com



Tips for Hiring the Right Mesothelioma Attorney from the Arizona Mesothelioma Victims Center:

"It is incredibly important a person diagnosed with mesothelioma in Arizona has the most skilled and experienced attorneys assisting them. Before you hire a lawyer to help with a mesothelioma compensation claim make certain they have references that will demonstrate their ability to get the best possible mesothelioma compensation for their clients.

"If you are a US Navy Veteran in Arizona please make certain the lawyer/law firm you are talking to has achieved a million dollar settlement for a US Navy Veteran with mesothelioma within the last twelve months.

please make certain the lawyer/law firm you are talking to has achieved a million dollar settlement for a US Navy Veteran with mesothelioma within the last twelve months. "There is no such thing as a "federally sponsored" mesothelioma claims centers and Internet ads that suggest no lawsuit is needed are not being honest.

"Before you hire a lawyer to assist with a mesothelioma compensation claim in Arizona please call us at 800-714-0303. The Arizona Mesothelioma Victims Center can provide resources and guidance in choosing the best lawyers to represent your claim. The more qualified the attorney is - the larger the financial compensation settlement is likely to be as we would like to explain-anytime." http:/Arizona./MesotheliomaVictimsCenter.Com

For the best possible mesothelioma treatment options in Arizona the Arizona Mesothelioma Victims Center strongly recommends the following heath care facilities with the offer to help a diagnosed victim, or their family get to the right physicians at each hospital.

* The Mayo Clinic Phoenix/Scottsdale, Arizona: http://www.mayoclinic.org/patient-visitor-guide/arizona

* The University of Arizona Medical Center Tucson, Arizona:

http://azcc.arizona.edu/profile/linda-garland

The Arizona Mesothelioma Victims Center would like to emphasize theirs is a statewide initiative available to a diagnosed victim anywhere in Arizona including communities such as Phoenix, Tucson, Mesa, Chandler, Glendale, Gilbert, Tempe. Peoria, or Prescott. http://Arizona.MesotheliomaVictimsCenter.Com

High risk work groups for exposure to asbestos in Arizona include US Navy Veterans, power plant workers, manufacturing workers, plumbers, nuclear power plant workers, electricians, auto mechanics, machinists, or construction workers. Typically, these high risk workers were exposed to asbestos in the 1950's, 1960's, 1970's, or 1980's.

According to the CDC the states indicated with the highest incidence of mesothelioma include Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, Michigan, Illinois, Minnesota, Louisiana, Washington, and Oregon. Mesothelioma also happens in Arizona. http://Arizona.MesotheliomaVictimsCenter.com

For more information about mesothelioma please refer to the National Institutes of Health's web site related to this rare form of cancer: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/mesothelioma.html

Contact:

Michael Thomas

800-714-0303

[email protected]

SOURCE Arizona Mesothelioma Victims Center

Related Links

http://Arizona.MesotheliomaVictimsCenter.Com


ATLANTA, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- As companies seek to cut costs and improve efficiency, a growing number of businesses encourage or allow their employees to use their own digital devices at work. "Navigating the IT, privacy, security, and intellectual property issues was difficult enough before Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) became common," says attorney and engineer Janine Anthony Bowen, a shareholder in national law firm LeClairRyan's Atlanta, Ga. office. "But as the trend surges and the law catches up with it  companies should carefully review their BYOD policies."

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161026/432902

Challenges range from liability for unpaid overtime to stiff legal penalties for failing to preserve data that may be subject to the eDiscovery process, adds Bowen, a member of LeClairRyan's Privacy and Data Security Practice.

"Non-exempt employees checking email at home after hours  is that work for which they should be paid overtime? Likely so," she explains in a recent blog, Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)  Be Smart. "Are employers capturing this time? Probably not. Are employers getting in trouble because of this? Yes."

Bowen's advice: "Either capture all work-related time for non-exempt personnel, or do not allow non-exempt employees to access work-related content after working hours."

Businesses may also get into hot water if they don't reimburse employees for expenses associated with their personal digital devices. "If your state law requires that employers reimburse employees for all expenses incurred in discharging their work responsibilities, even if your employees don't have any additional expenses associated with their work-related use, you might want to consider reimbursement for some portion of the monthly data charges and/or the device cost," she warns. "California has already weighed in, and other states will likely follow."

Companies may also need to be able to keep track of, and preserve, company data that's on employees' digital devices. "Data from on premise, cloud-based, and mobile storage devices are all potentially in play as part of the eDiscovery process," writes Bowen. "The penalties for failing to get this right can be stiff. If you can reasonably anticipate litigation, and there is discoverable content on your employees' device, the rules may require you to find it and keep it."

But don't take an overbearing approach to this, since revised Federal Rules and approach to proportionality might impact the issue, adds Bowen. Approach it carefully, and consider consulting with litigation counsel or an eDiscovery specialist, she advises.

BYOD issues can even impact a company after an employee's termination or voluntary departure. "Many corporate BYOD policies allow or require an employee's phone to be wiped in the event the device is lost or the employee leaves," notes Bowen, pointing out that this can protect the employer's confidential, sensitive, or proprietary information. "Courts have held this permissible, even when the wipe is complete  deleting all the personal information, including pictures of the phone's owner. But, honestly, it's kind of rude to wipe someone's phone and put it back to its factory settings when they quit."

As an alternative, a company may wish to partition the memory so that only the work-related areas are wiped upon a departure. Or, "at a minimum, explicitly make your employees aware of when a device may be wiped and what a wipe will do to their devices," she advises. "If they know the potentially drastic results to their personal data, they may actually prefer two devices."

BYOD has advantages for both the employee and the employer, "But you need to think it through, on a regular basis, and share some of the results of your thinking with your employees," Bowen adds. "Both parties are better off with more information, not less. Be smart, just like your phone."

To read the full blog post, visit http://informationcounts.com/bring-your-own-device-byod-be-smart/.

About LeClairRyan

As a trusted advisor, LeClairRyan provides business counsel and client representation in corporate law and litigation. In this role, the firm applies its knowledge, insight and skill to help clients achieve their business objectives while managing and minimizing their legal risks, difficulties and expenses. With offices in California, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Virginia and Washington, D.C., the firm has approximately 380 attorneys representing a wide variety of clients throughout the nation. For more information about LeClairRyan, visit www.leclairryan.com.

Press Contacts: At Parness & Associates Public Relations, Bill Parness, (732) 290-0121, or Lisa Kreda, [email protected]

SOURCE LeClairRyan

Related Links

http://www.leclairryan.com


NASSAU, Bahamas, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- BMD Holdings Ltd. ("BMD") reiterates that it is pursuing its proposal to CEXIM to purchase Baha Mar at a higher price higher than that which CEXIM or the CEXIM-related entity, Perfect Luck Assets Limited ("Perfect Luck"), may be able to obtain from any other possible buyer. BMD further notes that the press release issued today by Chow Tai Fook Enterprises clearly states it has not reached any agreement with CEXIM or Perfect Luck regarding its potential purchase of the Baha Mar asset but rather that it only has "entered into negotiations" in this regard and provides no financial details.

BMD stated, "The fact is that a close reading of the Chow Tai Fook Enterprises press release makes clear that there is no deal between Chow Tai Fook Enterprises and CEXIM/Perfect Luck. If indeed Chow Tai Fook Enterprises and CEXIM/Perfect Luck are in negotiations, then it can only serve the interests of the seller and The Bahamas to have a competitive process to achieve the best outcome. BMD stands fully prepared to engage with the seller to achieve such."

Media Contacts

Robert Siegfried / Ross Lovern

212-521-4832 / 212-521-4876

[email protected]

SOURCE BMD Holdings Ltd.
NEW YORK, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Legal Momentum - The Women's Legal Defense and Education Fund, represented by Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP, today urged the U.S. Supreme Court to review a case against Backpage.com for facilitating the buying and selling of children for sex. The case is Jane Doe et al. v. Backpage.com LLC, in which the website Backpage.com is charged with knowingly profiting from the commercial sexual exploitation of children.

The case against Backpage.com was filed by three women who were sold on Backpage.com beginning at age 15 and were raped thousands of times in Massachusetts and Rhode Island as a result. According to court documents, Jane Doe No. 1 estimates that she was advertised on Backpage.com as many as 300 times, often simultaneously in multiple cities. Jane Doe No. 2's traffickers posted advertisements of her an average of six times per day. Jane Doe No. 3's traffickers also posted repeated advertisements of her each day.

Despite this obvious harm to the women, the case was dismissed by a U.S. District Court judge in Boston. The dismissal was upheld by the First Circuit Court of Appeals, which held that a 1996 federal law, the Communications Decency Act, protects Backpage.com against being sued.

In an amicus curiae brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the case, Boies, Schiller & Flexner and Legal Momentum argue that Congress never intended for the Communications Decency Act to permit a website operator to deliberately create a forum for, and profit from, criminal activity, especially the sex trafficking of minors. The brief was also filed on behalf of a coalition of organizations and individuals that provide support to survivors and educate the public on the harm caused by sex trafficking, including Cindy McCain, Florida Abolitionist, the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, the Organization for Prostitution Survivors, Rising International, Sojourner Center, StolenYouth, StreetLightUSA, and the YWCA of Silicon Valley.

"The sex trafficking of children is an evil of our society, and the internet is the primary method of advertising children for sex. The Supreme Court should decide whether Congress intended to protect websites engaged in this type of activity," said Boies, Schiller & Flexner Chairman David Boies.

Carol Robles-Roman, the President and CEO of Legal Momentum, said, "Three young girls experienced terrible suffering because of Backpage.com, whose business model features ads that offer children for sex. The First Circuit held that this is legal because of a federal law, the Communications Decency Act. We ask the U.S. Supreme Court to accept this case. A law whose clear intent was to protect children from harmful materials cannot be perverted to give blanket immunity to website operators that provide an online marketplace for pedophiles."

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) has reported that over the last five years it has seen a 98 percent increase in reports of suspected child sex trafficking, much of it online. In fact, nearly three-quarters (71 percent) of the recent child sex trafficking reports it receives have a link to Backpage.com. Backpage.com brings in roughly $9 million in revenue per month through sales of adult services ads, which include sex ads selling children.

Earlier this month, Carl Ferrer, the CEO of Dallas-based Backpage.com, was arrested on charges filed by California Attorney General Kamala Harris that included pimping a minor. Backpage.com's two controlling shareholders, Michael Lacey and James Larkin, were arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit pimping.

Legal Momentum, the Women's Legal Defense and Education Fund, has been advocating on behalf of girls and women for nearly 50 years. Legal Momentum was instrumental in drafting and helping pass the Violence Against Women Act and other major legislation that protects girls and women. Sex trafficking is an extreme form of violence against children and women.

Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP is representing Legal Momentum pro bono as part of the firm's civil rights practice.

SOURCE Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP

Related Links

http://www.bsfllp.com


"Our clients and their projects have allowed us to attract and expand a growing employee base in Arizona," says Pat Edwards , vice president and general manager of the Phoenix office. "With regulations and technology constantly changing, we're seeing an even greater client need for comprehensive design and construction solutions to the critical challenges we face as a community and country."

Edwards, who was recently named one of the Phoenix Business Journal's Most Admired Leaders, says the move to the Central Arts District supports the firm's commitment to being the best place to work in the country. Burns & McDonnell currently ranks No. 16 among Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For and has been recognized as a Best Place to Work in Phoenix since 2013.

"We're constantly looking for ways to enhance our work environment," says Edwards. "When exploring office options, we sought a location that would reflect our culture and bring new benefits to our employee-owners. Our new 25,000-square-foot space is located in a vibrant area near downtown and boasts on-site amenities such as a dining options, outdoor meeting spaces, collaboration spaces, cutting edge video conferencing, laundry and auto services, workout facilities and access to the light rail."

The Phoenix office is home to one of our largest teams of employee-owners dedicated to traditional and renewable energy solutions. This year, Burns & McDonnell was recognized by Engineering News-Record as the No. 1 firm in Electrical Power and AZ Business as one of the top three engineering firms. In addition to power generation, transmission and distribution, the office specializes in the design, program management and construction of commercial, manufacturing and industrial facilities.

"Pat and the Phoenix team are taking some of the greatest challenges within our industry and turning them into opportunities," says Paul Fischer, president of the regional office group. "The growth the office has experienced  from just a small project office to one with a full scope of services offered by our firm  speaks to their talent, quality of work and dedication to the clients they serve."

Since 1999, the Phoenix office has managed approximately $10 billion in projects with clients such as the Arizona Public Service, Salt River Project, Tucson Electric Power, Berkshire Hathaway Energy, City of Phoenix, Arizona Army National Guard, American Airlines, Monsanto and Hexcel.

About Burns & McDonnell

Burns & McDonnell is a company made up of more than 5,300 engineers, architects, construction professionals, scientists, consultants and entrepreneurs with offices across the country and throughout the world. We strive to create amazing success for our clients and amazing careers for our employee-owners. Burns & McDonnell is 100 percent employee-owned and is proud to be No. 16 on Fortune's 2016 list of 100 Best Companies to Work For. For more information, visit burnsmcd.com.

Contact: Elle Jenkins, Burns & McDonnell

816-651-7826

[email protected]

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161026/433142

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160426/360057LOGO



SOURCE Burns & McDonnell

Related Links

http://www.burnsmcd.com


NEW YORK, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The unique festival defies all traditions and evolves year on year, funnier, trendier and wackier than before. The tricks are more sprightly and the treats are more delightful. With many superheroes rising each year the costumes have become more delineated and the carving on the pumpkin lanterns much trendier.

The National Retail Foundation indicates an expected spending of $8.4 billion on Halloween 2016. Total spending has grown by 12%. The number of people planning on celebrating the Halloween has grown considerably. 171 million people are to join the jamboree and have fun on the All Hallows' Eve distributing candies, tricking or treating. The good news is that 35.4% of celebrants will engage in sending Halloween greetings this year.

Halloween is popular with all age groups. Everyone enjoys getting in the weird costume and feigning the mystic look. The thrill of playing pranks and laughing until it hurts is difficult to resist. 123greetings.com brings to you its patented e-cards for sharing the festive joy and excitement with family and friends.

We have a bunch of lively online greetings, fresh from the oven adding on to an exquisite collection of more than 945 e-cards across 15 categories ranging from spine-chilling fun to haunted house and bewitched lovers. The spooky graphics and the eerie sound effects add on to the animated, virtual terror.

Arvind Kajaria, Founder of 123Greetings.com, says, "Halloween is a special time to enjoy tricking and treating your friends or expressing in a unique and fun way, how much they mean to you. We at 123greetings.com believe in strengthening relationships with the right expressions and rejoicing in the warmth of the festive spirit. Wishing you all a happy and fun-filled Halloween."



About 123Greetings:

123Greetings.com is the world's leading online destination for human expressions reaching 95 million visitors annually. Its offering of over 42,000 ecards across multiple languages covers a mix of 3,000 seasonal & everyday categories. Its presence is ubiquitous with its Mobile App, Mobile Website and Facebook App catering to users on mobile and social media respectively. Its Connect feature is a relationship management tool enabling users to actively manage their expressions to both personal and professional contacts. It also operates 123Greetings Studio, a unique platform for artists, to upload and monetize their own ecards.



For details, visit www.123greetings.com

SOURCE 123Greetings.com, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.123greetings.com


WESTBOROUGH, Mass., Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- CCR Wealth Management ("CCR"), an independently managed investment management and financial planning firm supporting over $1.2 billion in client assets under advisement, today announced the launch of its new national headquarters office facility in Westborough, Massachusetts. The move to this expanded office is part of CCR's broader business expansion strategy, which will require additional work space to accommodate its ongoing growth, as well as a wave of anticipated new hires of both advisors and client service professionals.

CCR provides customized financial planning solutions combined with a strategic, disciplined portfolio management process to individuals, corporations and institutions. CCR acts as personal advisors, who seek to empower clients with long-term wealth strategies, individualized financial plans, and strategic investment management solutions to help them achieve their financial goals.

"Since establishing CCR Wealth Management in 1998 with the aim of building the premier financial advice platform for successful professionals and entrepreneurs in New England and throughout the country, our firm has enjoyed steady and sustainable growth, averaging around 20 percent [growth in revenues] each year. Knowing that our success is driven by our ability to deliver exceptional service to our clients, we are investing in expanded office facilities to bring on board fresh talent as part of our strategy of continuously driving enhanced support for the families and businesses we serve. At the same time, we are delighted to have grown our business in Westborough and remain committed to creating jobs right here in our hometown," said David Borden, Managing Partner of CCR.

The firm's new office is located at 1800 Park Suite Drive, Suite 150 in Westborough and is 9,810 square feet held under a long-term lease. The transaction was executed through realtor John Lashar at Transwestern RBJ. Previously, CCR was located at 1400 Computer Drive Suite 245, also in Westborough.

Over the last two years, CCR has added seven executives to its team in Westborough. In all, the firm currently employs 18 advisors and client service professionals across its offices in Westborough and Glastonbury, CT, and intends to hire many more professionals and support staff in the coming two to five years, to be based in its new Westborough headquarters.

About CCR Wealth Management

Headquartered in Westborough, Massachusetts, CCR Wealth Management is an independently managed investment management and financial planning firm supporting more than $1.2 billion in client assets under advisement. CCR manages wealth and provides customized financial planning solutions and portfolio management for individuals, businesses and charitable entities.

Securities and Advisory Services are offered through Cetera Advisors LLC, Broker Dealer member FINRA, SIPC, and Registered Investment Advisor registered with the SEC. Cetera Advisors LLC and CCR Wealth Management LLC are not affiliated companies. For more information, please visit us at: www.ccrwealth.com.

Media Contacts

Jessica Caris / Michael Dugan

Haven Tower Group LLC

424 652 6520 ext 104 or ext 106

[email protected] or [email protected]

SOURCE CCR Wealth Management

Related Links

http://www.ccrwealth.com


BEIJING, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The board of directors (the "Board") of China Life Insurance Company Limited (the "Company") (NYSE: LFC; HKSE: 2628; SSE: 601628) announced today that the Board has approved the proposed appointment of Ernst & Young Hua Ming LLP as the auditor for the Company's Form 20-F for the year of 2016 to be filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Ernst & Young Hua Ming LLP will replace Ernst & Young, which submitted a resignation letter to the Company stating that it proposed to resign as the auditor for the Company's Form 20-F due to its requirements for project management. The resignation will take effect from the conclusion of the forthcoming first extraordinary general meeting 2016 of the Company. The appointment of Ernst & Young Hua Ming LLP has been approved by the Audit Committee of the Company. Ernst & Young will continue to be the auditor for the Company's reports filed in Hong Kong.

Ernst & Young has confirmed in writing that there is no matter relating to its resignation as the auditor for the Company's Form 20-F that needs to be brought to the attention of the shareholders of the Company. The Board has confirmed that there are no disagreements between the Company and Ernst & Young, and the Board is not aware of any other matters in relation to the change of the auditor for the Company's Form 20-F that need to be brought to the attention of the shareholders of the Company. The independent directors of the Company expressed their independent opinion in favor of the change of the auditor for the Company's Form 20-F.

The proposed change of the auditor for the Company's Form 20-F is still subject to the approval of the shareholders of the Company at the forthcoming first extraordinary general meeting 2016.

SOURCE China Life Insurance Company Limited
BEIJING, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- China Online Education Group ("51Talk", or the "Company") (NYSE: COE), a leading online education platform in China, with core expertise in English education, today announced its participation in the Credit Suisse 7th Annual China Investment Conference on November 3, 2016 at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Shenzhen, China.

Management will meet with institutional investors throughout the event. For additional information, please contact your Credit Suisse institutional sales representative.

About China Online Education Group

China Online Education Group (NYSE: COE) is a leading online education platform in China, with core expertise in English education. The Company's mission is to make quality education accessible and affordable. The Company's online and mobile education platforms enable students across China to take live one-on-one interactive English lessons with overseas foreign teachers, on demand. The Company connects its students with a large pool of highly qualified foreign teachers that it assembled using a shared economy approach, and employs student and teacher feedback and data analytics to deliver a personalized learning experience to its students.

For more information, please visit http://ir.51talk.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains statements that may constitute "forward-looking" statements pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will", "expects", "anticipates", "aims", "future", "intends", "plans", "believes", "estimates", "likely to" and similar statements. Among other things, 51Talk's business outlook and quotations from management in this announcement, as well as 51Talk's strategic and operational plans, contain forward-looking statements. 51Talk may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its periodic reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), in its annual report to shareholders, in press releases and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about 51Talk's beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement, including but not limited to the following: 51Talk's goals and strategies; 51Talk's expectations regarding demand for and market acceptance of its brand and platform; 51Talk's ability to retain and increase its student enrollment; 51Talk's ability to offer new courses; 51Talk's ability to engage, train and retain new teachers; 51Talk's future business development, results of operations and financial condition; 51Talk's ability to maintain and improve infrastructure necessary to operate its education platform; competition in the online education industry in China; the expected growth of, and trends in, the markets for 51Talk's course offerings in China; relevant government policies and regulations relating to 51Talk's corporate structure, business and industry; general economic and business condition in China, the Philippines and elsewhere and assumptions underlying or related to any of the foregoing. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in 51Talk's filings with the SEC. All information provided in this press release is as of the date of this press release, and 51Talk does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required under applicable law.

For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

Contacts:

China Online Education Group

Investor Relations

+86 (10) 5692-8909

[email protected]

The Piacente Group, Inc.

Brandi Piacente

+86 (10) 6535-0148

+1-212-481-2050

[email protected]

SOURCE China Online Education Group

Related Links

http://ir.51talk.com


AMSTERDAM, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Constellium N.V. (NYSE and Euronext: CSTM) today announced the appointment of Peter R. Matt as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Peter will join Constellium on November 1, 2016, as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Designate. He will officially become Constellium's Chief Financial Officer on January 1, 2017. Until this time, Corinne Fornara, currently serving as Interim Chief Financial Officer, will be responsible for the function and will thereafter return to her position as Constellium's Group Controller.

"We are delighted to have Peter join our executive leadership team," commented Jean-Marc Germain, Constellium's Chief Executive Officer. Peter's breadth of financial expertise, longstanding experience with the financial community and extensive knowledge of the metal market will be critical to seizing the short term and long term opportunities to optimize our balance sheet, implement our strategic plan and unlock shareholder value," Jean-Marc Germain added.

As Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Peter will be responsible for the Company's Finance, IT and Procurement functions. He will be based in the US and will report directly to Jean-Marc Germain.

Peter spent 30 years in investment banking at First Boston/Credit Suisse where he built leading Metals and Diversified Industrials coverage practices and, in his last position at the firm, was the Managing Director and Group Head responsible for managing the firm's Global Industrials business in the Americas. Throughout his career, Peter worked closely with management teams across a broad range of competencies including business strategy, capital structure, capital allocation, investor communications, treasury and mergers and acquisitions. He is a US citizen and a graduate of Amherst College.

About Constellium

Constellium (NYSE and Euronext: CSTM) is a global sector leader that develops innovative, value added aluminium products for a broad scope of markets and applications, including aerospace, automotive and packaging. Constellium generated 5.2 billion of revenue in 2015.

www.constellium.com

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130624/NY37453LOGO

SOURCE Constellium N.V.

Related Links

http://www.constellium.com


HARRISBURG, Pa., Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In partnership with the Pennsylvania Recreation and Park Society, the state Department of Conservation and Resources again will be offering free, in-person grant workshops at six locations across Pennsylvania in November.

"Once again the intent of these workshops is to answer questions applicants have when they consider seeking available DCNR grants for recreation, conservation, and community-based projects," said DCNR Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn. "Participants will receive guidance and updates on our on-line application process and how to create a competitive application. Attendees also will receive information on eligible applicants and projects; learn about the documents required for various types of projects; and have the opportunity to interact with Bureau of Recreation and Conservation staff."

"Regardless of employment or position, we are urging all who are interested to attend one of these sessions planned across the state," Dunn said. "Last year were drew municipal officials, consultants, land trusts, board members, trail managers and park and recreation professionals."

Beginning Nov. 2 in Blue Bell, Montgomery County, and ending Nov. 17 in Upper St. Clair, Allegheny County, regional workshops will begin at 9:30 a.m. and close at 12:30 p.m. Registration begins at 9 a.m. Sessions dates and locations are:

Nov. 2 - Science Center Theater, Montgomery County Community College;

Nov. 3 - Community Room, Giant food store, Camp Hill;

Nov. 9 - Luzerne County Community College, Building 10, Educational Conference Center, 1333 South Prospect St., Nanticoke;

Nov. 10 - Dean's Hall, The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel, 215 Innovation Blvd., State College;

Nov. 16 - Park Inn by Radisson Hotel, Clarion;

Nov. 17 - Upper St. Clair Community and Recreation Center, Upper St. Clair.

DCNR's Bureau of Recreation and Conservation (BRC) grant program for statewide, regional and local recreation and conservation projects opens Jan. 23, 2017, and closes April 12, 2017.

Grants are funded through a variety of sources, including the Keystone Recreation, Park and Conservation Fund; Environmental Stewardship Fund; Pennsylvania Recreational Trails Program; and the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

Free of charge, the grants workshops will offer a sound introduction to the department's Community Conservation Partnerships Program, popularly known as "C2P2." Also covered: land acquisitions, community park planning, community park development and trails.

Attendees will be provided in-depth information on projects eligible for DCNR grant funds; learn how to develop a competitive "ready-to-go" application; learn about matching fund requirements and other sources of funding for the match; receive guidance and updates on the eGrants application process, and the documents required for each project type; learn what's new in the DCNR Bureau of Recreation and Conservation; and have an opportunity to interact with DCNR Regional Advisors and grant project managers.

Pre-registration is required. Visit

http://events.dcnr.pa.gov. For additional information, contact Jim Young at [email protected], or at 717-783-2713.

MEDIA CONTACT: Terry Brady, 717-705-2225; [email protected]

SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

Related Links

http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us


PALM SPRINGS, Calif., Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Dead men don't write plays.

That's the explanation from Sir Francis Walsingham, the head of England's spy system, in The Shakespeare Conspiracy, by Ted Bacino.

Ted Bacino, author of The Shakespeare Conspiracy The Shakespeare Conspiracy

"Fourteen plays?" he asks. "And Shakespeare's been dead for years. Some playwrights don't write that many plays in a whole lifetime and certainly not after they've died."

The question of the authorship of Shakespeare's plays once again took center stage this week when the prestigious and highly respected New Oxford edition of the Complete Works of Shakespeare lists Christopher Marlow as the co-author of three of the plays ("Henry VI," Parts One, Two and Three).

According to The London Guardian, these three are among the 17 or more that are now believed to "contain writing by other people."

According to The New York Times, this is the first time another author has been listed on the title page of any of Shakespeare's works. An esteemed team of 23 scholars from five countries completed the research on this.

Two questions have plagued historians for hundreds of years. How could Christopher Marlowe, a known spy and England's foremost playwright, be suspiciously murdered and quickly buried in an unmarked grave  just days before he was to be tried for treason?

And, how could William Shakespeare replace Marlowe as England's greatest playwright virtually overnight  when Shakespeare had never written anything before and was merely an unknown actor?

According to The Shakespeare Conspiracy, the answer lies in Marlowe's suspicious murder and the unmarked grave, which has never been found to this day. If Marlowe's death was faked, as many historians believe, he could have fronted for Shakespeare for years. That would explain the plays that regularly appeared after 1616 when Shakespeare died. Marlowe could have outlived Shakespeare and continued to write.

There have always been many questions about the Bard's ability to have written those works. Marlowe was highly educated while Shakespeare had a grammar school education of "little Latin and less Greek." Marlowe traveled extensively, knew court manners, legal issues, and maritime facts. Shakespeare had no background in these areas that are so prevalent in his plays and he never left England, even though many of the works take place in Italy.

Bacino's novel is written as "The Greatest Literary Deception of All Time." It chronicles the life that Marlowe possibly lived as a fugitive, writing the works we know today as those of Shakespeare.

Also, researchers have found almost a hundred identical or very similar lines in the writings of Marlowe and Shakespeare. Did one person write both?

The last fifty pages of Bacino's novel is a supplement of historical notes and data to verify the accuracy of the details in his novel.

Throughout history, there have been many suggestions of who could have been the real author of Shakespeare's works. The two most popular candidates are the Earl of Oxford and Christopher Marlowe. Each has a strong and very active following. (See The Shakespeare Authorship Coalition.)

The major argument that Marlowe could not be the author is that he was murdered in 1593 before Shakespeare's writings began appearing. The conspiracy theory explains how Marlowe could have been alive to write these works if his murder was faked.

The major argument against the Earl of Oxford being the author is that he died in the year 1604, well before most of the works were appeared.

Bacino's novel, The Shakespeare Conspiracy, has been made into a stage play of the same title, which has had productions in Columbus, Ohio, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Rockford University in Illinois.

The rights for the play have recently been released for amateur and college productions.

The Sydney Morning Herald put the issue succinctly: Has the debate over the authorship of Shakespeare's playsfinally been settled? The paper wrote that this recent revelation sheds "new light on the links between the two great playwrights after centuries of speculation and conspiracy theories."

www.TheShakespeareConspiracy.com

CONTACT:

Dr. Rufus Cadigan

(815) 969  9065

[email protected]

Or

Ted Bacino

(760) 778  1030

[email protected]

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433606

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433607

SOURCE Ted Bacino

Related Links

http://www.theshakespeareconspiracy.com


BEND, Ore., Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Deschutes Brewery's Street Pub finished out its second annual national tour this year by raising nearly $440,000 for charity. At each stop, the brewery partnered with local charities and donated 100 percent of proceeds to help those charities achieve their missions. With an estimated 140,000 beer fans who turned out to drink over 1,100 kegs of damn tasty beer, the Street Pub is collectively one of the largest beer festivals in the country.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161026/433106-INFO

"This was another epic year for Street Pub and we got to visit with fans in cities we love from one coast to another," said Joey Pleich, field marketing manager for the brewery who runs the Street Pub program. "We raised $70,000 more for charity over last year's numbers and saw twice as many in attendance. Success for this program means success for all the communities we visit and we are thankful to our many fans to coming out to support Street Pub."

Here's a look at how Deschutes Brewery's Street Pub assisted the nonprofits it partnered with in each city:

Arlington, VA : $25,000 donation in conjunction with Ballston BID/BallstonGives Taste of Arlington festival to benefit the Arlington Food Assistance Center

donation in conjunction with Ballston BID/BallstonGives Taste of Arlington festival to benefit the Philadelphia, PA : $34,144 donation to the Vetri Community Partnership to cover costs for preparing healthy meals in public schools all over the Philly area and South Street Headhouse District to help provide a safer, cleaner, well managed business district

: donation to the to cover costs for preparing healthy meals in public schools all over the Philly area and to help provide a safer, cleaner, well managed business district Columbus, OH : $43,000 to the Mid-Ohio Foodbank helping them achieve their goal of a hunger-free and healthier community. The Funds raised will provide Over 172,000 meals for needy families in greater Mid-Ohio.

: to the helping them achieve their goal of a hunger-free and healthier community. The Funds raised will provide Over 172,000 meals for needy families in greater Mid-Ohio. Chicago, IL : $70,295 to Alliance for the Great Lakes to protect and restore the Great Lakes and Logan Square Preservation to protect and beautify its local neighborhood

: to to protect and restore the Great Lakes and to protect and beautify its local neighborhood Roanoke, VA : $81,000 to a wide selection of local charities including Roanoke Outside Foundation, Blue Ridge Land Conservancy and Feeding America Southwest Virginia

: to a wide selection of local charities including and Minneapolis, MN : $104,723 to Second Harvest Heartland to provide more than 300,000 meals for needy families in Minnesota

: to to provide more than 300,000 meals for needy families in Sacramento, CA : $80,000 to Runnin' for Rhett to help fulfill its mission to nurture healthy communities by hosting both adult and youth fitness programs. Proceeds brought in will fund over 3,000 programs

Check out our wrap up video about this year's Street Pub here: https://youtu.be/zHP8ZMz0A2M

2017 tour dates and locations will be announced soon.

About Deschutes Brewery

Named as OUTSIDE's Best Places to Work (2013-2015) and winner of the 2015 Oregon Sustainability Award, Deschutes Brewery was founded in 1988 as a brew pub in Bend, Oregon. Still family and employee owned 28 years later, the brewery is known for brewing a diverse line-up of award winning beers including the popular Fresh Squeezed IPA, Black Butte Porter, and Mirror Pond Pale Ale. From the beginning, the focus has been on crafting the best beer and food using thoughtfully curated ingredients. With a second brew pub in Portland's Pearl District that has become a popular destination for craft beer lovers from around the world, Deschutes Brewery now ships beer to 28 states, the District of Columbia, and internationally from its main brewing facility located on the banks of the Deschutes River. To find out more, visit www.DeschutesBrewery.com.

Media Contact: Marie Melsheimer, 541-815-3951, [email protected]

SOURCE Deschutes Brewery

Related Links

http://www.deschutesbrewery.com


This work is a continuation the pipeline replacement program DTE launched earlier this year to ensure customers continue to have a safe and reliable natural gas infrastructure.

The five-year program involves replacing aging natural gas infrastructure  mainly cast iron mains, and steel or copper service lines that deliver natural gas from the gas mains to homes and businesses. DTE also is upgrading natural gas meters with the latest technology and relocating the equipment to the outside of homes.

"The work is important for the long-term safety and reliability of the natural gas distribution system," said Joi Harris, DTE vice president, Gas Operations. "We have served the area for several decades and in some areas more than a century. It's time for our gas infrastructure to be renewed. A smarter, up-to-date infrastructure gives customers reliability, control, flexibility and choice in how they manage their energy."

DTE is on schedule to complete 100 miles of natural gas main replacement by the end of 2016, with that workload to increase by 30 miles next year. In 2017, DTE will continue its main replacement program in Dearborn between Ford Road and Tireman, and in Grosse Pointe from Lochmoor to the Fisher Freeway. Work also will begin in Hamtramck, Highland Park and Inkster.

Throughout the process of completing this work, DTE crews have worked consciously to restore all streets, sidewalks, driveways and lawns that have been dug up to accomplish the pipe replacements. By the end of 2016, DTE will have restored 450,000 square feet of lawn to their original condition.

An operation this size has many other sizeable statistics, some of which are (all in 2016):

400,000 hours worked

19,000 meters moved and upgraded

7,000 cubic yards of dirt moved

10,000 cubic yards of concrete poured

DTE collaborates with local communities to schedule work so it complements any road or sewer projects planned in those communities.

About DTE Energy

DTE Energy (NYSE:DTE) is a Detroit-based diversified energy company involved in the development and management of energy-related businesses and services nationwide. Its operating units include an electric utility serving 2.2 million customers in Southeastern Michigan and a natural gas utility serving 1.2 million customers in Michigan. The DTE Energy portfolio includes non-utility energy businesses focused on power and industrial projects, natural gas pipelines, gathering and storage, and energy marketing and trading. As one of Michigan's leading corporate citizens, DTE Energy is a force for growth and prosperity in the 450 Michigan communities it serves in a variety of ways, including philanthropy, volunteerism and economic progress. Information about DTE Energy is available at dteenergy.com, twitter.com/dte_energy and facebook.com/dteenergy.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433212

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140924/148236

SOURCE DTE Energy

Related Links

http://www.dteenergy.com


(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160303/792302 )



Browse 103 market data tables and 58 figures spread through 196 pages and in-depth TOC on "Electric Vehicle Plastics Market"

http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/electric-vehicle-plastic-market-219387183.html

Early buyers will receive 10% customization on this report.

The market is driven by factors such as stringent emission regulations leading to light weighting of passenger cars, and government policies encouraging the adoption for electric vehicles.

"Polyurethanes to be the largest material segment used in electric vehicles"

Polyurethanes is expected to dominate the Electric Vehicle Plastics Market. The growth of this market can be attributed to the advantages offered by polyurethanes, such as high strength, flexibility, and resistance to temperature, weather, and radiation. The key applications of polyurethanes are seating, electric wiring, and hard plastic parts. The average percentage of polyurethanes employed in a passenger car is around 15%-20%, according to MarketsandMarkets analysis. Many automotive plastic manufacturers, such as BASF SE (Germany) and The Dow Chemical Company (U.S.), have a wide range of polyurethane products for the automotive industry.

"Battery electric vehicles to be the fastest growing segment in the Electric Vehicle Plastics Market"

The Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) segment is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The primary difference in the plastics employed in a BEV compared to a Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) is the under hood components. The growth of this market is driven by factors such as increasing innovation, environmental concerns, and stringent emission regulations. To promote the growth of BEVs, governments are introducing various tax and non-tax incentives for electric vehicle owners. This in turn supplements the growth of the plastics employed in these BEVs.

Make an Inquiry: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_Buying.asp?id=219387183

"Asia-Oceania to be the largest market for Electric Vehicle Plastics Market"

Asia-Oceania is estimated to dominate the Electric Vehicle Plastics Market, and is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The region has emerged as a hub for electric vehicles in recent years, with China and Japan as the frontrunners. Governments in Asia-Oceania are also trying to provide incentives to support the demand for electric vehicles. For instance, in Japan, electric vehicles are exempted from acquisition tax and tonnage tax, and have a 50% exemption from automobile tax.

The Electric Vehicle Plastics Market is dominated by a few global players, and comprises several regional players. Some of the key manufacturers operating in the market are BASF SE (Germany), The Dow Chemical Company (U.S.), INEOS Capital Limited (Switzerland), SABIC (Saudi Arabia), and Lyondellbasell Industries Holdings B.V. (The Netherlands).

Browse related reports:

Automotive Lightweight Materials Market by Material Type (Metals, Composites, & Plastics), Application (Structural, Powertrain, Interior, Exterior, & Others), Manufacturing Process, Vehicle Type, and by Region - Global Trends and Forecast to 2019

http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/automotive-lightweight-materials-market-23937731.html

Composite Materials Market for Automotive by Material Type (PMC, MMC, & CMC), Application & their Sub-Components (Structural, Powertrain, Interior, Exterior, & Others), Vehicle Type (PC, LCV, HCV, & Rolling Stock), & by Region-Global Forecast to 2020

http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/automotive-composite-materials-market-6114278.html

About MarketsandMarkets

MarketsandMarkets is the largest market research firm worldwide in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to a multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors.

M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers.

We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository.

Subscribe Reports from Automotive and Transportation Domain @ http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Knowledgestore.asp

Contact:

Mr. Rohan

MarketsandMarkets

701 Pike Street,

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Visit MarketsandMarkets Blog @ http://mnmblog.org/market-research/automotive-transportation

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SOURCE MarketsandMarkets
NUREMBERG, Germany, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Internationally, the top five physical conditions that people worry most about having, either now or as they age, are eyesight getting poorer, not being as mentally alert, lacking energy, having trouble taking care of themselves physically, and being unable to walk or drive.

These are the findings from a GfK survey of the online population across 17 countries, which asked people which physical conditions they worry most about having, either now or as they age, from a list of 19 different conditions:

Eyesight getting poorer 38% Not being as mentally alert / memory loss 38% Lack of energy 36% Having trouble taking care of yourself physically 34% Losing mobility / unable to walk or drive 33% Experiencing body aches 30% Gaining weight 27% Being more at risk for serious diseases 26% Losing your hearing 24% Having digestive problems / irregularity 21% Getting wrinkles, sagging / loose skin 21% Losing your hair or having your hair get thin 20% Incontinence 19% Losing muscle tone 19% Losing your sexual drive 17% Hair turning gray or white 16% Developing age marks, scars or noticeable veins 15% Menopause 10% None of these 10%

The study reveals how widespread certain concerns are within different countries and between genders - information that manufacturers and retailers can use to better target their product placement and advertising.

For example, 38 percent of the international online population says "eyesight getting poorer" is a worry. But this rises to over half in Spain (53 percent), Mexico and Argentina (both 52 percent). Similarly, "not being as mentally alert" is a concern for 38 percent of people internationally, but is much wider concern in Spain (66 percent), Argentina (58 percent), Germany (52 percent), Mexico (51 percent) and Italy (50 percent).

Some countries also stand out as being more concerned about specific physical conditions compared to others. Russia is the only country surveyed where "losing your teeth" is a top five most popular concern, while in Japan and Korea "getting wrinkles or sagging skin" is in their top five. Japan also has "losing muscle tone" in their top five, which again does not feature in other countries' top five.

Differences between men and women are also seen. Both genders have the same top five physical concerns around aging - although in slightly different order. However, looking further down the list, far more men than women worry about "losing sexual drive" (22 percent men; 11 percent women) - and far more women than men are worried about "getting wrinkles or sagging skin" (32 percent women; 11 percent men).

Download the full results for all 17 countries: http://www.gfk.com/global-studies/global-study-overview/

About the study

GfK's online survey interviewed over 22,000 consumers aged 15+ across 17 countries. Fieldwork was completed in summer 2016 with data weighted to reflect the demographic composition of the online population aged 15+ in each market: Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Russia, South Korea, Spain, UK and USA.

SOURCE GfK
WASHINGTON, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, Family Research Council Action (FRC Action), announced a new voter tool, iVoter Guide, providing values voters with comprehensive information on all federal elections in all 50 states, and all statewide races in 9 states. The nine states included in this effort are: Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington state, and Wisconsin. FRC Action plans to finish distributing over 4 million election guides prior to Election Day.

The voter guide rates the candidates in each race tracked by FRC Action on a scale of "very conservative," "conservative," "somewhat conservative," "moderate," "somewhat liberal," "liberal," and "very liberal."

The voter guide was compiled using legislative vote ratings, campaign finance data, virtual vote ratings, endorsements from around 300 liberal and conservative organizations, and candidate issue surveys to determine how each candidate would potentially govern given publically available data. The voter tool also includes a tool in which users can search their state and district candidates, find their polling location and share their research with others.

FRC Action president Tony Perkins commented:

"Conservatives can't afford to sit back and watch their country go over the edge with four more years of ultraliberal policies under a Hillary Clinton presidency, a Democratic controlled House and Senate and Democratic controlled state level governments. For America, this cannot be an election about two people running for president. It's about two fundamentally different visions for our country at the national and state levels. If polling has shown us anything, it's how razor-thin the margin of victory may be. In a nation this divided, even one vote can make a difference.

"The outcomes of this year's elections will have a major impact on the future of religious liberty, family values, sanctity of life, and the Supreme Court. In 2012, there were 39 million voting-eligible Christians who did not vote. As we travel the nation, we are telling values voters this is not a time to stand on the sidelines. If we, as values voters, do not stand up and exercise our freedoms now, we may lose them tomorrow," concluded Perkins.

Please see ivoterguide.com for more information: http://votevalues.com

SOURCE Family Research Council Action
NEW YORK, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- This report describes a complete method for evaluating the performance of a sample of world producers of machinery for the ceramic industry and world producers of glazes and colours for the ceramic industry. It is the first part of a broader suite of products for analysing data provided by the ACIMAC Research Department which have the aim of providing entrepreneurs, managers of Italian and non-Italian companies, scholars and sector analysts with a tool for greater understanding of the main characteristics and trends in the sector and its key players and competitors. It is also a powerful integrated tool containing organised data that will help entrepreneurs and managers draw up the best manufacturing and commercial strategies at a company or group level. It will enable readers to evaluate the economic performance of sector companies in Italy and in other countries or groups of countries where ceramic machinery manufacturers or ceramic glaze and colour producers have a significant presence.

The rest of the Report is organised as follows:

PART ONE serves as an introduction and consists of three separate sections:

The first section briefly discusses the methodological and statistical aspects of the survey.



The second section provides an initial analysis of the results on a geographical basis. At this stage the analysis is performed by grouping companies together by individual countries (if the number of companies is sufficiently large) or by larger geographical regions if the number of companies is too small (aggregate average data are provided for ITALY and the REST OF THE WORLD). This section examines the incidence of costs and profit margins at all levels of operation and the relevant trends, comparing the last few years of financial statement data and calculating the relevant variations. The main geographical regions are then compared and commented on.

The third section provides an analysis of companies grouped into homogeneous groups or clusters of profitability performance based on a cluster analysis approach. The aim is to interpret economic and financial data and performance indicators independently of prior, geographical, sectoral or dimensional classifications, thereby allowing a more consistent comparison to be made with companies with similar results and levels of performance regardless of their size and nationality. In other words, direct comparisons can be made between companies' management and business models. This section also examines the most important economic and financial variables (including indices and ratios) for differentiating companies into clusters, namely the indicators that more than others determine whether a company is to be placed in a strongly performing cluster (corresponding to a business model) or one experiencing structural, economic or management difficulties. Lastly, the characteristics of the various business models are compared and a list is provided of Italian and non-Italian companies with similar characteristics.



PART TWO analyses the individual companies, each of which is examined and compared with the reference groups described in Part One. In this section the companies are analysed through a standard index-based financial statement analysis using balance sheet and income statement data. In particular it focuses on the following:

1. structure and recent trends in the economic and financial results of the various management areas (e.g. production, production costs and the inventory cycle; personnel management; financial management; asset management, etc.);

2. structure of debt and equity capital;

3. main financial indices and economic ratios;

4. the added value creation process, including its implications in terms of costs and plant capacity utilisation and make-or-buy tradeoff corporate decisions (which in turn determine the company's degree of vertical integration);

5. other profitability margins at various levels in the company's chain of value;

6. alert and financial vulnerability indices;

7. ratings (from various sources) of individual companies, each placed within the context of sector averages;

8. graphical representation (using RADAR diagrams) of the degree of similarity between each company and the cluster it has been assigned to during the cluster and benchmarking analysis. The radar diagrams show the key characteristics of the companies and clusters based on the 6 most interesting variables.



In PART THREE the world ceramic tile manufacturers are further classified according to a multidimensional ranking based on a system of 15 indicators (11 financial statement ratios, 2 company size indicators and 2 rating company synthetic indicators). This will enable readers to make a direct comparison between a company's results and those of its competitors. It should be noted that compared to the previous edition of the report on the economic and financial performance of the world ceramic machinery manufacturers (three-year period 2011-2013), the choice of the 15 indicators underwent some minor changes. This decision was based above all on the results of the cluster analysis showing which indicators can be considered robust for discriminating between levels of company performance. The general approach to construction of the multidimensional ranking proposed by the Acimac Research Department and the corresponding results were confirmed in the cluster analysis. It was also decided to use three-year averages for the chosen indicators so as to obtain a more structural or medium-term picture. In a sector subject to significant annual sales fluctuations, this makes it possible to provide more stable and accurate rankings for each individual company.

The criterion for constructing the multidimensional ranking proposed by Acimac focused on 4 synthetic indices for company profitability (ROI, ROE, ROS and ROA), 4 indices for economic/ productive and management efficiency (Added Value margin, EBITDA margin, EBIT margin and Profit/Loss margin) and 3 indices for structure and financial solidity (Cash Flow margin, Equity ratio and Gearing). Although not directly related to economic performance, the dimensional indicators of operating turnover and number of employees were also included in the multidimensional ranking. The companies were first ranked on the basis of an index that takes account of the company's ranking for each chosen indicator. The final ranking was then calculated as an average of the rankings obtained for the 15 selected variables. It should be noted however that the chosen indicators assign greater weight to the profitability and efficiency of management processes than to financial strength and equity structure.



PART FOUR of this report, organised in an analogous way to PART ONE, is devoted to world producers of ceramic glazes and colours. For this group of companies the results were again analysed on the basis of two main geographical areas, ITALY and REST OF THE WORLD (given the very small number of non-Italian companies). This analysis examines the incidence of costs and profit margins at all levels of operation and the relevant trends, comparing the last few years of financial statement data and calculating the relevant variations. The two geographical regions are then compared and commented on. For this group of producers it was not considered appropriate to perform cluster analysis. The number of observed companies for which complete economic and financial data are available (40 companies) did not appear sufficiently large to ensure a reliable cluster analysis.



PART FIVE analyses the individual companies, each of which was examined and compared with the reference groups processed in previous part. The same analysis method was adopted as for the ceramic machinery manufacturers. The companies were analysed through a standard index-based financial statement analysis using balance sheet and income statement data. Lastly in PART SIX the group of ceramic glaze and colour producers underwent a final multidimensional ranking using the same method and criteria as those adopted for the ceramic machinery manufacturers. The Appendix to this report includes a detailed glossary listing the indices and ratios used.



METHODOLOGICAL NOTES The following criteria and guidelines were followed in the economic and financial analysis of the ceramic machinery manufacturing sector. To create a systematic, readable and comparable framework within which to interpret the collected economic information, the available data were organised according to the new International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) or a mixture of IFRS and the older International Accounting Standard (IFRS/IAS). The balance sheet items were divided into Assets, Liabilities and Owner's Equity (or Solo Equity). The various items were then classified according to their liquidity as current or non-current. In particular, an asset is classified as current if it satisfies at least one of the following criteria: it is expected to be sold or destined for sale/consumption within the company's normal operating cycle; it is held primarily for the purpose of being traded; it is expected to be realized within the 12 months following the end of the reporting period; it is a cash or cash-equivalent. All other assets that do not satisfy the above-mentioned criteria are classified as non-current.



Likewise, a liability is classified as "current" if it satisfies at least one of the following criteria: it is expected to be settled within the company's normal operating cycle; it is held primarily for the purpose of being traded; it is due to be settled within the 12 months of the reporting period; the company does not have an unconditional right to defer settlement of the liability for al least 12 months after the reporting period. All other liabilities that do not satisfy the above-mentioned criteria are classified as non-current.

The income statement classifies items essentially by function. Given the significant variations in the minimum amount of information required by national laws and regulations, we are proposing a simplified income statement format to which a further list of important items is added. The income statement first provides the values of Operating Revenue, Sales and EBIT.



Next, a section on non-operating net revenues gives detailed figures for financial revenues and expenses and the corresponding profits/ losses (P/L). This makes it possible to identify the P/L before taxes generated by non-core operations together with corresponding operating profits or losses (P/L or net income per period). Further important items listed are: Material Costs, Costs of Employees, Depreciation & Amortization, Interest paid, Cash Flow, Added Value and EBITDA. More detailed definitions and descriptions of the calculated indices/ratios can be found in the index and ratio glossary in the Appendix.



CLUSTER AND BENCHMARKING ANALYSIS

The purpose of cluster analysis is to select and group together similar companies taken from a seemingly heterogeneous set without using the usual size classifications (classes of employees, classes of turnover). Instead, the similarities or differences are determined on a multidimensional level, allowing them to emerge from a broad set of indicators and economic variables examined using statistical methods. The basic hypothesis is that company size may be a condition for profitability growth, for example by leveraging economies of scale and variety, but that this condition is neither necessary nor sufficient to ensure growth. We decided to use the statistical classification techniques to define the variables mostly describing differences and similarities between companies. We can then proceed with cluster analysis by examining the degree of similarity of companies over a wide range of variables describing their structure, management and results. In other words, by performing this kind of analysis it is possible to establish which companies within a sample can be considered similar amongst themselves and dissimilar from others in terms of a large number of variables. These similarities or dissimilarities between companies can then be used to perform the benchmarking process, which involves identifying the business models that represent the best practices in terms of structure, management and performance.



This way we can identify the strategic and managerial levers that can be used to approach, match or even exceed these best practices. In order for this strategic and managerial benchmarking process to be more meaningful, companies must be compared with others that are similar to them in terms of structure, management and market. In terms of procedure, the cluster analysis was performed on the whole sample of companies. The similarity (or diversity) is evaluated statistically by using the entire set of chosen variables. By using cluster analysis it is possible to determine which of the chosen variables are the ones that are most important in determining similarities and differences (in technical terms, this involves identifying the best cluster predictors and the degree of importance of the predictor in distributing the companies among the various clusters).



Finally, after forming clusters of relatively homogeneous companies, it is possible to perform benchmarking analysis on two different levels: a more general and descriptive level (performed and presented by the Acimac/MECS Research Department) which involves making comparisons between homogeneous clusters within each profitability class; a more analytical level (which is left to the reader) in which each company can be compared with those that are similar to it in order to identify (and compare) group best practices. However, the two benchmarking levels share the same methodology for comparing and identifying best practices: the financial statement ratios of the various clusters are compared, while those of individual companies are compared with the average financial statement ratios of the corresponding clusters. This makes it possible to determine whether the company's characteristics are better or worse than the majority of the companies in its cluster, or in other words relative to the "typical" cluster companies. Similarly, the various clusters are also compared using mean values. The first benchmarking analysis level is presented in Part One of this report. It provides the lists of companies belonging to the various clusters along with summary tables showing the average characteristics of each cluster of companies. For the second benchmarking level, the reader can refer to these tables of cluster average values. Furthermore, each company (in the individual sheets in Part Two of this report) is provided with a Radar chart showing a visual representation of the main differences within the cluster it has been assigned to.



Read the full report: http://www.reportlinker.com/p03895332-summary/view-report.html



About Reportlinker

ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place.

http://www.reportlinker.com





__________________________

Contact Clare: [email protected]

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Intl: +1 339-368-6001

SOURCE Reportlinker

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DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla., Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Franchisees in the Coverall System know the importance of having a clean office space, not only for business function and productivity, but also for employee health and wellness. Investing in the proper steps to ensure office cleanliness is especially important during the most vulnerable times of the year, including cold and flu season.

In an effort to educate consumers on making the workplace healthier during cold and flu season, Coverall North America, Inc., a leading franchisor of commercial cleaning businesses, commissioned a national survey asking men and women who have worked, or currently work, in an office setting what surface or common area contains the most infectious germs in the office. More than 50 percent of those surveyed selected computer keyboards as the culprit when in fact, the handles on the kitchen sink contain the most bacteria.

"Influenza causes billions of dollars in lost productivity each year, which is why the Coverall Program is designed to provide consistent, high-quality service to aid in the fight against infectious germs in the workplace," said Rick Ascolese, President and CEO of Coverall North America, Inc. "Our Franchisees' service packages and techniques go beyond the standard dusting and vacuuming. The Coverall Health-Based Cleaning System Program uses proprietary processes that are designed to tackle contagious germs that can be found throughout the workplace  even the kitchen sink handles."

According to the Centers for Disease Control, each flu season, nearly 111 million workdays are lost due to the flu, translating to approximately $7 billion per year in sick days. While the CDC strongly recommends the flu vaccination, there are several other common Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions (NPIs) that businesses can incorporate into their cold and flu prevention plans:

Encourage employees to wash hands frequently throughout the day.

Regularly wipe down keyboards, phones and other frequently touched surfaces with disinfecting or sanitizing wipes.

Utilize the "elbow cough" method of using the crook of your arm instead of your hand. This helps prevent spreading germs when tissues aren't available.

If you're sick, stay home. This will help prevent the spread of sickness and aid in a faster recovery.

The Coverall Core 4 Process used by Coverall Franchisees adds another line of defense in the battle against cold and flu viruses. The proprietary process includes hundreds of specialized cleaning protocols and technologies designed to disinfect and fight the spread of infectious germs, which can ultimately aid in preventing employees from getting sick. From advanced cleaning equipment to effective cleaning product chemistry, the Coverall Program is designed to create a safe and healthy work environment.

In order to help you combat the 2016 Cold and Flu Season, Coverall has identified popular "germ hot spots" in and around the workplace. To find out where germs are hiding in your office, visit: https://goo.gl/WsZ4en.

About Coverall North America, Inc.

Since its inception in 1985, Coverall North America, Inc. has grown into a leading franchised brand, licensing thousands of entrepreneurs to operate independent commercial cleaning businesses using the Coverall brand and system. February 26, 2015, marked the company's 30th year in business, a milestone anniversary celebrated across the entire Coverall Franchise System. In 2008, Coverall launched its proprietary Health-Based Cleaning System Program and in 2014, introduced the Coverall Core 4 Process, demonstrating its dedication to continuous innovation and leadership on behalf of its franchisees. Coverall's unique system combines advanced cleaning technologies and tools, hospital-grade disinfectants, professional training programs, business support services, and a passion for healthy cleaning to do one thing: help our franchised businesses remove the maximum amount of dirt and germs as efficiently as possible for their customers. System-wide, more than 8,000 Franchised Businesses provide Coverall Program services across 90 markets to over 40,000 customers. For more information, visit www.coverall.com.

CONTACT: Michelle Estevam

Fish Consulting

(954) 893-9150

[email protected]

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160118/323380LOGO

SOURCE Coverall North America, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.coverall.com/


"As a long-time fan of the brand, I am thrilled to have been selected by ghd as their new ambassador," says Olivia Culpo. "I was initially introduced to ghd by my hairstylist and it was a revelation. The fact that I could easily create any style I wanted while at the same time preserving the health of my hair was game changing; I have been hooked ever since."

As a fashion and beauty icon, with millions following her every day on social media, looking to her for beauty and fashion inspiration, Culpo is the ultimate style chameleon and quickly become a go-to resource for both consumers and the media. "Hairstyling for me is a form of self-expression. My hairstyles parallel my moods and I love experimenting with different looks. That being said I've been heat styling my hair for as long as I can remember and because I style my hair so often, my biggest concern has always been heat damage. What I love about ghd is that they are all about healthy hair and have developed a range of tools that give you gorgeous results and keep hair healthier. This is so important to me because minimizing the damage to my hair, is just as important as getting the look right."

Olivia Culpo perfectly exemplifies the "Maximize Impact, Minimize Damage" messaging of ghd's new brand campaign, which represents the brand's efforts to bust commonly held heat styling myths and educate consumers on how the revolutionary benefits of ghd's multi-award winning range of styling tools. Most women believe that in order to maximize the impact of their hairstyle, they need extreme heat, but ghd's cutting-edge technology is designed to deliver ultimate styling results and hair that is healthier*, stronger* and shinier**. With this new campaign, ghd hopes to show that you don't need to sacrifice the health of hair to achieve maximum impact.

"We are very pleased to have Olivia Culpo as ghd's new ambassador. She knows how to make an impact whether it's walking down the street or walking down the red carpet, and we're excited for her to join the ghd family," says Francesca Raminella, President of ghd North America. "As someone who millions of women are looking to for beauty inspiration Olivia is the embodiment of our new campaign and is proof that you don't have to sacrifice the health of your hair in order to get gorgeous results. We're looking forward to Olivia helping us continue our mission of giving more women around the world a good hair day, every day."

About ghd:

- ghd stands for "good hair day" and is always written in lower case

- ghd is an iconic British, professionally endorsed hair styling brand, available only through the finest salons, ghdhair.com and a few select premium retailers such as Sephora, Nordstrom and Space NK

- ghd is celebrating its 15th year of transforming the way women style their hair around the world. In 2001, ghd re-invented the professional hairstyling tool market with the launch of its ground-breaking styler, replacing flat irons, straighteners and curlers with a professional styling tool designed for salon use that could also be used easily by women at home and that could straighten or curl

- ghd continues to be a leader and innovator in hair styling in and out of the salon, enabling women all over the world to have a good hair day, every day with its award-winning range of stylers, curing wands and tongs, hairdryers, professional brushes, ghd Style styling products.

- For more information visit www.ghdhair.com/us

*vs a styler working at 450F

** vs untreated hair

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161028/433768

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161028/433779LOGO

SOURCE ghd

Related Links

http://www.ghdhair.com/us


LOS ANGELES, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Gigastone, the Leading Global Mobile Technology Accessory Brand announced today; its Apple iOS Flash Drives and Micro SD Card Readers, available for purchase at leading big-box stores and online, can be effectively used to secure your personal data from online hackers and DDoS attacks.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161028/433773

Think of USB Drive. Add an Apple Lighting adapter to the other end. Now you can plug the iOS Memory Stick into an iPhone or iPad and backup, copy or move data. Remove and plug the USB Drive into a computer and access the data from an iPhone in seconds. This is an iPhone USB Flash Drive, iFlashDrive, iOS Memory Stick or iOS This is an unprecedented advancement in iPhone and iPad memory management that meets a multitude of current iPhone user needs:

iPhone and iPad users may be afraid their data is not secure, after the proliferation of hacking attacks in the last few months. On October 22, 2016 Dyn, a company that routes internet traffic sustained a massive cyber attack which prevented Twitter, Spotify, Netflix, Amazon, Tumblr, Reddit and Paypal users from accessing the sites. This is especially alarming for the general public who are storing all their information in the cloud. In the event that cloud storage solutions are rendered inaccessible, data cannot be retrieved.

Harold Katz, Gigastone Chief Marketing Officer commented, "As a result of the limited memory capacity of iPhones and iPads users are already faced with having to store much of their data offline in the cloud. In a situation where the cloud services are not available, their data is no longer accessible. The best way to prevent this would be to backup and store critical information on external memory." He went on to say, "Gigastone has the largest range of iOS flash drives, giving Apple iPhone and iPad users the means to backup their devices in the event that their cloud based storage is not available."

The Gigastone iOS Flash Drive come in a number of configurations to meet the needs of the Apple iPhone and iPad user. The Gigastone iFlashDrive software allows users to:

Backup iPhone data from your device to the external memory of the Gigastone iPhone Flash Drives.

Backup can be done automatically. (Photos/Contacts/Calendar)

iCloud, Google Drive, Dropbox and Facebook Album data can be moved to the external Gigastone IOs Flash Drive.

The data is secured by Touch ID Security and/or Encryption.

All photos, movies and data is accessible from the iPhone or iPad without having to move the data from the external iOS Flash Drive to a iDevice.

The Gigastone iOS Flash Drives have both Lightning and USB adapters or removable MicroSD cards, so backed up data can easily be moved to any computer without the need for the iDevice.

Data can also be copied from a computer to the iOS Flash Drive and accessed from an iPhone or iPad.

Gigastone President, Michel Hassan recapped by commenting, "With our technology, iPhone and iPad users are liberated from cloud based only storage. They can sleep easily, knowing their data is offline and backed up onto external memory not linked to the internet."

Gigastone iOS flash Drives are available through all the major big-box stores and online retailers.

Gigastone also sells a full range of memory and mobile technology accessories. The full Gigastone i-FlashDrive range can be seen on the Gigastone Web Site.

About Gigastone

Gigastone is the leading global mobile accessory brand, specializing in state-of-the-art, high-end mobile peripherals and technology. For two decades, Gigastone has been distributing technology to all the major big-box and Electronic Commerce stores. Gigastone has leveraged its engineering, manufacturing and quality control skills to drive world-class production and deliver quality products. A uniquely positioned company, poised to continue to grow and maintain its leadership in the fast paced consumer electronics space.

Gigastone currently has eight major offices around the globe; USA, Canada, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, France, Brazil and China, with distributors in Asia, the Americas, and Europe. Notable distributors include Walmart, Costco, Target, Best Buy, Amazon, Guo Mei, JD.com, E-Mart and The Source. Gigastone continues to launch world-class mobile peripherals, constantly diversifying its product range to meet consumer demand. Customer focus is the key to ongoing Gigastone global success.

Related Files

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image2.png

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Related Links

What is an iOS Flash Drive

Essential Tools of a Mobile Warrior

Related Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-OYvRI2zKo

This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com.

SOURCE Gigastone

Related Links

http://www.gigastone.co/


DUBLIN, October 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Global Text-to-speech Education Technology Market 2016-2020" report to their offering.

The report forecasts the global text-to-speech education technology market to grow at a CAGR of 8.63% during the period 2016-2020.

The report has been prepared based on an in-depth market analysis with inputs from industry experts. The report covers the market landscape and its growth prospects over the coming years. The report also includes a discussion of the key vendors operating in this market.

One of latest trends in the market is increase in government investments in education for differently abled students. Improvements in the educational content provided through digital platforms have prompted increased investments from the government sector. This will help institutions with technologically advanced education system to provide quality education to students. Also, it will eventually benefit the nation as a whole, as students with quality education can contribute to the economic growth of the nation.

According to the report, one of the primary drivers in the market is growth of m-learning. The increased adoption of mobile phone and tablets by students and faculty has led to the rise in m-learning methods. Vendors in developed countries such as the US and the UK adopt m-learning methods to provide users with real-time access to educational content when the requirement arises. With the increase in global smartphone shipments from 490 million units in 2011 to 1.43 billion units in 2015 many emerging geographies such as India, New Zealand, and the Middle East and Africa are amending their educational structure and policies to create a technology-driven learning environment.

Further, the report states that one major challenge in the market is threat from open-source platforms.

Key vendors:

IVONA Software

NaturalReader

NextUp Technologies

Key Topics Covered:

PART 01: Executive summary

PART 02: Scope of the report

PART 03: Market research methodology

PART 04: Introduction

PART 05: Market landscape

PART 06: Global text-to-speech education technology market

PART 07: Market drivers

PART 08: Impact of drivers

PART 09: Market challenges

PART 10: Impact of drivers and challenges

PART 11: Market trends

PART 12: Market segmentation by schools

PART 13: Geographical segmentation

PART 14: Vendor landscape

PART 15: Key vendor analysis



PART 16: Other prominent vendors

PART 17: Appendix

For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/vpp4h2/global

Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]

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

SOURCE Research and Markets

Related Links

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PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Goucher College, perennially lauded as one of America's most innovative liberal arts colleges, has joined the SAGE Scholars Private College & University Enrollment Consortium.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433518

Often ranked No. 1 in the nation for study-abroad programs, Goucher is the 19th member affiliated with Colleges That Change Lives to participate in the SAGE Tuition Rewards program. Attracting students from 44 states and 50 foreign countries, Goucher offers 60-plus study-abroad programs in 30 countries. Every undergraduate since 2006 has studied in a foreign country.

Located on a wooded, 287-acre campus eight miles north of downtown Baltimore, Goucher offers a 10:1 student-faculty ratio, with an average class size of 17. The nearly 1,500 undergrads have a choice of 33 majors. 86% of students join at least one of the 60+ clubs and activities  or play one of school's 18 NCAA Division 3 varsity sports. 78% of students complete at least one internship. One year after graduation, 100% of students report that they were either employed or attending graduate school.

Founded in 1885, Goucher has been co-ed since 1986. Goucher is the 6th Maryland private college to participate in the SAGE consortium.

26 new colleges have joined the SAGE consortium in the past 12 months, including Canisius College (NY), Linfield College (OR), Marist College (NY), Saint Martin's University (WA), University of Redlands (CA), Ursinus College (PA) and Wabash College (IN).

368 U.S. private colleges now participate in the consortium, which is a source of students for colleges in 45 states from Maine to Hawaii.

The SAGE Tuition Rewards program strongly encourages families to save for college  and attend a private college. Financial organizations (529 Plans, banks, credit unions, employers, insurance firms, mutual funds, etc.) use the program as a value-added benefit, enabling clients and employees to earn rewards points that students can redeem for guaranteed minimum scholarships  tuition discounts  at any member college in the consortium. Rewards points are similar to frequent flyer miles and are submitted at time of application. (1 point = $1.00)

Member colleges absorb the scholarships, which are "capped" at one full year's tuition (spread evenly over four years) and can be included with other aid, as a marketing cost to effectively reach out to a wider audience than an individual college could on its own.

Participation in the SAGE program is free to families and to colleges. Consortium member colleges benefit by free marketing access to participating students (once they reach 9th grade). For colleges, it is not always easy to find families interested in private higher education. SAGE students are typically well-qualified both academically and financially.

SAGE Scholars was founded in 1995 to promote the values and affordability of private higher education by Dr. James B. Johnston, former director of admissions and financial aid at the Wharton Graduate School, University of Pennsylvania.

"Through our unique Tuition Rewards program, SAGE has brought together families, schools and investment companies for nearly two decades to create college-funding solutions," Dr. Johnston said. "SAGE membership can assist in finding desirable applicants across America."

SAGE strongly promotes its member colleges and their affordability  as well as the benefits of private higher education  to participating families.

Drexel University was the most popular member college with SAGE's 2016 seniors, receiving 238 rewards statements, correlated with applications, followed by Duquesne University (170 SAGE applicants).

Other colleges popular with SAGE students included Bradley, Clarkson, Creighton, DePaul, La Salle, Messiah, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Rochester Institute of Technology, University of Dayton, University of San Diego, University of Tampa, Valparaiso and Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

For a full list of participating colleges, visit www.tuitionrewards.com

Contact:

Robert Savett

215-564-9930 ext 14

[email protected]

SOURCE SAGE Scholars, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.tuitionrewards.com


ANNAPOLIS, Md., Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. ("Hannon Armstrong," "we," or the "Company;"NYSE: HASI), a leading investor in the efficiency, wind and solar markets, today announced that the Company will release its third quarter 2016 results after the market close on Wednesday, November 2, 2016, to be followed by a conference call at 5:00 p.m. (Eastern Time).

The conference call can be accessed live over the phone by dialing 1-800-239-9838, or for international callers, 1-913-312-1298. A replay will be available two hours after the call and can be accessed by dialing 1-844-512-2921, or for international callers, 1-412-317-6671. The passcode for the live call and the replay is 2710760. The replay will be available until November 9, 2016.

Interested investors and other parties may also listen to a simultaneous webcast of the conference call by logging onto the Investor Relations section of the Company's website at www.hannonarmstrong.com. The on-line replay will be available for a limited time beginning immediately following the call.

To learn more about Hannon Armstrong, please visit the Company's Web site at www.hannonarmstrong.com. In addition to filing or furnishing required information to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Hannon Armstrong uses its Web site as a channel of distribution of material Company information. Financial and other material information regarding Hannon Armstrong is routinely posted on the Company's Web site and is readily accessible.

About Hannon Armstrong

Hannon Armstrong (NYSE: HASI) invests in the energy efficiency, wind and solar markets. We focus on providing preferred or senior level capital to established sponsors and high credit quality obligors for assets that generate long-term, recurring and predictable cash flows. We are based in Annapolis, Maryland.

Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

Investor Relations Inquiries:

[email protected]

410-571-6189

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160125/325673LOGO

SOURCE Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.hannonarmstrong.com


ALBANY, New York, October 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The global human vaccines market is dominated by GlaxoSmithKline plc. Sanofi, Pfizer, Inc., and Merck & Co, Inc. These players collectively accounted for over 70% of the market in terms of revenue in 2015. Analysts at Transparency Market Research have identified some of the key strategies adopted by players in the Human Vaccines Market in order to gain a competitive edge over the rest. These include mergers and acquisitions, collaborations and acquisitions for market penetration, the establishment of local production sites, the expansion of product portfolios, and expansion activities in regions with high growth potential.

A focus on research and development is also a successful growth strategy, TMR finds. For instance, Pfizer, Inc. has always focused on R&D in order to improve innovation and productivity. It is presently working on various pipeline products for different therapies and innovating new capabilities that can position it for long-term leadership across the globe.

The global human vaccines market was valued at US$28.3 bn in 2015 and is estimated to reach US$72.5 bn by 2024, registering an 11.2% CAGR during the forecast period.

Inquire for a Sample Copy of the Research Report: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=16127

Hospital Pharmacies and Drugstores Prominent Distribution Channels for Human Vaccines

By age group, pediatric vaccines accounted for a 57.5% share in the global human vaccines market in 2015. Adult vaccines, on the other hand, are expected to expand at a 13.2% CAGR from 2016 to 2024. Based on product, the pneumococcal segment accounted for the majority share in in 2015, with the hepatitis segment exhibiting strong growth during the forecast period.

On basis of vaccine type, the conjugate vaccines segment accounted for the majority share in the global human vaccines market in 2015. On the other hand, the combination vaccines segment is expected to expand at an outstanding CAGR from 2016 to 2024. By distribution channel, the hospital pharmacies segment led the global human vaccines market. However, the drugstores segment is projected to expand at a considerable pace through 2024.

Geographically, North America dominates the global human vaccines market and is estimated to reach a value of US$28.0 bn by 2024. Asia Pacific is the most promising market for human vaccines and is expected to expand at a high CAGR of 12.5% during the forecast period.

Browse Research Report with Complete TOC: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/human-vaccines-market.html

Minimal Side Effects of Vaccines Bolstering Large-scale Adoption

An extremely low risk of serious and fatal side effects associated with vaccines is one of the primary factors driving the market for human vaccines around the world. Similar to other drugs, vaccines are associated with a few side effects; however, most of the times, these are rather mild. Soreness, swelling, redness at the site of injection, fever, rash, or itchiness are the most common side effects of vaccines. Several healthcare organizations, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the US FDA, the American Medical Association (AMA), and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommend the use of vaccines owing to their safety.

Complementing this factor is the growing awareness among patients and the general population regarding the benefits of vaccination. This can be attributed to a rise in awareness programs by government, private, and not-for-profit organizations. "The celebration of the National Immunization Awareness Month in the month of August in the U.S., for instance, is a great way of spreading awareness and getting more people to opt for vaccination," the author of the report states.

High Costs Deterring Market Growth

Strict regulatory requirements is a major hurdle for most players in the global human vaccines market. In addition to this, high costs pose a significant challenge. "The discovery and development of new vaccines require immense capital. Moreover, the transportation, storage, and handling of vaccines can also be extremely heavy on the pocket," the TMR analyst reports. Apart from this, the containment of technical expertise in the hands of a few major players also acts as a deterrent on the growth of the human vaccines market.

Speak to Research Expert for any Query: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=ASK&rep_id=16127

Global Human Vaccines Market, by Vaccine Type

Conjugate

Recombinant

Inactivated

Combination

Attenuated

Others

Global Human Vaccines Market, by Product

Pneumococcal

Influenza

Hepatitis

HPV

Meningococcal

Rotavirus

Measles and Mumps

Typhoid

Combination

Others

Global Human Vaccines Market, by Age Group

Pediatrics

Adolescents

Adults

Geriatrics

Global Human Vaccines Market, by Distribution Channel

Hospital Pharmacies

Drugstores

Others

Global Human Vaccines Market, by Geography

North America U.S. Canada Europe

Germany France U.K. Italy Spain Rest of Europe

Asia Pacific (APAC) Japan China ASEAN Rest of APAC

(APAC) Latin America (LATAM) Brazil Mexico Rest of LATAM

(LATAM) Middle East & Africa (MEA) GCC South Africa Rest of MEA

& (MEA)

Browse Related Research Reports:

U.S. Vaccine Market (Human Vaccines: Hepatitis, Influenza, Meningococcal, Pneumococcal, HPV, Combination Vaccines; Animal Vaccines: Canine, Feline, Porcine, Bovine, Ovine, Poultry and Equine) - Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2014 - 2020

http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/us-vaccine-market.html

Veterinary Vaccines Market (Animal Type - Companion Animals (Equine, Canine, and Feline) and Livestock Animals (Bovine, Ovine, Porcine, and Poultry); Technology Type - Inactivated Vaccines, Live Attenuated Vaccines, Conjugate Vaccines, and Toxoid Vaccines) - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecast 2016 - 2024

http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/veterinary-vaccines-market.html

DNA Vaccines Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2013 - 2019

http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/dna-vaccines-market.html

About Us:

Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a U.S. based provider of syndicated research, customized research, and consulting services. TMR's global and regional market intelligence coverage includes industries such as pharmaceutical, chemicals and materials, technology and media, food and beverages, and consumer goods, among others. Each TMR research report provides clients with a 360-degree view of the market with statistical forecasts, competitive landscape, detailed segmentation, key trends, and strategic recommendations.

Contact Us:



Transparency Market Research

90 State Street, Suite 700

Albany, NY 12207

Tel: +1-518-618-1030

USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453

Email: [email protected]



Website: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com

Blog: http://www.tmrblog.com/

SOURCE Transparency Market Research
FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif., Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Hyundai Motor America will show five new concepts at the 2016 SEMA show news conference, including a special skunkworks race concept on November 1 at 10:30 a.m. at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Special details about the skunkworks race project will be shared at the news conference.

Details about the other four Hyundai concepts follow:

Hyundai Motor America builds four unique concept vehicles for the 2016 SEMA show. HYUNDAI JOINS FORCES WITH BISIMOTO TO DEVELOP "SANTA-FAST" 1,075 HORSEPOWER REAR-DRIVE SANTA FE SUV FOR 2016 SEMA SHOW HYUNDAI TEAMS WITH ROCKSTAR PERFORMANCE GARAGE TO CREATE NITROUS-BASED ROCKSTAR SANTA FE CONCEPT OFF-ROADER FOR 2016 SEMA SHOW HYUNDAI AND GURNADE INC. LINK UP TO CREATE RACE-READY VELOSTER CONCEPT FOR 2016 SEMA SHOW HYUNDAI AND ARK PERFORMANCE COMBINE TALENTS TO DEVELOP ROAD RACER ELANTRA CONCEPT FOR 2016 SEMA SHOW Hyundai Motor America builds four unique concept vehicles for the 2016 SEMA show.

HYUNDAI JOINS FORCES WITH BISIMOTO TO DEVELOP "SANTA-FAST" 1,075 HORSEPOWER REAR-DRIVE SANTA FE SUV FOR 2016 SEMA SHOW

Hyundai and Bisimoto have again partnered for the SEMA show, this time developing a 1,040 horsepower, rear-drive "Santa-Fast" SUV. Bisimoto is well-renowned for awe-inspiring street, show and race vehicles. With no fear of the unknown, Bisimoto is always on the cutting edge of automotive technology, and the Bisimoto "Santa Fast" Santa Fe is no exception, pumping out the power from a flex-fuel turbocharged, Hyundai-based 3.8L Lambda V6 powerplant making reliable power, positioned longitudinally and driving the rear wheels.

"Bisimoto takes pleasure in making any vehicle fun to drive, even a larger SUV," said 'Bisi Ezerioha, owner of Bisimoto. "Our Santa-Fast SUV is a proof-of-concept vehicle with driving capabilities that our customers can count on every day they turn the key." The Bisimoto team worked exhaustingly on the custom rear-drive and six-speed manual transmission conversions to achieve an OEM-like appearance and function. Full boost for the powertrain is 39 psi, and a boost-per-gear protocol is used to allow for optimal traction.

Other key modifications to the "Santa-Fast" include:

ENGINE

Bisimoto-built Hyundai 3.8L engine, in climate-controlled engine-building clean room

Bisimoto custom twin-turbo kit and intercooler

AEM Electronics

Infinity 708 ECU

Boost-control solenoid

Fuel pressure regulator and flex-fuel sender

Arias 9.0:1 custom forged pistons, Bisimoto specification

Bisimoto-Web level 2.4 camshafts

PurOl "Elite Series" Synthetic Motor Oil, 5w30

PurOl Manual Transmission Fluid

GuldstandPro mil-spec wiring harness

Driftmotion Aluminum tubing

ARP Head studs, wheel studs, and bolts

Bisimoto custom exhaust system with dual-pulse chambers

Five-O racing 2200cc Injectors

Supertech valvetrain

Kinsler fuel filters

Golden Eagle sleeves

sleeves NGK Iridium spark plugs

Odyssey PC 950 battery

Brian Crower steel rods

steel rods Racepak IQ3 street dash

Twin Turbonetics TNX 30/56 Turbos

Dual RG45 wastegates

Godzilla blow-off valve

Spearco intercooler core

Vibrant Vanjen clamps and stainless steel hardware

WPC engine treatment and coatings

Goodridge Motorsport braided lines and plumbing

Performance tube bending mandrel hardware

Griffen dual-core radiator

TurboHot exhaust coatings

DRIVETRAIN

Custom Rothfab rear sub-frame conversion

Hyundai Equus rear differential

6-speed manual conversion, with Genesis R-Spec gearbox

Custom console-mounted shifter

Spec stage-5 clutch and aluminum flywheel

Custom Bisimoto axles and half shaft

KW coil-over suspension

CHASSIS

Fifteen52, 19-inch Tarmac R40 Wheels

Toyo tires: R888 265/35R19

Buddy Club 4-piston brakes, with Bisimoto brackets

EXTERIOR

Denmatic design scheme

Gatorwraps auto wrap

Hyundai Genuine Accessories mudguards

Custom modified grill

INTERIOR

Momo Daytona EVO seats

Bisimoto reservoir socks

4-point chromo roll cage

Crow restraint harnesses

HYUNDAI TEAMS WITH ROCKSTAR PERFORMANCE GARAGE TO CREATE NITROUS-BASED ROCKSTAR SANTA FE CONCEPT OFF-ROADER FOR 2016 SEMA SHOW

Hyundai Motor America and Rockstar Performance Garage have partnered to develop a nitrous-powered Santa Fe CUV capable of serious off-roading while conveying the iconic Rockstar design attitude. Rockstar is world-renowned for the boundless energy it brings to any product concept or event, and the Rockstar Santa Fe Concept follows that reputation, with a nitrous-powered, Hyundai-based 3.3L Lambda V6 engine driving all four wheels through any terrain via a raised Santa Fe off-roading setup.

"Rockstar conveys its endless brand energy in everything we do," said Nick Ashby, lead developer of the Rockstar concept vehicle. "Our Rockstar Santa Fe Concept is simultaneously all-show and all-go, a non-compromising concept with tremendous capabilities and a confident demeanor to match."

Key modifications to the Rockstar Santa Fe Concept include:

Hyundai-based 3.3L V6 engine

AEM cold air intake

Mishimoto cooling system

Nitrous-oxide injection system

R1 6-piston front, 4-piston rear, big brake system

2.0 KING coil-overs front

2.5 KING shocks with finned reservoir rear

Custom suspension setup with new tie-rods and control arms

Nology high-performance wires

Odyssey batteries

Nitro Gear gears

KICKER audio system

Magnaflow custom exhaust

17-inch off-road KMC XD 301 Turbine bead-lock wheels

Mickey Thompson Baja Claw 35-inch off-road tires

35-inch off-road tires Wheel clearance expansion setup

WARN winch

Rock sliders and bumpers

Custom roof rack, headlamps and taillamps

Bulldog LED lighting

Roadwire custom leather interior design

HYUNDAI AND GURNADE INC. LINK UP TO CREATE RACE-READY VELOSTER CONCEPT FOR 2016 SEMA SHOW

Hyundai Motor America and Gurnade Inc. combined talents to develop the race-ready Gurnade Veloster Concept for the 2016 SEMA show. The Gurnade Veloster Concept takes the fundamentally-aggressive stance of the Veloster and magnifies it further with integrated flares, front splitter, racing canards, three-piece lightweight forged wheels and a custom rear spoiler.

"Gurnade has always been drawn to the uniquely aggressive lines of the production Veloster," said Joshua Cloud, owner of Gurnade, Inc. "So when Hyundai approached us with the opportunity to develop one of their vehicles for SEMA, we didn't hesitate to create the Gurnade Veloster Concept. It leverages all the strengths of the Veloster and takes it where we always envisioned it could go."

Key modifications to the Gurnade Veloster Concept include:

ENGINE

845 Motorsports intercooler, downpipe and cold-air intake

845 Motorsports ECU tune

Synapse blow-off valve

ARK Performance cat-back exhaust

CHASSIS

NEO Motorsports coil-overs and 6-piston big brake kit

Pierce Motorsports strut bar, rear torsion bar, and tie brace

strut bar, rear torsion bar, and tie brace Rotiform 19-inch OZT three-piece forged wheels

Toyo competition-spec tires

EXTERIOR

PPG Refinish Magic Magenta paint

Lightner Motorsports custom fender flares and grille

custom fender flares and grille EPR carbon-fiber front spoiler, side sills, and rear garnish

Seibon carbon-fiber hood and hatch

ARK Performance carbon-fiber spoiler

Tippett Auto Design vented bumper cover

Cappelletti Design custom headlamps and foglamps

Front crash bar

InShane Design paint protection

INTERIOR

Cobra Nogaro racing seats

Takata racing harnesses

Pierce Motorsports roll cage

roll cage Glowshift gauges and LEDGlow lighting

SoCal Garage Works carbon-fiber steering wheel

Phoenix Gold subwoofer and amplifier with Stinger audio system wiring

Creative Car-Tunes audio system

HYUNDAI AND ARK PERFORMANCE COMBINE TALENTS TO DEVELOP ROAD RACER ELANTRA CONCEPT FOR 2016 SEMA SHOW

Hyundai Motor America and ARK Performance have partnered again for the SEMA show, creating the ARK Road Racer Elantra Concept. This ARK Elantra Concept takes the practical yet sporty lines of the Elantra sedan and infuses it with an alternate persona, with integrated flares, bulging forged racing wheels and custom new front and rear fascia designs for an aggressive yet fully-integrated appearance.

"ARK Performance knows the Hyundai brand almost as well as our own," said Kevin Bentley, developer of the ARK Elantra Concept. "We strive to leverage the superb product development of Hyundai engineers, building upon their expertise while offering something really special to enthusiasts. The ARK Road Racer Elantra Concept offers the specific model enhancements that our customers have come to expect from ARK."

Key modifications to the ARK Road Racer Elantra Concept include:

Powertrain

Custom ARK turbo kit using Xcargot XT26 turbocharger

ARK downpipe and GRiP exhaust system

Turbosmart blow-off valve and wastegate

Suspension

ARK DT-P coil-over system and ARK front strut tower bar

ARK front and rear performance anti-roll bars

ARK front big brake kit

Nitto Tire NT05 summer tires

Exterior

ARK Solus wide body kit and ARK lightweight forged wheels

Fiere Customs full vinyl wrap

APR Performance front splitter

Interior

Custom diamond-stitched interior

Custom sport steering wheel by ARK

HYUNDAI MOTOR AMERICA

Hyundai Motor America, headquartered in Fountain Valley, Calif., is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Co. of Korea. Hyundai vehicles are distributed throughout the United States by Hyundai Motor America and are sold and serviced through more than 830 dealerships nationwide. All Hyundai vehicles sold in the U.S. are covered by the Hyundai Assurance program, which includes the 5-year/60,000-mile fully transferable new vehicle limited warranty, Hyundai's 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain limited warranty and five years of complimentary Roadside Assistance. Hyundai Blue Link Connected Care provides owners of Hyundai models equipped with the Blue Link telematics system with proactive safety and car care services complimentary for one year with enrollment. These services include Automatic Collision Notification, Enhanced Roadside Assistance, Vehicle Diagnostic Alert, Monthly Vehicle Health Report and in-vehicle service scheduling.

For more details on Hyundai Assurance, please visit www.HyundaiAssurance.com

Please visit our media website at www.hyundainews.com and our blog at www.hyundailikesunday.com

Hyundai Motor America on Twitter | YouTube | Facebook

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433664

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433583

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433584

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433585

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433586

Video - http://origin-qps.onstreammedia.com/origin/multivu_archive/PRNA/ENR/Hyundai30secSEMA20163.mp4

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20131002/LA90771LOGO-b

SOURCE Hyundai Motor America

Related Links

http://www.hyundainews.com


You've seen plenty of pictures of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspecting various installations, now you can now see him actually doing things in a new propaganda video released by Korean Central Television.

Distributed via Youtube, the lengthy video titled "Kim Jong-un the Great Supreme Commander and the Consolidation of a Powerful Army" shows Kim flying a plane, riding atop a submarine, giving speeches to fervent applause, and grinning as weapons are displayed.

In one scene, he sits incongruously in the middle of a field at an office desk with a chunky PC, and in several he appears to talk to soldiers about shooting technique. In a number of shots, he's smoking a cigarette.

The video starts with the exaltation of Kim by citizens and the military and runs through the inspection of various military facilities. Footage of the 32-year-old flying a plane, with a co-pilot's hand firmly on the throttle, starts at minute 38:42.

Although the commentary is in Korean, the YouTube channel promises that a version with English subtitles will be available soon.

The video comes on back of the secretive state's latest failed missile launch. North Korea shocked the world in September when it claimed to have tested a miniaturized nuclear warhead .

Follow CNBC International on Twitter and Facebook.







More From CNBC


MELBOURNE, Australia, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Australian pharmaceutical manufacturing and drug development company IDT Australia Limited (ASX: IDT) announced that it has executed an agreement with Japanese integrated healthcare company I'rom Group Co. Ltd (see: http://www.iromgroup.co.jp/en/) for I'rom Group to acquire IDT's CMAX Clinical Trial Business. IDT will receive a minimum AU$14,000,000 in consideration for the CMAX business in a staged transaction as further described below.

The acquisition is subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions precedent, and as part of the agreed upon structure of the deal, IDT will establish and integrate the CMAX business within a new company (henceforth referred to as NewCo). I'rom Group will initially acquire 61% of the shares of NewCo; and I'rom Group and IDT will jointly manage NewCo through their 61% and 39% respective share holdings. This will allow I'rom Group to integrate the CMAX business and to learn from IDT's experience in managing CMAX, paving the way for I'rom Group to acquire the remaining shares of NewCo over the next twelve months.

IDT will receive an initial cash payment of AU$10,000,000 in consideration for 61% of the CMAX business. A second payment for the remaining 39% of the CMAX business will be a minimum of AU$4,000,000 (payable at I'rom Group's election in cash or a combination of cash and forgiveness of IDT shares). The second consideration payment may increase subject to an earn-out provision based on CMAX exceeding a specified revenue target for FY 2017. An additional consideration payment may also become payable in the event CMAX achieves additional revenues linked to it achieving a specific business milestone before the close of the 2018 financial year.

"I am very pleased to announce I'rom Group as the successful acquirer of CMAX. Having just moved into the new purpose built clinical trial facility the CMAX business is in great shape, I'rom Group are an ideal partner for this business and IDT will assist I'rom in any way we can during the handover and beyond." said Dr Paul MacLeman, IDT's Managing Director. "This transaction effectively simplifies IDT's core business and provides us with the focus and resources to drive IDT's strategicmove into specialty generics."

In 2015 IDT engaged United Kingdom based specialist healthcare dealmaker PharmaVentures Ltd to manage and drive a competitive process to explore the possibility of IDT divesting the CMAX Business. The process generated a shortlist of potential acquirers which was further narrowed down to six parties that were invited for further due diligence. Following the period of duediligence, I'rom Group emerged as the highest and successful bidder.

CMAX was established in 1993 within the Royal Adelaide Hospital in South Australia and was acquired by IDT in 2002. IDT recently re-located CMAX into a brand new purpose built clinical trial facility adjacent to the New Royal Adelaide Hospital. CMAX offers a full suite of clinical trial services including Phase I clinical trials management and delivery, recruitment in specific disease states for Phase II and Phase III trials.

I'rom Group is an integrated healthcare company headquartered in Tokyo Japan and listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. I'rom Group's primary business is the provision of clinical trial site management services as a Site Management Organisation ("SMO"). I'rom Group have been an IDT shareholder since 2013. I'rom Group believes that the acquisition of the CMAX business will help grow profits and help the company and its shareholders in the medium term through an increased corporate value. Furthermore, I'rom Group believes that: "Through the acquisition they will be able to acquire know-how that will assist in growing the company's existing clinical trial and advanced therapeutics business domains (both of which are stated growth areas for I'rom Group)."

For further information please contact:

IDT Australia Limited Monsoon Communications Dr Paul MacLeman Rudi Michelson Managing Director (03) 9620 3333 (03) 9801 8888



About IDT

IDT Australia Ltd recently acquired a portfolio of 23 generic drugs to manufacture and sell via US distribution partners.

With IDT's 2013 Temozolomide ANDA filing this signifies IDT's move to rapidly become a specialty generics business with near term revenue build up.

IDT (ASX:IDT) is a public Australian pharmaceutical manufacturing company based in Boronia, Victoria, Australia. It has extensive experience in the development and production of high potency and high containment pharmaceutical products for local and international clients. IDT's facilities are fully cGMP compliant and are regularly audited by the US FDA and Australian TGA. With an experienced team of specialists within world-class facilities, IDT provides a full-scale service for new drug development and scale-up, commercial active drug manufacture as well as a variety of oral and injectable finished drug dose forms.

Through CMAX, its clinical research services business based adjacent to the new Royal Adelaide Hospital in South Australia, IDT also provides full Phase I clinical trials management and delivery, recruitment in specific disease states for Phase II and Phase III trials as well as offering trial packaging, distribution and pharmacy services from the cGMP Boronia facilities.

SOURCE IDT Australia Limited
NEW YORK, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

New York: The Next Horizon for FABERNOVEL GROUP.

Global Innovation agency FABERNOVEL announced the launch of a New York office. The decision follows outstanding growth in FABERNOVEL's San Francisco office, which opened in 2007. With 25% of FABERNOVEL Group's revenue generated internationally, the agency is setting its sights on the New York market to better serve its international clients including LVMH, Kering, and Shiseido, and to support the startup ecosystem.

"We're expanding to New York for 3 reasons," says Stephane Distinguin, CEO FABERNOVEL Group. "First, to continue to offer the best access to innovation ecosystems to our French customers. Second, to bring our expertise in strategy and digital performance to American brands. Finally, because New York is a wonderful opportunity for the FABERNOVEL Group to continue its growth from 15 million net revenue in 2015 to 50 million in 2018."

FABERNOVEL's New York office will be headed by LaShada Di Cosmo, who has experience in leading marketing, sales, e-commerce, and digital strategies with several Fortune 500 companies to include L'Oreal USA, PepsiCo, and Unilever. LaShada will be responsible for developing the activities of the FABERNOVEL's brands in New York and across the US.

"With substantial contracts secured, such as our partnership with the cosmetics leader Shiseido, opening offices and hiring a New York team was the obvious next step in our international expansion," says Dominique Piotet, CEO of FABERNOVEL US. The recently launched Shiseido + Digital Academy program is a large-scale initiative to develop digital leadership across Shiseido Group's international brands, with an emphasis on a consumer-centric, forward-looking approach to digital skills.

Alongside customized Digital Academies, FABERNOVEL's US offerings include Learning Expeditions in Silicon Valley and other innovation ecosystems, and Innovation Outposts that connect the leaders of industry to cutting-edge innovation in Silicon Valley and around the globe. "With San Francisco and now New York, we strengthen our ability to understand the US market," says Piotet. "We're really building upon the bridges we have created between these two major centers of global innovation."



FABERNOVEL DATA & MEDIA: at the forefront of digital performance.

FABERNOVEL DATA & MEDIA will also sit in the New York office. FABERNOVEL DATA & MEDIA is a digital performance agency by FABERNOVEL group. Founded in 2013 by ex-Googlers Yassine Belfkih and Kevin Gentil-Cantin, FABERNOVEL DATA & MEDIA emphasizes contextual performance, a unique approach that breaks down silos across a variety of channels to focus on the audience as a whole. Using these strategies, FABERNOVEL DATA & MEDIA unleashes performance for its customers, implementing innovative solutions for traffic acquisition and data processing & analysis.

The expansion of FABERNOVEL DATA & MEDIA's offerings in the US is being led by Pierre Putois, previously of Google, who joined the agency two years ago as Director of Digital Performance & Innovation.

About FABERNOVEL

Founded in 2003, FABERNOVEL is a global innovation agency that helps its clients redesign their organizations to lead in the Network Economy. With a customer-centric approach, FABERNOVEL designs and tests products and services, and implements innovation strategies.

FABERNOVEL's comprehensive range of services range from training to the development of mobile applications and websites, from the design and prototyping of new products and services to the optimization of search and media acquisition. FABERNOVEL also owns and manages the PARISOMA co-working space in San Francisco. Enmeshed in a diverse global innovation ecosystem through its presence in San Francisco, New York, Paris, Hong Kong, and Lisbon, FABERNOVEL fosters meaningful connections between large corporations, start-ups, innovators, and digital experts.

SOURCE FABERNOVEL

Related Links

http://www.fabernovel.com


IRVINE, Calif., Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Resolve Systems - The Incident Resolution Summit, a unique executive event focused on innovation and transformation efforts in IT Operations, Automation, and Security Operations, had its European debut in London last week. Resolve Systems, the global industry leader in accelerating incident resolution, continued as principal sponsor of the event and led collaborative discussions with industry trailblazers and disruptors.

Headliners of the two-day summit focused on sharing best practices on topics such as: new models for incident resolution, actionable intelligence with automation, effective security incident response, critical incident management, and cyber security. Speakers included, Aleem Cummins representing the SplunkTrust, Jennifer Arcuri, Founder and CEO of My Hacker House and Tedx Speaker and Lee Bonham, Business Change Architect from Amadeus. Participants in attendance ranged from a variety of industries and companies including: TalkTalk, Fujitsu, KPMG, Accenture, Sky, Updata, BT, and Splunk.

Aleem Cummins former Group Data Analytics CTO of Computacenter and SplunkTrust member shared that, "There is an inherent need for an event like the Incident Resolution Summit that fosters an environment for disruptors in IT Operations and Security Operations. Companies need to evaluate their technology investments and prioritize human-guided automation processes as part of their new norm."

"Hearing industry leaders share their thoughts and experiences on systemic challenges and needs solidifies Resolve's position on automation," said Zahi Yaari, Managing Director of Europe at Resolve Systems. "There is an inherent opportunity for network, service, and security organizations to make an impactful mark within their organizations by leveraging human-guided automation and incident resolution tools Resolve delivers."

The London summit follows the successful inaugural Incident Resolution Summit held in Austin, Texas earlier this year with over 100 companies in attendance. For more information on upcoming 2017 events visit www.resolutionsummit.com.

Media

Resolve Systems

949-954-6592

[email protected]

About Resolve Systems

Resolve Systems is the global leader in accelerating incident resolution for enterprise IT operations and cyber security operations that utilizes a unique combination of intelligent incident response, actionable dashboards, and human-guided automationsTM in a single, scalable platform. Headquartered in Irvine, California with Operations in EMEA, Resolve Systems has Fortune 500 customers around the world. For more information, please visit www.resolvesystems.com.

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150420/199820LOGO

SOURCE Resolve Systems

Related Links

http://www.resolvesystems.com


TORONTO, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ - iSIGN Media Solutions Inc. ("iSIGN" or "Company") (TSX-V: ISD) (OTC: ISDSF), a leading provider of interactive proximity marketing solutions that serves advertisers, manufacturers, retailers and advertising agencies throughout North America, announced that it has applied to the TSX Venture Exchange for approval to extend the exercise date for the 9,566,094 outstanding warrants issued in November 2014 in conjunction with a private placement.

The 9,566,094 warrants due to expire on November 11, 2016 will be extended to November 11, 2018. There is no change to the original exercise price of $0.24. Of this total, 7,971,744 warrants are held by companies controlled by two individuals who are deemed to be "related parties", as such term is defined in Multilateral Instrument 61-101 Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"), of iSIGN, holding approximately 11.4% and 6.1% of the issued and outstanding common shares of the Company. As such, the issuance of Notes is a "related party transaction" for the Company.

About iSIGN Media

iSIGN Media, based in Toronto, is a data-focused, software-as-a-service (SaaS) company that is a pioneering leader in gathering point-of-sale data and mobile shopper preferences to generate actionable data and reveal valuable consumer insights. Creators of the Smart suite of products, a patented interactive proximity marketing technology, iSIGN enables brands to deliver targeted messaging, personalized offers and loyalty perks to consumers' mobile devices in proximity and with real-time proof of redemption. iSIGN's data gathering capabilities provide analytics on price points, typical purchases, in-store dwell time and other shopper metrics that identify emerging consumer behaviors. These insights enable smarter business decisions and provide increased ROI metrics for more transparent marketing. iSIGN delivers relevant, timely messages on an opt-in basis at no charge to consumers, transmitting rich media to consumer mobile devices via Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity in complete privacy as opposed to iBeacons, apps, downloads and required surrendering of personal information. Proven to increase brand engagement and customer loyalty, iSIGN generates preference-based, predictive "clean data" without compromising consumer privacy. Partners include: IBM, Keyser Retail Solutions, Baylor University, Verizon Wireless, TELUS and AOpen America Inc., with solution distribution by Graphic Media, Inc. www.isignmedia.com

 2016 iSIGN Media Solutions Inc. All Rights Reserved. All other trademarks and trade names are the property of their respective owners.

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 or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE iSIGN Media Solutions Inc, Alex Romanov Chief Executive Officer
BOSTON, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- John Hancock Retirement Plan Services has named Joseph Gallagher director, Taft-Hartley ERISA consultant. He is responsible within John Hancock for helping Taft-Hartley plan sponsors to stay in compliance with the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and the Internal Revenue Code, as well as ensuring that the clients' retirement programs are meeting both their needs and the needs of their participants.

Gallagher has been with John Hancock since 2003 in a variety of roles, most recently leading the ERISA Compliance & Government Reporting group. Previously, he oversaw a group providing daily plan administration to corporate 401(k) and Taft-Hartley plans, and managed a legal team within John Hancock's ERISA Services division.

"Servicing the unique needs of Taft-Hartley clients and participants is a priority for John Hancock and we're excited to have Joe take on this important role on our team," said Patrick Murphy, president, John Hancock Retirement Plan Services. "His experience makes him uniquely qualified to help us serve our Taft-Hartley clients."

"Joe is an accomplished professional, and I am confident we are now better positioned than ever to service the needs of our clients and their participants in the Taft-Hartley market," said Nick McParland, national director, Taft-Hartley market.

Gallagher earned a bachelor of science degree in business management from Springfield College, and holds a FINRA Series 6 license.

John Hancock is a leader in the retirement plan services marketplace, servicing more than 57,000 plans and helping more than 2.7 million participants1, making it one of the largest full-service providers of 401(k) plans across all plan sizes2.

About John Hancock Financial and Manulife

John Hancock Financial is a division of Manulife, a leading Canada-based financial services group with principal operations in Asia, Canada and the United States. Operating as Manulife in Canada and Asia, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States, the group of companies offers clients a diverse range of financial protection products and wealth management services through its extensive network of employees, agents and distribution partners. Assets under management and administration by Manulife and its subsidiaries were $718 billion (C$934 billion) as at June 30, 2016. Manulife Financial Corporation trades as 'MFC' on the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under '945' on the SEHK. Manulife can be found on the Internet at manulife.com.

The John Hancock unit, through its insurance companies, comprises one of the largest life insurers in the United States. John Hancock offers and administers a broad range of financial products, including life insurance, annuities, investments, 401(k) plans, long-term care insurance, college savings, and other forms of business insurance. Additional information about John Hancock may be found at johnhancock.com.

1 As of June 30, 2016, John Hancock Retirement Plan Services serviced 57,005 plans with 2,741,875 participants and over $137.8 billion in assets under management and administration (AUMA).

As of June 30, 2016, John Hancock Life Insurance Company (USA) supported 43,787 plans, 1,619,408 participants, and $77,118,688,000 in AUMA. John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York supported 2,410 plans, 72,453 participants, and $4,208,061,000 in AUMA. John Hancock Retirement Plan Services, LLC supported 10,808 plans, 1,050,014 participants, and $56,540,684,000 in AUMA. Approximate unaudited figures for John Hancock Retirement Plan Services division, provided on a U.S. statutory basis.

2 Source: PlanSponsor Magazine, 2015

John Hancock Life Insurance Company (U.S.A.), John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York and John Hancock Retirement Plan Services LLC are collectively referred to as "John Hancock".

John Hancock Retirement Plan Services, LLC offers plan administrative services and service programs through which a sponsor or administrator of a plan selects various investment options to offer in its retirement plan for investment. John Hancock Retirement Plan Services, LLC does not provide fiduciary investment advice. John Hancock Trust Company LLC provides trust and custodial services to such plans.

Group annuity contracts and recordkeeping agreements are issued by John Hancock Life Insurance Company (U.S.A.), Boston, MA (not licensed in New York) and John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York, Valhalla, New York. Product features and availability may differ by state.

Both John Hancock Life Insurance Company (U.S.A.) and John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York do business under certain instances using the John Hancock Retirement Plan Services name.

JH Enterprise is a registered trademark by John Hancock Life Insurance Company (U.S.A.).

JH Signature is a trademark of the Group Annuity Contracts and recordkeeping agreements issued by John Hancock Life Insurance Company (U.S.A.), used under license by John Hancock Life Insurance Company of New York.

NOT FDIC INSURED | MAY LOSE VALUE | NOT BANK GUARANTEED

 2016 All rights reserved. MGR081516324574

SOURCE John Hancock Retirement Plan Services

Related Links

http://johnhancock.com


BALTIMORE, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Legg Mason, Inc. (NYSE: LM) today reported its operating results for the second fiscal quarter ended September 30, 2016. The Company reported net income1 of $66.4 million, or $0.63 per diluted share, as compared to net income of $33.5 million, or $0.31 per diluted share, in the previous quarter, and net income of $64.3 million, or $0.58 per diluted share, in the second quarter of fiscal 2016. The current quarter's results included acquisition and transition-related costs of $13.2 million, or $0.09 per diluted share, as compared to acquisition and transition-related costs of $56.8 million, or $0.37 per diluted share, last quarter. The current quarter also included a credit of $7.0 million, or $0.05 per diluted share, related to a contingent consideration fair value adjustment, compared to a similar credit of $18.0 million, or $0.11 per diluted share, in the prior quarter. In addition, the current quarter included a tax benefit of $6.3 million, or $0.06 per diluted share, largely due to a reduction in the United Kingdom corporate tax rate. For the current quarter, operating revenues were $748.4 million, up 7% from $700.2 million in the prior quarter, and up 11% compared to $673.1 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2016. Operating expenses were $620.7 million, down 1% from $626.6 million in the prior quarter, and up 15% from $540.1 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2016.

Legg Mason also announced today that its Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend on its common stock in the amount of $0.22 per share.











Quarters Ended

Six Months Ended Financial Results Sep

Jun

Sep

Sep

Sep (Amounts in millions, except per share amounts) 2016

2016

2015

2016

2015 Operating Revenues $ 748.4



$ 700.2



$ 673.1



$ 1,448.5



$ 1,381.7

Operating Expenses 620.7



626.6



540.1



1,247.3



1,124.2

Operating Income 127.6



73.6



133.0



201.2



257.5

Net Income 1 66.4



33.5



64.3



99.9



158.9

Net Income Per Share - Diluted1 0.63



0.31



0.58



0.94



1.42





















Assets Under Management

















(Amounts in billions)

















End of Period Assets Under Management $ 732.9



$ 741.9



$ 672.1



$ 732.9



$ 672.1

Average Assets Under Management 742.1



709.1



687.2



723.3



695.0











Comments on the Second Quarter of Fiscal Year 2017 Results

Joseph A. Sullivan, Chairman and CEO of Legg Mason said, "Legg Mason delivered solid operating results despite a challenging quarter for active managers. Gross and net sales in our global retail distribution platform were strong, as our teams worked to deliver our expanded investment capabilities to investors around the world.

"Our long term strategy is straightforward. We are offering global investors expanded choice across investment strategies, vehicles and access. We believe this, in turn, will reaccelerate organic growth by leveraging these capabilities in high growth areas, increasingly in multi-asset vehicles, as clients look to execute on their investment objectives in a more holistic fashion. To complement this strategy, we are pleased to be an industry leader in the rate at which capital is returned to shareholders while also continuing to invest in our business.

"Scale, diversification and global reach are going to be critically important in an increasingly regulated, low growth and low rate environment. The current Legg Mason platform helps address those concerns, by offering investors relevant and differentiated product sets, a wide variety of competitively priced investment options, and global distribution access. We intend to be among the leaders in delivering on these needs for investors and we're pleased to see progress as we execute on our strategic plan."

Assets Under Management of $732.9 Billion

Assets Under Management ("AUM") were $732.9 billion at September 30, 2016 compared with $741.9 billion at June 30, 2016, driven by liquidity outflows of $25.4 billion and long-term outflows of $0.3 billion. This was partially offset by positive market performance of $15.7 billion and $1.0 billion in positive foreign exchange. AUM was up 9% from $672.1 billion at September 30, 2015.

Long-term net outflows of $0.3 billion included alternatives outflows of $1.6 billion and equity outflows of $1.5 billion , which were partially offset by fixed income inflows of $2.8 billion .

included alternatives outflows of and equity outflows of , which were partially offset by fixed income inflows of . At September 30, 2016, fixed income represented 54% of AUM, while equity represented 23%, liquidity represented 13% and alternatives represented 10%.

By geography, 66% of AUM was from clients domiciled in the United States and 34% from non-US domiciled clients.

and 34% from non-US domiciled clients. Average AUM during the quarter was $742.1 billion compared to $709.1 billion in the prior quarter and $687.2 billion in the second quarter of fiscal year 2016. Average long-term AUM was $631.9 billion compared to $597.7 billion in the prior quarter and $560.4 billion in the second quarter of fiscal year 2016.

Comparison to the First Quarter of Fiscal Year 2017

Net income was $66.4 million, or $0.63 per diluted share, as compared with net income of $33.5 million, or $0.31 per diluted share, in the first quarter of fiscal year 2017. This quarter's results included acquisition and transition-related costs totaling $13.2 million, or $0.09 per diluted share. The current quarter also included a tax benefit of $6.3 million, or $0.06 per diluted share, largely due to a reduction in the United Kingdom corporate tax rate. The prior quarter included acquisition and transition-related costs of $56.8 million, or $0.37 per diluted share.

Operating revenues of $748.4 million were up 7% compared with $700.2 million in the prior quarter, principally due to $35.8 million in performance fees at Clarion that, per the terms of the acquisition, were passed through as compensation, as compared to $14.6 million of such fees in the prior quarter, as well as higher average long-term AUM, one additional day and incremental revenues resulting from a full quarter of results at Clarion and EnTrust.

were up 7% compared with in the prior quarter, principally due to in performance fees at Clarion that, per the terms of the acquisition, were passed through as compensation, as compared to of such fees in the prior quarter, as well as higher average long-term AUM, one additional day and incremental revenues resulting from a full quarter of results at Clarion and EnTrust. Operating expenses of $620.7 million were down 1% compared with $626.6 million in the prior quarter principally due to lower acquisition and transition-related costs of $13.2 million compared with the prior quarter costs of $56.8 million . The current quarter also included a credit of $7.0 million for a contingent consideration fair value adjustment compared to a similar credit of $18.0 million in the prior quarter. Further, the current quarter included $35.8 million in compensation related to the pass through of performance fees at Clarion compared to a similar charge of $14.6 million in the prior quarter. In addition, current quarter expenses included a $5.4 million gain in the market value of deferred compensation and seed investments, which is recorded as an increase in compensation and benefits with an offset in other non-operating income, compared to a gain of $2.2 million in the prior quarter.

were down 1% compared with in the prior quarter principally due to lower acquisition and transition-related costs of compared with the prior quarter costs of . The current quarter also included a credit of for a contingent consideration fair value adjustment compared to a similar credit of in the prior quarter. Further, the current quarter included in compensation related to the pass through of performance fees at Clarion compared to a similar charge of in the prior quarter. In addition, current quarter expenses included a gain in the market value of deferred compensation and seed investments, which is recorded as an increase in compensation and benefits with an offset in other non-operating income, compared to a gain of in the prior quarter. Other non-operating expense was $11.2 million , as compared to $12.9 million in the prior quarter. Interest expense increased by $3.4 million primarily due to the $500 million junior subordinated debt issued in August. Gains on corporate investments, not offset in compensation, were $7.3 million compared with gains of $4.2 million last quarter. Both quarters included gains and losses on funded deferred compensation and seed investments, as described above. The current quarter included a $3.7 million loss on the termination of an interest rate swap contract. In addition, the current quarter included $6.2 million in gains associated with the consolidation of sponsored investment vehicles compared to $3.5 million in gains in the prior quarter. The consolidation of sponsored investment vehicles has no impact on net income as the effects of consolidation are fully attributable to noncontrolling interests.

, as compared to in the prior quarter. Interest expense increased by primarily due to the junior subordinated debt issued in August. Gains on corporate investments, not offset in compensation, were compared with gains of last quarter. Both quarters included gains and losses on funded deferred compensation and seed investments, as described above. The current quarter included a loss on the termination of an interest rate swap contract. In addition, the current quarter included in gains associated with the consolidation of sponsored investment vehicles compared to in gains in the prior quarter. The consolidation of sponsored investment vehicles has no impact on net income as the effects of consolidation are fully attributable to noncontrolling interests. Operating margin was 17.1% compared to 10.5% in the prior quarter. Operating margin, as adjusted 2 , was 22.7%, as compared to 11.3% in the prior quarter with the increase primarily due to lower acquisition and transition-related costs.

, was 22.7%, as compared to 11.3% in the prior quarter with the increase primarily due to lower acquisition and transition-related costs. Net income attributable to non-controlling interests, excluding sponsored investment vehicles, was $14.4 million compared to $9.4 million in the prior quarter, principally related to Clarion, EnTrustPermal, RARE Infrastructure and Royce.

Comparison to the Second Quarter of Fiscal Year 2016

Net income was $66.4 million, or $0.63 per diluted share, as compared with net income of $64.3 million, or $0.58 per diluted share, in the second quarter of fiscal year 2016. This quarter's results included acquisition and transition-related costs totaling $13.2 million, or $0.9 per diluted share. The current quarter also included a tax benefit of $6.3 million, or $0.06 per diluted share, largely due to a reduction in the United Kingdom corporate tax rate. The prior year's second quarter included an $11.1 million, or $0.06 per diluted share loss on an Australian dollar hedge, as well as a tax benefit of $5.0 million, or $0.05 per diluted share, primarily due to the successful conclusion of certain tax examinations.

Operating revenues of $748.4 million were up 11% compared with $673.1 million in the second quarter of fiscal year 2016, principally due to incremental revenues related to the addition of revenues of Clarion and EnTrust as well as $35.8 million in performance fees at Clarion that, per the terms of the acquisition, were passed through as compensation.

were up 11% compared with in the second quarter of fiscal year 2016, principally due to incremental revenues related to the addition of revenues of Clarion and EnTrust as well as in performance fees at Clarion that, per the terms of the acquisition, were passed through as compensation. Operating expenses of $620.7 million were up 15% compared with $540.1 million in the second quarter of fiscal year 2016 primarily due to incremental expenses related to the addition of expenses of Clarion and Entrust as well as acquisition and transition-related costs of $13.2 million . The current quarter also included a credit of $7.0 million for a contingent consideration fair value adjustment and $35.8 million in additional expense at Clarion due to the pass through performance fees. Further, the current quarter expenses included a $5.4 million gain in the market value of deferred compensation and seed investments, which is recorded as an increase in compensation and benefits with an offset in other non-operating income, compared to a loss of $5.5 million in the prior year quarter.

were up 15% compared with in the second quarter of fiscal year 2016 primarily due to incremental expenses related to the addition of expenses of Clarion and Entrust as well as acquisition and transition-related costs of . The current quarter also included a credit of for a contingent consideration fair value adjustment and in additional expense at Clarion due to the pass through performance fees. Further, the current quarter expenses included a gain in the market value of deferred compensation and seed investments, which is recorded as an increase in compensation and benefits with an offset in other non-operating income, compared to a loss of in the prior year quarter. Other non-operating expense was $11.2 million , compared to $42.5 million in the second quarter of fiscal year 2016. Interest expense increased $14.6 million primarily due to the issuance of additional debt to fund the Clarion and EnTrust acquisitions. Gains on corporate investments, not offset in compensation, were $7.3 million compared with losses of $11.5 million in the prior year quarter. The current quarter included a $3.7 million loss on the termination of an interest rate swap contract. The prior year quarter also included an $11.1 million loss on an Australian dollar hedge related to the RARE Infrastructure acquisition. Both quarters included gains on funded deferred compensation and seed investments, as described above. In addition, the current quarter also included $6.2 million in gains associated with the consolidation of sponsored investment vehicles, as compared to $2.3 million in losses in the prior year quarter. The consolidation of sponsored investment vehicles has no impact on net income as the effects of consolidation are fully attributable to noncontrolling interests.

, compared to in the second quarter of fiscal year 2016. Interest expense increased primarily due to the issuance of additional debt to fund the Clarion and EnTrust acquisitions. Gains on corporate investments, not offset in compensation, were compared with losses of in the prior year quarter. The current quarter included a loss on the termination of an interest rate swap contract. The prior year quarter also included an loss on an Australian dollar hedge related to the RARE Infrastructure acquisition. Both quarters included gains on funded deferred compensation and seed investments, as described above. In addition, the current quarter also included in gains associated with the consolidation of sponsored investment vehicles, as compared to in losses in the prior year quarter. The consolidation of sponsored investment vehicles has no impact on net income as the effects of consolidation are fully attributable to noncontrolling interests. Operating margin was 17.1% as compared to 19.8% in the second quarter of fiscal year 2016. Operating margin, as adjusted, was 22.7%, as compared to 24.0% in the second quarter of fiscal year 2016. The decrease was principally the result of acquisition and transition-related costs in the current quarter.

Net income attributable to non-controlling interests, excluding sponsored investment vehicles, was $14.4 million compared to $0.2 million in the prior year quarter, principally related to Clarion, EnTrustPermal, RARE and Royce.

Quarterly Business Developments and Recent Announcements

Legg Mason acquired Financial Guard, an online Registered Investment Advisor and innovative technology-enabled wealth management and investment advice platform based in Salt Lake City, Utah on August 17, 2016 .

on . The Legg Mason International Low Volatility High Dividend ETF (BATS: LVHI) was launched on August 1 , 2016. The product is an all-cap ETF composed of international stocks.

, 2016. The product is an all-cap ETF composed of international stocks. RARE Infrastructure launched its first UK fund on July 1, 2016 , the Legg Mason IF RARE Global Infrastructure Income Fund.

, the Legg Mason IF RARE Global Infrastructure Income Fund. On August 8, 2016 , Legg Mason, completed the issuance and sale of $500 million aggregate principal amount of the Company's 5.45% Junior Subordinated Notes due 2056.

Quarterly Performance

At September 30, 2016:



1-Year 3-Year 5-Year 10-Year % of Strategy AUM beating Benchmark3 73% 68% 82% 83%











% of Long-Term US Fund Assets Beating Lipper Category Average3









Alternatives 91% 100% 100% n/a

Equity 71% 46% 69% 59%

Fixed Income 63% 74% 75% 85%

Total US Fund Assets 67% 59% 72% 70%

Of Legg Mason's long-term U.S. mutual fund assets, 41.4% were in funds rated 4 or 5 stars by Morningstar.

Balance Sheet

At September 30, 2016, Legg Mason's cash position was $571 million. Total debt was $2.2 billion and stockholders' equity was $4.1 billion. The ratio of total debt to total capital was 36%, in line with the prior quarter. In the second fiscal quarter, the Company completed additional open market purchases of 2.7 million shares which reduced the weighted average shares by 1.3 million.

The Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend on the Company's common stock in the amount of $0.22 per share. The dividend is payable January 9, 2017 to shareholders of record at the close of business on December 14, 2016.

Conference Call to Discuss Results

A conference call to discuss the Company's results, hosted by Joseph A. Sullivan, will be held at 8:00 a.m. EDT today. The call will be open to the general public. Interested participants should access the call by dialing 1-800-447-0521 (or for international calls 1-847-413-3238), confirmation number 43491054, at least 10 minutes prior to the scheduled start to ensure connection. A live, listen-only webcast will also be available via the investor relations section of www.leggmason.com.

The presentation slides that will be reviewed during the discussion of the conference call will be available on the Investor Relations section of the Legg Mason website shortly after the release of the financial results.

A replay of the live broadcast will be available on the Legg Mason website, www.leggmason.com, in the investor relations section, or by dialing 1-888-843-7419 (or for international calls 1-630-652-3042), enter pass code 43491054# when prompted. Please note that the replay will be available beginning at 11:30 a.m. EDT on Friday, October 28, 2016, and ending at 11:59 p.m. EST on Friday, November 11, 2016.

About Legg Mason

Legg Mason is a global asset management firm, with $732.9 billion in AUM as of September 30, 2016. The Company provides active asset management in many major investment centers throughout the world. Legg Mason is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, and its common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (symbol: LM).

This release contains forward-looking statements subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to differ materially. For a discussion of these risks and uncertainties, see "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" in Legg Mason's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2016 and in the Company's quarterly reports on Form 10-Q.

Supplemental Data Regarding Quarterly Performance

Strategy Performance

For purposes of investment performance comparisons, strategies are an aggregation of discretionary portfolios (separate accounts, investment funds, and other products) into a single group that represents a particular investment objective. In the case of separate accounts, the investment performance of the account is based upon the performance of the strategy to which the account has been assigned. Each of our asset managers has its own specific guidelines for including portfolios in their strategies. For those managers which manage both separate accounts and investment funds in the same strategy, the performance comparison for all of the assets is based upon the performance of the separate account.

Approximately eighty-eight percent of total AUM is included in strategy AUM as of September 30, 2016, although not all strategies have three-, five-, and ten-year histories. Total strategy AUM includes liquidity assets. Certain assets are not included in reported performance comparisons. These include: accounts that are not managed in accordance with the guidelines outlined above; accounts in strategies not marketed to potential clients; accounts that have not yet been assigned to a strategy; and certain smaller products at some of our affiliates.

Past performance is not indicative of future results. For AUM included in institutional and retail separate accounts and investment funds managed in the same strategy as separate accounts, performance comparisons are based on gross-of-fee performance. For investment funds which are not managed in a separate account format, performance comparisons are based on net-of-fee performance. Funds-of-hedge funds generally do not have specified benchmarks. For purposes of this comparison, performance of those products is net of fees, and is compared to the relevant HFRX index. These performance comparisons do not reflect the actual performance of any specific separate account or investment fund; individual separate account and investment fund performance may differ. The information in this presentation is provided solely for use in connection with this presentation, and is not directed toward existing or potential clients of Legg Mason.

Long-term US Fund Assets Beating Lipper Category Average

Long-term US fund assets include open-end, closed-end, and variable annuity funds. These performance comparisons do not reflect the actual performance of any specific fund; individual fund performance may differ. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results. Source: Lipper Inc.

(1) Net Income Attributable to Legg Mason, Inc.

(2) See "Use of Supplemental Non-GAAP Financial Information."

(3) See "Supplemental Data Regarding Quarterly Performance."

LEGG MASON, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME (Amounts in thousands) (Unaudited)

































Quarters Ended

Six Months Ended







September

June

September

September

September







2016

2016

2015

2016

2015 Operating Revenues:



















Investment advisory fees:





















Separate accounts $ 233,328

$ 226,853

$ 205,155

$ 460,181

$ 413,259



Funds 377,079

363,463

359,871

740,542

744,216



Performance fees 41,970

17,459

7,902

59,429

26,555

Distribution and service fees 94,545

91,382

99,602

185,927

196,462

Other 1,448

1,008

556

2,456

1,244





Total operating revenues 748,370

700,165

673,086

1,448,535

1,381,736

























Operating Expenses: (1)



















Compensation and benefits 368,330

358,625

282,433

726,955

597,485

Distribution and servicing 128,868

124,663

138,930

253,531

288,218

Communications and technology 51,281

52,732

49,845

104,013

98,522

Occupancy 30,558

33,142

25,716

63,700

51,703

Amortization of intangible assets 6,271

5,703

670

11,974

1,327

Other 35,429

51,745

42,462

87,174

86,908





Total operating expenses 620,737

626,610

540,056

1,247,347

1,124,163

























Operating Income 127,633

73,555

133,030

201,188

257,573

























Other Non-Operating Income (Expense):



















Interest income 1,545

1,848

1,229

3,393

2,546

Interest expense (27,925)

(24,565)

(13,280)

(52,490)

(25,229)

Other income (expense), net 9,975

6,585

(28,110)

16,560

(22,399)

Other non-operating income (expense) of





















consolidated investment vehicles, net 5,206

3,228

(2,303)

8,434

(1,896)





Total other non-operating income (expense) (11,199)

(12,904)

(42,464)

(24,103)

(46,978)

























Income Before Income Tax Provision 116,434

60,651

90,566

177,085

210,595



























Income tax provision 29,902

15,311

27,647

45,213

52,737

























Net Income 86,532

45,340

62,919

131,872

157,858

Less: Net income (loss) attributable





















to noncontrolling interests 20,091

11,888

(1,400)

31,979

(1,009)

























Net Income Attributable to Legg Mason, Inc. $ 66,441

$ 33,452

$ 64,319

$ 99,893

$ 158,867









































(Continued)

























(1)Operating expenses include acquisition and transition-related costs related to business combinations.



























Acquisition and transition-related costs:





















Compensation $ 6,821

$ 30,186

$ 

$ 37,007

$ 



Occupancy 5,086

9,093



14,179





Other 1,269

17,506



18,775







Total acquisition and transition-related costs $ 13,176

$ 56,785

$ 

$ 69,961

$ 

LEGG MASON, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME, CONTINUED (Amounts in thousands, except per share amounts) (Unaudited)

































Quarters Ended

Six Months Ended







September

June

September

September

September







2016

2016

2015

2016

2015

























Net Income Attributable to Legg Mason, Inc. $ 66,441

$ 33,452

$ 64,319

$ 99,893

$ 158,867























Less: Earnings (distributed and undistributed)





















allocated to participating securities (1) 2,183

1,051

1,615

3,173

3,951

























Net Income (Distributed and Undistributed)



















Allocated to Shareholders (Excluding



















Participating Securities) $ 64,258

$ 32,401

$ 62,704

$ 96,720

$ 154,916

























Net Income per Share Attributable to



















Legg Mason, Inc. Shareholders:























Basic $ 0.63

$ 0.31

$ 0.58

$ 0.94

$ 1.43































Diluted $ 0.63

$ 0.31

$ 0.58

$ 0.94

$ 1.42

























Weighted-Average Number of Shares



















Outstanding:























Basic 101,817

104,465

107,851

103,075

108,399





Diluted 102,057

104,677

108,784

103,301

109,503

























(1)Participating securities excluded from weighted-average number of shares outstanding were 3,447, 3,134, and 2,772 for the quarters ended September 2016, June 2016, and September 2015, respectively, and 3,291 and 2,754 for the six months ended September 2016 and September 2015, respectively.

LEGG MASON, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES CONSOLIDATING STATEMENTS OF INCOME (Amounts in thousands) (Unaudited)







Quarters Ended







September 2016

June 2016

September 2015

















































Balance Before Consolidation of Consolidated Investment Vehicles and other (1)

Consolidated Investment Vehicles and other (1)

Consolidated Totals Balance Before Consolidation of Consolidated Investment Vehicles and other (1)

Consolidated Investment Vehicles and other (1)

Consolidated Totals Balance Before Consolidation of Consolidated Investment Vehicles

Consolidated Investment Vehicles

Consolidated Totals





































Total operating revenues $ 748,384

$ (14)

$ 748,370 $ 700,177

$ (12)

$ 700,165 $ 673,168

$ (82)

$ 673,086 Total operating expenses 620,613

124

620,737 626,511

99

626,610 540,023

33

540,056 Operating Income (Loss) 127,771

(138)

127,633 73,666

(111)

73,555 133,145

(115)

133,030 Other non-operating income (expense) (17,023)

5,824

(11,199) (15,495)

2,591

(12,904) (40,988)

(1,476)

(42,464) Income (Loss) Before Income Tax Provision 110,748

5,686

116,434 58,171

2,480

60,651 92,157

(1,591)

90,566 Income tax provision 29,902



29,902 15,311



15,311 27,647



27,647 Net Income (Loss) 80,846

5,686

86,532 42,860

2,480

45,340 64,510

(1,591)

62,919 Less: Net income (loss) attributable





























to noncontrolling interests 14,405

5,686

20,091 9,408

2,480

11,888 191

(1,591)

(1,400) Net Income Attributable to Legg Mason, Inc. $ 66,441

$ 

$ 66,441 $ 33,452

$ 

$ 33,452 $ 64,319

$ 

$ 64,319



























































































Six Months Ended



















September 2016

September 2015





























































Balance Before Consolidation of Consolidated Investment Vehicles and other (1)

Consolidated Investment Vehicles and other (1)

Consolidated Totals Balance Before Consolidation of Consolidated Investment Vehicles

Consolidated Investment Vehicles

Consolidated Totals















































Total operating revenues $ 1,448,561

$ (26)

$ 1,448,535 $ 1,381,903

$ (167)

$ 1,381,736









Total operating expenses 1,247,124

223

1,247,347 1,124,110

53

1,124,163









Operating Income (Loss) 201,437

(249)

201,188 257,793

(220)

257,573









Other non-operating income (expense) (32,518)

8,415

(24,103) (45,867)

(1,111)

(46,978)









Income (Loss) Before Income Tax Provision 168,919

8,166

177,085 211,926

(1,331)

210,595









Income tax provision 45,213



45,213 52,737



52,737









Net Income (Loss) 123,706

8,166

131,872 159,189

(1,331)

157,858









Less: Net income (loss) attributable





























to noncontrolling interests 23,813

8,166

31,979 322

(1,331)

(1,009)









Net Income Attributable to Legg Mason, Inc. $ 99,893

$ 

$ 99,893 $ 158,867

$ 

$ 158,867



















































(1)Other represents consolidated sponsored investment vehicles that are not designated as CIVs

LEGG MASON, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

SUPPLEMENTAL DATA

RECONCILIATION OF OPERATING MARGIN, AS ADJUSTED (1)

(Amounts in thousands)

(Unaudited)







































Quarters Ended



Six Months Ended







































September

June

September



September

September









2016

2016

2015



2016

2015































Operating Revenues, GAAP basis $ 748,370

$ 700,165

$ 673,086



$ 1,448,535

$ 1,381,736

































Plus (less):

























Pass-through performance fees (35,831)

(14,600)





(50,431)







Operating revenues eliminated upon



























consolidation of investment vehicles 14

12

82



26

167





Distribution and servicing expense excluding



























consolidated investment vehicles (128,806)

(124,590)

(138,920)



(253,396)

(288,200)































Operating Revenues, as Adjusted $ 583,747

$ 560,987

$ 534,248



$ 1,144,734

$ 1,093,703





























































Operating Income, GAAP basis $ 127,633

$ 73,555

$ 133,030



$ 201,188

$ 257,573

































Plus (less):

























Gains (losses) on deferred compensation



























and seed investments, net 5,432

2,166

(5,499)



7,598

(4,289)





Amortization of intangible assets 6,271

5,703

670



11,974

1,327





Contingent consideration fair value adjustments (7,000)

(18,000)





(25,000)







Operating income of consolidated investment



























vehicles, net 138

111

115



249

220































Operating Income, as Adjusted $ 132,474

$ 63,535

$ 128,316



$ 196,009

$ 254,831































Operating Margin, GAAP basis 17.1 % 10.5 % 19.8 %

13.9 % 18.6 % Operating Margin, as Adjusted 22.7

11.3

24.0



17.1

23.3































(1)See explanations for "Use of Supplemental Non-GAAP Financial Information."



LEGG MASON, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES SUPPLEMENTAL DATA RECONCILIATION OF CASH PROVIDED BY (USED IN) OPERATING ACTIVITIES TO ADJUSTED EBITDA (1) (Amounts in thousands) (Unaudited)

































Quarters Ended

Six Months Ended

































September

June

September

September

September







2016

2016

2015

2016

2015

























Cash provided by (used in) operating activities, GAAP basis $ 303,829

$ (165,970)

$ 149,038

$ 137,859

$ 151,708



























Plus (less):





















Interest expense, net of accretion and amortization























of debt discounts and premiums 26,487

23,906

13,032

50,393

24,805



Current tax expense (benefit) 15,689

(783)

4,262

14,906

5,988



Net change in assets and liabilities (190,181)

260,996

(10,162)

70,815

136,298



Net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interests (20,091)

(11,888)

1,400

(31,979)

1,009



Net gains (losses) and earnings on investments 1,103

(4,494)

12,019

(3,391)

22,336



Net gains (losses) on consolidated investment vehicles 5,206

3,228

(2,303)

8,434

(1,896)



Other 948

(1,447)

367

(499)

175

























Adjusted EBITDA $ 142,990

$ 103,548

$ 167,653

$ 246,538

$ 340,423



















































(1)See explanations for "Use of Supplemental Non-GAAP Financial Information." We have previously disclosed Adjusted EBITDA (also referred to as "EBITDA, bank defined" in the past) that conformed to calculations required by our debt covenants, which adjusted for certain items that required cash settlement that are not part of the current definition.

LEGG MASON, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES (Amounts in billions) (Unaudited)































Assets Under Management





























Quarters Ended







By asset class: September 2016

June 2016

March 2016

December 2015

September 2015









Equity $ 168.4

$ 161.1

$ 162.3

$ 167.3

$ 164.8









Fixed Income 396.9

387.2

372.3

364.8

363.1









Alternative 72.0

72.6

22.7

24.1

18.1











Long-Term Assets 637.3

620.9

557.3

556.2

546.0









Liquidity 95.6

121.0

112.3

115.3

126.1











Total $ 732.9

$ 741.9

$ 669.6

$ 671.5

$ 672.1













































Quarters Ended

Six Months Ended By asset class (average): September 2016

June 2016

March 2016

December 2015

September 2015

September 2016

September 2015

Equity $ 166.1

$ 162.3

$ 159.0

$ 170.7

$ 176.5

$ 164.6

$ 181.1

Fixed Income 393.7

377.6

365.3

366.3

365.2

385.5

367.7

Alternative 72.1

57.8

23.3

22.8

18.7

63.8

19.0



Long-Term Assets 631.9

597.7

547.6

559.8

560.4

613.9

567.8

Liquidity 110.2

111.4

114.7

123.2

126.8

109.4

127.2



Total $ 742.1

$ 709.1

$ 662.3

$ 683.0

$ 687.2

$ 723.3

$ 695.0































































Component Changes in Assets Under Management

























Quarters Ended

Six Months Ended





September 2016

June 2016

March 2016

December 2015

September 2015

September 2016

September 2015 Beginning of period $ 741.9

$ 669.6

$ 671.5

$ 672.1

$ 699.2

$ 669.6

$ 702.7 Net client cash flows:

























Equity (1.5)

(3.0)

(4.4)

(4.3)

0.3

(4.5)

(1.0) Fixed Income 2.8

3.9

(7.8)

2.3

3.1

6.7

5.9 Alternative (1.6)

(2.0)

(1.0)

(0.4)

(0.3)

(3.6)

(0.5) Long-Term flows (0.3)

(1.1)

(13.2)

(2.4)

3.1

(1.4)

4.4 Liquidity (25.4)

8.0

(3.3)

(10.9)

(3.0)

(17.4)

(0.7) Total net client cash flows (25.7)

6.9

(16.5)

(13.3)

0.1

(18.8)

3.7 Market performance and other 15.7

12.3

9.7

6.4

(22.6)

27.9

(31.4) Impact of foreign exchange 1.0

2.0

4.7

(0.5)

(4.6)

3.1

(2.9) Acquisitions 

51.1

0.2

6.8



51.1

 End of period $ 732.9

$ 741.9

$ 669.6

$ 671.5

$ 672.1

$ 732.9

$ 672.1































NOTE 1: Alternative assets include all AUM managed by Clarion Partners, EnTrustPermal, RARE Infrastructure, and Permal Capital Management. NOTE 2: Due to effects of rounding, the sum of the quarterly results may differ immaterially from the year-to-date results.

Use of Supplemental Non-GAAP Financial Information

As supplemental information, we are providing a performance measure for "Operating Margin, as Adjusted" and a liquidity measure for "Adjusted EBITDA", each of which are based on methodologies other than generally accepted accounting principles ("non-GAAP"). Our management uses these measures as benchmarks in evaluating and comparing our period-to-period operating performance and liquidity.

Operating Margin, as Adjusted

We calculate "Operating Margin, as Adjusted," by dividing (i) Operating Income, adjusted to exclude the impact on compensation expense of gains or losses on investments made to fund deferred compensation plans, the impact on compensation expense of gains or losses on seed capital investments by our affiliates under revenue sharing agreements, amortization related to intangible assets, income (loss) of consolidated investment vehicles, the impact of fair value adjustments of contingent consideration liabilities, if any, and impairment charges by (ii) our operating revenues, adjusted to add back net investment advisory fees eliminated upon consolidation of investment vehicles, less distribution and servicing expenses which we use as an approximate measure of revenues that are passed through to third parties, and less performance fees that are passed through as compensation expenses or net income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interests, which we refer to as "Operating Revenues, as Adjusted". The deferred compensation items are removed from Operating Income in the calculation because they are offset by an equal amount in Other non-operating income (expense), and thus have no impact on Net Income Attributable to Legg Mason, Inc. We adjust for the impact of amortization of management contract assets and the impact of fair value adjustments of contingent consideration liabilities, if any, which arise from acquisitions to reflect the fact that these items distort comparison of our operating results with results of other asset management firms that have not engaged in significant acquisitions. Impairment charges and income (loss) of consolidated investment vehicles are removed from Operating Income in the calculation because these items are not reflective of our core asset management operations. We use Operating Revenues, as Adjusted in the calculation to show the operating margin without distribution and servicing expenses, which we use to approximate our distribution revenues that are passed through to third parties as a direct cost of selling our products, although distribution and servicing expenses may include commissions paid in connection with the launching of closed-end funds for which there is no corresponding revenue in the period. We also use Operating Revenues, as Adjusted in the calculation to show the operating margin without performance fees, which are passed through as compensation expense or net income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interests per the terms of certain more recent acquisitions. Operating Revenues as adjusted also include our advisory revenues we receive from consolidated investment vehicles that are eliminated in consolidation under GAAP.

We believe that Operating Margin, as Adjusted, is a useful measure of our performance because it provides a measure of our core business activities. It excludes items that have no impact on Net Income Attributable to Legg Mason, Inc. and indicates what our operating margin would have been without the distribution revenues that are passed through to third parties as a direct cost of selling our products, performance fees that are passed through as compensation expense or net income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interests per the terms of certain more recent acquisitions, amortization related to intangible assets, changes in the fair value of contingent consideration liabilities, if any, impairment charges, and the impact of the consolidation of certain investment vehicles described above. The consolidation of these investment vehicles does not have an impact on Net Income Attributable to Legg Mason, Inc. This measure is provided in addition to our operating margin calculated under GAAP, but is not a substitute for calculations of margins under GAAP and may not be comparable to non-GAAP performance measures, including measures of adjusted margins of other companies.

Adjusted EBITDA

We define Adjusted EBITDA as cash provided (used in) by operating activities plus (minus) interest expense, net of accretion and amortization of debt discounts and premiums, current income tax expense (benefit), the net change in assets and liabilities, net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interests, net gains (losses) and earnings on investments, net gains (losses) on consolidated investment vehicles, and other. The net change in assets and liabilities adjustment aligns with the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. Adjusted EBITDA is not reduced by equity-based compensation expense, including management equity plan non-cash issuance-related charges. Most management equity plan units may be put to or called by Legg Mason for cash payment, although their terms do not require this to occur.

We believe that this measure is useful to investors and us as it provides additional information with regard to our ability to meet working capital requirements, service our debt, and return capital to our shareholders. This measure is provided in addition to Cash provided by operating activities and may not be comparable to non-GAAP performance measures or liquidity measures of other companies, including their measures of EBITDA or Adjusted EBITDA. Further, this measure is not to be confused with Net Income, Cash provided by operating activities, or other measures of earnings or cash flows under GAAP, and are provided as a supplement to, and not in replacement of, GAAP measures.

We have previously disclosed Adjusted EBITDA that conformed to calculations required by our debt covenants, which adjusted for certain items that required cash settlement that are not part of the current definition.

SOURCE Legg Mason, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.leggmason.com


CHICAGO, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) announced at its Board of Directors meeting today that President and Chief Executive Officer Lois Margaret Nora, MD, JD, MBA will complete her term as the organization's leader at the end of 2017.

"It has been my privilege and a pleasure to serve as the leader of ABMS, working with the 24 Member Boards and the greater professional community in our work on behalf of professional self-regulation," stated Dr. Nora. "We have accomplished much together as a community, and I will miss the incredible team of professionals and physician volunteers with whom I have had the honor to serve with over the past five years. I have every confidence that the programs and initiatives we have implemented to evolve our continuing certification process will endure, as will the value and importance of Board Certification for the patients, families and communities that we serve as well as the profession."

Assuming the role of President and Chief Executive Officer in 2012, Dr. Nora has been dedicated to her profession and to the importance of Board Certification in defining and establishing specialty and subspecialty standards both on behalf of the physician community as well as the public at large. A neurologist and former medical college dean, Dr. Nora brought her passion for medical education, collaboration and the importance of continuous learning and improvement to her role at ABMS. Among the many accomplishments under her leadership is the adoption and implementation of the 2015 Standards for the ABMS Program for Maintenance of Certification (MOC), enabling and encouraging ABMS Boards to explore and implement innovations in their MOC programs and processes. These standards paved the way for the host of innovations occurring throughout the Boards Community ranging from remote proctoring and open book testing, to increased access to MOC approved continuing medical education programs. In addition, her tenure saw the growth of the ABMS Multi-Specialty Portfolio Program which affords physicians the opportunity to obtain MOC credit for the quality improvement, practice improvement and patient safety activities in which they are already actively engaged at their hospitals, health systems and private practices. Most recently, Dr. Nora was instrumental in launching the development of the ABMS CertLink platform. Participating Member Boards will have the opportunity to build and pilot longitudinal assessment models with the goal to offer immediate, real-time feedback as to knowledge proficiency and gaps.

"ABMS and the Boards Community are grateful to Dr. Nora for her visionary leadership, and her unfailing faith and conviction in our mission to truly set higher standards for better care," said ABMS Board of Directors Chair, John Moorhead, MD. "Her passion for Board Certification, our social responsibility and our desire to grow and evolve to better meet the needs of today's physicians and patients are unparalleled, and her impact on the Boards Community will be lasting."

About ABMS

Established in 1933, the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) continues to be the leading not-for-profit organization overseeing physician certification in the United States. ABMS establishes the standards its 24 Member Boards use to develop and implement educational and professional evaluation, assessment, and certification of physician specialists. More than 840,000 physicians are certified in one or more of the approved 37 specialties and 85 subspecialties offered by the ABMS Member Boards. For more information about ABMS, visit abms.org or call (312) 436-2600.

SOURCE American Board of Medical Specialties

Related Links

http://www.abms.org


(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150122/726967 )

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161028/433792 )



The plant is located in Sanford, about 30 miles from Raleigh (the capital of North Carolina). It covers an area of almost 90 thousand square meters. The site is also a technical center for product development. There are currently about 400 employees in the facility.

Over the years, the Sanford plant has obtained TS 16949 and ISO 9001 quality certifications, ISO 14001 environmental certification and OHSAS 18001 health certification, a proof to Magneti Marelli's dedication to quality and safety. Core operations within the Sanford facility include aluminium die casting, complex machining, injection molding, and assembly. Such vertical integration is rare for these components and promotes the ability to be highly flexible to customer volume fluctuations.

Sanford produces various components including highly technical air intake manifolds. These types of intake manifold uses sophisticated electronic control systems to regulate air and gas fluid dynamics aimed at maximizing performance, reducing fuel consumption and CO 2 , and reducing engine noise.

The production, carried out for major manufacturers such as FCA, VW, Harley-Davidson, Polaris, and Mercury Marine, illustrates the level of innovation and technological development of Magneti Marelli. Its attractive location is just a short distance from the Research Triangle Park and the nation's premier automotive hubs.

Magneti Marelli can rely on a longstanding presence in North America in the Powertrain, Lighting, Electronic Systems, Suspension Systems (Shock Absorbers), Exhaust Systems, After Market and Motorsport businesses. Magneti Marelli's North American headquarters are located in Auburn Hills, Michigan.

Magneti Marelli sites in North America:

U.S.

Auburn Hills, Michigan: Headquarters, Application Engineering & Sales for Powertrain, Lighting, Electronic Systems, Suspensions Systems (Shock Absorbers), Exhaust Systems, After Market and Motorsports;

Clarkston, Michigan: Exhaust Systems manufacturing

Pulaski, Tennessee: Suspensions Systems (Shock Absorbers) and Automotive Lighting manufacturing

Sanford, North Carolina: Powertrain manufacturing;

El Paso, Texas: logistics and warehouse.

MEXICO

Juarez: Automotive Lighting manufacturing

Tepotzotlan: Manufacturing for Electronic Systems and Automotive Lighting

Saltillo: Manufacturing for Suspension Systems and Powertrain

Milan, 28th October 2016

Magneti Marelli designs and produces advanced systems and components for the automotive industry. With 89 production units, 12 R&D centres and 30 application centres in 19 countries, approximately 40,500 employees and a turnover of 7.3 billion Euro in 2015, the group supplies all the major carmakers in Europe, North and South America and the Far East. Business areas include Electronic Systems, Lighting, Powertrain, Suspension Systems and Shock Absorbers, Exhaust Systems, Aftermarket Parts & Services, Plastic Components and Modules, and Motorsport. Magneti Marelli is part of FCA.



Follow Magneti Marelli on:



The Company Website: http://www.magnetimarelli.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MagnetiMarelliTechAndRacing

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/magnetimarellit

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/magneti-marelli

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/magnetimarellit

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/MagnetiOfficial

WeChat: QR on http://www.magnetimarelli.com.cn

Weibo: http://www.weibo.com/u/5582153639

Youku: i.youku.com/magnetimarelli

Iquyi: http://www.iqiyi.com/u/1163676930

SOURCE Magneti Marelli SpA
"Linda brings a wealth of experience to this role," says Jim Leiferman, President of Mattamy's US Group. "Her varied background in the homebuilding industry spans nearly 25 years and includes not only a number of top builders but also vast sales and general management experience. We're excited that she will be helping to guide our US business through a period of tremendous growth."

Before joining Mattamy, Linda was the VP-Region Manager for Beazer Homes in southern California, directing the company's homebuilding operations in San Diego. Linda was also the Principal and President of her own firm for several years, specializing in the purchase, renovation, resale and longer-term strategies of Southern California properties. Her past experience also includes the following:

Meritage Homes  President, Southern California Division

Ryland Homes  President, Southern California Division

 President, Southern California Division KB Home  EVP Orange County Division and VP Sales & Marketing, San Diego Division

The Baldwin Company  VP Sales & Marketing

"Having the opportunity to contribute to a company that is both successful and committed to growing its business was an exciting prospect," says Linda. "I am looking forward to meeting more people across the organization, sharing best practices and helping to impact Mattamy's business results at a national level."

About Mattamy Homes

Mattamy Homes is the largest privately owned homebuilder in North America, with operations across the United States and Canada. Mattamy has sold more than 70,000 homes in 160 communities. In the United States, the company is represented in nine metropolitan areas  Minneapolis-St. Paul, Charlotte, Phoenix, Tucson, Jacksonville, Tampa, Sarasota, Naples and Orlando (where its US Head Office is located). Visit www.mattamyhomes.com for more information.

SOURCE Mattamy Homes Limited

Related Links

http://www.mattamyhomes.com/


SAN DIEGO, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Russell Valone, president of MarketPointe Realty Advisors and an expert on area housing, today released a report that concludes the San Diego County General Plan approved in 2012 has failed to provide for the construction of smaller homes on smaller lots that would be affordable to middle-class San Diegans.

Valone said, "While regulatory restrictions on the entitlement process have been a major factor in limiting housing production in many of the County's municipalities, restrictions within unincorporated San Diego County have been even more damaging. Since 2011, less than eight percent of the new homes sold countywide were built in the unincorporated County. Nearly 60-percent of those were developed on high-priced estate-sized lots."

Valone continued, "San Diego County is experiencing a dramatic housing shortfall, which is driving housing prices up and forcing tens of thousands of households to commute into Riverside County to find a home they can afford."

Valone said, "The Lilac Hills Ranch project, on the November ballot as Measure B, will have an average lot size of 4,737 sf and an estimated average home size of 2,160 sf., which is 43% smaller than the average size of homes built on estate lots in the County since the General Plan was approved in 2012." Valone continued, "Just this difference in the average size of homes on Estates in the County vs. LHR homes represents over $421,000 increase in price for estate homes."

Measure B San Diego will be on the November 8th ballot to approve a General Plan amendment in northern San Diego County to provide more housing affordable to middle income families. Supporters argue that it would help alleviate the region's severe housing crisis. For more information on Yes on B, click https://yesforbetter.org/

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161024/431861LOGO

SOURCE Measure B San Diego

Related Links

http://www.yesforbetter.org


WASHINGTON, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA will host an agencywide event Tuesday, Nov. 1, highlighting innovation by NASA employees. NASA Deputy Administrator Dava Newman will discuss the importance of encouraging collaboration across the agency, and this keynote presentation will air live on NASA Television and the agency's website at noon EDT.

The day-long event for agency employees also will feature activities at each NASA center, including an opportunity for employees to help select new creative ideas through the NASA Innovation Kick Start.

The Agency Innovation Mission Day is a project of the NASA FIRST (Foundations of Influence, Relationships, Success and Teamwork) leadership program, which is designed to develop future agency leaders. The 2016 FIRST class was asked by Newman to coordinate and unify center-specific innovation initiatives into an internal, agencywide event that promotes, celebrates and sparks creativity and innovation within NASA.

The NASA Innovation Kick Start competition asks NASA employees to collaborate across the agency to generate creative ideas that address anything from existing technical or organizational problems to new and original concepts. As much as $10,000 will be provided for equipment and supplies to help launch each of the winning projects; $100,000 will be available in total.

For NASA TV streaming video, schedule and downlink information, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/nasatv

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO

SOURCE NASA

Related Links

http://www.nasa.gov


LONDON, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- A Customer Perspective

This study is derived from a survey of IT decision makers around the world across multiple industries. It provides insightful information on what drives investment in IT solutions, the IT-related challenges that organizations face today, and most importantly, plans for IT budgets. Technologies covered include Enterprise Mobility Management, Social Media Management & Marketing Tools, eCommerce/mCommerce, Unified Communications & Collaboration, Infrastructure and Data Centers, Big Data and Analytics, Digital Marketing, Customer Experience Management, Cybersecurity, Internet of Things (M2M), ERP/Supply Chain Management/HR Management. There is section on Internet of Things that explores drivers, challenges, and different phases of implementation. End user companies will be able to benchmark themselves with regard to IT investments while IT companies will learn how to gain a competitive advantage over the next few years.



Excerpts from study:



-The agriculture and mining industries are embracing digital transformation. This industry is the only one we covered in this study that has a higher percentage of live Internet of Things (IoT) services with customers, distributors, and suppliers than the percent that are watching and learning.



-Security risks and managing data protection & privacy requirements are the main restraints to deploying IoT. The drivers for investment in IoT include the ability to optimize field or on-site operations, automate manual processes, and improve employee safety.



-In general, dealing with security threats, ensuring network stability/reliability, and automating and streamlining business purposes are top IT challenges in the agriculture and mining industries.



-CEOs are much more concerned about automating and streamlining processes while CIOS are more focused on dealing with security threats.



-Over the next few years, companies will invest in IT solutions that help them to expand to new markets and regions, gain a competitive advantage, and improve collaboration.

Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/4248642/



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

SOURCE ReportBuyer

Related Links

http://www.reportbuyer.com


KAPOLEI, Hawaii and TAMPA, Fla., Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Most women with the title "mommy" know the importance of patience, compassion and a caring touch to ensure their charges thrive. For the past three years, Adela Salacup earned this title not from her own child, but from an 'Ohana Health Plan member. Salacup was welcomed into the member's home through Hawaii's Community Care Foster Family Home (CCFFH) program.

"This member has no known family or friends, but calls Adela 'mommy' and refers to her as 'my family,'" said Lolita Ching, owner of Quality Case Management Inc., a case management agency in Waipahu. "This is because Adela treats the member like she is a part of her family. I am honored to have someone like Adela affiliated with our agency."

With a history that includes diabetes, high blood pressure, asthma and behavioral health conditions, Salacup's care allows this member to receive the attention she needs in a loving, home setting. In addition to providing food, shelter and medical services, Salacup takes time to help the member develop healthy behaviors and stay connected to her community. For example, Salacup purchases knitting supplies to redirect her from smoking, includes her in dinner parties, and takes her on shopping trips.

Today 'Ohana Health Plan, a WellCare Health Plans, Inc. (NYSE: WCG) company, will honor Adela and nine other caregivers who literally bring their "work" home with them. These outstanding caregivers participate in 'Ohana's CCFFH program and care for veterans, the elderly, and others with long-term health care needs, in their homes.

Also known as the Adult Foster Care Program, this state program provides an alternative to traditional long-term care for members who are unable to care for themselves. Foster homes are single-family homes where care is provided for one to three people. 'Ohana has participated in the Adult Foster Care Program since 2009 and has approximately 800 members enrolled.

The honorees, who were nominated by their case management agency owners, are:

Doreen Torres , Ewa Beach , All Island Case Management Corporation

, , All Island Case Management Corporation Myra Venegas , Honolulu , Azil Case Management Agency

, , Azil Case Management Agency Aurelia Jacob , Ewa Beach , Blue Water Resources

, , Blue Water Resources Leslie Ballesteros , Pearl City , Case Management Professionals, Inc.

, , Case Management Professionals, Inc. Estrelita Caramancion , Waipahu , Health Services Hawaii

, , Health Services Hawaii Emily Saturnino , Honolulu , Nightingale Case Management

, , Nightingale Case Management Imelda Bonilla , Waipahu , 'Ohana Case Management

, , 'Ohana Case Management Adela Salacup , Waipahu , Quality Case Management Inc.

, , Quality Case Management Inc. Rowena Sabio , Waipahu , Residential Choices, Inc.

, , Residential Choices, Inc. Prixie Cruz, Kapolei , Veterans Administration Case Management Agency

"One of the most important things we do in managed care is to help our members access the care and services they need within the most appropriate setting," said Dr. Edward Fess, medical director at 'Ohana Health Plan. "Here in Hawaii, we are fortunate to have options that include care in smaller, more intimate adult foster care homes. The honorees regularly go above and beyond their roles as caregivers to provide our members with both long-term care and personal attention. I am inspired by their commitment to doing the things that make life complete, like going on outings to the beach and shopping trips, and enabling continued participation in hobbies."

To qualify for the program, members must not need health care beyond the level typically provided by a nursing home or intermediate care facility. They are examined by a physician before being accepted into the program to ensure that more complex care is not necessary.

During the foster home placement, 'Ohana's care management team works closely with the care managers and families to ensure that the member and caregiver's personalities are a match to facilitate a successful placement.

"We use a coordinated care approach designed to ensure all members receive the unique services and supports they need to achieve and maintain the best health outcomes possible," said Rida Ching, director of service coordination for 'Ohana. "The adult foster care program allows our members with long-term services and supports needs to remain a part of their communities and to receive care within a family environment. Members are literally taken into the daily lives of their caregivers."

Care managers from the community care management agencies routinely visit adult foster homes to check on members, and to review detailed notes from the caregivers about the services that have been provided. These care managers work closely with 'Ohana to make sure the member receives all needed services, equipment and supplies.

"It is a setting where the member, who often has no family on the islands, can feel wanted and cared for in a family situation," said Donna Oshiro, 'Ohana service coordinator.

As of June 30, 2016, 'Ohana Health Plan has more than 230 employees in Hawaii and serves approximately 57,000 members through its offices in Kapolei, Honolulu, Hilo and Kahului.

About 'Ohana Health Plan

'Ohana Health Plan is offered by WellCare Health Plans, Inc. WellCare provides managed care services targeted to government-sponsored health care programs, focusing on Medicaid and Medicare. WellCare offers a variety of health plans for families, children, and the aged, blind and disabled, as well as prescription drug plans. The company serves approximately 3.8 million members nationwide as of June 30, 2016. 'Ohana has been able to take WellCare's national experience and develop an 'Ohana care model that addresses local members' health care and health coordination needs. As of June 30, 2016, 'Ohana serves approximately 48,800 Medicaid members, 7,800 Medicare Advantage members, and 400 Medicare Prescription Drug Plan members in Hawaii. For more information about 'Ohana, please visit the company's website at www.ohanahealthplan.com.

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SOURCE WellCare Health Plans, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.wellcare.com


NASSAU, Bahamas, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Chow Tai Fook Enterprises Limited (CTFE) is pleased to announce that it has entered into negotiations in connection with the ownership of Baha Mar. CTFE, a world-class developer with immense experience in global hospitality and mixed-use development, has applied to the Government of The Bahamas for approval as a proposed investor and acquirer of the Baha Mar Resort, by way of acquisition of Perfect Luck Assets Limited (Perfect Luck), the company to which certain assets of the Baha Mar Resort have been transferred.

Not only does CTFE have a vast and diverse portfolio of global business operations, but one of the company's subsidiaries, Rosewood Hotel Group, has had a relationship with Baha Mar since 2011. CTFE has significant experience in tourism/hospitality, in part, through Rosewood Hotel Group, which manages 55 hotels in 18 countries under three different brands. Some of CTFE's most iconic owned properties include The Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotel (New York); Rosewood London; The Beverly Wilshire, a Four Seasons Hotel (Beverly Hills); and the Grand Hyatt (Hong Kong). Rosewood Hotel Group also operates three resorts in the Caribbean: Jumby Bay, A Rosewood Resort in Antigua, Rosewood Tucker's Point in Bermuda, and Rosewood Little Dix Bay in the British Virgin Islands (re-opening 2017).

CTFE also has extensive experience with large-scale integrated developments. For example, one of the largest investments in London's history, the over US$10 Billion Greenwich Peninsula development project, as well as the Queen's Wharf Brisbane, a US$2.3 Billion integrated resort development project in Australia, are both CTFE and affiliated company projects.

"CTFE is looking forward to having Baha Mar join its portfolio of world-class integrated resort development projects," said Dr. Henry Cheng, Chairman of CTFE. "We are fully committed to this project and plan to hire as many Bahamians as possible to work at the property."

CTFE is dedicated to the successful opening of Baha Mar and will work with the Government to achieve the goal of a phased opening. As part of the company's commitment to the project and The Bahamas in the immediate term, CTFE will invest millions ahead of the official deal completion through pre-opening activities and employment  which has already commenced and will be expanded in the coming weeks and months.

Graeme Davis, the President of CTFE's Bahamas subsidiary added, "CTFE is a company that embraces and champions the culture and values of the communities where it does business around the globe. We are excited to create an experience in The Bahamas that showcases what we collectively have to offer the world. We are confident that Baha Mar will be a property that Bahamians can be proud of."

As part of the remobilization efforts, CTFE is already in discussions with hotel brands previously involved in the Baha Mar project, including Hyatt and SLS Hotels. CTFE also intends to re-engage its subsidiary, Rosewood Hotel Group, as a luxury hotel operator at Baha Mar.

Given the non-disclosure agreement in place, the stakeholders involved are unable to discuss specific terms of the transaction or the negotiations at this time. However, we look forward to keeping the public informed on pre-opening activities.

About Chow Tai Fook Enterprises Limited

Chow Tai Fook Enterprises Limited (CTFE) is a leading Hong Kong-based conglomerate owned and controlled by the Cheng Family with a diversified business portfolio spanning across the globe. Principal activities of CTFE and the Cheng family include property holding and development, hotel investment and management, jewelry retailing, department stores, transportation and infrastructure investment. Major listed companies controlled by CTFE and the Cheng Family include New World Development Company Limited (HKEx Code: 17), a property developer with a market capitalization of over US$11 billion, NWS Holdings Ltd (HKEx Code: 659), an infrastructure and transportation company with a market capitalization of over US$6 billion, and Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group Limited (HKEx Code: 1929), one of the largest jewelry retailers in the world with a market capitalization of over US$7 billion.

SOURCE Chow Tai Fook Enterprises Limited (CTFE)
SSGT Taylor served in the USMC for 10 years, eight of which he spent in the Marine Corps Forces, Special Operations Command as a Marine Raider. He served on seven official deployments during his term. During a raid in the winter of 2014, SSGT Taylor sustained severe back, spine and knee injuries that limited his ability to walk.

The new home will include features and options specifically designed to meet SSGT Taylor's needs. The keys to the new home were delivered during a Hero Home Finale ceremony in Holly Springs, N.C. The celebration featured a fly-over with missing man formation, home keys delivered by a parachute team and other surprises for the new homeowners.

The project is a result of Operation Coming Home, a joint volunteer project led by the Home Builders Association of Raleigh-Wake County (HBA), the United States Veterans Corps (USVC) and the home builder that builds and donates homes for disabled combat veterans. Hero Home 13 is built by CalAtlantic Homes.

"We are honored to have the opportunity to commit our time and resources to partner with Operation Coming Home to build an exceptional home for such an extremely deserving American hero," said Troy George, Raleigh Division President for CalAtlantic Homes. "It is our hope that this home provides a place for the Taylor family to make cherished memories for years to come."

"A tremendous group of people have all come together to make this home for SSGT Taylor and his family a reality," said Andy Ladner, President of Operation Coming Home and Executive Director of the U.S. Veterans Corps. "This project provides a way for our community to give back and the unique touches in this home showcase the appreciation by the CalAtlantic Homes team and their vendors for this hero."

SSGT Taylor was selected last spring to receive the Hero Home on behalf of Operation: Coming Home. A groundbreaking ceremony was held on March 14 and a flag raising ceremony was held on June 21.

Significance of October 27

On October 27, 2008, members of the HBA, USVC and Royal Oaks Building Company co-built and donated a home to veteran Joey Bozik, the project's first recipient. Bozik, a sergeant in the 16th Military Police Brigade based at Fort Bragg, was injured in 2004 when his Humvee hit a bomb south of Baghdad. "Alive Day" is the day a wounded veteran wakes up from the near-death injuries received and realizes he or she is alive and life has changed forever. Bozik's Alive Day is October 27 (2004), therefore the 13th Hero Home is an anniversary celebration of that event.

About Operation Coming Home

Operation: Coming Home is a joint volunteer project by the Home Builders Association of Raleigh-Wake County (HBA), and various area nonprofits and businesses. The project builds and donates homes for disabled combat veterans who have served in the Middle East, after a selection committee interviews candidates to determine the best fit. For more information, visit http://operationcominghome.com.

About the HBA

The Home Builders Association of Raleigh-Wake County (HBA) is the voice of the home building industry throughout Wake County, and provides members opportunities for business development, education, professional growth, networking and community involvement. The membership, comprised of builders, remodelers, developers, and sales & marketing professionals, is affiliated with the National Association of Home Builders, which represents over 160,000 member companies nationwide. Currently the HBA is the second largest home builders association in the country. The members of the HBA are building excellence together for the neighborhoods and communities of tomorrow. www.hbawake.com

About CalAtlantic Homes

CalAtlantic Group, Inc. (NYSE: CAA), a combination of Standard Pacific Corp. and Ryland Group, Inc., two of the nation's largest and most respected homebuilders, offers well-crafted homes in thoughtfully designed communities that meet the desires of customers across the homebuilding spectrum, from entry level to luxury, in 41 Metropolitan Statistical Areas spanning 17 states. With a trusted reputation for quality craftsmanship, an outstanding customer experience and exceptional architectural design earned over its 50 year history, CalAtlantic Group, Inc. utilizes its over five decades of land acquisition, development and homebuilding expertise to acquire and build desirable communities in locations that meet the high expectations of the company's homebuyers. For more information, visit: www.calatlantichomes.com.

News Release Contacts:

Lara Wilson

VP of Marketing and Communications

Home Builders Association of Raleigh-Wake County

[email protected]

919.624.6133

Danielle Tocco

National Communications Director

CalAtlantic Homes

(C) 949.648.1823

[email protected]

Video - http://origin-qps.onstreammedia.com/origin/multivu_archive/PRNA/ENR/Calanitc_Key Ceremony_No Audio.mp4

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433563

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SOURCE CalAtlantic Group, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.calatlantichomes.com


SAN DIEGO, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- OrPro Therapeutics, Inc., and its research collaborators at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) today presented promising new non-clinical human subject data on the efficacy of OrPro's inhaled mucus-normalizing drug Theradux (modified human thioredoxin-1) during a poster session at the North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference held in Orlando, Florida.

"The studies conducted at UAB using their non-invasive micro-optical coherence tomography imaging platform demonstrate that Theradux treatment is effective in restoring transportability to stiff and viscous mucus from cystic fibrosis (CF) patients," said OrPro President and CEO Peter Heifetz, Ph.D.

In the UAB study Theradux was found to be at least twice as effective in increasing mucus transport than Pulmozyme (human DNase, dornase alfa), a standard of care mucolytic whose target is viscous DNA released from cells and bacteria as a consequence of chronic infection and inflammation.

"Highly significant increases in mucociliary transport in situ were observed in both mucus-producing human bronchial epithelial (HBE) cultures in vitro and CF patient sputum applied to excised rat trachea ex vivo. Together these indicate the potential for Theradux to act early in the disease process", commented Dr. Steven M. Rowe, Director of the UAB CF Research Center. "While not a cure, such an approach may, like CFTR modifier drugs Kalydeco (ivacaftor) and Orkambi (lumacaftor and ivacaftor), act to alter the course of disease and mitigate onset of the serious late-stage lung symptoms that are the primary contributors to CF morbidity and mortality".

About Cystic Fibrosis

CF is a fatal, inherited disease in which chronic mucus clearance defects resulting from loss of CFTR anion channel function lead to a cycle of airway infection and inflammation, ultimately progressing to irreversible lung injury and respiratory failure. CF affects more than 30,000 individuals in the United States and nearly 80,000 worldwide. While the life expectancy of CF patients has continued to increase, from 18 years prior to 1980 to nearly 40 years today, there is still an urgent need for improved therapies to further extend life expectancy and enhance quality of life.

About OrPro and Theradux

OrPro Therapeutics, Inc. is a resident company at Johnson & Johnson Innovation JLABS (San Diego, CA). OrPro is developing Theradux (U.S. Patent 9,168,290), representing a new class of inhaled, non-systemic therapeutics that target underlying structural changes in CF mucus via a unique pH-independent binding mechanism that both prolongs activity and sequesters the drug in the mucus layer. Earlier 'mucolytic' reducing agents that break up mucus non-selectively lose most of their potency at the low pH of the CF airway and are rapidly absorbed into the body, resulting in the potential for systemic side effects and low effective concentrations at the target site. In contrast, Theradux relaxes excess protein linkages without disrupting the polymeric mucus gel structure essential for normal transport and clearance. A biologic drug derived from a native airway enzyme (thioredoxin), Theradux is hundreds of times more active than small-molecule mucolytic agents, with far greater selectivity and specificity for mucus protein disulfide bonds.

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SOURCE OrPro Therapeutics, Inc.
PITTSBURGH, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI) announced a major expansion of its College Readiness Program in western Pennsylvania schools with an investment of $26 million from ExxonMobil, made on behalf of its XTO Energy Inc. subsidiary. The three-year program empowers school communities to improve participation and success in rigorous coursework to better prepare students for college and the STEM-intensive careers of the 21st century. NMSI will partner with approximately 40 schools across the region over the next several years to enhance teacher effectiveness and student performance in the core subjects of math, science and English.

"Access to a high-quality education can be critical to a student's academic growth and their future success," said Pennsylvania Secretary of Education Pedro A. Rivera, who participated in the program expansion announcement at West Allegheny High School near Pittsburgh. "As the commonwealth works together to invest in students and Schools that Teach, the College Readiness Program is a standout model of how public schools, innovative educational organizations and committed businesses can partner to ensure that the next generation of scientific, business and civic leaders are prepared to succeed."

NMSI's College Readiness Program has proven to dramatically increase the number of students taking and earning qualifying scores on Advanced Placement (AP) exams using a comprehensive approach that provides extensive training for teachers, more time on task for students, and equipment and supplies to support AP coursework. In just one year, the program boosts the number of AP qualifying scores in math, science and English in partner schools by 10 times the national average, while producing outstanding gains among female and minority students  two groups that are traditionally underrepresented in STEM fields. To date, the College Readiness Program has reached more than 1,000 schools across 34 states.

"The College Readiness Program is raising the academic bar in Pennsylvania and across the nation," said Gregg Fleisher, president of NMSI. "We're grateful that companies like ExxonMobil realize the value of STEM education and are committed to ensuring that our future workforce is better equipped with the knowledge and skills they need to be successful."

Fleisher emphasized that AP is one of the most powerful tools for preparing students for the demands of college-level work and a rapidly changing workforce.

Mike Johnson, vice president of XTO Energy's Appalachia Division, praised the program's achievements.

"A strong education today is the key to empowering our young people to be the business leaders of tomorrow," Johnson said. "Skills in math and science are especially critical to our nation's economic success, and investments to sharpen those skills remain a major priority for ExxonMobil and XTO Energy. We are proud that nearly 60,000 Pennsylvania high school students will be more prepared for the rigors of college and careers than ever before."

Government officials, local business and civic leaders, higher education representatives and teachers gathered this afternoon for an event announcing the expansion. Hosted by West Allegheny High School principal Kevin McKiernan, officials at the event recognized the hard work of local educators and highlighted the need for community leaders to raise matching funds to reach every high school across the state in future years.

"I'm grateful that the National Math and Science Initiative, ExxonMobil and XTO Energy are making a positive contribution to Pennsylvania's schools," noted Rivera. "Our students will be more prepared to lead the commonwealth into the future thanks to their commitment."

Nine Pennsylvania schools have participated in CRP since 2013. Schools that began the College Readiness Program between 2013-2016 include: Brashear High School; Pittsburgh Science and Technology Academy; Allderice High School; Carrick School; CAPA 6-12; Chartiers Valley High School; Deer Lakes High School; Peters Township High School; West Allegheny High School.

New schools joining the program in 2016-2017 include: Burrell High School; Chartiers-Houston High School; Kiski Area High School; McGuffey High School; Penn Hills High School; Ringgold High School; Trinity Area High School.

About National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI)

NMSI, a national nonprofit organization, breaks down barriers to access in education and prepares all students to graduate college and career ready. Launched in 2007, NMSI's programs improve student achievement and teacher effectiveness, particularly in math and science, through scalable solutions rooted in local partnerships. NMSI has received national recognition for programs benefiting school communities in 40 states and the District of Columbia including NMSI's College Readiness Program, Laying the Foundation Teacher Training Program, and UTeach Expansion Program. For more information, visit nms.org.

About ExxonMobil and XTO Energy

ExxonMobil, the largest publicly traded international oil and gas company, uses technology and innovation to help meet the world's growing energy needs. ExxonMobil holds an industry-leading inventory of resources, is the largest refiner and marketer of petroleum products and its chemical company is one of the largest in the world. XTO Energy is a leading natural gas and oil producer in the U.S. with expertise in developing tight gas, shale gas, coal bed methane and unconventional oil resources. XTO has operations in all major U.S. producing regions. For more information, visit exxonmobil.com and xtoenergy.com.

ExxonMobil engages in a range of philanthropic activities that advance education with a focus on math and science in the United States, promote women as catalysts for economic development and combat malaria. Over the past 15 years, ExxonMobil has contributed more than $1.2 billion for education programs around the world.

SOURCE National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI)

Related Links

http://www.nms.org


"Today, CCAMLR made history by declaring the planet's largest marine protected area in the Ross Sea. This landmark decision represents the first time that nations have agreed to protect a huge area of the ocean that lies beyond the jurisdiction of any individual country and shows that CCAMLR takes its role as protector of Antarctic waters seriously. This would not have been possible without Russia joining with other countries to pass the proposal. The governments of the United States and New Zealand should also be commended for their tireless work these past six years.

"Although there wasn't time to complete action on additional proposals for Southern Ocean marine protected areas in the nearby Weddell Sea and East Antarctic waters, it is clear that all the CCAMLR member governments are now committed to protecting these pristine areas for future generations."

The Pew Charitable Trusts is driven by the power of knowledge to solve today's most challenging problems. Learn more at pewtrusts.org.

Barb Cvrkel, 202-510-5670, [email protected]

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433200

SOURCE The Pew Charitable Trusts

Related Links

http://www.pewtrusts.org


"As the name of the manual implies, the process of protecting our children does require planning, procedures and training. It could be overwhelming but it is an absolutely critical task to implement and monitor safe environments. It is not necessary to reinvent the wheel when there is an excellent tool available that makes customization of policies and the follow-through a manageable task," said Melodie Bissell, President and CEO of Plan to Protect.

Bissell went on to say, "For over two decades, we have seen great success as many faith communities and non- profits have risen to the challenge to protect children and youth. However, there is no shortage of news headlines reinforcing the fact that our work is nowhere near complete and so we aim to constantly improve our resource and service offering while also attempting to impact more and more organizations."

Scott R. Konrad, Senior Vice President, Willis of New York, Inc. writes, "Having devoted the majority of my career to managing and insuring the risks of religious and secular nonprofits, I know well the pitfalls of having inadequate protection for their most vulnerable constituents. Plan to Protect provides a cost-effective, comprehensive, turnkey risk management solution that can be easily adapted to the specific needs of any religious entity -- from the parish church to a denominational headquarters. I know of no other resource providing this depth and quality of actionable, hands-on content approaching this price point, and I recommend Plan to Protect to any institution seeking to fortify its youth risk management programming."

About Plan to Protect:

Plan to Protect provides the HIGHEST STANDARD of abuse prevention and protection for organizations servicing the vulnerable sector. This is accomplished through our commitment to provide the certification, tools, training and momentum to help win the race against abuse.

The 250 page, beautifully formatted, manual includes five key chapters and word document downloads.

The manual can be purchased on line at www.plantoprotect.com/store for $59.99 plus shipping.

Plan to Protect includes the following content:

Protect Through Awareness of Abuse

Understanding your Organization's Responsibility

Understanding Legal and Insurance Perspectives

Recruiting and Screening Guidelines

Protect Through Program Development

True Case Studies

Child and Youth Protection Procedures

Reporting and Response

100+ pages of templates and forms with downloads in Word format

Compiled Policies for ease in customizing

Learn more about more about Plan to Protect and their certification, training and resources at www.plantoprotect.com, or visit them on Facebook and Twitter and LinkedIn. Also download the PlanToProtect App on the iTunes Store.

Early Tributes to Plan to Protect

"Ignoring wolves does not make them go away or erase their crimes. Ignoring victims does not magically make them heal. It's time we take seriously the ways of the Good Shepherd who laid down his life  His comfort, His reputation, His will  for His wounded sheep. That is why I'm grateful to recommend this resource, carefully created by Plan to Protect. Here you will find the information and wisdom needed to not only protect children, but to help each church become a beautiful place of healing and redemption. "

- Mary DeMuth, Author, Not Marked: Finding Hope and Healing After Sexual Abuse

"We are thrilled to come together into a national partnership with Plan to Protect  an organization at the forefront of safety and abuse prevention training. Plan to Protect provides extensive expertise in the safety and abuse prevention field with their programming, materials, and extremely knowledgeable staff. Their ability to successfully and effectually train organizations serving vulnerable populations is unmatched. With this partnership, Verified Volunteers is excited to add another highly effective security and protection measure to our arsenal of products. We are now equipped to better mitigate risk within the service sector."

- Katie Zwetzig, Executive Director, Verified Volunteers

About the Editor and co-author, Melodie Bissell

Melodie Bissell is the Founder and President of Plan to Protect, which provides the HIGHEST STANDARD of abuse prevention and protection to organizations servicing the vulnerable sector globally.

Melodie is the co-author of the bestselling Plan to Protect manuals: Plan to Protect: A Protection Manual for Children and Youth, and those that work with them and four Pocket Guides of Plan to Protect Best Practices, for Children, Youth, Vulnerable Adults, and Disability Initiatives.

Melodie is currently working towards her Doctorate of Ministry at University of Toronto on the Spiritual Healing of Victim Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse.

SOURCE Plan to Protect

Related Links

http://www.plantoprotect.com/


ZURICH, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- "There will probably be another crisis after the 'liberation' of Mosul from the Islamic State," William Warda, the Chairman of the Alliance of Iraqi Minorities and co-founder of the Hammurabi Human Rights Organization, warned in a CSI-hosted lecture here Tuesday.

As the Iraqi, Kurdish and Turkish armies and their respective proxy militias advance on Mosul, supported with American air power, Mr. Warda raised the sobering prospect that a coalition victory over the Islamic State (IS) may not mean a genuine "liberation" for city's civilian inhabitants nor for the hundreds of thousands of displaced religious minorities.

"Most of the displaced people," Warda predicted, "will not return to their homes if there is no rule of law and justice." If neither the Iraqi government, nor a great power like the U.S. or Russia, establishes security, there will surely be continuing violence, perhaps even open warfare between the competing "liberators."

"It has a been a year since the Yazidi region of Sinjar was 'liberated' from the Islamic State," Mr. Warda pointed out, "but fewer than 5% of the displaced Yazidis have returned."

In his wide-ranging talk, Warda highlighted the many atrocities endured by Christians and Yazidis since Iraqi independence in 1932, culminating in the wave of terrorism that reduced the Christian population of Iraq from 1.5 million in 2003 to less than 300,000 today. After the American invasion, Islamic extremist groups targeted minorities for murder and abduction, and treated their property and even their female relatives as ghaneema, or just spoils.

"Mass displacement robbed Christians" of their traditional strengths in business and education, Warda said. "In the near future, we may expect illiteracy among Christians. The rate was zero before. Fewer Christians are getting married or having children. If there is no dramatic change in the trajectory of violence, Christians and other religious minorities in Iraq are on their way to extinction." Should this come to pass, Warda forecast, Iraq itself will have no future.

Warda noted that the United States correctly acknowledged that the Islamic State had committed "genocide" against Christians, Yazidis and other minorities like the Turkomans, Shabaks and Kaka'i. But he pointed out that it was Washington and its partners in the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) who "suddenly withdrew their forces and left the minorities to face the Islamic State, without so much as a warning". He furthermore observed that the Shi'ite-dominated government in Baghdad demonstrates symbolic contempt towards non-Muslim minorities by refusing to repeal Article 26 of the National ID Law, which forcibly Islamizes children if even only one of their parents converts to Islam. Furthermore, this past week, the Iraqi parliament passed a ban on alcohol, a traditionally Christian area of commerce.

"The mentality of those who are in power in Erbil and Baghdad," Mr. Warda said, "is to either dominate, control and contain minority capabilities, or eradicate them."

Compounding the disaster is the fact that "the international community's involvement for minorities is very weak," Warda said. During the U.S.-led Operation Iraqi Freedom, it was clear, Warda observed, that "the non-Muslim religious minority communities were out of the American equation, while Washington's attention was directed only towards the Shi'ites, Sunnis and Kurds." Iraq's Christian and other religious minority communities paid what Warda called a "high price" for the American invasion and occupation of Iraq.

Warda regarded proposals for an autonomous Christian province in the territory reclaimed from the Islamic State with skepticism. "There is no doubt that someone is pushing Christians and Yazidis to ask for this, because they think this province will be joined to the KRG or another region," he said. "This solution doesn't serve Christians," since of the hundreds of thousands who were driven from their homes in the area intended for such a province, "50% have left the country already."

If religious minorities are to survive in Iraq, Warda concluded, there are no substitutes for the rule of law, backed up by strong guarantees of protection from the international community. "The central government and the KRG have lost the trust of the minorities," Warda said. "They need a new mandate or sponsorship by the UN or a superpower" to guarantee protection and justice. "Minorities can survive under a decentralized, civil democratic system that recognizes political, religious ethnic and cultural diversity." But this must be rooted, he continued, in security and the rule of law. In the absence of this Iraq's minorities will choose the only route left to them: emigration.

While expressing appreciation for William Warda's talk, Dr. John Eibner, the Director of CSI's Middle East program, commented, "It is not yet clear whether the current reconquest of Mosul, which was already 'liberated' in 2003, is a real liberation, or simply another milestone in the destruction of Iraq's minority communities."

Contact: Alexandra Campana

[email protected]

SOURCE Christian Solidarity International (CSI)

Related Links

http://www.csi-int.org


WASHINGTON, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- For American children with an incarcerated parent, Christmas can be bittersweet as they are separated from their imprisoned parentoften by more than 100 miles.

Prison Fellowship's Angel Tree brings joy to these children through gifts given by volunteers on behalf of their parent, and this year, an additional offer of good news in English and Spanish: The NIrV Adventure Bible for Early Readers and the NVI Biblia Aventura from Zondervan's children's and Spanish imprints, Zonderkidz and Editorial Vida.

NIrV Adventure Bible for Early Readers NVI Biblia Aventura

This is the first time Prison Fellowship has been able to offer a free Bible to every one of the Angel Tree families it servesanticipated to be more than 140,000 families this Christmas season.

"Through the Angel Tree program, this Christmas, we will deliver gifts to over 300,000 children, better connecting children with their incarcerated parent. Through this partnership with Zondervan, we have the opportunity to place a Bible in the hands of hundreds of thousands of childrenand what better way to show kids the true meaning of Christmas than to offer them God's word as they open their Angel Tree gifts?" said James J. Ackerman, president and chief executive officer of Prison Fellowship. "We are appreciative of Zondervan, which has partnered with Prison Fellowship to make this possible."

Every Christmas in all 50 states, Angel Tree mobilizes churches to minister to hundreds of thousands of children by delivering a gift and the gospel message on behalf of their incarcerated parents. Last year, the program provided more than 300,000 children with Christmas gifts. Since 1982, Angel Tree has delivered more than 10 million gifts to children on behalf of nearly 4.2 million imprisoned parents.

"Prison Fellowship's Angel Tree program has always been near and dear to the hearts of our team at Zonderkidz," said Annette Bourland, senior vice president of publishing. "To be able to present The Adventure Bible for Early Readers, in English and Spanish, to young readers who will find comfort and strength in God's message for them is a tremendous joy for our team."

Prison Fellowship's Angel Tree is the only nationwide, year-round program that reaches out exclusively to children who have a parent in prison. Through collaborations with local churches and community organizations, hundreds of thousands of children receive a gift each Christmas on behalf of their incarcerated parents. In addition, partner churches meet the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of prisoners' families through year-round ministry, such as camping events and mentoring. For more information on Angel Tree, visit www.angeltree.org.

About Prison Fellowship: Prison Fellowship is the nation's largest outreach to prisoners, former prisoners and their families, and a leading advocate for criminal justice reform.

About Zonderkidz: Zonderkidz, the children's division of Zondervan, inspires young lives through imagination and innovation. As a leader in Christian children's communications, it creates products that awaken the hearts and touch the souls of kids under 16. Zonderkidz is also the publisher of the NIrV (New International Reader's Version) Bible translation, the 3rd-grade reading level edition of the NIV. For additional information, please visit www.zondervan.com.

About Editorial Vida: Editorial Vida, the Spanish division of Zondervan, publishes Spanish Bibles, books, devotionals, and other resources that promote a faithful relationship with Jesus. Vida maintains the largest catalog of Christian products and resources in the Hispanic cultureU.S., Latin America, and abroad. Vida holds the exclusive distribution rights of the NVI (Nueva Version Internacional)New International Version of the Bible in Spanish. For more information please visit www.editorialvida.com.

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161026/433018LOGO

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161026/433019

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161026/433020



SOURCE Prison Fellowship

Related Links

http://www.prisonfellowship.org


CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- QuickBase Inc., a leading low-code application development platform provider, today released its second annual study on citizen development, building on the results of last year's inaugural research to show how the movement has evolved over time. The report revealed citizen developers are moving beyond singular uses to embrace low-code solutions as multi-purpose platforms, using them to create a growing diversity of apps.

The 2016 State of Citizen Development Report draws from research conducted by QuickBase both within its own user base and across the general population of app developers. The research contains insights on the growing adoption and interest in citizen development as well as the specific benefits this approach brings to organizations of every size and industry. Citizen developers are a growing movement of business employees creating and maintaining apps without writing a line of code. Gartner predicts by 2020, 60 percent of all fast-mode application development projects will be done outside of formal IT teams, driven by the rise of citizen developers.[1] The full QuickBase report is available here: http://www.quickbase.com/state-of-citizen-development-report.

Compared with 2015's industry-first research, this year's findings demonstrate citizen development has evolved considerably in the past year, with no-code users achieving greater enhancements in speed and efficiency relative to their counterparts with traditional coding skill sets. Among the general population of app developers surveyed, a majority said they were able to deliver apps in less than a month. This contrasts sharply with traditional hand-coded apps, for which two-thirds (67 percent) of developers reported requiring over two months to develop, and nearly one-third (31 percent) required more than six. Four in five (80 percent) respondents named speed as one of the top reasons for using citizen development, and developers seem to be getting faster: among citizen developers using QuickBase, 42 percent are now able to create apps at least twice as fast as with traditional methods. This is a marked uptick from 2015's finding of 29 percent.

"Over the last year, citizen development has gone from a grassroots movement to an integral part of an organization's strategy," said Karen Devine, VP of Marketing at QuickBase. "Our findings this year underscore why the trend is garnering so much attention. By eliminating the complexity involved with app development, line of business workersnot just business analysts or ITcan get involved. As a result, organizations are creating customer-facing and employee-facing applications even faster by tapping into a larger pool of developers who can solve the problems they know best."

"Today, the trend toward citizen development is accelerating in organizations of all types and sizes," Gartner states in a recent report. "Most are finding that citizen development projects can reduce IT workloads when managed appropriately; for example, citizen development projects that meet a 'sweet spot' for deployments can streamline the IT effort and enable corporate IT resources to focus on critical success factors rather than on small, and less business-critical, projects. Citizen development also enables IT to focus on moving 'big rocks,' rather than juggling 'small pebbles.'"[2]

Additional findings of the 2016 State of Citizen Development Report include:

App Development Becoming An Organization-Wide Job: More citizen developers now consider app development a part of their day job, with over three-quarters (76 percent) of QuickBase app builders agreeing, up from 68 percent in 2015.

More citizen developers now consider app development a part of their day job, with over three-quarters (76 percent) of QuickBase app builders agreeing, up from 68 percent in 2015. Citizen Development Becoming More Indispensable : The QuickBase platform replaced an average of 11 point solutions in 2016, an increase from 2015's average of eight solutions.

: The QuickBase platform replaced an average of 11 point solutions in 2016, an increase from 2015's average of eight solutions. Low-Code Apps No Longer Limited to Internal Use: More than one-third (35 percent) of QuickBase app builders reported creating customer-facing apps, up from 27 percent in 2015.

More than one-third (35 percent) of QuickBase app builders reported creating customer-facing apps, up from 27 percent in 2015. Different Models of Citizen Development Emerging with Focus on Collaboration: The report also detailed three typical citizen development approaches, including business-led (62 percent of respondents reported that line-of-business managers are doing most of the citizen development); balanced development (21 percent reported IT and citizen developers working together); and IT-led (17 percent reported that IT is leading efforts to complete apps for citizen developers).

To illustrate the results of the report, QuickBase also published an infographic detailing these findings, available here.

Methodology

The results were compiled from two separate surveys. First, a survey of 205 QuickBase customers conducted in May 2016 at the QuickBase EMPOWER 2016 user conference, with a margin of error of five percent. The second was conducted in partnership with IDG in June/July 2016 and surveyed 153 custom app developers and users in the United States, with a margin of error of five percent.

About QuickBase

Launched in 1999 and headquartered in Cambridge, Mass., QuickBase Inc., formerly a division of Intuit, is a newly independent company focused on helping businesses of all sizes drive productivity and digitally transform their organizations. The platform's unique low-code interface enables users to create custom applications faster and easier without learning code. Today, QuickBase is used by more than 6,000 customers, including half of the Fortune 100, across a variety industries and use cases. The company was divested from Intuit in March 2016 and is backed by Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe. For more information, please visit: www.quickbase.com.

[1] Gartner: Predicts 2016: Application Development, December 9, 2015. [2] Gartner: Citizen Development Success Depends on an Equal Partnership Between Business and IT Leaders, Nov. 25, 2015.

Media Contacts: Angela Maglione Will Gluckin

QuickBase Bateman Group for QuickBase

(617) 250-2241 (347) 382-9734

[email protected] [email protected]

SOURCE QuickBase Inc.

Related Links

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"The Sentinel fleet is well-recognised for the outstanding contribution it has made to military and surveillance operations around the globe over the last nine years," said Richard Daniel, chief executive officer of Raytheon U.K. "As well as creating new jobs in Broughton, the extension of the Sentinel fleet will support several hundred highly skilled jobs within Raytheon and its supply chain, while maintaining world leading expertise in the customer community."

Raytheon U.K., supported by the Welsh Government, has invested in a new hangar at Broughton to ensure that its Airborne ISR, for Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance, continues to provide end-to-end, design-to-flight-trials capability for improved operational availability. The new investment will allow Raytheon U.K. to undertake export work as well as to optimise Sentinel support, resulting in considerably reduced time and cost of 8C deep maintenance checks.

The full range of Raytheon's technical support for the Sentinel fleet includes fleet management, maintenance planning, maintenance service, technical and engineering services, obsolescence management, air vehicle integrity, supply and procurement service, training, design service and overarching service management.

About Raytheon U.K.

Raytheon U.K. is a subsidiary of Raytheon Company. It is a prime contractor and major supplier to the U.K. Ministry of Defence and has developed strong capabilities in mission systems integration in defence, national security and commercial markets. Raytheon U.K. also designs, develops and manufactures a range of high-technology electronic systems and software at facilities in Harlow, Glenrothes, Waddington and Broughton.

About Raytheon

Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN), with 2015 sales of $23 billion and 61,000 employees, is a technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, civil government and cybersecurity solutions. With a history of innovation spanning 94 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration, C5I products and services, sensing, effects, and mission support for customers in more than 80 countries. Raytheon is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts. Follow us on Twitter @Raytheon.

This document does not contain technology or technical data controlled under either the U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations or the U.S. Export Administration Regulations. E16-VRXN.

www.raytheon.com

Media Contact

Nick West

+44 207 872 5602

[email protected]

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THOUSAND OAKS, Calif., Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Thousand Oaks, California - CA-26th Congressional District  Today the Dagnesses for Congress campaign announced the endorsement of The National Latino Peace Officers Association.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161028/433746

Rafael Dagnesses for U.S. Congress Continues to Receive Public Safety Endorsements

"Dear Rafael Dagnesses, Based on your interview and the recommendation of the Ventura County Charter, The National Latino Peace Officer Association-Advocacy unanimously supports and endorses your candidacy for U.S. House of Representatives.

NLPOA-Advocacy's mission is to promote social welfare by advocating with regard to law enforcement, including best practices, diversity, and community relations. NLPOA-Advocacy endorses Rafael Dagnesses for U.S. House of Representatives, because he has demonstrated the highest ideals of honor and integrity.

Rafael Dagnesses believes in the safety and security of our communities. He is committed to bridging the gap between law enforcement and our diverse local communities. Congratulations on your endorsement."

Other Public Safety & National Security Endorsements include:

Oxnard Police Officers Association

Police Officers Association The Los Angeles Police Protective League

Police Protective League California Reserve Peace Officers Association

Countless Law Enforcement and Public Safety Officials. Many of which have known Dagnesses for decades.

Sean Reyes , Utah State Attorney General

, Utah State Attorney General National Security Experts, Countless Veterans of all branches including Special Forces members who have known Rafael Dagnesses for decades.

Chairman Buck Mckeon , Chairman Armed Services Committee ret.

, Chairman Armed Services Committee ret. Larry Elder

Dagnesses received over 50 commendations during his tenure as a Police Officer. The commendations range from Acts of Bravery to Letters of Appreciation from citizens. There is only one candidate in this race that has actually risked his life countless times in the protection of others.

Rafael Dagnesses was born in Socialist-Communist Cuba and was able to flee to the United States with his family. Raised in the inner city, United States Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant-Veteran, former law enforcement officer and entrepreneur-small business owner running for California's 26th Congressional District which includes most of Ventura County and portions of Los Angeles County. He lives in Camarillo with his wife and two youngest children.

805.668.1444 - P.O. Box 4966 Thousand Oaks, CA 91359

find us at www.facebook.com/rafael4congress

www.twitter.com/rafael4congress

www.instagram.com/rafael4congress

Paid for by Rafael Dagnesses for Congress  FEC ID# C00583120

campaign info and donate at www.RafaelForCongress.com

Contact: [email protected]

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This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com

SOURCE Rafael Dagnesses for Congress
Jack Lee succeeds Mike Granby, who served as President of Red Lion for seventeen years, and is leaving the company to pursue other entrepreneurial projects. Mike joined Red Lion in 1996 through the acquisition of the UK business that he founded, Paradigm Controls.

"Jack has broad experience in industrial markets, including business development in the rapidly-growing Industrial Internet of Things field. His leadership skills and global industrial background make him well-suited to take Red Lion into its next phase," said Jo Hallas, Business Group Director at Spectris plc. "We would like to thank Mike for his considerable contribution to Red Lion, building the company into a trusted industrial automation and networking brand over his many years of service."

Jack served as Senior Vice President and Managing Director of the Surface Equipment and Automation Business Group for Dover Corporation before joining Red Lion. Prior to this, he held various senior positions with Emerson, including leading the acquisition and integration of the Bristol measurement and control business. Earlier in his career, he held positions with Solvay and Pennzoil. He holds a Master's degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Houston and an MBA from Northwestern University.

"I look forward to the opportunity to lead Red Lion forward as it helps customers gain business insight by improving communications and increasing productivity through its industry-leading solutions," said Jack Lee, President of Red Lion. "Red Lion has great talent, technology, partnerships and global reach, and we will continue to innovate and focus on providing strong customer service into the future."

For more information on Red Lion, visit www.redlion.net.

About Red Lion Controls

As the global experts in communication, monitoring and control for industrial automation and networking, Red Lion has been delivering innovative solutions for over forty years. Our automation, Ethernet and cellular M2M technology enables companies worldwide to gain real-time data visibility that drives productivity. Product brands include Red Lion, N-Tron and Sixnet. With headquarters in York, Pennsylvania, the company has offices across the Americas, Asia-Pacific and Europe. Red Lion is part of Spectris plc, the productivity-enhancing instrumentation and controls company. For more information, please visit www.redlion.net.

2016 Red Lion Controls, Inc. All rights reserved. Red Lion and the Red Lion logo are registered trademarks of Red Lion Controls, Inc. All other company and product names are trademarks of their respective owners.

Media Contacts:

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Winners were identified based on the results from a comprehensive study of independently-owned companies, using advanced analytics and a proprietary algorithm built on a balanced scorecard designed to measure metrics reflecting the major pillars of entrepreneurship. For additional details on the Entrepreneur 360 List and the companies recognized, visit entrepreneur.com/360companies.

Quote from Omer Trajman, CEO & Co-Founder, Rocana

"We are honored to be recognized by Entrepreneur magazine for our impact, innovation, growth and leadership. Rocana was founded on the premise that IT leaders empowered with total operational visibility can profoundly impact the business. We are proud to help enterprise customers be more innovative by connecting IT operational events with customer experience data to improve IT efficiency, deliver better customer experiences, and create competitive advantage."

Quote from Ryan Shea, President of Entrepreneur Media, Inc.

"The Entrepreneur 360 List celebrates outstanding companies for the value they bring to the world, not just the worth of their company. The companies on this list exemplify growth, not just in top and bottom line, but in their ability to create a superior value for their customers, build adaptive learning cultures, and drive innovation in their marketplace."

About Entrepreneur Media, Inc.

For nearly 40 years, Entrepreneur Media Inc. has been serving the entrepreneurial community providing comprehensive coverage of business and personal success through original content and events. Entrepreneur magazine, Entrepreneur.com, and publishing imprint Entrepreneur Press provide solutions, information, inspiration and education read by millions of entrepreneurs and small business owners worldwide. To learn more, visit entrepreneur.com. Follow us on Twitter at @Entrepreneur and like us on Facebook at facebook.com/entmagazine.

About Rocana

Rocana gives technology leaders total operational visibility, eliminating the boundaries of legacy IT monitoring and empowering technologists to lead digital transformation. Rocana Ops captures and analyzes all data from all sources, keeping it online and available for instant and future access. By combining event data warehouse capabilities with advanced machine learning, Rocana Ops gives technologists the ability to see emerging issues anywhere in the environment, minimize security risks, and surface opportunities for innovation. Rocana was founded by big data veterans and is backed by proven digital leaders like Google Ventures (GV), Vinny Smith (Quest Software and Toba Capital), Paul Sagan (Akamai), Brian Smith (Google), and General Catalyst. Learn more at www.rocana.com.

Press Contact

Mike Tomlinson

Public Relations Manager, Rocana

+1 (877) 762-2621 Ext. 3

[email protected]

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SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- True to its roots in the Bay Area, Pacific Union International is leading the U.S. residential real estate industry with new and impactful technologies in its growing kit of innovative sales and communication tools that are transforming the industry.

Pacific Union's third annual Bay Area Real Estate Forecast will inform investors, buyers and sellers of the market through 2019. November 16, 2016, 5 pm at the SFJazz Center in San Francisco, CA.

Ranked as the ninth-largest brokerage in the nation based on 2015 sales volume of $8.2 billion by REALtrends, Pacific Union invests in developing game-changing technologies for residential real estate professionals. The firm's latest innovation is its proprietary Best Buyer Report (BBR), which analyzes a real estate listing's neighborhood location, surrounding community features and amenities, and the home's physical features to instantly create a target buyer demographic profile. By using leading-edge consumer demographic data and strategically matching the BBR results with digital marketing execution, clients and real estate professionals can confidently reach their target buyer pool through curated digital ads specifically designed for each listing to quickly attract the highest-probability buyers.

"The Best Buyer Report takes all of the anecdotal intelligence we have and replaces it with deeper data," Pacific Union CEO Mark A. McLaughlin says. "Clients appreciate being empowered by the data teamed with our deeply experienced professionals."

Pacific Union real estate professionals also leverage the company's award-winning, proprietary Digital Listing Presentation to deliver sales presentations to clients via the iPad or Apple TV. Apps and communications tools Theo and RealScout enable real-time dialogue between Pacific Union professionals and their clients. The Boston Logic-designed Pacific Union dashboard for professionals has a built-in CRM system that enables professionals to easily deliver efficient and effective marketing campaigns.

Pacific Union delivers its housing-market reports via Market Pulse videos and Web-based market data on a quarterly basis, which feature expert commentary from Pacific Union Chief Economist Selma Hepp. The company also enables its real estate professionals to deliver monthly market reports via its corporate blog and email updates.

This fall, Pacific Union will present its third-annual live "Bay Area Real Estate Economic Forecast 2019," which will offer an exclusive, forward-looking take on the region's housing market. The one-hour event will be held on Wednesday, Nov. 16 at 5 p.m. PST at the SFJAZZ Center in San Francisco and will be streamed live in both English and in Mandarin. Pacific Union CEO Mark A. McLaughlin will present the outlook, along with Hepp and noted real estate economists John Burns and Dean Wehrli of Irvine, California-based John Burns Real Estate Consulting.

Pacific Union was one of two Bay Area-based, full-service residential real estate brokerages named to this year's Inc. 5000 list. And like last year, the San Francisco-based firm had the largest revenue of any California firm that Inc. classifies in its real estate category. In June, REAL Trends named 11 Pacific Union real estate professionals among the most productive in the country.

About Pacific Union

Pacific Union is the San Francisco Bay Area's premier luxury real estate brand operating in eight regions. The brokerage offers a full range of personal and commercial real estate services, including buying, selling, and relocation, and enjoys a relationship with Christie's International Real Estate as an exclusive affiliate in in the San Francisco, Marin, Sonoma, Napa, Alameda, and Contra Costa counties in the state of California. Locally owned, Pacific Union operates with an entrepreneurial mindset and unwavering commitment to deliver exceptional service and expertise. For more information, please visit us at www.pacificunion.com.

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SOURCE Pacific Union

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NEW YORK, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Less than two months after Chadbourne & Parke Partner Kerrie Campbell filed a $100 million gender discrimination class action suit on behalf of female partners at the firm, Jaroslawa Z. Johnson, a female former managing partner at Chadbourne's Kiev office, joined the case as a second class representative in the Amended Complaint, filed today in the Southern District of New York.

Ms. Johnson alleges that the firm discriminated against female partners in pay and promotion and retaliated against Ms. Johnson when she complained about these practices.

The Amended Complaint adds six named individual defendants, including Abbe Lowell, Chadbourne's Head of Litigation. The Amended Complaint alleges that Mr. Lowell was videotaped removing and replacing material on Ms. Campbell's office wall after Ms. Campbell sued Chadbourne. Mr. Lowell can be seen placing a card with a cartoon of a fat man in a bowler hat on Ms. Campbell's office wall and stealing a postcard. That postcard, the Amended Complaint alleges, contained a quote by icon for equality Nelson Mandela: "It will forever remain an accusation and a challenge to all men and women of conscience that it took as long as it has before all of us stood up to say: 'enough is enough."

In addition to Abbe Lowell, who is based in the firm's D.C. office, the other individuals now named as defendants are all located in Chadbourne's New York City office and are current or former members of the Firm's Management Committee. Current members are Andrew Giaccia, the Firm's Managing Partner; Lawrence Rosenberg, Howard Seife, and Paul Weber. Marc Alpert is a former member of the Firm's Management Committee.

Jaroslawa Z. Johnson, the second named Plaintiff, is currently CEO of a regional private equity firm. From 2003 to 2013, Ms. Johnson was Managing Partner of Chadbourne's Kiev office. Johnson produced more than $24 million in revenues for Chadbourne during her time at the firm. However, as was true for Kerrie Campbell, the male-centric leadership of Chadbourne & Parke did not recognize these accomplishments. Even though Ms. Johnson ranked ninth in revenue production, Chadbourne ranked her 67th in "points," which meant that she earned much less than male partners who produced a fraction of her business. Additionally, Chadbourne awarded Ms. Johnson low merit bonuses or none at all.

Ms. Johnson did not accept this discriminatory treatment quietly. Each year she complained about the inequality in payment when compared to male partners. The Amended Complaint alleges that Chadbourne retaliated against Plaintiff Johnson by reducing her points. Furthermore, the firm's leadership refused to take Ms. Johnson's additional managerial duties into account in her point allocation.

"Gender discrimination seems to be Chadbourne's modus operandi," stated David Sanford, Chairman of Sanford Heisler and lead counsel for new Plaintiff Jaroslawa Z. Johnson and original Plaintiff Kerrie Campbell. "The pay differential and retaliation that Chadbourne imposed on Ms. Johnson confirms that Ms. Campbell's case is no outlier, but rather reflective of a firm-wide atmosphere that encompasses a range of serious instances of gender discrimination against female partners at Chadbourne."

Mr. Sanford also noted that, "any doubt about Chadbourne's attitude toward its female lawyers is dispelled by the outrageous actions of Defendant Abbe Lowell, head of Chadbourne's Litigation Department." "These actions by Abbe Lowell," said Sanford, "are a clear example of patent disrespect for and retaliation against women who demand equal treatment at Chadbourne."

Both Plaintiffs request a trial by jury.

For more information contact: Jamie Moss, newsPRos, PR Counsel, Sanford Heisler, LLP [email protected]; 201.493.1027

SOURCE Sanford Heisler, LLP
Based in Southfield, Michigan, Kerr oversees a growing business unit comprising more than 450 colleagues and serving the workers' compensation, disability and leave management needs of 22 high-profile customers. She joined the company after college in 1999 as a claims examiner and quickly ascended the ranks due to her penchant for leadership, business savvy and commitment to customer service. Her outstanding track record in operational and program management success earned her a 2014 promotion to become one of Sedgwick's youngest senior VPs.

Kerr also played a pivotal role in establishing the Michigan chapter of Kids' Chance, a non-profit organization that provides educational opportunities for the children of workers seriously injured or killed on the job, and serves on its executive committee.

"Azurely's passion for serving customers, developing people, and giving back is infectious," said David A. North, Sedgwick president and CEO. "She is a natural born leader, and her unique ability to build relationships and get the best out of her colleagues has propelled her career. She is also an innovative self-starter who has played a critical role in developing many of our market-leading customer solutions. Azurely is a terrific example of balancing work and family, growing personally and professionally, leading effective teams, and inspiring others to make a difference."

Kerr and her fellow honorees will be profiled in the December issue of Business Insurance and recognized at the 2016 Women to Watch Conference & Awards Gala Dec. 12-13 in New York City.

About Sedgwick

Sedgwick Claims Management Services, Inc., is a leading global provider of technology-enabled risk and benefits solutions. At Sedgwick, caring countsSM; the company takes care of people and organizations by delivering cost-effective claims, productivity, managed care, risk consulting and other services through the dedication and expertise of more than 14,000 colleagues in some 275 offices located in the U.S., Canada, U.K. and Ireland. Sedgwick facilitates financial and personal health and helps customers and consumers navigate complexity by designing and implementing customized programs based on proven practices and advanced technology that exceed expectations. Sedgwick's majority shareholder is KKR; Stone Point Capital LLC, La Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec (CDPQ) and other management investors are minority shareholders. For more, see www.sedgwick.com.

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SOURCE Sedgwick
WASHINGTON, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) convened researchers, conservationists, academics and government officials from across North America this week for the first full-scale meeting of the SFI Sounding Board to provide guidance for the SFI Conservation Impact Project. This project, launched by SFI in September at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress, is a large-scale effort to quantify conservation benefits of well-managed forests stretching across North America from British Columbia to Florida. Forests certified to the SFI Forest Management Standard cover more than 280 million acres/113 million hectares. Millions more benefit from the SFI Fiber Sourcing Standard.

"There's great value in having this group of experts come together to improve understanding of the crossbenefits of managed forests for water, biodiversity, and climate change mitigation," said Dr. Che Elkin, Associate Professor of Ecosystem Science and Management at the University of Northern British Columbia, and a participant at the sounding board meeting.

The SFI Conservation Impact Project comprises a suite of projects that are conducting simultaneous investigations at a variety of scales. Researchers include grantees and partners of SFI's Conservation and Community Partnership Grants Program, as well as other researchers with compatible interests. The project focuses on developing metrics for climate change mitigation, water quality and biodiversity, to encourage forest health, conservation and sound management, and to facilitate continual improvement.

"SFI brought together a diverse group of practitioners and scientists to discuss ways to quantify conservation benefits and their importance. Our team at Oak Ridge National Laboratory is working to define what sustainability really means in particular contexts. The effects of forest management on water, climate and biodiversity are not always apparent to diverse stakeholders. The activity of the SFI Sounding Board is a useful step towards quantifying the benefits of proactive forest management," said Dr. Virginia Dale of Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Landscape Ecology and Regional Analysis Group.

The sounding board is an informal group of scientists, drawn from academia, public agencies, and the non-profit conservation community, that SFI convened to identify specific ways to clarify the contribution of SFI-certified forestlands to conservation goals that are of broad interest to conservationists and consumers alike. Their input will help ensure credibility and transparency, and provide direct input into project development.

The participants, many of whom are the foremost experts in their field, serve voluntarily, and additional participants will be sought and added to ensure expertise on relevant issues. Thirty-seven people attended. Some of the participating organizations at the conference included: Virginia Tech, Nature Conservancy of Canada, American Forest Foundation, Ducks Unlimited Canada, American Bird Conservancy, Saskatchewan Research Council, American Institute of Biological Sciences, NatureServe, U.S. Forest Service, and Canadian Forest Service.

"Developing robust data regarding conservation attributes and outcomes will help stakeholders and users of sustainably sourced forest products to understand these values, and to promote their management," said Paul Trianosky, Chief Conservation Officer at SFI. "The experts on our sounding board help to ensure that our measures are reliable, and that the results are relevant. The future of our forests depends on this work."

About the Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc. (SFI)

The Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) stands for future forests. SFI is an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting forest sustainability and supporting the links between sustainable forests and communities through grant programs, carefully targeted research, direct leadership of critical initiatives, and partnerships that effectively contribute to multiple conservation objectives. SFI's Forest Management, Fiber Sourcing and Chain of Custody Standards work to ensure the health and future of forests. Through application of these certification standards, SFI's on-product labels help consumers make responsible purchasing decisions. SFI Inc. is governed by an independent, three-chamber board of directors representing environmental, social and economic sectors equally. Learn more at sfiprogram.org.

SOURCE Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc.

Related Links

http://www.sfiprogram.org


ATLANTA, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- A new white paper, "Myth Busting Millennials and Home Buying Attitudes," issued by national homebuilder PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE: PHM), provides insights into the views and behaviors toward housing of the next wave of homebuyers  the millennials.

"At 30-plus years of age, the leading-edge of the millennial demographic is prime for homeownership, making them the next major wave of potential homebuyers," says Jay Mason, vice president of market intelligence for PulteGroup. "From the type of homes we design, to the location of our communities, to the home and neighborhood features we offer, understanding millennials' views on housing is critical to successfully serving the more than 75 million individuals who comprise this country's biggest demographic.

"Contrary to much of what has been written, older millennials' views on homeownerships and their purchasing intentions are similar to previous generations. In fact, in many ways they are acting a lot like their parents, but they are just doing it a bit later in life."

PulteGroup's research project set out to examine older millennials who are more affluent and better educated than the general population. To best understand their views and attitudes regarding homeownership, as well as the propensity to buy, PulteGroup's research was focused on answering four key questions:

Are the millennials rejecting homeownership? When, why and how will they purchase homes? What are their thoughts about homeownership versus renting? Are millennials abandoning the suburbs?

In conjunction with prior work, PulteGroup is using the research findings as a foundation for developing community concepts and house designs that can meet the needs of millennials as they enter the homebuying market throughout the next decade.

"Consistent with the research findings, the Company outlined a number of opportunities to capture the millennial homebuyer, including adding urban styling to its suburban offerings, identifying closer-in land positions, and building in urban infill locations," said Mason.

The white paper highlights several actively selling and to-be-open communities as examples of how PulteGroup is meeting the housing needs of the millennial homebuyer.

Download a complimentary copy of the white paper at http://bit.ly/PulteGroupMillennials.

About PulteGroup, Inc.

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE: PHM), based in Atlanta, Georgia, is one of America's largest homebuilding companies with operations in approximately 50 markets throughout the country. Through its brand portfolio that includes Centex, Pulte Homes, Del Webb, DiVosta Homes and John Wieland Homes and Neighborhoods, the company is one of the industry's most versatile homebuilders able to meet the needs of multiple buyer groups and respond to changing consumer demand. PulteGroup conducts extensive research to provide homebuyers with innovative solutions and consumer inspired homes and communities to make lives better.

For more information about PulteGroup, Inc. and PulteGroup brands, go to pultegroupinc.com; www.pulte.com; www.centex.com; www.delwebb.com; www.divosta.com and www.jwhomes.com. Follow PulteGroup, Inc. on Twitter: @PulteGroupNews.

SOURCE PulteGroup, Inc.

Related Links

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AM Stock-Cameo has thrived thanks to its relationships with Hollywood studios. Over nearly three decades, AM Stock-Cameo has delivered the second-unit needs of Hollywood producers to offer high-quality and relevant stock footage that has aired on some of television's most popular programs.

"We're excited to work with AM Stock-Cameo," said Francois Arbour, Shutterstock's VP, Product, Video and Music. "Over recent years, we've seen an increased interest from the Hollywood community to license Shutterstock imagery and music, and this relationship helps us provide those clips to our customers. It's truly a one-of-a-kind library we can now make available royalty-free."

Amid the recent television boom, the demand for both authentic and contemporary footage has only ballooned. Such a vast and prominent collection of high-demand footage is hard to come by.

"I've spent my career building a collection I'm extremely proud of," said AM Stock-Cameo's Founder Chris Angelich. "Working with Shutterstock gives me the opportunity to have my clips reach a much wider audience than ever before thanks to global distribution."

Small businesses like AM Stock-Cameo cater specifically to directors to fill in second-unit shots that convey certain aesthetics and styles. Now, for the first time, filmmakers around the world will be able to match Hollywood's best in their own productions.

About Shutterstock, Inc.

Shutterstock, Inc. (NYSE: SSTK), is a leading global provider of high-quality licensed photographs, vectors, illustrations, videos and music to businesses, marketing agencies and media organizations around the world. Working with its growing community of over 140,000 contributors, Shutterstock adds hundreds of thousands of images each week, and currently has nearly 100 million images and 5 million video clips available.

Headquartered in New York City, with offices in Amsterdam, Berlin, Chicago, Denver, London, Los Angeles, Montreal, Paris, San Francisco and Silicon Valley, Shutterstock has customers in more than 150 countries. The company also owns Bigstock, a value-oriented stock media provider; Offset, a high-end image collection; PremiumBeat, a curated royalty-free music library; Rex Features, a premier source of editorial images for the world's media; and WebDAM, a cloud-based digital asset management service for businesses.

For more information, please visit www.shutterstock.com and follow Shutterstock on Twitter and on Facebook.

Safe Harbor Provision

Statements in this press release regarding management's future expectations, predictions, beliefs, goals, intentions, plans, prospects or strategies, including statements regarding the future availability of the collection to all Shutterstock customers, may constitute forward looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other federal securities laws. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors including risks related to any unforeseen changes to or the effects on liabilities, financial condition, future capital expenditures, revenue, expenses, net income or loss, synergies and future prospects; our inability to continue to attract and retain customers and contributors to our online marketplace for commercial digital imagery and music; a decrease in repeat customer purchases or in content contributed to our online marketplace; our inability to successfully operate in a new and rapidly changing market and to evaluate our future prospects; competitive factors; assertions by third parties of infringement or other violations of intellectual property rights by Shutterstock; our inability to increase market awareness of Shutterstock and our services; our inability to effectively manage our growth: failure to respond to technological changes or upgrade Shutterstock's website and technology systems; Shutterstock's inability to increase the percentage of its revenues that come from larger companies; our inability to continue expansion into international markets and the additional risks associated with operating internationally, including fluctuations in currency exchange rates; general economic conditions worldwide; our ability to successfully integrate acquisitions and the associated technology and achieve operational efficiencies; and other factors and risks discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, as well as in other documents that may be filed by Shutterstock from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. As a result of such risks, uncertainties and factors, Shutterstock's actual results may differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements discussed in or implied by the forward-looking statements contained herein. Shutterstock is providing the information in this press release as of this date and assumes no obligation to update the information included in this press release or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

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SOURCE Shutterstock, Inc.

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LOS ANGELES, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Sovereign Health, a leading national provider of behavioral health treatment services, has announced it will host a new job fair in Arleta, California, near Sovereign Health of Los Angeles' facility. The event will be held on Thursday, Nov. 3, 2016, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at 9120 Woodman Avenue, Arleta, California 91331. The job fair is open to the public. For questions, please contact Pat Prakhin at 949-207-1580, ext. 1757, or via email. Parking is free.

During the job fair, applicants will have the opportunity to meet with the hiring managers of Sovereign Health of Los Angeles' clinical, operations and administration teams. Positions include: operations managers, house managers, drivers, maintenance technicians, kitchen managers, kitchen staff, administrative assistants and receptionists.

Sovereign Health currently operates nine treatment facilities in five states: California, Arizona, Florida, Texas and Utah. Each facility is fully licensed in accordance with the regulations of the state where the facility is located. Sovereign Health's facilities have been awarded Gold Seal accreditation by The Joint Commission, the highest level of accreditation available in the behavioral health field.

In addition, for the third consecutive year, Sovereign Health has earned a spot on the Inc. 5000, Inc. Magazine's list of America's fastest-growing private companies. Sovereign is ranked at #535 on the 2016 list, placing the company in the top 11 percent of all companies on the list with a three-year sales growth rate of 721 percent.

About Sovereign Health

Sovereign Health's mission is to provide a broad spectrum of high-quality behavioral health treatment services for adults and adolescents, including support services for family members. Sovereign's treatment facilities are licensed to provide both addiction/dual diagnosis treatment and mental health treatment, such as trauma, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Sovereign also offers treatment for patients who have chronic pain, eating disorders and cognitive deficits. One factor that differentiates Sovereign from other treatment providers has been the company's ability to offer separate mental health and addiction or dual diagnosis treatment programs at its facilities. For more information, visit www.sovhealth.com.

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SOURCE Sovereign Health

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PHOENIX, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- SYNLawn Arizona, the exclusive distributor of SYNLawn artificial grass products in Arizona, is celebrating its re-grandopening at its new Phoenix facility on November 11 and 12.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433533

The free festivities kick off at the company's new 20,000-square-foot facility located at 1800 S. 7th Ave., Ste. 108, Phoenix, AZ 85007. The grand opening starts on Friday, November 11, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and continues on Saturday, November 12, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Locals will enjoy food, giveaways, a raffle for a GreenMaker putting green and a putting contest to win a portable putting green. They can also register for a $2,000 gift certificate to be drawn at the close of the event; the winner does not need to be present to win. A 10 percent discount will be offered to those making a purchase or an appointment for a measurement during the grand opening.

"We feel that our new location is an excellent choice to help us better serve Phoenix valley customers," said Sina Ehteshami, sales manager at SYNLawn Arizona. The company opened its first showroom in Scottsdale in January of 2004 and its first distribution center in Phoenix later that year. "All of our products are made in the USA, and we have thousands of feet of stock and specials running monthly," said Ehteshami. Locals visiting the new showroom will be able to touch and feel samples of the offered artificial grass products and view installed product displays both inside and out. Prices for product start as low as $1.50 per square foot, and complete installations start as low as $3.99 per square foot.

SYNLawn of Arizona has extensive commercial experience doing installations for clients, such as Grand Canyon University, JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort & Spa, the Arizona Country Club, Mesa Public Schools, Liv North Scottsdale and Renaissance Retirement Community.

About SYNLawn Arizona

SYNLawn Arizona is the exclusive distributor of SYNLawn artificial grass products. Since 2003, the company has been providing product and installation services for homes and businesses across Arizona and the Phoenix metropolitan area. SYNLawn Arizona offers landscaping, putting greens, pet turf, playgrounds and commercial applications. For more information about SYNLawn Arizona, visit www.synlawnarizona.com, or call 623.584.1456.

If you would like more information about this event, please contact Lisa Mattson at 623.584.1456, or 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 SYNLawn Arizona

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MIAMI BEACH, Fla., Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Terranova Corp announces its ongoing commitment to Moving Day, National Parkinson Foundation's annual fundraising event to be held on November 13th at Museum Park, as the walk's Presenting Sponsor.

"Our commitment to fight this disease is personal to us, which is why we have decided to support the walk once again by becoming the Presenting Sponsor for the 3rd year in a row," says Stephen Bittel, Chairman of Terranova Corp.

To date Team Terranova has contributed over $550,000 in their 3 years of participation to the walk and has become an inspiration to other teams across the nation. And with 20 days to go until Moving Day Miami, Team Terranova is projected to surpass its fundraising goal of $50,000.

With an outpouring of support, Terranova is making a HUGE impact in the lives of people living with Parkinson's disease. Dedicated to improving the quality of care for people with Parkinson's, Team Terranova is committed to the National Parkinson's Foundation and will continue to surpass any milestones in its path.

To learn more about Moving Day Miami and how you, your family and friends, and/or your company can get involved, please visit www.MovingDayMiami.org.

Terranova Corporation, South Florida's leading commercial real estate advisory firm, currently is involved with commercial real estate assets for its clients and its own portfolio valued at over $1 billion. Terranova offers complete commercial real estate services, including asset and property management, leasing, tenant representation, acquisitions, dispositions, financing, construction management and development.

FOR INFORMATION CONTACT:

Karen Maerovitz

305-779-8907

[email protected]

SOURCE Terranova Corp

Related Links

http://terranovacorp.com


NEW YORK, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Prix Galien USA committee last night honored excellence in the research, development and innovation in the biopharmaceutical and medical industry at its tenth annual Prix Galien Awards Gala, held at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. The Galien awards committee recognized leading efforts in progressing the welfare of humankind in three categoriesbest pharmaceutical product, best biotechnology product and best medical technology. In a first, the committee extended its recognition to a new awards category - The Discovery of the Decade - with nominees in each of the three categories drawn from the 35 distinguished previous winners of the USA awards since the Prix Galien ceremony debuted ten years ago, in 2007.

The Prix Galien Awards selection committee is comprised of an unrivaled network of accomplished scientific leaders that includes four Nobel Laureates.

The 2016 Prix Galien USA Awards

In recognition of the development and discovery products that improve the human condition, the selection committee awarded:

Pfizer Inc. for Ibrance In the category of Best Pharmaceutical Product.

Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation for Cosentyx in the category of Best Medical Biotechnology Product.

Exact Sciences Corporation for Cologuard in the category of Best Medical Technology Product.

As a highlight of the evening's proceedings, the Awards Committee presented the

The Discovery of the Decade Awards

The Awards were bestowed on Honors for the Discovery of the Decade to:

Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation for Gleevec in the category of Best Pharmaceutical Product.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company for Yervoy in the category of Best Biotechnology Product.

Edwards Lifesciences Corporation for Sapien in the category of Best Medical Technology Product.

"Strides in biomedical research cannot advance without professionals in the medical field who are constantly innovating and dedicating their lives to improving the welfare of patients everywhere," said Pr. P. Roy Vagelos, Chairman of the Prix Galien USA Committee. "This year's nominees are leaders in the development of disease-altering advancements through biopharmaceutical and medical innovation. " The selection of Ms. Apsell for the Prix Galien Humanitarian award demonstrates our member's commitment to ensuring that these breakthrough innovations are both widely known and taken up convincingly in the real world clinical setting, where the patient is the ultimate beneficiary,. "Vagelos said.

In Introduction of the Ceremony, the 2016 Pro Bono Humanum Award, which recognizes exemplary and innovative efforts in improving the human condition. This year's recipient is Paula Apsell, an acknowledged leader in science journalism and Senior Executive Producer of the award-winning PBS television program NOVA.

The Galien Awards Committee selected Ms. Apsell in recognition of her early and continuing leadership in making the complexities of science, engineering and medical research accessible to a mass audience. In its citation for the award, the Committee said " through innovative broadcast and digital programming of the highest journalistic standard, her work has educated, entertained and enlightened successive generations of viewers on the mysteries that underlie our understanding of the natural world. And by turning great science into a good storya human story Ms. Apsell shows that scientific literacy is an essential line of defense against the destructive forces of fear, ignorance and blight."

About the Galien Foundation

The Galien Foundation fosters, recognizes and rewards excellence in scientific innovation to improve the state of human health. Our vision is to be the catalyst for the development of the next generation of innovative treatment and technologies that will impact human health and save lives.

The Foundation oversees and directs activities in the USA for the Prix Galien, an international award that recognizes outstanding achievements in improving the human condition through the development of innovative therapies. The Prix Galien was created in France in 1970 in honor of Galen, the father of medical science and modern pharmacology. Worldwide, the Prix Galien is regarded as the equivalent of the Nobel Prize in biopharmaceutical and medical technology research.

For more information visit www.galienfoundation.org.

Galien Foundation Media Contact:

Lee Davies/Biopharmaceutical categories -

Makovsky

[email protected]

212-508-9651

Giana Gregga/Medical Technology category

Finn Partners

[email protected]

312-329-3910

SOURCE The Galien Foundation

Related Links

http://www.galienfoundation.org


The first implantation of the Venibri Valve in a patient was performed by Prof. Mao Chen, Prof. Yuan Feng from the West China Hospital, Sichuan University, China and Dr. Jorge Baccaro from Institute of Cardiology of Corrientes in Argentina on October 26. The 82-year-old female patient suffered from severe aortic stenosis. Upon confirming the appropriate valve size for the patient, a 29mm Venibri Valve system incorporating the pre-crimped, pre-loaded, pre-packaged "dry" heart valve was removed from the package and the guidewire lumen and flush port were injected with saline to purge the system of air. The Venibri Valve delivery system was then inserted into the femoral artery over the guidewire. The valve insertion, advancement, and deployment was smooth and stable. Upon 2/3 deployment, blood pressure recovered to a normal range indicating the leaflets were immediately functioning. The post deployment angiogram demonstrated the Venibri heart valve leaflets functioned immediately. Total time from opening the ready-for-use Venibri THV system to valve deployment was approximately 15 minutes. With success of the first valve, on October 27, a 26mm Venibri Valve was implanted in another patient, an 81-year-old female patient with severe aortic stenosis. Total implantation from opening the package took approximately 16 minutes.

The operators were quite impressed with the clinical performance of the Venibri Valve. Prof. Chen commented, "The Venibri THV system is very easy to use and helpful in saving precious time for patients. It provides the opportunity to treat emergent, severe and critical aortic stenosis patients easily and effectively."

Prof. Horst Sievert, director of the CardioVascular Center Frankfurt, highly praised the technology, "Dry tissue technology has become another important milestone since the first ever TAVR case in 2002. These advantages of the Venibri THV system turned a complex TAVR procedure into a relatively easy one, like a PCI procedure. I believe physicians and patients will broadly benefit from this new technology."

"The advancement of the Venibri THV system is further validation for the Colibri "dry" tissue technology and compliments the previous FIH experience demonstrated with the Colibri pre-packaged, ready-for-use, balloon expandable THV system," stated Dr. R. David Fish one of the co-founders of Colibri Heart Valve. Dr. David Paniagua, co-founder of Colibri Heart Valve also stated, "This successful first-in-human implantation of the Venibri THV system is a significant milestone demonstrating the value of the Colibri "dry" tissue technology and will be a meaningful advancement for the treatment of severe aortic valve stenosis."

"The JVE will offer both a self-expanding and balloon-expandable pre-packaged, ready-for-use, THV system to address the large and growing aortic stenosis in the Chinese and emerging Asian markets." Stated Eric Zi, president and CEO of Venus Medtech Hangzhou. "The convenience and benefits offered by the Venibri Valve will allow the JVE to successfully penetrate the significant aortic stenosis market in China and emerging Asian markets."

The JVE, through the combination of the Colibri Heart Valve and Venus Medtech technologies, will develop and commercialize both self-expanding and balloon-expandable pre-packaged, ready-for-use transcatheter heart valve (THV) systems in China and emerging Asian markets. Colibri Heart Valve will have the rights to the JVE products for the North American, European, Japanese, Australian, and New Zealand markets.

"The recent successful first-in-human implantation of the Venibri Valve system is a testament to the technology benefits formed by the combination of the Colibri and Venus technologies," stated Joseph B. Horn, president and CEO of Colibri Heart Valve. "We look forward to further clinical and commercial advancement of the Colibri and Venus Medtech technologies through the JVE to provide a breakthrough in advancement of patient treatment of severe aortic stenosis."

For more information, please visit www.colibrihv.com and http://en.venusmedtech.com.

Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161027/433638

SOURCE Venus Medtech (Hangzhou) Inc.
"Many drivers say they choose Uber because they want to be their own boss and get work at the touch of a button. It's work that fits around your life, and not the other way around. We couldn't be more excited to work with innovative companies like Jobcase to help drivers get to where they want to go in work and in life," said Chris Saad, Head of Product for the Developer Platform at Uber.

Jobcase will provide Uber driver-partners a platform enabling drivers to show their ratings directly on their Jobcase profiles - a highlight to their commitment to excellence as they seek new job opportunities.

"Providing drivers the opportunity to highlight their ratings on their Jobcase profile will help them stand out to prospective employers and achieve their professional goals," said Fred Goff, CEO of Jobcase. "We're also excited to announce that we are integrating the Jobcase Common App via Uber API's in order to streamline the signup process for prospective drivers. This benefits Jobcasers everywhere who wish to supplement their income or improve their work experience by becoming an Uber driver-partner."

"We're committed to making the Uber experience more rewarding for everyone who drives with Uber, and our API integration with Jobcase will help us deliver on what matters most to them," continued Saad.

Both companies are committed to empowering people to make the most of their work lives on their own terms. Added Goff, "This integration is just the beginning of greater opportunity for millions of people in this country in 2016 and globally going forward."

To learn more about Jobcase services for Uber Driver-partners, visit https://developer.uber.com/showcase and https://www.jobcase.com/uber.

For more information about Jobcase, please visit www.jobcase.com.

About Jobcase

One of the Boston area's fastest growing technology companies, Jobcase is the only social media site dedicated to empowering America's workforce. Jobcase provides one place to manage all things job-related, especially access to the knowledge, connections and wisdom of 60 million other Jobcasers. Jobcase is an industry affiliated partner of MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, CSAIL, and Jobcase technology powers over 100 job sites in the Jobcase Network, connecting more than 60 million workers and employers. For more information on Jobcase, visitwww.jobcase.com.

About Uber

Uber's mission is to make transportation as reliable as running watereverywhere, for everyone. We started in 2010 to solve a simple problem: how do you get a ride at the touch of a button? Six years and over a billion trips later, we've started tackling an even greater challenge: reducing congestion and pollution in our cities by getting more people into fewer cars.

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SOURCE Jobcase

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According to TechSci Research report, "US Water Soluble Polymers Market By Type, By End Use Application, Competition Forecast & Opportunities, 2011-2025, water soluble polymers market is forecast to cross US$11billion mark by 2025. Continuously growing pharmaceutical industry, increasing demand for water soluble polymers in oil and gas extraction activities, food & beverages, personal care and cosmetics sector are expected to boost the demand for water soluble polymers in the United States. This growth in the water soluble polymers market can be attributed to strong emphasis on increasing need for wastewater treatment activities and wide use of major types of these polymers in pulp and paper making industries. Strict environment regulations and various applications in number of end use industries are expected to escalate the demand for water soluble polymers in the United States through 2025. The major producers of the different types of water soluble polymers in the United States includes Ashland Inc., SNF Holding Co., Kemira Chemicals, Inc. and E.I. Du Pont De Nemours & Co.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140117/663730 )



Browse 11 market data Tables and 59 Figures spread through 124 Pages and an in-depth TOC on

"US Water Soluble Polymers Market"

https://www.techsciresearch.com/report/us-water-soluble-polymers-market-by-type-polyacrylamide-guar-gum-polyvinyl-alcohol-etc-by-end-use-industry-water-treatment-food-processing-enhanced-oil-recovery-etc-by-region-competition-forecast-opportunities-2011-2025/784.html

Polyacrylamides hold the largest share of application in water soluble polymers market and is expected to continue holding the largest share in the market during the forecast period, 2016-2025 on account of continuously growing need for wastewater treatment in the region. United States municipal wastewater treatment market stood at US$7.11 billion in 2013, and valued at around US$7.93 billion in 2015, exhibiting growth at a CAGR of 5.61% during 2013-2015. Moreover, increase in the applications of guar gum and its derivatives in the oil & gas industry and further use as natural additives in the food industry are expected to grow on account of boom in shale gas extraction in the region and continuous growth in food & beverages sector. Moreover, cellulose ether applications are expected to experience progress majorly because of growth in the country's pharmaceutical sector and increasing use of cosmetics and personal care products. United States pharmaceutical market, which stood at US$380 billion in 2015 is projected to grow at a CAGR of 5.60% over the next six years to reach US$527 billion by 2021.

Download Sample Report

@ https://www.techsciresearch.com/sample-report.aspx?cid=784

Customers can also request for 10% free customization on this report.

"US water soluble polymers market is dominated by South East region due to increase in the number of industrial and municipal wastewater treatment plants, and continuous growth in the region's shale gas recovery with demand propelling from currently existing petrochemical industries in the region. However, over the forecast period, South West region is projected to exhibit the fastest growth in the United States water soluble polymers market. Recent advances in the shale gas evolution are promoting drilling activities in the region, which would result in augmented demand for water soluble polymers like polyacrylamides and guar gum across the region." said Mr. Karan Chechi, Research Director with TechSci Research, a research based global management consulting firm.

"US Water Soluble Polymers Market By Type, By End Use Application, Competition Forecast & Opportunities, 2011-2025" has evaluated the future growth potential of US water soluble polymers market and provides statistics and information on market size, structure and future market growth. The report intends to provide cutting-edge market intelligence and help decision makers take sound investment evaluation. Besides, the report also identifies and analyses the emerging trends along with essential drivers, challenges and opportunities in US water soluble polymers market.

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About TechSci Research

TechSci Research is a leading global market research firm publishing premium market research reports. Serving 700 global clients with more than 600 premium market research studies, TechSci Research is serving clients across 11 different industrial verticals. TechSci Research specializes in research based consulting assignments in high growth and emerging markets, leading technologies and niche applications. Our workforce of more than 100 fulltime Analysts and Consultants employing innovative research solutions and tracking global and country specific high growth markets helps TechSci clients to lead rather than follow market trends.

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SOURCE TechSci Research
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Valpak, a leader in local print and digital coupons, announced today it is looking to further grow its brand in the Narragansett Bay area, which includes Providence, Warwick and Cranston. The company currently mails to as many as 140,000 homes in the Ocean State, but is looking to expand its reach to 230,000 homes that will receive its signature Blue Envelope.

The U.S. Census Bureau lists Providence as the state's most populous city, making the location a target expansion market for Valpak. Growth rate data from the American Community Survey also indicates that within the past five years, Providence, Warwick and Cranston have all emerged as the Ocean States' top 10 fastest growing cities  with Providence and Cranston leading the list as the top two cities. Additionally, the Providence-Warwick Metropolitan area continues to earn national recognition, such as a Forbes.com ranking for Best Places for Business and Careers and Cost of Doing Business.

"The Providence metropolitan area offers entrepreneurs an opportunity to capitalize on the local economic growth," said Shak Turner, Valpak's director of franchise sales. "It's exciting to know that Valpak, as a leading direct marketing company, can assist local businesses in their own economic growth by offering services through our popular mailer, along with our vast suite of digital advertising tools."

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 valpak.com, Smartphone apps, Google partnerships, website development, mobile web optimization and reputation management.

With more than 25 million Americans using couponing apps each month, Valpak's digital offerings have been a big draw for new franchisees. Digital coupon use is on the rise, and ample gains are projected in 2016. 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 Shak Turner at [email protected] or 727-399-3091 or visit www.valpakfranchising.com.

About Valpak

Based in St. Petersburg, FL, Valpak is one of the leading direct marketing companies in the U.S. and Canada. We provide print and digital advertising through a network of 160 local franchises. From mailbox to mobile phone, Valpak brings exciting local business offers and opportunities to millions of consumers. Each month, our well-known Blue Envelope of savings is mailed to about 39 million demographically targeted households in 45 states and in four Canadian provinces. Our digital suite of products, including valpak.com, reaches more than 110 million users. Founded in 1968, Valpak is owned by Cox Target Media, a subsidiary of Cox Media Group in Atlanta.

CONTACT: Samantha Rego

Valpak

727-399-3139

[email protected]

Alexya Williams

Fish Consulting

954-893-9150

[email protected]

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150212/175295LOGO

SOURCE Valpak

Related Links

https://www.valpak.com


PHOENIX, Oct 3, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Viad Corp (NYSE:VVI), announced today that it will host a teleconference with investors and analysts to review 2016 third quarter results on Thursday, October 27, 2016, at 5:00 p.m. (Eastern time). Viad will issue a press release outlining its financial results and forecast on that date and will also post it on Viad's Web site at www.viad.com prior to the call.

Steve Moster, Viad's president and chief executive officer, and Ellen Ingersoll, Viad's chief financial officer, will comment on the company's results and respond to participants' questions.

To join the live teleconference dial toll-free (888) 810-6751 passcode "Viad" or access the webcast through Viad's Web site. A replay will be available for a limited time at (800) 871-1323 or (203) 369-3841 (a passcode is not required) or visit the Web site and link to a replay of the webcast.

Viad (NYSE: VVI) generates revenue and shareholder value through two distinct business groups: the Marketing & Events Group (GES) and the Travel & Recreation Group (T&R). GES is a global, full-service live events company offering a comprehensive range of services to the world's leading brands and event organizers. T&R is a collection of iconic destination travel experiences that showcase the best of Banff, Jasper, Glacier, Denali and Kenai Fjords National Parks. Viad is an S&P SmallCap 600 company. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.viad.com.

Sajid Daudi

Investor Relations

(602) 207-2681

[email protected]

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20111011/LA84399LOGO

SOURCE Viad Corp

Related Links

http://www.viad.com


CHICAGO, Oct. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Today VTech announced its Ring & Learn Cash Register received an esteemed Platinum Award from the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio. The interactive cash register, which comes with a shopping basket and play food to encourage little ones with role-play fun, was recognized as one of the most innovative and engaging products of the year.

"We are very excited that our Ring & Learn Cash Register has been acknowledged by the respected Oppenheim Toy Portfolio," said William To, President, VTech Electronics North America. "This product is a wonderful example of how we develop engaging toys that enrich children's development through play and discovery, and it's an honor to see our efforts recognized with a Platinum Award."

Little shoppers will love filling their basket with healthy play food and pretending to buy it with this interactive Ring & Learn Cash Register. They can weigh the food, ring up the order and use the credit card to pay for the groceries. Each interaction is rewarded with a variety of playful phrases, fun sounds, songs and music. Children can press the light-up number buttons to introduce numbers, colors, food and hear healthy-eating phrases. For even more role-play fun, they can press the "open" button to pop open the cash register drawer.

"Our toddler testers loved the Ring & Learn Cash Register and the shopping basket of play food that comes with it," said Stephanie Oppenheim, publisher of the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio. "It's a great, age-appropriate prop for role-playing that helps children explore concepts of cause and effect as they press buttons and are rewarded with fun lights and sounds."

The Ring & Learn Cash Register is designed for ages 12-36 months and retails for $24.99. Additional information can be found at www.vtechkids.com/learning.

About VTech

VTech is a world leader in age-appropriate and developmental stage-based electronic learning products for children. As a pioneer in the learning toy category, VTech develops high-quality, innovative educational products that enrich children's development and make learning fun. With a rich, almost 40 year history, VTech has not only established itself as a learning authority but also consistently remains at the forefront of innovation with multiple award-winning products. The company also has a broad range of award-winning infant and preschool products available in 24 different languages worldwide, with more than 100 new products introduced every year. VTech was awarded a prestigious 2015 Toy of The Year (TOTY) Award for its Go! Go! Smart Animals Zoo Explorers Playset. In order to further strengthen VTech's position as a learning authority, the company's Expert Panel, with esteemed experts in reading, language arts, science, math, and child development, consult on new product introductions.

VTech Electronics North America, LLC is based in Arlington Heights, Illinois. VTech Electronics Limited is headquartered in Hong Kong with distribution globally.

For more information on VTech's additional product lines, visit www.VTechKids.com, www.facebook.com/VTechtoys on Facebook or follow @VTechToys on Twitter.

About the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio

Founded in 1989 by child development and toy experts, Joanne Oppenheim and her daughter Stephanie Oppenheim. The independent organization does not accept entry fees for reviewing products. Their awards are the benchmark of excellence with consumers, media and the toy industry. The Oppenheims are Contributors to NBC's TODAY Show. For more information, visit toyportfolio.com.

Media Contact:

Nicole Centinaro

Coyne Public Relations

973-588-2000

[email protected]

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SOURCE VTech

Related Links

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COLUMBUS, Ohio, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- White Castle, America's first fast-food hamburger chain, announced today it is now carrying Monster Energy Drink in all White Castle locations. The announcement is just in time for Halloween and will help Cravers everywhere fuel those late nights and early mornings.

"At White Castle, we believe that no two cravings are alike. We offer the most exciting Anything, Anytime menu so that our customers can decide what satisfies their craves and when. Today, our menu just got even better," said Jamie Richardson, vice president of White Castle. "Our relationship with Monster Energy Drink is an extension of our customer-first philosophy and allows White Castle to provide another refreshing and energizing beverage option to our customers."

White Castle is one of the first restaurant chains to offer Monster Energy Drink, system wide. Monster Energy is the number one selling energy drink in the United States in all measured channels.

"Many of our customers come to us late night and early morning  whether it's to spend time with friends after a night out, help break up a long road trip or get an early start to a fun-filled day ahead," said Richardson. "Monster Energy Drink will keep our customers energized and ready to take on whatever comes their way."

For more information, visit www.whitecastle.com.

About White Castle

White Castle, America's first fast-food hamburger chain based in Columbus, Ohio, is celebrating 95 years as a family-owned business. The company was founded in Wichita, Kansas, in 1921 serving The Original Slider which was named the most influential burger of all time in 2014 by Time. All White Castle Sliders are made from 100 percent USDA inspected beef. Today White Castle owns and operates nearly 400 restaurants in 13 states and has two dedicated Crave Mobiles that attended hundreds of events in 2015. White Castle's commitment to maintaining the highest quality products extends to the company owning and operating its own meat processing plants and bakeries as well as three frozen food processing plants. The retail division markets White Castle signature products in grocery, warehouse and convenience stores across the United States and in a growing number of international locations, including military base exchanges around the world.

WhiteCastle.com is a culture center for Cravers, the chain's loyal and passionate fan base, connecting like-minded Slider enthusiasts from around the globe in a social media setting. For more information on White Castle and to see the Craver Hall of Fame, visit whitecastle.com.

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CAPA Centre for Aviation recognizes YVR as the global leader

RICHMOND, BC, Oct. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ - Today, Vancouver International Airport (YVR) received CAPA Centre for Aviation's prestigious Airport of the Year Award at the Aviation Awards for Excellence, hosted in Amsterdam. This award is given to the airport that has been a strategic leader and has done the most to advance the progress of the aviation industry globally.

"This is an incredible achievement and is a testament to YVR's success and our growing influence on the world stage," said Craig Richmond, YVR's President and CEO. "We have achieved this milestone thanks to our focus on safety, teamwork, accountability and innovationand our community based, not-for-profit governance model, under which we constantly improve the airport for our passengers, our partners and our communities."

"YVR being recognized as global airport of the year shows the strength of the Canadian airport system, which enables innovation and the pursuit of excellence in sustainability, governance and overall airport operations," said Mary Jordan, Chair of YVR's Board of Directors. "I'm so proud of the team that achieved this honour."

CAPA Centre for Aviation is the leading provider of independent aviation market intelligence, analysis and data services. Candidates for the Aviation Awards for Excellence are shortlisted by the CAPA team of analysts and aviation partners, and then reviewed by an esteemed panel of judges. The Airport of the Year award has previously been conferred upon major global hubs with a strong international reputation of excellence, including Singapore Changi Airport, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol and Beijing Capital International Airport. YVR is the first airport in North America to receive this prestigious award.

YVR has been recognized for a range of initiatives that reflect the organization's leadership in innovative business strategies, sustainability and marketing. These initiatives range from terminal improvements that reduced YVR's greenhouse gas emissions to government relations efforts that opened new markets and a competitive new rates and charges program. YVR's creative business model is designed to increase non-aeronautical revenue and drive innovation, as seen with our award-winning BORDERXPRESS kiosks and the McArthurGlen Designer Outlet Centre. YVR has also been an incubator for successful businesses that have become global leaders, including Vantage Airport Group (currently transforming LaGuardia Airport in New York) and InterVISTAS, a global consulting company with extensive expertise in aviation, transportation and tourism.

Most importantly, YVR has continued to focus on delivering remarkable customer experiences, resulting in a 91 per cent customer satisfaction ratingfor three years in a row.

YVR has seen strong passenger and airline growth in 2016. Over the past year, YVR has welcomed 18 new services, 11 new destinations and 2 new airlines including Xiamen Airlines and Beijing Capital Airlines. Air Canada has continued to build its Transpacific Hub at YVR with exciting new services to Brisbane, Delhi, Osaka, San Jose and Chicago. The airport welcomed a record 20.3 million passengers in 2015 and expects to surpass 22 million by year-end.

- YVR -

ABOUT VANCOUVER AIRPORT AUTHORITY

Vancouver Airport Authority is a community-based, not-for-profit organization that manages Vancouver International Airport (YVR). Canada's second busiest airport, YVR served 20.3 million passengers in 2015. Fifty-five airlines serve YVR, connecting people and businesses to more than 120 non-stop destinations worldwide. YVR was voted Best Airport in North America for the seventh consecutive year in the 2016 Skytrax World Airport Awards. Vancouver Airport Authority is a dedicated community partner and in 2015 donated more than $900,000 to local organizations. We are committed to creating an airport that British Columbia can be proud of: a premier global gateway, local economic generator and community contributor. For more information, please visit www.yvr.ca.

SOURCE Vancouver Airport Authority
After Three Years of Extreme Vetting, I Nearly Gave Up on My American Dream

We are now ten days into the Iraqiled, U.S.backed fight to retake Mosul, ISISs remaining stronghold in Iraq. Assuming a victory, will it look much different than a defeat?

The most consequential aftermath is the political, diplomatic, and battlefield mess Turkish President Recip Tayyip Erdogan is determined to make of Mosul in the name of self-interest across the region.

Related: Has the US Backed an Incompetent Commander in Iraq?

Reports from the front lines are positive, by and large. Iraqi units are advancing on the nations second-largest city from several directions. Two Iraqi generals estimated Thursday that 800900 Islamic State fighters have already been killed. Based on the Pentagons earlier estimates, thats up to a third of ISIS forces inside the city.

However, the same commanders also warned that winning back Mosul could take weeks or months of heavy fighting.

That is grave news for the Obama administration for one simple reason. Anything other than a short, sharp victory will leave the White House at least partly responsible for the same kind of destruction, violence, and loss of life that the SyrianRussian campaign wreaks daily in East Aleppo.

In such a case, it will be hard to resist comparisons between Aleppo and Mosul despite incessant criticism, including charges of war crimes, against Syrian forces and the Russian bombers supporting it.

Related: Factbox: Once-Tolerant Mosul Site of Iraq Push Against Islamic State

The bitter lesson Obamas policy planners should not have had to learn is this: Whether Americans or Iraqis are leading the fight, any battle for a city of a million or more is fated to be protracted, and whats left afterward will inevitably reflect tragic human and material losses.

So much for the Obama Doctrine. The White House also did not figure on what it means to make local forces lead, which is the core goal of the presidents new strategy. Elliot Ackerman, a former Marine now reporting for Esquire, described the prevalence of sectarian militias when interviewed from the front lines on NPR Wednesday.

Story continues

From the back of their Humvees theyre flying these Shia flags as they go toward Mosul, Ackerman said. These are supposedly nonsectarian forces that arent supposed to be participating in sectarian violence.

Grim reality No. 2: Defeating ISIS in Mosuland by extension Iraqisnt going to make much difference if it means replacing Sunni extremists with their Shia adversaries.

The Obama Doctrines most serious indictmentand the grimmest reality now facing the White Housearises from Erdogans arrogant insistence that Turkish units must be part of the Mosul campaign. In a phrase, the Turkish leader now makes his nation the local ally from hell.

Nobody wants the Turkish army to play any such rolenot Baghdad, and certainly not U.S.backed Kurdish forces, whose effectiveness on the battlefield proves decisive in Iraq and Syria alike.

Related: Turkey, Iraq Reach Agreement 'In Principle' on Mosul

The Sunni-nationalist leader signaled his intentions two years ago when Turkey stationed a garrison of troops equipped with tanks and artillery in northern Iraq over Baghdads strenuous objections. As forces gathered for the Mosul campaign earlier this month, the Turkish parliament voted to extend the mandate for a yeara pointed provocation that set the stage for the multi-sided mess now unfolding.

Erdogan has since asserted that Turkey cannot be left off the tableagain over Baghdads protests. He elaborated by stating that only Sunnis should remain in Mosul after it is recaptured.

There we have it: Sectarianism as official policythis from a key American ally in the region.

Erdogans obsession with crushing Kurdish minorities in Turkey, Syria, and Iraq is well-enough knownand problem enough for Washington, given its military reliance on Kurdish forces. Now he is asserting grandiosely that the Ottoman Empires legacy gives Turkey a historic role in the region well beyond its borders.

Related: Iraq's Traumatized Minorities: A Test of Unity After Mosul Offensive

The SykesPicot maps, which divided the Ottoman Empire into modern Syria and Iraq after World War I, may need to be redrawn before this is all over, but Recip Tayyip Erdogans nostalgia for lost greatness cannot be accepted as the guiding principle.

The Obama administrations responses to Erdogans ever more stunning assertions have been inadequate to choose the mildest term for it.

Last week Defense Secretary Ashton Carter announced after meetings with Turkish officials that Baghdad and Ankara had reached an agreement in principle allowing Turkey a role in the Mosul campaign. A Pentagon official subsequently explained that Turkey could make nonmilitary contributions such as humanitarian assistance and medical aid.

Iraqi leaders immediately and unambiguously stated that no such agreement existed, in principle or otherwise. Pretending a chasm this wide and deep isnt there is one definition of inadequate.

Related: Turkey's Erdogan Says Iraq Cannot Handle Mosul Assault Alone

Carter compounded matters when he addressed Erdogans hyper-nationalist ambitions. As The New York Times put it, Mr. Carter has said the United States is trying to balance our respect for the sovereignty of Iraq and our respect also for Turkeys historic role in the region.

What? Iraqs rights under international law do not balance with an unpredictable dictators irredentist dreams of imperial revival.

Mosul has pushed the Obama administration into an all-too-familiar bind, as Secretary Carters misguided remarks make plain: It will do anything at this point to mollify a wildly undisciplined leader who should be treated to just the opposite. Never mind the Middle East as another quagmire for the Russians: The outgoing president has made it ours.

Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this





Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here
New Delhi, Oct 23 : The respect and admiration that Indians have for the armed forces, will be expressed this festive season through a campaign led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The #Sandesh2Soldiers campaign has been launched to invite people to send letters and messages to the armed forces, an official statement said here on Sunday.

"The campaign gives every citizen an opportunity to spread happiness among the Indian Armed Forces, who are guarding our nation's frontiers, far from their loved ones on Diwali," it said.

Leading this effort, the Prime Minister shared through social media, a special video featuring his appeal to the people to send messages to our brave armed forces personnel.

People can send messages to soldiers on the Narendra Modi App through MyGov.in, and also through All India Radio.

Doordarshan is also going to mount a programme to share people's emotions with the armed forces.

A special module has been launched on the Narendra Modi App to enable people to send greetings or their hand-written messages to the armed forces.

The #Sandesh2Soldiers campaign is expected to generate increased interaction between people and the army.
New Delhi, Oct 25 : One person was killed and four others were injured in a deafening blast outside a firecracker godown here on Tuesday, the Delhi Police said.

The cracker explosion, captured on CCTV, took place at 10.40 a.m in a Pattewali Street in Naya Bazar in Old Delhi, not far from where firecrackers are sold in bulk for Diwali.

The police said the man killed in the explosion has been identified as Motalip Mirza, who worked as a labourer and was a resident of Murshidabad at West Bengal. The injured men -- Bhupendra Gupta (40), Mahesh (40), Hawa Singh (42) and Murari Lal (40) -- were admitted to a nearby hospital.

"Mirza had collected the bags from a rented house in Gali Zakaria, in Mohalla Fatak Hawas Khana, near Lohari Gate. Several bags of similar content have been found at that place. Mirza was working in Delhi for the last 15 to 20 years as a load carriier," Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Madhur Verma told IANS.

He carried two big plastic bags full of crackers and kept them on the ground when the explosion occurred, the DCP said.

"It was a low intensity cracker blast. Later, from the Forensic Science Laboratory reports it appeared that the blast took place due to pressure of crackers kept in bags in large quantity. The samples of explosive were sent to the FSL soon after the incident," Joint Commissioner of Police Virender Singh Chahal told IANS.

Windowpanes of the surrounding buildings were damaged due to the impact of the explosion.

Footage from a CCTV camera showed people in the lane running away from the blast site in panic.

Security forces immediately threw a cordon in the area.
Moscow, Oct 27 : The second part of a report by an independent commission headed by Richard McLaren on alleged doping abuse in Russia will be published in early December, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has said.

In July, a WADA commission led by McLaren presented a report based on the investigation results, in which Russia was accused of running a state-wide doping programme. It urged the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to consider a blanket ban on the entire Russian team, reports Sputnik.

On July 24, the IOC decided against imposing a blanket ban on all Russian athletes.

"Professor Richard H. McLaren announces that he expects to release the 'McLaren Investigation Report, Part II', in early December 2016. More details will follow in the weeks ahead," WADA said in a statement on Wednesday.

In turn, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) banned all Russian Paralympic athletes from the 2016 Summer Paralympics and 2018 Winter Games.
By Mohammed Ghobari SANAA (Reuters) - A U.N. peace proposal to end a 19-month war in Yemen appears aimed at sidelining exiled President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and setting up a government of less divisive figures, according to a copy seen by Reuters. Hadi fled the armed advance of the Iranian-allied Houthi movement in March 2015 and has been a guest of neighbouring Saudi Arabia ever since. A U.N. Security Council resolution a month later recognised him as the legitimate head of state and called on the Houthis to disarm and quit Yemen's main cities. But the Houthis and their allies in Yemen's army have said he will never return, accusing him and his powerful vice president, Ali Mushin al-Ahmar, of corruption. The latest peace plan submitted by U.N. envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed suggests Ahmar would step down and Hadi would agree to become little more than a figurehead after a Houthi withdrawal from the capital Sanaa. It was not immediately clear if the men had been consulted on the plan. But their supporters have in the past insisted that past agreements recognising Hadi as leader must be respected. "As part of the signing of a complete and comprehensive agreement, the current Vice President will resign and President Hadi will appoint a new Vice President," the document says. "After the completion of the withdrawal from Sanaa and the handing over of heavy and medium weapons (including ballistic missiles) Hadi will transfer all his powers to a Vice President, and the Vice President will appoint a new Prime Minister ... (who will form) a national unity government," it added. SYMBOLIC ROLE The proposal would technically confirm Hadi in office, as stipulated by the U.N. resolution, but leave him in reality with only a symbolic role. Yemeni Prime Minister Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr said that the government had not received a draft of the peace proposal from the United Nations, according to state news agency Sabanew. Government officials have said they are unwilling to legitimise what they see as a Houthi "coup". "We emphasise our conviction that all proposals are doomed to failure if (they dont reject the) excesses of the coup, which is the mother of all these calamities and the root of the evils," Abdullah al-Alimi, a senior official in Hadi's office, wrote on Twitter. A U.S. State Department official said Washington continued to support the U.N. envoy's peace efforts. "We have long maintained that compromises and concessions by all sides are necessary to reach a political settlement," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. There was no immediate comment from the United Nations, or from Saudi Arabia, which backs Hadi and is leading a military coalition, including the United Arab Emirates, trying to dislodge the Houthis. But UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash expressed his support for the U.N. plan on Thursday, saying on Twitter that "alternate options are dark". "The road map represents a political solution to the crisis of Yemen. ... It is time to leave behind the logic of arms and violence among Yemenis, and the road map gives a chance for reason and dialogue to prevail," he wrote. The ongoing conflict in Yemen has killed at least 10,000 people and unleashed one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. (Additional reporting by Yara Bayoumy in Washington; Writing By Noah Browning; Editing by Tom Heneghan and Jonathan Oatis)
Ankara, Oct 27 : Turkey on Thursday issued arrest warrants against 73 army pilots suspected of having ties with Islamic preacher Fetullah Gulen who was accused by the government of being the mastermind of the country's failed attempted coup last July.

The pilots are allegedly accused of rebelling against the government and being part of the Gulen movement, which until the end of 2013 was a firm ally of the Islamist Turkish government but now is considered a terrorist group.

Since the failed coup, 265 Air Force pilots were suspended from their posts, EFE news reported.

The police operation launched on Thursday was based in Konya, in the region of Anatolia, where 71 of the 73 pilots live.

This is the fourth wave of arrests of soldiers at this military base since the attempted coup of July 15.

A total of 91 soldiers, including former base commander, have been arrested so far.

Since the coup, authorities have detained or suspended from jobs thousands of police officers, soldiers, judges, professors and officials of various public offices, accused of being followers of Gulen, who now lives in the US.
New York, Oct 28 : Republican vice-presidential candidate Mike Pence had a narrow escape as his plane skidded off the runway while landing at LaGuardia airport in New York in heavy rain, media reports said.

Emergency crews were on site but all passengers on the plane including Pence, were said to be fine.

The plane, which was coming from Fort Dodge, Iowa -- about a three-hour flight from New York -- made a rough impact when it landed. The pilot slammed on the brakes and travellers could smell burning rubber, NBC news reported.

A spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration said it will be investigating the incident.

Stephanie Grisham, a spokeswoman for Donald Trump's campaign, said the businessman called Pence shortly after the incident, adding that Trump "is very glad everyone onboard the plane is safe", CNN reported.

The Indiana governor has cancelled a fundraising event that he was due to hold in New York, and headed to his hotel.
Srinagar, Oct 28 : Authorities on Friday imposed curfew in some parts of Srinagar city to prevent post-prayer protests.

The police said curfew has been imposed in old city Nowhatta area while restrictions would remain in force in other parts to maintain law and order.

Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, chairman of moderate Hurriyat group has announced that he would defy restrictions to offer Friday prayers at the Jamia Masjid in Nowhatta.

Mirwaiz has been placed under house arrest in his uptown Nigeen residence in the outskirts of Srinagar.

For the 112th consecutive day, life across the valley remained paralysed due to the separatist called protest shutdown which is now extended till November 3.

All educational institutions including schools, colleges and universities have remained closed.

After the authorities announced holding of exams on schedule, over a dozen schools across the were gutted.

Main markets, public transport and other businesses have also remained close during this period.

Ninety-one people have been killed and over 12,000 injured since the present unrest began here on July 9, a day after Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani was killed.
New Delhi, Oct 28 : Apart from obesity, birth control pills and additional factors such as smoking, high blood pressure or diabetes may put women at increased risk for the most common type of stroke, health experts suggest.

Oral contraceptives increase the risk of ischemic strokes, caused by a blood clot that blocks or plugs a blood vessel in the brain.

"Women who take birth control pills are slightly at higher risk of stroke as a result of the high estradiol content in these contraceptive pills, which also increases the risk of blood clots," Vipul Gupta, Additional Director, Neurointervention Surgery, and Co-Director, Stroke Unit, Artemis Hospital, Gurgaon, told IANS.

"The risk also increases for a woman during pregnancy as the increased blood pressure puts stress on the heart. Also migraine can cause chances of stroke three times up in women," Satnam Singh Chhabra, Head Neuro and Spine Surgeon, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, added.

Women who smoke are also advised against taking birth control pills as this may increase the risk of a stroke.

Stroke is a serious medical emergency causing premature death and disability. It occurs when blood flow to an area of brain is cut off; brain cells are deprived of oxygen and begin to die.

"A stroke occurs when blood supply to a part of the brain is suddenly cut off. The brain cells in the immediate area begin to die because they stop getting the oxygen and nutrients they need to function," Gupta explained.

Apart from the ischemic stroke, there is the hemorrhagic stroke caused by a blood vessel that bursts and bleeds into the brain.

"Rheumatic heart disease and atrial fibrillation in younger females is emerging as major cause of strokes," M.G. Pillai, Head of the Cardiology Department at Nanavati Super Speciality Hospital, Mumbai, told IANS.

When brain cells die during a stroke, the abilities controlled by that area of the brain such as memory and muscle control are lost.

The treatment for stroke may also depend on its type. An ischemic stroke in many cases can be reversed through medicines but only if it is detected within three hours of its occurrence. Treating a hemorrhagic stroke involves finding the cause of bleeding in the brain and controlling it.

"Depending on the damage and overall health of a patient, one can regain the lost abilities to some extent through rehabilitation and medicines," Chhabra explained.

Unlike ischemic strokes, hemorrhagic strokes aren't treated with antiplatelet medicines and blood thinners because these medicines can worsen the bleeding.

Advanced scans, such as CT angiography, perfusion imaging and MRI are also done to evaluate the site of blockage and quantify the extent of the brain that can be salvaged.

Gains can happen quickly or over the time depending on various factors like the area of the affected part, how much is affected and the patient's motivation. The most rapid recovery usually occurs during the first three to four months of a stroke.

"The cure for a stroke depends on the amount of area damaged. If the damage is fatal then it may take months to heal and if the damage is normal, the patient may recover within a week or two," Kishan Raj, Consultant Neurologist at IBS Hospital, Faridabad, explained.

According to experts, 80 per cent of all strokes are preventable. This starts with managing key risk factors, including high blood pressure, smoking, atrial fibrillation and physical inactivity.

Strokes are life-changing events that can affect a person both temporarily or permanently.

After a stroke, successful recovery will often involve specific rehabilitative activities such as speech therapy, physical therapy to help a person re-learn movements and coordination along with occupational therapy to help people improve their ability to carry out routine daily activities.

(Vivek Singh Chauhan can be contacted at vivek.c@ians.in)
New Delhi, Oct 28 : He has been proving his mettle in the world of Indian cinema for 15 years, but Boman Irani feels he is "still a newcomer" in the field. The versatile actor says he behaves like a junior on the set.

"I am extremely young person in the industry. You may call me a grandfather, but I am still young as an industry person. Most actors I work with, even the heroes, are senior to me. There are very few heroes who have come in after me," Boman told IANS over phone from Mumbai.

He added: "You name any hero and all of them are senior to me. They had done work before I came in the industry. Today, we may talk about Varun (Dhawan) and Sidharth (Malhotra) and a few others...Everybody comes from a generation that started working before I made my debut. So I just see that I am still a newcomer and I will behave like a junior and I feel great about it."

Boman is a professional theatre actor with over 40 plays to his credit, and he walked into the world of Bollywood in 2001 with "Everybody Says I'm Fine!". He came into spotlight as J.C. Asthana in Rajkumar Hirani's 2003 hit comedy "Munnabhai M.B.B.S". And there was no looking back for him after that.

He followed it up with "Being Cyrus", "Lage Raho Munna Bhai", "Khosla Ka Ghosla", "Don - The Chase Begins Again", "3 Idiots" and "Happy New Year".

Boman, who is the brand ambassador for Ambi Pur India, asserts there are still so many milestones for him to cross in showbiz.

"People talk about these years as if they were long years. When I look over my shoulder, I feel like it was yesterday, genuinely because I have been at it continuously for over 12 years now since 'Munnabhai' release. I don't think of it as long journey. I am in the middle with a lot more to go for me," said the 56-year-old.
New Delhi, Oct 28 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi will pay a two-day official visit to Japan from November 11 for his third annual summit meeting with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe, with economic and defence cooperation likely to figure high on the agenda.

The annual summit will be an occasion for the two leaders to have in-depth exchanges on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest to further deepen the broad-based and action-oriented partnership between India and Japan, said an official statement.

Modi will also have an audience with Japanese Emperor Akihito.

The two sides are likely to sign a civil nuclear cooperation pact, including a provision to assure Japan that India, which has not joined the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, will not use Japanese nuclear power plant technology for military purposes, Kyodo news agency quoted diplomatic sources as saying.

Both leaders are also likely to discuss defence cooperation, including joint maritime exercises between Japan, India and the US. The South China Sea is also likely to figure in the talks.

"We expect (Modi's) visit to advance the special strategic global partnership befitting a new era for Japan-India (relations) and further deepen the bonds and cooperative relationship between our countries," Kyodo quoted Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Koichi Hagiuda as saying in Tokyo.

During Modi's visit to Japan in 2014, which was his first bilateral visit outside India's immediate neighbourhood, the India-Japan relationship was upgraded to 'Special Strategic and Global Partnership'.

In the New Delhi summit of 2015, India and Japan outlined a Vision of Working Together for Peace and Prosperity in the Indo-Pacific Region and the World.

This will be Modi's second visit to Japan for the annual summit since he became Prime Minister in 2014.
Mumbai, Oct 28 : Acclaimed actor Irrfan Khan, whose Hollywood film "Inferno" has been lauded, says the audience's appreciation is something that matters to actors.

"No matter how many films you do, appreciation, especially from the audience is something any actor is ecstatic about," Irrfan said in a statement.

The actor's film, which released in India and the US, has been praised by the audience and Irrfan says it is rewarding for him.

"The film is doing really well. I have been hearing and witnessing on social media which is rewarding for me as an actor," he added.

Directed by Ron Howard, "Inferno" also features Hollywood star Tom Hanks.

-*-I'm always up for experimentation: Richa Chadha Actress Richa Chadha, who has been praised for her portrayal of characters like Bholi Punjaban and Nagma Khatoon, is set to surprise her fans in the upcoming short film "Raakh". She says she is always game to experiment when it comes to roles.

The film, which is produced by Milap Zaveri, will feature Richa as a homemaker.

"I am always up for experimentation, and when Milap Zaveri told me I was his first choice for this girl-next-door character, I realised I have actually never done a simple character like this before. Naturally, I jumped at the opportunity. I am certain the audience is in for a sweet surprise," Richa said in a statement.

The short film will be out on November 7.

The film's cast also includes Vir Das and Shaad Randhawa.
Beijing, Oct 28 : China's Defence Ministry has accused Japanese military aircraft of increasingly engaging in "dangerous" intercepts of Chinese military aircraft, and putting the safety of Chinese fliers at risk.

China and Japan have been locked in a territorial dispute over a group of uninhabited East China Sea islands, called the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China.

Both countries have been shadowing each other on and off near the islets. Japan reported earlier this month that it has scrambled its warplanes 407 times between April 1 and September 30 in reaction to increased Chinese military flights near Japanese airspace.

"Such high-frequency reconnaissance against China not only disturbs the routine training of the Chinese military but also undermines the security interests of China," CNN quoted Wu Qian, spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense as saying at a briefing.

"The aircraft of Japanese Air Self Defense Force switched on the fire control radars or even dropped an infrared countermeasure bomb during encounters with Chinese aircraft," Wu said, calling those actions "unprofessional and dangerous."

Chinese military flights near Japan were completely within international law and standard aviation practices. Japan's disproportionate response risked accidents and relations, he added.

During the summer, China said two Japanese F-15 jets locked their fire control radars onto two Chinese Su-30 jets during a June 17 encounter over the East China Sea.

According to China's Defence Ministry, when the Chinese jets manoeuvred to counter the Japanese move, the Japanese fighter fired their infrared countermeasures.

In late September, Japan sent up fighter jets after eight Chinese military planes crossed between Okinawa and the Miyako islands near Taiwan.

Japan's Defence Ministry on Friday said its Self Defense Force follows international law when conducting intercepts, CNN reported.

"It has not taken any provocative actions against Chinese military planes nor endangered them as claimed by the spokesman of the Chinese Defence Ministry," the ministry said in a statement.
Geneva, Oct 28 : The Islamic State (IS) terrorist group has kidnapped nearly 8,000 families from outlying areas of Iraq's Mosul city, and is using them as human shields in an attempt to deter the Iraqi army from attacking their positions, the UN said on Friday.

Given that the average Iraqi family has six members, a total of over 47,300 civilians have been abducted and forced by the jihadis to move to Mosul, Efe news reported.

This is a cowardly strategy to make certain areas immune from military operations, said UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani, adding that those who refuse to obey the IS orders are executed on the spot.

The abductees came from four different areas on the outskirts of Mosul, where more than a million civilians reside in an area that has been subjected to a large military offensive by Iraqi forces for the last 12 days.

The UN also revealed that the IS group executed 242 persons in Mosul last Wednesday, 90 per cent of whom were former members of the Iraqi security forces, while the rest were civilians who refused to join the terrorists.
Bengaluru, Oct 28 : India's bio-pharma major Biocon Ltd has been ranked among the world's top 10 employers in the biotechnology industry by an international science magazine on Friday.

According to a web-based annual survey by the magazine, the city-based company moved to ninth this year from 13 last year in the 'Science 2016 Top Employer' ranking, which is based on firms that are innovative leaders in the industry, are socially responsible and have a clear vision.

"The ranking is recognition of our high quality talent aligned with the vision of innovation-led enterprise that is socially responsible," said Biocon Chairperson Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw in a statement here.

When the magazine asked what makes companies best, their employees asserted that top firms operate as meritocracies, have adequate resources, trusted brands and are responsive to their stakeholders.

"We believe that our employees are our great strength. Our work culture of unconventional thinking, focus on excellence, freedom of speech and empowerment instills confidence and ownership in our people," added Shaw.

Of the top 10 employers, six are based in the US, two (Novo Nordisk and Novozymes) in Denmark and one (Roche) in Switzerland.

The US-based ranked biotech firms are Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Moderna Therapeutics, Eli Lily, Vertex, Genetech and Alexion.
Why Donald Trump is popular with a lot of people in India (and China)

Donald Trump may not be too kind toward foreigners or immigrants when he's on the campaign trail, but there are still groups of Chinese and Indians  both in the United States and in Asia  who support the Republican presidential candidate.

Make no mistake: The vast majority of Asian-Americans favor Hillary Clinton . According to the National Asian American Survey for Fall 2016, Clinton enjoys an almost 4-to-1 advantage over Trump  55 percent vs. 14 percent  with about 1 in 5 still undecided.

Indian Americans tend to lean left, fitting the larger trend among Americans of Asian descent. But a growing number of Hindu Indians support Trump because of his anti-Muslim rhetoric  and Trump has capitalized on this.



In a speech in New Jersey , Trump pledged that he would support Indians and crack down against Muslim extremism. Those strong words from Trump resonated with many Indians, who have seen their country repeatedly struck by terrorism, the most significant example being the Mumbai terror attacks in 2008 which killed more than 200 people.



A vocal, right-wing political group, Hindu Sena, called Trump a "hero," due in part to his ability to "save humanity from Islam and Islamic terror."



Trump's commentary also comes at a time when tensions have been elevated between India and Pakistan over the disputed region of Kashmir.



"Most U.S. leaders in the past have had a pro-Pakistan tilt  so Trump's pro-India comments have been cheered by the [Indian] community," said Professor Ravi Ahuja at DeSales University in Pennsylvania.



Aside from his aggressive words on terrorism, Trump's brand also has equity in India.



"India probably has the highest number of Trump-branded real estate projects outside of North America ," said a spokesperson for Tribeca, a Mumbai -based developer that acts as Trump's partner in India. "Trump has five ongoing deals in India with a gross development value of about $1.5 billion" with "more projects likely to be launched in 2017."

Story continues

But whether any of that sentiment translates into more U.S. votes on Nov. 8 is, of course, the key question. In the United States political strategists say Indian Americans are slowly taking a more prominent role in corporate America  specifically in the technology and financial services industries.

"We're only 1 percent of the population, but South Asians tend to be highly influential and wealthy," said M.R. Rangaswami, Silicon Valley investor and founder of Indiaspora.



Indian Americans are among the most highly educated U.S. ethnic groups, with 70 percent of Indian Americans aged 25 and older holding a college degrees in 2010, which is 2.5 times the rate among the overall U.S. population, according to data from the Pew Research Center. The median annual household income for Indian Americans in 2010 was $88,000, much higher than the U.S. average.

Trump realized the importance of the group and therefore has put in concerted effort to win their votes. This week, Trump made a video that trended on social media where he recited a statement in Hindi, India's national language, ahead of Diwali, the Indian New Year which is celebrated on November 4.

Trump's rhetoric toward India stand in contrast to what he's said about China , which he criticizes for stealing American jobs, using corrupt trading practices and manipulating its currency.

Trump's unforgiving rhetoric is being watched closely by leaders and citizens of China. Steve Orlins, president of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations and a former managing director at asset management firm Carlyle Asia, said Chinese express worry that Trump's policies, if implemented, would send the world economy into a downward spiral.



"I don't have a sense that many Chinese support Trump. The ones I speak with are deeply offended by his rhetoric and believe he creates his own reality," said Orlins, who just returned from a trip to China.



That said, a few individuals on the ground in Beijing confess that Trump does have some fans there.



In a country run by a communist one-party system, where individual expression is discouraged, and where debates are not even allowed, some Chinese find Trump's bold comments liberating  or at the very least, entertaining.



"Trump is in many ways the diametric opposite of a typical Chinese bureaucrat: brash, confrontational and unapologetically egocentric, whose main rhetorical line is that through him, you (the voter) will retrieve your lost pride in your country," said Gilliam Hamilton, head of NSBO China Policy Research in Beijing.



"My [personal] take is that people don't take his rhetoric on its own, and instead think of his harsh rhetoric as language on the stump and anticipate him to follow in the footsteps of previous U.S. presidents by becoming more pragmatic" should he take office, said Shan Huang, managing editor at Caixin, a Chinese media group.



What also seems to resonate with many in China is the perception that Trump has an entrepreneurial spirit. Huang said Trump's business instinct makes some people believe that he is a deal-maker, and his business acumen may help the United States break the cycle of on-again, off-again bilateral relations with China.

Trump also espouses policies that would be geopolitically advantageous to China.

His stated intention to tear up the Trans Pacific Partnership  a multi-nation trade deal proposed by Washington which pointedly excludes China  supports China's longer-term goal of diminishing the United States' place in the region.



"Undermining the alliance that the U.S. has with its Asian allies is China's overriding, long-term geopolitical objective," said Jennifer Harris, U.S. foreign policy expert and a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.



Trump has also sharply criticized U.S. security arrangements with its European and Asian allies, and it would be in China's favor if those links between the United States and the rest of the world were weakened.

In various speeches and interviews in July, Trump suggested that Japan, South Korea and the Philippines are taking advantage of the United States and the security Washington provides.



Experts point out that China yearns to be the dominant force and leader in Asia and cannot accomplish that goal with the U.S. regularly intervening in economic and geopolitics affairs in Asia.
New Delhi, Oct 28 : The Supreme Court on Friday rapped the Centre for sitting over the top court collegium's recommendations on appointment of judges to various High Courts, prompting the opposition to attack the Narendra Modi government for what it said was deliberate weakening of the country's democratic institutions.

A bench of Chief Justice T.S. Thakur, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justice L. Nageswara Rao observed that the government's inaction amounted to paralysing and locking out the judiciary.

"We had a situation when there were judges but no courtrooms; today, we have courtrooms but no judges... it is not anybody's ego but the institution that suffers," the Chief Justice of India (CJI) said as he asked Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi to play a constructive role in the capacity of the leader of the Bar.

The CJI's observations were echoed by former Attorney General Soli Sorabjee and a former apex court judge.

"If we don't appoint judges in time, justice will inevitably be delayed. It will be denied actually. There is no justification on the government's part for this delay," Sorabjee said.

"I think the Chief Justice is absolutely justified in expressing his indignation at the delay in the appointment of the judges by the government after the collegium has cleared the names," he added.

Former Supreme Court Judge Ashok Ganguly said if the courts cannot redress people's grievances due to lack of judges, then "it creates a crisis".

"On an average, most high courts are working with 30 to 40 per cent vacancies. It is a great impediment in the administration of justice. Even if all the vacancies are filled, that will not be adequate. It is an institutional deadlock," Ganguly said.

On the political front, the Congress mounted a bitter attack on the Narendra Modi government, accusing it of systematically and deliberately weakening the country's democratic institutions, including the judiciary.

"During the last two-and-a-half-years of its rule, this government has been systematically and deliberately weakening the democratic institutions, including the judiciary," said Congress spokesman and senior lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi.

"We condemn this government's attempt to erode and undermine another pillar of our democracy. Now, we are seeing its attempt to demean, control or embarrass the judiciary. It is sad that the issue of Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) is being used by the government as an instrument of blackmail," he said.

Janata Dal-United spokesman K.C. Tyagi said the delay in the appointment of judges was an attack on the institution of judiciary.

"They are attacking the judiciary. This is not for the firt time that the Chief Justice has expressed his displeasure over the delay in judicial appointments. A few months back, he even cried while raising this issue, but the government is not ready to listen," Tyagi said.

When contacted, BJP spokespersons refused to comment on the issue.
New Delhi, Oct 28 : The Congress on Friday slammed the government for "its lack of policy on Jammu and Kashmir" and also the separatist leaders for the ongoing unrest in the Valley.

The Congress sought to know what the government's policy on Kashmir was and asked it to share the same with the opposition.

"Does the government have a policy? Do they have a way out? Does the government have a solution? Does the government have a roadmap or a plan," said Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi.

"We are asking about a short-, medium- or long-term plan, or all of the three. If you can't share it with the nation, please share it with the constitutional functionaries. It affects each one of us," the Congress leader added.

"The situation is extremely serious. Forget the Pakistan factor, forget the cross-border firing, the state is bleeding because 25 schools have been burnt," Singhvi said.

Singhvi hit out at separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, referring to media reports that Geelani's grand daughter had appeared for internal exams this month at an indoor stadium amid high security.

"I am not talking about that child; but I am certainly talking about the children of those so-called senior leaders of separatist organisations whose children are receiving education, even sitting in exams and tests under special camps held in schools," said Singhvi.

"Can you imagine the plight of a child who misses a month, a quarter, and consequently a whole year. Can you imagine the impact on his long-term future," he added.
New Delhi, Oct 28 : Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students on Friday rallied outside the Delhi Police headquarters at ITO here to protest alleged inaction in case of the disappearance of JNU student Najeeb Ahmed.

The students demanded that the status of the probe by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) be made public and asked why the police had not yet examined records and closed-circuit television footage of vehicles entering the JNU campus on the day Ahmed went missing.

They also wondered why the police have not yet questioned the "goons" who beat up Ahmed.

Around 200 to 250 JNU students took part in the protest which started at 4.30 p.m. The police declared the protest illegal and warned the students to disperse.

The police barricaded the road outside the headquarters, causing a massive traffic jam.

Students made attempts to remove the barricades, but relented after JNUSU President Mohit Pandey pleaded with them not to resort to such actions and protest peacefully.

Another student body, Students Islamic Organisation (SIO), was part of the protest along with members of other student bodies.

Ahmed went missing on October 14 night after he was beaten up by some alleged activists of the Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

A police complaint was filed and a Proctorial inquiry was initiated by the university. The police later formed an SIT to trace Ahmed.

The protesters also denounced the findings of the JNU administration's inquiry, saying it failed to take cognisance of the facts as mentioned by the Warden of Mahi-Mandvi Hostel, where the assault took place.

The Warden, present when the attack occurred, had said it was a "brutal assault" on Ahmed in his October 16 report submitted to the varsity Proctor.

A student delegation, led by JNU Students Union (JNUSU) President Mohit Pandey, later went into the headquarters to hold talks on their demands with police officials.

The delegation included JNUSU office-bearers, namely Vice-President Amal, General Secretary Satarupa, and Joint Secretary Tabrez.

The delegation submitted a memorandum to R.P. Upadhyay, Joint Commissioner, South Range, demanding a through search of the forested area in the JNU, and examination of video recordings of nearby metro stations.
Mumbai, Oct 28 : The demand for Gold Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) and Sovereign Gold Bond (SGB) zoomed on Friday, as investors sought to buy the investment instruments on the auspicious occasion of Dhanteras.

"ETF sales were a bit lower than last Dhanteras, but if you include Gold Sovereign Bonds along with it, the sales in Gold assets this Dhanteras have gone up significantly," Anand James, Chief Market Strategist, Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services, told IANS.

The segment had increased by 30 per cent till around 5.00 p.m.

According to Devendra Nevgi, Chief Executive of ZyFin Advisors, the Gold ETF and GSB will remain attractive given the uncertainties around global growth.

"Gold will remain an attractive asset in the longer run given the uncertainties surrounding the global growth and unexpected outcome of the US Presidential elections," Nevgi said.

The key indices -- the wider 51-scrip Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and the barometer 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the BSE -- had earlier decided to extend the Live trading session in Gold ETF and SGB securities in the equity segment.

Trading in gold ETFs resumed after the closing of the regular market. The trading restarted at 4.30 p.m. and continued till 7.00 p.m.

Gold ETFs are traded on the cash market like any other company stock, and can be bought and sold continuously at market prices. They are passive investment instruments that are based on gold prices and invest in gold bullion.

Meanwhile, sales of physical gold also increased on the auspicious occasion on Dhanteras.

The occasion of Dhanteras is considered to be auspicious for purchase of gold.

'Dhan' in Hindi means wealth, and 'Terah' means number 13th. Dhanteras is, accordingly, derived to mean the day devoted to wealth that falls on the 13th day of the Krishna Paksha (waning moon period) in the Hindu calendar month of Ashwin.

People seek to usher in wealth into their homes and buy gold, silver and utensils as a sign of good luck on this day. In some parts of the country, people also worship Goddess of Wealth, Lakshmi.
Washington, Oct 29 : The FBI has said that it is investigating newly-discovered emails related to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clintons personal server.

"The FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation. Case reopened," US House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz tweeted on Friday.

According to a copy of a letter by FBI Director James Comey to Chaffetz, new emails had emerged recently that appeared to be linked to the Clinton email probe completed in July, Xinhua news agency reported.

"I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation," said Comey in the letter.

After a year-long investigation the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in July recommended no criminal charges against Clinton in its email probe and the Justice Department then closed the investigation.

At a press conference in March 2015, Clinton acknowledged that she had exchanged about 60,000 emails from her private email account during her stint in the Obama administration, among which about half were personal and thus deleted.

All emails were sent and received via a private email server based at Clinton's home.

In response to requests from the State Department, the Clinton camp turned over the other half, roughly 30,000 emails to the State Department in December 2014.

The controversy surrounding Clinton's email practices again burst into public view in August 2015 after the inspector general for the intelligence community revealed that two of the thousands of emails held by Clinton contained top-secret information.

The revelation then trigged a federal investigation into whether Clinton had mishandled sensitive information.
This is long overdue, and I think we are headed in the right direction, says Frank Mecham of the SLO County Board of Supervisors.

San Luis Obispo electrical contractor Electricraft has been selected to help with the construction and electrical detail of the new terminal at the San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport.

In 2013, San Luis Obispo County supervisors authorized the completion of a design for a new passenger terminal at the San Luis Obispo Regional Airport. Supervisors held a wide-ranging discussion of the future of the airport, including the passenger terminal which was described as functional, but too small. The Board of Supervisors estimated this project would cost roughly $25 million, with $1 million alone going towards planning and design.

With an uncertain budget for the 5 years to come, it was previously undetermined whether or not the project would move forward. Some supervisors argued that new terminals produced moderate to low benefit for the airport, others agreed that a new terminal would be needed if the airport is to expand its services as requested by the business community, who wanted a route to Denver established.

In 2015, the construction of the new passenger terminal was approved. Citing the importance of the airport to the areas tourism and business industries, the SLO County Board of Supervisors unanimously gave final approval to the construction of the project, with an estimated cost of $35.4 million. Groundbreaking on the terminal began mid-October and is expected to take about 18 months to complete.

To help with the construction and electrical detail, Q&D Construction, Inc. the selected general contractor based out of Sparks Nevada has enlisted San Luis Obispo Electricians Electricraft. A small team of professional electricians, Electricraft has been proudly serving the Central Coast since 1984. Family owned and operated, their business has for several decades provided superior quality service, repairs, and construction.

At Electricraft, we take care of everyone in our community, says Wes Treder, Co-Owner of Electricraft, From repairs in homes, remodels, and new construction to large wineries and commercial, industrial projects like this one  Theres no job too big or small for us, and were honored to have been awarded the job.

Displaying a passion for quality and hard work, the team of San Luis Obispo Electricians stays up to date with the progressive electrical industry. Through continued education, hands-on experience and staying in tune with the ever-changing technology, they strive to excel in the electrical energy industry. Their focus is to provide superior quality service, repairs, and construction insuring customers long-term satisfaction with their work.

The terminal, estimated to be completed within the coming years, has been 17 years in the planning. The need for a new terminal was first identified in 1998, however plans to build a new facility grinded to a halt in 2008 due to the recession. The economy has now picked up enough for the new facility to be warranted. This is long overdue, and I think we are headed in the right direction, says Frank Mecham of the SLO County Board of Supervisors.

Electricraft, Inc.

205 South Street

San Luis Obispo, CA 93401

(805) 544-8224

Press release by San Luis Obispo SEO company Access Publishing, 806 9th Street, #2D, Paso Robles, CA 93446 (805) 226-9890.
Jeff Grant, JD, M Div Jeff's own experience and commitment to Family ReEntrys mission makes him an ideal choice to quickly and effectively move the agency forward. - Ronda Muir, Board Chair

The Board of Directors of Family ReEntry has appointed Jeff Grant, JD, M Div, as interim Executive Director of Family ReEntry of Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Grant served on Family ReEntrys board of directors since 2009  his new appointment marks the first time in the United States that a person formerly incarcerated for a white-collar crime has served as the head of a major re-entry agency. Its a tremendous step, and a bold decision on the Boards part, Grant said. This is a transformative period for Family ReEntry. I owe them my fresh start, so of course I said yes when they offered me the position.

From an advocacy, program and fundraising perspective, it resonates with people to have a formerly incarcerated person at our helm, stated Jeffrey Earls, Director of Development for Family ReEntry, with a background in business, law, prison ministry, recovery and prisoner reentry, Jeff brings a wealth of experience to Family ReEntry.

Family ReEntry receives tremendous support from individuals and families who have been very open and receptive to our mission, Grant said. We have a message that resonates around the state and the country  to lower recidivism and disrupt the intergenerational cycle of incarceration.

Family ReEntry provides essential support and programs to individuals and families who have been involved in or impacted by the criminal justice system. FRE works to reverse the impact of domestic violence, crime, incarceration, drug abuse and mental illness. FRE also offers Youth Mentoring programs that focus on assistance to youth that are impacted by the devastating effect of an incarcerated parent or sibling.

Ronda Muir, Board Chair, said, Jeff's own experience and commitment to Family ReEntrys mission makes him an ideal choice to quickly and effectively move the agency forward. He has the full support of the board as we build on Steve Lanza's tenure to support those impacted by the criminal justice system."

Mr. Grant replaces Stephen Lanza, who served as Executive Director since 1999. Mr. Lanza will continue his relationship with Family ReEntry as a senior advisor and consultant. Steve Lanza has been the heart and soul of Family ReEntry, and has served our agency, community and mission for the past fifteen years with dignity, says Mr. Grant.

More information, visit http://www.FamilyReEntry.org or call Jeffrey Earls, Family ReEntry Director of Development at (203) 576-6924.

For press inquiries email to: fre-press(at)usadagency(dot)com
GrooveCar, the nations leading online auto buying program for credit unions, announces a partnership with CAP COM Federal Credit Union located in Albany, NY. Situated in the Capital Region of New York state, the credit union serves over 128,000 members with assets of more than $1 billion. CAP COM is one of the largest credit unions in upstate New York serving a robust area with members spread throughout a diverse region. Our approach to serving members included a fully customized platform to meet their auto-buying needs, explains Robert OHara, Vice President of Strategic Alliances, GrooveCar Inc., Hauppauge, NY.

The GrooveCar resource provides credit unions with the ability to serve members with pertinent information needed to complete the car buying process. Industry data has found when it comes to member engagement, 97% of car buying begins online over an average of 4 months. The goal of the program is to capture more loans by connecting with members during the research phase of the car purchasing cycle. The program insures credit unions messaging will be present during every step of the car buying journey.

Providing members with a resource specific to their needs with a large selection of regional inventory and leveraging dealership relationships, was a priority for CAP COM. Over the years, weve established great partnerships with local dealers. GrooveCar allows us to leverage those relationships for our members in a way that is more convenient. They can shop multiple dealers from the comfort of home to find the right vehicle and still take advantage of preferred pricing as well as the guidance of CAP COMs car buying experts, said Cliff Carignan, CAP COM Director of Lending.

GrooveCar worked with CAP COM to customize all aspects of the program. This included combining the members desire for a new or pre-owned vehicle and matching it with available local inventory, special credit union pricing and offers from the credit unions preferred dealer network. GrooveCars platform combines the power of digital and traditional marketing programs along with sales strategies to optimize the member experience while capturing more loans for their credit union partners.

With CAP COM, the customization of the program went a few steps further to incorporate the synergies present between their preferred dealer network and the credit union. We took CAP COMs existing preferred dealer network and added these dealers inventory to the site while removing all inventory we previously had within 250 miles of CAP COMs central location. CAP COM wants to build stronger relationships with their preferred dealers while eliminating dealers from their auto buying site that do not push business back to CAP COM. We want credit unions to recognize you dont have to settle for a one size fits all car buying program, GrooveCar can customize the program to match the credit unions needs and not the other way around. We truly see our role as a partner to their success, stated OHara.

About GrooveCar:

Founded in 1999, GrooveCar provides automotive loan growth solutions to credit unions nationwide while providing their members, as well as the general public, with the most informative and user-friendly auto search engine. With its expansive dealership network surpassing five million vehicles, GrooveCar facilitates the entire car buying process, including shopping, researching, buying, leasing, and financing. Through the national auto-leasing program CU Xpress Lease, credit unions can take advantage of leasing opportunities in the new and pre-owned vehicle market. CU Xpress is the leading credit union lease program in the nation. Additional information on GrooveCar or CU Xpress Lease may be found at http://www.groovecarinc.com.

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DL Media We have been part of the Nixa business community for over 16 years and are excited to help build program awareness for our local food pantry as they help our Christian County neighbors this holiday season.

The Nixa-based, full-service digital marketing and advertising agency, DL Media, Inc., is hosting an open house from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Friday, November 18, 2016. The public is invited to tour its expanded space at 720 W. Center Circle. The event will mark this growth milestone and serve to thank the clients whose business allowed DL Media to expand.

Visitors will be able to tour the newly renovated space which will better serve the needs of DL Media's clients, meet current team members and find out more about the many exciting projects in the works. Guests will also have the opportunity to enter drawings for door prizes, partake in refreshments and participate in ribbon cuttings. The Springfield Area Chamber ribbon cutting will be held at 11:00 a.m.; the Nixa Area Chamber ribbon cutting will held be at 11:30 a.m.; the Table Rock Lake Chamber ribbon cutting will be held at 12:30 p.m.; and the Branson/Lakes Area Chamber ribbon cutting will be held at 2:00 p.m. DL Media is also partnering with the local charity Least of These, Inc., for this event.

In an effort to give back to the community, DL Media will feature a can drive for Least of These food pantry. Monthly, Least of These serves 750-820 families, with over 2,000 family members, all of them living in poverty. The Least of These organization will distribute more than 500,000 pounds of food this year. Christian County has the highest percentage of food insecurity in the state among middle-class families. Visitors are encouraged to bring canned food items as "the price of entry."

"We're elated to be able to offer our clients a welcoming space with enhanced resources," says Dianne Davis, president and owner of DL Media. "We have been part of the Nixa business community for over 16 years and are excited to help build program awareness for our local food pantry as they help our Christian County neighbors this holiday season.

As part of the expansion, DL Media doubled their office space and parking lot and now leases half of the building. Clients will benefit from exciting features including a spacious promotional products shopping area, a new large conference room, a freshly renovated small conference room and an expanded video production and photography studio space accompanied by a video-viewing lounge. A 100-gallon freshwater fish tank now greets clients and team members in the lobby of the main entrance. DL Media gained 15 offices, four bathrooms, a kitchenette to complement the existing full kitchen and a shipping-and-receiving area in the expansion. The buildings new owner recently completed an extensive renovation of the entire building including a new roof, LED safety lighting in the parking areas, a freshly resurfaced parking lot and awnings to welcome visitors.

Least Of These, Inc., is a 501(c)3 nonprofit, nondenominational organization and the only full-service food pantry serving Christian County, one of the fastest growing counties in the state of Missouri. They rely on generous food, cash and clothing donations from the community, foundation grants and free government food commodities to provide food, hygiene and clothing assistance to struggling families. Donations are accepted Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. Learn more at leastofthesefoodpantry.org.

The Nixa Area Chamber of Commerce works to promote the growth and development of local businesses to enhance the community as a desirable place to live, learn, work, shop and play. Today, Nixa continues to function as a crossroads or mid-point location between Springfield and the Branson/Tri-Lakes area, attracting both residential and commercial development. Nixa continues to expand in all directions and in all aspects of a community.

The Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce serves as the principal advocate for business in partnership with the community. They support and assist existing businesses, act as the primary catalyst in promoting the economic health of the Springfield area, stimulating jobs and improving the quality of life.

Table Rock Lake Chamber of Commerce invites visitors and residents to enjoy the beauty and crystal clear water of Table Rock Lake through quality family vacation experiences in Stone County. Nearly 500 miles of shoreline in Stone County offers vacationers lakefront resorts, hotels and campgrounds only minutes from all that Branson and Silver Dollar City have to offer.

The Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce strives to grow businesses through increased visibility and bringing awareness to local businesses. A moderate cost of living, low unemployment rate, low crime rate, numerous churches, pleasant and variable climate, beautiful scenery, and variety of civic and cultural opportunities make Branson a great place to live, work and play.

Founded in 1997, DL Media is a full-service digital marketing and advertising agency headquartered in Nixa, Mo. The agency works to advance clients businesses by helping solve marketing challenges through relevant, engaging and compelling communications. For more information about DL Media, visit dlmedia.com.
SharePoint Fest returns to Chicago, Illinois December 6-9, 2016 at McCormick Place South and announces Microexcel as an exhibitor of this annual technology conference. Microexcel is a global leader in delivering innovative and comprehensive enterprise solutions on the Microsoft technology stack, and will have experts available to discuss enhancing the capabilities of SharePoint and Office 365, boosting productivity in the cloud with rapid migrations, and simplifying licensing, services, and support with their ME Cloud bundled plans for Microsoft Cloud solutions.

Microexcel is a gold level partner for collaboration and content, cloud productivity, application development, and data analytics. With select partner status, Microexcel can offer customers exclusive cost saving promotions and offers that only certain levels of partners can provide. Ranked as one of the Top 100 Microsoft Solution Providers by CIO Review Magazine in 2014, Microexcel is also part of an elite two percent of Microsoft partners that are recognized for managed services, is a Fast Track Partner (Office 365), as well as a SharePoint Deployment Planning Services Partner.

As one of the premier SharePoint Conference companies in North America, SharePoint Fest has brought together the Microsoft SharePoint Product group, the leading SharePoint experts from across the country, and an audience of motivated SharePoint adopters who are looking to enhance their knowledge and find solutions to their SharePoint challenges.

About Microexcel Inc.

Microexcel Inc., is a global leader in providing innovative and comprehensive software solutions and services. Founded in 2001, Microexcel merges people and technology to deliver the most value and return on investment for customers. With headquarters in Secaucus, NJ, and offices worldwide, Microexcel provides full services and support to clients in the areas of Microsoft, SAP, Quality Assurance and Testing, Informatica, IT Infrastructure, Staffing, and Interactive Services. Microexcel is also a New York and New Jersey state Certified Minority Owned Business Enterprise. For more information, please visit: http://www.microexcel.com/ or contact us at info(at)microexcel.com.

About SharePoint Fest

SharePoint Fest is in its sixth year. It offers a two-day conference (with an optional two days of workshops) that brings together SharePoint enthusiasts and practitioners, with many of the leading SharePoint experts and solution providers in the country. Attend SharePoint Fest Chicago where attendees will be able to attend workshops and seminars  taught by Microsoft Certified Trainers, Microsoft engineers, and Microsoft MCM's and MVPs  covering Enterprise Content Management, Implementation/Administration, Business Value, Search, Business Intelligence, Office 365 and SharePoint Development. Attendees will be able to choose one complete learning track or mix and match based on what content best meets their current needs. At SharePoint Fest Chicago, there will be sessions created for SharePoint administrators, software developers, business analysts, information architects, and knowledge workers, which will ensure that attendees walk away with as much knowledge as they desire to truly leverage SharePoint in their current environment.

Web Site: http://www.sharepointfest.com/Chicago
"Our employees are a big part of (winning this honor), because they take the initiative to make the most of these programs and truly excel.

Continuing its strong tradition of earning accolades for training and development, continuing care retirement community (CCRC) leader Vi has once again earned an impressive honor. The organization was recently named among the winners of the 2016 LearningElite award, which is presented annually by Chief Learning Officer magazine.

Operating 10 CCRCs throughout the nation, Vi has long been known and respected for providing a myriad of opportunities for learning, growth and success among its employees specializing in resident services, nursing, and professional areas.

As the publisher of Chief Learning Officer magazine, representatives of Human Capital Media announced the awards during the LearningElite Gala, which took place during the 2016 Spring CLO Symposium in Amelia Island, Florida.

Determined by a rigorous, peer-reviewed benchmarking system that factors in best practices and principles for top performance, the award recognizes organizations that employ exemplary workforce-development strategies and deliver significant business results. Judy Whitcomb, Vis Senior Vice President of Human Resources, Learning, and Organizational Development, was quite excited about the award because it reflects well upon her teams as well as her organization.

She explained that this is exactly the sort of honor that we hope to achieve, as it says so much about the many opportunities we offer for professional growth. And our employees are a big part of it, because they take the initiative to make the most of these programs and truly excel. There are a lot of wonderful stories about people who have moved onward and upward with Vi.

To learn more about employment opportunities with Vi, visit https://jobs.viliving.com/

Contact:

Judy Whitcomb

Vi

Senior Vice President of Human Resources, Learning, and Organizational Development

Phone: 312-803-8428

JWhitcomb(at)ViLiving(dot)com

About Vi: The Vi family of companies consists of 10 continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) across the United States. We have more than 25 years of experience as the owner/operator of residential communities for older adults, and have continued to work toward providing quality environments, services and programs to enrich the lives of those we serve. Our corporate office, located in downtown Chicago, Illinois, supports Vi's 10 communities.

###
With over two-dozen unique and independently owned restaurants, the historic area of Downtown Sanford has become a true foodie haven. The all-new Sanford Food Tour allows locals and visitors an opportunity to tour and taste the amazing variety that this small town, just outside of Orlando, has to offer.

The three-hour walking tour provides an overview of the history of this great waterfront city introduces local chefs and proprietors and offers healthy sized samples of their delicious fare. Tour participants learn about the influence of the Seminole Indian War, the vision of Henry Sanford and the legend of early settlers. Central to the success of the food tours are the first hand views of the passion from folks, who live, work and play right here in Downtown. The itinerary delivers savory dishes made with fresh ingredients sourced from local farms.

According to Steve Tishman, Partner of Sanford Food Tours, As a local, I love the opportunity to showcase the wonderful businesses here in Sanford and the people who own them. These folks have a passion that shows through in everything they do!

Sanford Food Tours had a soft launch in August and is already receiving rave reviews from local area bloggers and first time participants being called a Must Do as well as being compared to other well-known food tours in larger cities.

Sanford Food Tours are offered for groups of 4-12 every Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 11 AM until 2 PM. Reservations are required and pricing is $49 per person.

Note to Editors:

Sanford Food Tours are operated by Limo Cycle Florida, LLC as an add-on to the current list of Limo Cycle Tours. Walking food and heritage tours are available around the world in cities looking to promote distinctive neighborhoods, unique districts and local establishments. To learn more about Sanford Food Tours, http://sanfordfoodtours.com, or call 855-756-9386, ext 2.
Dallas Gables Day 2016

Gables Residential has been giving back to its communities in many ways around the country. One of the most significant ways has taken place over the past 16 years by dedicating a day where all associates come together in their respective regions to focus on giving back to a worthy cause. Gables Day encompasses a full day in each region throughout the fall where approximately 1,000 associates come together to volunteer their time and share in the experience of this special day. Since 2000, Gables Day has resulted in contributions of over $1.2 million in goods and services and approximately 125,000 hours of labor and dedication by Gables associates.

In Dallas, Gables Day recently took place with People Helping People (PHP). Since 1985, the PHP has been assisting 62+ years of age or disabled homeowners with minor exterior home repairs, including replacing rotted wood, scraping and painting, rebuilding/replacing steps, handrails, porches, demolishing small structures and removing open storage from yards.

Many thanks for partnering with the PHP! Our program would not be successful were it not for the generosity of awesome volunteers such as Gables Residential! Along with our clients Ms. Alice West, Ms. Nawanna Stevenson, Ms. Mary Scott, Ms. Arecia Garner, Ms. Lue Horn, I sincerely appreciate the repairs and painting of their homes. A special shout out to all the teams that go above and beyond to build steps and handrails, repair decks, install safety lights and beautiful curb appeal; just to mention a few of the extras! You always bring an abundance of talented staff and a willingness to make a difference that leaves our home owners overwhelmed with gratitude. We could not have completed these projects without your diligence and effort! Again, thank you for all you do for our clients, commented Carla J. Woolridge, Project Coordinator for the PHP.

Donna Summers, Senior Vice President of Operations for Gables shared, I have attended many Gables Days over the 11 years Ive been with our company, but I am still in awe and so proud of our Gables family each time. This Dallas Gables Day was no exception. The team was well prepared and hit the ground running in spite of the weather. The rain did not slow anyone down or dampen the spirits of the Dallas team as they began the tasks at hand. I was again honored to be a part of this amazing experience!"

About Gables Residential

Gables Residential is an award-winning, vertically integrated, real estate company and privately held REIT specializing in the development, construction, ownership, acquisition, financing and management of multifamily and mixed-use communities. Gables Residential owns, develops and manages communities in high-growth U.S. markets such as Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Dallas, Denver, Houston, South Florida, Southern California and metropolitan Washington, D.C. Gables also provides third party management services in the New York, Baltimore, Frederick, Tampa, Phoenix, Seattle, Charlotte, Central and North Florida markets.

Gables manages over 31,000 apartment homes and approximately 550,000 square feet of retail space and has received national recognition for excellence in development, construction, management, sales, marketing, learning and development, benefits and corporate accommodations. These achievements reflect the impact of our experienced and dedicated team members, our superior knowledge of the markets served, and our expertise in development and management.
Our partnership with Bridge English will allow students to matriculate into their academic programs with confidence, knowing that their English skills will be honed for the American classroom.

Bridge Education Group has announced new partnerships with three universities in the United States. The partnerships include a new ESL Pathways center on the campus of Concordia University, St. Paul, in Minnesota, to be opened in September 2017; a new auxiliary campus at Metropolitan State University of Denver, Colorado; and a Network Partnership with Capital University in Columbus, Ohio. The addition of these three new partners brings Bridges total number of university partnerships in the U.S. to eight.

The three universities are joining Bridges existing higher education portfolio, which includes both ESL Pathways centers on campus as well as Network Partnerships. The latter partnership, which is the newest model offered by Bridge for U.S. universities, is tailored for institutions that may already have an Intensive English Program on campus, but wish to take advantage of Bridges extensive global agency network and international student recruitment services.

The new Bridge ESL Pathways center at Concordia University, St. Paul will begin enrolling students in September of 2017, and will prepare international students for university degree programs by focusing on linguistic, academic, and intercultural skills.

The Concordia University, St. Paul campus community is so pleased to welcome the Bridge Pathways program to campus, says Tiffanie Loeb Schneider, Director of International Student Services. The quality language instruction provided by the Bridge Pathways program will set students up for academic success early on in their programs and beyond. We are really looking forward to this opportunity to further internationalization on campus, says Schneider.

The auxiliary campus on Metropolitan State University of Denver is an extension of the Bridge Language Center in downtown Denver, Colorado. The agreement allows international students to obtain conditional admission to the university, and also includes a TOEFL and IELTS waiver for students who successfully complete the Bridge Academic English Program. Our hope with this new partnership is to see an increase in the number of international students on our campus and greater diversity within our international student body, says Leigh Eleazer, M.Ed., who is International Student Support Coordinator at MSU.

Our partnership with Bridge English will allow students to matriculate into their academic programs with confidence, knowing that their English skills will be honed for the American classroom," Eleazer says. She sees the benefits for both international and domestic students at MSU, adding, We hope to see our domestic students engaging more frequently with our growing international population, developing intercultural competencies that will aid them in their future professions within the global workforce.

The Network Partnership with Capital University in Columbus, Ohio, provides the university with access to global international student markets via the Bridge recruitment network, including students seeking either full or conditional admission. Students requiring ESL preparation will enroll at the universitys Intensive English Program on campus.

Capital University is an excellent addition to our growing higher education portfolio, says Lisa Rooney, Vice President for Institutional Relations at Bridge. Located in one of the largest metropolitan hubs for international students in the U.S., the university prides itself on providing a very personalized educational experience for all students, which is in alignment with Bridges own educational philosophy."

Rooney further commented that Bridge would continue to carefully expand its higher education portfolio, with the goal of seeking a balance in terms of geography, academic offerings, and affordability.
Vistex, Inc., announced the addition of Josh Weinreich as an Account Executive based in New York, NY. Mr. Weinreichs impressive track record brings him to Vistex from The Weinstein Company where he was VP of Distribution. Josh has 15 years of industry experience and will primarily be working with Media Maestro, License Maestro and cpOnline, a new cloud solution for the film industry,by leveraging his knowledge of the industry to partner companies with the Vistex product.

Its a really exciting time in the media industry. The proliferation of content across so many different services and platforms increases the number of stakeholders and complexity in every media deal says Weinreich, when asked about what hes looking forward to. I want to leverage my experience to help clients understand the true value of accurately and efficiently managing their media and licensing rights and royalties.

Weinreich, who has been in the media industry for nearly 15 years, has had an impressive career so far at the executive level of Miramax, Disney, A+E and the Weinstein Company, managing content distribution, finance and licensing across the globe. From film to television, his industry knowledge will be a great asset for the Vistex team.

Josh is an incredible addition to our team. Not only does he bring unique industry knowledge to the position but we now have a permanent presence in New York where so many key players in the media industry do business, says Amos Biegun, Global Head of Rights and Royalties. Josh has worked with rights management and royalties software on the customer side from initial engagement to implementation and were excited to have someone with his breadth and depth of knowledge on our team.

About Vistex

Vistex provides enterprises with solutions that manage pricing, incentive, rebate, royalty and channel programs to enhance business performance while reducing labor and infrastructure costs. The software and services provided by Vistex are optimized by industry to deliver an end-to-end solution for the design, management and administration of the entire spectrum of Go-to-Market programs. Enterprises are empowered with unprecedented visibility into program performance, and gain deeper insights to better enable fact-based decisions that drive revenue, control cost, minimize leakage, and streamline processes. For more information, visit http://www.vistex.com.
AP, in partnership with design teams Semple Brown Design and Handprint Architecture, celebrated the groundbreaking of the new and innovative UNC Campus Commons project. The entire team has worked extremely hard prior to this momentous event...We are committed to ensuring the University has a smooth construction experience.

Adolfson & Peterson Construction (AP), in partnership with design teams Semple Brown Design and Handprint Architecture, celebrated the groundbreaking of the new and innovative University of Northern Colorado (UNC) Campus Commons project. When complete, this 114,000-sf student recreation center will showcase the Universitys world-class music and musical theatre programs.

UNCs new space will provide the University with state-of-the-art performance, rehearsal and display space for its College of Performing and Visual Arts. Designed to include a 400-seat multi-use auditorium, 600-seat performing arts venue, new student orientation and multiple new student programs, the facility will serve as a community and student gateway to the University.

UNCs Pride of the Rockies Marching Band led students, staff and faculty in celebrating the October 22 ceremonial groundbreaking where more than 300 people attended, including many surrounding communities. Governor John Hickenlooper made a surprise visit for this monumental event. All those who have been a part of this journey expressed their excitement, gratitude and optimism for the future.

The new campus commons is a unique one-stop-shop where current and prospective students can obtain individualized support services, engage with alumni and form lasting connections to their alma mater.

AP is excited to be a part of this journey for the University, said AP Superintendent Brian Yahn. Having worked on numerous campus projects and being a part of your community, AP is more than ready to begin construction.

Jason Heustis, Senior Project Manager on the project, The entire team has worked extremely hard prior to this momentous event  meeting with the design team in preconstruction to evaluate the direction of the project, building materials and preplanning logistics. We are committed to ensuring the University has a smooth construction experience.

About Adolfson & Peterson Construction

Adolfson & Peterson Construction (AP) is a U.S.-based, privately held builder that is consistently ranked among the top 50 construction managers and general contractors in the nation. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the company delivers innovative and collaborative building solutions for clients across the country from its regional offices in Charlotte, Dallas, Denver, Minneapolis and Phoenix. Founded in 1946, AP serves clients in the education, healthcare, commercial, municipal, multifamily, hospitality and senior living market sectors. For more information, visit http://www.a-p.com or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.
A list of the Best Online Colleges in Indiana for 2016-2017 has been released by leading online higher education information provider AffordableCollegesOnline.org. Measuring a dozen different data sets provided by schools across the state, the site found Indiana State University, Indiana Wesleyan University, Huntington University, Oakland City University and Ivy Tech Community College earned the highest marks for the best overall combination of cost, quality, variety and flexibility in online education.

"Only three out of every ten students at Indiana colleges finishes a four-year degree on time, said Dan Schuessler, CEO and Founder of AffordableCollegesOnline.org. "Schools on this list are offering students more flexible learning options by way of top-quality online education programs. This provides an alternative opportunity for students to hit their on-time graduation goals, and is a great resource for students seeking.

In order to be considered for the AffordableCollegesOnline.org list, schools are required to meet specific base criteria. Each institution on the Best list must hold accreditation and be a public or private not-for-profit entity. To meet the sites affordability standards, each school must offer in-state tuition under $5,000 per year to qualify for the two-year colleges list, and under $25,000 to qualify for the four-year colleges list. Each qualifying school is scored and ranked based on a unique value-based formula.

More information on the 2016-2017 Best Online Colleges in Indiana ranking, including school scores, data analysis and methodology details visit the link below:

http://www.affordablecollegesonline.org/online-colleges/indiana/

Schools recognized as the 2016-2017 Best Online Colleges in Indiana:

Ball State University

Calumet College of Saint Joseph

Crossroads Bible College

Grace College and Theological Seminary

Huntington University

Indiana Institute of Technology

Indiana State University

Indiana University - Bloomington

Indiana University - East

Indiana University - Kokomo

Indiana University - Northwest

Indiana University - Purdue University, Fort Wayne

Indiana University - Purdue University, Indianapolis

Indiana University - South Bend

Indiana University - Southeast

Indiana Wesleyan University

Ivy Tech Community College

Oakland City University

Ottawa University - Jeffersonville

Purdue University - Calumet Campus

Trine University

University of Southern Indiana

Vincennes University

AffordableCollegesOnline.org began in 2011 to provide quality data and information about pursuing an affordable higher education. Our free community resource materials and tools span topics such as financial aid and college savings, opportunities for veterans and people with disabilities, and online learning resources. We feature higher education institutions that have developed online learning environments that include highly trained faculty, new technology and resources, and online support services to help students achieve educational and career success. We have been featured by nearly 1,100 postsecondary institutions and nearly 120 government organizations.
Spartan Capital Securities LLC is proud to announce that our very own Anthony Monaco, Senior Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer will be part of the chosen panelist at the Thomson Reuters Legal Executive Institute Risk, Ethics, and Compliance Forum on November 2, 2016. The event will be held at Thomson Reuters headquarters located at Three Times Square in New York City. The program will feature interactive workshops and insightful panel discussions led by senior leaders from some of the worlds most respected companies. Attendees will gain powerful takeaways designed to navigate a complex and often unforgiving climate. Thomson Reuters is the worlds leading source of intelligent information for business and professionals and we are delighted that Anthony can be a part of this very essential forum.

With over 30 years of Compliance Experience we are confident that Anthony will be able to instill the importance of ethics, compliance and creating a culture of integrity as he has done at Spartan Capital.

Spartan Capital Securities Founder and CEO, John Lowry commented: We are very pleased that Anthony has been chosen as part of the panel to speak on compliance risk and ethics. Ethics is the key element in creating a compliant culture in this ever changing regulatory environment.

The event will focus on the following topics:



The Corporate Regulatory Environment

Administration of internal controls

Tailoring compliance and ethic programs to evolving security risks and regulatory reforms

Ethical Challenges

Conflicts of Interests

Tracking Fraud and Abuse and employee misconduct

For more information on the Compliance Forum, visit http://legalexecutiveinstitute.com/events/risk-ethics-compliance-forum/

About Spartan Capital Securities LLC (SCS): Spartan Capital Securities, LLC is a full-service, integrated financial services firm that provides sound investment guidance for high net worth individuals and institutions. Their in-depth market knowledge, calculated risk management strategy and investment acumen have earned them a strong reputation as trusted financial advisors. Spartan Capitals experienced investment professionals provide highly customized personal service, tailoring an asset allocation program to enable each client to meet their financial goals. Spartan Capital also offers advisory and insurance services through its affiliates, Spartan Capital Private Wealth Management, LLC and Spartan Capital Insurance Services, LLC. http://www.spartancapital.com

Spartan Capital Securities, LLC

45 Broadway - 9th floor

New York, New York 10006

(877) 772-7818
It takes a village and many of the people that have been a part of Parmetechs journey for the first 25 years were present last night to help us celebrate.

On Tuesday, October 18th Parmetech, Inc. celebrated their 25th year in business with employees, key clients, strategic partners, business friends, personal friends and family. The crowd networked, celebrated and played wine and spirit toss!

Ana Fernandez-Parmet, President and CEO, was thrilled with the celebration. It takes a village and many of the people that have been a part of Parmetechs journey for the first 25 years were present last night to help us celebrate.

The celebration was held at the Enterprise Center at 4548 Market Street in Philadelphia. The Enterprise Center, founded in 1989 by the Wharton Small Business Development Center, provides access to capital, capacity building, business education and economic development opportunities to high-potential, minority entrepreneurs.

Parmetech has occupied space in the Enterprise Center since May 2016; this office space is a technical and sales office and the team is looking forward to hosting demos and customers at this new satellite office space.

Congratulations to Ana and the entire team at Parmetech! Heres to another 25 years of success!

About Parmetech

Parmetech is a WBE/NMSDC and XPPS/MPS Certified full service consulting firm focused around providing business technology solutions and designing work-flow improvements for their clients. Parmetechs key value proposition is their ability to accurately assess and understand a clients environment and priorities before recommending solutions that are right-sized and optimized for their current and future document management and technology life cycle needs. Parmetech received the 2014 Xerox Oustanding Managed Print Service (MPS) Execution and Performance and 2015 XAD Partner of the Year awards. Offices are located in Havertown, PA and Philadelphia, PA. For more information, please visit http://www.parmetech.com
I am pleased to join the ISPA Board of Trustees and look forward to working with the other members to support the growth of the industry,

The International Sleep Products Association (ISPA) welcomes Melissa Barra, Senior Vice President, Chief Strategy and Customer Relationship Officer at Select Comfort Corp., to the ISPA Board of Trustees, and Eric Rose, Director of Product Innovation at Select Comfort Corp. to the Sleep Products Safety Council (SPSC). The terms for each position will run through March 2018.

Barra has a broad background in strategy, finance, and operations. Prior to her current role at Select Comfort, she was Vice President of Consumer Insights and Strategy from February 2013 to January 2015. Prior to joining Select Comfort, Barra was Vice President of Process Reengineering Officer for Best Buy Co., Inc. from 2011 to 2012. In a dual role, she also served as Vice President of Finance, New Business Customer Solutions Group from 2010 to 2012. From 2005 to 2010, she held leadership positions in Strategic Alliances and Corporate Development for Best Buy. Prior to Best Buy, Barra held corporate finance and strategy leadership roles in companies in the U.S. and internationally, including Grupo Futuro S.A., Citibank, and GE Capital.

Eric Rose has over 20 years of experience in the mattress industry, spanning operations and product development. After receiving both bachelors and masters degrees at Bob Jones University, Rose began an 18-year tenure with Park Place Corporation, where he was responsible for the operations of Park Places air mattress division, Comfortaire. During his time with Comfortaire, Rose managed general operations, retail relationships and product development. Resulting from Select Comforts purchase of Comfortaire in 2013, Rose joined the R&D team at Select Comfort and has served in that capacity where he has managed the development of several new product innovations.

We look forward to the insights that our new trustee and committee member will contribute as we plan for the future of the Association, noted ISPA President Ryan Trainer. On behalf of the full ISPA membership, I thank Melissa and Eric for volunteering their time and effort to serve in these important positions.

I am pleased to join the ISPA Board of Trustees and look forward to working with the other members to support the growth of the industry, said Melissa Barra. Rose also noted, Im truly excited about the opportunity to join the Sleep Products Safety Council, and am looking forward to leveraging my industry experience to help us navigate the evolving regulatory environment.

About the International Sleep Products Association (ISPA)

Established in 1915, the International Sleep Products Association (ISPA) is dedicated to protecting and enhancing the growth, profitability and stature of the mattress industry. As the industrys trade organization, ISPA represents nearly 700 mattress manufacturers and suppliers throughout the world.

ISPA provides a wide range of services that benefit its membership. These include exclusive industry surveys and statistics, government advocacy support, educational offerings, the industrys ISPA EXPO trade show, safety research through its Sleep Products Safety Council, consumer research and education through its Better Sleep Council, BedTimes and Sleep Savvy publications.

The Board of Trustees sets ISPA policy and direction by; approving the annual budget, adopting a strategic plan, setting advocacy and program priorities and evaluates overall ISPA performance. The Sleep Products Safety Council (SPSC) provides consumer information, supports research and promotes activities that advance the safety of sleep products.

To learn more, visit http://www.sleepproducts.org or contact info(at)sleepproducts(dot)org.
Christie technology is helping us share the wonders of the quantum world in new...

Christie projectors are bringing quantum science to life in a new exhibit at THEMUSEUM in downtown Kitchener, Ontario. QUANTUM: The Exhibition will run from October 14, 2016  January 1, 2017, and then depart on a Canada-wide tour throughout 2017.

QUANTUM shares the wonders of the quantum world and emerging quantum technologies with attendees. Part of the exhibition, the introductory experience, features six Christie Captiva 1DLP laser phosphor projectors, which set the stage for visitors entering the exhibition by providing an immersive space that reminds them that the world is not as it seems.

Produced by the Institute for Quantum Computing at the University of Waterloo, QUANTUM has been selected as a Signature Initiative of the Government of Canadas sesquicentennial celebrations. QUANTUM is part of Innovation150, a partnership of five leading science outreach organizations leading a cross-country celebration of science and innovation with stops at Science World at TELUS World of Science in Vancouver and the Discovery Centre in Halifax.

Quantum science is transforming our understanding of the world around us, says Tobi Day-Hamilton, associate director at the Institute for Quantum Computing. Christie technology is helping us share the wonders of the quantum world in new and innovative ways and Im delighted to partner with them on this incredible experience.

Were pleased that Christie projection technology will be a part of bringing quantum science to life  not only at THEMUSEUM, but at science centres across Canada, says Kathryn Cress, vice president, Global & Corporate Marketing, Christie. The fusion of technology and science in QUANTUM is truly representative of the Kitchener-Waterloo region, and were thrilled that the rest of Canada will have the opportunity to experience this exhibit first-hand.

About Christie

Christie Digital Systems Canada Inc. is a global visual and audio technologies company and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ushio, Inc., Japan, (JP:6925). Consistently setting the standards by being the first to market some of the worlds most advanced projectors and complete system displays, Christie is recognized as one of the most innovative visual technology companies in the world. From retail displays to Hollywood, mission critical command centers to classrooms and training simulators, Christie display solutions and projectors capture the attention of audiences around the world with dynamic and stunning images. Visit http://www.christiedigital.com.

Follow us:

Twitter.com/christiedigital

Facebook.com/christiedigital

Linkedin.com/company/christie-digital-systems

Youtube.com/christiedigital

Instagram.com/christiedigital

#christiedigital

Christie is a trademark of Christie Digital Systems USA, Inc., registered in the United States of America and certain other countries.

DLP is a registered trademark of Texas Instruments
Pathmatics is committed to providing marketers with the deep intelligence they need to compete, said Gabe Gottlieb, CEO of Pathmatics.

Pathmatics today announced a new North American alliance with Nielsen to bring Pathmatics digital advertising tracking data to Nielsens U.S. and Canadian customers.

The collaboration will enhance Nielsens existing digital ad tracking service with uniquely specific insights that modern marketers demand. Beyond ad spend, market placement, and a catalog of ad creatives, Pathmatics will provide Nielsen customers with views of new media types, purchase preferences, and the targeting of different devices.

What sets Pathmatics data apart is the unique transparency provided by the companys PathSource technology which allows marketers to decode programmatic and direct ad campaigns by understanding the critical path points each impression took towards placement. Pathmatics advertising intelligence solution, AdRoutes, is used in the U.S. by agencies, brands, publishers and adtech companies including two of the top three agency holding companies and three of the top 10 advertisers.

Pathmatics is committed to providing marketers with the deep intelligence they need to compete, said Gabe Gottlieb, CEO of Pathmatics. Were really excited to grow our relationship with Nielsen into the U.S. and Canada, adding our best-in-class digital ad data to Nielsens broad media coverage.

Advertising intelligence has evolved greatly over the last several years with innovations that allow for a clear picture of entire competitive landscapes. Insights can be used to respond to aggressive spending, new product launches or customer conquest efforts.

"Transparent digital ad intelligence is critical for modern marketers to better understand how, why, and where to market their products or services," said Heather Jordan, Senior Vice President of Product Leadership, Nielsen. "The Pathmatics collaboration will ensure our customers have the most accurate spend and impression data they need to make critical decisions."

Nielsen undertook an extensive process to evaluate the markets top digital advertising intelligence providers. After establishing a relationship in 2015 to serve the Australian and European markets, Nielsen expanded Pathmatics role to now serve their top media market, North America.

For more information, visit: info.pathmatics.com/Nielsen

# # #

About Pathmatics:

Pathmatics is a competitive tracking platform that changes the way agencies, publishers and brands see, calibrate and respond to digital advertising campaigns. Users can easily monitor a competitors online spending, identify pitfalls in their own campaigns and quickly respond to market trends via a simple, self-serve dashboard. Pathmatics provides modern marketers honest transparency and unprecedented access to creatives being served, where and how they are delivered, and the impressions theyre reaching. Analyzing 36k advertisers, 32k publishers, 600 ad services and 13.5M creative executions, Pathmatics is a must-have intelligence platform for advertisers looking to optimize efforts in real-time.

About Nielsen:

Nielsen Holdings plc (NYSE: NLSN) is a global performance management company that provides a comprehensive understanding of what consumers watch and buy. Nielsen's Watch segment provides media and advertising clients with Total Audience measurement services for all devices on which content  video, audio and text  is consumed. The Buy segment offers consumer packaged goods manufacturers and retailers the industry's only global view of retail performance measurement. By integrating information from its Watch and Buy segments and other data sources, Nielsen also provides its clients with analytics that help improve performance. Nielsen, an S&P 500 company, has operations in over 100 countries, covering more than 90% of the worlds population. For more information, visit http://www.nielsen.com.
D4 Lands on Rochester Top 100 The Rochester Top 100 Program was created as a tribute to the areas innovation and entrepreneurial character, and D4 epitomizes that spirit

D4, LLC, an international leader in eDiscovery managed services, litigation support, computer forensics, document review and deposition solutions announced today that the company has been recognized for the seventh consecutive year as a Rochester Top 100 company.

"As a proud company born and raised in Rochester, we are thrilled to be recognized again as a Rochester Top 100," said John Holland, Founder and CEO of D4. The Rochester Top 100 Program was created as a tribute to the areas innovation and entrepreneurial character, and D4 epitomizes that spirit. Since our founding nearly 20 years ago, our focus has been on providing our customers with the most advanced technology and exceptional peopleand thats ultimately what drives our continued growth.

This is the final year that D4 will be eligible for the Rochester Top 100, since its acquisition by Adecco and Special Counsel earlier this month. Holland adds, We are deeply thankful to the Rochester community and all of our customers and team members for bringing us to this level.

The Rochester Top 100 is a program of the Rochester Chamber and KPMG honoring the fastest growing companies in Upstate New York. Since 1988, they have ranked the areas privately held companies based on dollar and percentage revenue increases over the prior three fiscal years.

Weve taken the D4 spirit of innovation into China, meeting and even anticipating the needs of law firms and corporations doing business behind the Great Wall, said Peter Coons, SVP and Co-Founder of D4. Our corporate and law firm customers get the quality and service they have come to expect from D4, with the benefit of hosting, collecting, and eDiscovery services in our Shanghai data centeras well as our skilled assistance navigating Chinas strict data protection laws. Its that kind of forward-thinking that has contributed substantially to our growth.

About D4, LLC

D4 is a leading provider of managed data and discovery services to law firms and corporations.

D4 offers full-service capabilities with local infrastructure to support litigation, investigations, compliance and other legal matters. The companys state-of-the-art data centers and global operations are complemented by electronic discovery, computer forensics and document review offices throughout the USA, China and the UK. Depth of staff, experience and innovative technology allow the company to provide first-class performance worldwide.

D4 was one of the first providers to offer an eDiscovery Managed Services solution, and continues to lead the field in innovation. D4 became part of Special Counsel and the Adecco Group in 2016, enhancing D4s offerings with Managed Review and streamlined access to legal staffing. Visit http://www.d4discovery.com for more information.
APIStrat Logo ...we are pushing the envelope again with highlights on emerging technologies, APIs and data science, a look at how APIs are used by non-developers, and a special panel where we can explore how APIs are disrupting the media industry.

The final program announcements have now been locked in and all workshops organized for API Strategy and Practice, to be held at the Marriott Long Wharf in Boston Nov. 2-4, 2016. A full program schedule can be found online at: http://boston2016.apistrat.com/schedule/. API Strategy and Practice (known as APIStrat) is the premier independent API event of the year, organized by 3scale by Red Hat and API Evangelist.

Final announcements of speakers include noted tech writer and platform business thinker Sarah Jeong, who will share her front row seat experience from this years Oracle v. Google court case. This years key API news story was a legal showdown that saw an open API industry come under threat. Jeong reported daily live from the court case, refraining from her usual work in order to keep the API and tech industry informed daily of key arguments and some of the more absurd moments of the court case, which included wheeling a filing cabinet into the courtroom. Jeong will share her insights in a keynote presentation at APIStrat.

With bots and voice activation being some of the key API trends of the year, we are excited to have Rob McCauley from Amazon talking about hacking the Amazon Alexa voice-activated device that is altering the way developers think about retail, home automation, personalized and contextual tech engagement, bots, and more.

In addition to his keynote, McCauley will also host a workshop on how to develop Alexa skills as part of a program of six workshops that will be held throughout the afternoon of Nov. 2. Attendees are encouraged to register now for the workshops, that will include a crash course on the Open API Initiative format, Azure API management techniques, and building API-driven apps with IBM StrongLoop.

Im so proud of the program we have been able to build this year, said 2016 Program Chair Lorinda Brandon. It includes some of our mainstay topics like API design practices and developer experience, but we are also pushing the envelope again with highlights on emerging technologies, APIs and data science, a look at how APIs are used by non-developers, and a special panel where we can explore how APIs are disrupting the media industry.

Other keynotes include industry thought leader Mike Amundsen, who will urge attendees to unleash the chaos. Amundsens previous keynotes and talks on innovation, self-replicating machines and hypermedia have been fodder for deep discussions at coffee breaks, over lunch, and well into the night at previous APIStrat events.

Jonathan Barton and Neha Abrol also plan to share with us their model of building goMake APIs so that students can talk with high balloon telemetry as part of a scalable STEM learning platform.

Tickets are still available but selling fast. Participants are encouraged to register now and to indicate which workshops they would like to attend, at http://boston2016.apistrat.com/registration/.
Brandon Bir, coffee sourcing and education manager for Columbus coffee roaster Crimson Cup Coffee & Tea recently traveled into Perus Andes Mountains to expand relationships with coffee farmers, agronomists, and others dedicated to improving the quality of the countrys coffee. While there, the licensed coffee Q Grader led judging for a coffee competition in the Junin region.

Birs trip originated in Lima. While visiting the capital city, he shared samples of Crimson Cups Ethiopian Kossa Kebena and 1991 Blend coffees with local coffee houses and coffee cuppers.

We had some great discussions about Peruvian coffees, Limas coffee culture and how things are evolving, he said. They have some well-put-together cafes, and everyones competing for exceptional coffees.

Local coffees are getting better every year, with better coffees scoring in the mid-80s on the 100-point coffee quality scale, he added. In the past, they were known for their chocolatey flavors but were not extremely nuanced.

From Lima, Bir traveled into the Andes Mountain jungle to La Merced, a town in the Junin region. There, he visited with Don Julio Arevalo Tello, founder of private co-op NARSA (NEGOCIACIONES AGROINDUSTRIAL AREVALO S.A.) Since 1988, NARSA has focused on helping small coffee and cacao farmers in Perus Central Highlands and Amazon regions with achieving market access throughout Peru and beyond.

NARSA has been instrumental in coffee development in the Junin region, Bir said. Weve been extremely impressed with the way they live their principles of integrity, eco-efficiency and transparency and their focus on inclusion of indigenous families.

For the next four days, he visited local coffee farms and prepared for the upcoming coffee competition sponsored by NARSA. The competition is just one of the ways NARSA is involved in improving local coffee quality, he said.

One of the farms he stayed at was Finca Santa Rosa near the small town of Villa Rica. This farm is owned by third-generation grower Selena Contreras Obregon. Established by Contreras grandfather in 1927, the 104-acre, Rain Forrest Alliance-certified farm grows catuai, caturra, bourbon, typica and geisha varietals under a canopy of indigenous trees at an elevation of 1,600 meters.

This is the third year weve visited Selena, her family and her farm, Bir said. They continue to impress us with their passion for quality coffee and dedication to progress in every aspect of operations. Over this past year, Selenas coffee professionals created a new coffee lab to evaluate coffee quality.

On his final day at NARSA, he coordinated a quality competition among more than 25 local coffee farmers. In addition to friendly competition, a goal was to help farmers understand the qualities that are more prized in coffee beans and that command a higher price. Bir and three other Q Graders cupped coffee samples from morning until the competition ended at 10 p.m.

Our winner was an 89-point coffee from Damien Conde in Alto Palomar, Bir said. It stood out from the typical coffees of the region with its flavor profile more similar to that of a high grown Kenyan coffee.

Crimson Cup will evaluate the purchase of coffee from this crop through its Friend2Farmer direct trade program in the future. The roaster developed its Friend2Farmer direct trade program to ensure that farmers receive a fairer share of proceeds from coffee sales. The company pays a premium to farmers, who can then invest in agricultural and community improvements. Crimson Cup coffee experts also collaborate with farmers on ways to improve the quality of the coffee and quality of live for farmers, workers and their communities. In addition, the roaster invests in projects such as solar dryers to help improve coffee quality.

About Crimson Cup Coffee & Tea

Columbus, Ohio coffee roaster Crimson Cup Coffee & Tea is Roast magazines 2016 Macro Roaster of the Year. Since 1991, Crimson Cup has roasted sustainably sourced specialty and craft coffee in small batches. The company also teaches entrepreneurs to run successful coffee houses through its coffee franchise alternative program, which includes a coffee shop business plan. Crimson Cup coffee is available through a community of more than 350 independent coffee houses, grocers, college and universities, restaurants and food service operations across 29 states, Guam and Bangladesh, as well as the companys own Crimson Cup Coffee Houses. To learn more, visit crimsoncup.com.
Filmmaker/Producer Steve.Alves Vernon Oakes uses film to promote Co-ops!

Acclaimed filmmaker, Steve Alves, joins Everything Co-ops screening of his documentary Food For Change, and will hold a post-show discussion on Monday, October 31, 6:00 pm, at BusBoys and Poets, 1025 5th Street NW, Washington, DC. The Event is FREE and open to the public, but seating is limited. Visit EventBrite for tickets. Food for Change tells the story of the cooperative movement in the United States in a way that is both entertaining and informative. It includes interviews with co-op workers, rare archival footage, and narration by the films director, Steve Alves.

Alves tracks the co-op movements quest for whole and organic foods, and their focus on sustainable food systems. The film profiles several food co-ops that have revived neighborhoods and entire communities. Steve Alves is an internationally-acclaimed filmmaker, and member of the Franklin Community Co-op in Greenfield, Massachusetts. He hopes co-ops will use this film to raise the publics awareness of their unique place in our countrys economic and political landscape

Co-ops Vote materials and information will also be distributed at the screening, courtesy of National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). The Co-ops Vote website is a great resource for voters. The site includes a Voter Resources page, that offers links to voter information, including: a list of upcoming elections, Absentee Ballots, a polling place locator, and a list of Early Voting sites. Visitors to the site can also review information on Presidential candidates, and other candidates associated with their local voting districts. Co-ops Vote is your one-stop Vote site. Visit http://www.vote.coop to become an informed voter.

Everything Co-op is a radio show that airs on WOL 1450AM, in the Washington, DC Metro Area market. Vernon Oakes, host and executive producer of Everything Co-op, is sponsoring this screening of Food For Change in the hope of introducing the cooperative business model to the general population, and to provide an opportunity for people to network and be empowered to take action. Everything Co-op is sponsored by National Cooperative Bank, (NCB).

Tune-in to listen to the Everything Co-op live on Thursdays, 10:30 - 11:30 am, at http://www.woldcnews.com, or on the WOL 1450 Station on the Tune-in Radio phone application.
LSM Graduation 2016 I would be thankful to LSM definitely said Marina, after graduating I got a new job with the fourth largest software company worldwide!

London School of Marketing, a pioneer in the blended learning education industry, recently held its graduation ceremony at the O2 arena in a truly exceptional manner. The tedious graduation formalities were replaced with fun filled proceedings which allowed for more treasured memories for the happy graduates.

The graduation ceremony which united over a 1000 students from around the globe provided students with the opportunity to celebrate with their friends and family immediately after receiving their awards on stage.

As the venue filled with happy chatter from the graduates and their loved ones, a few students took a moment to reflect back on their educational journey with LSM. LSM, they have a very flexible working programme, especially for working professionals like me. said LSM student, Evan Ray Benedicto.

MBA Graduate, Marina Zennaro also shared the news of her new job opportunity after completing her postgraduate qualification. I would be thankful to LSM definitely says Marina in the video, After graduating I got a new job with the fourth largest software company worldwide!

Nasrominallah and Xialeemar both entrepreneurs and graduates of LSM, discussed how they look forward to improving their own business and benefiting society by utilising the knowledge, skills and abilities gained from London School of Marketing.

The school which has been operating in the education industry since 2004 is known for unorthodox approaches implemented to achieve their goal of removing all boundaries to education. Director of Academic Operations, David Holliman ended the proceedings with a few words of wisdom for the graduates. Your education doesnt end today said Dave from the graduation stage podium, Your education gives you responsibility. Responsibility to educate others and to lead to the growth and development of the next generation.

The key moments of the unique graduation ceremony, including statements from students were captured on video and can be viewed here. To learn about the range of internationally recognised qualifications offered, visit London School of Marketings course page at http://www.londonschoolofmarketing.com/our-courses

London School of Marketing delivers accredited marketing and business qualifications, and offers professional courses from recognised professional bodies such as CIM, EduQual and academic qualifications on Marketing, Business, Finance, Law and HRM from Anglia Ruskin University and The University of Northampton. Based in Central London, they are a QAA approved institution. The school also has offices in Sri Lanka, a network of Local Access Points (LAPs), and online programmes of learning.
"The Digital Research Yearbook brings together the first holistic overview of research activity in a visual and engaging way that makes it an indispensable guide to the environment in which research is done in the UK."

Digital Science, a leading technology company serving the needs of scientific and research communities, has released an extensive new directory profiling the research activity of every UK university and college that receives core research funding from one of the Higher Education Funding Councils.

The Digital Research Yearbook brings together and visualises a wealth of data on funding inputs, research activity and research outcomes across the UK higher education research base. It provides a suite of reference points for institutional senior management, funders and overseas institutions to shed light on research activity in a way that hasnt been done before; to reveal a more timely, rounded and balanced picture for research management than retrospective bibliometric analysis in a ready-reference and highly accessible format.

The Digital Research Yearbook is a modern guide to the research environment in the UK, providing a helpful reference point for those who need a broad understanding of the UK landscape for strategic, policy or collaborative purposes. Key analyses include:



A double page spread of innovative visualisations* presents key data about the research that an institution carries out.

Funding, capacity, publication, collaboration, ORCID and Altmetric data and much more.

Core information on each institution with leadership and contacts for research and commercial activity, providing a route to senior managers and research offices.

Unique sector group benchmarking  see where each institutions stands amongst comparable institutions, and easily compare across institution.

Detailed explanation on methodology and interpretation.

Key data-driven snippets that highlight important insights about each institutions performance

The Digital Research Yearbook draws upon data from across the portfolio companies of Digital Science and from valuable external sources:

The Dimensions database of $1+ trillion of research funding data from 250 research funders from around the globe.

Policy, News and social media attention data from Altmetric.

The ORCID indicator, shows what proportion of researchers at each profiled institution have registered an ORCID account and specified their current affiliation with the institution.

The Nature Index, published by Nature Research, part of Springer Nature, provides data about the author affiliations of research articles in 68 high-quality journals, including the number of articles (article count) authors from a country or institution have published. It also tracks domestic and international collaborations.

The Open Archive initiative indicator shows the average number of items per researcher, including datasets, theses, journal articles or grant proposals deposited.

*For example: The Digital Science BrainScans are based on an analysis of the text content of research projects in the Dimensions grant database and of impact case studies in the REF2014 UK national research assessment database, revealing the extent of interdisciplinary links in an institutions research: SEE ATTACHMENT

Universities and higher education colleges are responsible for a high proportion of basic, innovative research and train most of the highly qualified people who underpin any knowledge-based economy.

Commenting on the release of the Digital Research Yearbook, Jonathan Adams, Chief Scientist at Digital Science, said:

The Digital Research Yearbook brings together the first holistic overview of research activity in a visual and engaging way that makes it an indispensable guide to the environment in which research is done in the UK. The profiles of research input, capacity and outcomes for these institutions enable better analysis and planning. They are based on a wide range of management analyses and indicators around the whole research cycle instead of of the narrow focus of traditional citation impact metrics; they capture todays research, not data on historical activity.

Consultant Data Scientist, Martin Szomszor added:

The Digital Research Yearbook taps into the emerging need for data-driven decision making. Instead of fixed questions and answers, the Digital Research Yearbook empowers the reader by using a broad range of data sources and novel visualisations, to unearth new and current insights.

The Digital Research Yearbook will be published in both print and e-book formats on October 28th 2016 and available online at http:// http://www.digital-science.com/yearbook/.

About Digital Science Consultancy Team

The Digital Science Consultancy team delivers data-driven analytical reports and technology solutions to research policy and management clients such as higher education institutions, charities and funding agencies, publishers and policy bodies. Its in-depth knowledge of the historical and current research ecosystem gives us the perspective to get the most value from data on the research lifecycle, and its team of data scientists are experts in using innovative analytical techniques to develop revealing visualisations and powerful insights.

Digital Science is a technology company serving the needs of scientific and research communities, at the laboratory bench or in a research setting. It invests in and incubates scientific software companies that simplify the research cycle, making more time for discovery. Its portfolio companies include a host of leading and admired brands including Altmetric, BioRAFT, Figshare, Labguru, Overleaf, ReadCube, GRID, TetraScience, Symplectic and UberResearch. It is operated by global media company, Holtzbrinck Publishing Group.

For more information, visit http://www.digital-science.com and follow @digitalsci on Twitter.

We will also be sharing information online using #DigitalResearchYearbook.
The Lodge at Manito, an assisted living and memory care community currently under construction, will open in the spring.

The community, which will be located on eight acres of land at 1301 South East Avenue in Manito, will serve adults 62 and older who need some help to maintain their independence. The Lodge also features a specially designed memory care neighborhood for individuals with Alzheimers disease or related dementia.

The 39,000 square-foot building will include 24 assisted living apartments and 24 memory care suites. Each of the private apartments at The Lodge will feature a kitchenette, spacious bathroom with shower and grab bars, individually-controlled heating and air conditioning units, and an emergency alert system.

In addition, The Lodge will have a large community room, a private dining room, an outdoor recreation area, library, hair salon and other amenities.

An on-site medical clinic is the most unique feature of the community. This clinic will be managed by Mason District Hospital and available to residents at The Lodge.

Certified nursing assistants, working under the direction of a licensed nurse, will be on-duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The community will be managed by Gardant Management Solutions. It will further expand Gardants mission of providing residents with the love, compassion and dignity they deserve in addition to the help with medications and personal assistance they need, says Rod Burkett, CEO of Gardant.

Joseph Architectural Group, PC designed the community, and construction will be completed by Trotter General Contracting, Inc. Atlas Professional Consulting developed the $5.5 million project.

The Mason County Health Department and the Prairieland Council share ownership of the project, which is the first of its kind in the state. No other health department in Illinois owns an assisted living property.

When fully occupied, the community will provide 60 full-time and part-time jobs. Annual payroll with benefits is projected to be $1.8 million.

Gardant Management Solutions is the largest provider of assisted living in Illinois. It operates more than 40 assisted living, senior living and memory care communities in Chicago and surrounding suburbs, the Metro East area of St. Louis, and other locations in northern, central and southern Illinois.

The company recently expanded its portfolio, adding properties in Georgia and Indiana.

Gardant ranks as the 12th largest provider of assisted living in the country, according to Senior Living Executive, a publication of Argentum.

For more information about The Lodge at Manito or the assisted living, senior living and memory care communities that Gardant operates, visit http://www.gardant.com.

Individuals interested in having their names added to an interest list for The Lodge can call 309-968-5330.
Kitt Swanson marks her debut in the literary limelight with a new inspirational book, Troubles Don't Last, You Do! (published by WestBow Press). Written in simplicity with Gods word as reassurance, this chronicling reminds readers that triumph over trials is possible with God as the benevolent guide.

Troubles Dont Last, You Do! is a book about spiritual persistence in a world of uncertainty, atrocity and degradation. God is infinitely more powerful to sustain anyone through every painful experience endured in life. This encourages the readers to keep pressing heavenward hand-in-hand with God.

The challenges in this life may slow you down and rob you of your happiness and joy. Yet, you will rise above your circumstance, pain, and suffering, Swanson points out. This book was written as a reminder to the weary that no matter what life throws your way, you are an overcomer. The atrocities you encounter wont last  you do on into eternity.

Reviews for Troubles Don't Last, You Do! shares:

Kitt is a connoisseur of motherhood! She epitomizes perseverance through adverse situations and is one for whom which all young ladies facing adversity are to emulate! - S. Germon (Marriage Counselor), Brandon, Florida

Kitt has been blessed with the gift of edification. I cannot recall a time I didnt leave her presence encouraged, motivated and inspired. Dont let this blessing pass you by. Purchase her book today! - K. Christon, Michigan

Her continued Faith makes her stronger than her temporary circumstances. Add this treasure to your library! - L. Dexter, Orlando, Florida

Troubles Don't Last, You Do!

By Kitt Swanson

Hardcover | 6 x 9in | 108 pages | ISBN 9781512752021

Softcover | 6 x 9in | 108 pages | ISBN 9781512752014

E-Book | 108 pages | ISBN 9781512752007

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

About the Author

Kitt Swanson lives in Land O Lakes and is a native of Syracuse, New York. She enlisted into the Air Force on February 24, 1986. Her 20 years were spent encouraging soldiers along the rock trails of war. In 2005, she was struck in the head by lightning. Her sight was taken and returned. She overcame that ordeal and is a walking billboard for Jesus. She won several writing contests, including the MacDill Air Force Base Black Heritage Contest, and was published in the Mobility Forum Commands Magazine, and also received top honors for her essay on The Price of Freedom. She published a newsletter called Heart-to-Heart that turned into Christian Medicine. Both venues were created to encourage the weary in all walks of life. Swanson has two associate degrees, two bachelors degrees, a masters degree and three years in a doctorate program.

WestBow Press is a strategic supported self-publishing alliance between HarperCollins Christian Publishing and Author Solutions, LLC  the world leader in supported self-publishing. Titles published through WestBow Press are evaluated for sales potential and considered for publication through Thomas Nelson and Zondervan. For more information, visit westbowpress.com or call (866)-928-1240. For WestBow Press news, click Like at facebook.com/WestBowPress and follow @westbowpress on Twitter.
Attorney Philip Wright Each familys situation, values and assets are all unique, and there isnt a one-size-fits-all formula for creating an estate plan. Past News Releases RSS

Estate Planning attorney Philip Wright, founder of the Wright Law Firm LC, as part of Pro Bono Week, recently participated in an Elder Law event through Kansas Legal Services (KLS). KLS does a great job serving low and moderate income individuals here in Kansas. It was an honor to step in and help these individuals for an afternoon, said Wright.

At the event, which took place at the Matt Ross Community Center, Wright gave advice on multiple issues including estate planning, wills, trusts, probate, health care power of attorney, durable power of attorney and a neighbor being a nuisance. Private attorneys, such as Wright, were asked to advise/assist applicants, with KLS Elder Law attorney, Alexandra English.

Each familys situation, values and assets are all unique, and there isnt a one-size-fits-all formula for creating an estate plan, said Wright. My goal is to ensure that you and your loved ones are protected for any eventuality, and that your assets and estate is handled with the utmost care should those events come to pass.

About Philip Wright, Wright Law Firm LC

Philip Wright focuses on estate law, probate law and will and trust law. Mr. Wright maintains an active license to practice law in Kansas and Missouri. The Wright Law Firm LC specializes in trust litigation, estate planning, trust administration, last will and testament and probate. For more information, please call (913) 710-9885, or visit http://www.pwrightlaw.com. The law office is located at 13420 Santa Fe Trail Drive, Lenexa, KS 66215.

About the NALA

The NALA offers small and medium-sized businesses effective ways to reach customers through new media. As a single-agency source, the NALA helps businesses flourish in their local community. The NALAs mission is to promote a business relevant and newsworthy events and achievements, both online and through traditional media. For media inquiries, please call 805.650.6121, ext. 361.
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Ten years ago this month, Feiwel and Friends released Nancy Tillman's On The Night You Were Born, a publishing moment that marked three significant firsts. This originally self-published picture book celebrating a babys birth was Tillmans debut title, the first childrens book sold by literary agent Cathy Hemming, and the inaugural title released under Macmillans Feiwel and Friends imprint. And the stars auspicious alignment continued: On the Night You Were Born is the top-selling title for author, agent, and imprint. On the 10th anniversary of its publication, this popular go-to baby gift has sold more than five million copies in its hardcover and board-book editions.

The triumphant publishing tale began in the early 2000s, when Tillman, who had left her career in advertising to be a stay-at-home mom for 18 years, launched a greeting-card company. One of her bestselling cards, still in circulation today, expressed the sentiment that inspired On the Night You Were Born. That card, in fact, became the first page of the book, she explained. I expanded the message to say what I felt for my own children, and with the hope that those words would say what other parents felt for their children as well.

Though Tillman was well acquainted with the printing business from her advertising work, she found herself a bit at sea after deciding to try to get her picture book published. Much had changed in the printing and publishing industries in the years I was at home, she said. I didnt have an agent or publisher connection at the time I was ready to move forward, and self-publishing seemed the fastest way to get the book to market.

Tillman did just that in 2005, handling fulfillment and distribution herself, and sold some 30,000 copies relatively quickly  but not without some rocky interludes. I discovered it was a very big job! she recalled. At one point, I was on a family vacation in the Cotswolds, with very little access to technology, when Homeland Security decided to hold many book shipments coming in from China. I had to find a library near Stratford-upon-Avon to deal with it  crazy-making!

Fortunately, Tillmans greeting-card distributor, Bottman Designs, stepped in to help. Tom Bottman distributed half of the books I sold the first year to gift stores around the country, she said, and Biblio Distribution came on board soon after to supply the book to large bookstores and independents.

While working on an Internet promotion, Tillman met author Peggy McColl, a friend and client of Hemming, who sent a copy of On the Night You Were Born to the agent. Knowing little about childrens books, Hemming admitted, I didnt know if the book was good or not  but what I did know was that it had sold very well as a self-published book in a short period of time. So I shared it with some people, and the first person immediately cried, and others had similar reactions.

A Rebirth and a Long New Life in Print

Fortuitously for all involved, Hemming had recently read in PW that Jean Feiwel had left her longtime position at Scholastics editorial helm to launch her own imprint at Macmillan. The two had been colleagues at Avon Books more than two decades earlier, when Hemming was a sales rep in the Midwest and Feiwel was childrens book editor. Knowing that time was of the essence  Tillmans stock of books was almost depleted, and she quickly had to either find a publisher or place a reorder  Hemming dropped off a copy of the book at Feiwels office.

The editor was out of town at the time, but when she returned she looked at On the Night You Were Born with initial skepticism, given her expertise and success with blockbuster middle-grade series, including The Baby sitters Club and Goosebumps. I hadnt yet acquired any books for my list, and of course everyone expected I would launch with a middle-grade series, Feiwel recalled. But when I opened Nancys book, I immediately loved it. I responded to it emotionally, not because it was a commercial success. It was unlike anything Ive ever seen. So I contacted Cathy and we negotiated a three-book deal.

Though Feiwel had planned to debut her imprint in fall 2007, she decided to jump the gun and release On the Night You Were Born a full year earlier. There was such an appetite for the book, and we didnt want the momentum to stop, she explained. Also, I dont have it in my DNA to wait! Everyone in the company agreed with the decision, and since the files already existed, we rushed the book into production  with all hands on deck  including Nancy, who was involved in every step.

It was, by all accounts, a lucky leap. Feiwel and Friends has to date published a dozen of Tillmans picture books (most recently last months You and Me and the Wishing Tree), whose combined sales in the U.S. alone total more than 10 million copies. I think someone was looking out for me that Cathy brought me On the Night You Were Born, said Feiwel. In fact it may well have been divinely inspired. It was a bit of a risk to publish it so early, but I do think that the way to remain successful is to pitch yourself onward into the unknown  to take chances rather than repeat a success.

Hemming, whose Cathy D. Hemming Literary Agency is associated with McCormick Literary, likewise expressed gratitude for her ongoing relationship with Tillman. My luck is ridiculousabsolutely ridiculous, she remarked. Im so grateful for the close friendship Ive established with Nancy. Tillman echoed that sentiment: I knew I adored Cathy the first time she called me. She was five minutes late getting to her office for the call, and said it was because her cat had fallen asleep in her laundry basket and she hadnt had the heart to wake her up. We are dear friends to this day, and I dont know what Id do without her.

The author, whose next book, Youre All Kinds of Wonderful, is due in September 2017, also noted that the continual, uplifting feedback she receives from readers means a great deal to her. I believe that the love a parent has for a child is the most profound love there is, and I am so grateful and humbled when parents tell me that On the Night You Were Born, and my subsequent books, have given them words to say what they feel for their children  and that my books speak the words of their hearts.
You are my people, and I love you, exclaimed Jon Scieszka, emcee of the Childrens Awards Breakfast at the 2016 SCIBA Fall Trade Show, as he welcomed the booksellers, authors, and sales reps to the early morning event. The ensuing laughter set the tone for the session and the show. Held October 2122 at the Garland Hotel in North Hollywood, Calif., the gathering was attended by 308 members of the Southern California bookselling community: 117 booksellers, 34 teachers and librarians, 65 authors, and 92 publishing professionals.

That love was reflected in the commentsand in some cases, the grateful tearsof the authors who addressed the breakfast. Author David Shannon thanked independent booksellers for making it possible for him to publish a sequel to his Duck on a Bike12 years after the last installment. You guys keep backlists alive.

You have superpowers, a tearful Towers Falling author Jewell Parker Rhodes told the booksellers. One book at a time, you are changing the world.

As a lonely child, I turned to books, said YA novelist Sabaa Tahir, who grew up in the only South Asian family in her small California town. Books didnt yell at me to go back to where I came from. The booksellers in my town knew I didnt have money to buy books. They let me sit in their store and read. Im here because of you. You make it possible for me to live my dream.

Accepting the Middle Grade Book Award, The Toymakers Apprentice author Sherri L. Smith wept, too. No matter where I go, the bookstore is my home. Booksellers have supported me my whole life.

Jessica Palacios, bookseller at Once Upon a Time in Montrose (and daughter of store owner Maureen), was attending her first SCIBA at age 22. Ive been hand-selling The Toymakers Apprentice, Jessica said. Im so happy Sherri Smith got the award. I can tell my customers about that.

Another young bookseller, Elisa Thomas of Cellar Door Books in Riverside, was looking ahead to holiday sales. At Christmas I stick to backlist a lot. We sell a lot of An Ember in the Ashes, too. She smiled across the breakfast table at Tahir. Im so excited to be sitting next to the author!

Penguin childrens sales rep Nicole White said she never misses the SCIBA. I look forward to this event all year, she said. This is such a great group of people. I love being with them.

Scieszka called the gathering a concentrated collection of the best booksellers, signing books as fast as he could scribble his name. They make the effort to come here at 8 oclock in the morning. Some of them have to shut down their bookstores but they do it, because they know how important it is. If these people didnt do what they do, I couldnt do what I do. Thats why I love them so much.

SCIBA executive director Andrea Vuleta expressed optimism about the organizations future. We have about the same number of authors as last year, said. And a few more publishers, which is nice, and so many exhibitors that were going to have to find a bigger space for next year. For all the worry about e-readers and Amazon and everything else, independent bookstores are still with us. And were not going anywhere.
Francesca Kay. Tin House (Norton, dist.), $15.95 trade paper (304p) ISBN 978-1-941040-45-4

Kays new book is a brilliant spy novel charged with existential dread. In 1981, as the Cold War sputters on and IRA bombs explode, Stephen Spencer is a listener for the Institute, a subsection of British Intelligence. He spends his days listening to taped conversations of peripheral enemies of the state. One day, he is given a new assignment: to listen to the domestic tapes of Phoenix, an Institute member who might also be a traitor. And as he begins his aural surveillance, Stephen, who leads a lonely existence, soon becomes obsessed with Phoenixs unseen wife, Helen, imagining her life, and what his life could be like if they were together. He becomes a secret sharer in all the intimate details of her marriage. In order to keep the surveillance going, Stephen puts himself at great risk. He even goes so far as to stalk Helen and visit the apartment building in which she and Phoenix reside. At the same time, he becomes friendly with a mysterious foreigner named Alberic, who figures prominently in Stephens last-ditch attempt to meet Helen. Kay (The Translation of Bones) does an excellent job of portraying Stephens inner life and his descent into obsession. She also does well at delineating the covert society of Stephen and his fellow listeners. Filled with witty period references to Brideshead Revisited, The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, and Another Country, this is a haunting work of espionage fiction.
Its hard to exaggerate the importance of the race for Illinois next U.S. senator.

If voters select Democrat U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth over incumbent GOP Sen. Mark Kirk, and all goes as the political prognosticators predict, it would tip the Senate balance of power to the Democrats and impact such decisions as the makeup of the U.S. Supreme Court.

The winner will be responsible for keeping us safe at home and abroad, and for crafting fair immigration policies that protect Americans, keep our borders open, and provide a tough but navigable path to citizenship for those already in our country.

The next U.S. senator will need to address the real and growing problems created by the Affordable Care Act.

Beyond that, as Illinois continues to struggle economically and politically, our senator can play a key role in the recovery of our broken state.

Closer to home, our senator will have a major voice in policies that can help or hurt two key drivers of our Quad-Cities regional economy: agriculture and the Rock Island Arsenal. The winner also will make decisions that impact our roads and bridges and mass transit and our social service agencies and our schools.

These serious issues require serious debate from responsive candidates. Sadly, voters in Illinois havent gotten much from either candidate in this race. Shame on both for wasting so much energy trading barbs rather than advancing ideas and speaking to the issues -- and especially for ignoring so much of our state throughout this long campaign.

In doing so, they sell short their own compelling stories: Rep. Duckworth is a decorated veteran seriously wounded in combat in Iraq, who went on to be elected to Congress. Sen. Kirks life was changed dramatically after a stroke. But he worked his way back to the Senate halls. Voters would benefit from hearing more about such stories of overcoming adversity.

Shame on them especially for campaigns that focus primarily on the Chicago metro area, with only rare, quick and largely non-substantive stops in places such as the Quad-Cities.

Rep. Duckworths appearances with Hillary Clinton, for example, have done little to inform local voters. Neither have Sen. Kirks recent and rare quick stops in Reynolds and Moline provided the substance voters crave.

Neither found time to slip down the road to talk with us, despite repeated invitations to meet with our editorial board so we could share their views and ideas with you. Only after we said time had run out, did we get a hastily arranged 20-minute phone call with our junior senator which offered precious little time to effectively address the issues important to the Q-Cs. We did get a few moments to talk about the Arsenal, specifically Sen. Kirks welcome championing of a measure to make pricing of products manufactured on the island more effective. But it was far from the detailed discussion the topic demands.

Still thats more than we got from the Duckworth camp, which also set up an 11th hour phone session, then later canceled and declined to reschedule. Thats not much different from how the candidates responded to our requests for an in-person editorial board during the primary.

As a result, our editorial board is unable to offer our readers the informed analysis they deserve. Indeed, the only conclusion we can safely draw is this:

A vote for the socially moderate and fiscally conservative North Shore Republican incumbent Sen. Kirk could keep the Senate in GOP hands. A vote for Rep. Duckworth could tip the Senate to the Democrats. And if she joins U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin -- who could teach both candidates a great deal about how to effectively engage and represent an entire state -- Illinois voice in the Senate will have a decidedly liberal bent.
DAVENPORT -- Genesius Guild founder Don Wooten told attendees of his retirement gala that the work the guild does is tough, satisfying and can change lives.

Mr. Wooten was honored Thursday night at the Genesius Guild 60th Anniversary and Don Wooten retirement gala at the Radisson Quad City Plaza Hotel, 111 East 2nd Street. The guild performs Greek plays during the summer months at Rock Island's Lincoln Park, near Augustana College.

"When you do something on stage, when you bring alive something that speaks to the human condition, you can change lives," Mr. Wooten said. "I have seen people come out on the stage, with apparently not much to offer, for themselves or for others, and in two or three seasons is a different person."

Before the dinner, Mr. Wooten talked about the many hats he has worn over the years, including being a former Illinois state senator, his time at WHBF-TV as a weatherman and as general manager of WVIK-FM.

"When you don't know what you want to be when you grow up, you get into that situation," Mr. Wooten said. "I've been in the process of retiring since 2003. I'm not quitting anything else just yet, but I'm getting tired. At 87, you do run out of steam. "

He said overall, though, his heart still beats strongest for the Genesius Guild that he founded 60 years ago.

"It's the kind of tough work that is satisfying; it helps you recharge yourself as a human being," Mr. Wooten said. "If you approach it properly, it enlarges your view of others, and gives you a better sense of sympathy for how other people live, how they think."

Prior to taking the stage, videos were shown with testimony of how several longtime Guild members first learned about the organization. Another video told the stories of members first meeting Mr. Wooten and how he inspired their lives.

Mr. Wooten said that over a seven year period, the guild has had people from 94 Illinois communities, 36 Iowa communities, 38 states and 10 foreign countries make their way to Rock Island to watch the plays. He said one couple made their way from New Jersey off and on over a 20-year period because this was the only place they could find these plays.

"I've been kidded about my repeated retirements. I have tried to withdraw from the guild. It's like when a man decides to give his mistress to another man; it's not easy to do," Mr. Wooten said.

He still plans on directing "Murder in the Cathedral" in March 2017 and writing a book about the guild.

After that, he said he plans on "a lot of reading, sleeping and eating," but insisted he will still be listening and watching.
ROCK ISLAND -- A limited liability corporation has purchased the former Kmart property for $600,000, according to Rock Island County court records.

Kmart closed its store, at 3840 46th Ave., at the end of July. In August, Augustana College announced it was looking to sell the vacant Rock Island Kmart property.

A sale occurred Oct. 7 with Chicago Title Land and Trust Co. selling the property to Rock Island KM LLC, for $600,000, according to property records. Augustana spokesman Sam Schlouch said Chicago Title Land and Trust was holding the property for Augustana.

Rock Island city manager Randy Tweet said he had no information on the property or plans for it.

In August, Augustana officials said it was looking at options to sell the property. Mr. Schlouch said via email this week the college no longer has a financial stake in the property, "so I'm not sure of any plans for the site."

Records show Rock Island KM LLC was formed as a Delaware corporation in 2012. None of the available records identified the principals in Rock Island KM.

The former Kmart store opened in 1976 and received a major renovation in 1998. Court records show the property tax bill for Rock Island KM LLC will be sent to Old Westbury, N.Y.
Saudi Arabia said the missile was "intercepted and destroyed" 65 kilometers (40 miles) from Mecca, which is home to the cube-shaped Kaaba that the world's Muslims pray toward five times a day.

Angry Saudis soon denounced the missile fire online with hashtags questioning the faith of Yemen's Shiite rebels known as Houthis, as other Sunni Arab leaders in the Gulf linked the attack to Shiite power Iran.

Invoking Mecca also invigorated support for Saudi Arabia as it leads the stalemated war in the Arab world's poorest country, as well as turned attention away from those starving under a kingdom-led blockade and the civilians killed in its airstrikes.

The Saudi military said the missile, fired Thursday night from Yemen's northwestern Saada province, which borders the kingdom, caused no damage. The Saudi military has a supply of U.S.-made, surface-to-air Patriot missile batteries it previously has fired at Houthi-launched missiles.

The kingdom's military said in a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency that it immediately targeted the area where the missile was launched in airstrikes.

The Houthis and their allies, including forces loyal to former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, have a stockpile of Soviet-era Scud missiles and locally designed variants. A Houthi ballistic missile fired earlier this month targeted Taif, home to Saudi Arabia's King Fahd Air Base, which also is near Mecca.

What the missile fired Thursday night targeted, however, quickly became a controversy.

The Houthi-controlled satellite news channel Al-Masirah said the Yemeni rebels had fired a Volcano-1 variant missile at Jiddah's King Abdulaziz International Airport, without mentioning Mecca. That airport is 75 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Mecca.

The Houthi-controlled SABA news agency said the missile "directly hit" the airport and caused massive destruction, though there were no delays or diversions affecting the airport Friday.

The Saudi military, however, stressed the missile was fired "toward" Mecca, without elaborating  the protection of the holy city is a key pillar of the Saudi royal family's prestige and the country's national identity.

Gulf Arab countries allied with Saudi Arabia immediately began condemning the attack, suggesting the Houthis intentionally targeted the Islamic world's holiest site. Many also immediately linked the attack to Iran, further inflaming regional sectarianism.

"The Iranian regime supports a terrorist group that launched its rockets on Mecca," Emirati Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nayhan wrote on Twitter. "Is this regime Islamic as it claims?"

While analysts suggest Tehran doesn't have direct control over the Houthis, the U.S. Navy says it is has intercepted Iranian arms heading to the rebels.

In Iran, state media reported on the ballistic missile fire citing international reports, without any government comment.

Yemen, on the southern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, has been in the midst of a civil war since September 2014 when the Houthis swept into the capital of Sanaa and overthrew the country's internationally recognized government. In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition of Arab countries began a military campaign against the Houthi forces, saying its mission served in part as a counterbalance to Iran's influence following its nuclear deal with world powers.

The Saudi-led campaign initially had the logistical and intelligence support of the U.S., but mounting civilian casualties from its airstrikes led to America pulling back, especially after a Saudi strike earlier this month on a funeral in Sanaa killed some 140 people and wounded over 600.

The U.S. also fired Tomahawk missiles at mobile Houthi radar sites after reporting its warships came under fire in the Red Sea near the crucial Bab el-Mandeb strait. In recent days, two commercial ships reportedly have come under fire in the same area.

United Nations efforts to strike a peace deal to end the conflict have been slow. The most recent plan apparently sidelines President Abed-Rabbo Mansour Hadi of Yemen's internationally recognized government. Saudi Arabia launched its coalition campaign to restore Hadi's rule, so that's likely a deal breaker for the Sunni-ruled kingdom.

In the meantime, Yemen stands on the brink of famine. More than 10,000 people have been killed or wounded and 3 million of the country's 26 million people have been driven from their homes by the fighting.
UNICEF raised its toll for Wednesday's attack to 28 dead, among them 22 children and six teachers.

Ban said in a statement that the attack, carried out against rebel-held territory, may amount to a war crime if found to be deliberate.

"If such horrific acts persist despite global outrage, it is largely because their authors, whether in corridors of power or in insurgent redoubts, do not fear justice. They must be proved wrong," he said.

Witnesses said overhead jets targeted the school in the town of Hass as many as 10 times, around midday Wednesday. Opposition activists blamed the strikes on Russian and government planes.

Idlib is the main Syrian opposition stronghold, though radical militant groups also have a large presence there. It has regularly been hit by Syrian and Russian warplanes as well as the U.S.-led coalition targeting Islamic State militants.

The Russian military denied responsibility, calling the accusations a "sham."

Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said a Russian drone flew over the school building on Thursday and found its roof intact and no bomb craters around it.

Russian warplanes didn't fly over the area the previous day, Konashenkov said.

A team of first responders, the Syrian Civil Defense, said on Thursday that the airstrikes killed at least 35 people, mostly children.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 15 students were killed, as well as four teachers and three other women. It was not immediately possible to reconcile the separate figures, but divergent death tolls are not uncommon in a conflict-torn Syria that has been largely inaccessible to international media for over two years.

UNICEF and the Syrian Civil Defense said the death toll is likely to rise as rescue efforts continue.

Juliette Touma, regional UNICEF chief of communication, said Wednesday's attack was the deadliest attack on a school in 2016, bringing the overall death toll of children killed in such attacks in 2016 to 54.

According to Touma, 591 children were killed in 2015 in Syria.

Prior to Wednesday's attack, the deadliest assault on a school was reported in April 2014 when 30 children were killed in airstrikes that hit a school in the rebel-held part of Aleppo city, according to UNICEF.

UNICEF said it has verified at least 38 attacks on schools this year across Syria, whether in government-held areas or rebel-controlled territory, compared to 60 attacks last year.

"In general there are one in three schools in Syria that can't be used anymore because they were damaged or destroyed or used for military purposes or sheltering the displaced," Touma told The Associated Press, speaking from Amman, Jordan.

On Thursday, Syria's state TV said two students were killed and 13 others were wounded by projectiles fired by rebel fighters at a school in the government-held western part of Aleppo.

Elsewhere, at least eight people were killed in government shelling of Douma, a rebel-held suburb east of the capital Damascus, according to the Syrian Civil Defense team and the Observatory. The first responders said that there was a child among the eight who died.

UNICEF says over 1.7 million Syrian children remain out of school in 2016, a staggering figure but a drop from 2014 when 2.1 million were recorded as not attending classes. The U.N. agency says another 1.3 million are at risk of dropping out this year. In the rebel-held part of Aleppo, teachers and volunteers have set up underground schools to ensure some classes continue amid a punishing bombing campaign and a siege that has tightened since July.

Russian President Vladimir Putin meanwhile defended his support for the Syrian army's siege of the rebel-held eastern districts of the city of Aleppo, saying it is necessary to crush the militants there.

Putin spoke on Thursday to international foreign policy experts in Sochi. He said the choice was between "keeping a terrorist nest there or crushing that nest while minimizing civilian casualties."

Russia's air campaign in support of the Syrian troops' offensive on Aleppo has drawn international outrage. Moscow has denied striking civilians and has blamed Washington for failing to persuade the U.S.-backed rebels in the city to cut their ties with fighters from al-Qaida's branch.

Putin shrugged off calls to end the onslaught on Aleppo, saying the U.S.-backed offensive for Islamic State-held Mosul in Iraq would have to be halted, under the same logic.

Airstrikes by Russian and Syrian government planes on Aleppo have been halted for nine days now in expectations of evacuations, but efforts have failed because Syrian rebels say there have been no safety guarantees for the evacuees. The rebels also say Russia and the government are not allowing aid into the besieged, eastern rebel-held districts of Aleppo that are home to some 275,000 people.

A government ground offensive attempting to push into the rebel-held part of the city, and airstrikes in rural Aleppo have continued.

In Geneva, U.N. official Jan Egeland, said efforts would be renewed to secure the evacuation of nearly 200 wounded from eastern Aleppo districts, and allow medical and food supplies into the besieged part of the city.

He said the Syrian government had denied humanitarian access to eastern Aleppo as part of a monthly U.N. plan to access 25 besieged and remote areas in Syria.

"We need to overturn that decision because east Aleppo needs humanitarian supplies, they need it urgently," Egeland said. "If not ... it will be the worst winter in now the six winters we have had in the conflict."

An Iranian news website said a senior commander from Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard was killed in Syria.

Thursday's report on Mizanonline.ir says Gen. Gholamreza Samei, whose service dates back to the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s, was killed in Syria on Wednesday. Samei was also formerly posted to a remote area in east of Iran.

The report says he was in an advisory assignment in Syria. It did not elaborate.

Iran is a main ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad.
G'day! It's Murray here. I've put together a little quiz to test your musical knowledge. Think you can score top marks in Murray's Magic Music Quiz? Give it a go now!
The bonds have a maturity of 15 years at a rate of 1.104%.

The funds raised through the issue will primarily support investment in the existing network, although it will also be used to develop new projects and strengthen SNCF Networks sustainability strategy.

SNCF Network says it has developed a methodology to measure the impact of modernisation of the rail network in terms of CO2 emissions and the consumption of natural resources.

An annual report, certified by an external auditor, will enable green investors to monitor the usage of funds and their environmental impact. The SNCF Network green bond has also been awarded Green Bond Principles accreditation by Oekom Research and Climate Bond Initiative certification.

The success of this initial programme confirms the level of interest among investors in companies that put sustainable development at the heart of their industrial strategy, says SNCF Network president Mr Partick Jeantet.

SNCF says it makes 1.5-1.8bn in green bond-eligable investment each year, and therefore plans at least one green bond issue annually.
The work will make SUNIJ compatible with the new Uithof Line from Utrecht Central Station with the University Campus, which is due to open in 2018. The two lines will meet at Utrecht Central.

The first part of SUNIJ opened in 1983 and large-scale renewals are now required on much of the line, although part of the route has already been modernised. The high-floor trams used on the line are also approaching life-expiry.

As part of the project, SUNIJwill be adapted for low-floor vehicles and 22 CAF Urbos LRVs will be procured using an option from the existing contract to supply 27 LRVs for the Uithof Line. The province says the option will be exercised as soon as possible.

The new trams will operate in multiple, and each 75m long pair will accommodate up to 500 passengers. Stations on the Uithof Line are being constructed to accommodate 75m-long trams, which will allow through operation.

The total cost of infrastructure works is estimated to be 141m. This excludes the cost of modernising the combined tram/bus depot built, which is already being upgraded as part of the Uithof Line project. However, with the need to provide capacity for 22 additional trams, a second 40m phase of construction will be required.

The Uithof Line is forecast to boost light rail ridership by 35,000 passengers per day in 2018, rising to 45,000 passengers per day in 2020. Ridership is also forecast to increase along the route of SUNIJ with traffic from the university to Nieuwegein and IJsselstein.

The provincial council will consider the proposals on December 12.
The 30.3km east-west Line 7 links Taian in Luohu with Xili Lake in the district of Nanshan, serving 28 stations including 10 interchanges with other metro lines. The journey time between the two termini is 55 minutes.

The 22-stion Line 9 runs for 25.3km from Hongshuwan in Nanshan to Wenjin in Luohu and serves 22 stations, including 10 interchanges, with an end-to-end journey time of 45 minutes.

During the initial stage of public operation services on both lines are running at 10-minute headways between 06.30 and 23.00.

In 2014 Shenzhen Metro Group awarded CNR Changchun Railway Vehicles (now part of CRRC Corporation) a contract to supply 70 type A metro trains for the two lines. The order comprised 41 sets for Line 7 and 29 for Line 9. Each six-car train will accommodate up to 2502 passengers.

Shenzhen Metro Group forecasts the two lines will increase ridership on the network by 700,000 to 4.5 million passengers per day when they are fully operational.
Amsted Rail announced Oct. 28 that it has entered into an agreement to acquire 100% ownership of the Amsted Rail-Faiveley brake component business for freight cars.

The acquisition by Amsted Rail will include brake components such as hand brakes, slack adjusters, empty load devices and ABU cylinders produced by Ellcon-National, which Faively Transport acquired in 2008.. In addition, Amsted Rail will continue to offer the plastic pellet gate product line.

Ellcon freight car brake products have a long-standing reputation of quality. We feel this acquisition will better position Amsted Rail to enhance our component systems, including new innovative designs for a more comprehensive railcar component system solution focusing on improved product performance and reliability, said Gary Wagner, General Manager-Freight Brake Products, Amsted Rail. Our component systems are engineered for optimum performance and increased life cycle savings. This acquisition provides Amsted Rail a greater platform to bring new and innovative value to our industry and our customers.

Amsted Rail plans to continue producing brake components in a new location in the Greenville, S.C. area.
Davy Leung has been named a senior principal technical specialist in the Orange, California office of WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff, a global engineering and professional services organization.

In his new position, Mr. Leung will be responsible for radio frequency product and system design, integration, installation, testing, commissioning and maintenance of advanced wireless communications and control systems in the railroad and transit industries. He will focus on tunnel and in-building communications system design, wide-area radio system design and implementation, and advanced radio solutions for wireless train control systems.

Mr. Leung brings more than 30 years of experience in the field of wireless and radio systems to this role. Prior to joining WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff, he was a senior telecommunications engineer in an international company specializing in advanced technology for railway and urban transport.

A licensed professional engineer in British Columbia (B.C.), Canada, Mr. Leung earned a masters degree in engineering from Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, B.C., and a bachelors in electrical engineering from the University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. His professional affiliations include membership in the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.
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In the ongoing military scorecard between the United States and China over who has the most stuffbe it troops, tanks, guns, ships or airframesthe human element is sometimes overlooked. By human element we mean the operators behind the hardware making the decisions on what, how and when to shoot and how to employ tactics and counter-tactics based on the environment and the adversary. Neglecting the human element of the U.S.-China military competition would be a major omission, however, as it remains a key variable in assessing a country's overall military power and capability.

The determinants of operator competency are shaped to a large extent by the military and political culture under which troops train. During the Cold War, U.S. planners believed quantitative advantages in the Soviet air force were offset by superior USAF training and tacticsa product of a U.S. training system that breeds pilot autonomy and objective assessments of error. In many respects, this was a correct assessment at the time. In comparing U.S. and Soviet air forces, for example, Col. Mike Press, writing in Air University Review in the mid-80's, penned an articulate and persuasive case for U.S. fighter pilot training superiority based on the USAF training program, but warned that human advantage is very fragile and even here the Soviets show signs of progress.

Now three decades later, Press's words remain more relevant than ever when it comes to assessing the air forces of China and the United States. The People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) has made tremendous strides in recent years, fielding an impressive array of third-, fourth- and even fifth-generation stealth aircraft. By numbers alone, the PLAAF remains one of the largest air forces in the world. The PLAAF also desires to build what it calls a Strategic Air Force to play a larger role in China's push to project power and influence in areas farther from the Chinese mainland. Already, the PLAAF has begun sending bombers to patrol the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Seaareas in which it would have been unheard of for the PLAAF to operate just five or 10 years ago.

Until recently, little was known, however, about how Chinese air force pilots train. In our report on PLAAF fighter pilot training, we find that the PLAAF has embarked on major reform of its pilot training program in order to remedy deep-seated flaws in fighter pilot competency. We know this because of the availability of an increasingly large number of Chinese language open sources published by the People's Liberation Army and other authoritative military professional military education institutions. For our report, we examined articles on PLAAF fighter pilot training at the operational unit over a five-year time frame in the PLAAF's official newspaper, Kongjun Bao (Air Force News). What we found was a PLAAF that is acutely aware of its shortcomings in pilot combat skills and that is seeking to train pilots capable of fighting and winning battles against near peer military adversaries, like the United States.

The core of the reform is an effort to train pilots to fight under what the PLA refers to as actual-combat conditions. The emphasis on actual combat conditions is manifested in training scenarios meant to mimic or simulate real-world battle conditions by adopting within daily training routines elements of nighttime battle training, complex electromagnetic environment, special geographical environments, and combined arms training. The PLAAF's lack of recent wartime experience magnifies the importance of constructing a training regime grounded in scenarios that approximate to the greatest extent possible technologically sophisticated battlefield conditions.

The remainder of this commentary is available at nationalinterest.org.

Lyle J. Morris is a senior project associate at the nonprofit, nonpartisan RAND Corporation. Eric Heginbotham is a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation and a professor at the Pardee RAND Graduate School.

This commentary originally appeared on The National Interest on October 27, 2016. Commentary gives RAND researchers a platform to convey insights based on their professional expertise and often on their peer-reviewed research and analysis.
Discovery Networks Latin America (DLA) is opening a commercial office in Peru to meet future opportunities in the country.





Announced during the companys up-front for LATAM, the new office will also oversee various projects with Media Planet.Opening a Discovery office in Lima shows the importance of the Peruvian market for our company, said Felipe Cabrales, country manager, Colombia, and operations manager for the Andean region, Discovery Networks Latin America In Peru we see great possibilities for our brands and having a local office is a key step to reaching our goals in the local market as well as in the Andean region, added the executive.Currently, Discovery delivers 11 Spanish-language networks in Peru, namely Discovery Channel, Discovery Kids, Discovery Home & Health, Animal Planet, TLC, Investigation Discovery (ID), Discovery Turbo, Discovery Civilization, Discovery Science, Discovery World HD and Discovery Theatre HD.
Back in 2005, when Ben Bernanke first warned of the risk of a global savings glut, the combined savings rate of Asias main surplus economies (China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore) equaled 35 percent or so of their collective GDP. That number now? About 40 percent.
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Price: $ 179 Seller State of Residence: California Property Address: Santa Fe Trail Zip/Postal Code: 92342 Type: Homesite, Lot Zoning: Residential Area Acreage (acres): 10.00 Location: 923**, Helendale, California

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